Lord Name: Platinum Elegance Stelcrest
School Name: The Emerald Fawn
School History: Once upon a time, there was a demon named Gore. A corpulent and repulsive beast, it made a name for itself in battle driving unnaturally skilled child soldiers before it; the only thing more repugnant than its methods was its success. The Stelcrests of old met in battle with this fiend and its pawns many times, famously rescuing children from demonic bondage in honor duels on more than one occasion... and less famously losing on several more. The Charhand Legion, as the beast's followers were known, went on to become both infamous and successful, shifting to mercenary work and gladiatorial combat as war in the region dried up, and are referenced even today in songs, plays, military companies, gladiatorial schools, and other places where romanticized references to demonic child legionnaires might be held in high regard.
No one knows what became of the demon Gore himself; many stories of his grisly and painful demise existed as wishful thinking well before his most recent sightings, and the Charhand Legion and its successors were known to have operated in various forms without his direct influence for quite some time. In her quest for a purpose, however, Platinum did discover an interesting theory left behind by one of her ancestors- that around the same time the demon disappeared, an infernal "noble" house named The Butchered Stag had arisen in the foulest pits of hell. While said ancestor had no guesses as to the meaning behind the house's name nor any expertise in the finer points of demonic politics, he did note that, as amongst humans, exemplary service and great achievement often resulted in exalted station for such cretins, and remained personally convinced that his crimes in the mortal plane had granted him power and influence in an infernal one.
Platinum, of course, had even less idea than her predecessor as to the veracity of this idea, but it made for an elegant and poetic connection, the kind she could impress the refined and cultured with by explaining. She therefore decided to found her school as "The Emerald Fawn," a rival and bulwark against that brutish infernal house of old... even if only in plays and courtly gossip.
Personal History: Born the eldest daughter of a noble house, Platinum was content to wallow in luxury and courtly activities, flawlessly playing the role of useless but well-connected noble. This was in sharp contrast to her younger brother, who at a young age became obsessed with swordfights and knighthood. This would have been all well and good, save that he took it far too far, intending to actually fight things instead of looking inspiring and letting others fight for him.
Unfortunately, he eventually made good on his ambitions and ran off to stab things in a hole. Fortunately or even more unfortunately, he turned out to be rather good at it, bringing wealth, honor, and fame to himself and his House that far outstripped anything Platinum could match by having a lot of noble heir friends. The prodigy and paragon of her family suddenly found herself second-rate and lazy-looking while her idiot brother revived the image of the valiant Stelcrests of old, and not surprisingly her other siblings began making moves to follow in his footsteps rather than hers.
Faced with this existential crisis, Platinum briefly considered doing actual work before abandoning that as a fool's errand. She knew she wasn't really a fighter or worker or currently even much of a leader, but she also knew full well that she did have a lot of valuable skills- she just needed to put them to use. Maybe something about manipulating or inspiring people, handling money or logistics, maybe even getting other people to hit things with sticks for her in a pinch...
And as it so happened, not long after this decision came her and her friends' weekly gladiatorial outing, where Platinum prided herself on her ability to pick winners...
Author
Topic: Gladiators of Nevendaar – High Fantasy Gladiatorial Management Game - Week 5 (Read 14635 times)