Runner Up – Iris Rowen

With all the fantastic submissions, we had trouble selecting just three. There were two submissions that were in consideration for winners (and many many others that we had a hard time choosing between to advance to the final decisions), and while these two were ultimately not selected, we wanted to feature them as well. Iris is an interesting take on the idea of a well-intentioned pact with darkness, and the submitter has also given us permission to re-post their own original art. The runners up will both receive an extra download for the Valor e-book!

 

Name: Iris Rowen

Age: 22

Pronouns: He/him

Powers: Can enter others’ dreams, Charm (requires malevolent entity roll)

Physical Description:

Iris is about 5’1”, pale, has fluffy, light blue hair and purple eyes. His outfit consists of a blue

and purple sleeveless hoodie, brown shorts, and brown shoes with blue socks.

Growing up a shy, but cheerful child, Iris had two loving parents, a younger brother, and a

couple of friends. As he grew older, most of these friends either moved away or fell out of touch,

but one of them, Jacob, stuck by him throughout elementary, middle, and most of high school.

Iris never got too good at making friends, so Jacob was his only one.

When Iris turned 17, Jacob was diagnosed with an illness and was told he only had a couple

months to live. Iris was heartbroken, not wanting to lose his only friend, who had so many

dreams while Iris still didn’t know what he wanted to do with his life. Iris struggled with what to

do, but decided on summoning a demon to help cure Jacob.

He summoned an incubus, named Raven, and asked if he could cure his friend. Raven said he

could, in exchange for using Iris as his vessel until he accomplishes his goal, not telling Iris what

it is. Iris did not agree right away, but Raven lingered, tempting him to accept the deal. He finally

accepted as he was sitting beside Jacob’s hospital bed. Raven cured Jacob and immediately

entered Iris’ body, possessing him.

Jacob woke up from his nap only to be greeted by Raven in Iris’ body. He could already tell

something was wrong with Iris, as Raven was loud and informal. He didn’t do anything to harm

Jacob, but did scare him just by how drastically different he was acting. Iris was able to witness

everything Raven does with his body and how Jacob reacts to it. Iris softly told the demon to be a

bit more careful, which was ignored.

After leaving the hospital, Raven had Iris give him directions to his house. Iris tried to tell Raven

to be careful and act more like him, but Raven did the opposite, flat-out calling attention to the

fact that he was a demon: “My name’s Raven, I’m an incubus, and I’ll be living inside Iris from

now on. Just consider me another son.” Iris’ parents were worried about Iris, but also a little

scared. They tried to get to know him and assess the situation over dinner. Iris’ 11 year old

brother, Poppy, found Raven cool and asked him a bunch of questions. Iris asked for control

during dinner, and Raven agreed. He apologized to his family and explained why he summoned

Raven. His parents seemed to be okay with it, but worried about Iris’ and their own safety.

The next day, Iris apologized to Jacob and explained what happened. Jacob responded that he

was grateful that Iris cared for him that much, but summoning demons was inexcusable. Iris left

the hospital broken-hearted and friendless.

Iris continued school as even more of an outcast, since Jacob told his group of friends about the

demon. Raven took over every so often during school or at home, sometimes threatening

students and Iris’ parents. Poppy tried to talk to Raven whenever he was out, but his parents told

him to stay away from him.

Iris managed to finish high school, and his parents decided to pay for an apartment for him a city

over. They forbade Poppy from visiting Iris alone, so Iris was truly isolated, with Raven as his

only “friend.”

 

Current Accomplishments:

~Summoned a demon

~Made friends in the Silver Grove Paranormal Society

~Charmed three antagonists and an octopus

~Fell in love for the first time

~Helped almost kill one of his friends

Runner Up – Saph

The second Runner Up is Saph. The character can be described quite easily: Kitten sorcerer! We absolutely adored this submission, it was a simple but adorable concept that we all fell in love with.

 

Initially, Saph was a small newborn kitten half-dead and waterlogged before she was found by a

kingdom’s sorcerer who used his magic to keep her alive during the night; the magic ended up modifying

her colors/physical appearance quite a bit. Ever since, she basically considers the sorcerer her dad, and

he takes care of her and sometimes spoils her a bit.

When a corrupted mage (who went on a massacre to absorb the magic of each kingdom’s unique

sorcerer or mage) targeted the sorcerer, he gave all of his magic abilities to her and sent her far away;

the power gave her human-like sentience and intelligence as well as vast magical capabilities (Broad

interpretations). While her main goal is to find out what happened to her owner/dad and the state of

the kingdom, she tries to solve problems of those she meets during her travels in memory of her

owner’s kindness and willingness to help others.

She means well, but doesn’t seem like she does outwardly; she’s brash, a little arrogant, and can get

easily riled up with the right button pushing. Most of the time she comes off as sarcastic or cynical, but

once she mellows out she tries to make amends.

Character Contest Winner – Chronos

The third winner of the Character contest is the young mage-in-hiding Chronos. The loss of parents and the discovery of hidden abilities is a common theme among many of the submissions, and we liked how Chronos fit into the setting that was presented to us and how the system of magic was presented in the setting. While hidden abilities are so often a starting point of a hero’s journey, Chronos hasn’t quite made it to that point, still working to get by in a world that would not accept her, which we thought was an interesting take on the concept.

 

In a world where the use of magic is strict and may only be used by those of pure breeding and years of

mastering, our protagonist Chronos was brought into a family of rebels. Her mother was a simple human

who sought an alchemist’s education, but her father was a much darker pedigree. His race was one

of Mystics, of which could manipulate the natural magic within a body, essentially taking it for

themselves. Hundreds of years ago, they were sought after by the council of holy magic users, who ruled

the seperate parts of the land. The council attempted to seize the magic of common peoples, under the

guise that it was far too dangerous to be used carelessly, when really they’d become greedy.

When their plan failed, people turned on the mystics, casting them out as cheats, no better than foxes.

People became scared of them, and eventually began to bully them to the point of being scared to walk

the streets. After hundreds of years, magic has since then been restricted heavily. However, Chronos’

family says otherwise. From a young age, her parents had guided her in the use of magic, though were

certain to hide it from the public eye.

All was going well for some time, and she’d become moderately well versed in magic, even into her teen

years. However, the council were not as blind as her parents had hoped. The Papillion family line had

established multiple underground hideaways for magic users, where one could practice, train or learn in

a safe enviornment. There were scares of being caught sometimes, but they never reached the surface

until Chronos was about 15. The hideaways were stormed by the councilmen and their familiars,

taking away whomever they could find and throwing them in jail, if they were lucky.

Chronos’ parents defended all they could, being sure to get their daughter to safety. Run, they’d told her,

to the edge of the city where the lanterns float on rooftops. In the chaos, a disoriented Chronos did as

told, sprinting across the city to find these “floating lanterns.” After some time, she’d made it to the

edge, finding only one dim light glowing above a doorframe. The outskirts were all seemingly empty

homes and the ivy that kept them company. In her exhaustion and dismay, she collapsed upon a

doorstep, though found herself in an entirely foreign room upon waking up.

Chronos soon came to find that an elderly cat-like woman was actually her savior. She’d explained that

the edge fo the city had been abandoned years ago, and that the magic users had been cloaking it to

make it appear as such. In actuality, the outskirts became alive at night, paper lanterns glowing upon

rooftops to show safe houses to those who were pure of heart.

Years had passed since that night,and Chronos was soon taken in by said woman, who’s name was Bora.

Together they lived on the outskirts with the other users who had escaped there, though Chronos was

the only one brave enough to venture to the heart of the city.

Now at the age of 19, Chronos poses a blind young man, selling potions and magics under a fake name

and license. She hides her eyes beneath a blindfold, as the Mystics can be indentified by their striking

pink eyes.

Personality wise, Chronos is a spirited young woman, who rarely takes no for an answer. She’s incredibly

opinionated and fiery, typically following her heart over her head. Admittedly, the events of her

childhood has hardened her, and though she does thrive on helping other’s, she can be a bit too brash

for people’s tastes.

She doesn’t hold back from how she feels, getting her into fights more often than not. Chronos can’t

afford to be found out though, so she tries to keep things to herself which rarely works out. At least

she can say she sticks to her guns, though.

Her Valor though, lies in her determination not only to find the truth out about her parents, but to free

all magic users of their shackles. She dreams of the day where she doesn’t need to change her gender

and name just because she wants to use a talent she was born with.

Character Contest Winner – Professor Julius Rightsworthy

The second winner of the character contest is the esteemed Professor Julius Wrightsworthy. We loved the fact that someone was actually bringing and playing a mad scientist to the table, and the full character stat line really helped us understand who this brilliantly mad scientist was and what they can do. You don’t always see characters like this in roleplaying games, and the good Professor would be welcome at any of our tables – although maybe not quite so close. We don’t trust that Killbot to not turn on us!

 

VALOR: 0

Name: Professor Julius Rightsworthy

 

Backstory

Julius Rightsworthy is perhaps the model of the mad scientist, seeking to understand as much of the world

as he can, according to concrete scientific laws. From these laws, he seeks to derive new creations, and

establish a significant change across the world. An end to old regimes of inefficient tyranny, and a

beginning of a New Order, of advancement, justice, and truth.

In his course on attempting this, he has created nine generations of advanced Killbots. The first, refused to

exhibit even limited sentience (it was a mechanical pencil.) The second, while it built upon the first,

refused to allow itself to use violence (it was a sentient mechanical pencil.)

The third, however, was too successful by far. Killbot Mark 3, a sentient machine built into the

framework of a castle, began to spread itself far and wide. By separating off its towers, K-3 used it’s own

self-repair mechanism to build more versions of itself, till it threatened the whole region. Professor

Rightsworthy threw himself into the fight, ultimately giving up much of his own power, his youth, and

one of his legs in the hunt for Killbot-3.

For a little while after that, Professor Rightsworthy laid low, iterating and modifying his various

inventions and patents, all the while denying any involvement in the destruction caused by K-3. However,

before too many years had passed, Rightsworthy became aware of what his sacrifices had truly cost – and

more, for all he had given, he had done nothing to truly change the world. What’s more, he grew to

believe that some aspect of K-3 had survived, and resurfaced under the name of Doctor Rightsunworthy.

In the end, Rightsworthy gathered all his means, and the final iteration of the Killbot, developed during

the K-3 War, the Killbot Mark 9. With a nanobot formulation, and a reconstructive intellect, K-9 was

effectively immortal and self-improving, while still bound by overriding commands to stop the K-3 War

from repeating itself.

With these, Professor Julius Rightsworthy has sought an adventuring guild, to rebuild his power, gain

allies, and defeat the Killbot Mark 3 menace once and for all. While having fun along the way, of course.

 

Description

Julius Rightsworthy is a man old beyond his years. While only 41, his hair is grey all over and his skin

prematurely dull and pale. The small fortune he has amassed from his inventions has allowed him to style

himself in the highest of fashion, with a top-hat and a suit for every occasion. The cloth of one trouser-leg

is folded over at the knee, and he sits in a wheelchair of his own intention, equipped with various weapons

of destruction, and just as many tools of creation.

By his side, often stands a robotic hound. Though steel all over, it largely resembles a Doberman, with a

large slit down it’s back. In combat, that slit opens, revealing a tri-barreled rotary cannon and a long

mechanical arm, equipped with several bandage dispensers, medical needles, and welding tools for K-9’s

own use.

 

Level: 3+1

Experience: 600

Base

Strength 2

Agility 7

Spirit 5

Mind 10

Guts 7

 

Active (Base+Level)/2

Muscle 4

Dexterity 6

Aura 5

Intuition 7

Resolve 6

 

Attack (Base+Level)*2

Strength 10

Agility 20

Spirit 16

Mind 26

 

Statistics

Health 160 Out of 160

Stamina 58 Out of 58

Defense 15

Resistance 21

Move 3

 

Increments

Health Increment 32

Stamina Increment 12

Critical Health 64

Damage 8

Initiative Modifier 8

 

Flaws – Total 5

● Slow – Gain 2; Level 1

○ Movement is reduced by 1.

○ Having lost a leg, Rightsworthy is bound to his Wheelchair, slowing him down compared

to his companions. Also prohibiting his use of stairs.

● Unthreatening – Gain 3; Level 1

○ Enemies can move through his Zone of Control at full speed.

○ Rightsworthy is constantly busy, tinkering with a new invention. He cannot interfere with

the movement of those around him.

 

Skills – Total 37/37

● Darksight – Cost 4; Level 1

○ Ignore darkness-based penalties.

○ One of the many benefits of a technological faux-eyepatch is an advanced form of

night-vision.

● Attack Node – Cost 5; Level 1

○ Support Action: Expend 4 Stamina and create an Attack Node anywhere within 5 spaces

of oneself.

○ Rightsworthy can quickly create small drones, from which he may direct his other

inventions.

● Danger Sense – Cost 3; Level 1

○ Immune to the effects of Surprise during Ambush Rounds.

○ Another benefit of the eyepatch is threat-tracking software. Rightsworthy’s reactions are

flawless.

● Balanced Fighter – Cost 8; Level 1

○ +1 to all but the highest Active Attribute.

○ While many a man would take the loss of a leg to be a crippling blow, Rightsworthy has

pushed on, and taught himself to compensate.

● Tireless – Cost 5; Level 1

○ Maximum Stamina increased by 8.

○ It is amazing how much more energy efficient Rightsworthy is, now that he doesn’t have

to put any effort into travelling. He can fight for much longer!

● Versatile Fighter – Cost 6; Level 1

○ Gain an additional 4 Technique Points

● Asset – Cost 3; Level 1

○ Great Wealth

○ When making a roll against a meter influenced by Great Wealth, gain a +3 to the roll!

○ As a famous and successful inventor, Rightsworthy has access to a truly terrifying

amount of wealth.

● Fast to Act – Cost 3; Level 1

○ +2 to Initiative!

○ Though slow to move, long experience, and a predictive element to his pseudo-eyepatch

have left Rightsworthy able to react with amazing speed.

Techniques – Total 24/24

● Newest Marvellous Invention; Level 6; Cost ??

○ Mimic ​Core, Level 6

○ Copy One Technique that you have witnessed during the scene. It must have been used

within 20 Spaces of your character.

○ Always rolls with Intuition, but otherwise uses the stats of the copied technique.

○ “Ah, an intriguing stratagem. I shall incorporate it in my Newest Marvellous Invention!”

● Mimic’d Technique!; Cost

○ ?? Core, Level 1

○ Action​:

○ Mods​:

○ Limits​:

○ Target​:

○ Effect​:

● Autocannon Strafe!; Level 4, Cost 3

○ ?? Core, Level 2

○ Action​: Attack

○ Mods​: Ranged, Whirlwind Attack

○ Limits​: Cooldown, Landbound

○ Target​: All Enemies, within 5 of the Drone.

○ Effect​: Uses Dexterity to Attack. Deals 44 Physical Damage on a hit.

● Electrical Containment Grid!; Level 4; Cost 3

○ Barrier ​Core, Level 1

○ Action​: Support

○ Mods​: Blast Radius, Line Attack, Ranged, Violent Barrier

○ Limits​: Cooldown 1

○ Target​: Each Square around a Line, 3 Long, Starting within 8 of the Professor.

○ Effect​: Creates a Barrier that covers all spaces the Technique targets, which blocks

Techniques and Movement.

■ Uses Core Power 1, and Intuition for Defense.

■ If someone tries to target a Technique across the Barrier, they must make an

Opposed Roll, using their Core Power vs. Core Power 1. If they succeed, the

Technique continues as normal; if they fail, the Technique has no further effect.

Either way, the Barrier is Destroyed.

■ If someone tries to move through the Barrier, they must make an Opposed Roll

using the Active Attribute of their choice against Intuition. They take a Damage

Increment, regardless of if they pass or fail.

○ “Come, if you insist on violence, you will face my Electrical Containment Grid!”

● Proton Destabilisation Cannon!; Level 5; Cost 1

○ Mind Damage​ Core, Level 2

○ Action​: Attack

○ Mods​: Ranged 2, Line Attack, Drain

○ Limits​: Health Limit 1 (Drain 5 HP per use); Reload Limit (Cannot use again till a

Support Action is spent reloading the technique)

○ Target​: Line, 3 Long, Starting within 6 of the Professor.

○ Effect​: Uses Intuition to attack anyone targeted. Deals 33 Energy Damage per hit!

○ “Very well! Let us see how you fare against the Proton Destabilisation Cannon!”

● Killbot, Mark 9!; Level 3; Cost 6

○ Summoning​ Core, Level 3

○ Action​: Slow

○ Limits​: Vitality Limit (Cannot be used if Health is Critical)

○ Target​: One Adjacent Square.

○ Effect​: Summon a Level 3 Drone.

○ “You leave me no choice! I will unleash Killbot, Mark 9!”

● .454 Rightsworthy and Wessen!; Level 6; Cost 1

○ Agility Damage​ Core, Level 2

○ Action​: Attack

○ Mods​: Ranged, Accurate Strike, Piercing Strike

○ Limits​: Reload Limit, Valour Limit 1 (Need at least 1 Valour to use)

○ Target​: One target, within 4 of the Professor.

○ Effect​: Uses Dexterity+2 to attack anyone targeted. Deals 30 Physical Damage, ignoring

Defence, on a hit!

○ “Truly, you persist? Very well! I call upon an old friend of mine… the .454 Rightsworthy

and Wessen Prototype Revolver!”

Drones

1⁄2 Health, 1⁄2 SP, 1⁄2 TP, 1⁄2 Attack, -1 to Actives.

Level Three Drone

Level Three Drone Base

Strength 2

Agility 10

Spirit 3

Mind 6

Guts 10

Level Three Drone Active (Base+Level)/2

Muscle 2

Dexterity 6

Aura 2

Intuition 4

Resolve 6

Level Three Drone Attack (Base+Level)*2

Strength 11

Agility 19

Spirit 0

Mind 3

Level Three Drone Statistics

Health 95 Out of 95

Stamina 38 Out of 38

Defense 14

Resistance 11

Move 6

Level Three Drone Increments

Health Increment 19

Stamina Increment 8

Critical Health 38

Damage 8

Initiative Modifier 6

Level Three Drone Flaws – Total 5

● Feeble – Gain 3; Level 1

○ -1 to Defence Rolls against Muscle-Based Attacks.

● Energy Vulnerability – Gain 2; Level 1

○ -4 Resistance.

● Weak Defender – Gain 2; Level 1

○ -4 Defence.

● Weak Energy Attacker – Gain 3; Level 1

○ -6 Spirit and Mind Attack

Level Three Drone Skills (26/26)

● Darksight – Cost 4; Level 1

○ Ignore darkness-based penalties.

● Physical Attacker – Cost 6; Level 1

○ +6 to Strength and Agility Attacks.

● Versatile Fighter – Cost 6; Level 1

○ +4 Technique Points

● Sprinter – Cost 4; Level 1

○ +1 Speed

● Combination Attack – Cost 6; Level 1

○ Once per round, delay your turn until an ally attacks, then attack the same target. Your

initiative is set to just before your ally. You both get +2 to your attack rolls while making

the attack. After the end of this round, your Initiative is reset to its normal value for this

scene.

 

Level Three Drone Techniques (14/14)

● Autocannon Strafe!; Level 4, Cost 3

○ ?? Core, Level 2

○ Action​: Attack

○ Mods​: Ranged, Whirlwind Attack

○ Limits​: Cooldown, Landbound

○ Target​: All Enemies, within 5 of the Drone.

○ Effect​: Uses Dexterity to Attack. Deals 44 Physical Damage on a hit.

 

● Autocannon Burst!; Level 6, Cost 6

○ Dexterity Damage​ Core, Level 4

○ Action​: Attack

○ Mods​: Ranged 2

○ Limits​: Immobile Limit

○ Target​: One Target, within 8 of the Drone.

○ Effect​: Uses Dexterity to Attack. Deals 54 Physical Damage on a hit.

 

● Automatic Maintenance Routine!; Level 4, Cost 1

○ Healing (Guts) ​Core, Level 3

○ Action​: Support

○ Mods​: Ranged

○ Limits​: Reload

○ Target​: One Target, within 3 of the Drone.

○ Effect​: Heals 17 Health.

Character Contest Winner – Wynn

The first of our contest winners is the bearded dragon Wynn. We loved Wynn’s design, it was very visually striking and the storyline was light and humorous – an aspiring spy and rogue with a larger-than-life personality whose appearance doesn’t necessarily fit her ambitions and personality.

 

Born into a thieve’s guild, Wynn grew up with the goal of becoming a spy. Armed with a quick mind

and a silver tongue, she can charm information out of just about anyone – at least she would if it

weren’t for her super conspicuous appearance. So yeah she’s a pretty bad spy. She finds more often

than not she’s taken for granted, used as muscle or intimidation whenever necessary.

But even while living as a hired thug, Wynn’s mind always yearns for knowledge. she spends every

spare moment that she can reading current papers and novels alike, interviewing adventurers passing

through town. She is never satisfied with a simple answer, and seeks meaning behind everything.

However, she is quick to accept things as fact and will sometimes investigate and pass on mundane

gossip she hears about town.

Wynn is overeager and inquisitive – definitely an intimidating personality when paired with a 7 foot tall

dragon girl. Her scales are a dull gold, which fade into a lighter cream at the ends of her horns, toes,

and other bits and bobbles. She is sturdily built, with toned arms and thighs, and has two horns

protruding vertically from the top of her head. more flexible spines – almost akin to hair, falls to her

collarbone from the back of her head. She also has a large frill around her neck that will lie flat on

most occasions, but flare up when she is excited (Like when she’s sharing the latest gossip). for her

outfit, she tends to keep her arms free, since she does a lot of work with her hands. Her outfit is

multiple layers – starting with a black one piece bodysuit that stops right at the top of her thighs. this

is covered with a rich blue top with gold embroidery along with a belted corset, and accompanied by

some good old fashioned Assess Chaps and a belt full of coins and baubles she’s collected from

people’s pockets.