Zonah Safar

The life of Zonah Safar is a tragic one full of many fights and allegiances. Zonah was first in the Roadani Military but he left to join the Legion of the Dancing Winds. There he served for two decades before an encounter with cultists of Nezeril. Though Zonah helped slay them, he was cursed to always experience a bitter winter. With nowhere to go but North, Zonah joined the Winter’s Hand. On his first mission he was sent to Curaheim. Zonah and the other new recruits found the town occupied by a host of Drel’Mareath under the command of the Dawn Priest. Using the knowledge he had gained in the Legion and even the winter he caused, Zonah helped free the town and kill the Priest. After the last fight with her, Zonah and Valera decided to head North into the mountains. Their goal was to find the goddess Selviir. Zonah hoped she could help him with his curse, or at least let him stay where he wouldn't harm anyone.

History
Zonah has the normal life of any Roadani boy. He grew up hearing stories of the military and of Rallia. At seventeen he began his service. But a normal military life wasn’t enough for him. Three years in, motivated by the Roadani code of war, he joined the Legion of the Dancing Winds. Zonah travelled to the Island where he trained for three years before heading back out into the world. He traveled by himself for decades. In his journeys he lived the solitary life of a Legionnaire, moving from town to town without many possessions. Forgoing the traditional Roadani spear, all he had was his greatsword and his robe. In the two decades of this part of his life he fought many monsters and gained a reputation among the Legion. For this reputation he was called on when a sect of Nezeril was found. Along with several other Legionnaires, Zonah killed the few cultists. But the battle changes his life. Zonah was cursed by the dying breath of a fanatic, to always experience a bitter winter. Brining frost and ice wherever he went, Zonah could no longer serve as a member of the Legion. He was forced to retire. For a man born under the desert sun, the endless cold was one of the worst curses he could imagine. Fearing the damage he would cause, Zonah went to the one place where the cold was normal, Carufell. There he joined the Winter’s Hand.

Zonah’s first mission with the Winter’s Hand was to go to Curaheim with a group of twenty mercenaries to collect taxes. Zonah was not the only rookie on this mission. Joining him were Deryl, Tarron, and Valera. They were all under the supervision of Jessie, a Winter’s Hand veteran. Zonah and the other rookies were made responsible for basic camp functions such as making dinner, and keeping watch. This gave them time to get to know each other. Zonah kept some distance between himself and the others. That didn’t stop him from protecting Tarron when some of the veterans tried to haze him. The first destination of the mercenary band was the Last Outpost on the border of the provinces Emparum and Tellish. It was the last place they would have warm beds and hot meals. A week later, the Hand was deep in the pine forests. The whole time they had been on the road, the skies had been dark and grey. This was partly due to Zonah’s curse. On this day, the skies opened and it began to storm. In moments the Hand was caught in whiteout conditions. Then the screams began. Zonah and the other rookies began noticing members of the Hand being picked off by White Badgers. As they tried to run, Zonah ended up fighting the monsters. He suffered a deep wound but managed to kill one. The rookies, Jessie, and a mercenary named Zek, found their way to safety in a cave. The next day they headed north, trying to meet any other survivors at the gates of Curaheim. Zek’s leg was injured so Zonah pulled him in a sled. One night on the way, the group encountered a band of Drel’Mareath with their left hands painted red. Zonah killed some. When they finally reached Curaheim they found it occupied by more Drel. They realized they needed to save the town. Zonah emphasized to the rest that the lives of everyone including townsfolk and Hand survivors, were less important than stopping the Drel.

Zonah went with Valera to scout potential camping sites for the group. The group decided on a  different spot, which they moved too. Zonah helped fortify it by digging trench around the entrance. The next day they went to fight a band of Drel and free some workers. In the fight Zonah took down a group of Pawns but suffered another wound, which no one had the expertise to heal. The workers told the Hand about the Dawn Priest, the mysterious mage and commander of the Drel, who now ruled Curaheim. Later in a conversation, Valera told Zonah that the Dawn Priest might be a follower of Nezeril. Zonah insisted if she was, the Legion of the Dancing Wind would have stopped her. This was not the first time he had mentioned the Legion, which prompted Valera to ask him if he was part of it. Zonah denied he was and did not bring them up again. Zonah also decided to start teaching Deryl magic. Deryl had bought a storm stone at the outpost. Zonah, damaged by his curse, did not want to use magic. Later, the group went with the villagers to free a mine controlled by the Dawn Priest. The mine ended up on fire when a Drel’Mareath witch blew up a pile of coal. Zonah and Tarron did their best to put out the fire while the miners tried to escape. They took the next day to rest. Zonah went hunting by himself, tracking an elk for miles. The grey skies and cold followed him. When he was gone, Spring started to pop up around the camp. Zonah killed the elk and spent the night away from the Hand. In the night he was awoken by a solitary Drel’Mreath pawn, making its way towards Curaheim. The pawn ignored Zonah, but Zonah killed it anyway. Zonah returned the next day with the elk. He then went with the other rookies to answer a call by the Dawn Priest’s second in command. The man had hostages and a Drel fighting force. One of the hostages was a kid, which zonah insisted on saving. Zonah and Valera approached the man, who told the Drel “Kill the hostages if I die” Zonah sprang forward cutting out his tongue before he could issue other orders. He also chopped on the man’s hands but left him alive. Zonah stole his horse and killed a rook by cutting off its hammer and using it to break open its head. Meanwhile Deryl freed the hostages.

The next day Zonah marched with everyone else to take back Curaheim. This ended up in a confrontation on the frozen lake, where Deryl used magic Zonah had taught him, to lure the Behemoth guarding the town out. Zonah used his horse to distract the Behemoth and other Drel, almost dying in the attempt. Eventually the Behemoth fell in the lake, but survived. To kill it, Zonah confessed to the others about his curse and let Deryl channel a storm spell through him. This had the effect of creating a frozen wind which trapped the Behemoth in ice. The next day Zonah and the other rookies set out to find the Dawn Priest. They followed a map she had left in her home, which pointed to a vault North of the Treeline. It took ten days but they reached the vault hours after her. Inside, Zonah killed a cultist and two monsters. They then confronted the Dawn Priest, and eventually killed her and the Drel’Mareath she awoke. Zonah helped bring down rocks from the ceiling which eventually crushed the Priest and the dormant Drel Army. Once more he barely made it out with his life. Outside he talked with Valera, revealing his plans to go North. She wanted to accompany him, to try and find Selviir. She also showed Zonah the day magic ritual the Dawn Priest had created. In response Zonah ate the pages, destroying the ritual so no one could use it. They then went North, with the wind leading the way.

Appearance
Zonah was just above average height at five foot eleven. Zonah was muscular and stocky from his decades in military service. He wore a grey coat and robe, tough boots, and gloves. Zonah always carried two weapons, his greatsword and his longbow. Zonah also carried the scars of his many fights.

Relations
After receiving his curse, Zonah couldn’t maintain friendships. However in the battle of Curaheim he was able to help Deryl, Valera, Tarron, and Jessie. His calm demeanor and martial ability helped win back the town. After the battle with the Dawn Priest, he went North. Valera accompanied him on this trip. The two trusted each other to watch their backs and they were able to be mostly honest with each other.

Powers
Zonah had some of the best military training in all of Var’Tareen. Not only was he an expert with a greatsword, longbow, and spear, but he also had vast knowledge of supernatural foes. Zonah was an expert at killing monsters and Drel’Mareath. He was an adept field commander and disciplined soldier. Zonah also knew limited amounts of magic and was able to teach Deryl how to use a godstone.

Zonah’s winter curse was mostly devastating to his life but also once proved to be a boon. In the fight on Curaeheim’s lake, Deryl was able to channel a storm spell through Zonah, tapping into the seasonal energy from the curse. The resulting spell caused a blizzard which permanently froze a Drel’Mareath behemoth below the lake.

List of Appearances
Campaigns
 * 1) The Tale of Storms and Clay Session One: The Blizzard’s Bite
 * 2) The Tale of Storms and Clay Session Two: The Grip of Frost
 * 3) The Tale of Storms and Clay Session Three: The Winds that Blow
 * 4) The Tale of Storms and Clay Session Four: The Sunshine’s Lost
 * 5) The Tale of Storms and Clay Session Five: The Force of Cold
 * 6) The Tale of Storms and Clay Session Six: A Host of Force
 * 7) The Tale of Storms and Clay Session Seven: In Frozen War
 * 8) The Tale of Storms and Clay Session Eight: Beneath the Cold