Stats for the Three Musketeers

When I first started running Honor+Intrigue I thought that Athos, Porthos, and Aramis would be allies or possibly rivals for the player characters. One of the PCs, Lucien de Bourges, started as a Musketeer and became acquainted with Athos who taught him some fine points of swordsmanship. But alas, the plans of mice and GMs often go astray. Lucien's player took a gaming hiatus and for various reasons two of the PCs ended up working for Cardinal Richelieu. Now that Three Inseparables are rivals and enemies of some of the PCs. So in a way, the stats for the three have become even more important than if they were fellow Musketeers, acquaintances, and occasional allies.


For models, we voted on which of the various versions of the Musketeers should be used. A consensus, though not a unanimous one, was reached to use the characters from the Lester's 1973 film. Athos and Aramis tend to be fairly consistent between film and TV versions. The character that has the most variety is probably Porthos. In the Three Musketeers he is depicted much like the film versions. A bit vain with his partly gilded sash and certainly not the brightest of the four main characters. He is bluff, hearty, and loud and possibly larger than the other Musketeers though not exceptionally strong. However in Dumas' third tale, The Vicomte of Bragelonne: Ten Years Later Porthos is described as the "Hercules of France" and his death in the third part of the story, The Man in the Iron Mask, makes a main point of his mighty strength. This element of Porthos is usually downplayed or even wholly absent in film - with one exception. The clockpunk 2011 film version of the Three Musketeers has Ray Stevens (who was absolutely fabulous as Titus Pullo in HBO's Rome) playing an extremely mighty Porthos who hearkens back to the ending Dumas wrote for the Hercules of France.


To be fair, the BBC TV version of The Musketeers does make Porthos the strongest of the four, though not so strong as to count as a Hercules. The BBC program which airs on BBC America is well worth a watch. With the loss of Richelieu to Dr Who it has verged even further into alternate history, but every episode has some exciting dueling, a decent amount of intrigue, a few fascinating plots and NPCs to steal, and some really great props. Seeing actual matchlocks and wheellock weapons being used is a special treat.


So here are the Honor+Intrigue stats I use for the Three Musketeers.

Athos King's Musketeer and notable swordsman SR 7+ PC Image: PC20130531B-254 Location: King’s Musketeer Athos is the nom de guerre of one of the King’s Musketeers, a brooding, cultured soldier with an affinity for strong drink in large quantities. He is one of three comrades regarded as the best swordsmen in the company; Aramis and Porthos are the other two. The oldest of the trio, Athos is seen as their unofficial leader. Athos is served by a lackey named Grimaud, a Breton. Grimaud rarely speaks in the presence of his master, the two communicating by a sort of sign language. He taught Lucien de Bourges mastery of the Feint maneuver. He was recently wounded and defeated in a duel by Gaston Thibeault. Might 1                   Daring 3                  Savvy 1                   Flair 2 Brawl 1                   Melee 4                   Ranged 1                 Defense 2 Noble 3                   Duelist 3                  Soldier 2                  Sailor 0 Lifeblood 9              Composure 3           Advantage 5            Fortune 6 Boons: Daredevil, Dueling Style (French), Good Etiquette, Hard Drinker (Bonus Die to resist intoxication), Left Handed Training, Membership (King's Musketeers) Flaws: Arrogant, Drunkard, Terrible Secret (murdered his wife) Rapier: 1d6+1 Dmg; +1 Parry Dagger: 1d3+2 Dmg; 5' Range, +1 Called Shot Cloak: NA Dmg; +1 Bind, +1 Feint Maneuvers: Bladework+7, Brawling+4, Dirty Fighting+3, Disarm+5, Glide (Bonus+6), Hilt Punch+5, Lunge+7, Quick Cut+6, Tag (Bonus+6); Beat+5, Bind+5, Feint (Bonus+6), Footwork (Bonus+5), Grapple+2, Shove/Trip+3; Cloak Parry +6, Dodge, Parry +5, Riposte+5 NPC in: L'Honneur et les Intrigues (Fictional)

Porthos King's Musketeer and would-be gentleman            SR 7+ PC Image: PC20130531B-264 Location: King’s Musketeer Porthos is the nom de guerre of one of a trio of soldiers in the King’s Musketeer company. Though strong and large, he has the grace of a swordmaster or dancer. He is one of three comrades regarded as the best swordsmen in the company; Aramis and Athos are the other two. A practical, earthy man, Porthos is not as clever, intellecutal, nor as refined as his friends Aramis and Athos. He is the swordmaster who taught Aramis (Chevalier d’Herblay) to fence, he and Aramis together recently joined the musketeers after Aramis killed an important noble in an illegal duel. Two of his fellow Musketeers, Cadilhac and Termopillae have presuaded Porthos to avenge the Musketeers honor by fighting a duel with Gaston Thibeault. Porthos dresses the part of a courtier, subject to the fiscal limitations of both his vocation as a soldier and his skill as a Lothario. His fortunes are such that he rarely makes the impression he hopes. His clear intent is to marry a wealthy woman and retire to the life of a gentilhomme. Porthos is served by a lackey named Mousqueton, a man who like his master aspires to the finer things in life. Porthos’ mistress is clever, gray-eyed Madam Athenais Coquenard who is married to an old, wealthy, but miserly attorney. Porthos was recently defeated by Norbert Thibeault, a giant Cardinal’s Guard who brained Porthos with a large flower urn. Porthos claims he will get his revenge once his head heals. Might 3                   Daring 2                  Savvy ‑1                  Flair 1 Brawl 2                   Melee 3                   Ranged 1                 Defense 1 Gentleman 0            Duelist 2                  Soldier 2                  Don Juan 1 Lifeblood 15            Composure 3           Advantage 5            Fortune 4 Boons: Dueling Style (French), Membership (King's Musketeers), Strength Feat, Flaws: Arrogant, Braggart Rapier: 1d6+3 Dmg; +1 Parry Dagger: 1d3+4 Dmg; 5' Range, 1d3+2 Dmg; +1 Called Shot Cloak: NA Dmg; +1 Bind, +1 Feint Cane: 1d6+2 Dmg; Maneuvers: Bladework+5, Blade Throw+4, Brawling+4, Choke/Crush+5, Disarm+6, Dirty Fighting+3, Glide (Bonus+4), Hilt Punch+6, Lunge+5, Tag (Bonus+4), Beat+6, Bind+6, Feint (Bonus+4), Footwork (Bonus+2), Grapple+5, Shove/Trip+5, Cloak Parry +4, Dodge, Parry +2, Riposte+2, Stop‑Thrust +5; Ranged Attack +0 NPC in: L'Honneur et les Intrigues

Aramis King's Musketeer and occasional student of theology       SR 7+ PC20130531B-251 Location: King’s Musketeer Aramis is the nom de guerre of the Chevalier d’Herblay. He is one of three comrades regarded as the best swordsmen in the company; Athos and Porthos are the other two. Aramis and his friend Porthos together recently joined the musketeers after Aramis killed an important noble in an illegal duel – Porthos was the swordmaster who taught the would-be cleric to fence. Together with their friend Athos, they form a trio of soldiers in the King’s Musketeer company. Aramis is clever with a Jesuit trained intellect and a natural flair for the intricate politics and schemes of the court. Aramis claims to be serving in the musketeers only until such time as he takes vows to become a priest, However, he is considered an intelligent but diffident student. Aramis is better known for his mistresses and his skill with the rapier. He is served by a lackey named Bazin, a pious man who looks forward to the day when Aramis takes his vows, so that he can serve a member of the clergy. He recently fought a duel to a draw with Jacques Dlancey, one of the Cardinal’s Red Guards. Aramis claims he could have defeated Dlancey but he instead proposed a draw as a matter of strategy as Dlancey was about to be reinforced by two other Red Guards. Might 0             Daring 2            Savvy 3             Flair 2 Brawl 0             Melee 3             Ranged 1           Defense 2 Don Juan 3        Clergy 1            Duelist 2            Soldier 1            Courtier 2 Lifeblood 8          Composure 3       Advantage 5        Fortune 6 Boons: Dueling Style (Spanish), Friends in Many Places: (I know a man…), Jack of All Trades, Membership (King's Musketeers), Savant, Silver Tongue Flaws: Hot-Headed, Lustful Rapier: 1d6 Dmg; [+1] Parry T. Knife: 1d3+1 Dmg; 10’ range, +1 Called Shot, +1 Quick-Draw, ‑1 Melee Cloak: NA Dmg; +1 Bind, +1 Feint Maneuvers: Bladework+5, Dirty Fighting+2, Glide+5, Quick Cut (Bonus+5), Tag (Bonus+5), Feint+5, Footwork (Bonus+6), Dodge, Parry+6[+7], Riposte+6 NPC in: L'Honneur et les Intrigues

Wonder of wonders the formatting looks pretty good. The NPC record I use in play pasted nicely into Blogger. I use half page sheets for the important NPCs.
Acknowledgements: I used the stats from Black Vulmea's excellent web site as the starting point for the Three Musketeers. Here are his originals: Athos, Porthos, and Aramis.