Niklas Swyfte
SeaMaster Niklas Swyfte (a.k.a. "Captain Nik")
A dashing half-elven man of about forty years old (though he appears no older than thirty), Niklas acts as Captain of Whiteport’s navy. Nicholas has long blond hair which he keeps braided, and is a charming and passionate man. Originally a lieutenant of the navy, Niklas rose to his position after his Captain was killed fighting pirates in the Sunset Sea, and then when the aging master of ships died five years earlier. Earning himself a reputation as a debonair rogue, Niklas frequently leaves to sail with his fleet, fighting the dangers the Sunset Sea offers and keeping the vital trade links between Whiteport and the Summer Isles open and safe. When in port, Niklas loves to carouse and is a friend to both Gavin Bronzecourt (who appreciates his tales of romance and bravado) and Rhiannon Bronzecourt (who appreciates his tales of adventure and his use as a sparring partner, though some suggest his romantic intent).
Physical Description
General Physical Condition
Niklas is handsome and fit. He has a slightly slim build, but his muscles are wiry from years working on ships. He walks with swagger, and has superb balance.
Body Features
Niklas has tanned, weathered skin. His hands and feet are calloused. He has almost no body hair and numerous tattoos.
Facial Features
Niklas has a short blonde goatee and long blonde hair, which he keeps under a bandana (and which also conceals the pointed, elongated tips of his ears). His irises are startlingly blue (a trace of his elvish heritage), and the skin on his face is tanned and somewhat weathered. He has a slight scar on one cheek.
Identifying Characteristics
Niklas has numerous tattoos, including a sea-eagle tattooed on the inside of his right wrist which holds three lightning bolts, the symbol of Tempus, as well as the words 'fear no leviathan' tattooed on his left pectoral and written in elvish. Niklas also has a long scar across his right cheek from a saber cut, as well as three circular scars around his ankle from a Kraken tentacle. Finally, on his back Niklas has a large, intricate tattoo of a conch in the style of a protection sigil of Sephine.
Physical quirks
Niklas is right hand dominant. He walks with swagger, and has superb balance.
Apparel & Accessories
Niklas dresses in light, colorful fabrics, usually loose fitting, blouse-like shirts and long, sleeveless trench coats with numerous pockets.He wears a large leather belt with a rusted iron beltbuckle, and long pants tucked into tall black leather boots. He typically wears large, colorful hats, often adorned with large feathers or gold and silver thread. When he works on the ship, such as when he climbs the rigging or works as a regular deckhand, he often foregoes the symbols of his captains rank and works shirtless.
Specialized Equipment
Niklas usually carries a compass, spyglass, maps case, coin purse, a fine rapier with a gold-inlaid hilt, a dagger, and bottle of some sort of liquor.
Mental characteristics
Personal history
Niklas effectively grew up at sea, as he was adopted by the crew of a merchant ship after being abandoned as a baby. In exchange for his meals, Niklas was put to work as a cabin boy at a young age, and was taught the various sailing skills needed and worked his way up the ships hierarchy, growing from a cabin boy into a deckhand, then a second mate, then a first mate, and then finally to captain of his own ship, the Jackdaw. He earned local fame for hiis work hunting pirates, and was recently named SeaMaster of Whiteport, the youngest ever appointed to the role. He is now almost forty years old, though he has aged slowly and hardly looks older than thirty.
Gender Identity
Male
Sexuality
Pansexual
Education
While never formally educated at the naval academy, Niklas received extensive education as a sailor from the previous captains of the Jackdaw and the individuals who sailed on it.
Employment
Niklas' education and his work almost completely overlapped, and he was raised working on ships. From a young age he served as a cabin boy and personal assistant to the captain before being tutored by the various sailors and officers on the ship. He was eventually made Captain of the Jackdaw, taking contracts with the Naval Academy and earning a formal commission and finally being made SeaMaster of Whiteport.
Accomplishments & Achievements
Niklas earned his reputation as a formidable sea captain when he took contracts escorting merchant ships for the Summer Seas trading company, and then eventually earned a commission in Whiteport's navy hunting pirates. Niklas became something of a local celebrity when he defeated the Crab Feeder, a notorious pirate who had plagued the coast for nearly a decade.
Mental Trauma
Niklas has always struggled with his heritage, both as an orphan and as a half-elf. He usually wears a bandana that both holds his hair in place and also covers the tips of his ears, concealing his half-elf ancestry. Although Niklas is grateful his heritage has made him conventionally attractive, but he remains embarrassed of his origins and prefers to masquerade as a human.
Intellectual Characteristics
Niklas is adventurous and curious. He is fairly intelligent and is extremely worldly, having traveled all over and tried anything he could.
Morality & Philosophy
Niklas has a distinctly materialist view of life, and doesn't believe in an afterlife. He believes he makes his own luck and is wholly concerned with living in the moment and living the happiest, most exciting life he can. He has accepted he will never have a true family, so he prefers to keep the company of close friends and those he finds entertaining.
Personality Characteristics
Motivation
Niklas feels he has achieved almost everything he wants in terms of a lifestyle, and even resents some of the duties of SeaMaster of Whiteport, as he would prefer to be out at sea. He wants to live a life with no regrets, and seeks to avoid any strong commitments or ties to one place.
Savvies & Ineptitudes
Niklas is a talented sailor and captain. He also has nearly perfect balance, enabling him to pull off impressive acrobatic feats. He also has an extremely high alcohol tolerance and is almost always drinking. Niklas is a terrible manager of money, and often generously buys drinks for his companions and spends frivolously.
Likes & Dislikes
Niklas loves the freedom of sailing and controlling wherever he wants to go, and is happiest when captaining his ship without responsibility. He dislikes pirates and academics, and especially dislikes those who try to tell him how to live his life or control him.
Virtues & Personality perks
Niklas is good-natured, friendly, and generous. He treats almost everyone with respect and interest initially, and has a generally positive view of people. To those he considers close friends, especially members of his crew, Niklas feels a deep, familial bond, and is more than willing to die to protect his crewmates, and his widely-known willingness to sacrifice himself on behalf of his crew makes him extremely popular.
Vices & Personality flaws
Niklas' attempts to live life fully have also turned him into something of a substance abuser, and he occasionally boasts that if its a drug, he's tried it. He is almost always drinking, and his commitment to live hard inevitably takes a toll on his body. Niklas also has a fear of commitments and is resistant to forming strong relationships with others due to a fear of abandonment.
Personality Quirks
Niklas is often slightly drunk, and may slur his words.
Hygiene
Niklas usually smells vaguely like the ocean and saltwater, though as the day progresses his breath may smell more and more like strong alcohol. He typically washes and shaves every morning, meticulously keeping his facial hair.
Social
Family Ties
None
Religious Views
Worshipper of Tempus and Sephine
Social Aptitude
Niklas is braggadocios and confident. He is extremely boisterous and charismatic, and lives life passionately. He flirts with almost everyone, and is extremely extroverted.
Hobbies & Pets
Niklas loves sailing, and would spend almost all his time at sea if he could. He enjoys drinking and carousing in his spare time, and is also a talented gambler.
Speech
Niklas is flamboyant, passionate, and charming. He is prone to bragging and clearly has a high opinion of himself, and speaks as though he was accustomed to people liking him. He exaggerates many of his accomplishments and flirts with anyone remotely attractive. He speaks loudly as a result of years on ships shouting over the wind.
Relationships
Wealth & Financial state
Niklas is fairly wealthy as a result of his time as captain, and has accrued a sizable fortune from his contracts as a captain and his time trading exotic goods. He spends money with abandon, knowing he has the tab to cover it, because aside from his ship and crew he has no other real expenses, and Niklas' generosity and popularity as a captain often mean his crew sail with him for a fraction of their usual rate.
Alignment
Chaotic Neutral
Current Location
Ethnicity
Honorary & Occupational Titles
SeaMaster of Whiteport; Captain of the Jackdaw.
Circumstances of Birth
Niklas was born in Whiteport, but little is known about his parents aside from the fact one was an elf and the other was a human. He was abandoned almost immediately after being born but was found by a group of sailors returning from a night drinking,
Birthplace
Whiteport
Spouses
Siblings
Children
Current Residence
Jackdaw
Gender
Male
Eyes
Deep Blue
Hair
Long, Sleek, Blonde, Intricately Braided
Height
5'10"
Weight
120lbs
Quotes & Catchphrases
"The horizon awaits!"
Aligned Organization
Other Affiliations
Character Prototype
Niklas is a combination of Anthony Bourdain and Jack Sparrow.
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