Beranz

Information

Player: Krent

Character Full Name: Beranz Grilnoz.

Character In-Game Name: Beranz

Nickname(s): None.

Association(s): Steamwheedle Cartel, Thorsocket International, Grilnoz Financial.

Race: Goblin

Class: Rogue

Age: 67

Sex: Male

Hair: Gray, in the beginning stages of balding.

Eyes: Beady goblin yellow.

Weight: 49 lbs.

Height: 2' 9”

Usual Garments/Armor: The snazziest suits you ever saw.

Other: Owns and runs the successful loan firm Grilnoz Financial. It is important to know, however, that Grilnoz Financial is a subsidiary of the larger Thorsocket International–a conglomerate run by a mogul named Grizdren Thorsocket. While Grilnoz Financial is named after and run by Beranz, the true owner would be considered Thorsocket.

Personality

Alignment: Neutral-Evil.

Professional, respectful, diplomatic. Beranz knows that running a successful business means knowing how to negotiate and compromise. In order to maximize profits, the goblin has learned how to deal with a variety of people and personality types, setting time to listen and respond appropriately. Beranz knows how to be respectful without being condescending, attentive without being submissive. If it means a good opportunity for the company, Beranz is willing to work for the mutual benefit of all.

That being said, the man suppresses a lot of anger, hostility, and overall negative emotions. Prone to substance abuse and avoidance, Beranz keeps his personal side locked under chain. He sometimes has bouts of uncontrolled rage. While they are few, they are significant enough to warrant wariness.

The goblin is also unforgiving. Life in Kezan taught Beranz to spare no expense when dealing with an enemy. The goblin loan lord is very meticulous and obsessive when exacting revenge. Beranz is not the type to let things go or rest.

One way or another, a goblin gets his coin.

History

Beranz Grilnoz was born into a family of five in the lowest rungs of the Undermine. Like many of the Kezani lower class, the Grilnoz family knew little of wealth or comfort. Both parents worked as low-wage assembly line workers, making all kinds of explosives. As was typical of munition sweat-shops, the conditions of the factory were abysmal. Hundreds of goblins cluttered together in the smoke-filled factory, working up to 16 hours a day in a mess of machinery. Worker safety and comfort were often sacrificed for profit maximization.

Being the oldest of his siblings, Beranz was expected to follow in the foot steps of his mother and father. The young goblin joined his parents on the assembly line at the age of 9. He was not the only child working in the factory. Despite the efforts of Beranz and his parents, financial strain remained high for the Grilnoz family. By the time Beranz was 12, his other two siblings joined him on the assembly line. Before long, the entire family worked on making stock piles of explosives.

Due to the conditions of the factory and because of the item of production, accidents were common place. The workers of the factory faced mutilation and death every time they came in for work. Beranz's father ended up losing both of his hands during one such accident; the trigger mechanism for a grenade detonated prematurely while the old goblin tinkered with it. Beranz's father avoided death due to the fact that the grenade was not fully assembled. Still, the explosion was enough to render him crippled, straining the family even more. Having lost one worker, the Grilnoz family was forced to work more. Tragedy would come again, when Beranz's little brother, Parn, lost his entire arm trying to grab a loose screw near a mess of whirring gears. The medical attention necessary to save Parn's life was not administered in time, with the 10 year old goblin bleeding to death on the factory floor.

The loss of Parn was a huge blow to the Grilnoz family, both emotionally and financially. With financial obligations rising more as the family lost viable means of income, Beranz was pushed to satisfy them however he could. Beranz, being considered the financial head of the family, became increasingly more desperate to bring his family out of their poverty. More and more, he grew fearful that his little sister would share a fate similar to Parn. When he was 15 years of age, Beranz's mother became ill with the “black lung,” an illness wrought on by her many decades of working in a smoke-filled, factory floor.

That was enough for Beranz. Knowing that the Grilnoz family would not be able to survive on the wages of two assembly-line workers, Beranz sought his wealth within the criminal underbelly of Kezan. Joining a gang of petty thugs, Beranz spent less time in the factory and more time on the streets; learning all the methods of hustling, thieving, and conning others out of coin. And, of course, this life would introduce Beranz to a world of violence.

Beranz's criminal career went along as most did; fast, hard, full of loss and strife. Beranz got accustomed to the cycle of violence and extortion, slowly becoming accustomed to saying goodbye to his friends a little too early. While Beranz scrounged at the bottom of the criminal ladder, his little sister, Keri, devoted all of her time in the factory. The disparity between the two grew, with Beranz becoming more accustomed to the criminal world and Keri becoming more involved in the politics within the factory.

Opportunity struck when Beranz was 19 years of age. While he hadn't rose to any prominent rank in this time, Beranz and the gang he was a part of was given an opportunity they could not turn down. After years of exploitation, the workers of Thorsocket Munitions (the company that owned the factory that the Grilnoz family had worked at) grew tired of the meager pay and hazardous conditions. The workers began to use the dreaded words of “worker's rights” and “union.” The talk of such detestable things caused a panic within the upper echelons of the goblin hierarchy–the factory owners and managers wanted to prevent any and all labor reforms.

At the center of all this “union” and “rights” talk was Beranz's sister, Keri. By talking about ideas like “worker's compensation for accidents,” “medical insurance,” “five-day work weeks,” and “over time payment,” Keri Grilnoz was considered a firebrand radical who threatened to destroy the entire Goblin order. While Beranz had abandoned his life on the assembly line, Keri had embraced it. As the years toiled onwards, Keri witnessed more accidents and tribulation. Eventually, Keri Grilnoz reached a breaking point, no longer willing to stand by in the face of blatant exploitation. She, and other factory workers like her, began to organize a resistance all around the Undermine. They were regarded as ideological terrorists; heralds of destruction bent on undoing all the greatness of Goblin society. The upper class of the Undermine unanimously agreed that the growing “worker's movement” was something that needed to be stopped, whatever the cost.

Beranz and his gang would meet such a cost. The labor movement that Keri Grilnoz became involved with needed to be de-legitimized in the eyes of the Kezan society. The upper crust of goblin society knew that if they crushed the labor movement through direct violence, it would only spurr the unwashed masses to further resistance. So instead, gangs–like the one Beranz was a part of–were given large sums of money to subvert the movement in every way they could.

Whenever there was a peaceful protest, Beranz and his gang would infiltrate the crowd to turn it violent. Where ever there was an underground meeting, Beranz and his gang would spy in on it. Every time there was a strike about to go into effect, Beranz and his gang would round up a number of “scab” workers to take the place of the picketers. At every turn, both publicly and privately, Beranz worked to subvert and sabotage the growing labor movement.

Through his actions, Beranz became a bitter political enemy of his sister, Keri. And as unfortunate as it was for the Kezan working class, the meddling of the Undermine elite had paid off. By the time Beranz was 26, the labor movement had been completely crushed; with too many gangs having sabotaged the efforts of the proletariat. Eventually, all of the leaders within the movement (the ones that Keri Grilnoz had collaborated with), had either been bought off, intimidated away, or outright assassinated.

Keri herself, due to Beranz's influence, was one of the individuals “lucky” enough to be bought off. Though she did not take the political defeat lightly; Keri denounced Beranz, cursed his name, and vowed never to be involved in his life. The would-be labor advocate told Beranz that she no longer considered herself his sister. Beranz informed Keri that he owned the legal rights to the 'Grilnoz' family name. At that, Keri shrugged her shoulders and said “then I'm no longer a Grilnoz,” walking off.

To this day, Beranz and Keri have not spoken. Every attempt Beranz has made to contact her has ended in failure.

Though having completely alienated himself from his sister, Beranz's loyalty and dedication to subverting the labor movement came with many rewards. Beranz became skilled at organizing violence for very specific purposes, becoming a valuable asset to Thorsocket International. Eventually, his gang became legitimate employees of the Thorsocket conglomerate, gaining a much sought-after position of power and wealth. By the time Beranz reached his mid-30's, he had become a certified “company man,” working within an office and managing paper-work.

After many hard years of work, Beranz had finally grabbed onto the wealth he had so wanted. Though, he noted it came at the cost of his family–both of the Grilnoz parents had passed by this time. With Keri gone, Beranz was the last of the Grilnoz family. The goal that pushed him so hard–to support his family–was now gone. And with it, was Beranz's feeling of purpose.

The guilt swelled up within the middle-aged goblin. He propelled himself into a life of womanizing and substance-abuse, never able to get over the split with his sister. By the time Trade Prince Steamwheedle had announced an ambitious migration out of Kezan, Beranz was more than ready to leave his home. Beranz had seen too many friends and family members die. The Undermine was full of loss, and little gain.

Along with many other key members of Thorsocket International, Beranz migrated over to Kalimdor sometime before the events of the Third War. He, in collaboration with thousands of other goblins, would work with setting up the mega metropolis of Ratchet. Having just enough money to start up his own business, Beranz became the head of Grilnoz Financial. Acting as a subsidiary of the larger Thorsocket International, Grilnoz Financial became one of the many key gold-loaners within the Steamwheedle Cartel.

Though, dealing with all the new races was not without it's problems. Like most goblin financial firms, Grilnoz Financial often ran into clients who couldn't–or wouldn't–pay their dues. While Grilnoz Financial made every effort to keep things as civil and cordial as possible, Beranz wasted no time in calling back to his days as a violent gangster, organizing “forceful collection” dates with those unfortunate enough to fall behind on their payments.

Because of the demand for “forceful collection,” (those damn non-goblins are -so- irresponsible with their finances) Beranz sought out the aid of many mercenaries. Due to the nature of the work involved in collecting debt, Grilnoz Financial had no problem in hiring non-goblins as official employees. And, perhaps as a way of dealing with the guilt of what he did to his sister, Beranz takes a special interest in connecting and helping the down-trodden miscreants of the Horde and Alliance. On more than one occasion, Beranz has gone out of his way to help a lost soul find a home within the turbulent city of Ratchet. It was in this way that Beranz met Corlmitz, an exile orc from the Horde whom–for better or worse–found a place within goblin society.

Over the years, Beranz has run his business as successfully as any goblin could want. With a steady stream of income and a dedicated group of employees, Grilnoz Financial stands secure in their presence within the debt economy. Though, having now reach the later stage of his life, Beranz struggles with his legacy. While having been involved with multiple marriages, Beranz has no children–and is too old to make any. Being the last surviving member of the Grilnoz family, the old goblin struggles with what he'll leave behind, and to whom.

In his late days, Beranz wonders if a certain orc, who's lived a life of exile and violence similar to his own, could manage a financial enterprise like a proper goblin....