CHARACTERS OF KALANDAR:

MARK TODD

In a galaxy where daily hostility and betrayal are common, an individual such as Mark Todd not only is extremely rare, but, according to logic, it shouldn't even exist.

A pilot old about 25, handsome and in very good shape, Mark Todd has lived since his first years in the streets, growing on the frontier world of Nebulon V, where he spent his teenager years as an apprentice in a repair shop for starships. His altruistic and quiet nature and his friendly behavior made of him quite a popular figure in the streets of the frontier world: always ready to lend a hand and to help friends, acquaintances or even perfect strangers, Todd found himself most of the times at the end of the day without a coin in his pockets but with one more friend or contact.

One particular casual encounter provided Todd the chance to learn what would one day become one of the few passions of his life: Kylan. After offering hospitality to an old Barabel alien whose ship had been confiscated by the local authorities for not having paid full repairs and refueling, Todd soon found himself learning the secrets and the combat techniques of the martial arts known as Kylan. His body, already lean and agile from the hardships of a life in the streets, turned out to be a perfect instrument in learning martial arts, and soon Todd found out he had a promising future before him as a fighter. So he took to alternate his work in the repair shop with combat tournaments -more or less legal- all around Nebulon V, most of the times not because he had any personal interest, but to quickly earn some money for a friend in need.

But the underworld and the network of clandestine fighting tournaments was not the best place for Todd's naive soul: when he was dragged into death combats and matches in which he was meant to kill the adversary to raise the fares of clandestine bets the boy abandoned his career. He got out of the whole tournament network and, even though he kept training himself in his free time, he gave up advanced in that field ad returned to his life in the streets, accepting the most various jobs: from acrobat to bodyguard to speeder driver. An old dream of his, that of entering the Academy and becoming a pilot, could never be turned into reality: having been raised in the streets of a frontier world outside all known laws, Todd hadn't even a document witnessing his existence and had always lived as a clandestine.

Fortune and disaster struck Todd at the same time: stumbling upon a mysterious starship cemetery not far from Nebulon V -hundreds and hundreds of hulls in pretty good shape with a little effort and repair- he started his own activity: he repaired the ships he found there and sold them back as working starships... at a laughable price.

Not wanting to earn too much from the sale of the repaired relicts, soon Todd saturated Nebulon V's market with prices so low that merchants and crime bosses of the planetary outpost decided it was time to put an end to this: a bounty was put on the young man's head, his repair shop was blown up and Todd had to abandon the planet.

Not much time after that the boy found his true vocation: the Rebellion. Todd casually met some Rebel sympathizers and, after giving them his help as he always used to do, he saw in the Rebels the answer to his future: ideals worth fighting for, an organization in desperate need of help and an answer to what would he do with his life.

Even inside rebel ranks Todd distinguished himself for selfless acts, volunteer offers and determination. When the outpost he was working on, at Toprawa, was destroyed by Imperial forces, Todd was largely responsible for the escape and the successful evacuation of many survivors, by volunteering and staying behind and covering the retreat of the evacuation staff itself.

Once the Toprawa outpost was destroyed Todd meant to reunite with the Rebels, having obtained contacts with the Tierfon and Goldcrest bases, but fate decided differently. After a stop at Arnoon the young man crossed paths with a fugitive hunted down by stormtroopers and bounty hunters alike. Mark acted on instinct and hid the quarry aboard his ship: he had just rescued Gothar Palpatine. At first intimidated by the wicked and sinister figure of the former Imperial dignitary, but also moved to pity by his condition, Todd offered the man his help.

But the darksider would not content with a simple liftoff aboard todd's ship: hunted down by everyone, without any resource and without even the chance of showing his face in public, Palpatine soon realized that he had found in Todd a right hand man faithful, effective and easily manipulated. Acting on his good heart again and again, he manage to obtain Todd's help "only until I don't get back what's rightfully mine".

Since then Todd has remained divided between the Rebellion and the promise of help he made Gothar. He dreams of bringing Gothar in the Rebellion to solve his conflict of fidelity, but the few attempts he has made in this field did not turn out very satisfactory.

In spite of all past battles and the many times he has been manipulated Todd manages to keep his optimism and his naivet? in a most puzzling way. It is rare he will ever refuse a request for help by anybody, if he doesn't even anticipate that request by volunteering and venturing into challenges and missions nobody else would dare to touch. There are those who also consider him stupid more than simple, and it is possible that Todd doesn't notice many of the second aims and the malice that surround him, but the young man manages to keep a very distinct vision of what he believes to be right and wrong, and he will always act in order to help out even the most abject individual, as long as nobody is hurt or suffers from that.

Mark Todd, already trained in the arts of Kylan, is capable of outstanding acts of agility, resistance and balance close to impossible: anything involving climbing, jumping, sustaining prolonged efforts rarely is beyond his power. In addition to this, Todd's body, already forged by his life in the streets and his Kylan training, shows recovery and healing capabilities far superior to those of a normal human being. Mark explains all of this as mere "luck" or as a result of his hard years of training, but there are those who suspect that there's something more behind these uncanny abilities.

His blonde hairs, blue eyes and his athletic build also made him the unaware idol of many women who put their eyes on hi, although the young man remains most of the times unaware and puzzled by the reactions he exerts.

His quiet mood and the carelessness with which he liquidates anything concerning himself, added to the quickness with which he volunteers for impossible missions and his total disinterestedness about himself and his future lead to think about a low esteem of himself or to a hidden dilemma, but Todd is too altruistic to burden someone else with his own problems: whoever approaches him will always find a shining smile, a naive look and a lending hand.

Mark Todd
Type: Brash Pilot

DEX 3D
Blaster 6D
Brawling Parry 7D
Kylan 8D+2
Dodge 7D
Grenade 5D
Melee Combat 5D+2
Melee Parry 5D+1
Pick Pocket 6D
Running 7D
Thrown Weapons 4D

KNO 2D
Alien Species 4D
Languages 5D
Planetary Systems 6D
Streetwise 5D
Nebulon V: 7D+2
Survival 6D+2
Willpower 5D

MEC 4D
Archaic starship Pil. 4D
Astrogation 5D+2
Beast Riding 5D
Communications 5D+2
Repulsorlift Operation 5D+1
Sensors 5D
Space Transports 6D+2
Starfighter Piloting 7D
Starshp Gunnery 6D+2
Starship Shields 6D
Swoop Operation 5D+1

PER 3D
Bargain 4D
Con 4D+2
Forgery 5D
Hide 5D
Search 5D
Sneak 6D+2

STR 3D
Brawling 7D
Kylan 9D
Climb/Jump 8D
Lifting 5D
Stamina 6D
Swimming 6D+1

TEC 3D
First Aid 5D+2
Ground Vehicle Rep. 6D
Repulsorlift Repair 6D
Space Transport Repair 7D+1
Starfighter Repair 5D
Starship Weap. Rep. 4D+1

Force Sensitive? Yes
Force Points: 8
Character Points: 20
Equipment: Blaster (4D), tool kit, medipac, 500 credits, Lantillian Short Hauler Silver Bolt
A Quote: "You all get back to safety now, I try get back inside and save them."

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