Gastro Zimirvox

Gastro Zimirvox
Race	Goblin
Age	~60
Affiliation	Sparkcog Cartel, The Trade Coalition
Status	Alive
Occupation	Trade Prince
Family	Quarzin Zimirvox (Father), Sasha Boltclamp (Mother), Vinaz Zimirvox (Brother), Bonny Zimirvox (Sister), Weezix "Cuz" Boltclamp (Cousin)

Gastro Zimirvox, more commonly known as Trade Prince Zimirvox, is the current ruler of the Sparkcog Cartel. Under his leadership, Sparkcog has grown into a vast trading empire from Kezan and far beyond, becoming more powerful than it has been in centuries. He is regarded by many Sparkcog historians as a risky, but successful economic speculator and perhaps one of the greatest Trade Princes to come to power in a few centuries.

Appearance

Gastro is average height for a goblin, and shows clear signs of aging such as wrinkles and graying hair. He is said to be around his 60's, but none truly know. From the sides of his head are two beautiful, lushious graying sideburns which he is often characterized by. He often wears high quality and fancy clothing, some which cost more than a goblin makes in a lifetime. On his head he always adorns a high-class top hat, a tradition among the Zimirvox family dating back to his great grandfather, and perhaps beyond. He is often symbolized by his top hat, along with his iconic sideburns. Though Gastro does not often drink alchohol, he is a fond practicioner of smoking cigars.

Personality

Gastro's personality, though not bland, is one of a generic Trade Prince. He is cunning, intelligent, ruthless at times, and a mastery in the mercantile arts. Though, he does have some traits which differ him from others, one of these being his compassion for hard workers, especially slum dogs who are able to raise themselves to higher statuses. Having his own experience from having nothing to gaining everything, he holds high respect to others who can do the same. Gastro is also a risktaker, characterized in the goblin world by his seemingly doomed speculation. Some media have called him the "luckiest goblin alive" due to his mostly successful investments. In recent years, Gastro has become more secluded from the public and celebrity life of the Sparkcog Cartel in order to avoid any untimely usurptions, and he has sold most of his company and trademarks off to his moguls and barons. Despite genuinely liking a few of his Moguls and Barons, he is very manipulative and will do whatever he needs to keep on their good side. This skill has helped him hold his title as Trade Prince far longer than he should've.

Background

The Zimirvox family, taken a few years before Trade War I.

Where it all Began

Gastro Zimirvox was born to a rich family of Sparkcog goblins. His mother, Sasha Boltclamp, was a successful businesswoman who controlled her own mining operation. His father, Quarzin Zimirvox, was a powerful and influential Baron of the Sparkcog Cartel, possessing a sizeable piece of Sparkcog land within Undermine. He also had two younger siblings, his brother Vinaz Zimirvox and his sister Bonny Zimirvox.

Gastro grew as any rich goblin child would. Just like his siblings, he was pampered, spoiled, and shaped into an ideal businessman to carry on the family's future. For many years Gastro attended numerous classes and private tutoring sessions in the goblin fine arts, otherwise known as swindling, engineering, goblin politics, economics, bribing, and goblin history. His social interaction was limited to his siblings, and in turn of this he became very close to them.

After years of learning, Gastro began to reach the pivotal age of 12, where he would be set out into the world to start his own business. Unfortunately for him, the first Trade War broke loose across Kezan, only months before his birthday. Gastro was forced to hide in an extremely expensive bunker with the rest of his family, their butlers, and his tutors. During this time, his younger siblings surpassed the age of 12 as well, and they began plotting to start their own business together. Gastro was eager for the war to end, and with that a chance to make his own name.

Out of the Bunker

Finally breathing the almost fresh air once again, and after a few months of eating and rest in their missed mansion, the siblings set out to begin their business. Very early on heated conflicts began to spark among the three, mainly Bonny complaining about the company's design. Though this had been planned during their many years in the bunker, Bonny was a female goblin entering adolescence. Leaving to start her own business, the two brothers shrugged and went to pursue their goals.

Using the kickstart money given to them by their parents, Gastro and Vinaz invested in a large factory and store building to house their company's operations. Their goal was to produce engineering and construction items, such as nails, wrenches, cogs, screws, motors, steel bars, and all the likes. With the devastation of the Trade War still fresh in Kezan's air the two where able to quickly find many dedicated, often very powerful, clients for their wares. They named themselves "Two Brothers, Co.", and quickly gained a widespread, positive reputation.

If undisturbed, Two Brothers, Co. would have grown into a massive industry, but unfortunately they were disturbed. As the volatile goblin politics exploded once again, a second Trade War swept across Kezan. Believing he would be able to gain large portions of Bilgewater and Steamwheedle land if won, the new Sparkcog Trade Prince, Dazian Reklix, called for a draft. With a fiery ambition, he refused all payoffs, which shocked thousands, and everyone of age was forced into the military. Vinaz and Gastro were no exceptions, but were able to turn the situation into a positive light. Investing hundreds of thousands of Macaroons into a premium-class and luxurious war zeppelin, and then bribing their way up to Captains, the two believed they could drastically increase their fame as heroes once the war passed.

Gastro and Vinaz Zimirvox's crew during Trade War II. From left to right, Kizek Ironbomb, "One-shot" Draz, Big Benito, Captain Gastro Zimirvox, Vinaz Zimirvox, Teddy Wrenchscrew, and "Cuz" Boltclamp. This was taken only moments before the infamous Krazzenburg Disaster.

The Second Great War

As the eldest, Gastro was chosen to command the crew, and Trade Prince Reklix welcomed the powerful war zeppelin to his ranks. Gastro, intent on claiming his fame as a war hero, charged into many battles head-on. Through dumb luck, and his extremely expensive Zeppelin, he was able to claim numerous victories. With this, he quickly soared to the command of other Zeppelins, slowly gathering his own fleet and the title of Sky-Admiral.

Both Vinaz and Gastro became increasingly overconfident, believing they were invincible and tactical geniuses. As they won more and more battles General Zazzin Steelwrench, one of Reklix's top generals, approached Gastro with an important mission. He was to assault the large enemy fortress of Krazzenburg, which was holding the front lines against Sparkcog forces. In a quick and impulsive decision, Gastro agreed to the challenge and set off immediately. Accompanied with hundreds of dogfighters and his personal fleet of Zeppelins, and a seperate ground force from below, Captain Zimirvox began his assault upon the fortress-city. Blindly charging the city, he found his forces quickly ripped to shreds by anti-air weaponry, and in horror watched as his own Zeppelin began to plummet to the ground in flames.

Gastro woke up in an intensive care room within one of Sparkcog's finest hospitals after suffering a short coma. Though he survived, he mangled a large portion of his legs, and three fourths of them had to be amputated. His crew could not be as lucky as him, and nearly everyone in the assault died, including Vinaz. The incident became known as the "Krazzenburg Disaster", and spread like wildfire throughout Kezan's media. Because of this, his family was a target of hate and prejudice, quickly losing their influence, money, and power. Shamed by his utter failure, shunned by his family, and ridiculed by the public, Gastro retreated from the world to live in the shadows.

From Riches to Rags and Back

Taking refuge within the slum-city of Westcog Harbor, a large and filthy industrial harbor, Gastro lived in seclusion, permanently bound to a wheelchair. He drudgingly went through his daily life for nearly a year, observing the low-class, shack-bound goblins. One day, he came to a shocking realization. Not that he had been spoiled and overconfident, but that he was too good to lurk with these losers until the end of days. A new determination burned within him, and he set forth to create one of his most ambitious goals of the time.

Visiting the bank to withdraw what was left of his treasury, he found most of it taken already by his family, and Vinaz's own empty. Luckily, he was able to scrape up enough Macaroons to suffice for his project. Locking himself up within his shanty house, living off only instant noodles, Gastro worked intensely on his new invention. He intended to create what was only known as science fiction to the time, an advanced pair of mechanical legs, to fill the gap where his old ones once were.

Many incantations of his legs rose, some with wheels, others with treads, others that only had one leg, but all were discarded. After months of strenuous work, Gastro finally developed a prototype to his ideal mechanical legs. With his vast engineering knowledge he gathered over the years, he had finally created his most prized and important invention. For now he kept them a secret, as the publicity he would recieve would not fully benefit him at this point. With legs once again, Gastro felt like his old self. He began treading on his road to glory again, which he had began nearly six years ago.

Gastro's old company, "Two Brothers Co." was shattered and disbanded, all contact and probably respect was lost with his parents, and he had gained infamous reputation from his failure in the war among Kezan; Gastro Zimirvox was forced to start from the bottom again. Collecting his remaining few thousand macaroons, he started a small engineering appliance and wares shop. He was able to rack up a fair amount of business, but still desired more. With the help of hired professionals, he began to strategically sabotage other competitors, even if they didn't know him, and slowly one after another fell. Numerous bombs going off, entire shipments of supplies disappearing, stacks of illegally printed macaroons appearing in stores, all these inconveniences gave way for Gastro's own shop to boom in business.

Slowly but surely, Gastro formed a powerful monopoly after destroying all his competition, one way or another.

Gastro Zimirvox conversing with Director Tek'zik Riddlevox, leader of the esteemed Tinker's Union.

With his newfound power came the goblin media, and a new surge of popularity, good and bad. Entering the scene of Kezan's celebrity life once again, Gastro revealed his mechanical legs, gaining him much support and turning the opinions of once stark opposers to his favor. Doing this also gathered him respect and curiosity from the famed Tinker's Union, establishing a large array of contacts within it. Gastro soon moved out of Westcog Port, to his childhood home and the heart of the Cartel, Sparkcog Undermine.

Gastro had proved himself as a financial and engineering genius among the many denizens of Kezan. For a while, Gastro was seen as the model of the "ideal goblin man". He was also able to get back in touch with his parents and sister, sending them money and restoring their reputation, in hope their influence would be able to benefit him in the future. By giving out bribes, manipulating the media and influential peoples, creating a large network of spies and information brokers, eliminating competing businesses, and using his own wits, Gastro was able to create one of the most successful companies on Kezan and create a powerful monopoly over many industries. Though, one powerful Mogul, still holding a vast company within the engineering industry, stood in his way, Vermix Blastbor.

A Game of Monopoly

Vermix Blastbor held great favor with the Trade Prince, and was one of his most prominent moguls. He controlled numerous companies and lands across Sparkcog territory. Gastro was already set on creating a monopoly over the engineering goods industry, and he intended to destroy Vermix's work. Vermix's sales in this field far surpassed Gastro's, and Gastro could do nothing to tip the scale. Instead, he decided to employ various spies within Vermix's company.

For months the spies worked, and worked, and Gastro recieved no contact from them as they promised. Becoming worried they were discovered, he sent other agents to infiltrate the designated factories they were working at to discover their fate. They were not dead nor discovered, by they were instead bound to a highly illegal contract. It lasted forever, and forced the workers to live and work in the factories endlessly, though this was not the bad part. Contracts that could hold goblins for life were common and norm among their society, but this one had a certain quality that was disgraceful. It paid much less than minimum wage, and doing such was a forbidden sin in goblin culture. With this new knowledge, Gastro quickly mobilized to publicize this.

Taking numerous copies and evidence of the contract, and interviewing various Blastbor Co. employees, Gastro revealed this news to the media and the Sparkcog goblins were shocked by this revelation. Vermix's sales plummeted, and he was hated and ridiculed for what he had done. Millions of goblins began to boycott Vermix's goods. As this happened, Gastro's sales soared up high as he had successfuly created a powerful monopoly, and destroyed Vermix Blastbor. Trade Prince Reklix was inevitably forced to exile him after months of media pressure and protesters, or face sullying his own reputation.

Reklix had already been angry at Gastro before this, as his failure had severely damaged their armies, costing millions of macaroons, and ultimately led him to gain little to nothing in the last Trade War. He worked hard to spread much negative propaganda against him and his family after the incident. Though all his work against Gastro seemed to have disappeared now, and with the exile of his favored mogul, Reklix became infuriated. With much resentment, he began to plot against him. In order to accomplish his goal of destroying all of his work, and ultimately Gastro himself, the Trade Prince had to do this secretly; Gastro had gained too much support to be publicly opposed.

The Secret War

Working with various criminal organizations, and using his extensive power and influence, Trade Prince Reklix began to undermine Gastro's company. By bribing many of his directors and officials, sabotaging factories, and ambushing his supply ships and caravans, Reklix was able to slowly build up extensive damage to him. Gastro began to catch on to these subtle activities, but was unable to find who or what was doing this. This happened for months, and Gastro's macaroons began to drain. Becoming slightly paranoid and nervous, he went to one of Kezan's most infamous Information Brokers of the time in hope of aid.

Mr. Smile was his only known name, and for a hefty price he gladly gave Gastro all he knew. Following these leads, Gastro began to take countermeasures, establishing various guard posts and spies at suspected subversion locations. Inevitably, he was able to discover Trade Prince Reklix was behind these operations. Discovering this not only angered him, but gave him a new goal to strive for. The idea of Trade Princehood had come up before, but Gastro had never thought about seriously pursuing it: until now. Though he could easily reveal this to the public, Gastro decided he would maneuver secretly just as Reklix had done, "because revenge is sweeter when you beat them at their own game".

As both sides enlisted the aid of criminal organizations, battles began to rage across the underbelly of Kezan. Soon, though, they began to rise, and shootouts became common in warehouses, garages, shops, and even out in the streets. As the fighting became less and less secretive, Gastro decided to take a different approach. He began to tell his contacts of his new campaign for Trade Princehood. Contacting media stations, the Tinker's Union, and even his own family and their contacts, Gastro collected millions of extra Macaroons. With large amounts of funding and support, and with Mr. Smile's constant feed of information, Gastro was able to tip the stalemate and gain the upper hand in the war.

A Prince is Born

Trade Prince Reklix became desperate, and began to make a darker move. Many goblin "scholars" believe Reklix to have always been insane, but his losses and constant anger only worsened it now. Being able to somehow track down many of Gastro's contacts, he murdered one after another brutally, leaving no connections back to him. Gastro began stationing guards around his contacts, who would follow them in secret. After over three dozen murders, Gastro was able to repel the rest of Reklix's attacks, forcing him to withdraw his brutal new strategy.

With no options left, Trade Prince Reklix turned to his advisors. Concocting a new plan, Reklix decided he would assassinate Gastro himself at a dinner gathering, and show his body to all the other Moguls and Barons as a warning against the large support Gastro had garnered. Gastro recieved the invitation, where Reklix claimed he would apologize for all he had done. Gastro's spy network had become too extensive, and he was able to easily decipher Reklix's plan. Tracking down the names and location of each assassin, Gastro was able to bribe them with a hefty sum, and they eagerly agreed to comply with his plan.

The dinner party, held in one of Undermine's most prestigious resturants, contained over a hundred influential Barons, Moguls, Generals, and other important figures in the Sparkcog Cartel, including Gastro's family. Trade Prince Reklix and Gastro sat together at their own table, near the window curtains, where a myriad of well-trained goblin asassins lurked nearby outside. They spoke for a while, putting on fake smiles and nods. Eventually, Reklix signaled his assassins, but they did not come. Reklix grew increasingly frustrated, repeating the code words over and over. His voice continued to rise, and he drew much attention to all around him as he began to fully yell. This was unplanned by Gastro, but the attention only served to benefit him.

Gastro, almost bursting out in laughter at Reklix, finally gave out his own signal. Pushing his chair back and standing up, he climatically straightened his tie as assassins poured from the curtains and held Reklix at gunpoint. With the entire room staring at them, Reklix froze in fear. "Theresa' new Trade Prince now, buddy." Gastro said, and with that he proclaimed Reklix exiled out of Kezan forever, claiming the title of Trade Prince for himself. And so began Gastro's reign as the newly crowned Trade Prince Zimirvox.

Proving Himself

Though exiled, Dazian Reklix still held onto a large number of supporters. Hiding out in a loyalist Mogul's mansion, Reklix amassed his own forces to trigger a rebellion against the new Trade Prince. Reklix launched his first assault on a remote Sparkcog lumber mill. Successfully taking over the mill, he began constructing fortifications and spread the word of the rebellion in hopes of recruiting more people. A large ammount of Reklix's supporters arrived to aid him in his rebellion.

Within hours of hearing news of the rebellion, Trade Prince Zimirvox sent a massive force to Reklix's headquarters. The Sparkcog forces completely annihilated Reklix's army, and him and his moguls were all captured. Each of them were tied onto a raft, including Reklix, and were given only a knife, one silver coin, a piece of frozen pizza, and then pushed out into the oceans to let fate guide them. After this event, no one dared to speak out against the new Trade Prince's rule for years.

The Golden Age of Zimirvox

For the next few decades Kezan was thrown into two more Trade Wars, until the Treaty of Reveltide declared no more Trade Wars would ever be fought. The Sparkcog Cartel, who had remained neutral or played a minor role in both these wars, prospered under Trade Prince Zimirvox. Gastro met various new aspiring businessmen, many which he promoted to his own new set of Moguls and Barons. Gastro also disbanded his company, splitting it up among his Moguls to increase competition and boost the Sparkcog's economy.

One of the many future Moguls Gastro met was Glucket Gizmospin, a young and bright, but bankrupt, businessman struggling for wealth. Seeing potential, determination, and his own younger self, Trade Prince Zimirvox decided to uplift Glucket's business and aid him in growing his industry. In time, Gizmospin Industries grew into a powerful trade organization, and Gastro eventually enlisted Glucket to his growing cabinet of Moguls.

Another prominent and very unique figure Trade Prince Zimirvox encountered was Ryypo, a suprisingly intelligent troll engineer in control of a small oil operation. Regardless of his race, Ryypo seemed brilliant for a troll and Gastro worked out numerous deals with him. In the end, Ryypo ended up joining the Sparkcog Cartel, and to the majority's surprise, became a troll Baron.

Sparkcog prospered greatly, but they still lacked one thing, a large and extensive sea trade center. Though Westcog Harbor had grown much under Zimirvox's Golden Age, it's location was far from many major goblin trade routes, making it inefficient. Port Dynaz, another Sparkcog port, was inefficient for trade and mainly served as a resort location. Restructuring it would of costed much time and work, and potentially harmed the revenue gained from vacationers. Instead, Gastro set off on a quest to establish and create a new port city, in one of the small isles near Kezan, where hundreds of trade routes intertwined.

Establishment of Shipwreck

Gastro sent a large fleet of ships to look for the best isle to create their new city. Though the first fleet never came back, they were able to send a distress call out via radio. Sending a second fleet, Gastro was able save a majority of the shipwrecked crewmen. They decided to call this newly discovered tropical island Sparkcog Isle. But, more importantly, Gastro stumbled on the perfect location for his new city where the first fleet had crashed. In honor of those who discovered it, he founded the soon-to-be port Shipwreck City.

Sparkcog Isle was surprisingly inhabited by goblins, but not the expected kind. They where primitive, and seemed to of escaped from troll captivity thousands of years ago. As a result, they where never affected by the Kaja'mite. The following history was bloody and brutal for the primitive goblins, completely destroying their society. The surviving women and children where sent to centers to reassimilate to society, while the men where all forcefully turned into Hobgoblins. After dominance of the isle was established, Shipwreck City began full construction, pillaging the untouched resources of the island to build it.

After Shipwreck's completion, hundreds of thousands  of Sparkcog citizens moved to the port city from Kezan, in hopes of great success, and encouraged by cheap real estate. With a large source of income and trade, and a growing population, Shipwreck City became rich and prospered. Even Gastro himself would later move into Shipwreck, constructing a mansion which would become his permanent residence. Shipwreck quickly became the heart of the Sparkcog Cartel, and eventually it's capital.

As Shipwreck grew, the Sparkcog's presence on the isle also grew. Many news mines, lumber mills, and oil rigs began to sprout around the island, exploiting it's untouched resources. Small villages also began to sprout up around the isle, commonly near logcutting camps and mines. The island was able to retain some of it's tropical beauty, especially by goblin standards, but inevitably it will be just like Kezan.

Present Day

Gastro has still remained in power for over thirty years, and has cunningly evaded various assassination attempts and put down dozens of usurpers. Under his rule, the Sparkcog Cartel has become a major power in the goblin world and its politics. He has written five critically acclaimed books about engineering, economics, and goblin politics. Shipwreck has also grown to nearly twice it's original size, and is a "living" example of Gastro's prowess as a Trade Prince. He still resides within his mansion in Shipwreck, and is rarely seen by regular people. However, he is often seen at meetings and parties among the upper class of Sparkcog. Though he has grown old, he intends to take the title of Trade Prince to the grave.

As for the fate of his family, both his parents have long since died of old age. His sister, Bonny, raised to the rank of Mogul shortly after Gastro had obtained Trade Princedom. She, like her mother, delved into the mining industry, later inheriting her mother's company after her death. She has since grown into a large corporation, delving into many other projects such as deforestation and hunting.