[hider=Character Sheet] [b]Name:[/b] Pykes [b]Age[/b] 19 [b]Sex:[/b] Male [b]Nationality/Homeland:[/b] Blackwater, of the Thousand Kingdoms. (Modern day Wisconsin, parts of Lacrosse, Monroe, and Jackson Counties.) [b]Appearance:[/b] Pykes stands 5'7", he is thin and lean, looking underfed and much less bulky compared to most from Blackwater. He has wild reddish/brown hair shaved on both sides and patches of ginger facial hair. His eyes are piecrcing blue/green, and his tan skin is dotted with tattoos. These include 14 cross tattoos on his left arm, three black ring tattoos around his right bicep, a fox's head tattoo on his left shoulder, and various symbols on his legs/back. [b]Equipment:[/b] -Black leather head, chest, leg, and arm armor -Steel spear -Brown scarf -Green/black outfit under armor. (Armor, scarf, and outfit are adorned with the [url=http://www.mccoy.army.mil/ReadingRoom/Newspaper/realmccoy/07112008/images/Triad_black_1_200x.JPG]sigil of Blackwater[/url].) [b]Skills:[/b] --[b]Common:[/b] - Polearm combat --The spear is the traditional weapon of Blackwater, all soldiers are raised with one in hand. - Running speed --Pykes has always been faster than most, but when in a thick forest, jumping over and around roots, trees, and rocks is when he is the fastest. - Stealth --Being an outsider in his own culture and a mute has made Pykes very good at being unnoticed. He does not make much noise and only moves when necessary. - Herbology --Pykes loves plants, and despite having no formal training in herbology, he has come to know much about them through personal experimentation. He knows of secrets hidden within nature that no one else notices. - Hand-to-Hand --Come with the military lifestyle, at the loss of your weapon you must fight in a more personal fashion. - Camouflage --Pykes can disappear in the wildlife, his love of plants and his reclusive nature help him to remain hidden. Pykes will hide and watch someone before making any move, good or bad. - Military doctrine --The common citizen of Blackwater must obey a strict code system and adhere to a structured society, the soldiers of this nation are even more regimented. Pykes knows how armies work and operate. --[b]Uncommon:[/b] - [u]Archery[/u] --Considered a coward's weapon by the people of Blackwater, archers are deemed a necessary evil. Despite training being minimal, Pykes showed himself to be a natural with the bow. The equipment his people use is of poor make and condition, if given a good bow, Pykes could truly prove himself. - [u]Animal expertise (taming/identification)[/u] --Pykes enjoys the company of animals more than people, be it the Whitetails and Rabbits he hunts to the dogs he hunts with. He has a way with animals, they seem to be calm whenever he is near them. Pykes also knows how these beasts behave and think, as well as their uses. - [u]Survival*[/u] --Were it not for his loyalty to Balcwater, Pykes would disappear into the night and live on his own. He knows how to live on his own and how to carve his own existence in the wildlife, far from the rest of the world. - [u]Orientation[/u] --With or without a map, Pykes always seems to be able to get to where he wants to go. He is able to recognize areas by their features, even when he hasn't been there previously. [b]Personality:[/b] Pykes is a mute, he has never been known to speak. What is known about his personality is assumed by the people around him as a gentle, calm, and non-combative person (compared to most from Blackwater at least). That being said; he is entirely obedient and loyal to his people and only remains with Blackwater due to that sense of loyalty. He views other cultures with curiosity, but also caution, and he will never go out of his way to meet someone. Wherever Pykes is, you get the feeling that he would rather be somewhere else. [b]History:[/b] Pykes is a product of Blackwater, he grew up in the military without knowing his parents (as is custom). At the age of 15 he was in a hunting party that was tracking down a caravan from the Westerlands. They set an ambush but the few raiders soon found that the convoy had hired very well equipped mercenaries and all raiders were killed except Pykes who ran off into the woods. That night, the caravan made camp atop a hill known as: Pykes Peak, with a young boy following them quietly. Over the next week, the caravaneers were haunted by Pykes who had effectively trapped them on the hill with scare tactics, traps, and late night raids, picking the mercenaries off one by one. Eventually, another Blackwater raiding party came to investigate smoke and found Pykes sitting in the middle of the mercenary camp with a burning pile of bodies and a massive stash of loot. Pykes name was earned during a coming-of-age ceremony shortly after, but his true parents never showed themselves. Since then, Pykes has been mostly involved in scouting, hunting, and tracking operations with little actual combat experience due to his thin stature. Less than 5 months ago, High Counciler Ells chose Pykes for his personal guard, a collection of the most unusual but effective soldiers in Blackwater. Pykes is one of 6 guards accompanying Councilor Ells to the Royal wedding. [/hider] [hider=Blackwater]A city was once constructed along the Eastern shores of the Great River (Mississippi), a place of peace and trade, acting as the gateway to the East for Westerland travelers and a network of trade for those of the Free lands and the Thousand Kingdoms. As the city grew, so too did their influence on the land. They pushed local tribes out of their homelands and expanded greatly growing a great nation, swatting the native away with their strong walls and their mercenary armies. A collection of 5 displaced tribes put away their differences and disputes and held a conference on the shores of the Blackwater river. The 5 tribes chose to join their forces and strike at the city and it's stolen lands. For the next 35 years, the Blackwater alliance harassed the city, slowly drawing their people back to the high city walls.They sent sellsword companies to end the assaults and the raids, but the natives always overcame. The longer this went on, the more tribes flocked to the Blackwater alliance, all eager to take down the mighty city. Eventually the fight came to the city walls, and the people there found themselves besieged. The war came to a standstill until the day a Blackwater hunting party came upon a strange metal in the woods. This curiosity led to a large-scale excavation of the area, discovering the ruins of Fort. McCoy and it's store of old military vehicles. The armor made from these vehicles was akin to the knights of the East, but it was lighter and far more durable than iron or steel. Using this new weapon, a legion of armored warriors broke upon the gates of the city and it finally fell. After months of celebration and looting, it looked as if things were to revert to normal and the tribes would fragment and fight eachother once again. The quick thinking of an young chieftain led to the attention of the Blackwater tribe being turned to the East, to the various communities that once traded with the great city and the other nations hidden among the hills and planes. As the alliance focused on the conquest, this young leader was able to dissolve old tribal traditions and leaders through hidden alliances and key assassinations, eventually forming all leadership under a unified council of wise men. The conquest turned South, the Blackwater Alliance now a horde of well-equipped savage fighters. The large city-sates along the shores of the Great River were not weak, but they fell one-by-one to the alliance. As the years passed, tales of destruction reached all across the thousand Kingdoms, fear of this brutal army led to an ironic twist of fate as multiple nations pooled together their forces to stop this menace. The fighting was brutal, more blood was spilled in these clashes than any of the burned cities, but the Blackwater lines eventually gave in, and a slow, gruesome retreat back North was initiated. The other kingdoms perused, but found that a last line of defense had been constructed around the area where the alliance was formed all those years ago. The fighting eventually settled down, the chieften who had united all tribes under one flag and identity had died off, and a truce was formed with the other nations. This was the first time that the people of the Thousand Kingdoms had to unite against a threat, it would not be the last. However, ever since this treaty was made all those years ago, the proud Blackwater army would come to the aid of any Kingdom in danger, reason enough for most to stay away. Blackwater would eventually form into a productive nation, keeping a tight grasp on their lands and moving any aggression across the river to the Free Lands. Their numbers are nothing of what they once were, but they still retain a warrior culture and are still regarded as some of the most brutal fighters in the Kingdoms. However, there is still a pride in the Blackwater people, they still think that they could take the entire Midwest if they were to assemble once again, but they are satisfied acting as peacekeepers and protectors for now. Military training begins at a young age and every segment of life in Blackwater is controlled by the High Council, leaving a regimented society. Children are taken from their mothers shortly after birth and raised by the army. You are not given a name, you earn it through an act or behavior. Earning a name is the way a child becomes an adult, and this is when the adults are finally able to introduce themselves to their children.[/hider]