Richard Montag
Age - 38 | Alignment - Lawful Neutral | Rank - Cause
Reason: To grasp an opportunity.
Command Seals: A two plumes rising from the caldera of a jagged peak.
Personality: Richard has always been a grounded man among the idealists of the moonlit world with their grand aspirations for the Root. He has the interest to pursue his magecraft, but it is not the all consuming desire the dictates the lives of his contemporaries. His interests are often more inclined towards the practical aspects of supporting a fourth generation magus household, often through making small, sensible loans to upstart businesses catering to the Magus community as well as enterprising students with little funds of their own, in exchange for compensation, monetary or academic, further down the line.
This has earned Richard no love from his betters whose paranoia might lead one to believe he were laying the framework for a grand scheme to influence the young and prosperous of the moonlit world, but he doesn't mind the wild speculation and in fact takes no small measure of amusement from it. Bearing the visage of a modern businessman alongside the scars of a magus who has pushed against the borders of his favored craft with unpredictable results, most who talk to him find Richard pleasant, but harmless to them or their interests. He converses with a welcoming air about him, sometimes revealing glimpses of a self depreciating sense of humor oft unseen in prideful magi. Holds the belief that he has averted more attempts upon his own life, limb, and research through dialogue then any duel of mysteries.
Bio: Born to a family of respectably moderate age and enough holdings not to be deemed destitute by their peers, Richard was expected to be the one who would provide his family with something to distinguish themselves among the moonlit world. To the families chagrin, he did nothing of the sort. Entering into the Clocktower at a reasonable age, unlike those child prodigies who had their first research grant at 10, he labored well enough to succeed in all his classes though never excelling enough to be singled out by instructors for special attention. There was a hope that he would find his spark of genius among the more cut throat departments of the Clocktower or seclude himself in isolation like the mad Magus' who concocted grand machinations away from prying eyes.
Then he joined the Archaeology Department (Researching the levels of ambient prana found in the air through the ages), the department known for being so far removed from an Magus Association conflicts that they didn't even shoot their trespassers on sight, and the family promptly abandoned all expectations for their heir to put them on the map. Richard was delighted by this news, and continued to work in relative peace and fostered connections among the very department noted for also producing Touka Aozaki, Souren Araya, and Cornelius Alba.
Abilities
Trigger:A cigar burning flesh.
Element:Wind
Number Of Magic Circuits: C
Quality Of Magic Circuits: B
General Magecraft: While not exceptional, he is well versed in his general studies and can perform the basics feats of any moderately proficient mage without issue.
Structural Grasping: Due to the nature of his magecraft as well as his employment, Richard has invested a great deal of time into the basic magecraft related to the understanding of materials compositions, Structural Grasping. Not to say he has wholly mastered the art and all its secrets, but is skilled enough to grasp the chemical composition of the air around him for twenty meters in all directions.
Alchemy: While the Clocktower is not as renowned for its Alchemists as another prestigious institution is, there are more then enough magi who are proficient in the magical chemistry. Alchemy pertains to the re-arranging of substances and materials into different forms through means of combustion, distillation, prana infusion, etc.
Manipulation of Matter's Third State: By suffusing any sufficiently understood gas, smoke, or airborne particulates with his own prana, Richard can thus manipulate it to his will as though an impromptu familiar, though the gases have no will beyond what Montag makes of it. Note, this does not confer control after changing from a gas state to a liquid or a solid, even if Richard is capable of performing that transition.
Crest: 340 Years.
Mystic Codes:
Gentlemen's Cigar Case: A slim silver case holding twelve hand rolled cigars, with its exterior emblazoned with a raised M in a stylized font. While serving an obvious practical purpose, the case's mystical role is to draw contaminants and assorted noxious gases from the air and infuse them into the cases contents, altering the cigars into potent toxic weapons when burned to create manipulable smoke clouds. This process occurs passively but should Montag actively wield the Case he could draw the air to it like a vacuum, allowing him to accumulate greater mass to manipulate.
Ocular Spectrometer: Glasses capable of seeing across a broad spectrum of light, offering greater insight into the natural and mystical portions of life around him. Useful for providing insight into the matter with which he works with.
The Firebrand's Lighter: A similarly silver lighter to match the Gentleman's Case, this lighter does not just produce a tiny flame for lighting cigars, but also a ten foot long whip of flame Richard uses to defend his person while his gases do their work.
