The Amiable Vagabond

"He claims to be an expert in snake-wrangling, thimble-twisting and stick-swinging; he professes to be a psychologist, mythologist, and escapologist; he boasts he can tell stories that'll haunt you until you die, and play tunes that'll make stones dance. If all that fails to entice you, he supposes he could turn his hand to signalling."

The Amiable Vagabond is an experienced wanderer and an unofficial leader of the skylarks, a group of travelers.

The Skylarks' Quest

“My life is a lark! My king is the sky!"

The ultimate goal of all skylarks is to find the mythical ‘Sugarspun Garden’, a fabled paradise where the rivers flow with whisky and the mountains are made of marzipan. There, at last, the wanderers could rest their heads and put down roots. The Amiable Vagabond has led them on this madcap quest across the sky for as long as any of them can remember, and he has the tall tales to prove it.

The skylarks meet with something approaching regularity at sites marked with crypt skylark signs to swap stories, trade liquors, and mourn those who have perished since their last meeting. For all their joy, the skylark’s life is perilous, and there is rarely a meeting without a missing face.

A Sinister Sister

“The Psalm contains the only lesson that we need to hear: the promise that those who wronged us can be made to suffer.”

The Amiable Vagabond is not alone in the world - he has a sister, the Lank Minister of the Church of the Judas Psalm. The Church is devoted in the ardent belief that the Almighty will rain vengeance upon those who have wronged the congregants. In the case of the Minister - her brother. The Vagabond believes that as part of her campaign of vengeance, she lures his followers to the Well and thus to their deaths.

"Are you quite sure you want to know this?" Beyond this point lie major spoilers for Fallen London, Sunless Sea, Sunless Skies, or Mask of the Rose. This may include endgame or major Fate-locked spoilers. Proceed at your own risk. You can find out more about our spoiler policy here.

The Prospector's Prize

In truth, of course, the Vagabond is rather more than he seems - for he was once known as Old Tom. One of the first prospectors through the Avid Horizon, he made a deal at the [Well](old tom’s well) in the reach - fabulous wealth in exchange for his life. The entity within kept its promise: Tom soon discovered [The Mother of Mountains](Lustrum) and became wealthy beyond measure. 

As the day of his death drew near, however, Tom found himself unwilling to die. Desperate to extend his lease on life, he drew upon his more sinister connections and eventually discovered a ritual that would allow him to exchange another’s life for his own. 

And so Old Tom became the Amiable Vagabond, and his murderous odyssey began - he leads the skylarks on a perpetual journey, occasionally singling one out and sacrificing it to the remnant within the well. Nobody remarks on the disappearance of a skylark, for a thousand deaths await travelers in the heavens.

The Vagabond’s true relationship with his sister is tense and complicated. As the only person the Well has ever spoken to, the Lank Minister regards him with jealous respect. She has no particular compunctions about his homicidal practices, but deeply resents what she sees as a betrayal of the entity within the Well.