Character Sheet for Drakelyn Rubank Surerudder
Species
Eurasian otter (Lutra lutra)
Character Description
Drakelyn Surerudder is a classic Mossflorian Skipper of Otters. Brawny, confident, good looking, and very friendly. He would fit nicely into any Redwall story as a beloved otter character. His views are traditional, that of a male hero, and he backs them up with his actions. He is a family beast with grown children and many grandchildren. His is a skilled warrior and excellent leader among his otterkin and when needed in Redwall Abbey.
Drakelyn is a Chief Skipper, as opposed to just a normal Skipper of Otters, which positions himself and his wife at Redwall Abbey. His eldest son, Blake, is the Skipper of nearby holt, Camp Willow.
Drakelyn has had his position for 14 years, serving most of it under Father Abbot Josiah, then Father Abbot Serney. Prior to the eruption of Mt. Salamandastron in 5637, the proud skipper was all but Redwall Abbey's warrior hero. He was the bravest, most fatherly, and most masculine beast at the abbey. He enjoyed being looked up to. But that changed when the Long Patrol arrived.
Drakelyn was tough, he could fight and he handled his share of ruffians around Mossflower Wood as good as any warrior. But he was not a soldier, not like the Long Patrol hares. Drakelyn looked up to and admired, but was also intimidated by him. Thunderfoot was the real thing. A real general with a booming voice, a presence, and a swagger that Drakelyn could only fake, badly. He tried to order his otterguards around in the same way as Thunderfoot, it did not go well. Colonel Cornelius Longstride took the Skipper aside and told him, "Just be the Skippah of Ottahs, Sah. This wo'ld is hahdly big enough for one General Thundahfoot, let alone two, wot wot!" It was a very gentle. but effective blow to his ego.
Drakelyn was not a deep thinker, he took many things at face value. He was aware of the changes coming to Mossflower, the acceptance of 'vermin' species and gradual fading away of 'old Mossflower'. He paid it little mind though. Unlike the badgerlord and Long Patrol high command, he got along well with Abbot Serney and did not feel threatened by most changes because they had very little affect on him. This changed drastically in spring of 5644, when the rat Queen Guivderin arrived with her entourage.
Skipper Drakelyn hated everything about the rat queen. One, she was a rat, which makes her vermin, in his simplistic way of thinking. Two, she is a single young female in a legitimate position of power, which undermined his view of the family unit so important to otter tribes. And three, her youth, beauty, and overall elegant presentation contradicted his idea of a vermin queen. He wanted so badly to expose her as an impostor, but she was for real and it upset him. He watched as Guivderin befriended everyone and gained the trust of the abbey dwellers. He vented his frustration and concerns to the Long Patrol, who agreed with him.
When the time came to march off to face the Siberians, Skipper Drakelyn Surerudder pledged his sword. He would lead a select group of otter warriors with the Long Patrol to Langchex. He was assured Redwall would be safe under the guard of the many remaining Long Patrol hares. On June 12, 5644, Skipper Surerudder participated in the ill fated Battle of Langchex. The Long Patrol were cut down, Badgerlord Hammerfist and his kin were all killed, and Drakelyn lost three of his otterguards, the rest injured. He remained unhurt at the battle's conclusion.
It took some time for the gravity of the situation to sink in. But when he saw the gravely injured General Thunderfoot being handed articles of surrender by victorious Siberian General Niskoff, it couldn't have been more real. He looked at the bodies all around him, most of them Long Patrol hares. Besides the sorrow of loss, he realized he had no business being on this battlefield. This was something out of his league and he was lucky to be alive. He kept on a brave face, but his ego was collapsing on the inside.
Personality
Proud, that's probably the single best word describing Drakelyn Surerudder's personality. Big ego, thinks highly of and enjoys talking about himself. But he is also friendly, caring, fun loving, and driven. He is not selfish and would give you the shirt off his back. He tries to place himself in positions of importance so he can be seen as important. To his credit, he is a good leader on a family and tribal level, although he views himself as a military general.
His ego is fragile and he does a good job putting himself in unchallenged positions so it won't be shattered. He is brave on a bit of a reckless level. His hotheadedness and stubborn nature gets him into trouble from time to time. He bottles up fear and sadness, puts on a brave face in bad times.
Great sense of humor, playful, always up for a good time.
Likes/Dislikes
Loves his family, friends, and Redwall Abbey. Drakelyn loves what the abbey stands for and wants to protect it with his life. He loves being surrounded by his family and feeds off the energy.
Drakelyn enjoys sports and anything physically competitive. He's always up for a party, getting drunk, and a good Redwall feast. He'll go head to head with any Long Patrol hare in an eating contest.
Drakelyn does not like challenges to his ego or position. It's one of the easiest ways to get on his bad side. He doesn't take well to being idle, he always needs something to do. And vermin species, he hates them and considers them all criminals.
Background/History
Drakelyn Rubank Surerudder was born October 18, 5584 in Camp Willow, Mossflower. He is the oldest of the three children of Trawnwade and Glideponda Surerudder. Trawnwade was the previous Skipper of Camp Willow. Drakelyn's childhood was typical of most Mossflorian otters. His academic education was basic, but his practical skill education was extensive. The holt, or streamside otter village of Camp Willow was a lively friendly place. Life was dandy and friends and family were plenty. Redwall Abbey was only a short distance away and visits were frequent. Young Drakelyn grew to love the abbey, and especially the heroic story of Martin the Warrior. But when he learned there had been an otter warrior named The Taggerung, who wielded Martin's sword many centuries ago as Redwall Abbey's hero, he became truly inspired. He would become the next otter to wield Martin's sword if it was the last thing he did. So instead of training with the traditional sling, he pursued the broadsword as his weapon.
Throughout his adolescence and teens, Drakelyn became proficient with his sword. He was taught by a local mouse named Fenris, who was not a warrior but sword aficionado. Summer of his 18th year, Drakelyn began courting a young ottermaid named Rillbrook. The two were deeply in love. Two weeks later, Drakelyn traveled to Salamandastron with a number of other woodlanders for real swordsmanship training under the Long Patrol. The timing couldn't have been worse. The young otter could not stop thinking about his new girlfriend. He had the strength, speed, coordination and endurance of a true warrior, but he lacked the focus. He dreamed of his girl, marrying her, having a family, swordwork was suddenly second place. He barely passed. When he returned home however, he presented himself as all the warrior thought he was. He and 16-year-old Rillbrook married on a beautiful autumn day that October in Redwall Abbey.
Drakelyn and Rillbrook wasted no time in making a family. He loved being a father and was good at it. He also had the presence and charisma of a leader. Over the next 25 years, Drakelyn and Rillbrook raised 7 children. Drakelyn was a well liked and prominent creature in Mossflower Woods, and he began spending more time as an otterguard at Redwall Abbey. He was unanimously appointed Skipper of Otters on January 23, 5630 at the age of 45 when his predecessor retired.
Everyone loved Drakelyn. They all knew he had an ego, but what a great leader he was. Brave, dashing, friendly, Always a positive presence. He rarely spoke ill of anyone other than passing vermin. But when the Long Patrol arrived in 5637, his place as 'top dog' was suddenly eclipsed. He got along well with the Long Patrol, not so much with Badgerlord Hammerfist, whom he just avoided. But the hares had an omnipotence about them, especially General Thunderfoot, whom he admired and feared. These feelings eased in 5640 when Abbot Serney became Father Abbot and lessened the Long Patrol's ever-presence. Drakelyn felt whole for the next 4 years, then Queen Guivderin arrived.
Fast forward a few months, Drakelyn is back in Redwall Abbey after the loss at Langchex. It was during a meeting in Great Hall that he pulled his sword on Queen Guivderin, blaming her for leading the Siberians to Mossflower. Only Abbot Serney's intervening prevented a bloodbath. General Thunderfoot gave him a dressing down after the dejected queen left the room. She returned a short time later holding Martin's sword, everyone knew she'd been chosen.
Drakelny unraveled, almost wetting himself. This was blasphemy! HE was supposed to be Redwall's next hero, not her! Not a rat! Her disgusting paws are touching HIS sword! "Skipper control yourself!" Thunderfoot bellowed. Drakelyn's voice cracked as several otterguards escorted him out.
On September 22, 5644, Drakelyn was replaced by his 40 year old son, Blake, as Chief Skipper of Otters. Drakelyn lived out his years comfortably in Camp Willow as its Skipper.
Relatives/Family
Wife: Rillbrook Surerudder, 57.
Son: Blake Surerudder, 40.
Son:Franbank Surerudder, 38.
Daughter: Sandra Keel, 37.
Daughter: Heather Surerudder, 35.
Son: Horst Surerudder, 34.
Daughter: Lily Cattail, 32.
Son: Truedrift Surerudder, 29.
Sister: Tridentia Swiftcurrent, 56.
Sister: Ouitel Priddle, 52.
Extended family of cousins, nieces, nephews, and grandchildren.
World/Setting
Set on planet Earth approximately 50,000 years in the future. All of my Redwall OCs are depicted as they were in the year 5645(Year Zero was when time measurements switched from seasons to years.), the year of the Rendezvous of the Six Armies. Most of Chucky's world is stone aged to medieval at this time, with some increasing industrialization. The most modern cities have technology equivalent to that of Ancient Rome. Worldwide ocean travel exists with celestial navigation, although it is a risky undertaking.
Drakelyn Surerudder is from Camp Willow. The riverside community sits along the River Moss near Redwall Abbey, it is mentioned in a few Redwall books. It is described as a holt(otter dwelling) built into the riverbank under a large willow tree.
By Drakelyn's time, Camp Willow is a thriving community of over a thousand creatures, mostly various otter clans. Camp Willow's economy is based on fishing and transportation of creatures and goods along the River Moss. Camp Willow otters control the drawbridge that now exists where the Main Path crosses the river north of Redwall Abbey.
Drakelyn Surerudder was 52 when the assumed extinct Mt. Salamandastron erupted, destroying the millennia-old home of badgerlords. Most badgers and the Long Patrol relocated to the forest surrounding Redwall Abbey. This was the start of what would become Mossflower City. Most Redwall stories take place in Mossflower Country. For the purpose of crossover with Chucky's world, Mossflower is what most of Western Europe is known as. Mossflower Proper, covers the Iberian Peninsula. Redwall Abbey sits near what we know as Valladolid, Spain.(yes, I know there are some holes in my geography, but just go with it.) And although this area experiences a semiarid Mediterranean Climate in our time, in Surerudder's time, the climate has cooled and Mossflower experiences a climate similar to the rest of Western Europe.
Mossflower Country has no centralized government, just a common language of Mossflorian. It is a collections of kingdoms, species based tribal communities, communal settlements like Redwall Abbey and Mt. Salamandastron, and a few true cities like Southsward and Marl. Its history is that of survival and tribal warfare. Small kingdoms under a feudal system run by a lord or chieftain would trade or fight with each other for better land and resources. Larger communities grew in places where farming was done on a large scale. Redwall Abbey was built between early 4109 and 4129. It became known throughout the regions as a place of sanctuary, and a place of riches. The Redwall book series does a good job of explaining life in Mossflower over the next thousand years or so.
Mossflower began seeing changes in past centuries. Free markets began forming allowing creatures to make a living with their own skills. The quickest change was the sudden lack of 'vermin hordes'. Rats, weasels, stoats, foxes, and other 'vermin' no longer needed to join hordes for survival. The rat city of Blaggot, fox city of Marl, and northern coast trade port of Coltswart where such places. Relations between creatures and kingdoms softened. Internal trade and travel grew, and Mossflower felt smaller.
Most agree that the 5637 eruption of Mt. Salamandastron ended the era of 'Old Mossflower' for good. The displaced Long Patrol became the new horde for a short time. Then a new enemy approached from the east, not set on riches, but on empire building. 'Goodbeast' and 'vermin' alike cowered as the Long Patrol's first attack was efficiently cut down. Drakelyn survived the battle unhurt by pure chance. But his meltdown at the naming of Rat Queen Guivderin Rijeka as Redwall's new hero sealed his fate. He was forced to relinquish his position to his son, Blake. Drakelyn did not participate further in Mossflower's history.
Body
Fairly typical fur pattern for a European Otter. Grey highlights on his head, cheeks, and a few other places as he ages. He is self conscious about this and will often dye his fur in places to look younger.
Average height for an anthropomorphic otter, around 5 feet 10 inches tall. Strong brawny build, keeps himself in good shape. Somewhat intense, but friendly brown eyes.
In his later years, Drakelyn began displaying occasional jerky uncoordinated movements. He almost stabbed himself in the foot posing for the image above. These movements would intensify when he was under stress and became particularly noticeable after the arrival of Queen Guivderin. He denied it was happening, of course, because of his pride. But everyone saw it, and it was one of the catalysts for his eventual removal from his position. Called the "Flerjy Twinge" in Mossflower, we know the condition as Parkinson's Disease.
Clothing
Dresses like he's about to go into battle. Frequently wears chainmail with his Camp Willow Skipper of Otters outer garment. Thick leather belt. Other days he wears a tunic and enjoys going shirtless when the weather is warm. Yes, he does it to show off his muscles.
Accessories
Unlike the typical sling that most Mossflorian otters carry, Drakelyn carries a broadsword.
