Polecat (Degenesis)

Chronicler Personality Profile Record

• Known Name: Polecat
  
• Height: 5'4"
  
• Apparent Age: Late teens/Early 20s
  
• Culture: Borcan
  
• Concept: IX. The Hermit
  
• Cult: Scrappers
  
• Rank: 3 - Fox
  
• Player/Type: NPC

Appearance

Polecat is a young girl that can is often described as either being in her late-teens or early twenties, depending how clean she is at that moment and if she is smiling or scowling - but her actual age is unknown (when asked her age she simply snaps "old enough!"). Some suspect because she is functionally an orphan that perhaps even she does not know her own age. Although she has been raised in Borca, and identifies (for what it's worth) as such, her complexion indicates the possibility of northern Frankan origin or ancestry.

She is of just below average height, with a lithe figure, although she is tougher and more enduring than she appears due to a hard life of self-survival. As she spends weeks at a time away from settlements on her own, she is usually unkempt and scruffy, wearing clothing that usually has holes, patches and roughly sewn repairs. She usually wears a cloak made of Gendo fur (which she claims to have made herself, citing "hey, it was either me or the fucker!"). When she is away from civilised areas for extended periods her personal aroma (as others put it) often makes her appearance look good in comparison.

Despite the lack of self-care and attention to unimportant sense of vanity, Polecat has striking blue eyes, well-defined cheekbones and a captivating smile that adds appeal and can be disarming. She is a natural blonde, though it is easy to mistake her for a brunette or dirty blonde because of the typical condition of her hair, which is usually kept naturally loose or tied up for convenience. No attention or attempt is made at all to capitalise on her potential physical appeal. Indeed, some people believe that if a Magpie got their hands on her, gave her a good bath (or three) and a makeover, there is probably an attractive young woman underneath all the dust and grime.

Background

Polecat ("Cat" to her few friends) doesn't know (or really much care) who her parents were, and has been functionally an orphan her entire life, although it is suspected that she comes from northern Frankan origins. At a young age she was sold by Apocalyptics to, and trained as a Mouse by the Scrapper Ioel. Under his care she learnt (the hard way) how to survive out in the wilderness, how to construct and repair things, and search ruins for valuable scrap and artefacts. Ioel was smart and a natural tinkerer, but not so physically adept, whilst young Cat proved to be passionate, agile and sneaky, and this relationship worked well for them both. Well, at least it did for him - their adventures together led to Ioel making enough Chronicler Drafts to eventually set up his own workshop and become a Machinist, whilst Cat ended up with little more to show than Ioel passing her some of his no-longer-required junk when he effectively abandoned her to her own devices. Whilst non-Scrappers may find this to be heartless, Cat is not sour about this - she has seen what other Scrappers are like and at least considers that he treated her fairly until he "got out of the game" instead of dumping her once she got a little older for a new Mouse, or put her into knowingly overly dangerous situations, like many Scrappers are wont to do. She believes that Ioel's effective retirement is logical as he would have likely died out in the wilderness in time without her.

Although Cat learnt well from Ioel about crafting and to a lesser degree engineering, her spirited nature and lack of proper education makes her unsuited to attempt to follow Ioel's footsteps - but she's okay with this as she's a loner and wanderer by nature, and by far prefers her own company and being out in the Borcan wilderness than being in an urban community. She has few friends, though various allies and a good reputation; refusing to let others get close to her.

Although she is quite young, Polecat has already built up a respectable level of renown for her activities and warning other Scrappers of dangers in the ruins. Her refusal to bow to the Cartel may have made her some enemies, but also some allies within the Scrappers. Her dealings with the Chroniclers, and occasionally other Cults, has led to some contacts in those areas as well, and earnt renown as a reliable and experienced guide with a nose for finding lost artefacts and valuable scrap.

Unfortunately, as she has gotten older the Cartel has become less willing to tolerate her "childish impudence" and more willing to get their Thugs to show their displeasure using physical means. People in the protectorate (especially the Judges) don't take kindly to Cartel thugs harming children - but her youthfulness fading, Cat is now increasingly in their sights. She has been good at evading them so far, but the Cartel monitors all the best contact and selling points and resupply points - so it is only a matter of time before her luck runs out. Cat may soon have to bow to the Cartel's demands, unless perhaps she may find benefactors able to protect her from the Cartel's enforcers?

Personality

Polecat prefers her own company, and is often described as having a chip on her shoulder (against everyone). She can be well behaved, and even friendly or flirty when she wants to (ie when she knows she needs to be or it benefits her) but most of the time is sassy, sarcastic and (usually) extremely potty-mouthed. She is naturally distrusting of others, as if she believes everyone is out to either harm her or exploit her somehow - although many have pointed out that this actually serves to make her a good guide and lookout. Cat tends to make allies, not friends, and they often tend to be short-term. Her longest allies are mostly contacts she trades with that she has finally become accustomed to - and most of them believe that she would flee from them in a heartbeat if she were spooked by them somehow. In social situations, she appears visibly discomforted and out of place, blending into the background and not bringing attention to herself unless for some reason she requires it. She can at times enjoy limited social contact, but tends to describe social interaction as mentally exhausting and after a period will desire to be solitary again.

Other Notes

Like many Scrappers, Polecat got her name based on a combination of her actions, fame and rank. Like most scrappers she was known simply as "Mouse" until she was left to her own devices. As an orphan and a Scrapper, any real name she may have once had has long ago vanished into her past. Most Scrappers earn a name akin to a title or nickname sometime after they become Badgers, with names often changing over their lives to reflect their deeds, fame (or lack thereof). Due to her stealthiness, fierceness and preference for independence she earned the name Polecat - a weasel-like animal common in the Protectorate, of the same Mustelidae family of which Badgers are also members. Others point out derogatorily that Polecats are also a type of skunk - and that her aroma may be the cause of the nickname, rather than her other qualities. Regardless, Cat carries the name with pride, stating that Polecats survived the Eshaton and still thrive in the Protectorate, and none can doubt Cat's survival skill match her namesakes. As Polecat's fame has been growing and she is now generally considered to be a "fox" in rank by other Scrappers, it is likely that soon people will start referring to her by a more appropriate new nickname.

Combat Style

In a fight someone always gets hurt. Or dead. Or both hurt, then dead. Polecat is a survivor and self-preservation is her key motive. Possessing good agility and instincts, she is surprisingly fast and whilst her physical build is little more than average, she is surprisingly athletic and able to climb and hide in areas that make her hard to find and catch, and good at finding shelter or cover. Therefore her normal combat tactic is to hide until the danger passes, or a good opportunity to flee goes away.

If forced to fight, her natural agility lends her well to being fairly decent with her self-created Marvel rifle, made out of parts of a 12 gauge shotgun (and other parts) that she scavenged. Her preference for buckshot ammunition limits her range, but she would generally rely on her gun only when pressed anyhow. Her Marvel has been designed with barrel spurs and spikes which quickly enable it to become a crude but vicious melee weapon in a pinch - and Cat has an ice axe which in a pinch can become an equally vicious but effective weapon. Although agile and surprisingly tough, she doesn't really have the sheer physicality or training to rely on any kind of combat skill. Given the right guidance, however, she has the raw ability to potentially become a good marksman.

When on the offensive, however, Cat is quite cunning and prefers to use her knowledge of the terrain to her advantage, setting up traps or leading the unaware into natural hazards in the area that she may know of. Cat has been known to survive against marauding gangs by fleeing from them and leading them into traps. When in the area of her warren, Cat has multiple traps set up for both protection and survival (catching food) and people frequently underestimate her to their peril.

Social Style

Polecat thinks everyone is out to use her, or are there to be used. This doesn't necessarily mean she hates everyone or that she's a manipulative sociopath - just that she's a pragmatist about people ultimately looking out for number one when it comes down to it, and thus alliances are for [mutually-]personal benefit until it suddenly is no longer personally beneficial. Ironically enough, this means that she is unlikely to take people at face value and generally assumes there is an ulterior motive (even if there may not be) or hidden aim or agenda - which is ok by her as the reverse is normally true. If she offers help it is because there is a benefit in it for her too. She sees this as the natural state of things - "just business." She doesn't like debts and so is likely to refuse charity if offered it (she will assume there's a motive for it - and if there isn't would feel uncomfortable with it) but is willing to repay aid with services. It is difficult to earn her trust, which must be earned with actions and consistency, but those few who have earned her trust find her to be a ferociously loyal ally. Her allowing someone (or telling them) to call her "Cat" is a good indicator of earning her loyalty (she reacts harshly if called this by anyone other than those select few).

Signature Equipment

Cat is usually found well-equipped for whatever endeavour she is undertaking; usually scouting ruins for scrap and artefacts. Most of her signature gear revolves around increasing her ability to survive in hostile environments.

• Gendo Fur Cloak
• Marvel rifle (12g rifle barrel)
• Ice Axe
• Compass
• Lock Pick
• Periscope
• Rope
• Carrying rig

Signature Quotes

• "Are you fucking kidding me?"
• "Okay, don't be a dick..."
• "Fucking shit. We actually made it."
• "You know... bad as those things are, at least they're predictable. It's normal people that scare me."
• "[I'm] old enough!"
• "It was me or that fucker. I chose me."

Gallery

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  Polecat

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