Morcaine of Grayce

Here is a picture of my most recent Pathfinder character, Morcaine of Grayce, a changeling inquisitor of Iomedae drawn at my request by the talented and generous Noble Phantom here:

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Morcaine is my character in an online Pathfinder Campaign, using the Carrion Crown adventure path.

Here's her story:

Morcaine does not know the day she was born, so she's based her age off the day she was found on the steps of the small temple in the village of Grayce, on the border between Ustalav and Lastwall. A foundling with no clue left as to her heritage, the people of the village raised her together, instilling in her the values of hard work and honor. She might have lived her whole life as an aid to the local farmers and a shepard for the church's sheep, had she not heard the call.

It came to her on the eve of her tenth birthday, a subtle cooing in the night, like a mother to a child. Though the voice spoke of comfort and family, Morcaine became frightened of it. She told the local priest the next day, and begged him not to send her away or think she was crazy or something. To her surprise, he didn't. He told her that Ustalav could be a dark and frightening place, and that if she ever felt alone, she need only turn to the gods, and they would be with her. Morcaine prayed in the temple each night, sometimes feeling she could almost hear the voices of Pharasma, Iomedae, and the Empyreal Lord Andoletta, real voices to drown out the false. But after about a year of resisting the mysterious call, it tried to take her. Undead rose from the cemetery near the temple and attempted to take her. Though they could not enter the temple, the priest tried to drive them away, and was slain. They came the next night, and the night after that, never entering buildings, but trying everything in their power to get Morcaine out of the temple to follow the call that summoned them

The people of Grayce didn't know what to do. Some wanted to drive Morcaine out, blaming her for the problem, while others wanted to help her, as she'd been nothing but a friend to them all. The question was answered for them when a Knight of Ozem arrived to investigate the problems affecting the village. The Knight's name was Sir Able, and he was accompanied by the famous Professor, Petros Lorrimor. The two interviewed Morcaine and the village folk about what was going on, and the Professor told Morcaine something that shook her to the core.

She was not human, but a changeling, the daughter of a hag and some poor man she'd tricked and then likely eaten. The cooing voice was her mother trying to lure her back to her, to turn Morcaine into a hag as well. Sir Able surmised that the undead plaguing Grayce must have been raised by the hag to try and bring her back by force. Morcaine was horrified, but the two men told her not to worry. They would protect her from this scourge. Sure enough, when night fell that day, Sir Able single-handedly dispatched the undead at the door while Morcaine watched. The next day, Morcaine decided to ask the two to accompany her to find the hag. She wanted her mother to pay for the death of the priest that had helped her, and for the desecration of Grayce's dead. They agreed, and that night, Morcaine followed the voice where it beckoned, and Lorrimor and Able followed.

The call led the group north, across Ustalav to the County of Barstoi. There, they found out that there was a particularly dangerous coven of witches in the area, led by a woman known only as Oothi. Gathering a few more adventurers and inquisitors from the local cities, Morcaine, Lorrimor, Able and company sought the coven out. It wasn't long before they were led by the call to an eerie hut, more like a cave made from fallen branches and moss, and inside was a hulking black monstrosity, an annis hag. Oothi cackled praise for Morcaine for bringing more toys to play with until they drew their weapons. She then screeched in anger and attacked them. While most of the others moved to subdue or drive off the lesser witches, Professor Lorrimor and Sir Able charged straight at Oothi to engage her. She was incredibly strong, and both men were injured in the fight, until Morcaine snuck up behind her mother, stabbing her in the back. It was only a flesh wound, but it was all the distraction the two men needed to knock Oothi unconcious and tie her up. The hag was brought to the nearest village and a show-trial was put on before preparing for her execution. Oothi screamed curses at them all, but especially at her "wretched, traitorous child" for leading her enemies to her. Morcaine herself watched as the villagers trussed Oothi to a stake and set her ablaze. She felt the call become silent, as a horde of spiders skittered away from the blaze and Oothi's body was reduced to a skeleton. Morcaine was free. Under Professor Lorrimor's suggestion, the skeleton was dismantled and the bones were scattered to the farthest reaches of Ustalav to prevent any attempt at bringing Oothi back, as her disciples were still out there, and may have had plans to resurrect should the worst happen. After that, the adventurers remained in Barstoi for a time to recover from the wounds they'd suffered in the battle.

When that time came, Professor Lorrimor left for his home in Ravengro, while Sir Able was about to set out for Vigil in Lastwall. Morcaine asked the knight if she could go with him. She said that this little adventure had showed her something. She was safe from the predations of her mother, but she knew that there were other evils in Ustalav that caused just as much, if not more harm, and she wanted to learn how to root them out and destroy them so the innocent would be protected. Sir Able agreed, and upon arriving in Vigil, Morcaine underwent training at the war colleges of the Crusaders. She dedicated herself wholeheartedly to learning anything she could about how to hunt down and destroy evil, eventually squiring under Sir Able and keeping a regular correspondence with Professor Lorrimor. She was never as proud as the day Sir Able himself knighted her and welcomed her into the Knights of Ozem as a sister-in-arms. A few days later, she recieved a letter from Ravengro informing her that her dear friend, Professor Lorrimor, had passed away, inviting her to the funeral and notifying her that she was a beneficiary in his will.

Now a knight herself, she buckled on her armor and set out for her homeland.

Morcaine is a devoted evangelist and investigator in Iomedae's name. She is constantly vigilant both for potential converts to the Light in the Sword's faith and for evildoers and troublemakers to smite. She tries to show no fear in the face of danger, but a part of her is still that scared little girl that hid from the undead that tried to drag her from the church. Furthermore, her faith is somewhat unique, as Grayce, her home village, worshiped not just Iomedae, but also Pharasma and the Empyreal lord Andoletta. As a result, she's friendlier and more open-minded than many assume her to be at first glance. She respects Pharasma as most Ustalavic people do, but she feels that the ideals of the Pharasmin Penitance are extreme and that simply accepting the suffering in one's life in exchange for a supposedly happy afterlife is absolute rubbish. That the world can be made a better place right now if you're willing to stand up for what's right. She carries the skane of the village priest that gave his life to protect her, both for the knife's utility and as a reminder of what others had sacrificed on her behalf, and how she needs to make their sacrifices worth something. As a Knight of Ozem, and because of her own personal experiences, Morcaine loathes the Whispering Way and necromancers in general. When she finds evidence of them, she will relentlessly pursue it until she's found them and crushed them. She also suffers from a subtle phobia of insects and arachnids, especially spiders, as they remind her of the spiders that crawled away from Oothi's execution, and thus they remind her of her horrible mother.

For those who will no doubt be curious, no, this character will not be appearing in Temple of Temptation or any other sort of WG-related scenarios. Sorry.