Heridoth PBM - Koistran characters ---------------------------------- These are my characters from a Heridoth PBM run by Mike Tittensor. I played the city of Koistra, and the way I set it up made the characters important. The text here was written for the game Sholari (Mike) and as such may not be clear to those unfamiliar with the Heridoth PBM. The information is current as of the start of 3423. The numbers are skill levels - skill 1 represents an exceptional person, skill 3 is likely to be the best in all Heridoth and skill 5 is likely to be the best in the entire of human history (eg. Dhar Cabal Sancho "Panzer" Wobbegong of Pan Tahsia). Owen Smith (owen.smith@net-tel.co.uk) 21st November 1995 Drenn King Sharnax ------------------ Reasonable King, best known before 3411 for calming relations with other states either by beating them back in warfare or by good diplomacy. Originally not very good at running the state itself, he tended to follow the advice of his siblings and then his children, particularly Alissandra and Sharnos. Since Alissandra's marriage and the increased demands on Sharnos' time from the secret service, Sharnax has been more involved in the running of the state and has actually become good at it in a remarkably short period of time. Royal Family name is Marliss. Born 3368, age 55 in 3423. Married with 4 children. General 3 Diplomat 3 Administrator 2 Keshtia Princess Alissandra --------------------------- Only daughter, heir to the throne. Proud of being the only young Kesht in the Royal Family (in The Order of Our Lady). Enjoys being a lady when she chooses, but equally at home as a warrior and huntress. Starting to prepare herself for the throne, was heavily involved in the running of the state (possibly more so than her father on internal matters) before her marriage. It is known that Alissandra has a laser pistol, which she used when captured by the JarHars and in beating off Banda's attack on Koistra. The King gave it to her when she achieved Kesht status in 3410. Since 3411 has become known for her patronage of Simban fashions, particularly the exiled Koistran-Simban fashion houses. Married Crown Prince David of the Holy Terran Empire in Eris 3419. Family name now Marliss-Tarsory. Achieved Keshtia at 18 as follows. Went to Ardoth and met some of the Princes. Together they went off to Lelligire, where there were an increasing number of attacks on the Princes. Alissandra found herself in the bodyguard role, and uncovered an Ardothian merchant who was behind the attempted killings. Her thwarting of this merchant gained her Keshtia status and prompted the opening of mutual embassies between Koistra and Ardoth. Since Banda's death she has had to spend much of her time away from Koistra in the Imperial capital since she is still trying to have children. She chafes at this, but accepts it as her lot for now. Once she is too old to realistically bear children and/or is on the Koistran throne, things will change. Born 3392, age 31 in 3423. Married with 1 child. Warrior 3 Diplomat 1 General 1 Seduction 1 First child born Auss 45, 3420 name Richard Adam Marliss-Tarsory. Drenn Prince Sharnos -------------------- Eldest son, second in line to the throne. Runs the secret service (frequently using Tauther as pawns) using administrative skills as a cover. It is known but not advertised that the secret service is directly run by the Royal Family. Spent some time for a few of years looking for a suitable lady to marry, but found none. During this time he had occassional explosive physical relationships with Talya Nagrin. His active searching for a marriage partner ended in 3422 when he realised that he was in love with the boccord wreslter, and she seemed to love him. The relationship has its problems, since Sharnos can't go public due to fear of the reaction of the church and the other nobles. Talya Nagrin is not particularly happy about this, and has the occasional fling with someone else (usually a boccord). Despite all this, somehow Sharnos and Talya always end up together again. Close friends speculate that this is because they understand each other and have got close to each other in a way which other people have been unable to due to Sharnos' work and Talya's wrestling. Born 3393, age 30 in 3423. Unmarried. Spymaster 2 Administrator 1 General 1 Prince Hanrax ------------- Imprisoned for life for his role in leading the Dobren attack through Sholis on Koistra in 3418 and later his role in the civil disturbances and assasination attempts that the wedding of Alissandra and David in 3419. The Kard family in Dobre (Lucius Kard died in the attack) are his friends and have requested through diplomatic channels that his life be spared. Technically third in line to the throne, but would encounter many problems in trying to make use of this (including not being Drenn). Has the sympathies of the traditionalists and the Dobrens, although support is not as strong as it was. Not one of the brightest members of the Royal Family. Not actually one of my characters. Born 3395, age 28 in 3423. Unmarried. Skills unknown, but might be an orator and a diplomat. Drenn Prince Jansor ------------------- Youngest child of Sharnax. Matriculated at Sharnax University in late Auss 3415 into the Land Economy faculty. Now present at the Dharsage court of the Holy Terran Empire as the hostage to ensure good behaviour. In fact he has turned himself into an asset and is doing excellent things to promote Koistran interests (but needs a 20gc per year budget). Will probably die of gout at the age of 35 due to the amount of alcohol flowing at the court. Married the Clun Elector's daughter Francisca in Eris 3421 after winning a first blood duel with her elder brother. Born 3397, age 26 in 3423. Married. Politics 1 Warrior 1 Princess Royal Isobelle ----------------------- Drenn King Sharnax's wife. She is the only daughter of a wealthy businessman (now dead, business disolved) and is not of noble lineage herself. Although a little unusual in noble circles this is not unheard of. Sharnax met her while they were both Tauther and they fell in love. This is the most common way for commoners to marry into nobility although this is only the second time it has happened with a ruler (Drenn Queen Ruth being the first to marry a commoner). Isobelle's love for Sharnax was sufficient for her to choose not to finish her tothis and instead to marry Sharnax and start a family as soon as he became Drenn. Technically she should be called Tauther Princess Royal Isobelle but everybody drops the Tauther out of respect. Isobelle has never regretted marrying Sharnax and loves him and her family dearly, but she does tend to keep out of the way of the affairs of the nobles around her since she wasn't brought up to it. Born 3375, age 48 in 3423. Married with 4 children. No skills. Keshtia Princess Hervia ----------------------- Second sibling of Sharnax. Koistran Ambassador to Ardoth. Reached Keshtia due to her work in Ardoth, and joined The Order Noblesse. Her husband is nearly Kesht. Hervia and her younger twin Lyanda are very alike in appearance, although most people can tell the difference most of the time. Hervia is a frequent customer at Frank Buck's restaurants - it's the only way to get decent Koistran food in Ardoth. Born 3372, age 51 in 3423. Married with 7 children. Diplomat 1 Drenn Princess Lyanda --------------------- Third sibling of Sharnax. Koistran Ambassador to Dobre. Lyanda and her older twin Hervia (ambassador to Ardoth) are very alike in appearance, although most people can tell the difference most of the time. The Koistran embassy in Dobre opened in 3421 after a considerable length of time persuading Ardoth that this was a reasonable thing for Koistra to do. Born 3372, age 51 in 3423. Married with 6 children. Diplomat 1 Drenn Prince Randall -------------------- Fourth and youngest sibling of Sharnax. Head of the roving Koistran diplomatic team. A little young for the job, but it does mean he can take the pace of foreign visits. He was assigned to the team the first year they went to Anasan to try to get the Archbishopric. His first idea - to give the research results as a gift - was a good one and he has been in charge of the team ever since. They have been significantly more effective since he took charge. Born 3283, age 40 in 3423. Married with 6 children. Diplomat 1 Drenn Princess Louisa Marliss ----------------------------- Drenn Prince Wilfred's third child. Wilfred obtained a land grant in Ardudwy (northern Holy Terran Empire) in 3420, but Louisa stayed behind to be with her lover Drenn Lady Helen Fitz-Flixworth. They have been lovers since 3414 and it looks as if they will be together for a long time. Reaction to this relationship varies from acceptance to ambivalence, but rarely to hatred or prejudice. The slowest members of the Royal Family haven't even noticed, Prince Hanrax included. Some blame the Flixworth family for leading an innocent royal astray. In 3420 Louisa went to a monastery to learn how to breed and train horses. Unfortunately they took exception to her proclivities (which they discovered through espionage) and she was used as menial labour. After spending some time soul searching and an apology from Drenn King Sharnax himself Louisa decided to continue pursuing her love of horses. A teacher was brought over from Ruleane at considerable expense (25gc) and Louisa has now started a horse breeding program. 3398, age 25 in 3423. Lesbian in stable relationship. Horse breeder/trainer 1 The next bit was current at the start of 3420 and was written for the wedding of Alissandra. She has lots of cousins. By 3423 more of them will have married, more children will have been born and moe of them should be Drenn and Tauther. Drenn King Sharnax's Siblings ----------------------------- Drenn Prince Wilfred, born 3371, age 49 in 3420. Married with 6 children. Drenn Princess Hervia, born 3372, age 48 in 3420. Married with 7 children. Drenn Princess Lyanda, born 3372, age 48 in 3420. Married with 6 children. (Prince Hanrax, born 3375, died 3382 age 7.) Drenn Prince Randall, born 3383, age 37 in 3420. Married with 6 children. Prince Hanrax's death as a child coupled with the more recent Prince Hanrax's betrayal of the state means it is highly unlikely the name Hanrax will ever be given again to a royal or noble child. Drenn Prince Wilfred, born 3371, age 49 in 3420 ----------------------------------------------- Wife born 3376, age 44 in 3420, Noble Drenn. Marriage was in 3395. Children: Age 3396 Female twins 24 Both Drenn, virtually indistinguishable 3398 Female 22 Drenn, lesbian in stable relationship * 3400 Male 20 Tauther, fiance 3404 Male 16 Tauther, girlfriend 3408 Male 12 * The girl's lover since 3414 (6 years) is Drenn Lady Helen Fitz-Flixworth (born 3395, age 25). Reaction to this relationship varies from acceptance to ambivalence, but rarely to hatred or prejudice. The slowest members of the Royal Family haven't even noticed, Tauther Prince Hanrax included. Some blame the Flixworth family for leading an innocent royal astray. Keshtia Princess Hervia, born 3372, age 48 in 3420 -------------------------------------------------- Husband born 3366, age 54 in 3420, Noble Drenn almost Kesht. Marriage was in 3399. Hervia is the twin of Lyanda; they are very alike but most people can tell the difference. Children: Age 3401 Female 19 Tauther 3402 Male 18 Tauther, girlfriend 3406 Female 14 Tauther 3407 Female 13 3408 Male 12 3410 Male+Fem twins 10 Very alike despite being different sexes Drenn Princess Lyanda, born 3372, age 48 in 3420 ------------------------------------------------ Husband born 3370, age 50 in 3420, Noble Drenn. Marriage was in 3397. Hervia is the twin of Lyanda; they are very alike but most people can tell the difference. Children: Age 3398 Male 22 Drenn, married * 3401 Female 19 Drenn 3403 Male 17 Drenn 3404 Female 16 Drenn 3405 Fem+Male twins 15 Both Tauther, girl married ** * Wife born 3397, age 23 in 3420, Noble Drenn. Marriage was in 3414. Children: Age 3416 Male twins 4 Not at all alike 3418 Female 2 3420 Male twins 0 Not at all alike The husband also has an illegitimate daughter born 3415, age 5. The child's mother is a married commoner, who is reasonably certain the child is not her husbands since they had been trying to have children without success for 9 years. Her husband thinks the child is his, and is proud of his beautiful daughter. The real father of the child thinks the child might be his. Both the real father and mother are keeping quiet, since everyone is happy. The child is the result of the mother deciding she wanted a child badly enough to go round seducing random men for an evening until she conceived. She knows of 4 men any one of whom could be the father of her child. ** Husband born 3403, age 17, Noble Drenn. Marriage was in 3418 after pressure from both sets of parents due to the girl becoming pregnant at 13. The marriage is not a happy one since there is no love in it, but they are young enough that that may change. Neither of them are particularly mature in attitude yet. Children: Age 3419 Male+Fem twins 1 Drenn Prince Randall, born 3283, age 37 in 3420 ----------------------------------------------- Wife born 3374, age 46 in 3420 (9 years older). Marriage was in 3401, when Drenn Prince was 18 and his wife was 27. She was thought of as a bit of a cradle snatcher then, but this has worn off with time. Their first child was born 6 months after the wedding, but their's was no forced wedding. Plans were already in place before the wife become pregnant. Children: Age 3401 Female 19 Drenn, fiance 3404 Fem+male twins 16 Girl Drenn, boy Tauther 3406 Female 14 3408 Female twins 12 Notes on the die rolling ------------------------ It is odd that Sharnax's siblings have so many children. I rolled a D6 for each of them, and all four rolled a 6 (after having rolled 5 on a D6 for 4 siblings of Sharnax in the first place). I then used percentile dice for sex: 01 = same sex twins, 02-50 = female, 51-99 = male, 00 = different sex twins. By the time this had rolled the first 6 out of the 8 sets of twins in the family, I decided that twins are common in the royal family (tendency to twins is hereditary) and changed to a D10: 1-4 = female, 5-8 = male, 9 = same sex twins, 10 = different sex twins (on a 9 roll D8 for sex, on a 10 roll D8 for which sex is born first). This is still less likely than the 6 sets of twins out of 22 rolls that the percentile dice produced. Thus I feel it is entirely appropriate for this roll to be used for Alissandra's children. The other die rolls were a bit more arbitrary, but the other things to note are the high incidence of young Drenn and the low incidence of marriage. Both of these go against the grain of the dice used to roll for them (which were both adjusted for age). Similarly the low incidence of illegitimacy is heavily against the die I rolled for it. The Lesbian was a result of a 00 on her percentile dice for marriage and another 00 on her percentile dice for Drenn. I decided this meant she was unusual and gave her a 10 on a D10 chance of being a Lesbian. I was going to keep thinking of unusual things until one of them turned up on the die. Death during childhood was rolled for, and again the very low incidence (only Hanrax) was grossly unlikely. I think I should donate my dice to some Thriddle for them to do research on. This is the second installment of my Koistran characters listing, with one more to follow. The information is current as of the start of 3423. The numbers are skill levels - skill 1 represents an exceptional person, skill 3 is likely to be the best in all Heridoth and skill 5 is likely to be the best in the entire of human history (eg. Dhar Cabal Sancho "Panzer" Wobbegong of Pan Tahsia). From here onwards are the characters who are not members of the Royal Family. This information is current at the start of 3423. Kesht Lord Charles Wilson ------------------------- Leader of the Royal Exploration Corps. An excellent explorer, but out of Koistra during the summer as a result. Gained Kesht status by charting the river Kyis from the Elfael lands through to York in 3418 and joined The Order of Seekers. Discovered Shanthic artifacts in Mairamin in 3420 and now carries a Thailerian sword. Granted lands and a noble title in Crith 3421. Professor of the Wilson Faculty of Shanthic Studies. Introduced to noble circles and some marriagable ladies by Alissandra. Speaks Shanthic at Experienced. Born 3388, age 35 in 3423. Unmarried, wooing Drenn Lady Wilma Hevingham. Explorer 2 Shanthic Archaeology 1 Cabal Rahn Trohan (deceased) ---------------------------- Boccord general, lead Koistran army in battle of Serpent Path against Banda, and died there. Born 3384, age 32 at his death in 3416. Never married. General 1 Archbishop James Alderton ------------------------- James Alderton is the youngest brother of 3, the eldest currenly holding the Alderton family estates. Before becoming Archbishop, Alderton was in charge of a middle class urban church in the city itself. He is not particularly connected with any of the nobles except his family, but he does promote the interests of the college and he supports the rule of Drenn King Sharnax and the succession of Keshtia Princess Alissandra. Archbishop Alderton is not Drenn (he entered the church fairly young) and hence cannot inherit his family's estates. Tends to preach tolerance and conciliation and is thus in the church faction which favours the Iscin races. The Archbishopric of Koistra encompasses the Bishoprics of Ardoth and Gauss and covers the Sobayid too. Born 3377, age 46 in 3423. Unmarried (Catholic Priest). Priest 1 Orator 1 Diplomat 1 Drenn Lord Blickling -------------------- Runs the limilate colonies on Dosoi and Curili, and rather well too. His parents died a little younger than is usual and he inherited early. Born 3380, age 43 in 3423. Married with children. General 1 Drenn Admiral Richard Fitz-Flixworth ------------------------------------ Drenn Admiral Richard Fitz-Flixworth is of Koistran noble descent, but has the slight problem of being illegitimate. This doesn't prevent him from inheriting of course, but it is a bit of a stigma and having an older Drenn brother (legitimate) makes the likelihood of inheriting slim. Thus he has decided to try to make his mark with a naval career. He's a bit of a lovable rogue and he rather admires Granthix Storm's nerve at some of the stunts he pulled with the JarHar pirates, whilst simultanesously deploring the criminal nature of them. It was such a waste really. Granthix Storm in charge of the Koistran navy could have worked miracles. The Drenn Admiral favours the JarHar people in Koistra. He feels it would be a shame if the better side of the character of the JarHars was lost forever, and since there is little sign of the JarHars in Sholis, Dowsen, and York and the Ellemin ones are not in the Navy it is up to Koistra. The Drenn Admiral is a little biased in this since his wife is a JarHar woman. He fell in love with her and got her pregnant out of wedlock in 3417. The child was born in Mullin 3418 and his wife chose to have the marriage after the birth. Thus they were married in Auss 3418 with the baby present, which in the Flixworth dynasty is almost normal. As a wedding present, her father presented Richard with the secrets of using marines. The first unit of marines was formed, consisted entirely of JarHar men and women. The Drenn Admiral's full name (Drenn Admiral Richard Fitz-Flixworth) is a bit of a mouthful. He knows this and plays up to it. If anyone he has never met before can pronouce it flawlessly while speaking at normal speed he will buy them a drink. Born 3390, age 33 in 3423. Married with children. Admiral 1 Drenn Lady Caroline Flixworth ----------------------------- The current holder of the Flixworth estate, and Richard's mother. A slightly unusual estate holder. She married Herbert (of noble descent), had one child, and then fell out with her husband and seperated from him. Needing more heirs, the next two children (Richard and Helen) are illegitimate. No-one knows who the father is except Richard, Helen and Caroline (and the father) for fear Lady Caroline's husband or his family would find out and cause trouble. Herbert then paid a visit and after a blazing row raped Lady Caroline. Hence the youngest daughter Louise is legitimate, at least technically. Herbert served 15 years in prison for rape (yes it is legally possible to rape your wife in Koistra) and was released in 3408. Prison appears to have humbled him and since 3408 he has lived a very modest life on his family's estates. Born 3366, age 57 in 3323. Married and seperated with 4 children (middle 2 illegitimate). No skills. Drenn Adam Philpotts (deceased) ------------------------------- Previously a member of Drenn Wilson's exploration team, became a leader of an exploration team himself. He was a bit young to be an exploration team leader, but his youth made the physical aspects easier and he was very ambitious with masses of drive for one so young. Wilson was his role model, and one day he hoped to have served Koistra as well and for as long as Wilson had. Became Drenn in Auss 3417, and had his sights set firmly on Kesht. Sadly, he went missing in Mairamin in 3419. In 3420, the Sholian exploration team found the bodies of Philpotts and his team. Strangely, the bodies seemed to be drained of all blood. The Sholians returned the bodies to Koistra for proper burial. Born 3394, age 25 at his death in 3419. Never married. Explorer 1 Drenn Fisher Mobile ------------------- Poet Laureate, specialising in (but not limited to) erotic poetry. Not technically one of my characters, but he's around and if I think of anything for him to write he might be useful. His poetry has already provoked a reminder from Archbishop Alderton to the palace about public morality. Alissandra is quite a fan of his poetry, as it expresses the desires within her that have been fulfilled since she married. She gave a book of his poetry to Crown Prince David when she was courting him, with a couple of extra poems in the back about herself. Fisher Mobile obtained a number of points from Alissandra for his contribution to her wooing of David. He has a teaching post at the Arts faculty. His work there and the success of Arts research in 3421 culminated in him reaching Drenn status. Born 3385, age 38 in 3423. Married with children and a mistress. Poet 1 Drennit Alwed Nobb ------------------ His father David is a failed merchant turned teacher at the music faculty. Alwed was always a disappointment to his father, but following his brush with death and subsequent artistic flowering writing the Mountains Symphony, Alwed has found a new role for himself. For some time he forgot he was in tothis since he failed miserably to get any Drenn points. During the Drenn guild drive, the Keshtan noticed and awarded him some Drenn points for raising artistic standards in Koistra with his music. Awarded Drennit status in 3421 for the spectacular success that he and Daria Adson achieved in leap-frogging several steps in the development of organs for the cathedral (bearing in mind previous excellent work). Born 3399, age 24 in 3423. Unmarried. Composer 1 Drennit Daria Adson ------------------- Female Muadra (dysha illiterate). Daria arrived at Sharnax University in Crith 3417 (3417-3418 academic year) and stunned everyone with her suggestion for the Durlig Printing Press. It was unusual, it was innovative, and it might just work. Funds were found from the Royal Purse, and Daria took charge of the project. Daria strikes people as a little distant. She tends to keep to herself, doesn't make friends easily, and wears clothes that cover her from neck to toe. All people ever see is her face and hair and her hands. She also works hard, as if driven by some internal force. She did not register herself as a Tauther, claiming that she was not worthy. Perfected the Durlig Printing Press in 3420 for basic text printing. Refined it to include printing patterns onto fabric in 3421. Also in 3421 worked with Alwed Nobb on organs, Daria concentrating on the mechanics. This work was spectacularly successful, outstripping all expectations. She and Alwed were awarded Drennit status for this work (bearing in mind previous excellent work). 3422 was a tumultuous year for Daria Adson. First the picture in "Women of our time", then the success of the fabric printing and the spectacular organ research, and finally being awarded Drennit status at the same ceremony as the illustrious Alwed Nobb and Beth Dars. Her mind spinning from all this praise, when a young male muadra asked her out to dinner she said yes. Afterwards she was unsure why, but felt compelled to turn up if only to avoid being rude. It turned out that it was he who drew the sketch for "Women of our time", and he was greatly interested in Daria herself and her work. He in turn is an artist and minor Caji, with some unusual ideas on artwork involving isho that somehow changes its appearance depending on the viewers naull. So elated was Daria with this year's achievements, that without really realising it she gradually fell in love. Born 3392, age 31 in 3423. Unmarried. Iscin 1 Special Yord Talya Nagrin ------------------------- Female boccord. Originally trained as a wrestler, Talya has found a career for herself as chief interrogator in the substantially up-rated Koistran Yords. She came to the Yords with an excellent reference from Drenn Prince Sharnos himself, and seems to have some sort of rapport with Sharnos' agents. It isn't that she works for them, since the rapport is too obvious for that. It's more like respect based on a mutual secret. Talya still wrestles on an amateur basis, and this is part of the secret of her success as an interrogator. Most of the people she interrogates are human males. Quite simply there are more humans than anything else in Koistra, and men tend to commit more crimes than women. A lot of men are psychologically afraid of women who are larger and physically more powerful than they are, and this helps Talya in her questioning. She does not torture people, except pschologically. She doesn't actually know scientifically what she's doing and why being large and well built helps, she's just naturally adept at wearing people down with questions until they spill the beans. Socially Talya has a string of brief but wildly passionate affairs behind her, at the rate of about 2 or 3 per year. Many of them are with Boccord, but about 1 in 3 are with humans. The affairs are wild because she has difficulty seperating sex and wrestling, and they tend not to last because most men can't take the pace and if anything goes wrong in the relationship Talya swings into full interrogation mode. Talya had various affairs with Drenn Prince Sharnos and finally fell in love wth him in 3422. However, the relationship has its problems due to her inclinations to take the occasional other lover and his inability to make the relationship public. Despite all this, they somehow manage to stay together. Born 3386, age 37 in 3423. Unmarried with 2 children. Interrogator 1 Wrestler 1 Drenn Calprin Martin Remin (deceased) ------------------------------------- A young man with a sharp mind who until he became a Calprin wasn't able to find what best suited him. He took a degree in Medicine at Sharnax University, but only just scraped a pass due to becoming dis-interested. He set himself the goal of becoming Kesht by the age of 30 but got side-tracked shortly after reaching Drenn. He became a querrid for a while and investigated things for the Thriddle, but that wasn't quite right either. Finally with the formation of the Koistran Calprin unit he realised he had found his calling and signed up immediately. While the rest of the Calprin were being trained in Ardoth, Martin stayed behind against orders because there was too much to do. He didn't need the Ardothian's telling him how to be a detective, he'd already learnt all that from the Thriddle. He was about to be reprimanded by his superiors, until he showed them his work. The tone quickly changed to "excellent work, well done, but next time try to follow orders please". Martin's techniques are slightly different to those of his Ardothian trained colleagues. Sometimes this is useful when the Ardothian techniques hit a brick wall, but at other times Martin ends up at odds with the department over the correct way to proceed with an investigation. The department most distrusts Martin's use of Thriddle informers, but Martin claims that a Thriddle learns more in a day than a human learns in a lifetime. Since he continues to produce results, his methods are tolerated. Martin speaks Triddis passably, which helps in his dealings with Thriddle. Unfortunately it has given him a mild case of Thriddle Language Complex. Went to Sholis in 3421 to help InterYord investigate the counterfeit money. This turned out to be the Fourth Ring, a criminal/terrorist organisation. They attempted to assassinate Martin and Talya Nagrin. Talya escaped with only minor cuts and bruises, Martin was found dead in a back alley. Martin's new found Sholian girlfriend (an ex-acrobat) was deeply upset by all this. Born 3391, age 30 at his death in 3421. Never married. Detective 1 Yord Alan Handar ---------------- Officially the assistant to Lord Bannington's deputy. In practice, this man keeps the Yords ticking over like no-one else can. He's the archetypal desk job man through which all the paperwork goes. No-one thinks he's all that important, but when he goes on holiday things just don't happen like they should. Overweight, balding and slightly cynical, he commands respect simply because he has more years of service in the Yords than anyone cares to remember. He is never late for work and no-one ever has cause to criticise him. The paperwork used to have to go through Bannington which limited Alan's effectiveness, but while Bannington was away the arrangements were streamlined and they worked so well that they were kept that way. Socially Alan is as regular as he is at work. He is a staunch supporter of his local creshi-throwing team and never misses a match. He can recall matches that happened decades ago with uncanny accuracy. ("I remember the final fish thrown by Wobbler Higgins in the ninth match of the 3384 season against the Dock Street Bruisers like it were yesterday. He's still the only man to have scored with 3 thirty pound fish in one season you know.") He keeps pibber as pets, claiming that caring for them is very soothing after a hard day's work. His wife won't allow his pets in the house however, so he keeps them in the shed and lets his grandchildren play with them (always supervised) when they come to visit. Born 3359, age 64 in 3423. Married with 3 children and 5+ grand children. Administrator 1 Cle-Lance Halna Darinn ---------------------- Female boccord, Cle-Lance of the Bronth/Boccord Medium Infantry. Technically she has the title Cabal, but actually she uses the title Cle-Lance since it emphasises the fact that a woman has the job. She is aware of the fact that she and Wiggleswood are the only non-noble generals in the army. She is immensely proud of her unit, having been recruited into the ranks of the original Boccord medium infantry unit and having survived and worked her way up through all of the unit's battles. She was Cabal Rahn Trohan's second in command, and was effectively promoted in the field on his death. Unfortunately she was injured at the time and was unable to assume command, and with several people at the next level down there was no obvious leader. Halna feels that Trohan was unlucky to get killed the way he did, but she does not blame the Emlyn for his death. They fought well, we didn't. That is the way of war for a boccord. Fortunately the unit has since distinguished itself as a joint Bronth/Boccord unit, particularly in the defence of the city against that runt Tauther Prince Hanrax. Halna particularly liked Sharnax's brilliant tactic at the steps of the cathedral where the Royal Caji wove dyshas over the heads of her kneeling unit. She hopes to be able to work with the Caji again at some time in the future. One thing that is not well known, even in the unit, is that Halna had a crush on Rahn Trohan. She never told him, and her love was unrequited. For a year or so she berated herself for not having told him before his death, since there was ample opportunity to do so. Recently as the morale of her unit improved and she found positive things to balance his death she has got over her guilt, but not quite all of her grief. A christian before Rahn's death, she doubted her faith for a time. Her faith was renewed on the steps of St. Rupert's, where she believes that the hand of God played a part in inspiring Sharnax's excellent tactics. Born 3385, age 38 in 3423. Unmarried and likely to stay that way. General 1 Cabal Adrian Wiggleswood ------------------------ Originally a member of one of the peasant units that attacked Sholis, he "distinguished" himself by his quick thinking in getting his unit inside the gates when the Sholians opened them. Drenn King Sharnax decided that Wiggleswood knew enough to be dangerous but not enough to be useful, and so solved the problem by training him up as a commander for the city militia. Unfortunately Wiggleswood was on Dosoi at the time of the Dobren attack, and although his unit arrived they were a little late and got killed for their trouble. So without obvious units to command in 3419, Wiggleswood drew the short straw since someone had to accompany the peasants as the military "advisors" to the Dobrens in the Essanja. The job was simple - wave the Imperial flag and come home with himself, the unit and Drenn Lord Bannington in one piece. He succeeded (since there was no fighting) and was promoted to Cabal. Born 3392, age 31 in 3423. Unmarried. General 1 This is the third and final installment of my Koistran characters listing. The information is current as of the start of 3423. The numbers are skill levels - skill 1 represents an exceptional person, skill 3 is likely to be the best in all Heridoth and skill 5 is likely to be the best in the entire of human history (eg. Dhar Cabal Sancho "Panzer" Wobbegong of Pan Tahsia). Owen (owen@sj.co.uk) Drenn Lord Tharst Walsham ------------------------- Tharst is third in line to inherit the Walsham estate, behind two elder sisters. He is quite a disappointment to his father, who had hoped to make him a fine upstanding figure of a man to fight in the army. Quite how his father intended to achieve this while spending little or no time with his son is not clear. As the only son in the family Tharst was brought up by his mother and her ladies in waiting with his three sisters. He is somewhat embarrased to admit that he is considerably better with a needle and thread than he is with a sword. It's not that he's effeminate or anything similar, because he isn't. He is a well spoken, charming and courteous young man. But he has the kind of bias on his skill-set that a noblewoman would normally be expected to have, and is slightly more at ease socialising with women than with men. He would make a good husband for a title holding butch woman. Tharst's father finally let him fulfill his wish to go to university into the music faculty; again a sign of his leaning towards more traditionally female skills. Here Tharst found an unexpected benefit of his upbringing; the women at the university positively fell over each other in the rush to get a date with this nice, courteous young man with an understanding of a lady's needs. Tharst treats all women as ladies if they behave as such, whether they are noble or common. Daria Adson found his attitude particularly flattering; he merely regarded it as courteous behaviour to a polite lady. Tharst quickly found he had a particular aptitude for listening to old earth music and transcribing it. First of all, he writes out a score for the original old earth instruments. Only when he has a complete score does he start arranging the work for Jorune instruments. Sometimes this doesn't work and the piece is shelved until more old earth instruments have been re-invented. An example of this is the New World Symphony; it is a magnificent work which he felt compelled to write out a score for, but without full brass and reed instruments it just doesn't work. Tharst initially settled on Vivaldi's The Four Seasons violin concertos as the first public performance of old earth music. It is almost entirely strings, the only other instruments being a Harpsichord and a small amount of organ accompaniment. The Harpsichord parts were re-arranged for pizzicato whosins, and the organ parts re-arranged either for tentershines or bass whosin. However, Tharst then realised that no whosin player could actually play the solo part and he started looking for something else to arrange. Time and time again he found himself simply listening to the timelessness of The Four Seasons. Composed in 1725 AD, it predates all of the inventions that people think of when the phrase "Earth-Tec" is used. In some areas Jorune's technology actually exceeds that present on old earth in 1725. One day he went to bed a little early. As he lay in bed in the mixed quarters, he started to here snatches of Spring. At first he thought he was simply listening to it in his mind as he drifted towards sleep, but then he realised hazily that only the solo part was present and it was being played over and over again slightly differently to the recording. Sometimes there were wrong notes. With a start he leapt out of bed as the realisation hit him: someone was practising the solo parts. More importantly, they were very close to playing the most difficult passages correctly. Excitedly, he left his room and went wandering the corridoors with only a cloak thrown over his night clothes. Every time the soloist started playing again he came closer to its source. Eventually he entered one of the few female only dormitories. By now it was getting late for men to be entering it, particularly in night clothes under a cloak. Tharst ignored all this for once, and the whispers started among the women: Tharst must have a lover. He followed the music to Gwen Nobb's room, and knocked on the door. After a pause she opened it, in her night clothes. Knowing that Tharst was an arranger and a very courteous young man who would not lay a finger on her, Gwen let him in. At this point tongues really started wagging. Tharst stayed until the early hours of the morning. The gossip reached fever pitch, but in fact all he and Gwen did was talk of music. The next day Gwen came to Tharst's room and started practising the solo parts with access to both the written parts and the original recording. With this help she was soon able to play the parts that had previously eluded her. The rest is public knowledge: the Koistran Royal Symphony Orchestra premiered Vivaldi's The Four Seasons in 3421 to critical acclaim and Gwen Nobb shot to instant stardom. Rumours of a passionate affair between Gwen and Tharst persist, despite their best efforts to quell them. It doesn't help that neither of them actually has a lover and that they spend a lot of time together discussing music. 3422 saw Tharst and Gwen even more strenuously denying a relationship when they went to the Ellemin cultural festival and Pan Joruni games. This got to the stage that the habit of denying it got so great that it took them a long time to admit that they did have growing feelings for each other. In 3423 they finally admitted it by attending social functions together. However, the rumour mill claims that the relationship started in 3420 when they didn't actually meet until 3421, had no feelings for each other until 3422 and did nothing about them until 3423. Thus everyone treats them as an established couple when in fact they've only been dating for a few months. Such are the vagaries of the rumour mill. The rumours even seem to gloss over Tharst's tentative dates with half a dozen women in 3421, which he went to due to the sheer pressure of ladies asking him out and him not wanting to seem rude. Born 3397, age 26 in 3423. Unmarried. Arranger/transcriber 1 Tauther Gwen Nobb ----------------- Alwed Nobb's younger sister. Entered Sharnax University at the age of 19 into the music faculty. The family had previously been unable to afford much teaching for her, but her brother's success changed all that. During her second year she suddenly shot to fame as the soloist who played the premier of the Jorune arrangement of Vivaldi's The Four Seasons having been heard copying the solos by the arranger. Technically an undergraduate, she spends as much time teaching others now as she does being taught. On stage she is either a soloist or the leader of the KRSO (Koistran Royal Symphony Orchestra). Has finally started a relationship with Drenn Lord Tharst Walsham in 3423. This has aroused considerable jealousy as Tharst is many women's idea of an ideal date due to his charming nature. Born 3401, age 22 in 3423. Unmarried. Whosin player/teacher 1 Drennit Caji Dame Beth Dars --------------------------- Female muadra. One of the rising new generation of dysha literate Koistran muadra. She married in 3420 at 16 and gave birth to her first child a year later. The child lived, but there were significant complications in the birth resulting in surgery to save the mother's life. Attempting to deal with a retained placenta, the surgeons were forced ultimately to remove her womb entirely. She now has huge scars on her abdomen and cannot have any more children. To add insult to injury the baby then died of Blue Thriddle Flu. Beth was distraught, but her husband supported her and suggested she seek advice in the cathedral. She spoke of her despair at confession to Archbishop Alderton, admitting that life without children was meaningless to her and she had nothing to live for. Archbishop Alderton suggested that if she could no longer have children of her own, she could help others have children instead. Beth seized on the idea and resolved to become a midwife. Beth is a little young to be a midwife, which coupled with her size as a muadra makes her look even younger. This has caused her some problems including comments from expectant mothers like "what does this child know of birth?". Beth usually sidesteps this neatly, but in the case of the rare vociferous ones she bares her abdomen and shows them the scars, saying "I'm here to stop this happening to you". No mother has yet dared to say anything after that. In addition to being a good midwife, Beth knows the Healer dysha (among others) which is sometimes useful. She always asks if people mind before weaving this dysha on them. As with the Caji healer paramedics, Beth carries a writ from the King allowing her to weave dyshas outside the kerning bays and Open Isho Area. Beth spends some of her time helping with births, and some of it assisting the midwife research at Sharnax University. She always attends births of important nobles, including Keshtia Princess Alissandra giving birth to Prince Richard. In 3421 Koistran research into Midwifery was spectacularly successful. Beth was summoned to the Holy Terran Dharsage court where Dharsage Banda made her a Dame of the Empire and awarded her lands in the Ardudwy Electorate (disposable income 1gc per year). A female Imperial land holder is unusual in itself; her youth makes it doubly unusual; and the fact that she is a Caji (whom the Emlyn have an irrational fear of) makes the award unprecedented. This is explained by the deep-seated fear the Emlyn nobility have of their wives dying in childbirth. The Keshtan then awarded her Drennit status for the same research. In 3423 implemented an unusual approach to her estate, essentially involving being cocerned that her peasants have a good education and good health care. Adopted 4 muadra children, and declared that dysha weaving was permitted on her estates. Occasionally even serves as midwife to her peasants for difficult births. Born 3404, age 19 in 3423. Married, cannot have children. Midwife 1 Lisart Landis ------------- When Martin Remin went on his ill-fated trip to Sholis in 3421, he met Lisart Landis. An ex-acrobat from the circus, she grew tired of the corruption in the rings and finally left when the limilate smuggling scandal broke. Although she loved what the circus should have stood for, she could not stay in such a corrupt and brutal environment. She got a job carrying messages at the InterYord HQ, one of the qualifications for the job being that you can't read so that it is pointless looking at the message. At InterYord, Lisart met Martin Remin. Martin was shy, so he asked his thriddle friends what to do. On their advice, he presented Lisart with a Rik's Pibber with a large red bow tied loosely around its neck. The thriddle discovered that Lisart had always wanted a pibber, and Rik's Pibber are adept climbers and would be appropriate for an acrobat. The relationship never looked back, and they had many happy times. Fed up with Sholis and horrified to hear of both the Fourth Ring and corruption within InterYord itself, Lisart was ready to turn her back on Sholis and go to Koistra to marry Martin. Fate intervened when Martin was brutally murdered by Fourth Ring terrorists. For a year Lisart did little other than mourn, expecting the Sholian Yords to clear the mess up. She did keep up contact with Martin's thriddle friends, whom she felt were the only beings she could trust. They talked of Martin before she met him if she wished, and they changed the subject if required with a tact and politeness that only the thriddle can master. They also carried on what Martin had started - Lisart had asked him to teach her to write and so he did, but to add to the challenge and to avoid compromising her job Martin taught her to write in Triddis. Because her spoken Triddis is a lot worse than her written Triddis, Lisart has avoided the Thriddle Language Complex that plagued Martin. ("I must admit to finding you distinctly attractive in your person, and furthermore would be greatly pleased if you would with me dine" being Martin's worst outbreak under the pressure of asking Lisart out.) In Crith 3422, Lisart came out of her daze and noticed that the Yords weren't really getting anywhere. And then it happened. She was out shopping with Kiri, her pibber, when it wandered off a little. Searching for it she heard a terrible sound. Rounding the corner she saw that some circus children had been teasing Kiri, and the pibber had thisted. Some of the children got away unscathed, others were less fortunate. Fortunately the Yords were not well disposed towards the circus and there were witnesses to the teasing, so no charges were made. That night, Lisart thought about what she had seen. The thisting of the pibber Martin had given her was a sign that she too should thist. It was time for direct action against Fourth Ring. Using her acrobatic skills and the detective work she had picked up from Martin, she was sure she could get somewhere, providing she worked independently to avoid the corruption in InterYord. She thus started her dual existance. By day she was still the messenger at InterYord and still unable to read the messages. By night, she stalked Fourth Ring members, broke into their buildings, stole documents, wrote notes about their movements, caught and tied some of them up, etc. In the morning InterYord would find a note written in poor Triddis, detailing some Fourth Ring activities and signed "Riki". The Yords know nothing of who it is, apart from vague reports of a woman in dark, acrobat's clothing clambering over rooftops. Investigating the circus yielded nothing, since she doesn't work there anymore (although her wanton mother does - her father is unknown). The Thriddle suspected but gave only misleading information to the Yords, because they stood to benefit more from being on good terms with Lisart. Sholari notes: think of Lisart as a chaotic good version of Catwoman (unfortunately Pibberwoman or Rik'swoman just doesn't work). She works for good against evil and corruption, but cares little what laws she breaks in the process. She will not kill unless her own life or that of innocent bystanders is at stake. She uses her acrobatic skills to the full, since that is her primary edge over both the Yords and Fourth Ring. She works either by leaving notes in Triddis and evidence for InterYord to find, or by dumping Fourth Ring members in the porch. Descriptions of her are likely to be innacurate. Although she does, as stated, wear dark acrobat's shorts and halter top, she darkens her skin considerably so that it doesn't reflect under the light of the moons. She also wears a black cap that keeps her hair out of the way and covers part of her face, this being very similar to the catwoman mask except it doesn't have the ears. Once Fourth Ring is well and truly squashed, she will turn her attention to the corruption within InterYord itself. I have described her second skill as Vigilante/detective, since neither on its own is an accurate description of what I'm looking for. If anything, Secret agent or Espionage would be a closer match. Born 3397, age 26 in 3423. Unmarried. Acrobat 1 Vigilante/detective 1 Drenn Thargold Straffe ---------------------- Thargold is one of the merchants who lost out on the overland trade route from Koistra to York, although in his case it was because he knows nothing of business. He jumped on the Imperial trade bandwagon, did well when pickings were easy, and then was one of the first to lose out to York. He still maintains the pretence of running a business as an import/export handler in Koistra, but he now works as a counter espionage agent for Drenn Prince Sharnos. His job is simply to improve the quality of the counter espionage in the field under Sharnos' control in the state of Koistra. His duties can include any current counter espionage operation. The main reason for continuing the pretence of the business is that Thargold is married with young children, and he must try to avoid them knowing of his work. Born 3387, age 36 in 3423. Married with children. Counter espionage 1 Iscin Fleris ------------ Iscin Fleris is a male woffen who has been gradually rising to prominence in the economics research program at Sharnax University. His family is native to Koistra, although his parents have drifted apart with age. This is not uncommon among woffen. His mother works as a Yord on the island of Dosoi, and his father is the Shast at the recently opened shenter at Sharnax University. In 3422, there were finally enough woffen undergraduates for them to band together and open a shenter. Fleris' father has a notch cut in his left ear to indicate that he abstains from alcohol; in fact he came very close to becoming an authew and this contributed to him drifting apart from his wife. An abstaining shast is unusual, but the university was quite pleased. It means that abstinence for notched undergraduate woffen is rigorously enforced as Fleris' father would rather suffer permanent exile than sell alcohol to one who is abstaining. Iscin Fleris himself graduated in 3422, but showed enough promise to be offer an indefinite research and lecturing post in the econmics faculty. As the first woffen lecturer he did have some trouble from the undergraduates, but after demonstrating his anger during a disturbance in one lecture the undergraduates now behave themselves. Having a woffen's teeth at your throat is a wonderful reminder that they are descended from wolves. Born 3397, age 26 in 3423. Unmarried. Economist 1 End of Koistran characters file.