Valeria Putnam

**Valeria Putnam,** or **Valeria Blackroc**k, is a half-elf ranger-rogue and member of TMOMT Gang

## Intro

Valeria Putnam was born on the 1st of Sydenstar 809PD to Vanya Blackrock and Eilion Wildwhisper, an elven man who abandoned the relationship when it was discovered that they were going to have a child. Valeria was raised by her single mother for fourteen years, up until Vanya's death at the hands of her brother in 823PD. Valeria was subsequently discovered in the woods, bloody and bruised, by a trio of rangers who adopted her as their own.

## Description

### Appearance

Valeria is a tall, fair-skinned half-elf woman in her late 20s. In the first chapter of the adventure she had waist-length, wavy black hair which she cut short after the Battle of Castle Ungebroch (Session 21: Air Traffic Control). She has green eyes flecked with gold, which temporarily turned completely gold after her death in session 24 (Boys' Night!), and she has a distinctive port-wine stain birthmark covering most of her left cheek, from her eye to her jaw. Valeria is typically seen wearing all black clothing, save for her navy blue Cloak of Elvenkind which she is very rarely seen without.

### Personality

Valeria is notably rather cold and standoffish, particularly towards men, and is often perceived as unfriendly.

While she can be quite impulsive at times (most notably when it comes to protecting her friends), a lifetime of religious service has granted her a wisdom beyond her years and a gift for strategy and planning ahead. While she will never shy away from a fight, she prefers to take a stance of protector, rather than attacker, and her priority will usually be defending her friends over trying to kill.

Having experienced an exceptionally lonely childhood, Valeria craves companionship and is quick to grow attached to people, something seen especially strongly in her friendship with fellow adventurer Laverna Morcaster, who became one of her closest friends from the very day they met. This deep-seated loneliness tends to put her at odds between her desire for fellowship and her suspicious and untrusting nature - something which also comes as a result of her upbringing.

Valeria has battled intensely against her own morality since she was just a child, believing that she was doomed to follow the evil path of her family, the Blackrocks, and thus always strives to do what she believes to be good. Her kind intentions often get buried under her harsh exterior, but at heart she is a gentle person who only wants to help people, and she tries her best to show this through her actions.

## Biography

### Childhood

The early years of Valeria's life were spent fighting to stay alive as she was forced into the role of primary provider for herself and her mother. Vanya Blackrock had herself experienced a tumultuous childhood in her cultist family, before running away at the age of twelve and becoming trapped in a domain of the feywild known as 'the Country,' where she was hunted for sport until her eventual escape after nine years. The ordeal changed her completely and left her deeply emotionally disturbed, which led to the intense neglect and emotional abuse of her daughter. Vanya would abandon Valeria for days at a time, returning occasionally with food or stolen gifts for her daughter, but more often than not empty-handed, leaving Valeria to beg, borrow and steal from the locals in the city of Gwardan.

At home, Valeria's relationship with her mother was unpredictable and often very damaging to her self-esteem. An incredibly volatile woman, Vanya would often terrify her daughter with bedtime stories of her time in the Country and re-framed tales of Tharizdun and its triumphs during the Calamity, instilling a deep distrust of religion in Valeria's mind, and it was from her mother's stories that she first heard the prophecy 'Aghelion is coming.' Vanya always blamed Valeria for her father leaving and made sure she knew it, making it very clear that she resented her daughter for driving him away. Especially as Valeria got older, her mother would always tell her that she looked identical to her father, other than the birthmark, and would always remind her how beautiful she could be if things were different, and so Valeria spent most of her childhood believing that she was ugly and undeserving of real love. Vanya's ongoing neglect led to Valeria having to cut off all her hair at the age of seven because it had grown so matted that she lived in constant pain.

In spring of 819PD, when Valeria was just nine years old, she was hunting with her homemade spear in the Doralle Woods when she stumbled upon a stag in a clearing. No normal animal, the deer had a halo of light around its head and glowing lilac eyes. Valeria was absolutely mesmerised by the creature, her daze only being broken by two crossbow bolts landing in its side. Two hunters had been tracking the deer, which darted into the woods the moment it got hit, disappearing from view. Valeria flew into a rage like nothing she had ever felt before, and attacked the two hunters who were too surprised by her to think to defend themselves. She ultimately killed them both, and the guilt left her crying hopelessly until she was hoarse in the middle of the clearing. But after some time the stag returned, breaking Valeria from her stupor by pressing its head against hers and, unbeknownst to her at the time, bestowing her with a blessing of the fey as thanks for defending its life.

When Valeria was thirteen, Vanya made the decision that together they would pack up their things and track down their family, with Vanya believing that it was time that Valeria was introduced to them. After growing up on stories of the Blackrock family and their values and traditions, Valeria was very nervous to meet them. Despite her apprehension, she considered their year-long search to be the best year of her life, as her mother seemed much happier and her darker episodes were few and far between. Upon uniting with their family, Valeria very quickly realised that they were not the heroes that her mother had described to her, but she went against her instincts and ignored the warning signs for fear that she would upset her mother; a decision which haunted her for years, as only a few days after their reunion, Valeria was forced to watch in horror as her uncle severed her mother's head and attempted to feed it to the False Hydra. She broke free from her restraints and ran for her life into the woods, closely pursued by her uncle, knife still in hand. After a short but intense fight - in which Valeria survived her uncle's attempt to sever her head, leaving her with a nasty scar - she gained the upper hand and plunged the knife into his chest before ultimately making her escape.

A few days later, Valeria - bestowed with newfound powers of telepathy, courtesy of the Blackrocks - was found in the woods, half-dead and with amnesia. The women who found her were a trio of polyamorous rangers by the names of Meredith Putnam, Tolga Hedlund and Irabel Marivaldi. While Irabel and Tolga were initially hesitant, Meredith decided firmly by herself that she had a responsibility to care for this child, and carried Valeria with her to safety.