Loren Greyjoy

Loren Greyjoy is the younger brother of Dagon Greyjoy, formerly steward of Seagrave, now Lord Reaper of Pyke. Loren Greyjoy is oft described as a fanatic of the Drowned God, and has done little to dissuade that notion.

Appearance and Character:
Loren Greyjoy is a mammoth of an individual, standing 6 and a half feet tall, and his body is corded with muscle from a lifetime upon the sea. His beard is as wild as an ocean gale, and while in the past he has let his hair grow out in thick tangles, now he keeps it cut close. Above his mane are deep set brown eyes, often described as intense, and his crew have found it difficult to maintain eye contact for too long. He dresses in boiled leather upon his ship, but otherwise he wears a suit of plate-armour emblazoned with the insignia of his house.

Loren Greyjoy is a pious man, made more pious by his time at sea. He is fiercely ironborn, protective of his culture and often takes offence at insults directed towards his house or his crew. At the same time, Loren is often reasonable, especially to those he deems worthy of his respect, and has been known to find compromise when he and another are in conflict. He holds the Drowned God and the Iron Islands above all else.

An Unlikely Start
Much like his older brother Dagon, Loren was born a salt son of a salt son, a forgettable branch of the Greyjoys sequestered off in Saltcliffe. He was a child often out of sight and mind, as his parents focussed more on his older brothers, although he did receive a proper education. While Dagon was pleasent, dutiful and intelligent, it was to his middle brother that Loren looked up to: Emmon Greyjoy, a loudmouthed brash boy, who loved the song of axe and blade. Determined to be just like his brother, Loren trained incessantly in the martial arts, using his natural strength and build to his advantage. He quickly became an able warrior, but was still unable to beat either of his brothers. It was during the Scarlet Winter that Dagon and Emmon left to raid the coasts of Essos, and while Loren begged to accompany them, he was denied due to his age. AS they left, Loren dreamed of the tales his brothers would tell him when they returned, of the riches and food they would bring back. Most of all, he prayed for them to return with some sort of healer, as his father lay dying in Saltcliffe. Every day Loren would cross the island to watch for his brother’s sails returning home, until one fateful day when they did.

The raid was a failure. Having lose a fair portion of their men, both Dagon and Emmon were despondent; Emmon particularly was far less outspoken of the ironborn way of life, and began to talk of changes to the old ways. Loren’s worldview was shattered, his role model questioning himself, and his personal view confused. He began to sequester himself from his family, preferring to train with the master of arms, and spoke at length with the island’s Drowned Priest.

Mummer’s War:
It was the the aftermath of the conflict, despite causing great loss of life to the ironborn, that provided Loren with a level of freedom he had never known. Dagon was made Lord of the Iron Islands, and suddenly Loren was given prestige and the reputation befitting the brother of a major lord, including the command of a vessel he named the Salt Spray, a reference to his previous lowborn status. It was here that he reached out to his brother Emmon one final time, pleading with him to strike out with him for the glory of the Drowned God, but was refused. Emmon Greyjoy left to the south, and in a black mood Loren left the Iron Islands and vowed not to return until he had shed enough blood upon the sea to redeem House Greyjoy in the Drowned God’s eyes.

The Reaving Days:
For the next 9 years, Loren Greyjoy spent his time upon the narrow and sunset sea, working as a sellsail, pirate and raider. He helped pillaged vessels from the far off land of qarth, has visited Slaver’s Bay and sailed in the service of slavers in Astapor and Meereen, and some say has sailed around the ruins of Old Valyria. He has journeyed long and far, looking for traces of the Drowned God wherever he can. As he travels, Loren Greyjoy has grown more pious, some might say even to the point of fanaticsm. His closest advisor has a similar view, a woman by the name of Eurona Farwynd, who Loren believes is the conduit of the Drowned God. Over their travels, both have stood knee deep on the shores of far-off lands to give captives to the sea. Loren has been drowned once by her personally, and upon his return to the land of the living claimed to have seen the Drowned God’s watery halls himself.

Recent Events
After 9 years of self-imposed exile, Loren Greyjoy has returned to the Iron Islands, ready to serve the glory of the Ironborn closer to home. Except now, instead of the Salt Spray, his longship now bears the name the Drowned Prophet. The talk of a tournament has interested him, and he hopes to show the greenlanders the true might of the Drowned God.