[center][h1][color=ed1c24]Franz[/color] [color=aba000]Kaufmann[/color][/h1][/center] [center] [color=aba000]Stats[/color] [/center] [hider] Agility: 6 Smarts: 6 Spirit: 4 Strength: 5 Vigor: 4 [/hider] [center] [color=ed1c24]Appearance[/color] [/center] [hider] Franz is relatively average physically. He’s 5’10”, with an average stature. He has a fair and lightly freckled complexion. He has short light brown hair and a full beard. His outfit contains a long grey coat, white shirt, tough blue trousers from his military days, blue vest, old army boots, and something like a grey Homburg hat: [url]https://www.hats-plus.com/images/Product/large/2662.jpg [/url] [/hider] [center] [color=aba000]Gear[/color] [/center] [hider]An automatic gatling rifle built in his shop [url] https://i.pinimg.com/originals/f1/93/77/f19377f809ba47b81e09eb79a8d0d191.png [/url] His modified Gasser M1870 he used to survive during the Battle of Sedan. This pistol was used by officers and cavalry, and Franz has cared for it meticulously and updated some of it’s mechanisms. It has high stopping power, with it’s carbine chamber of 11.25x36mm. [url] https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/battlefield/images/8/81/Gasser_M1870_IRL.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20160912171936 [/url] Franz has also brought his tools for reloading ammo and gun maintenance. [/hider] [center] [color=ed1c24]Background[/color] [/center] [hider] Franz Kaufmann was born to Josef Kaufmann and Marie Kaufmann in poor worker tenements in Vienna in 1848. The chaos caused by the year’s revolutions caused his parents much misfortune, so they named their son after the new Hapsburg monarch, Franz Joseph, who ascended to the throne that year to return stability to the Empire. The family lived an impoverished existence, working hard early industrial jobs in Vienna. Josef and Marie were unable to conceive again, so further strain was put on Franz to work hard for the family. The young man knew his duty, but truly desired to seek fame and fortune from adventure, like so many others. When he was 18, he enlisted in the army for the Austro-Prussian War, much to his parent’s chagrin. The adventure was short-lived when the war ended in quick defeat for the Austrians, but he distinguished himself and received extra payment for his service. With the money, his family was able to rise out of the worst of it’s problems. The experience of a lost war changed him forever, but he ultimately considered it worthwhile to serve his Empire and family. He stayed on in the army and started to rise in ranks. In 1870, the Prussians turned on Napoleon III’s French Empire. The Austrians didn’t join the war, but the French paid for an expeditionary force to aid them. He joined it eagerly, knowing it would set him up for life if he used his pay wisely. The force found its way to France just in time before the Battle of Sedan, where it fought well with another division of French men. In the chaos of the battlefield, he, a British advisor named John, and a Frenchman named Constantin depended on each other to make sure their guns kept firing. They barely managed to fend off every Prussian advance on their position, unaware that the battle as a whole was deteriorating. As they kept firing to keep the Prussians from braving a full assault, the unthinkable happened: the corpses of the fallen rose up. Soon they were surrounded as undead Prussians, French, and Austrians lashed out from all sides. A living man was worth 10 of the flesh gnashers, but the dead always outnumbered the living. Under the moonlight, they were almost overwhelmed. Then Prussian artillery started shelling the growing horde, allowing them an escape route. As they fled into night, it became apparent that the Frenchman had been hit in the chest with artillery shrapnel. Even though the three knew none of each other’s language, they all knew what had to be done. Despite Constantin's plees to leave him behind, Franz couldn't bring himself to abandon a fellow soldier. He pulled the shrapnel out piece by piece and bandaged the wound, saving Constantin from death. His screams and twisted flesh would haunt Franz whenever he remembered Sedan. After resting a few hours, the three hiked back to Paris, arriving in time for the coronation of Kaiser Wilhelm I. They managed to strong-arm an army bureaucrat into giving Franz and Constantin their rightful compensation and release from service. Before they went their separate ways, they exchanged contact details, so the three men could correspond later. Franz went back to Vienna, secured an honorable discharge, and decided to settle down. He’d lost his taste for adventure and soldiering after the horrors of Sedan, or so he thought. Utilizing his carefully saved army money, Franz was able to open a business as a gunsmith in Vienna. He quickly saw success by getting out in front of the newer innovations and was able to set his aging parents up well in his new home. The working class soldier suddenly found himself thrust into Vienna’s new wave of Bourgeoisie. While it was a culture shock at first, he soon became invested in efforts to help modernize Vienna and prepare for the coming age of technology and magic. He joined the state funded Imperial Society of Science and Magic to tell his stories of the horrors of Sedan and his experiences with the new wave of gatling firearms. It helped him to share his experience in a productive way. He also found love in a professor's daughter named Amelia, marrying her and establishing a family. Franz was happy and successful, while raising his toddler daughter Sophia, but his old taste for adventure started to reawaken. Things in America were getting worse and the Emperor wanted somebody from the Imperial Society to go abroad and investigate more. Franz somewhat reluctantly volunteered. He didn’t want to leave his family and business, but he also couldn’t deny his desire to discover the happenings of the American West. He urged his friends from Sedan in letters to join him. While the Frenchman was reluctant, John agreed readily. The group took a ship together across the pond. Franz acquired a coach and the small band of old European soldiers is on their way to Selina, Kansas. [/hider] [center] [color=aba000]Worst Nightmare[/color] [/center] [hider] Getting eaten alive at Sedan. [/hider] [center] [color=ed1c24]Skills[/color] [/center] [hider] Coach Driving: 1 Fighting: 1 Investigation: 2 Knowledge: 2 Repair: 3 Riding: 1 Shooting: 4 Streetwise: 1 [/hider]