The Black Tempest

[Hunkat]

No longer accepting until further notice

So... you fancy yourself a pirate, eh?

Well... we will see about that. Come right up, step aboard the Tempest, if you dare...
There is more to a pirate's life than grog and wrenches... but you'll see that for yourself soon enough.



Welcome, to the crew of The Black Tempest, or just Tempest for those who know her well.
This magnificent ship if where you will live, eat and sleep for the next few years, shore leave not counted of course.
If you work hard, its mission will be successful and the wealth of the British, Spanish and French will be yours to share among yourselves.
There is a risk of dismemberment or death, but such is life, eh?


This is where we start. The capital of the small Caribbean island of Martinique.
It is under French rule and as such, a peaceful and lawful place.

Which means it is a good place to look for people desperate to get out of there, for one reason or another....

There are a few things you should know before you sign up though.
Firstly, The Charter. These are the rules you will abide to as long as you are a part of the crew.


-No fights on the deck. Perpetrators will be keelhauled.
-No arguing with the Captain. The Captain's word is the law.
-No cheating or stealing from your fellow mates. Perpetrators walk the plank.
-No mutiny. Perpetrator will be marooned.

Simple stuff really. And that is all there is too it, so if you still dare, step right up and let's have a look at you mate.

- - - Updated - - -

Alright, here is how it goes.
Everyone is welcome but this is a high casual RP. That means, I want people to put some effort into it. Spelling mistakes and grammatical errors are fine (within limits) but I want to see that people did not just spend two minutes, making their character grab a mug of ale and that's it for their post. No. This is a world where a dagger in the back is not unusual, you do not just walk into a bar and then walk out again. You're a pirate for God's sake. Drink, gamble, get in a fight! Just do something!

The rules are simple.
You do not start fights in the OOC, you do not start arguing with me if I tell you to change something or that you stepped out of line, you do not godmod, or play Gary Sue or in other ways break the usual rules. It is really simple, just don't be an ass.

There are a few things for characters.
They can't all be women, naturally. That was not how things worked.
I would like a (non-photographical) picture, not just a description. If you really can't find one that works for you, go ahead. But just... do a quick Zerochan or DA search, okay?
Put in whatever you feel needs to be known. I'll let you know if something is missing. Basic data really. And a nice background story.
Not everyone can be crew already, nor a newcomer. Balance it out people.

We'll get to the rest once the IC is in the works. For now, let's just have fun

[Gelatinous Cube]

Reserving myself a spot, will put my CS up tomorrow.

[Gormul]

Aye captain, I'll put my CS up later too! Any sort of framework you want us to work around?

[Hunkat]

Well, as historical as possible (I'm a history nerd). No, just don't be silly, no semi-automatic guns or crazy kung fu skills.
As for positions aboard, we'll just work with a pretty loose structure. No need nitpicking over which rank was worth most at what point in history. Captain on top, shipboy in the bottom, you fill out the rest as you please.

Oh and quirks people. I want at least one per character!

[Hunkat]

Here is a character skeleton for those in need of it. Feel free to do it any way you like.

Captain Anne Bonney

Age:
29
Rank:
Captain and current owner of the Tempest

Personality:
Anne is tougher than more, noting out of line slips by her. She takes no special pleasure in being feared by friends and fiends alike, that is the price of maintaining order aboard the Tempest. When the air is thick with gun smoke and flying debris, she will be found at the front line, taking the worst of it with her crew.
She values loyalty above anything else, the crew is her family, treason is unforgivable to this young scourge of the seas.
In private she prefers quiet reading, though you just as easily will find her drinking and gambling with the men.
Most young men would probably find her pretty vulgar, she swears like... well, a sailor and fights as dirty as one too.

Background:
Of unknown carribean family, Anne lived most of her life on the small islands belonging to the French and at times the British. She never knew her father, probably a sailor on leave but she never asked too much about. Her mother did her best to support the small family, though conflicts, both local and between the Old Nations meant that they never stayed long in one place. Anne was not too unhappy about it though, she felt most comfortable at sea anyway and dreamed of following in her father's footsteps and make a living from sailing.
Just one small problem though... women are hardly welcome on most ships. The sailors believes it brings bad luck and the navy of the respective countries believes they decrease moral and cause trouble in general. This was a great injustice in young Anne's opinion and she swore that she too would be a sailor, no, she would make it to captain or die trying.
Anne left home at the age of 18, going straight to the nearest recruitment office and just as quickly was turned down. She was furious and hit a nearby bar to calm down. Here she heard another story, of a place where women were welcome, if they were ready to work on equal terms. Hard, tedious work, but at a ship nonetheless. Pirates... there your name, family and gender mattered less than your will to make it. So Anne signed up for the first petty pirate captain she could find.
By now she have been on several ships, working her way up, slowly saving for her own ship, though she came to be captain in a slightly unorthodox way. When the previous owner of the Tempest was hit dead square between the eyes by a cannonball, Anne was elected temporary captain... that is almost three years ago today and the Tempest have become one of the most feared vessels sailing the Caribbean sea.

Equipment:
Cutlass and flintlock.
A small pouch of gold and gems, for bribes and fun times.

Quirk:
Swears, drinks, swears. And never sleeps without her lucky teddy.

[RedxXxDawn]

Name: Reya

Age: 27

Gender: Female

Appearance: Standing at five feet-eight inches high, she has bronze sun-tanned skin, deeply piercing blue eyes and a voluptuous, athletic figure with a proud bosom. Her clothes have somewhat rich tones, though a little bit tattered here and there. Her black boots are much longer, thicker, and come up just below her knees. Her coat and outer garments are all in royal blue, deep sea hues with only some being black here and there. Instead of the hat, she wears a blue bandana over her long hazelnut curls of hair. Compared to the rest of her outfit, the bandana looks faded and somewhat out of place. Despite no loner being a captain, she retains that same pride and seeks to find a new hat anyway.

Personality: Tough, tomboyish and commanding. Also honest, hard-working and ambitious, though she can be a bit too strict or serious at times being used to the life of a pirate captain. She can be greedy sometimes, and has a rather colorful language –Especially when she's angry, which is not hard to trigger. She also has the habit of striding as she walks. This causes wooden plank floors beneath her to reverberate the sound in a way that signals her approach, which somehow becomes distinguishable to others knowing it has to be her. Reya also has a drinking habit, and will take a swig of ale or rum whenever she is bored, pondering, etc. etc. And while she is tough as nails, she does have a protective side for her cremates; for her old crew (should she find any of them still alive today) and the new. Also, she is still a little used to being the captain of her own ship, and may forget her place once in a while.

Job: First Mate (if that's okay)

Equipment: Reya carries an iron cutlass and some throwing knives, and is efficient with them in combat, intimidation and even interrogation. She also carries lockpicks, a compass, some tools for setting and defusing traps, a small satchel of coins she keeps hidden away, a pistol with some pellets, and some bottles of ale and rum she keeps tied over her shoulder.

Special Abilities/Skills: Quicker and tougher than she appears, Reya has great reflexes and sharp survival instincts. She is able to pick locks, set and defuse traps, and is a great pickpocket. She is good at haggling, thinking and making choices on the spot, and has a very good sense of direction. She seems to have something of a sixth sense; intuition that can predict a coming storm and other nasty weather. However she thinks little of it and does not consider it an extra sense, often simply calling it a "gut feelin,'" or "just a smellin' o' the briny seas," as she would put it. This 'sense' is not entirely accurate, as she can only give rough approximations of how bad it is, when it will arrive, roughly what direction it comes from and from how many marks, etc. but a huge storm has never come without her knowing. (I can delete the storm sense thing if it sound like too much)

Bio: Born as the daughter of the captain of the Legacy (another ship), Reya had eventually become the new captain of the vessel herself. Not for simple inheritance reasons, that had very little at all to do with her gaining the title. She worked her way up and earned the position as anyone else would have to, as was obvious to anyone who had seen her performance and ability to call shots and make decisions. One day her ship had been wrecked and sunk by another pirate vessel, the Passion Driver, and she was the only survivor as far as she is aware. The whereabouts of the rest of her crew remain unknown, but after being bombarded with cannon fire and overrun by a horde of enemy pirates like that, she would call it a safe bet they did not survive (although she would hate to admit it). Later, she came across the Tempest vessel and their crew.

[Gormul]

Name: Babash Masoud

Age: 38

Gender: Male

Appearance: Babash is of Persian origins, his parents moving from there just after he was born. He is a big man of about 6"6 and 290lb's. Babash' physique is muscular from hard physical labour but also rather large around the middle which adds to the feeling of great size about him. His head is always completely shaven but he sports a large black bushy moustache which he waxes at both ends. Clothing has never been overly important to Babash, most often when at sea he goes shirtless and wears loose pants tied at the waist with chord, paired with leather boots. When in ports or colder weather he has tunics with Persian embroidering around the edges. When shirtless there can be seen many words tattooed on his body in Arabic, but he refuses to talk about these, he also has many bodily scars.

(So I couldn't find a really suitable picture, but hopefully the ones below will fill in some of the blanks. The general physical look is sort of like the wrestler the Iron Sheik, including the moustache and general physique but not the speedos. And those are the kind of tops he would wear too.)

Personality: Babash is generally a very stoic individual, preferring actions to words. He isn't the most intelligent of people and so prefers to use his physical strength to get what he wants. He has a very short temper and if people get out of line they could easily find themselves on the wrong end of one of his massive fists. Babash knows he is not leadership material and likes the chain of command, he is fiercely loyal to his captain and will fight like a demon to protect them.

Job: Bosun

Equipment: Babash carries a large two handed scimitar and blunderbuss, weapons built for power rather than speed.

Skills: Babash is skillful with his blade as he was trained by his father in Persian swordfighting techniques, he is a fairly decent shot with his blunderbuss but prefers close quarter combat. Due to his size and physique he is capable of great feats of strength.

Weaknesses: Whilst his size gives him a natural strength advantage it also means he is not the most agile of people, speed and subtlety are not his strong points. Babash also has limited intelligence and is quick to anger meaning he can often charge into situations without fully thinking them through.

Background: Babash worked as a dockhand from his teenage years before joining the navy, his limited intelligence meant he did not get promoted far in the conventional navy and he was becoming increasingly irritated by being overlooked and his small salary. One day the ship he was assigned to was boarded by pirates, Babash fought fiercely and carried on long after his crewmates had surrendered or died. The captain of the pirates was so amazed by his tenacity that he called for the fighting to stop and immediately offered Babash a place on his ship, thinking this could be a way to increase his riches he was more than happy to jump ship. He was a member of several different crews before finding The tempest, where he was most happy.

[jimi]

(LOL @ the Arabian man in a blue speedo)

((I hope this guy is okay...))

One-Eyed Jack

Age: 40

Rank: None...yet.

Weapons: A cutlass , a flintlock and a dagger.

Personality: One-Eyed Jack is a very stern fellow with a crude sense of humor. He trusts nobody and is quick to slit a throat if need be. When he's not busy being a hardened, adventure-seeking swashbuckler, Jack likes to tip back a few pints and gamble away some coins. Then, kill everyone involved when he loses, laughing and tipping back a few more pints afterwards.

Bio: One-Eyed Jack was born on a faraway island of which he knows nothing about. His father died before Jack was born, leaving him, well....fatherless. When jack reached his teens, he ran away from home, in search of a new life. Stowing away on a cargo ship, he ended up in a small trading village where he gained the knowledge of a fishmonger. Jack spent the next few years in the village, selling fish just to get by. After a while, he became fed up with the deed and began looking for a way out. A friend mentioned that a ship was getting ready to leave for the island of Martinique soon and there would be new opportunity for business there. Jack knew nothing of the island but agreed to go. He and his friend paid their way onto the ship and made the long journey across the open sea.
When they arrived, the island was nothing like Jack had expected. Right away, he wanted to leave but his friend insisted they stay and continue their fishmonger business. A couple of months in, Jack met a couple of swashbucklers one night at the local tavern. Their careless and rowdy personalities immediately captivated him. From that point on, One-Eyed Jack's life changed forever.

((Gahh...I hate writing bios))

[Assallya]

Sarah Covenry

Age: 19
Rank: None
Personality: Sarah is a pampered, selfish young woman. All she cares about is getting even with the upper crust of society by marrying whoever she chooses and by being rich and happy.
Background: Sarah is the daughter of a formerly wealthy landowner in Britain who has fallen upon hard times. As a result she has been shopped around by her father to a number of wealthy men he hopes will bail him out of debt. It was while entertaining these men that she, by chance, overheard talk of a gold shipment and a plan formed in her mind. If she were to partner up with a pirate vessel she could use her share to pay off her father's debt and marry whoever she wished.

[Gelatinous Cube]

Murdock






Age:
27

Rank:
We'll see about that

Personality: Murdock is a man with a checkered history of dubious legality and even shadier morality. Though what pirate wouldn't tell you the same story? When pressed about his past, Murdock will remain evasive and in some cases even become angry. While bloody good with a sword, he is often not the first to draw steel, but always the first to raise a mug.

Background: Murdock was once a naval officer, highly respected and high in the ranks for his age. He had an adoring wife and a remarkable home, and all who saw him would note the perpetual smile on the young officers face.
Like all happy tales, it was to come to a crashing finale. Deception came for him in the night in the form of his beloved Cecilia, who had played her part to absolute perfection. The band of pirates she was in league with ransacked Murdock's home, taking his expensive valuables and leaving him for dead in a burning house. Chance brought him a brave city watchman who pulled him from the wreckage and managed to save his life.

After that, Murdock was changed. He resigned from the Navy and took up freelance work, with the intention of tracking the pirates that had almost killed him and making them pay. His vengeance came to its apex on a stormy night, when he managed to cripple the pirate's ship and finally kill Cecilia and her Pirate Captain lover. After the bloody confrontation, which ended with a delirious, malnourished Murdock drifting onto a tropical shore, fate rewarded him with yet another lifesaver.
He was brought back to health by the islands residents and though he saw a possible life for himself, he could not escape what he had done, nor what had happened to him.

He took up work on the only place he could find it, in the most ironic way of living he could imagine.
Piracy.
He now finds himself in Martinique, dueling men for money in taverns and living from drink to drink.