Game: NPC Generator

[DeepShadow of FoS]

Okay, here's another worldbuilding game in the tradition of "Bait this Hook!" Using a simple template, we generate a stock of new NPC's around a given theme, such as "ghosts in the House on Gryphon Hill," "Kargat officers," "farmers of Mordent" or "apprentice wizards at Ramulai." The theme should be narrow enough to inspire creativity but wide enough to be have many, many members (i.e. don't do "Falkfuhrers of Falkovnia" or "Authors of the Books of Ezra").

I'll start by selecting a theme, and then everyone else post seven-sentence writeup of a matching NPC. At some point, I'll call a stop and declare my favorite. The winner will select the new theme and we'll continue the thread from there. Two pieces of advice for winning: 1) Multiple entries are welcome, but try to focus on quality; 2) don't go over the top--subtle is powerful.

The format will use traditional Seven-Sentence NPC but add an eighth sentence: each NPC gets some little secret. The following example comes from The Vaults of Pandius.

1) Occupation and History -- "Serge Varli is the innkeeper of Midwood's Shady Dragon Inn, having bought the business almost 20 years ago."
2) Physical description -- "He is a tall, broad-shouldered man with a neatly trimmed black beard and a growing belly."
3) Attributes and skills (exceptional ones only) -- "Serge is legendary for being able to eat or drink nearly anything without dimming his robust health (Constitution 17) and his skills as a chef made those who knew him back in Krakatos that he was destined to be the chef for a noble or for some exclusive restaurant."
4) Values and motivations -- "He is devoted to his family and, surprising for someone in his position, his privacy."
5) Interactions with others -- "Direct to the point of bluntness with commoners, Serge is polite but not fawning with those he believes to be above his station (namely, nobles, clerics of the Church of Traladara and wizards)."
6) Useful knowledge -- "Making the most of his self-imposed exile to Midwood, he is a master of turning available foodstuffs into fine cuisine and knows more about local game than all but the greatest hunters, trappers and fishermen."
7) Distinguishing feature -- "Serge's one concession to vanity is his beard, which he is forever checking in reflections and fussing over."
Secret -- "Serge fled Krakatos with his new bride Stefana to save her from the clutches of his old flame, whom he had belatedly discovered was an up-and-coming member of the Iron Ring."

So, ready or not, the opening theme for this first round of NPC's is "Talons." That's right, let's see how many of Vlad's ruthless elite soldiers we can crank out!

[Nathan of the FoS]

Harald Eisenkopf is a veteran Talon nearing his twentieth year of service. He is tall, with black hair just beginning to go grey and a handlebar mustache. He's respected among the Talons as an expert halbardier and infamous being willing and able to eat anything--live rats, daggers (given a day or so), glass bottles--without ill effects. He's angling for a position as a weapons instructor at Stangengrad so he can bring his aging mother in from the countryside and let her live out her last years in peace. He is relaxed and jocular with his peers, distant and respectful to his superiors, and a (un)holy terror to the men under his command. He knows every quartermaster and supplier in the Falkovnian army, and a word from him gets the best gear the military can offer. He's missing the last two joints of his left pinkie, and everyone who asks about it gets a different explanation for it. In truth, chopping it off was the punishment for an infraction against the Thieves' Guild of Lekar--an organization with which he still maintains thoroughly clandestine ties.

[Strahdsbuddy]

Karl Schofeld is a young Talon from a prominent family who has advanced quickly despite his age. Karl is tall and thin with boyish good looks that he is not ashamed to use for winning over a maiden. Karl is famous for this brand of hunting among his mates, and he considers it poor sportsmanship to use his rank as Talon to take the virtue of a lady. He is a self-proclaimed connoisseur of the fairer sex, and acts as if their conquest is his right. Karl is known as a jovial fellow and tends to leave the infamous Talon bullying to those who enjoy it, preferring to be the rare Falkovnian version of the "good cop." Although his playboy reputation is well-earned, Karl has romantic leanings and imagines himself settling down with the right girl when he finds her. In spite of the hawk on his forehead, Karl's handsome features and quick smile would endear him in even picky Port-a-Lucine circles. It would certainly cost them dearly if it came to light, but Karl's tryst with Ela, his commanding officer, has developed into the sort of love he had always imagined and he has vowed to himself that he would put aside his polyamorous ways if she would be his--even if they had to leave the country.

[DeepShadow of FoS]

Otto Olshammer
Otto is a veteran's veteran, and one of the oldest living Talons. He stands exactly six feet tall and wears his grey hair in a short ponytail. He was fortunate enough to remain behind during the Gold Claw Massacre, but has otherwise played a major role in every foreign conflict since he survived the 711 Dead Man's Campaign as child of 13. Perhaps due to his amazing track record so far, Otto only values that rarest of blessings among Falkovnians--a long life. Otto's experience and age have led others to seek his counsel, and while he is cautious with his advice, he carefully cultivates his relationships with younger Talons to make himself indispensable. Otto's greatest shame is his firstborn son Felix, a tusked caliban whose cloistered life has only served to make him a topic of gossip. In bright sunlight Otto never stop shading his eyes with hand or helmet, to avoid his eyes watering. This weakness--along with the accompanying gift of darkvision--is the result of a failed powers check from burying a captive alive during the March of Doom.

[Gonzoron of the FoS]

Dermott Garzen
Dermott is one of many Talons who lost their lives in the Second Dead Man's War; for the past half-century he has patrolled the Forest of Shadows on behalf of his new master: Azalin Rex. His once strong build is now withered and rotten, his armor tarnished and covered with mud and small sprouting vegetation, and his Hawk brand long since decayed into an unrecognizable scar. Unlike most of Azalin's undead horde, he has retained some memories and skills of his former life, and sees himself as a leader among the masses of zombies that defend Darkon's border. Having been implanted with false memories of being kidnapped from Darkon and pressed into service as a Talon against his will by the memory draining effect of the domain, he now has a zealous hatred of his former homeland. Dermott still sees himself among the elite; he will dismiss any living being who approaches him, with an air of superiority conveying, "Nothing to see here. We have it under control. Back to your homes, citizens." He has thorough familiarity with a wide strip of forest south of Nartok which he believes to be "his charge"; If he can be convinced to share this knowledge with the living, he can be a perfect guide in that area. Dermott is always tense and alert, as though in the middle of a scouting mission; he constantly scans for threats and is rarely surprised.

Secret - During Drakov's Fifth Invasion, Dermott mortally wounded his own grown son, who had followed in his father's footsteps as a Talon. The son, Dirck, was brought back into Falkovnia, babbling feverishly about seeing his long-dead father in the woods, before he succumbed to his wound and rose as a ghost, bound to the other side of the border. Should Dermott ever approach close enough to the border to be seen by his son's ghost, Dirck would use his Telekinesis power to pull him back into Falkovnia and out of Azalin's control.

[brilliantlight]

Johan Shiller

Puts the lawful in lawful evil! He is a strong believer in strict discipline, for himself as well as others. He obeys all orders without question and expects the same from others. However, he is far less brutal than most talons. He is also a near genius with talent for investigation (remember Drakov's army is used as police as well as soldiers) and is used mainly to fight criminal activity rather than invasions. He is surprisingly polite even to inferiors in a condesending way. He doesn't rape or pick fights as he sees that as untidy and he is very neat.
He is absolutely ruthless in enforcing the law however. Despite his polite manners and relatively mild temperment he is not at all hesitant at torturing someone if it helps his investigation. If some innocents must suffer to punish the guilty so be it. If some guy can't pay his taxes and sending him to prison means his wife has to prostitute herself to feed herself and children the husband has only himself to blame.

He is 6'4" and 250 pounds of muscle with a handsome face. He is well known for his love of gambling, partly because he knows the odds and usually wins. He has made a small fortune gambling. He has a wife and 4 children all of whom he adores. It is well known that if anyone messes with his family they better pray he never finds them.

His distinguishing feature is his spotless appearance and his very neatly cut hair style. His big secret is that his brother is a traitor who works for the Kargat. His brother spilled all his secrets for money and tries to lure any Falkovians to Azalin's service.

[herkles]

Wilhelm Matzenkopf:

Wilhelm is the elder son of the matzenkopf family, his brother became an officer in the falkovinian army while he became a talon. His brother, Siegfried, has a quarrel with him though Wilhelm does not engage in his brother's quarrel against him. His brother has recently gone missing following a recent patrol. Recently he has married Evelyn who has given birth to a baby girl. He is a tall man, with a thin beard, narrow of frame. He is famous for his cold intellect, a cunning and manipulative man and a renown interrogate. It is said that he does not even need to torture someone and he can make people confess.

He is motivated by loyalty to Falkovinia and to his family, despite his manipulative nature or perhaps he started to believe his own lies, he does care deeply for evelyn and his daughter. He also would like to find out what became of his brother as well. When interacting with others, he can be calm, polite, direct to the point, or indirect, it depends on the person he is interacting with, though with the exception of Evelyn and his imidate family he is a bit distant and closed when it comes to family life. It is this interaction with his family that he seems to be more then the rutheless interogatter that he is.

secret: he is in truth afraid of blood, it makes him queasy. this is why he became such a ruthless interrogater and why he tortures without spilling blood, he is afraid of it and it makes him sick at the sight of it. Obviously he makes sure that no one, not even his wife and daughter, know about this secert.

[Drinnik Shoehorn]

Staphi Geruntzieber has been a Talon for 14 years. She is a short, squat woman with a fierce face and permenant scowl. She is known for her intimate knowledge of the geography of south-eastern Falkovnia and a perverse sense of humour. She values strength and courage over anything else, but is notoriously secret about her private life. She is quiet and reserved, only speaking what is necessary, but is perhaps more sparing with insults towards demi-humans than most Falkovians. Staphi is an experienced woodsman, and is surprisingly well versed in herblore. She keeps her head shaved to the bone, causing her to look more intimidation. Her secret is simple; all of the above is an act. Staphi is actually part of Gonedegal's secret army, and a Knight of the Shadow. She uses her position to feed information to the Lost King and the Basilisk. The many "sucesses" she has under her belt are all clever play-acting on behalf of the army and Staphi. She has surrounded herself with trusted members of the secret army and is a genuine beacon of hope in the darkest domain in the Core.

[Le Noir Faineant]

(Yay! Drinnik Shoehorn sighting! Terrorist fist bump, buddy!)

[DeepShadow of FoS]

And the first round winner is...Dermott Garzen! Thanks, Ron, for this interesting character, and all of your for participating. Ron, you can now select our next category. What group would you like to see?

[Gonzoron of the FoS]

Thanks, DS! Drinnik's entry inspires my choice of next category: Knights of the Shadows.

[Drinnik Shoehorn]

Goodwife Lydia Myrtle of Tepest is a meek and shy woman, she is subservient to her husband, who runs the general goods store in Kellee. She is tall and thin, with a pretty face and long, thin limbs. She is known to be a master butcher, being able to get the most meat from even the thinnest animals. She is something of a town nanny, watching over neglected or orphaned children in the village. She rarely talks to people, and rarely makes eye contact. She is painfully shy, and defers to her husband for everything. Lydia is also something of a healer, helping with births and deaths in the village. This has given her something of a mysterious reputation, with whispers about her a regular feature of gossip. Lydia's little finger on her right hand is maimed and mangled. If pressed, she says it happened whilst learning her trade. Unbeknownst to all of Kellee, Lydia is also the mysterious Lady Silver, a masked hero who protects the village from goblins and witches from the woods. Lydia and her husband keep up the ruse to protect her from the Three Hags.

[DeepShadow of FoS]

As a crossover with the Bait This Hook! game, here's a fun twist:

Mikhail Hiregaard is the youngest son of Sir Tristen...and the most highly placed subversive in the Nova Vaasan government. He serves as chief whip in the Nova Vaasan court, a position that affords him access to the gossip of the noble families. Like his father, Mikhail is ruggedly handsome, with his soft gray hair framing a face tanned but not worn, wrinkled but not coarse. Mikhail is a better listener than speaker, but when he speaks he weighs his words with gravity and passion (Wis 18, Cha 20). After losing a friend to Othmar's thugs, Mikhail has discovered that he cannot abide tyranny like the rest of his family, and a discreet conversation with his nephew Kiev put him in touch with Gondegal, who inducted him into the Knights in secret.

Mikhail is no honorless rumormonger, but he does deal in secrets, and he's used both blackmail and public embarrassment to force the hands of other nobles. Through allies, favors, and various types of coercion he can obtain food, equipment, lodging, animals, privacy/secrecy, and many other things for those who need it, all without revealing himself as the true benefactor. The only hint he leaves of his service is a scrap of ermine fur, a calling card that hearkens back to his friend who was murdered merely for breaking sumptuary laws.

Mikhail's vast network would be a grand jewel in Malken's crown, but a boyhood encounter with one of the bogeymen has actually stripped Mikhail of his family's latent insanity; if Malken ever discovered this, he'd leave off waiting for Mikhail to join Darkhaaven and merely have him assassinated.

(This secret is actually a foreshadowing of something from the Sea of Sorrows Gaz)

[DeepShadow of FoS]

I'm currently using this thread to stock my my campaign with Talons, although I may have to tweak a few to get them to fit the circumstances. Thanks, everyone!

Anyone else wanna throw out a Knight of the Shadows?

[twinwolf]

A transplant to Kartakass, Rivalan of Riverside is a man that is used to looking out for his own. He was a woodsman by trade in his native Verbrek and as such is both strong and scarred in mind and body. Knowing full well that no human survives forever in the Verbrekan wilds, Rivalan decided that it would be best to leave his homeland and finally settled in the forests just outside Skald. Concerned more with survival than what others think of him, he is most often short and cold with those he has just met. Most avoid him but those that do befriend him find him to be knowledgeable about the forest and a loyal if somewhat distant friend, willing to chip in for the survival of all, but making sure that his own is cared for first.

Rivalan once had a family and was more open than he currently is. A young werewolf however took all that from him and the fight left him with deep scarring on his arms. This is the real reason that he left Verbrek. He has recently discovered however that he has traded one group of wolf masters for another and has had enough. He currently is not sure what he will do but is watching and planning.