7th Sea 2e - A Villain of Honor

So not all that long ago, I posted a plethora of Heroes for the second edition of John Wick Presents' 7th Sea RPG, and even included a write-up of the adventure I used to introduce my Friday Night Skype group to the game.

Well, I'm back with some new morsels of 7th Sea goodness, this time turning my attention to the Villains.  Now admittedly, coming up with stats for a Villain isn't that difficult, given they use a much simpler method to determine their capabilities, those being Strength and Influence, which combine to determine their Villainy Rank, along with any notable Advantages that the Villain might have.  Still, it never hurts to have a few ready-made Villains on hand for your Heroes to face, either for them to confront, confound, and vex, or to be confronted, confounded, and vexed in turn.

Now, I won't be posting these Villains quite as frequently as I did the cavalcade of Heroes, and will instead aim for one new Villain each Saturday for at least the rest of this month and perhaps a couple more going into October.

Captain Charles du Chevalier, Musketeer Captain

Nation: Montaigne

Villainy Rank: 10

Strength: 6

Influence: 4

Advantages: Connection (Montaigne Musketeers), Disarming Smile, Duelist Academy (Valroux), Reputation (Chivalrous)

Notable Items: Rapier and main-gauche, Musketeer uniform, flintlock pistol with powder and shot

Appearance: Charles is tall and muscular, with the grace of an athlete and the bearing of king.  He is clean-shaven, which makes him look younger than his twenty-nine years.  His nose turns upward slightly at the sight of commoners, and he always condescends to those beneath him.  He is always polite, however, and rigidly adheres to the code of chivalry at all times; arrogance and honor can go hand in hand.

Background: Captain du Chevalier is the epitome of a King’s Musketeer: honorable, noble, and devoted to king and country.  He’s also arrogant and more than a little condescending to his social inferiors, but his heart is good and he faithfully adheres to the Musketeer’s code.  The third son of a landed nobleman, he joined the army for the excitement it offered, and was eventually selected to join the Musketeers.  Charles is a valiant swordsman, and fights to uphold the honor of his native country.  He is also an aristocrat, and affects the elitist snobbery typical of Montaigne’s nobility.  He has a hard time believing that a gentle of any stripe could commit a crime, and rarely persecutes anyone of breeding.  If he does become convinced such individuals are a threat, he will hound them to the ends of the earth; in his mind, a noble foe is ten times as dangerous as an ignoble one.  Unlike many of his peers, he knows that the peasantry of his homeland suffer and realizes their complaints are genuine.  While he sympathizes, he also genuinely believes that they were meant to suffer as they do, often saying that “if Theus wanted them happy, he wouldn’t have dirtied their blood.”

Notes: Captain du Chevalier made his first appearance in The Lady’s Favor, Part One of the Erebus Cross adventure series.  He could make for a good recurring adversary for a group of Heroes, given that he’s highly capable but also a man of honor.  Under the right circumstances, he might even make for a capable ally, as his commitment to defending king and country are absolute, and if pointed in the direction of a serious threat to either, he’ll waste no time working to thwart that threat, or at the very least give the Heroes aid in doing so.  He's really not much for scheming, and tends to spend his Influence to call up a contingent of rank-and-file Musketeers in the form of a Strength 10 Brute Squad with the Duelists special ability, or instead to all upon the aid of a Musketeer Officer, who has a Villainy Rank of 5 (Strength 4, Influence 1) with the Deadeye and Fencer Advantages if it appears things might get tough.

7th Sea Pre-Made Heroes - Vivianne Praisse du Rachetisse

Given that many of the prior entries have lacked a certain sense of class and a tendency to fight their way out of problems, perhaps it would be best to end the list of characters presented on a more refined note.

As I made mention in the earlier post for Cedric, Montaigne is a nation in the thrall of a very wealthy noble class, with many members of the social elite focused entirely on the navigating the treacherous waters of Montaigne's thriving social scene.  While perhaps not as immediately treacherous as Vodacce, the courts of Montaigne are still dangerous to the unwary, and while an ill-considered comment might not result in one's death, it can result in ridicule and shame, which in Montaigne can be considerably worse.  Thus, being a professional courtier takes far more effort than most would presume, as staying abreast of the latest gossip and fashion trends can be just as tiresome as performing sword drills or as perilous as sailing the open seas.

But to those who master the ways of court. there is much to gain, and being able to cut down your opposition with a few choice words is a strength not to be underestimated...

Vivianne Praisse du Rachetisse, Montaigne Courtier
Traits: Brawn 2, Finesse 2, Wits 3, Resolve 2, Panache 4
Backgrounds: Aristocrat, Courtier
Skills: Aim 2, Convince 3, Empathy 3, Notice 2, Perform 3, Ride 2, Tempt 3, Weaponry1
Advantages: An Honest Misunderstanding, Come Hither, Connection (Montaigne high society courtiers), Disarming Smile, Friend at Court, Linguist, Rich
Arcana: Arrogant (Hubris), Astute (Virtue)
Starting Reputation: 0
Starting Wealth: 3
Languages: All Thean languages
Personal Items: Bodice dagger, concealed brace of throwing knives, fine-quality dress with proper accoutrements, traveling dress and cloak

Appearance: Vivianne is a strikingly beautiful young woman, blessed with pale skin, bluebell eyes, long tresses of honey-blonde hair, and a charming yet coquettish smile.  Her sensuous figure is sheathed in stylishly risque dresses that blend the fashion trends of Montaigne's elite and the courtesans of Vodacce, drawing the attentions of onlookers like moths to a decadent flame.

Background: The daughter of members of Montaigne's landed gentry, Vivianne has enjoyed of luxury and privilege that most people could only dream of.  Though lacking any talent with the Porte sorcery that the Praisse family is known for, she has proven value in the courts due to her keen wit and a pervasive charm that can put even the most untrusting soul at ease; many an upstart noble has found their reputations soured and their fortunes at court diminished after a few choice words on her part whispered into the right ears.  That she is a stunning beauty who can inspire lurid thoughts in all but the most chaste of men has been an added boon to her responsibilities as a courtier; she's pried many a juicy secret from a man's lips with little more than a smoldering glance and a few honeyed words.  And should a hot-tempered noble think that a demure lady of such loveliness would be easy prey away from the courts, Vivianne has become quite proficient with the throwing knives concealed about her person, with a bodice dagger kept as a means of last resort.

Notes: Yep, Vivianne is 100% a femme fatale type of character, being exceptionally talented in the social arena.  While it would seem that being Vodacce (faux Italy) would be a better nation of origin for such a character type, I thought that might be a tad too stereotypical.  Plus Montaigne is well known for the deadly decadence of its courts, and a character who's best suited to navigating such treacherous waters would be quite adept at talking her way out of many other sorts of trouble.

And to be honest, I really hadn't intended that both of the two Montaigne Heroes I made for this to both be Aristocrats; it just turned out that way.  Next Montaigne Hero I write up is not going to be part of the upper class, that's for darn sure.

7th Sea Pre-Made Heroes - Cedric Bisset du Verre

Since we started off with a surly, salty seadog of a pirate, I thought I might switch it up a bit and present a character that is far more urbane and cultured.  After all, one of the core elements of the swashbuckling genre are swashbucklers themeselves, men of good breeding and education that are can cut you down with a well-timed jibe just as easily as they could with their blade.

If any of the nations presented in 7th Sea could be said to fall in line with the romanticized ideal of the swashbuckling hero, then it with little doubt has to be Montaigne.  Mirroring France just before the bloody revolution, Montaigne is a land where the nobility live the high life at the expense of the peasantry, but opportunities abound for those of noble ideals to do the right thing.  And while the stereotype of a Montaigne noble is a vain fop that spends their time indulging in one passing fancy to the next, some of the nation's nobility are up to the challenge of representing the best that Montaigne has to offer...

Cedric Bisset du Verre, Montaigne Dilettante 
Traits:Brawn 2, Finesse 3, Wits 3, Resolve 2, Panache 3
Backgrounds: Aristocrat, Duelist
Skills: Aim 1, Athletics 2, Convince 3, Empathy 2, Intimidate 2, Perform 2, Ride 1, Scholarship 1, Tempt 3, Weaponry 3
Advantages: Disarming Smile, Duelist Academy (Valroux), Fencer, Friend at Court, Rich
Arcana: Foolhardy, Victorious
Starting Reputation: 0
Starting Wealth: 3
Languages: Avalon, Montaigne, Old Thean
Personal Items: Fine-quality rapier and main-gauche, fine-quality clothing

Appearance: Cedric cuts quite the dashing figure, with his lean frame and aristocratic features.  His outfits are a mixture of fashionable and practical, allowing him to look his best while still having freedom of movement should trouble arise.

Background: The third child of a minor branch of the Bisset family, Cedric is still quite well off in comparison to most.  As a lesser child, he's been granted indulgence from the family's patriarch to pursue whatever matters might be of interest to the young noble, enabling him to have a passing grasp of a variety of topics as well as become a talented duelist and socialite.  Due to his lower station in comparison to his older brothers, it is Cedric who is most often sent out and abroad to handle matters of lesser importance for his family.

Notes: Back in first edition, being a swordsman in 7th Sea was something of a mixed bag.  In the early going a swordsman character simply had a few more combat options than other PCs, but had to pay a hefty price, but as they got more experienced a skilled swordsman could be an utterly devastating opponent in a fight.

In second edition, the waiting time to be awesome in a fight as a swordsman has been dramatically reduced, as the combat options available to anyone with access to a Duelist school means that they are going to be a terror to their foes once they draw steel.  While Cedric would prefer to present a far more refined image, he's no slouch when he decides it's time to fight, as he ably demonstrated during the one-shot I ran for my Friday Night Skype group as he pretty much owned the minor villain in a one-on-one duel (same scenario saw a PC completely obliterate a large Brute Squad thanks to the timely use of a particular Advantage).

It bears mention that Wealth is something of an odd thing in this version of 7th Sea.  Being more of an abstract concept (not to unlike Wealth as used in d20 Modern), most PCs are assumed to be able to live fairly well (if not extravagantly), being able to acquire decent quality weapons, clothing, and items without much hassle; after all, time spent haggling over goods is time that's not spent swinging from chandeliers, trading insults and blows with villains, or wooing lovely young maidens.  Since Cedric is very much a part of the upper class, he's not the type to really worry about money; what some might consider abject luxury he'd probably deem as barely adequate for a man of his station.