Stuff goes here.
Okay!
Should we spoiler up our responses and such?
Checking in.
** spoiler omitted **...
I enjoy writing, and I enjoy fleshing out characters that I build, even if much of what I find out about them never comes to light in-game; I don't build throwaway characters, and while I'm not completely sure how Pirknok will develop in the course of an adventure, I'm sure he will develop, and I'll learn things about him as we go.
Feel free to post sans spoiler blocks.
I just did it in the recruitment thread for ease of reading.
All true. Not having played a barbarian before, I didn't want to make anything too "out there"; he's meant to be fairly down-to-earth, mechanics-wise. I'm certainly open to changing his weapon of choice, or other things about him, based on your feedback... with that said, I don't think a somewhat plain character (mechanically speaking) is necessarily a bad thing.
There's certainly nothing wrong with a somewhat plain character but an unplain character will help push you ahead of the pack. It's just something to keep in mind.
All true. Not having played a barbarian before, I didn't want to make anything too "out there"; he's meant to be fairly down-to-earth, mechanics-wise. I'm certainly open to changing his weapon of choice, or other things about him, based on your feedback... with that said, I don't think a somewhat plain character (mechanically speaking) is necessarily a bad thing.There's certainly nothing wrong with a somewhat plain character but an unplain character will help push you ahead of the pack. It's just something to keep in mind.
Fair enough. It's probably not coincidental that the PbPs I've gotten into with the least amount of trouble were those for which I had pretty unusual character concepts (my half-orc cleric of Iomedae certainly comes to mind).
Guess that answers my question! :)
** spoiler omitted **
Really, he's going to end up sort of being the Team Mom, of sorts. He will be personally invested in the health and well-being of his companions, and while he may berate or scold them for their chaotic actions, he has every intention of keeping them alive and well.
TO SERVE AND PROTECT.
I can go on if you'd like some more info, Feral. I'm still working on his overall personality, and he's going to grow into a more solid one as the game goes on, but for now, I think he'll be a really fun character to play.
Ceru Cloakchaser, reporting in!
She is of course at the moment designed for Jade Regent so I will have to tweak her if we do another AP (which is fine, Ceru could be adapted pretty well to a few other stories).
I am not sure if we are to respond now, but here we go.
She could develop a further interest in magic given the opportunity, and one thing I do see is her getting more and more interested in is the functioning and creation of magic items. She understands them to a degree (Use Magic Device) and they are a way she can access magic (and prove her worth) without being an actual spellcaster. Depending, she might eventually learn how to fabricate such items with her unusual skills (taking Mastercrafter feat, if the story developed in such a way that seemed appropriate).
She would otherwise rather hone the talents she does have, which includes her prodigious skills at getting into places she doesn't belong, gambling (entirely for fun and less for profit), and of course, her cooking (as an aside, I need to add to her equipment list her pack of recipe cards. These sometimes get mixed up with her playing cards...).
Otherwise, how her relationship with magic and spellcasting develops is something I see as dependent upon the plot and characters she meets, especially because she does have some conflicted feelings over the matter ("magic is neat! but my father will never truly love me because I am not a wizard"). If she meets a spellcaster who is disdainful and judgmental of her, she might back away from an interest in magic. If she meets a parental-figure type who encourages her interest in magic, however different it may be from a person who traditionally studies magic, she may well focus on that a great deal more. And so on. It is in truth something I very much wish to explore as well, but I am the kind of person who wants to see what's going to happen first before I determine the path the character is going to take. I want my PCs to react organically to what happens to them, not develop rigidly in a path I determined well ahead of time with no room for deviation. Sure, I think ahead to how, mechanically speaking, the character might grow, but I want to be flexible with my plans in case circumstances call for a different path of development (narratively and mechanically speaking) than I first anticipated.
Perhaps in short, it is a little ambiguous in her identity at the moment because Ceru has mixed feelings on the matter, and clarity can only come with time and experience.
Checking in!
As to AP choice, I an see Eli moving with his wife to a small town (Sandpoint) or even into the wilderness to escape retribution from criminals or to simply start a new life, if the comment about Kingmaker or Rise of the Runelords ends up being the case. This can work for most APs, really.
A diminutive, alabaster hand raises. "Heah!"
Doran has a VERY noticeable accent, based on my interpretation of a London accent. I will be willing to translate if necessary. ;)
"'n' what I mean by 'at is 'at I 'ave a tendency t' cut 'ole syllables offa words, ya see."
Here!
In response to your earlier comments about using some character flaws:
The personality I had written down was pretty basic but playing off the role he had in the aborted RotR campaign (Only got to the first encounter), he'll spend a lot of time trying to balance alturism with self-interest but at the same time would be the first to charge into a hopeless situation. He would end up 'hot-headed' but not due to an over active temper so much as willfully ignoring his survival instinct when the chips are down.
I'm going to give everyone a few more hours to check in and then post a few more questions. The comments/questions I made in my final recruitment thread post weren't the sort of thing that needs answering, they're just suggestions for you going forward.
Everyone will have a couple days to answer this next series of questions and make any adjustments to their character and/or backstory. Sunday evening, I'll be making the final cuts and choosing the party.
But first, we need to determine which AP we're playing.
Please post (or repost) your preference. Keep it brief.
I vote for RotRL.
RotRL
I'm also voting for RotRL. I'm already in a Kingmaker game, and after running RotRL's first bit last night for my friends, I really want to give it a shot. We all had a blast, and I'd love to get a chance to run through it myself.
As I said before, I am completely and totally capable of keeping my previous experience away from this. I have no intention to metagame or do things that my character couldn't possibly know how/when/why to do. That's no fun, after all. :)
** spoiler omitted **
** spoiler omitted **** spoiler omitted **
I do what I can, when I must, because I can. Or something.
We do what we must, because we can? For the good of all of us (except the ones who are dead)?
Yes. Yes, indeed.
Carrion Crown?
If the only choices are Kingmaker or Rise of the Rune Lords, very much Rise over Kingmaker.
I'm a little burned out on Kingmaker at the moment. Also the fact that this character pretty much grew up in Pitax.
I vote Rise over Kingmaker, but Council of Thieves is my other preference. I love Carrion Crown but am running it in my home game an playing in a PbP.
Since Doran brought it up, I'll mention that I'm in a live RotRL, but didn't come into the campaign until after the entire first book and about half the second... so no worries about spoilers or metagaming from me. Even if we make it to the point that I joined the live game, APs are totally different from telling to telling, and this character is very different from the one I'm playing in the live game, so I'm honestly looking forward to it.
In order of preference
RotRL
Jade Regent
Carrion Crown
Council of Thieves
Serpent's Skull
NO to:
Kingmaker (I'd want to play a different character)
Skull and Shackles (likewise--Ceru's definitely not interested in enslaving anyone or pillaging)
Actually, yeah. This is my updated vote. In order of preference:
- Rise of the Runelords
- Jade Regent
- Council of Thieves
But I'm still gravitating mostly towards RotRL, should everyone else be okay with that.
Jade Regent would also be my second choice.
Checking in. Order of preference would be RotR, Jade Regent, as far as this character is concerned., though I could work him into Kingmaker easily enough if need be.
Rise of the Runelords it is!
Please answer these additional questions in addition to getting your character sheet and backstory together for a final review.
A) What timezone are you in and what times are you available to post?
B) Briefly describe how you foresee your character reacting to another finalist and how the relationship between the two of you would develop. There are assignments for this one. You're responsible for the character after you in the list I posted in the recruitment thread.
Thus:
Aran -> Amoonrann
Ceru -> Ysmerelda, Dawn's Rose
Eli -> Pirknok Stonemight
Etc.
People have varying amounts of information in their profiles currently so some of you will have more information to work with than others.
C) I've posted some information in the Campaign Info tab about Sandpoint and its residents. Choose a person/location from the list (it's pretty big) and describe your character's first time meeting that person/visiting that location. Make up whatever details you need to. Feel free to do this in whatever way works for you. It can be a detailed face to face dialogue or just a brief narrative summary.
***
The purpose of B and C is similar to the probing questions I asked before. I want to see how much you've thought about your character and give you a chance to make him/her interesting for me (and also you). I've told most of you what I believe the strengths and weakness of your apps are. I suggest you keep those things in mind.
You have until Sunday afternoonish PST. At that point I'll be going over these answers and doing a final review of your character sheets.
One late thing:
Ysmerelda, please change your avatar. That picture creeps me out. =P
Edit:
I will update my character for Rise of the Runelords (which means Ceru arrived in Sandpoint earlier) and swap out the JR campaign trait for another. I'll respond to B and C after I've had some time to think.
I am in Eastern time and can usually post around lunchtime and/or in the evenings. On weekends I may be more sporadic but usually check threads at least in the morning. I will note if I am on any breaks. (I am off Christmas week though I don't expect that will disrupt any posting except on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.)
Sure thing, man. I don't really have any problem with people knowing how I intend to play Doran.
On that note, are we going to do 2 traits, with one of them being a RotRL campaign trait?
Correct.
Apologies on the delayed reply. I have been entertaining a friend for most of the day and then I had some personal drama to deal with.
First of all:
Consider this: the character concept, mechanically, is to do everything off of WIS. Thus, mechanically, the racial choices are severely limited as only the Humans, Half-Elves, and Half-Orcs have the ability to put the +2 into WIS. I am loathe to play a Human because, in general, I find them to be conceptually boring. I face a similar problem with Half-Orcs; speaking generally, I find them uninspiring as characters. This leaves Half-Elves; but they don't ring true as a 'Druidic' race for me. They strike me as survivors, rogues, and general 'free spirit' types because they don't fit into the label of either Elf or Human. I envision Druids as being necessarily rigid -- Moony especially (just because of how I envision the character).
If I were to envision any of the core races as being 'Druidic' it would be the Elves. However, their stats are pretty much useless for a mechanical concept that does everything off WIS. Logistically speaking, my character would be largely gimped if I picked the race I'd like to pick for 'flavour' reasons. Compare these two 20 point builds:
Vanaras:
STR 10
DEX 14
CON 12
INT 12
WIS 19
CHA 09
ELF:
STR 10
DEX 12
CON 12
INT 12
WIS 18
CHA 08
The Vanaras makes sense to me as a 'Druidic' race. Living off in the forested regions of some fantastical land; they seem to embody the kind of spiritual awareness that I'd expect of a Druid. The Vanaras carry the presence a Druid should carry. Moony is going to be such a dignified character -- rigid, commanding. She'll have a strict sense of justice and will enforce the will of the natural order above all else. A Vanaras is the only race available that works both mechanically, and conceptually for Moony as a character without seriously rethinking how I envision the character either mechanically, or in terms of flavour.
I'll post Moony's sentiments on Ceru later tonight or before I head out tomorrow.
A: Central Time Zone, at least once a day, most likely early morning or late night
B:spoiler used for space and ease of reading concerns, not a particular desperate need for secrecy
C:There are really two locations that would define Ensu's arrival in Sandpoint, and highlight the duality of Ensu's personality and calling.
So I'm looking at the RotRL campaign traits, and Giant Slayer says it gives a +1 to Perception, Bluff AND Sense Motive? I imagine that's just against Giants, right?
Also, I am probably going to spend a couple hours writing up answers to your questions, because I am bored and need to keep myself entertained!
I was actually going to ask for a ruling on that trait as well. I've got it as just versus giants for now, but can definitely see a wording-based argument for the other way.
First: Does this avatar make you less queasy Feral?
Second; I live in the Midwest United States of America, Central Time Zone. I am highly unlikely to post between Midnight Central Time & Eight am. Other than that, I generally check the boards quite frequently as my job is largely just being a visible presence & I have internet access.
I will have a post regarding Ysmerelda's feelings regarding Eli & the locale tomorrow.
One question. 'Varisia, Birthplace of Legend' has two additional Campaign traits for RotL. One of them, Sandpoint Faithful, fits Ysmerelda better than the traits in the RotRL AE Player's Guide I feel. May I take it instead?
Sandpoint Faithful: As a faithful adherent of Abadar, Desna, Erostil, Gazreh, Sarenrae, or Shelyn, you've come to the Swallowtail Festival to celebrate the consecration of Sandpoint Cathedral. You gain a silver holy symbol of your chosen deity and so long as you worship that deity and openly wear his or her symbol, you regain +1 additional hit point every time you receive magical healing.
@Doran & Piknok: Nope, in general I'm pretty sure. Campaign traits tend to be a bit more powerful than standard traits. The limiting factor is that you are only supposed to use them in that Campaign. Technically, the most potent of these Campaign traits is arguably the most boring: Merchant Family, you are literally bending the game economy by a fair margin.
...Whoops. Yeah. It's fixed, now.
Terath is Doran's father, though the original version of this character was named Terath. It's something like pushing it forward a generation. :)
A) Eastern Standard Time, Usually I can post at most points during the day. My class and work schedules are very flexible and changing. I'll update this availability as needed but you should expect at least one post a day from me.
B) Ventus does not understand much about magic, or the holy gifts of the gods. Put the two together in the form of a gnome and you have something almost entirely alien to him. Of course, what he does appreciate is someone who puts forth an effort and gets things done. Ensu, in his element, would be invaluable but out of his element .. well...
Ventus and Ensu could have a strong working relationship, warriors need healers and healers need warriors. However, outside of combat they would probably have a hard time relating to each other. One is an eccentric academic and the other is a bit of a brute. That is not to say if they end up in the same bar he wouldn't buy the gnome a drink or stand up for the him but it would take a little work for them to get to know each other beyond that.
Of course, numerous life-or-death situations and likely saving each other's skins a few time can do wonders for a burgeoning friendship.
C)
"Do you really need to know? My head is killin' me and I did him a favor by improvin' his looks." Ventus was sober now, the Oldlaw throughly drained from his system by adrenaline and pain. He finally looked up at the deputy, only really seeing her through one eye, the other was swollen shut. Behind the deputy was a tall, dark skinned man. His gear was better maintained and he wore what Ventus assumed was a badge of office. It seemed he was the sheriff here.
"Paper work, you know how it is," the deputy continued.
"The man needed it," Ventus looking around the room some more.
"Doesn't matter if he needed it or not. We've got rules in Sandpoint. One of them is no coldcocking upstanding members of society in barroom brawls." Ventus checked his nose while she said this, it was definitely broken.
"He was interruptin' my relaxin' evenin'. Whiskey is best consumed with music." The man, Rusk, had been giving a local minstrel a hard time. Ventus had decided he did not much care for that.
"And who are you to have the freedom to pummel man for interrupting your evening?"
"Just a lover of fine music, ma'am," Ventus said with a smile. The deputy, finally satisfied or exasperated heaved a sigh and left. The Sheriff approached and unlocked Ventus's manicles.
"You're free to go stranger and do me a favor while you're in Sandpoint, lay off the whiskey. It doesn't do much for your attitude or judgement and next time, at least wait until his three friends are too drunk to return the favor."
There isn't really any devout 'character inspired' reason why save my sentiment that the core races make less than appealing candidates for this character.
I fully appreciate your honesty here but your answer was literally the worst answer you could have given. Efficiency and/or optimization are not valid reasons for me to allow an outside race in. I'm sorry, vanaras is out.
I think that elf stat array looks fine for your purposes. The Vanaras is only slightly more powerful.
Remember guys, I don't give a crap about strong characters.
I want to see strong characters.
I'll post Moony's sentiments on Ceru later tonight or before I head out tomorrow.
Sounds good. I look forward to it.
I was actually going to ask for a ruling on that trait as well. I've got it as just versus giants for now, but can definitely see a wording-based argument for the other way.
** spoiler omitted **
All of the benefits of Giant Slayer only apply to giants.
First: Does this avatar make you less queasy Feral?
The previous one wasn't making me queasy. If anything, it was scaring me!
One question. 'Varisia, Birthplace of Legend' has two additional Campaign traits for RotL. One of them, Sandpoint Faithful, fits Ysmerelda better than the traits in the RotRL AE Player's Guide I feel. May I take it instead?
That's fine but keep in mind that you need to be a paladin of one of those deities (of those that allow for paladins).
The Junker's Edge description seems to be incomplete. Is that intentional?
Not at all. That's just me stealing someone else's copy/pasting and doing a poor job of it. It should be fixed now.
Figured, but it's still one of the better-sounding options. Hmmm, I need to do a bit of thinking.
Scary, really? I was going for... Well, kind of off, is the best way I can describe it right at the moment, not scary.
I read the description of the Sandpoint Cathedral & didn't see anyone mentioned. Did I miss the name of the resident priest? I checked in the description of Sandpoint in the Player's Guide, but didn't see any mention there either. Given her primary reason for coming here is the Festival & the Cathedral's consecration, that is likely the first place she would visit.
Shelyn is on the list, which is why I wanted that one. Shelyn does have an order of Paladins, she even has her Paladin's specific Code in Faiths of Purity. In fact Shelyn's shrine is specifically mentioned in the description of the Cathedral. All I have to do now is figure out which of the two there is Shelyn's & I can give you an almost pin-point description of where Ysmerelda spends a notable amount of her time...
I read the description of the Sandpoint Cathedral & didn't see anyone mentioned. Did I miss the name of the resident priest? I checked in the description of Sandpoint in the Player's Guide, but didn't see any mention there either. Given her primary reason for coming here is the Festival & the Cathedral's consecration, that is likely the first place she would visit.
Father Zantus would be the one -- he's mentioned briefly in #45.
Thanks Piknok!