Gan Ning, Party Commander

[Gan Ning]

Gan Ning

Xingba		35 Years
6' 0"	200 lb.	Wu
Male	Straight	Officer

Appearance

You would not be able to guess that Gan Ning would soon be entering his late 30s by his appearance. He had kept a rugged yet youthful look ever since his early 20s. He keeps his hair back and pinned to stay out of his face, and a small goatee on his face. He rarely wears armor, instead resigning to either be topless or wearing a light chainmail and robe over his torso, while he has chaps with ornate leggings worn over them. Even without armor, though, Xingba is a massive figure who towers over normal men, standing at six feet tall and weighing an impressive two hundred pounds. His body is very muscled and tan, for his long exposure to the sun.

personality

+ Follows his heart and stays loyal to his feelings
+ Brave and unselfish in battle
+ Cares about others, especially the men under his command
+ Easygoing, gets along with others
+/- Arrogant, confident but often times too much so
+/- Unafraid to speak his mind, even if it gets him in trouble or hurts others
+/- Womanizer, can either woo or piss off a woman within moments of meeting them
- Likes wine a bit too much for many people's likings
- When drunk (which is often), is much more prone to violence
- Unlike the typical Chinese man, he hates formality and tries to be informal

history

Gan Ning was born in Linjiang county of Ba Shu. As a youth, he was very brave but reckless and behaved like a youxia often. He was once recommended to an Assistant post in the Yi Province commandery, but left after a few days of boredom. He gathered himself a group of wayward young men like himself and began pirating and plundering the countryside. The group wore feathers on their heads and attached bells to their belts, to signal their victims that they were coming. His murderous ways gave him fame throughout southwestern China. He was not unfair, in his own way, anyways. Local officials who treated him kindly were returned with kindness in turn. Those who treated him and his men poorly were severely punished, and even lawmakers could not escape his wrath.

In his mid twenties, as the Han began to show deeper cracks, he decided to give up his pirating ways and learn how to be a better man and scholar. He took 800 men with him to serve Liu Biao, who was known for being weak militarily but a scholar in his own right, and was given a post in Nanyang. Soon, Gan Ning would deduce for himself that Liu Biao would be easily crushed by the rising powers, and looked to the east, towards Wu, where Sun Ce, the Little Conqueror, had achieved fame across the land for his bravery and skill in battle. Xingba longed to serve such a courageous lord but, when he traveled east, found that he could not cross into Wu. So, he took a position under one of Liu Biao's military officers, Huang Zu, in Jiang Xia.

Huang Zu never recognized his talents for many years. Gan Ning would not be given high-ranking posts under him, even though time and time again he proved his worth to the man. In 203, Sun Quan attacked Xia Kou (near Jiang Xia), seeking revenge on the man who slew his father. Huang Zu was defeated, but was not able to safely escape the enemy. Gan Ning, leading his own detachment and using his own skill of archery, shot and killed Ling Cao, throwing the pursuers into confusion and allowing his lord to escape. Still, Huang Zu did not appreciate him, after saving his life. This angered Xingba greatly.

Su Fei, another general, though higher ranked than Gan Ning, under Huang Zu, recommended him to be appointed to a higher position because his skill exceeded his own, but he denied his repeated requests. The two were close friends by this time, so Su Fei told Gan Ning to leave in a private meeting. Su Fei wanted him to find a lord who appreciated his talents, and Xingba told him that was what he had been planning, but had not found the opportunity.

The moment came to Gan Ning in a surprise title given to him by Huang Zu, Chief of Zhu, which granted him a post closer to Wu than Jiang Xia. He gratefully accepted it, but instead of commanding the garrison, kept his men and led them all the way to Wu. There, he met with Sun Quan, whose advisors Zhou Yu and Lu Meng wished for him to accept Xingba into their ranks. Quan agreed and took him and his men into the folds of his army. In 208, when Sun Quan invaded Jiang Xia to take the head of Huang Zu, Gan Ning was given a major role and fluorished in it, helping to capture the city and leader alive.

Prior to the campaign, Sun Quan had two boxes made for the purpose of containing the heads of Huang Zu and Su Fei. After Huang Zu's defeat, Su Fei was also captured and Gan Ning was informed. Later, when Sun Quan and his officers were celebrating the victory, Gan Ning left his seat and knelt down before his lord. With tears in his eyes, he pleaded with Sun Quan, "I owe Su Fei a favour. If not for him, I would have been dead and my body abandoned in a ravine. I would not have been able to serve under you. Now, even though Su Fei's actions warrant death, I still hope that you can spare him." Sun Quan was moved and he asked, "What if he leaves after I spare his life?" Gan Ning replied, "Su Fei will be grateful if he is spared from death. He'll not leave even if you try to chase him away. Why will he still seek his own doom? If he really does that, I'm willing to use my head to replace his in the box." Sun Quan then pardoned Su Fei, who then joined Wu and served as an officer to Gan Ning.

In the battle of Chi Bi, Gan Ning served under Zhou Yu in their decisive victory over Wei. Gan Ning also participated in the Battle of Jiang Ling shortly after Chi Bi. Sun Quan's forces, led by Zhou Yu, attacked Cao Cao's general Cao Ren at Nan commandery, but were unable to conquer the city. Gan Ning suggested to lead a separate force to capture Yi Ling. He had only a few hundred soldiers with him when he reached Yi Ling and the strength of his army increased to around 1,000 after he recruited some men in the area. Cao Ren sent 5,000–6,000 troops to besiege Gan Ning at Yiling. The enemy built high towers, from which they rained arrows upon Yi Ling. Gan Ning's men were all terrified but Gan remained calm. He sent a messenger to request aid from Zhou Yu, who heeded Lu Meng's plan and led reinforcements to help Gan Ning. Zhou Yu, Lu Meng and the others succeeded in lifting the siege at Yi Ling, leading Cao Ren to be ordered to abandon Nan commandery.

[Gan Ning]

Finished.

[Sun Renxian]

Approved