Samarra "Sam" Ripley

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SAMARRA "SAM" RIPLEY
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Age:	28
Gender:	Female
Primary Occupation:	Pilot
Secondary Occupation:	Auxiliary Gunhand
Appearance:	Not an overly imposing figure at around 5'6", Sam is well-toned and packs a surprising punch when the need arises - though more wiry than built. Dark blonde hair falls over her right shoulder, the left side shaved and tattooed with a winding, leafy vine motif that goes from the side of her head all the way down her arm and across the back of her hand. There's a set of quick and keen pale blue eyes to watch the skies with. Usually dressed in a comfy, utilitarian manner - jumpsuits tied at the waist, worn-in flight jackets and well-loved combat boots.
Faceclaim:	Natalie Dormer
Initial Personality:	An easy-going, casual kind of person with a tendency to rely on sarcasm or dry jokes to break the ice. Rough around the edges, a spacer mentality of being planetside is only temporary - she's spent far too much time in space to feel at home anywhere on the ground. She'll boast her skills just like any pilot around and tends to make excuses when things don't go her way. It's not her fault, okay? Not overly feminine in manners or presentation, but there are soft and subtle hints here and there.
Underlying Personality:	Underneath there's a hesitancy for intimacy or commitment. Sam keeps people at arm's length and isn't very well-versed in close romantic relationships. She's fine with casual, one-time encounters, but when it comes to emotions she's out the door. She finds things get too messy when feelings get involved. Aside from that? She's got fears, and surprisingly being entirely alone is one of them. Second one is being trapped with no way out - it causes a bout of claustrophobia to kick in. There's an underlying romanticism about space and stars - she'll spend hours just sitting on the bridge, watching the stars go by. Any kind of day-dreaming is quickly covered up. She actually kind of likes kids, but will act like she doesn't to keep from having to take care of any.
Known History:	Sam was originally born on Shadow, fifteen years before all hell broke loose in the Unification War. About a year later, as a babe in arms, her parents, Beau and Damia Ripley, dreamed of life in the Core Worlds - wanted something better, fancier. Against the insistence of their families, the pair up and paid for the fare off-world. From there, they jumped from ship to ship, from station to station until their funds ran dry and they were desperate. They ended up on an old colony ship retrofitted as a mobile home for refugees, down-and-outs and other's left displaced or without somewhere to call home. A humble little floating community aboard the good ship 'Hearth'. When the war broke out, Sam's father felt it was only right to enlist - same as the rest of his kin, and those that also followed the independent way. Her mother disagreed, saying they had no stake in a war when their life was out in the Black, but couldn't sway him. Sam had to watch him leave, unable to follow. Beau Ripley didn't return from the Unification War, ending up caught in the hellfire that consumed Shadow as a warning to the Independent Forces. With the loss of her father, Sam grew more distant from her mother, either hanging out with undesirable spacer folk whenever they made dock anywhere, or some influential Browncoats looking to recruit more to their cause. One time was all it took for her to not come back to the Hearth, leaving a hastily scrawled note that she was going out to find her old man; convinced he hadn't perished. Sam joined the war towards the tail-end of it, just about old enough to enlist, but desperate times called for all the soldiers they could get. There, she found her knack for flying. Days spent sneaking up onto the Hearth's bridge as a kid already proved a budding interest in being a pilot, but getting taught in the middle of the war was more of a crash-course than she'd expected. She ran a few evacs before getting shot down, ending up trapped in the wreckage for hours until the battle was over and she was dug out by Alliance forces. She sustained a number of injuries in the crash - notably bruised ribs and a broken leg. For the remainder of the war, she was held in a POW camp, spending most of that time in recovery. Sam never found her father, more than enough of her fellow soldiers confirming that Beau never made it off of Shadow when the bombing started. After the war, Sam ended up drifting from place to place, taking work as a pilot whenever it came to her. Mostly freighter work transporting goods, one commercial transport carrier that she got fired from after an altercation with the captain, and a handful of off-the-record jobs that weren't proved as smuggling, but were assumed smuggling. There were a few times where she had to take odd jobs in ports and stations, but only as wait staff or selling used ship parts. She is currently without work, on the market for another ship to fly, for however long it lasts.
Other History:	The Hearth was officially where Sam grew up, and the place she considers home. While what happened to Shadow was a tragedy, Sam had no memory of what it was like there, nor any of the extended family she lost. The people around her that helped raise her, and the other kids she made friends with, were essentially the only family she ever knew. She became highly adjusted to space travel, and life in the Black, that she never really felt right whenever they docked anywhere - planetside just wasn't what felt natural to her. She also grew up sneaking around areas on the Hearth that kids probably shouldn't sneak into. Mostly up to the bridge to watch the crew do their work, and a couple times down into the engine bays. The latter of which was where she slipped down a flight of stairs and ended up with a hairline fracture in her left forearm. The 'usual suspects' of kids that got into trouble were usually Sam, and her two friends Jonah Raleigh and his younger brother Jarrett. Her father was the man she looked up to most - and in turn she was his little girl. The pair of them generally inseparable as she was growing up (when she wasn't off getting into trouble). Beau did his best to teach her right from wrong, told her what he could about the home they left behind. While she held no connection for it, she appreciated the stories because they were his. Especially about the picturesque farmstead he grew up on - with leafy vines winding up the brickwork. After her father left to join the war, Sam went off the rails a bit. Getting into things that she probably shouldn't have at her age. Drinking, bit of gambling and hearing all the dumb stories of hardened spacers about the 'Verse she had yet to see. She got into some fights, got caught stealing a thing or two, but always ended up dragged back to her mother. Damia tried her best to reign her daughter in, but in the end she couldn't keep her from following in her father's footsteps. Their relationship was always strained, but the report of Beau's apparent death rocked the little family to their core. Damia was distraught, and Sam refused to believe the report - she couldn't accept he was gone and that led her to joining up with the Browncoats just to see him again. Joining the war left her with scars mental and physical. The situational claustrophobia was definitely one such souvenir. To this day, she kind of resents ever joining up, realising it was her own gorram fault, but likes to blame the Browncoats for drawing her in. A part of her wanted to blame her old man, however really couldn't bring herself to think ill of him. She became a drifter after the war - with no desire to return to the Hearth. A feeling that she'd changed too much to ever go back. This led her down all sorts of paths and opportunities. She stayed out of the Core for the most part. A couple runs took her in closer, but she always felt uneasy the further in she got. Sam wasn't about to end up in a holding cell again, at the mercy of the Alliance's good nature. Definitely did do some smuggling with the crew of the vessel 'Faraday', and she could not deny the thrill she got out of it. Unfortunately, she had a bit of a fling going on with the Captain - man named Benson Hicks - and when things started to feel a little too serious, Sam realised she needed to get out.
Skills and Strengths:	• Piloting ; Arguably her best skill. Her most notable achievements come from within the cockpit of one ship or another and it feels like an extension of her being sitting in that chair, hands on the yolk. It's one thing in life she cannot do without.    • Combat ; Sam is trained in firearms and hand-to-hand. To a certain degree she is more than capable of looking after herself in a fight (though not without her share of scrapes and bullet wounds in the past). She's scrappy in a brawl and will use anything at her disposal to survive the outcome.    • Minor Mechanics ; While she's no full-blown mechanic, Sam has some understanding of the systems at her disposal (limited to the bridge/cockpit) and how to fix them when the need arises - it's not pretty, but it works, and if it works then she can work her magic on the controls.
Weaknesses:	• Easily Baited ; Sam cannot help, without intervention from others, from rising to a challenge or an insult. It's just in her blood to defend herself or slug an asshole who's running their mouth. It's always after that she (sort of) regrets in, when the consequences kick in. There are some instances, of course, where she won't start something - common sense that dictates whether acting out will end in bloodshed or getting arrested. She won't be happy about it, but she'll only let things go if she can tell it'll get her killed.    • Claustrophobia ; Triggered under circumstances where she's trapped with no way out, Sam will be hard to console or calm down. It'll take a lot of trust to talk her down from a panic attack or hurling herself at ways to break on out.    • Low Charisma ; When it comes to talking her way out of a situation, Sam's not the best at it. Charming someone, being the one handling the deals - all of these are not her strong suits and she would prefer to stay on the bridge or in the back and let someone in charge handle all that business.

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Equipment

Main Sidearm: Model 1894, No. 1 / "Bergmann Schmeisser" - modified with the times to be more updated, Sam received this weapon during the war for personal protection and it has stuck with her since - both for convenience and reliability. Other items of note include: A knife hidden in her boot, a well-loved flight jacket & a pair of worn-in boots.

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Medical Records

Official Records:

Hairline Fracture - left radius	Injury obtained from a fall, treated by the Hearth's infirmary. Sling worn for seven weeks, with painkillers administered. (Age: 11years)
Fracture - right tibia	Injury obtained from enemy forces evac shuttle crash, treated by POW Camp Delta-5 medics. Recovery time eight weeks. (Age: 20years)

'Faraday' Ship Records:

Gunshot Wound - right shoulder	Injury obtained from firefight resulting from delivery of goods, treated by Faraday's onboard medic. Painkillers & bed rest administered. Patient was up on the bridge after one week. (Age: 27years)
Puncture wound - knife, right thigh.	Injury obtained from an altercation with gamblers on Santo. Treated by Faraday's onboard medic. Painkillers taken, rest mostly ignored - patient claimed she 'didn't need to walk to fly'. (Age: 27years)