Work Text:
CHOOSE CHARACTER:
CLASS/Chef
AGE/32
INFO/ Pursuing the highs of the culinary arts the Chef excels at staying alive by proper nourishment and proficiency in using sharp utensils to his advantage. While unassuming he can get to great lengths to prove himself useful.
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The soothing sound of the railtracks... You are not used to such peaceful and tranquil atmosphere. You can't help but let your mind wander. You reminisce what has lead you to this point in life...
You were born in the northern parts of the Kingdom of Rondon by the family of migrants coming from the now occupied country of Lechia. A hard decision which they made having expected the terrors of yet another foregin invasion to their homeland.
Ever since you can remember your parents tried to instill within you the idea of local patriotism.
You were Randonite throught and throught. Participatig in the miriad of local traditions and being raised on many of the Rondons national dishes. You hapily finished your plate but always felt like it, surprisingly enought, wasn't made with the same amount of love as some other foods that were served in your parents restaurant.
At the age of 12 you were deemed old enough to help around the floor and kitchen. Which is where, working with your father, you'd hear his stories and memories of your previous homeland. Something your mother was very against sharing. You:
- Assisted your father in the kitchen (Gain Bury the Trauma)
Said stories were not only folklore but also creations of the Great Lechian Bards. You've heard many stories about the bleak yet inspiring history of your ancestors, national heroes and neighbours that tormented it. Raised on their ideas of Romanticism you've grown with prideful predisposition.
Yet it made you anxious about not being able to live up to their vision.
- Attended to the tables with your mother.
Having interacted with local clientele you've been inspired by the ideal vision of the posh Rondon lifestyle and decided to associate with those of the higher standing in order to gain their approval.
Yet that made you anxious about not being able to live up to their visions of you.
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Later, as you grew older, simple things like reading, working and hanging around with your many friends wasn't enough to satisfy you completely. You've felt misundertood and that your potential is being wasted on such activities. This led you to develop longing for something you don't quite understand to this day.
You needed a way to express yourself.
Somehow your parents accepted your pleas to enroll in the high end art-school in which you've done your best to develop your newfound passion.
- Try painting (Gain +1 Agility)
You picked up a brush thinking it would give you an aura of misundertood artist and a man of culture. Your teachers commented on your "violent brush strokes" showing great interest in your future works. With newfound inspiration you finished painting after painting. Things started to look brigther for a while. But unfortunately your progress was pretty much nonexistent. Despite promising start you were overshadowed by other, more talented young artists. Best wishes of the teachers turned into quiet contempt despite your efforts to finally show the world what was kept deep within your heart.
- Try sculpture (Gain Melee Proficiency)
You choose to shape stone in effort to look more original and like a man of culture. Your hands, used to labor, were a great fit for chisel and hammer. One of your teachers described the way you force materials into shape as "spectacularly brutal" and shown her interest in your possible development. However, with the way that a mistake once made in stone was rarely one to be corrected you quickly leaned on the avoidant mindset. With every mistake made you've felt your heart sinking deeper within your chest. There'was only so much rejection you could take.
- Try acting (gain Persuade if you choose Tending to the tables previously, otherwise start with x1Officer Sword)
You decided on trying to become an actor in order to better express yourself as a human and a man of culture. Your acting skills were praiseworthy which paired with your dilligence in rehersing the lines was quickly noticed by your instructors. Despite feeling great on the scene however you always opted out of the main roles as to not stand out to much from your crowd. Your performences were doing great but the obvious lack of chemistry with the rest of the troupe meant there wasn't an easy way fro you to improve. Soon that made you feel lonely and inadequate. What caught your mind was that bitter realisation than despite your efforts even your co-stars did not try to understand you.
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And as the time passed, along with your student savings, you've realised that there really was no point in trying. Reluctantly you picked up other disciplines of fine art which you failed at again and again. Wasting even more time and money.
People you considered friends turned their back on you the moment they realised what big of a disappointment you were. With nothing else left of your academic life a new chapter in life had to be started.
- Swallow your pride and return home (Gain +2 Agility)
This was a hard decision. The one thing you wished to avoid in your life is to be considered a failure. Yet you felt exactly like one. Having your parents spend lots of money when their small business barely prospered just so you can later abandon the school was the closest thing you've ever felt to dying of embarrassment. They moved away from their country for you to have better life and now you've wasted a grand opportunity for such. Although they were geniuenly happy to see you back you didn't have it in you to look them in the eyes. This day you swore to pay them back no matter how hard would the work in the kitchen be. You took their responsibilties upon yourself.
- Find a regular job (Gain Slow Metabolism and x10 Shillings)
Thanks to your rather professional demeanor and experience in your family business you landed a job on your first try. At a bar not too far from your previous school. Although you've never mixed a drink before it didn't prove to be too difficult considering your naturally advanced pallet and inherited resistance to alcohol which allowed you to taste and adjust the proportions as needed. You've even got close to a female pianist hired to play there on the weekends. Alas she didn't come to return your feelings, at least not with the same intesity as you would want.You, a hopeless romantic at heart. Not able to bare working in the place which reminds you of a such recent heartbreak you finally decided to return home for even the tiniest amount of comfort. And with no other way avalible to make a good living you took it upon yourself to lead your family business. Not only for yourself but also to repay your parents for having faith in you in the first place.
- Join military service (Gain Poison Tip)
Due to the circumstances of the time there was a huge demand for military service. While you were used to labour and tried not to stand out much your commanders didn't take kindly to your cowardice and artistic background. Instead of preparing for the front lines you were instructed to work at a cantine and clean above your ussual drill exercises. You quickly understood that it was all an effort meant to demasculinize you in the eyes of the other soldiers. Still, you didn't mind. Cooking has always been your way of respite and aside from those higher on the ladder,it was a well known fact that cantine workers were ussually liked due to their connections and acts of service to the fellow man. Above that your easy access to food let you get a revenge of sorts (or rather a prank to humor you and the brach) by causing ussually harmless poisoning and toilet runs. It was acceptable enought life but then you've heard about the possibility that your branch was to support the forces of Eastern Union. Serving people who occupied your parents home didn't sit well with you, so as an act of solidarity you abandoned your uniform and returned home. You father, especially proud of your decision, offered you to take over the family business. Offer which you accepted without much enthusiasm. A man has to earn his keep somehow, and provide for his family after all.
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But then something happened. The blade just felt right in your hands.
Experiences you had in art-school made you more eager to consider yourself the "creative type". Finding solace in the act of creation and expression through food a new flame flickered within you, pushing you towards further trials and experimentation. Above that, in the kitchen ran by your aging parent you felt... Needed.
With that Klikov's family restaurant began to grow something of a fame. Every passing month your costumers seemed more enthusiastic about their visits to your establishment. It just happened by luck that in your most productive days yet a well respected food critic paid you a surprise visit which left him asking for more. Positive review printed on the local papers turned out to be axactly what you needed to be pushed to the new level. This new-gained recognition allowed you to seek guidance behind otherwise closed off kitchen doors around the Rondon.
Not to disappoint once again you spent most of your free time travelling to the distant places in continuous search for inspiration.
That finally led you to develop an interest in the famous Bohemian delicacies, to get a taste of which you've decided to ride to the newly liberated city of Prehevil. Fate of the city giving you hopes to one day venture to the homeland of your parents, if ever freed from Eastern Unions regime.
This journey is supposed to be your longest one yet. How did you prepare for it?
- Stock up on medical goods (Gain x2 Blue vials and Cloth fragment)
- Stock up on food (Gain x1 Meatpie+, x1 Mushroom Stew+ and x1 Wine)
- Stock up on something to read (Gain x1 random Skin Bible)
Finally, your eyelids were getting heavy from all that reminiscing. As the sleepiness crept in you hoped for life to finally get exciting.
Henryk starts the game with: Linen Vest, Knife, x1 additional Lucky Coin and Recepies of the 15th century vol 1 and 2
His additional special ability is: Inpired Cuts which doubles your critical hit and bleed chance from Slashing weapons against enemies you fight for the first time (unique enemies included)