Poppy Rowan
Appearance
Poppy stands taller than most of her race and gender, an impressive six foot two further accentuated by her heels, which bring her at an even taller height. She is an attractive and svelte woman, possessing a firm but feminine figure honed through training and dieting. Her hair is a deep, almost blood red, wavy and voluminous. She takes very special care of it. She has fair, smooth skin, the use of ointments ensuring that it is not yet scarred. Her eyes are blue.
She dresses rather liberally, even by pirate standards, usually opting for some sort crop top and tight pants. She does occasionally deviate from this when in a more professional setting, such as meeting with a government body that has given her a war commission to engage in privateering.
Poppy usually wears makeup, typically in the form of eyeliner, eye shadow, and a touch of lip gloss.
She dresses rather liberally, even by pirate standards, usually opting for some sort crop top and tight pants. She does occasionally deviate from this when in a more professional setting, such as meeting with a government body that has given her a war commission to engage in privateering.
Poppy usually wears makeup, typically in the form of eyeliner, eye shadow, and a touch of lip gloss.
Skills and Abilities
Leadership and tactics: Perhaps the most prominent of her skills is her ability to command and navigate the battlefield with expertise only a trained commander could have. Her abilities as a leader allow her to coordinate those under her in the chaos of battle, assembling them and making them far more effective than they otherwise would be on their own. To complement this, her abilities as a tactician make her a formidable opponent to face in war, quick mind allowing her to lead her men to victory. This skill even works in a duel, her shrewd mind allowing her to formulate plans of attack on the fly. She is not infallible; her long-term planning skills are lacking when compared to her skills in leadership and battlefield tactics, and her inexperience can lead to panic in moments of high pressure and stress. Still, her skills are valued by her allies and feared by her enemies.
Swordsmanship: Though she has some experience with most battlefield weapons, she is most experienced with the cutlass, and most manners of curved sword by extension. In battle, she wields her personal weapon, the Flying Swallow. Like most swords, it's an incredibly versatile weapon that's useful for both piercing and cutting, though she mostly does the latter in combat. Her sense of flow and tempo are two aspects of her fighting that make her stand out, almost like she choreographed the fight beforehand. Elegant motions that seek to keep the opponent on their toes while minimising stamina consumption. She is also an expert at interception, knowing when to stand back and strike with a single decisive blow, or perhaps just a small cut to discourage further attack. While this more orthodox manner of fighting can be overcome with constant pressure and exertion of strength, this must be applied carefully lest you walk straight into her sword.
Hand-to-hand: Though less trained in this than her swordsmanship, Poppy still knows how to handle herself in a bare knuckle brawl. It is with this style that she appears more like a pirate than anything else, her skills in fist fighting derived more from experience than formal training, choosing to take blows at angles that minimise damage rather than outright dodge or redirect them. A trained and competent martial artist is typically enough to defeat her in this avenue.
Physical capabilities: Poppy was trained as a soldier for much of her early life, so her endurance, strength, and agility are all well above what you would find in the average man. She is nimble, especially for her size, able to manoeuvre through obstacles and attacks more easily than most fighters. Her physical abilities are a tentative mix of balance and force, momentum lending her attacks more power than what would otherwise be expected from someone of her frame.
Navigation: Having studied and trained in maritime navigation, Poppy knows the way of navigating the seas. Mapping out routes and studying islands, sea currents and air currents are all her trade. She developed this ability out of necessity, for she would not be able to pilot a ship without these skills. Despite her training, she is most comfortable "feeling" things. She may go for a swim to get a feel for currents and take note of any rocks that might damage the hull of her ship. She also relies on local information to ensure she's properly familiarised with the area.
Swordsmanship: Though she has some experience with most battlefield weapons, she is most experienced with the cutlass, and most manners of curved sword by extension. In battle, she wields her personal weapon, the Flying Swallow. Like most swords, it's an incredibly versatile weapon that's useful for both piercing and cutting, though she mostly does the latter in combat. Her sense of flow and tempo are two aspects of her fighting that make her stand out, almost like she choreographed the fight beforehand. Elegant motions that seek to keep the opponent on their toes while minimising stamina consumption. She is also an expert at interception, knowing when to stand back and strike with a single decisive blow, or perhaps just a small cut to discourage further attack. While this more orthodox manner of fighting can be overcome with constant pressure and exertion of strength, this must be applied carefully lest you walk straight into her sword.
Hand-to-hand: Though less trained in this than her swordsmanship, Poppy still knows how to handle herself in a bare knuckle brawl. It is with this style that she appears more like a pirate than anything else, her skills in fist fighting derived more from experience than formal training, choosing to take blows at angles that minimise damage rather than outright dodge or redirect them. A trained and competent martial artist is typically enough to defeat her in this avenue.
Physical capabilities: Poppy was trained as a soldier for much of her early life, so her endurance, strength, and agility are all well above what you would find in the average man. She is nimble, especially for her size, able to manoeuvre through obstacles and attacks more easily than most fighters. Her physical abilities are a tentative mix of balance and force, momentum lending her attacks more power than what would otherwise be expected from someone of her frame.
Navigation: Having studied and trained in maritime navigation, Poppy knows the way of navigating the seas. Mapping out routes and studying islands, sea currents and air currents are all her trade. She developed this ability out of necessity, for she would not be able to pilot a ship without these skills. Despite her training, she is most comfortable "feeling" things. She may go for a swim to get a feel for currents and take note of any rocks that might damage the hull of her ship. She also relies on local information to ensure she's properly familiarised with the area.
Personality
"If you set up a path for me, I will toss it aside like garbage."
The one core trait that defines Poppy is independence. She is loathe to do anything she is told to, abhors letting anyone else dictate her line of action, and has disgust for any who try to exert whatever manner of control over her. Her desire to be independent is what led her to abandon her life of luxury and comfort, to go adventuring, doing dangerous work just to ensure she could have an inn for her and her crew to stay in if her ship needed repairs when she wouldn't have needed to worry about any of that had she just stayed in line.
"I've had people tell me what to do all my life. I'm tired of it."
Her independent nature lends her a natural confidence and charisma. Whether by spinning her words to silver or using some of her allure, she makes people listen more often than not. She knows she has these attributes as well, and is not afraid to make use of them if she sees an opportunity to do so. This attributes a certain manipulative aspect to her, and though she generally means no harm, she can still upset and make enemies of those who realise they've fell victim to it.
"I will not sacrifice my freedom for a bit of security."
As one might gather from the above traits, Poppy can be selfish, especially in regards to her independence. She will hold on to her freedom at all costs, even at the detriment of others. She has vowed to never, ever go back to a life of servitude and submission, and aggressively upholds her freedom, letting others know on no uncertain terms that she does not serve anyone but herself.
"Do you really think I will let this go unanswered?"
Though Poppy may seem immoral and entirely selfish, this is not the case. She detests any manner of injustice imposed upon people; especially those in no state to fight back against it. Corruption makes her blood boil, and she is not above resorting to vigilantism if it means justice is served... her brand of justice, at least. This sense of justice, however, leads to a tendency towards spite and vengeful acts. She does not easily forget and forgive wrongs committed against her, especially if they were done on purpose. The fiery passion inside of her can bring her to great heights or burn her to ashes.
Trivia: She dislikes being called Poppy, preferring to go by her alias, the Ruby Sparrow. She finds her given name embarrassing.
In her free time, she usually be found reading or chatting with her crew.
Poppy is rather vain, and occasionally complains about the sea air ruining her hair and skin.
She speaks in a very posh manner, but has picked up a bit of pirate slang here and there.
The one core trait that defines Poppy is independence. She is loathe to do anything she is told to, abhors letting anyone else dictate her line of action, and has disgust for any who try to exert whatever manner of control over her. Her desire to be independent is what led her to abandon her life of luxury and comfort, to go adventuring, doing dangerous work just to ensure she could have an inn for her and her crew to stay in if her ship needed repairs when she wouldn't have needed to worry about any of that had she just stayed in line.
"I've had people tell me what to do all my life. I'm tired of it."
Her independent nature lends her a natural confidence and charisma. Whether by spinning her words to silver or using some of her allure, she makes people listen more often than not. She knows she has these attributes as well, and is not afraid to make use of them if she sees an opportunity to do so. This attributes a certain manipulative aspect to her, and though she generally means no harm, she can still upset and make enemies of those who realise they've fell victim to it.
"I will not sacrifice my freedom for a bit of security."
As one might gather from the above traits, Poppy can be selfish, especially in regards to her independence. She will hold on to her freedom at all costs, even at the detriment of others. She has vowed to never, ever go back to a life of servitude and submission, and aggressively upholds her freedom, letting others know on no uncertain terms that she does not serve anyone but herself.
"Do you really think I will let this go unanswered?"
Though Poppy may seem immoral and entirely selfish, this is not the case. She detests any manner of injustice imposed upon people; especially those in no state to fight back against it. Corruption makes her blood boil, and she is not above resorting to vigilantism if it means justice is served... her brand of justice, at least. This sense of justice, however, leads to a tendency towards spite and vengeful acts. She does not easily forget and forgive wrongs committed against her, especially if they were done on purpose. The fiery passion inside of her can bring her to great heights or burn her to ashes.
Trivia: She dislikes being called Poppy, preferring to go by her alias, the Ruby Sparrow. She finds her given name embarrassing.
In her free time, she usually be found reading or chatting with her crew.
Poppy is rather vain, and occasionally complains about the sea air ruining her hair and skin.
She speaks in a very posh manner, but has picked up a bit of pirate slang here and there.
Biography & Lore
Poppy was born into riches and privilege, the daughter of a merchant woman and military father. From birth, she was set for life, destined for riches and having anything she may ever need at her back and call. However, as is common in the upper echelons of society, she was born from a political marriage and served only to strengthen the bond between the two families she'd been born to. Naturally, this led to young Poppy being something of a puppet for those around her, groomed from birth to be a desirable wife so she might be married off to strengthen their political power.
She became aware of this at a young age, the machinations of her parents able to be seen by her, and begged her parents not to do something like that to her. Despite attempts to convince her that this was for the best, Poppy did not listen and eventually started military training so that she could get away from the possibility of being married off. Her parents reacted with a slew of insults and curses at her, but could not legally do anything to her. Still, a lot of her privileges were removed until she reconsidered her actions. Poppy persevered and kept at it, much to the growing anger of her family. She took great liking to the Navy, often going on training assignments so that she might learn to pilot and navigate a ship.
The more she grew and involved herself in the military, the more aware of Allaria's faults she became. Corruption was the way of life here, and those less fortunate could not possibly hope to have their voices heard over the voice of those with coin. This caused a growing distaste within her, to the point where she refused to befriend any from the Inner City, using training missions as an excuse to talk to people outside the privileged little bubble she had been raised in. Despite their less refined mannerisms, she did not feel the constant nagging feeling of being used and back-stabbed, and was far happier outside the political nonsense going on in the Inner City.
Despite her best efforts, however, her parents managed to secure her marriage with another family. This shot her into despair; all the effort into getting away from what everyone pushed her to do would essentially amount to nothing if she was married off. But she saw no way out. No way to get out of this marriage.
So she fled.
Her friendships in the outer parts of the city had payed off. She used the connections and money she had to hire a crew and get a ship, and sailed away from Allaria. From there on out, she began taking small jobs and hunting for both pirates and treasure. This way of life was far harder than anything in Allaria could ever hope to be. She risked death, disease, and even imprisonment.
But she was free. That was all that mattered.
She became aware of this at a young age, the machinations of her parents able to be seen by her, and begged her parents not to do something like that to her. Despite attempts to convince her that this was for the best, Poppy did not listen and eventually started military training so that she could get away from the possibility of being married off. Her parents reacted with a slew of insults and curses at her, but could not legally do anything to her. Still, a lot of her privileges were removed until she reconsidered her actions. Poppy persevered and kept at it, much to the growing anger of her family. She took great liking to the Navy, often going on training assignments so that she might learn to pilot and navigate a ship.
The more she grew and involved herself in the military, the more aware of Allaria's faults she became. Corruption was the way of life here, and those less fortunate could not possibly hope to have their voices heard over the voice of those with coin. This caused a growing distaste within her, to the point where she refused to befriend any from the Inner City, using training missions as an excuse to talk to people outside the privileged little bubble she had been raised in. Despite their less refined mannerisms, she did not feel the constant nagging feeling of being used and back-stabbed, and was far happier outside the political nonsense going on in the Inner City.
Despite her best efforts, however, her parents managed to secure her marriage with another family. This shot her into despair; all the effort into getting away from what everyone pushed her to do would essentially amount to nothing if she was married off. But she saw no way out. No way to get out of this marriage.
So she fled.
Her friendships in the outer parts of the city had payed off. She used the connections and money she had to hire a crew and get a ship, and sailed away from Allaria. From there on out, she began taking small jobs and hunting for both pirates and treasure. This way of life was far harder than anything in Allaria could ever hope to be. She risked death, disease, and even imprisonment.
But she was free. That was all that mattered.
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