Viktor Selnar

Name (Etymology):

Viktor Selnar
Viktor — From the High Wardenic root vikt, meaning “to steady” or “to weigh.”
Selnar — From Stoneborn tradition: sel (etched memory) + nar (keeper).
Combined Meaning: He who steadies memory. The name evokes his role as archivist and guardian of Dark Spire knowledge — a man who believes knowledge must be preserved with reverence, not paraded.

Details:

• Age: 63
• Gender: Male (He/Him)
• Race: Human
• Occupation: Lorekeeper, Archivist of the Dark Spire
• Region: Eastern Wendmor
• Affiliation: Circle of Archivists, Tower of the Hundred Scribes

Appearance

Viktor wears robes the color of char and twilight, layered for warmth in the cold stone halls of the Spire. His thick silver hair and matching beard are always immaculately kept — a remnant of his former diplomatic station. He moves deliberately, with the sort of quiet gravity that makes a room feel smaller when he enters it.

Home

Viktor lives in the Ember Archive, a spired archive-house nestled against the cliffs overlooking the Vale of Stars.

Background

Viktor once served as a high emissary of the old Wendmor court, known for negotiating uneasy treaties and unraveling historical hoaxes. But when the court fractured, he vanished from public life and reappeared at the Spire, where he now tends the vaults of forbidden histories, disavowed prophecies, and texts too volatile to be widely read.

He rarely speaks of his past allegiances, but those who study closely can trace his influence in old treaties — and in the burned footnotes of censored tomes.

Skills

• Linguistic Deciphering: Fluent in over 15 dialects, including several dead tongues.
• Forensic Scribing: Able to date and authenticate scrolls, grimoires, and stone etchings with uncanny precision.
• Political Historiography: Holds deep knowledge of Wendmor’s noble houses, secret alliances, and unspoken laws.

Notable Belongings

• The Ember Seal: A signet once used to ratify peace among fractured noble lines — now kept locked in a drawer.
• Inkblade Quill: Carved from obsidian and dragonthorn wood, its ink adapts to the page and resists forgery spells.
• Codex Selnari: His personal folio of redacted truths, hidden annotations, and memory-wrought marginalia.

Ongoing Project

The Palimpsest Vault
Viktor is quietly assembling a layered archive — a vault of overwritten scrolls, censored codices, and reclaimed vellum scraped and re-inscribed over generations. His aim is to reconstruct the Era of Erasure — when Wendmor’s ruling houses attempted to sanitize their legacy through ritual book-burnings, mass disavowals, and selective retellings.

With the help of a few trusted scribes, Viktor peels away layers of posturing to uncover the original undertexts: firsthand confessions, condemned treatises, and pre-accord grievances too volatile to survive polite retelling. He claims the effort is purely historical. The Council suspects otherwise.

Reputation

Among students of the Spire, Viktor is equal parts legend and deterrent — the master of the restricted stacks. He is known for his deep integrity, his impossible standards, and his refusal to flatter. Outsiders call him austere. The Spire calls him necessary.

Quote

“A record kept in haste is a lie written slow. Ink must earn its permanence.”