Salanthe Oatwind, Shu’halo shaman

(( This story is still in progress, as is the character. She is being developed specifically for the Earthwalkers guild on the Moon Guard server. Stay tuned for further updates. ))

Salanthe was never a fighter. She spent her days raising her calves, feeding her clan, mending clothing, bandaging minor wounds, and picking herbs. She was content in her life, traveling with her clan and living off the land. It was a time of peace in the Barrens and the plains were plentiful.

Then the centaurs came – great waves of them, crashing over the scattered tribes. The Oatwinds, content with their peaceful wanderings, were never warriors. They crumbled under the overwhelming tides of centaur. They raced across the plains, trying to find another tribe to save them. As they fled, the centaurs picked them off one by one. Salanthe lost her entire family in that long flight through the empty plains; the tribe lost their revered shaman, Jharathe Oatwind.

The day after Jharathe’s death, Salanthe was visited by his spirit. Standing before her, the shaman told her to leave her fleeing clan and journey into the vast grasslands alone. The ancestors and the spirits had chosen her for the Earthwalk. Should she survive it, she would be the next shaman of the Oatwind tribe.

Turning her back on her clan, she left for the wilderness. There was no questioning the ancestors! She wandered the plains for many days, learning of the elements. When the spirits finally deemed her trial complete, she rushed to find her lost tribe. Their trail was easy to locate for one who had the assistance of the elements. She hurried for the smoke plume on the horizon, arriving to find nothing but remains. The centaurs had finally caught up with the fleeing tribe. Searching through the debris, Salanthe found the tiny calf, Jhawna. Taking the child in her arms, she sprinted away from the destruction, intent on saving the only remaining member of the Oatwind tribe.

Relying on the benevolence of the spirits, Salanthe traveled for weeks across the Barrens. It was the plumes from Bloodhoof cooking fires that lead her to safety. She stumbled into the Bloodhoof camp, exhausted and worn, the tiny Jhawna strapped to her back. The tribe immediately took the refugees in and adopted them as their own.

In the years that followed, Salanthe taught Jhawna about the Oatwinds. They had lived in harmony with the plains, specializing in agriculture and culinary pursuits. The Bloodhoofs on the other hand were a warrior tribe. Salanthe wanted to ensure that the last remaining member of the Oatwinds understood the traditions of her tribe, particularly when it seemed that the warrior path was the only way to survive.

Salanthe knew that her path was irrevocably changed. No matter how badly she desired to bake and sew, these would never be her professions again. The elements had made her their instrument. She had a duty to her new tribe and an obligation to honor the memory of her ancestors, the Oatwind tribe. She walked the path of the shaman now.

When Cairne Bloodhoof, her rescuer and defender, suggested the tribes band together and take Mulgore for their home, Salanthe threw her considerable power behind him. She walked into battle with the centaurs, throwing her totems down to protect and aid the Braves and hunters, and calling the elements to defend her people. She distinguished herself with her passionate hatred of the centaur and exquisite control of the power the elements bestowed upon her.

After Mulgore was settled, the ancestors, elements, and her beloved chief all gave her the task of teaching the orcs and trolls about shamanism. She is intensely dedicated to that missive.