About Bey-Rystar Staveon Takehiko.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Bey-Rystar Staveon Takehiko (aka "Dog, the Harlotsworn" (sometimes "Mutt" instead of "Dog") or "the Lightning Strike") Past associations around Brevoy and the River Kingdoms:
a former Sergeant major of the Bloodstone Swords (honorably discharged; friendly relations); Bey-Rystar of Brevoy (though with no lands, holdings, or people); former working member (guard) for the Daggermark Assassin's guild (departed on friendly relations); one-turn free Gladiatorial semi-final champion (nonlethal duels only) and two-year-long Tymon freedom fighter (since disassociated on friendly terms) A Note on 'Bey-Rystar':
"Bey-Rystar" is a noble rank that means, roughly translated, "Lord-Knight" in Common; he received the two titles (Bey and Rystar) simultaneously from a noble in Brevoy who didn't have the funds to give him his full pay and originally sent him off with the barest fraction of his payment. Of course, said noble changed his tune when he visited the local temple of Calistria... he very quickly thereafter both knighted Staveon as a "Rystar", and granted him true nobility (the lowest form anyway), though he earned no place in society and no actual lands or people by acquiring it in such a fashion, meaning it is, effectively, worthless (though rarely it's useful in certain social situations). On the rare occasion he uses it, he mostly does so by getting people to buy him drinks (though he'll most always pay them back in rounds or dinner later) and generally hates anyone who he considers an "equal" (which is many) to refer to him by his title; his foes on the other hand get the "full treatment" including being forced to use his title. Physical Appearance:
Skin tone: a dusky bronze-tallow; well tanned Hair: Taldan texture, but with Azlanti-style widow's peak and eyebrows; the color is a "nearly-black" brown that's strongly tinged with a very dark red (also from both Azlanti and Tian heritage) Eyes: large and expressive (though with Tian inner eye-folds) steel-gray around the outer edge, becoming red-orange/amber-flecked-with-green towards the pupil (taking from all three Taldan, Kellid, and Tian heritage and blending them together, in a way that seems uncommon, but normal). Height: 5'7" Weight: 158 lbs Build: Shorter than average, and thin, but wiry and hard. In the end he looks surprisingly Azlanti in appearance, if smaller than many of those depictions. A brief history of Staveon Takehiko:
Staveon is part Tian, part Taldan, part Kellid, and (if his eyes and hair are any indication) part Azlanti (though it's impossible to say)... and he bears none of the cultural norms of any of them, save, perhaps, a penchant for skill at violence. Regardless, he's all human and, as he's quick to attest, all male.
Raised in Mivon of the River Kingdoms, he's seen his share of action - he spent time with the Bloodstone Swords near Galt and Kyonin (he loves those guys!), helped guard against some Daggermark assassins in Brevoy (got himself a fancy title and everything! And later, after he joined the guild and worked for them a bit, the Daggermark Assassins said that there're no hard feelings - what great guys!), and even fought against the forces of Razmiran defending the gladiatorial state of Tymon ("BOOYA! Where's your 'god' now, fools?!"). Though his reputation and deeds have made him (very slightly) famous (substantially beyond his actual skill), his enemies (and he has earned at least a few) generally refer to him derisively as "the dog" or "the mutt" (due to his mixed heritage), as he's "always panting after a new master" as one of them put it. This bothers him not one whit, however, as he's usually too busy slamming something hard in their face or sliding sharp steel into their precious vital organs (he's pretty sure they need those to live... too bad for them) to really be bothered. In fact, he eventually made it a semi-official nick-name for himself. Despite his skill at it, he is not, himself, terribly violent... at least, not in terms of his normal day-to-day behavior. But he will throw down with a fool who actually wants to do so. Staveon is generally gregarious, kind (except to foes - up their collective noses, right?), and especially respectful of those practicing in Calistria's service - to the point that he's oft called the "Harlotsworn Knight"; he has yet to turn down any serious, formal request of one of the priestess, save in those rare times when his current job conflicts (in which case he's usually quite apologetic, and vows to take care of this or a future task in its stead on their behalf; vows that he's so far been able to keep, though, at least partially, it's probably the good sense of the priestesses not to push him into territory he wouldn't go into. Though marked (at his own request) with the symbols of his patrons Kurgess, Arshea, and (after several harrowing encounters with the fine folk from Daggermark) Nocticula, he's most commonly a visitor at the temples of Calistria. (In fact, with the three holy symbols on his shoulders and lower-center back, more than one... "priestess" has commented that Calistria's would line up perfectly...) Still, he has never formally sworn himself to Calistria, despite the implied suggestions or occasional urgings of the inhabitants of the temples he most often frequents. Regardless, he is well-loved in those places, though, it's actually gotten kind of embarrassing, sometimes: it's almost gotten to the point where few dare actually challenge him openly over petty slight, lest a local priestess or twenty come knocking to know why their most devout, er, "worshiper" suddenly coming down with a case of "not showing up" and/or "dead", and nobody does revenge like Calistrians... Despite the rumors (some of which are true), his time at the temples are not exclusively for the utilization of their services. In fact, he's often seen praying there over all sorts of things. Staveon's family is a bit of a mystery to him. He knows his basic heritage - the Calistrian temple Staveon was left at (such as it was) held some old letters about it. It seems that it was written by a shaky hand, quickly, for the purpose - from what he can tell - of more or less "just letting him know". The documents contains little in the way of platitudes, endearment, or even much in the acknowledgement of family relations, though, once or twice the words "my son" instead of "the boy" is thrown in there, with references to "his brother" and "his grandfather" (though who, exactly, these folk are, what they look like, and who they are is anyone's guess; some of those clergy who understood Tian culture know that "Takehiko" isn't a proper family name at all...). Still, Staveon holds the idea that he has a brother, parents, and a grandfather - somewhere out there - as a good thing, he supposes. Most of the rambling, though neatly-organized, hastily-written (and edited) pages give instruction about caring for "the boy, as best as possible, of course" thoroughly mixed with the occasional nearly-indecipherable ramblings about the dangers of becoming involved with "dangerous activities" while generally informing the reader of a tremendous number of highly unrelated and mostly uninteresting factoids about various minor magical effects (all of them cantrips, none of them worth using as the basis of magical theory; entirely layman's terms), natural phenomena (relatively detailed, but mostly worthless), and well-known but very inconsequential political notations within the River Kingdoms around the time of Scaveon's birth. Though the temple of Calistria would later be burned down by cultists of Gyronna (that cult later learned to never mess with Calistrians) and Staveon would go on to be raised by a traveling priestess-oracle of Arshea and Kurgess (named Eryanna Murchane), he retained the letter. Eryanna (originally of Razmiran and Razmir) is the closest thing Staveon has to family, now - he considers her his mother, for all intents and purposes, and she considers Staveon her son - one that she's very proud of (for the most part - the "Nocticula thing" is a bit "iffy" to her, but his reasoning is mostly sound, so she lets it slide). She still lives, wandering the River Kingdoms, and they see each other usually around once a year still (mostly due to her wanderings coinciding with his current locale), though sometimes less and sometimes more, though they have no "official" promise - it's just been nice they've able to do so. Though he's aware of magic (keenly, with his own Ma being such a caster) he's not too knowledgeable about magic; mostly it just kind of happens and things either turn out useful or frustrating. To that end, he's often got a love/hate relationship with magical forces in general. Gregarious by nature, Staveon tends to pick up a lot of connections and often like to help those he considers friends, no matter what the situation. He is not always as pleasant as he'd like to be, and sometimes comes off as boorish, obnoxious, or rude, but he often tries to be pleasant. Though fiercely independent, he's also fiercely dedicated to something he feels strongly about - and anyone he's given the title "friend" is something he feels very strongly about. Of late, he has traveled to the strange region around Sevenarches, where he ran into an old acquaintance - a young man named Therin with whose time in the Bloodstone Swords had overlapped only very briefly with Staveon's own - a Halfling he'd heard of who'd destroyed a bandit group, and two foreigners: an Elven wanderer (she seems way too idealistically naive, but a really nice person) and a Chelaxian native (who, he's pretty sure, is running away from something - not that it bothers Staveon, who's known far too many good people running away from something to care, really). Although he got a little carried away with the local Calistrian priestess, he was quite pleased to make everyone's acquaintance (or re-acquaintance, as the case my be) and vaguely recalls (jokingly and in an extreme case of inebriation - unusual for him) suggesting that they form a (temporary) adventuring company check out a mysterious sinkhole near one of the titular Seven Arches (or maybe that was someone other than him?) - anyway, he'd heard something about stupidly valuable treasure and magical portals, but, of course, none of the magical portals work any more, and, really, what's the likelihood of magic ever "going wrong"? Staveon's Class Basics:
level 3 fighter (Aldori swordlord): d10, best base attack, best fortitude, 2+ skills
(skills: climb, craft, handle animal, intimidate, knowledge (dungeoneering, engineering), profession, ride, survival, swim) Staveon's Statistics:
Staveon Takehiko
Male Human Fighter (Aldori Swordlord) 3 CG Medium Humanoid (Human) Initiative +8 +4 DEX +4 Improved Initiative, Senses +0 Perception ------------------ DEFENSE ------------------ AC 19, touch 14, flat-footed 15 (+4 mithril chain, +1 armored kilt, +4 DEX)
Carrying Capacity Light (50 lbs), Medium (100 lbs), Heavy/Lift Over Head (150 lbs), Lift Off Ground (300 lbs), Push or Drag (750 lbs) Deity Kurgess, Arshea, and Nocticula (most often seen at the temples of Calistria, however) Abilities not yet earned:
5th level: Disarming Strike (Ex): When Staveon is wielding an Aldori dueling sword and successfully disarms an opponent, he deals the sword's damage to the opponent (though not the additional strength bonus to damage). 7th Level: Steel Net (Ex): When fighting defensively as a full-round action with an Aldori dueling sword, Staveon's penalties on all attacks in a round are reduced by 2, and his dodge bonus to AC is increased by 2 for that round. 11th Level: Counterattack (Ex): As an immediate action, Staveon may make an attack of opportunity against any opponent in reach that hits him with a melee attack.
Planned feats:
(f4) dazzling display, 5) weapon specialization, (f6) [lunge], 7) leadership, (f8) [improved feint?] 9) [lunge], (f10) ???, 11) [improved feint?]
As I am planning on taking the Aldori Swordlord prestige Class, it is unlikely that I will get fighter bonus feats starting around sixth level for some time; I have alternate suggested levels for feats. Items and Equipment:
WEAPONS: total value 440 gold; 42 lbs
. ARMOR: total value 1,270g; 22.5 lbs
. OTHER: total value 545 gold 5 silver
Adventuring/Drink/Food/Alchemical/Clothes/Games/Tattoos: total value [445g 4s; 110 lbs]; total value of Beasts: [354g 6s; 513 lbs] Staveon is powerfully curious about the new world. He wants to explore, wander and see new things, right new wrongs, and generally make this world a better place. He just... hopes that the Calistrians, or, even worse, his Ma... don't accidentally blame some of his enemies for his disappearance or death. Staveon would only kill them, after all. He is somewhat confused in a world that completely lacks all contextual clues or religious or linguistic similarities to his own... but, meh, he'll make do. Besides, somebody's gotta be a Sic erat scriptum, "Sic transit gloria mundi"!
Old Bloodstone Sword Chants, Songs, and Sayings used by Staveon at different times:
History: the Bloodstone Swords were established by a group of warriors seeking mercenary employ who understood the value of those they protected and the importance of the River Freedoms. To that end, they began as an organization to fight for money, but to treat non-combatants extremely well and with great care while doing so. One of the original founders, Toric Fiarnassie, was an expert linguist, and a sage of some repute, as well as a strong force of personality and understanding of motivation and character. Though he would later be killed from poisoning (possibly from an assassin sent from Daggermark - the truth and details are unknown), he created a large number of songs, chants, rhymes, and rhythms utilizing a language none of the other 'Swords really understood, but that sounded highly important, and did, in fact, teach key lessons (which were taught in common Taldan, naturally). A few have since learned the language, and, given the dark, crude, and gallows-humor that tends to be ubiquitous around such professions as mercenary work, the Bloodstone Swords have developed something of a ubiquitous sub-culture that utilizes different silly phrases from said language. The original (and later, the joking) phrases have become quite important to the 'Swords, and, if you know to look for it, one can often tell that a person is or used to be a Bloodstone Sword simply by the way they occasionally pepper their speech with such phrases or chants. -------------------------------- SAMPLE CONVERSATION BETWEEN TWO 'SWORDS: Staveon talking to Therin -------------------------------- Staveon to Therin wrote: Remember what we were taught in the 'Swords, Therin: Semper ubi sub ubi. It's important to be prepared in case of sic transit mundi, because otherwise that would just be embarrassing, you know? Oh, and I suppose they taught us both semper fi (or, for the completionists 'round here, I suppose "semper fidelis") and sic semper tyrannis (depending, of course, on what you mean by "sic"), but for my money, I'm pretty sure the first one is the most important, considering both Ma and the Bloodstone Swords taught it. Translations: Semper ubi sub ubi: "Always where under where" <a Latin-English pun>Sic Transit Mundi: "Thus passes the world" <in other words, we're not on Golarion any more> Sic semper tyrannus: "Thus always to tyrants" <in other words, Tyrants are not going to be happy with us> Semper Fi/Semper Fidelis: "Always faithful" <usually used in conjunction with a specific organization or group> Sic: "Always" <it's a 1-to-1 translation> Staveon about the meaning of the phrases wrote: It's a busillis, really. [smaller]Translations: Busillis: <this isn't a real word in the language; it was coined by a scribe (possibly a Bloodstone Sword) that mistook how words were written; it has since come to mean a "baffling puzzle" or "difficult point"... of course to those Bloodstone Swords who are less erudite, it's also been adopted as a by-word for a nearly-homonymistic curse>-------------------------------- ALMA MOTTO^ -------------------------------- Alma Motto wrote:
*snicker* I said, "posteriori" - what?! Yes, I'm seven! Translations and Explanations
Translated 'Alma Motto' wrote:
^ NOTE: Yes, this title is a pun. ^^ NOTE: Religious types are permitted (if not directly encouraged) to say "Veni, vidi, vixi, deus vicit!" instead, of "Veni, vidi, vixi, vici!" to venerate their patron, a bene placito. TRANSLATIONS: "Vici" means "I conquered" but "Deus Vicit" means "God Conquered", thus the implication of reverence of the divine character's patron. "A bene placito" means "At your pleasure"; in other words, you may substitute or not, at your pleasure.-------------------------------- THE BLOODSTONE SWORDS REPLY -------------------------------- The Bloodstone Swords Reply wrote:
Translations and Explanations abusu : "abused" <direct translation>Ab abusu ad usum non valet consequentia, ab antiquo: "an inference from an abuse to use is not valid from the ancient" <rights are still rights, even if they are abused; from ancient times [implied: this is true from ancient times]; this is a response to critics of the River Freedoms> Ab imo pectore accipe hoc: "From the deepest chest take this" <i.e. "from the bottom of my heart, take this", in other words, they take those they face seriously and had best take them seriously, too> Ad mortem: "To death" <they will not quit when they fight; this is slightly undercut by the fact that, occasionally, they accept surrender> A bene placido ad multos annos: "From one well pleased, to many years" <it is generally a toast; in other words, the Bloodstone Swords like getting money and they wish their employers a long life> Acta non verba: "Deeds not words" <talk is cheap, actions are what count; the Bloodstone Swords are not really known for their diplomats or any discussion, really> Actus me invito factus non est meus actus, sic ad hominem semper evello mortum tyrannis: "The act done by me against my will is not my act; thus to the man always I eradicate tyrants' lives" <this phrase is deeply rooted in several failures and triumphs in the Bloodstone Swords' early history against oppressive enchantment wizards that attempted to turn 'Sword against 'Sword (successfully in a few times), before grit, determination, and fury enabled the Bloodstone Swords to kill the cabal; it exonerates those under mental compulsion while encouraging them to kill those who try it against them> Ad acta: "To the archives" <no longer relevant - you are now just part of our history> Ad astra acta sanctorum: "To the stars deeds of the saints" <Desna-worship is rather common among the Bloodstone Swords' early days; thus a prayer to the stars of the deeds of the saints is an honorific, effectively sanctifying someone to Desna; this is an honor usually reserved for those who die heroically defending their brothers or otherwise acting in extreme circumstances for the Bloodstone Swords> Ad augusta per angusta: "To rise to a high position overcoming hardships" <the implication is to persevere and overcome hardships, thereby rising high; possible implication is that by doing well, the Bloodstone Swords promote you> A priori et a posteriori: "From the former to the latter" <Known before proof, we have seen it proved; in other words, the truth of this was always known, but it has also been subsequently proven> Tranlated 'The Bloodstone Swords Reply' wrote:
Our Adventuring Company:
[ spoiler=Our Adventuring Company][ list]
|
|
