[b][u]Leofric And Friends[/u][/b]

[hider=Lord Captain Leofric]
[b]Name:[/b] Lord Captain Leofric

[b]Appearance:[/b] Leofric stands at an even six feet in height, with short golden blond hair and dark green eyes. Despite being in his early thirties (thirty-two to be precise), he has the look of a man in his mid-twenties, with the handsome and refined features usually associated with men of noble birth. Unfortunately, he is not perfect; his nose is slightly misshapen after being broken in the past, and there is a scar running from under his left eye to the bottom of his cheek. His face is completely clean shaven, save for some short, neat sideburns.

Aboard his flagship, Leofric can usually be identified by his bright red coat, black leather gloves, a rather large captain's hat, accompanied by a pair of brown pants and black leather boots. He makes sure to keep both his boots and his hat in pristine condition. However, he also keeps a suit of steel chainmail, which he ensures is well-maintained and combat-ready at all times.

Leofric's primary weapon is a longsword which he keeps sheathed at his left hip. The weapon is made from high quality steel, with a gilded crossguard and a hilt wrapped in fine leather. As back-ups he also keeps a cutlass sheathed at his right hip, and a dirk secured to a sheathe on his right boot.

[b]Kingdom Allegiance:[/b] Syrome

[b]Tribe:[/b] Eodaen

[b]Background:[/b] Leofric's family faithfully served the monarchs of Eodaland for centuries, and can trace their lineage all the way back to the Kingdom's foundation. They had a history of producing some of the finest naval commanders the Kingdom had to offer, and owned one of the largest shipyards, as well as multiple key sources of lumber. 

As the heir, Leofric was naturally expected to follow in his ancestors' footsteps, and was groomed for naval command from a young age. He took to his studies with enthusiasm, drawn in by tales of glorious battle and the thrill of adventure. When he reached the age of adulthood, he was granted a post onboard his uncle's ship, acting as his uncle's second-in-command. They were meant to patrol a minor trade route, until they were unexpectedly set upon by pirates. When his uncle fell in battle, Leofric took charge and rallied the men to drive the corsairs off his ship, before taking the fight to the enemy's own ship and putting them all to the sword.

From that moment onward, Leofric was granted command of a ship of his own... and soon proved that he was not quite ready for such an appointment. More often than not, the pirates he was meant to be keeping an eye out for had managed to evade him. When he did catch them, he usually bested them quite handily, but overall it was clear that his promotion had been premature. Still, he did learn a great deal from the experience. After four years he had noticeably improved, and was well on his way to living up to his family's reputation.

Then his father died. With a heavy heart, Leofric was forced to return home to attend the funeral. After that, he was to travel to the capital, to take up his title and swear an oath of fealty to the King. Upon his arrival at court, he immediately fell under the influence of Badastan's magic, issuing false praise alongside the rest of the toadies, and praying to the Squirrel-Demon, which he had previously found laughable.

After a few months at court, it was time to leave and see to his lands. Not too long after he departed, the spell began to fade. He remembered the King who had not been so impressive, yet Leofric had worshiped him like a minor god. He remembered kneeling at the shrines to the Demon Squirrel, with a downright embarrassing and uncharacteristic level of reverence. 

At first, the thought made him nervous. Then, he became sickened. Then, he became enraged. For years everyone had been eating out of Badastan's hand and buying into his teachings. The Eodaens had been enslaved. No, it was worse than that - even a slave's constraints were only physical. Either the King knew of Badastan's abiltiies and allowed it, or the King himself was under Badastan's control. Either way, this could not be allowed to stand.

Unfortunately, Leofric lacked the ability to free the King from Badastan's control, and couldn't kill Badastan himself. But there were still other ways to fight.

So he gathered his most loyal men, whom he could trust, and left managing the land in the hands of his capable brother. Then, he set off with his family's six best ships, including their flag ship, [i]The Storm's Herald[/i]. He had gone off to become a pirate lord, like so many other Eodaen nobles had done before him, but this time he had something on his mind other than personal profit. 

Over the next several years, Leofric plundered and pillaged his way through the Sea of Tears, becoming an infamous pirate. He expanded his fleet with captured vessels, and he earned a reputation as a fair and cunning leader, which caused the ranks of his ships to swell with eager recruits. It wasn't just Eodeans he took in, however; he also took in foreigners from other nations. In addition to this, he banned all worship of the Squirrel-Demon within his fleet, punishing anyone who dared whisper a prayer to the false god. All this was done with the intention of assembling a force that could strike against the King's interests: if Leofric could not depose the tyrant, he would at least be a thorn in the King's side.

Despite his plans, while he has attacked the occasional Eodaen ship, he has yet to go to open war against the Kingdom itself. Instead, he has continued to bide his time and build up his forces. Eventually, his fleet would grow to include a dozen ships and nearly a thousand men to crew them.

A year ago, an envoy from Syrome somehow managed to track down Leofric's fleet and offered him a deal - what was effectively a loose, secret alliance, and the only serious condition was that he would cease his attacks on Syrome ships. In return, he would be granted safe access to Syroman ports. Over the years, his infamous reputation had dramatically reduced the ports of call available to him, thus making resupply and recruitment increasingly difficult, so that was something he desperately needed. Furthermore, the additional news that Badastan had finally seized power for himself had made Leofric's ultimate goal that much more difficult. Although he did not relish the idea of serving a foreign power, he felt he had little choice but to accept the terms.

So far, he has kept his word and held true to the agreement, but who is to say that won't change?

And with the news of many Eodeans being exiled for their rejection of Badastan and his Squirrel-Demon, Leofric may be able to expand his army even further.
[/hider]

[hider=First Mate Aella]
[b]Name:[/b] First Mate Aela

[b]Appearance:[/b] Aela stands at five foot ten. Like most Eodaen women, she is not particularly attractive, with square features and a long hooked nose. Her hair is jet black with streaks of grey, while her eyes are a dark brown. She looks to be in her early forties, but despite her age she is surprisingly muscular, and her outfit on board the ship is a simple but well made green tunic. Her weapons of choice are a pair of scimitars.

[b]Kingdom Allegiance:[/b] None.

[b]Tribe:[/b] Eodaen

[b]Background:[/b] Aela had been with Leofric ever since his first command, when he was serving as his Uncle's first mate. When Leofric was granted a ship of his own, he took some of the most competent crew members with him, Aela among her. He came to trust and appreciate her judgement despite her common birth. When Leofric made the decision to sail off and turn pirate, she followed him, and while she does question some of his decisions, she remains loyal to this day.
[/hider]

[hider=Oarmaster Peric]
[b]Name:[/b] Oarmaster Peric

[b]Appearance:[/b] Standing at six foot two, Peric is a strict, strong, intimidating man in his late twenties, with a shaved head and a black beard. He wears boiled leather, and goes into battle with a two-handed boarding axe.

[b]Kingdom Allegiance:[/b] None.

[b]Tribe:[/b] Lampert

[b]Background:[/b] Peric has been at sea ever since he was a boy. At some point in his late teens he found service on a trading ship, which had dealt in mostly legal goods, but the Captain had also taken to smuggling religious contraband into Lampert. Nothing major - a few holy symbols of God here, a statuette of the Squirrel Demon there. But somehow, the authorities managed to sniff them out. While the crew was off drinking, the ship was raided, and the crew themselves were arrested in the tavern.

The entire crew was executed, while the ship and all its goods were confiscated. Peric escaped only because he had never been a heavy drinker, and left early. He had to sign onto another ship, and thankfully Leofric's happened to be in the harbour. Peric's no nonsense attitude, strong back, and sound judgement soon caught Leofric's eye, and over the years he was eventually promoted to Oarmaster.
[/hider]

[hider=Quartermaster Alicia Arenar]
[b]Name:[/b] Alicia Arenar

[b]Appearance:[/b] Alicia is a young woman in her early twenties, with blonde hair, icey blue eyes, and rather attractive features. She wears a bright blue doublet, the sort that might be found on a merchant, and is a good shot with a crossbow.

[b]Kingdom Allegiance:[/b] None.

[b]Tribe:[/b] Chlotar.

[b]Background:[/b] Alicia was born a daughter of House Arenar, a highly wealthy Chlotar family with a reputation for being shrewd businessmen. As a result, she was expected to have a high understanding of business and finance, and excelled in her studies. However, since she had three brothers, two of which were older than her, the chances of her actually inheriting anything were rather slim, so it seemed as if she was destined to be married off.

When her father died, and her eldest brother was disowned, the second-eldest inherited the family fortune and title. He immediately began seeking out potential suitors for her. She was on a voyage to meet one of them when the ship was set upon by pirates. Alicia was captured and held for ransom, but the demand was outrageous, and her brother refused to pay.

Soon after, the pirates who held her ended up getting into a clash with a ship called [i]The Storm's Herald[/i]. She thought she was rescued, only to discover that her apparent capturers were pirates too. The captain, Leofric, issued another demand for her ransom, this one far more reasonable, but it too was denied, and all further attempts at negotiation or communication failed.

She thought her fate was sealed, but then, rather then merely dump her overboard or cut her throat, Leofric asked her what skills she had. As it happened, he needed a new Quartermaster - someone who would keep inventory of the ship supplies, and oversee the distribution of pay. That was something she could do, and so she was given the position. There are rumours that her relationship with the Lord Captain is not strictly professional, but so far nobody has seen or heard anything concrete.
[/hider]