User:Ayrionthar

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Ayrion Viperis


Full Name: Ayrionthar Viperis (Originally Ayrionthar Starscribe)

Title: Druid of the Fang Race: Night Elf

Gender: Male

Class: Druid

Guild: None

Rank: Commander of the Dragonmaw Clan

Nicknames: Greaseball, Snake

Religious Affiliation: None

Server: Server:Feathermoon

Appearance and Traits
Ayrion looks to be middle aged for a night elf, slim to the point of being reedy but relatively tall, standing at somewhere around eight feet in height. Although lean, he's strong enough, his frame like whipcord over steel, but compared to many other kaldorei, he usually gives the impression of being fragile. Or greasy - generally he is, at that, with his dark blue hair slicked back into a ponytail and most often kept smoothly organized via grease and oil. Likewise is his beard, normally short clipped and scruffy, is kept organized via the same method. His skin is pale blue-shaded purple, patterend here and there with the scars that come with the ravages of fighting time and again, eyes a remarkably untypical pale yellow but with solid black 'tear stripes' running from the inside of each eye to nearly the bridge of his nose, his features narrow and serpentine. He doesn't particularly stand out in a crowd of other elves, despite this.

His gear is even less remarkable, a kitbash of whatever he could find to throw on normally, sturdy enough but usually worn and marked with bits of carefully repaired damage. Occasionally his clothing is far more ceremonial, care taken in every stitch and hide worn, patterned in brilliant greens and warm browns to resemble the viper he takes the name of. Oddly enough, there is no scent of grease or oil on anything he wears - just the smell of serpent musk. He gives the impression of being a little too wary to be up to anything good.

A determined follower of the Serpent Totem, one of Ayrion's feral forms are markedly different from most other druids. The bear shape is not unlike what others might take, nor the purple-feathered raven form won through difficult tasks and much work, nor the spotted cheetah shape. But most of his fighting is done in the form of a massive dire cobra: easily at least thirty feet long from fanged snout to tailtip and able to rear up to twelve feet in height, this dark indigo scaled form is outright foreign to most druids but his favored shape; yellow eyed and long-fanged, he relies on his poison, speed and bite more than endurance to win his battles.

Allies and Relatives
Kaledevi Vagrantwind:

Several hundred pounds of pure muscle and incredible power, Kale is one of Ayrion's most valued allies - whenever he gets himself into trouble, inevitably it's the bear-druid's strength that gets him back out of it. Although Kale's not the most intelligent druid to ever walk the world, he more than makes up for it in sheer tenacity.

(moar goes here nub, edit this! Need: Hev, Pallion. Adatir?)

Personality
Strongly cynical, Ayrion tends to expect the worst of pretty much any given situation and plans accordingly; few incidents are spared his ascerbic take on the situation and how it will likely turn out, usually to the frustration of his travelling companions. He tends to be fond of debate and arguing, and can be excellent at battles of wits when truly at the top of his game. At times, he acts too fast on hastily formed opinions, and has to waste a lot of time and energy defending his rash and sometimes flagrantly incorrect conclusions. This makes him somewhat easy pickings for those who have the *right* conclusions, especially given his tendency to defend a point simply for the point of the matter long after the situation's lost any importance or relevance. Ayrion's learned one important thing, however: some battles need to change fields before being won. Snide arguments in pubs often can't be won, and striking out at nominal allies can earn painful retribution from stronger people nearby, but anyone else is fair game. If a fight can't be won in the way it begins, he'll win it through other means; insults can earn the one who ticks him off a sudden brutal attack in the dead of night, without warning or seeming provocation. His powers lie in stealth and surprise. Using them like a carving knife instead of a sledgehammer is something he's learned only with time.

Ayrion is entirely self-motivated. Most druids wish to preserve nature at any cost, including their own lives - he wishes to preserve nature so long as it doesn't risk his neck or cost him much comfort to do it. His heart's in the right place, but his methods are .. less than stellar. His aversion to getting killed often makes him seem a coward, reluctant to get involved in things that might lead to inevitable personal suffering. Oddly enough given his dislike for betrayal, being spied upon, and generally being backstabbed, Ayrion has absolutely no hesitation when it comes to backstabbing or betraying others so long as it benefits him directly or indirectly enough to make it worth it. But should a better offer come along, he'd would do what he's done in the past, and simply walk away from what he has now in favor of reaching something better, more important, and ultimately more beneficial to himself. Right now, the best deal is helping Shattrath City and trying to free Outlands. If that changes, so will his loyalties. . Honor is for others, for fools who have no concept of reality; that the world is a dark, harsh and terrible place where only the strong - and those who control the strong - survive.

But sometimes he's generous. He shares what he has freely, be it food or objects found in his travels, and doesn't usually expect anything in return.

Occasionally he fugues. Triggered usually by a combination of undead and blind terror, his fugue state is, basically, dissociative amnesia - in these states, Ayrion forgets who he is, invents himself a whole new name, personality and background (that sometimes changes from fugue to fugue) that he believes is absolutely true, and suffers the compulsion to leave wherever he is currently and go somewhere else far away. What happens in the intervening time is often not remembered; Ayrion simply seems to abrubtly find himself far from where he was before, with no knowledge or memory of how he got there or what he'd just been doing. Ordinarily, the personality he aquires, and history, is of a night elf called 'Gray', who claims to be nothing more than an ordinary practitioner of druidism and leatherworking, but specializes in skinning /humanoids/ and making things out of their hides.

Skills
Ayrionthar is a skilled leatherworker, specializing in ornamental 'tribal' designs made from hides in colors and patterns most people never see. While he doesn't bother to tell people that oftentimes his hides come from trolls or orcs or sometimes even humans and the like, it keeps him well in money, and his abilities to craft elegant clothing from such things is obvious.

Fond of cooking, Ayrion's dedicated a lot of time to learning new recipes and inventing his own, often winding up making more than he could eat and promptly sharing with others that happen to be nearby.

Serpent Totem
Ayrion is a completely sane, uncorrupted student of Naralex and follower of the Serpent totem. The way he acts is how he is naturally, for better or worse.

Traditionally, Druids of the Fang are spellcasters of considerable ability, able to call down lightning to strike their foes as well as induce sleep in anyone they battle, be it beast or humanoid. This is most prevalently seen in the Wailing Caverns, and the many serpent druids there. But as there are many types of serpent, so there are many paths even a Fang druid can take. Currently, Ayrion follows the path of the Dire Cobra, choosing to forgo considerable casting power in favor of sheer speed and melee combat ability.

For those who take the time to pry from him what it means to him to be a Druid of the Fang, Ayrion will generally explain: worldwide, the serpent is seen as a coldblooded killer, poisoning foes instead of battling fairly, or as symbols of rebirth and renewal; as much as many serpents are venomous and can kill in one bite, so too do they shed their skins, renewing themselves over and over. To be a druid of the serpent totem, he feels, means to be aware most people will assume you're corrupted on sight, but having the perserverance to continue anyway, be it to kill or to heal. Naralex exemplified the aspect of rebirth and renewal, seeking to restore the damage to the Barrens, while his Fanglords ... well, they forgot all but the deceit, damage and trickery a snake is known for.

It's all very complicated, he claims.

Ayrionthar does not have an animal companion, like some druids do. This isn't because he doesn't want to put them at risk, so much as he hasn't found a serpent he thinks could keep up.

Precious Things
Special belongings, Ayrion has few of. For someone who really likes luxury, he doesn't have a lot of STUFF.

What he does have, however, is a pair of Netherdrakes. One netherdrake, blue scaled and raised by the Dragonmaw since whelphood, does not work with Ayrion willingly. A slave kept obedient through ornate jewelrylike bands and delicate looking chains, this drake (called Ashclaw by Ayrion) is as cunning and intelligent as a free netherdrake might be, but has no free will to speak of, doing as directed when directed without hesitation, be it transportation throughout Shadowmoon Valley, or far more frequently, being used as a terrifying weapon against Ayrion's foes.

Ayrion does not call Ashclaw when his other allies are around. Explaining why he has a dragon in thrall would simply be too difficult.

The other drake, self-named Viridis, is mostly in shades of green and tan, and like many of the Netherwing, fully believes Ayrion has been helping them gain their freedom from the threat of the Dragonmaw for months on end. As such, he has willingly offered his aid to Ayrion, doing much the same things Ashclaw does - but of his own free will, instead of through forced subjugation. Why Ayrion has chosen to not free Ashclaw and simply keep Viridis around, he's not explaining.

Even more peculiarly, Ayrion has a 'pet' demon, a small soccer ball sized floating one eyed Beholder he calls Will. This demon he jokingly claims is there to keep an eye on him, and often doesn't otherwise speak about.

Loyalties
Ayrion has few genuine loyalties. Nevertheless, he has taken the time to get into good standing with Cenarion Refuge, possibly because he'd like to get his hands on an Earthwarden after seeing what Kaledevi can do with it. Likewise, he professes loyalty to Shattrath City and specifically the Aldor, taking quite a bit of time to prove to the Draenei there that he is a determined killer of Demons, bringing them many marks and armaments to prove it.

The fact that he is a Commander in the Dragonmaw clan's forces and an accomplished netherdrake rider there is much less easily understood, especially given the fel orcs there are perfectly aware he's a night elf and still do nothing about it. It often seems his loyalty with these corrupted orcs is stronger than it is with his own people.

Otherwise, he has few loyalties. The few allies he trusts he's loyal to, willing to do what he can to help them out, but even then.. he puts his own desires and wants first.

The Dragonmaw
As a Commander of the Dragonmaw, Ayrion's willingly slaughtered foes of the Illidari, consorted with demons, turned over netherdrake eggs to the orcs there, and done his best to drive out potential threats to the operations on Netherwing Ledge. As mentioned elsewhere, the orcs are well aware he's a night elf, and have done nothing about it. It's likely that even Illidan Stormrage is aware that the druid is there, having personally insisted that Ayrion be promoted to Captain to begin with, and has yet to act on the Dragonmaw's knowledge that he's occasionally in disguise.

Why would a night elf, nevermind a Druid, even consider aiding these corrupted orcs? Unknown sources have quoted his feelings on the matter, transcribed below, supposedly overheard during a conversation with Trope the Filth-Belcher.

"Look at Ichman and Mulverick. One human, one orc. They're here, aren't they? Nobody cares that they used to be Alliance or Horde. Nobody gives a damn that they once fought for the other side of this war Stormrage is fighting, just that they're here now, fighting for this instead. You don't get that elsewhere. You don't get people deciding that everything you've done in the past doesn't matter so long as you stay loyal and work hard. Nobody cares you're a Broken either, doesn't matter what you do or did. And if you work at it, if I work at it, hell, if that satyr over there does too, it pays off. You don't have to be an orc, or related to someone to get ahead. Doesn't matter who you are or what you are, or what wars you fought elsewhere against who. With the Dragonmaw, and with Stormrage, you get a second chance at getting somewhere in life. And nobody questions it."

History
While Ayrion claims to be at least old enough to have seen the War of the Shifting Sands, most other things about his history, family, and what turned him towards being a druid of the Fang, are a complete mystery. He's not generally inclined to discuss it, either, preferring to suddenly change the subject when asked.

Ayrion's current whereabouts are unknown, last seen at the Altar of Sha'tar in Shadowmoon Valley. It is assumed that he, like many other combatants in the Outland's many wars and battles, has perished.