He hails from a Lake port village of Wollschloger, in the far north of Perrenland, about 120 miles from Krestible. Mathius father was a painter who never received recognition either critically or monetarily; His mother was a seemstress. The family never had much money and his father died broke. Mathius became a gambler with a desire to get rich quick.
Problem was, he was very unskilled and unlucky as an honest gambler. He was good at cheating, but this left him constatly in danger of being permanently harmed by people tired of being ripped off. After such an incident, he lay low in an unfamiliar tavern. Playing with his deck of cards, he dealt himself a hand at the table. Noting to himself that he couldn't deal himself an honestly good hand to save his life, the serving girl noted that what he'd dealt actually told her about his past present and future.
After giving him a very accurate reading based on the cards he'd dealt, he became fascinated with the idea of foretelling the future. While it started out as a means of knowing what to bet and when, his interest evolved, as did his interest in his mentor, Hayleon. The two of them were involved for nearly a year. During this time she taught him how to store magic in the cards, much like one might create a scroll. Again he decided this would be a good way to store defensive magic in case he's confronted about his cheating.
Problem is, she saw this all as a perversion of the pure science of fortune telling. When she discovers he's still gambling and using her techniques, she leaves him with a note: "I'm not going to be around while you destroy yourself. As long as you continue on this path, the cards will lead you astray. If we're meant to be together, we'll find each other again."
Since then, he's stopped gambling. He tries to follow the cards wherever they lead him. Often this leads him into trouble or far distances. Fortunately his burgeoning skills as a spellcaster have helped him get work with adventuring groups, and so he's passed from one group to another whenever the cards have told him it's time to move on, hoping that some day he'll cross paths with Hayleon again.
He's become a tool of fate, following the will of the cards in hopes of finding the girl he feels fated to be with again. All the while he tries to keep his urge to gamble under control.
He goes where the cards lead him. Recently, he drew "The Fool" [a card of an innocent traveler out in the world to learn], "The Chariot" [card indicating a time of great travel and transformation], and the "Ace of Wands" [good time to start a journey; strength uplifts others]. Normally, this might not be surprising since he enjoys traveling, but that night he dreamed of the cards - the Fool riding the Chariot towards the south, looking for the Wand. Somewhat confused but very intrigued by this particular spread, he consulted his cards again (and his wits) and believed he needed to head south, into Perrenland and eventually into the city of Krestible.