Aether Shanties RP (PM if interested/Started)

[Terratina.]

So one RP has gone into indeterminate hiatus so that frees up a slot, so here the sheet.

Spoiler: Vasco Roque

Name: Vasco Roque

Age: 24

Gender: Male

Culture: Neovictorian - Upper Class

Background: Doctor

Ship: HMS Invincible

Appearance: His face is completely hidden away behind a crow mask, which has tubes attached that leads to a gas tank containing purified air, which often periodically lets out steam, masking Vasco in a veil of mist. The ?eyes? of the mask reflect all light, giving the illusion of glowing eyes and giving people the idea that there is something other than human inside. He wears a top hat on his head and a coat that hides the rest of the body. None are sure that something human resides under all the clothing, but whatever it seems to be stick thin and at least six foot in height. In contrast to other people?s musings about what is under there, Vasco is indeed human. Beneath the mask is a twenty-something man with hard eyes, short brown-black hair, and a clean shaved face with cheekbones so sharp you could cut yourself on them. Years of hiding his face beneath a mask and under all the layers of clothing has rendered him pale and years of carrying that air tank around has affected his posture, causing him to hunch.

Spoiler: Vasco's Appearance

Personality: One would describe Vasco as cold and calculating, caring more about the details of his patients? affiliations than the patients themselves. He simply regards himself as one who appreciates all the little details that people often miss, little ironic consequences that often make him chuckle at the wiles of Fate and Lady Luck. Other than that, he is a hypochondriac, seeing a simple cough as a sign of a fatal diseases or a scratch as a fatal wound. In this sense he worries about his patients, but Vasco worries about the little details. To the extreme, Vasco is obsessive but with his overzealous diagnoses, he has never lost a patient because of a simple oversight. He prides himself as a doctor, and heaven help you if you challenge his methods or his diagnoses. A stern man that has discarded the naivete of youth long ago.

Biography: Born into a rich Neovictorian family, he was the sort of child who would pull the wings off flies or collect butterflies, relishing the moment when the spike pierced the torso of the poor insect. Without brothers or sisters, Vasco found amusement in other forms. He was once caught trying to dissect the family cat, which he got punished for with the cane. But seeing the boy?s interest in the natural world, his parents reluctantly decided to encourage him, hoping that he would become a respect professor of the sciences or a doctor. Nevertheless, Vasco was a sickly child. He was not made for the heavy polluted Neovictorian cities and often spent weeks in bed with bronchitis and still suffers from asthma to this day. For him, it was just more time to read books, for his parents, a source of constant worry. A child with such a weak constitution as his would probably die if left in the slums for a week. But fortune smiled on him and vast amounts of money was spent on medicine and doctors, to ensure that he would live.






Soon, Vasco was old enough to go to medical school. With little money left, the tuition fees would bankrupt the family and doom his parents to the poorhouse. Reluctantly, his parents agreed to send Vasco to the best school available, wiping out the once vast wealth from the Roque name, yet another noble family of Everglade drained of its wealth and of its blood. While his parents slaved away in sadness and in shame, Vasco passed with flying colours, inventing an air filtration system for those with lung problems from the pollution like himself. Finding civilian work not to his taste, he enrolled in the Navy. The constant clashes with pirates keep him busy, though he found time to perfect his invention, adding an air intake there and a air pump system here, etc. With his odd, but tolerated, appearance, rumours of a so-called Doctor Death spread but were quelled as he performed the impossible and used ideas stemmed from his invention to save another officer?s life.

A poison quill had impaled itself in her throat, probably from a Misbegotten pirate, but he knew how to save her, using a combination of chemistry and the mechanised air filters he had created. Vasco assisted the ship surgeon in the operation, him being only a low ranking junior officer at the time. However, when she was declared unfit for duty, he lashed out at his superior, telling them of the genius behind the device which kept her alive and with sufficient investment could easily make her fit for duty again. For this, he was declared mentally unstable and therefore was unfit for duty, plus some counts of gross misconduct so both doctor and patient were demoted that day for. He has stuck together with her since, both out of a sense of responsibility to keep the device working and to make improvements on the device where he can, hoping to prove the senior officer that demoted him was wrong.

Shared backstories take the fore. Any comments or criticisms welcome.

 

[CJ1145]

Last minute entry, GO! Also if this is too oversaturated a role, I'll make a military guy instead.

Spoiler: Leo

Name: Leo Kolpik

Age: 18

Gender: Male

Culture: Neobedouin
Background: Beast Dancer
Ship: The Mermaid

Appearance: A scrappy, slightly emaciated looking young man. His face is thin, and very scrappy looking, with fierce and bestial brown eyes and thin brows drawn into a defiant expression. His nose is small, and contributes to an appearance that generally speaks of youth, and perhaps a bit of naivete. His mouth is wider than average, and capable of producing quirky, catlike grins or such gigantic smiles that half his face seems to be absorbed into them. His hair is a shaggy, light brown that hangs in a jagged ring around his head right about level with his eyebrows. Below that, the rest of his hair is drawn into a ponytail that hangs over his right shoulder most of the time.

He has a few scars on his face. A jagged cut like from a piece of glass goes from his left cheekbone diagonally to just under the right side of his bottom lip, and in the center of his right cheek is a pockmark from a bullet, which he refers to jokingly as a dimple.

He is about 5'11" tall, and weighs 150 lbs. He has a layer of lean muscle, but still comes across as unhealthy from his abnormal weight.

He generally wears bright, primary colors, usually blue or red. Almost always this takes the form of a high-collared, long-sleeved jacket with gleaming cufflinks, brass buttons running up and down either side of the middle (the jacket is usually left open), with a bandanna of some sort wrapped around his neck. In the case of a blue or red jacket, it's yellow; a yellow jacket sports a red bandanna. Not one to go bare-chested, he wears a black, loosely-fit sleeveless shirt when wearing blue or yellow jackets, and a white one when wearing red. He always, repeat, ALWAYS wears a pair of baggy, khaki-colored pants that hang off his waist loosely and puff up where they are tucked in to his black combat boots. His belt is leather, with a big gleaming and utterly audacious buckle shaped like a skull.

He has a pair of prized brass goggles with tinted lenses which are often somewhere on his person, often raised to rest on his forehead. They do nothing. But, they make for good eye protection in the middle of a fight.

Personality: Has a very romantic, adventurous outlook on life. He sees the world below as constricting and a waste of space, and the sky as the whole world. A place to explore, a place to live, a place to love. He values companionship immensely and always seeks out people to befriend and bond with. His "grammarm", as he'd always called her, told him as a little boy that somewhere in the world, everyone has a group of people who share their heart, their dreams and their hopes, and will accept them wholly for who they are. True companions, and a family where everyone had a place and a purpose. He intends to find his out in the skies.

Never really tries to be mean, but he's frankly just disinterested in most normal people and their problems. Though he's not so hard to befriend if you catch his interest, and he'll defend you to a frightening extent once you've accomplished this. An enthusiast of competition-based activities, be they drinking eating or wrestling competitions. Can't stand books or any lethargic pastime. It's a wonder, at times, that he's even capable of sleep.

Biography: Leo was never satisfied in a Neobedouin setting. Though his family was kind, and he listened to stories from his grandmother, called "grammarm" through all of his youth, the life of a traveler in the hostile wilds was simply not for him. It was actually his grammarm's stories that inspired him. He looked up to the skies and dreamed of a real family, one that was accepting of who he was, including his desire to leave this life behind.

He had little in the way of talent, though he was a deadly fighter in close combat. He couldn't put that to much use outside of pirating...

But then, that was it, wasn't it? That was the key. A buccaneer's lifestyle high in the skies, a pirate's life for he. From the Appalachian mountains, he snuck away from his tribe not six months after he became a "man" at age 14. He rarely speaks of how he found his way aboard the Mermaid, but he'd already acquired massive scars along his back. He served as a servant for several years, only recently becoming full-fledged crew after an intensely long period proving his worth in combat.

 

[Malyc]

Well, looks like I've likely missed my opportunity... I'm just gonna bow out, as I've gotten busier with work and school than I thought I was going to.

 

[Ultraman950]

Last minute entry, GO! Also if this is too oversaturated a role, I'll make a military guy instead.

Spoiler: Leo

Name: Leo Kolpik

Age: 18

Gender: Male

Culture: Neobedouin
Background: Beast Dancer
Ship: The Mermaid

Appearance: A scrappy, slightly emaciated looking young man. His face is thin, and very scrappy looking, with fierce and bestial brown eyes and thin brows drawn into a defiant expression. His nose is small, and contributes to an appearance that generally speaks of youth, and perhaps a bit of naivete. His mouth is wider than average, and capable of producing quirky, catlike grins or such gigantic smiles that half his face seems to be absorbed into them. His hair is a shaggy, light brown that hangs in a jagged ring around his head right about level with his eyebrows. Below that, the rest of his hair is drawn into a ponytail that hangs over his right shoulder most of the time.

He has a few scars on his face. A jagged cut like from a piece of glass goes from his left cheekbone diagonally to just under the right side of his bottom lip, and in the center of his right cheek is a pockmark from a bullet, which he refers to jokingly as a dimple.

He is about 5'11" tall, and weighs 150 lbs. He has a layer of lean muscle, but still comes across as unhealthy from his abnormal weight.

He generally wears bright, primary colors, usually blue or red. Almost always this takes the form of a high-collared, long-sleeved jacket with gleaming cufflinks, brass buttons running up and down either side of the middle (the jacket is usually left open), with a bandanna of some sort wrapped around his neck. In the case of a blue or red jacket, it's yellow; a yellow jacket sports a red bandanna. Not one to go bare-chested, he wears a black, loosely-fit sleeveless shirt when wearing blue or yellow jackets, and a white one when wearing red. He always, repeat, ALWAYS wears a pair of baggy, khaki-colored pants that hang off his waist loosely and puff up where they are tucked in to his black combat boots. His belt is leather, with a big gleaming and utterly audacious buckle shaped like a skull.

He has a pair of prized brass goggles with tinted lenses which are often somewhere on his person, often raised to rest on his forehead. They do nothing. But, they make for good eye protection in the middle of a fight.

Personality: Has a very romantic, adventurous outlook on life. He sees the world below as constricting and a waste of space, and the sky as the whole world. A place to explore, a place to live, a place to love. He values companionship immensely and always seeks out people to befriend and bond with. His "grammarm", as he'd always called her, told him as a little boy that somewhere in the world, everyone has a group of people who share their heart, their dreams and their hopes, and will accept them wholly for who they are. True companions, and a family where everyone had a place and a purpose. He intends to find his out in the skies.

Never really tries to be mean, but he's frankly just disinterested in most normal people and their problems. Though he's not so hard to befriend if you catch his interest, and he'll defend you to a frightening extent once you've accomplished this. An enthusiast of competition-based activities, be they drinking eating or wrestling competitions. Can't stand books or any lethargic pastime. It's a wonder, at times, that he's even capable of sleep.

Biography: Leo was never satisfied in a Neobedouin setting. Though his family was kind, and he listened to stories from his grandmother, called "grammarm" through all of his youth, the life of a traveler in the hostile wilds was simply not for him. It was actually his grammarm's stories that inspired him. He looked up to the skies and dreamed of a real family, one that was accepting of who he was, including his desire to leave this life behind.

He had little in the way of talent, though he was a deadly fighter in close combat. He couldn't put that to much use outside of pirating...

But then, that was it, wasn't it? That was the key. A buccaneer's lifestyle high in the skies, a pirate's life for he. From the Appalachian mountains, he snuck away from his tribe not six months after he became a "man" at age 14. He rarely speaks of how he found his way aboard the Mermaid, but he'd already acquired massive scars along his back. He served as a servant for several years, only recently becoming full-fledged crew after an intensely long period proving his worth in combat.

Sadly, we already have someone on the Mermaid named Leo (he's a robot, but still). Might consider a different first name.

 

[Fiad]

Last minute entry, GO! Also if this is too oversaturated a role, I'll make a military guy instead.

Spoiler: Leo

Name: Leo Kolpik

Age: 18

Gender: Male

Culture: Neobedouin
Background: Beast Dancer
Ship: The Mermaid

Appearance: A scrappy, slightly emaciated looking young man. His face is thin, and very scrappy looking, with fierce and bestial brown eyes and thin brows drawn into a defiant expression. His nose is small, and contributes to an appearance that generally speaks of youth, and perhaps a bit of naivete. His mouth is wider than average, and capable of producing quirky, catlike grins or such gigantic smiles that half his face seems to be absorbed into them. His hair is a shaggy, light brown that hangs in a jagged ring around his head right about level with his eyebrows. Below that, the rest of his hair is drawn into a ponytail that hangs over his right shoulder most of the time.

He has a few scars on his face. A jagged cut like from a piece of glass goes from his left cheekbone diagonally to just under the right side of his bottom lip, and in the center of his right cheek is a pockmark from a bullet, which he refers to jokingly as a dimple.

He is about 5'11" tall, and weighs 150 lbs. He has a layer of lean muscle, but still comes across as unhealthy from his abnormal weight.

He generally wears bright, primary colors, usually blue or red. Almost always this takes the form of a high-collared, long-sleeved jacket with gleaming cufflinks, brass buttons running up and down either side of the middle (the jacket is usually left open), with a bandanna of some sort wrapped around his neck. In the case of a blue or red jacket, it's yellow; a yellow jacket sports a red bandanna. Not one to go bare-chested, he wears a black, loosely-fit sleeveless shirt when wearing blue or yellow jackets, and a white one when wearing red. He always, repeat, ALWAYS wears a pair of baggy, khaki-colored pants that hang off his waist loosely and puff up where they are tucked in to his black combat boots. His belt is leather, with a big gleaming and utterly audacious buckle shaped like a skull.

He has a pair of prized brass goggles with tinted lenses which are often somewhere on his person, often raised to rest on his forehead. They do nothing. But, they make for good eye protection in the middle of a fight.

Personality: Has a very romantic, adventurous outlook on life. He sees the world below as constricting and a waste of space, and the sky as the whole world. A place to explore, a place to live, a place to love. He values companionship immensely and always seeks out people to befriend and bond with. His "grammarm", as he'd always called her, told him as a little boy that somewhere in the world, everyone has a group of people who share their heart, their dreams and their hopes, and will accept them wholly for who they are. True companions, and a family where everyone had a place and a purpose. He intends to find his out in the skies.

Never really tries to be mean, but he's frankly just disinterested in most normal people and their problems. Though he's not so hard to befriend if you catch his interest, and he'll defend you to a frightening extent once you've accomplished this. An enthusiast of competition-based activities, be they drinking eating or wrestling competitions. Can't stand books or any lethargic pastime. It's a wonder, at times, that he's even capable of sleep.

Biography: Leo was never satisfied in a Neobedouin setting. Though his family was kind, and he listened to stories from his grandmother, called "grammarm" through all of his youth, the life of a traveler in the hostile wilds was simply not for him. It was actually his grammarm's stories that inspired him. He looked up to the skies and dreamed of a real family, one that was accepting of who he was, including his desire to leave this life behind.

He had little in the way of talent, though he was a deadly fighter in close combat. He couldn't put that to much use outside of pirating...

But then, that was it, wasn't it? That was the key. A buccaneer's lifestyle high in the skies, a pirate's life for he. From the Appalachian mountains, he snuck away from his tribe not six months after he became a "man" at age 14. He rarely speaks of how he found his way aboard the Mermaid, but he'd already acquired massive scars along his back. He served as a servant for several years, only recently becoming full-fledged crew after an intensely long period proving his worth in combat.

Sadly, we already have someone on the Mermaid named Leo (he's a robot, but still). Might consider a different first name.

Ya, could see that getting quite confusing. Well unless we called him by his last name. But since we don't know if one, both, or either of us will get in, it is a bridge to cross when we get there.

 

[blaze96]

With two strong competitors I really hope my doc can make it in.

 

[3quency]

Question for hiei, 'tina and I think Evrant:

Okay, seriously, how the fuck do you guys get such awesome images? Do you find the pictures then base the characters around them or is your google-fu just abominably strong?

 

[Evrant-Knight]

Question for hiei, 'tina and I think Evrant:

Okay, seriously, how the fuck do you guys get such awesome images? Do you find the pictures then base the characters around them or is your google-fu just abominably strong?

Regarding the images, I mainly use deviantart, its where I got the image for the sword. But now I kind of want to find an image to represent Garrett now that you mentioned it; because well, I am a little jealous of Hiei's.

 

[3quency]

I just managed to find one for Annis' mask. But I need to resize it, which is probably going to bug me for the rest of the day.

 

[hiei82]

Question for hiei, 'tina and I think Evrant:

Okay, seriously, how the fuck do you guys get such awesome images? Do you find the pictures then base the characters around them or is your google-fu just abominably strong?

I usually just spend a half-hour Google image searching specific words (like "Steampunk Captain") and seeing what comes up. In this case however, I knew what I was looking for before I made the character. The image I used is a character from a tabletop game I enjoy called Pathfinder. Specifically, It's from the Shackles & Skulls adventure - an adventure about pirates.

In the game, the character in question is an evil admiral from a devil-worshiping empire trying to wipe out the pirates forever. I just thought of it as the character sheet started to come together, so I decided to use her.

Had I not remembered the character, I would have used this:

[img/]http://fc09.deviantart.net/fs71/i/2012/074/4/b/steampunk_captain__color_edit__by_gravitybeams-d4r4wnv.png[/img]

Which I only mention because I wanted to post the image ^_^

 

[Ruedyn]

Hmm, found an awesome picture that could be cool for a misbegotten bard. How much time do we have before we start?

Spoiler: pic I found

 

[Sehnsucht Engel]

I'll just quote those who were accepted. Those who weren't can PM if they want to know why, but it might just be because the competition was tough.


[HEADING=3]Pirates[/HEADING]

Name: [s/]Cloud Strife[/s] Eddie Cirrus

Name: Skulk-Hound Sheska

Name: Jessie Tollan

Name: Samuel Garland

Name: Jason Aurora

[HEADING=3]Imperials[/HEADING]

Name: Rear Admiral Adriana Victor Elizabeth Lanester

Name: Garrett Corvus

Name: Feron-12

And I finally get a sheet in... I apologise for the length... kind of.

Spoiler: Exeter St John

"People of the Empire fear and revere his past. The pirates fear and despise his future."

Name: Exeter St John

Age: 36

Gender: Male

Culture: Neovictorian (Upper Class)

Background: 10 years as a Pirate, 13 years as an Air Navy Officer

Ship: HMS Invincible

Appearance: Exeter is a wiry man of 5'9" with shoulder-length, greasy brown hair that is sometimes tied at the nape of his neck - usually for more formal occcasions. He has shifty grey eyes and an unnerving smile; sardonic at best, imperious at worst. Around Exeter's neck can be seen a braided-rope scar and the back of his right hand bears a tattoo of bats in flight that climb halfway up his forearm.

The navy uniform is Exeter's regular attire; a Royal-Navy blue greatcoat with red trim, a white silk-shirt, a pair of durable Royal-Navy blue trousers, and a pair of heavy black boots. Unlike the rest of the officers onboard though, Exeter's uniform is rarely clean and never ironed. The coat is old, stained and fraying around the edges, a few poorly-mended holes are also obvious on the breast. The silk shirt was perhaps once white but is now more of a dusty grey and the top two buttons seem to be permanently undone - probably because they're missing. The trousers have dusty, worn knees and more poorly-stitched mends in them and his boots are scuffed and unpolished.

At his waist, Exeter carries a powerful flintlock pistol ornately decorated with silver engravings at the butt and along the barrel. He also has an old sabre for close-quarters but prefers to use the heavy telescopic baton and brass knuckles that he keeps stashed inside his coat.

Personality: Exeter St John is an extremely cool and quiet man who likes to keep on the good side of his superiors (even if he dislikes them) and intimidate his subordinates into obedience. He is a highly unctuous character - to the point of apparent patronism - who always looks as though he is plotting something; he stalks rather than walks everywhere.

Staunchly loyal to the Empire, Exeter will defend it unerringly. Even the most ardent lovers of the Empire have commented on Exeter's zealous affection and it has been said that he takes his job of interrogating pirates a bit too personally, often taking things too far and with a grin on his face. The only thing he is more loyal to is the memory of his late father, a hero amongst the Air Navy. Anyone who insults Exeter's father usually find themselves shot very quickly.

Although an angry and violent man inside, he is also well-read and a bit of a romantic - he enjoys military history and some philosophy, and is drawn into the idea of single-handedly saving the Empire from piracy.

Described as a pyschopath and a sadist, Exeter's success lies in his ability to intimidate on his reputation alone. This assurance is what makes him so cool and collected, qualities that just act to cement his reputation as a ruthlessly violent bastard. But could also help to get him killed...

Spoiler: Biography

Spoiler: Orphaned by Pirates

Exeter was born to the extremely rich St John family in Old Borealis, his father being the decorated Navy Officer Salisbury St John. Exeter's childhood was ripe with maids and servants, butlers and cooks. Exeter was treated kindly, well-educated and care-free but he barely saw his father.

The inimitable Salisbury St John was always away "saving the Empire" and "routing the pirate scourge". Not that the young Exeter particularly minded - he loved having a hero for a father, revering him more than the Empire itself.

When Exeter was eleven however, his father was killed in a failed assault on High Tortuga, a disastrous incident that the Empire quickly tried to forget. Exeter's mother couldn't forget though and a year after her husband's death she took her own life, leaving Exeter to be picked up by an orphanage.

Spoiler: Accidental Pirate

Exeter spent less than a year at the orphanage. He was becoming increasingly withdrawn and angry, prone to spells of violence against the other children, most often when the subject of fathers came up. He could think of nothing except pirates and avenging his father. He began reading stories about pirates in order to learn more about them but his anger was the only thing fuelled by the romantic portrayals of what he perceived to be murderers and villains.

Just before his thirteenth birthday, Exeter ran away. He went straight to the docks and made a few failed attempts at stowing away on a merchant airship. Eventually, he succeeded and managed to hide himself among the cargo. Not entirely sure what he was doing or where he was doing, the young boy simply vowed to stop piracy at any cost - to avenge his father and save the Empire no matter the risk to himself.

Less than a day from Old Borealis the merchant airship was attacked by pirates. The crew didn't put up much of a fight and, despite his initial anger, Exeter was terrified. The pirates found him when searching the cargo and took him to the captain, a man by the name of Harry Hornbill.

As Hornbill was delibertaing what to do with the him, Exeter's anger and courage were beginning to overpower the fear. Sliding free of his captor, Exeter grabbed quickly grabbed the nearest pirate's flintlock straight from the belt and fired. Hornbill hadn't moved the entire time but the young Exeter still missed, instead hitting the man next to the captain right in the heart. All the pirates watched in shock as the man dropped to the floor, stone dead. Exeter dropped the pistol in shock and held back tears at the thought of his coming fate.

After a moment staring at the dead man, Hornbill looked at young Exeter and grinned widely. "Congratulations," he said, "you just killed my first mate. I never liked the bastard anyway. Welcome aboard the Duskhunter!"

Spoiler: The Duskhunter

At the age of thirteen, Exeter was a pirate. He resisted at first but captain Hornbill was a charismatic and kind person and Exeter soon found himself warming to the man. In light of having nowhere to go and with the urge to learn more about piracy, Exeter endeavoured stay on the Duskhunter, hoping to learn secrets and methods to best remove piracy once and for all.

Exeter spent ten years on The Duskhunter; he learnt to shoot and fight, learnt how to fly and command an airship. During this time, Exeter never forgot about his father or the Empire but everytime he aided in killing Imperial soldiers and helping the pirates evade capture, he told himself that what he was learning could help the Empire and redeem his conscience. When they travelled to High Tortuga, the place his father was killed, Exeter choked back tears as he drank and cavorted with women, all to keep the charade going; all for the greater good of the Empire.

At the age of eighteen, Hornbill retired and left The Duskhunter under Exeter's charge. To celebrate, he set the course for High Tortuga, but instead of joining his crew for drinks and women, Exeter mourned his father alone, his burning conscience increasing the anger in his heart. There was one woman that night, a poor defenceless whore who happened to find herself in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Exeter captained The Duskhunter until he was twenty-three. In that time he gained a reputation as an unpredictable and ruthless man, often flogging his men for minor infractions and attacking other pirates who had spoken ill-words about him and his noble upbringing. The only time he was ever mutinied involving him nearly being hanged to death before struggling free and single-handely killing all involved. His orders were never disobeyed since that day.

Exeter eventually retired from piracy suddenly and without warning, just one day announcing to his crew that there would be a new captain before boarding a merchant vessel bound for Old Borealis. His education had finally ended and he now felt ready to share his findings with the Empire. Conscience tarnished and mind skewed, Exeter was finally ready to begin his revenge.

Spoiler: A Decorated Hero

Exeter's return was met with confusion, anger and cries of treason. He was arrested upon setting foot in Old Borealis and put on trial. Calmly, Exeter unfolded his story and although many didn't believe him, the ones who mattered did. His courage was commended and he was awarded nearly every medal imaginable. A mixture of his family name and his accolades earned him the title of Rear-Admiral, but Exeter refused - much to the surprise of everyone.

Exeter didn't want to draw attention to himself now, he wanted to aid the Empire from the shadows using his knowledge to aid other admirals instead of being in charge of a large vessel himself. He also believed that his experience as a pirate would be invaluable for interrogating captives, to which his superiors agreed. Thus Exeter began his career in the Air Navy.

Not long after this, Exeter was visited by a woman claiming to have borne his son. She arrived at his the St John manor with a four-year old in tow. Exeter took one look at the child and instantly dismissed the woman's claim. The child was a Misbegotten; eyes like a goat's, pure white hair and an inability to speak. The woman, however, was adamant and would not leave Exeter alone. After a brief struggle, Exeter shot the woma dead and considered the Misbegotten in silence for a long time. Eventually, he decided to raise it like a dog, keeping it caged and hand-cuffed, training it to fight bare-handed and fear his blows if it disobeyed him. As the Misbegotten grew up, Exeter began using it as a tool for intimidation against his peers and war against the pirates. If he didn't want to get his own hands dirty, he would simply order his loyal pet to do the work for him.

Exeter St John has worked in the Air Navy for thirteen years, helping to destroy countless pirate vessels in that time - including The Duskhunter, which he didn't bat an eyelid at. He has tortured hundreds of pirates and attained valuable knowledge for the Empire and believes he is getting close to stopping piracy once and for all. His desire to destroy piracy has flourished into an obsession, to the point where Exeter rarely sleeps and takes little care of his appearance and hygiene. Exeter's reputation as a cold and ruthless man and the fear which he could inspire in people with his own presence as well as his deadly Misbegotten's has become legendary. Although his methods are unsavoury and his presence on ships are uncomfortable for the crew, Exeter is tolerated because he has the vital knowledge and experience needed by the Empire.

Recently, Exeter has - along with his Misbegotten - been taken on board the HMS Invincible to aid her captain in finding and quelling pirates. Exeter has taken an instant dislike to the one-armed woman but shows her deference in order to sustain influence on the ship. He suspects her of something...but he is yet to find out what.

I think the end of the Bio falls apart a little but I'd been writing most of the day. I might go and edit if people suggest I need to add more detail anywhere.

As always, questions and stuff are always welcome. In fact, questions usually help me realise the character better and fill in any holes I've missed.

EDIT: Here's my secondary character.

Spoiler: Capricorn

"He's a beast. Useful for nothing more than killing."

Name: Capricorn

Age: 18

Gender: Male

Culture: Misbegotten

Background: Not Applicable. The life he has now is the only life he's ever known.

Ship: HMS Invincible

Appearance: Capricorn is a tall, lean man, standing at 6'2" and weighing 112kg of pure muscle. He has snow white hair and - most strikingly of all - eyes similar to that of a goat. Another subtle difference between himself and a regular human is that he has no canines, just very flat teeth as can be seen on herbivores.

He wears what are effectively rags; a soiled and torn pair of breeches. during colder weather he can be seen wrapped in a threadbare hessian cloak but it otherwise bare-chested. His feet are always bare.

Scars cross Capricorn's body from countless fights and discipline from his master. Until he is needed, his wrists and ankles are securely manacled with reinforced leather and chain, the key of which is held by Exeter St John.

Personality: Capricorn's loyalty to Exeter St John is unquetionable. It can perhaps only be compared to a dog's loyalty to it's master but even that is getting nowhere near how single-minded Capricorn is. The Misbegotten would die a thousand times before he allowed anyone to harm his master.

Despite revering Exeter St John, Capricorn is also infinitely afraid of his master due to the beatings and strict discipline he received whilst growing up. The result is a placid, simpleton capable of killing a group of armed men with his bare hands.

Although he has almost no mental aptitude aside from fighting, Capricorn is nevertheless a curious person. He cannot speak, instead merely making strange animal-like noises and he can often be found staring at things he finds interesting. His curiosity is often sated by tasting the thing holding his attention. He will usually chew something he finds interesting for hours on end before swallowing it.

Despite being placid when in chains, Capricorn is a quick and efficient fighter and will stop at nothing to fulfil his master's order of "kill", even if he is dying himself. Because the Misbegotten is mentally deficient, he has no morals. He doesn;t see hurting other people as right or wrong, he only knows the desire to please his master.

Biography: Capricorn was taken in by Exeter St John when he was four years old. Disgusted with the Misbegotten, Exeter kept him in a cage, fed him scraps and beat him for disobedience. Capricorn grew up in worse conditions than a mangy dog. Whilst Exeter was away for prolonged periods of time, Capricorn was locked in a cage in the basement and a servant would bring food and water once a day.

As the Misbegotten grew older, Exeter began to train him to fight. He brought in special trainers, paying them vast sums of money to keep quiet, and it wasn't long before Capricorn became the muscled monster he is today. At fifteen, Capricorn experienced his first street fight. Exeter had entered him in an illegal bout against four armed men. Capricorn won easily and became an instant hit with the illegal fight spectators. After that, Capricorn was entered into at least one fight a week with ever-increasing opponents. Capricorn beat them all.

Rumours of Exeter's dangerous Misbegotten "pet" began circulating and it wasn't long before he started using Capricorn to intimidate his peers, gaining respect from their fear.

Not long after Capricorn was seventeen, Exeter began using him in his interrogation work. Many officers were unsure of the methods but they couldn't deny it produced great results in a fraction of the time. One of Exeter's favourite methods was to give his pistol and sabre to the captive and just lock them in a room with Capricorn, who's only order was to "maim". That certainnly worked quickly.

Now, at the age of eighteen, Capricorn has had just over a year working on Navy airships and finds himself alone, caged in one of the darkest rooms of the Invincible, occasionally visited by Exeter for feeding or - more often - discipline.

It's probably important to note that Capricorn - due to the nature of him - would not be used in the RP as often as Exeter. Obviously he'd be around during battles and if other characters want to go visit him but my main character is Exeter. Also, if Exeter is accepted but people dislike the other sheet, I can remove that from Exeter's bio.

Oh, I do have a submission for an Imperial character written up if we still need more.

They may have turned out a little larger-than-life in terms of villainy-ness.

So the Imperial ship is populated by mercenaries, evil imperials, ex-pirates, thieves, and robots... Why does this sound like a sitcom in the making?

That said, I want to see it, because I like seeing crazy characters

Well she's not crazy per se but... ah, what the hell. Here we go:

Spoiler: Black Annis

Name: Anastacia "Black Annis" Baker-Cromwell
Age: 36
Gender: Female
Culture: Neovictorian Upper Class
Background: Ex-Marine commander/ Quartermaster
Ship: HMS invincible

Spoiler: Appearance

Annis is incredibly tall, standing at 6' 5'', she veritably towers over others. Her broad shoulders and shoulder-length hair can give the impression of a more masculine figure than people actually expect. Her hair is black as pitch, and is bound into a tight bob, held together with a pair of deadly assassin's needles, claimed from a best Neobedouin.
The most distinct thing about Annis' appearance is her brass half-mask-cum-gasmask that covers the lower half of her face and extends down around her throat. This is a rebreather system, specially designed so that Annis can actually still breathe. It has a pair of grille-like slots on the front from which escapes a greenish vapour whenver she breathes out. A series of valves and tubes spread forth from it and curl around and into her Navy greatcoat, to a chemical release system strapped to her thigh.

She carries a military sabre with her at all times, and a large steam-pistol is holstered against her leg. Her eyes are a piercing blue, and almost always narrowed with a look of disdain.

Spoiler: The Mask WARNING: I'm shite at image manipulation, image is rather large

Spoiler: Personality

Annis is extremely resentful. She lost her station and lost her respect a few years back in the accident and has been looked at as the laughing stock of the Navy ever since. She hungers for a way to once more become a rising star, to regain her station. She wants to be a captain, or admiral.
This desire for power far outstrips her loyalty to the Empire. She would never consciously betray the emperor or her country provided there was no way in which she'd benefit from the betrayal.

On a more personal level she used to be quite the sadist. But in recent years, something inside her... broke. She's colder now. More efficient. Where, in her days as a Marine Captain she'd pull a man's eyes out and cram them down his throat she'll now just shoot him point blank. It's as if she no longer has time for such things.

She is committed to military discipline and other than regularly drilling those men under her command, she keeps a strict physical regimen and practices sword and gun-play at least twice a day often for hours at a time.

Spoiler: Biography

For Black Annis, the game of life was rigged in her favour from the start. Born into the Neovictorian aristocracy was already enough, but combine that with a doting father who had a ?special understanding? with the forces of justice and a large estate in Everglade and her life was perfect.

Her father, Jacob, was an avid big-game hunter and had all manner of animals from beyond the walls imported on the sly into their extensive gardens. Since her only brother was a sickness-infested weakling Jacob instead took Annis out with him on the hunting trips.
She loved these trips, not only did she get to spend large amounts of time alone with her father (whom she adored), but she got to learn certain skills no other girl she knew could perform. Whether her mean streak was developed through constant hunting and skinning of wild animals or whether this was merely fuel for a fire already burning is up for debate, but her taste for bloodshed was undeniable.

When she finally came of age, she begged her father to pull some strings with the Navy and sure enough she ended up in the Marines less than a year later.

As time wore on, Annis' ferocity in combat and general enthusiasm for the military rules and regulations saw her quickly rise through the ranks until she made Captain aged 25.


It was during this period that she earned the name black Annis. Her ships were known for pursuing Pirates with a frightening ferocity, and any pirates that were actually found after the battle were usually skinned and pinned to their own decks, if they were found at all. Rumours were abound that she skinned them because she hated the taste of skin, and kept the rest for eating. Annis eagerly encouraged this rumour, and even planted spies in pirate towns to spread it further.

But this time was not to last. One day during a particularly lethal boarding melee Annis took a poisoned quill fired from a misbegotten pirate to the throat.
The ship surgeon fought to save her life and only just stabilised her in time to get her to a proper clinic.
Annis was fitted with the breathing apparatus she wears to this day. Certain elements of the poison remained in her system and only by breathing in the chemicals provided by the mask can she still survive. It also patches the hole in her throat.

Unfortunately due to military regulations, she was no longer considered fit for active duty. Through some desperate political manoeuvring she managed to secure a place as a non-combatant officer aboard the Invincible, and has leapt at this opportunity with a typical enthusiasm. She keeps herself as fit and healthy as her body will allow, and is still a fierce fighter, but is no longer allowed to put these skills to use.

She hopes that one day soon that will change.

So one RP has gone into indeterminate hiatus so that frees up a slot, so here the sheet.

Spoiler: Vasco Roque

Name: Vasco Roque

Age: 24

Gender: Male

Culture: Neovictorian - Upper Class

Background: Doctor

Ship: HMS Invincible

Appearance: His face is completely hidden away behind a crow mask, which has tubes attached that leads to a gas tank containing purified air, which often periodically lets out steam, masking Vasco in a veil of mist. The ?eyes? of the mask reflect all light, giving the illusion of glowing eyes and giving people the idea that there is something other than human inside. He wears a top hat on his head and a coat that hides the rest of the body. None are sure that something human resides under all the clothing, but whatever it seems to be stick thin and at least six foot in height. In contrast to other people?s musings about what is under there, Vasco is indeed human. Beneath the mask is a twenty-something man with hard eyes, short brown-black hair, and a clean shaved face with cheekbones so sharp you could cut yourself on them. Years of hiding his face beneath a mask and under all the layers of clothing has rendered him pale and years of carrying that air tank around has affected his posture, causing him to hunch.

Spoiler: Vasco's Appearance

Personality: One would describe Vasco as cold and calculating, caring more about the details of his patients? affiliations than the patients themselves. He simply regards himself as one who appreciates all the little details that people often miss, little ironic consequences that often make him chuckle at the wiles of Fate and Lady Luck. Other than that, he is a hypochondriac, seeing a simple cough as a sign of a fatal diseases or a scratch as a fatal wound. In this sense he worries about his patients, but Vasco worries about the little details. To the extreme, Vasco is obsessive but with his overzealous diagnoses, he has never lost a patient because of a simple oversight. He prides himself as a doctor, and heaven help you if you challenge his methods or his diagnoses. A stern man that has discarded the naivete of youth long ago.

Biography: Born into a rich Neovictorian family, he was the sort of child who would pull the wings off flies or collect butterflies, relishing the moment when the spike pierced the torso of the poor insect. Without brothers or sisters, Vasco found amusement in other forms. He was once caught trying to dissect the family cat, which he got punished for with the cane. But seeing the boy?s interest in the natural world, his parents reluctantly decided to encourage him, hoping that he would become a respect professor of the sciences or a doctor. Nevertheless, Vasco was a sickly child. He was not made for the heavy polluted Neovictorian cities and often spent weeks in bed with bronchitis and still suffers from asthma to this day. For him, it was just more time to read books, for his parents, a source of constant worry. A child with such a weak constitution as his would probably die if left in the slums for a week. But fortune smiled on him and vast amounts of money was spent on medicine and doctors, to ensure that he would live.






Soon, Vasco was old enough to go to medical school. With little money left, the tuition fees would bankrupt the family and doom his parents to the poorhouse. Reluctantly, his parents agreed to send Vasco to the best school available, wiping out the once vast wealth from the Roque name, yet another noble family of Everglade drained of its wealth and of its blood. While his parents slaved away in sadness and in shame, Vasco passed with flying colours, inventing an air filtration system for those with lung problems from the pollution like himself. Finding civilian work not to his taste, he enrolled in the Navy. The constant clashes with pirates keep him busy, though he found time to perfect his invention, adding an air intake there and a air pump system here, etc. With his odd, but tolerated, appearance, rumours of a so-called Doctor Death spread but were quelled as he performed the impossible and used ideas stemmed from his invention to save another officer?s life.

A poison quill had impaled itself in her throat, probably from a Misbegotten pirate, but he knew how to save her, using a combination of chemistry and the mechanised air filters he had created. Vasco assisted the ship surgeon in the operation, him being only a low ranking junior officer at the time. However, when she was declared unfit for duty, he lashed out at his superior, telling them of the genius behind the device which kept her alive and with sufficient investment could easily make her fit for duty again. For this, he was declared mentally unstable and therefore was unfit for duty, plus some counts of gross misconduct so both doctor and patient were demoted that day for. He has stuck together with her since, both out of a sense of responsibility to keep the device working and to make improvements on the device where he can, hoping to prove the senior officer that demoted him was wrong.

Shared backstories take the fore. Any comments or criticisms welcome.

 

[hiei82]

[HEADING=3]Imperials[/HEADING]

Name: Adriana Victor Elizabeth Lanester

Name: Garrett Corvus

Name: Feron-12

Name: Exeter St John

Name: Black Annis

Name: Vasco Roque

Right then. So my next question is how to organize the ship and set up our pre-game interactions.

Some of this seems to have been done already: Adriana + Garrett in a relationship, Exeter dislikes Adriana (and probably Feron-12 and Garrett). Also, I know that Black Annis is the Quartermaster, Vasco is the ships Doctor, and so on.

Looking at it, I think Exeter is probably the first mate; though Annis could qualify if she wanted the promotion.

Questions: (some you may have answered in the character sheets so just bare with me)
1) How long have each of you been on the ship?
2) How do we want to set up our interactions. Who gets along with who, and who can't stand the others presence? etc.
3) I like to pre-plan what happens a bit so every player can accomplish their goals with their characters. How do you want your character's to develop? What kinds of events do we want to work toward.

Let me know your answers. I can set up a group for this discussion if you don't want the dirty rotten pirates to see your answers.

 

[Sehnsucht Engel]

[HEADING=3]Imperials[/HEADING]

Name: Adriana Victor Elizabeth Lanester

Name: Garrett Corvus

Name: Feron-12

Name: Exeter St John

Name: Black Annis

Name: Vasco Roque

Right then. So my next question is how to organize the ship and set up our pre-game interactions.

Some of this seems to have been done already: Adriana + Garrett in a relationship, Exeter dislikes Adriana (and probably Feron-12 and Garrett). Also, I know that Black Annis is the Quartermaster, Vasco is the ships Doctor, and so on.

Looking at it, I think Exeter is probably the first mate; though Annis could qualify if she wanted the promotion.

Questions: (some you may have answered in the character sheets so just bare with me)
1) How long have each of you been on the ship?
2) How do we want to set up our interactions. Who gets along with who, and who can't stand the others presence? etc.
3) I like to pre-plan what happens a bit so every player can accomplish their goals with their characters. How do you want your character's to develop? What kinds of events do we want to work toward.

Let me know your answers. I can set up a group for this discussion if you don't want the dirty rotten pirates to see your answers.

I was planning on using this thread for the RP as well. I'm making a group though, so it's better if you go there with this sort of discussion when everyone's invited.

 

[Kuroneko Aisha]

Aww, didn't make it. Better luck next time then. Hope this RP has a long life! ^_^

 

[Ultraman950]

I didn't make it? I didn't make it?! @_@

... Darn. Maybe next time. *Shrug*

 

[3quency]

Batting for team badguy then. Sublime. I think I may keep a hold of Isaac though, I actually quite liked writing him so you never know, if we ever set another of these up...

 

[Fiad]

Darn. Well grats to everyone who made it.

 

[hiei82]

Batting for team badguy then. Sublime. I think I may keep a hold of Isaac though, I actually quite liked writing him so you never know, if we ever set another of these up...

Team bad guy? What are you talking about. Our side is the empire. We bring law, order, and civilization to the world; pushing back the darkness by the will of the Emperor. Meanwhile, the pirates are just thieves and bandits taking what they want from those who work hard to make a living, and killing those that try to stop them.

The pirates are CLEARLY "team bad guy." Long live Victor III! Long live the Empire!

In all honesty though, one group is Imperialistic England in the sky and the other is a group of brigands; you're batting for team bad guy no matter which side you're on.

 

[3quency]

...you just wanted to use that image didn't you

Well in the actual game book the tone they've taken is quite Larger-than-Life, Swashbucklery Black and White, so at the very least the Imps are Team Worsebadguys.