Character SheetName: Kanros the Raven
Age: 43
Gender: Male
Race: Human
Physical Description:His hair, dark and shaggy, is worn long and stubbornly resistant of ever being neatened, except that he has a tendency to wear it pulled back in a severe fashion to reveal a high forehead and a long-ish jaw. He has a straight nose and deep-set blue eyes, which, along with the pale skin, mark him as an outlander. The man himself is large and well-made, his physical shape his pride and joy; he has an imposing size. He wears a lot of wealth on his arms, fingers, and belt buckle, and around his neck, feeling, as a sellsword often does, that it is best to carry the wealth on one's person as the most simple but effective security system devised – a thief looks for easier pickings and a robber has to contend with the man's swordarm. He has surprisingly few scars for a man in his line of work -- and that is something of a statement for those who use their eyes to see. The sole exception to that is the marks of monstrous claws across his right arm and shoulder, cutting into the pectoral muscle, a rather fell-looking wound. He has kept his physical condition, though he has to work at it more and more.
Skillset:A swordsman, a former pirate, gladiator and leader of men; despite his barbaric ancestry, he is a cunning strategist with a strong interest in masonry-- as a child, he learned from the thralls that did the masonry for the local lord. He can tie a knot and weave a rope if he wishes, though it's been a long time since he's had to. In matters of violence, he is an authority, from how to fight a single man to how to recruit, provision, train, organize and lead men in the field. Siegecraft is something he has had the time and leisure to study and practice -- he doesn't always show his mind off, because he likes to hide behind the impression of a barbarian, but he is a sharp negotiator. Still, he can be diverted by his pleasures, for what is life without those? To this day, he is often accused of the practice of banditry by other cities, and not entirely without cause. He has made quite the profit by selling his services to rival cities at various times, helping to keep the internecine warfare between Aluth's city states going, while quietly steering it away from Dara itself, who thereby profits.
Far Ancestry:In the dim, distant past, a spirit of the seas, of storm and wave wooed the daughter of a thane, but her jealous betrothed found out about this budding romance and threw the girl from a cliff into the cold, grey waters. From this union sprung a daughter as dark and furious as the stormclouds, whose eyes were as gray as the waves of the northern seas who became a notorious raider and pillager of the lands her mother's betrothed once held, and it is said that when the Lord would not take the field against this daughter that he was cursed to the form of a weasel. This weasel was pandered to as if he remained the Lord of the land, and yet people laughed and his rivals closed in to tear apart his lands among themselves.
The career of Asna Blackmane, sorceress, thief and pirate, was long and varied; the myth has it that she took a prince hostage for ransom, but loved him and bore his bastard despite this. In the years to follow, this young man, Asnar Blackheart, grew to adulthood and became as renowned as his mother, though perhaps not quite as soft a touch. Ambition burned darkly in his bastard breast and when his mother passed on, he sailed forth to pillage the lands of his father, untouched since the days of his mother's liasons with their lord. He slew his own father in battle and destroyed his half-siblings. The gods struck down Asnar Blackheart for his monstrous crime, though they took mercy upon his infant son and stole him away to be raised by the grieving widow of one of his half-brothers...
Character History:The son of a passing sailor and the daughter of a fisherman, a netweaver and ropemaker by trade. For a few glorious summers she was darkly beautiful, then she became gray and used, bowed by the contempt of the village's moralists, the drunken abuse of her husband and the cares of the world. He never knew his father, of course, but he knew his stepfather all too well.
He was born to a married woman, the daughter of fishermen who married another fisherman only reluctantly...he was the result of a passing hunter and sailor aboard a longship sailing down the coast to trade seal furs where they'd fetch a good price. His father was never to be seen again, but he left his reminder of the visit. Kanros was raised in an abusive household, with a father that liked to take it out on him and his mother; he fell in the water one day and turned to ice in the winter, and while he greeted the news cheerfully, the rest of the village thought he'd done the man in. His bastardy meant that no fishermen would take him as an apprentice, though he knew ropes, and he instead labored as a mason and a builder with thralls, learning something of how stone is cut and wood is hewn from these men. He grew strong, and learned how to fight with the young men of the village, the ones that presumed to teach him his place.
His mother died after she no longer had the will to live, when her son was old enough and strong enough to feed himself; her passing was greeted with little comment from the rest of the village, who made her a pariah through a combination of her infidelity as a young woman and her marriage to a loutish drunkard.
He left his village whilst still a lad when a passing ship came through bound for southern lands. Of course, it was a pillager and a pirate, and its crew corsairs. He was big but fast, strong and unrelenting, and, of course, very angry; thus began a career of varied fighting for pay, raiding and piracy at various times. Eventually, he found himself in a falling out with others of the crew over shares, and the dispute turned bloody as he was intent on taking the share he considered his; when the killing was over, he was left on his own in the city of Baruk...where he was lured in with drink and the flesh of a woman and captured when he was vulnerable. He was sold on the block as a gladiator.
Despite the success and opulence of his life as a slave gladiator, he wanted his freedom. He managed to break free of his captivity, in a bloody fashion, during travel between cities and found his way to Dara, where there were no slaves. After a few months of minor adventures with the group he fell in with, they found themselves fighting for Dara against King Pykas of Selander and his many soldiers. Then, of course, they raided on Melazus, hoping to end the Sorceror's fell influence over the King. That story, is of course, well known.
After the encounter with Pykas and Cyrabassis in Melazus, he found his calling as a sellsword under the command of the mercenary captain Jalal, the Prince of Killers, and became a favored right hand man to him -- and eventually, as Jalal became older and Kanros matured, his equal partner, using the wealth plundered from Melazus as his stake. It was not merely an apprenticeship in combat, but in diplomacy, economics, in having to navigate the deepest and most dangerous currents of them all -- politics. As the years passed, it became apparent that Jalal would have no son, and that Kanros was being groomed to take the fiefdom of the old man, including the hand of his daughter, Amira, in marriage. It was a strange sort of mating, but Jalal was the son of a desert nomad, and Kanros the bastard of a barbarian people -- and in perhaps, they saw things similarly.
The old Prince of Killers passed on, but by then Kanros, wealthy in his own right, was the most influential mercenary in the city. His wife, regrettably, died in childbirth.
Psychological Profile:Kanros has a sullen aspect betimes, but is a man of flashes of dark humor and barbaric gaiety in the face of danger. He drinks deeply from life, knowing that it may end abruptly and harshly some day unforseen. That fatalism drives his lust for life. Since seeing the magic of Cyrabassis in Melazus, he has had an inordinate fear of it and takes superstitious measures against things, though he knows little of magic -- it is considered a quirk of his that he will pay lavishly for icons and exorcisms, blessings and curse removal. He enjoys his drink and his wenches, but he brooks little insult to his person -- there have been some that thought the big man might seem an easy one to dance around, only to find that the conditioning of the fighting pits of Baruk remains -- he is deceptively fast. He is surprisingly sharp in commercial matters, though he finds mercantilism for its own sake boring -- his commerce involves swords and fighting men, and he likes it that way. He makes his gold outside of the city and brings the plunder back, and that's no accident either. Every pirate needs his safe haven, after all, and Kanros has chosen Dara.
In terms of how he makes decisions, he is a pragmatist that leans toward the amoral -- he has a bit of a distaste for the moral hand-wringing some people do; he prefers to do what has to be done and he also tends to believe that people are cynical and so goes with the outcries in the name of morality; there is often an ulterior motive for such. As a result, he tends to distrust people that claim to be acting out of altruism, and that's hardwired into him.
He is less concerned about methods than results. He does not believe in fighting fair, because fair is an abstraction, but he also has a distaste for overly elaborate plots or things that he considers indecent, like poison and other dark arts. If he wants a man dead, he'll do it with a knife or good strategy, like a roadside ambush and slaughter, not with some damned powder. All the same, he is perfectly capable of ruthlessness and deception -- he is a bandit and a thief at heart, though not one without redeeming qualities.
It's best not to mistake Kanros' interest in Dara as a concern for the welfare of its people out of moral reasons -- he tends to think the Daran nobility are effete and too long decadent and 'civilized' and that many of the citizens are too weak to properly protect themselves -- a very barbaric attitude. He comes from a place where all men have steel and fight to defend their villages, and the cities still bemuse him. At the same time, he's carved out a niche as a sometime protector, albeit a very self-interested one. The plight of the suffering don't move him as much as the opportunity for his own selfish reasons. Luckily, he can be dragged into trouble for love of action and a fight, as well as the potential for plunder, which he equates with profit.
Owing to events in Melazus, he fears apes, monkeys and other things of that nature. He avoids them and will not have them in his presence or home.
Equipment: Vindurfang -- a sword his mother had and told tales of, though it is merely a sword. It is a good sword, with runes, two edges and very fine steel, so he's managed to retain it all through the years. He wears clothing as he sees fit, though he avoids the typical Daran robe -- he prefers to properly cover the lower bits. Typically, the clothing is silk, but he leaves the arms bare for a variety of reasons. He likes bracers and torc bracelets, thick accessories.
In battle, he goes with a lamellar scale hauberk that is surprisingly light (because he is strong) and a good helmet with a plate over the eyes and nose to help protect from a slash to the eyes in a fight. He's not much for shields, but he's also highly pragmatic in these situations. He thinks of mobility as better than any shield, which is a barbarian's way of thinking about a fight.
Titles/Holdings/Power Base:Kanros takes residence in Shield Hall, built from the stones of ruins on the on the Northeastern edge of the city, in the Zalot District, facing the Gold Roads. When Dara sought to rebuild its moldering defenses, Kanros and Jalal volunteered their expertise and some investment on the part of the fortifications around the city, which means that Shield Hall is built into the city's defenses; it is indeed defensible, though Kanros keeps enough men to keep watch and staff the place as servants, rather than keep a standing army of sellswords within the walls (expensive.) The place is well set up to host a large number of men, with a large hall in the center for feasting.
He has the ability to recruit sellswords -- it depends on the time and place, but Kanros and Jalal have spent decades building the trust and reputation that Kanros now uses to his advantage. He is for sale -- there is no doubt about that -- but he is loyal to Dara. His activities as a mercenary captain are often questionable, as he happily practices a type of warfare that involves looting and pillaging, raiding commerce and otherwise eroding other competitor cities and their ability to guard their roads and caravans. In a sense, Kanros guarantees Dara's caravans -- he won't raid the Gold Road, after all. He has allies who are invested in the prosperity of that route; he helps secure the Gold Road and raids the others. Some look down on these depredations and the more pragmatic appreciate that Kanros is carrying out a policy that Dara's more reputable notables can't readily admit to even as they desire it -- he undermines the competition.
In diplomacy, Kanros is considered a good choice of emissary when a certain sort of message needs to be sent. He is affable enough, but he is dangerous and has a reputation -- Dara's Guardians would request his services as such when it came time to deliver a veiled threat of force to come, and sometimes it was heeded. And if it wasn't, they would hire him to captain a significant portion of their forces in the field. When Dara wants to indirectly support another city or faction without overtly aligning itself, it cuts a deal with Kanros, who fields a mercenary force that, coincidentally, advances the interests of Dara. Kanros has made himself wealthy off this ambiguity and worries little of the disapproval of others -- in his mind, they mostly fume because they didn't think of it first.
Why would Dara tolerate the likes of Kanros, even look upon him as a hero? His methods are not good for other cities, but he is good for the city's trade -- he helps keep the chaos off the Gold Roads, and having recruited most of the would-be bandits into his fold as hirelings for wars elsewhere, he's also impressed upon them the importance of not spoiling their home base of operations, particularly as he invests in the caravans himself...and happily recommends experienced men as caravan guards in the leaner times when peace breaks out, to keep them off the damned roads as bandits. The man is also quite openhanded with the commoners -- he is not above drinking in a winesink or gambling with dice or otherwise sharing in the baser pleasures that a barbarian enjoys and when he does get a few in him, he can get generous with buying the drinks and tipping a serving wench. In a sense, Kanros is a man that Darans like having on their side, rather than pointed against them.
RelationshipsRickas Bannon - Friendly relations -- the Raven makes sure Rickas has good sellswords for his bodyguard through his good offices. The men Kanros put in service of his old friend are perhaps what one might expect; men that a renowned leader of mercenaries might put around his old friend and sometime business associate. They're damned good and it's a steady source of income for the best sorts. There's been a time or two when Kanros has needed Rickas to keep his hide on just this side of the law and he sees to it that the arrangement is a mutually beneficial thing. On the other hand, he wonders what Rickas will do with Guardianship. It's a fair question, as it becomes harder to please them all as you move up.
Sher'Fon'ahn - The dusty old shaman doesn't have a pot to piss in, but if he's in Dara and so inclined, the Raven is happy to have a houseguest. The gold doesn't gleam and the rubies aren't so glittering that he forgets old friends, particularly salt of the earth types like old Sher. But he doesn't pretend to understand the man, not in the least bit. Kanros has buried himself in the pleasures of the flesh, and has long since stopped worrying about the spiritual. He blocks it out really, particularly Melazus. As a Guardian, he isn't sure what to make of Sher; of all of them, he was the least interested in such things.
Valmoria - Another one with the air of disrepute to her. Indentured servitude is not considered respectable, nor are its brokers, despite the fact that every Pureblood requires servants and prefers such. Since some of the things he do require information, she has a good business going with Kanros, though hardly inexpensive. There are times when knowledge can be the difference between life and death, profit or loss, in his trade, though it's hard to say where he stands with the woman -- she has her armor on, so to speak. She'll need it, as Daran purebloods tend to prefer their Guardians human and Daran.
Skorrin Halvar - Skorrin went pretty respectable after Malezus, seeing as she had a skill besides violence to see her through with the wealth that allowed her to start up her brewing in the city. He respects that she's strong and independent and doesn't see the need to intrude on that, though he will certainly drink his share. As an early taster of the brew, he realized immediately that exportation would eventually become a concern, and wisely got involved on that end, to his profit. On the other hand, Skorrin may well be a little too honest for politics in Aluth as he knows them.
Barmaetus - Useful bloke, sewed up people and kept them alive despite wounds in their adventuring days. Kanros has one particularly bad scar on his shoulder, from the raking of monstrous claws -- he did what the healer said and regained the full use of the arm, something he feared mightily after Melazus. The old man's therapy worked, which is why, in his mind, he's not some maimed beggar. On the other hand, he knows the man has a soft spot, what he might decide to do with the power of a Guardian, while well-intentioned, could be dangerous. Kanros is willing to risk making enemies for such idealism and otherwise deal with consequences, but he isn't about to sacrifice the city or himself for it.
Esse “Sunder” Edonui - WIP
Haljon - A natural rival to Kanros and his operations as he is the commander of the Khavi. Kanros keeps his distance naturally, as the intervening years have caused them to adopt very different views of matters while remaining in related occupations. Kanros also has every reason to fear that as a Guardian, Haljon may well use the Khavi as his ace in the hole, at least within the city. It's been done before, and it could be done again. Then again, Dara is a mess and that ought to keep Haljon occupied -- if any are going to worry about the fate of their predecessors, it would be the Khavi's captain. However, Haljon is an altruist that believes overmuch in duty for duty's sake, and that sort of thing can get out of hand fast.
Whurri Mooncheek - Another altruist; and Kanros sort of fears, in a sense, the arguments he'll wind up having with the dwarf. She prefers peace, but does she realize what Dara's peace is predicated on? Indentured servitude as a means of keeping beggars off the street, cutting off the trade routes of other cities to keep them from even daring to threaten Dara's own prosperity? How much of the world can you look out for. Kanros feels he has a realistic vision of this. He respects the dwarf's stubbornness, but that's also why he knows he's in for it as a guardian. Of course, Guardianship isn't an absolutism -- it's a consensus, and that means, inevitably, messes to clean up from imperfect solutions to complex problems. He knows the dwarf has been around enough to perhaps appreciate that good intentions can backfire.
