Name/Alias and Reddit Username:Pavese_
Timezone: CET
Name and House: Martyn of House Rowan
Year of birth and Age: 344AC, 28 years old
Title:Lord of Goldengrove
Culture: Westerosi
Appearance: The gods did not seem fit to bless him with the height of his family and so Martyn is a short man with darker hair and green eyes. Because of this he gets judged younger by most with an oval shaped face and a patchy beard, at best, not helping his case but despite his small stature diligent training shaped his body well.
Usually seen wearing bland leather jerkins. The most noticeable piece of attire he wears is a silver ring with a deep blue sapphire.
Current location: Goldengrove
To Maester Willas Flowers, From Maester Oswald, Maester of the Goldengrove
My dear Willas, I have received your request and am delighted to hear that the planning for your book of the Houses of the Reach is finally coming to fruition. It will be my pleasure to help you in this regard by answering some of your questions and providing you with my knowledge of over 40 years in service to House Rowan. But I hope to see you in person soon as so many little details are better shared in company.
As a first Letter I shall tell about the life of our Lord Martyn, who was born in 344AC as the second son of our late Lord Petyr Rowan and Lady Melissa of House Webber. Though his early childhood went without any noteworthy complications it became apparent during the year that something was amiss. The boy grew slowly, too slowly. By the time he was 6 years old his older brother, Mace, already towered over him. Though unusual I couldn’t find a cause for this and I feared Martyn would be left a dwarf but thankfully he got spared this fate. Still, his stunted growth hasn’t left him the tallest among us, much to his annoyance.
I remember when his father tried to train Martyn in swordsmanship at the age of 10. They practiced long into the night with little result, the sparring blade was too heavy and long for little Martyn. Even when we forged a new, more appropriate blade, for him he found little success as other of his age were larger and stronger already. In the end they stopped training saying that he would never be a warrior. The next day I found Martyn sitting alone at the Riverside, staring into the distance, and when I approached him he asked me why he’s small and weak when others even younger then him are already taller and stronger then him, the pain and doubt written into his face. “Some of your friends are born stronger, some of them taller.” I told him, “You will never be as tall as your brother and he will always be stronger then you. But that shouldn’t discourage you. I know that you are capable of doing whatever you set your mind to. You have to do it the hard way, but little in life that is worth living for comes easy.” Martyn never got as good as his brother at swordsmanship but it didn’t stop them from training almost every day.
At the age of 14 the Castellan took over the tutorship of Martyn from me. A position I thought he should have no problem with as he might’ve been born small but not a fool. At first he fulfilled his duties but after his 16th nameday Martyn started to become less and less interested into the work. He would often go on long hikes instead vanishing from sunrise till sundown. It must’ve been on one of these hikes where he first met Lady Hylena. What at first might’ve been nothing more than a travelling companion became something more and more important in Martyns life to the dismay of his father, Lord Petyr. Hylena, born a commoner, was not an appropriate match for one of his sons and the growing bond between her and Martyn was becoming a bigger issue day by day. When Martyn turned 18 years he told his father he would marry Hylena. One could hear the shouts from the Lords Tower throughout the for hours as they clashed and I can only imagine what soothing words Lady Melissa had for her husband to calm him, but in the end Martyn left Castle Goldengrove with Lady Hylena and the reluctant blessing of his father. I don’t know when or where they got married, and when I asked him he only smiled at me saying “That’s not of your concern.” but he didn’t return to the Castle until many months later his Brother Mace celebrated his 19th nameday.
A year later, in 363AC, disaster struck when parts of the Castle collapsed during a fierce summer storm, burying Lord Peter and his oldest son, Mace, underneath it. After receiving the tragic news Martyn returned to the Goldengrove. If I had to describe how he was during the funeral: the only time I’ve seen him so distant was on the riverbed all those years ago. His brother, with whom he had a bond only true brothers can understand, and his father, their relationship still clouded by the conflict barely more than a year ago, now both dead left him as the new heir of Goldengrove. Something I’m sure he didn’t expect ever happening. It took the better part of a year for Lord Martyn to come to terms with the loss and the new title but like many other things in his life he rose to the challenge.
In 366AC, we celebrated the birth of the twin sisters Eleanor and Anora to Lord Martyn and Lady Hylena. In the meantime Lord Martyn repaired collapsed parts of the Castle and renovated other older parts. With him in command of the Armies of the Goldengrove he went to the Citadel to study military tactics. After his studies came to a close, 2 years later, he restructured his levies with a distinct focus on archery and light cavalry and made his Uncle, Tion Rowan, Master-of-Arms.
With the birth of his 3rd daughter, Alyse, in 370AC I’d like to end this letter. The recent past years have been quieter and as I grow older myself I find it harder to keep track with all the happening in the Lordship not to mention the Kingdom. I shall write you more in a short while, expect it. In any case I do implore you to come visit me as I fear I’m getting too old for the journey to the citadel. Then we can hammer out the details for your work. Until then I’ll be expecting your Raven.
Yours truly, Maester Oswald, Maester of Goldengrove