Eulàlia de Barcelona

ArsMagicalGirl
AMG-Companions

Backstory and Description

Eulàlia was born to a wealthy merchant family in Barcelona, and named for one of the patron saints of that city. She was a beautiful child, and much pampered. As Eulàlia grew up, she was educated by her mother in social graces and in managing the household. However, she was much more interested in the family business. Her father was indulgent of her when she was young, and often brought Laia along for his negotiations with merchants (bringing a cute child to negotiations is helpful too), or let her linger in his room while he went over the ledgers. Laia loved animals, especially dogs, and would often tag along on hunting trips near Barcelona. This was a happy time in her life, but as she grew up her parents become less indulgent of her whims.

Rather than give up on her dream of being a merchant, Eulàlia ran away from home. She cut her hair and started to dress as a man, though it took her a while to learn how to convincingly pass as one. One day, she found a dying dog in a village and took pity on it, trying to nurse it back to health. Strangely, the dog did not seem to get better with care, nor did it seem to be obviously ill. She was dying from nothing, or so it seemed until Laia's journeys took her near a covenant. The dog slowly recovered, and Laia overcame her distaste for magi to ask one of them what had happened. The magus told her that the dog was a magical creature and required magic to survive. He offered to take care of it, but Laia refused. She named the dog Anna.

Eulàlia and Anna have been inseparable since. Anna's magical powers have saved Laia's life on more than one occasion, and her dependence on magic has meant that Laia has often dealt with the Order of Hermes in the years since, and is familiar with them to some extent. After some years, Eulàlia discovered to her astonishment that she had come to understand Anna, and even other animals to a degree (that is, she gained Animal Ken through prolonged interaction with a magical animal).

Eulàlia is a stunningly beautiful person, as a woman or a man - the kind of beauty that turns heads and brings trouble. In some ways, Laia dresses as a man as much because the attention she gets is easier to deal with as a man than as a good-looking woman traveling alone than because people take female merchants less seriously. She keeps her black hair at a length that is short for a woman and long for a man, but not unduly so in either case.

Basic Stats

Name: Eulàlia de Barcelona (Laia for short, Laius when in her male guise)
Characteristics: Int +1, Per +2, Pre +4, Com +3, Str -3, Sta -3, Dex 0, Qik 0
Size: -1
Age: 21 (21)
Decrepitude: 0
Warping Score: 0 (0)
Confidence Score: 1 (3)
Virtues and Flaws:Affinity with Bargain, Animal Ken, Great Presence, Independent Study (1), Merchant (free), Privileged Upbringing, Puissant Bargain, Social Contacts (merchants), Venus' Blessing, Ambitious (Major), Magical Animal Companion (Anna), Overconfident (minor), Poor Student, Small Frame, Weak Characteristics (Although Laia crossdresses, she does not have the Transvestite Flaw)
Personality Traits: Ambitious +3, Confident +3, Merchant's Honor +3
Reputations: None

Combat Stats

Weapons: Sling: Init -4, Atk +4, Def +3, Dam +1
Dagger: Init 0, Atk +2, Def 0, Dam 0
Soak: -2 (Quilted Fur)
Fatigue Levels: OK, 0, -1, -3, -5, Unconscious
Wound Penalties: -1 (1-4), -3 (5-8), -5 (9-12), Incapacitated (13-16), Dead (17+)
Equipment: Sling, Dagger, Quilted Fur, Horse and Wagon
Encumbrance: 1 (1)

Abilities

Animal Handling 2 (dogs), Animal Ken 3 (dogs), Artes Liberales 1 (arithmetic), Awareness 1 (searching), Bargain 5+2 (hard sell), Catalan 5 (business dealings), Catalonia Lore 3 (covenants), Carouse 2 (staying sober), Charm 3 (first impressions), Chirurgy 1 (binding wounds), Civil and Canon Law 1 (Catalonia), Etiquette 1 (townsfolk), Folk Ken 3 (merchants), Guile 3 (disguise), Hunt 1 (small game), Occitan 4 (business dealings), Order of Hermes Lore 1 (mundane relations), Ride 1 (long distance), Survival 1 (mountains), Thrown 2 (slings)

Notes

1: Independent Study (Minor, General)
The character develops new skills extremely quickly on his own. When he is studying through Practice, add two to the Source Quality, and add three to the Source Quality of his Adventure experience.