Forsilvra: Guy Wintour

[Guy Wintour]

[Your Information]
Name: Rich
Contact: (Aim/Email/Etc) contact me via PM
Credit to Garett Massive credit to Garett who wrote about 99.9% of this profile with a few minor tweeks by me.

[Public Application]

Character Name: Guy Wintor
Character Age: 37
Gender: Male
Birthday (including year): May 4, 204 AF
Current Location: Castle Lincorn, Forsilvra
House House Wintour
Banner Appearance: A silver mockingbird over a white background
Words: "By the coin, peace
House Description

A lesser house from the Vandermark, House Wintour possesses a small patch of land stretching across the shoreline near the capital, the Hollors. The gem of the land is a sizable port city aptly named Portsmock, which is well-known as an open and diverse nexus for trading. Portsmock's closeness to the Hollows has further spurred the thriving trade industry; it is not uncommon for merchants from Portsmock to retire in luxury after a life of trading between those two cities alone. House Wintour itself has likewise benefited from the trade atmosphere of Portsmock. When the atmosphere goes poorly, as it did during the plague, the House similarly suffers.

While other houses focus more on fielding knights and soldiers, House Wintour is renowned for its practicality and diplomacy-inclined members. Given the emphases on trade in Portsmock, the House focuses on trading, business, and commerce.

Little surprise that after demonstrating his financial prosperity Guy Wintour, would be appointed Authority of Coin.



Player Base: Aiden Gillen
Appearance: Guy is thin and wiry with dark, graying hair and green eyes. He generally sports a fashionable, pointed beard that is also beginning to gray
Personality:

Silver Tongued This man's words are like liquored honey and can intoxicate even the most guarded and skeptical of listeners. For him, a person is little more than a piece on a chess board waiting to be moved: A word here or there, and even a knight could be urged forward. But his ability to persuade comes second to the true art of manipulation: He can do it without others suspecting his true motives or even knowing the ruse. To them, the Authority was but a man offering wise and sage counsel. How silver the mockingbird's song...

Master of Intrigue Knowing how to move a chess piece has little use if one is ignorant on how it moves within the game or where it can move on the board. Guy has the quaint ability to play people against one another, a skill he has used on at least one occasion to pit one Authority against another. A word here, a word there, and just enough information is given to gently nudge a person in the right direction.

An Actor's Facade The way Guy hides his true feelings and thoughts would leave many an actor desirous of his talents. Not surprisingly, some of the Authority's childhood, in addition to his learning and school, was spent privately acting in dramas and plays. The young Guy had a knack for assuming roles and characters, a trait he carried well into his adult life. He has mastered the way one's body and face can communicate ideas and can express in a look what others stumble over words to say.

Clever Guy prides himself on being one move ahead of anyone else. He has a quick and agile mind and is a quick study, learning new things usually easily.

Well Connected Through his life, Guy has met many people and has remembered each, particularly those who could later prove beneficial to him. He boasts a wide range of acquaintances from many different walks of life and varying social strata and possesses numerous contacts across the lands, particularly within Forsilvra, Belleile, and Castle Licorn. There is little that occurs within the capital that the Authority of Coin does not know about through his retinue of associates: Their eyes and ears are his eyes and ears. There are certain benefits to being quite rich.

Ambitious Guy is incredibly ambitious, it is the driving force of his life. His ambition is only held in check for fear of what his ambition may cost him. He does not hold with the traditional power structure of lords, kings and so on, he believes mainly in wealth and formulates his own path to power.

Enjoys Life Guy is a man who enjoys life, he enjoys wine, women, food and everything else. He has a reputation as a bit of a rogue, his lifestyle verges on decadent and takes whatever his wealth will buy him.

History: Guy Wintour is the second son of Lord Thomas Wintour and his wife, Lady Juliet Wintour. Like most of the men of House Wintour, Guy spent his time studying at Portsmock, his father paying a high premium for the best tutors and academics from across the lands to come teach his son. Given the nature of Portsmock, and House Wintour's personal investment in commerce and trade, Guy's studies were also supplemented by studying with the local merchants. As a youth, Guy managed the finances of these merchants and picked up tips on trading. While usually a successful student he occasionally found himself in trouble for various schemes, taking advantage of other students and those generally not wary enough of him.

During his teenage years, Guy used his father's money to start several trading affairs at both Portsmock and the Hollows. He dabbled in the black market of both cities, gaining numerous underworld connections and making a large profit selling wares from the uncivilized lands.

Guy's relationship with his family was sometimes strained. He realised from a young age that his house was of minor consequence and it was something that was a constant source of irritation and frustration. While good at maintaining a pleasant façade any perceived insult to his standing from other nobles cut him deeply. As such he did not begrudge his elder brother what would be his inheritance as he had his eyes on something else. Through his businesses his personal wealth easily surpassed that of his brother and indeed his parents as well and talk spread far and wide of the wildly prosperous young noble. Ultimately, if he could count on their loyalty he would like to see the advancement of his House as the more allies he has the better.

When Guy became the Authority of Coin he relocated to Castle Licorn and found a thriving community in Belleille, connecting the capital with his businesses at Portsmock and the Hollows. To date, the Authority has held a near-monopoly on the trade industry between the three cities. Guy carefully dovetails his own business interests with those of the state, one supporting the other.

Thus far, Guy's time as Authority has been renowned for his ability to balance His Grace's treasury during the plague; however, the coffers are still being bled. In his time his measures have not always been popular but he has managed to put them all into practice and usually critics have been silenced by his success.

Writing Sample: [Please include 2-3 paragraphs as a writing sample.

Guy tried not to spend too much time in this room but it was invigorating. He was in the treasury, surrounded by neatly stacked gold bars, bags and chests filled with gold and silver coins as well as other valuables. It reminded him of his power and position at court, the contents of this room were his responsibility. He had wandered down to the room to see the guards bringing in the latest collection of taxes. Guy had the collection of these taxes down to a science, people paid in full and on time, those who didn't would regret it. His tax policy was known for being fair but this was not due to high ideals or morals but because a fair tax was most effective. People, typically, would pay a fair tax. A quick way to lose his position would be to seen as a hated miser of gold, reducing peasants to poverty and stripping nobles of their wealth.

He sighed contentedly and stepped out of the treasury, leaving the guards to their work, while the treasury was invigorating it was also intoxicating. The real power of the king was in that room, people spoke of loyalty, honour and duty but a poor king would find few friends. It would be easy to forget that he merely managed that wealth, it wasn't his, and he did not want to fall into that trap. Still, his personal wealth grew daily, his trade network reached further and his criminal friends became more agreeable with every passing day. He watched as the last chest of the tax collection was placed in the room and the guards slowly filed out. The heavy doors were closed and locked, the reassuring click of the lock that guarded all that wealth was a delightful sound. "Excellent work," said Guy, he was always one for giving compliments, especially to the peasants. They helped create loyalty and efficient workers, and best of all, compliments were cheap.

Money had always been something that Guy had understood perfectly, the way it flowed from one to owner to another, what men would do for it. He had previously boasted that if you let him talk to a man for two hours at the end he could name the man's price. Now he felt he had that down to a single hour of conversation. He made his way back to his chambers to continue work, he had some more calculations to make, sadly the state was still poor and it was his job to do something about it.

[Time Line Events]
Please list any important time line events for your character in the format:

Year 965: Event
Year 204: Guy Wintour is born.*
Year 210: Tutors arrive at Portsmock to teach Guy.
Year 213: Guy begins mentoring for the local merchants.
Year 217: Guy opens his first trading operation at Portsmock and follows with another at the Hollows.
Year 230: Guy is appointed the Authority of Coin.
Year 231: Trade between the Hollows, Portsmock and Belleile is strengthened. Guy holds a near monopoly on the trade.*
Year 233: The Plague strengthens. Trading across the lands grows stagnant.*
Year 234: King Joseph Fontenot dies. Adrien becomes King.*
Year 236: The King's coffers bleed. Trade severely decreases.
Year 241: The economic situation remains bleak.*

Family Genealogy:
These will be added to the House Genealogy Thread.
Lord Thomas Wintour ------- Lady Juliet Wintour
- Elric Wintour
- Guy Wintour*

[PMed Application]
Plot Points To Be Kept Hidden
Please PM a few plot points in the form of a list or paragraph to account: Jenn

Examples include:

[Tiberius Lexington DeLauncey]

Approval from me. Stamp #1 achieved!

[Jenn]

Before I approve, please credit what you copied to "Garett"

[Guy Wintour]

Thanks for reminding me Jenn, I've added a line giving credit it Garett

[Friday]

approved! <3

[Jenn]

Approved <3