Name:
Kregan "The Bear"

Position:
Freelance Bonded Mercenary

Age:
Unknown, possibly early 30's

Sex:
Male

Race:
Human

Skills:
A skilled and deadly warrior, Kregan can use most weapons, though he favors his own fists and his trusty battleaxe above all others. He can ride, but dislikes mounted combat, preferring to be in your face and personal on his own two feet. He knows several styles of martial arts, but prefers to focus on those that most utilize his sheer physical power and speed. He is literate enough to read a contract and do basic ciphering, but has never had a formal education, nor an interest in gaining one. This does not mean he is not intelligent – he can hold his own in philosophical and political discussions, though he draws the line at poetry.

Physical Description:
A physically imposing man, Kregan stands just over 6 feet tall, and weighs in at nearly 300 pounds, all of it hard, compact muscle. He is darkly tanned, with dark brown hair cropped in a military cut to facilitate wearing a helm. He has a hard, craggy face, adorned with the lines of a hard life and a scruffy goatee. His body is covered with battle scars, though he is not maimed. He often moves in a deceptively slow and lumbering manner, appearing much like his namesake, until provoked. Then, despite his size, he can move with a terrifying swiftness and agility, putting the full considerable weight of his body behind each movement, to lethal effect. He has a deep, gravelly voice, and can use it well, cutting over and through the din of battle to be heard yards away.

Personality / Attitude:
Kregan is not a subtle man, by any stretch of the imagination. He's also not the kind of person one should bring home to meet the family, under any circumstances. He's gruff, crude, blunt and brutally honest. He has a terribly coarse sense of humor, and won't waste any opportunity to cut others down a notch or five if he thinks they need it. He is steadfast and loyal, to those who earn it, and always keeps his word, once given, but is slow to trust others. He is a brawler by nature, enjoying a good fight as much as a good beer or a good wench. Until recently, he was something of a womanizer, having only one use for the opposite sex, and priding himself on that particular badge of bachelor-hood. He is slow to anger, but once provoked, takes ages to cool down, and holds grudges for eternity. He also has an intense dislike and distrust for mages and their ilk (including the Gifted), though he has a healthy dose of fearful respect for merc mages and Heralds.

History:
Born the 12th son of a pig farmer, Kregan decided early on that a life in the mud was not for him, and joined a bonded mercenary company (where he spent the first year and a half in a campaign in the mud), where his battle skills were formalized and refined. Before that, he often got himself and his brothers in trouble picking fights with the local village boys, thrashing them so soundly his father was almost relieved when he left and didn't have to pay restitution to the families of the boys he'd beaten anymore.

He became a truly brutal and efficient killer, and learned to use most any weapon, and many fighting styles, though at heart he is and always was a brawler. His second-favored weapon (his first being his own fists, the better to feel the flesh of his enemies being crushed) is the battleaxe, which he can wield in both hands or either, as the situation warrants.

He earned the nickname "Bear" for his sheer ferocity in battle, often carving swathes through the enemy with his axe. His size, strength, and endurance often earned him a prime spot with the infantry, the front-liners and meat shields of the unit, though his temper (slow to provoke but also slow to cool) prevented him from rising farther than Sgt. in the ranks.

During a campaign early in his career, when the merc unit he was with was assigned to work next to and with the Maizen, he also met and became fast friends with Vasilis Shanley, often joining him (even more often provoking him) in rowdy fun, drinking, wenching and fighting.

His last assignment brought him all the way to Valdemar, and when that assignment ended, he opted to stay in Haven working freelance again.

Goals:
Drinking, fighting, and women, in any order. Though he has remained faithful to Aidanna since the two of them hooked up, he still ogles the fairer sex often enough to get himself in trouble once in a while.

Gifts/Talents:
No Gifts to speak of, but he has an uncanny talent for picking barfights.