Country of Origin: Castille (any member of the Explorer’s Society or the Invisible College can learn Vargas for 25 HP, regardless of nationality)
Salon: Vaticine City (Small)
Founded: 1665

Description: Juan Francisco Vargas was called many things in his life: a poet, a philosopher, a romantic, an Explorer…and a heretic. Juan Francisco went on many expeditions with his colleagues in the Explorer’s Society, and uncovered many artifacts with historical, cultural, and ecclesiastical implications that the Church wanted kept quiet. In May of 1665, Señor Vargas was captured in his home in Cantabria (a small city about thirty miles upriver from Vaticine City), subjected to a speedy trial in his living room, and executed in his back yard while his horrified family watched on, His wife sunk into a deep depression and died a few months later, and his twelve-year-old daughter Antonia was sent to an orphanage in Vaticine City.

Antonia learned many things at the orphanage…and even more things sneaking out at night to run the streets of the Castilian capital with her friends. Over the next few years, she began to thrive as a student during the day, and a pickpocket, brawler, and knife-fighter by night. Antonia had learned early that life was fragile, and that one must live in the moment; this philosophy governed her entire existence, from the relationships she forged to the fighting style she developed to defend herself and her friends…and to keep the Inquisition in check. She established a small facility in Cantabria, offering training to anyone who might draw the ire of the Inquisition (especially members of the Explorer’s Society). With Cardinal Verdugo’s fall from grace and exile, and the downswing in the (public) activities of the Inquisition, Antonia moved to Vaticine City and opened a formal training salon, reminding anyone who will listen that even the most well-intentioned organization can become corrupt, and a Castilian must guard his or her moments fiercely, lest they be taken away.

The movements of a Vargas fighter are erratic, appearing to be completely random. He may take an aggressive stance and advance, then unexpectedly pivot on one foot and spiral out of melee range. He may seem to be ducking beneath an attack, only to spring up at the last minute and risk being struck to deliver a savage dagger strike beneath an opponent’s ribs. What appears to be a vicious slash may suddenly evolve into a roundhouse kick with no wasted motion. Nothing is off the table, so long as it takes an opponent by surprise; if the Vargas fighter doesn’t even know what he will do next, how could an opponent?

A Vargas fighter’s approach to combat often catches an opponent off guard, but it also presents some challenges. A sudden change in direction can leave him off balance or overextended under the best of conditions; adding a near-random string of movements and attacks into the mix complicates things even further, as these momentary openings occur more frequently, and with no strategy for which the Vargas fighter can compensate. This is the price of spending too much time “living in the moment.”

Basic Curriculum: Dirty Fighting, Knife
Knacks: Corps-á-Corps, Disarm (Knife), Double Attack (Knife/Knife), Exploit Weakness (Vargas), Lunge (Knife)

Apprentice: Vargas fighters are trained to use two daggers simultaneously and never suffer an off-hand penalty when doing so. In addition, the Vargas fighter’s swift, unpredictable movements make him harder to target in combat; he may add his Mastery Level in Vargas to his TN to be hit whenever he is using Parry (Knife) as a Passive Defense Knack.

Vargas appeals to neither the Swordsman’s Guild nor the Duelist’s Guild for sanctioning. As a result, Apprentices receive a free Rank in one of their Swordsman Knacks, or in the Knack of their choice from the Dirty Fighting Skill, in lieu of Guild Membership.

Journeyman: Journeymen of Vargas learn a sort of “full-body feint” wherein they seem to be moving towards one line of attack, then fling themselves out of that line and into another; their knives may not be ready to strike, but the rest of their bodies are. Whenever the Journeyman has two legal Action Dice in one Phase, he may use the first to make a standard attack using one of his daggers. If this attack would be successful, it inflicts no damage; however, for every five full points made on this roll, he receives a free Raise on the second attack made in the same Phase, which may be attempted using any Knack in the Dirty Fighting Skill.

For example, if a Vargas Journeyman is facing an opponent with a TN to be hit of 20, and he rolls a 27 using Attack (Knife) with his first Action Die in the Phase, he receives five free Raises to be used on the next attack in the Phase, which may be a Kick, a Head Butt, an Eye Gouge, a Throat Strike, and so on. If the opponent had a TN to be hit of 30, the Journeyman would get no benefit from the first roll because he failed to meet his opponent’s TN to be hit; however, he could use his second Action for anything, not just an attack using a Dirty Fighting Knack.

Master: A Master of Vargas has learned to minimize the weaknesses of his melee fighting style…by eliminating an opponent before he gets that close. The Master receives a free Rank in the Throw (Knife) Knack, which may increase his Rank in the Knack to a six. If it does not, he may increase it from a five to a six later by spending 25 XP. In addition, the Master’s unerring accuracy allows him to Keep an extra Die (+0k1) on his thrown daggers’ Damage Rolls. Finally, just in case an opponent survives the thrown dagger and closes anyway, the Master may draw and attack or defend with a dagger by spending a single Action Die.