Post by Vako on Mar 3, 2012 13:31:17 GMT -5
Name: Vako Yizaak
Age: 36
Race: Toydarian
Birth place: Toydaria
Height: 4 ft. 5 inches
Weight: 43 lbs
Eye Color: Gray
Skin Color: Gray
Appearance:
Vako is not difficult to pick out in a crowd, not even amongst his own people. He has gray skin and is slightly above average height for a Toydarian, though this is almost completely unnoticeable. He always appears to be ready for battle, wearing his combat vestments at all times when out and about. His clothing consists of a gray scarf wrapped around his neck and traditional Toydarian war garb that is made from a large cluster of thin durasteel scales. He has two shoulder guards, and a number of arm bands for additional protection. Two belts wrap across his body, with a cluster of pouches and holsters among them. Most distinct are a holster for a heavy blaster pistol at his front, and a small sheathed sword on his left side. A small blaster rifle is frequently seen slung around his back. On his fingers are a set of manually extended razor claws. There is a headset on his head, with an antenna that extends from the right side. As far as size is concerned Vako is no larger or smaller then the typical Toydarian. He does have a collection of small scars on his body, which are noticeable when you are looking for them. By far his most distinguishable feature is the white war paint style face tattoo which runs down his trunk and around his eyes.
Personality: Vako is a rather mean spirited creature. He has a very dark and dry sense of humor. His perception of the universe is not one that is generally the most positive. He has a habit of saying what he thinks, and its not typically good things. He doesn’t have a loner’s mentality, and in fact hates working by himself. He does however get along fine when he does. He doesn’t have much of a concern for the lives of individuals unless he knows who they are. He can easily be described as someone with loose morals. He tends to take a calculated and efficient approach to things, which allows him to see that what he is doing is for the better. This can allow him to do bad things, without necessarily feeling bad about doing it. Vako is also a bit of a racist. He is quick to judge books by their covers, and make generalizations about varying species. In general he is merely an absolute product of his environments, and has found a way of living that can allow him to be what he has become without having to worry about changing who he is.
Profession: Mercenary
Skills:
- Piloting
- Situational Awareness
Attributes:
Physical Strength: 3
Intelligence: 7
Speed: 6
Leadership: 6
Unarmed: 4
Melee Weapons: 6
Ranged Weapons: 7
Ship Name: The Exile - swrponline2.proboards.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=imv&thread=12361&page=1
Bio: Vako Yizaak was born in the middle of the night in Toydor, the capital of Toydaria, inside of his parents house, which was located on a high floor in the building it was in. Like all newborns, Vako came out fully developed, and was flapping his wings within seconds of being a part of the world. Cold and hungry, he was wrapped up in his mother’s arms and fed almost immediately. Carrying on the family tradition of naming the children similar to the father’s first name, like his siblings, Vizen, Vaka, and Vulak, he was named the same way. Vako Yizaak he was written in the census registry, the fourth child, and third son of Vurko and Lalwa Yizaak. He was a very average sized newborn, and like all would begin to grow quickly.
Vako was very fortunate as his parents lived in the capital, a place in which the inhabitants lived to the modern galactic standard of living, and where he could be exposed to the great variety of people that lived in the galaxy. Toydor was a place where most of the space travel for the planet began and ended. As such there was a fine blending of culture there. Most Toydarians preferred to live in a very basic form of living that most cultures wouldn’t consider very civilized. But those Toydarians that lived in the capital did not live in such a way, and so neither was Vako.
At a young age Vako began receiving an education. His father was a medical practitioner in the capital, and knew the importance of seeing to it that his children were educated. All of Vurko’s children received very good schooling, and it gave them particular advantage over most of their peers. Though they were not the only ones who were going through school, it wasn’t the most common thing for Toydarians in general to know everything about how the entire galaxy worked. Vako himself was not the best student, but he did come up better then the average. He liked to learn new things, and took it well on his own time. He didn’t cope well with being forced to learn specific subjects, and liked a more hands on approach. He liked learning about other star systems, and the people that were there. However he did tend to generalize the people that were there, and didn’t get into great specifics about them.
Vako often thought about the idea of leaving Toydaria. He wanted to see stars and travel to new places. At the age of seventeen his father managed to get him an apprenticeship on a large Hutt Freighter that operated in the system. The Hutts had seemingly always been the real rulers of Toydaria, and that was always very evident in the capital. The Hutts and those loyal to them were everywhere, and Vako had grown up with a great loyalty to them. As such it was little trouble accepting this position on the freighter. His duties were very simple as he was really just a cabin boy. He’d go from place to place doing chores, and fetching things. All the while he’d also get lessons in how to operate basic systems on vessels, and how they worked. It was a very fair trade, and Vako did it well. The captain of the ship liked having Toydarians in positions like his as their wings made them quick inside of the ship, which was generally what they needed. Vako never did stop his education, though he took over the teaching himself. When he wasn’t doing work for the ship, he would spend a great deal of time on the Holo-Net studying various subjects, and adding to his knowledge base. Over the course of two years Vako learned the basics of astro-navigation, how to operate small ships, and could even man the helm of the large freighter itself to a certain extent. He was in no way a master of any of these things, but he did well on an amateur level.
One year later however a day came that Vako had suspected would come for quite some time. Toydaria was infamous for regular food shortages, which would come every thirty years or so. Vako was lucky enough to have been born at a time when that wasn’t a factor, but one day he received a message that told him the food shortages had come again, and with it, wars for control over the resources. As food would become scarcer, various Toydarian factions would fight over control of food supplies. The capital wasn’t at such great risk of running out of food, but it did have a great risk of coming under attack by those that wanted to steal the resources. As such Vako had a choice to stay on board the ship, or to do his perceived duty of fighting to protect his home. He made the decision to go home and defend Toydor from raiders and invaders that wanted control of the vast food stores of the capital. When the freighter landed at Toydor several weeks later, Vako disembarked.
Now twenty years old Vako was a soldier with the “Wardens of Toydor”. The army itself was just over a thousand Toydarians, which was quite large compared to the other factions around the planet. His uniform was a green and blue color, and he was taught how to use a blaster. He had no experience in combat, which was common amongst Toydarians going into these battles. The Wardens were a mixed force of city police, security forces, and just young recruits who were there to do their part. Their whole purpose was to defend the city and its resources, in particular the space port, which was the most vital resource the city had.
Vako learned the basics of combat well enough, and like many was eager to use those skills in action. It wasn’t long before that wish would be granted. Vako was sent with a group of soldiers to defend a fruit farm west of the city. It fell under attack from winged raiders from a village not far from Toydor. His first time in battle was very easy for him. They outnumbered and outgunned their opponents. The invading Toydarians were more just desperate for the food, and Vako and his counterparts gunned them down as they came about. Vako was sure he’d killed two people that day, and it wasn’t all that difficult. They were the enemy, he was doing his duty, and they were the victors. It was as simple as that to him. Months carried on like that in a similar fashion, and small little raiding parties would be met with swift and decisive strikes against them. Vako had grown to enjoy that sort of lifestyle. It was easy, and he was well respected amongst the community as a defender of the city. During a raid at another orchard, his squad leader was killed and Vako took over control of his squad. He did very well in ordering his men, and the orchard was safe. He was given a promotion for his actions there, and was placed in charge of the squad full time. After a full year of defending the city, it seemed like the other factions in the area were getting the message that Toydor was not going to give up any of its resources the attacks seemed to cease. For a whole month the fighting seemed to end. The food shortages had not stopped, but it the other factions it seemed were out fighting each other and leaving Toydor alone. But not long after that changed.
Just after a month of no fighting, a large ship landed at the star port. It opened up and out poured a large group of Toydarian raiders. They were right inside of the city, and once they had finished pouring out, the ship exploded, damaging many of the other vessels and causing a large wreckage pile on the landing pads. The invaders damaged the star port significantly and started an insurgency inside of the city. The battle went on for several days, with people scared to go outside with the fighting going on in what seemed to be every street. The invaders were outnumbered at least ten to one, but they were so spread out and well hidden that it was hard to find them. Vako and his squad would fly around patrolling areas that were perceived to be secure, only to be ambushed. Luckily Vako made it through unharmed, and after 5 days the last of the invaders were stamped out. The star port was cleared, and commerce resumed which was a great help in rebuilding the damaged city. No attack of that size ever happened during the war, and the fighting began to die down. Eight months later the food shortages began to end, and the conflict seemed to be completely forgotten. The “Wardens of Toydor” disbanded, and everyone went back to their lives as though nothing had happened.
Vako however did not have a life to go back to. He had been an apprentice on a freighter before, but that was the work of a boy. He had just gone through the entire conflict, and had seen many of his people die, a good number by his own hand. There was no way Vako could go back to just being a cabin boy. He had skills that could apply to being on a ship, but the fire of conflict was now in his veins. Even though the war was over, he didn’t really feel like it was. He was a soldier now, he needed to find a place where he could be a soldier. Vako got his opportunity when he was in a bar near the star port. He saw some men walk in who were heavily armed, and most certainly not from around there. Vako overheard their conversation, and they were talking about some conflict that they had just gotten out of. It was strange to him, as they were not wearing uniforms, and it was not a war on that planet. He flew over and inquired if they were soldiers. They were harsh at first, but they explained that they were mercenary soldiers with the “Black Rock Brigade”, a small mercenary army. Suddenly it was as though a door opened to Vako that he’d never seen before. He could join a mercenary army, and then he’d get his fight. The money didn’t matter to him, he didn’t think he really needed it. But he could join up and they’d take him right to the fight. When he asked where he could sign up, he was laughed at and mocked. Even him saying that he had just fought in a full war didn’t seem to win them over much, as they didn’t consider it too hard to kill desperate Toydarian farmers, or Toydarians in general. Still Vako was persistent and it wasn’t as though they were losing anything for it. They told Vako that he could come with him, but he’d have he was on his own when it came to entering. They brought him to an armored freighter that was docked, and he was placed before a Zabrak who was apparently the commander of that particular group. He told him he wanted come with them. The commander seemed to be surprised that a Toydarian wanted to come along with them, but let him on all the same after he demanded Vako pay five hundred credits as an entry fee. This was a lot of money for Vako, as he hadn’t been paid much as a soldier. After being let on, the ship then took off, and he was starting his life as a Mercenary Soldier.
The ship joined up with a fleet of nine mixed ships that was focused around a frigate as the flagship. Vako and the others were moved onto the flagship, which was known as “The Razorwind”, and he started to get an understanding of what he was doing. They group didn’t wear a particular uniform, they just used white as a signifier of their allegiance to the Brigade. When Vako asked why they used white and not black, he was told it was because their enemies would be expecting that, and this confused them. Vako was quickly beginning to like these people. For the most part they stuck to themselves, and had their own groups. Vako was placed in the fourth platoon, and was expected to just catch on to everything. No one gave him any training, or told him how things worked. He was just expected to figure things out for himself. It wasn’t terribly difficult, and he was fortunate enough to be able to catch them on a slight break in work. He figured out the meal schedule, the unit organization, and who certain people were. He also learned about the all in important pay schedule. The Brigade didn’t issue weapons as they expected everyone to pay for their own. They did have weapons on board, which were sold over priced. Uniforms weren’t uncommon, as others had them to. Vako’s Green and blue uniform however was a bit problematic, and seemed to stand out. He didn’t realize it yet, but that would be a problem.
His first operation with the Brigade was to quell an uprising of miners on the outer rim. They came in quickly and began removing resistance without issue. However, Vako found that he was being shot at far more then most of the others. He realized it was because he was a very unique target, and had bright colors to boot. After the operation was over, Vako figured out what he needed to do. He went to work dulling down the uniform, changing it from the bright green and blue, to a singular dark gray color. This made him fit in better among the others, and by the next time out in battle, he did much better. Vako became fairly well established in the organization. His prior combat experience made this an easy situation for him to handle. He found it easier to shoot at enemies that didn’t look like him, but also the fact that they didn’t move as much as Toydarians. Vako got better, and became very enthralled in the organization itself. His skills were honed by sparing matches that were held in downtime, and he picked up a small durasteel sword. He practiced with several others in how to use melee weapons, as times would come up when such skills were useful. He could never be as strong as many of the others, but he could use his speed to his advantage. Vako did continue to learn more about the galaxy as he wanted, and in his spare time did continue to study things about the worlds they visited.
Five years passed, almost like a blur. Vako was having the time of his life. The people around him were just like him. There were some that he didn’t get along with so well, and there were those in the Brigade that didn’t treat him very well. The reasons could vary greatly, but sometimes him being a Toydarian would come up. That sort of speciesism would cause Vako to return it in kind. In particular he had a serious distaste for Wookiees, which started after he got in a fight with one over something he said. They didn’t actually go to blows, which Vako wouldn’t have aloud anyway as he would have just tried to shoot him, but the conflict was still there. Fortunately the Wookiee died not long after that in a battle on an outer rim moon. Around this time, Vako had developed such a liking for the Brigade that he decided to have white war paint markings tattooed onto his face. It showed not only his loyalty to the brigade, but had him stand out amongst them. As new people came in, they saw Vako as someone who was experienced and quite a character. This was what Vako wanted, and it fit perfectly.
A year later the Brigade was called to war on a moon of Caramm V. A wealthy factory owner, named Pargal, had recently been having trouble with the locals, and needed some firepower to back up his control. He was the wealthiest man on the whole moon, and owned whole towns. He had control of local gangs and was forcing large taxes on the people. But when the people began to rise up in rebellion, he had no real way to stop them. Before the rebellion got into full stride, he hired the Black Rock Brigade to fight for him. The Mercenary Army deployed and began doing exactly as its employer requested. They were an army enforcing the laws of a dictator, oppressing the people, and removing any opposition. The rebels on the moon were overwhelmed by the introduction of the mercenary army at first, but soon after got their bearings and the real war began. The Black Rock Brigade was in charge of making sure their employer remained in control. That meant keeping the people in line, protecting his assets, and putting down the insurrection wherever they found it. The Rebels on the other hand needed only to thwart all of their efforts, a much simpler task. Though it only started out as guerilla tactics, the rebels slowly began to get more organized, and somehow managed to get a hold of a large stockpile of weaponry. They had plenty of recruits, and they began the real battle with The Black Rock Brigade. Actual full scale battles were being fought, with territory taken and lost on both sides. Vako was caught up right in the middle of it. As one of the more experienced in the Brigade by this point, he was in charge of a squad of more recent recruits. He battled all over the moon, in cities, in small towns, in the middle of no where. In this time he had to do things, and see things that most would consider absolutely horrible. It was all a part of war though, and Vako knew it. It was important for those things to happen, and so when he found woman or children in his sights, he still knew that he had to fire. He did an equal amount of saving however. When a loyal town fell under attack, there were several occasions he’d put himself completely at risk to save a helpless civilian.
Months turned into two years, and the Brigade was still fighting Pargal’s war. But so long as he was able to keep the money flowing, the Brigade would keep on fighting. Vako was out escorting a convoy of supplies back to their primary city when suddenly they fell under attack. They managed to hold off the attack, but they found out the attack was coming from everywhere. Most of the vehicles were badly damaged and needed repair, and so Vako stayed back with some of the others to repair them, while another group went off in the working vehicles to help defend the city. After several hours the vehicles were up and running again, but they found out that the city was under a much larger attack then initially anticipated. Vako and his men came to the city to help where they could. The battle was very harsh. Streets were dug up and turned into trenches, mortar positions put into street corners, blasters being fired everywhere. While amidst the battle Vako heard a rumor that the rebels had somehow managed to get the help of a small mercenary Navy and destroyed the Brigades fleet. That idea seemed highly unlikely and it didn’t bother Vako much. The next day however it was confirmed that was exactly what had happened. The Rebels had hired a small mercenary fleet to attack their ships in orbit. They’d managed to destroy the “Razorwind” and four of the other ships. The Brigade had already lost a third of its soldiers in the war, and suddenly morale began to plummet. The rebels were too numerous to get the Brigade out, and the only choice they had was to fight. The plan was to fight their way through to an opening, and then get out to the transports. Unfortunately for the Black Rock Brigade, the rebels had completely besieged the city.
The battle went on for an entire month, before the Brigade was finally beaten down so much that they were going to make a desperate action. They’d initially hoped the rebels would run out of steam, and that their ‘fortress city’ was strong enough to hold. Both of these assumptions were proven wrong however. The Brigade decided that it’s only course of action would be to get a hold of the fleet, which would meet them in the desert several miles away from the city. They Brigade would pull all of its forces to the weakest point of the city, and force its way through, and rendezvous with the fleet on the ground. The plan worked, but at a very high cost. Vako and the other soldiers had to battle their way through street after street of enemy forces, being shot all the way, and chased. They made it out of the city, and continued running through the desert. The rebels did not chase them. They were more interested in taking control of the city then fighting the retreating mercenaries. Upon arriving at the fleet, they realized how much they’d really lost. Over half of the number they’d gone into the fight with were dead or badly wounded. Many of the officers were dead, the fleet had been reduced to only a few of the large freighters, and the Black Rock Brigade had been forced to spend most of its money on resupplying its men on the ground. Without a way to pay its soldiers, repair its fleet, and fight its wars, the Black Rock Brigade was disbanded. Vako didn’t want it to fall apart, and was willing to stay on. But the leaders couldn’t afford it, and money was the only thing that drove that army.
For the second time in his life Vako was left not knowing what to do. He was thirty years old and had absolutely no idea where to go. He had his equipment, and had a bit of money from his years of service. Realizing he had all the tools he needed to make something for himself, he headed out to the outer rim to do some small scale bounty hunting. He went from one planet to another, but only did very small local town things as he was not a skilled tracker. Needing something to do with his time, he went through a short pilot training course, which gave him a stronger grasp on how to fly different starships. This was a skill he presumed he would need eventually. Though he did not have his own ship, he had a mind for perhaps getting one. After drifting from one place to another for months he realized he needed a more regular sort of lifestyle. He linked up with different mercenary teams on the outer rim. His experience and skill was enough to make him an acceptable asset to certain groups. He wasn’t ever leading them, but that didn’t bother him at all.
Vako joined up with a group run by an Ithorian named Dur’gii. Dur’gii and his gang of five were a pack of thieves and bandits. They were looking simply for profit, and used their blasters and ambition to get it. They were a set of drifters though, and used regular transport to get from one place to another. Dur’gii had the idea of them getting their own ship, and getting involved in piracy. Vako was not the biggest fan of being a pirate, but it wasn’t as though it was a long stretch from what he had been doing. Dur’gii used every resource he had in tracking down an ideal vessel for them to steal. Finally he found a BV-700b, which was an anti fighter patrol ship. It would be perfect for taking down wayward freighters, and the best part was that it was owned by a small security force on Ord Janon. The area the ship would dock at saw very little crime, and should therefore have been no problem. Dur’gii devised a plan, that involved them sneaking in at night, killing the guards, and stealing the ship. This would be no trouble at all as far as they knew. When they were finally ready they went to the ships dock point. As expected there were two guards at the open air landing pad. They saw them approaching, and Dur’gii leading the group prepared his blaster pistol. As he brought it out however, the guards already had an idea that this was trouble. The Ithorian was shot through the head almost instantly. The others began firing on the guards and killed the two in front of them, though lost another in the process. With the group in a panic and without any idea of what to do, Vako told them to keep moving. One of them ran the other way, while Vako and the last two ran towards the ship. They got to the airlock door, and found it was locked. One of the men was a hacker and started working at it while Vako and the other man held back the guards. Vako flew high and kept moving so the guards would have difficulty hitting him, as he always did. This was successful, and after a minute, the door was open. The other defender of the group was however struck down by fire and fell forward. Vako flew in towards the airlock door, as did the one who had gotten the door open, but as they entered the hacker was hit in the back by a blaster shot. Vako pulled him inside, and shut the door behind him. The plan having turned into a complete disaster, he did the only thing he could do. He flew forward to the controls and manned them. Fortunately they were not complicated and very basic. He activated the launch sequence, and the vessel lifted off the landing pad. The guards were still firing but that did not matter. The ship took off and soon it was too far to see.
Vako went back to find that the hacker was dead on the floor. Not knowing what else to do, he did a standard burial in space. Now in possession of a ship, Vako made his way out to the outer rim. He would need to do a few things before the ship was entirely his. On Tatooine he hired a man to change the ships registry data and codes, and had the name “Exile” listed in the vessels identification entry. With a ship, and his equipment, Vako decided that the only thing he could do is what he had always done, mercenary work, and has been working at it ever since.
Password - Trouble With Tribbles
RP Sample:
A flapping sound was heard inside of the bar. It was sudden and quick as the sliding metal door jetted open. What appeared on the other side was a small gray creature, hovering about three feet off the ground. He leaned forward and made his way inside of the bar, and the door jetted shut behind him. Not a single person in the bar took notice, since it wasn’t as though it was an odd or even uncommon occurrence. The gray flying creature wasn’t the strangest looking being that was inside of the bar, but he was a unique one. He was recognizably strapped with weapons and equipment. His white tattooed face was unique amongst them, and his eyes moved over the people there. He hovered straight through the people and took a seat just in front of the bar.
”Ha’du.” The creature spoke in Huttese. ”Ba’da cu ra’I doza book” He finished. A droid in front of him nodded and rolled its way to a shelf behind him. Vako turned around to look over some of the people there.
This was not his first time in that bar, and so he was wary of his surroundings. Behind him, a glass of red liquid was brought to him. Vako set down a set of plastic chips. The droid swiped them up and moved away. Vako looked up at a screen that was showing a race of large animals on a screen. He didn’t know what planet it was on, but he didn’t really care. He wasn’t really watching it, as much as he noticed it was happening. He took a drink from his glass, and he could feel a surge of energy through his body. Toydarians needed a lot of energy to feed their high metabolism. Because of this, they ate a lot of food, and drank a lot of liquid that was high in energy.
Behind him Vako heard a familiar growl. It was deep, but also somewhat gentle sounding. He knew what it was. The sound of a Wookiee never escaped him. Vako reached down at his front and put his hand on his blaster. He tapped two of his three fingers on it, drumming on it in a quick succession. Vako hated Wookiees. Their smell, their sound, their sight. They were archaic creatures, with a disgusting sense of honor. One word could set them off, and it was a battle to the death. And of course you were expected to play by their rules with only physical combat.
Vako was never concerned about that. He had his own way of doing things, and that got him to where he was. But realizing that the Wookiee was there put a bad taste in Vako’s mouth. He didn’t know him, and had never seen before. But he gathered by the bowcaster that he probably thought of himself as a warrior. The warriors were the worst kind, as they were strong and wanted to prove it. The more Vako thought on it the worst he began to feel about the whole thing.
Reaching out and grabbing the glass Vako poured the remaining liquid down his throat quickly. He set the glass down, and his wings began to flap once again. The flapping drew the attention of some, but only for a moment. As he lifted off, he thought about using his hand to show the Wookiee a signal of insult. But he didn’t bother, realizing he’d either have to run, or kill the fury animal. Instead Vako just flew back towards the door, and outside, leaving no real sign that he had ever even been there.
Age: 36
Race: Toydarian
Birth place: Toydaria
Height: 4 ft. 5 inches
Weight: 43 lbs
Eye Color: Gray
Skin Color: Gray
Appearance:
Vako is not difficult to pick out in a crowd, not even amongst his own people. He has gray skin and is slightly above average height for a Toydarian, though this is almost completely unnoticeable. He always appears to be ready for battle, wearing his combat vestments at all times when out and about. His clothing consists of a gray scarf wrapped around his neck and traditional Toydarian war garb that is made from a large cluster of thin durasteel scales. He has two shoulder guards, and a number of arm bands for additional protection. Two belts wrap across his body, with a cluster of pouches and holsters among them. Most distinct are a holster for a heavy blaster pistol at his front, and a small sheathed sword on his left side. A small blaster rifle is frequently seen slung around his back. On his fingers are a set of manually extended razor claws. There is a headset on his head, with an antenna that extends from the right side. As far as size is concerned Vako is no larger or smaller then the typical Toydarian. He does have a collection of small scars on his body, which are noticeable when you are looking for them. By far his most distinguishable feature is the white war paint style face tattoo which runs down his trunk and around his eyes.
Personality: Vako is a rather mean spirited creature. He has a very dark and dry sense of humor. His perception of the universe is not one that is generally the most positive. He has a habit of saying what he thinks, and its not typically good things. He doesn’t have a loner’s mentality, and in fact hates working by himself. He does however get along fine when he does. He doesn’t have much of a concern for the lives of individuals unless he knows who they are. He can easily be described as someone with loose morals. He tends to take a calculated and efficient approach to things, which allows him to see that what he is doing is for the better. This can allow him to do bad things, without necessarily feeling bad about doing it. Vako is also a bit of a racist. He is quick to judge books by their covers, and make generalizations about varying species. In general he is merely an absolute product of his environments, and has found a way of living that can allow him to be what he has become without having to worry about changing who he is.
Profession: Mercenary
Skills:
- Piloting
- Situational Awareness
Attributes:
Physical Strength: 3
Intelligence: 7
Speed: 6
Leadership: 6
Unarmed: 4
Melee Weapons: 6
Ranged Weapons: 7
Ship Name: The Exile - swrponline2.proboards.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=imv&thread=12361&page=1
Bio: Vako Yizaak was born in the middle of the night in Toydor, the capital of Toydaria, inside of his parents house, which was located on a high floor in the building it was in. Like all newborns, Vako came out fully developed, and was flapping his wings within seconds of being a part of the world. Cold and hungry, he was wrapped up in his mother’s arms and fed almost immediately. Carrying on the family tradition of naming the children similar to the father’s first name, like his siblings, Vizen, Vaka, and Vulak, he was named the same way. Vako Yizaak he was written in the census registry, the fourth child, and third son of Vurko and Lalwa Yizaak. He was a very average sized newborn, and like all would begin to grow quickly.
Vako was very fortunate as his parents lived in the capital, a place in which the inhabitants lived to the modern galactic standard of living, and where he could be exposed to the great variety of people that lived in the galaxy. Toydor was a place where most of the space travel for the planet began and ended. As such there was a fine blending of culture there. Most Toydarians preferred to live in a very basic form of living that most cultures wouldn’t consider very civilized. But those Toydarians that lived in the capital did not live in such a way, and so neither was Vako.
At a young age Vako began receiving an education. His father was a medical practitioner in the capital, and knew the importance of seeing to it that his children were educated. All of Vurko’s children received very good schooling, and it gave them particular advantage over most of their peers. Though they were not the only ones who were going through school, it wasn’t the most common thing for Toydarians in general to know everything about how the entire galaxy worked. Vako himself was not the best student, but he did come up better then the average. He liked to learn new things, and took it well on his own time. He didn’t cope well with being forced to learn specific subjects, and liked a more hands on approach. He liked learning about other star systems, and the people that were there. However he did tend to generalize the people that were there, and didn’t get into great specifics about them.
Vako often thought about the idea of leaving Toydaria. He wanted to see stars and travel to new places. At the age of seventeen his father managed to get him an apprenticeship on a large Hutt Freighter that operated in the system. The Hutts had seemingly always been the real rulers of Toydaria, and that was always very evident in the capital. The Hutts and those loyal to them were everywhere, and Vako had grown up with a great loyalty to them. As such it was little trouble accepting this position on the freighter. His duties were very simple as he was really just a cabin boy. He’d go from place to place doing chores, and fetching things. All the while he’d also get lessons in how to operate basic systems on vessels, and how they worked. It was a very fair trade, and Vako did it well. The captain of the ship liked having Toydarians in positions like his as their wings made them quick inside of the ship, which was generally what they needed. Vako never did stop his education, though he took over the teaching himself. When he wasn’t doing work for the ship, he would spend a great deal of time on the Holo-Net studying various subjects, and adding to his knowledge base. Over the course of two years Vako learned the basics of astro-navigation, how to operate small ships, and could even man the helm of the large freighter itself to a certain extent. He was in no way a master of any of these things, but he did well on an amateur level.
One year later however a day came that Vako had suspected would come for quite some time. Toydaria was infamous for regular food shortages, which would come every thirty years or so. Vako was lucky enough to have been born at a time when that wasn’t a factor, but one day he received a message that told him the food shortages had come again, and with it, wars for control over the resources. As food would become scarcer, various Toydarian factions would fight over control of food supplies. The capital wasn’t at such great risk of running out of food, but it did have a great risk of coming under attack by those that wanted to steal the resources. As such Vako had a choice to stay on board the ship, or to do his perceived duty of fighting to protect his home. He made the decision to go home and defend Toydor from raiders and invaders that wanted control of the vast food stores of the capital. When the freighter landed at Toydor several weeks later, Vako disembarked.
Now twenty years old Vako was a soldier with the “Wardens of Toydor”. The army itself was just over a thousand Toydarians, which was quite large compared to the other factions around the planet. His uniform was a green and blue color, and he was taught how to use a blaster. He had no experience in combat, which was common amongst Toydarians going into these battles. The Wardens were a mixed force of city police, security forces, and just young recruits who were there to do their part. Their whole purpose was to defend the city and its resources, in particular the space port, which was the most vital resource the city had.
Vako learned the basics of combat well enough, and like many was eager to use those skills in action. It wasn’t long before that wish would be granted. Vako was sent with a group of soldiers to defend a fruit farm west of the city. It fell under attack from winged raiders from a village not far from Toydor. His first time in battle was very easy for him. They outnumbered and outgunned their opponents. The invading Toydarians were more just desperate for the food, and Vako and his counterparts gunned them down as they came about. Vako was sure he’d killed two people that day, and it wasn’t all that difficult. They were the enemy, he was doing his duty, and they were the victors. It was as simple as that to him. Months carried on like that in a similar fashion, and small little raiding parties would be met with swift and decisive strikes against them. Vako had grown to enjoy that sort of lifestyle. It was easy, and he was well respected amongst the community as a defender of the city. During a raid at another orchard, his squad leader was killed and Vako took over control of his squad. He did very well in ordering his men, and the orchard was safe. He was given a promotion for his actions there, and was placed in charge of the squad full time. After a full year of defending the city, it seemed like the other factions in the area were getting the message that Toydor was not going to give up any of its resources the attacks seemed to cease. For a whole month the fighting seemed to end. The food shortages had not stopped, but it the other factions it seemed were out fighting each other and leaving Toydor alone. But not long after that changed.
Just after a month of no fighting, a large ship landed at the star port. It opened up and out poured a large group of Toydarian raiders. They were right inside of the city, and once they had finished pouring out, the ship exploded, damaging many of the other vessels and causing a large wreckage pile on the landing pads. The invaders damaged the star port significantly and started an insurgency inside of the city. The battle went on for several days, with people scared to go outside with the fighting going on in what seemed to be every street. The invaders were outnumbered at least ten to one, but they were so spread out and well hidden that it was hard to find them. Vako and his squad would fly around patrolling areas that were perceived to be secure, only to be ambushed. Luckily Vako made it through unharmed, and after 5 days the last of the invaders were stamped out. The star port was cleared, and commerce resumed which was a great help in rebuilding the damaged city. No attack of that size ever happened during the war, and the fighting began to die down. Eight months later the food shortages began to end, and the conflict seemed to be completely forgotten. The “Wardens of Toydor” disbanded, and everyone went back to their lives as though nothing had happened.
Vako however did not have a life to go back to. He had been an apprentice on a freighter before, but that was the work of a boy. He had just gone through the entire conflict, and had seen many of his people die, a good number by his own hand. There was no way Vako could go back to just being a cabin boy. He had skills that could apply to being on a ship, but the fire of conflict was now in his veins. Even though the war was over, he didn’t really feel like it was. He was a soldier now, he needed to find a place where he could be a soldier. Vako got his opportunity when he was in a bar near the star port. He saw some men walk in who were heavily armed, and most certainly not from around there. Vako overheard their conversation, and they were talking about some conflict that they had just gotten out of. It was strange to him, as they were not wearing uniforms, and it was not a war on that planet. He flew over and inquired if they were soldiers. They were harsh at first, but they explained that they were mercenary soldiers with the “Black Rock Brigade”, a small mercenary army. Suddenly it was as though a door opened to Vako that he’d never seen before. He could join a mercenary army, and then he’d get his fight. The money didn’t matter to him, he didn’t think he really needed it. But he could join up and they’d take him right to the fight. When he asked where he could sign up, he was laughed at and mocked. Even him saying that he had just fought in a full war didn’t seem to win them over much, as they didn’t consider it too hard to kill desperate Toydarian farmers, or Toydarians in general. Still Vako was persistent and it wasn’t as though they were losing anything for it. They told Vako that he could come with him, but he’d have he was on his own when it came to entering. They brought him to an armored freighter that was docked, and he was placed before a Zabrak who was apparently the commander of that particular group. He told him he wanted come with them. The commander seemed to be surprised that a Toydarian wanted to come along with them, but let him on all the same after he demanded Vako pay five hundred credits as an entry fee. This was a lot of money for Vako, as he hadn’t been paid much as a soldier. After being let on, the ship then took off, and he was starting his life as a Mercenary Soldier.
The ship joined up with a fleet of nine mixed ships that was focused around a frigate as the flagship. Vako and the others were moved onto the flagship, which was known as “The Razorwind”, and he started to get an understanding of what he was doing. They group didn’t wear a particular uniform, they just used white as a signifier of their allegiance to the Brigade. When Vako asked why they used white and not black, he was told it was because their enemies would be expecting that, and this confused them. Vako was quickly beginning to like these people. For the most part they stuck to themselves, and had their own groups. Vako was placed in the fourth platoon, and was expected to just catch on to everything. No one gave him any training, or told him how things worked. He was just expected to figure things out for himself. It wasn’t terribly difficult, and he was fortunate enough to be able to catch them on a slight break in work. He figured out the meal schedule, the unit organization, and who certain people were. He also learned about the all in important pay schedule. The Brigade didn’t issue weapons as they expected everyone to pay for their own. They did have weapons on board, which were sold over priced. Uniforms weren’t uncommon, as others had them to. Vako’s Green and blue uniform however was a bit problematic, and seemed to stand out. He didn’t realize it yet, but that would be a problem.
His first operation with the Brigade was to quell an uprising of miners on the outer rim. They came in quickly and began removing resistance without issue. However, Vako found that he was being shot at far more then most of the others. He realized it was because he was a very unique target, and had bright colors to boot. After the operation was over, Vako figured out what he needed to do. He went to work dulling down the uniform, changing it from the bright green and blue, to a singular dark gray color. This made him fit in better among the others, and by the next time out in battle, he did much better. Vako became fairly well established in the organization. His prior combat experience made this an easy situation for him to handle. He found it easier to shoot at enemies that didn’t look like him, but also the fact that they didn’t move as much as Toydarians. Vako got better, and became very enthralled in the organization itself. His skills were honed by sparing matches that were held in downtime, and he picked up a small durasteel sword. He practiced with several others in how to use melee weapons, as times would come up when such skills were useful. He could never be as strong as many of the others, but he could use his speed to his advantage. Vako did continue to learn more about the galaxy as he wanted, and in his spare time did continue to study things about the worlds they visited.
Five years passed, almost like a blur. Vako was having the time of his life. The people around him were just like him. There were some that he didn’t get along with so well, and there were those in the Brigade that didn’t treat him very well. The reasons could vary greatly, but sometimes him being a Toydarian would come up. That sort of speciesism would cause Vako to return it in kind. In particular he had a serious distaste for Wookiees, which started after he got in a fight with one over something he said. They didn’t actually go to blows, which Vako wouldn’t have aloud anyway as he would have just tried to shoot him, but the conflict was still there. Fortunately the Wookiee died not long after that in a battle on an outer rim moon. Around this time, Vako had developed such a liking for the Brigade that he decided to have white war paint markings tattooed onto his face. It showed not only his loyalty to the brigade, but had him stand out amongst them. As new people came in, they saw Vako as someone who was experienced and quite a character. This was what Vako wanted, and it fit perfectly.
A year later the Brigade was called to war on a moon of Caramm V. A wealthy factory owner, named Pargal, had recently been having trouble with the locals, and needed some firepower to back up his control. He was the wealthiest man on the whole moon, and owned whole towns. He had control of local gangs and was forcing large taxes on the people. But when the people began to rise up in rebellion, he had no real way to stop them. Before the rebellion got into full stride, he hired the Black Rock Brigade to fight for him. The Mercenary Army deployed and began doing exactly as its employer requested. They were an army enforcing the laws of a dictator, oppressing the people, and removing any opposition. The rebels on the moon were overwhelmed by the introduction of the mercenary army at first, but soon after got their bearings and the real war began. The Black Rock Brigade was in charge of making sure their employer remained in control. That meant keeping the people in line, protecting his assets, and putting down the insurrection wherever they found it. The Rebels on the other hand needed only to thwart all of their efforts, a much simpler task. Though it only started out as guerilla tactics, the rebels slowly began to get more organized, and somehow managed to get a hold of a large stockpile of weaponry. They had plenty of recruits, and they began the real battle with The Black Rock Brigade. Actual full scale battles were being fought, with territory taken and lost on both sides. Vako was caught up right in the middle of it. As one of the more experienced in the Brigade by this point, he was in charge of a squad of more recent recruits. He battled all over the moon, in cities, in small towns, in the middle of no where. In this time he had to do things, and see things that most would consider absolutely horrible. It was all a part of war though, and Vako knew it. It was important for those things to happen, and so when he found woman or children in his sights, he still knew that he had to fire. He did an equal amount of saving however. When a loyal town fell under attack, there were several occasions he’d put himself completely at risk to save a helpless civilian.
Months turned into two years, and the Brigade was still fighting Pargal’s war. But so long as he was able to keep the money flowing, the Brigade would keep on fighting. Vako was out escorting a convoy of supplies back to their primary city when suddenly they fell under attack. They managed to hold off the attack, but they found out the attack was coming from everywhere. Most of the vehicles were badly damaged and needed repair, and so Vako stayed back with some of the others to repair them, while another group went off in the working vehicles to help defend the city. After several hours the vehicles were up and running again, but they found out that the city was under a much larger attack then initially anticipated. Vako and his men came to the city to help where they could. The battle was very harsh. Streets were dug up and turned into trenches, mortar positions put into street corners, blasters being fired everywhere. While amidst the battle Vako heard a rumor that the rebels had somehow managed to get the help of a small mercenary Navy and destroyed the Brigades fleet. That idea seemed highly unlikely and it didn’t bother Vako much. The next day however it was confirmed that was exactly what had happened. The Rebels had hired a small mercenary fleet to attack their ships in orbit. They’d managed to destroy the “Razorwind” and four of the other ships. The Brigade had already lost a third of its soldiers in the war, and suddenly morale began to plummet. The rebels were too numerous to get the Brigade out, and the only choice they had was to fight. The plan was to fight their way through to an opening, and then get out to the transports. Unfortunately for the Black Rock Brigade, the rebels had completely besieged the city.
The battle went on for an entire month, before the Brigade was finally beaten down so much that they were going to make a desperate action. They’d initially hoped the rebels would run out of steam, and that their ‘fortress city’ was strong enough to hold. Both of these assumptions were proven wrong however. The Brigade decided that it’s only course of action would be to get a hold of the fleet, which would meet them in the desert several miles away from the city. They Brigade would pull all of its forces to the weakest point of the city, and force its way through, and rendezvous with the fleet on the ground. The plan worked, but at a very high cost. Vako and the other soldiers had to battle their way through street after street of enemy forces, being shot all the way, and chased. They made it out of the city, and continued running through the desert. The rebels did not chase them. They were more interested in taking control of the city then fighting the retreating mercenaries. Upon arriving at the fleet, they realized how much they’d really lost. Over half of the number they’d gone into the fight with were dead or badly wounded. Many of the officers were dead, the fleet had been reduced to only a few of the large freighters, and the Black Rock Brigade had been forced to spend most of its money on resupplying its men on the ground. Without a way to pay its soldiers, repair its fleet, and fight its wars, the Black Rock Brigade was disbanded. Vako didn’t want it to fall apart, and was willing to stay on. But the leaders couldn’t afford it, and money was the only thing that drove that army.
For the second time in his life Vako was left not knowing what to do. He was thirty years old and had absolutely no idea where to go. He had his equipment, and had a bit of money from his years of service. Realizing he had all the tools he needed to make something for himself, he headed out to the outer rim to do some small scale bounty hunting. He went from one planet to another, but only did very small local town things as he was not a skilled tracker. Needing something to do with his time, he went through a short pilot training course, which gave him a stronger grasp on how to fly different starships. This was a skill he presumed he would need eventually. Though he did not have his own ship, he had a mind for perhaps getting one. After drifting from one place to another for months he realized he needed a more regular sort of lifestyle. He linked up with different mercenary teams on the outer rim. His experience and skill was enough to make him an acceptable asset to certain groups. He wasn’t ever leading them, but that didn’t bother him at all.
Vako joined up with a group run by an Ithorian named Dur’gii. Dur’gii and his gang of five were a pack of thieves and bandits. They were looking simply for profit, and used their blasters and ambition to get it. They were a set of drifters though, and used regular transport to get from one place to another. Dur’gii had the idea of them getting their own ship, and getting involved in piracy. Vako was not the biggest fan of being a pirate, but it wasn’t as though it was a long stretch from what he had been doing. Dur’gii used every resource he had in tracking down an ideal vessel for them to steal. Finally he found a BV-700b, which was an anti fighter patrol ship. It would be perfect for taking down wayward freighters, and the best part was that it was owned by a small security force on Ord Janon. The area the ship would dock at saw very little crime, and should therefore have been no problem. Dur’gii devised a plan, that involved them sneaking in at night, killing the guards, and stealing the ship. This would be no trouble at all as far as they knew. When they were finally ready they went to the ships dock point. As expected there were two guards at the open air landing pad. They saw them approaching, and Dur’gii leading the group prepared his blaster pistol. As he brought it out however, the guards already had an idea that this was trouble. The Ithorian was shot through the head almost instantly. The others began firing on the guards and killed the two in front of them, though lost another in the process. With the group in a panic and without any idea of what to do, Vako told them to keep moving. One of them ran the other way, while Vako and the last two ran towards the ship. They got to the airlock door, and found it was locked. One of the men was a hacker and started working at it while Vako and the other man held back the guards. Vako flew high and kept moving so the guards would have difficulty hitting him, as he always did. This was successful, and after a minute, the door was open. The other defender of the group was however struck down by fire and fell forward. Vako flew in towards the airlock door, as did the one who had gotten the door open, but as they entered the hacker was hit in the back by a blaster shot. Vako pulled him inside, and shut the door behind him. The plan having turned into a complete disaster, he did the only thing he could do. He flew forward to the controls and manned them. Fortunately they were not complicated and very basic. He activated the launch sequence, and the vessel lifted off the landing pad. The guards were still firing but that did not matter. The ship took off and soon it was too far to see.
Vako went back to find that the hacker was dead on the floor. Not knowing what else to do, he did a standard burial in space. Now in possession of a ship, Vako made his way out to the outer rim. He would need to do a few things before the ship was entirely his. On Tatooine he hired a man to change the ships registry data and codes, and had the name “Exile” listed in the vessels identification entry. With a ship, and his equipment, Vako decided that the only thing he could do is what he had always done, mercenary work, and has been working at it ever since.
Password - Trouble With Tribbles
RP Sample:
A flapping sound was heard inside of the bar. It was sudden and quick as the sliding metal door jetted open. What appeared on the other side was a small gray creature, hovering about three feet off the ground. He leaned forward and made his way inside of the bar, and the door jetted shut behind him. Not a single person in the bar took notice, since it wasn’t as though it was an odd or even uncommon occurrence. The gray flying creature wasn’t the strangest looking being that was inside of the bar, but he was a unique one. He was recognizably strapped with weapons and equipment. His white tattooed face was unique amongst them, and his eyes moved over the people there. He hovered straight through the people and took a seat just in front of the bar.
”Ha’du.” The creature spoke in Huttese. ”Ba’da cu ra’I doza book” He finished. A droid in front of him nodded and rolled its way to a shelf behind him. Vako turned around to look over some of the people there.
This was not his first time in that bar, and so he was wary of his surroundings. Behind him, a glass of red liquid was brought to him. Vako set down a set of plastic chips. The droid swiped them up and moved away. Vako looked up at a screen that was showing a race of large animals on a screen. He didn’t know what planet it was on, but he didn’t really care. He wasn’t really watching it, as much as he noticed it was happening. He took a drink from his glass, and he could feel a surge of energy through his body. Toydarians needed a lot of energy to feed their high metabolism. Because of this, they ate a lot of food, and drank a lot of liquid that was high in energy.
Behind him Vako heard a familiar growl. It was deep, but also somewhat gentle sounding. He knew what it was. The sound of a Wookiee never escaped him. Vako reached down at his front and put his hand on his blaster. He tapped two of his three fingers on it, drumming on it in a quick succession. Vako hated Wookiees. Their smell, their sound, their sight. They were archaic creatures, with a disgusting sense of honor. One word could set them off, and it was a battle to the death. And of course you were expected to play by their rules with only physical combat.
Vako was never concerned about that. He had his own way of doing things, and that got him to where he was. But realizing that the Wookiee was there put a bad taste in Vako’s mouth. He didn’t know him, and had never seen before. But he gathered by the bowcaster that he probably thought of himself as a warrior. The warriors were the worst kind, as they were strong and wanted to prove it. The more Vako thought on it the worst he began to feel about the whole thing.
Reaching out and grabbing the glass Vako poured the remaining liquid down his throat quickly. He set the glass down, and his wings began to flap once again. The flapping drew the attention of some, but only for a moment. As he lifted off, he thought about using his hand to show the Wookiee a signal of insult. But he didn’t bother, realizing he’d either have to run, or kill the fury animal. Instead Vako just flew back towards the door, and outside, leaving no real sign that he had ever even been there.
