Crennus was brought up in a house with substantial trading and customs interests. The plan was for him to fill the role of a government functionary, and early in his career he did so, remaining corruption-free and scrupulous to a fault due to his moralistic religious upbringing. Several turns of bad luck led to the elimination of his office during a bureaucratic reshuffle, and a certain pettiness in Crennus’s character leads him to secretly berate himself for not abusing his position when he had the chance. He dove into sorcerous study out of this obsessive desire to regain the power over others that he feels should have been his, though ironically he remains fearful of the gods and (at this stage) it is doubtful he could bring himself to victimize or exploit another for personal gain even given the opportunity. Crennus is a driven but bitter man.

Lacking the courage of his convictions—or so he thinks—Crennus could be called “neutral/self-interested/weak good” in terms of alignment. He is most motivated to overcome the latter, which he sees as a flaw. Should he succeed, he may well evolve into a devotee of power for its own sake. At the moment, he gives off an air of frustration, forced politeness, and embarrassment in equal parts. He will remain acutely conscious of status and decorum at all times.

What joy Crennus allows himself can be found in the pursuit of knowledge. Though anything that might lead to greater power awakens his fervor, he is truly in his element among books and relishes research. Toward religion, he is grudgingly deferential; toward love, indifferent.

In terms of tailoring, Crennus’s insecurity defeats his effort to stay within the bounds of good taste. He often sports a few rings too many, a flaring collar just a little too wide, and so forth. Sadly, “Let them remember that you were well-dressed, but not what you were wearing” goes over his head.