Maru

Art By: @SaintCinder

**Maru** was a player character in the Fire & Ice Dungeons and Dragons campaign, played by UsulBard. He was a satyr Druid and Bard, the only player character to multiclass in either campaign. Maru was with Acquisitions Inc prior to the start of the campaign and joined up with the party following the crash of their airship. Maru was tragically killed by a Wil-o-wisp in the lair of a hag, then brought to the Feywilds where he was resurrected before bearing a final farewell to the party.

## Description

### Appearance

Maru wore flashy purple clothing and could always be seen carrying around his lute and cooking supplies. With green eyes and a smile usually on his face, he eventually began traveling with a Skunk named Renley, which would give him a strong odor about his presence.

### Personality

Maru was to many the heart of the Icewind Dale party, always trying to make people happy and connect the other players together. However he did have his own baggage and burdens that he carried with him, which would at times lead him into deep reflections, but he often kept those moments to himself.

Maru also had an apparent fear of starvation, as he was hype aware of the amount of food the party did and did not have at the start of their quest.

## Biography

### Early Life

Maru was originally from the Feywilds, in the region known as Lonelywood, specifically he was from a Satyr village in the Feywilds known as Treestump. He told the party that he left the Feywilds and his home after falling in love with a fey spirit, it was later revealed that this fey spirit was Sabina, the personification of the entire Lonelywood itself.

In Maru's final session with the party, it was revealed that falling in love with a fey spirit was forbidden for mortals, and that the only way Maru could continue his relationship with her was to marry her. This commitment scared Maru and he fled from the Feywilds.

He claims to have lived a life of debauchery and hedonism all along the Sword Coast, until he joined Acquisitions Inc and returned to Icewind Dale.

### Maru's Death

Maru died fighting against a Wil-o-wisp in a hag's lair off the coast of Lac Dinneshere near Easthaven. Maru had an opportunity to heal himself, but given the dangerous fight they were in, he healed Altan instead. resulting in him getting downed the next turn, then insta-killed by the Wil-o-wisp when it used its Consume Life ability as a bonus action.

Maru was brought back to life however in the Feywilds after his friends (The party) returned him there. There he went on a brief adventure with them all, visiting another Hag's lair, and fighting a Hydra. Maru then returned to his home of Treestump to finally marry Sabina, the fey spirit he had fallen in love with.

It was revealed that the "marriage" was actually a ceremony which turned Maru into a Treant and Sabina into a Dryad. The party felt betrayed by this but learned from Maru's former druid master, Boofalus, that he knew this was the price for loving Sabina, and the reason he ran from the Feywilds for as long as he did.

The party mourned his final departure, and were happy to see Maru's flute still playing beside the tree.

## Relationships

### Altan Edenwalk

Maru and Altan did not always get along, as Altan's serious demeanor clashed with Maru's light heartedness. However they did start to form a bond only sessions before Maru's passing, for which Altan blames himself.

### Kaelyn Loara

Maru and Kaelyn were like minded in many ways, both older and wiser than their fellow party members, both providing wisdom to their friends. Where Kaelyn was more serious, Maru was more heartfelt. The two worked well together.

### Zira

Maru and Zira had a tense relationship that was often in jest, as both fought for the attention of Wolfie.

## Equipment and Gear

Maru carried a Heward's Handy Spice Pouch, and an Acquisitions Inc Bag of Holding, as well as a self playing flute that would play tunes in harmony with Maru's Lute.

### Abilities

* Maru had the ability to make delicious meals and play music that would inspire the party and give them a better long rest.

## Trivia

* Maru is named after the famous Starcraft pro player.

## Quotes

* When asked what he'd like to do during a tense combat situation "Um....die?" He died later that session.