Branno, the Brawler
Stats
Thing you are: Tough
Things you can do: Fighting, intimidation, protecting others
Background
Branno came from the Twin Cities basement fighting pits, where men bled for coin while gamblers shouted from behind smoke, sweat and cheap wine. He was never a champion in the polished arena sense. He was a back room bruiser, the kind of fighter used when someone wanted pain without spectacle. He learned to break noses, absorb punishment and stay standing long after clever men had run out of cleverness. Eventually he got tired. Not noble, not redeemed, just tired of waking with blood in his mouth for other people’s amusement.
He left for Estoria because ships went there and because anywhere else seemed better at the time. Then Estoria trapped him the way it traps many men: unpaid debts, familiar faces, regular work and no clean road out. Branno is the team’s muscle, bodyguard and last argument. He is not stupid, but he distrusts elaborate plans because he has seen too many fail when someone gets punched. Qadir hired him after Branno ended a warehouse dispute by throwing one man through a table and convincing the rest that negotiation was still possible.