Maeve

## Backstory

Maeve was born in Threllisar, the largest of the Sun Elf city states, to an Escarnian father and a Sun Elf mother. Though she faced prejudice and near-constant discrimination as a half-elf, Maeve led a relatively comfortable childhood, thanks to the income provided by her father’s successful smithy and her mother’s respected position on the Threllisar Architectural Board. In the Expanse, the area containing the Sun Elf city states, culture sits above all. Battles are not fought with violence, but with displays of artistic expression. And among these combatants, Threllisar reigns supreme. It has the biggest buildings, the finest clothing, and the most exquisite cuisine. As such, knowing that their daughter was at an inherent disadvantage with her half-elven heritage, Maeve's parents were abyss-bent on training her in the ways of Threllisarian high society.

Though it was expensive, Maeve's parents splurged to enroll her at Threllisar's top university. She was instructed in all sciences of both human and elf origin, soon developing into a sharp young woman. Because of the rate at which Sun Elves age, Maeve's father Cian passed away when she was still in her relative adolescence. The family had been prepared, accepting the reality of Cian’s human lifespan well before it came to pass. Prior to his death, Cian had prepaid for Maeve’s education with every coin he had, supplemented by his inheritance from his extended family in Escarnes. In return, Maeve had promised him she would become the best version of herself. And so, he died happy, and his daughter's path was set.

Maeve spent the next 75 years in Threllisar's various schooling systems, mastering every subject to which she was introduced. Finally confident in her skills, Maeve felt she was ready to tackle the world outside of academia. She applied to join the Mystic Council of the Expanse as an Inquisitor - in essence, a diplomat tasked with helping the Council maintain order across the many continents of Terrazael, particularly Verroa. Yet even with her impeccable qualifications, she barely made the cut. Thus, Maeve became the first half-elven Inquisitor in hundreds of years, sparking quite a bit of controversy across the land.

The Mystic Council is, in many ways, the most influential group on Verroa outside of its various governments, and the Council's Inquisitors are afforded almost limitless privilege and authority. They are among the few that Verroa’s monarchs actually fear, which also makes the rank of Inquisitor one of the most difficult to achieve. Even once Maeve was accepted into the fold, another 10 years of specialized training awaited her before she could hope to receive an assignment in the field. This training included all manner of things, including torture resistance techniques and combat proficiency. By the end of this period, Maeve was considered by many to be more formidable than a full cohort of soldiers and nearly twice as terrifying.

Long after receiving her rank, Maeve often felt she bore the cumulative weight of every half-elf’s reputation on her shoulders. Given minor tasks at first, she spent years stepping politely around the eccentricities of various monarchs and complying with frivolous demands. For every exciting investigation, there were ten mundane diplomatic chores that entailed some manner of smoothing wrinkles or proactively keeping the peace. The Council refrained from granting duties of greater import to Maeve, in a manner she found quite deliberate, but her immense respect for her superiors kept her tight-lipped for many years. After breaking her back on countless trivial assignments for almost a decade, her concern that the Council failed to utilize her full potential grew too great. Nervous as she was to raise even a minor concern to the Councillors she held in such esteem, she conjured up the strength to calmly and precisely deconstruct the ways in which the Councillors had mismanaged her position, in her mind, to the ultimate detriment of the Council.

By the time she had finished, the Council had long since dissolved into fits of laughter. The final test of an Inquisitor, its true nature kept hidden from Maeve until this very moment, was only passed once an initiate developed the courage to question the Council’s actions. Many never reached this point, and those that did rarely took longer than several years. Maeve had thought they had held her in utter disdain, when in reality, the opposite was true. Some on the Council had even wagered on how long it would take her to rally against them - and some had believed it would never happen. She was immediately given several of the Council’s most important assignments.

But along with these new assignments came a new bodyguard, and an unusual one at that. The Council had been looking into alternate sources of protective muscle for their Inquisitors, and their efforts had led them to the city of Fauldaren, the home of a dark and secretive sect known only as the Exiled. The Council assigned Thae'Lanel, one of the oldest and most respected Exiled, to serve Maeve in her work. Clearly, they had decided their most unusual Inquisitor deserved a most unusual bodyguard, and though Maeve did her level best to manage this unique situation, it wasn’t without its own special challenges. But Maeve met each of them head on, proving to her detractors that despite her half-elven blood, despite the Exiled at her back, she was still a major force to be reckoned with.

Over the course of the next decade, Maeve foiled three assassination attempts, brokered a peace between two major nations, and stamped out an attempt to raise sea monsters in Lake Hao’Fen. She became both a famous and well-respected figure, yet never sacrificed her poise or humility. She pushed herself harder and harder, constantly striving to expand her own horizons, and soon became the Council’s most effective operative. In record time, Maeve was appointed a Grand Inquisitor, a position that came with further privileges and responsibilities. And since she had gained the trust of both the Council and the common people, she was soon called upon to perform only the highest level missions on the Council’s list.

But these days, Maeve’s work has slowed down. The Councilors are in agreement that the world is all too silent. A lack of political turbulence seems a boon to many, but to these Elves who have worked in the Council for years, they know it to be a sign of trouble to come. They've kept Maeve on a short leash, along with their other most capable Inquisitors, ready to send them out to calm the forces of chaos that they expect will soon return to consume Verroa. Each Inquisitor is allowed a small trip to their ancestral homeland - a brief respite from a lifetime of servitude. Maeve, nostalgic for her youth, has gone to visit her father's homeland in Chelebons. No one is sure what is to come.

## In Gameplay

### Aptitudes

Personal Skill - Diplomatic Immunity: Defeating an enemy grants +30% Dodge for 1 turn.

### Bonds

* Alden
* Lincoln
* Corvan
* Vesta
* Thae'Lanel
* Wren
* Fenton
* Rose
* Alexa
* Liberty

## Trivia

* In the game's files Maeve is referred to as **Kitara**.