Cassius Hardalio

"This is the last time your name shall be spoken, henceforth you are nameless and forgotten, your treacherous soul shall find no peace in the afterlife..."  Flavius Verus, Head Inquistor during the trial of Cassius Antonius Hardalio  

Cassius Antonius Hardalio was not born into riches but with dedication, cunning and boundless ambition he has become one of the wealthiest men in the Imperium. He owns guilds, lands and noble titles, he has at least a dozen members of the Imperial Senate in his pocket. He offered to finance the entire campaign against Rubia, an offer the Emperor could not refuse. He no longer cares about money, what he craves is glory. By delivering Rubia and its riches to the empire he will be admired and respected by the masses. But such ambitions can be dangerous in the Imperium because when it comes to the love of the people the Emperor tolerates no competition.

Cassius knows that his ambitions put him at odds with the Emperor and he has no illusions such that Marius will play fair. The Emperor has granted him only a single legion to command so Cassius raised a large army of Crimson Tide to supplement his forces. He is also well aware that the members of the legion are fanatically loyal to the Emperor so he had taken many precautions to avoid them turning on him (e.g. blood potions: if he dies the legion officers die too). This ensures he is in command of his army but also creates a weakness that his enemies might exploit...

In the end his bid for glory led to catastrophic failure: his entire army was annihilated by the Edict of Fire cast by The Faultless Arrow. Although he escaped the battle unscathed, he was immediately arrested. The Emperor publicly blamed him for the failure of the campaign and had him publicly tortured and executed. His wealth and lands were seized and added to the Imperial Demense.