[hider=Ian Twain]
Name: Ian Twain 

Age: 148 (Apparent age 55)

Gender: Male

Clan: Brujah

Generation:  11th

Occupation: Former philosophy professor. Current 'hidden founder' of a startup company.

Appearance:

[img]https://file.garden/ZKVp9NCxLBkb2R14/Ian.png[/img]

[b]Personality[/b] 
Ian presents himself as a level-headed Kindred, who enjoys discussion and playing the devil's advocate if needed, challenging the view of people around him to 'ensure they truly believe what they believe'. He is also rather affable if approached for advice. Beneath the surface, however, Ian is still a Brujah, one who thrives on convincing people of his worldview and is angered when people are unable to properly defend or articulate what they profess, revealing a shallow understanding of their loudly proclaimed worldview. The louder people shout their beliefs with ignorance, the greater his anger is roused, and woe is to them who roused his anger far enough that his fists are raised. Though Ian is slow to anger and for him, succumbing to the beast is the most disastrous mistake a Kindred can make.

Rather than the punk rebels that are common to Brujah in the modern nights, Ian is a somewhat rare breed who embraces their past as a philosopher king. Though in his case, he sees himself as more of a 'philosopher kingmaker'.

[b]Background[/b]
Born in 1875, amid the Second Industrial Revolution, Ian’s family was one of the people affected by the sweeping mechanization across the country. His father being a blue-collar labourer, the revolution drove his father to unemployment, and Ian’s family into poverty. With little option, Ian fell in bed with the local crime ring, doing odd jobs as his family’s breadwinner. Eventually, after beating up some people, he caught the eyes of the owner of an underground fighting ring, offering Ian a quick way to make money. Ian took the offer and trained in—then fairly new contact sport—boxing, before dominating the ring. Ian uplifted his family with money, investing in various local businesses, before enrolling in the Sage School of Philosophy at Cornell University.

He eventually graduated, and after pursuing further education, became tenured as a philosophy professor at his alma mater in 1905. During his lifetime, Ian Twain was known to his colleagues and students to be a somewhat controversial figure, backing various progressive movements at the time. As a professor, he made a reputation by mentoring several students who eventually became activists, philosophers, or even politicians.

One of Ian’s former students was Angelica Shields. Enrolling in 1907, Angelica was among Ian’s first students and one of the rare women pursuing education at the time, Angelica Shields was a charismatic bright young woman—an almost larger-than-life figure, as noted by her friends and professors. Seeing a bright future in Angelica, Ian had high hopes for his best student. After graduating, Angelica became a prominent activist of First Wave Feminism, before abruptly disappearing after a few years. Ian finally encountered his former student again in the 5th of September 1930. In a political rally protesting the American status quo of the Great Depression that had gone wrong, a dying Ian was turned into Kindred by his former student, Angelica Shields. It was later he found out that the riot broke out due to the secret machination of the local Anarch baron, attempting to discredit the politician behind the rally who was backed by the Camarilla.

For a while, Angelica Shields brought Ian into the Anarch movement as her childe. However, after a few years, Ian became disillusioned with the Anarch movement. He saw the movement as little else but short-sighted rabbles who rebelled for the sake of rebelling with no concrete goal in mind. A movement whose foolish idealism would threaten all of them and the masquerade, forcing a conflict between the mortals and Kindred. In a political rally with similar circumstances to the one in which he was embraced, Ian betrayed the Anarch Baron to his Camarilla rival, seeing it as nothing but a waste of resources with no clear goal that only serves to threaten the masquerade.  Disappointed in her former teacher, Angelica and Ian parted ways on bad terms. At the time, with only three years as a Kindred and unwilling to join the Ivory Tower, Ian was fortunate to be found by Ludwig Strauss and Edwina Adamson.

In recent years, after being the secret founder of a startup called Speechcraft Oratoria, Ian spent his days managing the company from behind the scenes, with the current CEO as his ghoul. Speechcraft Oratoria is a consulting firm that offers services as ghostwriters for speeches and various other rhetorics. Though it had a slow start, as of today, various politicians, CEOs, and socialites count themselves as its client, with Ian secretly handling the high-profile clients.

Though parting with his sire and former student on bad terms, Ian still holds hope that Angelica would abandon the foolishness that is the Anarch movement. In the post-beckoning world of 2023, Ian sees great potential more than ever in the bright and charismatic 10th-generation Kindred that is Angelica. To Ian, Angelica represents the possibility of a new ‘3rd path’ for Kindred.

[img]https://file.garden/ZKVp9NCxLBkb2R14/Sheet1_Ian.png[/img]

[b]Notes[/b]

[b]Influence[/b]
Due to the nature of Speechcraft Oratoria, Ian counts several politicians, CEO, and socialites as his clients. Conferring a position of influence among mortals

[b]Resources[/b]
As a major shareholder and 'hidden founder' of Speechcraft Oratoria, servicing elite clientele, Ian has amassed a decent amount wealth, which he then invests in various businesses.

[b]Retainer[/b]
Alex Boering, the CEO of Speechcraft Oratoria and Ian's ghoul.

[b]Herd[/b]
A trusted group of employees from Speechcraft Oratoria that hope to take over as CEO once Alex stepped down 'in old age'.

[b]Domain[/b]
A high-rise apartment in Manhattan, Financial District. Serves as Ian's personal Haven and safe house.

[b]Flaw[/b]
Probationary Sect Member (Anarch). Due to the circumstances of how he left the Anarch Movement, Ian is rather infamous and detested by those in the movement. There was little lost love from Ian's end.
[/hider]