> [!infobox|center wfull] > # Ezmerelda d'Avenir > ![[ezmerelda portrait.png|320]] > ###### Character > | Biographical | | > | ---- | ---- | > | Aliases | Ez, Victoria van Richten, Ezra Weathermay-Foxgrove, Mathilda von Holz, Magda Petrovna, Lavinia Juste, Nyanka Lukresh, Minodora Grygorova, Nimira Nimirova, Zondra Voltanescu, Dezdrelda ApBlanc, Korina Lansten, Diavola Karushkin, Ruxandra Groza | > | Status | Alive | > > | | | > | ---- | ---- | > | Species | Vistani Human | > > | | | > | ---- | ---- | > | Pronouns | She/Her | > | Gender | Trans Woman | > | Sexuality | Lesbian | > > | | | > | ---- | ---- | > | Born ([[Calendar of Harptos\|Harptos]]) | 09/21/1464 | > | Location Born | [[Martira Bay]] | > | Residence | [[4 Ghostwalk Alley]] | > > | | | > | ---- | ---- | > | Dominant Hand | Ambidextrous | > > | Appearance | | > | ---- | ---- | > | Eye Color | Brown | > | Hair Color | Brown (Burgundy) | > | Height | 5'11" (180.34 cm) | > > | Affiliation | | > | ---- | ---- | > | Former Occupation | [[Lorehold\|Lorehold Faculty]] ([[Strixhaven University]]), Adventurer, Monster Hunter | > | Other Former Affiliation | [[Strixhaven LARPing Guild]], [[Force Grey]] (Initiate) | > > | | | > | ---- | ---- | > | Current Occupation | Shopkeep at the [[Fox & Feather]], Weaver | > | Other Current Affiliation | [[Keepers of the Feather]], [[Richtenhaus]], [[Weathermay Apothecary]], [[Waterdeep Weavers' Guild]] | > > | Game Details | | > | ---- | ---- | > | Class | Eldritch Knight Fighter | > | Level | 20 | > | Alignment | Lawful Clown | > | Background | Charlatan | > > | | | > | ---- | ---- | > | Played By | [[Lup]] | > | Character Type | Player Character, Non-Player Character | > | Campaign | [[Curse of Strahd]], [[Tomb of Horrors]], [[Borca]], [[Waterdeep Dragon Heist\|Waterdeep: Dragon Heist]], [[Wild Beyond the Witchlight]], [[Strixhaven Year 1\|Strixhaven: Year 1]], [[City of Eyes]], [[Re Strahd\|Re: Strahd]], [[Volo's Guide to Getting Murdered]] | ## Biography #### Early Life Ezmerelda d’Avenir – a vistana by way of her mother – was born in the year 1464 DR to cruel and distant parents. Although he treated his family with relative fairness, Ezmerelda’s father was loyal to the local lord Metus, committing many atrocities in his name. Ezmerelda’s mother was also involved in these atrocities, being a devout of Strahd von Zarovich herself. Their cruelty continued; in 1474, they trafficked Erasmus van Richten, the teenage son of famous monster-hunter Rudolph van Richten. With Erasmus’s subsequent death, Ezmerelda shed her family name and left home, aiming to find the boy’s father and repent for the crimes of her parents – a misguided goal that would come to define her. Ezmerelda managed to meet up with van Richten by the year 1477, parting ways only three years later. In 1480, Ezmerelda enrolled in Strixhaven University, eventually graduating from Lorehold. She then served as the assistant to Augusta Tullus until she began to suspect Tullus of vampirism, at which point she attacked the professor. As a result, Ezmerelda was fired from her job and banned from returning to Strixhaven. Ezmerelda later reunited with van Richten in 1486. The two began to work together – they disagreed frequently, and van Richten soon departed once more. Ezmerelda spent the next several years searching for the man, venturing through the Domains of Dread in her efforts. During this period, Ezmerelda briefly returned to Strixhaven in disguise in order to prevent the formation of a Domain. ## Appearance and Personality Ezmerelda has sharp features and a long head of dark red-brown hair. Her eyes are a deep black; they are also typically cold, piercing, and lidded with caution. 5’11 and wide-shouldered, Ezmerelda’s stature befits her personality. Her features – along with her clothes, styled to look professional – add to her intimidating disposition, which is an image she makes great efforts to maintain. Despite this, Ezmerelda’s outfit does not entirely reflect the imposing air she desires. This is mostly thanks to the other bits of personality that come through with the outfit; her headband – an accessory worn since childhood that suggests her Vistana heritage – is a prime example. There is also her prosthetic leg, which is complex and ornamental by Ezmerelda’s own design. Even her most striking accessory – her jacket – is needlessly ornamental, lined with gold. The jacket is also a vivid red, but only when Ezmerelda occasionally bothers to deep-clean the years of dust and wear out of the material. Although she maintains an affectation of coolness – and although she does often seem impressive – Ezmerelda struggles with things that come to easily to others, such as mundane, every-day conversation. She can also be insecure in a way that is at odds with her genuine confidence in her abilities. Overall, Ezmerelda is a deeply passionate person. Stubborn and unflinching, she’s quick to butt heads with others – that said, she cares deeply for people, whether it be those close to her or those she believes need protecting. She is something of cynic; however, there are ways in which it’s clear that she, once upon a time, wished to be a handsome knight saving women from towers. #### Ideals > Responsibility. Evil that feeds on the innocent is the worst of all evils. It's my duty to destroy it, whether I like it or not. The most important thing to Ezmerelda is bringing justice to the innocent, or the "good people." To this end, she needs to fight evil, or the "bad people." As a result, Ezmerelda often sees the world in mostly black and white. Her somewhat rigid way of seeing the world sometimes leads her to make rash judgments in moments of frustration. In many ways, this is a maladaptive coping mechanism, developed after witnessing the evils of her parents during her childhood. Ezmerelda feels that it is her duty as a monster hunter to identify evil and stop the innocent from being hurt by that evil. While her sense of responsibility is partly owed to the idea that she is making up for the cruelty of her parents, this is not exclusively the case; Ezmerelda cares greatly for people and maintains a strong sense of sympathy for others. It’s also important to note that Ezmerelda – despite her straightforward view of justice – does not necessarily view good and evil as immutable categories, perhaps thanks to the influence of Krue, Skoll, and Nia. This can be seen with Ivana Boritsi, for example, who Ezmerelda initially viewed as evil before ultimately forming a friendship with her, partly thanks to intervention from Krue. #### Bonds For much of her life, Ezmerelda drifted from location to location in a way that made significant relationships difficult. In fact, the only person that Ezmerelda felt truly close with throughout her teenage years and early 20s was her mentor; despite this, van Richten was often absent himself. Not unlike van Richten, Ezmerelda felt that her duty as a monster hunter precluded the necessary time and safety for relationships with anyone else, platonic or otherwise. Her lack of closeness with others eventually led her to feel incapable of such relations. Often feeling misunderstood, Ezmerelda’s relationships felt far too hollow and far too casual for the knight-and-princess romances that she had dreamed of as a child. Because of this, many of her interactions with others are combative at best; she’s incredibly defensive, seeming broadly disappointed in others. Despite her defensiveness, Ezmerelda has softened significantly since her time in Barovia, where she quickly grew attached to Krue and the others. Combined with the recognition of how van Richten’s lifestyle was contributing to his sad and troubled demeanor, this caused Ezmerelda to decide that she would rather not turn out like her often-absent mentor. Instead, Ezmerelda wished to at least try to form bonds with others. This has largely been a success, all in all; currently, the most important thing to Ezmerelda is holding onto that which she has with Krue, which motivates her to combat her distancing and lonely habits. > My mentor is like a father to me, but I don't want to resign myself to being like him; the happiness I've found is too important to. #### Flaws Ezmerelda's biggest flaws relates primarily to her struggle with finding herself in the world. > I go where demons tread... but that admittedly leaves it hard to go where everyone else prefers to tread. Ezmerelda has spent much of her life prioritizing her responsibility as a monster hunter above herself and her personhood. In many ways, this leaves her with a shaky sense of identity. A pertinent example of this can be found toward the end of her time in Barovia, when Ezmerelda spoke to Krue about how she had little idea of what to do after Strahd’s demise, a hesitation which likely came from the amount of time and energy she had put into planning the dark lord’s death while ignoring herself and her needs in the process. Moreover, Ezmerelda’s propensity to run headlong into danger reflects the little value that she places on her own life. She views herself as more willing, competent, and capable than others; this leads her to take great risks, convinced that these risks are necessary and that no one else will take them. Sometimes, her rashness goes well for her, as was the case with Borca; however, being reckless in Barovia very nearly killed her when she rushed into Castle Ravenloft. As it relates to those around her, Ezmerelda’s strained sense of self puts her in a difficult position. Despite her desire to be closer with others, she doesn’t typically know how to engage with them, which often leads her to feel like interloper in the lives of those she cares about. An example of this can be found with Skoll; Ezmerelda recognizes that Skoll still believes she dislikes him thanks to an argument early on in their friendship. Thus, Ezmerelda’s unsteady sense of self holds her back in two ways: not only does she struggle to engage with people in general, but she also struggles to keep herself safe. ## Relationships ```base filters: and: - file.hasTag("Character") - this.Relationships.filter(value.person == file) formulas: Relationship: this.Relationships.filter(value.person == file).map(value.relationship) properties: file.name: displayName: Person views: - type: table name: Table order: - file.name - formula.Relationship sort: - property: file.name direction: ASC columnSize: file.name: 350 - type: cards name: Cards order: - file.name - formula.Relationship image: note.Portrait cardSize: 200 ``` ## Images ![[ezmerelda book art.webp|400]]![[ezkrue_1.png|400]]![[ez and weathermay-foxgroves.webp|400]] --- ## Page Tags/Properties **Tags:** #Character **Category:** [[Characters.base|Characters]]