[hider=Karya of Brackenglade][b]Name:[/b] Karya of Brackenglade [b]Race:[/b] Wood nymph, a race of forest-dwelling beings descended from the fey. [b]Age:[/b] 18 [b]Gender:[/b] Female [b]Appearance:[/b] [img]https://i.imgur.com/oGa2N3I.png[/img] Karya is tall and lanky, standing at 5'10". She has plenty of lean muscle from her archery training and living in the wilderness, and dresses in earthy-toned, practical clothing that often ends up torn around the edges. Her warm tan skin has a ridged texture similar to tree bark. Her sharp golden-brown eyes, and messy hair with vines and flowers woven into it, add to her wild look. [b]Class:[/b] Druid/Ranger [b]Personality:[/b] Confident and daring, Karya is as unwavering as one would expect of someone with characteristics of a sturdy tree. Once her mind is made up, it's near impossible to turn her from her goals. With her boundless energy and good cheer, she fills every moment she can with activity, whether exploring, woodcrafting, or training. Said determination often leads her to push herself too hard, or get into situations over her head. As far as she's concerned, though, an adventurer needs high standards to be the best they can be - and she has a personal reason to want to excel. It isn't often that someone sees past her boisterous, tough facade, to the fears and regrets underneath. She has to be strong, after all. Strong enough to help others, a certain person in particular. [b]Strengths:[/b] - Due to her bark-like skin, she's physically resilient. - She has a strong affinity for plant magic. - Skilled at crafting, particularly with wood. She carves her own bows and arrows. - Proficient at archery, with a keen eye and good aim. - Her knowledge of the wilderness helps in survival situations. [b]Weaknesses:[/b] - Vulnerable to fire, and afraid of it - it's common for wood nymphs to be at least wary of fire, since it's a major weakness. Most use runestones for cooking and winter warmth. - Fey ancestry gives her a weakness to cold iron, a type of iron that's forged at a lower temperature to protect its properties. While she's ok around regular iron and steel, she can't wear it as armour for a different reason - it goes against druidic principles. - Not the best at hand-to-hand combat. She can use her crafting knife in a pinch, but lacks skill and experience with close range fighting. - Very little knowledge of urban civilisation and life outside of the druid circle. As such, can come across as ill-mannered. - Overconfident, and while she means well, she can act like a know-it-all on missions. [b]Biography:[/b] Born into a druidic circle deep in the woodland, Karya knew only the wilderness for most of her life. As such, she learned survival skills from a young age - crafting, hunting, defending herself and others. Since children in the village are raised communally, she grew up with many role models and mentors, yet the most influential person in her life was her older sister Xanthe. Not only was Xanthe a formidable defender, hunting down monsters and other threats, her tracking expertise extended to searching for lost travellers. The Brackenglade tribe, despite being looked down on by some as primitive, overall had decent relations with nearby settlements due to not just their trades of enchanted woodcrafts, but their rangers' skill with search and rescue. Karya aspired to this calling, looking up to her sister as an example. In her youthful naivete, she thought no harm could possibly befall someone so skilled and strong... Until Xanthe left for a mission one day, and never came back. Not even the other trackers could find her. Karya herself tried a few times, nearly landing herself in trouble, having to be brought back to the village by other tribe members. Painfully aware of how futile these attempts were, she nonetheless refused to give up. If she had to take her training further than most, so be it. Which was why she enrolled at the prestigious school she'd heard of via adventurers who'd travelled by. Hoseforn Academy. She hopes to eventually become an adventurer adept enough to find her sister, or at least find out what happened to her.[/hider] [hider=Tybert Palug][b]Name:[/b] Tybert Palug [b]Race:[/b] Grimalkin [b]Age:[/b] 18 [b]Gender:[/b] Male [b]Appearance:[/b] [img]https://i.imgur.com/DZyLeO0.jpg[/img] Tybert's most striking features (to non grimalkin anyway) are his cat ears and tail, glossy black like his hair. He has tan skin, and running from eye to jaw on either side of his face is a marking resembling a tabby stripe. His eyes are blue and slit-pupilled, and he has small fangs, as well as retractable claws. He stands at 5'11", with a lithe build suited for agility, and scars on his arms from his martial training. [b]Class:[/b] Fighter [b]Personality:[/b] Tybert is quiet, refined and finicky, to the point that he could be described as stuffy. He isn't the most approachable person, often wearing a frown and snarking under his breath. It's rare to see him smile, besided the occasional confident smirk, and even rarer to hear him laugh. His haughtiness drives him to be the best he can, so he spends much of his time studying or training. Those who get past his grouchy exterior will find a much more affectionate side, and may even get him to be somewhat playful (emphasis on "may" and "somewhat"). He's extremely protective of his friends, and has a strong sense of justice in general, refusing to tolerate slavery or exploitation of any kind. [b]Strengths:[/b] - His feline traits make him highly agile and flexible. He's good at jumping and climbing, and when falling, can land in such a way as to prevent or minimise injury. - Skilled at fighting with swords and daggers, and with his claws in a pinch. - Keen hearing, smell and night vision. - He can turn into a cat, which is useful for stealth missions. - If he got over his dislike of magic, he'd be pretty apt at it. Particularly motion magic because of his dexterity, and spells that temporarily enhance others' skills and functions. [b]Weaknesses:[/b] - Since he relies on agility, he can't wear heavy armour. - Despite having an aptitude for magic, he has a strong aversion to all but the most natural kinds. He distrusts magic users, and refuses to use it himself. If he has to use it as a last resort, his conflicting feelings about it often weaken the spell or make it go awry. - Stuck up and snobbish, he won't admit to his mistakes or shortcomings easily, and is reluctant to take others' advice. - Loud noises and strong unpleasant smells are overwhelming to his sharp senses. - His cat transformations take 10-20 seconds depending how tired or injured he is, during which time he can't move and is vulnerable. [b]Biography:[/b] Growing up in a woodside grimalkin community, Tybert was a fair bit more free-spirited when he was younger. Taught from a young age to train as a fighter like his parents, he tended to defy the strict expectations put on him. Venturing outside of the town was how he met Trixie, a girl from Kako Village. Trixie appeared to be human, and Kako Village was known for the crafting of magical items - two reasons to be wary. The grimalkin had a difficult history with human mages, the first of their kind having been created by them as familiars and bound into servitude. Many, including his community, outright rejected most forms of magic for this reason. Still, youthful curiosity won out over fear, and he developed a friendship with Trixie. A friendship that, sadly, wore away after an event drove him to take on the ideals of his family and community. His father died in battle, and Tybert felt the need to follow in his footsteps. Not just this, but to be a good role model to his younger brother in their father's stead. Slowly, he drifted away from Trixie as the anti-magic prejudices of his family and his mentors got to him. Yet, likely thanks to her, his curiosity about it never completely disappeared. Since part of his training was to defend against magic, this involved learning a few things about how it worked, and he looked into it more than he should have. One day, tragedy nearly struck again, as he learned his brother had been severely injured in a training accident. The medics were doing what they could, but the situation looked bleak. Visiting his bedside, Tybert knew there was only one thing he could do, even if it went against his principles. He wasn't going to lose anyone else. Making sure nobody would notice, Tybert focused and muttered the words for a healing spell. Considering his lack of experience, it took several tries for anything to happen - and by the time he managed to help his brother to any extent, the medics caught him. He was promptly kicked out from his training, and his family made their utter disappointment clear. Even his brother, who'd been stabilised enough to pull through, admitted he'd rather have died with honour than live in shame. It seemed at first there was nowhere to go, but one person turned out willing to help - a certain old friend. Despite the distance that had grown between them, Trixie was willing to shelter him. It was through her that he heard of the prestigious Hoseforn academy, and decided to go with her to regain his honour, as well as prove himself to his family. The only issue was it would inevitably be full of mages, but he'd show that even without casting a single spell, he could do better than any of them.[/hider]