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[note: this week's COTW is a matched set.]
Femke; orphan, former courtesan-in-training, now
debutante
(c) copyright 2000 andi jones
Total Points: 18 Points
Age 15; 5'4"; 115 pounds; a petite and pretty young lady,
with dark brown hair and equally dark eyes, Femke is quite
charming, making the most of her good looks and engaging
smile.
ST 8 [-15] - thrust 1d-3, swing 1d-2
DX 10 [-] - basic speed 5, move 5, dodge
5
IQ 12 [20]
HT 10 [-] - hit points 8
WL 11 [-8]
ADVANTAGES: Appearance (Attractive) [5]; Charisma +2
[10]; Contacts (Various, "Street") [10];
Semi-Literate [5]; Status 2 [10].
DISADVANTAGES: Duty (Matthias van Pettrik, 12-)
[-5]; Impulsive [-10]; Reduced Hit Points -2
[-10]; Sense of Duty (Lady Rookstaever, and the
Queen) [-1]; Stubbornness [-5].
QUIRKS: Admires independent women, especially the Queen;
Afraid of disappointing Matthias; Enjoys singing, and going
to musical theatre. [-3]
SKILLS: Area Knowledge (Marna)-12 [1]; Courtesan-10
[.5]; Fast-Talk-13 [4]; Holdout-11
[1]; Make-Up/TL4-11 [.5]; Panhandling-11*
[0]; Riding (Horse)-8 [.5]; Savoir-Faire-11
[.5]; Scrounging-11 [.5]; Sex Appeal-10
[2]; Singing-9 [.5]; Streetwise-13
[4].
*default from Fast-Talk
LANGUAGES: Marnan (native)-12 [0].
EQUIPMENT
Femke doesn't have much in the way of equipment. Outside the
home, she'd carry a change-purse, a handful of coins and
little else of value.
BIOGRAPHY
Life on the streets of Marna can be harsh and unkind, and
Femke learned this lesson young. When she was six, her
parents - both non-guilded craftsmen - lost their wares to
thieves, and soon thereafter lost their lives to the same
men. Their ten-year-old son was killed, but Femke slipped
away. For a time, she tried living with one of her father's
brothers, but that eventually fell apart. By the time she
was nine, she'd spent most of a year on the street; she ran
with various packs of other orphans and runaways, stealing,
begging and occasionally doing petty jobs for food.
Among her peers, Femke stood out: she was both bright and
charming, and by the time she was a teen-ager she had grown
into a head-strong and confident young woman. It was these
qualities that ultimately brought Femke to the attention of
a woman named Ritske; she worked at a "parlour" called the
Black Swan - a social club with a tavern, casino and brothel
- and offered Femke work. The idea of working at such a
place didn't much appeal to Femke, but it was better than
living on the street. So she accepted, moved into the club's
apartments, and began her training.
Over the next year and a half, Femke was apprenticed to some
of the Swan's older women, and learned the basics of being a
hostess, and courtesan. Also in this time, she was
befriended by a man named Sander van Krijn, a silentiary
working for one of the citystate's Loyalist noblemen. Femke
- in exchange for a little extra cash, and someone to keep
an eye out for her - helped van Krijn by acting a courier,
holding and delivering messages between him and his
colleagues.
It was in this capacity that she met Matthias van Pettrik;
during the All Saint's March festival in 1218, Matthias and
several colleagues were looking into van Krijn's
disappearance in connection to their investigation of a
conspiracy to kill an influential Loyalist noblewoman. As
one van Krijn's contacts, Femke was put in danger, and took
refuge in Matthias' home until the conclusion of the affair.
The noblewoman's life was saved, and as an expression of her
gratitude - feeling that Femke deserved a proper upbringing,
and aware that Matthias had no children - she arranged to
have Femke formally made a part of the van Pettrik
family.
ENCOUNTERED
Charming, pretty and amiable, Femke is a fiery and
head-strong young woman. Sometimes, this gets in the way;
she can be stubborn and abrasive - trying too hard to prove
her worth - as if her very integrity is on trial. She is
also inclined to speak her mind or act on her impulses, and
doesn't always thinks thing through. But she is not
irresponsible, and has a strong respect for Matthias, his
way of life, and the effort he has invested in it. For all
her impulsive attitude, she's bright enough to recognise
where the acceptable boundaries are, and how to flirt with
them.
CANONICALITY
Femke is mostly compatible with the standard GURPS rules.
The only exception is that her Contacts are left undefined,
since the GM may wish to customise them. In general, he
Contacts would be old friends from the social club or the
streets, and would have effective skill in Streetwise. It's
unlikely she has any Contacts in business or law
enforcement, but if they does, she should not be very
connected.
WHAT IF?
Although Femke was designed for a Renaissance-style urban
swashbuckling setting (see the What If? section of Matthias
van Pettrik's character), she could be adapted for any
setting that could accommodate Matthias: fantasy,
historical, or even space opera or cyberpunk. In the case of
Femke, it's easy enough to maintain the character concept -
the down-and-out orphan adopted by the well-to-do widower -
while only rearranging a few setting-specific skills.
ADVENTURE SEEDS
Earning a Father's Trust: Despite occasional outbursts of
head-strong behaviour, Femke is a respectful daughter, and
works hard to earn her new father's trust. So when she
receives word that one of her former girlfriends from the
Black Swan is in trouble - unwanted attention from a
criminal client, maybe, or extortion from a corrupt lawman -
she tells her father. Matthias tells her to remain
uninvolved, and promises to use his contacts in the
Constabulary to deal with it. But Femke isn't terribly good
at sitting still... Can she sit by while her friend is in
trouble? Can she get involved without her father finding
out? And if he did, how would he react?
- written and formatted by andi jones
(andi@angelwerks.com)
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