Malnova NPCs

Nobility

	Baroness Rucia Malnova Baroness Rucia Malnova is the oldest child of the Holy Queen’s brother in Estland. Rucia had moved to the Principal to attend the royal court and her father hoped to find herself a husband. Instead she discovered her love and talent for arcane magic. Rucia began to study under the court wizard Alfons and received her license to practice magic upon completion of her apprenticeship. She gained sponsorship from the Guild of Engineers and Architects and began to research and discover new methods for practical applications of magic to improve urban development and defense infrastructure. Rucia remains unmarried. She has entertained potential suitors in the past, but seems to have abandoned such ideals in the past several years. She travels with an entourage of six to a dozen men and women and it is rumored that she has intimate relations with some or all of them. Rucia was the first volunteer for the opportunity to improve her station amongst the nobles and more importantly to her, the chance to actively apply her research in the field and construct a well planned and stronger designed new settlement. It is obvious that she is much more interested in this aspect of the project than that of spreading Daltes law or religion, but if she can stake and hold a foothold, those other aspects can be established by others better suited to the task, such as her “expert advisors” that have been chosen to attend and facilitate hers and Datles’ interests in the new settlement. Rucia's Entourage consists of the half-elven painter Emar, an eccentric and emotional poet named Dila, Lett the master swordsman, a dancer named Kinyn, ex-Royal Chef Atana (rumor is she lost her position due to an unfortunate episode involving shellfish), the scribe twins, Cersi and Serl, the barely proficient minstrel Lorll, Adil the seamstress and devotee of Sune, a translator named Okina, an asa interior decorator named Riisa and Arq, the Darshinian alchemist made infamous when one of his experiments burned down part of the bardic college.
	Ambassadors Etissan and Ivy of House Ashania Etissan and Ivy are both tall and statuesque and exude old nobility. Ashania is a major house in Dulnai and they both held influential positions. Everyone was shocked when they were one of the first to step up and volunteer to join the settlement. Unlike most of the other nobles on the journey, they brought very little with them, including a minimal number of retainers. This strangeness has prompted a great deal of suspicion from their peers. Etissan and Ivy are both open worshipers of Bahamut and Waukeen.
	Lord Balek of House Danosh short, fat, lazy and a drunk. Balek is the black sheep of House Danosh and was volunteered by his father to join the settlement. If he succeeds, House Danosh will gain territory in Katrica, if he fails - well that probably means he's dead. Balek used to hunt wild game in his youth until an accident cost him his left leg below the knee. He wears an engraved wooden leg when in public.
	Lady Delia of House Rasar a stout woman with curves in all the right places and honey blond hair that cascades down her back to her knees. House Rasar is a minor house, but Delia is ambitious and seeks to change her fortunes with this venture. She is friendly and quick to call people friend, and just as quick to put them to use in improving her standing in the world.
	Lady Rosella & Lord Roldano of House Lyilla the Lyilla twins are barely adults, but the dour air that haunts them makes them seem much older. House Lyilla had barely evaded the chopping block following the Ascension War. Their parents were executed, but it's commonly believed that their parents arranged to have the Guild Council call for their heads before the King's culling of traitors. As a result, they were executed by the Guild and their house was overlooked when the King summoned forth those who had supported his half-brother in the war. When the King became aware of this, he acquired all of House Lyilla's assets as compensation for damages during the war, but allowed the twins to retain their title. With almost nothing left, the siblings joined the company traveling to Katrica in the hopes of reestablishing their house as part of Malnova. Roldano openly worships at the altar of the Rathe.
	Lord Marc the ideal picture of a noble knight, Marc is tall and strong with perfect hair and a winning smile designed for winning over a crowd or wooing a companion for the night. Marc is a paladin of Erollisi Marr and vocal in his belief that nobility exists not only to lead, but to love and protect their people as a sacred task, sacrificing themselves if need be, for that is what it means to be NOBLE. It's a very well known fact that the King and Marc share a mutual loathing. Marc's parents volunteered him for the journey west, though it's not clear if this was done in order to smooth relations between their house and the King or because the King himself put pressure on them. Marc sees the entire endeavor as an opportunity to perform the duty he was born to (his cheerful acceptance and enthusiasm has been noted as putting the King into "a mood").

Church of Dom

• Father Rahod, Priest of Lathander: one of the nothgar, Rahod is of average height, but built like a wall, with a wild mane of golden hair and beard that makes one think of a lion. Rahod and Giasha have been friends since he met the older woman in Domshal when he was a young acolyte. When the discussion about the settlement began, they eagerly volunteered for the project, looking forward to the challenge and the opportunity to work together. As well favored priests in the Church of Dulnai, they were chosen to lead in the establishment of the new Church of Malnova.
• Mother Giasha, Priestess of Chauntea: an aging, motherly woman with a gentle demeanor and soothing smile. Giasha is generally adored and well known to the smallfolk as she has always preferred to toil in the fields, serving her goddess through example over presenting sermons in a temple. "A clean priestess of the Grain Goddess is a bad priestess. The callouses on our hands are as much our holy symbol as these trinkets we wear about our necks.", is a line she has been known to say.
• Sister Tiany, Priestess of Waukeen: Stylish blond hair, perfected cosmetics, expensive but tasteful tailored dresses, and fabulous shoes and accessories, Tiany strives for only the greatest things in life. Tiany was a member of one of the exiled noble houses that had supported the false king during the war, but as she had already been anointed as a priestess and no longer a member of her house, the King was bound by law and tradition to overlook her familial ties. Tiany's assignment to the settlement came as quite the shock to her and she begged for the Church to reconsider; there were no markets, no spas, few tailors and who would groom her dog and paint her nails every Tuesday? She has since concluded that this entire affair is the Church bowing and scraping to the King and sending her away, likely to die, as a different form of exile since she had escaped the one he had planned for her family.
• Justicar Inar, Priest of the Tribunal: the very model of a Justicar, Inar is tall, stoic and grim with a neat white beard and a long topknot. Inar is a paladin and whether he is performing the roll of warrior or justice, he wears his heavy armor with the black hooded tabard and wields his silvery maul. Many are fearful of the Justicar, but his love for literature, cats and fine wines are generally also well known and seem to humanize him a little.
• Brother Rakon, Priest of Mystra: Rakon, a short balding man of middling age, is a graduate of the legendary College of Alchemy and Thaumaturgic Science in Zalcoryn. This distinction has won him a great deal of prestige in the church and community at large. When he volunteered for the settlement of Malnova, many tried to convince him otherwise, but he was determined to stick to his decision. He is eager to study and learn more about the flora and fauna of Katrica forest, an opportunity few alchemists have had since the College was established following the cataclysm that was Anaya's Folly. He is also very interested in the legends of mana-infused water or objects in the lower depths of Katrica City.
• Sister Kasa of the Underburrow, Priestess of Reorx: A dwarven woman with a beard to rival that of most non-dwarven men. Kasa is an energetic busy-body, always on the move and always eager to get her hands dirty and tackle tasks, how else to get thing done so that you can move onto the next challenge. She tends to be somewhat absent minded, so often she will lose interest and forget about some of these various tasks that had seemed so important just a short time ago, in order to obsess about her newest objective. She is often driven by curiosity and has a tendency to wander into situations that wisdom would have dictated otherwise. Kasa is married to the stonemason Deagen, though they live apart and see very little of each other. She says that because of this arrangement they will have a very long, healthy and happy marriage, at least until he drinks himself to death or is crushed beneath one of his walls, at which point she'll go find herself a cuter, younger lad to replace him.
• Daughter Que’essi, Priestess of Hel: while most of the priests of Hel are quiet and somber, Que'essi is not. Daughter of a trader from the Summer Kingdoms, she is loud, stark and practical. "The dead have a great deal of patience and impeccable manners, it's a pity their squawking kin do not."

The Guilds

	Basol Tan, Guild of Builders A broad man with a heavy beard and dark eyes. Basol seems to have chosen to transport his entire estate with him for the journey and has more servants and packs than half of the entire caravan. He is quick to hand out gifts and tokens to those he seeks to impress or charm and is known to pay handsome rewards to those who have earned his gratitude. The Tan family are the founders and backbone of the Guild of Builders.
	Daren Vallig, Guild of Weavers A tall, thin and pale man, Daren prefers to wear the most over the top, gaudy and flashy outfits, dripping with jewels and avian plumage sprouting from every inch of his garments. Though he looks like a very expensive jester, Daren is a comic and a charmer as well as wealthy and is rarely seen without an attractive young lad and lady on each arm, as well as his muscular bull of a younger brother always watching his back.
	Sarec, Master of Beer, Guild of Brewers Sarec is somewhat stern and usually pretty quiet, often seeming to be distracted or deep in thought. His concoctions are often bizarre and whimsical, he is fond of desert wines and brews and is well known to host spontaneous informal tastings of his creations, sometimes at his home, but often at lesser known taverns, bringing them new traffic.
	Vora of House Benu, Guild of Coin & Commerce Vora, often called "the Vora Widow" belongs to one of the oldest noble houses in Dulnai. She is an older widow, whispered to have had her husband done away with in order to clear his debts. She is tall and gaunt with long white hair in a high bun per Estland fashion. She has dead grey eyes and wears long, heavily embroidered dark dresses with neck lines that end just beneath her chin, another bygone of old Estland. She does not smile. She never laughs. She is hesitant and calculating in everything she does.
	Oriss Inkpots, Guild of Law Writers Oriss considers himself a writer. He graduated from a bardic college in Talaria and did some traveling for a few years. He has been working on his epic biography ever since he returned to Dulnai. Oriss is a short man of average build with a considerable middle paunch. A notably calm and lazy bachelor who enjoys his leisure time, fine wines and large meals, he is also very fond of himself and can entertain for hours with tales of his life and his adventures, particularly the time he claims to have spent living with kenku monks or in a hut made of ice with a nothgar family, eating only bear meat and huddling up with their sacred yaks for warmth. Oriss and Chief Ranger Aldur are old friends, having spent some of those travel years on the road together.
	Shanon Lark, Guild of Agriculture Shanon is an attractive, but cruel woman who strives to be the perfect image of dignified nobility. She is considered to be brilliant in her field and very educated in agricultural science and business models dealing with commerce and market values depending on region, crop, supply, demand and time of year. She is often found shopping, always haggling over prices and critiquing the quality of products in vendors stalls. Her dislike of children is well known and she generally has two large dogs with her trained to aggressively keep such creatures away from her. She flaunts her wealth and standing, and will put down those beneath her without hesitation if she feels she has been slighted. Shanon was a vocal supporter of the King during the war.

Craftsmen & Professionals

• Zeric: a very large blacksmith. People call him the giant dwarf, as he stands six feet tall and has similar proportions to that height as a dwarf would if they were that tall and a beard that he tucks into his belt.
• Seth: a flamboyant Estland weaponsmith & pretty decent armorer (if you can stand the ornamental filigree)
• Lionel, Penna & Sons: a family of tanners, Penna is also a cobbler.
• Cham, Waldur, Jenny and Old Will: carpentry foremen
• Deagen: a Nakaltian dwarven stone mason and husband to the Priestess Kasa. Deagen has only seems to have two passions: stonework and drinking. He and his wife see very little of each other and both seem to prefer the arrangement.
• Chief Ranger Aldur: Aldur an is unusually tall and chunky cathian hunter and trapper. He has been in Katrica for the past two years, having been one of the first people sent in to scout the forest for potential settlement sites. He has a terrible weakness for baked goods and confections. Aldur and Oriss Inkpots are old traveling buddies.
• Hathgar: a mighty mustache that happens to be wearing a man beneath it, Hathgar intends to open the first tavern of Malnova.

Others

• Little Oak & Ash Twig: a pair of brownie siblings representing their clan elsewhere in the forest. They were brought to the city a few months ago and granted the titles, "High Ambassadors of the Little Folk of Katrica" by the Queen and King. They are eager to return home with the Baroness and her crew, being uncomfortable with all the extravagance and ceremony of the city. They just wanted to trade radishes and pretty blue stones for the nice cloth they saw the forerunners wearing.
• Di of this Grove: a strange sethian elf druid claiming to represent all the inhabitants of Katrica Forest, including its very opinionated trees.