Fernado is a wiry but exceptionally muscular kobold, standing just over three feet tall with bronze-red scales, a pale cream throat, and bright amber eyes. His left horn is chipped, and a jagged scar crosses his snout from an old battlefield ambush. He wears battered chain mail sized and altered for his small frame, a red soldier's sash, and a heavy iron medallion bearing the symbol of his former patrol. His enormous greataxe is nearly as tall as he is, though he handles it with practiced confidence.

Fernado is blunt, protective, and surprisingly patient with frightened people. He enjoys campfire stories, military songs, and practical jokes that do not humiliate anyone. He speaks with the confidence of a veteran twice his size, but he is quick to praise others and deeply uncomfortable when people call him a hero.

Fernado was born beneath a ruined watchtower where a kobold warren survived by scavenging the remains of forgotten battles. Unlike most of his clutchmates, he was huge, loud, and stubbornly difficult to frighten. The warren's elders eventually sent him to serve as a runner and camp follower for a border militia. Fernado learned that soldiers were not simply raiders in polished armor. They were people who shared food, carried the wounded, and stood together when the night became terrifying. He earned his place through sheer strength, fierce loyalty, and an instinct for putting himself between danger and smaller companions. During a disastrous night attack, Fernado's patrol was betrayed by a commander who abandoned the defensive line. Fernado dragged three wounded soldiers to safety, but the patrol's banner and most of its supplies were lost. He now travels as a wandering veteran, taking work that lets him protect the vulnerable while searching for the officer responsible. He does not seek glory or revenge for their own sake. He wants proof of what happened, justice for the dead, and a new company whose members will never be discarded as expendable.