Wardens of Heroes Gate

Dawndra Norlandr

“Three things cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon, and the truth.”

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PC: Dawndra Norlandr
Dawndra is an Arktikos, though she does not know it. She is a Monk from the Treyvigg Monastery following her unique way under tutelage… The Way of the Ice Pike. She knows nothing of her birth but lived 20 years on the isle of Norland in the Moonshaes and then has spent the past 10 years living in the Treyvigg Monastery in Amn.

Level 03

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Description:
Dawndra is just over 7 and a half feet tall. Her skin is lightly tinted blue but is entirely covered by a fine white fur, giving her an appearance like snow-covered ice. Her pure white hair is long – nearly the length of her back – which she generally keeps tied in braid secured by a curious hairpin that appears to be made of ice. All of her life she has worn only simple cloth robes and prefers nothing at all when alone in her own company.

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Combat Tactics:
Dawndra is highly trained as a martial fighter and exceptionally skilled in the art of defense. In the majority of scenarios, she will prefer to take the Dodge action and rarely initiates combat herself. Her weapon of choice is the ice-born hairpin she wears. With a simple flick of will, the pin can expand to the length of her choice – up to ten feet long. When she was young, she found she could only cause it to enlarge to dagger-size, but with practice and age, she could use it like a piercing sword and then eventually the length of a spear and pike. Getting past her defenses in melee combat is difficult. She is also unwilling to kill for sport or spite. If she can accomplish submission she will show mercy to most combatants.

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Roleplaying:
Dawndra is stoic. She has a low charisma and is not likely to engage in word-play or theatrics. Her uncommon looks and size will tend to both fascinate and intimidate many in the realms. This does not bother her – she is likely not to even notice strange looks. When not on task, she is drawn – always – to practice. Rather than drink in a tavern, she is more likely to find a quiet spot behind the tavern to practice her forms and her breathing techniques. Her Heavens Orbit flow-form practice need only be performed for 30 minutes a day to benefit but she will often spend hours in the meditative state of flow. Dawndra is also not very worldly-wise. Like any monk recently entering the outside world beyond the monastery, much of society still does not make a lot of sense. She is not naïve however – she has been trained to trust very slowly.

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Objective(s):

Dawndra’s primary objective is to train and test her martial skills. Beyond that, she has deep questions about her origins. She has never met another person like herself – and she has never met a person who has ever met another person like herself. The mystery is always with her.

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Motivations and Temptations:

Dawndra is motivated by physical and martial challenge. She may be tempted to overestimate her own strengths as a result.

Dawndra is also motivated by the truth of her own existence. Being truly and obviously one of a kind in the world can be both inspiring and painful. She is unlikely to twist herself into conformity in response to her oddness, but she does face a temptation to isolate. When alone she is never out of place.

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Relationships:

Dawndra has never had any sort of intimate relationship with another – although the inclinations have been there for many years. She spends no time thinking about this normal aspect of life

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Characteristics: 

Traits:
Ideals:
Bonds:
Flaws:

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Background:

Dawndra Norlandr appears vagely human, mostly. Many mistake her for one of the Barbarian tribe women of the Savage North until they get a little closer. She has long white hair, is over 7 and a half feet tall and her face and skin is covered in a fine white fur.

Dawndra is an Arktikos, though she does not know it. No one she has ever met knows what she is or where her kind actually hails from. She was raised by a Firbolg family on Norland in the Moonshae Isles but it was always apparent she was from elsewhere.

An Urthgardt Shaman discovered her among ship wreckage along the northern coast of Norland. The Shaman could see by her size, and the odd skin covering, that she was not quite human, so he took her into the Jotunhammer Mountains and found a Firbolg family which was willing to raise her as one of theirs.

Dawndra was found wrapped in fur which was held together by a curious pin. It looked to be made of pure ice and felt icy-cold to the touch yet it never melted. No other clues were ever found to explain who, or even what, Dawndra is.

As she grew up, and as her hair grew long, she used the odd ice pin to contain it. If ever the hairpin was more than a few feet away from her, she would feel it’s gravity-like pull. No one would be able to take it and hide it from her. She discovered as a teenager that she could will it in her hands to expand into the length of a dagger and then back to a hairpin with just the thought. Soon, when she was nearing 20 years of age, the adornment would reach 8 feet long. It became a mighty spear in her hands but she knew not how to use it.

It was then she decided to leave her home on Norland Isle and seek out martial master who could teach her to wield a spear in battle with strength and prowess. She started looking for a teacher in Baldurs Gate.  She was referred to Monastery of St. Domin by a sailor and hopped on a ship to Tethyr that same day. It was a disappointment for her however as they did not appear to have the martial expertise she was looking for. She wandered the region for several months taking on whatever work she could find – which led her to working vineyards in a small winery in the Small Teeth. She spent an entire season in the hillside vineyards and living in the worker shacks before even entering Treyvigg Monstary grounds. She was amazed to find groups practicing martial forms, specificall defensive forms and – to her delight – there was a Elder spear-master there. He soon  recommended she become a novice. That was ten years ago and today she is one of the most respected Guides teaching in Treyvigg.

Dawndra did not need her teachers in the temple to over-teach her self-discipline, that came naturally to her. She is often stoic in nature but can be kind when the moment calls for it. She is willing to risk to protect or help those who need help but cares little for the expectations of others (Neutral Good). She would rather be practicing her forms over most other activities. She usually wears only the simple blue silk robes of an adept of her order.

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References:
Links out to sources about character class, race, etc.

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https://www.skullsplitterdice.com/blogs/dnd/firbolg-5e

https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com/wiki/Northlander

Race: Arktikos

Class: Monk

Subclass: Way of the Ice Pike

Common, Illuskan, Giant

Monastery – Treyvigg Monastery

This is what I am working on for my intro scenes

Intro

Dawndra is sitting around the ice pit… watching the contest, waiting to be called into the second round fights. She has traveled many tendays North from Tethyr to enter the competition. The Frozenfar Fray Games contest is sponsored by the Tribe of the Bear once a year, and primarily features members of the various Reghedmen Tribes but is open to any contestant. Cost to enter the games is 100 Gold, which goes entirely to the winners pot.

There are 3 rounds:

01) The Stones Throwdown – Located in the Ten Towns – Dougan’s Hole, this battle takes place within the Stones of Thruun. Any may enter, losers may leave.

02) The Ice Pit Riot – Located in Ten Towns – Good Mead. The fighting arena is a large-sized hole dug into the frozen ground filled with water routed from the Redwaters. The battle requires that three enter the ice pit, only one leaves standing. Battles continue until all contestants fight at least one battle. The surface of the battleground is kept treacherously slick. Only winners of the Stone Throwdown may enter. Winners move on to the next round, losers leave.

03) The Frost Troll Head Roll – Located anywhere along the northern slopes of the Spine. Remaining contestants must track and battle a Frost Troll while surviving the potentially murderous ploys of the other contestants. Any returning to Easthaven with a fresh Trolls head within a tenday will share the reward pot. Any not returning likely never will.

From <https://www.dndbeyond.com/private-messages/128813>