The Crow’s Nest: The Brawlers

Hey, gang!

I hope you liked last week’s sneak peek of Maximilian Black, Iron-Eye Cordelia, Padre Alonso de Oro, and Silverbeard. This week, I’ll be sharing four more of the Roles from Osprey Adrift! These four can best be described as the brawlers of the ship – the ones who have a penchant for bloodshed, and the skill to pull it off. They’re some of the sharpest and most dangerous members of the crew. If you find yourself one move behind these sea dogs, you might just wind up with a bullet between your eyes… or worse. Any one of these characters might just secretly be a cannibal…

Keep on reading for a bit of their backstories, as well as their official game portraits, masterfully done by the uber talented Fiona Marchbank. (If you haven’t already, be sure to check out her deviantart page, and her deviantart character art page!)

Tin-Toothed Hines | The Tinkerer

He’s as bright as his shiny tin teeth. Give him a bit of fermenting seaweed, an old bottle, and some gunpowder, and he can make an exquisite beverage… or a vicious explosive…

I knew that I wanted the crew of the One-Winged Osprey to have an engineer. Tin-Toothed Hines is way ahead of the curve, technologically speaking. While the game takes place during the golden age of piracy, Hines’s knowledge of science and invention is probably a good 100 years beyond then. I also wanted to play with the idea that even though some of these characters have genius level intelligence, they’re still–at their core–pirates. A life at sea means you likely won’t have all of your teeth. Tin-Toothed Hines just happens to have replaced his with a set of bright false ones, since he has access to tools and skill with metalworking.

Role Ability

“Once per game, you may use a single Resource card as if it were any other single Resource card.”

Over the countless iterations of the rules, Tin-Toothed Hines’s Role ability was perhaps the trickiest to nail down and achieve a balance. At one point, Hines could use this ability as often as he liked, and that made for a very over-powered engineer. Part of the idea behind the four different resources in Osprey Adrift (Seaweed, Gunpowder, Bottles, and Rope) is that it forces the players to collect the proper card(s); and if they can’t draw them, it forces them to trade with one another. Hines’s ability can only be used once per game, but it’s quite powerful – imagine being able to shoot a bullet at one of your crewmates with a piece of Seaweed, because you don’t have enough Gunpowder!

Portrait Art

I absolutely love how Fiona portrayed Hines. The juxtaposition of the posh attire and wig with the facial scars really shows his two sides: a love of the cutting-edge and the finer things… and a life of having experiments (literally) blow up in your face. I’m especially fond of the patterned vest and–of course–the shiny metal teeth.

Tiny | The Muscle

Capable of crushing two skulls with one hand, he is the proverbial unstoppable force. When he’s not keeping order on board the ship, he serves as the late Captain Ninefingers’ daughter Olivia’s bodyguard – even though the girl hardly needs protecting.

Tiny’s story is an interesting one. He was a member of the Guaná until his only child–his precious daughter–died far too young. He found solace with a group of Jesuits – among them, a priest named Padre Alonso de Oro. The Padre gave Tiny his nickname as a joke for the man who stood nearly seven feet tall, and the two of them became fast friends. It wasn’t long until Alonso and Tiny acted on their shared disdain for the restrictive authority of the priesthood and joined the crew of the One-Winged Osprey. Tiny took the pain of losing his daughter, and focused it into protecting the lives of the Osprey’s crew, especially that of the captain’s young daughter, Olivia.

Role Ability

“You cannot be the target of the “Whittled Shiv” or “Gag” cards.”

Tiny’s just too big to let someone stab him with a whalebone shiv, or pin him down to gag him. His Role ability is quite powerful – being immune to the Whittled Shiv means he needn’t worry about another player stealing his cards; and being immune to the Gag means Tiny will always be able to speak his mind, no matter what.

Portrait Art

Fiona’s rendition of Tiny is amazing. She perfectly captured this mountain of a man who’s known for being the biggest and toughest member of the Osprey’s crew, but who’s also known for the pain of his former life. His facial expression manages to be both stoic and sombre, with just the right amount of suspicion. If there’s a killer among the crew, Tiny’s not going to let them get him first…

Christopher Cross | The Cannoneer

Once a good-looking young man with a promising life, Christopher lost his fiancee to Mother’s Ruin. Now, he’s scarred and nearly deaf from manning the cannons on the Osprey. Some think he’s mad, but he finds no greater thrill than blasting beautiful things to smithereens…

Cross is, without mincing words, the male heart-throb of the One-Winged Osprey. In an early version of the story, I’d assigned that role to Henry Miles, but decided that Henry was too young and naïve. So, Christopher Cross was born. Cross works on the Osprey as the ship’s cannon-man, a job he loves doing because–like everyone else aboard the ship–he’s a tiny bit insane. Many on board the Osprey assume he has a death wish because he’s heartbroken over the loss of his fiancee, but Cross was and still is a man of many ports… to the point of addiction. If there’s a beautiful woman–or man–who catches Cross’s eye, then it’s a guarantee he’ll work his charm to get what he wants.

Role Ability

“You cannot be the target of the “Diviner’s Bowl” or “Spyglass” cards.”

Cross has a handy pair of card immunities: the Diviner’s Bowl, and the Spyglass. Both of these cards are used to gather information about a player’s intentions (the Diviner’s Bowl looks at a player’s Morality card, and the Spyglass looks at a player’s eaten Food). Because Cross is such a smooth operator–and a bit touched in the head–the other players don’t dare spy on him. This is useful if Cross is on the Pure team, or the Cannibal team, because it gives the player playing him more leeway in how they bluff and form alliances.

Portrait Art

Like Tin-Toothed Hines, Cross’s portrait is quite striking because of the juxtaposition of such a good-looking character with so many disfiguring scars. I love how Fiona gave Cross an almost sly, fox-like appearance that suits his personality perfectly. And even with the shrapnel scars, Christopher Cross still manages to be quite dashing.

Lady Ravenrose | The Sharpshooter

No one would ever dare pull a gun on her, out of fear she’ll shoot them between the eyes before they can even take aim. She’s a deadly combination of beauty, wit, and skill…

If Christopher Cross is the male heart-throb aboard the Osprey, then Lady Ravenrose is definitely the female heart-throb. I knew I wanted a character that fit the traditional femme fatale archetype, and what better way to fit one into a pirate crew than to make her the resident sharpshooter? Lady Ravenrose comes from a past as the former slave of a gold mine magnate, but since taking her freedom, she’s now one of the wealthiest women in the world and one of the most notorious pirates on the high seas.

Role Ability

“You may not be killed by the “A Single Bullet” card.”

Lady Ravenrose only has immunity to a single card, unlike many of the other characters who are immune to two. However, the card she’s immune to–A Single Bullet–is the only true ‘kill card’ in the game. This ensures she can’t be shot by someone on the opposing team, and it ensures she won’t wind up as collateral damage due to a broken alliance or mere misunderstanding.

Portrait Art

Lady Ravenrose’s portrait is one of my favorites – again, Fiona did a fantastic job of creating the look and feel that I was going for with these characters’ stories. On the one hand, Ravenrose is living a life of immense luxury, but on the other hand… that luxury is only afforded by embracing the treachery, deceit, and danger of being a pirate. I love Lady Ravenrose’s gorgeous outfit, gobs of beautifully rendered jewelry, and gilded pistol neatly tucked into her belt.

Well, gang, that wraps up this week’s sneak peek at more of the characters of Osprey Adrift! Next week, I’ll be revealing the portraits and background for four more… including everyone’s favorite drunken sailor… Three-Tongued Sal. 😛

Until next time, gang. Keep it plucky,

Nick