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Sindri Waggletop was born and raised in the village of Pleasantleaf, a small forest gnome village in the Forest of Ruin. According to legend, the god Ellaros planted within a handful of gnomes a desire to leave the cramped, humid Rockhome, and instead go find a home in the fresh sunlight. He then spoke directly to Enidda Pleasantleaf, a gifted mage, and told her to lead the gnomes through the wilderness, protecting them from any danger they encountered. He granted her an artifact to aid in this journey, known as Ellaros’s Gift. The exact nature of this artifact has been lost over the years, but it’s most often depicted as a staff. Enidda did as Ellaros commanded, and led her people through the wilderness, protecting them from danger, until they found the site of what is now Pleasantleaf. She stayed with them for many years, acting as guardian. But eventually, when Enidda saw that the village was strong enough to care for itself, she left, eager to explore more of the world. That’s the last that anyone in Pleasantleaf ever heard of her. But they still tell the stories, using their illusion magic to bring the tales to life in magnificent fashion.
Sindri had a happy childhood. He was always curious and eager to learn, and found beauty and fascination in the world around him. While nearly everyone in Pleasantleaf had some ability to craft illusions, Sindri showed more promise than most. Still, he lived a normal life among his people. When he came to adulthood, he joined the village rotation with everyone else; one week on gathering duty, one week on illusion duty, one week on sentry duty, and repeat. He was content, for the most part. But he started to grow curious about the outside world. As time went on, the itch to explore grew harder and harder to ignore.
One evening, while on sentry duty, Sindri saw a human traveler approaching. He alerted the illusion team, who quickly hid the village from the traveler with their magic. However, unlike previous travelers, this one stopped nearby and set up camp for the not. As Sindri watched, the man conjured a translucent hand to aid in collecting firewood. He mumbled a word, and fire leapt from his fingertips to start the fire. Then he pointed at the tip of his staff, and started glowing with a bright light, by which the man began reading from a leather-bound book. Sindri was amazed! He had heard that there existed magic beyond the illusions of his people. In fact, the stories of Enidda Pleasantleaf had her using all manner of magic. But this was the first time Sindri had seen proof that it was true! Unable to contain his excitement any longer, Sindri went and greeted the man.
After dodging a ray of ice, and convincing the man Silas Frostweaver that he wasn’t a threat, Sindri began asking questions about the outside world. They talked for hours, Sindri soaking up as much as he could. Sindri was most fascinated to learn of the Tower of Magi, where magic users of all kinds could meet and learn. The very next day, Sindri packed up his few belongings, and set out.
It took some time, and much exploring, but eventually Sindri found his way to the Tower of Magi. He began his studies, learning as much as he could about magic, but also the world and everything in it. But despite the wealth of information in the Tower, after a few years Sindri started to feel the itch to explore again and see the world with his own eyes. Just as that restlessness was starting to emerge, he came across a bit of lore about Enidda Pleasantleaf. It wasn’t much, but it suggested that, after exploring much of Tawaim, she may have found her way to the Ivory Coast. Suddenly, Sindri had a quest: to go to the Ivory Coast, find out what happened to Enidda Pleasantleaf, recover Ellaros’s Gift. Of course, he’ll gladly experience and learn as much as he can on the way…