Darkonian Kargatane Record
- Known Name: Kasimira Odmienka
- Race: Caliban
- Apparent Age: Mid teens
- Birthday: Real birthday unknown, has chosen 5th April 740 BC as birthday (date abandoned at orphanage)
- Height: 5'7"
- Alignment: Chaotic Good
- Affiliations: Leiksburg Orphanage.
- Religion: The Morninglord
- Character Class: Oracle (Life).
- Place of Origin: Unknown, abandoned at temple in Vallaki as infant.
- Player/Type: NPC
Appearance
Kasimira Odmienka is a young woman with a striking, almost haunting appearance, defined by her heavily misshapen and hunchbacked body, sharp features and piercing colourless eyes that seem to see far beyond the physical world. Her dark hair is untamed, falling in tousled, messy locks around her face, adding to the aura of wildness and unpredictability that surrounds her. Her pale skin is marked by the harshness of her life, with a faint flush on her cheeks hinting at both the cold she endures and the fire of resilience within her.
She wears a tattered, once-gray tunic that has been worn down to shreds over time, barely held together by makeshift ties and knots. The fabric is frayed and torn, exposing patches of her skin and giving her a disheveled, almost feral look. The rough, threadbare clothing reflects her life of hardship and survival on the fringes of society, where warmth and comfort are luxuries she can seldom afford.
Background
Kasimira never knew the warmth of a family. Abandoned as an infant, she was left at an orphanage in Vallaki, where she was given the bare minimum of care and attention. Lacking knowledge of a family, she was given the surname Odmienka, which meant "outcast" or "freak". Her unusual appearance and the aura of unease she seemed to project made her a target for bullying by the other orphans, while the caretakers either mistreated her or ignored her entirely. She learned quickly that to be seen was to invite abuse, and so she honed her skills in avoiding humans, keeping a low profile, and hiding from sight.
There was one bright spot in her early childhood—a fellow orphan named Anya. Anya felt sorry for Kasimira and took it upon herself to protect her as much as she could. Anya's kindness and friendship touched Kasimira deeply, instilling in her a belief in the power of compassion and love. Tragically, when Kasimira was nine, Anya succumbed to cholera. Bereft of her only friend and protector, Kasimira endured the orphanage’s cruelty alone. Her situation worsened after she began receiving visions. When she tried to warn people of what she saw, she was ignored but, when her visions came true, was reviled as a foul witch. Then when she was just 11, she received a vision—her own death at the hands of a brutal beating by a caretaker. And thus, fearing for her life, Kasimira fled the orphanage, knowing no one would bother looking for her, grateful she was gone.
Life on the streets was harsh. Kasimira survived through her uncanny ability to foresee danger and her resourcefulness. Her visions warned her of threats and guided her actions, often helping her evade harm. However, her attempts to assist others were usually met with suspicion and hostility. When misfortunes befell those she tried to help, she was often blamed, branded a curse, and driven away.
Kasimira wandered from village to village, doing small jobs such as helping in kitchens, tending gardens, and weaving baskets to survive. She kept her features hidden, knowing that her appearance would attract unwanted attention. Yet, inevitably, calamities would occur, and she would be scapegoated, forcing her to move on.
Throughout her travels, the only infrequent kindness she received came from followers of the Morninglord. They may fear her as much as anyone else, but their faith made the faithful show kindness and hope. At a small temple to the Morninglord, she found temporary refuge and learned about the faith, embracing its message of hope and the promise of a brighter dawn. This belief sustained her, giving her a glimmer of hope that her life might one day improve. But even the clerics couldn't keep the angry mobs at bay once their fear of "the hag child" (or whatever foul thing they believed her to be) got too strong.
A few months ago, Kasimira encountered a band of adventurers who were wounded in a fight with monsters. She healed some of them, and they treated her with a kindness she hadn’t experienced since Anya’s death. One of the adventurers, now the Burgomaster of Leiksburg, invited her to his village and Marcus, the Warden of Ezra, offered her refuge at his temple-turned-orphanage. The fact that the temple had once been dedicated to the Morninglord felt like a sign to Kasimira. She accepted their offer, hoping that through these kind souls, her brighter dawn had finally arrived.
Kasimira now helps at the orphanage, tending to the children and assisting Toret Rozalia, the young anchorite. She continues to live quietly, offering her skills and hoping that this new chapter will bring the peace and acceptance she has longed for.
Personality
Kasimira is a complex individual shaped by years of mistreatment, solitude, and an innate connection to the mystical forces of the world. Her experiences have made her wary of others, and she often keeps to herself, avoiding unnecessary contact with people. Her isolation has fostered a deep sense of independence, and she has learned to rely solely on herself for survival. However, beneath her guarded exterior lies a compassionate heart that has not forgotten the kindness shown to her by the few who did not shun her, particularly the one friend she lost in her youth.
Kasimira is introspective and possesses a wisdom far beyond her years, likely a result of her connection to the supernatural and the visions she experiences. She is driven by a need to understand the forces that have shaped her life, and she is often seen as strange or unsettling by those who cannot comprehend her gifts. Despite this, she is not without empathy, and she is known to help those who are suffering, albeit in her own, often unconventional, ways.
Other Notes
Prophetic Sight
Kasimira was born during a time of great astronomical significance - the Grand Conjunction. In times of distress, she often has strange visions that duplicate the effect of an Augury spell. If Kasimira deliberately wishes to have a vision relating to a specific topic, she can use Divination as a spell-like ability once per week, but if she does so, she gains two negative levels from the physical and mental trauma of the experience, which last for 24 hours. This prophetic sight grants Kasimira a degree of personal protection and she constantly functions as if affected by a Foresight spell.
Rags of Invisibility
Kasimira travelled a while back with a hedge wizard, serving as his manservant and pack mule. As they travelled with a couple of hired guards from Vallaki down the Dreadpass towards Teufeldorf, they were attacked by a ghoul hunter. As the group broke in terror and were hunted down by the hunter, the wizard decided to use Kasimira and the hirelings as a decoy and became invisible, and attempted to sneak away as the ranger attacked them. But the ghoul used a seeking arrow to attack the wizard, wounding him and discerning his location, before moving in tearing the flesh off his face as he began to devour the wizard alive. Kasimira used her channel ability to harm the ghoul, who decided to grab one of the corpses for dinner and flee rather than face an unknown with divine power. Despite being abandoned by the wizard to save his life, Kasimira refused to leave him. As the wizard felt the onset of Ghoul Fever and knew his fate, he begged Kasimira to end his suffering and burn his body so he would not rise as a ghoul himself, offering her his magic rags as compensation for the final service. She accepted, more as an act of mercy than for the compensation. She now wears those rags and hopes to use it more wisely and for better cause than its creator.
Combat Style
Kasimira is not a trained fighter, and carries no proper weapons or armour other than her sling, and what improvised or magical weapons and protection she can muster short-term. But she is a caliban and has lived a harsh life on constant cruelty and physical hardship - so she is naturally strong and very enduring, and despite not having any formal combat training, has had to defend herself against bandits, monsters on the road or who would prey on the downtrodden, and other dangers. Although only in her mid-teens, barely an adult, she has had more real-world experience and danger than your typical town guard would likely face in their entire career.
As such, Kasimira would try to avoid combat it possible. If it is inevitable, she would rely on her sling for ranged attack. If there is need, she would charge at an opponent and physically overpower them with whatever improvised weapon she can find on-hand (or conjure if none is within easy reach). He combat style would reflect her lack of training - simple, direct, and brutal, with years of repressed pain and anger coming out for a moment in self-defence or defence of others.
She is magically capable however, blessed with divine magic akin to that of clerics. Whilst clerics have to prepare for their spells and carefully pray for a limited amount of a huge potential range of spells granted by their faith, Kasimira does not. She has access to a very limited range of spells - spell that fate, the Morninglord, or whoever the "patron" of her divine magic may be has chosen to grant her - spells that generally allow her to divinate, to survive, heal, or protect. Whilst she has not been shown to have any offensive magic, she has shows the ability to instantly conjure armour or improvised weapons, and have a greater range of immediate healing ability than a comparable cleric. Whilst a cleric may not have had specific types of healing spells prepared if they did not anticipate the need, Kasimira can cast any spell she is capable of at any time without preparation, giving her a versatility as a healer during crisis that outshines most clerics. When with allies, her greatest strength is the ability to keep her allies healthy and alive and remove ailments and conditions that may be otherwise debilitating.
Social Style
When interacting with Kasimira, it is important for characters to approach her with a sense of respect and caution. She values sincerity and is quick to detect deceit or ulterior motives, responding with cold indifference or outright hostility to those who seek to exploit or harm her. However, those who show genuine kindness, particularly towards the downtrodden and marginalized, may earn her trust and even her assistance. Kasimira is drawn to those who, like her, have been cast aside by society, and she will go out of her way to help those who share her plight.
She is not easily swayed by material offerings or flattery, but rather by actions that demonstrate a true understanding of suffering and the will to alleviate it. To gain her favor, one must prove themselves through deeds rather than words, and be prepared for the possibility that Kasimira’s aid may come with conditions or in ways that are difficult to understand. Those who show her respect and compassion will find in her a powerful and insightful ally, but those who seek to harm or deceive her will face the full force of her wrath.
Signature Equipment
Armour & Weapons
- Sling: A simple leather sling which she can use to fling bullets that she keeps in a small sack.
- Improvised and Desperate Weapons: Kasimira doesn't like fighting and tries to avoid it, and has not been formally trained in any kind of combat. Most of the proficiencies with weapons and armour she has have been learnt the hard way - through experience and desperation. Her sling is the only weapon she carries, and she uses it more often as a hair net or tourniquet than weapon. But she has become used to having to defend herself with whatever is on hand, and can wield a brick as if it was a warhammer, a garden pitchfork as if it was a trident, and she has the ability to instantly summon to her hand an improvised weapon that could be expected in her surroundings, which can be used effectively for surprise attacks when she realises combat is inevitable and needs to strike first whilst their guard is down.
- Instant Armour: Kasimira wears no armour usually, but when she is in danger and needs protection, she has the ability to conjure a suit of chainmail-like armour of opaque energy around her, but this only lasts for several minutes.
Magic Items
- Rags of Invisibility: Created by a hermit hedge wizard to help avoid or survive dangerous encounters, these decrepit and tattered grey robes are more durable than they appear. Up to three times a day, the wearer can activate this item to benefit from Invisibility, as the spell.
Mundane Items
- Wooden Holy Symbol of The Morninglord: A simple round piece of wood with an engraving of the symbol of the Cult of the Morninglord, hanging on a simple leather cord.
Signature Quotes
- "Hate me if you must, but let me heal your wounds. Suffering should never be left unanswered."
- "I offer you solace, not for your sake, but for the sake of all who might suffer if I turn away."
- "I have been spat upon and cast aside, yet still, I choose to heal. Kindness is not a weakness, but a strength."
- "Forgiveness is not for the one who wrongs, but for the one who wishes to find peace within."
- "The silence is my refuge, where I can hear the voice of my soul amidst the chaos."