Raphuz

 Raphuz

Telperiën's Wall: As you cross the threshold into Shagani to meet with the Tale-Wardens that record history and collect relics, one panicked man anxiously calls you over. He quietly tells you that he lost his pack of supplies somewhere along the Road of Riches. You backtrack a little ways and find the pack not too far from the trail. As you pick it up, you feel a presence watching over you and catch a glimpse of a woman in the distance. When you return to Raphuz, he is glad to hear that what he too saw by the wall was not a hallucination. His colleagues make you aware that retrieving his pack wasn't necessary since they brought plenty of extra supplies for such an occasion. You sit down by the fire as Raphuz tells you his true intentions in traveling beyond Umbar. His mother was Umbari but his father was Shagâni. Before she passed, Raphuz promised her to return to his homeland and now believes a woman of beauty is haunting his waking moments. 

 
 
"You saw the vision too? Maybe it was no vision." - Raphûz

Iridír: As we break conversations with the locals, Raphuz overhears a story of a merchant who delivered his daughter's prized pet fully believing the spirit of his deceased wife inhabited the deer and needed to be freed. The traveler instead planned to sacrifice the deer to the serval (cats) that currently plagued him. What's odd is how the description of the woman matches the one both of you saw near the wall. You reach the den, free the deer, and pick berries to help revive the sickly doe. Raphuz invites you sit down with him once again by the fire as he tells you about the lost of his grandfather. In the middle of his story, the woman we've seen before appears. She says that she is there to take her mother, the deer, back with her. 

 
"You mewl like a boar's piglet. It is no wonder you fear a large boar." - Ashâmi

Sûru: Smitten by her beauty, Raphuz attempts to converse with the woman. Her name is Ashâmi and unfortunately will not reciprocate his feelings after seeing how ignorant he is on their culture. Raphuz decides to inquire more about the Shagani tales and learns more about the Aladi. He decides to take on his fears by fighting a boar and scorpion of great strength... with your help, of course. He also asks for you to pick a dozen flowers from the banks of the dry river-bed. A few nuts and meat for the road wouldn't hurt either.

 

"A people who suffered so long in oppression are still profoundly proud and hopeful." - Raphuz

Jirush: Raphuz follows his heart to meet with the man in the southern region of Khûd Zagin. Before meeting with the man, he overhears Ashami's sister's husband Ardub has been captured by the Ordâkhai. After a short scuffle through the stronghold, you tell the merchant how Raphuz was brave in rescuing his son-in-law in the heart of the enemy. Unfortunately, Igbâl is not able to understand a word you said. Thankfully, his translator Galamê was nearby and wants to convey thanks personally to the one who returned Ardub safely. Before Ashami's father will accept a courtship, Raphuz must be tested by retrieving treasure in the Tombs of Nirgambar. 

 
"The wealth within should command Igbâl's attention." - Raphûz

Shonith: After returning with the treasure in hand, Galamê says that Ashami was stricken mad with an Aladi curse and fled. Raphuz is flummoxed. What really happened was she fought with her father and told him her hand was not his to give. Raphuz personally asks you if he should try to and track her down. Regardless if you say yes or no, he has already made the decision to follow his heart. The quest will automatically send you to the elven grove to follow her trail. When you find her, Ashami tells you the story of the Aladi is seeded in truth as the three of you encounter the spirit nearby. Oddly enough, a head rolls out once his essence dissipates. Ashami plans to return with the head intact to prove her independence, but Raphuz asks to carry it instead to fool her father into thinking she is dead. To further the ruse, Igbâl now believes the new fawn birthed from the deer (assumed to be the mother) is Ashami reborn.

 
 
"His superstitions are profound." - Ashâmi

Imhûlar: So much time passes as you venture through the desert that you find Ashami and Raphuz at your next destination in Urmâkh. They both seem to have taken residence and on the verge of meeting with Numûru to join their elite guard in restoring Kûr Anzar. Before they can join, their character must be challenged. Raphûz is tasked to overcome a boar, which isn't too difficult since he has already done so earlier in your travels. Ashâmi's task proves a little more difficult since her fear of servals stem from being attacked by one in her youth. Unfortunately, that was not the only challenge. They must also strike down the Ordâkhai at Dûl Zidur. They do so reluctantly and discover something odd with what the cultists were shouting. They choose to investigate the matter further east and learn of a large force of orcs residing in the hills. Upon returning, they are shocked so much with how Numûru brushes off their report that they no longer wish to join their force. They speak with Lathagwid at Shonith and learn of a greater evil resonating to the north near Maurûsh.

 
 
 
"You will not stop the ascension. I will end you here!" - Mad Barkhûshim Cultist

Ub Nishir: If you meet them in the hidden canyon, they award you a housing decoration. Sadly, there doesn't seem to be any sort of functionality from the item. You can obtain a number of standard missions from them available with the purchase of Legacy of Morgoth.

"Raphûz and I are together because of you. We found our purpose." - Ashami