About Halla IngendóttirHalla Ingendóttir
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Backstory:
"My name is Halla. They call me Halla Ingendóttir, daughter of nobody. My mother was a thrall and had no husband. When her belly swelled, no man stepped forward to claim me. I suppose he was a traveler, a guest at my master's stead or a wandering ruffian, who had his pleasure and was gone long before he could have known he had left a seed behind. My mother never told me. She never told me anything."
"They say I was born dead, came out with the cord wrapped around my neck like a noose around a hanged man's throat. Many of the women said it was as well, being the daughter of no one as I was and the dark hair on my head marking me as of impure provenance; the fates meant ill for me, and they might as well claim me sooner than later. But one old midwife untangled me, took me outside and plunged me into the snow, rubbing off the blood and afterbirth with handfuls of ice. The cold of the land was stronger than the cold of the grave, and I cried out. Then she took me inside and wrapped me in cloth and gave me to my mother. It wasn't until after I was washed in snow and had taken my first breath that they saw the purple mark on my shoulder...." Only a few generations ago, Ulfen longboats regularly plundered the Southern lands, taking treasure, supplies -- and slaves. Today, except for the raiders of Broken Bay, the Linnorm Kingdoms present a more civilized face to their southern neighbors, but the populace is still laced with those whose coloring and features betray the ancestry of other peoples and tribes. Among these is Halla Ingendóttir: although born in the north, her dark hair and pale olive tint to her skin mark her as a child of thralls and not a pure-blooded Ulfen, but her difference is far more than physical. Since before she formed conscious memories, she has been haunted by dreams, of laughter and dances, swirling scarves of bright colors, and voices speaking a language she's never heard but understands just the same. She has come to known one voice above all others over the years of her life: a woman named Maeve. She was an ever-present playmate and guardian, expecially after her mother fell through thin ice one late spring and was drowned in the pond. Maeve taught her songs and steps of dances she could barely perform in her heavy cloth boots. The other thralls thought she was fey-touched or bewitched and kept their children away, but as long as she had Maeve for company she didn't care. By the time she had lived through fifteen winters, she was judged strong enough to work in the fields during the short growing season, and her time for songs and dances was over. The master of the farmstead pushed the thralls to plant as soon as the frozen ground would not break the plow and to harvest through every hour of daylight before the frost returned and robbed him of his investment. When she slept, she was too tired to dream. Appearance:
Halla is somewhat slight for an Ulfen, although she would be considered rather tall among most other peoples of the Inner Sea. The past few years of field labor have lent her strength and left her hands calloused. In her native land, her most striking feature is her black hair that earned her the nickname Lilleravn ("Little Raven"), which she dislikes intensely. It also means that she stands little chance of blending into a crowd, so her natural comportment is not to cringe but to stride with her head high and her eyes challenging, as if daring someone to question whether she belongs. Her habitual expression is one of distance and wariness; no telltale creases around her mouth or eyes suggest that smiling or laughing is a common occurrence with her. When Maeve is in charge, her face and expressions grow more animated, and her eyes flash with energy. A birthmark on her left shoulder is a purple mark in the shape of a butterfly; it manifested when she was revived as an infant and the spirit of her ancestor Maeve, a Varisian follower of Desna, was reborn in her. She is unaware of the religious significance of the mark. Personality:
Halla has two separate personalities. The Ulfen Halla Ingedatter is cool and stoic, like the land itself. She accepts pain and hardship as simply part of the landscape, something to be accepted and inadmissible of memory, like the late frost that kills the crop. Maeve, the spirit of her Varisian ancestor, is fiery and passionate, quick to both laughter and anger. Both personalities share a deep resilience and sense of self, a refusal to be cowed that is the core of their connection.
Enjoying, as she has, the constant company of Maeve, Halla has never formed a true friendship with a living being. While she has considerable force of personality, she hasn't learned how to channel that into a mode that pleases others. She is blunt in speech and distant in manner, in a way that makes it difficult for her to relate to others in a comradely manner. Maeve always knows what Halla is feeling without being told so she has no experience in communicating emotionally with words. Halla is stoic, and Maeve is stubborn. Both see revealing vulnerability or asking for help as a weakness. She is slow to trust and slower to accept the charity of others. That same stubbornness, however, gives her resilience and determination. She will not give up on a goal, no matter how many obstacles interpose themselves; she will pick herself up, find another way around, and keep going. In Maeve's spirit burns a passion for the underdog. While Halla might be inclined to keep walking past an injustice and avoid getting involved, Maeve will not let her rest about it. As such, she is likely to act compassionately, albeit somewhat coldly and reluctantly. When Maeve is more in control, as in combat, she is more likely to take risks to help others. Tongues curse houserule:
GM dien wrote: How about this as a off-the-top-of-my-head compromise: in combat situations where Halla is not currently threatened, she can make a will save to test her current composure and see how stressed she actually is? DC of 10 + CR of the nearest opponent? (Would be a 14 in the current fight, and I would allow any bonuses vs fear to apply to the save). This would be entirely voluntary on your part, so when you WANT Halla succumbing to unease, you could, but in those instances where you're like 'ughhh I really wish she could grok what's going on right now' you would have a decent chance to, yet not a blanket 'it will always work' since you can still roll low. There might be situational penalties to, for instance if she's currently wounded she might take damage as a penalty to that roll. |
