Gilleabart MacGreghor

My name is Gilleabart MacGreghor, and I come from a small giantkin village in the mountains, where my family clan settled long ago. To our north and west are dwarven settlements, to the east are reivers, who we keep close eye on, and to the south is land where no man nor beast would be pleased to call home.

Our people are mostly shepherds, tending to the rolton most days and nights, though my family provide the smithing for the clan, and sometimes, we come forth with a bard, warrior, or rarely, an empath.

I personally can trace my family back a few generations, and I’m told I’m descended from the line of Lord Aonghus and Lady Elana. I have not proof of this, however, save for my pine badge and my surname.

My mother is a housewife, my father was a blacksmith. My younger brother, Hamish, has taken on the family smithing business, and my younger sister, Briggit is in training to be a bard, as my great grandmother was reputed to be.

The MacGreghor clan has always strongly followed the Path of Ronan, while giving secondary honor to Kai and Voln. We have a clan shrine in the center of our village, and it is routinely maintained and cared for by all members of the clan. Beneath the shrine is a large room with many cots, built to allow any who are weary and wander into our village some place to rest for the night.

All the family clans of the mountain giantkin have Manhood Ceremonies. Each clan’s ceremony is different, and is made to test a young giant’s bravery (and in our clan’s case, stupidity). It’s a three day ceremony that all the members enjoy.

The first stage is the Feast. All local clans, plus the family, gather together to have a huge feast in honor of the youths about to be tested. Oftentimes, you have as many as six young boys ready, as the feast is shared between all the family clans. Young women coming of age have their own ceremonies.

The second stage is prayer and meditation. This is a solitary event for each young man. Each boy goes to his family shrine, prays to the arkati he serves, and thinks back on his youth, makes plans for his manhood, and fasts for the day. At the end of this meditative time is the Break Fast, usually of cheeses, soft breads, and oatmeal.

The third day is the test. Each clan’s is different, but the MacGreghor’s is the most dangerous. We go to the top of a cliff, above the deepest ravine, with the coldest air surrounded by mists and fog. The boy cannot see the other side. He steps back, runs towards the cliff, and leaps. Those who make the other side are officially adult men.

Sometimes, something odd happens. My cousin Halbert, for example, didn’t quite make the leap, caught the edge in his hand, and felt himself lifted to the top. As he survived, he was declared a man, but in the process, he discovered his gift for healing.

My experience didn’t happen during the test, but in the meditation. I felt my body and my spirit separate, as if I walked through a waking dream. I had a vision, and by this vision, which remains private and shall remain private, I knew I was destined to be a Paladin of Ronan’s.

From that point, I put my musical practice on hold, bid my family farewell, and went to the nearest school for paladins. I was drilled in arms, strategy, tactics, religious pursuits, honor codes, and history on a daily basis, and fell into bed for a few hours sleep each night.

After a few years, I was released into the world to continue my studies alone. I returned to my family clan to bid them farewell, pay last respects to my father who had recently passed away, and to gather my few belongings, including the badge passed down to me, as eldest son, from my father.

From there, I traveled to the Landing, to start my journies, and have settled here.