Quartz 4

Barb Olstoy

2 min read

Barb Olstoy

A surgeon whose hands never shake, and whose patience ran out years ago.

What People Know

Barb Olstoy is the surgical half of Recov & Olstoy, Physicians, and the person Valinport sends for when injuries are catastrophic, unconventional, or politically inconvenient. She is blunt, unsentimental, and devastatingly effective.

If Alexi Recov keeps people alive,

Barb Olstoy decides how much of them survives.

Reputation

  • Ruthlessly competent

  • Terrifyingly calm under pressure

  • Intolerant of foolishness, excuses, or delay

Among dockhands and guards alike, her name inspires the same response: relief followed by fear.

Surgical Practice

Barb specializes in:

  • Severe trauma and amputations

  • Deep internal injuries

  • Wounds caused by unusual weapons or forces

She works fast, speaks little, and expects absolute obedience in the operating room. Assistants who hesitate are dismissed permanently.

Personality

  • Direct to the point of offense

  • Pragmatic, unsentimental

  • Respects results, not rank

Barb has no interest in bedside manner. Survival is the courtesy.

Relationship with Alexi Recov

Barb and Alexi Recov operate with near-wordless coordination, a partnership forged through years of shared crises. Publicly, they insist their relationship is strictly professional.

Privately, they argue like people who know each other far too well.

Whether their bond is romantic, platonic, or simply forged in blood and exhaustion remains a matter of Valinport gossip—which Barb dismisses with open contempt.

Relationship with the Party

  • Evaluates them clinically

  • Respects competence immediately

  • Has no patience for bravado

If Barb tells you to hold still, you do so—or lose the privilege of anesthesia.

Rumors

  • Barb trained in battlefield hospitals outside Valin

  • She has removed Infernal weapons from living bodies

  • She knows exactly how long someone can survive without treatment—and uses that knowledge strategically

Player Notes

Barb Olstoy does not care who you are.

She cares whether you will live.

If she agrees to operate,

you already passed her only test.

Graph View

Backlinks