Rhys Talved

An elven bard running from a troubled past and a big mistake. [he/him, but any pronouns are fine]

[regular D&D universe bg:]

Hailing from a noble house in a port city, he accidentally killed a man when trying to follow the path laid by his parents, and he ran away from home in shame as a teen and pursued his dream of music. However, fear and paranoia plauged him as he feared the his family would hunt him down as they were prestigious members of the city guard. His fear made him a habitual liar, always spinning himself a new identity for every other town he visited and never staying anywhere for too long. This has prevented others from getting to know the real Rhys under his facade.

At one point, he ended up trading his eye to a fae in exchange for an enchanted coat, and inadvertently opened himself up to influence from a malevolent creature outside the material plane.

[Baldur's Gate 3 universe: ]

Formerly the ruthless chosen of Bhaal, after the Nautiloid he's become a completely different person. Things he was once skilled at have now slipped from his grasp, and the violence that was once a natural instinct second to breathing is now something he finds himself afraid of. In truth, the violent urges he experiences distress him greatly and he finds himself gravitating towards a skill that requires as little brutality as he can imagine. When Aclero ran into him on the Nautiloid, he all but clung to the tiefling, and now the two act as moral counter balances to eachother. (Aclero is prone to stab first and ask questions later, but dislikes fighting because he is physically weaker. While Rhys will usually talk Aclero into doing things that will help people, even if Aclero isn't nice about it. And Aclero helps Rhys come to terms with neccessary violence needed to survive but becomes more diplomatic as time goes on thanks to the elf's influence)

After they reach Baldur's Gate, Aclero still sticks by the bhaalspawn and activley works with their other companions to help Rhys resist his father's pull.