About ShanyaThis character is reserved for the Reign of Winter Adventure Path. Shanya Free-Winter
Melee
Spells Known (CL 17th):
Formula Slots
Feats: Weapon Finesse, Mother's Gift (Natural Armour Boost), Mother's Gift (Spell Resistance), Mother's Gift (Claw Bonus), Extend Spell, Improved Initiative, Extra Investigator Talent (Amazing Inspiration), Improved Critical (Rapier), Weapon Focus (Rapier), Fencing Grace Traits: Warded Against Witchery, Friend in Every Town Skills: +11 Acrobatics, +15 Bluff (+17 vs. Sexually Attracted), +8 Craft (Alchemy) (+12 to Craft Alchemy items), +16 Diplomacy, +13 Disable Device (+15 vs Locks, +17 vs Traps), +7 Escape Artist, +11 Intimidate, +8 Knowledge (Arcana) +7 Knowledge (Geography), +7 Knowledge (History), +9 Knowledge (Local), +8 Knowledge (Nature), +7 Knowledge (Nobility), +7 Knowledge (Planes), +11 Linguistics (Giant, Sylvan, Iobarian, Draconic, Free Slot) +14 Perception (+17 vs. Traps), +8 Perform (Sing), +14 Sense Motive, +14 Stealth, +10 Spellcraft (+11 to ID spells cast by evil arcane casters) Languages: Common, Aklo, Dwarven, Elven, Skald, Giant, Sylvan SQ: Natural Armour, Darkvision, Claws, Green Widow, Spell Resistance Equipment: +1 Mithral Chain Shirt (2100 GP), Mwk Backpack (50 gp), Bedroll (1 sp), Waterskin (1 gp), Soap (1 cp), Cold Weather Outfit (free), Trail Rations (3x, 1 gp 5 sp), Grooming Kit (1 gp), Gear Maintenance Kit (5 gp), +1 light mace (2005 gp), mwk cold iron dagger (304 gp), shortbow (30 gp), arrows (40) (2 gp), sap (1 gp) potions of invisibility (x2), Money: (6,000 to begin) 224 gp --------------------
Background The land of Irrisen is a country locked in eternal winter. The once proud Ulfen peasantry live in constant fear of not only the monstrous & fey denizens of the cold, harsh land, but also of the nation's aristocracy: the Jadwiga, descendants of the legendary Baba Yaga herself, blessed (though most others would say cursed) with talents for arcane magic and endless cruelty. The most cunning and cruel of them rise to become rulers of the nation's provinces & cities; the best of them, in turn, form Irrisen's secret police, the Cold Sisters. Based out of the capital city of Whitethrone, the Cold Sisters patrol Irrisen, seeking out evidence of rebellion among the peasants and signs of double-dealing amongst the merchants and even their own kind to punish with all the fury of winter. Every day looks utterly bleak for the smallfolk of Irrisen, but the existence of the Heralds of Summer's Return give them hope for a better tomorrow. This loosely-organized group fights against the tyranny of Irrisen's winter witches in the hope of one day overthrowing them entirely. One such member was Ivan Koslov, Shanya's father. Shanya was left on the doorstep of her father's apothecary when she was a baby in the town of Hagby in Irrisen's province of Thronehold. Ivan took a look at her, and noticing how much she resembled him, decided to raise her as his own. Shanya's childhood was, like many of the children in Hagby, rife with paranoia and the looming menace of the town's ruler, Baroness Veronika Kseniya. The baroness was a lady prone to indulging in pointless greed and cruelty; in but one example of such pitilessness, when tax day came around, she was fond of hiking taxes up to unbearable rates and confiscating the property of those unable to pay. Unlike some of the other youths of Hagby, Shanya had a talent for staying out of the baroness' sight, as well as a good memory: she remembered every one of her atrocities and nurtured a private desire to see her brought low. Shanya learned how to make basic concoctions and tonics for the townsfolk of Hagby under her father's tutelage, sometimes even filling in orders for Baroness Kseniya herself. Throughout her training, Ivan never spoke of her mother; every time she asked about her, he only remarked on how much Shanya looked like her. He was fond of saying that she had his face and her mother's beauty. In the end, Shanya only had more questions about her mother that Ivan refused to answer. She understood that she wasn't like the other village children--other children didn't have mismatched eyes, unnaturally tough skin and claws that could tear flesh like tissue paper. Ivan came to trust his daughter with running the family business and frequently went away from home by the time she was twelve. When she was fourteen years old, Ivan finally revealed to her why he often left her in charge of the shop: he was a member of a resistance movement called the Heralds of Summer's Return, dedicated to striking back at the white witches that keep the once proud folk of Irrisen under their heels, and that they have been working tirelessly to break Kseniya's hold on the town. Shanya demanded that she be allowed to join, seeing an opportunity to get back at the baroness who tormented the populace of Hagby for so long. And so it was that the Heralds accepted her into her ranks, teaching her the finer points of diplomacy and deception as well as knowledge of the fey allies of Irrisen's white witches. She developed into a capable spy, using the skills in avoiding attention and charming others she developed on Hagby's streets to suss out Baroness Kseniya's darkest secrets. As Shanya discovered, the baroness thought herself cunning enough to get away with skimming off a sizeable cut of the taxes that went to Whitethrone. It was a simple matter for the Heralds to spread that secret along the trade caravan routes until Irrisen's Cold Sisters decided to pay the baroness a visit. On the eve of the Cold Sisters' arrival, Ivan revealed to Shanya that the plan to overthrow the baroness was simply a distraction: the Heralds' real ploy was to smuggle as many of Hagby's townsfolk as they could out of the country while the Cold Sisters were occupied with the baroness' treachery. An operative of the Heralds named Solveig Ayrdahl in Whitethrone would be able to smuggle the townsfolk out of Irrisen. When the Cold Sisters arrived in Hagby, only a few families were willing to make the journey to Whitethrone--the rest were too afraid of the witches' wrath to go. Setting out from Hagby, the caravan ran for many days and nights, resting as sparingly as possible in order to stay as far ahead of the Cold Sisters as they could. In the end, it was all for naught. As the caravan traveled along the road to Whitethrone, they ran across a rider garbed in red, blood staining his clothes, his mount slain by foul magics--Baba Yaga's Red Rider. He revealed Queen Elvanna's plan for Golarion: to blanket it in eternal winter, and that she had enslaved the legendary Baba Yaga. As he spoke, it became clear that he was not long for this world. "Winter is coming... coming for the rest of your world. You believe the cruelties of my Queen's daughters is the worst anyone could suffer? The rest of your world is fated to endure far, far worse. But I can offer you a chance to stand against this... others like you are already fighting against her. Some of them have received the blessings of my Queen... blessings that I offer you in turn. Take them, and you may yet have a hope of bringing an end to this." Most of the townsfolk balked at the Red Rider's request, Shanya's father among them. A select few took the Rider up on his offer. Though it galled Shanya to ally with the favoured servants of the woman whose daughters her people fought against for so long, she accepted as well. It was then that the Cold Sisters caught up to the caravan. The Red Rider and the caravan fought valiantly against them, but in the end, Shanya was entombed in a block of ice, the sole survivor of the attack... Description & Personality Before you stands a petite young woman with abnormally pale skin and differently-coloured eyes: her left eye is blue and her right eye is a sickly green. Her messy black hair falls down to her shoulders, and she is clad in black furs that appear to be a few sizes too large for her. She looks you over with a critical, appraising eye. A shortbow is resting next to her, with a quiver of arrows slung across her hips. A dagger is visible on her belt next to a light mace and a cosh. Shanya is a quiet, observant young lady, often found with her nose in some book or other and weighing her words carefully before she speaks. She enjoys conversing with people on the same intellectual level as her, but also harbours a serious mistrust of anyone who practices witchcraft. She finds it easy to befriend people, but has trouble really getting close to anyone after seeing how easily trust can be used and twisted for evil ends. Given time, she proves to be a reliable friend and ally. She has a decidedly pitch-black sense of humour. Traits Warded Against Witchery: Through sheer dumb luck, Shanya was the only survivor of an ambush by the Cold Sisters. Shanya has learned from this traumatic experience, and knows what to expect the next time she encounters evil spellcasters. Shanya gains a +1 trait bonus to saving throws against spells, spell-like abilities and supernatural abilities of evil arcane spellcasters, and a +1 trait bonus to Spellcraft checks made to identify spells cast by evil arcane spellcasters. Friend in Every Town: Shanya's talent for befriending people serves her well in her work for the Heralds of Summer's Return. Her information-gathering & retaining skills are well-honed with a blend of training and life experience. Shanya gains a +1 bonus to Diplomacy & Knowledge (Local) checks, and Diplomacy is always a class skill for her. Macros:
Attacks Mace/Rapier/Dagger Attack: [dice=Attack]1d20+7[/dice]
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