Void Sea Philly

It's always stabby in Philadelphia

Orianna Helker

Player Character
name	Orianna Helker
alias	Affect
pronouns	She/They
playbook	Whisper
status	Presumed dead
player	Parker
A former steelworker who developed a fascination with the ghost field after witnessing vampires massacre her union mates. Now a manifestation of Vazara.

Orianna was a steelworker at the Duskvol Steel Works for most of her life before joining the nameless, but her passion had always been in sneaking books away from libraries and universities across the richer districts of Duskvol and bringing them back to her Crow’s Foot home. As part of the Nameless, she began to learn to control her connection to the ghost field and discovered her strange ability to conjure ancient and malevolent forces from before the cataclysm.

Later, she touched a force that had not been seen in the world in a myriad when she accidentally connected to the imprisoned manifestation of the Sun, which lay far beneath the waves of the void sea. Eventually, Orianna’s research into ancient cults, saints, and rituals led her to take up hunting down the remnants of the ancient world, spirits like Elia, Scurlock, and their minions. As part of an attempt to destroy Wickham, she allowed the ancient god Vazara to fuse itself with her body, becoming the chosen of the storm god.

Appearance

A young, but worn woman standing a head above most of Duskvol’s populace. What was initially a short cut of shocking “eel green” hair has grown messy and faded to an altogether more uneasy green, kept tied up in a black velvet band. Scars like burns mark one side of Orianna’s face, a memento from the attacks that led her to abandon her work in the steel manufactories and take up the call of the nameless. Dresses in faded coveralls and other wear that marks her as one of the city’s many downtrodden. Previously, had a spirit mask that was cobbled together from welding equipment, but after it was shattered by Old Wickham she abandoned that one in favor of a more complex one.

Story

Backstory

Inspired to learn the truth about an ancient ancestor, a Saint who seemed to have little recognition in the modern canon, she has always been curious about the true nature of the ghost field and the arcane. When her workplace began the process towards unionizing, she was happy to join with her comrades in looking for a better life. But in the twilight city of Duskvol, a better life does not come cheap. Arcane forces directed by the fearsome Lord Scurlock massacred the striking workers, a tremendous display of sorcery that Orianna had not experienced before. One of the few survivors of the attack, she was left attached to the ghost field and the spirits of her dead friends. Saved and brought back to health by the witch Quellin, she began to learn to reign in her connection. Now desperate for other work, she reached out to her cousin Adric for an introduction, and was brought to the Nameless in the wake of their Opera-house heist.¹

Time With the Nameless

Detail your character’s adventures here. You can also link primary sources in the footnotes!

Relationships

Create lists using asterisks:

• Quellin – The woman who saved her life after the vampire attack on the striking steelworkers. A witch with a focus on rituals and folk physicking. Sometime lover, now a devoted priestess to the powers within. The most important person in her life by a mile and now the first face she can remember. Must be protected from the dangers the Nameless face.
• Katya – Orianna is jealous of the She-Wolf’s prowess and status, but considers her a friend and mentor. She certainly wouldn’t be where she is now without the professor’s uncanny abilities. Probably the Nameless who Orianna would consider the most powerful.
• Arkin – Orianna considered Arkin a curiosity at first, but has an admiration for Arkin’s endless forethought. Every time she comes to him with a need for new technology related to the ghost field, it feels as though he’s already built it. Considers him a friend and genuinely thinks he is capable of doing great good, despite his penchant for forbidden arts.
• Adric – Orianna grew up unsure why she had only met her cousin a handful of times, until she realized it was because of his family’s considerable difference in status. Until her ascension, she considered him distant but wanted to be closer. Recognizes that he is a better liar than she will ever know how to be. Post ascension, she has yet to reckon with how to greet family she cannot remember.

Citations

Last updated December 15, 2023.

homepage | contact | site map | discord | xhtml | css | © 2024 Parker Kelly and Vinnie Price |
This work is based on Blades in the Dark, product of One Seven Design, developed and authored by John Harper, and licensed for our use under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license.