Thistle - Aasimar (Goblin) Quandrix Chronurgy Wizard
Name: Thistle, also sometimes referred to as the annoying goblin.
Character Concept:
Roleplaying wise: A goblin(?) wizard, (over)eager to find her purpose. Sometimes a little whimsy, always good natured.
Role wise: One dash of Thistle adds knowledge, buffs, crowd control, utility, ritual casting and humor to the party.
Race: A goblin with a divine spark, also known as an Aasimar.
Background: Quandrix Student (Strixhaven: A Curriculum of Chaos)
Subclass: Chronurgy (Explorer’s Guide to Wildemount)
Description: At first glance, Thistle looks like most other goblins; short, green, with big ears and a head covered in brownish hair. But there is more to her than meets the eye. When her temper or adrenaline rises, sensitive individuals may pick up that there is something special about her. Even the dullest of people can see that the normally grey irises of her eyes glow with silvery light when she is angry.
Even when she's not temperamental, she is a very direct person. She makes no effort to conceal her feelings, so anything from sadness to boredom to enthusiasm are effortlessly read from both her face and body language. To simply call her naïve would be wrong; she is prone to be tricked, but that is not only issue. She often struggles with understanding social norms, and has a tendency to misunderstand and insult people unintentionally.
If you find yourself the center of her attention, it is most likely because she finds you interesting. Don't worry, she'll let you know. She is curious towards anything she wants to learn more about, and similarly dismissive to things or people she does not find captivating.
Like most other goblins, she has no sense of modesty, neither her own or anyone else's. She wears clothes because she has been told that most people find it disturbing when she doesn't, but prefers to just keep it as simple as possible and often just a single layer. Her favorite blue dress, originally a part of her school uniform, has seen years of use and much mending, and she is in no hurry to replace it. Her red cloak holds sentimental value for her; it was a gift from her former roommate.
Her arms are adorned with six distinct tattoos from her goblin tribe. On her left arm, from top to bottom: Two leaves that signify her connection to the natural world and that is meant to ward of dangers of the wilderness. A band of triangles, which helps keep the body and spirit in balance. Flames that signify her as a mage, and gives her mana an outlet so it doesn't poison her soul. On her right arm, from top to bottom: A band of circles that overlap each with other that helps protect her against spirits that seek to harm her. A jagged band that provides resilience in times of need. And finally, a wave of water dancing around her wrist that is also specific to her as a mage; this one is supposed to help her focus her mana to better shape it.
She always wears a hair ornament that was crafted by her mother from the bones of animals. The two bands around her wrists were given to her by May, her best friend and roommate.
Plothook: Right. Third time's the charm. I won't fall asleep this time! Absolutely not! I will not be defeated again by the most boring author I have ever had the displeasure of reading. Is it possible to be any worse at expressing yourself in brevity? Let's see. Where was I?
What's that noise? Hey! Share the news, please? What, an army? A dragon? Are you serious? Really?
Wait. This must be it. This must be the what the voice told me about. No, not talking to you. I need to go to Kalaman right away. Too bad my mentor is away. You'll let him know, won't you? No, I'll be busy, saving the world. I just need to figure out where I can sign up to help.
Backstory:
Everyone realized early that Thistle was not like the other goblins. She did not pay attention to the same things other children did, and as soon as she could speak, she would ask all manner of weird questions. Their shaman could sense something unusual about her soul, but determined that she wasn't possessed. She was just viewed as a strange child.
At least he had something interesting to teach her; magic. Except, she didn't really learn from him. She couldn't replicate his method no matter what she tried, but through trial and error she found a different way that worked for her. The shaman was baffled, but recognized her talent. As a fledgling mage, she was given the traditional markings of a spell weaver. They didn't seem to do anything, but the shaman assured her that they would help her.
One day, a group of adventurers attacked their camp. While everyone was running away, Thistle was busy drawing with a stick to try to solve a problem. When an adventurer approached her with her weapon raised, she didn't understand the danger and instead started asking questions. The adventurer decided not to kill her, and instead referred her questions to their wizard. They spent the next hour discussing, or more precisely, she spent the next hour asking very question she could think of while he did his best to answer. In the end, not only did they spare her, he advised her on where to go: The Mage Tower. She wanted to immediately go with them, to the point where they had to tie her up to stop her from following them.
The knowledge that there existed a place where she could find answers made Thistle unable to accept her life among the goblins. The others packed up the camp and prepared to move further into the wilderness, but she refused; she wanted to head towards the humans. In the end, she got her wish; her uncle Dandelion took pity on her and decided to take her to the Mage tower. Her family was sad, but understanding.
Her uncle had a talent unlike most others; he could successfully pass himself off as a somewhat ugly gnome. He applied the same mix of clay and color to Thistle's skin and covered her up as much as possible before bringing her to the civilization. The travel was educational for her, mostly for the wrong reasons. Her lack of social grace caused them plenty of trouble, and Dandelion had to save her from her countless blunders. He probably got a few grey hairs from the journey.
The mage tower accepted her, which was a bit of a surprise, since it hadn't even occurred to her that they might reject her. Dandelion bid farewell, and she was so busy exploring that she barely noticed him leaving. So many interesting magic, artifacts, books, ingredients, creatures, experiments... woops! Sorry! That wasn't on purpose!
Apart from a some minor hiccups and perhaps a few appropriate punishments, she settled well into her new home. Her social awkwardness didn't do her any favors, but there were plenty of like-minded awkward young people that tolerated her lack of grace. She immediately made friends with several others around her age, first and foremost her haregon roommate May.
Within a few years, she graduated from a novice to a wizard, and called forth her familiar, a raven she named Blackie. During that time she had also learned more about herself. Apparently her soul was touched by a divine spark, but that was about all the priest could tell her with certainty. Nothing about what kind of divine creature, for what purpose or anything else. But not all was lost; she was taught how to touch the divine spark. When she focused on it, her hand glowed, and with some experimentation she learned she could heal someone with a touch.
Later experiments with her soul made multicolored uneven circles appear on her back. Wings. She could fly! What an exhilarating feeling. Until it abruptly stopped with no warning.
With her new status as a full-fledged wizard, she was allowed to take part in expeditions organized by the tower, where she gained experience in all manner of tasks; gather materials, face unfriendly fauna, perform experiments, study old ruins and more.
Though graduated wizards were allowed to depart the tower, she saw no reason to leave her new home. Something was bothering her, though. There would occasionally be small episodes that kept nagging at her thoughts. Remnants of dreams when she woke up. A voice at the edge of her perception. A bout of bad conscience from lazing around a bit. The impression she got from all these disconnected feelings was that she was supposed to do something, but she had no idea what.
She spent more years both within the tower and attending expeditions. Her frustration with the hints remained a constant factor. That is, until the day she got the message of the Dragon Army. It immediately clicked with her. This was her purpose, it called to her. She immediately set out to face her destiny.
Truths, Rumors, and Lies:
- Thistle went around kissing people on their feet after her roommate May told her that it was the best way to show sincerity. The rumor is true, and only one in a series of practical joke May made at Thistle's expense.
- If Thistle gets too enthused with something and forgets to eat, don't get too close to her. She once bit someone in the arm because she mistook them for food. This rumor is false; she bit a calligraphy pen belonging to the student who sat down next to her.
- The first time Thistle manifested her wings, she was more than sixty feet off the ground when she discovered they had a limited duration. She barely survived.
Loyalties: Thistle is immensely loyal to her new home; the mage tower. Apart from that, she still feels loyalty towards her tribe, despite not having lived with them for years and years. She doesn't even know where they are right now.
Is Might Right? As far as Thistle is concerned people should be able to do what they want as long as they don't bother anyone else. If not, they're bullies, and should be punished accordingly.
She will bow her head to a superior power that has defeated her, while making it very clear she's not happy about it. That does not mean she has given up; a defeat is merely another type of lesson.
Deity: Her respect for goblin ancestors and Chislev, the god of nature on its own terms, still lingers from her days living with her tribe. After her divine spark was revealed, she has started to revere Mishakal above all others. As the goddess of healing, she seems like the most likely candidate to have gifted her the ability to heal. For the moment, Thistle's best hypothesis is that the voices she hears and the dreams she receives might be from either Mishakal or some of her agents.
Music: The music would greatly depend on her mood. She is curious about the world around her, and her thoughts quickly dance between various associations. When she finds something interesting, she eagerly explores it, often charging ahead heedless of any complications. She also has some serious temper, and the right (or wrong) trigger will seriously piss her off. (Spotify links: curious, eager and angry)
Connections. Her family is still out there, and her tribe will (probably) welcome her if she can find them. The one she is most likely to run into is her uncle Dandelion, as he is the only that can willingly visit human settlements. He is getting older, but not interested in staying put anytime soon. The seemingly gregarious but ugly gnome will more often than not treat others to a drink or two or three. He gradually eases the conversation into topics of commerce after the subject has gotten tipsy, all the better to get a better deal. But he is smart to keep his greed in check. Just far enough to earn or save a decent coin, but not so much that the subject feels cheated once they have sobered up.
Thistle is not without enemies, even if she made most of them unwittingly. One such candidate is a fellow mage from her tower; Alurian the hairless. The elf didn't have that nickname before Thistle meddled in his experiment. After it blew up on him, he lost all his hair; every single strand of hair on his head, his face, and his body. Even his eyebrows completely vanished, and no treatment has been able to bring them back again. He has so far failed to take a satisfactory vengeance; she views his attempts as mere games and plays along, while he just wants to see her suffer. The rules of the tower prevent him from going overboard, and has so far protected her from the worst of his wrath.