Lord Strozza Mazetti
Account for all you can, suffer no setback.
Description: Stern featured, a figure that seems born of silent admonishment and disapproving looks. Tall and average of build, this man carries himself with a firm, confidant, manner - no motion wasted, no action frivolous, everything controlled. Raven locks hang in waves to his shoulders, regularly tied back to keep from getting in his face. Thin browed with storm cloud gray eyes that frequently look down along the length of his straight lined and noble nose. Square chinned with an angular jaw that seems perpetually with a scruff that implies grooming is a secondary matter for him at best. Thin lipped, and with stern lines beginning work their way into his features the blush of youth is being left behind, turning him into a form cast in stone, weathered by salt sea air and wind.
Personality: A life of duty and discipline, Strozza plays a constant game of checks and balances. What will it cost to do one thing, how much reward reaped for the other. Calculating and tabulating all actions he takes and those taken around him. He'd be just as happy in a counting house, most feel, as he does on the deck of a ship, that is if it were confirmed if he was capable of such states as 'happy'. A ship is considered the ultimate weigh of balances. Supplies to crew. Space taken by necessities, and how much personal affects are allowed. All must be accounted for, and the keeper to be held accountable. Life is a mere extension of this. Too much flotsam and the man struggles beneath the weight, too little preparation and he flounders. It is impossible to factor for every contingency, but preparedness is rewarded with a chance to continue, to survive and learn from missteps or from what to be ready for in the future.
Background: Second son to Cacciatore and Fissata, Strozza's childhood was a game of cat and mouse with his elder sister, pitted against one another by mother and father. Who was the better tactician? Who was the better and keeping to the shadows? Who curried favor? Who commanded respect? Playmates were carefully selected, to challenge and confuse. Problems to be solved over people to connect and corroborate with. He would make them subservient, she would make them pawns. Nothing of childhood was truly childish, for there were lessons compounded into lessons and his mind began to look for angles, where pieces could fit. How to use what happened now to confirm what was needed in the future. Account for everything that could feasibly be.
Cacciatore took his daughter beneath his wing, to teach her the works of spying and confidence games. Fissata took her son to sea. Captained under his mother he was surprised to find himself little more than a servant. A cabin boy. Left to fend for himself Strozza learned how to win trust and use that to his own ends. How to manipulate the crew to see him as their leader, even as he was raised from boy to mate. No duty was shirked, but he made sure to work harder than any of the others around him. Turn their respect to love. Pit that love against the distrust in others. Use the men and women to bring round others to his heel. Always the stern word, but never the fist.
Fissata was especially stern with him, but never for the crew to see. To the crew he was just another lad of noble birth being taught seamanship. Behind their backs he was the son of the Captain. And a son who was ever found wanting. Even he was twisted and manipulated to seek his mother's approval. He became a mate, but he was still barely better than cabin boy. First Mate, but not an officer. Bosun, but not a lieutenant. Every achievement was a rung on a ladder and he'd best keep climbing.
Games and theory became his life, aboard ship or on dry land. How to get what he needed, as needed, and how to manipulate the game to his favor so that he won his prize, earned through victory and his own clever will.
That was how Fissata Mazzeti was demoted to Commander under her son. Holes punched in her method and record. Quietly kept issues that showed she should be a second in command at best for now, and not the ruler of a ship. Then he transferred her to a trade route escort. Let her become ships master there while he acquired his first command. And then his second ship, and then a half dozen in his grip. Patrol craft, transports, royal escorts. Fissata wrote from the eastern coasts that she was so proud of him. She expected him to go so far. His father too expressed his pride his sister, Nucca, he still has not seen since she turned ten.
Strozza though, continued his work, to serve his family make them proud, and strive to command more than just his half dozen small craft. To command all craft bearing their crest.
| Name | Summary |
| Adalyn | Every Mazetti I've had the good fortune to meet thus far has seemed both pleasant and intriguing. The Lord Admiral Strozza is no exception. And he wields a whip in combat! I hope to observe him in action soon enough. |
| Adrienne | I met Lord Strozza Mazetti at Arx's Shrine of Jayus, but that was long after his name first became known to me. He's a poet for better and worse - focused and creative in one moment and easily distracted and earth-bound in the next. |
| Alarissa | Every time I turn around, there's another Mazetti. This one is no less charming and delightful. |
| Apollo | It's difficult to resolve his poetry with anything else about him. |
| Arcadia | A curious man. Not what I expected at all. |
| Aswin | Skilled admiral. I don't know much of him, but he made a big ship coast through shallow waters with surprising skill. |
| Bhandn | A little flamboyant, by how he came in to the training grounds. It rather made me wonder if the man has a future with the Champions, myself. |
| Blacktongue | Smooth speaker, tall and healthy. I'll have to keep an eye on him |
| Cambria | The Admiral of Ostria possesses hidden depths, not unlike the ocean upon which he often sails. Since he has come to Arx, Strozza has fast become a valued source of advice. |
| Catalana | He seems to have been able to recover his ability to talk since our first meeting, but he is very much the sailor I am use to being surrounded by. |
| Charlotte | He is like a cat. Curled up between two women. Clearly he must be lycene. |
| Dimitri | Lord Mazetti serves as an Admiral and both position and title seem to suit him. Well mannered, helpful and friendly, he is one individual that I would not mind getting to know better. |
| Domonico | Admiral of the Ostrian First Fleet. Good grip. Good respect for the sea. Able to stand in the presence of a legend without faltering. I approve. |
| Drake | A bold one with the ladies himself. Impressive. |
| Esme | Very Southern, that is not a bad thing at all. He's got a very strict outward appearance, but I feel there is more beneath the surface. |
| Evaristo | Lycene to the fingertips, this lord! Seems like the kind you'd have fun with at a party. |
| Evelynn | My cousin is newly arrived to the city much to my joy. A cautious man. There's wisdom in that. |
| Gabriella | Though our meeting was brief, the Lord of House Mazetti strikes me as a very thoughtful, deliberate man. He is not entirely wrong in his observations on the adamance of my House in making sure all checks are balanced, either. |
| Gaspard | An Admiral who knows how to write poetry and music, apparently inspired by the shanties that coordinate the work on ships. Thanks to him I know the difference between them and boats now. |
| Hadrian | I find a good deal to like in him. He enjoys a good joke, he's capable of enjoying a pleasant moment to relax, but when the serious talk starts he doesn't shy from it. On top of all of that? He asks pertinent questions, without being bogged down by his own theorizing. |
| Ilsa | A man of good cheer, with a desire to help others. A fine thing in a nobleman. |
| Iseulet | A man after my own heart... And I sense I have competition when it comes to the affections of felines in the city of Arx. I'll try not to be jealous. |
| Jadara | We have been in the south long enough to recognize a spider when we see one. |
| Jules | He's a kind lord who's also an admiral. Each time he's been with you, he treated you with dignity and you appreciate this. |
| Kaia | Charming, handsome, and pleasant to converse with. His cat is just adorable! I bet Nilanza (my kitten) would get along quite well with it. I look forward to meeting with him more often! He seems to like gardens and music? Unless I heard wrong... |
| Korka | When he speaks he tends to wax poetic and draw most people in with the lure of his sugary words. Most people. I just wish everyone would get to the point. |
| Laurel | He has a big purse and pays too much for baked goods. This means I will need to send along a few extras. An interesting companion as well in the form of some hate wearing fellow. He nearly looks Eurus which could go poorly at this time in our lives. But the Lord himself seems proper and kind. |
| Leola | Another one who would kill a man without a trial, once they've been brought down. Delightful. |
| Liara | Seems an amiable fellow, and if he likes dancing, all the better. Very quick and easy to get into conversation. |
| Lucita | A dignified, somber man about my age, a cousin of my friend Alessia. He is pleasant to talk with, neither too familiar nor too distant on first meetings, has an interest in ships, and in poetry. I'll have to ask to hear some of his work, soon! |
| Mabelle | A very composed Mazetti. That seems a bit unthematic for that family. |
| Marzio | Admiral of Mazetti. He is a bit more outspoken than myself, but I can hardly fault him for that. I would trust him when it came down to blows, so that probably says more for him than any other words could. |
| Merek | A great dancer, and nice to the people that look like they need a friend! |
| Miranda | One of the Broodfesters (this is a word I have made up). I think it must be a family joke and I'm not yet in on it. Still... he was a bit awkward when recalling my name and face. Can't hardly blame him. The wedding was a simple affair, after all. |
| Mirari | Highly over protective of poor Orelia-- or was that the other man? Hmm. |
| Monique | A handsome lord with an even smoother tongue. But the man is unique in his beliefs and it's refreshing to find someone who does not doubt what he has seen with his own eyes. |
| Nina | I love to meet sailors as they always have so many stories to tell! But this one seems stern, so perhaps it will take a little effort to get him to be properly talkative about his adventures... |
| Nurie | A most intriguing lord of the Mazetti. Though all of that house seem to be uniquely mysterious, there's something about his stormy-sea eyes that draws one in. He is charming company, though there's an edge there as well--perhaps it comes from spending so much time at sea. One doesn't survive that without a steel will and a ready blade in one form or another, I don't think, no matter how disarming the demeanor. |
| Orelia | A little grumpy until he warms up. Good taste in pets. |
| Oskar | He can talk about ships for hours, definitely one of my kind. |
| Poppy | A man of many words. His first presentation was full of sleeve but I have grown to enjoy his company. Clearly a man of many masks and abilities. |
| Ras | Gotta say it ain't real comfy havin his hawk eyes on you. |
| Raymesin | Silks. Just... silks. |
| Reese | A lord of Mazetti who lives up to the impression I have of his family, which is saying much. He is pleasant company and very charming. |
| Rodica | Can't spell cat. |
| Rosalind | An interesting and poetic Southern Lord! I can talk to him about anything and he knows something! It was great! I can't wait to talk to him some more! |
| Samira | A lord admiral who undoubtedly shows no mercy to the enemies that he tosses overboard. And yet he speaks with tenderness of the things he loves. A study in contradictions, but then again, perhaps we all are. |
| Santiago | Admiral Strozza Mazetti of Ostria. We had met at the Hart, before Princess Valencia of Velenosa, and Orelia Stonewood. Champion. He is a flamboyant man, clearly capable of military tact. |
| Sanya | A fine drinking companion and a certain skill with words. |
| Sebastian | An insightful man, with an innate understanding of art. I can't help but to admire that. |
| Selene | Can you take the measure of a man by the wine he drinks? Any Lycene would agree. What a dark charm rests at his hands, and I am left to wonder of its deeper mysteries. |
| Sophie | Poor dear, to have his heart broken. I am curious how often he suffers such heartbreaks. I shall seek to comfort him when I am able. |
| Sydney | Refreshingly unstuffy for a Lord, and taller than most I've met in Arx. Willing to learn to be better with his hands, and I /always/ respect that. |
| Tatienne | A sailor, a lord, and a generous man. Best to stay on good terms with. |
| Thea | A lord of the Mazetti's. I feel the name speaks for itself, as he also talks in poetry. |
| Vicente | He was family with Dianna and Alessia. You don't know him well but he seems like a decent fellow. |
| Victus | They met my otter. The otter didn't bite them. They were told the otter is sentient. They were alright with this. Sometimes I wonder how I got to this point in my life. At least the otter is happy with new acquaintances. |
| Zoey | Stiff and formal, but a warm heart under that steel. |