The Mask Collector

Lord of the High Plains Estate

By 120 A.E., the Medilazzo family had incorporated two powerful bloodlines into itself and the result was Cyrus Medilazzo. Gifted with Marocian wit and focus the Medilazzos had always been renowned for, sly Arshuan intellect through the sorcerous Seidityua family, and the famed Le Kerrien's gnomish knack for magic and technology, Cyrus seemed destined for greatness. The child's only character flaws - a precocious thirst for knowledge and an isolationist attitude - were a private tutor's dream. Here was a child who wanted to learn and preferred to spend long hours reading dusty old tomes alone over trivial childish entertainments or socializing with common children. All this was ruined when he met a merchant's daughter named Wyldine.
The wild little girl was nothing at all like Cyrus, save only that she had the necessary wit to equal his arrogant temperament and a stubborn sense of self-worth to brush aside his criticisms. The closer their friendship grew, the further Cyrus drifted from the expectations of his elders. Complicating his relationship with his family was the fact that all attempts to "correct" his behavior ended in embarrassment for the meddling adults, who simply could not deal with the boy's alienating genius. Despite his newly flippant attitude and apparently unambitious outlook, Cyrus received his first degree from the Academy Arcanum by the age of 16 - roughly the average age of entry into the prestigious school of magic.
By the time he was a young man, Cyrus had made a name for himself as "the east's most educated degenerate", as the local paper, the High Plains Holler, liked to call him. Regardless of such dubious journalistic integrity, he was popular with the working class due to his natural charisma and willingness to frequent their company. Known for raucous drinking and fights, Cyrus nevertheless displayed unexpected aptitude at commanding the day to day operations of the High Plains Estate. Whatever flaws he exhibited he simply shored up with magic.
With his talent for spellcasting, magnetic charisma, powerful family, money, and broad support from the common folk, Cyrus Medilazzo would have surely made his mark on the world. The Starvation ended such pleasant speculations.

---

Before the fear of the Baron grew to madness inducing intensity, the Mask Collector's rather tame character flaw was merely a sort of paternalistic arrogance, an elitist belief in his own unique capabilities of leadership. After the Baron's horrific assault on the hamlet in the shadow of the Collector's estate, that arrogance turned into frenzied authoritarianism hidden behind a facade of gentility. Fixating on the particular method of the Baron's torment - that of masks hung on trees like common criminals, but bereft of their bodies, cannibalized by the fiend - the Mask Collector devised an arcane method by which he could remove a person's mask without killing them.
Rather than present his findings as a voluntary means of protection, the Mask Collector simply gathered the remaining villagers, including the beautiful and gallant young woman who had captured his heart, and stole their masks, replacing them with wooden ones he carved with his own hands. Without their proper masks, the people became as children, simple and naive. They also lost the ability to form lasting memories. From moment to moment, they live life as though they've first discovered it. This the Collector considers a regrettable but acceptable cost. The masks he has taken are displayed proudly on the walls of his obsessively well defended estate, presumably safe from the Baron's attentions.
The gallant young lady resides in honor in a room adjacent to his own. No more does she scandalously dash about with her skirts around her waist, or laugh from the treetops and from horseback at his stuffy mannerisms. Now she sits at the only window left unbricked, staring into the impenetrable darkness as though she could still see the rooftops of her ruined hamlet.

Physical Description

General Physical Condition

A man of average height that walks with his chin up, chest out, and with a confident gait. His ivory mask is festively decorated and trimmed in gold.

Body Features

Tall but not overly so, the Mask Collector nevertheless seems much larger than his height. Enlarged by the power of his charismatic presence, the Collector has the curious ability to look up at people taller than him while giving them the distinct impression of being looked down upon.

Identifying Characteristics

Notably has only one eye.

Special abilities

The Mask Collector's real mask sits on the walls of his mansion. The one he wears normally is a simulacrum designed with the Preceptor Automata's assistance. He is able to magically borrow any mask he has taken and make use of the abilities of its true owner temporarily. This makes him nearly unstoppable inside his own house, as he can adapt to nearly any situation immediately.

Apparel & Accessories

He wears a fine coat, sturdy breeches, and high, hard leather boots. He has a fondness for hats and is never without one.

Specialized Equipment

A belt with many pouches holds spell components and an ornate scabbard in which rests a masterwork rapier.

Current Location

High Plains Estate

Species

Human

Ethnicity

Marocian

Eyes

Light, golden brown. Very bright.

Hair

Wavy, dark brown

Height

5'11"

Ruled Locations

• High Plains Estate