Post by Echo on Aug 1, 2013 2:43:22 GMT
Name: Xani
Gender: Female
Race: Ferelden Dalish Elf; Mage
Age: 23
Mortality: 8 - Mortal, though the Dalish live marginally longer than Humans.
Phys App: Long, pointy, almost-horizontal ears, a tattoo on one side of her face and being shorter than the average Human mark her out as an Elf. She has pale skin, just-past-shoulder-length dark red-orange hair, usually worn with thin braids from the front tied at the back, and bright orange eyes that sometimes almost seem to glow in the darkness; in truth they're a little reflective, like cats eyes. She wears a robe that her mother made and her father enchanted to protect her, though it does not look like the typical Mage robes seen in Thedas. It is green, as per standard for Dalish Elves, with wolf-fur shoulders and an oiled wolf-skin hood to keep the rain off. Her arms are bare, though her torso and neck are covered, with the exception of a small circle around her belly-button. The knee-length skirt has slits three quarters of the way up both sides for maneuverability, and she wears knee-high oiled wolf-skin boots. She also wears an enchanted belt and pendant for added protection, though the pendant is usually under her robes.
Weapons: Her father's hand-crafted Ironbark Staff; Brutal-looking curved blade made of Dragonbone at the base end and something resembling a red crystalline Dragon egg ensnared by thorny vines or roots at the top. It has two Grandmaster-level runes embedded in it; Cold Iron, for dealing with the undead, and Silverite, for dealing with the Darkspawn.
Magic/Skills: She has learned all basic arcane, spirit, creation, primal and entropy spells, plus several not-so-basic ones, as well as the shapeshifter and spirit healer specialisations. She focused more on spirit healing and primal spells, so is better at them than the others. Her power is largely channeled through her staff, but she can use her hands if needs be. She is also an expert Runecrafter and potion-maker, though she's only a novice at poisons. She learned a little Dalish weapon and armour crafting from her father, but she's not brilliant. She's not bad at picking a lock, and she tends to go unnoticed as an Elf.
Background: A Dalish Elf, born and bred. Once she began exhibiting her magical potential around age six, her mother wanted to ship her off to the Circle of Magi in Ferelden; but her father, an apostate Mage himself, would not allow it. When she was about seventeen, the Templars got word of them and a small group was sent to bring them in or kill them if they resisted. Her father bade her run, but her mother wanted to turn her over. She stayed and fought alongside her father. The pair killed the five Templars sent to capture them, and Xani escaped with very minor injuries. The same could not be said for her father, who had kept their attention away from his daughter. On his deathbed he gave her his staff so that she might remember him. After his death, her mother sent her away with nothing but her clothes and her father's staff, which she absolutely would not let go of, and forbade her to attend the funeral, though she did anyway. Life was tough at first, but it occurred to her after a few months in the Elven Alienage in the Ferelden capital city of Denerim that as long as she looked like one of the ordinary city Elf slaves, she could go largely unnoticed by the Humans. She kept her robes and staff hidden for a time, and befriended a Dwarven weapons merchant who managed to set her up with a servant job working for one of the local Nobles. Once employed she moved to her Master's estate so that she would always be there at his beckon call, and he had her marked as an Elf slave (the tattoo on her face). During her service, she was beaten several times, being nothing more than a slave to her Master, and her Dwarf friend eventually gave her a small dagger to protect herself with for free because he felt it was his fault in some way. She has remained in servitude in Denerim ever since, and occasionally rebels in her own small way, though her original Master was mysteriously assassinated two years into her service. Suspicions were on the Antivan Crows for a while; her Master had had a lot of enemies with the coin to dispatch him. Since he had no wife and left no heirs, his estate was sold to a relatively new Nobleman and his family. His wife elected to keep Xani in service to the family, though Xani regards her as her Mistress, and will occasionally disobey her son's commands. Her new Mistress was much kinder than her old Master, and allowed her to wear the robes her parents gave her, and though she suggests Xani not carry her staff, she is permitted her dagger. Her Mistress allows Xani one day off every fortnight, which she usually spends in the wilds practicing her magic, at Wade's Emporium learning to craft armour and occasionally providing an enchantment or two to make Wade's better, or at the forge learning to craft weapons, though nothing compares to her father's teachings on Dalish craftsmanship. Xani has been a loyal and trustworthy servant for the last three years, and has saved three quarters of what she's been paid since she began working nearly five years ago, the last quarter of which has largely gone to poor Elves and an underground resistance helping Circle Mages escape the Chantry and Templars.
Personality: Kind, yet hardened. She's seen how tough life can be for an Elf and a Mage, let alone both, and it has hardened her to the world. She helps other Elves when she can, and isn't overly fond of Humans, with the exception of her current Mistress, though her teenage son is beginning to become a nuisance. She is also wary of most Dwarves, though she knows all the Dwarven and Human merchants by name, and gets along very well with them. Generally trustworthy, she isn't above the occasional unsavory action should the need arise. Loyal and compassionate, Xani will fight to the death for her friends and those she deems worthy of protecting. The constant threat of being hunted by the Templars keeps her eyes and ears sharp, and she often picks up news, both important and useless, faster than many of the Nobles, given her connections with the travelling merchants. The Noble family she works for started out painfully naive about the politics of Nobility, and Xani was able to put what she'd learned from her old Master to good use, proving her both loyal and trustworthy to the family. The Nobleman isn't fond of the idea that she is a smart servant, and smart and armed is worse, but her Mistress refuses to allow him to get rid of her, for which Xani is eternally grateful. Their teenage son has taken a shine to her as a play thing, believing he can do as he pleases with her because she's an Elf, and threatens to treat her like a slave if she doesn't obey him. However, this is where Xani shows her power. Influential amongst Elves and well-liked by the merchants, not to mention her Mistress, Xani is able to get away with much more rebellion than other servants would. In light of this, she almost consistently disobeys the boy's commands, and when she does obey she does it wrong just to spite him (e.g. Knowing how he likes his bacon and making sure it comes to him the exact opposite) and with Xani at the helm of this mischief, one or two of the other servants began to join in, purposefully over-cooking the boy's food, or dulling his sword rather than sharpening it. Xani's theory is that he needs a taste of his own medicine now and then, though she would never do anything to intentionally harm him or anyone else living on the estate. Xani is strong-willed and even stronger-minded, particularly in her views on the treatment of Elves and Mages. Having grown up a Dalish Elf and an apostate, she knows Elves and Mages can live freely, away from the oppression of Humans, Templars and the Chantry. In her own small way she fights for that right, not just for herself, but for her brothers and sisters of race and magic.
Notes: I've used items and spells from Dragon Age: Origins rather than any of the DLCs or Dragon Age II, as the quest she will be introduced to the QA in takes place towards the end of that storyline.
Gender: Female
Race: Ferelden Dalish Elf; Mage
Age: 23
Mortality: 8 - Mortal, though the Dalish live marginally longer than Humans.
Phys App: Long, pointy, almost-horizontal ears, a tattoo on one side of her face and being shorter than the average Human mark her out as an Elf. She has pale skin, just-past-shoulder-length dark red-orange hair, usually worn with thin braids from the front tied at the back, and bright orange eyes that sometimes almost seem to glow in the darkness; in truth they're a little reflective, like cats eyes. She wears a robe that her mother made and her father enchanted to protect her, though it does not look like the typical Mage robes seen in Thedas. It is green, as per standard for Dalish Elves, with wolf-fur shoulders and an oiled wolf-skin hood to keep the rain off. Her arms are bare, though her torso and neck are covered, with the exception of a small circle around her belly-button. The knee-length skirt has slits three quarters of the way up both sides for maneuverability, and she wears knee-high oiled wolf-skin boots. She also wears an enchanted belt and pendant for added protection, though the pendant is usually under her robes.
Weapons: Her father's hand-crafted Ironbark Staff; Brutal-looking curved blade made of Dragonbone at the base end and something resembling a red crystalline Dragon egg ensnared by thorny vines or roots at the top. It has two Grandmaster-level runes embedded in it; Cold Iron, for dealing with the undead, and Silverite, for dealing with the Darkspawn.
Magic/Skills: She has learned all basic arcane, spirit, creation, primal and entropy spells, plus several not-so-basic ones, as well as the shapeshifter and spirit healer specialisations. She focused more on spirit healing and primal spells, so is better at them than the others. Her power is largely channeled through her staff, but she can use her hands if needs be. She is also an expert Runecrafter and potion-maker, though she's only a novice at poisons. She learned a little Dalish weapon and armour crafting from her father, but she's not brilliant. She's not bad at picking a lock, and she tends to go unnoticed as an Elf.
Background: A Dalish Elf, born and bred. Once she began exhibiting her magical potential around age six, her mother wanted to ship her off to the Circle of Magi in Ferelden; but her father, an apostate Mage himself, would not allow it. When she was about seventeen, the Templars got word of them and a small group was sent to bring them in or kill them if they resisted. Her father bade her run, but her mother wanted to turn her over. She stayed and fought alongside her father. The pair killed the five Templars sent to capture them, and Xani escaped with very minor injuries. The same could not be said for her father, who had kept their attention away from his daughter. On his deathbed he gave her his staff so that she might remember him. After his death, her mother sent her away with nothing but her clothes and her father's staff, which she absolutely would not let go of, and forbade her to attend the funeral, though she did anyway. Life was tough at first, but it occurred to her after a few months in the Elven Alienage in the Ferelden capital city of Denerim that as long as she looked like one of the ordinary city Elf slaves, she could go largely unnoticed by the Humans. She kept her robes and staff hidden for a time, and befriended a Dwarven weapons merchant who managed to set her up with a servant job working for one of the local Nobles. Once employed she moved to her Master's estate so that she would always be there at his beckon call, and he had her marked as an Elf slave (the tattoo on her face). During her service, she was beaten several times, being nothing more than a slave to her Master, and her Dwarf friend eventually gave her a small dagger to protect herself with for free because he felt it was his fault in some way. She has remained in servitude in Denerim ever since, and occasionally rebels in her own small way, though her original Master was mysteriously assassinated two years into her service. Suspicions were on the Antivan Crows for a while; her Master had had a lot of enemies with the coin to dispatch him. Since he had no wife and left no heirs, his estate was sold to a relatively new Nobleman and his family. His wife elected to keep Xani in service to the family, though Xani regards her as her Mistress, and will occasionally disobey her son's commands. Her new Mistress was much kinder than her old Master, and allowed her to wear the robes her parents gave her, and though she suggests Xani not carry her staff, she is permitted her dagger. Her Mistress allows Xani one day off every fortnight, which she usually spends in the wilds practicing her magic, at Wade's Emporium learning to craft armour and occasionally providing an enchantment or two to make Wade's better, or at the forge learning to craft weapons, though nothing compares to her father's teachings on Dalish craftsmanship. Xani has been a loyal and trustworthy servant for the last three years, and has saved three quarters of what she's been paid since she began working nearly five years ago, the last quarter of which has largely gone to poor Elves and an underground resistance helping Circle Mages escape the Chantry and Templars.
Personality: Kind, yet hardened. She's seen how tough life can be for an Elf and a Mage, let alone both, and it has hardened her to the world. She helps other Elves when she can, and isn't overly fond of Humans, with the exception of her current Mistress, though her teenage son is beginning to become a nuisance. She is also wary of most Dwarves, though she knows all the Dwarven and Human merchants by name, and gets along very well with them. Generally trustworthy, she isn't above the occasional unsavory action should the need arise. Loyal and compassionate, Xani will fight to the death for her friends and those she deems worthy of protecting. The constant threat of being hunted by the Templars keeps her eyes and ears sharp, and she often picks up news, both important and useless, faster than many of the Nobles, given her connections with the travelling merchants. The Noble family she works for started out painfully naive about the politics of Nobility, and Xani was able to put what she'd learned from her old Master to good use, proving her both loyal and trustworthy to the family. The Nobleman isn't fond of the idea that she is a smart servant, and smart and armed is worse, but her Mistress refuses to allow him to get rid of her, for which Xani is eternally grateful. Their teenage son has taken a shine to her as a play thing, believing he can do as he pleases with her because she's an Elf, and threatens to treat her like a slave if she doesn't obey him. However, this is where Xani shows her power. Influential amongst Elves and well-liked by the merchants, not to mention her Mistress, Xani is able to get away with much more rebellion than other servants would. In light of this, she almost consistently disobeys the boy's commands, and when she does obey she does it wrong just to spite him (e.g. Knowing how he likes his bacon and making sure it comes to him the exact opposite) and with Xani at the helm of this mischief, one or two of the other servants began to join in, purposefully over-cooking the boy's food, or dulling his sword rather than sharpening it. Xani's theory is that he needs a taste of his own medicine now and then, though she would never do anything to intentionally harm him or anyone else living on the estate. Xani is strong-willed and even stronger-minded, particularly in her views on the treatment of Elves and Mages. Having grown up a Dalish Elf and an apostate, she knows Elves and Mages can live freely, away from the oppression of Humans, Templars and the Chantry. In her own small way she fights for that right, not just for herself, but for her brothers and sisters of race and magic.
Notes: I've used items and spells from Dragon Age: Origins rather than any of the DLCs or Dragon Age II, as the quest she will be introduced to the QA in takes place towards the end of that storyline.