A partially burnt painting found in the ruins of Castle Foy, a once mighty stronghold located near Mirrah's northern border. Rumors suggest the entire Foy family perished when a rival kingdom invaded their lands, and this portrait, depicting Lord Gordon and Lady Elspeth's only child, is all that remains of their proud legacy.
Character Name: Isolda Foy, also known as Isolda of Mirrah
Age and Age at time of original death: Currently 28 years old, 21 years old at time of original death
Sex: Female
Class: Knight
Skills
- Vitality – 10 (+5)=15
- Endurance – 10 (+2)=12
- Attunement - 10
- Vigor – 10 (+3)=13
- Strength – 10 (+10)=20
- Dexterity - 10
- Intelligence - 10
- Faith - 10
- Adaptability - 10
Appearance: Standing at roughly 5'6", Isolda of Mirrah doesn't seem particularly intimidating at first glance. This initial impression quickly changes when strangers see her pale blue eyes glaring at them from behind her helmet's dented visor. There's little warmth or compassion in Isolda's gaze, and she seems to regard the rest of the world with a mixture of bitter indifference and disgust. Unlike most women of noble birth, her skin is slightly sunburnt due to spending many years on the open road, though her black hair still creates a striking contrast. She keeps her hair short, rarely allowing it to grow past her jawline, because the last thing she wants to be worrying about in the heat of battle is her hair. Her heavy silver plate armor completes the image of a wandering knightess, though Isolda's body isn't especially muscular. There's a leanness and a wiry strength to her that allows the highborne to move faster than most warriors. However, a ropy scar starting above her right eye and ending below her left serves as a grim reminder that speed isn't always enough. Narrow shoulders, a flat stomach, and powerful legs further contribute to the aura of strength clinging to Isolda of Mirrah like a burial shroud. However, she is still an Undead, and her Darksign can be seen burning in the middle of her back whenever she's not wearing armor. While Isolda almost never removes her battle regalia, she can usually be seen wearing a plain linen tunic and leather breeches when she does. Luckily, the knight has only died a few times since becoming Undead so she still looks human.
For now.
Weapons and Armour/Clothing: Silver Longsword, Wooden Shield, Knight Helm, Knight Armor, Knight Gauntlets, Knight Leggings, Bracing Knuckle Ring, Life Ring
Personality: Isolda Foy is an extremely practical woman, a trait that has served her well over the course of her tumultuous life. Furthermore, whenever she decides to pursue a specific goal, such as joining the Watchdogs of Farron, she will do anything to achieve said goal. While she still believes the knightly virtues of honor and duty are important, Isolda is no longer willing to risk death to protect someone she doesn't care about. Defending your family and friends is one thing, but trying to save every stranger you come across is ludicrous. This attitude makes it hard for the noblewoman to form lasting relationships. In addition, Isolde is more than happy to offer advice when asked, but she doesn't see the point in talking to others about her own trials and tribulations. It won't change anything. Instead, she believes it's more sensible to channel one's energy towards doing something, anything to stave off depression and indolence. Since Mirrah's collapse, however, the lady knight has become even more withdrawn, and an unnerving ruthless streak has started to color her actions.
However, this icy facade masks a crippling fear of hollowing. Isolda is terrified of transforming into a mindless creature, deprived of all memories and humanity. This fear is what ultimately drove her to embark on the long, dangerous road to Farron Keep. The highborne is desperate to find some way to make her existence meaningful. In truth, Isolda is a lost woman, seeking purpose in a world that is slowly falling apart.
Biography: Isolda was born to Lord Gordon and Lady Elspeth Foy on a gorgeous morning in spring. She was their only child, which meant she would inherit Castle Foy when her parents passed on. Considering the ancient keep's formidable reputation, the Foys weren't surprised when their daughter received a veritable flood of marriage offers from Mirrah's other noble families. In a startling act of generosity, however, Lord Gordon said he would let his "little bird" decide if marriage was something she wanted when she was older. For the time being, Isolda's childhood was filled with lessons, numerous playmates, and a thorough grounding in Mirrah's various fighting styles. She tended to favor the sword and shield, though her combat skills paled beside her talent with horses. Lord Gordon would spend hours with Isolda, teaching her the finer points of riding and watching as she galloped across the meadows surrounding Castle Foy. Sadly, the venerable lord had sustained a grievous wound in his youth so he couldn't join his daughter, but the sight of her laughing as her gelding cantered around the courtyard filled him with joy.
Lord Gordon knew his "little bird" was destined for great things.
When she turned thirteen, as the daughter of a prominent noble family, Isolda was permitted to join one of Mirrah's knightly orders. From the Shadow Knights to the Knights of the Blazing Heart, these peerless fighters would do anything to keep their homeland safe. It was an honor to be counted among their number. This would, however, prevent Isolda from marrying until she was formally discharged from whatever order she selected. After discussing the matter with her family, Isolda decided to join the order her father had belonged to in his youth. The Knightly Order of the Silver Wyrm. The day she received her silver armor and became a squire to Sir Arantiel, one of the most celebrated knights in Mirrah, was the happiest day of Isolda's life. While several nobles voiced their disappointment that the girl was no longer able to marry, Lord Gordon was too proud to care. Sir Arantiel would keep his daughter safe while forging her into a noble Knight of the Silver Wyrm.
A few days later, Isolda bid her mother and father farewell before riding off with Sir Arantiel to do what the knights of Mirrah did best. Protect their kingdom. The next seven years were difficult, but Isolda wouldn't have traded them for all the gold in the world. Sir Arantiel taught her everything he knew about chivalry and warcraft while still finding time to help those in need.
Shortly after her twentieth birthday, Sir Arantiel brought Isolda to the Silver Bastion, the headquarters of the Knightly Order of the Silver Wyrm in southern Mirrah. A dozen other knights and their squires joined them over the next few days. The knights spent a year in the Silver Bastion, training and testing their young wards to ensure they were ready for what would come next. On a chilly morning in winter, Isolda and the other squires were given new armor and weapons to commemorate their ascension to knighthood. Isolda was overjoyed and wanted to return to Castle Foy to tell her parents the good news. Sir Arantiel, who'd become like a second father to the girl, said he'd be more than happy to accompany her.
It was during the long journey north that everything changed.
During this time, whispers of a strange disease and something called the Darksign were spreading through the land like wildfire. Thankfully, only the kingdoms to the north and east seemed to be affected. After traveling for several weeks, Sir Arantiel suggested stopping at a settlement called Blackstone Village in central Mirrah to rest and resupply. The people there were decent, hardworking folk, and they'd jump at the chance to assist two wandering knights. Isolda agreed, and they reached Blackstone Village just after sunset...only to find it completely deserted. Abandoned settlements weren't uncommon in war-ravaged Mirrah so the twosome decided to stay the night before moving on. Before they'd even taken out their bedrolls, however, the villagers, who'd all fallen prey to the Curse of the Undead, emerged from the shadows and attacked. Isolda and her mentor fought bravely, slaying dozens of walking corpses, but the knightess quickly realized there were too many enemies to overcome. Fear gripped Isolda, and she fled, ignoring the horrified screams of her friend and mentor as the Hollows ripped him to pieces.
Sobbing as her warhorse galloped away from Blackstone Village, Isolda found herself wandering through an immense, tangled forest. She spent the next four days trying to escape, and, while she did eventually find a way out, she wasn't alone. A group of bandits had been following her since her flight from Blackstone Village, and they saw how exhausted and fearful the lady knight was. Isolda barely had time to get her bearings before an arrow hit her with enough force to knock her to the ground. The noblewoman fought with all her strength, but it simply wasn't enough. The leader of the brigands slashed her across the face with his axe, splitting her head like a ripe melon. As the victorious highwaymen began to remove their victim's silver armor, however, Isolda rose from the ground, her injury already turning into a garish scar. "Undead!" the men shrieked. "You're a filthy Undead!"
The cut-throats fled into the forest, leaving Isolda to stare after them in mute horror. It was true. She'd contracted the Darksign. What in the name of the gods was she going to do?
In the end, Isolda decided to keep moving north, hoping her parents would be able to do something about her condition. Maybe they could find a physician capable of curing her? Could the Curse of the Undead even be cured? Sadly, her horse had run off during the fight with the bandits so she didn't reach Castle Foy until nearly a month later. As she crested a small ridge just to the south of the stronghold, Isolda immediately knew something was wrong. A pall of black smoke hung over the keep, and the entire region was unnaturally quiet. Her home had been ransacked. After noticing several discarded weapons of foreign make and coming across half a dozen burned villages, the lady knight slowly pieced together what had happened. The whispers she'd heard while traveling with Sir Arantiel had suggested the kingdom to the north, whose name Isolda couldn't remember for some reason, was fighting a losing war against the Undead. Obviously, they'd seen Mirrah, a relatively untainted land, and decided to conquer it. Starting with Castle Foy.
Isolda spent the next seven days sifting through the ruins of her home, trying to find her parents' bones or any of her childhood belongings. Only ashes remained. Grief-stricken and numb, the knightess sat down inside the charred keep and tried to come up with a plan. But nothing came to her. Out of some belated desire to atone for Sir Arantiel's death, Isolda spent the next seven years traipsing across Mirrah, trying to help the commonfolk to the best of her ability. If she was lucky, they would give her green blossoms and other essential supplies to show their gratitude. If they discovered the Darksign blazing on her back, however, Isolda was forced to flee or fight for her life. She usually managed to escape unscathed, but sometimes she was slain. As the days turned to weeks and then to months, Mirrah's various knightly orders tried to rally against the northern invaders while also contending with the rising tide of Undead and Hollows. In the end, it proved to be too much, and Isolda was forced to watch her beloved homeland sink into despair and anarchy. Mirrah's knights were scattered, which made them easy prey for roving groups of bandits, Hollows, and enemy soldiers. Villages burned and blood flowed through the city streets.
And that's when Isolda remembered a conversation she'd had with Sir Arantiel as they'd traveled through an apple orchard a few days south of Blackstone Village. Her teacher had mentioned how sad it must be to be Undead. After all, they were destined to hollow, to lose everything that made them human. If they had any brains, the rotting bastards would all head west to the kingdom of Farron. Sir Arantiel had heard stories about a group of Undead that called themselves the Abyss Watchers, men and women afflicted by the Curse of the Undead that had chosen to follow in the legendary footsteps of Knight Artorias. They had sworn an oath to fight the Abyss until it destroyed them.
Isolda briefly revisited the wreckage of Castle Foy, but she already knew what she had to do. Mounting her horse, one of many valuables she'd stolen from a drunken knight a week earlier, she rode west, trying to avoid the chaos consuming Mirrah. After nearly a month of traveling, Isolda Foy has finally reached Farron Keep. She plans to pledge her sword to the Watchdogs of Farron. What else is there for an Undead with nothing and no one?
Spells/Pyromancies/Hexes/Miracles: None
Inventory:Firebombs (x5), Green Blossoms (x5), Homeward Bone (x1), Repair Powder (x2), Charcoal Pine Resin (x1), Estus Flask (x5)
