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Hegzsi

NPCs
Hill dwarf · Fighter, Samurai archetype · Level 20

Hegzsi

Wandering sword-for-hire and occasional rescuer
AC16
HP184/184
Init
STR
DEX
CON
INT
WIS
CHA
ConditionsNone

At the table

Voice

A full-bodied, slightly rasped voice with a dry edge, like someone used to calling instructions across a noisy workshop. He projects without noticing and often punctuates a sentence with a sharp bark of laughter. His volume comes from habit and enthusiasm, not menace.

He speaks from a strong chest and a life spent shouting over forge noise, wind, and frightened workers. His words arrive in quick, emphatic bursts, often with a laugh or a blunt, misplaced metaphor. Years of travel have given him a scattering of borrowed sayings, which he confidently uses in the wrong situations.

Speech patterns

Speaks in loud declarations, then tacks on a question that reveals he missed a crucial detail.
Uses simple comparisons involving food, animals, and tools.
Repeats a person's name when trying to show sincerity.
When frightened, insists that everything is fine while describing exactly why it is not.

How to play them

Meet his energy without mistaking noise for stupidity. Give him a clear, concrete task and he will commit wholeheartedly. If the conversation turns to family or the cave-in, he may joke or change the subject; direct but compassionate questions work better than pity. He respects people who protect others without making a spectacle of it.

Goal

Stop the mine owner from reopening the unstable tunnel, while finally asking Reka what help she wants instead of deciding for her.

Motivation

To prove that his speed and courage can prevent another family from being broken by a preventable disaster.

Secret · GM only

Appearance

Hegzsi has a rounded, doll-like face and delicate features that strangers often mistake for a woman's. His large, round green eyes seem too wide for his pale face, framed by conspicuously thick, long lashes. Messy black hair brushes his shoulders, its ends dyed a deep navy blue; one blunt lock hangs between his eyebrows. His bare torso is lean and corded rather than bulky, with a startlingly narrow waist. He moves in springy, abrupt bursts, feet whispering in grass sandals, and tends to stare at the floorboards or ceiling beams instead of the person speaking to him. The unexpected detail is his meticulous care for tiny things: he keeps a pocket-sized folding paper garden and painstakingly refolds it whenever he is nervous.

Clothing

Bare-chested, he wears loose blue trousers slung low on his hips, trimmed at the waist with brown fur and gathered at the ankles with black fur. Grass sandals leave his toes exposed. The trousers are repeatedly patched in mismatched blue cloth, but the fur trim is brushed and carefully repaired. He carries a grey boar-head mask hooked at his belt when not fighting.

Body language

He fills silence with expansive gestures, jabs a thumb at whoever he is praising, and leans too close when excited. In a tense room his gaze skitters to rafters, exits, and loose floorboards, rarely meeting anyone's eyes for long. Before a fight, he goes suddenly still and rests one hand on each wrapped sword hilt.

Height
4 ft. 7 in.
Build
Lithe and leanly muscular, with a narrow waist and defined shoulders built by years of footwork and climbing.
Eyes
Green
Hair
Messy black, fading to navy blue at the tips
Skin
Slightly pale, with a cool, almost porcelain cast
Age
Adult, 104 years old
Gender
Male
Size
Medium

Distinguishing features

Large, round green eyes with unusually lush, thick lashes.
A blunt black forelock ends between his eyebrows; the tips of his shoulder-length hair are navy blue.
No beard or visible body hair, and a rounded face often mistaken for feminine.
Two battered katana blades, deeply chipped along their edges, with handles wrapped in layered, weather-faded bandages.
A carefully mended grey boar-head mask hanging from his low-slung trousers.

Personality

12 traits and drives

Hegzsi is boisterous and impulsive, but not cruel; he is slow to understand a scheme and quick to notice when someone is left out. Around strangers he performs confidence with grand claims and reckless jokes. With children and injured people he becomes surprisingly patient, speaking plainly and letting them set the pace. When ashamed, he gets louder; when truly afraid, he stops joking and watches every exit.

Alignment
Chaotic good

Quirks

Gives tools and weapons names, but forgets the names he chose and invents new ones.
Folds tiny paper plants from any scrap of paper while waiting.
Taps both sword hilts twice before entering a doorway, even when the doorway is plainly safe.
Offers people a bite of whatever he is eating as a substitute for asking if they are all right.

Habits

Rushes toward an obvious immediate danger, then belatedly asks what caused it.
When worried, folds and unfolds a tiny paper garden with intense concentration.
Offers food, repairs, or an escort instead of apologizing directly.
Wears his boar mask hanging from his waistband until the instant a fight seems likely, then pulls it on with dramatic seriousness.

Traits · 3

He boasts like a champion but readily admits when he does not understand something, unless family is involved.
He wants to be the first into danger, yet fusses over the comfort and safety of everyone he has just rescued.
He distrusts elaborate plans but remembers small acts of kindness for years.

Flaws · 3

Mistakes fast action for good judgment and can make a dangerous situation worse.
His loud confidence covers a deep discomfort with difficult conversations.
Underestimates clever opponents and often fails to notice a plan until it is underway.

Fears · 3

Another collapse in which he must choose whom to save first.
That Reka will decide she is better off without him.
Being asked to explain his father's death in a way that makes it sound like a simple lesson.

Wants and needs · 3

Wants the mine workers safe and the reopening stopped.
Needs to let Reka decide what kind of relationship she wants with him.
Wants to complete his father's unfinished blade but fears what the act would mean.

Combat

AC 16 · HP 184 · 25 ft.

He tries to draw dangerous foes away from bystanders, then uses Fighting Spirit and Action Surge to overwhelm one priority target with rapid paired-blade strikes. He favors mobility and aggression over defense, but will spend his turn helping a trapped or badly wounded ally. He uses Rapid Strike when advantage gives him an opening. The boar mask is a custom battle mask and grants no mechanical benefit.

Hegzsi

Medium humanoid (hill dwarf), chaotic good
Armor Class16
Hit Points184
Speed25 ft.
Level20
STR
DEX
CON
INT
WIS
CHA
Saving ThrowsStrengthConstitutionWisdom
SkillsAcrobaticsAthleticsInsightPerceptionSurvival
SensesDarkvision 60 ft.; passive Perception 11
Languages
Common,
Dwarvish
Dwarven Resilience. advantage on saving throws against poison and resistance to poison damage.
Dwarven Combat Training. proficiency with battleaxes, handaxes, light hammers, and warhammers.
Dwarven Toughness. his hit point maximum increases by 1 per character level.
Fighting Style, Two-Weapon Fighting. add his ability modifier to the damage of his off-hand weapon attack.
Second Wind. as a bonus action, regain hit points once per short or long rest.
Action Surge. take one additional action on his turn once per short or long rest.
Extra Attack. attack four times whenever he takes the Attack action.
Indomitable. reroll a failed saving throw three times per long rest.
Fighting Spirit. as a bonus action, gain 15 temporary hit points and advantage on weapon attack rolls until the end of his turn, three times per long rest.
Elegant Courtier. add his Wisdom modifier to Charisma checks and gain proficiency in Wisdom saving throws.
Tireless Spirit. regain one use of Fighting Spirit when rolling initiative with none remaining.
Rapid Strike. when he has advantage on a weapon attack, he can forgo that advantage to make one additional weapon attack as part of the same action.
Strength Before Death. when reduced to 0 hit points but not killed outright, take an immediate additional turn before falling unconscious.

Actions

Multiattack. Hegzsi makes four attacks with his chipped katanas, in any combination. Katana: to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 9 () slashing damage, or 10 () if wielded in two hands. His katanas count as magical for overcoming resistance and immunity to nonmagical attacks.
Katana. Melee Weapon Attack: to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 9 () slashing damage. He can draw or stow this weapon as part of the attack.
Handaxe. Ranged Weapon Attack: to hit, range 20/60 ft., one target. Hit: 8 () piercing damage. The weapon is a handaxe he insists is a throwing star with a handle.
Second Wind, Bonus Action. Hegzsi regains hit points.
Fighting Spirit, Bonus Action. Hegzsi gains 15 temporary hit points and has advantage on weapon attack rolls until the end of his turn.

Reactions

Fighting Spirit's Resolve. When a creature Hegzsi can see hits him with a melee attack, he adds 3 to his AC against that attack, potentially causing it to miss. He can use this reaction three times per long rest.
Opportunity Attack. When a creature Hegzsi can see moves out of his reach, he can make one melee weapon attack against it.

Legendary Actions

Boar's Rush. Hegzsi moves up to half his speed without provoking opportunity attacks.
Quick Cut. Hegzsi makes one katana attack.
Twin-Path Lunge (costs 2 actions). Hegzsi moves up to half his speed and makes one katana attack. This is a custom encounter feature for using him as a solo boss; it is not a standard Samurai class feature.

Services they sell

Escort through dangerous mountain roads or unstable mine passages.
Training in paired-blade footwork and battlefield rescue.
A loud, reliable distraction when someone needs to draw attention away from an ally.

Rewards they can give

His services as a dangerous guide through unstable tunnels.
A chipped katana, if he trusts the recipient and believes they will use it to protect someone.
A hand-drawn route to the sealed mine workings, marked with warnings rather than reliable measurements.

Equipment

  • First Chipped Katana (weapon)A well-worn katana with numerous chips along its blade and bandage-wrapped handle. It is a custom magical weapon, though its enchantment only lets it harm creatures resistant to nonmagical attacks.
  • Second Chipped Katana (weapon)A matched, equally battered katana with a bandage-wrapped handle. Its balance is slightly different, a fact Hegzsi claims makes it lucky.
  • Grey Boar Mask (worn item)A grey boar-head mask of stiffened hide and carved wood. He wears it in battle for intimidation, with no magical effect.
  • Warding Wraps (custom wondrous item)A custom pair of enchanted cloth-and-leather wrist wraps that ward off glancing blows. They grant AC 16 while Hegzsi wears no armor and uses no shield.
  • Fur-Trimmed Trousers (clothing)Loose blue trousers with brown fur at the waist, black fur at the ankles, and many neat repairs.
  • Paper Garden (keepsake)A small folding paper garden, kept dry in a waxed pouch.
  • Traveler's Pack (gear)A plain travel pack containing spare bandages, whetstone, food, and a few letters from home.

Possessions

Two chipped katanas with bandage-wrapped handles
Grey boar-head battle mask
Warding wraps
Fur-trimmed blue trousers
Grass sandals
A pocket-sized folding paper garden
Letters from his family

Background

Hegzsi grew up in Khar Duz, a dwarven settlement whose old sword-makers' quarter now survives by repairing farm tools. His mother, Varda, taught him to mend before she taught him to fight; his father, Nori, wanted him to inherit a respectable forge. Hegzsi was never good at measurements or quiet work, but he could copy a movement after seeing it once. At twenty-seven, a tunnel collapse trapped a dozen workers, including his younger sister, Reka. Hegzsi charged into the unstable passage with two unfinished blades and dragged people out one by one. Reka survived, but the cave-in killed their father, who had stayed behind to brace the supports. Hegzsi came away believing that hesitation, not strength, had cost his father his life. He trained with traveling sword dancers, turned the unfinished blades into his battered twin katanas, and became a noisy wandering protector. He still sends most of his pay home, though Reka, now a practical forewoman, keeps returning it with notes telling him to stop trying to buy forgiveness. Recently, a local mine owner has begun reopening the sealed tunnel despite warnings of shifting stone. Hegzsi is back in the region, torn between confronting the owner and asking his sister what she actually wants.

Role in the story

A memorable ally, rival, or high-level duel opponent whose rash courage can turn a crisis into a rescue or a catastrophe. His return to Khar Duz puts the party between an unsafe mine reopening and a family argument he has avoided for most of his life.

“His mother, Varda, taught him to mend before she taught him to fight; his father, Nori, wanted him to inherit a respectable forge.”
From their background
Faction
No formal faction. He is welcomed by the repair workers of Khar Duz, though he has no authority among them.

Known connections

Reka, his younger sister and a mine forewoman, loves him but resents being treated as someone he must rescue.
Varda, his mother, sends him practical letters about household repairs and never mentions his father's death.
Tamas, an old sword dancer who trained him, believes Hegzsi has confused courage with refusing to think.
The workers of Khar Duz remember him as the young man who carried them from the cave-in.
Major secret · GM only
Minor secrets · GM only

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