Liam Anders
Posted: Tue Apr 10, 2012 4:54 pm
Hey everyone, been lurking for a few days, figured I'd get around to posting an app so I can get involved. I hope this is alright. The history I took a few liberties with, since I wanted Anders to be an outsider to Marn, and already had a back story in mind. I picked a region I didn't see much background on for him to be from. If it doesn't work, please let me know how I can change it. I'm more than willing to work with things on this character. Looking forward to hearing feedback!
Player Name: Anders
Name: Liam Anders
Age: 25
Race: Human
Height: 5'11"
Weight: 175 lbs.
Physical Description: Anders is currently in excellent physical shape, a lean and toned man of twenty-five years, with fair skin, dark brown eyes, and close cropped light brown hair, his only facial hair being a goatee confined to his chin. While he doesn't exactly have an intimidating appearance, he is clearly quite athletic, and more or less a picture of health. For clothing, Anders prefers simple, loose, comfortable clothes when in the city.
Possessions:
Longbow - An expensive-looking and well made recurved longbow, this weapon looks slightly more expensive than Anders could afford, given his simple dress and background. The wood of the bow is a light brown, almost golden color, with a grip of some kind of fine black cloth. Anders keeps it slung across his back if there's a chance he'll need to use it, or when hunting, otherwise it is kept on a wall in his home.
Hunting Knife - A small blade, simple in appearance, but still quite sharp. It's seen heavy use. Kept in a simple leather sheath on his belt.
Hunting Equipment - This includes a pair of leather bracers, a quiver full of hand made arrows, a large satchel, and a pair of tough leather boots. Kept in his home.
Strengths:
Archery - Anders has years of experience with his longbow, and is very skilled in its use. He can draw and prepare arrows quickly, aim efficiently, and hit targets from long distances. His skill is not supernatural, however, merely honed from years of experience.
Wilderness Expertise - Years spent hunting, both in his homeland and in Thar Shaddin, have made Anders excellent in more natural environments. He is skilled in foraging, cooking (with limited supplies), climbing, horseback riding, and tracking. His hunting experience, and previous background, has made him effective at silently stalking prey as well.
Thievery - A newer hobby of Anders', but one he finds fulfilling and exciting. He isn't so much into breaking and entering, but simple pickpocketing has become somewhat of a passion of his. He still needs practice picking out good marks, but has become quite good at rifling through the pockets of others.
Weaknesses:
Poor in Melee - Anders never received much training in close quarters combat, and is poor at defending himself or attacking with melee weapons. He'll sooner retreat and try to use his bow than fight someone head on, or simply escape altogether if he is without his bow.
Paranoia - The main reason for Anders' lack of many real friends. He is sociable enough, although slightly awkward at times, but even now, a year after leaving his homeland and arriving in Marn, he is extremely watchful, and slow to make friends. It's something he's working on.
Lingering Depression - Another thing Anders is working on. Though he has made significant improvements since arriving in Marn, if something causes him to become fixated on his past, he will likely fall back into a poor mood for a time. He doesn't really have a good friend to help him get over this, and he doesn't realize that he needs one.
Curiosity - It hasn't killed him yet, but it's gotten him into a good deal of trouble on occasion. He's prone to approaching strangers at times, if they are doing something that catches his eye. If he feels like he has a good grasp on a situation, it borders on mischievousness. Meddling with people to produce reactions amuses him immensely. It often backfires.
History:
Liam Anders was born under the name Amil Rio, far to the west of Thar Shaddin, in the land known as Corezo. The last name Rio was granted to him due to the fact that he was a bastard son of a local noble lord, Rodrigo Carcenera, whose province was centered around a major river of the region. His mother was a prostitute, working out of a local brothel, in which Amil was born and raised for the first nine years of his life. His early years were difficult and unforgiving, and hardened him against hardship.
His father made periodic checks on Amil, and as far as he knew, the lord had no other bastard children to speak of. Amil never developed a meaningful relationship with his three half-siblings, all of which lived at the castle with Rodrigo. Amil was not bothered by this, as Lord Carcenera's other children grew up in luxury, and from what Amil saw, they were not his type in the slightest. He preferred the children of the street, tough urchins such as himself.
At ten, Amil's mother contracted a disease. Lacking the coin to pay a doctor, she perished a few weeks later. Amil was not overly crushed by her death. She'd left him to fend for himself for much of his life. Little would change now that she was gone. Or so he thought.
Lord Carcenera, hearing word of this the next time he checked in on Amil, decided he could afford to give the bastard a more valuable way to spend his life. He offered him a place in his castle if Amil agreed to serve him for the remainder of his days. Amil had little choice but to accept. It was a chance to move on to something else.
Life at Rodrigo's castle was surprisingly similar, except that now he was given work to do. Cleaning stables, tending to the horses, delivering messages, assisting the cooks with their work. Amil was glad for something to do for once, even if the responsibilities were small. It was a start. He even convinced the castle scribe to give him lessons in reading and writing occasionally.
When Amil was twelve, Rodrigo granted him the honor of accompanying one of the castle guard on a hunt into the nearby woods. They were to bring meat for the night's feast. It was here that Amil discovered his first passions: hunting and archery. He took to the bow naturally, and felt more at home in the woods than he did in the castle or in the streets. Out there, he was the master, not a boy to be ordered around and spat upon.
Amil was allowed to continue hunting, sometimes even in place of his other duties. Over the next few years he developed his skills, learning to track, stalk, and take down prey. He grew strong and fit, and motivated. It was the first time he'd found something he truly enjoyed doing. Lord Carcenera recognized his growing skill, and soon developed another use for him.
By the time Amil was sixteen, Lord Carcenera's province had grown considerably in strength and renown throughout the region, and was beginning to butt heads with some of the neighboring lords. Rodrigo asked Amil if he was ready to use his skills to serve his lord father in a more important way. Feeling ambitious, Amil accepted.
Hunting men wasn't so different from hunting deer or other creatures, Rodrigo explained. So long as the archer saw them both as merely beasts, there was nothing to worry about. Amil was to become Lord Carcenera's personal assassin, it seemed. This was a delicate time in Amil's youth, a time in which the petty gifts and duties Rodrigo offered him could create loyalty that was stronger than he deserved. Amil was more or less dedicated to serving his father by now, and accepted. He would hunt men for his father.
He trained for two years before his first assignment, learning how to track men instead of beasts, how to eavesdrop, gather information, learn when a target would be vulnerable, and honed his marksmanship even further. Seeing how far he'd risen since his days in the brothel gave Amil a strong sense of pride.
At eighteen, the killing began. Open war was not really an option for many of the minor lords of Corezo, but there were still other ways of getting messages across. Assassination was a common choice. Amil murdered merchants, ambassadors, doctors, guard captains, and dozens of others. Lord Carcenera valued his skills highly, and it was not long before a higher profile target was selected for him.
The lord to the east of Rodrigo had only one child, a daughter, named Caterina Milana. Her father was growing old, and as a result, his daughter was steadily assuming more of a leadership role in her father's province. Lord Carcenera ordered her death, and assigned Amil to the task. He traveled east to find her, now age 22.
Amil tracked Caterina to a wooded area just outside her father's castle. She was accompanied by a few guards, but in the woods, there were plenty of excellent places for Amil to hide. Lining up a shot was easy enough, but in that moment, Amil's purpose faltered. To say she had caught his eye would be an understatement. He was unable to take the shot. She discovered him, and called for her guards. The men intended to kill Amil on the spot, but Caterina stayed their blades, instead ordering him to be taken to the dungeons for the time being. Amil praised her as a goddess of mercy as he was hauled off.
He was held in the dungeon for some time, during which Caterina came to speak with him often. He explained his situation, and his story, to her, and she listened patiently throughout. He harbored no hate for her, he explained, nor any of the men and women he'd killed, simply a wish to serve his lord father, who had raised him up to his position from complete hopelessness.
The two of them developed a friendship, and eventually Amil was allowed to wander the castle under supervision. He eventually came to have a different view on things, due in no small part to Caterina. His father was simply using him, he had decided. The man clearly desired power and control in the region, and was willing to murder whoever he needed to to get it. What kind of father turned his own son into a weapon, meant only to kill?
Amil and Caterina eventually came to love each other, and Amil's loyalty switched in favor of his love, away from his father. He started hunting in the forests again, finding himself once more among the trees and foliage. It was the happiest year of his life. But it could not last.
Amil had simply been traveling through the halls of the castle, on his way to meet with Caterina one evening, when he heard a scream and a struggle. He rushed to the source to find his love on the ground, severely injured by multiple stab wounds. Certain she was near death, Caterina ordered Amil to leave Corezo, and start a new life for himself, away from the spies and assassins of his homeland. She died in his arms. When Caterina's father arrived, he immediately became enraged at the death of his daughter, and instantly blamed the assassination on Amil, assuming he had finally carried out his orders. He ordered his guard to kill Amil on the spot.
Amil narrowly escaped the castle guards, managing to lose them in the surrounding town. Grief stricken but still loyal, he followed Caterina's orders, stealing a horse from the village and riding off into the night, heading east. It was unclear if his father knew of his betrayal, but Amil was certain he'd be followed if he did know. He rode without stopping for days, losing several horses along the way. He decided he would no longer go by the name Amil Rio, instead rearranging his first name into Liam, and adopting the name Anders instead of Rio. It was the name of the strongest horse he had stolen, and did not sound of his homeland. It would do.
Liam Anders traveled east for weeks, searching for a suitable place to stop, until at last he came across Thar Shaddin, and the city of Marn. Marn's distance from Corezo, and its relative isolation and self-sufficiency made it a good place for Anders for stop. Weary of travel, Anders was glad for a chance to rest, though he could not help but feel that his father's men would eventually come looking for him.
A year later, Anders had acquired a humble home in the Residential District, making some coin selling hides from the animals and creatures he was able to hunt in the limited forests, and the plains. Early in his time in Marn, he found that honest work was not quite enough for him to get by on, and was forced to resort to stealing. Not only did he find himself to be somewhat of a natural at pickpocketing, but he also found it highly enjoyable. A healthier sort of alternative thrill to murder, which he hopes to never need to do again.
He wished Thar Shaddin had more trees, but it would do. Anders is currently without much of a purpose, having lost it in Corezo, but he's looking for a way to move forward with his life. The thought of returning to Corezo and exacting revenge upon his father has crossed his mind, but as of now he currently wishes only to escape his past, not to return to it.
Player Name: Anders
Name: Liam Anders
Age: 25
Race: Human
Height: 5'11"
Weight: 175 lbs.
Physical Description: Anders is currently in excellent physical shape, a lean and toned man of twenty-five years, with fair skin, dark brown eyes, and close cropped light brown hair, his only facial hair being a goatee confined to his chin. While he doesn't exactly have an intimidating appearance, he is clearly quite athletic, and more or less a picture of health. For clothing, Anders prefers simple, loose, comfortable clothes when in the city.
Possessions:
Longbow - An expensive-looking and well made recurved longbow, this weapon looks slightly more expensive than Anders could afford, given his simple dress and background. The wood of the bow is a light brown, almost golden color, with a grip of some kind of fine black cloth. Anders keeps it slung across his back if there's a chance he'll need to use it, or when hunting, otherwise it is kept on a wall in his home.
Hunting Knife - A small blade, simple in appearance, but still quite sharp. It's seen heavy use. Kept in a simple leather sheath on his belt.
Hunting Equipment - This includes a pair of leather bracers, a quiver full of hand made arrows, a large satchel, and a pair of tough leather boots. Kept in his home.
Strengths:
Archery - Anders has years of experience with his longbow, and is very skilled in its use. He can draw and prepare arrows quickly, aim efficiently, and hit targets from long distances. His skill is not supernatural, however, merely honed from years of experience.
Wilderness Expertise - Years spent hunting, both in his homeland and in Thar Shaddin, have made Anders excellent in more natural environments. He is skilled in foraging, cooking (with limited supplies), climbing, horseback riding, and tracking. His hunting experience, and previous background, has made him effective at silently stalking prey as well.
Thievery - A newer hobby of Anders', but one he finds fulfilling and exciting. He isn't so much into breaking and entering, but simple pickpocketing has become somewhat of a passion of his. He still needs practice picking out good marks, but has become quite good at rifling through the pockets of others.
Weaknesses:
Poor in Melee - Anders never received much training in close quarters combat, and is poor at defending himself or attacking with melee weapons. He'll sooner retreat and try to use his bow than fight someone head on, or simply escape altogether if he is without his bow.
Paranoia - The main reason for Anders' lack of many real friends. He is sociable enough, although slightly awkward at times, but even now, a year after leaving his homeland and arriving in Marn, he is extremely watchful, and slow to make friends. It's something he's working on.
Lingering Depression - Another thing Anders is working on. Though he has made significant improvements since arriving in Marn, if something causes him to become fixated on his past, he will likely fall back into a poor mood for a time. He doesn't really have a good friend to help him get over this, and he doesn't realize that he needs one.
Curiosity - It hasn't killed him yet, but it's gotten him into a good deal of trouble on occasion. He's prone to approaching strangers at times, if they are doing something that catches his eye. If he feels like he has a good grasp on a situation, it borders on mischievousness. Meddling with people to produce reactions amuses him immensely. It often backfires.
History:
Liam Anders was born under the name Amil Rio, far to the west of Thar Shaddin, in the land known as Corezo. The last name Rio was granted to him due to the fact that he was a bastard son of a local noble lord, Rodrigo Carcenera, whose province was centered around a major river of the region. His mother was a prostitute, working out of a local brothel, in which Amil was born and raised for the first nine years of his life. His early years were difficult and unforgiving, and hardened him against hardship.
His father made periodic checks on Amil, and as far as he knew, the lord had no other bastard children to speak of. Amil never developed a meaningful relationship with his three half-siblings, all of which lived at the castle with Rodrigo. Amil was not bothered by this, as Lord Carcenera's other children grew up in luxury, and from what Amil saw, they were not his type in the slightest. He preferred the children of the street, tough urchins such as himself.
At ten, Amil's mother contracted a disease. Lacking the coin to pay a doctor, she perished a few weeks later. Amil was not overly crushed by her death. She'd left him to fend for himself for much of his life. Little would change now that she was gone. Or so he thought.
Lord Carcenera, hearing word of this the next time he checked in on Amil, decided he could afford to give the bastard a more valuable way to spend his life. He offered him a place in his castle if Amil agreed to serve him for the remainder of his days. Amil had little choice but to accept. It was a chance to move on to something else.
Life at Rodrigo's castle was surprisingly similar, except that now he was given work to do. Cleaning stables, tending to the horses, delivering messages, assisting the cooks with their work. Amil was glad for something to do for once, even if the responsibilities were small. It was a start. He even convinced the castle scribe to give him lessons in reading and writing occasionally.
When Amil was twelve, Rodrigo granted him the honor of accompanying one of the castle guard on a hunt into the nearby woods. They were to bring meat for the night's feast. It was here that Amil discovered his first passions: hunting and archery. He took to the bow naturally, and felt more at home in the woods than he did in the castle or in the streets. Out there, he was the master, not a boy to be ordered around and spat upon.
Amil was allowed to continue hunting, sometimes even in place of his other duties. Over the next few years he developed his skills, learning to track, stalk, and take down prey. He grew strong and fit, and motivated. It was the first time he'd found something he truly enjoyed doing. Lord Carcenera recognized his growing skill, and soon developed another use for him.
By the time Amil was sixteen, Lord Carcenera's province had grown considerably in strength and renown throughout the region, and was beginning to butt heads with some of the neighboring lords. Rodrigo asked Amil if he was ready to use his skills to serve his lord father in a more important way. Feeling ambitious, Amil accepted.
Hunting men wasn't so different from hunting deer or other creatures, Rodrigo explained. So long as the archer saw them both as merely beasts, there was nothing to worry about. Amil was to become Lord Carcenera's personal assassin, it seemed. This was a delicate time in Amil's youth, a time in which the petty gifts and duties Rodrigo offered him could create loyalty that was stronger than he deserved. Amil was more or less dedicated to serving his father by now, and accepted. He would hunt men for his father.
He trained for two years before his first assignment, learning how to track men instead of beasts, how to eavesdrop, gather information, learn when a target would be vulnerable, and honed his marksmanship even further. Seeing how far he'd risen since his days in the brothel gave Amil a strong sense of pride.
At eighteen, the killing began. Open war was not really an option for many of the minor lords of Corezo, but there were still other ways of getting messages across. Assassination was a common choice. Amil murdered merchants, ambassadors, doctors, guard captains, and dozens of others. Lord Carcenera valued his skills highly, and it was not long before a higher profile target was selected for him.
The lord to the east of Rodrigo had only one child, a daughter, named Caterina Milana. Her father was growing old, and as a result, his daughter was steadily assuming more of a leadership role in her father's province. Lord Carcenera ordered her death, and assigned Amil to the task. He traveled east to find her, now age 22.
Amil tracked Caterina to a wooded area just outside her father's castle. She was accompanied by a few guards, but in the woods, there were plenty of excellent places for Amil to hide. Lining up a shot was easy enough, but in that moment, Amil's purpose faltered. To say she had caught his eye would be an understatement. He was unable to take the shot. She discovered him, and called for her guards. The men intended to kill Amil on the spot, but Caterina stayed their blades, instead ordering him to be taken to the dungeons for the time being. Amil praised her as a goddess of mercy as he was hauled off.
He was held in the dungeon for some time, during which Caterina came to speak with him often. He explained his situation, and his story, to her, and she listened patiently throughout. He harbored no hate for her, he explained, nor any of the men and women he'd killed, simply a wish to serve his lord father, who had raised him up to his position from complete hopelessness.
The two of them developed a friendship, and eventually Amil was allowed to wander the castle under supervision. He eventually came to have a different view on things, due in no small part to Caterina. His father was simply using him, he had decided. The man clearly desired power and control in the region, and was willing to murder whoever he needed to to get it. What kind of father turned his own son into a weapon, meant only to kill?
Amil and Caterina eventually came to love each other, and Amil's loyalty switched in favor of his love, away from his father. He started hunting in the forests again, finding himself once more among the trees and foliage. It was the happiest year of his life. But it could not last.
Amil had simply been traveling through the halls of the castle, on his way to meet with Caterina one evening, when he heard a scream and a struggle. He rushed to the source to find his love on the ground, severely injured by multiple stab wounds. Certain she was near death, Caterina ordered Amil to leave Corezo, and start a new life for himself, away from the spies and assassins of his homeland. She died in his arms. When Caterina's father arrived, he immediately became enraged at the death of his daughter, and instantly blamed the assassination on Amil, assuming he had finally carried out his orders. He ordered his guard to kill Amil on the spot.
Amil narrowly escaped the castle guards, managing to lose them in the surrounding town. Grief stricken but still loyal, he followed Caterina's orders, stealing a horse from the village and riding off into the night, heading east. It was unclear if his father knew of his betrayal, but Amil was certain he'd be followed if he did know. He rode without stopping for days, losing several horses along the way. He decided he would no longer go by the name Amil Rio, instead rearranging his first name into Liam, and adopting the name Anders instead of Rio. It was the name of the strongest horse he had stolen, and did not sound of his homeland. It would do.
Liam Anders traveled east for weeks, searching for a suitable place to stop, until at last he came across Thar Shaddin, and the city of Marn. Marn's distance from Corezo, and its relative isolation and self-sufficiency made it a good place for Anders for stop. Weary of travel, Anders was glad for a chance to rest, though he could not help but feel that his father's men would eventually come looking for him.
A year later, Anders had acquired a humble home in the Residential District, making some coin selling hides from the animals and creatures he was able to hunt in the limited forests, and the plains. Early in his time in Marn, he found that honest work was not quite enough for him to get by on, and was forced to resort to stealing. Not only did he find himself to be somewhat of a natural at pickpocketing, but he also found it highly enjoyable. A healthier sort of alternative thrill to murder, which he hopes to never need to do again.
He wished Thar Shaddin had more trees, but it would do. Anders is currently without much of a purpose, having lost it in Corezo, but he's looking for a way to move forward with his life. The thought of returning to Corezo and exacting revenge upon his father has crossed his mind, but as of now he currently wishes only to escape his past, not to return to it.
