Kristof Kringle

Played By: Esjitu (story-only character)

Race: Nord

Age: N/A

Gender: Male

Element:

Residence: Kringol Barrow, Nordlands

Alignment: Neutral Law

Occupation: Adventurer, Viking, Santa Claus

Status: Deceased

As a young man, Kristof was the model example of an ideal Nord warrior - bearded, muscular, and covered with battle scars. He wore simple armor forged of iron and steel, though he would typically keep his body light and unburdened - even forgoing a helm in most cases.

As a ghost, Kristof looks the same as the above, but more translucent.

In his old age, Kristof inspired the 'classic' Santa Claus look with his white hair and beard, as well as his tendency to wear robes of red and green.

Kristof was as chivalrous as they came, every bit fit to stand before the gods at the gates of Verdhöll - The Hall of the Worthy in ancient Nordic belief. However, he forsook even this most honorable of fates when he made the decision to bind his life for the sake of sealing Krampus. This goes to show just how strong Kristof's belief in justice was, weighing the need to stop the beast's rampage over his own eternal fate and the fate of his progeny.

Though Kristof had a strong tendency to put the good of others before his own, his motivation for defeating Krampus was in fact colored with personal feelings, as the beast had taken the life of his younger sister. Thus, setting out to imprison Krampus was as much for the sake of revenge as it was to prevent him from harming others in the same way, and he willingly sacrificed his own afterlife for the sake of this goal.

In his old age, Kristof became notorious for giving gifts to the pilgrims who came to see him at his humble shack in the Ice Plains. This generosity inspired the gift-giving traditions of Christmas, and the image of a kindly old bearded man engraved the iconic visage of Santa Claus in the hearts of generations to come.

Kristof was a nord warrior and adventurer who lived many hundred years ago in the Nordlands. It is unknown how true the many, many, many accounts of Kristof's adventures told of in stories and song in his home country of the Nordlands are actually true. However, it is believed that the majority of those events did in fact transpire, even if the specifics have been exaggerated and warped by the passage of time (and for the sake of excitement factor or lyrical meter).

What we do know of the man is that he was a notorious adventurer, brave and strong, who traveled the land slaying beasts and helping those in need. He was also a viking, sailing the frigid northern seas in search of new lands. He is historically considered to be responsible for the large population of nords settling in IGNOLand hundreds of years past when he made the journey across the sea from the Nordlands to The Ice Plains with Krampus in tow. Since the time of his death, many nords still make the pilgrimage to IGNOLand to visit the place he lived out his final years.

As part of the curse he used to bind Krampus' power, Kristof was unable to pass to the next world even long after death. Thus he remained a restless ghost waiting in his own tomb of Kringol Barrow, ensuring that Krampus could never again be free.

In life, Kristof was both a skilled warrior as well as a powerful spellcaster. His favored weapon was his trusty battle axe, but many stories and legends tell of 'Kristof's magic items' as well - various weapons and artifacts that he had gained through his travels and adventures with enchanted and magical properties. One such artifact was his staff, a striped cane to which he bound his very soul as part of the ritual to ensnare Krampus.

It is unknown what other magic items Kristof had, but supposedly many of them were distributed to his children at the time of his death and passed down through the Kringle family since. Some are said to have been lost or hidden away across IGNOLand...