The Devil's Woods: A Cheliax adventure of Danger, Slavery, and Freedom from Infernal Tyranny (Inactive)

Game Master Dalgar the Great

I'm planning a homebrew game set in a small town called Cidergrove in western Cheliax. It will start around level 2-3 and involve hunting down monsters in the Barrowoods, escaped slaves, and infernal secrets in the woods.

Ohhh, do tell more about character creation rules. Cheliax, yummy.

Love this setting so I'm already interested. I GM a solo-campaign with my boyfriend set in Cheliax, so I am very curious to see what other GM's do with the setting.

As far as creation rules go:

20 pt buy

Core races only unless you can pursuade me otherwise, I can be pretty lenient ;)

All classes/archetypes by Paizo except synthesis summoners and as a note I'm not that big a fan of gunslingers but am fine with people playing them.

3pp is on a case-by-case basis(as in convince me your character and the story benefits from it) Even though I am a HUGE fan of psionics I am going to disallow them because they don't fit the theme of Cheliax.

No evil alignments

1000 starting GP

you'll level up when I say so

Two traits

Hero points

Max HP at lv 1 then average HP+1 at every other level

Answer the following questions:

Who are you?

Who do you want to be?

What are you afraid of?

Why are you in Cheliax?

Would you consider Tieflings since they are so predominate in Cheliax?

If you are more interested in Core Races I'd rather draw up a character you are interested in, though.

I'd be interested as well. I normally play casters, so I'm thinking a Toppling Magic Missile mage. After all, it's easier to catch fleeing slaves when they're lying on the ground. ;-) He'd be a LN bounty hunter.

I'd really prefer core races, Tiefling might be the exception however. Are you aware of the discrimination they face among the Chellish?

Color me interested. I'm not sure what I'll make yet. A few questions...

1) How often would you want us to post?
2) You mention dealing with escaped slaves. If we're playing a Halfling, as an example, can we work to actually help the escaped slaves while doing what is asked in all other respects? Would you rather avoid the possible conflict that could arise from that?
3) Precisely which level are we starting at? 2 or 3?
4) I'm assuming this will be roleplay heavy?

EDIT: Hm... One more question, since this is a homebrew game.

5) Would you consider classes made by third parties or homebrew classes? There's a homebrew class I'd love to try, but I'm not at all bothered if you say 'no.'

Making a double post here. Forgive me.

I want to go ahead and clarify what class I'm asking about, and why I want to use it. I'll also give you an idea of what sort of character I was thinking about making.

The class I'm interested in is the Trick Blade, a sort of Rogue/Magus meld. Medium BAB, slower Sneak Attack progression; swaps out and delays some Rogue abilities for Magus stuff. Has a spell list. They get Trapfinding at level 2, and since we'll be starting at level 2 or 3, I thought that was a perfect fit.

The character I had in mind is someone that is a Halfling slave whose master is a local wizard. She isn't very happy about her situation, but manages to play the fool and act weaker than she is; behind her master's back, she's been reading his spellbooks and scrolls and trying to figure out how they work, as well as generally being more perceptive of her surroundings than she lets on. She's handy with a dagger (I haven't decided on whether she'll use TWF), at lying, and especially at pretending to be weak and meek.

Her goals will be, generally speaking: Stay alive, help other halflings, free slaves, don't get caught, and maybe get the heck out of Cheliax. There's no particular order to these priorities. Alignment: Neutral Good.

To clarify, this is a "heroic" game set in the rebellious western Cheliax. I forgot to mention that you'll be helping slaves escape Cheliax. So while an anti-slavery theme is nice, it's not necessary. You all are either bored, broke, down on your luck, usual adventurer problems and have some reason to fight against Cheliax. You won't be immediately taking on Devils and stuff but we'll work are way up. I've decided on starting at level 3.

@Amir
Both the class and character sound fine and are approved.

This looks really cool. If I don't get into the other game I've submitted this guy to, I would like to put forth this character for consideration. He's pretty much ready to go although I might switch up his traits since you are allowing enough starting gold that I don't need to take Rich Parents and Heirloom Weapon. I could stick with those if you prefer, they fit well with his story. Oh and he's only a 15pt buy so the stats would change a touch.

I'll submit Velmora for your consideration. Extensive background, personality, character sheet and I believe your questions are all answered in her profile. She's a 20-point buy two-handed fighter with 1,000gp in equipment via 3 masterwork items. However, to make your work easier, I've copied all the information from the profile into this post, but in the profile is a homepage link to a google docs link with an easier view of a character sheet.

She's a bit different than other fighters in that she concentrates on disarming and tripping opponents if she think's they're "tough", then proceeds to beat them up.

PROFILE COPIED

Severn and Velmora look good. I kinda goofed as starting gold should be 3000 gold for level 3 starting characters. I'd like if you could post at least once every weekday with weekends optional. I'd like to start around next Saturday. What is everyone's timezones btw? I'm on Eastern Standard Time.

I have no problem posting at least once a day and I'm on Mountain Standard Time. Next Saturday sounds fine for starting. BBIAB with 2 more levels.

Okay. I threw the character together on Myth Weavers.

I live in the U.S. Central Standard Time Zone. I can post once a day, and probably a little more than that from Thursday-Sunday.

------------------------------------------------------

Reia has been a slave all her life, though she's had the luck (perhaps ill in its own way) to be the servant of a Chelaxian wizard. She's always been more cunning and observant than she lets on, and her ability to spin a solid lie or tell a half-truth without blinking has been in her favor for a long time. She's a skilled enough thief, and she's good with a blade, but what makes her unique as a slave is how she combines these skills with her understanding of magic.

Without her master ever noticing, Reia has studied his tomes and learned the languages he writes them in, despite having no formal training and little opportunity to do so. She's even developed a little magical ability, though she hasn't quite grasped how to make the spells work yet. The tricks she has learned, though, have proven very useful to her; and since she's recently stolen a magical cap of illusions from her master's collection of items, she's been able to gain a considerable amount of autonomy using her talents.

Reia tries to help other slaves escape when she can. She remains in her position despite the fact that she could probably escape on her own largely because she can help other slaves from where she is. Being the pet of a wizard does have its perks, after all, especially when one needs to "borrow" a few useful magical trinkets...

Still, Reia has some notable faults. She has trouble trusting others, especially humans, and she has difficulty expressing herself honestly. One might describe her as 'withdrawn' and 'cautious,' or even 'paranoid.'

Reia, Halfling Trick Blade

Who are you?

Reia is a cunning slave that uses trickery and the assumption of a docile nature to get into places other people can't.

Who do you want to be?

She wishes to one day be a free woman and a hero to other halflings - and perhaps a magic user in her own right.

What are you afraid of?

Death. Capture. Torture. Betrayal by a friend.

Why are you in Cheliax?

Reia is the slave of a local wizard. She typically runs small errands for him, collects his spell components, cleans his laboratory, and other such menial tasks. She's been experimented on a couple times, but thankfully was not harmed.

So Amir is good to go, awaiting to hear from Severn, and if we get one more player we're good to go.

This is Whack-a-Rogue's Wizard submission. Aside from purchasing gear and assigning some skill points, he's all set.

Who are you?
"My name is Astoroth. I'm a minor spellcaster and shop owner who's secretly an Andoran agent working to free slaves.:

Who do you want to be?
"Right now, I want to be known as a harmless magic practitioner who can cast a few weak spells. When it's time for me to leave this foul country, however, I hope to be remembered as someone who made a difference. One who saved the lives of countless people trapped in servitude."

What are you afraid of?
"Being caught. Not because I'd be tortured and killed, but because I'd no longer be able to help others."

Why are you in Cheliax?
"As I said, I'm an Andoran agent who secretly frees slaves and escorts them to a place where they'll be safe and free from oppression."

@Amir: psst! How'd you like to work for me? :-)

@Amir: psst! How'd you like to work for me? :-)

If we both get picked, that would be perfect. Heck, if your character could buy my character from her current master, she'd still have the guise of being a slave and wouldn't have to steal things to have access to magical books, AND she'd have someone to work with when freeing slaves. It would be perfect.

That's what I was thinking. To the outside eye, it's a normal master/slave deal. In actuality, we're the Underground Railroad. :-)

How are you getting toppling when it raises it's spell level by one and you only have 1st level spells?

I'm like the story between you two btw

The Magical Lineage trait from the APG. Whenever I apply metamagic to a specific spell (magic missile in this case), I treat its final level as 1 lower. It's the same method a Magus uses to cast Intensified shocking grasp as a 1st-level spell.

Magical Lineage

I am interested and will create a character this evening if there is still an opening

That's what I was thinking. To the outside eye, it's a normal master/slave deal. In actuality, we're the Underground Railroad. :-)

Sounds good. Let's do it, but I'd rather have my character still be a slave to the not-so-kind master when the campaign starts. Your character can purchase her in the campaign - perhaps with a little financial aid from my character, especially if she can rob her master before she leaves his service. (Right now she's broke.)

EDIT: Wait, we have 3,000 gold, not 1,000? ...I'm going to have to purchase more gear.

Sounds like a plan. :-) I have about 200gp left over but am probably going to cut out a few of the more expensive consumables I've bought to get a little extra cash.

Sorry but I've had a busy day and friends are over for tabletop D&D tonight so I won't be able to get a finished product up until tomorrow. I am still very interested in this game though. Very little has changed between level 1 and 3, I just took straight oracle levels.

I made a separate profile for level 3 Severn btw. I look forward to finishing this profile ASAP tomorrow.

Don't worry Severn, it'll be a day or two until I close recruitment anyways.

We have so far:

Velmora [fighter/tripping based]
Astorth [wizard/Tripping based as well]
Riea [trick blade/ Skill monkey]
Severn [Oracle/healer]

So we somehow ended up with a typical party lol. I'm going to be afraid of tripping however. I'll try to post some info on Cidergrove if not tonight then tomorrow.

Slow night at the table. I'm feeling pretty good about this guy now. Hope he'll work out.

Who am I?
A servant of the light? A paragon of good? Definitely not that dick who got those children killed, other than that, I can only hope.

Who do I want to be?
Lythertida's holy warrior. A paladin bringing freedom to the land, conquering evil for the cause of the kind and righteous.

What am I afraid of?
Falling from Lythertida's grace and losing the use of my other leg.

Why am I in Cheliax?
I have never known any other land. There is plenty of wickedness to vanquish and many people in need of a powerful ally like me.

Hey folks! Brooklyn85 here, posting with the Tiefling character I mentioned earlier. I am aware of the prejudice against Tiefling in the area, and have based his background on such an environment. I actually welcome the role-play challenge.

If you are unsold on this idea, I'm happy to draw up something else. I'm also attracted to the rumors of a druidic enclaves within the woods and would be interested in seeing where that takes me.

Who are you?
Buhzter is a lone wolf. He escaped slavery at a young age when a riot broke out amongst the caravan he was being traded upon. He saw an opening and ran as far and as fast as he could, ending up in the Barrow wood which learned to call home. Since then he’s been living off the land and his own ingenuity, and has all but shunned the society that rejected him.

Who do you want to be?
A friend. The toils of a life outdoors has hardened Buhzter all but to the core. He may not be willing to admit this to himself, but more than anything he seeks a connection to others that this life of freedom has denied him.

What are you afraid of?
Dying alone.

Why are you in Cheliax?
The complexity and depth of the Barrowood gave the young refugee the security he needed to remain free. Until recently, he was unwilling to risk leaving it’s borders for fear of being captured and killed, or worse.

Who are you?
Rory Inkalle at your service. I used to be the newest hot shot summoning student, but I was "expelled" for "Unorthodox Studies". There is more to summoning than demons and the Headmaster was NOT pleased.

Who do you want to be?
I want to show all those demon summoners that summoning is not about forcing creatures to obey you, they should want to listen to you and do what you say without coercion.

What are you afraid of?
Being forced into summoning and binding practices. My parents taught me that harming guests is bad form.

Why are you in Cheliax?
I am running from the administration that wants their hot shot summoner back.

still working on the crunch. Might as well get some pacific time in here too, just to round it out.

@Buhzter

Crunch is okay. As for the fluff I like the idea of loner not wanting to be alone anymore. Your say he escaped from slavery at a young age and his stats say he's 35. How long has he been living in the Barrowoods?

@Rory

I dig the hotshot student who has a different paradigm then those around him. Can't comment on the crunch yet and would like to see a little more fluff. You have some time though so no need to rush.

Hmm.. maybe 35 is a too old. I figure he got out when he was 12 or so, which would make 23 years. I want him to have lived there long enough to have become a true hermit in some ways... looking back on some lost time... you have a suggested timeline?
10-15 years in the woods make more sense? Perhaps he is mid-twenties.

Copy and pasted from my background
Rory was sent to the Premier summoning school in Cheliax. He had a natural gift with communicating with outsiders. The teachers were stunned when after a few short days there was an outsider so closely bonded to him. Rory was placed in many advanced classes which he passed with flying colors, mostly because he had access to his eidolon. Because he had such an easy time with classes and summoning came so easy to him, he got cocky. Not just smug, but brutal and malicious. He would sit in class with his eidolon next to him and disrupt the other students summons.
Now he was taught that only evil creatures were worth summoning, even if they needed some "rough" coercion to do what they were bid. This upset Rory, because the eidolon would always do Rory's bidding without needing to resort to violence and harmful spells. He did some studying and found there were many other creatures worth summoning and many were more powerful than the devils he was told to summon. On his last day of class he was calling celestial horses to clobber the other students summons. He thought it was hilarious when the Lemures or fiendish whatevers would appear the horse was there to attack before it had a chance to finally materialize, or when his earth elemental would burrow up underneath and quickly disappear back into the floor. Needless to say he was expelled.

After a few weeks lounging at his parents lavish residence he intercepted a letter summoning him to Egorian for "Advanced Classes". The students all gossiped about the "Advanced Classes" and the best conclusion they came up with was: powerful devils and binding them to service. So Rory swiped his mother's old adventuring gear (his fathers was too big) and took off.

I'm planning a homebrew game set in a small town called Cidergrove in western Cheliax. It will start around level 2-3 and involve hunting down monsters in the Barrowoods, escaped slaves, and infernal secrets in the woods.

I am very interested when do we start

@ Dalgar - I updated to level 3 and 3,000gp per your follow-up comment. Just took Power Attack & Cleave (obvious feats) for the next two levels and boosted the heavy flail to +1 from masterwork, which puts the gold at 3,000gp.

Rather than repost everything, here is the character sheet updated on google drive: Velmora Character Sheet

@Buhzter
Sent you a PM dealing with the subject

@Rory
Everything looks good there as well. Can you please just give me a physical description of the eidolon?

@Velmora

All stats are good

@Scott Matwly

I'll end char creation probably Wednesday, I'll open the discussion section so you guys can role play and get the feel for character interactions and we'll start when sometime before Saturday

Applicants so far:

Velmora [fighter/tripping based]
Astorth [wizard/Tripping based as well]
Riea [trick blade/ Skill monkey]
Severn [Oracle/healer]
Buhzter [ranger]
Rory Inkalle [Summoner]

http://santani.deviantart.com/art/Inari-Foxes-Oncilla-423526300

but medium size

One more day till recruitment guys

Sounds good. :-)

Thanks for the update. :)

Feel free to role-play in the discussion thread for now!

So any last minute applicants have until I get home for school around 3:00 PM EST

I have made my selection sorry to everyone who didn't make it.

The people who did make it are:

Astorth
Riea
Severn
Buhzter
Rory Inkalle

Please get to know everyone in the discussion thread for now and I'll switch to the gameplay thread tomorrow.

Yahoo! Thanks for selecting Buhzter! Looking forward to hunting down some baddies...

Just have to buy gear and double check my character sheet and he'll be ready to go. I'll probably flesh out his back-story a bit as well.Should have this finished by tonight.

Do you object to any character changes at this point? I may re-think my skill point distribution and favored enemy,for instance.

We haven't started yet really so skill point changes are fine, favored enemy choices you might want to make are outsider(evil) which would make sense still seeing as you ARE an outsider or humminoid(human) which you could justify as wanting to hunt down those who enslaved you for instance.

I'm going to make a quick alias for this character and try to find an appropriate picture.

One nitpicky detail: My character's name is Reia (not Riea). For pronunciation purposes, consider it to sound as follows: RAY-ee-ah. The 'ee' and 'ah' sounds are actually spoken together practically, such that it pretty much ends up sounding like "RAY-ah" or "RAY-yah," especially when one needs to speak quickly and doesn't have the time to carefully enunciate the name. Feel free to misspeak the name in-character, folks.

I'll get to the alias making and post posting. I may not be able to post again in the discussion thread until later tonight.

And here is the character. The picture isn't quite what I wanted, but it'll do. It's a halfling with brown hair.