Emerion Brightsmith's page

Class Skills: A fighter trained at a famous war college or fighting school gains the following class skills (in addition to the normal fighter class skills): Diplomacy (Cha), Knowledge (architecture and engineering)(Int), Knowledge (geography) (Int), Knowledge (nobility and royalty) (Int), Sense Motive (Wis).
Skill Points per Level: 4 + Int modifier.
Class Abilities: Numerous martial academies around the Inner Sea region teach weapon skill, tactics, diplomacy, and other tools useful for war. Fighters who attend these schools may choose the above option, which replaces the bonus feat gained upon taking the first level of fighter, or else replaces medium and heavy armour proficiency at level 1, and costs the bonus feat at levels 8 and 16.

Specialist/Magic Gear: +1 Mithral Rapier (2520gp), +2 Chain Shirt (4250gp), Belt of Mighty Constitution +2, Boots of Striding and Springing, Composite Longbow (100gp).

Mundane Gear: Fine clothing, silk rope & grappling hook, backpack, dagger, crowbar, thieves tools, light mace, 50 arrows, bottle of fine wine, sunrods (3). Cost = 228gp

395gp remaining

Few Varisians ever rise far in the society of Korvosa, yet an extraordinary talent at crafting blades of exceptional quality gave Robban Brightsmith, Emirian’s grandfather, the chance to do so. He carefully forged a reputation as one of the finest sword-smiths in the city, and his success allowed him to educate his sons beyond a simple apprenticeship in the forge. They in turn dealt not just in swords, armour and weapons but in metals, finely crafted goods and the like, and the family grew surprisingly wealthy. So much so that they left the crowded Old City when Emirian was still a child, and joined (or tried to join) the ranks of petty-nobility. Emirion’s uncles married into other families, but the respect they gained was grudging and hard-won.

For Emirian childhood was a history of not fitting in – not with his varisian peers in the Old City, and not with the children of the nobility he was schooled with. At his grandfather’s insistence he learned the arts of sword-crafting as well as the book learning of the schools. At his own initiative he learned the skill of swordsmanship, determined to defend his family’s honour if he was called to. This was less unusual than might be wished for – the family was dogged by thieves, ‘accidents’ and the like, and at least two of Emirian’s cousins died in duels or from ‘random’ crime. This lead Emirian to have a somewhat iconoclastic attitude to the cream of society, realising that they had little to be proud of – all with hooks in the criminal underworld, they sneered at the (relatively) honest Brightsmith’s as thieves and murderers who had somehow ‘stolen’ their way into success. He has developed a devil-may-care attitude and a desire to thumb his nose at his peers and betters in any way possible.

At eighteen, he gained entrance to the Orsini Academy, run by Vencarlo Orsini, where he surprisingly cut a swathe through the ranks of the students. Once one of the finest schools of swordsmanship in the city, it has fallen on hard times, but was still an effective school. Although not the best student of the military arts, he nonetheless managed to graduate in spite of a number of midnight adventures outside of the halls. However, he has hesitated to follow up with a commission and a military career. As the younger son he is not required to act in the family business, but his father is beginning to tap his foot with impatience at Emirion’s lack of a concrete profession, and while Emirion has not had to be bailed out of the watch-house as many of his peers have this is not perhaps for want of getting into trouble.
In response to this Emerion has taken up instructing at the Academy for the Old Man, as he has withdrawn somewhat from day-to-day teaching.

Recently, Emerion's older brother Eugeni was accused of a murder after his weapon was stolen and placed at the scene. Emerion was able to discover the culprit, and obtain a testimony that cleared his brother, but he has not forgotten the slight and has been tracking down the culprit.

Character

Emirian has a rogue’s smile and a nose for trouble. He effects being an effete noble purely to rile those that would assume otherwise, and offers a ready hand of friendship to those that look past the accidents of birth to the person within. Heather Whiteraven is one of these he has not forgotten. He most often wears the finery of a minor nobleman, but with the flair of his varisian ancestors.

Emerion typically wears a crimson frock coat and white silk shirt over his mail, with pink breeches and an orange cravat. He is always immaculately turned out, making the best of his fairly plain features, and while his rapier is inlaid with gold and silver, he has demonstrated on more than one occasion that it is a very serviceable weapon in which he has considerable proficiency.

His clothes, however, are reversible, and have black linings that allow him to change his appearance instantly from fop to sombre academic to masked thief as needed. His travelling pack has the same quality - one minute a students carry-bag, the next a thief's napsack.

Philly Vander – a student at the Academy and a friend of Heather Whiteraven’s, Philly is a natural athelete who dabbled at fencing. Although of a wealthy merchant class family, she had to drop out for a few months for financial reasons. She's returned recently and has taken a much more serious approach to classes.

Captain Earnst Gustaveson – one of Emerion’s former class-mates and partners-in-crime, Earnst has ‘gone respectable’ and taken a commission. Earnst is happy to help out his friend, but occasionally presses him to take a commission and start a career himself.

Morino Shadowstep – one of those people who always ‘know a man who can’ Morino is a small-time trader, fencer of stolen goods, arranger of meetings and maker of deals. Although greedy and disreputable, Morino is a valuable contact and has a soft-spot for Emerion – partly because he brings a certain amount of business Morino’s way, largely because his family, in spite of their discrete patronage, seems to try and deny their Varisian roots (Morino is a full-blooded Varisian himself), leaving Emerion adrift. Now and then he hints that he would not be averse to a match between his daughter Rowena and Emerion, but while the two are genuinely fond of each other no romance has blossomed.

Deadly Defense (Complete Scoundrel)
You are at your most dangerous when forced to protect yourself.
Benefit: When fighting defensively, you deal an extra 1d6 points of damage with any light weapon or with any weapon to which the Weapon Finesse feat applies (such as a rapier, spiked chain, or whip).
This feat’s benefit applies only when you are unarmored or wearing light armor and not using a shield.
Special: If you have the Combat Expertise feat, you also gain the benefit of Deadly Defense when taking a penalty of at least –2 on your attack roll from that feat.

Stat Rolls With +2 Racial bonus to dexterity, +1 Character Point to Charisma. 1st level Feats: Weapon Finesse, Deadly Defence, Combat Expertise.
Level 2 hit points (fighter). 9 +1 favoured class. 2nd Level Bonus Feat: Dodge.
Level 3 hit points (Rogue). 3 3rd Level Feat: Improved Feint.
Level 4 hit points (Rogue). 4 4th Level Combat Feat: Mobility, +1 to Charisma.
Level 5 hit points (fighter). 7. Level 5 feat: Weapon Focus (rapier).

Robban Brightsmith – patriarch of the family, once one of the most gifted smiths in the city. Becoming too old to work regularly, he still occasionally does commissions for the very important. More often, he visits with the dwarves of Janderhoff with whom he is friendly and from whom he has obtained regular fine steel as well as small quantities of mithral and adamantine for special products.

Andrezi Brightsmith – Emerion’s uncle and inheritor of his father’s skill, Andrezi oversees the family’s smithies, and works himself on most of their finest work. He is married to Narcizia Brightsmith, a match that occurred before the family’s fortunes elevated them out of Old Khorvosa. They have four children: Dorin and Viorel are sons who follow the family business, the latter is as skilled as his father although less famous. Both have married into minor noble Khorvosan families with connections, as have their sisters Zeldana and Anca, and all have several young children.

Iolana Grigoreson – Emerion’s Aunt, she married a haulier (Henric Grigoreson) who handles the family business’ supply of bulk material. They both live in the family household rather than with Henric’s family on Old Khorvosa. This connection has allowed Henric’s own business some moderate success. They have two sons, Katelin and Iozif, who are often absent as they work in the family trade. Katelin has married into a Varisian family (not from Khorvosa), Iozif has yet to wed.

Silviu Brightsmith – Emerion’s father, married to Alika. Silviu has less skill with the hammer, but was adept at making deals and juggling finances – a large part of the family’s rise in fortune and wealth is down to his skilful manoeuvring. Emerion has an older brother and sister, Eugeni and Esmeralda. Eugeni was recently almost framed for murder, a situation Emerion exposed and resolved before it could mire the family name. He has married Korva, a daughter of a Chelaxian merchant-prince with whom the family has since made some lucrative export deals, and they have a young child. Esmeralda married Marcian Sanderson, an Andoran trader with whom she lives and who likewise has helped expand the family fortunes with trade can connections.