Dufrain Stonebeard

Summary
Dufrain Stonebeard is an adventurer who first appeared in Millwood, a small town in the north of the empire. At first appearance, Dufrain is stern looking, and can be intimidating to those who don't know him. However, he has been known to act strangely, demonstrated the odd obsession with his name and his belief that he is indestructible. This was also demonstrated within a cave inside Shadowfog Forest, when Dufrain was attempting to learn what the statue was and began to bang his head against it to learn, despite the fact that his head began to bleed. At the start of the Millwood Massacre, Dufrain is 23 years old.

Background
Dufrain grew up on a farm near the small town of Millwood. He was born a sickly infant, and it wasn't known whether he would survive or not. However, he was saved by a passing dwarf paladin named Thrak Stonebeard, who had heard of the families plight and the sickly child. He came to the farm house and blessed Dufrain, and he became healthy again. 6 years passed and Dufrain lived a happy life, always playing with his toys outside and away from the farm house. However one day he came home to find his parents had been slaughtered by a lone orc. The orc saw Dufrain and was about to kill him too if Thrak hadn't returned to the farm house and killed the orc.

Dufrain, though saddened by the loss of his parents (something which still tears at his soul today), he started his new life as the apprentice of the dwarf paladin. 16 years passed since that day, and Dufrain was ready to part ways with Thrak, who had in the past 2 years grown distant with his apprentice. This deeply troubled Dufrain, as with each passing day, Thrak looked increasingly haggard and dark rings formed under his eyes. The last time Dufrain saw him, Thrak gave him essentials and was about to send him on his way when Dufrain made a vow. Taking the name of Stonebeard for his own last name, Dufrain declared that he was family, and that he would return to find him and aide him from his troubles when he has become more powerful like Thrak. With that, Dufrain, armed with the knowledge of the dwarvish language and the ways of the paladin, set out to become more powerful and help his master.

At some point, Dufrain found a village plagues by constant orc raids. He trained the local peasants how to fight and led them in battle against the orcs. Making significant damage to the raiding parties, Dufrain was able to convince the peasants to end the orc problem once and for all and attack their stronghold in the iron mine nearby. Having befriended three of the peasants, he made them his captains and and set out to attack the mine. During the battle, Dufrain was cornered with all three captains, and he made his worst mistake. He tried to attack his way out with his war hammer, but he ended up hitting all his friends, killing them. This made him distraught that he had lost not only his family but also the only friends he had ever made. This turned to rage, and he quickly slaughtered the orcs, even the maimed ones who weren't "an honorable kill" as his master said. At the end of his rage, the battle was won, but Dufrain realized the error in his judgement and swore from then on to remain level headed when in the thick of battle, even when his friends are killed. He left after making sure the rest of the villagers would be alright without him, and made his way to the north, to Millwood.

Personality
Dufrain at first appearance is intimidating, with his refusal of letting go of his warhammer adding to this image. However, in actuality, he is very childlike, and to the constant annoyance to Ellen, refers to himself in the third person sometimes in conversation. This however, is in no way an indication of his intelligence, as he uses his childlike behavior to protect himself of making any more friends. This is due to the fact that Dufrain had accidentally killed his friends, and wishes to no longer have friends that he has the potential to hurt, though this is failing due to Dufrains constant insistence to speak with Ellen.

Physical characteristics
Dufrain's intimidation aspect is greatly helped by his size. However, Dufrain also has a surprisingly soft face when not giving his stern look (something he does often in populated areas), as noticed by his: Oddly enough, Despite his travels, he has never obtained any scars. whether this was from the blessing he received from Thrak years ago or from being within his presence, it isn't known. What is known is that Dufrain will heal his wounds to prevent scars from forming, as he doesn't wish for his skin to be marred by them.
 * 6 foot
 * 200 lbs.
 * Thickly muscled
 * calluses all around his hands, feet, and the sides of his fingers
 * Stubble
 * Square jaw (giving the impression that he is a stonewall)
 * Soft, rounded features of his face
 * deep blue eyes
 * curly, dark brown hair

Dufrain also seems to have odd senses. This was demonstrated first when he was inside the Glowing Hammer Inn in Millwood, when the inn was on fire (painfully noticeable to most) and Dufrain thought nothing was wrong. This was also seen when Dufrain was in The Cave of Statues and through the deafening roar of battle managed to hear his party calling to him beyond the chamber.

Millwood
Dufrain started his adventure at Millwood, within the Glowing Hammer Inn. Sitting alone, Dufrain didn't move from his seat until he noticed two patrons going after a tiefling outside the inn. Looking outside the window, he saw one of them attempt to attack the tiefling after he scared the other away. Grabbing his warhammer and shield, he rushed outside to stop the madness. This was when an elf monk had intervened and accidentally killed the assailant. Disgusted with what he saw, but seeing no moral confliction, Dufrain went back inside. This was when he saw Ellen for the first time. she was trying to get a room for the night but she sounded broke. Feeling like he could do some small good, Dufrain haggled with the inn keeper to allow her to stay for a mere 5 gold.

Unbeknownst to Dufrain, orcs had begun to burn the village down, mainly due to the fact that Dufrain had attributed the smoke to a fire not on the roof. He continued on sitting and looking at his swill until one of the patrons (Alaria) shouted to the rest of the citizens within the inn that it was on fire. Immediately running outside, Dufrain then heard the war cries of the orcs outside. Realizing that the north gate was swarming with orcs, He along with the other survivors, ran to the south gate, which was only defended by a mere 4 orcs.

Engaging with the other orcs with other survivors, Dufrain attempted to attack the orcs. He however managed to not hit a single one of them and also accidentally killed a peasant helping beside him. This brought back the traumatic memory of killing his friends, but remembered to keep a level head, and so he continued with his attacks. The orcs were eventually killed, and the group, including one of the only known surviving peasant Kieroth, ran out the south gate and towards Shadowfog forest.

Flight from Millwood
Dufrain and the party headed towards the Shadowfog forest, attempting to outrun the orcs that were either burning the fields or giving chase. During the flight, Dufrain noticed that Kieroth had fallen. Upon reaching Kieroth, Dufrain attempted to pick him up but also tripped over him. This was actually timely, as a stampede of boars running from the chaos trampled over Dufrain, severely wounding him but also protecting Kieroth. Ignoring the wounds, Dufrain pressed on further without further injuries.

Shadowfog Forest and The Cave of Statues
Upon reaching the forest, Dufrain and the party noticed that there were orcs. Realizing that they all couldn't stay out in the open for long, the group entered the cave. Upon arriving, the group immediately noticed a Statue near the entrance. It seemed to be staring at them, and Dufrain became scared twice before coming back and quelling his fear. Dufrain then began to hear impish grumbling, and deduced that from the sound of it, there could only be at most 10.

Because the entrance way was too narrow (two standing abreast at a time) Chester Blitherington and Valen went ahead to deal with the unknown threat. Discovering that it was goblins, Chester was about to move in and grapple when he suddenly dropped into a pitfall trap. Alive but creating a racket, the goblins discovered the trapped Chester and began taunting him, starting a battle. Dufrain hardly payed attention to it, as he could not hit the goblins with his warhammer. Instead, he attempted to study the statue with Tane Fel and Ellen, but got nowhere with it. Dufrain continue until he heard an anguish cry and the sound of a body smacking onto the ground. Kieroth lay dead in the pit, an arrow lodged in his throat from one of the goblin archers.

Though Dufrain hardly knew Kieroth, he still felt sorrow that another innocent, who had gotten so far from surviving the Millwood massacre to getting into the cave, had his life cruelly cut short buy evil creatures. There was nothing he could do however, so Dufrain continued to study the statue, even after the battle was over. Becoming frustrated (a mix of not learning anything and losing another survivor) Dufrain began to headbutt the statue. Ellen, upon seeing the blood running down Dufrains face, attempted to calm him down but was scared away when Dufrain turned around and screamed at her. This though, got to Dufrain as he realized he made yet another mistake (and almost permanent brain damage), prompting him to stop.

Later, when the goblins were all killed, Dufrain and Ellen held a private funeral for Kieroth, in which Dufrain promised to make a wooden carving that would capture his likeness. Before resting, Dufrain spoke with Ellen, trying to get information out of her past using the most childish ways possible such as "why?" over and over again. He didn't realize how tired he was, but his exhaustion was clear when he fell asleep mid-sentence beneath the statue.

Dufrain was later woken up by a voice calling him further down the cave, beyond the first chamber. Unable to resist its call, Dufrain managed to sneak past the rest of the sleeping party (in heavy armour) and go further down the dark depths below. Lighting a torch, Dufrain lowered himself down a ledge and continued down, beginning to hear the sounds of battle getting louder the farther he went. When Dufrain entered the chamber, the sounds of battle became deafening, and scared Dufrain just enough for him to scream. Controlling himself after some time, Dufrain began to investigate the room, hearing his party call for him through the roar of combat but choosing to ignore it.

Upon reaching the opposite side of the chamber, Dufrain found more statues, in which he tried to investigate them but again found nothing. Frustrated, Dufrain went to the center wall and felt around for anything, likely to be as useful as the statues he told himself. A vision painfully thrusted itself into Dufrains mind as both statues fed him the visual link just beyond the center wall. A great and epic battle raged, with dragons swooping down from the sky and incinerating enemies to orcs slaughtering large swathes. The vision was interrupted by the arrival of the rest of the party, briefly causing Dufrain to rage at the statues to "give him more".

Seeing Dufrain rage at the statues made the party uncomfortable in the least, so Dufrain was tied up next to the coals of the old fire within the first chamber. He briefly touched madness, reviewing the days events and almost succumbing to the stress, but ultimately he remained sane, and was untied and allowed to wander free again.

The Happy Lucky Inn
Leaving The Cave of Statues, Dufrain and the party headed to Ivor Tower in the south. Upon reaching the tower, Commander Ivor got the details and events of the orc raid, and after cursing about the orcs and how they will be the downfall of all humans, explained to the party that they are free to rest up and explore but must return in a weeks time for the Inquisitors to arrive. Realizing that sticking with the party was the best course of action, Dufrain spoke with the rest of the party (with the exception of Chester Blitherington, who had passed out within the barracks) and all agreed to go to The Happy Lucky Inn, renowned throughout the eastern fringes and the rest of the empire as the best Inn for hundreds of miles.

Upon arriving to the Inn, Dufrain was about to order a drink (to forget about the Millwood Massacre) when two black clothed men entered and told the innkeeper that they had "business" to discuss. Not liking the tone they were taking with this man, Dufrain used his divine sense and detected a faint trace of evil, something he couldn't stand. Attempting to intimidate the men, he was instead pushed to the ground and was kicked in the face. This pushed him over the limit, and he rose up with his warhammer at the ready and called upon divine might to aid him.

The party, sensing what was going to happen, attempted to stop him but couldn't as a sudden magic cloud casted by Ellen blocked all vision. But Dufrain didn't need to see the enemies, for he could see their evil through the cloud. With all his might, Dufrain smashed one of the enemies with his warhammer, enhanced with a divine smite. Pulling out of the cloud, Dufrain saw that his enemies wanted to end the conflict, especially the now heavily bleeding man Dufrain smashed. Realizing that the Innkeeper was getting the guards, and that he would end up doing more harm than good, Dufrain ran out with the rest of the party back to Ivor Tower.

Lords Shire
After reaching Ivor tower, Dufrain and the party (still without Chester) decided to go into the opposite direction of where the guards would be looking and go to Lords Shire. Upon reaching the Castle town, The party went to the nearest inn and heard rumors of increased amount of Kidnappings happening. Dufrain was noticed a stairwell leading down into the basement and became curious as to what was down there. He managed to convince the Inn keeper to allow him down into the celler, where he asked the Innkeeper if he could sample some of the alcohol. Growing suspicious, Dufrain again used his Divine Sense to find evil and felt it far beneath the celler. At this point, the Innkeeper had grown fearful, having suspected Dufrain as the kidnapper instead and ran off to find the guards. Not wanting to waste time, and knowing he was innocent and that his party members would show he was actually innocent, Dufrain set about looking for more evil.

While Dufrain was investigating the ground itself, The guards entered the basement, followed by his party members, the bouncers, and the Innkeeper. Ellen managed to convince the guards that Dufrain was actually mad (and looked incriminating since Dufrain was smelling the ground for evil) and that he wasn't the kidnapper. He straightened up and began to tell the guards that he was a paladin looking to destroy evil and that he was investigating the kidnappings. The guards then suddenly moved in to arrest Dufrain, and using his Divine Sense, He felt the guards burning with evil. Readying his Divine smite, Dufrain attempted to incapacitate one of them but the guard was suddenly killed by Alaria's Thornwhip. Looking at the unneeded kill with utmost disgust, Dufrain became enraged to the point where he could no longer move.

Another guard had been killed before the third and final guard surrendered, begging for his life. Dufrain was slapped back to reality, and upon seeing the begging guard, found his opportunity. Approaching the guard with his warhammer raised, he demanded information about the kidnappings, something only an evil creature such as the guard would know. The guard (named Larry) told Dufrain that he only knew that the Count of Lords Shire somehow benefited from all the kidnappings, and that he wasn't particularly concerned about them. Remembering his master's teachings, Dufrain offered Larry a way to redeem himself from the Evil that he had allowed to come into this world, and committed himself, by becoming his apprentice to learn the ways of being a paladin.

Readily accepting (due to Valen threatening to split his skull with the quarterstaff and Dufrain's warhammer above his head), Dufrain and the rest of the party were suddenly called by Ellen, who had made a discovery in one of the rooms of the inn. Upon reaching the room, Dufrain and the party all looked down into a black hole in the wall that turned into a chute leading down. Deciding to leave Larry behind until he discovered what was down in the cute, Dufrain told him to wait as the party jumped down.

When Dufrain reached the bottom, he discovered a foul fiend, a vampire huddling in the corner with Alaria asking if it was alright. Dufrain, readying his warhammer, Yelled out "I am Dufrain, vanquisher of all Evil!" The vampire turned around, showing its true nature when it attempted to attack the group. It was stopped after being burned and Thornwhipped, with Dufrain rushing in front of it and smiting it with his holy power. The vampire was reduced to smoldering ash, and the group now noticed that they were stuck in a cage, somewhere unknown.

Relationship with the party
Dufrain has a rather odd relationship with the party members, especially towards Ellen.

Ellen
Dufrain first met Ellen in the Inn at Millwood, in which he was haggling with the inn keeper to lower the room prices so that Ellen could sleep and not lose all of her money. Later, during the cave exploration within the Shadowfog forest, Dufrain was pounding his head into the statue, determined to get answers. In his blood rage, he scared Ellen with the blood pouring down his face. This was purely accidental, and later apologized to Ellen for his behavior. Dufrain pestered Ellen before resting, bombarding her with questions about her past, despite not getting any answers. This was due to Dufrain's curiosity of this strange woman he helped out, who has no last name and vaguely reminds him of the mother he lost and hardly remembers.

Chester Blitherington
Dufrain doesn't really know or interact with Chester, though he greatly admires his "honorable" ways of fighting, it being him grappling the nearest enemy and then punching them to death. he is slightly jealous of his strength, and Chester is capable of wrestling a fully grown orc raider into a headlock whereas Dufrain uses great effort just to wield his warhammer in one hand.