VixereAnd here's hoping Amazon doesn't have supply problems like they did with Awakening.
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And that is perfectly fine. Besides, Fates is coming out in a week, too. It's gonna be a case of "whelp, looks like everything siezed for a week."
It's okay; take your time. I was thinking for a moment I was overdoing it. <_<
Did not think I'd have so much to say about King Ardias; feel free to correct contradictions between his bio and any of the lore you came up with so far.
King Ardias de Rochefort the Kind
"You know what would be best for our people? A whole lot of new bridges. Yeah. And how about some walls? Let's build them around five layers thick and hundreds of feet heigh. And while we're at it, how about a swimming pool for the slums?"
-- A quote commonly attributed to King Ardias de Rochefort when discussing new public works projects in the capital, usually parroted by his detractors verbatim."What? I didn't say that so flippantly. I was simply making a series of line items to my Master of Coin about what we needed to shore up our defenses in the future. Here it is in writing from his hand. Besides, what do you have against poor people being able to swim?"
-- King Ardias the Kind, when questioned during petitioning hours with the above quote.Ardias has aged just as one can expect from a king who is almost jolly to a fault. Though lines have begun to show up on his face from time to time, he maintains a well-groomed, fluffy beard that he rarely shaves; said beard is larger than most of his face when he shaves it. Reportedly, he used to be a gangly figure when he was a prince, but he has since ballooned for the twenty three years he has assumed the throne. He is covered head to toe in finery of some sort routinely. His crown used to be too small for his head, but with the extra hair grown with his beard it now fits him -- and boy is it a magnificent crown; as one of the last kingdoms in the land, Ashkandi's crown is jeweled with one type of precious stone for each of its vassals -- a ruby, a sapphire, a topaz, a garnet, and an amethyst, so the stories go. Ardias' eyes are heavyset with rather large bags as of late, but he counters such obvious stress and age with a big, goofy smile when even the subjects he's most annoyed with show up to court.
Class
King
Reclass Options
One does not reclass a King. That's regicide, practically. Maybe. Okay, not really, but the guy's gotta keep his title for life.
Age
49
Sex
Male
Personality
Alignment
Lawful Good
"Goofy" is a word that comes up a lot when it comes to the King's personal life. He's always one to crack a joke with his vassals to lighten the mood, and he more often than not tries to maintain an air of levity among his subjects. His every statement to the public is pockmarked with the kind of japes that make a significant amount of the kingdom take him for a fool. Yet, it is undeniable that he thinks of his subjects first and foremost -- that he doesn't even think for himself, a rarity for a monarch even in Ashkandi. Thus is his nickname "The Kind," because no matter who petitions him he has a kind ear open for them. Towards his children he's a somewhat stern father, but one who always emphasizes that dignity is not just the front one puts up (a lesson that fell on Martin's ears the wrong way, and still hasn't sunk in with Elin), but almost never raises his voice to them.
His relationship with Queen Ylonda was a rocky one at first (see bio), but is nothing short of loving, a relationship that reflects in how he treats the children. His frustrations with Catherin, for example, never manifested in a violent reaction, but he never knew how to draw a bead on what was best for her (see bio; he had nothing but brothers for siblings). He is the only sparring partner of Elin's who does not check his blows, surprisingly.
He does have a habit of making rather baffling political gaffes at court; the example above is not the best of them, but there are times when, especially when finding a proper suitor for Catherin, he would insist that "look, my daughter just likes big brains," or words to that effect.
Biography
Ardias de Rochefort was the eldest of seven children born to the previous king of Ashkandi, Linus de Rochefort the Protector. All of his siblings were brothers -- and most of them had succumbed either to early sicknesses in childhood, or in battle against the Darkness after he became king. Nevertheless, Ardias grew up as a passive child for the most part, one who the significantly more brutal King Linus believed would be a weaker ruler, hated by his people for not being able to protect them from the encroaching darkness sweeping across the world, or even against other human foes. And so, the majority of Ardias' education from his father was spent trying to get him to be able to make the harder choices of rulership. His friendship with Ser Nikalos would prove to be a counterweight to King Linus's insistence that a more kind rulership would end in disaster, proving that his subjects didn't always need to be coerced in order to protect them. In the time that it took Linus to attempt to teach Ardias what it took to be king, three of his younger brothers succumb to sickness at a young age.
When he came of age, his marriage to Lady Ylonda of Londium was arranged for him by his own parents, against both of their wishes. The marriage to the public went without incident, but once the doors were closed they were a cold couple. All the public knew was that it took several years time for Ylonda to be pregnant with their first son; by that time, Linus de Rochefort was aging to his last breath and anticipating that Ardias would be a far weaker ruler. On his death bed, he had no faith in his son, a fear that would haunt Ardias' rule forever. The crown didn't even fit Ardias at first, and he didn't even look half as fierce or strong as his father when he was crowned. The first bright star of good news came with a turn in his relationship with Ylonda, which had been significantly less sour with the birth of Prince Martin. In fact, even as the Darkness approached Ashkandi's borders once again, the two of them got over their differences in surprisingly quick time. Rumors spread that it was Ardias that spent an entire night with her trying to figure out how to run the state that King Linus had left behind -- indebted from the most furious, costly attempts to end the threat outside Ashkandi's borders and even more costly attempts to rush construction of defenses on Ashkandi's borders -- as well as raise a family. It would have seemed that the two of them agreed that the best way to do so was to not make Linus's mistake of assuming manpower and coercion alone would slay the Darkness, and, judging by Ardias's later policies, to concentrate on defending from the Darkness.
Such policies have worked ... thus far. He spent his first years of rulership maintaining the kingdom's wellbeing, and has succeeded at stemming the advancement of the darkness to this day, even if the first years were costly. See, the first years of his rulership were spent securing a border -- he drew a line in the map of Ashkandi and said "The Darkness will not cross this line." Securing that line for the sake of building a wall that would last against The Darkness ended up costing the lives of two more of his brothers, of the three who volunteered (though, rumors exist that one of the two slain was captured instead, his fate unknown). They are deaths that weigh heavily upon him, enough so that he looks upon Martin's posturing with fear, and fears for Catherin's learning of magic -- enough so that he assigned his best knights (sans Ser Nikalos) to be in Martin's retinue, and ... the best of the knight's recruits plus Ser Nikalos to look after Catherin (the princess did not take kindly to as large an escort as her brother's).
Hauchefort de Rochefort
"When I grow up, I'm gonna be like Martin! No wait, I wanna be as smart as Catherin! Wait no..."
Thus far, Hauchefort has grown into a kind of plump child, definitely taking an appearance similar to his father's in his younger age. His brown hair is bushy, and almost refuses to stay combed in any way that can be called "neat." His parents have a habit of putting clothes on him that look a little too large on him for about a week before becoming too small the next. The royal launderers are quite baffled at this, and don't know whether to blame it on shrinkage from hot water or on the prince's eating habits. He's otherwise a
Age
6
Sex
Male
Personality
Alignment
True Neutral
He's an indecisive kid, one who doesn't have a lot in the way of convictions just yet. His parents fear that he will grow up as morose as Delia, or even as wicked and mischievous as Elin. So far, it's not clear even to Hauchefort what he wants to be. It's clear that he is a happy kid who doesn't really see much wrong with the world yet, other than the occasional gripe about discipline every now and then. His favorite sibling as far as idolization goes is Prince Martin; as far as sibling rivalries go, he thinks he has one with Elin, though Elin doesn't quite see it that way. He doesn't know Catherin too well, especially after she began her apprenticeship -- he takes literally her nickname of "The Tower Princess," thinking that she is literally trapped in a tower somewhere. He knows Delia as a very kind and doting older sister. He knows Elin as a bit of a jerk, but with a soft side ... somewhere. In return, his siblings all regard him as someone to be protected at all costs, as much as he's embarrassed when someone like Martin or Elin express that fact.
Biography
Hauchefort has not lived for very long, and without much in the way of incident. He has hopes and dreams, though being third in line for the throne has hampered them somewhat. He does agree with Delia to a degree that there are fissures forming in the family as they try to get accustomed to the darkness encroaching upon Ashkandi, but he is so innocent as to think that his elder brother alone is heroic enough to fight the darkness on his own. Hope is the one thing that Hauchefort clings to the strongest.
Alright.
Just got Hauchefort (is tyke a class?) and the King and Queen and I'll be finished with character bios.
Just got Hauchefort (is tyke a class?) and the King and Queen and I'll be finished with character bios.
Martial weapons, lances especially; think Ameila.
Princess Elin de Rochefort
"Hey! Get back here! I'm not done with you yet! Just you wait until I get my hands on you..."
—Elin, likely talking to a servant carting away leftovers at the end of a sparring matchIs anyone really sure that this pimply, freckle-covered Princess is a legitimate child of the royal family? The suspicions lie in her unusual hair color (it's the royal white, yes, but with a tint of orange instead of blue), even if her eye color is much the same as her siblings. None ever brought up the question about Delia, as brown is the queen's hair color, but it doesn't stop there. Elin has a bit of a softer face so far, and quite the strong eyebrow game in comparison to her siblings. She often looks like she's plotting something, much to the stress of the royal guard and those training her to fight.
Class
Trainee
Reclass Options
__
Age
12
Sex
Female
Personality
Alignment
Chaotic Neutral
Undisciplined is one way to sum up Elin. She's impatient, cocksure, and almost always direct, so direct that Martin never lets her read his strategy ledgers (for fear that she would take a dollop of red ink and point out something very flawed with his strategy). She's always trying to get a rise out of people, her siblings especially (it's the reason she misses Catherin so much, as she cheers for Catherin "fighting the [old] man." When it comes to being married off, Elin's a little bit more resigned, but insists that "she'd make it a living hell for any husband."); she finds it harder to get a rise out of Delia, while she enjoys pushing Martin's buttons the most, when he's not in the middle of any serious business.
She takes sparring overly-seriously. Her teachers have a habit of checking their blows against her, but she always goes all out on them, even once breaking Ser Nikalos's pinky finger with the broad side of her spear.
She is a little but more selfish; she's doomed to grow up to be a glory hog.
Biography
Elin's birth is surrounded in rumor and hearsay. Those who would wish to subvert the royal family take how different she looks and how unruly she is from her sibling as a sign that she is a bastard child. Such rumors are only half-true; as Queen Ylonda did have a very different turmoil giving birth to her. Elin's birth was marked with a fever that nearly killed the queen afterwards. Elin's version of the story of how Ylonda survived is... Something else... (It involves Elin punching the fever in the face. Not even joking), but it was more a matter of reaching a cleric as soon as possible.
Still, Elin took this fortune in stride, and even as a child insisted she wanted to learn how to fight. She never cared for defying potential marriage contracts the way Catherin did, or meet them with faith and apathy the way Delia did. Rather, she gives off the air that she wants to make sure her potential husbands can handle her as a person...though the way she would put it would be a little more hostile-sounding ("if your wife wields a pointed stick better than you, you're outta here."). As of today, suitors are only just being suggested Elin's way, and instead Elin is furiously trying to finish her training.
Princess Delia de Rochefort
"Brother! Sister! Stop fighting... Mother and father would not like it at all..."
Delia hit her growth spurt quite recently. "Awkward teenager" is a descriptor for it in many respects, as she almost never looks comfortable in any of the dresses she's in. They're either too small around the chest, a tad too long, or the wrong color (she's a big fan of teal colors). She wears her brown hair in a series of intricate buns, each of them different every day. It is such a habit with her that many in court have called her the "cinnamon roll princess." (Granted, the cinnamon roll prince was a nickname given to Martin for all of five seconds when he was six). She's not as willowy as her older sister, as she has the benefit of the royal diet—rather, her figure is starting to fill with generous curves instead.
Class
Cleric.
Reclass Options
__
Age
16
Sex
Female
Personality
Alignment
True Neutral
Delia is innocent in a million ways. Innocent and oblivious. Subtext in conversation goes over her head routinely, though as of the present she is starting to catch on to a few things (like, perhaps the reason Martin and Catherin fight over fiction routinely). She is a pacifist who gets sick at the sight of blood, and the kind of person who would beg incessantly for people to stop fighting the moment a bruise forms in a sparring match. She thinks herself a coward in comparison to Prince Martin and an idiot in comparison to Princess Catherin (an opinion neither of them share). Despite being so modest and kind, she may actually be the most depressed of the royal family.
Biography
Delia's birth and childhood was more or less normal. Compared to her elder siblings she was a much more quiet child, one who never took initiative towards heroism or even magic the way her elder siblings did. Rather, she very quickly took a look towards the fiends surrounding Ashkandi's walls, and chose to pray instead. For her entire life, she had resigned herself to the Gods, watching as cracks formed in her family, and fearing the worst in the future.
As of today, she is officially ordained as part of Ashkandi's priesthood. It is her goal to become a bishop one day, in order to help shelter the less fortunate from the coming darkness. It is a goal her parents find to be ... Odd. But then, she is the princess who is the least confident in the future.
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