New Character Submission - Grahm Stillwater

[Grahm]

Full Name: Grahm Stillwater
Age: 22
Class: Druid
Race: Halfling
Subrace: Ghostwise Halfling
Alignment: True Neutral
Deity: None

Description

Before you stands a Halfling of average height, just over 3 feet. His eyes are a pale gray, very stonesque, and yet they yield a warming sentiment. His clothes are in a fair, maintained condition with no visible tears and the like. His auburn hair is also kept in a mild manner, though it looks as if it was cut with a dull knife or sharpened stone.

Biography

It’s strange. As long as I can remember, I have always felt different from my family. Well, you might not call them family, more like friends or neighbors, but my people see things different. Yet I have always preferred the company of animals to family. My parents always told me that, “it was just my youth getting the best of me”, and “by the time I received my 'naming’ I would feel different.” My father, Dell, was more adamant about this.

Throughout my youth I trained with my father. He was a scout, and a fairly good one at that. There were several times when I would swear he would just vanish into thin air. I, on the other hand, was not so adept at the art of the unseen. My attention would always be diverted by the various flora and fauna of the forest. My father, frustrated with my lack of enthusiasm, would scold me for being so addle-minded.

We lived in a tiny village of no more than twenty small families. Everyone knew everyone. I suppose the fact that almost nothing went unnoticed in my village had, in a way, help me feel somewhat alienated. You would think that it would mean the opposite, but I was just 'off', as some of the village children would say.

Well the time of my 'naming’ came and went... but the feeling did not.

While my father could be rather strict at times, my mother, Eve, is his polar opposite. She is a very kind and understanding woman unlike my father who could be rather impatient at times. When I told my mother that my 'problem’, as my father refers to it, still remained, she suggested I go speak with Mylie.

Mylie Windwillow was a rather eccentric woman... at least that is what my father would say. She lived outside the village in a house that was carved from a fallen tree. I do not know how long the tree has been there, but it has not rotted one bit.

Following my mother’s advice, I made my trek to Mylie’s. Her log house had two small, round windows on one side, yet I could not see in. The place seemed too small for anyone, even a Halfling, to occupy. I approached the door, and before I could knock, a voice from inside said, “Come in.” Without hesitation, I obliged. Opening the door, I was confronted by stone steps, not something one would expect to find in a log. Proceeding down the steps, I entered a surprisingly larger than anticipated domicile. It was ingenious actually. The walls were made of a light stone, and with the two windows letting in light the place was actually quite cheery. There was even a fire place along the far wall. A woman sat at a table in the center of the room. There was an unlit candle, sitting on the table, in a wooden candelabrum.

“So... Grahm is it? Do you know why you are here?” She asked me. Her voice was rather soothing; it reminded me of my Grandmother before she passed.

“I was told that I should see you,” I replied.

“Yes, yes. But do you know WHY you are here?”

I was confused. I hadn’t really been asked something like this before. It was always DO this or GO here. I answered with the first thing that came to mind. “I have a problem.”

She cocked one eye at me, leaned back, and let out a boisterous laugh. I felt foolish, but couldn’t help but smile. “A problem, says you. I think not. A calling is more like it.”

For the first time in my life, I felt as if I found someone who could help me understand.

For the next year, I trained under Mylie’s tutelage. I learned things about nature that I never could have comprehended on my own. She taught me how to understand animal behavior. She even introduced me to Reya. Reya is a panther that roamed about near the village. After months of feeding and the relationship that followed, Reya and I became almost inseparable.

Yet, even after all this, I still felt... partially empty. Something was still missing. I don’t know what exactly, but Mylie understood.

“You are searching for something, that can’t be found in these woods,” she told me. “You will need to leave the forests before you can find what it is you are looking for.”

“Which is?” I asked.

“What you are looking for, is yourself. Go and find it... and come back. Or stay gone. Whatever it is that you are looking for, I am sure it will find you.”

It finally made sense... sort of. At least I knew where I could find answers. I rushed home to my mother to tell her of this revelation. I was excited and wanted to rush out immediately, but she convinced me to speak with our elder and participate in the 'Ritual of Change'.

During the ritual, I managed to catch a glimpse of my mother and father. She was smiling, but I noticed she had tears in her eyes as the sun that leaked through the canopy of trees reflected off of them. I suppose that she wanted me to be happy, but was sad to see me go and hoped for my safe return. My father, on the other hand, had a half frown on his face. I couldn't really grasp what was going through his mind. I shook off the mental image of him yelling at me for making mother sad and looked forward.

When the ritual was finished, the village was silent. Everyone went back to their separate homes quietly, without word.

The next morning, I packed my things, and started out the door. Father was awake at the table, while mother made his breakfast. He didn't look up to see me when I entered the room. I gave my mother a hug and told her everything would be alright.

Before I made it out the door, I heard my father say just two words.

"Stay alive."

On my way out of the village, I stopped and thanked Mylie for all of her help and training, and set out to find my answer. For the first time in my life, I would be leaving Silkwood... yet I was unafraid.

-

I understand and agree to the objectives of being a druid in Layonara.
I understand and agree to the rules of achieving these objectives.
I understand the internal organizational structure of the druids.

[darkstorme]

A few points of your submission are under discussion - we'll be back to you very shortly.

Thanks again for your patience!

[Grahm]

It seems I need a further clarification, as a friend of mine pointed out.

Grahm Stillwater is a Type 1 druid. Although he did receive some training from Mylie, what he truly got from her tutelage was someone who understood where he was coming from. While in the bio, it states that Grahm learned things that he never would have on his own, this is just a state of mind that Grahm allowed himself to believe, and whether or not it is true... the jury is still out on that.

[Rowana]

Hello Grahm and sorry for the extended wait!

This is a great first submission and I only have a couple of points I'd like to see addressed.

Firstly, mostly for clarity for your RP, the Ghostwise halflings live in small groups, as you indicated but their villages tend to be in tree tops and veiled from the average eye in other ways.

Secondly, any halfling leaving the clan to go on a walk about does so with (traditionally) the Ritual of Change (of which there are admitadly few details). If you could clear up that detail (if he did go through with it or if he did not and why, etc...)

If you could update with those small portions I think this application should be set to go.

Thank you for your patience and work on this!
~row

[Grahm]

Story has been edited, hopefully to your approval. I can't wait to be accepted.

[Rowana]

Thank you very much for the extra work!

Your character has been approved.

Server address is west.layonara.com
Password is layoplayer

Some final notes on character creation:

• Please note that racial adjustments for players with subraces are skin based and thus get applied after getting in game.
• Only two ability scores can be less than 10 and only one can be less than 8 after racial adjustments
• Brownies, when selecting a head, the head you choose on the halfling selection will correspond to that numbered head for elves (for example, clicking right 6 times on the head selection during character creation will take the 6th head when clicking right on the elf creation)
• Half-giants and ogres, please ask for a GM (type /dm Anyone here?) if you would like to change to a custom skin.

Welcome Mister Stillwater to Layonara.


~row