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Race: Human Gender: Male Age: 21 Birthday: 3rd of Winter, 491 AV
Languages
Language
Level
Common
Fluent
a
Physical Appearance
Height: 6'5" Weight: 176 lbs Hair colour: Black Eye colour: Black
Description :
Tall and thin, Kelmar is often called regal-looking by the more romantic viewers, and gaunt by those who are less so. High cheekbones and a low brow framing two eyes with irises nearly indistinguishable from the pupils, short straight hair cut above his ears and forehead, long limbs and digits but by no means bony. His look is reminiscent of some of the aristocrats of Ravok. One who prefers to have others do the hard work rather than get his own hands dirty, Kelmar has nary a callous or scar on him save for the bottoms of his feet. Since most of his work is intellectual or simply sneaking around, he has little cause to have many defacements, hence there is little to mar his skin.
a
Character Concept
Nature and Severity
Calm and quiet, many often mistake Kelmar as a timid or withdrawn individual. To the contrary, he has the utmost confidence in everything he does, and he is always paying attention to whatever's around him. He may not catch everything, but if you're his focus you'd be surprised what he can tell about you. Though he prefers to remain in the shadows and corners of a room, watching people from a distance and on the lookout for trouble, he isn't afraid of direct confrontation. Saying he had a silver tongue would be entirely inaccurate, but his ability to assess and analyze gives him an edge in conversation as he can roughly guess what you're after and use that to his advantage to try to persuade you into doing something mutually beneficial. That's assuming he's okay with you finding him. If you're out for blood, you'll find him surprisingly elusive, Kelmar being able to slip away at a moment's notice on most occasions.
His early childhood as the son of a wealthy merchant family did little to pamper him. If anything, it gave him certain advantages when it came to life on the streets. Held always to a high expectation by his father, Jorvik, almost every waking moment was spent either studying or practicing. He enjoyed learning, fascinated by all this knowledge, and his optimism made him a bright-eyed if somewhat solitary youth. After they fell into poverty, that changed. Comfort and normal were thrown out the window, life took what he thought was true and twisted it into a horrid lie. He remained a constant student, teaching himself when his father would not, but he no longer did it for its own sake. Now, experience and knowledge were tools, instruments of power that could give a man what he wants. His new position in life gave him opportunities to practice his analysis and persuasion, often saving his parents from a drunk barfight or mugging. Losing his parents would have been a tragic loss for him, but he had already snapped. No tears for the dead, they were no longer useful. There was no sentiment or pain, only power, and power was something he needed to recapture.
If drawn into a conversation, Kelmar will often keep his thoughts to himself, only reacting to questions or prompts from the other participants. When he wants something done however, he can often be seen as talkative, almost even sociable, as he guides the conversation where he wants. Whether this leads to persuasion or information-gathering, he will often succeed in getting what he wants from others, sometimes unintentionally on their part. Chances are you won't come across him in the streets, but if you do be sure what you have to say is important as he doesn't like being waylaid.
Cold Calculating Self-Interest
There are many reasons to fear various kinds of people. The madman is dangerous because he is unpredictable, often doing things without any logical thought and surprising his adversaries, letting his utter chaos wreak havoc. The zealot is dangerous because she is devoted, using everything available to her for her purposes and ceaselessly driving onward until she achieves either victory or death, letting her emotions fuel her actions. However, perhaps most dangerous of all, is the calculating man, for he knows when and how to act. He knows when and where to attack to do the most damage, he knows how to use others to his best advantage, and most importantly he knows when things have gone wrong. He won't engage in a head-on assault unless there's a reason, he won't make a last stand unless it is part of something bigger, he will retreat and try again. What maybe makes him the most dangerous of the three is the assurance that he will always be back, and while he is watching you cannot show weakness for even a second for as soon as you do he will be there. That is what it trully means to be calculating, and that is what Kelmar is.
Since he was young, the sole surviving Hedos has had a desire for power. Not a craving, for that is similar to zealotry, a desire. Anything that grants him more power he will willingly do, performing difficult tasks just for the practice and taking the opportunity to learn wherever he can. However, above all else he makes his safety his top priority. Power is pointless if the user is deceased. Kelmar's outlook on his fellow man and woman is simple: he will help if the person in question may be of benefit to him, but never will he place another's safety over his own.
To him, worth is measured in capabilities, both physical and mental. Power is everything to him, and power is given by both the body and the mind. This, ironically, makes him a rather fair-minded individual, especially in a place like Ravok. Slaves are still slaves, but a capable slave is worth something. Kelvics are indeed animals, but they are just as able as humans and even more so in some respects. Every other species has its own ability, and that makes them more powerful as a whole. When you are torn down from a comfortable position of near-aristocracy, it makes you appreciate the capabilities of the individual rather than the right of birth or money.
Ravok and Rhysol
Having grown up in the city of canals, Kelmar of course knows about the benevolence of Rhysol and how he shelters from the rest of the world with his manifestation within the central temple. Gratitude is a word not often associated with the surviving Hedos, but if he were grateful to anyone he would be grateful to Rhysol, though he does not regard the god with the same loving adoration as most of the city. People have called him a Sylirist in the past, but Kelmar doesn't care much for any of the other gods. He just doesn't pay much attention to the divine. In comparison to his opinion of the other gods, Kelmar regards Rhysol with the utmost reverence and appreciation, and he respects all those who follow him, particularly the Black Sun and all its branches.
Were the god of chaos to call on him, he would likely find that Kelmar willing to do as he asked. Though Kelmar is not a zealot or devout worshiper, his own interests coincide with what Rhysol would likely ask him to do. The human's desire to hone his skills and gain more power would be satisfied for a time by accepting Rhysol as his lord, and the missions the Black Sun would inevitably perform would give him ample to practice his skills. Simple desires make a predictable person, and though he may not fanatically follow the Defiler he understands the god's craving for power and is open to whatever corruption Rhysol may bring, so long as it satisfies his own desire for power.
That, and there is plenty reason for Rhysol to at least find the young man an appealing agent. When the Hedos family fell sharply from their position of wealth and the social status that went with that, Kelmar's comfortable life had been torn apart. He'd been raised to think that as long as you had money, you had the power to do whatever you want. However, this truth was absolutely shattered as he and his parents ended up in a hovel, for although it was the efforts of rival families that destroyed the Hedos household, it was the actions of criminals and agents without much money at all that decimated them. It showed Kelmar that it was not the strength of a name or a business that gave a person power, but that own person's individual skills and capabilities, hence his never-ending quest to cultivate his own since then.
Kelmar has not yet considered the Black Sun or Rhysol as a path for him, but he would not find either undesirable. To the contrary, he would embrace the power of Rhysol and have his personal ambition drive him to do his greatest. Unfortunately, he has yet to be acquainted with the religion surrounding Ravok's great patron. Poverty left him few opportunities to learn, and after his parent's death he has obsessed over his work as an agent. Though now he is unemployed, he might take it upon himself to do some research. Knowledge is power after all...
a
Housing
A relatively small place near the City Center of Ravok, Kelmar's house is basically a large loft overlooking one of the smaller canals. His bunk and chest are over in one corner of the room, right beside the hearth, and beside the windows sits his table and chair with a good view of the canal and walkways, as well as the stairs up to his home. It's bare bones, but it satisfies Kelmar, at least until he becomes more powerful. Whenever he is home, he usually sits at the table and plotting whatever job he has going or watching the canal carefully for any sign of undesirables.
Hearth
Bunk
Chest
Chair
Small table
a
Character History
Childhood :
Once, the Hedos family was on its way to riches and social status, making a comfortable living as merchants, importing exotic tapestries and selling them to the noble families as well as less fine examples to the less wealthy. They had their own warehouse by the docks where they stored their goods, and when the works of art needed to be moved the family slaves would move it with nary a complaint - out loud anyway. It was a profitable occupation, and with the decorations having little weight their slave upkeep was minimal. With their eye on making the Hedos family one of the prominent wealthy households, they groomed their son for a life of intrigue and business among the ancient merchant families. Private tutors were hired to teach Kelmar the rudimentary basics of most topics, but it was his father that gave him the skills he would use most. Assessment and logic were two of the most rudimentary abilities that Kelmar's father cultivated in him, being able to analyze another's actions and guess at motives and plans, sometimes discerning their desires and then using those to persuade them to help. Such lessons were daily and encompassed most of Kelmar's time, so unlike many children of such status who were fawned over and spoiled by wealthy parents, the young Hedos never became socially extroverted or entitled, always striving to do better. His father often urged him to do better, seeing in his son the future of the Hedos family, a name to be respected nearly as greatly as Valdinox or Nitrozian, but Kelmar saw before him endless roads that could take him anywhere, some to desolation and others to great power, not as a family but as an individual.
Years went by and Kelmar honed his skills with the help of his father, but as time passed the Hedos family slowly lost profits and customers to their competition, failing to the many other different and arguably more efficient practices. On their way down the drain, they tried to shift their business from tapestries to more common goods like metal and leather, but the markets for these were already well-established and they found themselves slipping even further. In addition to their failing profits, criminal agents hired by rivals would often commandeer vessels bound for the Hedos warehouse and steer them towards their employers, or assault their slaves while moving the decorations, or sabotage some goods in the warehouse by dirtying them up and significantly decreasing their value. All the success and planning that the Hedos family did was for naught, and everything that they had accumulated for two decades was lost in only a few years.
By the time Kelmar turned fifteen, the Hedos household was a pathetic shadow of its former self. Their once comfortable lifestyle had been reduced to near homelessness, their once luxurious house replaced with a dank hole, their exotic furs replaced with rags and torn cloth, their filling meals replaced with crumbs and scraps. Their reversal of fortune had left the Hedos family destitute, and after having so long to grow used to their privileges they found it difficult to follow orders and put up with what was necessary to earn a living. Their dreams of becoming a prominent business family rival to the Nitrozians was in tatters, and now Kelmar's parents spent what they had at the tavern, which they became as familiar with as their own home. Not three days after their lad had his fifteenth birthday were they murdered on the streets while on their way home. With their death, it was only a matter of time before the Black Sun seized the property, and the lad was left with nothing but the clothes on his back to live by.
Early Adulthood :
His family's fall from prominence did little to affect Kelmar. Unlike his father, it was never about creating an everlasting dynasty with the Hedos name or anything nearly as romantic. No, it was about power. Kelmar had had a taste of power, watching how his father commanded respect from the citizens and fear from his slaves, how everyone below his social standing did more or less as he asked through persuasion and compulsion to status. Then, he watched how it all got drained from his father, the status and power, all of it lost to those who sought his destruction. He wanted power like that, the power to destroy as well as command. One could always start building support for himself, but it was through destructive power that one could tear down the support for their enemies and rivals. That was the model Kelmar was striving for.
With nothing but his ingrained instincts and practiced skills, he took to the streets with no plan and no idea how he was going to eat again. Fortunately for Kelmar, someone had a use for him. The Galatos family was one of the merchant households opposing the Hedos family, and once they found the sole survivor of their former rivals they saw before them an opportunity. The Galatos household offered to provide the young boy with a steady flow of mizas to help him get by in return for some not-quite-legal tasks. A homeless youth with no ties or reputation was a good person to perform such subterfuge so that none of the repercussions would blow back on the Galatos household, and it was a sweet topping that the last of what was once their enemies was now at their beck and call.
Ironically, Kelmar found himself performing the very same tasks as the agents who destroyed his family, assaulting slaves of rival merchants and sneaking into places at the right time to destroy some goods. Skills that his father had taught him to use for business and politics were instead used to plot and destroy, and Kelmar's honed ability to analyze and assess made it simple to concoct plans against his targets and carry them out to their logical conclusion. Being able to gather information about a target was a crucial skill in the field, and being able to adapt to the situation even more so, and he managed both very well. He also learned on the street the value of being able to move without detection, of seeing yet remaining unseen. A weapons skill would benefit in combat, but you couldn't fight what you couldn't find. Better to avoid combat altogether rather than risk defeat and death. This combination of planning and sneaking made the lad an effective agent, one that threw everything he had at a target. Many budding merchant families were halted by this one boy's work, the entire time his employers growing ever more prominent.
The Galatos household recognized early on the kid's talent at such plans and made an effort to observe him. After a couple of years, they gave him even more resources and told him to conduct coordinated plots with other agents to further erode the standing of rival families. The more practiced and experienced Kelmar became, the more the Galatos family rewarded him and the more respect he earned from his fellow agents, especially when he planned success after success. Though they did not follow him as rigidly as they would a superior or leader, they respected him well enough to do as he asked, especially at the behest of their employers. Kelmar was also responsible for setting up roles of information-gathering for various others, creating a mini-network for his employing household and teaching the other agents how to assess and analyze and observe. For a few years this continued, and though Kelmar lacked the necessary knowledge to set up a large network of contacts he was able to train other agents to be at least decent at information-gathering.
Now a well-established family among the upper crust of society and with a decent network that they would look to others to improve, the Galatos household gave Kelmar a good sum of money they thought befitting his accomplishments and cut him loose, fearing that the Hedos might remember what they had done to his family. The young man wasn't one for vengeance though, and after purchasing a nice small home for himself he began to wander Ravok for employment, looking for employment and more opportunities to further hone his skills.
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Relationships
Xerin Galatos
The Handler :
Race: Human NPC Type: City NPC Race: Human Gender: Male Age: 54 Hair colour: Gray Eye colour: Blue
It is clear that Xerin was once a master spokesperson: he's an excellent conversationalist and very inspiring when he tries, full of energy and life. Yet at the same time his age has made him less proud and more personal, giving him a quite friendly and honest nature. He no longer thinks of himself as the master of the spoken word, but he remains confident in himself and devoted to his family. To most people he is the nice old man that you talk to every now and then, sometimes because you need something or sometimes just to chat. When it comes to his students in persuasion, he is just as welcoming if a little more solemn, as to him his students will keep his voice alive for generations to come. For clients, he puts on his best face and attitude, working his charm to it's greatest extent.
The old Galatos first approached Kelmar a few days after the young Hedos was left on the street. Pity was not something Xerin felt, but when he looked at the son of one of his worst rivals he felt a sense of responsibility, knowing he was in part to blame for this youth's current state. So he found a way to both care for the kid in a way as well as get something out of it. Though the idea was Xerin's, it was the head of the Galatos family - who nobody knows outside of the household - that sent the old man to recruit Kelmar as well as assign the young Hedos his missions. Everything had to go through Xerin though as he was Kelmar's handler, giving him his missions and pay as well as frequently inviting him in to eat or simply talk at his own private estate. When the decision was made to cut Kelmar loose, Xerin was staunchly opposed to the idea, having grown fond of the youth after their years of working together. Even though it came to naught, the old Galatos remains one of Kelmar's most supportive acquaintances, and is probably the only person alive who Kelmar truly considers a friend.
Heldora Genanis
The Associate :
NPC Type: Stationary Race: Human Gender: Female Age: 23 Hair colour: Brown Eye colour: Blue Skills:
Larceny (26 EXP)
Acting (18 EXP)
Seduction (6 EXP)
Part-time actor Heldora Genanis started out as poor as poor could be. Whereas the Hedos family fell into destitution, that's where Heldora began. She had to scrape by doing whatever she could to make ends meet, resorting to larceny just to have food in her belly. The commoners were often charitable , but none of the wealthier families would even so much as look at her, leaving a seed of resentment to grow within her. As she grew, she got better at her small gigs until she got a part-time job with her own little troupe as an actor, hosting street performances in the Nitrozian Plaza on a small sanctioned stage. They weren't amazing, but they were enough of a show to please the commoners and earned more than a few donations daily. Things were looking up, but she still spent many a night hungry. It wasn't until Kelmar approached her with an offer that she finally started becoming comfortable, having a steady source of income by being a contact for the Galatos.
Heldora has mixed feelings about both her job and Kelmar. While the Galatos family is generously paying her for what she thinks of as a minor service, she still despises the richer families and their neglect of people like her, though the Galatos are slowly growing on her after so long of being employed - especially Xerin. Kelmar is easier to like having fallen from what status he had and being the one who sought her out and offered her the job in the first place. When the Galatos cut Kelmar loose, she was just as vocal as Xerin in her protests and even threatened to quit, despite knowing that it wouldn't mean much to whoever the head of the family was. In the end, Xerin and Kelmar talked her out of it, though she insists on helping whenever Kelmar should need it.
Zecher Aldini
The Forger :
NPC Type: Stationary Race: Human Gender: Male Age: 67 Hair colour: Gray Eye colour: Brown Skills:
Forging (40 EXP)
Negotiation (10 EXP)
A crotchety old man stowed away on his own, Zecher has been in the business of forging for decades. Through thick and thin, through up and downs, this man has survived the passage of time even while all of his business partners faded away. That isn't to say he's the best at what he does, not by a long shot, he's just been doing it the longest. His fakes won't survive careful scrutiny, but to a under a casual look or to anyone untrained it may as well be the original. Letters, official documents, he's seen them all and made his fair share of copies, and those that can put up with his constant complaints and annoying whinging often find themselves with an advantage in the field.
It was Xerin who first pointed Kelmar to the forger, having heard from some folks about the old man. Though their first meeting had been less than spectacular, they kept doing business with each other for a long time, despite their dislike of each other. Zecher's dislike for the lad isn't particularly personal, he actually quite likes how curt and to-the-point the young agent is, he's just required by nature to find everything under the sun annoying. As for Kelmar, his annoyance only extends as far as how long Zecher insists on complaining. The two are acquaintances, but by no means friends, and the old miser now charges Kelmar fully for all his services now that the Galatos are no longer subsidizing the work on behalf of the Hedos.
Jorvik Hedos
The Tutor :
NPC Type: Stationary Race: Human Gender: Male Age at death: 42 Day of death: 6th of Winter, 506 AV Hair colour: Black Eye colour: Brown Location: Ravok Skills:
Intelligence (25 EXP)
Persuasion (15 EXP)
Politics (10 EXP)
An idealist and big dreamer, Jorvik was obsessed with the everlasting aspects of his being, what he would leave behind when his body and soul retired from the world. He had a growing business and was rising in the ranks, and though he knew it was unlikely to happen in his own lifetime, he saw in the future the Hedos family name being as large as the Nitrozian or Valdinox. Always talking about the reign of the Hedos, he groomed his son since birth to expand his business and grow the family into a powerful trader household. To Jorvik, his son was not a family member to be treasured, but a key to a dynasty and what would remain of his legacy after he had passed, and though he never outright stated such it was clear to Kelmar that was his only role in the family. He did not complain though, only take his father's lessons to grow his own power and use them to his own means and desires.
Cordelia Hedos
The Mother :
NPC Type: Stationary Race: Human Gender: Female Age at death: 37 Day of death: 6th of Winter, 506 AV Hair colour: Brown Eye colour: Gray Location: Ravok Skills:
Auctioning (30 EXP)
Persuasion (15 EXP)
Intimidation (5 EXP)
More practical than her husband, Cordelia was the more business-oriented between the two. She had a more direct link to the family trading operations, and often interacted with the nobility while bartering her goods. As the real head of the tapestry trading operations, she oversaw the warehouse and the deliveries and the auctions and the sales, often traveling to various locations in the rich districts to look for customers and clients. Many paid for the tapestries just to make their estates look even more impressive, but many truly did appreciate the art itself and haggled with Cordelia over more and more tapestries and rugs. Mrs Hedos became very connected in her time, but all these calls to business meant she had little to no time for her son, but he was well in his father's hands anyway. Their fall from glory didn't hit her as hard as it hit Mr Hedos, but she had many difficulties coping with what she considered a mundane and inept life until she finally died.
a
Knowledge and Training
Skill
Level
Total Points
Sources
Interrogation
Novice
10
5SP, 5xp
Stealth
Competent
34
12SP, 15RB, 7xp
Intelligence
Competent
35
28SP, 7xp
Persuasion
Novice
5
5SP
Observation
Novice
14
14xp
Philosophy
Novice
3
3xp
Rhetoric
Novice
7
7xp
Chain Dart
Novice
1
1xp
Seduction
Novice
1
1xp
Subterfuge
Novice
1
1xp
Acting
Novice
1
1xp
Lores
History of Ravok (SP) Powerful families in Ravok (SP) A Horse in Ravok The Three Things That Matter Amelia's Office Having Your Fortune Read Failing at Picking a Card Destined to a Life of Success and Loneliness A Woman will Destroy Kelmar How to Hide in the Dark A Man of Many Talents -- Sneaking up on the Sneaky Gaining another Associate -- Hazel Richardson Happy Birthday Kelmar Attempting to be Seductive Treating a Girl to a Meal A Game of Questions Amelia the Fortune Teller Amelia has family in the Black Sun Jeb the Bartender Amelia isn't a Citizen Tailing a Mark Noric is of Svefra Descent Aradia knows Fire Magic Imass- Proud, Scarred Akalak The Art of Eavesdropping Attempting to Appear Social Learning Useful Information
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Inventory
Provisions:
7 days (starting package)
Item
Received From
Clothes
Received From
Weapons
Received From
Backpack
SP
Leather shirt
SP
Cold iron rope dart (chained/bladed)
'Heirloom'
Toiletries - comb, razor, soap
SP
Leather trousers
SP
Eating knife
SP
Leather shoes
SP
Flint & steel
SP
Cotton cloak
SP
Simple undergarments
SP
Letter from Heldora
Heirloom
When the Hedos family fell from power, they had nothing. However, Xerin became incredibly fond of Kelmar during his employment as a Galatos agent, the two becoming close acquaintances and even friends. Once Kelmar had set up the Galatos network of contacts, the family cut him loose despite Xerin's best attempts at persuading them otherwise. Kelmar wasn't down about though, and before he parted from his handler the old man gave him a gift: a cold iron bladed chain dart. The small weapon was valuable and rather intimidating, and since it was the only material gift Kelmar had ever received he prizes it dearly, always carrying it on him. He has no idea how to use it.