Benjamin Kirkeby
07-27-09, 12:39 AM
Basic Info
Name: Benjamin Kirkeby
Age: 24
Race: Caucasian
Hair Color: Brown
Eye Color: Hazel
Height: 5’11”
Weight: 138 lbs
Occupation: Confidence Trickster
Personality:
Benjamin Kirkeby, like most con artists, has a plethora of personalities at his beck and call. He can be a priest one minute, a beggar the next, a businessman, a baker, and so on. In general terms, however, he has two personalities.
The first is The Charming One. This is what Ben shows to most of the world. He’s smart, funny, clever, and most of all charming. Very charismatic, very socially adept, very likeable. Everyone trusts The Charming One. Everyone likes The Charming One. Even if they sense that there might be shark teeth beneath the seemingly open and friendly smile, even if they have an itch at the back of their mind telling them that something isn’t quite right, any doubts are usually quickly ignored...because people want to trust The Charming One. He’s just so damn charming!
Underneath this exterior lies something quite different. In reality, the only word that can really be used to describe Ben is UNPREDICTABLE. One minute he’s chivalrous and kind and caring about the good of others; the next he’s downright cruel and selfish. Mostly he’s selfish. Ben is of strong the belief that the property of others is rightfully his, and if he’s smart enough to get it from them, he deserves it. Usually he is smart enough to get it. What he spends that money on is anyone’s guess. Sometimes he spends it on jewelry, booze, gambling, whatever. What really matters to him is the taking, not the spending.
He’s also a huge risk taker and a gambler, and not just in the card-game dice-game sense. He’d gamble his life away on the roll of a die and not think twice on it. Ben’s life is one crazy gamble after another.
That’s how he likes it.
Appearance:
It’s generally agreed that Benjamin is attractive, if for no real specific reason. His face is smooth, his chin is normal, and his features are perfectly symmetrical. He has a broad, friendly, trustworthy smile and dazzling white and straight teeth. His hair is well-groomed (almost vainly so) and he’s generally quite clean and hygienic. The only problem is his eyes; they’re dull. Not sparkling, not interesting, nothing. Just sort of small and mundane and dark...almost mean. Benjamin is aware of this, unable to hide it, and wears glasses for this reason.
As for clothing, in Benjamin’s opinion, the more flamboyant and crazy the better. Obviously on the job he has to wear whatever matches the role he’s playing, but when he’s out and about he dresses wildly. He always wears the latest fashionable trend, and spends quite a bit of his money on clothing he really doesn’t need (much to his money-conscious sister’s chagrin). Frequently he wears one white glove and one black glove. He likes bright primary colors (often clashing) and hats. Big hats. With feathers in, preferably.
History:
Poor is not even the word to describe Ben’s family. Complete heartbreaking soul-crushing poverty is more apt, if less concise.
Benjamin and his twin sister, Ellen, were born to an unemployed mother in Radasanth. Their father was a sailor who was never at home and brought back minimal amounts of money at best. Most of his paychecks he drank away, anyway. Ellen and Ben were largely forced to fend for themselves in the big city. It was then that they learned to steal, and cheat, and con, and pickpocket, and all those other useful life skills. The gutters were better teachers to them than a private school tuition.
The thieving...just never really stopped. Both of them got progressively better at their chosen track (Ben’s con artistry neatly complimenting Ellen’s thieving) and they stole more and more money. Eventually they saved up enough for a ticket off of Corone, and from there on they have sailed from city to city, stealing and indulging in whatever whims they desire.
Skills:
Silver Tongued: To say that trusting Ben seems like a good idea is putting it mildly. He is the ultimate salesman. People can hardly help but trust him. They want to trust the handsome, young, well spoken man. He’s very convincing, and it’s almost impossible to tell when he’s lying.
Trustworthy Handshake: Ben has perfected the art of the handshake. Many men pride themselves on their ability to tell the nature of a man by his handshake. Ben’s is firm, solid, dependable. A man with such a good handshake, people reason, must be trustworthy.
Except that he’s not.
Forgery: Given the right set of inks and papers, Ben can forge simple things. ID Cards and some kinds of money he can forge within reason. Anything with a watermark or the so-called “fiddly bits” is right out, though. He’s not as good at forgery as he is at smooth talking, though, and he’s liable to get discovered pretty quickly.
Quite Handsome Really: This is sort of a skill and sort of an innate attribute. People are naturally attracted to Ben, even without him speaking. Part of it is that he’s handsome, part of it is that he’s witty and charming, most of it is that he just exudes confidence and charisma. He can sneak around in broad daylight in a restricted area, and if he’s carrying a clipboard and looking official, no one will bother him.
Find The Lady: Card tricks are really Ben’s forte. He has very fast hands and is very tricky, and he’s excellent at diverting people’s attention. If he just needs a few gold pieces, the fastest way always seems to be to set up a little table on a street corner and play a crooked game of Find the Lady. Gets them every time!
Identity Switch: Ben has a wide number of identities, for every occasion you could possibly think of. Put on a fake moustache, some eyeglasses, and an accent, and you’d be surprised at how easily people are fooled. Or maybe you wouldn’t; he is Ben Kirkeby.
Weaknesses:
Fighting Is For Chumps: Benjamin doesn’t...do...fighting. He has no experience with any weapon, and frankly finds the whole thing a bit distasteful. He’s also more than a little bit of a coward when it comes to physical confrontation. He’s completely useless. Hell, he isn’t even strong or physically fit; while not fat, he isn’t really muscular either.
Magic Is Hard: Ben knows absolutely nothing about magic. He can’t counter it, can’t use it. His talents are very narrowly focused to a few areas: trying to ask him to cast a spell is going to achieve nothing fast.
Pathological Liar: Ben is so good at lying, that he actually has a very hard time telling the truth. Sometimes he isn’t even sure what the truth is any more, after a particularly long charade. Frequently he lies to people for no reason at all and when it’s to his disadvantage. He can’t help it.
Equipment:
(2) Packs of Cards
(1) Small Club, for emergency purposes, concealed under his shirt and tucked into his pants
(2) Un-Weighted Dice
(2) Weighted Dice which always come up sixes. Indistinguishable from the normal dice.
(1) Queen of Wands, up his sleeve.
(1) Fake moustache.
(1) Large Pair of Eyeglasses (normal glass on the inside, not lenses; he can see fine)
Name: Benjamin Kirkeby
Age: 24
Race: Caucasian
Hair Color: Brown
Eye Color: Hazel
Height: 5’11”
Weight: 138 lbs
Occupation: Confidence Trickster
Personality:
Benjamin Kirkeby, like most con artists, has a plethora of personalities at his beck and call. He can be a priest one minute, a beggar the next, a businessman, a baker, and so on. In general terms, however, he has two personalities.
The first is The Charming One. This is what Ben shows to most of the world. He’s smart, funny, clever, and most of all charming. Very charismatic, very socially adept, very likeable. Everyone trusts The Charming One. Everyone likes The Charming One. Even if they sense that there might be shark teeth beneath the seemingly open and friendly smile, even if they have an itch at the back of their mind telling them that something isn’t quite right, any doubts are usually quickly ignored...because people want to trust The Charming One. He’s just so damn charming!
Underneath this exterior lies something quite different. In reality, the only word that can really be used to describe Ben is UNPREDICTABLE. One minute he’s chivalrous and kind and caring about the good of others; the next he’s downright cruel and selfish. Mostly he’s selfish. Ben is of strong the belief that the property of others is rightfully his, and if he’s smart enough to get it from them, he deserves it. Usually he is smart enough to get it. What he spends that money on is anyone’s guess. Sometimes he spends it on jewelry, booze, gambling, whatever. What really matters to him is the taking, not the spending.
He’s also a huge risk taker and a gambler, and not just in the card-game dice-game sense. He’d gamble his life away on the roll of a die and not think twice on it. Ben’s life is one crazy gamble after another.
That’s how he likes it.
Appearance:
It’s generally agreed that Benjamin is attractive, if for no real specific reason. His face is smooth, his chin is normal, and his features are perfectly symmetrical. He has a broad, friendly, trustworthy smile and dazzling white and straight teeth. His hair is well-groomed (almost vainly so) and he’s generally quite clean and hygienic. The only problem is his eyes; they’re dull. Not sparkling, not interesting, nothing. Just sort of small and mundane and dark...almost mean. Benjamin is aware of this, unable to hide it, and wears glasses for this reason.
As for clothing, in Benjamin’s opinion, the more flamboyant and crazy the better. Obviously on the job he has to wear whatever matches the role he’s playing, but when he’s out and about he dresses wildly. He always wears the latest fashionable trend, and spends quite a bit of his money on clothing he really doesn’t need (much to his money-conscious sister’s chagrin). Frequently he wears one white glove and one black glove. He likes bright primary colors (often clashing) and hats. Big hats. With feathers in, preferably.
History:
Poor is not even the word to describe Ben’s family. Complete heartbreaking soul-crushing poverty is more apt, if less concise.
Benjamin and his twin sister, Ellen, were born to an unemployed mother in Radasanth. Their father was a sailor who was never at home and brought back minimal amounts of money at best. Most of his paychecks he drank away, anyway. Ellen and Ben were largely forced to fend for themselves in the big city. It was then that they learned to steal, and cheat, and con, and pickpocket, and all those other useful life skills. The gutters were better teachers to them than a private school tuition.
The thieving...just never really stopped. Both of them got progressively better at their chosen track (Ben’s con artistry neatly complimenting Ellen’s thieving) and they stole more and more money. Eventually they saved up enough for a ticket off of Corone, and from there on they have sailed from city to city, stealing and indulging in whatever whims they desire.
Skills:
Silver Tongued: To say that trusting Ben seems like a good idea is putting it mildly. He is the ultimate salesman. People can hardly help but trust him. They want to trust the handsome, young, well spoken man. He’s very convincing, and it’s almost impossible to tell when he’s lying.
Trustworthy Handshake: Ben has perfected the art of the handshake. Many men pride themselves on their ability to tell the nature of a man by his handshake. Ben’s is firm, solid, dependable. A man with such a good handshake, people reason, must be trustworthy.
Except that he’s not.
Forgery: Given the right set of inks and papers, Ben can forge simple things. ID Cards and some kinds of money he can forge within reason. Anything with a watermark or the so-called “fiddly bits” is right out, though. He’s not as good at forgery as he is at smooth talking, though, and he’s liable to get discovered pretty quickly.
Quite Handsome Really: This is sort of a skill and sort of an innate attribute. People are naturally attracted to Ben, even without him speaking. Part of it is that he’s handsome, part of it is that he’s witty and charming, most of it is that he just exudes confidence and charisma. He can sneak around in broad daylight in a restricted area, and if he’s carrying a clipboard and looking official, no one will bother him.
Find The Lady: Card tricks are really Ben’s forte. He has very fast hands and is very tricky, and he’s excellent at diverting people’s attention. If he just needs a few gold pieces, the fastest way always seems to be to set up a little table on a street corner and play a crooked game of Find the Lady. Gets them every time!
Identity Switch: Ben has a wide number of identities, for every occasion you could possibly think of. Put on a fake moustache, some eyeglasses, and an accent, and you’d be surprised at how easily people are fooled. Or maybe you wouldn’t; he is Ben Kirkeby.
Weaknesses:
Fighting Is For Chumps: Benjamin doesn’t...do...fighting. He has no experience with any weapon, and frankly finds the whole thing a bit distasteful. He’s also more than a little bit of a coward when it comes to physical confrontation. He’s completely useless. Hell, he isn’t even strong or physically fit; while not fat, he isn’t really muscular either.
Magic Is Hard: Ben knows absolutely nothing about magic. He can’t counter it, can’t use it. His talents are very narrowly focused to a few areas: trying to ask him to cast a spell is going to achieve nothing fast.
Pathological Liar: Ben is so good at lying, that he actually has a very hard time telling the truth. Sometimes he isn’t even sure what the truth is any more, after a particularly long charade. Frequently he lies to people for no reason at all and when it’s to his disadvantage. He can’t help it.
Equipment:
(2) Packs of Cards
(1) Small Club, for emergency purposes, concealed under his shirt and tucked into his pants
(2) Un-Weighted Dice
(2) Weighted Dice which always come up sixes. Indistinguishable from the normal dice.
(1) Queen of Wands, up his sleeve.
(1) Fake moustache.
(1) Large Pair of Eyeglasses (normal glass on the inside, not lenses; he can see fine)