Strange visitors from places unknown, keepers are driven by a pathological need to learn the secrets of others. The magnitude of the secret does not matter to them, but rather its value to the person keeping it – they lust after state secrets that affect the lives of thousands just as much as the closely-guarded affairs of a single individual. When the keepers learn what they want to know, they kill their target and anyone else who might know the secret they’ve learned, keeping their hard-won knowledge to themselves.
Keepers resemble humans or half-elves at first glance, always gaunt and bald, wearing a heavy black coat and opaque glasses hiding a dreadful secret – they have no eyes, only black pits. All keepers look remarkably similar, making it difficult for outsiders to tell if they’ve dealt with a given keeper before. Sages believe that the keepers were created as a race of constucts for use as spies and guardians of hidden knowledge, but the process of creation went awry, causing the keepers to be created as free-willed beings who proceeded to kill their unknown creator. Of course, those who pry too deeply into the secret origin of the keepers tend to end up dead.
Though insanely driven, keepers can be reasoned with. They can be bribed with knowledge, and keep to the letter of any deal they make; they never willingly part with their secrets, however. Their manner is abrupt and disturbing, and even when they use diplomacy they come across as unsettling to mortals.
Keepers are highly intelligent, but they are poor innovators. When they find a tactic that works, they keep using it until it fails repeatedly. When entering combat, some keepers hang back in hiding, then use their body switch ability to replace their allies and further wear down their opponents.
Shores of Swords 