Editing Valentius ("Val") Rafmagnus

A player character in the play-by-post game [[Rogue Trader: Conquest of Paradise]].

<u>Career Path:</u> Seneschal<br>
<u>Rank:</u> 1<br>
<u>Current Experience:</u> 5000<br>

<u>Characteristics:</u><br>
WS 30<br>
BS 35<br>
S  30<br>
T  35<br>
Ag 40<br>
Int 48<br>
Per 40<br>
WP 30<br>
Fel 48<br>

<U>Talents:</U><br>
Basic Weapon Training (Universal)<br>
Enemy (Adeptus Arbites)<br>
Peer (Nobility)<br>
Peer (Underworld)<br>
Pistol Weapon Training (Universal)<br>
Resistance (Interrogation)<br>

<U>Skills:</U><br>
Awareness (Per)<br>
Barter (Fel)<br>
Ciphers (Underworld) (Int)<br>
Commerce (Fel)<br>
Common Lore (Rogue Traders, Underworld) (Int)<br>
Concealment (Ag)<br>
Deceive (Fel)<br>
Dodge (Ag)<br>
Evaluate (Int)<br>
Forbidden Lore (Archeotech) (Int)<br>
Inquiry (Fel)<br>
Literacy (Int)<br>
Security (Ag)<br>
Silent Move (Ag)<br>
Sleight of Hand (Ag)<br>
Speak Language (Low Gothic, Trader's Cant) (Int)<br>

<U>Untrained Basic Skills: </U><br>
Speak Language (High Gothic) (Int)

<U>Traits:</U> <br>
Etiquette <i>(+10 to Interaction with high authority or in formal situations)</i><br>
Jealous Freedom <i>(Must test WP to 'go quietly')</i><br>
Legacy of Wealth <i>(+1 starting Profit Factor)</i><br>
Seeker of Lore <i>(Spend an FP to automatically succeed at Ciphers, Lore or Logic tests; one bonus degree of success to passed Commerce, Inquiry and Evaluate tests)</i><br>
Vendetta <i>(House Ostender and their beloved Rogue Trader, Dietrich)</i>

Wounds: 10<br>
Fate Points: 2

Insanity: 0<br>
Corruption: 4

<U>Gear:</U><br>
Best-craftsmanship hellpistol<br>
Boltgun<br>
Xeno-mesh armour<br>
Autoquill<br>
Dataslate<br>
Micro-bead<br>
Multikey<br>
Two sets of robes<br>
Synskin<br>
Chrono<br>
Cameleoline cloak<br>
Good-craftsmanship Navis Prima

<U>Advances taken:</U> Awareness, Dodge, Security, Silent Move, +5 Int 

<U>Lifepath:</U><br>
Noble Born <I>[-5 WP, +5 Fel, Etiquette, Legacy of Wealth, Supremely Connected, Vendetta]</I><br>
Scapegrace <I>[Skill: Sleight of Hand, +3 Int, +4 Corruption]</I><br>
Renegade (Recidivist) <I>[Talent: Enemy (Adeptus Arbites); Talent: Resistance (Interrogation); Skill: Concealment]</I><br>
Press-ganged <I>[Jealous Freedom; Skill: Ciphers (Underworld); Skill: Common Knowledge (Rogue Traders)]</I><br>
Pride <I>[+3 T]</I>


<U>Background</U>

<U>Noble Born</U>
Dunscore was a civilized world which was gradually becoming more important as changes to certain trade routes brought more and more spacecraft to the system, not to mention the gelt and opportunities that came with them.  As planetary governor, Alessander Rafmagnus was in prime position to take advantage of this.  House Rafmagnus reputedly had a finger in every dubiously legal dubious pie on Dunscore, with connections in the black market extending throughout the sector.  Their principal local rivals for power, House Ostender, were coincidentally most vocal about these concerns.

<U>Scapegrace</U>
Valentius, Alessander's youngest child, gravitated towards his family's seedy connections as a youth.  They in turn found it improper - working with criminals with one thing, but freely associating with them, and without intermediaries?  Despite his family's wishes, Val spent more time with smugglers, gamblers and con-men than with his own peers.  

At first they regarded him with suspicion, but as he learned from them ("That's really... <i>'imp'</i>... right?") and they started to learn from him ("Yeah, the larger bribes will impact your profit margin, but you have to weigh it against the risks inherent in changing your route - here, pass me the data slate..."), the young man became a regular and accepted sight around the docks and in the taverns.  

<U>Renegade (Recidivist)</U> 
Things had always been tense between House Rafmagnus and House Ostender, but their cold war began to escalate without warning.  The regular drunken confrontations between rival armsmen now ended in fatalities, while House Ostender began introducing extremely ambitious bills in the Senate.  The Rafmagnus family wondered what had given them the confidence to start pushing so hard.  They didn't have to wonder long, as the Adeptus Arbites launched a full-scale investigation into House Rafmagnus and the Governor in particular, regarding allegations of institutional corruption.  

Val was still a Rafmagnus, even if he didn't much get along with his family.  He did everything he could to support his House, including destroying evidence, smuggling messages, and lying comprehensively and at great length to officials who could easily have ordered him killed.  It wasn't enough.  By the time the dust had cleared, his father had been stripped of office, his oldest brother was in the custody of the Arbites, and his sister had disappeared without trace.  The family's power-base was all but destroyed, and House Ostender had been perfectly positioned to take over.  Val found himself urgently needing to get off-world.

<U>Press-ganged</U> 
Val found profitable work on a series of merchant vessels, investigating new markets for them and helping to negotiate deals; it was a living, but not one that he could live with.  Even fleecing his employers didn't take the edge off his boredom and frustration.  He started to look for new opportunities, but his plans were forestalled.  Dietrich Ostender, Rogue Trader and most favoured son of House Ostender, sent him an 'offer' - join his crew or else the Arbites would receive some interesting information about Val's whereabouts and activities.  Apparently House Ostender needed to make contact with some unsavoury businessmen, and suddenly the old Rafmagnus connections were useful, rather than repulsive.  Oh, and if Val double-crossed him, he would simply be shot in the head.  No pressure.

<U>Pride</U>
Val was able to cut ties with House Ostender, eventually, but the experience had brought home the knowledge that he had already lost almost everything.  He was a nobleman without a home or a family, his name was a liability, and the bastard House Ostender thought him a pawn to be used for their own entertainment.  If nothing else, though, he still had his pride.  If they believed they had seen the last of House Rafmagnus, he would just have to prove them wrong.  How better to redeem his family name than by braving the legendary Lost Stars of Pschent?