James Cassidy

Small Man, Big Desk.

## Overview

James is a former viscount of the Northern Reach, having lost his title as a result of publicly speaking out against the then-newly appointed viceroy Silas Capewell and an incident where a golem apparently in his charge temporarily disabled two senior officers within the NRA; Mer'Ek and Isibéal Brennan.

Currently, he is serving as the steward of Castle Ashenholme though he has been somewhat remiss in his duties as of late and a dismissal would not come as a surprise.

He arrived in Novania in the Harvest Call of 1189, having been present for and in attendance at the wedding of King Alwin Sarethi. Making use of the panic following, he secured a grant for a mine in the Northern Reach in conjunction with Baron Ernst Brenner. He has since raised his home there and created a life for his children outside of Alenthyl, though the safety of any home in the Reach will always be questionable at best.

### Appearance

While not necessarily tall, James is a bull of a man - broad of shoulder and with a thick chest. His eyes are tired, with ever so slight grey rings. Though he walks with a cane, it's not clear whether he legitimately needs it. A swathe of thinning brown hair has tugged away from his head, the rest plastered down. He can usually be seen in a roughspun shirt and heavy coat, though he also owns a two-toned gambeson that he wears when need be.

## Background

**Early Life,**

 James was born to pirates at sea, just off of Granthelian shores. He likes to boast that he got his sea legs before ever learning to walk on land. Of course, a child on the ship was perhaps more than a touch unwelcome, so the ship was turned around he was taken to be fostered ashore, behind the thick walls of Granthelia. Being poor and not possessing the gift, James received no formal education. He just about managed to learn basic mathematics and how to read and write from his uncle Neil, so as he would be able to perform bookkeeping tasks when he was old enough. At the  age of thirteen, James was put to work aboard his father's brig as a powder monkey.

A love of both the sea and of sailing was, of course, ingrained deeply into James. He took to it like a fish to water, taking on each new responsibility given to him with vigour and a lust for life. Reaching the age of twenty-six, he was awarded a captured Alenthylian sloop to captain for himself. James’ first action was to have the hull and sails painted black and the name changed, details and lettering picked out in brass, and having documents forged to ‘officiate’ it for port authorities. ‘The Nighthawk’ became a smuggling ship under James’ captaining, with false panels hiding prime storage locations for illicit goods and the black colouring aiding to mask it on the shores during the dark hours of the night.

> *More to come when I've written it down properly!*
>
>

## Known Associates

### Friends

-Ernst Brenner

-Corvan Vangrave

-Thane'Amaelia

-Ishaan

### Acquaintances

-Edward Valarian

-Tel'Grov

-Liliana Villette

-Liberius Armellio

-Magnus Hendrik

-Gabrielle Tel

### Enemies

-Isibéal Brennan

-Mer'Ek

## Personality

James is exceedingly ambitious and goal-driven, often coming across as gruff or domineering. However, his intentions are good more often than not. Having witnessed Novania's struggles throughout over a decade of living in the country, he is determined to turn things back in his favour. James can often be taken as being quite aggressive, though he's just as capable of a fatherly tenderness - just that he rarely exhibits this ability. He can be best described as the uncle you like, but would rather not spend time with.

### Likes

* James is a big fan of strong drinks.
* Monetary gain is a driving force behind many of James' actions.
* Having grown up in Granthel, tea is a staple of the man's lifestyle.
* James was brought up with a love of the sea in his heart.

### Dislikes

* Governance - James' enmeshment in politics hasn't been a smooth one.
* Coffee - Unsurprisingly, James is a tea person. See above.
* Sand - It's course and rough and irritating and it gets everywhere.
* Disloyalty - James believes that any cause worth investing into is one worth dying for.
* The Gays™ - Despite having raised one, James has a distaste for homosexuals.

### Quirks

* While James makes a fairly convincing act of using his cane to get around, it is not unknown for him to abandon it if in a hurry or in moments of stress.
* James finds clothes-shopping especially difficult - he has difficulty in permitting himself to be too flashy in his outfits but commands too much personal wealth to dress poorly. Furthermore, Granthelian styles are difficult to keep low-key. This amounts to James keeping an exceptionally limited wardrobe.

## Other

### Item Claims

A four-leaf clover dropped by The Chandler in the presence of James and Thane'Amaelia. It is currently kept in a tiny glass phial on a string around James' neck.

A ship in a bottle gifted by Corvan Vangrave on The Second Coming of the Siegfriend. It resides in James' office at Cassidy Manor and features a Granthelian Schooner in fine detail, complete with a splash of water in the bottom and painted clouds on the glass.

A Granthelian Steel Longsword forged at Cassidy Manor. On the underside of the pommel is a kraken sigil, engraved deeply so the design won't fade with time. Accompanied by an aqua blue leather grip, the weapon's hilt is quite extravagant, with contours dispersed onto each side.

### OOC Notes

James Cassidy is played on Erinaco in-game