[Current Version]
[After Gauntlet]
Alan ex Criamon – at Gauntlet
Characteristics: Int +2, Per -2, Pre +1, Com +4, Str -2, Sta +3, Dex 0, Qk 0
Size: 0
Age: 28 (28), Height: 1.70m, Weight: 65k, Gender: Male
Decrepitude: 0
Warping Score: 0
Confidence: 1 (3)
Reputations: none
Voting Sigil: Small stone puzzle cube that cannot be solved without magic
Virtues: Free: The Gift, Hermetic Magus, Enigmatic Wisdom
Gentle Gift (3), Improved Characteristics (1), Greater Characteristic (Communication) (1), Skilled Parens (1), Enduring Constitution (1), Cautious Sorcerer (1), Puisant Creo (1), Puisant Terram (1)
Flaws: Restriction (3), Deficient Perdo (3), Continent (1), Temperate (1), Weird Magic (1), Warped Magic (1)
Personality Traits: Focused +1, Calm +2, Ascetic +3
Combat:
Dodge: Init: +, Attack ‑‑, Defence +1, Damage ‑‑
Fist: Init: +0, Attack +1, Defence +1, Damage -2
Kick: Init: -1, Attack +1, Defence +0, Damage +1
Soak: 3
Fatigue levels: OK, 0, ‑1, ‑3, ‑5, Unconscious
Wound Penalties: ‑1 (1‑5), ‑3 (6‑10), ‑5 (11‑15), Incapacitated (16‑20), Dead (21+)
Encumbrance: 0
Abilities:
Ability[tab][/tab] Rank[tab][/tab] Specialization[tab][/tab]
Language: French (Norman) 5 [tab][/tab] Stories and Tales
Language: Celtic (Breton) 3 [tab][/tab] Chatting
Language: Gaelic (Scottish) 1 [tab][/tab] Haggling
Dead Language: Latin 4 [tab][/tab] Difficult concepts
Awareness: 1 [tab][/tab] Faults in stone
Artes Liberales: 2 [tab][/tab] Geometry
Bargain: 2 [tab][/tab] Appraising
Brawl: 1 [tab][/tab] Dodging
Charm: 2 [tab][/tab] Friendly
Concentration: 3 [tab][/tab] Meditating
Craft: Sculpting 1 [tab][/tab] Stone
Craft: Stone 2 [tab][/tab] Weird cuts
Criamon Lore: 1 [tab][/tab] Riddles
Enigmatic Wisdom: 3 [tab][/tab] Complex patterns
Etiquette: 1 [tab][/tab] Nobles
Finesse: 1 [tab][/tab] Creative flair
Folk Ken: 2 [tab][/tab] Little white lies
Guile: 1 [tab][/tab] Little white lies
Intrigue: 2 [tab][/tab] Connections
Leadership: 1 [tab][/tab] Labour workers
Magical Theory: 4 [tab][/tab] Terram
Parma Magica: 1 [tab][/tab] Corpus
Philosophy: 1 [tab][/tab] Mathematics
Profession: Scribe 1 [tab][/tab] Copying
Swim: 1 [tab][/tab] Staying afloat
Detailled Accounting
Early Childhood (0-5) (45 xp)
French (Norman)5(free), Celtic (Breton) 2 (15), Awareness 1 (5), Brawl 1(5), Charm 1 (5), Folk ken 1 (5), Guile 1 (5), Swim 1 (5)
Later Life (5-13) (120xp)
Celtic (Breton) 3 (15), Gaelic (Scottish) 1 (5), Bargain 2 (15), Charm 2 (10), Concentration 3(30), Craft (Sculpting) 1 (5), Craft (Stone) 2 (15), Etiquette 1 (5), Folk Ken 2 (10), Intrigue 1 (5), Leadership 1 (5)
Apprenticeship (13-28) (165xp)
Artes Liberales 2 (15), Criamon Lore 1 (5), Enigmatic Wisdom 3 (25), Finesse 1 (5), Latin 4 (50), Magical Theory 4 (50), Parma Magica 1 (5), Philosophy 1 (5), Profession (scribe) 1 (5), Intrigue 2 (10)
Arts (125)
Cr: 10+3* (55) An: 1 (1) Ig: 1 (1)
Int: 1 (1) Aq: 1 (1) Im: 1 (1)
Mu: 1 (1) Au: 1 (1) Me: 1 (1)
Per: 1 (1) Cor: 1 (1) Te: 10+3* (55)
Re: 2 (3) He: 1 (1) Vim: 1 (1)
*Puissant
Magical Sigil
Static: complex patterns are left over. Any dynamic effect is overshadowed by the warping
Spells
150 lvls total at gauntlet
Circle of Beast Warding ReAn 5 AM 120
Charge of the Angry Winds CrAu 15 AM 125
Trap of Entwining Vines CrHe 15 AM 135
Panic of the Trembling Heart CrMe 15 AM 148
Conjuring the Mystic Tower CrTe 35 AM 153
Rock of Viscid Clay MuTe 15 AM 154
Ward Against Fairies of the Mountain ReTe 10 AM 155
The Unseen Porter ReTe 10 AM 156
Invisible Sling of Vilano ReTe 10 HoH:S 38
Dust Cloud CrTe(Au) 20 MoH: 31
This spell is essentially Foras Vim done with Creo, so it can be used anywhere. Its duration is Diameter, which increases the magnitude by 1. As a result of these changes: a) For the duration or until something clears the cloud (like a strong gust of wind), visibility is impaired and targeting of ranged weapons and spells that require sight is impossible. b) To interfere with Magi casting, a successful penetration is required.
[tab][/tab]Appearance
Alan is a medium height man of Breton descent, painfully thin to the point of gauntness. Clean shaven and with very close cropped reddish-blond hair, his appearance is unusual for a Celt. Soft brown eyes and a perpetual smile make him seem friendly. Alan dresses in stout peasant clothing, mostly linen and wool, though he avoids furs: a simple half-robe that reaches to the mid of his calves with long, deep sleeves, and a woolen or leather hose, he looks quite ascetic.
The most striking feature of the Criamon magus is his voice. A low, soothing deep rumble, it easily conveys emotion and meaning. Alan is always calm and reasonable in his interactions, almost never raises his voice. His Stigmata start at his navel and cover much of his belly, flowing to the sides and then climbing up his ribs and down to his thighs. They are continuous lines of Celtic knots, whorls of woad mixed with strange interlocking meanders. Sometimes they move...
Alan self flagellates every few days, as a means of meditating and activating his magic. He puts unguents and carefully dresses his wounds, being stiff on the day he does. This way he activates his magic. He also sports several cuts on his left forearm; some times in emergencies, he self inflicts knife wounds on his flesh.
[tab][/tab]Equipment
Simple peasant clothing, a walking stick, a knife
[History, Virtues and Flaws explained.]
[tab][/tab]History
Alan was born in a small village near Caen, France, to Breton parents. His father was fortunate enough to manage a quarry for a monastery as its head mason and stone-cutter. Despite his cultural heritage, Alan's father insisted that all his children (three sons and two daughters, Alan was the second born son) being taught and raised as Normans not Bretons. It would seem he was afraid he would lose the patronage of local nobles, or he was ashamed of his heritage. What smattering of Breton Alan learned came from his mother.
Alan was taken to help in his father's quarry from an early age, just like all his siblings. He was passably good at cutting and shaping stone blocks, being very focused in the task at hand, but his father despaired that he would ever be a good stone mason; he was too scrawny and weak for the job. However he seemed very good at communicating with people, especially clients and merchants, his father soon would bring Alan with him to the city when selling stone. The child seemed to have a way to befriend and make a favorable impression on everyone.
It was during one of those trips that Cartera ex Criamon found about him. He met the maga in an alley, mistaking her for some herb woman or such. He politely answered the scary, tattooed woman's weird questions and chatted with her about riddles for some time. He did not give much thought on that encounter. Two weeks later, a noble lord came over to the quarry and had a discussion with his father. Next, Alan was taken away from his family and off to be apprenticed with the noble. It seemed the noble purchased the kid for his entourage, arguing with Alan's father that he would provide an education and what use was a scrawny kid to a stone-cutter. Money seemed to also be exchanged, and his father relented and gave him away. The 'noble' of course worked for L'île des fous, Cartera's covenant.
Life in that small covenant was hard, simple, yet also rewarding. Just three magi, all Criamon, working together like an actual monastery. He was the only apprentice at the time and his education was almost communal. There were chores to be done, lessons to be learned, meditations and lots of riddles. His inner Gift was brought forth and he was taught magic, but most importantly the Criamon creed and philosophy. His aversion to destruction is attributed to that, and seemingly his need for mortification to use magic. Alan's dependence is not born of pain, but rather from the belief that magic is born from sacrifice, and that apt results are the product of toil. He has taken to use flagellation as a means of activating his magic. Though this is a very Christian thing to do, Alan is a follower of the Criamon ideology now, mistrusting Christianity. His Gauntlet was of course a riddle to solve, he was let out to the outside world to find the solution. It took his six month to solve it. His parens and magi gifted him with books and lore and after much goodbyes he set out to find a covenant for himself. He still writes to them and admits in missing that life and those people.
Alan was fascinated with the legends of Arthur and the Britain saga, a popular thing with the minstrels and jogleurs of the time. He would sit and endlessly hear stories about knights and fairies and magical isle over the sea. Cartera gifted him with a beautiful book of Arthurian prose at his passing the gauntlet, his most valuable possession. He was inspired by it and started his long travel north to the lands of the Scots, following stone circles and menhirs pointing ever north...
[tab][/tab]Virtues and Flaws explained
Gentle Gift: Alan's Gift is mild and does not rub people or animals the wrong way. This is why he was found so late and escaped the notice of the Tytalus.
Improved Characteristics and Greater Characteristic: Clean air, healthy environment, very good at talking with people at the quarry and selling stone.
Puisant Creo and Terram: A hold over from his youth and a way to express himself, he constructs structures and sculptures in his spare time.
Skilled Parens: Very good relationship with Cartera, his parens. Still keeps tabs with her.
Continent, Temperate: Partially inclined as an individual, partially because of Criamon training and beliefs.
Cautious Sorcerer: Learned to be extra careful when casting, because his magic manifests strongly and in weird ways.
Warped Magic: Alan's magic created vibrations affecting glass, ceramics and even metal. At Magnitude 1 glass trembles. At 2 glass shakes and cracks, ceramics tremble. At 3 glass breaks , ceramics crack. At 4 ceramics shatter, metal trembles. At 5 metal vibrates and hums and at 6+ metal also turns slightly hot. Note that cracks and shattered pieces have the Alan's Sigil.
Note: This makes Alan a 'danger' in laboratories. His own needs to be specially created around this flaw, with stone vessels and beakers, avoiding ceramics and glass. Thus it would have a cost of x1.5 to x2 in upkeep.
Weird Magic: There is a large chance when botching that Alan's magic manifests in a surreal way that has to do with puzzles, weird confusing shapes and sounds.
Deficient Perdo: Probably a manifestation of Criamon doctrine.
Restriction and Enduring Constitution: Alan is a flagellant, though he does not believe in the Christian religion any more. He cannot cast magic unless he is currently wounded (a Light wound and above). Thus every few days he meditates by flagellation until he gets a wound, which he then takes care and binds. Until it completely heals, he is fine to use his magic. This pattern has steeled him against pain and also helps him meditate.
Note on Languages:
French (Norman) – Anglo-Norman -1
Celtic (Breton)- Cornish -1
Celtic (Breton)- Welsh -2 as per TlntL 143p
Gaelic (Scottish) is a different branch
This character looks good. Nicely interwoven virtues and flaws.
Are there any questions that you still have?
Nope not really. I will have to make some minor changes in spell repertoire when the covenant section is finished, and I am also looking into medieval clothing and equipment (I cant find Celtic apparel for Bretons)
Mildly interested on this, as I too have the flaw, though clearly Vertidius is much more concerned about the enchanted device part. My personal view is philosophical: to activate the magic, a condition must be met. Therefore, that activation condition 'passes on' to the device. The wielder of the device then needs to meet that condition. Otherwise, in Alan's case, if he dead , he is permanently mortally wounded? That would create some weird situations....
I agree - here it makes more sense to apply the restriction to the wielder.
Removed Miner's Keen Eye 20 and got Circle of Beast Warding 5 and Panic of the Trembling Heart 15 instead