Background

 
 
Initiate Cora Thorngage is a Halfling druid from The Sword Coast in Faerûn.
 

Early Life

 
 
She was born into an order of druids in The High Forrest on the Sword Coast, Fearûn. Her mother was a druid halfling named Bree Thorngage a member of a small order of halfling druids called The Little Druids of Tall Trees that was an offset from the Druids of Tall Trees. Her mother met her farther, a halfling poacher named Corrin, in the High Woods where he was camping when a bear attacked him, almost killing him. Bree nursed Corrin back to health and the two quickly fell in love and had Cora. However, when the other druids found out the reasoning for Corrins camping trip they exiled him. Unwilling to let her beloved leave alone Bree went with Corrin bringing Cora with her. The three lived a quiet life in The High Forrest.
 
 

Upbringing

 
From a young age Bree taught Cora the ways of nature mentoring her into how to be a druid and it seemed Silvanus took a liking to Cora as she learned extremely quickly. Her father Corrin taught Cora how to survive in the wilderness, how to start a fire without magic, how to set up a camp, where to find food. Everything one needed to know when alone in the woods.
 
However, both her parents were concerned about her lack of social interaction so decided to move from their cottage in the woods to a mining village just outside Neverwinter called Phandalin so she could go to a school, make friends and meet new people. It was here Cora decided that nature is a kinder and softer friend than any person. She did begrudgingly go to school, she didn't really pay attention and mainly kept to herself. She learnt how to interact with people but would prefer to sit outside near a tree at break time rather than be in a big group playing some game.
 

Venturing Out

 
Having finished school at 18 and with a thirst and hunger to be in nature and hone her druidic powers she decided to move out of her parents' house and travel south along The Sword Coast to The Reaching Woods east of Baldur's Gate. Her mother had stopping being a practicing druid and stopped mentoring Cora a year prior this was what ultimately gave Cora the final push to move out. Her parents begged her to stay especially her father who, unbeknownst to his wife and child, knew he only had a few years left after being diagnosed with a terminal illness.
 
On her travels south she met a group of humans, unfortunately this group was a group of bandits, they robbed and beat her and left her in a ditch on the side of the road. It was only through the grace of Silvanus that she survived, healing herself with a first ever cast of a druidic spell. From this moment she realised that the people of Fearûn could be vicious, evil and malicious from that moment she was slower to trust.
 

Living in The Reaching Woods

 
Cora lived off nature's bounty in The Reaching Woods, foraging for food and hunting only when absolutely necessary. She prayed to Sivanus and diligently practiced her druidic powers. Occasionally she would venture to Baldur's Gate for the few supplies she couldn't gather in the woods. In order to pay for these supplies, she earned money by escorting nobles, merchants and other folk through the various forests and woods surrounding Baldur's Gate. Whether for business trips, holidays camping trips etc. if it paid Cora would do it, the only trips she refused were hunting trips, or foresters doing surveying trips. She didn't much like this work, but it was a necessity. The only time she enjoyed this work was when she was showing off the beauty of nature to those who sought to find it.
 

Physical Description

 

General Description

 
Cora is a 23-year-old halfling, she has long, brown, scruffy hair. She has deep mahogany brown eyes. Her skin is olive, tanned through spending so much time outdoors she is average weight for a halfilng woman around 25kg. She is 3 feet tall. Cora wears clothing that let her blend in more with a forest environment, not in order to hide herself, but more so to hide any stains from the plants and dirt in the forests.
 

Body Features

 
Cora is a stout halfling so is a bit wider and hardier than a more common lightfoot halfling, she carries very little fat however it'd be hard to tell as she always wears baggy clothes. Her clothes are loose-fitting a mix of greens and browns and are all hand made using resources gathered in the woods. She wears a satchel over her shoulder in front of her with all her earthly possessions contained inside. She has a pelt cloak draped over her shoulders. her clothes are sull of little tears and nicks some of which have been mended, others left open. She also has a lot of scars on her arms and hands mainly, most of which she got from being scraped by thorns and twigs, very few she received from animals and humanoids.
 

Facial Features

 
Cora has a small face; her ears are small, and the lopes connect to her head. Her eyes are a deep brown and look worn from years of being outdoors and not having a break from the sunlight until night. She has a small thin chin that doesn't protrude much and a tiny thin-lipped mouth that turns up at the corners into a resting slight smile. She wears earrings and other jewellery on her head and face. She also has dark green face paint around her eyes to help them deal with the sunlight. She wears the shed antlers of a buck in her hair as a sign of respect for nature and the god Silvanus.
 

Identifying Characteristics

 
Cora's most identifying physical traits would be her au naturel hair with buck antlers worn in it, her short but hardy stout halfling frame and her dark green face pain around her eyes. She also carries a pair of handaxes/hatchets and a slightly twisted, slightly bent wooden staff that's around 2 and a half feet long with some eagle feathers tied around it. This is her druidic focus which she uses to cast her spells.
 
 

Personality

 

Motivation

 
Cora mainly cares for the preservation of nature believing the natural world is more important than all the constructs of civilization. She thinks all living things don't deserve to be inflicted with unnecessary pain and suffering and is willing to fight if necessary to protect those plants, animals who fall victim to this. She was taught from a young age that your circle matters above all and therefore will fight to protect those who are close with her.
 

Likes

 
Cora likes all things natural, especially animals. her favourite animals are birds, more specifically eagles. Sometimes Cora's love for nature's beauty can annoy those around her as she will continue to go on about how beautiful a particular species of tree is or stop for 10 or 20 minutes to watch a lizard bask in the sunlight.
 
 

Dislikes

 
Cora dislikes arrogant people above all else, anyone who sees themself above other living creatures will get under her skin. However, she is a bit shy when dealing with them and would therefore more likely feel angry quietly, grinding her teeth rather than speak up and challenge them. She also feels uncomfortable in very built-up areas, if she can't hear the chirping of birds or feel the heat of the sun on her, it puts her on edge.
 

Speech

 
Cora is a quiet halfling, her voice is dull and monotone only really picking up any tone when discussing nature, either getting brighter when happily describing an interesting plant or getting more sober when morning the passing of a young deer buck. She speaks very simply and seriously without swearing, or sarcasm.