Jesper

**Jesper** is a half-elf druid NPC from the Temphere campaign. He is a werewolf, and seemingly a powerful caster, as he was able to call upon a wish spell. Like all Temphere NPCs, Jesper is played by Tiger.

## Story

### Pre-Game

Little is known about Jesper's life before the story of the game. It was stated by Idola Hillwillow, the town herbalist, that he occasionally came around Sedgely before Vandoryth arrived there, something the guardsman Kelfir Stonemeadow also indicated. Idola knew he was a druid, and he would occasionally help her by finding elusive herbs in the forest, but she suspected that he might not have furnished the rest of the town with that information, as farmers and druids are often at odds. He definitely didn't tell anyone he was a werewolf, presumably for torches and pitchforks reasons. However, he at one point came upon a wild wolf with a broken jaw that was being hunted by the village of Sedgely for preying on their sheep. Jesper cast a wish spell hoping to heal the injury, but instead he accidentally turned the wolf into a "wolfwere"- giving it the power to shift between wolf shape (still with a broken jaw) and an uninjured half-elf shape. Doubtless feeling responsible for the newly sapient person, Jesper took the wolf under his wing and started to teach him how to function, naming him "Vandoryth."

However, this made things worse, as the village became convinced that a werewolf had been hunting their flocks and hired monster hunters. Now pursued by Rochol, Beatrix, and Shanks, the werewolf and wolfwere were forced to flee for their lives.

### The Black Claw Gang

The party briefly bumped into Jesper, unknowingly, while camping on the road to Mire's Edge. He was in wolf form and sneaking up on their camp. Dahlia spotted him in the darkness, and Cree growled to spook off what she took to be a normal wolf.

At some point between this and when next the party encountered the hunters, Jesper was captured by Rochol and co, leaving Vandoryth alone.

### Where Wolf?

Ryth wandered into Caellond looking for shelter from the supernatural storms- and from the hunters. However, Rochol's team had tracked him, and tricked the party into helping them ferret out Ryth's location.

After a great deal of upheaval, Ryth finally told the party the truth about his history, and about Jesper. Furious that they'd been used, the party vowed to do everything they could to help Ryth and Jesper clear their names and be freed.

### Baby Guard Drake Interlude

Due to a misunderstanding, the party assumed for a long while that the hunters had already dropped Jesper off at Sedgely. However, when Ryth clarified that Rochol and Co had him, the party agreed that they had an obligation to check on Jesper and make sure he was okay. It took some convincing, but they were able to get Rochol to agree to a brief interview. Jesper was wary at first, but softened when he realized the party was on his and Ryth's side and were looking after his erstwhile companion. The team left him with some comforting words, a cookie, and some brief amusement in the form of a flustered and embarrassed Rochol.

### Sedgely Sheep Suit

Jesper was kept in the hunter's wagon for the duration of the trip to Sedgely, and the party did not see him, though the hunters insisted they were tending him. Upon arrival in the town, Adjucator Iporr inspected his confinement conditions and was *less than pleased.* After lecturing Rochol about Jesper's inhumane prison conditions, he ordered both Jesper and Vandoryth to be transferred into the custody of the guards he had brought with him from the capital. Rochol argued, but lost the battle, and Jesper was finally allowed out of the wagon. He seemed relieved to be out of the hunter's untender care, and assisted the party with verbally reassuring Vandoryth as they were lead to the local guardhouse. Once there the soldiers tested both wolves by cutting them with a non-silvered blade, confirming their account that Jesper was indeed a werewolf when his wound healed almost instantly, but that Vandoryth was not when his continued to bleed. Jesper is now awaiting trial.

## Personality

The party hasn't interacted with Jesper much as of yet. So far he seems well mannered, thoughtful, and polite. Going off of what Ryth said about him using a Wish spell to heal a random wild wolf, he seems to be extremely compassionate (perhaps a bit foolhardily so). He expressed concern about Ryth when the party mentioned they were watching him, and relief that the wolfwere was being well looked after and not treated like a prisoner. He is bitter and angry towards Rochol, understandably, but didn't take much convincing to thaw to the Wild Cards, suggesting that he is understanding and open-minded.