Iris

Description of who she is

Iris is a tiefling barbarian who serves as a wandering guardian, standing between the helpless and whatever hunts them. Her crimson skin, swept-back horns, and iron-banded battleaxe mark her at a glance, but it is her disciplined restraint that sets her apart: she keeps her word, obeys a hard-earned code, and unleashes her fury only when someone under her protection is threatened.

Iris was born in the hill town of Bellwether, where her horns and red skin made her an easy target for frightened gossip. Her mother, Mara, ran the town’s forge, and her adoptive father, Captain Oren Vale, served as a constable. Oren taught Iris that a law was only worth obeying if it protected the powerless. Mara taught her to work iron until sparks stung her cheeks and to repair what others were too quick to discard.

At sixteen, Iris joined Oren on a winter patrol through the mountain pass. They found a merchant caravan surrounded by starving bandits—farmers from three villages ruined by a noble’s soldiers. Oren lowered his sword and ordered the merchants to share their food. The soldiers arrived before the argument ended. When their commander struck Oren down, Iris lost control. She broke the man’s shield, drove his soldiers from the pass, and nearly killed him before Oren stopped her with one bloodied hand.

The commander was arrested, but Oren took responsibility for Iris’s violence and resigned rather than let the town hang her. He spent the next year teaching her to master the rage that surged through her like a second heartbeat. Iris learned to count her breaths, name the people she meant to protect, and put her weapon away when the danger had passed. She still carries Oren’s cracked badge on a cord around her neck.

Now Iris travels wherever laws have become excuses for cruelty. She keeps written promises, pays debts before they are due, and gives bullies one clear warning. When anger rises, she grips Oren’s badge until its edges bite her palm. She does not fear the beast within her; she fears becoming the kind of person who uses strength to serve herself.

• Speaks plainly and expects others to do the same; evasive answers earn a hard stare and a second question.

• Greets servants, guards, and nobles with the same formal courtesy.

• Counts to five in Infernal before acting on anger, gripping her axe until the urge to swing passes.

• Steps between bullies and their targets without hesitation, then offers the frightened party her cloak.

• Keeps a careful list of promises in a battered notebook and treats every one as binding.

• Laughs loudly at bad jokes, especially when someone tells one to make her feel less awkward.

• Feeds stray dogs before herself and gives each one an official-sounding name.