RQ NPC - The Whistler

Armor: Enchanted robe; 5 AP, 2.5 ENC. Also, long-term 5-point Damage Resistance spell.

Skills: Climb 79, Dodge 95, Jump 70, Throw 75, Acting 170, Whistle 180, Play Flute 99, Understand Language (any) 100, Animal Lore 35, Human Lore 85, Craft: Butchery (Human) 110, First Aid 95, Read/Write Language (any) 99, World Lore 80, Conceal 99, Devise 50, Sleight 99, Listen 110, Scan 95, Search 45, Track 95, Smell 65, Hide 75, Sneak 99

Sorcery Spells (all in familiar's mind): Armoring Enchantment (2) 90, Cast Back 89, Damage Boosting 100, Damage Resistance 95, Drain 110, Enhance CON 90, Enhance DEX 93, Glow 65, Haste 80, Immortality 70, Regenerate 81, Skin of Life 55, Spell Resistance 76, Spirit Resistance 43, Telepathy 101, Treat Wounds 97

Usual Long-term Sorcery Spells: Enhance CON 6 (8 weeks), Enhance DEX 7 (4 weeks), Damage Resistance 5 (16 weeks), Damage Boosting 6 on sword (8 weeks), Damage Boosting 6 on dagger (8 weeks), Damage Boosting 6 on strangling cord (8 weeks)

Magic and Special Items: Pale blue robe (Armoring Enchantment - 5 point armor), black silk strangling cord (nonmagical, but extremely strong), Magic Point Matrix in small granite ring on cord around neck (stores 14 MP).

Familiar: Horrible (aka Sparky the Wonder Dog, aka Jumbles the Parrot) Demon, age unknown (see below)

Appearance: With light brown hair, perfect fair skin, and sparkling blue eyes, the Whistler has the face and form of a Botticelli angel. His behavior is often angelic, too; he frequently lends a helping hand at just the right moment for his friends. His perspicacity seems even more remarkable because of his severe disability; he never speaks, and in fact is psychologically unable to speak under any circumstances. Nor can he communicate by writing, although he is able to read and understand any and all languages. His only means of communication is his extraordinary ability to whistle and act. Although he rarely makes grand gestures, his ability to get across complicated ideas with whistling, facial expressions and restrained gestures is almost supernatural.

He wears a spotless pale blue robe, light brown suede boots, and sometimes carries a leather pouch. At times he is variously accompanied by Sparky the Wonder Dog, or by the always-comical parrot Jumbles. He sometimes carries a shortsword of a strange pale blue metal.

Personality/Bio: Born long ago to noble parents in the far west (note to Glorantha gamers -- possibly the Kingdom of War), the young Whistler-to-be was soon revealed as a very unusual talent. Though apparently unable to speak, he possessed an exceptional gift for magic, as well as great beauty. The finest tutors in the land were summoned to tutor the young genius.

Cut to ten years later, a golden summer morning. Bewildered servants wake to find a room in shambles, and blood streaked across every surface. Only later, after a deeper search, did they begin to understand the true horror of what had happened.

The Whistler is cheerful and good-humored, with a mischievous but not obnoxious sense of humor. He tends to appear and disappear at a whim, and rarely takes anything completely seriously. He values his friends and does his best to help them when they need it. All of his considerable intelligence works to find ways to help those he's interested in—although he rarely stays in one place or with one group for very long. Months might go by between one visit and the next. The Whistler has no known abode. His only known travelling companions are the amazing Sparky the Wonder Dog and Jumbles, the Parrot. For reasons that are made obvious in the final section, only one of his animals is ever around at one time.

Secret: The Whistler is a sociopath and cannibal. He began his career with his parents, and has racked up many other victims since then. Typically he strangles his victims from behind, or more rarely stabs them in the back. He completes the kill by devouring the victim's liver raw (note: this character was created some years before the release of The Silence of the Lambs). The Whistler will never threaten the party, unless a party member becomes incredibly disruptive (i.e. the player has become so obnoxious that s/he must leave the game), and can be killed in complete safety without letting anyone else see. He is very secretive about killing. He has no moral sense (that's what being a sociopath is all about, after all), but he does take friendships seriously.

Familiar: Horrible (aka Sparky the Wonder Dog, aka Jumbles the Parrot) Demon, age unknown

Horrible
(aka Sparky the Wonder Dog, aka Jumbles the Parrot)
Demon Familiar, age unknown

Armor: 6-point leathery red skin. Also, long-term 5-point Damage Resistance spell.

* - On a successful penetration of armor the bite attack injects a POT 10 poison. In addition to normal constitution damage, the bite is extremely itchy and distracting -- the victim temporarily loses percentage points in all skill equal to the amount of damage taken (i.e. -10% if the CON roll was failed, -5% if the poison was resisted).

Skills: Climb 222, Dodge 140, Jump 92, Throw 67, Mimic 113, Speak Language (any) 100, Animal Lore 21, Human Lore 76, First Aid 25, Read/Write Language (any) 57, World Lore 46, Conceal 101, Barf 100, Devise 17, Sleight 100, Listen 94, Scan 88, Search 45, Track 33, Smell 85, Hide 79, Sneak 105

Sorcery Spells: Armoring Enchantment (2) 51, Cast Back 39, Damage Boosting 66, Damage Resistance 28, Drain 75, Enhance CON 19, Enhance DEX 22, Glow 59, Haste 38, Immortality 20, Regenerate 17, Skin of Life 34, Spell Resistance 18, Spirit Resistance 28, Telepathy 100, Treat Wounds 15

Special Natural Abilities: Shapechange to Cute Dog (SIZ 03, APP 17), Shapechange to Parrot (SIZ 03, APP 14), Invisibility (unless attacking), Regeneration (3HP per location per melee round).

Appearance - Real: A horrific, sprightly, red-skinned little imp with wicked claws and a round, fang-rimmed sucker instead of a mouth. Golden eyes without pupils or whites.

Appearance - Dog: Unbelievably cute brown-spotted little spaniel, with floppy ears and a waggly tail. Can sometimes do amazing tricks.

Appearance - Parrot: A wild explosion of brightly-color feathers, showing every hue in the rainbow. A large, comical-looking bird with a large head and beak -- not unlike Toucan Sam of the Fruit Loops commercials on American TV, but funnier. Able to talk and, of course, fly.

Personality/Bio: Horrible was born, or hatched, or whatever by some indescribable and unpleasant process in some horrible place no one would ever want to go to at some extremely dark hour long ago. Other creatures were probably involved, but the details are doubtless too gruesome to explain.

Horrible enjoys tormenting small animals, buying human souls, and ~~Dewar's Scotch~~ other bad things. Turn-ons: Stupid people, small helpless creatures, and Evil. Turn-offs: Getting caught. Favorite Movie: When Harry Met Sally. Last Book Read: The Fountainhead. His Scotch: Dewars

Horrible has a wicked sense of humor, and enjoys nothing more than making fools of people without letting them even realize what's going on. His shapechanging, invisibility, and climbing abilities dovetail beautifully with creative uses of the Telepathy spell to give him lots of opportunities for fun. For example: in a tavern he might use Telepathy to speak as the "voice of the Table God" to an inebriated customer, and persuade them to throw coins under the table as a sacrifice. He is somewhat greedy, and has a passion for honeysuckle liqueur. He often uses his Parrot or Dog disguises to comical effect. As a parrot, he speaks but is careful not to seem sapient. He is evil, but tolerable. He might torment or (perhaps) kill a small animal (a spoiled lap-dog, for example), but will not do anything to provoke a general hue and cry against his master.

Note: The Whistler and Horrible are an opportunity for a GM to have a lot of fun, and show off whistling/acting ability (if any). Believe it or not, but both started as PCs -- yes, Horrible too.

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