Talbinor, future Ranger of the North, was born on the 19th of January in the year 2997 of the Third Age. 2997 was a quiet year for most but not for Talbinor's immediate kin; his father, Bleuriach, was a relatively old Ranger of the North for one about to have his first son, and when reports of wolves compelled him to rush north to the furthest peaks of the Ered Luin he had little choice (or so he saw it, for he thought the errand would be brief and was somewhat overprotective of mother and unborn child) but to take his very pregnant wife Yelurim on the journey with him.
Both were examples of the finest attributes of a Dúnadan of the period; strong, resilient, used to adversity. But both were also mortal and capable of making foolish decisions, and as it became clear that Talbinor was going to be born rather soon, while the Ered Luin's fierce winter raged around them and made protecting a newly born child improbable at best, the two finally realised the mistake they made and they had to fly. They headed south-east, with the goal of making it to at least Bree, but by the time the two were sheltering from the winter storms in the ruins of the old capital Annúminas, Yelurim could not go on. But the strength of the Dúnedain did not fade so easily, and Talbinor was born in relative safety sheltered behind a ruined stone wall in the old capital. A break in the weather made travel safe, and by the time the storms returned husband, wife, and baby had taken shelter in Bree.
Bleuriach unashamedly wanted his son to follow him into the Rangers, and unlike so many fathers he had no trouble convincing his son on this front. Talbinor grew as a typical Arnorian child; one of wiry build, quick tongue, fidgety body, and keen mind, but fairly ordinary regardless. Though not an exceptional student of the martial arts, Talbinor never wanted for enthusiasm, and when he joined the Rangers his mind was filled with glorious visions of derring-do, visions with precious little resemblance to reality.
At twenty-two years old in March 3019, the young Ranger was walking the Great East Road between Bree and the old citadel at Weathertop. Treading off the path so as to learn the lay of the land, Talbinor was attracted by cries and found a small raiding party of Orcs attacking a small, lost bad of travellers from Bree. Badly outnumbered, Talbinor did not consider an optimum strategy but rather charged headlong into the fray. In the confusion, the travellers did escape, but Talbinor was hopelessly outclassed, endured a wound in his left leg, and spent three agonising days in painful retreat, nearly fainting with exhaustion by the time he could afford to rest and treat his injury. Though he suffered no long-term physical damage beyond a small scar, the mental lesson never really left the young Ranger.
Talbinor also began to develop his healthy appreciation for avoiding physical violence. His first encounter with a group of enemies on more-or-less even turns resulted in a victory for he and the two Rangers alongside him, but also the broken nose which became the first of a few disfigurements the young man became self-conscious over. His father was fond of lecturing Talbinor on various survival strategies, and though physical cowardice never became his calling card, discretion in greater measure than some of his comrades certainly did. Moreover, Talbinor openly professed his dislike for sweeping out his blade, and though he was willing to do his duty, he increasingly focused on intellectual and strategic pursuits rather than combative ones.
