Copyright 2001 by Brandon Cope
 

Vallone Aquarius, Wandering Water Mage
 

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ST: 10 [0]  --  Swing 1d; Thrust 1d-2
DX 11 [10]  --  Basic Speed 5.25; Move 5
IQ: 12 [20]
HT: 10 [0]

Total Points: 50

Advantages: Literacy [10], Magery 2 (Water College) [16]

Disadvantages: Compulsive Carousing [-5]; Minor Phobia (Large bodies of water) [-15]; Overconfident [-10]; Wealth (Struggling) [-10]

Quirks: Pipe smoker; Wears mainly blue clothing; Makes ice sculptures for relaxation; Plays with water (Shape Water) when bored

Skills: Area Knowledge (Home kingdom)-12 [1]; Cooking-12 [1]; Crossbow-12 [2]; First Aid-12 [1]; Glassblowing-9 [1]; Hiking-9 [1]; Knife-12 [2]; Magic Jet-11 [1]; Savioir-Faire-12 [1]; Sculpting-11 [2]; Shield-12 [2]; Shortsword-11 [2]; Spell Throwing (Icy Dagger)-12 [2]; Stealth-9 [0.5]; Streetwise-10 [0.5]; Survival (Woodlands)-11 [1]; Thaumatology-12 [2]

Grimoire: Body of Water-12 [1]; Create Water-12 [1]; Dehydrate-12 [1]; Essential Water-12 [1]; Freeze-12 [1]; Ice Dagger-12 [1]; Icy Weapon-12 [1]; Purify Water-12 [1]; Seek Water-12 [1]; Shape Water-12 [1]; Umbrella-12 [1]; Walk on Water-12 [1]; Water Jet-12 [1]; Water Vision-12 [1]

Languages: Native (Anglish)-12 [0], Latin-11 [1]

Appearance

Vallone is 5'4" tall, 145 lbs, with short blonde hair, hazel eyes and fair skin. He appears to be in his mid twenties. See Equipment for clothing.

Equipment

Vallone wears a light blue blue over a pale blue (almost white) shirt and dark blue pants, and wears leather sandals. He carries a cheap shortsword (1d cut, 1d+2 imp) and large knife (1d-2 cut/imp) at his left side. Over his left shoulder he carries a small shield. Over his right shoulder he has a crossbow (1d+2 imp) slung, a quiver holding 12 bolts on his left hip. He has a small pouch next to his sword scabbard, containing 2 gold, 26 silver and 19 copper coins [assuming 1 silver = $1]. A small backpack contains various travelling items (personal basics, some dried meat and bread, a small waterskin, etc.).

Biography

As a child, Vallone thrilled to tales of war mages tearing through invading armies of nothern barbarians, smiting them with no effort. Years passed, however, and Vallone largey forgot about these dreams as he began helping his father in his glassblowing shop in a village on the northern edge of his kingdom. In the spring of his twelfth year, a wizard in service of the local duke came to the village, to test all children aged ten to thirteen for magical abilities. Much to Vallone's surprise, he tested well, though his abilities seemed to be aspected. The boy quickly remembered the childhood tales -- fire mages setting pagan villages ablaze, earth mages with skin of stone hurling spheres of granite at barbarians. After he was taken to the duke's castle to begin his training, he was in for a second shock -- his magical ability was limited to the element of water.

Vallone's dreams of being a war mage quickly vanished. Though there are a few combat-oriented Water spells, most of are of a more practical or defensive nature. It also didn't help that, coming from a fairly dry region, he was terrified by large bodies of water. He was a quick learner, however, and after serving his required two years of service to the duke (after his apprenticeship was over), he took up the life of a wandering mage-for-hire. He isn't an expert in any spells but has minimal competence in over a dozen. Fortunately, he knows several spells (Freeze, Purify Water, Seek Water and, to a lesser extent, Essential Water and Water Vision) that are of some small commercial value. In addition, though he is not very skilled at it, he likes to create ice sculptures, particularly to relieve stress and sometimes he is paid for making them.

Since water is not especially well-suited to combat, Vallone has studied the use of weapons a bit more than other mages. He is by no means a skilled warrior, but can defend himself to some degree. Note that if he feels extremely threatened, he will use Body of Water on himself and try to escape. Only once has he used Walk on Water to cross anything larger than a pond. Now that he has learned a significant number of the water spells, he intends to start specializing in some of them.

Encountered

Vallone wanders constantly, so PCs are just as likely to run into him on the road as in a village. He does, however, avoid coastal regions and lakes, and normally avoids river towns. He will cast minor spells for a silver here or there, and has sometimes been hired to accompany caravans or perform water-related magic for petty nobles. In all, far from the life of a great war mage.

Canonically

Vallone conforms to normal rules, with the exception of his phobia. Since it applies to lakes and large rivers, as well as oceans, I have increased the cost of Thalassophobia by -5 points.

What If?

Vallone is designed for a generic fantasy campaign with Medieval overtones. He can be used almost as-is for Yrth or Discworld®. If appropriate, some GMs may wish to exchange his Shortsword skill for Fencing (and a rapier for his shortsword) and Shield to Buckler (or perhaps Main-Gauche) if the campaign has more of a Renaissance feel to it.

Campaign Uses

Since few PC mages will have many Water spells, it is possible that they may hire him to accompany them, especially if they are going to pass through an especially dry region. His Phobia is likely to come as a surprise …