Donatian Karolsky's page

About Donatian Karolsky

Justus (Neutral Good)

Initiative +5; Speed 30/20 ft. (6/4 sq.); CR 1/2; HP 12
Senses Perception +1
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DEFENSE
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AC 18, touch 11, flat-footed 17. . (+5 armor, +2 shield, +1 Dex)
Fort +4, Ref +1, Will +3
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OFFENSE
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Melee Longsword +5 (1d8+3/19-20/x2) and
. . Unarmed Strike +4 (1d3+3/20/x2)
Ranged Shortbow +2 (1d6/20/x3)
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STATISTICS
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Str +3, Dex +1, Con +2, Int +1, Wis +1, Cha +1
Skills Climb +7, Knowledge (Dungeoneering) +5, Ride +5, Swim +7
Feats Improved Initiative, Power Attack -1/+2, Weapon Focus: Longsword
Equipment Adventurer's Kit, Arrows (20), Chalk, Flint and Steel, Grappling hook, Longsword, Piton (10), Rope, Scale Mail, Shield, Heavy Steel, Shortbow
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SPECIAL ABILITIES
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Power Attack -1/+2 You can subtract from your attack roll to add to your damage.

==== Appearance ====

With his broad shoulders and his above average height, Donatian stands out in crowds. He walks with confidence and his young age is only betrayed by his delicate features which are still unadulterated by time and labour. His jovial face is framed by dark hair, kept slightly above the shoulders. His most striking features are his green eyes and his looks are not lost on all ladies (though his manners are more important in this regard).

Donatian wears clothes in neutral colours, fit for travelling. His unadorned armour, though it bears marks of use, appears to have been cared for well and it shines when it catches the sunlight. The only element of his attire that identifies him as the offspring of a once-wealthy family is the silver emblazoned brooch that secures his hooded midnight-blue cloak on his shoulders.

The traumatic events of his youth have forever scarred Donatian, both directly when he witnessed his mother's demise and later when he grew up without a feminine presence to take care of him. His father constant reminders that he should not have survived the tragedy, since his mother did not, have further made him feel helpless and responsible for what happened. As a consequence, he aspires to prevent more families from being destroyed as his was and to prove himself, especially to women but also to himself and his own family.

Only a few of his friends are aware of his past, as Donatian has made sure to hide his wound behind a cheerful persona. When he is not on duty at the academy, he can usually be found at local taverns listening to tales sung by the bard, having long debates with his friends or meeting strangers. The later activity has made him tolerant of other races, in spite of his upper-class upbringing, but he remains wary of those that break the law.

Donatian is fiercely loyal to his friends and does all he can to help them out in times of need. However, his darker side sometime reveals itself when his mother's honour is questioned. He has been involved in fights more than once after some lewd (and drunken) comments were said and he was once suspended from the academy after he broke the arm of a fellow student.

===== Background ====

Last-born to a minor noble of Brevoy and his XYZ wife, Donatian spent his early childhood with his eight siblings in Egede, where his father ran a successful trading enterprise. They lived comfortably in a manor, which frequently welcomed some of the most influential figures of the region.

Unfortunately, this situation did not last. Donatian's mother set out with her three youngest children on a journey to visit her family in distant XYZ, but never made it to her destination. The caravan she was part of was ambushed in the River Kingdoms and she was killed, as well as the two daughters that accompanied her ; only Donatian survived. He was treated properly, as the raiders had realized that they could get a good ransom out of their captive. Thus, the child was returned to his father after six months. His father, however, would forever resent him for surviving the attack that took his wife.

As soon as he was old enough, Donatian was sent away to one of Nerosyan's military academies run by a knightly order. Away from his saddened father, the young pupil flourished. His great strength ensured that he was never bullied and he surrounded himself with a close-knit circle of friends. Lacking his mother's affection, he strove to upheld the chivalrous ideal of gallantry and shine in front of damsels and ladies.

The next major event of Donatian's life occurred a few weeks after his seventeenth birthday. News reached him that one of his father's ventures had failed and that the family fortune was gone. To make things worse, his father had fallen gravely ill with a degenerative disease that required expensive treatments they no longer could afford. Since Donatian's elder brothers were either occupied within their knightly orders or attempting to salvage what could be from the family businesses, he was tasked to travel to XYZ where he would ask his mother's relatives for money to cure his father.

Leaving behind all he held dear, Donatian set out from Egede on a boat, headed for the River Kingdoms once again.