Quote:
Originally Posted by ericthered
Legends and magic in the mountain west? I think we mostly just borrow our legends from other people. The most likely stories to be local are classic ghost stories and a touch of bigfoot. And I've heard an old song about a pair of cowboys who are attacked by the devil, see his horns and hooves, and know just how to handle this situation. But I wouldn't know where to go looking for those sorts of legends.
Native American Lore in the area is a bit richer. This site appears to be a good starting point. Each tribe on it has a legends page, and tells you to look at other nearby tribes for other stories, and it appears to try and list stories only once. The Piautes ("Pie-utes") seem to have some useful monsters on their page. You may need to dig more. |
Thanks.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ericthered
I don't know actors well enough to do more than a cursory glance, but I can try to get pictures for you. You can use this sort of look for Zamal (very casual office-day look). For Danny you can use Branscombe Richmond. |
Okay, perfect.
Both are obviously older members of Kessler's crew and not presently in the kind of shape that thirty-year-olds just recently out of top special operations teams would be. That suggests that they are either security on board the Penemue, as opposed to active duty monster hunters, or that while they are older, they have experience and talent that places them above 'mere' ordinary special operators in perfect condition.
I think I'll have them both be part of the monster hunting team that
Penemue usually carries. Only two PCs formally belong to that away team and I think it needs to number eight people, aside from subject matter experts who may go with it on certain missions (inc. PCs like powerful conjure man and master druid 'Nonc' Morel or anthropologist and research assistant Alice Talbot).
So far, it has:
Team leader: Unassigned.
2i/c and O&I:
Zamal Juman.
Communications:
Danny Daniels; unless you object, I'll make him a retired Communications Sergeant (18E) from the USASF, with experience in the 7th SFG and the 19th NG SFG.
Wayfinder:
Edward Alvin Smith (PC).
Spiritualist:
Lucien Lacoste (PC).
Medic: Unassigned.
Engineer:
Bo Johnson, USN SEAL; fairly young, cheerful and fond of extreme sports. Loves explosions and will take considerable risks for cool or fun stunts.
Support Weapon: Unnamed USMC MARSOC Raider (CSO); big enough to carry the big gun and plenty of ammo.
Each team member will also have a number of specializations and areas of focus, like lead climber, diver, scout-sniper, etc. They'll also, hopefully, be cross-trained in vital specialties.
For example, Edward Smith is a competent field medic, albeit not at the level of a graduate of the SOCM course at JSOMTC, Ft. Bragg, and an exceptional field alchemist. He's also a good mechanic and a fair combat engineer, though the interaction between magic and technology mean that he might be reluctant to utilize those old skills if he's been opening himself up to magical energies.
The reason the PCs aren't in leadership positions is that no player wanted a character with the kind of special operations military background that would yield the skills and experience needed to be a credible team lead or 2i/c.
*From a realism point of view, the special operations community of the United States military is usually described as whiter than a ZZ Top concert. What research I have done into SOCOM and JSOC demographics back up that the proportion of Caucasian males of Southern descent is much higher than in the country as a whole and that most minorities are underrepresented. As I've not yet described many Caucasian people aboard the Penemue, I'll have to make some sort of a nod toward real demographics when it comes to the shooters.