Brave New Vardia

Antiquarians are highly educated treasure hunters often found in local markets bartering for ancient treasure sold by unwitting shopkeepers or following local legends to uncover artifacts that may or may not belong in a museum.

Members of an artificer tradition focused on nautical enchantments, Brinewrights often exchange their services for free travel, allowing them to spread their craft across the material plane.

Cannoneers are obsessed with iron and smokepowder and often covered in soot and gun oil. They proudly carry their portable cannon with them everywhere they go, so that they always have the ability to propel balls of iron into the faces of their enemies.

Cooks are essential to the running of a ship, ensuring bellies are full for the busy day ahead. At sea they keep track of supplies, allocate rations, and prepare communal meals. On land they are always on the lookout for new ingredients and recipes to keep the crew happy.

Engineers are always keen to inspect machinery and mechanisms of every kind, and try to solve all of their problems with mechanical solutions. They often struggle with social interaction, preferring instead the cold mechanical logic of their contraptions.

An experienced and respected sailor, the First Mate is an expert in maritime affairs, able to understand ships and the sea better than anybody else. They respect the whims of the sea and are very superstitious.

Flintlocks are firearms addicts, absolutely obsessed with maintaining and polishing their little tools of destruction. Sometimes they don’t even bother with reloading, they just grab another loaded pistol from their belt and keep blasting

Expert in navigation and the natural world, the guide is a well-traveled explorer, never content to sit in one place for long and most at home under an open sky. The guide will find the best route to any destination, and work to get everybody there alive.

Kelpwitches are members of a tradition of coastal druids who live as solitary wandering ascetics outside of civilization. Calm and reflective, muttering to the ocean like an old friend, they smell strongly of brine and travel in a coracle fashioned from driftwood tied with kelp.

Experts in the art of maritime warfare, they create battle plans and enforce discipline, ensuring each of the crew perform to the best of their abilities. On land they would be on the lookout for handy recruits for the ship, particularly those handy in a battle.

Shrewd and materialistic, merchants will turn any situation into a business opportunity that benefits them. Obsessed with the accumulation of funds, merchants are often found enjoying the luxurious side of life.

Minstrels are charismatic performers who inspire and entertain, keeping morale high through music and camaraderie. Accomplished social facilitators, they know where to find the right people and how to bring them around to their own way of thinking.

Old timers appear to be frail but they can be surprisingly effective in a fight, relying on wisdom accumulated through their long and no doubt interesting lives, rather than raw strength. Often to be found telling a story of dubious origin, they are well respected veterans of the sea.

Rocketeers are singularly focused on developing reliable rocket propulsion, convinced it is the future of transportation. However, they often injure themselves in their pursuit of this unreliable method of getting around.

Just like the sea itself, sea priests are sometimes found in dark moods and other times they are serene. Although the whims of the sea are not controllable, they can be somewhat appeased through ritual and superstition.

Shamans of the Mor-Kuura (Life Speaker) Tradition focus on four pillars: martial prowess, druidic magic, spiritual healing, and poisons. They live in small communities on the fringes of civilization and feel most at home in the wilds.

Starseers are divinely blessed navigators able to harness astral magic, granting them an innate connection to the stars and the astral plane. They are often aloof and introspective, constantly musing on the strands of fate that guide them.

Trying to find a better life, the stowaway is an evasive scoundrel used to a life on the road. Valuing their freedom above all else, they will do anything to avoid captivity.

Surgeons are responsible for preserving the life (but not necessarily the health and happiness) of the crew. On land the surgeon will be found gathering supplies and experimenting with new concoctions and ingredients.

A Tourist is completely oblivious to danger, consumed by excitement and optimism. They wander through hostile lands remaining unscathed through a combination of impossible luck and being well prepared for any eventuality.

Dirty, smelly, and skittish, the vermin has spent so long living among rats that their connection with humanity has faded. Although they have lost access to civilization they truly feel at home with their vermin friends, thriving in the dark filthy corners of the world.

A scarred, cranky, evil-looking bird with a small repertoire of curse words that they squawk at inopportune moments. Woe betide anybody who slays such a menacing creature, for they shall surely be cursed.

It appears that somebody thought it was a good idea to give a monkey access to explosives, which is an act they might have lived to regret. Chaotic, mischievous, and quick to anger, the powder monkey could be a useful but unpredictable ally.

Taking on the attitude and personality of its crew, a ship cat spends most of its time sleeping or catching rats. Although it is naturally inclined to avoid danger, when given no choice a ship cat can make any creature regret getting in it’s way.

Although humanoid in appearance, sirens are of Fey origins. They are androgynous social chameleons, able to act in ways that others find appealing, and prone to getting what they want.

Bound to a ship, a spirit is sometimes created from the essence of a long-dead sailor who served and died aboard. In other cases, a ship spirit can be the manifestation of the personality of the ship itself, an amalgam of all who have sailed aboard it.

A construct whose purpose is to be the most stereotypical pirate ever, the Steelbeard ruthlessly pursues any opportunity to loot and plunder. The eyepatch is purely cosmetic.