Humfrey Lefford

Myranda Lefford

Ossifer Lefford

Humfrey Lefford is the Lord of the Golden Tooth, having inherited the seat from his father after the latter's passing in the year 79 AC. He is currently married to Jeyne Marbrand. A statesman through and through, Humfrey has long worked to ensure the prosperity of his lands.

## Appearance and Character

Humfrey Lefford shares features with many of his companions in the Westerlands - blond hair and green eyes. Never quite developing a liking for combat, the young future Lord of the Golden Tooth was content to allow his peers to grow stronger and bigger than himself. And so he remained for the rest of his life, an unimpressive figure when compared to the knights and men-at-arms that accompanied him.

By no means is the Lord of the Golden Tooth an unimpressive *man,* however. Across the West and beyond, Humfrey Lefford is known for the ease with which he not only captures but befriends crowds - and in doing so, he has built himself quite the reputation.

## History

Born in the year 59 after Aegon's Conquest to Lord Addison Lefford and his wife Lady Jynessa Lefford neé Tarbeck, Humfrey Lefford was groomed for rulership over the Golden Tooth since his birth. As it quickly became clear that the heir to the Golden Tooth had neither talent nor interest in fighting, the boy convinced his father to replace most of his fighting lessons with lessons in more theoretical matters. Soon, Humfrey developed a liking for engineering - be it the construction of houses, castles, watchtowers, mining platforms or siege weaponry. He excelled in these matters and soon enough, around Humfrey's fourteenth year, learned all that the Tooth's maester could teach the boy about those specific subjects.

After much pleading, the weak-willed Lord Addison Lefford allowed his son and heir to tour the realm - yet noble families were not his destination. Instead, he sought out the great works of Westeros - the complex mines of the West in addition to Casterly Rock, the Wall of the North, the Hightower of the Reach, the Eyrie of the Vale, and the Marcher castles of the Stormlands. He would read their books and speak with their maesters and workers; indeed, to Humfrey Lefford, they were fascinating sights.

The heir to the Golden Tooth would return home near two years later, just in time to witness the beginning of one of the harshest winters in recorded history. Soon enough, the heavy blizzards and snowfall blocked off most roads into and out of the Golden Tooth; goldmining came to a complete halt as the mines deteriorated quickly, and the smallfolk quickly ran out of supplies. The villagers of the Lefford lands soon grew restless and threatened revolt - it was then that Humfrey convinced his father, whose own health was rapidly worsening to some illness or another, to name him Castellan of the Tooth. Lord Addison Lefford, fearing that this would be a cruelly long winter, initially refused his son's pleads to distribute the castle's supplies to their domains' villages. When their Master-at-Arms advised him, however, that men started to desert, the sickly Lord of the Tooth relented.

Humfrey did not wait long - the following day, he rode out with dozens of men and carts loaded with supplies for the winter, visiting village after village. Though at first they were met with distrust and hostility, Humfrey managed to convince them of his good intentions and - backed by the supplies that the smallfolk were desperately looking for - he was eventually hailed as a hero by his own people.

After three long and cruel years, winter would finally make place for spring. Mere weeks after the white raven from the Citadel arrived, Lord Addison Lefford drew his last breath and Lord Humfrey Lefford assumed his seat as the Lord of the Golden Tooth.

That same year Humfrey married Jeyne Marbrand, and later in the year their first child was born; a son, named Lorent. In the following years, three more children would follow: Alyssane, Myranda and Ossifer.

Humfrey Lefford's reign has, for the most part, been prosperous both for House Lefford and its subjects. The ambitious Lord started and finished many construction projects, and has started preliminary work on repairing and maintaining the goldmines in his lands. The Lord of the Tooth, an ever pragmatic man, has sought to keep his House out of conflict that would not directly benefit his House or its lands - not seeing the sense in wasting blood and gold on matters such as honor.

Thus, when the Reach and West rose up in rebellion against House Targaryen in the year 93 AC, Humfrey was more than content to comply with the Lord Lannister's order to simply hold the Tooth. Yet his eldest son and heir - Lorent Lefford, no more than 15 years of age, was of other mind. The boy was particularly skilled at combat, and wanted nothing more than to prove his worth to all the realm. And so he begged his father for leave to join the Western host with a force of Lefford men. Humfrey's refusal was met with anger and growing resentment, until finally Lorent threatened to join the Western army with or without permission. Fearing a loss of face among the Western lords over his inability to control his son, Humfrey begrudgingly placed a force of a few hundred men under Lorent's command to lead into war, threatening that if his son returned a cripple, he would be sent to the Wall.

Yet, despite his threats and clear disapproval, Humfrey could not help but worry for his son's wellbeing in the campaign. And so, in the weeks before his departure, he would spend day and night with his blacksmiths and engineers - the blacksmiths, to design the best possible equipment for the party, and the engineers to begin construction plans on siege weaponry.

Soon enough the war would come to an end, however, and his son and a portion of his men returned to him. Lorent, mostly unscathed - yet the tensions between father and son remained, and threats of the Wall had been issued many time since as a consequence of Lorent's hotheadedness.