by Name: Tristan, of the House Astereus.
Age: Old. Looks to be in his mid-thirties.
Sex: Male.
Species: Ordo Dracul.
Role: Head of the Astereus House and uneasy ally of Monique Terren.
Nationality: Was born in England (undetermined time period), but his House moved to the States during the colonial era.
Appearance: Tristan stands at an intimidating six feet tall, and is of an athletically muscular but not bulky build. His face is rough, squared and ever so slightly angular, with a mess of small scars and what look to be mini wrinkles lining his face at differing angles. His eyes are slightly narrow but of a brilliant, icy blue, and his stylised, swept-to-the-side dark brown hair sticks out at a slight angle to his head. He wears a high quality mid-grey suit with large, full-torso-length lapels and a white shirt, with a red tie underneath, stylised with a horizontal bar across the chest (clipped to the sides of his shirt) to take the shape of a cross, with similar smaller red crosses embroidered on his collar. He doesn't believe in God, he just enjoys the irony of such imagery. Besides, if any Nosferatu give him trouble, it could give him an advantage due to their irrational fear of the shape. The right shoulder of his suit jacket is covered by a red shoulder-cape that falls to his elbow. He often wears a thin glass monocle over his left eye; it's just for show, of course. He has perfect vision. He had to take the image of an old-fashioned English Gentleman at one point in his life, and he found that he enjoyed it. Cards on the table, yes, look at my avatar. The appearance is based on a game character. So sue me, he's pretty damn awesome looking and I was feeling indecisive, so went for the lazy option.
Personality: Tristan is, above all else, cultured and civilised. He always attempts diplomacy, political or economic espionage and then out and out skulduggery in that order to deal with his problems. Oftentimes, he finds that the solution is not in going into open conflict, but by making it clear to the other party somehow that them doing so is not in their best interests. He is cunning and able - he has to be, to have kept his relatively small house alive and prosperous for so long without an heir - and actually fairly wealthy. Whilst he doesn't have the money or influence of the Big Houses, he has enough to get by, and he has a few plans in place that could hopefully change his fortunes. However, he is prudent. He will not implement them until he feels they are almost guaranteed to succeed. Being an old English Gentleman, he is polite and courteous, though perhaps at times he can come across as a tad superior, and is not above asking for aid when he requires it. Therefore, when the Terren family approached him for an alliance, he was quick to agree and - having moved with the times despite his appearance - had no problem in shifting his business to the female of the family when her brother left.
As for the House, well...so many of the smaller Houses hold to tradition, not realising that much of that tradition is holding them back. The officers in his house are all Ordo Dracul, of course, members of his extended family (though he hasn't picked one for an heir yet), but he does not discriminate overly much. He has a number of Markavian and Skinchanger agents, a smattering of the species as basic footsoldiers and bodyguards (though he doesn't have many, he has enough to defend his Houses estates if they are attacked), and a number of advisor's on-hand to assist him. He even has a few Nosferatu; despite their slow wit and brutish appearance, they can be very useful, and he was around for the American Civil War...he saw what supposedly "inferior" races can do, and he would rather keep the Nosferatu on-side. It doesn't hurt to be courteous to them, after all. They have their uses, same as everybody else.
Background: Ahah, that would be telling, now wouldn't it? House Astereus is an old - though not quite ancient - house that has been around since Roman times. Its fortunes have waxed and waned, of course, but it has never disappeared and will not do so under Tristan's guidance, if he can help it. He was born in England some time ago, but his family moved during the Age of Exploration and have stayed put ever since. They don't have much influence, but they do have enough to be slightly higher than middle-of-the-table when it comes to strength. They have their fingers in a lot of pies, just in case. Everything else, well...that's a closely guarded secret.
Age: Old. Looks to be in his mid-thirties.
Sex: Male.
Species: Ordo Dracul.
Role: Head of the Astereus House and uneasy ally of Monique Terren.
Nationality: Was born in England (undetermined time period), but his House moved to the States during the colonial era.
Appearance: Tristan stands at an intimidating six feet tall, and is of an athletically muscular but not bulky build. His face is rough, squared and ever so slightly angular, with a mess of small scars and what look to be mini wrinkles lining his face at differing angles. His eyes are slightly narrow but of a brilliant, icy blue, and his stylised, swept-to-the-side dark brown hair sticks out at a slight angle to his head. He wears a high quality mid-grey suit with large, full-torso-length lapels and a white shirt, with a red tie underneath, stylised with a horizontal bar across the chest (clipped to the sides of his shirt) to take the shape of a cross, with similar smaller red crosses embroidered on his collar. He doesn't believe in God, he just enjoys the irony of such imagery. Besides, if any Nosferatu give him trouble, it could give him an advantage due to their irrational fear of the shape. The right shoulder of his suit jacket is covered by a red shoulder-cape that falls to his elbow. He often wears a thin glass monocle over his left eye; it's just for show, of course. He has perfect vision. He had to take the image of an old-fashioned English Gentleman at one point in his life, and he found that he enjoyed it. Cards on the table, yes, look at my avatar. The appearance is based on a game character. So sue me, he's pretty damn awesome looking and I was feeling indecisive, so went for the lazy option.
Personality: Tristan is, above all else, cultured and civilised. He always attempts diplomacy, political or economic espionage and then out and out skulduggery in that order to deal with his problems. Oftentimes, he finds that the solution is not in going into open conflict, but by making it clear to the other party somehow that them doing so is not in their best interests. He is cunning and able - he has to be, to have kept his relatively small house alive and prosperous for so long without an heir - and actually fairly wealthy. Whilst he doesn't have the money or influence of the Big Houses, he has enough to get by, and he has a few plans in place that could hopefully change his fortunes. However, he is prudent. He will not implement them until he feels they are almost guaranteed to succeed. Being an old English Gentleman, he is polite and courteous, though perhaps at times he can come across as a tad superior, and is not above asking for aid when he requires it. Therefore, when the Terren family approached him for an alliance, he was quick to agree and - having moved with the times despite his appearance - had no problem in shifting his business to the female of the family when her brother left.
As for the House, well...so many of the smaller Houses hold to tradition, not realising that much of that tradition is holding them back. The officers in his house are all Ordo Dracul, of course, members of his extended family (though he hasn't picked one for an heir yet), but he does not discriminate overly much. He has a number of Markavian and Skinchanger agents, a smattering of the species as basic footsoldiers and bodyguards (though he doesn't have many, he has enough to defend his Houses estates if they are attacked), and a number of advisor's on-hand to assist him. He even has a few Nosferatu; despite their slow wit and brutish appearance, they can be very useful, and he was around for the American Civil War...he saw what supposedly "inferior" races can do, and he would rather keep the Nosferatu on-side. It doesn't hurt to be courteous to them, after all. They have their uses, same as everybody else.
Background: Ahah, that would be telling, now wouldn't it? House Astereus is an old - though not quite ancient - house that has been around since Roman times. Its fortunes have waxed and waned, of course, but it has never disappeared and will not do so under Tristan's guidance, if he can help it. He was born in England some time ago, but his family moved during the Age of Exploration and have stayed put ever since. They don't have much influence, but they do have enough to be slightly higher than middle-of-the-table when it comes to strength. They have their fingers in a lot of pies, just in case. Everything else, well...that's a closely guarded secret.
