Alexandra Stacja
'Getting their attention is easy, you just need to hold it. But that doesn't concern you. Just make sure it's quick, then move on. You'll know when I wink.'
Editors note: Before I begin with the sub, let me give credit where it is due. The idea for this submission came from Cheka Man asking me if I could think of a few characters for his 30 Tavern Wenches. Inspiration struck and I came up with two decent ones. This is one of them. So thank you Cheka for re-starting my imagination :)
Hurrying along the dark path, hood drawn close around her face, she dragged her brother behind her. Telling him to keep moving. The lights of the town they had been forced to vacate already dimming behind them.
Appearance
With a petite frame, standing at a little over 5'4'. Alexandra stands out, and she makes every effort to put her good looks and allure to use. Her hair is a flowing river of blonde, slightly wavy and scented with rose water.
Her eyes are her most beautiful feature, if one can stop staring at her ample cleavage for long enough, a thing she know will distract them. When playing her lute she makes sure to jiggle about a bit, knowing that this will further excite the patrons and distract them for those precious few seconds.
When working she intentionally dresses up a little, a tight corset, a short skirt made of leather, and a pair of snug fur boots.
Her everyday/travel attire is simpler and somewhat more modest. Warm leggings, a pale green tunic and a pair of well worn, yet sturdy boots. She also owns a dark green, slightly grubby cloak which she will only wear when she travels.
Background
Her parents rejoiced when their first child and daughter was born, on the eve of Wlastem Njar. A very small baby, the village midwife was sure she wouldn't survive the harsh winter they had all been forced to endure thus far. Luckily the little girl made it, thanks to much care, love and prayer, and perhaps the eve of her birth.
A mischievous girl as a child with a gift for languages, something her mother was very proud of and did everything she could to support her daughters passion.
As a teenager things got difficult for the Stacja family. Alexandra's mother fell ill to the plague. The Stacja family were quickly shunned by the village in which they lived, and it was all her father could do to care for the mother and support their three children: Alexandra and her two younger brothers. But then further tragedy occurred- Alexandra's father fell ill, and both her parents became bed-bound.
Her father, knowing that if Alexandra continued to care for him would fall prey to the same disease, sent her away on her own. Alexandra was told to take care of her brothers, given all the family's possessions, and told to head towards the nearest city. He then, to end both his and his wife's suffering, killed his wife and commit suicide himself.
Alexandra soon found herself, teenaged and in charge of two children, in the middle of an unfamiliar city. The only blessing they received was that it was summer, and so they had no need for a blanket when they slept on the streets.
A gang found them there. One of the gang had mercy on the miserable, hungry trio, partly because Alexandra's beauty was all ready appearing. The gang raised them, and taught them. Alexandra found that she wasn't that good a thief, but found that she was good playing the lute, while her brothers learned the art of theft.
Alexandra's gang and their rival fought. The rival gang won, and the Stacjas were once again forced to leave their home for another.
It took them another year to reach the next city. They took their time, practicing their theft skills as they went. They'd milk the town or village for a bit, and left before it noticed. By the time they'd reached the next city, Alexandra had become the beauty that she is today.
Technique:
Rarely will Alexandra and her brothers simply go out and pickpocket people. They will usually reserve this for when they really need to. Typically, Alexandra will play on the lute at a bar to distract the clientele while her brothers farm the crowd. She plays her femininity and her beauty up to further distract the people. She might stoop even further down the road of seduction if a person might catch one of her brothers surreptitiously rifling through some pocket or bag.
During the day, when the crowds at a bar are not filled enough to warrant her presence, Alexandra will play the lute as street theater, and let generous passerby fill her bowl, as well as let her brothers fill the bowl with stingy passerby's money.
Perhaps the plague that her parents died of lay dormant in her and her brothers. A small twist could be used that during her travels she past on the plague to a few folks that were susceptible to what she was carrying. It morphed a bit for her to carry it and the right circumstances could pass it on. Follow the plague, find the thieves and stop the spread.
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? Responses (14)
Update: Added caesar193 as collab.
Update: Many thanks to caesar193 for his invaluable help in the completion of this submission.
And on that bombshell, we present to you: Alexandra Stacja!
Nice one. What is Alexandra and her brothers doing when they're not stealing and singing? Are they always travelling? What are their goals? Also, I would like to point to this section here:
'Alexandra's gang and their rival fought.' I would suggest you put in some foreshadowing. Maybe mention the rival gang before the fight. As it stands, it came off a bit abrupt. And/Or maybe name the gangs, that would make for a nice plot hook.
Here are some spelling/grammatical mistakes:
wife and commit suicide himself.
(committed)
because Alexandra's beauty was all ready appearing.
(already)
the bowl with stingy passerby's money.
(Passerby is singular, passersby is plural. I would rewrite the sentence though, as it is a tricky one). 'the bowl with money from stingy passersby', perhaps.
-
And the link for Wlastem Njar was eaten by a Grue.
The Grue is there in place of the sub for now. I had one lined up and ready on my memory stick. Will have to try my best to find it.
Thanks for the pointers, will get on it ASAP.
A standard minor npc, useful for adding extra background on a character.
Her background seems typical 'tragic backstory' - judging by the rate that people lose their mother and father in the fantasy world, parenthood seems to be more dangerous than adventuring!
The trio together sound like they have a system for thievery worked out quite well; and there are few better ways to distract people than through lust.
More depth would be nice if she and her brothers were to be a more major influence in a game, but for a minor NPC, this is all the depth necessary to quickly throw her in any tavern the PC's may come across.
caesar193 did have some extra material, I'll PM him and ask if he feels like submitting it.
This stops mid sentence at the end. Her personality does not seem detailed beyond mischievous.
What were you looking for advice on?
I've left this one for quite a while now. Before the disaster it had been completed as a collab, I think CM or Forganthus or somebody else was finishing it. I myself can't rememebr where I was going with this one. I have recently found my memory stick so the finished submission might be on there, I'll have to get back to you on that one.
I want to know what Wlastem Njar is :)
Patience Muro :P
Update: Update: Re-added caesar193 as collab author yesterday and he has restored this submission. Thank you! re-submitting this as a Normal Submission for now.
Gots all the bits and pieces I need. A great character to add to your typical 'I go to the bar.' Have an easy backstory like this to play with is great.
I should have voted on her before.
