Chieftain, Ruunakai

Born during a rare silence that fell across the Echoing Heart village—a phenomenon the shamans interpreted as the ancestors holding their breath in anticipation—Ruunakai grew up acutely aware that his very existence seemed marked by fate. As a young warrior, he discovered that his echo magic could do more than merely amplify sound; he learned to compress it into devastating waves, to shape it into protective barriers, and most remarkably, to use it to communicate across vast distances with precision that bewildered even the eldest shamans. When a blight began spreading through the heart tree's roots, threatening the village's connection to their ancestors and thus their collective survival, Ruunakai's pragmatic approach clashed with tradition—he advocated for immediate action rather than waiting for ancestral guidance, earning both fierce loyalty and bitter criticism. His determination proved justified when he discovered that the blight's vibrations could be detected and countered through creative applications of echo magic that no previous leader had conceived, and he personally descended into the tree's depths to sing the sickness away using frequencies that resonated with the very heartbeat of his people. The golden markings that now spiral outward from his joints commemorate not just his status, but the day he saved both his village and its spiritual lifeline, proving that honoring the ancestors sometimes means being willing to forge new paths they never walked. Now, as chieftain, Ruunakai walks the delicate line between reverence for tradition and bold innovation, his echo magic a constant reminder that survival itself is a form of sacred legacy.

Strength

18, modifier +4

Dexterity

14, modifier +2

Constitution

20, modifier +5

Intelligence

12, modifier +1

Wisdom

16, modifier +3

Charisma

15, modifier +2

Echo Wave

Ruunakai unleashes a wave of sound, dealing 4d8 thunder damage in a 30 ft. cone. DC 15 Constitution save halves damage.

Protective Barrier

Ruunakai creates a barrier of sound, granting allies within 10 ft. +2 AC until the start of his next turn.

Ancestral Call

As an action, Ruunakai can summon ancestral spirits to aid him, granting advantage on his next attack roll.

Sonic Pulse

Ruunakai sends out a pulse of sound, forcing all creatures in a 20 ft. radius to make a DC 15 Wisdom save or be frightened until the end of their next turn.

Heart Tree's Embrace

Once per long rest, Ruunakai can heal himself or an ally within 30 ft. for 3d10 hit points by channeling the heart tree's energy.

Echoing Resonance

Ruunakai can communicate with allies up to 1 mile away using echo magic.

strength

+7

dexterity

+5

constitution

+8

wisdom

+6

Thunder