The Flight of the Meriwether: A Steampunk Outlaw RP (Reboot Interest Thread)

[socialtangent]

A select few of you might remember this RP from around September. Due to a combination of lack of planning and personal issues, it was put on hiatus. Now, I'm looking to give it the defibrillator. Any of you who were the original thread are free to reapply, and in fact I hope that at least some of you do.

Without any further adieu, I give you...

[HEADING=1]The Flight of the Meriwether (A Steampunk Outlaw RP!)[/HEADING]

The year is 1872, and the Civil War amongst the American states continues to rage on with no end in sight. Both the Union and the Confederacy have focused the entirety of their efforts and resources to the war, leaving the Western states to fend for themselves. West of the Mississippi River, America has become a lawless hellhole of drugs, sex, violence, debauchary, and pirates. In this world, money and bullets do the talking and it's every man for himself. One of the people who understands this all too well is Captain Gideon McClellan of the Meriwether, a fine vessel and the mobile base of the Lost Regiment, a freelance group of outlaws hand-picked by Gideon himself. The Lost Regiment has no allegiance to anybody but the highest bidder, no desire but survival and the life of an outlaw.

Spoiler: Basic Rules

-No one liner posts. I expect at least some effort in everyone's writing. I don't think it's too much to ask for
-Decisions made by the GM are FINAL. The GM also reserves the right to control characters if necessary to advance the plot.
-No God-Modding (But this should be obvious)
-No taking control of another player's character without prior permission
-Members are expected to keep up with the story. If you cannot read, don't join.
-Be respectful to the GM and other players.
-One Character Per Player (Unless otherwise approved by the GM)

Spoiler: Character Sheet

Name:

Age:

Physical Description:

Personality:

Weaponry:

Bio (A brief history of your character. Their background, occupation(s), affiliations, any special talents, etc.):

Spoiler: The Meriwether

This is a general idea of what the Meriwether looks like. She is divided into several sections:

Lower Deck: This is where you will find the cargo hold and related storage areas, as well as the main entrance ramp. The Meriwether's lower engines are also down here, which can be used for additional speed at the expense of extra stress on the hull.

Living Quarters: Situated right above the Lower Deck, this is where the crew lives. Gideon's team has quarters closer to the stern, while the workers live near the back. On this deck, you will also find the kitchen and similar amenities.

Mid Deck: Above the Living Quarters is the Mid Deck, where the Meriwether's primary weapons are. She boasts eight cannons on each side, which gives her enough punch to go toe-to-toe with most other airships, save for the hardiest of military craft.

Main Deck: The Main Deck is adorned with smaller cannons, used as antipersonnel weapons during ship-to-ship combat. Here you will also find the very strong and sturdy network of thick steel cables that tether the ship to the primary air bag.

Bridge/Captain's Quarters: These two places are on a raised section towards the stern. It is here where Captain Gideon resides, as well as his copilot Harvey Morgan. The Bridge lies above Gideon's quarters.

 

[blaze96]

Spoiler: Character Sheet

Name: Samuel Garland

Age: 30

Physical Description:

Spoiler: Battle/normal Jacket

Spoiler: Mask (only worn in battle)

Spoiler: Pants/boots used in both combat and normal.

The only difference is the pants are missing the red stripe.

Spoiler: Union formal uniform. Only worn if necessary

The only difference between the clothes he wore while working and his normal dress is the fact that he only wears the mask when he has a job to perform. He also kept his full Union uniform in case they ever need to enter the Union. His chest full of medals tends to be able to talk him past the Union lines without trouble.

Occupation (Before joining): Union Medical Officer

Bio: He is a fairly slim Caucasian man who's left leg is now mechanical after an artillery shell exploded nearby as he attempted to tend to a wounded man on the field. He has many scars from where bullets and shrapnel had ripped through him during his service. The final straw was when he had seen a trooper go down on the lines and ran to him as was his job while the Union line fell back leaving him entirely exposed in the middle of a crossfire. Samuel grabbed the trooper and began to drag him back to the line when a cannon ball went off nearby and sent shrapnel into his leg and shattered the entirety of both bones in his lower leg. Bleeding and with an unusable leg he continued to drag the Union trooper back close to friendly lines and patched the soldier up while still under confederate fire. The adrenaline in his system blocked most of the pain and as soon as he had finished he immediately passed out.

When he awoke he was in an army hospital in Washington D.C. and had a prosthetic leg as they had to amputate the leg because the damage was too great to his leg. The trooper he had patched up was alive and there was currently talk that his superior had put him up for the medal of honor. He was awarded the honor with all the pomp and circumstance that came with it and was told due to his injuries he would be taken off the lines with honor and a final promotion to the rank of Captain in the Union Army.

He wasn't especially appreciative about being taken off the front lines with honor, but as a good soldier he had accepted it. His association with the Union was purely geographical but his choice of profession had been motivated by his want to help the wounded and save his fellow Union soldiers. He holds no particular grudge against the Confederates and sees the war itself as a travesty for both sides of his beloved country.

Special Abilities/Talents (If any): Battlefield Medic, Barber, Dentist, Surgeon, and Doctor

Afilliation (If any): Former Union Captain

Weapons:

Spoiler: Henry Rifle

Spoiler: Army Officer's Sword

Spoiler: 1860 Colt

Spoiler: Medical Satchel

Minor differences: Everything is in English and the bag has the symbol of the Red Cross on it.

and my sheet for the reboot

 

[CounterAttack]

I'm keen to join, will have a sheet up sometime.

 

[Lizmichi]

Spoiler: Lia Baird

Name: Lia Baird
Codename: Rose

Age: 28

Physical Description: Lia has long black hair that's kept tied up in most cases with goggles on top of her head that she uses when working on her weapons. Her pale skin is covered by clothing save for part of her face, the rest being covered by a red leather mask. She's about 5'6" and skinny. Her targets have fallen for her looks before by have never lived to tell of it.

Spoiler

Occupation: Union Spy

Bio: Her father, a Union Captain, had taught her hand to hand combat and sword play since she could walk. She started taking apart guns and rebuilding them at the age of 11 soon modifying them so suit her needs. Lia volunteered to be a Union spy at the age of 18. As a spy Lia used her beauty and charm to kill her targets making her a well respected Fem Fatal that never existed to the Union.

After each kill she would leave a white rose making her seem more as a free lance killer then a military one. Few have seen her face but the ones that have ended up dead. After years of serving the Union Lia's identity was compromised by a Confederate soldier when she was 25. The Union Government burned all of her files and basically anything proving she existed or service to the Union.

She spent years looking for work and doing contract killings for mercenary groups and others that just needed someone to die until she got a letter from Captain Gideon McClellan. The letter didn't disclose much but enough to interest Lia.

Personality: She's calm and centered in everything she does. She can't be shaken easily but isn't overly serious. She enjoys a challenge and tries to be friendly to all she works with but when a job comes up she's all work. She also flirts with people that can give her things she needs or could use like guns weapons and information.

She learned a long time ago to not trust anyone, even if they employed her them selves. She keeps ever thing close to the vest. She'll get to know others but won't let them know much of her. She hides the fact that she's lonely.

Special Abilities/Talents: Assassinations, stealth, weapon engineering, sword play, hand to hand combat and tactics.

Affiliation: Union

Weapons: Hidden daggers on her wrists, a sword hooked on her belt with a knife and dual pistols.

Spoiler

 

[The Zango]

You know I'm in for this man, but this time I'm going into this both feet first! How about we start in medias res? So we can skip the customary 'getting to know each other' stuff, then again, this is your show man

Spoiler: Karl's back!

Name: Karl

Age: 36

Physical Description:

Spoiler: His mask

Spoiler: Maskless, minus the left eye

Karl wears a specially crafted mask that hides his deformed face, though he wears it only to preserve his well-being, as it is semi-bullet proof. He prefers to wear black trench-coats, gloves, with matching trouser and shoes, when operational. In his spare time, he wears whatever makes it easiest to continue his 'modification'.

His body is a disfigured mess of scars and intricate mechanical devices, with many parts of his form either augmented with/or completely replaced by some form of technology or another.

Weaponry: Two Tonfa style swords and a gun he constructed himself that eschews modern construction methods, as it does not have a revolving mechanism like common revolvers, instead it has a 'magazine'.

Occupation (Before joining): Professional mercenary, clock maker.

Bio: Karl Rupercht, as he was originally known, was born far away from the madness of the States, in Belgium. For most of his early years, he worked as a clock-maker under his father, finding himself fascinated by the delicacy and intricacy of the beautiful devises he and his father constructed.

By the time he was nineteen, his father had passed on, leaving him the family business, that Karl dutifully continued in his fathers name. For five more years, he lived in normality, even going as far as to have a wife and father a child, a girl named Erika.

However, Karl was not destined for a life of normality.

When taking his family on holiday to Italy via Switzerland, the train that they were travelling on suffered a catastrophic failure and plunged off the Alps into the canyons below, killing seventy of the trains one hundred passengers.

Karl survived with horrible injuries to his body, specifically his face where a window smashed and the shards tore his flesh, rending his left eye useless and his face a hideous mess. However his wife and child were worse off, as they both perished in the crash.

Karl fell into a cycle of depression, self-loathing and regret, relying on a regime of drug abuse and self mutilation (what he refers to as 'modification')

No longer content with his life as a clockmaker, he left Europe, travelling to the fractured United states to find a reason to keep on living.

He has found nothing thus far.

Special Abilities/Talents (If any): Karl is adept at constructing and tinkering with anything mechanical, 'priding' himself on creating works so intricate and complex that they seem to run on magic.

Years as a mercenary have granted him great skill with a pistol and his weapons of choice, his dual Tonfa. He wields them with such skill, that he has been known to go against groups of seven armed men and come out victorious.

Affiliation (If any): None, though he shares confederate ideology.

 

[RBMidknight]

Aww...Enjoyed the first one, but I don't have think I'll have time for this. Still, good luck to all, have fun!

 

[YourEvilClone]

im intrested reserve me

 

[Nukey]

I've been out of commission for an while, but I'm very much interested in this; as is a friend of mine. I'd like to be put down for a reserve, sheet coming in soon.

 

[socialtangent]

Just so you guys know, I'll be giving everyone about a week or so to complete/update sheets, so don't feel too rushed in making your characters.

 

[Captainguy42]

Alright, here I shall post my sheet, NOW!

Spoiler: Ken Aloys

Name: Ken Aloys

Age: 31

Physical Description: Ken stands at 6'2", a fairly muscular man whose body has been strengthened by a hard-life of fighting and running for his life. He?s got green eyes and brown hair, a triangular face with a small amount of acne scarring around his cheeks, which cannot be seen under his beard. He has several scars on his body, from fights, accidents and several other unfortunate occasions, Ken to can point to any mark on his body and tell you a tale of how he missed death by an inch. The four constants in Ken?s attire are his black duster, white felt hat, red bandanna, and black cowboy boots.

Personality: Ken's a rather cagey person, he got a habit of watching out for his best interest and the best interest of those around him, if their best interest is in his best interest. If not he'll probably kill them. No hard feelings it?s just Ken hasn't gotten to keep living by being diplomatic with those who he is at odds with. Ken simply prefers to shoot first, whether or not the questions come before or after doesn't matter. Ken never worries about feelings, he?s never afraid to speak his mind.

Weaponry:

Spoiler: Pistol

Spoiler: Shotgun AKA Preacher

Spoiler: Knife

Bio:

Ken was born in Georgia, his father owned a cotton plantation and a few slaves. Ken can?t remember much about his early life, but he supposes it was nice, nothing terrible truly stood out. In 1854, Congress announced that whether or not Kansas would be a free or slave state would be decided by a popular vote. Ken?s father decided to stand up for his way of life and moved to Kansas to help rock the vote in favor of the slave states. The next four years would be known as Bloody Kansas, as pro-slavery and free-soilers fought in order to gain control of Kansas and decide it?s future. Skirmishes, shootings, and lynchings were constant during that time. In the last year, 1958, a band of men came to their home, they broke in, pulled Ken?s father, and older brother from their beds (Ken was awake, he hid just in time). His father and brother were then dragged out into the open, and killed with a sword. The men who did that then turned to burn down the house. Ken found a gun in time, and killed three of the men before the rest ran away. He was nine years old. His mother would pass away from grief soon after, leaving Ken and orphan. Eventually he moved west, it took him no time at all to fall in with bandits and the like. He roamed the West, as a hired gun, fighting for whoever would pay him, enough. He grew a reputation as one of the quickest draws in the west over time, as he traveled from town to town, fight to fight, cultivating a wide network of contacts, until he fell in with the Nine-Stars gang. He and them had a good run, stealing from trains, dirigibles and anyone with more money than they had. This ended after a bank-job went bad. No one knows how exactly the job went south, but the result was simple, ten-thousand dollars in gold was disappeared from a bank's vault, every member of the Nine-stars gang was killed except for Ken, who had to run back east to get away from the banks men.

 

[Dancingman]

Alright, I'm game, here's a character sheet.

Spoiler: Mister Samuel Welson

Name: Samuel Welson.

Age: 32

Physical Description: A tall (about 6'4"), strongly-built man with dark brown hair and a large beard, often told by people that he looks like Ulysses Grant. He wears a dark gray trenchcoat and a wide-brimmed hat to shade himself from the sun. Always his his old Union blues around somewhere...

He's lived quite a few different places in his life and knows how to adapt to different kinds of weather.

Spoiler: Personality

Personality: Kind of a friendly fellow, but takes to the fight powerfully and immediately if the need arises. On an unrelated note, he loves a good argument.

Morals wise Sam tends to be a fairly upstanding individual, he didn't have much growing up but he did have two parents and was raised well, the necessities of his work have bent the moral code that he was taught but at the base level Sam is a good man who will try his best to do what is right.

Samuel is a faithful man and often values a good hymn singing or prayer with the right type of individual. He often does nightly prayers if circumstances allow but his missing a prayer is a rare occurrence.

Samuel is a man of mixed values, having been influenced in some cases by his background and in others by his experiences. While his views on race are somewhat progressive, he does lean towards having mixed feelings even though he is generally affable towards most folk upon first meeting them. Samuel genuinely opposes the slavery practiced in the Confederate States of America and elsewhere in the world even if he does not always endear himself to the enslaved blacks themselves. However one of his closest friends is a negro and his experiences with him have broadened Samuel's horizons somewhat beyond the provincial, rural upbringing in which he was raised.

Spoiler: Weaponry

Welson has a good deal of military training under his belt and uses whatever he can find or whatever he likes if the selection is good.

1. Modified repeating rifle intercepted from a British weapons shipment originally destined for the Confederacy but wound up equipping some of the Union's crack troops. It fires rather quickly and packs a hell of a wallop, can be adapted to different kinds of ammunition though has a tendency to overheat if fired too fast. The rifle has a spring bayonet that can be launched as a last resort of defense.

2. Two gas-powered revolvers, fire quickly and new aiming technology has made them more accurate than their predecessors, relatively rare out West and too expensive for most outlaws.

3. Tomahawk.

His weapon selection in general tends to vary, though he generally has a preference for things that pack a wallop and seems to have a bit of a weakness for "old-fashioned" combat implements, one gets the feeling that he would have been right at home fighting on the battlefields of medieval Europe or Ancient Rome.

Bio: Sam's been a soldier most of his life, and he has the experience to back it up. He's done everything from fought in battles (he has the most stories about First Bull Run and Shiloh) to escorting California gold shipments to Union territory. He's fought Indians and he's fought Southerners but of late the Union isn't as big of a factor in his life as usual. Though he no longer works for the Union, his loyalties ultimately lie there. And many strategists on both sides are forecasting the West as being the unofficial next front in the war. With both sides pushed to the breaking point of resources and militarily stalemated, the loyalty of Western states could tip the scales in favor of either side. In addition, the North receives huge amounts of financing from California's gold shipments, should they be interrupted, the Confederacy could significantly mitigate the Union's advantage in financing.

Sam as a general rule of thumb has access to very up-to-date telecommunications regarding the progress of the war and any developments made along the way. He has a lot of contacts among the various Union officials and soldiers who migrated West to escape the war or who travel West on Union business. One of Sam's proudest stories is his story about having a beer with none other than Admiral David Farragut going to test a new ironclad vessel developed by American and Russian cooperation. The vessel is known as the Emancipator, in honor of Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation and of Czar Alexander II's freeing of the Russian serfs.

Sam has a bit of a debt to repay to Captain Gideon for some assistance he provided to Sam and his regiment and he's staying on for a time. Sam isn't the most eager of outlaws, but he'll do his job, and he won't abandon his comrades. Sam is currently holing up with the negro "Jim Dark" an old war buddy of his who's settled down in the West and opened a dry goods shop. Sam's town is rather quiet and tends to not get much in the way of outlaws, not much to rob nor is it the easiest town in which to do so. The little town is full of Union vets and railroad enforcers for a nearby Union Pacific station, it is not a got place for outlaws, as of now, Sam's just waiting for Captain Gideon to send for him.

Also, just curious but do we get PMed if we are accepted or not?

 

[Icarion (aka Stockholm)]

Spoiler: Sheet

Name:Saul Radhanite

Age:34

Physical Description:Saul is a tall, clean cut man. He has a open face, perfect for selling anyone anything. He has blue eyes, and dark, curly, mid-length hair. He wears a dark suit with a red collared button down shirt beneath his jacket. His out fit is topped off by a dark hat and a black bow tie.

Spoiler: Hat

Personality:Saul is an outgoing man and is a great reader of faces and personalities. He generally knows exacltey what to say to get what he wants. And what he wants is to sell you his goods. He's driven by his desire to play in the game of possessions. He doesn't care for the money. He just loves rush confincing someone to buy his things. He has a healthy disgust for gambling though, seeing it as the easy way out.
Weponry:Saul is not a good fighter and is no use in a prolonged shoot out. For that reason, he doesnt carry more than one gun. He always has his trusty Whitneyville Gambler holdout pistol. It fires .22 rounds and is good for five shots. Saul is a great shot with it at short range and has one hell of a draw. But he cant hit anything beyond 20 paces to save his life.

Spoiler: gun

Bio:Saul grew up in the great state of Massacusetts and was raised Jewish by his parents. his father was a merchant and his mother was an economist. His dad was involved in the cotton trade with England until things went bad with the South. At that point his father began importing more from England and exporting less from America. By the time Saul was old enough to go into the family buissness the stalemate had set in. He decided that there was a bigger market out West. He hired a few gaurds and got a decent inventory and headed out. He left on good terms with his parents and occasionaly writes them. Once on a stop in Las Angeles, Saul ran into some local gang members, who he promptly tried to sell some salvaged merchandise to. The merchandise had apparently taken off of the corpses of a recently missing gangers. After one of the men pointed this out to Saul he continued to try to sell it to them. His blood was up and he saw a challenge in selling these men their comrades' gear. Unfortunately, the gangers did not see it as a harmless transaction and their leader challenged him to an honor deul. Saul, never being too high on morals, pulled his pistol right there and shot the leader dead, wounded two more of the men, and then ran like hell. He managed to get away, but not without the gang swearing a blood oath to kill him.

 

[Nukey]

I'm still working on somethings, but for now it's pretty much done.

Spoiler: Ong Thiam Oetomo

Name: Ong Thiam Oetomo (prefers to be called his newly adopted American name, James Black)

Age: Forty Seven

Physical Description: Ong Thiam Oetomo is a man of typical build and stature, appearing much like the average Chinese male, despite only being half Asian. He stands at roughly 5'8, with tanned skin, adorned with numerous scars and a multitude of black tattoos strewn across his back. A pair of round, thick spectacles cover his grey eyes, the left lenses a pure black indicating the loss of vision in that one. His hair, black and cut short, seems to be kept down by a number of oils and chemicals, notably petroleum and crude oil. He, when lounging around or performing tasks of little danger, can be seen sporting a red and black stripped shirt, a black bowtie and a pair of khaki colored pants.

It is only when fighting that James resembles any threatening, only due to the suit of armor he crafted from scrap metal during his multiple years of travel. A silver painted set of makeshift body armor, spanning from his head all the way down to his feet, acts as a protective shield for his entire body, which, while very bulky in appearance, is far from difficult for him to function in due to the extensive network of pistons and fuel lines going throughout the armor. The armor, powered by an engine located underneath chest plate that is fed specially treated fuel, grants him great strength, although hinders his mobility greatly. The helmet appears to be that of a firefighter's with a gas mask attached to it in order to allow him to breath and see clearly without the smoke that spews from his protective shell getting in the way. It takes roughly forty minutes to put it all on and, as such, he rarely removes it, only during his time off or when fixing and building things he is seen without it.

Spoiler: Armor

Spoiler: Helmet

Personality: James, while far from the most pacifistic of men, still has a personal resentment towards the act of killing the innocent or unarmed, regardless of how belligerent or rude they might act. Philosophical and introspective in his off time, he can be seen meditating and carefully analyzing previous events, often writing his thoughts in a journal if paper is present. His fascination with the cycles of human behavior, notably the circles of life and death, the struggle between selfishness and selflessness and the battle between good and evil, seem to be the primary focus of his writing, although he is hesitant to show most people his work.

He tends to prefer his own company, simply standing on the side lines as he watches others interact, responding to anyone's attempt to speak to him with sarcasm. He believes that the majority of those he meets, regardless of what level of education they might have, are below him, and speaks to them as such. In the rare moments he feels as though he's encountered someone with a similar level of intellect of them, his attitude quickly shifts from cynical to shockingly bright, and will speak as though he's with his best friend.

James, being something of a hedonist, is known to enjoy opium and tobacco and caries small pouches of both in his front pocket. He also enjoys fencing, a hobby he took up while still living in China on his estate, and can hold his own in a duel quite well.


Weaponry: James, being an inventor and the owner of his armor, has fashioned himself weapons of great size and power, incapable of being wielded without the use of the armor or five particularly strong people.

The first of these weapons is what he considers the successor of the ancient Pen Huo Qi flamethrowers, a massive system of tubing that runs underneath his armor and leads into what appears to be a rifle barrel emerging from his left hand palm. The weapon shoots a substance similar to napalm over twenty yards. The weapon is fired by holding his palm out and tucking his thumb next to a small trigger next to the barrel, a small switch located on his right shoulder acts as a safety switch to prevent misfire. This weapon, being integrated into his armor, does not stop him from wielding another. The tank for the fuel is located underneath the lower back portion of the armor and surrounded by multiple layers of fire resistant fabric in order to prevent that section from igniting, or, at the very least, to give him enough time to escape from his armor before it explodes in the off chance it does happen to catch fire.

His primary weapon, a large, high powered rifle, roughly six feet long, is his favorite weapon to use, although even he admits it's size is a major disadvantage and such firepower is rarely needed. The weapon, modeled after the lever action rifles James had seen so many of of during the war, is simply a larger version of one of those same rifles, although using a much larger bullet at ammunition and equipped with something vaguely resembling a drum magazine. It is also fitted with a large axe-head to allow it to be used in a similar fashion to a pike.

In close combat situations, he is in possession of a large hammer, capable of being swung with great enough force to shatter stone while within his suit.


If forced into combat when outside of his suit, he has a single, ivory handled revolver he received as a gift, but he lacks any real experience with it.

Bio: James Black, lawfully known as Ong Thaim Oetomo in government records, was born into a economic and social situation most would consider appalling and unbearable, though he, being nothing short of an opportunist and manipulator, found multiple ways to bend the social chaos and political corruption to his favor. His mother, a poor, uneducated addict was not fortunate to survive her son's birth, leaving him in the care of his uncle, a professional thief, as his father, a British soldier, was roughly halfway across the globe at the time of his birth, and was unaware of his son's existence entirely. Ong Thaim Oetomo, despite these conditions, lead a life of comfort due to his impeccable ability to pick up creative skills at a moment's notice, causing him to support himself through the selling of artwork to European tourists, forging rifles for bandit groups and creative bizarre, clockwork devices for the more eccentric of collectors. It was a somewhat honest living, one he led up into his twenties, but his uncle though his genius could be used more productively in the criminal underworld. Ong Thaim Oetomo was easy to sway into illegal pursuits, and used his talent as an inventor to create weapons of war for all manners of criminals, ranging from the least threatening of gangs to the most vile of terrorists. He secretly sold his talents to the same government attempting to put these groups down, however, and made sure no side had an advantage, keeping a constant demand for his services present.

It was through this method that Ong Thaim Oetomo found himself sitting on a large fortune in his early thirties and, with his uncle no longer alive at this time, lacked anyone to support but himself. This money, lacking any other clear use, was directed towards pursuing an education, notably learning how to read and write, a small amount of it being used to support his growing desire for luxury, with the last of it used to build a small town to house his multiple hired hands and his own small army of guards. His life was quickly transformed into one not unlike those that European diplomats and governors enjoyed, but Ong Thaim Oetomo, having been forced to work for his wealth, understood he would never truly be considered "upper class". He kept this life up until his early forties, his routine rarely changing.

As he seemed to be reaching retirement, with enough wealth to live comfortably until his death, an unfortunate event occurred when the government, along with a few of the larger groups, discovered his scheming, and put aside their feud to launch an attack on his villa. It was only due to the ferocity of his personal security staff and the immense defensive structures surrounding his town that he lived long enough to devise and execute an escape plan. He, having gotten into this mess through his talent, planned to get out of it with his ability to invent, and brought upon himself to construct a suit of armor after being inspired by reading of the outlaw Ned Kelly. It took him three days to construct the suit, at, this time, resembled nothing more advanced than a helmet, multiple layers of chain mail, steel plates and multiple leather belts taken from his wardrobe, but it was enough to escape with his life, though the ensuing clash with the government and gangs cost him his left eye after a soldier got close enough to take it out with his thumb.

The escape was considered complete when he stowed away on a shipping vessel headed towards the United States. The life he had built was shattered, his manor set aflame, his reputation among the criminal underworld of china ruined and every last belonging other than the clothes on his back and the armor that saved him were taken, but he nevertheless pressed onward, intent on making his mark on the western world despite his age.

The rest of his life, up until now, was spent serving the Union in the civil war with his engineering process for a modest living under the name of James Black, his spare time focused on continuing to improve the armor that he held so dearly to him. It was only recently he heard of Captain Gideon McClellan and has decided that, despite how well he has it serving the army, a more exciting life waits.

TL;DR: A Chinese inventor forced into America after his wrong doing's are exposed, forced to restart his life in the states after losing it all. Adorns coal powered armor that makes him slow as a tortoise, but very difficult to stop or fight one on one with, essentially a genius bruiser [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/GeniusBruiser] and a mighty glacier [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/MightyGlacier].

EDIT: A lot longer than I was hoping...

 

[drisky]

Im interested, I've really been wanting to roleplay but escapist's ones always fill up so fast. I have to jump on this chance while its open and steampunk is an awesome genre, I'm going to sleep now though I'll have to make the character later.

 

[Fishtie]

I missed out on this last time, but I intend to get a sheet in this time at least.

Here goes:

Spoiler

Name: Viktor Grishuk & Zoya

Age: 17 & 12

Physical Description: Viktor is still young and a bit stocky with somewhat boyish figures on his face though his skin is already somewhat hardened against the cold of his old home. He has short black hair and black eyes. Recently Victor has taken to not wearing a shirt at all, only having a simple drab vest with a few pockets on it, though he often also wears some rather tattered denim pants and ridding boots. Victor always wears his ushanka (stereotypical Russian fur hat) that still has a small mark on it of the Russian military.

Zoya is a normal looking enough brown bear. She stands about 4'6" at the shoulder (and "stands" at almost 10'). Zoya usually wears a light harness and collar, but when going into battle she wears a war saddle and a equipment harness that is heavier and slightly armored. Zoya has brown fur and blue eyes.

Personality: Victor is quick to please and a bit naive. Victor is totally loyal to those that he puts his trust in and particularly believes that Captain Gideon can do no wrong. Victor throws himself fully into whatever he does though his methods tend towards the simple rather then the elegant or subtle.

Zoya is a quiet strong type. She is often untrusting of those she is unfamiliar with though she can be quite protective of Victor at times.

Weaponry: A cavalry special revolving carbine (bayonet optional), a pair of revolvers, cavalry saber, a pair of daggers, grenades as the situation demands.

Spoiler: carbine

Skills: Victor has some training with a variety of weapons though he is no expert and his training was more on shock and awe assaults then enduring combat or defense. He is also a naturally talented bear-rider. In fact, Victor seems to have a natural rapport with animals in general. He also has some wilderness survival training (in a tundra for all that's worth). Finally, Victor has picked up the basics of airship piloting though he is by no means skilled. Victor can speak Russian fluently as it is his first language though his English is still a bit flaky.

Zoya is a fully grown and trained war-bear, if ripping people's arms off is a skill then she has it. She also knows basic bear skills. She can understand some Russian but only speaks bear.

Bio: Everyone knows about Russia's most feared shock troops, the famed Russian Bear cavalry. These massive soldiers and their massive mounts are known the world over for their tenacity, devotion, and strength. Even word of a unit's presence can be enough to put down rebellions and send enemy armies cowering.

Victor was a cadet in the 8th Imperial Russian Bear Cavalry Corps, still undergoing his training. Even among the Russian forces, the 8th Corps was known for being particularly loyal to the imperial family and for following orders to the letter. However, the commander was a fighter, not a politician, and when the unit stole the honers of other units one too many times disaster followed.

The unit was told to rest near the capital when it was suddenly set upon by other troops of the Russian military. With no warning or way to fight it was a massacre, only a handful of individuals escaped. Victor was one such lucky soul who was able to flee with Zoya, one of the bears from his unit and some equipment.

With no one to turn to and nowhere to go Victor fled as far as he could go. Selling trinkets and some of the supplies Victor was eventually able to find his way west, then west, then west once more till he ended up in America.

Lost, alone, and half starving Victor and Zola might have died there if Gideon McClellan hadn't taken an interest in them. Victor has devoted himself to serving his savior ever since.

Heh, heh, heh...

 

[Viking Incognito]

Spoiler: Duke

Name: Rez Tereth A.K.A. Duke
Age: 29
Physical Description:

His face under the mask is actually normal with green eyes. By the way, the other eye hole on the mask is a heavily tinted lens. The one in the picture is a telescope type thing. He is about 5?11 and wears thick welder?s gloves most of the time. His outfit is just the rest of that vest and shirt you see in the picture and then a pair of grey pants with lace-up boots on his feet.

Personality: Duke is called Duke for a reason. He insists that he is a descendant of Scandinavian royalty. He introduces himself as ?Duke Tereth? and insist that people cal him Duke, seemingly unaware that people use it mockingly. He dose however get angry when people tell him to his face that he isn?t royalty. Other than that he is quite a nice guy. He is kind to most people and is actually quite the ladies man; using his persuasive speech he has no problems with women. Duke is also a bit of a pyromaniac. He built a flamethrower for himself with the help of a welding expert and he loves that thing the way a normal pirate loves their ship. He doesn?t just burn everything he see, he usually just contains his desire until he can unleash it in a battle or by smoking cigarettes to calm his nerves.

Weaponry: His flamethrower that he calls Margret which he keeps slung across his back and uses as a melee weapon in close quarters with the blade on the bottom.

And a small pistol he keeps concealed in his vest, plus a serrated edge knife that he keeps on his hip.

Bio: His family line has always said that hey were royalty that had to move to America when they were shunned for being too strict with taxes and religion. Duke was raised believing all of this and being taught to live like a royal so he learned to be a people person and quite a smart man with a good education from his parents. When he was a boy he saw a house fire that had been started by pirates and he couldn?t take his eyes off of it. The flame was warm and pleasant and it danced like a ballerina. Duke stayed and watched until the whole building was burnt to ashes and that is when the spark inside him grew (yes that was a very cheesy joke, I know). He grew and learned about welding from the local guild and became a masterful metal worker, but it was the fire that made him like it. To see it bend and transform the metal was a sight as amazing to him as a beautiful spring sunrise. He eventually built his beloved Margret and ended up burning down half the town. That is when he took up the outlaw lifestyle and made a name for himself.

 

[CounterAttack]

It took me a while to get things right and sort out details, but here's my character sheet.

Spoiler: Character Sheet - Callista Montenegro

Name: Callista Patience Montenegro
Age: 29

Physical Description: Callista has fairly pale Caucasian skin, stands at around 5'7" tall, and is about average in terms of weight and body shape. Her dark hair is always cut short to avoid it getting in the way of her work or catching in the precision-driven mechanics with which she works most often. Bright green eyes stand out from behind her glasses, without which she cannot see anything.

When at work, Callista can usually be found wearing lightweight clothing that does not get in the way or have any loose ends that would get caught up. If she is called away from her precious inventions, though, she has a couple of formal outfits. In accordance with her weapons of choice, she has a holster for her pistol and a scabbard for her sword; both of these can be attached to or detached from her belt. She carries a small pack of spare parts at all times, just in case.

The most notable feature of Callista is her metal arm. Designed and built by the inventor herself, the contraption is primarily powered by steam and clockwork. It is attached to the stump of her left forearm, just below the elbow, by a socket which allows her to detach the arm if she wants to. Callista has incorporated many switches, dials, levers and suchlike into the inside of the arm to allow her to move her mechanical hand and fingers into various positions and hand movements; a layer of armour plating covers the other side to prevent damage to the intricate mechanics from gunfire and other sources. As a result of this metal arm, Callista's right hand is particularly strong and dextrous. As a side note, the wrist can turn a full three hundred and sixty degrees.

Personality: A technician and inventor by nature, Callista loves machinery and steam-powered contraptions. She likes to create new devices, and will usually be found working on something when left to her own devices, be it an improvement or upgrade for her mechanical arm, a collapsible workbench or just a random idea that comes into her head. She does a fair bit of sketching and design of these ideas, and will constantly refer to these when working to ensure that the physical object is as accurate, if not more so, as her mental image of the project. However, it takes her a while to build something, as she has to do it one-handed because her metal hand does not function independently. As a result, she has a fair amount of tolerance for working slowly - a throwback to her middle name, Patience - but will become frustrated with her efforts after numerous errors in succession.

While working, Callista is a highly logical person with a need to see issues in black and white, with a right or wrong answer. Either something works or it doesn't, and if it doesn't, there is usually a way to correct this. When separated from her machines or tinkering with spare parts, she is fairly shy and introverted, and will only speak when someone speaks to her specifically.

Weaponry: Callista is not as skilled a fighter as others, but when she is called to action - thankfully a rare occurrence - she uses a simple, small-caliber revolver and a three-foot-long sword made of iron. She knows and trusts her weapons, having done some training and practice with them. She is nowhere near as experienced as most of the other people boarding the Meriweather, but would probably be able to hold her own for a little while.

Biography: Born to a simple family in Pennsylvania, Callista grew up with exposure to technology from a young age. She loved playing with spare parts from her father's workshop in the family's house, and he taught her how to put pieces together to make simple clockwork devices, eventually helping her to build things herself. The first invention she built all by herself was a catapult to hurl tiny gears across the room, at age seven. It worked fantastically, and she was proud of herself and her skills.

Callista's father, Desmond, joined the Union forces soon after the war broke out, in the year Callista turned eleven. While unhappy to see her father go off to join the war effort, she was old enough to realise what was going on. Two years later Desmond was shot and killed on the front line, and Callista fell into a bout of deep depression when she heard the news. She shut off contact with her friends for six months, who were equally devastated by the loss; Desmond was a fun guy to have around, and an amazing father and husband. Callista put all her time and effort into technology, endlessly working on projects she dreamed up and producing them with parts and components from machinery she disassembled. She had to keep creating: inventing new and ingenious machines kept her mind away from her father. It was at this point her social skills began to dwindle and she became a quiet girl, speaking only when asked a question and talking animatedly only to herself when she was working. No amount of persuasion from her mother Hannah, or any of her childhood friends, could shake her out of her state of mind as the years progressed.

At the age of eighteen, Callista had secured many more parts and was able to design and craft more complex mechanisms with relative ease. She began to create weapons; based on knowledge she gained from examining firearms up close, she built a pistol from a melange of broken or outdated guns and tested it constantly. After about a month of tweaking the gun and checking its effectiveness, she was satisfied with the weapon and kept it the way it was. A trip to one of the local ironworks secured her the metal she needed to create her second weapon; a simple sword with a three-foot-long blade and a hilt akin to those of medieval swordsmen.

With her weapons of choice acquired, Callista elected to join a medical corps in order to try and help out during the war. She disliked fighting, but felt that she should do something to at least help the wounded recover. This lasted for a while until the base at which she worked was raided by Confederate forces. They left the nurses alive except for Callista, who they shot when she resisted their assault, killing two of the Confederate attackers in the process. Callista took a shot to the leg and three in her left arm, breaking the forearm and rendering it useless. The only option was to amputate the limb just below her elbow and patch her up as best they could.

Deprived of one arm, discharged and sent back to her home, Callista became even more depressed as she had even less to do. Her short service had done very little, and now she couldn't even work with her beloved machines. Then it hit her. She could build herself a new arm. Designing the mechanical limb took the next six months just to develop the basics. Building it, however, took years, especially since Callista only had one hand with which to work. She had to call in her mother to help after many failed attempts to piece together the intricate mechanisms of the wrist joint and the dial to turn it. Fingers and the thumb soon followed, and eventually Callista and Hannah had built the basic skeleton and a socket to attach it to the amputated stump of her arm.

Plating to protect the interior mechanics followed soon after; dust and dirt had been proven to damage clockwork and steam-powered devices if it got into the inner workings. A small steam engine was incorporated to provide power to the arm, as it was nothing but dead weight without power; nothing moved without it, even with Callista's other hand manipulating the dials and switches. When eventually completed, it was a heavy construction, and Callista spent the better part of two years to get used to the weight, finishing her final tests, calibrations and exercises on her twenty-third birthday.

Even with the limitations on her metalcrafting talents, Callista continued to design bigger and better things. Her most notable project was a human-sized, steam-powered machine that incorporated a dozen rifles pointed in the same direction, and armoured by a large plate from which the barrels protruded. It was mounted on a wheeled base, allowing the operator to turn it - albeit slowly - and aim at targets. When the operator hit the appropriate lever, all twelve guns fired simultaneously, allowing the user to eliminate an entire squad of hostile forces at once. The artillery piece's one weakness was its reload time, but it soon became well-known as a useful weapon in the one Union unit to which it had been sent once it had been tested. Callista had been asked to produce more of the fantastic contraptions, but she refused. She was an artisan and an inventor, not a fighter; her creation was a unique piece that she had taken years to build.

It was this unique "hurricane rifle", as it came to be known, that drew the attention of Gideon McClellan to its creator.

 

[NeoAC]

Spoiler: Sheet

Name: Claire Delhomme
Alias: Shadow Queen

Age: 23

Physical Description: Claire is a descendent of the original slave community that had settled in Louisiana and she looks the part. She is 100% African-American, with long black hair reaching down to the small of her back when not tied up and brown eyes said to be able to see through time. Her skin is a deep brown and smooth as chocolate. She is of average build for a woman, and she stands at 5'4" Her usual attire includes a billowing red and white strapless dress that has been hemmed above her ankles for better mobility and has been adorned with various bobbles she has acquired. She also couples this with a red cloth collar lined with white lace on the edges. Under this collar she wears her gris-gris, a talisman that has been purified in a ceremony to repel evil and bad juju. She has acquired a pair of goggles, but she doesn't use them for their intended purpose very often, instead using them to keep her hair in place.

Personality: Claire is a very spiritual woman, as is natural considering her upbringing. She has complete devotion to her faith even if it does get her some weird looks in the more "modern" world. She will help any of her brothers or sisters who ask for it, no questions asked. It's not in her nature to judge anyone, that's someone else's job. Due to the events of her past, she is not as trusting of people with fairer skin than her.

Weaponry: Eschewing the more lethal and clunky weapons of the other outlaws, Claire has instead become adept with one of the more common tools of her practice: needles. She can fling the needles with a high accuracy, aiming for the more vulnerable parts of the body whenever she can spot them. These are mostly meant to paralyze and allow for escape, but stuck in the right places, they could be quite lethal.

Bio: Claire was born as the daughter of slave laborers in Breaux Bridge, Louisiana, and grew up alongside her parents and the other workers in the cotton fields. She was deeply immersed in the culture of her ancestors, and this continued after her parents had saved up enough money to buy their freedom. Her mother continued teaching her about the methods of her parents religion, the path of the Voodoo.

Heavy practicioners of the Louisiana Voodoo that became such a huge part of the culture of the Delta, Mrs. Delhomme brought her daughter up to be another follower of the faith and was delighted when Claire started having visions in her dreams. Claire's dreams seemed to predict the future, she claimed to have predicted the tornado that touched down in Shreveport when she was 12, and so she was appointed as the next in the line of voodoo queens, similar to that of the main leader of the religion, Marie Laveau. Her mother consulted with whatever literature and word of mouth she could get to make sure Claire was properly instructed in the ways of her new found calling. She gained a small following in Breaux Bridge and the surrounding area as people came to see the young soothsayer.

She became well respected in the community and her "talents" allowed a comfortable living for her family, until the war broke out. With martial law being declared throughout the South as most able bodied young men were called to the Confederate army, that left the door wide open for the kick-starting of one of the most regretable southern traditions; lynching. Being prominent members of the community, The Delhommes were one of the first ones targeted. Claire wasn't at home at the time, she was out giving a "reading" to a couple in Cecelia regarding a child, and when she returned home later that day, she found the house her family had worked so hard to build in flames, her parent's bodies hanging from the tall oak tree in front. Claire couldn't do anything but run away, lest the mob still be hanging around and eager to add her body to those of her family.

Claire cried a lot that night, she cried a lot that week, wondering what kind of righteous God would allow crimes like this to happen. After that she swore she would use the spirits of her newly departed parents along with all of her ancestors to get back at the people who committed this crime, and the intolerant bastards that were taking hold in the lawless South. Of course, there being no law, there were some advantages that she took liberties with. Needing a way to support her self, she trekked across the South, keeping out of the daylight by shacking with other black couples who had avoided the lynchers nooses, and then going out a night to the wealthy plantation owner's palatial estates and taking what she desired from them. They would be unable to act as she was quick to insert the paralyzing needles she learned how to prepare from her mother into the owners, leaving them unable to move or even scream. She would dole out possessions to whoever was awake in the slave community and ask them about the master who's fate now rested in their hands. If the master was kind, and respected her brothers and sisters, then he would be allowed to live, his debt having been repaid by Claire's lifting. If he was a cruel man, then she would go back to the room, perform a quick sanctifying prayer in the name of Papa Limba, and insert a final needle, killing the greedy owner. Word spread of her exploits throughout the slave community again, and since she did not give a name, she adopted the moniker that was given to her; the Shadow Queen.

While staying with another freed couple in Mobile, Alabama, she received a letter from Gideon McClellan, regarding a proposition. She was very skeptical about it, unsure whether or not this was a trick to try and take her in, but she had been covert in her dealings so far, and this man was obviously skilled enough to get this to her. She decided to cautiously check it out, aware that if this man was on the up and up, she could help out a lot more of her brothers and sisters this way.

 

[PrinceOfShapeir]

Spoiler: Liam O'Connor

Name: Liam O'Connor

Alias: William Reilly, Connor Waite

Age: 26

Physical Description: Liam is tall, pale-skinned, and dark-haired, with a neatly trimmed Vandyke beard and neatly trimmed and combed hair. His most immediately notable physical trait is bright hazel eyes that, according to Liam, are capable of getting the pants off any woman as soon as he wants them to. He keeps himself well dressed, usually in a well-tailored double-breasted black suit, or at least in his waistcoat. Even in harsh weather, he keeps it on underneath a well-made but sturdy canvas overcoat.

Personality: Liam is suave, or at least he tries to be. He tries to present himself at the best at anything he tries - gambling, shooting, wooing, and more than a few people have come to believe it because while Liam may lack a ton of useful skills, he's got confidence to spare. And of course, while they're distracted with his 'displays' of skill, he's doing his best to plunder their secrets, wallets, and women. Those who get to know Liam well enough to get past the bluffs and con games will find a man riding the coattails of life, laughing his ass off all the way.

Weaponry: Liam prefers talking to fighting, and...intimate relations to talking, but when neither are an option, he uses an ivory-handled Colt 1851 Navy Revolver.

For emergencies, he also carries a derringer in his suit pocket, but he's yet to ever use it.

Bio: Liam was born to a wealthy family in Boston. For the early part of his life, he attended the best schools, the best clubs, the best of everything, his father even buying him away from the draft, until four years ago when he was set up to be married to Ms. Mary Alander, the homely daughter of the wealthy Alander Family. Already fed up with his lack of control over his life, Liam departed the family home and took the next train out of Boston, eventually ending up in California.

Equipped with a good education, strong wits, and the ability to lie straight faced, Liam made his living as a poker player for the better part of a year before growing bored. He began taking advantage of the ignorant but lucky gold prospectors, presenting himself as an agent for a major mining company that would exchange the locations for the mines for a 'significant' sum of money, then turning around and selling it to a real company for many times that much. Gradually, he branched out further and further into his criminal operations, learning the tricks of pickpocketing and burglary in addition to fraud.

Eventually, his luck ran out, and he was forced to flee California to escape a posse intent on having his head. Not long prior to leaving, he received a message from Captain Gideon McClellan. It seemed like a good time to try out something else anyway.

 

[Viking Incognito]

Soooooo......whats the current status here?