How to create a character in Flashing Blades

Link to a character sheet: https://www.dropbox.com/s/wss9...heet%281%29.pdf?dl=0

Also here: https://mckinneygaming.wordpre...es-character-sheets/

Once your character is complete please link an image of the sheet into the character sheet online.  For an example, look at the NPC (De Soucy) in the cast.

1.   Determine Attributes

Roll 4d6 and drop the lowest for a range between 3-18.  The six attributes are: Strength, Dexterity, Endurance, Wit, Charm and Luck.  If the nature of any attribute is not obvious let me know.  You may place the results of the six die rolls in any order you wish.

2.  Determine Height and Weight

You may choose either your height (from Short, Average or Tall) or your weight (from Thin, Average or Stocky) but not both.  For the one you did not choose, roll 2d6 on the chart below.  Extremes of height or weight will modify your attributes.  Once you’ve determined height and weight, I will give you the modifications.

2-5 ---- Short/Thin
6-8 ---- Average
9-12 -- Tall/Stocky

3.  Hit Points and Skill Points

Based on your final attributes I will give you your starting HP and skill points.

4.  Background and Skills

Choose one of the four backgrounds:  Rogue, Gentlemen, Soldier or Nobleman.  Each background has a list of skills, three of which are in CAPS.  The skills in CAPS are specialty skills and may purchased for one (1) point each.  The other skills on the list may be purchased for two (2) points each.  If you want a skill for your character not on your list that you see on another list, it is three (3) points.  Rogues need to purchase Literacy if they want to be able to read.  For French it only costs one (1) point.  If you have points remaining they may be used on weapons.

5.  Martial Skills

Once regular skills have been purchased you may choose your martial skills according to the method or options available to your background.  The details are with the Backgrounds in the separate post.  Any left over skill points from step 4 may be used to boost expertise in a weapon at +1 per point.

6.  Advantage and Secret

Every character has one (1) advantage and one (1) secret.  You may choose your secret in secret if you wish, let me know in private.  The Backgrounds list includes information on available secrets.  Also, you can spend two (2) skill points and have only an advantage, or you can choose to have no advantage and get an extra skill point.

7.  Roll 1d6 for starting funds and income.  This will give you a base income from 50 to 500 Livres (L) per year, which is also how much money you begin the game with.  There is an equipment list in a separate post.  Soldiers are provided with regimental weapons and armor, and a horse if in the cavalry.  Officers are expected to purchase their own uniforms running between 8-24 L.

8.  Gentlemen, Soldiers and members of a club or order can work out their current rank or position.   Flashing Blades has a detailed system for Wintering events, that is, for taking up a character's down time with a career.  Generally that means advancement in some chosen path to power:  Military, Political, Business, Religious or Social.  You do not have to decide now which, if any of the paths you wish to follow, but a Gentlemen may begin immediately if they qualify for entry.  Let me know if you are interested.

Gentlemen may choose to start a career in the Royal Bureaucracy, the Clergy or in Banking.  The Bureaucracy may be entered at game start by a gentlemen with Bureaucratics skill as a Bureaucrat, or with Magistracy and Latin, as a Student of Law.  To enter the Clergy as a Student of Theology, the gentlemen needs Latin and Theology.  Becoming a Banker or Moneylender just requires starting capitol and time.  If you are interested in any of these, let me know.  Starting after game play begins is more difficult.

Rogues and Sailors begin with a Social Rank of 2; Soldiers at 3, Gentlemen at 7 and Noblemen at 8, on a scale of 1-20 where the King is 20.  Military rank, membership in an Order, and Titles may increase this.


Soldiers begin the game in the Military, in the Regiment and company of their choice.  Any other character may join later.  At the beginning of the game, Soldiers start as Troopers and may buy additional ranks: Sergeant, Subaltern, Lieutenant or Captain.  Each rank must be bought in succession.  The King's Musketeers are a company in the Guards Regiment; you may not buy the rank of Captain in that company.
This message was last edited by the GM at 20:55, Tue 29 Sept 2020.

Backgrounds for Flashing Blades

A Rogue is a common person of low birth who has had little formal education and has learned to live by his wits.  Some common occupations for Rogues are pickpocketing, robbery, gambling, adventuring, and banditry.  Despite their lack of training in the proper etiquette and the finer social graces, Rogues prove quite useful because of their unique assortment of skills.  Beginning social rank is 2.  Rogues speak French and the Criminal Argot and are illiterate.  The skills available to Rogues are listed below; those in CAPS are specialty skills.

Acrobatics (Dex)
Bargaining (Wit)
Bribery (Wit)
Carousing (End)
CUT PURSE (Dex)
Disguise (Wit)
FINE MANIPULATION (Dex)
Forgery (Wit)
Gambling (Luck)
Literacy (None)
STEALTH (Dex)
Tracking (Wit)

A Gentleman is a person of middling status who has received a wide and liberal education.  Gentlemen may be the sons of wealthy merchants or landowners, or the bastard sons of noblemen.  Gentlemen may start the game as low-level Clergymen, Bureaucrats or Bankers.  Beginning social rank is 7.  Gentlemen speak French and are literate.  The skills available to Gentlemen are listed below; those in CAPS are specialty skills.

Acrobatics (Dex)
Banking (Wit)
BARGAINING (Wit)
Bureaucratics (Wit)
Carousing (End)
Chemist (Wit)
Disguise (Wit)
Espionage (Wit)
ETIQUETTE (Charm)
Fine Manipulation (Dex)
History (Wit)
Horsemanship (Dex)
LANGUAGES (Wit)
Magistracy (Wit)
Oratory (Charm)
Seduction (Charm)
Theology (Wit)
Tracking (Wit)

A Soldier is a person who chooses to make the military his career.  A soldier may choose his exact Regiment and Company and are the only characters that may start the game in the military trade.  Beginning social rank is 3 or higher, based on rank.  Soldiers speak French and are literate.  The skills available to Soldiers are listed below; those in CAPS are specialty skills.

Acrobatics (Dex)
Bargaining (Wit)
CAPTAINCY (Charm)
Carousing (End)
Espionage (Wit)
Gambling (Luck)
HORSEMANSHIP (Dex)
Stealth (Dex)
STRATEGY (Wit)
Tracking (Wit)

A Nobleman is a person born into the ruling class.  Such a character has the advantages of status and wealth, but his education may be of little practical use outside of the royal court.  Beginning social rank is 8, or higher depending on title.  Noblemen speak French and are literate.  The skills available to Noblemen are listed below; those in CAPS are specialty skills.

Bribery (Wit)
Captaincy (Charm)
ETIQUETTE (Charm)
Gambling (Luck)
HERALDRY (Wit)
History (Wit)
HORSEMANSHIP (Dex)
Languages (Wit)
Magistracy (Wit)
Oratory (Charm)
Seduction (Charm)

Martial Skills are learned separately from ordinary skills.  There are six training organizations which teach Martial Skills; characters may choose among them based on the limitations of their backgrounds.  The six organizations are:

1.  The School of Hard Knocks, only available to Rogues, and may be taken in addition to the Fencing School.  Teaches Brawling.
2.  The Archery School may only be taken by a character with a 12 or higher in either Dexterity or Wit and may be taken in addition to the Fencing School.  Teaches Archery.
3.  The Academy may only be taken by a character with a 12 or higher in either Strength or Endurance.  Teaches either Firearms and Polearms, or Firearms and one fencing style.
4.  The Fencing School is comprised of a group of students with one or two masters.  Teaches one style of fencing and gives a +1 expertise in one weapon.
5.  The Fraternity is a much larger organization where students are taught by several masters.  Teaches two fencing styles and gives a +1 expertise in one weapon.
6.  The Guild is a nationwide or international fencing organization composed of many masters.  Teaches either three fencing styles, or two fencing styles and Polearms.

Soldiers learn Martial Skills from their company, as below.

Foot soldiers
Fusiliers:  Polearms and Firearms
Artillerists:  Artillery and Firearms
Grenadiers: Grenadier and Old-Style Dueling
Arquebusiers: Old Style Dueling, Firearms and +1 expertise in one weapon

Cavalry (Dragoons, Cuirassiers, Carabiniers):  Cavalry Style Fencing, Firearms, and Horsemanship

Guards: French Style Fencing, Firearms, Polearms, Horsemanship, and +1 expertise in one weapon.

Musketeers (Guards): French Style Fencing, Firearms, Horsemanship, one extra martial skill of his choice, and +1 expertise in one weapon.

Every Character has a choice of one Advantage and one Secret.  A character can choose to have only an Advantage at the cost of 2 skill points.  A Character may choose to have only a Secret and may use an extra skill point.  There are nine advantages:

1.  Title:  only a Nobleman may choose to inherit his father’s title.  Roll a d20 to determine the title.
2.  Wealth:  Any character may choose to have an extra source of money.  Roll d20 to determine the extra amount of annual income.
3.  Land: Any character except a Rogue may choose to own land.  Land needs upkeep, brings income, and may be sold.  Roll d20 to determine the property owned.
4.  Contact: Any character may choose to have a contact, an NPC that will aid in times of need.  The frequency of available aid, and the extent of aid possible, vary depending on the social rank and position of the contact.  Let’s discuss.
5.  Favor:  Any character may choose to be owed a favor by an NPC.  This can be a very powerful person, but is a one-time use.
6.  Double: Any character may choose to have a double, either a twin or a stranger who happens to have an identical appearance, by chance.
7.  Gentlemen’s Lackey: Any character except a Rogue may choose to have a Gentleman’s Lackey.  This is a personal servant of indisputable loyalty.
8.  Member of an Order: Any Nobleman or Gentleman may choose to be a member of a club or order.  Roll a d6 to determine the type of organization, choose from the ones available.
9.  Renaissance Man:  Any character with a score of 12 or higher in all his attributes may choose to be a Renaissance Man.

Posting Guidelines

I'm not going to be too crazy about this, but for ease of reading, let's use bold text in quotes for anything said aloud, "This is what I mean," I said.  If you want to color it I don't mind, but please use a dark color, the bright ones are hard to read.  You can italicize any internal monologues, things the character says to himself.  I prefer third person perspective, as in the quote above, and some sort of description of facial expression, tone of voice, body language etc.

Thank you

The Dueling Styles

Spanish Style: This was probably the first real dueling style to develop after the middle ages. It relies heavily upon keeping the opponent at a set distance, and uses the slash as its main attack. Characters trained in Spanish Style may fence with rapiers and longswords and receive a +1 to hit when attacking with a slash.

Italian Style: This style developed shortly after the Spanish.  It stresses many mechanical and physical points of fencing, such as facing the opponent mostly with the right side, so as to give him the smallest possible target. Italian Style relies upon the thrust and the lunge for its attacks (during this time a lunge was just a running thrust).  Early Italian fencing style also started to integrate the left-hand parrying
weapon and the main weapon into a single system of combat ('Florentine style'). Characters trained in Italian Style may fence with foils, rapiers, and longswords and get +1 to hit when attacking with a thrust or lunge, and may also use simple left-hand weapons (the baton, main gauche, and buckler, only) to some effect.

French Style: This style was just developing at the beginning of the 17th Century. After importing Spanish and Italian fencing masters for more than a century, France began to produce its own, with their own theories and styles. French Style emphasizes the use of strategy and thinking in combat, and fully integrates the 'Florentine style' to a state more advanced than that of Italian Style. Characters with French Style may fence with foils, rapiers, and longswords and may use all left-hand parrying weapons (such as main gauches, bucklers, batons, daggers, other swords, or even hats or cloaks).

Cavalry Style: This style developed mostly in Eastern Europe, around the same time as Italian Style was developing. It uses a vicious system of cuts and slashes at the upper torso and a box-like system of parries, adapted from the attacks and defenses commonly used by men on horseback. Characters with Cavalry Style may fence with longswords and sabres, and get +1 To hit with a slash attack.

Old Style: This style is what remains of medieval fighting techniques, which relied more on brawn than brains. Characters with Old Style may fight with daggers, longswords, cutlasses, and twohanded swords.

Basic Equipment

Clothing and Armor

Ordinary Clothing (doublet, breeches, hose, shoes, hat, etc.) 8 L
Fine Dress (silk clothing, velvet linings, powered wig, etc.) 24 L
Cloak 3 L
Helmet 20 L
Padded Doublet 18 L
Leather Jerkin 26 L
Cuirass (breastplate and backplate) 60 L
Padded Sleeves 6 L
Gauntlets B L
Epaulettes (shoulder and upper arm guards) 16 L
Buckler (small shield) 8 L
Padded Breeches 12 L
Boots 5 L
Tassets (waist and thigh guards) 18 L

Weapons and Accessories

Foil 18 L
Rapier 24 L
Longsword 28 L
Sabre 24 L
Cutlass 18 L
Main Gauche (left-hand dagger) 16 L
Baton 4 L
Dagger 8 L
2-H Sword 30 L
Scabbard 2 L
Sheath 1 L
Pike 20 L
Halberd 24 L
Poleaxe 32 L
Crossbow 32 L
16 Crossbow Bolts I L
Bow 26L
24 Arrows 1 L
Quiver (holds 16 Bolts or 24 Arrows) 2 L
Bowstring 1 L

Pistol
Matchlock 36 L
Flintlock 50 L
Wheellock 72 L
Dueling Pistol 48 L/62 L/90 L
Carbine 54 L/70 L/100 L
Musket 60 L/84 L/124 L
Arquebus 72 L/94 L/148 L
Hand Cannon 112 L
Powder Horn (holds 60 shots) 2 L
Powder (20 shots) 5 L
Shot (20 bullets or lead balls) 1 L
Pole-brace (used to steady aim) 3 L

Miscellaneous Equipment

Pen, Paper and Ink 2 L
Wax Candle 1 L
Lantern 6 L
Makeup and assortment of Wigs 10 L
Watchmaker’s Tools 32 L
Set of Dice and Cards 2 L
Good Gamecock (for cockfighting) 24 L
Set of Maps (of France, Europe, or the New World) 8 L
Assortment of Chemicals 24 L
Hemp Rope (10 m) 1 L
Grappling Hook 4 L
Bottle of Good Wine 12 L
Bandages 1 L
Large Sack (holds 10 Weight Points) 1 L

Support

Monthly expenses when in the city (food, shelter, etc.) 3 L x Social Rank
Traveling rations (for one week) 4 L
Stay in a Roadside Inn (per night) 1-3 L
This message was lightly edited by the GM at 21:54, Sat 01 May 2021.