Walter Weißman's page

About Walter Weißman

Walter Weißman, Deserter

History + Description:

Walter's family are German immigrants who were plantation owners before the Civil War. Once upon a time, his own wife and children, along with his parents and two siblings, were killed in a ghost rock weapon attack on the town where they lived by the Union army. The weapons were powerful enough to barely leave any traces, and their deaths weigh heavily on his mind.

When he became an adult, Walter joined the Confederate army to protect the land that his family had chosen. He was not a particularly impressive soldier, but he does possess a certain cunning and an engineering knowledge borne in good education from his homeland. He quickly found work as a weapons designer during the heaviest fighting, and he created many weapons of war which were used against the Union army. After the death of his family, however, he deserted the Confederate army. He had grown bitter regarding the senseless killing that he was a part of, and felt responsible for the loss of his loved ones. Moving to the frontier, he found work as a mine foreman in Dakota Territory. While life there was hard, especially the frequent skirmishes with the Sioux Indians, it offered him a certain serenity and escape from the war that he had fled.

Plus, it doesn't hurt to live in an area where you are likely to die when you have nothing left to live for.

Walter's life began to turn around when a group of bounty hunters began to pursue him in 1875. Thinking himself done for, he was rescued during the shootout by one Jackson Greenfield, who intended to indebt the engineer to himself in preparation for a future job. It worked, and Walter went with Jackson when the call came for the work in the South, despite the danger.

1. Traits

Attributes -
Agility +d6;
Smarts +d8;
Spirit +d4;
Strength +d6;
Vigor +d8

Skills - Lockpicking +d6,
Notice +d6,
Repair +d8,
Shooting +d6,
Knowledge (Battle) +d6,
Knowledge (German) +d4,
Fighting +d4,
Weird Science +d8

Languages - English, German

Secondary Statistics -
Charisma -2; Grit 1; Pace 6"; Parry 4; Toughness 6

2. Special Abilities

Hindrances -
Wanted (Major) : Walter is a deserter from the Confederate army, and is likely to be executed if he is ever turned in. Anyone who catches him can earn a bounty of d6 x $1,000.

Ugly (Minor) : Years of experimentation, as well as a general poor draw in the genetic lottery has left Walter with an unsettling and gnarled appearance.

Edges -
Arcane Background (Weird Science): Walter served in the Confederate army as a military engineer, designing weapons of mass destruction with which to level Union cities. Though he has since left that life behind, he still retains his old skills.

. . . Powers: Burst ; Walter has been able to develop a flamethrower which functions from ghost rock that he can carry and use all on his own.

3. Equipment

Bowie Knife - $4
Dynamite (8 sticks) - $24
Winchester '73 - $25
Ammunition (.44, 100 rounds) - $8
Watch (standard) - $2.50
Bottle of Liquor (good stuff) - $5
Rifle Boot - $3

Boots - $8
Work Shirt - $1
Backpack - $2
Canteen - $1
Lockpicks - $50
Trail Rations (10 days) - $5

$111.50

4. Worst Nightmare

Walter has a recurring nightmare that always leaves him waking up in a cold sweat, in search of a fortifying shot of bourbon and a few hours of hard work to forget. Though the dream has variations and sometimes doesn't include all elements, it generally consists of him finding out that his family is indeed alive again, and being personally responsible for their deaths after going to try and find them. Typically, they burn to death.