About “Chance” RavennablitzFortunato Pineapple-Umbria Phantasmagorius Ravennablitz, aka "Chance"
GM Xavier Kahlvet's Hell's Rebels 2e Physical description: As a fell gnome born during the ascendancy of House Thrune during the final years of the Chelish Civil war, the infernal influence that swept across the nation affected Chance's appearance. His shaggy hair (including his eyebrows) is a deep crimson; his skin is a lighter red, but of far too strong a hue to be merely pink. His eyes are so black that they look more like the eyes of an elf than those of a gnome. Chance realized young that he would never be inconspicuous so he dresses to emphasize his natural coloring, in dark reds and blacks. Behind his back, his landlady says her diminutive tenant "looks like a Chelish flag." Images from the HeroForge mini builder are here: front view and rear view (he is casting Pernicious Poltergeist, and has a lute because the pan pipes on HeroForge looked terrible. Statblock, level 12 (Remaster), as of 04-19-2024:
“Chance” Ravennablitz Remaster Male gnome bard 12 (Advanced Player's Guide, Dark Archive, Lost Omens Character Guide, Lost Omens Firebrands, Lost Omens Gods & Magic, Lost Omens Knights of Lastwall, Rage of Elements, Secrets of Magic) Small, Gnome, Humanoid Heritage wellspring gnome Background fortune teller Perception (M)/b] +19; low-light vision [b]Languages Common, Draconic, Elven, Fey, Gnomish, Jotun, Varisian Skills Acrobatics +18, Arcana +19 (+21 to all primary checks to perform a ritual), Bardic Lore +18, Crafting +18, Deception +19, Diplomacy (E) +22, Fortune-telling Lore +18, Intimidation +19, Medicine +15, Nature +13 (+15 to all primary checks to perform a ritual), Occultism(M) +23 (+25 to all primary checks to perform a ritual), Performance (M) +23, Religion +15 (+17 to all primary checks to perform a ritual), Society +18, Stealth +17 Str -1, Dex +4, Con +3, Int +4, Wis +1, Cha +5 Items +1 resilient quenching chain shirt (snapleaf), +1 striking flaming rapier, +1 striking shortbow (10 arrows), +1 striking silver dagger, Reprisal (+2 holy striking mithral rapier), The Dischordance (personal staff)[SoM], arrows (10), bedroll, captivating score (negative)[TV], captivating score (positive)[TV], chalk (10), charm of fire resistance, custom gear, dice set (gambling) (worth 1 sp), dimensional knot[SoM], diplomat's badge, disguise kit, fancy black hat, fancy party suit (high-fashion fine clothing), feather for fancy hat (red) (worth 10 sp), flint and steel, greater salve of antiparalysis, harrow deck (simple) (worth 10 sp), healer's toolkit, ladder marvelous miniature, lesser antidote, lesser antiplague, lesser elixir of life (2), mage's hat, mask for ruby masquerade (red 6-sided die) (worth 55 gp), masquerade scarf, minor healing potion, moderate healing potion (2), pendant of the occult, predictable silver piece[APG], quenching potion[TV], rations (1 week) (2), repair toolkit, rope (foot) (50), scroll of cleanse affliction (3rd level), scroll of clear mind, scroll of confetti cloud, scroll of darkvision, scroll of darkvision (3rd level), scroll of darkvision (3rd level), scroll of honeyed words, scroll of hypercognition, scroll of invisibility sphere, scroll of invisible item (3rd level), scroll of liminal doorway, scroll of martyr's intervention, scroll of object reading (2nd level), scroll of share lore (2), scroll of silence, scroll of soothe (5), scroll of soothe (4th level), scroll of sound body, scroll of telepathic bond, sleeves of storage[APG], soap, soothing scents[SoM], swim fins[LOWG], torch (5), tree feather token, tyrant ampoule[TV], virtuoso pan flute, wand of see the unseen, wand of share lore, wand of soothe, wand of thundering echoes (4th)[LOGB], waterskin, winged sandals, wondrous figurine (silver raven), purse (24 pp, 7 gp, 8 sp, 5 cp)
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Reason to Protest (Meeting a Contact) & Campaign Trait (Pattern Seeker):
Chance doesn't have a lot of friends. His unusual appearance and forceful but unsettling personality would put people off even in a less oppressive environment; in Cheliax under the devil-backed House Thrune, his acquaintances view him as both off-putting and potentially politically dangerous.
One of the few people in Kintargo willing to socialize with Chance is a halfling swashbuckler named Zamir Montajay (unless there is an NPC in the AP who would fit the part). They would spend long hours in in Chance's rooms or the lounge of Zamir's boardinghouse, or any of a handful of nearby taverns, drinking and arguing about the belfry at the top of the Asmodean Temple. The swashbuckler was convinced there was a pattern to the ringing of the Devil's Bells, even if nobody knew what it was; the bard was not terribly interested in anything having to do with the devil-worshippers, but always argued that the ringing was random just to be contrary. On several occasions when the diminutive pair were in their cups, Zamir had dropped broad hints about being part of a secret organization opposed to House Thrune, often taking the opportunity to mispronounce Chance's surname as "Raven-ablitz" (the correct pronunciation is "Ravenna-blitz"). Zamir has been missing since the new Lord-Mayor put Kintargo under marital law. Chance checked all of the halfling's usual haunts but found no clues to the whereabouts of his friend. His investigation had reached a dead-end until an unsigned message was slipped under the door of his shabby rented rooms (over an apothecary's shop), inviting him to a meeting at the Aria Park protest with an unnamed man wearing one glove to learn more of the fate of the Silver Ravens. Now Chance is more worried than ever about his absent friend. If Zamir really was a member of the Silver Ravens, could the halfling also have been right about there being a pattern to ringing of the Devil's Bells? If so, then Zamir's disappearance could be the result of either his membership in the rebel group or pursuing his investigation into the Asmodean belfry further than was safe. Chance’s backstory:
The happiest days of Chance’s life were during that brief period - less than two full semesters - when he was a student at the Alabaster Academy, thirty-odd years ago. Those days came to a crashing end on a bright spring morning as he arrived for his Storytelling Against the Dark Arts class. A young halfling who worked for the Dean of Students was waiting for him outside the lecture hall and handed him a sealed letter. The letter, signed by both the Headmaster and the Dean, notified Chance that he was expelled, effective immediately, for engaging in unsanctioned rituals with "reckless disregard for the safety of your fellow students, not to mention the Academy's faculty and staff, the campus infrastructure, as well as the citizens of Kintargo generally." Chance was informed that he would be permitted to apply for readmission, but only “when and if you are able to demonstrate to the satisfaction of the undersigned that you have learned to apply the knowledge gained from our esteemed institution responsibly. Exercise caution in availing yourself of this second chance; you will not be given a third.” Chance didn't think that was fair - it might, he admitted to himself, have been true, but that didn't make it fair. Why would the Academy library keep books containing dangerous rituals that could call forth and bind powerful and terrifying denizens of the Great Beyond if students were not meant to use them? Surely everyone understood that designating a section of the library as "Restricted" was virtually the same as designating it the "Interesting" section? Even after three decades and the retirement and appointment of several successive Headmasters and Deans, Chance still had not sought readmission. Nor has he given up to try something new; he has continued to live like a student, in the same shabby rooms over an apothecary shop, still telling fortunes in the parks and public squares for a few coins, eating cheap meals in the same inns and coffee shops. After the first few years, his classmates had all graduated and moved on; the new students who came after them knew Chance only as the odd-looking gnome who was always sitting alone in popular student hangouts close to campus, or perhaps as a cautionary tale passed on to them by upperclassmen. Chance was well and truly stuck - still focused on getting back into the Alabaster Academy, but paralyzed by the fear of trying again too soon and being rejected. How was he supposed to demonstrate that he would use what he learned at the Academy responsibly before being given the chance to learn it! He knew he was putting himself at an early risk of the Bleaching, but he didn't know what to do. So he waited for something to happen that would push him one way or the other. When Barzillai Thrune placed Kintargo under martial law and began issuing his ridiculous proclamations, Chance thought that maybe the decision had been made for him. Kintargo was the only tolerable city in Cheliax; Chance decided that if the House of Thrune was serious about the crackdown, then it was time for all smart little gnomes to give up on getting back into the Academy and put on their traveling shoes. He even went down to the docks and talked to the first mate of a ship from Magnimar - in dry dock for repairs after a storm - about the possibility of working in exchange for passage once the ship was ready to sail back to Varisia. The sailor was encouraging but noncommittal, and told Chance to come back the next day to speak with the captain. That evening was when he realized Zamir had gone missing, and in his worry he forgot all about his appointment with the captain. But Chance had made up his mind: once he made sure his friend was all right, he was ready to leave Kintargo once and for all. Chance’s backbackstory - the backstory before the backstory:
Chance's parents lived in Kintargo through the latter half of the Chelish Civil War. During those years, his father was a painter and his mother a priest of Nivi Rhombodazzle. Little Fortunato was born on the day Abrogail I took the throne; his parents knew of her coronation before the formal announcement reached the Silver City due to their infant's distinctly Chelaxian coloration. When he came of age, Chance's parents encouraged him to travel the Inner Sea region to build up a store of experiences and memories to stave off the Bleaching, and so young Chance left Cheliax for a number of years to see the world. Along the way, he learned a great deal about different cultures and religions, and whenever possible, he learned what he could of the art of magic and the hidden lore behind the veil of the everyday world. He spent the most time in the great cities and ports of Avistan and northern Garund - unlike many gnomes, the natural world held little interest for him, at least in his relative youth. After thirty years or so of aimless - but never boring - travel, Chance returned home to Kintargo. He did not return to see family or friends; his parents had separated amicably and moved away years ago, as gnomes do, and his childhood friends - mostly halfling and human children of his parents' friends - had settled down into late middle age and had become (to his mind) dull as dirt. No, Chance came back to Kintargo to study at the Alabaster Academy, which, although it was known primarily for its schools of medicine and biology, also had a small but well respected department of occult magic. To his surprise, the administrators of the Academy admitted him to its school the first time he applied. He paid his admission fee and tuition with the gold he had saved from odd jobs over his decades of travel, and covered his living expenses by doing Harrow card readings for passers-by in Aria Park and other public squares. He enjoyed most of his classes, respected most of his instructors, and even made a few friends who had similar interests. It was, he felt, the happiest he had ever been staying in one place. |
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