Esten
Appearance
Esten is usually found to be wearing dark, often black clothing, with different types of animal bits like fur, feathers, bones, etc tastefully woven into the fabric. Though she claims it's to blend in better with the forestry, it’s absolutely because she thinks it makes her look scarier and more mysterious. When she means business, however, Esten will wear her mask, made of black fabrics with black feathers, gold detail and a long, black beak. At home by herself, however, the elf is typically more comfortable in simpler clothing, consisting of a plain tunic and trousers.
Her long silvery hair is usually braided back, but she'll let it hang loose around her face to give off more of that “dangerous local witch who hides in the woods and has an undead and kinda stinky crow familiar” vibe. Hell, if she's really feeling like it, Esten will even sometimes put warpaint on her face. Not that it actually means anything. She also has a long staff (couldn’t find source image) made of wood, with sigils painted on to enhance its strength and durability. The staff is mostly used to hit people, and to give Faustus a place to perch.
Surprisingly, the elf's skin is largely free of any scars, however if anyone is fortunate or stupid enough to get close to her head, they'll see that both of the tips of her ears have been cut off, almost cauterized. If you ask her what happened, her stock answer is that she cut them off in a bet with an orc to prove she was tough. Whether or not you believe her though, is up to you…
In any case, she's also got a wolf form via transmutation, because why not? Her weight stays the same as a wolf, and her fur is silver while her eyes are also gold.
Her long silvery hair is usually braided back, but she'll let it hang loose around her face to give off more of that “dangerous local witch who hides in the woods and has an undead and kinda stinky crow familiar” vibe. Hell, if she's really feeling like it, Esten will even sometimes put warpaint on her face. Not that it actually means anything. She also has a long staff (couldn’t find source image) made of wood, with sigils painted on to enhance its strength and durability. The staff is mostly used to hit people, and to give Faustus a place to perch.
Surprisingly, the elf's skin is largely free of any scars, however if anyone is fortunate or stupid enough to get close to her head, they'll see that both of the tips of her ears have been cut off, almost cauterized. If you ask her what happened, her stock answer is that she cut them off in a bet with an orc to prove she was tough. Whether or not you believe her though, is up to you…
In any case, she's also got a wolf form via transmutation, because why not? Her weight stays the same as a wolf, and her fur is silver while her eyes are also gold.
Skills and Abilities
Sigil Magic: Esten grew tired of the complexity and time consumption of runes, besides what runes she knew were based largely in necromancy and they were ruined when she threw her book in the river. As such, the elf much prefers to create and use sigils for most of her things, such as warding and glamour spells. Even if she loses or forgets the sigil designated to a certain spell, the elf can easily craft a new one. Practicing sigil magic for the past 20 years or so means Esten is quite good at it -- though would not yet consider herself a master.
That said… As with runes, Esten has found her sigils to work best when paired with the proper materials. Simply putting them on paper will still be effective, but not as effective. Additionally, the sigils will draw their strength from her unless specifications are added into the sigil. Doing so raises its own risks, like a misunderstanding/vagueness leading to a sigil spell not working or misfiring. Additionally, the sigils that retrieve their source of energy from a separate source will need, at least, to be retraced and redone every week (not that sigils sapping her strength last much longer, really).
Necromancy: Esten knows Necromancy. This is evident in her undead crow familiar, Faustus, and her Great Big Book Of Necromancy that is also Kind Of Damaged due to Being Tossed In A River during a Severe Lapse Of Judgement. She is not a master necromancer, due to again much of the knowledge having been lost due to water damage (“Well doesn't she remember most of it anyway?” Uh, no, because people usually write things down so that they don't have to remember it, Janus), but obviously she knows enough to keep her pet crow mostly alive, rather than her stupid ex lover that betrayed her and stuff.
The other part of Necromancy is the ghost whispering. Sometimes, it truly is ghost whispering, because even in death some of them can't hear a single thing unless it's blasted at them in several decibels. In any case, Esten can more readily see and hear ghosts and spirits than others, meaning it takes said ghosts and spirits less energy to reveal themselves to her.
Which is all fine and dandy until the ghosts realise you're the only one who can hear them, causing them to be drawn to you like a bunch of peasants drawn to a BOGO bake sale. Then it becomes utterly noisome, where you have to listen to one ghost talk about his boils in unsavory places and another talk about how she just cannot believe how none of her kids have bothered to come visit her since she died, this generation is just so ungrateful and when she was a child this sort of disrespect was absolutely intolerable and wouldn't you please be a dear and go give her rude relatives a piece of her mind?
...you get the idea.
As a result, Esten's cottage is now ostensibly ghost-proof.
Wordless Magic: Esten's magic best comes not from spoken word, but visualization. She wants a ball of fire in her hand that doesn't immediately scorch her skin? Better visualise it. Want that pesky flower to just grow, dammit? Better visualise it! Of course, the biggest drawback of this is the fact that if she can't visualise it, it's not happening. At least, not how she's wanting it to.
And, as always, for every action there must be a price. The bigger the attempt, the more energy is needed and the more precise visualization is necessary.
Herbology: This isn't necessarily magical, but except for a handful of plants found elsewhere, Esten is well versed in the uses of various types of plants and fungi found in her region of Allir Reach and the outskirts surrounding it. This comes in handy when dealing with the locals, who will often employ her services for ointments, poultices, and spell concoctions (some as smooth as molasses).
Transmutation: When the big moon rises then it's time to play -- at least, if you're a werewolf. Of which Esten is not. However, she can turn into a wolf, whose appearance has already been noted. So there's really no difference between her and a werewolf! Except, of course, the transformation is completely voluntary and self-initiated, plus if she bites someone the only thing that'll happen is they'll get mad.
Unfortunately, aside from now being a wild and potentially dangerous pack predator with the sentient mind intact, there's not much else that changes. Esten's weight and relative body mass stays the same, she can't talk in anything other than Good Boi, and if she wants to cast a spell, well, tough luck. Oh and uh, if she's gonna change back, she best have a change of clothes, too.
Home Ec: Esten can cook, and she can sew. In fact, her cross stitching is pretty good, or at least she assumes so. Any time the witch decides to enter something in the village's annual craft fair, she always wins first place. Can't imagine why.
Divination And You: The future is not set in stone. It is a fluid force, ever changing with each choice a person makes. At most, a person might be able to see a handful of the most likely outcomes, but even they are subject to revisal. Many experienced practitioners of magic know this. Even Esten knows this.
But Esten also knows how to tell someone what they want to hear the most, and how to cold read someone such that she can make a divination reading sound more, well, real.
In other words, if this witch tells you she can read your fortune, DO NOT BELIEVE HER. Not even she fully knows if it's because she lacks the Sight or just can't be bothered, but Esten absolutely cannot see into the future no matter what she says.
That said… As with runes, Esten has found her sigils to work best when paired with the proper materials. Simply putting them on paper will still be effective, but not as effective. Additionally, the sigils will draw their strength from her unless specifications are added into the sigil. Doing so raises its own risks, like a misunderstanding/vagueness leading to a sigil spell not working or misfiring. Additionally, the sigils that retrieve their source of energy from a separate source will need, at least, to be retraced and redone every week (not that sigils sapping her strength last much longer, really).
Necromancy: Esten knows Necromancy. This is evident in her undead crow familiar, Faustus, and her Great Big Book Of Necromancy that is also Kind Of Damaged due to Being Tossed In A River during a Severe Lapse Of Judgement. She is not a master necromancer, due to again much of the knowledge having been lost due to water damage (“Well doesn't she remember most of it anyway?” Uh, no, because people usually write things down so that they don't have to remember it, Janus), but obviously she knows enough to keep her pet crow mostly alive, rather than her stupid ex lover that betrayed her and stuff.
The other part of Necromancy is the ghost whispering. Sometimes, it truly is ghost whispering, because even in death some of them can't hear a single thing unless it's blasted at them in several decibels. In any case, Esten can more readily see and hear ghosts and spirits than others, meaning it takes said ghosts and spirits less energy to reveal themselves to her.
Which is all fine and dandy until the ghosts realise you're the only one who can hear them, causing them to be drawn to you like a bunch of peasants drawn to a BOGO bake sale. Then it becomes utterly noisome, where you have to listen to one ghost talk about his boils in unsavory places and another talk about how she just cannot believe how none of her kids have bothered to come visit her since she died, this generation is just so ungrateful and when she was a child this sort of disrespect was absolutely intolerable and wouldn't you please be a dear and go give her rude relatives a piece of her mind?
...you get the idea.
As a result, Esten's cottage is now ostensibly ghost-proof.
Wordless Magic: Esten's magic best comes not from spoken word, but visualization. She wants a ball of fire in her hand that doesn't immediately scorch her skin? Better visualise it. Want that pesky flower to just grow, dammit? Better visualise it! Of course, the biggest drawback of this is the fact that if she can't visualise it, it's not happening. At least, not how she's wanting it to.
And, as always, for every action there must be a price. The bigger the attempt, the more energy is needed and the more precise visualization is necessary.
Herbology: This isn't necessarily magical, but except for a handful of plants found elsewhere, Esten is well versed in the uses of various types of plants and fungi found in her region of Allir Reach and the outskirts surrounding it. This comes in handy when dealing with the locals, who will often employ her services for ointments, poultices, and spell concoctions (some as smooth as molasses).
Transmutation: When the big moon rises then it's time to play -- at least, if you're a werewolf. Of which Esten is not. However, she can turn into a wolf, whose appearance has already been noted. So there's really no difference between her and a werewolf! Except, of course, the transformation is completely voluntary and self-initiated, plus if she bites someone the only thing that'll happen is they'll get mad.
Unfortunately, aside from now being a wild and potentially dangerous pack predator with the sentient mind intact, there's not much else that changes. Esten's weight and relative body mass stays the same, she can't talk in anything other than Good Boi, and if she wants to cast a spell, well, tough luck. Oh and uh, if she's gonna change back, she best have a change of clothes, too.
Home Ec: Esten can cook, and she can sew. In fact, her cross stitching is pretty good, or at least she assumes so. Any time the witch decides to enter something in the village's annual craft fair, she always wins first place. Can't imagine why.
Divination And You: The future is not set in stone. It is a fluid force, ever changing with each choice a person makes. At most, a person might be able to see a handful of the most likely outcomes, but even they are subject to revisal. Many experienced practitioners of magic know this. Even Esten knows this.
But Esten also knows how to tell someone what they want to hear the most, and how to cold read someone such that she can make a divination reading sound more, well, real.
In other words, if this witch tells you she can read your fortune, DO NOT BELIEVE HER. Not even she fully knows if it's because she lacks the Sight or just can't be bothered, but Esten absolutely cannot see into the future no matter what she says.
Personality
As much as Esten likes to pretend she's big and bad to scare the locals, the elf...really isn't. Sure, her moral compass is kinda wonky, and yeah she’s got her own less than cheerful view of humans now that is suspiciously similar to that of her own people's, and ok yeah she's not gonna exactly turn her nose up at murder, and maaaaaybe it wouldn't kill her to do good for goodness's sake, but by and large she's not a bad person. However, she's not above lying. Cannot stress this enough. Whether it's because she doesn't want to share the truth (as with her past), because she doesn't trust someone, or simply because she wants to see how far she can pull someone's leg, Esten is perfectly happy to lie if she so feels inclined to.
She does have a soft spot, though. Particularly towards individuals who have been wrongfully outcast by their own people, or who are shunned by their peers for things out of their control. The elf especially has an automatic axe to grind against people who choose to betray loved ones for greedy or selfish reasons. It's a bit of a sore subject, after all.
Biography & Lore
”Hey, you. Yeah you, yer a newcomer aren't ya? How long ya plannin’ ta stay here? A few days, huh? Well then ya better listen close ta me, 'cause I got a word or two of advice ya might want ta heed, while yer here.
“Ever hear of the witch? The White Witch of the Woods? Nah, didn't figure you’d’ve. She’s pretty well-known in these parts, and not fer the right reasons. She lives in those woods not far from Ghent, in a cottage she built herself. At least we older folks figured she did, since no one dared make a house in there before her.
“Why’s she called the White Witch? Well, it's ‘cause her hair is the color of silver, ‘n her skin is as pale as a full moon. She's got a pet crow that stinks like death, too. You ever smelt somethin’ rotten before? Yeah? Well here if you smell it, you best scurry away fast as you can, or else. They also say she’s got a white wolf, with golden eyes like hers, but some believe that wolf is her.
“Huh? Where’d she come from? Well, nobody knows fer sure. But if you ask Loony Luka -- that's, that's him over there, all huddled up in the corner stinkin’ like filth -- if ya ask him, he'll say she's an elf, born over yonder in Fal’Addas. Supposedly she ran off with a human lover, 'gainst the wishes of her family. But her lover tried ta leave, so the witch killed 'em in rage.
“She realised what she'd done, 'n cut off both the tips of her ears. I know! I know. No elf would cut off their ears willingly, no matter what happened. But hey, we don't call 'im ‘Loony’ fer nothin’. In any case, the witch went off 'n spent damn near half a century tryna learn how ta bring back her lover...only ta dump the body in a river. Apparently the witch lost her nerve.
“Yeah I see that there look yer givin’ me. I can't believe it either, ‘specially considerin’ the source. But hey, she won't open up, so alls we can do is speculate.
“Wh-what? I don't think I heard-- really? Yer kiddin’-- no? No yer not? Yer a damned fool, I'll tell ya that, but if yer that bent on seein’ her I'll tell ya. On the edge of the forest, to the north or so of Ghent, there's a big ol oak tree. You'll know it by the box hangin’ low from the branches. If ya need to see her, ya write yer name and yer request on whatever scrap ya got, then stick it in the box. If she likes what she reads, her crow will come 'n drop off a response.
“I know, I know, yes I know I told ya t’ run if ya smell or see her crow, but that's only if yer not expectin’ ta hear from her. ‘Course it makes sense! What would you know? Yer not from around here. Anyway, no matter what, always bring somethin’ yer willin’ ta trade for her services. If yer polite, and ye've got a good voice or a knack fer storytellin’, she may accept that in exchange. But if ye ain't...well, yer funeral.
“Now, I'd like ta finish my drink if ya-- where ya goin? What? Yer wantin’ ta speak with the Witch? Now? *sigh.* You youngins nowadays have no sense of self-preservation, I tell ya. No, I don't have a pencil -- what do I look like, some high-finaglin’ artist? Get yer own!”