Raoul

Name: Trace Mombasu

Height: 5'3"

Weight: 150 lbs

Distinguishing Marks: Dark skinned, Dreads, bowler hat, animal skull necklace

Mannerisms: Curious to a fault, pleasant

Trace Mobasu Origin
In my homeland, you hear stories about spirits that can come for you in the night. Giant, white-haired gorillas with horns and glowing eyes or even Man-Eating Lions. I, like many, had been spared of any such sites. My Jiddah (Grandmother) however, showed me many things when it came to the alchemical. Jadd (Grandfather) was a mine foreman and was always bringing Jiddah samples of ore, clumps of dirt, mineral shards, and cuts of gems. She would let me help when putting each sample through study, notation, further experimentation, and catalog. The first reaction she showed me was the reaction between HCH3COO and NaHCO3; vinegar and a bicarbonate commonly called baking soda. Mixing the two at a two to one ratio created a forceful expulsion of CO2 gas. This can be pressurized to, at the very least, pop the top of a cola bottle packed with clay. But from that day I had found my muse.

Jadd was able to have a bit of security, the general was sure to have patrols make passes close to the mine. The mine was near military land; Jadd and Jiddah once saved the son of a high ranking officer from a stampede of buffalo. Jiddah used vinegar and baking soda to make improvised explosives in order to split the path of the stampede to vier around them. That son was now the general for the forces station in the region. He would come to the mine and visit when he could. Sometimes he would come with a few soldiers, other times by himself, once he was passing through the area with a third of his forces. He arrived at four hours after midnight and asked Jadd for all the coffee he could spare. Jadd gave him all three cans he kept for the workers and the one in the kitchen. Jiddah was so upset with him.

Jadd always kept a few information gatherers on the mines workers list. They would bring back news from the markets and bazaar. With a lot of fighting in the region happening around our borders, he wanted to hear about it as soon as possible. He even had a few of his miners take shooting lessons from the soldiers and pass skill to the other miners.

There were many fights happening between this faction and that, for years. But when we heard that the general was assassinated; I had never seen Jadd so distraught. For someone else he considered a son to be murdered. My baba(Father) also being taken by the constant conflicts of the warlords. For the lives of himself and his wife and grandson. Distraught for many things.

I was twenty when the factions finally raided us. The knowledge of our mine began to become common knowledge but our location was held a secret for a long while after the general died. Jadd’s information gatherers evolved to what could have been considered full-blown spies. The misinformation they spread and the information the obtained. One of the spies was who spilled our secret, however. One of the factions kidnapped his niece; promised her safe return with the location of the mine. He told them but she was already dead. They cut off both of his arms at the elbow and left him for dead before they raided the mine.

Jadd was killed during the raid taking a direct hit with a rocket-propelled grenade. When Jiddah saw that happen she spun us around and rushed me to a cache she had been preparing. There she gave me bags and pouches filled with coin and gems; A satchel made from animal hide filled with chemical components and lab gear, and a small box of minerals that were cut into the shapes of animals. She kissed me and pushed me out into the darkness of that night saying only one word. Run.

That was the last time I saw either of them or the mine.

I spent the next five years in Lebanon and worked as an alchemists aid, doctors assistant, chemical warehouse attendant or anything else I could find on the subject. All the while trying to build off of the knowledge Jiddah gave me with manuscripts, chemical workbooks, and pure experimentation.


 * 1) Why did you travel from your home? To gain more knowledge in my chosen field of chemistry.
 * 2) How are you linked to your party mates? I encountered them in the pub where I shared drinks and story alike in a foreign land. To further expand upon my link to my companions, we encountered a Gargoyle, which we laid to pass.
 * 3) What do you desire in this game? To explore the world and the development of Trace Mombasu.
 * 4) Who or what was your darkest loss? My grandparents Jadd and Jiddah, along with the life that I once knew.
 * 5) Who or what is your brightest love? Gaining the knowledge of chemistry and the working of different alcehmical compounds.
 * 6) What has compelled you to answer the call of "The Rippers" (besides the obvious)? The intrigue of science, the mystery of the unknown, and the potential to make the world a better place.