FoolJakk (FOOL-jak)

Type

Plotter - Guide

Job

Bard

Goal

FoolJakk seeks to bring the mortal world of Fahr Ryasc back to the Cosmic Balance that will prevent the annihilation of the world through absolute Law or absolute Chaos. To this end, he searches for a leader among the Brynd Tribes which will be able to inspire the mortal people of Fahr Ryasc to resist the influence of the Lords of the Higher Worlds and the Great Old Ones. The person he searches for is the reincarnated high king of the Brynd Tribes, the Aìrdrìgh.

What makes them cool?

FoolJakk is smooth as silk. If sunglasses were common in Fahr Ryasc, he'd definitely be wearing them everywhere. He's not a fashionista like the aristocrats among the Irex with their ostentation, but he wears his clothes well. He is a blend of aloof detatchement and, intimite connection. When he gives his attention to someone, he can make them feel like the most important person in the world.

Additional Goal(s)

FoolJakk also sings for his supper. He's an excellent teller of tales, singer of songs and player of his lyre. He seldom has much in the way of coin, often he walks into a tavern or roadhouse with an empty purse. But he always finds a way to talk his way into a hot meal, and a tall mug of drink.

Competence

5 - Highly trained genius

Likeability

5 - Lovable

Proactivity

4 - Good effort

Quirk

FoolJakk is always carrying his lyre and plucking notes and melodies from it's strings, often as emphasis to what he is saying.

Equipment

FoolJakk's most consistent piece of equipment he bears is his lyre. The frame is carved from the heart of a cherry tree and it's seven strings are drawn silver which are enchanted never to break. FoolJakk has carried this instrument as long as he can remember, indeed he cannot recall when or where he first obtained the instrument. But he is very sure it was a gift from someone special to him.

Other than the lyre, FoolJakk always seems to have the object he needs, when he needs it. He seldom carries weapons, though he can usually produce a sharp knife when the occasion calls for it. He often has a thick travel journal and a writing instrument. Sometimes FoolJakk writes in the journal, other times he looks up a song, myth, or story he's written in it. The journal seems to change over time, hinting that FoolJakk has many different journals at his disposal, and only produces the one he needs in the moment.

Finally, FoolJakk wears a wide brimmed hat that keeps the sun and rain off his face. The hat, like his lyre is always present, though sometimes it doesn't rest atop his head but hangs off his shoulders by a loose cord. It's weathered, battered and patched with a bewildering variety of different-colored patches. Every patch, if asked about, is tied to a story that FoolJakk is more than happy to share with anyone who will listen.

Desire

FoolJakk is on a gaes to save the mortal world. He believes that the Cosmic Balance can be regained if the mortal peoples of Fahr Ryasc turn from the corruption of the Lords of the Higher Worlds and the Great Old ones. To this end, he wanders the Bryndlands telling tales and enticing the young and ambitious to undertake quests.

FoolJakk is also searching for a person who can lead the Bryndffolk (and, if his visions are realized, the Tralfolk, Xjinn, and all the mortal people of Fahr Ryasc) to bring Fahr Ryasc back into Cosmic Balance. He believes this leader to be the Aìrdrìgh, a mythic reincarnating high king that appears among the Brynd tribes periodically throughout history.

Fear

Even though FoolJakk projects a carefree and confident attitue. He's burdened with the terrible knowledge that the world of Fahr Ryasc is ending. The Lords of the Higher Worlds and the Great Old Ones will swing the pendulum of Law and Chaos to the point where the mortal world will be unable to bear the extreme. He is terrified that despite the ages of hard work that he's accomplished, it is still not enough to save the mortals he so loves, and that he no longer has time left to stop the End.

Facial Characteristcs

FoolJakk wears his hair long, has bushy eyebrows, a proud nose and a sharp goatee without mustache.

Speech Patterns

FoolJakk speaks with a very smooth, melodic cadence. Like he's singing even when he's simply speaking.

Body type

FoolJakk is thin, with long limbs, fingers and toes. He's double-jointed which allows him to play nearly impossible melodies on his lyre

Sight

Lean, timeless, nimble, deft, mischievous,

Sound

The notes plucked from his Lyre. FoolJakk regularly uses his instrument to add emphasis to the emotional beat he wants to bring forward.

Smell

FoolJakk smells like the air just before a storm mingled with the pleasant scents of wildflowers in a meadow.

Touch

FoolJakk is smooth to the touch, the wrinkles on his face and body are very fine and the only parts of his body that are rough at all are his fingertips, calloused from ages of plucking the strings of his lyre

Emotional State

Fooljakk normally presents as care-free and cheerful

Happy

FoolJakk is regularly happy, or at least he projects as such. He's always clever and charming. He is quick with a compliment and often says the exact right thing to lighten the mood. FoolJakk is an eternal optimist, even when the world is coming to an end. He cherishes and spreads hope that the Cosmic Balance can be returned to Fahr Ryasc.

Sad

The only time FoolJakk seems to become quiet is when he's sad. He still responds when spoken too, even sing when he's compelled. But his entire manner is subdued. FoolJakk becomes sad when he realizes he's failed to change the world towards the Cosmic Balance. It's difficult for anyone to resist feeling sad themselves when they're around FoolJakk when he's feeling down

Angry

When angry, FoolJakk's charm turns to cruelty. His wit bites hard and even if there's a smile on his face, the twinkle in his eye becomes a burning coal. FoolJakk only becomes angry when Fate betrays him, when Fate "cheats" and drives the world further away from the Cosmic Balance. He's never angry with other mortals, even those who are devoted to the forces of Cosmic Law or Chaos. FoolJakk's anger, when it comes, is directed at the Cosmos itself, and it's uncaring, callous nature.

Biography

FoolJakk has been walking the world for as long as it has been turning, and intends to walk for a few years after it stops. In his time, he's met many, many heroes and guided more than a few onto the path to become heroes.

He has advised many Taisech and Rìgh, many good, some bad. He's attended the gatherings of the Druì Roth Mohr atop their sacred peaks among their standing stones. He's walked among the Síoraí People of Zàqu and talked with the Elder Serpent Mn'bolo.

Although FoolJakk has not been a part of history, he's witnessed much of it. He maintains that it is not his place to directly involve himself in the events that shape history, only to give the events a nudge when they need it.

Ærkyl (though he almost never uses that name, preferring "FoolJakk") (a.k.a. FoolJakk)

Perhaps the oldest Bard wantering the Kælic Highlands, FoolJakk has sung the tale of hundreds, if not thousands, of heroes. He appears where he is needed, and seldom when he is expected, and though he very rarely participates in the adventures and quests he inspires in the unquiet or the young FoolJakk is responsible for great change among the Bryndffolk, Tralfolk, and even the Xjinn.

There are rumors that this enigmatic old nomad is just the latest in a long line of Bards who have taken the mantle of FoolJakk. For it is beyond rational thought that anyone whose eyes are so old, who had attended to grandparents and great-grandparents would have lived so long. Indeed no one can say, for certain, that they know a tale where FoolJakk is young.

FoolJakk remains quiet on the issue, deftly turning questions and conversations towards subjects far more important than the number of Midwinter Nights he's seen. There is always a need for heroes after all, brave adventurers willing to find the lost or hidden places in Fahr Ryasc. Recover the relics thought gone forever, or put an end to a growing danger that could threaten all. Even as the first melodies fall from his ever-present lyre this Bard of Bards always seems to sing the perfect song or tell the perfect tale for the place and the time. FoolJakk stands at the crossroads of history and midwifes the birth of legends.

Artifacts

FoolJakk's enchanted lyre has channeled his magic and spells for so long that it's become empowered in it's own right. The lyre has achieved a degree of consciousness, but not sentience, it sometimes interacts with FoolJakk like a loyal pet.

Divine Goals & Aspirations

FoolJakk is a demigod. He achieved apotheosis when he uncovered the nature of the cosmos and the struggle between Cosmic Law and Chaos. He realizes that the intrustions of the Lords of the Higher Worlds and the Great Old Ones have fatally upset the balance of Fahr Ryasc. Worse, the incarceration of the Great Old Ones five centuries past have dangerously tipped the scales in favor of Law. FoolJakk desperately wishes to save the mortal world from the oblivion that comes from static Law as well as evermutating Chaos. To this end, both pantheons must be banished and barred from intervening in the destiny of Fahr Ryasc.

Mental characteristics

Gender Identity

FoolJakk identifies as a Ganigan Brynd Man. He was born such (though he no longer recalls much of his time as a mortal) and over the ages, has never understood himself to be anything but. Though over his long life, the importance of his gender identity as mortals understand the concept has become of trivial importance.

Sexuality

FoolJakk is an incorrigible flirt. He loves mortal people and the world of Fahr Ryasc with all of his being. However, he is best described as asexual. The physical act of sex no longer has mystery nor appeal to him. FoolJakk is, however very pan-romantic. He delights in the quickening of his emotions, the intimate mental stimulation of attraction and courtship. In short, he loves to bring out the joy of being desired in others. There is a very long list of lovers who found one another, and discovered their feelings for one another because FoolJakk brought them together.

Education

FoolJakk is one of the most knowlegeble people to ever walk the face of Fahr Ryasc. He has mastered both the mysteries of the Druì Roth Mohr and the lore of the Bards throughout Bryndland. In the ages since he involved himself in the affairs of gods and the struggle of law and chaos, he's only learned more about the world and the Cosmos.

Morality & Philosophy

FoolJakk believes in the cosmic balance between law and chaos. He is generally selfless and kind, seldom cruel, and often generous with his time and knowledge. However, he understands the need for sacrifice in achieving the greatest good. To him, a mortal life is precious and he cherishes every one, but the life of a single mortal, or the lives of thousands are only a drop in the ocean of untold millions who live, or are yet to live. He is not reluctant to send his mortal heroes and champions to their deaths, or worse, if the sacrifice benefits multitudes more. In this FoolJakk believes himself to be beyond morality as motals understand it. He is unconcerned with the good or evil consequences of his meddling, only with the greater good of preserving the peoples of Fahr Ryasc.

Taboos

FoolJakk cannot use his vast power for direct personal gain. He is prohibited from attracting disciples, or worshippers. He cannot found a realm or even a family of his own. Whether this is due to a self-imposed restriction (if FoolJakk succumbs to these temptations, he would only doom the world and himself eventally fall to be a Lord of the Higher Worlds or a Great Old One) or if it is a condition of his gaes that is now long forgotten that he shouldered as a price for his great power and knowledge is unknown, perhaps forgotten.

Personality Characteristics

Motivation

FoolJakk has seen the reality of the Cosmos, he has an understanding of the struggle between the Cosmic Balance, and the extremes of Cosmic Law and Chaos that few people who walk among the mortals of Fahr Ryasc can comprehend. He also can see the future and the past, to an extent, and is convinced it is his responsibility to guide the people of Fahr Ryasc back to a harmonious existance with the universe. To this end, he is always searching for the once and future high king of the Bryndffolk. The Aìrdrìgh. When he finds them, he knows it will be his duty to mentor them to lead the Bryndffolk in a last effort to resist the beings calling themselves the Lords of the Higher Worlds and the Great Old Ones.

Vices & Personality flaws

FoolJakk's greatest flaw is sadly common among people who achieve great power and knowledge. FoolJakk is convinced that [b]he knows best with regards to the questions of fate and destiny. He believes he doesn't use his power in selfish ways, he tells himself he does not wish to profit from his

Social

Contacts & Relations

FoolJakk, either by reputation or by personal relationship has powerful contacts at all levels of Brynd society. He's welcome in a humble home as well as the grandest hall. He is likewise a member of the Druì Roth Mohr, and has been ordained as a druid. FoolJakk is also well known amongst the Xjinn people of the Irex City-States and among both the Deasìoraì and Bansìoraì of the Zàqu Empires.

Religious Views

FoolJakk does not promote the worship of any particular religion, god or gods. He is a druid of the Druì Roth Mohr and he believes the Circle of the Cycle and the Elemental Court are the faiths that best align with his designs of promoting the Cosmic Balance.

Wealth & Financial state

FoolJakk, as a bard, a druid, and a wanderer has little need for wealth. He relies on a combination of Hospitality and his extensive network of contacts, friends and cronies for everything that money is needed for. He's rich in favors, not in coin.

Divine Classification

Immortal

Current Status

Wandering among the Bryndlands

Species

Ganigen Bryndffolk

Ethnicity

Bryndffolk Tribes

Age

FoolJakk looks old, but in a timeless way.

Children

Pronouns

He/him

Sex

Male

Gender

Man

Presentation

Mascline

Eyes

Green, sparkeling like gems

Hair

FoolJakk's hair is snowy white and full, falling down past his shoulders. He at times ties his hair back with a cord (especially when the weather is rough)

Skin Tone/Pigmentation

FoolJakk has the appearance similar to Ganigan Brynd. His pale skin tints towards a golden yellow, like late Summer afternoon.

Height

70 inches

Weight

140 pound thin build

Aligned Organization

Druí Roth Mohr

Known Languages

FoolJakk either through fluency or through his magic understands, reads, and writes all known languages.

Entry for Worldbuilding Summer Camp 2023

Answering: "a character driven by wanderlust or the desire to explore"

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Adventurer's Guide to the End of the World