Willow Bauden

**Willow Bauden** is an Aasimar Cleric played by Megan Kraus.

Art by @Evil\_CultLeader

## **Description**

### **Appearance**

Willow Bauden is a tall, muscular woman with short brown hair, shaved on the right side and wears an eye patch that covers her left eye. She dresses somewhat plainly with a neat, put together military style in mostly dark blues and black. Her ears have multiple piercings of silver and she wears a Holy Symbol of Mielikki (a silver unicorn head) around her neck. She also wears a platinum ring around one finger, it is the partner to one worn by Nyci for purposes of the Warding Bond spell.

When using her Necrotic Shroud, two skeletal wings spring out of her back, looking to be made of ice, white and icy blue in color. She wears bronze split armor, an iron shield, and caries a bronze short sword as her chosen weapon. She also has a tattoo of a six pointed snowflake on her left upper chest that is mildly cold to the touch.

### **Personality**

Willow is disagreeable and stern. She has very little patience when it comes to shenanigans and craziness, especially when on a job. Willow has been seen, in a few occasions, to have a short temper with those she feels disrespected by and will often retaliate more strongly than was instigated. Sometimes serious to a fault, Willow does sometimes find herself at a loss for words, especially when in social situations she doesn't feel in control of. So far those situations have been mostly with romantic interests of hers.

Willow is slow to form close bonds, keeping personal information to herself and refusing the title of "friend" from her party member, Nyci, on a number of occasions. As of yet her party has not asked many invasive questions and she has not taken the initiative to divulge additional personal information.

Willow has been seen to be incredibly intimidating, and even scary, when she chooses. This has been paired notably with acts of violence that others have noted to be extreme.

## **Biography**

### **Background**

Willow is from the city of Dybe in the kingdom of Orø. Very little is known about her time in Orø though she has mentioned by name her mother, Emilese, and that Orø became too inhospitable for her to stay.

After leaving Orø she traveled for some time with a merchant caravan as a caravan guard for a group of fur, cloth, and dye merchants. The caravan leader, a prominent tradeswoman named Alea, hired Willow on as a guard not long after her departure from Dybe. Alea, the head of the dye merchantry of the caravan and elvish woman, was accompanied by her husband Dalyor (an elf) and their daughter Daerieth.

The caravan guard was comprised of Riston (a male human), Inana (a female elf), Willow, and a number of others that as of yet have not been mentioned by name. During the months that Willow traveled with the group, she made tentative friends with a number of the other guards, namely Inana and Reymys, as well as Alea’s daughter Daerieth following Willow saving the young woman. Much to Alea’s apparent chagrin, Daerieth paid Willow more attention after that.  Alea, feeling obligated by Willow’s self-sacrificial service, did not protest.

Willow and Daerieth's relationship continued to develop until the caravan reached Panzano, at which point Alea abruptly fired Willow. The loss of employment lead Willow to continue traveling with her new party following their drafting to the army of Panzano.

## **Character Information**

### **Aasimar Abilities**

* Celestial Resistance (reflavored to be resistant to Cold and Necrotic damage)
* Darkvision
* Healing Hands
* Light Bearer
* Necrotic Shroud

### **Cleric Abilities**

* Acolyte of Nature
* Bonus Proficiencies (Heavy Armor)
* Channel Divinity (2/rest)
	+ Turn Undead
	+ Charm Plants and Animals
	+ Destroy Undead (CR 1/2)
* Dampen Elements

### **Cleric Spells**

Willow has access to four cantrips. As a 7th-level cleric, she can prepare up to 12 spells per day.

**Cantrips**

* Frostbite
* Guidance
* Light
* Sacred Flame
* Spare the Dying
* Thaumaturgy

**1st-Level**

* Animal Friendship
* Speak With Animals

**2nd-Level**

* Barkskin
* Spike Growth

**3rd-Level**

* Plant Growth
* Wind Wall

**4th-level**

* Dominate Beast
* Grasping Vines

## **Trivia**

* Willow's last name, Bauden, was chosen in part for the similarity in sound it shares with the word "bawdy".
* Willow was first played by Megan as a one shot character in 2018. She was later played again in a different one shot some months later, making Willow's character over a year old before Stories from Iconia began.