Beast Trainer (Character Kit)

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==Beast Trainer==
Beast trainers work to tame or control wild creatures destined for gladiatorial games. These gladiators use brute strength, cunning, and their knowledge of the animals to accomplish their goal. Many trainers possess a wild talent that is especially helpful in taming or coercing creatures into becoming effective battle partners. The beast trainers also help to control the exceptional creatures brought by the reavers to fight gladiators in the arena. Great skill must be exercised to keep these wild beasts alive until it is time for the games.
Whether slave or free, beast trainers tend to be loners. They often feel a closer affinity with the beasts they tend than for mankind. In the arena, a beast trainer's animal is both his best friend and his weapon of choice. This makes beast trainers outcasts, even among fellow gladiators.
Role: A beast trainer's fame is directly linked to his creature's performance in the arena. If the beast delivers an exceptional battle, the trainer receives accolades and praise. If the creature performs poorly, or dies in the arena, the trainer's prestige plummets.
Beast trainers are occasionally hired or ordered by templars and nobles to train beasts as guards, either for personal safety, or to protect a particular place.
Secondary Skills: Hunter, Teamster (animal handling), or Trapper should be the secondary skill.
Weapon Proficiencies: Blunt instruments are preferred by beast trainers to subdue their charges. To keep hostile creatures at bay (and at a distance), polearms are favored. Beast trainers are free to use any weapons without penalty, but they may only specialize in blunt weapons and polearms.
Nonweapon Proficiencies: Beast trainers receive proficiencies in both Animal Handling and Animal Training as bonuses. Recommended proficiencies: (General) Riding (Airborne or Land Based), Animal Lore, Charioteering, Endurance, Running, Setting Snares, Survival, and Tracking.
Equipment: Beast trainers need to purchase at least one weapon in their specialization, and to spend at least 50% of their starting funds on materials to capture and subdue wild creatures. Otherwise, a beast trainer may spend her funds in any way she chooses.
Special Benefits: Beast trainers do enjoy some special advantages with this kit. First, they gain an automatic specialization in one of the following weapons: club, man catcher, scourge, whip, or a polearm of their choice. This is a bonus, and no slots are expended.
Secondly, since a great deal of wealth and materials are required to capture and maintain wild creatures, the beast trainer begins the game under the sponsorship of an important KTPC. The sponsor may be a templar, landowner, senator, a lesser or greater noble, or even a trading house. Sponsorships are a kind of independent apprenticeship, and they grant certain benefits to the trainer—depending, of course, on the wealth of the sponsor. Advantages may include free room and board, special discounts when purchasing available goods, templar favors, or free travel along trading routes. Upon reaching 5th level, a beast trainer may choose to strike cut on his own, if his master will permit him to do so.
Slave beast trainers are generally well kept by their masters. Possessing special abilities, they are much harder to replace than other gladiators. They can look forward to "special" rewards for a job particularly well done. Free trainers, under sponsorship, always have to pay or reimburse their sponsors a percentage of any monies they earn.
Finally, beast trainers have the ability to form personal attachments with their charges. This ability gives them an additional +2 to their die rolls when attempting to train creatures. The down side of this ability is that the bond of love and respect between trainer and beast requires an Intelligence check to be made if the beast is injured or killed. Failure means that the beast trainer is overcome with grief by the creature s injury or loss, and becomes obsessed with revenge against the attackers. The beast trainer can do little but plot against the killers, however, because the killers are usually gladiators and few of these plots ever come to fruition.
Special Hindrances: To every advantage there is a disadvantage. The same sponsorship that supports the beast trainer can become a dangerous proposition. The failure of a beast trainer can be used to bring shame upon the sponsoring house, making it a convenient target for an inter-house challenge. Rivals may attempt to dishonor the beast trainer or the sponsoring individual or house. To ensure the failure of a trainer, an enemy may try to prevent the return of a wild creature, steal it before it gets to the city, or even poison a beast before an important match.
Repeated failures can cause a trainer to fall from favor with his sponsor. Frequently, low-level beast trainers do not have sufficient funds to capture, protect, or house their charges without sponsorship. Inexperienced freelancers are often destroyed by more wealthy and experienced rivals.
Wealth Options: Prices for captured beasts fluctuate with arena location and rarity of the species. To determine the price of a specific creature, divide the monster's experience points by 100. The result is the market value of that creature in Athasian silver.
Races: This kit is open to any character race indigenous to Athas. Dwarves, halflings, and humans, however, tend to make the best beast trainers.
Special Notes: Smart arena managers keep at least three beast trainers on staff. This allows for the replacement of any trainer injured or lost while preparing creatures for arena combat. Deadly rivalries may develop between trainers of the same house, and these disputes are settled in the arena. Such matches are usually the highlight of any games lineup.
Many trainers have favored beasts; one creature favored by beast trainers is the metallic, doglike creature known as the rasclmn. Rasclinn are quick to learn and they are very loyal, except when hungry. They are easily trained as young pups, but older animals respond well to positive encouragement.
Famous and Infamous:
* Sizzkus: Formerly of Tyr (deceased).
* Beautiful Vanous: Veiled, beast trainer Mistress of Gulg.
* Ular Lael: Beast trainer Mistress; Sojournist, House Omnir.
* Tutoc: Hunchbacked, half-giant beast trainer of Balic.
Category:Character Kit
Category:Character Kit CGH