Loch

Lochleer Vallentin was born in the isolated city-state of Elfenbein as a member of one of the four Noble Houses of Ventis. From the very beginning his life had laid out a path of a proud historic lineage and an expectation of greatness. The life of a Ventis member meant an honorable duty protecting the city from any and all that treatens her boarders - The Houses of Ventis were amongst the highest titles of power in the land. Being the oldest and first born of House Vallentin, history would have dictated that Loch's future was to be head of The House of Rangers; However, In reality, this would never be his fate. A sullied pedigree from a secret affair and an even more taboo lycanthropic liniage meant his life was forever marred.

Loch's werewolf nature was abhorrent in the culture of Elfenbein. Beasts and Abbarrations that posed a threat to the city were snuffed out by the Ventis with swift determination. Because of this his family quickly hid this from the rest of the Ventis as well as anyone outside of immediate family. Unfortunately his nature of being born into this affliction left him an unpredictable anomoly. He showed gradual characterisitcs with heightened senses and vulnerabilities to silver initially. The subdued traits eased his father and step-mother into believing his case was a rare but not fully developed essence of lycanthropy, but still his step-mother Dofrea kept a personal close eye on him.

This theory would prove wrong as eventually these traits became fully manifested in his adolescence, resulting in his first transformation. Unprepared and unsuspecting, the event grew from bad to worse as his typically manageable wolf-like attributes turned into a fully transformed rampage. In the end this incident marked the beginning of the end for Loch. From here on he lived a life behind bars, both figuratively and literally. He remained under constant supervision and examination and although he was able to maintain his status as a Ventis member, it quickly became a sentince rather than a service.

As time grew on and the vise grew too stiffling Loch sought an escape. Initially it was through occassionally sneaking away on his own. In attempt to regain his life he would wander the city unsupervised, helping citizens who were overlooked by the Ventis and meeting new faces among the people. This led him to escapades not only on the streets but, eventually, within the Vallentin Castle; upon which he stumbled upon letters between his mother Ranna and his father Ley'thas. Through these letters he uncovered the origin of the Blood Hunters. A dark and mysterious faction of huntsmen who used blood magic to enhance their skills to unnatural levels of prowess. His mother being a Blood Hunter herself, Loch gathered that it was this as well as her lycanthropy that had put a target on her back by the Ventis. He also learned through these letters that when she left she gifted Loch to Ley'thas in hopes of giving him a better life than what she thought she could provide.

This sparked a yearning in Loch to find answers from his mother. In the hopes to better understand himself and potentially connect with her he buried himself in extensive research into the Blood Hunter magics discovered in the letters and detailed in the Ventis archives. In the end he used this to eventually find her. Years later he risks everything to meet her and hopefully leave with her but is discouraged when he's met with a resistant Ranna who was more surprised that he had gone looking for her at all. With the weight of his secret meeting being discovered and his mother resisting Loch's attempts at following her, he ultimately decided to return to Elfenbein. Heeding her promise that they would meet again.

Back in Elfenbein he continued to endure the suffocating weight of his step-mother Dofrea's watch. Still he continued to sneak out when he could and eventually found his joy with a small blossoming friendship in a young tavern owner and her siblings. Visiting said tavern as often as he could became a welcoming distraction from his own life. Loch found a content joy in this new routine of his and continued with this low-key lifestyle.Of course, like most good things in Loch’s life his time visiting the tavern and walking amongst the citizens of Elfenbein was swiftly severed. On a dark night while Loch had just returned home from a personal mission, he gets struck by a silver tipped arrow from an unknown assailant. He quickly realizes these weapons belong to Ventis Rangers and having nowhere else to turn Loch is chased out of the city. Injured and bleeding out in the wilds Loch’s life was nearly cut short before he's saved by a kind stranger. As the dawn broke a recovering Loch gathered what little items he could and set off, leaving his home behind but most importantly the few people in his life whom he had grown to care for.

In an attempt to put his life in Elfenbein behind him Loch put all of his focus toward finding his mother. For a year Loch spent his days travelling, looking for leads but spending most days as a vagabond, taking up odd jobs here and there in exchange for food and supplies. In the end Loch always found himself gravitating towards the plight of others. Throughout his travels he continued to help people wherever he went, whether it be rescuing a travelling caravan from a hoard of gnolls or fixing an elderly couples' roof. Eventually Loch settled upon a town where he happened upon his mother’s name and tale of a guild of hunters settled in the outskirts. Loch follows this lead, desperate for clues and discovers that she had been a member of a guild of witch hunters residing in a castle on a hill. With this being his only lead in years and desperate for a sense of home he attempts to join the guild, coming accross a teacher and guild member Hadrian who knew Ranna and agreed to bring Loch into the guilid. Now Loch spends his time at the guild, helping rid the world of the various creatures that threaten the land while continuing on his search for his mother.

• 28, Human (F)
• Owner of the Owl's Nest Tavern in Stromfell
• Close friend

Although they but-heads a lot (think Lorelai and Luke –Gilmore Girls), Laurel and Loch have a strong friendship. Fierce determination, passionate, loyal, and steadfast, Laurel is known for having a boisterous personality towards everyone she meets. When she feels, she feels strongly, and isn’t afraid to speak her mind. Being the owner of a tavern, she knows how to deal with unruly people. Loch finds her quite abrasive at times and the two often get into quarrels, but in the end, they are close friends that simply know how to push each other's buttons.

• 27, Human (NB)
• Laurel's sibling, employee at Owl's Nest Tavern
• Close friend/Kiindered Spirit

Rosen first met Loch in the tavern where they work along with Laurel. With their intuition they quickly took a notice of Loch’s unique energy and gravitated towards him in an attempt to understand more about him. Seeing how they were the quieter of the Lamont siblings Loch felt a kinship with Rosen and the two quickly grew to appreciate each other's company. With Rosen’s quiet nature and Loch’s own tendency to be more of a listener than a talker Rosen was able to reach out to Loch and be true to themselves without fear of being ignored or overlooked. Rosen is also one of the very few people in Loch’s life that knows about his Lycanthropy. Although he never outwardly told them Rosen was able to figure it out through their own intuition. This open understanding of each other made their bond unbreakable.