Campaign of the Month: May 2021
Baghdad on the Bayou
Rikard Baldurson
Half Aesir Chief of Security for Monoc Tower
Description:
Face of: Plaza Tower (Monoc Tower)
Rikard appears arch-typical Nordic – 6’6", about 240 lbs of solid muscle, pale blond hair and ice blue eyes. He dresses casually, or in appropriate “working” or “combat” gear. He is never without at least one gun (usually something enormous in caliber), although when he is “working” he favors Bani-Forad, the weapon his Grandfather gave him, While wading into the enemy. If he has to use longer-reaching weapons, he favors the European assault rifles, particularly the old FN-FAL or British SLR.
Aspect Summary
- Half Aesir Chief of Security for Monoc Tower (High Concept)
- Never Leave An Enemy Alive (Trouble)
- Grandad Is Always Watching
- Mercenary Code Of Honor
- Until Valhalla
- Lady Oka Is Tiny But Fierce, And I Like It
- Hello Beastie! I’m The Slayer Of Monsters. (Guest Star: Susannah James)
Skills
- Fantastic (+6): Weapons
- Superb (+5): Fists, Endurance
- Great (+4): Athletics, Intimidation, Might
- Good (+3): Alertness, ,Rapport, Guns
- Fair (+2): Conviction, Lore, Presence, Contacts
- Average (+1): Burglary, Driving , Survival, Stealth, Investigation
- All other skills are mediocre (+0)
Skill Points: 50/50
Powers
- Inhuman Strength (-2) (+3 break/lift; +1 grapple/2 dmg.; +2 melee dmg.)
- Marked by Power (-1) (+1 to social skills with the magical community. Hard to conceal. They know he is Aesir)
- The Catch (Mistletoe, esoteric research required) (+2) ([Brief description])
- Inhuman Recovery (-2) (Recover 1 level faster; skip 1 night of sleep; 1x Shrug-Off)
- Superhuman Toughness (-4) (+4 Stress, Armor 2)
- Bani-Forad (Old Norse ‘Slayer of Monsters’) (-4) (Item of Power)
- Description – A Viking Battleaxe with Norse runes inscribed on it.
- Musts: You must have an aspect related to your possession of this item.
- Skills Affected: Weapons
- [-0] Purpose: To protect Midgard from unnatural creatures who threaten its safety.
- [-0] It Is What It Is: A well made Viking Battle Axe. Weapon: 3
- [-0] Unbreakable: As an Item of Power, this item cannot be broken except with a magical ritual predicated upon perverting its purpose.
- [+2] One-Time Discount: It’s a sword and not easily concealed.
- [-1] True Aim: Bani-Forad is a superlative weapon. It provides a +1 bonus to all Weapons rolls.
- [-2] Slayer of Monsters: +4 to the Weapon Rating of Bani-Forad when attacking a non-human character with it.
- [-3] ] Army of One: Bani-Forad grants a +1 to Weapons when the wielder is personally outnumbered in melee; that is, when more than 1 person attacks them in close combat in any given exchange. This bonus increases to +2 if three or more people are attacking the wielder, and increases to a maximum of +3 when four or more people engage the wielder.
Stunts
- Linguist (Scholarship) (-1) (+4 to Scholarship level when determining known languages. Speaks: English, French, German, Old Norse, Swedish)
- Berserker (Weapons): (-1) (Go berserk. In this mode, you must attack your foes until you or they are dead. Gain +1 to attacks and +1 stress if they hit, but all defense rolls are made at –1)
Total Refresh: -13 / 2 FP (15 Total Refresh)
Stress boxes
- Physical (0000(0000))
- Mental (000)
- Social (000)
Description of Aspects
High Concept: Half Aesir Chief of Security of Monoc Tower
Rikard has no idea who his father is. Nor does his mother. It soon became apparent that he was not “normal”. Faster, tougher, and stronger than his peers, Rikard was at first teased, then feared as began savagely beating any would-be tormentor. As he learned of his heritage, no revelation came about who his Aesir parent was. He did discover a vulnerability to Mistletoe and a reading of the old myths – Rikard adopted the surname Balderson.
He has been in the military and a mercenary most of his life, not he works for the ‘family business’, Monoc Securities. Which means when they call, he has to come. He is currently the chief of security for the new Monoc Tower in New Orleans.
- Example Compels: Anything to do with his heritage, or his job
- Example Invokes: Anything to do with his heritage, or his job
Trouble: Never Leave An Enemy Alive
Rikard tends to fly into a Berserker rage and kill whatever he attacks, it is hard for him to pull back and spare an enemy’s life.
- Example Compels: Finish Him!
- Example Invokes: Finish Him!
Aspect: Grandad Is Always Watching
It was in the late 50s, while serving as a mercenary, that things changed forever. Rikard was visited in his run-down, vermin infested quarters by a tall man, formally dressed, in a manner inappropriate for the tropical hell hole in which Rikard was serving, and sporting an eye patch. This individual beratedhim for the waste of his talents, his drunkenness, his casual propensity for violence, emphasizing that he was a disgrace to the blood.
Rikard was enraged – he flew at the individual, who proceeded to administer the only comprehensive beating that he had ever received. Broken and bleeding, Rikard really looked at the visitor properly for the first time and revelation came to him – this was Odin, the Al-Father. It could not be, it was impossible, but it was true nonetheless and explained so much – he was at least part Aesir.
- Example Compels: Odin has an interest in Rikard, and that can complicate things.
- Example Invokes: Can Call on Odin for Help
Aspect: Mercenary Code Of Honor
Devoid of direction, Rikard joined the army at 19. Despite constant issues over insubordination and excessive violence, he found that he loved the life. Finding the Swedish army “boring”, he joined the Finnish army in 1925, and stayed with them for more than two decades. A complication arose when Rikard discovered that he was not aging significantly – by the time the Winter War began in 1937, he was in his late 30s and looked barely into his 20s.
Rikard served with the Finns throughout the Second World War. In the aftermath, and given a discharge, he joined the French Foreign Legion and served for 2 terms before becoming a mercenary.
- Example Compels: Ours is not to question, but to do or die.
- Example Invokes: Military Orders, Strategy, Tactics, etc.
Aspect: Until Valhalla
’Until Valhalla" is a Viking battle cry. Rikard trained with the Einherjar, and became a “consultant” for Monoc Security, one that was seldom hired out but who acted directly on behalf of the company.
- Example Compels: Unafraid to die.
- Example Invokes: Extra courage or fortitude in the face of danger,
Aspect: Lady Oka Is Tiny But Fierce, And I Like It
When the party went to Jotunheim to help Hilda retrieve the cauldron Rikard began to notice Sunny. He had never really taken her seriously before, but when she wielded Hviturgaldur, the hammer of white magic, he was impressed. Since then and through fighting Fomor at David’s wedding he has began to see her in a much different light – so much so they kissed at the wedding. He is excited to see where it goes in the future.
- Example Compels: Hunt needs help
- Example Invokes: teamwork with Hunt
Aspect: Hello Beastie! I’m The Slayer Of Monsters
Since the Fomor have stepped up operations, so has Monoc. Being Chief of Security for Monoc in New Orleans has meant that Rikard is on the frontlines in the war with the Fomor. This has resulted in him seeing Fomor creations – monster up close and personal. He knows how to fight them and where to hit them hard. It also means he sometimes gets carried away and will rush headlong into dangerous situations with the Fomor. Just recently he dove into the Mississippi River and into the gullet of a Kraken, in order to stop it from dragging a ferry out to sea – without thinking of a way out. Good thing Sussanah James was there with a holy sword to cut him out. Odin gifted Rikard Bani- Forad as a reward for his reckless courage in fighting the Kraken.
- Example Compels: Rush headlong into danger
- Example Invokes: Extra knowledge or fortitude when fighting Fomor creations
Bio:
Rikard has no idea who his father is. Nor does his mother. All both of them knew is that, on a wild night in Stockholm, celebrating a victory in a soccer tournament around the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, his mom got drunk, had a one night stand, and got pregnant. Rikard is the result. It soon became apparent that he was not “normal”. Faster, tougher and stronger than his peers, Rikard was at first teased, then feared as began savagely beating any would-be tormentor.
Devoid of direction, Rikard joined the army at 19. Despite constant issues over insubordination and excessive violence, he found that he loved the life. Finding the Swedish army “boring”, he joined the Finnish army in 1925, and stayed with them for more than two decades. A complication arose when Rikard discovered that he was not aging significantly – by the time the Winter War began in 1937, he was in his late 30s and looked barely into his 20s.
Rikard served with the Finns throughout the Second World War. In the aftermath, and given a discharge, he joined the French Foreign Legion and served for 2 terms before becoming a mercenary. It was in the late 50s that things changed forever. He was visited in his run-down, vermin infested quarters by a tall man, formally dressed in a manner inappropriate for the tropical hell hole in which Rikard was serving, and sporting an eye patch. This individual berated Rikard for the waste of his talents, his drunkenness, his casual propensity for violence, emphasizing that he was a disgrace to the blood.
Rikard was enraged – he flew at the individual, who proceeded to administer the only comprehensive beating that Rikard had ever received. Broken and bleeding, Rikard really looked at the visitor properly for the first time and revelation came to him – this was Odin, the All-Father. It couldn’t be, it was impossible, but it was true nonetheless and explained so much – Rikard was at least part Aesir. Recognizing the signs of understanding, Odin opened a way and took Rikard away to Oslo.
The next few years were ones of education and investigation. No revelation came about who his Aesir parent was, but the discovery of a vulnerability to Mistletoe and a reading of the old myths lead Rikard to adopt the surname Balderson. He trained with the Einherjar, and became a “consultant” for Monoc Security, one that was seldom hired out but who acted directly on behalf of the company. It was in this capacity, working on a hunter-kill mission in Egypt, that Rikard met Hunter “Hunt” Allain (Matthew). They worked well together, and a friendship sprung up based on mutual respect.
Over the next several years they encountered each-other semi-regularly, their relationship growing stronger. When Rikard heard that Hunter had become a Warden during the Vampire War, he requested and, unexpectedly, received a leave of absence from Odin, who he facetiously always addressed as “granddad”, and traveled to his friend’s home town of New Orleans, opening up a sub-branch of Monoc in New Orleans to serve both his own loyalties and his duties to his “Grandfather”. Being able to serve great beer was icing on the cake.
Since the Fomor have stepped up operations, so has Monoc. Rikard recently turned over management of Lafitte’s to Jeanie, in order for him to concentrate on the expansion of Monoc in New Orleans and the refurbishment of Plaza Towers. He recently was assigned to be chief of security for the new Monoc Towers.