If I may offer a plot based on all ideas.
Actors:
Eryn - a fighter
Marcus - a paladin
Dr. Hiran Krauss - a wizard
Rirrik Lollygag - a (gnoll) bard
Ilura - a ranger
The Overlord and his lieutenants
A new evil
For decades the overlord, aided by his servants and Dr. Krauss, grew in power and annexed the lands to his empire.
Eryn has found herself in the middle of the conflict on one of her jobs, and she joined Marcus and his knight in a battle against one of the lieutenants. Too late to save the knight, but in time to make sure the then squire lived.
When the overlord fell, Marcus was among the forces that stormed the keep and was present when Dr. Krauss was caught. Remembering his vowes to his paragon, he offered a hand of peace to the mage.
Few years have passed and a new force started to rise to fill the void in power left by the Overlord's fall. There was of course struggle between remaining servants, but none amounted to much.
Marcus, used to traveling and fighting alongside someone, decided to accompany Eryn, trying to instill in her knightly ideals that he grew up with. After a while, he realized it would be he who took the mantle of the knight but continued traveling with his companion.
Rirrik was cast out of his tribe, but not before he felt the growing shadow fall on the land. Gnolls first, and then the rest of the world, would once again be drawn into a great conflict.
Ilura and her mentor had the misfortune to come upon the servants of the new force, and the man gave his life for his ward to survive. She vowed to avenge him and started her search for Eryn, a warrior she has traveled with in the past.
Rirrik sought out Dr. Krauss, who was a well-known figure among the gnolls, and while others mocked the tales of his change of heart, the bard saw it as a sign that things could be well again.
Once together, Krauss took Rirrik on a search for the man the mage knew could be counted on, Marcus.
And so through luck or fate, the five gathered together to find out more about the concealed threat, and maybe stop it before it was too late.