"Your backstory is factually incredulous..."

So its coming round to that time when people probably have at least a concept, and in the case of most people I've talked to a group concept, for the characters they want to play in the new chronicle. With the planned stating session fast approaching it's time to start looking at what I would like from people prior. What I want to do with the Changeling slot of the statting session is for players to generate character ties, form motleys or group concepts (as I'm expecting players being players to already have started statting characters).


Before the statting session:

1. If you haven't yet I would suggest reading my blog posts; 'From National to Local Level' and 'The Changeling Courts of Norwich' posts are the most important for getting the getting the tone of the game I am running.
2. Could you please email me at norwich.lost.lst@islesofdarkness.com with the seeming, Kith and Court you intend to play as well as a one sentence character concept.
3. If you are planning on having anything at beginning of chronicle that might require an approval (I would use the old chronicle Lost addenda as a reference for that) could you also include that in the email.
4. Have a think about the answers to the Character questionnaire below

For people who are in the process of statting you have 160xp as per the addenda (150xp plus two months cap due to Requiem restarting earlier). No trait can start at five with the exception of Wyrd (if you really want to put all your xp into it) and the attribute selected for Arcadian body (in which case you cannot raise that attribute to six at character creation). This gives players something to aim for as a character goal. On top of that characters may earn a one time award of 2xp for submitting a background (to earn this you will need to submit a completed character questionnaire) and a further one time award of 1xp for providing an IC biography for distribution to all players.


As per the universal setting document, If you also want a secondary Lost character they will have to belong to a different domain.


The Character Questionnaire
So rather than a traditional backstory that narrates what has happened to a particular character before the Chronicle start I would like players to answer a series of questions about their character (a la God Machine Chronicle). The reason I am doing this, and the reason this post is titled, is because Clarity is how a Changeling sees and responds to reality. Being broken down in Arcadia and attempting to rebuild themselves, Changeling's don't have access to any sort of objective reality and more than most people have to seriously question their own memories. Therefore instead of telling me what happened to your character tell me what your character believes.


Below are 25 questions that I would like you to answer about your character. Not all of them may be applicable to your character and its cool for you to answer some with 'no one' or 'nothing' but try to explain that as the more you put in the more I can take out. Fell free to answer some IC and others OOC. I would suggest reading the four subheadings below first as they detail what I'm looking for in a backstory and might help you answer some of the more left field questions.


For people who still want to write a 'traditional' backstory I would suggest writing it as the IC biography (just remember everything in that biography is easily obtainable IC knowledge).


The Duality of Changelings
So pretty much everyone I have already spoken to about what they are intending to play in the new chronicle has only mentioned their 'Fae' persona with no reference to their 'Human' life (which to be honest is fair as no one ever got enthused about playing a guy struggling to hold down a menial nine-to-five job...especially when you can play a dragon). However one of the core themes of Changeling is navigating the thin tightrope of this duality, even the most dogmatic Spring courtier's actions are informed by the person they perceived they were. What I want is for players to think about the mundane challenges their characters face and the dissonance between their lives before and after Arcadia.


Motive Vs. Circumstance
I'm going to be honest here, as an ST tool I don't like player backstories. The backstories I have read have all been really enjoyable reads  and have provide insightful, but when you have to periodically go over them looking for plot worthy details it can be time consuming and sometimes, in the context of the plot you want to run, unproductive. What I really want is the answers to three questions: 'what can I bait your character with?', 'what can I do to harm your character?' and 'where does your character want to go?'
Therefore, by asking for a background in the form of this Character questionnaire I have a quick reference for various circumstances that might come up in play. From a player perspective, this also puts the emphasis on a characters reasons for doing something rather than simply reporting stuff that has happened; I've tried to make the questions as open ended as possible so players can put their own spin and emphasis on them. After all, how you define a question can be as insightful as the content of the answer.


An Anthology of Memories
Most Folkloric characters don't have an established chronology of action and consequence, instead there are usually multiple episodic tales attributed to them. In my own experiences playing with an established and ordered background makes it less likely it will come into play for fear of going 'too far down the rabbit hole': everyone usually has that one skeleton in the closet from their backstory that they simultaneously want to come up in game but don't want other characters to use against them. This makes players less likely to openly draw on their characters experiences because this can lead to unwanted scrutiny. By breaking up a backstory into a series of questions you can make each answer a self contained story which is easier to offer up on the alter of good roleplay.


'Trigger Warnings'
Everyone has things that make them uncomfortable in a roleplaying environment for various reasons: although I am pitching Lost as an Urban Fantasy WOD in general is a horror game and as such there should be times when there is tension and unease. So with that in mind, using a questionnaire instead of a traditional background players can give me things they are comfortable with but will freak their characters out. (As an aside if there is something you are uncomfortable with coming up in play feel free to drop me a discreet message and it won't turn up).
Moreover, from an in character perspective Changelings will only vaguely remember the rules of Faerie and undoubtedly have forgotten the rhyme or reason behind them. As such the Lost harbour many superstitions which they believe either ward off or attract the Gentry.

1. Who are you?
2. Who were you?
3. What are you?
4. What is the worst thing you have done?
5. What is the worst thing you could imagine yourself doing?
6. What is the worst thing you can imagine someone else doing?
7. What did you endure?
8. What have you forgotten?
9. What brought you back?
10. What have you lost?
11. What do you intend to (re)claim?
12. What three rules will you never break?
13. Who doesn't know, but suspects you are not exactly 'human'?
14. Who could give you up to the Gentry right now, if they really wanted to?
15. Have you ever considered working for the Gentry?
16. What will you protect at all costs?
17. What are ‘acceptable losses’?
18. What keeps the wolves from your door?
19. What is your sweetest dream?
20.  ...and your most chilling nightmare?
21.  What do you bring to the Freehold?
22.  What does the Freehold do for you?
23.  What’s that in the corner of your eye?
24. "That you can only see me because you are mad, does not mean that I do not really exist". Who said that?
25. 'Freedom is Slavery'. Discuss.

 

The Changeling Courts of Norwich part 5: The Leaden Mirror

The work of God can be destroyed by the work of the Devil,

 just as we are now discussing the effects of Witchcraft.

But since this can only be done by the permission of God,

it does not at all follow that the Devil is stronger than God.

- The Malleus Maleficarum

There was a time when the Leaden Mirror commanded both fear and respect amongst the citizens of 'The Tower', even before the sorcerers feud however their influence was on the wain. The Silent Arrow commands begrudging respect because it is the leader of the Unseelie court but the Leaden Mirror can claim no such authority. As such, those more ignorant from the other courts easily dismiss their 'mad, dangerous and unethical' research as an abomination against the 'Church of Lost Salvation'. Although these concerns have never crossed the line into open persecution, Changelings of the Leaden Mirror know full well that they walk a precarious path between true insight into the war against the Gentry and the hell that is paved with their 'good intentions'.

Living on the Edge

The Leaden Mirror dedicates its efforts to the understanding of two things, the fears of others and the magic of the True Fae. This in turn provokes suspicion and revilement from more 'respectable' citizens who would seek to learn another's fears without intent to use it against them, and perhaps more importantly could anyone learn the secrets of the others without bringing the consequences down on others. Their compulsion to discover the hidden depths and mysteries often portrays them as 'Faustian' figures on the fringes of sanity and common decency.

That doesn't mean however that the freehold won't accept any of the Leaden Mirrors findings: the scholars of the Leaden Mirror may practise all manner fringe theories and time and again it has been the unique insight of one such individual that has staved off a threat to the City at large. Moreover, it is members of the Leaden Mirror that best understand the City walls and take the lead in maintenance and repairs.

Simon Pierce  Autumn Leader
“Just <bzzzt> leave it on the worktop there and I’ll have a look at it this evening”
The Autumn court doesn’t talk about it but there is a reason that Mr Pierce speaks with their authority. The Leaden Mirror was once a divided group, two sorcerers had feuded for leadership but their ambition plunged the court into disgrace. With wounds still raw what was needed was a leader who was not controversial…was not divisive. Simon Pierce was a low ranking member of the court what had not picked a side; in fact he had spent most of his time rebuilding his life within the mortal world. Simon Pierce works as a senior architect for a local practice and is an expert in hedge spinning and token making. To the citizens of Westwyk he is nothing less than a hero showing that they can truly ‘have it all’ but the higher ups are getting concerned and the sword of Damocles seems to dangle ever more precariously above his head

Elemental: Manekin
Mantle: 3
Entitlement: Unknown
Mask: A scruffy looking man in practical outdoors clothing. He seems perpetually preoccupied with something or other as if he cannot keep his hands or his mind still. He is rarely seen without a sketchbook.

Mein: Simon has a cold, metallic and angular face. His articulations are accompanied by the ticking of cogs, hampered only by the bellows of his lungs. It looks as if he’s always listening for the sound, as if he is hoping it’s just his mind playing tricks.
Noticeable Mechanics: None

Rumours:

• That whole stick about reclaiming his old life back, I bet its not even real...he seems to spend all his time abseiling on the walls...I bet he's not even a neutral party either: his whole token expertise probably puts him as Annabel's marionette...
• ...Senior architect, that's more than just sticking your head above the parapet and he's not been dragged kicking and screaming to you know where...What kind of deal has he done to keep that cushy number???
• I got a visit from Si a couple of weeks back, middle of the night he just turns up all panicked like and muttering about god knows what...anyway when I managed to calm him down he sort of froze up and didn't want to talk about it...it was like he had found something out but didn't know who to trust with it...

Dr Sleep   Autumn’s Legate of Mists

“…”
If you go out on the streets at night, talk to the right people and hand over some cash you too can hear the legend of Dr Sleep: The Homeless of Norwich have three rules, keep an eye out for each other, don’t go into a place marked with a chalk star and hide if you hear the sound of bells…because that’s when the good doctor comes calling. The Good doctor is a powerful Oneiromancer who takes a cynical view towards the Mortal Realm as an accident waiting to happen. Moreover, being one of the two sorcerers he hasn’t taken too kindly to the current status quo amongst his court, believing the whole court should follow his acolytes devote themselves to the study of fears and superstition.

Darkling: Skitterskilk
Mantle: 3 (Unseelie)

Entitlement: Unknown
Mask: The Good Doctor is shabbily dressed in a long coat, frock and tails, remminisant of rogues and vagrants of the Victorian era.
Mein: The Good Doctor never quite seems there, as if he’s merely an extension of the shadows. His face moreover looks like it is wrapped up in black cloth like a crude executioner’s hood. Two sunken eyes glare out of this freakish ‘garment’ though there is no trace of a nose or mouth.

Noticeable Mechanics: Gentrified Bearing, Fame 1 (Urban Legend)

Rumours:

• I was in one of the Summer expeditions out into the hedge last winter and we came across this line of posts blocking the trod. each had a skull facing towards the deeper hedge and a candle in the mouth which by all laws of heaven and earth should have been blown out in that bitter wind...Apparently the good Doctor put them there but why???
• You know The Good Doctor can kill you in your sleep...no, not like any old darkling creeping up on you in the middle of the night but actually kill you in your dreams...I heard that if you fuck up, and I mean really fuck up so exile seems like getting away with it, he'll pay you a final visit next time you close your eyes...
• I heard The Good Doctor has a hobby for collecting memories...apparently he has a secret room in his hollow where they are all on display and sometimes samples them...more worryingly though I head he likes to take memories from Changelings because he likes to study its effect on their clarity...

Annabel Lee  The Witch of the Bitter Wind

"Please! I have more important matters to deliberate…go pester an ibecile like the doctor on such trivial matters”
Annabel is the most noted scholar within the walls of the tower. Quick to anger and one who does not suffer fools gladly her feud with Dr Sleep almost tore the Autumn court in two and severely weakened their influence amongst the freehold. She is known as a capable battle sorceress who condones the rivalries and infighting amongst her coven for her praise and the arcane secrets she bestows as a reward.

Fairest: Telluric/Brightone
Mantle: 4 (Unseelie)
Entitlement: Unknown
Mask: A stern librarian who is angered by your presence disturbing the ambiance of her sanctum. Her facial expressions move from contorted displeasure to forced smile. Her skin is fair and only extenuates the brightness of her red mane. She has constellations tattooed on her arms.

Mein: Annabel is a collection of lights forming constellations like the map of the Northern Hemisphere. She speaks with a voice that seems to echo from a great distance.
Noticeable Mechanics: Siren Song

Rumours:

• Autumn may have an understanding but I give it a few months tops. Annabel's followers have been getting rather vocal at late and I bet she is going to make another play for her courts leadership. You better choose a side now otherwise you'll be caught in the crossfire...
• If you can impress her with some display of Fae magic I head Annabel is looking for an apprentice...another one so soon you ask, well you remember how changed the last one was since they both journeyed into the hedge alone...and then one night she just disappeared without a trace, whatever Annabel showed her no good will come of it...
• Look I've seen a lot in my time, I know what different seeming's are capable of and hell I've even seen some of the weird shit the lesser courts can pull of...but one time my motley was escorting Annabel into the hedge when we were attacked by hedge beasts....and seriously man the shit she was pulling off was unlike anything else I had seen before: she couldn't have come by a trick like that naturally is what I'm saying...

The Changeling Courts of Norwich part 4: The Silent Arrow

Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,
Or to take arms against a sea of troubles,
And by opposing end them? To die: to sleep...-Hamlet

Like the servants at the feast: the Courtiers of the Silent Arrow are ever present, never invited and for the most part forgotten about. With the ruling emotion of sorrow it is natural for them to 'cut the losses' and insulate themselves from the world around them. However, in a society like 'The Tower' the Silent Arrow have been forced into the open and the leadership of the Unseelie Court thrust upon them they have had to make the most of the situation and made few friends in the process. With winter being a time of ill fortune and general stereotype of being 'untrustworthy', the Silent Arrow has learnt to make the tough decisions that ensure the Freeholds survival and live with the barbs of other courts unwilling to make sacrifices. The Silent Arrow are the spies and far sighted watchmen that keep ever vigilant for the next looming threat and it is this scrutiny that offends the sensibilities of other Lost.


The Lore of Ice:
The Silent Arrow follows a code of ethics known as the 'Ice laws'. To many these can be seen as needlessly heartless but in the context of want and frugality created by winter it is only natural, their advocates say, that the state should utilise and optimise its resources for the mutual good regardless of the citizens sentiments. Many of the more draconian Monarchical Decrees were introduced by a Winter Monarch and a such any attack on the perceived 'liberties' of the Free Lost are attributed to them (it is never questioned however that this encroaching securitisation is never repealed by the Summer Monarch).


The Silent Arrow as a court also take the keenest eye on the Mortal Realm, when your people are starving or suffering the ravages of clarity haemorrhage it is impractical to simply deny the opportunities on offer. However, it is the Silent Arrow that knows most well that such resources can be a honeytrap for the less cautious: rare is a mortal in the pocket of a Spring Courtier who wasn't discovered by a 'anonymous' tip off or a loyalist cell the Knights of Summer bear down upon without the Arrow mapping out their defences first. Their work is underappreciated at best and scorned at worst, for the Arrow see the folly of exposing oneself to save another who allowed themselves to be ensnared. One has to think about the whole and sometimes that means sacrificing the few, a view the Seelie courts find repugnant.


'The Outsider'
To walk the path of sorrow is to be the outsider, to make decisions no other is willing to make and to turn the other cheek from the hypocrisy of the other Courts. Many of the Silent Arrow see themselves simply as realists making the most of a bad situation while their detractors see them simply as a bunch of spies, thieves and cowards. The imposition of the City scapegoat on the Winter court is both a boon and a sanction: it allows them to act without the worry of censure as they have already crossed that bridge yet all members are fully aware that other Changelings are never fully comfortable in their presence.

Beatrice Crowley  The Winter Monarch
“Thank you for your forthrightness and expediency in bringing this matter to my attention dear: Now don’t let me detain you…”
Nobody can remember a time when Ms Crowley was not a member of the Freehold. Some of the braver and older members of the City will tell you tales of the ‘little darkling upstart’ who managed at a young age to place herself in the orbit of the cities elite, most tales conclude with hushed whispers of blackmail and ‘surprising revelations’ to see of potential rivals. Ms Crowley would refer to herself as a pragmatist and a firm believer in the ice laws. ‘The world is cold and bitter and we must be harsh to survive it’ she reposts.

Darkling: Gravewright

Mantle: 5(Unseelie)
Entitlement: Unknown

Mask: Ms Crowley is lean old lady, her skeletal frame removing any excessive flesh from her body so that her remaining muscle is compact and honed to her requirements. She is too prim and proper in both her posture and her mannerisms to be called a crone yet her eyes flicker with a folkloric and atavistic cunning.
Mein: Ms Crowley’s complexion is that of a fresh corpse, her eyes are sunken into her sockets and give off the glassy sheen of the deceased. Her flesh is rigid and occasionally flakes while more observant changelings have noticed her lack of blinking.

Rumours:

• I heard Ms Crowley is actually dead...no really her heart stopped beating a long time ago and even on a cold winters day you don't see frost on her breath. She's only still around due to sheer willpower and her connection to the Wyrd...If she ain't one of them then she's sure as hell close to...
• Its all an act with Ms Crowley, the big bad Darkling...Seriously if the Winter Creeps do anything its telling people nothing. She's just a façade that we all have gullibly turned our attention to like a bunch of slack jawed ejits...Still makes you think, if she's a just as much a puppet as the rest then who is pulling the strings???
• It is not wise to spread malicious rumours about Ms Crowley...

Violet Thorne The Sun Banisher
“Do you have the number for a takeaway cause its going to be a long night”
Violet is a relatively new citizen of the Tower. Being taken as a child and still in her teenage years she can’t really attempt to take the place of her 30 year old fetch. Instead she has become the adoptive Daughter of Ms Crowley and trained in the arts of obfuscation. She spends a lot of her time amongst the citizens of Westwyk and in the company of Fuchsia Peake but her status as Ms Crowley’s ‘ward’ earns her few friends amongst the winter Monarchs detractors.

Beast: True friend/Tunnel grub (Ferret)
Mantle: 3 (Unseelie)
Entitlement: Unknown

Mask: a Nieve schoolgirl who wears antiquated black dresses, obviously chosen by Ms Crowley’s sense of taste.
Mein: A wide eyed Ferret who is still finding her way in the world. She has never the less picked up various pet like habits.

Noticeable merits: Fast reflexes 2, Charmed life

Rumours:

• The Sun Banisher...isn't that the person who 'ties up' loose ends? I dread to think what hidden depths lie behind that carefree smile...
• She just turns up one day and in a matter of weeks gets a position amongst the Queens retinue...Either Crowley's lost the plot or she's grooming the girl for something before she can develop  any undesirable personality traits...there's even talk she's going to be announced as Crowley's successor...
• I was in this Club the other week to top up my Glamour reserves and I swear I saw Violet in the VIP area. I didn't get a good look at the Man she was with be he was defiantly a Changeling. She handed over a brown envelope and the man gave her a Metal briefcase...just don't tell anyone about this okay, I think she saw me and if word gets out I don't want her knocking on my door in the middle of the night...

Myles  Owner of La Fae Verte
"Welcome....bad day huh? Well why don't you have a drink and tell me all about it"
An enterprising young Changeling from Westwyk, Myles is the owner of La Fae Verte, a social club in Westwyk for Changelings to meet up in numbers and away from the City leadership looking over their shoulders. Myles is an easy going type with a knack for problem solving and an attentive ear for his patrons. As such he is known for being a font of information and a middleman for introductions. Myles is famed for is unique blend of Hedge bounty Absinthe.


Wizened: brewer
Mantle: 1
Entitlement: Unknown


Mask: An unassuming twenty something hipster. Myles has a pair stylish geek-chic glasses and an Indy crop haircut but beyond that no distinguishing features.
Mein: Myles' skin shows speckles of discolouration on his skin and is accompanied by the smell of a distillery. His teeth have yellowed and his fingertips are stained a multitude of colours.
Rumours:

• I wonder what goes into that brew of his, I mean one week it tastes of sour plum and another it's sweet cherry...I heard it's a secret recipe he used to brew for his keeper and that the secret ingredient is Changeling...don't laugh! the reason it tastes different is because he has to go to the market for his secret ingredient and he's not always guaranteed cuts from the same kith...
• When speaking to Myles listen very carefully to what he says. He occasionally slips up and mentions talk about some other group of Changelings out there... I don't know about you, but that radio in the corner behind the bar is supposedly broken yet he still has it out on display...I'm just saying it wouldn't surprise me if he's listening out for some secret transmission...
• ...Oh yeah? and what would that be? Nah what you have to be careful about with Winter creeps like Myles is they are always listening for things to blackmail you with...he may sound like some sort of dissident but its a ruse, I tell you he's probably feeding everything you tell him to his handlers in the court leadership...

The Changeling Courts of Norwich part 3: The Antler Crown



Unless I am convinced by the testimony of the Scriptures or by clear reason,

I am bound by the Scriptures I have quoted and my conscience is captive to the Word of God.

I cannot and will not recant anything, since it is neither safe nor right to go against conscience.

May God help me. Amen.-Martin Luther

It is probably because of their seemingly flighty and hedonistic nature that the Antler Crown emerged as the lesser of the two factions amongst the Seelie Court. However the true reason is much more nuanced: while the antler crown adheres to 'The Ardent Rule' (Your Desires Are Your Own) the unique pressures of 'The Tower's society has placed them on the back foot and as such many amongst the court have become 'philosophical' and 'academic' about their relation to desire. To be held in high regard within the Antler Crown one must be able to cite precedent, explain ceremony and be knowledgeable of the City's lore. Although critics have argued that many in the Antler Crown cynically learn this simply to push the envelope and bend the rules in relation to achieving their own desires, it can be seen in some Lost such as the Courts' leader Cyrus Flay that such knowledge is necessary to preserve the hard one freedoms of the citizens from  the tyranny mob rule.

By the Lost, For the Lost

The Antler Crown is the court that deals with society, in the case of 'The Tower' it is a predominantly Changeling society rather than that of the Mortal world, and as such have a keen understanding of the City's various beats and rhythms. Changelings of the Antler Crown are often sought out for their legal expertise and presumed impartiality in resolving disputes as they believe the system can work for everyone so long as you know it well enough to not get duped.
Amongst the Seelie court in particular it is the Antler Crown that is the check and balance against the Summer Monarchy's less thought out schemes. Of Course there have always been Changeling of the Antler Crown that have coveted power but for the most part its members display a Lassaiz Faire attitude, respecting everyone's boundaries so each Lost is free to pursue their own 'Promised Land'.


Alongside the Silent Arrow, the Antler crown also keeps an eye on the mortal world, scouting out good sources of glamour or places where the Lost can move amongst the populace to maintain their clarity. However, unlike the Silent Arrow which is seemingly content to abandon those who get caught out to their fate, the Antler Crown does make selective contacts that can be useful in getting a naïve Changeling out of a tight spot. This is rarely done out of a sense of altruism and one who seeks such an intervention will be made to feel indebted afterwards. The accusations of Usury are never far from a Spring Courtier who comes to call in their debts.

Cyrus Flay  Verdant Advocate

“If that would be all…sir?”

Hovering like a fly though more akin to the elephant in the room, Mr Flay seems like an odd fit for the undisputed leader amongst the local spring court. Bookish and seemingly awkward he displays none of the flair or flamboyance traditionally associated with the pangs of desire. Flay’s desire is a smouldering obsession for order and sense in a world that seems long bereft of it. His constant companion is a well-thumbed tome that details all the various rituals, ceremonies and celebrations that mark the Freeholds social calendar. Each one he meticulously attends to, imparting his knowledge and experience into every aspect of their organisation. Flay knows the value of tradition, the reassurance it brings and in the case of the freeholds pageantry the desire for life and colour it grants, and is a stickler for it.

Wizened: Chatelaine/Antiquarian

Mantle: 1 (Seelie)

Entitlement: Unknown


Mask: Dour looking man in his mid-fifties, smartly dressed though his sense of dress is nostalgically outdated like some minor character in a Wodehouse comedy. His excessive maintenance of his posture makes him look ill at ease upon scrutiny, preferring much more to slink into the shadows until required.

Mein: Cyrus walks with a spindling, spider like gait. His is a tall stretched out man with skin greying with age. His eyes are drawn together like two black beads shifting from one thing to another, giving each item in view a scathing appraisal in turn.
Noticeable mechanics: Unobtrusive
Rumours:

• When the crown passes to Summer Mr Flay seems to disappear for a couple of weeks. It's not like you'd notice considering all the events and party's at that time are wholesale Summer court 'WE R THE BEZT' affairs. I heard he goes somewhere private to get all that desire out of his system so he can be the dour snob he is the other fifty weeks...
• You know the Wizened on Bethel Street who owns the bakery. Yeah the one who doesn't go out much. She used to be in the Spring Court and was a real...I mean REAL partygoer, couldn't prise her away from the mortal club scene with a crowbar. I heard one night got arrested for assaulting a copper and her motley asked Mr Flay to get her out of custody. Well I don't know the details of what happened but sure as his word he returned with her and she's ever since been doing her best to avoid him...
• Mr Flay is incredibly loyal to Ms Crowley but next time you see him out attending a ceremony during Summer watch his body language in relation to 'Big Al'...I'm not saying anything exactly but Mr Flay has an almost ingrained respect for the institution of the monarchy and an encyclopaedic knowledge of what's right and wrong. And it seems to me he thinks 'Big Al' ain't the sort of Person who should be running this City...

Fuchsia Peake  Spring’s Searce

“lemmie see lemmie see…you made this right? Perhaps you should try better next time…”

Where ‘Dear old Flay’ creeps around making sure everything is in its place Fuchsia Peake struts around like the queen bee of spring. As the Spring Searce the young vixen plays the role of critic, gate keeper and rumourmonger for her court. A Paragon of the Courts more hedonistic aspects she is known for being able to find ‘anything’ a person requires if they are willing to play her ‘little games’ (which often involves embarrassment or scandal on the part of the customer). Anyone who wishes to earn favour with the Antler Crown soon learns to swallow their pride and pander to her whims.

Beast: Roateater/Cleareyes (Fox)
Mantle: 4 (Seelie)
Entitlement: Unkown

Mask: A Young woman wearing exclusively vintage clothing of the fifties and sixties. There is a distinct jovial naivety about her body language that contradicts the cunning in her eyes.

Mein: Her fur is immaculately groomed and when she smiles she cannot help but bar her fangs.
Notable Mechanics: Striking Looks 2, Rigid Mask
Rumours:

• If you want to join the Antler Crown then you have to impress the Searce. The way I heard it though Fuchsia has a pathological hatred of the Fairest, she just can't stand them for some reason. So any of them that try to join she makes their lives a living hell, forcing them to do demeaning tasks...and I mean demeaning by Fuchsia's standards before she will even consider them. She'd deny it obviously but which one of them is going to speak up about it anyway...
• Fuchsia is simply a bad influence on people. I head the only reason she is in a motley with Violet is so Ms Crowley could try and get evidence for her spreading malicious rumours, but that's backfired. When you see the two of them together its worth keeping an eye out because one of their 'little pranks' is about to go off...
• Apparently Miss Peake has a little black book which details all the things she has forced people to do to become a member of the Antler Crown. I'm sure if one could get their hands on it then they could acquire a few 'golden handshakes' to keep its contents secret...



Nate Pickett  Head of the Guild
"See, I can respect you for seeing an opportunity and taking it...its just this is the way we roll"
The last few years have seen the inexplicable rise of Nate Pickett through both the ranks of the Antler Crown and the City Guild. This scrawny urchin with a passion for running his mouth off was nothing but a petty annoyance until a surprise vote of no confidence in the Guild's then leader caused a vacuum of power. Nate somehow emerged on top convincing one of the stronger candidates to back him and the other to disappear. following his ascension Nate has reinvigorated the Guild and increased its political clout with the use of 'your friendly neighbourhood leg breakers' to maintain the Guilds position as the City's chamber of commerce.


Darkling: leechfinger
Mantle: 3
Entitlement: Unknown


Mask: a slight, hunched man rubbing his hands together with glee and the flicker of avarice in his eyes. He wares Victorian-esque clothes which have seen better days, more for the perceived effect of refinement old clothing gives despite the multitude of patches and re-stitching, and has a habit of whistling inanely especially when someone is in for it. He has a very fair complexion and soot coloured hair.
Mein: The first things you notice about Nate's Mein is his long sharp fingernails and smiling fangs that seem to invite only the promise of immeasurable pain.
Noticeable Mechanics: none
Rumours:

• Mr Pickett apparently has a fetch that runs one of the gangs in the Mortal Realm though from what I head they each made an offer the other couldn't refuse...apparently Nate got bored with running the Guild cause everyone has the sense to pay up. So they swapped round so he can indulge his pleasures away from the City's prying eyes...
• You don't remember Gog, the Ogre that was front runner for leadership of the Guild, do you? Well I was in the market one time and I was passing the slave market...Just passing through mind...and I'm sure I saw him amongst the merchandise...true story I swear...
• You want anything done in Mancroft then you have to get Nate's permission...The City leadership don't care what happens outside their district so long as the pledges are maintained so nobody's dared challenge him yet cause if you haven't noticed there are an awful lot of guild members that don't seem to be running any sort of trade...