Post by Robinwing on Jun 19, 2012 16:12:52 GMT -5
Name: King Barendan Leopold
Age: 47
Role: King
Appearance:
Usually, Barendan will be wearing a gold circlet, since it is lighter than the full crown. He would also be wearing hardy leather jacket, breeches, boots and gloves, along with a blue shirt and a billowing dark blue cape. He'll only wear the full crown when he's taking important or official visitors. He's tall, about 6', and broad shouldered. He's starting to give over to age a bit, but the evidence of a youth spent wielding swords, riding horses, and other knightlike pursuits can still just about be seen.
Personality: Barendan is brave and chivalrous, if a bit rowdy. He has a good sense of humour, and bemoans how seriously people usually take him because he's the king, making him thankful for those who don't always do so. He can be riled up easily by people who pick on the weak, or those who cannot fight back, and will sometimes go into a fuming sulk if he's in a position that makes him have to stand by and let that happen. On the other hand, he is very good at hiding his hot-bloodedness when he has to, and never lets it make his major decisions for them. He's also surprisingly wise for such traits, being older, and having gone through quite a bit in his lifetime. He always tries to take a direct hand in everything his soldiers and guards are doing, but this means he runs himself into the ground a bit. He can also be amazingly stubborn when he "knows" he's right, such as with the search for his dear friend's daughters. He considers the girls as his nieces, and is convinced they must still be out there somewhere. He thinks that their kidnappers still have them, so instead of having active searching, like he did in the beginning, he has his guards vaguely on the lookout, and is waiting for the kidnappers to make a mistake. He can be very blunt and to the point, but he is also well versed in battle strategy, which he kind of applies everywhere else as well. He has vaguely learnt to handle not having his court sorceress, but every now and then, he will wish more than anything that he could have the soothing voice and the assurance that there was someone with the power to keep his people safe should his sword fail.
History: The Leopold family tree goes extremely far back, and has been royalty almost from the word go, so it would be rather useless to describe his parents, beyond to simply say they were as distant as the great great grandfather whose portrait adorned the wall. As the crown prince, Barendan learnt swordsmanship, strategy, and all the other things he'd need as king. One of these was that he'd have a court sorcerer, as an advisor and a line of defence, though Barendan was slightly adverse to the idea. He, in a fit of ego, thought that his sword could protect against any threats to his kingdom, until a magical beast nearly killed him. The only reason he survived was because that was how he met his future court sorceress, Zarania, as she drew the creature's attention, and managed to bring it down with her magic. He hadn't expected that, a few years later, he'd have seen her again in the shadow of a powerful wizard, and learn she was the greatest sorceress of their time. They built a close friendship, and quite a few times Barendan had to catch himself from calling the woman "sister", so it only made sense that when he became king, she became court sorceress. Many threats were faced with her and the knights by his side, all eventually put down, until Etlaris lived in a time of peace. He remembers one memorable occasion where the Unseelie Court had collectively decided it hated Etlaris. They'd demanded one of her daughters, which was certainly not going to happen. They'd managed to get through negotiations with a good deal of clever wording on Zarania's part. For a few years afterward, he worried that they'd try again, and nowadays he wonders if that's what did happen. He refuses to have a knee jerk reaction, and will only make any kind of move if he gains hard evidence of the Unseelie taking the girls. Doesn't stop him looking at them with no small measure of suspicion. Her death haunted him for quite a while, and he still sometimes has moments when it does, but he has slowly learnt to remember her as the woman who fought at his side and teased him mercilessly when she was bearing the child of someone he couldn't have a chat with. That chat, had he been allowed to have it, would mostly have consisted of thinly veiled threats that if this man had hurt his court sorceress, he was going to wake up one day with a sword through his face. He's often worried about less wholesome beings taking pot shots at the now magically unprotected country, but thus far he's been lucky. He's tried to keep it as much on a need to know basis that Zarania's daughters went missing, but of course there were plenty of people who saw him and the knights charging about looking for them the day they vanished. Rumours obviously abounded.
Age: 47
Role: King
Appearance:
Usually, Barendan will be wearing a gold circlet, since it is lighter than the full crown. He would also be wearing hardy leather jacket, breeches, boots and gloves, along with a blue shirt and a billowing dark blue cape. He'll only wear the full crown when he's taking important or official visitors. He's tall, about 6', and broad shouldered. He's starting to give over to age a bit, but the evidence of a youth spent wielding swords, riding horses, and other knightlike pursuits can still just about be seen.
Personality: Barendan is brave and chivalrous, if a bit rowdy. He has a good sense of humour, and bemoans how seriously people usually take him because he's the king, making him thankful for those who don't always do so. He can be riled up easily by people who pick on the weak, or those who cannot fight back, and will sometimes go into a fuming sulk if he's in a position that makes him have to stand by and let that happen. On the other hand, he is very good at hiding his hot-bloodedness when he has to, and never lets it make his major decisions for them. He's also surprisingly wise for such traits, being older, and having gone through quite a bit in his lifetime. He always tries to take a direct hand in everything his soldiers and guards are doing, but this means he runs himself into the ground a bit. He can also be amazingly stubborn when he "knows" he's right, such as with the search for his dear friend's daughters. He considers the girls as his nieces, and is convinced they must still be out there somewhere. He thinks that their kidnappers still have them, so instead of having active searching, like he did in the beginning, he has his guards vaguely on the lookout, and is waiting for the kidnappers to make a mistake. He can be very blunt and to the point, but he is also well versed in battle strategy, which he kind of applies everywhere else as well. He has vaguely learnt to handle not having his court sorceress, but every now and then, he will wish more than anything that he could have the soothing voice and the assurance that there was someone with the power to keep his people safe should his sword fail.
History: The Leopold family tree goes extremely far back, and has been royalty almost from the word go, so it would be rather useless to describe his parents, beyond to simply say they were as distant as the great great grandfather whose portrait adorned the wall. As the crown prince, Barendan learnt swordsmanship, strategy, and all the other things he'd need as king. One of these was that he'd have a court sorcerer, as an advisor and a line of defence, though Barendan was slightly adverse to the idea. He, in a fit of ego, thought that his sword could protect against any threats to his kingdom, until a magical beast nearly killed him. The only reason he survived was because that was how he met his future court sorceress, Zarania, as she drew the creature's attention, and managed to bring it down with her magic. He hadn't expected that, a few years later, he'd have seen her again in the shadow of a powerful wizard, and learn she was the greatest sorceress of their time. They built a close friendship, and quite a few times Barendan had to catch himself from calling the woman "sister", so it only made sense that when he became king, she became court sorceress. Many threats were faced with her and the knights by his side, all eventually put down, until Etlaris lived in a time of peace. He remembers one memorable occasion where the Unseelie Court had collectively decided it hated Etlaris. They'd demanded one of her daughters, which was certainly not going to happen. They'd managed to get through negotiations with a good deal of clever wording on Zarania's part. For a few years afterward, he worried that they'd try again, and nowadays he wonders if that's what did happen. He refuses to have a knee jerk reaction, and will only make any kind of move if he gains hard evidence of the Unseelie taking the girls. Doesn't stop him looking at them with no small measure of suspicion. Her death haunted him for quite a while, and he still sometimes has moments when it does, but he has slowly learnt to remember her as the woman who fought at his side and teased him mercilessly when she was bearing the child of someone he couldn't have a chat with. That chat, had he been allowed to have it, would mostly have consisted of thinly veiled threats that if this man had hurt his court sorceress, he was going to wake up one day with a sword through his face. He's often worried about less wholesome beings taking pot shots at the now magically unprotected country, but thus far he's been lucky. He's tried to keep it as much on a need to know basis that Zarania's daughters went missing, but of course there were plenty of people who saw him and the knights charging about looking for them the day they vanished. Rumours obviously abounded.