Raita
"You may have bested bears in combat, but you will never best ME."
BASICS
Name: Raita
Species: Nanook
Gender: Female
APPEARANCE
Like most Poe Nanooks, Raita can seem to be more coat than bear – though it is clear there is a lot of bear to bear, with her being some seven feet at the shoulder and over a ton in weight. It is difficult to tell when the dull, storm-gray coat stops and the muscle begins. One thing is for certain: Raita is more tank than beast - her arms are thick enough where few arrows can actually pierce through her hide, let alone through her. Given that her body is less fat than most bears, her body weight is more compact in its musculature - which is impressive, given her already monstrous size.
Raita’s neck area is decorated with with the skulls of various creatures that are said to have attempted to challenge her and failed – including, but not limited to, a Minotaur, a lion, a Vystrian wolf, and even a Gryphon – along with the feathers from said Gryphon. Few ever try to figure out if this is a bluff or not. It is said she has a dragon skull, but keeps this off her person in order to appease Lady Verridith and the like. Talking about this in her presence is a good way to earn a cannonball of a backpaw to the face.
ABILITIES:
Forewarning: Raita’s biggest asset to the council is, oddly enough, not her brute strength – though that accounts for quite a bit. Instead, her seer abilities come in flashes of ‘insight’ – allowing her to foresee potential traps and ambushes she may be leading her forces into. While not perfect, as it requires some interpretation and she gets these on the fly seemingly at random, they are flexible and happen quickly, allowing her to make on the fly decisions that may make the difference between victory and defeat.
“You claim to have bested bears in combat, but you will never best RAITA:” Raita is a fierce combatant, and she instills this fear in those she leads. Able to match physical capabilities with a dragon, and having decent skills with ice magic, Raita often acts as the disciplinarian herself when troops get rowdy, often laying down the iron claw of the law upon those that step out of the line.
WEAKNESSES:
Distracting: Raita’s Forewarning is not honed, and can sometimes come suddenly during inopportune moments. While she is not frozen in place, she often dodges back in order to piece together the vision she just saw, which often can make her give up opportunities to slay an enemy or follow up on an opening.
BACKGROUND
When Raita was young, her mother’s den was invaded by settlers – while her mother was able to slay them, she died from the wounds soon thereafter. Having lost her mother, Raita made the decision she would rely on no one – that the only power one could rely on was one’s own strength. There would be no mercy granted to anyone, no matter how virtuous or justified.
Having learned from her mother, she refused to participate in such senseless violence herself, but made sure that the next time trespassers came, she would be ready. Forced to raise herself, Raita was a fierce, self-reliant bear – and extremely xenophobic to boot. Anything that got within yards of her own den, she would rip apart in an especially brutal fashion.
This became a problem, as her den was near a rather important Millirand port town and next to an inconveniently well-used trade route, making her a problem for the merchants and sailors of Millirand. A bounty was placed on her head.
However, all those that took the bounty failed. The forces that confronted Raita was formidable – but hearing Raita’s roar, even the most stalwart of warriors flinched. It took Verridith, the Gold Queen-to-be, as well as her brother, Zephyr, to bring her low.
The tension, even in the mere standoff, was enough to make the gathered mercenaries who had also come for her head drop their blades and run. The roars exchanged were deafening. In that exchange, it became clear that each knew the sort of strength they were dealing with. Zephyr made sure to escort the scared shitless mercenaries to a safe space as the two begun to fight.
While Raita’s strength was slightly superior, Verridith’s flight, speed, and magic earned her the victory over the bear. Raita surrendered, promising to leave her den once again. Realizing the situation, Zephyr, her brother, dragged her off of the bear whose face was about to become lunch. Encouraging Verridith to hear the bear out, Verridith was able to begrudgingly step back – and Zephyr explained the problem of the merchants of Millirand. An agreement was reached. Raita begrudgingly apologized, and, to show that she was willing to make amends, kept watch over the roads – still fighting tooth and nail to those that sought to invade, but being more mindful of simply passerbys
Years passed. At some point before the Queen-to-be’s 100th birthday, she was injured by a particularly vicious sarka who ambushed her – although she had won, she was stumbling, bleeding through a cold, biting blizzard.
As fate would have it, Raita found the gold queen, and dragged her unconscious form to her den – sharing the food she had planned to consume for hibernation.
Raita revealed it was a vision that had told her that Verridith would return in such a state, and had kept awake until the moment came where they would cross paths. Defensively, she claimed it was ‘a matter of honor’ – and commanded her ‘to hurry up and get better’ in spite of her own insistent hospitality.
When Verridith ascended to the throne, there were issues, at times, of disciplining the ranks – and Verridith alone was not capable of overseeing all the knights, given her other duties at queen.
Her thoughts turned to the bear that could make hardened mercenaries piss their pants – who, in spite of her grizzly demeanor, was as steadfast an ally as one could hope for.
Raita is very no-nonsense in both disciplining her troops and on the battlefield – she barks orders, and expects them to be followed. Most, if not all, have the sense to just say yes ma’am and get’er done. Those that don’t, learn quick.
Quotes:
“You call that a sword swing? I’ve seen children wield a stick of sausage with sharper skills!”
“Keep pushing! Break through the enemy ranks, or, Ten help me, I will break your face with my teeth!”
Name: Raita
Species: Nanook
Gender: Female
APPEARANCE
Like most Poe Nanooks, Raita can seem to be more coat than bear – though it is clear there is a lot of bear to bear, with her being some seven feet at the shoulder and over a ton in weight. It is difficult to tell when the dull, storm-gray coat stops and the muscle begins. One thing is for certain: Raita is more tank than beast - her arms are thick enough where few arrows can actually pierce through her hide, let alone through her. Given that her body is less fat than most bears, her body weight is more compact in its musculature - which is impressive, given her already monstrous size.
Raita’s neck area is decorated with with the skulls of various creatures that are said to have attempted to challenge her and failed – including, but not limited to, a Minotaur, a lion, a Vystrian wolf, and even a Gryphon – along with the feathers from said Gryphon. Few ever try to figure out if this is a bluff or not. It is said she has a dragon skull, but keeps this off her person in order to appease Lady Verridith and the like. Talking about this in her presence is a good way to earn a cannonball of a backpaw to the face.
ABILITIES:
Forewarning: Raita’s biggest asset to the council is, oddly enough, not her brute strength – though that accounts for quite a bit. Instead, her seer abilities come in flashes of ‘insight’ – allowing her to foresee potential traps and ambushes she may be leading her forces into. While not perfect, as it requires some interpretation and she gets these on the fly seemingly at random, they are flexible and happen quickly, allowing her to make on the fly decisions that may make the difference between victory and defeat.
“You claim to have bested bears in combat, but you will never best RAITA:” Raita is a fierce combatant, and she instills this fear in those she leads. Able to match physical capabilities with a dragon, and having decent skills with ice magic, Raita often acts as the disciplinarian herself when troops get rowdy, often laying down the iron claw of the law upon those that step out of the line.
WEAKNESSES:
Distracting: Raita’s Forewarning is not honed, and can sometimes come suddenly during inopportune moments. While she is not frozen in place, she often dodges back in order to piece together the vision she just saw, which often can make her give up opportunities to slay an enemy or follow up on an opening.
BACKGROUND
When Raita was young, her mother’s den was invaded by settlers – while her mother was able to slay them, she died from the wounds soon thereafter. Having lost her mother, Raita made the decision she would rely on no one – that the only power one could rely on was one’s own strength. There would be no mercy granted to anyone, no matter how virtuous or justified.
Having learned from her mother, she refused to participate in such senseless violence herself, but made sure that the next time trespassers came, she would be ready. Forced to raise herself, Raita was a fierce, self-reliant bear – and extremely xenophobic to boot. Anything that got within yards of her own den, she would rip apart in an especially brutal fashion.
This became a problem, as her den was near a rather important Millirand port town and next to an inconveniently well-used trade route, making her a problem for the merchants and sailors of Millirand. A bounty was placed on her head.
However, all those that took the bounty failed. The forces that confronted Raita was formidable – but hearing Raita’s roar, even the most stalwart of warriors flinched. It took Verridith, the Gold Queen-to-be, as well as her brother, Zephyr, to bring her low.
The tension, even in the mere standoff, was enough to make the gathered mercenaries who had also come for her head drop their blades and run. The roars exchanged were deafening. In that exchange, it became clear that each knew the sort of strength they were dealing with. Zephyr made sure to escort the scared shitless mercenaries to a safe space as the two begun to fight.
While Raita’s strength was slightly superior, Verridith’s flight, speed, and magic earned her the victory over the bear. Raita surrendered, promising to leave her den once again. Realizing the situation, Zephyr, her brother, dragged her off of the bear whose face was about to become lunch. Encouraging Verridith to hear the bear out, Verridith was able to begrudgingly step back – and Zephyr explained the problem of the merchants of Millirand. An agreement was reached. Raita begrudgingly apologized, and, to show that she was willing to make amends, kept watch over the roads – still fighting tooth and nail to those that sought to invade, but being more mindful of simply passerbys
Years passed. At some point before the Queen-to-be’s 100th birthday, she was injured by a particularly vicious sarka who ambushed her – although she had won, she was stumbling, bleeding through a cold, biting blizzard.
As fate would have it, Raita found the gold queen, and dragged her unconscious form to her den – sharing the food she had planned to consume for hibernation.
Raita revealed it was a vision that had told her that Verridith would return in such a state, and had kept awake until the moment came where they would cross paths. Defensively, she claimed it was ‘a matter of honor’ – and commanded her ‘to hurry up and get better’ in spite of her own insistent hospitality.
When Verridith ascended to the throne, there were issues, at times, of disciplining the ranks – and Verridith alone was not capable of overseeing all the knights, given her other duties at queen.
Her thoughts turned to the bear that could make hardened mercenaries piss their pants – who, in spite of her grizzly demeanor, was as steadfast an ally as one could hope for.
Raita is very no-nonsense in both disciplining her troops and on the battlefield – she barks orders, and expects them to be followed. Most, if not all, have the sense to just say yes ma’am and get’er done. Those that don’t, learn quick.
Quotes:
“You call that a sword swing? I’ve seen children wield a stick of sausage with sharper skills!”
“Keep pushing! Break through the enemy ranks, or, Ten help me, I will break your face with my teeth!”