Sunday, December 18, 2016

Character Profile: Tilly the dwarven monk

The group remembers Tilly as a young dwarven woman who stood about 4’2”. She had a light, slightly ruddy complexion with rosey cheeks and deep red-amber hair worn in a thick plait down her back. Tilly was physically fit and agile, always dressed in soft undyed wools and leathers of brown and dun. She typically wore a belted tunic over loose-fitting breeches tucked into her tall boots, all under a cowled robe. Her movements were fluid and efficient, in fact ‘fluid and efficient’ would have been a good descriptor for her whole being.

Other than knowing that she was a monk who studied in a very small and remote monastery, you know little else of her background and family. Dwarves you’ve met have been typically independent, logical, practically-minded, and fiercely loyal to kin and clan. You know that many dwarves never leave their great mountain cities. So to meet this lone dwarf living the life of a wanderer was odd at first. After traveling with her for many years you now have a greater appreciation of the temperament that leads one of any race to leave their culture and choose the life of a monk. 

Serene and calm. You have seen Tilly walk the edges of a battlefield assisting the fallen just as calmly as she may sit by the campfire and cook the evening meal. But yet is not an apathetic or somnolent calmness. Looking into her deep, green eyes you sense that she cares deeply for the world around her, but there is a distance there as well and a chasm of duty fills the space in between. She would laugh at a joke, smile at the antics of a child or animal, show sadness when witnessing pain and death, but you always had the sense that she was serving her duty. You might have wondered if you ever truly got to know the ‘real’ Tilly.

Dutiful or not, Tilly was always ready to help, fair-minded, and even-tempered. Though she could easily hold her own in a fight (and likely saved your ass once or twice over the years), she considered violence a last-resort option and would urge for a diplomatic resolution or even outright avoidance of a conflict rather than deliberately harm other creatures. If asked she would introduce herself as a healer and herbalist, and though not a channel of divine healing magic, she seemed to have such an intuitive sense of the body and vast knowledge of herb-lore that she probably spent more time healing wounds than inflicting them during your travels. 

Though hard to read, impossible to rile, and not someone who ever opened up on any deeper level, you still count her as a friend. You have many fond memories of downtimes during your travels where she would forage roots and berries from a barren tundra and somehow create the most amazing meal that would fill your belly and warm your soul. In fact, Tilly’s fantastic cooking is probably one of the things you recall most vividly about her.
Tilly and Tethran:
Tilly and Gaylia:

Watch here for more updates on Tilly.

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