Montague Ford

Goodman Montague Ford

Montague Ford manages the Silver Spade tavern in the Lower Bailey, and his sister Pippa runs the Silver Spade Lodging Inn next door, with the two establishments attached by a passthrough in the wall.
Montague (please never call him 'Monty', only his sister is allowed to do that) grew up in the Lower Bailey, where he and his sister were raised by his aunt Gert, their father's sister, who owned the tavern before them. She was a favorite around the town who passed away a little over three years ago. His mother was a caravan guard who was injured in a journey through the Wild Wastelands and died of her injuries some months later when Montague was six and his sister was three, and his father was an Archer on the Keep walls who was a broken man ever since, eventually succumbing to a wasting sickness likely accelerated by drink. Despite technically being orphans, Montague has always had a sense that he and his sister ended up living better lives as Gert's wards than they would have with two self-absorbed military and mercenary parents.
While it troubled him deeply as a teenager, his father's inability to keep his shit together has become more understandable as he's grown up, and it likely has led to his great caution in trusting his own heart to anyone for a lifetime relationship, when life may be much shorter than you planned. Gert's passing about 3 years back hit him hard despite her advanced age, but he knows she's been at peace, and that she earned it. He tries in turn to earn her blessing by running her tavern and Inn as she would have, and did, when she was still alive. He and his sister Pippa have always been very close, thanks to their shared hardships and family events, as well as similarly enthusiastic and upbeat approaches to life. Where Pippa is more bubbly and excitable, Ford is more measured, a listener rather than a talker like Pippa. They adore each other and Ford's unwavering dedication to her success at the Inn has greatly contributed to his own at the Tavern.
Montague is also a fairly religious man, dedicated to the worship of Ombel, the lord of Commerce, who rewards ethical and fair merchants and blights those who cheat or defraud their customers. He gives fifteen percent of his personal income to the Temple, in addition to his 10% personal and business taxes to the Castellan and through him, to the crown. But he also spares some time and a large percentage of any table winnings to Danildee, the Lady of Luck, careful to keep her more addicting tenets on a short leash. He's a good, kind and fair man, slow to judge and quick to listen to any customer, and he usually gives people the benefit of the doubt. This has led to more than one disappointment and heartbreak in his life, however, so while he is a good friend when one needs someone to listen to them, he is guarded about his own life, his own feelings, and his own inner self out of necessity. At 31 he's still young enough to find a good woman (or man, should it come to pass; his stigmas are few) and settle down to raise a family, but he also knows he's not as young as he was at 25. For years his excuse for not circulating more was his need to care for his sister, and to take care of Gert as she aged and became less and less able to care for herself, but Gert is three years gone and Pippa is 28, more than capable of living her life without his assistance. He's just been that person for so long that now he's not sure what he should be doing.
In the meantime there's always good mead, great food and interesting company to be had at the Silver Spade Tavern, where he personally oversees the brewing and runs the bar, and entrusts the food and table-service to a pair of workers, Leda Faroun the barmaid (Daughter of the weaponsmith of the upper bailey Orn Faroun, built like a belly dancer and she knows it, but anyone who knows Montague knows not to lay a finger on her) and Vaughn Corkaire, a most excellent Chef who once worked for Gert, rarely seen in the front of the house but often complimented.
Not long after Gert's death, Montague received the honor of Goodman after thwarting a bank robbery which was being planned within his earshot in the Silver Spade, evidently a place convenient for conspirators as the bank is located across the street. He allowed the planning to continue but informed the guard and participated in the capture of two men who unexpectedly slipped the cordon that had surrounded the thieves, when they ran to the bar for cover, unaware that Ford was the one who had ratted them out. This happened three seasons ago, not long after his Aunt Gert's death, and he credits her spirit for watching over him as he was still struggling to manage the bar in her absence.
Montague is also fast friends with Janni Zeffirelli, whom he's known since he was a teen and Janni was a scrawny young boy who came in on the supply wagon to and from the Lambertus compound. Montague was a robust and athletic young man who took little Janni under his wing, beating the holy hell out of a few neighborhood bullies who would pick on the younger, small and fairly helpless Zeffirelli. At first, he was only humoring the boy when he put on a play or two, but as Janni got older his plays and performances have become better and better, and now Montague feels like he's giving the hardtack people of the Lower Bailey one of the only tastes of culture they're likely to get while also encouraging a young dramatic genius with no other outlets and not much in the way of prospects unless he goes all the way east to the Empires of Silk and Spice. He's also helped Zeffirelli with materials for his staging, and helps promote his plays with posters that he draws.
An avid gardener, Montague keeps a vegetable patch behind the tavern, has a few bird feeders for the local doves and stonebirds, and also helps maintain the flowerbeds and landscaping around the lower bailey. He has a cat named Moon who lazes around the tavern now, but in his kitten days earned his full name 'Moon Monkey' with constant fits of zoomies when Montague was a kid living with Gert upstairs above the tavern.

Social

Contacts & Relations

Running the lower bailey's only tavern puts him in contact with a variety of people at all levels in the keep, and one can assume he is always one of the best informed people in it.

Wealth & Financial state

Ford is not overtly wealthy, but he has done an excellent job with the Tavern and makes a fine living for himself - enough for a family, but it's just him these days.

Alignment

Neutral Good

Current Status

Proprietor of the Silver Spade Tavern

Current Location

The Keep on the Borderlands

Ethnicity

Esterline

Honorary & Occupational Titles

Goodman: Montague is a bit too self-conscious to really use the title, but he is proud of the certificate he received, and the dinner held in the Silver Spade to recognize his achievement has been his benchmark for parties ever since.

Age

31

Date of Birth

Fifth of Thirdmonth

Birthplace

Women's Ward in the Upper Bailey, Raven's Rock Keep

Current Residence

In his rooms upstairs above the Silver Spade Tavern.

Gender

Male

Eyes

light brown

Hair

Long, dark brown streaked with blonde (bleached) strands, often kept partly tucked up in a rondelet

Skin Tone/Pigmentation

Olive

Height

6'3"

Weight

255

Belief/Deity

Ombel, lord of Commerce; Danilee, the Lady of Luck