Character Submissions - Rivendell / Lone Lands / Bree

[Ercassie]

Name (s): Clayton 'Clay' Dogwood

Heritage: Man of Bree

Birthplace: Born in the Lone Lands (?)


Appearance: Brown hair and dark brown eyes. Clay always has hardy footwear, thanks to his family's business, but otherwise looks uncomfortable in clothes that Amber 'Berry' Finch has dressed him up in to look 'halfway decent'. He works hard to keep up with his peers and it shows. He is trying to grow a beard to impress the older men he works with,

Personality: Perhaps because of some local notoriety (due to rumours of him being a foundling) and his irrepressible nature, Clay has never quite managed to tow the line and live an ordinary life. Raised by a shoemaker, he nonetheless decided to join the Hillwatch and protect his homeland instead of taking up the family business. He is considered by some of his colleagues as little more than a company mascot, and is rarely taken seriously, even when his gut instinct tends to be rather keen. He is ever eager to help support his aged ‘parents’ and of late quite very much in love with Amber Finch, the milkmaid from Combe. He has proven rather less than successful in winning over her father, Farmer Caldwell Finch.


Experience: Clay had an unusual start in life, given that his young parents desperately/accidentally took shelter from a storm in the hideaway of robbers – and paid the price. His mother secretly hid him away, while his father tried to placate their ‘hosts’, but the fiends entertained themselves by allowing the boy’s mother to live, if she killed her husband. She did so, at her already wounded lover's insistence, to save her life. She meant to come back for baby Clay, but by the time she managed to do so, he was gone …

Two Elves passing through the scene had in fact found the body of Clay’s father, and the helpless infant. Though Nariel had wanted to keep and raise the baby, Erfaron refused outright, and so they left the child on the doorstep of a home in Bree. He was duly taken in by Amos and Prudence Dogwood and raised as their son. Ironically, Clay’s true parents were Bryony Witchwood and Clancy Dogwood, who had run away together as rather naive adolescents. So in truth, he was raised by his grandparents, though assuming them his parents.


A good friend of Coleman Finch since childhood, Clay and Cole Finch are quite inseparable, though recently their relationship has shifted ever so as Clay pursues Cole's sister with romantic intentions. During an adventure to recover a prized horse that ran from Finch Farm, Clay come across a young girl called Daesy/Dessy Hart just outside of Bree. He brought the young ranger’s daughter home and his family agreed to mind her while her father serves in the wild. She is an aide to Prue around the house, and plenty company, even in a comfortably cramped small home. As far as Clay is concerned, Dessy is his ‘sister’ and he is suitably protective of her, as though she were in fact. Her father regularly visits, and provides generous gifts of needful supplies and occasional manual labour for the elderly Dogwood guardians.

Clay is entirely oblivious to the fact that Bryony Spruce is his true born mother, and seems unlikely to realise this fact despite that she has herself secretly started to suspect the truth. This has proven most fortuitous as he endeavours to have Sully Spruce arrested. Bryony has so far managed to intervene between the pair to avoid serious damage. It remains to be seen if the suspicions shall ever be confirmed. He is happy with the family he lives with, and is looking forward to starting a family with his girlfriend.

[Fane Mordagnir]

1. What is your name?

Fanecu Orquicotumo Mordagnir

2. Where do you hail from, currently?

Imladris

3. Of what race are you?

Noldor

4. What arms do you bear?

Fane's training in Gondolin under the House of the Fountain has served him well and he fights mostly with his long sword Mirmacil (Jewelsword) but also carries his father Manar's spear forged in Aman, Andapalt (Longblade). Although proficient with a bow Fanecu due to his long life he is by no means an expert archer as considered by elves. He wears light armour as often seen among those who wander for many years but in his home in Rivendell hangs still some of his many armours including the plate from Gondolin and his helm peaked with a diamond.

5. Tell us about your family and history!

Fanecu's father was Manar, one Fingolfin's people who awoke in Cuivienen and lost his partner to Melkor. His Mother Aranna was born of the Falathrim some time before the siege of Falas during the First Battle of Beleriand. Manar had long followed Turgon and sworn himself to the second son of Fingolfin after the death of Elenwe having known the loss of a spouse in the early years of awakening. Although Turgon's host was large Manar always tried to stay close to the leader and was often seen in the number of guards of his lord. Often staying out of the spotlight Manar was seen as a steady elder who was slow to anger and metered in all his endeavours.

and Aranna met as they both traveled with the parties of their respective lords to the Mereth Aderthad and both returned together to Vinyamar. Manar felt that he had once more found his lost partner but knew that Aranna was not that elf. He often thanked Eru for the gift that he had been given even as one of the exiled. The two elves joined themselves sometime before the construction of Gondolin began in FA64. Both travelled with Turgon to the Tumladen and were secret builders of the great hidden city. Fanecu was born in FA110 just a few years before the city was completed and as a very young elfling he watched as the gathered host of Turgon entered the seventh gate at this point he knew he wished to be a member of the House of the Fountain.

For the remainder of Fanecu's youth he focussed on training at all hours but his mother made sure he also paid attention to his learning and as well as being a skilled warrior he was also gifted in the flute and also had a working knowledge of smithing and the cutting of gems. At his coming of age Fanecu swore his fealty to Ecthelion and fulfilled his dream of becoming a member of the House of the Fountain. He was one of the many guards present for the arrival of Tuor to Gondolin and watched Ecthelion greet the mortal who would soon become the ruler of the House of the White Wing.

Fanecu and his father both fought in the host of Turgon at the Nirnaeth Arnoediad among the 10,000 elves that were brought out of Gondolin. It was the first time that Fanecu had left the city and met other elves and other men. This was also the time when he learned of his love of the wilderness.

During the sack of Gondolin Fanecu fought with the House of the Fountain at the seventh gate and was part of the retreat both to the Square of the King to rejoin his father who was a member of the House of the King and the retreat of the rest of the Gondolin army escaping with his mother and father through Idril's secret way following Tuor to the Mouths of Sirion and then onwards to the isle of Balar. Then becoming vassals of Cirdan and Gil-Galad going east with them to Lindon after the drowning of Beleriand. For a long period the family lived among the Noldor in Forlindon. Aranna found that her sister had also survived the trials of Beleriand and had come to settle in Harlindon and often visited her but found that she was often unwelcome outwith her sister as she was seen as a traitor to the Sindar. Aranna's sister eventually could not bear the guilt of having a connection to the Noldor and the strain this put on her relationship with her sister so left to join the other Sindar in the east and eventually came to be one of the elves of Mirkwood marrying and having a child Ringnar.

Fanecu's love of the wilderness encouraged his travel with other Noldor east to found Eregion with the host of Celebrimbor who he had known from Gondolin. His parents however still saw Celebrimbor as one of the line of Feanor and remained in Mithlond despite Galadriel and Celeborn's initial rule of the new kingdom. Fanecu was not among the smiths of Eregion but was instead concerned more with exploring the wilderness and was among the host and the outriders to defend the land and explore further. His mothers heritage allowed Fanecu access to the land of Lothlorien as an emissary on occasion both before and after Galadriel and Celeborn emigrated.

As Fanecu was long in the wilds he did not come under the influence of Annatar but held good favour with the people of Gil-Galad in Forlindon and therefore was there spending time with his parents during the fall of Eregion and Celebrimbor's death. Guilt for not being present during the downfall of Eregion forced Fanecu to fight in the Battle of Gwathlo and again becomes an outrider chasing the last of Sauron's forces east with the Numenorean soldiers.

Fanecu retained connections with the Numenorean's even after Tar-Atanamir the Great's rule and often visits the Elendili in Middle Earth. Eventually he moves to Rivendell as he believes that this is the front line in the battle with Sauron. Fanecu often travelled far south and east to Pelagir but is at home in Rivendell when Elendil and his sons arrive in Middle Earth.

Again Fanecu and his father Manar raise blades with one another as members of the elvish forces in the Last Alliance and battle in Dagorlad and at the Siege of Barad-dur. Manar is severely wounded in the latter and walks with a cane for the rest of his life - he passes his weapons to Fanecu who now posesses his weapons forged in Gondolin but also his fathers spear forged in Aman before he left. Following Gil-Galad's demise Fanecu's family choose to remain in Lindon under Cirdan's rule.

Fanecu's wanderlust continued into the Third Age often being absent from Rivendell for many years at a time travelling among men and elves. Occasionally straying into the far east and south under the guise of a merchant having set himself the task of learning and monitoring the men who had betrayed their own as they reminded him of the Moles who destroyed Gondolin. Due to his travels he misses most of the war with Angmar in the North hearing about it only after the fact.

During one of Fanecu's long expeditions in the east Manar and Aranna choose to travel one last time to the east to visit Aranna's sister in Mirkwood before they travel westwards to Aman as Manar's injury pained him greatly and he sought relief and peace in the land he still believes is his true home. Having spent much time in Mirkwood, Manar and Aranna depart with an escort of Aranna's sister and husband who promise to travel with them to Lothlorien to see them safely home. During the journey west the group is attacked by a roving band of orcs travelling between Dol Guldur and the ranges of the Misty Mountains. No more is heard of the four of them.

Having returned to the west Fanecu hears of the disappearance of his parents and the rest of their party and sets out to find signs of them. After much searching Fanecu finds the belongings of his mother and aunt (matched broaches and necklaces to fine for orc hands) among remains and knows that this is where is family perished. The singlemindedness of Fanecu then turns away from men and his ill will is directed entirely at the orcs seeking them out and bringing some of their fear of Gondolin blades back. This period of his life is where he takes the name Orquicotumo and aims to be a feared shadow to the orcs and stripping them of their safety in the dark.

On one of the many visits home Fanecu meets Elladan and Elrohir who share his own hatred of elves after the mistreatment of their mother and tarries for a time in Rivendell and often rides with them abroad in assistance of the Dunedain.

Several years ago Fane returned to Rivendell again knowing that the age of the elves is waning and knows that the Hidden Vale requires protecting against the growing forces of darkness in the world. There following the loss of his family he becomes a member of the Mordagnir clan - old friends and allies of his and his family who had been present in Gondolin and were influential elves in Eriador.

His life was once more thrown for six when out of the blue a message arrived for Fanecu which suggested that his father had not perished in the attack in Wilderland but had been captured and escaped the orcs of the mountains and had been sighted east of the mountains and was brutally murdering orcs leaving rivers of blood behind him. Fanecu left immediately without warning or telling anyone from the Mordagnir clan.

He has now returned to Rivendell after his search turned up only empty clues that could have been Manar but could equally have been any other being with ill will towards the orcs. He lives in hope that he is not the last member of his line to seek council from the Mordagnirs on what he should do next if anything.