Spoopy Scary

Who Wants To Go On An Adventure!!! (FULL)

<Snipped quote by Spoopy Scary>

No, it won't change any decisions, I just don't like him as a person. But I like you, so why would I make you suffer because your character is a dick?

@Kronshi

Okay, thanks! Forgive my suspicion, I've been with a couple of very bad DMs in the past. I just typically don't look at character at face value, so even if a character is a dick, I can still come to like them for their values.

@Spoopy Scary Kelvin would appreciate the deftness, if he had ever really met the man... xD Not much interaction between them yet.

@The Wanderer

The perfect business partners. Kelvin will be his go-to man for his supply of explosives.

Who Wants To Go On An Adventure!!! (FULL)

@Spoopy Scary I'm gonna knock your lights out. Is that ok?

@Voltus_Ventus

I hope you don't mean literally, because that'd actually be keeping a merchant from conducting business, which is the point of his chosen profession.

@Spoopy Scary Is it bad that even I hate Arastoph?

@Kronshi

As long as you don't let it affect your decision making as some other DMs do. I have to ask why though. He doesn't explicitly know that the hat belongs to Alula, and while this method of haggling is quite underhanded, it is perfectly viable and even pretty effective as you can see with Alula. We're just riding out the few bumps in the road before we integrate him into the party. By that point, I've every confidence that he'd be a very useful member for making the party money to buy the supplies they need.

Upon meeting, I agree I wouldn't like him as a person, but I could also appreciate how clever and sly the man is.

Who Wants To Go On An Adventure!!! (FULL)

Arastoph rolled his eyes at the child. Was the thing brain-damaged? Actively walking up to a group of strangers, and then sleeping next to the largest man there? And then this... this thing, this cretin has the audacity to look at him and trying to decipher meaning of his own existence? Labeling him as evil? Nay, evil was subjective. But even amongst subjectivity, mankind was the true evil of the world. He was just now labeled evil by an ignorant little child, when he was the product shaped by mankind's hand. He pointed out the young girl that had come through last night and asked if they were together (an absurd assumption, obviously, as helmets do not associate knights of the same order). This grabbed the attention of the girl, and she too had approached.

She had marched towards him, her face angry and her eyes were literally glowing. His hand subtlety moved to touch the grip of his stiletto out of suspicion.

"Born into this world, pure and yet hated." She said. Arastoph blinked. The girl continued, "To attune for crimes never committed. A full life never to live."

At this moment, Arastoph was slightly disturbed, and very much irritated. He scolded, "if you wouldn't mind, the both of you can keep the preposterous divinations to yourselves."

The girl, once appearing angry, looked soft. Then subsequently neutral. Surely there was some damage in this one, much as there was in the child. However, she did something unexpected; she motioned towards the hat resting on Arastoph's shoulders, which was kept from falling with a last-minute modification made of a strip of wool. She showed him a coin purse and nudged. Ah, so already there was a business prospect? Interesting.

Unfortunately, there was more than one monkey in the group. Another one, the one with the glowing eye (who Arastoph had assumed had no reason to distrust him, and though he was simply being an ass) approached him with some bread and used a peculiar skill that made his voice sound as though it was right next to his ear. Granted, not expecting the speech impediment present in the half-elf's voice caused the trader to miss most of what he was trying to tell him. But the general message was clear: "don't take the money, or else". Arastoph rolled his eyes. He played out the scenario in his head. This man walks up to a merchant, tells him not to conduct business appropriately as the merchant is wont to do, and threatens the merchant if he does. Arastoph simply laughed to himself softly. He didn't fear a crippled monkey, especially not one so harebrained, and especially not in the presence of the paladin, Carver. While they may have gotten off on the wrong foot, he was sure that Carver wouldn't let anything happen outside of what he deemed moral regardless of who was the victim.

He overheard the girl asking the fool for more bread. An entertaining idea entered his head, that selling the piece of bread offered to him to the girl would be the ultimate dismissal of his threats. That and he didn't trust food handed to him by strangers. Especially by a stranger who had threatened him. If poison were the case, giving it to the girl would sure draw him out on his intentions. But in the case of taking these people's money, Arastoph had no qualms. He didn't identify with them. He wasn't one of them. He was a merchant. One who fabricated a life lost. He didn't owe these people anything. Perhaps he'd sell the bread after he dealt with the girl and the hat.

'Conducting business is how I've lived my life, and that isn't going to change because a jumped-up elf got pissy. These people are as much patrons as anyone else.'

Despite the warning, Arastoph accepted the whole coin purse into his hand, and began counting the pieces. Not too terrible much, but he was surprised to find this kind of pocket money in a group of vagabonds like this one. He counted up a total of a hundred sixty-five pieces. Not bad. The hat may not be worth that much, but none of these people knew that. They couldn't determine the value of an item like he could.

"One hundred and sixty-five pieces?" Arastoph asked, sounding somewhat pleased. "That isn't a bad offer. Though this hat and its craftsmanship does seem rather valuable. I apologize, but I think I could probably fetch a better price someplace else. Perhaps even in the next town over."

Who Wants To Go On An Adventure!!! (FULL)

@Spoopy Scary I had kinda just assumed, since he is a cold, manipulating, door-to-door salesman who would sell my enemies a knife to stab me with.

@The Wanderer

But he'd also sell you medical service after you were stabbed. There's profit in everything.

(and asexuality isn't synonymous with unscrupulousness or goes hand-in-hand with it, for the record; in this case, it is coincidental)

Who Wants To Go On An Adventure!!! (FULL)

T-this merchant! He is utterly immune to the woman 0.0!
*plots to bring Arast's sexuality over*

@Kimiyosis

I forget to mention his asexuality in the sheet!

I mean, it's just as good to drop the bomb here, but I wanted to clarify so it doesn't look like I am power playing.

Who Wants To Go On An Adventure!!! (FULL)

Arastoph lended the women a courtesy glance and nod, but remained uninterested in the woman's advance. Indeed, his sexuality was that of an odd one, even in his youth, lacking most if not all sexual attraction to the people around him. Howe'er, with his view on mankind as a whole, finding an attraction in others outside of sexual appeal was a futile effort - and neither was he keen on advances upon the beast races. Still, shooing away the woman was hardly worth the effort, and for what gain? He'll let her advance as she pleased, assuming it fell within the realm of his own consent. Contact? Not even close.

"I've obtained a formal education," he answered Suki, "the subject is hardly complex."

The paladin, while not relinquishing his evangelical death grip upon the gnome, was at least willing to let others express their opinions freely. In that, there was some respect to be held, albeit expected from the better of paladins. He still felt the majority of the order was remarkably unintelligent, taking all things into consideration - or unwise, at least.

When Carver broke the news of his visitor that night, Arastoph barely held back a laugh as a snide comment or two came to mind.

"Oh, Carver!" Arastoph bemoaned. "I did not think you to be the type to sleep with children. I suddenly feel less guilty about requesting monetary compensation."

Who Wants To Go On An Adventure!!! (FULL)

"A celestial body." Arastoph piped up, intervening on the conversation; and hopefully end the religious conversion before it began. Worshiping the light was cute and all, but what kind of man would he be if he let the knight take advantage of a little boy like that? Er-- gnome. How old was the wee guy anyway? Regardless, Arastoph had one thing that the others didn't: a formal education befitting of a noble (perhaps, with time and money, Arastoph could make himself a noble in due time - imagine that!).

"Telescopes, the creation of which prompting due thanks to the world's scientists, can allow you to look at the stars and see they are like that of the sun. Granted, we do not know what they are made of yet, but I doubt their making is magical or divine."

The trader tipped up the wide-brimmed hat he had scavenged last night, revealing his face from the shade it offered. Light bags formed under his eyes. Nothing severe, but he had spent the whole night doing little more than closing his eyes. A man like him can not sleep among strangers, especially as suspicious of him as they were. Granted, he fared it better than most would, but it didn't make the experience any more pleasurable. He found that there were a couple of people that had joined their crew amidst the night. A young boy, and a girl. Assuming that the watchman had not grown lazy and fallen asleep, he had let them in, indicating he recognized them. Their party was larger than Arastoph had first anticipated. With larger groups come greater solidarity and variety of perspectives. A larger group was much more difficult to manipulate, but assuming he can get just a few to trust him, he should be well off. Even if the monkey and pious knight didn't.

"I believe we are better off accepting that there are beneficial consequences of its product, like of the trees, than to humanize it... but that's just my take on it. Decide what you will, wee one."

Who Wants To Go On An Adventure!!! (FULL)

<Snipped quote by Dragonbud>

Just because he has the appearance of a child, doesn't necessarily mean he is a child

@Kronshi

Generally speaking, that's exactly what it means.

Who Wants To Go On An Adventure!!! (FULL)

Only human, of course, that was likely where their value fell short. Only human. Though, he had to wonder - did the brawler come back out only to argue with him, then go back to bed once more? Was arguing with a supposed refugee so important to him? A supposed refugee who had supposedly lost so much? It was adorable, to say the least. Now, back to business... with Carver. He felt that his delivery was smooth and tactful, yet the paladin seemed to have interpreted his words in such a different way. Taken at face value instead of being contemplated upon. Indeed, these holy knights were valued for their initiative, though Arastoph felt they were too quick to act. As the paladin stood at his full height, raining his anger down upon the merchant, Arastoph held his composure but at least kept his eyes wide with intrigue and leaned back - if not to avoid the spittle from the knight's rage as he flung his coins at his lap.

He watched the paladin retreat into his tent, annoyed at how poorly negotiations went this time around. Arastoph sighed aloud, then spoke up in a calm and easy voice, in his attempt to temper the paladin's ire.

"Perhaps I should have clarified, Carver... but clarifications or no, I wouldn't have expected you to be so naive as to jump to conclusions so quickly without asking me to explain myself. Money is required if I am to rebuild my life. Money is the only thing that our society cares about. Without it, I'm as dead as I would have been back in Ravenwood."

Arastoph paused as the reality of his previous situation sunk in. He really could have died.

"I just ask that I receive the resources that would allow me to rebuild. As much as I would love to spend the rest of my days grieving over my parted kin... I will make it a mission to carry on; if just for her."

He ended his explanation there, not expecting an answer back from the paladin. He hoped, at least, that the knight would hear what he said and consider it. Sleep on it. Arastoph looked around the camp that had suddenly grown quiet. He never was much of a sleeper. Less so outdoors, and less so among strangers. Especially if one or two of those strangers distrusted him. The most he will be able to do this night is to rest his eyes, and listen to the excited activity of the forest.

Who Wants To Go On An Adventure!!! (FULL)

Just as soon as Arastoph fucks Carver out of all his money.