OPEN SIGNUPS OUT OF CHARACTER KNAVES! - Signups & OOC

[Hecatoncheires]

Interest Check | OOC | IC | Lore​

Welcome to the Stolen Lands. A vast peninsula of city states and grand battles, of powerful lords and ambitious knights. All of them fighting their great wars, delving dangerous depths, their names being sung to the rafters of every taverna and inn the length of the kingdom.

It is a land in dire need of heroes.

Unfortunately, what it has instead is you.

A raucous mob of lazy swindlers, low-life scoundrels, listless dabblers, and greedy Knaves. Gathered together under the banner of a Free Company, you are the dregs of the adventuring world. The cannon fodder of all battles, the dirty dozen pulled out of prison for desperate missions, you take the jobs no-one else wants. The ugly, necessary work that keeps the world turning and keeps you living from day to day… assuming it does not get you killed. What you lack in status, fame and power you make up for with cunning, luck and outright duplicity.

The Stolen Lands are a dangerous, tantalising place. Built atop the remains of a receding empire, it is the crucible of new ideas and the perpetual battleground between the great and good. A realm of powerful, squabbling lords and old rivalries. Of bold new technologies that may change the very nature of warfare, or just get a lot of people killed. Of lingering magics from ancient times, left behind by a receding Empire. And amidst it all, opportunity.

Storm a city's walls, or find a way to sneak through them. Defend a guild caravan moving through dangerous wilderness, or engage in a spot of banditry yourself. Choose which jobs to take and which lines you will not cross. Decide whether loyalty to your patron is worth more than the bribe you have been offered to betray him. There is work to be done, Knaves. Ugly, dishonest work.

But hells, someone has to do it.​

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INTRODUCTION CHARACTER CREATION CITY STATE CREATION MAP OF THE STOLEN LANDS (WIP) CHARACTER SHEET TEMPLATES

• What This Is
  'Knaves!' is a Picaresque Fantasy set in a fantastical world analogous to the Italian city states in the 15th and 16th Centuries. It is an RP about the rough and ready mercenary companies that make up the primary fighting forces of the Stolen Lands, a vast peninsula on the southern end of the setting's main continent divided into feuding (and often warring) city states.
  
  Who You Play
  You play the aforementioned mercenaries, known colloquially as "knaves" (no this is not a complimentary term). Knaves are the rabble that have made a business of war, rampaging across the peninsula on perpetual campaign - there's always a battle to fight and money to be made in this region of the world.
  
  Your characters are members of Crow Company, a relatively new group of knaves operating in the Stolen Lands, representing the elite of their 'lance' (a group or unit of soldiers). Expert crossbowmen, pioneers of musket warfare, shock troops and pikemen, I want to give players free rein to decide the direction of their mercenaries and the style of soldier they are a part of.
  
  In the spirit of collaboration and integrating player ideas into the story, I also want to give you the opportunity to design other aspects of this world. There will be several slots open for player created City States, as well as the opportunity to design other Free Companies operating within the Stolen Lands.
  
  Where This Is Headed
  You provide some plucky mercenaries, rakish rogues and daring sellswords, detailing the lances they are a part of and the skills they bring to the table. I, in turn, will provide the challenges they face, the situations they have to deal with and the allies, acquaintances and enemies that make up the world of the Stolen Lands. Together, we will tell cool stories about cheeky scoundrels overcoming seemingly insurmountable odds, getting paid and maybe even performing a spot of heroics too (if the money is good enough).
  
  As a GM, I want to focus less on staking out a plot players may or may not be interested in, but instead to focus on creating interesting situations characters and NPCs can impact upon and influence. I want this to be a story of balancing rival factions, finding clever solutions to difficult problems, and raising hell up and down a world that lots of people have contributed to.
  
  The world of the Stolen Lands has been left purposefully broad. That's because I want to encourage players to help develop it and fill in the gaps - by leaning into collaboration and a spot of group worldbuilding I hope to create a setting that you all feel you have stakes in and a greater understanding of.
  
  What To Do From Here
  
  1. Decide that this RP is extremely very cool and that you're going to join.
  2. Have a gander through the Lore thread to get a feel for the vibe and tone of the setting.
  3. Read the Character Creation Guide for an idea of where to take things.
  4. Submit a Character in this thread.
  5. Submit a City State as well, cos you're just that creative. (Optional, first come first served)
  6. Submit a Free Company whilst you're at it. (Also Optional)
  7. Wait for Hecky to find a way to mess all of this up get things going when we have enough people involved.
• 
  • Only puckish rogues need apply. Your character is a sellsword willing to risk life and limb on the battlefield, not for a noble cause but for a mighty profit. That implies a certain kind of character.
  • 'Picaresque' stems from the Spanish word "picaro", meaning "rogue" or "rascal". Think of stories about roguish heroes who don't fall within the bounds of the law but still do the right thing (should the mood take them). I'm going for a comedic, satirical tone: The Princess Bride rather than Game Of Thrones.
  • Just because you're a 'bad guy' doesn't mean you're a bad guy. Your character might be a Picaresque Hero, but that's still a hero (after a fashion). Doing the right thing is absolutely allowed - it's just that your character's definition of "the right thing" might be quite at odds with the rest of society.
  • Knaves are infamous for their bravado, flamboyant dress sense and their tendency to loot everything not nailed down in an area (then pry up anything nailed). Your character can play to such a stereotype, or play against it.
  • To get a sense of the vibe of warfare we're talking, I think this scene from the movie Alatriste sells the idea of Pike & Shot battles pretty brilliantly. Kickass movie by the way, you should watch it.
  • For all I take my cues and inspirations from history, you are not bound to some rigid form of realism in this RP. Larger than life characters and the Rule Of Cool are very much welcome.
• 
  • There are a limited number of slots available for City States, available on a First Come, First Served basis.
    • Six slots, to be precise.
  • My map of the Stolen Lands on the next tab is meant to convey where each region is in relation to one another and very little else: I want to give players plenty of room to get creative.
  • City States are going to be an integral part of this RP. Their goals, rivalries, hidden agendas and underlying problems will serve as a major source for plots, situations and other events that will occur as Crow Company's story develops.
  • Your goal should be to seed your City State with Cool Things That Might Unfold As The Story Goes On™. Potential sources of contracts, tensions with other cities that might erupt into wars, and so on.
  • Magical elements can absolutely be a factor in the details you add to your City State, but bear in mind that magic is a mysterious force within the world that humanity knows little about. It was a force that the Alfir Empire played with, but which they never explained to their servants.
  • Whilst I want you to have plenty room to go hog wild with your ideas, please try to keep to the tone and vibe of the RP as a whole. If you start dropping Magitech Fortress Cities or Grimdark Misery Metropolises, I will die a little inside.
• 
• CHARACTER SHEET TEMPLATE
  Name: (Please provide any nicknames your character has earned in their time as a knave.)
  Age:
  Appearance: (Images are ideal, if not then a very concise description.)
  
  Role Within Company: (In addition to their service on the field of battle, what else does your character bring to the company? Are they a surgeon or a chaplain? Do they organise logistics or lead scavenging parties?)
  Lance: (Describe your character's Lance, the group of soldiers they command or act as the spokesperson for. What role do they serve on the battlefield? Are they a larger unit of line infantry, or a smaller band of specialists?)
  
  Five Words: (Give five specific words that encapsulate the nature of your character, and don't elaborate on them further.)
  Reason For Joining: (Elaborate a little on how your character fell in with the Crow Company. Don't feel the need to explain everything, such things are often best left to be revealed in character.)
  Skills: (Give up to four skills that your character has a knack for, and provide a brief explanation of them.)
  
  Character Connections: (Free Companies are close groups, and the people who serve in them come to know one another well. Please provide up to three connections between your character and other player characters that have been accepted. This could be anything from drinking buddies to bitter rivals and ex lovers. I don't expect you to have this section of your sheet to be completed right out of the gate: this is one that can be discussed and hashed out as we go.)
  
  CITY STATE TEMPLATE
  City Name: (Provide the capital city of the region's name, and any nicknames/titles it may have acquired over the years.)
  Region Number: (Which region on the provided map is this City State meant to be?)
  Current Leader/s: (Who currently rules in this City?)
  
  Major Factions: (Who are the powerful families, prominent guilds and assorted groups that make up the movers and shakers of the City? Aim for around three to five.)
  Form of Rule: (Most states within the Stolen Lands vary between hereditary rulers and oligarchic "republics", but it varies from City State to City State.)
  
  Geography: (What sort of lands surround the City? Are there any prominent landmarks, dangerous areas or notable features?)
  Key Trade/Industry: (What the primary export of means of revenue creation the City State uses to stay afloat and cover it's expenses.)
  Interesting Facts: (Please provide around five or so details that offer an insight into the history and feel of this region of the world.)
  
  Relationship With Other Cities: (The dynamics between the various City States are fraught and ever shifting. Allies today might be bitter enemies tomorrow, and the opposite is equally true. That being said, certain sentiments and bitter grudges tend to ingrain themselves after a time. Please outline how you feel your City State behaves towards it's neighbours and rivals in the Stolen Lands. As ever, this is not something that must be established immediately: feel free to come back to it.)
  
  FREE COMPANY TEMPLATE
  Company Name: (What the company is known as within the Stolen Lands.)
  Company Leaders: (Who is/are the Captain/s that lead the company? Provide a brief profile of them, no more than a sentence or two at max.)
  
  Specialisation: (Warfare comes in many forms in this day and age, leading many companies to focus on honing specific methods of it. Is the Company a dab hand at siege warfare, or do they focus on cavalry?)
  Reputation: (Every Free Company comes to develop prestige and/or notoriety amongst their fellow sellswords and the wider world. Is the Company known for it's honour and chivalrous behaviour to local populations during wars, or are they little more than bandits? What great victories have they won? What terrible atrocities might they have committed?)

 

[Hecatoncheires]

Characters!​

ROOKWOOD LAZIA

• Name: Cosimo Rookwood
  Age: 37
  
  Role Within Company: Captain, Frontline Commander
  Lance: Rookwood commands "the Wall", the frontline pikemen that make up the centre of the Company's battleline. Numbering in the hundreds, they provide the central point around which the rest of the Company tends to operate.
  
  Five Words: Taciturn, Pragmatic, Crafty, Tired, Detached
  Reason For Joining: Cosimo brought Crow Company together from the remains of a previous company of knaves, who had lost their captain and several of their senior leaders at the tail end of a particularly disastrous campaign. He has been a solid, if reluctant, captain for the Crows over the last few years of the company's existence, though time is beginning to catch up with him.
  Skills:
  
  • Veteran of the Push: Rookwood is an experienced hand on the field of battle, and is well versed when it comes to murdering people with pointy objects such as pikes and halberds.
  • Friends in Low Places: Having travelled the length of the Stolen Lands in his time (and beyond), Rookwood has developed a network of contacts and friends across the City States. Not nice friends and acquaintances, mind, but beggars (and knaves) can't be choosers.
  • Dulcet Drill Sergeant Tones: The ability to make oneself heard on a field full of men and women attempting to kill one another is invaluable in Rookwood's line of work. He's got a voice that could just about go toe to toe with a cannon blast.
  
  Character Connections: (WIP)
• Name: Lazia di Eco (or "Laz" amongst the Crows)
  Age: 23
  
  Role Within Company: Long-Suffering Quartermaster, Unofficial Company Chronicler
  Lance: Do camp followers, hangers on, waifs and strays count as a lance? If so, then Laz has quite the lance indeed. They might not be able to hold the line during a push of pike, but they ensure that the Crows' camp does not descend into a disease ridden madhouse. At least most of the time.
  
  Five Words: Precise, Stressed, Barbed, Perceptive, Curious
  Reason For Joining: Lazia's promising career as a scholar at the Universita di Valis came to a rather sudden and abrupt end in the wake of a large fire, a dead academic rival and several missing books, all of which she insists to this day she had absolutely nothing to do with. Rather suddenly cut off from her old life and in need of people who could get her far away from Valis till things calmed down, she found herself falling in with the recently formed Crow Company.
  Skills:
  
  • Book Learning: Lazia is fluent in several languages, familiar with multiple academic subjects and has read the complete masterworks of the famed writer Augustero Floris (they're rubbish, don't bother). None of which might sound terribly useful, but you lot can't count past ten (or less, if you're missing fingers), so you don't get to judge.
  • Begging, Borrowing, Stealing: Scrounging up the supplies, resources and material that a herd of riotous knaves need to go and do a lovely spot of warring is no easy feat, especially on campaign when every other company is trying to do the exact same. Laz has made an art of scraping together the necessary supplies for her fellow Crows (not that you miserable bastards ever thank her for it, oh no).
  • A Spot of Blue Blood: Even if she's fled from it fast enough to leave a dust cloud in her wake, Lazia still experienced a well-to-do upbringing and has the knowledge associated with it. Yes, this means more than just knowing how to hold a knife and fork properly (you're doing it wrong, by the way). Etiquette, heraldry, and old family connections can occasionally come in handy.
  • Stick Them With the Pointy End: It would be a rather lethal mistake to assume that a young runaway who has spent several years living amongst a herd of knaves does not know her way around sharp objects. Laz in particular is partial to the rapier.
  
  Character Connections: (WIP)

Free Companies!​

VULTURE COMPANY PEREGRINE COMPANY

• Company Name: Vulture Company
  Company Leaders: The (ironically named) Sweet Sisters, a twin sister duo who hate everyone else almost as much as they hate one another. Former street toughs from the city of Valis, they turned their unruly mob of cut-throats, bravos and thugs into an equally unruly mob of knaves.
  
  Specialisation: Ambushes, raids, surprise attacks and ransacking. If there is an underhanded aspect of warfare, the Vultures are familiar with it.
  Reputation: Vulture Company are the knaves' knaves, the biggest bastards currently active within the Stolen Lands. Vicious, untrustworthy and frequently unreliable, they have nonetheless found a niche for themselves by being the company willing to do what others will not. Want a town put to the torch and it's inhabitants slaughtered? Need a forest decorated with the hanged corpses of a specific City State's merchants? The Vultures are your guys. Their notoriety is sufficient enough that it has been rumoured several towns and fortresses have immediately surrendered upon seeing the Vulture banner as part of the force arrayed before them. Whilst they are vicious bastards to just about every company of knaves they come across, they reserve their greatest ire for the Peregrines.
• ​
  Company Name: Peregrine Company
  Company Leaders: Captain Ashunta Pauoli, a woman who's talent and skill in battle is matched only by her ambition. Said to have come from the same rough streets as the Sweet Sisters of Vulture Company, her rise to fame has been meteoric (and she shows no signs of wanting to stop).
  
  Specialisation: Though knights and earlier forms of cavalry have suffered in this age of powder and shot, the exiled knights and second sons of the landed gentry that make up a solid proportion of Peregrine Company's numbers have found a way to move with the times. Eschewing lances and more traditional forms of cavalry weapons, the Peregrine horsemen now pack pistols with which to rapidly approach and harass infantry positions. The practice has since spread throughout the Stolen Lands, but the Peregrines are still said to do it best.
  Reputation: The golden child of the sellsword world, Peregrine Company has carefully fostered a reputation for excellence and a pristine battle record that has left them one of the most highly sought after mercenary groups in the Stolen Lands. This tremendous success has led to more than a little bit of resentment from other knaves, but no-one is about to complain when they find that the Peregrines have joined the campaign on their side. Their rivalry with the Vultures is now legendary, and is said to go back to their captain's younger days when she still lived in the slums of Valis.

City States!​

MOURDENCE BASALAN VALIS

• ​
  
  City Name: Mourdence
  Region Number: 5
  Current Leader/s: Lord Valence Di Donafuerta II, Doge of Mourdence
  
  Major Factions:
  
  • House Donafuerta has successfully kept the other families within the city in line for several generations, largely through their monopoly on the region's peat market. Larger resources, and a brutal streak, have allowed them to buy their way to the top job each time it has come up, though they have a chip on their shoulder about the lands they rule and their eerie reputation.
  • House Lametar are the Marsh Lords, the noble family that has guarded the lands around the Astaphar Marsh for generations. Their alliance with House Donafuerta is what is said to keep this region relatively stable, but the Lametars have an eerie reputation - rumours swirl of them being entirely too close to the things that dwell within the swampland that surrounds them.
  • The Peat Harvester's Guild is aligned closely with House Donafuerta, and is responsible for extracting the valuable peat and bog iron that can be found in these lands. Recently, however, they have suffered a schism and lost many of their number to a young upstart who seeks to challenge their monopoly.
  • Svero's Mob broke away from the Peat Guild under the leadership of the charismatic and ruthlessly ambitious Svero. They now poach shipments of peat from farms deeper in the marsh than most are willing to go, and attempts to bring them to justice result in them simply retreating further into the Astaphar. No-one is sure how Svero and his people are able to survive that far into the marsh, and no-one is especially keen to find out.
  • "Sunken bells are tolling for thee, out of the caverns of Astaphar, dark and terrible deep, the marsh is calling her children home."
  Form of Rule: The Doge of Mourdence is an elected role, but is a lifetime appointment. Serving beneath the Doge is a ruling council made up of powerful merchants and noblemen.
  
  Geography: Water choked and difficult to navigate, the Mourdencilands are dominated by marshes, bogs and swampland that makes it a less than ideal region to travel through. At it's heart festers the Astaphar Marsh, a vast and dangerous wetland infamous for how dangerous it is (and also for the fact that nothing stays dead there, that adds to the reputation a touch).
  Key Trade/Industry: Peat has become the primary export for Mourdence. Astaphar peat can be difficult to extract, but it burns longer and far hotter than even coal and as such is in high demand across the Stolen Lands.
  Interesting Facts:
  
  • Mourdence is a cursed place. Not in the metaphorical or insulting sense, either - in ages past some manner of arcane calamity occurred within the depths of the Astaphar Marsh, casting a pall over the region that still affects it to this day. Things have a tendency not to stay dead in the marshes and swamps of this region.
  • Things not staying dead may include, but are not limited to, livestock, wild animals, fish and other forms of aquatic creatures.
    • And people, can't forget the dead people that don't want to stay dead. They're a bit of a problem (and a reliable source of contracts for Companies with the stones to handle them).
  • The terrifying and unnatural maelstrom said to swirl at the heart of the province does come with some benefits, however, and is said to be what lends the region's peat its potency as fuel. The bog iron found within the peat bogs is also said to possess strange qualities, making it valuable for artificers and other manufacturers with an interest in the occult.
  • The people of the region around Mourdence are a grim but hardy people, well versed in navigating the many marshes and rivers that run through their lands.
  • Rumours that the unquiet dead of this region have been seen to move to some common purpose, as though pulled along by some invisible puppet master's strings that stretch back into the depths of the Astaphar Marsh, have been declared completely baseless by the ruling council of Mourdence.
    • Stop asking questions and get back to work.
  
  Relationship With Other City States: (WIP)
• City Name: Basalan
  Region Number: 1
  Current Leader/s: High Councillor Niko Praxima
  
  Major Factions:
  
  • House Proxima are either crafty nouveau riche or underhanded upstarts, depending on where you sit on Basalan's political spectrum. Heavily involved with the Artillerists' Guild, their cannon-making prowess has catapulted them to the heights of political power and thoroughly angered their more traditionalist rivals in the city. It is rumoured that they have strong ties to the Dvergar Under-Republics.
  • House Ravure have long been associated with the Armourers' Guild within Basalan, and are said to have been instrumental in building the city's reputation for producing the finest armours in the Stolen Lands. Once the power players in the council, they have been forced into second place by the Proximas and harbour some rather bitter feelings towards their rivals.
  • Guilds hold considerable power and influence within Basalan and can vote in it's elections. Craftsmen guilds are amongst the most powerful, and all have helped build the city up as the central hub for military supply in the country - these guilds are locked in a bitter rivalry with the Miners' Guild, which is far larger in terms of membership but seen as far less prestigious.
  Form of Rule: An "elected" council is voted on by eligible citizens of the city. Only people of means, nobility and senior guildsmen are permitted to vote. Once the council seats have been filled, the councillors in turn appoint a High Councillor to act as the overall leader of Basalan. Terms of office last ten years, unless the council is toppled.
  
  Geography: Situated close to the Guglia Mountains in the north, the region around Basalan is dominated by foothills and the initial outcrops of the mountains themselves. Several rivers flow through the area, including the TK that runs directly through the city itself (and which provides much of the water used to run the workshops and furnaces). The Cieliblu Pass, one of the key routes that connects the Stolen Lands to the wider continent, also runs through Basalani territory.
  Key Trade/Industry: The people of Basalan are in the business of industrialised violence. It is said that the cannons and muskets forged in the city shoot the furthest, last the longest, and (more importantly) do not routinely explode on their users. More traditional guild craftsmen have also made a name for themselves as armourers, and some of the finest suits of armour in the Stolen Lands were forged here.
  Interesting Facts:
  
  • With it's closeness to the Guglia Mountains, Basalan has experienced frequent contact with the Dvergar Under-Republics - ancient rivals of the Alfir Empire who dwell beneath the mountains and whose technological prowess is matched only by their isolationist attitudes. Though they are loathe to part with their inventions, some do inevitably found their way to the human city to be greedily poured over and reverse-engineered.
  • Many Dver exiles have made a new home within the walls of Basalan over the years, and this has had an impact on the culture of the city. Dvergar phrases are a common part of local slang, and many buildings have been influenced by the brutalist architecture popular in the Under-Republics.
  
  Relationship With Other City States:
  Mourdenci peat is a highly sought after kind of fuel for the forges, so there are strong trade connections between Basalan and Mourdence.
  They still think the Mourdenci are utter weirdos, though, don't get them wrong.
  Valisi finance props up many a forge and workshop within the walls of Basalan, but that doesn't mean everyone is happy about it.
• City Name: Valis
  Region Number: 4
  Current Leader/s: Augustin di Scozia, Doge of Valis
  
  Major Factions:
  
  • House Scozia are the Banking Guild, and the Banking Guild is House Scozia. Their stranglehold over the institution has only grown tighter over the last few decades, and they are now the de-facto authority within the city. Charming, urbane and utterly ruthless, their ambition has made them incredibly powerful (but also a whole lot of enemies).
  • House Coppoli are not criminals. They are a respected and highly influential new addition to the city's elite that just happens to have a lot of ties and family connections to the slums and docks of the city. Where a lot of crime happens. Stop asking questions.
  • In addition to the Banking Guild there are a host of prominent guilds operating within the city, each utilising their monopoly on specific trades to get rich and influence people.
  • The street gangs, smugglers and bravos of the city slums are an unacknowledged force within the city's rough politics, but their presence is still felt when the knives come out. They also have no ties with House Coppoli.
  Form of Rule: Valis is ruled by the Signoria, a council of nine worthy citizens of the city (by "worthy", read "wealthy", "powerful" or "likely to start a coup if not on the council"). Such citizens tend to be drawn from the nobility or the most powerful guilds. On paper the leader of this council, the Doge, is chosen from amongst the nine every year by lottery. Something the powerful council members would never rig, which is why the Doge for the last decade has always been a member of House Scozia or one of their allies. They're just really lucky, okay.
  
  Geography: A blend of rolling hills and farmland dominated plains, the Valislands are some of the most beautiful territories to be found in this part of the world. The TK river continues it's journey down from Basalan territories to flow through this region as well.
  Key Trade/Industry: "Money, dear boy." Valis has become the banking heartland of the Stolen Lands, with their investments and debtors now being found both locally and abroad. This has drawn considerable funds to the City State and made it amongst the most wealthy in the country (they would argue the most wealthy), and has also given rise to the city's other notable trade - art. Valisi patrons are amongst the most generous (and demanding), drawing all manner of artists, sculptors and creators to the city in the hopes of finding work.
  Interesting Facts:
  
  • The city's main form of coinage, the valin, was the first gold coin to be minted in the Stolen Lands and has gone on to become the most trusted form of currency in the country (and sometimes beyond). When a knave gets paid, they want it to be in valins.
  • Valisi architecture can be politely described as "eclectic" and more accurately summarised as "a fucking eyesore". Different families, guilds and individuals have competed to have the largest, most eye-catching structures and towers built here over the years to project their majesty. Different styles and influences have come in and out of fashion over the years. As such, there is very little consistency (and an awful lot of problems with structures built quickly then abandoned).
  • Valisi politics is cut throat in a very literal sense of the term: throats really do get cut on a regular basis. Street fighting, coups and armed struggles between factions are also not uncommon. Whilst there is an unspoken rule that knaves should not be brought in for "internal disputes", that rule has been skirted on more than a few occasions.
  
  Relationship With Other City States: (WIP)

 

[Tastes Like Blue]

Alright, here is this. I read your lore page, did some real-world research, found an absolute banger of a picture, and decided to work backward from there. Let me know if I need to change anything. I'll be considering a City State now that I'm not thinking of a whole-ass person. I tried to stay the same with the formatting sans some fancy bullshit.

𝕹𝖆𝖒𝖊

Pasquale "Pascal" Cantagatti​

𝕬𝖌𝖊

31​

𝕽𝖔𝖑𝖊 𝖂𝖎𝖙𝖍𝖎𝖓 𝕮𝖔𝖒𝖕𝖆𝖓𝖞

Huntsman, as a company can't survive on dried rations, starchy vegetables, and stale bread alone. They need meat to stay healthy and formidable. Also, the byproducts of animals can be used as salves and leather to repair clothing and armor. He's also, sometimes, a Bard​

𝕷𝖆𝖓𝖈𝖊

Pasquale commands a block of arquebusiers. His group is a hodgepodge of sharpshooters, hunters, ex-court archers, and mercenaries from collapsed companies. Anyone with a good eye, discerning judgment, and quick hands is a good fit for the lance. Of course, those are also descriptors for rogues and thieves. He honestly doesn't care what they do in their off time as long as they don't disrupt the company's cohesiveness. They can be absolute bastards outside of those bounds, though.​

𝕱𝖎𝖛𝖊 𝖂𝖔𝖗𝖉𝖘

stoic • grumpy • stubborn • watchful • romantic​

𝕽𝖊𝖆𝖘𝖔𝖓𝖘 𝖋𝖔𝖗 𝕵𝖔𝖎𝖓𝖎𝖓𝖌

Out of the Fire and Straight Into Hell

Pasquale was in the employ of a small court; while he was higher than a servant, he was much lower than a noble. That life ended shortly after the lordling met the shiny end of a—well—poisoned cup. Pasquale is not the sort to give up on his profession; he will make it work much like a square peg in a round hole. So, he traveled about teaching members of small towns how to hunt to make it through harsh winters—for a fee, of course. This led several people to realize this was a lucrative job, so they joined him. It turned from a found family into a small band of archers, trackers, and arquebusiers. Pasquale picked up the latter. While he didn't care for the prep and loudness of an arquebus, he did enjoy the stopping power. In a short time, he became the most gifted member of his band with that style of musket. Anyway, the band would travel around, providing services to not only hunt for small villages during winter but to protect them from bandits and pillagers. This turned sour, though, when a town couldn't pay them due to the taxation on their coffers, so the band sold them out to a group of bandits. The town, unfortunately, burned. In lieu of being viewed as criminals and possibly arrested, they joined up with the Crow Company, practically gifting them a well-oiled machine for protection and coin.

​

𝕾𝖐𝖎𝖑𝖑𝖘

• An Antiquated but Still Lethal Profession

While the current state of warfare doesn't employ much in the way of longbows, that was, unfortunately, Pasquale's bread and butter. He could spot a target, follow it, and volley an arrow up in the air that would either hit it or come close enough to scare it into running into his next arrow. While he mainly used this skill on beasts he was hunting, he may have shot a man or two or twelve.

He can also fletch arrows and restring bows with quick fingers and sharp movements. If given enough time and materials, he could craft a well-functioning bow.

• Apologies, He is a Bird Person

It was essential and posh for a hunt to involve birds. Having been in a smaller court, Pasquale became the lead huntsman and austringer (they fly accipiters rather than falcons.) So, when his job "fell through," he kept the birds. Unfortunately, that was many years ago, and the bonded pair has passed away due to age. But before they went, they provided Pasquale with a clutch of eggs. One of those eggs made it; he has a female sparrowhawk named Lady Jane. And he has trained her not only in the art of hunting, but she can also kill carrier pigeons and retrieve messages. She is his best friend, so you better not think of speaking foul of her and her majesty.

• Emotionally Distant, Physically Close

He wouldn't be a huntsman worth his weight in gold (and that'd be a lot of gold, considering he's a block of a man) if he couldn't track. While his terrain of choice is the woods and other heavy wildernesses, he can also fair fine in plains and craggy places. The only hunting he does not do well is of the urban kind. People are the worst, and he'd rather not.

• The Lute

It is no surprise to anyone that Pasquale plays the lute. He carries it on his person when they are on the move. He purchased it during his days in the court and was taking lessons from a bard. Since then, he's practiced as he could, but war keeps getting in the way. While he's not bad persay, he's not good either. He'd be better if every time he was playing and someone made a displeased noise or gawked at him, he wouldn't stop and stare at them until they became uncomfortable and left. He's a man of few words but has a story to tell with his music, even if he looks so angry while he plays.

​

𝕮𝖍𝖆𝖗𝖆𝖈𝖙𝖊𝖗 𝕮𝖔𝖓𝖓𝖊𝖈𝖙𝖎𝖔𝖓𝖘

• Person

Thoughts

• Person

Thoughts

• Person

Thoughts

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[Ariel]

Name: Marina "La Bella"
Age: Who knows?
Appearance:

Role Within Company: Marina is the company's colour serjeant, its senior NCO of sorts. She's in charge of the colour guard, who carry and protect the company's banner and its leadership. She's also in charge of discipline in the company, and either she or one of her subordinates carries out the punishments meted out by the captain. She also personally performs all executions required within the company, her preferred method being the garrote.

Lance: Colour guard - The guard are the longest-serving, saltiest and toughest grognards in the company, all Doppiosoldato who are too mean or stupid or criminal to be allowed to lead others, but also too valuable to discharge or leave in the ranks. In addition to their battlefield role protecting the flag, they serve as capitano Cosimo's personal bodyguard and leg-breakers.

Reason for joining: Marina was one of the survivors of the company that Rookwood formed the Crows around. She brought her decimated lance to his new banner since he was the only fair and competent commander she knew.

Five Words: Vicious, Canny, Loyal, Unkillable, Scarred
Skills:
The best at what she does - And what she does, of course, is fight. Whether it's a barracks brawl or the chaotic infighting of a "bad war", she fights hard and dirty and to great effect.
The serjeant's glare - She may not be able to read, or have the patience to listen to long explanations of this or that, but she's not a fool either. She has a hard-won insight into the hearts of men and women, and can suss people out at a glance. Don't try lying to her about where the spare rations went.
Shriveling bollocks at fifty paces - Whether it's the scowl or the facial twitch or the horribly raspy whisper of a voice, there's something about Marina that puts the fear of the gods into people.
Like a scarred and smelly ghost - Despite her distinctive appearance, Marina can be quite sneaky. She's infamous for appearing suddenly behind someone who's about to make a grave error of judgement and giving them some friendly advice in a voice from a mass grave.

Character Connections:
Captain Cosimo Rookwood - If there's a single moral touchstone in Marina's unhallowed existence, it's the Capitano. Like a hunting hound, she is loyal to him and him alone. There is no higher calling for her than to execute his wishes - sometimes literally. This has been known to create conflicts when she becomes convinced that the Captain's decisions are not in his own best interests....
Lyanna - Marina outwardly despises the kind-hearted healer, but privately.... she despises the kind-hearted healer. This is because, in a company full of thugs and rapists, a pretty woman who doesn't actively and violently create distance between herself and the men is basically a catalyst for strife and discord. She's already had to string up a targeteer for trying to rape one of Lyanna's underlings, and she knows it's a matter of time before someone tries it on Lyanna herself.
Lazia - Laz? She gets it. Light of hair, round of face and fat of teat - she'd clean up well if the likes of the Company were ever invited to a ball. But she keeps herself covered up and the men away, while doing a damned good job of all the scut work that keeps a company healthy and running. Saves a bunch of trouble, and Marina knows to show her appreciation for it. Laz can count on her backup any time.

 

[allthekingsmen]

Let me know if anything should be changed.

Name: Junayd D'Onofrio (he would like be called "Juna" in a good-natured way, but is too shy to ask for that)

Age: He's a young buck—only 20—but since his face is covered and people assume big scary giants are a little older, it's hard to tell.

Appearance: The biggest, burliest man you've ever seen—Juna towers over most and is built like a brick wall. He's always wearing an old but well-maintained closed helm, regardless of whether he's wearing other armor or not; he has a terrible need to conceal his face, barely lifting the visor to slip food in at mealtimes (in the past, he's even used a melon to hide his face when desperate). He's usually seen hunched over a little to seem less imposing, but it only succeeds in making him unintentionally loom over others intimidatingly. His exposed skin is tan and flecked with freckled dots and old scars.

Role Within Company: Farrier & groom/stable hand. Even though most company members fight on foot, someone's got to take care of the horses, and this is a good job for him when he's not actively fighting. He's also generally good for any manual labor needed to be picked up—he likes to help, he's strong, and he's completely unable to say no to people.

Reason For Joining: The company that Juna grew up with is no longer the place he or his family belongs. While his parents, both in their forties, can mostly settle down with their riches from years of work, Juna is still young and full of life, not to mention fit for a life of knavery. The Crow Company is fresh and up-and-coming, just like he is—he decided to give it a chance, taste their sense of honor (or the lack thereof).

Lance: Juna "commands" a small group of light cavalry skirmishers, showing them how to better connect with their mounts and fight on horseback, as well as directing them to certain spots on the battlefield and coordinating positions. Considering that he doesn't speak very much, most of his "commanding" is in vague gestures, grunts, and letting them figure out for themselves what the hell he means... but, well, all's well that ends well. They're effective, even if they're scared of and constantly confused by him.

Five Words: timid — oblivious — trying — devoted — malleable

Skills:

Big Lug: Uh. He's big. Strong. A human battering ram. Self-explanatory—he can carry multiple injured people at once, hoist heavy material goods when looting, and break through crates with his fists. Despite this, he manages not to accidentally squish the wrong people when shaking their hands, and can use his strength to brutal efficiency on the battlefield.

Still Standing: While he can be a clumsy oaf at times, he's awfully good at moving into danger and taking hits. He's very good at ignoring pain and fighting despite injuries. That being said, he will sniffle at a paper cut (he doesn't have to be so tough when outside of the battlefield!).

Oops, Did I Scare You?: He's a silent giant with a heart of silver (not gold—he's nice, but he'll still take all of your stuff if he's alone with it), but that gooey center doesn't usually show, despite his efforts. On more than one occasion, he's scared vital information out of weaselly connivers just by standing around quietly and letting them leap to their own conclusions. He's good to bring to an interrogation.

Maybe Knows What He's Doing: Juna is the son of two "former" mercenaries—he knows some people from other companies, whether they be positive or negative connections.

Character Connections: WIP

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Company Name: Peacock Company

Company Leaders: Captain Attilio D'Ambrosio, former knight (supposedly) and so-called idealist. He fancies himself a "good" mercenary; he struts, fluffs, and preens, but is no better than the vultures and peregrines he claims to despise, and robs innocents just as blindly—absolutely nothing like his predecessor.

Specialisation: "Artful" warfare that combines majestic charges and colorful distractions to mask cavalry skirmishes from unexpected angles. Admittedly not so effective now that it's become their trademark. In the past, they'd become famous for their excellent bodyguarding work and grand heists for expensive items—loving the money, not the war—but nowadays take part in more battles and killing.

Reputation: Initially considered some of the most chivalrous of the newfangled knaves of today, Peacock Company is now considered a bunch of underhanded scrappers who look pretty on the outside but are rotten on the inside, with many of their former members now disillusioned with their cause.

 

[Hecatoncheires]

Okay these characters all look absolutely wonderful so far. You guys are all absolutely nailing the vibe with it comes to such knave-ish knaves, and I love that we have different archetypes and styles of character emerging.

You've also all highlighted the fact that I am fucking idiot who forgot to update the Character Sheet Template with the 'Reason For Joining' section. Fortunately, given that you're all more competent than me, your sheets kinda convey this information already - you're welcome to add it in to your sheets if you want to though. This is why you shouldn't keep two versions of a document but only update one.

 

[allthekingsmen]

Added a free company concept to my earlier post so I can keep it all in one place. I hope it's okay ;; again, if there's anything I should change, I'll change it up!

 

[peachiie]

CHARACTER SHEET TEMPLATE

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Name: Lyanna aka Birdie ( or mom when the knaves think they're being funny )

Age: Is not quite sure but believes she's around 24

Role Within Company: The resident soft touch who sings hurt knaves to sleep while brushing her fingers through their hair, Lyanna is the healer, the one who soothes the hurts and occasionally lectures the irrational.

Lance: Kind-hearted and incredibly stubborn are the best way to describe Lyanna's group of healers. They'll heal your wounds, hold you down to a bed to ensure you rest, all while feeding you the most nutritious soup known to man. Some of them are Lyanna sweet and some are as gruff as can be, but most importantly, they care.

Five Words: Kind-hearted, Stubborn, Friendly, Diligent, Insecure

Reason For Joining: A lost battle is all it took for Lyanna's last company to be completely decimated. Whoever was leftover simply packed their stuff and continued on. Lyanna stumbled across the crow company figuring they'd appreciate the help of a healer.

Skills:

Soft Touch : Lyanna promises herself to always be as gentle as she possibly can, and she's known for her soft and soothing touch, built to calm all but the most battle hardened knaves.

Mother's tone : Though she's known for her sweet demeanor, Lyanna is able to conjure a tone and lecture like a highly disappointing mother, complete with the hands on her hips. It's very effective.

All Comes From Nature : Lyanna is quite adept at foraging and finding medicinal herbs in almost any environment. She generally has a pouch full of herbs she's found and can often disappear for times when foraging for more.

Urchin's Steps : Growing up as a street orphan, Lyanna is naturally plucky, good at sneaking, an adept pick-pocket ( when needed ), but most importantly, healer or not, Lyanna knows her way around knives and she is not afraid to 'stick em with the pointy end' so to speak.


Character Connections:

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Hi! Hope that's okay, please let me know if i need to add or change anything !

 

[driedstrawberries]

CHARACTER SHEET TEMPLATE

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Name: Celine Accola

Age: Twenty-one


Role Within Company: Being able to read and write wasn't exactly a common skill. Celine puts that rare ability to use by being in charge of sending out letters and correspondence.

Lance: They're the Skirmishers. The soldiers are deployed ahead of the main force in a looser fashion either to harass the enemy or defend a position. Her lance is full of brutes, but each one admires their captain with their upmost respect.

Five Words: Convincing, Confident, Selfish, Observant, and a tad Childish

Reason For Joining: Celine's thirst for knowledge was insatiable, even after being an apprentice to an old university professor who taught her a great deal. When she realized she wanted more than he could offer, she left in search of something new. That's when she stumbled upon the Crow Company, a place that promised both risk and reward. The opportunity was too tempting for Celine to resist.

Skills:

Empowering: There has always been a sort of glow around Celine when she gets fired up. Maybe it's her determination, maybe it's her infinite greed, but whatever it is it's easily spread to others. Like she sprinkled a bit of her glow to everyone around her.

Calligraphy: Celine's penmanship is exelent. Though it's not the most useful skill Celine still takes pride in her nice handwriting.

Childish Second Nature: Celine's talent for switching personalities may not be seen as a skill by many, but it never fails to bring joy to those around her. While she often appears serious, there is a playful side to her that emerges when she's not busy with raids or planning strategies.

Pistols: Two Wheellock pistols is her preferred choice of weapon on the battlefield.. Celine learned how to shoot in her days before the academy, from her father, a retired mercenary. They're easy to use and just as effective.

Character Connections:

1. 
   
2. 
   

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Hello! Let me know if anything needs tweaked!

 

[Ariel]

I've updated my character sheet with Marina's reason for joining and some character connections. I assume that someone who's joined up for an RP like this does not need content warnings. I don't intend to shy away from depicting the horrors of life and death amidst a Thirty Years' War type of mercenary company - "nasty, brutish, and short".

 

[Hecatoncheires]

That raises a point, actually: I'm a muppet and I haven't really clarified much about the tone I'm going for with Crow Company. I'd like for it, and the knaves within it, to represent a middle ground between the lofty fanciness of groups like Peregrine Company and the worst excesses that mercenaries can get up to (ably embodied by Vulture Company). Think more the crew of the Serenity from the Firefly TV series (god I'm showing my age here) - rough around the edges, perfectly willing to do bad things, but not total bastards. It's a bit of an abstraction, I'll grant you, but it should keep the Crows firmly in the picaresque camp rather than Berserk territory.

I do love the idea of one or more characters hating the shit out of another character, though, cos that's going to lead to all manner of opportunities for drama and interaction.

Also who fancies making some City States? We need City States for the company to get employed by and then screwed over by when it's time to get paid.

 

[Ariel]

I'll clarify too - hating someone doesn't mean you can't work with them, and neither does it mean you can't eventually find something to respect about them, even if you'll never want to spend time with them outside of duty. In any case, Marina despises most people anyway, outside of the Captain. And Marina herself will do all kinds of nasty stuff on behalf of the Captain, but without personally taking any pleasure in it - she's a professional, not a sadist. When she kills, it's like a butcher dispatching a lamb: coolly, casually, efficiently.

 

[Tastes Like Blue]

I've been visualizing it as a Guy Ritchie script. Didn't he do a King Arthur? Something snappy and medieval a long those lines.

Though if I was to cast Pascal in Firefly, he'd be a strong Zoe. Except replace Wash with his bird, Lady Jane. That feels right and bad at the same time.

I will be working on a City State. It would have already been done had my weekend not imploded. How dare it.

I'm interested to see what Marina thinks of him. Good things, I'm sure/s.

 

[Kuno]

Also who fancies making some City States? We need City States for the company to get employed by and then screwed over by when it's time to get paid.

I'm in the process of writing one up alongside my character sheet!

 

[Hecatoncheires]

I'll clarify too - hating someone doesn't mean you can't work with them, and neither does it mean you can't eventually find something to respect about them, even if you'll never want to spend time with them outside of duty. In any case, Marina despises most people anyway, outside of the Captain. And Marina herself will do all kinds of nasty stuff on behalf of the Captain, but without personally taking any pleasure in it - she's a professional, not a sadist. When she kills, it's like a butcher dispatching a lamb: coolly, casually, efficiently.

Every company of hired fighters needs someone that even a herd of hired fighters are scared of.

I've been visualizing it as a Guy Ritchie script. Didn't he do a King Arthur? Something snappy and medieval a long those lines.

...man why the fuck didn't I list Guy Ritchie as an inspiration/"behold the vibe we desire"? King Arthur was underrated, now you mention it. But then I'm a sucker for most things the man does.

I'm in the process of writing one up alongside my character sheet!

Yaaaaaaaaaaas. Looking forward to seeing it.

 

[allthekingsmen]

I think I may bit younger than you all, so I don't necessarily get all these references… I'll do some research (watch some movies) lol.

I can't wait for everyone's characters to meet, either! Juna is very new to the Company and is petrified of actually speaking to another human being, so he's very liable to misunderstandings in conversations. I think that'll be fun to RP.

 

[peachiie]

The way I wasn't getting notifs for this..

but yes im excited for everyone's characters and seeing how they interact! also when thinking of this rp i keep thinking of that scene from princess bride when inigo is like "you killed my father" and humphrey just fucking runs also the "he's only mostly dead" which i definitely want lyanna to say at some point

just finished dragon age 2 so if I can get my brain to work ill try and make a city state based off kirkwall maybe ( if you guys know anything about dragon age )

 

[driedstrawberries]

I don't know what else to say except for I'm exited! I can't wait to start and see how everything starts to come together.

 

[Hecatoncheires]

Juna is very new to the Company and is petrified of actually speaking to another human being, so he's very liable to misunderstandings in conversations.

Juna is a sweet giant marshmallow and I can already see him being absolutely delightful. Looking forward to seeing how this cast bounces off one another.

just finished dragon age 2 so if I can get my brain to work ill try and make a city state based off kirkwall maybe ( if you guys know anything about dragon age )

...I really need to replay Dragon Age 2. Played the hell out of Origins but I bounced off the sequel pretty hard when it first came out cos it felt too similar. People have told me it's aged pretty well though, so maybe it merits a second looking. Gotta finish Baldur's Gate 3 first, though.

 

[peachiie]

Juna is very new to the Company and is petrified of actually speaking to another human being, so he's very liable to misunderstandings in conversations.

Juna is a sweet giant marshmallow and I can already see him being absolutely delightful. Looking forward to seeing how this cast bounces off one another.

just finished dragon age 2 so if I can get my brain to work ill try and make a city state based off kirkwall maybe ( if you guys know anything about dragon age )

...I really need to replay Dragon Age 2. Played the hell out of Origins but I bounced off the sequel pretty hard when it first came out cos it felt too similar. People have told me it's aged pretty well though, so maybe it merits a second looking. Gotta finish Baldur's Gate 3 first, though.

dragon age 2 feels like a dnd game tbh
like origins feels like a darker rpg but dragon age 2?? definite has that dnd hijinks feel especially if you do humorous hawke. the story itself is pretty good too, i actually kinda prefer it over origins + the mage fighting is the best out of all 3 dragon ages