"Death comes for everyone. Me? I just facilitate the process."
Appearance
The first word that comes to mind when describing Owan is big. He stands at six feet seven inches and weighs in at a two hundred and twenty pounds. His weight is all muscle, rippling across his broad shoulders and his massive chest. His extremities are thick and equally muscled. His hands are calloused and rough, much like his demeanor.
He wears his blonde hair long and pulls it back with a piece of rope. Likewise, he keeps his beard long and untrimmed. His eyes are light blue, and his gaze is oftentimes taken as being flat and uncaring.
He is covered in assorted scars, most of which have a story behind them. One such "scar" is his missing left pinky-finger, which he lost in a knife fight during his teenage years.
He normally wears simple peasant clothing under sturdy leather armor, as well as a pair of thick leather boots to protect his feet in a fight. Along with the boots, he wears a pair of thick leather gloves to prevent the loss of any more fingers.
He wears his blonde hair long and pulls it back with a piece of rope. Likewise, he keeps his beard long and untrimmed. His eyes are light blue, and his gaze is oftentimes taken as being flat and uncaring.
He is covered in assorted scars, most of which have a story behind them. One such "scar" is his missing left pinky-finger, which he lost in a knife fight during his teenage years.
He normally wears simple peasant clothing under sturdy leather armor, as well as a pair of thick leather boots to protect his feet in a fight. Along with the boots, he wears a pair of thick leather gloves to prevent the loss of any more fingers.
Personality
Gruff and honest, Owan says what he needs to say when he needs to say it. He's not above hurting feelings and stepping on proverbial toes. He has a bit of a temper, and fails to find the humor in most everything. He's very serious in nature; one could call him pragmatic and somewhat pessimistic and not be far off. He never sees the glass half-full, nor can he stand to be around those who are incessantly cheerful.
In social situations, Owan finds himself ostracized for his blunt honesty, but he doesn't mind being on the fringe of a group.
He has a very dark view of life and a hefty dose of skepticism regarding religion. He believes in the pantheon of deities but he views them as little more than squabbling children with phenomenal cosmic power at their disposal. As such, Owan never prays, nor does he offer thanks when the world seems to turn in his favor. He chalks it up to luck and coincidence more than he does to divinity.
He would never admit to being unhappy and lonely, but deep down he is well aware of the fact that he's both of these things. Being a pragmatist, he simply accepts it and continues his life. He rarely trusts anyone he meets, which contributes to his loneliness as well as his bleak outlook on life. He has known the touch of a woman, and he longs for it again, but he is much too proud to admit that he needs someone.
The only time that Owan puts his pessimism and dark attitude aside is in the heat of battle. Then, be it an all-out war or a simple fistfight, he loses himself in the blood-lust and does his killer's work with a smile on his face. The din and clamor of the battlefield is the only place Owan Bardson truly feels at home.
History
Born in the Wildlands on the 15th of Summer 487, Owan was the son of a mercenary called The Bard and his on-again-off-again "wife", another member of the company. To say that Owan's childhood was less than perfect would be the ultimate understatement. From the time he could walk, his parents taught him to survive in a hostile world. They taught him to wield an ax shortly after his sixth birthday, and often sparred mercilessly. They taught him to survive in the wilderness and how to fight when his weapon was out of reach.
As he aged, he began the path of a career mercenary. He killed his first man when he was fourteen, after the band robbed a caravan in the Wildlands for their supplies. At first, he found the act of killing abominable, and when he told his father he was savagely beaten and told that death was a necessary part of the life they lived. Afterward, his parents made him fight another teen that they'd taken to sell in Ravok. Owan lost his left pinky. The other youth lost his life. As he continued to kill his mindset changed, and he became sulkier and distant, preferring the solitude of the woods' to the company of his family and the rest of the band.
He learned much in the woods: how to start a fire, what plants were edible, and how to hunt for his food with nothing but his wits and his ax. He adopted a shield later that year to protect himself on the band's numerous raids. When The Bard was killed by a caravan guard, Owan's mother took over the band and led them to Sunberth, where they ultimately drifted apart. Owan did what he could to help support his aging mother, both legal and illegal. He even took jobs guarding the few caravans that came and went to Sunberth and back. Mostly he did simple mercenary work for the groups that ran the city, occasionally robbing stores or performing brutal shakedowns and kidnappings.
He continued to travel with the caravans, learning more about the wilderness and how to survive on his own. He taught himself the basic principles of medicine, after patching up a countless number of minor injuries. He returned to Sunberth when his mother became ill and stayed by her side as she wasted away. After her death, he became a fixture in Sunberth, preferring to move in and out of the city instead of maintaining a constant residence in the town.
As he aged, he began the path of a career mercenary. He killed his first man when he was fourteen, after the band robbed a caravan in the Wildlands for their supplies. At first, he found the act of killing abominable, and when he told his father he was savagely beaten and told that death was a necessary part of the life they lived. Afterward, his parents made him fight another teen that they'd taken to sell in Ravok. Owan lost his left pinky. The other youth lost his life. As he continued to kill his mindset changed, and he became sulkier and distant, preferring the solitude of the woods' to the company of his family and the rest of the band.
He learned much in the woods: how to start a fire, what plants were edible, and how to hunt for his food with nothing but his wits and his ax. He adopted a shield later that year to protect himself on the band's numerous raids. When The Bard was killed by a caravan guard, Owan's mother took over the band and led them to Sunberth, where they ultimately drifted apart. Owan did what he could to help support his aging mother, both legal and illegal. He even took jobs guarding the few caravans that came and went to Sunberth and back. Mostly he did simple mercenary work for the groups that ran the city, occasionally robbing stores or performing brutal shakedowns and kidnappings.
He continued to travel with the caravans, learning more about the wilderness and how to survive on his own. He taught himself the basic principles of medicine, after patching up a countless number of minor injuries. He returned to Sunberth when his mother became ill and stayed by her side as she wasted away. After her death, he became a fixture in Sunberth, preferring to move in and out of the city instead of maintaining a constant residence in the town.
Relationships
None insofar
