Carta Bellamarina forums

Hello everyone, and welcome to the forum.  The intention is that this will  be a useful resource in organising the group and plotting what we want to get up to.

We are hoping to pick up more players before the game starts, and it's my firm opinion that froth begets froth, which is to say that the more we share our awesome ideas for the Carta, the more interest we will generate from other players.  To that end, I'd like to put a "People" section up on the main website to advertise the sort of concepts people are playing.   Please post your summaries up here, and I'll add them to the website.

How is this for a background? 

The truth will not really be known by all; maybe the leader of the Carta. Sorry, I like characters who aren't all they are supposed to be!

Rosario Verzorger de Holberg: History.

The daughter of Frederico Verzorger, Rosario followed in her father’s footsteps, acting as his apprentice in the art of medicine. She grew into a fine lady, and enjoyed court life and the comforts of the nobility. In her studies, she excelled, and finally was sent to join the Carta Bellamarina in Sarvos to do her father proud.

The Verzorger family consists only of Frederico himself and his child. As for the mother, Frederico insists that she died of illness, many years ago.

THE TRUTH

Rosa was a poor girl living on the streets of Holberg at the age of ten. She cannot remember much of her parents, only that she had run away with nothing but the clothes on her back. It was when assisting sick beggars in the poor quarters with dirty bandages when Frederico Verzorger found her. Finding the girl a passing resemblance to his late wife, he took her into his home. Telling all she was his daughter, Rosario, back from living with her aunt.

So Rosario learned to have a family again, though Frederico’s enemies would love to discover that his precious daughter is in fact no such noble at all. 

Alessandro (surname to be confirmed).

Having made a disappointing start in life with a failed venture in the cloth trade and an imprudent marriage, Alessandro withdrew into scholarly pursuits after his wife ran away with an enchanting foreigner. His mind turned to occultism, and although he is a capable magician valued by the Carta, there are various ugly rumours circulating about him: that he is at least halfway insane, that he had his wife and her lover murdered, that he conducts foul experiments in a secret room in his house, and that he has made terrible pacts with dangerous Eternals, and so on. All of these rumours are almost certainly untrue, but they persist.

Updated history: This is the one I'm sending to PD

 

Rosario Verzorger de Holberg: History.

 

The daughter of Fransisco Verzorger, Professor of surgery at the Holberg university, Rosario followed in her father’s footsteps, training in the university in the art of medicine. She grew into a fine lady and in her studies, she excelled. Due to the constant troubles in Holberg, Fransisco arranged for Rosario to join the Carta Bellamarina in Sarvos to do her father proud and keep her safer.

The Verzorger family consists only of Fransisco himself and his child. As for the mother, Professor Verzorger insists that she died many years ago of illness.

 

THE TRUTH

Rosa was a poor girl living on the streets of Holberg at the age of ten. She cannot remember much of her parents, only that they had died on an outlying farm when it had been overrun and she had been told to run to the safety of the city.

It was when assisting sick beggars in the poor quarters with dirty bandages when Fransisco Verzorger found her. Finding the girl a passing resemblance to his late wife, he took her into his home. Telling all she was his daughter, Rosario, back from living with her aunt.

Rosario had a family again, though Fransisco’s enemies would love to discover that his precious daughter is in fact no such daughter at all. 

I like it. Sounds very cool. I will probably also be going down the magic user route.

Guido Tofina di Sarvos

I was born into a wealthy mercantile family, but was orphaned by the storm which drowned my parents homes and holdings in Caricomare.

Taken in by the Church of the Little Mother, I spent much of my childhood tending the Church Herb gardens and helping to fetch and carry for the Church apothecary's. It wasn't the apprenticeship I wanted however. Once I came of age, I found the sea calling to me and contacted some old family friends, taking service on a merchantman of Carta Alivetti.

I worked for many years hauling canvas and tossing barrels until one terrible journey during which our Captain and most of the crew contracted a disaese which weakened and disoriented them.

Thinking back to my time in the Church apothecary and remembering the recipes I was taught, I suggested to the First Mate that I might be able to brew up a concoction that could save everyone, but he refused to allow the precious cargo to be disturbed.

After the death of the Captain and several crew, the ship was on the verge of mutiny, so I disobeyed the First Mate, took a chance and tried mixing together some of the herbs anyway. To my surprise, after all these years, it worked. Unfortunately the First Mate was incensed and cast me down into the bilges, reminding everyone that the lost profits would come out of their wages.

My crewmates had suffered enough and once they had fully recovered they put the Mate overboard in a Jolly boat and released me. We all knew that Carta Alivetti would never let mutiny stand. Being so weak already, we knew the loss of another Captain and Cargo would bring the wrath of the signeur on all our heads, so we went on the run, renamed the ship and styled ourselves free traders.

I stayed with the pirates for several years, studying whenever and wherever I could, trading time and herbs for tuition when we were in port and practicing my craft when on-board, but eventually the guild caught up with us. Few of us survived the attack, and those who did left with nothing.

I worked my passage back to Sarvos and went to pay my respects at the ruin of my ruined family home in Caricomare, only to find the upper storeys had been built over and turned into an art gallery. It was there that I first met Concordia Sforza, singeura of Carta Bellamarina. It didn't take long for me to be won over by her passion, philosophy and determination.

I signed up as an Apothecary, but when a couple of ships became available a few years later, my sailing experience and expertise in the value and quality of herbs from foreign ports suggested me as an obvious candidate for the charter. Since then I have turned enough of a profit to buy the ships outright.

Over the years, I have realised that Concordia is an exceptional individual who could go far, and more than anything else I want to he see her realise her ambition for herself and the guild. It's a year to the day since I swore myself into her personal service and had a ring cast to seal my allegiance, and now we head to Anvil.

Giacomo Aubrellio, Merchant Adventurer.

Was from a long family of bargemen. The Aubrellios of Sarvos had, for some generations, taken their little boats up and down the same river, as per guild Traditions and Regulations, with scant regard for weather, economic circumstances and other such conditions, and were paid the same stable stipendary fee for the same work for the entirety of their existence, and stood together bound by blood and brine with their colleagues, and were very happy for it.

Signor Aubrellio found this pretty dull. So he sold most of the barges, took out a loan, and sailed as many routes as he could to turn a profit. After a time, he used the money to obtain a ship, and see the world. He has recently completed the first voyage of his pride and joy, the Carrack 'Fortitude'.