Vanidicus Alexander

"From discipline comes strength, from strength comes willpower, from willpower comes magic, from magic comes mastery, from mastery comes discipline.*

Vanidicus ‘Van’ Alexander is a Battle-mage in the service of Magus Senate of Dalaran. With a service lasting in years in fealty to the City-state of Dalaran, Baelheit has spent years learning, applying, and teaching in the ways of the Arcane. While his service to the Kirin-Tor is still new, he hopes to apply his many years of military training to learn magic with a flexible and disciplined mind.

Description
Van tries to project himself as a stern man. His eyes are not wide and his lips don't usually hold a smile. There are many hard lines across his face and a light scar on his right cheek. His red beard is full and long hair is tamed into two braids with occasional wisps of hair escaping despite his best efforts. His nose is slightly crooked from a previous break that didn't heal as well as it could have. His left pinky is shorter then is right, as it is missing the top two portions of it. He tries to carry himself with knightly dignity, having once been a knight before discovering his gift for magic and his stride is measured and rigid.

Vanidicus also always carrier his weapons with him. A sword he has carried since his young days, and a simple staff with a focusing crystal on the head that he carved himself. He has since named his weapons; his sword, Force, and his staff Verve. Meaning Strength and Vigor respectively.

History
When Van was born to lesser noble family that had a longstanding tradition of knighthood in Stormwind some 13 years before the Dark portal opened. Growing up it had been his dream to follow in the footsteps of his father, Jordan Alexander. Eventually his dream was realized when he was squired to a knight named Richard Johnson of the Stormwind Army at the age of 13. When the Orcs came pouring through the Dark Portal and the Stormwind Army marched for War his father never came back. Vanidicus remained in Stormwind until Richard did, he had been grievously wounded during an initial skirmish and had been evacuated home, missing an arm. When the Orcish Horde came for Stormwind, the recovering Richard took his young squire Van and followed the rest of the surviving humans to Lorderon. Van spent the next six years training under Richard and also a man named Anderson, when the Orcs came back again and marched north, he was ready to fight to avenge his father. He engaged in several small battles but finally proved himself during the alliance reinforcement of Quel'thalas and was promoted to Sergeant. After the war he stayed with the army to help train new recruits, eventually he left the army to his foster father, Richard. They retired to a small village in northern Lorderon and took up smithing and farming.

When the third war came and Lorderon fell to the foulest betrayals, the Scourge began to ravage the land. It didn’t take them long to reach his village. Richard and Van rallied a valiant defense but it was ultimately not enough, most died, including Richard, but Van managed to escape with several villagers. Eventually though, the Burning Legion would come in force, and Archimond the Defiler would destroy the realm of Dalaran, killing a great amount of people. As Van and the remaining villagers fled south from the Scourge they met up with fleeing survivors and Magi from Dalaran. It was at this time Van discovered his gift of magic.

The Dalaran Survivors and the remaining few villagers banded together and helped protect each other over the months from the rampant undead and Van continued to learn what magic he could from the mages who were willing to teach him. Learning what he could, over time he became proficient in force magic and arcane usage as it allowed the most ammount of brute fore. He also made efforts to learn of frost magic over time, but like many other more intricate magics, they for the large part eluded him. He would combine these techniques with his knightly training and act as a battle-mage in defense of those that he held dear.

After the battle of Mt. Hyjal and the defeat of the Burning Legion Van returned to stormwind and assisted in its rebuilding and defense. His mage companions returned to Dalaran to rebuild and his few surviving villagers settled in Stormwind. He joined the stormwind army, his rank carrying over, and served as a magical advisor and rear support at the Dark Portal during the War in Outland and participated in the expeditionary forces to Northrend and served at Valiance Keep in Borean Tundra, combating the presence of the garrisoned scourge and serving as a squad leader for attacks on local scourge holdings. Eventually he was given leave to visit the recently relocated Dalaran where he reunited with several of his magi friends in the Kirin tor and learned a few tricks, taking time to become proficient in several helpful ways of frost magic. He turned down an invitation to join however as he felt he had a duty to Stormwind first. Upon returning to Valiance Keep he served with distinction during the dealings with Naxxanaar and was promoted to Staff Sergeant. Once the Lich King fell he returned to Stormwind where he primarily oversaw the new recruits and enjoyed some much needed down time.

When the cataclysm hit and broke the world, he watched Deathwing land on the gates of Stormwind he fell into a period of depression which lasted for several weeks. How could he fight against something like that with sword and spear and what magics he knew? During this time Van spent much of his free time with the Stormwind Circle of Magi, trying to improve. He served as an in between for the stormwind circle and the Stormwind guard during this time trying to coordinate their efforts better as the Horde began a campaign of aggression. He served in multiple theaters across Azeroth; Stonetalon Peaks and Ashenvale primarily as reinforcement units.

Now that the Mists of Pandaria have parted and the horde on the march and feeling he needs to make a difference that he cannot make as part of the Army, he has been given leave to refine his talents. Van now works with the Kirin Tor as a Battle-Mage, growing stronger all the time.

Personality and traits
Two decades of military training have given Vanidicus a no nonsense and structured outlook on life. He believes in order above all things and while he is open to new ideas and modifications to existing strategy on the basis of pragmatism. He does not approve of wild deviation from the norm and is slow to accept new ideas and doctrine, instead preferring to rely on tried and true techniques and rigorous practice. He applies this outlook to how he goes about his studies and training in magic. Van strongly approves of Dalaran’s now official ties to the Alliance, but he strongly disapproves of Jaina Proudmoore’s appointment to leader of the Kirin Tor, seeing her as a leader driven by vengeance and emotion over practical doctrine which he believes will lead to aggression above and beyond what is required and rapid action without attention to consequences; a practice which Van intensely dislikes.

Despite Vanidicus’s hardline personality, he is not without a softer side. While he maintains his composure most of the time he is not good with speaking to women and can come off as somewhat chauvinistic or overly chivalrous. He deeply appreciates the company of comrades who have earned his trust and jokes occasionally when the mood strikes him, finding humor in the small things.

Equipment
Vanidicus has used much equipment over the years, swords, shields and spears, he has come to favor a select few since his tutelage under the mages of Dalaran.

- “Force''' The broadsword he has carried since his first days in the Army. It has been in his hand through one hundred battles and will participate in one hundred more. He had not named the sword for a long time. Eventually, using what little skill in enchanting he possessed and the help of the Stormwind Circle of Magi, he was able to enchant the blade with a magical aura, giving it an absurdly sharp cutting edge as a displacement aura around it pushes material aside. It also maintains its strength as it were newly forged. Van uses the blade as a focus as well, using it to project bursts of arcane force to augment it’s combat power.

'''- Verve. ''' A simple staff carved and crafted by Van many years ago when he first began to learn magic. Van has carried this staff with him for many years and it has seen much wear and usage. The staff has bandages wrapped around the middle of grip and is tipped with a light purple crystal to serve as a focus. Van uses the staff to channel more complicated magics through such as barriers, area of effect spells, and other abilities. It’s name, verve, means ‘vigor’ or ‘spirited’ as to signify Van’s desire for more knowledge on magic.

'''- Flintlocke Pistol. '' Since the standardization and introduction of firearms into the military, most NCO’s or higher have carried a sidearm of some sort and Staff Sergeant Vanidicus Alexander is no exception. A finely crafted side arm with small carvings done by his dwarven friend, Angris Stoutheart, it is capable of firing two shots before reloading. Van keeps this sidearm on a small holster on his lower back, hoping to keep it concealed as to be a surprise when he uses it.

- '''Kirin Tor Signet Ring. '''One of dozens of identical rings worn by every Mage of Dalaran. Focusing on the ring activates its ley-channel, enabling contact with colleagues over vast distances.

Relationships
Vanidicus has many friendships in the guard and maintains contact with his former villagers in stormwind and his magi friends in Dalaran. Now that he lives in the mage city he gets to see them a lot more. He has had no significant long term romantic relationships, but an person of his affection remains garrisoned at Valiance Keep. He hopes to one day see her again.

Trivia
Vanidicus translates to “Speaker of Lies.” Though this is far from the truth.