Friday, September 2, 2016

Villain - Amadej Radtke

"If they don't live to see the statehouse,
then they can't vote, can they?"

Villainy Rank: 10

Strength: 3

He took fencing lessons as a child and...dabbles with Serafina.

Influence: 7

He is the heir to a very wealthy province with influence that stretches throughout the Sarmatian Commonweath.

Arcana

Virtue: The Road
Hubris: The Tower

Advantages

Friend at Court
Connection: The Sarmatian Semj
Rich

Motives & Goal

Order. He protects the natural way of noble blood this way.

Deeds

Seek a sanctuary where he can wait for back up.
Brag about his noble upbringing makes him superior.
Make a display of wealth to cow someone's poor opinion of him.

Villain - Serafina Bonetti

"I am ready to inspect this noble blood you claim to possess."

Villainy Rank: 5

Strength: 4

She's a very deadly duelist instructed in the
Ambrogia style by her mother.

Influence: 1

She's on the outs with the Duelists Guild (and her mother), but she can usually round up a few local thugs to back her up.

Arcana

Virtue: The War
Hubris: The Tower

Advantages

Duelist Academy - Ambrogia

Motives & Goal

Ambition. To make her way in the world as a Duelist, NOT a courtesan like her mother.

Deeds

Make a wild eyed attack that covers up a cheap shot.
Send in some Brutes to soften up her opposition.
Question something obvious about her opponent.

Sunday, August 28, 2016

Hero - Felix Guy-Daniel


"I have the perfect red for this battle.
I do hope they don't surrender before I return."

Traits:

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

Arcana:


Virtue (The Fool): Wily
Activate your Virtue to escape danger from the current Scene. You cannot rescue anyone but yourself.
Hubris (The Beggar): Envious
You receive a Hero Point when your Hero covets something, and does something unwise to get it.

Backgrounds:

Sorcier Porte: Earn a Hero Point when you close a Blessure that a Villain ripped open.
Aristocrat: Earn a Hero Point when you prove there is more to nobility than expensive clothes and attending court.

Skills:

Aim: 2
Brawl: 2
Convince: 3
Empathy: 3
Hide: 2
Ride: 3
Scholarship: 3
Tempt: 2

Advantages: 

Able Drinker: Alcohol never adversely affects you, no matter how much you drink.
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.
An Honest Misunderstanding: Spend a Hero Point to edit, redact, or otherwise alter something you or another Hero just said, “reinterpreting” the words into the kindest compliment.
Linguist: You speak, read, and write all Théan languages. Even the dead ones.
Sorcery (Porte): As described on pg. 219. You have four Minor Marks for small items you can Pull. You have two Major Marks that he may Walk to: your cabin aboard The Tempered Steel and your wine cellar in Montaigne.
Rich: You begin each session with 3 Wealth.
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.

Hero - Rachelle Anjou

"I offer you my blade, m'sieur.
Your manners from here on out determine which end of it you will receive."

Traits:

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

Arcana:

Virtue (The Magician): Willful
Activate your Virtue and target a Villain. Until the end of this Scene, you cannot spend Hero Points and the Villain cannot spend Danger Points.
Hubris (The Sun): Proud
You receive a Hero Point when your Hero refuses an offer of aid—for example, if a Hero tries to spend a Hero Point to give you Bonus Dice and you turn them down.

Backgrounds:

Farmkid: Earn a Hero Point when you solve a complex problem in a simple, tried and true method from back on the farm.
Mousquetaire: Earn a Hero Point when you take a serious injury to protect your comrades or King.

Skills:

Aim: 2
Athletics: 3
Convince: 2
Empathy: 2
Intimidate: 3
Notice: 2
Perform:
Ride: 2
Weaponry: 3

Advantages: 

Camaraderie: Whenever you spend a Hero Point to aid an ally, they
gain four dice instead of three.
Duelist Academy: You studied at the Valroux academy thanks to the influence of your Musketeer patron.
Style Bonus: Valroux Press
When you wield a fencing sword in your right hand and a dagger in the left, you can perform a special Maneuver called Valroux Cross. Valroux Cross prevents Wounds equal to your Weaponry, and you choose a Maneuver you know your opponent can perform on her next
Action. Performing any other Maneuver costs your opponent an additional Raise. You can only perform Valroux Cross once per Round, immediately following
the Maneuver that caused your Wounds.
Legendary Trait (Finesse): Whenever you rolls a Risk using Finesse, you remove one die from your pool before you roll. That die is always considered to roll a 10. If your 10s explode, your free Legendary Trait 10 explodes as well.
Quick Reflexes (Weaponry): You always take actions as if you had an additional Raise to spend when you use this Skill.
Survivalist: 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.

Game Hack - Story Options

I was inspired by +Rob Donoghue 's excellent hacks for incorporating Dracheneisen back into 7th Sea as a noble trait and using the Sorte Deck to develop 13th Age Icon-like relationships with the big names of the setting. (Rob also did a thorough review post on the game that echo most of my feelings as I read the book.)

7th Sea has always been a game of hacks, tweaks and house rules for me. Now that I'm a game designer, that hasn't changed. I offer a trio of hacks for the player stories after the jump.