Ember Storm

Kokotha: Old Magic, New World

@Patches
Duff's hand went to the sabre strapped to his hip. "Lad looks a touch drunk. Not sure how he's allowed t'be drinkin' on th'job, but it doesn't look like anyone cares at this point. 'Sides... we've got some issues at six o'clock ourselves... should I've loaded Voidtips? 'M really thinkin' I should've loaded Voidtips." Without obviously looking behind them, Duff had caught a glimpse of a very rotound man approaching the group, another guard in tow. His CO in the army had always been on about "Constant vigilance!" and "Situational awareness!" and it had stuck, because it was especially important for a marksman like Duff. Now, Duff was no Buck Frobisher, but he could aim well enough and loved his gun like a man would love a woman... hopefully that amount of care would see him through what could be an inevitable confrontation if Gregor wasn't playing the talking game well enough tonight.

If need be and they were forced to leave... well... There were plenty of nice little sniper spots outside the manor to shoot from, and no magical protection in the world could stop Duff's custom Voidstone rounds.

Kokotha: Old Magic, New World

"Poacher" Harfang deNeige

Name:

"Poacher Harfang deNeige

Age:

Late forties to early fifties

Brand:

Light. He also has a brand gained from an Amalgamate that allows him to throw his voice in different ways.

Weapon and Rune:

“Old Moonlight”, a weapon that at first appears to be a dagger in a spring loaded clamshell sheath that becomes an oversized cross guard for the small knife. In actuality, Old Moonlight is designed to work with Harfang’s Light brand, becoming a large and exaggerated greatsword of hard light capable of throwing arcs of light out to around fifteen feet from the path of its swing. Due to its construction of mostly light, Old Moonlight is easy to wield in a single hand even though it is a large greatsword.

“Avelyn”, a special crossbow. Avelyn is unique for essentially being three crossbows in one. Avelyn has two runes applied to it: Stone and Storm. Stone allows Harfang to load it with an endless supply of bolts, and Storm allows it to do three things. First, the Storm rune allows Avelyn to automatically draw all three strings. Second, it allows all three strings to fire upon trigger pull, and third, it imbues the quarrels with lightning, allowing for heavier than normal damage.

A small shield, rarely seen, that at first appears to be not unlike the spokes of a carriage wheel. Harfang uses his light rune to form hard light sections in between the “spokes”, and also to fling small discs of light out to about fifteen feet if need be.

A longbow, also rarely seen (as Harfang prefers shorter range engagements), that he fires beams of hard light from in place of arrows.

Faction:

Ex-Harvestman, now operates as a freelance "bounty hunter."

Personality:

Harfang is cocky, rude, and insulting to most everyone, friend and foe alike. He sees much of his occupation as a game and enjoys toying with his prey for the “thrill.” It is truly unfortunate, then, that he sees no difference between human and Amalgamate prey, hunting whatever he’s paid to with extreme skill, attempting to cause as much fear in his prey as possible.

Background:

Once a member of the Harvestmen, Harfang was exiled from the faction thanks to his “overly enthusiastic” approaches to hunts, putting his fellow Harvestmen in danger due to a disregard for their well-being. Only one thing really matters to Harfang beyond himself: the successful end to his hunts, be they to kill or just spook his prey.

Other:

Harfang seldom uses his light magic to make anything other than his weapons. However, that isn’t to say that he can only use his brand in conjunction with his weapons. He focuses on short to mid-range engagements, rarely actually engaging in melee but keeping his prey on a short leash. Harfang is highly intelligent, and his preferred method of attack tends to reflect both his versatility and the tactical mind he has, despite how utterly unhinged he could rightfully be considered.

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Kokotha: Old Magic, New World

@Patches
@Nashie
Astrid drew her bow and knocked an arrow as she helped cover Yoshimi. It was probably better that the one with a bit more physical strength dealt with the guard who now knew they were there. "Paska," she swore upon hearing the muffled shouts from above. Did the cowboy get himself too deep? "You two can handle him," she said to Yoshimi and Kordan, "I will go to help dhe cowboy." Without turning, she faded into mist and floated rapidly up the cistern behind her colleagues to find Johnny hiding behind a door with a cheap looking blade in his hands. Reforming, she nodded at him.

Silently, she alighted and drew the moisture in the air around her into a veil that she hid in, crouched against the far wall with her bow out. Hopefully, with the darkness of the room and her shroud of mist, she'd be well hidden. Knocking an arrow to her bow string, she drew back on the compound weapon, double checking the type of arrow she had drawn. Razor, by the looks of the Liquid Rune etched carefully into the head. Well, hopefully the guards were going to enter single file... a well placed shot might take out more than one of them if they weren't prepared for combat.

Kokotha: Old Magic, New World

@Patches
Duff nodded, keeping Mercury in the corner of his eye. The trick here, he knew, was to watch without making it obvious that you were doing so. Being obvious might draw attention to the young pickpocket, and that would destroy this whole mission. "So, Gregor," he said, making what most would just ignore as idle conversation, "Whaddaya think's behind that wall of guards that people want, eh? An' who th'fuck's this 'Gishka' they're talkin' about?" He was genuinely curious.

Kokotha: Old Magic, New World

@Patches
@Nashie
Almost simultaneously, Astrid shifted into mist herself, flowing underneath the door before reforming right behind the now lonely guard. "I hear you like Yiskin girls," she said softly before stabbing him in each jugular artery with the throwing knives she had been playing with. "A real ssame," she continued, "Because I am dhe last one you will meet." She lowered him gently to the floor before approaching the second one from behind, ready to grab him for interrogation purposes.

Kokotha: Old Magic, New World

I threw together a list of firearms most often used by the Aborranian Royal Army in case people are interested. One of them is the Gophman 9mm submachine gun - a parallel to the real world Thompson.

Kokotha: Old Magic, New World

@Patches
"Never been one fer close range stuff, mate," Duff said. "But what's yer idea? P'raps there's another plan hidin' in th'woodwork, eh?" the Aborranian grinned. "Now, I may be a stranger t'Kokotha, but what might Gustrag have up in those rooms what people might be innerested in? If yeh know what yer lookin' fer up there... what about jus' walkin' up an' askin'? D'we know what they go up there fer?" he asked, nodding to the folks talking to the guards. He squinted, trying in vain to read the lips of the party-goers that were heading upstairs. Perhaps if he got closer to them, he'd be able to hear what they were going for... but how to do that without painting a massive target on oneself?

Kokotha: Old Magic, New World

@Patches
@Nashie
Astrid slid two throwing knives out and spun them through the gloved fingers of each hand. "If we are to open dhe cells, we should make ssir to silence dhe guards, yes?" she whispered. "Perhaps one of dheir 'Yiskin girls' can say hello, I dhink?" Her face betrayed no emotion. Even with an idea like that, she remained stoney and calm as she awaited a response, fully expecting someone to shoot down her plan. She scoffed silently. Astrid can handle two young bastards, she thought. You can leave dhem to me.

---

@Patches
Duff glanced around the crowded room. Even when he was in the army, parties and gatherings were never this pompous. He judged it all silently, somewhat irked at just how much the event lacked personality behind the thin veneer of circumstance. Back home, they knew how to put on a shindig. Music everyone'd join in on. Fresh food and lots of it, not this "gourmet" that was more about presentation than substance. "I'll keep my eyes out, mate." he said softly, glad there was something for him to do that didn't involve socializing all that much. The Aborranian stayed within appropriate distance of Gregor, playing his role as bodyguard as well as he could - though he was tall, his reedy frame did not strike much of an intimidating stance, but he had his rifle, and that was enough for him. As ordered, he watched for an opening into the back rooms of the mansion, trying to find a way around that wouldn't alert anyone to any untoward activity. If he was magic, he'd probably be able to throw some sort of shroud over himself like that Dweller Gall could. Still, being non-magical had its uses, and they might just come in really handy in a place like this, a place that Duff could tell was positively swarming with Casters and probably a few Amalgamates.

Kokotha: Old Magic, New World

"Rougish" Astrid Hamdottir

Name:

Astrid Hamdottir/Rougish Astrid

Age:

Twenty-seven

Brand:

Mist

Weapon/Rune:

Compound bow. It itself lacks runes, but Astrid uses several different types of trick arrows with various runes that allow for explosive/incendiary arrows (her own mist brand); laser beams, shield arrows, flash arrows, light arrows (light runes); poison arrows, freezing arrows, and razor arrows (liquid runes).

Non-magical twinned curved swords, about as long as one’s forearm, the blades are designed to draw as much blood as possible and make wounds that are difficult to close without magical means thanks to well-honed edges.

Non-magical throwing knives. It’s honestly surprising how many she carries, seemingly pulling them out of nowhere.

Faction:

Ex-Old Path, now a freelancer that takes contracts with the White Teeth, Golden Boys, et cetera.

Personality:

Distant and reserved, the only emotions Astrid seems to display are those of negativity. Often appearing scornful and annoyed, few people realize that these emotions are more of a face than reality, although they were originally adopted from two things. First, her time in the Old Path taught her to eschew and deride the modernity of current day Kokotha, a feeling she often has difficultly setting aside despite enjoying many of the luxuries afforded to the modern citizen. Secondly, most people call her “Rougish Astrid,” a name she highly dislikes due to her actual training as a scout.

Background:

With several years of training as a scout and ranger in the forces of the Old Path, Astrid eventually found herself wandering further and further from the Path, both literally and figuratively, as she saw more and more of the modern world. Eventually, she went AWOL, leaving the order to begin working as a freelancer and information gather that is usually under contract to the White Tooth Men or Golden Boys.

Other:

She still wears her own armour from her time in the Old Path, although it has been dyed and repainted. Its black and grey colour scheme offers a lot in the way of stealth.

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Kokotha: Old Magic, New World

Robert James "Duff" Duffield

Name:

Robert James “Duff” Duffield

Age:

Thirty-seven

Brand:

None, he is an ordinary human

Weapons:

Smye & Cochrane Ltd. Cavalry Special .303 rifle; carries two types of ammunition. The most common type he carries is standard .303 ammunition, but he will often load custom Voidstone tipped ammunition as every fifth round when dealing with higher class Amalgamates or rarely use his .303 Voidtipped ammunition exclusively if required.

Amherst Munitions Type IX .455 revolver; again, he uses two types of ammunition like the ones for the .303.

Kalden Knife and Sword Co. Voidstone infused cavalry sabre; in case of unavoidable melee, the scabbard is designed to allow him to easily draw the blade, but the primary purpose of this sword is to slow his foe down long enough to allow him to get some distance and draw his Type IX.

Faction:

None, though he finds kindred spirits in many other factions.

Personality:

Although he carries a seemingly gruff and almost world weary demeanor, Robert James Duffield is amicable and polite, almost to a fault. Among those who know him, he has a reputation for kindness, but is known to be a brutal combatant when the chips are down. This is a trait shared by many of the natives of Aborrana, as the harsh winters and thick forests require a stern constitution and a cooperative spirit for survival.

Background:

At the age of eighteen, Duff joined the Aborranian Royal Army as a dragoon, where he received training with rifles, sidearms, and the cavalry sabre he still carries. Five years later, he was honourably discharged from the military due to an injury he received that still causes him to walk with a slight limp. Not one to sit quietly and reminisce, Duff quickly put his training to good use, becoming reputable as a man of action and capability in dealing with Amalgamates in his home province of North Ridge. Over the last one and a half decades, his skills as a crack shot reached near fabled status as his training with his trusty rifle and revolver allowed him to take on threats that most ordinary humans would run from. As his kill count grew, so too did his resistance to magic. He is capable of shrugging off lower power spells, and spells that would kill most non-casters will only slow him down for a variable period of time.

Other:

Seldom is he seen without his trench coat from his military days. The various pockets carry survival equipment, rations, ammunition, and a first aid kit... as well as a flask that he tends to keep topped up with Aborranian rye whisky. He is capable of riding a horse, but doesn’t own one at the present time. His primary method of supplying himself with the needed Voidstone for his ammunition is to sell the runes he makes from his kills to Casters.

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