User:Rangerkid51/Varredin Lightforge

Varredin Lightforge, Knight of the Silver Hand, originally born Varredin Pendragon, also known as Varredin the Lightsworn or simply Varredin, is a powerful human paladin. Born in Andorhal but being raised in Stratholme during the Second War, Varredin trained as a paladin under both Alonsus Faol and Uther the Lightbringer and joined the Knights of the Silver Hand just prior to the Scourge's first invasion of Lordaeron. Serving under the regiment of paladins lead by Arthas Menethil, Varredin witnessed the death of Kel'Thuzad, the Culling of Stratholme, and the murder of King Terenas first hand. When the Silver Hand disbanded, Varredin joined the Scarlet Crusade for a number of years, but left the organization when he felt they had become twisted and corrupt.

Varredin betrayed the Scarlet Crusade and joined the Argent Dawn. It was here he became one of the Dawn's greatest roaming soldiers throughout the Eastern Kingdoms. His dedication to the Holy Light gave him the nickname "The Lightsworn". After a failed assault on Scholomance by the Argent Dawn, Varredin was captured by the necromancers and cultists in Scholomance and held as a prisoner there. His incarceration in Scholomance did not last long, as he killed Darkmaster Gandling mone night and fled into the Plaguelands. However, he was captured by a night patrol of Scarlet Crusade, which led to the Crusade capturing him and holding him prisoner in the area of Stratholme they claimed for themselves. Condemned as a traitor and slated to be executed, Varredin escaped death by dueling Grand Crusader Dathrohan, before exposing his true identity and fleeing the plagued city. While continuously eluding the Scarlet Crusade, Varredin took refuge in Stormwind and took the name Lightforge, while secretly maintaning connections with the Argent Dawn. After the Dawn merged with the reformed Knights of The Silver Hand to form the Argent Crusade, Varredin returned from exile during the Battle for Light's Hope Chapel and helped the forces of Tirion Fordring and Darion Mogaine claim Acherus. Varredin then served as the Crusade's goodwill ambassador in Stormwind, the remnants of Lordaeron, and the Plaguelands before sailing off to Northrend, where the War against the Scourge had re-established himself. It is in Northrend where he is currently.

A Son Of Stratholme
Varredin Pendragon was born in the small village of Andorhal around the time of the Alliance Expedition to Draenor. The son of Lord Romulo Pendragon, a retired paladin, widower, and memeber of Lordaeron's House of Nobles, Varredin was very popular as a young boy and had many friends, including none other than Prince Arthas Menethil himself, and including Alexi Barov, the Mograine brothers, Taelan Fordring, and Derek Proudmoore. For a short time, when he became a teenager, he had a romantic fling with Alexi's sister Jandice.

Although it is known that he spent much of his younger childhood in his birthtown of Andorhal, Varredin moved to the city of Stratholme when he was ten years old. And despite this, being the son of a noble, traveled throughout much of Lordaeron, Khaz Modan, and Azeroth. By the time he was seventeen, Varredin had already traversed the entire continent.

As he became older, Varredin frequently went to Lordaeron, Stormwind, and Kul Tiras to train in the arts of combat. His best training came from the Grand Admiral Daelin Proudmoore, a rugged war veteren and the longtime ruler of Kul Tiras, he studied all forms of combat. By the time he reached manhood, Varredin became a skilled fighter.

Varredin also began training as a paladin around this time as well. Starting under his father, Varredin began training under Alonsus Faol and his apprentice Uther in the year 599 of the Stormwind calendar. After he finished his training, he had become an exceptional paladin.

The Knights of the Silver Hand
n the year 603 of the Stormwind calendar, a Plague of Undeath began sweeping through the regions of Lordaeron. When word of this reached Stratholme, Archbishop Faol summoned 5 of the greatest paladins – Uther, Alexandros Mograine, Tirion Fordring, Saidan Dathrohan, and Isillien- and announced that they were the first five members of an organization known as the Knights of The Silver Hand, a league of paladins that would defend Lordaeron from the coming threat of the Scourge.

Almost immediately, at the behest of his old friend Prince Arthas – a fellow paladin who immediately joined the Order of the Silver Hand, along with his father, King Terenas – Varredin approached the Archbishop on joining the Silver Hand. Alonsus agreed, and swore Varredin into the Order right then and there.

Varredin’s father, Lord Romulo, had also been a paladin, during the Second War, and Prince Arthas inquired if Romulo could join as well. Romulo, at first, refused, believing he was too old to be of much legitimate use to the Silver Hand – but he eventually agreed. Minutes after his son was sworn in, Romulo was as well.

Arthas was given command of his own regiment of paladins – commandeered by him and Uther, which included both Varredin and Romulo. Delighted to take up the fight alongside their Prince against the Scourge, they set out to battle.

Determined to defeat the Scourge before hey did too much damage to his kingdom, Arthas decided to seek out the mad necormancer Kel'Thuzad, the leader of the death cults in the land. Arthas charged Varredin with finding the necromancer's base of operations, and Varredin would later determine this to be the School of Necromancy known as Scholomance. Although Arthas was sucessful in slaying Kel'Thuzad, this inevitably did little to halt the oncoming threat of the Scourge.

The Fall of Stratholme
Arthas lead his weary men back to Lordaeron, but Varredin and Lord Romulo returned to Stratholme. There they waited for further orders.

One day out of the blue, they received word that Arthas had traced the plague's origins in Lordaeron to the village of Andorhal, Varredin's brithplace, and that a demon was commanding the Scourge from there. Answering Arthas' call, Varredin and Romulo met their feloow paladins in Andorhal as a nathrezim demon known as Mal'Ganis taunted Arthas above Andorhal. Arthas, though he managed to destroy the plague cauldron found in Andorhal, became obsessed with hunting down the dreadlord.

Arthas followed Mal'Ganis to Stratholme, and convinced the prince that he had plagued the entire city. To Varredin and Romulo's shock, Arthas ordered that Uther purge the city. When the Lightbringer refused, Arthas accused Uther of treason and ordered the Knights of the Silver Hand to be disbanded. Varredin and Romulo watched in horror as Arthas ravaged the city, nearly razing it to the ground. Those few who survived fled to Stormwind with Jaina Proudmoore. Romulo told his son that he was going to Stormwind as well. Varredin said he would too, but not until he entered the city to see if any part of their home had survived.

When he entered the city, he found that it had become totally deserted and that the fires that Arthas had unleashed on the city were still burning. To Varredin's despair, but not total surprise, nothing of the Pendragon home had survived. Badly shaken, possibly never the same, Varredin turned to leave the ruins if the dead city.

Varredin Pendragon, Scarlet Crusader
As he approached the gates of Stratholme, a woman rode up on horseback to him. This was Brigitte Abbendis, the daughter of High General Abbendis. The two had been romantically involved for a time before Stratholme fell. Brigitte told Varredin that the scattered remnants of the Silver Hand - including Alexandros Mograine, Isillien, Saidan Dathrohan, and her father - had formed a new faction called the Scarlet Crusade, and asked if he would join the cause. Intrigued, Varredin accepted and briefly flew to Stormwind and told his father of this decision. This was the last time that they would see each other face to face for a long time.

Varredin then journeyed to the village of Tyr's Hand, where the Crusade established itself. fter commiting himself solidly with the Crusade, Varredin was taken under the wing of Highlord Mograine himself. After much training and study, Varredin was elevated to the rank of Scarlet Commander, and also the Field Commander. Varredin was charged with clearing out the undead infested areas in the lands now known as the Eastern Plaguelands and Western Plaguelands. Having his old childhood friend Renault Mograine as his number one lieutenant, Varredin led his Crusaders to the villages nearby villages of Havenshire and New Avalon. The area would come to be known as the Scarlet Enclave.

Over the course of several years, Varredin and his forces helped to establish many bastions of might for the Crusade all throughout the Plageulands. After claiming many places in Lordaeron, only two remained for the Scarlet Crusade to capture: the Monastary in Tirisfal... and Stratholme.

Revelations
After sucessfully claiming the Monastary as their own, Varredin lead his men to Stratholme to restore their glorious city. Yet when they arrived, they found Kel'Thuzad and minions of the Scourge waiting for them. A long and bloody battle began.

As members of the Crusade's hierarchy joined the fight, Varredin's lieutenant Renault went mad during the fight and slew his father Alexandros in battle. Shocked by this sudden act of betrayal, Renault claimed that Alexandros had succumbed to the plague. His words were echoed moments later when Kel'Thuzad resurrected Alexandros as a death knight. While the Scourge onslaught was too great to bear, Varredin managed to claim the western side of the city, ruling from Alonsus Chapel. Renault was promoted to Scarlet Commander and returned to the Scarlet Monastary, while Isillien and Dathrohan remained in Stratholme. Varredin and Brigitte Abbendis returned to Tyr's Hand to command the forces there.

Upon returning to Tyr's Hand, High Inquisitor Fairbanks told everyone of Renault's betrayal. Those who believed him, led by Scarlet Commanders Maxwell Tyrosus and Nicholas Zverenhoff, left the Scarlet Crusade. Varredin, in outrage from Fairbanks' words, rammed his sword through the High Inquisitor's heart.

Later that night, however, he was overcome with a wave of remorse for murdering Fairbanks, and slowly began to realize that the Scarlet Crusade might have become corrupt. Storming from their ranks forever, Varredin searched for his place in the world.

Redemption
Varredin traveled to Light's Hope Chapel, the stronghold of a faction called the Argent Dawn, a new faction against the Undead. Initially intending to strike down the former Scarlet Commander, Lord Tyrosus stayed his hand when Varredin explained that he had left the Scarlet Crusade for finally "seeing the Light". Seeking redemption, he asked to join the Argent Dawn.