Arobynn Hamel was the King of the Assassins and the head of the Assassin's Guild, whose headquarters are located at the Assassins' Keep in Rifthold.
Biography[]
Early life[]
Arobynn is from an unknown kingdom that had been conquered by Adarlan. Not much else is known about Arobynn's early history, other than that he owned an estate in Terrasen near a river 10 years ago. During the fall of Terrasen, as a young man, Arobynn was summoned from his bed by Elena Galathynius in order to find the young princess Aelin Galathynius near the Avery River, and take her in.
The Assassin's Blade[]
The Assassin and the Pirate Lord[]
Arobynn convenes his assassins in a meeting to notify them of the death of his second-in-command, Ben. In addition, it is revealed that Arobyn also had Gregori killed to prevent him from revealing the location of the Guild of Assasins. Arobynn, although clearly disconcerted about the death of two of his assassins, maintains a cool demeanor. He prevents Sam Cortland and Celaena Sardothien from attacking each other during the meeting and has them—a few months later—meet with the pirate lord for reparations for the death of Ben. In the meeting, Sam and Celaena discover that Arobynn arranged a slave trade with Rolfe, the leading pirate lord.[1] They then worked together to free 200 slaves, ending in Celeana starting to have a romantic attraction to Sam. After they got back, Arobynn beat Celeana until she passed out, making Sam watch. Celeana later remembers that Sam had been screaming "I will kill you" repeatedly at Arobynn.
The Assassin and the Empire[]
Sam and Celeana decide that they wish to be freed from Arobynn's grasp. They tell him they wish to move and start another Guild somewhere else. He gives them an extraordinarily high price, and Celeana agrees, much to Sam's dismay and anger. Arobynn later arranges for Rourke Farran, the man Sam had tried to take down, to have Sam tortured and killed. With Sam dead, Celeana turns angry and tries to kill Farran and his master, Jayne, but is betrayed and sent to the Endovior Salt Mines. Arobynn then bribes the guards so that they wouldn't kill her, so then she would come crawling back to him when she returned, as he knew she would be able to brave the horrors of Endovier.
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Queen of Shadows[]
Arobynn conspires with Aelin to rescue her cousin Aedion Ashryver in return that she deliver him a Valg demon to study. However, he later betrays her, putting an (unbeknownst to him) fake Wyrdstone ring on Aelin's finger, in an attempt to use her to take control of Terrasen. He sends her away and is later killed by Lysandra, his whore and Aelin's friend, in his sleep, as Aelin realizes he can't be trusted.[2] Aelin takes additional advantage of Arobynn's death by replacing Arobynn's real will with one that she forged. The forged will left nearly everything to Aelin.
Empire of Storms[]
Arobynn is seen in a flashback from Elena, in which he is shown waking from his sleep due to Elena's compulsion and riding to find Aelin. He finds her, picks her up, and rides home.[3]
Personality and traits[]
Aelin remembers Arobynn as a strict and unforgiving mentor. An example of this is that when he found Aelin's swordsmanship to be lacking in her left hand, Arobynn gave her a choice to either break her right hand or have him break it for her. Aelin chose the former. However, this teaching style worked extremely well, as Aelin became Adarlan's premiere assassin because of it.
Arobynn is very cunning, manipulative, and possessive. He thinks of Aelin as his possession and does not wish to "share" her with anyone.
Despite his harsh training methods, he is shown to have a kinder side, as Arobynn takes Aelin into the Assassin's Guild after she seeks refuge there. It is implied that he loved Aelin romantically when he kissed her neck and ordered her to tell him she loved him, under the Valg ring's supposed control.[2]
Physical description[]
Arobynn was described as a tall, muscular, and handsome man with a fine-boned face, long auburn hair, silver eyes, and pale skin.
Abilities[]
- Combat: As an assassin, Arobynn was highly skilled in combat and weaponry.
- Stealth: Arobynn, as an assassin, was most likely extremely stealthy.
- Teaching: Arobynn was shown to be an extremely good teacher, as he turned Aelin - who had no experience in assassin skills - into Adarlan's Assassin.
- Leadership: Arobynn was an effective leader of the Guild of Assassins.
Relationships[]
Aelin Galathynius[]
Arobynn had a complicated relationship with Aelin, as he treated her harshly and trained her mercilessly to become a feared assassin. Arobynn may have had a romantic interest in Aelin, due to his actions while he believed that she was under his control. Despite whatever he felt for her, Arobynn left next to nothing to her in his will and spent years keeping the Amulet of Orynth from her, after finding it with her after the murder of her parents.
Appearances[]
- The Assassin's Blade (first appearance)
- The Assassin and the Pirate Lord
- The Assassin and the Healer (mentioned only)
- The Assassin and the Desert (mentioned only)
- The Assassin and the Underworld
- The Assassin and the Empire
- Throne of Glass (mentioned only)
- Crown of Midnight (mentioned only)
- Heir of Fire (mentioned only)
- Queen of Shadows
- Empire of Storms (mentioned only)
- Empire of Storms Exclusive (Target) (mentioned only)
- Tower of Dawn (mentioned only)
- Kingdom of Ash (mentioned only)
Trivia[]
- Before moving his residence to Rifthold, Arobynn resided in his Keep on the border between Adarlan and Terrasen.[4]
- SJM has stated on her Youtube Channel that Arobynn is the character she misses writing the most.