Izembert Krine was born in the frozen barony of Wynsparrow as the seventh son of the ailing Lord Magnus Krine. By tradition, this meant Izembert would be consecrated to the Wynsparrow abbey as a clergyman. As a boy, gangly Izembert showed no aptitude for the martial arts or statesmanship like his older brothers. He shunned other children, preferring the solitude of the castle's dusty libraries.

Enthralled by forbidden texts on magic and the dark arts, Izembert taught himself ancient glyphs and rituals in secret. The occult obsessed him like nothing else in his cloistered world. He stole remains from the family crypts to experiment with unnatural resurrection on dead birds and rodents.

When Lord Magnus announced Izembert's betrothal to Lady Anastasia of house Ravenhew, Izembert was distraught. He would not be chained to a provincial wife and clerical life! A week before his wedding, Izembert staged his "kidnapping" with the help of a vagrant hewnman named Yoric and fled north.

In the ruin-strewn badlands of Galdrum, Izembert sought out the necromancer Malrach. He offered himself up as Malrach's disciple in exchange for more powerful teachings. For a decade he learned the intricacies of death magic under the cruel tutelage. When he finally slew Malrach, Izembert took his master's staff and tomes and departed for the Old City.

Now a striking man of 43 winters, Krine is a rising power within the Old City's cabals. Pale and sinister, he surrounds himself with ravens and relics from ancient battles. Though he lives luxuriously, Krine spurns romantic company, driven solely by his occult obsessions.

Rumors spread that Krine aims to resurrect the entombed kings of Galdrum to lead his undead army on a rampage. Others insist these are lies spun by the Holy Order of the Flame to discredit his controversial works. But none can deny that death follows this enigmatic necromancer who slipped free of fate's intended design.