Sir Cornelius

Sir Cornelius

Ruff Ruff Bark Bark

Languages	Common, Dwarvish, Halfling, Primordial, Sylvan
Species	Golden Retriever
Gender	Male
Eye Color	Brown
Class	Wizard 9 / Paladin 1

Sir Cornelius is a famous world traveling adventurer, a master wizard, and a very good boy. Once a loyal golden retriever, Cornelius was gifted sentience through a powerful Awaken spell, and soon after discovered an innate talent for wizardry. Donning a great pointed hat and wandering the realms with boundless enthusiasm, he has become both scholar and adventurer. With his trusty lizard familiar, Pickle, always at his side, Sir Cornelius pursues knowledge, friendship, and dog treats.

Physical Appearance

Sir Cornelius is a golden retriever, his fur shimmering like sunlight on a meadow. He proudly wears a wizard’s hat far too large for his head, adorned with arcane trinkets and a few chew marks from his puppy days. His traveling gear is strapped neatly across his back, filled with potions, scrolls, and bones (for both spell components and snacks). His magic manifests as sparkling purple smoke.

His familiar Pickles is a tiny and silly little green lizard dressed in a small shimmering black cape and wizards hat which he borrowed from a doll. Pickles’ eyes rarely stare in the same direction, but Sir Cornelius loves him all the same.

Personality

Sir Cornelius is loyal, optimistic, and unshakably cheery. He greets both friend and foe with a wagging tail, though he will always put on a brave face when defending those who are scared or threatened. Ever curious and eager to learn, he studies magic with the same enthusiasm he also shares for chasing balls. Despite his wisdom, he has the heart of a playful pup, and things like treats, sticks, or other dogs can easily distract him.

History

Sir Cornelius began his life as nothing more than a golden retriever pup, born in a liter of other puppies and belonging to a humble family in a quiet countryside village on the continent of Osugbo. Loyal and bright-eyed, he grew up alongside the family’s children who adored him, chasing sticks by day and sleeping at the foot of their beds by night.

But everything changed when the War of Many Names began, and dragons descended upon the world. There was little Cornelius could do when a red dragon attacked the village, and yet Cornelius remained by his family’s side, even as the dragon’s fire claimed them. Cornelius would have met the same fate if they were not saved by a wandering druid named Kormira who came in search of survivors. After tending to Cornelius’ wounds, the druid, seeing a kindred and loyal soul within the golden retriever, saw fit to cast the Awaken on them, gifting Cornelius mortal intelligence and the ability to communicate with humanoids. Cornelius, now able to understand the world as a mortal would, mourned his lost family with the druid.

The druid helped Cornelius bury the bodies of his families, before telling Cornelius that he could find sanctuary in the nearby town of Vanaleigh, who would welcome Cornelius with open arms. Traveling to Vanaleigh, Cornelius made a vow that never again would those under his protection suffer harm. Arriving in Vanaleigh, Cornelius survived on the streets and in alleyways, eating from the trash and drinking from puddles of rainwater, his spirit battered but alive. It wasn't long before Cornelius made friends with the locals who would offer Cornelius food and shelter on the regular. It was during this time the locals would give Cornelius the nickname of “Sir.” After a year of living in Vanaleigh, the city would be attacked by a Green Dragon sent by the dragon goddess Tiamat herself. Cornelius was terrified that once again, dragons would take away everything he loved. But before the dragon could wreak its destruction, a heroic wizard adventurer stepped in and defeated the dragon with their arcane magic. This moment would serve as a turning point in Cornelius’ life, sparking their fascination with magic and its abilities to protect.

The wizard was the Halfling archmage Indri, and after much convincing, allowed Cornelius to apprentice under him and learn magic. Cornelius would soon become practiced in abjuration magic, and after many years of learning from Indri, would part ways with their teacher to explore the world and to protect people. Along the way, they would meet a small lizard named Pickles who would become Sir Cornelius’ familiar.

Languages

Sir Cornelius is only able to communicate using barks, woofs, and growls. Strangely though, even when they communicate like this, people are able to understand what Sir Cornelius means every time as if he was speaking their language. People who have spoken to Sir Cornelius says he has a broad understanding of language and grammar, and is very expressive in his speech.

Powers and Abilities

As a 9th level wizard, Sir Cornelius is able to cast 5th level and lower arcane spells. While they are not afraid to use spells like magic missile and Bigby's Paw to fight off enemies, they much prefer to use abjuration spells to protect their friends and allies when the time comes. Their signature spell is Mage Paw, similar to a classical wizard's Mage Hand, but instead Sir Cornelius manifests the spell as a floating purple paw. Sir Cornelius also possesses a small amount of healing magic from their paladin oath.

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