Hjalmar Vanakkhan

## Backstory

Hjalmar was born in a small mountain village in the frigid Northern Kingdom. Well, less of a village and more of a permanent tribal camp. His clan was full of men and women of mixed human and goliath blood, but all on the very hearty side. His parents were Gunne and Halla who were both part of the clan trappers. For most of the year, these adults would be gone, leaving the children to be cared for by those few adults who remained.

When he was 12, Hjalmar’s parents were killed in the mountains. While he mourned, this was not the tragedy one would expect. It was given in their world that many died in the mountains, and they should be remembered with pride, not sorrow.

After their deaths, Hjalmar was taken in by the Thunukava family whom he had already lived with much of his life. Their daughter Rjoor was his dearest friend and it was universally assumed they would be wed one day.

At the age of 16 Hjalmar underwent his companion ceremony where he summoned a spirit in the form of a large, almost bear-like, dog he named Bernadine. This marked the beginning of his days as a trapper like his father and mother.

Rjoor and Hjalmar did marry as predicted when they both turned 18. Soon she gave birth to Kaerr, a beautiful daughter. Rjoor swiftly grew worried for their daughter, constantly asking Hjalmar why they could not leave the mountains for a time, at least until Kaerr was old enough to be safe through the cold. Hjalmar insisted it was unnecessary, their tribe had been safe there for generations, and he couldn’t just abandon the ancestors.

So he continued to leave his girls to hunt and trap. All was fine, he was certain Rjoor was just paranoid. That was until, having kissed his 18-month-old daughter goodbye mere weeks before, Hjalmar and his companions returned to the village to find it ransacked, homes stripped of all their blankets and tapestries and burned, the women and elders with barely any clothing to keep themselves warm. And without the much-needed sources of warmth in the still early spring…

Three of the youngest children of the tribe were dead, including little Kaerr.

Without taking the time to mourn, Hjalmar set off into the mountains alone in the white-hot rage he had not experienced since boyhood.

When he found the camp, he wasted no time. Tent by stolen tent, the men were dispatched without making a sound as he did many times before on the hunt. Leaving the remains naked, to be consumed by the mountains, Hjalmar drug every last supply and possession back to his village where he was greeted as an avenger.

By everyone but Rjoor.

Hjalmar has never seen his wife since. Alone, he took Kaerr’s body to the lake, where he had burned and scattered his father, and did the same with his daughter.

Unable to live with his clan any longer, too filled with grief and guilt, and anger, Hjalmar took up the offer of a traveling caravan leader to be their Northern Mountain guide, as his expertise was unparalleled. He liked the first job so much, Hjalmar began working for this company long-term and traveled with them throughout the Southern part of the continent. He loved absorbing the world's culture and took to learning as many languages as he could.

The leaders were Mauricius Rassow and Albreuin Bassard, two retired guildsmen who grew to love Hjalmar greatly. Mauritius recognized the rage in the man and began teaching him ways he himself learned to control his anger, things like tea and yoga. Albreuin on the other hand observed a talent in Hjalmar for combat that was poorly served by his hunter’s knives and bow. His weapon of choice was the glaive, with which Hjalmar also proved talented. In the group was also Albreuin’s daughter, Albrade. Over the course of traveling with them, Hjalmar fell in love with her. But rather than letting himself feel joy again, Hjalmar determined it was time to go. So he left in the night, his only parting words a note.

In an effort to avoid the Southern routes of his former company, Hjalmar returned to the Northern Mountains, still avoiding his clan’s home territory. While leading a party through a valley they were set upon by a mountain beast (idk what the fauna are like).

The next thing Hjalmar knew, he was awake and alive though still gravely injured. He also suddenly started exhibiting strange happenings others might call magic. He kinda tries to ignore it.

To recuperate, he was taken to a nearby mountain sage, Roana Lapin. It took a month for Hjalmar to fully recover from the injuries but he stayed longer to repay the debt of his care through manual labor. Then he continued to stay. Hjalmar fell in love again. This time he was determined to do right by Roana and admitted to his past. She assured Hjalmar it was no crime worth a life sentence of misery. So Hjalmar tried. He really did try to forgive himself. But he just couldn’t seem to do it. In his mind, being with him would be far worse for Roana in the long run. So he left again, with no word but a note.

Hjalmar took to wandering the world again, this time making do on odd jobs rather than caravanning. He is passingly interested in why he came back to life and will follow any leads in that direction.

## Associations

###### Romaence Paertners

* Rjoor Thunukava (ex-wife)
* Albrade Bassard (best friend/crush)
* Roana Lapin (ex-partner)
* Leana Lightgrove

###### Family

* Father: Gunne Vanakkhan
* Mother: Halla Vanakkhan
* Daughter: Kaerr Vanakkhan

###### Friends

* Mauritius Rassow
* Albreuin Bassard
* Tante (elder of his village, second mother)

###### Enemies

* Rjoor Thunukava (*crazy* ex-wife)
* Bjarn Atall (da bear)