The Learned Treasurer — A royal ship has arrived with its captain absent and a sealed ledger missing. Tiptoft has already offered three different rewards to three different people.
At a Glance
- Name: John Tiptoft
- Species: Human
- Role: Earl of Worcester; Lord Treasurer of England; royal councillor and maritime commissioner
- Age: 27
- Alignment: Lawful Neutral
- Base: Court, Exchequer offices and England’s southern ports
- Present status: Alive in 1454
- Encounter: A royal ship has arrived with its captain absent and a sealed ledger missing. Tiptoft has already offered three different rewards to three different people.
His accounts contain sums that can raise armies; his letters open ports or close them. Tiptoft is young for a great lord and unnervingly comfortable among books, bills and accusations. He does not need to draw a sword to ruin a household.
Made earl in 1449 and Lord Treasurer in 1452, Tiptoft sits among the king’s councillors and was appointed to help guard the seas in April 1454. His later infamy belongs to a future that has not happened.
Game Statistics
Original campaign NPC statistics, not official published creature blocks. The four rulesets represent the same character at different tables.
John Tiptoft
Medium Humanoid (Human), Lawful Neutral
AC 15; Initiative +1; HP 45; Speed 30 ft.
Saving Throws Dex +1, Wis +2; Skills Insight +5, Perception +5, Persuasion +5, History +7, Investigation +7; Senses passive Perception 15; Languages English, French, Latin; CR 3; PB +2
Traits
Local Influence. In territory controlled by this character’s faction, an allied guard who can hear this NPC has advantage on checks to notice suspicious activity.
Actions
Multiattack. John Tiptoft makes two Rapier attacks.
Rapier. Attack Roll: +3; Hit: 5 (1d8 + 1) piercing.
Order Under Seal (Recharge 5–6). One ally who hears him within 30 feet may use its Reaction to move up to half its Speed and make one attack.
John Tiptoft — 5e (2014)
Medium humanoid (human), lawful neutral
Armour Class 15; Hit Points 45; Speed 30 ft.; Challenge 3
STR 10 (+0), DEX 12 (+1), CON 14 (+2), INT 18 (+4), WIS 14 (+2), CHA 15 (+2)
Skills Insight +5, Perception +5, Persuasion +5; passive Perception 15; Languages English, French, Latin
Actions
Multiattack. Two Rapier attacks, each +3 to hit and dealing 5 (1d8 + 1) piercing on a hit.
Order Under Seal (Recharge 5–6). One ally who hears him within 30 feet may use its reaction to move up to half its speed and make one attack.
John Tiptoft — Pathfinder 1e
CR 4; XP 1,200; Human aristocrat 4/expert 3; Init +1; Senses Perception +10
Defence
AC 17, touch 11, flat-footed 16; hp 35; Fort +6, Ref +6, Will +5
Offence
Speed 30 ft.; Melee rapier +7 (1d6/18–20); Ranged light crossbow +7 (1d8/19–20)
Statistics
Str 10, Dex 12, Con 14, Int 18, Wis 14, Cha 15; Base Atk +5; CMB +5; CMD 16; Skills Diplomacy +10, Perception +10, Sense Motive +10, Knowledge (history) +14, Linguistics +12
John Tiptoft — D&D 3.5e
CR 4; Human aristocrat 4/expert 3; Init +1; AC 17, touch 11, flat-footed 16; hp 30; Fort +6, Ref +5, Will +5; Speed 30 ft.
Base Attack +5; Grapple +5; Attack rapier +7 (1d6/18–20); Abilities Str 10, Dex 12, Con 14, Int 18, Wis 14, Cha 15; Skills Diplomacy +10, Spot +10, Listen +10, Sense Motive +10, Knowledge (nobility and royalty) +14, Decipher Script +12
What Is John Tiptoft Doing Now?
A series of counterfeit maritime orders threatens to turn trusted shipmasters against one another. Tiptoft wants the genuine seals identified before anyone reaches the royal council. He fears a stolen tally book could expose how much the fleet actually costs.
Encounters and Adventure Hooks
- The ship’s crew swear their vessel carried a relic that sang beneath the decks. Tiptoft demands the mundane manifest before allowing an exorcism.
- Two copies of a treasury writ bear authentic seals. Recover the clerk who knows which one was issued first.
- A foreign scholar will exchange an ancient manuscript for safe conduct, but insists Tiptoft must not learn its last page.
Personality and Relationships
Precise, courteous, well read and ambitious. His dangerous habit is to weigh people as if they were entries in his accounts. He prizes educated company but will not tolerate a convenient lie when a verifiable answer exists.
Henry VI’s government supplies his authority; Richard of York’s protectorate creates both opportunity and peril. His clerks and sea captains serve him while his critics ask why so much power belongs to one unusually young treasurer.
Equipment and Rewards
Fine wool and fur, breastplate beneath court dress when travelling, a small sword, seal-case, ciphered letters, notebooks and a key to a locked Exchequer chest. A suitable reward is intelligence, safe passage or practical assistance, never automatic political immunity.
People and Places
Henry VI · Richard, Duke of York · London · British Isles NPCs
Historical and Literary Sources
Historical dates and literary associations are source-based; dialogue, supernatural threats, encounters and game statistics are original campaign adaptations.
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