[hider=Flint][center][img]https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/41/d7/6b/41d76b6c131f89fbd3031c288b831381.jpg[/img][/center] [b]Name:[/b] Archranger Flint [b]Age:[/b] 44 [b]Gender:[/b] Male [b]Appearance:[/b] Flint stands a few inches shorter than most men, has brown hair and green eyes, and is generally the last person one would expect to be [i]The King of Rangers[/i], though for a ranger, this is a good thing. He wears clothes typical for a ranger, with no cape or crown to denote his status -- A hood that is rarely ever lowered obscures most of his sun-leathered face, along with lightweight leather armor and a green tunic and pants designed to act as camouflage in the thick Borean forests while keeping him warm and dry as well. Everything he wears is caked in a thin layer of dirt, and is usually somewhat tattered or frayed at the edges. [b]Personality:[/b] Flint is [i]strange[/i]. First and foremost, he is almost completely mute, though it is unknown if this is a personal choice or a mental impediment. He communicates with nods, grunts, and occasionally whistles, though nobody has ever known him to [i]speak[/i]. On very, [i]very[/i] rare occasions, he may speak one or two words if absolutely necessary, but will otherwise do anything to avoid communicating directly. As a result, most simply just call him "The Archranger" -- Being asked his name is far from an important enough reason for him to speak. Flint has poor social skills, is uncomfortable and panicky in crowds, and dislikes being touched. Additionally, though he has expert knowledge of animal behavior, he has great difficulty picking up on social cues. Fortunately, what Flint lacks in social graces, he makes up for being a survivalist savant. Flint is exceptionally skilled with wilderness survival, and has spent years at a time in total isolation in the forests of Borea without so much as a tent. He can start a fire in the middle of a storm, shoot down a bird without killing it, and track footprints through rivers at night. Flint's skills as a ranger border on [i]supernatural[/i]. [b]History:[/b] Flint was born shortly after the beginning of the Age of Dawn, in a small logging village in Borea. Even in the early stages of his childhood, it was easy to see that Flint was [i]different[/i]. He would not cry as a baby, had little interest in playing with other children, and was frequently caught sneaking into the forest surrounding his village after dark by his mother and father. It was rumored that Flint was a changeling left by fairies, leading most to view him with a great deal of suspicion, driving him further into isolation, which Flint enjoyed greatly. As a boy, Flint showed a great deal of aptitude for archery and was considered for candidacy as a squire, but was ultimately not chosen for his unnerving silence and strange mannerisms. Flint spent most of his adolescence in his village's forest honing his skills as an archer and woodsman, dragging entire elks to his family's cottage frequently enough that most believed he had been stealing from other hunters. Eventually, Flint left home to join the rangers and learn their ways. Since then, he has lived his life in periods of isolation in Borea's forest, only occasionally having contact with other rangers in passing. By the time Flint was in his late thirties, he was skilled enough to be known throughout Borea, and when Archranger Korin died of an illness, Flint was elected at a ranger's summit to take his place. Since then, he has continued his work as a ranger, keeping the forests of Borea safe from bandits and mutants alike, planting medicinal herbs along roads, and generally acting as a steward of the land. [b]Journey:[/b] Though his path will soon change, Flint has few goals other than the preservation and protection of Borea's forests. [b]Ideals:[/b] Freedom, Self-Sufficiency, Humility, Duty, Balance, Nature [b]Holdings:[/b] Though Flint technically holds no lands or titles, his status as Archranger makes him the de facto king of Borea's forests, and gives him the right to call a ranger's summit. Additionally, as the leader of the Rangers Guild, any and all rangers he meets on the road are sworn to protect and serve him, though he generally tries to avoid contact whenever possible. His equipment is simple, as he travels lighter than most rangers. He carries fire starting tools, a day of rations, a quiver of arrows, a longbow, a dagger, and a metal dart attached to thirty feet of rope. [/hider] [hider=The Ranger's Guild] [center][img]http://us.123rf.com/450wm/jdwfoto/jdwfoto1311/jdwfoto131100055/23518460-a-star-carved-into-a-tree.jpg?ver=6[/img] [sub]The Ranger's Star, a symbol carved into trees by rangers to denote that an area is safe. It is the unofficial symbol of The Ranger's Guild.[/sub][/center] Approximately 200 years old, The Ranger's Guild is an organization of elite trackers and woodsmen. Originally created to track and arrest poachers and bandits, The Ranger's Guild has had a great deal of ebb and flow regarding their [i]mission[/i], usually because of the absolute power that their elected archrangers possess. For about sixty years, The Ranger's Guild has become less of a forest brute squad, and more of a vigilante group that acts as peacekeepers in forest villages too small for city guards, as well as protectors of the forest in general. Most rangers live close to a patch of forest that they patrol daily, living either in villages or in solitary cabins, though some are dedicated enough to being rangers that they travel throughout the forests permanently. They are usually viewed with admiration by peasantry and with a certain level of disdain by high lords and kings. Their current archranger is an anomaly from the usual -- most archrangers are well-known, have regular communication with other rangers, and typically live in large, comfortable cabins to retire in peace. The [i]current[/i] archranger carries little more than a blanket for comfort, and actively avoids giving his whereabouts to other rangers. That being said, most rangers still view him with a mixture of confusion and admiration for his dedication and skill. All rangers repeat The Ranger's Oath before the ranger who trained them during their initiation, which is considered legally binding and grounds for execution if broken. [center][sub]Before I am a son to my mother, I am a ranger of my land Before I am a soldier to my king, I am the sword of my archranger Before I am a countryman to my people, I am a brother to my guild Before I am a follower to my god, I am loyal to the rangers I am a ranger, from now until my last breath. [/sub][/center][/hider]