Well I lost a big chunk of backstory to the Forum Monster even though I clearly remember copying the text so that wouldn't happen and I'm too tired to rewrite it, but enough of the backstory survives for a submission, so here's Teacher Corvoril, Champion of Irori.
======Code of Conduct for Champions of Irori======
• I will strive for personal perfection in all things - body, mind, and spirit.
• It is my sacred duty to learn and explore, to teach and uplift, to correct ignorance and open closed minds.
• Anyone who wishes to better themselves is under my guard, and I will not allow learning to be suppressed.
• Every individual walks their own path to perfection. My role is to offer guidance, not direction.
• My word is my bond.
• Anyone who surrenders or is captured has my full protection.
• I always hold myself to the highest standard possible - my own vision of perfection.
• I shall exercise temperance and restraint.
A champion of Irori embraces law and goodness as other paladins do, conducting himself with honor and protecting the innocent; he loses all class features if he ever willingly commits an evil act. A champion of Irori must avoid entanglements that would distract him from the pursuit of perfection and may not incur debts nor give loans to others—though he is encouraged to give freely to those in need. He likewise turns away potential followers of any sort and may not recruit (and must discharge from service, if already acquired) any cohort, follower, animal companion, familiar, special mount, or similar creature.
======Description======
Pic for inspiration.
Age: 32 | Height: 6'3" | Weight: 200 lbs. | Hair: Shoulder blade length, unstyled white hair | Eyes: Silver-white
Teacher Corvoril is a shoreborn: a half-elf with a human mother and an aquatic elf father. He is six and a half feet tall and well-muscled. His hands carry calluses from countless hours of hauling nets, splicing line, climbing masts, and repairing sails. He reflects his aquatic ancestry more than his human side. Dark slate blue skin hides his kind in the ocean depths but is offset sharply by his shoulder-length white hair. His hands and feet are webbed and three slits on either side of his neck betray his gills, allowing him to function just as well on land as in water. His eyes are silver white, giving him a haunting, unnerving gaze.
He wears dark brown linen trousers and prefers to go barefoot. His arms and shoulders a protected by simplistic leather vambraces, rerebraces, and pauldrons, protecting the pugilists’ hands and arms from the blades of opponents or the teeth of predatory fish. Elsewise he is topless. Each vambrace has ten shuriken slotted into them for ease of access and a large seax hangs from a leather belt for ready use in an emergency. Occasionally he carries a monk’s spade, a polearm that is as much tool as weapon.
Teacher Corvoril carries himself with confidence. His superior elven senses allow him to focus on the environment and people around him without seeming to. Despite his intimidating size, he does not push his way through crowds, preferring to flow around obstacles like water, imitating his elven ancestors in their unnatural grace.
======Personality======
Law and order shape all things, even if some cannot see it. The bard believes he is unbound and through his perceived freedom comes his power, but that is not the truth: the bards magic comes from the even tempo and mathematical precision of their instruments. The sorcerer believes their magic comes only from their blood, but their latent arcane abilities speak to the discipline and perseverance of their ancestors. Law is order. Order is discipline. Discipline is strength.
Teacher Corvoril seeks perfection. Not in the obsessive, unproductive way of the perfectionist. In their simplest form, Irori’s tenets could be summarized thusly: be better tomorrow than you are today. Read from a new book. Practice a new technique. Speak to a stranger. Contrary to the nature implied by his aquatic elven ancestry, Corvoril enjoys the structure of monastic life. A life without drama and distractions, but by no means a life without enjoyment or a sense of reward. Growing up in Absolom, the City at the Center of the World, Corvoril was surrounded by people from all walks of life and all nations. He is open minded, not allowing prejudices to steal opportunities to learn or experience new things. He is generous. Not with his possessions for he has none, but with his time and knowledge. He is humble and levelheaded. A highly skilled martial artist, he is not one to boast or rush to violence.
======History======
Corvoril is the result of a one-time union between Willow Neenan and an unnamed aquatic elf. Willow, a marine in the Andoran navy, did not want to abandon her military career to raise a child, so she left her son in the care of the Iroran monastery in Absalom. She left him, but not because she did not love him, nor did she ever renounce her child as her own. She stopped by to see the boy when she could, but as time went on and she rose in the ranks, she had fewer and fewer opportunities. Children taken in by the monastery are not raised as Irorans. The path of the cleric or the monk is not the path for everyone, but Corvoril took to monastic life well and at thirteen, he became a novice monk at the Iroran temple in Absalom. He never proved to be the most intellectual of students, preferring subjects like philosophy, martial arts, and diplomacy over history and geography.
Martials arts are one of the steps on the long path to perfection. Most Irorans would never find themselves in a fight for their life, but martial arts improve body, mind, and spirit for any, from the humble tulip farmer to the wizened duelist. As he could breathe underwater, Corvoril was trained in the Way of the Crushing Tsunami. Water was not a good medium in which to exchange weak and rapid blows, hoping to wear one’s opponent down with a shower of attacks. Practitioners of the Way of the Crushing Tsunami were taught to deliver deliberate and powerful attacks, pooling their strikes into strong, punishing blows that would crush through an opponent’s defenses. His strength gave him the power needed to perform the taxing combat style, his constitution giving him the fortitude he needed to stand on the ocean floor in the face of the oceanic currents.
The Iroran monastery in Absalom, like all monasteries, did work to provide for the poor and enrich their community. The monastery owned several fishing ships, and on one of those ships – the Serenity - Corvoril found a place. Ship life was inherently like monastic life. Order and discipline are of utmost importance at sea. If a sailor shirks his duties, if maintenance protocols are ignored, if high emotions are allowed to run rampant, the ship could sink. On the Serenity Corvoril could be in touch with his aquatic heritage and maintain his monastic lifestyle, all while presenting the occasional opportunity for a daring aquatic rescue.
After a decade on the Serenity, Corvoril felt called in another direction. The Irorans had a sect of elite warriors who embodied the tenets of justice, enlightenment, discipline, and truth – Moreso than Irori’s other clerics: the Champions of Irori. Their numbers were not many. Irori’s core teachings were equally applicable to all, from righteous kings to craven cutthroats, but the Champions of Irori sought to strike down evil just as much as chaos, and in doing so they would uplift society. Champions needed not just strength of body and mind, but charm as well, something – admittedly – many monks lack. While he was never the most intellectual student, Corvoril had the physical strength, the mental fortitude, the force of personality and, most importantly, a good heart, making him a strong candidate for the small group of paladin-monks.
Irori does not direct his followers with a closed fist. Everyone is encouraged to find their own path to enlightenment and perfection for there is no path wide enough to accept all who would walk it. When the discovery of the once lost continent of Azlant was announced, Corvoril felt an attraction to these strange new lands. Azlant represented an opportunity to Corvoril. An opportunity to pursue perfection. What lost knowledge lay hidden in the remnants of Golarion’s oldest civilization? It was more than just an opportunity to learn. Many of the adventurous, the courageous, the curious, and those who simply felt out of place in civilization were making their own ways to the new lands to build new lives for themselves and their loved ones. But not all who rush to new lands have adventure and knowledge seeking in their hearts. Some only wish to exploit those who travel unprepared to lands not protected by the rule of law. The Champions of Irori were sworn to uphold not only the tenets of law, but of goodness as well. Corvoril would help protect the denizens of the blossoming new settlement and build good will with the people, paving the way for the Irorans to build monasteries, which double as schools.
============
Teacher Corvoril stepped onto the gently swaying deck of the Peregrine and closed his eyes. He had been training with the Champions of Irori for the better part of a decade and had few opportunities to sail in that time, but a sailor never forgets the comforting arms of the ocean rocking them to sleep. What was an unfamiliar sensation was the weight of his heavy pack on his shoulders. Mundane as it was, Corvoril had never owned any more property than he could carry in one had. It was just as well that the Bountiful Venture Company was supplying basic equipment for the hopeful settlers of Azlant, as Corvoril also had no coin. His hemp and leather backpack bulged with camping equipment, surveying and writing tools, cooking kit and rations, flint and tinder, blanket and tent. A bedroll, lantern, and folding shovel were strapped to the outside. His surveying supplies were adequate but not comprehensive. He was Teacher, not Seeker, after all. The shoreborn inhales the salty sea air, taking a moment to enjoy the warm kiss of the sun on his dark blue skin and the familiar play of the ocean breeze in his silver-white hair. A shudder passes through the deck of the ship as ocean swell pushes the vessel against the docks, and Teacher Corvoril opens his eyes. He can't help but smile.
Teacher Corvoril
Male half-elf (Shoreborn) unchained monk 1
LG Medium humanoid (elf, human)
Init +4; Senses low-light vision; Perception +13
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Defense
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AC 19, touch 19, flat-footed 14 (+4 Dex, +1 dodge, +4 Wis)
hp 13 (1d10+3)
Fort +5, Ref +6, Will +4; +2 vs. enchantments
Immune sleep
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Offense
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Speed 30 ft.; 30 ft. swim
Melee seax +6 (1d4+5) or
. . monk's spade +7/+7 (1d6+7) or
. . unarmed strike +7/+7 (1d6+5)
Ranged shuriken +6/+6 (1d2+5)
Special Attacks flurry of blows (unchained), stunning fist (1/day, DC 14)
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Statistics
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Str 20, Dex 18, Con 16, Int 13, Wis 18, Cha 16
Base Atk +1; CMB +6 (+8 grapple); CMD 25 (27 vs. grapple)
Feats Aquatic Combatant, Combat Expertise, Deadly Aim, Dodge, Power Attack, Pummeling Style, Skill Focus (Perception), Stunning Fist, Unarmed Combatant, Weapon Focus
Traits cosmopolitan, open palm of irori, set mind, student of history
Skills Acrobatics +9, Climb +9, Diplomacy +7, Knowledge (history) +6, Knowledge (religion) +6, Perception +13, Profession (sailor) +9, Sense Motive + 4, Survival +9, Swim +9; Racial Modifiers +2 Perception
Languages Aquan, Common, Elven
Combat Gear seax, monk's spade, shuriken (20)
Adventuring Gear backpack, bedroll, blanket, canteen (2), elven trail rations (7), flint and steel, grappling hook, hammer, hooded lantern, mess kit, piton (4), silk rope (50 ft.), small tent, tindertwig (4), torch (2), cooking kit, grooming kit, scriviner's kit, chronicler's kit, 1 gp
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Special Abilities
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Adaptability Half-elves gain Skill Focus (Perception) at level 1.
Amphibious Breath air and water.
Aquatic Combatant +2 bonus on Swim checks; avoid normal penalties on melee attack rolls underwater.
Combat Expertise +/-1 (EitR) Bonus to AC in exchange for an equal penalty to attack.
Cosmopolitan (Social Trait) + 1 to Linguistics; Linguistics as class skill.
Deadly Aim -1/+2 (EitR) Trade a penalty to ranged attacks for a bonus to ranged damage.
Dodge +1 dodge bonus to AC.
Elf Blood Half-elves count as both elves and humans for any effect related to race.
Elven Immunities - Sleep You are immune to magic sleep effects.
Fey Thoughts Bluff and UMD as class skills.
Flurry of Blows (Unchained) (Ex) As full-rd action, gain extra attacks with unarmed strike/monk weapons.
Keen Senses Half-elves receive a +2 race bonus to Perception
Low-Light Vision See twice as far as a human in dim light, distinguishing color and detail.
Open Palm of Irori (Race/Human Trait) You gain a +1 trait bonus on Acrobatics and Knowledge (religion) checks. If you have a ki pool, once per day as a swift action, you may channel your ki during an unarmed strike, gaining a +2 trait bonus on one damage roll. This additional damage is precision damage.
Power Attack -1/+2 (EitR) You can subtract from your attack roll to add to your damage.
Pummeling Style Total damage from all unarmed attacks before applying DR.
Set Mind (Campaign Trait) Once per day when you fail a saving throw against a charm or compulsion effect that would cause you to act differently than you normally would, you can immediately reroll that saving throw as a free action. You must take the second result, even if it’s worse.
Student of History (Faith Trait) You gain a +1 trait bonus on Knowledge (history) checks, and Knowledge (history) is a class skill for you.
Stunning Fist (1/day, DC 14) You can stun an opponent with an unarmed attack.
Swim Speed Swim speed of 30 feet and gain the +8 racial bonus on Swim checks that a swim speed normally grants.
Unarmed Combatant (EitR) Always considered armed, no attack of opportunity on grapple attempts.
Weapon Focus (Monk Weapons) You gain a +1 bonus on all attack rolls you make using weapons from the selected group.
Background (Seaman)The seaman might not have been born on the sea, but he’s lived almost his entire life upon it. The seaman is essential for crewing merchant vessels and naval ships. Some seamen are former outlaws, pressed into service for their crimes.
Alignment: Any
Skills: Choose 2 of the following skills as class skills. If a skill you select is already a class skill, you receive a +1 competence bonus on checks using that skill.
Acrobatics, Climb, Knowledge (geography), Profession (sailor), Survival, Swim
Bonus Feat: Choose either Dodge or Martial Weapons Proficiency
Race Stuff (Shoreborn half-elf)
TYPE
Humanoid (elf, human) 0 rp
SIZE
Medium 0 rp
BASE SPEED
Normal 0 rp
ABILITY SCORE MODIFIERS
Human heritage 0 rp
LANGUAGES
Linguist 1 rp
OTHER
Elven immunities 2 rp
Skill bonus (Perception) 2 rp
Static bonus feat (Skill Focus) 2 rp
Low-light vision 1 rp
Fey Thoughts 1rp
Swim speed 2 rp
Amphibious 2 rp
TOTAL: 13 RP
Possible Build
Level 1 (UnMonk) - FCB: +1/4 Ki; Feat: Aquatic Combat; Monk feat: Deflect Arrows; Background Feat: Dodge; Bonus Feat: Weapon Focus (Monk Weapons)
Level 2 (UnMonk) - FCB: +1/4 Ki; Monk Feat: Combat Reflexes
Level 3 (UnMonk) - FCB: +1/4 Ki; Feat: Crane Style
Level 4 (UnMonk) - FCB: +1/4 Ki; Ki Power: Barkskin (?)
Level 5 (Paladin) - Feat: Crane Wing; Bonus Feat: Combat Style Master
Level 6 (Paladin) -
Level 7 Champion of Irori - Feat: Crane Riposte
Level 8 Champion of Irori -
Level 9 Champion of Irori - Feat: Pummeling Charge
Level 10 Champion of Irori - Bonus Feat: Deific Obedience
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Update to house rules, specifically the Feats section.
Feats: Feats are gained as normal, but additional feats may be awarded by group/character play. Bonus feat awarded at 1st, 5th, 10th, 15th and 20th level. Class features from other classes can be taken as feats on a 1:1 basis. All abilities gained this way must be Extraordinary and you must have a high enough character level to qualify. Furthermore you cannot replicate abilities that grant bonus feats such as the fighter bonus feats.
How could you gain a bonus feat at level 1? You neN earned during plat but before leveling to 2?
I never say no to free feats, aiming for double slice at level 1, and perhaps challenge/champion story line feats thereafter? Brigid is going to be pretty terrifying in battle, I can definitly justify taking non optimized feats later on.
I mean, it is EITR, I could also go for whirlwind attack and emphasisze mobility, soo many options.
Update to house rules, specifically the Feats section.
Feats: Feats are gained as normal, but additional feats may be awarded by group/character play. Bonus feat awarded at 1st, 5th, 10th, 15th and 20th level. Class features from other classes can be taken as feats on a 1:1 basis. All abilities gained this way must be Extraordinary and you must have a high enough character level to qualify. Furthermore you cannot replicate abilities that grant bonus feats such as the fighter bonus feats.
So my monk/pala could pick up a Cavalier Order and Challenge, since they're both EX? Isn't that interesting.
How could you gain a bonus feat at level 1? You neN earned during plat but before leveling to 2?
I believe 1/5/10/15/20 are automatically gained at the appropriate level, and that there will be opportunities to gain additional bonus feats as the story goes on, but DM Skull may need to clarify.
You get a bonus starting feat.
Ah. Cool. I'd go with Attuned to the wild {counting as elf from half elf trait) Healing double normal rate for hp and ability damage when in an aquatic terrain
Nice! I was strongly considering cross-classing into slayer for this character, it seemed very thematically appropriate. Now I don’t have to.
I believe Nivva is finished, I also added a section on why the Bountiful Venture Company chose her for their colonization effort.
Hey GM Skull, Sadly I've not gotten Taldo's crunch done, so I am going to remove his application from the recruitment. Thanks for running the game, we players appreciate it.
Also, I appreciate you commenting about the character from 'The Night Angel Trilogy' I've been reading the first book and have the second one checked out from the library.
Good luck everyone and good gaming.
Update to house rules, specifically the Feats section.
Feats: Feats are gained as normal, but additional feats may be awarded by group/character play. Bonus feat awarded at 1st, 5th, 10th, 15th and 20th level. Class features from other classes can be taken as feats on a 1:1 basis. All abilities gained this way must be Extraordinary and you must have a high enough character level to qualify. Furthermore you cannot replicate abilities that grant bonus feats such as the fighter bonus feats.
How would this work with abilities that scale over time? For example if I take the Ranger’s Favored Enemy ability, do I need to take it again at 5/10/etc to get the increase from +2 to +4 and so on, additional enemies, etc, or does it increase automatically?
It almost feels like I should "buy" Rage with a feat, or Favored Enemy, or Sneak Attack :) So many great ones! @GM, honestly, maybe the feat for feature thing should be a bit more limited. There's even that system (I don't remember the URL!) someone created for people to tailor classes of their own!
Please allow me a suggestion, if you don't mind, and my apologies if I'm out of place: maybe when you do the selection, focus on the concepts per se (how real/rich/interesting the characters look?) more than the mechanics... And once people are selected, work with the group to improve the characters in such way that their sheets better reflect the concepts they presented? :)
Sorry, I guess I'm just a sucker for RP/concepts/etc. and want to suggest the emphasis to go on it! Hah! :$
Houserules update under Feats.
For something like Favored Enemy you would need to take it for every new Favored enemy but not the scaling numbers.
The new rules under feats are also limited by alignment. For example this means if you want to take any abilities from the Monk class you have to be lawful.
I think out of all the submitted classes, trapfinding could be a serious consideration.
I’ll definitely be swapping Creature Focus for Favored Enemy in my starting feats. FE is just better. Might look at picking up some barbarian stuff eventually too, especially if I were to end up the party tank (thinking of DR, maybe Rage as well)
I’ll definitely be swapping Creature Focus for Favored Enemy in my starting feats. FE is just better. Might look at picking up some barbarian stuff eventually too, especially if I were to end up the party tank (thinking of DR, maybe Rage as well)
I'd imagine many builds will change some since trading out a feat for an Ex ability from another class is better than VMC in many situations. VVMC. Variant Variant Multiclassing.
@GM, would it be okay to keep Aleranna with the current crunch as a proposed concept, and then (if she is accepted) we work together and make adjusts to it? There are several things I could change to make her serve into other roles in the party, but I was wondering if I can propose her with a "fresh"/"clean" concept, and later on adjust accordingly to match the party needs.
I do love story feats if those are on the table as possible bonuses. Class features as feats also sounds incredibly promising. I'm keeping Dolgrin as-is until post-selection, and allowing experiences moving forward help to determine his growth. But as SmooshieBanana indicated, Trapfinding would be a very strong bet for him.
Also, definite kudos for the Night Angel trilogy reference. What a fun series.
Alright I have looked at everyone's applications and I first want to say a big Thank You to everyone who has applied. I am however just a single DM and so can only accept 4 of you.
SmooshieBanana: Britta Karan, NG Female Human Velvet Revolver Swashbuckler (Guide, Following in the Footsteps)
polyfrequencies: Dolgrin Briskalberd, CG Male Dwarf Aquachymist Beastmorph Alchemist (Seaman, Resourceful)
Lapyd: Aleranna Dawn, LG Female Aquatic Half-Elf Pearl Seeker Paladin of Yuelral (Eagle Knight Recruit)
Crisischild: Teacher Corvoril, LG Male Half-Elf (Shoreborn) UC Monk/Paladin/Champion of Irori (Seaman, Set Mind)
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Also I do have a list of backups in case 1 or more members of the current party die.
Robert Henry: Taldo the Tanner, Male Undine Ranger or Slayer
SodiumTelluride: Nivva, Female Merfolk Serpent Shaman Druid (Seaman, Skillful)
Ruin Explorer: Trisk, CG Male Undine Watersinger Bard (Azlanti Scholar)
Backups, if called up, will come in at the same level as the party.
Again a big thank you to everyone who applied. Those chosen as primary and backup please post in the OOC page I just created.
Enjoy