Twilight of Empires

Va'retha belongs to the Moonwind Tribe, one of a group of nomadic tribes that travel throughout the Plains of Kring verging on the edges of the Asteria Empire, the Uruk Mandarinate, and the fringes of the Great EastFyre Desert. The Moonwind Tribe is known for breeding riding animals such as horses and chocobos. There are rumors that the leadership of the tribe are planning on expansion or migration, perhaps looking to take over some of the areas the Uruk Mandarinate abandoned.

As a child, Va'retha was found to be a good candidate for shaman training and was placed under tutelage of a Wise Old Master. Twelve years later when her training was complete, it was determined that the tribe already had enough assistant shamans. In what her Wise Old Master has claimed is an uncommon but Ancient and Honorable Practice of Our People, as the newest shaman Va’retha has been sent out into the world to learn about and ally with other spirits to bring back to aid the clan. They wouldn't turn down mundane allies either. Also, as this is Va'retha's task, she won't be getting any help from her stereotypically mischievous and unhelpful Wise Old Master.

By now Va’retha knows quite well that her so-called Wise Old Master is tricky. The Ancient and Honorable Practice of Her People she's performing could be no such thing - she’s never heard of it in all the songs, stories, and history she's learned. Is her task really what it seems to be, or does her stereotypically mischievous and currently unhelpful Wise Old Master intend something more?

Va'retha is a human female, age 22 at campaign start. She has an athletic build, is a bit taller than average, and has a golden tan skin tone. Her dark brown hair is worn in a long braid. Like many other members of the plains tribesfolk, she likes colorful trim on her clothes and gear. On first glance she wouldn't be physically notable enough to pick her out of a group of her tribeswomen, but a more discerning eye might find her charisma and strength of will attractive.

Va'retha is favored by the Great Chocobo Spirit, and she often decorates her braid with chocobo feathers or wears other chocobo imagery in its honor.

When he was a chick, he got a pretty bad case of feather mites. Part of the prescription is dust baths. Dusty liked dust baths. Or maybe he liked all the attention being groomed to get dust out of his feathers afterward. Or else he decided he never wanted to go through that again. Va'retha isn't sure which. As soon as his riding tack comes off, he wants to head for the nearest dust wallow if there's one nearby. He hasn't tried to do it with a rider or with his tack on . . . yet. Dusty can be a pain in the tail feathers, but he's a lovable one. Playful, curious, and adorable when he gets himself in trouble - again.

• +4 DEF, head only (Rasgrid’s Braid-Ring)
• +2 COM (Rasgrid’s Braid-Ring)
• +5 PRE Defense (Ring of the Cat's Blessing)
• +2 to any skill requiring superior balance (Ring of the Cat's Blessing)
• Nightvision (Ring of the Cat's Blessing)
• Insect Repellent (Frog of Insect Repellent)
• Weatherproof (Magic Weatherproof Cloak and Boots)

• Witch's Spear “Ars” (Halls of Memory), Contains Ursul and Hydris
• Rasgrid's Braid-Ring (Spring of the Myst, Grandpear’s Basement)
• Ring of the Cat's Blessing (Gnosisblock)
• Frog of Insect Repellent (Lynne’s Hall, Hunters’ Camp near Duskenvale)
• Glimmerlamp (Lynne’s Hall, Hunters’ Camp near Duskenvale)
• Aelum Brigandine Armor (Fort Sinister)
• Magically Weatherproofed Cloak and Boots (Fort Sinister)
• Wood Mouth x2 (Curiosity shop, Fort Sinister), One extrudes 2“ “cob” of grain daily, type changes each season. The other extrudes a few inches of cucumber daily
• Potions (Lynne’s Hall, Hunters’ Camp near Duskenvale): Cure x2 - Basic - healing, round tube; Elixir x2 - Restore endurance, ball-shaped flask; Poisona x2 - Universal antidote, square tube; Viruna x2 - Universal anti-disease, hexagon tube
• Va’retha’s Scary Stick (Curiosity shop, Fort Sinister) Leftovers of a particularly ugly ritual item Rasgrid bought for the spellshard inside. Kept for potential mischief.
• Dusty the Chocobo He's pretty unusual, all by himself

• Frog of Insect Repellent

• Frog of Insect Repellent
• Glimmerlamp

• Naginatajutsu/Sojutsu, UMA p45
• Nomad package, Fantasy Hero p45
• Shaman package, Fantasy Hero p58-59
• Spells and spiritual abilities, mostly Fantasy Hero and Fantasy Hero Grimoire, various pages