PC Spotlight - Ilda Stoneshoulder

Hello again, dear readers. We have our next character spotlight. As summer vacations begin to wind down, I have faith that we'll actually get a first session in here one of these days. In the meantime, I'd like to introduce you to Ilda Stoneshoulder. As a reward for writing a background, Ilda will receive the following:

Blind Luck: You've had to have quick reflexes your whole life to avoid getting into trouble. You have disadvantage on perception checks based on sight, but advantage on dexterity saving throws.

Cover: Passed down from wizard to wizard for generations, this is the first time that Cover has been worn by a monk in hundreds of years. Ornate wraps of polished bronze, these bracers provide a +2 bonus to AC when worn by a creature without armor or  using a shield.

Ilda Stoneshoulder - Shield Dwarf Monk

When asked about her past, Ilda tends to yawn and shrug. She was raised the eldest daughter of Baron and Baroness Stoneshoulder in the "sleepy mining town", as she liked to call it, of Mithral Hall. Despite dwarves generally being quite progressive in terms of gender equality, her parents were stiflingly overprotective due to her short stature (even for a dwarf) and poor eyesight. She stubbornly refused to wear her spectacles, which only fueled the fire. For Ilda, there wasn't much to see in Mithral Hall except shiny rocks, which still didn't appeal to Ilda as much as they do to most dwarves. She preferred to practice kung fu with her half-elf friend Talis, an orphan who was taken in by her parents. Talis was her only solace in the dark, expansive halls. She was even a good sport while being Ilda's punching bag when they'd practice. Or maybe Talis was actually scared of her.

When Ilda's parents started to make noise about marriage to some stuffy dwarf noble whose granddaddy killed a dragon or something, Ilda decided it was time to see the world.  She ran away with Talis to concentrate on training to become a monk full-time. Ilda had had a lot of practice punching people who'd made fun of her habit of squinting, and showed great aptitude as a warrior monk. With no real mentor to teach her, it really was impressive how Ilda was able to hone her skills, drawing power from the wilderness that was so new and exciting to her. After a couple years however, Talis disappeared after a drunken run in with some dragon cultists. Though her monk talents were still raw and untapped, Ilda followed Talis's trail for years with no luck. Recently though, she got a new lead that will lead her to the environmentally friendly town of Greenest.

Ilda would like to find her Talis, but in the meantime adventuring sounds fun and at least she doesn't have to marry that dwarf, what's-his-face.