Moonie "Yew" Beestinger

## **Backstory**

***Moonie Gemling Yewchild "Yew" Beestinger*** was born the youngest of 6 kids in a hidden forest gnome village deep in the Forest. The village had a strong sense of community and was largely self sufficient with little to do with outsiders. Her parents were both enchanters whose job it was to help place wards on the village as well as help magically construct homes within trees. Early on they recognized an intensity towards and affinity for spellcasting in Moonie. When focusing on magic she would often take on an unusual serious and dark(for gnomes), earning her one of her early names "yewchild"(yew being a very poisonous but mystical tree) though when teased others would call her "ew-child".

Despite her clear interest, none of the available magical disciplines, whether wizard or druid, fit her. So instead, Moonie took to exploring the woods as much as she could. By 15 she was exploring some of the deeper, more wild areas of the forest that even the gnomes had not charted.

One day, in one of the oldest sections of the forest she came across a sink hole with a massive Yew tree growing along one side of it and branching over it. At the bottom of the sink hole, sitting on a mound in the shallow water was a large standing stone. A single beam of light came through the massive tree's canopy to illuminate the worrying fey designs on the stone. Instantly she recognized this as a place of extreme power and danger, though before she could go further, something touched her mind and she fled, forgetting of the place's existence, yet some how she would always avoid it on future excursions.

By 25 she was an accomplished guide and forester, safely leading friendly peoples through the forest(and making sure they avoided the village at the same time). By now she had explored the forest and knew it intimately and was beginning to grow bored.

She was leading a party of strangers through the woods, about a day in and half way through the woods. Tension between some of the party had been steadily rising and Moonie had started to become a bit apprehensive. While the party rested and she scouted ahead, flames shot up from behind her as she got knocked over by a wave of heat. In a fit of rage, a mage had summoned a fire elemental which quickly had gotten out of control. The party was dead and the elemental was coming towards her. It would consume her in flames and likely the rest of the forest. Cornered and without hope, she felt a presence from the sinkhole touch her mind.

Frozen in that moment, Titania, Queen of the Summer Court spoke with her. The gnome's adventuring spirit and untapped magical potential had intrigued the Fey Queen a decade ago. Moonie, realizing her luck, immediately offered to make a Pact with the Queen. While she might say she had no choice in the moment, for all she held dear would perish, in some way making the pact felt right independent of the stakes.

In exchange for some unspecified later cost/favors, Moonie was imparted with a powerful spell and a fraction of the Queen's power, enough to help vaporize the elemental. Moonie awoke in the sinkhole, beneath the Stone, with her focus on her wrist/hand completely healed.

A week later, the entire village waved her goodbye, happy to see that she had found her magical calling. She set out to explore the world outside the Forest.

## Skills and Traits

Due to her background as a Guide and Forester, and her natural affinity to magic, Moonie is proficient in **Arcana, Athletics, Nature and Survival** . Having guided many different races and professions through her forest she is fairly open and affable towards strangers, except to when it comes protecting her village. She made sure that those she was guiding did not have a chance to blunder upon her home and she made sure to pretend as if she were on her own. And when guiding or exploring she for the most part was,

**Personality Traits:**

* I'm driven by a wanderlust that led me away from home.
* I contacted and made a pact with a Fey to help protect my village and I'd do it again in a heartbeat.

**Ideals:** Greater Good: It is each person's responsibility to make the most happiness for the whole tribe.

**Bonds:** My family, clan, or tribe is the most important thing in my life even when they are far from me.

**Flaws:** There's no room for caution in a life lived to the fullest.

**Languages:** Common, Gnomish, Elvish

**Proficiencies:** Longsword, Longbow, Shortbow, Shortsword, Simple Weapons, Cooking tools, Herbalism kit.

**Character Sheet**