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Bardlox

Name Chester Rockwell (real name); Bardlox (nickname)
Age 30
Race Dragonborn
Hometown Highland Heights, Kalashport
Class Bard
Status Alive

Overview

Chester Rockwell, more commonly known as Bardlox, is an entertainer and owner of the Brasserie du Bardlox in Midtown, Kalashport. Presumably born in a far away country where his species is common, he was found and brought to Kalashport by the Kalashport Shipping and Handling company and adopted by the wealthy Rockwells.

Bardlox went to school at the Highland Heights School of the Arts and became a bard specializing in pyrotechnics and ukulele. Shortly thereafter, he opened a dragon-themed tavern in Midtown to turn his exotic heritage into an attraction. The Brasserie du Bardlox remains one of the most popular locales in all of Kalashport.

Personality and Relationships

Bardlox is gregarious and likes to surround himself with other people (especially those who could bail him out of trouble). He makes little dragon pins to give to his friends and his fans. In Midtown, having a dragon pin has become akin to being a member of an exclusive social club. He is notably impulsive, and he often finds himself in bad situations that could have been avoided with a bit of foresight.

Bardlox is the adopted son of John and Lucille Rockwell, owners of Steel City Real Estate. While not bad parents by any stretch, they always expected Bardlox to take on the family company one day. Bardlox’s decision to attend HHSA and move to Midtown placed strain on their relationship, and though there isn’t any bad blood between them, they seldom talk.

Bardlox met Weston and Eleanor while in college. Weston was a detective-in-training and met Bardlox while investigating a mundane drug dealing case at one of HHSA’s fraternity houses. Eleanor was a fellow musician in college, and the two developed somewhat of a rivalry due to their opposite personalities and performing styles. By the time he graduated, Bardlox knew he wanted to open a tavern in Midtown. He met Forik at a punk concert hired him to help run the business.

Bardlox has since developed a positive relationship with Yancy, Fet, Mascarpone, and Tae. The four chased off some muggers one day and they have been friends since. Bardlox housed them while they were fighting the Stability Provision in Midtown, and they reciprocated the generosity by allowing him to stay at the Bargoyle after his tavern got raided by POGs. Bardlox and Yancy especially relate to each other, being adopted children of Highland Heights aristocrats. Bardlox and Fet also get along well by virtue of being fellow tavern owners.

History

Pre-Campaign

The young dragonborn who could come to be known as Bardlox was born around 30 years before the Faction Campaign in a faraway country where his species is native. Through unknown circumstances, as a baby he was boarded on a Kalshport Shipping and Handling boat heading to Kalashport. Upon arrival, he was adopted by the wealthy Rockwell family and he grew up in Highland Heights.

Bardlox went to college at the Highland Heights School of the Arts in the same class as his rival, Eleanor. Bardlox wasn't particularly great at music, so he decided to focus on branding and pyrotechnics instead to become an all-around entertainer. He met his best friend Weston at college. Weston wasn't a student there however; he was investigating a drug-dealing case at one of the school's fraternities as a detective-in-training.

By the time he graduated, Bardlox decided he wanted to open a dragon-themed tavern in Kalashport, planning to use his exotic heritage and exciting music performances to bring people in the doors in order to sell them expensive drinks. He met Forik at a punk rock concert in Midtown, and the two decided to open the Brasserie du Bardlox together.

For the first time he could remember, Bardlox met a fellow dragonborn one day at the tavern. They were very different from Bardlox, being a firefighter rather than a fire-starter for one, and they were also more familiar and respectful of dragonborn culture. The two became close over time. When the FerrCO collapsed, Bardlox's friend died trying to put out fires caused by the riots. Bardlox since then struggled with mental illness and was reluctant to get close to other people.

Faction Campaign

Bardlox was the first person the party met in the campaign when they saved him from being mugged in the alley next to his tavern. Bardlox quickly made friends with the group and invited them to stay at the tavern while they sort out their business in Midtown. For the first time since the collapse, Bardlox grew close to a new group of people. He invited them to his performance at a venue in Downtown, only for POG officers to raid the place and try to arrest him for being a magic user.

The party returned the favor and let him stay at their new bar and hide from the POGs. Bardlox and Forik helped the party set up the Bargoyle for business while they were in the Canal District, and he trained the new hires from Legume Lagoon and Deep Trench. Bardlox helped set up a Bargoyle stall at the Canal Lights Festival, where he announced he would be returning to Midtown.

While the party was in Highland Heights searching for the white dragon scale, Bardlox visited the Bargoyle again to check on the lizardfolk and triton employees. The Stack began their attack at the same time, and Bardlox and Weston got caught in the crossfire. Weston died and Bardlox was injured before he could take cover inside the Bargoyle. The party came back from the Heights and found him hiding upstairs. Tae resurrected Weston and Yancy let Bardlox hide at the Bargoyle (again).

Post-Campaign

Post-campagin, Bardlox continues to perform at his bar in Midtown. He kicked his drug habit and has started to get pretty close to Forik....

Appearance

Bardlox is a golden-hued Dragonborn with pointy horns, a spiky tail, a blunt snout, and manicured claws. He has two sharp upper teeth that stick out from his mouth. He wears knee-length pants and a purple doublet embroidered with a golden “B”. He does not wear shoes, but that is only because Kalashport shoe stores don’t really cater to reptilian anatomy. Bardlox is a little overweight, despite what the multiple portraits of him in his tavern portray.

Trivia