Howdy all!
I come here seeking advice. My party is still fairly new, having just narrowly missed capturing Tsuto beneath the glassworks in Burnt Offerings.
One of the players is new to role-playing (but doing an awesome job so far), and since he was a little leary of the concept at first, I allowed him to browse my extensive RPG library and get an idea of what he liked. And what he liked (loved, even) was the Warforged from my 3.5 Eberron Campaign setting.
Thankfully, I found a Pathfinder compatible conversion of the race, and agreed to let him play it. That said, I want to make something special out of his character, as Warforged obviously don't exist in Golarion. While my first thought was to make him either a construct from Alkenstar or something from Numeria, I can't help but be drawn by the urge to make hime Runeforged instead of Warforged!
So here's where I need your help. Why would this runeforged being exist? Which runelord (or their assistants) created him, and for what purpose? How can I weave hints of his identity into the story as the players go forward?
Making things much easier is the fact that he is playing his character as a relative amnesiac. He does not know his past, save that he awakened deep beneath the junk heap outside of Sandpoint shortly after the Runewell there flared to life, with an innate understanding of the ways of war (fighter class) and the ability to read and understand Thassilonian. He dug his way out, and over time, has earned a decent reputation as an arm for hire in Sandpoint.
So guys, throw some ideas at me! :D Please?
You could make him an experiment from the Golemworks in Magnimar. It would help accommodate why locals are less put off by him here than elsewhere.
His back-story doesn't need to go all the way back to Runelords.
If you want to link him in, just because chopper is the only historical figure wrapped into the runewell backstory in print, doesn't mean he needs to be the only one at all. Create an inventor that was also drawn in by his sins and twisted by the touch of the runewells, perhaps an inventor that might have known Vorel Foxglove while he was adventuring around and procuring artifacts for his conversion to lichdom.
Make this character something this person made with payments received from foxglove.
Sort of a frankenstein's monster backstory, with the character plagued by the long past sins of the 'father', even though the details of his story have been lost to collective memory.
Ahhhh thats a definitely cool idea! :)
I'm going to throw this behind a spoiler tag, just in case.
I'd exercise some caution about tying him to the Runelords or even Runeforge, you may get a player who thinks the right thing for his character is to ally with Karzoug. Unless of course that kind of player v player interaction appeals to you.
Other crazy ideas - he isn't just similar to a warforged character, he is warforged from Eberron, transported here through some freakish dimensional rift. There's no way back of course. Maybe he is a reincarnated champion from another world - one of the gods of Golarion owes him a debt but couldn't send him back to his home world so he sent him here for a second life. Or he screwed up big time in a past life and has been sent here for redemption. Prevent the return of Karzoug or be sent to H-E-double-toothpicks. Maybe he's not Thassilonian but Azlanti sent to scout Thassilon and buried during the cataclysm of Earthfall. One of the gods re-animated him and nudged him onto the path of thwarting Karzoug - few if any of Golarion's deities have interest in the return of a Runelord.
I'm going to throw this behind a spoiler tag, just in case.
** spoiler omitted **
Man, you are good.
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I like the Runeforge/amnesiac idea. Players, or even goblins awaken him either below the Glassworks in the catacombs, or perhaps a jumbled heap in the junk pile along the shore. You could use him to occasionally remember glimpses of Thassilons past and feed the players info as needed as well as use some of the backstory provided that never really gets told during the game.
I might even tie in a Hellboy II like event later on, with an army of "brethren" and a crazed individual in search of the "Runeworks" or some such...
-Vaz
I'm going to throw this behind a spoiler tag, just in case.
** spoiler omitted **
I am DEFINITELY stealing a majority of this! Thank you - exactly what I was looking for!
I'm going to throw this behind a spoiler tag, just in case.
** spoiler omitted **
I am DEFINITELY stealing a majority of this! Thank you - exactly what I was looking for!
If you get this far:
It also begs for you to include a handful of similar warforged, perhaps even a legion of them, serving as bodyguards and servants in Xin-Shalast...