Strkyr Hrafngeirr's page

About Strkyr Hrafngeirr

NINTH BATTALION PATRON: Warskald Stryrkr Hrafngeirr
XP 1200
Dwarven bard 1/fighter 4
LG Medium humanoid (dwarf)
Init +1; Senses darkvision 60 ft., Perception +5
DEFENSE
AC 20, touch 11, flat-footed 19; (+1 Dex, +7 banded mail, +2 darkwood shield)
hp 32 (1d8+1 +4d10+4)
Fort +6, Ref +4, Will +3; +2 vs. poison, spells or spell-like abilities, +1 vs. fear,
OFFENSE
Speed 20 ft.
Melee mw dwarven waraxe +8 (1d10+5s), dorn-dergar +7 (1d10+4b), dwarven waraxe power attack +6 (1d10+9s)
Ranged heavy crossbow +5 (1d10p)
Special Attacks hatred (+1 to attack rolls vs. orcs and goblinoids), fascinate (Will DC 11)
Spells Known (CL 1st, Concentration +2, -/2 4/2)
1st – cure light wounds (Will DC 12, 1d8+1 hp), grease (Ref DC 12)
0 (at will) – daze (Will DC 11), detect magic, mage hand, message
STATISTICS
Str 16, Dex 13, Con 14, Int 10, Wis 10, Cha 12,
Base Atk +4; CMB +7; CMD 18 (22 vs. bull rush and trip)
Feats Weapon Focus (dwarven waraxe) (B), Power Attack (B), Cleave (B), Extra Performance (+6 rds), Arcane Strike, Great Cleave
14
Skills
Acrobatics 0 (-4), Bluff 1 (+5), Climb 0 (-1), Diplomacy 1 (+5), Disguise 0 (+1), Escape Artist 0 (-4), Fly 0 (+1), Knowledge (arcane) 0 (+1), Knowledge (dungeoneering) 0 (+1), Knowledge (engineering) 0 (+1), Knowledge (geography) 0 (+1), Knowledge (history) 1 (+5), Knowledge (local) 1 (+5), Knowledge (nature) 0 (+1), Knowledge (nobility) 1 (+5), Knowledge (planes) 0 (+1), Knowledge (religion) 0 (+1), Linguistics 0 (-), Perception 1 (+4), Perform (sing) 5 (+9), Perform (wind) 1 (+5), Sense Motive 0 (+0), Sleight of Hand 0 (+1), Spellcraft 1 (+4), Stealth 0 (-4), Use Magic Device 1 (+5); armor check penalty -5
Languages Common (Taldan), Dwarvish,
SQ armor training (-1 ACP), bardic performance 11 rounds / day, bardic knowledge (+1 all knowledge checks, can use knowledge skills untrained), countersong, distraction, inspire courage +1
Combat Gear mw dwarven waraxe, dorn-dergar, banded mail, darkwood shield, dagger, potions of cure light wounds (2), flash powder (2), thunderstones (2), bottled lightning (2*); continual flame on reversible tabard, yard long winding ram’s horn (for signal and music)

Styrkr was born to the Hrafngeir clan, famed for their arcane potential (usually binding to ravens as familiars) and their warriors’ preference for the longspear in combat, attacking in ranks. He proudly wears the family crest (a raven winged spear descending from the NE facing to the SW facing and backlit by a bolt of lightning descending from the N/NW to the S/SE) on shield, tabard and cloak, but he did not have the arcane potential of his kin, and chose to begin his life following the path of the skald, so that he didn’t even master the family’s signature weapon until later, to the consternation of his kinfolk.

He was recruited into the Ninth Battalion while still completing his bardic training, strengthening his voice to boom down twisting passageways as he strove to impress into his memory the poetic epics that his people chanted during combat, or recited in downtimes, to retain their sense of history and community. He learned from their warriors the arts of battle, not content to remain on the rear lines exhorting his comrades to acts of glory, but wishing to partake in those acts himself.

In battles that never see the light of day, and go unknown to the surface world, he has faced terrible foes in deep places, and there he has found glory, and wisdom, and even love, marrying Byrnja, a shieldmaiden of the Ninth Battalion after she lost an eye and retired from the field of battle, feeling that she had given enough to the cause, and was ready to begin a new life, as wife and mother. He calls her his dark lady, for her raven-black hair, and dotes on her, and his children, wishing to also retire from the field, and now spending more time practicing the use of the dorn-dergar, while his waraxe stands ready, as he wishes to return home to his dark lady, and no longer craves the spatter of warm blood on his face the way he once did. Still, he is no coward, and if a front-line fighter falls, he will step forward without hesitation, calling upon the names of ancient champions to inspire not just his companions, but to bolster his own courage.

Boons Styrkr knows all the songs, and will teach a recruit or ally who has earned his favor one of the chants of the Ninth Battalion, to bolster their own abilities with tales of heroism from ages past. Such songs tend to not translate well into languages other than Dwarvish (and the tales of ancient dwarven heroes don’t really inspire non-dwarves as effectively), and so he may find alternate ways to reward non-dwarven allies, by providing them with access to dwarven crafted weapons, including masterwork axes, spears and crossbows, as well as most types of metal armor, at reduced prices. He can also provide access to scrolls, from his family connections, primarily of spells related to thunder and lightning, the favored tools of his clan, including an electrical variation on Scorching Ray that is not commonly known on the surface world.

His family jealously guards the alchemical formula to create ‘bottled lightning,’ an alchemical compound that can be thrown like acid, but inflicts electrical damage instead. Research continues to craft a version that retains its charge, causing lingering damage, like alchemical fire, but this has not yet proven feasible. He will part with flasks of the substance to those who earn his favor, but does not know the formula, and would not share it in any event.