DACE ILENTUS
PHYSICALITY
"Pray tell me, what image does the word ‘Ilentus’ evoke?"
Description
While the rest of the Ilentus are resigned to locks of a color in between brown and raven, Dace takes after his mother. His blond tresses are an unkempt mess working in his favor with the maidens. After unhorsing a competitor, his gaze may spread across the crowd as he cracks a grin revealing his pearly whites. Add to that a sly and simple wink, and suddenly the observing women start to faint or fan themselves as though they are taken to a distant dream. His deep set and serious brown eyes were inherited from his mother as well. They speak of a boy who became a man, and would never look back. His mother's kin was also known for their cheekbones, of which he was fortunate enough to inherit.
His father gave him his jawline and firm forehead, marks of an assiduous man. The marks did not lie, for he put in years of training as a knight, which has given him robust muscles. Taut muscles fit for hard labor, but not that of servants or common folk, rather war and martial duties. His body is not without a few scars earned from jousts. However, he has none from any real combat. His height is neither imposing compared to most men nor supporting of an inferiority complex. Similar to the warm southlands, his complexion sees much sun, which casts upon his skin a thin coat of princely bronze from time to time.
In breast plate or cuirass, Dace seems every bit impressive and knightly. He has looked the part since adolescence, but he still needs to play and be the part. When not within his suit of marred and dirtied armor, he is draped within the finest and cleanest linen robes and tunics or leather doublets available in Piroa. Due to the changing circumstances, he may find himself more often in robes than in metal. Even without armor, he can still make the ladies swoon. Some say that when he dances, he moves with an elf-like grace, but those words never came from an elf. When he walks, he walks the way all high born walk, with pride and honor carried upon his brow.
Hair: Dusty Blond to Blond
Facial Hair: A stubble
Eyes: Brown
Build: Athletic build
Skin Tone: A light tan complexion by days out in the sun where he feels he belongs, not holed up within the dark confines of a keep.
Height: 6’1
Weight: 167 lbs.
Voice:A warm crooning baritone that weighs on the deeper end. As he says, he could have been a bard.
Handed: Right
Body Markings: None
Scar Tissue: One prominent scar is at the end of his left clavicle, while the other is just below his left pectoral muscle. Both were the result of competing against other knights that managed to pierce his armor using sharpened lances, illegal by tournament rules.
Unique Body Features: None
Name
Dace Ilentus (DAY-ce ILL-Entus)
Nicknames and Titles
Pretty Boy Knight, He Who Smiles And Does Nothing More, The Gallant Fool, Heir of House Ilentus of Piroa, Scion of Piroa, Son of Reynald Ilentus, Sir, the Young Hawk
Race
Human
Visual Age
Mid to late 20s
Factual Age
25
Gender
Male
Sexual Orientation
Heterosexual
Mage Ranking
Noram, the Mundane
Class
Knight
MENTALITY
"Had I not been born an Ilentus, I could have been a bard or a dancer.
Yet, here I am, a knight and a noble. Not the boy...that I once was."
Yet, here I am, a knight and a noble. Not the boy...that I once was."
Personality
As a knight, he speaks with manners and the courts see him as a man of civility and maturity. He seems quiet and contemplative, but this is only because he tries to keep his mouth close lest he speak an ill word that another noble catches wind of. This is quite contrary to the way he displays himself at tourneys, where he lets go of inhibitions allowing his more rambunctious and youthful side to take control of the crowd. He often contemplates his pleasure in tournaments. Perhaps it is the thrill of feeling alive with the fear of death unrealized. When the crowd cheers, his ego has been fed. The spring of vitality and impulse governs the youth. However, this is mitigated as he grows older and compares the world for what it truly is to what he thought it was.
The servants, who tend to him personally, affably know him as a non-morning person. Dace's reasoning is that some knights do not need to bathe themselves when they have servants to do it for them. Time is better spent honing one's skills for a true test of valor or perhaps a maiden of significant love and beauty. His father tells him that those are mere stories, nothing more, and that he should grow up. When he feels his honor has been questioned, his sword will be raised for a duel. Whether or not he could defeat the person who put his honor at stake is but another question.
Those who observe him will recognize that his eyes have a certain growing quality of gravity and forcefulness to them, overtaking the leisurely luster of youth they once had. His mind was once wandering and preoccupied with the fantastical through his adolescent years, now it is somewhat more focused and guided. He understands that if he is to succeed his father and inherit his father's rank and station then he will have to work harder at curbing the traits that could become the dagger in his back.
Quirks
- Cutting down dandelions because they make him sneeze
- The occasional swear at inanimate objects
- Climbing tall trees, but not in armor
- Singing before jousts or melees
Moral Alignment
Neutral Good/Neutral
Virtue/Creed
“Family First”
Motivation
- While his father pressures him to become a man worthy of leading House Ilentus, a personal desire to become what he believes to be a true knight may conflict with that.
Fears
- That he is already past the point of becoming a true knight
- Losing his ability to fight
- Mermaids
- Magic
Likes
Tournaments – The Jousting and Melee, and Winning Them
Humor
A very nice suit of Armor
Song, Dance, and Feasts
Adventure and Exoticism
Dislikes
An injury to his pride or ego – an umbrella of many things
Having gone a day without sword or spear play
Mermaids – although this is more grounded in story, not any real sour encounter
Cheaters – in tournaments, but his dislike translates outward
Witches - He has a wild imagination sometimes
Strengths
Combat Skills
Educated
Inheritor
Weaknesses
Politics and Courtly Intrigue
Proud
Impulsive
Tactless, some of the time if he ever opens his mouth
Is your character literate? In what languages?
He is proficient in proper and common, but nothing else beyond.
MARTIAL PROWESS
"Men say that I speak better with a lance. Well. Go on then. Bring me a lance and I shall ‘converse’ unto you."
Rating System
[Perfect] - [Excellent] - [Good] - [Above Average] - [Average] - [Below Average] - [Poor] - [Very Poor]
[Perfect] - [Excellent] - [Good] - [Above Average] - [Average] - [Below Average] - [Poor] - [Very Poor]
Combativeness
Hand-to-Hand Combat – [Below Average]
Drawing from fights in childhood, he can fling his fists and use them if he is without sword or lance. Yet a knight who fights with his fists is no more a knight than a barbarian.
Melee Combat – [Good]
He excels in melee combat, but only with his weapons of choice. The sword, lance, and morningstar are the choice weapons of a knight. Some say his excellence with the lance is unrivaled, at least in tournaments. He has yet to see combat that will truly test his skill with spear or lance. Even though he is not the best swordsman in the land, he is adept and swords are much less cumbersome than lances or spears.
Ranged Combat - [Very Poor]
He was taught archery lessons once, but a knight never fights from afar. Dace abhors the use of bow and arrows himself, but he understands their necessity in the grander schemes of war.
Magic Combat – [Very Poor]
Mundane, there was a time when he thought he had some magic. A mage came along one day and said that there was not one ounce of it within the boy, but that he should not be bothered by the arcane arts. Dace thought it was best to trust the counsel of a mage on matters of magic.
Mounted Combat – [Excellent]
A knight without a horse is just a man-at-arms, which is just a peasant. Years of tournaments, practice, and the occasional skirmish has strengthened his ability as a rider in battle. Though he may be excellent on a steed, he has never ridden on any other mount. Gryphons, direwolves, wargs, and the like may require some time for him to tame.
Racial Abilities
Adaptability - [Average]
The only time that this trait has ever manifested itself within him is when he is combat. He may not be a tactical genius, but he is clever to some degree. The days of knights rigidly adhering to their code have long passed. He learned to be a knight and soldier. Now he must learn to be a noble. Adaptability is about learning and applying.
Shrewdness and Cunning - [Average]
The knight’s code was his first form of training. At times it is hard to reconcile the teachings of knighthood with his father's lessons. Honor and chivalry were imprinted at an early and naive age. He has since grown out of that. He is aware that even if there are rules at tournaments, there will still be cheaters. Likewise, at courts where there are no rules at all, words are more dangerous than swords. Sometimes, it is better to say nothing if one wants to keep his head.
Natural Talents
Dancer’s Feet - [Good]
His armor may not be the thickest, but that is for good reason. He uses his little known talent of being able to dance to blindside many a competitor in tournament melees. His balance and coordination were honed with horseback riding at a young age. If he was to be a proper noble, then he needed to learn to dance. Any knight who knows how to dance and win tournaments looks favorable in the eyes of a possible suitor.
Endurance - [Excellent]
By human standards, some say he was blessed with a body forged by the gods, but that is just the bard chirping away. The rigorous training and heavy armor are what sculpted his muscles. He has endured many a lance thrust, which may seem glamorous and worthy of a song. Truthfully, it is a grueling ordeal, especially in tournaments when knights wish to uphold their honor by having at least gone for a second joust per bout. Within the first ten seconds of receiving the blow, a knight's heart briefly stops while he continues to ride on his horse or while he is pushed from his saddle. Dace has been unhorsed many times before he started winning, and falling to the ground in armor takes a toll on the body.
Equestrian - [Good]
Dace learned to ride ponies around the age of seven as part of his duties as a page. By the time he became a squire at thirteen, he was expected to participate in jousts and ride along with Sir Selmont to events such as hunts and tourneys. Dace may lead a line of riders with their banners and lances at the ready to trample or pierce the enemy line.
Class Skills
Education and Training - [Good]
Being able to read and write works very well especially if one was required to send a letter to the right lord for the right reasons. Had he been born a commoner, his abilities with sword or lance might have suffered, and his intelligence worthy of mockery. He was fortunate enough to be born into nobility, and his father did everything in his power to ensure that Dace received the proper education that so many other children of nobility had.
Leadership and Command - [Above Average]
A knight is a leader of men, and Dace Ilentus is no different. He is esteemed in the eyes of men who get the chance to serve under him for they know they are in the presence of a capable leader. At times when all strategy fails, a single knight astride a horse is all that is needed to raise morale and perhaps turn the tide. Whether that is the stuff of ballads or of actual battles, only few know.
Persuasion - [Average]
Keeps and castles are nice places to look at, but the deals and treachery within are another story entirely. Sir Dace may be a knight, but he is beginning to learn the ways of politics. After all, friends are gained through some manner of persuasion.
Political Power - [Average]
To be the scion of House Ilentus means to be the inheritor of the titles and lands that come from being Reynald Ilentus’s first born son. His inheritance includes a sizable tract of land known as the Peninsula of Tocay upon which the largest city is Piroa with a population of just under half a million.
Furthermore, House Ilentus holds a sizable retinue on land and at sea that can be mustered and fielded for battle. This is coupled with the support of other houses through marriage, from his mother’s House Culimi, to his aunt’s House Wyndham. Not to mention that Dace is an eligible bachelor since he does not have a choice as to who he gets to marry, that privilege of choice belongs to his father.
EQUIPMENT
"My sword, my shield, and my lance are always kept clean. They will remain so until the day that I am no longer able to draw breath."
Items
Coin Pouch - He just keeps one for the sake of appearances. With thieves ever present, the best ploy is to leave the coins spread between servants.
Weapons
Weapon Type: Longsword
Quantity: Two
Material: Steel
Length: Around 101 cm/Around three feet and a third
Weight: A little under than three lbs.
Weapon Description/Info: Not any particular swords with great tales or myths attached to them. Both have handles wrapped in black leather.
Weapon Type: Lance
Quantity: One
Material: Steel
Length: Around 305 cm/ten feet
Weight: A little over four lbs.
Weapon Description/Info: A plain lance with the house motto engraved on the handle like so many others.
Clothing/Armor
Good coin and a good smith can forge the best of armor, mail, breast plates, greaves, gauntlets, vambraces, and helmets. The additional advantage is the appearance of noble armor, embellished with house symbols, can lend an aura of confidence to the wearer and allies, and intimidation to their foes. Dace has rarely ever had to use his full set of armor with a lime-plumed helm. At tournaments, he wears a different suit that is much lighter and more flexible made for jousting. Armor may protect him from some of the sharpest swords, but it will never protect him from even the dullest of words.
BACKGROUND
"Legacy. Built on the backs of forefathers. For descendants to either destroy within a single night, or refine across generations."
Group Affiliation
House Ilentus, The Nobility of Dorelith, The Messiah Queen (In a sense)
Marital Status
Single, Never Married
Relatives
Lord Reynald Ilentus – Father (Alive)
Lady Gemma Ilentus née Culimi - Mother (Deceased)
Lord Foirise Ilentus – Uncle (Alive)
Lady Orinia Ilentus née Wyndham – Aunt (Alive)
Yohn Ilentus – Cousin (Alive)
Elaena Ilentus - Cousin (Alive)
Houses Culimi and Wyndham
Origin
The union of Reynald and Gemma
Social Rank
Nobility
Occupation
Knight/Heir
Bio/History
The story of the man or boy (depending on whom one asks) named Dace Ilentus began a generation before. Reynald and Foirise Ilentus were the sons of Lord Averent Ilentus of the Kingdom of Ausfell. Lord Averent taught his sons a single rule. To get ahead in the world, one must do anything and everything. So when Lord Averent went on to lead an alliance of nobility in open rebellion, his sons joined him as captains and generals of his host. Not a second thought crept into their mind as to how it would all conclude.
Many great knights and warriors throughout the realm flocked to both sides and partook in the bloody and glorious struggle. There was plenty of both, bards of two to three generations downward would have no need to compose of their own lyrics. The nobles' initial string of victories was short lived as loyalist armies eventually checked their advances. Aid poured in from the neighboring realm of Citha. By crushing the rebellion in Ausfell, Citha would be discouraging any attempts to ferment rebellion among its own nobility. Though there were many points upon which the war could have been decided, and many lives could have been spared, that never came to pass. The war devolved into a protracted and bloody struggle until its destined conclusion.
The nobles were brought before the king and queen in stockades and fetid tunics. The king delivered his justice by offering a sword to Reynald and ordering him to pay for their father's sins. In that moment, the eldest son remembered what his father had taught him so many years ago. In that moment, there was no other thought. Reynald took the offered sword, and, rather than deliver a swift and merciful blow, he bludgeoned his father to death before the the eyes of the entire kingdom. Then he proclaimed that he and his brother would yield their undying loyalty to the king and queen until the very end of their lives.
This act was enough to spare them death, but not enough to prevent the king from laying their house low. The king stripped them of their ranks and domains, giving their station to another house that fought on the side of the loyalists during the war. The brothers were exiled to the south, where they remained for a number of years. The two brothers watched and waited for the day they could return the injuries and humiliations that their family had borne.
When the Messiah Queen came, they saw an opportunity.
Like many other nobles with foresight, their banners were raised, their knees were bent, and they swore allegiance to her, or rather the lord behind her. They converted, but they were never men of religion. Not all nobles were as wise, namely the king and queen of Ausfell. They resisted, for a time. The Ilentus brothers' crusade in the name of the Messiah Queen disguised their true motives for conquest, namely revenge and power. Their plans were dashed as the king and queen surrendered before the brothers had the chance to cleave their heads as they would have wished for their father.
Though they did not have the chance to slay the king and queen, they were content to know that their actions would not go unnoticed. The Messiah Queen rewarded their "devotion" with a province to govern, a peninsula jutting out into the Kraken Ocean. Reynald established the main branch of House Ilentus at the port city of Piroa, while Foirise established House Ilentus of Ordenus castle. They married for power, acquiring the hands of two ladies from larger houses. They would wait and watch for the moment when the king and queen of Ausfell would slip.
Some have long histories, others do not. Dace is but twenty five and has yet to lay claim to any feat or deed that can win him purport in the eyes of the realm. He is known as a noble and a knight, a knight that frequents the tourneys. Dace Ilentus was born to Lord Reynald Ilentus and Lady Gemma Ilentus.
At around the age of three, his mother died of a plague that came from the lands beyond the ocean, rumored to be of magical nature. When the men of the house were off to the court of the Messiah Queen, Dace found himself in the care of his aunt, Lady Orinia. It did not come as a surprise that he formed somewhat of a bond with his aunt. She became like a mother to him, while cousins Yohn and Elaena, a brother and sister.
As a child he was rapt by tales of chivalry and the knights of old, he told himself he would become a knight one day. Tales at the time spoke of knights with the occasional fable about mermaids. Or perhaps this was just the result of Lady Orinia refurnishing his shelves. The knight who slew the great dragon hoarding the pile of gold. He who saved the beautiful maiden from monsters. He who defended the weak, protected the innocent, and punished the black-hearted. He who lived an illustrious and happy life until the very end. It seemed like a plan, it all made sense, be a knight. His father learned of this and made preparations to send him off to a loyal bannerman and able knight to begin the boy's training.
At age six, he was sent off to be fostered and trained in the ways of knighthood by Sir Weyne Selmont. Selmont was a strict and uptight man, some would say he was very close to being a true knight. Others said he was simply atoning for his past misdeeds of youth. Dace's training went from weapons and horseback riding one day to books the next and then on to more abstract studies. He was gifted in the first, decent in the second, and lacking in the third. Sir Selmont had expected as much. He just hoped the lad would eventually have as good a brain as he had a sword hand.
Dace reached squirehood at twelve, and he saw his father away more often than he used to. The whispers between the servants spoke of tensions rising at the Queen's court. Meanwhile, the bandit raids reached a new level of boldness in the south, and the pirates on the high seas, not to be outdone, began preying closer to the coasts. Though there was conflict all around him, Dace was completely blind to it.
At sixteen, Dace bedded a girl and claimed her maidenhead. Whether it was an act of adolescent rebellion or plain love, he did not know. The next morning, following an intense dream, he realized that he was jeopardizing his knighthood and decided he would marry her to preserve her honor.
Reynald discovered the boy’s misbehavior and his attempt to correct it. Such a marriage was detrimental to the family’s fortunes. Reynald could not afford this, so he acted swiftly and ordered knights to murder the girl and bury her at sea. Then Dace was whipped for his recklessness and idiocy. The boy harbored rage against his father until his uncle began to speak of their family’s history. He spoke of the sacrifices that Reynald had to make for their family. This was to be the legacy that Dace would one day carry, and it left him unsure if he could reconcile being a knight with being an Illentus. Nevertheless, he was nearing adulthood and he would have to soldier forth.
Most squires, when they turned eighteen, reached knighthood. At the age of nineteen, Dace had not. He was accomplished in the world of tourneys, managing to win a few despite the field of competitors. In the eyes of Sir Weyne, he was still untried. This was a problem.
On their way to a tournament, Dace accompanied Sir Weyne, Sir Merton Farrow, Sir Logan Teague, and the latter two's squires when they were ambushed and surrounded on the open road by bandits. Dace had a sword in hand as did the others, and he managed to draw the blood of one of the attackers. However, he was among the first to be knocked unconscious, sword in hand. Dace awoke from what he thought to be death to find the rest of his company dead, a grip still on his sword. A group of knights led by Sir Ulwin Dunstan came down the same road in search for them.
The knights took Dace back to Piroa and spread word that he and a group of knights fought against bandits. They managed to slay many a foe, but at a high cost. It was not long before he was kneeling at an altar to the Messiah Queen with Sir Ulwin and a sword before him, and his family and attendant nobles behind him.
Now at twenty five, having seen much more combat and blood, he still believes himself unfit to carry the title ‘Sir.’ It matters not what anyone else thinks, in his own eyes, he has not earned that title yet.