Gold Steiner

By the time of the events recounted about him, Gold has reached the age of eighty-eight, and the years have left him notably hard of hearing. Little else about his looks is spelled out, though he clearly retains enough vigor to challenge a young fighter to a duel.

Gold is a gruff, no-nonsense martial artist who prizes grit over pedigree. When a stranger arrives seeking training, he refuses to coddle her, throwing down a brutal survival test and judging her solely on whether she endures it. Stubborn and quick to act, he is nonetheless fair enough to own up to his own blunder and generous enough to reward proven toughness with an offer of apprenticeship.

By 1897 the renowned Silver Steiner had died, so when Izumi Harnet came looking for alchemy instruction from him, she instead found his elderly brother. Being hard of hearing, Gold misheard the request entirely and assumed she wanted his own tutelage. He handed her a machete and sent her off to survive alone on Mount Briggs for a full month as a trial of her worth. When she returned right on schedule dragging a dead bear behind her, Gold grasped his mistake and set the record straight, but her sheer tenacity had won him over, and he offered to train her himself. To gauge her skills he challenged her to a sparring match and was beaten senseless by the furious young woman. The tale is recounted in the Perfect Guide 2 Gaiden chapter and the third Brotherhood OVA.