User blog comment:Leolab/Siege User Tourney sign-ups/@comment-4661256-20121230215019

 General: Bernard Law Montgomery (El Alamein) 

Long Range: A simple hair-trigger crossbow (no pulleys or cranks necessary) crudely outfitted with a looking-glass telescope for questionably increased accuracy. Bonus points for when I need to survey the landscape without shooting. Decent range of about 300 m, slightly increased when I'm using the "scope" (although with increased range comes a wildcard in accuracy). Crossbow bolts made of wood with a triangular metal head.

Polearm: A partisan - this is a spearhead mounted on a long shaft (made of Spanish steel) with protrusions on the sides that help me to parry sword thrusts. It's got a 7-foot shaft with a 12-inch spearhead.

Main-Hand: My right hand. With a simple straighsword clutched firmly in its grasp. 34 inches, Spanish steel. It can slash, although it's much better as a stabbing weapon. It's got a nice |basket hand-guard too.

Off-Hand: My left hand. And it's got a small buckler strapped on the elbow (a Spanish steel buckler, mind you) that offers minimal protection, with a 14-inch short sword (designed for slashing rather than stabbing) clutched firmly in the hand.

Armor: Spanish steel cuirass breastplate, with a ring-mail hauberk underneath (which serves to protect as high as my arms and neck and as low as my upper legs). I've got a fancy Chalcidian helmet, really for show rather than for protection, but it looks cool. Finally, I've got thick leather hunting boots that let me walk steadily over uneven terrain. I've also got gloves. But that's not really important.

Biography: Bernard Law Montgomery (nicknamed Monty) is just another general with a superiority complex and a huge ambition... but it'll probably go unfulfilled. Trained from a young age, blah blah blah... he can ride a horse, swing a sword, and shoot a crossbow as well as your next medieval knight. He's young, but he has experience in combat. He served as a knight in his father's army, but quickly discovered taking orders wasn't his forte. Breaking away from his father's army and the king that they served, Monty raised a mercenary army who follow his command with questionable loyalty... but hey! Monty's a cool guy. He's got a decent track record - some wins, some losses. But then again, he never claimed to be another Alexander the Great.... which makes some people wonder why he insists on wearing that ridiculous helmet. He'll probably die somewhere in his forties, since that's the life expectancy of people in the 1500's and 1600's ... unless this tournament does him in sooner than that.

Single Combat: Boy, oh boy, does Monty love single combat. And he's a dirty bastard when it comes to it. Honor means nothing to him. Victory, on the other hand...? Well, let's put it like this: he'll throw mud in your face, and he'll point at the sky and say "What the heck is that?" to distract you. He'll even get one of his own men to intervene if things go badly. But of course, you guys don't know that. You've never fought him.

Quirks: Monty is aggressive to a fault. He doesn't like taking orders from other people - but subtle suggestions slip under his radar. He's a glory hog, although it's unlikely he'll find it. He wears fancy armor to stand out - although fancy doesn't necessarily mean protective. He also enjoys fine British humor like Monty Python - proving once and for all that Monty is far ahead of his time.