Post by Adalinde Faust on Oct 3, 2017 6:43:24 GMT
NAME:
Adalinde Faust
GENDER:
Female
AGE:
75
AFFILIATION:
Summer Court, The Tolltaker’s Knighthoood
RACE / SPECIES:
Changeling
STATISTICS: (These are without use of Contracts)
Intelligence: 2
Strength: 5
Speed: 4
Stamina: 5
Durability: 4
Supernatural Energy: 6
Combat Proficiency: 5
Power Proficiency: 5
ABILITIES:
Changeling Nature: Adalinde was born as an ordinary mortal, but due to a chance encounter with one of the True Fae, she was abducted and taken to Arcadia to serve as a Gladiator and, to be frank, a pet for one of them. Not only was she made more ‘beautiful’ according to that Fae’s standards, but she was given the powerful blood of the dragon, giving her the form that she has now, and giving her access to all of her powers. After all, if one strips away her nature as a changeling, all that would be left would be a broken woman with a knack for combat.
{Spoiler}Greater Blessing of the Fairest: As she grows in the power of the Wyrd, her grace and magnificence grows commensurate to her understanding of the strange powers of the Faerie. At this point, she can use her Glamour to enhance her skills in social abilities, letting her be more magnificent, lie more easily, and persuade others of her cause. Her high Wyrd makes this even easier than she once found it as one of the Fairest.
Greater Kith Blessings: Her escape from Arcadia and her unique role in her Keeper’s panoply resulted in a rather interesting situation for her only exacerbated by her deeper dive into the powers of the Wyrd. She is a mixture of the elemental fire of the Fireheart and the primal power and beauty of the Draconic, with a focus on the former. She does, however, gain the benefits of both. She can use Glamour to grow especially powerful natural weapons in the form of teeth and terrible claws, as well as pay glamour to give her bursts of witty insight much like a bright flare of fire.
Faerie Biology: Due to her exposure to the Fae, she is able to consume Goblin Fruits, which allow her to heal damage done to her body extremely quickly. These fruits are found within the Hedge, an extradimensional space that she can gain access to. She can take over two dozen of them out with her, but unless she prepares them or otherwise preserves them, they only last for three days. On top of this, her odd Biology is responsible for her warped appearance and banes that are discussed elsewhere. She also is extremely long lived and looks much younger than she actually is thanks to the power of the Wyrd, letting her appear in her mid-twenties despite being in her mid-seventies, and she will live to easily 150 if not older thanks to it.
Pledgesmithing: All those touched by the Fae have the power to forge powerful contracts enforced and rewarded by the Wyrd itself, but she is especially adept at it, able to forge contracts to her advantage or just more powerful in general, as she has been at the process for a long time and has managed contracts for herself and her subdivision of the Tolltakers for decades now. The effects of such contracts are extremely varied, and rely heavily upon what terms they agree to, so each Pledge has the potential to be unique, even if some are used more often than others. In general, however, they tend to be balanced, the rewards being balanced with the price paid.
Dreamwalking: Dreams are much like the domains of the Faerie, and as such she Adalinde has great control over them. She is a naturally vivid dreamer and has complete control over her own dreams. If given access to another’s dreams, such as through a Pledge or Contract, she has the ability to harvest glamour from them by using her control over dreams to involve herself in the dreamer’s dreams as much as she pleases. This is not harmful for the individual, besides the occasional nightmare she may cause them.
Hedgewalking: To a Changeling, anything that could serve as a metaphorical portal, such as a mirror, archway, window, or door, can act as a portal to the Hedge. With a simple expenditure of Glamour and a command to open, it opens up into a portal to the hedge. From there, she can make her way through it to any other portal that has been used as such. It is possible to open them up from the hedge into reality without it having been used before, but this is not something she has mastered yet. People can follow her through, but such a thing is unwise for any but the Changelings, as the thorns of the Hedge strip away at the souls of most anyone else who tries to come through, and failing that, they bite at the body, dealing harm to even powerful creatures.
The Mask: A phenomenon that stems from ancient contracts between the world and the Fae, this hides the true forms of anything Fae-touched from the eyes of normal mortals, giving them images that are in line with what would be acceptable for where they are. For those who can see past illusions or those who are fae touched themselves, it takes effort to see the illusion, and such a thing is extremely temporary as their true nature shines through. Of note is that it seems not to function in Eokia, as it is utterly unnecessary for the most part, and it has very little effect in Sonlas, mostly affecting her to downplay but not erase her fae touch, like giving her normal hair as well as adjusting the clothing based on where she is but keeping it’s general theme.
The Wyrd: The Wyrd is many things, but perhaps the best way to describe it is the magic of the Fae, it’s transformative Essence, and how it has begun the shape the Changeling into something other than human. It increases their capacity to handle Glamour, the power of emotions and basis for most fae magic, and gives them the capacity to regain it through feeding on dreams, emotions, and other sources of it. It strengthens their magic, and once their Wyrd hits levels like Adalidne’s, it allows them to transcend the limits of what is possible for human skill and physical condition. It allows them to forge the pledges, and even allows them to occasionally incite a Bedlam of emotion in those around them. The Wyrd is a mystery to all but the True Fae, and naturally they are not explaining it to the Changelings that have escaped, if they could even understand it even if it was explained. In addition, as a result of her deep connection to the Wyrd, objects that she has on her for long periods of time often become Tokens, magical relics that provide strong benefits when used, but cause lashback at their user. Normally only those connected to the Fae can use them, but if a mortal is taught the Catch, a condition that allows free activation of it, or discovers said Catch accidentally, they can use it. She has no control over what these objects become, the Wyrd has a mind of it's own. It takes about a week of being on her person constantly at the least, and sometimes even longer, for something to become a Token.
Greater Kith Blessings: Her escape from Arcadia and her unique role in her Keeper’s panoply resulted in a rather interesting situation for her only exacerbated by her deeper dive into the powers of the Wyrd. She is a mixture of the elemental fire of the Fireheart and the primal power and beauty of the Draconic, with a focus on the former. She does, however, gain the benefits of both. She can use Glamour to grow especially powerful natural weapons in the form of teeth and terrible claws, as well as pay glamour to give her bursts of witty insight much like a bright flare of fire.
Faerie Biology: Due to her exposure to the Fae, she is able to consume Goblin Fruits, which allow her to heal damage done to her body extremely quickly. These fruits are found within the Hedge, an extradimensional space that she can gain access to. She can take over two dozen of them out with her, but unless she prepares them or otherwise preserves them, they only last for three days. On top of this, her odd Biology is responsible for her warped appearance and banes that are discussed elsewhere. She also is extremely long lived and looks much younger than she actually is thanks to the power of the Wyrd, letting her appear in her mid-twenties despite being in her mid-seventies, and she will live to easily 150 if not older thanks to it.
Pledgesmithing: All those touched by the Fae have the power to forge powerful contracts enforced and rewarded by the Wyrd itself, but she is especially adept at it, able to forge contracts to her advantage or just more powerful in general, as she has been at the process for a long time and has managed contracts for herself and her subdivision of the Tolltakers for decades now. The effects of such contracts are extremely varied, and rely heavily upon what terms they agree to, so each Pledge has the potential to be unique, even if some are used more often than others. In general, however, they tend to be balanced, the rewards being balanced with the price paid.
Dreamwalking: Dreams are much like the domains of the Faerie, and as such she Adalinde has great control over them. She is a naturally vivid dreamer and has complete control over her own dreams. If given access to another’s dreams, such as through a Pledge or Contract, she has the ability to harvest glamour from them by using her control over dreams to involve herself in the dreamer’s dreams as much as she pleases. This is not harmful for the individual, besides the occasional nightmare she may cause them.
Hedgewalking: To a Changeling, anything that could serve as a metaphorical portal, such as a mirror, archway, window, or door, can act as a portal to the Hedge. With a simple expenditure of Glamour and a command to open, it opens up into a portal to the hedge. From there, she can make her way through it to any other portal that has been used as such. It is possible to open them up from the hedge into reality without it having been used before, but this is not something she has mastered yet. People can follow her through, but such a thing is unwise for any but the Changelings, as the thorns of the Hedge strip away at the souls of most anyone else who tries to come through, and failing that, they bite at the body, dealing harm to even powerful creatures.
The Mask: A phenomenon that stems from ancient contracts between the world and the Fae, this hides the true forms of anything Fae-touched from the eyes of normal mortals, giving them images that are in line with what would be acceptable for where they are. For those who can see past illusions or those who are fae touched themselves, it takes effort to see the illusion, and such a thing is extremely temporary as their true nature shines through. Of note is that it seems not to function in Eokia, as it is utterly unnecessary for the most part, and it has very little effect in Sonlas, mostly affecting her to downplay but not erase her fae touch, like giving her normal hair as well as adjusting the clothing based on where she is but keeping it’s general theme.
The Wyrd: The Wyrd is many things, but perhaps the best way to describe it is the magic of the Fae, it’s transformative Essence, and how it has begun the shape the Changeling into something other than human. It increases their capacity to handle Glamour, the power of emotions and basis for most fae magic, and gives them the capacity to regain it through feeding on dreams, emotions, and other sources of it. It strengthens their magic, and once their Wyrd hits levels like Adalidne’s, it allows them to transcend the limits of what is possible for human skill and physical condition. It allows them to forge the pledges, and even allows them to occasionally incite a Bedlam of emotion in those around them. The Wyrd is a mystery to all but the True Fae, and naturally they are not explaining it to the Changelings that have escaped, if they could even understand it even if it was explained. In addition, as a result of her deep connection to the Wyrd, objects that she has on her for long periods of time often become Tokens, magical relics that provide strong benefits when used, but cause lashback at their user. Normally only those connected to the Fae can use them, but if a mortal is taught the Catch, a condition that allows free activation of it, or discovers said Catch accidentally, they can use it. She has no control over what these objects become, the Wyrd has a mind of it's own. It takes about a week of being on her person constantly at the least, and sometimes even longer, for something to become a Token.
Contracts: The enigmatic powers of the changelings are curious because these powers aren’t innate abilities. Rather, supernatural changeling abilities, known as Contracts, come as a result of bargains struck between the Fae and the natural world. Indeed, they are literal contracts between the dream-folk and the worlds they inhabit. By paying their end of the contract in glamour or fulfilling strange catches mentioned in each power, she invokes the powers of these contracts. Learning a contract and it’s catches essentially involves coming to a deal with the powers involved in it’s making and getting in on the contract. This process isn’t easy, but it is definitely worth it. These cannot be taught to anyone without the touch of the Fae, as the contracts only apply to the Fae-touched.
{Spoiler}Punishing Summer: Long ago, the earliest rulers of the Court of Wrath forged contracts with the blistering heat of the hottest summers. Many of the clauses to these pacts are lost to the weave and weft of history, but some still remain. Those of the Summer Court use these searing clauses to punish their enemies for their transgressions, whether on the sunlit battlefield or in a dark subbasement. These are the tools of war. These are the instruments of Wrath.
Eternal Summer: These Contracts provide changelings with physical manifestations of Summer, including great heat and bright sun. They draw upon ancient contracts with Summer himself that the Summer court made after they tracked him down and demanded the power to smite those who wronged them so that they can more easily channel their wrath.
Elemental Fire: Drawing on the powers of the Elementals from whom she shares a connection through her Kith, she invokes powers from the Contracts tied to their very nature. Specifically, she has learned to wield fire like that which burns within her and across her Mien, acting as a mystical tie to the nature of Fire itself.
Stone: Strength defines Adalinde’s existence, she was a gladiator when she was in Arcadia, and she is now a Knight of the Tolltakers and an enforcer of the Summer Court. Naturally, she set about becoming in tune with the Contract of Stone, so that she may fight like an Ogre and make herself strong enough to beat down any opposition that dare stand in the way of her burning wrath.
Vainglory: These Contracts draw on Glamour to make the changeling more impressive and awe-inspiring. Several of these clauses allow the Adalinde to reveal her true mien to mortals in a fashion that neither risks lowering her Clarity nor allows the mortals to remember it clearly. This resonates with her Seeming, after all, while she was a combatant as a Gladiator, she was as much an entertainer for her Keeper’s pleasure in that way, among with many others.
{Spoiler}Smoldergrip: Items left long in the sun collect deep and terrible heat: a steering wheel in a hot car, a plastic toy left on a desiccated lawn, the rubber grips to sun-scorched pruning shears. With this clause, the Adalinde may force any object small enough to be reasonably held in human hands, up to the size of her sword, to become hot enough to sear the hands of those who hold it, forcing them to drop it lest they be burned. If she has a natural sunburn when she activates this, it costs nothing to use.
Battle Bright: Fighting with the sun in one’s eyes is no easy task. Depth perception is weakened as a fighter squints to see his foe. Is that his target or his target’s shadow? The bright light blinds. While using this ability, Adalinde makes herself radiate with the white, searing light of the summer sun, a hot bright mote that burns in the eyes of all who see it. So long as she is standing still, she becomes a beacon of supernatural light, making it much harder to fight. If she is holding a real, burning torch aloft, this costs nothing to use. This power can only be used once a day.
Crown of Clashing Fire: Woe to those chosen to do battle with a courtier of Summer in the Crown of Clashing Fire. With this clause, Adalinde chooses a foe on the battlefield with a simple point of the finger. When the two are within 10 yards of one another, a ring of thorns rises up around the two of them and in the next turn those thorns catch fire. The duel is on. Until the duel is resolved, the two of them cannot leave the ring and must fight until it is settled. Any who are not part of the duel but are in the ring find themselves affected by the heat in ways those in the duel are not, and have trouble doing anything physical while within it, though they may leave it freely. Should she bear scars from her last fight with her designated opponent, then this ability costs nothing to use.
Baleful Stroke of Summer Sun: With a close strike of a deadly weapon, a Summer courtier with this ability infects the target with a debilitating poison that simulates the effects of sunstroke and heat exhaustion. As the seconds pass after the strike, the victim begins to feel the effects take hold. He is no longer able to sweat. His tongue turns to cotton. The target’s heart race accelerates, he suffers splitting cramps, and he gets dizzy with fatigue. She must inflict a wound upon her opponent with a strike, and they must not fight off the supernatural poison with their stamina for it to take effect. When under this effect they either find their actions slower and more sluggish due to it, or they take damage as they force themselves to fight on as normal despite the poison. If she is wielding a weapon she had a large part in it’s creation, then she may use this for free. Her weapon of choice was made by her, so all attacks with it may apply this.
Scorched Earth: This clause represents the ultimate punishment of summer: with it, a changeling curses an area to bake in blistering heat, blighting the plants, incurring drought, possibly even invoking the death of pets, older adults, or children. Many Summer courtiers have been known to invoke this clause in the midst of battle. While it runs the risk of harming those who fight for the freehold, one hopes that they are prepared to fight through such scorching weather. They are drained of energy as they find their strength failing them, their body stops healing naturally, plants die, and water dries up as the heat evaporates it. This lasts for a week, and the longer she focuses on evoking it, the larger she can make it, going up in increments of half a mile in raidus. If she meditates under a banner of the Summer Court that she helped make, this power costs nothing to use.
Battle Bright: Fighting with the sun in one’s eyes is no easy task. Depth perception is weakened as a fighter squints to see his foe. Is that his target or his target’s shadow? The bright light blinds. While using this ability, Adalinde makes herself radiate with the white, searing light of the summer sun, a hot bright mote that burns in the eyes of all who see it. So long as she is standing still, she becomes a beacon of supernatural light, making it much harder to fight. If she is holding a real, burning torch aloft, this costs nothing to use. This power can only be used once a day.
Crown of Clashing Fire: Woe to those chosen to do battle with a courtier of Summer in the Crown of Clashing Fire. With this clause, Adalinde chooses a foe on the battlefield with a simple point of the finger. When the two are within 10 yards of one another, a ring of thorns rises up around the two of them and in the next turn those thorns catch fire. The duel is on. Until the duel is resolved, the two of them cannot leave the ring and must fight until it is settled. Any who are not part of the duel but are in the ring find themselves affected by the heat in ways those in the duel are not, and have trouble doing anything physical while within it, though they may leave it freely. Should she bear scars from her last fight with her designated opponent, then this ability costs nothing to use.
Baleful Stroke of Summer Sun: With a close strike of a deadly weapon, a Summer courtier with this ability infects the target with a debilitating poison that simulates the effects of sunstroke and heat exhaustion. As the seconds pass after the strike, the victim begins to feel the effects take hold. He is no longer able to sweat. His tongue turns to cotton. The target’s heart race accelerates, he suffers splitting cramps, and he gets dizzy with fatigue. She must inflict a wound upon her opponent with a strike, and they must not fight off the supernatural poison with their stamina for it to take effect. When under this effect they either find their actions slower and more sluggish due to it, or they take damage as they force themselves to fight on as normal despite the poison. If she is wielding a weapon she had a large part in it’s creation, then she may use this for free. Her weapon of choice was made by her, so all attacks with it may apply this.
Scorched Earth: This clause represents the ultimate punishment of summer: with it, a changeling curses an area to bake in blistering heat, blighting the plants, incurring drought, possibly even invoking the death of pets, older adults, or children. Many Summer courtiers have been known to invoke this clause in the midst of battle. While it runs the risk of harming those who fight for the freehold, one hopes that they are prepared to fight through such scorching weather. They are drained of energy as they find their strength failing them, their body stops healing naturally, plants die, and water dries up as the heat evaporates it. This lasts for a week, and the longer she focuses on evoking it, the larger she can make it, going up in increments of half a mile in raidus. If she meditates under a banner of the Summer Court that she helped make, this power costs nothing to use.
Eternal Summer: These Contracts provide changelings with physical manifestations of Summer, including great heat and bright sun. They draw upon ancient contracts with Summer himself that the Summer court made after they tracked him down and demanded the power to smite those who wronged them so that they can more easily channel their wrath.
{Spoiler}Son of the Hearth: Adalinde is comfortable in all temperatures, and may even heat a chamber with her power. She can quickly and easily either expel heat to prevent herself from getting too warm, or she would generate heat to keep herself warm. With an expenditure of will, she can even keep the entire area around her warm no matter what for up to a day. If she spits on a fading ember or spark then this power costs her nothing to use.
Ulf’s Heart: Adalinde shines the light of high Summer on her surroundings. She shines with a light that is as bright as the noonday sun, and the light illuminates an area out to 200 yards from herself. It does not hinder vision, but naturally such a radiant amount of light heavily inhibits any attempt at stealth that she might try to make. It does not count as true sunlight in regards to harming creatures that have an aversion to it. If she is using it within five minutes of midnight, then it costs nothing to invoke.
Noonday Grasp: Adalinde borrows some of Summer’s immense strength to increase her own. Both her endurance and her strength are increased noticeably when she is using this. If she eats a chunk of naturally formed ice before using this power, then she can invoke it for no cost.
Solstice Revelation: Channeling the light of the sun at its most intense, Adalinde reveals all that is hidden around her. Darkness and illusion can hide nothing from her gaze. Anywhere the light shines, the ability to hide or disguise oneself is reduced, including magical effects that may try to obfuscate things. These hold up far better than mundane disguises, but they would require someone of about the same magical potency as her or higher to withstand it. If she invokes it within five minutes of noon, then it costs nothing.
The Dread Lord’s Gaze: Channeling the destructive power of the relentless Summer sun, Adalinde sears her enemies with sunlight. A potent, glamour infused bolt of sunlight lashes out from her blade and hits her target from range. If she concentrates on it or the effect is free, then the damage becomes hard to heal with magic, leaving them in need of natural recovery or especially potent healing magic. If her target is wearing or touching gold metal, then the clause costs nothing to invoke.
Ulf’s Heart: Adalinde shines the light of high Summer on her surroundings. She shines with a light that is as bright as the noonday sun, and the light illuminates an area out to 200 yards from herself. It does not hinder vision, but naturally such a radiant amount of light heavily inhibits any attempt at stealth that she might try to make. It does not count as true sunlight in regards to harming creatures that have an aversion to it. If she is using it within five minutes of midnight, then it costs nothing to invoke.
Noonday Grasp: Adalinde borrows some of Summer’s immense strength to increase her own. Both her endurance and her strength are increased noticeably when she is using this. If she eats a chunk of naturally formed ice before using this power, then she can invoke it for no cost.
Solstice Revelation: Channeling the light of the sun at its most intense, Adalinde reveals all that is hidden around her. Darkness and illusion can hide nothing from her gaze. Anywhere the light shines, the ability to hide or disguise oneself is reduced, including magical effects that may try to obfuscate things. These hold up far better than mundane disguises, but they would require someone of about the same magical potency as her or higher to withstand it. If she invokes it within five minutes of noon, then it costs nothing.
The Dread Lord’s Gaze: Channeling the destructive power of the relentless Summer sun, Adalinde sears her enemies with sunlight. A potent, glamour infused bolt of sunlight lashes out from her blade and hits her target from range. If she concentrates on it or the effect is free, then the damage becomes hard to heal with magic, leaving them in need of natural recovery or especially potent healing magic. If her target is wearing or touching gold metal, then the clause costs nothing to invoke.
Elemental Fire: Drawing on the powers of the Elementals from whom she shares a connection through her Kith, she invokes powers from the Contracts tied to their very nature. Specifically, she has learned to wield fire like that which burns within her and across her Mien, acting as a mystical tie to the nature of Fire itself.
{Spoiler}Cloak of Fire: This clause protects Adalinde from the natural manifestations of fire. She becomes comfortable in weather associated with fire and is protected against damage by its more extreme manifestations. Heat no longer bothers her, so long as it is natural and not from things that are created or modified to harm someone. She is fine in a wildfire or a bonfire, but a flamethrower can still harm her. If she bears some symbolic representation of the element in question, such as an image of a fire or some small amount of it in her form, then this power has no cost. Due to the particulars of her Mien, this is always available for free.
Armor of Fire’s Fury: Adalinde cloaks herself in a frenzied and damaging manifestation of her chosen element, providing limited armor and damaging anyone who touches her. It takes the form of a raging flame around her, and she can limit it’s manifestation. This allows her to limit it to her hands, for example, so that she can attack people with it, or even heat water with it or start a fire. If she is touching the element in question when she invokes it, then it has no cost. Due to the particulars of her Mien, this is always available for free.
Control Fire: Adalinde takes control of the element attuned to the Contract, causing the element to move and act in a directed fashion, such as moving fire around or using it to throw a fireball. It cannot create new instances of the element, but she can use it to help a fire spread more so she can control more of it. If she is in area dominated by fire, such as in the middle of a forest fire or some other large amount of fire, then she may invoke this for free.
Armor of Fire’s Fury: Adalinde cloaks herself in a frenzied and damaging manifestation of her chosen element, providing limited armor and damaging anyone who touches her. It takes the form of a raging flame around her, and she can limit it’s manifestation. This allows her to limit it to her hands, for example, so that she can attack people with it, or even heat water with it or start a fire. If she is touching the element in question when she invokes it, then it has no cost. Due to the particulars of her Mien, this is always available for free.
Control Fire: Adalinde takes control of the element attuned to the Contract, causing the element to move and act in a directed fashion, such as moving fire around or using it to throw a fireball. It cannot create new instances of the element, but she can use it to help a fire spread more so she can control more of it. If she is in area dominated by fire, such as in the middle of a forest fire or some other large amount of fire, then she may invoke this for free.
Stone: Strength defines Adalinde’s existence, she was a gladiator when she was in Arcadia, and she is now a Knight of the Tolltakers and an enforcer of the Summer Court. Naturally, she set about becoming in tune with the Contract of Stone, so that she may fight like an Ogre and make herself strong enough to beat down any opposition that dare stand in the way of her burning wrath.
{Spoiler}Might of the Terrible Brute: Adalinde’s muscles bulge and ripple with added power. He may use his strength more effectively through a combination of leverage and brute determination. When in use, her strength increases dramatically, allowing her to deal greater amounts of damage when she strikes an enemy. If she is fighting multiple opponents bare handed, this power has no cost for her.
Ogre’s Rending Grasp: Adalinde can focus his inhuman prowess against an inanimate object. Using this Contract, she can rip down a wall with his bare hands or bash in the sturdiest door with a lead pipe. The changeling must either touch or be able to clearly see an object to use this clause upon it. If she is attempting to remove a barrier such as a door or a wall, then this power has no cost for her.
Display Grandiose Might: Adalinde can boost his Strength by a significant degree for tasks not involving combat. She can run, climb, jump and lift heavy objects far more effectively than normal. This cannot apply to combat actions, and indeed should she attack someone when this is in effect it ends immediately. Breaking inanimate objects, however, does not count as combat. If she is using this clause for the express purpose of showing off his physical or athletic prowess to others, perhaps to gain some prize or to win acclaim, but not for any more practical purpose then it does not cost her anything to invoke.
Ogre’s Rending Grasp: Adalinde can focus his inhuman prowess against an inanimate object. Using this Contract, she can rip down a wall with his bare hands or bash in the sturdiest door with a lead pipe. The changeling must either touch or be able to clearly see an object to use this clause upon it. If she is attempting to remove a barrier such as a door or a wall, then this power has no cost for her.
Display Grandiose Might: Adalinde can boost his Strength by a significant degree for tasks not involving combat. She can run, climb, jump and lift heavy objects far more effectively than normal. This cannot apply to combat actions, and indeed should she attack someone when this is in effect it ends immediately. Breaking inanimate objects, however, does not count as combat. If she is using this clause for the express purpose of showing off his physical or athletic prowess to others, perhaps to gain some prize or to win acclaim, but not for any more practical purpose then it does not cost her anything to invoke.
Vainglory: These Contracts draw on Glamour to make the changeling more impressive and awe-inspiring. Several of these clauses allow the Adalinde to reveal her true mien to mortals in a fashion that neither risks lowering her Clarity nor allows the mortals to remember it clearly. This resonates with her Seeming, after all, while she was a combatant as a Gladiator, she was as much an entertainer for her Keeper’s pleasure in that way, among with many others.
{Spoiler}Mask of Superiority: Adalinde convinces a single subject that she is his professional superior or someone of superior social status. This clause cannot compel anyone into obedience, only deceive them. The changeling can either convince the subject that she is a high-ranking person in the subject’s workplace, or simply that she is a celebrity, someone important and worthy of notice and respect. The changeling doesn’t control who the target sees, only the general “someone in his workplace” or “a celebrity.” If the subject is expecting someone important to come and talk with him, he assumes the changeling is this person. This Contract does not force any particular action on the subject, but most will behave deferentially. If Adalinde pretends to be a socialite or similar celebrity whose fame comes from high standing or good looks alone, then this ability costs nothing.
Songs of Distant Arcadia: Some Gentry keep slaves to provide them with more refined forms of entertainment. This clause allows changelings to become consummate performers, preternaturally skilled storytellers or inhumanly eloquent speakers. This allows Adalinde to draw on the power of her Wyrd to enhance her skill at speech and other forms of entertainment for a short while. If she is giving a performance in front of a wealthy and powerful audience, then it costs nothing for her to use.
Splendor of the Envoy’s Protection: The Gentry sometimes send the finest on diplomatic missions where they must be both impressive and difficult to harm. The changeling temporarily abandons the Mask, revealing her fae mien to all mortals (and other beings) within sight. However, using this clause does not harm the changeling’s Clarity, because his appearance dazzles mortals with amazing glory rather than confusing or frightening them. Mortals can clearly see they are talking speaking to a creature of inhuman appearance, but this merely impresses them to the extent that mortal onlookers are incapable of attacking the character except in self-defense. No electronic recording devices catch her changed form, and those without supernatural powers remember it as her having been wearing a costume or being striking in another way while forgetting her inhuman appearance. If this clause is invoked at a formal party containing at least a dozen people, then it costs nothing for her to use.
Mantle of Terrible Beauty: The changeling appears in her fae mien to all onlookers in a fashion that makes her appear both frightening and terrible. Onlookers see the changeling as a great and terrible version of her normal seeming, but afterwards cannot remember the exact details of what she looked like, only that she filled them with utter terror. As a result, invoking this clause does not risk a changeling losing Clarity. Supernatural creatures have much less of a hard time resisting the compulsion to flee, but it takes extremely willful mortals to stand their ground. After this is over, only the supernaturals can remember what she exactly looked like. If Adalinde is fighting a duel or some other combat that has been agreed upon in advance by both sides, then this power costs nothing to use.
Songs of Distant Arcadia: Some Gentry keep slaves to provide them with more refined forms of entertainment. This clause allows changelings to become consummate performers, preternaturally skilled storytellers or inhumanly eloquent speakers. This allows Adalinde to draw on the power of her Wyrd to enhance her skill at speech and other forms of entertainment for a short while. If she is giving a performance in front of a wealthy and powerful audience, then it costs nothing for her to use.
Splendor of the Envoy’s Protection: The Gentry sometimes send the finest on diplomatic missions where they must be both impressive and difficult to harm. The changeling temporarily abandons the Mask, revealing her fae mien to all mortals (and other beings) within sight. However, using this clause does not harm the changeling’s Clarity, because his appearance dazzles mortals with amazing glory rather than confusing or frightening them. Mortals can clearly see they are talking speaking to a creature of inhuman appearance, but this merely impresses them to the extent that mortal onlookers are incapable of attacking the character except in self-defense. No electronic recording devices catch her changed form, and those without supernatural powers remember it as her having been wearing a costume or being striking in another way while forgetting her inhuman appearance. If this clause is invoked at a formal party containing at least a dozen people, then it costs nothing for her to use.
Mantle of Terrible Beauty: The changeling appears in her fae mien to all onlookers in a fashion that makes her appear both frightening and terrible. Onlookers see the changeling as a great and terrible version of her normal seeming, but afterwards cannot remember the exact details of what she looked like, only that she filled them with utter terror. As a result, invoking this clause does not risk a changeling losing Clarity. Supernatural creatures have much less of a hard time resisting the compulsion to flee, but it takes extremely willful mortals to stand their ground. After this is over, only the supernaturals can remember what she exactly looked like. If Adalinde is fighting a duel or some other combat that has been agreed upon in advance by both sides, then this power costs nothing to use.
Entitlement: Adalinde is a bearer of a Noble Title in the society of Changelings, and due to their odd nature this is more than just a showy title that has no real bearing outside of social contexts. It shapes her Mien and changes the ways in which the Faerie interact with her, and even gives her boons to carrying out her functions. She is a Knight of the Tolltakers, and this is reflective in the many scars that appear on her Mien as well as the blood that always seems to be splattered and dried on her armor and weapons to those who can see through the Mask. If she gets a contract to take on an enemy that she feels is justified, she may exert her will to level a curse upon them, reducing their ability to defend themselves from her blows and making them feel sluggish. The major downside of her entitlement is that the True Fae take a great interest in Changelings with Titles, and this is the cause for her current predicament in the first place.
Mantle of Summer: As an Exemplar of the virtues of her Court, her Fae nature has taken in the aspects of Summer and this empowers her and changes her Mien. To those who can pierce the mask, she seems like a font of ever-radiating heat that seems to make their mouths dry and make their eyes need moisture as she radiates the ever-present heat of the summer. It empowers her, making her stronger, more durable, and shielding her from harm that is intended to strike at her person, making her more adept at fighting off her foes and those who would wish to do her or her clients harm.
WEAKNESSES:
Cold Iron: In the modern world, Iron pure enough to be considered Cold Iron is a rare thing indeed, as it is most definitely the exception and not the rule. Any amount of other substances added to it, such as carbon to make steel, renders it no longer Cold Iron and thus ineffective. However, should someone hunt down pure, cold iron in an antique store or the like, the effects are extremely noticeable. None of her powers can protect her from it, and her hedgespun armor is bypassed entirely, leaving her entirely weak to violence from them beyond her natural combat prowess.
Glamour Addiction: To those Changelings who have come to command the Wyrd as much as Adalinde, the taste of fresh Glamour has become addictive, both physically and psychologically. If she goes four days without taking in enough glamour, her body will begin to eat itself in order to get the fix it needs, and it will not stop until she tastes fresh glamour harvested from any source.
Wyrd Frailties: All Changelings treat Cold Iron as a Bane, but those who have come to become one with the Wyrd as much as Adalinde has develop their own particular banes that affect her. They have not become too debilitating and destructive….yet. They will ignore any magical or physical protections that she has and will harm her on contact. Her particular banes are wet ashes and the blood of virgins, stemming from the innate weaknesses of her Kiths.
Wrath: As a Courtier of Summer, and one of great adherence to it’s ideals, Adalinde has quite the temper, always being forced to restrain it if her ire is provoked. It is a righteous fury, that burns at those who attack the weak and exploit them…no matter how much stronger than she they are and how bad of an idea it would be to attack them. After all, she seeks to destroy the True Fae, and they are beings of omnipotent power within Arcadia. What matter is a little difference between her and another being besides them? None, at least to her.
Low Clarity: Due to the intense changes that have just occurred in her being thrown into another world, she has lost a lot of the clarity that she once had, not helped by the curse inflicted upon her by her Seeming. As a result of this, she has begun to lose her grip on reality somewhat, and as such has started to have hallucinations of the Fae popping up in her everyday life, making it hard to be perceptive about the real world around her.
Greater Curse of the Fairest: As Adalinde has grown in the power of the Wyrd, so has her derangement due to the powers of the Faerie clashing with her human mind. She finds it harder and harder to keep her Clarity and focus on the human realm, and even when she does it becomes harder to keep her derangements caused by it from showing.
EQUIPMENT
{Spoiler}Hedgespun Raiment: Her Raiment appears to be a wondrous military garb reminiscent of what one might expect a medieval knight of old to wear, tailored to fit over her draconic features and even complimenting them. It is red with gold trim, shining with decorative gold chainmail, and it bears symbols of fire and the Summer Court on it. When it is hidden by the Mask, it appears to be militaryesque garments, incorporating bits of military wear into a casual look.
Hedgespun Armor: In it’s base form, it appears to be a red and gold breastplate finely adorned with symbols of fire and summer, along with images of dragons and knights doing battle. She wears it over her raiment usually, and when the Mask is covering it, it usually appears to be some sort of protective chestpiece, such as a bulletproof vest to go with the military outfit in Sanctuary.
Warmonger’s Blade: The blade appears to be a large Zweihander with a blade tinged with gold inlays on it and appearing to be made of a red metal, it’s twists and turns invoking the flickering tongues of a fire, giving it a nasty edge that would tear up anything it hits. When swung, the blade seems to evoke the cries of anguish of dying soldiers, evoking an image of those that it killed being trapped within the blade, their dying moments immortalized whenever she swings. When activated, it causes victims who can to cry out when hit, absorbing the cries into itself and using them to heal Adalinde. However, this power comes at a price, for twelve hours after it deactivates after use, she is haunted by the screams of those she has killed, scratching inside her skull and taunting her about the loss of her humanity. When protected by the Mask, it appears to be either a normal sword where such things would be acceptable, something more technological where weapons are expected to be like that, or even a toy or replica where no real weapons are accepted.
Hedgespun Armor: In it’s base form, it appears to be a red and gold breastplate finely adorned with symbols of fire and summer, along with images of dragons and knights doing battle. She wears it over her raiment usually, and when the Mask is covering it, it usually appears to be some sort of protective chestpiece, such as a bulletproof vest to go with the military outfit in Sanctuary.
Warmonger’s Blade: The blade appears to be a large Zweihander with a blade tinged with gold inlays on it and appearing to be made of a red metal, it’s twists and turns invoking the flickering tongues of a fire, giving it a nasty edge that would tear up anything it hits. When swung, the blade seems to evoke the cries of anguish of dying soldiers, evoking an image of those that it killed being trapped within the blade, their dying moments immortalized whenever she swings. When activated, it causes victims who can to cry out when hit, absorbing the cries into itself and using them to heal Adalinde. However, this power comes at a price, for twelve hours after it deactivates after use, she is haunted by the screams of those she has killed, scratching inside her skull and taunting her about the loss of her humanity. When protected by the Mask, it appears to be either a normal sword where such things would be acceptable, something more technological where weapons are expected to be like that, or even a toy or replica where no real weapons are accepted.
APPEARANCE:
Mask: Adalinde, when viewed through the Mask, appears to be a relatively normal looking woman, about five foot nine inches tall and weighing about a hundred and seventy pounds that is rather obviously pure muscle. She has firey red hair and light blue eyes, much like the color of extremely hot fires. She has a few rather obvious scars, all of them jagged like they were inflicted by a jagged edge or by someone especially sadistic, perhaps both. One of them circles around her neck, another goes across her chest and between her breasts going from her right shoulder to right below her left breast. Yet another runs across her stomach, stretching from her right hip to her left side right under her rib cage. Across her back lie numerous scars that look like she was whipped with barbed wire, and one last scar runs down her right arm from her shoulder to her forearm.
However, as one looks extremely closely, some oddities start to emerge about her. For one, her skin is always a lot warmer than a normal person’s, and she doesn’t seem to have any body hair besides what she has on her head and her eyebrows. Another slight oddity is that it seems as if her hair is moving slightly even when there isn’t enough wind to be moving it, though it is always so little that most anyone would rationalize it away as just a trick of the eyes or perhaps her moving slightly and them not noticing it. Another oddity is how she seems to duck a bit to get through doors when she really appears to have enough clearance, but it is almost always close enough that it could be mistaken for her just wanting to be extra careful. When it’s not, it does look strange, but rarely would anyone think much of it. One final one is that she very much dislikes people closing doors quickly after her, and quickly hurries through them.
Mien: Beneath the Mask, the oddities of how she looks to mortals are rather obviously explained by what they see. She’s obviously twenty or so pound heavier between her musculature and the large tail that she has, which she normally keeps tucked up close to her in order to avoid thigns getting closed on it. She’s six foot even, and obviously looks inhuman. Her extremities are covered in scales from the forearms and mid thighs down and tipped with claws instead of nails. Her feet appear to be much like draconic taloned feet, like a lizard’s, instead of a humans. Just as striking is the fact that her tail and hair are alight with flame, a stripe of it running down her tail and in the case of her hair, it is made out of pure fire instead of regular hair.
Her body has splotches of dried blood on it that will never come off, usually on her forearms and talons, all as a result of her entitlement and high Wyrd. Upon her body are numerous light scars, all of which do not stand out as much as the ones that follow her through the Mask. Those scars are even enhanced, seeming to glow a bit as if they had a fire lit up behind them. Her body temperature seems to be even higher than normal, and she seems to radiate that heat into the surroundings near her, causing people nearby to have their eyes and mouths dry out, as if they were in the dead heat of summer, at least those who can see to her Mien and are not seeing her Mask. She also seems to be more tanned as well, further embodying the Summer Court’s elements and ideals.
PERSONALITY:
Adalinde is a person of passion, much like many of those touched by the Fae, especially those who have become as in tune with the Wyrd as she has. In particular, she is a person with an intense sense of justice, driven by righteous fury against those who would enslave others and make themselves like the True Fae, let alone the Fae themselves. However, far from being a ball of rage lashing out at anything near her, she has embraced the way of the Summer Courtier and learned to control and direct that rage in order for it to be productive. All of her strikes carry with them the heat of her fury, and every action she does is driven by a spirit of competition that allows her to vent the excess energy she cannot use to smite her foes and the foes of the Changelings and humanity as a whole. As such, like all summer courtiers, she enjoys competitions of all kinds, and is driven with an urge to win, not just to hone her skills for later, but to revel in the feelings brought about by it.
To get her taste of wrath for feeding on Glamour, she often visits criminals in prison, learning about the wrath that drove them to their crimes and the wrath that they have towards the world, all the while sitting in satisfaction that she is just because, unlike them, she can contain and direct her rage and fury properly, unlike those she visits. After all, they would have been successful and competitive instead of in jail for murder if they knew how to do so, at least that was in her opinion. She often works as a mundane bounty hunter for the same reason, feeding on the conflict and rage of her prey as they struggle to avoid being caught and sent away for their crimes. This fuels her passion for justice as well, as she knows that they are getting their just desserts by being caught and sent off to prison. Sometimes she even visits those she personally caught to taste their wrath for herself, or perhaps to be surprised by their repentance and approve of it if they have decided to try to put that anger and fury to more constructive uses. For those, she often tries to pull the strings of the connections she has made to help them in their endeavors.
As a Tolltaker Knight, she serves much the same roll for the supernatural community as she does for the mortal community, though with a more lethal turn more often than not. Instead of taking in criminals, she often is forced to kill them. To combat this source of loss of Clarity, she tries to maintain connections to the mortal life she has built and tries to stay involved, always there to help the community when they need it. It not only keeps her fed and flourishing, but it also keeps her from losing what little grasp she has left on the world. If she were ever to be separated from that, she would feel an intense need to set up something new to take that place, lest she go insane from the isolation and being left alone with her memories of the Fae. She has needed to change it every once in a while along with her identity when people get suspicious as she has not aged for decades, but she makes sure to make these transitions slowly enough that it is not jarring to her mind.
She can be your best of friends, loyal to the end and willing to put her own life in risk to do what she feels is right, which is always to protect her friends, or she could be your worst of enemies, hunting you down for transgressions against herself or her friends. Rarely will she be somewhere in the middle if she spends any time with a person, after all, such tepid emotions are not suited for someone with the firey passions of a Courtier of the Summer, especially one as potent in the Wyrd and the concept of summer as she is.
HISTORY:
Adalinde remembers nothing of her life before she was taken to Arcadia, and until very recently, she has remembered very little about her time in Arcadia as well. She preferred it that way, and she wishes it would go back to that way, however she knows that to return to that, she would need to lower her connection to the Wyrd, which is something that she is unwilling to do. After all, without it and without going even deeper into her connection, how is she supposed to protect her friends from the True Fae? When she left the Hedge, she barely remembered her last name and her first name was an utter loss to her, so she simply picked an appropriate name given the visage she found herself with, Noble Serpent. Of course, she named herself that in German after looking up names that might fit her last name, since she quickly found out that she was of German descent, even if she no longer looked it given the way she appeared to herself, and how she appeared to the normal people wasn’t Germanic either.
She set about getting herself a new life, getting in contact with the local Freehold which was ruled by the Summer Court, who quickly brought her into the fold and she took to the concepts of summer like a fish to water. She was angry, justifiably so, that she had everything taken from her by the Fae, including her life, appearance, and even her name. She worked for them and they gave her what she needed to put her life back together. She eventually joined the Tolltaker Knighthood when her connection with the Wyrd became deep enough for her to become a Noble, and at the same time she managed to get her Bounty Hunter License, setting her up for her lifestyle for the next several decades of her life, trying hard to keep things as stable and normal as possible considering her work.
However, this all changed one day when she was chasing her Quarry through the Hedge and she was confronted by her Keeper, who had been rather pleased with her development and having become a noble, it obviously amused her. She wanted to strike out at her, but something deep within her quivered at the very notion of it, and she hesitated, unable to strike at her knowing that if she did, she would be whisked away back to Arcadia, likely to never return again. However, this too amused her Keeper, and in respect of her noble title, she gave her a choice. Either come with her to Arcadia, or thrive for a decade in a foreign land without losing touch with her power. If she managed it, then all rights to her would be handed back to her by her Keeper, and she would be a free woman. Naturally, she took the deal without asking any questions. And with that, she found herself thrown deep through the hedge, flying for what seemed forever before being ejected from a mirror in a land she knew nothing of, and having to come to grips with the major life change. Her sanity quickly began to slip before stabilizing at a much lower level than she had before. She was glad she had survived that, but now she had to stabilize herself and work to get it back, or else she would not survive.
