Norin Redbranch

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 **Norin Iroah Redbranch**  was an elder wood elf who served as the Archdruid of the Druidic Circle during LF 3 and 4.

## *Biography*

### Childhood

   Norin was born into a community of wood elves that settled within the tangled depths of the Shroom Forest long ago. His tribe, the Redbranch, are one of several that inhabit the region. Though they appear unaffiliated, the tribes are in actuality united under a common family known as the Gildenleaf. Norin’s direct lineage includes neither royalty nor spiritual significance, so a great deal of his youth was without event. His parents managed as hunters; that was their contribution to the Redbranch tribe. Neither showed more than an inkling for magic, but Norin has displayed a proficiency with it for as long as he can remember. His natural talent for elemental manipulation attracted the eye of the Druidic Circle and before long, the young wood elf found himself inducted as an acolyte at the young age of seven.

### Adolescence

An easygoing childhood encouraged a kind of lethargy to settle within Norin, but following his conscription into the Druidic circle, the young elf grew to become impetuous and haphazard.

### Adulthood

Wife/Marriage, birth of daughter; death of wife, ascension to Archdruid

Discovery of the Seventh Crystal

### LF: Regrowth

Quest to destroy pestilence demon / strike a blow to the Dark Council

### LF: The Civil War

Norin Redbranch died before the events of the civil war. He reached the end of his lifespan and passed on of natural causes. Oversight of the circle was left to its council of elders, who, with the disorder raging throughout Visgird, have yet to appoint a new archdruid. The circle has not reconvened since Redbranch's passing.

## Appearance

### Facial

A handsome elf in his youth, Norin has aged with grace and refinement. Deep wrinkles have settled within the space of his forehead, and his cheeks have grown thin and hollow.

## Abilities

#### Physical Combat & Weaponry

    Norin has a fair amount of training with the bow and quiver combination, as is the case for most wood elves. However, the old elf grumbles that he is far too feeble to put such skill to good use these days. Beyond the longbow, Norin shows no other skill with weaponry of any kind. He carries a gnarled staff and is dexterous enough to give a clobber with it when the need for such arises, but beyond that the object functions only as a means of stabilization.

#### Magic

A considerable amount of intelligence and experience have allowed Norin's magical prowess to grow to a level rivaled by few other beings. As the leader of the Druidic circle, he boasts an impressive command over the natural forces of the world, wielding them with a graceful finesse. In his five centuries of living, Norin has cultivated many spells, including a few that have been deemed "forbidden" by the Druidic Circle's former leadership. But with the guild's reigns now in his hands, Norin disregards what he considers the rigidity of his mentors, not only utilizing these prohibited spells should the need for such arise, but also imparting them on a few select druids that come through the Circle.

While he is versed in a variety of spellwork and elemental manipulations, Norin specializes in green magic; magic that allows him to influence the flora and fauna of the land. His skill with this particular spellwork is so great that he is able to imbue plants or other natural materials, like stone, flame or water, with autonomy, effectively giving them sapience.

**Green** **Magic**: Magic centered around the manipulation of flora and fauna. Green magic further splits into two trees: *Greenthumb*, which harnesses the power of vegetation and *Wildspeaker*, which grants influence over animals.

Greenthumb: This skill tree that allows Norin to manipulate plant life in a multitude of ways. Along with innately understanding vegetation through a kind of empathic bond, Norin can expedite its growth, infuse vegetation with autonomy or create salves capable of physical or mental restoration. The main drawback with Norin's plant magic is that he must have workable material in order to use it. Norin cannot create plantlife where none exists and without vegetation, he is unable to employ any spells that require it as a medium. While not the totality of his botanic repertoire, below are a few of the spells he frequently uses.

*Sleep Dust: Norin causes a large tree to sprout from the earth. The tree will blanket a small area, a radius of 50 feet, in a thick cloud of pink spores that place sleep upon any within range who inhale the mist.*

*Spontaneous Growth: A contact spell that allows Norin to enlarge any plant he touches. The effect is fleeting and wears off after twenty minutes.*

*Garden of Eden: Norin uses plant magic to create an enchanted garden. Within the area of effect, which spans a circular radius of 50 feet, elves gain +1 to all stats and protection from harmful spellwork.*

    *Sage Animism: A spell that allows Norin to infuse inanimate materials with his own blood, creating golemic constructs that act as an extension of his will. Though he is able to enliven creatures of impressive size, typically, the larger the construct the more lifeforce Norin contributes to its creation, and the weaker he himself becomes.*

Wildspeaker: The ability to converse with nature; chiefly fauna. This skill tree allows Norin to speak with and transform into different animals.

*Wildspeak: A technique that allows Norin to both speak and understand the verbal cries of any animal. It has a telepathic component that permits some mental influence over an animal Norin is interacting with. It does not apply to humanoid languages.*

*Beast Within: A series of spells that allows Norin to assume both the form and skills of an animal. Norin, like his protégé, he shifts between four totems that are each linked to a specific physical augmentation. Norin, however, does not need an independent item to initiate his transformations. These effects are temporary and wear off when Norin resumes his elven form. Norin can remain in an alternate form up to thirty thirty, but does not face a cool down period between shifts.*

* **The Totem of Strength:***Lion Form*
* **Height/Length**: 12 feet tall at the shoulders; 16 feet long from snout to tail

    **Innate Ability**: Keen senses

**Stat** **increase**: +4 STR, +3 VIT

**Stat** **decrease**: -4 MAG

**Attacks**:

* Roar: Intimidates opponents, decreasing their morale. [-3 STR to opponent]
* Swipe: Bats at opponent with a huge paw, much like a cat would.
* Eviscerate: Uses teeth and claws to rend a foe, causing a large amount of damage.
* Royal Presence: Exerts dominance over any animal with STR ≤ 4, where STR rating in the case of players is based on the character's given STR level.

    **The Totem of Vitality:** *Kirin Form*

* **Height/Length**: 10 feet tall at the shoulders; 8 feet long from snout to tail

**Innate** **Ability**: Tough hide

**Stat** **increase**: +2 STR, +3 VIT

**Stat** **decrease**: --

**Attacks**:

* Cleansing Fire: Emits a burst of flame from the space between its antlers.
* Depollute: Dispels dark magic; renders Norin and his allies immune to the effects of dark magic while Norin is in this form.
* New Life: Heals self of all damage. Restores health from immediate damage (as in, heals as soon as damage is made) taken for a duration of five minutes.
* Harbinger of Spring: Creates an area of effect (30 feet) that rapidly heals self and allies for a duration of twenty minutes.

* **The totem of Dexterity**: *Wolf Form*
* **Height/Length**: 3 feet tall at the shoulders; 6 feet long from snout to tail

**Innate** **Ability**: Keen senses

**Stat** **increase**: +1 STR, +2 DEX

**Stat** **decrease**: -2 MAG

**Attacks**:

* Howl: An eerie cry. [+1 VIT to ally; -1 STR to opponent]
* Sharp Senses: Allows Norin while in wolf form to smell, hear or see anything from great distances. It aides in tracking.
* Spirit of the Wild: Assumes the characteristics of the surrounding environment for complete camouflage.
* Caller of the Pack: ???

* **The Totem of Magic**: *Owl Form*
* **Height:**2 feet tall

**Innate** **Ability**: Flight, keen senses

**Stat** **increase**: --

**Stat** **decrease**: -1 VIT

**Attacks**:

* Screech: Emits a high-frequency cry that may disorient an opponent. [-1 DEX to opponent]
* Cloak: Completely conceals Norin's movements while he is transformed as the totem of magic. [+2 DEX to self]
* Hypnosis: Encourages a foe to fixate on bird form's third eye. If unbroken contact is maintained for three minutes, the spell induces drowsiness within the target. [-5 DEX to opponent]
* Owl Magick: Reverses the effects of any magical ability or spell within close range (10 feet) of bird form.

**Blue** **Magic**: Elementally, blue magic allows Norin to access and manipulate sources of *water* and *wind*. *Mental* magic -- that is, magic that involves manipulation over the senses of one's self or others -- also emerges from this particular mana, but such spellwork is incredibly difficult. Norin knows only a few spells that employ mental magic and can utilize even fewer.

Tidewalker: This spell tree allows Norin to manipulate water in any of its three forms: Liquid, solid or gas. While water is not his preferred element, Norin's aptitude with the element is fair; he displays enough skill to wield it with utilitarian efficiency.

        *Ice Cage: Norin entraps an opponent in a thick block of ice.*

*Maelstrom: A spell usable only when in proximity to large bodies of water, it creates an inescapable whirlpool.*

*Typhoon: A large wave is generated to wash away opponents or objects. Norin requires access to a a large body of water to cast this spell.*

*Monsoon: Great winds and heavy rains are brought together in a downpour. Norin often uses this spell as a medium for creating lightning.*

Wind Rider: Wind is Norin's least-used element. As he has spent little time refining his skill with it, he can do little more than manipulate fogs -- bringing them in or clearing them out -- and levitate himself. Wind isn't an offensive element and Norin knows only one spell that allows it to be wielded as such.

*Shroud: Norin generates a low-lying mist to conceal himself, his allies or an area from the eyes of his opponents.*

*Levitation: A simple spell that gives a sense of weightlessness to the user or an object, allowing the user to levitate himself or whatever he enchants. The effect is temporary and usually lasts no longer than twenty minutes.*

*Reversal: By directing air currents, Norin alters the trajection a ranged weapon or spell. He can then cause the object to miss him (if he is the target) or even strike something else.*

*Eastern Zephyr: Norin conjures incredibly strong winds. The winds are used to ravage an opponent or obstacle.*

Mindmage: A subset of blue magic, psychic magic is dangerous and unpredictable. Norin knows few spells with it.

*Bond of Agony: A telepathic link wherein Norin bridges tethers from himself to someone else*
*or between two individuals. Although no physical damage is ever transferred, these connections force the recipient to feel whatever sensations the host does. The spell requires unbroken eye contact for a duration of at least 30 seconds for an imprint to be made.*

*Dreamscape: Norin projects a convincing illusion. They are often pleasant and used primarily as a means of distraction. The images do not possess the ability to inflict harm.*

*Dispel: A spell in which Norin negates any enchantments within his immediate vicinity (radius of five feet).*

**Red Magic**: Red magic deals with fire, lightning and the raw form of the earth. The invocation of red magic manifests as control over the flame as well as land sculpting. This is Norin's primary means of offense. He can convert heat to visible flame or manipulate any pre-existing flame; the limits are only oxygen (a necessity for fire) or, in the case of lightning, a large accumulation of electricity. Norin frequently fuses the elements and fire and water to create a storm that he then uses to generate lightning.

Follower of the Flame: Techniques that allow one to harness the destructive force of fire.

*Fire Breathing: Following a deep inhalation, Norin creates rings with his thumb and index fingers, places them to his mouth, and spews a dazzling plume of red flames through the loops.*

*Rain of Fire: Upon stabbing his staff into the ground, Norin disrupts the land beneath him and causes small stones of flame and heat to fall from the sky. The rocks are roughly the size of a tomato and the radius is limited to a few feet around him.*

*Inferno: Norin assumes command of an existing fire, often increasing its height and girth.*

Lightning Rod: This spell tree allows Norin to channel and direct lightning without sustaining injury.

*Chain Lightning: As its namesake implies, lightning moves between individuals, growing in speed and power as it passes through more bodies.*

*Doublestrike: Norin wills a bolt of lightning to strike a foe twice.*

Terraformer: This spell tree allows Norrin to manipulate the land beneath his feet.

*Rumbling Slum: This spell allows Norin to shift unearthed debris into a golem.*

*Seismic Rupture: Causes an earthquake underfoot. The intensity varies.*

*Magmaquake: Divides the land beneath and around the user in deep crevices that spew liquid fire.wob*

## Familiar

***Filigon**, the Bird of Paradise*

 Also known as the Tropical phoenix, Birds of Paradise are a rare species found only in the Lithki Isles... [ tbc ]