Tontu

Art by mariah\_art

### Connections

Frostfell, Faewunder, Count Corbett Aleister, Mournful Queen, Timedias, Vulkan Burgh

## Campaign Appearances

### Main Campaign(s)

*Curious Curios*

**Tontu** is a member of the *Curious Curios* party. A young Tanookin dressed as a knight, Tontu was once part of a community of Racclings living in a verdant forested Veil. One day, Tontu went into hibernation with the rest of his people, turning into a statue. However, Tontu would be awakened by a group of strangers in a completely different location 100 years later, with none of his friends or family in sight. He is played by Strippin.

## Description

### Appearance

Tontu is a short and stout young Raccling with particularly fluffy fur. His body fur is mostly light brown in color with darker chestnut brown fur found on his belly, tail and forearms. The fur on Tontu's head spans out beyond his shoulders, with the majority of his facial fur being black. His muzzle and brow are a much lighter shade of brownish-white, mimicking the distinct contrasting patterns of a tanuki. His eyes are a deep brown and he has a pair of stubby black pointed ears at the top of his head.

Tontu has also notably donned a set of wooden armor, crudely carved into a breastplate and a set of pauldrons. A carved wooden mask is worn on his forehead, roughly carved to resemble the face of a Raccling. Tontu also carries a small wooden kite shield and a wooden club with a rounded head with various pointed sticks jutting out.

### Personality

Tontu is usually quite calm and reserved, often waiting to be spoken to before offering his thoughts. He is generally polite to those around him, often excusing himself and saying "please" and "thank you" accordingly. Tontu's first instinct is to be helpful to others, which can have him doing simple chores like folding robes for Mao to diving in front of missiles in the defense of his friends. Tontu's courteous nature also means he is entirely honest, almost never lying to others or omitting information even when it would benefit him. These traits endeared him to the alchemist Toth, who provided the means to search for his past out of pity for the earnest young Raccling.

One of Tontu's most admirable traits is his strong sense of morality and justice. Despite his kind nature, he is prone to passionate outbursts when he deems something to be unfair, or when someone is acting rude or malicious. This is most evident in his dealings with Count Corbett Aleister, where he frequently calls out the vampire's callous nature and disregard for the lives of others. Tontu's moral compass is further reinforced by his bravery, as Tontu will staunchly stand up for what he believes in and face down foes quadruple his size without hesitation.

Tontu can also be quite naïve due to his clan being secluded in the wild, and the fact he was a statue for 100 odd years. He is often confused by common slang, terminology and technology and has next-to-no knowledge of life outside his forest. To balance this, Tontu is quite inquisitive and will always ask when he does not know something, usually to mixed results. Tontu will also engage in childish behavior, such as teasing Howie about technically being older than him and playing in the snow with Kyuubi.

Though he does not often express it, Tontu is deeply grief-stricken by his past, particularly the senseless loss of his family and friends. His deep sorrow is normally well hidden and he prefers to keep focused on the task at hand and protecting his friends than process his own feelings. This intense unresolved sadness grants him a connection to an equally sorrowful eldritch being, who willing offers Tontu its power to aid him. When Tontu transforms using this power, his immense grief overwhelms him, flooding to the surface and causing him to lash out in a haze of anguish. Time will tell if this expression of buried emotion is beneficial or detrimental to the young Tanookin.

## History

### Background

Tontu was born as an only child in a small settlement of Tanookin in the Silversoil region of Faewunder, an alternate plane of existence land of whimsical wonderment. The Tanookin tribe spent their days acting as guardians of the forest, while paying homage to the rulers of Silversoil, King Cyran and Queen Izabel Morved, whose castle was located within a short distance of the village. Under the guidance of the king and queen, the realm knew tranquility and harmony among its denizens.

Tontu lived with his mother and father and spent much of his life playing with his fellow Tankookin, such as Pop Pop and Ronny. During his early life, Tontu would often play-pretend as a knight of the forest and fashioned himself a suit of wooden armor, club and shield to better live out this fantasy. Tontu also learned much from the older Racclings of the village, like their chief. This included how to survive in the forest, how to defend himself in combat and how to channel the magic of nature. As part of their traditions, Tontu would also partake in self-petrification, an innate ability unique to his people. At one point, Tontu and his whole village underwent the petrification process, presumably to hibernate.

### Crime against Nature

Unbeknownst to Tontu and his village, a nefarious stranger had entered their peaceful realm through a curious keep that connected worlds. The stranger was an aristocratic vampire by the name of Count Corbett Aleister, intent on bringing ruin to Silversoil for his own amusement. As part of his scheme, the count located the slumbering Racclings and used dark magics to ensorcelled four of their number, including Tontu. To do this, he used a mask made of Shadewood from his homeland of the Shadow Veil, carved to resemble the face of Tontu's father. With the Tanookin under his control, the count waited in the forest for the royal procession to come his way. When they did, he introduced himself to the king and queen, as if to earn their good graces. The king was charmed by the count's stories, though some of his retainers held misgivings. As they continued their walk with the count, Tontu and the other possessed Racclings emerged from the woods. The king, unaware something was amiss, invited them to his side.

With the opportunity presenting itself, the count commanded his thralls to attack, using a set of blades conjured from Shadow. Three of the Tanookin fell upon the king, stabbing him to death as his train flew into a panic. Tontu, however, remained frozen in fear, unable to lift his blade to commit a foul deed. He soon managed to shake off the possession and attempted to intervene, turning his blade on the count. However, the vampire was too quick and struck back, causing Tontu to instinctively petrified himself for protection. To ensure the Raccling did not attempt another attack, the Count cast a spell to prevent him reverting to his original form.

With the king brutally murdered, his train began to also fall victim to the violence. As the Queen screamed in horror, the Count slipped her husband's ring from her finger and drew out a book from his pouch. Using her intense grief and the ring as components, the Count completed a ritual that wove Shadow into the very fabric of reality. Silversoil became transformed into a new demiplane called Frostfell, a frozen tundra devoid of joy and love. Unable to turn her ire on the Count, the Queen later descended upon the Raccling Village in grief-stricken outrage, smashing as many of the petrified Racclings as she could. After the destruction of the village, she returned to her castle to commence her eternal mourning, shutting herself off from the world of cold the count had created.

### A Stony Vigil

When all was said and done, the Count took his leave from this new frosty domain, satisfied in his accomplishment. However, he also took two trophies along with him, one being the king's ring and the other being the petrified body of Tontu. The reason behind taking Tontu is unclear, but it is likely the Count, as a collector of oddities, thought the Raccling would make a striking addition to said collection. The vampire returned to the Curios Keep, where he acted as its caretaker, and set the ring in a cabinet of curiosities. As for Tontu, the Count transported him to the Prime Plane, specifically the Fogbound Forests of the Eshonia Isles in Etropa. Outside the Keep's main entrance, Tontu would stand watch in his stony vigil for the next 100 years, completely unaware of what he had done, and what he had lost.

## Mechanics

### Powers and Abilities

#### Paladin Abilities

* *Divine Sense*
* *Lay on Hands*
* *Divine Smite*
* *Fighting Style* (Interception)
* *Divine Health*
* *Extra Attack*
* *Aura of Protection*
* Martyr abilities
	+ *Protective Sanction*
	+ *Channel Divinity: Mark of the Martyr*
	+ *Aura of Offerings*

#### Feats

* *Mounted Combatant*
* *War Caster*

#### Spell List

##### 1st Level

* *Absorb Elements*
* *Bane*
* *Bless*
* *Protection from Evil and Good*
* *Shield of Faith*

##### 2nd Level

* *Barkskin*
* *Find Steed*
* *Spike Growth*
* *Warding Bond*

### Other Abilities

* *Eldritch Energy*: You have a number of Eldritch Energy points equal to your Proficiency Bonus. You may use this energy in a number of ways and regain all points on a long rest.
	+ You may conjure an eldritch beast that fights along side you until dispatched.
	+ You may transform in an eldritch form, granting you the following abilities
		- Your size becomes Large
		- You replace the Extra Attack feature with the Multi Attack feature, allowing you to attack with 2 claw attacks, and can replace one of these with a bite attack.
			* The Bite attack deals 2d4 piercing damage and can knock the enemy prone on a failed Strength save
			* The Claw attack that deals 2d6 slashing damage
		- You regain your Channel Divinity, but can only use the *Mark of the Martyr*
		- Your movement speed increases to 40ft
		- Your Divine Smite deals Necrotic damage instead of Radiant
		- You have advantage against any creature that is your size or smaller that is not mounted
		- You gain the following features: Keen Hearing, Keen Smell, Evasion
		- You may only cast Oath spells
		- Your AC is set to 15 and are unable to use any equipment.
		- You gain 11 Hit Points.
		- If your HP reaches 0, you revert back to normal and go unconscious.

### Notable Items

* *Oaken Lifegiver Warhammer*
	+ Properties: +1, Lifegiver
	+ When you deal damage with this weapon, you regenerate 1 HP.
* *Sword of Winter's Wrath* (Greatsword +1)
	+ This weapon deals 1 extra point of Cold damage. On a crit, you can deal an extra 5 points of cold damage to any creature of your choice within 10ft.
	+ This weapon can be shortened to a longsword, shortsword, or dagger via a blacksmith.
* *Cloak of Protection*
* *Shield of the Titan* (Attunement)
	+ While attuned and wielding the shield, you gain a +3 to AC. While using the Interception fighting style, you roll an additional 1d10.
* *Gauntlets of Ogre Power*

## Etymology

"Tontu" is a possible corruption of the Finnish word *tonttu.* A *tonttu*, also known as a *tomte* or *nisse*, is a mythological creature from Scandinavian folklore. They are typically a type of guardian spirit that lives secretly in house, barns or woods to protect and assist the inhabitants of those places. They are usually described as tiny humanoids with long white beards and conical caps, similar in style to the classical garden gnome.

## Trivia

* Tontu is the first Raccling player character to be announced, being revealed in *Curious Curios* Episode 0. Tontu is the first Tanookin to be seen onscreen, a subrace of Raccling that resembling the *tanuki* found in Japan.
* Though he had met the level requirements, Tontu did not chose a Paladin subclass until the first episode of Season 2 of *Curious Curios*. Strippin had intended to chose Oath of the Ancients, but felt that the subclass no longer suited Tontu, given the direction the character was going. Instead, the Oath he chose was the custom-made Oath of the Martyr, the first homebrew Paladin subclass released by Io Publishing.

## Images

### Official Art

WIP of Tontu (Art by mariah\_art)Tontu in his statue form, as seen in Curious Curios Episode 1.Tontu taking on his Eldritch form granted to him by his patron (Art by AishaSoup).Tontu's steed, the Eldritch Wolf (Art by AishaSoup).Tontu manifesting the Memory of Vulkan Burgh through his Eldritch Form (Art by mariah\_art).