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Player Character: Harrison "Harry" Taylor 
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Post Player Character: Harrison "Harry" Taylor
Hullo, folks,

One of the things I tend to do when new rpgs come out that I'm interested in running is creating a couple of characters to see how the process works, and to get a feel for the character generation system and see if there are any potential trouble spots in the game. Below, one of the first characters that I created to test the Broken Rooms character creation system.

You can find the complete discussion of the game system rules and stuff for Harry's creation on my blog here: http://jkahane.livejournal.com/763993.html . However, here's the game mechanics and write-up on Harry, without all the discussion aspects about the character:

**********
HARRISON "HARRY" TAYLOR

Character Concept: An architect who has gotten involved in matters pertaining to the parallel worlds after an encounter with his deceased wife.

Body: 3d Def: 3d 3/6/9
Mind: 5d Def: 5d 5/10/15
Soul: 4d Def: 4d 4/8/12
Depth 3d Distance: 2 Momentum: 2 of 4
Armor: 0 Speed: 15 Initiative: 2d + 5

ATTACKS: Fist (0B, 3d@10+)

SKILLS

Professional (7+): Engineering (Civil Engineering), Higher Learning (Architecture)

Trained (8+): Athletics (Golf), Artistry (Drafting), Interpersonal (Persuasion)

Familiar (9+): Athletics (Tennis), Engineering, Gather Information (Research), Higher Learning, Interpersonal, Meridian (Blocking), Science (Horticulture), Transportation (Cars)

Unfamiliar (10+): Everything else

QUALITIES

+ I Can Take It: Despite his seemingly academic looks, Harry's athletic body is quite fit, and his body can take more punishment than it would appear to.
+ Sees It In His Head: He has the raw ability to actually see designs in 3D in his head once he gets an idea of what he wants. 1d bonus to all Architecture rolls.
- Obsessed with Sally: Harry is obsessed with finding the variant Sally, as he wants to regain the woman that he loved. He'll do anything to find her and make her his once more, but doesn't realise that this Sally might not be one to fall in love with him.

M Guardian: Provides a 1d bonus when using the Blocking Meridian to create protective shields or armour. The character can also place himself in front of physical attacks he can see that are levelled against a nearby person he has designated to protect. He gains a 1d bonus to his Defense rolls when intercepting such an attack. He can only designate a single person per combat.

EQUIPMENT

Several business suits; casual clothes; wallet; cell phone; small library of architecture books; survey maps; subscription to Architecture Digest; drafting board; drafting supplies and instruments; state-of-the-art laptop; photo of Sally; other items as needed.


MOTIVATION
Harrison's main goal in life is to bring a little bit of light and brightness into peoples' lives. He accomplishes this with his architectural designs. He finds himself in need of enlightenment himself, and thus he plays golf and has recently taken up tennis. He also seeks to find the variant Sally that he encountered, for reasons that he keeps to himself.

PERSONALITY
Once a very outgoing and social personality, Harry has become somewhat more withdrawn and sharp-tongued. He tends to take a stand more often than not, and has a stubborn streak about things that causes problems in his field work, as he refuses to back down from positions and won't change his mind about his architectural plans. Once a rather unhasty individual in terms of actions and plans, Harry has become more impulsive, but won't take risks.

HISTORY
Harrison Taylor, "Harry" to his friends, was born in Philadelphia to loving parents. He had his three siblings, a brother and sister older than him and a sister younger than him, all of whom were raised with good morals, and his parents doted on their two daughters but treated their sons right as well. Harry was the role model for his younger sister, June, while he looked up to older brother Frank and older sister Claire. The four siblings pursued different careers due to their different outlooks on life.

Harrison developed an interest in buildings and their construction from an early age, enjoying the shapes of various structures as well. This led him to pursue a degree in architecture, and he joined an architectural firm owned by his mentor upon graduation. During this time, he became an avid golfer and developed an interest in gardening and horticulture. He met Sally Travers during the course of his first year at the firm, where she worked as a secretary, and the two pursued a relationship and fell in love. Married six years later, the two tried to start a family (both desiring one, as both came from multi-sibling families themselves), but didn't have any luck in this regard.

Then came a tragic day. While at work on a Saturday morning, Harry received a phone call from the police. He was informed that Sally was killed in a car crash that wrecked the supermarket where she had gone to shop. Devastated, Harry was given some time off to mourn his loss, but when he came back to work several months later, he seemed changed - more distant, less outgoing, and somewhat sharp-tongued. Harry's friends and colleagues tolerated this, and Harry returned to the job he loved so well. But it had lost its lustre, its shine, and his work was never the same. Oh, sure, he was able to create stunning architectural plans and designs, but none of them had that "je ne sais quois" of his earlier work, and none of them won him or the firm awards any longer. Harry chose to eventually leave the major firm that he was employed with, and used his nest egg to start up a small architectural firm, Taylor Designs. Several of his friends at the firm went with him into the new business, and things looked good.

About eighteen months after the death of Sally, Harry finally felt as if he were getting his life put back together. The new business was firmly off the ground, and earning a decent profit. He was starting to come out of his social isolation, and had even started dating again. And then one night, while travelling from Pittsburgh back to Philadelphia by car, the impossible happened. He came upon a car at the side of the road, and there was Sally working on a flat tire! The experience shocked him, and triggered his First Fall. Harry ended up on Earth3, Fall, where a rain of asteroids had devastated the planet, and barely survived his two days there. When he returned to Earth1, Harry found everyone worried about him. He knew that he couldn't tell them the truth of what had happened, but he knew that he couldn't just let it rest. Over the next six months, he didn't see hide nor hair of the other Sally, but discovered a few interesting and odd things about people and their doppelgangers.

And then Regency approached him. The man from the Regency Group, Ellington, offered him answers to his questions, and promised him that he could meet Sally again. In exchange, Ellington wanted his help in saving the Nearside. He explained what the Nearside is, and what he wanted Harry to do for Regency. How could Harry refuse? That was five months ago, and now Harry is a field operative with a Regency team. He's also discovered that he's got a unique ability as well, what the Nearsiders call Meridian or Distance powers. They call him a Blocker, but the one thing that he can never block are his memories of seeing Sally on the road by that car that night, and Ellington still hasn't answered all of his questions. Harry's getting somewhat impatient...

APPEARANCE
Harry is some 33 years of age, stands 5'11" tall and at 189 lbs. has a relatively athletic build. He has an aquiline nose, tan features, dark brown hair cut relatively short, and dark blue eyes. In the office, Harry wears suits and ties in the latest style, but out in the field he dresses more casually and wears a hard hat. No matter what, Harry wears a pair of Sketchers sneakers in a dark blue colour.


MILESTONES

Personal Divergence Event
Harry Taylor's PDE occurred when his wife, Sally, died when a car ploughed into the shopping centre where she had gone to do her grocery shopping. Her death had a profound effect on Harry and impacted his life in so many ways.

First Fall
During a trip from Pittsburgh back to Philadelphia, Harry encountered a woman by the side of the road changing a car tire who looked to be Sally. This triggered his First Fall, and Harry found himself for a couple of harrowing days on Earth3, Fall.

Recruitment
Six months after his First Fall, when Harry wouldn't let things go, a man from the Regency Group, Ellington, offered him answers to his questions, and promised him that he could meet Sally again. In exchange, Ellington wanted his help in saving the Nearside. He explained what the Nearside is, and what he wanted Harry to do for Regency. How could Harry refuse?

-----
Copyright (c) 2012 John M. Kahane. All rights reserved.
**********

Hope everyone enjoys! :)

_________________
"There's a village of Mongrels just over that hill. We need supplies, but remember that it's not just the outside that has been altered..." - Jediah Kane, traveller


Sat Sep 15, 2012 8:58 am
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Post Re: Player Character: Harrison "Harry" Taylor
Great character, John, I saw him posted on your LJ.
The hardest part, I think, is the MPHA, which is really a good thing.


Mon Sep 17, 2012 2:05 pm
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Post Re: Player Character: Harrison "Harry" Taylor
Hullo, StephenH,

Stephen wrote:
Great character, John, I saw him posted on your LJ.


Thanks, mate. :) I figured that you and some of the other folks might have seen the character on my LJ, but there was no harm posting him up here. And the detail on the character is, as you see, quite...detailed. :)

Stephen wrote:
The hardest part, I think, is the MPHA, which is really a good thing.


Yes, the MPHA is a tough thing to do for the characters in the game, to a point, but I think it's a necessary thing, moreso than in Desolation, as the character's MPHA are so vital to understanding the character and potentially recover from being "broken". I still have two other player characters that I created to test the system, and may eventually post them up here if there's enough of a demand.

_________________
"There's a village of Mongrels just over that hill. We need supplies, but remember that it's not just the outside that has been altered..." - Jediah Kane, traveller


Mon Sep 17, 2012 3:12 pm
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