[CHAR] The Wicked, The Weird, The Ugly. (Western/Horror.)

[shankyshank]

I hope this is appropriate. I can modify details if need be.

Name: John "Irish" Peterson
Gender: Male
Age: 47
Faction: Freemasons
Deity: Judeochristian God (Deist)
Major Talent: Ritual magic, especially divination
Minor Talents: Research, gunsmithing, especially production of specialty ammunition

Background

Born in 1818 to an upper class New England family, John was immersed in the arcane from an early age. His father was a prominent Freemason, though not of the hunting variety, and encouraged his eldest son's entry into the fold. John studied dead languages in university, and his familial connections let him pore over obscure, dangerous texts at will. He dabbled in magic of all kinds, eventually finding a particular talent with divination, the art of seeking and identifying people, objects, and supernatural beasts. On his induction into the Freemasons, he was put to work in their various petty wars, using his talents to locate enemy strongholds and identify infiltrators. He rose through the ranks, and joined the hunters, putting him for the first time into the line of fire, so to speak. Despite his nerves, John proved useful, able to expose weaknesses in the foe through his research, and he became adept at manufacturing weapons to battle the lesser beasts that could be hurt by such mundane tools. At the outbreak of the Civil War, he was put in charge of a small team dedicated to hunting down vampires, werewolves and other creatures on both sides, with the aim of keeping the war from spinning further out of control and disrupting Freemason plans. Here John came into his element, the advent of modern firearms a natural medium for his tinkering. Silver bullets, garlic-infused hardwood shot, cold iron, and hypodermic shells filled with holy water kept him and his men alive.

Tall and gangly, John's red hair earned him the nickname "Irish" from his rougher compatriots, though he's mainly of Scandinavian descent. He wears clothes suited to travel, well-worn but of high quality; jeans, boots, flannel shirts, and a leather duster, topped by a broad hat to protect his fair skin. He also wears glasses that he has enchanted to see through weak illusions, but they're imperfect and holding onto them is a point of pride more than anything. He travels with a large case that holds his tools. John is armed with a cartridge-converted Colt Dragoon that's meant for defense against mundane threats, but he can load it with specialty rounds if need be. His main hunting tools are a pair of coach guns that live in his tool case. He was ordained as a priest in an obscure Christian sect, and their faith lends power to many of his creations. Unfortunately for John, he is a middling shot at best, and would not survive long on a hunt without backup.

When the threat of Cadia became apparent, John was sent alone to Colorado to determine the extent of her influence. He's well-versed in the lore, but only what was available to him in the order's libraries.

[Blue Demon]

William "Bill" West

Male - 35
Faction
The Lost Brigade
Deity
God/ Lutheran
Major Talent
Swordsmanship
Minor Talents
Outdoor survival and Card sharping

Bill was born 1830. His family was of middling wealth. Unfortunately for Bill he was born fifth. He had two older brothers and two older sisters. His eldest brother was to inherit the family business. His second oldest brother, the one closest to him in age joined the church as soon as he could. His sisters were married off as business deals. By the time he was old enough to walk he knew his destiny wasn't at home. Taking that revelation to heart he became a solider.

Bill ended up in the American Army for a time. His parentage granted him an officer's commission, yet he was placed further out west because of the little influence his parents had. Bill, of course, was okay with this. His unit routinely skirmished with the Rednecks. When the government decided that to sign the Homestead law in 1862, Bill and his unit was sent to protect the pioneers.

Tragedy befell his unit and the men and women they were protecting. To this day Bill cannot recall the events clearly, just the screaming. When he finally staggered into a small town he collapsed and remained insensible for days. When he awoke he learned all his men were dead. Bill never returned to the East; leaving the Army to believe he died with his men. Instead Bill set off to make sense of what had happened to him.

Within a few months Bill was found by the Brigade and was extended an offer to join them. They'd help him find out what happened in exchange for his service. Bill signed up after a little hesitation. It was only after they told him he could help others not suffer as he had that he agreed.

[Thaddeus Dron]

Character Image

Name Thaddeus Alexander Dron
Gender: Male
Age: 30
Faction: Jacob's Lament
Diety: A strange, fervent version of Christianity, in which God's punishment for original sin is repetition. Mankind is doomed to live over and over and over again, sinning and wallowing in its own filth until released from the Original sin. This creates a rather amoral landscape for his twisted mind. Dying, just means restarting the same nightmare. Killing, means letting someone else restart. The more pain one endures in life, the more penance given to God.
Major Talents: Rifles
Minor Talents: Charisma, Silver Tounge
Background: Thaddeus took part in the civil war, though being a black man during America's Genesis provided him an interesting perspective on the faith he was being forced to digest. He watched men his color (some he considered family, from village he'd heard of, others as strange as the accents on their tounge) tortured and murdered for the slightest offense. It was passed down in his family that their tribes had incurred betrayal and wrath as a matter of course: they were here, in this condition because God willed it so- and as God willed it, so must it be. His particular master (before he met his demise) was sadistic and cruel, though of course it was under the guise of doing the Lord's work. Savages had no souls, he'd say- punishment for their incest and their wicked ways. Thaddeus learned quickly that men needed to suffer in order to appease God. So once freeing his master of the burden life presented him, he began killing the other members of the plantations, freeing them from slavery, freeing them from pain forever. They would have the chance to start anew- with new bodies in a new life.

Once war broke out, Thaddeus immediately enlisted, where he met conflict on a wider scale. He was trained as a rifleman, though it was never thought he'd be able to fight. Seeing the futility in this newfound expertise in dealing pain and suffering to other mortals without an outlet to hone it, he abandoned his post and killed his way West. It was on his bloody trek that he met a representative of Jacob's Lament. There was an easier way to gain attrition, he learned- something darker than the heart's of men to destroy. For this, he would tame his urge to wipe the slate clean. For this.. he would become a weapon.

[Commodore Robot]

Alexander Beauregard III

Name: "Colonel" Alexander Beauregard III
Gender: Male
Age: 35
Faction: The Lost Brigade
Deity: Baptist(struggling)
Major Talent; Quite accomplished with pistol and saber
Minor Talents: Horseback riding, well educated
Background: Born to to a wealthy family of the Louisiana planter gentry in 1830, Alexander had a privileged upbringing to say the least. His family owned an expansive sugar plantation which raked in massive profits in the antebellum period and guaranteed great wealth and influence for at least 3 generations of the Beauregard clan. Alexander's father ensured for him a world class education by international tutors from England, France, and beyond. Only the best for the next head of the Beauregard household he said. For his part Alexander was a studious youth who took to education like a catfish to the bayou and to this day speaks fluent French, Greek, and Latin. Alexander enrolled at West Point like his daddy before him and graduated reasonably high in his class. The military education and his well connected family saw him getting a comfortable commission in the Cavalry where he served for the remainder of the antebellum period. When the War Between the States broke out, Alexander was one of many officers who sided with their home states over the national government.
Throughout the war Alexander was a true poster child of that southern grit and honor, leading many a dashing charge and advance. His meteoric rise could be attributed in equal measures to nepotism, genuine skill, and the sniper's bullet clearing he path for his ascent to the rank of colonel in the Army of Western Louisiana. It was after the Confederate victory at Mansfield that Alexander's conception of the world came crashing down. His cavalry had been given the task of harrying the retreating union army through a thick wood and set upon it with fierce determination. What they found however truly lacked proper definition. What was supposed to be an understrength battalion of Union infantry cut off from the remains of their army turned out instead to be the stuff of only the most twisted nightmares. Men and the remains of men hanging in pieces from the trees, entire platoons flayed and stitched into macabre new forms, but few of these poor souls were dead. They had been warped by something into hideous ghouls, and those things that had warped them still strode among them. Alexander remembered his youth spent down in New Orleans, the stories he heard whispered by slaves and freeman alike about Voodoo, angry spirits and vile curses and a whole measure of devilry, but none of those stories could compare to what he witnessed before him. He made a mistake when he tried to stare directly at one of the Things that walked among the ghoulish soldiers, immediately his mind was overwhelmed by a terrible malevolence, he remembered screaming out the orders to retreat but after that everything was a blur. There was the sound of gunfire, of gnashing teeth, steel meeting flesh, the screams of man and horse, and other sounds that he shudders to even attempt to recall. By the time they had cleared the wood they were no longer a battalion of fine horsemen, they were a ragged group of less than 100, most of whom could barely keep in their saddles. His after action report was a single line of troubled script, "Enemy found in greater strength than expected. Battle was met. Losses severe. Request 2 weeks leave for survivors."
Alexander never spoke about the events of the wood again, but they never left him either. He found it hard to sleep at night, the memories of that horrible day replaying forever in his dreams. He became overly paranoid even around his own men, always looking over his shoulder for some unseen threat. With war's end, Alexander had hoped to return home to a quiet life, only to find his plantation burned to the ground, his family left paupers by the ravages of warfare. With nowhere to turn he was extended an offer from a curious individual, somehow word of what had happened in the wood had gotten out and this curious fellow wearing the uniform of the US cavalry had managed to track him down to a cheap inn down in New Orleans. He was told of the Lost Brigade, of their mission, and of things that go bump in the night. He signed on without hesitation, he'd spent long enough running from the monsters of his dreams, maybe it was time they do the running for a change.

[Rhymer]

Name: Alban von Dittersdorf
Gender:Male
Age:Born 1829, Aged 36
Nationality:Austrian
Faction:LightBringer
An organization that sprung from the remains of the Templar and Hospitalers, this organization while Catholic originally, have come to take in anyone of christian faith so long they are dedicated to the cause. They are witch hunters foremost, apt at rooting out cultists. They see Cadia as Lilith, and mean to put a end to her. While, throughout history their faith put them at odds with members of other organizations such as the Crescent Order, they seem to have mellowed a little bit.

Deity: Roman Catholic
Major Talent:Marksmanship
Minor Talents:Theology,Swordplay
Items: Revolver,Colt Model 1848 (Dragoon), Rifle .22 Frank & Wesson(2-Trigger Model), Ammunition, Dueling-Knife, Crucifix, Rosary Beads, Bible, Journal, Map of Colorado Territory, Leather Satchel, Austrian Money, American Money(Federal),Cigars
Background:
A native of the Austrian Empire and a veteran of the various wars and revolutions in Europe after 1848, Alban von Dittersdorf found himself recruited by Baron Alexander von Bach, the Minister of the Interior to serve as a bodyguard and become a member of the Lightbringers.. Alban gained experience fighting the forces of evil until 1859, when he was forced to flee to the American Midwest after von Bach's removal and an assassination attempt on Dittersdorfs life. Pursued by an unknown malevolent force, Alban made his way to Colorado by 1865. He awaits further instructions from his order, the Lightbringers.

[Noxious]

Name

Cocheta "Koe-SHAY-ta"

Age; Sex

Twenty-two; Female

Faction

Children of the Lynx

Dieties

& Gitchi Manitou or Tabaldak; the Great Spirit & Master of Life
& Wisakedjak or Nape or Coyote; the Trickster & Transformer
& Old Mother Lynx; the Teacher (( & Others ))

Talent

Tracking; Stealth & Archery

Background

Becoming one of the Children of the Lynx is truly becoming a new child. Your identity prior to joining the group is unknown, undiscussed and wholly irrelevant. The elders watch and train the younger children, given to the group for a multitude of reasons. They create family units without marriage or childbirth, both being forbidden within the group for obvious reasons.

When you appear helpless the cannibal rabbit will come as a friend, when you stray from the light the wendigo will come in the dark, and then the true evil, the madness, the nameless things lurk just outside of perception. The Old Mother Lynx will teach you to grow claws to fight with, give you instincts to hunt with and the cunning to track with. She would learn to be invisible and not afraid. She learned that loss was natural, even if the cause was not.

In her preteens she started venturing on close range hunts, mostly used for collecting information, learning to track, but also listening to rumors. They often followed rumors, whispers, murmurs. As she got older they followed them further and further. She learned the deafening thump of a wendigo's rotten selfish heart and the fleshy lumps left behind by skin walkers. She also learned that not all rumors were true.

Rumors are what brought them here. She secretly hoped they weren't true, but there was no denying it. As soon as they entered the area there was something tickling all the wrong nerves. Her group broke up, she was headed towards the town to see if anyone knew anything.

Other

& Loves telling and hearing stories.
& She's also a bit of a pyro.