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Life as a 102nd Century Warlord

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[X] ENTOURAGE: Five Brave Adventurers
[X] FLAW: Golden Eye

Kind Heart seems like it's going to be crippling in the setting as described so far, and also an unusual flaw for a warlord overall.
 
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Adhoc vote count started by Diatomic Element on Oct 23, 2023 at 8:52 AM, finished with 8 posts and 8 votes.
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Creation 0.4
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    • Creation 0.4​

    Unusually for a resident of the Coldbrew Coast, you have a bit of a soft spot- While this certainly makes life insanely difficult sometimes, you can't say that it's not worth it. You could make compromises to save yourself time and pain, or to earn more money, but would that really make up for that wrong? In a place as dangerous as this, someone needs to be good, and it might as well be you.

    You have come into possession of an adventuring crew- Not mere mercenaries, but strong and independent individuals who you trust reasonably well. How did these people come into your employ? All options will have roughly the same level of trust and prowess, this is for character building purposes. Vote for any that interest you, the top option will be chosen.

    [ ] PAST: A Long Term Assignment
    • These people were once career mercenaries, but you have been working with them for years at this point on an isolated vessel- They might not be best friends with you, but working together in combat and swapping stories has grown your bond and trust in your leadership.

    [ ] PAST: An Antisocial Collection
    • These people were once scattered fighters, abandoned by their groups or shunned by society. Each of them was saved by you in a time of need, and chose to stay on your ship rather than face the world alone. A hodgepodge group, they have begrudgingly bonded with you and each other.

    [ ] PAST: A Shared Goal
    • While these people were never academics, they can still dream about the future. Your ship seemed like a great opportunity, and this group has bonded with you over a common love of uncovering the past.

    [ ] PAST: A Shared Past
    • Semisubmersi, the "Greatest City in the North", is also one of the only areas that hold academic institutions- In your youth, you worked with a small street gang to protect your own research and do minor expeditions. In adulthood, you invited them to join you in larger endeavors.

    [ ] PAST: An Inherited Mission
    • This group once had a dominant leader, one who believed in your cause- They might have been a friend, or someone who you saved in a time of need, but they were always eager to work with you. After their death, the group decided to honor this last wish by becoming your crew.

    You don't currently command much power, and your name carries little respect, but titles are important- You are an academic flush with ideas, you give orders to a fierce team of warriors, and you have full ownership of a genuine Coldbrew level ship. Which role is most important for you to be recognized as? This will mainly impact how your fame or reputation is represented, as well as how characters address you. Vote for any that interest you, the top option will be chosen.

    [ ] TITLE: Call Me Doctor.

    [ ] TITLE: Call Me Commander.

    [ ] TITLE: Call Me Captain.

    [ ] TITLE: You may write in a more creative title if you want, but it must make sense.

    Something a little simpler than a title, what gender are you? This will not have a mechanical impact. While some parts of the world have strict society, the Coast is far too disorganized for anyone to care about silly things like gender roles.

    [ ] GENDER: Male

    [ ] GENDER: Female

    [ ] GENDER: Nonbinary

    You do not start with any ongoing projects or hints of the future- While you will have to earn some money to pay for upkeep, your plans are wide open. Which city zone will you start in? This will not have to be your main base. Vote for any that interest you, the top option will be chosen.

    [ ] START: Semisubmersi
    • The Greatest City of the North, Semisubmersi is full of action and opportunities. This is the easiest place to find a diverse range of jobs, and information flows freely if you know how to buy it. It is also centrally located, making it a good range for short term jobs.
    • High upkeep cost.

    [ ] START: Halftown
    • Not even a city, Halftown is relevant due to the high number of archeological sites near it- The water is especially unusual in Sugar Bay, and the small area holds a deceptively large amount of half drowned caves, secret bunkers, and intact wrecks.
    • Low upkeep cost.

    [ ] START: Rebeccia
    • The City of Dust, Rebeccia functions as a hub for all the villages in the southeast. Beset by bandits and strange raiders, there are always plenty of people willing to work. It also functions as the first marketplace for curiosities found in the sands, or news of drylands discoveries- At some point in the past, some civilizations apparently started parking their boats in the desert.
    • Low upkeep cost.

    [ ] START: Port Forsaken
    • Only mildly hyperbolically known as the worst city in the Lake Confederation, this is a heavily militarized zone. After all, it guards the only river connecting the lakes to the ocean and its trade. Large amounts of goods flow through here to and from the Tygar Free State, and it is the largest trading hub on the coast. The jobs might not be as numerous here, but any of the wealthy merchants who stay here are eager to see their needs and curiosities met.
    • Regular upkeep cost.

    [ ] START: Goldbar
    • One of the few productive cities on the coast, Goldbar processes and ships the precious resources from the nearby mountains. The city and their ships are also a massive target for pirates, and the majority of their budget goes into hiring protective details and stationary guards. They are also the only settlement larger than a village between Little Mersi and Port Forsaken, collecting news of any uncovered ruins on the barren coast.
    • Regular upkeep cost.

    [ ] START: Little Mersi
    • A somewhat unusual city, Little Mersi is the failed remains of an ego trip. A nearly forgotten king had built it on top of ancient city ruins to compete with Subsermersi, dying before it was completed. Half pirate enclave and half research haven, it is filled with taverns and libraries. The researchers are protected by an agreement passed down the generations from the first pirate lords to inhabit it- Rather than drive out their prey and seizing money once, it was better to have them pay to stay and earn in the long term.
    • High upkeep cost

    This is the last update that is solely character creation, feel free to ask for clarifications about anything. Voting will close in 12 hours.
     
  • Threadmarks
    • [X] PAST: A Shared Goal.
    [X] PAST: An Inherited Mission.

    Sounds really cool.

    [X] TITLE: Call Me Doctor.

    Arknights vibes are intensifying. Plus, such a title seems quite unique to these places, which is good for gaining a reputation.

    [X] GENDER: Female.

    [X] START: Halftown.

    Treasure Hunt!
     
    [X] PAST: An Antisocial Collection
    [X] TITLE: Call Me Doctor.
    [X] GENDER: Female.
    [X] START: Halftown.

    Halftown seems pretty obviously good - cheap and full of SCIENCE!

    Nice to start out with a polycule too.
     
    [X] PAST: An Antisocial Collection
    [X] TITLE: Call Me Doctor.
    [X] GENDER: Female.
    [X] START: Halftown.
     
    [X] PAST: A Shared Goal
    [X] TITLE: Call Me Doctor.
    [X] GENDER: Female.
    [X] START: Halftown.
     
    Voting is closed.
    Adhoc vote count started by Diatomic Element on Oct 24, 2023 at 10:30 AM, finished with 6 posts and 6 votes.
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    Scheduled vote count started by Diatomic Element on Oct 23, 2023 at 6:01 PM, finished with 6 posts and 6 votes.
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    Chapter 1: January and February 10100
  • Threadmarks
    • Turn 1: January and February 10100​

    The stars shine down from above as you relax on your deck, leaning on a firm metal railing. As you gaze upwards, you can't help but drift into daydreams.

    It was the hundredth year after the ten thousandth year, a momentous date- Albeit, one that no one knows the significance to. Were it not for the ancient clocks telling the world of the date, not a single soul would know the year. Yet… It was an iconic time. The world had been allowed to congeal for too long, the weak trampled by an uncaring society and history forgotten by the masses. You had spent far too long idling, and it was time to change the world. As you sat there stargazing, you knew that there were countless others out there, thinking just like you- You might meet them, and you might fight them, but whatever happens you know it will be interesting.

    With the dull chiming of the town bell, you shake off your muses and prepare to witness the main event. As a ship in harbor, you had a prime viewing location to watch the fireworks. With screams of energy and mighty booms of powder, you watched as Halftown sent dazzling streams of light into the air, a cacophony that lit up the night. It wasn't the best you had ever seen, but it was pretty good for a town of this size.

    With a muttering to announce her presence, you turned around to see Anastasia coming up from below, a perpetual scowl on her elegant face. She launches into her complaints without even greeting you, saying "Doctor, why don't we just scram already? It's a dumb hick town, and their little fireworks festival doesn't even have any good booze."

    With a smile, you turned to her, a grin creeping across your face. "Anastasia, we don't need to go to another city. Everything I need can be found here", your gaze sliding off her to survey the cloying sea foam of Sugar Bay.

    "Let the rest of the Devious Sisterhood know. Tonight, you may rest. But tomorrow, we work harder than we ever have before."





    What is your name?

    [ ] NAME: Charity

    [ ] NAME: Sabrina

    [ ] NAME: Maire

    [ ] NAME: Write in, as long as it's a name that makes sense.





    For this quests mechanics, you will start with 2 Free actions and 1 martial Adventurer action- Free actions can be spent on anything, but your additional Adventurer action can only be spent on martial actions, and it will be carried out by your companions. Because you might also be voting to use a free action on a martial task, please specify which one is being done by the adventurers. Over the course of the quest, you will increase the number of actions you get (Ex. Hiring and organizing some financiers will gain a stewardship action, growing your powerbase will generate new Free actions at certain thresholds).

    A correct plan should look something like this-

    [ ] FREE: Locate Something to Investigate
    [ ] FREE: Train with the Devious Sisterhood
    [ ] ADVENTURER: Explore the Saccharine Seadens

    Martial Actions:

    [ ] Hunt Pirates
    • Halftown is relatively safe, but there are still some pirates in the Gulf of Sweetness- Spending some time hunting pirates would be good for reputation or any potential bounties.
    • Medium difficulty.

    [ ] Explore the Saccharine Seadens
    • The Saccharine Seadens are a maze of interconnected sunken caves, grottos, and underground rivers- It is filled with Ne'er-do-wells, misshapen beasts, and trapped boltholes.
    • DCs will decrease with increased attempts or more knowledge.

    [ ] Explore the Algae Flats
    • The Algae Flats are a menace to ships, and are host to a bevy of shipwrecks. Most aren't too old, but you never know what you might find amidst the mists and monsters.
    • DCs will decrease with increased attempts or more knowledge.

    [ ] Train with the Devious Sisterhood
    • While you might consider yourself an academic, having such a small crew means that you will often be placed in danger, or have to fight and run personally. Training with your companions will be useful.
    • Can be repeated. There will be higher DCs after each success until you reach a martial cap.

    [ ] Establish Territory by Force
    • With force of arms, you may subjugate a village. Unfortunately, you lack the ability to truly control one with the forces you have now. They will send you taxes, but you will not control them directly. The locals will also dislike this.

    Stewardship Actions:
    [ ] Buy Artifacts
    • Halftown is full of artifacts, some more potent than others. While there isn't really a market to sell your own, you could try to find any that would be useful for you.

    [ ] Explore Halftown
    • While living on the ship might be cheaper than staying in the city, Halftown is still your temporary home- It would be best to familiarize yourself with the city, learning both the local laws and the society that you are adjacent to.

    [ ] Find Jobs
    • Halftown is… Not the greatest place to find jobs. The town is protected by local guards and militias, with not much to encourage any raids. There is not much spending money, and the locals are not very curious about the death traps near their home. Yet, there are still probably jobs if you know where to look.

    [ ] Find Independent Money Making Schemes
    • Halftown might not be a boomtown, but there are still opportunities- At least, you hope so. It might be algae collection, relic flipping, or a special trade route; You won't know until you look.

    [ ] Establish Territory by Finance
    • With the lure of money and jobs, you may influence a village. It would provide manpower and any special resources it produces, while taking in your money. Unfortunately, you lack the forces to actually control the town, so it would be autonomous.
    Diplomatic Actions:
    [ ] Form Contact Network
    • You already have some scientific contacts around the region, but it would be best to organize yourself to take full advantage of this- With a proper contact network, information will pass to you much faster than simple acquaintanceship.

    [ ] Meet Halftown Leaders
    • Despite their lack of power in the grand scheme of things, those who control Halftown are still people who can make your life much harder. Meet with them, learn who they are, and establish yourself as friendly.

    [ ] Improve Reputation in Halftown
    • While Halftown isn't hostile to you, they don't especially care either. As an outsider, you will have to work harder than a local to get the same respect, and some resources or information will come easier if you are trusted.

    [ ] Spend time with the Devious Sisterhood
    • Each member of the sisterhood might be here because of you, but you aren't glorified for that- they are independent people who like to do their own thing. Spend some time with them, learn more about them, and grow your relationship with them.

    [ ] Find a Teacher
    -[ ] Write in stat
    • For your own improvement, you might want to find someone that can teach you about diplomacy, stewardship, intrigue, or occult to unlock a training action. You may also find one for martial or learning to decrease your DC. This person may become part of your crew if you hire them and develop a good relationship, otherwise they will remain a professional resource.

    [ ] Establish Territory by Words
    • With the strength of your reputation and the power of your words, you might convince a village to join you. You will be reliant on their current leaders, and shaping their policies will be a test in trust. Unfortunately, you lack the forces to actually control the town, so it would be autonomous.

    Learning Actions:
    [ ] Locate Something to Investigate
    • The Sugar Bay is full of interesting sites for study, but many of them have already been plunged. In order to not waste your time, it would be best to narrow down the avenues for investigation. You know that you will find something, it's just a matter of what and how many.

    [ ] Diagnose Halftown Artifacts
    • Halftown residents have artifacts, many of which were never properly examined- Since you are going to be spending time here anyways, offering to look at Artifacts for money would be an easy way to earn a quick buck.

    [ ] Research Upgrades for the Ship
    • The ship works well enough, but you could always improve it- Faster, more storage, adding weapons, or much more. Before you can get someone to build it, you need a blueprint.

    [ ] Brain Training
    • While you are skilled in matters of the mind, you can always be better- Set some time as study hours, and sharpen your intellect.
    • Can be repeated. There will be higher DCs after each success until you reach a learning cap.

    [ ] Work on Scientific Acclaim
    • The researchers who live along the Coldbrew Coast stay in contact through special papers and letters, which remain engaging and informative despite the delays- While you have nothing to write about at the moment, taking part in these socially distant forums will help find new contacts and improve your image.

    Intrigue Actions:
    [ ] Form Informant Network
    • While having a public network is all well and good, sometimes you need information from the little guys- This will get you a wider range of information, and often before others get to know about it.

    [ ] Investigate Smugglers
    • The Gulf of Sweetness functions as a calm interior to the Coldbrew Coast, and it is located right next to Semisubmersi- There are a good amount of pirates who use this place to stash their illicit goods. If you could find one, it would be a boon to your treasury.

    [ ] Find Acceptable Targets
    • This area is sleepier than most, but that doesn't mean it is always peaceful- Bandits, pirates, and exploiters are everywhere in the world. Find someone who you can attack without worrying about reprisals or innocents.

    [ ] Establish Territory by Proxy
    • With carefully aimed threats and bribes, you can suborn the leaders of a village. This will provide you with a stream of revenue that would be smaller than normal control, but you don't gain any responsibilities or negative reputation. Unfortunately, you lack the forces to demand much, so your contract with them would be inflexible.

    Occult Actions:
    [ ] Test Sugar Bay
    • The seawater is different here, and the source of this sugar is located somewhere in the bay. Take samples, consult your ledgers, and put the water through the paces. If there is anything you can find about it, it would

    [ ] Investigate Sugar Bay
    • People have been looking for the source of this sugar since they started living here, but nothing has been found. If you want to try, you might attempt to triangulate it with diagrams and ceremonies, your ship floating about as you strain. It is nearly impossible at the moment, but you can still try.

    [ ] Dissect Monsters
    • The creatures that inhabit this area are not natural, or at least that's what your books say. Something about the coast has warped them, and it is up to you to find out.

    [ ] Research Gods
    • You are not religious, and neither are many people along the Coldbrew Coast, but you can never be too prepared- Learn of the religions, of their gods, and of the people who worship them.




    I will have a character sheet ready soon, voting will close in 12 hours. If writing in the type of action being used is too hard then we can try another way, but I want to try this method.
     
    Last edited:
  • Threadmarks
    • [X] NAME: Cassandra

    [X] FREE: Explore Halftown
    [X] ADVENTURER: Train with the Devious Sisterhood
    [X] FREE: Form Contact Network
     
    [X] NAME: Maire
    [X] ADVENTURER: Explore the Saccharine Seadens
    [X] FREE: Explore Halftown
    [X] FREE: Form Contact Network
     
    [X] NAME: Charity
    [X] ADVENTURER: Explore the Algae Flats
    [X] FREE: Diagnose Halftown Artifacts
    [X] FREE: Train with the Devious Sisterhood

    Alright, here's my reasoning:
    • We already decided we're going to be suckers for a good sob story, so might as well lean into it all the way. "Doctor Charity" absolutely sounds like a small town's folk hero.
    • The Sisterhood is one of our two big assets from character creation, so I think it's a good idea to invest in them early, especially to prevent things like a member leaving or betraying us.
    • Algae Flats have shipwrecks, which potentially means add-ons for our ship, our other big asset, or things like logbooks, maps, last testaments, etc that local folks will want. Also, unlike the Seadens, they're not necessarily all plundered already. I don't know how much cash we have on hand, but if a ship is valuable enough to be our primary wealth, then finding a strongbox of coins is going to be significant for us.
    • Diagnosing Halftown Artifacts gets us in touch with the people we want to know - those who have weird artifacts we can covet - and it puts cash in our pocket. It also makes us useful to everyone else - nobody hates on the doctor who identifies your strange magic items for you. It's a good springboard to later contact/networking work.
     
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    [X] NAME: Charity
    [X] ADVENTURER: Explore the Algae Flats
    [X] FREE: Diagnose Halftown Artifacts
    [X] FREE: Train with the Devious Sisterhood

    Sounds good
     
    [X] NAME: Cassandra
    [X] FREE: Explore Halftown
    [X] ADVENTURER: Train with the Devious Sisterhood
    [X] FREE: Form Contact Network
     
    [X] NAME: Cassandra
    [X] ADVENTURER: Explore the Algae Flats
    [X] FREE: Diagnose Halftown Artifacts
    [X] FREE: Train with the Devious Sisterhood
     
    [X] NAME: Charity
    [X] ADVENTURER: Explore the Algae Flats
    [X] FREE: Diagnose Halftown Artifacts
    [X] FREE: Train with the Devious Sisterhood
     
    Looks like a tie on names. Charity works as a last name, so Cassandra Charity maybe? Or Charity as pseudonym/stage name, Cassandra as the real name.
     
    [X] NAME: Cassandra
    [X] ADVENTURER: Explore the Algae Flats
    [X] FREE: Diagnose Halftown Artifacts
    [X] FREE: Train with the Devious Sisterhood
     
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