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This installment of COTW features two new Roman characters,
in further support of the recent release of "GURPS Imperial
Rome, 2nd Edition". Like weeks #9 and #13, this week's pair
is a matched set, but with a "mixed double" twist: the
higher-point character is not necessarily the more powerful,
influential or important...
Lucius Cornelius Varus; rich and influential moron
(c) copyright 2000 Volker Bach
Total Points: 111 Points
Age 24; 5'9"; 148 pounds; a clean-shaven man with dark,
tousled hair and bronzed skin.
ST 11 [10] - thrust 1d-1, swing 1d+1
DX 11 [10] - basic speed 5.5, move 6*, dodge
5
parry
(shortsword) 5, block (medium shield) 9
IQ 9 [-10] - senses 10
HT 11 [10]
WL 9 [-]
*includes Running bonus
ADVANTAGES: Alertness +1 [5]; Ally (Titus Cornelius
Artemidorus, all the time) [5]; Fit [5];
Literacy [5]; Status 4* (Junior Senatorial)
[15]; Wealth (Filthy Rich) [50].
*one level free from Wealth
DISADVANTAGES: Alcoholism [-15]; Compulsive
Carousing [-5]; Impulsive [-10];
Overconfidence [-10].
QUIRKS: Likes to show off his body; Sings when drunk;
Chummy; Generous with his money. [-4]
SKILLS: Administration-8 [1]; Area Knowledge
(Rome)-12 [6]; Bard-10 [4]; Boxing-10
[1]; Carousing-13 [8]; Gambling-9
[2]; History-7 [1]; Law-9 [4];
Literature-8 [2]; Musical Instrument (Lyre)-8
[2]; Riding (Horse)-11 [2]; Running-10
[2]; Savoir-Faire-12* [2]; Shield-12
[2]; Shortsword-11 [2]; Singing-11
[1]; Spear Throwing-13 [4]; Strategy-7
[1]; Wrestling-11 [2].
*bought from default (skill 11) from Status
LANGUAGES: Latin (native)-9 [0]; Greek-8
[1].
EQUIPMENT
Lucius Cornelius Varus is always well dressed, and never
short of money. He wears his gold signet ring all the time.
He carries a dagger whenever he goes out in Rome, and a
sword when he leaves for the country. Unlike most Roman
aristocrats, Lucius likes riding and often travels on
horseback.
BIOGRAPHY
Born with the proverbial silver spoon in his mouth, Lucius
Cornelius Varus grew up in the home of his senatorial father
pampered and secure. In spite of his limited intellect he
had the finest teachers of Greek, rhetoric, literature,
history, law and politics that money could buy, and leave to
spend his free time indulging his whims. Consequently he has
no real appreciation of the value of money, or any
understanding for the meaning of poverty. Indeed, his
upbringing was sheltered even for a member of the senatorial
class. Lucius is quite out of his depth in matters
political.
After entering political life Lucius has found himself
floundering. He has held the posts of supervisor of the
Roman mint and legionary tribune and has managed to squeeze
through without any major cockup largely due to the good
advice of his secretary Artemidorus and his aversion to
actually do work he could make mistakes at. He is now slated
to stand for the quaestorship, and his reputation as a
dissolute rake is beginning to seriously worry the family.
ENCOUNTERED
Lucius is an amiable, welcoming, warm-hearted and open kind
of fellow. He has big trouble taking anything seriously and
his engaging humor and generosity can easily lull others
around him into the same stance. It is hard to feel worried
about anything around this carefree party animal.
In the prime of his youth, Lucius Cornelius Varus - while
not exceptionally handsome - is in good trim and not
unattractive. He likes to flirt, is not averse to amorous
adventures and can get quite obnoxious with his heavy-handed
passes, but he will never force himself on any woman or boy
(either can find his interest). He spends most of his
mornings in bed, the afternoons at the gym and the evenings
at parties, and anyone who goes to the same as he should
have no trouble approaching him. Indeed, he is not above
occasionally slumming it, or bringing unsuitably poor people
to upper class parties. An attractive, engaging, charismatic
or physically impressive PC could find him- or herself
invited to join a highly exclusive booze-up on a whim.
Fit, reasonably agile and in good physical trim, Lucius even
has some potential as an adventurer, though he is altogether
too unremarkable physically to develop any exceptional
skills (his ST, DX and HT are already well developed and
should be subject to decrease in middle age). He is no great
fighter - though he certainly thinks he is - and given to
overestimating his ability at almost anything. Given that he
likes hanging with the athletic crowd even a friendly
challenge to a wrestling match or practice bout to a PC is
not out of the question. Lucius can be defeated with
impunity; he holds no grudges and tends to be favorably
impressed by any such display of prowess.
CANONICALITY
Strictly speaking, Artemidorus ought to be a Dependent since
he numbers well under 75 points. However, given the massive
usefulness of this devoted retainer, it was decided to have
him cost points by defining him as an Ally; this describes
the relationship between the two characters more accurately.
(If anything, Lucius should count as Artemidorus'
Dependent...)
WHAT IF?
Lucius' basic character concept works fine in almost any
setting. There have always been rich people, they have
always had children, and at almost any time have those
children failed to live up to their fathers' expectations.
Equally, his faithful secretary translates to almost any
period as a clergyman, bodyservant or butler. The Skill list
is so setting-specific as to require complete rewriting,
though. In any period, Lucius should be adept at partying,
devoted to several popular combat sports and outdoor
activities, and have a smattering of what counts for good
education among the upper classes. Since all these things
change heavily with time there is little common ground to
build on.
ADVENTURE SEEDS
Of All the Places: Well, it was late at night, the party had
involved quite a lot of undiluted wine and Lucius had
indulged to the end. Nonetheless he should have found a
better place to empty his bladder than at the plinth of the
statue of the reigning emperor! While this need not carry
the death sentence - that depends entirely on who is the
reigning emperor at the moment - it will certainly end his
political career once and for all. Lucius himself is
distraught and panicky. He remembers little of the night's
events, except the helpful stranger who accompanied him home
after Artemidorus had fallen asleep. Finding this man,
especially based on Lucius' vague description, is a
challenge even for experienced investigators and may open
the door to a tangled political intrigue - or close the book
on a stupid youthful indiscretion.
Come Along, Then!: Lucius is given to inviting perfect
strangers to classy parties, and one fine day the PCs are
it. The naive young man immediately forgets about his
newfound friends over the next entertainment and the PCs are
left to roam freely, falling into amorous entanglements,
overhearing conversations and otherwise getting themselves
into the right kind of trouble.
- written by Volker Bach
(volker_bach@public.uni-hamburg.de)
- editted and formatted by andi jones
(andi@angelwerks.com)
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