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Our second COTW offering this week is a low-key smuggler for
a GURPS Traveller setting...
Nashu Nirkra; low-visibility smuggler
(c) copyright 2000 Brandon Cope
Total Points: 110 Points
Age late 20s; 5'3"; 135 pounds; with pale skin, brown eyes
and long black hair in a single braid worn over her left
shoulder.
ST 10 [-] - thrust 1d-2, swing 1d
DX 11 [10] - basic speed 5.5, move 5, dodge
5
IQ 13 [30]
HT 11 [10]
WL 13 [-]
ADVANTAGES: Contacts (Various) [10]; Danger Sense
[15]; Intuition [10]; Serendipity
[15].
DISADVANTAGES: Edgy [-5]; Greed [-15];
Secret (Smuggler) [-20].
QUIRKS: Always curses in Gvegh (Vargr); Always wears a dark
blouse; Refuses to admit she misses Lydos Hsiang.
[-3]
SKILLS: Acting-14 [4]; Administration-13
[2]; Area Knowledge (Collace)-14 [2]; Area
Knowledge (Trexalon)-14 [2]; Area Knowledge
(Tarsus)-14 [2]; Area Knowledge (District 268)-15
[4]; Computer Operation/TL10-13 [1]; Detect
Lies-13 [4]; Disguise-13 [2]; Fast Talk-14
[4]; Freight Handling-13 [2]; Guns
(Pistol)/TL8-13 [1]; Holdout-13 [2]; Law
(Trade)-11/17 [2]; Merchant-16 [8];
Pilot/TL10 (Contragravity)-10 [1]; Streetwise-15
[6].
LANGUAGES: Common (native)-13 [0]; Vargr (Gvegh)-12
[1]; Aslan-12 [1]; Human Language-12
[1]; Human Language-12 [1].
EQUIPMENT
Nashu Nirkra typically wears a light jacket and pants, a
dark blouse and casual shoes. If she feels a weapon is in
order, she can be expected to conceal a TL8 Body Pistol with
two magazines.
BIOGRAPHY
Nashu Nirkra was born in the Deneb Sector into a long line
of tramp merchants. When she became an adult, Nashu signed
on as a trade specialist on a Beowulf-class trader named
Renny's Revenge, which was owned by a young, rich and brash
merchant named Lydos Hsiang. Over the next year and a half,
the ship made its way through into the Spinward Marches and
into District 268, a region of worlds mostly independent of
the Imperium.
By this time, it was apparent that Lydos was a much better
pilot than merchant; despite Nashu's best efforts, he had
lost virtually all his money. In desperation, the crew
turned to smuggling, at which it was reasonably successful.
However, Lydos - not happy with the profits being made -
decided to turn pirate. Although Nashu has a great love for
money (even greater than Lydos'), a nagging feeling kept her
from going on the first pirate cruise and she instead
remained behind on Collace. As fate would have it, it was
perhaps the best choice she ever made.
While she was waiting for the ship's return, she used her
time to familiarize herself better with the subsector and
some of its worlds. She also, through frequent visits to the
starport, made contacts with several merchants on other
planets in the sector and to support herself made several
minor 'arrangements' for the transportation of small bundles
of goods. After several weeks passed, Renny's Revenge still
had not returned. Eventually, she discovered it had been
destroyed by an Imperial Q-ship in the Dallia system, with
all crew listed as killed.
Stranded some 40 parsecs from home, Nashu decided to use her
newly-acquired contacts to start her own 'small package'
business. While she does not, herself, have a starship to
carry packages, she finds those who will (for a price). She
has now been in District 268 for nearly eight years and has
no plans to leave (at least not until the Imperium annexes
it).
ENCOUNTERED
Nashu can be found in virtually any of the starports in
District 268, especially independent worlds with CR 3 or
less and a Class V, VI or III starport. (Specifically, she
frequents Avastan, Binges, Collace, Dallia, Pagaton,
Talchek, Tarkine, Tarsus and Trexalon.)
CANONICALITY
Nashu is designed using normal GURPS rules. Her Contact
advbantage has been left unspecified, for easier GM
customization (for simplicity, the GM can assume (a) five
2-point Contacts or (b) two 4-point Contacts and two 1-point
Contacts). Similarly, she has two Human language skills
which are not specified.
WHAT IF?
While Nashu is designed for a GURPS Traveller campaign, she
could fit in almost any setting where there is a demand for
smugglers.
ADVENTURE SEEDS
The most obvious use of Nashu is as means of providing shady
PCs with jobs - given the tone of the original Traveller
adventures or the inclinations of most PCs, this is would
not be unusual. Note that to keep up appearances, she will
also broker legitimate deals, so PCs may meet her that way
as well. The PCs may be hired by someone who has been
double-crossed - not intentionally by Nashu, at any rate -
and wants revenge. She could also, if desired, be used as a
PC (and not strictly as a smuggler; she has fairly good
'legitimate' merchant skills).
- written by Brandon Cope (copeab@hotmail.com)
- editted and formatted by andi jones
(andi@angelwerks.com)
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