Ryn (Syl-Arryn)

Syl-Arryn grew up in the Alfinwald, a child of privilege and destiny. They gave up their gender early, already feeling more like a political pawn than a toddler thanks to their parents' ambitions. They learned to hold their tongue and listen to the ambitious fill the air with words continually produced from insecure minds. Arryn always had an aura of quiet power and an intensely present gaze which disquieted adults, especially those in positions of power.

Arryn's parents groomed them to assume their legacy since birth. Their days filled with royal hunts, political feasts, arms training, and endless study of history, divinity, and arcane secrets. Arryn secretly studied poetry, art, and nature as well, all topics considered "unimportant" by their parents. But those were the only things that held Arryn's attention for any length of time.

They kept trying to tell their parents that they wanted to do something else, anything else. But the days always seemed full of legacy-building activity. Another hunt with the Monarch. One more backwoods excursion with the Padalant Circle. An obscure lecture from the High Circle of Mages. Formal lessons on the nature of divinity from the Disciples of the Morning Star.

The days blurred, and Arryn grew more and more distant. A routine patrol turned into a life and death struggle with a scouting warband of ogres. Arryn fired their first arrow in anger, killing one of the ogres, and the patrol emerged victorious. Everyone congratulated Arryn, but their words rang hollow. Arryn did what they were trained to do, and nobody asked questions. Arryn had robbed a sentient creature of their life, and nobody gave that a second thought.

The memory of Arryn's first kill haunted their nights. They knew they couldn't sit idly by and watch their life float downstream on the canal dug by their parents. They were here to help people, not kill, and staying in this life would cause so much more bloodshed. Arryn had to act. They had to get out, to go somewhere and be unimportant.

Arryn left silently, their time with the Padalant Circle serving them well as they slipped past the guards. They disguised themself as a simple merchant named Ryn and joined a caravan into Okular. They roved into the mountains of the Molten Throne to learn about metal, and then into Dunhill to learn about stone and wood. Ryn made so much money along the way, getting lucky with buying random art pieces that caught their eye and parleying simple-to-them knowledge into coin. Finally they arrived at Fellport, where they decided to try their luck at some of the crafts they learned along the way. Ryn petitioned for an abandoned Watch smithy in the Artist's Quarter, and they named the workshop Terra's Bones.

Ryn has proficiency with Jeweler's Tools, Smith's Tools, and Woodcarver's Tools. They're trying sculpting, and hope to learn Mason's Tools soon, but it will take time. They combine these skills with uncanny inspiration to make multimedia art pieces emphasizing the beauty of natural form. One recent piece features wind-blown trees with gemstone leaves growing out of a steel plate decorated as the rippled surface of a pond. The whole piece conveys a sense of motion while remaining still.

Ryn is shy to the point of reclusion, and rarely shows their true face to anyone. They play the part of their own broker often as not, freeing themselves in anonymity. They can appear half-elven, human, even dwarven through their Mask of Many Faces, and they rarely take their true form for fear of their parents finding them. They read and study everything under the sun and moon at all hours of the day and night, and they live in Terra's Bones full-time. They continuously learn about beauty and form, letting go of worry as they help raw materials become their best selves. Ryn also has an enchanted stone which makes the background noise of the forest when commanded. It reminds them of how serene their home in the Alfinwald could be, when their parents weren't pushing them.

The ironic thing is, Ryn's parents were right. Ryn doesn't realize they are an incarnation of the Morning Star, destined to improve the lives of everyone across Benterra. They can read any language (Eyes of the Rune Keeper), cast ritual magic (with their Book of Ancient Secrets), change their appearance at will (through Mask of Many Faces), and recently they have learned to live with neither sleep nor trance (Aspect of the Moon). Now they have escaped the Alfinwald, and they will refuse to return without evidence of great changes in elven society. Ryn's parents have hired people to keep tabs on Ryn to ensure their safety, but the watchers will not reveal themselves until Ryn decides to unmask their true face in public.

Ryn (Syl-Arryn)
High Elf Celestial Warlock (Level 8) (They/Them)
(Sage Background; Fey Teleportation, Skilled Feats)
Str 10  Dex 16  Con 12  Int 18  Wis 12  Cha 18
Arcana +6, History +6, Nature +6, Religion +6

Part of T.W.Wombat's Lore 24 project, detailing the world around Fellport.
For all city posts, see the Fellport Index. For posts about the wider world, see the Beneterra Index.