Brekken Proudhorn

Appearance
Unlike most Tauren, Brekken’s size would not intimidate. On the contrary, he is rather short for a Tauren male, standing somewhere between six and a half to seven feet. To add to his fragile appearance is his skinniness, suggesting near emaciation when seen without his usual armor covering him. Dark rings beneath his eyes and the beginnings of stress wrinkles add to his sickly appearance. His brown-and-white fur he keeps relatively clean, though it’s obvious that he doesn’t care much for his appearance. The longer parts of his mane he keeps tied into long braids on either side of his head, though they, too, look a bit unkept, stray hairs poking out of them. However, his horns, pitch black and pointed forward along his snout, seem to be well kept and cleaned. In Northrend, while no one is looking, he occasionally puts on a pair of horn-warmers his friend Veronia made for him.

Dress
Brekken’s favored leathers are a thick, black and red setup that provides both protection and quick movement. The suit has several animal parts worked into it; bear fur lines his gauntlets, eagle feathers point out of his shoulderpads, and a pair of stag horns are attached to either side of his helmet. He believes that those fetishes, claimed by him from successful hunts, offer him the protection and assistance of the Animal Spirits. On both of his shoulderpads are two spheres of crystal. He claims these attract moonlight and provide him with a reliable source of Moonfire should he need it while indoors or in places the moon does not reach.

History
Brekken was born in a remote village in southern Thousand Needles, to a small, virtually insignificant Tribe known as the Boulderhoof. From an early age, he was fascinated by animal life, and would often travel through the Needles, to the forests of Feralas, the Great Desert of Tanaris, and even scaling the cliffs to the Barrens. Within his twentieth year, Brekken embarked on a Spirit Quest given to him by his Tribe’s Shaman. The point of his quest was to become closer to the Great Bear Spirit. In completing the quest, he slew a black bear from Feralas and took his paw, keeping it on his person at all times to this day. Afterward, Brekken vowed to always honor the Bear Spirit and live in it’s example.

Like any young bull, Brekken pursued a some of the village girls. One of his brief romantic involvements produced a son, Henkel. The mother refused to look after the child, and left Brekken to be the parent.

Throughout his life, Tribe Boulderhoof had always been cautious of their enemies, the Centaur. Twenty years after Henkel was born, the Centaur, for no reason, attacked the tiny village and razed it to the ground, slaughtering anyone they could. Brekken, his sister Aleis, and Henkel all managed to flee to the Barrens, but the rest of the Tribe was destroyed, including Brekken’s brother and parents.

They wandered for several years, unable to fight back against the Centaur or find a permanent residence. Soon after, however, the Orcs found their way to Kalimdor. Brekken, like many other Tauren, allied with the Orcs and joined them in fighting back the Centaur Clans. Even after the bulk of the Orc and Tauren armies made their way to Mount Hyjal, Brekken stayed behind in the Barrens in a frenzy of bloodlust brought about by so many years of his hatred remaining dormant, killing any Centaur who happened to cross his path.

After the events of the Third War played out, Brekken, Henkel and Aleis settled in the newly founded city of Thunder Bluff. There, Brekken first discovered the new order of Tauren Druids, and was especially drawn to their connection to the Animal Spirits, particularly the Bear. Wishing to reform his relationship with the Animal Spirits, he found a teacher for himself, and learned the Druidic arts.