Baron Crane is a Seelie Sidhe Grump of House Liam in Concordia.
Overview[]
The baron is a quieter key figure in the Concordian opposition to Duke Gwilliam's policies. While the baron is an imposing man, over six-feet-tall and massive with both muscle and gut, his political tendencies do not match his physical presence. Rather than bully his way to recognition, he works in whispers and in calm suggestion, which has proven very effective over the years.
The baron is a sidhe who retains fragmented memories of his time before the Shattering and in Arcadia. He was a young man when the Shattering occurred and he did not take it well; the first years of his life in the mundane world was spent in restless search for the answers nobody had. And his isolation was a poor base for research. Toward the end of that time, the baron spent a year in dalliance with Lady Sara, a minor noble of House Eiluned. Her observations on the utility of political power with regards to the uncovering of secrets led him to choose his current path.
Since the late 1970s, he has been working to ensure that as many Kithain owe him as possible, then using those favors to create a library that is the envy of any court. He was briefly chosen to be the ranking voice of House Liam in Concordia until he abdicated in favor of Baroness Grayswan, He became the Baron of New Haven in 1993, trading in a number of political chits for the privilege, which enabled him to add the resources of the Yale University Library to his own.
He rarely leaves his fief or his freehold today. His messengers and yeomen, though, are scattered throughout Concordia. Many House Liam members have found themselves working for the baron, bringing back scraps of records or entire books to feed the desire for knowledge that lurks behind his deceptive, clear-blue eyes.
Crane thinks Duke Gwilliam to be headstrong and dangerous; by pushing so hard against the established way, one cuts oneself off from resources. For a scholar, this is unthinkable. It is unimportant, in the baron's opinion, whether or not Liam ever returns to favor as long as it is allowed to pursue knowledge and creativity.
References[]
- CTD. Noblesse Oblige: The Book of Houses, p. 129.