Ser Kenrith HardyIndex | HomePage | PlayerCharacters | SerKenrithHardy  Ser Kenrith Hardy was born the eldest son of Lord Oswain and Lady Emelyn Hardy and is the heir apparent. When he was very young, Kenrith fell ill with the summer fever. Although the Maester feared he would not survive, Kenrith managed to endure his brush with polio. He did lose the full use of his left arm, however, and as he grew older it slowly became clear that he was not growing out of it. The disease had ruined the development of the muscles of the arm, leaving him a cripple for life. Kenrith was packed up and sent to Riverrun not long after, to recover from his polio, right after the war ended. His father’s second wife, a young widow, brought with her a child by the previous marriage, a desire to produce more children by Lord Oswain, her brother as the new captain of Holdfast’s guards, and a deep dislike for Lady Emelyn’s children. After the war was over and Robert crowned, Ken was sent as a fosterling under Lord Tully at Riverrun where his Uncle, Ser Grell, is still Master-at-arms. Kenrith tried to become a knight as hard any child his age at Riverrun, perhaps harder… but there were simply things he could not do. To lance, one must steer the horse with one’s knees while the shielded left arm intercepts and deflects the other man’s lance and the right guides his own spear home. He could ride with his knees, but not protect himself as he charged. Similarly, firing a bow is impossible. He did compensate as best he could with his sword work, but a knight was no lithe fencer who fought with a pointed whip of steel. Often, one of his opponents would close with Ken and grab ahold with his free hand while the guards of their wooden swords were locked. It was a move Ken learned to defend against, but also one he could never hope to duplicate. Still, he compensated as best as he could, and tried to overcompensate for a dearth of arms by a surplus of endurance in his legs. He knew he was fortunate to walk without difficultly after his disease, and ran often to enjoy what the nameless gods had left him with. At Riverrun he also learned the ancient laws of hospitality and etiquette, of reading and writing, and the rudiments of arithmetic and geometry. He was no brilliant budding Maester, but he sought to sharpen his mind so that it could help make up for what he lacked. He spent evenings playing games of strategy or discussing old sieges and hard winters with the gray knights on the edge of retirement. He hoped summer would last his whole life, but knew in his northern blood that one day, as Lord Hardy, he would have to hold fast against winter. As he grew, he was able to visit with his father and half-brothers and sisters on only a few special occasions. While his father clearly still loved him, it was just as clear that his second wife bore a deep set dislike for him, and these were not the happiest days. When word came that his father had fallen ill, however, he mounted up the horse that Lord Tully had gifted him on his 17th birthday and left with Riverrun’s blessing. He has straight, dark hair like his mother and sharp cheekbones. His eyes, though, harkens back to the blood of the first men in his line. They are steel gray, and his gaze can be just as hard and unwavering as that same metal. He stands quite straight, often with his muscular right arm resting on his hip. His clothing is well tailored, but he wears his withered left arm folded up inside his tunic as if it weren’t there at all. He even has a similarly tailored suit of leather, mail, and plate. (See Kenrith Armor.) Kenrith is possessed of a vast supply of willpower, and a great sensitivity about his deformity that he tends to overcompensate for. He is not willing to accept he is unable to do something until you’ve proven to him that he can’t do it. Most of what a lord does is not done in battle, and he is more than capable of making men respect him. Kenrith understands well the meaning of his family’s words. He will hold fast to his place in life, and not let any knock him aside. Kenrith turned 19 years old shortly before completing his journey back to Holdfast. Kenrith is played by Vincent Cassel (the villian from 'Brotherhood of the Wolf'). Recent DevelopmentsKenrith traveled north with Mal and Jayne, two men at arms of Riverrun, as well as a group of sellswords bound for the Wall. (tbc) |
