Many years ago, Kekaul lived on the Storval Plateau with the rest of his family. His sister, Lyraana and he were only small children when their father ran afoul of a strange woman with pale skin and stark white hair. His mother, Jilara, scooped up both he and his sister and spirited them away with magic. Jilara told them not to look back, but Kekaul couldn't keep his eyes off his father. He was locked in combat with the woman, wielding his bow. She was shooting spikes of ice at him. As the battle shrank into the distance, Kekaul heard his father cry out in mortal pain.
For years, Jilara would keep her small family on the move. She ran south, farther and farther each year. Kekaul and Lyraana were raised in forests and plains across the Inner Sea region. Lyraana took to her mother's lessons quite easily, harnessing the magic of nature all around her. Kekaul, however, shunned these teachings. He instead tried to emulate his father. He stalked the shadows of the forests and hunted game to help feed his family. His mother never spoke about who that woman was. She would only say the woman was coming to collect a debt she couldn't pay.
Eventually, the family had relocated to southern Taldor. Kekaul was out on one of his hunts and returning late. Only something wasn't right. There were tracks all around their campsite, as if there were some kind of fight. Kekaul dropped into a low crouch and moved silently into the underbrush. In the campsite, Kekaul saw his mother, bleeding profusely on the ground. Standing over her was the white witch who had been hunting them for years. She was gloating, pacing around the campfire, spouting some nonsense about collecting on her debt. She left his mother to enter his sister's tent. He heard Lyraana scream from inside the tent and he shifted in the bush. Jilara looked straight at him. They locked eyes, and he could see the desperation in his mother's eyes.
The witch came out from the tent, gripping his sister by the arm. She stood over his mother once more, and said simply "The debt is paid." With one final motion, a spike of ice pierced his mother's heart and she was dead. In that moment a screech rang out from the trees and a hawk swooped down on the witch. She batted at the bird with both arms, letting go of his sister. He could see it, this was his chance to swoop in, maybe kill the witch, at least abscond with his sister. But he was frozen in place with fear. All he could think about was the look in his mother's eyes as the light faded from them. Another flash of light and Kekaul was back in his right mind. The witch was gone, so was his sister. All that was left was the corpse of his mother and the grievously injured hawk. The hawk that had tried to save his sister.
The bird had done more for his sister than he had. The hawk was a hero, and he named her such, Atsii. Kekaul resolved to help the bird heal and hopefully go after his sister with Atsii. It took a while for him to remember his mother's lessons on caring for the creatures of the wild, but he eventually did. Kekaul gently brought the bird into the nearby town of Heldren. He had brought many of the pelts he hunted into town to trade, and he had a little money stored up. For the next couple of months, Kekaul would redress Atsii's wounds, place her on his shoulder, and go hunting in the Border Woods. Then he would come home, cut the pelts and meat, sell the extras he didn't need, and have dinner with Atsii. All the while, he'd train for fighting witches, researching however he could. The day he finally took off Atsii's bandages and let her fly once more, it was strangely cold...
Kekaul's Sheet:
Kekaul
Human (Shoanti) Ranger (Falconer) 1
NG Medium humanoid (human)
Init +6; Senses Perception +6
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Defense
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AC 18, touch 14, flat-footed 14 (+4 armor, +4 Dex)
hp 11 (1d10+1)
Fort +3, Ref +6, Will +2
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Offense
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Speed 20 ft.
Ranged longbow +5 (1d8/×3)
Melee throwing axe +5 (1d6+2)
Special Attacks favored enemy (humans +2)
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Statistics
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Str 14, Dex 18, Con 12, Int 10, Wis 14, Cha 8
Base Atk +1; CMB +3; CMD 17
Feats Point-Blank Shot, Precise Shot
Traits vigilante witch hunter, reactionary, world traveler (knowledge(local))
Drawback haunting regret
Skills Handle Animal +3, Heal +6, Intimidate +3, Knowledge (dungeoneering) +4, Knowledge (local) +5, Knowledge (nature) +4, Perception +6, Sense Motive +3, Stealth +5, Survival +6 (+7 to track)
Languages Common, Shoanti
SQ track
Other Gear hide armor, arrows (40), longbow, throwing axe (2), backpack, masterwork, grappling hook, hammer, iron spike (5), rope, silent whistle, trail rations (3), 11 gp, 8 sp, 5 cp
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Special Abilities
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Animal Companion Link (Ex) You have a link with your Animal Companion.
Favored Enemy (Humans +2) (Ex) +2 to rolls vs Favored Enemy (Humans).
Point-Blank Shot +1 to attack and damage rolls with ranged weapons at up to 30 feet.
Precise Shot You don't get -4 to hit when shooting or throwing into melee.
Share Spells with Companion (Ex) Can cast spells with a target of "you" on animal companion, as touch spells.
Track +1 Add the listed bonus to survival checks made to track.
Atsii's Sheet:
Atsii
Female Hawk
N Small animal
Init +2; Senses low-light vision; Perception +2
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Defense
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AC 14, touch 13, flat-footed 12 (+2 Dex, +1 size, +1 natural)
hp 7 (+5)
Fort +4, Ref +5, Will +2
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Offense
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Speed 10 ft., fly 80 ft. (average)
Melee bite +2 (1d4) and
2 talons +2 (1d4)
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Statistics
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Str 10, Dex 15, Con 12, Int 2, Wis 14, Cha 6
Base Atk +1; CMB +0; CMD 12
Feats Toughness
Tricks Attack, Attack Any Target, Come, Defend, Distract, Down, Heel
Skills Acrobatics +6 (-2 jump), Fly +4, Stealth +10
SQ attack any target, come, defend, distract, down, heel
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Special Abilities
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Attack Any Target [Trick] The animal will attack any creature on command.
Come [Trick] The animal will come to you on command.
Defend [Trick] The animal will defend you.
Distract [Trick] The animal companion flutters wildly around any enemy it would normally attack with the attack trick. It makes an attack roll against that enemy. On a hit, the enemy is shaken.
Down [Trick] The animal will break off combat on command.
Flight (80 feet, Average) You can fly!
Heel [Trick] The animal will follow you.
Low-Light Vision See twice as far as a human in low light, distinguishing color and detail.
