Agents of Empress Wu:Ambrose Krastev

Back to Main Page

Name: Ambrose Krastev

High Concept: Rakish Antiquities Dealer

Trouble: Prices On His Head

Aspect: Second Star to the Right

Aspect: Silver-Tongued Scoundrel

Aspect: That's Not A Problem, It's an Opportunity!

Player: Face_Loran

Background

Ambrose Krastev, formerly Ambrosius Diogenus, is a European antiquities dealer, translator, and businessman. While Krastev is evasive about his past, he doesn't hide the basics, and speaks of his heritage with pride. Born to Roman nobility that fell to the Bulgars when he was a child, Ambrosius and his mother were taken in by the commander Krastyo. The bulgar taught his adopted son to fight, but recongnized that the boy would always take after his mother - sharp, social, and curious- and supported her efforts to encourage those traits in her son. Both cared for the common people they were responsible for, and that belief in the nobility of the common man is a core trait for Ambrose now.

Ambrose was educated both in Bulgaria and Byzantium, but neither suited the young man, who found it all to be overly religious and creatively stifling. And the rules! So many rules! He set off on his own, traveling Europe and the new Caliphates to study. Over the course of his youth, Ambrose developed both a determination to succeed and a resilience that presents itself as an unflappable easygoingness.

A love of language and history served him well, enabling him to make a considerable amount of money translating, which in turn funded his passion - investigating lost knowledge and myths. That fascination with antiquity combined with a growing network of nobility and businessmen allowed Ambrose to become something of an antiquities dealer, working with rare texts, magical/religious artifacts, and weapons.

Ambrose's natural charm and sociability is a boon, but a lack of social awareness often gets him into more trouble than he realizes, partially explaining why he's never made a permanent home. Ambrose can easily maneurver the halls of power, but finds himself more comfortable among the common people, and he as on more than one occasion found himself on the wrong side of the law in an effort to help them.

Main Page

Skills

+4	Investigate
+3	Rapport	Will
+2	Notice	Decieve	Burglary
+1	Athletics	Physique	Fight	Lore

Stress

Physical [1][2][3]

Mental [1][2][3][4]

Stunts

Can't Stop Now

Use Will instead of Physique on any overcome rolls have to do with endurance.

Indomitable

+2 to defend against Provoke attacks specifically related to intimidation and fear.

Attention to Detail

You can use Investigate instead of Empathy to defend against Deceive attempts. What others discover through gut reactions and intuition, you learn through careful observation of microexpressions.

Kung Fu: Egyptian Tahtib

Form	Ambrose's walking staff, or assaya, was gifted to him by a Zoroastrian monk in Persia, who taught him (a version, at least) tahtib, the ancient Egyptian art of stick fighting. Regardless the dubious accuracy of the name, Ambrose learned to use the staff primarily for defense - surprisingly quick sweeping arcs ward off attackers, and fluid movements avoid those who penetrate the staff's barrier.
Unseen Current	When you defend against a fight attack with style, you may inflict a 2 shift hit instead of taking a boost on your attacker.
Reeds of the Marsh	Add an additional +2 bonus when using full defense to defend yourself in combat. If used to defend others, take a +2 armor rating instead.
Shifting Sands	A tie of a fight- or athletics-based defense action grants no boost to your attacker.

Main Page