Scions of Magic (Inactive)

Game Master Viscount K

Looking to see if folk would be interested in the following game. The game, as run on here, will probably be short (as far as PbP's go), as I intend it to be something of a test run for the first few chapters of a campaign I hope to later run with my regular local gaming group.

That being said, if there was enough interest, or fun being had, it's entirely possible I could just keep running the whole thing here. Without further ado, here's the details.

Scions of Magic
Plot (Imagine this running over the title sequence of a Pirates of Dark Water-esque show)
Tetrigus the lich, immortal would-be tyrant, schemes to remove all opposition to his plans by bringing an end to all mortal magic. He has very nearly succeeded - but with that success has come arrogance. Convinced that mortal wizardry is finished forever, he has begun the final stages of his plan to establish his eternal reign over the world.
However, for all the undead wizard's knowledge, and the advantages he has worked for centuries to secure, there still exists one last threat to his power.
Progeny of celestials and fiends, born of dragons and descended from the stars, ancient bloodlines sing within a few young adventurers. They are not yet aware of their own destinies, but it is only through their power that Tetrigus's evil can be defeated, and balance restored to their world!

Game World
Set in my own homebrewed little world, the plane of Maren. This world finds itself in a dark age. Over the long centuries of Tetrigus's plans, the world has very nearly forgotten that the arcane ever existed, and the creatures of fantasy have faded into the mists of time. The lichs's secret campaign has left the world bereft of its primary driving forces, and technology has not yet proceeded apace to fill the hole. Many once-great kingdoms have fallen into ruin, lacking the infrastructure to stand on their own. Settlements have been overrun by the creatures of the wild, and society is, on the whole, becoming more and more ignorant and backward.
The PC's will begin their adventure in the city-state of Danel, known as the Chapel on the Hill. One of the last standing bastions of civilization as the world once knew it, Danel's citizens are aware of the world's growing troubles, but are themselves content and, more or less, prosperous. The adventurers find themselves about to enter into the training all citizens are required to undergo as they reach their maturity, training under the city's armsmaster, descendant of the city's founder.

Starting Characters
Attributes: 24 point buy. Unusual, I know, but it's the number I like.

Races: All standard races are available, although all appear human, and age as humans. Those with non-human stats are said to have their race's blood in their ancestry, although mostly, this is considered a joke. Ex: "Dwarf-blooded".

Classes: Any non-casting class is available, or any archetype that removes spellcasting from a normally casting class. If you would like to play an overtly mystical archetype, run it by me, but no guarantees. Monks, I'd prefer it if you tried to find one of the less flashy archetypes. I'm reserving the right to veto any crazy ideas.

2nd level. Technically, I intend for the characters to be 1st level when we start out, for story purposes, but for such a miniscule amount of time, I don't want anyone to bother statting it out.

Restricted skills: Any skill is available, but any ranks in Spellcraft or Knowledge: Arcana will be entirely theoretical, at least at first. Think of it as if someone in our world had book smarts about how wizards in Golarion cast spells, for example.

What I'd like to See: I'm more interested in concept than numbers, folks. Give me an interesting backstory, or awesome flavor, and I'm way more willing to give you all kinds of leeway in the game itself. One of the primary reasons I game at all is because this is the only medium I'm aware of where you can be rewarded for trying to accomplish something awesome, even if it's doomed to fail.
Frankly, I'm looking for good writers. I don't want to see a game that reads like a collection of stats and rote actions, I want to see something that I can look back later on and read to entertain myself.

Numbers: I'm only looking for a few players here. Three, maybe four if I see some really great character ideas coming down the pipe.

Game Style
I intend for these heroes to shape the destiny of their entire world, and therefore, will be pumping them up to ridiculous levels over the course of the full campaign.
For the first few chapters, intended to run on these boards, what this essentially means is that I'll be handing out bonuses left and right based on what I perceive to be your character's goals, intentions, and personality. This is not to say that you won't have any say in these extras whatsoever, though. Most of the time, when I drop extras on you, I'll offer you a choice or two, and later on, I'll grant you the ability to change it if you don't feel like what you have fits what you have in mind for your character.
What this means for gameplay is largely what I already said about what I'd like to see about your characters. If you try to pull off something interesting, I'm gonna be happier with it, and the more I know about your character's details, the more I'll be capable of tailoring the bonuses to you specifically.

Time Management
I'm not putting a time limit on recruitment just yet. I'm pretty much willing to let it run until I do or don't have enough character concepts that interest me. I will make sure to give a few days warning before I make my final choices. As for pace once the game starts, I intend to be fairly casual about it. If you can make a post a day, great. Otherwise, I'll just make sure things keep moving along several times a week, making assumptions about people's actions as necessary if they're slowing us down.

Misc
I'm sure I missed some things people will want to know, so ask away. I'm more than glad to flesh out some details on the world, if it helps you build your character. Heck, feel free to take some liberties, I'll either help you correct them to fit what I have in mind, or incorporate them into this still-growing world.

What are your thoughts on Psionics? If you allow I will be dotting for interest, if not I will pass.

Hm. Psions are neat, but I don't have ready access to the book personally, so I'm gonna have to pass on that plan for the moment. I'll try and keep you in mind if those rules come into my possession anytime soon.

They are free online, Psionics Unleashed. Though if you're going for a low magic feel, they definitely aren't it. However if you do end up approving them, I've been looking to play a soulknife for some time. Possibly multiclassed with my below monk idea.

I'd also be interested in playing a Monk with the martial artist archetype, based off the Shaolin monks of reality who can do crazy things like balance all their weight on their adam's apple on a spear point.

What's up with religion in your world? Golarion deities? I'd like there to be a religious aspect to the monk. Perhaps a member of an order that was formed when magic started to dissapear in order to find another way to defend themselves against the monsters of the world. Similar to when Bodhidharma brought Chan Buddhism to China and taught the monks there how to exercise and fight to defend their weak bodies against the bandits plaguing their lands.

I'll take a look at the Psion bit, thanks. You're probably right and I'm not into using them, but we shall see.

As for the monk concept, martial artist will work just fine. I have no problem at all with over the top feats of martial prowess, just overt arcane nonsense.

Moving on to religion, there definitely are Golarion-similar deities, except that their presence is almost never felt on the world anymore, and thus, their teachings have gotten pretty fuzzy. One of the primary buildings within Danel is the chapel at the top of the hill, but religion there is treated a lot like a less serious version of religion in our own world. "Some good ideas, but let's not get carried away," is the basic thought on religion for most folk. That's not to say there aren't devout followers, though.
One trick with this for your concept: This monastery/order probably does exist somewhere, but all the PC's need to be starting within Danel. Two ideas to make that work for you;
First, you could have been a young member of that organization, sent to Danel when very young with a plea for help (that was sent, but arrived too late) against rampaging bandits or some such. Since then, he's tried to keep up with the teachings and traditions of his order, but he was never taught the higher mysteries.
Second, your character could have heard of such an order from Danel's libraries, and attempted to learn something of their ways. You've been assured by Gohren, the armsmaster, that he can teach you some of that path when you undergo your training.

Either of those thoughts appeal? If not, let's keep talking. I want to make it work.

So is Danel like a demi-plane or a planet? What's the predominate culture in the area where we start like? European, asian, something inbetween? Mix of cultures?

edit:If there's an armsmaster, will we be starting as apprentices, or students somewhere?

edit edit:Could a buddhist like 'religion' work in your world? Buddhism doesn't actually have a deity so that part would be fine.

Answer 1) Danel is the city-state you'll all be starting in. What the heck did I call the world again...right, Maren. For our purposes, Maren is the Prime Material plane, or the planet, if you'd prefer to think of it that way. The primary culture in Danel is European (think Gondor, but without Mordor at the gate) but for some time they've been getting an influx of other cultures as people find their way there after the collapse of their own places, so it's a bit of a melting pot these days.

Answer 2) Thought I mostly answered this above, but here's a bit more detail. The campaign will be starting just before you PC folk begin your period of training with the armsmaster of Danel, name of Gohren. Every citizen of Danel is required to go through this training, as part of the long standing traditions that've kept the city safe. Generally, this happens around the time they reach their maturity, but can be delayed or started early if there's good reason for it.

Answer 3) Sure. A collection of philosophies, handed down from an ancient teacher/wise man? Why not?

To give an entirely-too-vague answer to a previous question: Psionics may find their place in the world eventually, but it's definitely not available as a base class from the start.

On that note, I feel like I should mention that re-training class levels will eventually become possible for PC's. It'll take time, but it's doable.

This is full of win.

Would you consider a Tovenaar with deniably-magical choices for the Domain powers? (I mean, choosing the Inquisitions/Domains such that the powers are low-signature, perhaps allowing higher-signature powers later on?) Tovenaar is at the bottom of the Magus archetype list on d20pfsrd.

Alright how about an immigrant from an eastern inspired land, where this religio-philosophy is common. His parents are circus performers, acrobats. He worked with them all his life. Now that he's older he's into free running, parkour type stuff. He's also a serious student of the Way (my impromptu and unoriginal name for the belief system), which teaches that through reaching physical perfection one can come to a realization that everything is nothing and be free from the endless cycle of illusion and rebirth. To that end he's all serious and trains for several hours every day, and then spends his remaining time performing, and studying the Book of the Way and meditating.

He's excited for his time of service to Danel, seeing it as a way to put his constant training to good use while continuing his way down the path to physical perfection.

I'm interested, never done a low-magic setting before and it should be interesting.

I'l start off with 'Basher' Ames, the bastard child of a Northern (read as orcish) family of blacksmiths. Due to prejudice in the upper echelons of society reinforcing the opinion that Northerners are little more than brutes and barbarians, his family has a hard time securing work. He divides his time between helping his mother in the forge and bilding up enough of a reputation on the streets to keep any would be opportunists from targeting their family. As such he has a rather eclectic skill set at his disposal, a mixture of petty thievery, brute force and more subtle tricks.

Basher is going to use the Skulking Slayer archetype for Half-Orc rogues. He'll be a strength based rogue without disable device and specializing in doing absurd damage with his cleaving attacks. I might dump some skill ranks into Craft (Blacksmithing) and later take Master Craftsman and Craft Magic Arms and Armor since ostensibly we will not have access to magic items until much later in the game.

One post, multiple answers.

Thornborn: I think I'll be keeping it to official Paizo stuff for this one. There's more than enough material there to break my head open without delving into third party bits. I like the creativity, though, I'm not averse to a similar idea.

Jelani: That all sounds great to me. I'd love to hear more about the Way.

Ptolmaeus: First off, your name is hard to type. =) Second, thanks for the Northern thing, I like that, we'll keep it. Finally, the background's cool, but a little harsh for Danel. I definitely like the concept, so we'll run with it, but let's keep it light - there isn't that much of a seedy underbelly to the city. Your crafting plans are great, totally down with that.

Finally, one thing for all of you and any future applicants: I think we might be running under one slight misconception - namely, that this is a 'low magic' setting. It's starting out that way, and your characters are certainly under that impression. But! Bear in mind that the major antagonist is a ridiculously powerful and ancient lich, and the quick description for the game calls for "a few adventurers to stop him, with the power of the world's last sorcery at their command!"

Feel free to plot out whatever madness you have in mind for your characters, and I'll gleefully encourage you; just be aware that if you're looking for a low magic game, you won't find it here, at least not for long. All kinds of arcane surprises lie in wait.

Oh, one more thing I suppose I should mention. If it hasn't become clear by now, I really enjoy world building, as player or GM, and I'm very in to having the players help out with that. There are portions of the world that are pretty set in stone, but an awful lot of the place is still fluid right now, and will likely remain so until actually mentioned in game.

Therefore, any input on places or ideas you'd like to see around Maren is welcome. I'll probably put my own spin on it to make it fit into place, but please, chime in. I hope to make this as much your home/creation as mine.

I'll work on the character more later today. Crunch first then a more detailed backstory. I'll make up a bunch of stuff and then you can veto/edit it.

I'll make an alias for Basher so you don't have to type my name again. I used it as a character name in one campaign and everyone just ended up calling me 'Tom'.

I was really thinking of giving the seedy underbelly, such as it is, more of a Fable or Discworld feel when I talked about it. There's the odd thug or mugger but they are usually dumb enough to be mostly harmless. Basher will definitely be the most dangerous representative of the seedy underbelly.

How would you feel about a would be paladin who seeks to reconnect to the lost gods??

question.. what about divine magic?

I'm definitely interested,

How would an alchemist fit in??

originally conceived for a Golarian campaign, but minor tweaks to background let Yafeu fit in anywhere - he's a survivor.

I would need to do a little bit of surgery to take out the latent bardic spellcasting - though most of it's cast as deniable 'luck' and 'charm'. I'll take a quick tour around and see if I can find a 'know-bot' directed rogue archetype, rather than a 'trap-monkey' directed bard archetype.

I'm thinking a human or half-orc paladin (starting with a few fighter levels; I'd either take the Warrior of the Holy Light archetype on the paladin side to drop spellcasting, or delay class entry long enough that it would work with spellcasting capability).

He comes from a region where it's extremely clear that it's a dark age; I'm basing this region on pre-Saxon, post-Roman Britain. Think a magnificent villa, made of stone, with fountains and tile mosaics... except that the fountains no longer work, and the roof caved in on the east wing, so the old tile roof was replaced with thatch, and the collapsed wall was rebuilt with wood or daub & wattle. The people are mostly farmers and shepherds, and they're being pushed out of their homeland by a more warlike culture (which just wants to settle on this good farmland). The people can't make much; they've lost knowledge to the degree that heirlooms are very important... just because you can't make items like that anymore. A steel axe is a treasure.

I don't know yet whether my family would have fled to Danel to escape, or just managed to send my character there, while they remained behind. Either way, I'd be a hardy and likeable type, who grew up knowing that you have to fight to keep what's yours. The type of guy who stands up for what he believes in, and is a living example of a better way.

Taking feats leading to Eldritch Heritage (orc) and its progression would be a part of accessing that scion of magic destiny, though not necessarily the exclusive part. It also, of course, puts a nice conflict between the savage blood and the ideals of the paladin.

With a little bit of work, if it fits everyone else, I could probably make him Stealth-capable as well (though pulling it off might be interesting).

Here's the beginnings of Ptolmaeus's character. I filled out his backstory and made the seedy side of the town more reasonable. I'll work on his appearance and personality in a little bit.

Basher is mostly done, the only thing remaining is to figure out his gear. Let me know what you think of his story.

Hokay, that's a lot of things to respond to. Here we go.

Yafeu: Your initial thoughts about the character seem to be pretty much what I think - the spellcasting is a sticking point, and the background could use some tweaking to fit. Looking forward to seeing what you come up with, just ask if you need some input.

Monkeygod: Pretty much, they wouldn't. At least not at first. Too much of the class is rooted in spellcasting. If there's a variant out there that I'm unaware of that drops the magic, great, let me know and we'll check it out. Otherwise, that's the sort of thing we save for multiclassing/retraining to later on, when the PC's know it's possible.

Edward: There isn't any, as far as the PC's are aware. High Knowledge (history) checks would allude to legends about such things, but only on the level that, say, Christian Saints have legends about the miracles they performed.

Varin: Awesome, run with it. Just be aware that paladin isn't actually available as a base class for the start. One thing to think about: most folks don't think of the gods as lost, just as more amorphous or uninvolved beings (y'know, like most folks think of gods on Earth). You could certainly be someone who truly believes in the old legends about priests with miraculous powers (see my answer to Edward), or even just a really devout follower who wants to spread the faith.

PhelanArcetus: Well thought out, I'll be adding that region to the world at large. If you don't have a preference, I think that your family probably brought you to Danel at a very young age, such that you only have a few vague memories of the place and what it was like to live there. Mostly, your impressions will be based on what your parents told you of the old days, and the stories of your kingdom's ancient glories. This'll leave you some interesting story hooks should the game ever take you back to your homeland. Need a name for the place, and I'm drawing a blank on something that sounds right at the moment. Any thoughts?

Basher: Nice. Very solid stuff there. As for your gear, don't worry about it too much. Just pick out whatever seems reasonable for a city person to own. You probably don't have anything masterwork, or super expensive, but other than that, go nuts. Question: How's he feel about his impending time spent training with the militia?

In fact, that's a good question for everybody.
How does your character feel about having to learn to fight with the militia? No wrong answers, just something I think is important. A few important things to bear in mind when answering this; 1) Danel has been almost untouched by any serious threat for over a century. 2) Are you originally from the city, or from elsewhere? 3) How do you feel about the prospect of training directly under Gohren? The guy's more or less a living legend around here. Think of it like...hm, having trouble with an analogy...getting personal basketball lessons from Michael Jordan.

After doing some homework I think I'm going to take both master of many styles and martial artist archetypes. He'll focus on Dragon and Janni style feats, charging in for a strong initial blow and then tripping and pummeling opponents into submission.

Edit: To answer your question about service, I already kind of did but I'll reiterate. He's excited to both learn from Gohren (someone clearly farther along the Way than himself) and to serve Danel. He hopes it will earn him the respect of his fellow citizens that has always been somewhat lacking due to his 'foreignness' (though he has lived almost all his life in Danel).

Hey Jelani & Viscount; How do you feel about a younger sibling for Jelani's monk? A ninja.

Raised in the same acrobatic rigors as her brother she's less disciplined than her older brother and more care-free, not keen on taking things to seriously. Where her brother studied the Way she studied the contents of purses and the functions of the window latch. Though she's mastered the basics of martial arts she's nowhere near as good at it as her brother though she can muster a desperate focus when the need arises.

Regarding your archetype choices, Jelani - Cool cool, sounds good, but a quick warning about the Many Styles. Just keep in mind that the Dragon's Roar (or similarly impossible feats) is gonna be off-limits until you've "unlocked" it, so to speak.

Sigz, I'm all in favor of PC's finding links to each other, but it's Jelani's character. He may not have a sibling fit into the picture in his head.

Jelani, I just noticed that technically, Master of Many Styles and Martial Artist don't mesh - but since it's only at 20th level, doesn't bother me (unlikely to come up in the best of circumstances). For the record, though, I'm gonna ask you to make a choice between Perfect Style and Extreme Endurance. If you drop Endurance, I'll give you back Purity of Body and Diamond Body.

How do you feel about 'expert' (NPC class). That's going to be the closest match to bard(archaeologist) without magical effects. If you're contemplating later retraining, it'd be a clean path to 'unlocked' capabilities, without trying to unwind previously available abilities (like sneak attack). Thoughts?

Alright, he'd got his grandfather's falchion and a greatclub and wears a hide shirt into battle (I need to up his dex at the first opportunity). I figure he'll borrow any sundry items he needs. Not too enthused about being drafted into the militia but he'll deal with it.

Mean thinking what to do here, and would like to have a plane touched if I can what do you think GM, they would have Spell Like ability not spells. Thinking warlock I know its not standed but I love em.

Warlock

I'd rather have extreme endurance. I checked and thought they didn't overlap, sorry my mistake.

Fuglet: Nope. So very not. Sorry, but warlocks are way, way off theme. Folk in this world, at the time you're entering it, don't have access to magic at all, and a warlock is "so infused with magic that he manifests power with no training." Feel free to try again.

Yafeu: Yikes, NPC class. That's a bit unfortunate. I'm willing to let you go that route if you like, but I think you might be better off with the easier route of just dropping spellcasting off of Bard. That work for you? Also, don't worry too hard about the numbers. I'm more interested in your story details, which, having read your old story, I can tell you do well. Specifically, how did Yafeu get to Danel? Based on his old backstory, I'm assuming he hasn't been here his whole life, so...?

Oh, and Jelani, how do you feel about Sigz's suggestion of being your sibling?

Coming to Danel at a very young age fits. I think my parents sent me there to live with some relatives (I'll call them aunt & uncle, but they may be a bit more distant than that), while they stayed on their land, fighting to hold on to it. Which means I have almost no memory of the homeland, but I have some letters they've managed to send. That way I'll have some sense of history, of how much more land we lost in the last decade, of what life is actually like there, and so on, but also be very distant from there; my life is in Danel.

I would suggest something Celtic or Welsh for the name of the homeland, except that I tend to like mixing cultures, and the seed is so heavily pre-Saxon Britain that I'd want to pick a different influence to help shape the area. (In pure Welsh I'd take some variation on Lloegyr "The Lost Lands"; especially if the invaders have almost finished pushing the natives out.)

Danel may have been untouched, but my life has been shaped somewhat by those letters from "home", which describe a land where everybody has to fight to keep the land. If Danel didn't require everyone to train for the militia, I would think it foolish, careless, short-sighted, and doomed. As for training under Gohren specifically, that sounds like a ticket to better training and better prospects.

In fact, more background on the homeland: I see it as the sort of area that's got a rough feudal organization; there's someone who passes for king, and under him are his "great lords", who manage areas for him. There might be another tier under that. Because farming doesn't need a lord, the lords are mostly selected for their ability in battle (individual skill and also leadership). You would much prefer the chance to serve under a lord renowned for his skill at arms than one who isn't. Especially since those lords tend to have won more battles and have more equipment to provide to their followers (someone who had chainmail died on either side of the battle? someone who didn't have chain but survived gets it). They also probably have a better reputation for training their militia well for battle. You want to be under the guy who has a couple spare suits of chain and trains his spearmen how to hold a shield wall, not the guy who's wearing leather armor and doesn't train his men to keep formation.

So training under a living legend is a lot better than training under "some guy".

A question towards rough build planning. When you say "paladin isn't immediately available", do you mean all paladins, or only for those archetypes that don't drop spellcasting? Either way, around what level (roughly) would they open up? Part of the reason that I'm starting in fighter is to get a few more feat slots (especially if I feel like I can throw myself a 13 Int for Combat Expertise and related feats, and, if ending up with paladin spellcasting, also Unsanctioned Knowledge down the line). I'll be playing with a 24-point buy a little today to see what I can get to comfortably and roughing out the feats. I'll skim races to see if anything feels better than human or half-orc, as well.

(If I do end up half-orc, which is a distinct possibility, I may want to go with the Redeemer archetype in addition to Warrior of the Holy Light to drop spellcasting. I'm not sure... I may be biting off more than I can chew by adding that in, but it could lead an interesting understanding with why people are invading his homeland.

Oh, and Jelani, how do you feel about Sigz's suggestion of being your sibling?

We're discussing it via PM.

narrr looks like all the good classes are gone,
have guys im out

So - I've left vague the (not too distant) principality that Yafeu and his compatriots have been 'tomb raiding'. Depending on how sandboxy you want thiings to run, I can go into more or less depth on this - also depending on whether/how central it is plot.

I've introduced Magpie and a set of factions internal to Tetrigus's government. I've opened the door for a solid dash of intrigue and internal political jockeying. That could be as innocuous as the corrupt deputy chief of the secret police wanting to keep his source of Ming vases from getting offed by the Inquisition, or as serious as the Forces of the Rebellion seeking to preserve a key source of theoretical spellcraft knowledge from being drafted by the Mafia Dons of Smuggling, turned into an altar boy by the New Church, or (always the fallback) getting offed by the Inquisition. Door open a crack, not crashed dramatically into the casements. Again, your sandoxiness mileage may vary. Oh - this also leaves open the question of Gohren's loyalties. But that's not going to be visible to new recruits.

How's this working for y'all? I'm kinda digging the Indiana Jones meets Road Warrior vibe for at least one province outside Danel.

Oh - and Bard (archaeologist) sans spellcasting works fine for me. I'd like to hang on to Spell Craft and UMD ranks though, in the spirit of the "Theoretical Magician" trait. Because all the other Archaeologist abilities are (Ex), can I assume they're OK? I was a bit concerned the Archaeologist's 'Luck' might be (Su) and highly suspect, but it turns out to be happily just Extraordinary Luck - how lucky is that?

I reread this and spotted no one had Ninja, GM think halfling or elf blood Ninja. what ya think.

Yafeu - sorry about all the work you put in, but I've gotta shoot you down on that interpretation. Not gonna say much about it, but no one you know is going to have any knowledge of Tetrigus or his organization. At most, someone with a stupid high Knowledge History/Arcane/Nobility might have heard vague tales of a horribly evil lord somewhere back in history.

I like what you're trying to do there, and no denying it's cool - I may steal some of it for later on in the game, if you don't mind - but the PC's just don't have this information.

Up until the 'approached by a special client' bit, you're good to go, though.

Feel free to hang on to Spellcraft and UMD, but be aware that should you start encountering actual magic, it's gonna take you a little while to adjust that theoretical knowledge to fit reality (otherwise known as a penalty to the skills for a while - the time on that will be shortened by Theoretical Magician).

Everybody else, this does make me wonder if I wasn't too clear on one point - Tetrigus is not known to the world at large. Part of his plans have been erasing knowledge of all magic, including his own existence. What's the saying? "The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist."

Spugly - for reference, I do think we have a ninja in the works in the form of Sigz. But don't let that deter you, go ahead and take a stab (heh) at it.

@Viscount - roger that - is it the whole 'drafted by a power player in Danel' that's off base, or the specific references to Tetrigus?

Is it wrong to assume there's some 'men-in-black' style group that's implementing the embargo on all things magical, and that smugglers and tomb raiders would have cause to fear?

@Fuglet - I don't see any pure rogues - either sneaky/stabby or conny/facey.

~~~~
On the Topic of Theoretical Magical Understanding

"So, if Trismesgitus is right, this fancy stick should be a wand. Few possibilities - it could be a focus, an activation item, maybe an athame kind of thing, could be a battery, or a single-use item you activate by snapping. I think we'll leave the snapping for later. The Honorobal Rowling recommends, 'swish and flick'. Well, apparently not. Perhaps a soldering device - metals? wood? cloth? still not. Well, fizban"

BANG

<cough> <snort> "so - some progress."

Ye sorry spotted that so GM I have an Idea for a rogue

I like the idea of a kitsune Rogue,

As a Rogue They get 1/6 of a new rogue talent. always nice.

What do you think, A nice trap finder.

Hiroka Kindo Okina, kitsune, Rogue.

Nicked up a Alt for him here

GM Spugly Fuglet

Ok, I've settled where I'm going mechanically. Hopefully not an overload. I'll get a full level 2 writeup ideally later today. Quick summary in the spoiler.

Cadeyrn (I decided to stick with a Welsh name; didn't see anything particularly inspiring from other cultures) hails from an ancient land (working name Lloegyr). It was never exactly a peaceful land, but it was prosperous. However, much has been lost. The skills to build or even maintain good stone buildings, or craft quality metal weapons and tools. Many families in Lloegyr live in daub and wattle huts with thatch roofs. The wealthy and powerful live in the remains of old stone villas... patched with the same daub, wattle, and thatch. To make matters worse, Lloegyr's rich farmland and pleasant weather have made it appealing to another culture, which has been forcibly settling the area.

Lloegyr's people are hardy and tough, and they've been able to prevent the outsiders from completely taking over Lloegyr for a couple of decades. But almost every year they lose some land to the invaders, and they never recover it. They know that without outside assistance, they will one day lose their land entirely to the invaders. Many families have abandoned the fight, leaving for Danel or other regions. Cadeyrn was sent to Danel by his parents as a toddler, to live with his mother's cousins just outside the city-state's walls. Every child sent away like this is a plea for help, that has so far gone unanswered. And also a chance for that child to have a better life.

Cadeyrn has no heirlooms of his parents; anything valuable enough to consider a heirloom is too valuable to send away from the fight to hold the land. He does have letters from them; once or twice a year, describing the harvest, the ebb and flow of the battle for Lloegyr, and so on. He grew up on the outskirts of Danel, outside the city proper, farming with his "aunt" and "uncle", and wandering the woods and hills. He's intense and a little bit reckless, and very personable.

"How does your character feel about having to learn to fight with the militia? Danel has been almost untouched by any serious threat for over a century. 2) Are you originally from the city, or from elsewhere? 3) How do you feel about the prospect of training directly under Gohren?"

Hiroka would hide in plan site always looking human for fear of the shame he would bring to his family.

I would like him to move to sorcery if it becomes a option gm , some think like animal blood line etc to link in with his race.

Okay, DM Jelani here. This is the alias I'll be using. Right now it's empty, but I'm gonna write his background before I go to bed.

Background can use some more work when I'm less tired, and after I've coordinated more with Sigz. But the basic framework is up. Will crunch numbers sometime tomorrow. Still deciding on some final aspects of the build.

Hey guys, bunch of things I need to respond to here, but I'm crazy tired tonight so I'm only getting to a few just now.

Yafeu - It's just the bit where Tetrigus comes up. If you're drafted by some other kinda shady organization, sure, go 'head. Also, the men-in-black style thing is pretty off base, mostly because there hasn't been anything of that kind to 'smuggle'. You occasionally find strange objects that you can't explain the purpose of, but they don't seem to do anything, so that's it. Any knowledge you may have of magical rituals and the like is basically just learning what 'primitive cultures' thought and did, like we would learn about proto-man's cave paintings, or the Roman priest's rituals. Should you later discover all that to be right, it'll be something akin to a Tolkien nerd discovering that he actually can speak Elvish. Also, your magical theory thing? Yeah, that's totally how it'll go down, should you start actually finding stuff. Hilarious, by the way.

Phelan - Don't worry too much about the Paladin thing. The class isn't available at all to start with (there just isn't the divine connection to be made), but I sincerely doubt it'll be an issue for you if your first few levels are Fighter. We'll address it should it come up, but as a rule, just worry about your first couple levels (maaaaaybe level three). On a different note, I'm definitely pleased with where Caderyn, and Lloegyr, is going. Nice work.

Hiroka/Spugly - I'm not sure you're quite getting the concept here. No on the kitsune.

Ardeth - Heh. I like where the background's going, but I'm pretty sure Agrabah is actually a Disney copyright, so let's find a different name. Also, too bad that Hyborian game died, right? I keep trying to find places to play Dorin.

Hey, look at that, I think I got to everything. Go me.

If you want to establish Northerner as an ethnicity, I could BS up a culture and background for them.

Hahaha. You're Dorin? Cool, didn't realize that.

Alright, we can change the name :P I was just scrambling for a name last night really late. How about Bassan Ayier?