Triplex
Triplex is a Acanthus Free Council from Chicago, Illinois.
Overview
Quote: "Some speak the language of astrology or tarot, we speak of symmetry, of box scores, of innings and sudden death."
Benjamin "Triplex" Connelley grew up on Chicago's South Side, the middle child in a large Catholic, working-class family. As a child, he ate, slept and breathed baseball, and since he lived not far from Comiskey Park, he and his older brothers saw the White Sox play many times (and even paid to get in sometimes). As a teenager, Ben tried out for the baseball team in high school, but a weak throwing arm and a low batting average ended his career after his first high school season. His coach, however, realized that the boy had a comprehensive knowledge of the game and the ability to follow plays as they happened. Soon the boy was acting as an umpire and, eventually, as a student coach.
His Awakening happened during the middle of a particularly close game between the White So and the Yankees when Ben was 17. He lost awareness of the game as he was drawn in spirit to the Watchtower of the Lunargent Thorn, where he took his first steps along the Path of Thistle. Soon afterward, the Free Council recognized him as one of their own.
In the Sleeping world, Ben Connelley teaches physics and coaches baseball at a local high school and keeps up his certification as an umpire by refereeing Little Leage baseball during the summer. He tries to impart his cosmic vision of the game to his young students; some of them actually "get it," and one or two have gone on to Awaken.
Ben's love for baseball colored his approach to magic, making it difficult for him to hew to the tried-and-true traditions. Soon he found himself the leader of a cabal of like-minded mages, all of whom see the rhythm and structure of the game as a perfect synthesis of movement and stillness, balance and action, duality and plurality. Ben's goal is to use his cabal to influence the future of mages in the world through a gradual restructuring of mages society. The arrival of Laplace and the coming together of the Open Source cabal has taken some of the heat off Triplex and his cabal. No longer are they the only iconoclasts within the Consilium.
Recently, he gladly ceded his position as Councilor to Laplace and accepted a post as one of the Heralds of the Consilium. This change has given him more time for the study of magic - and of baseball.
Description
Triplex has the compact, trim build of a pitcher. He wears his dark brown hair short and neat, in a style similar to the ball players of the 1950s and 1960s, and frequently hides his bright green eyes behind a pair of sport sunglasses. He dresses casually for his physics classes and wears sweats or warm-up suits when he does coach duty. He owns a number of White Sox T-shirts and baseball jackets, as well as a large collection of baseball caps. His face is weathered from time spent outside, and he has a perpetual squint from being out in the bright sunlight during games. He affects a "coach's scowl" so his teams will take him seriously, but in private and when he relaxes, he is genuinely personable and laughs easily.
His Nimbus blends the small of popcorn and franks (Chicago-style, of course) with the sound of a cracking bat and the roar of the crowd.
Stats
Dedicated Magical Tool: Small, silver wand in the shape of a baseball bat
Real Name: Benjamin Matthew Connelley
Path: Acanthus
Order: Free Council
Mental Attributes: Intelligence 4, Wits 4, Resolve 3
Physical Attributes: Strength 2, Dexterity 3, Stamina 3
Social Attributes: Presence 4, Manipulation 3, Composure 5
Mental Skills: Academics (History of Mathematics) 4, *Crafts (Bat-Making) 2, Occult 3, *Science (Physics) 3
Physical Skills: Athletics (Baseball) 3, Brawl 2, Drive 2, Firearms 1, Weaponry 2
Social Skills: Expression (Public Speaking, Teaching) 4, *Persuasion 2, Socialize (Baseball Fans) 3, Streetwise 1
Merits: Contacts (U.S. Cellular Field Administrative Staff, White Sox Fans, High School, Physics Community) 4, Hallow (Shared) 4, High Speech, Library (Shared) (Baseball History, Magical Workings, Physics), Resources 3, Sanctum: Size (Shared) 3, Status: Consilium (Herald) 2, Status: Free Council (Geo Leader) 2
Willpower: 8
Wisdom: 6 (Fixation, mild: 6)
Virtue: Hope
Vice: Pride
Initiative: 8
Defense: 3
Speed: 10
Health: 8
Gnosis: 3
Arcana: Fate 3, Forces 2, Matter 1, Time 3
Rotes: Fate - Interconnections, Fortune's Protection, Lucky Coin; Forces - Nightsight, Control Sound; Matter - Detect Substance; Time - Momentary Flux, Flop of the Coin. Shifting Sands
Manna/per turn: 12/3
Weapons/Attacks:
Armor: 3 ("Fortune's Protection," Fate **)
References
- CofD: World of Darkness: Chicago, p. 345-346