Villain - Captain Stephen Fevrier

Villainy Rank: 11

Strength: 7

Fevrier incorporates the Bone Hook Hand into his Valroux style in unusual ways.

Influence: 4

Fevrier's ship, Le Chien de Chasse au Loup (The Wolfhound), was recently refitted by his new employers, the Atabean Trading Company.

Arcana

Virtue: Temperate (The Glyph)
Activate your Virtue to prevent any magical effect (Sorcery, Artifacts, Monsters, etc.) from affecting you.

Hubris: Confusion (The Moonless Night)
You receive a Danger Point when this Villain fails to understand an important plot element and that misunderstanding leads to danger for herself or others.

Advantages

Duelist Academy - Valroux
The Bone Hook Hand - Received as a gift from the Devil Jonah when marooned on an island. The bony hand is able to change its shape in multiple ways but also seems to have a mind of its own.

Motives & Goal

Gratitude. To send as many pirates to the Devil Jonah as thanks for his gift to you.

Redemption

Fevrier's redemption is unlikely due to his insane devotion to The Devil Jonah. He won't stop until he is put into the deep, where he believes Jonah will rise him up to bring him more souls.

Deeds

Show eerie resolve in the middle of chaos
Reconfigure the Bone Hook Hand  to suit your needs
Reveal the Devil Jonah as your true master

Schemes

• Hunt pirates for the Atabean Trade Company (1). Stephan's stint as a pirate was relatively short, but he quickly realized that siding with the ATC was a much better idea. Every ship sunk is full of souls to appease the Devil Jonah.
• Kill every member of his original crew (3). Captain Fevrier began his naval career as a noble who bought a commission as a lark. He hated it, his crew hated him and they mutinied. He ended up marooned and, in a desperate move, cut off his own hand and threw it into the sea as an offering for the Devil Jonah. Jonah replied by sending the Bone Hook Hand and the ship that would become The Wolfhound to rescue him. Now Captain Fevrier seeks revenge on the crew that nearly killed him, marking a scar on the Hook Hand arm. There are only three more to go, including the leader of the mutiny, now a Captain in the Montaigne Navy.
• Unlock the true power of the Bone Hook Hand (5). Captain Fevrier believes that once he sinks a ship from each nation of Theah, the Devil Jonah will reward him with an even greater power - to summon and control a sea serpent with the Bone Hook Hand.

Hero - Yans Ingemar

Traits:

Brawn: 3
Finesse: 2
Resolve: 2
Wits: 4
Panache: 2

Arcana:

Virtue (The Beggar): Insightful

Activate your Virtue to discover a Brute Squad’s type, or to know a Villain’s Rank and Advantages.

Hubris (The Lovers): Star-Crossed

You receive a Hero Point when your Hero becomes enamored with someone she really shouldn’t.

Backgrounds:

Professor: Earn a Hero Point when you use knowledge from an obscure text to solve a complicated problem.

Sailor: Earn a Hero Point when you put aside your personal desires to ensure the safety and comfort of your allies.

Skills:

Athletics: 3
Brawl: 3
Convince: 1
Empathy: 3
Notice: 1
Perform: 1
Sailing: 2
Scholarship: 3
Tempt: 2
Weaponry: 1

Advantages: 

Bar Fighter: You gain 1 Bonus Die when you make a Brawling Risk to fight using an upturned table, a barstool, a plank of wood or some other improvised weapon.
Dynamic Approach: Spend a Hero Point to change your Approach during an Action Sequence or Dramatic Sequence.
Eagle Eyes: As long as you have a clear line of sight, you can see perfectly out to a distance of one mile. If you use a spyglass you can even pick out fine details, such as the inscription carved into a wedding band. If you make a Risk that relies heavily on your keen vision, you gain 1 Bonus Die.
Large: Gain 1 Bonus Die on any Risk that is easier due to your size—using Athletics to run at full speed even while carrying another Hero, or looming over someone in order to Intimidate them.

Sea Legs: While aboard a ship, treacherous footing never affects you. You gain 1 Bonus Die on any physical Risk while aboard a ship at sea—engaging in a sword fight on a pitching ship deck, or climbing through the rigging during a storm.
Tenure: You can expect refuge, a place to stay and hot meals in any university. You also have access to many of a university’s libraries simply by requesting it. Finally, you gain 2 Bonus Dice for any social Risks against characters who are members of an institution of higher learning or who respect such an education.
Team Player: When you spend a Raise to create an Opportunity, you can spend a second Raise. If you do, you activate the Opportunity on behalf of another willing Hero—she doesn’t need to spend her own Raise.

Active Story

Break the Curse of the Fate Witch (4 Steps)
Type: Dramatic

Reward: Revenge for the death of Roxana (Resolve 4) OR Someone else falls for Yans (Empathy 4)

1. Discover the name of the witch that cursed me

Hero - Irene de Montfort

Traits:

Brawn: 3
Finesse: 3
Resolve: 2
Wits: 3
Panache: 2

Arcana:

Virtue (The Witch): Intuitive

Activate your Virtue to ask the GM one yes or no question about an NPC. The GM must answer honestly and should be generous—for example, if there is a qualifier, he should tell you and explain more fully.

Hubris (The Tower: Arrogant

You receive a Hero Point when your Hero shows disdain, contempt, or otherwise looks down on a Villain or someone who could cause harm to friends.

Backgrounds:

Mousquetaire (Musketeer): Earn a Hero Point when you take a serious injury to protect your comrades or King.

Spy: Earn a Hero Point when you take a great risk to uncover a secret.

Skills:

Aim: 2
Athletics: 2
Empathy: 1
Hide: 3
Intimidate: 1
Notice: 2
Ride: 2
Tempt: 3
Theft: 1
Weaponry: 3

Advantages: 

Camaraderie: Whenever you spend a Hero Point to aid an ally, they gain four dice instead of three.

Eagle Eyes: As long as you have a clear line of sight, you can see perfectly out to a distance of one mile. If you use a spyglass you can even pick out fine details, such as the inscription carved into a wedding band. If you make a Risk that relies heavily on your keen vision, you gain 1 Bonus Die.

Joie de Vivre: Just before a confrontation with a Villain occurs, spend a Hero Point and make some sort of pithy or clever comment about how “When things look darkest, that’s when souls shine brightest.” Each Hero—that hears the speech—counts all dice that roll equal to or under his Skill on his next roll as 10s.

Opportunist: When another Hero spends a Raise to create an Opportunity, you can spend a Hero Point to immediately activate the Opportunity for yourself.

Poison Immunity: Poison never affects you, aside from some potential mild discomfort. If the poison would ordinarily kill you, it might cause you only to vomit instead, but there are no additional effects.

Quick Reflexes (Weaponry): You always take actions as if you had an additional Raise to spend when you use this Skill.

Active Story

Unlock My Puzzle Sword (4 Steps)
Type: Simple

Reward: Gain Signature Item (Montaigne Puzzle Sword)

1. Identify the Maker's Mark On the Hilt

Game Hack - At Sword's Point

The Explorers Society, named after my favorite secret society, is a fan-created resource for additional 7th Sea Second Edition content above and beyond the official books. Mark Diaz Truman asked me to create some content to help the website launch, so I pitched a short PDF that offered two things missing out of the book. That PDF became At Sword's Point, which is available now.

• A lot of swordsman school didn't make the cut (sorry) and the feeling I got from the design team was that anything that was going to be converted from the earlier edition officially was going to be in the core book or nations books. Until the nation books come out with any official versions of the old sword schools, these conversions should do.
• Some folks want there to be a difference between weapons, so I worked up short, quick rules for those too. That way, even people not interested in more dueling school might still want to check out the PDF.

Most of these schools were pulled from the original The Swordsman Guild book, which compiled the schools from the nation books and added more. It's one of the rarest of 7th Sea books and had commanded insane prices on the secondary market. I converted the school that were sword or blade based and omitted any schools that reflected the "weapon specialty school bloat of the sourcebooks.

If this product does well, I might consider doing a follow up that contains those other old schools, like the musket school and the boar spear school and so on. Part of why I agreed to do the project was an experiment to see how long it would take this project to earn out what I would have made on it as a flat fee. So please pick up a copy and leave a review!

Hero - Aletta Villanova

Traits:

Brawn: 2
Finesse: 2
Resolve: 3
Wits: 3
Panache: 3

Arcana:

Virtue (The Tower): Altruistic

Activate your Virtue to suffer a Risk’s Consequences in place of another Hero.

Hubris (The Fool): Stubborn

You receive a Hero Point when your Hero is stubborn and refuses to change her mind in the face of evidence.

Backgrounds:

Sorte Strega: Earn a Hero Point when you commit to a dangerous course of action that you believe is destiny.

Aristocrat: Earn a Hero Point when you prove there is more to nobility than expensive clothes and attending court.

Skills:

Aim: 2
Athletics: 1
Convince: 3
Empathy: 2
Hide: 2
Notice: 3
Perform: 1
Ride: 2
Scholarship: 1
Tempt: 3
Weaponry: 1

Advantages: 

Disarming Smile: Spend a Hero Point to keep another character from drawing a weapon, starting a fight or resorting to violence. She will still defend herself, but she will not start any violent conflicts.
Inspire Generosity: Spend a Hero Point to convince another character to grant you an object you want at no cost. They might give you something they already have or go to some lengths—legal or illegal—to procure the item, whatever is the easiest way for them to get their hands on what you want.
Rich: You begin each session with 3 Wealth.
Sorcery (Sorte) (7S2, pg. 228): When a Strega uses a Tessere, she spends a Hero Point and takes at least 1 Lash. The number of Strega’s Lashes magnifies the effect of a Tessere, but they also make the eventual cost steeper to pay. Fate is displeased by the meddling of Strega, and it always makes sure to take its toll.
Aletta posesses the Read, Arcana and Bless Major/minor effects, and the Pull minor effect
Time Sense: You always know what time it is. You know how long until the next sunrise or sunset, with less than a one minute margin of error.

Active Story

Topple Prince Giovanni Villanova (4 Steps)
Type: Dramatic

Reward: Change my Altruistic Virtue/Shift Panache to Wits

1. Learn to read from Professora Ximena Reyes

Hero - Erma Grimmson

Traits:

Brawn: 2
Finesse: 2
Resolve: 3
Wits: 2
Panache: 2

Arcana:

Virtue (The Tower): Humble

Activate your Virtue to gain 2 Hero points instead of 1 when you activate your Hubris or trigger a Quirk.

Hubris (The Fool): Curious

You receive a Hero Point when you investigate something unusual, especially if it looks dangerous.

Backgrounds:

Trubeneisen: Earn a hero point when you take a risk to protect your good name.

Ungetumjager (Monster Hunter): Earn a Hero Point when you choose to hunt down an inhuman creature so it will never hurt anyone ever again.

Skills:

Aim: 2
Athletics: 3
Brawl: 3
Convince: 1
Hide: 1
Intimidate: 2
Notice: 2
Scholarship: 2
Warfare: 1
Weaponry: 3

Advantages: 

I Won't Die Here: Spend a Hero Point to ignore all negative effects from Dramatic Wounds for the round—the Villain does not gain Bonus Dice if you have 2 Dramatic Wounds, and you do not become Helpless at 4 Dramatic Wounds.
Indomitable Will: After another character attempts to intimidate, seduce, or otherwise goad you, spend a Hero Point to automatically resist.
Linguist: You speak, read, and write all Théan languages. Even the dead ones.
Secret Society (Die Kreuzritter):  See pg. 261, 7th Sea Second Edition for more info.

Sorcery (Hexenwerk): You have the recipe for one Major Unguent and two Minor Unguents. See pg. 208, 7th Sea Second Edition for more info.

Staredown: Spend a Hero Point to intimidate a character into backing down from a threat, letting you into somewhere he shouldn’t, or otherwise getting out of your way.
Suvivalist: If you are in the wilderness, you can forage or hunt and find enough food for yourself and up to five other people. Under extreme circumstances—lost in the middle of a desert, or abandoned in the Ussuran tundra, for example—you find enough food for yourself and up to two other people.

Tarnished Dracheneisen: Dracheneisen cannot be destroyed, but it can become tarnished. No one is entirely sure how this happens – the Eisen say that it can happen when the weapon is shamed by its wielder, but alchemists are skeptical, expecting that the process is more mundane. Whatever the explanation, it can be cleaned, but not easily. The Eisen say that only the blood of monsters can clean Dracheneisen, and that is not terribly far from he truth.

You own a dracheneisen artifact, either a heavy melee weapon, a piece of armor or a panzerhand. Describe it in detail, bearing in mind that it should have a storied history.

• It is indestructible by any normal means
• Spend a Hero point to have your Signature Item appear in the next scene if you lose it or it is stolen
• Spend a Hero point to gain 2 Bonus Dice on a Risk when using your Signature Item.
• Spend a Hero point to attack a foe to deal Wounds equal to the Raises you spend plus your highest Trait when using the Signature Item.
• Spend a Hero point to prevent a number of Wounds equal to the Raises you spend plus your highest Trait

It is possible to “unlock” the other attributes of the item through stories. There are three levels of purification, each of which requires a 2 step story (usually 1. Find a rare monster, 2. Kill the hell out of it). After the first story, It glows when within 30′ of a monster. After the second story, If brandished before a monster, monstrous abilities which cost 1 danger point cost 2. If the item leaves the scene, the benefit is lost. After the third and final story, it gains a benefit based on its form:

• If it is a weapon, it causes one extra wound when striking a character with a Sorcery Advantage or Monster Quality.
• If it is a piece of armor, once per scene you may spend a hero point to avoid the automatic dramatic wound from a firearm
• If it is a Panzerhand, and you are fighting in the Eisenfaust style, it acts as both armor and weapon.

Time Sense: You always know what time it is. You know how long until the next sunrise or sunset, with less than a one minute margin of error.

Active Story

Restore My Family Name (2 Steps)
Type: Simple

Reward: Unlock the first Dracheneisen power

1. Find my brother Dek

Hero - Gaspar Ximinez

Traits:

Brawn: 2
Finesse: 3
Resolve: 3
Wits: 3
Panache: 2

Arcana:

Virtue (The Hanged Man): Altruistic

Activate your Virtue to suffer a Risk’s Consequences in place of another Hero.

Hubris (The Road): Underconfident

You receive a Hero Point when your Hero decides he cannot take an action without help from another Hero—insisting another Hero spend a Hero Point to give you Bonus Dice, or asking her to use one of her Advantages to aid you, for example.

Backgrounds:

Scholar: Earn a Hero Point when you put yourself in harm’s way in pursuit of knowledge.

Mirabilis (Priest): Earn a Hero Point when you give of yourself to demonstrate the warmth and compassion of the Vaticine Church.

Skills:

Aim: 1
Convince: 3
Empathy: 3
Notice: 2
Perform: 3
Ride: 2
Scholarship: 3
Weaponry: 3

Advantages: 

Duelist (Aldana): You are a skilled duelist. You have access to the Dueling Maneuvers Slash, Parry, Feint, Lunge, Bash and Riposte (see p. 235). You also have access to the following Style Bonus:

• When you wield a fencing sword in one hand and nothing else, you can perform a special Maneuver called the Aldana Ruse, causing your target to take additional Wounds equal to your Ranks in Panache the next time he takes Wounds this Round. You can only perform Aldana Ruse once per Round.

Linguist: You speak, read, and write all Théan languages. Even the dead ones.

Ordained: You can expect refuge, a place to stay, and hot meals in any church. You also have access to many—but not all—of the Church’s libraries. Finally, you gain two dice for any social Risks against characters who are adherents to your faith.

Spark of Genius (History): When you make a Risk and call on your specialized field of study, spend a Hero Point to gain additional Raises equal to your Wits.

University: You attended one of Théah’s formal universities and are familiar with many academic fields of study such as mathematics, architecture, and astronomy. When you make a Risk using Scholarship, Empathy, or Notice, all of your dice gain +1 to their value.