Xarzithbilnol Nythauth, commonly known as Nightwind (especially to those not well-versed in the pronunciation of Draconic), is a silver Dragonborn in the Forgotten Realms setting of Dungeons & Dragons. A rogue of the arcane trickster subclass, he is a guild artisan who works as a jeweler in the city of Baldur's Gate and makes occasional expeditions into the surrounding wilds in search of gems and precious metals to use in his craft. He began as my first player-created character in Baldur's Gate III, and I became attached enough to him that I've fleshed him out in an effort to make him a character usable in the overall Forgotten Realms setting without being tied to the events of the game.

Clan History
The history of Clan Xarzithbilnol was largely lost when their settlement was burned down in 1463 DR; their elders died and most of their written records were reduced to ash. As such, what is known is based on memory and oral tradition, and there are many details which have faded into mystery. Like all Dragonborn on the planet Toril, the clan was originally from the planet Abeir; the events of the Spellplague in 1385 DR resulted in the nation of Tymanchebar being transported onto Toril. The survivors of this event renamed the nation Tymanther. In this nation, and even back on Abeir, it is believed that Clan Xarzithbilnol was rather insular. This is evidenced in part by the unusually high proportion of the clan population who possess tails, which most Dragonborn see as a deformity, and their brilliant silver-and-white hued scales, which suggest a relatively strong and “pure” heritage in comparison to most Dragonborn’s reddish or brownish coloration.

The clan name also reflects its apparent history as a group of outsiders. Xartzithbilnol is Draconic for “ice dusk,” and as told to hatchlings by clan elders, refers to the first night the clan spent in the first settlement of its own back on Abeir. They had ventured far from their previous homes, and were awestruck when, after sunset, the rain-soaked rocks and plants around their settlement froze and glittered with gleaming coatings of ice. This, allegedly, was seen by the nascent clan as an omen of good fortune.

Though the exact reasons are lost to time, it is known that the clan departed Tymanther sometime around the turn of the fifteenth century DR. As a result of this early departure, members of the clan do not typically speak in the Tymantheran dialect, instead using a more traditional form of Draconic. They can, however, understand the dialect with little issue. For about the next six decades, Clan Xartzithbilnol adopted a nomadic lifestyle, traveling roughly westward through Faerûn without founding or integrating with any permanent settlements. This changed in 1458 DR, when, having ventured well into the Sword Coast region and just about run out of land to the west, the clan founded what was intended to be a permanent settlement on the northwestern edge of the Wood of Sharp Teeth. They named the settlement Bilnolskatuch, or “dusk home,” and established some communication and trade with the nearby city-state of Baldur’s Gate.

Personal History
Xarzithbilnol Nythauth was hatched on 16th Alturiak, 1462 DR, the Year of the Elves’ Weeping, in his clan’s small settlement, Bilnolskatuch. As is customary for Dragonborn, his clan gave him a nickname early in his childhood – and as had long been customary for clan Xartzithbilnol in particular, it was in Common. He was nicknamed “Nightwind” due to his tendency to stay up long after sunset listening to the wind blowing through the trees in the adjacent forest; many of the clan’s other small children were frightened or annoyed by the sound, but he found it comforting. He scarcely remembers his time in the settlement, as it was tragically cut short in the summer of 1463 DR when Bilnolskatuch was destroyed by a sudden and powerful storm; lightning set fire to a portion of the forest, and the burning trees collapsed into the settlement. Most of the clan, including Nightwind’s direct familial relatives, perished in the disaster.

The remnants of his clan made the decision to relocate to Baldur’s Gate, hoping to re-integrate with a larger society for the first time since the clan’s original departure from Tymanther decades earlier. They settled in the impoverished and lawless Outer City, first in the Twin Songs district – a well-known haven for those displaced by war or disaster – but then in Stonyeyes once the intense saturation of religion and clerics in Twin Songs began to grate on them too heavily. Life was hard, and Nightwind, along with several other members of the clan, turned to crime to survive. From a very early age he developed skills as a rogue, using his dexterity and wits as a pickpocket and burglar. When he began to exhibit a natural ability to manipulate the Weave to small effect, he incorporated bits of arcane trickery into his skillset as well. He made a point of trying not to steal from anyone worse off than he and his clan were, though in times of great desperation it was not always possible to adhere to such morals.

By the time Nightwind entered his teens – at which point he, like all Dragonborn, was fully matured but not yet a legally recognized adult – the clan was stable enough to leave crime behind. Nightwind was happy to do so, having always harbored some guilt over his criminal actions despite their necessity. What he did not abandon was the fascination with jewelry and gemstones that he had developed by stealing and fencing them. It was true that Dragonborn, like dragons themselves, seemingly had an innate appreciation and desire for jewels and precious metals. Still, Nightwind’s fixation went deeper, and rather than simply acquiring these valuables, he felt a powerful yearning to learn how to craft them into exquisite pieces of his own design.

Of course, given how poor he was, he couldn’t buy the raw materials to work with – and he refused to supply himself through the same thievery that had sustained him in his childhood. Thus it was that he took up light adventuring in order to source materials with which to hone his craft. He would make relatively short expeditions around the Sword Coast in search of gems and precious metals which had no living owner who could lay claim to them; if he could not find those, he would obtain whatever valuables he could without outright stealing them, and then seek to trade those for what he required. From time to time, though, if he encountered a particularly abhorrent individual, he would indulge himself in taking something of theirs – and in doing so he kept his skills sharp should he ever have true need of them again.

At first things were very slow, and he had to study and practice his craft on his own time while working odd jobs around the district. His ambition, though, served him well, and he soon found himself excelling at his chosen trade. In 1481 DR he made arrangements to sell his jewelry on consignment at a small clothing shop in the Lower City, and while he had fair success with this for a few years, the management of the actual shop was not terribly competent. Facing mounting debts, they began stealing from Nightwind by selling his work without paying him his due. Nightwind soon caught on and stopped supplying them with stock, and they went out of business in short order.

Luckily for Nightwind, though, his work and his plight had brought him to the attention of an artisan’s guild, and he was invited to train under a master jeweler in the city proper. Despite his already remarkable skills, he found he still had much to learn about the finer details and practical considerations of the trade. He was an excellent and inquisitive student to his mentor, a human jeweler by the name of Fabian Dutsk, who helped him unlock his yet-unrealized creative potential and gave him invaluable lessons in good business sense. He completed his apprenticeship in 1489 DR, at the age of 27, and soon after went into business on his own. He established a presence as merchant in the Wide, the huge open-air marketplace in the Upper City of Baldur’s Gate, regularly operating out of a booth which he dubbed Nightwind’s Niceties.

Though he was now able to source materials through his guild connections, Nightwind retained a fondness for his adventurous little excursions and the sense of accomplishment that came from finding his own supply of gems. Although it was now a frivolity rather than a business requirement, he kept up the habit deciding to allow himself one such outing per year so long as business permitted it. He and his clan continued to live in Stonyeyes, pledging to remain there together until it was practical for all of them to find and afford housing within the city’s walls – clan, after all, was as important to them as it was to just about any Dragonborn. He hoped he would soon become successful enough in his trade that he could finance their relocation into the city proper… and from there, he aimed to one day open a full-sized, permanent store in the Upper City and become the greatest and most renowned jeweler on the Sword Coast, or perhaps in all of Faerûn.

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Reference sheet by  Iudicium86