Merry Mid-Year Mikaze-mas! (with a twist)


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Hey guys.

I wanted to do something similar to Mikaze-mas, since I was a beneficiary last time. I will of course be reviewing the PDFs I received when I actually get a chance to read them properly (my free time has been in ridiculously short supply since Christmas), but I wanted to give something as well.Now hopefully Mikaze doesn't mind me adding a twist to his tradition for my version of it, but I'd like to do something a little different. I don't have huge amounts of funding lying around, and what I'm planning is pretty time consuming for me, so it's going to be a smaller scale affair.

So here's how it's going to work. I'm asking for people to provide detailed descriptions (clothing and physical description), personality and backgrounds for their favourite character. The more detailed the better. Note that this doesn't have to be Pathfinder, it can be any game you want. Actually, they don't even have to be from a game, if you created it, it's fair game.

It's a case of first come, first served, with four descriptions being accepted at first. I'm giving Mikaze first dibs on the fifth slot if he wants it, as a thank you for kickstarting the whole phenomenon of generosity that occurs here around the time he kicks of Mikaze-mas every year. If he doesn't want it, I'll accept the fifth description posted.

Basically what I've done is put aside enough cash to get five character sketches done by the guy who I usually use when I want one of my characters illustrated. To get an idea of what the art is like, you can take a look at the Unusual Suspects updates for The Samurai and Varian Blackthorne on my blog. It'll be more like the Samurai artwork, it won't include a more detailed background like Varian has. I'm told that the artist's basic sketches (which is what I've budgeted for) now don't include shading either, so that'll change the look a bit, but I'm told they're still excellent quality.

If the first piece of artwork comes back and I'm not happy with how it looks without shading, I'll do my best to try and squeeze a little bit extra out of the budget to try and pay to get the extra detail added, but I can't guarantee that will be possible sorry.

So, the first part of this is to get the artwork done (which is where the physical/costume descriptions come into it), and maybe a bit of the personality as well (the artist is pretty good at capturing the attitude of the characters when he draws them, or I think so anyway). But although it'll take time to get that done (usual turnaround time is just over two weeks, may be a little bit longer for a bulk order), that's not the time consuming part for me.

Part two will start when I get the artwork back. The creator of each character will be emailed a high quality copy of the image, while I get to work writing a short piece of descriptive fiction for each one (again, for examples, have a look at the updates on my blog) introducing the character. This is what'll take me a while. I'd be looking at trying to get one done a week, maybe two, depending on work and other commitments. As each character is done, I'll write up their background, personality and so on based on what I was given originally, and post it on the blog as part of the Unusual Suspects feature, an introduction about who created the character, and links back to their site (assuming they have one of course).

If this goes well, I'll be considering opening it up for some further submissions at a later date.

If you submit a character for this, I'm going to assume that means you're happy to have your character featured on my blog. If you're not, please don't submit one. Also don't submit if you're impatient, like I said, this will take a while, and I do occasionally suffer from writer's block. It WILL get done, it's just a matter of taking the time to do the best job I can.

Please use the following format for any submissions -

-------------------------------------------------------

Name: Self Explanatory

Race: Self Explanatory

Source: Where is the character from? Pathfinder? World of Darkness? Your own fiction?

Core Concept: A summary of your character's concept, in no more than a sentence or two. For example, Varian Blackthorne is "a spirit-binding werewolf shaman. He works as a stage magician, using real magic", while the Samurai is "a warrior from the past brought forward in time to avenge the death of his lord".

Description:
Put your description of your character in a spoiler tag. Helps keep the thread from looking like one big wall of text. Include details of physical appearance, distinguishing marks, clothing etc. As detailed as you can make it

Personality:
Put a description of the character's personality here. Again, detail is key. What's his vice? What's her virtue? Is he friendly, outgoing, cold, distant, aggressive.

Background:
Put the backstory of your character in here. Is he a mysterious stranger wandering around to put wrongs right? Was she born under a particularly auspicious phase of the moon? Did he have a loving family, or were they taken from him?

-------------------------------------------------------

So, let's get this Mid-Year Mikaze-mas started! Hit me with your favourite characters!


Forgot to mention in the initial post. Though I hope this warning isn't really necessary given the community here, but just in case...

Please don't submit anything horrifyingly offensive. I'm okay with disturbing characters, horror based ones and so on, but please nothing that appears to be created purely for the sake of offending people. I'll just discount any submissions like that and move onto the next one.

Okay, formalities are now done. Go!


Sweet - I'd /love/ to get a sketch of a character! I've actually tried commissioning one before, but the artist fell through and so I never got past the concept art. So thank you, Tinkergoth!

Name: Oladon
Race: Goblin (ex-half-elf)
Source: Pathfinder (my first PF character, from years ago; still in play)
Core Concept: Oladon started as a half-elf rogue. Then she had a run-in with some [redacted], and the party druid reincarnated her... as a goblin. Her modus operandi, as described by said druid, is "sneaky sneaky stabby stabby flippy flippy".

Description:
I imagine her as one of the greener goblins, instead of the grey or other colors... but not a green that turns her into a cartoon or a joke. She dresses modestly and practically, preferring fairly loose-fitting clothing in dark colors: browns, a bit of black, and dark greens. She dual-wields (magical rapier & magical adamantine dagger), or wields her rapier and has a wand in her off-hand. She is garbed in mithral celestial armor, but usually wears it under her outer clothing so that its shimmer doesn't give her away when she's trying to be sneaky. (I leave it up to the artist to decide whether or not to portray the armor.)

Her only decorative jewelry is a forest green Elven broach worn at her throat, her only connection to her childhood. She generally wears a billowing cloak to conceal her goblin-ness, but the portrait could be with or without that. The character sheet has boots of speed, but the last artist and I thought that bare gobliny feet worked better, and instead represented the 'boots' as ankle-straps. Either works.

Personality:
Her alignment is CG, with the G bigger than the C. The biggest concern I have is that she's a goblin... on the outside. She was born a half-elf, and retained that form until a rather fateful encounter with two lamias, and a subsequent reincarnation. Now her body is that of a goblin, while her mind retains the maturity and goodness of before. (See why I'm concerned about anyone's ability to portray that?)

Backstory (warning: bit long):
Oladon was born in Barrowood and raised by her human (Chelaxian) mother and elven father (both followers of Calistria). Around age 17 (considered a young and fairly immature age for half-elves), her father was called back to Kyonin temporarily on elven business.

During his absence, a delegation of Hellknights arrived from House Jeggare to collect the seasonal tax, paid in foodstuffs. Oladon, seeing the disrespect and even cruelty in the Hellknights' treatment of the locals, hated the whole of the Jeggare family even more. An idea occurred to her, a way to end the arrogant tyranny of the Jeggares once and for all. Having not a clue of the immature and brash naïveté of her plan, Oladon poisoned the tax payment.

One of the humans saw her, and reported it to House Jeggare. Oladon and her mother were arrested, tried, and found guilty. Oladon was forced to watch as her mother was slowly, agonizingly "executed." Oladon herself managed to escape, barely (or so she thought -- chances are, they hoped to use her to track down other "guilty" parties).

Fearing the punishment of the evils in power, Oladon fled. She left Barrowood and traveled north, trusting Calistria to keep her, as her parents had taught. (Gradually, as she fled, she grew to trust more in Ketephys, the elven god of running and the hunt.) House Jegarre, incensed, realized that Oladon might truly get away, and pursued in earnest. Over the course of 6-9 months, traveling in hiding and barely managing to stay alive at times, Oladon fled up through eastern Nidal, avoiding major towns (yet having to visit smaller ones to survive).

(Her father later returned to Barrowood to find his wife and daughter gone, taken [as he was told] by the Hellknights of House Jegarre. Stricken by grief, he returned to Kyonin in melancholy bereavement.)

Eventually, Oladon made it to Korvosa, only to discover that House Jeggare holds tremendous power there. When they realized she'd arrived in that particular city, the pursuit intensified and Oladon, in desperation, "procured" passage on a Chelaxian trade ship bound for Riddleport.

In Riddleport, she learned to blend in, picking up useful skills for one who needed to avoid notice. She managed to find odd jobs here and there, acquiring items, surveilling errant spouses, performing acts of stealth and infiltration. She learned Gnomish, and discovered that gnomes pay well for novel and interesting experiences. Their quests and errands provided her with a livable income, but more than that, they allowed her some escape from the face of her mother, disfigured with pain and torture. The gnomes, too, filled a need in her for age and wisdom, which short-lived humans (though older than she) could not provide.

For close to six years, Oladon lived and worked in Riddleport, struggling with her past and learning -- always learning -- to survive. She managed to save a bit of gold, here and there, gradually acquiring better equipment (though still nothing spectacular).

After nearly six years, any other accuser might have been expected to forget about a lone half-elf who'd escaped their clutches... but not the House of Jeggare. They found* her after that long, and the old anger smoldered strong again. None must defy or threaten House Jeggare and live.

They put out the word, carefully, quietly, aware of their limited power in Riddleport and Varisia at large. An offer was made; an agreement reached; her fate was sealed, and the deed was considered done. House Jeggare was satisfied.

Within days, Oladon received an official message from Justice Variel Ironbriar of Magnimar [a corrupt government official who ordered her to kill a party member]...

* I talked this over with the DM, and ended up deciding that she'd received a physical brand in the shape of the House's crest, and someone somehow saw it after that long and recognized it, reporting her to them.

Let me know if you have any questions - and thanks again, Tinkergoth!


This is very cool. Kudos to you Tinkergoth. Probably would want the humanoid form...

Name: Kiyo aka Kiyoshi (Birth name, means "Pure Child"), Burnt Boots (Childhood nickname), The Blessed Blaze (Shrine nickname from back home)
Race: Kitsune (Red Jack 3PP Race)
Source: Pathfinder Character, Tarnia Campaign. Been playing him a couple months now.
Core Concept: Kiyo is a Flame Oracle with the Dual Cursed and White Furred Oracle archetypes. In his village he was incredibly blessed and pampered, but it has lead him to constantly trying to help others and become worthy of the powers he's been given leading him to a life of adventure. He's a bit of a trickster, but with a good heart who sometimes goes a bit too far in his pursuit of helping others.

Description(s)::
Appearance (Humanoid Form)

{Kiyo's humanoid form is that of a young, human man with platinum white hair and golden eyes)

Height: 5' 6"
Weight: 12 lbs
Eyes: Golden and shining with mischief
Hair: Pure white, worn long and straight.
Skin: Very pale
Build: Even in his human form, Kiyo is short and very thin, lacking almost any amount of muscle. Most are extremely surprised by how incredibly weightless he is, almost like an apparition.
Expression: Solemn but with a playful look in his eyes and a kind smile. His features tend to be rather sharp looking and exotic, like those from the lands of Tian.
Misc: Generally prefers ceremonial white robes and holy-looking vestments and a pair of long, white, silken gloves which cover the blackened skin that covers the majority of his lower arms and hands. While he carries no weapons, he does have a spell component pouch which is still worn with same leather bag and cord around neck.

Appearance (Natural Form)

(Kiyo's natural form is that of a small-sized, white fox with blackened fur and skin on his feet)

Height: 2' 11" (Nose to Tail)
Weight: 12 lbs
Eyes: Yellow
Fur: Pure white with the exception of his feet and part of his upper legs, where the fur is blackened and burnt looking.
Build: Even amongst Kitsune, Kiyo is well below average in terms of size and bulk but makes up for it with his quickness and agility.
Expression: A mixture of curiousity and playfulness.
Misc: Single fluffy tail. Wears a pouch full of a few spell components in a leather bag around his neck strung with a leather cord.

Personality:
I'm...going to leave this section blank. I wrote up his backstory from his perspective to capture a better idea of his personality. If this disqualifies me I understand, it was just cool to post this. I'm rather proud of it.

Backstory:
I am Kiyoshi of the Hakurin Clan, heir to Daikitsu's grace and he who is known as the Blessed Blaze. I never met my parents for, as they do with many Kitsune born with white fur, I was raised amongst our oracles and clergy almost exclusively after my birth. In our small village I came to learn such births were extremely rare and a sign of favour of Daikitsu and symbol of good luck and favourable tidings. While I cannot say for certain that is the truth, I can say I was gifted with great power and do try to live up to the expectations placed upon me, which is not always an easy thing to do.

My young life was incredibly pampered in retrospect. I was fussed over and never really went without anything at the shrine, perhaps with a single exception that felt incredibly important at the time. The only other Kitsune my age that visited were usually with their parents or guardians and paying respects to the gods and giving thanks. Rather solemn affairs and not at all scratching the itch I had to play and tussle. Eventually my curiosity and desires got to be too much and after one of the minor ceremonies I followed one of the other young kitsune's families back to the main village where I found a group of younger kitsune to join. They were hesitant and wary at first as I stood out like a sore paw between being the only white-furred kitsune in the village and being small as I was. While I was teased in a good natured manner, they did eventually let me join them and we played until the sun set. When I returned to the shrine everyone was in quite the tizzy and I got scolded harshly, though it wasn't enough to stop my visits to the village for playing after that.

It was during one of these visits during my early years where my blessing first manifested itself more fully. We were chasing each other throughout the forest playing tag when a pack of wolves caught our scent. This would be a joke to any full grown kitsune, between our magical abilities and cleverness...but when you are but a youngster, the fear inspired by their growling and sharp teeth puts such things far from mind. As we were fleeing back to the village as fast as our little legs could carry us, Yumiko tripped, and got tangled in the underbrush. My first instinct was to rush back and help as the wolves closed in and while I can't say what exactly it caused it, whether it be the fear or desire to protect her, the holy flame manifested around me for the first time. The bright-blue flickering flames surrounded and covered me, frightening the stupid wolves off quickly. Yet even as relief filled me, dread did as well for I had no control over the power granted to me. While the flame did no damage to Yumiko or the nature surrounding us, it scorched my legs terribly and left them blackened husks. I was unable to even move until they retrieved some adults who bore me back to the shrine and applied healing magic and salves for the pain.

Cursed wolves, how I detest them. Anyway...

It took me over a month to recover from the incident and even then it had left its mark as the fur and skin of my legs were left blackened and perpetually burnt looking. It even carried over to my alternate human form who's hands and lower arms showed the same horrid burns. No healing made much of an impact and many at the shrine rumoured it was the markings of the gods. As for me? At the time, I could only worry about the image it gave and the fact the other younglings had taken to calling me 'Burnt Boots' which wasn't all that funny at the time to me. With that said, I still did recover more or less fully and didn't lose any of my grace or speed to the incident, much to everyone's relief.

Yumiko? Ah yes, she was a close friend. I was not the only kitsune in the village born...well...puny. She was also born very small in stature and went through a lot of the same teasing I did. We sort of became comrades in arms due to the shared connection. Having numbers on our sides made it a lot easier to get even too. It still brings a smile to my face thinking of the tricks we pulled together. I found it infinitely amusing as you couldn't find a more quiet or shy kitsune in the entire village...but I also don't think anyone could move quite as quietly as she could either. A great asset in catching our targets off guard. My favourite is silently entering the one fellow's home while he slept and dying his fur like a skunk. Not too many people picked on us for our size after that time!

I began to start gaining some control after that over the magic I was gifted with. The ability to heal minor injuries and shape the strange blue flames came almost naturally and even more strangely, the flames I was conjuring did not burn me since that single occasion. I became eager to master them all as I finally had a sign that I actually was blessed and special...and even more importantly, had a way to help and pay back those that had been helping me for so long. It was a slow process, but one I undertook with great enthusiasm. More time was spent at the temple as I entered my teenage years, though I still set aside evenings to sneak out and visit, especially when I felt stuck or lonesome.

As much as it frustrated me at the time, a great deal of my knowledge and learning came from Whisper. While he was extremely well known to our village, Whisper wasalso...a unique sort of entity in the forest. A particularily learned and skillful pipe fox but with a sharp tongue to match his wisdom and wit. Almost infinitely knowledgable, he was always willing to divulge information...but only for information he considers equally valuable. I will admit he was fair with his deals, but for a young kitsune with little knowledge to trade he did not already have, he caused me numerous headaches during my encounters with him. I had my suspicions about he came into some of his knowledge as he was a sneaky, sly creature...but it was hard to argue with his results. He introduced me to religions, magics, and lands far from our own. He even helped me draft some of my early plans for where I would travel when I left. I thought we would be parting ways the day I left. How wrong I ended up being on that...

I wasn't quite an adult when I chose to leave. I had more or less mastered the extent of the gifts I had to a point where I was comfortable and despite it making me nervous, I felt the kitsune instinct to wander, learn, and gain enlightenment. I was at the point where I felt the village itself and surroundings didn't hold much in the way of mysteries any longer. Not to mention, seek the source of the powers I've been granted (and perhaps my real parents) and find out what fate has in store for me. I parted the village on good terms, most seeing me off with warmth and understanding. I was sad Yumiko never showed up for the seeing off ceremony, though it is easy to forgive her as close as we were. I do hope to see her again some day and will certainly go back home. I only hope she isn't sore toward me for leaving.

Contributor

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Despite the fact that there are still spots left, and despite the fact that I've got several characters begging for more artwork, I already have a metric ton of artwork of some of my favorite characters, and I shouldn't be greedy when others' might not have any artwork of theirs.

Thus I just want to say that you're awesome, and I'll at least share my current favorite active character. Besides I'm going to wall of text this place!

Name: Il'setsya the Wyrmtouched aka Crazy-hooves, aka Random McSparkletail
Race: Xaoling (protean descended planetouched - see 'Xaolings' by Rogue Genius Games)
Source: NPC in my current Pathfinder campaign
Core Concept: Random, whimsical, utterly carefree and careless with the abilities of a high level sorcerer (protean bloodline) and a smattering of rogue levels to back that up. If the Maelstrom had a mortal high priestess, she probably had the job but got kicked out for not following the rules.

Description(s)::

Spoiler:

Il'setsya in many ways looks like a classic tiefling: slightly curling horns like those of a ram or antelope, a long scaly tail, and goat legs from the knees down. Take that archetypal tiefling and add the primal essence of the Maelstrom and perhaps some LSD and you'll have Il'setsya.

Her fingers are tipped in claws painted a wild assortment of colors, and her skin is covered by a mottled sheen of scales on her neck, forearms, and outer thighs in a mixture of green, purple, and orange. Making tieflings everywhere jealous, her tail is prehensile and insanely long (nearly twice as long as she is tall) and the crazy thing is covered in scales and feathers along the spine that shift color randomly – with the tail’s tip having a burst of fur and feathered plumage.

The girl's eyes glow a luminous shade of neon orange most of the time, and her wild, perpetually moving hair is usually some flavor of brilliant grape purple, lime green, or candy-apple red, though like everything else about her, the particular color is prone to change on its own accord at random - and she wouldn't have it any other way.

Beyond that she's prone to decorating herself with a wild assortment of earrings in her pointed ears somewhere between elven and tiefling, a hodgepodge of jewelry she stole that never really matches, and lips painted an obnoxious shade of purple.

And if it were obvious that somewhere in her past one of her ancestors dallied with a protean, she has a floating ring of translucent, glowing blue symbols in Protean loosely orbiting around her head. If asked about it, she'll casually reply that it's a keketar's crown that she gleefully borrowed, entirely without permission of course.

She looks like this

Personality:

Spoiler:
Random, silly, obnoxiously whimsical. She doesn't have a care in the world, and she's of the mind to share that very same outlook with anyone else she meets. Depending on their own outlook, she might do so whether they mind it or not. Watch your purse, don't trust your senses, and take her with a mountain sized grain of multicolored salt. You'll have fun with her around, trust her.

Backstory:

Spoiler:
Il'setsya grew up in the planar city of Galisemni in the Maelstrom, though she no longer remembers any details of her past. Her parents, her childhood, any brothers or sisters or friends, all of this is forever lost to her, because she signed her name upon an artifact in that city scratched with thousands of others before her.

It was covered in names not recorded in any book nor remembered by any scholar or any god - these names have never existed. But as legend says, those that voluntarily give their name are granted their greatest wish in return, though it may not be the one that they had in mind. It gives, but in return it devours everything, and thus it did for Il'setsya. All she knows is that she signed her name, and that prior to that she flipped a coin: heads she would sign her name, and tails she would kill herself.

She does know the precise reason why she signed the wall, and has never told a soul - not friends, not lovers, nor the proteans that seem to flock to her side like family members to a wayward sister. But she's happy, finally.

Probability doesn't work properly around Il'setsya. Magic doesn't function by its normal rules around her. Things happen and not necessarily as she plans, but that's the fun of life isn't it? The randomness, the spontaneity, the risk! So what if you turn the entire inn's beer to urine, or a vrock to a construct of graham cracker, chocolate, and marshmellow right before you set it on fire and put it through the roof of a church of Asmodeus?

The Maelstrom and at least one particular protean lord has designs for her. Not that she knows. Not that she particularly cares.


Name: Voadam Skysailor

Race: Human

Source: D&D

Core Concept: Voadam is a viking wizard, clever and mercenary but with a good heart underneath ready to step in to deal with overwhelming evil to save the world.

Description:

Spoiler:

A big bear of a man with brown hair, steel blue eyes, and a full beard. Standing 6 foot two and weighing 240 pounds he is physically imposing but he normally has a friendly smile and a calculating look in his eye. He bears scars from arrows, claws, blades, and bindings on his arms and torso. He normally wears wizards' robes with a wide sash but often wears a blade. He favors fighting with a sword or crashing fist while powered by magic.

Personality:

Spoiler:
Voadam is a friendly and gregarious man with a lust for life and an inquisitive and calculating mind. He dives into whatever events he finds himself in, often becoming involved in politics and plots while quickly making allies and enemies. He is pragmatic and willing to work with most anyone from paladins to potent evils to achieve his goals. He harbors greed for money, magic, lore, and position but is also prideful of himself as a good and clever man in a world with many evils. He does not value mercy or piety, but strives to be cunning and work for honorable ends. He is a great believer in the potential of mortals.

Background:

Spoiler:
Voadam was a clever viking warrior who turned to magic to fight fiends and took up a wandering life adapting to what fortune threw across his path. He has been a mercenary, a ship captain, a demon hunter, a merchant prince, a respected wizard, and an imperial advisor. He has made and lost fortunes, risen to political heights and fallen to penurious lows and needed to start fresh on new worlds many times. He has had dealings with various deities, been directly involved in many prophecies, and earned the enmity of multiple demon lords.


Thanks for the responses so far guys. I'm going to wait until I've got the last two submissions before I order the art, and I have to run to work now, so I'll check in again tonight :)

Sovereign Court

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This is very cool of you Tinkergoth. Not going to post a PC, but I did want to give you kudos and to ask if you could PM me a link to the artist's portfolio.


This is super awesome. I've honestly always wanted some personal art for him. The token picture I found just doesn't do him justice.

Name: Saelyan Aerynndal (Or as some have called him, Saelyan the Dying Elf)
Race: Elf
Source: My very first character created for pathfinder (or any tabletop roleplay game). From a custom game called Thagnias
Core Concept: Saelyan is a magus who uses a Black Blade (longsword) bathed in cerulean fire to cleanse abberations from Galorian.

Description

Spoiler:
Saelyan isn't a very tall or wide figure. He is about 5'11, looks about 140 pounds (but weighs only 70. Deals with fey are odd.) He has shoulder length silver hair that is usually straight down. His eyes are a deep forest green. He is usually wearing a smile on his face. He wears a +1 Gash's bane Breastplate that looks like it is made out of blackened bone. Over the breastplate he wears a green mages robe over it that lets him use dimensional hop. Belted over one side is his trusty Black Blade Sevros. While not out sev is in a black sheathe with silver filigree. Saelyan wields Sevros in his right hand and when out and fighting abberations, he calls upon the Cerulean Flame (Basically like a bane effect against abberations but with a few extra stuff.) to coat his blade. In his off hand he wears a +1 Clawed Gauntlet that lets him use that hand for somatic spells and can also attack with the gauntlet as a natural attack. Those are his most distinguishing items and features but he also usually carries a lute on his back and has a box hooked up to one side (Aptly named Schrodinger's box). He has a cloak with the pattern of the night sky that he wears hooked on his back as well. He also has assorted odds and ends like potions, perfections key, a rod of wonder, and a nicely sized ruby of power with him.

He looks incredibly light on his feet, but when he strikes it is with strength not agility. (He has a 16 str and 17 dex). He is very good looking for even an elf, but when you look into his eyes, you can see the gleam of a large intelligence.

I dont really mind how the artist goes with all the odds and ends and everything. They can also choose to have Sevros out and ready for a fight or sheathed at his side. Not super picky on that honestly

Personality

Spoiler:
Saelyan is a fairly easy going elf. He usually wears a smile on his face is quick to make a joke even in the face of long odds. He is loyal to a fault, never giving up on his friends or thinking someone is beyond redemption. Friends are made easily and enemies are made even easier. He wont tolerate things that go against his moral code and will do what needs to be done to accomplish what he thinks is the greater good (He's a NG guy, but is known to enjoy the chaotic side of the fence more than the lawful). If his friends or his love (A tiefling woman by the name of Vanessa, also a noblewoman and a Kensai magus) are in danger he has no qualms about eliminating the threat with extreme prejudice. When he is all alone, he breaks out his lute and starts playing with abandon. He can be serious, but is generally not very. He does have problems with strict authority figures, especially ones who make him angry. He will try to work with them but he is not above getting in childish pranks or snide remarks when able. Saelyan takes up the role of a jack of all trades. He has picked up abilities like assorted knowledges and disable device, and is incredibly perceptive.

Backstory - This is going to be the backstory he had when he started the campaign and I am going to add in some of the adventures from after it started.

Spoiler:
-He was outcast and ostracized during childhood, always had fingers in everything and tended to be naturally talented.
-He has a deep love of music, calmed and kept him sane during the worst times.
-He left home during the evening on his birthday and wandered for many years learning diverse trades and skills (gambling, music, swordsmanship, magic, etc)
-He sought out a mentor. With much in common, and both ostracized for their talents, they were elated to find a kindred soul.
-He eventually discovered that his master Vanidur experiments on people, keeps them as live guinea pigs. Feeling horribly betrayed and alone once more he faces his master and slays him for the atrocities he performed. -He releases the test subjects then remained in the house alone for a time longer, gathering and learning what little more he could before departing and moving on once more.
-Where we start the story of his adventures he is just getting to the grand city of Thagnias.
-In Thagnias, Saelyan (with the rest of the party) helps save the city a few times, and become widely known heroes. One member of the group campaigns to become a council member and wins the vote. (To help saelyan went to one of more mean noblemen of the city when he was campaigning and illusioned up a huge sign with the logo of his friend running to talk over the man and embaress him.
-The reason for Saelyans nickname is that early on he almost died a few times. The closest time was when he was on the end of a particularly nasty death attack by an orc assassin that had already tried to poison him and blow him up with explosive runes (which also ruined his house >.>)
-The party uncovered a huge secret of the city, which was the biggest noble house in all the city was allied with a house of devils. Saelyan and friends helped take the devils house down and discredited the house allied with them. Saelyan got help from the house's daughter Vanessa and the two fell in love.
-After the devils were ousted, they hired (more) assassins to try to kill the party. The party in turn bought the scry proof mansion that was formerly owned by them and now live in it with the occasional guest.
-They all saved a small town from the start of a plague called the Black Breath. It was a nasty affair that had to be cleansed by the Cerulean Flames and if it wasnt cured it wouldve infected the entire province.
-Saved a former member of the city council with his tengu friend Chak-Chak. They snuck into the assassins guild and ended up stealing the man away. (and not getting caught which was kind of impressive)
-Saved a forest from a rampaging druid (that was rampaging because Saelyan accidentally collapsed the tower the druid was living in when he claimed Sevros). Not proud of that moment but it was an important one.
-They rescued an Android girl from being taken and she joined up with the hero's party.
-Saelyan is in the process of joining a spy guild that works with the city.
-Vanidur, Saelyans former master has an odd love/hate relationship with Saelyan. He wants Sael to work with him and join him, but when Sael refused, Vanidur made clones of him. Now those clones are roaming the city/countryside with magus levels and weird abberation powers.
-Was attacked by Wyverns at one point, and after they were dead he found they had an egg that would die. So the entire way back he used prestidigitation to keep it warmed appropriately and the baby is now being raised in the care of the mages guild.
-He is not in the mages guild because he does not like some of the things they do/believe, but he does have a working relationship with some of the deans of the schools, specifically evocation.

If you would like more stories, more detail, well more anything really please feel free to let me know. Thank you again for doing this. Im incredibly pumped for it.

Heres Saelyans character sheet incase you need any inspiration or just curious some of the things he had item/skill wise

Spoiler:
http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheetview.php?sheetid=478835

Silver Crusade

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:D

Thanks, big time, for running this Tinkergoth!

Now I feel guilty for all the words that are about to spill out. ;)

Name: Liath Samathran

Race: Tiefling(demonspawn) of mixed Kellid/Chelish heritage.

Source: Pathfinder, originally a PC for a Kingmaker game that was cancelled and then moved to a Wrath of the Righteous campaign.

Core Concept: A tiefling raised with his twin sister in confinement due to the nature of their birth. He answers the call to paladinhood eagerly, desperate to be the shining knight of the stories that helped him survive his childhood and manage to find some measure of acceptance.

Description::
Liath is a young tiefling man possessed of an androgynous beauty much like his twin sister. Basically on the extreme end of the "bishounen" spectrum. Long pitch-black hair flowing past his shoulders, some spilling before his face. Fine eyebrows, dark gray eyes, and pale almost-white gray skin. His ears are pointed and slightly elongated, like those of half-elves. His tiefling traits suggest succubus or incubus heritiage: Two short, upwards curving horns just from his forehead. His legs are digitigrade, hairless, and end in hooves, like those of an incubus. He was born with small vestigal wings, but all that remains of them are two ragged stumps jutting from his back. A long, thin, prehensile tail grows from the base of his spine.

He wears silvery-steel armor from shoulder to just above the hooves, designed for mobility and flexibility more than stiffer and sturdier full-plate, with elements of his Iomedaean faith worked into the design. Stylized ornamental silvery-steel angel wings adorn the back-plate of his armor, covering the stumps of his actual winglets.(If you're familiar with Ninety-Nine Nights' Inphyy, they were imagined quite a bit like that) His tail is left exposed to allow it to move about and help him maintain balance. He weilds a longsword of clean, simple design; well-worn but cared for. He carries a light assymetrical steel shield emblazoned with the holy symbol of Iomedae. An actual silver holy symbol hangs from his neck at all times. He wears a pale blue/white peasant's cloth cap on his head, a gift from a dwarven friend.(basically, Link hat etched with Celestial characters)

At this point in the campaign, Liath is often ill at ease with himself, always on guard against what he currently sees as his own inner weaknesses and mindful of the judging eyes of others. He tries to live up to the impossible ideal he's built up in his head, not out of pride but out of a desperate need to overcome the shame and self-loathing that were hammered into him as a child. He's naturally inclined towards somewhat feminine mannerisms, again tying into his somewhat androgynous nature.

Personality::
Utterly idealistic and hopeful. Some would say naively so, but he tries hard to see the best in others even as he doubts it in himself. He clings to that knight-in-shinging-armor ideal even as he fears he can never live up to it. He's empathetic towards others, especially fellow outcasts, but he has a lot of internalized guilt over his own race, having been brought up to see himself as a scion of unholy lust. Speaking of which, while he fosters the romantic knight look, he is absolutely not at ease with his own sexuality, not even having come to terms with his own bisexuality. He sticks to a chaste path, though it has done little to help him find peace with himself. He also has a bit of chivalry-borne internalized sexism, falling into "male sinner, female saint" lines of thinking and being overly protective of women. That has mostly been shed after those assumptions were beaten out of him in Kingmaker, and whatever remains of it is something he's aware of and understands it's something he needs to overcome.

He's extremely faithful to Iomedae, seeing her as the absolute ideal that he feels so unworthy of yet still tries to emulate. Having been on the recieving end of abuse born out of a twisting of that faith, he's extremely mindful of overzealous fantaticism and faith being warped into something to oppress or persecute others. He understands that while Iomedae is the ideal, the mortal clergy does fall short sometimes.

Along with the stories of his youth, his experiences in Kingmaker have left him with a sort of infatuation for goodly fey. It could be said that while he stays constantly on guard against any wickedness he perceives within himself, he's got a bit of a blind spot for chaos.

His eyes often have a bit of a haunted or sad look after all the trauma he's endured, but that is most often drowned out by hope, compassion, and wide-eyed wonder.

Boy's got guilt up to the gills, and he's going to have to struggle to overcome it.

Background (short version)::
Liath was raised along with his twin sister initially confined to their family's house yet somewhat decently treated, then locked in the cellar and treated horrifically until they were smuggled out by their father's servant. During that time they were brought up to be ashamed of their heritage, enduring hardships meant to "cleanse" them of their "sin" of being born as they were. Their only relief were the stories and fairy tales of the outside world, which painted it as heaven compared to the hell that was their everyday life.

When they finally got out, they were taken in by the local church of Iomedae. The clergy did what they can to mend thier spiritual wounds, more successfully with his sister, less so with him. When he was driven by maddened guilt to cut off his wings, nearly dying in the process, they were both shipped off to a monastery better equipped to heal their minds. Eventually, Liath caught up with his sister to a point in terms of coming to peace with his heritage and managed to leave some of that self-loathing behind.

It was around that point that he heard the paladin's call, which the clergy was all too eager to push him into, putting distance between him and his sister. In the following years he met some people outside the monastery, made friends, went south to the Stolen Lands for Kingmaker and subsequently took a beating right in his ideals. He refused to let go of those ideals or become cynical, but the stress of his failures led to him eventually having a nervous breakdown as he desperately tried to make amends for disasters he blamed on himself. This reset him to level one as he and his sister both answered the call of the Mendevian Crusade and are currently there trying to find both the truth of their origins and to try and accomplish some real lasting good in the world, even if it costs them their lives.

Background (words words words version):
The Straheim family name was a proud one once, long ago. A line of knights devoted first to Aroden and later his inheritor, Iomedae, the sons and daughters of Straheim were stalwart defenders of their church and nation. Yet none of them shone as brightly as Maximillian Straheim, an annointed paladin of Iomedae.

A man of immense virtue and even-handed temperament, Maximillian was a paragon of his order. He seemed destined to become something even greater, a legend in his own land and beyond, as he marched with his fellow knights to join the first Mendevian Crusade. The people of his hometown were certain that whatever horrors the then newly formed Worldwound held, Maximillian's faith and strength of character would see him through.

Three years later, Maximillian returned, a shadow of the man he once was. His sword and armor were tarnished, his eyes tired and haunted. He no longer seemed to carry the grace of his goddess. Instead, he came home with an infant in his arms.

He never spoke of where the boy came from, or what happened to him at the Worldwound that caused him to fall from grace. He only retired to form of exile in his manor, adopting the child as his own, naming him Markus. He remained faithful to Iomedae, and walked forth in defense of his township when he was needed, but for reasons he kept his own, he never sought atonement for whatever caused his fall.

As generations passed, the inheritors of the Straheim family name had to bear the weight of their forebears shame and the rumors that abounded concerning his fall. The Straheim's gained a reputation as a dour lot, but they were also increasingly driven to prove themselves. Many of Markus' descendants died before their time attempting to redeem the family name by taking part in the Mendevian Crusades or in other conflicts at home or abroad.

Twenty-two years ago, Lukas Straheim became head of the the family. After his brother and sister both gave their lives in the ongoing conflict at Mendev, the burden of carrying on the family name fell upon his shoulders. He had always felt sharply the ever lingering shame that hung over his family, and it was with no small amount of relief that Samathra Vendell, daughter of minor, unlanded, yet still noble house, accepted his proposal to wed. He loved her, but more than that she and her family were the hope he needed.

Lukas was naturally overjoyed when Samathra revealed that she was carrying their child, even more so when she began to suspect they were to have twins.

His joy was shortlived.

His hopes died as the priest called him into the bedroom. Samathra was delirious with grief, screaming her denials at what she had bourne. Lukas thought for that they had lost their children in birth. When he saw them, he wished they had. The small, nascent horns growing from their skulls, the tiny winglets sprouting from their backs, the bend of the legs that ended in hooves...it was clear to anyone whose family had history with the Worldwound. These were demon-spawn. Tieflings. His flesh and blood. His crying children, a son and a daughter, were practically a pronouncement of damnation in his eyes.

Lukas flew into a rage, and would have slain the infants if the priests had not subdued him. They assured him, begrudgingly, that they were not monsters. They were deformed, unsightly, but they were still mere infants.

Samathra was driven mad by the ordeal, and was placed in a sanitarium by her family. She was never again the vibrant, lively woman she once were.

Lukas was eventually calmed enough to be entrusted with his children by the priests. Samathra's family preferred to have nothing to do with them, fully intending to keep them as far from their daughter as possible. They were Lukas' shame alone to bear.

He could not stand the sight of them, and he dared not let them be seen. The truth of their existence was kept secret, for the sakes of both the Straheim and Vendell families. They would never leave the manor, if he had his way. Most of their care was entrusted to the head servant of the house, Vorrus, who had long faithfully served Lukas and his father before him. He then set off for Mendev, to find redemption or death by joining the battle against the Worldwound. He could not remain at the manor with those things. He had barely bothered to confirm their names, half-heartedly, before leaving. Samathra had chosen them. Liath and Naella.

The twins spent the next six years in Straheim manor, never knowing their father or mother, and raised by Vorrus alone, who cared for them when no one else would. They were kept inside and out of sight, but he saw to it that they were cared for and taught as children should. He was amazed at how much they were like normal children, save for their freakish appearance. They played like other children, they cried like other children, they listened in rapt attention as he read to them at night. Both of them were enthralled by the legends and tall tales he read; they shaped how they viewed the outside world. Those bedtime stories were more real to them than what actually lay outside the manor walls. Liath in particular listened attentively whenever Vorrus told tales of great adventure, of stalwart knights, of champions of the gods. He regretted the need to keep them prisoner in their own home.

Then Lukas Straheim returned to his home. He had experienced much in Mendev, and it had changed him. He had seen the new practices beginning to take root on the warfront, tactics of purification and inquisition that would appall the mainstream churches of Iomedae. But Lukas had seen their effectiveness. He had helped.

Outwardly in public, Lukas was a much calmer man, one who was at peace with himself. At home, in private, his anger, his rage showed itself without warning. The children were his burden, his punishment for what he was. He would purify them, and thus the family name, or they would die in the attempt. They were locked away in the cellar, where they would remain for the next six years. He would visit them when the mood took him, to take out his frustrations upon them, to punish them for being.

The first time he struck Naella, Liath hurled himself at his father, biting and clawing like a wild animal. After Lukas was finished with him, Liath never raised his hand against his father again. He knew better than to fight back, after that.

Vorrus was still tasked with their care, but now his duties included drying their tears, tending to their bruises and cuts, and resetting broken bones after their frequent beatings. When Liath and Naella asked what they had done to deserve such treatment, he had no answers to give. Eventually, horribly, they came to accept that this was the correct order of things. They deserved to punished simply because they lived. They were damned things; mere monsters, not people. Liath and Naella became meek, frightened shadows of the children they once were, huddled and shaking next to each other in the corner, ever fearful of their father's next visit. And understanding that it was best to accept what he did. After all, they brought it on themselves.

And still, when his master was not aware, Vorrus read to them as he had before. Now more than ever, those moments were an escape for the twins. Moments where they could imagine that they were in another world, that they were people better than the things they really were.

Vorrus hated the situation, and he finally worked up the courage to betray his master. One day, while Lukas was away on extended business, he smuggled Liath and Naella out of the manor. He bundled them in cloaks, and took them in a wagon directly to Vendells. Surely their mother would take them in if she knew how they were treated.

He did not know that Samathra's condition had not improved. His search for her led them to the sanitarium where she had been kept since giving birth to the twins. He knew she could not care for them in her condition, but he could not resist letting Liath and Naella see their mother at least once. She was bedridden, wasting away. Her eyes focused on things that were not there. She sang songs without melody, to music no one could hear. But when her children were brought before her, she smiled. She called them her "angels", finally returned to her. She begged them to come close, and hugged them as tightly as her weak arms could manage. She begged them to forgive her for letting them go, for casting them out. They asked her why she called them angels. She asked what else could they be with those wings?

Liath and Naella could not understand. Their mother was so different from what they knew of their father. Why was she showing them kindness? Why could they not stay with her? They held onto her tightly, weeping at the first experience of love either of their parents had shown them.

Her brother's arrival cut the reunion short. He was outraged at Vorrus' boldness, at bringing these children to bother his ailing sister. Surely seeing these things would do her no good at all. After all, the twins were the Straheim's problem, not the Vendalls. Vorrus apologized, despairing that this avenue of escape for the children had been cut off. He reluctantly pulled the children away from their mother, all of whom cried and reached out for the other. Samathra only had time to press a locket into Naella's hand.

Vorrus had no choice but to bring them back home, to put them back in their cellar. He regretted ever having taken them out. To give them a taste of the world outside, to show them their mother, and then drag them back into the darkness? That was too cruel.

Samathra died a year later.

Soon afterwards, Lukas' fortunes shifted. Six years after his return. A prostitute he had used to distract himself from his troubles nine months earlier came knocking on his door. She was panicked, frightened, and she was carrying a baby. She didn't know what to do. And she trusted Lukas. He had treated her kindly, thus far.

Lukas knew who the child's father was the moment he looked at him. At first, the old horror and revulsion coursed over him. But then...

No, this one was different. He must have been doing something right. He had purged himself of some of his taint at least, he must have! This one was not as malformed as the others. He only had slightly pointed ears...and one eye was slitted like that of a cat...

Those were easily fixed.

He invited the girl inside, to take shelter. He told her not to worry, and that all was going to be well.

She never left the manor alive.

When Vorrus learned what happened, and what his master was planning, he knew he could stand by no longer. He knew that what little reason Lukas had to keep the twins had just disappeared. He quickly and quietly smuggled Liath and Naella out of the manor. He put them on a wagon, paying the caravan driver to take them to the next city and hand them over to any orphanage that would accept them. Liath and Naella were frightened, and begged him not to go, but Vorrus knew he could not go with them. Lukas would find them easily if he went. But this way they had a chance. He returned to the manor, keeping his master's attention away from the matter of the twins for as long as possible.

Lukas was busy enough with his scheming that it took some time to realize what had happened. He found a simple girl all too eager to marry a knight, no matter what his standing. It would be an embarrassment to admit that he married her barely in time to legitimize "their" son, but that was an easier burden to bear than having demon-tainted tieflings as scions of the Straheim name. Things were finally looking up for Lukas Straheim.

Liath and Naella were not prepared for the world outside. They had seen precious little of it during the journey to see their mother, and it was not at all like the tales Vorrus had told them. They clung to each other fearfully, not quite understanding the change from their cramped prison to the wide open world they now found themselves lost in. The wagon driver could not easily find a place that would take the twins in, and left them to their own devices when he finally left the city, leaving them only a portion of the payment Vorrus had given him as a bit of mercy.

Liath and Naella wandered the streets, avoiding attention where they could, learning to steal when they had to eat. Even so, they did not have the skills needed to survive long on their own, and they both nearly froze to death that very winter before a priest from the local church of Iomedae happened upon them. They recoiled from his hand at first, fearful and remembering how their father invoked Iomedae's name as he tried to "cleanse" them. The priest was eventually able to coax them into trusting him and following him back to the church.

They spent the next six months enjoying the shelter and food freely given to them. Some of the priests worried at the idea of bringing tieflings into a house of Iomedae, but others insisted it was their duty to care for those other institutions would not. Most of the clergy showed the twins kindness, yet a few still whispered that they should be watched carefully, that they could never truly be trusted. After all, the blood of demons ran through their veins.

Liath and Naella were both taught the word of Iomedae, and together they learned and memorized the 11 Acts. The goddess the clergy presented was very different from what their father had spoken of. She seemed far more like the greatest of heroes Vorrus had told them of, in what seemed a lifetime ago.

Naella took to the teachings quickly. She shed the image of herself her father had beaten into her, wishing to reforge herself as something better.

Liath had more difficulty. He could never shake the idea that his blood marked him as a wicked thing. He could never get his father's words out of his head. Even then, he still felt guilty for having been blessed with such a shelter, because one such as he did not deserve it. The suspicious whispers of some of the priests only confirmed that belief.

And yet he wanted to be something more. He wished to be different from what he was. He didn't want to be damned. He desperately wanted forgiveness for having been born a tiefling. He wanted to believe Iomedae would accept him, but that was impossible in his eyes. He was wicked and unworthy by virtue of his blood.

Liath was tormented by these thoughts every night. He prayed, constantly, for Iomedae to show him what he had to do, to simply give him a way to be free of this fate he had been born into.

Finally, during his thirteenth year, he realized what he had to do.

Late one night, he snuck into the empty chapel. He reached out and took the ceremonial longsword from the altar. He flinched as he touched it. He was certain it burned at his touch, he was utterly convinced of it.

He held it in his shaking hands, stuttered a prayer to Iomedae, and reached back to grasp the tiny, useless wings growing from his shoulders.

Naella and the priests woke when they heard Liath's screams. They rushed to the chapel to find him laying before the altar, bleeding out from the small ragged stumps jutting from his back. His little wings lay before him, before the altar, as if in offering. He was still whispering, weakly, "Forgive me." over and over.

The priests were able to save his life, though his wings could not be healed. It was clear now that the boy, and likely his sister, were far more emotionally scarred than they had originally believed. It was decided that they needed more help, and a better environment, than what they could recieve within the city.

Naella held her quiet, shivering brother close as they were taken to a secluded Iomedaean monastery in a forest far from the city. There they would spend the next seven years with the monks and the peace of nature. It was there that Liath's mind and soul finally began to heal, and where he finally found his faith.

He eventually came out of the shell he had withdrawn into following his traumatic attempt at purifying himself. The first step in this was learning to walk again. Without his wings, his center of balance had shifted, and with no toes to help him he often found himself falling flat on his face. The seemingly endless patience the monks and his sister had for him during this actually began to frustrate him. He felt he was being coddled, like a cripple, which in truth, he was. He had to walk with a cane for quite some time.

Liath found himself spending much of his time alone in the woods outside the monastery walls, once the monks were certain he would not try anything rash once he was out of sight. He enjoyed, as much as he enjoyed anything those days, the sound of the wind and birds overhead, of being able to forget all of his troubles until he started moving again, and the phantom ache of his wings and the clumsy imbalance of his limbs made themselves known again. It was during one particularly long, rolling fall down a hillside that he met Bieran.

The old dwarven woodsman looked at the boy in confusion when Liath finally came to a stop. Looking him over and deciding he wasn't too badly hurt, he asked the timid boy if he was alright. Liath quietly nodded as he sat up. Bieran simply replied that that was good, and that he thought satyrs had more grace than that. Liath reluctantly corrected him. Bieran said that they all look alike anyway and continued on with his work.

Liath watched him silently, until the dwarf finally got irritated with the attention. "You lookin' at me, boy?" he asked. Liath lamely shook his head that he wasn't. "You got a lot of nerve lookin' at someone like that lookin' the way you do." Liath simply remained silent, simply accepting the insult. Bieran looked at him, considering, for a while. It was obvious that the boy came from the monastery. And it was painfully obvious that talking wasn't his strong point, nor was any sort of self-confidence. "Well, you going to sit on your ass all day while someone else works for a living or are you going to help?"

Liath wasn't sure how to answer, but he clumsily got up and complied simply because it was what was expected of him. He quietly followed Bieran as the dwarf went on complaining about things he knew little to nothing about, and awkwardly tried to help with what work he was entrusted with. He had trouble keeping his balance on his hooves as he swung an axe too large for his frame, for which Bieran lightly mocked him. He also scraped his arms on his horns trying to lift the axe overhead as Bieran did, which also drew the dwarf's barbed comments. And still Liath did not protest anything he said.

Liath continued to wander down to meet the old dwarf for quite some time, unofficially adding whatever tasks Bieran would trust him with to what duties he and his sister kept at the monastery. It was something to do, and the dwarf was different from everyone else there. He did learn not to ask the monks about some of the more colorful language Bieran used, however.

He got better at swinging an axe, his balance improved greatly, and he was actually finally building a bit of confidence in something he did rather than simply going through the motions. Still Bieran threw light insults at him even as he was commended for a job well done, until Liath finally asked him to, please, stop. Bieran smirked, asking him what he was getting so upset about. Did Liath NOT think he looked like a freak? Liath had no answer to that.

Bieran changed the question. "What about your sister? You don't think she looks like a freak?" Liath snarled for Bieran to shut his mouth, and stopped in shock at his outburst. The dwarf chuckled sadly. "So you think she's just fine but you aren't. You got problems, kid." Bieran asked Liath just what was is about him that he was so ashamed of. After all, he just looked like another damn satyr. Liath explained that it was more than that. That his blood was tainted, cursed.

Bieran laughed. "Blood don't mean $%^&, boy. Look at me! I'd rather be out here than stuck in them damn tunnels o' my youth. Even if it does mean livin' like them @#$%ing elves. You decide who you are, godsdammit. No one else."

It was a perspective that had been gently preached to Liath by priests and monks, but coming from someone who actually lived by those words gave him pause.

He had much to think about then, about what his life had been, and what he wanted it to be. He felt a sense of loss for the first time about his wings, useless though they may have been. And shame as well. If he thought so poorly of himself, what did that say about his sister?

He continued to work with Bieran, talking more freely now, and asking about the world outside the monastery, the church, and the manor that had held him his entire life. It was like Vorrus' stories in a way, though less clean and sterile. They spoke more as equals, though Liath could never match Bieran's stamina for rants and insults. In truth, it was entertaining simply to listen to him complain.

He grew at ease with himself, and at the same time began to grow restless in the daily routine he had lived in for seven years. Life at the monastery was good, but it was beginning to grow stifling. Naella was happier, he thought. She had felt the call of her goddess earlier, and had recently been confirmed as a priestess in Iomedae's name.

He was happy for her, but he also envied her in a way. He remembered his call upon the goddess, and what he had done to draw her attention. He saw the foolishness, and selfishness, of that act now, and the stumps on his back were a constant reminder of his shame. But still he wanted to reforge himself. Still he wanted to become something more than what he was.

One day while working with Bieran, Liath caught a glimpse of something glinting in the underbrush. Liath felt drawn towards it. He made his way towards it, and found an old, mostly tarnished longsword embedded in the ground. It was still in fine condition. It felt right and balanced in his hand. The dwarf furrowed his brow, "That weren't there yesterday. Think you better talk to the monks about that."

When he did, the elder of the monastery smiled, and asked Liath if he was ready to begin his training. The boy finally realized what the sword meant.

Before leaving the monastery, Bieran gave Liath his old cap. "You can pull it over your head if you meet any girls. Might have a chance then."

Three years have passed, and Liath has only recently been confirmed as a paladin in service to Iomedae.

He and his sister keep close when they can, and remain ever protective of each other. They are both also zealous in their faith. Even now they still feel uncomfortable with their blood, and they subconciously fear that weakness in their faith would allow them to become the things their father spent years convincing them they were. Liath has managed to accept what he is, mostly. He regrets the removal of his wings, as if he has somehow diminished himself and also distanced himself from his sister by that action.

Naella was well aware of her brother's shame, and had something made especially for him, to mend whatever rift Liath believed he was responsible for: A piece of armor, a backplate that could be worked into his armor once he acquired it. It would not only fit over his back, but had small steel ornamental wings, like those of an angel, just as their mother once said.

Liath and Naella do not use the Stalheim family name, nor that of the Vendells. For want of something to signify their familial link, they both agreed to choose one during their time at the monastery. Samathran.

Edit-It just hit me how irrelevant a lot of that info probably is for your purposes...sorry about that! D:


This sounds really, really cool. Props to Tinkergoth for running this, and I'm looking forward to seeing the results!


This is pretty rad of you, Tinkergoth. Thanks for paying it forward :)

Silver Crusade

Seriously, this is beyond sweet. :)


Woo! Just got home from work. Talk about an exciting day...

The joys of sitting through a week long orientation course that deals with the subjects of foreign investment, international education, economic forecasting, export market development and all kinds of awesome stuff... Did I mention I'm in the IT infrastructure team? On the plus side, getting to hang out with awesome people from our international offices. On the downside, 8 hours a day of pretty much entirely irrelevant info dumps in the form of slideshows (I'm being unfair here, the investment, tourism and economics talks were pretty rad, but you get what I mean. There are probably much better uses for my time).

What is exciting is that it looks like we've got our five!

Oladon
Aleron
Voadam
Solem_Reaper
Mikaze

And thanks to Todd Stewart for being so awesome and sharing a character anyway.

I'll start reading through the descriptions tonight after I finish off some work on my review of The Redemption Engine, and will try to get back to you with any questions I might have by the end of the week, or over the weekend at the latest.

I get paid on Thursday, so I can start organising the art as soon as I make sure I've got everything I need.

One thing that occurred to me while I was trying to stay awake today. When it comes time to do the writeups for the characters, I'll obviously do the descriptive fiction and introductions, but would you guys like to do your own writeups about the characters themselves? Talk about the concept behind them, how you came up with them, a bit about their development and the game they're in and so on? Kind of like a guest post? Let me know what you think.

@zylphryx: I'll send you a PM shortly.


Sure, I wouldn't mind. Let me know whatever you need and by when. PMs or whatever are fine here. Any chance to gloat and elaborate on favourite characters is easy. ;)


Awesome :D I'm incredibly excited to have gotten in on this.

But about the guest post thing, I'd love to do that. How long would you want the post though? I could do a shorter one with more of a summary from the campaign or I could do a longer one with more of the personal story adventures I've had.


Disappointed to have missed out on this. I've bookmarked that Fiverr page, though! Thanks for introducing me to a great character artist anyway! :D


Looks like guest post is the way to go.

Any length is fine. I'll PM you with some more details closer to when I'll be getting ready to get started on the posts, but if you have a look at the previous updates you'll see the sort of thing I normally do for my own characters.

There's no real rush though, I most likely won't even start writing the short fiction pieces for each character til I have their portrait back, I find it easier to work with if I've got the visual there already.

El Ronza, glad to have helped. Keep an eye out though, as I said I may be doing this again sometime down the track (it'd probably be towards the end of the year, so a while away).


I could go either way, Tinkergoth; maybe you could come up with a few (canned or individual) questions and make it a bit like an "interview" or something... that way there's a bit more structure to it.

I'm really, really looking forward to this - let your artist friend know that I'm happy to share the concept art I've got if it would help him.

The Exchange

Awesome! I like that you also did a huge favor for the artist along the way.

Silver Crusade

Seconding that "can do" from the others, Tinkergoth! :)


Hey guys. Sorry, I haven't been able to do any reading of the characters yet. Part of this orientation week that I wasn't aware of is that the last couple of nights are spent having dinners and taking the international attendees out to experience the night life (such as it is) here in Canberra. Turns out these guys party hard.

My time will be my own again tomorrow evening, so I'll try to get it all sorted then before I head home for Mother's Day.


Sounds good, thanks for the update.


Okay. Preliminary reading of the characters done, and PMs sent to everyone :)

I'll be on the road tomorrow for at least three hours depending on road conditions(in freezing cold weather on the motorbike. Woo!) then going to a dinner to see my brother's band play (they don't often tour through Canberra, so when they're close enough for me to go see, I like to), then I'll be spending Sunday morning with my mother for Mother's Day before spending another three hours or so on the bike on the way back home.

What this means is that I probably won't see any responses until Sunday evening, and I most likely won't be in a state to respond at that stage, since hours of highway riding tends to leave me pretty wiped out. So at this stage assume I'll be looking at it again Monday.


Reply sent. Thanks Tinkergoth!


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Hey guys. Just dropping by to let you all know that art orders are going in today, and to thank you all again for being so understanding about the delay... stupid bloody bike is more trouble than it's worth to keep on the road sometimes, but it's the only transport I've got, so...

Anyway, I'll be placing the orders as soon as I hear back from the artist about the easiest way to put them through (technically speaking I'm meant to select extras like shading when I order each portrait, but the bulk order option doesn't let you do that... frustrating).


Awesome! Thanks for the update.

Silver Crusade

WOO! Thanks again, big time, for this generosity Tinkergoth. :)

RPG Superstar Season 9 Top 32

Tinkergoth, would you be willing to share with me the artist and cost? I love this idea especially and I would want to maybe do this sort of thing as well.


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Apparently there's a limit to how many I can order at a time. Since it takes him a couple of weeks to do the pictures, I'm going to split the order into two. I'll do them in the order I received them, Oladon, Aleron and Voadam in the first lot, Solemn_Reaper and Mikaze in the second. Given that it takes the artist two weeks on average to get them done, and I'm going to stagger the updates by a week or so, this won't have any effect on the time it'll take to get everyone done.

theheadkase: I'll send you a PM soon as I've set this first order up.


Okay, first order is placed. ETA is around June 6th, though that can fluctuate a little.


Awesome. So very stoked!

Silver Crusade

oh, drat. :(

Silver Crusade

Awesome. Thanks again again, Tinkergoth! :)


I'm going to be away from the computer this weekend, Tinkergoth - so if you send a PM and don't get a response until Sunday, that's why. :)


No worries Oladon.

I actually got a message from the artist while I was sleeping saying that things are a bit delayed. Didn't give an ETA, so at the moment I'm assuming just a couple of days. I'll keep you guys posted.


Okay, I think I've figured out the delay. The site automatically gives a standard delivery date... which doesn't account for the fact that I'm ordering multiple pieces at once (normally I only do them one at a time, cause that's all I need), and because I did a bulk order, it didn't take into account the added time for adding the extra detail/shading that I requested. I'm about to duck out to work, but I'll flick the artist a note to night and just see if he can give an ETA on it.

Thanks for the patience guys. Been a bit of a learning process here regarding how it is to have to work to someone else's schedule for once...


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Sad I missed out on this, but this is awesome of you!


Have sent another messsage to the artist to follow up, since I haven
t heard back yet.

Starting to think that next time I might just do a more standard "HAVE SOME PDFS!" Mikazemas :P


Appreciate the thought all the same and it was a very cool idea!


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Never fear, I'll be seeing this round of it through come hell or high water :P Once I decide I'm going to do something, it gets done, no matter how long it takes.

Silver Crusade

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Come what may come what will. No worries man. :)


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Thank you for the regular updates, too. I always get excited when I see new posts in this thread. :)


What Oladon and Mikaze said!


Sigh... Still no response from the artist. I've sent him another message, if I haven't heard back within a week I'm going to cancel the order and find an alternative artist (I've already found a few promising looking ones).

It means that the art style may be rather different to what you were expecting, and some of them only seem to do black and white, but they still look pretty awesome. Anyway, I'll keep you appraised.


Thanks for the update!


Woo! Response from the artist with his apologies, he thought he'd already responded to my previous query.

He's been swamped with his day job, but is in the process of catching up on his stuff this week. Said it should be ready soon.


Hurray! Here's hoping he's inspired enough by the descriptions to be excited about finishing them, and find the time to do so soon! :)

Thanks for keeping us updated!


First two characters are in. Aleron and Voadam just received and downloaded. Oladon will take a little longer, and the ones for Mikaze and Solemn_Reaper will be another few weeks away most likely.

I'll get started on the updates to the blog for them once I've pushed through the current round of overtime/illness that I'm dealing with.


Received! Thanks for doing this again. You rock!

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