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Cevra

NPCs
Tabaxi · Artificer, Alchemist · Level 5

Cevra

Apothecary
“That dose is a key, not a cure. It opens the wrong door.”
AC15
HP38/38
Init
STR
DEX
CON
INT
WIS
CHA
ConditionsNone

At the table

Voice

Her voice has a dry rasp from years of grinding powders and breathing sharp medicinal fumes. She clips the ends of words when moving quickly, then draws out ingredient names with exact care. When alarmed, her speech speeds up rather than softening, each sentence arriving like a newly checked measurement.

She speaks in clipped, clearly separated phrases, with the practical vocabulary of a working apothecary and the careful qualifications of someone once ignored at a cost. She names ingredients precisely, rarely uses grand metaphors, and often turns a question into a diagnostic checklist.

Speech patterns

Asks what a person ate, touched, and was told before asking what hurts.
Repeats a client's exact wording when she suspects they are hiding a detail.
Uses practical comparisons: 'That dose is a key, not a cure. It opens the wrong door.'
Ends negotiations by listing the next three steps and who will perform each one.

How to play them

She begins by offering a small, practical service, then quietly tests whether visitors respect boundaries and answer direct questions. Honest, specific answers earn her cooperation. Threats, evasions, or sudden movements make her end the meeting and move toward a guarded exit. If shown evidence that someone is in immediate danger, she will act before she has solved the entire mystery.

Goal

Trace the stolen prescriptions to their source and determine which noble household is being targeted before another patient dies.

Motivation

She wants to make remedies that protect people without turning their private needs into leverage. She also wants proof that her warning years ago was right, though she dislikes admitting how much that matters to her.

Secret · GM only

Appearance

Cevra is a tawny tabaxi with fine dark rosettes that blur into stripes along her flanks. Her short fur lies sleek where her sleeves cover it and sticks up in a stubborn ridge between her ears, usually dusted with pale mortar. She moves in quick, precise starts and stops, placing her feet as if each tile might conceal a listening device. A squat green-glass scent bottle hangs at her throat; its brass cap has been rubbed nearly smooth on one side from years of her thumb worrying it. The incongruous thing about her is the tiny, carefully mended child's kite tucked into her satchel, its paper tail patched with scraps of expensive prescription labels.

Clothing

A high-collared charcoal coat with deep inner pockets, a leather apron stiffened by old spills, and soft-soled boots for crossing polished floors without announcing herself. Her cuffs are carefully clean, but the apron bears a permanent greenish stain.

Body language

She keeps her shoulders squared to the room and her tail low, the tip making small, measured taps against her calf. When thinking, she presses the worn side of her scent bottle with one thumb. She rarely sits with both feet on the floor, preferring a crouch that lets her spring up without warning.

Height
5 feet 7 inches
Build
Lean, spring-loaded, and stronger through the shoulders than her narrow frame suggests.
Eyes
Amber-gold
Hair
Dark brown fur, with a black ridge between her ears
Skin
Warm tawny fur patterned with dark rosettes and flank stripes
Age
Twenty-six
Gender
Female
Size
Medium

Distinguishing features

A squat green-glass scent bottle always hangs at her throat, its brass cap polished smooth on one side by her thumb.
She walks in short, silent starts and stops, as if testing the floor for traps.
A child's kite, patched from discarded prescription labels, is tucked into her satchel.

Personality

13 traits and drives

Cevra is briskly helpful with people in genuine pain, yet guarded with anyone who asks how she learned her craft. When business is steady, she can be dryly funny and surprisingly patient; when a detail feels wrong, she becomes methodical to the point of cruelty, questioning a frightened person as if they were a suspect. She wants others to trust her work but rarely trusts their motives.

Alignment
Neutral

Quirks

She smells the cork of every bottle before she reads its label.
She counts door hinges under her breath when entering an unfamiliar room.
She folds used paper wrappers into tiny boats and lines them along the windowsill.
She taps her scent bottle exactly three times before making a difficult decision.

Habits

Checks the seal on every bottle before opening it, even when she sealed it herself.
Leaves a chair angled toward the nearest exit and notices when someone moves it.
When a client describes a symptom, she listens closely; when they describe who sent them, she watches their hands.
On nights without customers, she repairs the paper kite in her satchel instead of sleeping.

Traits · 3

She is compassionate about suffering and suspicious of explanations.
She plans for emergencies with care, then improvises boldly when her plan fails.
She can be warm with children and patients, but stiffly formal with the powerful.

Flaws · 3

She treats uncertainty as evidence of danger and can turn a cautious inquiry into an accusation.
She withholds useful information until she has verified it herself, even when others need it urgently.
She would rather exhaust herself keeping watch than admit she needs help.

Fears · 3

That an innocent person will die from a remedy she prepared.
That her aunt will be punished for sheltering her.
That the prescription thief is someone she trusts and that confronting them will leave her with no allies.

Wants and needs · 4

A trustworthy way to protect her aunt and the kitchen runner.
Access to prescription records from the households that hired her.
A chance to investigate without being forced to reveal her old theft.
A safe place to sleep where she can hear the door open.

Combat

AC 15 · HP 38 · 30 ft., climb 20 ft.

Cevra avoids a fair fight. She opens with faerie fire or web to expose or restrain threats, then attacks from cover with acid splash, fire bolt, or her crossbow. She uses feline agility to cross an exposed space or reach an exit, and reserves healing word for a badly hurt ally. If cornered, she uses thunderwave to create room and retreats toward a prepared escape route.

Cevra

Medium humanoid (tabaxi), neutral
Armor Class15
Hit Points38
Speed30 ft., climb 20 ft.
Level5
STR
DEX
CON
INT
WIS
CHA
Saving ThrowsConstitutionIntelligence
SkillsArcanaInvestigationMedicinePerceptionSleight of Hand
SensesDarkvision 60 ft.; passive Perception 11
Languages
Common,
Elvish,
Goblin
Darkvision 60 feet.
Feline Agility. when she moves on her turn in combat, she can double her speed until the end of that turn. She cannot use this trait again until she moves 0 feet on one of her turns.
Cat's Claws. her claws deal slashing damage, and she can climb at a speed of 20 feet.
Alchemical Savant. when she casts a spell using her alchemist's supplies as a spellcasting focus, she can add her Intelligence modifier to one damage roll or healing roll of that spell, provided it restores hit points or deals acid, fire, necrotic, or poison damage.
Experimental Elixir. after a long rest, she can create one random elixir. She can also expend a spell slot to create an additional elixir of her choice. Each elixir's effect lasts until the end of the next long rest or until used.

Spells

Acid Splash (cantrip, conjuration). An instant burst of acid splashes over one or two creatures within range. Each target makes a Dexterity saving throw or takes acid damage.
Fire Bolt (cantrip, evocation). She hurls a mote of fire at a creature or object within range. Make a ranged spell attack; on a hit, the target takes fire damage.
Prestidigitation (cantrip, transmutation). She produces a minor sensory effect, such as a brief scent, a small sound, or a harmless visual mark.
Cure Wounds (level 1, evocation). A creature she touches regains hit points. This spell has no effect on undead or constructs.
Healing Word (level 1, evocation). A creature within range regains hit points. This spell can be cast as a bonus action.
Charm Person (level 1, enchantment). A creature makes a Wisdom saving throw or becomes charmed for the duration. The spell ends early if Cevra or her allies harm it.
Enhance Ability (level 2, transmutation). A target she touches gains a magical enhancement. She most often chooses to improve its Constitution saving throws or make it faster.
Web (level 2, conjuration). She creates a sticky webbing in a 20-foot cube within range. Creatures in the area may be restrained, and the webs can be burned away.
Thunderwave (level 1, evocation). A burst of thunderous force pushes creatures away from her. Each creature in a 15-foot cube originating from her makes a Constitution saving throw, taking thunder damage and being pushed 10 feet on a failure, or taking half damage without being pushed on a success.
Faerie Fire (level 1, evocation). A 20-foot-radius sphere of light outlines creatures and objects in the area. Attacks against affected creatures have advantage if the attacker can see them, and affected creatures cannot benefit from being invisible.

Actions

Claws. Melee Weapon Attack: to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: slashing damage. Her claws count as a simple melee weapon.
Light Crossbow. Ranged Weapon Attack: to hit, range 80/320 ft., one target. Hit: piercing damage.
Spellcasting. She makes one attack with her light crossbow or claws, or casts a spell with a casting time of 1 action. Spell save , spell attack bonus +6. She has four 1st-level spell slots and two 2nd-level spell slots, regained after a long rest. Her prepared spells are listed below.
Experimental Elixir. She administers or throws an elixir to a creature within 5 feet, or throws it to a point within 20 feet. A creature that drinks it gains its effect. A thrown vial shatters on impact and affects a creature in the space where it lands. Her daily elixir is randomly determined: healing, swiftness, resilience, boldness, flight, or transformation, using the standard artificer alchemist effects.

Reactions

Bottle-Slip Guard. When a creature Cevra can see hits her with an attack, she adds 2 to her AC against that attack, potentially causing it to miss. She must be able to see the attacker and be wielding a simple weapon or alchemist's supplies. This is a custom defensive reaction, not a standard artificer class feature.

Services they sell

Identifies common medicinal ingredients and suspicious contaminants.
Prepares poultices, antitoxins, and ordinary remedies for clients she trusts.
Treats injuries discreetly and can arrange a private meeting with household staff.

Rewards they can give

A reliably prepared healing potion or a custom antitoxin, if she trusts the party and has time to make it.
Access to her discreet network of patients, servants, and household stewards.
Evidence connecting a stolen prescription to the poison used in the old household case.

Equipment

  • Apothecary's apron (clothing)A sturdy leather apron with protected pockets for small bottles and tools.
  • Alchemist's supplies (tool)A small set of tools used to identify, mix, and prepare alchemical substances.
  • Light crossbow (weapon)A well-kept light crossbow and a case of bolts.
  • Dagger (weapon)A belt knife with a plain wooden handle.
  • Glass stirring rod (spellcasting focus)Her spellcasting focus, battered at one corner and wrapped in a strip of clean linen.
  • Experimental elixir (consumable)One randomly determined experimental elixir made after her most recent long rest.

Possessions

A squat green-glass scent bottle with a brass cap worn smooth on one side.
A patched child's kite made from discarded prescription labels.
A sealed vial from the poisoning that drove her from her first apprenticeship.
A pocket notebook of client symptoms, ingredient sources, and suspicious requests.

Background

Cevra grew up carrying remedies and messages for her aunt, a street apothecary in the capital's crowded lower wards. At sixteen, she was hired to prepare harmless tonics for a noble household. One night she recognized the bitter almond scent of a poison in a supposedly medicinal cordial. She warned the household physician, who dismissed her. A visiting servant drank it and died before dawn. Cevra stole the remaining vial and fled, taking the blame for the missing stock. Her aunt found her, believed her account, and taught her to test every ingredient twice. Years later, Cevra earned a place in the noble quarter by quietly treating people who could not risk public physicians. Her aunt still runs their old shop, and they disagree over whether Cevra's constant suspicion protects anyone or merely keeps her isolated. Cevra now suspects that someone is using her prescriptions to identify which nobles are secretly ill, but she has no proof and cannot tell whether the culprit is a client, a servant, or a rival practitioner.

Role in the story

A wary source of medical aid and investigative leads in the noble quarter. Her knowledge can expose a poisoning scheme, but her secrecy and old guilt may complicate any attempt to earn her help.

“At sixteen, she was hired to prepare harmless tonics for a noble household.”
From their background
Faction
Independent apothecary serving noble households and discreet clients; no formal allegiance.

Known connections

Her aunt, Dot, runs their old apothecary stall in the lower wards and wants Cevra to come home before suspicion turns into obsession.
Merrit, a soft-spoken household steward at House Bell, discreetly brings Cevra patients and has begun asking questions about her prescription records.
The physician who ignored her warning years ago, Master Hobb, still practices among the nobility and insists the poisoning was an accident.
A young kitchen runner named Tavi leaves folded scraps of kite paper at her shop door; Cevra treats the child's cough without charging.
Major secret · GM only
Minor secrets · GM only

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