Name: Sakurako Amano
Mug:
Sprite:
Race: Human
Class: Thief Trainee > Outlaw > Assassin
Character Skill: Gamble
Gnosis: Ferrum (Heaven)
Personal Fault: Overbearing Familiarity: Sakurako cannot initiate combat against Merchants or their promotios.
Personal Skill: Ambush Hunter: If Sakurako is fighting an enemy that is not adjacent to any enemies, +10 Crit.
//Personal Skill: Infinity Crushes Zero: If Sakurako is adjacent to an ally, +2 DMG
///Personal Skill: We Never Sleep: If a supported ally is attacked in the enemy phase, Sakurako gains +10 Hit and Evade until their next turn.
Preferred Stats: Speed, Luck
Weapon Profs: Hidden (E) > Hidden (D), Bow (D) > Hidden (C), Dagger (A), Bow (C), Longbow (A)
Total Level: 1
Level: 1
HP: 16 (50%) +1
STR: 4 (50%) +1
MAG: 0 (0%)
SKL: 4 (60%) +1
LCK: 4 (50%)
DEF: 1 (30%)
RES: 1 (30%)
SPD: 4 (60%) +1
CON: 4
AID: 3
MOV: 5
Combat Arts:
Furious Stab (Hidden): 3 QL, +3 MT, 10 Hit.
Monster Hunter: 3 QL, +3 MT, Eff. vs. Monsters and Undead.
Waning Shot (Bow): 3 QL, +4 MT, after combat, inflicts -3 DMG on the target for 1 turn.
Gnosis Art: Assassination Art [Tekkōdan]: Forgoing fine control in favor of pure speed, Sakurako exerts control over her metal weapons to violently launch them into the enemy. For the next combat, the benefits and drawbacks of Gamble are Doubled.
Gnosis Burst: Assassination Art [Tekketsuenzetsu]: Drawing upon the power of her Gnosis further, Sakurako exerts control over the closest sources of metal to tear them out, and force them into a spinning mass of metal dust, fragments, and the odd blade before sweeping it through enemy lines. All enemies within a 3-square row with its center adjacent to this unit's takes twice of Sakurako's AT as damage to the lower of RES or DEF. Tekketsuenzetsu's damage can critically hit.
Bio: For as long as Sakurako could remember, she had been captivated by the tales of adventurers. Raised in the outskirts of a Hokutan town, she entered town only weekly, traveling there for supply runs with her father. It would be these weekly visits she would learn to relish, giving her a chance to speak to the adventurers of the local guild (in practice, little more than a trumped up group of mercenaries and caravan guards) who would regale her with stories of their travels, along with the local children who often spoke about her father’s mysterious past, whispering rumors of the supposed heroism, or despicable villainy of the hermit hunter.
In time as Sakurako grew older those weekly visits became twice a week, then thrice until the young hunter began to spend more time in the forests honing her skills, or in the town learning more about the adventurer’s life than she did at home. This of course, did very little to endear herself to her father, who had up to this point, quietly hoped that all of this would be little more than a phase in her long youth.
Deciding that enough was enough, Sakurako’s father tried to sort her out by setting the record straight, and sitting down with her one night to talk about his past in detail, in a way he never had before. He had hoped that this would be enough, that after realizing that he was exactly what he seemed to be, a competent if entirely unadventurous hunter who simply wanted to be left alone, she would grow out of it so to speak, and stop chasing after her childish dreams.
Unfortunately, by this point the truth did little to dissuade her, she was long past needing to believe in such baseless rumors after all, and if her bloodline contained no great heroes, or adventurers of note, that simply meant that she would be the first. She would make her father proud one day, whether the old man wanted to or not.
Eventually, they both realized that they needed more space, and she left to strike out on her own, with little protest from her father other than a gentle sigh, and the assurance that she could always come back if she needed to. It made her smile a little to hear that, even if they both hoped that it would never come to that.
Having spent most of her life training to become an adventurer, and hearing about their exploits, it was only natural for Sakurako to try her luck, and join the ‘Adventurer’s Guild’ herself. Only to find that she was both overqualified, and unprepared for the job at hand. The mercenaries she looked up to throughout her youth spoke of heroism and adventure, of daring deeds and the clashing of blades, and pointedly not about the long days and weeks spent marching through well travelled routes while absolutely nothing happened, which made up the vast majority of their ‘adventures’.
Still, to her credit Sakurako stuck to it regardless of her initial impressions, and strove to remain every bit as passionate and dedicated about her work, as the adventurers of her youth
seemed to have, and with that dedication came a certain reputation that only grew over time.
To her clients she was one of the best that money could buy. Loyal almost to a fault, she was
dependable, someone you could rely on time and time again to stand and fight where most would simply flee. To her more pragmatic coworkers, she was a keener, someone who
tried too hard, and yet seemed to miss the finer points of mercenary work regardless. They were here to get paid after all, not to lay down their lives for a single caravan.
Even as the years dragged on, Sakurako's desire to explore the world never quite went away despite the relative mundanity of her guild work, and she continued to dream of a life outside of Hokuto. The thought of saving up enough money for a trip to Amatsu to study the martial arts, before striking out down south to find her fortune in the merchant kingdom of Izumo kept her moving forward everyday as she pushed herself to reach beyond what she, or anyone else in her family had achieved.
And perhaps it was that desire to excel that drove Sakurako towards obtaining her gnosis, as on one fateful day, when a well planned ambush left a caravan's cargo and occupants in the hands of surprisingly competent bandits. Sakurako chose not to cut her losses, and attempted to convince the remaining guards to stay and fight with her to save their charges. Their response was mixed of course, they had already suffered defeat at the bandit’s hands that day, and few were keen to face them in battle again so soon. But most were still willing to
consider a rescue, at least, until Sakurako herself returned with news of the camp’s defenses.
By then they had no choice but to reject it outright, they were expecting a motley collection of tents after all, not a veritable
fortress. Even disregarding the numerical advantage the bandits held, the palisade encircling their camp, and the wooden tower propped up in the center seemed enough to stop them dead. With no way into the camp itself save for a heavily guarded gap, and the tower serving as a clear vantage point to spot them from afar, it seemed all but impenetrable for such a small and under equipped force as theirs.
But despite it all, Sakurako wasn’t deterred, because she had something more than her convictions this time, she had a plan. A plan that could turn the tide, and quickly at that, that supposedly risked little for the other mercenaries than their time, and could
certainly net them all a nice and hefty bonus after all of this is over. All they had to do was
wait for now, and prepare to strike after she had ‘cleaved a path open for their advance’.
Of course, the other mercenaries weren’t expecting much at the time, the keener could talk big all she wanted, but nothing short of an army could breach those walls, or as it turned out, something that could take one on. One thing the others never understood about Sakurako, is that she wasn’t merely grandstanding whenever she stood her ground, or spoke of her desire to surpass the heroes of the past both in deed and virtue. No matter what it took, she would become a legend in her own right, even if it meant becoming past tense.
What happened next is unclear, as unfortunately it is in the nature of every warrior present on the winning side of a 'great' battle (Sakurako included) to embellish every now and then, and perhaps overstate the importance of certain actions. But what is known is that through sheer luck, or perhaps skill, the bow wielding mercenary managed to lead a Shriyo to slaughter, and live to tell the tale. The terror, and confusion caused by an angry, overgrown lizard slamming straight into their camp to chase after a frankly ecstatic young woman distracted the bandits well enough, while the rest of the guards set to work on hacking or sneaking their way into gaps in the wooden palisade.
With an angry lizard to their front, and a highly motivated mercenary force breaking in from all sides, it didn't take long before the bandit force crumbled under pressure, leaving a heavily wounded Shiryo to face off against the last men standing. Sources of course differ on
who landed the killing blow, with Sakurako swearing up and down that she personally slew the beast with a single silver gnosis empowered thrust after it backed her into a corner, and the rest of the band making their own claims for that honored role. But what is known is that after an apparently 'titanic' struggle, the motley band of mercenaries found themselves wounded, exhausted, and perhaps a little traumatized, but victorious nonetheless.
Despite all odds they had saved the caravan, and they went above and beyond to do so. The sheer thrill of it all almost made up for the long journey to town, and the men they had lost on what should have been a routine job. And with everything said and done, after the celebrations were over, and she had time to recover, Sakurako simply counted her savings, and went to the guild for her next job, intending to travel throughout the empire one quest at a time in the hopes of becoming a hero worthy of the gnosis she had received.
In time her travels would take her to Sangonomiya, where the glory seeking adventurer would find relatively stable employment in the service of the Kamisato clan. Having been convinced by one of the ‘rebellion’s many recruiters to join easily enough, as her own journey throughout Hokuto had allowed her to witness its seeming decline first hand.
Inventory:
Steel Dagger D 1 5 6 80 15 35
Author
Topic: FEF: Chains of Horai (Recruitment Closed, 11/11) (Read 6613 times)