Varell Telera

[The Scarecrow]

Name: Varell Telera.
Age: 24.
Race: Human.
Hair Color: Dark brown.
Eye Color: Hazel.
Height: 5’9’’.
Weight: 179lbs.
Occupation: Tinkermage.

Personality: An ambitious soul with a (usually) selfless lookout on most situations he encounters, Varell wields an intellect that cuts deeper into the minds of his enemies than any other weapon. Usually choosing to support the people he works with through strategical thinking and clever manipulation of the battlefield, the insight he’s gained through years of campaigning make him a force to be reckoned with. Although he hasn’t seen much close quarters combat, Varell isn’t one to shy away from close and personal encounters, as his swordsmanship has been practiced enough that only warriors who hold a considerable grade of experience in the art could pose a danger to him. Originally dealing with other people with a cold and uncaring demeanor as per the teachings of Avadon, the apathetic Varell has warmed up to outsiders after a series of events that shook his entire perception of the world around him. Despite all this, Varell still believes he’s one of the best Tinkermages around and will do anything and everything to further his study within the art as well as to improve already existent creations.

Appearance: At first glance, Varell would probably be regarded as a mere engineer or builder. His usual attire consists of a simple gray shirt akin to a tunic and light brown leather pants, complete with a pair of leather work boots. The two belts that keep his pants and tunic in check hold three storage compartments akin to pouches, all leather, where some of his Tinkermage equipment rests. He’s also usually seen carrying a backpack, also made out of leather with traces of cotton for comfort and weight reduction, which holds most of his travel gear and other pieces of equipment. Attached to his left forearm is a ‘wristflinger’, an elaborate device that is capable of shooting lethal razordisks. The inner workings of this piece of equipment have not yet been disclosed, and just like any and all Tinkermage secrets, probably never will be. His involuntary trip to Althanas seems to have limited the use of his wristflinger to the point that no common razordisks can be launched, thus negating its most basic uses. However, disks filled with energy such as his Charged Shot can be fired freely.

Skills:

• Advanced battle strategizing.
• Advanced Marksmanship – Razorflinger/Archery.
• Architecture.
• Average swordsman.
• Basic cooking.
• Basic survival knowledge.
• Crafting – Minor Alchemy.
• Crafting – Expert on Defensive Structures.
• Crafting – Expert Tinkermage Knowledge.
• Crafting – Expert Trap Making.
• Crafting – Tool Use (Lockpicks, Trap Disarming, Trap Recognition, etc).
• Horseback riding.
• Scouting.
• Standard Avadon Hand Training.

Abilities:

– Engie? No! Tinkermage! –

Varell is a mechanical master, capable of utilizing his skills to make powerful weapons and to construct turrets and drones to attack or outright obliterate his enemies. Their inherent bond with mana makes it possible for them to create constructs in no time at all, essentially infusing the base materials required to build, say, a turret or a ballista, and putting them together without needing to pull out their tools and work for hours on each structure. That said, Tinkermages are naturally crafty but their constructs could be dismantled quite easily by people with knowledge on engineering and similar practices. (Ongoing with the character theme, I’ve decided to divide his skills in three different ‘trees’ so to speak, that will naturally evolve as he grows within Althanas).

Tinkermage to Arms

Essentially will evolve into the skill tree that encompasses all the knowledge a Tinkermage could have within the battlefield regarding his weapons, both melee and ranged. For now, Varell can only utilize a single one ability under this tree.

Charged Shot – Perhaps one of the most basic abilities to every Tinkermage is being capable of manipulating the mana or simply the raw energy both within their bodies and in the environment around them to empower constructs and creations. This ability revolves around using some of that energy and instill it into a razordisk which is then fired from the ‘wristflinger’. The result is a slicing oval of orange energy that generally dissipates on contact, releasing the power contained within the razordisk in the form of multiple slashing wounds across any target it encounters. Sometimes, it might even cut right through stone walls or objects, and in some rare case scenarios, through iron. It can be used up to three times in the span of several hours.

Although Wristflingers are supposed to be able to shoot razordisks freely and without restrictions, the warping process that took Varell from Lynaeus to Althanas seems to have messed the mechanism up. It is unknown how or why the Wristflinger's inner workings have changed, but while it doesn't allow for common razordisks to be fired from it, energy-filled disks appear to bypass this minor setback. Varell seems to believe that, once he's able to remember more of his old tinkermage insight, he will be able to put the potential of the Wristflinger to better use.

Blueprints and Plans

This skill tree will eventually contain all the constructs available to a Tinkermage. Varell is only capable of building the weakest constructs for the time being for reasons that will be linked to his backstory.

Invoke the Machine – Not quite as ominous as its name, this ability allows Varell to build a turret whenever he desires. Each turret consumes a considerable amount of mana and/or raw energy from his body that he will either have to replenish or pull from elsewhere. However, once constructed, the turrets are self-sustaining. Varell can choose between the conventional and consistent Boltflinger, a small turret capable of firing six iron bolts as though it were a crossbow, occasionally spraying a rain of razors on an area if the magical power contained within builds up enough before expiring… Or the more lethal Razorflinger, which is a larger, slower, and deadlier version of the Boltflinger. Instead of firing bolts, the Razorflinger is capable of shooting six razordisks carrying large amounts of kinetic energy within, similar to the razordisks from the Charged Shot ability. Unlike the Boltflinger, however, they don’t have the capability to use up any built up magical power. Once Varell chooses one type, he cannot build the other until disarmed or until they expire. (e.g. if he builds a Boltflinger, he won’t be able to build a Razorflinger as long as the former is still existent and vice-versa.) Both the Bolt or Razorflinger can remain existent for 14 total posts after creation - if in a constant scene - or one hour.

Reinforcement

One of the most coveted abilities and (maybe) the main reason why tinkermages are such a valuable rarity in Lynaeus, Reinforcement allows the tinkermage to channel their mana through a variety of objects to, naturally, reinforce them. A tinkermage who particularly focuses on this branch of ‘magic’ is capable of even transforming common materials into rarer, stronger ones once their mastery of Reinforcement is high enough.

Basic Reinforcement – This allows the caster to pour a small amount of mana or energy into wood. The affected material becomes far stronger and more resilient for a brief period of time – if the tinkermage chooses to pour their energy into the wood from afar - or for as long as the caster maintains contact with it, enough to mimic the defensive and/or offensive properties of iron. Such reinforcement can only occur once every one hour, rendering the technique rather ineffective for constant material reinforcement in the heat of battle. The technique lasts for eight total posts assuming it's a constant scene -or- fifteen minutes.

Equipment:

• Standard issue iron dagger.
• Common tinkermage tunic –Silk & (to a minor degree) leather.
• Leather work gloves.
• Leather belts.
• Several leather pouches & leather backpack containing tinkermage equipment.
• Basic first aid kit.
• Common Wristflinger.

History: Born and raised in the sea power of Dharam, Varell’s interest in the tinkermage arts was spurred at a very young age. Varell’s father, an influential merchant by the name of Johann, often took the young Telera with him whenever ships docked at the town’s port. It allowed his son to learn more about the world through seeing and sometimes conversing with the people arriving to Dharam. Varell had only read about tinkermages in the books of Johann’s library. He knew that they mostly had workshops of their own and that every single nuance within their art was closely guarded. Their skill demanded secrecy, though they were often in charge of the defense of important areas or certain cities.

One day, one of the tinkermages Varell had read about arrived to the town and met up with Johann. He was a Hand of Avadon, the mighty fortress located in the middle of Lynaeus and where the strongest warriors and assassins gather to bring stability to the world. Rumor had it that rogue pirates of Svorgald, a nation near Dharam, were planning an assault on Varell’s town. For a generous fee from the town’s mayor, the tinkermage set to work and coordinated an entire plan of defense with the troops provided to him. Bolt and razorflingers were constructed along the docks and special turrets that could breathe and launch fire were built on important and specific positions. The final touch were several magical pylons that could restore and bolster nearby warriors’ physical and mental abilities, which were placed in spots of easy access to the archers and blademasters who would fend off any pirate that could make it to the shore.

Although Varell had been told to stay inside the house throughout the entire battle, the moment the onslaught began, the young Telera gazed upon it all from the safety of a nearby tower. With the soldiers distracted by the pirates, it was extremely easy for him to sneak in and look at the extent of the tinkermage’s skill. There were very little casualties from the Dharamites’ side, and every single pirate had been wiped out or apprehended and sent to the dungeons of Avadon. Consequently, Varell was punished for sneaking out of the house, but the Hand noticed the young one’s interest.

It wasn’t until Varell’s seventeenth birthday that the gaze of Avadon was drawn to him and the Hand returned to the town. He was here to pick Varell up through Avadon’s right of conscription, as they were in dire need of able warriors. Johann did not object, as he could see his son’s eagerness to put what he had learned thus far to use. Varell soon discovered that the professions of blademaster, sorcerer, or shaman weren’t adequate to him, as his skill with the blade and bow were subpar and his magical knowledge was nowhere near the expertise of a sorcerer. Throw on top of everything that he wasn’t exactly attuned to nature, and the only path left to him was the one he had chosen to pursue from the start – the path of the tinkermage. Under the wing of the Hand who had aided his town, Varell soon excelled in the tinkermage arts, acing most basic courses with little effort. Of course, he was also trained as a Hand of Avadon and made into a fine warrior capable of solving petty disputes between clansmen as well as participating in battle.

Over the years, Varell was dispatched to every corner of Lynaeus, where his powers as a tinkermage only grew exponentially to the difficulty of his tasks. However, his rising power gained him many enemies that ultimately managed to ambush him in the middle of a mission. Banding together against Varell, the bloody battle ended with sixteen warriors dead, thirty two heavily wounded, and four escapees. The Telera lay beside an energizing pylon that was in the process of healing the countless wounds he’d suffered. With several turrets around to protect him, it was unusual for a hooded man dressed like a ninja of sorts to walk right past them and look down at Varell. He was grinning, a gesture that was barely visible behind the black cloth that covered most of his face, as a pair of black eyes analyzed the tinkermage’s condition.

After a string of words spoken by the ninja, his consciousness finally left him, and it wasn’t long before he awoke in the middle of a completely different area with pristine clothes and a new assortment of equipment. Everything he had gained in Lynaeus had been taken away from him… Even the knowledge and the power that he had managed to amass as one of the prodigies in the tinkermage arts. He could only remember basic things, lagoons in his memory here and there. Despite all this, he recalled the shadowy man’s words perfectly…

“You aren’t needed in Lynaeus for the conflict that is about to take place. Avadon will fall but it’s a shame that you won’t be there to see it. Perhaps I’ll see you again… If you manage to find a way back.”

Lost and slightly dizzy but completely rested up, Varell wasn’t about to sit still and wait for death to claim him. As far as the Telera was concerned, there was an enormous conflict about to take place back on Lynaeus. The destiny of Avadon hung on a thread much like his life. A stranger in a strange land, Varell set out with only one goal in mind – gather enough power and influence in this land and devise a method to get back home.

[Hysteria]

Howdy. First off, Tinkermage = awesome.

This is an interesting character to approve. Probably the best way to think about it is like a Tinkermage (or the various other fantasy versions, technopriest, technician, etc) use their abilities in computer games. For example, throwing down a turret that lasts for x amount of time or has x amount of shots. As you progress you will be able to have greater fire power, longevity, etc. For now that we need to tone down the abilities to a level one character.

Wristflinger should most likely be linked to an ability. Wristflinger (assuming it can launch discs without Charged Shot ability) is itself too strong for a starting level character. The easiest way is to link it to an ability and increase the ability as his technical experience increases. This seems in line with your character's modus operandi.

Once you decide how to handle Wristflinger, we can work out the skills.

[The Scarecrow]

Hmm... I have an idea for that. I was going to have it work like a bow for him and have that be his ranged weapon, but if it's too powerful to start with, I'll tweak it a little bit and do what you suggested. It'll let me incorporate a bit more ideas I have in mind for the 'flinger.

Making a couple edits!

EDIT: Edits made. I hope that's a little better for balancing the character out.

[Hysteria]

Ok, that looks good. Once you get some money, feel free to go to the bazaar and buy (or in your case fix) the Wristflinger.

With that done, on to your abilities. First things first, we need to see use limits on how many times things can be used. The standard is for people to have a number per thread (or day) for each ability. As it stands, your abilities are probably sitting around a strong level 4, so we need to dial them back somewhat.

Charged Shot – This is good, but at the moment you will need to dial back on how strong it is. Given your level, and that you have two other decent abilities it needs to be limited to slicing flesh and cutting into iron. Uses can be three times.

Invoke the Machine – This one is again too strong. You can give them a shot limit, and then a deploy limit (say two for both, total of four shots). Damage should be roughly the same as charged shot.

Basic Reinforcement – Again, if you could stick to iron strength. Can you also define the amount of wood he can reinforce and how many times?

[The Scarecrow]

Edited and colored edits for an easier read.

[Hysteria]

Are you able to limit the turrets to one before he needs to rest?

[The Scarecrow]

That's probably a deterrent to his combat capabilities since he's pretty much forced to rely on the turrets to be able to battle properly. I could limit the turrets to one and probably grant them two more shots and/or two more turns before they expire, allowing the creation of a second one as he levels up.

[Hysteria]

I can live with that. Last two things, can you change his dagger to iron and limit charged shot to 3 uses?

[The Scarecrow]

Done and done!

[Hysteria]

Ok, all good. You are approved!