Welcome to the Vaults
Keep away from the cell doors.
If the alarm goes off, don't hesitate.
Hit the deck.
OP
Expendable The Certifiable
Member
Seen
35 min ago
Keep away from the cell doors.
If the alarm goes off, don't hesitate.
Hit the deck.
OP
Expendable The Certifiable
Member
Seen
35 min ago
Accepted
Ilyana the Half-Human
Race, Age, Time in the Caravan:
Half-elf, 29, 2 months
Appearance:
Ilyana is below average height for a half-elf, standing at 5' 3" with short-cropped sandy blonde hair and dark tanned skin from her time at sea. She's thin and wiry, but looks youthful, so sometimes mistaken for a boy. One cannot help but notice the pink scar that divides her left eyebrow and travels down on an inward slope to her cheek. The artificial eye she wears on the left has an amber iris that contrasts with her natural jade green right iris. She has an eye patch she wears to hide the socket when its out.
One looking closer can see signs of other scars, and perhaps a peep at her skull tattoo on her chest neatly transected by another scar running from her right shoulder to her left hip. Few would ever see what looks like a second naval just under the ribs is actually a scar from a puncture wound, but anyone who rubs her back may feel the raised ridges of the scars from her flogging. Her right palm has an "L" branded there for "Leshere (thief)".
Born on the 13th of Uktar in a brothel, where her mother took shelter. Unfortunately she died shortly afterward, so nothing is known of her human father. She was raised by the the staff of her Aunt Pol and Uncle Glyberos' house, largely ignored by the family, including their eldest daughter Sylna and their youngest son Keras.
Many visitors assumed the young girl was a child of one of the staff, as she would be frequently seen doing various servant chores. But when Marquis Muleho, friend to the judge and frequent visitor, discovered she was their neice, her Aunt and Uncle, deeply embarrassed, moved her to a private room and forbade her from doing any more domestic work. They also hired a private tutor to address her neglected education.
Marquis Muleho showed up one day with a spell book that he brought for Aunt Pol to examine, leaving it in the library. Later, when it was discovered missing, her uncle, his face burning red, went to her room first and found the burned out cover in her fireplace. Keras, who'd been checking her chest of drawers, turned around and presented the jewels that had adorned the cover. Glyberos flogged her until she confessed to taking the spell book (she hadn't), then used his authority as a judge to have her branded and imprisoned for five years.
It was in prison that she learned how to be a thief, a necessary skill to survive in that place. During her third year, diseased ravaged the prison and she spent long hours tending to both guards and prisoners before finally succumbing to illness herself. While she couldn't say for sure, there were times afterward that guards and the other inmates gave her some grudging respect and the ocassional blind eye.
On her release, now fully an adult, she was immediately pressganged into the Royal Navy as a sailor, handed over to the crew of galleon The Golden Falcon. The next four years were spent in hard labor. Crew were not permitted ashore except in the company of an officer, who was authorized to execute them on the spot should they attempt to desert.
Her five years in prison had already inured her to the lack of privacy under close quarters. When Ilyana slung her hammock, it was in the middle of the group, rather than on the edges. She also realized that the thief mark on her palm would make others reluctant to trust her, while others would use it as an excuse to rob her blind by claiming she stole their things. Ilyana therefore kept most of her money on the ship's books, avoided gambling, taking care to mark her few possessions and to keep careful receipts with witness signatures.
In her fourth year at sea, the Golden Falcon was one of a squadron of ships whose job was to blockade the harbor entrance to contain the ships of the Pretender. Under cover of darkness, the enemy launched some of their ships with skeleton crews to go out with the evening tide, creeping up unaware on the blockading ships before setting them alight before escaping as the fireships, drawn out by the tide, smashed into the blockading ships. In the confusion, the Pretender and the remainder of his fleet made their escape. Ilyana was the only survivor from the Golden Falcon.
Desperate to pull some sign of victory from this disaster, Ilyana was hailed as a hero for her survival - but instead of being released from service, her wounds were treated and she was transferred aboard the galleon The West Wind. Because of her 'lucky' status, she was given the 'honor' of leading the boarding crews - which led to the loss of her left eye in battle. It was the first of many battle scars she'd earn aboard the West Wind.
An arrow wound messed up her stomach - and wasn't helped much by the diluted healing potions they'd been supplied with, which made her very queasy and sick all over the place at the least sign of stress. They finally decided to discharge her from service in the Royal Navy, giving her a handful of medals, her silvered cutlass and dagger, the scarred leather cuirass she'd wear in battle, and all of her back pay on the books.
Many visitors assumed the young girl was a child of one of the staff, as she would be frequently seen doing various servant chores. But when Marquis Muleho, friend to the judge and frequent visitor, discovered she was their neice, her Aunt and Uncle, deeply embarrassed, moved her to a private room and forbade her from doing any more domestic work. They also hired a private tutor to address her neglected education.
Marquis Muleho showed up one day with a spell book that he brought for Aunt Pol to examine, leaving it in the library. Later, when it was discovered missing, her uncle, his face burning red, went to her room first and found the burned out cover in her fireplace. Keras, who'd been checking her chest of drawers, turned around and presented the jewels that had adorned the cover. Glyberos flogged her until she confessed to taking the spell book (she hadn't), then used his authority as a judge to have her branded and imprisoned for five years.
It was in prison that she learned how to be a thief, a necessary skill to survive in that place. During her third year, diseased ravaged the prison and she spent long hours tending to both guards and prisoners before finally succumbing to illness herself. While she couldn't say for sure, there were times afterward that guards and the other inmates gave her some grudging respect and the ocassional blind eye.
On her release, now fully an adult, she was immediately pressganged into the Royal Navy as a sailor, handed over to the crew of galleon The Golden Falcon. The next four years were spent in hard labor. Crew were not permitted ashore except in the company of an officer, who was authorized to execute them on the spot should they attempt to desert.
Her five years in prison had already inured her to the lack of privacy under close quarters. When Ilyana slung her hammock, it was in the middle of the group, rather than on the edges. She also realized that the thief mark on her palm would make others reluctant to trust her, while others would use it as an excuse to rob her blind by claiming she stole their things. Ilyana therefore kept most of her money on the ship's books, avoided gambling, taking care to mark her few possessions and to keep careful receipts with witness signatures.
In her fourth year at sea, the Golden Falcon was one of a squadron of ships whose job was to blockade the harbor entrance to contain the ships of the Pretender. Under cover of darkness, the enemy launched some of their ships with skeleton crews to go out with the evening tide, creeping up unaware on the blockading ships before setting them alight before escaping as the fireships, drawn out by the tide, smashed into the blockading ships. In the confusion, the Pretender and the remainder of his fleet made their escape. Ilyana was the only survivor from the Golden Falcon.
Desperate to pull some sign of victory from this disaster, Ilyana was hailed as a hero for her survival - but instead of being released from service, her wounds were treated and she was transferred aboard the galleon The West Wind. Because of her 'lucky' status, she was given the 'honor' of leading the boarding crews - which led to the loss of her left eye in battle. It was the first of many battle scars she'd earn aboard the West Wind.
An arrow wound messed up her stomach - and wasn't helped much by the diluted healing potions they'd been supplied with, which made her very queasy and sick all over the place at the least sign of stress. They finally decided to discharge her from service in the Royal Navy, giving her a handful of medals, her silvered cutlass and dagger, the scarred leather cuirass she'd wear in battle, and all of her back pay on the books.
Personality:
Ilyana is always wary and reserved, keeping a weather eye not just on the horizon but the other pilgrims as well. In an open room, she prefers to have her back in a corner. A bit of a loner, she can be quick to anger, especially if pressed. Her speech is often blunt and profane, much to the dismay of others.
She works hard at being self-reliant and always ready to lend a hand, Ilyana avoids seeking help from others. Many assume it's her pride holding her back, but really it's to avoid debts as not everyone seeks repayment in coin. She knows well the reputation that half-human girls have among her people.
Ilyana is also aware what people will say about a known thief in their midst, so she keeps a careful inventory on her ledgers, recording each sale or purchase to fight any claims on her purse or property.
Motivation:
Finally free, she decided to join the pilgrimage, since that would mean crossing over wide stretches of dry land that didn't pitch and roll from the sea and the wind, and allow her to see something other than a lot of water from horizon to horizon.
Skills, Strengths and Weaknesses, and Tools:
Animal Handling - good with donkeys, ponies, horses.
Archer - average skill with shooting a bow and arrow. Works best with a bow and arrows.
First aid - experienced in the basic treatment of wounds and illness. Needs bandages and medicinal herbs.
Lockpicking - some experience in the opening of locks without using a key. Usually reqires lockpicks, although some tools can be improvised on the scene.
Navigation - sufficient ability to navigate using a map, compass, and/or sextant to get to their destination. Maps, compass, sextant required.
Rigger - Experienced with ropes, knots, blocks and tackle, and rigging. Requires rope, fid, sail twine, pully blocks, serving mallets, etc.
Sailing - experienced in the basics of sailing. Requires a boat with sails.
Sailmaking - skilled in the crafting of sails and other articles of canvas work. Requires canvas, sail twine, needles, and rope.
Swimming - allows them to cross bodies of water.
Swordswoman - above average skill with her cutlass, especially in close quarters. Requires a bladed weapon.
Archer - average skill with shooting a bow and arrow. Works best with a bow and arrows.
First aid - experienced in the basic treatment of wounds and illness. Needs bandages and medicinal herbs.
Lockpicking - some experience in the opening of locks without using a key. Usually reqires lockpicks, although some tools can be improvised on the scene.
Navigation - sufficient ability to navigate using a map, compass, and/or sextant to get to their destination. Maps, compass, sextant required.
Rigger - Experienced with ropes, knots, blocks and tackle, and rigging. Requires rope, fid, sail twine, pully blocks, serving mallets, etc.
Sailing - experienced in the basics of sailing. Requires a boat with sails.
Sailmaking - skilled in the crafting of sails and other articles of canvas work. Requires canvas, sail twine, needles, and rope.
Swimming - allows them to cross bodies of water.
Swordswoman - above average skill with her cutlass, especially in close quarters. Requires a bladed weapon.
Strengths
- Right eye can see in the dark like it was dim light
- Right eye can see in dim light like it was bright daylight
- Speaks Elvish middle-tongue, thieves' cant, a few human languages.
- long lifespan (just shy of two centuries)
Weaknesses
- Trust issues
- Bears a thief mark
- blind in one eye when not wearing her prosthesis
- Visibly scarred
- Mixed race with reputation of promiscuity (they grow up faster than elves, so many think they're older than they are)
- Underdeveloped body
An artificial eye that carries an enchantment that allows the wearer to see through it as if it was their own natural eye. Does not work in mana-depleted zones.
a canvas bag with a wooden bottom and several interior pockets that hold various rigger tools - sewing palm, needles in a needle case, sail twine, serving mallet, fids, wood rasp, metal file, sharpening stone, various hanks of cords, bundles of oakum, screw eye auger, small hatchet. This also holds her lockpicks, a pouch of tobacco, and a smoking pipe.
A gray donkey harnessed to a small cart carrying her few possessions for the trip. Barrels of water, grain, & flour. A chest containing cooking gear, mess gear, lantern, a few flasks of oil, a small tea chest, and few spices. A sea chest holding spare clothes, bedroll, 50' of rope, hammock, some ledgers, a wooden comb, a lockbox with some gold and silver, and a few well-wrapped bottles of her medicine. A couple small casks of rum. A canvas tarp to cover it all while traveling. This also holds her bow, quiver of arrows and her armor while traveling.
a bronze stem that unscrews at one end to reveal a dipping pen inside, while a small covered pot on the opposite end has a length of silk wadded inside, soaked in black ink so that it will not spill. It can be tucked into a pocket in the interior of her jerkin or slipped onto the belt.
A whistle that makes a shrill sound when blown, can be heard over high winds and far distances. A trained user can make a variety of sounds with one.
leather belt pouch holding two rolled bandages, two bundles of dried herbs to use as a poultice, other medicinal herbs.
-----
Optional Details
What They Most Want:
Freedom
If They Had a DnD Alignment, It Would Be:
Chaotic Good
Three Likes:
- A sharp blade
- Rum
- A good smoke
Three Dislikes:
- A dull blade
- Storms
- Hardtack
Do They Follow Their Heart or Their Mind?:
Their mind. Heart's been betrayed too often
Worst Fear:
Imprisonment
Favorite Color:
Sky blue
Most Like The Animal:
A fox
Favorite Time of Day:
Daybreak and the promise of a new day, the sun shining warm on her face.
- Brown wide-brim hat
- Red bandana covering her hair
- Cream-colored peasant's shirt
- white bandana tied loosely around her neck
- Lined Brown leather jerkin with her medals stitched on the left breast, a dolphin embroyered in aquamarine beads on the right breast.
- Brown breeches
- Green Hose
- Brown leather boots with the tops folded down
- Wide brown leather belt
- [Nested]
- knife with a broken tip (keeps from punching holes in sails and officers) in a leather sheath
- Fid in sheath
- Belaying pin tucked into belt
- Belt pouch with some coins, flint, small pouch of pipe tobacco.
- Flask containing medicine for her stomach
- Cutlass with a silvered blade and scabbard.
- knotted lanyard that holds a bosun's pipe
- Leather curiass
- Leather Braicers
Favorite Season:
Summer
What Gods/Spirits/Whatevers They Worship (If Any):
Deep Sashelas - an Elvish god of the oceans who likes to tinker and create new creatures, somewhat flighty. One hears tales about him having affairs with mermaids and land dwellers. Popular deity among Elvish sailors. His symbol is of a dolphin.
Ilyana's themes
- Somebody's Watching Me
- My Demons
- In the End
*Revised and Accepted
Siri
Race, Age, Time in the Caravan:
Human, 25, 1 year
Appearance:
This woman puts you in mind of a mysterious raven. She has narrow blue eyes that are like two windows on the afternoon sky. Her thick, straight, coffee-colored hair is worn in a handsome, exotic style. She is tall and has a wasp-waisted build. Her skin is white. She has hollow cheeks. Her wardrobe is sexy.
Sireena grew up on the family farm with her mom, dad, three brothers, and an older sister, just outside of the tiny village of Upper Hythe. When she was twelve, she found a violin in a chest of an abandoned house, and spent a lot of time learning how to play it. Sireena would pop down to the village tavern The Old Wolf, begging for lessons from the wandering minstrels who'd visit.
When she was 14, Taryn the tavern keeper pointed out that Sireena was hanging around enough that he might as well offer her a job as one of the serving wenches, and she could play her violin for the crowd when they didn't have a minstrel.
The tavern keeper died a few years later, and his wife, jealous of the attention her husband had given Sireena, fired her on the spot. That night, one of the boys from the neighboring farm was a guest at the dinner table, sitting next to her. It didn't take her long to figure out that her parents were trying to set her up for marriage. She ran away the next day, disguising herself as a boy to avoid unwanted attention on the road.
A little over a week and three counties later she got robbed by some highway men. Angry at the meager coins in her purse, one of them grabbed up her violin, suggesting it might be worth a few coins. When Sireena tried to take it back, the gang jumped her.
She woke up in a feather bed in the house of Mother Lily, the local midwife, who had found her on the side of the road where the gang had left her. When she asked about her violin, Mother Lily sighed, shaking her head and told her the only thing that was left by the side of the road was her, and how like a musican to worry about their instrument before themselves. She then began listing Sireena's injuries, starting with the broken right arm and wrist.
Sireena spent the first week mourning her violin, but began to take an interest in Mother Lily's house with all the drying herbs, the massive medicine chest, her curious brewing apparatus, and her visitors. Noticing her interest, Mother Lily began sharing some of her work such as the making of medicines.
And then the highwaymen who'd robbed Sireena made the mistake of trying to burgle Mother Lily's house.
When it was over, Mother Lily guided a stunned Sireena to a wagon in the barn, hitched up her horse, then turned her attention to the cottage - which rapidly shrank until it was the size of a child's toy, which the then picked up and placed into a chest filled with straw. A toy-sized barn was careful place beside it, and more straw packed around them before closing the chest. Bare dirt showed where each had stood.
And so began her apprenticeship. Magic was alternated with lectures about plants, more details on the making of medicines, the brewing of ale, beer, the bandaging of wounds, lectures on the stars and the moon, suturing, winemaking and distilling, the telling of fortunes, brewing of potions, birthing babies, stitching of wounds, treating illnesses...
As well as readings from the Old Believers' bible Mother Lily kept hidden underneath a loose floor board, even though the last soldier of the empire had marched south long before Sireena was even born. Some of the stories were about the mischevious Lord Jester, a shapeshifting wolf who played pranks on foolish people to get them to mend their ways.
They'd also moved the cottage three times, changing their names and their looks each time to become new people so that the angry villagers whose cows had died or their crops had failed wouldn't find them.
One morning, returning to the cottage after a particularly difficult birthing to a farmer's wife of triplets (two sons, one daughter), she found Mother Lily sitting at the table, her body stiff and cold. There were also two glasses of last summer's wine on opposite sides of the table, but no sign who the visitor had been.
After she had buried Mother Lily after the rites of the Old Believers, Sireena decided to change her name to Siri and to join the pilgrimage.
When she was 14, Taryn the tavern keeper pointed out that Sireena was hanging around enough that he might as well offer her a job as one of the serving wenches, and she could play her violin for the crowd when they didn't have a minstrel.
The tavern keeper died a few years later, and his wife, jealous of the attention her husband had given Sireena, fired her on the spot. That night, one of the boys from the neighboring farm was a guest at the dinner table, sitting next to her. It didn't take her long to figure out that her parents were trying to set her up for marriage. She ran away the next day, disguising herself as a boy to avoid unwanted attention on the road.
A little over a week and three counties later she got robbed by some highway men. Angry at the meager coins in her purse, one of them grabbed up her violin, suggesting it might be worth a few coins. When Sireena tried to take it back, the gang jumped her.
She woke up in a feather bed in the house of Mother Lily, the local midwife, who had found her on the side of the road where the gang had left her. When she asked about her violin, Mother Lily sighed, shaking her head and told her the only thing that was left by the side of the road was her, and how like a musican to worry about their instrument before themselves. She then began listing Sireena's injuries, starting with the broken right arm and wrist.
Sireena spent the first week mourning her violin, but began to take an interest in Mother Lily's house with all the drying herbs, the massive medicine chest, her curious brewing apparatus, and her visitors. Noticing her interest, Mother Lily began sharing some of her work such as the making of medicines.
And then the highwaymen who'd robbed Sireena made the mistake of trying to burgle Mother Lily's house.
When it was over, Mother Lily guided a stunned Sireena to a wagon in the barn, hitched up her horse, then turned her attention to the cottage - which rapidly shrank until it was the size of a child's toy, which the then picked up and placed into a chest filled with straw. A toy-sized barn was careful place beside it, and more straw packed around them before closing the chest. Bare dirt showed where each had stood.
And so began her apprenticeship. Magic was alternated with lectures about plants, more details on the making of medicines, the brewing of ale, beer, the bandaging of wounds, lectures on the stars and the moon, suturing, winemaking and distilling, the telling of fortunes, brewing of potions, birthing babies, stitching of wounds, treating illnesses...
As well as readings from the Old Believers' bible Mother Lily kept hidden underneath a loose floor board, even though the last soldier of the empire had marched south long before Sireena was even born. Some of the stories were about the mischevious Lord Jester, a shapeshifting wolf who played pranks on foolish people to get them to mend their ways.
They'd also moved the cottage three times, changing their names and their looks each time to become new people so that the angry villagers whose cows had died or their crops had failed wouldn't find them.
One morning, returning to the cottage after a particularly difficult birthing to a farmer's wife of triplets (two sons, one daughter), she found Mother Lily sitting at the table, her body stiff and cold. There were also two glasses of last summer's wine on opposite sides of the table, but no sign who the visitor had been.
After she had buried Mother Lily after the rites of the Old Believers, Sireena decided to change her name to Siri and to join the pilgrimage.
Personality:
Warm and caring, it is concerning when she suddenly starts laughing out of the blue. Sometimes she seems very distracted, as if she's listening to people who are not there. Or talking to animals like they having a conversation.
Knowing some of the things Siri collects in the woods and fields, one wonders if she might be sampling her own wares...?
Still, she's a good doctor, loves to play the violin and collects 'miniatures'.
Motivation:
Tired of moving constantly whenever the villagers would blame them for the family cow dying, the crops failing, or the odd bit of property that vanished one night in lieu of payment, Siri has decided to join the pilgrimage and to see some of the places mentioned in Mother Lily's books and minstrel songs.
Skills, Strengths and Weaknesses, and Tools:
Animal Handling - Has a way with animals
Cooking - a master of the kitchen
Fortune-telling - It's almost as if she has a direct line with Fate.
Herbology - knows many uses of many plants, always eager to examine new plants
Hermetic Magic - still a journeyman in the study of the Laws of Sacrifice
Medicine - a master at tending to illness and injury, can perform minor surgery.
Potion-making - A journeyman in the creation of potions, odd explosions still happen sometimes.
Shrinking - able to reduce objects and later restore them to their normal size (See Sympathetic Magic)
Singing - Fair singer, knows a lot of songs.
Sympathetic Magic - still a journeyman in the study of the Laws of Sympathy.
Violin - Very good musician with the violin.
°Strengths
- Clever
- Dedicated
- Caring
°Weakness
- Makes a lot of assumptions
- Fondness for alcohol and sweets
- Sense of duty
- quirky sense of humor
°Tools
- Living wagon, home/workspace/surgery
- a small library of books.
- her shrunken collection of "miniatures"
What They Most Want:
Knowledge and new horizons
If They Had a DnD Alignment, It Would Be:
Neutral Good
Three Likes:
- Books
- Music
- Alcohol
Three Dislikes:
- Tobacco smoke
- Needless violence
- Child abusers
Do They Follow Their Heart or Their Mind?:
Their heart.
Worst Fear:
To be trapped
Favorite Color:
Red
Most Like The Animal:
A Swallow
Favorite Time of Day:
Sunset
How They Dress:
- Wide brim hat, either black or white
- Red dress
- Black bodice
- White apron
- Knee-high black boots
- Colorful... sweaters and scarfs when it gets cold
- A red hooded cloak
- Plague mask
- Leather satchel that holds various items and her journal
- Necklace with a crystal ball pendant.
Favorite Season:
Spring, the renewal of the world
What Gods/Spirits/Whatevers They Worship (If Any):
An old believer of the ancient gods of Oscana, admirer of Lord Jester.
Sirl's themes
- Something Just like This
- Pompeii
- Lone Digger
Knowledge and new horizons
If They Had a DnD Alignment, It Would Be:
Neutral Good
Three Likes:
- Books
- Music
- Alcohol
Three Dislikes:
- Tobacco smoke
- Needless violence
- Child abusers
Do They Follow Their Heart or Their Mind?:
Their heart.
Worst Fear:
To be trapped
Favorite Color:
Red
Most Like The Animal:
A Swallow
Favorite Time of Day:
Sunset
How They Dress:
- Wide brim hat, either black or white
- Red dress
- Black bodice
- White apron
- Knee-high black boots
- Colorful... sweaters and scarfs when it gets cold
- A red hooded cloak
- Plague mask
- Leather satchel that holds various items and her journal
- Necklace with a crystal ball pendant.
Favorite Season:
Spring, the renewal of the world
What Gods/Spirits/Whatevers They Worship (If Any):
An old believer of the ancient gods of Oscana, admirer of Lord Jester.
Sirl's themes
- Something Just like This
- Pompeii
- Lone Digger
<<< REJECTED >>>
When I was creating Siri, I realized that there would be some additional characters who step in from time to time as a part of her world, and I didn't want to surprise anyone when they did. Dia would be a companion to Siri and seen in her cat form most of the time.
And yes, I know it won't fool the fairies.
The Witch - Needed revising.
"As per our contract, your name now belongs to me," the Fallen lord smiled, satisified. "You are now 'Siri'."
Race, Age, Time in the Caravan:
Human, 25, 1 year
Appearance:
This woman puts you in mind of a mysterious raven. She has narrow blue eyes that are like two windows on the afternoon sky. Her thick, straight, coffee-colored hair is worn in a handsome, exotic style. She is tall and has a wasp-waisted build. Her skin is white. She has hollow cheeks. Her wardrobe is sexy.
Personality:
Warm and caring, it is concerning when she suddenly starts laughing out of the blue. Sometimes she seems very distracted, as if she's listening to people who are not there.
Or talking to her cat as if it was a person.
Knowing some of the things she collects in the woods and fields, one wonders if she might be sampling her own wares...?
Still, she's a good doctor, loves to play the violin and collects 'miniatures'.
Motivation:
Traveling in the caravan would be one way to avoid the angry mobs looking for someone to blame for when their crops fail and their cow dies, but her patronus Lord Jester has commanded it. Not that she minds too much, it's been an interesting trip, so far.
Skills, Strengths and Weaknesses, and Tools:
Animal Handling - Has a way with animals, but not with her cat....
Cooking - a master of the kitchen
Fortune-telling - It's almost as if she has a direct line with Fate.
Herbology - knows many uses of many plants, always eager to examine new plants
Hermetic Magic - still a journeyman in the study of the Laws of Sacrifice
Medicine - a master at tending to illness and injury, can perform minor surgery.
Potion-making - A journeyman in the creation of potions, odd explosions still happen sometimes.
Shrinking - able to reduce objects and later restore them to their normal size (See Sympathetic Magic)
Singing - Fair singer, knows a lot of songs.
Sympathetic Magic - still a journeyman in the study of the Laws of Sympathy.
Violin - Very good musician with the violin.
°Strengths
- Clever
- Dedicated
- Caring
°Weakness
- Makes a lot of assumptions
- Fondness for alcohol and sweets
- Sense of duty
- quirky sense of humor
°Tools
- Patronus Lord Jester
- Dia, when she chooses to help.
- Living wagon, home/workspace/surgery
- Her team of horses...? Best to avoid when their eyes turn red.
What They Most Want:
Knowledge and new horizons
If They Had a DnD Alignment, It Would Be:
Neutral Good
Three Likes:
- Books
- Music
- Alcohol
Three Dislikes:
- Tobacco smoke
- Needless violence
- Child abusers
Do They Follow Their Heart or Their Mind?:
Their heart.
Worst Fear:
To be trapped
Favorite Color:
Red
Most Like The Animal:
A Swallow
Favorite Time of Day:
Sunset
How They Dress:
- Wide brim hat, either black or white
- Red dress
- Black bodice
- White apron
- Knee-high black boots
- Colorful... sweaters and scarfs when it gets cold
- A red hooded cloak
- Plague mask
- Leather satchel that holds various items and her journal
- Necklace with a crystal ball pendant.
Favorite Season:
Spring, the renewal of the world
What Gods/Spirits/Whatevers They Worship (If Any):
Lord Jester
The Cat
"As per our contract, your name now belongs to me," the Fallen smiled, satisified. "You are now 'Dia'."
Race, Age, Time in the Caravan:
Half-demon, 17, 1 year
Appearance:
- A black cat with green eyes.
- A black cat with green eyes and large bat wings.
-This girl makes you think of a dashing jaguar. She has green slitted eyes that are like two spheres of jade. Her thick, straight, black hair is worn in a simple style. She is short and has an athletic build. Her skin is black. She has small feet. Her wardrobe is uncomplicated.
History:
-Born in the Shadow realm, she quickly realized that her mother treated her different from her other siblings, a sort of cold resentment. It finally drove her from nest, only to be abused by both stronger demons and slumming Celestials as she tried to make a living for herself. There wasn't much to remember.
Caught one day outside of her lair by a group of lower celestials eager to prove themselves, they took turns punching and abusing her until Jester appeared towering over them in his Wolf form and drove them off.
For the first time in her life, Dia felt... safe. It didn't take her much to agree to sign away her name and become one of Lord Jester's most loyal minions, eager to please him.
Personality:
-Anger bubbles away below the surface, appearing as a sort of bitter resentment one can hear in her voice and in her mannerisms. She does not engage in 'play' - pleasure makes you drop your guard, makes you vulnerable, open to attack. Is it paranoia when you know the world is really out to get you?
Motivation:
-To serve Lord Jester with all her being, fearing if she fails, he might cast her out.
Skills, Strengths and Weaknesses, and Tools:
- Flaming claw attack
- Melee-fighting
- Shape-shifting
- Stealth
- Hermatic Magic
°Strength
- An internal reservoir of magical power
- A trust in Lord Jester
- Able to speak in any form, although the smaller the form, the deeper the voice.
- Her non-demon half allows her to cross over to the Material World without need of preparation or possession.
- Absorbs and converts heat into magic
°Weakness
- A sense of duty, of responsibility
- A lack of social skills
These next two are just NPCs that Siri and Dia interact with. They have no power in the campaign against the caravan or its people. Jester can't cross over to this world unless a place has been prepared for him, and nobody except a few can see Death.
Also, Jester is offering their grand unified theory on magic and Shadow Realm relations.
The Patronus (NPC)
NPC Patronus
Although, to be honest, I do miss the old names....
Race, Age, Time in the Caravan:
-Fallen Lord, At the beginning, Never.
Fallen - a being from the Celestial realm who's been drained of magic and exiled to the lower realms
Fallen Lord - a Fallen who's managed to regain a significant measure of magic. What makes them dangerous is how they've managed this...
Appearance:
-This guy puts you in mind of a witty comedian. He has deep-set violet eyes that are like two windows on the evening sky. His luxurious, straight, salt and pepper hair is medium-length and is worn in an utilitarian, severe style. He is tall and has a wiry build. His skin is cream-colored. He has a large nose and wide feet. His wardrobe is complicated, with a lot of greys and blacks.
-The Wolf, black and gray fur with cream highlights, as tall as a two-story building. His howl can bring wolves from miles around.
History:
-We were there in the beginning, my brothers and sisters. Well, not before She, no one was there before She, not even Death. My brothers and sisters, we had charge of a small corner of the world, Oscana, and we guided those who lived in our lands, leading them out of savagery. Oh, the stories I could tell you of those days...
-But then Empire came. They wanted our part of it, our lands, our people. We were driven out of our place in the world and so we fell.
-Now, our names are forgotten, our temples destroyed, our people who would not submit wiped out as heritics and heathens, and with them our power gone from this world. Many of my brothers and sisters are now but dust and dim memories, their names only whispered by the wind.
-But then the old Empire and their gods too, in their time, were driven out.
Personality:
- Teacher
- Mischievous
- Curiosity
Motivation:
-With all the time that has passed, they now have only the merest toe-hold in the Material world and are eager to see what the child races have done since they fell.
Skills, Strengths and Weaknesses, and Tools:
- Hunting
- Knowledge of the world from before their fall
- Medicine - how to treat injuries and illness
- Hermetic Magic - The Laws of Sacrifice
- Sympathetic Magic - The Laws of Sympathy
- Teaching - the ability to inform and bring about inquiry
°Strengths
- Access to a reserve of power they've accumulated in the Shadow Realm after many years.
- Very limited ability to portal beings between the Material world and the Shadow Realm.
- Shape-shifting
°Weaknesses
- They cannot set foot in the Material world unless a place is prepared for them.
- They can only experience what is happening in the Material world through their projection and through anchors such as crystal balls (stare into the void and see who blinks first) or their minions.
- Cut off from the Celestial Realm, they have only the fraction of the power they once had.
°Tools
- Their minions, through which they can spread their influence.
- Their shadow, a projection that allows them to limitedly view and communicate with the Material world or even the Celestial - however, takes power and is vulnerable to attack.
- The creation of artifacts
The Psycopomp (NPC) - Likes to show up when things get interesting. Or for parties. He's bored.
Oscana's Reaper of Souls
Race, Age, Time in the Caravan:
Psychopomp, Eternal, From the Beginning
Appearance:
A skeleton dressed in tattered black robes, carrying a scythe, with a spark or flame burning in their eye sockets.
History:
WHEN THE FIRST SPARK OF LIFE APPEARED, I WAS VAGUE AND UNFORMED. WHEN DISEASE RAN RAMPANT IN OSCANA, I BECAME AS I AM NOW. I SHALL REMAIN THIS WAY UNTIL THE END OF THIS UNIVERSE.
Personality:
Dispatched curiosity. HE finds life to be... odd, in its quirks.
Motivation:
Duty, especially to the old believers.
Skills, Strengths and Weaknesses, and Tools:
- Collecting Souls
- Cooking
- Horse Riding
- Reaping
°Strengths
- Walls younger than a millennia are mere insubstantial shadows.
- Ignored by the living.
- Comes for the souls of Gods, Kings, Heroes, Mages & Witches, and the Old Believers, scattered by the old empire.
- Can control the passage of time, slowing it down, speeding it up.
- Able to ride anywhere in the world or the other realms to collect a soul.
°Weaknesses
- Curiosity
- Can be seen by Gods, Mages, Witches, Drunks, Ghosts, Small children, & Cats.
°Tools
- Scythe
And yes, I know it won't fool the fairies.
The Witch - Needed revising.
Sireena Siri
"As per our contract, your name now belongs to me," the Fallen lord smiled, satisified. "You are now 'Siri'."
Race, Age, Time in the Caravan:
Human, 25, 1 year
Appearance:
This woman puts you in mind of a mysterious raven. She has narrow blue eyes that are like two windows on the afternoon sky. Her thick, straight, coffee-colored hair is worn in a handsome, exotic style. She is tall and has a wasp-waisted build. Her skin is white. She has hollow cheeks. Her wardrobe is sexy.
Sireena Siri grew up on the family farm with her mom, dad, three brothers, and an older sister. When she was twelve, she found a violin in a chest of an abandoned house, and spent a lot of time learning how to play it, hanging around the village tavern begging for lessons from the wandering minstrels who'd visit.
When she was 15, Taryn the tavern keeper pointed out that Sireena Siri was hanging around enough that he might as well offer her a job as one of the serving wenches, and she could play her violin for the crowd when they didn't have a minstrel.
The tavern keeper died a few years later, and his wife, jealous of the attention her husband had given Sireena Siri, fired her on the spot. That night, one of the boys from the neighboring farm was a guest at the dinner table, sitting next to her. It didn't take her long to figure out that her parents were trying to set her up for marriage. She ran away the next day, disguising herself as a boy to avoid unwanted attention on the road.
A little over a week and three counties later she got robbed by some highway men. Angry at the meager coins in her purse, one of them grabbed up her violin, suggesting it might be worth a few coins. When Sireena Siri tried to take it back, the gang jumped her.
She woke up in a feather bed in the house of Mother Lily, the local midwife, who had found her on the side of the road where the gang had left her. When she asked about her violin, Mother Lily sighed, shaking her head and told her the only thing that was left by the side of the road was her, and how like a musican to worry about their instrument before themselves. She then began listing Sireena Siri's injuries, starting with the broken right arm and wrist.
Sireena Siri spent the first week mourning her violin, but began to take an interest in Mother Lily's house with all the drying herbs, the massive medicine chest, her curious brewing apparatus, and her visitors. Noticing her interest, Mother Lily began sharing some of her work, the making of medicines.
And then the highwaymen who'd robbed Sireena Siri made the mistake of trying to burgle Mother Lily's house.
When it was over, Mother Lily guided a stunned Sireena Siri to a wagon in the barn, hitched up her horse, then turned her attention to the cottage - which rapidly shrank until it was the size of a child's toy, which the then picked up and placed into a chest filled with straw. A toy-sized barn was careful place beside it, and more straw packed around them before closing the chest. Bare dirt showed where each had stood.
And so began her apprenticeship. It wasn't easy, she thought she would never light the candle with anything other than a taper from the fire. Until she heard a whisper....
The unseen voice named itself Lord Jester, and it seemed to toy with her, needling when she demanded answers, not veiled hints and strange exercises, but somehow Lord Jester's riddles and Mother Lily's teachings came together.
And then a rider appeared at their door.
"Open the door, Sireena Siri," Mother Lily sighed. "It's time."
GOOD EVENING, the hooded figure seem to say, standing in the doorway. It glanced curious at Sireena Siri, leaning close. DO YOU SEE ME, CHILD?
"Y...yes, milord."
MANY TIMES I HAVE STOOD HERE, BUT NOW IS THE FIRST TIME YOU HAVE SEEN ME, Grim sighed, straightening. WE WILL MEET AGAIN, AND NOT JUST AT THE END.
Grim took a step towards Mother Lily, then paused to stare at the crystal ball in the bookcase. AND ONE DAY, I WILL COME FOR YOU AS WELL.
When she was 15, Taryn the tavern keeper pointed out that Sireena Siri was hanging around enough that he might as well offer her a job as one of the serving wenches, and she could play her violin for the crowd when they didn't have a minstrel.
The tavern keeper died a few years later, and his wife, jealous of the attention her husband had given Sireena Siri, fired her on the spot. That night, one of the boys from the neighboring farm was a guest at the dinner table, sitting next to her. It didn't take her long to figure out that her parents were trying to set her up for marriage. She ran away the next day, disguising herself as a boy to avoid unwanted attention on the road.
A little over a week and three counties later she got robbed by some highway men. Angry at the meager coins in her purse, one of them grabbed up her violin, suggesting it might be worth a few coins. When Sireena Siri tried to take it back, the gang jumped her.
She woke up in a feather bed in the house of Mother Lily, the local midwife, who had found her on the side of the road where the gang had left her. When she asked about her violin, Mother Lily sighed, shaking her head and told her the only thing that was left by the side of the road was her, and how like a musican to worry about their instrument before themselves. She then began listing Sireena Siri's injuries, starting with the broken right arm and wrist.
Sireena Siri spent the first week mourning her violin, but began to take an interest in Mother Lily's house with all the drying herbs, the massive medicine chest, her curious brewing apparatus, and her visitors. Noticing her interest, Mother Lily began sharing some of her work, the making of medicines.
And then the highwaymen who'd robbed Sireena Siri made the mistake of trying to burgle Mother Lily's house.
When it was over, Mother Lily guided a stunned Sireena Siri to a wagon in the barn, hitched up her horse, then turned her attention to the cottage - which rapidly shrank until it was the size of a child's toy, which the then picked up and placed into a chest filled with straw. A toy-sized barn was careful place beside it, and more straw packed around them before closing the chest. Bare dirt showed where each had stood.
And so began her apprenticeship. It wasn't easy, she thought she would never light the candle with anything other than a taper from the fire. Until she heard a whisper....
The unseen voice named itself Lord Jester, and it seemed to toy with her, needling when she demanded answers, not veiled hints and strange exercises, but somehow Lord Jester's riddles and Mother Lily's teachings came together.
And then a rider appeared at their door.
"Open the door, Sireena Siri," Mother Lily sighed. "It's time."
GOOD EVENING, the hooded figure seem to say, standing in the doorway. It glanced curious at Sireena Siri, leaning close. DO YOU SEE ME, CHILD?
"Y...yes, milord."
MANY TIMES I HAVE STOOD HERE, BUT NOW IS THE FIRST TIME YOU HAVE SEEN ME, Grim sighed, straightening. WE WILL MEET AGAIN, AND NOT JUST AT THE END.
Grim took a step towards Mother Lily, then paused to stare at the crystal ball in the bookcase. AND ONE DAY, I WILL COME FOR YOU AS WELL.
Personality:
Warm and caring, it is concerning when she suddenly starts laughing out of the blue. Sometimes she seems very distracted, as if she's listening to people who are not there.
Or talking to her cat as if it was a person.
Knowing some of the things she collects in the woods and fields, one wonders if she might be sampling her own wares...?
Still, she's a good doctor, loves to play the violin and collects 'miniatures'.
Motivation:
Traveling in the caravan would be one way to avoid the angry mobs looking for someone to blame for when their crops fail and their cow dies, but her patronus Lord Jester has commanded it. Not that she minds too much, it's been an interesting trip, so far.
Skills, Strengths and Weaknesses, and Tools:
Animal Handling - Has a way with animals, but not with her cat....
Cooking - a master of the kitchen
Fortune-telling - It's almost as if she has a direct line with Fate.
Herbology - knows many uses of many plants, always eager to examine new plants
Hermetic Magic - still a journeyman in the study of the Laws of Sacrifice
Medicine - a master at tending to illness and injury, can perform minor surgery.
Potion-making - A journeyman in the creation of potions, odd explosions still happen sometimes.
Shrinking - able to reduce objects and later restore them to their normal size (See Sympathetic Magic)
Singing - Fair singer, knows a lot of songs.
Sympathetic Magic - still a journeyman in the study of the Laws of Sympathy.
Violin - Very good musician with the violin.
°Strengths
- Clever
- Dedicated
- Caring
°Weakness
- Makes a lot of assumptions
- Fondness for alcohol and sweets
- Sense of duty
- quirky sense of humor
°Tools
- Patronus Lord Jester
- Dia, when she chooses to help.
- Living wagon, home/workspace/surgery
- Her team of horses...? Best to avoid when their eyes turn red.
What They Most Want:
Knowledge and new horizons
If They Had a DnD Alignment, It Would Be:
Neutral Good
Three Likes:
- Books
- Music
- Alcohol
Three Dislikes:
- Tobacco smoke
- Needless violence
- Child abusers
Do They Follow Their Heart or Their Mind?:
Their heart.
Worst Fear:
To be trapped
Favorite Color:
Red
Most Like The Animal:
A Swallow
Favorite Time of Day:
Sunset
How They Dress:
- Wide brim hat, either black or white
- Red dress
- Black bodice
- White apron
- Knee-high black boots
- Colorful... sweaters and scarfs when it gets cold
- A red hooded cloak
- Plague mask
- Leather satchel that holds various items and her journal
- Necklace with a crystal ball pendant.
Favorite Season:
Spring, the renewal of the world
What Gods/Spirits/Whatevers They Worship (If Any):
Lord Jester
The Cat
Lanpendia Dia
"As per our contract, your name now belongs to me," the Fallen smiled, satisified. "You are now 'Dia'."
Race, Age, Time in the Caravan:
Half-demon, 17, 1 year
Appearance:
- A black cat with green eyes.
- A black cat with green eyes and large bat wings.
-This girl makes you think of a dashing jaguar. She has green slitted eyes that are like two spheres of jade. Her thick, straight, black hair is worn in a simple style. She is short and has an athletic build. Her skin is black. She has small feet. Her wardrobe is uncomplicated.
History:
-Born in the Shadow realm, she quickly realized that her mother treated her different from her other siblings, a sort of cold resentment. It finally drove her from nest, only to be abused by both stronger demons and slumming Celestials as she tried to make a living for herself. There wasn't much to remember.
Caught one day outside of her lair by a group of lower celestials eager to prove themselves, they took turns punching and abusing her until Jester appeared towering over them in his Wolf form and drove them off.
For the first time in her life, Dia felt... safe. It didn't take her much to agree to sign away her name and become one of Lord Jester's most loyal minions, eager to please him.
Personality:
-Anger bubbles away below the surface, appearing as a sort of bitter resentment one can hear in her voice and in her mannerisms. She does not engage in 'play' - pleasure makes you drop your guard, makes you vulnerable, open to attack. Is it paranoia when you know the world is really out to get you?
Motivation:
-To serve Lord Jester with all her being, fearing if she fails, he might cast her out.
Skills, Strengths and Weaknesses, and Tools:
- Flaming claw attack
- Melee-fighting
- Shape-shifting
- Stealth
- Hermatic Magic
°Strength
- An internal reservoir of magical power
- A trust in Lord Jester
- Able to speak in any form, although the smaller the form, the deeper the voice.
- Her non-demon half allows her to cross over to the Material World without need of preparation or possession.
- Absorbs and converts heat into magic
°Weakness
- A sense of duty, of responsibility
- A lack of social skills
What They Most Want:
- Safety
If They Had a DnD Alignment, It Would Be:
Lawful neutral
Three Likes:
- Lord Jasper's attention
- warmth
- a full belly
Three Dislikes:
- being touched by others
- those who abuse others
- Celestials
Do They Follow Their Heart or Their Mind?:
-The heart cannot be trusted.
Worst Fear:
-To be abandoned and alone
Favorite Color:
-Black
Most Like The Animal:
-Black Jaguar
Favorite Time of Day:
- The night
How They Dress:
- In human form, they may appear wearing a loose peasant's blouse and breeches.
- In either form, they wear a collar with a crystal ball pendant suspended from it.
Favorite Season:
Summer
What Gods/Spirits/Whatevers They Worship (If Any):
-Lord Jester (The Old Wolf)
- Safety
If They Had a DnD Alignment, It Would Be:
Lawful neutral
Three Likes:
- Lord Jasper's attention
- warmth
- a full belly
Three Dislikes:
- being touched by others
- those who abuse others
- Celestials
Do They Follow Their Heart or Their Mind?:
-The heart cannot be trusted.
Worst Fear:
-To be abandoned and alone
Favorite Color:
-Black
Most Like The Animal:
-Black Jaguar
Favorite Time of Day:
- The night
How They Dress:
- In human form, they may appear wearing a loose peasant's blouse and breeches.
- In either form, they wear a collar with a crystal ball pendant suspended from it.
Favorite Season:
Summer
What Gods/Spirits/Whatevers They Worship (If Any):
-Lord Jester (The Old Wolf)
These next two are just NPCs that Siri and Dia interact with. They have no power in the campaign against the caravan or its people. Jester can't cross over to this world unless a place has been prepared for him, and nobody except a few can see Death.
Also, Jester is offering their grand unified theory on magic and Shadow Realm relations.
The Patronus (NPC)
Lord Jester
NPC Patronus
Although, to be honest, I do miss the old names....
Race, Age, Time in the Caravan:
-Fallen Lord, At the beginning, Never.
Fallen - a being from the Celestial realm who's been drained of magic and exiled to the lower realms
Fallen Lord - a Fallen who's managed to regain a significant measure of magic. What makes them dangerous is how they've managed this...
Appearance:
-This guy puts you in mind of a witty comedian. He has deep-set violet eyes that are like two windows on the evening sky. His luxurious, straight, salt and pepper hair is medium-length and is worn in an utilitarian, severe style. He is tall and has a wiry build. His skin is cream-colored. He has a large nose and wide feet. His wardrobe is complicated, with a lot of greys and blacks.
-The Wolf, black and gray fur with cream highlights, as tall as a two-story building. His howl can bring wolves from miles around.
History:
-We were there in the beginning, my brothers and sisters. Well, not before She, no one was there before She, not even Death. My brothers and sisters, we had charge of a small corner of the world, Oscana, and we guided those who lived in our lands, leading them out of savagery. Oh, the stories I could tell you of those days...
-But then Empire came. They wanted our part of it, our lands, our people. We were driven out of our place in the world and so we fell.
-Now, our names are forgotten, our temples destroyed, our people who would not submit wiped out as heritics and heathens, and with them our power gone from this world. Many of my brothers and sisters are now but dust and dim memories, their names only whispered by the wind.
-But then the old Empire and their gods too, in their time, were driven out.
Personality:
- Teacher
- Mischievous
- Curiosity
Motivation:
-With all the time that has passed, they now have only the merest toe-hold in the Material world and are eager to see what the child races have done since they fell.
Skills, Strengths and Weaknesses, and Tools:
- Hunting
- Knowledge of the world from before their fall
- Medicine - how to treat injuries and illness
- Hermetic Magic - The Laws of Sacrifice
- Sympathetic Magic - The Laws of Sympathy
- Teaching - the ability to inform and bring about inquiry
°Strengths
- Access to a reserve of power they've accumulated in the Shadow Realm after many years.
- Very limited ability to portal beings between the Material world and the Shadow Realm.
- Shape-shifting
°Weaknesses
- They cannot set foot in the Material world unless a place is prepared for them.
- They can only experience what is happening in the Material world through their projection and through anchors such as crystal balls (stare into the void and see who blinks first) or their minions.
- Cut off from the Celestial Realm, they have only the fraction of the power they once had.
°Tools
- Their minions, through which they can spread their influence.
- Their shadow, a projection that allows them to limitedly view and communicate with the Material world or even the Celestial - however, takes power and is vulnerable to attack.
- The creation of artifacts
Rotation of the Material World causes magic to be depleted in the Shadow Realm. This, perhaps most of all, explains why the demons in the Shadow Realms hate the Material World, as it steals away their magic, keeping it low and the realm barren. However, some demons have learned how to create a reservoir within themselves and in objects to hold their magic safe, and to work with less. It's also the reason why demons can work such powerful magic in the Material World.
Fortunately, demons cannot cross into the Material world unless a place is prepared for them, such as using sympathetic magic to create a conjuring circle to thus alter the area within to match the Shadow Realm, or they may possess a host - and not necessarily a living one. (See Succubus, Vampirism, Hermetics)
This stolen magic forms currents within the Material World, in what is called Ley Lines, each taking up elemental aspects of Earth, Wind, Fire, and Water. Those with the training can, if they are close enough, tap into these flows, although it can take time for them to gather this magic.
However, there is only so much magic the Material world can hold onto, so the ley lines radiate away this power where it collects in the Celestial realm, giving the Celestials a surplus of magic that they can use easily.
But ley lines may be too far for a mage to tap into. One way power may be gathered is through the study of Hermetics, also known as the Laws of Sacrifice. Many assume that sacrifice requires the death of a living being, but it can also be giving up some of the magic within all living creatures through the use of repetitious rituals like prayer or dance, directed to an altar. It's why so many gods have temples constructed, giving them a source of power they may tap into away from the Celestial realm.
One must be very careful in old temples and stone circles, as sometimes the altars has been depleted and will draw away one's magic if they connect with it. Some demons have this power too. If too much of the host's magic drawn away, they become shambling hulks, unable to restore balance within themselves.
Hermatics also works with the concept of equivalent exchange, of sacrificing items of equal value to what they desire. However, sometimes the value of the sum is greater than its parts, be careful in your trades.
Sympathetics is another field of magical study, sometimes called the laws of Sympathy, or like calling to like through similarities and symbols like runes. The tale of spinning straw into gold represents Sympathy magic. Those trained in Runes or symbolic magic can use these to gather and direct magic. When they say "words have power", they are right. One should wary giving up their true name.
Fortunately, demons cannot cross into the Material world unless a place is prepared for them, such as using sympathetic magic to create a conjuring circle to thus alter the area within to match the Shadow Realm, or they may possess a host - and not necessarily a living one. (See Succubus, Vampirism, Hermetics)
This stolen magic forms currents within the Material World, in what is called Ley Lines, each taking up elemental aspects of Earth, Wind, Fire, and Water. Those with the training can, if they are close enough, tap into these flows, although it can take time for them to gather this magic.
However, there is only so much magic the Material world can hold onto, so the ley lines radiate away this power where it collects in the Celestial realm, giving the Celestials a surplus of magic that they can use easily.
But ley lines may be too far for a mage to tap into. One way power may be gathered is through the study of Hermetics, also known as the Laws of Sacrifice. Many assume that sacrifice requires the death of a living being, but it can also be giving up some of the magic within all living creatures through the use of repetitious rituals like prayer or dance, directed to an altar. It's why so many gods have temples constructed, giving them a source of power they may tap into away from the Celestial realm.
One must be very careful in old temples and stone circles, as sometimes the altars has been depleted and will draw away one's magic if they connect with it. Some demons have this power too. If too much of the host's magic drawn away, they become shambling hulks, unable to restore balance within themselves.
Hermatics also works with the concept of equivalent exchange, of sacrificing items of equal value to what they desire. However, sometimes the value of the sum is greater than its parts, be careful in your trades.
Sympathetics is another field of magical study, sometimes called the laws of Sympathy, or like calling to like through similarities and symbols like runes. The tale of spinning straw into gold represents Sympathy magic. Those trained in Runes or symbolic magic can use these to gather and direct magic. When they say "words have power", they are right. One should wary giving up their true name.
What They Most Want:
-To return to power in the Celestial Realm and to be free to walk the Material world once more.
If They Had a DnD Alignment, It Would Be:
-Lawful Neutral
Three Likes:
-The Sun's warmth
-New life and new lessons to learn
-Clever people
Three Dislikes:
-Pettiness
-Meaningless Destruction
-Those who let evil pass uncontested because it does not inconvience them
Do They Follow Their Heart or Their Mind?:
- Their heart, but they're trying to control that.
Worst Fear:
- To be cut off from the Material world entirely
Favorite Color:
-The color of magic
Most Like The Animal:
-The Wolf
Favorite Time of Day:
-The moment that exists between days.
How They Dress:
- Polo shirt and khakis A suit of dark armor with a wolf's head on the chest plate and a wolf-skin they wear as a cloak - or the Wolf.
Favorite Season:
-Winter, when the Material world rests.
What Gods/Spirits/Whatevers They Worship (If Any):
-The immutable She who was there before Us and will be there past the End.
-To return to power in the Celestial Realm and to be free to walk the Material world once more.
If They Had a DnD Alignment, It Would Be:
-Lawful Neutral
Three Likes:
-The Sun's warmth
-New life and new lessons to learn
-Clever people
Three Dislikes:
-Pettiness
-Meaningless Destruction
-Those who let evil pass uncontested because it does not inconvience them
Do They Follow Their Heart or Their Mind?:
- Their heart, but they're trying to control that.
Worst Fear:
- To be cut off from the Material world entirely
Favorite Color:
-The color of magic
Most Like The Animal:
-The Wolf
Favorite Time of Day:
-The moment that exists between days.
How They Dress:
- Polo shirt and khakis A suit of dark armor with a wolf's head on the chest plate and a wolf-skin they wear as a cloak - or the Wolf.
Favorite Season:
-Winter, when the Material world rests.
What Gods/Spirits/Whatevers They Worship (If Any):
-The immutable She who was there before Us and will be there past the End.
The Psycopomp (NPC) - Likes to show up when things get interesting. Or for parties. He's bored.
Grim (NPC)
Oscana's Reaper of Souls
Race, Age, Time in the Caravan:
Psychopomp, Eternal, From the Beginning
Appearance:
A skeleton dressed in tattered black robes, carrying a scythe, with a spark or flame burning in their eye sockets.
History:
WHEN THE FIRST SPARK OF LIFE APPEARED, I WAS VAGUE AND UNFORMED. WHEN DISEASE RAN RAMPANT IN OSCANA, I BECAME AS I AM NOW. I SHALL REMAIN THIS WAY UNTIL THE END OF THIS UNIVERSE.
Personality:
Dispatched curiosity. HE finds life to be... odd, in its quirks.
Motivation:
Duty, especially to the old believers.
Skills, Strengths and Weaknesses, and Tools:
- Collecting Souls
- Cooking
- Horse Riding
- Reaping
°Strengths
- Walls younger than a millennia are mere insubstantial shadows.
- Ignored by the living.
- Comes for the souls of Gods, Kings, Heroes, Mages & Witches, and the Old Believers, scattered by the old empire.
- Can control the passage of time, slowing it down, speeding it up.
- Able to ride anywhere in the world or the other realms to collect a soul.
°Weaknesses
- Curiosity
- Can be seen by Gods, Mages, Witches, Drunks, Ghosts, Small children, & Cats.
°Tools
- Scythe
What They Most Want:
Order
If They Had a DnD Alignment, It Would Be:
True Neutral. It's of no importance to Him what the living do, His job begins when their lives end.
Three Likes:
- Cats - it's nice to be seen
- Libraries - full of dead thoughts
- Parties - although they tend to go downhill at midnight, when the party goers try to take His 'mask' off.
Three Dislikes:
- Being called a killer, a thief, or blamed for suffering - He claims no lives, He merely claims what he is due. With Him, suffering ends.
- Those who try to cheat Him to gain some extra life. That's not His department.
- With the fall of the Oscana, the fall of the old Empire, and the scattering of the few remnants of the Old Believers, He has a lot of time on His hands.
Do They Follow Their Heart or Their Mind?:
Mind.
Worst Fear:
Disorder and chaos.
Favorite Color:
Black.
Most Like The Animal:
A lion.
Favorite Time of Day:
Night
How They Dress:
Tattered robes. Scythe. A black horse.
Favorite Season:
Winter, a very busy time.
What Gods/Spirits/Whatevers They Worship (If Any):
SHE
Order
If They Had a DnD Alignment, It Would Be:
True Neutral. It's of no importance to Him what the living do, His job begins when their lives end.
Three Likes:
- Cats - it's nice to be seen
- Libraries - full of dead thoughts
- Parties - although they tend to go downhill at midnight, when the party goers try to take His 'mask' off.
Three Dislikes:
- Being called a killer, a thief, or blamed for suffering - He claims no lives, He merely claims what he is due. With Him, suffering ends.
- Those who try to cheat Him to gain some extra life. That's not His department.
- With the fall of the Oscana, the fall of the old Empire, and the scattering of the few remnants of the Old Believers, He has a lot of time on His hands.
Do They Follow Their Heart or Their Mind?:
Mind.
Worst Fear:
Disorder and chaos.
Favorite Color:
Black.
Most Like The Animal:
A lion.
Favorite Time of Day:
Night
How They Dress:
Tattered robes. Scythe. A black horse.
Favorite Season:
Winter, a very busy time.
What Gods/Spirits/Whatevers They Worship (If Any):
SHE
OP
Expendable The Certifiable
Member
Seen
35 min ago
The Eye of the Needle (where Fantasy and Sci-fi collide)
Name: J'eon of Mythadia
Species: The Glen
Appearance: This male Glen puts you in mind of an unstoppable machine. He has narrow olive-green eyes. He has a muscular wide-chested build, and a network of old, dark flogging scars on his upper and middle back. His hide appears creamy yellow or gold, depending on the light. He has hollow cheeks and wide feet, with a long dark scar crossing his cheek below his right eye.
His wardrobe is practical, a dark brown leather cuirass peppered with small burns over his upper torso and bronze pips along the shoulders. A medallion of the Mythadia Blacksmith Guild is over his first stomach - an anvil with a six pointed star of a master craftsman over it, flanked by a hammer on the right and a sword on the left. His upper arms bear a studded leather rerebrace, while his lower arms wear a darkened leather vambrace peppered with small burns. Each leg wears leather greaves, with the front pair peppered once again with small burns. A wide leather belt bears two leather pouches in front, with leather gloves tucked behind them, his favorite hammer on his right, while on his left he carries a long kukri blade, with two smaller blades and a small iron hook for cleaning his hooves. Each hoof has an iron shoe on it.
While traveling, he wears a leather chamfron with small iron plates & bronze pips over his face, leather paulroons, and has a cart with harness that he can strap himself into.
Leaves on the left, right, and back sides of the cart can be pulled up and slot into ironwork straps underneath. It carries under canvas a traveling forge (in the back), an anvil, a box with his tools and a leather apron, a locked iron-bound chest (key is on a cord hanging on his neck), a box holding two blankets (one quilted with straps) wrapped in oilcloth and ropes, a tripod with a small cooking pot, barrels holding charcoal, iron blanks, water, and grain. Oarlocks on the right arm of the cart hold a long spear.
Augmentations: N/A
Magical affiliation: Heat domain - able to manipulate thermal energy.
Occupation: Blacksmith
Key skills: Blacksmith, Engineering, Wilderness survival.
Backstory: J'eon was born into the Dark Ash clan, a nomadic group that assisted settlements with planting, harvesting, and various services they lacked before heading back to Dark Ash Vale, their wintering grounds. F'eon, J'eon's father, was the backsmith for the clan and its unofficial leader. He spent much of the winter months mining for ores that he would then smelt into the old forge into the refined metal blanks he needed, or into various impliments he could sell. J'eon watched and learned beside his father, marveling at how he called up the flame.
They were raided by bandits, his father ran through by one of his own swords. What happened to J'avra, his mother, he didn't see. He was chained up with the other survivors and eventually sold to a miller in the west, who chained him to one of the poles to turn the millwheel along with the other slaves - simple brute labor. One can still see the shackle gauls on his wrists when he takes his vambraces off. When he got out of line, they'd flog him. In his sixteen summer, the miller's daughters began to pay him close attention with strangely hungry eyes and giggles. When the overseer reported their attentions to the miller, he had the young muscular buck unchained and hauled to the flogging post. It was during that flogging that the Fire came to him.
With the burning of the miller's place, J'eon along with the other Glen made their way back east, eventually finding themselves in Mythadia once more. It wasn't long after that he found himself the oldest apprentice in the blacksmith guild, but he was quickly initiated into the innermost secrets once they realized he could call forth the flame. It was here he learned the riddle of iron and steel.
Once he became a master, he took to the road in a cart he build to hold his traveling forge and his tools. Word of his craft spread beyond the borders of Mythadia, and he found himself traveling out of the kingdom, called forth to build weapons, craft armor and chains, even called to repair waterwheels and windmills. Slave mills, however, tended to go up in flames. Nor was he particularly soft on bandits or slavers.
Name: Jack Ryan Mallory, Commander (Ret) USSF
Species: Human (Age: 42)
Appearance:
This man makes you think of an inhuman statue. He has deep-set gray eyes. His fine, straight, midnight black hair is worn in the military Ivy League style (longer than a crew cut, hair in front can be swept to the side, with a tapered block in back. He is tall and has a masculine build. His skin is deeply-tanned. He has a large mouth. His wardrobe is a bit odd.
Currently wearing a navy blue BioPlas bodysuit under his olive drab flight suit, polished black boots, and a utility belt with a holstered 9mm pistol & magazine pouch holding two magazines on the right, while the left holds an insulated multi-tool in a sheath. His left breast pocket contains his personal comm, with two slots on the left sleeve for a multi-surface pen and a black penlight.
His right breast pocket contains a challenge coin from the Secretary of the Space Force, a comb and two PlastiPatches.
His front right pocket holds an electric Ziplo lighter, while his left has fingernail clippers with file.
Ruggedized short-range personal communications device / pocket computer. Can act as a remote interface for some equipment.
Augmentations:
Magical affiliation: None
Occupation: Executive Officer
Key skills: Pilot, Navigator, Engineer.
Personality: Crisp and professional, he has a notorious poker face. He is very tidy, never a hair or a thread out of place. While he vapes, he prefers smoking a pipe, with either a whiskey or cherry tobacco. One would never suspect he had two bottles of 12-year-old single malt whiskey in his locker.
Backstory:
Attended the Space Academy in Colorado, in the top quarter of his class. Volunteered for the recoding implant.
First tour was aboard the USS Comet, a salvage ship that collected old satellites and lost items from low Earth orbit for orbital processing.
Briefly returned to the Academy as a guest lecturer to talk about his experences in orbital salvage operations, and he got married in a whirlwind romance to Jackie.
Second tour was aboard the USS Fox, supply runs to Mars and the Belt. Commendation for the Ceres Rescue operation. While serving out his rotation as the junior engineer, discovered a few of the recycling gang had put together a still for brewing moonshine. He kicked it apart, tore into them as being some of the few people on board who knew how to distill and yet managed to build their homemade rig wrong.
During his Earth tour, incident with the Flat Earth Church, but his recording of the encountered showed he had restrained himself and it was the Flat Earthers who had struck the first blow. Turned out one of them was a former boyfriend of his wife.
Shipped to the Aries Lunar Base for his lunar tour. Received commendations for his work, but there was another incident where a video surfaced of him escorting a wealthy and flirty female tourist. His wife, sick of the long separations already, filed for divorce.
Heartbreak tour with the Pournelle on a solar patrol of the system. Was not directly involved with the Jupiter mission, worked in an advisory capacity. Left the service after that, only to get hired by the company as X.O. for the Jotunheim.
Species: Human (Age: 42)
Appearance:
This man makes you think of an inhuman statue. He has deep-set gray eyes. His fine, straight, midnight black hair is worn in the military Ivy League style (longer than a crew cut, hair in front can be swept to the side, with a tapered block in back. He is tall and has a masculine build. His skin is deeply-tanned. He has a large mouth. His wardrobe is a bit odd.
His garment bag came on the plane with him, and held a nice tailored black suit (two pants), a dress shirt, three silk ties, a khaki safari jacket with cargo pants, two leather belts, and a nice pair of black dress shoes in their own protective shoe bags.
However, his checked-in bag did not come on the flight, so he had to scavenge from the local stores for toiletries and other clothing. He's got some novelty underwear, a lot of black socks, handkerchiefs, a couple of plain white t-shirts (which are easy to pick out from the colorful ones), three plain coveralls, a pair of jeans, navy jogging suit with two reflective stripes down the sides, workout shorts, sneakers, and a very garish Norwegian Hawaiian shirt.
His ceremonial sword and gun were shipped to the embassy in a diplomatic pouch, the company made arrangements for him to bring them aboard.
However, his checked-in bag did not come on the flight, so he had to scavenge from the local stores for toiletries and other clothing. He's got some novelty underwear, a lot of black socks, handkerchiefs, a couple of plain white t-shirts (which are easy to pick out from the colorful ones), three plain coveralls, a pair of jeans, navy jogging suit with two reflective stripes down the sides, workout shorts, sneakers, and a very garish Norwegian Hawaiian shirt.
His ceremonial sword and gun were shipped to the embassy in a diplomatic pouch, the company made arrangements for him to bring them aboard.
Currently wearing a navy blue BioPlas bodysuit under his olive drab flight suit, polished black boots, and a utility belt with a holstered 9mm pistol & magazine pouch holding two magazines on the right, while the left holds an insulated multi-tool in a sheath. His left breast pocket contains his personal comm, with two slots on the left sleeve for a multi-surface pen and a black penlight.
His right breast pocket contains a challenge coin from the Secretary of the Space Force, a comb and two PlastiPatches.
His front right pocket holds an electric Ziplo lighter, while his left has fingernail clippers with file.
In the event of pressure loss, the suit will deploy self-sealing hood and gloves to turn it into a light vacuum suit. Internal oxygen supply suitable for four hour operation, can be extended with external connection to oxygen canisters or hose. Interface allows it to be programmed with artwork or to merge with another BioPlas suit. Lives off of body heat / sweat of wearer, requires a battery for storage, usually build into the storage egg container.
Jack Ryan Mallory, USSF (Retired)
Ruggedized short-range personal communications device / pocket computer. Can act as a remote interface for some equipment.
Small pen-size device that acts as a flashlight.
Pen that writes on wood, glass, metal from -150° to 400°, works in Zero G and vaccum. Blue felt tip.
Standard commercial multi-tool with Jack Mallory engraved on the insulated handles.
6x6 inch bandage, good for sealing moderate wounds or patching punchures in the hull or spacesuit.
Augmentations:
This implant monitors the subject's vital signs - temperature, pulse, blood pressure, blood sugar, alcohol level, oxygen saturation, respiration, basic statistics, etc. Pressing on the left inner wrist brings up the eSkin display tattooed there. This is programmed to send wireless reports to a monitoring computer.
This implant hooks into the optic and auditory nerves, broadcasting a short range transmission to a monitoring computer of everything they see and hear. All recordings have to be accessed via the computer.
Magical affiliation: None
Occupation: Executive Officer
Key skills: Pilot, Navigator, Engineer.
Personality: Crisp and professional, he has a notorious poker face. He is very tidy, never a hair or a thread out of place. While he vapes, he prefers smoking a pipe, with either a whiskey or cherry tobacco. One would never suspect he had two bottles of 12-year-old single malt whiskey in his locker.
Backstory:
Attended the Space Academy in Colorado, in the top quarter of his class. Volunteered for the recoding implant.
First tour was aboard the USS Comet, a salvage ship that collected old satellites and lost items from low Earth orbit for orbital processing.
Briefly returned to the Academy as a guest lecturer to talk about his experences in orbital salvage operations, and he got married in a whirlwind romance to Jackie.
Second tour was aboard the USS Fox, supply runs to Mars and the Belt. Commendation for the Ceres Rescue operation. While serving out his rotation as the junior engineer, discovered a few of the recycling gang had put together a still for brewing moonshine. He kicked it apart, tore into them as being some of the few people on board who knew how to distill and yet managed to build their homemade rig wrong.
During his Earth tour, incident with the Flat Earth Church, but his recording of the encountered showed he had restrained himself and it was the Flat Earthers who had struck the first blow. Turned out one of them was a former boyfriend of his wife.
Shipped to the Aries Lunar Base for his lunar tour. Received commendations for his work, but there was another incident where a video surfaced of him escorting a wealthy and flirty female tourist. His wife, sick of the long separations already, filed for divorce.
Heartbreak tour with the Pournelle on a solar patrol of the system. Was not directly involved with the Jupiter mission, worked in an advisory capacity. Left the service after that, only to get hired by the company as X.O. for the Jotunheim.
OP
Expendable The Certifiable
Member
Seen
35 min ago
See you space samurai... A Space Opera
<<< REJECTED >>>
#310367
'Seven'
Core Details
Name: Seven
Age: 390 (+/- 25) N.C. (Chronological) / Early-to-mid twenties (Biological)
Gender: Fem
Species: Human (Revived)
Who are you?
"Subject #310367, cryogenically preserved head, female, no accompanying file. Obtain by the Seares Foundation on 2478.0916 N.C. Minor cranial damage, placed into the Chrysalis reactor and a body was reconstructed."
"Disappointing. No panic reaction. They didn't even open their eyes until we opened the shield. Non-verbal, can follow basic instruction. Barely registers as curious. Ice formation in the brain likely damaged the tissues beyond the capabilities of the Chrysalis reactor to repair. Classified as 'Burnt' - oh, don't you roll your eyes at me, Decker! It's clear to me there's nothing going on up there! Now go get the next head and make sure it's lively! I want to see the fear this time!"
Classification: Menial worker.
Assignment: Custodial duties.
"Disappointing. No panic reaction. They didn't even open their eyes until we opened the shield. Non-verbal, can follow basic instruction. Barely registers as curious. Ice formation in the brain likely damaged the tissues beyond the capabilities of the Chrysalis reactor to repair. Classified as 'Burnt' - oh, don't you roll your eyes at me, Decker! It's clear to me there's nothing going on up there! Now go get the next head and make sure it's lively! I want to see the fear this time!"
Classification: Menial worker.
Assignment: Custodial duties.
"Gentles, you are not going to believe this! Earlier this afternoon, the head of the network, Randall Garrett, was shocked to find out from the police that his daughter got kidnapped while she was sitting in Santa's lap at the Crater Street Mall by three members of the Kutath gang!"
<gasping, unsettled muttering>
"I'm serious! I'm serious! I swear to you, this really happened! Honest to god!"
"But they didn't make it out of the mall with her. No, it wasn't security - they were heading past the restrooms only to slip on the floor this Burnt was mopping!"
<Confused muttering>
"Honest to god! She even tried to help them by reaching out with her mop, but kept hitting them instead! Man, just when you thought it was safe to go to the restroom!"
<Laughter>
"Then the Burnt heard little Tabitha crying - but thank god, she dropped her mop!"
<Laughter>
"The quick response team found Tabitha in the Burnt's lap being rocked while sitting on the wet floor."
<Aahs, symathetic noises>
"I'm glad there's something still rattling around in that freezer, but man, that cleaning service has gotta shell out for better diapers!"
<Laughter, howls>
"Garrett was so happy, he bought out that Burnt's contract!"
<Happy coos>
"I just gotta wonder, how long are they gonna let her keep working there before they tell her?"
<Laughter, howls>
<gasping, unsettled muttering>
"I'm serious! I'm serious! I swear to you, this really happened! Honest to god!"
"But they didn't make it out of the mall with her. No, it wasn't security - they were heading past the restrooms only to slip on the floor this Burnt was mopping!"
<Confused muttering>
"Honest to god! She even tried to help them by reaching out with her mop, but kept hitting them instead! Man, just when you thought it was safe to go to the restroom!"
<Laughter>
"Then the Burnt heard little Tabitha crying - but thank god, she dropped her mop!"
<Laughter>
"The quick response team found Tabitha in the Burnt's lap being rocked while sitting on the wet floor."
<Aahs, symathetic noises>
"I'm glad there's something still rattling around in that freezer, but man, that cleaning service has gotta shell out for better diapers!"
<Laughter, howls>
"Garrett was so happy, he bought out that Burnt's contract!"
<Happy coos>
"I just gotta wonder, how long are they gonna let her keep working there before they tell her?"
<Laughter, howls>
"I don't like her eyes."
"Whose eyes? That Burnt?"
"Yeah, she don't blink. Just keeps staring at me."
"So?"
"It's creepy as hell. And I yawned. "
"Yawned? What the hell does that have to do with anything?"
"Empathy. You see someone yawn, you yawn back. You do it, I do it, everyone does it."
"Except her."
"Except her. She's a psychopath. Pure evil, I'm telling you."
"A burnt."
"Mark my words, if we let her go..."
"What, because she doesn't yawn? She's a hero who just saved a kid! We've no reason to hold her, nobody's going to prosecute her, so she's free to go. And you leave her alone."
"Why?"
"She scares me, too."
"Whose eyes? That Burnt?"
"Yeah, she don't blink. Just keeps staring at me."
"So?"
"It's creepy as hell. And I yawned. "
"Yawned? What the hell does that have to do with anything?"
"Empathy. You see someone yawn, you yawn back. You do it, I do it, everyone does it."
"Except her."
"Except her. She's a psychopath. Pure evil, I'm telling you."
"A burnt."
"Mark my words, if we let her go..."
"What, because she doesn't yawn? She's a hero who just saved a kid! We've no reason to hold her, nobody's going to prosecute her, so she's free to go. And you leave her alone."
"Why?"
"She scares me, too."
What do you bring to the table?
- Observant. Listens.
- Scary eyes. Doesn't blink much, if ever. It's like staring into a laser drill, one of you is gonna go blind and it's not going to be her.
- Good with guns. Good with improvised weapons. Knows pain points. Deadly with her hands.
- People ignore her, like she's a part of the wall that you don't want to stare at.
- Knows how to clean. Maybe too well. Not sure if what she's mixing up in the janitor's closet is all that healthy. Or why that box of igniters are in there. Or those big bottles of acid.
What's your problem?
As a Burnt, Seven's considered barely human. A menial worker, someone you glance at, see that line on her neck, that blank expression, and your eyes just slides off her. You don't want to look at her anymore, makes you uncomfortable, butterflies in your stomach like you just traded a glance with death. And you're happy because it's not you standing there, staring back coldly like that.
It's creepier if she's living next door, or walking by your side, never saying a word. (Not that Seven could.)
It's worse if she's taken some Aura and her eyes start to glow. And she starts smiling....
Life in the crew
Showed up during interviews at a bar. Someone tried to push pass Seven and wound up on the floor, screaming, head bashed on the table edge and caught in an arm lock. All the while quietly staring back.
Then when she let them go, Seven pulled out a cleaning cloth and wiped the table edge as if nothing much had happened.
Admittedly, the ship's never been cleaner and she's still working on those more stubborn stains, but you're half afraid to walk into a room where she's scrubbing the floor on her hands and knees. Like the next time you walk across that fresh scrubbed floor in dirty boots, you'll wake up in the airlock with them hanging around your neck, with her staring back at you through the window as the pumps start. Maybe the doc has something to stop that nightmare...?
Still, it's comforting to know that when she throws that blade towards you, it's for the guy standing behind you about to shoot. If you call that comforting.
OP
Expendable The Certifiable
Member
Seen
35 min ago
A group concept for Pilgrim.
Name: Justin Tyrell, disposed prince.
Race, Age, Time in the Caravan:
Human, 22, 7 days.
Appearance:
This aristocratic gentleman puts you in mind of a fierce wolf. He has deep-set eyes the color of the midnight sky. His silky, straight, jet black hair is neck-length and is worn in a pageboy style. He is tall and has a masculine build. He has small ears and wide feet. His wardrobe is professional, mostly tan and lincoln green.
Personality:
Catherine's betrayal has shaken him to the core, and truthfully he's a little leary about Lucia Craft, as he has no idea what to expect next - and is afraid to ask.
He does speak of the strange and insideous spread of coffee houses throught the kingdom of Ohmskrieg, but unsure what it means.
Motivation:
Justin wants to travel a bit before he decides to settle down, as what little he knows comes from books, as he's only lived in Volksberg and Ohmskrieg. And that as long as they keep moving, he's not as likely to run into any assassins Catherine might send after him.
Skills, Strengths and Weaknesses, and Tools:
Skills:
Swordmanship (Advanced), Bow (Advanced), Crossbow (Average), Animal Handling & Horsemanship (Advanced), Field Tactics (Average), Field Wound Dressing (Basic), Athletics (Advanced), Dancing (Advanced), Singing (Average), Musical Instruments (Advanced), Draw and Paint (Average), Gambling (Average), Languages (Average), Accounting (Advanced), World History (Average), Basic Mechanics (Basic), Diplomacy (Basic)
Strengths: Strong body, good education, wealth
Weaknesses: Tends to say what he thinks, needs to work on developing his diplomatic skills.
Tools:
Armor, sword, bow, crossbow
His wagon (pulled by horses)
The wagon shared by the priestess and the apothecary (pulled by horses)
The cook's wagon (pulled by oxen and cows)
The supply wagon (pulled by oxen)
The drivers' wagon (pulled by oxen)
Strong boxes are in the prince's and the apothecary's wagons, the bulk of his fortune is deposited at a trading house in the Floating City and he bears a letter of credit hidden behind a secret panel.
Their kingdom back, or a place to settle down and call their own.
Lawfull neutral.
Interesting company
A good sword and horse.
Lucia Craft
Coffee shops (The drink is bitter and yet shops seem to be popping up everywhere...)
Bandits (they're everywhere and think they're big bads.)
Greedy beggers.
Bit of both.
Clowns. There's something... unnatural about them. False painted smiles, eyes filled with anger, sadness, or misery, deadpan delivery of jokes.
Lincoln green
A wolf.
The evening, when the heat of the day is gone and the stars appear above.
When not wearing his field plate mail or his training leathers, he's usually wearing a checkered leather beret of lincoln green and tan checks, a lincoln green tunic, a slashed tan dublet, a tanned leather jerkin, tanned leather codpiece, tanned leather gloves, lincoln green breeches, off-white hose, and tanned brown boots. (Lucia has promised the next time they find a decent tailor...)
A black leather swords belt with a belt pouch and a dagger in a sheath.
Spring, when the world becomes new again.
The Wanderer, as he feels like a fool set adrift in this world.
Race, Age, Time in the Caravan:
Human, 22, 7 days.
Appearance:
This aristocratic gentleman puts you in mind of a fierce wolf. He has deep-set eyes the color of the midnight sky. His silky, straight, jet black hair is neck-length and is worn in a pageboy style. He is tall and has a masculine build. He has small ears and wide feet. His wardrobe is professional, mostly tan and lincoln green.
Justin grew up in the small kingdom of Vultzberg, mostly known for its ancient roads and hard cider. As far as historians can determine, the people who lived there before built really good roads, then one day decided to use them.
The small kingdom was surprisingly well-off, thanks to various mines, but the prince realized everyone had grown to expect rather lavish presents for even minor things, which made him scowl. About the only person who never asked him for anything was his cousin Catherine, whose family had a farm. They had to struggle a bit, but they seem to be genuinely happy.
During his mother's funeral, he overheard two boys wondering what sort of present they were going to get for attending. Prince Justin lost it, swearing at them with words that even made the guards blush, and his cousin Catherine seated next to him wanting to crawl away in mortification. Someone tagged him, "Bad Prince Justin" and it stuck.
The king sent him off to college in the neighboring kingdom of Ohmskrieg, hoping some time away would make people forget. However, following the king's accidential encounter with a pitch fork two years later, Justin returned to find the bandit Ned trying to rob his poor cousin on the border and a kingdom in turmoil. Even his cousin was acting strangely, asking him to meet in odd places and then pretend he caught her.
His father's fortune teller, Siri, assured him it would all be sorted out soon, but the Bandit Ned, working with one or two of the guards, was digging a tunnel into the castle's strongroom to rob the treasury. Because he wouldn't know who to trust, she suggested he move what he could to his room in the castle without telling anyone. Ned, she assured him, would be caught, but he might hide the loot so he needed to move the gold now.
Using a secret locked passage between the strongroom and a storeroom, he transfered a good part of the kingdom's gold to several chests and had them brought up to his room, saying he had to pack away some old clothes. However, the servants also brought up a creepy chained iron coffer that his father had shown him once. The king had made him practice saying one of the words engraved on the lid in a certain way until he was satisfied, promising someday to explain it all as he handed him a small key.
It was then he noticed his cousin Catherine was outside his window, seated in a sling being lowered to the castle walls below, in full view of half the kingdom. He went down to ask her what was going on, she just smiled and waved at the guards above to haul her back up.
Returning to the fortune teller, he told her of his cousin's last antics, the fortune teller assured him everything would be explained soon, but the temple was retiring her that night, so it would be a week before the next fortune teller would arrive. Confused by this, he returned to the castle only to be captured by the guards and spent the night in a cell. The next morning, bound and gagged, he was brought to the throne room to see his cousin Catherine be crowned as Voltzberg's new queen, and her first order was to order Bad Prince Justin's exile for all the terrible things he did to the kingdom and her person, much to his confusion.
Guards dragged him outside to a pair of wagons loaded with the chests from his room, including the iron coffer, but most of the guards were called back when one of them came out screaming someone had dug their way into the treasury. At the dock, he was placed on board the same ship the fortune teller was on, smiling when she saw him being dragged aboard, and the key to his bonds given to the captian, on orders not to release him until after the ship was well away from the kingdom.
When he was unbound, he demanded to know if she had set this all up, but Siri explained she became aware of the actions of others and simply took advantage of them to ensure Justin's safe escape into exile. Did he really want to fight his ingrateful people to get his kingdom back? If there was any hope for him, he needed to build up some good relations with the common people, and what better way than to offer his skills in service to the common folk? Slaying monsters, rescuing princesses, that sort of thing.
The small kingdom was surprisingly well-off, thanks to various mines, but the prince realized everyone had grown to expect rather lavish presents for even minor things, which made him scowl. About the only person who never asked him for anything was his cousin Catherine, whose family had a farm. They had to struggle a bit, but they seem to be genuinely happy.
During his mother's funeral, he overheard two boys wondering what sort of present they were going to get for attending. Prince Justin lost it, swearing at them with words that even made the guards blush, and his cousin Catherine seated next to him wanting to crawl away in mortification. Someone tagged him, "Bad Prince Justin" and it stuck.
The king sent him off to college in the neighboring kingdom of Ohmskrieg, hoping some time away would make people forget. However, following the king's accidential encounter with a pitch fork two years later, Justin returned to find the bandit Ned trying to rob his poor cousin on the border and a kingdom in turmoil. Even his cousin was acting strangely, asking him to meet in odd places and then pretend he caught her.
His father's fortune teller, Siri, assured him it would all be sorted out soon, but the Bandit Ned, working with one or two of the guards, was digging a tunnel into the castle's strongroom to rob the treasury. Because he wouldn't know who to trust, she suggested he move what he could to his room in the castle without telling anyone. Ned, she assured him, would be caught, but he might hide the loot so he needed to move the gold now.
Using a secret locked passage between the strongroom and a storeroom, he transfered a good part of the kingdom's gold to several chests and had them brought up to his room, saying he had to pack away some old clothes. However, the servants also brought up a creepy chained iron coffer that his father had shown him once. The king had made him practice saying one of the words engraved on the lid in a certain way until he was satisfied, promising someday to explain it all as he handed him a small key.
It was then he noticed his cousin Catherine was outside his window, seated in a sling being lowered to the castle walls below, in full view of half the kingdom. He went down to ask her what was going on, she just smiled and waved at the guards above to haul her back up.
Returning to the fortune teller, he told her of his cousin's last antics, the fortune teller assured him everything would be explained soon, but the temple was retiring her that night, so it would be a week before the next fortune teller would arrive. Confused by this, he returned to the castle only to be captured by the guards and spent the night in a cell. The next morning, bound and gagged, he was brought to the throne room to see his cousin Catherine be crowned as Voltzberg's new queen, and her first order was to order Bad Prince Justin's exile for all the terrible things he did to the kingdom and her person, much to his confusion.
Guards dragged him outside to a pair of wagons loaded with the chests from his room, including the iron coffer, but most of the guards were called back when one of them came out screaming someone had dug their way into the treasury. At the dock, he was placed on board the same ship the fortune teller was on, smiling when she saw him being dragged aboard, and the key to his bonds given to the captian, on orders not to release him until after the ship was well away from the kingdom.
When he was unbound, he demanded to know if she had set this all up, but Siri explained she became aware of the actions of others and simply took advantage of them to ensure Justin's safe escape into exile. Did he really want to fight his ingrateful people to get his kingdom back? If there was any hope for him, he needed to build up some good relations with the common people, and what better way than to offer his skills in service to the common folk? Slaying monsters, rescuing princesses, that sort of thing.
Personality:
Catherine's betrayal has shaken him to the core, and truthfully he's a little leary about Lucia Craft, as he has no idea what to expect next - and is afraid to ask.
He does speak of the strange and insideous spread of coffee houses throught the kingdom of Ohmskrieg, but unsure what it means.
Motivation:
Justin wants to travel a bit before he decides to settle down, as what little he knows comes from books, as he's only lived in Volksberg and Ohmskrieg. And that as long as they keep moving, he's not as likely to run into any assassins Catherine might send after him.
Skills, Strengths and Weaknesses, and Tools:
Skills:
Swordmanship (Advanced), Bow (Advanced), Crossbow (Average), Animal Handling & Horsemanship (Advanced), Field Tactics (Average), Field Wound Dressing (Basic), Athletics (Advanced), Dancing (Advanced), Singing (Average), Musical Instruments (Advanced), Draw and Paint (Average), Gambling (Average), Languages (Average), Accounting (Advanced), World History (Average), Basic Mechanics (Basic), Diplomacy (Basic)
Strengths: Strong body, good education, wealth
Weaknesses: Tends to say what he thinks, needs to work on developing his diplomatic skills.
Tools:
Armor, sword, bow, crossbow
His wagon (pulled by horses)
The wagon shared by the priestess and the apothecary (pulled by horses)
The cook's wagon (pulled by oxen and cows)
The supply wagon (pulled by oxen)
The drivers' wagon (pulled by oxen)
Strong boxes are in the prince's and the apothecary's wagons, the bulk of his fortune is deposited at a trading house in the Floating City and he bears a letter of credit hidden behind a secret panel.
What They Most Want:
Their kingdom back, or a place to settle down and call their own.
If They Had a DnD Alignment, It Would Be:
Lawfull neutral.
Three Likes:
Interesting company
A good sword and horse.
Lucia Craft
Three Dislikes:
Coffee shops (The drink is bitter and yet shops seem to be popping up everywhere...)
Bandits (they're everywhere and think they're big bads.)
Greedy beggers.
Do They Follow Their Heart or Their Mind?:
Bit of both.
Worst Fear:
Clowns. There's something... unnatural about them. False painted smiles, eyes filled with anger, sadness, or misery, deadpan delivery of jokes.
Favorite Color:
Lincoln green
Most Like The Animal:
A wolf.
Favorite Time of Day:
The evening, when the heat of the day is gone and the stars appear above.
How They Dress:
When not wearing his field plate mail or his training leathers, he's usually wearing a checkered leather beret of lincoln green and tan checks, a lincoln green tunic, a slashed tan dublet, a tanned leather jerkin, tanned leather codpiece, tanned leather gloves, lincoln green breeches, off-white hose, and tanned brown boots. (Lucia has promised the next time they find a decent tailor...)
A black leather swords belt with a belt pouch and a dagger in a sheath.
Favorite Season:
Spring, when the world becomes new again.
What Gods/Spirits/Whatevers They Worship (If Any):
The Wanderer, as he feels like a fool set adrift in this world.
Lucia Craft
Race, Age, Time in the Caravan:
Human, 21, 7 days
Appearance:
This lady puts you in mind of a clever stage magician. She has almond-shaped grass-green eyes. Her luxurious, curly, gold hair is neck-length and is worn in a messy short bob. There is a small burn spot on her head, above her right ear, usually covered with hair. She is short and has a muscular build. Her skin is deeply tanned. She has nearly-nonexistent eyebrows and small feet. Her wardrobe is basic, with a lot of red and gold.
History:
Lucia was born a traveler in a field on the side of the road. Her family were entertainers, they would play instruments and her mother would dance for the crowd, while her grandfather sold medicines and his grandmother told fortunes. Some of the stories she's overhear in her grandmother's tent led to a lot of questions, afterward. Like, is that really the proper way of using a tea cozy?
She was nine when one night, her family's living wagon caught fire. When they couldn't get out the door, her grandmother pushed her unconscious body through a window to the villagers outside, saving her life. When she finally woke three days later, were no sign of the other travelers.
One of the villagers put her on a mule, and took her to a monastery. The monks took her in, and tested her, as they tested all children that was brought to them. There was something about her they liked, so they began training her in the arcane and secret mysteries of fortune telling (and intelligence gathering), while stressing the need for her to remain pure, least it affect her gift.
When it was time, the monks put her on a boat with several brother monks, and they traveled to Voltzberg to set up a new temple. Much of her mornings were spent in listening to the stories the monks had gathered from the previous day, then breathing in the smoke and vapors from pots filled with burning 'herbs' while she stare d into a large crystal ball, her mind weaving a pattern she could then share with clients. Only the most important clients could be in the chamber with her, watching as Lucia recited prophecy after prophecy.
The monks made a killing in the Voltzberg stock market.
One of her first clients was the king, who had recently lost his wife of many years, and had an angry son name Justin. There was a thread there, barely noticeable, but it led her to telling the king to send his son away, to college, to study.
A few of the kingdom's ladies of the evening would seek her advice, and shared with her many secrets and techniques, the later she would sparingly share with other clients in need.
Over time, she uncovered several troubling threads that suggested the prince would be in danger should Justin return. But shortly after his father died (not responsible for the fate of those who do not listen!), she came face to face with the prince when Justin came to air his troubles, and she realized she wanted this one to escape the web of lies about to engulf him - and he was very handsome.
As fortune favored, she retired in the evening of Justin's arrest, and was waiting at the ship when Justin, bound and gagged, along with several chests, wound up aboard the same ship.
Personality:
A friendly nudist who is very comfortable in her own skin, but has some loose clothing to wear when she must venture from the wagon.
Very curious, she tends to ask a lot of questions.
Motivation:
After being cooped up in a monastery and then a temple, she's looking for some new adventures on the road now that she's finally free.
Skills, Strengths and Weaknesses, and Tools:
Very observant and a ready listener. Her mind is quick to create connections. Loves playing with children, she's sometimes mistaken for a child herself. Can climb and swim like a fish.
She can read and write a couple languages. Knows the tarot and can do cold readings.
The occasional wardrobe misfunction.
The monks were very keen on the martial arts, she knows how to chop, block, throw, and rip off ears. Can throw knives and stars.
Crystal ball helps to give her a focus that allows her to find the connections, but a mirror or even a clear puddle works. She's also gets the occasional hint from the universe.
She can see spirits, possibly something to do with her near death experience as a child.
To travel and see new sights.
chaotic good
Sleeping in a sunny spot
Chocolate
Coffee
Snowstorms
People who do not listen.
People who take out their fears on others.
Yes.
Being trapped inside a burning structure. It still gives her nightmares.
Yellow, it's so warm.
A cat, seeing all, sharing its affections to those it trusts.
The middle of a day, when everything is warm.
A straw hat, loose robes that are tied or a tunic, black breeches, sandles.
Summer
The Wanderer, patron god of all travelers.
Race, Age, Time in the Caravan:
Human, 21, 7 days
Appearance:
This lady puts you in mind of a clever stage magician. She has almond-shaped grass-green eyes. Her luxurious, curly, gold hair is neck-length and is worn in a messy short bob. There is a small burn spot on her head, above her right ear, usually covered with hair. She is short and has a muscular build. Her skin is deeply tanned. She has nearly-nonexistent eyebrows and small feet. Her wardrobe is basic, with a lot of red and gold.
History:
Lucia was born a traveler in a field on the side of the road. Her family were entertainers, they would play instruments and her mother would dance for the crowd, while her grandfather sold medicines and his grandmother told fortunes. Some of the stories she's overhear in her grandmother's tent led to a lot of questions, afterward. Like, is that really the proper way of using a tea cozy?
She was nine when one night, her family's living wagon caught fire. When they couldn't get out the door, her grandmother pushed her unconscious body through a window to the villagers outside, saving her life. When she finally woke three days later, were no sign of the other travelers.
One of the villagers put her on a mule, and took her to a monastery. The monks took her in, and tested her, as they tested all children that was brought to them. There was something about her they liked, so they began training her in the arcane and secret mysteries of fortune telling (and intelligence gathering), while stressing the need for her to remain pure, least it affect her gift.
When it was time, the monks put her on a boat with several brother monks, and they traveled to Voltzberg to set up a new temple. Much of her mornings were spent in listening to the stories the monks had gathered from the previous day, then breathing in the smoke and vapors from pots filled with burning 'herbs' while she stare d into a large crystal ball, her mind weaving a pattern she could then share with clients. Only the most important clients could be in the chamber with her, watching as Lucia recited prophecy after prophecy.
The monks made a killing in the Voltzberg stock market.
One of her first clients was the king, who had recently lost his wife of many years, and had an angry son name Justin. There was a thread there, barely noticeable, but it led her to telling the king to send his son away, to college, to study.
A few of the kingdom's ladies of the evening would seek her advice, and shared with her many secrets and techniques, the later she would sparingly share with other clients in need.
Over time, she uncovered several troubling threads that suggested the prince would be in danger should Justin return. But shortly after his father died (not responsible for the fate of those who do not listen!), she came face to face with the prince when Justin came to air his troubles, and she realized she wanted this one to escape the web of lies about to engulf him - and he was very handsome.
As fortune favored, she retired in the evening of Justin's arrest, and was waiting at the ship when Justin, bound and gagged, along with several chests, wound up aboard the same ship.
Personality:
A friendly nudist who is very comfortable in her own skin, but has some loose clothing to wear when she must venture from the wagon.
Very curious, she tends to ask a lot of questions.
Motivation:
After being cooped up in a monastery and then a temple, she's looking for some new adventures on the road now that she's finally free.
Skills, Strengths and Weaknesses, and Tools:
Very observant and a ready listener. Her mind is quick to create connections. Loves playing with children, she's sometimes mistaken for a child herself. Can climb and swim like a fish.
She can read and write a couple languages. Knows the tarot and can do cold readings.
The occasional wardrobe misfunction.
The monks were very keen on the martial arts, she knows how to chop, block, throw, and rip off ears. Can throw knives and stars.
Crystal ball helps to give her a focus that allows her to find the connections, but a mirror or even a clear puddle works. She's also gets the occasional hint from the universe.
She can see spirits, possibly something to do with her near death experience as a child.
What They Most Want:
To travel and see new sights.
If They Had a DnD Alignment, It Would Be:
chaotic good
Three Likes:
Sleeping in a sunny spot
Chocolate
Coffee
Three Dislikes:
Snowstorms
People who do not listen.
People who take out their fears on others.
Do They Follow Their Heart or Their Mind?:
Yes.
Worst Fear:
Being trapped inside a burning structure. It still gives her nightmares.
Favorite Color:
Yellow, it's so warm.
Most Like The Animal:
A cat, seeing all, sharing its affections to those it trusts.
Favorite Time of Day:
The middle of a day, when everything is warm.
How They Dress:
A straw hat, loose robes that are tied or a tunic, black breeches, sandles.
Favorite Season:
Summer
What Gods/Spirits/Whatevers They Worship (If Any):
The Wanderer, patron god of all travelers.
Name: Mahari Vrargerelde
Race, Age, Time in the Caravan:
Human, 27, 7 days
Appearance:
This solem lady has beady brown eyes that are like two tiger-eye gems. Her luxurious, wavy, long hair is the color of varnished wood, and is worn in a complex style. She is tall and has a lithe build. Her skin is cream-colored. She has high cheekbones and a large mouth. Her wardrobe is severe and no-nonsense, with a lot of black.
History:
Parents Mojorvar and Selriha immigrated to Ohmzkrieg before Mahari was born, settling down in an apothecary shop in the port city of Sarvin. Her mother, Selriha, ran off with a sailor when Mahari was six and her brother Mahmar was four, abandoning them.
She was sixteen when Rhadum Belad came to town, and impressed her with her knowledge of herbs. He began to teach her in secret in the arts of Opheric, impressed on how quickly her talents grew.
Her brother, however, saw her leaving Belad's house one night and told their father. Mojorvar became insensed and wouldn't listen to her explanations, calling her a slut like her mother and threw her out of the house. Belad, her mentor, took her in, but Mojorvar and Mahmar would throw insults at them any time they ran into them. Belad and Mahari left soon after for the Floating City.
To keep up appearances, she took a job in an apothecary shop and a bed in a bording house, while he set up a quiet office, producing various mana-based artifacts and potions that he discretely sold to various shops. When he was satisfied with her training, she also began turning out her own. A year later, her mentor explained it was time for him to move on, and that she should consider it herself.
By shear accident, she ran into her mother, now Captain Selriha Qiem. It took a few months, but eventually she conviced Mahari to join her as ship's physician. While she had a few flings, and a few adventures, stories were being spread about some of some magical events she wanted to keep quiet. When she met Lucia, a retiring fortune teller, and her just exiled boyfriend, former Prince Justin Tyrell, the fortune teller convinced her it was time to travel a different road where she might be able to practice her gifts to a larger audience.
Personality:
Mahari is quietly reserved, a professional apothecary and doctor when needed, while practicing her arts in private.
Motivation:
Trying to put some separation between herself and the sea, perhaps find someone who can share her life.
Skills, Strengths and Weaknesses, and Tools:
Skills: Doctor (expert), Herbologist (expert with most plants), Orphic practionioner of the Line of Vunzobre (Advanced).
Strengths: courage and fortitude, a fighter.
Weaknesses: Self-doubt in social situations.
Tools: her wand, her tome of magic in a protective case, her personal lexicon, a pouch holding potion vials, Pen & Ink holder, her doctor's kit, her apothecary kit, her distilling stand.
Someone to share their life with
Lawful neutral
Petrichor - the earthy, musky smell that comes after rain has fallen on ground that has been dry for a long time.
Flowing plants
Animals
Abusive men
Suffering of others
Greed
They follow their heart more than they should
Being helpless
Yellow
A dog
Morning, when all the possibilities are fresh in the day
A yellow head scarf and a peasant's blouse with a brown leather bodice and a green peasant skirt, brown boots, green hose, and a ring leather belt. her
Autumn, when the heat of summer starts to fade.
She pays lip service to the Orphic trickster god of the hunt, the Old Wolf.
Race, Age, Time in the Caravan:
Human, 27, 7 days
Appearance:
This solem lady has beady brown eyes that are like two tiger-eye gems. Her luxurious, wavy, long hair is the color of varnished wood, and is worn in a complex style. She is tall and has a lithe build. Her skin is cream-colored. She has high cheekbones and a large mouth. Her wardrobe is severe and no-nonsense, with a lot of black.
History:
Parents Mojorvar and Selriha immigrated to Ohmzkrieg before Mahari was born, settling down in an apothecary shop in the port city of Sarvin. Her mother, Selriha, ran off with a sailor when Mahari was six and her brother Mahmar was four, abandoning them.
She was sixteen when Rhadum Belad came to town, and impressed her with her knowledge of herbs. He began to teach her in secret in the arts of Opheric, impressed on how quickly her talents grew.
Her brother, however, saw her leaving Belad's house one night and told their father. Mojorvar became insensed and wouldn't listen to her explanations, calling her a slut like her mother and threw her out of the house. Belad, her mentor, took her in, but Mojorvar and Mahmar would throw insults at them any time they ran into them. Belad and Mahari left soon after for the Floating City.
To keep up appearances, she took a job in an apothecary shop and a bed in a bording house, while he set up a quiet office, producing various mana-based artifacts and potions that he discretely sold to various shops. When he was satisfied with her training, she also began turning out her own. A year later, her mentor explained it was time for him to move on, and that she should consider it herself.
By shear accident, she ran into her mother, now Captain Selriha Qiem. It took a few months, but eventually she conviced Mahari to join her as ship's physician. While she had a few flings, and a few adventures, stories were being spread about some of some magical events she wanted to keep quiet. When she met Lucia, a retiring fortune teller, and her just exiled boyfriend, former Prince Justin Tyrell, the fortune teller convinced her it was time to travel a different road where she might be able to practice her gifts to a larger audience.
Personality:
Mahari is quietly reserved, a professional apothecary and doctor when needed, while practicing her arts in private.
Motivation:
Trying to put some separation between herself and the sea, perhaps find someone who can share her life.
Skills, Strengths and Weaknesses, and Tools:
Skills: Doctor (expert), Herbologist (expert with most plants), Orphic practionioner of the Line of Vunzobre (Advanced).
Strengths: courage and fortitude, a fighter.
Weaknesses: Self-doubt in social situations.
Tools: her wand, her tome of magic in a protective case, her personal lexicon, a pouch holding potion vials, Pen & Ink holder, her doctor's kit, her apothecary kit, her distilling stand.
What They Most Want:
Someone to share their life with
If They Had a DnD Alignment, It Would Be:
Lawful neutral
Three Likes:
Petrichor - the earthy, musky smell that comes after rain has fallen on ground that has been dry for a long time.
Flowing plants
Animals
Three Dislikes:
Abusive men
Suffering of others
Greed
Do They Follow Their Heart or Their Mind?:
They follow their heart more than they should
Worst Fear:
Being helpless
Favorite Color:
Yellow
Most Like The Animal:
A dog
Favorite Time of Day:
Morning, when all the possibilities are fresh in the day
How They Dress:
A yellow head scarf and a peasant's blouse with a brown leather bodice and a green peasant skirt, brown boots, green hose, and a ring leather belt. her
Favorite Season:
Autumn, when the heat of summer starts to fade.
What Gods/Spirits/Whatevers They Worship (If Any):
She pays lip service to the Orphic trickster god of the hunt, the Old Wolf.
Name: Sister Mara (Marianna de Roet)
Race, Age, Time in the Caravan:
Human, 25, 7 days
Appearance:
This reserved woman has deep-set eyes the color of burnished iron. Her thick, curly, very short hair is the color of desert sand, and is styled as a mop crop. She has a wiry build. Her skin is tan.
History:
Agathe and Trym de Roet were court advisors to the former king of the island kingdom of Nouvia. Marianna, their only daughter, was promised at a young age in marriage to the eldest son, Prince Emanuele Sulayman. Initally warm, his attentions began to cool noticibly as diplomatic negotiations began between Nouvia and the Aphucaevaria Empire.
When it became time to formally receive their ambassador, he brought with him Princess Astrid Feta'u, the third daughter of the Emperor, a stunning dark haired and tanned beauty dressed in fine silks suggesting curves under their translucent panels that drew every mans' eye. When she was introduced to the king, Astrid offered him a pastry she had made herself. The king asked Marianna for a sip of water to clear his palette, then took a bite of the pastry and swallowed. A sudden change came over the king, he began to cramp, his face red and swollen while his breath became labored. Immediately, there were cries of poison - but the Astrid swiftly retrieved the rest of the pastry and ate it completely - with no ill effect.
By the time the court physician reached him, the king was dead. Angrily, Prince Emanuele smacked the goblet out of Marianna's hand and accused her of poisoning the king, his father. He then ordered guards to arrest her and her parents, and to take them immediately to the White Tower, a stronghold now used as a royal prison - and execution site.
However, when the guard escort reached the royal pier, they were suddenly set on by men wearing hoods. One of them managed to get Marianna away, revealing himself to be her elder brother Ádomás. He dragged her to another pier where five cogs waited - and her tutor, Catavignus the Wanderer. Shoving her aboard, he called out that Catavignus would explain everything as the five sailing ships cast off their lines and headed for the harbor entrance.
Once they were free, the five ships scattered in different directions.
Catavignus explained her parents had become suspicious with meetings between the empire's negotiator and the prince. They had prepared to secure the king against a sudden attack, with plans to get her and the prince to safety. She told the Wanderer about what had happened, and he said it was probably not a poison, but a severe allergic reaction - which explained why the Princess had so readily ate the pastry afterward.
He explained he was to hide her, and offered her a magic satchel her brother had prepared for her, able to hold as much as a room in so tiny a space. However, Catavignus explained that with the prince now looking for her, it necessitated a new strategy. He then shaved her head and made her an initiate Wanderer, Sister Metilia.
Catavignus used his contacts in the Floating City to sell her clothes, then they left the city so that he could begin her education in the Ways of the Road, so that others would accept her as one of them. The few messages they got back were grim, the Empire had absorbed Nouvia, with Emanuele now wedded. Her father had died, and her mother and brothers were in hiding. And there was now a price on her head.
An assassin, posing as another messenger, managed to gravely wound Catavignus before they managed to kill him. The Wanderer told Marianna to change her name, her hair, and to take to the road for her own safety.
Personality:
While she smiles and helps without complaint, she's clearing holding back a great sadness deep within her. Oddly enough, she seems to be happiest when repairing shoes.
Motivation:
Safety in numbers, never staying long in one place.
Skills, Strengths and Weaknesses, and Tools:
Martial Arts - She can do kicks, blocks, throws, and chops. Sometimes they connect. Watching her do kata makes people think it's some weird exercise.
Quarterstaff - She can do some damage.
Sling - She can do some damage from a fair distance.
Herbology - Just the basics. Still has to look stuff up in her lexicon.
Bandaging and suturing - she does a very good job of it, even use the boiled shaft of a feather as a drain (a Nouvia specialty)
Cobbering - able to repair shoes
Prayer - she offers prayers when she is in need to the Wanderer. Sometimes they are granted.
Security
Chaotic Good
The laughter of children
Rain falling after a hot day
A warm spot to sleep for the night
Screams of pain
Bandits
Those who would do evil
Their heart
To be imprisoned
Yellow
The fox
Evening, when people start to relax after the heat of the day
A green cloak, a tan tunic, dark breeches, and sandals. She carries a sack on a pole with a pad cushioning where it rests on her shoulder, while the other holds a quarterstaff.
Summer it's full of promise
The Wanderer
Race, Age, Time in the Caravan:
Human, 25, 7 days
Appearance:
This reserved woman has deep-set eyes the color of burnished iron. Her thick, curly, very short hair is the color of desert sand, and is styled as a mop crop. She has a wiry build. Her skin is tan.
History:
Agathe and Trym de Roet were court advisors to the former king of the island kingdom of Nouvia. Marianna, their only daughter, was promised at a young age in marriage to the eldest son, Prince Emanuele Sulayman. Initally warm, his attentions began to cool noticibly as diplomatic negotiations began between Nouvia and the Aphucaevaria Empire.
When it became time to formally receive their ambassador, he brought with him Princess Astrid Feta'u, the third daughter of the Emperor, a stunning dark haired and tanned beauty dressed in fine silks suggesting curves under their translucent panels that drew every mans' eye. When she was introduced to the king, Astrid offered him a pastry she had made herself. The king asked Marianna for a sip of water to clear his palette, then took a bite of the pastry and swallowed. A sudden change came over the king, he began to cramp, his face red and swollen while his breath became labored. Immediately, there were cries of poison - but the Astrid swiftly retrieved the rest of the pastry and ate it completely - with no ill effect.
By the time the court physician reached him, the king was dead. Angrily, Prince Emanuele smacked the goblet out of Marianna's hand and accused her of poisoning the king, his father. He then ordered guards to arrest her and her parents, and to take them immediately to the White Tower, a stronghold now used as a royal prison - and execution site.
However, when the guard escort reached the royal pier, they were suddenly set on by men wearing hoods. One of them managed to get Marianna away, revealing himself to be her elder brother Ádomás. He dragged her to another pier where five cogs waited - and her tutor, Catavignus the Wanderer. Shoving her aboard, he called out that Catavignus would explain everything as the five sailing ships cast off their lines and headed for the harbor entrance.
Once they were free, the five ships scattered in different directions.
Catavignus explained her parents had become suspicious with meetings between the empire's negotiator and the prince. They had prepared to secure the king against a sudden attack, with plans to get her and the prince to safety. She told the Wanderer about what had happened, and he said it was probably not a poison, but a severe allergic reaction - which explained why the Princess had so readily ate the pastry afterward.
He explained he was to hide her, and offered her a magic satchel her brother had prepared for her, able to hold as much as a room in so tiny a space. However, Catavignus explained that with the prince now looking for her, it necessitated a new strategy. He then shaved her head and made her an initiate Wanderer, Sister Metilia.
Catavignus used his contacts in the Floating City to sell her clothes, then they left the city so that he could begin her education in the Ways of the Road, so that others would accept her as one of them. The few messages they got back were grim, the Empire had absorbed Nouvia, with Emanuele now wedded. Her father had died, and her mother and brothers were in hiding. And there was now a price on her head.
An assassin, posing as another messenger, managed to gravely wound Catavignus before they managed to kill him. The Wanderer told Marianna to change her name, her hair, and to take to the road for her own safety.
Personality:
While she smiles and helps without complaint, she's clearing holding back a great sadness deep within her. Oddly enough, she seems to be happiest when repairing shoes.
Motivation:
Safety in numbers, never staying long in one place.
Skills, Strengths and Weaknesses, and Tools:
Martial Arts - She can do kicks, blocks, throws, and chops. Sometimes they connect. Watching her do kata makes people think it's some weird exercise.
Quarterstaff - She can do some damage.
Sling - She can do some damage from a fair distance.
Herbology - Just the basics. Still has to look stuff up in her lexicon.
Bandaging and suturing - she does a very good job of it, even use the boiled shaft of a feather as a drain (a Nouvia specialty)
Cobbering - able to repair shoes
Prayer - she offers prayers when she is in need to the Wanderer. Sometimes they are granted.
What They Most Want:
Security
If They Had a DnD Alignment, It Would Be:
Chaotic Good
Three Likes:
The laughter of children
Rain falling after a hot day
A warm spot to sleep for the night
Three Dislikes:
Screams of pain
Bandits
Those who would do evil
Do They Follow Their Heart or Their Mind?:
Their heart
Worst Fear:
To be imprisoned
Favorite Color:
Yellow
Most Like The Animal:
The fox
Favorite Time of Day:
Evening, when people start to relax after the heat of the day
How They Dress:
A green cloak, a tan tunic, dark breeches, and sandals. She carries a sack on a pole with a pad cushioning where it rests on her shoulder, while the other holds a quarterstaff.
Favorite Season:
Summer it's full of promise
What Gods/Spirits/Whatevers They Worship (If Any):
The Wanderer
Name: Ciannait Duanei
Race, Age, Time in the Caravan:
Dark Elf Vampire of the line of Dubhghlass, 247, 7 days
Dark elves are of dark skin, charcoal or bluish-gray, typically subterrainian dwellers. They have incredible darkvision and hearing. In the past, they've raided farms and small villages, something few are willing to forget, even today, and dispised by other elves. Especially feared was the Dark elvish pirate Capt. Blackeye Rattlebones, who some claim still roves the seas.
Appearance:
This girl reminds you of a dangerous spider. She has almond-shaped eyes the color of blood. Her fine, straight, neck-length hair is the color of fine china, and is worn in a severe style. She is tall and has a lithe build. Her skin is a bluish-gray. She has thick eyebrows, pointed ears, and thin lips.
On her chest is an ancient slave brand, marking her as the property of House Donovani.
History:
Born to Brianan and Saibh Duanei when the warmth was just returning to the world, her father worked as a gardener to a wealthy family in the capital of Ohmskrieg. Previous in life, he had been a sea captain with many jilted ex-lovers.
When Cian was ten, her parents discovered her ability to mimic other people's voices, providing some hours of entertainment.
She was fourteen when an occasional night visitor of her father's pressed a map and a note into her hands to give to him, telling her he would be in the ruins outside of town. On reading the note, Brianan turned pale, then gave her some coins to take to him, and bolted as soon as she was out of sight. When Cian gave the man the coins, town guards rushed in and captured them both. She was hauled in front of the sheriff, who ordered her enslaved for aiding a pirate.
At the slave market, she was surprised to be purchased by an elegant woman, Mor Donovani, who she soon discovered was the chief advisor to the Vultzberg king. On her arrival to her house in the capital, she learned she was to be an attendant to Mor's courtesans, until she was of age to join them. Part of that included telling Mor everything she could gleam from the courtesans' time with the guests. Impressed with her attention to details, she had her taught as a scribe, so she could write up the reports from the courtesans.
When she became one of the courtesans, a frequent guest, however, tormented her whenever he visited. One night, she struck back at Neasan Hyland and attempted to escape, but was easily captured and beaten by the guards. Mor was furious, and had her branded on the chest, forever marking Cian as her property.
After she recovered, Mor escorted Cian personally to the rooms of Dughlas Dubhghlass, a very important guest. However, it turned out that Dughlas was not desiring companionship, he was merely... thirsty. He turned her, that night, gifting the young vampire back to her unknowing mistress.
Cian was 'sick' for days, then when she was deemed ready, her unfortunate first guest was Neasan, eager to get his revenge for his previous visit. Attendants before dawn found him drained to the last drop and Cian passed out in a stupor.
A witch in debt to Mor used the seal of the Dead God to hold her in place as she put a geas on Cian so she would obey Mor or her lieutenants' commands, and an iron casket built to hold the new vampire, which was placed in a crypt in the city's graveyard. A servant would come once a week to feed her blood, pouring it into a small bowl on the lid that would drip it into her mouth.
Now and then, Cian would be released by Mor to attack an enemy of the kingdom or of herself, only to be ordered back into the crypt.
After Mor's death, Cian's casket was moved to the castle to safeguard it, to a storeroom adjacent to the caskset strongroom. She was to be the King's weapon of last resort. As before, castle servants secretly fed blood to the sleeping vampire.
When Prince Justin ordered servants to bring up several chests from the storeroom, her coffer was mistakenly brought up as well.
Personality:
Cian is lazy and will argue about everything, but is always concerned about her appearance being immaculate and keeping things organized.
Motivation:
Her coffer was mixed among Prince Justin's things, and was loaded onto the ship.
Skills, Strengths and Weaknesses, and Tools:
Skills:
Strengths:
Weaknesses:
Tools:
Leather armor
A satchel containing a small sharp scalpel, a wooden bowl, a handful of make-up brushes, combs, ointments, lip color, blush, a scrubbing cloth, and a leather-wrapped bar of jasmine soap.
Freedom
Lawful evil
Blood
The smell of Jasmine
A hot bath
The Dead God's Seal
The Geas
They do as they're told.
Crusnik (Krsnik) - Some vampires believe themselves to be on the top of the food chain. They're not. A Crusnik is a type of vampire that preys on vampires. Some can even manipulate their own blood. Having been drained once by Dubhghlass was nightmarish enough, she does not want to experience that again.
Red
That is, which animal they are most like- not which one they like the most.
Badger
Midnight
Cian wears a strangely repellant metal seal as a pendant on a necklace. A hard tug on the necklace will cause it to break away, she is forbidden from removing the seal herself.
Her wardrobe is a dark hooded woolen cloak, leather armor styled in some ancient pattern, and an adventurer's satchel, with pockets along its wide strap.
Winter. The cold no longer bothers her and the nights are longer.
None.
Race, Age, Time in the Caravan:
Dark Elf Vampire of the line of Dubhghlass, 247, 7 days
Dark elves are of dark skin, charcoal or bluish-gray, typically subterrainian dwellers. They have incredible darkvision and hearing. In the past, they've raided farms and small villages, something few are willing to forget, even today, and dispised by other elves. Especially feared was the Dark elvish pirate Capt. Blackeye Rattlebones, who some claim still roves the seas.
Appearance:
This girl reminds you of a dangerous spider. She has almond-shaped eyes the color of blood. Her fine, straight, neck-length hair is the color of fine china, and is worn in a severe style. She is tall and has a lithe build. Her skin is a bluish-gray. She has thick eyebrows, pointed ears, and thin lips.
On her chest is an ancient slave brand, marking her as the property of House Donovani.
History:
Born to Brianan and Saibh Duanei when the warmth was just returning to the world, her father worked as a gardener to a wealthy family in the capital of Ohmskrieg. Previous in life, he had been a sea captain with many jilted ex-lovers.
When Cian was ten, her parents discovered her ability to mimic other people's voices, providing some hours of entertainment.
She was fourteen when an occasional night visitor of her father's pressed a map and a note into her hands to give to him, telling her he would be in the ruins outside of town. On reading the note, Brianan turned pale, then gave her some coins to take to him, and bolted as soon as she was out of sight. When Cian gave the man the coins, town guards rushed in and captured them both. She was hauled in front of the sheriff, who ordered her enslaved for aiding a pirate.
At the slave market, she was surprised to be purchased by an elegant woman, Mor Donovani, who she soon discovered was the chief advisor to the Vultzberg king. On her arrival to her house in the capital, she learned she was to be an attendant to Mor's courtesans, until she was of age to join them. Part of that included telling Mor everything she could gleam from the courtesans' time with the guests. Impressed with her attention to details, she had her taught as a scribe, so she could write up the reports from the courtesans.
When she became one of the courtesans, a frequent guest, however, tormented her whenever he visited. One night, she struck back at Neasan Hyland and attempted to escape, but was easily captured and beaten by the guards. Mor was furious, and had her branded on the chest, forever marking Cian as her property.
After she recovered, Mor escorted Cian personally to the rooms of Dughlas Dubhghlass, a very important guest. However, it turned out that Dughlas was not desiring companionship, he was merely... thirsty. He turned her, that night, gifting the young vampire back to her unknowing mistress.
Cian was 'sick' for days, then when she was deemed ready, her unfortunate first guest was Neasan, eager to get his revenge for his previous visit. Attendants before dawn found him drained to the last drop and Cian passed out in a stupor.
A witch in debt to Mor used the seal of the Dead God to hold her in place as she put a geas on Cian so she would obey Mor or her lieutenants' commands, and an iron casket built to hold the new vampire, which was placed in a crypt in the city's graveyard. A servant would come once a week to feed her blood, pouring it into a small bowl on the lid that would drip it into her mouth.
Now and then, Cian would be released by Mor to attack an enemy of the kingdom or of herself, only to be ordered back into the crypt.
After Mor's death, Cian's casket was moved to the castle to safeguard it, to a storeroom adjacent to the caskset strongroom. She was to be the King's weapon of last resort. As before, castle servants secretly fed blood to the sleeping vampire.
When Prince Justin ordered servants to bring up several chests from the storeroom, her coffer was mistakenly brought up as well.
Personality:
Cian is lazy and will argue about everything, but is always concerned about her appearance being immaculate and keeping things organized.
Motivation:
Her coffer was mixed among Prince Justin's things, and was loaded onto the ship.
Skills, Strengths and Weaknesses, and Tools:
Skills:
She's got the skills and the body to make the night memoriable. Of course now, it's likely to be your last.
If she locks eyes with another, Cian can slowly pull them into a light hypnotic state, able to obey basic commands. However, if contact is lost before that state is achieved, or the subject is shaken or experiences sharp pain, the hypnosis is broken and they wake up.
Strengths:
With the strength of five men, Cian is able to lift a horse, or she can punch her way through a stone wall.
A side-effect of her strength, she can run flat out five miles in as many minutes - but that does leave her thirsty.
A bite from a vampire of Dubhghlass' line can quickly numb and paralyze their victim, leaving them helpless as the vampire feeds.
Vampires of Dubhghlass' line are unaffected by viruses or bacteria, but it can make the blood taste differently. The black plague gives blood a smoky flavor.
A vampire of Dubhghlass' line can recover from even grave injuries. Small injuries may be completely healed in a few days, a stake in the heart a month or two. Eyes and limbs may take a couple years. It's why vampires of Dubhghlass' line do not age.
A vampire of Dubhghlass' line, even reduced to ash, can be restored with a drop of blood. Cian carries a small vial of blood on her for just this purpose.
It's often believed that a wooden stake driven through the heart of a vampire will kill it. However, with Dubhghlass' line, due to the nature of their cursed blood, you've only pissed them off. Do you know how hard it is to find a seamstress or tailor willing to work after dark?
Weaknesses:
A word in an ancient language was engraved into the lid of her iron coffin, among others. On hearing that word, she must obey any command given to her. However, pronunciation is important.
When a vampire of Dubhghlass' line is exposed to full sunlight, their flesh will start to smoke. After a few moments, their flesh catches fire, burning them to ash if they are unable to find shelter or a body of water.
While a vampire of Dubhghlass' line can hibernate for many years after a heavy feeding, an active vampire must feed on a pint of blood at least once a week to maintain its strength. Blood from a heavy drinker or habitual drug user will affect the vampire as well. If starved for blood, a vampire can become a wild thing, driven by its unquenchable thirst. The smell of blood can be mildly intoxicating, one has to guard their reaction around minor cuts.
A vampire of Dubhghlass' line also can also consume a living victim's life force as it drinks, converting it naturally into Orphic mana, which it stores.
A vampire of Dubhghlass' line also can also consume a living victim's life force as it drinks, converting it naturally into Orphic mana, which it stores.
A vampire of Dubhghlass' line can drink water, wine, tea, and coffee, or eat bloody meat, but most food tastes incredibly foul to them. For the unprepared, they can become violently ill.
Lactose intolerant.
Possibly because she's trapped between Death and Life, or maybe it's insanity, but she sometimes see creatures and things that others say are not there. Sometimes they talk to her.
Tools:
A small medallion that resembles (yet isn't) lead, bearing the ancient mark of the Dead God. It feeds constantly on magic, or perhaps the soul? It makes the skin crawl if one gets within an arm's length. To wear one is an almost unbearable torture. There are three on Cian's iron casket, making her an invalid while inside, barely able to move. Wearing one on a necklace leaves her weak.
This heavy metal coffin has chains to keep it locked up, preventing Cian's escape and allowing her to be safely transported, with three clips securing the Dead God's seals on the lid. A shallow bowl in the lid allows blood to drip into her mouth.
Leather armor
A satchel containing a small sharp scalpel, a wooden bowl, a handful of make-up brushes, combs, ointments, lip color, blush, a scrubbing cloth, and a leather-wrapped bar of jasmine soap.
What They Most Want:
Freedom
If They Had a DnD Alignment, It Would Be:
Lawful evil
Three Likes:
Blood
The smell of Jasmine
A hot bath
Three Dislikes:
The Dead God's Seal
The Geas
- Vampires of Dubhghlass' line can see themselves in mirrors - they just hate them. To see themselves is an unkind reminder of what they used to be.
Mirrors also do not reflect glamours cast by her line, so one disguised by such will be revealed if one checks their reflection in a mirror, the forgotten reason why they are often found in entryways.
Mirrors also do not reflect glamours cast by her line, so one disguised by such will be revealed if one checks their reflection in a mirror, the forgotten reason why they are often found in entryways.
Do They Follow Their Heart or Their Mind?:
They do as they're told.
Worst Fear:
Crusnik (Krsnik) - Some vampires believe themselves to be on the top of the food chain. They're not. A Crusnik is a type of vampire that preys on vampires. Some can even manipulate their own blood. Having been drained once by Dubhghlass was nightmarish enough, she does not want to experience that again.
Favorite Color:
Red
Most Like The Animal:
That is, which animal they are most like- not which one they like the most.
Badger
Favorite Time of Day:
Midnight
How They Dress:
Cian wears a strangely repellant metal seal as a pendant on a necklace. A hard tug on the necklace will cause it to break away, she is forbidden from removing the seal herself.
Her wardrobe is a dark hooded woolen cloak, leather armor styled in some ancient pattern, and an adventurer's satchel, with pockets along its wide strap.
Favorite Season:
Winter. The cold no longer bothers her and the nights are longer.
What Gods/Spirits/Whatevers They Worship (If Any):
None.
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