Darvo

Alias/Rep: Ravo, Rav, "The D", / A Casonova

Appearance: Despite a crooked nose and a weak chin, Darvo is thought to be quite handsome by many women. His charms are mainly learned, however. He has thin blond hair he can wear long or short, and he often dyes it after finishing a con.

Key Terms: False-Hearted, Charismatic, Hates Himself and Women Equally

Knows: Darvo is a con artist who specializes in stealing the hearts of women for profit. He has loved and left dozens so far, and is still young enough to love and leave dozens more. All he requires is access to a vulnerable woman. Within hours or days he will be able to win her heart. Oddly, Darvo imagines that the women he betrays know him for what he is - a cad - and thusly deserve what they get from him.

Hook: A woman the characters knows might be cheated by Darvo, and demand vengeance of an up-close and personal kind. Or perhaps Darvo might make a run at one of the female characters in the party, appearing suddenly, sweeping her off her feet (while promising the world), and then betraying her in some way. Either of these plots can be furthered by a trip into Darvo's past (as it were), with the PCs tracking down and contacting the women he has left behind, collecting information about their quarry (his state of mind included) before striking.

Brenda Apgarr

Alias/Rep: Brennie "The Map" Apgarr, "King's Cartographer" / A bad gambler

Appearance: Brenda is a small woman, perhaps even a gnome, dwarf, or hobbit, depending on the campaign. She has a very honest face, wide eyes and a ready smile. She wears gloves to hide the ink stains on her hands.

Key Terms: Fast Talker, Master Forger, Imaginative, Wants the Best for You

Knows: Brennie is a skilled map-maker, though her actual surveying skills are weak. She is very good at sizing up marks, and always has a variety of props ready for marks to peruse. Treasure, secret knowledge, a lucrative trade route, an abandoned castle - "The Map" has a map to it... and patter to match. Her mostfavored disguise is that of a King's Cartographer, which aids in cooling the mark when the map is discovered to be a fake; after all, she did steal the map from her lord in the first place, did she not?

Hook: In a classic role-playing game situation, Brenda sells the party a map to a wellstocked dungeon... only there's nothing "well-stocked" about it, or the dungeon isn't even there. On the other hand, Brenda might play a role in a longer con planned by other artists; her skilled hands can produce just about any inked forgery needed. Conversely, Brenda could herself have been conned, and request the PCs' help, only to con them out of something in the end.

Rundolfo

Alias/Rep: The Holy Roller/A Heartless Con Artist

Appearance: At first glance, Rundolfo is quite; average. But let him focus his half-crazed eyes upon you, and that impression changes forever. He can recreate himself as a frantic, nervous, sputtering religious figure in an instant. His brown hair, eyes to match, and average height notwithstanding, once he's preached before you, he's unforgettable.

Key Terms: Devout, Half Mad, Greedy

Knows: Rundolfo goes for the jugular. While many con artists try not to take their marks for everything, figuring that a mark with nothing to lose is dangerous, Rundolfo thinks that the only good mark is a destitute one. He is often accompanied by a number of "converts" who trail him in the hope that one of his grandiose religious schemes will succeed. When they don't it is of course a failing on the convert's part -- not Rundolfo's -- that has prevented the promised wealth from rolling in.

Hook: Rundolfo is the sort of con artist who will meet a violent end when his greed outstrips ,his charm. He is due a bad end, and might come to the attention of the adventurers in that light; Conversely, one or more of the characters might fall for his patter (as per some sort of innate Charm spell that works on the religiously insecure) and then for one or more of his scams. 

Garney

Alias/Rep: A new alias for every town...

Appearance: Garney is a young woman of some apparent charm. Her eyes are lifeless, however, and she's been accused of being a "warm zombie." She dies her brown hair something she considers more attractive - red or blond, usually - and she is a very animated talker. Asleep, she appears to be an entirely different person.

Key Terms: Ruthless, Despises the Old, Greedy

Knows: Garney knows how lonely old folks can get. She is skilled at finding the elderly in larger towns and cities who don't have any immediate family. Her marks are invariably these older people, whom she cons ruthlessly, taking even the gruel from their tables.

Hook: Player characters have relatives, don't they? Were one of them to fall prey to Garney, a hunt spanning weeks could easily ensue, as Garney is nothing if not mobile, and quite adaptable to boot. All too often, unfortunately, Garney's victims actually pass on from hunger, from sheer shame, or from being forced into the poor house after Garney runs off with the proceeds from a false mortgage. The only advantage that the PCs may have in tracking this villain is her propensity to prolong the long con process as long as she is able, relishing the discomfort and confusion caused by her machinations.

Goodman Smythe

Alias/Rep: "The Strangler"

Appearance: Smythe is an ordinary citizen who was conned out of his valuables some time ago. Since then, he has left sanity behind and moved on to the realm of vengeful lunacy. Only a close look at his handsome face might reveal this to an onlooker, however. Otherwise he's a pudgy, middle-aged man who, when questioned, will claim he used to fix carriage wheels for a living.

Key Terms: Insane, Relentless, Seeks Revenge

Knows: Smythe knows how to fix carriage wheels, but he doesn't do that much anymore, especially since he was cheated out of his tools, his house, and his wife (who ended up in slavery). Lately, Smythe has taken up the traveling vigilante trade. Wherever he goes, he seeks out and strangles people he thinks are con artists. Sometimes he's right. Sometimes he's wrong.

Hook: Smythe is too insane to be left alone, though his motives wouldn't be questioned by some. The characters might become involved if Smythe strangles a seemingly innocent man. Or perhaps the PCs become "acquainted" with Smythe and, in a moment of pity, act to repair some of the damage that has been wrought upon him. The most such altruistic acts would achieve would be Smythe's eventual realization of what he has become, however, and perhaps his entrance into an asylum...

Duchess Valentine Broshkova

Alias/Rep: Countess Vilna Bintaka, Baroness Voona B'zhinsky, and so on

Appearance: This lady of noble heritage has seen many years, but a careful application of makeup (and magic?) maintains her youthful appearance. Long flowing hair is invariably caught up in artful tresses. She frequently employs a fan to partially conceal her face when in public.

Key Terms: Corrupt, Calculating, Vampish

Knows: How to seduce rocks, how to estimate the worth of jewelry at sixty yards, and all manner of (only barely) legitimate cons involving real estate, titles, and other legal shenanigans. Note that since much of her luggage and clothing is embroidered, she always uses a name with the initials "VB." It might be possible to track her actual identity with this revelation...

Hook: VB prefers cons of great scale. She is a frequently married woman, and not all of her previous husbands are dead... though they are all much poorer for having known her. The characters might be hired to track down and extract documents from VB. This might be more difficult than it seems, however, as VB is rich enough to afford a small staff. She is also not above working with other con artists, though she never trusts them. Alternatively, one or more of the characters might be tricked into believing marriage to VB would lead to a noble title... 

Oroditus, keeper of the temple

Alias/Rep: Has a noble heart

Appearance: Oroditus is a lithe man of average height. His thinning hair is receding from a strong, intelligent forehead. His eyes are dark, and his nose is long and sharp. His face is nearly always blessed with a smile.

Key Terms: Friendly, Helpful, Devoted, Compassionate

Knows: Oroditus is a skilled leader of his flock, as far as spiritual matters are concerned. He is an easy mark, however, for the hard-hearted, and his pocket has been lightened a number of times by con artists with a sob story to tell.

Hook: The Keeper might be in need of protection from such artists, and the characters might be implored to keep an eye out for him when he goes on a pilgrimage to a holy place. Alternatively, Oroditus may have been conned out of a valuable church artifact, and the characters are needed to retrieve it, which would involve a search through the seamy con artist underworld for the dreg that scored the touch and ,the item itself. Alternately, Oroditus could be used as part of an "anti-con coalition", consisting also of the other two NPCs on this page. In this case, he would act as the de facto leader of the batch, the organizer and spiritual "adviser" in charge of keeping the actions of the group in line with their mission statement - to protect the unwary from heartless thieves.

Constable Abe

Alias/Rep: Honest Upholder of Law

Appearance: Abe is a short, stout man with thick black hair that is often in his eyes. He wields a truncheon while carrying out his duties. In his middle years, Abe has a wry grin he flashes just before deciding whether someone needs to be taken to the magistrate.

Key Terms: Honest, Sweet Tooth, Wry

Knows: Abe knows his neighborhood: any locals who commit a crime there are destined to find themselves in his hands... sooner or later. Abe isn't nearly as good with interlopers, however, and he usually settles for keeping a keen eye peeled and running suspicious types out of his area.

Hook: Since he doesn't have the ability to deal with the sort of crimes most con artists commit, if Abe is called in on such a case he might have to turn to outsiders for help. On the other hand, if Abe were to get his hands on an artist and the scoundrel were to make a public appeal to the PCs, they might he put in a position of determining the artist's guilt and pose a statement about it to the crowds. If the "anti-con coalition" option is used, Abe can provide its official authority figure, likely to already be established in the area. Everyone knows him (or knows of him) and most of the less savory elements are afraid of him. Abe would be the fulcrum for Oroditus' piety and Slick's "justice".

Slick Mcgee

Alias/Rep: Gaunt McRee/Con Artist with a heart of gold

Appearance: Slick is a tall, muscular man -a lot bigger than he appears - and his arms provide' a long reach. His short sandy colored hair is nearly as flavorless as his spit-colored eyes. With a ready, friendly smile, Slick can make himself welcome nearly anywhere amongst the lower and middle classes.

Key Terms: Self Interested, Keen on justice, Contempt for the Ordinary

Knows: Slick knows small water craft and the interior of the human heart. He is a skilled con artist with a wide repertoire of scams at his fingertips. He's also quite a brawler and an experienced lover of women.

Hook: Stick prefers to con his own kind. He is known by word of mouth as an artist who can -. get things back for people who have been: conned. Of course, he keeps a percentage: usually half, though sometimes much less if he is working on behalf of a noble or just cause. He makes a good contact for characters learning about the con artist underworld. He knows all of the wrong people (generally those that Abe is either familiar, or at odds with), and can acquire just about anything the PCs may need. Unfortunately, he s cannot be readily trusted, even as part of the coalition (should it be used), as he is willing to go farther and do worse than others to finish the job.,

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