Balthor Rockfist
| Balthor Rockfist | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Information | |
| Colors |
 (Original) (Undead) |
| Species |
Spirit Dwarf Formerly Zombie |
| Job | Barbarian |
| Birth, Life & Death | |
| Birthplace | Pardia, Otaria, Dominaria |
| Lifetime | War with Phyrexia-Rift Era |
| Born | 4160 AR |
| Death | 4305 AR, 145 years old |
| Family | |
| Relatives | Balthor Stoneface (ancestor) |
| Sources | |
| The Secrets of Magic, Chainer's Torment, Judgment, Scourge | |
Balthor Rockfist was a dwarf of the Rock Clan driven off by his people, and who became an important barbarian chieftain on Otaria.[1]
Description
Balthor was built like most dwarves, short and broad and gnarled as a stump. His long beard was split into two equal points that fell to his waist, and he wore an ornate headdress with a large red gem at the center. Instead of a fighting axe, he carried some kind of axe-staff that was neither completely a weapon nor completely a walking stick.[2]
History
Balthor Rockfist was named in honor of his ancestor Balthor Stoneface[3] of Otarian myth, who, according to dwarven legend, was among the firstborn dwarves, and who lost an arm defending the Lady of the Mountain and was honored by learning her first name. [4]
Invasion
At the age of forty-five, Balthor fought during the Phyrexian Invasion. Miraculously, he survived as so many others fell and were left alone; he scavenged what he could, managing to retrieve nothing less than Urza's staff. As he wandered the vast wastelands left by the Phyrexians, he found a fellow survivor fighting warhounds, Matoc. Matoc and he dispatched the constructs quickly and began their long trek home to Otaria. On the ship ride home, Balthor befriended Matoc and explained how badly he felt out of place among the rock druids of his clan. At that moment, he and the barbarian reached a kinship as they talked of the heat of battle. After an assault by pirates, it became clear to Matoc what should be done. The barbarian invited Balthor to join his clan. When they returned to Auror village, Balthor underwent the challenge to join the tribe and passed with no trouble.
As thanks for giving him a home, Balthor forged Matoc a blade from Urza's Staff.
A New Home
He was the mentor of both Kamahl and Jeska, as well as many other barbarian warriors. In addition to being a warrior, Balthor was a skilled mage and worshipper of Fiers. Out of concern for Kamahl, he traveled with Jeska to Cabal City to try to find him, briefly fighting in the pits alongside her, but was unsuccessful in his search and returned to the mountains.
Balthor was reunited with Kamahl when the barbarian returned to his home with the Mirari, bringing the Battle for the Mirari with it. Balthor was initially happy to see him, but became concerned about Kamahl's increasingly erratic and violent behavior. Balthor realized that the Mirari was to blame and was forced to oppose his pupil when Kamahl tried to take over all the tribes. Following Jeska's mortal wounding, Kamahl snapped out of the Mirari's influence and resolved to atone for the damage he had caused, which Balthor was happy to help with. The pair traveled to Krosa to seek help from the druids, but they were ambushed by Cabalists and Order Legionnaires under the influence of Ambassador Laquatus.
Balthor let Kamahl flee into the forest and sacrificed himself to destroy the seemingly unkillable dementia beast Burke as it suffocated him.
Balthor the Defiled
However, death was not the end for Balthor.[5] The Cabalists raised him as a zombie, in the form of Balthor the Defiled. In his zombified form, he was able to retain a large degree of his personality and memories, which broke loose, leading him to pursue the merfolk responsible for his death, Laquatus. He repeatedly ambushed the ambassador's men and caused many casualties, leading to the Order and Cabal members leaving when they realized the creature in the shadows was mainly after the ambassador, not them. This left Laquatus alone in the forest to confront Kamahl and Balthor. However, in a twist of fate, the remains of Burke inside Balthor allowed Laquatus to control the dwarf, forcing him to fight Kamahl. Balthor begged Kamahl to end his suffering, which the barbarian reluctantly did before killing the ambassador.
Balthor the spirit
Even then, Balthor remained. His spirit lingered in the Krosan Forest around the Mirari-sword, sensing that Kamahl would need it again. When Kamahl did indeed return for it, Balthor offered him his guidance first in finding the sword and then in mastering it. When Kamahl began to be overwhelmed by the sword's influence during a dangerous kata, Balthor intervened only to be struck by the sword and killed for the last time. However, his efforts were not meaningless: his final death brought Kamahl to his senses again and allowed the barbarian-druid master to harness Mirari's dark powers.[6]
Story appearances
In-game references
- Represented in:
- Quoted or referred to:
References
- ↑ Will McDermott (June 03, 2002). "Caught in the Mirari's Wake, Part 3". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2021-04-29.
- ↑ Scott McGough (2002) - Chainer's Torment, Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Will McDermott, J. Robert King, ed. (2002). "Journey Home", The Secrets of Magic, Wizards of the Coast. ISBN-13 0-7869-2710-0.
- ↑ Will McDermott & Daneen McDermott, Jess Lebow, ed. (2000) "The Lady of the Mountain", The Myths of Magic, Wizards of the Coast
- ↑ Magic Arcana (November 21, 2005). "Balthor the Dwarf". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2021-03-03.
- ↑ J. Robert King. (2003.) Scourge, Wizards of the Coast. ISBN-13 0-7869-2956-1.
- ↑ Rei Nakazawa (May 15, 2002). "Character Study". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2021-03-03.