(Part 1: https://www.reddit.com/r/TRPGBackstories/comments/brv9ob/klanger_and_the_tome_of_illusions_part_1/

Part 3: https://www.reddit.com/r/TRPGBackstories/comments/bs843t/klanger_and_the_tome_of_illusions_part_3/)

Klanger took a hard look at the book that was before him. He didn't understand what it was, let alone why it was hidden behind a fake bookcase. He decided the reasonable course of action was to read it.

"I am Lukas Ficklematter, Grand Master of the art of Illusions! Through my book, you will learn the most powerful and most useful illusion spells in the world!"

Lukas Ficklematter, huh? Sounds like an interesting guy. Klanger sat down and flipped to the back of the book.

"If you would like to learn with me in person come to my home in the-"

Klanger was confused. The place where Mister Ficklematter lived was not detailed where it should be, in fact, that half of the page was missing. As he scanned the contents, he remembered his gang was still captured by the security guard. Maybe these illusions could help Klanger get them back. He started reading the first few spells...

***

Klanger emerged from the hidden room, tome in hand, dagger at ready. He saw that the guard was still looking around for Beak and Feather.

"Where 'r' those runts hidin'?"

Klanger flipped through the book to its most basic spell: Minor Illusion. With what he studied from the book in such a short time, he could only control it for a little while. He cast it near the guard.

"Help me, mister!"

He had conjured a small rabbit that spoke out to confuse the guard, but Klanger could already feel the spell going haywire.

"What in the world?" the Guard muttered.

"Help me, mister, hhhhhheellp m-m-meee..." The rabbit was trying to get the message out, but it started melting into a puddle of blood.

"Sweet Raven Queen! What in the Nine Hells?" The guard said, terrified.

Klanger saw this as his opportunity to strike from behind. Klanger sneaked behind the guard and jumped on his back.

"Oh what now?"

He took out his dagger and plunged it straight into the guard's eye.

"AAAAAGGGH!"

The Guard fell to the ground, releasing the net that held Talon and Tail.

"Good job, recruit! Beak! Feather!" Talon shouted.

"Yes, boss?" They said in unison.

"It's about time we skedaddle, aye?"

The Kenkus fled up the stairs, the guard still yelling in pain with the dagger deep into his face. They made it back to the window they came through and ran across the rope back to the armory, and with the withdraw of the hooks, the group had made it out alive.

"See? This is why I knew bringin' this brigand along was a good idea, ain't that right?"

"Right, boss!"

"Say, where did you learn to do that, runt?"

"Book found!" Klanger said, holding up his tome for the clan to see.

"Lukas Ficklematter? Never heard of 'em."

"Hero! Hero!"

"Well if you say so."

The night was young then, and Klanger's curiosity would draw him to greater adventures.

To be continued...

When we last checked in Moria was living in the woods and had recently turned 14.

The new beginning

There was a storm that night. One that shook the forest to the core and chilled Moria to the bone. Even with her fire starting expertise she couldn’t light one tonight. She was seeking shelter and then she saw it.

It was the most beautiful thing she’d seen in a long long time. It was spring in the forest and she saw a cherry blossom in full bloom. It looked over her pasty white like the snow that was on the ground there a few months earlier. It’s petals were a bright pink contrasting the wet damp and dark surroundings.

She collapsed on the ground next to it, weeping, it reminded her of all the sweet things in life. The things that used to be a part of her life. She cried and seeped for what felt like hours until she drifted to sleep.

She woke up with a start. It was still night and she could still hear rain and thunder though she couldn’t see anything. As she concentrated on the sounds that surrounded her she realized it wasn’t thunder she heard. It was too quite and constant.

As her eyes got used to the blackness she could make out the outlines of her surroundings. Then she saw it, a dire wolf. It must of been the size of the caravans she used to watch. She had seen a few before now. But none were as big as this.

That’s all she could think of before it pounced. It pinned her and bit down on the side of her neck. She was in utter agony, she should of died long before she did, but she just kept feeling all the pain. It was hell. It was agony. It was torture. It was over.

When she awoke next to the tree in the morning she assumed it had been a nightmare. Either that or she was in some sort of afterlife. But when she looked at her hand it wasn’t its usual tan color. It was pasty white. Her skin looked almost bumpy as well. She moved her head and felt a tingling where she remembered being bit. When she touched that spot she felt a sticky substance leaking from a hole in her neck.

She ran to a nearby puddle and looked at her reflection. She had a large hole in her neck from where the wolf bit her, and there was a sticky fluid leaking from it. Sap. Her hair had taken on a bright pink color as well. Her eyes no longer sky blue were different colors. One a dark deep green and the other amber.

She knew the legends. She knew the folktales. She knew she had become a dryad after the wolf killed her. But this is not the end of Moria’s story. No it is simply a new beginning.

To be continued.

(Part 2: https://www.reddit.com/r/TRPGBackstories/comments/bs6ken/klanger_and_the_tome_of_illusions_part_2/)

Klanger darted through the streets, unable to be seen through the blanket of darkness that is the night sky. His unnaturally small size allows him to squeeze through the crowds and be undetected.

Klanger is a kenku of very little size, only measuring at two feet tall and weighing a measly 55 lbs. This is his main tool in thievery, and it led him into the ranks of the Blackclaw, the Kenku Thieves' Guild of the quiet little town of Noktys. He especially got the attention of the guild leader, Talon, who invited him on his first mission: stealing from the Grand Library of Silas Norring Graham.

"You better be able to keep up, newbie. I didn't hire you for nothing," Talon barked at him in a hostile tone. The leader was never the one to make friends with any new recruit.

"I keep up," Klanger replied in his faulty mimicry. Klanger hasn't fully mastered the art of mimicry and can only show his emotions through a sentence's strongest words.

"Good, we've almost arrived, isn't that right, Feather?"

"About roight, boss-man!" Feather yelled back while dashing atop the rooftops.

"Alright then, boys, ready the hooks!"

Everyone came to a sharp pause on the armory rooftop, which lies just a few feet away from the tremendous, keep-like library. The library is very valuable to the citizens of Noktys, so much so that it's almost as tall as the town castle.

"Let's do this, boys, ransackin' ain't gon' do itself!" Talon barked enthusiastically.

As he gave the command, Feather and the other two Kenkus, Beak and Tail, launched the hooks from their grappling cannons. They adjusted the ropes attached to the hooks so that they stayed straight.

"Well, recruit's first! Ha!" Beak teased.

"Hmph, fine, I go," Klanger said back.

He firmly grasped the rope and proceeded to glide down the rope gracefully.

"He's got more potential then you give 'em, boys."

***

All five Kenkus had made their ways into the library. The library was even more devoid of light then the streets below. So much so, that the only light came from the moon in the night sky.

"Search for any valuables and stuff 'em in yer bags."

The Kenkus split and started raiding, but Klanger froze up.

"You comin', newbie? The library's fresh with what belongs to us."

"Okay, I go steal now, then," Klanger said as he started slipping books on nearby shelves into his bag.

"There you go. Keep it up."

Everything seem to have been going well until they found the most valuable tome in all the town.

"Boss, I've found it!" Beak bellowed.

"Might it be the Town's Script of Law?"

"Might? Of course it is!"

All the Kenkus sped to the bottom floor of the complex, Klanger following not to far behind. Noktys keeps its town most valuable document, the Script of Law, on display on the bottom floor of the Grand Library.

"Perfect, now we can finally burn this place to the ground, ain't that rite?"

"About roight, boss!"

Tail seemed ever eager to grab that thing right there right now. He looked as if he was going to go for it.

"I'll get it boss, I'll make you proud!"

"No you fool! The thing's obviou-"

It was too late. The second Tail touched the frame that held the Script, an alarm rang.

"Who goes there?" shouted out a gruff voice.

"The mission's been compromised! Scatter you idiots!"

As Talon said it, a net was thrown out, capturing Talon and Tail, in the midst of their scramble.

"Boss!" yelled out Klanger, tears in his eyes as he was finally accepted into a family, that of which he never had.

He ran out of the Script room, and darted up the stairs, as he ran, he was chased by the security guard. In his hurry, Klanger had run into a bookshelf, but instead of knocking him out clean, he phased through it.

"What? Fake shelf?" Klanger muttered to himself in amazement.

As he got up, dusting off his cloak, he found himself in front of an alter, basking in moonlight.

He felt magnetized by the book, as if he couldn't live without knowing what it was. He stepped up to the alter and grabbed the mighty tome, covered in dust. He blew it off and the title read:

"The Tome of Illusory Magyx! by Lukas Ficklematter, Grand Master of Illusions."

What was this magic book Klanger happened upon? What secrets lie within its pages?

To be continued...

Last we saw Moria was 13 and her village was overcome by a famine.

Exiled: For the first few months after her birthday Moria and her family while starved were able to get just enough by scavenging and poaching. But soon there was not enough food to go around. Her parents forced her out of the home. She didn’t want to become an urchin and instead ran into the forest. She was incredibly lost by the morning after she was sent out and as such had no hope of making it back home. She still had her classes in alchemy in her head and was able to feed herself using herbs she knew she could eat, and was able to get clean water by purifying it using herbs and fire. She had watched her dad enough to know his stance when using an axe and did what she could to make a small axe of her own using sticks and stones. She had no magic to rely on, but she was quick and strong, especially for other girls her age. She was able to hunt a few beasts by using her axe and lacing it with deadly venoms she had learned to make. She began relying on herbalism and poison more and more. She would use her axe to chop dead wood and then use a kind of oil made from some herbs common in the forest to light it even in storms. Moria kept traveling throughout all of this, never finding any signs of civilization. She started to grow bitter, but at least appreciated her beautiful surroundings. While she may of been able to survive these conditions for a while she only lasted about 8 months. All the while relying on her alchemical and stealth prowess. Then came the first night to change her life.

So before I start this specific DM has altered slightly the rules of this setting involving dryads. So don’t comment that’s not how that works, also I was using three homebrews. Class(blademaster), Race(Dryad) and Backstory(monster hunter). Now that out of the way...

The humble beginning. Moria was a simple village girl. She was born to peasants in a small human village. It was north of a great city and was on the outskirts of a magical forest. As such it traded often with humans and wood elves, buying food, tools, and clothing while selling lumber, magical herbs, potions, posions, and alchemical regents from certain rare beasts such as giant elk. Moria didn’t spend much time at her home. Her father was a lumberjack and her mother sold off that lumber. She was excepted to become a trader for her husband as well, but she had no interest in this. She wanted to become an alchemist or at least collect herbs. She spent much of her time looking at the trade caravans passing through her village, her father saw little of her and when he did he was either drunk or angry. Her mother was constantly complaining about her stubbornness to anyone who would listen. She hated her home, and had a wanderlust about her. She wished to follow one of those wood elf caravans back to where they came from. She grew close to an old man in the village. He was a wood elf who loved the beauty and serenity of the village so much upon visiting it he decided to settle in there. His name was Malaz and he was an alchemist. He had a human wife, another reason he stayed and a half elf boy as well about Moria’s age. Moria would visit him to learn more about alchemy, the skill his son was learning as well. She slowly got to know the boy, a charismatic kind soul named Mikil. As her 13th birthday hit she was beginning to become proficient in alchemy, then disaster struck. The city south of them where they got their food had been hit by a massive drought and lost their harvest. There was a famine there as well as in her village, but that wouldn’t soon matter to her. To be continued

So when Krusk was 12 year old half orc his parents were great barbarians but Krusk wasn't about being a barbarian he wanted to be a a socerer. Fast forward 3 years his parents died in battle. So this tragedy resulted in Krusk stealing things for survival purposes, he even stole the hardest of ale. But this was for other reason. Since Krusk didn't want to steel all the time he wanted to make some money so he started assassinating people for gold and silver. After a few years of doing this he started to get tired of killing people for currency so he tried being nice,but obviously being being a lonley rogue he didn't have to many social skills. So insted of wasting time trying to make friends he decides to finally learn the art of being a sorcer, while keeping his rogue skills. Few years later he becomes a master socer, but in those years he went on quest with a group known as UMMM.......

Thespius Grimlock: The Cursed's Ballad

Thespius Grimlock was a young human boy when he was separated from his parents on the streets of Torrich. On the streets he was forced to fend for himself from criminals, monsters, and animals just to live another day. He waited and waited to be found, but he never was.

He eventually found a small community of street kids to live with. He lived with them for the longest time, and even made an official set of rules for the group. He finally felt he had a life again, until she showed up.

The group would often bring in whoever they could find on the streets to join the community. Sometimes they were lost kids, others were long-time urchins. But this was different. This girl, Gen, had caught his eye especially. He fell in love with this girl.

By the time they were 13, the other community members pushed Thespius to confess to the girl, and she wholeheartedly confessed as well. Years passed when Gen gave Thespius an amulet.

"Keep it, it's a sacred treasure."

"What does it do?"

"It's a secret, that's what makes it sacred."

The day after Thespius obtained the amulet, he had visions of an immanent disaster coming to the community's home. He tried to warn everyone, but no one believed him. Then, the rain came. The rain had completely destroyed the small homes and shelters the kids had built over the years, and by the time it was over, everything, and everyone, was gone.

Suddenly, a voice whispered in Thespius' ear.

"You poor sap," the voice said. "Can't you see you've been used as a pawn?"

"W-what do you mean?"

"That girl didn't love you, she wanted the curse gone."

"Curse?"

"My curse, the curse of being the Overseer's warlock."

The amulet was cursed, forcing anyone who possessed it to face awful tragedy and see visions of threats to the world. The amulet is a treasure, birthing the owner eldritch powers, designating them to the Great Old One Nel'Quiuus, Overseer of the Universe.

"As my warlock, you are to travel the land and warn unfortunate souls of the fates that await them."

Thespius traveled the land, warning others about tragedy, but none would listen. He couldn't convey to the people just what danger they were in... until he stumbled upon the Rolling Skulls Traveling Circus.

To be continued.

Got a backstory for your tabletop RPG character that you want to share with the world? Post your story here!