Bronze Cane

By skbl17

• February 7, 2015

Age: 61

Gender: Male

Species: Earth Pony

Appearance: Bronze Cane is a brown earth pony with a black-and-gray mane and small wrinkles on his face, symbolizing his advancing age. His eyesight has deteriorated slightly in recent years, forcing him to wear glasses at almost all times. His build is burly compared to the average earth pony, but Bronze Cane is not especially muscular.

Cutie Mark: Bronze Cane's cutie mark is, well, a bronze cane, which describes his noble upbringing.

Personality: In general, Bronze Cane is a soft-spoken, intelligent, and calm pony. He speaks in gentle, polite mannerisms, almost never raises his voice in anger, and is known for the exceptional respect he treats all Impalarana residents, visitors, and dignitaries with. Much of his polite behavior Bronze Cane attributes to "years of increased wisdom" and his upbringing. That being said, he believes that his extensive "wisdom" is nigh absolute, so he is a bit slow in adapting to rapid changes in society and politics. He has become more weary of taking risks, even if those risks can translate to huge "rewards" later on.

Backstory: Bronze Cane was born in an exclusive, wealthy part of the Commonwealth of Impalarana, an island country located south of Equestria. His parents wanted him to grow up to be a "successful, noble" pony, and they did everything they could to ensure that such a thing happened. Bronze Cane was homeschooled (public schools were rare at the time,) taught three languages (Equestrian, Zebrican, and Caninian,) sent to socialize with other fellow noble children, and form connections with other wealthy families. While Bronze Cane did not outright hate the way he was being raised, it was not uncommon to see him question how effective this was. He thought he could do better: become an upstanding citizen and help out those in need.<br /><br />When he was a teenager, Bronze Cane decided to form a charity that would help some of Impalarana's poorer families. His parents wanted the best for him, so they not only allowed him to form his charity, but they funded it. The charity, the Bronze Cane Foundation, still exists today in much the same form.<br /><br />For higher education, Bronze Cane attended the Goldenhoof School of Business and Trade, a former college that offered courses and degrees in various fields related to business and management. He graduated near the top of his class, after which he went on to found Impala Iron Works, Inc., a resources firm specializing in the exploration and exploitation of iron ore fields. The company grew, with profits continually increasing. Bronze Cane extended his philanthropic tendencies to his company, where he set aside 60% of profits to go to his foundation, where the money would be used to both help those in need and finance new infrastructure projects, which he thought necessary to advance his former goal of giving the poor a leg up. It is assumed that Impala Iron Works and the Bronze Cane Foundation contributed significantly to Impalarana's massive jump in economic development during this time frame.<br /><br />About twenty years into his life as a CEO, Bronze Cane fell victim to a particularly severe cutie pox epidemic that swept the country. During this time, his ability to function was limited, forcing him to not only the brink of selling the company, retirement, and indefinite hospitalization, but even death. He made a full recovery; to this day, Bronze Cane still does not know how he was able to recover, but he still "thanks Celestia for helping him recover". He soon returned to his full duties as a CEO of his two organizations, while retooling the foundation's payouts to also include hospitals.<br /><br />The national government began to notice Bronze Cane's work, and thirty years prior to the start of the roleplay, the Commonwealth Assembly unanimously voted to appoint him as President-General, citing his extensive philanthropy work, intelligence, and "love and devotion to Impalarana and its citizens". Bronze Cane resigned from his position as Impala Iron Works CEO to take on the new position, but continues to serve as a "senior mentor and advisor" to the Bronze Cane Foundation, which is now run by his family and friends on his behalf.