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Background
Panlos comes from an extended family of Foots. Mostly from the offshoot Lightfoot branch, there are several instances were Stronghearts have intermarried, as in the case with Panlos' immediate elders. There are the Clawfoots, the Featherfoots, the Giantfoots, the Scalefoots...and even some distant Smellyfoots are always welcome at reunions. Once, a very earnest cousin called Gub Handfoot—for the fact that with his feet he could do almost all that one normally used their hands for...like, and especially, writing—made the effort to create a family Foot Tree—after 948 Foots recorded, it became an unreadable tome of shared family history. Why were their so many Foots? The tradition in the Foot Family was that each newborn child would eventually show their innate character at some stage between birth and adulthood, where once agreed upon by the parents, that child would receive and appropriate surname reflecting that characteristic. But as was the way of things, many distant cousins could likely share the same preface-foot name...and the day these two Good Folk would meet, it would be a day of immediate celebration in comparison of the gifts of their traits.
The Winefoots were an especially rowdy bunch!
As it were, Panlos' mother—born and raised in Corm Op—was one of these Lightfoot branch Hins. His father—a adventurous Strongheart Halfling from Lurien—was smitten when seeing his wife-to-be at a Shieldmeet...and pursued her all the way back to Corm Op, where they settled and created an large family. It was said from birth that Panlos took to his father's side of the gene pool, fifty-one percent-if-not-more Strongheart, and full of said traits.
One story that Panlos tells about his first "calling" to nature—a story told to him by his family as he grew into adulthood—is how once when a very young child, before he could even talk, he could not be found by his parents for two days, which was two days of great worry (and a bit of gossip in the village of Corm Orp about parenting duties....). Alas and finally, Panlos's siblings got the idea to search the barn, and sure enough, above the hayloft, up in the rafters, snuggled pleasantly in a barn owl's nest, was Panlos...and two baby owlets. All was well and good, after Panlos was reunited with his Hin kin...but it would take a few weeks before he accepted any food that wasn't first chewed and lightly regurgitated by his mother.
Personality
“There is a wild spirit in all of us. Mine just so happens to be an Owlbear!”
— Panlos Pawfoot
— Panlos Pawfoot
Like a typical Hin, Panlos has a friendly disposition towards others, except for those that treat flora and fauna with disrespect. He believes in the strength of family and friends, but as his power within Nature has grown, he has found himself on the bad side of skepticism and distrust, which at times he does not handle very well. Panlos is adamant about the need for Nature to take its course, even when that is a chaos beyond control. He is willing to fight for the right of Nature, in that regard.
Unlike many Halflings, instead of being cordial to the "larger" Races, he actively enjoys challenging them, through his innate powers allow for a grant range of forms to be taken. Not necessarily a trickster, he does carry a roguish manner, which seems to manifest more the longer and farther he is away from the peace and tranquility that a wild nature surrounding inspires.
Training
In his early adult life, Panlos left Corm Orp through one circumstance or another, and traveled deep within The Reaching Woods. Unbeknownst to him, this desire to wander was a mix of innate desire from what he inherited from his mother, and the chosen call from the Forest Father, reaching out to one of the Hin race that was more wild in nature spirit than any others of his Race. Ways of the Druid—especially that of wild nature—was taught to Panlos within the Reaching Woods by those that inhabited it: the Satyrs, the Hypsils, the Centaurs...and by the "voice" of the Forest Father what was speak to him, guide him, show Panlos that nature must remain free, wild, untamed...and that would be Panlos' meaning in life to pursue and uphold. After a time, his development into what is spoken as "a Shifter" powers manifested. The woods, being both peaceful and full of half-breed-like beings of man-animal types, Panlos was trained to best use both his original form and his animal-beast forms to their best means of fighting.
Worship
Panlos feels a connection to and of being blessed by the Forest Father. For a time, powers and magic were granted him through this worship, and developed skillfully under guidance by other druids within the Reaching Woods. But at a certain point, Panlos felt his connection to the druidic ways slow down or perhaps peak, while simultaneously, he found his connection to what he calls the "Wild Spirit" within grow and eventually, literally, manifest is a certain innate control of his own form. Currently, though Panlos reveres all the the Forest Father teaches, he follows a path of the wild aspect of Nature, and in particular, that which is evident in the fauna—the beasts and the monsters of the wilds—that populate all corners of the world.
Panlos is concerned with any aspect of Nature that becomes bound, trapped or dominated. His actions take the form of liberation of beasts—both mundane and magical—that become bound against their will, or, have never been given a true taste of freedom. This has led Panlos to liberate domestic animals harshly groomed, to unleash or attempt to liberate beasts kept caged in dungeons and castles to become tools of cruel masters. On a more direct, personal note, Panlos has taken it upon himself to both guard against and limit the expansion of his hometown Corm Op, and even at times other Halfling settlements—such as Gullykin—where nature is not given the better side of balance. Panlos "studies" Nature through his ability to mimic or take shape of the many beasts and beings he encounters on his travels, feeling that shall he "embody" all those "Others" than himself, he will truly know the best way to make sure he understands what the Forest Father asks of him to be.
Relationships
Panlos has a strong relationship to being a Halfling, though his innate powers have brought him many new forms of...existence. Therefore, his relation to any village or enclave with a Halfling population or a dominant population, he has made or is interested in making a greater connection. As he continues to venture farther and farther away from his cherished forests and villlages, he has met a few Hins that bring him comfort and companionship.
Heirloom items
- Upside-down Birds Nest
At least that what Panlos' great aunt Ginny Finefoot calls the hat Panlos wears. A mostly-straw construction that Panlos has been religiously repairing for years, it is likely as much straw as it is bird feathers, twigs, pine needles, moss, spit, boogers and odd bits of string. "I keep my most precious object under that hat!" says Panlos often enough. Just what could he mean? - Oak Wood Ball Necklace
A hobby-craft of his oldest sister who trades in such wood-based jewelry in the annual harvest market, this necklace of 17 perfectly round and polished balls of oak wood references the total number of (known!) siblings from Panlos' family. The wood comes from fallen branches from one of the oldest and secretly protected oaks in the neighboring hills of Corm Op. - Just Plain Boots
Panlos' abilities as a Shifter have reached their apex, yet...ever since his life as a Shifter began, he would experience often a rather peculiar after effect from shifting: his lower legs would shape back to original Hin, yet...they would retain the feather, scales, leathery skin, etc. that he had most recently shifted from. This unfortunate lingering state would often last for some time, even after continual shifting thereafter. Not himself embarrassed from this situation, he was quite aware of the commotion such a look would stir up among his friends, among his family of Foots. And thus Panlos' father, a known genius for simple solutions to problems within the large household, passed on to Panlos a pair of just plain boots...or so his Father told him they were....
The Essential Nature of Panlos Pawfoot
Some say that the Forest Father is always watching Panlos, like a good fatherly figure would do to his wayward son-ling. Others may say that Panlos gives the God of Wild Nature great entertainment, in seeing Panlos both disturb and create The Balance, through Panlos' many experiences upon the Sword Coast.
Panlos Pawfoot's Pouch of Procured Prizes
Every so often, Panlos can be seen dragging behind him in the dirt a large sack full of items he has managed to acquire by traveling up and down the Sword Coast, sometimes below and above as well!!!
///WIP