Oberlin begins the story with the Master Locksmith class, ideally and exclusively suited for getting into places that others prefer to be closed off. His street-smarts and his skills also make him a good choice when information needs to be gathered.
Oberlin is a friendly individual and full of energy. Even though a thief, he looks for more honest ways to make a living. He is also a very helpful and reliable person for his friends. Oberlin's friendly personality also means he is able to play off of others well.
Not much is known about the life of Oberlin Danihoff, III in the real world other than that he was a successful burglar. He began playing Nova Terra in order to break away from his past, only to eventually fall into his old patterns after his situation became dire. Oberlin tried several classes—a magic caster, an agility-based fighter, and a chef—but found himself ill-suited for all of them. He used his last Destiny point to become a Locksmith, a role already very familiar to him. He quickly advanced to Master Locksmith, and he made a living in the capital by hiring out his services to other players, such as by unlocking chests and dungeons.
One day, a client came to Oberlin needing a box unlocked. Unfortunately for Oberlin, the box was cursed. He ended up having to pledge himself to the Ordo Serpentes, unaware of its true nature, in order to remove the curse. This pledge included the secretive order taking a portion of Oberlin's soul. While the tasks that the Ordo Serpentes gave to Oberlin started out relatively benign, they began to order him to retrieve military secrets as well as other sensitive information of the Human Empire. He was unwilling to take part in such tasks and tried to escape the order, but they used his soul to torment him with terrible nightmares.