Rustic Hospitality

Since you come from the ranks of the common folk, you fit in among them with ease. You can find a place to hide, rest, or recuperate among other commoners, unless you have shown yourself to be a danger to them. They will shield you from the law or anyone else searching for you, though they will not risk their lives for you.

Fancy Footwork

You learn how to land a strike and then slip away without reprisal. During your turn, if you make a melee attack against a creature, that creature can’t make opportunity attacks against you for the rest of your turn

Rakish Audacity

Your confidence propels you into battle. You can give yourself a bonus to your initiative rolls equal to your Charisma modifier. You also gain an additional way to use your Sneak Attack; you don’t need advantage on the attack roll to use your Sneak Attack against a creature if you are within 5 feet of it, no other creatures are within 5 feet of you, and you don’t have disadvantage on the attack roll. All the other rules for Sneak Attack still apply to you.

Panache

Your charm is extraordinarily beguiling! As an action, you can make a Charisma (Persuasion) check contested by a creature's Wisdom (Insight) check. The creature must be able to hear you, and the two of you must share a language. If you succeed on the check and the creature is hostile to you, it has disadvantage on attack rolls against targets other than you and can't make opportunity attacks against targets other than you. This effect lasts for 1 minute, until one of your companions attacks the target or affects it with a spell, or until you and the target are more than 60 feet apart. If you succeed on the check and the creature isn't hostile to you, it is charmed by you for 1 minute. While charmed, it regards you as a friendly acquaintance. This effect ends immediately if you or your companions do anything harmful to it.

Balthazar shares most of his features with his human mother! Except his relatively tall stature, which was inherited from his Elven father, & of course his tiny elf-ears. He's 5'8" & likes to boost it up by wearing heeled boots. But he has his mother's face -- wide blue eyes, a round nose, & thick dark eyebrows in contrast to his light colored hair. He has sun-kissed skin & honey blonde hair, lightened naturally from being out on the open waters all the time. His hair is beach-wavy & quite long, reaching past his middle-back, & he takes exceptionally good care of it, as it is personally his favorite feature. His clothes tend to be flashy, but not in an opulent/expensive way -- they're just usually brightly colored & eccentric, with lots of loose-fitting blouses, plunging necklines & several types of drapery wrapped at his waist at one time. It's quite rare to see him without a big dumb smile on his face. He has his ears pierced thrice from youth, while the rest of his piercings were done later in life & while blasted drunk. He has is his right nipple done & his belly button. His tan body is scattered with tattoos among scars from battle: a blue-ink sleeve on his entire right arm of crashing waves; a compass on the back of his left hand; a cartographer compass & roses on his left hip / upper thigh; a dagger wrapped with a ribbon flag that has the phrase "Protect & Prevail" in Elven written on it, on his outer right calf; a design of the sun surrounded by waves on his lower back; a tiny, cursive "F" in red ink on his left ring finger; & lastly, the map coordinates of his birthplace under his left collarbone.

Balthazar is a friendly & resilient sailor! Charismatic, courageous, & dumb as a box of rocks. He's brave & very protective of those who cannot protect themselves -- he considers this his "destiny" in life, & nothing or no one can steer him away from this higher calling. If someone is in trouble, he’s always ready to lend a helping hand, but he tends to rush in without much thought — he prefers “action” over “thinking”. He’s confident in his own abilities & this confidence radiates brightly, so he will do what he can to instill the same confidence in others. He gives great pep talks to his crew! But he's also not afraid to accept help from others when he's in need -- whenever someone lends him a hand, he's quick to offer a favor in return, as thanks. Even when he blunders, he is well spirited & good at laughing at himself! He's truly always optimistic & blind to any shortcomings & the risk of failure. Sometimes this is good, others it's not... He would never purposefully put himself or his crew in danger, but sometimes his quick actions & commands have unpleasant consequences. Self-preservation is not something he often considers, putting others' lives before his own. He also has a weakness for the vices of the city,especially hard drink, & he is a MESSY drunk.

Extra!

✦His ship is called the Ruby Cerberus, because its body is made from a beautiful, matured redwood. It's a Brigantine style ship. It's the same ship he's been in charge of since he first began sailing, so naturally, it is his pride & joy

✶Despite how much he tries to learn & understand the exact art of sailing, he can never seem to get a hang of it. He kind of just thought that someone would explain it to him when he first started, but then no one did... So he's not necessarily the most competent captain, but what he lacks in knowledge he makes up for tenfold in charisma & spirit!

✦He & his parents are not on the best of terms... Their relationship is a bit strained, but this doesn't stop Balthazar from writing & sending them letters every so often. & At the end of each one he promises he'll return when it's time for him to take over their section of Valwick, though this is mostly a lie to try & get them off his back. As incredibly annoyed as they are that their only child is so foolishly living a sailor's life, they don't resent or disown him. They're just anxiously awaiting his return & only hope for his safety

✶You could say that he tries to keep his noble status a secret. Only a few of his crew members know, but per his request don't mention it. If it were to be brought up, he wouldn't deny it, but rather just ask he be treated no differently than anyone else

✦He has a pet golden retriever named Barkley! He was originally just going to name him 'Bark', but thankfully Pip suggested 'Barkley'instead. Barkley wears a matching blue ribbon around his neck as a collar

✶His most prized possessions are his cartography tools. He LOVES studying & drawing out maps so much, & has since he was young!

✦If he's in a pinch & needs to put his hair up, he uses the ribbon around his neck!

✶His homeland is still impoverished, & he himself is poor as well. But he almost never accepts money for his good deeds, as the safety & happiness of others is plenty reward for him

✦Though Balthazar cannot hold a tune to save his life, he feels very connected to music! His mother would always play the piano for him when he was young, for many occassions -- to put him to sleep, during his dancing lessons, to calm him down when the villages are under siege... It's one of the few things Balthazar misses now, while he's away from home

Swept Hilt Rapier [ Weapon ]

Before leaving home, he had never touched a blade. Since then, he's trained hard to learn the art of fencing. & The weapon of finesse suits him well! This particular blade was a gift from the village blacksmith, & though it has seen a lot of battle since its creation, it is in decent shape

Promise Locket [ Gift ]

Part of a matching pair, given to him by Fortune. They are seperated for months at a time & their meetings are far & few between... This locket brings Balthazar much comfort in those long periods apart. Inside is a small portrait of his dear lover & thus he keeps it close to his heart always.

Original Maps [ Misc ]

Neatly drawn by yours truly!