New Elf Character

Eryndor Vale

Eryndor Vale never thought he'd wear armor, let alone carry a sword.

He grew up in a quiet valley town on the edge of the Silverpine forests, the kind of place where the biggest worry was a bad harvest or an early frost. His parents ran a small apothecary, and most of his early life was spent grinding herbs, labeling jars, and running errands barefoot through the woods. He loved it. He had no interest in fighting, and everyone figured he’d take over the shop one day.

But things changed when the shadows came down from the northern peaks.

Creatures started slipping through the trees at night — things no one had seen before. Twisted, fast, unnatural. The town lost two families before anyone understood what was happening. Patrols were formed. The local baron put out a call for able-bodied volunteers. Eryndor’s older cousin went. Then his childhood friend. Then, with barely a week’s sword training, Eryndor followed.

He figured he'd just be helping with maps, gathering herbs, maybe tending wounds. But when you’re out in the field, things don’t stay neat and labeled. There’s no time to be afraid when something’s crawling out of the dark.

He’s not a warrior. He flinches when steel clashes. He hates killing things, even when they're monstrous. But he keeps showing up. He watches. He learns. He does what has to be done, even if his hands shake while doing it.

For this idle (above) and run cycle (below), I really want to capture the essence of the character: someone completely out of his depth, terrified, but determined to contribute to his village’s efforts. These animations are meant to play as he patrols the forest at night, searching for monsters.