I've rewritten a few bits of Luciana's fluff to bring it a little more in line with what the Couth playbook is all about. (In hindsight the Eye might have been a better choice for her, but oh well!) The remaining crunch-related decisions that needed to be made at this point should also all be in place now, so unless I missed something this submission is well and truly done.
Added in some goals and personality I believe, at least the goals I think are manageable by the game system? If something isn't let me know, I can always redraw things
@Luciana - looks good! I think she'll be well-suited as a Couth, you can always 'borrow' some special abilities from the Eye playbook when you advance.
@Bianca - the game is extremely open-ended (hence my encouragement in the opening post for players willing to "lead the dance") and will accommodate a lot of goals (e.g. Sasha wanting to regain her family's ship is entirely achievable). The goals you've listed are fully manageable :)
Recruitment will close 9 pm (UK time) on Wednesday
The village elder found fault in the guard's quick judgment, and eager to be rid of Saoirse, sentenced him to serve as her guardian.
And so Colm Clearwater took the child under his wing, more apprentice than daughter. For eight years, she'd accompany him on caravan. Saoirse became well traveled both within the wild and trackless bounds of Calrais and beyond. Colm was a drunk and a fool, but keen and observant nonetheless. She was taught how to track and identify prey in all conditions, how to shoot, how to kill- a tool she'd later have to use against him.
Her guardian fell further and further into alcohol and grew increasingly angry and erratic to match. While working with a caravan destined for Ilrien, he'd sent her off to get him booze and, impatient, wandered off in pursuit himself. They were gone when thieves came. A gang of youths absconded with several whole wagons of goods, and although the pair was able to capture and kill those responsible, they were fined and fired.
They had just been children. If her gang had pulled a score like that, would she have been caught unaware just the same? A bullet to the brainstem, a future cut short.
Colm's anger built inside him as they pursued their own way up the coast, still bound for their next job inside the city. He took it out on Saoirse in small ways, and for a time she bore it gladly. But when she woke with his hands around her neck, she pushed a thumb through his eye and a knife between his ribs.
She'd made it to the city alone. Never had she seen so many people in one place, but she knew them all the same. For many, she had played their parts before. Every street urchin, every desperate wanderer wore her face. It had not been long in Ilrien before she found herself in Colm's position, that she had caught a child's hand in her pocket. Instinctively, she drew a knife and pressed it into their finger, drawing blood. The kid whimpered and she relented. She would not be him. She would be better.
Rather than take the job she'd come here for, she decided to stay in the city, and for the next four years built a career as a bounty hunter, a thug for hire, a free agent in a city defined by faction. It's only recently that she's ended a long string of bad luck, as for a year or two, all her jobs wound up sour. She's still seen by some as an ill omen, a harbinger of bad fortune, and competitors even call her Storm Crow, mocking both her and those that would associate with such an unlucky sort.
Things are looking up now, and she's chosen to attribute the turn in her luck with her recent allegiance to $house and her new compatriots.
While far from a wordsmith herself, she views puns as the height of humor and frequently attends the plays of gifted punster Wollfred Shiverlance when able.
Saoirse keeps many Calrais superstitions alive in Ilrien and greatly fears the fey, choosing to always carry salt and iron on her person. Every night, she leaves bread and milk out as an offering, and the local cats love her.
In her last relationship, she drunkenly divulged a client's secret and is quietly waiting for this to either come back and blow up in her face, or for her to be forced to handle this herself
Skulk 1
Wreck 2
Survey 1
Hunt 2
Command 1
Indulgence Stupor
Special Ability
Terrifying - You have an air of menace and danger obvious to even the most unobservant. You gain +1 effect when trying to intimidate someone. If done immediately after a show of force, also take +1d.
Special armor to resist a complication related to traps or ambushes against you or your coterie (when you are present).
Special Permission
Fine Iron Nerve - Once per errand you can use your Fine Iron Nerve to resist the consequences of being terrified, unnerved, or uncomfortable. [0 load]
Specialized Gear
A Fine Ranged Weapon - Masterfully crafted, this weapon is more accurate at longer ranges. [2 load]
A Fine Heavy Cloak - Perfect for masking yourself or blending into terrain. [1 load]
A Handy Restraint - Rope, cuffs, collars, chain, or whatever best fits your needs for the situation. [1 load]
A Hunting Companion - An arcane or mundane creature of your choosing, capable of carrying out simple tasks. It must still abide by the rules of the city. A wolf on the streets will not go over well. An arcane companion out in the Twist may get you killed. [0 load]
A Fine Spyglass - Masterfully crafted, your spyglass allows you to see further and under lower light conditions than others. [0 load]
As a Hawk, you gain xp when you address a challenge with pursuit or observation.
@The Lobster - lots of details, I have a clear sense of Saoirse's personality and I like the secrets, definitely a lot for a GM to work with! The only thing that gives me pause is the theme: Saoirse would fit right in to a Blades in the Dark campaign, 12-year-olds getting their fingers sliced off, deliquent youths being shot in the back of the head, eyes being gouged out, all grist to the mill. But for Court of Blades, it's a bit grimdark and it's not really what I'm going for. I guess the question I'm asking, in typical roundabout fashion, is how important are those elements to your character concept?
I do want her to be actively grappling with PTSD and I love the visual of her missing fingers, but all aspects are a conversation, more than willing for things to change- the whole point of pbp is telling a story with folks, not to folks.
I chose these themes bc in intrigue games I love playing characters who are outsiders to court politic, bring in their own baggage that initially keeps them from adequately playing the Game but if/when mastered serves them in it. I felt that a darker tone in her past would make her a paranoid sort willing to engage in violence, an obstacle to be tempered but still a useful tact when not overly relied upon.
Worth noting she's actively trying to leave dark times behind her, to grow and change beyond. Ideally she will soften with time and perhaps the process has already began in the time since the founding/her joining of the coterie
I started writing down some things for Kyra, based on a couple of character creation questions I stole from another recruitment thread. The 20 basic questions are answered, I hope to make some progress on the advanced stuff tomorrow.
I hope that gives you a better idea of her personality and goals, WW.
@The Lobster - that's helpful, thanks. I too like the idea of a character who isn't born into the game but who masters it despite/because of that. If the visual of the missing fingers is important to you, perhaps it could be an injury she acquired in early adulthood? PTSD/nightmares and so on are fine. Let me know what you think.
@Kyra - looks good. Part of the BitD ethos is "play to find out" so I don't need all the details ironed out in advance, just enough to get a sense of your character.
If it's helpful, by the math she's around 14 or 15 when she first met Colm.
But maybe instead of enacting his own judgment on her, upon discovery he took her to the village elder who decided to get rid of them both, with Colm owing someone a bar tab or something, "her punishment is to go with you, you can pay off your debt by taking her," etc, and she blew off her fingers when learning how to shoot, gun dramatically misfired, so it's still a visual reminder of her father figure but far less pointed
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@The Lobster - I can work with that.
On a more general note, in Ilrien someone like Colm would be regarded as a monster - and, worse, gauche. You shouldn't need to cut someone's fingers off to send a message when with the right attire and the right bearing, you can cut them dead with a look. The Ilrienne know that what is best in life is to snub your enemies, to see them shrivel before you, to know from their lamentations that you're winning.
Recruitment closes in 2 hours. It may take me a while to make my selections, thank you again to everyone who posted, I really wasn't expecting this much enthusiasm!
COMPLETED/IN PROGRESS
CrusaderWolf - Adrianos Garibaldi, Altori Hawk
fatmanspencer - Bianca Lucia Donatia, Altori Knack
Itzi - Elisabetta Filosa, Altori Bravo
Kittenmancer - Kyra Kyralina, Iberican Key
The Lobster - Saoirse Storm Crow, Calrayan Hawk
Nikolaus de'Shade - Violetta di Valori, Ilrienne Key
Tareth – Sasha Elena Pyrope, Garnetyne Eye
TheWorstFighter - Luciana García, Iberican Couth
INTERESTED/BASIC CONCEPTS
Azure_Zero
Dorian ‘Grey’
Good luck all
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OK, you have not made this easy! On top of that, I'm swamped with work in advance of the Easter break so I will let you have my decisions some time tomorrow morning (UK time).
I came this close to taking all of you and running an 8-person group, but that way madness lies, and the abyss, and no good thing. Apologies to those not selected, it was a very difficult decision.
That said, please will
Elisabetta Filosa
Kyra Kyralina
Luciana García
Sasha Elena Pyrope
Violetta di Valori
report to the discussion thread.
Congrats all, have fun!