Ahem, just to be sure... you
have checked the Rogue's Gallery already, right?
Here are some of my characters backstories from the PbP forum:
Taz
Lightfoot Halfling Rogue/Sorcerer
Appearance: Taz is 22 years old, stands 3' tall and weights 29 lbs. Her long and straight black hair is bound to a pony tail. Her eyes are brown with a warm and friendly look. She prefers comfortable clothes of dark colors. On top of those she wears her chain shirt and a bandoleer with a dozen small pouches.
Background: Taz is an orphan. She was raised in Waterdeep by an elven family. Her "father" is a respected wizard with the name Enialis Nightbreeze and her "mother" Lia Nightbreeze is a craftswomen. Ever since her "father" noticed Taz' arcane talent he was eager to instruct her in the wizardly ways, but she was not quite a perfect student, often exploring the city instead of learning her lessons. Despite her obvious lack of interest she has discovered the talent that rests in her and slowly begins to explore its possibilities. Her interest in the arcane ways has grown during the last years, but she chose to find out more about them on her own. She left her familiy to journey the continent, looking for interesting places and persons. With the promise to return one day and her few belongings she headed to the east.
Personality: Taz is a notoriously curious and friendly person. She is fearless and very loyal to those she calls her friends. She is also very optimistic and quite confident in her abilities.
Goals: To find out more about her magical talents and to return to her family one day to show her "father" that his teachings were not completely lost on her. To see interesting places and meet interesting persons on the way. Those are Taz' current goals.
Eshe’ri Wolfchylde
Human Druid
Appearance: Eshe’ri is only slightly taller than the elven women and has a slender yet athletic build. Being human, she has a more rounded face and more prominent curves. Her auburn hair is worn shoulder-long and open, with green eyes underlining her pleasant look. This look is quite appealing even to elven standards, altho she lacks the unearthly grace and fine features of her sisters. She has her own natural charm. Eshe’ri is dressed in simple and comfortable clothes of green and grey color, loose fitting pants and shirt, soft leather boots and a wide cloak. She is accompanied by a grey wolf named Scar, the name obviously stems from the pretty large scar at his right side, which must have been an almost mortal wound once.
Background: When she was still a baby, 18 years ago, her parents travelled with her into the Evermere Forest. They were attacked by wolves and killed swiftly, however, for some reason the wolves didn’t attack the child. The elves found her shortly thereafter and picked her up to bring her into an elvish settlement deep within the forest. The council decided that she may stay and live amongst the elves of Evermere. So she was raised by them and, because she was not an elf herself, received the name Eshe’ri, which means ‘friend of elves’, and indeed she became a trusted friend over time. Years passed during which the young Eshe’ri learned to live in harmony with nature. A deep affinity to the forest spirits grew within her and she followed the call and became a guardian of the forest, a druid. From then on she was known as Eshe’ri Wolfchylde. One day, on a ramble through Evermere, she found a badly wounded wolf on a forest clearing, wounded by a wicked blade. After she had treated the wolf’s wound, she returned to her home with him and nurtured the wolf, until he was back to full health. A visible scar was left still, after the wound had healed completely, and so she named the wolf Scar, who stayed with her and was trained by her. Over time a deeper bond formed between the two and Scar became her companion. After a while, she left Evermere to travel the nearby human lands to learn some more about her heritage. The so-called civilized lands weren’t quite what she expected, though. Mistrust and jealousy predominated the human lands. Hatred was born which culminated into a civil war, where brothers and sisters fought each other to the death. This was not the place where Eshe’ri belonged to. She had already decided to return, when an animal messenger brought her a notice, that she should visit the council as soon as possible. Because of the imminent dangers, the Sentinels - the guardians and protectors of Evermere - where to be increased in numbers and she was offered a place among their ranks. This was a great honor indeed, which only few non-elves had ever been considered for in the past.
Willow
Wood Elven Druid of Mielikki
Appearance: Willow is quite tall for an elf. Her slender and athletic body is in perfect shape. Even for a wood elf, she is pretty strong, altho not among the strongest of her kind. Willow has a very attractive appearance, her shoulder-long coppery-red hair line a beautiful face and her emerald-green eyes sparkle like gems. Willow is clad in the simple dark green and earth-toned clothing, that is typical for the wood elves. She is wearing a long hooded cloak of grey-green color and a leather armor, and besides the beautifully crafted longsword at her side, a large oaken staff is her only weaponry. Her remaining gear is stashed into a shoulder bag or into small pouches at her belt.
Background: Born in the High Forest, Willow is the daughter of a hunter family. Her father is a ranger sworn to Mielikki and her mother is a skilled herbalist. During her childhood, she has learned from her parents, about archery and swordplay and about the ways of nature. Willow was never good with the longbow, but she has always shown an affinity for plants and animals and so it was just natural, that one day she was presented to the druids and soon after invited to their order. Her father has many friends among the druids, many of whom follow the same path of the Forest Queen. Willow has been seperated from her family for years, while she was initiated into the secret ways of the druid order.
Still young for an elf, she traveled the High Forest, but also distant lands, during her training. She learned more about nature and her affinity and about friends and foes, her senses sharpened and she was introduced into the magic of the druids. Many years passed until Willow finally went back to see her family once more. Not much had changed in the High Forest during the time, the wood elves still battled advancing orc warbands occasionally and her father was out to protect the borders, which he often did in the past. Willow's mother smiled happily as her daughter entered the tree-house, that she called home. The two took a long walk through the nearby forest area, visiting places that Willow held dear during her childhood. A few days later her father returned. Still weakened from the many combats he was bearing the proud stance of a victor. At his side a beautiful white wolf traveled with him and his smile widened as he noticed Willow standing next to his wife. The wolf also noticed the young elf and there was something, an almost mythical connection between the two. Willow's father noticed this as well, and it was immediately clear to him, that the wolf he had befriended on his last journey wasn't staying with him. This thought was not saddening him, but instead filled him with joy. The white wolf, Willow called him Ivory as her father had not yet given him a name, became her animal companion. During the next days Willow's father recovered from his wounds and the three often talked about the last decades and what had changed. Willow went out with her newly found friend a lot, to play and to train him.
One night, during her Reverie, Willow had a dream. She dreamed of a city full of white and silver, lined with trees and beautiful like a gem in a scarred land. She saw unicorns wandering the deserted streets of the city and a copper-headed girl walking amongst them. Later the unicorns faded and the streets filled with people, elves and humans, but also a few others. The copper-headed girl still stood there when she awoke. Willow had seen more, but she couldn't remember anything but shadowy blackness anymore. She told her parents about her dream and her father said, that it must be Mielikki's will, that she traveled to that place. Since Willow didn't have any duties from her order currently, she visited one of the elder druids to tell him about her dream and the journey she wanted to undertake. He agreed, that she should follow that path and he also told her, that it could only be Silverymoon, a beautiful city far in the North, that she had dreamed of. So Willow prepared for another time of travel, packing together the few belongings she needed. Her father gave her his old sword, a blade he had achieved many victories with, to protect her against any dangers she might find abroad. Willow happily accepted and early on the morning of the following day she set out and left her home once more.
Alexi
Human Wizard
Appearance: Alexi is an attractive, young woman, barely 18 years old. She is rather small, slender and willowy (5'4", 115 lb). Alexi's long brunette hair is worn open with braids along the sides, her brown eyes are warm and friendly. Her skin is sun-tanned, altho her complexion is otherwise fairly normal.
She is wearing dark-blue robes and a grey cloak. Most of her equipment is carried in a shoulder bag, or in small pouches at her belt. When travelling outside, Alexi is riding on her black stallion Hurricane, a fierce warhorse with a temper to match his name-giver, and she is accompanied at all times by a small black raven named Blackwing.
Background: Alexi grew up in a small village in the south-east of Silleria. It was a very easy life. Her mother was a herbalist, while her father was training horses to sell to the militia. Sometimes travelers, aiming for the vast mountain ranges, came into the village to buy food and other goods. Naturally the children were curiously watching these on their stay. Alexi wasn't different. One day, a single traveler, a woman clad in dark-coloured robes, came to her village. While mustering the children, her gaze stopped when she looked upon young Alexi. There was something about this girl, a talent, that was rarely seen these days. Neither Alexi nor her parents or friends had noticed this talent, but the strange traveler did. She offered her parents to take the girl with her into the Fiernas Cabal and train Alexi in the mystic ways, the arcane ways, wizardry, spellcasting. It was indeed a rare occurance and so the parents agreed, proud to have such a talented daughter. The following years were filled with study and training, sometimes boring, but most often not. Her natural curiosity complemented her talent quite well and so Alexi quickly learned how to cast the first spells. After a few years her initial study was over and she was sent outside of the Cabal to travel the country and hone her skills. Of course, her first way led her back to the small village and her parents, who joyfully expected her return. Alexi stayed for a week, during which her father gave her one of his best horses, a black stallion named Hurricane, to carry her swiftly on his mighty back and protect her on her travels. And so she continued her journey to the north-west, to find knowledge and adventure...
Rahja
Human Sorceress/Incantatrix of Sune
Appearance: Rahja is a gorgeous young woman. She is of average height and has a slender and willowy build. Her auburn hair is worn waist-long and open and her green eyes further complement her attractive appearance. She just seems to have been blessed with beauty by her patron deity Sune. Not being shy or bashful about her body, Rahja favors skimpy and revealing outfits, most often wearing a dark-coloured long skirt with a cut along the right leg up to the hip and only a brassière to show off her figure. Her clothing is always form-flattering as well as clean and tidy. Rahja wears unostentatious jewelry to underline, but not distract from her appearance.
Background: Rahja was born to an unmarried mother, a tavern wench working in the small miner town of Deadsnows far in the north. She never knew her father. Rahja often helped in the tavern, where her mother was working. Her life was easy-going and so the years passed until one day Deadsnows was assaulted by invading forces from the north. Most inhabitants were slaughtered on the spot, including Rahja's mother. Only a few prisoners were made, among them a young, pretty girl, who was obviously worth more alive than dead. Rahja was sold into slavery, some vile sorcerer bought her as a servant. She was brought to his tower somewhere in the wilderlands and had to clean, cook and perform similar duties for him.
A time of sorrow followed, altho Rahja was lucky still, that her master had no intent to hurt her. Every night she sent prayers to the gods, begging to rescue her from this prison. During this time she also discovered her knack for the arcane, but she tried to keep it secret from him, hoping that one day she might use it to escape her prison. She observed her master and tried to learn as much as she could and further practiced in secret whenever she was alone. Of course, eventually she was caught and her talent was discovered. Knowing about the dangers her master called powerful beings from other planes to watch over her, when he wasn't around. It almost looked like she could never break free from his grasp.
During one night, however, Rahja had a dream. She dreamed of a beautiful red-haired woman and of a way to escape. The devil that was bound to guard her was a fearsome monster. From observing her master during the past, she knew that these beings were not easy to keep under control and that they would try to subvert their instructions whenever a possibility arose. This particular outsider was ordered to guard her and Rahja was able to persuade him that the only thing she could possibly be guarded from was her master himself. The devil's vile grinning was a sign for his upcoming revenge. Rahja was frightened, she didn't know what would happen, but it was the only chance and so she didn't hesitate to try.
When her master returned the devil immediately attacked him with all his might. Caught by surprise he was badly wounded before he could even fight back and so he didn't notice that Rahja used her own spells now to break free and get outside, and the devil didn't care about her anymore, completely focused on his revenge against the one who called him.
Rahja was free for the first time since years and she ran as fast as she could. She ran for hours upon hours until she finally collapsed inside a small forest, completely exhausted. When she awoke, she couldn't believe her eyes. The creature standing close to her was huge and of a radiant appearance. Was it an angel? Did she finally die? The picture only lasted a split-second, then it was gone. Rubbing her eyes she got on her feet to find fresh clothing and delicious food waiting for her.
A few years have passed since then. Rahja has learned more about her magical powers, the planes and about the red-haired woman, that appeared in her dream. She has become a devout follower of Sune, protecting all things beautiful whenever she can, trying to live a life of passion and granting others the freedom to do so.
Lenya
Human Sorceress
Appearance: Lenya is a young and attractive woman. Her auburn hair is worn shoulder-long and her green eyes underline her friendly and pleasant appearance. A subtle smile usually carries this impression as well. She often wears some simple silver jewelry, a pair of rings and bracelets. There is something special about her, which is hard to put into words. Like a faint and subtle aura. Maybe it's just her good looks combined with the strong personality, but it almost feels like there is something powerful lurking underneath, seductive, alluring, commanding... It's not a bad feeling at all, but it is unnerving to some degree. It's surely nothing to worry about, she's just a pretty girl, right?
When traveling, her outfit is usually comfortable and dark, with long black breaches, sturdy black boots, a loose-fitting black shirt and a wide dark-grey hooded cloak. She also has a set of flashy, green clothes, with a short skirt and revealing top, which she usually wears during a tavern stay to perform an alluring dance to the local bard's music, earning some coins, but sometimes also wears for travelling under the hot summer sun. Her clothes are always clean and tidy.
Personality: Lenya is a friendly and good soul. She is helpful and tries to get along with everyone. However, she has a certain problem with authorities, she has her own head and her own views. Lenya has an alluring charm and she doesn't hesitate to use it for her advantage, manipulating others this way, combined with her powers of witchery. She is also rather curious and never shy for an excuse. Lenya has no real goal in her life, except to experience the beauty of the moment and earn some money to live a happy life, and to further improve her magical powers, of course. She doesn't really plan ahead too far, rather letting herself flow to wherever her journey leads her.
Background: Lenya has been born in a small village in the south of Solmaria, her parents being farmers, happy with their simple lives. Lenya never really fit into this community, always dreaming of a larger life, travelling the country, discovering secrets and meeting new and interesting people. When her talent started to show, people looked upon her with various feelings, ranging from curiosity to jealousy. During her early teens, she often neglected the farmwork to practice her newly discovered powers and quickly learned to manipulate her inborn energies intuitively.
A few years later, it was obvious, that she couldn't just stay there forever and her parents, altho reluctant to let her go, felt that it was the only way to Lenya's own luck. They scrapped together every money they had saved up and bought some travel equipment for their unusual daughter. With tears in their eyes they wished her farewell and best of luck on her journey. They will never forget the mixture of joyful expectation and sadness in their daughter's look at this morning. And so Lenya's journey had begun...
During the following year she learned a lot from travellers she met and from her own observations. She earned some money on the way, which she mostly spent on magical materials, bought by an elderly woman in a remote village, to call her familiar - a small, black raven, whom she named Midnight, because it was at midnight, when the animal arrived, called by an exhausting ritual performed inside a deep forest apart from the usual travel routes.
When she arrived in Faunt a few days ago, the new emperor Joahna I had just proclaimed his first two edicts after a period of mourning over the loss of his father. Because of these laws, Lenya is hiding her talent from others now, using her mundane skills to earn some money to pay for her tavern stays. She plans to leave this forsaken city as soon as possible...
Silvermoon
Grey Elven Rogue/Diviner/Arcane Trickster
Appearance: Silvermoon is a slender and attractive elven girl. Her shoulder-long silverblonde hair is worn open and her emerald green eyes are sparkling with curiousity. As most grey elves, she is quite tall, almost like a human, but with a small frame and graceful body. Silvermoon is most commonly dressed in simple and comfortable clothing of dark color, mostly black with a grey-green cloak, contrasted by her fair skin and silvery hair.
Background: Born in a small elven town in the great forest of Degal, Silvermoon had a happy childhood. Her parents being artisans and craftsmen of high skill were living a reclusive live deep within the forest, only dealing with others occasionally to trade their exclusive wares for things they couldn't make themselves. While the fascination for the beautiful creations of her parents left their daughter learning from them, she had many other interests as well. Remarkably outgoing and curious for a grey elf, Silvermoon often met with a young half-elven rogue she was acquainted with and who teached her his 'trade' during the long hours they roamed the town and forest together. After a few years, the boy had grown into a man, while Silvermoon still was very young, and he left the forest to find adventure and wealth. She stayed with her parents for another few decades and while she got older, her father introduced her into another fine elven art, the art of magic. This was something, Silvermoon showed a considerable knack for, and she learned to cast her first spells unusually fast. She also showed a lot of creativity in application and was quickly experimenting on her own as well. During the following years, Silvermoon started to wonder, what her half-elven friend was up to now and whether he had found what he left for, and an unresistable urge grew within her, to follow his example and leave the great forest to find her own adventure. And so she started to travel her home country of Degal and the neighbouring Flynn. While earning money by tailoring luxurous clothes and crafting fine jewelry for the wealthy, she picked up a lot of useful knowledge and meanwhile further honed her mundane and magical skills, even blending together the two to a degree.
Dara Dragondaughter
Human Ranger/Barbarian/Rogue
Appearance: Dara is a buff blonde. She is 5'9" tall, weighs 130 lb. and her lithe body is athletic and well-proportioned. Her straight blond hair is worn waist-long, her eyes are green and her usually fair skin has a slight tan. Dara is 21 years old. She wears a short fur trimmed skirt made of leather and matching brassiere and boots. On top, she wears her pitch black chain shirt, when expecting danger; the mithril links do not seem to hurt the skin like normal chain armor would and Dara likes the cool touch to her skin. Her large sword is carried on the back and other than that, she only has a small backpack and a belt with a few pouches. Dara obviously prefers to travel light.
Background: Dara was raised as a member of the dragon tribe, who were living far in the north-east of Eärwa in a small village near the Great Northern Kayarsus and raiding from there. The barbarians were vicious warriors and took whatever they could aquire on their constant raids. While not as cruel as the Scylvendi they were everything but nice. Dara was no exception. Once she had reached a certain age, she often accompanied raiding parties as a scout and a warrior, hunting down farmers, villagers, travellers, plundering hamlets and small villages, whatever crossed their path. It was a life full of battle and full of victory, there was not much opposition for the warrior tribe. They won fight after fight, until one day... they lost.
On one of their raids, they battled slavers from the far south, but were outmatched and outnumbered. Most of her brothers and sisters died this day and the few that survived were taken prisoner. Dara, being an attractive woman, was obviously worth more alive than dead. She was taken to the south, where she was sold into slavery a few weeks later. Her new master took her westwards towards the heart of the continent, Dara had never been there before.
A time of humiliation followed. It was her own personal hell with no way to escape. Once every few nights she was taken into her master's sleeping chamber and while she had done worse things in the past it was the total loss of control that made her suffer the most. Dara learned the hard way, how her victims of the past must have felt.
She would have died there for sure, if not for another woman, Sinara, who shared her fate. She was a burglar and a thief, who had been caught and ended up here much like Dara. She always plotted for her escape, the glimpse of hope kept her above the sorrow, and she possessed the skills to actually make it happen. Dara learned a lot from her, how to circumvent the alarm traps outside of their living quarter and how to open the locks that held them prisoner. It lasted well over a year, until one morning, Sinara was gone. She had finally tried to break free, but it was not freedom that she found, but death. She had been caught and killed swiftly.
Another few months had passed, when everything changed. Dara was accompanying her master on a long journey. Their ship, that crossed the Sea of Nyranisas southwards, was attacked by pirates and the crew including her master was slain during the resulting combat. The valuables, including herself, were taken over to the pirate's ship and brought to an island somewhere to the west.
The pirate captain, Rangor the Red, was a giant of a man, standing well over 6 feet tall and his muscled body rivaled the strongest men Dara had ever seen. Rangor kept his men away from their prescious bounty and on the next day, he offered Dara a chance. A fight for her fate, for the enjoyment of his men. When he would beat her, she had to stay with him and follow his orders, but if not, she would be free and he would bring her to whatever shore she desired. While she was proud of her battle prowess, Dara knew the fight was heavily stacked against her, yet she had nothing to lose.
It was a spectacular fight, she ducked under his mighty swings and managed to hit him a few times. Some tricks, Sinara had shown her, could be put to good use there. It almost looked like she would beat him, his movements became slower and slower and his swings less powerful... almost. The crowd was cheering loudly, obviously enjoying the show. When Dara raised her arm for the final blow, which should fell the giant, a mighty swing hit her straight on the head. She toppled over and passed out.
When she opened her eyes, the strong arm of Rangor was stretched out to pull her back to her feet. He smiled and Dara knew her fate was sealed. “You are the first woman to beat me.” What!? What did he just say? When he had knocked her out, she hit him at the very same moment and he had been down as well. While it wasn't a full victory, it was enough for him to accept, that he had not beaten her and so she was free to go. “It's a shame, I would have enjoyed your company,” Rangor said, while his smile broadened. She turned around and looked right into his eyes. “Love is so much better, when it is given, not taken.”
Dara spent another night at the pirate's camp. Rangor was a good lover, he was not like she had expected, gentle and soft, and he respected her, as a warrior and as a woman. On the next morning the ship set out, and as promised, he brought her to whatever shore she desired. A new life had begun...
Bye
Thanee
sorry honey) when she was roughly 11th or so. A new character with this background would be a Sorceror, aiming for Alienist.
