Garbaldis Menotti was a folk hero to the fractured nation of Balitello. Once a great empire in the old continent of Zarcosia, Balitello itself survived the Age of Chaos, but inner strife, mistrust, and war broke the nation into several city-states. Garbaldis grew up on stories of ancient Balitello and learned everything about the disjointed nation traveling through every city-state with his merchant family. After some time fighting among the Freeguilds outside Balitello, Garbaldis returned home swearing to unite the region once more. Through his travels, everyone had something to say about him. Noble of heart, inspiring to a fault, dynamic on the battlefield as he was at court, and a cavalier persona aware of his reputation. Yet all agreed that Garbaldis was one of the finest tactical warriors of his time. Garbaldis’ dream of a unified Balitello seemed inevitable after years of fighting to unite the city-states, but the catastrophic Jhokulapse saw Balitello consumed into the Spine of Jhokul mountains and most of its citizenry killed, including Garbaldis.
But that was not the end of Garbaldis, for Sigmar saved his soul and reforged the Blade of Balitello into a Stormcast Eternal of the Astral Templars. But upon meeting the God King and hearing his plans to return the new Stormcast to his ancestral homeland, now known as the Jhokulands, Garbaldis forsook Sigmar and refused the order out of fear and sorrow. Sigmar surprisingly agreed and allowed Garbaldis to follow his personal quest. The Knight-Errant Garbaldis traveled the realms reconciling with his new eternal life and offering his services to the mortal races. From civilizations in Aqshy, Ghur, and Chamon, Garbaldis provided his tactical and martial skills to aid the creation and preservation of several Cities of Sigmar. His cavalier persona only grew in his new role, drawing the admiration of mortals and condensation of his fellow non-Astral Templars. His experiences began to weigh on his choice to condemn Sigmar, and offered reflection of what he could aspire to accomplish. In the climactic siege of Karzgard, Garbaldis and his Freeguild forces struggled to breach the walls of the Chaos-held city. The Knight-Errant charged the daemon-infused gate and broke it open at the cost of his life, but his endeavor was not in vain as the Freeguild stormed inside and eventually captured Karzgard.
When Garbaldis was reforged, Sigmar again summoned him with a new offer: to lead a new Thunderstrike host of Astral Templars and take command of the stormhost in the Jhokulands. The God King then revealed that an unexpected catastrophe on the continent had seen Balitello reborn, and asked the folk hero of old to claim the territory for Azyr. With pride in his heart and the humbling of his new life on his mind, Garbaldis gladly accepted Sigmar’s offer and took up the mantle of a Lord-Imperatant. He would serve as the moral compass for his Thunderstrike brethren mentally fatigued from reforging, and lead the Astral Templars at the head of a Dawnbringer Crusade to accomplish his dream of a unified Balitello.
