- A hunter(src)
Helgrotha, the Wood Witch, was a nephalem, and member of the Ancients.
Biography[]
Helgrotha lived in the early history of Sanctuary; one of four hunters alongside Corvik, Bersarik, and Gratian. It was said that no animal could conceal its tracks from them, and no beast could stand against them. Always, the four hunted together, and were as close as kin.[1]
The Gospel of Death[]
Encounter With Death[]
- Helgrotha(src)
On what would be their last hunt, they ventured to the green steppes, where none had ever hunted. There, according to Bersarik, they would hunt aurochs. After three days’ preparation, they left the golden city which they called home, and traveled northward. In the mountains, they were attacked by creatures similar to Blood Hawks, but they were able to fend them off. While troubled by the creatures’ boldness, they nevertheless carried on.
In the steppes, they tracked the aurochs’ trail for four days, ignoring the weakness creeping into their limbs. On the fifth, they finally found the herd. They cornered one of the beasts, but at this point they were attacked by Ahduma the Earthbreaker, who killed Gratian. Helgrotha and the others ran to their beloved, while Adhuma returned to the herd.
Helgrotha and the others mourn Gratian
Never before had the nephalem known death, yet Helgrotha and the others knew that Gratian was no longer Gratian. That something vital had left him. A long time passed before Helgrotha spoke, declaring themselves to be fools, and no better than the beasts they had slain. When the moon rose, Helgrotha declared that she had to leave, to go where death could not find her. After giving a parting embrace to Corvik and Bersarik, she walked into the darkness.[1]
The Wood Witch[]
”How are you a fool?”
”I see now that I cannot hide from death. No one can, nor can death be mastered through worship and flattery. To rage in defiance of death is to hasten it."
- Helgrotha and Kalmor(src)
Ages passed. Kalmor, acting under orders of Lilith, was ordered to slay Corvik and Helgrotha, and while he succeeded in the former task, he searched for Helgrotha for years, and for years, she eluded him. Paranoid about death, she gave up living under the sun, and only moved under cover of night, trying to hide from death. Taking residence inside a forest, she became known as the Wood Witch. It was said that she knew every branch of every tree, and could speak with animals and have them do her bidding. She instructed the animals on how to avoid traps left by hunters. She encountered a bear which she named “Bersarik,” in honor of her old friend.
Kalmor eventually tracked Helgrotha down, and entered the forest in which she dwelt. In a glade, come night, Kalmor shouted Helgrotha’s name. One animal after another attacked him until Bersarik maimed him, before Helgrotha ordered it to halt, but only that they may learn something of this hunter before devouring him. Kalmor asked if the bear was named after Bersarik, which Helgrotha confirmed. He admitted to slaying both Bersarik and Corvik, to which Helgrotha showed no surprise. She called herself a fool, stating that after all these years of trying to evade death, death had finally caught up with her. Death, she realized, was inevitable.
Helgrotha asked Kalmor if he intended to kill her. Keeping his thoughts to himself, he told her that he did not, that his errand was finished. He broke his blade in two, and buried the pieces in the glade. Helgrotha watched his task with sadness at the final ending of his former company. He told her that he would leave her wood, if she would allow him to leave in peace. Helgrotha told him that he would leave unharmed, but peace was something he would have to find for himself. With that, the two parted ways.[1]
Afterdeath[]
- Mendeln to Helgrotha and her legion(src)
Many tales exist for Helgrotha as to what she did after this meeting, and how she eventually came to her death.[1] It appears that Helgrotha and a number of her fellow nephalem were among those slain by Lilith, alongside numerous angels and demons. Unlike their forebears, however, the souls of Helgrotha and her kin were able to endure on Sanctuary.
Aeons later, during the Sin War, Helgrotha and a full legion of nephalem were summoned by Mendeln ul-Diomed. Mendeln stretched out his hand, and Helgrotha’s spirit bowed, so that his hand touched her hair. In doing so, Mendeln learnt her name and history. He asked if they would march against Lilith for him. In response, Helgrotha conjured a bone and gifted it to Mendeln, before she and her fellow nephalem faded. The bone twisted into a dagger, and Trag'Oul explained that the nephalem had accepted Mendeln as one who would prevent Sanctuary from being akin to either Hell or Heaven.[2]
Personality and Traits[]
Black-haired,[1] silver-eyed,[2] and discerning, she would sometimes let her quarry live to see another sunrise.[1] She was almost as powerful as Rathma.[2] Having encountered death, she became a protector of the nocturnal animals of Sanctuary.[2][1] She was kind, but also firm in the protection of those she cared for.[2]
She carried a spear, and later, a short sword.[1] Mendeln considered her to be beautiful.[2]
Trivia[]
- In the context of class archtypes, Helgrotha seems to incorporate elements of the Druid and Necromancer. The former is symbolized by her connection with animals, while the latter is symbolized through her interactions with Mendeln.