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Petra Freedman
Female human com 3: CR 2; Medium humanoid (human); Hit Dice 3d4+6; 15 hp; Init +0; Spd 30 ft. (6 squares); AC 10 (10 touch, 10 flat-footed); BAB/Grapple +1/+0; Atk +0 melee (1d4-1/19-20, dagger), or +1 ranged (1d4-1/19-20, dagger); AL NG; SV Fort +5, Ref +3, Will +5; Str 8, Dex 10, Con 14, Int 12, Wis 15, Cha 13.
Skills and Feats: Craft (pottery) +5, Handle Animal +2, Listen +8, Profession (clerk) +8, Ride +1, Spot +8; Great Fortitude, Iron Will, Lightning Reflexes
Spoken Languages: Common, Dwarven
Possessions: Courtier’s outfit, dagger, riding horse (named Sammy), 30 gp, 5 pp, 7 sp.

The inexplicably cute face of the girl is the first thing that captures your attention. Her features are smooth and round, except for her nose, which points sharply with a slight tilt upward. While she is a bit on the chubby side, her figure has graceful curves in the all the right places. The weight gives her a soft, comfortable look. Beneath long, dark hair hanging thickly around her head, brown eyes stare excitedly at the world around. The fingers on her hands are long and thin, able and ready to manipulate the world around them. Her nails are kept unpainted, but cleanly cut and filed.

She wears plain clothes, a slightly faded white work tunic that is a little tighter than it ought to be, brown breeches that are a little too short and old shoes that have little holes in the sides.

Alternatively:
She is wearing a long dress with pastel flowers forming no particular pattern. The dress fits snugly around her full hips and falls to reach her ankles. Sandaled feet peek out from under the fabric, revealing unpainted toes that seem to be a bit too long for their own good.

History:
Petra is the third child (second daughter) of a working class couple. Petra’s father is a blacksmith. Her mother spent the majority of her time at home with the children, but in an effort to earn a few extra coppers to help support her family, she took a job at one of the local inns as a maid. Certainly her parents’ relationship is not storybook love, but they get along as well as can be expected, and are still together to this day.

Currently, Petra lives in her hometown, where she shares a small house with three other single women. She works as a bank clerk and spends her nights dating, drinking, dancing or just staying at home writing bad poetry.

Personality:
Petra is the kind of girl that someone could love, but it would take a lot of work to do it. She is courageous, friendly, good-hearted, high-spirited and beautiful. At least, she would be if an ever-present layer of insecurity and doubt didn’t constantly haunt her and work to obscure all these good qualities.

Petra is neurotic in the lay sense of the word. She worries incessantly about what people think of her. She looks to those around her for her self image and is never confident in her own abilities until she is reassured by someone else or something threatens the things she holds dear. She strives to protect her friends, family and values with a zealot’s ardor, as these give her meaning and are the sources of her strength. Her demeanor may come off as controlling, but she honestly wants the best for everyone and tries to form fulfilling relationships, even if her attempts are misguided. She never makes a promise if she doesn’t intend to do her all to keep it. Her loyalty is almost irritating and she often takes offense when if her dedication isn’t appreciated. Sociable by nature, Petra loves meeting new people, particularly if they have the chance to be Mr. Right. As a result of the stress of living up to imagined expectations, she often finds herself overeating and moping. These actions serve to taint the opinions of the people she is trying to impress.

Petra is a moody person, but rather than making seemingly random jumps of emotion without provocation, her feelings cycle like the tides. If she is feeling happy, she views everything in a positive light that reinforces her happiness. During the times when she is sad, she views everything in a negative light that deepens her blue mood. Her temper is normally even, but she is particularly sensitive to the topics of rejection and loss of loved ones, both of which can easily drive her to fits of screaming or crying.

Anyone willing to support and bolster Petra’s self image while learning to understand the nuances of her style of relation could be very happy with her; however, doing so requires an amount of time and patience which many do not possess.

Pieces of Petra:
She once went through a phase where she only wore low cut gowns that showed off her breasts because an ex-boyfriend told her, “Those beautiful breasts aren’t worth putting up with you.”

Petra went into a six-month depression because she got a new short hairstyle and thought that it made her look old. At then end of the sixth months she found herself thirty pounds heavier due to a diet, which primarily consisted of pure candied apples.

Petra is simultaneously afraid of commitment (because he will think she is clingy) and casual relationships (because he will think she is a tramp). As a result, her relationships are a constant see-saw of closeness and distance.

She responds to insults with strength and indignities, but secretly takes them to heart. Even if confronted with evidence of the injury, she will deny it, feigning competence, confidence, and closure in the face of irrefutable evidence to the contrary.

She once rode thirty miles in the rain to deliver a dress to a friend who wished to borrow it for a date. She cried the whole trip back home, knowing that she had given the man she loved away to someone else.

She wants exactly two children, one boy and one girl. Any other combination will make her unhappy and she refuses to consider the possibility that this might not happen.

Why Would You Want to Use Petra?
Petra is the type of character who adds depth to a campaign. She is a common person, perhaps the very type of person that the PCs save on a regular basis. The party probably never even talked to her because most DMs feel that the Petra's of the world aren’t worth their time, even though this takes a great deal of the humanity out of the game. Not every single commoner should be detailed, but making a few that are interesting and dynamic gives the campaign a more realistic depth and a more human experience.

Some specific roles Petra could play in your game:
The person at the bank: As a rule, adventurers make a lot of money, usually in various forms that need to be exchanged or invested. A successful group of adventurers probably spends a lot of time at the bank. Using Petra as one of the bank clerks makes this mundane experience much more interesting. The PCs have a character whose name they know and who they can interact with, shower with their tales or struggle through the small talk while trying to get their business done. Should the PCs decide to rob a bank, the character with whom they will have to interact is detailed so that they can commit their nefarious deed without forcing the DM to resort to the use of a stock NPC.

Friend: Petra is a perfectly sociable person and would make a great friend for one of the characters. The trials and tribulations of a commoner might seem like a trite topic for an adventurer, but to a friend, even the most trivial of problems is still a problem nonetheless. This type of angle could help bring levity to a game after a monumental task, open doors to the common people via this point of contact, or open up plots with the information gained from the ally. And of course, the obligatory kidnapping of someone that the PC holds dear is always an option.

Romantic interest: For all of her foibles, Petra wants to love and be loved in return. A romantic interest character may have no use in some games, but for those in which it does have a use, she will make a well-rounded target for a PC’s affections.

Damsel in distress: Sometimes, you just need a girl to get kidnapped to open up an adventure. It doesn’t always have to be a rich merchant’s daughter or a princess every time. Petra is a perfect character to be captured. She is just a commoner, in way over her head, though somewhat weak and vulnerable, she is still tough in her own way.

Damsel causing distress: Other times, the strong-minded Petra can get herself in over her head without anyone capturing her. If something bad is happening to the people she cares about she will do what it takes to set things right. While she is a tough commoner, she is still just a commoner in a world full of villains and monsters. Petra might need to be rescued from her own good intentions.

The stowaway: The party is off on a quest, but they have some unexpected help. Petra is drawn into their quest for her own reasons. When attempting to complete their assignment, the party is faced with finding a way to protect Petra from the dangers of their world, all the while dealing with the fact that she is stubborn and won’t give up on her cause once she is attached to it. Simply telling her to go home may not be an option if the quest needs to be completed quickly or if the path out is not as simple as turning around.

Coming home: Some adventurers live their whole lives running away from where they came from. Sometimes they come home to celebration or to face their responsibilities. That home needs characters and personalities to fill it. Petra can be one such face: an old friend, old flame, sister, acquaintance, cousin, etc.

Random person: Once in a while you just need another face in the crowd. Petra can fill this role, adding some flavor and detail to a simple scene.