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⸻⠀the self⠀⸻ Years of life at sea has left Nathaniel somewhat jaded towards the world and his role in it and has sent him into a depressive spiral that he assauges with nights at a tavern when he isn't working; when he is working, he has his own personal flask (or three). When appropriately plied with alcohol, he will join in the boatmen in their songs. Nathaniel looks much like the rogue he is, his features hawkish and sharp. Behind the rheumy brown eyes lays a sharp wit.
'The seas couldn't drown me, why should this?'
ALIGNMENT: Neutral
LIKES: Alcohol; sea turtles; money; women (in that order)
DISLIKES: the sea; his father; squid and octopi (of any size)
⸻⠀the body⠀⸻
HEIGHT: 5'11
HAIR COLOR / STYLE: Dark brown; since he's been ashore, its grown out past his ears
EYES: gray; almond-shaped
SKIN TONE: years of exposure to the sun and salt of the sea has left his skin dark and rough
PHYSIQUE: Athletic
DOM. HAND: ambidextrous; prefers right to duelling, uses his left to shoot
APPARENT AGE: mid to late 20's
VOICE: hoarse, slurred
MODIFICATIONS // a brass ball pierces his left lobe with a trio of rings along the upper cartilage, a silver chain connects the upper and lower ring with gentle slack, signifying his freedom; various maritime tattoos decorate his body, each with its own story, real or otherwise.
SCARS / MARKINGS // On his left hand, the fore-, middle and ring finger have had the first knuckle removed, marking him as indebted. Otherwise, scars from whips, sword fights, and other accidents criss-cross his body but they are faint, old scars with few new ones.
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⸻⠀the ability and tools⠀⸻
How did your character get their skills and abilities? Are they natural, granted by items, training, etc. Before being sold off, Nathaniel had been working under his father as a fisherman. Whatever money wasn't spent on necessities was spent on booze for his father to drink, and even then it was the bare minimum. He learned how to gut and clean fish, make netting and weave baskets, something his father had little patience for.
These beginnger skills were only expanded upon during his time with the pirates; fish became men and while being battle-hardened, he had no head for real strategy. He was good with what was in his hands, in front of him. He was often used in repairing the sails or clothes and even those things were soon replaced with men. He was no surgeon, but he could make sure a man would live to see one, his hands deft and confident from his time sewing and weaving. Cleaning the others' gear showed him how to pack and care for his own.
Knives were replaced with swords and pistols, even cannons. The games of cards and dice went from simple to complex, to betting on chores to real wages. He learned his numbers from dominoes and how to spot all sorts of foul play and tricks used to cheat; learned how to be successful in using these tricks himself. Nathaniel learned his letters through deciphering the code his crew used and how to write using this same code. Nathaniel learned of different cultures and religions from the diverse pirate crew, though largely remains secular himself.
As a pirate, the ship would be engaged in battle and in battle, damages occur and these damages need to be repaired and, just like he isn't a surgeon, he is no shipwright nor were any of his crew, but their work was passable. After all, it hadn't sunk in the twenty years it's been active. Another consequence of pirating is the loot, where he learned what was valuable and what was cheap; uncut from cut gems; the fake and the real.
While the human side of things can be dangerous, there was another danger that Nathaniel had to learn to deal with: sea monsters.
ABILITIES // Nathaniel is never dry
SPELLS // No magic, but a sea witch tattoo'd a spell onto the left side of his ribcage so that he may always find his way back to sea (truly a curse)
ATTIRE //
Typically seen in a gray shirt and dark pants with steel-capped boots, Nathaniel often wears a black wool jacket when he goes out and while he's never seen without his armaments, the pistols are usually put away in his room at the tavern he is staying at until he starts a job.
GEAR // Nathaniel carries two pistols with him: a four shooter and an eight shooter, as well as a backsword and rondel dagger. The four shooter he has named "Ol' Faithful", which almost never works, even in the best of circumstances. His eight shooter is named "Damnit" due to how loud it fires. These weapons are rather plain in design, and were given to him as a parting gift by his crew. One he keeps holstered at his right hip with the other is holstered slightly behind the sword at his hip.
The backsword, Rosam ne Rode, is around 4.5 feet in length, narrow in width; a rose patterns the pommel with the 'stem' acting as the grip as well cross- and hand-guard; it has a straight single-edged blade and a hilt with a single-handed grip; has a "false edge" on the back near the tip, which is sharpened to make an actual edge and facilitate thrusting attacks. This rests at his left hip.
The rondel dagger, which is named Prick, is about 20 inches in length, round hand guard and spherical pommel; The blade is long and slim with a tapering needle point; the tang runs through the handle, having been carved from bone; In cross section, the blade is diamond-shaped and have been sharpened to a point with the edges also sharpened.
Both sword and dagger were loot found after taking over a merchants ship, clearly meant for someone of more noble blood than a lowly pirate, but It had been with these two weapons that Nathaniel had earned his freedom. He wears a ring given to him by his former captain.
INVENTORY // Nathaniel carries around his melee weapons as well as a flask of his favorite liquor, Troll's Spit, a spicy drink with some earthy notes; he gets it from a merchant that travels from Tethis to sell his wares in Khare who swears no actual troll spit is used (Nathaniel remains skeptical). Aside from this, he keeps some local currency secreted about his person as well as some dice.
For his jobs, he has a backpack that keeps camping supplies; medicine, firestarter, rope, hatchet, candles, a blanket, bees wax, pots and pans, to name just a few.
⸻⠀the story⠀⸻
From the age of 11, he was sold by his father --- a man of many vices, to be sure --- to pay of a gambling debt to a group of pirates. It would take over ten years to earn his freedom. Years at sea honed his body, those around him quick to correct him with a slap to the back of the head or extra duties, but he took to the life farily quickly and would find himself at the captains side, who would go on to adopt Nathaniel at the age of 16; in the years after, the captain would offer Nathaniel a position as his second. Nathaniel had accepted, of course, under the condition he was given his freedom. A deal was struck and Nathaniel gave the pirate captain three years of his freedom before parting to start his life on land as a hunter of monsters, mundane and supernatural; human or beast.
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