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Warlord Balthazar
February 09, 2008 - 1:10 PM
Unauthorized use of them is strictly prohibited.
(NOTE: The Felara species/race and the details of their world were created by
and are copyright © to Ruth Collins. Balthazar is © Renée Atkinson, created with Ruth's permission.)
FULL NAME: Balthazar (pronounced BALL-thuh-zar). His reputation precedes him -- he is known by this single name only.
RANK/STATUS: Felaran Warlord -- the highest-ranking warrior of "dark" alignment (i.e., a follower of the dark god Shardeth) in Felaran society.AGE: 428 (mid-sixties)HEIGHT: 7'1"WEIGHT: 535 lbs.BUILD: Heavy, burly, muscular... just plain big. He is terrifically strong but no longer possesses the chiselled physique of his prime.COAT: A light rusty brown, darker around his eyes and the tips of his ears, but otherwise fairly uniform. Scruffy in certain areas but mostly short.HAIR: Rich brown with heavy doses of silvery-white, as he has grayed significantly with age. He has thick, bushy eyebrows, a very long and fluffy beard kept tied with leather binding, and scruffy "sideburns" travelling all the way up to his ears. He shaves his head to form a wild, crest-like mohawk from his forehead to the nape of his neck, in varying lengths (shorter in back, longer up top). His mohawk and "goatee" are the only parts that have completely grayed -- his eyebrows, beard, and sideburns still retain streaks of brown.EYES: Orange. Round pupils.PIERCINGS: None.TATTOOS: Bright red markings across his head and face. See his ref sheet for details.STYLE: Most often, he is seen wearing his battle armor -- a lot of black metal, shiny polished metal, red accents, chainmail, and burgundy-colored leather. In colder weather or in formal settings, he sports a vivid red cloak with a fur-trimmed collar. In full armor, he will carry all his weapons on him and protect his head with an ornate metal helmet from which his silver mohawk protrudes upright. Typically only those closest to him ever see him without his armor, as he likes to keep up the "warrior general" decorum in all public situations. He does not dress casually -- only with fewer layers, if he is in a relaxed setting. He is also one of the "old school" Felara who still walks around barefoot, with his "ankles" securely wrapped in leather straps for support.WEAPONS: Modern technology is available on the Felaran world of Aenith. Like any good warmonger, Balthazar is well-acquainted with all sorts of destructive or torturous instruments -- he knows how to use guns and other modern weaponry, and does employ them in large-scale battle settings, but he is more of a traditional warrior at heart with a penchant for blades and bloody carnage as opposed to the impersonal feel of guns, lasers, and explosions. At this point, because of his rank and experience, he is no longer at the forefront of battles anyway -- he is the general, directing, strategizing, and watching his troops do all the gunfighting/dying on the battlefield while he sits back and waits to do hand-to-hand combat with the top member from the opposition. He will use swords, axes, masses, spiked clubs, and a variety of other tools depending on his mood, but his preferred weapon is a set of hand-held sickle-type blades (only one shown in his ref sheet, but he uses two), which he wields with eerie dexterity. He is well-known for cleanly decapitating his enemies with these instruments and keeping the skulls as trophies.NOTEWORTHY TRAITS: A long history of combat has resulted in a few major injuries to the notorious Warlord. His long tail was severed at about mid-point centuries ago; he keeps the end of it wrapped in leather to protect the smaller bones from further damage. His long, tufted ears have nearly identical notches along the lobe that split them along the middle. He has numerous scars as well, usually unseen beneath his armor, fur, or beard. His nose and pawpads are roughly the same shade of brown as his hair. Like all Felara, he has pointed canine teeth and sharp retractible claws. Wrinkles are visible in his face, particularly on his forehead and under his eyes.PERSONALITY: Balthazar is unpleasant, to say the least. While he is widely respected among his troops as a wise, powerful, noble, and fearless commander, he upholds dark principles and represents a dangerous menace within Felaran society. He is arrogant, cruel, manipulative, and very cutthroat in dealing with anyone he perceives as a threat to his power. He is a rather humorless individual, seemingly sporting a perpetual look of anger, savage bloodthirst, or stone-faced seriousness, though he does take great pleasure in dominating, defeating, humiliating, and hurting people he does not like. He's also incredibly cocky and feels that any question of his authority is laughable. He's witty when it comes to insults and finds nothing funnier than putting young upstarts in their place. He does have some redeeming qualities -- for instance, he is highly protective of his immediate family, he is generous with his possessions, he is patient, focused, perceptive, courageous, profoundly intelligent, and ferociously tenacious... some would even suggest (though not to his face) that he is capable of such sentiments as love or affection. Were he a pure spirit seeking the betterment of his people with these qualities, he might represent a tremendous force for good among the Felara. However, because he has chosen a path of power, pride, and corruption, he has become more of a curse than a blessing.REFERENCE IMAGES:
