Inspiration in the creation of Roevash comes from both Spock (Leonard Nimoy) and Worf of the Star Trek universe. And, OMG, I hear Michael Dorn‘s voice every time Roe speaks in my head!
Okay, so you probably realized by now I am a huge Star Trek fan. Yes, I have been to a Trek Convention, and yes, I have had my picture taken with an amazing Klingon. I have seen a lot of the episodes but not as much as I wanted to of the later series as real life got in the way. The thing I like most about Star Trek is it is about a vision of the future. I kept asking the question, when are humans going to evolve so we can get to that “Star Trek generation?”
There are many sources of influence in my life as a writer. Let’s not forget video games. Role playing video games to be exact. My favorites are Dragon Age, Dragon’s Dogma and Elder Scrolls. My mind has always made up that unheard dialogue as the characters meet with NPC’s and monsters. It was only a matter of time before the urge to write my own stories would come about.
Unlike Worf, Roevash does not choose to fight. He was not raised in a warrior culture. Elves learn to protect themselves through the wisdom of their sovereign. Many young elves travel to their local rulers palace to go through a time of guard training, but it is totally volunteer work. Roevash never made it to that age of choice. Instead, he found himself surrounded by human influence during a time of war, and was swept into battle by accident. He chose to stay however, and that might have been because of the darjal’n influence in his bloodline. At this time in his life, Roevash was 6’ tall. He was born February 13, 2402, of the third age. He is right handed, and has crystal blue eyes that are accentuated by his dark complexion and sable brown hair. Roevash was shy and secretive about his race and kept much to himself in those days. He could also be stubborn and bearish when first met but he ultimately had an elven grace and virtuous heart.
Roe’s experience growing up as a half-blood among the Edhellen, and then among humans, has made him look on with silent judgment before trusting anyone, and even then, he is skeptical and always weighing your virtues. He became a seasoned fighter, and once provoked, will easily protect whomever he deems as his own. Although Roevash can be a terrifying warrior his deeply hidden heart is still that of an innocent youth who yearns to love and be loved. Roe’s instincts for strategy is honed to a sharp edge. He is able to quickly cut down to the truth of the matter. We learn much later, Roe can be very humorous when he is with his closest companions.
Darjal’n are a race of giant, sturdy men and women from Darjalia, a mountainous region to the farthest northwest. Roe’s own father, Marin of house Isokian, is from the Skald Mountain range on the eastern end of Darjalia. Few ordinary humans dare enter this region of the kingdom because the terrain is freezing cold more than half the year, and it is very treacherous and steep.
Darjalia is governed by it’s own sovereign who resides in his palace on the Isle of Rock. The darjal’n king always shares bloodlines with the High King of all of Ainghaille. As a people, they were granted longer lives by the Lords of Ilmatar, up to 1000 years from their birth, for the act of saving the Edhellen from slaughter when they first arrived into the realm. The elves hold an influence over the hearts of giant peoples of Darjalia. The darjal’n folk revere the elvenkin, and they lived in harmony together, with them as neighbors, for many years.
Many scholars believe this time in history is when the Edhellen learned battle technique from their darjal’n hosts. The elves then migrated south into the more forested areas of the kingdom. Though a few still remained in Darjalia, they are scarce. It is also rare to find a darjal’n outside of their northern homeland unless called to war. An exception was the settlement of darjal’n folks, whom by their ruler’s request stationed themselves in the Illianheni foothills to keep watch on the Ajattara Fells. This area to the northeast is where the last known evil would be put to rest in the “Great War” at the end of the “Third Age of Elves.”
“Chivalry and ambition leads to success,” was the credo from which they lived. When the darjal’n weren’t called to battle, they lived in a fairly peaceful society. They were fishers, farmers and ranchers just like any other human population. The young men were often times indentured to those of influence so they could have a chance to become influential themselves. They were a people of honest integrity, so abuse was never a factor in taking on a young squire as a servant. The darjal’n race has always had a second name designated by their estate property. They kept that name even when adopted into servitude.
Men and women worked side by side as equals in the harsh mountainous climate. The women folk of Darjalia were often times taller than their menfolk. They are also exceptional horsewomen, and developed a terrifying war horse that towered to an imposing 17 to 20 hands tall. The animals were sturdy and sure-footed, strong enough to carry a fully armored darjal’n over rough terrain. If Roevash had been raised in Darjalia he would have been trained up as a warrior from a young age. Darjal’n men and women often times bore the scars of childhood, but this was not a point of pride because scars went to the loser of a fight. The women did not often go to battle with their men because they raised-up their young, and you might say, “kept the hearth fires burning,” in their vast estates when their men went off to war.
I have to say, Roevash is my favorite character. He suffers so as a youth being in love with his cute little brother and mother and yet feeling like an outsider in Eldelórne. As time passes he has moments of greatness and total failures, but because of his built in stoic integrity and a methodical mind he always seems to come up with the right answers to rises above the problems he faces. Though the focus may be on his little brother at times, Roe is always my hero.
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