BELARUSE THOMPSON
MEDICAL MERCHANT • CITY ACCOUNTANT • ARCANE RESEARCHER
Visiting a local speakeasy in Ul’dah to squirrel away some of your evening hours, you sit and order the bar’s special before listening in on the ambience. One conversation nearby, however, catches your ear above the others. You try and listen in after the bartender sets your drink down in front of you.“...f’more of the drug shipments y’provided the other week,” a stout, portly man was telling an Elezen man seated off to one side. “I can provide more of the drug you require, mister Siddeon, though these are substances only available to the local hospitals. The price will be higher now,” the Elezen man replied. Siddeon, however, frowned. “Why’s that?” he asked. The Elezen man calmly smiled and let out a small sigh: “You purchased most of the available stock the other week, but now the remainder will cut into the allocated supply for hospitals. That involves more work on my part.”You watch as Siddeon considers this, downs the rest of his drink, puts the cup down, and spares a single glance at the Elezen. “Fine, y’got a deal,” he says, and then leaves in a hurry without another word. With the Elezen alone now, he sips at his own drink- a simple coffee- and spares you a glance. “Hardly ever a boring moment here, is there?” he asked with a casual smile.
Residence: Goblet (balmung), Sultana's Breath subdiv, ward 17, apt 28
leave a message for appointments
THE STORY SO FAR...
| Race | Elezen | Height | 6 fulms, 8 ilms |
| Age | 48 | Weight | 248 ponz |
| Eyes | Blue | Hair | Black w/ Greying |
| Alignment | Lawful Evil | Nationality | Ishgardian |
| Sexuality | Heterosexual | Romanceable | No |
Born in Ishgard during the period of high conservatism prior to the end of the Dragonsong War, Belaruse began life in a relatively minor noble family. His life back then was posh and left him with a great deal of time to focus on his research into the arcane, once his mandatory military training had been completed. While his parents were able to pay a hefty sum to keep him out of the war, they couldn't keep the war from ending. The conclusion of the war and the societal upheaval that accompanied it saw the Thompson family ultimately caught on the wrong side of history. Disenfranchised, debt-ridden, and all but destitute by the changing times, Belaruse opted to leave Ishgard and try his luck elsewhere rather than sift through the ruins and try to rebuild. With the choice made, he liquidated his remaining assets, paid his debts, and left the city.Intimately familiar with the pomp and promise of politics, he naturally gravitated towards Ul’dah, where he began working within the city council’s administrative offices as a low-level secretary. The following years saw the young man quickly rise through the lower ranks through a combination of charisma and ruthless pragmatism. Alongside his blossoming career in accounting and politics, he founded a small limited liability merchant company called Thompson & Sons. Responsible chiefly for supplying medical goods to Ul'dahn public healthcare facilities, the company is an intermediary that arranges prices with initial suppliers, and skims profit off the discount it negotiates on behalf of the city.Today, Belaruse has managed to position himself in the service of the lowest of the Ul’dah city councils responsible for budget and accounting of public services. From here, his hand reaches out for allies and servants, hoping to aim higher still in his ambitions.
HAVE YOU HEARD...
CONNECTIONS & RP HOOKS
These are just ideas, and can be edited and adjusted however you'd like!
Bad Business - The Ul'dah city budget council has passed a new resolution that, while certainly beneficial for some, has had a negative impact on your own business. Frustrated, you decide to seek out one of the eleven members of the council, and naturally, Belaruse's name floats to the top.
Mysterious Benefactor - You have a new project or business and are seeking potential investors. Another option you overhear is to speak with a city official, as occasionally, some businesses just happen to find themselves allocated funds for supposed public services.
The Change of Coins - Either as an independent outlaw, or one working for a larger crime family, you need information or the chance to influence public policy in your favor. With a little coin in the right hands, it seems an easy deal to arrange in a city like Ul'dah.
Now Hiring - Those in service to the Ul'dah city budget council often find themselves in need of an extra hand or three, for whatever they need doing, so long as such employees aren't wont to ask questions. Perhaps you could use the extra coin of stable employment in exchange for flexible morals?
Arcane Secrets - Within academic circles, one might come across mention of a practitioner who uses arcane magic through the use of runes. Supposedly, these runes are drawn using aether, and take the place of a more common focus such as a wand or staff.
A Magic Item - You have come into possession of an unknown item, and are uncertain of its purpose or even if it is cursed. You hear of a man that maintains an extensive library on the knowledge of the arcane, and hope to meet with him in order to secure an appraisal.
A Medical Need - You find yourself in need of a particularly rare medical or medical-related good, or one that is illegal to obtain. Through underworld connections, you learn that the Thompson & Sons LLC is capable of obtaining medical supplies fairly consistently, though the arrangements aren't always done on top of the table.
In Syndication - It's no small secret that the Syndicate controls the majority of Ul'dah's politics, and Belaruse is no exception. As someone else who serves the interests of the Syndicate, you may be able to find an ally in Belaruse...
A WORLD OF CONFLICT
FREELANCE DUNGEON MASTER STORYTELLER
My characters are chiefly designed to front my passion for telling stories as a Dungeon Master. I enjoy helping others develop their own characters, world building, and breathing life and immersion into the setting. I’ve always found it to be a little forced and awkward to run an event for my own character’s development. But for me, there always needs to be something “going on,” which creates a damned-if-you-do, damned-if-you-don’t type situation.To this end, Cana’to and Belaruse are a yin-yang of characters in constant conflict with each other, and other characters can participate in that conflict without directly entering a PvP situation with another character. This conflict is a root node for forking out more character-centric storylines, but even this conflict tree isn’t the only storyline I am operating. More than anything else, I operate under the premise of a singular canon and continuity between all of the storylines I write, and oftentimes, unrelated events have a tangential impact on one another.That said, thematically, my storylines are fairly mundane, low-power affairs. You won't find any end-of-the-world stories here, and impact to the game lore itself is kept fairly minimal in order to maximize cross-compatibility. Hence, your character can talk about these events with other characters who might not be involved at all.I primarily freelance DM for small groups, but also enjoy DMing for solo players. Although my main campaigns have a hard population limit, I welcome and embrace supporting characters who can play more tangential roles. Being a Dungeon Master is my true passion and there's never any requirement that my characters be involved in events (generally I will leave my characters out if viable). I also operate a Discord that is open to any characters who participate in any of my storylines, and this is one way to meet other characters organically.If you're just looking for an adventure, feel free to inquire! Typically, I will try to cater the themes of storylines to the preferences of the players involved. Regardless of if you want something lighthearted, mature, outright dark, or virtually anything else, I can easily accommodate!All that being said, I don’t DM for guilds or premade groups. Since I prefer to write character-centric storylines, I avoid one-size-fits-all storytelling that is more typical of these groups, and I prefer to pick my players rather than having them chosen for me. There’s just a limit to how many people I can DM for at once, and because each individual is important, I prefer to focus on players who show an active interest and investment rather than a laissez-faire attitude.
ACTIVE STORYLINES
These storylines are constantly evolving and character involvement- even independent- can impact other characters secondhand. Anyone is welcome to dip into these and influence the outcomes!I will try to keep this list fairly updated, depending on how storylines progress and as new ones are triggered or introduced.
Belaruse is currently gathering allies, collaborators, and servants to advance his cause of elevating himself further up the political food chain. He is not above blackmailing, corrupting, trading favors, or manipulating others into his service.
Other parties are currently engaged in acts of subterfuge and sabotage against Belaruse in order to force the budget council to favor them instead.
Someone has stolen copies of Belaruse's signature without his knowledge, although their goals in forgery are not yet known.
Belaruse recently turned on a political ally- Kneeling Blade- when it was uncovered the Roegadyn was humanoid trafficking with the Ul'dahn black market. The weight of the evidence was so overwhelming that the Brass Blades were forced to make an arrest. His trial is scheduled to take place in late July.
With Kneeling Blade removed from the city's budget council, the council's balance of power has shifted out of Belaruse's favor. Presently, he schemes to regain control and cement his influence.
Having drawn up a listing of the other ten members of the city council, Belaruse is currently employing assistance to sleuth into their business, looking for weaknesses to exploit.
As a matter of more personal interest, Belaruse is seeking an institution of higher learning to lend his services and knowledge towards. Ultimately, he aims to expand the breadth of his arcane research.
OOC INFORMATION
Contact
Discord @ Thunderbolt300#0807 (all day, friend requests welcome)
Hydaelyn Roleplayers @ Thunderbolt300 (semi-weekly)
Availability
M-F, 5:00 PM - 11:00 PM CST; Sat all day until ~5 PM CST; Sun all day.
RP in-game is preferred but I'm generally happy to do Discord RP as well; Crystal Datacenter only; CST timezone. Discord RP is only available during the day; I tend to prioritize in-game interactions when I'm home.
I will generally attempt to schedule in-game meetups and make a directed effort to show! If something changes, I will notify ASAP.
I can do Discord RP potentially at any time on any day, but my response time can vary depending on work.
Personal Preferences
Communication is critical, and I am happy to entertain feedback and constructive criticism. I will make adjustments depending on your own preferences. The aim is fun for everyone!
I am comfortable with all themes, including dark and adult themes, and like to get a good mix of everything (variety is the spice of life!). I don't have very many reservations. That said, I won't engage in any dark or adult themes with minors.
I'm generally a semi-paragraph roleplayer and I write in the style of a novel. It's tough for me to write anything less than 2-3 sentences, but rarely more than 2 chat buffers. I'm not picky with how you choose to write, though!
I am interested in most types of interactions and connections (slice-of-life, storyline arcs, antagonist, drinking buddies, etc.), although I place the most emphasis on long-term storyline connections. I'm happy to meet people and make new friends, although neither myself nor my character are interested in romance. Both are happily taken!
I prefer to keep the setting that my characters live within fairly mundane. This means having a focus on resource scarcity, delegating significant authority to NPCs, and protecting against long-term power creep.
Miscellaneous Info
I have about 20 years of RP experience, including extensive dungeon master experience (primarily 3.5 Forgotten Realms, NWN1, WoW, GW1, WildStar, TOR, and FFXIV). I'm willing to teach, discuss or RP with any experience level.
As a little bit about me, I'm a very chill dude in my mid-30's, I work as a wireless admin/engineer, I brew my own beer, and I enjoy hiking, travel, anime, writing, DIY projects, and, of course, heavy amounts of gaming!
Last updated: 06/27/2022