16.52 INT
16.37 WIS
18.52 DEX
16.32 CON
6.52 LKS
8.86 CHA
34 HP, TOP 11
31 Honor
1064 Experience
Racist & Prematurely Grey
Skills
Dwarven 84%, Literacy 24%
Merchant Tongue 31%
Animal Mimicry 53%
Observation 24%
Resist Persuasion 38%
Mining 27%
Appraisal Arms & Armor 20%
Cooking/Baking 45%
Geology 24%
Leatherworking 45%
Botany 21%
First Aid 28%
Swimming 56%
Proficiencies
Shields & Armor, Minimal weapons, Great Warhammer, Javelin, Laborer
Combat Profile
Great Warhammer, Attack +9, Speed -2 (10), Init -3, Defense +8, Damage +6, Base Damage d8p+d10p.
Javelin, Attack +6, Speed 0 (8), Init -3, Damage +0/+3, Base Damage 1d12p
Background
Balen Shield-Splitter, son of Klim, grandson of Urdur, and great-grandson of Borli Rune-Hammer himself is a proud Dwarf who was forced to flee Karasta during the Battle of Kadir Ridge. Too young to participate in the battle himself, Balen fled with his parents and four of his six siblings. His oldest brother Borli and sister Elta stayed behind with the defense forces and fell in battle. The rest of the family worked their way East, making a new home in Zoa, but not without “losing” the next two oldest children. During the migration to Reanaaria, and during that time Balen’s brother Bolburd and sister Mieka departed to find their own way in the world. It was rumored that Bolburd joined an adventuring company and Mieka was last heard to have made her way back to the guerrilla camps that seek retribution against Emperor Kabori.
As the youngest of seven children, Balen had no choice but to obey his father and move to Zoa, but he does not consider it “home”. Klim and his wife Kelarr were content enough to live their lives together as peaceful craftsman and hoped to pass on their skills in gem-cutting and leatherworking to their children. Balen has picked up some skills from his parents, but he is unable to forget what had happened at Kadir Ridge. While he had a normal relationship with Borli, he was very close to Elta, Bolburd, and Mieka. Losing so much of his family in such a short time-span has really jaded his outlook when it comes to “outsiders”. The family has either adapted to their new home, or gone off to reclaim their old one, but Balen clung to the old ways. Instead of training to become a gem-cutter or other craftsman, he decided to train in the use of the Great Warhammer, just like the clan’s patriarch (Borli Rune-Hammer). He learned how to read Dwarven even though it is not a useful skill in Zoa. Balen has had to learn a bit of Merchant’s Tongue to get buy, but he has so far adamantly refused to learn any of the “lesser” tongues.
Balen’s sullen demeanor and xenophobic tendencies didn’t afford him many opportunities for friendship and his parent’s quickly learned that it was better to conduct business dealings with other races outside of the home. One of their regular clients, Master Gorum Talek, was always welcome in the home as he was a fellow Dwarven refugee. During Gorum’s trips through Zoa he would visit with Kilm and Kelarr and discuss the news of the world and their people after the business of the day had been finished. Gorum was already a travelling merchant, so his transition to a life outside of Karasta was relatively easy. He sympathized with Kilm and his family’s difficulty in their transition and offered encouragement when he could. From time to time he would also bring Balen a book of Dwarven literature.
When Balen became of age Gorum offered him a guard position with his caravan. Gorum seemed to have some ulterior motives, kind ones no doubt, as to why he wanted to offer Balen such a position. Perhaps he wanted to temper the young man’s racist tendencies or he wanted to keep Balen from rushing back to Karasta. For whatever the reason, Gorum has treated Balen fairly and without special favor.
Balen is at a crossroads in his life. He is old enough to set out on his own but lacks any real direction. He had thought of locating Mieka or even Bolburd and trying to fight alongside them, but he isn’t quite ready to make such a long and perilous trek quite yet. For now he is content to earn some coin and gain some experience while he figures out what to do.
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