» INTRODUCING THALMOOR STORMHAWK⌗

Welcome to our first character inspiration post! Today we’ll be exploring Thalmoor Stormhawk, a Path of the Storm Herald Barbarian concept that I came up with while listening to Bury the Light by Casey Edwards off of the Devil May Cry 5 Soundtrack. The part lyrics that really drew me in were the lines I am the storm that is approaching / Provoking black clouds in isolation / I am reclaimer of my name. Something about being that storm that approaches, that strikes fear - that’s what I resonated with and hoped to emulate in this character.

If you’d like to listen to a preview, the Spotify link is below - warning, default is very loud - and as always, feel free to use this character in your campaigns however you’d like!

• Title/Inspired Name: Thalmoor Stormhawk
• Race: Goliath
• Gender: Female
• Age: 19 years old
• Height: 7 feet, 2 inches (~218 cm)
• Weight: 273 pounds (~124 kg)
• Alignment: Chaotic Good
• Class: Barbarian, Path of the Storm Herald, possible multiclass into Ranger/Druid
• Background: Thalmoor was raised in the mountains with a druidic circle. A neighboring nation sent a corporation to extract and drain the land of its natural resources, resulting in a revolution. The revolution wiped out most of the land and almost all of Thalmoor’s people. After leaving their home, the remaining members became a strike squadron, intentionally targeting corporations that seek to destroy the land. Over time the remaining members have passed away, leaving Thalmoor as the sole surviving member.

» A HISTORY OF THE MOUNTAINS⌗

One fateful stormy night, a circle of mountain druids found a Goliath baby crying inside a burning husk of a home. No parents were found; as the storm raged on, the druids feared the worst. Believing it best, the druidic circle took her under their wing and cared for her, nurtured her, raised her.

This is the beginning of the tale of Thalmoor Stormhawk.

Thalmoor spent most of her childhood being raised by the wilderness in the Emeritas mountain range. Along with this natural upbringing came a healthy amount of respect for the land as it existed without interruption. She cared deeply for the land and all the creatures that inhabited it; the squirrels, trees, birds and bees were all Thalmoor’s companions during her childhood. Though rooted in the mountains, she always dreamt of the outside world - What is it like out past the mountains? Are there other Goliath children in the rest of the world?

And so Thalmoor grew, both in size and maturity - she learned many skills that helped both nature and the druids to prosper. This carried on for many years without interruption; a cycle of prosperity and growth, intertwined with the efforts of many. Eventually, Thalmoor stumbled upon a new cave, one which she hadn’t previously explored - this area seemed… different, somehow. It was as if it had its own energy, a buzz that seemed to fill the atmosphere around her - how could this be? Deeper and deeper Thalmoor ventured, heart pounding. Something unnatural seemed to pull on Thalmoor’s body; she, a mere marionette, with whatever this energy was playing the role of the puppeteer.

Downwards and downwards she trawled until she eventually reached the source of this mysterious energy - what she came to call “world essence”. The mysterious liquid seemed to glow a radiant purple, with the soil all around producing the richest plants she had ever seen. Grass had never looked more green, flowers never more vibrant! With this newfound knowledge Thalmoor returned, telling the other druids of her discovery. From then on they began to use the World Essence to enhance their crops, careful to measure and meter its usage so as not to disturb the natural order.

Eventually the druids began to produce even more crops using the World Essence, selling to nearby local villages. During one of the local seller’s markets, Thalmoor noticed a man in clothes that didn’t look like everyone else’s - whereas everyone else had functional attire, this man had on clothing with spotless whites and vibrant hues. He couldn’t be from around here. He approached her, intrigued with the size of the fruit.

“Excuse me, how exactly did you manage to grow fruit that size? I’m something of a farmer myself,” the man exclaimed. Thalmoor decided he must be a merchant from afar and began to talk, mentioning her discovery of the World Essence. It was something that she mentioned to the other farmers, so it seemed harmless enough to talk about in passing. The man bought some fruits, thanked her for her time, and the day finished without any events of note.

Some time passed, and Thalmoor grew older - she was now 17 years of age, nearly an adult. She had been handling more of the responsibilities around the village as she became more mature. Because of this, she had nearly forgotten about the World Essence Cave - oh, how long ago it felt! On a day that she was met with little to do, she made up her mind - she would return to the cave.

On that day, however, she was met with a shocking discovery - man-made machines were massacring the side of the mountain cave - clack! clack! clack! In horror, she rushed back to the circle - they all returned together. The gentleman from the market eventually walked out to greet them, introducing himself as the supervisor for the West Balkhern Trading Company. Thalmoor’s family dissented, mentioning that they had no right to the World Essence - extracting it at such a scale would surely ruin the natural order! The man assured them that the Company would take the utmost caution when extracting and that if they saw anything that was upsetting nature, they would stop. Satisfied, the druids returned home.

At first, the Company seemed to uphold their end of the promise - the extractions continued, but no effects were felt. Continuing the drilling led to instability; instability, natural destruction. Eventually the village noticed trees fading, losing their colors. It seemed to spread from tree to tree, flower to flower - slowly the surrounding area turned an ashy gray color. Again dissatisfied, the druids made their pleas heard; again, the Company made the same promises. Tensions began to climb, and climb, and climb until they could climb no higher, then POP!

The West Balkhern Trading Company recognized the rising tensions and sent security details to the cave from the neighboring lands. Each day the land seemed to house another few soldiers; each day the druids were met with more force. Eventually Thalmoor grew frustrated and talked with her close friends - they could not continue to be ignored. On that day they formed the Redhawk Raiders; and on that day, they began to recruit others in secret. Nearby Goliath groups, druids, and rangers - all were welcome to join the struggle.

In the deep of the night, the Redhawks struck the machinery and camp supplies. They took the utmost care not to avoid injuring the workers there, though some cuts and bruises were acquired in the tussle. This attack angered the Company, ordering the security forces to engage with the village. Casualties followed; the village was damaged beyond repair, their homeland ashen. The Redhawks evacuated as many villagers as possible and left.

From that day forward, the mountaintop druidic circle began their nomadic lifestyle. As the Redhawk Raiders had no further attachments, they decided to split from the nomads and begin their new objective - seek and destroy the West Balkhern Trading Company and all others like it. They were to work in the shadows, crippling those that would hurt the world as it occurs naturally for profit motives. None were exempt. As they carried out these strikes, the casualties piled up; now, only one of the Raiders remains.

This is the beginning of the tale of Thalmoor Stormhawk.

I am the storm that is approaching / Provoking black clouds in isolation / I am reclaimer of my name