Birel's tribe originally hails from the far northern kingdom of Hartvale, having migrated from there when the region became colder and life in those lands became difficult. After a long traveling, they finally reached Moonwood and found refuge there. It was at this time that Birel was born, 27 years ago. She lived an ordinary childhood, with her caring parents, her older and glooy brother and her two best friends, the aloof Hadarai and the energetic Enna. Things were peaceful, until that fateful day arrived when the Black Dragon attacked her clan, for unknown reasons. Despite the effort of Aelar, Birel's father, and the other warriors of the clan, the dragon destroyed their home and killed many firbolgs. Listening to her father's cry, Birel ran away, until she ended up lost and where unable to find the way back home. Alone with nothing but her longbow, she managed to survive only thanks to the hunting skills she had learned from her father and the knowledge of nature of her people, which allowed her to talk with animals and plants. For a couple of years, she was still alone, trying to find traces or signs that her family was still alive, when one day she came across a noble dwarf, Eberk Ironshield and his bodyguard, an adventurer Dragonborne skald, Nemmonis Balasar, who were both running away from a band of furious Uthgardt barbarians. Promptly, Birel aided the two to fend off the attackers and drove them away. Grateful, Eberk invited Birel to come with them to Settlestone, his home where she would be welcomed has a hero and the young firbolg hadn't had the company of another sapient being for far too long to refuse the offer. Overtime, Settlestone became sort of a new home for Birel, as she helped the settlements by guarding it against invaders, though she never abandoned hope to find her family again one day. Nine years passed, and although for her time passes differently than the other species, she became a proficient ranger, having helped Settlestone's residents more than once to fend off the occasional warband of orcs or other malevolent creatures. It was because of her abilities that she was approached by a human, an Illuskan named Westra Helder: she claimed to be a merchant that needed safe passage to Neverwinter. Westra was quite the charming person and persuaded Birel to leave Settlestone to follow her in her journey and Birel's ranger skills proved to be very useful for the survival of the caravan and when they finally to the Jewel of the North, Birel was fascinated: never had she seen such a great settlement. Taken by curiousity she started to explore the city until she came across a diviner who offered to read her future. The old woman predicted both good and bad things to her: she would fall in love with someone, but she would also take part to a battle that will leave her affected by terrible nightmares. As she left the shop, confused by what was told to her, she bumped into someone, a human. The man was pissed by that and despite the attempts of Birel to resolve the situation peacefully they ended up in a fight, which ended with the man's death as Birel punched him with too much strength. She was arrested and put into a dungeon and there she developed a fear for closed spaces as she was too big for her cells. After three years, she was released and left alone in the big city. Confused and scared, she was helped by a tiefling Eliphus Omnious, an entertainer, who offered her to accompany his caravan to return to Settlestone, since she was clearly out of place in Neverwinter.
