Wasn't there some kind of debate on the relation of Slavery and Industry in Magoose's Italy Renaissance Quest Part 2? One portion spoke that industry can actually also help slavery, just replace plantations with industry.
Yeah, my plan with that character was to basically strangle slavery by showing it to be not only immoral but also economically inefficient before the southern elite gets too attached to LARPing as European aristocrats. That being said I'm not really personally interested in the whole "do American communism" thing.
Yeah, I'm gonna have to put my foot down here. There will be no American Communism or stuff in this quest. At best, you'll be laughed out of having any respect whatsoever if you try something like that.
Yeah, I'm gonna have to put my foot down here. There will be no American Communism or stuff in this quest. At best, you'll be laughed out of having any respect whatsoever if you try something like that.
You mean pretending to be a man in the Continental Army? (That's actually a thing for the time period, even happened in the American Civil War..wasn't there a story about a Prussian lass pretending to be a man in the Prussian Army or something?).
Alright, that's voting done! Industry and Abolition wins, though I am a little disappointed that I didn't get to use the fancy trait that a woman PC would get.
Adhoc vote count started by Duke William of on May 10, 2024 at 7:34 AM, finished with 62 posts and 31 votes.
[X] Plan: Industry and Abolitionism
-[X] Jonathan Halbert
-[X] Write in your age.
--[X] 24
-[X] You are a boy.
-[X] Describe your appearance. (Or just put in an image, either works.)
--[X] A man of Scottish descent, tall and lanky but with a wiry strength behind it all. Light-brown hair made up in the popular style of the time, and piercing green eyes that have intimidated many a rival that thought to underestimate him.
-[X] Virginia (Richmond)
-[X] You came from a respectable and well-off merchant family, with your father having made much profit trading overseas. (+3 Stewardship, +2 Diplomacy, +10 to all Stewardship rolls when purchasing or selling items, and +1 Relations with merchants.)
-[X] Write in your backstory.
--[X] Jonathan was born into a merchant family of Scottish descent in Richmond, Virginia, his father having fled the exploitation of his native land by the British and set up a profitable business through trading and shipping. Unlike many of his contemporaries, he found slavery to be both distasteful and hypocritical considering what he and his fellow Scots were fleeing from, and he would impart these views, as well as a strong sense of patriotism, onto his son. During his education, Jonathan would become a known figure among his university's admittedly small abolitionism society, arguing against slavery not just on moral grounds, but providing evidence of it being less economically efficient then other systems, hoping to appeal to people's greed if appealing to their morals didn't work. With unrest against the British growing, and fed up with their controlling ways, he has decided to put his financial skills to use for the revolution, and hopefully beyond to help repay the country that has given him so much.
[X]Plan: An angry, angry Irish-American Huntress
-[X]Elizabeth 'Liza' O'Conner.
-[X]Age: 22
-[X]You are a Girl
-[X]Appearance: An Irish-American Woman with fiery red hair and blue eyes, lithe and muscular from years of working outdoors, often dressed in Hunters clothing.
-[X]Place of Birth: New York (State, not City, on the Frontier near the Iroquois Territory)
-[X]You came from a simple hunting family, with your father teaching you everything he knew about hunting wild animals. (+3 Prowess, +1 Martial and Intrigue, +10 to all rolls when using any ranged weapon, and +10 to all rolls when in an ambush.)
-[X]Write in your Backstory: Elizabeth is the daughter of an Irish Immigrant Family that was driven out of their Home on the Emerald Isle by the oppressive British Policies, especially after her Father was implicated in a plot to assassinate several local Landlords who were planning to jack up rents so they could evict Catholic Tenants and sell their land at a higher price.
To all those who are disappointed their voted plan didn't win, don't fret. Every character who lost will still be in the quest as a recruitable npc. Usually, this wouldn't be a good idea, but we only have two extra characters so I'm willing to throw a bone here.
I hope we can convince the Continental Army that invading Quebec to try and rally the Quebecois to join them is a terrible idea that should be scrapped from existing..especially in Winter. (Not to mention it's been said the actual breaking point that caused the revolution was because Quebec was made a Province of the British Empire, why would Quebec join a land full of people trying to conquer them?)
If not, then I'm sure that calling them out the operation being a failure would allow the growth of influence of Halbert as the one to listen to.
"Everybody's got the right to be happy! Don't be mad,
Life's not as bad as it seems!" –John Wilkes Booth, Assassins
[X] Plan: Industry and Abolitionism
-[X] Jonathan Halbert
-[X] Write in your age.
--[X] 24
-[X] You are a boy.
-[X] Describe your appearance. (Or just put in an image, either works.)
--[X] A man of Scottish descent, tall and lanky but with a wiry strength behind it all. Light-brown hair made up in the popular style of the time, and piercing green eyes that have intimidated many a rival that thought to underestimate him.
-[X] Virginia (Richmond)
-[X] You came from a respectable and well-off merchant family, with your father having made much profit trading overseas. (+3 Stewardship, +2 Diplomacy, +10 to all Stewardship rolls when purchasing or selling items, and +1 Relations with merchants.)
-[X] Write in your backstory.
--[X] Jonathan was born into a merchant family of Scottish descent in Richmond, Virginia, his father having fled the exploitation of his native land by the British and set up a profitable business through trading and shipping. Unlike many of his contemporaries, he found slavery to be both distasteful and hypocritical considering what he and his fellow Scots were fleeing from, and he would impart these views, as well as a strong sense of patriotism, onto his son. During his education, Jonathan would become a known figure among his university's admittedly small abolitionism society, arguing against slavery not just on moral grounds, but providing evidence of it being less economically efficient then other systems, hoping to appeal to people's greed if appealing to their morals didn't work. With unrest against the British growing, and fed up with their controlling ways, he has decided to put his financial skills to use for the revolution, and hopefully beyond to help repay the country that has given him so much.
Trait Revealed:
The "Rational" Abolitionist – You are an abolitionist through and through, no compromises made on the matter. However, while other abolitionist focus on the moral, or rather immoral, aspects of slavery, you expound on the economic downsides of slavery and how untenable it is as an economic system. In the eyes of most slave-owners, this makes you more agreeable with than your colleagues. (+10 to all Actions that involve abolitionism and freeing slaves, with Stewardship Actions gaining +15 instead, and -4 Relations with all slaveowners instead of the usual -8.)
Skill Revealed:
Micro-Economics – You are well-trained in the smaller-scale aspects that run a business's economic health and success. (+10 to all Stewardship rolls that involve personal business and profit.)
The Life and Times of Jonathan Halbert
Humble Beginnings
Jonathan Barclay Halbert was born on February 12, 1751 in Richmond, Virginia as the third of five children to Roger and Mary Halbert, Scottish immigrants who had fled from Scotland due to the exploitation of its people by the British. His father, a hard worker and fueled by sheer determination, managed to carve out a thriving business enterprise of shipping and trading goods from the Thirteen Colonies to Great Britain and back.
Unlike the majority of his fellow Virginians, however, Roger had a profound distaste for the institution of slavery, which was in part due to the hardships he and his fellow Scots had endured from the British. To him, owning slaves wouldn't just be immoral, but hypocritical to the highest degree. To this end, he would often purchase the freedom of slaves before offering them a job at his businesss. The former slaves would gain a job with steady income and infinitelt more workers' rights, and Roger would gain a cadre of loyal workers. The elder Halbert imparted his abolitionist beliefs, as well as a strong sense of patriotism, to all of his family, including his second son: Jonathan Halbert.
Judging by his future actions Jonathan Halbert evidently took his father's lessons to heart. When he, at thirteen years old, was sent to be educated at Yale–Roger was worried that his son would be ostracized for his anti-slavery views if he were sent to the more local William and Mary College–he became the leader of the admittedly small group of abolitionists in it, as well as a member of Crotonia, Yale's first literary society. However, though other abolitionists often preached about the moral repugnancy of slavery, Jonathan took a different approach to the issue. He knew that humans are sinful things, and as such, moral exhortations would do little to turn the hearts of slaveowners. So, he instead attacked slavery through materialistic avenues, arguing that slavery was an inherently deficient economic system and that it would not be sustainable in the long run.
At Yale, he would rub shoulders with other patriots of the era such as Timothy Dwight IV, Benjamin Tallmadge, and Nathan Hale. The last two would prove much more relevant than the former in the years to come. Jonathan would graduate from Yale with a Bachelor of the Arts, and he would return to his home in Virginia to help run the family business.
In 1775, however, history changed when the British shut down Boston as a commercial harbor and stationed troops in the city to bring order to it. Thousands all acrosd the Thirteen Colonies came together to raise funds in support of Boston. Not one to do anything by half, Roger would task his son with delivering an entire convoy of supplies and money up to Boston, a task his son would take to with aplomb. On March 30, 1775, the last of the supplies would be loaded onto wagons, and the convoy would set out for Boston as snow began to slowly melt and spring would slowly creep around the corner.
The Base Stats of Jonathan Halbert (Not his Skills or Traits):
What would you consider to be your best virtues?(Pick two.)
[] Calm – You are slow to anger and able to keep your cool. (+2 Diplomacy, +2 Learning)
[] Brave – You are utterly fearless on most occasions; and even when you aren't, you soldier on anyway. (+2 Martial and Prowess, +1 Diplomacy)
[] Diligent – You are a hard worker and make what work you do count. (+1 for all Stats, +1 Action per turn)
[] Gregarious – You live and breathe to socialize. (+3 Diplomacy, +1 Intrigue)
[] Honest – You are a paragon of truth. (+3 Diplomacy, -3 Intrigue)
[] Kind – You always find it in your heart to help out your fellow man. (+3 Diplomacy, -2 Intrigue and Prowess)
[] Just – You know what is right and wrong and are stalwart in your convictions. (+3 Stewardship, +2 Learning and Diplomacy, -4 Intrigue)
What would you consider to be your worst vice? (Pick one.)
[] Wrathful – You are quick to anger and slow to calm down. (+4 Prowess, -4 Diplomacy and Intrigue)
[] Craven – You run screaming at the first sign of danger. (-2 Martial and Prowess, -1 Diplomacy)
[] Slothful – You cannot seem to find the time to do anything productive. (-1 for all Stats, -1 Action per turn)
[] Shy – You'd rather curl up inside a little shell than talk to others. (-3 Diplomacy, -2 Intrigue)
[] Deceitful – No one can ever accuse you of being honest. (+3 Intrigue, +1 Prowess, -3 Diplomacy)
[] Callous – You can't seem to find a place in your heart to care for others or find your heart at all. ( +2 Intrigue, -1 Martial, -3 Diplomacy)
[] Arbitrary – You don't care about what's right or wrong, only that you do what you like. And even that changes every other day. (+2 Intrigue, -2 Diplomacy and Stewardship)
What do you consider yourself skillful at? (Due to previous choices, you can choose up to three Skills. Try to have them make sense regarding your character, though.)
[] Horseback Riding: You are skilled at riding a horse.
[] Advanced Polyglot: You are skilled in various languages that are not English. In the eyes of most Europeans, this is quite remarkable for a colonial bum.
[] Riflemanship: You understand the use and maintenance of a rifle.
[] Artillery: You understand the use of artillery and its value in battle.
[] Swordsmanship: You know how to use a sword and various fighting styles.
[] Cavalry: You are trained in commanding cavalry and how best to use them.
[] Infantry Command: You are trained in commanding infantry and how best to use them.
[] Logistics: You are trained in military and state logistics. While strategies win campaigns, logistics win wars.
[]Grand Strategy: You are trained in military grand strategic thinking. While tactics win battles, strategies win campaigns.
[] Survival: You know your way around the American frontier and are able to survive out there with only your grit and determination.
[] Poetry: You have a mind for poetry and beauty.
[] Rhetoric: You are skilled in rhetoric and debate.
[] Hunting: You are a hunter and a damn good one.
[] Chemistry: You are a fully trained chemist.
[] Engineering: You are an expert engineer.
[] Medicine: You are a fully trained and licensed doctor.
[] Geology: You are skilled in geology.
[] Geography: You are skilled in geography.
[] Cartography: You are skilled in cartography.
[] Political Theory (Liberalism): You believe in liberal policies and are able and willing to argue for and convince others of their Merit.
[] Political Theory (Enlightened Monarchy): You believe in constitutional, enlightened monarchist policies and are able and willing to argue for and convince others of their Merit. [] Micro-Economics: You are well trained in the smaller-scale aspects that run a business's economic health and success. Due to previous choices made, you already have this skill.
[] Macro-Economics: You are well-trained in the large-scale aspects of a nation's economy and economic health.
[] Metalworking: You are skilled in metalworking.
[] Weapon Smithing: You are skilled in crafting guns, artillery, and other tools of war.
[] Writing: You are skilled in the art of writing, your words seemingly written with silver ink.
[] Propaganda: You are skilled in the art of creating and disseminating propaganda.
[] Spycraft: You are skilled in the matter of spying and spycraft. You... hey, where did you go?
[] Law: You have a deep understanding of the law and its many intricacies.
[] Criminal Networking: You are adept in forging ties with the criminal underworld.
[] Social Manipulation: You are skilled at convincing people, be they single persons or multiple masses, to your point of view. Be it through honest means or deceitful half-truths.
[] Mathematics: You are skilled in mathematics and adept at applying it to everyday life.
[] Astronomy: You are skilled in astronomy and the study of the night sky with all its stars.
[] Investigation: You know how to conduct an investigation.
[] Sailing: You are skilled at sailing.
[] Write-in. (Subject to QM Approval.)
And finally, when exactly does your story start?
[] Lexington and Concord – An expedition of Redcoats have secretly set out from Boston in order to destroy colonial munitions and weapons and to arrest notable Revolutionaries. But because of William Dawes and Paul Revere, the local militia are ready and waiting for them in the town of Lexington. Flintlock in hand, you stood with them.
[] Fort Ticonderoga – Fort Ticonderoga is the wall that stands between the American Revolutionaries and Canada; if it were to be seized by the Revolutionaries, the heart of Canada would be exposed. Under Major General Ethan Allen and Colonel Benedict Arnold, the Green Mountain Boys prepared to swipe the fort from under the British nose. Counting down the days until the attack, you prepared with them.
[] Bunker Hill – Boston is under siege by the British navy, with thousands of Redcoats landing on the Charlestown Peninsula. A thousand-strong American force under Colonel William Prescott moved to counter this by fortifying Breed's Hill just a short distance from Bunker Hill. An attack was inevitable, and both sides prepared for the fight ahead. Behind a hastily-crafted earthwork, you waited with them.
[] Invasion of Quebec – As the Siege of Boston rages on, the Continental Congress and George Washington have both been convinced of the need to invade Quebec and the ease of such a maneuver. To that end, they have tasked Major General Philip Schuyler and Colonel Benedict Arnold to each lead an expedition to liberate Quebec from the British. Though the winds would be rough and the journey rougher, you marched with them.
-[] You were part of Schuyler's Expedition, which would strike at Fort St. Johns from Fort Ticonderoga before marching onto Montreal.
-[] You were part of Arnold's Expedition, which would strike from Fort Western in Maine–which was part of Massachusetts at the time–and cross the Chaudière River into Quebec.
Author's Notes:
And that should be it for character creation. Let me just say, your dump stat is gonna be a dump stat, but that's about as far as the bad stuff goes because not a single roll after that went below ten.
Here's how stats will work in this quest. More points in a certain stat will unlock more actions for its particular category, such as more Prowess unlocking more actions that involve personal combat like duels and such. For every point you have in a stat above twenty-five, you gain +1 to rolls for actions that pertain to that category. This bonus caps at +25. For example, if you have an Intrigue of 39, you gain +14 to all Intrigue Actions.
[X] Plan: Stonks Man
- [X] Arrangement of Stats
-- [X] Martial: 10
-- [X] Diplomacy: 17
-- [X] Stewardship: 18
-- [X] Intrigue: 13
-- [X] Learning: 12
-- [X] Prowess: 2 Virtues
- [X] Diligent – You are a hard worker and make what work you do count. (+1 for all Stats, +1 Action per turn)
- [X] Calm – You are slow to anger and able to keep your cool. (+2 Diplomacy, +2 Learning) Vice
- [X] Craven – You run screaming at the first sign of danger. (-2 Martial and Prowess, -1 Diplomacy) Skills
- [X] Engineering: You are an expert engineer.
- [X] Political Theory (Liberalism): You believe in liberal policies and are able and willing to argue for and convince others of their Merit.
- [X] Macro-Economics: You are well-trained in the large-scale aspects of a nation's economy and economic health. Start
- [X] Bunker Hill – Boston is under siege by the British navy, with thousands of Redcoats landing on the Charlestown Peninsula. A thousand-strong American force under Colonel William Prescott moved to counter this by fortifying Breed's Hill just a short distance from Bunker Hill. An attack was inevitable, and both sides prepared for the fight ahead. Behind a hastily-crafted earthwork, you waited with them.
Not sure about Craven being a good Vice to choose, but none of the others seemed to make sense to me with how the character was written
I'd say have Prowess the least out of the bunch (The backstory does not mention much about fighting, so narratively it can be said our Abolitionist here is more-so an erudite through books, critical thinking, stewardship than a fighter).
18 should go for Stewardship, 17 for Diplomacy. (We can reasonably say Stewardship is him at his best, and Diplomacy as he would need the training to establish business relations as he grows up.
10,12,13 is left..
13 at Learning (We can say that he is quite a hard worker in learning at a decent rate while at University).
12 should go for intrigue (We can reasonably say business espionage to keep up with the market training, although decent about it).
then 10 for Martial (We can reasonably say martial can go towards leadership skills, not to mention having to have the knowledge of military positions/tactics/etc. of the British's force in the 13 Colonies in case they try to seize our business.)
I'd say go for Diligence, as narratively it can be explained his work ethic at University in turn developed his willingness to work hard for his business and to keep up with the demand of Uni. This bleeds over to the rest of his life towards keeping up at whatever life throws at him.
Next, I'd say Calm, we can reasonably say he learned to become calm in the face of adversity in stressful situations that befell him as a student while also growing up as a child of a merchant. He applies this aspect of self-discipline to the rest of his life to be able to keep a solid head when having to do decision making.
What'd make sense would've been Deceitful, as we can say with the reasoning that our Abolitionist learned to do so in order to persuade/confuse opponents (and future business rivals) to take advantage of the situation as a Merchant.
Political Theory Liberalism, Might as well go the full way as it can be said that the ideas of liberalism interests him that would influence him towards his pragmatic way of Abolitionist standing.
Macro Economics, We can reasonably say that Jonathan here became interested with Macro Economics as well as Micro Economics. After all, he can reasonably think to himself that he needed to learn the direction and policies of the National Economy to make the best decisions as a future merchant.
Social Manipulation, A natural talent for burgeoning Merchants that can be said Jonathan learned from an early age from watching his father do business dealings and the likes. Not to mention his dad himself teaching them to him.
[X] Plan: Merchant Roots
-[X] Arrangement of Stats
--[X] Martial: 10
--[X] Diplomacy: 17
--[X] Stewardship: 18
--[X] Intrigue: 12
--[X] Learning: 13
--[X] Prowess: 2 Virtues
-[X] Diligent – You are a hard worker and make what work you do count. (+1 for all Stats, +1 Action per turn)
-[X] Calm – You are slow to anger and able to keep your cool. (+2 Diplomacy, +2 Learning) Vice
-[X] Deceitful – No one can ever accuse you of being honest. (+3 Intrigue, +1 Prowess, -3 Diplomacy) Skills
-[X] Social Manipulation: You are skilled at convincing people, be they single persons or multiple masses, to your point of view. Be it through honest means or deceitful half-truths.
-[X] Political Theory (Liberalism): You believe in liberal policies and are able and willing to argue for and convince others of their Merit.
-[X] Macro-Economics: You are well-trained in the large-scale aspects of a nation's economy and economic health. Start
-[X] Bunker Hill – Boston is under siege by the British navy, with thousands of Redcoats landing on the Charlestown Peninsula. A thousand-strong American force under Colonel William Prescott moved to counter this by fortifying Breed's Hill just a short distance from Bunker Hill. An attack was inevitable, and both sides prepared for the fight ahead. Behind a hastily-crafted earthwork, you waited with them.
[x] plan merchants nightmare
- [x] Arrangement of Stats
-- [x] Martial: 10
-- [x] Diplomacy: 17
-- [x] Stewardship: 18
-- [x] Intrigue: 12
-- [x] Learning: 13
-- [x] Prowess: 2 - [x] virtues
-- [x] Calm – You are slow to anger and able to keep your cool. (+2 Diplomacy, +2 Learning)
-- [x] Diligent – You are a hard worker and make what work you do count. (+1 for all Stats, +1 Action per turn) - [x] vice
-- [x] Deceitful – No one can ever accuse you of being honest. (+3 Intrigue, +1 Prowess, -3 Diplomacy) - [x] skills (Due to previous choices, you can choose up to three Skills.
-- [x] Advanced Polyglot: You are skilled in various languages that are not English. In the eyes of most Europeans, this is quite remarkable for a colonial bum.
-- [x] Macro-Economics: You are well-trained in the large-scale aspects of a nation's economy and economic health.
-- [x] Social Manipulation: You are skilled at convincing people, be they single persons or multiple masses, to your point of view. Be it through honest means or deceitful half-truths. - [x] story start
-- [x] Bunker Hill – Boston is under siege by the British navy, with thousands of Redcoats landing on the Charlestown Peninsula. A thousand-strong American force under Colonel William Prescott moved to counter this by fortifying Breed's Hill just a short distance from Bunker Hill. An attack was inevitable, and both sides prepared for the fight ahead. Behind a hastily-crafted earthwork, you waited with them.
wasn't sure on the start so went with bunker and for skills Polyglot beat Political Theory Liberalism in my mind for the character.
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