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Background
The King of Couviere, Jean-Paul l’Valdan has a checkered reputation, but is much-beloved by the people of Couviere.
Born in the second year of the marriage between Maris and Cynthia l’Valdan, Jean-Paul is their eldest child and the Crown Prince of Couviere. Unsurprising given that Couviere was still embroiled in the Thirty Years' War at the time of his birth, he spent nearly his entire life being groomed for battle, command, and rulership, and being possessed of his father's sharp mind, excelled in his lessons. He also had a knack for making friends, showing signs of his mothers' talent for inspiring trust at an early age. His was a close family, despite the stresses of royal life, and to this day his siblings remain among his closest friends and supporters.
At the appropriate age, Jean-Paul was squired to Sir Brion l’Corren, a close cousin of the Duke of Murnord, and a Knight of the Order of the Temple. As a squire, Jean-Paul fought alongside Sir Brion against the tribes of the North, being blooded quite young at only 15 years of age. As with his early lessons, Jean-Paul eagerly absorbed much of what Sir Brion had to teach, growing into a more-than-capable fighter and battlefield strategist. It was also during this time, however, that Jean-Paul acquired a taste for strong drink, and as he grew older, this extended to a taste for female company. While just careful enough never to dishonor any women of noble birth, the dashing young Prince certainly left a trail of broken hearts in his wake.
Jean-Paul was transferred to Couviere's Southern Front in the closing years of the war. With both nations war-weary, and with Couviere's forces flagging after the crushing defeat of House l’Corren's main forces by House Haldis of Rivana, Jean-Paul found the armies of the south to be disorderly, demoralized, and undisciplined. Despite still being a squire, Jean-Paul was still the Crown Prince, and now for the first time he exercised his authority on his father's behalf. He knew he could not bolster the entire front, so he chose the center army of the front, and began encouraging the commanders to reinforce lax standards of discipline. He walked among the troops, listening to their stories and their fears and bolstering their spirits with well-chosen words. Sir Brion watched, and approved, and early in his 19th year, Jean-Paul was Knighted in a battlefield ceremony that oh-so-coincidentally (or not) occurred just in time for his father to dub him, as he had been conducting an inspection of the Southern Forces.
Along with his dubbing as a Knight came a promotion…when the commanders of the Center spoke highly of Prince Jean-Paul, King Maris saw fit to appoint his young son as the Commander of that segment of Couviere's armies. Fighting was at a lull and Maris had already heard inklings of High Priest Alphonse working towards bringing an end to the long conflict. So Maris returned to Rovilon, and Jean-Paul took command, finding the responsibility heavy, but simultaneously heartened by the fact that much of it was not so different from what he had already been doing, and the Commanders truly did seem to take some heart in his appointment despite his youth. Now with full command authority, Jean-Paul began drilling the soldiers in his command and reinforcing them with fresh (well, fresher) troops in anticipation of fighting being renewed. Jean-Paul would get his chance, but not quite in the manner anyone expected.
It was in early Fevrier of 1851 that an ambitious Rivanan General of House Tracano, seeking to try to claim back some of the glory he felt had been stolen from him by the stunning performance of the young Haldis Duke's defeat of House l’Corren, attempted to launch a winter invasion northward, figuring the enemy's guard would be down. He had heard tales of the inexperienced young Prince commanding the center portion of Couviere's lines, and thought a swift victory against Couviere's future ruler would put his name in the history books. Count Gerard Tracano would indeed be remembered, but not in glory…
Prince Jean-Paul's scouts spotted the mixed force of House Greycen, House Gerrell, and House Tracano long before they breached Couviere's (then-nebulous) border. He accurately calculated the path they would take, and prepared his army accordingly, breaking it into three segments and sending two flanking forces outward and south to encircle his foe. Overconfident that no one was expecting his winter assault, Count Gerard sent his own scouts out too late to discern the Prince's movements, and when they met a force that looked to be less than half their side waiting in defense, Gerard assumed a swift victory would be his. Instead, he found himself completely outflanked and his army utterly routed in one of the shortest battles of the Thirty Years' War.
Being Merciful, Prince Jean-Paul had left an opening for the Rivanans to flee southward (since he knew a truly cornered army would fight much harder), and the Rivanan forces took full advantage when they found themselves set upon from three sides. All told, the Rivanans lost nearly half their number, and the Couviere forces not even a fifth of their own. It was, put plainly, one of the most one-sided victories Couviere had seen in the entire course of the Thirty Years War. Count Gerard perished when he was thrown from his horse while trying to rally a band of archers to mount a heroic charge to break through the enemies lines! Strangely, no one seemed to think it amiss that he was returned to friendly lines with seven arrows in his back bearing Rivanan fletching. After all, all present, including his second, who was a veteran Knight of no small repute, testified that he had "fallen on them" when thrown from his horse. Victory and glory truly belonged to Prince Jean-Paul.
Of course, no one there at the time yet knew that the War had technically ended three days prior….
There was no real embarrassment for Jean-Paul over the mistake, though, as all understood that the relay of messages takes time, and carrier birds were in short supply after many long years of war. Oh, a few on both sides of the border (but mostly Rivana's) made some noise about the Couviere Prince trying to prolong the fighting (conveniently ignoring that it had been Count Gerard who had invaded), but none of it really stuck. The flipside, however, was that a victory that should have made Jean-Paul one of Couviere's greatest heroes was…rather muted in the grand scheme of things, since Couviere was unable to capitalize on any advantage it had gained. Privately, King Maris gave his son all due accolades (and even a fair bit publicly), which went a long way towards soothing any wounds to Jean-Paul's pride, but the War left Jean-Paul feeling strangely…unfulfilled.
At first, Jean-Paul slid into bad habits again, with drink and women and frequent brawls. Of course, as tales are wont to do, they were amplified and exaggerated in the retelling, and before long Jean-Paul had gained a reputation as "The Black Prince of Couviere." Mixed in with the rumors were tales that he was itching for war with Rivana to begin again (which admittedly may have slipped from him in an extremely drunken state). Eventually, it took the one force that no son can resist to bring Jean-Paul back from the brink: His mother's wrath. Of course, being who she is, Queen Cynthia's "wrath" did not manifest as so much as a sternly-worded lecture filled with disapproving looks. No, instead she simply did the most natural thing in the world: She found her son a good woman, and convinced his father to decree that he would marry her forthwith.
The Lady in question was Lady Louisa l’Corren. Lady SIR Louisa l’Corren. Where one might expect that Queen Cynthia would choose someone similar in temperament to herself for her son, instead she chose someone she felt would have both the strength to withstand Jean-Paul's force of personality, and the patience to understand that bringing him to heel might not be an instantaneous process. Louisa was a reasonably-accomplished warrior herself, and as a daughter of the l’Corren Duke, was a good match politically, especially for bolstering that House's morale after the Thirty Years' War. Perhaps to be expected, Louisa and Jean-Paul had many clashes in the early years of their marriage, which of course gave rise to even more rumors that their marriage was purely a political arrangement. In fact, it very well may have stayed precisely that were it not for yet another intervention, this time by King Maris himself. All it took to halt and turn around Jean-Paul's slide into debauchery was a single word: "Please."
Realizing how far he had fallen (and how much further he would have if he continued), Jean-Paul pulled away from his vices. With the aid of Princess Louisa, he suffered the withdrawals of alcohol and survived. He gave up the women of dubious character altogether, and before long, Louisa gave birth to a son, and then a daughter, and then another son. Jean-Paul found purpose in his family, and matured into something approaching true wisdom. More temperate than ever and with an eye towards the future, Jean-Paul once again moved among the people, earning their admiration everywhere he went. Yet oddly, despite this turnaround in behavior, rumors still dogged him of brawling and poor behavior. At first he thought it simply recycling of old tales. Then he thought it might be Rivanan influence trying to sully his reputation, but the longer the tales continued and grew, the more he came to realize that it was not someone outside of Couviere that was attacking his character…it was someone within.
While Prince Jean-Paul has his suspicions as to who seeks to sully his name further, he has shared them only with his mother and his wife. Recently, Queen Cynthia bade Prince Jean-Paul to work closely with the Blue Cavaliers, Couviere's nigh-legendary Royal Guardsmen, and he has become their de-facto leader (even if they have an "official" commander he works alongside). He remains quite popular with the people of Couviere, but continues to struggle with a reputation that remains less-than-above reproach.
On the Grid
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Tall and lean, the Crown Prince of Couviere possesses all the regal bearing of his father, but between his well-chiseled cheekbones and intense blue eyes he possesses what some might call "the hungry look." Still, his features, while angular, could certainly be described as handsome by most standards, with a close-cropped moustache and goatee and a head of thick light-brown hair. He moves with energy and agility, carrying himself with the discipline of the warrior and the grace of a dancer. Still, there is a certain air about him that speaks of weariness beyond his years, and those bright blue eyes never seen to stop searching, though what they're looking for remains an open question.
Personality
Jean-Paul is outwardly a bold and forthright leader of men, who makes friends easily and in many ways shows much of the foresight his father had, even if he was a bit slower in developing it. He is genuinely charming and decisive, though he certainly can be a bit more impulsive than the late King Maris. Moreover, Jean-Paul has a genuine love of the people he rules over, and an uncanny knack for making the person he's speaking to at any given moment feel like they're the most important person in his life at that particular instant (a gift he seems to have inherited from his mother). He's quick with a joke and has a ready smile, though when matters are serious he does become appropriately sober. Generally he at least professes an upbeat view of Couviere's future, though he does not take it for granted or assume that this brighter future will not require plenty of hard work to achieve.
Much like his father, there is a darker side to Jean-Paul's personality that leans towards the depressive and pessimistic. He is hard on himself for his perceived failures and occasionally even self-blames for things he has little or no control over. He also has deep fears that he might be unworthy of the throne he will inherit or incapable of fulfilling the duties and responsibilities his position will require (despite reassurances from nearly everyone that he'll be a fine or even great king). Unlike his father, he used to try to fight off this side of himself with drinking, fighting, and the company of courtesans or even common whores (even more scandalously of both genders, no less), from which his "black" reputation was derived. In recent years, however, his marriage has tempered his vices considerably, reserving his hard-drinking for appropriate celebrations and having curtailed the brawling and partners other than his wife altogether. There does seem to be a constant threat that he might backslide into bad habits, however.
Quirks
Personality Quirks
Charismatic - Jean Paul has a strong personality, and while he generally turns it towards being charming, he can also be quite intimidating when the situation calls for it. If there's one thing he certainly inherited from his father, it's a good, cold "death glare" when someone annoys him.
Down-to-Earth - Jean Paul spent a good deal of his youth "slumming it" and has even been a fugitive on the run within his own Kingdom. He has few illusions about the way the world works and generally has a great deal of hard-won common sense.
Shrewd - While perhaps not a genius outside of military matters, Jean-Paul is generally clear-headed and sensible, often far more than people expect him to be, given his past.
Skill Quirks
Military Genius - Jean-Paul has a tremendous gift for tactics and strategy. He is insightful and innovative on the battlefield and keeps a cool head when the battle plan has to be adjusted to reflect the realities of the situation.
Natural Leader - Knowing how to fight and win a battle is one thing. Convincing those around you to charge into that battle with you is another matter entirely. Jean-Paul, however, never seems to lack for inspiring words and infectious courage. He slips easily into the leader's role, and has a true gift for winning the personal loyalty of those around him.
Social Quirks
Black Sheep (Formerly "Bad Reputation") - Let's face it, the l'Valdan have a reputation for being stuffy and staid over dynamic. They're supposed to be competent, but not particularly exceptional. Jean-Paul tends to subvert these expectations at every turn. He was a hellraiser in his younger days and for a time had quite a black reputation as a lecher and drunkard (though it would later come to light that the reputation lingered long past Jean-Paul maturing into a more thoughtful and selfless fellow due to Cardinal Lucien Ramius' keeping the rumors circulating). In any case, Jean-Paul does not fit very many of the l'Valdan stereotypes, beyond the whole "competent steward" business. He's a bold and inspiring military leader, deeply beloved by the people, and has a warm sense of humor about both himself and the world around him, even if it veers towards the playfully sardonic at times.
Popular - The common folk of Couviere love Prince Jean-Paul, and for the most part, he loves them back. He's not quite sure how this all came about, but he's grateful for their support nonetheless. In fact, it's arguable that he's more popular than his father (even after Maris' heroic death), and possibly by a wide margin. The common folk of Couviere are thrilled to have a "strong" leader that they can be proud of, even if some of the nobility are still a bit uncertain as to what kind of King Jean-Paul will be (though he is in the process of winning many of them over as well).
Renowned - Jean-Paul's military leadership and battlefield exploits have given him a reputation as one of the Edge's most talented military leaders. He won one of Couviere's most one-sided victories at the close of the Thirty Years' War, and led forces to the relief of Valetta twice, to say nothing of banding together the ("disbanded") Blue Cavaliers and infiltrating Rovilon just in time to rescue his family from Cardinal Lucien Ramius when the fellow's treachery was unveiled (though the timely recovery of King Maris also played a large part in that). In any case, Jean-Paul is well-known throughout the Edge, both for being a colorful figure and a superb commander.
Logs and Sundry
(alaric alina antonia artos clarke cynthia evelyn event gabriel gwedolyn jean-paul joffrey justin log louisa lucas marcella michael nyssa samuel talia)
(adrienne aidric alina alysande ania artos bartolo bella broderick clara darman dawn destrian elaida elrick emilia eva event gabriel gawain ghazi giorgio graham gwendolyn hashim jaren jean-paul joffrey johanna jordan kabede leander log louisa marcel martyn michael quentyn raelyn raimond rashad rosana samuel samwell stephen thaddeus tristan)