Ionna Palatina

Ionna Palatina is the Matriarch of the church of Shandalene in Estwald. As such, she is the highest ranking member of the church of Shandalene in all of Aldorath, considered little less than a mouthpiece of the goddess herself.

She was an orphan who was given to the service of the church when she was very little. She did not remember her family, other than her family name, and she threw herself into the service of the goddess with gusto. When she was still a teenager, she shocked church reverences by going into the city’s Lantern District and speaking to people there. Her earnest nature and tremendous faith inspired many to come to the goddess, and she soon found herself rising in the church hierarchy. It was a surprise to no one (except perhaps Ionna herself) when she was given the crown of Matriarch at the young age of forty.

Now just past seventy, Ionna remains vigorous and strong. She often disguises herself as a commoner and goes out into the city to preach the word of Shandalene, and many have come to love her gentle, motherly nature. When she dons the robes of her office, however, she brings a gravitas to her work that inspires awe even in those not of her faith.