Need some advice, please

[Ail]

Thank you all, but I think I'm going to go with Jacqueline. I've had this idea of reversing what I usually do. So, the two fighters are lost in the woods when they see a light. If they approach it, they see a woman keeping guard by a firelight, a small boy sleeping soundly and another man sleeping by them. The woman is armed with a short sword and tosses pebbles around as if in deep thought, and deep problems.

The woman is Jackie who, be prepared, has had a child. That's the boy, and he's five years old. Jackie is still evil, she still has her curse, but now she has someone who she truly and honestly loves. I don't know yet who the other man is, but I think it will be a young cleric who's been mentored by Van Richten and who was headstrong enough to go do good in the world too soon and without listening to Rudolph. He still keeps the letters from the old man, though, as his most cherished treasure.

Now, why is Jackie here? Because her curse has began manifesting in her son, althouh she doesn't know exactly the mechanics of it. She has just witnessed that sometimes a few droplets of blood appear in his throat. They quickly disappear, but over the last months, they have increased in range, so they begin to spread linewise aroud the neck.

She is searching for Madame Eva because she suspects this has something to do with her,and she is daring the scoffing of the Vistani to at least try to save her child. But Eva was not at Tser falls the last time she went there, so she is a bit aimlessly looking for her (but you've read the first post, Eva is very near from her location now).
Now, what is happening to the boy? Indeed, he is cursed and if the curse proceeds, eventually his neck will sometimes (let's say, once a week, for example) be completely encircled by a bloody thin line. Then it will progress to the point where it will bleed more profusely until after some time, I don't know how much, it will simply fall off. Contraty to Montarri's curse, the boy will not acquire the HeadMaster ability: he will simply die, for good.

This is perhaps not as important, but I think the Vistani will agree to lift the curse from the boy if Jackie forfeits him and lets him live forever with the Vistani. I see Jackie doing this: a mother's love, a true mother's love, will sacrifice anything for the well-being of her kids. But at the time the PCs meet her, this has not happened yet.

Now, if the PCs encounter the camp, Montarri will react suspiciously, as the PCs always do when someone comes to their camp in the night. She will probably wake her companion and assume a protective stance towards her son. She might even think that they're werewolves or something, since the excessive Garlic the female PC uses will cast away any doubt about their vampirism. Still, there are some problems, for which I humbly ask your help again.

Problems:
1) why would Jackie be allied with a Van Richten's pupil? How is their alliance, do they suffer each other, do they need each other or do they like each other?
2) who is the father of Jackie's son ? (please, no Headless Horseman!)
3) how would the encounter develop in this scenario?

Thank you all.

Alex

[WolfKook]

Have to say: I love what you've come up with. I've never been too enthusiastic about using Jackie IMC. With your twist, however, it seems she would be someone I would like to use. Mind if I use your ideas?

Now, on the "problems" section:

Jackie takes what she wants when she wants it, and even after all these years, she still has her needs. However, she is not always herself, if you know what I mean. The solution? One-night-stands.

That solves problem #2. It just can be anyone, and it sure doesn't have to be one of the "main characters".

However, around 6 years ago, one of Jackie's lovers was a young and inexperienced young man who wanted to become a cleric, whose crush on Jackie continued long after she disappeared the night after (She was beautiful, intelligent, experienced and mysterious, after all). He looked for her everywhere, but after a while, he just had to move on with his life.

When he returned, after studying with Van Richten, he tried to look for her again. Upon learning that he was searching for her, Jackie -who knew he had become a cleric -saw in him a person who could eventually be able to lift her son's curse (or her own), who could know someone who could be, or who could otherwise be of any use for her. So, she went to meet him, told him a lot of her story (Though she obviously presented herself as the victim, as she may even think she is), and presented the child as his son.

Now, on their relationship: He have always had a crush on her; he believes her and sincerely wants to help her, and his son (If he is really his, maybe even Jackie doesn't know), and he will do anything for them. She only wants to use him for lifting the curse (Something he is unable to do) or finding Eva (His training with VR has proven useful for that).

I have other ideas, which are not so soap-opera-like

Just a question: You have future plans for this guy, don't you?

[Ail]

Future plans for the guy? He came to me as an afterthought, but often these turn out to become something special. At the moment, I don't care much for him, but if he proved to have a character, a real personality, then yes, I might include more of him in my campaign. But I DO have plans for Jackie! She still has to appear later so she must survive this encounter (not that there is a high risk with it as it is now, but we never know.... should the PCs find severed heads in her bags, the thing might turn ugly. Remember she can wear any head for at most a week, so if she's to be away from home for a long time, she must have a collection with her somehow).

It might be worth telling you that the PCs have met her once, or better, have seen and her group harvesting heads once. Some of them failed Horror checks because of that. They fought with her and her band and she escaped harmlessly and with some traits of cruelty. At the time she was a mage. Of course she wears a different head now, perhaps a rogue's or a fighter's, and no normal person would identify her. However, I will allow the ranger PC a Spot check with DC 30 or 35 to understand it is the same woman, based on two things: her red ribbon and her body. Being that this PC is a womanizer, he would certainly look at her body as much, or even more, than her head, so he might have registered some particular detail.

What would come of it afterwards? What if they killed an ally of Van Richten's and the old man (who's still alive somewhere in my campaign, but has never appeared) would come to consider them enemies because of that?

Of course you can use this idea, and I am also very interested in hearing your other ideas

Alex