Laura's Character: Arielle Allais du Crieux

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Laura's Character: Arielle Allais du Crieux

Postby Kesyrah » Sun Aug 10, 2014 9:05 pm

Hello fellow lovers of the old 7th Sea system! I saw these games on the Gencon event list and was thrilled to get a spot in the 9 AM game Thursday. I haven't played this for a decade, but I still have all the books and went on a skimming-binge this weekend. Of course I waited until the weekend before Gencon to finally make my character...oops.

Thoughts or feedback are greatly appreciated; I haven't played this in forever. I have a character with 135 points, and know how I want to spend the 8 XP. My biggest outstanding question at this point is what on earth should my enterprise/business be? I will hash out appearance and starting equipment before game time. Here is the sheet and story thus far:

Arielle Allais du Crieux

8 Brawn 2
16 Finesse 3
16 Wits 3
8 Resolve 2
8 Panache 3
Reputation- 0

Advantages:
10 Inheritance (a thriving business, wine? Cheese? Textiles?)
10 Noble (Allais du Crieux family)
5 Membership - Invisible College, “Dabbler” style
5 Montaigne Servant (Porte Messenger)
0 1 pt connection (invisible college), contact in Montaigne
1 2 pt connection (invisible college), contact in Vaticine in Altamira)
2 Spark of genius - accounting
2 Linguist
6 two specialties (accounting, shopping)

-10 Arcana: Ambitious

Languages:
0 Montaigne r/w/n
1 Castille r/w
1 Vodacce r/w
2 Thean r/w
1 Avalon
1 Vendel

Skill and Knacks:
25 Bonita School
0 bind 1, disarm 1, wall of steel 2, exploit weakness 1
0 Athlete
2 climbing 1, footwork 3, sprinting 1, throwing 1
0 Fencing
4 attack (fencing) 3, parry (fencing) 3
2 firearms
0 attack (firearms) 1
5 courtier: dancing 1, etiquette 1, fashion 1, oratory 1, politics 1
4 scholar: history 1, mathematics 3, philosophy 1, research 1
0 accounting 1 (specialty)
0 shopping 1 (specialty

8 xp: 2 pt for lip reading 1, 4 pt for accounting 2, 2 pt for law 1

Appearance:

Equipment:

Arielle grew up in an atmosphere of scholarship, her father being an accomplished inventor and member of the Invisible College. Despite the current fashionable trend in Montaigne, Arielle’s immediate family is devoutly Vaticine. Her family’s estate is extremely profitable, being enhanced by her father’s inventions (windmill powered irrigation, advanced harvesting methods, etc.). Her father/family has been instrumental in increasing the wealth and power of the Allais du Crieux family. This family already known to be easier on the peasants than others when it comes to taxes, her particular branch has taken it a few steps further. Her father started a tradition of extremely good relations with the serfs and servants of the estate: creating gadgets that make their lives easier, and paying them far more than is the norm elsewhere in Montaigne (the family is rich enough to afford it). He also ties a bonus to how well the business does, giving them incentive to take pride in their work, the land, and the business. Arielle continues to act in this vein.

Arielle’s mother died of the flu when she was very young. She has a younger sister, Corrine. Both children were very close with their father, Bastien Allais du Crieux. While growing up, Arielle’s tutors quickly noticed she had a sharp mind for math. Delighted, her father found specialty tutors and helped her develop this talent. By the time she was a teenager, she became very interested in the accounting of the family business. Studying the books, she became adept at strengthening the business from an accounting standpoint.

A year ago, her father’s health deteriorated. Just before he passed away he revealed to the 18 year-old Arielle that he was a member of the Invisible College. For years, he had been helping smuggle scholars away from the Inquisition. They had always been welcome to stay in hiding at the business, or simply use the estate as a stopping point before traveling on to Avalon, Vendel, and other places where the Inquisition had less reach. He introduced Arielle to his primary Montaigne IC contact before his death. As dangerous as the work was, it seemed far more dangerous to allow so many brilliant minds and their work to be snuffed out from the world. Stunned by this news but impassioned by the cause, Arielle readily agreed to carry on in his stead. Since his death, she has inherited and taken over the business. She continues to enhance it with her math and business acumen. Publicly, she attributes the success and business cunning to employees. The IC knows the truth, and every now and then she receives a math-code message with a business problem or idea, seeking her advice.

She has great ambitions for the business, seeking to grow it into a thriving multi-national empire. She has combined this goal with a new one: to travel abroad to Altamira and help scholars flee the inquisition from Castille itself. Under the guise of traveling there for business and as a flamboyant noble, she hopes a loud, ostentatious presence and throwing expensive parties will distract any potential Inquisition notice away from her true purposes. The IC has set her up with a contact in the local clergy to help her in her search for any people in immediate or future danger of the Inquisition’s attentions. She plans to use her wealth and influence to send people to her estate, where they can remain in hiding or then continue on to other nations. She also plans to make connections there that can help her grow her business. Though abroad from home, she still runs the business from afar, using a pair of Porte servants who pass a chalkboard back and forth from Altamira and the family estate in Crieux. Rather inexperienced but very ambitious, Arielle has big plans for her time in Altamira. While she knows the courtier basics, her family had never been big on court intrigue and politics, so she knows she needs to learn fast if she is going to survive these dangerous games. It is time to get her nose out of the books, and into the world.

Her sister still lives at home, and is now 15 while Arielle is 19. Her sister has more of a propensity toward being a tinkerer, taking after their father. She is good at keeping up his previous inventions, and seems poised to start making some of her own soon. She does not know of the family’s involvement with the IC.
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Re: Laura's Character: Arielle Allais du Crieux

Postby salamanca » Sun Aug 10, 2014 11:10 pm

Ok, even more tired than last time I looked at stats so I am going to not add number. BUT YOU DO NEED TO CHANGE 1 THING. We do not allow for any servant or henchman style advantages in the campaign. It puts too many characters at the table (because someone will figure out the 25 lackey loophole). Outside of that it looks fine. As for your trade of choice... I think there are a couple players involving themselves in a bit of import/export trade (mostly wine and such). I don't think anyone is dealing in textiles or food to my knowledge. But we are open to anything that you will have interest in delving into and interacting about. (we have a lot of short notes about the local merchants and econmy that are never going to come into play with our own plans so we can accomodate player input for this sort of thing. And I love you taking Bonita School, it's one of my faves.
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Re: Laura's Character: Arielle Allais du Crieux

Postby Black Jack Rackham » Sun Aug 10, 2014 11:28 pm

Since I'm not as tired I'll go ahead and do the numbers here (we'll just take it as read that I quoted everything Dave said as gospel).
Traits: 56
Advantages: 41 (though, as Dave mentioned, we don't have servants in game*)
Sword School: 25
Arcana: -10
Languages: 7 (you get Montaigne for free but there's a 1pt cost for R/W)
Skills: 6
Knacks: 14
For a grand total of 139. Drop the servant and you'll still have a point to spend.

*you are, of course, a landed noble so you have plenty of servants, they just don't follow you around on your adventures (they're way too smart for those kind of shenanigans)
smafdi wrote:STOP BEING SO DARN POPULAR GUYZ SRSLY I NEEDZ MEH GAMEZ TIHS YAER!!!

kenderleech wrote:If the cows were not meant to be ridden, why would they be so close to the chase scenes?
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Re: Laura's Character: Arielle Allais du Crieux

Postby Kesyrah » Mon Aug 11, 2014 8:31 am

For knacks I count 11. Are you including the extra point in wall of steel? I get that for free instead of swordsman guild membership.

Thanks for taking a look! I will redistribute the servant points and figure out what in earth this business of mine is going to be.
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Re: Laura's Character: Arielle Allais du Crieux

Postby Black Jack Rackham » Mon Aug 11, 2014 10:22 am

Woop, you're right, I guess I was tired. I thought that Research was an advanced Knack. 11 it is.

That makes your grand total 136, 1HP over.
smafdi wrote:STOP BEING SO DARN POPULAR GUYZ SRSLY I NEEDZ MEH GAMEZ TIHS YAER!!!

kenderleech wrote:If the cows were not meant to be ridden, why would they be so close to the chase scenes?
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Re: Laura's Character: Arielle Allais du Crieux

Postby Sister Sonya » Mon Aug 11, 2014 3:16 pm

If Arielle is a merchant, I don't know why you would not want to select the Merchant Skill and then raise whatever that business is to rank 3.

My character, Sister Sonya, has Merchant (metalworker)-3 and Merchant (Calligrapher)-3, using the bonus only for metalworker.
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Re: Laura's Character: Arielle Allais du Crieux

Postby kenderleech » Mon Aug 11, 2014 3:59 pm

Welcome, fellow resident of Crieux! and bear in mind that even if you didnt get into any of the other sessions, show up with generics, and you might (its very likely) get a seat anyways!
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Re: Laura's Character: Arielle Allais du Crieux

Postby Lady Grace » Mon Aug 11, 2014 9:11 pm

Avoid mead -- that'll just attract those damn dirty Vesten... :twisted:
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And here's where I try to be a writer...
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Re: Laura's Character: Arielle Allais du Crieux

Postby salamanca » Mon Aug 11, 2014 9:46 pm

Well Mike, my first instinct about the merchant thing is that the crafting and manufacture of goods is for commoners. A noblewoman may dabble in buying and selling of a commodity but to actually sink to the level of making the product is just shameful. And in Montaigne the best commodity dealers are the ones that can predict the next fashion to hit the court and corner that market.
I don't mind growing old... but I hate growing up.
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Re: Laura's Character: Arielle Allais du Crieux

Postby Sister Sonya » Mon Aug 11, 2014 10:20 pm

salamanca wrote: And in Montaigne the best commodity dealers are the ones that can predict the next fashion to hit the court and corner that market.

Predicting fashion still involves defining and describing a product.
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Re: Laura's Character: Arielle Allais du Crieux

Postby Kesyrah » Mon Aug 11, 2014 11:06 pm

That's precisely what I was thinking- merchant didn't make sense to me, I'm not a tradesman. I'm a noble. But may as well know the books well for running the estate. But I figured I could have some kind of thriving business that I inherited that is both a cover and reason to be in Altamira. Maybe shipping? Crieux has many thriving ports. Perhaps I am an aspiring shipping magnate, with a decent foothold in the industry already...
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Re: Laura's Character: Arielle Allais du Crieux

Postby salamanca » Tue Aug 12, 2014 12:43 pm

And the import/export business in Altamira is thriving. Just make sure you pick the right locals to work with. (and you will understand that statement much better in a few days).
I don't mind growing old... but I hate growing up.
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Re: Laura's Character: Arielle Allais du Crieux

Postby kenderleech » Tue Aug 12, 2014 1:48 pm

Yes, come and deal with Francois, and his good friend, Santino!
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Re: Laura's Character: Arielle Allais du Crieux

Postby Kesyrah » Tue Aug 12, 2014 10:38 pm

Ok, so let's go with shipping. With the 10 points I sank into Inheritance, is something like a handful of boats under my control and some rented warehouse space in Altamira reasonable, or is that way out of line? Between the math, accounting, and shopping knacks, I envision playing it out as being very canny in finding profitable business transactions and investments. Knowing when someone is selling under market value, recognizing how to mitigate various tariffs and taxes, logic out profitable shipping routes and transactions, etc. Storing goods in the warehouse as needed, and leasing the boats out for other people who wish to ship their goods when I do not have any of my own to move.

I don't really have business acumen in real life, so if this sounds totally off or unreasonable in the context of the game, please let me know.

Redone stats (natural philosophy and astronomy are treated as basic knacks for IC members):

8 Brawn 2
16 Finesse 3
16 Wits 3
8 Resolve 2
8 Panache 3
Reputation- 0

Advantages:
10 Inheritance (a thriving business, shipping and investments?)
10 Noble (Allais du Crieux family)
5 Membership - Invisible College, “Dabbler” style
0 1 pt connection (invisible college), contact in Montaigne
1 2 pt connection (invisible college), contact in Vaticine in Altamira)
2 Spark of genius - accounting
2 Linguist
6 two specialties (accounting, shopping)

-10 Arcana: Ambitious

Languages:
1 Montaigne r/w/n
1 Castille r/w
1 Vodacce r/w
2 Thean r/w
1 Avalon
1 Vendel

Skill and Knacks:
25 Bonita School
0 bind 1, disarm 1, wall of steel 2, exploit weakness 1
0 Athlete
2 climbing 1, footwork 3, sprinting 1, throwing 1
0 Fencing
4 attack (fencing) 3, parry (fencing) 3
2 firearms
0 attack (firearms) 1
7 courtier: dancing 1, etiquette 1, fashion 2, oratory 2, politics 1
6 scholar: history 1, mathematics 3, philosophy 1, research 1, astronomy 1, natural philosophy 1
0 accounting 1 (specialty)
0 shopping 1 (specialty)

8 xp: 2 pt for lip reading 1, 4 pt for accounting 2, 2 pt for law 1
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Re: Laura's Character: Arielle Allais du Crieux

Postby salamanca » Tue Aug 12, 2014 11:28 pm

I would start small and work my way out. There is no campaign need for a fleet of ships so I would probably work with the assumption that the character had access to a couple ships moving merchandise back and forth to Montaigne and maybe make use of contacts in your adventures to procure a warehouse and contacts in the city. Save the actual money for actual investment or other in game purchases (hint, we don't make a habit of scrutinizing money expenditure during adventures unless it's for something ridiculous like a cannon). Most of this is stuff to do during solo time of the personal agendas session. (just show up with a generic ticket, they will make room).
I don't mind growing old... but I hate growing up.
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Re: Laura's Character: Arielle Allais du Crieux

Postby Kesyrah » Wed Aug 13, 2014 11:13 am

kenderleech, who is the other Crieux resident? I didn't see one while skimming the heroes listed here.

Thank you all for your help! I'm feeling mostly ready for Thursday, whew! Will flesh out appearance, mannerims, personality, et al by game time. Promise!
red dress.JPG
character picture
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Re: Laura's Character: Arielle Allais du Crieux

Postby salamanca » Wed Aug 13, 2014 12:17 pm

A) Ken's character Francois is from that area. And you never know who else may show up at gencon since we have well over 100 active players in the campaign. (since gencon is not my job, I have no idea offhand how many montaigne are regulars). And B) is that character picture you or just something you found because that dress is awesome and needs to end up in a larp at origins in the future. (but not for sister sonya).
I don't mind growing old... but I hate growing up.
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Re: Laura's Character: Arielle Allais du Crieux

Postby Kesyrah » Wed Aug 13, 2014 12:23 pm

Just something I found on a google image search-

http://www.aliexpress.com/item/17th-18t ... o_detail_a
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Re: Laura's Character: Arielle Allais du Crieux

Postby kenderleech » Wed Aug 13, 2014 12:47 pm

Francois DeGaulle Du Crieux, Mod Du Lac *bows deeply, flourishes hat with a feather imported from the crescent on it*
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