Dice Eternity Beckons - OOC

[PatriasLover]

oh and I used a random name generator.... one of the things that popped up was this beauty: ))

(wait, what would her title be?) Ryana, Third daughter of the house of Du Wett

Ryana was born the third daughter and fifth child of (so uh did you already have a name for him?) Du Wett, Vassal of the Farridens. Ryana was always a wild child and held a precious few fond memories of stolen moments of simply playing with her sisters and brothers. however, as she grew older, these moments became rarer as being a daughter, it was expected that she be ladylike, prim, propper... obedient. one by one, in age order, her siblings grew more and more like how they were expected to be. her oldest sister Elinor was sent to marry the eldest son of the Gullimans, her eldest brother Aistan was trained in statesmanship, growing to be so very much like her commanding father, the once cheerful boy now hardly smiling. her next sister Rima caught influenza and passed when she was ten and Ryana was seven, and her last brother Colbern took to the sword, now training to be a knight.

Rima was set to wed the now head of the Kain vassal, but with her death, Ryana was pushed into that role. and was... not all that pleased. Forced to learn the skills required to be a "good wife", Ryana hardly left the family home, no longer allowed to play with Colbern, the only one still willing. Ryana never had much of a gift for sword fighting anyway (not to mention weak lungs, thanks asthma you bitch), so that eliminated any hope of joining the Iron Rose. but, Ryana wouldn't so quickly resign herself to her fate. since she wasn't good with blades, then the pen, her tongue, and her mind must be her weapons, her defenses. Sneaking her brother's books, staying up late into the night, reading by candlelight.

at 15 (had it been Rima, she would have been 18) Ryana was sent off to House Maerlyn, determined to do all she could to escape this wedding, either by begging Lady Francesca for an escape or if need be, taking a dagger to her throat on her wedding night. (though that would be a last resort)


and then i have literally no idea how she gets turned help.... sorry if this isn't good!

 

[Grey]

You're doing fine! I hadn't given the Du Wett parents names yet so we'll go with Artur for the father and Madeleine for the mother.

So, she's being wedded to Count Kain? Now there's a fun dynamic; we can say at this point in the timeline he's posing as his own son...
Lady Francesca would be very sympathetic and likely Ryana would develop some admiration for her as an indepdently powerful and scholarly woman. She would also advise Ryana to give Alastair a chance as she knows him to be a man of good character.
She'd be allowed to stay at the Maerlyn house for a time before being introduced to Kain on 'neutral' ground.

She would find him to be respectful and mindful of her feelings, and he'd show sincere interest in her studies. Is she actually attracted to women? If that comes out he'd shrug, say it's no business of his what she does with her 'friends', and at no time express any expectation of consummation.

I imagine Ryana would actually figure out he's a Vampire after the wedding, if not before, and he would congratulate her for it. Offer her the gift, so they might act as allies, as mentor and student, rather than a wedded pair, and one day as friends.

What do you think?

 

[PatriasLover]

oooooh! this actualy sounds great! yeah, Ryana's gay, and i see her taking the gift as partially teenage rebellion, partially curiosity. and then, yeah, teaching Alaric how to read will undoubtibly fall to ryana.

now, to figure out how numbers work. adhd, have mercy on me.

 

[Grey]

As a fellow ADHD haver, I feel you. Let me know if you want help.

Kain is at a point in his Vampiric existence that his relationship to gender and sexuality is radical even by modern standards, so they may have some interesting conversations about that after she is made a Vampire.

If they do go through with the wedding - and they probably will to placate her parents, it would have to be before she's embraced.
Kain is elder enough to go out in sunlight and get a headache but unless the ceremony is in midwinter it would be very difficult for Vampire Ryana to get around the sun.

 

[PatriasLover]

i have... no idea what the hell I'm doing. I'm gonna go smash my head against the wall a couple of times, and get back to you.

gender. ew. what's that? ryana's probably some closeted form of genderqueer, but usually you don't have a gender identity crisis until you figure out your sexuality (at least, that happened to me). Ryana's not let herself think much of any romance (but also like the knights of the order of the iron rose are like really hot- wait what?).
well, ryana's adapted to living inside... actually, not all that well. but she liked the darkness better anyway. oh, and do you keep your allergies and various medical conditions once you've been turned? because I'm putting most of my points in mental and social things and i need an excuse, so I'm giving her all the things that are wrong with me .

 

[Grey]

All ailments are cured by the transformation, but Vampires get some free Physical Attributes and Loxite can manipulate their own physiology more or less at will.
So after becoming a Vampire she might get some rudimentary training but you can feel free to leave that minimal. I think where Dr. Rune gets good at Caroforma, Ryana will likely focus on Nyctomancy (a sorcery I thought I'd renamed somewhere, hmm).
And Alaric is there to handle the violence when needed.

Although a possibly fun dynamic later might be Ryana teaches Alaric to read, Alaric teaches Ryana to fight.

 

[JarOfPickles]

Alaric can definitely do that!

 

[Crocodile]

Rune is definitely going to plunge into Caroforma just to see what he can do with it. He'll provide some manpower with what hapless mortals he lures into his service so we have some minions to tend to matters. He'd likely explore what he can do to himself including seeing how far he can alter his form, up to creating a feminine verison of himself perhaps depending on how far Caroforma can go. He's definitely bisexual and his medical knowledge will simply pose challenges to him on what he can achieve.

That aside he'll likely be the bookworm for the group. Need to figure out what ancient languages and knowledge he'll have picked up. I see him sort of taking up the role of someone like a Maester from game of thrones. Knowledge is his weapon and tool, aside from awesome vampiric power... and those mortals who become his pawns/agents/meat puppets.

 

[PatriasLover]

nice. nyctomancy seems good. and ryana prefers to learn alone, and took to the second sorcery rather than the first. "i mean sure i made the shadow creature, but they're sentient and we're buds now and also we killed my dad " may happen at some point.

Ryana's the noble here. she'll provide the role of the party front. she's got wit, and is more than willing to toy with the minds (though not the hearts, ryana can seduce if need be, but doing anything further than flirting makes her feel sick) of her enemy.(but she doesn't hurt kids. moral code yall. she knows what it's like to have a sibling die. it hurts).

also, it would be kinda fun for rune and ryana to maybe take a moment to teach each other a few skills... you know, for when the chest dysphoria hits. ryana has no patience, but she'll grow to tolerate alaric, the more he learns.

 

[Grey]

I will note that Kain is actually a benevolent tyrant. He does not tolerate cruelty to mere mortals and sneers at anyone who cannot win their love.
So if you mean to take mortal servants, make sure you maintain the appearance of being nice to them.
There is no shortage of terminally ill and maimed peasants who will pledge fealty for their health.

Need to figure out what ancient languages and knowledge he'll have picked up.

He likely knows the elder dialects of Hrothgaard and definitely knows Old Imperial (which is equivalent to Latin in the setting).
He may have some knowledge of the Magocracy, and the legends of the Hrothgaard hill clans. Whether this concerns their culture or technology, their geography or history would be up to you.
I have copious notes in my files and will gladly invent lore on request to answer questions.

 

[Crocodile]

I will note that Kain is actually a benevolent tyrant. He does not tolerate cruelty to mere mortals and sneers at anyone who cannot win their love.
So if you mean to take mortal servants, make sure you maintain the appearance of being nice to them.
There is no shortage of terminally ill and maimed peasants who will pledge fealty for their health.


He likely knows the elder dialects of Hrothgaard and definitely knows Old Imperial (which is equivalent to Latin in the setting).
He may have some knowledge of the Magocracy, and the legends of the Hrothgaard hill clans. Whether this concerns their culture or technology, their geography or history would be up to you.
I have copious notes in my files and will gladly invent lore on request to answer questions.

Go for it, I used to love playing the Adept in Dark Heresy. I enjoy being the knowledge-monkey for the group.

Sound like I have a good basis for what to look into building this evening when I take a whack at the sheet.

As to mortals, Rune isn't cruel, he just knows his own limitations. Anyone working for him is someone he intends to keep around. He'll get actively angry if they're injured and enraged if killed, followed by a streak of guilt. Its part of why he'll likely tool up any servant and make them physically superior if he can.

How would minions be handled? Grey

 

[Grey]

How would minions be handled? Grey

I'd like to start this off fairly early in your unlives, so I would encourage you to start with maybe one human minion and three or four animals.
I'd probably distill minions down to their roles, giving them a handful of stats relevant to their purpose. Human agents I'd be more inclined to treat as complex NPCs with a near-full sheet.
Hm. Tell me what minions you want, initially, and I'll try to find a nice clean way to track them.
Maybe something like a short stat block and few statements like:
- Likes tending the orchard during time off
- Scared of cats
- May be recognized by former friends in and around Halzstadt.

Stat wise I advise you to invest in Animal Handling for nonhuman minions and your choice of social skills for human agents.

 

[Crocodile]

I figure his first minion is sort of a porter/coachman type. Able to handle himself and do menial work, but can defend his employer if the need arises. He's the sort of servant you expect a doctor to have for moving equipment or patients.

Animals I'll ponder but likely dogs and corvids. Smart birds would make good spies/trackers.

 

[Xenobiology]

Aithne Venette
Gorite Ex-Magus Inventor

Aithne was born in one of the many Kelenite settlements out in the Frontier. She was born a fiery young redhead with the same kind of spark settled deep in her soul, marking her as a Magus. While alive she spent most of her time trying to keep away from others to keep her secret just that. In that time she picked up a small hobby in inventions and repairs, something she was able to use to keep herself alive in the settlement because she could hide in her small workspace while still being of use to the rest of her peers. In a way, she knew this probably wouldn't last.

Aithne had heard enough tales of the Inquisition and their ultimatum for people like herself. So when they had come by during one of their tireless hunts for Graveth the White, she hid. But not well enough. Whether someone snitched on her or if it had just been obvious to them she'd never know, but she was well aware of being found when they pulled her from her hiding spot by her hair. They gave her her options and Aithne knew what she would choose even if she never wanted to make this decision. But she did and she chose death, not willing to live the rest of her life in captivity.

She expected it to be swift and bloody. But it never came. She couldn't say exactly what happened, she had long shut her eyes to block out what she believed would be her final sights in life (and looking back she supposed that that still held true). Instead a stranger had saved her, kneeling to meet her eyes and giving her a new option. "You can find safety in my domain, but the change will not be all kind." She had pondered it briefly, coming to some understanding staring at her savior that this was something deeper than just whisking her away from the Inquisition. But these kinds of things were not unheard of in the Frontier... plenty of superstition ran rampant, much of it with good cause. Aithne made her choice to go with through with the change, welcoming a new option outside of what had been laid out to her. She remembered very little of the process, truthfully, just waking up feeling so much colder than she ever had but being reassured that from now on she'd be able to protect herself. And that they would make a fine warrior of her.

---

Anddd, admittedly that's all I've got so far! ^^; If this isn't alright do let me know! I'm open to changing things as nothing I've come up w/I've set in stone. I did think that since Aithne is Gorite and not Loxite like our party NPC that perhaps her savior has some kind of agreement with the NPC? After all, I'd assume a party looking into archeology in this kind of world would need some combative help? And what better way to train than to be thrown into it head first! Not quite sure who Aithne's sire/dam would be, though...

 

[JarOfPickles]

Gorite! Nice to have a fighting buddy.

 

[Grey]

ot Loxite like our party NPC that perhaps her savior has some kind of agreement with the NPC?

That was my plan; Kain has fostered a lot of connections and compacts over the centuries, and a Gorite out in the Frontier would be exactly the kind of ally he'd want to cultivate.
Also I love the image of her shaping metal with her bare hands and then using delicate tools on the mechanisms.

 

[JarOfPickles]

Quick question - Since there is no skill associated to it by name, is persuasion the one used for intimidation?

 

[Grey]

Quick question - Since there is no skill associated to it by name, is persuasion the one used for intimidation?

Yes, it would be a Persuasion Focus although I'm open to allowing it elsewhere

 

[JarOfPickles]

Makes sense. Might invest in it while I'm still juggling skills around.

 

[Grey]

Yiu can always take a little at one point, then add Intimidation to an Advantage

 

[JarOfPickles]

That's true, although I did end up finding a good space for it after distributing things out more evenly today. Satisfied with the numbers now.
Now he can swing a sword and look the part too.

 

[PatriasLover]

aaaannnnd help i have given up. murphys law has taken a dump in my bed. i have covid, and i cant figure out this dang sheet.


help. please

 

[Grey]

aaaannnnd help i have given up. murphys law has taken a dump in my bed. i have covid, and i cant figure out this dang sheet.


help. please

Okay, you focus on getting better and resting up.
Give me an idea of where you want her passions and competencies to lie, her interests, and I'll whip something up for you on my next day off.

 

[Crocodile]

So, would I be using Craft with Caroforma? Or Medicine? Trying to figure out my focus.

Also would Bedside Manner be suitable for Familiarity?

As to Talent, I don't know what to take for Rune.

 

[Grey]

So, would I be using Craft with Caroforma? Or Medicine? Trying to figure out my focus.

Also would Bedside Manner be suitable for Familiarity?

As to Talent, I don't know what to take for Rune.

Either is actually fine but Medicine may work out better for the subjects. Craft can be very functional in the short term but not always conducive to long term viabilitlity.
Bedside Manner is perfect.
For Training, something like 'Duck & Cover' applied to Defence, Stealth, and maybe Athletics when trying to avoid violence?