DMDM's Wrath of the Righteous (Inactive)

Game Master Douglas Muir 406

Player's Guide: There is a Player's Guide for this AP, and you can download it for free right here. It is not mandatory but is recommended.

Stats: 15 point buy.

Starting level and hp: 1st level. Max hp on the die at 1st, roll thereafter.

Race: All races are allowed, but if you're playing something weird you'd better have a good explanation. The setting is majority human.

Alignment: Any nonevil.

Classes and builds: All base and core classes except summoners. Be aware that while I am perfectly happy to see you optimize your characters, cheese is discouraged and minmaxing may prove counterproductive. The goal is not to build towards a ragelancepounce barbarian who can deal 3000 dpr. The goal is to have a game that's fun and interesting. Think fun and interesting.

Equipment: Standard 1st level. You may roll for gp or take the average, as you please.

Traits: You get two traits. It is recommended (though not required) that one of them be a trait from the WotR Players Guide. No drawbacks.

Setting: Assume the setting is default Golarion.

Mythic rules: I haven't decided, but I'm leaning towards "no". As you may know, this AP uses the Mythic rules, but they don't kick in until the end of the first AP. I have no idea if we'll reach that point. And if we do, experience shows that it takes an average PBP group at least six months and more typically about a year to finish a module. So we'll cross that bridge when/if we come to it. Some people absolutely adore the Mythic rules, while others say they turn the game into rocket tag. Let's not get into that. For now, just design your character as if there was no such thing as Mythic rules.

Backstory: Give us some backstory, broadly defined. It doesn't have to be personal history per se, but tell us something about the character. Be interesting.

Not gonna lie: spelling, grammar and presentation all matter. We may be locked in a small virtual room with each other for months. If you write that demons killed your character's parents by "burning they're house down", well, I just know that over time that sort of thing is going to drive me slowly nuts. Sorry. (N.B., if you're not a native English speaker, say so -- that's different.)

We're going to be WRITING for each other's entertainment. So show me what you've got!

Character description: Give us a brief outline of your character's personality and motivations. Likes, dislikes, fears, loves, what have you. Again, here's your chance to make it interesting.

3PP: Nope. Paizo stuff only. Yes, there's some great 3PP stuff, but I just don't have time to review new races and classes and whatnot.

I think that covers the high points. Come Monday, I'll decide among the submissions based on character ideas, backgrounds, general presentation, and how interested/engaged you seem. Well-written, interesting character descriptions and backstories are likely to catch my interest.

A huge, imposing figure covered in armor from head to foot, he carries a polished shield bearing a black rose. He speaks seldom in a deep, chilling voice that sends shivers up the spine of even the boldest knights.

Beneath the armor:
Height: 6'7"
Weight: 245#
Eyes: Red
Skin: Black
Hair: None
Once he takes off the helmet, you see a horrific black-scaled monster. Gleaming white fangs, small horns, glowing red eyes and pointed, serrated ears make him seem almost a full demon.

His mother Kale caused the cracking of the Kenabres Wardstone.

At least, that is the way she tells it. Before the first attacks, she was merely one of a squad of soldiers assigned to routine duty in the city. With nothing much to do most of them spent a lot of time in the local tavern, which is where she met Arvoris. A fairly good-looking young blacksmith come to trade from a neighboring village, she started spending a lot of time with him. He asked her endless questions about her and the exciting life of a soldier, and she enjoyed the attention.

Until the attack began.

With the cracking of the Wardstone, Demons began the assault , a screaming horde ready to claim all Golarian as their own. The crusaders fought bravely but were barely holding the line. After a disasterous battle on the front where she had seen almost her whole squad killed, she and a ragged group retreated back through the city. She rushed to find her lover. When she told him he had to flee, he laughed.

And then he changed.

He was not a simple craftsman but an advance scout for the Demonic Horde. And she had provided so much valuable information! Tears in her eyes, she could not believe it. She had used her Sight on him, seen no sign of evil! He grinned and raised an amulet with strange markings on it, taunting her. She rushed him with sword raised, but he teleported away, his laughter still ringing in her ears. She changed after that. Before, she had been a devotee of Shelyn, finding beauty in everything and a firm believer that anyone could find redemption. Now, she rushed into battle and fiercely attacked the enemy with no regard for her own life. Slowly, they managed to turn the tide and reclaim the city. The Wardstone held and she joined the new crusade to push the demons further back.

Until she discovered she was pregnant.

She knew once the child was born everyone would know of her shame and betrayal, so she fled. She settled in Ustalav, kept to herself and raised the demon-child for the rest of her life. She poured all her bitterness, rage, and hate for all demons into her son and trained him to kill as soon as he could hold a sword. But she also had the wisdom to try to make him understand that he was not to blame for what he was. Through his actions, he could overcome the stain of sin left on him by both his father and herself. He took to wearing full armor as often as he could, so as to hide his horrific visage. He still rarely removes it except when alone.

But it was not all lessons about demons and training. His fondest memories are of the times when, after a long day his mother would sing to him. She had a voice that would make the goddess Shelyn herself stop and listen! She would also sometimes talk about the family she left behind, her brother Kal who as far as she knew was still fighting in Kenabres.

Last year, he returned from a trip to pick up the weapon he would need in his fight to find her dead, with a skeletal grey-skinned demon standing over her. The fiend dropped something on her body and vanished before he was able to reach them. He vowed then to destroy all demons, and to find out why she had been singled out for such misery. He still holds the strange amulet dropped by the demon, but he has not yet found someone who can tell him the meaning of the runes carved into it.

Now he has arrived in Kenabres, biding his time training in a crusader camp outside the city, ready to kill his Father and any other demon that gets in his way...

Loric Solnebren
Male human rogue (sanctified rogue) 1
LN Medium humanoid (human)
Init +3; Senses Perception +4
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Defense
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AC 16, touch 13, flat-footed 13 (+3 armor, +3 Dex)
hp 10 (1d8+2)
Fort +1, Ref +5 (+6 vs. traps), Will +0
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Offense
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Spd 30 ft.
Melee short sword +3 (1d6+1/19–20), dagger +3 (1d4+1/19–20)
Ranged shortbow +3 (1d6/x3), dagger +3 (1d4+1/19–20)
Special Attacks sneak attack +1d6
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Statistics
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Str 13, Dex 16, Con 12, Int 14, Wis 10, Cha 13
Base Atk +0; CMB +1; CMD 14
Feats Weapon Finesse
Traits Child of the Crusade, Child of the Temple
Skills Acrobatics +4, Bluff +5, Climb +2, Disable Device +6 (+7 vs. traps), Disguise +5, Knowledge (local) +6, Knowledge (religion) +7, Perception +4, Sleight of Hand +4, Stealth +4
Languages Abyssal, Celestial, Common
SQ child of the temple, dual talent, trapfinding +1
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Gear
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Studded leather armor, short sword, dagger, shortbow w/ 20 arrows, backpack, bedroll, belt pouch, flint and steel, thieves' tools, trail rations (5 days), traveler’s outfit, waterskin, whetstone, winter blanket, wooden holy symbol, 42 gp, 8 sp, 8 cp
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Special Abilities
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Child of the Crusade (Ex) Several generations of Loric's family have served in the crusades, and the righteousness of their cause sometimes feels like it runs in his very blood, hardening him against demonic influence. He's heard many tales of their bravery, and his strong family ties bolster his mind and sense of belonging to the crusade. Once per day when he fails a saving throw against an effect created by a demon which would possess or mentally incapacitate him, he may immediately reroll that saving throw as a free action. He must take the second result, even if it is worse.

Child of the Temple (Ex) Loric has long served at a temple in a large city, picking up on many of the nobility's customs while also spending many hours in the temple libraries studying his faith. As a result, he gains a +1 trait bonus on Knowledge (nobility) and Knowledge (religion) checks, and Knowledge (religion) is always a class skill for him.

Dual Talent (Ex) Loric’s family has always excelled at maximizing their natural gifts. Unlike a typical human, he picks two ability scores to gain a +2 racial bonus. This human racial trait replaces the normal +2 bonus to any single ability score, the bonus feat for being a human, and the skilled trait.

Step 1: Six Concepts Important to Loric
1) The youngest son of a noble family in Taldor, Loric comes from a long tradition of serving in the crusades. He and his brother both sought to honor their ancestors by joining the holy templars of Iomedae and marching to war in the Worldwound. While there, they expected to distinguish themselves so one of them could gain their father's blessing and inherit the family's holdings upon his passing. Yet, the templars chose only his brother to join their ranks, and Loric's exclusion caused a jealous rift between them.

2) Forced to watch his sibling march north three years ago, Loric turned to alternate methods in an effort to follow and upstage him. The young noble built his social circle and practiced the 'game' of Taldoran politics, involving himself in all the intrigues that entails.

3) Eventually, he the eye of the declining priesthood of Aroden, the dead god of humanity. A once powerful force in containing the rise of demon cults in the north, the organization no longer has the resources to raise hosts and wage war. Instead, they rely on more subtle methods to aid the Crusades. The Church recognized his useful, if somewhat morally ambiguous, talents and gladly welcomed and sponsored Loric, sending him to the front lines as their sanctified agent.

4) Once he reached the front lines, Loric established himself as a member of an exclusive and secretive group of spies and operatives working to safeguard the sanctity of crusade. Prepared to cull anyone who falters in their devotion—or who succumbs to demonic temptation — he keeps a watchful eye for enemies both within and beyond the crusader ranks.

5) At times, this role puts him in contention with his brother. The two have reached an uneasy truce at best, keeping a watchful eye on one another as they carry out their respective duties. At the same time, Loric is still beholden to his sponsors within the church of Aroden. Though he has his own reasons for fighting in the Worldwound, Loric's masters occasionally assign him missions, as well — mostly to seek out and return various artifacts, insights, and lore linked to their god. While these assignments certainly help the crusade, they're also meant to increase the prominence of their faith back to the heights it once knew.

6) Loric wears stylish, dark gray, studded leather armor provided by the church, overlaid by a black tabard with gold trim depicting a downward-pointed longsword on his chest and a single, four-pointed star to its left. His weapons include a double-edge shortsword, dagger, and shortbow with a full quiver of arrows. He's tall and agile with sharp muscle definition honed through combat and rigorous exercise. His hair is dark and shoulder-length, but his face remains clean-shaven. At the age of 19, he stands 5-feet, 11-inches tall and weighs 170 lbs.

Step 2: Three Goals for Loric to Achieve

1) Loric’s association with Aroden's church puts him at odds with some crusaders. Those who honor his faith's history of combating demon cults openly accept his involvement, while others view his presence among them with curiosity and distrust — believing his faith should have turned to the Iomedae when she welcomed his clergy into her fold. No one feels this more strongly than Loric’s own brother and their differing opinions have led to no small amount of arguments and tension between them. I've left the identity of Loric's brother some what vague, as I think the conflict there could achieve maximum impact if it were another player. If you wish, I could flesh this out better.

2) Part of Loric’s charge as a sanctified rogue for his sect of the Aroden's church should involve secret assignments, meetings, and messages outside the normal chain of command. While these activities mostly focus on feeding information back to his superiors, there’s also an element of spying on his fellow crusaders and carrying out tasks which the more pious paladins and inquisitors might otherwise consider forbidden. Though this role puts him at odds with some of his fellow companions, he always believes the ends justify the means, and he serves his distant masters with the same unquestioned zeal as a devout paladin.

3) Aside from the normal tasks of a crusader, Loric’s priesthood may also assign him tasks to retrieve ancient relics and divine magic associated with the Aroden. These items could help the crusade, but might also shore up his temple's declining influence in the absence of their deceased god.

Step 3: Two Secrets for Loric, One He Knows and One He Does Not

1) While participating in the intrigues of Taldor's capital, Oppara, Loric was set upon by a masked assassin. A struggle ensued, and the attacker was thrown down a set of stairs. Removing the dead man's mask, Loric was horrified to see that it had been a former friend of his. He covered up the death and renounced political life, seeking the duty of the church as a useful avenue for his talents.

2) Loric's failure to be selected by the templars was not entirely his doing. His father, ever favoring his elder brother and resenting Loric's less honorable path, pulled strings to ensure that Loric would never join the prestigious order.

Step 4: Three People Loric has Relationships With

1) His Brother - Loric and his brother grew up close, always thinking that they would be serving together as templars. That bond has been tested, and strained, in a number of ways since then, but they remain blood. It would take much for Loric to turn on his brother.

2) Mather Kendall, his handler - A cleric of the Last Azlanti, Mather is Loric's connection to the rest of the church in the outside world. Although Kendall looks out for Loric as best he can, he sometimes loses sight of Loric's safety when it comes to missions of importance within the church.

3) Shepherd Adlem, rogue mage - A relatively inexperienced mage once loyal to the Crusade. The demonic corruption of his lover drove the young man to recklessly search for magic capable of curing her. To this end, he taps into forbidden magic and often steals and damages the magical research of other mages. So far, he has managed to elude Loric with a surprising amount of luck.

Step 5: Three Memories, Mannerisms, or Quirks Unique to Loric

1) Loric has a quiet, focused demeanor about him, as if judging those around him while calculating his odds and next steps for engaging them (whether verbally or in battle). He's a man of action and his poised body posture belies that to anyone with the good judgment to notice.

2) He takes an active interest in circumstances others may miss, ever watchful for demonic aggression as well as corruption and betrayal from within the crusader ranks. Studious and always prepared, he prides himself on making a difference in ways others can't, working outside the chain of command, if necessary, and asking forgiveness later.

3) Despite this, his formerly rakish nature sometimes shines through, particularly with a love for the finer things in life: comfort, food & drink, and most of all, women.

Half-orcs from jungles are often protected by elaborate tattoos that redirect demonic magic. Jungle half-orcs with this racial trait gain spell resistance against divine magic equal to 6 + their level. Additionally, divine spells cast on them by demon worshipers have a 10% chance of failure. This racial trait replaces the orc ferocity racial trait.

Background The last egg of the brood finally shook and cracked, yielding forth a scrawny, lanky whelp of a hatchling. It’s mottled, pale gray scales lacked the signs of any great draconic bloodline. The matrons looked on in disgust as it tried to clamber out of the pack. A larger, black scaled hatchling swatted the whelp down and pounced on top of it, going in for its next meal. Surprisingly the whelp threw the black-scale off it and, snapping out with it’s own jaw, tore a large chunk out of its would-be assailant. This one had a strength to it after all.

The Stonefangs valued strength and greed, and so the whelp was raised among his kin. Xidhal grew quickly, exhibiting a strength rare among the kobolds. At five years the small nubs normally seen on a broodling were instead already three inches long and growing sharp. Xildhal’s jaw continued to elongate, yet still its scales remained pale and gray. As other broodlings wrestled and fought for each shell, bone and coin, he often wandered to the side, shying away from the rest of its kin. He had little passion for the fighting, and lacked much of the knack for traps and mechanics the others exhibited. While not shunned by his Tribe, Xidhal had few friends, for the ideals that they espoused held little desire for him, though he knew not why.

Approaching his tenth year, Xidhal was sent to face the broodling’s final challenge before full admission into the tribe - the journey to the Hall of the Undying. The Halls were in fact a grand chamber in the Darklands where it was rumored dragons went for ‘the long rest’. A warrior was expected to return with a bone recovered from there, which would be added to the chief’s throne. While there, several of Xidhal’s broodmates snuck up behind him and ganging up on him cast him from a cliff down into the boneyard below. One of the bones thrust up through his chest, and as he felt the blood flowing out of his body, the others abandoned him.

Yet something happened. The pain turned to warmth, and a strange energy flowed into his body. A moment, a vision, a call. The bone had belonged to an ancient silver dragon that had been mortally wounded during the First Crusade and had come under the mountain to pass. And thus Xidhal was exposed to the great battle between good and evil, the horrors of the Worldwound, and the teachings of Apsu.

And in that moment he felt a power erupt. His muscles grew further, his horns stretched longer, and his mottled, gray scales erupted in a shiny, silver sheen. As Xidhal stood, he slowly pulled the bone from his chest, yet no more blood came. And as he did, he heard a name, "Xill".

Traveling through tunnels he did not know toward something he could not see, Xidhal trusted the voice in his heart. It drew him further and further toward his calling, his crusade. He knew he would join those fighting the evil of the Abyss. Stumbling to an old ruin, he found the remains of a half-ling adorned in chain shirt, and from its possessions Xidhal recovered a well made short bow and a stout spear.

The next morning as he awoke, Xildhal found a strange silver dragonkin kneeling at his feet, waiting excitedly. It had a unique rune on its forehead, and at the same moment he felt a warmth on is own. Holding up his hand to the small silver dragon. And then he heard it again, "Xill".

And so he and Xill emerged from the Darklands and looked to the north, toward the strange clouds that hang hauntingly above the Worldwound. Not knowing what was ahead. Traveling north, they came across a company of knights destined for the distant city of Kenabres. The warrors of Iomedae were intrigued by the shimmering young kobold and his companion, and took the pair as a sign of providence. They told Xildhal of the great wyrm Terendelev, equipped him with armor, and even fashioned a saddle for his companion.

Thus Xildhal arrived in Kenabres, riding at the front of Knights of the Regal Blade, serving as their squire and mascot, with the desire to serve the Crusade, uphold the teachings of Apsu, fight the evils of the Abyss, and one day perhaps meet the glorious Terendelev.

Karla had the makings of a powerful warrior at birth; born to a mother and father that were co-leaders of a mercenary guild that doubled as a temple to Gorum, her training in the art of big stupid fighting began from the moment she could hold a sword. Karla took well to the IDEA of battle; she loved her god and reveled in conquest and triumph. The problem was that she was just really bad at it. Despite all the weight training in the world she only managed the strength to carry her armor and she was hopelessly incompetent at anything involving a weapon. All hope seemed lost for poor Karla, and her parents regarded her as a failure and a disgrace.

One night, after crying herself to sleep after another useless day of failing to pierce a dummy with her blade, Karla received a vision in her dreams. She saw a weak and feeble old man, his skin pulled taut over his bones; opposing him was a gigantic warrior, imposing in his black full plate. The black knight charged the old man, greatsword swung back and ready to strike with force. The old man placed a single finger on the knight's armor; the knight stopped, and the armor began to shake. In a few moments the armor collapsed, seemingly devoid of occupant. Dust flew out of the seams with the breeze, the last remains of the fallen knight.

Karla awoke the next morning, more excited than she had been in years; she knew that the dream had been of Gorum's design, a vision to tell her what she must do. Her path was to wage war not with blade in hand but with spell, to use her clerical powers not to strengthen herself but to weaken her foes.

Her parents, of course, were having none of it. To them the idea of a caster cleric was a blasphemy; fit for followers of other deities, but not for Gorum. Karla was not dissuaded. She sought to prove that her direction was blessed by Gorum's might, and to do that she journeyed to the greatest battlefield of the current era; to Mendev, to join the crusaders in their fight against the demon hordes.

Like all good clerics of Gorum, Karla is primarily motivated by victory and glory on the battlefield. She is not particularly bound to a code of ethics other than a few basic tenants she keeps for herself (for example, she believes theft is dishonorable; if you wish to take from someone, you must first make a corpse out of them like a proper lady or gentleman). She treats those she fights with as family; she will fight fiercely for a cause she does not personally put much stock in in support of a comrade in arms.