Rolen Fana-Pol

Rolen Fana-Pol is a 107 year old wood elf. He was born in the village of Auvandell. The wood elves of the village would tend to a small forest on the outskirts of town. His father, Peren Fana-Pol, tended the trees but he was known around the region for his fantastic and intricate wood carvings. His mother, Enna, was a bit more mysterious. When Rolen was younger, she would disappear for days, often returning with tattered clothes or bruises. But she was kind and funny. She liked to take Rolen to  the woods for fantastic games of imagination. As he grew older, she taught him the basics of the short sword and the longbow.

Rolen had one older sister, who would join his mother and himself in the woods for their games. Her name was Hanna and Rolen looked up to her. She was his sun and moon. She was adept with a bow like his mother and continuously doted on young Rolen, often sneaking him fruit between meals.

In the late fall of Rolen’s 51st year, Orcs attacked the village of Auvandell. Rolen and his mother were singing songs and shooting targets in the forest and were unaware of the violence until their return. Many villagers died. Many more were missing, his sister Hanna among them.

His mother immediately set off with a band of men and elves to track the orcs. The trail was wide and easy to read, as if the orcs were riding a black dragon with a limp. But then, after 10 miles, nothing. It just stopped. As if the orcs disappeared from this plane. The searchers continued for days but could find nothing. No signs, no clues. Nothing. No bodies were recovered. Eventually Rolen’s mom returned to the village, empty handed and broken-hearted.

Enna changed after the orc raid. She laughed less, stared vacantly into the woods more. Eventually Enna’s brother, Aust Sianodel, appeared in the village. He was foul mouthed and rude, which was rare for a wood elf, but he was also an excellent ranger and tracker. Rolen took shine to his uncle immediately and Aust took a shine to Rolen. Enna told Rolen that he was to leave the village in the early spring and wasn’t to return until the late fall. That he needed to train with Aust. That he needed to be ready. Rolen knew this new paranoid streak in his mother was because of the raid and Rolen felt sorry for his mother but training in the woods with his uncle for seasons was a thrilling opportunity and Rolen embraced it. Year after year, Aust and Rolen would go into the woods and mountains and villages of the region, training and having adventures, only returning to Auvandell in the late fall. As Rolen expanded his travels and his mind, Auvandell seemed less like his home and more just like a place where his sister used to live. His mother was always happy to see them and hear about their adventures (and more so how his training was going) and she was always eager to shoo them out in the spring to continue his education. His father would take the winters to show Rolen some wood carving techniques and all though he wouldn’t say much, Rolen could detect the sadness of the soul that only a dead child can leave.

In the winter of Rolen’s 106th year, Aust declared that Rolen was ready to set out on his own. He said that his training was complete and he needed to travel to become the ranger that Aust knew he could be. So that spring Rolen hugged his mother and father and said that he wouldn’t be returning in fall. Rolen said he needed to see what was out there but that he would visit if he was in the area. Both of his parents understood. Rolen and Aust traveled for a day together before saying their goodbyes. They embraced and Aust turned to the south not looking back. Rolen traveled west and this is where his adventure begins...

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