Kobe Morimoto

by Daniel Deadmarsh

Kobe Morimoto is the owner and cook of Kobe's Food Stand. Kobe can be found most of the time at his stand in the market. Kobe also lives only two blocks away from the market and sometimes visits the Yuan-Ti Secret Nation temple, located in the city's sewer system.

Appearance

Kobe is in effect entirely human. His snake like features are easily hidden and concealed from others. His feet, have no toenails and his toes are slightly scaled as a snake's skin, and his back-teeth are fang-like. He used to shed his skin growing up as a child, but now he no longer sheds skin.. Furthermore, his saliva is mildly poisonous to humans, halflings and elves and gnomes. Dwarves are immune to his weaker poison. Anyone that ingests the saliva or if it enters the blood stream must save vs. poison or become ill in 1d4 rounds for 2d4 hours (Strength and Constitution scores are halved for that duration).

Kobe has no hair on his head and is clean shaven. He is tall and muscular. He has high cheek-bones and a defined jaw-line. He is slightly tanned, and has brown almond-shaped eyes, he is usually seen wearing plain white clothing and a leather apron, all of which are stained with blood, spices and sauces. He his often considered attractive to many of the Fellaren-Krae women. His hands often smell of ginger.

He has a dark-blue tattoo around his neck. It is an intricate pattern of Kara-Tur writing and magical wards. He also has similar tattoos along both his ankles. The tattoo around his neck is magical and provides protection from the know alignment spell and spell-like affects and from mind-reading spells. The tattoo around his ankles are magical and provide an enhance ability to moving silently and climbing +10% to each

He wears a coiled-serpent golden earring on his left ear. The serpent earring is a ring of protection +2, with a +10% bonus to detect noise for thieves.

He also wears two old-stained brass looking bracers on each wrist which act as Bracers of Defence AC3.

He carries two silver curved-kukri daggers, behind his back. He also carries a leather belt with half a dozen throwing daggers, three on his left hip and three on his right. These are visible to all, and they signify that Kobe is much more than a food-stand cook. He can be seen throwing his daggers into cutting boards and into the beams that hold-up "The Stand's" tarp. The Kukri Daggers are magical daggers +3, (1d4+3). When the command word is spoken, (fo), the blades ignite into flames. Creatures struck in this manner take an additional 1d6 points of damage, per blade. When lit, they illuminate the area as a torch would, and can burn wood, paper, parchment, etc. Cold-based creatures and creatures susceptible to fire (i.e., trolls), take an additional 1d6+2 points of damage per blade if struck. When the daggers are carried the wielder gains a +4 bonus to save against all fire-based attacks, and always takes minimum damage from such attacks. For example, the wielder saves successfully against a fire-ball spell from an 8th level mage, would only take 4 pts of damage, (8 points (minimum amount) halved). Both daggers must be in hand to gain these later benefits. The throwing daggers are all throwing daggers +2, the belt's magically summons the daggers back in place once they have struck something, ground, tree, victim.

Personality

Kobe is a humble person by appearance and first contact. People that observe him at work in "The Stand" soon realize it is a quick witted, spirited, friendly and has a keen sense of memory, especially when it comes to orders and payment.

He is quiet and observant. He maintains a quiet and calm demeanour, as he is the major information gatherer for the Yuan-ti Secret Nation of Fellaren-Krae, and does not want to attract unwanted attention.

In combat Kobe is ruthless, only fleeing in overwhelming odds or when defeat is eminent. However, in the event he is hunting trolls, or protecting other yuan-ti or snakes he will fight until all foes perish.

Background

Kobe grew-up in a tribe of half-blood and pureblood yuan-ti in Northern Kara-Tur. His tribe was attacked and the small community utterly destroyed by a marauding group of trolls.

His parents sent him off running into the forest at the age of 12, while they defended their home and neighbours. The young lad did not listen, but remained hidden and watched with horror, as the band of trolls came in and slaughtered the inhabitants of the village and devoured them, and what livestock the villagers had. He saw several trolls downed, but when the attack was over, the troll's numbers were intact. Kobe slowly left the seen behind as he fled to a nearby human settlement.

Once there he explained to an elderly man covered in tattoos, what had happened. The man brought Kobe into the protection of the human village. The man knew who and what Kobe was, but set out to protect him and nurture him in the ways of humans. The man enchanted some ink and placed a tattoo around Kobe's neck providing Kobe with immunity to mind-reading and thought detecting spells.

As time past, even though Kobe was considered a reckless youth and upstart within the community, he was trained as a huntsman. After years of training and hunting there was an unfortunate accident, the young man he was hunting with was killed. The village accused Kobe of murdering the other man, as they were competing for the affection of the same woman. Kobe was banished from the community. Before he left he asked his adoptive father for one last favour, to tattoo his ankles with magic. Once completed, Kobe killed him, and fled, taking a number of supplies, coins, gems and a belt of magical throwing daggers.

Kobe travelled Kara-Tur and Faerun seeking others of his kind. He found some in the North of Faerun and Waterdeep, who helped him tap into the Yuan-ti powers that were his to control. He later settled down in Fellaren-Krae becoming an important figure within the city and within the local Yuan-ti Nation, Sect of the Seven Serpents.

He is respected as a fighter within the city as he has helped the city Watch hunt down trolls that were plaguing the local farmsteads. He is also well known amongst the council and watch officials as a friend and law abiding citizen.

He met Gilleus Seventhand, who introduced him to Sshrizsra Sieszsled, the leader of the Sect of the Seven Serpents. Kobe was immediately recruited into the nation and serves it loyally. Kobe listens intently (or reads lips) to many conversations that occur within "The Stand". This provides the Sect with much information about the authorities, guilds, smugglers, caravans, and the lesser known groups of Fellaren-Krae (i.e., Cult of the Mist).

However, he is currently enamoured with Chow Fen On-Ling, a diviner from Kara-Tur. He hopes to win her love and loyalty so that he may change her into a Tainted-One.

History on the Fo Saans

The blades that Kobe carries were acquired from a caravan travelling from Kirin to northern Kara-Tur.

The blades were created by an ancient mage named Chen Tsao-Chin. He had created the daggers so that he might better battle the Frost Giants that lived nearby and continually raided his neighbouring village. When the gong sounded, to alert the people, that Frost Giants were approaching, Chen left his tower with the daggers in hand. Chen not a skilled hand to hand combatant, froze with fear, believing the daggers to small to seriously injure the giants. He summond the flames and was struck dead by a giant's hurled boulder, before seeing any combat. A nearby soldier picked-up the two blades and repeated the command word used by Chen. With the help of the other militia, and the Fo Saans, the giants fled. The blades remained within the village for over 100 years.

With the departure of a merchant caravan, that had left Winter supplies with the villagers. Unknown to the villagers the Fo Saan daggers left as well. The daggers turned up in the hands of a noble defender for the people along the Yellow Sea 50 years after their disappearance. The warrior who yielded them became famous and word eventually spread to a small village in Northern Kara-Tur. Ten years later the village sent an emissary to reclaim the daggers. The nobleman heard the story and gave the daggers back to the emissary, along with a small caravan of supplies and a few swordsmen to help along the way. They stopped in Kirin and picked up more supplies and wagons and additional guards, one being Kobe Morimoto.

The daggers disappeared and the caravan never made it to the Northern village. The emissary, caravan guards and 6 others were found all dead along the roadside.

Kobe Morimoto is the new owner of the Fa Saan Kukri daggers.

AD&D Statistics

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