First, this account is a major work in progress, which is going to take a few months of posting to buy the required bits and pieces to finish it all out. I like to plan my characters out fully, though, and so here are all my plans laid bare. I have qualified where needed that certain items and skills are currently theoretical, until silver has been earned and spent, and I will only be RPing what I currently have.

Character Name: (Captain) Ed Ward
Age: 32
Height: Six feet even
Weight: 190 lbs
Gender: Male
Race: Human
Hair: Red hair, but he shaves his head. He keeps a neat read beard.
Eyes: Light blue
Skin Tone: White, but tanned from being in the sun
Build: Athletic
Weapons of Choice: Knuckle Dusters, Throwing Knives, Skyshard Boomerangs. Ward is not a skilled fighter, and resorts to tricks as much as possible to avoid a fair fight. He is a decent enough marksman, however. He does have an enchanted knife (Veille Mbanja) which he seems to have better accuracy with when throwing.
Eventually, he hopes to find the enchanted sword of his former captain, Glory’s Bane, a magic cutlass (Vilpamolan Cutlas) which has belonged to the captain of the airship Zephyr since its maiden voyage.
Armor of Choice: Ward does not wear armor, other than a battered leather overcoat (Overcoat + Full Leather Armor) which provides him with some small measure of protection.
He has been working on a design for a new coat, with light armor plates sewn into the lining for more protection (Overcoat + Full Witchwood Armor). Ward also has enchanted goggles (Goggle!s!) the lenses of which can be turned to change the enchantment from seeing through walls, discovering hidden traps, seeing extremely far, and allowing him to scan and temporarily remember any text (Combination of Tinkerer’s Goggles, Magic Lens, Silguns Eye, and Heart Eyepatch).
Magical Abilities: Ward has some latest psionic talent, but his bond (combination of Gaes, Blood Bond, Telepathic Bond) with the flame spirit Calcifer has allowed him access to a small amount of fire magic too, which he is still beginning to learn to harness.

His list of powers will eventually come to include:
Animate Object, Arcane Empower, Aura Sight, Breath of Ki, Charm, Concussive Blast, Conjure Food, Conjure Magic Weapon, Disarm Trap, Dispel, Faerie Fire, Fire Ball, Fire Weaving, Flame Shot, Flame Strike, Fog Cover, Gate Travel, Grease, Greater Agility, Heal, Hunter’s Instinct, Incognito, Invisibility, Invoke Familiar, Invoke Flame Spirit, Lesser Agility, Magic Script, Magic Unlock, Mind Tower, Minor Levitation, Minor Telekinesis, Parvpora’s Sight, Replication, Reveal, Safe Passage, Spectral Arrow, Spectral Blades, Strength, Summon Companion, Summon Item, Telepathic Bond, Teleport, Telepathy, Gaes, Blood Bond.
It seems like a lot of magic, but it just means he will eventually come into his psionic powers, and Calcifer will give him access to much greater magic ability. If his bond with Calcifer is ever severed, it will mean he will lose a lot of this magic.

Special Techniques: Ward is a bit of a dirty fighter, and he isn’t all that great with flashy magic. He is good with using what he has got. If he has to fight he will use a combination of knuckle dusters and boost his agility and strength with magic. If he can fight from afar, he will. He will use throwing knives or boomerangs, using a small boost of strength and agility, and then throw in some telekinesis, to make tricky shots or make them hit harder. After throwing, he will summon the projectiles back to himself (Summon Item/Magic Item). If something prevents this, he has begun working on magic projectiles (Combination of Concussive Blast, Spectral Arrows, and Spectral Blades) which look like ghostly throwing knives.
He is working on more utility spells, like Incognito, Invisibility, Fog Cover to make his life easier, and build up his trickiness and versatility.

Calcifer: Calcifer is a flame spirit which Ward met while trapped in the spirit world for the last few years. Now they are back in the physical world, Calcifer is permanently bonded to Ward’s soul. Calcifer resides within a special lantern (Steel Bound Lightning) and ring (Anima Ring) crafted by Twinkle. The lantern needs to be guarded closely to prevent anything happening to Calcifer, and the ring provides Ward with a more solid link Calcifer’s power.

Backstory: Ward has a pretty standard backstory. Son of an airship engineer, he tested his boundaries as a child while his father was away, getting into trouble and driving his mother crazy. Through his time with street urchins and other nefarious characters, Ed learned the basics of crime. CRIME I saw. Crime. Pickpocketing, gambling, breaking and entering, running cons. He learned a lot, but none of it good. When caught in a compromising position with a nobleman’s daughter, Ward’s parents decided to get him enlisted somewhere to teach him responsibility and remove him from a delicate situation.

Ward’s father managed to get his son a position on a respected airship, but during the standard tests it was discovered that Ward was a bit of a difficult placement. He had just enough magic that it was agreed he needed training, but not enough to be a battle mage. A compromise was made where he would be trained as an officer, a position where his magic would not necessarily be wasted, but where magic was not exactly a necessity. Four years, he was told he would need to serve.

The next four years Ward spent in airship officer training. Ward tried to pay attention in class, and learn the basics of magic and command, but he spent a lot of time running gambling rings and conning others out of their family money. As his own family wasn’t exactly well off, it was a necessity. After four years his training was complete, and Ward thought his time was up. He slipped out one night, not wanting any emotional goodbyes. Unfortunately he was labeled a deserter, and that is a continuing issue with the authorities.

Full of excitement and a little knowledge gained over his time at the academy, Ward decided to try and cash in on his skills. Air piracy, while not the most respectable careers, had the benefits of not putting you on the front lines like the military, a more laid-back approach to discipline, and higher profits. It took some time, but Ward found himself on the good ship Zephyr under Captain Stone. Life was good and Ward was able to work his way up through the ranks in the crew, finding a comfortable spot as the treasurer/quartermaster, and became a close confidante to the captain. Then the captain disappeared, and there was a struggle over the position of captain. For a week Ward was able to hold the position, but then after a rowdy night of celebration after taking a particularly good prize, Ward woke up alone in a dockside tavern, his crew having disappeared with his ship.

Ward, lost and abandoned, began a series of adventures which would see him making new friends, forming a new crew, and gaining a sailing vessel. The people in his new crew were genuine friends, and not just a band of pirates brought together by circumstance. Things were looking up for Ward, despite his refusal to give up on finding his airship, until a mysterious figure sent him into the world of spirits.

For the last four years Ward has been trapped, trying to find his way out, while his crew has been searching for a way to reach him. In the spirit world Ward found a fire spirit, Calcifer, who agreed to help him for a price; His soul. With no other options, Ward agreed. Their bond formed, and Ward has had a series of misadventures as he has searched for a way out, and for the identity of the one who trapped him, and the reason why.

Relations: Ward has not visited his family since he was forcibly enlisted in the military, and has cut off all communication. His crew has grown since he woke up alone that fateful day.

Peabody, Human Butler (Noble)
There are some men who are born into service, and Peabody (nobody knows whether this is his first or last name) is one. Well into his forties, Peabody has spent his life in one form of service or another. Towering over most men, his is six foot six, and his body is all lean muscle. His hair is kept cropped short and neat, once deepest black but these days there is more grey in it. He has a stiff mustache, fully grey, kept meticulously, and his eyes are the color of polished steel.

Peabody is a skilled fighter, though he will tell anyone who listens that those days are behind him. His weapons of choice are a rapier and throwing knives. He does not wear armor, he is a butler, not a soldier! He does have a little magic, he is the one who taught Ward how to combine minor psionic skills to augment fighting skill. He can increase his strength and agility, and uses a combination of telekinesis and summon item to guide his throwing knives and recall them. When out of knives, he uses his own version of magic knives (Arcane Empower and Spectral Blades). His word is his bond and cannot be broken. He has sworn an oath to serve Ward, and this cannot be broken (combination of Gaes, Blood Oath and Mind Tower).

Peabody was the son of a butler in a noble household, and raised from birth to be the replacement for his father when the time came. This would have been great, something Peabody had no problems with, but fate had other things in mind for him. A rival family arranged for an assassin to pay a visit to the house and remove all who lived within. When it came to the child of the butler the assassin had a moment of pity, and instead took him and made him an apprentice.

Peabody never forgave the assassin, and after his fourth attempt at revenge the assassin left a now older Peabody behind in Adeluna. Peabody, with only the skills of a killer and a butler at his disposal, was unsure how to go about becoming a professional in either career. Passing a naval recruiter, the young man decided to enlist, and spent more than twenty years serving with an impeccable record.

Retirement left Peabody feeling lost and in need of purpose. A chance encounter with Ward left Peabody with a sense that there could be more to his life. Falling back on his ingrained butler skills, he joined Ward as his manservant, agreeing to follow him on his journey, and swearing himself into Ward’s service.

After Ward’s disappearance, the rest of the crew looked to Peabody for direction. The butler took reluctant charge of the ship, creating a small shipping and transport business to fund their search for their missing captain.

Twinkle, Stone Construct, Mage.
Twinkle is a construct of Dwarven proportions, only four foot eight tall, but slender. She does not technically have a gender but identifies as female, and she appears to be made of black opal with faint veins of blue and white, and glowing emeralds for eyes. She does not talk much, is terrified of water and heights, and loves animals, especially cats. She is obsessed with cats.

Twinkle is a mage of water and air, and the veins of white and blue glow faintly as she uses water (blue) and air (white) magic. She does not use weapons, but will eventually have a crystal staff (Irian Staff). Her own skin is her armor (Combination of Stone Skin and Full Dragon Plate), and she wears blue robes which are far too big for her. She will eventually have access to the following magic: Acid Rain, Air Meld, Arcane Empower, Commune with Beasts, Concussive Blast, Dust Devil, Earth Weaving, Fog Cover, Hurricane, Invoke Familiar, Protection, Tornado, Tsunami, Water Meld, Water Weaving, Wind Weaving. She has one spell she loves above all others, which lets her summon cats (Cereus).

She does have some special powers because of her race. Heat and cold do not affect her (Acclimatize), she does not breathe (Breath of Ki), her mind is harder to impact with magic (Mind Tower), and her eyes are infused to allow her to see in the dark and better able to see magical effects (Combination of Magic Lens, Aura Sight, Parvpora’s Sight, and Reveal). She is also very strong (Strength).

Twinkle was created to be the assistant and companion to a skilled Dwarven engineer, smith, and artist. The old Dwarf was lonely, and he had the knowledge and skill, and so Twinkle was born. She was happy, and she learned a lot, but he was old. When he passed, she did not know what to do, and simply waited in his workshop for many years, sitting in place, unmoving. Then she was found by unsavory characters, and sold into slavery as she had no experience with the world outside of the workshop, and did not know how to defend herself.

Her new master, a collector of interesting slaves, put a limiter (Combination of Weaken and Shackles) on Twinkle, restricting her powers, allowing her only the most minor of water and wind magics. Nothing she could use to free herself, or others. The Master (his true name was never used in front of slaves) soon grew bored of his new toy, though, and decided to see how she would fair in gladiatorial combat. Sent to an illegal arena, before her first combat (she hates violence, it would not have gone well), she was inadvertently freed when Ward led a revolt of the slaves, freeing them. The Master escaped, and only he knows how to remove the restriction to Twinkle’s powers.
Joining Ward, Twinkle was able to use her powers to help their ships travel more quickly through the water. She also adopted the ship’s cat, and has since begun adopting more, and befriended multiple sphinxes. After Ward’s disappearance she continue to train her magic and aid in the shipping business, to give them an edge over their competitors, and help to find Ward.

Celeryx, Aquatic Kobold, Fighter.
Celery is a young warrior of an aquatic kobold tribe. He is just shy of four feet tall, his scales are a sea-green, and he has yellow reptile eyes. His limbs, including his tail, are all long and powerful. He is naturally (Lesser Agility), can see in the dark (Parvpora’s Sight), has naturally armored scales (Stone Skin), adjusts quickly to changes in climate (Acclimatize) and can breathe under water (Breath of Ki). He can also talk to animals (Commune with Beasts), and has heightened senses (Hunter’s Instinct). He is known by his companions as Celery.

His weapons include an enchanted trident made of giant insect pieces (Combination of Stinger Rapier and Beetle Horn Tonfas), a spider silk net (Net and Web), and a buckler. He also has armor made of giant insect pieces (Chitinous Armor), taken after a great battle. Eventually, through his training with two dragons (Shyrus and her companion), he will learn to harness his latent draconic powers. He will be able to become stronger (Strength), faster (Greater Agility), and harden his scales (Mythic Polymorph and Full Dragon Plate).

While out hunting, Celery was caught up in a fishing net. Unable to escape before being towed to land, Celery found himself in a strange city, with no concept of the language or people (he had never seen a city before). The locals saw only a savage beast and overpowered him. Unsure what to do with the angry dragonkin, they sold him to an interested party, who in turn sold him to the Master, who immediately saw in him a fighter for the gladiator matches. Celery fought for his life for a long time before Ward showed up. The human, unafraid of Celery, instead enlisted his help to free the slaves from bondage.

Celery remained with Ward after that, despite Ward offering many times to help him find his home. Celery, is bound by his draconic nature to follow Ward until he has repaid his life-debt to him (Gaes and Blood Bond). After Ward’s disappearance, Celery vowed to become stronger, to better aid in the search and rescue of Ward, which is how he wound up in a training montage with dragons.

Fieri, Dryad, Ranger.
Fieri is a Dryad, a spirit of nature and creature of the forest. She is currently trapped within a human form, until she is able to remove the bond the Master placed on her (Shackles and Weaken). In her human form she is a beautiful woman, five foot nine tall, slender, with red hair and green eyes.

Fieri is stronger and faster than the average human (Strength and Lesser Agility) and able to tap into greater speed when needed (Greater Agility). As Dryads are of the Fae, she cannot touch iron or steel. There are some other racial effects, some she still has access to, and others which will not be available until her powers are unlocked. She is able to adapt easily to different climates (Acclimatize), breath underwater (Breath of Ki), see in the dark, and auras, and more easily detect magic (Combination of Aura Sight, Reveal, Parvpora’s Sight) and has heightened senses (Hunter’s Instinct). She is able to Commune with Beasts and Nature, and her word is binding (Gaes and Blood Oath). As a Dryad, she is able to change her appearance and shape (Combination of Incognito, Polymorph and Mythic Polymorph), and harden her skin like thick bark (Stone Skin).

She wields an enchanted bow (Ethereal Bow) and bottomless quiver (Yoyuki’s Quiver), as well as an enchanted whip and scythe (Reaper Scythe and Rose Whip). While she currently wears Chitinous Armor and an enchanted leaf cloak (Leaf of the World Tree), she will eventually also have Full Witchwood Armor.

Fieri will eventually have access to the following magic, mostly nature, when the limit is removed from her:
Astral Projection, Botanical Growth, Disarm Trap, Earthbind, Earth Grasp, Earth Meld, Earth Weaving, Elder Trees, Faerie Fire, Insect Swarm, Invisibility, Invoke Earth Elemental, Natures Fist, Spectral Arrow, Summon Item, Telepathic Bond, Telepathy, Web.

As a Dryad, Fieri is bound to a specific tree, they are one. She can take a physical form separate from the tree, but if one should die, so will the other. Fieri is still young, as was her tree, and had not come fully into her power, which left her vulnerable. People who deal in terrible things look for Dryad tree to imprison the spirits or harvest the wood. When they came across a young tree, small enough to transport, they restrained Fieri in iron and dug up her tree, taking it to ensure her compliance. This saw Fieri taken into captivity, bound by the Master to limit her power, until she is able to break her shackle and recover her tree.

Trapped in physical form as a beautiful woman, life as a slave was unpleasant at the best of times, a nightmare the rest. Fieri refused to be broken, and after enough acts of defiance she was sent to the fighting pit to die. Only, as a Dryad, Fieri is a protector of the forest and knows how to fight. Instead of being executed she turned the tables, and soon became a fan favorite. She was a part of Ward’s plans, and as a Fae she became bound to repay him for her life, and joined his crew.

After Ward disappeared Fieri became determined to become stronger and more powerful. She went to find the Fae to train her and wound up in a training montage with a crazy little fairy, until she felt able to return to the mortal realm to look for the Master, her tree, and help in the search for Ward.

Stella Quartz, Dwarven Lawyer, Noble
Stella Quartz, sometimes known as Squatz, is a Dwarven lawyer from a minor noble family. She is of average Dwarven build, with dark brown hair and eyes. As a Dwarf she is stronger than the average human (Strength), can see in the dark (Parvpora’s Sight), and has an affinity toward seeing magic (Aura Sight).

Stella had a pretty normal upbringing, for a noble. Low down in the family hierarchy she was not expected to become an engineer, smith, or warrior, and so she was instead encouraged to pursue law as a profession, to help with patents, mining rights, and other such things. She was good at her job, but too curious for some peoples’ tastes. She found herself framed for a murder when she began investigating a Dwarven cartel, and found Ward willing to help her clear her name. Unfortunately, despite evidence to prove her innocence being provided to the authorities, she and Ward did not have more influence than the Cartel, and so Stella was not cleared of charges and instead banished to the world above.

Since then, Stella has joined Ward’s crew, through lack of any ideas what else to do. She is often lost in the madness, but since Ward’s disappearance she has found herself again, excelling at helping Peabody with the new business. She hopes that, if they gain enough political power and recover Ward she may one day return and end the Cartel.

Former-Admiral Shyroh, Human Chef, Mage.
Shyroh is short for a human, and heavyset. He has long grey hair, and a long grey beard, and brown eyes. He was once an Admiral in Nishokki, but having served his whole life he decided to retire and pursue his dreams of becoming a world-famous chef. His problem is that he was very good at his previous job, and has made enemies across the world, and has struggled to find one place he could settle down in for long. He met Ward after booking passage on The Guy, Fieri, and enjoyed his time with the crew, and hasn’t left them since. He still has his old Irian Staff, though has not used it since retiring.

Shyroh is a fire mage, though he has not fought for years. He will eventually have the following magic:
Acclimatize, Arcane Empower, Aura Sight, Concussive Blast, Explosion, Faerie Fire, Fire Ball, Fire Breath, Fire Meld, Fire Weaving, Flame Shot, Flame Strike, Hellfire, Lesser Agility, and Rain of Stars.

He does not use weapons or wear armor, and he uses his powers mainly for food preparation.

Bones, Revenant Surgeon, Healer.
Bones is not his real name, but it is what he has been called for years across the ships he has served on. Bones is a Revenant, a spirit of vengeance possessing an undead body, until such a time as he is able to exact his revenge on whoever killed him. His problem is that he has been cursed and his memories of his previous life stolen (Memory Flux). His is tall and gaunt, his flesh withered, his hair gone, his flesh pale. As a Revenant he is stronger than the average human (Strength), his body does not feel changes in climate (Acclimatize) and he does not breathe (Breath of Ki).

While Bones does not remember his life, he is still able to use the same healing powers he did in life. He will eventually have the following spells:
Arcane Empower, Archcure, Archprotection, Aura Sight, Cure, Dispel, Greater Banish, Greater Heal, Heal, Holy Light, Lesser Banish, Mass Dispel, Mind Tower, Noble Sacrifice, Protection, Resurrection.

Bones awakened on a ship full of corpses, and no recollection of what had happened. Within him is a burning desire for revenge, but without his memories he can only tell when he is getting close to the person he has come back to kill. The problem is that the changes in this feeling are so subtle that it does not really help him. Ward and his crew came across the ship and found Bones aboard. He agreed to come with them, if they in turn agreed to help him recover his memories.

Since Ward’s disappearance, Bones has found himself following the necromancer Llewellyn, aiding him in his searches for their captain throughout the spirit world and land of the dead.

Llewellyn, Dark Elf Necromance, Clergy.
Llewellyn was the final member to join Ward’s crew before his disappearance, but he feels no less strongly about finding the captain than the others. A Dark Elf, Llewellyn is tall, lean, and handsome. His skin is faintly blue, his hair pure white, and his eyes red, and he tends to wear flowing black robes, which does nothing for his coloring. Llewellyn’s familiar, much to Twinkle’s delight, is a ghost kitten, and he is also followed by the ghost of a mammoth. He has a staff made of bone (Irian Staff).

Llewellyn is a member of a cult dedicated to a god who is not of this world. The members of the cult cannot quite agree whether the god has left the world, or is yet to enter it, but they have all been raised from birth to believe in this deity of darkness and death, known as The Nameless One, The Forgotten, or The One to Come, depending on who you speak to. It’s a confusing cult, but that is why it hasn’t hit it off as a major religion. That and the lack of a physical god in a world where gods walk the earth.

A powerful mage, Llewellyn will eventually have access to the following spells:
Animate Dead, Arcane Empower, Arms of Bryn, Aura Sight, Blighted Wilderness, Blood Memory, Blood Oath, Blood Weaving, Bloody Rebound, Corpse Skin, Curse, Drain Essence, Invoke Abomination, Invoke Darkness Elemental, Invoke Demon, Invoke Familiar, Invoke Sanguine Elemental, Invoke Spirit, Mass Paralysis, Midnight Terror, Mind Rot, Mind Tower, Necrotic Whispers, Pain Spike, Paralyze, Poison, Profane Sacrifice, Sanguine Thread, Shadow Puppet, Taint Weapon, Unhallowed Graveyard, Weaken.

Llewellyn was happy growing up in a cult, he didn’t really know any different. You got up, did daily worship, learned about the dead, some sorcerous training, more worship, go to bed and repeat the next day. All was good in the world bordering the living and the dead. Until someone from the outside stumbled across their little underground community, and suddenly it was all “Burn the evil dead-worshippers”. Llewellyn and his family were separated in the following commotion, and as he was being chased through a forest he stumbled across Ward and his crew, who were definitely not in the middle of smuggling contraband. They took him in, and he has been with them since.
Since Ward’s disappearance, Llewellyn has been searching the worlds of spirits and the dead, with the aid of Bones, his familiar, and a magic hookah.

Fleet and Crew
Before and after Ward’s disappearance, he and the crew have slowly been amassing a small fleet of vessels and loyal crewmembers. The following are a combination of the ships they have and will eventually have:

A Horse Drawn Carriage, pulled by the horses Clip and Clop. This fine vehicle provides fast and comfortable transport to lucky passengers.

The Pride of Carnelux (Skiff), a little one mast boat and the first vessel in the fleet after Ward was left abandoned by his former crew. The previous owner has wanted to name it the Pride of Canelux, but there was already a vessel registered under that name.

Spirit, Bone, and Blood (Skiffs). Named by Llewellyn for this three favorite things, these small one-masted vessels were acquired by Llewellyn through methods nobody questioned in the weeks following Ward’s disappearance. He claimed the crew would need to be able to split up to cover more ground, but since then they have begun a part of the business.

The Guy, Fieri (Caravel), a slaving vessel which was requisitioned, renamed, and repurposed by Ward. After taking care of the slavers, Ward and his crew used this for their many adventures.

The Ocean Dryad (War Galley), the warship Bones was found on. Seeing an opportunity, they crew disposed of the bodies with full naval ceremony, and then kept it. No use wasting a good ship.

Celery’s Fist, and Celery’s Tail (Caravels). Named as a dare, these ships will be the most recent additions to the fleet, bought to improve the shipping business Peabody has built.

Horde of Cats. There is a simple truth in life, and that is the fact that every ship needs a cat. Stubble is a black cat, doted upon by Twinkle, and the first of many. Pumpernickel soon joined the crew, and six others (one per ship) have come on since. Every ship needs a cat.

One unit of Skirmishers, the slaves from the fighting pit who decided to pledge themselves to Ward and follow him. Currently aboard The Ocean Dryad.
One unit of Spearmen, the mercenaries originally hired by Ward as part of his plan to free the slaves from the fighting pit. They decided to stick around, and currently crew The Ocean Dryad.
Three units of Support, each unit crews a caravel, getting it where it needs to go.
Two units of Skirmishers, split across the four skiffs, these light soldiers were trained to fight in case they would be needed.