Current Version (to be added)
At start of campaign
Colm Macraith of Eilean Doman, aka Colm the Brown – Campaign Start
Characteristics: Int +4, Per +2, Pre +1, Com +0, Str +0, Sta +0, Dex +1, Qk -1
Size: 0
Age: 21 (21), Height: 1.87m, Weight: 80k, Gender: Male
Decrepitude: 0
Warping Score: 0
Confidence: 1 (3)
Reputations: Gruagachan protection (bad/good) 3
Religion: Pagan
Virtues:
Mythic Herbalism (3), Improved Characteristics (1), Greater Characteristic(1), Unaging (1), Well Traveled 1 (5), Puissant M.Herbalism (1), Arcane Lore (1), Protection 1 (5)
Flaws: Favors (3), Compassionate (3), Visions (1), Poor Student (1), Ability Block (Logic)(1)
Vow (1)
Personality Traits: Compassionate +6, Patient +2, Secretive +2
Combat:
Dodge: Init: ‑‑, Attack ‑‑, Defense +3, Damage ‑‑
Fist: Init: -1, Attack +4, Defense +2, Damage 0
Kick: Init: -2, Attack +4, Defense +1, Damage +3
Soak: +0
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][tab][/tab] Rank[tab][/tab][tab][/tab] Specialization[tab][/tab]
Language: Gaelic (Scottish)[tab][/tab] 5 [tab][/tab] Plants
Language: Saxon (Scottish)[tab][/tab] 4 [tab][/tab] Trade
Dead Language: Pictish [tab][/tab] 1 [tab][/tab] Geasa
Area Lore (Highlands) [tab][/tab] 2 [tab][/tab] Clans
Area Lore (Lowlands) [tab][/tab] 1 [tab][/tab] Forests
Awareness [tab][/tab] 1 [tab][/tab] Herbs
Bargain [tab][/tab] 1 [tab][/tab] Cloth and Bandages
Brawl [tab][/tab] 3 [tab][/tab] Dodging
Charm [tab][/tab] 1 [tab][/tab] Mothers
Chirurgy [tab][/tab] 3 [tab][/tab] First aid
Concentration [tab][/tab] 1 [tab][/tab] Chirurgy
Etiquette [tab][/tab] 1 [tab][/tab] Grouchy Magi
Fae Lore [tab][/tab] 2 [tab][/tab] Fae Plants
Folk Ken [tab][/tab] 1 [tab][/tab] Diseases
Gruagachan Lore [tab][/tab] 1 [tab][/tab] Geasa
Infernal Lore [tab][/tab] 1 [tab][/tab] Tainted plants
Magic Lore [tab][/tab] 3 [tab][/tab] Magical herbs
Mythic Herbalism [tab][/tab] 5+2 [tab][/tab] Healing potions
Profession: Apothecary [tab][/tab] 4 [tab][/tab] Herb Preservation
Ride [tab][/tab] 1 [tab][/tab] Traveling
Stealth [tab][/tab] 2 [tab][/tab] Hiding from Christians
Survival [tab][/tab] 1 [tab][/tab] Traveling
Swim [tab][/tab] 1 [tab][/tab] Staying afloat
Detailed Accounting
Early Childhood (0-5) (45 xp)
Gaelic (Scottish)5(free), Awareness 1 (5), Brawl 1 (5), Charm 1 (5), Folk ken 1 (5), Saxon (Scottish) 2 (15), Stealth 1 (5), Athletics 1 (5)
Well Traveled: (50xp)
Saxon (Scottish) 4 (35), Bargain 1 (5), Area Lore (Highlands) 1 (5), Etiquette 1 (5)
Arcane Lore: (50xp)
Fae Lore 2 (15), Magic Lore 3 (30), Infernal Lore 1 (5)
Later Life (5-21) (240xp)
Ride 1 (5), Swim 1 (5), Area Lore (Highlands) 2 (10), Area Lore (Low lands) 1 (5), Mythic Herbalism 5 (75), Chirurgy 3 (30), Pictish 1 (5), Gruagachan Lore 1 (5), Concentration 1 (5), Brawl 3 (25), Profession: Apothecary 4 (50), Stealth 2 (10), Survival 1 (5)
[tab][/tab]History, Virtues and Flaws explanation
[tab][/tab][tab][/tab]Appearance
A very tall, dark man dressed in a brown, knee-length robe and leather pants tucked into boots, dressed for travelling in the woods and shrubs. He tends to listen to people with arms crossed and says very little, moving in a deliberately precise and slow manner. His expression is closed and guarded, focused on the matter in hand which is usually healing, frowns at violence. Only children make him relax and smile. Very secretive, tends to avoid Christians.
[tab][/tab]Equipment
Stout traveling clothes, walking stick, lots of drying herbs, packets of various seeds, powders and clay jars of unguents. A small iron cauldron, a leather folded tent, a small cutting axe.
[tab][/tab]Virtues and Flaws explained
Mythic Herbalism, Puissant M.Herbalism: Taught very early to Colm by his Master, Darissa of Glenlivet, it is the focus of his life. He is a most competent herbalist and apothecary, but he truly excels in this Old Religion Art. As a follower of Manopos the god of Youth and Healing, he attributes a lot of practices and 'spells' to him. That makes him very secretive about his actual practice methods.
Improved Characteristics, Greater Characteristics, Unaging: Attributed to healthy life and the herbs and potions he uses, it is non the less clear that Colm has received some kind of supernatural blessing, probably from his 'God' Manopos. He is still young for his agelessness to be apparent, he also has grown his black beard long to confuse his apparent age.
Well Traveled, Arcane Lore: Colm and Darissa roamed the highlands extensively, healing folk. They rarely stayed more than two years in a place, avoiding towns and Christians in general. As devout followers of the Old Gods, Colm learned a lot about the 'other worlds' around.
Favours, Protection: Just like his master, Colm has come under the protection of the Gruagachan. Those magi followers of the Picts found the healers very useful and fully support them. They have provided shelter, protection and resources and helped them in their travels, delivering retribution to those who wished them harm. Sadly they were late saving Darissa from being burned on the stake, but they did extract revenge for her demise. Colm owes great favours to them, and particularly Brude Deathless. He always provides them and theirs with information, healing and succour. Its the reason why he went south to the lowlands to join a covenant.
His reputation comes from the Protection granted to him by his affiliation with the Gruagachan. Its either positive or negative, depending if its pagans or Christians he is facing (and even if they actually know he is under their protection)
Compassionate, Vows: Colm has a soft spot for people in suffering... he is a healer after all. He has taken vows to 'never raise a blade in anger', 'never refuse healing a mortally wounded man, a pregnant woman or a suffering child' and 'never reveal the secrets of balm and holy to outsiders'. These are Geasa to him and he takes them very seriously.
Poor Student, Ability block (logic): Colm believes that wisdom cannot be locked into books and scrolls. He never learned how to read and write, nor will he ever. He believes that most important things are learned in life by doing, not by being preached upon for hours. He understands that masters teach apprentices but he takes a more direct view on the matter.
Visions: Occasionally, Colm gets mystic visions of places and tasks. He still has no control of them, nor can he make sense of most of the time. They did save his life a couple of times though. He sees them as a sign of his God's patronage and heeds them well.
[tab][/tab][tab][/tab]History
[tab][/tab] Colm was born on the shore Eilean Doman, to the clan Macraith. He lived with his parents in a small village community in the highlands and was a normal youth just like any other. He does not remember much about the time with his family, but he has a clear recollection of the event that shaped his file.
[tab][/tab] During the winter of his ninth year, a rival clan raided their community. They were unprepared and has lots of casualties. Messengers were sent to the local monastery for help that never came. Desperate Colm wounded father sent the child alone in the snow to find a local herb woman, a fame healer and follower of the Old ways. Colm run into the wilds to try and bring help, but as bad luck had it a snowstorm struck the Highlands and the child was lost in the blizzard. Dying and delirious, Colm thought he saw a smiling child with faintly glowing woad tattoos moving through the haze and slowly followed him. After undetermined time he reached some Roman ruins and collapsed. It is there, shivering with frostbite, that Darissa of Glenlivet found him.
[tab][/tab] Darissa was a herbwoman that followed the old gods and Manopos the god of youths and healing in particular. She knew many secret lores about herbs and balms and healing. She took Colm in and plied her craft on the child, quickly restoring him to consciousness. After listening to his delirious story about the attack, and making sure he would stay put and recover, she travelled through the blizzard to the beraved settlement miles away to give what help she could. Weeks later, after saving many in the village, Darissa asked as payment to be allowed to take Colm as hers to nurture and teach. Reluctantly his family let him go and never saw him again.
[tab][/tab] Life with Darissa was harsh but oddly fulfilling. There were a lot of things to do every day, and life on the road was very difficult. Sometimes they would make a haven for some years, near a friendly village, those were the best times spent on drying herbs and bubbling cauldrons healing the sick and helping the needy. Darissa taught Colm all about Mythic Herbalism, and some chirurgy, how to identify plants and animals, how to live off the land. She also initiated him into the Old Faith and taught him things about the hidden worlds around them. Darissa was in very good terms with the Gruagachan, conferring with them frequently and having many of them and theirs visit them wherever they might be. Colm came to trust them as fellow pagans in the Highlands. Christians though were mistrustful of them, warding them off with the evil sign and sometimes chasing Darissa out of their villages. Colm learned to avoid the bigger settlements and to mistrust any Christian; the memory of the local monastery not providing help augmented his antipathy. He became a competent healer, taking the name Colm the Brown and Darissa gave him his Geasa.
[tab][/tab] It was after his apprenticeship, two years since Colm started travelling as an itinerant healer, that word came to him of Darissa's death at the hands of Christians. A mob led by a priest burned her at the stake. In grief Colm returned to her cottage hut to save what he could, only to find it burned to the ground too. Emotionally wounded, he took refuge in Mac Gruagach, the largest Covenant in the highlands under Gruagachan control. He spent two years there plying his trade and being allowed to heal his emotional wounds. He came to know the magi well, even getting some education in their traditions, and made many friends and contacts.
[tab][/tab] Time came to leave. It was the Gruagachans' suggestion that he head towards the lowlands. It would be good to have friendly ears and eyes there, someone they could trust to help. Reluctantly Colm agreed, he had mistrusted the Lowlanders, Christians all, but he recognised the debt he owed. He was sent to find a healer in those parts who could help, a magi named Stephan with an apprentice, and take stock of the area. Colm arrived with his mule, avoiding the main paths and the towns and villages, only to find the place empty. Stephan seemed to have died....
[Extra development space reserved]
I'm fine with the Gruagachan connection.
Looks good!
Do you have a social status?
Probably Wanderer or Covenfolk. The reputation comes from protection