1920's pulp noir meets fantasy sounds like an excellent foray. Let's see what the dice gods say...
= 14
= 14
= 10
= 16
= 13
= 12
=10
=9
=17
=12
=11
=12
Gonna go with a Vigilante, I think.
Ouachitonian: It'll be average HPs.
Some questions on the setting: is Earth human-only? IE, could there be elves or dwarves, vampires or Fey who are native to Earth and just live in the shadows? Or are all the non-humans from elsewhere? I’m thinking about an elf who’s originally from Northern Europe somewhere, but immigrated to the US some decades ago, and has been in Crossroads long enough to take the Local trait. Remembers Napoleon ravaging Europe when he was a boy, may have arrived in the US early enough to fight in the Civil War. Could that be a thing?
Also, what sort of balance are you looking for, race wise? Do you expect to have a mostly human party with only one or two oddballs, or is it more wide open?
Earth is human only. Though there's some magic, it's very rare, poorly understood, and unpredictable.
I'm looking, ideally, for one of each campaign trait, so half human, two odd but not too crazy characters, and one who's a total oddball.
Could we submit two characters? If yes, could we use the same rolled stats on both?
Are there other points of access to Crossroads?
Lobster: Yes, you could.
Han Del: On Earth, no. On other planes and dimensions and whatnot, there are.
Please accept my submission (Mallory)
Not bad at all.
I'll have something up shortly.
DBH here with my offering. Charity Drake, the girl who looked too deeply and is now looking for a way out. :
CHARITY DRAKE
Female Human oracle 5, CG medium humanoid (human)
Init +2; Senses Darkvision (60 ft.), Perception +9,
Languages Aklo, Celestial, Common, Draconic, Tongues,
AC 17, touch 13, flat-footed 15
hp 38 (5HD)
Fort +3, Ref +4, Will +5
Ranged revolver +6 (1d8+1/x4), within 30 ft. +7 (1d8+1)
Base Atk +3; CMB +2; CMD 14
Known Oracle Spells (CL 5th):
2nd (5/day) - restoration (lesser) (DC 16) , sound burst (DC 16) , dust of twilight (DC 16) , cure moderate wounds (DC 16)
1st (7/day) - ears of the city (DC 15) , protection from evil (DC 15) , ray of sickening (DC 15) , shield of faith (DC 15) , cure light wounds (DC 15) , entropic shield (DC )
0th (at will) - create water , detect magic , detect poison , light , mending (DC 14) , sotto voce (DC 14)
Abilities Str 9, Dex 14, Con 13, Int 14, Wis 10, Cha 19
Special Qualities Bonus Feat, Cloak of Darkness, Dark Tapestry Mysteries, Orisons, Pierce the Veil, Skilled, Tongues, Tongues ~ Aklo, Tongues ~ Celestial,
Feats Fast Learner, Point-Blank Shot, Precise Shot
Skills
Acrobatics +2,
Appraise +2,
Bluff +4,
Climb -1,
Craft (Untrained) +2,
Diplomacy +12,
Disguise +4,
Escape Artist +2,
Fly +2,
Heal +5,
Intimidate +4,
Knowledge (Arcana) +10,
Knowledge (History) +7,
Knowledge (Planes) +10,
Knowledge (Religion) +6,
Perception +9,
Profession (Courtesan) +4,
Profession (Fortune-teller) +6,
Sense Motive +8,
Spellcraft +10,
Stealth +7,
Swim -1,
Possessions: Mithral shirt; traveler's outfit; Revolver ; Wrist Sheath, Spring Loaded [ Cold Iron Dagger; ]; Handy Haversack [ Courtesan's Kit; Survival Kit (Masterwork); Medium's Kit; Healer's Kit; Grooming Kit; Silk Rope (50 ft.); Grappling Hook, Common; Perfume/Cologne; Mess Kit; Bullet (Firearm/30); Bullet (Firearm/Silver) (x10); Bedroll; Winter Blanket; Coffee Pot; Compass; Soap; Inkpen; Paper (x5); Coffee (Cup) (x5); Absinthe (Bottle); ];
1,968.04 GP.
Bonus Feat Humans select one extra feat at 1st level.
Cloak of Darkness (Su) You conjure a cloak of shadowy darkness that grants you a +4 armor bonus and a +2 circumstance bonus on Stealth checks. You can use this cloak for 5 hours per day. The duration does not need to be consecutive, but it must be spent in 1-hour increments.
Crossroads Seeker: Somehow, you became aware of the city of Crossroads and set yourself to finding it. After a while of searching, you’ve finally found it and have set yourself to uncovering it’s mysteries. You gain a +1 bonus on knowledge (arcana) and (planes)* checks, and one of these becomes a class skill. You must be human to select this trait, and magic classes are appropriate for it.
Dark Tapestry Mysteries You draw upon the divine mystery of the Dark Tapestry to grant your spells and powers.
Language Humans begin play speaking Common. Humans with high Intelligence scores can choose any languages they want (except secret languages, such as Druidic).
.
Orisons You can prepare a number of orisons, or 0-level spells. These spells are cast like any other spells, but they are not expended when used and may be used again.
Pierce the Veil (Su) Your bond with the alien denizens of the Dark Tapestry allows you to see in even the deepest darkness. You gain darkvision 60 feet.
Seeker You are always on the lookout for reward and danger. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Perception checks, and Perception is always a class skill for you.
Skilled Humans gain an additional skill rank at first level and one additional rank whenever they gain a level.
Tongues In times of stress or unease, you speak in tongues. Whenever you are in combat, you can only speak and understand two selected languages. This does not interfere with spellcasting, but it does apply to spells that are language dependent.
Tongues ~ Aklo You gain Aklo as a bonus language.
Tongues ~ Celestial You gain Celestial as a bonus language.
I'm not to experienced with ABP so please let me know if I need to change anything?
Still working on the background but I see her as a girl from a a comfortably wealthy family who lost her father in the great war and went looking for answers in old books and strange places. This left her open to the dark Tapestry and now she seeks Crossroads and the knowledge of those more used to the occult.
Well this sounds pretty cool. My guilty pleasure is urban fantasy novels (Dresden files, Alex Versus, Rivers of London, etc...) so Gonna have to figure out if I have time for another game.
= 13
= 12
= 15
= 14
= 10
= 13
Could probably do something with that.
13
11
11
11
16
16
A lot of elevens here, maybe the dice tell me to play someone of elven heritage?
I’ll also be using Auto Bonus Progression, Background skills, guns everywhere, and feat tax rules. Finally, I’ll be using a scaling armor bonus system to reflect the increased prevalence of firearms.
I love this.
Would you be open to switch the spellslinger's (in this setting) useless class feature Gunsmith out for something else?
In Guns Everywhere, the Gunslinger class gets a similar treatment.
Would you be willing to take a DSP Malefex? I just realized how one would make a hell of an Occult PI
Han Del: Malefex seems like a great fit.
Ellioti: Yep, you can swap out the spellslinger’s gunsmithig for gun training.
Alright! Time to make one hell of a PI!
Also, important point for anyone needing a character idea...
1920s America mean that there is every chance of a follower of suffrajitsu still being around.
Alrighty, here's my submission for the game. I might be tweaking between now and then, of course.
I'm thinking either a earthling bard who wandered into crossroads, or some kind of monstrous brawler (or both). Either way, here are stats:
= 10
= 11
= 18
= 8
= 14
= 5
Well, that's around a 13 point buy, so I guess 20 point buy it is.
Ellioti: Yep, you can swap out the spellslinger’s gunsmithig for gun training.
Amazing, thank you. I have a human Spellslinger 1 / Cabalist 4 that would fit right into this game. Will take the Crossroads Seeker trait.
Alright, so I'm working up a character, using the monster rules. Hero Lab seems to think that for a monster that is CR 4, and thus gets only 1 PC class, should not then get any Automatic Bonus progression stuff.
This will have the effect of a 5th level character having no magic armor or weapons.
Am I interpreting the rules correctly? OR is Hero Lab interpreting them correctly is probably the better question.
I think that’s an error in HeroLab. But also note: CR and class levels aren’t quite the same. A 5th-level character in one of the normal PC races is CR 4, so a CR 4 creature shouldn’t get any class levels, unless I’m mistaken.
@Ouachitonian gear affects CR. a 5th level PC with level appropriate wealth is supposed to be CR 5 or 6 iirc.
Ok, that’s what I was missing. Thanks for the clarification.
With ABP's increase in NA, what if the PC does not benefit/acquire NA?
Could a deflection/untyped bonus replace it instead?
i'm not sure why a PC wouldn't benefit. if your natural armor bonus is +0 and you get an enhancement bonus of +2 to your natural armor, your natural armor bonus becomes +2.
It is a racial thing, the body made of ectoplasm.
'Does not have a NA bonus to AC, even if it would otherwise get one.'
That aside, is it okay to be employed by one of the prominent families?
I am going with high roller trait.
A large minotaur with a hideously sharp greataxe slung across his back enters. His mane of hair is slicked back and parted right down the middle. A pocket watch dangles from the breast pocket of his tailored pin stripe suit. "Hey, the boss said I was needed here." He stands nonchalantly waiting for a response.
Thematically, I'd say that minotaurs are still fairly ancient Greek in flavor, though with some Italian influence as a result of their envolvement with the mafia.
Physically, this is some of my favorite minotaur art (minotart?) that Paizo has done, so something like the more bull-like is my idea for them.
I don't envy the person tailoring the suits for those legs, but no problem, the more bestial modern minotaur it is.
Wrong time period, but similar feel, your game reminds me of the movie Bright with Will Smith. Sounds fun.
I can see that in some ways. A pretty goofy movie, but a decent one nonetheless.
So, I was thinking about making a Lycanthropic character, and it would be a lot easier to just use the Lycanthrope template, rather then using the monstrous creature rules. Permission to do so?
All right, I'll hold off on making an alias until I'm (hopefully) selected. This is a summary of Jace Rayne, Occult Investigator extraordinaire!
Since Mere up and vanished, I'd been building me the skills and knowledge to find her in Crossroads. I only inherited a spattering of my family's magic and use it to find those things that other PIs scoff at. You saw a wolfman take your baby boy? I'll look for it. Found a mysterious rune painted on your door? I know who wrote that and what you need to do to keep your family safe. Regular PIs don't do "the bizarre," but that's on my business card.
I'm not too insecure to admit my weaknesses, I have three: red wine, dark coffee, and running away from literally anything that can take more than one bullet or a mystic bolt. I'm a detective, not a hitman, not a soldier. I ain't fighting anything that I can't beat.
I've only been in Crossroads about a fortnight, but I'm still peeved that I haven't located my mere yet. This town is a serious meat grinder, with the vampires and werewolves and evil dwarves. I suppose it's not so different from where I came from. People round here seem to only accept a "no" if it's backed up with force, and a "please" if it's backed up with a pile of money. I don't know if she's here, but even if she's not, it's a place where I don't have to hide my magic, but it's still been useful for me to hide it when I have a contract with the Concerned Citizens. I used to hate them and their paranoia, but they make useful clients.
Okay so I had an awful idea for the other character I'm working on and I am very excited by the possibility of it, but it goes off of two 3rd party products that I would need your approval for:
The concept is just the Hulk. Smart tweedy human that gets big and dumb and terrifying when mad. I know I could just play an alchemist and flavor it different but, to me, this is better.
This works by using the 3rd party barbarian archetype Jotunkin. In a "jotunrage" the barbarian grows to Large, which then qualifies them for classic 3.5 prestige class War Hulk (which was 1st party, but was not OGL so has not been converted over to Pathfinder).
War Hulk's level one ability reduces all their skill ranks in INT, WIS, or CHA skills to 0 (except Intimidate), making the smart human become dumb as rocks. Also, every level of War Hulk they gain 2 STR instead of any increase to BAB, but since this growth is a class feature, when their Jotunrage ends, they no longer qualify for the prestige class, giving them their skill ranks back and reducing their STR dramatically.
Because of the War Hulk hit die, they would always be durable and hard to kill, but out of rage, their combat effectiveness is greatly hampered by the 0 BAB of the War Hulk (but that's the point).
I'd be willing to build and propose a conversion on individual features or the PRC as a whole if you needed me to (but ideally, after the character is chosen. Since we're starting at level 5, we'd have a whole level to iron out the details, :))
3.5 content is something I’m not willing to accept. Jotunkin sounds fine, but I won’t allow War Hulk.
I was thinking of a soldier who was wounded in the trenches of Flanders in WW1, a crack shot naturally. While convalescing he visited family in America when great aunt Agatha disappeared. The sheriffs were stumped, private detectives where hired and turned up nothing but bills. So with his trusty service revolver in tow he set out to retrace her steps and promptly got stuck in Crossroads. Some years passed and the campaign began...
Possibly a savage technologist, fighting with a revolver and a kuckri knife.
I was thinking he would be a British officer, a number of those historically were given Kukris. Probably raise less eyebrows in Kansas too.
I'd love to roll up a hard boiled dick for this!
Oh, yeah...
17
16
11
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13
13
Um, I can deal with that.
Okay, I am tossing around the idea of a halfling gunslinger/bard whose family runs a distillery in Southfields, doing business with many of the bars and taverns, and thus mafia, in town. Perhaps their whiskey/moonshine is so good, the mafia even exports it out of Crossroads back to Earth. He's the fourth son of the family, not in line to inherit the family business, and thus has a bit of a wild streak, but is still loyal to his kin.
Anyway, I stumbled onto a spell and had an idea - could the spell Abundant Ammunition be cast on the magazine of a pistol?
Oblivion: Don’t see why it couldn’t be. Tracking mundane ammo is one of my least favorite aspects of RPGs.
Digger Chandler's crunch for his private eye here. This was a fun if complicated build. War vet, former cowpoke, current hard boiled dick on a case that has gone ...weird.