Hello all and welcome to the recruitment thread for the Curse of the Crimson Throne! This will be where we can discuss builds, group needs, and so on while waiting for everyone to check in. If you haven't seen it before one of the blogs had the "new" Player's Guide for CotCT linked here. Below I have also posted the campaign traits as they are straight from the book.
Character Creation:
Not required, but here are things that I have seen/used/done to help flesh out characters more, posted from another campaign I am running. As I said, not required, but very helpful.
1) I'd like 5+ points that capture the concept and story of the character. Doesn’t have to be more than blurbs. More are welcome, but no less than five.
2) Two goals that you'd like the character to accomplish in-game.
3) Two secrets, one the PC keeps to himself, and one kept from the PC. I'll come up with a third that both the character and player aren't aware of, in hopes of shocking surprises within the storytelling.
4) 3-5 people that are tied to your PC by blood, love, rivalry, honor, etc. I'd like at least one enemy in a set of three or four, with no more than two for a set of five.
5) Three key memories that define your character as the person they are at the time of submission.
All that is to help you and me tell a compelling story not only you, but any who read our adventure, will enjoy. If this is asking too much, let me know.
Finally, some rules of my own.
Posting expectations: I do enjoy quicker games, but I realize that with different time zones it may be tricky to pull off (Ex: I have family in an 8 hour time zone away. Between work and sleep it is difficult to catch up with them). So I ask that you post once per day Mon-Thurs minimum, and once per Fri, Sat, Sun period, even if it’s something entirely ooc. I also understand real life happens and I am more than willing to accommodate, just drop me a line about what’s up. All of that being said, my posting schedule will revolve around yours, meaning: I will post more when you guys post more. Some campaigns run smoothly at 1 post a day, others run fast where I post 3 or more times per day.
Houserule: Instant Death: This is something I have developed over time and while it comes up rarely I feel it adds to dramatic tension when it does show. If you roll a 20 on your attack, and follow with a 20 on your critical confirmation you get one more attack roll at the same bonuses. If this attack roll meets or exceeds AC the creature being attacked is instantly killed, regardless of any effect that may prevent such a thing from happening.
I use this both for and against PCs, and in the many years I’ve run using this rule (or had it adapted by my players who wanted a turn GMing) I have seen exactly 1 PC die because of it, where I have seen probably 2 dozen or so NPCs die. 8 of them were in one campaign from a Praying Mantis AC (which was later Awakened and gained Monk levels to become Mantis-Bro)
If you guys don't want this house-rule to be invoked let me know and we won't use it.
You were hardly a model citizen as a child or young adult. Your reasons for turning to a life of crime may be varied, but what matters is that you eventually fell in with a certain well-connected and notorious crime lord named Gaedren Lamm. His reputation as a snake and a treacherous scoundrel was known to you, but for reasons of your own, you chose not to turn him down when he offered you a chance to work for him. You may have assumed you were an exception, or that you’d be able to handle him, or perhaps even planned to betray him. As it worked out, though, Gaedren got the upper hand and took you down you first. You may have served time in jail, may have been beaten by his thugs and left for dead, or could simply have had your profits stolen out from under you. Whatever the cause, Gaedren wronged you, and you are eager for the chance to get revenge.
Choose one of the following benefits.
Hungry for Revenge: You’ve never forgiven Gaedren for his betrayal, and have vowed to make him pay for what he did. Whether that’s seeing him rot in jail or a shallow grave, you hope to taste vengeance someday. Whenever you deal damage with a melee weapon on a creature that is flat-footed, you gain a +1 trait bonus on the damage roll.
Reformed Criminal: You’ve given up the life of crime, and managed to talk your way out of any repercussions such as jail time or fines. You’ve told yourself that you would rather leave your past behind, yet the concept of seeing Gaedren Lamm pay for his crimes still appeals to you. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Diplomacy checks, and Diplomacy is a class skill for you.
Drug Addict
Someone you know has become addicted to shiver, a drug distilled from the venom of tropical arachnids known as dream spiders. The drug induces sleep filled with vivid dreams, during which the user’s body shakes and shivers, giving the substance its street name. You’ve always thought of shiver as a problem of the lower class, but then someone you know overdosed on the stuff. You’ve done a bit of investigating and have learned that the villain who got your friend addicted in the first place was a crime lord named Gaedren Lamm. Unfortunately, the guards seem to be focused on the bigger dealers. They don’t have time to devote many resources to what they’ve called “a bit player in a beggar’s problem.” It would seem that if Gaedren’s operation is to be stopped, it falls to you.
Choose one of the following benefits.
Addicted Friend: The addict is a friend or lover who might or might not have survived the overdose. Your research into the drug scene and local politics has given you a respectable education in street knowledge. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Knowledge (local) checks, and Knowledge (local) is a class skill for you.
Personal Addiction: You were the addict. You blame Gaedren for your brush with death and hate how his drugs are causing similar problems among other youths. Fortunately, your body recovers quickly from toxins, and you gain a +1 trait bonus on Fortitude saving throws.
Framed
Someone you know and love was accused of murder. A supposed eyewitness account from a local fisherman seemed to be enough to seal the case, but the accused had enough alibis that sentencing wasn’t immediate. Someone confronted the fisherman and discovered he was intimidated into providing false witness and forced into planting the murder weapon by the actual murderer—a local crime lord named Gaedren Lamm, whose thugs killed the fisherman before he could recant his testimony. Although this removed the key witness and resulted in the accused being set free, the stigma was enough to badly damage the accused’s reputation. If you can find Gaedren, you’re sure you can find evidence that ties him to the murder and can clear the accused’s name.
Choose one of the following benefits.
Dropout: You were the one accused of the murder. Although you were eventually freed when a friend confronted the fisherman and got the truth, the damage had been done. You were forced to leave your school or church. As a result, you were forced to self-train and promised yourself you would become better at your chosen profession despite the spurning of your peers. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Spellcraft checks, and Spellcraft is a class skill for you.
Family Honor: The person who was framed was a family member, perhaps a father or sister. You managed to trick the fisherman into revealing the truth with your skilled tongue. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Bluff checks, and Bluff is a class skill for you.
Love Lost
Someone you loved was knifed to death in a dark alley one night. You were called to the scene by the Korvosan Guard to identify the body, and as rough as that was for you, you also noticed a ring was missing from your loved one’s finger. Whoever murdered your loved one stole that ring— you’re convinced of it. You’ve done some investigation on your own and recently found the ring for sale at a local merchant’s shop. To your great frustration, you can’t yet afford the 500 gp to buy it back, but the merchant did tell you from whom he purchased the ring: a man named Gaedren Lamm. It seems likely this criminal killed your loved one, or at the very least, he knows who did. The only problem is finding him.
Choose one of the following benefits.
All Alone: The murder victim was a lover. With your lover’s death, a part of you died as well, leaving you haunted, grim, and prone to dark musings. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Intimidate checks, and Intimidate is a class skill for you.
Orphaned: The murder victim was your only surviving parent. You had to work hard to make ends meet for yourself and any siblings, and often had to scavenge for food. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Survival checks, and Survival is a class skill for you.
Missing Child
You suspect that a child you know has been abducted by Gaedren Lamm. Whatever the relationship, you’ve heard rumors about “Lamm’s Lambs,” and of how the old man uses children as pickpockets and agents for his crimes. You’ve even heard rumors that the child you’re looking for has been spotted in the marketplaces in the company of known cutpurses and pickpockets. Although the Korvosan Guard has been understanding of your plight, it has its hands full with “more important” matters these days, it seems, and has not yet been able to learn anything more about Gaedren. No one else is interested in bringing Gaedren down and rescuing his victims—that task falls to you. Yet where could the old scoundrel be hiding?
Choose one of the following benefits.
Missing Sibling: The missing child is a brother or sister. Although everyone else has given up hope, you believe your sibling still lives. Your constant search for the missing sibling has developed into great skill at rumormongering and finding out information from others. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Sense Motive checks, and Sense Motive is a class skill for you.
Missing Son or Daughter: The missing child is your own son or daughter, a niece or nephew, or a child you were charged with protecting. The child was abducted during a trip to the market or other daily event. Your stubbornness and long hours spent searching for rumors grant you a +1 trait bonus on Will saves.
Unhappy Childhood
You spent a period of time as one of Gaedren Lamm’s enslaved orphans, doing all manner of dirty work for him. Maybe you were abducted from your parent’s home or during a trip to the market. Perhaps the irresponsible matron who ruled your orphanage traded you to him in return for a desperately needed financial loan. Or perhaps you, like most of Gaedren’s slaves, were merely a child of the street who succumbed to his promise of regular meals and a roof in return for what he said would be “a little light work.” Whatever the case, you spent several years of your life as one of “Lamm’s Lambs” before escaping. You’ve nursed a grudge against the old man ever since.
Choose one of the following benefits.
Religious: Today, while on a job for Gaedren, you found a holy symbol of the god you worship, and intrigued by it, you snuck off to attend services. When Gaedren found out, he beat you to within an inch of your life and broke your holy symbol. Your faith let you block out the pain, and you escaped his control and took shelter in the church, where you spent the rest of your youth. You gain a +2 trait bonus on concentration checks and Constitution checks to stabilize at negative hit points.
Tortured: After you made one too many errors, Gaedren tortured you and left you for dead in a garbage heap. Your scars and memories have motivated you to hone your reaction speed and make you rather jumpy. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Reflex saves.
As per GM Fez's request:
Cecil Rosencrad
Male half-elf arcanist 1 (Pathfinder RPG Advanced Class Guide 8)
NG Medium humanoid (elf, human)
Init +1; Senses low-light vision; Perception +6
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Defense
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AC 11, touch 11, flat-footed 10 (+1 Dex)
hp 6 (1d6)
Fort +0, Ref +1, Will +3 (-2 vs. Charm or Compulsion effects if there's a promise of wealth or power); +2 vs. enchantments
Immune sleep
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Offense
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Speed 30 ft.
Melee spiked gauntlet -1 (1d4-1) or
. . unarmed strike -1 (1d3-1 nonlethal)
Ranged light crossbow +1 (1d8/19-20)
Special Attacks arcane reservoir (2/5), arcanist exploit (potent magic[ACG]), consume spells
Arcanist Spells Prepared (CL 1st; concentration +5)
. . 1st—mage armor, toppling magic missile
. . 0 (at will)—detect magic, mage hand, prestidigitation, ray of frost
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Statistics
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Str 8, Dex 12, Con 10, Int 18, Wis 10, Cha 14
Base Atk +0; CMB -1; CMD 10
Feats Skill Focus (Perception), Toppling Spell[UM]
Traits magic is life, magical lineage, missing child (son or daughter)
Skills Artistry (literature) +8, Knowledge (arcana) +8, Knowledge (dungeoneering) +8, Knowledge (history) +8, Knowledge (nature) +8, Knowledge (planes) +8, Perception +6, Spellcraft +8; Racial Modifiers +2 Perception
Languages Common, Draconic, Elven, Goblin, Infernal, Sylvan
SQ arcane training, elf blood, power-hungry
Other Gear crossbow bolts (10), light crossbow, spiked gauntlet, arcanist starting spellbook, backpack, bedroll, belt pouch, flint and steel, ink, inkpen, mess kit[UE], pot, soap, spell component pouch, torch (10), trail rations (5), waterskin, 88 gp
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Special Abilities
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Arcane Reservoir +2 DC or CL (5/day) (Su) Pool of points fuel exploits, or can expend to add +2 CL or DC while cast spell.
Arcane Training +1 CL for spell trigger/completion items for favored class, or use them as if 1st level.
Consume Spells (2/day) (Su) As a move action, expend a spell slot to add its spell levels to arcane reservoir.
Elf Blood Half-elves count as both elves and humans for any effect related to race.
Elven Immunities - Sleep You are immune to magic sleep effects.
Low-Light Vision See twice as far as a human in dim light, distinguishing color and detail.
Power-Hungry -2 vs. Will saves if the effect's creator promises wealth or power
Toppling Spell Spell with the force descriptor knocks targets prone.
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Cecil Rosencrad is a tall and lean half-elven man who appears quite young for his age. Handsome, he has fair skin, short but shaggy blonde hair, and a handsome nose. He has one blue eye and one green eye, both peering out from behind circular lensed spectacles.
His clothing is simple, common day fare, with a notable ink spatters on the cuffs of his sleeves. A tightly bound spellbook is kept in a leather sleeve on the back of his belt.
Though fairly attractive, he definitely has the look of someone who regularly forgets to eat, and is quite skinny and lean. He has long slender fingers and ink stains on the sides of his hands near his pinky fingers.
Cecil does not smile. Things do not amuse him, though his face does have laugh lines. Nowadays he just looks tired and vaguely upset.
1) I'd like 5+ points that capture the concept and story of the character.
1-He was a Novelist before this point-Trained in magical spells, but has been making a living writing books.
2-He had a daughter with a human woman, but they've become split (mutual agreement)
3-The daughter lived with his ex-wife, until she had been kidnapped by Gaedren Lamm. He was alerted to this only after his ex-wife went to the guard.
4-He has since stopped writing, and instead devoted all his time to finding and rescuing his daughter.
5-Staying 'good' alignment is getting harder on his as time passes, where he is getting desperate and willing to take more and more drastic measures to rescue his daughter.
2) Two goals that you'd like the character to accomplish in-game.
1-Rescue his daughter (or find closure if she's dead).
2-Put an end to the operations that use kids like this.
3) Two secrets, one the PC keeps to himself, and one kept from the PC.
1-He should have been able to prevent his daughter's kidnapping. She was supposed to spend the weekend with him, but he had turned it down because he was trying to complete a manuscript by the deadline and refused to see anyone.
2-He doesn't know that his daughter had in fact run away from home that weekend, not actually been kidnapped. She had been picked up by Gaedren, but not out of her home like he had been told. She had been upset about their divorce and hated him for chosing work over her.
4) 3-5 people that are tied to your PC by blood, love, rivalry, honor, etc.
1-His daughter Celise. (Love)
2-His ex-wife Maggie (Uncertain love)
3-Gaedren, the rotten bastard (quite certain hate)
4-The watch captain for his area of town (despised, at-odds)
5) Three key memories that define your character as the person they are at the time of submission.
1-The disappearance of his daughter
2-His study of magic
3-The first time he successfully made money writing a novel
Here is the modified character profile for Aloysia! I have left the original backstory that the character creation was centered around, because I think it helps get an idea of who the character is. The 5 essentials was added that is more specific to the campaign (I think - I have only read the character guide for the campaign).
I'm TOTALLY fine with the house ruled instant death. I like the option a lot!
Please let me know if any more edits need to be made on my part.
Hey everyone! I'll be building a character over the next few days, so I don't have much to share yet, but I just wanted to check in and say hi.
Ok folks, I've got a discussion thread live. We'll get gameplay up when everyone has a character they like.
Should I build an Alias now?
You most certainly can. I'll be adding more information to the Campaign tab about what your characters should know about Korvosa and the surrounding lands as we wait for everyone to check in and finish characters.
Archpaladin Zousha here, presenting my edited version of Pellius Zenderholm, Jolon Vulture-Heart, now a half-orc and dropping the paladinhood in favor of Pharasma. He'll be finished by the end of the week.
Hey Jolon, just wondering, which class is your character? I'm still debating which class to chose, and might as well make sure I'm not overlapping.
Oracle of the Life Mystery, eventually taking the Holy Vindicator prestige class!
Okay good to know, thanks!
I'm an arcanist, so I can learn spells like a wizard but prepares only a few that I can cast spontaneously. The benefit I get though is my arcane pool that lets me boost the dc or caster level of my spells, and later on do other cool things.
I'll definitely be the go-to guy about magic stuffs. :)
My goal is divine spellcasting and being sort of the off-tank, using Life Link to keep the party's health solid, and then bolstering myself to help flank. I'm curious as to how well we'll work with an evil would-be assassin.
I am as well, but I figure we're all responsible here (I would say adults, but I'm a child at heart and disqualify myself).
If it helps, I don't intend on being an a%!~!#&! Lawful Evil just fits better for "if you pay me, I'll do it" than another alignment. It the side of good pays, then she's on board with whatever they want. Chaotic Neutral could have been something I selected for her to avoid the evil alignment, but I figured a sociopath would be worse than a contractor :)
Lawful Evil characters tend to follow the rules, which is good. And having someone willing to do the dirty deeds (not necessarily dirt cheap) that others can't/won't is also handy.
Sorry for the delay, but I finally got around to putting my character together! Gamon's a melee-type, and personality-wise he's pretty accepting of anyone, so he should fit in just fine!
Backstory stuff:
5 points that capture the concept
-He’s fiercely devoted to Erastil, and as a result believes in treating everyone well and helping all when possible.
-He’s very trusting in general, and wants to see the good in people.
-He is the son of a guard captain in the Midland, and as a result has received some degree of military training throughout his youth.
-After his mother passed away of heart disease when he was young, his father became more and more distant over time until eventually the two seemed like strangers to each other, and Gamon left the household once he turned of age.
-He put his martial training to use as a guard for the Pauvet Apothecary, which serves poor or otherwise needy people.
2 goals for Gamon
-To end the crisis of drug addiction in the shingles.
-To help the apothecary stay in business despite not usually making a profit.
2 secrets(one of his, one from him)
His-He has often taken his daily pay from Johan, then moments later dropped it into their money jar as soon as the older man turned his back, in order to ensure that the man can afford to eat that night.
Kept from him-His father tried to get him accepted into the Orisini School without his knowledge shortly after his mother's death, since that would require him to live at the school and not at home and thus he could have a career of his own without working for his father, but he didn't have the savings to afford the school.
3-5 contacts including one enemy
-His now-estranged father Cleod
-Johan Pauvet, the elderly man who runs the apothecary, and who has impressed upon Gamon time and again the need for kindness to all.
-Alena, a young girl who ended up as a patient of Johan multiple times for things ranging from bruises to broken bones, but was never anything less than cheerful to Johan or Gamon.
-Gaedran Lamm(enemy, continually at fault for the death of his patients)
3 memories
- In a moment of crushing sadness after the first time he had to watch a patient die, he vaguely remembers running from the room, crouching in the alley with his holy charm clutched in his hand. His hand clenched so tightly the tiny edges cut grooves into his palm, and it took almost half an hour for him to get a hold of himself enough to finally let go of the charm, now almost embedded in his hand, and return to the apothecary.
-The first time he met Alena, she was sitting on the table inside the apothecary after he returned from buying supper. She looked up at him, her bright blue eyes so innocent and asked, “are you going to fix me, mister?”
-The day Alena came to the apothecary, after years of occasionally showing up with bruises or broken bones, and for the first time her eyes weren’t shining with joy to see him. Her whole body was shaking, she staggered through the door and collapsed into a deep sleep across one of the cots. She called out in her sleep, apparently hallucinating for hours, but never woke.