Name: Umbra Rimph
Age: Fifties
Gender: He's a dude.
Race: Orsimer
Appearance: Umbra is rather wiry individual, at least for an Orc. He carries his jet black hair combed back tightly while tied in a short ponytail, making his noticeably high hairline even more noticeable. Umbra also has a beard, which is tied in a similar manner to the hair on top of his head. Like any orc, he has large canine teeth, but his are short and pointed rather than large and broad. He is much more slender than other male Orcs, and is weaker than most people in general.
Personality: Umbra is of the opinion that everybody should stop killing each other and generally "just get along". In terms of current events, he's very much on the Imperial side of the Stormcloak Rebellion, believing Ulfric to have committed unprovoked regicide and hoping for unification of the Imperium, as that would better lead them in shaking off the shackles of the Second Aldmeri Dominion. He's well versed in past and current political maneuverings in order to properly defend his position in the Nordic homeland. He's also willing to forgive anyone, providing they treat the opportunity correctly.
Equipment: The standard Blades set, but it serves mostly ornamental purposes. He's done more than his fair share of tweaking and ornamenting his "dress armor", but since he doesn't like using it for practical purposes, it is actually weaker than average. His "work armor", on the other hand, is one he expertly crafted in the Dwemer fashion, as he studies the vanished race of Mer as his preferred vocation. Currently, he is spending his spare time constructing an original set of armor [http://skyrim.nexusmods.com/mods/23530], which he is developing from various theories he studied from both Dwemer and contemporary scholars. At this point, he's engineering a method of self-sustainable soul gems to fit into the pieces of the armor. If possible, it would be nice for him to have a Dwemer Lexicon, although I'm not sure if that counts as legendary or not.
Spells: He pretty much just uses Candlelight/Magelight regularly, but he does know Soul Trap from his stint with enchanting. As a Restoration mage: Greater Ward, Heal Other, Close Wounds, Stoneflesh, Waterbreathing, Ash Shell, Detect Life, Courage(?)
Bio: Born in Orsinium, he was captured a few years after his birth and taken to Cyrodill, where he was then sold to Gadave Andalor, a Dunmer mage and ancient scholar in Cheydinhal who wanted more time to dedicate to his Dwemer studies. The mage kept him as a house slave, requiring that Umbra cook his meals, clean his house, and other subservient acts unbecoming to an Orc. In addition to this, Gadave purposefully and methodically stunts Umbra's growth, taking a perverse delight in transforming the naturally dominant Orsimer into a creature "incapable of commanding respect, let alone demanding it". Over a period of roughly eighteen years, Umbra had completely taken over the domestic matters for Gadave, and he had even started to participate more and more in his master's research, often accompanying him on expeditions to visit Dwemer ruins or recover artifacts. During these expeditions, which Umbra relished, he never often had to engage in conflict, as Gadave was a very powerful mage and relished proving his massive combat superiority over the Orc. It was at times like these, when Umbra was able to see with his own eyes the glory of the ancient Dwemer civilization, and he started to study Gadave's works on the matter whenever he could. Sometimes, when he would be sent out to get something from a neighbor or the market, Umbra would carry one of his theses that he wrote and ask for advice, claiming it was a prospective apprentice who handed it to him in town. This proved to be a great way of being taught indirectly by Gadave, as the Dunmer purposefully taught Umbra as little of his scholarly works as possible. This continued for a fair while, with the Great War interrupting surprisingly little of their daily lives, simply adding more tension, paranoia, and making resources more scarce. In 4E 174, however, this all changed. The Imperial City was sacked, and Titus II joined forces with General Jonna to battle the Aldmeri Dominion within spitting distance of where Umbra had spent his last eighteen years. Like any respectable Dunmer mage, Gadave hightailed it back to Morrowind, entrapping Umbra in house in the process, because slavery was of questionable legality at that time and he didn't want to risk any of what happened over the last two decades coming back to him in any way. In the ensuing battle, Gadave's residence was blown open by a Bosmer fireball, badly burning and knocking out Umbra but also freeing him in the process. When he awoke, the forces of the Alderi Dominion were being pushed back, and the bodies of his townsfolk surrounded him. Umbra decided to hightail it north to Skyrim, away from the war and towards Dwemer ruins, in which remained pretty much the only occupation he knew.
Fast forwarding a quarter-century later, we find Umbra to be a fairly successful Dwemer scholar living in a (comfortable) shack between Markarth and Falkreath. He's written a few books and delved in a few ruins, in addition to grasping a good handle on the Restoration magics. He does this in part of his docile and frail nature, but also because "It's easier to find someone who will kill for you than fix you, so why not provide the latter yourself?" He's also gotten in a few good fights over hot political topics, like the false Imperial/Stormcloak dichotomy and the Forsworn problem.
Fast forwards a bit more and we get to the Blades, which is where interesting stuff happens. This takes place the next day after an invigorating (and drunken) speech given by Umbra for the "fascistic, narcissistic, and insufferable pisspots who refer to themselves as 'High Elves' to get their inbred asses across the Abecean Sea". Needless to say, this got the wrong kind of attention from the Thalmor, who caught him with his pants down as he was traveling from his shack to a lecture in Solitude. Lucky for Umbra, though, was the Blades patrol following the Thalmor patrol following him, so the Orcish scholar managed to remain unharmed. Awestruck by the sight of the warriors, whom he had only seen once before, during a pre-war parade with Gadave, Umbra humbly asked if he could join their ranks in any suitable way. They obliged him, and after some fairly brutal practice tests, Umbra joined the ranks of the Blades, serving as a hospitaller mage for their wounded and earning them coin through selling Dwemer theories and goods.
