| Douglas Muir 406 |
NPC character concept: a dwarf alchemist. Call him Zargo. Zargo is an ugly, selfish, foul-tempered creature straight out of Wagner. Alignment NE -- he doesn't care about anything but himself. Mindchemist; he's a research monster who uses his cognatogen to boost his Int.
The PCs should encounter Zargo as an unpleasant NPC, but not as an antagonist. Maybe he's running the potion shop; perhaps he's the guy who knows everything about aberrations. Encounters with him should be unpleasant -- he's foul-mouthed, vile-tempered, and utterly dismissive of anyone with an Int under 20 -- but not so unpleasant as to make the PCs kill him and take his stuff. Emphasize how unattractive he is -- wild, greasy beard; half his hair burnt off; red eyes, filthy clothes smeared with grease and dried blood, acid scars on his face. Have other NPCs curl their lips when his name is mentioned.
So Zargo is a background character in the PCs' home town, unlikable -- really, kinda loathsome -- but useful. Until the PCs hit middle levels. Because that's when Zargo takes his first level of Master Chymist...
...and becomes Smoove.
http://www.scottdikkers.com/pages/writing/theonion/onion-smooveb.html
Smoove is Zargo's suppressed side made flesh. Smoove is a handsome, charming operator with +4 Cha, baby. His alignment is NN; Smoove doesn't want to hurt anyone. Smoove just wants to show the ladies the true meaning of his love.
Smoove is gorgeously dressed (white slacks, purple satin shirt), his beard is trimmed, combed and braided, his hair is slicked back, and he moves with an elegant swagger completely at odds with Zargo's cranky stomping. The PCs may not even recognize Zargo as Smoove at first -- it'll require a Perception DC 25 or so to realize what's up.
Of course, Smoove's life is somewhat complicated by the fact that Zargo's Cha is 5, so that Smoove starts with a Cha of just 9. He can boost this to 13 or 17, temporarily, with his cognatogen and Eagle's Splendor -- but both of those will wear off all too soon. I'd expect Smoove to invest early in a Cha-boosting gold neck chain or something. Meanwhile, his low Cha could be played as him thinking he's much -- much, much, much -- more attractive than he actually is.
Smoove has all Zargo's memories and skills, so he /can/ sell the PCs potions or tell them about the aberrations or whatever. But he's just not very motivated. ("Smoove will sell you this potion if you insist, but he advises against using it. It can cause bad breath, which the ladies do not like.") The exception will be, of course, if there's a female party member. In which case Smoove will become a harmless but incredibly persistent and obnoxious nuisance. ("Girl. Smoove wants to... /be/ with you.")
Smoove will defend himself if attacked, but he's not a combat monster and will prefer to withdraw in wounded dignity rather than fight. If attacked for pestering a female party member, his protests will become tragic. ("Girl. Smoove feels /pain/.") But note that Zargo/Smoove will be higher level than the PCs, and Zargo will not be pleased if he wakes up injured and/or missing stuff. The PCs may have to choose between tolerating Smoove or confronting his enraged alter ego.
Thoughts?
Doug M.