Tuesday, January 26, 2021

Nick the Pike, a reintroduction

Who doesn't love a "let me tell you about my character" blog post?


After a disastrous battle, Niccolo found himself unemployed, and friendless after his unit was taken out by some demon thing.. Scrounging what he could from the battlefield and the destroyed pack train, he fled. Never wanting to feel his life thrown away for some faceless lord, he decided to strike out on his own, and seek his fortune where no one could order him into some hopeless battle.

In the years since, Nick has found himself delving numerous dungeons, taking portals with startling frequency between realms. He’s never quite sure what world he’s on anymore, having literally been to hell, fighting in the skeleton wars.

After trying his skills adventuring, he heard a herald calling for contestants in a tournament, but only those of higher station could participate. Knowing how the world worked, he paid the lord who’d organized the event to knight him. Thus Niccolo, aka Nick the Pike, became Sir Niccolo de G’plus. Spending some of his hard earned gold, he purchased a jousting mount, jousting armor, and hired a squire and a herald, and so began the tourney phase of Nick’s career.

Between events, there were other adventures, including a wedding at which his squire was torn limb from limb by a werewolf, and one of his men at arms, Boarface, took leave of Sir Nick’s service. Nick still feels guilty about his squire’s death, and has become even more protective of those in his service. At the same wedding Nick drew several cards from a Deck of Many Things. He was granted a wish, which he has not claimed, and is also watched by an other worldly being who bares him great malice.

Between the demon that launched his adventuring career, the various horrors he’s faced in sprawling dungeons, the violent death of his squire at a wedding, and the frequent feeling of being watched by something unnatural, Nick frequently wakes up in a cold sweat from the nightmares.

To see him is to be generally unimpressed. Somewhat on the short side for a human, and a bit stocky, his stubbly worn face rarely smiles. As a bit of a snub towards his purchased station, he keeps his hair cut down to near stubble, causing “real” knights to avoid his company. He dresses simply in sturdy and fashionable clothing when not adventuring, and in plate armor that looks too fancy for the wearer. His kite shield is painted red, with a white cross of equal lengths that doesn’t quite reach any of the edges of the shield. A stylized portcullis is framed in the top left quadrant, and a black pike stretches from the bottom left quadrant to the top right over the white +. He still carries his old pike, but will drop it to favor his ax with glowing blue runes.

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