Lydia

Character Name: Lydia

Minecraft account: hauntedchevy

Player: it’s me, chevy

Other character(s): Oakley Pebble, the late Vanilla Yardstick

Race: Half Dwarf

Age: 27

Gender: Female

Character Description: 5’6, Pale amber-green eyes, long black hair, stocky build.

Donor Items request: Father’s stonecarving kit

Player Plus Items request: A small glass figurine in the shape of a humming bird from her mother.

Known Languages: Dwarven, Common, Player Plus: Orc

Character Occupation: An aspiring hunter 

Character Personality/Traits: Confident in everything except romance. Fairly even tempered, though prone to bouts of depression.

Name notes: Steenvoorhoofd – Loosely translated as stonebrow, a clan of stone shapers. The clan claims the name is because of the focus, care, and determination they have towards their craft, though the truth is that the name comes from a particular dwarf who was particularly inattentive and had a bad habit of letting stones fall on his head.

Family:

Mother: Summer Ismirasdaughter – Human age 50, born in the year 64

Father: Thuldor of clan Steenvoorhoofd – Dwarf, Born in the year 48 (Deceased at 42 in the year 90)

Brother: Mikael – Age 30, Born in the year 84. Dwarf. Adopted

Sister in Law: Tasdish of Clan Diepetroon – Age 34, Born in the year 80

Character Biography: 

Family Origins:

  Summer and Thuldor were married in secret in Barkemsted in the year 85 AW. Thuldor was unashamed of his marriage and wanted to do it openly, but Summer was nervous about how their families would react, and insisted on keeping it secret ‘until the right time’. Her family having been silver smiths during the pact war and being in constant competition with dwarven businessmen and no love for the shorter race, and his family being racially proud as well. Though the two lived predominantly apart, just over a year into their marriage, Summer began to show signs of pregnancy. She, against her husband’s wishes, traveled to Falkvard and stayed until her daughter was born, to avoid the shame of having born a child supposedly out of wedlock. She then returned home with Lydia, claiming she had adopted a child while working up north.

Thuldor lived as a dwarven shaper, smith, but died early in Lydia’s childhood. He was a worshiper of perities, and hunted often, He never intended to have a child but loved Lydia very much regardless.

Summer worked in glassblowing, specifically in the working stained glass. It was partially her skill in this that attracted her husband.

Early Childhood: Born in the Autumn of 87, to Summer and Thuldor Steenvoorhoofd, Lydia. She was born in Falkvard, but grew up in Barkamsted being raised by her mother. She never knew her father, and believes her mother to be an adopted mother rather than her biological one. Her mother, saying he was a man she had met who had been badly hurt and unable to care for her. Her mother told her stories of her father, heavily edited to avoid revealing his identity. She was raised on stories of mighty hunts and men and women of honor. Her father, feeling that she had a right to her heritage, gave her his first chisel and hammer, as something for her to practice with. The gift was presented by her mother, with a heavily edited story.

Growing Up: Lydia’s Father, thought to be a close friend of her mothers, disappeared around the time she was three. She doesn’t remember much of him, but has vague memories of there being times when her mother seemed to be grieving.

The year long winter was tough on Lydia and her mother, but not nearly as tough as it would have been for a farmer. Her mother continued working in her glassblowing shop, though demand was scarce, they still scraped by. A few months after her seventh birthday, Lydia’s Older brother, Mikael (Kael), a dwarf is adopted. The two do /not/ get along. Frequently getting into fights that mostly end in a lot of swearing and frustrated her mother. Her childhood is otherwise fairly normal. She plays with other children, learns to read, and even picks up a few orcish curses from Daml, an orc friend of the family, and close friend to her father who lived near them in Barkemsted. Lydia is barely aware of the sons of Itiris attack, though around that time she starts working with her mother in the glassforge, mostly helping clean and watch the shop when her mother has errands to run.

Tween and teenage years: 

After the loss of the crossroads when Lydia is 11, the glasshop begins to suffer. The loss of trade from the crossroads increased the cost of materials and decreased the profits her mother could make. This meant that Lydia’s mother had to go into debt and start working as a farm hand to keep her business afloat and her children fed. The two kids had to start finding ways to make money or help provide food. Lydia started setting out traps outside Falkvard to catch rabbits under the guidance of the orc family friend, on her own soon moved to other very small game to help support the family. Her mother was not a fan of her exploits, but working two jobs left her little time to control a headstrong child.

By the time she turned fourteen, Lydia had started helping much more with the glassblowing business, and started collecting colorful stones and making collages out of them and broken glass. She and her brother begin becoming closer, both of them having matured both because of age and of necessity. Her brother started taking more and more care of her, as her mother had less and less time.

After the restoration of trade following the reclamation of the crossroads, the struggling family was really hopeful that business would pick up. Lydia continued doing small bits of trapping, and helping in the glassblowing shop. Her older brother joined up with the Barkamsted guard to help support the family. She grew more quiet in these years, but stayed focused on helping her family. While out trapping during the early Autumn, she encountered a black bear stealing the rabbits her trap had caught. She tried to scare it off, and was badly hurt in the aftermath. The flooding in Barkamsted luckily passed the family by, though her brother was very busy helping out in the aftermath

After the onset of the deep winter, and as it became clear that crops would likely fail, the farm Lydia’s mother was working on let her go, depriving the family of critical income. Her mother lost the glassblowing shop, despite Lydia and her brother’s best efforts to save up to pay off debts. Lydia promised her mother she’d get a glassblower shop again for her someday.

Adult life:

In the spring of 108, her mother falls ill with a severe fever and cannot work, and though she recovers, her mother is sent to debtors’ prison. Lydia and her brother visit her regularly. Her mother insists she will find a way out of this and urges the siblings to take care of one another. Later that year, in much happier news, Her brother marries a young dwarf woman named Tasdish of Clan Diepetroon. 

As the long Winter ends; Lydia finds herself falling for a young man who works for a cobbler she sells fur to, and he falls for her as well. The early days of the romance are a whirlwind of flowers, dancing and joy. They eventually grew apart. After a nasty fight and a breakup, they separated permanently. She didn’t take it well, and with her mother in prison, her brother focused on a new child, few friends, and the glassblowing business gone, she left Barkemsted and the broken dreams there and set out into the east of Angel creek. She found a small cave and lived out of there for a few years, occasionally traveling to various towns to sell her hunting results, or art pieces she had made by gluing stones into collages. She mostly saved the money she made during this time, hoping to have the money someday to pay off her mother’s debt. Her time in the wild was hard, but she learned much quickly. Among the hardships she faced, nearly freezing in the winter, the isolation of being far from family, and one year A large spring storm blew down a tree while she was out in the forest trying to get back to her cave. The pinetree’s fall broke her leg. Unfortunately for her, she was far enough from civilization that returning wasn’t an option, so she treated it as best she could

Having spent years out in the wilds, dealing with her frustration, she encounters a couple of injured hunters who teach her more about the worship of Perities, something her mother had told her of, and that she knew her father had followed. The hunters stay with her for a few weeks until they are well enough to travel home. When she sees the falling star, and hears about those who have gone to fight the void, she determines to seek them out and learn more about how they survive.

Character Timeline:
Year 85 (-2 years old) – Parents married in secret

Year 87 (0 years old) – Lydia born in Falkvard

Year 90 (3 years old) – Thuldor, Lydia’s Father dies, executed after having gone feral. 

Year 93 (6 Years old) – Year long winter: The year long winter was tough on Lydia and her mother, but not nearly as tough as it would have been for a farmer. Her mother continued working in her glassblowing shop, though demand was scarce, they still scraped by.

Year 94 (7 Years old) – Lydia’s Older brother, Mikael (Kael), a dwarf is adopted. The two do /not/ get along. Frequently getting into fights.

Year 97 (10 Years Old) – The sons of Itiris attack Falkvard. Lydia is fully unaffected by this, and is barely aware of it. This year she starts working with her mother in the glassforge, mostly helping clean and watch the shop when her mother has errands to run.

Year 98 (11 Years Old) – Crossroads Lost, Ravine Assault; The loss of trade from the crossroads being lost meant that Lydia’s mother had to go into debt and start working as a farm hand to keep her business afloat. The two kids had to start finding ways to make money or help provide food. Lydia started setting out traps outside Falkvard to catch rabbits, and other very small game to help support the family. Her mother was not a fan of her exploits, but working two jobs left her little time to control a headstrong child.

Year 101 (14 years old) – Cultist attack on falkvard. Lydia at this point had started helping much more with the glassblowing business, and started collecting colorful stones and making collages out of them and broken glass. She and her brother begin becoming closer.

Year 102 (15 Years Old) – Liberation of the Crossroads; The restoration of trade gave the struggling family a lot more hope. They were really hopeful that business would pick up. Lydia continued doing small bits of trapping, and helping in the glassblowing shop. Her older brother joined up with the Barkamsted guard to help support the family.

Year 103 (16 Years Old) – Bear attack. Lydia, while out trapping, encountered a black bear stealing the rabbits her trap had caught. She tried to scare it off, and was badly hurt in the aftermath.

Year 104 (17 Years old) – Ocean Strangeness. The flooding in Barkamsted luckily passed the family bye, though her brother was very busy helping out in the aftermath

Year 106 (19 Years old) – Deep Winter; The farm Lydia’ mother was working on fired her, as there was nothing being produced. Her mother lost the glassblowing shop, despite Lydia and her brother’s best efforts to save up to pay off debts. Lydia promised her mother she’d get a glassblower shop again someday.

Year 108 (21 Years old) – With mounting debt and an onset of severe fever, her mother is sent to debtors’ prison. Lydia and her brother visit her regularly. Her brother marries a young dwarf woman named Tasdish of Clan Diepetroon. 

Year 110 (23 years old) – Winter ends; Lydia has her first romance. It ends badly. she left Barkemsted and the broken dreams there and set out into the east of Angel creek. She found a small cave and lived out of there for a few years, occasionally traveling to town to sell her hunting results, or art pieces she had made by gluing stones into collages. She mostly saved the money she made during this time, hoping to have the money someday to pay off her mother’s debt 

Year 112 (25 years old) – The large spring storm blew down a tree while she was out in the forest, and landed on her leg, breaking it. Unfortunately for her, she was far enough from civilization that returning wasn’t an option.

Year 113 (26 years old) – Having spent years out in the wilds, dealing with her frustration, she encounters a couple of injured hunters who teach her more about the worship of Perities, something her mother had told her of, and that she knew her father had followed. The hunters stay with her for a few weeks until they are well enough to travel home. When she sees the falling star, and hears about those who have gone to fight the void, she determines to seek them out and learn more about those involved.