BOZBIK THE FACE BREAKER


Bozbik the Face Breaker came from a long line of adventurers. He seemed to walk a thin line between being a pompous celebrity and a seriously devoted hero and explorer. Adventuring largely seemed to be his method of keeping in shape as Bozbik himself had stated that he saw himself as an arena fighter first and an adventurer second. This may also be why he dressed up as a barbarian while having enough money and influence to have kept up with the latest in adventuring styles.

The Face Breaker was described as a very tall, very ominous fellow, who usually wore recognizable sandals, a cape made from animal hide, and was frequently well-armed. In public, his appearances and disappearances were quick, coupled with overly dramatic speeches. But in private, he was a polite, well-mannered hero.


ANCESTRY OF BOZBIK
Zoz was a mighty warlord during the time of Bozbik's grandfather, who was also an adventurer of sorts. Not much is known about their rivalry but whatever the root of their animosity toward each other was, it led to the creation of a special spear that came to be known as the Spear of Zoz, the dread enemy of Bozbik's bloodline. Although the spear was somehow lost to history shortly after its creation, the mage Gnilbel, who was an enemy of Bozbik's father, invested a great amount of time and resources into the creation of a set of Dice that were designed to always guide their user to the location of the Spear of Zoz. It is slightly possible that the Dice had a mind of their own and were actually fans of Bozbik's bloodline as they had a knack for either disappearing entirely (such as when Bozbik's father first learned of their existence) or gave more helpful information to those who might be more kindly disposed to using the Spear of Zoz for more noble goals.


THE FACE BREAKER
Mizniaport was home of Bozbik during the Great Monster Uprising. When the Bozbarland arena was constructed within the city limits, he quickly rose, not only to be to be one of the most acclaimed fighters locally, but even to the ends of the world. The unique and astonishing face-breaker style he developed enabled him to break more faces per second than anyone else in the entirety of the Great Underground Empire, and also rightfully earned him the sirname "the Face Breaker." Those whom he challenged to do battle with in the arena, who dared not make an appearance on the date of the duel, Bozbik would track down; the coward would not even have the safety of witnesses to help him during the face-breaking.

One particular subject of note is that he once challenged an adventurer to a duel. That specific adventurer discovered (and defeated) the evil, sentient bell known as Tiberyl the Terrible in his mad rush to raise the funding required to purchase a weapon that might give him a chance at defeating Bozbik in the arena.  No one knows if the adventurer won or lost, but when compared to the "Enter the Face Breaker" series of events (see below), it suggests an odd trend wherein the Face Breaker would challenge "no name" adventurers to duels in a manner that would nudge them in the direction of greater successes than ever before. That was not always what happened when he challenged adventurers, but he had challenged more than his fair share of soon-to-be-greats in the arena (it was rumored that nearly all of his defeated opponents ended up with their faces broken because they could blink; nor could they blink afterwards).


THREE RIGHTEOUS ACTS
Tandric the Trapwright was a member of the Hunter’s Guild; however, he used his skills to turn to crime and created a small band of bandits. They plagued the merchants who would travel through many forests, until the entire band was eventually caught and captured by Bozbik.

Beldric the Enchanter was a member of the Enchanter’s Guild who went rogue. While attempting to summon The Beast of Beldra in the Fields of Frotzen, Beldric was discovered and halted by Bozbik, prompting Beldric to swear vengeance.

The smuggling operations of Oldric the Pirate were halted by Bozbik and his unnamed, though recognizable, ship (it had a seemingly too-short mast) became blacklisted at most major ports. However, Oldric kept in touch with his crew and was able to call on them to help with future criminal activities, such as when he joined forces with Beldric and Tandric, who planned to finish off Bozbik once and for all.


"ENTER THE FACE BREAKER"
The episode known as "Enter the Face Breaker" was most pivotal, as it details the recovery of the Spear of Zoz and displays the rare humility of Bozbik. At the time when a man known only as "Detective Softly" adventured in Mizniaport, he had the mishap of literally running into the Face Breaker on the streets. Through this calamity, Bozbik acquired the adventurer's coconut smoothie on the front of his tunic. In reprisal, Bozbik challenged "Softly" to a duel in the arena.

Little did the Face Breaker know, but his former enemies, Oldric, Beldric, and Tandric, for their final scheme against him, shrewdly recruited "Softly" into recovering the Spear of Zoz for them without drawing attention to themselves. To do this, they first manipulated "Softly" into finding the Dice of Gnilbel, which led him to the legendary spear in Fenshire.

Prior to the retrieval of the Spear of Zoz, Bozbik, on his last epic quest for the day in the Eastlands, recovered the relic beforehand and planned to place it in his soon-to-open Museum of Face-Breaking when it opened the following month. After raiding the Ghostly Tunnels of Barbel and the Hidden Castle of Yob in the Miznia Marshlands, he was done with marshes and swamps for a month, and was then pleased to move on to cool forests and mountains for some time.

While in the Hidden Castle of Yob, Bozbik the Face Breaker fought a tentacled creature that was trying to force its way into Zork from another plane of reality. Bozbik was the only adventurer who learned about it in time to forever seal it back into whatever horrific eldritch dimension beyond the understanding of feeble mortal minds from whence it came before it could have spread faster than grues from a pit. The only thing researchers known for sure is that this one was banished with a magical orb when Bozbik claimed to be a goose.

"Softly" wandered into vicinity at the conclusion of this victory over the horrific monster, hoping to snatch the Spear of Zoz off his back unawares. But the burst of energy erupting for the orb launched Bozbik backwards into "Softly". Oldric, Beldric, and Tandric took this opportunity to ensnare Bozbik by pinning his cape to a rock with arrows, binding magical gauntlets about his wrists, and throwing a weighted net over him. They took the Spear of Zoz from his back and fled.

"Softly" left to track them down in the Jungles of Miznia while the Face Breaker broke the traps that had ensnared him and headed for the Forest of Youth where he again met with the detective. Together, the two finally tracked down the trio at the Fields of Frotzen, defeated them, recovered the Spear of Zoz and took the three tied-up villians back to Mizniaport. In a strange change of intents, Bozbik rewarded "Softly" with the Spear of Zoz and some coconuts. While the Face Breaker did not repent of their arena match, it is unknown whether or not a duel ever commenced between him and "Softly".


MUSEUM OF FACE BREAKING
The Museum of Face Breaking, dedicated to the life and career of Bozbik, opened in Mizniaport approxmiately a month after the imprisonment of the aforementioned trio. The museum showed trophies and souvenirs from many of Bozbik's adventures (such as weapons of enemies, skulls from powerful monsters, rare treasures he had found but chosen not to sell, etc.), and served as a means of boosting his own (already quite impressive) reputation. Bozbik was a barbarian adventurer first, but he recognized the money that could be made as a celebrity too, and used things like the Museum of Face Breaking to act as a supplemental source of income.


TRIVIA:
It is possible that Bozbik the Face Breaker worshipped an obscure pseudo-god known as Crumb. Even if he did not worship Crumb, he was known to have sworn by Crumb quite often when making his sacred vows to help people or overthrow tyrants.

SOURCE(S): Legends of Zork (game, personal correspondence from the author of 'Enter the Face Breaker' quest)