Carlo Pasardelle

Carlo Pasardelle, also known as Carlo the Sage (born Karal of the Desert), is a powerful mage residing beneath House Pasardelle in Roccocino. He has been a pivotal figure since the founding of the city, and has been keeping close watch on it for centuries.

Early life
Carlo was born as Karal in the desert to the north, and lived as part of a nomadic group for his childhood and teenage years. As a child, his duties were minor: tending to camels and helping clean clothing were all that was expected of him.

During these travels, his caravan came across several travelling alchemists. During one opportunity, he managed to steal one of their books. Before he could get very far in his reading, however, he was caught and severely chastised by his parents. Forced to return the book, he apologized to the alchemist he stole from. The man simply laughed, and said to him, "Knowledge is the best thing to steal. Keep the book."

During his years, he read much in the ways of magic, arousing the suspicion of his fellows. He traded whatever he managed to produce for books, and traded those he had already read for new ones, committing everything to memory.

At the age of 17, his caravan suffered an undead attack which left him as sole survivor. After this attack, he was pursued by a vision of The King, who beckoned him to join his army in exchange for power and knowledge. Carlo knew better than to accept these gifts, and refused him. He then knew, however, that to track this King would be to find vengeance for the killing of his people.

War of the Alliance
Following the trail lead Carlo to the middle of the Zur Pensinsula, where he encountered Caspar Percolo and Laszlo Lomeri's forces engaged against hosts of undead. By this point, Carlo had honed his craft to the point that killing some of the attacking mummies and undead with fire spells was not much of a hassle. The visibly impressed Percolo and Lomeri leaders were quick to accept his help, albeit slow to give him their trust.

The war was at a standstill. Massive hordes of undead defended Ario and Tassio territory in concentric blockades. The only way they would break through would be by slowly chipping away at the undead army, and minimizing their own loss of life. Carlo realized this would be costly, so he dedicated all of his efforts towards mastering his craft. Over the next few years, his alchemy grew exceptional, and eventually he was able to fund the military campaign through his feats of polymorphism and transmutation.