Redding Arkwood

Wrapping his cloak around him, Redding eyes the sky as though seeking to assure himself it isn't about to fall on top of him. His apparent alertness might at first be mistaken for fear, but one soon understands that he is simply keeping a steady watch.

He is usually found lingering in the woods of the land, moving slowly from place to place. Though he is prone to drift back to the woods and glades as though summoned by a silent call, he is no stranger to the cities or other human settlements which he will sometimes visit - usually to sell his skills as a healer.

In converstaion he proves evasive and refuses to let himself be pinned to one belief or another. Sometimes his answers become too bland to bear, and people become increasingly irritated around him. However this does not seem to worry him in the slightest, and he will yet speak to any who wish to speak with him. He seems more than ready to give advice, and one can rely on him to speak logically and advise against letting one's emotions cloud a situation.

When pressed about his history, Redding simply shrugs and answers that what is past, is past. The 'here and now' is what matters. That is about as much as anyone can get out of him. Being a fairly normal looking human, tracing his ancestory seems to be an even more difficult task. What he will admit to is that he is the son of a simple woodsman and grew up in the woods, far away from most humans.

During his childhood he regularly visited druids that lived in the deep forests, at first because his father sometimes sought their advice and then later because he could learn much woodlore from them. When, at the age of 24, orc raiders swept through their homeland, they sought refuge in the deeper parts of the forests where the Druids themselves lived. As the raiders approached, Redding was witness to the amazing abilities the Druids were able to call upon to defend their home. Ever after, Reddings view of the forest was transformed from being a place he called home to an almost divine entity that willed its own preservation through those that served it. Enchanted by the idea of serving the being that had harboured his small family for so long, he enlisted with the Druids and became their apprentice. As his appretinceship comes to an end, he grows more curious of the lands outside his forest and travels more frequently. His curiousity leads him further out into new surroundings, and his apetite for new information is never satisfied.

Though he seems fairly inconsequential to the general flow of civilisation around him, Redding always manages to turn up when something important is happening - perhaps to simply watch and evaluate from behind his dark hood.