Jacob Satomi

> "*No, we won't add legacy support for you. It's an expensive, suboptimal solution; ultimately a waste of time for us both. Upgrade your end to something we can work with before calling again.*"
> ― Jake, to a potential customer
>
>

**Jacob Satomi** (who goes by just "**Jake**") is a Metal dragon from Novascaena with a quiet, impassive demeanor that masks a sharp intellect, carefully repressed emotions and a cynical outlook from being taken advantage of one too many times.

Both his business and personal life are characterized by a) strict demands on himself and others and b) rapid progress, often through unorthodox means. He's a strong wielder of the Metal Elemental Arts, and can "cast" a set of traditional spells through artifice. Beyond that, his main skills relate to signal processing systems, high-energy equipment, and innovating by combining ideas from both conventional technology and the arcane arts.

## Appearance

Jake is a dragon with light gray skin made up of fine, dull metallic scales, short black hair that's always in disarray, amber reptilian eyes, and polished silvery horns. The fins on the sides of his head are about 2/3 the size of the average hand, and don't seem to serve a purpose except to cover the long, pointy ears behind them.

Jake's wings have horizontal span of three times his height when spread, and a vertical span from head to just below the knee at rest. The tibial/lunar part of the wing (the main support) is the same color as the rest of his skin, but the wing surface is lighter and somewhat leathery. His tail is roughly 3/4 of his height and is partially prehensile—just enough to hold it out of the way and/or aim it as a Natural Weapon when needed.

### Attire

Jake usually dresses comfortably and (relatively) plainly in clothing tailored for shoulder wings and mobility. His accessories vary based on the needs of any given day, but he usually wears silver multi-purpose "channeling" bracelets, a pair of custom Gloves of Storing, and a "Heavy Haversack" to hold tools and other items.

For business, Jake wears the conventional pressed slacks and button-down shirt; nothing *too* fancy, but formal enough for most cases. In other situations, he wears blue jeans and a lightweight shirt (usually with some shamelessly geeky design), or something more athletic if he won't need the extra cover (e.g. lab work).

### Details

* Horns are prostheses with faint circuit patterns etched on them.
* Nose is reptilian with slits.
* Fins are mostly vestigial and have no aquatic use.
* Everyday carry accessories are usually Heavy Haversack backpack, custom Gloves of Storing, metal staff and silver "channeling" bracelets.

### Specifications

 **Eyes:** | Amber / reptilian w/ tinted secondary eyelids

## Personality

In addition to his repressed emotions and cynical outlook, Jake is stubborn and methodical to a fault, which is usually enough to hold his curiosity and short attention span in check. He's rather slow to trust new people (for good reason) unless they've proven themselves to be honorable. He doesn't naturally empathize with others, but does his best to treat everyone fairly and hold up his end of agreements or debts.

Jake prides himself on excellence earned through a mindset of continuous improvement—a standard to which he holds himself and his subordinates. He has no qualms with utilizing potentially controversial but more effective and/or practical means to an end, as long as it's not illegal or evil.

### Traits

 **Quirks:** | Fakes/avoids eye contact, speaks quietly and sometimes oddly, walks away from boring conversations, only cares for social conventions if required to further a goal/plan, and can almost never sit still. Judges merit harshly, but not other things

### Drives and Obstacles

* **Goal(s):**
	+ To explore new science, build new things with it, and make a profit by benefiting others
	+ To optimize his daily routine and business practices for maximum efficiency
* **Motivations:**
	+ Work: the satisfaction of building cool and/or useful things that haven't been seen before
		- Travel: he gets restless cooped up in an office, CEO or no. And he can go alone.
	+ Adventuring: on weekends, the wilds are a good setting for testing new developments
	+ Self-augmentation: accelerates work, increases safety, and opens up new potential for Metal Arts
		- "Integrated" or grafted with aid of enchantments. No rejection problems.
	+ Combat training: conscription baseline, plus obvious Metal applications for defense
		- Peregrine's various dangers keep everyone on their toes
	+ Career: it pays, and the work involves a lot of fun exploration and research
		- It helps people live better without having to interact with them directly
* **Obstacles:**
	+ Social illiteracy/anxiety, occasional inarticulation
	+ Strong reliance on pre-planning and routine in daily activities to function
	+ Cynicism towards newly met people or those who haven't proven themselves honorable

## Connections

### Affiliations

Impetus Corporation (owner and CEO): calls the shots, but avoids appearing as the "public face" or anything that would lead to personal attention in public. To Jake, the company functions as a layer of insulation that also serves to help turn his research into marketable, reproducible designs that in turn are sold to fund more research.

The Peregrine Mages' Guild (member, partner, artificer): occasionally hosts classes or workshops in exchange for discounted bulk supplies and rights to sell products through the Guild's own market channels. Has access to the lab spaces, but prefers to use his own at Impetus unless demonstrating an experiment using standard equipment as part of said classes or workshops. Also visits occasionally to look for new talent, as many other companies do.

### Family

* Parents: Charles and Janelle
* Siblings: Zachary and Michelle
* Daughter: Lumi (of a sort)

### Friends and Foes

**Knows:**

* **Xano, Zephyr**: witch quest (day 4)
	+ **Serushi** was the so-called "evil witch", but the misunderstanding was cleared up
* **Kel/Xav, Tara, Trace, Xano**: Asphoxia's rift (day 5)
	+ **Asphoxia**: has seen Catte, and knows about Stein's crimes against them
* **Asphoxia**: as Unnamed Disguise in ramen shop (not recognized as Phox by him) (day 8)
* **Jhora**: factory noise quest (day 11)
* **Maren**: spotted by and fangirled at by her one night at the Mage Guild (day 14)
* **Maren, Anore, Carden, Kim**: showdown at the Adventurers' Guild vs. Algos\* (day 14)
	+ **Rachel** barged in at the end and annihilated Algos... along with the rest of the building
	+ Afterwards, Jake got the unconscious Rachel a room at Peregrinn to recover in, then Lumi took over
* **Lucas Jones:** Met at the Mage Guild library. Jake was hyper-obsessed with research at the time. (day 15)
	+ **Vil\*:** Saved by Jake and Lucas after tripping a deadly book trap.
* **Dimitri Barronmore:** Encountered leaving an abandoned theatre after a nearby gang gunfight. (day 16)
	+ **Marston\*:** Was set up for failure, but saved by Jake and Dimitri. Is now a double agent.
* **Chrys:** An benign alien visitor who is very bad at blending in. Gave him some alien "wound paste".
* **Laney:** A street urchin who can hopefully put their arcane talents to legitimate and legal use.
* **Carden Malcruz:** Apparently he wants Jake to help with the rifts. Fair enough, but no shady business.

### Favors Owed

* To Unnamed Disguise (Asphoxia) for an escape route via XM portal during a mental break
* From Vil, for saving him in the library.
* From Marston, for saving his sorry butt from his own gang boss. He's a double agent now.

## Skills and Abilities

### Innate Abilities

* **Elemental Affinity (Metal):** a natural sense and influence over metallic substances
* **Energy** specialization: extends to conducted energies and electromagnetism
* **Flight:** he gots wings, and grew up using them in an often windy vertical mountain city
* **Inertia Control:** sudden/vertical takeoff/landing, midair maneuvering
	+ **Blink Dash:** < 15 ft (4.6 m) charge/stop in any direction, e.g. for dodging or ramming

### Skills

* **Artificing:** A combination of engineering, magic and Metal affinity to craft items
	+ This includes "regular" engineering, magical devices, or a combination of both
* **Martial Arts:** Recreational since an early age, but focused on combat since conscription
* **Programming:** Known for robust system design and implementation
	+ Specializes in signal processing, AI/ML and system modeling
* **Rifles:** Can use them well enough, but hasn't drilled on coordinated tactics

### Metal Arts

Magic-aided weapons/items are listed under Equipment below.

* **Common** abilities for all Metal dragons:
	+ **Charged Armor**: scales absorb medium damage and can seal bleeding
		- "Absorbs" damage by rebounding upon impact, but effect must be active
		- Reacts intensely enough when pierced to cauterize and staunch bleeding
		- Also has a small (30%) chance to reflexively stun melee attackers (100% if held)
	+ **Elemental Barrier** blocks and/or dissipates energy that attempts to cross it
		- The shield works in both directions, so blocks Radio/Radar and Magnetron
		- Electricity, radiation and metal kinetics are "free" to neutralize
		- Other elements like physical, fire, acid and pure magic take effort to repel
	+ **Metallokinesis** exerts force directly upon metal, regardless of iron content
		- Force exceeding what can be carried needs a nearby metal brace/pivot
		- Kinetic energy can also be translated to and from *Flux DisTorsion* below.
* **Energy** specialization:
	+ **Energy Redirection** alters or induces the flow of certain conducted or transmitted energies
		- Heat, electricity, and magnetism within metals or self
		- Electromagnetism in free space, up to ~30 GHz
		- **Induction** can create a new flow or transmission. Linear Chi usage scale.
	+ **Electroluminescence** is a LED-like effect excited in scales
		- Overall maximum 10M lumens pulsed, 20k continuous. Non-focused.
		- Useful for blinding or disorienting, but can't distinguish between friends or foes
	+ **Magnetic Projection** can be used for anything (electro)magnets can
		- Useful for pulling heavy things toward each other or locking them in place
		- Diamagnetism can also be induced to cause magnetic repulsion in non-ferrous metals
		- **Flux DisTorsion** stores energy in a magnetic "spring"; often manifests as an auroral spiral
			* Large amounts of energy can implode into small EMPs if concentration is broken
	+ **Radio perception/transmission** is innate, but prostheses decipher digital signals
		- **Radar** boosts rough awareness of surroundings, mitigates blindness/darkness like echolocation
		- The radio energy itself is non-magical and can be blocked by ordinary means
* **Combat** related skills powered by Energy specialization:
	+ **Deflection Field:** a magnetic effect that makes metal projectiles veer off course
		- Reduces chance of bullet hits by 30%, catches thrown items e.g. daggers
		- Extends to allies within melee/5' range at 20% protection.
		- **Braking Field** surge halts projectiles in both directions (costs extra Chi)
	+ **Melee Shock** electrifies held weapons and unarmed attacks
		- Only nonlethal damage (chosen before attacking) can inflict Stunned
		- Critical hits have a chance to fibrillate or blackout the opponent
	+ **Sabotage** has a high chance of jamming/breaking enemy equipment
		- Chi usage scales with distance and number of targets
	+ **Weapon Stabilization** absorbs firearm recoil. +30% pistol accuracy, +40% rifle.
		- Extends to allies within melee/5' (1.2 m) range for half the boost
		- Also prevents guns from jamming (e.g. on crit-fails)
* **"Power"** moves require concentration, power reserves and sometimes a wind-up
	+ Having an external source of energy to draw upon helps with focus and speed
	+ **Lightning** bursts are volatile and risk collateral damage, but are devastating
	+ **Magnetron** projects hard electromagnetic radiation at a target
		- Flash-heats unprotected tissue and fries unshielded electronics
		- Power use increases geometrically with energy level and area spread
	+ Lightning and high-power Magnetron *can* backfire if focus is interrupted

### Weaknesses

* **Finite Reserves:** Jake has a smaller supply of "raw power" to draw upon than casters
	+ This is why he prefers to instead use channeling and redirection when he can
	+ Replenishes after a short rest, after an hour of travel, or from external power
* **Large Target:** Jake's wings and tail make it impossible for him to present a small profile
* **Stealth:** He's a tall, shiny, heavy not-lizard whose most quiet aspect is the way he talks
	+ Furthermore, most invisibility spells interfere with Jake's radio sense
* **Tight Spaces:** Without room to maneuver, dashing is useless and wings become a liability

## Equipment

### Key Items

* **Prosthetic Upgrades:** various implants that extend and enhance baseline Metal Arts abilities
	+ **Skeletal Plating** helps to channel energy throughout the body
		- **Dynamo** uses metallokinesis to augment or oppose natural motion (strength/speed mod)
	+ **RF Horns:** multipurpose radio devices with digital signal processing
	+ **Processor Nodes:** general purpose, designed to help modulate strong energies
		- Note: interfaced indirectly via magnetic signalling, not via BMI
* **Quarterstaff:** more of a tool than a weapon, almost always kept within reach
* **Utility Nanites:** versatile, programmable microscopic robots. No self-replication.

### Weapons

* **Quarterstaff:** Main weapon. Has a retractable blade, and can channel or store energy.
	+ A gunmetal grey metal rod, roughly 8' long by 2" in diameter (2.4 m by 5 cm), with a finely knurled surface interrupted by narrow, smooth rings every 16" (41 cm). The double-edged blade at the end is 8" (20 cm) long when extended.
	+ **Bond of Returning:** can be "blinked" back at the end of a round from within 60 feet
	+ **Capacitor:** can absorb and hold several charges of lightning, but leaks over time.
		- Leaked energy dissipates into nothing. The more energy stored, the faster the leak.
	+ **Retractable Blade:** allows the staff to become a spear. Can charge by stabbing power cables.
* **Cable Whip/Grapple:** slashing or constricting damage from steel cables (uses Chi)
* **Handgun:** Black .44 Magnum Desert Eagle, 10" (25.4cm) barrel; proficient up to 55 yd (~50m) range.
* **Natural Weapons:** Claws (slashing), tail (bludgeon, trip), wings (bludgeon).
* **Projectiles:** Metallic objects flung at targets using metallokinesis
	+ Options range from nonlethal flak/shrapnel to high-impact iridium spheres
	+ Whatever's handy or nearby works too—bonus points for returning throwing weapons to sender

### Other Equipment

* **Channeling Bracelets:** helps focus elemental skills/induction at small scales.
	+ Computers and other electronics can be operated via induction at close range.
* **Warded Gloves of Inventory:** Custom. Used to work hands-free with tools (or coffee!) a snap away.
	+ Four slots; one-handed items are one and two-handed items are two.
	+ Stored items are held in physical stasis, but magic durations continue to count down.
	+ **Elemental Insulation:** Protects from Acid, Cold, Fire, Lightning, Bludgeoning or Piercing damage.
	+ **Item Recall:** Items within 30 feet (9 m) whose slot(s) haven't been reused can be pulled back.
	+ Swapping, storing, or recalling an item, or switching elements, is a Swift/Bonus action.
	+ The gloves' base color is normally black, but changes by protection element. They can also switch to fingered, fingerless, or elbow-length as needed. One hand has a circle on the back of it that shows an embroidered representation of the item(s) stored in each quarter or half (for two slots). The other hand has a similar circle that controls which element the gloves are insulated against, if any.
* **Heavy Haversack:** holds supplies, (in)complete projects, tools and other equipment.
	+ A custom, armored variant of the Handy Haversack that holds, but weighs more (30 lbs / 13.6 kg).
	+ Appears to be made of a stiff carbon fiber material, with MOLLE loops on the back and sides.
* **Gauntlet of Winding:** a self-(re)winding, self-locking spool for rope or cable
	+ Holds up to 50 feet (15.2 m) of normal rope, 100 of standard wire rope, or 200 of slim wire rope.
	+ Can unwind/reel out almost instantly. Combine with a grappling hook for full Just Cause action!
	+ Jake's design, but publicly available for purchase, so not exclusive.
* **Mass Effect Projector:** used to significantly reduce the mass of cargo to ease transport.
	+ Resembles a brass shoebox with a back face made of opaque light yellow crystal.
	+ Requires Earth element-charged crystals (or a similar kinetic energy source) to power.
	+ Must be attached to a flat or convex shell or solid of homogeneous material.
	+ Effect volume/area limited to 700 ft3 (20 m3), no longer than 20 ft (~6 m) along any dimension.
	+ Extremely dangerous to use on creatures with normal cardiovascular systems at high settings.
		- "Bad Things happen when your blood becomes over 10 times lighter in your veins."
* **Scarf of Slipstream:** A common item used by flyers that reduces drag while cruising.
	+ A white silk scarf, uncannily slick to the touch, with light blue arrow-like chevrons.
	+ Prevents chafing from loose clothes flapping, eyes drying out, and other unpleasantness.
	+ Only takes effect upon reaching a steady course, since some drag is needed for maneuvering.
* **Aural Eclipse:** A handheld device that creates a 5 ft (1.5m) diameter area of variable sound nullification.
	+ Absolute silence is unnerving for most people, so a low setting is normally used.
	+ The maximum setting can easily nullify Thunderwave and similar attacks.
* **Bracelets of the Voidfish:** Two-way telepathy bracelets acquired upon exiting Phox's Rift.
	+ "A set of bracelets with jellyfish charms, one blue and one green. Allows the wearers to communicate privately through story and song."

## Biography

Jake was raised in Hach Peak, one of the many mountain cities of Novascaena. Both of his parents were first generation Wood types so, although it sets him apart from his siblings, Jake's conception as the recessed Metal type isn't unprecedented. From an early age, Jake showed the usual affinity for the Metal element, but also showed a level of withdrawal and social disinterest/unawareness that has only marginally improved since then.

Following tradition, Jake was mentored by another dragon of each element to teach him that element's role in the history of their people, their diverse present-day society, and the world in general. He was taught how to fly, channel his own Chi into elemental or inertial effects, and apply his Metal affinity to modern science and arts like physics, metalcraft and artificing. With that understanding came an intuitive grasp of how various forces behaved, which Jake found much easier to explore on his own. The Energy specialization, which refines one's sense and influence over electromagnetism, was the obvious choice. Finally, he elected to become a conscript for defense, which carries responsibilities of having taken basic training up-front, to maintain basic combat readiness and to report when called (if present).

Applied research was a natural fit for the young dragon, and was the path he chose to continue abroad in the rigorous environment of a university. Unfortunately, his social blindness made him an easy target for several ambitious professors who, by providing lab access, were able to use some of Jake's developments to "earn" prestige and grant money by passing them off as their own. These betrayals of ethics were discovered and prosecuted roughly a year later, but still planted the seeds of a distrustful mindset. The world at large certainly held a lot to discover, but lacked the culture of honor from home.

During a particularly dull stretch in the middle of Jake's schooling, he busied himself engineering ways to become stronger in various aspects, including strength, speed, awareness and versatility. These "drastic" steps included body modifications by means of graft enchantments, branching out to other forms of martial arts, and sinking weeks into building and training the behavioral analysis AI that would wake up and take the name Lumi three years later. Though certainly unorthodox, very few of Jake's other aspects could be considered "normal" either, and he had stopped caring long ago. But he soon had to resume his studies.

Roughly half a year before Jake's graduation, his plans were dashed yet again. The goal of the multidisciplinary project which Jake chose as his degree capstone was to build a compact, proof of concept Flux reactor. The abundance of energy in the world makes standing out very difficult, so competition in the energy space tends to be especially fierce. The goal was to make the design public and easily reproduced, but the idea attracted enough interest from StarTech for them to buy up the research funding and hire off several critical team members. Left with no other option, Jake rushed to write up a far less impressive development as his capstone in order to graduate on time.

Jake's small circle of close (and very patient) friends was able to help him through these and several other rough patches during his six very busy years in academia, although some parted ways after he "crossed a line" by grafting technology onto himself. He also learned the ins and outs of industry during this time, and acquired a special distaste for corporate politics.

Jake wanted to continue his research after graduating, and was able to find a position at one of the cutting-edge national laboratories. This choice was influenced by the primary factors of the work being guaranteed to be public domain, and contractually enforced codes of conduct. Left (mostly) to his own devices once assigned to one, Jake was able to benefit several existing projects and start new ones by combining his natural insight of physics with magical items. Being able to sense and control the high-energy processes inside the hazardous equipment gave him leeway to adjust or outright dismiss certain operating parameters or redundant safeguards which, although provably safe, made a lot of people uncomfortable. For this reason, he was soon encouraged to start his own research firm and to adopt both the freedom and liabilities thereof. Four years later, he did just that.

With Peregrine as an attractive location for magic-powered research with a population accustomed to everyday oddities, it was the obvious choice of location to set up shop. For the past two and a half years, Jake has operated Impetus corporation out of a wide, two-story brick building that contains offices, lab space and a fabrication floor. He lives alone in a small house close to the mountains East of the city. He's known to adventure on the weekends, not because of financial need, but to cure cabin fever, test new toys, and discover what else is out there.

### Points of Interest

* Past Homes
	+ Hach Peak, Novascaena
	+ Kingston, Jemsor Republic
	+ Pine Bluffs, Tennoscotia
* Past Jobs:
	+ Student Researcher at Kingston University
	+ Lab Engineer at Pine Bluffs National Labs

## Notes

1. ↑ This ability falls into a category of natural Sympathy. Any force or torque being translated needs an object to brace or pivot upon, which can be the user's body or other metal object(s) nearby.
2. ↑ Thank Osh for this terrible pun of a name.
3. ↑ All native Novascaenans are required to pick a conscription area, e.g. firefighting, medicine, and defense.