Ren o' The Star Master of the Merchants' and Traders' Union

Ren is 94 years old, 5'9" tall, and 180 lbs. A half-elf, Ren clearly takes after his father with black hair, upswept eye brows, pointed ears and a thick moustache. Ren was already a successful and wealthy merchant when he arrived in the Free City, and his wide geographical knowledge and elven connections made him a valuable recruit to the union. When Ren was eventually appointed Master of the union, one of his lifelong ambitions was fulfilled.

Ren 's main weakness is his gambling. Ren found little to entertain him in the Free City, and his taste for risk became overwhelming.

Ren spends endless hours at the Wheel of Gold and will bet on just about anything. While Ren is wealthy, he has run through an incredible amount of money-much to the distress of his friends and his colleagues in the union. Already there are murmurs of discontent among the union membership.

Ren 0’ the Star was the product of the dalliance between a human merchant’s daughter and an elven noble in the Kingdom of Celene. His mother loved him and raised him by herself, with help from her father. When Ren was two years old, his mother married a merchant whom she had known since childhood. The combination of his stepfather’s careful training, his father’s influence (for he visited his father regularly), and his maternal grandfather’s advice, he decided to study the arts of dweomercraft and swords- manship.

As Ren 0’ the Star grew up, he displayed the stigma of his father’s noble House: a reddish, star-shaped birthmark on his shoulder (hence, his nickname). His proper name in the human languages is Ren Shan Fitsparaleen, which indicates his illegitimate relationship to the noble elven House of Paraleen. The combined wealth of his father, stepfather, and mother could pay for the best tutors, and young Ren was, like most half-elves, an excellent pupil, combining the best features of his mixed ancestry.

When he reached maturity, he received an inheritance from his maternal grandfather, which he used to begin a business. He traded furs, ivory, and precious metals- anything that combined high value and low bulk. If offered something bulky at an irresistible price, he would buy it, but the bother of transportation and security in getting bulky goods to a profitable market made him hesitant to accept such items.

He soon realized that the hub of mercantile activity on Oerth was the city of Greyhawk. After accumulating a respectable amount of wealth, he moved there and joined the Traders Union. His knowledge of various parts of Greyhawk and his connections in human and elven communities made him a valuable recruit for the Union. Soon he was a wealthy, respected trader, investing his wealth in more and more trading ventures across Oerth.

His success was not without problems, however. There were various envious people who resented the “half- breed’s’’ success. Their actions against Ren varied, from magical scrying methods to learn his business plans, to actual assassination attempts. There were even attempts to bribe bandits and humanoids to attack his caravans. Whenever Ren found out who was behind these attempts, he retaliated. After a while, surviving enemies began spreading the word that he was not an easy mark. Eventually, Ren was chosen as a Master of the Traders Union, fulfilling one of his life’s ambitions.

Ren 0’ the Star is a half-elf, and takes strongly after his elven father. He is 5’9” tall, with black hair, upswept eyebrows, pointed ears, and a thick moustache.

He has a set of antique bronze plate mail of which he is very proud. This armor was given to him by a tribe of barbarians who found it while looting an ancient ruin. It was a great day for him when he persuaded them that, in exchange for the armor, he would present them with a wonderful horse. The horse was a magnificent beast. He had made certain of that, when he polymorphed it from a monkey a few hours earlier. When the barbarians found the horse missing, they naturally checked Ren’s camp, but no one made the connection between the little monkey sitting so innocently on Ren’s shoulder and the missing steed.

In addition to his armor, Ren owns a wand of lightning which he won in a dice game, gauntlets of swimming and climbing, a necklace of adaptation, and a folding boat. His collection of magical weapons includes a longbow of speed, bastard sword of sharpness, and a cursed sword + 1 that he sometimes sells to raise cash, knowing that it will return. The bastard sword of sharpness has an intelligence of 14, an alignment of chaotic neutral, detects precious metals and gems, and argues constantly with Ren. “Some people are hen-pecked,” Ren will moan, “but I’m sword-pecked!” His old trading associates are used to seeing him walking along, arguing with his sword.

Ren’s main weakness is gambling. In the old days, when he was a trader crossing half of Oerth, he was able to satisfy his taste for risk easily, and make a profit. He gambled then, but it was mostly minor dice games with his trading associates. He kept his losses well within what he could afford.

With little to entertain him in Greyhawk except counting his gold, he has let his taste for gambling overpower him. He spends endless time in Nerof Gasgal’s gambling house, as well as others. He bets on horse races, on elections, and his friends have been amazed to see him seriously trying to make wagers on which of a pair of flies will take off first.

Possibly Ren 0’ the Star feels that he is too wealthy to be hurt by his losses. This is not exactly true. He is rich, but he is not infinitely wealthy, and already he has run through an incredible amount of money. His friends have tried warning him, but he brushes off their warnings. Nerof Gasgal and other proprietors of gambling houses love him, since his wealth is funneling rapidly into their pockets.

AC 0 (bronze plate mail and shield, Dex 17 MV 6; F7/M7; hp 58; THAC0 13/11; #AT 3/2; Dmg 2d4 + 1 (morning star)(bastard sword, long bow, dagger, mace Str 17, Dex 17, Con 18, Int 17, Wis 10, Cha 16; AL CN.

Spells: 4 1st, 3 2nd, 2 3rd, and 1 4th.

Magical items: wand of lightning, gauntlets of swimming and climbing, necklace of adaptation, folding boat.