DM Darknlight's Legacy of Fire.

Game Master Mrdarknlight

The noble slowly pulled back the covering cloth only to freeze in motion as he stared in horror at his child in his hands. After a brief moment, which felt like an eternity to the midwife, he bellowed with shear anger at the midwife, "What is this? Some sort of sick joke. You all shall pay with your lives with this treachery!", as he held the uncovered child towards the midwife.

"Get rid of this thing, if I ever see it again, you all shall pay with your lives.", thrusting his disowned child into the midwife's hands as he walks pass the midwife, "Guards! Come!". As she could hear the noble had left the room, she quickly wrapped the child, stood up and with determined pace she left the room.

The gate guard of the manor, allowed her pass without hassle, knowing she was instructed to get rid of what ever was in the wrapped parcel. She headed quickly down the road towards the surrounding desert. She walked for a hour away when the child started to cry, she opened the cloth and took pity on the child. She changed direction towards an oasis that was nearby. Once she arrived, she placed the child in a shady spot under some plants beside the water. She left the oasis to return to the manor, while hoping the child would be found by a caring person.

The next day, towards midday, Haleen was travelling to Katapesh arrived at the oasis to refill her water sacks. While filling her water sacks she heard a cry, upon investigating she found the wrapped child still covered in dried blood. She quickly realized that the child was abandoned, most likely due to his strange appearance. Always wanting a child of her own, yet too much on the move adventuring, Haleen decided to take the strange looking child as her own. As she travelled to Katapesh she gave her golden child the name of Kaltash Ardjut.

Depending on who get selected for the party, the remainder of the background will be written as it depends on if other characters have the Finding Haleen trait. Once this is known, the part of his childhood leading until the disappearance of Haleen, and finding clues of her being at Kelmarane. Joining Garavel as a mercenary for easy travel to Kelmarane.

Gender is not yet decided on. Just used male for ease of writing above background.

She also knows this was how she met Haleen. They were both but girls back then, even though Zarisha was Haleen's senior by many years. It was Haleen that convinced her to break away from "Uncle" and make their own way, moving to different markets and getting their own goods. It's from that moment on that her memory started to clear and she managed to keep hold of more of them. It was then she also discovered that "Uncle" was lacing the food he gave them with Pesh in an attempt to bind the kids to him through addiction. When she discovered it she, with help from Haleen, framed "Uncle" for one of the crimes she(Zarisha) had committed. She had stolen precious cargo brought in from an archaeological dig in Osirion, then she had traced "Uncle" back to his home and when he was gone, placed the loot there, making sure to leave a trail obvious enough for the guards to follow.

Eventually Haleen turned into a young woman while Zarisha was still a teen, the curse of her weird origins. While Haleen became an adventurer of sorts, going on quests and bringing back loot, Zarisha still was a thief. The thefts she committed were more and more daring and ambitious each time, but it still wasn't the adventurer's life, something Haleen insisted she wasn't ready for.

It was when Zarisha had decided she had waited long enough and had become old enough to join Haleen that she found her friend depressed and unwilling to talk. Zarisha was foolhardy and kept nagging to come along, but Haleen always came with some badly made up excuse. And then she vanished. First Zarisha blamed herself, she had chased her away with the nagging. In time though, that seemed less and less likely. Haleen had put up with the nagging before, so why couldn't she now? Besides, she had been depressed even before that, that was the whole reason she started to nag in the first place. Zarisha started to investigate what happened, finding more and more clues for her whereabouts. Sightings of someone matching her description, old acquaintances seeing her on the streets and even some weird mystic with some sort of weird divination. It was a vision in a dream that set her on Zarisha on her current path though, a vision of a ghost town called Kelmarane. The vision was nothing but a bird's eye few of the town with Haleen walking through it and that name ringing in her mind. When the advertisement for caravan guards in that direction came she knew that was what she had to do. She had to find Haleen, save her like she was saved many years ago.

When he was fifteen, Drellik managed to capture several rats that had been plaguing the community's stores. Even though they avoided the most clever traps laid by other farmers over several weeks, Drellik was able to get all of them on his first attempt. While both he and his mother were excited at his accomplishment, the rest of the town was suspicious - how could a half-breed teenager manage to capture all of the rodents while experienced farmers could not trap any? Even though nothing came of it, several families began distancing themselves from Drellik and his mother.

Nearly a year later, Drellik's mother caught a fever. Despite the best efforts of the local healer, his mother continued to worsen over the next week. At the end of the eighth day, she passed away. Her will instructed Drellik to sell the farm and join one of the caravans heading toward Katapesh in order to find a trade, leaving Commonfield and its predjudice behind him. In his grief, Drellik sold the farm for a fraction of its cost, eager to be away. He took the gold and a small locket his mother wore, then left Commonfield behind. The caravan he joined was a week into its journey when the bandits attacked.

Drellik managed to evade the bandits, and ran away as fast as he could. Little did he know but he chose to head deep into the southern desert. He wandered for days, dehydrated and confused, until stumbling into a small oasis. Drellik passed out on the bank of the tiny pool, reveling in the cool shade of the tall trees.

He awoke a few days later, surprised to notice a family of desert lions also lounging around the pool. Initially scared, he was surprised to see none of the cats paying him any special attention. He scouted the small oasis, luckily finding some berries, before returning to the pool. During the next few months, Drellik and the lions shared the oasis, ranging out during the evening to hunt for food, returning to spend the day near the cool water.

During one of these evening hunts, Drellik noticed that one of the cats seemed to be following him. While this surprised him, he was even more perplexed to discover the cat seemed to try and help him. It managed to find a few berry bushes he had missed, and it even killed a small snake then dropped it at the mul's feet. Drellik finally worked up the courage to pat the lion - it tensed at first, then rolled on its back with a satisfied growl. Over the next several weeks, Drellik continued to journey out with his new friend, becoming even closer and learning how to work together as a team during their hunts.

It was after one of these hunts as Drellik was laying down for the day he remembered his mother's locket. Pulling it out and opening it, he flipped a small clasp to find a drawing of a man with a bushy black beard. On the back was written "Drell, Kelmarane". Putting the locket back around his neck, he quickly forgot the details and concentrated on surviving with his new family in the desert.

Three years after Drellik first arrived at the oasis, three individuals mounted on camels approached. Drellik greeted them and offered them refreshment. The men, initially nervous about the lions quickly agreed. Over the course of their discussion, Drellik learned these men were traveling to join an exploration to the abandoned city of Kelmarane. The name caught his attention - he had discovered a way he might learn more about his past. Excited by the prospect of seeing more of the lands outside his oasis, Drellik asked if he could accompany them. Figuring that a man with his talents would be most useful in such an adventure, the men quickly accepted.

Fort +4, Ref +0, Wil +5
Init +0

Feats:
Combat Casting

Traits:
Reclaiming Your Roots
Reactionary

Animal Companion: Lion (big cat)

Class:
Rogue, Acrobat

Traits:
Finding Haleen - see background
Resilient - Mostly caused by having to subside on a pesh-laced diet for over a decade

Feats:
Airy Step
Weapon Finesse is planned as next
Dodge and Mobility are also high on the list
Maybe also some Combat Maneuvers, will have to check what also is supported via rogue talents.
Wings of Air at 9th level.
If you'd allow it I'd like Flyby Attack after getting Wings of Air
Perhaps also Inner Breath at some point

Skills:
Acrobatics, Climb(later replaced by Fly), Sleight of Hand and Stealth are musts. Will also get Bluff, Disable Device and UMD. Probably picking up Know: The Planes when possible once she has met her first Djinn and realised her ancestry.

Concept:
The idea is for Zarisha to move like the wind across the battlefield, attacking without getting hurt wherever possible. Her weapon of choice at the start would be a rapier but that might change over time.

Books:
ARG for the racial traits and feats (Airy Step, Inner Breath and Wings of Air).

Strength 10 +0
Dexterity 14 +2
Constitution 12 +1
Intelligence 18 +4
Wisdom 10 +0
Charisma 13 +1

Ranart was always a little odd, he spoke to what was apparently nothing, he seemed to know some things that he shouldn't, and finally he brought home a rat. When he was asked about his new pet, he claimed that it came to him, and that it could talk, though he couldn't demonstrate that ability. Haleen humored him throughout all of this, especially after he seemed to have gained some odd abilities after encountering the creature. When others thought he was crazy, she encouraged him.

Ranart began to worry about Haleen shortly before she disappeared. He spoke to his familiar about it many times, but it spoke to him in riddles, saying "she is lost, you must find her." When she went missing, Ranart understood immediately, and began searching in earnest for any clue as to where she might be. He found nothing, and was about to give up in despair, when his familiar approached him and said, "She is lost, you must find her in Kelmarine." Ranart knew the name sounded familiar, and soon he'd discovered that that was where the mercenary expedition that he'd heard about was headed. He immediately joined the group, expecting to find his foster mother there.

Saves
-Fortitude +3
-Reflex +4
-Will +2

AC/Flatfoot AC 11/10
Touch AC 11

CMB 0
CMD 11

Hit Points: 7
BAB 0
Speed 30

Racial Abilities:
Low Light Vision
Dream Speaker: +1 to DC of divination spells and sleep effects
Elven Magic: +2 racial bonus on caster level checks to overcome spell resistance; +2 bonus on spellcraft checks to identify properties of magic items.
Keen Senses: +2 bonus to perception
Arcane Focus: +2 bonus to concentration checks to cast definsively

Class Abilities:
Patron Spells
Familiar: Rat
Hex: Evil Eye

Feats:
Improved Initiative

Spells Known
Level 1- charm person, cure light wounds, enlarge person, mage armor, obscuring mist, unprepared combatant, ill omen

When the rat noticed Ranart, it didn't run away, in fact, he was sure that it beckoned him closer. It was then that the voices spoke to him, they called him son, and said that they were his parents, and had watched over him for all this time. The voices also told him the truth of how his parents died. Finally, they said that the rat was a gift to him, a physical sign of the protection that had been placed on him since his parents died. As long as he kept the rat close at hand, he would have a power that any wizard would envy. Not only did Ranart believe them, the claims also proved true. Ranart named the rat Bobinot, and has carried it with him every since.

The identity of Ranart's Patron is up to GM interpretation, despite what it told him, it may not actually be the disembodied spirits of his parents, especially when you consider that his patron is Time, not Ancestors. Of course, it could also turn out that it is his parents, considering the relationship that an elf's long life gives them with time.

• The taint to his bloodline is not recent, coming through from generations prior. One of his forebears dabbled in genie binding, and was imprecise when attempting to call upon them. The backlash tainted his lineage and manifests in some of his offspring.
  
• The signs of his heritage are mild, a slight sharpness of teeth, an otherworldlyness of eye - but mostly in the blotches that mar his skin. Large patches of bright birthmark like red mar his skin, and drive him to wear body covering clothing to hide them away.
  
• Born into a pesh farming family, his early life was one of poverty and toil - assisting in the field as soon as he was able. Apart from that his childhood was reasonably mundane.
  
• In his early teens the pesh farm was overrun by raiding gnolls, parents killed and he was left for dead. It was through the kindness of travelling Sarenric missionaries that he was saved.
  
• From then he was raised in Solku at the cathedral there - and trained in both worship and war against the gnolls.
  
• Hot headed and impetuous, he oft sparred verbally and occasionally with fists with fellow initiates and masters. In general the arguments were over the need for discretion and measure in approach - Gethric would see them sally forth against the gnolls rather than huddle and hide.
  
• In an attempt to teach restraint and humility, one of the masters arranged with Garavel to hire Gethric as a guard - and then plied Gethric with tales of gnoll threats to entice him to take up the opportunity.
  
• He will be firey of word and act - and initially prone to brash and foolhardy action. However the heat of the flame will be open to being tempered through experience... most tellingly likely when he is almost killed by the foes he seeks to slay.

Arolin is a devout follower of Sarenrae but his past leaves him at odds with her teachings sometimes, especially when Pesh is involved. A man stuck between helping others and destroying threats (anything Pesh related falls into this group)

Half-elf inquisitor of Sarenrae focusing on ranged and using his spells to help allies while keeping a finesse weapon for defence or close quarters

campaign trait missionary
ancestral arms - elven curve blade alternate racial trait
first feat weapon finesse curve blade

Abilities:
Str 16, Dex 14, Con 14, Int 10, Wis 15, Cha 8

Traits: Pesh Addict (+1 Bluff, Knowledge (local), Sense Motive), Finding Haleen (Monk: +1hp, +1sp)

Skill Ranks: 6 (4 +1 human +1 trait)
Acrobatics 1, Climb 1, Knowledge (local) 1, Perception 1, Sense Motive 1, Stealth 1

Feats
Dodge (monk), Crane Style (1st), Belier's Bite (human)
Improved Unarmed Attack (monk), Punishing Kick (HG monk)

Starting Wealth: 12.5 gp

His parents brought him across the water from Jalmeray to visit Katapesh, one of the largest cities in the world, to view the markets and bazaars. They were swindled out of their money, however, losing everything, and took to the streets. His mother was sold into slavery to support his father's pesh habit. Malik himself would have been given over to the slavers had he not already run away.

It was Haleen who found him and befriended him and helped him survive the streets. Despite Haleen's wicked temper, Malik became friends with her. When he was not playing with her, Malik would be searching for information about his mother, hoping to trace her through the slave markets. It took years but he eventually discovered her. Unfortunately Malik was too late. His mother had been killed by a particularly perverse owner. In a rage Malik killed the old man and fled back into the streets. Depression hit him hard and he fell into the pesh, much like his father had.

It was Haleen, again, who found him, her angry words lashing out at him as she took him away from the pesh houses he had been staying in. Her anger mixed with her caring helped pull Malik out of the addiction. The withdrawal was painful, but Haleen was there to support him and guide him away from the temptation and into focusing on a more structured regime. One that honed his body. The pesh had carved a piece out of his soul and so he would never attain the purity others may be able to achieve, but at least his desire for the poison had abated.

Now Haleen had left, leaving only a note. Yet Malik knew something was wrong and he began searching for her in vain, over the next several months. In despair he fell back into the pesh, but with the first dose he knew where she was. A pesh induced fantasy, perhaps, or perhaps an omen. He tossed aside the rest of the pesh in disgust, although was glad that enough of Haleen's influence remained for him to set the drug aside with relative ease. He then went to find a way to get to Kelmarane, where he knew she was, eventually joining with a man named Garavel who was heading there soon.

- Quinggong Monk from Ultimate Magic. Probably not going to come into play for a long while due to the other archetypes.
- Hungry Ghost Monk from the APG. The darkness of this sorta fits with his old pesh habit.
- Monk of the Sacred Mountain from the APG.

- Traits both come from LoF Player's guide.

Human Male Rogue 1

Str: 10 Dex: 16 Con: 13
Int: 12 Wis: 14 Cha: 14

Hp: 10
Bab: 0 CMB: 0 CMD: 13
Ac: 16 Touch: 14 FF: 12
Speed: 30 ft Init: +3
Fort: +1 Reflex: +5 Will: +3

Rapier
+3, 1d6, 18-20/x2
Shortsword
+3, 1d6, 19-20/x2
Leather Armor
+2 AC

Skills:

Acrobatics: +7
Bluff: +6
Diplomacy: +6
Disable Device: +7
Escape Artist: +7
Knowledge Local: +5
Knowledge Religion: +6
Perception: +6
Sense Motive: +6
Stealth: +7

Feats/Traits:

Indomitable Faith
Missionary
Weapon Finesse
Dodge

Asanna’s earliest memories were of running; fleeing some unseen tormentor beside her mother. From village to city, country to nation, Asanna has brief flashes of imagery stored in her mind from around the lands of the Inner Sea from exotic Qadira to wild Varisia, free-spirited Andor to the harsh sands of Osirion. Yet the only memory of her mother’s face that remains is that of woman with a face once filled with smile lines that were eroded away by the weary fear that crept over all her features. However, the sound of her mother’s voice is still strong in her mind; the love and worry she shared with her daughter over what was to eventually come, the little time they had together, and that whatever future should play out for them that they would one day be reunited no matter how long it took.

Asanna doesn’t remember how old she was the day the Chase ended, only the brutal finality of it. A day, maybe more, had passed since they disembarked from the ship onto the docks of Katapesh and her mother had yet to find even semi-permanent lodgings for their stay in the city. Asanna remembers the time almost down to the minute, which was two finger-widths from the sun disappearing over the horizon, when the towering cloaked figure on his monstrosity of a steed ran down her mother in a mostly deserted alley. The crunch of bone and painful moans of her mother were drowned out by the hideous bellowing laughter of the figure.

A face that will haunt her nightmares for all eternity grinned down from on high as one massive hand reached down to pick up her mother’s writhing body. The deep voice rose once again as he slung the body across his mount’s rump, “Fear not little grand-daughter. Your mother’s sins have come due today. Worry not for her as she will soon be reunited with her kin in paradise. Go forth and live without trepidation, you shall not see me again.” His words were like rotten honey and even her young ears could detect the lies contained within as the figure turned his mount and vanished as quickly as he came down the alley.

In a single blow, Asanna was made orphan and stranger to a strange city. Still only a child, she wandered the packed streets calling for her mother for hours. It was the pangs of hunger that followed that brought the first terrifying realization of her situation to her young mind. Without coin or anything to barter, Asanna begged the first food vendor for something to fill her rumbling stomach. The following bruises and boxed ears from unsympathetic merchants forced the young girl into more drastic measures. She watched several street urchins practice their craft the next morning, picking up on their tricks for purloining breakfast from a distracted vendor with rapid ease, her growling stomach a strong motivator in promoting the speed of her studies.

What Asanna remembers as weeks or maybe months went by as she lived this life on the streets of Katapesh. She never gave up looking for her mother in those early days, spending two-thirds of the day in such an endeavor before and after tending to more earthly needs. Asanna remembers the trouble her thievery would bring forth with the local gangs of youths. Unaffiliated with all of the groups, the gangs became as much as a danger to the young tiefling as the adults of Katapesh.

Asanna’s savior would come in the form of a young woman named Haleen. Haleen had taken notice of the young girl wandering the streets along, accosted by both young and old as she asked about the city for a woman with her mother’s appearance. Haleen felt pity for the child, already growing a small troupe of similarly displaced or abandoned children back at her home, and made the first move to entice Asanna to join her for dinner. At first weary of the woman and what could be an attempt to lure the young girl into some slaver’s greasy arms, a fate that Asanna had witnessed several times before with other street children and survived herself two such attempts, Asanna was slowly won over by Haleen’s caring nature and honesty.

Asanna remembers fondly of the years growing up in Haleen’s care. The woman would never replace Asanna’s mother but she fit nicely as a big sister figure to the sibling-less tiefling. She never could fully shake the time spend thieving on the streets and exasperated Haleen with each new bauble she would bring back to the house. She would eventually come more into her own as she started to remember things her mother used to tell her in the quiet moments between fleeing from one place to the next; secret things, powerful things about the workings of the world, things about her heritage and her great-grand-sire’s machinations. While Ali'murzed had been hunting down his spawn over the centuries, his spawn had been searching for methods to foil his plots and perhaps to even one day slay the fiend once and for all so that no more children should have to fear their own futures.