Riders in the Storm - Hobgoblin Warrior - Original Character Art

“We are Alvari, for the Storm’s sake! Only we could survive in this blasted desert, so only we have the right to be here! Not some invasive shrubs or rocks. I say we show them how we held on to life out here. Let’s give them a good taste of our steel and our lightning and send them right back whatever forsaken place they came from!”

Shouts of agreement echo through the large tent. “Then let us ride. The time for speeches is over.” All attention shifts to the head of the table. There, a Hobgoblin woman fixes them all with a piercing gaze. The warriors and leaders of the Alvari are unlikely to work together, but they will heed the advice of Chieftess Batu.

An unassuming, woman with a slight frame, Siha Batu seems like an unlikely leader for the Alvari. Having immigrated from the far away Goblin nation of Halak’Nor, she had to fight in order to earn recognition. Years ago, after she was ousted by her caravan, she struggled through the storm by herself. Her conviction did it go unnoticed. The next time that Batu was seen, she sat astride the legendary Mar’Ciel, a powerful Earth Elemental that had taken the shape of a horse. Many warriors had tried to tame this steed, but it had refused to be mounted every time.

Now, Chieftess Batu leads a band of skilled fighters and elementalists. Many families will send their gifted children to train under her, having them return years later as powerful Stormguards. These connections are the reason, why the tribes of the Alvari trust this woman to guide them though this new, extraplanar threat.