Overview

The 1890s finds many people looking upon theater as a craft for those of weak character or insufficient moral fiber. Of course, this is not true of actors presenting Hamlet for the pleasure of Queen Victoria or performing the works of Mozart and Wagner. On the whole, however, acting is not thought  of as a career for honest, hard-working folk.

Description

An actor lives and dies by his reviews and his popularity. Those who are well known get top billing, higher pay, and better roles. Because of this, less well-known actors tend to be flamboyant people. They often dress very conspicuously and act in a pompous or otherwise singular fashion. Once an actor attains fame and fortune, he will often assume more elegant  trappings. Of course, this doesn't mean that the character will be any less flamboyant, only that he'll probably be a good deal less garish about it.

Role-playing

Many of Gothic Earth's least talented thespians will gladly spend hours telling anyone who will listen just how famous they are destined to become.An evening with someone like this tends to be only slightly less annoying than an unanesthetized surgical procedure.

At the other end of the spectrum, one will encounter great actors who are quite happy to unfurl a list of their accomplishments. While there can be no doubt as to the talent of these people, some do tend to be full of themselves.

Finally, somewhere in the middle of the two, one will run across talented theater folk who are in the midst of building their careers and reputations. Often, these are the most interesting thespians to spend time with.

Special benefits

The ability to assume roles and impersonate others is part and parcel of the Thespian's career. The training and experience that these people have had in their lives allows them use a number of proficiencies with better than average ability.

Whenever a Thespian must make a Proficiency Check on his Dancing, Singing, Disguise, or Ventriloquism checks, he receives a +2 bonus. This bonus also might apply to various Special Interest skills (Oration, for example), at the discretion of the Dungeon Master.

Special hindrances

Actors have a natural flair for the dramatic that, although essential to their success in the theater, cannot help but spill over into the other aspects of their lives. In game terms, this results in a natural -1 initiative penalty that is applied whenever such a roll is made. The time lost by this handicap is assumed to be filled with banter, posturing, and similar dramatic elements.

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New proficiency

Thespian (1 slot/Cha/0)

Characters with this proficiency are skilled performers with experience on the stage. Whether this represents a past in the so-called legitimate theater or experience in the far less respected venues of vaudeville or burlesque. A skilled thespian is able to adopt the mannerisms and speech patterns of those he's impersonating with great efficacy. A character who successfully combines this skill with the Disguise talent can withstand even the closest scrutiny by critics or audiences.

Many players will want to combine this skill with others such as Singing or Dancing, to reflect backgrounds in specific types of theater such as opera or ballet.

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This page last updated 10/13/98.  For problems/questions/comments regarding the pages contact the webmaster.