Ruach

Ruach is first and foremost, a bird. As an Aarakocra, he has a powerful set of wings that allow him to cover great distances in little time. With his trusty boomersword, Kell, Ruach is a force to be reckoned. Ruach belongs to the Paladin order in the mountain city of Teknavir. Ruach showed incredible promise from an early age. He had a natural affinity with the air that placed him above his peers. Verafor took notice of this and decided to train Ruach himself. The first order of training was to master flight. Ruach was already adept in the sky, but Verafor empowered him further. This empowerment is what allows Ruach to have such aggressive flying attacks in battle.

Because Aarakocra must have such mobility in and out of battle, their armor is mostly leather. Those who are empowered (like Ruach) can incorporate more metal into their armor, which provides a little more protection. In addition to this, Verafor also provides the more advanced Paladins with an aura of protection. This aura is a seemingly living stream of air that courses around Ruach’s armor. This works to diminish the effectiveness of attacks (Ruach’s high AC with leather armor [character sheet says chainmail]).

One day, each of the Paladin masters were told to select champions for a tournament. As his only student, Verafor selected Ruach. In total, 5 champions competed. For the sake of fairness, all 5 champions had their empowerments removed by Verafor prior to the event. This event would be won by the warrior with the most natural talent. The tournament consisted of three areas: Flight, Air, and Combat. The flight competition was a time trial through a city-wide aerial obstacle course. Ruach excelled in his natural flight ability, and easily won the first trial. The trial of Air was a test of each champions ability to control the air around them. (Aarakocra’s have a natural affinity for the air that comes from their creator, Forseti). With the connection to their creator severed, the champions struggled with this task. Nevertheless, Ruach again showed that he had the most natural talent in controlling the air. The final test was combat. This was the longest of the three tests, with each of the five champions fighting each other individually. The final trial took place over the course of five days, with five sparring matches a day. The whole city was alive with energy during these 5 days. Ruach and one other champion both tied with 4 wins. As a tie breaker, they fought each other one last time. Ruach came to a decisive victory, and therefore won all three of the trials. Verafor crowned Ruach the victor of the tournament and restored the unique empowerments to each of the 5 champions.

After the celebrations had ended, Ruach was brought into a private meeting with Verafor and the elders. There, he was given a task of great importance. Ruach was to seek out the pieces of an artifact that would be used to bring back none other than Forsetti himself. Ruach was not quite yet a master in the order, yet his natural talent was undeniable. He has much room to grow still, especially in his aerial power (divine smite is a display of this power). Verafor then gave Ruach one piece to the artifact and told him of a second piece that new rumors told of in Tyr’Xedas. Ruach understood the gravity of this mission, the revival of Forsetti would change everything. He accepted the mission and began his preparations immediately. Within a month, he had set off west, to uncover an artifact that would resurrect a god.