THORVALD BONE-CARVER
FrostbornMaster Bone Carver
"Bone is memory. Bone is story. When I carve, I'm not shaping dead matter - I'm giving voice to a life that was lived.""
Identity
- Residence
- Frosthold - Bone Carver's Quarter
- Civilization
- Frostborn
Appearance
• Clothing: Wears a leather apron over simple woolens, both permanently stained with bone dust and marrow. His tool belt is made from interlocking bone plates he carved himself. • Distinguishing Marks: Missing the last two fingers on his left hand - lost to a carving accident that he claims "taught him respect for the material."
Relationships
- Family - Father is a retired hunter who still doesn't understand his son's choice. Mother was a weaver who taught him patience and pattern-work.
- Allies - Hunter Svana (NPC #2), his primary bone supplier; Shaman Yrsa (NPC #4), who commissions sacred carvings.
- Rivals - Bone carver Freya (NPC #19), who uses more modern techniques he considers disrespectful.
Personality
- Traits: Intensely focused when working, gregarious and storytelling when not, deeply respectful of the dead, surprisingly squeamish about blood
- Mannerisms: Constantly carves small practice pieces when talking, tells long stories about the animals whose bones he uses, apologizes to bones before carving.
- Voice: Animated and expressive, with a habit of trailing off mid-sentence when he gets an idea for a new piece.
Backstory
Thorvald was training to be a hunter like his father when he discovered his true talent lay in honoring the dead. After his first successful hunt, he spent three days carving his kill's bones into a memorial so beautiful that the clan shaman declared it blessed. He gave up hunting to focus entirely on bone carving, creating everything from practical tools to sacred relics.
Daily Life
Thorvald works in his shop from dawn until exhaustion, taking breaks only to trade for materials and share stories at the local gathering hall. He sources bones from hunters, butchers, and natural deaths, always ensuring nothing goes to waste.
Secret
Thorvald once carved a bone flute from the remains of a frost giant - a forbidden practice. The flute plays melodies that can calm any Frostborn, but he fears the giant's spirit haunts it and has hidden it away.
Story Hooks
- 1 Thorvald has been commissioned to create a bone relic for a foreign dignitary but needs a specific bone from a legendary creature; he needs hunters to retrieve it.
- 2 Someone is stealing his best works and selling them as ancient artifacts; he needs help finding the forger.
Narrative Value
Craftsman for equipment upgrades, source of cultural lore through his stories, quest giver for rare material gathering, connection to Frostborn death customs and ancestor veneration. ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════