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And I’m wearing a pretty cute dress, that’s all.
And I’m having a good time, you know?
We’re just having a good time here at breakfast.”
Jester was the type that lived a very comfortable, but lonely, lifestyle. She was raised surrounded by wealth on account of her mother being a highly sought-after courtesan. At least until her passion for jokes got her in so much trouble she had to leave home - having locked one of her Mother’s clients, Lord Sharp, out on the balcony mostly naked in the middle of the day. It took her some time to adjust to not having access to the funds she was used to, but with the help of her fellow party members, she persevered.
Jester, as she’s known by everyone, chose her name because she wants not only to be happy, but to also make others happy. Her birth name is still unknown and she doesn’t discuss it. She is a very bubbly person, easily excitable. She does what she can to put a positive spin on any situation and absolutely adores when she can pull a prank or do something others might consider mischievous.
Marion: Ah, young Jester was rambunctious, curious, ever running off, getting into, well, trouble, and finding trouble, making trouble. For me, it was a joy. She was very quick to learn, ever smiling, brightening any chamber she walked into. She had a good sense for who needed to be taken down a peg.
Being of the Trickster Domain, she devoutly worships The Traveler - an unapproved deity in the Dwendalian Empire. She openly talks about him wherever she goes, not caring about possible consequences if overheard within the borders of the Empire as the land she hails from, Nicodranas, is outside of the purview of the Empire. Most of her offerings to the Traveler either come in the form of a pictorial journal she keeps, tracking her exploits and adventures for him, or by leaving mysterious notes and drawings - especially of ***** - in random places to be found later.
Jester’s focus, as the campaign develops, does move from just doing tricks and pranking people to actually working to help others. She gets called out a lot by her fellow Mighty Nein members early on as she hasn’t always been the best cleric.
but you don’t have a healer’s kit in there?
And you’re the cleric?
But even with her healing fails and the inner conflict of wanting to help her fellow party members in the moment versus taking out whatever they’re fighting and healing them later, she often makes the right call. Especially when she suddenly has competition on the healing front. After the death of Mollymauk while she and Fjord were captured, Caduceus joined the party - a Grave Cleric. The addition of a second Cleric not only lit a fire under her butt to prove herself to the group as a still valued member, but it also took some of the pressure off of her shoulders.
She never had siblings and grew up in a very isolated environment, so it’s been a personal journey to really be able to put others first. Including burning a high level spell slot to heal someone else instead of doing a really cool damaging spell. Jester also struggles a lot with jealousy and insecurity, especially whens he feels like her spot within the group is being threatened. With Caduceus, it wasn’t as strong of a reaction, but when there was a stowaway on the Squall Eater named Twiggy, who had a pet squirrel - similar to her pet crimson weasel, those feelings surfaced. Twiggy had called Nott her new best friend and had shown she was also a talented painter. Nott had pointed out that Jester and Twiggy shared many abilities, leaving Jester to believe Twiggy was going to replace her. Rather than bottling it up, Jester trusts the others and opens up about her feelings - finding reassurance that she wasn’t being replaced.
While that was an easy enough fix to that issue, when the group meets Avantika, TALK ABOUT AVANTIKA
Her friendship with the Traveler has also guided her through this journey of loss and personal growth, their connection deeper than what might be expected of a deity. He’d come to her as a child when she’d been alone and had been one of her only friends - having always appeared to her hidden within a green cloak and growing up with her - at least in her eyes. Jester sometimes even uses plural pronouns, seemingly referring to The Traveler always being with her. While her dedication to him has always remained true, the foundations of their relationship had really been tested when she’d been captured by the Iron Shepherds with Fjord.
Jester believed that because The Traveler did not come to save her from the Iron Shepherds he did not like her anymore. She’d also lost her will to draw after being rescued, something she’d been doing since she was a child. Instead, she wrote ‘why didn’t you come’ in her journal.
She later asked for Nott’s help breaking into the Platinum House (the temple of The Platinum Dragon) so that she could vandalize it in the name of the Traveler to get him to like her again. Things did not go as planned, resulting in Nott and Jester almost being arrested, but the Traveler did visit Jester that night.
She asked him if he liked her again. He told her that he was never disappointed in her and that just because she didn't see him didn't mean he wasn't there, reaffirming her faith in him. This also gave her the power within herself to reassure Caduceus when he has his own crisis of faith. Caduceus had been unsure if he’d made a mistake leaving his home to join the Mighty Nein after feeling disturbed by the group's theft of the Squall Eater and then almost drowning. He hadn’t received a sign from the Wildmother in a long time and Jester reminded him just because his God might be silent, it didn’t mean she’d abandoned him.
There are a lot of things for you to see,
and you have to break out of your comfort zone
in order to find the path that you are looking for.”
While captured with Fjord, she’d done her best to keep their spirits up, singing and trying to talk the whole time while being tortured. Caleb had commented, stating that he thought it was a mask.
that it’s nothing to be ashamed of.
I don’t like having problems when everyone else needs to be happy.”
Her interaction with the Traveler is one of the few glimpses we get behind the mask she keeps in place, tampering down her own feelings of insecurity and fears of being alone. She really didn’t show any vulnerabilities to the others at first, but the wall she’d built around herself has slowly started to chip away. Especially with the loss of Yasha to Obann and the Laughing Hand. It’s really the first chance everyone has to witness some raw emotion from Jester and also the first time Jester really gets thrown off of her path. The loss of Yasha and Jester’s perceived inability to be able to stop it called into question her sense of self. She’s grown up a lot with the group and while the loss of Mollymauk was very difficult for her to face, this was the first time she’d witnessed something this awful first hand and had been helpless to stop it.
If they’d lost Yasha at the beginning of their journey together, it absolutely wouldn’t have had the same devastating effect. Jester has taken the time to really get to know everyone in the party, forming unique bonds with each of them. She’s tried to be a confidant for all of them and in turn has opened up ADD MORE
Jester: I'm really good at the waltz.
Caleb: I believe it.
Jester: Yeah. They taught me the same time I learned piano.
Caleb: Is there anything else that you're hiding from us? Any other quirks or skills?
Jester: So many. Lots of skills.
Caleb: What are three more?
Jester: I can paint. I'm really good at baking scones. Specifically scones.
Fjord: With cinnamon, right?
Jester: With cinnamon.
Beau: Scones are hard to make.
Jester: I know. It's a very tough recipe, but I'm good at it.
Even with all of her flaws, she is a very compassionate caretaker… When she remembers to heal. She will fight to protect others and was an active voice in taking in the kenku child they found in the swamp. While her style isn’t considered traditional, her heart is in the right place.
Kiri: (chirps)
Jester: We should probably teach you that’s not the coolest thing to do, I don’t think, but it’s fine that you did it this time. I’m sure he didn’t feel it. But probably if we’re in a place where other people are around, we probably shouldn’t stab people that are already hurt.
Kiri: (mimicking Jester) “Okay, okay, okay.”
Jester: I mean, no, that’s a lie. Unless they are attacking you. Don’t stab people that are dead-dead.
Kiri: (mimicking Jester) “Okay, okay, okay.”
Jester: Okay, okay, okay.
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deerington