Birring

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Information

Player: Zhaei

Character Full Name: Birring Brightspark

Character In-Game Name: Birring

Associations: The Gnomeregan Exiles, the Alliance, the Grandbell Knights

Race: Gnome

Class: Warrior

Age: 84

Sex: Male

Hair: Silvery blue. A plump, wholesome beard and a flourish of wax-held hair on the top of his head.

Eyes: Hazel

Weight: 44 lbs

Height: 3'2

Usual Garments/Armour: A plate set of breastplate and greaves. The rest is leather. The armour around his upper arms is heavily modified; enough that his strength can match the other races' in combat. Wears a pair of pretty basic goggles.

Other: Lugs around a big chunk of treated wood held together by an iron binding as a shield.

Alignment: Lawful Good

Personality

Birring takes elements of the quintessential Gnome into his personality, then fuses them with outside influences, a naturally incommensurable mindset compared to most of his kind, and, most importantly, a lifetime spent travelling the world. Birring is intrinsically altruistic and philanthropic, but, plagued by his kind's natural aloofness, he is often tasked with suppressing the less favourable sides of his personality in place of those he prefers.

Polite and well-mannered, Birring would subscribe to the phrase "Manners make the world go round" if he could shake the irritation of knowing full well that is in fact conservation of angular momentum. With a very large vocabulary and an opinion on anything imaginable (even if he had heard of it merely seconds earlier), Birring can be quite intimidating in conversation and debate, though it is his best intention to remain sociable and friendly.

Birring subscribes to his own personal doctrine on how to make decisions. Whether it is simply purchasing a beverage in a tavern or deciding how to deal with a life-threatening situation, Birring is assured and confident in the fact that his preset rules will see him through even the darkest hour.

Fascinated with the workings of the Light and its application in his own skill-set, Birring seeks not only to harness the tangible facets of the Holy Light but embody its finest champions. Paladins bring up a childlike excitement and he is not afraid to admit his obsession with them. However, a Gnomish Paladin is an outlandish concept. It can't be long before Birring gives up and seeks a way around his problems.

History

Mindix Gearsnoggle, esteemed father and husband, was, about ninety years ago, a very busy man. Responsible for overseeing the crafting, business and delivery of the Gearsnoggles (a very lucrative business at the time), he had little time for leisure. Mindix was not married, you see, and he could not call himself a bachelor, either. Eventually, the respected life of a successful entrepreneur became too much for Mindix, and he had a bit of a breakdown. Closing the business, he took his savings to the more seedy areas of Gnomeregan and lived the 'high life'. Needless to say, this didn't last long and in a little over five years he had lost his money, his integrity and his respected position. He had gained only one thing: a child. Vowing to make a better life for the young boy, he took up a job in a factory to provide some sort of steady income.

Infancy was difficult for Birring, the child in question. There was not always food on the table. There was little time spent with his father and none with his mother, whoever that was. Hopes were kept high, however. "At the top of Gnomeregan, my son, there is a colossal world just waiting to be traversed, explored, scrutinized!" The large majority of Birring's childhood was spent like this. Life was difficult, but he was safe. Predictably, his father rose quickly in the ranks and was in a comfortable position by the time Birring was old enough to learn the ways of the world. The two moved to a larger house and lived comfortably until Birring was nearing maturity.

The gleam of the adventurer sparked in Birring's eye. In not the most well thought out move, he bade his father farewell and left Gnomeregan with little but his wits, a pouch of coin and his spanner. Birring travelled far and wide. Exploring was in his nature. He soon picked up cartography and helped to catalogue parts of the Kingdoms. Despite his detachment from Gnomish society, Birring was still faithful to tradition and when he was twenty-five years of age he settled down to invent the device that would become his namesake.

Now, Birring had spent most of his time with the Explorer's Guild up to this point. None of his companions were magical, but they had all told him stories of the Light and its virtues. Contrarily, Birring was fascinated. Unfortunately, he did not quite understand the concept. When settling down in his workshop, he decided to base his invention off of the Light. A few years, uncountable mugs of coffee, three donkeys and a lot of metal later, Birring emerged from his workshop successful. He had created not only an invention, not only a useful one, but one that was modeled after the fabled Light. A small, supercharged filament of metal that cast light all around. Brightspark.

Birring was eager to get back on the dusty path once again. By now he had picked up some basic survival skills, but had relied on his comrades to ward away any physical threats. This time, Birring vowed to become not only useful with the intellectual aspects of his work, but the physical ones, too. Naturally, a Gnome was to use the most complex, fantastical weapon known to sentient life on Azeroth.

"Well, I have this axe." "..."

This life continued for many years; more than Birring cares to recite to inquisitive acquaintances. His skill in melee combat slowly increased as he moved away from cartography to return to Gnomeregan and see his father. The reunion was short and sweet. Old Mindix had fared well, balancing his work and social life. He had even found himself a female companion.

Birring stayed in Gnomeregan for a few years, often making trips to Ironforge and back. However, the need to travel rose inside him, and he had no choice but to set out on adventure once again. You see, this was not long before the wars. Birring had not quite left when the tidings of war reached Gnomeregan, so he stayed while the Gnomes prepared and left with them. The Gnomes on march is quite the sight; fantastical inventions, customized hydraulic armour, bright lights of techno-magic craft. Birring was content with only his axe, his shield, and his trusty goggles.

Reaching Khaz Modan, Birring fought back the Orcish horde with the rest of the Alliance. He made many a friend, and lost many more, but Birring left Khaz Modan a content Gnome. He enjoyed not war, but fighting for a good cause; helping those in need. Birring never returned to Gnomeregan. Seeing this as good a place as any to resume his travels, he went the opposite way to the rest of his kin: north. He was not travelling for necessity - he spent a long time at each stop, admired every sight there was to see, talked with every passerby. Thus, Birring was in quite the pickle when the Third War came about.

Birring was located just south of the mountains surrounding the borders of Quel'thalas when it all began. The tainted grain had begun to spread the virulent plague not too far from Birring. Luckily enough, he heard the news in good time and was able to safely stay away from the Plaguelands-to-be. Birring sought to return to Gnomeregan to aid his kin, and picked up the pace. Birring bumped into a small group of Dwarves halfway there. Returning to Dun Morogh to aid the Gnomes, they took Birring with them. Their leader, Kurvosh, was a member of the Silver Hand; a Paladin. Birring had heard much of them but had never had a chance to meet one. Kurvosh fascinated him. His kind are not one to be swayed by valor or courage - it is wit and intellect that take them - but Birring was inspired by the tales of bravery he was told.

It was an uneventful return, unfortunately. The Troggs had already destroyed most of Gnomeregan, and the rest of it was uninhabitable. Birring and his group came home to a race of refugees. Mindix was one of the many presumed dead, or worse. Birring stayed to help his kind settle into their new life, but found it depressing to stay in Tinker Town.

Four years ago, Birring left to join the Argent Dawn. He fought with them at the Plaguelands, battling back the terrible Scourge. His skills in engineering proved useful, and with further chance for development, he improved both the Dawn's effectiveness and his own. Birring became appreciated within the virtuous order, and grew more exemplary because of it. He learned proper skills that a being of his position should know, skills long neglected in his travels: compassion, philanthropy, altruism. Despite the harsh environment, the rewards outweighed the risks for Birring. He stayed with the Argent Dawn until he needed elsewhere: Northrend.

The frigid wastes were not such a content time. The weight of responsibility was great, and Birring's normally enthusiastic and approachable nature began to sour. Still did he fight the undead in this frozen hellhole; Gnomes are determined creatures indeed, and Birring is no different. The Argent Crusade was an order brimming with holy men and women. Birring's insatiable curiosity for the Light was only bolstered as he fought alongside the heroic Paladins. Thus did he make a vow to become one of them once the Lich King had been defeated.

He's still working on it.

Skills and Abilities

A lifetime of combat experience has left Birring quite the combatant. A competent practical engineer in exoskeletal enhancements, micro-technological utilities, and electromagnetism. Birring speaks Common, Dwarven and Gnomish fluently, and has both an interest and extensive knowledge in writing of many kinds. A proficient cartographer, though his skills are rusty and neglected.