Hern was born a slave in Cheliax. Even from a young age, he resisted his lot, suffering numerous beatings. Even now his face and body bears the scars of his mistreatment: a gouge that crosses beneath his right eye and a second one that runs down his right cheek; a mass of scars from whippings mar his back; and the pinkie on his left hand is missing. On his left forearm he bears a tattoo of a blue bellflower, a recent addition now that Hern feels no need to hide his beliefs. Hern has black hair and blue eyes.
Hern eventually learned to hide his simmering anger and resentment, biding his time. And then, it came, the moment Hern had been waiting for: his master was alone with only Hern, his master turned his back, and Hern killed him. Fleeing into the wilderness, Hern vowed to help other halflings escape from their servitude.
He spent several years as a tiller, leading escaped slaves through the wilderness to friendly communities. He also became increasingly reckless, provoking confrontations with slaveowners and Chelish authorities. After a few attempts to sow slaves turned into needlessly violent clashes with slaveholders, the Bellflower Society suggested that Hern retire from actively liberating slaves, funding his passage on the jenivere.
Hern tends to be reticent, his years of slavery and then guerilla resistance overcoming the natural cheerfulness of most halflings. However, as he has traveled further away from Cheliax, the natural openness of halflings is starting to bloom. He occasionally finds himself laughing jokes, enjoying the company of others, and smiling at a pleasant song. Hern can be short-tempered, especially when he feels that weaker folks are being victimized. Even worse, he can be cruel when former oppressors are at his mercy. He knows that he should temper his viciousness, but it is a struggle.
