Tavathi "Horsebreaker" "Kinslayer" Vunaka

Overview
The warhorse breeder and trainer for the Ember Sentinels, Tavathis is a friendly, boisterous, and massive woman. Standing almost nine feet tall (massive for a goliath), she has an easygoing, friendly disposition and a maternal attitude to horse and recruit alike. She has a skilled eye and a firm hand for the powerful breed of horses she raises, and is responsible for significant Sentinel success in recent years. The horses are powerful, sturdy, dangerous in fights, and well-behaved, all valuable assets. They are a fantastic source of income from interested third parties, as well.

Tavathi hides a dark secret. A member of the Vunaka clan in the northern clifflands, she fled her people after killing her young daughter. The girl had been bitten by a vampire which assaulted the clan in the night. While the group managed to restrain and stake the vampire, Laria showed signs of vampirism. Panicked and exhausted, Tavathi strangled the little girl, and when that failed to affect her, tore her head off.

Biography
Born to the Vunaka tribe in the northern Clifflands in 5E 542, Tavathi had a fairly normal goliath childhood, herding their mountain sheep with her parents and several other families. It was there that she attained a deep love of animals and animal husbandry, a talent that would serve her well throughout her life.

Tavathi married at nineteen to chieftan Vaka Cragdancer's second son, Pavkith Strongarm, who found her features attractive and her blunt attitude even moreso. She bore a daughter nine months after their marriage, and the two raised her to have a strong sense of fair play and respect for beasts.

Unfortunately, their tribe's relative prosperity attracted the attention of a lesser vampire, who had spawned near their territory. Initially reserved to animals, the vampire began to kill and drain scouts, transforming them into thralls which periodically attacked the village. The Vunaka were unaware of vampire's thrall-making powers, and assumed their tribe was turning on itself.

Suspicion and tension reigned until, in 5E 565, the vampire attacked their village directly. The tribe sustained heavy losses, but many were killed or mutilated in the process. The vampire had been drinking the blood from Laria when the watch raised the alarm, and Tavathi watched her little girl begin to turn before her eyes.

Acting quickly, she smothered Laria. And when that didn't work, she tore the 3-year-old's head from her neck. This halted the transformation, but Tavathi hadn't had time to call for help or warn others about what was happening. Thus, to the rest of the tribe, Tavathi had torn her firstborn's head off in the midst of the tribe's victory.

Enraged and horrified, Pavkith threw himself at Tavathi, incoherent and snarling in his fury. He nearly killed her then and there, and it was only a quick dodge that prevented her from being beheaded. Tavathi fled the clan that night, and they pursued her for several weeks before giving up the search. Still believing herself to be in danger, Tavathi traveled incredible distances each day, refusing to rest more than absolutely necessary.

During one such rest in Peyintach, she heard rumors of the Ember Sentinels, a group who would take anyone willing to serve their fallen nation. Homeless, penniless, and too proud to steal, Tavathi made haste for the fallen nation of Gentaria, where she was accepted after some initial surprise. Stranger troops had joined their forces, after all.

She proved herself a valuable soldier, but even more talented with their horses. They weren't the sheep and goats she had grown up with, but her eye for fit animals and talent in quelling their temperaments meant she could discipline, train, and breed their horses to their highest potential.

Tavathi has spent the last 18 years in Cinder Keep as horsemistress and keeper of livestock. She is happy, comfortable, and has a cause she can devote herself to. She keeps her past buried, hoping it will never return.