[hider=Vendican Reinhardt][center][img]http://www.komarckart.com/new_03.jpg[/img] [u][b]Name[/b][/u] Lord Vendican Reinhardt [b][u]Age[/b][/u] 102 [u][b]House Name[/b][/u] House Reinhardt [b]House Sigil[/b] The silhouette of a man standing arms extended, with a crimson droplet of blood in the center of his chest, sometimes simply a crimson droplet of blood on a black backdrop. [b]Family members[/b] Amelia Reinhardt (Mother, deceased) Mortarion Reinhardt (Father, secretly alive, enthralled to Vendican, confined to Castle Reinhardt) Vendican Reinhardt (elder brother, Lord of Castle Reinhardt, seated at the council of the lords of Ferros) [b]Stronghold[/b] [img]http://fc01.deviantart.net/fs71/i/2013/290/5/2/to_the_arena___by_klauspillon-d6qstov.jpg[/img] Castle Reinhardt is a castle high in the mountains of Ferros on the lip of The Cradle, overlooking the Capitol City of Snowhearth. It has a jagged, foreboding appearance, looming eerily over the city beneath. It has been the target of many peasant superstitions, and has many nicknames among the common folk and slaves meant to inspire fear. [b]Standing forces[/b] House Reinhardt has a total of 310 warriors, including the Castle Guard. Fifty of these warriors are Demonblood Thralls to Vendican, making them far more powerful than the average soldier. 20 Of the Thralls are Vendican's personal guard, and five have been hand-picked as his personal retainers. The house also has 50 slaves in it's service, though they are not warriors. [b][u]Homeland[/b][/u] Ferros [b][u]Race[/b][/u] Mage [b][u]Spells[/b][/u] Illusion, Alchemy, Sanguimancy (Blood Magic) [u]Sanguimancy[/u] Sanguimancy is the control over one's own, and other's blood. It is only used by Vendican himself, to his knowledge. As long as Lord Vendican keeps the demonic presence within his own blood satisfied by the blood of others, he has access to the following spell-like abilities, -Blood thrall: By draining the blood from a victim to the point of near-death, and then replacing it with some of his own, Vendican can transform the victim into a loyal servant, who will bend to his every whim. The Thralls of house Reinhardt are famous for being stronger, faster, and more durable than most normal humans, though nobody is sure why, save Vendican. Despite it's benefits, this ability is used sparingly, as it takes it's toll on Vendican, greatly weakening them for twenty-four hours afterward, or until he replenishes his body's reserves of blood. Not only that, but the ritual can be time consuming. Blood Thralls also gain an extended lifespan. -Blood Manipulation: The most obvious use for the school of Sanguimancy, this is similar to the manipulation of water in the Hydromancy school, but instead of water, it allows Vendican to manipulate and control someone's blood (including his own.) This spell can be used to do anything from giving someone a head-rush and knocking them out, to boiling their blood inside their body, causing them intense pain or even death. It can also be used to draw blood out of the body, whether in small amounts or vast, lethal quantities. This is the primary way in which Vendican feeds his Demonblood. The spell can be countered with other schools of magic, particularly branches of Restos. -Blood Transmutation: By combining Sanguimancy with his skill in the Alchemy school, Vendican can change the consistency, density, and shape of blood, usually, he uses this ability to create "Bloodstone" which is a scarlet crystalline substance similar in appearance to Ruby. Though not a very strong material, it is useful for surprise attacks, or projectiles. However, when one's blood is crystallized inside their bodies, the results can be interesting... -Regeneration/healing: Due to his Demonblood "condition" Vendican has a regenerative healing factor. In addition to granting him functional immortality (or at least a vastly extended lifespan,) His heart pumps Demonblood at an accelerated rate, his wounds close far faster than any ordinary man, and he can even regrow severed limbs, if given enough time. The process of healing/regeneration can be further expedited by the consumption of the blood of others, which helps power the Demonblood inside Vendican. The one drawback to this is that the effects of Restos magic are nullified on him, making healing from outside sources impossible. [u][b]Skill/Abilities[/b][/u] -Swordplay: Vendican is well-practiced with a sword, though he will usually only draw it as a last resort. -Diplomacy: Vendican's time spent on the Council of Ferros has taught him a great deal about how to manipulate a situation, and keep tensions from rising. [b][u]Equipment/Items[/b][/u] -Drinker: Drinker is the sword of House Reinhardt, and has been alchemized and enchanted by Vendican to absorb and store blood from those it cuts, to allow Vendican to transfer it into his body through a discreet but sharp decoration in the sword's pommel. -Reinhardt Library: The library in Castle Reinhardt has many tomes, scrolls, and volumes collected over the years regarding a number of subjects from history to magic. [b][u]Weaknesses[/b][/u] -Healing magic: The spells from the school of Restos have an opposite effect on Vendican than they do others, because of his Demonblood. Should someone attempt a healing spell on him, it could cause great pain or injury, and if somebody powerful enough should attempt an exorsism, his Demonblood would be forcefully expelled from his body, which would be quite fatal (and messy.) -Strange magical presence: Due to his condition, Vendican [i]feels[/i] wrong to skilled mages, particularly those well-versed in Demonology or Purification. Usually, it's only an off-putting feeling, but if the mage is knowledgeable enough, they may see him for what he is. Though, since he is quite unique in his condition, they would most-likely only be confused by it. Regardless, magically-inclined people feel a wrongness about him, and usually remain on-edge and untrusting when in close proximity. [b][u]Biography[/b][/u] [b]A sordid past, A mistrusted House[/b] Long ago, at house Reinhardt's prime, a young Mortarion Reinhardt was accused of studying demonology and performing devil-worship. The Ferrosian court was to put him on trial, and the evidence against him seemed staggering. However, the lords who had accused him mysteriously vanished, the evidence disappearing along with them. The trial was still held, but those who would pass judgement, out of fear, absolved him of his charges. Although the young patron was freed from his possibly damning fate, House Reinhardt fell into poor standing among the courts, and gradually, alliances were lost. The once-great house began to wither. Mortarion managed to secure himself a bride from another noble house, though they were unwilling at first. Then, he sired his first son, Vendican, with a terrible and dark plan in mind. [b]Early life[/b] Born a century ago to the decaying House Reinhardt, Vendican was groomed from an early age to lead the dying house back to it's former glory. His mother taught him history, and the ways of manipulation and politics, while his father trained him in magic and swordplay, as well as tactics, and the intricacies of ruling. By the time he was sixteen, Vendican had taken up a position on the council of Ferros as the young new patron of his house, and had solidified new partnerships for house Reinhardt, beginning the slow march to recovery. By Vendican's eighteenth year, House Reinhardt's name had recovered, and Vendican was a respected presence at the Ferrosian court. Castle Reinhardt was restored and regularly maintenanced on Vendican's orders, though the peasantry of the city below the castle still whispered foul rumours about the Reinhardt family. Things were going well for the young Lord Vendican. His influence was growing, and his house was restored, and free of any vile magics that they had been accused of before. At least, that's what he assumed. He would be proven wrong on his twenty-second birthday. [b]The Ritual[/b] After returning from a visit to Stonehearth, Vendican was knocked unconscious upon entry into his study. That night, he awoke in a dark, forgotten cellar of the castle. He was naked, and strapped lying face-up to a stone table, with unfamiliar markings drawn in a circle around him. He could recognize the markings as magical in origin, but could not even begin to understand them. As his senses attuned to his surroundings, he realized he was not alone as he heard the whimpering of his mother coming from somewhere in the room. Initially, he had assumed that they were under attack from a rival house, but the truth was far more sinister. After a few moments of struggling with his bonds to no avail, the door to the cellar opened. Vendican's mother screamed, recognizing the shape in the doorway. Vendican recognized it too, though he was confused as to his mother's reaction. Mortarion Reinhardt, Vendican's father, and patron to house Reinhardt entered the room and shut the door. Vendican assumed at first that his father had come to rescue them, but as he saw the look on his father's face, the grim truth of the situation hit him. While squirming against his restraints and cursing his father for whatever he was about to do, he watched in horror as his father strode into the shadows, drawing a large dagger from it's sheathe, and strode back out of the shadows with Vendican's mother in the other hand, the dagger pressed against her throat. Vendican began to realize what it all meant, the strange markings, the dagger, the look on his father's face. His father had been guilty all those years ago, before his birth. His father had studied demonology, and was about to kill his mother as a sacrifice to some hell spawn. Vendican tried to cast a spell, but his magic had been sealed by whatever markings were traced around him. He could only struggle and scream as his father cut his mother's throat, draining the blood into a pitcher. Then, his father took the dagger to him, opening several veins in his arms, and the artery in his neck. His father explained that it was to ease the transition, but Vendican didn't understand, his mind clouded by fear, pain, and blood loss. As his lifeblood began to leave him, he felt his soul leaving his body, beginning it's long, dismal stride through the river...but it wasn't over yet. Mortarion, speaking a vile-sounding spell, poured his mother's blood into a nearby fire he had started. Instead of having the expected result, the fire was given form by the blood. A horrifying demon of boiling blood and flame and smoke now stood in the room, but the ritual was still not complete. Mortarion bound the demon with another spell, and through with a foul spell of his own concoction, began to alchemize the demon into the pool of blood that was leaking out of Vendican. Vendican lost consciousness at this point, and it could be said that he never regained it. What was Vendican died in the ritual that night, but something else was reborn. [b]New Blood[/b] Vendican wasn't seen at court for several weeks. As he awoke to his new powers, he began to realize that he was neither Vendican, nor the demon, but something altogether new. He harbored no ill-feelings toward his father, despite the foul ritual, and the murder of his mother. Indeed, he felt a strange detachment from emotions in general. This was likely due to the part of his soul that escaped into the river Styx during the ritual, but it didn't really matter to Vendican at this point. Now he had the power to spread his influence not just among the court of Ferros, but to the entire world. Slowly but surely, he began his long, patient movement through time, beginning by learning the limits of his new abilities. He used his newfound powers to enthrall his father, Mortarion, and then locked him away in the deepest cellar of the castle. He didn't plan on letting his father manipulate him. For many years, he developed the power and prestige of his house, and began manipulating the Ferrosian court. This went undisturbed until Malfear's first coming, when Ferros was forced to fight the Necromancer alone. Vendican submitted his forces to the Ferrosian army, as well as giving over a vast sum of gold to the king of Ferros in order to buy the help of the kingdom of Kain. Vendican himself marched into battle with his men, serving as one of the Ferrosian generals, hoping to learn something about Malfear's strange magic. He felt a kinship with Malfear, despite having never met the mage. As the only other mage he knew to have developed a new school of magic, he wondered what he could learn from the Necromancer. However, Malfear was defeated and pronounced dead by one of the other generals, much to the disappointment of Vendican. Since the Necromancr's war, Vendican has been continuing his life in Ferros, ruling over Castle Reinhardt. He is a highly influential figure in the court, and the secret of the origin of his Blood Magic is kept closely guarded. Nobody but his father, and the occasional victim he takes from Stonehearth to satisfy his Demonblood, ever know his secret. There have been those who have asked questions over the years about things like his longevity, and those people tend to disappear mysteriously. For twenty-five years he has been content in this existence. However, rumors of Malfear's survival spread, and Vendican, as much as anyone, wants to know if these rumors are true, though his reasoning is far different than anyone else's. [/center][/hider] Just the bare bones of Vendican's history in the biography. Intend to flesh it out a bit more.