Editing Marcus

{{SpoilerWarning|act=2}}
{{Infobox character
| name = Flaming Fist Marcus
| image = Marcus Headshot.jpg
| race = Aberration<br>[[Human]] (former)
| titles = Agent of the Absolute
| faction = [[Cult of the Absolute]]
| level = 6

| modules =
{{Infobox statistics
| child = yes
| size = Medium
| type = Aberration
| armour_class = 17 
| hit_points = 86
| movement_speed_meters = 9
| movement_speed_feet = 30
| weight_kg = 75
| weight_lb = 
| hiddenlevel = 6
| str = 23
| dex = 16
| con = 16
| int = 10
| wis = 10
| cha = 10
| initiative = +6

| feature1_name = Great Weapon Master: Bonus Attack
| feature1_description = If you kill a target or land a critical hit with a melee weapon, use a bonus action to make another melee weapon attack. 
| feature2_name = Dark Devotion
| feature2_description = Advantage on saving throws against Charmed and Frightened.
| feature3_name = Extra Attack
| feature3_description = Make an additional free attack after making an unarmed or weapon attack.
| feature4_name = Feral Instinct
| feature4_description = You gain a +3 to Initiative and can't be Surprised. 
| feature5_name = Opportunity Attack
| feature5_description = Automatically attack an enemy moving out of your reach.
| feature6_name = Improved Critical Hit
| feature6_description = The number you need to roll a Critical Hit while attacking is reduced by 1.
| feature6_mode = Tactician
| feature7_name = Tenacity (passive feature)
| feature7_description = Apply Bludgeoning damage, even on a miss. 
}}
}}
'''Flaming Fist Marcus''' is a former member of the [[Flaming Fist]], now turned into an elite agent of the [[Followers of the Absolute]]. 

== Involvement ==
=== Last Light Inn ===
When the party reaches [[Last Light Inn]], [[Jaheira]] is instantly wary of them and summons vines to stop them. She believes the party are True Souls. If Mol didn't survive [[Act One]], Marcus comes to vouch for the party, telepathically revealing that he is an Absolutist spy.

Revealing that Marcus is tadpoled to Jaheira will trigger a fight against him. He will have a [[Initiative#Surprised|surprise round]] where he will summon 13 [[Crawling Claw]]s and then disappear, returning to Moonrise Towers. He can however be defeated here if members of the party have the passive [[Alert]] or have the condition [[Elixir of Vigilance]]. Killing him here will prevent the abduction attempt when you first talk to [[Isobel]].

If Marcus wasn't killed earlier, when the party first goes to speak with Isobel on how to traverse through the Shadow-Cursed Lands, Marcus will show up on the balcony much to her shock. He will quickly reveal his loyalty to the Absolute and [[Ketheric Thorm]], urging Isobel to come with him to see the warlord. A critical choice is then made here:

* Fight against Marcus and his [[Winged Horror|Winged Horrors]] who will focus on taking down Isobel.
* Turn against Isobel, making Marcus and the Winged Horrors allies. The rest of the inn won't be hostile at first though. Doing so will put a huge divide with Jaheira and the [[Harpers]].
* If Isobel is defeated, the barrier protecting the Last Light Inn will fade, letting the shadow curse in. Everyone except Jaheira and the party will either die or become [[Shadow-Cursed Undead (Condition)|Shadow-Cursed Undead]]. This will make multiple questlines prematurely end along with losing merchants, some of who will no longer be active in [[Act Three]].

===Moonrise Towers===
If the player failed to protect Isobel and Marcus survived the fight in the [[Last Light Inn]], Marcus can be found inside Moonrise Towers, on the top floor near the door to [[Balthazar]]'s room.    
If Isobel was knocked out and thus abducted alive, Marcus will also be alive. If, however, Isobel didn't survive the abduction, Marcus will be found dead, presumably killed by an angry [[Ketheric Thorm]].

== Speak with Dead ==
Marcus can be spoken to with [[Speak with Dead]].

(If Isobel doesn't survive the abduction)

'''Player:''' Who were you before you became a True Soul?

* '''Marcus:''' Marcus Falgor... raised in... Baldur's Gate...

'''Player''': What do you know of Ketheric Thorm?

* '''Marcus:''' Chosen of... the Absolute. Wants... the cleric... more than anything.
'''Player''': Why were you after the cleric?

* '''Marcus''': Orders... of the General... Absolute's... Chosen...

'''Player''': Who is the Chosen?

* '''Marcus''': Ketheric... Thorm...

'''Player''': How did you come to follow the Absolute?

* '''Marcus:''' Squad... captured... enlightened...

'''Player:''' What is the Absolute's end game?

* '''Marcus:''' Enlightenment... love... power...

'''Player:''' Do you know the source of Ketheric's invulnerability?

* '''Narrator:''' *The corpse remains silent. It does not know.*

Player: Did you leave anything valuable behind?

* '''Marcus:''' Outside the inn... buried near graveyard... she found out...

== Combat ==
===Attacks and abilities===

{{Feature box|Main Hand Attack|item=Greatclub +1}}

{{Feature box|Vampiric Shout}}

{{Feature box|Fly (Class Action)}}

===Tactics===
'''Marcus''' is an incredibly aggressive great weapon fighter, who in the case of the encounter at the [[Last Light Inn]] will focus on [[Isobel]] in trying to knock her out. The fight there can end very quickly if he and the [[Winged Horror|Winged Horrors]] act first on [[Initiative]]. Being a dedicated [[Fighter]], his extra attack along with a bonus attack he can gain through a [[Critical Hit]] thanks to his Great Weapon Master passive.

The key to besting '''Marcus''' is preparation. During the conversation with him, shifting your party around to avoid getting caught up in his Vampiric Shout is a good way to avoid losing [[Concentration]] on a spell. An easy approach is to use [[Banishment]] to put him out of the fight, sparing Isobel his wrath and allowing the group to clear out the [[Winged Horror|Winged Horrors]]. By the time the spell ends, he will be no match against the full party and the Inn's defenders.

Alternatively adding barrels and other objects to block the entrances will help by confusing the enemies and limiting how many have to be fought at the same time. Some enemies will attack the blockades to gain access, using explosive barrels with torches or other effects can trick enemies into damaging themselves.

===Notable loot===

*{{RarityItem|Greatclub +1}}
*{{RarityItem|Half Plate Armour|alias=Half Plate Armour (Flaming Fist variant)|override_icon=Flaming_fist_half_plate_icon.jpg}}
*{{RarityItem|Shifting Corpus Ring}}
*{{RarityItem|Mind Flayer Parasite Specimen}}

== Gallery ==
<gallery heights="200px" mode="packed">
Marcus Wings.png|Marcus with wings.
Marcus Model.png|Marcus' model.
Marcus Model Wings.png|Marcus' winged model.
</gallery>

== Notes ==
{{notebegin}}
* If Marcus is killed while attempting to kidnap [[Isobel]], his body can later be found in the grass to the north of the Last Light Inn, seemingly dumped there unceremoniously during the cleanup after the attack.
* Can be spoken to with [[Speak with Dead]].
** When asked if he left anything valuable behind, he will answer with ''"Outside the inn... buried near graveyard... she found out..."''. Moving to the graveyard adjacent to Last Light Inn, there is a Flaming Fist's corpse {{Coords|-3|215}} directly east of the open graves where the [[Shield of Scorching Reprisal]] can be looted from. This implies that the dead [[Gnome]] Flaming Fist discovered Marcus' treachery, but was killed by him before she could warn the rest of the Fists and Harpers. A successful [[Perception]] check is needed to detect the rubble, and a subsequent [[Strength]] check is required to smash the rubble to find the body.
{{noteend}}

[[Category: Aberrations]]
{{NavShadowCursedLands}}
[[Category:Followers of the Absolute]]
[[Category:Flaming Fist]]
[[Category: Available to Speak with Dead]]