New character Human Hunter Advice!

[Hátteras-lightbringer]

So, I have an idea for my next RP character and I was wondering if you Loremasters could give me points on what I can and can’t do. Here’s my idea (loosely based off a series of books I read):

• Human stable master from Eastvale.
• Mid 40’s
• Spent the majority of his life there with his father (also a stable master).

Now here’s where I’m not sure what’s acceptable lore wise:

• Can ‘bond’ with animals, but only one at a time and the bond remains for life.
• He has some kind of internal communication with the animal that almost allows them to ‘speak’ to each other.
• due to the nature of the bond, the personality of the animal rubs off on the character and is reflected in his fighting style (i.e. if it’s a wolf he’s all feral during a brawl)
• the animal augments the characters attributes ( i.e. again a wolf would allow him to have a apparent increased sense of smell, although really he is just experiencing what his bond animal experiences)
• Pain is somewhat shared.
• When the bond animal dies the character is completely destroyed since it’d be like losing half of yourself.

Not sure if any of this would be allowed within the boundaries of lore?

Someone help me out! Ta

(Excuse the formatting, posted from my phone)

[Morethan-steamwheedle-cartel]

I am not omniscient in Warcraft lore, but I thought I’d outline my two coppers, and you can take from it what you will (I’m sure someone more knowledgeable in the lore will reply).

Do keep in mind that Eastvale, Elwynn, Redridge, Brightwood (now Duskwood), and Westfall were completely overrun by the orcish horde in the first and second war.
Thus your character and his loved ones necessarily fled from Eastvale during that time (which gets confusing, because Blizzard decided most WoW expansions lasted only one year), around 33-26 years ago… So if your hunter is mid40’s, he probably spent his 7th-14th year as a refugee; from what I’ve read, most likely in Lordaeron.

As for the hunter specific lore, my knowledge is pretty thin, so here’s how I see it:

The bond my hunter has with his pets is much like the bond between animal lovers and their pets. (If you are, or know, such a person yourself, you know that bond can be just as strong as family ties:)
Nothing magical, though, in my case, just a strong mutual trust and affection.

I picture my hunter communicating with his pet(s) with subtle words, sounds, and gestures - and the pet(s) communicating with him in much the same way, except words, of course.
No communication would be necessary to ask for help if being attacked (assuming one could see the other); Naturally, either of them would take great pains to protect the other.

Personality-wise, my hunters’ do not change according to their current pet, but I do see some logic in it. I’d have no problem with that
(I even think examples can be found on Earth…)

In my cases, the animal companion does not affect the senses of the hunter, but if the animal sensed something, it would let the hunter know.
Also, my hunters have spent most of their lives out in the wilds, so their senses are more developed than those of city-dwellers.

Pain is not actually shared between my hunters and their pets, but strong compassion is a significant part of the bond they share, so I’d say they almost share pain, but not literally.

(That being said, I’d have no problem with hunters sharing pain with their animal companions. If some humans can shapeshift into ferocious, powerful beasts, amazing aquatic animals, and even birds… surely a hunter and his animal companion can feel each other’s pain.)

My hunters would be utterly devastated if their animal companion died, not because of magic, but because they love their animal companion just as much as a family member or a life partner.

That’s my take on it, but like you, I would really like to see some lore about it.

[Brigante-argent-dawn (Brigante)]

Well, for a start, if you haven’t read it , Michael Stackpole’s ‘Vol:jin, Shadows of the Horde’ is an excellent read for Human Hunters. Don’t be put off by the name, pretty much immediately it becomes a ‘buddy movie’ between Vol’jin and Tyrathan Khort, a Human Hunter, both recovering from injuries at a Pandaren Monastery and then having to defend it against a large Zandalari Force. Whilst it is largely seen through Vol’jin’s eyes, not all of it is, and we learn a lot about Hunters in general…

Fun Fact, when you ‘Summon’ your Pet. You are doing just that. You are literally able to summon them to your side. (Obviously you don’t have to RP it out that way, but doing so is completely lore Friendly)
The dialogue roughly goes
Vol’jin says “Why don’t you just summon your Pet, even from Elwynn…”
Tyrathan: “After the reasons I left, it would feel disrespectful to her”

They both accept it as a normal thing that Tyrathan could, had he wanted, have done so.

Elwynn…And they’re in Pandaria… Hunters do seem to be a lot more mystic than just ‘bloke with a bow and a pet dog’ in the setting.

You can sometimes borrow your Pet’s senses, or at least could, there was a spell allowed to you to do that, You can imbue yourself with the grace and speed of your pet at times, the communication is much more than “Go Fetch”, it can indeed border on the telepathic. As pointed out above, a character who lives in nature is likely to be much more attuned in their senses, than someone who lives in a bustling city full of noise. You don’t need to permanently take on their senses to seem almost preternaturally gifted (‘Hawkeye’ from Last of the Mohicans is a good example of this).
Shared pain is possible, I don’t have any lore examples, but certainly possible, and the death of a Bonded Partner likely would be devastating, almost on the level of losing a spouse. You didn’t just share your lives with each other, you shared your -minds- with each other.

Hope some of that helps.