HotepseAken
Appearance
Tall, physically fit, and little-known for showing outwards emotion, the stoic HotepseAken has a penchant for silence when emotionally unstable (rare and fleeting as such things are) though kindness shows readily in his voice. His lithe ears are usually gilded with the headdress of a priest though his actual rank is substantially higher. He bears no marks nor scars, but is possessed of a limp on his left; in his youth, a wound had improperly healed and his foot had partially begun to ossify. He is otherwise shirtless usually, and carries his Mendicant Staff and Physicians Scales openly. His tools and supplies are kept in a sack tied over his waist, doubling as a belt for his loincloth.
Skills and Abilities
Master Doctor: HotepseAken is one of the finest physicians of the Anaphite cult. It is unlikely there is a person in the world more skilled or knowledgeable than he, though were those two to meet, it would be a long evening of energetic discourse and the sharing of skills.
Life and Death Magic: Drawing upon the ancient arts of Life and Death both, HotepseAken is capable of a great many focused feats. While Necromancy is not within his domain (by choice), he has performed multiple resurrections and brought those thought dead back from the slightest sliver of life. If even a cell yet lives, HotepseAken can nurture the whole body back to vitality and vigor.
Natural Athleticism: Like all Anaphite, HotepseAken is a prolific runner and jumper. Unlike most, his jumping is hamstrung by his mishealed leg. He can only leaps 16 feet into the air and 30 feet forwards, unlike the more impressive distances the rest of his folk can manage. His speed in running, likewise, is merely 20 miles per hour, falling behind his kin in short order.
Life and Death Magic: Drawing upon the ancient arts of Life and Death both, HotepseAken is capable of a great many focused feats. While Necromancy is not within his domain (by choice), he has performed multiple resurrections and brought those thought dead back from the slightest sliver of life. If even a cell yet lives, HotepseAken can nurture the whole body back to vitality and vigor.
Natural Athleticism: Like all Anaphite, HotepseAken is a prolific runner and jumper. Unlike most, his jumping is hamstrung by his mishealed leg. He can only leaps 16 feet into the air and 30 feet forwards, unlike the more impressive distances the rest of his folk can manage. His speed in running, likewise, is merely 20 miles per hour, falling behind his kin in short order.
Personality
Deeply sympathetic and kind, the alien cold of the clinical Anaphite gives way as his calm, low voice diagnoses a situation. Sworn to a form of Hippocratic oath, that to first cause no undo suffering, he will defend himself all the same. He dislikes killing, but will do so if the individual is close to death and beyond their reasonable abilities to heal, or if it is the only means to save another life. In both cases, they will seek consent first. They become iritable when their ears are touched or they are spoken to without due respect, though they only resort to blows when the offender makes a great show of it and refuses to accommodate the master healer's pride.
Biography & Lore
Born in a time where his people dwelled in Amol-Kalit, HotepseAken was once named Imset-Setmat. A passionate and studios learner, he took up the dual swords of the Fanatics and swore to ensure the sanctity of the Tomb City. For uncounted years, he ranged across Amol-Kalit, slaying trespassers and devouring their souls. Raids for fresh speciments were often his job, and he relished bringing his people closer to their divine goal: To find and cure all ills. It was only when the Gnolls along the north coast chose to serve did his xenophobic extremism cease, failing to understand for a time that other creatures could see the value of their work. After many years of introspection, he chose a new name: Hotepse.
As Hotepse, he renounced his fanatical frenzy to advance his people's goals, choosing instead to apply their knowledge. First upon the Gnolls, he helped reduce their miscarriage rates to near-zero, and infant mortality to similar levels. This proximity to other races began to reveal more of the world to the Anaphite than he had ever considered. Before, other creatures were lesser races, animals. Now, he could see they felt, they loved, and they had dreams. No more could Hotepse bring them ruin for some vague goal of an end to suffering. The cure to all that brought pain could not, itself, cause suffering, lest the panacea be tainted. Now, Hotepse travels, given the named HotepseAken or "Helpful to men's peace" as they research the races of the world through curing their diseases, removing their sickness, and aiding those in need.
As Hotepse, he renounced his fanatical frenzy to advance his people's goals, choosing instead to apply their knowledge. First upon the Gnolls, he helped reduce their miscarriage rates to near-zero, and infant mortality to similar levels. This proximity to other races began to reveal more of the world to the Anaphite than he had ever considered. Before, other creatures were lesser races, animals. Now, he could see they felt, they loved, and they had dreams. No more could Hotepse bring them ruin for some vague goal of an end to suffering. The cure to all that brought pain could not, itself, cause suffering, lest the panacea be tainted. Now, Hotepse travels, given the named HotepseAken or "Helpful to men's peace" as they research the races of the world through curing their diseases, removing their sickness, and aiding those in need.