[IW] Story Ideas, Lone Autoduellist vs Conquistadors

[LokRobster]

I'm working on ideas for a side-trip that my PCs stirred up last session.

Anna "The Talon" van Zandt, a world-famous Duellist from 2038 Autoduel world, (thanks to some thoughtless actions on the part of my PCs), is stranded in a parallel world. The world is at 1776 and the setting is Secret Magic, complete with Cabal, Mages/Werewolves/Vampires, kind of a "Colonial Gothic"-type parallel - she and her vehicle were stuck on a foot-path in the Piney Woods of East Texas. After making her way south-east a few miles in her fully armed/armored duel-car, she parks it [activates the anti-theft security system] and she makes her way on foot (and raft) to the Gulf Coast, to a small Spanish fort near present-day Houston.

She arrives out of the woods in the late afternoon and approaches the Fort. She is wearing her TL8 body armor, and armed with a .50AE Desert Eagle, a Colt 1911 .45, and a FN-FAL assault rifle. 3 extra magazines for the DE, 1 for the Colt, and 4 magazines for the FAL. She has a backpack with a basic survival kit and some first-aid supplies.

She speaks Accented Spanish, and has enough presence of mind to 'act Catholic' - being somewhat familiar with Conquistador/Texas history. She has a vague idea to try to get a ship to New England and hook up with early American scientist Ben Franklin to try to develop some of her future-technology ideas and either find a way home or at least live comfortably in the late 18th Century... she has a homemade map of the location of her car in case she can gather enough local help and resources to go back for it.

Ideas on how you see the Spaniards reacting? Realistic, Cinematic, or both: I haven't pre-determined how this will play out for her, so I've thought of ideas ranging from the Spanish Captain cooperating fully, to an attempt to take her captive immediately (which would NOT go well for the black powder-armed soldiers), to pretending to be friendly and try to capture her while she sleeps.

The PCs later figured out what they'd done and are currently following her tracks to see about rescuing her (assuming she needs rescuing). They haven't caught up yet...

Duellist's Advantages: Apperance (attractive), Luck, Charisma 1, Fashion Sense (may not apply?)
Duellist's Disadvantages: Curious (6~), Impulsive (9~), Sense of Duty (Innocents) (enslaved natives at this point), and of course Weirdness Magnet.

I haven't drawn up stats/character type for the Spaniards, so throw some in with your post if you're so minded; or I will put together some stats to match a character type to the best story idea that ya'll come up with.

[LokRobster]

Her character sheet...

Duellist Anna van Zandt (266 points)
Age 22; Human; 5' 5"; 125; very short cropped dark brown hair, green
eyes, tan complexion [9th clone]
ST 12 [20]; DX 13 [60]; IQ 12 [40]; HT 12 [20].
Damage 1d-1/1d+2; BL 29 lbs.; HP 14 [4]; Will 11 [-5]; Per 12 [0]; FP 10 [-
6].
Basic Speed 6.25 [0]; Basic Move 6 [0]; Block 8 (DX); Dodge 10; Parry 10
(DX).
Social Background
TL: 8 [0].
CF:
Languages: English (Native) [0]; Spanish (Accented/None) [2].
Advantages
Appearance (Attractive) [4]; Charisma 1 [5]; Combat Reflexes [15];
Fashion Sense [5]; Luck [15]; Night Vision 2 [2]; Patrons (Scout
Commando Corp [former Scout]) (6 or less) [8]; Reputation (Famous
Duellist) 3 (All the time; Almost everyone) [15]; Wealth (Filthy Rich) [50].
Perks: Weapon Bond (Guns (Pistol)) [1].
Disadvantages
Code of Honor (Scout Commando Corp) [-5]; Curious (6 or less) [-10];
Flashbacks (Mild) [-5]; Impulsiveness (9 or less) [-15]; Nightmares (12 or
less) [-5]; On the Edge (12 or less) [-15]; Post-Combat Shakes (6 or less)
[-10]; Sense of Duty (Helpless/Innocents) (Large Group) [-10]; Weirdness
Magnet [-15].
Quirks: A bit disconnected from reality - doesn't really see herself as a
normal human anymore.; Loves to drive at night.; No alcohol or tabacco;
Refers to herself as Nine [number of times she's been cloned]. [-4].
Skills
Administration-11 (IQ-1) [1]; Artist (Pottery)-10 (IQ-2) [1]; Boating/TL8
(Sailboat)-12 (DX-1) [1]; Cooking-11 (IQ-1) [1]; Driving/TL8 (Automobile)-
16 (DX+3) [12]; Electronics Operation/TL8 (Communications)-12 (IQ+0)
[2]; Fast-Draw/TL8 (Ammo)-14 (DX+1) [1]; Fast-Draw (Pistol)-17 (DX+4)
[8]; First Aid/TL8 (Human)-13 (IQ+1) [2]; Geology/TL8 (Earthlike)-10 (IQ-
2) [1]; Gunner/TL8 (Beams)-14 (DX+1) [1]; Gunner/TL8 (Cannon)-14
GCA Duellist Anna van Zandt Race: Human GCA
1
(DX+1) [1]; Gunner/TL8 (Machine Gun)-18 (DX+5) [16]; Gunner/TL8
(Rockets)-14 (DX+1) [0]; Guns/TL8 (Pistol)-16 (DX+3) [8]; Guns/TL8
(Rifle)-14 (DX+1) [1]; Guns/TL8 (Shotgun)-14 (DX+1) [1]; Guns/TL8
(Submachine Gun)-14 (DX+1) [1]; History (Texas)-10 (IQ-2) [1]; Karate-13
(DX+0) [4]; Leadership-13 (IQ+1) [2]; Leatherworking-13 (DX+0) [1];
Lockpicking/TL8-12 (IQ+0) [2]; Mechanic/TL8 (Automobile [Power Cell])-
13 (IQ+1) [4]; Meteorology/TL8 (Earthlike)-11 (IQ-1) [1]; Navigation/TL8
(Land)-11 (IQ-1) [1]; Piloting/TL8 (Lighter-Than-Air)-12 (DX-1) [1]; Rapier-
13 (DX+0) [2]; Riding (Equines)-12 (DX-1) [1]; Running-12 (HT+0) [2];
Scuba/TL8-12 (IQ+0) [2]; Stealth-13 (DX+0) [2]; Strategy (Land)-10 (IQ-2)
[1]; Survival (Island/Beach)-12 (Per+0) [2]; Survival (Woodlands)-12
(Per+0) [2]; Swimming-13 (HT+1) [2]; Tactics-12 (IQ+0) [4].
Techniques: Kicking (Karate)-12 [2]; Knee Strike (Karate)-13 [1]; Quick-
Shot/TL8 (Guns (Pistol))-12 [2]; Targeted Attack/TL8 (Guns (Pistol)/Face)-
14 [4].

[Manycubes]

1776 "Colonial Gothic" practically begs for a cinematic campaign.

This means the macho Spaniards try to capture her directly only to receive Karate kicks to the groin, followed by a Desert Eagle pushed into the snout of their leader.

[ericthered]

My gut reaction:

"We have a heavily armed alien who wants to head towards a rebellion in one of our rival's colonies and contact a noted statesman there. Sure we could risk lives to stop her, but we could just let her go get herself killed or make trouble for Britain."

That said, with the supernatural around, problems may arise from other sources: After the first fight with a Vampire she may have a swirl of supernatural activity around her.

Also, I don't know if you are aware, but texas was an on-and-off war zone with the camanche at the time, and spain was reorganizing the government in the area link. What this means in a secrete history where the supernatural exists is up to you, but it could be a were-wolf outbreak, or supernatural war. Landing in the middle of that, supernatural or no, could also be a fun issue.

[patchwork]

Capture her? It's 1776 and she's a woman. They're going to try to rescue her. Cue series of misunderstandings as she tries to communicate that she is unmarried and they assume the Comanches got her husband, etc. Or maybe she has the presence of mind to invent an imaginary husband, who knows. They've never seen a repeating firearm and frankly shouldn't be able to conceptualize how much damage it can do, so this could indeed go pear-shaped quickly.

Bear in mind that these guys are dregs. Spanish officers posted to the new world tended to be liberal, since if they had the "proper" conservative ideas they'd have been able to secure a post in Madrid. Galveston/Houston is the ass end of nowhere even for New Spain, so I'd assume the captain is especially annoying or he'd have been able to get a post further south. All told, I would assume the post captain to be basically sympathetic to her aims and goals (if she communicates them honestly), but deeply lacking in political and social ability. Problems are from miscommunication, not malice.

[David Johnston2]

Realistically their first move would probably not be to try to capture the weird heavily armed man with the high-pitched voice. They'll want to ask him where he comes from and if they want to trade.

[DocRailgun]

If the Spaniards are used to (or have some idea that they might encounter) strange supernatural creatures, it seems likely that they will think she is such a being (or a 'witch hunter'). Even in armor and with strange weaponry, she's obviously a woman and obviously has some sort of firearms. Therefore, she's strange and exotic.

Unless she's hostile it seems unlikely that they will shoot first and ask questions later. With a name like 'van Zandt' they may well think she is from the Netherlands - which may or may not explain her oddly-accented Spanish.

She should be fine.

Originally Posted by LokRobster

I'm working on ideas for a side-trip that my PCs stirred up last session.

Anna "The Talon" van Zandt, a world-famous Duellist from 2038 Autoduel world, (thanks to some thoughtless actions on the part of my PCs), is stranded in a parallel world. The world is at 1776 and the setting is Secret Magic, complete with Cabal, Mages/Werewolves/Vampires, kind of a "Colonial Gothic"-type parallel - I haven't drawn up stats/character type for the Spaniards, so throw some in with your post if you're so minded; or I will put together some stats to match a character type to the best story idea that ya'll come up with.

[tshiggins]

Originally Posted by DocRailgun

If the Spaniards are used to (or have some idea that they might encounter) strange supernatural creatures, it seems likely that they will think she is such a being (or a 'witch hunter'). Even in armor and with strange weaponry, she's obviously a woman and obviously has some sort of firearms. Therefore, she's strange and exotic.

Unless she's hostile it seems unlikely that they will shoot first and ask questions later. With a name like 'van Zandt' they may well think she is from the Netherlands - which may or may not explain her oddly-accented Spanish.

She should be fine.

I think you're underestimating the conservatism of Spanish colonials, when faced with a female who is clearly not an American Indian, and clearly not acting in a way they consider appropriate for a female to act.

The Spanish, as a general rule, were incredibly protective of women of European ancestry -- so much so that, until they had stable and well-established towns, they would allow very few women from Spain to even travel to New Spain to live. Once here, they were kept in the same sort of walled Mediterranean-style courtyard homes they had in Spain, and were expected to conduct themselves with Catholic propriety.

Essentially, the European women of New Spain were never granted divorces, were expected to live within the confines of their courtyard homes, were required to maintain a moral stature above reproach and, in keeping with that, were expected to be accompanied by a chaperone in public.

Women in New Spain did have some legal protections, such as the right to own or inherit property, maintain their own businesses, control any wealth brought into a marriage, testify in court (including against their own husbands), and bring lawsuits on their own behalf. However, they received very little in the way of formal education, beyond reading and writing. If they wished a better education, they had no choice but to join a convent -- it was the only way.

Now then, that said, those legal protections extended only to European women. Indian women were expected to work hard, their entire lives, and their Meztiso (half-caste) children received far fewer legal protections than the children of Peninsular (both parents from Europe) couples.

So, what you have here is an unaccompanied European (not-Indian) female walking out of the wilderness. She's clearly armed and armored, and probably does not obey social norms. (Where is her black lace veil?)

The first time she attends Mass (which will be conducted in Latin, not Spanish), she will fail to provide the proper responses to the ritual greetings by the priest. She will probably not like how the Indian men (and especially women) get treated, although she may grit her teeth and bear it.

When all of this leads to its inevitable confrontation, she will defend herself with lethal efficiency.

To the Spanish colonists, that will likely mean one thing, and one thing only:

She's a witch -- a bride of Satan, sent to destroy them.

The situation will go pear-shaped. Guaranteed.

[LokRobster]

Originally Posted by tshiggins

When all of this leads to its inevitable confrontation, she will defend herself with lethal efficiency.

To the Spanish colonists, that will likely mean one thing, and one thing only:

She's a witch -- a bride of Satan, sent to destroy them.

The situation will go pear-shaped. Guaranteed.

I like it, this is what i see happening too.

Especially being on the edge of the Commanche war zone...

[LokRobster]

Originally Posted by patchwork

Bear in mind that these guys are dregs. Spanish officers posted to the new world tended to be liberal, since if they had the "proper" conservative ideas they'd have been able to secure a post in Madrid. Galveston/Houston is the ass end of nowhere even for New Spain, so I'd assume the captain is especially annoying or he'd have been able to get a post further south. All told, I would assume the post captain to be basically sympathetic to her aims and goals (if she communicates them honestly), but deeply lacking in political and social ability. Problems are from miscommunication, not malice.

it makes sense that you'd have to be pretty far down in troop and command quality to get this post. That, combined with the attitude of superiority over the natives could easily lend a viscous edge to your dealings with an unknown woman, no matter who or what she claims to be.

The knowledge of supernatural events and creatures is limited to superstition and rumor. Much like our own history except the outlandish horrors happen to be true (but unverified).

Anna has attracted the attention of one Cabal werewolf, though, who is very interested in finding out where she's from and what powers she has...