+---------------------------------------------------+
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+---------------------------------------------------+
The year is 890 AD. The Second Roman Empire is dwindling under its own massive weight and corruption, repeating the slow disintegration of four and half centuries earlier. Assaults from the Caliphate against Hispania, Africa and the eastern provinces drive the Empire back towards its heartland in Asia Minor, as Germanic and Scandinavian peoples raid south in ever greater numbers to put pressure on the Empire’s northern and western borders. Nowhere is the situation more tenuous than in the British Isles, where Danes, Norse, Jutes and other northmen have conquered large parts of northern Scotland, Ireland and north eastern Brittania.
The northmen are determined to take all of the British Isles for themselves, and to drive the Romans and their Celtic Christian allies back to the mainland. The savage Scotsmen fight only to defend their homeland from all outsiders. You count yourselves amongst the northmen, and were recently part of a ten ship raid, 500 warriors strong, striking into Cantium from its northern coast towards the cathedral at Durovernum Cantiacorum where vast stores of silver and gold relics were rumored to be kept.
Unfortunately an unknown Christian Dane betrayed the plan to the Romans, and a full Tagma of 1,000 battle hardened, fully armored Roman veterans were ready and waiting to intercept your raid. Their heavy cavalry charges shattered your side's hastily assembled shield wall from the flanks, while the legionnaires expertly rolled forward behind their own shield wall. Your raiding force was scattered or killed, and you all were taken prisoner.
In the empire of Rome, many crimes may send you to the dungeons, but the sentence has but one meaning. You are wicked and irredeemable. Each of you received the same greeting when you arrived in the fort called Regulbium. You were held down by rough hands and painfully branded upon the arm with an X. The mark signifies ‘criminal’ and the painful scar is indelible proof that each of you has betrayed the great and eternal love of Christ and his chosen mortal vassals.
Condemned, you face at best a short life of shackles and slavery in the nearby iron mine in Cantium. Others might await the “gentle” ministrations of the inquisitors so that other “pagan devilry” may be revealed and confessions extracted. Perhaps, some of you will be spared this ordeal. Perhaps instead you have come to Regulbium to face the final judgment. In three days, the executioner arrives and for the lucky ones the axe will fall or the pyre will be lit.
You are guilty of unlawful bearing of arms, theft, murder and perhaps worse, or the simple act of ‘going viking’ in your native tongue. You have violated the sanctity of the Roman Empire and its nailed God. Through fire or steel, your crimes will be answered. All you can do now is pray, and hope the true gods are listening.
You have all been chained together in the same communal cell dressed in nothing but filthy, tattered rags. Manhandled and mistreated, any finery you once possessed is either ruined or long lost. No special treatment has been given any prisoner – male or female, commoner or noble – all of the condemned are bound and imprisoned together. Your feet are secured by iron cuffs tethered by one long chain. Your arms are secured to the wall above by manacles. A guard is posted right outside the cell day and night. Little thought is given to long term accommodations. In Rome, justice comes swift and sure.
Escape seems hopeless. You have all been well searched and every attempt to conceal anything on your person has failed. And if you could somehow slip your bonds and fly out of this prison, where would you go? You former Jarl is dead, his crews scattered. You have no ship, you have no crew, and you are a long way from the shores of your northern homelands. Despised, alone and shackled – all that you can do now is await your doom, hoping that the Norns have woven a different fate for you than an ignominious death with no sword in your hand.
Level: 1
Races: Human only
Classes: Unchained Barbarian, Fighter, Ranger (Skirmisher and Trapper archetypes only), Unchained Rogue, Witch, Brawler, Shaman, Skald, Slayer, Swashbuckler
Ability Scores: 20 point buy, max starting score 18, min 8 (including racial bonus)
Starting Gear: Nada
Traits:Normal rules, 2, can take a drawback for RP fun, but no third trait
I’m looking for four experienced and reliable PBPers to go on an alternate history, fantasy journey with me. This game will center around the party and their quest to become rich and powerful jarls sung about by the skalds around every hall’s hearth for generations to come. The players will escape from prison, and become vikings, gaining their own ship and crew then choosing where to lead them to seek plunder. Parts of the campaign, including the beginning, are/will be adapted from the Way of the Wicked adventure path. I prefer players who haven’t played or run Way of the Wicked.
To make a submission I need a character set up in a standard (or very close to standard - Hero Lab is fine) stat block, in an alias, on the Paizo forums. Along with your stats, I need a character background (Birth, family, early life, events leading them to raid), and a physical description of the character. You should be from a late 9th century Scandinavian culture. If you have questions about the setting, please ask.
Here is an example of a properly formatted character
I plan to keep recruitment open for a week or so at least, potentially longer depending on interest or lack thereof. I reserve the right to close recruitment at any time with a 24 hour notice, if I get overwhelmed by applicants or have found several players who I feel will be a good fit. I’d prefer not to waste anyone’s time if possible.
If you have any other questions, please ask. I’m sure I’ve forgotten something, or that something is unclear.
(PS:I hate spoilers, keep that shiz to a minimum on your character sheet please.)
(Disclaimer:No offense is intended by reference to real world places, peoples or religions. This is a fantasy alternate history, and should in no way reflect upon the real world past or present. All faiths and people are equal in my opinion, and should be treated justly.)
Dot.
Very cool concept....thinking....
Woot! Great concept. I want to figure out an unchained rogue skald. Vikings need to be proficient with shields.
Did you consider background skills from unchained?
Cheers
Woot! Great concept. I want to figure out an
unchained rogueskald. Vikings need to be proficient with shields.Did you consider background skills from unchained?
Cheers
Haven't looked at them yet. I'll look into it.
Cool. I like them. We will also use background skills.
dotting...
My buddy is planning a similar earth-historical campaign for our home group's next campaign, so this intrigues me as well.
Do you have any specifics on where our characters hail beyond the broad stroke of Scandinavia? Lappland, Gotland, etc.
Considering a shaman.
ill dot but a question i don't have hero lap but i have been working on my own character sheet would you be ok with this -=character template=- i do use hyperlinks and this is an example of a completed character -=My character=-
just need to ask ^_^
Nice!
Óbjarni Redbeard, dragon skald. Crunch mostly done. Fluff in progress.
cheers
Hjalvar here, skald.
Character basically done. Wanted to ask about languages -- do you have any suggestions on which we should be picking?
Dot
I dont have a profile for him yet but here is Torstein. Profile to come.
Human (Ulfen) fighter (viking) 1 ( Pathfinder Player Companion: People of the North )
None Medium humanoid (human)
Init +2; Senses Perception -1
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Defense
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AC 12, touch 12, flat-footed 10 (+2 Dex)
hp 12 (1d10+2)
Fort +3, Ref +2, Will +0
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Offense
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Speed 30 ft.
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Statistics
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Str 20, Dex 15, Con 12, Int 10, Wis 8, Cha 7
Base Atk +1; CMB +6; CMD 18
Feats Improved Shield Bash, Power Attack, Two-weapon Fighting
Traits armor expert, indomitable faith
Skills Climb +9, Survival +3, Swim +9
Languages Common, Skald
—————
Special Abilities
—————
Armor Expert -1 Armor check penalty.
Improved Shield Bash You still get your shield bonus while using Shield Bash.
Power Attack -1/+2 You can subtract from your attack roll to add to your damage.
Do you have any specifics on where our characters hail beyond the broad stroke of Scandinavia? Lappland, Gotland, etc.
Considering a shaman.
They would mostly be from modern day Denmark and western Norway, but it doesn't really matter. Follow your preference. Hungry sea wolves from all over the North flocked to what would England in the 9th century, seeking silver, gold and glory. In this world, the northern languages are mutually intelligible and it's common for different tribes of northmen to work together when it benefits them.
ill dot but a question i don't have hero lap but i have been working on my own character sheet would you be ok with this -=character template=- i do use hyperlinks and this is an example of a completed character -=My character=-
just need to ask ^_^
If your remove all the spoiler tags and put it all together, I can work with that format I suppose.
Hjalvar here, skald.
Character basically done. Wanted to ask about languages -- do you have any suggestions on which we should be picking?
Languages will be simplified from history, because well, it's more simple that way. I've combined what would have been a long list of historical languages/dialects into a few made up ones that should be functional. The main languages of this region will be as follows:
Latin - Spoken by Romans from the western parts of the Empire. Includes written alphabet. Educated Romans will also speak Greek. (Represented by Google Translate Latin)
Greek - Spoken by Romans from the eastern Empire. Greek is the common and official language of the Second Roman Empire by this point. Includes written alphabet. (Represented by Google Translate Greek)
Proto-German - Spoken by Frisians, Sachsens and the other peoples of North and Northwestern modern day Germany. (Represented by Google Translate German)
Norse - This would include Danish, norse, geatish, etc. All the nothern european Germanic languages spoken by the people who we consider "vikings" now. Includes runic alphabet, though its rarely used or known. (Represented by Google Translate Icelandic)
Celtic - This group of languages is spoken by the Scots, Irish and Bretons. (Represented by Google Translate Irish)
Hey, a question that may be silly:
Would it be possible for me to make a pagan Scotsman who was owned by a Danish or Norse warrior as a slave and has sided with them because he hates the Romans more?
Absolutely. You can even play a secretly Christian northman/woman. Or whatever else you come up with. As long as they would plausibly be fighting for the northern "side" (not that it's organized and monolithic or anything).
The Scots are also fighting the northmen for now, but they will feature more later on in the campaign.
A note on religion - In case it's not clear, the official religion of the Empire is Christianity. The non-Roman, northern Europeans still worship the Germanic Pagan gods (Woden/Odin, Thor/Thunar, Bladur, Freya, Frigg, etc.) The native Celts (Bretons, Irish, Welsh) had their own pantheon of pagan gods before the Romans brought Christianity, and some still worship them in secret as well, though very very few at this point. Those would be gods like Cernunnos, Lugus, Ogmios, Epona, Danu, etc.
The Bretons, and Irish are majority Christian, and are allied with the Romans.
The Scots are also mainly Christian at this point, but they are a wild card out only for themselves. There are also Norse Pagan and Celtic Pagan Scots around in higher numbers than amongst the Bretons and Irish.
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Hey, a question that may be silly:
Would it be possible for me to make a pagan Scotsman who was owned by a Danish or Norse warrior as a slave and has sided with them because he hates the Romans more?
Absolutely. You can even play a secretly Christian northman/woman. Or whatever else you come up with. As long as they would plausibly be fighting for the northern "side" (not that it's organized and monolithic or anything).
The Scots are also fighting the northmen for now, but they will feature more later on in the campaign.
Yay, I'll get right to work on that! :)
My submission should be essentially complete and ready for review now.
Sounds like a neat game Jelani.
Another note, while I'm thinking about it.
Weapons, armor and some other equipment may not be at the level that is the default assumption in Pathfinder. There are basically only four types of armor. Padded gambesons/jacks, leather, chain mail (shirts and full mail), and lamellar from the Romans. Metal armor outside large imperial population centers is extremely expensive and rare.
Weapons wise, the most common by far is the spear. Daggers/short swords (saexs) were also common. Amongst northern people battle axes and dane axes (great axes) were common as well. Rich warriors might have a longsword, but no larger swords existed.
The Roman soldier is typically equipped with a lance/longspear, a longsword, a large wooden shield, lamellar armor, an armored skirt, and a helmet. Soldiers on civilian duty might not have the lance, and soldiers going to war would also carry a few javelins or have archery units.
Hmm. Potentially interested; a few questions:
1. How does iterative attack removal work with combat maneuvers against multiple enemies?
2. How fast do you anticipate leveling? Most of the things that seem fun to me about such a game would not be very interesting/unique at level 1 or 2...
Hmm. Potentially interested; a few questions:
1. How does iterative attack removal work with combat maneuvers against multiple enemies?
2. How fast do you anticipate leveling? Most of the things that seem fun to me about such a game would not be very interesting/unique at level 1 or 2...
1) Most combat maneuvers cannot be used multiple times per round, those can would be treated just like core PF (using BAB to determine the number of "attacks" available to switch out for maneuvers).
2) I will be giving XP and using the normal advancement track. Though this world is essentially an E10ish world. There are certainly no mortal creatures with more than 10 class levels, period. Most of the world is level 3 or lower. See Calibrating Your Expectations
My submission should be essentially complete and ready for review now.
Sounds like a neat game Jelani.
Fluff wise, the first thing that strikes me is his age. 30 was considered old back then, and you're probably only a few years from death. If that's what you're going for, fine, but most warriors would have been 16-25
Secondly, they didn't have books. He could recite the sagas rather than tomes, etc. They used the books they stole from Christian monasteries for wiping their bums and starting fires. Books and reading were a foreign concept to the viking peoples.
I like the betrayal of the gods, and hair white thing a lot. People probably call you a child of Loki or something like that.
The only other thing I would change is another minor detail. There's no uniforms or army per say, no kings (except local warlords who claim the title), the populations are very low. So...when he went to England it would have been as a Huscarl. A household warrior for a Jarl who had ships. I will make a separate post about that, to make sure everyone's on the same page. Anyway, change those little details and you're set. Good work :)
Another note:
All the PCs were part of the same raid. You all sailed under a great Jarl called Ubba Lothbrok, the last living son of a former king called Rangar Lothbrok. He sent out a general call for warriors, offering silver and slaves as a reward for service. Your Jarls had ships and pledged loyalty to Ubba, bringing you with them to Brittania. Ubba was killed in the battle where you were captured, putting an end to the final living son of Ragnar, and the last living commander of the Great Heathen Army that had been ravaging Brittania for the past thirty odd years. You all were huscarls (household soldiers) to one of Ubba's Jarls. So you don't necessarily know each other (probably don't), but you all fought under Ubba, and all got captured at the same time.
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She still needs her familiar and a backstory but I present what I have so far. Still trying to figure out a really good familiar.
Shes quite used to getting what she wants so this whole imprisonment thing will probably have her in a particularly foul mood!
Astrid
Female Human Dark Sister (Witch) 1
Medium humanoid (human)
Init +0; Senses Perception +2
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DEFENSE
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AC 14, touch 10, flat-footed 14 (+0 Dex, +4 Armor*)
HP 8 [6(Lvl1) +1(Con) +1FCB]
Fort +1, Ref +0, Will +3
*With Mage Armor Cast
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OFFENSE
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Speed: 30 ft
Melee: none
Ranged: none
Special:
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MAGIC
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Witch Spells Known (CL 1st; concentration +4)
1st (2/day) DC 14, 15(Enchantment or Mind Affecting vs Human), 16(Enchantment and Mind Affecting vs Human)—
Bungle, Unseen Servant*, Cure Light Wounds, Charm Person, Hypnotize*, and Mage Armor
0 (3/Day at will) DC 13, 14(Enchantment or vs Mind Affecting Human), 15(Enchantment and Mind Affecting vs Human) —
Arcane Mark, Bleed, Dancing Lights*, Daze, Detect Magic, Detect Poison, Guidance, Light, Mending*, Message, Putrefy Food and Drink, Read Magic, Resistance*, Spark, Stabilize, and Touch of Fatigue
*Indicates her 'default' prepared spells for the day
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STATISTICS
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Str 8, Dex 10, Con 12, Int 19, Wis 12, Cha 14
Base Atk +0; CMB -1; CMD 9
Feats:
Spell Focus (Enchantment) ( +1 DC Enchantment Spells )
Fast Learner (Additional(different) Favored Class Bonus)
Traits:
Overwhelming Beauty
+1 DC of Mind Affecting Effects against Humans
Fast Talker
+1 Bluff, Bluff is a Class Skill
Hedonistic
You are a creature of pleasure and comfort. Whenever you spend a day without gaining reward or treasure (at least 10 or more gold pieces) or spending an hour on entertainment or pleasure, attempt a DC 20 Fortitude save at the end of that day. If you fail, you begin the next day fatigued. This fatigue lasts 4 hours, or until you receive a reward or suff icient entertainment or pleasure.
Skills
Diplomacy - 1 Rank, 2 Cha | +3 Total
Bluff - 1 Rank, 1 Trait, 2 Cha, 3 Class | +7 Total
Perception- 1 Rank, 1 Wis | +2 Total
Knowledge (arcana) - 1 Rank, 3 Int, 3 Class | +7 Total
Knowledge (history) - 1 Rank, 3 Int, 3 Class | +7 Total
Spellcraft - 1 Rank, 3 Int, 3 Class | +7 Total
Sense Motive - 1 Rank, 1 Wis | +2 Total
Total ACP: 0 [n/a]
Languages:
Norse, Proto-German, Celtic, Latin
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GEAR
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-Armor:
-Weapons:
-Misc: none
-MONEY: none
Tracked Resources:
none
Weight Loads 26/053/080
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Special Abilities
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Discord Hex (Su) | DC: 13(14 vs Humans)
The witch can make an animal or humanoid within 30 feet distrust another creature within line of sight. The target's attitude toward the other creature decreases by one step. A successful Will save negates this effect. The effect lasts for a number of rounds equal to the witch's Intelligence modifier. The duration can be extended with the cackle hex. Whether or not the save is successful, a creature cannot be the target of this hex again for 1 day. At 8th level, this effect decreases the attitude of the target creature by two steps.This is a mind-affecting charm effect.
Familiar (WIP)
Patron: Trickery(Modified by Dark Sister)
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Backstory:
(WIP)
Since classes like Witch, Shaman, and Skald exist how prevalent is magic/knowledge of magic in the world? I know it does say 'low magic' in the thread title but sometimes people have different definitions of what constitutes 'low magic'.
Very low. Think Lord of the Rings, Game of Thrones, and Robert E. Howard's Conan the Barbarian stories. Magic is definitely out there, and everyone knows it's real, but normal peasants only have a vague idea how it works. Mythical creatures are rare around human settlements, but commonish in the wilderness. Most magic people know about is divination magic, healing magic and curses.
Christian Saints (ppl with Cleric levels) are out there who can do miracles, and there are even a few holy warriors for christ (paladin levels). But that kind of magic is very rare in the North, and is basically unknown amongst pagans.
Submitting Sonja. I would like to speak with you some regarding her background though, before typing anything up.
Here is the updated Torstein. I realized that his stats were off and fixed that.
Very interesting concept.
Ranger (Skirmisher and Trapper archetypes only)
When you say these two only, do you mean exactly that, or are other archetypes that stack with those archetypes acceptable, as long as they produce a spell-less ranger? I'd like to create a seafaring ranger, and the freebooter ranger meshes well with the campaign setting, I think.
If that is not possible, how will you be treating favored enemy? I assume if I take favored enemy: humanoid (human) that's probably a bit too broad for this setting? If FE: humanoid (human) is too broad, would something like favored enemy: humanoid (Roman) be acceptable?
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Here is the crunch for my submission. I think I have followed the rules you asked for, but I have not read all the new rules from unchained, so will need to pick up some of those on the go..
Herger
Male human fighter (two-handed fighter) 1 (Pathfinder RPG Advanced Player's Guide 108)
None Medium humanoid (human)
Init +3; Senses Perception +0
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Defense
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AC 11, touch 11, flat-footed 10 (+1 Dex)
hp 16 (1d10+6)
Fort +4, Ref +1, Will +0
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Offense
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Speed 30 ft.
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Statistics
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Str 18, Dex 12, Con 14, Int 12, Wis 10, Cha 11
Base Atk +1; CMB +5; CMD 16
Feats Combat Stamina, Toughness, Two-handed Thrower[UC], Weapon Focus (greataxe)
Traits savage, wary of danger
Skills Climb +8, Intimidate +4, Knowledge (nature) +6, Survival +4 (+5 to get along in the wild)
Languages Custom Language
SQ two-handed thrower, weapon focus
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Special Abilities
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Savage +1 to Survival checks to get along in the wild.
Two-Handed Thrower Gain Str bonus when using two hands to throw a one or two-handed weapon
Two-Handed Thrower [Combat Trick] 2 stamina points to add double strength to two-handed throw.
Weapon Focus [Combat Trick] 2 stamina points to gain Weapon Focus bonus on another weapon for 1 rd.
Very interesting concept.
Ranger (Skirmisher and Trapper archetypes only)When you say these two only, do you mean exactly that, or are other archetypes that stack with those archetypes acceptable, as long as they produce a spell-less ranger? I'd like to create a seafaring ranger, and the freebooter ranger meshes well with the campaign setting, I think.
If that is not possible, how will you be treating favored enemy? I assume if I take favored enemy: humanoid (human) that's probably a bit too broad for this setting? If FE: humanoid (human) is too broad, would something like favored enemy: humanoid (Roman) be acceptable?
Yeah, as long as you end up with a spell-less ranger and follow archetype stacking rules, that's okay. Favored enemy I was waiting for someone to ask about, but yes it will work off nationalities for humanoids. Here is a brief list of types that might be useful during the game depending on where you guys take things:
Romans, Scots, Bretons, Fey, Giants, Undead, Dragons, Northmen
It's highly unlikely that you will be facing other types of enemies in significant numbers.
Everyone remember, to consider your character complete, you need stats and a character background, and a description in it's own alias. If you're one of the people who are worried about alias bloat if you don't get accepted, just don't post with the new alias. You can edit or delete it later as long as you haven't made 10 posts with it yet.
I forgot to mention, no magic item creation feats are available. That includes stuff like scribe scroll or brew potion. If you would get an item creation feat as a bonus feat from your class, PM me and I'll give you an alternate bonus feat. Magic items in this setting are extremely rare, and almost all unique.
Submitting Sonja. I would like to speak with you some regarding her background though, before typing anything up.
PM me whatever questions you have, please.
Submitting Sonja. I would like to speak with you some regarding her background though, before typing anything up.PM me whatever questions you have, please.
PM sent.
-Backstory updated per DM's suggestions
-Background skills updated
I should be solid now.
Here are some more notes about the history of the time:
Article about the use of arm rings in norse/anglo culture at the time (Keep in mind the Angles and Saxons never moved to England in this timeline, they are still on the continent, kinda mixed in with the other Germanic peoples)
The Second Roman Empire is the product of Justinian's campaigns. The first Roman Empire collapsed in the West in the 5th century, just like in real world history. Except in our timeline, Justinian's renovatio imperii was much more successful. With the aid of a powerful angel sent by the Christian God, Justinian was able to live much longer, in much better health, and have more military success. He fully restored the empire to it's largest past borders, and then some. He still passed away, but not until 650 AD. After his death, the angel departed Earth. Justinian's successors have managed to hold the Empire together until the time that the game takes place, though under the pressures listed in the original post.
-Backstory updated per DM's suggestions
-Background skills updatedI should be solid now.
Great, thanks :)
Hjalvar, Bard of the North - Zedth
Ok, I think I have everything...please check and get back to me if I need to make changes. Thanks!!
oh, this is Daniel Stewart's submission...
Ok, I think I have everything...please check and get back to me if I need to make changes. Thanks!!
oh, this is Daniel Stewart's submission...
You are missing background skills, a backstory, and a description.