TL;DR; Seeking one character for a narrative heavy, long running, high level, "interplanar" campaign. Please NO “I’m only here for the melee” characters. Maybe a bard or a party-face with other extras + skill-monkey (everyone's a skill monkey to an extent in the campaign). Make-up interesting back-story in a plane of your choice. Read more than this.
Sample/Recent Post: Harclus furrows his brow and strokes his chin. "'temporal anomaly'? This is not a term I know... However, I could hazard a guess at the meaning ... unusual phenomena related to time itself? The idea seems preposterous yet it could explain a number of the weird occurrences I have been tracking in the area for the several years... So perhaps you're answer is yes?" The Rationality Researcher pauses... "As to our escapees, I can take to you to the location and show you the recent tapes. My automaton is a special unit that can accommodate us all and make good time.
At this point, Terex, disguised as the group's "tiny dog" comes bounding up, gets news of the situation and raises his concerns. Jocinth sends back "Yes, I believe this location was chosen because there were lurking temporal anomalies. But if this group is indeed 'later us', we should investigate but ... not follow closely... if anything, it's good argument for eventually entering this complex and emerging at the time of these characters, if we have the option."
After further discussion, Harclus takes the party to the Republic Guard's ultra-high security headquarters in the Giant's Garden where the audio-visual expert plays the crystal visual recording device that captured the group exiting the tunnel. It's pretty rough but it does seem like you, though for Terex, there is only a shadow that might or might be him and there might be others in the image too.
Jocinth sends by message "Well, seeking the opening Terex is predicting seems appropriate at this point...
Description: In a multiverse based on the Planescape setting, using PF1 rules plus custom “caper”/world-building rules and narative, you will be an agent of an ad-hoc group of wizards, priests and occultist, known on as "The Organization", aiming to stop plane-destroying effects, unleashed by various mysterious forces. Your employers are sophisticated interdimensional operators who understand many kinds types of magics and technologies operating on a variety of planes (with their own personal agendas too? Of course!). The operation still resembles a group of gentlemen adventurers than a true bureaucracy and you will operate as part of a cell of adventurer, the cell making its own choices on the ground, though guided by your mentors/handlers/comrades.
Style: This campaign began as an effort to use some ideas from the Blades In The Dark system. I am creating/evolving an approach of investigators who make their choices and add their own narrative. This is still a work in progress (after about three years). At this point, it mostly involves me outlining a situation and anyone can make a choice for the group (within reason but still). A lot of the initial thread following action involves; narrate what you do, maybe add a little improvised detail about the situation or world, and roll a skill (standard Pathfinder skills). It gets more defined as each character’s threads get more developed. The campaign has gone on for nearly two and half years with 5,000+ posts. Look at current posts for what’s happening.
Group: We currently have a pseudodragon rogue, a psionic android, dwarven Paladin and human shaman. Given the campaign, every character should sort of expect to be something like a "skill monkey", a researcher in some field and a social character (or be prepared to role play slightly awkward).
Inspirations: The Black Company series (especially Shadow Linger) by Glen Cooke, Nightwatch/Daywatch Sergie Lukyanenko, The Elder Isle series and other works by Jack Vance, The Dark Tower by Stephen King, Dilvish The Damned and The Amber series by Roger Zelazney, The Cornelius Chronicles and The War Hound and The World’s Pain by Michael Moorecook, The Earthsea Series by Ursula LeGuin and a number of others.
Campaign Parameters: Start at 14th Level, standard character wealth for magic item buying. 25 point buy. No dumping wisdom, intelligence or charisma below 9. Don’t maximize for initiative (I’m doing ad-hoc initiative for speed – party-goes, monsters go, repeat). Alignments between lawful-good and neutral. Standard wealth by Core Rule Book. All Paizo books allowed, third party books might be OK but only psionics or hi-tech or other classes/races not duplicating things in Paizo books. Magic users probably shouldn’t lean on teleport/dimension door since it’s hard to handle in play-by-post. Monstrous characters permited. 3rd party stuff OK but be prepared for some modification if it gives some weird power imbalance.
Campaign Traits (choose at least one of these and one standard trait):
Interplanar Travelers(s); knowledge planes is a class skill.
Minor magic awareness; Can cast detect magic once per day as a spell-like ability and spellcraft is class skill.
Minor technological knowledge; Can use knowledge engineering to determine the principles powering a given technological device. If you are trained in knowledge history, you can use it determine the sort of society which would produce such a device. You may make a Wisdom check to determine how to activate a given device (this does not imbue the character with any skills in the use of the device. It doesn’t teach to use firearms or welding machines, etc).
What's the post rate? One post per 1-2 days with periodic exceptions. I post nearly everyday and you should read my posts at least to keep up. If your character is absent during combat for a bit, I may act for you (keep in mind combat is rare). If you vanish, your character might become a regular NPC. I try to keep everyone's situation in mind - I expect certain currently absent players may return but I think I can handle the six we'll have if Rollo returns.
Posting approach: Most of the time, anyone can start posting after I’ve posted (In melee, anyone can take act first once I give the go-head, just don’t act twice – fair warning, this may initiative-feats less valuable). To a reasonable extent, you can post actions that the entire party takes part in (we enter the room). Don’t be shy. Always be thinking about how you can post to move forward the action – and feel free to send me suggestions on that as well (I’ll required saving throw levels, AC the monster hits + potential damage etc. You will too).
Learn the standard narrative style – write in the third person present tense, etc. Don’t just name a game mechanic, don’t just narrate what you are doing, combine the two. Don't ask whether you can roll a skill, just roll it. I encourage everyone to improvise little pieces of plot as we go along (but exactly how much you do that is up to you, since it’s fairly personal, each continuing player has their own style here). Still, we are creating a story together. I hope to find people excited to help shape this multiverse. I like to move actions quickly and give the group suggestions - though I've slowed down a bit over these years of player. Feel free to push back if things seem to fast for you, you don’t like a suggestion or for any other reasons. I try to be very open to constructive criticism (obviously there are limits). Did I mention “work in progress”? It is a continuing work, with stuff happening, however.
Applying: Describe your character concept and give an example of something you’d improvise in the process of acting in the world. (see above for allowed classes etc). I’ll answer questions and ask questions and then show me a character sheet. I will decide after three days, longer if there aren’t enough applications. This is a demanding campaign so if you are busy or already are in many campaigns, think if you can make the added commitment. Expect to read a fair amount, read each day even you can't post. I put some effort into my narrative, plot development and world-concept. I'm looking for one more players who that appeals to.
Big fan of Blades in the Dark, though I'm admittedly unfamiliar with Planescape. It sounds like quite the story you're telling here!
I have a few characters involved in campaigns that match this sort of vibe (just to offer a sense of where I'm coming from):
A few others in my profile also match bits and pieces, but that should provide at least a base sense (with a few samples) of what I would try to bring to the table.
Note: two of those are in Paizo APs, while the other three are in homebrew worlds/campaigns.
I want to take a closer look at the current party to see what sorts of abilities they're currently bringing to the table before I pitch a well-developed concept, but at first glance a bard does seem appropriate. A time oracle or occultist could fit as well. Maybe even an arcanist. But I'm getting ahead of myself.
Initial Question:
More questions to come after I've had a chance to read.
How are you handling monstrous PCs like the pseudodragon? Are there limitations on what creatures can be chosen (e.g., no greater than base CR 1), trade-offs based on HD to class, etc.? Are the base creature's stats over-written by...
Basically by-the-book without specific limit but you have to ask and have a good story.
I didn't have a concrete monstrous PC in mind, but figured I would ask anyway!
After reading up on a bit of lore, some recent posts, the characters, etc., I have a tentative concept:
I don't know how long the Dimension Wars have been going on, but either way--this character is quite an old elf. If the Dimension Wars are recent, then that doesn't matter so much. If they have been going on since long before the average lifespan of an elf, that wouldn't matter much either. But if the entirety of the Dimension Wars so far could fit into the lifespan of an elf, then this character would (ideally) remember a time before the war.
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Character Concept
The Curator had accumulated quite the collection of curios for curious commonfolk to canter through at a colossal gallery. He had seen fit to catalog history and culture from not just his home plane but many others as well. Some acquisitions had been won, some had been taken, and others had been requisitioned through...less savory means. And yet the Curator knows that these treasures were in better hands in his museum than they would be if they were ravaged by this interdimensional conflict. After all, he retained certain objects in his collection from pockets of existence that have been utterly wiped out in the war! Who would remember their civilizations if not for the Curator?
It was because of the books that he had published and the conferences that he had spoken at that the Curator came to the attention of The Organization. In the process of amassing his collection, The Curator had become an expert on a score of useful topics. He could make remarkable leaps of logic and connect disparate data points. At times, it made him seem almost prescient, able to anticipate enemy battle plans with uncanny fidelity by referencing three separate events separated by centuries and entire tangles of planar substrate.
Still, the Curator never expected to be called to the front lines. He had been content to remain in the comforts of his Collection in relative safety, summoned by The Organization only when they needed his Counsel (or an item from his collection). But when shattered his relatively peaceable existence, the Curator was forced to respond. And in taking up some of the items of his collection, he has found skills he could have never anticipated. The memories of the items' previous owners had left impressions on the items. Some of them were not at all pleased with the Curator. But despite their differences, the Collective recognized the threat posed to the multiverse and sought to lend their strength to the Curator.
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Improved Example 1: General (responding to the sample/recent post)
The Curator sits with Jocinth in his office, rolling his eyes. "Well that should have been sufficiently obvious so as not to even warrant mentioning. Didn't you read in my latest book about the gentleman who erased himself from existence by going back into his past and killing his grandfather by trying to help him earn lots of money? He tried to create a paradox by becoming his own grandfather, but time paradoxes don't play well. I'm sure it's happened more than once, too."
The Curator huffs and clinks some whiskey in his glass and takes a sip, trying to keep his eyes from rolling backwards as he deigns to explain this to Jocinth. "Obviously they should avoid their future selves as much as their past selves. We don't yet have enough historical data about the successful resolution temporal anomalies to manage a current one for obvious reasons. If the anomaly was resolved, it either did so by eliminating the loop by closing it or reverting to a previous stable state. Frankly, I was lucky to find the scrap of evidence that I did. And you are too, Jocinth."
Ah, and the whiskey was out. He clinks the ice back and forth, waggling for Jocinth to refill as he gestures to move the glass telekinetically across the desk. "I still think you should send me out, you know. It sounds like they're struggling. You know I know what I'm talking about, yes? And I don't have to disguise myself as a dog like Terex. Can you imagine? A dog. Ah, but I don't have to tell you. There are more dignified ways of going about The Organization's business. Have I convinced you? I've convinced myself. My things are already packed. Naturally. Anything further, Jo...oh, of course, the whiskey. Well, I suppose I'll finish this."
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Improvised Example 2: Combat
"I don't think you understand your situation," the Curator says, drawing his bow out as he stares at the eldritch abomination before him. "I might not have killed one of your kind before, but plenty of you have died. You think you will outlive the heat death of the multiverse. That you're special."
The Curator draws two arrows from his quiver, setting them into a pair of grooves barely apart on the wood of the bow. "Don't get me wrong--you're strong. I'm sure you've killed many of my kind, too. But you're just you. Alone."
The Curator takes a deep breath, reminding himself that the Bow responded more to calmness than any other emotion. He taps into that calm, like a meditation, and envisions his arrows piercing through the floating void before him. He sees himself do it, sees others do it as well--with this bow, with blades, with cleansing fire, with teeth--all united in a purpose. And in his hands, the Bow remembers.
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I'm leaning significantly into the gentleman adventurer lane while still trying to access the elven flair. A near-immortal with somewhat fewer moral qualms about his actions could be an interesting archetype to play. Haughty, rich, deeply privileged, highly knowledgeable, and often almost insufferable about it. One of those "I'm glad he's on our side because otherwise I could strangle him" types. The Collection would be like having an almost infinite supply of angels and devils on his shoulder trying to sway him, chastise him, praise him, and so forth. I'd hope that they could be an interesting way to delve into the story's history, and a playground for the GM to screw with the Curator (and therefore me as a player).
Mechanically, I'm envisioning an elven occultist. In combat situations, they are a formidable ranged combatant who can become a fierce melee fighter in necessary situations. They have spells of many sorts from the schools of abjuration, conjuration, divination, illusion, and transmutation, as much focused on augmenting their ability to function as a soldier as a spy and a diplomat. They would take the Minor Technological Knowledge campaign trait (along with Clever Wordplay [Diplomacy]). I have a sketch of a character sheet that I just need to polish up whenever you would like to see it.
This is partially inspired by another character I made previously for a Wrath of the Righteous campaign: Pakk Holstad. Pakk was curious about the structural resonance of different extraplanar substrates. So while the backstory, lore, and race will all be very different, the intellectual drive of Pakk will be quite present in the Curator.
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Quite an impressive concept, I have to say. Obviously, I try to balance the weirdness each character gets in the story but keeping this balance of attention in mind, lots of fun (and other characters have sources of entertaining weirdness as well).
There is very little in my world that's in D&D cannon. I really haven't read that much myself. I draw from the Cynosure concept from the old Grimjack comic for my Sigil as much as a draw from the Planescape books (though do have Planescape).
when you say [NO I'm only here for the melee" characters], do you mean ...I mean characters/players that only intend to post in a melee situation. I'd also want skills in other situations but also, be willing to post for stuff beyond what you considered your area of expertise.
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Wonderful! Then please allow me to present a draft of a character sheet for the as-to-be-yet-otherwise-unnamed Curator:
N male medium humanoid (elf)
Init +6; Senses low-light vision, darkvision 60 ft., see invisibility, blindsense 60 ft.; Perception +19
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Defense
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AC 37, touch 20, flat-footed 31 (+8 armor, +5 shield, +6 Dex, +4 natural, +4 deflection)
hp 140 (14d8+28)
Fort +15, Ref +14, Will +14 (+2 vs. enchantment; immune to magical sleep effects)
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Offense
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Speed: 30 ft.
Ranged: +4 adaptive composite longbow +24/+19/+14 (1d8+8/x3)
Special Abilities: combat trick, energy shield (30), legacy weapon (+2), martial skill (+2), mind barrier (12), physical enhancement (+4), sudden speed, warding talisman (+2)
Occultist Spells (CL 14th; concentration +20)
5th (3/day)--dispel magic, greater, overland flight, particulate form, remote viewing, seeming, teleport
4th (5/day)--dimension door, dimensional anchor, echolocation, freedom of movement, invisibility, greater, scrying
3rd (5/day)--clairaudience/clairvoyance, displacement, fly, haste, phantom steed, resist energy, communal
2nd (7/day)--bowstaff, glitterdust, mirror image, resist energy, see invisibility, versatile weapon
1st (7/day)--gravity bow, heightened awareness, mount, shield, silent image, tears to wine
0 (at will)--create water, detect magic, ghost sound, mage hand, mending, resistance
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Statistics
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Str 18, Dex 22, Con 14, Int 22, Wis 12, Cha 10
Base Atk +14; CMB +18; CMD 38
Feats: Clustered Shots, Deadly Aim, Extra Mental Focus, Many Shot, Point-Blank Shot, Precise Shot, Rapid Shot
Traits: Clever Wordplay [Diplomacy] (social), Minor Technological Awareness
Skills: Acrobatics +17, Artistry (curation) +16, Diplomacy +23, Knowledge (arcana, engineering, history, planes, religion) +23, Linguistics +16, Perception +24, Sense Motive +18, Spellcraft +23, Stealth +23, Use Magic Device +18; Racial Modifiers +2 Perception; +2 Spellcraft to identify magic items
Languages: Abyssal, Aquan, Auran, Celestial, Common, Draconic, Dwarven, Elven, Giant, Gnomish, Halfling, Ignan, Infernal, Sylvan, Terran
SQ: Aura Sight, Focus Powers, Implements (6), Implement Specialist, Knacks, Magic Item Skill
Mental Focus (32), Object Reading, Panoptic Call, Panoply Focus, Panoptic Harmony, Panoply Specialization (Trappings of the Warrior), Resonant Powers
Focus Powers: Combat Trick, Danger Sight, Energy Shield, Globe of Negation, Legacy Weapon, Mind Barrier, Mind Eye, Minor Figment, Planar Ward, Quickness, Servitor, Shadow Beast, Sudden Insight, Sudden Speed
Implements: Abjuration (buckler), Conjuration (tbd); Divination (tbd); Illusion (tbd); Transmutation (composite longbow); Trapping of the Warrior Panoply
Mental Focus: 32 points (Abjuration 8, Conjuration 2, Divination 12, Illusion 1, Transmutation 9)
Resonant Powers: Casting Focus (CL +1 for Conjuration spells), Distortion (Concealment 5%), Martial Skill (BaB +4), Physical Enhancement (Strength +6 (enhancement)), Third Eye (Perception +6 (insight)), Warding Talisman (Saves +4 (resistance))
Gear: +4 adaptive composite longbow, +4 amulet of natural armor, +4 belt of incredible dexterity, +4 buckler, +4 headband of vast intelligence, masterwork thieves’ tools, +4 mithral shirt, +4 ring of protection, automatic writing planchette, boots of striding and springing, bracers of falcon’s aim, efficient quiver, eyes of the eagle, handy haversack, prismatic crystal, ring of feather falling, lesser rod of metamagic (logical), spring-loaded wrist sheaths (2), talking board, 1165 gp
Focus/Resonant Powers (Su): At 1st level, an occultist learns the base focus power from both of his two implement schools (see Implements below) and can select one more focus power from the list of those available to him through those schools. Whenever the occultist learns a new implement school, he gains the base power of that school. In addition, at 3rd level and every 2 levels thereafter, he learns a new focus power selected from the options granted by all of the implement schools he knows. The occultist can use focus powers only by expending mental focus (see Mental Focus on page 48). Unless otherwise noted, the DC for any saving throw against a focus power equals 10 + 1/2 the occultist’s level + the occultist’s Intelligence modifier. The occultist can’t select a focus power more than once. Some focus powers require him to reach a specific occultist level before he can choose them.
Casting Focus (Su): The implement empowers the bearer’s ties to the worlds beyond, allowing his spells to maintain their power for a longer period of time. The bearer can add the implement as an additional focus component to any conjuration spell he casts that has a duration measured in rounds per level. If he does so, he adds 1 to his caster level for every 2 points of mental focus stored in the implement (to a maximum bonus equal to your occultist level). This increase applies only when determining the duration of the spell. Apply this increase after other effects that adjust a spell’s duration, such as Extend Spell.
Combat Trick (Ex): As a move action, you can expend 3 points of mental focus to gain a single combat feat for which you qualify. This benefit lasts for 1 minute.
Danger Sight (Sp) : As an immediate action, you can protect yourself from harm by expending 1 point of mental focus. You can use this ability whenever you are the target of an attack or are required to attempt a saving throw against a special ability, spell, or trap. Doing so grants you an insight bonus to your AC or on your saving throw equal to 1/2 your occultist level. This bonus applies only to the next attack against you or saving throw you attempt, and if not applied by the end of the round, the protection fades and you gain no benefit. You must be at least 3rd level to select this focus power.
Distortion (Sp): The implement allows its bearer to distort his form and location, protecting him from harm. As a standard action, the bearer can gain a concealment miss chance equal to 5% for every point of mental focus invested in the implement (to a maximum of 5% + 5% for every 2 occultist levels you possess) until the next time the bearer makes an attack. If this miss chance reaches 50%, it doesn’t increase further, but the bearer gains all the benefits of invisibility. Creatures with see invisibility, true seeing, or similar abilities ignore the miss chance from this ability.
Energy Shield (Sp): As a swift action, you can expend 1 point of mental focus to surround yourself with a shield that protects you from energy damage. Whenever you take acid, cold, electricity, or fire damage, the shield absorbs the damage (as protection from energy). The energy shield can absorb up to 5 points of energy damage per occultist level you possess. This shield lasts for 1 minute or until its power is exhausted. Its effect doesn’t stack with itself, with protection from energy, or with resist energy. You can activate the energy shield as an immediate action by expending 2 points of mental focus instead of 1. You must be at least 3rd level to select this focus power.
Globe of Negation (Sp): As a standard action, you can expend 3 points of mental focus to create a stationary globe of negation. This globe is 10 feet in diameter and cancels any spell effect that is cast into or through its area. This functions as globe of invulnerability, but it affects spells of any level. The globe can negate a total number of spell levels equal to your occultist level, after which the globe collapses. Spells that exceed the number of remaining levels remove all remaining levels, but are weakened; any creatures targeted by such spells receive a +4 circumstance bonus on any saving throws against the spells’ effects. The globe lasts for a number of rounds equal to your occultist level. It has no effect on spells originating within the globe—only on those that enter its area as or after they are cast. You must be at least 11th level to select this focus power.
Legacy Weapon (Su): As a standard action, you can expend 1 point of mental focus and touch a weapon to grant it an enhancement bonus. The bonus is equal to 1 + 1 for every 6 occultist levels you possess (to a maximum of +4 at 18th level). Enhancement bonuses gained by this ability stack with those of the weapon, to a maximum of +5. You can also imbue the weapon with any one weapon special ability with an equivalent enhancement bonus less than or equal to your maximum bonus by reducing the granted enhancement bonus by the appropriate amount. The item must have an enhancement bonus of at least +1 (from the item itself or from legacy weapon) to gain a weapon special ability. In either case, these bonuses last for 1 minute.
Martial Skill (Ex): When wielding the weapon used as the panoply’s associated implement, you treat your base attack bonus as though it were 1 point higher for every 4 points of total mental focus invested in all of the associated implements, to a maximum base attack bonus equal to your occultist level. This increase can grant you additional attacks when using the full attack action (for example, a 12th-level occultist with 12 points of mental focus invested among the associated implements would be treated as having a base attack bonus of +11, with iterative attacks at a base attack bonus of +6 and +1).
Mind Barrier (Sp): As a swift action, you can expend 1 point of mental focus to create a shield of mental energy around you that protects you from harm. The shield prevents a total of 2 points of damage per occultist level you possess. It lasts until the start of your next turn or until exhausted. For example, if you are 5th level, the mind barrier protects you from 10 points of damage; if you are hit by an attack that would deal 12 points of damage, the mind barrier is exhausted and you take 2 points of damage. You can activate this ability as an immediate action, but doing so costs 2 points of mental focus instead of 1.
Mind Eye: As a standard action, you can expend 1 point of mental focus to create a mind eye—a magical sensor through which you can see and hear. The mind eye is invisible and its size is Fine, giving it an AC of 18. Any amount of damage to the eye destroys it, but it can be harmed by only spells or magic weapons. The eye moves with a fly speed of 60 feet with perfect maneuverability and can travel up to 1 mile away from you. You must concentrate as a standard action to direct the eye and receive sensory images through it. The mind eye sees as your eyes see, including any additional senses you possess (such as darkvision or see invisibility). The mind eye lasts for 1 minute per occultist level you possess. You must be at least 5th level to select this focus power.
Minor Figment (Sp): As a standard action, you can expend 1 point of mental focus to create a minor figment. This can function as either ghost sound or minor image. In either case, the effect lasts for a number of rounds equal to your occultist level. If you are 7th level or higher, the figment lasts for a number of minutes equal to your occultist level, and you can cause the figment to change once during its duration when a specified condition occurs.
Physical Enhancement (Su): The implement enhances its bearer’s body. When you invest mental focus in the implement, select a physical ability score. The implement grants a +2 temporary enhancement bonus to that physical ability score for every 3 points of mental focus invested in the implement (to a maximum of +2 at 1st level, plus an additional 2 for every 6 occultist levels you possess). Ability: Strength.
Planar Ward (Sp): As a standard action, you can expend 2 points of mental focus to surround yourself with a planar ward. Creatures not native to the plane that you are currently on take a –4 penalty on attacks against you, and you receive a +4 circumstance bonus on saving throws against the spells, spell-like abilities, and supernatural abilities of such creatures. This ward lasts for 1 minute.
Quickness (Sp): As a standard action, you can expend 1 point of mental focus to grant supernatural quickness and reflexes to yourself or a willing living creature you touch. This functions as haste, but the bonus to AC and on Reflex saving throws increases to +2. This effect lasts for 1 round per occultist level you possess. You must be at least 5th level to select this focus power.
Servitor (Sp): As a standard action, you can expend 1 point of mental focus to summon a servitor. This ability functions as summon monster I, but you can use it only to summon a single creature, and the effect lasts for 1 minute. At 4th level and every 3 levels thereafter, the level of the summon monster spell increases by 1, to a maximum of summon monster VII at 19th level. You can’t have more than one servitor in effect at a time. At any time, you can expend 1 point of mental focus as a free action to extend the duration of an active servitor by 1 minute.
Shadow Beast (Sp): As a standard action, you can call forth one or more beasts made of shadow by expending 1 point of mental focus. This functions as shadow conjuration, but it can be used to duplicate only the effects of summon monster spells. Creatures created with this spell deal 50% of the normal damage to those that disbelieve the illusion, and their nondamaging effects have only a 50% chance of affecting disbelieving targets. This can be used to duplicate any summon monster spell up to summon monster V. For every 2 additional levels you possess beyond 9th, the maximum spell level you can duplicate with this ability increases by 1 (to a maximum of summon monster IX at 17th level). Regardless of the spell duplicated, the creatures remain for 1 round per occultist level you possess. You must be at least 9th level to select this focus power.
Sudden Insight (Sp): As a swift action, you can expend 1 point of mental focus to gain an insight into your immediate future. You can use this foreknowledge as a free action before you roll any ability check, attack roll, or skill check to gain an insight bonus on that roll equal to 1/2 your occultist level (minimum +1). You can use your foreknowledge only once per turn, and if it’s not used by the end of your turn, the insight fades and you gain no benefit.
Sudden Speed (Sp): As a swift action, you can expend 1 point of mental focus to grant yourself a burst of speed. This increases your land speed by 30 feet for 1 minute. This ability does not stack with itself.
Third Eye (Su): The implement allows its bearer to notice that which can’t easily be seen. The implement grants a +1 insight bonus on Perception checks per 2 points of mental focus stored in it, to a maximum bonus equal to the occultist’s level. If the occultist is 3rd level or higher and stores at least 3 points of mental focus in it, the implement also grants lowlight vision. If the occultist is 5th level or higher and stores at least 6 points of mental focus in it, the implement also grants darkvision 60 feet. (If the bearer already has darkvision, the implement increases the range of the darkvision by 30 feet.) If the occultist is 7th level or higher and stores at least 9 points of mental focus in it, the implement also grants the effects of see invisibility. If the occultist is 13th level or higher and stores at least 12 points of mental focus in it, the implement also grants blindsense 60 feet. If the occultist is 19th level or higher and stores at least 15 points of mental focus in it, the implement also grants blindsight 30 feet.
Warding Talisman (Su): The implement wards against adverse effects. Whoever wears (or holds, for bells) the implement gains a +1 resistance bonus on saving throws for every 2 points of mental focus invested in the implement, to a maximum bonus of 1 + 1 for every 4 occultist levels you possess.
Mental Focus (Su): An occultist can invest a portion of his mental focus into his chosen implements for the day, allowing him to utilize a variety of abilities depending on the implements and the amount of mental focus invested in them. An occultist has a number of points of mental focus equal to his occultist level + his Intelligence modifier; these points refresh each day. He can divide this mental focus between his implements in any way he desires. If an implement is lost or destroyed, the focus invested in it is lost as well, though the occultist still refreshes those points of focus normally.
Magic Item Skill (Ex): At 2nd level, an occultist’s knowledge of magic items grants him a bonus when attempting to use them. He gains a bonus on all Use Magic Device checks equal to 1/2 his occultist level.
Object Reading (Su): At 2nd level, an occultist learns how to read information from items he examines. Examining an item in this way requires him to spend 1 minute handling the item. If the item is a magic item, the occultist learns its properties and command word as if he had successfully examined the item using detect magic and succeeded at a Spellcraft check. This ability does not reveal whether the item is cursed unless the occultist’s class level is equal to or greater than the caster level of the item. If the item has any historical significance, the occultist learns one piece of information about its past (as determined by the GM). Finally, if the item was last used no longer than 1 day ago per the occultist’s class level, the occultist learns one piece of information about the last creature to use the item. This information might be a glimpse of the creature’s appearance, a brief vision of what it saw while using the item, or perhaps its emotional state when it last used the item. The GM determines what information is gained in this way. This functions like the psychometry occult skill unlock (see page 196), but doesn’t require a skill check and can be used at will.
Panoply Focus (Su): At 4th level, a panoply savant gains 1 additional point of mental focus each day, which can be invested only in implements associated with his chosen panoply. At 8th level, and every 4 occultist levels thereafter, the number of additional points of mental focus he gains increases by 1 (to a maximum of 5 points at 20th level). This ability replaces shift focus.
Aura Sight (Su): At 5th level, the occultist can read the auras of creatures around him as a standard action. This functions as the aura sight spell with a duration of 1 round.
Implement Specialist (Su): At 8th level, a panoply savant learns to use his mastery over the implements in his chosen panoply to unlock greater power from magic items associated with that panoply. For a number of times per day equal to 3 + his Intelligence modifier, when he uses a magic item that matches one of his chosen panoply’s associated implements (crystal balls, robes, and wands for the mage’s paraphernalia, for instance) and produces a spell effect, he can have the item use his caster level instead of its own. If the magic item doesn’t produce a spell effect, the panoply savant can use his caster level against attempts to dispel that item. Additionally, if the item has any abilities that can be used at least three times per day or has three or more daily charges, the panoply savant can spend 1 minute quietly meditating on the item and expend 2 points of mental focus to restore one daily use or one charge to the item. This ability replaces outside contact.
Panoptic Harmony (Su): At 8th level, a panoply savant can empower his abilities by harnessing the harmonic resonance between his chosen panoply’s associated implements. Whenever he casts a spell or uses a focus power with one of his chosen panoply’s associated implements, he treats it as though his caster level were 2 higher than it actually is, but only if on his previous turn, he cast a spell with or used a focus power from a different one of his chosen panoply’s associated implements. This ability replaces magic circles.
Panoptic Call (Su): At 12th level, a panoply savant’s mastery over his chosen panoply’s associated implements is so strong that he can call similar items to him. By taking a standard action and expending 1 point of mental focus from any of his chosen panoply’s associated implements, he can cause a single item he can currently see that matches one of his chosen panoply’s associated implements (such as a weapon or shield for the tools of the warrior) to fly through the air toward him at a rate of 30 feet per round, landing in his outstretched hand. If the item is unattended, the panoply savant automatically succeeds, but if it is held or worn, he must attempt a special disarm or steal combat maneuver check, using his occultist level as his base attack bonus and his Intelligence modifier in place of his Strength modifier. If the item in question is an implement he currently has 1 or more points of focus invested in, he gains a bonus on this combat maneuver check equal to twice the amount of focus currently invested in it. This ability replaces binding circles.
Traits
Clever Wordplay [Diplomacy] (social): Your cunning and logic are more than a match for another’s confidence and poise. Choose one Charisma-based skill. You attempt checks with that skill using your Intelligence modifier instead of your Charisma modifier.
Minor Technological Knowledge (campaign): You can use Knowledge (engineering) to determine the principles powering a given technological device. If you are trained in knowledge (history), you can use it determine the sort of society which would produce such a device. You may make a Wisdom check to determine how to activate a given device. (This does not imbue the character with any skills in the use of the device. It doesn’t teach to use firearms or welding machines, etc.)
Elf Racial Traits
Check: Once per week, you can spend 1 hour posing questions while your hand unconsciously scribbles messages of varying legibility and accuracy. At the end of this hour, you attempt a Linguistics check to decipher the meanings of these messages. If successful, you gain information as though you had used augury. If you have 10 or more ranks in Linguistics, you can attempt a higher DC check to instead gain information as though you had used divination. The chance of successfully producing coherent or meaningful writing from any of these effects equals 60% plus 5% for every 1 by which your check result exceeds the DC (to a maximum of 90%). You must choose which DC you’ll try to meet before attempting the check. The GM rolls the check and d% roll secretly, so that you can’t tell whether the messages are accurate.
Writing Results Ranks Required DC
As augury spell 1 20
As divination spell 10 30
Action: Automatic writing takes 1 hour.
Try Again: Yes. You can attempt to learn more about a subject, but can still attempt only one check per week.
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Hypnotism: You use the power of suggestion and subtle psychic influence to alter a subject’s mind and dredge up repressed memories.
Check: You can use hypnotism once per day. The DC of a Diplomacy check to hypnotize is 20 + the subject’s Will save modifier against mind-affecting enchantment (compulsion) effects. All uses of hypnotism are mind-affecting enchantment (compulsion) effects.
Implant Suggestion: You can implant a suggested course of reasonable action in the mind of a willing creature, along with a defined trigger. To implant a suggestion, you spend 1 minute inducing a trance-like state in the subject, after which you attempt a Diplomacy check. If the check is successful, you implant the course of action, as a suggestion spell with a duration of 10 minutes plus 10 additional minutes for every 1 by which your check result exceeds the DC. If the subject ceases to be willing, it can attempt a Will save once each round to shake off the effects. The save DC is equal to 10 + 1/2 your character level + your Charisma modifier. You can attempt to subtly implant a suggestion in the mind of an unwilling creature with an attitude of indifferent or better after 1 minute of continuous, calm interaction with that creature, but the DC is 10 higher.
Recall Memory: You can draw out forgotten memories from a willing subject. You spend 1 minute inducing a calming, trance-like state in the subject, after which you attempt a Diplomacy check. If you succeed at the check, the hypnotized creature can reroll any previously failed Intelligence or Knowledge check to recall the forgotten information with a +4 bonus. The information must be something the subject once knew or was exposed to.
Action: Hypnotism takes 1 minute of calm interaction.
Try Again: Yes. You can try to hypnotize the same creature more than once, but only once per day.
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Phrenology: You examine the skulls of intelligent creatures to analyze the subjects’ psychological attributes, since the shape of the brain influences the shape of the skull.
Check: Once per day, you can use your fingertips to examine the shape of a creature’s skull. Reading a creature’s skull requires 1 minute of concentration and scrutiny while you physically manipulate the skull. This technique can be used on a willing, helpless, or paralyzed creature, or on decomposed remains (as long as the skull is intact or can be pieced together). This skill can’t be used on creatures without discernible skulls, such as constructs, elementals, oozes, or plants. After the minute is up, the GM attempts a secret Knowledge (arcana) check. The DC is typically modified by the subject’s Hit Dice. With a single check, you determine all the information whose DC you meet. For instance, if you had a result of 22 when examining a creature with 2 HD, you would learn that creature’s race and age, gender, alignment, and class, but not its level or HD.
Task DC
Determine race and age 10
Determine gender 15
Determine alignment 15 + creature’s HD†
Determine class 20 + creature’s HD†
Determine level or HD 25 + creature’s HD†
† A dead creature’s skull uses the HD the creature had when alive.
Action: Reading a creature’s cranium requires 1 minute of uninterrupted study.
Try Again: Yes. Reexamining a skull may provide new insights. You can attempt only one such check per day.
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Prognostication: You are skilled in means of folk divination. The most common methods are cartomancy (reading cards), cheiromancy (reading a creature’s palms), crystallomancy (crystal-gazing), extispicy (reading animal entrails), horoscopy (reading a creature’s birth stars), oneiromancy (interpreting dreams), osteomancy (reading cast bones), and pyromancy (reading flames).
Check: Once per day, you can predict a creature’s fortune for the near future. You spend 10 minutes interpreting the divination means at your disposal. The GM then attempts a secret Sense Motive check with a DC modified by the subject’s Hit Dice (see the table below). The result of the check can give you basic insight into the subject’s nature, including its alignment, class, and levels or Hit Dice, and might reveal clues to the creature’s immediate future. Determining the immediate future as an augury spell has a chance of successfully interpreting meaningful readings equal to 60% plus 5% for every point by which the check result exceeds the DC (to a maximum of 90%). With a single check, you determine all the information whose DC you meet. For instance, if you had a result of 22 when telling the fortune of a creature with 2 HD, you would learn that creature’s alignment and class, but not its level, HD, or fortune.
Task DC
Determine alignment 15 + creature’s HD
Determine class 20 + creature’s HD
Determine level or HD 25 + creature’s HD
Determine fortune as augury spell 25 + creature’s HD
Action: Reading a creature’s fortune requires 10 minutes of uninterrupted contemplation, and the subject creature must be present.
Try Again: Yes. You can attempt to read a particular creature’s fortune repeatedly, but only once per 24 hours.
Special: Specially crafted items purchased for the exclusive use of this skill grant a +2 circumstance bonus on Sense Motive checks to prognosticate.
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Read Aura: Your psychic sensitivity allows you to read the psychic and magical auras of creatures and objects.
Check: Once per day, you can examine the natural aura of a creature or object to discern the subject’s alignment, emotions, health, or magic. This requires 10 minutes of concentration, after which you attempt a Perception check. Each time, you must pick one of four auras to read: alignment, emotion, health, or magic. The result of the check applies only to the selected aura. You must be within 30 feet of the subject at all times during the reading. Objects typically have only magic auras, though some also have alignment auras (and intelligent items have emotion auras). You can still attempt to detect a type of aura an object doesn’t have, but you get no results. The DC varies depending on the aura, as shown on the table.
Read Alignment Aura: You attempt to read the alignment aura, learning the alignment and its strength. An alignment aura’s strength depends on the creature’s Hit Dice or item’s caster level, as noted in the description of the detect evil spell.
Read Emotion Aura: The colors within the target’s aura reveal its emotional state. If successful, you learn the target’s disposition and its attitude toward any creatures within 30 feet of it. For a number of rounds equal to the amount by which you exceeded the skill check’s DC, you gain a +2 circumstance bonus on Bluff, Diplomacy, Intimidate, and Sense Motive checks against the target.
Read Health Aura: Viewing the flow of vital force, you assess a creature’s physical condition. You learn if the creature is unharmed or wounded, if it is poisoned or diseased, and whether it is affected by any of the following conditions: confused, disabled, dying, nauseated, panicked, staggered, stunned, and unconscious. You also learn the total number of points available in its ki pool, grit pool, or similar resource.
Read Magic Aura: You attempt to determine the number and power of all magical auras on a target creature or object (see detect magic to determine a magic aura’s power). If the check is successful, you can attempt Knowledge (arcana) or Spellcraft checks to determine the school or identify properties of a magic item, as normal. If the item is affected by magic aura or a similar spell, you can realize this and determine the actual properties of the item if your check result exceeds the DC by 5 or more. If the spell is of a higher level (such as aura alteration), increase this threshold DC by 2 for every spell level beyond 1st.
Task DC
Read alignment aura 15 + creature’s HD or item’s caster level
Read emotion aura 20 + creature’s HD or item’s caster level†
Read health aura 15 + creature’s HD
Read magic aura 20 + creature’s HD or item’s caster level
† Intelligent items only.
Action: Reading an aura requires 10 minutes of study.
Try Again: Yes. You can read a creature or object’s aura more than once, whether you read the same aura or a different one. You can still attempt only one skill check to read an aura per day.
It was because of the books that he had published and the conferences that he had spoken at that the Curator came to the attention of The Organization. In the process of amassing his collection, The Curator had become an expert on a score of useful topics. He could make remarkable leaps of logic and connect disparate data points. At times, it made him seem almost prescient, able to anticipate enemy battle plans with uncanny fidelity by referencing three separate events separated by centuries and entire tangles of planar substrate.
Still, the Curator never expected to be called to the front lines. He had been content to remain in the comforts of his Collection in relative safety, summoned by The Organization only when they needed his Counsel (or an item from his collection). But when shattered his relatively peaceable existence, the Curator was forced to respond. And in taking up some of the items of his collection, he has found skills he could have never anticipated. The memories of the items' previous owners had left impressions on the items. Some of them were not at all pleased with the Curator. But despite their differences, the Collective recognized the threat posed to the multiverse and sought to lend their strength to the Curator.
Sorry to go slow. The other character is also pretty interesting. Feel free to tell me more.
Choices are always difficult. I am choosing polyfrequencies' Collector.
Thank Andreww...
Hi,
We once again need a new player. I may put up a new page if I don't get responses but the current page is still a fine summary. I will be more demanding limiting a player's other campaigns to some minimum.
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Hmm... Color me interested, the story sounds incredibly interesting, and what I've read is very engaging. I don't know if this is the game for it, so I'll toss out a concepts before attempting to apply in full:
> **Bella, The Musicbox**
Bella was never meant to exist. A warforged not made for war out of the dying breath of a lover in love with a shadow. Something never intended to live, and yet the mark of draconic prophecy is etched into every mark in her being, showing an intention that was never intended.
And an intention that was never resolved, as she fled and was immediately adopted by planehoppers who had no idea how terrifying the existence of a dragonmarked warforged truely was due to how isolated Eberron is from the rest of the multiverse, and was immediately stolen from there into the greater planescape, leaving a woman who was just another oddity in a universe of oddities.
Or, at least in theory a woman. Truth be told, she still has trouble conceptualizing herself as a woman rather than a thing to be used- Her previous situation before discovering her dragonmark was quite unfortunate (Having been sold off after her creators death to provide poison to assasins and be entertainment).
History]
Themes/Trops:
Bella was made to create. Bella chose to run. From her heritage, from her past, from her very world, when she faced the idea of being anything more than what she was, she ran. And eventually, she's going to have to stop running from everything. As she joins the group, she'll strafe around it.
CLEAR MOTIVATIONS/GOALS:
- Aid her contacts to any goal they so desire
- Avoid being seen as unique and hide the nature of her dragonmark making her unique
- Figure out what it means to be a person
- Maintain a sense of stability in her life
- Keep those she cares about *safe* and *Happy*
Questions
IF you have your character outlined:
1. What was your world of origin like
Eberron, a world of nations and magictech, where magic did not reach the same limits or reaches, where nationality matters less than race, and nationalism is just as fervent. But a nation where blood still matters, as marked by the dragonmarks.
__A. Technology-level?
Eberron tech,
__B. "Values"? (honorable? Corrupt? Trading oriented?)
Incredibly compassionate and incredibly simple- She has her friends that she will fight for, and enemies that will need to be resolved.
__C. What was the geography of the world?
Space born, lived, and worked in space habitats/cities/ships
__D. What races existed and how did they relate?
Only one of note is the Warforged, which were manufactured creatues designed for ware, save for her.
2. How does your character manage to keep a low profile in a mostly human plane? What would your *cover* occupation be?
Either a magical disguise, a physical disguise,
3B. If you have NOT been in the organization long, how do you find your way to Sigil or where you were recruited?
Two idiots didn't realize they couldn't get to eberron, found their way to eberron, got drunk in Eberron, and she just kind of... Followed them home. To Sigil. And now needs a job, because they kind of kicked her out of the house she made.
Hmm... Color me interested, the story sounds incredibly interesting, and what I've read is very engaging. I don't know if this is the game for it, so I'll toss out a concepts before attempting to apply in full:
> **Bella, The Musicbox**
The concept sounds fabulous and well suited to the campaign.
Bump
I've got a few questions on the nature of your setting and houserules to help guide character concepts.
...
The Dark Traders are more like ongoing antagonists than a group headed towards a single apocalypse.
Players aren't usually engaged in philosophical debates but there's a lot of inquiry into the nature of the planes and the nature of civilizations in the planes - as well as some dabbling in things like time travel and worlds with strange natural orders, local (single-plane-wide) disasters and etc.
As far as secret agent-ness, Characters do periodically assume cover identities and gather information using those cover identities.
I'm learning to just not answer hypothetical "will you allow this sort of power" questions unless someone describes a character concept they want to play first. I will allow a lot if you present me a compelling concept (and I'll give lots of latitude here if you make it compelling).
And I think the best way to fully answer your questions is to have a look at the game play thread and the existing characters. I may some time produce a synopsis of the last three years of daily play (6+ distinct plot arcs, etc) but it's not immediately on my agenda.
This is a game requires reading on daily or every-other-day basis so if you're interested, probably start now.
The concept sounds fabulous and well suited to the campaign.Hmm... Color me interested, the story sounds incredibly interesting, and what I've read is very engaging. I don't know if this is the game for it, so I'll toss out a concepts before attempting to apply in full:
> **Bella, The Musicbox**
Wonderful! I've started on the character sheet, so my apologies for taking so long to respond- Character sheet creation is complex for a 14th level character, and I do work full time.
I hope you don't mind, but it will require access to Spheres of Power- Particularly the Creation sphere and Enhancement sphere, as I plan on emulating a siberyus mark using spheres of power, fluffing it as an innate part of her design meshing with her dragonmark to let her gain more from it.
Notably, she is going to be very charisma based, and probably going to be an Incanter. I don't suppose I could request that incanters be bumped to a 4+int class, or to be allowed to take some Skill Spheres to hopefully offset my low skill ranks. The only other stuff might be a war sphere talent to emulate a music box, some warleader sphere talent to emulate vocals, and maybe some perform or artifice talents if Guile is on the table.
The concept sounds fabulous and well suited to the campaign.Hmm... Color me interested, the story sounds incredibly interesting, and what I've read is very engaging. I don't know if this is the game for it, so I'll toss out a concepts before attempting to apply in full:
> **Bella, The Musicbox**
Wonderful! I've started on the character sheet, so my apologies for taking so long to respond- Character sheet creation is complex for a 14th level character, and I do work full time.
I hope you don't mind, but it will require access to Spheres of Power- Particularly the Creation sphere and Enhancement sphere, as I plan on emulating a siberyus mark using spheres of power, fluffing it as an innate part of her design meshing with her dragonmark to let her gain more from it.
Notably, she is going to be very charisma based, and probably going to be an Incanter. I don't suppose I could request that incanters be bumped to a 4+int class, or to be allowed to take some Skill Spheres to hopefully offset my low skill ranks. The only other stuff might be a war sphere talent to emulate a music box, some warleader sphere talent to emulate vocals, and maybe some perform or artifice talents if Guile is on the table.
I think Terex is using Spheres of Power and I'm looking into them for my IRL campaign so they're OK but give a couple days myself to read up on them to understand what you're talking about.
The concept sounds fabulous and well suited to the campaign.Hmm... Color me interested, the story sounds incredibly interesting, and what I've read is very engaging. I don't know if this is the game for it, so I'll toss out a concepts before attempting to apply in full:
> **Bella, The Musicbox**
Wonderful! I've started on the character sheet, so my apologies for taking so long to respond- Character sheet creation is complex for a 14th level character, and I do work full time.
I hope you don't mind, but it will require access to Spheres of Power- Particularly the Creation sphere and Enhancement sphere, as I plan on emulating a siberyus mark using spheres of power, fluffing it as an innate part of her design meshing with her dragonmark to let her gain more from it.
Notably, she is going to be very charisma based, and probably going to be an Incanter. I don't suppose I could request that incanters be bumped to a 4+int class, or to be allowed to take some Skill Spheres to hopefully offset my low skill ranks. The only other stuff might be a war sphere talent to emulate a music box, some warleader sphere talent to emulate vocals, and maybe some perform or artifice talents if Guile is on the table.
I think Terex is using Spheres of Power and I'm looking into them for my IRL campaign so they're OK but give a couple days myself to read up on them to understand what you're talking about.
Just to save you some time, TL;DR-
Creation- Make things, very free-form. Think if a wizard was focused only on true creation, minor creation, fabricate and true creation. A powerful sphere as a resault.
Enhancement- Mimics magic items that give +X Stats to things, also has Animate object and "Awaken," including something that mimics living spells.
War- Relatively simple but large area of effect spells that give small bonuses to any number of people
Warleader- same as War, but not magic
Artifice- improve your ability to create things and give material effects to the items you make
Perform- gives some non-combat performances directly and material effects in combat.
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So my initial Idea is Lady Vosk was born under an aspicious sign. A sickly child raised by mid ranking nobles who thought there child lost. The strife between the pair was heated as Emilia wasnt the first born, but the forst to come out alive.
The pair tried a variety of divine and alchemical options in their kingdom. Sadly she did not get better. Eventually a witch came at behest of the Families butler and the young toddler was gicen several strange tonics and tinctures, combined with rituals and runic sigils. Emilia was cured. Though her mother was once more pregnant.
This year long treatment altered her to the core. Her eyes turned a golden amber.This was the latent Bat Blood which the wotch used to stabloze Emilia. At age 8 her parents, servents and sibilings had acted eerie about her, this lead to the parents contacting the witch and taking Emilia to aid her
Emilia learned the truth that her totem the Bat was trying to eat her soul and thus the Witch used her magics and rituals to bond the spirit inher flesh. Now it was up to Emilia to choose what to do with such a spirit. The 8 year old young Lady began right then and there to train.
From age 8 to 12 she trained. Emilia learning wood craft and tapping into the beast within. Her master the Witch drilled her on the various techniques and skills of the Shifter. Soon she could control it to some extent.
At 12 Emilias parents sent thier steward out to collect Emilia she was to debut to the rest of high society. Emilia agreed to leave when she knew she wasnt done teaining, for her duties as the Vosk lead daugther would need to learn to also be a lady.
It was a tumultous time lesrning the ways of the court, the intrigue and politics. All the while she kept the beast at bay, using it to intimidate some and intrigue others. Eventually at 15 she was granted leave once more ans threw herself into the studies of the occult.
Sadly her ventures into magic where for not as its complexities and enegies escaped her reach. Even seeking power in the Divine was lacking. So she instead became an Adventurer. Seeking the life of exploration and allowing her ro research and expand her thrist for knowledge
Combined with the unlockinf of the beast within Lady Emilia Vosk tasked herself to fight and research the most darkest of places. It was these abilities that lead her to be recruited by the Organization. A proper lady with a bit of Beast inside. Through Intimidation and Guile she has accomplished much.
I think Terex is using Spheres of Power and I'm looking into them for my IRL campaign so they're OK but give a couple days myself to read up on them to understand what you're talking about.
Terexaltherin is indeed using Spheres of Power to represent expanding his psionic powers beyond his native telepathy. :)
For everyone's information, I am going to wait at least until Lawful Lilly makes her character to decide anything.
Lyra is tech-based from a Starfinder-like Tech as Magic plane and married to Arlo from a high-fantasy magic plane.
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Sorry for the delay! It's been a rough week, and Bella is... Not done yet, because a 14th level character is hard, and it's also just as hard to transpose it to the standard bestiary character stat format. But for the most part, mechanically she is pretty much done, save for magic item shopping (A nightmare at the best of time!) on the mythweavers sheet (https://og.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=2862578) if not on her profile
I have done some stuff: Warforged was used a base, but I made a custom ACF to swap out her natural armor for constant detect magic (Redundant with her trait but an interesting and thematic option for a support-focused warforge gift) and Sociable (Which allows her a second diplomacy attempt if she fails >5) from the race builder for the same price (3 rp and 1 rp respectively)
I also used oaths for her magic items, because she is in her story a magic item, and she would not usually be given magic items- Any further magic items I would buy I'd buy double price for slotless (AKA, as tattoos) Oaths with Oath of Offerings and the ones I chose are basically just automatic bonus progression
I'll see what I can do later in the week, thank you for your patience.
Thanks for keeping me informed. I'll look more now that I have some days off myself.
Alright, she's pretty much done mechanically, just need to write some more synopsis and character backstory stuff for her and actually format the damn thing.
in the meantime, battle sampler! This shows her flashiest action (AKA, summon big rock on head on fire and poisoned), and while I usually wouldn't do a party-debuffing effect like this (Or break with the plan there), I feel like this serves as a better introduction to Bellas personality.
Struck sorely by Terex, the Hermit transforms ... into a 20' tall amphibian corpse-figure and confronts Arlo - slamming him with a mighty slap that sends him 20' in the air to land in a heap and doing 15 points of damage while attempting to suck out his life force Fort save 20 or 3 pts constitution damage it then mutters curses in Aklo (but loudly) and stalks to Terex's general location, peering about to find the tiny dragon.
The "hermit" has huge rents in its body from Terex but you realize its sound may be loud enough to reach the town and the "stable hand"... about a quarter mile away...
Bella was not practiced in combat. Combat, in fact, was something that was mostly alien to her. Combat, in fact, was a horribly unfamiliar experience to her, so much so that she began to feel the panic boil in her.
So she did what she always did. She desperately tried to weave something together on the backfoot, her brain flickering back to the small room she used to live in, quietly weaving that memory into something solid and steel, not quite noticing her screams as the person transformed. Her mind remembered making poisons, flickering to her hands coated in thornapple between memories of smoke as it burnt in the air , screaming as she felt herself fall from it, linking that cry to her own in the present as she felt the item congeal... And fall
If she was smarter, she would have been more careful. She would have realized, there might have been collateral damage from this. She, in this moment, was not smart, as she dropped a building on him. Them, actually, as she hits both Arlo and herself.
She opened her eyes, looking at the building in shock- Largely because she is, in fact, blind. Her mind flashes back to the small rooom the boulder is designed to resemble, a cutout in design to the place she was stored until needed. Terathin can see, in the middle on a tiny plinth, is a stone statue of Bella, and another of a different woman pressing Bella's forehead as she kneeled. An effect quite marred when the beast rises up from the debris, shattering the statue of Bella as it rises.
OK, I am bumping this. We could use another player. Role is pretty currently. Long running, "deep" campaign. Hope for someone who can make time for such a thing.
I might be able to take this on. What do you need from me? And what does the party need? I have a vague idea for a minotaur-themed skald.
With have 1 front line fighter, and three magic/psion spell/power slingers.
So another front liner may be good.
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I am not familiar with Blades in the Dark. However I built an occultist based on a Shadowrun Adept (if that is what they were called). Shadowrun setting seems to have a lot of similarities to the Blades.
She is fun to play, and with some modifications (& level up) might make a good fit.
I have lots of short story experience. I hope I can find a good sample of a 'descriptive' PbP-post from her, but there are plenty in the GM & other characters if you look at my profile.
That is, if you have room for another.
Gift has a point that fighter could be useful.
I'm mostly asking for a narrative/flavorful description of the potential character to give me an idea of your approach. The Blades In The Dark reference is most around "you can add backstory with you narrative whenever appropriate, within reason".
The game has been going a while and you can look at the game play thread to see how we operate.
(and we seeking one character currently, yes)
The character I'm developing is sort of a nature bard with the preliminary name of Chella Heartfire. She's a tiefling skald, and grew up under the domineering thumb of her archdevil father who first introduced her to the interdimensional panoply. For a long time her role was punishing sinners at her master's direction, taking her to a variety of different planes, and she hated it. His favorite punishment was transforming her into a wild bull and having her trample them to death. They lived in a dark demiplane somewhere deep in the outer realms, but he often traveled to Sigil to research his targets, and he always brought Chella with him (in chains).
She has an aasimar half-sister (Peri) who tracked her down and helped her finally defeat her father, but she was forced to sacrifice her own life in the process. She now exists as a formless spirit, bonded to Chella and helping her from beyond the veil. For several years now they have lived on Sigil, taking odd jobs and struggling to get by. Chella has specialized in physical skills like Survival and social skills like Diplomacy, Intimidate, and Sense Motive. She is also immensely strong and tough, and wields a powerful greatclub for when talks break down. Peri is a literal ghost in the machine with a high understanding of technological magic and creature lore.
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Hi GM! Considering monstrous races are allowed, would you consider templates?
My idea would be for a middle-aged human werebear (polar bear) aiming for the Champion of Irori prestige class, which needs both levels in monk and paladin.
Bear (sorry!) in mind that while the lycanthopic template could be very powerful, giving me a lot of Str/Con, I'm balancing it my picking a combination of classes that are absolutely MAD. To be good in melee I need both Str and Con. With no armor, I need Dex and Wis. As a servant of Irori, I can't dump Int in good faith (sorry!) and finally, since the paladin's abilities are tied to Cha, I also need it. All in all, every single attribute is essential.
He should be pretty tough and effective in melee, both as a damage dealer and as a damage sponge. In terms of skills, should be great in knowledge and also contribute to social encounters.
With a powerful template, I'd also devote most of my feats in more fluff choices to make me more versatile instead of pumping extra power into it.
If allowed, I'd soon develop some scenes so you can see how my character would RP and decide if it fits your game.
I must say, however, that I'm not versed in the Planescape lore. Would this disqualify me?
With have 1 front line fighter, and three magic/psion spell/power slingers.
I know Terex here can casts spells and use psionic powers, but he's really more of a rogue than anything else... :D
That said, he's *definitely* not suited to front-line combat. But the truth is this campaign hasn't really been about combat. Sure it happens, but we tend to spend much more time on figuring out how to deal with strange magical phenomena or trying to figure out what our enemies' goals are or other things like that.
I'll also add that we're not really using Planescape lore as-written, so not knowing it is not a problem.
I looked over the existing characters, keeping in mind the original instructions that everyone on the team should have a specific area of expertise that might be useful to a gang of interdimensional private investigators based in Sigil. It seems to me you've got everything covered extremely well, and the only areas I could find that aren't as highly-ranked as the others are wilderness skills like Swim and Survival. So that's where I started.
Mechanically, Chella as I've developed her would be a force multiplier for Arlo in combat, inspiring rage to boost his Strength and also granting him damage reduction. She has the celestial totem line of rage powers, which are kind of a neat suite of useful abilities: healing, revealing hidden enemies, and spell resistance. And she's generally focused on absorbing and mitigating damage herself, which should take some of the heat off the others.
Outside of combat, she is focused on Strength and Charisma, and has good scores in Diplomacy, Intimidate, Sense Motive, and Bluff so that she can support Azzim in social situations. She has no Intelligence-based skills, or any sort of subterfuge except through her cohort's aid, because that seems to be Gift's and Terexaltherin's wheelhouses. Skald/bard spells are generally good at helping others' skills though, and I'm hoping Peri could also assist them somewhat without overshadowing them.
All the character concepts so far seem workable. What I would like to see is something like a sample post for a given character. How would the character relate to the broad task/quest of working with The Organization to stop the Dark Traders? I say more in the very first post on this thread.
Also, questions on the plot, setting and style are welcome (though you can see more or less what it is in the game thread).
(As Terex says, while "rounding out" the party could be nice, it's not main thing. Unless a character really duplicate another party member's functions, just about any class/etc else could be OK (the longer-term character we lost a while back was a sorcerer for example). We have the occasional tough combat but we also go along with mostly narration for longish periods. )
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Chella frowns, her beady eyes staring intently past her long muzzle as she attempts to puzzle out the words on the page in front of her. "What am I looking at, Peri?" she grumbles, addressing her steel-banded greatclub and the faint image of a woman in the metal's reflection. "It just seems like a lot of numbers and letters. Is this another one of your 'cross-sword puzzles'? You know I'm no good at any of that." She tries to keep the frustration out of her voice, since she knows her half-sister means well, but she hated these kind of mind games.
Peri's image in the metal winks. "IT'S DELVONIAN SCRIPT," her ghostly voice proclaims, drawing out the words like she is giving a clue, the sound echoing slightly in the small corner of the eatery where Chella waits for her meal. "GO ON, TRY AND DECODE IT-- THERE'S A POTENTIAL JOB OFFER BEHIND IT IF YOU CAN MANAGE IT!" She laughs, a bright and giddy sound that is both right next to Chella and also very far away at the same time.
Chella sighs and begins examining the magical nature of the text, adjusting the letters in her mind and cross-referencing them with her own sorcerous understanding based on musical theory. Despite herself, she does become interested as she works, so much so that she doesn't notice when the server brings her a bowl of watery soup and bread, leaving it on the table. "Oh, it's a poem!" she says suddenly. "The text can be adjusted into four lines, and the first and third both resonate in the same way, as do the second and fourth. That's neat." She looks over at the greatclub with narrowed eyes. "Is that close enough, or do I have to do more to learn about the job details?"
Peri laughs again. "WELL DONE! ACTUALLY, I DO NOT KNOW MUCH ABOUT THE DETAILS, ONLY THAT A GROUP OF HUMANS AND GNOMES FROM ORGUANION ARE LOOKING TO HIRE OFFWORLDERS TO HELP THEM WITH A TASK. ORGUANION IS AN OLD-WORLD SOCIETY BASED ON GUILDS WHO ARE NORMALLY VERY HOSTILE TO OUTSIDERS. HOWEVER, THE REPRESENTATIVES OF THE BOOKBINDER'S GUILD DO OCCASIONALLY HIRE EXPERTS FROM AS FAR AWAY AS SIGIL FOR EXTRAORDINARY CIRCUMSTANCES THAT REQUIRE SPECIAL HANDLING." She smiles, a glorious image inexplicably bathed in light. "A GROUP OF THEM ARE SHOWING AROUND THAT PAGE IN THE GUILDHALL WARD, DESCRIBING IT AS A SORT OF TEST TO SEE IF THEY WANT TO HIRE PEOPLE. MOST OF THE MERCENARIES THEY HAVE MET WITH SO FAR DON'T LOOK AS BRAWNY AS YOU, SO YOU WOULD BE A DISTINCTIVE CANDIDATE. YOU SHOULD GO OVER THERE AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, CHELLA DEAR."
Chella sighs again. She starts to protest that she hasn't even gotten her dinner yet, when she notices it sitting on the table. She pauses. Peri's advice was usually sound, though sometimes a bit delayed because of her unorthodox methods of obtaining information. And despite her initial misgivings, she was a little intrigued. "Veewell," she says after a moment's thought, "But let me finish the food first." Her purse was lean enough that she couldn't afford to waste a meal, and she had been scaling back to only two a day since work had dried up. Really shouldn't have upset the Harmonium, she thinks to herself for the umpteenth time, scowling at the memory. She slurps the bowl down in three gulps and grabs the roll to eat on the way, taking her club and leaving coins on the table. "I hope this isn't a waste of time," she mutters, eternally optimistic despite her gruff exterior.
I work Mondays and Tuesday. I'll try to respond tomorrow
Sure! Let me know if you need anything else.
Chella frowns... (impressive stuff)
When Peri and Chella follow up the lead, they meet not Orguanions but a tall human woman calling herself Livonia of The Organization. She outlines the principles of the group and asks if Chella would be interested in a more ambitious job that would only begin with translation... Appropriate training is quickly provided...