Duelist Backstory | Patreon Weekly #273

Hey Patrons, with v2.5.0 just entering beta, I’m going to use this weekly share some more detailed backstory info for the Duelist! These details were originally shared in Shattered Secrets #28, posted about this time last year.

There was originally going to be an Audio Q&A for this weekly as well, but unfortunately dealing with all the messages and bug reports relating to the v2.5.0 beta has taken longer than usual. Rather than delaying this weekly further, or doing a rush job, I’m just going to make and post the Q&A in next week’s weekly instead.

Duelist’s Backstory

(Note that just like with the other hero backstories, nothing here is final until it appears in-game. I don’t expect the general direction will change, but some specific details might)

Just as with the Rogue and Huntress, the Duelist was born in the city above the dungeon. She was the daughter of a respected family within the city’s inner walls. Her father was a hard-working knight and had steadily climbed the ranks to become a member of the royal guard. While she was no princess, her father’s position meant the Duelist had a wealth of opportunity in front of her.

But one night her father didn’t return from his post. Instead, the Duelist and her mother were greeted by a pale-faced member of the king’s court in the morning. She informed them that there had been an attack on the royal armory, and the Duelist’s father had been fatally stabbed while posted at the entrance. The Duelist was just a little girl then, and the sudden loss of her father was devastating. Unfortunately, the worst was yet to come.

The city above the dungeon is not a kind place, even for the well-to-do. While her father’s funeral was a great sombre celebration, there was nothing in the way of support offered to the Duelist and her mother. Left with almost no income, they were soon forced out of the city’s inner walls and chose to travel and live with family elsewhere.

With opportunity stripped from her, the Duelist’s life ambitions became defined by the death of her father. She wanted to help rid the world of evildoers, but desire for revenge drove her just as much as desire to do good. Her motivation meant that her skills quickly outgrew the small village she grew up in, and so she started to travel abroad as an adventurer and swordswoman.

Over the years of her travels her skills grew, and she steadily gained a reputation to match. While bystanders were awed by her swordsmanship, other adventurers couldn’t help but be unnerved by the cold fury they saw behind her swings.

The Duelist enters the dungeon to continue her life as an adventurer, hoping to earn new glory in the city that she was born in. She also hopes to meet the vile thief who took her father’s life and take theirs in return. However, both the Dungeon and her father’s killer are not quite what she expects them to be.

(If you’re interested in more Hero lore, you can also look at previous backstory posts for the Warrior and Mage, Rogue, and Huntress.)