The second to last member of my mercenary team, Sabre, the squad leader! Although physically past his prime, Sabre has been fighting for longer than most of the other team members have been alive and he exemplifies the expression "Beware an old man in a profession where men die young".

Sabre comes from a family with a strong military tradition and joined his country's armed forces as soon as he was old enough, quickly qualifying for elite special forces. When a large, foreign-backed extremist rebellion threatened the peace of his country, his unit was instrumental in defending his peoples' freedom. Unfortunately the foreign backers of the rebellion were able to exert political pressure on the international community and promises of financial or military support from allies went unfulfilled. Despite fighting furiously for over a decade, the small country's government slowly lost ground to the extremists until finally the capitol was overrun in a horrific bloodbath.

Persona non-grata in his own country under the totalitarian new regime, Sabre fled the country and became a mercenary. The tragedy of his country's fall and what he saw as the betrayal of the international community left him very cynical towards nations and ideologies. For years, he was angry and adrift, fighting and killing for whoever would pay him and resentful of the world. One day however after a long, half-drunken, post-mission discussion with a comrade, he was recommended a book on stoicism. The idea of personal virtue an honour being the only real good appealed to his jaded world-view and he set out to find meaning in simply doing the best he could in his own life rather than trying to change the world.

As a leader, Sabre is firm but not autocratic, encouraging all viewpoints to speak freely and selecting the most expedient solution to a problem from the ideas posited. He cares deeply for the soldiers he commands, but is willing to let them learn hard lessons on their own if they choose to ignore his advice. He believes in the stoic virtues of wisdom, courage, justice and temperance but never pushes his ideology on others as he believes that true virtue cannot be coerced of others.

In battle, Sabre is icy calm and precise in his movements and uses a scoped FAL battle rifle but is proficient in the use of most modern weaponry. In the air, Sabre knows enough to function as a co-pilot to Gandalf and man some of the weapons systems in the Hind, although if suddenly given primary flight controls, he would most likely attempt a shaky landing as soon as possible.


Basic Info:
Callsign: Sabre
Real Name: Harold McLaren
Sex: Male
Species: Smilodon (Sabre-tooth tiger)
Age: 52
Height: 1.84m
Weight: 91kgs
Alignment: True Neutral
Class: Squad Leader
Background: "The old man in a profession where men die young".
Personality: Stoic, calm and measured. Believes that honour and virtue are personal matters and that while he can guide and advise those he cares about, they must be free to make their own decisions on such things.
Physical Identifiers: Broad and stocky through the shoulders and upper body. Large sabre upper canines. Fur is dark red-brown down the back, becoming lighter around the sides of the chest and arms to a cream colour on the stomach and chest. Irregular black stripes are only present on the limbs and neck.
Strengths: Has a huge amount of combat experience from decades of fighting. Proficient with virtually all modern weaponry as well melee and unarmed combat. Especially experienced in small unit tactics, tracking and bushcraft- capable of going off the grid indefinitely with minimal provisions.
Weaknesses: Physically well past his prime, especially in speed. Passive, dispassionate and uninterested in that which doesn't directly concern him or those he cares about.
Weapons: FN FAL with Trilux scope. Browning Hi-Power pistol.
Other Talents: Has an air of quiet gravitas that tends to compell respect from those around him. Surprisingly skilled at ballroom dancing.