
DM Ayrphish |

This forum will be for out of character discussion concerning the Dragon Empire game.
Congratulations on being chosen to play. There were many great applications, and more than a few great characters will be retired prematurely.
If you were chosen to be one of the players, please do a couple of things for me, if you haven't already, and let me know when you are ready to begin.
First, please create an alias or character that you can use to post in the gameplay forum. Use that and just make a post here letting me know that you are aware you were selected, that you want you spot, you intend to play, etc.
Once you have done that please make sure that you edit the information for that character to show all of its pertinent information. I.e. ability scores, attacks, saves, spells, etc etc. This will require that you also 'finalize' a character sheet and background. Please do not make major changes to your character, as you were chosen on the merits of what you initially posted in the recruitment thread, and changing now would be unfair to those who were not selected.
Once that is all complete, please post here, as your character, letting me know that you are ready to begin. Once everyone has checked in and is ready, I will create the first post in the gameplay forum.
I would like to make that post on Thursday or Friday, so please try to finish up your character.
Congratulations again, I hope you enjoy the ride.

Chkaia Linthel |

I will post the stats in the profile immediately.
Before we get any further, I thought I would ask this, as it has been nagging at me. The tengu ability says that a tengu is proficient with swordlike weapons, but it does not say martial or simple only, so I am assuming that it was intended that tengu would be proficient with exotic swordlike weapons (much as Elves, Dwarves, and Orcs are proficient with exotic weapons with the race names in them). However, I stand ready to be corrected if that is overpowering.

Mark Sweetman |

Many thanks for the selection Ayrphish - I'm veritably giddy with excitement.
For any concerned - Kenta Gushiken will not be a stick in the mud type Paladin. He will be a bastion for law and good - but in understanding the tao of yin and yang he understands their co-dependency. While under the employ of Grandmother he will be as the eye of the yin - the white spot surrounded by blackness, attempting to ensure that the light is never extinguished, but also knowing that one man cannot change a nation on his own.
As far as group role - he's built as a Diplomatic Tank. Heavy hitting and will be heavily armored and hopefully able to take some licks and keep on ticking.
I've copied across my notes so they're easy for me to pull out as I put him together. As it's 2 AM my time (GMT +8) and I've still got some work to finish - I'll polish him off and profile him up tomorrow.
Discovered the next morning, he was told to go home - but refused. Following the aasimar across country the nagaji was not given succor, but also felt a primal and spiritual need that this was his journey to take. Managing to follow the aasimar all the way back to his home - a small monastery in Southern Hwanggot that served in worship of two masters - the sun goddess Shizuru and the moon God Tsukiyo. At that point the aasimar welcomed him to the monastery and nursed the malnourished nagaji back to health.
While convalescing the aasimar taught him their ways. Their worship was embodied in the passage from day to night and then from night to day - both dusk and dawn revered in their own ways. Dusk symbolizes the potential for man to descend into darkness, while Dawn shows that it is also possible for men to be saved from the pit.
When he was strong enough, he was also taught the ways of their weaponry. Both restraint and brutal assault taught in equal measure. Training hard he began to master the ways of tinbe-rochin (the spear and shield), sansetkuton (the staff of three) and the surujin (meteor hammer).
The monastery was also looked to as a bastion of reason within the area, and villagers often brought their grievances to the monks within. The nagaji watched the exchanges and read the subtlety of the words and fairness of the decisions offered. While not active in the debate at that time, he nevertheless learned much.
After two hands of years, he was deemed ready to venture forth from the monastery. He was sent forth to live and feel both the good and evil of the world so that he might come back to the monastery enlightened. As he left the masters also gifted him with his name, Kenta Gushiken. Kenta for strength, and Gushiken after the aasimar that led his calling.
Troubles brewing in the North between Hwanggot and Bachuan, Kenta crossed the border and came upon the village of Yaksha. Befriending a farmer, he bartered labor for the price of a bed and meals before slowly exploring the town. Soon after his arrival he receives a summons... he is to attend the Hidden Tiger and is led to believe that to refuse the summons would be unwise. Gathering himself he ventures to the inn... unsure if he if the experience will bathe him in yin or yang...
Traits: Altruistic Diplomat (Hwanggot); Weapon Proficiency (Meteor Hammer)
Skills: Diplomacy
Feats: Power Attack
Languages: Tien and Nagaji
Gear: (175gp)
Horn Lamellar Armor (100), Sansetkuton (8gp), Meteor Hammer (10 gp), Shortspear (1gp), Heavy Bone Shield (Turtle Shell) (7gp)

DM Ayrphish |

I will post the stats in the profile immediately.
Before we get any further, I thought I would ask this, as it has been nagging at me. The tengu ability says that a tengu is proficient with swordlike weapons, but it does not say martial or simple only, so I am assuming that it was intended that tengu would be proficient with exotic swordlike weapons (much as Elves, Dwarves, and Orcs are proficient with exotic weapons with the race names in them). However, I stand ready to be corrected if that is overpowering.
I agree with your interpretation. "Swordlike" is very vague, for better or worse lol.

DM Ayrphish |

@Tan, everything looks fine to me.
@Chkaia The summons to the bar, probably more ceremonial. For the next day's journey... thats up to you, you do know it will entail some travel. Guava probably doesn't care if you are armed or not, he thinks you're rather expendable, as he will expand upon at sunrise.

Bai-yin Dao |

So let me see if I've got this right. Our party consists of:
Chkaia Linthel Tengu Cleric of ?
Tan Jianguo Human Town Drunk
Kenta Gushiken Nagaji Paladin
Kenji Masada Human Samurai (Sword-Saint)
Bai-Yin Dao Human Fighter (Free-Hand)
That...is alot of melee. Although I dig how it doesn't look like we're stepping on each other's toes in fighting styles. This looks to be interesting.

Tan Jianguo |

Just in case it wasn't necessarily clear from my character sheet, the idea is that my quarterstaff is my oar. I just paid for both (in both gold and pounds) and just called them the same thing.
(Memo to self: work out a way to throw "Catch Off-Guard" into my feat progression...)
In other news, I'm the group's sneaky skill guy! Woohoo! No, I don't disarm traps...

DM Ayrphish |

Go ahead and take it, Bao. It would be a dick move to ask for the position back. All I ask is, however, let me know if a player drops. I am still proud of the work I put into this character. :)
I am as well. The concept is very impressive. Consider yourself on team blue for now, and I will keep you posted.
Thanks for cooperating with everyone on this.

Shanosuke |

I want to start off by saying thank you so much for this opportunity to play. I am really looking forward to running this bad boy.
I have a lot of RP to catch up on already but am at work posting from my phone. When I get home I will whip up my Alias and laydown a nice bit of RP in response to the selection process.
Since I kind of missed the punch, I will put that part of RP in a spoiler on our gameplay thread in additon to my Current RP. Mostly for flavor. I look forward to playing with you all in this.
Now just a few things to point out. In Kenji's backstory it says he is for the rebels. But you just had to bring destiny into this, so now he's gonna be very conflicted. Great, you just had to mess with my overly impressionable and unstable boy's head. If it is his "destiny" to serve the grandmother, he will not argue with an obvious show of purpose.
Oh well. I am going to play him out with the personality I intended and thats just how it will fit in. Can't wait to see where this goes.

Chkaia Linthel |

A few notes...
One, after adding up all my carried weight, I've discovered that Chkaia is encumbered with a medium weight. I thought I could escape that with the special leather lamellar, but it didn't work. :P So, his speed is 20 ft. (-3 armor check penalty), etc.
Two, I have a link to a better picture of Chkaia in my profile. (No Tengu love in the available profile pictures here.)
Three, DM, Would you allow the Mystery of the Gods feat from 3PP, 4 Winds Fantasy Gaming, Ways of Power
You gain access to one of the domains of your patron
deity.
Prerequisite: Ability to cast 3rd level divine spells.
Benefit: You gain access to a domain listed under the
description of your patron deity. This is an extra domain
in addition to any already chosen. For characters other
than clerics, use the character’s divine spellcaster class
levels to determine level for purposes of gaining domain
powers. This feat may be taken only once.
Of course, Chkaia doesn't have a patron deity, but it would allow access to a third (and final) cleric domain.

Kenta Gushiken |

Just a quick FYI - I'll be out of town and away from the internet for about 48 hours from the time of this post. Disappearing into the suburbs for the weekend.
Please take any DMPC actions required to keep things moving along.
Kenta would not support forcing these guys to return. The best idea he has currently is taking their patches back to get the bounty on them splash a bit of blood on them and say we found them dead and the goods were gone.

Kenji Masada |

Keeping ma fingers crossed. I know Kenta said he'd be out of town for a couple of days.
I keep a strong philosophy of optimism though being in 15 campaigns that have died shakes the faith a little.
Got one that is going real strong though. We all at level six in that one and closing in on level seven soon. Real exciting.