Darlingverse/Borin

Borin (Shield Dwarf Mason)

Before Darling: Borin was a sturdy, earnest dwarf boy of eleven, deeply proud of his family's long line of stonemasons in Waterdeep. He spent his days watching his father and uncles work, admiring their precision and strength, dreaming of the day he would lay stones for great halls. He was disciplined and meticulous for his age, always making sure his small pile of practice bricks was perfectly stacked. He respected order and the enduring strength of well-built things.

Captured by Papa: One late afternoon, while helping his father clean tools at a construction site in the Castle Ward, Borin lingered to admire a freshly laid wall. A sudden, sharp prick on his neck was followed by a dizzying disorientation. He remembered collapsing, the sounds of the city fading into a terrifying, muffled silence as he was hauled away.

Papa's Basement and the Void: His next awareness was of the bone-chilling cold of a stone basement, the scent of fresh blood, and the metallic tang of fear. He saw other children, small and terrified, huddled in rough cages. He recalled a tall, shadowy figure—Papa—moving with chilling purpose. Then, as Papa approached a whimpering child in a nearby cage, a blinding flash of visceral horror erupted, and the memory violently tore itself from his grasp, leaving only a cold, echoing void where the terrible truth should be.

Life in the Darlingscape: The Unyielding Foundation: When Borin awoke in "The Golem's Canvas," he found himself in a chaotic, shifting reality. Driven by his core belief in structure and the enduring power of creation, he immediately began to solidify his surroundings. He views his purpose as ensuring the very fabric of this internal world remains stable and robust, constantly working to shore up weak points against the encroaching chaos.

Borin with other Voices

With Kael: Borin found an immediate comrade in Kael. They share a fundamental understanding of physical strength, practicality, and the necessity of defense. They often patrol the outer boundaries of the safer districts, reinforcing psychic "walls" and clearing away encroaching mental "debris."

With Lyra: He respects Lyra's meticulous nature and her dedication to order, seeing her as essential for mapping and understanding the mind's complex architecture. They often work together to ensure the structural integrity of the Gallery of Shifting Memories and the Grand Conjunction.

With Flicker: While sometimes exasperated by Flicker's whimsical inventions, Borin appreciates his mechanical genius and how his ingenuity contributes to the fundamental structure of Darling's mind. He often provides the "solid foundation" for Flicker's more experimental constructs.

Antagonistic Towards: Borin struggles immensely with the chaotic natures of Pip and Jinx, viewing their unpredictable antics as dangerously destabilizing. He also finds Zee's shadowy, evasive methods unsettling, preferring directness and clear boundaries.

Borin Statblock

Borin is the Rock of Resolve of the Darlingverse, providing tactical logic, durable structural integrity, and stubborn defense.

Core Stats & Proficiencies

• Race/Class: Shield Dwarf / Fighter (Battle Master)
• Armor Class (AC): 20 (Plate Armor + Shield)
• Hit Points (HP): 100 (10 hit dice)
• Speed: 25 ft.
• STR 17 (+3), DEX 10 (+0), CON 18 (+4), INT 16 (+3), WIS 14 (+2), CHA 9 (-1)
• Proficiency Bonus (PB): +4
• Racial Traits: Advantage on Saving Throws against poison.
• Saving Throws: Strength +7, Constitution +8
• Skills: Athletics +7, Mason's Tools +7, Investigation +7, History +7

Combat & Tactical

• Weapon: Warhammer +1 (Melee Attack)
  • Attack: +9 to hit, Reach 5 ft., one target.
  • Damage: 1d8 + 5 Bludgeoning damage.
• Extra Attack: Borin can attack twice whenever he takes the Attack action on his turn.
• Second Wind (1/Short Rest): On his turn, Borin can use a bonus action to regain 1d10 + 10 HP.
• Action Surge (1/Short Rest): Borin can take one additional action on his turn.
• Stand Your Ground (Bonus Action)
  • Effect: Borin can use his Bonus Action to gain advantage on Strength and Dexterity Saving Throws until the start of his next turn.

Superior Maneuvers (Bonus Action)

• Effect: Borin may choose to expend one Superiority Die to use a Battle Maneuver. If it succeeds/hits, he may choose to take 1d10 damage to regain a Superiority Die.

Battle Master Maneuvers Borin has 5 Superiority Dice (SD) that are d10s and knows 4 maneuvers. He can expend one SD per maneuver use.

• Maneuver: Precision Attack: When Borin makes a weapon attack roll against a creature, he can expend one SD to add it to the attack roll. This must be decided before the success/fail outcome.
• Maneuver: Trip Attack: When Borin hits a creature with a weapon attack, he can expend one SD to deal that as extra damage. The target must succeed on a DEX saving throw (DC 15) or be knocked prone.
• Maneuver: Menacing Attack: When Borin hits a creature with a weapon attack, he can expend one SD to deal that as extra damage. The target must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw (DC 15) or be frightened of Borin until the end of Borin's next turn.
• Maneuver: Rally: On his turn, Borin can use a bonus action and expend one SD to choose one friendly creature who can see or hear him. That creature gains temporary HP equal to the SD roll + 4.

Custom Stabilizing Abilities (Darlingverse Focus) These abilities focus on materializing stable, logical structure and suppressing chaos.

1. Minor Stabilization: Mason's Mending (Action)

• Requirement: Borin must be within 5 ft. of a damaged or warped structural element (wall, floor, pillar).
• Effect: Borin focuses his practical will to instantly correct the warped structure. The damaged element is immediately repaired, and any Aberrations currently adjacent to it must succeed on a DC 15 Constitution Saving Throw or be Restrained as the material locks them in place. The Restrained condition lasts until the end of the Aberration's next turn.

2. Major Stabilization: Logic of the Bedrock (Action & 1 Minute Concentration)

• Requirement: Borin must be standing still and hammering the ground or a large stone nearby for the duration.
• Effect: Borin channels the logical, practical order of the Darlingverse. When casting and at the start of each Aberration's turn within a 30-foot radius must make a DC 15 Intelligence Saving Throw. On a failure, they suffer disadvantage on all Attack Rolls and Saving Throws until they move outside the radius. If Borin keeps channeling the order of the Darlingverse for a full minute, the ritual also cleanses all non-structural chaotic elements (like toxic smoke, whispering despair, or fear gas) from the radius and causes visible repairs and de-warping to anything structures or items that are broken in the area. If the ritual is interrupted before the full minute, Borin must rest for 10 minutes before using this ability again.