A thin man sporting the beginnings of a pot belly. Victor has dark hair, scraped back into a ponytail and a bushy moustache. Depending on how long it’s been since he’s been to a barber, he’ll also have the makings of a beard starting to grow in. His face is weatherbeaten and his body covered in scars. His nose has been broken and reshaped. Age lines have started to show on the creases of his brow and the corners of his eyes.
Victor Strade.
Male, 43
Human
Monster Hunter
Victor is world-weary. He has seen most of what he needed to see in order to mature, has suffered enough, and consequently understands the strife others go through. He has a temperamental nature, but his aggression is held back by his level-headedness and common sense. He knows how to pick his battles and is very aware of his limits. He carries himself with stoicism but there’s a faint warmth to his personality that makes him a little more welcoming than the an adventurer of his stature. He still operates under his own strict set of morals though, quick to be disapproving or to congratulate people for doing what he saw as ‘the right thing’.
Victor had a rather middle-class upbringing. Born to a merchant father in a town nestled safely amongst the core territories of the North, Victor spent his childhood assisting his father with his travels for sales or covering the homestead with his mother. Although he wasn’t admitted to higher forms of education, he was luckily taught literacy and competency.
The constant traveling with his father was something he enjoyed, not due to the nature of his profession but due to the occasional adventurers they met or sometimes just glimpsed preparing for a expedition. He was truly in awe of not only their status but also often heroic deeds.
Years passed and he was granted the choice of picking up his father's mantle which he obliged to, forcing himself to appease his parents. Luckily his miserable behaviour wasn’t ignored by them, prompting up discourse whether he’d rather pursue a different career. Victor was adamant with his want to chase after the career of an adventurer, something his parents weren’t keen on due their more realistic understanding of the skills that would require. Nevertheless his persistence convinced his parents to trial him, something he eagerly accepted and began preparations for.
After his fitting for barebone armor purchased from the cheapest smith, Victor joined a small party to start his journey with. He began completing miniscule contract after contract, racking up measly pay. The job was tough, and he had to hop from group to group due to the disbandment or loss of the previous one.
As time passed, Victor was met with the harshness of the world they lived in. Failed contracts with loss of life left him and whatever adventurers he joined up with not only without pay but emotional, physical, and eventually financial scars. As the work he took up began increasing in difficulty, failure turned from a farmer losing his tools to the villages losing their loved ones, families being destroyed, homes being annihilated. Every escape from death turned into luck, the feeling of control over the outcome of his tasks slipping. All these surging discoveries caused Victor to begin distancing himself from family and friends to allow him to more focus and dedicate his time to preparing and succeeding with his contracts. Then, his peers and their attitudes began displeasing him too. Their behaviour turned lacklustre and their desire for fame and glory trumped over the genuine need to help those who require it. This disgusted Victor and encouraged him to distance himself further from group work.
As such, Victor was left to his own devices. Dedicating so much time to this craft drove him to adapt and continue by taking contract after contract on his own. He started to find that avoiding needless bloodshed kept his health and his nerves in check. Most monsters had some capacity for sentience, and he tried to solve issues peacefully. This was not always the case, which meant he needed to be prepared for anything.
Many years have passed. Early mistakes made when contracting alone, even with permanent damage done to his body, were seen as valuable lessons. He picked up alchemy to accommodate for his lack of magic. He relied on tools and traps to compensate for his lack of party members. He invested in scrolls and trinkets to trivialise certain monsters. Large gashes and scars that taught him which limbs to plate and armor and which to free up to allow agility. All these lessons and more are what allowed Victor to survive this long and hopefully continue surviving.
Of course, life had a way of complicating things when everything starts to get simple. When a girl came headlong from the forest, begging Victor to help her find her way back home, Victor was hardly aware of the task that lay before him. The girl barely knew the Common language and didn’t even know which way was home other than ‘north’. Still, Victor relented, and within the week he accidentally discovered her status as a Skinwalker. Fearful of the needless attention and worried about what those powers would do if she mistakenly helped the wrong people, Victor decided to keep her with him at all times.
They are both recent arrivals to Heston, after Victor received word from the Prince himself that his skills were needed to investigate a disappearance. Although Adrian was not invited, she could not be left alone. They both ventured into the city the night before the start of the RP.
The constant traveling with his father was something he enjoyed, not due to the nature of his profession but due to the occasional adventurers they met or sometimes just glimpsed preparing for a expedition. He was truly in awe of not only their status but also often heroic deeds.
Years passed and he was granted the choice of picking up his father's mantle which he obliged to, forcing himself to appease his parents. Luckily his miserable behaviour wasn’t ignored by them, prompting up discourse whether he’d rather pursue a different career. Victor was adamant with his want to chase after the career of an adventurer, something his parents weren’t keen on due their more realistic understanding of the skills that would require. Nevertheless his persistence convinced his parents to trial him, something he eagerly accepted and began preparations for.
After his fitting for barebone armor purchased from the cheapest smith, Victor joined a small party to start his journey with. He began completing miniscule contract after contract, racking up measly pay. The job was tough, and he had to hop from group to group due to the disbandment or loss of the previous one.
As time passed, Victor was met with the harshness of the world they lived in. Failed contracts with loss of life left him and whatever adventurers he joined up with not only without pay but emotional, physical, and eventually financial scars. As the work he took up began increasing in difficulty, failure turned from a farmer losing his tools to the villages losing their loved ones, families being destroyed, homes being annihilated. Every escape from death turned into luck, the feeling of control over the outcome of his tasks slipping. All these surging discoveries caused Victor to begin distancing himself from family and friends to allow him to more focus and dedicate his time to preparing and succeeding with his contracts. Then, his peers and their attitudes began displeasing him too. Their behaviour turned lacklustre and their desire for fame and glory trumped over the genuine need to help those who require it. This disgusted Victor and encouraged him to distance himself further from group work.
As such, Victor was left to his own devices. Dedicating so much time to this craft drove him to adapt and continue by taking contract after contract on his own. He started to find that avoiding needless bloodshed kept his health and his nerves in check. Most monsters had some capacity for sentience, and he tried to solve issues peacefully. This was not always the case, which meant he needed to be prepared for anything.
Many years have passed. Early mistakes made when contracting alone, even with permanent damage done to his body, were seen as valuable lessons. He picked up alchemy to accommodate for his lack of magic. He relied on tools and traps to compensate for his lack of party members. He invested in scrolls and trinkets to trivialise certain monsters. Large gashes and scars that taught him which limbs to plate and armor and which to free up to allow agility. All these lessons and more are what allowed Victor to survive this long and hopefully continue surviving.
Of course, life had a way of complicating things when everything starts to get simple. When a girl came headlong from the forest, begging Victor to help her find her way back home, Victor was hardly aware of the task that lay before him. The girl barely knew the Common language and didn’t even know which way was home other than ‘north’. Still, Victor relented, and within the week he accidentally discovered her status as a Skinwalker. Fearful of the needless attention and worried about what those powers would do if she mistakenly helped the wrong people, Victor decided to keep her with him at all times.
They are both recent arrivals to Heston, after Victor received word from the Prince himself that his skills were needed to investigate a disappearance. Although Adrian was not invited, she could not be left alone. They both ventured into the city the night before the start of the RP.
As a hunter, Victor's kit is never constant and is pre-prepared and set specifically for each hunt.
One of the truly constant items he has on his person at all times is a rather large encyclopedia detailing information about common monsters in primary regions.
Obviously the book wasn’t designed for hunters, but it allows him to piece together information about specific species he hasn’t encountered before. The book is rather large too, so it’s only ideal purpose is to be read while encamped in safety.
An adventurer's kit, an advanced one in his case, is a must have for anyone in the monster hunting business. Whetstone, bandages, torches, maps of the local region, mortar and pestle, sleeping sack; every common item that someone in the wild would need to survive is always strapped to the sides of his mount.
Basic potions, tonics, and poisons. A man physically much less capable than the foes he faces requires special medicinal boosts to grant boons in certain situations. The alchemical solutions he carries on him are minimalist at best and cause clutter, forcing him to only carry the bare minimum and craft any specifically necessary ones beforehand.
One of the truly constant items he has on his person at all times is a rather large encyclopedia detailing information about common monsters in primary regions.
Obviously the book wasn’t designed for hunters, but it allows him to piece together information about specific species he hasn’t encountered before. The book is rather large too, so it’s only ideal purpose is to be read while encamped in safety.
An adventurer's kit, an advanced one in his case, is a must have for anyone in the monster hunting business. Whetstone, bandages, torches, maps of the local region, mortar and pestle, sleeping sack; every common item that someone in the wild would need to survive is always strapped to the sides of his mount.
Basic potions, tonics, and poisons. A man physically much less capable than the foes he faces requires special medicinal boosts to grant boons in certain situations. The alchemical solutions he carries on him are minimalist at best and cause clutter, forcing him to only carry the bare minimum and craft any specifically necessary ones beforehand.
Due to most of his fights facing him off against beasts and monsters, the combat training he had accumulated over the years have been molded to best deal with them. Traps, tools, lures, makeshift rituals, and caution have helped him achieve victory more so than sword play.
Years of monster hunting have taught him important lessons to take into account when chasing a or fleeing from a monster. He possess the basics of dealing with common creatures.
Tracker. Years of experience have granted Victor the art of reading prints, scents, droppings, and rituals to help him understand the behaviours and movement of common monsters.
Information gathering. Victor is no clairevoyant. Most of his hunts force him to not only interact with nature, but the people affected by the monster. Talking to the commonfolk to piece together information to paint the bigger picture is second nature by now.
Alchemy. Due to his lack of magical affinity Victor was forced to adapt or fall behind with the hunting of monsters. To counteract this Victor began dabbling in alchemy at an early age. This has now left him with a mediocre understanding of crafting and consuming mixtures that either benefit him or harm his target when applied.
Years of monster hunting have taught him important lessons to take into account when chasing a or fleeing from a monster. He possess the basics of dealing with common creatures.
Tracker. Years of experience have granted Victor the art of reading prints, scents, droppings, and rituals to help him understand the behaviours and movement of common monsters.
Information gathering. Victor is no clairevoyant. Most of his hunts force him to not only interact with nature, but the people affected by the monster. Talking to the commonfolk to piece together information to paint the bigger picture is second nature by now.
Alchemy. Due to his lack of magical affinity Victor was forced to adapt or fall behind with the hunting of monsters. To counteract this Victor began dabbling in alchemy at an early age. This has now left him with a mediocre understanding of crafting and consuming mixtures that either benefit him or harm his target when applied.
Victor possess no magical skills, forcing him to rely on trinkets and scrolls he might purchase or identify in the wild.
