In Horizon Forbidden West and its predecessor Horizon Zero Dawn, Blameless Marad is a minor yet integral character that factors into some essential quests for Aloy's journey through the Carja Sundom. Most likely born a Carja nobleman, Marad is a senior official within the Sun-King's Court in the Carja's Holy City of Meridian, where he faithfully serves Sun-King Avad, fourteenth Luminance of the Radiant Line. A mastermind at politics and a shrewd spymaster, Marad manages the immense spy network throughout the Sundom, extending his grasp even to the summer palace at Sunfall, which is considered a hostile entity during Horizon's timeline.
Since his primary profession deals with trading in secrets, whispers, and rumors, Blameless Marad demonstrates a practical mind for digesting and coalescing the numerous amounts of information he obtains. He remarks to Aloy that his methodologies for sourcing and relaying information are formed because all knowledge, intelligence, and conclusions are presented in likelihood rather than certainty. He does not merely seek out what seems correct, but considers all possibilities and motives and then examines the nature behind such concepts and information, which allows him to deduce what is most likely accurate. Though Blameless Marad is privy to fountains of knowledge, little is known about him as he cryptically answers any personal questions.
Working for the Sun-Kings
It isn't known when Blameless Marad began working for Avad's father, Jiran, the Mad King, yet Marad's presence within Jiran's court was tantamount to the King's eventual defeat. Jiran's paranoia and bloodlust continued to grow, culminating in the Red Raids, which saw the subjugation of the neighboring tribes and their sacrifice in the Sun Ring to appease the Deranged Machines through ten years of war. Blameless Marad deduced how detrimental to Carja society these events were and, through subterfuge and deception, worked to ensure Avad's rebellion, augmented by the Oseram Vanguard, was successful. Engineering the Liberation of Meridian from the Mad King without being caught, especially by Jiran's champion Helis, demonstrates how skillful Marad is in his work.
Under Avad, Blameless Marad shares the new King's vision of peace with all the tribes, as he sees this unification as the only way to ensure the future of the Carja civilization. Marad displays only loyalty to Avad and his wishes throughout the games, ensuring that his many spies and scouts are loyal to him, the Carja, or the Oseram, who also work to further Avad's cause. He is rarely seen far from Avad, as he has indicated to Aloy that he reveres and respects the young King and will do anything to ensure Avad's rule is safe.
Horizon Zero Dawn
In Horizon Zero Dawn, Aloy first meets Marad while she's investigating the death of Oseram Vanguard Captain Ersa, who is Erend's sister. Erend had begged Aloy to use her "second sight," the Focus, to investigate Ersa's murder from the rebellious Shadow Carja - Jiran loyalists who had survived the Liberation and Avad's rise to power. Aloy's search discovered evidence that suggested Ersa was possibly alive and that a rebel faction of Oseram was to blame, as they ambushed her with an engineered device used to lure Machines to attack.
When Aloy presented this information to Marad and Avad, the spymaster sifted through his collected information and ascertained that the Oseram warlord Dervahl could be the only man skilled enough to orchestrate such an attack. Through an informant at the Oseram town of Pitchcliff, Marad successfully sent Aloy and Erend to the village to learn the location of Dervahl and where he took Ersa. Though Aloy could not save Ersa, Marad's intelligence information led to Dervahl's camp, where plans to destroy Meridian were discovered. Marad continued to work tirelessly, deducing the alias Dervahl used to access Meridian and finding the location of explosives planned to incinerate the city.
Horizon Forbidden West
After the Battle of the Alight, which saw the defeat of HADES, Helis, and the Shadow Carja, a light is seen flashing at the Spire, lasting mere moments. Confirming it wasn't a trick of the light and originating from Aloy's spear, which was used to defeat HADES, Marad sent out informants and scouts to find Aloy, who had left Meridian shortly after the battle. While Aloy returns to Meridian at the behest of Varl months later, Marad's information leads her to discover Sylen's deception through the spear, which transmitted the HADES signal to the Forbidden West. Determined to follow at all costs, Blameless Marad arranges for Aloy to attend the Embassy at Barren Light between the Carja and the Tenakth tribe to help her venture into the West safely.
Horizon Call of the Mountain
At Sony's State of Play on June 2, 2022, Guerrilla Games unveiled their upcoming VR Sony exclusive, Horizon Call of the Mountain, where players will assume the role of Reyes, a new protagonist in the franchise. In the trailer, Blameless Marad is referenced and heard urging the protagonist to earn his freedom from prison to discover why the Machines are attacking. This statement indicates that the timeline for Horizon Call of the Mountain is before the Red Raids and the start of the Derangement, highlighting Marad's role in the Carja court and perhaps his eventual actions to help overthrow the Mad King.
Marad may feature prominently in Horizon Call of the Mountain and could provide players with more answers on exactly who he is, his true backstory, and his eventual goals beyond what's referenced in the main Horizon series. Regardless, there is no doubt that there is plenty left to explore about Blameless Marad and his life, work, and actions during the Red Raids.
While an enigmatic man on a personal level, Blameless Marad is a shrewd spymaster and brilliant politician who serves Sun-King Avad at the palace in Meridian. Successfully assisting in overthrowing the Mad King and his reign of terror through subterfuge, Marad has proven himself a loyal and worthy ally to Avad and, by extension, Aloy, as his methods for gathering and deducing information have been vital to both of their success. In Guerrilla Game's Horizon Call of the Mountain, players can expect to see the same level of mastery and care as he sets the game's protagonist forward on a quest to further protect the Carja.
Horizon Forbidden West is available on PS4 and PS5.