Character: Doctor Thaddeus 'Doc' Rathrock

Thaddeus is the living embodiment of how things can go wrong, and how far a sentient being can be pushed.

Originally from Er'th (Passage 88), his love of machinery was obvious from a young age. The trip into Thyra allowed this love to blossom and he was part of The College team that developed the 3rd Gen cores.

But it was not enough.

In his quest to explore other possibilities, Thaddeus stated to break College rules, his thirst for knowledge apparently boundless.

He injected himself with NighSerum, and it was not enough.

He developed the ability to fuse flesh and brass and steel to a degree others only dream of, he could make or break most machines, but it was not enough.

He started experimenting with his own flesh, but it was still not enough.

Eventually he was expelled from the university. But his experimentations continued.

Today, he is addicted to NightSerum, but what he has gained far outshines this issue.

To fund his research he became brains for hire. He travels the Passages, looking for new knowledge, new metals and new machines.

My personal character. He is a really unpleasant character, which for me is refreshing. He has a mild forcefield (-2 to hit) and has a lot of extra limbs, allowing a second action at no penalty, and these limbs have blades, making him really strong at melee. Otherwise, he's made of tissue. I look forward to see how he performs!

Character: Harlow Redstone

There are some harsh and wild Places at the other side of the Passages. And then there is Koncorvire. 

A planet of erupting volcanoes, boiling oceans and storm filled skies. Oh, and in constant conflict. 

Home sweet home to the wise mouthed, Mohawk wearing, cigar chomping, battle hardened Dwarf, Harlow Redstone. For over 300 years Redstone has been in the heat of battle against the Magma Giants. Standing 15 foot tall & made of burning rock, these monstrous creatures crush & incinerate anything that isn't their kin but with his Dac rifle in his hands and his Lightening blade strapped to his back, Redstone is never happier than crushing Mag heads.

On one fateful day though, during a routine scouting mission, Redstones team was ambushed and in the middle of the battle, the floor to give way. As both parties fall into the abyss, Redstone was engulfed in a shimmering distortion and with a sudden thump he was left unconscious. 

Waking up, Redstone realises he wasn't on Koncorvire any more. The tunnels around him was smooth, and well built, not natural at all (he was a Dwarf, after all, he knew of these things). After finding his way out of the 'caverns' he awoke in (he was at the outskirts of Below), Redstone reached the surface, and nothing could had prepared him for the visions he was exposed to.

He had heard tales of blue skies and green lands but never imagined he would ever see them for himself. For months Redstone has now been in the city of Thyra taking jobs to make money. Be it as a bodyguard or as a Merc or scout. If you need a blade or gun at your side, Redstone is your Dwarf. 


A custom build for a friend. Fantastic melee, with a wicked Lightening Axe (STR+D6+3), Bloodthirsty, you name it, he has it. I've been wondering about this for many a week, to focus combat on one speciality, and making the character phenomenally good at what he does. 

Character: Harry 'Copper' Dixon

Harry Dixon is a private eye. A good one.

Back in his home town of Steelopolis, in Rru-Ssarn (Passage75), he was a cop, until he was framed by a crime he didn't commit. The corruption in City Hall had gotten too much and he needed out, and the fat cats up in central office wanted him out. Thus the Passage Opening was a blessing in disguise.

In Thyra, he found a Place filled with good guys, bad guys and the same corruption up where The Ministerium meets (The Big House). But this time? This time he's being paid to track people down and to solve crimes the Yellowstripes don't want to touch.

Saw the picture and simply couldn't resist. Above average shooting and tracking.

Character: The Twilight Owl

Little is known about this stealthy and shadowy creature. Even his/hers/its race is a complete mystery. What is known is that as soon as the first Passage was opened, he started showing up, due to an interesting problem arising. 

If you say, rob someone or even kill, you'll be chased and probably found by the Yellowstripes (they are good at this). However, what happens if after the crime, you simply walk through a Passage? Do the Yellowstripes follow? What if instead of an uninhabited world, you have a bustling city on the other side? Are you now wanted by their own policing force?

Whilst these discussions continued, a core of bouty hunters slowly came into being. People that could disregard the local rules and bring people back. Subject to the highest parameters of conduct, but still with plenty of leeway to crack some heads.

Owl is one of these. His track record is smaller than some, but he has 100% success rate. 'Anyone Anywhere' is his motto, and by the Gods he lives up to it...

A personally interesting character, as Owl is my steampunk cosplay (in fact it's me in the picture). Great fighter, great tracter, good survivalist, otherwise not a pleasant person.

Character: Baetrice 'Bee' Vulpes

I

On the other side of Passage 19, there is world, Gaia, which is effectively an alternate Earth. The Passage ends near a city, K'tarin, but a few miles down the road there is an island, with another city, Kitsune, that is easily 3 times the size of Thyra, but with only a little over half the population.

They called it the Shadow Wind.

An epidemic the likes of which had never been seen. People wasted away hours after infection. Millions died. A precious few seemed to be immune.

The rest of Gaia enforced a deadly quarentine. Nothing in, nothing out.

Bee's father was an engineer. She learned clockwork at his side, to build machines, big and small. Then the Wind hit.

In those dark few months, Bee had to be a bit of everything: scavenger, doctor, fighter, protector.

What emerged was a strong healer. Someone still fascinated by machines, metallic and organic. Two years after The Wind had passed, the Opening of Passage 19 was a blessing, the city had plenty to trade, and was happy to receive immigrants. Bee made her bag, and left, deciding to take her gift out into Thyra and beyond. 

On her shoulder, faithful, annoying and bright, Sheba, a clockwork construct, able to morph shapes between a small dragon and a small snake.

Woe to those that get in their way.

A custom build for a good friend. A powerful healer and good melee fighter, with some engineering skills. Sheba will not be very fast, but it might provide key recon at times. I might give her +1 to hit from the start. She who knows how to heal knows how to hurt....

Character: Captain Rachel 'Silver' Wall

Rachel hails from Crescent Cove, in the Billion Isles (Passage 45). In her world, the whole planet is one huge ocean, peppered with the above mentioned Billion Isles, atolls, floating cities, etc.

The Billion Isle side of Passage 45 is in the middle of nowhere, and even to this day, only a selective few inhabitants know of it. Captain Wall is one of them.

Her world is one of high sea piracy, alliances, backstabbing and intrigue. Bar the piracy, she understood Thyra the moment she arrived.

Having an almost monopoly on trade with her world mean she has to put up with cutthroat pirates and bloodthirsty buccaneers at every step.

She wouldn't have it any other way.

Captain Wall is here because I adore pirates. An adventurer, amazing with a sword and pistol. Gave her a 'spider-sense' for danger and an attitude.

Character: OneFiveNineThree (Insectoids)

Perhaps the most exotic of all sentients that have emerged from the Passages are the Insectoids of The Hive (Passage 24).

Breaking with the stereotypes of literature and tale, and although in their world there are constant battles for resources and land, they revealed themselves to be fairly peaceful, and if anything, uncomprehending of our ways (it would later transpire that the fighting in The Hive is clan and family based, take those away, and the result is non-belligerent).

To separate them into individuals is sometimes hard, as they most often travel in groups of four. These 'quads' are so intricately connected that to separate them into singular minds or beings is almost impossible.

There are of course, exceptions.

OneFiveNineThree comes from an odd quad, possibly a mutation. They are inquisitive, curious, positively probing with their their quick wit. They cannot speak English, but try and make do with sign language, using their many appendages.

Some physical types can fly, other can burrow, others are fighting drones.  If you can understand them, having one in your organisation is a spectacularly good idea.

My first Insectoid. Natural weapons (Str+D6), Flying and Natural armour (+2), but no communication and odd physical aspect, so a severe penalty to Charisma.

Character: Snow Bear Stream Mountain

It is a testament to how rough things are in Hyperboria (Passage 11) that the men and women (and other sentients) that made their way into Thyra have adapted nearly seamlessly to a culture and technologies centuries beyond what they knew. The mental acuity needed to survive in that environment is apparently what is needed to survive anywhere.

Bear came across Passage 11 merely by chance, before trade had properly been established with his world. One would expect a bloodbath, as the young barbarian found himself in a new land, with a new language. However he kept his cool, and even the Yellowstripes were polite, showing him with gestures where to go for food.

A decade later, he is one of the most popular axe-for-hire in the land. He might not pass any College exams anytime soon, but a more faithful ally you won't find.

Does what is says on the tin. I might give him Swipe, allowing a wide arc attack to everyone contiguous, at a -2 to hit.

Character: Kregtee 'Tee' son of Hosshoo

It is a mere coincidence that on our Earth, the great reptiles were mostly extinct by the dawn of Man. The result could have been more like Rru-Ssarr, on the other side of Passage 75. Tee is technically a Thyran, having been born in the city, his race's development rate being more than twice that of humans.

Although his kind can understand English perfectly, they have some issues replicating it, but still manage to make themselves understood.

Tee is a fighter, and everything about him supports that statement. From his claws, to his fangs, to his reptilian mucle mass, everything about him is designed to chop, render, rip or otherwise shred. He is not very tall, but oponents will take that as a weakness to their peril. He has massive cultural issues using weapons, melee or ranged, but with natural weapons as his', who needs anything else....?

My first Saurian. Weak in and to cold, with claws and a mean bite. I took everything from him, just left tracking, sensing and fighting. If you like fighters, here he is!

Chraracter: The Engineer

Few people in Thyra are more mysterious than The Engineer, and this is a city where talking animals roam the streets.

Appearing seemingly out of nowhere, he is these days very much in demand for an almost preternatural ability to understand machines, which he explains by ‘these are good, solid machines, of a VERY old design’, which is odd, because most of them are brand new. He is possibly an old sailor, as he claims he ‘had a ship but lost it’. He seems fascinated by NightGems (although he doesn’t seem to acquire any) and by the Passages as ‘he can’t travel there, normally). 

A common vision in Thyra and the most friendly Places, The Engineer (the only name known) seems content to trade his knowledge for room, board and adventure. He is unusually good at languages, and seems to be able to acquire them at record speeds. 

On no less than 3 occasions, it is suspected he was the first to perform a Passage Opening, diving into the unknown without a second though. However, whereas Way scouts and reports back, The Engineer talks to people, engages with their machines and sits down for the evening meal, invited or not.

He has shown evidence to have seen the Dusk Bringing ritual of the Night Gaunts of Umbrous (Passage 39), and survived not only alive, but sane, the only non-native sentient known to have done so. How these wretched, deformed beasts didn't shred him on sight (they do it very often) is another mystery.

If you have him around, no device you have will ever fail. Just don't ask odd probing questions.

A custom character. Really good at engineering. As his background is secret (for now), that's really all I can say.

Character: Helen 'Ell' 2477

Not everyone in Thyra comes from a poor background. Ell comes from one of the richest families in K'tarin, the Gaian city closest to the other side of Passage 19. The technology level of her world is comparable to Thyra, but of course, without NighGems. The young noble came into the smoking, stinking, oily Thyra, and could not believe her eyes. She fell into it like a duck to water.

Within months, she has used her family fortune to organise small caravans in and out of the safest Passages, and sent scouts into the less savoury ones. Rumour has it that she has close links to Wallington and Associates.

Not one to sit idly herself, the young woman has also travelled extensively within the Passage network.

This is something her mother, Lady Margolla 2477 wants to stamp out sooner rather than later....


A simple character, I merely wanted a noble/posh background. Otherwise, her stats will be similar to any adventurer (Possibly better at ranged weapons than melee, although I might give her a sword). She might also be Rich, getting more money than the other characters, I just need to make sure this doesn't destabilize the balance of the group.

NPC: Lord Maximilian Brekenridge

There is an old Thyran saying: 'The Passage that delivers gold, also delivers death'

In the case of Lord Brekenridge, they are so close to the truth it's not even comical.

Born and raised in the ruins of London during the War, Brekenridge has seen it all, done it all and came out on top. 

He is presently the de facto leader of the Ministerium, ruling over the others with an iron fist inside a silk glove. The combined strength of the others would easily bring him down... But who would take his place?

Lord Brekenridhe is more agile than an eel and equally difficult to pin down. The city is working and prospering, but very much under HIS terms.

Character: M.E.C.H.A. (Mechanical Executor Construct Heavy Armour) and Animates

M.E.C.H.A. were originally designed as little more than bipedal cranes and tractors, powered but a 2nd Generation NightGem core and run by a differential engine. They would be imputed with simple instructions and commands (Dig here, move these rocks there), and the computer would do the rest.

Some years after their creation, during some experiments towards commanding MECHA with brain power alone, the College scientists, possibly using the recently found magiks, discovered that it is possible to transfer a human mind to one of these contraptions. 

Thus were borne the Animates. At least part of the mind is lost in the transfer (and the organic body is killed), but it is undeniable that some Animates retain the personality and memories of the human mind. By law, these New Men (and women) must have a blue light, showing their status as Animates. Strong and powerful, they are sometimes slow and dim-witted, but loyal to the last.

There are rumours of fully intelligent Animates. Imagine that. The brain of an intelligent person in the indestructible body of an Hercules.

What could one of those achieve....?

A simple conversion of an Android (construct) to Thyra. Strong (start with a D6 in strength), Big (+2 to be hit), and well armoured (+3). I have to make it stupid (D4 Smarts) and slow (Pace 4), otherwise it would be unstoppable!

Characters: Montague Finnian Wallington IV (Finn)

The amount of information one does NOT have about Finn could (and probably does) fill a normal sized encyclopaedia. Having emerged from one of the passages (which one was not registered), Finn scared and enchanted people in equal measure. A full sized silverback gorilla, but with the eloquence, intelligence and accent of an Eton-educated boy, people didn't really know what to make of him.

Finn is somewhat of an adventurer. He has a small company working out of Steamville 'Wallington and Associates', which is effectively a mercenary/exploration set-up. If you want protection, or to explore a Place, this is the place for you. They might not be cheap, but by golly they get the work done. They try to shy away from pure slaughter assignements, but were right there in the front lines on I-Day.

A request character. Smart, curious, and really strong phisically (Big) which gives him a bonus for strength, but makes him easier to hit (because he's huge).

Character: Wayfarer (Way)

There are those whose wanderlust takes them across countries, continents or worlds. Way (the only name of his that is known) has turned this into an art form. He has not only personally Opened 12 Passages, but has also explored many other Places accessible to Thyra.

He's been a part of the Thyran landscape for so long, people now forget when he showed up to begin with, what world he came from or what his intentions are. A man of very few words, he can usually be found in Oldtown restocking or in Rattown catching up with some contact or other, before jumping through the nearest Passage.

It is said of him that he could find water in The Anvil, and could track a wisp of smoke through thick fog.

A simple tracker and survivalist. D8 in Tracking, Survival and perhaps Notice. I don't imagine him being too much of a long range guy, but melee? Forget about it....

Character: Clifton 'Midnight' Andrews

It would later be remembered as I-Day (Invasion Day). The thing about Passages is, one needs to step through one, from Tyra's side, to actually open it. Something to do with the direction the NighGem shards pierced reality. Once open, it is open both ways.

That was the day someone found Passage 66 and stepped through.

And all Hell broke loose. Literally.

Every time a new Passage is opened, there is some confusion on the other side. Rare are the Openings where there's not some violence (or attempted violence) when a lonely native wonders into downtown Thyra. Even with lovely Passage 5, a party of elves wondered through and nearly came to blows with street vendors.

Hours after some nameless person found and opened Passage 66, Hades itself came through. No one knows what they call themselves, but their kin has been in humanity's imagination for millennia.

Demons. Ghosts. Wraiths.

A huge collection of them came through, destroying and killing as they went. The city mobilised, it was very much a 'all hands on deck' situation. 

Clifton was in the front line, his guns spelling doom to the indescribable obscenities in front of him. American born, he'd been in Thyra for only a few months, as a hired gun.

2 things then happened in close succession.

A Weird Doctor's tank of liquid NighSerum (that was powering a beam cannon) exploded, covering Clifton in the gunky liquid. A second before, he had blown a demon apart, and its black ichor was still en route to his body.

The two substances met pretty much simultaneously. Clifton burst into green flames. And he has been burning ever since.

Somehow, the two highly magikally charged substances covered his body, turning his flesh into green flames. These are cold to the touch, and do not ignite materials further. Those that have seen him in fights describe a living skeleton, with emerald flames coruscating around him.

If anything, I-Day made Clifton tougher. He is now still alive but better. He is still a hired gun, and may the Heavens have pity on any Passage 66 creature that wonders into his path.

A simple (?) gunslinger. His magik flesh is tougher (+3 Armour), and he is silly agile (D8 climbing). Also his guns. Big ones. And he can fire both simultaneously. Yep.

Character: Maxwell 'Zap' Constantine

Max is a Thyran boy, born and raised. He saw the latter days of the War, and its effects. He was always facinated by machines, and became a mechanic, and a good one at that. He lost an arm and a leg (quite literally) some years ago to an explosion, but replaced them with mechanical substitutes the first time he could. He keeps tinkering with them, and they are now at least as good as the real thing.

His arm hides a nasty surprise. Using some contacts at The College (who wish to remain anonymous), his arm is powered by a ping-pong ball-sized NighGem core. Pushing this core to overload, Max can let the energy rip, producing fairly devastating lightening bolts.

He can also figure out most engineering problems with some ease, and build mad machines to do whatever he wants them to do. 

Only once.

They usually explode soon after.

My first Savage Worlds character build. Max has the Bolt spell (as part of the Weird Science Arcane Background Edge). He is also amazing at engineering and has the gadgeteer edge (if he has the parts, he can build in 1D20 minutes a 1-use only machine which will work exactly as he wants it to).

Character: Marko Sharpclaw of Windbreath Clan

Marko hails from Llaruundo, beyond Passage 5. His clan of airship builders (and pirates) have revolutionised Thyra's air docks. As they only had more 'primitive' technology to work with, their building techniques were extremely efficient, and are now standard throughout the land.

Born aboard an airship, it is joked that Marko only stepped upon solid ground for his coming of age ceremony, at around 11 Earth years. His race has a number on names, but they seem happy to adopt the Earth denomination of Orc.

A nightmare with his scimitar, he can pilot anything that he can get his hands on. It it moves, chances are he can command it.

Another standard character. Great at Melee (Str + D6), Good piloting skills and really agile.

Character: Mara 'Thermo' Howard

Mara was a student at The College. She was simply an assistant during one of the many experiments that were being performed on NighGems. In particular, how they were attempting to turn NighGems into a liquid, a serum, that could then be used as a more efficient fuel. 

There was an explosion, and Mara, along with two others, was peppered with shards of metal covered in NighSerum.

One of the students died, instantly, his body shriveling and smoking in moments. The other changed, electricity crackling around her, hitting everything around. She was eventually committed.

And then there was Mara. Her hands faintly smoking, but with no other apparent adverse effect. It would later transpire that she could now access the energies of the NighSerum by will alone, ad could generate spheres on intense thermal energy and project them at will.

She was the first confirmed success at wielding Magik.

Today, she teaches at The College, helping other Magik users with their own powers, but she works primarily as a hired gun, particularly after the discovery of Passage 66.


A simple character, with the Bolt spell. Smart, agile and flaming deadly.

Characters: Valeriya 'Riya' Klyk

Riya's family have lived in Thyra for the last 20 years. The Cordigans (Canis Anthropomorphus Sapiens) were one of the first non-human races discovered by Thyrans (through Passage 4)

People were shocked at these new peoples, but they were small, unthreatening, only interested in work or trade, polite and, once they learned english, well spoken. Within years, Cardigan shops were being opened everywhere in the city.

Cordigans are industrious, with a keen eye for business. They speak English well, but always seem to keep their original Cordiganese language (a selection of growls and whines, with some body language). Their world (Original name unpronounceable, Common name: Cordigan Land) is a pleasant urban / agricultural world, with a technology level slightly behind Thyra's. Passage 4 ends near an out of the way village, hence the first wave of immigrants, looking for work.

Riya has taken the family shop 'Klyk and Daughters Emporium' and made it into one of the best jewellers / curio shops / antiquarians in town. When around the corner you have no less than 3 Passages into other worlds, you wouldn't believe what flotsam and jetsam washes up to your door.

A bit of an adventurer, she has been known to take sabbaticals from the shop to go through Passages to try and find artefacts herself, or simply to feel the wind of a new world on one's fur.


A custom request, Riya is a humanoid dog. I gave her -1 to Pace (small legs), -1 to Visual Perception (not the greatest eyes), but +2 to Smell Perception. Also -2 to Charisma when not in New Hades, as people would find a humanoid dog odd. She has the Contact Edge (due to the shop), having real informants around town and beyond, and has a mean bite (Str+D6).