[hider=Houndmaster Hoyt]
[b]Name / Sex / Age[/b]
Hoyt Alauntborne / Obnoxiously Male / 42

[b]APPEARANCE[/b]

A mastiff of a man half hidden behind an unkempt crop of curly blonde hair, the ever-present blush of anger coloring his pale, sweaty features. Objectively ugly the unfettered intensity of Hoyt's wild eyes keep most observers at arm's length, smoldering flecks of green set beneath a meaty brow. He stinks of hounds and hard labor and his beard is an untrimmed reminder of meals past.


[b]PERSONALITY[/b]
Hoyt has never much cared for the company of others--an attitude most have been all to happy to indulge--fonder of the family dog than his siblings. Having quickly grown too large for his father to discipline he had run of his household at an early age, never adopting the milder temperament society expects. As such he has grown into a coarse and plain-speaking man ruled by shallow passions and prone to violent tantrums, ready and willing to raise a hand to any perceived slight or insult.

Misogynistic and brash he hates lying and being lied to, holding the 'weaker sex' and effeminate men in low regard for an assumed duplicitous nature; honesty chief among his few virtues. Quick to brag and point out others failings he is never the less a hard worker and keen to do something himself if of the mind he can do it better, though likewise reluctant to admit another more skilled than himself. To date he has several sons and daughters (the fruit of a few roadside trysts with unwilling women) though has never been much of a father to the ones he knows of. Hoyt beat his eldest son to death over an argument he pretends to scarcely remember.

Hoyt believes in magic and the devil.

[b]BACKGROUND[/b]
From the cradle on up Hoyt was a handful in the most literal sense, six feet at fourteen and with no mind to share he quite quickly ate his family out of house and home, starving two of his three sisters to death in the process. Eventually hunger forced the lad to forage for himself, much of his youth spent away from the hovel in which he was raised. Well aware his kin were happy for any hiatus he gave them a young Hoyt grew to hate them for it, refusing to adopt any of the blame himself. For many years he hunted the surrounding lands with the family hound at his heels, following its subtle cues as the basics of subsistence came with time. Eventually while tracking an elk he stalked clear across to the nearest hamlet and simply never returned; his folks just as like to think him dead and be better for it.

Stotely as he came to know it offered plenty of opportunities for a man of Hoyt's stature, even if the town was sick of him near as soon as he arrived. Here he hunted, cooked and on occasion outright robbed his way to a more leisurely lifestyle, gaining a layer of fat and foul reputation he'd never be rid of. Though it started innocently enough with adopting the odd stray or wild dog nosing about town Hoyt eventually began outright stealing hounds from the more well to do peasantry, earning the attention of a local lord. As one might imagine Hoyt was pilloried and the animals confiscated, though it came as some surprise he was forcibly-consigned as the court fewterer afterwards. As luck would have it one of the 'strays' he'd adopted was the lord's own, an unruly and aggressive creature that had resisted the best efforts of the handler he was to replace.

From then to now the years were relatively uneventful, Hoyt having been a mostly loyal member of the Lord's retinue and source of amusement for the sheltered bluebloods, his size and 'wild ways' an enduring novelty.

[b]MOTIVATION[/b]
Hoyt was volunteered by the house of Greystroke to which he owes his fielty, under the not-so-veiled threat that his beloved hounds would surely die of 'loneliness' should he or the expedition fail to return. He is to provide evidence to the outlandish claims of an eastern paradise or disprove them, though has been assigned mostly to ensure the others don't end up lost or starving to death in the wastes. Hale as he is it can be safely assumed he has orders to murder any ambitious persons or parties that might seek to jeopardize the success of this endeavor.

[b]EQUIPMENT[/b]
[u]*Large club -[/u] A sturdy length of knobbed hardwood used mainly for separating rowdy dogs. It is scored by faded teeth marks and has enough heft that it can't be redirected mid-swing. A long length of braided leather is threaded through the base to keep it tied to the wielder's wrist when in use or retrieve it after being thrown.

[u]*Messer -[/u] A long hewing knife intended for chopping wood and general forestry but is Hoyt's preferred utensil in any task where it might make due. Used in everything from cooking and cleaning animals to picking his teeth. Smells strongly of the boot he sticks it in.

[u]*Garm, Bran and Soter - [/u]A trio of his Lord's favored hounds. These heavyset animals are well suited for tracking and downing large game but require a stern and experienced hand to keep them from the throats of the party. Very aggressive.

[u]*Thick Hide Armor -[/u] A secure coat of treated animal hide that can be peeled off in layers Hoyt's armor can be pressed into service as a blanket or shelter when the need arises and in general holds up better against blunt trauma and tears than it would against piercing weapons. Mostly waterproof.

[u]*Odds and Ends -[/u] Being experienced in living outside the comforts of a hearth and homestead it can safely be assumed Hoyt has the various items and small tools for cooking, hiking and crafting shelter on his person. Short of listing every waterskin, piton or piece of flint let it simply be said he prepared adequately for harsh terrain and inexperienced company.


[b]TRAITS[/b]

[color=8dc73f]Hardy 1
Thick-Skinned 1
Tall 1
Imposing 1
Grappler 1
Basic Weapons 1
Ranged Weapons 2
Light Armor 1
Woodsman 1
Hunter 1
Trapper 2
Animal Whisperer 2
Chef 1
Master Fewterer 5[/color]
[b]21[/b]

*******

[color=ed1c24]Base 7
Ugly 1
Clumsy 1
Loud 1
Slow 2
Dumb 2
Abrasive 1
Hot-Headed 2
Reckless 3
Heavy Eater 1
[/color]
[b]-21[/b]

[/hider]