Beneath The Snow (Inactive)

Game Master Orannis

Five adventurers brave the cold land of Irrisen to investigate a mysterious cave supposedly comprised entirely of adamantine.


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Quick question: Can you describe the "small Ulfen village near the border with Irrisen"? Rough location, or anything else that might help me interweave any background elements?


I'm mulling over a dwarven orcale of metal. It will be forthcoming if I can think of a compelling backstory.


Grand Moff Vixen wrote:
The crunch is up for Rouqas.

You know, I thought I posted this elsewhere. Sorry. Wrong character in the wrong thread. I still have the background coming for the strix.

Grand Lodge

Vindolfus was the son of a former nun,named Varella, who was impregnated by a celestial. Never knowing his father has made it very difficult for him to understand his own identity. He began wandering to find his place in the world. He became a bard because he lacks a true desire to study anything for a prolonged period of time, and so he has become a jack of all trades sort.

Vindolfus has just started his journey and is still young. All he knows of his father is that he was a great singer and musician. Vindolfus has inherited his father's voice and appearance, and as a result is very appealing to women (and some men, Vindolfus doesn't judge, but tries to turn them down politely). This is often awkward for him as he is very shy and unaware of his own attractiveness.

Vindolfus is very protective of his mother as she is the only parent he has ever known, and left her only after much prodding. To insult him is something he will shake off, to insult his mother, is to start a fight.

Vindolfus' greatest desire is to find a place in the world for himself, but he knows he is meant for greatness, not because he is descended from a celestial but because of his mother.

The Exchange

Alright, here's Dorian, primed and ready for combat. Now... to see if I can get in.


Hey everyone! Just the DM checking in. Sorry I haven't been more active today: there were some festivities last night and I found myself taking care of a handful of hangover sufferers this morning, haha.

Moving things along though, I'll be making two or three posts after this one addressing various questions and commenting on some of the more recent submissions.


TheThousandfold wrote:

Quick question: Can you describe the "small Ulfen village near the border with Irrisen"? Rough location, or anything else that might help me interweave any background elements?

EVERYONE SHOULD READ:

I'd add this to the OP, but I can't edit it any longer. Here's the village:

Frostbark

The population of Frostbark hovers at just around an even hundred, however loggers from Losthome often stay in the town for months at a time when assigned to regions of the Grungir Forest closest to the border with Irrisen.

Frostbark's primary purpose is to serve as a stopover on the way to Losthome for refugees from Irrisen. Being the closest civilian settlement to the border with Irrisen, the mood in Frostbark is suitably glum and superstition runs high, sometimes to the point of outright paranoia. Outsiders most often take the form of periodic bands of adventurers who's frequently suicidal forays into Irrisen have become the primary source of black humor for the locals.

There is little of note in Frostbark beyond the humble shacks and cabins of it's residents.

The local tavern, Linnorm's End, is owned and operated by Ingrit Blueaxe, an aged and retired adventurer. Her trademark frost-enchanted
cobalt greataxe hangs about the bar, the only remaining possession of her adventuring days.

The only nonhuman resident of Frostbark is Rista Stoutbarrow, a halfing wizard. Though she's lived in Frostbark for a little over a decade, she's still considered somewhat of an outsider. However, she purchased the general store in town once it's owner passed away bereft of family. Supplementing it's mundane stock with a sampling of useful poultices and even the occasional magical trinket has helped her to at least make a place for herself.


DM Orannis, I have a backstory for the strix. I ended up deciding that she will have the clipped wings trait until she can buy off the penalty. It makes the most sense and doesn't give me such a huge advantage over the rest of the party.

Here she is, Raven Wildflower. I am not sure that I like the surname. It fits, but I don't want a name that is too comical, stupid, cute or anything that detracts from the game. If you feel it would be good please let me know.

I have not posted any crunch. I want your opinion before I do that, although flavor wise I did set her up for the clipped wings trait.

Another concern is the hatred that the strix have. Her story starts her without such bias. Is there something we can replace it with that mechanically would work for her?

Anyways, let me know how you like everything. I will make any needed changes to make her fit better.


Thordan Silentail The Neverfail wrote:

Hi GM,

Wanna try my furry friend bard.

Will update his story to explain how he arrived here.

Long Live Furry Things!!....At least for those that do not eat me up...

This is a good example of the sort of high-concept idea that I like. Your crunch needs some editing but that can get handled if you get selected: there's more than enough there for me to get the gist.

As for the back story, love it. It's got a lot of classic fantasy elements to it, it's fun, and it's even got a bit sadness and loss. I do have a *minor* nitpick though, and it ties to my admittedly slavish devotion to working within world continuity: I have no problem with there being an offshoot clan of ratfolk living hidden away in Andoran because it allows this really fun 'Mouseguard' flavored character to work.

But I need a why. The vast majority of ratfolk on Golarion live in Tian Xia (or on other planets). How did ratfolk end up in Avistan? What drove them there? Doesn't have to have a lot of detail, two or three sentences should do, really. I'd also like a little bit of fleshing out on the devotion to Sarenrae, since from what I understand the Dawnflower Dervishes are rather devout.


I slept on it, and though this game sounds really fun I'm just not coming up with anything interesting for the dwarf idea. Must be my brain telling me that it's out of creative juice for the moment. So I will withdraw from this and wish you all the best of luck!


Grand Moff Vixen wrote:

DM Orannis, I have a backstory for the strix. I ended up deciding that she will have the clipped wings trait until she can buy off the penalty. It makes the most sense and doesn't give me such a huge advantage over the rest of the party.

Here she is, Raven Wildflower. I am not sure that I like the surname. It fits, but I don't want a name that is too comical, stupid, cute or anything that detracts from the game. If you feel it would be good please let me know.

I have not posted any crunch. I want your opinion before I do that, although flavor wise I did set her up for the clipped wings trait.

Another concern is the hatred that the strix have. Her story starts her without such bias. Is there something we can replace it with that mechanically would work for her?

Anyways, let me know how you like everything. I will make any needed changes to make her fit better.

You did a great job with this. You gave the character a reason to be divorced from the traditional Strix xenophobia and replaced it with a much more positive "outsider" feel for the character. Being raised by a half-orc and half-drow couple was a nice touch. On top of that, if this expands out into a full campaign, you've given me lots of nice plot seeds for your character. What happens if her biological father finds her? Dramatic conflict ahoy!

As for the Hatred trait, I see what you mean and unfortunately the printed material doesn't offer an alternate. I try to keep these things to a minimum but, for such wonderful work on the back story, if your character is selected I would be happy to work with you in order to either replace it with something equivalent from the Race Builder in the ARG or come up with something original.


DM Jelani wrote:
I slept on it, and though this game sounds really fun I'm just not coming up with anything interesting for the dwarf idea. Must be my brain telling me that it's out of creative juice for the moment. So I will withdraw from this and wish you all the best of luck!

I'm not making any final decisions 'till Wednesday, so if inspiration strikes you between then and now, then please feel welcome to submit. If not, I appreciate your interest!


Jack Spellsword wrote:

Vindolfus was the son of a former nun,named Varella, who was impregnated by a celestial. Never knowing his father has made it very difficult for him to understand his own identity. He began wandering to find his place in the world. He became a bard because he lacks a true desire to study anything for a prolonged period of time, and so he has become a jack of all trades sort.

Vindolfus has just started his journey and is still young. All he knows of his father is that he was a great singer and musician. Vindolfus has inherited his father's voice and appearance, and as a result is very appealing to women (and some men, Vindolfus doesn't judge, but tries to turn them down politely). This is often awkward for him as he is very shy and unaware of his own attractiveness.

Vindolfus is very protective of his mother as she is the only parent he has ever known, and left her only after much prodding. To insult him is something he will shake off, to insult his mother, is to start a fight.

Vindolfus' greatest desire is to find a place in the world for himself, but he knows he is meant for greatness, not because he is descended from a celestial but because of his mother.

There's some good stuff here. I like that his motivations for pursuing bardic study is a combination of his natural gifts and his inability to stick on one subject for long. Gives him a nice "adventurer's adventurer" feel. Very classic.

Maybe add a bit on exactly how he feels about his celestial blood? Other than that, you've got a solid concept.


Here's the list of applicants so far:

Thorgar the Childeater - Male Ulfen Barbarian(Invuln. Rager)
Haaken - Male Ulfen (Aasimar?) Monk
Fenris Stoutanvil - Male (Ulfen?) Inquisitor(Witch Hunter or Spellbreaker)
Melima Johnson - Female Half-Elf Summoner
Thordan Silentail - Male Ratfolk Bard(Dawnflower Dervish/Songhealer)
Dorian Filleal - Male Half-Elf Oracle (Life)
Vindolfus - Male Aasimar Bard
Raven Wildflower - Female Strix Ranger

All of these are good work, and while a couple of you have really "wowed" me it is going to be difficult only picking four (or five!) of you.

That said, I am still happy to see more applicants!

Especially if anyone want's to play a full arcane caster, or even a Magus. Not much in the way of wizardly types so far. (Not that that is a huge deal, if there's any one of the "classic four" that I don't feel too bad about leaving out, it's the wizard.)

Also, on the rogue-y side of things we've got a couple Bards but still no one that can do traps and the like, so future submissions may want to consider that as well.


DM Orannis wrote:
You did a great job with this. You gave the character a reason to be divorced from the traditional Strix xenophobia and replaced it with a much more positive "outsider" feel for the character. Being raised by a half-orc and half-drow couple was a nice touch. On top of that, if this expands out into a full campaign, you've given me lots of nice plot seeds for your character. What happens if her biological father finds her? Dramatic conflict ahoy!

You noticed! I like it when a GM notices my plot devices. At first, I was intending for her biological father to be dead, but then I realized it could be a lot of fun to see what would happen if she met him later on. And for the record, I leave the name her father gave her to you. She only knows her new name. Oooh, fun stuff!

DM Orannis wrote:
As for the Hatred trait, I see what you mean and unfortunately the printed material doesn't offer an alternate. I try to keep these things to a minimum but, for such wonderful work on the back story, if your character is selected I would be happy to work with you in order to either replace it with something equivalent from the Race Builder in the ARG or come up with something original.

If you are willing, my suggestion would be to take a total of 3 traits. If I can find a suitable one, it would replace her hatred bonuses with something more compatible with her new outlook. Either that or houserule a replacement that fits.

I look forward to seeing what you come up with.


Ulfen he is.


Will be out of the mix till Thursday due to a field training exercise. Hope to see you guys soon.


Bilbo Bang-Bang wrote:
Will be out of the mix till Thursday due to a field training exercise. Hope to see you guys soon.

While I'm making my decisions on Wednesday we won't start playing until probably the weekend, so no sweat. If you get picked, you won't miss out on anything. I hope your training exercise thingie goes well!


I submit Tamashii Koboshi, kitsune sorcerer of the Starsoul bloodline and Pathfinder initiate. If his background has caught your attention I will post the Crunch tomorrow :)

Background:
Nothing could have surprised Koboshi's parents more--short of not being kitsune at all-than the snow white fur which covered Koboshi's body, a departure from the rich auburn of his mother and father. At once his parents took him to a seer, who divined a distant ancestor who came from a long line of stargazers and mystics known as the Starsouls, and proclaimed he was the rekindling of that bloodline. His parents named him Koboshi-- that is, "star child" in their native Tien, and began a life of adventure by taking him on their caravans through the Path of Aganhei, as the boy's powers seemed to wax at the sight of the aurora, which in turn seemed to bless the whole group's journeys.

The northern reaches of Avistan proved more appealing to Koboshi than Minkai, and once he reached 15, he waved goodbye to his parents and stayed in the Land of the Linnorn Kings as an apprentice to Sieg, an Ulfen sorcerer and member of the Pathfinder lodge in Kalsgard, to whom his parents had recommended him. At 16, Sieg took him to the Grand Lodge in Absalom for Pathfinder training. At 18, he was sent back to Kalsgard to await his Confirmation test. However, since returning they have only assigned him research and drudge work, and every time he asks when his Confirmation will occur, he is always told "the Grand Lodge has not sent any word yet".

While researching in the town of Frostbark to update the Kalsgard Lodge's maps of the Thanelands a few weeks after his nineteenth birthday, Koboshi saw the flyer offering 500 gp to adventurers to secure the adamantine cave. Koboshi resolved then and there to make his own confirmation test, and quickly responded...

Long, cold nights in the mountains studying the night sky with Sieg have made Koboshi a patient man with a thirst for adventure, and his years of long journeys have made him a great joker to cope with the boredom. To amuse himself or others, he will shapeshift back and forth between human and vulpine forms as rapidly as he can, or practice his cantrips. Indoors, he usually uses his human form, but outdoors, he uses his vulpine form for its fur, a boon in the frosty weather of the Thanelands. He embraces both forms as equal parts of himself, using each form based on his mood or its utility, rather than using his human side to hide his kitsune heritage.


Tamashii Koboshi wrote:

I submit Tamashii Koboshi, kitsune sorcerer of the Starsoul bloodline and Pathfinder initiate. If his background has caught your attention I will post the Crunch tomorrow :)

** spoiler omitted **...

Ah, this is good. I like the flavor, and I feel the Starsoul bloodline dovetails nicely with Koboshi's impetus to explore out into the world. There are a couple other things that I actually *really* like for how they could tie in to some of the "beyond the first adventure" ideas I have, but I can't say exactly what. ;-)


Man, I always thought that PbP DM's were being polite when saying things like "There's just too many good character ideas to choose from, this will be hard", but I see now how sincere that is. So many creative ideas flying around out there! You guys are doing a really good job of egging me into going with five players.


Hey everybody! Since I'll be selecting the party on Wednesday I wanted to post a short description on how I plan for things to go from then on so whoever gets selected knows what to expect.

Once the party is determined, I'll create the discussion thread for the campaign. We'll spend a couple of days in that going over some basic elements before getting started. This will include:

1. Going over what sort of PbP etiquette I expect and the style of posting I'd prefer to use. There's a really great "Guide to Playing In a PbP" a user posted on the boards a little while ago that, if you're not familiar with, I will link to at that time. You don't have to invest the time reading it until you get selected, so don't sweat about it at the moment.

2. I'll audit character sheets one last time. This is also when we'll handle any mechanical tweaks or houserules (these should be very few) for characters that I have agreed upon ahead of time. We'll also work on getting everyone's character sheets formatted to the same general style.

I expect to start playing sometime this weekend, and will notify you all immediately if this changes. Saturday is likely, but I might need a day to adjust some aspects of the module based on how large the party ends up being.

Thanks everyone!


Excellent, I'll have to read that guide, sounds like it might be useful even for those of us that don't get it.

I am probably going to make some minor alterations now the fluff is up for Frostbark. Thorgar has been living on the outskirts in a little farmstead under the assumed name of Thori, and has some survival so he could concievably fulfill the local guide roll - albeit poorly.

Sczarni

I look forward to seeing what comes of his adventure. Once I get home I'll make the changes we talked about and repost the changes.


Here is the crunch for Koboshi.

Crunch:
TAMACHII KOBOSHI
Male Kitsune Sorcerer 1
NG Medium Humanoid (kitsune shapechanger)
Init +3; Senses Low-light vision; Perception +0
Favored Class Sorcerer
--------------------
DEFENSE
--------------------
AC 13, touch 13, flat-footed 10. . (+3 Dex)
hp 9 (1d6) (+3 Toughness)
Fort +1, Ref +3, Will +2
--------------------
OFFENSE
--------------------
Spd 30 ft.
Melee Natural Attack (Bite) +0 (1d4 P/x2) and
. . Quarterstaff +0 (1d6 B/1d6 B/x2)
. . Dagger +0 (1d4 P or S/19-20/x2)
. . Unarmed Strike +0 (1d3+1 nonlethal/x2)
Ranged Dagger +3 (1d4 P or S/19-20/x2/10 ft) and
. . Ray of Frost +3 (1d3 cold/25 ft ranged touch atk)
. . Magic Missile (1d4+1 force/110 ft/always hits)
Sorcerer Spells Known (CL 1):
1 (4/day) Magic Missile Mage Armor
0 (at will) Mage Hand, Detect Magic, Ray of Frost, Prestidigitation
Bloodline Starsoul
--------------------
STATISTICS
--------------------
Str 10, Dex 16, Con 10, Int 13, Wis 10, Cha 18
Base Atk +0; CMB +0; CMD 13
Feats Eschew Materials
Traits Highlander, Resilient
SKILLS
Acrobatics +5
Appraise +5 (1 rank)
Bluff +8 (1 rank)
Disguise +4 (+14 to appear human in human shape)
Kn (arcana) +5 (1 rank)
Kn (nature) +5 (1 rank)
Stealth +4
Languages Common, Sylvan, Skald
SQ Change Shape, low-light vision,
Combat Gear dagger, quarterstaff
Other Gear pathfinder's kit, chronicler's supplies, cold weather clothes, smoked goggles, 8 gp
--------------------
SPECIAL ABILITIES
--------------------
Starsoul Arcana Whenever you cast an evocation spell, targets that fail their saves are dazzled by tiny sparkling starlights for 1 round per level of the spell.
Minute Meteors (Sp) (Bloodline Power) At 1st level, you can summon a rain of tiny meteorites as a standard action to fall in a 5-foot column, 30 feet high, with a range of 30 feet. The meteors inflict 1d4 points of fire damage + 1 per 2 sorcerer levels. A Reflex save negates this damage. The save DC is equal to 10 + 1/2 your sorcerer level + your Charisma modifier. You may use this ability a number of times per day equal to 3 + your Charisma modifier.
Eschew Materials (bonus feat) You can cast any spell with a material component costing 1 gp or less without needing that component. The casting of the spell still provokes attacks of opportunity as normal. If the spell requires a material component that costs more than 1 gp, you must have the material component on hand to cast the spell, as normal.
Toughness (feat) You gain +3 hit points. For every Hit Die you possess beyond 3, you gain an additional +1 hit point. If you have more than 3 Hit Dice, you gain +1 hit points whenever you gain a Hit Die (such as when you gain a level).

Liberty's Edge

DM Orannis wrote:
Thordan Silentail The Neverfail wrote:

Hi GM,

Wanna try my furry friend bard.

Will update his story to explain how he arrived here.

Long Live Furry Things!!....At least for those that do not eat me up...

This is a good example of the sort of high-concept idea that I like. Your crunch needs some editing but that can get handled if you get selected: there's more than enough there for me to get the gist.

As for the back story, love it. It's got a lot of classic fantasy elements to it, it's fun, and it's even got a bit sadness and loss. I do have a *minor* nitpick though, and it ties to my admittedly slavish devotion to working within world continuity: I have no problem with there being an offshoot clan of ratfolk living hidden away in Andoran because it allows this really fun 'Mouseguard' flavored character to work.

But I need a why. The vast majority of ratfolk on Golarion live in Tian Xia (or on other planets). How did ratfolk end up in Avistan? What drove them there? Doesn't have to have a lot of detail, two or three sentences should do, really. I'd also like a little bit of fleshing out on the devotion to Sarenrae, since from what I understand the Dawnflower Dervishes are rather devout.

Hi GM,

Thanks! I am just glad someone appreciates Thordan. :) I updated his crunch and storyline.

Appearance and personality:

--------------------
Character Portrait
--------------------
Character Portrait of Thordan Silentail
--------------------
Appearance
--------------------
He has inquisitive dark eyes that are like two pebbles on the snowing plain. He is small and has an athletic build. His fur is pure white. He has small quick hands and a long white furry tail. He has well groomed whiskers. He wears a tight fitted leather armor with a flowing purple cloak. He wears a scimitar with a purple hue to it, styled to resemble a diving eagle. The guard is a pair of bird wings. Its grip is formed like a talon clutching on to a large topaz gem which has multiple crack lines in it. It is named "NutCracker"
--------------------
Personality
--------------------
Thordan like all ratfolks love shiny objects. He loves gold silver and anything that reflect lights. He polished his scimitar every day so that it catches the sunlight with his every stroke. Thordan has a very outgoing personality and loves to meet new people. Usually he goes into a complete chitter chatter frenzy and starts telling complete strangers his dreams and where he came from. When he is excited he twitches his whiskers and his tail moves around. He always love a good adventure and cannot help but literally poke his nose into matters that intrigue him, like why is the baker missing 2 loaves of bread 2 nights ago or why is there strange noises coming from the sewers at night? More than all these, Thordan loves to sing though to the untrained ear it may just sound like 2 rats squeaking in harmony at certain high notes of the song.
His favorite phase? I will Never Fail!.
--------------------
Personal Ethos
--------------------
To live; to serve Justice tirelessly. (Maybe....)
To bestow Courage, Benevolence and Respect upon the weak. (Preferably they pay in cheese)
To owe our friends nothing but Honor, Honesty and Loyalty. (What do they owe me then?)

Statistics:

Male ratfolk Bard 1
NG Small humanoid (ratfolk)
Init +4 ; Senses Perception +7, Darkvision 60 ft
--------------------
Defense
--------------------
AC 17, touch 15, flat-footed 13 (+2 armor, +4 dex, +1 size)
hp 10 (1d8+1)
Fort +1, Ref +6, Will +2
--------------------
Offense
--------------------
Spd 20 ft/x4
Melee Scimitar +5 1d4+4 18-20/x2
--------------------
Statistics
--------------------
Str 8, Dex 18, Con 12, Int 10, Wis 10, Cha 16
Base Atk +0, Cmb -2Cmd +13
--------------------
Feats
--------------------
Armor Proficiency (LIGHT) (PFCR 118)
Weapon Finesse- With a light weapon, elven curve blade, rapier, whip, or spiked chain made for a creature of your size category, you may use your Dexterity modifier instead of your Strength modifier on attack rolls. If you carry a shield, its armor check penalty applies to your attack rolls.
Dervish Dance- When wielding a scimitar with one hand, you can use your Dexterity modifier instead of your Strength modifier on melee attack and damage rolls. You treat the scimitar as a one-handed piercing weapon for all feats and class abilities that require such a weapon (such as a duelist’s precise strike ability). The scimitar must be for a creature of your size. You cannot use this feat if you are carrying a weapon or shield in your off hand.
--------------------
Traits
--------------------
Anatomist- You know where to aim your blows to strike vital organs and you gain a +1 trait bonus on all rolls made to confirm critical hits.
Flame Of Dawnflower- Whenever you score a critical hit with a scimitar, you deal an additional 2 points of fire damage to your target.
--------------------
Racial Traits
--------------------
Tinker- Ratfolk gain a +2 racial bonus on Craft (alchemy), Perception, and Use Magic Device checks.
Rodent Empathy- Ratfolk gain a +4 racial bonus on Handle Animal checks made to influence rodents.
Cornered Fury- Ratfolk can fight viciously when cut off from friends and allies. Whenever a ratfolk with this racial trait is reduced to half or fewer of his hit points, and has no conscious ally within 30 feet, he gains a +2 racial bonus on melee attack rolls and to Armor Class.
--------------------
Special Abilities
--------------------
Favored Class (Bard)- +1 hitpoint
--------------------
Special Abilities
--------------------
Bardic Performance

Distraction (Su)

At 1st level, a bard can use his performance to counter magic effects that depend on sight. Each round of the Distraction, he makes a Perform (act, comedy, dance, or oratory) skill check. Any creature within 30 feet of the bard (including the bard himself) that is affected by an illusion (pattern) or illusion (figment) magical attack may use the bard’s Perform check result in place of its saving throw if, after the saving throw is rolled, the Perform check result proves to be higher. If a creature within range of the Distraction is already under the effect of a non-instantaneous illusion (pattern) or illusion (figment) magical attack, it gains another saving throw against the effect each round it sees the Distraction, but it must use the bard’s Perform check result for the save. Distraction does not work on effects that don’t allow saves. Distraction relies on visual components.

Fascinate (Su)

At 1st level, a bard can use his performance to cause one or more creatures to become fascinated with him. Each creature to be fascinated must be within 90 feet, able to see and hear the bard, and capable of paying attention to him. The bard must also be able to see the creatures affected. The Distraction of a nearby combat or other dangers prevents the ability from working. For every three levels a bard has attained beyond 1st, he can target one additional creature with this ability.

Each creature within range receives a Will save (DC 10 + 1/2 the bard’s level + the bard’s Cha modifier) to negate the effect. If a creature’s saving throw succeeds, the bard cannot attempt to fascinate that creature again for 24 hours. If its saving throw fails, the creature sits quietly and observes the performance for as long as the bard continues to maintain it. While fascinated, a target takes a –4 penalty on skill checks made as reactions, such as Perception checks. Any potential threat to the target allows the target to make a new saving throw against the effect. Any obvious threat, such as someone drawing a weapon, casting a spell, or aiming a weapon at the target, automatically breaks the effect.

Fascinate is an enchantment (compulsion), mind-affecting ability. Fascinate relies on audible and visual components in order to function.

Inspire Courage (Su)

A 1st level bard can use his performance to inspire courage in his allies (including himself), bolstering them against fear and improving their combat abilities. To be affected, an ally must be able to perceive the bard’s performance. An affected ally receives a +1 morale bonus on saving throws against charm and fear effects and a +1 competence bonus on attack and weapon damage rolls. At 5th level, and every six bard levels thereafter, this bonus increases by +1, to a maximum of +4 at 17th level. inspire courage is a mind-affecting ability. inspire courage can use audible or visual components. The bard must choose which component to use when starting his performance.
Battle Dance- A Dawnflower dervish is trained in the use of the Perform skill, especially dance, to create magical effects on himself. This works like bardic performance, except that the Dawnflower dervish’s performances grant double their normal bonuses, but these bonuses only affect him. He does not need to be able to see or hear his own performance. Battle dancing is treated as bardic performance for the purposes of feats, abilities, and effects that affect bardic performance, except that battle dancing does not benefit from the Lingering Performance feat or any other ability that allows a bardic performance to grant bonuses after it has ended. The benefits of battle dancing apply only when the bard is wearing light or no armor. Like bardic performance, battle dancing cannot be maintained at the same time as other performance abilities.
Starting a battle dance is a move action, but it can be maintained each round as a free action. Changing a battle dance from one effect to another requires the Dawnflower dervish to stop the previous performance and start the new one as a move action. Like a bard, a Dawnflower dervish’s performance ends immediately if he is killed, paralyzed, stunned, knocked unconscious, or otherwise prevented from taking a free action each round. A Dawnflower dervish cannot perform more than one battle dance at a time. At 10th level, a Dawnflower dervish can start a battle dance as a swift action instead of a move action.
When the Dawnflower dervish uses the inspire courage, inspire greatness, or inspire heroics bardic performance types as battle dances, these performance types only provide benefit to the Dawnflower dervish himself. All other types of bardic performance work normally (affecting the bard and his allies, or the bard’s enemies, as appropriate).
Deity- A Dawnflower dervish must be a worshiper of Sarenrae. A dervish who abandons or betrays this faith reverts to a standard bard.
Dervish Dance- A Dawnflower dervish gains the Dervish Dance feat as a bonus feat.
--------------------
Skills
--------------------
Perception +7, Sense Motive +5, Spellcraft +5
--------------------
Equipment
--------------------
Scimitar, Holy Symbol of Sarenrae, Leather

background:

--------------------
Background
--------------------

In the beginning...there was MICE!!
Somewhere far far away in the Verduran Forest lies a warren of ratfolks living together harmoniously. The nearest human settlement was the sleepy town of Falcon Hollow which lumberjacks mostly lived in. It is in one of the many barrows in the warren, Thordan Silentail was born. He was born as a stillborn in a litter of 5 rats. His mother Mrs Silentail was sad that one of them is a stillborn

Well at least i have 4 of them... she thought.

Just when Mrs Silentil was about to ask the nursing mother to dispose of him, Thordan Silentail started wailing..thus the runt of the of household Silentail was born.

Growing up, Thordan accompanys his father Mr Silentail in tending their carrot fields while his older brothers and sisters learnt and studied in schools about crafts and merchantship. While Thordan loves carrot, he definitely do not love them so much that he will spend everyday with them!!

Why can't I attend school like my brothers and sisters Dad?
Well that's because you are so small Thordan, it's better you stay beside me... replied Mr Silentail.

You see, his siblings all grew tall and strong like normal Ratfolk children and they always bully Thordan due to his smaller size.

Someday i will grow to be the biggest Rat in this village...no in this world!! Wait till you see!! I will never fail!! Thordan shrieks after the other children in the village as they laughed and pounced away leaving him sitting in the mud.

One day, while Thordan was carrying carrots to the warren market to sell for the he came across a merchant stall selling books. Like all good old curious ratfolk, he cant helped but be drawn towards the shiny object located in the piles of trinkets. He dug into the pile and pulled out a needle like object.

Ahhh...I see you found something intresting. Got it off a training fighting school instructor for children in the city of Almas. He mentioned that he wanted to be a baker instead that's why he is selling away all his gear the white furred ratfolk merchant chattered.

Thordan pull out the blade from the brown scabbard and it is a plain dull steel rapier designed for a young human child. He touched the pointed end of the rapier and it was sharp

I can sell trade you for it...those huge carrots of yours look mighty fine...so what say you my furry lad?

Thordan hesitated but he can feel the furs on his back tingling with excitement.

I tell you what, since we are fated together on this fine day. I shall throw in a book that teaches you how to fence. No use trying to use that ting without proper training aye?

Thordan left the stall a happy Ratboy carrying the blade and a book titiled "In Out, In Out, the basic steps for the aspiring rapier-ist.". Of course he was canned by Mr Silenthil that evening for losing the carrots but Thordan took it all with a smile knowing his trusty sword which of no surprise he named it "Needle" was safely hidden under one the the loose floorboards in the barn...

Seasons passed, and Thordan has grown considerably much from the last time we met him. By now he has memorized and mastered every move in the book, thanks to his late night trainings alone in the barn. One day, Thordan had a crazy idea to start an adventure of his own. Packing his gear and trusty Needle, he venture out into the woods..

On his journey, he heard a loud scream in the woods. Curious, he dashed towards the scream. In the foliage he saw a young human girl cornered by a snarling timber wolf. Instinctively, Thordan screamed and dashed out of the bush towards the wolf.

The girl screamed when she saw a screaming ratfolk burst out of a bush.

Oh furry paws, I do not know if this was a good idea.. thought Thordan before turning his focus back on the wolf.

The wolf turned around and pounced towards the charging ratboy. Upon closer inspection, Thordan realized that the timber wolf is at least 2 times his size. His training took over and he thrust his rapier towards the wolf, the wolf landed unto Thordan with a yelp burying him under a mass of bones and fur. His rapier has found it's mark and it has pierced the heart of the wolf. Thordan rolled over the wolf over his body as he faced the young human girl. He never noticed before but she seems well dressed with a nice silk dress with golden braided hair set in a complicated intertwining pattern.

Must be a lady thought Thordan as he bowed before the girl and said Thordan Silentail at your service My Lady"

Just at that moment a steed burst out from the green foliage.

Back off fiend!! spoke the rider on the steed. He was dressed in a suit of dark leather armor as he readied his sword.

Ricardo stop it! He just saved my life! shouted the girl.

But My Lady...he is a monster. replied the knight. Thordan frowned at that remark.

It is a command! Ricardo snorted in disbelief before sheathing his sword.

The girl then introduced herself as Fiona Evenheart the daughter of a local rich merchant. She introduced Ricardo as her father's captain and they are out today for a hunting trip. She then invited Thordan to accompany her at her castle despite Ricardo's protest.

Sir Mouse Guard?
Fiona was thrilled with Thordan's tail as she keeps touching it and asking him to do tricks with it. When they arrived at the castle courtyard, her father Merchant Lord Tharkin stepped out to greet her. He was amused at her daughter's furry companion. Fiona then moved on to explain how Thordan rushed to her rescue when the wolf threatened her. Lord Tharkin thanked Thordan and asked him what can he do in return? Before Thordan could reply, Fiona stepped in and requested Thordan to be her personal bodyguard. Lord Tharkin was flabbergasted but he gave in to her daughter whom he loves very much.

Sir Thordan Silentail will you take the honor and oath to serve my house to protect at all cost the life of Fiona Evenheart all the days of your life?

i will never fail, My Lord. replied Thordan.

So it was at this place Thordan Silentail met the renowned Dervish Bard Prancelin Parques who serves as Lord Tharkin personal bodyguard.

So you think you know how to fight? asked Prancelin as he twirls the pointed end of his long gravity defying mustache.

Its a wonder how he keeps his mustache horizontal, I bet he never washes them that's how. thought Thordan as he touched his own whiskers trying to keep them as straight as possible.

Yes dear famous teacher, I have trained myself i using Needle my pointy sword and I have killed me a huge ferocious wolf by poking him.

And what if you cannot poke him? Or if he evades you and runs behind you? Or if he spits at you? asked Prancelin now twirling both ends of his mustache with his both hands.

I run?

You run?! We believe in Sarenrae and we never run! I will teach you the art of the famous dervish dance with the scimitar and not that little barbeque stick you call Needle. If you cant poke? You will slash, if he evades you will follow and if he spits at you...well you spit back! exclaimed Prancelin now twirling both ends of his mustache at a furious pace.

Thordan nods his head eagerly like a child at a candy store.

Prancelin then taught Thordan the personal creed to live his life by

To live; to serve Justice tirelessly.
To bestow Courage, Benevolence and Respect upon the weak.
To owe our friends nothing but Honor, Honesty and Loyalty.

Thordan thought it was awesome. At least he knows something his siblings don't.

Thus for the next 6 years Thordan trained under the tutelage of the famous (Thordan thinks...) Dawnflower Dervish. He has trained in the use of the scimitar as a deadly weapon that does not require great strength and in the ways and teachings of Sarenrae. When he first saw the portrait of the goddess Sarenrae he thought he saw princess Fiona. The fact that Sarenrae resembles princess Fiona gave Thordan the motivation devote himself into the dervish dawnflower ways and teachings. He also learned how to sing while fighting in the style Prancelin is most fond of. Oratory. He loves singing Opera songs and playing the lyre to tunes such as "The Peanutcracker", "Cannonballs in D" and his favorite " Goose Lake"

Whenever he is not training under Prancelin Parques he would be accompanying Fiona to hunting trips, town visits, dancing balls in his customized armor and scimitar. They have grown very close and every night before Thordan goes to sleep, he tells himself I will never fail Miss Fiona...

Lord Tharkin is an ardent supporter of the pathfinder society. He has helped funded many expeditions to unexplored areas for the advancement of mankind. He built a room of a huge collection of artifacts and history relics from his expeditions. One of Thordan's favorite past time is to sit in the middle of this room an admire the dazzling stuff. His inquisitive nature allows him to spend hours and sometimes even days in tinkering these artifacts.

Flames to dust, Lovers to friends...Why do all good things come to an end?
On his 21st birthday, Fiona held a grand party for Thordan. There was fireworks, magicians and alot alot of cheese...Thordan was ecstatic and touched at the same time. When the time for the cake cutting ceremony has arrived, a large cake prepared by Lord Tharkin was rolled out. When the ceremony was over the cake was served to every guest. A few moments later however, Fiona suddenly fainted.

The doctors and priests of Saranrae cannot find the reason for her sickness. Thordan spent nights beside Fiona's bed crying and wailing.

Princess..I have failed you... cried Thordan.

Silly...you have never failed me and you will never fail... replied Fiona each time.

One day, Lord Tharkin summoned Thordan into his room. He asked Thoprdan if he would like to save Fiona. Thordan leaped unto Lord Tharkin and exclaims he will do anything to save her. Ricardo drew his sword. Lord Tharkin pushed Thordan away and signaled Ricardo to sheath his sword.

I have heard that the white witches of Irrisen has magical healing powers that can heal Fiona. Their powers arrive from the witch queen Baba Gaya...

Pssst My Lord, I believe it's Baba Yaga whispered Ricardo.

Yes i mean Baba Yaga..apologies on the mistake, her name is quite babblish. blushed Lord Tharkin.

I will go My Lord. I will never fail! replied Thordan with determined eyes.

Excellent! My house is in your debt Sir Thordan Silentail bowed Lord Tharkin.

Unknown to both Fiona and Thordan, Lord Tharkin finds Thordan a nuisance and for a more important reason he has plans to arrange the marriage of Fiona to another Merchant's Son to secure a profitable trade route as she too has come of marriageable age. He knew that unless Thordan is away from Fiona, that will not be possible. That is why he chose Thordan to go away to a land far far away from here; Irrisen. In fact he just read about Baba Yaga from a local children story book. Lord Tharkin knew one thing that no one knows beside him and that is Princess Fiona is allergic to almonds. When she was young, one of the maids fed her almonds and Fiona fainted and went into a week long of weakness. Since then, no almond was allowed in the castle until recently Lord Tharkin ordered the chef to prepare an almond cake for Thordan's 21st birthday party.

After saying his goodbyes to a tearing Prancelin, he boarded the ship bound for Irrisen with a hand drawn map indicating the exact location of Baba Yaga which no one has seen for the past century or so. Along with the map is a bag of gold and a scimitar given by Prancelin as his 21st birthday present. The scimitar has a purple hue to it, styled to resemble a diving eagle. The guard is a pair of bird wings. Its grip is formed like a talon clutching on to a large topaz gem which has multiple crack lines in it.
Probably cheaper to get a cracked topaz thought Thordan when he recieved the scimitar from Prancelin. Prancelin named it "NutCracker".

Thordan sniffed the air, it definitely smells of adventure..
Furry paws...Let's hope they eat cheese there...thought Thordan as the ship sailed into the sunset.


Hehe, I found your background highly entertaining Thordan, kudos!

Liberty's Edge

Hi Gm to answer your question why the ratfolk found their way to the Verduran Forest..it's a far shot but here goes lol...

In the beginning...there was MICE!!

In the beginning...there was MICE!!
Somewhere far far away in the Verduran Forest lies a warren of ratfolks living together harmoniously. The nearest human settlement was the sleepy town of Falcon Hollow which lumberjacks mostly lived in. It is not known exactly how a warren of ratfolks would settle in a distant land far away from Tian Xia where most of their kind settled. However, according to some old ratfolk lore many generations ago, there was a famous Ratfolk Merchant named Christofelt Crumbles who brought along a caravan of some 30 ratfolks to establish a new trade route. However, during their travels they got lost in the Verduran Forest as the wayfinder Christofelt Crumbles was using was swallowed by the only giant rat pulling the caravan. In order to get the wayfinder, they prepared a potent concoction of herbs to cause the giant rat to have diarrhea. After much diarrhea time, they managed to locate the wayfinder but it was broken. Unfortunately the concoction proved too strong for the giant rat as it soon died from dehydration. Without a working wayfinder and a proper transportation, the ratfolks decided to rest in a clearing next to a stream and work out a solution. They promised to meet the next day to discuss how can they make their way back to Tian Xia. Well they forgot. Soon days turn to months and months turn to years and years turn to decades until the last ratfolk of the original 30 passed away. The future generations of ratfolks are pretty much clueless why they are living in the middle of the Verduran Forest, but i guess life goes on...

Well it is in one of the many barrows in the warren, Thordan Silentail was born.

@Thorgar- Thanks! Glad you enjoyed reading as much as i wrote it....by the way Thordan has something to ask you...

"Uuuuhhmmmmm.....how come you have the same name as my brother Thorgar?...are you related to me?? Furry paws...you sure have a serious problem of fur loss if you are...and I sure hope you don't eat children mouse...


Thorgar gives the rat creature a long level look, and then glances down thoughtfully at his mug.

"I guess Ingrit forgot to water this down today. Ha," The big man waves an admonishing finger at Thordan,

"Yer not even pink, should be pink. Bastard," his eyes flutter shut, and his head lolls back, as he begins to snore - though somehow the mug remains carefully raised.

Liberty's Edge

Fiona likes pink...maybe i should be pink...hmmmmm bet Rista Stoutbarrow know something about colors..he always have an answer to ALL my questions...maybe he will have an answer to his fur loss problem too...poor rat..he does not seem to be taking it too well about his fur loss.. Thordan stuck his tongue out at the snoring barbarian, twitched his whiskers and scamper off to look for Rista Stoutbarrow.


Vedic Boreal, Admixture Evoker (concentrating on cold spells).

I tried to put plenty of plot hooks and setting tie-ins into his backstory.

I still have to pick up equipment, but the rest is done.

Let me know what you think.


Didn't think I'd reuse a concept but I have one from a previous campaign that seems like it might be a really good fit.

Hob is a Smith. He grew up a half-breed outcaste of a superstitious sea-town. His town got raided and he ran away. Ended up getting apprenticed to a smith, and studied all the aspects; smithing, metallurgy, alchemy, mining and magic. He's currently travelling as a Journeyman Smith, pulling together twists of lore and superstition to train himself in magesmithing and spellcrafting. The big towns already have smiths, so he spends a lot of times in small out of the way places that are almost big enough for a smith of their own.

I'd need to tweak the background a little - at the moment he's from a marshy sea town, but could easily be moved a bit more north. I'd need to tweak the stats a little, and would like to work in the Heart of the Fields and Focussed Study racial traits.

Hob is a Human Enhancement Wizard 1. He has a thrush that helps his Diplomacy.

Does this seem like it might be worth looking at?

You can look at the previous campaign in this profile to see Hob's roleplaying.


Still working on writing the background down for you. Works been crazy and it's my birthday today. I will make the time though, and have it to you late tonight. In short he's been sent to deliver a parcel of rare mountain herbs to Rista Stoutbarrow, with some cryptic instructions from the Abbot about his return.

Haaken will be an Aasimar(Angelkin) Monk (Ki Mystic/Weapon Adept). I'll need DM approval on a few things, though. Looking at the alternate racial traits from the table in "Blood of Angels". Leaning towards asking for an additional attribute bonus to either STR or WIS. Trying to relieve some of the MAD, required for a monk.

The Exchange

Happy birthday, man. FOR YOUR BIRTHDAY I GIVE YOU THE GIFT... OF ART!!!

Liberty's Edge

I'm interested. I'm leaning towards an ulfen archer.


TheThousandfold wrote:

Still working on writing the background down for you. Works been crazy and it's my birthday today. I will make the time though, and have it to you late tonight. In short he's been sent to deliver a parcel of rare mountain herbs to Rista Stoutbarrow, with some cryptic instructions from the Abbot about his return.

Haaken will be an Aasimar(Angelkin) Monk (Ki Mystic/Weapon Adept). I'll need DM approval on a few things, though. Looking at the alternate racial traits from the table in "Blood of Angels". Leaning towards asking for an additional attribute bonus to either STR or WIS. Trying to relieve some of the MAD, required for a monk.

In my experience, making a monk on 20 point buy isn't too tough. Also, as an angelkin you'll have access to alter self 1/day for a strength buff. If you'd like to roll randomly on the replacement ability, you can do so. Show me your build as is and, if I feel like it's really having a hard time coming together I'll considering letting you select a replacement ability of your choice.


I've updated Haaken's profile with what I feel ok about putting out there so far. Should be enough to start. I have more, Haaken's personality and the sevenfold-path is fully realized, but I'm having some writer's block bridging it from my head onto paper without more context. I also shamelessly cribbed some of the first narrative from a favorite story, because I'm still a little drunk from my birthday party, and my homework is due!

Pardon me!

The attributes in his profile are with an additional +2 to Str. I'm not one for a random roll, I'd rather fit the mechanics to the character together. I'm more than willing to work with this, but I'm just bringing what I want to the table. Nothing is true. Everything is permited.

I'm thinking of using Anatomist & Student Survivalist as traits, though I really wish I could use "Open Palm of Irori". I'm willing to kill for it, because it simply fits. But I'm already asking for a boon by sacrificing the spell-like ability for another attribute bonus. I'm going to exchange Alter-self for another ability, regardless, as it doesn't fit the feel of the character.

He'll wield a Temple Sword and fling bladed dagger shuriken at foes. Also a kama "Ice Axe" if I can afford it.

The Serratic Order try to live in a state of constant meditation rather than enter that state during a practice. Their goal is to act from the superconscious/intuitive state rather than an ego/conscious state (The Ki Mystic seems to fit this best). This training coupled with a focused and sheltered life has hindered his analytical and competitive development.

The herbal package Haaken also contains a scroll addressed to Rista, which is actually for Haaken. It reads "You may return home when you can refill this satchel. Remember that frogs sing." Obtuse? Yes. But that's the point.

Wow, it's late. Goodnight!


Hello all!

I'll be making my final selection some time around 5pm west coast time tomorrow, so please make any final changes or submissions by then. You're crunch doesn't have to be 100%, but it should at least be around 85%.

Thank you all for your time and submissions!

The Exchange

Today's the day, everyone! Today's the day!


Here is the final build for Raven Wildflower. I ended up taking the adopted trait and choosing elven reflexes. It would make sense since her parents taught her new things. Also, it seemed to be the only trait I could figure out a good reason for having to replace hatred.

Looking forward to see who is chosen.


I hope to get in under the wire here.

I would like to submit a rogue concept I think will work well in your game.

I've got the background and a first draft of the character sheet up on her alias. Please don't hesitate to let me know if adjustments are needed to make her more appropriate.

Thank you for considering Smite aka Buttercup.


Ok, everyone here it is. This was a tough choice, do much so I upped the party to 5 and still had to pass on two submissions I really liked (more on that after the roster). Without further ado, congratulations to:

Thorgar the Childeater
Haaken
Thordan Silentail
Raven Wildflower
Vedic Boreal

Honorable Mention:
Dorian
Melima

Vonzara and Tirq: You guys both had great characters, but I just couldn't quite fit them in. You guys will be the first I contact if anyone drops. Also, if this goes well and I decide to run another PbP in the future I will contact both of you first and offer spots in the game before opening recruitment. I really appreciate the effort you put in.

Everyone who was selected: I'm a bit busy at the moment, but watch this thread for a link to the discussion thread by tomorrow.

Thanks again, everyone!


Awesome! I look forward to the first gameplay post.


Brilliant! I think trying to maintain my dark and brooding barbarian persona with Thordan around should prove challenging, lol. Commiserations to those of you who did not get in, I hope to play with you in the future.

Really looking forward to playing with you all :)

Sczarni

I wish all of you happy adventuring :)

Liberty's Edge

Wow...I won a prize?

Sure wish my siblings can see me now...bet they never won a prize before..

Even Thorgar the furless rat complimented me as being challenging! Prancelin always say i was challenging when he was teaching me the ways of Lady Fiona..Furry Paws...I mean Lady Sarenrae...what a day!

Thordan beamed with a wide smile revealing his 2 front teeth, his dark eyes darting around the room looking for the anything resembling the prize.


Here's the discussion thread, everyone! Please check in!

Discussion Thread


Have fun everyone :)


Excellent!

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