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In the interest of developing my homebrew setting more, I am looking for interesting people to populate the courts of the various rulers.
Current people/ positions include
1. Ormond Dragonhammer, high champion of the King
2. Ilfan, spiritual advisor and brother of the King
3. Banthor the blind, elderly advisor of the King
4. Jhotan, Court wizard
5. the lord marshal of the realm
6. Arthon, illegitimate son of a neighboring king
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7. Halt, a guard being tried as you enter. He WAS a high guard, but he got too drunk one night. HE was found in the king's bedchamber the next morning with both of his daughters, between the three of them the only article of clothing worn was the crown...it wasn't on his head.
8. Orukath, an emissary from a powerful empire across the sea. He proposes friendly relations, but his people are invading a neighboring kingdom. Many have misgivings about his presence, but few dare to speak such things aloud.
9. Ramius, a young looking man who they say has been advising kings and mentoring future heroes since the dawn of time. He comes and goes as he pleases, and often plays a small part in important events. Whether he is a benevolent sage or manipulative imp varies depending on who you ask.
10. Lady Shada, an incredibly shrewd and influential noblewoman who has a hand in almost every part of the nation's economy. The state and most of the nobles are indebted to her in more ways than one.
11. Lord Toben, an old general whose place in the court was secured in his younger years, as a famous young adventurer and hero. While many still sing of his brave deeds, he has grown old and tires of his reputation. He is a refreshing source of common sense and brutal honesty, a fact that irritates many but amuses the king enough that few ever publicly criticize him.
12. Gambol, the Kings Fool. Actually he is one of the Kings most powerful advisers, he watches everyone that enters the Kings presence.
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13. Darabont, the seemingly mentally challenged, surprisingly large young boy. He is in fact the "tranformed" state of a master chymist assassin, who uses this form to avoid people's suspicions.
16. Orente, master of records. Orente records all of the goings on of the court, from simple pronouncements from the throne to detailed business transactions. He is mostly blind, and a bit hard of hearing, but he never misses a pertinent detail. His records are written in what appears to be Common, but no one can make out what it says save for Orente.
16.) Villanious Claw: The seemingly traitorous advisor to the king, he actually is a Gnoll juju Oracal and his necromancy is A-OK! But he seems like a complete traitor despite his mindless loyalty to the king.
Torv Wyrmskinner, guest of the king and queen for slaying the last dragon in the kingdom.
18- Demarse, the mage page- a very lucky young lad who upon coming of age found himself both employed as a page and apprenticed to one of the many hedge wizards of the court. Studying and page duties rake up a great deal of his time, but he is determined, and has only recently mastered his first few cantrips that he already uses to make his day a bit easier.
19. Lady Antibonne -- A very old elven bard. Having no children of her own she started a finishing school for young ladies named the twin bells school for young ladies. Many of the nobles send their daughters to her school, and every year she takes at least 10 commoner girls with promise to her school for training. There appear to be a hierarchy of graduates depending on if the girl graduated with figuring out how to ring one or both of the bells suspended in the two bell towers that do not have stairs or ropes to the bells.
Lady Antibonne is not above marrying nobles but she only marries widows or those with plenty of heirs already, seeking to avoid inheriting anything from the human nobles or causing problems in the court.
22. Manusha Kamaranathana, a Vudrani exiled noble who pesters the king for help in retaking his former seat. The king keeps him around because he's a useful source of knowledge about that part of the world. Has a pack of trained monkeys who entertain people. He's moderately wealthy despite having no visible income...because he's an accomplished thief.
23. Lady Naera, the king's ancient and utterly senile aunt. Very rich and occasionally preposterously generous, but also incredibly rude.
24. Shaunilla, one of Naera's maids. Very attractive and so the target of much male attention, but interested in nothing except getting her hands on Naera's wealth.
Some very interesting ideas have been put forward by people. Several similar characters will be placed within my homebrew setting thanks.
and if anyone was any more ideas feel free to keep posting them.
26.) Monty the aging wild man who merely stands and listens in the corner as he feeds his Dire Wolf pieces of meat that he produces from a bag of holding
27. Lady Dalrymple, the dowager widow of one of the King's favored Barons. She has gone blind in her dotage, but has an uncanny aptitude for court gossip, and despite her blindness seems to always have a finger on the comings and goings of the powerful.
Sir Raymond Jast- A halfling & member of the king's personal guard. He is a mid-level cavalier who rides into battle on his bull mastiff Nicodemus. His life began as a servant in a noble house, but countless nights spent training, along with years of saving wages, allowed him to enter and win a tournament to gain a title of his own. He aims to stamp out the belief that all halflings are shady thieves and vagabonds by becoming the greatest knight in the land.
30. Xannan-Court Wizard. Tall lithe Elven prodigy with a paranoid, controlling, and often dramatic personality. Double agent/spy for an inconsequential nation. Infatuated with his familiar. Easily identified by the red scar from an unwarranted brain surgery.
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31. Duke Ranald, an embittered man in his mid-fifties with dreams of grandeur and a sizable personal fortune and estates in the realm.
Duke Ranald saved the King's life when an attempt was made on his majesty's life 10 years ago. The King was appropriately grateful, and more: he thinks Ranald his close friend, and often confides personal matters to him.
In truth, Ranald arranged the attempt on the King's life, but had a late minute change of mind (spurred by shame of himself), and managed to catch up to the would-be assassin (killing the villain in the process) just in time to spare his liege's life.
Now Ranald plots with all the malcontents in the realm to bring the King down - Ranald is jealous of the man and has wild dreams of taking "the place [he] deserves" on the throne. This is common knowledge among the realm's nobility, but the King does not want to hear "any venomous slander about [his] good friend", going so far as to exile out of the realm one of his most faithful noble who didn't drop the matter.
Ranald will never send an assassin after the King again, because he considers it "beneath [him]", but he will use every other means he can think of to bring down his insufferable (to his envious eyes) lord.
He is also unlikely to plot with foreign powers, as he generally has nothing but contempt for them, thinking highly of his native kingdom.
Duke Ranald is a very bitter man indeed.
32 & 33. Baron Harold Johanson & Assistant Steward Sigmund.
Baron Johanson was ennobled after he and his adventuring party saved the Queen's son from a band of Ogres. Several years later the adventuring party hit it big, but leaving the Baron with a permanent limp. He retired to the Queen's Court where he lives off the treasure he accumulated and small commissions advising young nobles going out to adventure on the habits of the various monsters he had fought.
Assistant Steward Sigmund is a minor functionary in the Queen's Court, he spends most of his time dealing with the minor problems of the Steward, so the Steward can deal with the major problems. He is rarely seen in public, but occasionally fills in for the Steward at minor public ceremonies.
The amazing thing about these two is that, except for the Baron's limp and a scar on his face, they appear to be identical. With the addition that only a handful of people have seen them at the same time, there is a rumor that has been circulating through the Court that they are the same person. The Steward has confirmed that he has seen them together, but the Queen just smiles and chuckles if anyone brings it up to her.
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34. Marken of the Morose Motley
This jester is unusual in that he prefers greys and blacks in his garb, rather than the bright colors of a traditional court fool. His personality is equally unusual. Rather than capering and making obnoxious jokes, Marken's style of humor seems dry. A joke from him sounds like a businessperson, that requires you to think about it for a few minutes before you get it. His razor-sharp wit, combined with his understated delivery, make him a lot funnier than people expect when they meet him.
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35: Martin, the Bard/Gunslinger?
A human who speaks with an unrecognized accent. He claims to be from Connecticut, a land no scholar can find on any map. He seems to break into song at odd moments. He knows his way around firearms.
36. Grey Matter - A long, grey haired and bearded indecisive human man. A Wizard who over analyses everything and realises that not everything within the world is black and white. Mostly used as a wise ambassador, he has a few secrets and motives of his own.
Quick dot. Nice stuff here!
37. Josef Schmitter: a retired privateer (coughpiratecough) who won a rundown manor house and noble title--along with the debts that came with it--in a game of cards. After a year or more of struggling with debt collectors and an estate on the verge of financial and literal collapse, Schmitter suddenly became solvent, with enough money to pay off his debts, refurbish the estate, and live happily ever after. Just as quickly, he went from obscurity as a "new money" noble to a position of trust and camaraderie with the royal family.
Rumor has it he found something beneath the manor house--proof of an illegitimate heir, a powerful magical weapon, or a lost treasure--and rather than using it to take down the monarchy, he surrendered it to them in exchange for wealth, prestige, and genuine friendship and appreciation from the monarchy.
Of course, that's just rumor, right?
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38-39. Seme and Uke - Doppelgänger "twins" and the queen's royal consorts. Both are also arcane spellcasters (enchanter and bard, respectively) of middling but notable talent (6th level). Given the doppelgänger propensity for living off of others, rumors of their subversive plans are probably unfounded.
40. Huntress - The royal hound, an exceptionally strong and handsome mastiff. Notorious for being able to escape from any enclosure she's placed in. However, her pups are the strongest in the land, she's saved lives on more than one occasion, and is said to be an impeccable judge of character. What isn't said, or known, is that she's a hound archon.
41. Aeyrin Eight-Minds - The court alchemist, considered the brain of the realm. It is said (and feared) that she could take over by mere power alone, putting her research ahead of the realm's welfare.
Aeyrin has no seditious plans per-se but she is astoundingly close to an indirect takeover -- she lusts after the princess, and the feeling is mutual. Such an affair would be scandalous, even if no bastards come of it…though such a feat would be possible with Aeyrin's skill.
42. Mushroom-Grower-with-Fragrant-Needles - Though physically barred from court due to her large size and constant shedding, as this treant was hand-picked by Queen Tjikko to represent the Spruce Court she is considered a valued emissary and treated with due honors.
The Spruce Court itself is an alliance of sylvan beings who seek symbiosis with humanity rather than appeasement from it. This has worked well enough to greatly expand the Spruce Court's territory over the decades, though at the expense of the Beech Court. Mushroom-Grower-with-Fragrant-Needles assures concerned humans that the Beech Court are racist snobs whose influence is best diminished.
43. Shearin the Hairdresser - Known as the favorite hairdresser for the Queen and many ladies of the Royal Court, Shearin appears to be a rather plain, though well-dressed and groomed woman. In truth though, Shearin is Simon Greensman, a male witch (or sorcerer, wizard, etc...) who, in addition to doing their hair, also smuggles minor potions and erotic toys to the ladies of the court. He is also the Queen's occasional lover.
His current situation came about when the King banned him from the court. His clients, some of the most powerful women in the country, compelled him through bribery and threats to adopt his current disguise in order to continue serving them. While he finds the situation very profitable, his fears of discovery by the King, the humiliation of dressing like a woman, and especially the attention he receives from the guards and male couriers during his visits, are causing him considerable stress.
Ironically, the King is fully aware of the deception, but is pragmatic enough to give the Queen her entertainments. He does however take pleasure in Simon's obvious discomfort at the situation and has instructed a few of his more trusted guards and courtiers to make passes at the increasingly humiliated witch.