| Vzis |
In my Savage Tide campaign, Avner actually became a Player Character. No really!
He started off as an NPC, played pretty much like he was described, and fulfilled the roles of annoying foil/pain in the neck/punching bag for the party. One of the characters even threw a harpoon at him ("First! Officer! We do not throw *harpoons* at passengers!").
He gained a little bit of depth during "Here There Be Monsters," when the party got caught in a trap just inside Olangru's temple. They pretty much blew all of their saving throws and were in very bad shape. Not wanting to kill off the party that easily, I had Avner get over his fear and enter the temple just far enough to dig them out. He passed it off as arrogant self-interest ("I expect better service in future, Captain!"), but the party was taken aback and one of them, who had been secretly planning to kill Avner before they reached Farshore, changed his mind.
About a session later, a new player joined the game. I gave him the option of either creating a native or taking over one of the NPCs. I described them and he looked them over- and chose Avner. The player ran Avner as a bit less annoying, but still arrogant and just as foolish and bumbling- and it worked. The player and I decided that saving the party had been Avner's moment of truth.
Over the campaign, Avner grew more heroic- and gained a tendency towards "clever" tactics. Although these had mixed success, Avner did mastermind the defeat of Saint Kargoth and fought Demogorgon alongside the rest of the party.
The end of the campaign saw Avner taking up the reins of the Meravanchi family in Farshore (his uncle died during the campaign) and marrying a native girl (who he did *not* attempt to buy this time).
In sort-of sequel campaign set twenty years later, the same player ran Avner's son, who had inherited a lot of his father's personality.