People

No you should've stayed out of my way. Do not test me, 'cause I'm the fucking king of the world!

Making NPCs is likely the part of storytelling that the MC will be called upon to do the most. Many times, players will take the action to some place unexpected. Maybe they will have a throwdown in a bowling alley, or decide to follow up on some minor rumors about the docks. It is a good idea to have a cast of characters who can be used with modest adjustments in lieu of other characters who suddenly become important. Some of this can - and should - be done in the form of having a script of random bullshit for non-player characters to make small talk with. The use and re-use of common small talk phrases by random people in various parts of the chronicle can quickly become a running gag, which frees the PCs to explore in a more sandbox fashion.

What follows are some sample characters. It is entirely intentional that these characters are entirely recognizable rips from popular culture. Ultimately when creating NPC cast members of your own, you will want to transform ideas in your mind into the numbers and abilities that represent a character in After Sundown. Therefore it is more useful as an example for the sample characters to be ones which you could plausibly be familiar with the idea in addition to the stats themselves.

Dean

Dean spent several years as a slave soldier to the King with Three Shadows after he sold his soul to get a family member raised from the dead. Since escaping from Limbo, he spends most of his time traveling the country and killing monsters, which has earned him a place as a respected hunter in the Stellar Oracles, but a noted name on the shit list of several Makhzen Princes. Dean is a Fallen. He is rather brash and tends to leap into danger as soon as he sees the barest opportunity to do so. In combat he will activate Quickness immediately, and when investigating things he will generally mimic a governmental authority figure. Dean's Powers grant him a +2 bonus to Socialization and a similar bonus to people asking about him later, and he almost never shies from this, grabbing the center of attention with Atract any time he enters a bar. He gains a +2 bonus to soak damage against weapons that are not iron, and personally has a true name that he does not use (Taxiarch Μιχαήλ) and knows the true name of everyone he runs into. Dean deals with a Master Passion of Rage, though admittedly, not very well.

S: 4; A: 5; I: 3; L: 1; W: 2; C: 5; Edge: 3; Potency: 1.

Skills: Athletics 4; Combat 6; Drive 3 [+2]; Larceny (Palming) 5; Perception 3; Stealth 5; Survival 3; Bureaucracy (Government) 2; Empathy 3; Expression 1; Intimidation (Fear Mongering) 5; Persuasion (Fast Talk) 3; Tactics 6 Electronics (Wiring) 2; Medicine (First Aid) 1; Operations (Repair) 2; Rigging (Lockpicking) 4; Research 1 (Archives); Sabotage (Explosives) 4

Backgrounds: Bar Scene 6, Ballistics 6, Credit Fraud 5, Hell Mouths 4, Infernal Politics 4, Christian Splinter Groups 3, Cars 3, Sports Teams 2, Chemistry 2

Powers: [Fallen] Attract, Repel, Deny the Gauntlet, Mask of a Thousand Faces, Patience of the Mountain, Learn the Heart's Pain, Suggestion, Quickness, Dismissal, Desire Reflection, Façade of Nonchalance, Bind the Name

Advantages and Disadvantages: Attractive, Diplomatic Incident, Feared by Children

Equipment: Shotgun [4], Colt 1911 (silver bullets) [3], Badass Jacket, Numerous hidden knives [1], sand (including sand cartridges for the shotgun), salt (including salt cartridges for the shotgun), Lockpick set, Chevy Impala

Jack

Jack is a trucker who has been married many times and lived many different lives in many different cities. And that's even before you factor in the fact that he has begun to remember past incarnations of himself, where he apparently used to be a warrior in ancient China. He is openly skeptical that these "memories" are anything other than particularly vivid and weird dreams, but nonetheless finds himself embroiled in some seriously weird shit. Driven by a constant feeling that things are not right, Jack seeks out and gets new relationships frequently. And while he frequently just drifts off from his previous lives and interests (and has a legacy of failed marriage to show for it), he doesn't specifically do anything bad, and maintains a friendship with all of his ex-wives.

Jack is a Reborn. Jack has a Master Passion of Despair. Jack's Powers grant him a +2 bonus to Socialization and a similar bonus to people asking about him later, an ability he calls upon only if the subtle approach fails. Jack often tries to get through confrontation without drawing upon magical powers at all, but if he feels in danger he will reset things and go into full speed mode. After all, as Jack always says "It's all in the reflexes."

S: 3[+1]; A: 4; I: 4; L: 2; W: 5; C: 2; Edge: 3; Potency: 1.

Skills: Athletics 2; Combat (Knives) 4; Drive 6; Larceny (Security Systems) 3; Perception 4 [+4]; Stealth 3 [+1]; Survival 2 Animal Ken 1; Bureaucracy 2; Empathy (Other Peoples' Troubles) 4; Expression 3; Intimidation 4 [+1]; Persuasion (Acting) 6; Tactics 3 Artisan (Carpentry) 2; Electronics (Radio) 1; Rigging (Plumbing) 6; Operations (Repair) 4; Research (Databases) 1; Sabotage (Thorough Destruction) 2

Backgrounds: Truckin 6; Cars and Trucks 5; Chinese Monsters 5; Gambling 4; Construction 4; World Crime League Finances 3; Small Town Life 3, Corporate Jobs 3, Food Service 2

Powers: [Reborn] Quickness, Nimble Feet, Supernatural Senses, Sensory Damper, Summon Spirits, Vigor, Attract, Shadow Casting, Shifting Sands, Retrocognition, Rapid Thought, Blur

Advantages and Disadvantages: Loyalty, Haunted, Distinctive Appearance

Equipment: A six pack of Pabst, Machine Pistol (wooden bullets) [2˟], A very nice knife [2], Crowbar [2], Baseball Bat [2N], MAC Truck, a spare suit

Marionette

Marionette is a harlequin clown from Southern France who made her own elaborate performance enhancing drugs that eventually drove her quite mad. She isn't exactly certain that she isn't a human anymore, but she rarely takes the makeup off and continues to inject herself with "performance enhancements" of various sorts. She is a hanger-on to supernatural politics, preferring to promote the world as some kind of massive clown stage where people apparently get fed to hyenas.

Marionette is an Icarid. A natural contrarion, Marionette gains a +4 bonus to argue against any course of action, and a +4 bonus to soak damage against weapons that are not iron.

S: 2[+1]; A: 6; I: 3; L: 4; W: 4; C: 1; Edge: 3; Potency: 1.

Skills: Athletics (Acrobatics) 6; Combat 4; Larceny (Disguise) 6; Perception 2[+2]; Stealth 6 Animal Ken 6 [+2]; Bureaucracy 3; Empathy 1; Expression (Dance) 6; Intimidation (Tormenting) 2; Persuasion 1; Artisan (Metalworking) 3; Rigging (Ropes) 3; Medicine (Poison) 6; Research (Old Books) 2; Sabotage (Explosives) 6[+2]

Backgrounds: Circus Life 6; Chemistry 6; Surreal Humorists 5; ETA 4; Gambling 4; Gloomy Poetry 4; Children's Programming 4; Wine 2

Powers: [Icarid] Hide From Notice, Mask of a Thousand Faces, Supernatural Senses, Curse of Failure, Clinging, Revive the Flesh, Walk of Flame, Tongue of the Beast, Dark Night of the Soul, Hide in Plain Sight, Holistic Ventriloquism, Indomitability

Advantages and Disadvantages: Experimenter, Weapon Finesse, Delusional (Nihilism), Frivolous, Prideful

Equipment: Silver Rapier [3], Flash Bombs, Smoke Bombs, Playing Cards, Silver Bells, Fishing Line, Squeaky Toy, Lighter, Can of Gasoline.

Dante

Dante is not supernatural, and doesn't actually believe that the supernatural exists at all. He is the manager of a Quick Stop, and would be almost wholly uninvolved in the machinations of monsters save for the fact that he is a Luminary.

S: 3; A: 2; I: 4; L: 4; W: 1; C: 4; Edge: 3

Skills:Athletics 2; Drive 2; Larceny 1; Perception 3; Stealth (Inconspicuousness) 3; Animal Ken 2; Bureaucracy (Corporate) 5; Empathy 4; Expression 3; Intimidation 2; Persuasion (Whining) 5; Artisan 5; Electronics (Computers) 4; Rigging (Refrigeration) 2; Research (Culture) 5

Backgrounds: Science Fiction 5, Food Service 5, Hockey 4, Periodicals 4, New Jersey 3, Pornography 2, Town Savages 2, Recreational Drugs 2

Equipment: Hockey Stick [2N], Car, Today's Newspaper, Pornographic Video, Beef Jerky.

Chris

Chris is a bystander. He works at the SK8R|, and he pours beers. Chris is an Extra, and is of primary note in that his stat line can be used with minor adjustments for all kinds of extras who work in different parts of the realms of horror.

S: 3; A: 2; I: 2; L: 2; W: 1; C: 3

Skills: Athletics 3; Combat 1; Drive 1; Larceny 1; Perception 2; Stealth 1; Bureaucracy 4; Empathy 2; Expression (Guitar) 3; Intimidation 4; Persuasion 3; Rigging (Pressurized Fluids) 4; Operations (Mechanical Bull) 3;

Backgrounds: Skating 6, Food Service 4, Drinking 4, Sports 3, Politics 3, Organic Food 2, Recreational Drugs 2

The Black Isz

There are a cadre of Mirror Goblins who work for a vicious killer: a dangerous Baali named Artemis Pender. The player characters may never meet Artemis Pender or learn what it is that he is doing - but his Mirror Goblin agents are sufficiently numerous that they may be encountered many times. A typical group will be between 4 and 6 of the Isz, and be dispatched with some identifiable (if baroque) mission. Abilities vary slightly within an Isz pack, but one of them might look like this:

S: 3 A: 4 I: 2 L: 2 W: 1 C: 3

Skills: Artisan 1 (Painting); Athletics 2; Combat 3; Larceny 4; Perception 2; Sabotage 1 (Traps); Stealth 2; Survival 4; Tactics 2

Backgrounds: Gibbering 4, Infernal Politics 3, Rare Art 3, Human Laws 2

Powers: Quickness, Mask of a Thousand Faces, Touch of Darkness

Advantages and Disadvantages: Swarming, Fiercely Competitive

Equipment: Trench Coat, Spray Paint.

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