Groten was captain of the bodyguard for Nevall Od' Orr, Chief Factor of Cawn. He was a hulking Dal Honese, with a shaven blue-black bullet head and meaty hands. He had formerly worked on one of the Factor's merchant vessels whipping slaves. Groten supervised the team of six labourers and ten bodyguards who carried the Chief Factor through the city on his palanquin. He had a difficult time remembering to use his employers' titles when addressing them.