Otto Marius Baruch
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Otto Marius Baruch (3rd of the Sun's Smile 1581 - 20th of The Grand Harvest 1640) was the Count of Ayr, the High Magistrate of Oren, and the patriarch of House Baruch until his death after an two year battle with dementia. He ascended to the position of Count on the 3rd of the Grand Harvest 1606 after the death of his father on the battlefield opposing the Courlandic forces, and reigned until his death in 1640.
Early life
At the time of Otto's birth, the realm was mostly stable and so his childhood was mostly uneventful. However, it was during his childhood that he and his siblings formed a bond that lasted even after both his siblings had died. In his late youth, Otto spent much of his time with his future in-laws within Serpentstone. He was particularly fond of Brandon Vanir - the Margrave of Vasiland at the time - and his eldest daughter, Linnea. After much time spent in the company of the Vanirs, Brandon offered Otto's father, Eirik, the chance to join the houses of Vanir and Baruch through Otto and Linnea. The then Count of Ayr graciously accepted and Otto was wed to his closest friend and lover, aged 19. Not long after, his brother Sigmar was wed to Natalia Kovachev, and the four became exceptionally close. Less than three months after his brother's wedding, Sigmar left Haense on a voyage, leaving his pregnant wife and family in Ayr. With his sister-in-law with child, Otto stepped in to fill his brother's absence and raised his niece and nephew as his children in all but name. Several years passed and Otto continued to raise his brother's children only now alongside his own. It was through his nephew that Otto rekindled his relationship with Edward Von'Krennol, a distant cousin through his Roswell grandmother. With this relationship Otto managed to keep his family afloat during the Courlandic occupation of Haense. Edward - a landholder beneath the Staunton overlords held the lands formerly belonging to House Kovachev, including the mountain keep of Liefgaard (an estate in which Otto had taken great interest). During a card game over a cup of ale, Otto managed to have his cousin bet the keep on his hand - something which Edward would later come to regret. After winning the hand, Otto took control of Liefgaard and consolidated his hold over the land that came with it. This massively angered his cousin, who then plotted to murder Otto and his children. Infuriated with his cousin's betrayal, Otto sought out the Rutherns and Lord Viktor Kovachev. Upon meeting the group hatched a plan to execute Edward Von'Krennol, which would then allow the land to pass to Otto as the laws of inheritance dictated that the eldest living male would inherit the land and titles. With the plan set in motion, the Rutherns attacked and killed Edward and everything seemed to be going into place. Otto marched down from his keep up in the mountains but was met with hostility at the gates as well as rumours of Staunton forces en-route to reinforce the holding. With that, Otto marched with his men to the Ruthern lands to regroup and share the information with his fellow conspirators. After hours of discussion, the Houses of Ruthern, Baruch, and Kovachev agreed that they would go into open rebellion against House Staunton and the impostor who falsely claimed to be a member of House Kovachev. With that, the group attempted to coup the ancestral Baruch seat of Saint's Rest in order to gain another holding in the northern plains, and increase their influence in the region. The coup failed and so the conspirators again returned to the lands they had left to recouperate their losses. It was in this time that the Baron of Rystburg, Adolphus Vyronov, was considering lending support to his former peers. Otto met with the Baron in an attempt to bring in his support and host. The pair struck a deal - Lord Vyronov would join the cause to retake Haense in the Barbanov name in return for Lord Otto's sister, Katherine's, hand in marriage. Otto agreed on the terms that the wedding would not occur until Lord Vyronov had proved himself a sufficient asset to the war effort.
Later life
Otto's reign was fairly uneventful until the restoration of the Sixth Empire under John VI Maximillian, who appointed Otto as the High Magistrate of Oren. During his time in this position, he presided over some minor cases with nothing major being brought to his attention. It was during this time that he began his works to modernise the legal system; updating the legal codex and creating a more modern legal structure. He served in this position until the destruction of the Empire, and so he returned to his homeland to serve as King Otto II's chief legal adviser. He continued his works on the modification of the legal codex and judicial standing with the help of his grandson, Marius Karl Baruch.
Issue
Tatiana Valeria Baruch (1602-1670)
Astrid Baruch (1605-1638)
Aldrik Baruch (1605-1673)
Siegfried Baruch (1606-1668)
