GM Knightmare's Besmara's Bastards [Skull and Shackles]

Game Master TheChelaxian

The eager caress of the salt sea lovingly spraying his sea-green skin sent ripples of expectations down his spine. The omnipresence of Gozeh's breath redirects his long sea-blue hair from lazy to quite active. The dull raucous of reliable reactions radiate rowdy (likely from rum) from the culpable crew.

Blue eyes peer about the milling faces of the salty pirate crew. The tall aquatic elf simply pantomimes pushing with his currently tied together hands. Shouting obscenities that only enlarge the smile of the currently standing on a plank over the churning waters not distance enough from the Eye aquatic elf.
Is anyone interested in the distance current to the Eye? Just curious.

Dubious facial expressions are clashing with a different type of excited chattering from amongst the suddenly nervous crew.

The terribly terrific terror that is the Eye of Abendego seemingly stretches it's whirlpool out to catch the Cyclopean Sight, as it's remaining recently mutinous crew recoil in fear! Still calmly standing on the aforementioned plank, the aquatic elf begins to laugh!
Wager! I survive because well ..

He gestures with his still tied up webbed hands.
And you mutinous lot go down to The Locker.

Angry, scared, frustrated eyes turn to look at the bound elf....

....a week later, Arkhan Silvinesti is seen whistling a merry tune, as the tall aquatic elf skips off the Cyclopean Sight down the docks of Port Peril. An angry, still shaken crew of salty pirates glaring at his back.

Absently padding a recently new purse filled with gold, the gambler is heard asking a street urchin
Ever here of a watering hole called the Formidable Maid?

Ragnhild grew up as a normal if strong Kellid child, during a raid by demons, her bloodline manifested and she tore a minor demon attacking her apart in her fury. Rather then accolades and praise, her tribe exiled her for being demonically tainted, and sicked the inquisition on her.

She narrowly escaped that, wondering why the heck she is even hunted, due to a Nocticulan demon offering her a lift to the shackles, in return for a favor owed.
She thinks that the demon assumed she was important because the inquisition was hunting her, but is otherwise clueless on what was going on behind the scenes.

On her first night of carousing, she gets drunk, sings Warsongs in a bar to Besmaras and Gorums glory, does that pretty well actually, and then gets press ganged.

While she can swim (Sarkoris has rivers, and had both riverrine trading and raiding) she has never been on the ocean, and will be out of her depth until she acclimatizes.

Is pretty upbeat and outgoing inspite of everyone.

Will go to war for those she considers "part of her pack".

Looks down on cowards, more so then on weaklings because cowardice is always a choice, while weakness may be out of the weak persons ability to fix.

Is hilariously good at trashtalking and weaving her way around the truth, but if she gives her word freely it counts and binds her.

Strongly motivated by glory, less so by wealth, doesnt care much about secrets.

Aamu is a middle-aged vanara, his once-deep brown fur streaked through with threads of gray that gather most heavily around his muzzle and the crown of his head like the first mists of dawn. His eyes are a warm amber, bright with curiosity even behind years of quiet discipline. The fur on his face and hands has thinned slightly with age, revealing dark, expressive skin beneath. A face prone to thoughtful smiles and long silences before speech. He dresses in the flowing attire of his Mwangi monastery: wide-legged pants of deep marigold and crimson, wrapped with a sash of turquoise silk. Over these, he wears a light, robe-like garment that flares almost like a skirt when he walks or sits cross-legged, the fabric catching light and movement alike.They mark both celebration and reverence, echoing the aesthetics of his order.

He carries himself with an easy, deliberate grace. The quiet poise of one who has trained body and mind in harmony. A simple string of prayer beads hangs from one wrist, worn smooth from years of touch. His tail moves constantly, betraying thought and focus, flicking or curling when he reads or debates historic events. An aura of pensive calm surrounds this man, hinting at depths of contemplation, tempered by a gentle warmth. He seems to view the world as both a mystery to be studied and a feast to be savored. The scent of spice markets, the laughter of children, the sound of an evening rain. He takes quiet joy in these things, though he never clings to them. Beneath that appreciation lies a deliberate stillness of a man who has tasted life’s flavors, but chose a stoic path, finding contentment not in abundance, but in balance.

Born beneath the dense canopy of the Mwangi Jungles, Aamu grew up among vines, roots, and ancient stone. A child of both wilderness and wisdom, his early years in the monastery were filled with lessons of balance, patience, and contemplation. Yet between meditations and scrolls, he found freedom in climbing the towering trees that surrounded his home. His body grew strong and sure-footed, his tail as much a tool of movement as of thought. As part of his scholarly training, Aamu devoted himself to the study of history. Not merely the stories written by victors, but the truths buried beneath moss and ruin. His monastery, though ascetic, occasionally served as guides to explorers and scholars seeking relics deep in the Mwangi interior. Aamu became invaluable in this role, equal parts pathfinder and philosopher. He learned to read the jungle’s moods, to trace the language of stone and vine, and imagined how civilizations rose and fell like the monsoon tides.

Among his studies, the legends of the Ghol-Gan empire seized his imagination. The idea of a lost cyclopean civilization: vast, mysterious, and long forgotten, called to both his scholarly curiosity and his monkish sense of duty to preserve knowledge from oblivion. With the blessing of his order, Aamu left the monastery, following whispers of crumbling ruins scattered across the Shackles.His journey led him to Port Peril, the notorious pirate haven, where a contact promised to sell him a weathered map said to lead to ancient Ghol-Gani vaults. He met the contact at a raucous tavern called the Formidably Maid, but the drink there was stronger than he anticipated. Somewhere between his second and third cup, the world went black, and Aamu’s carefully planned expedition began to unravel before it even started.

LN Male Medium Vanara Sensei Monk 1
Init 3; Senses Perception: +8 Low-Light

Defense
AC 18, touch 18, flat-footed 14
HP 10
Fort 4; Ref 5; Will 6

Offense
Unarmed Strike +3 (1d6+1) Bludgeoning

Speed 30 ft.
Climb 20 ft.

Statistics
Str 13, Dex 17, Con 15, Int 13, Wis 18, Cha 8
Base Atk + +0; CMB +1; CMD 19

Skills
(* background)
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Acrobatics +10
Climb +13
*Knowledge (History) +6
Perception +8
*Profession (Sailor) +8
Stealth +9
Survival +8
Swim +5

Feats
Unarmed Combatant (Combat) - Monk 1
Improved Grapple
Improved Unarmed Strike

Dirty Fighting - Level 1

Dodge - Monk Bonus 1
Dodge
Mobility

Stunning Fist - Monk 1

Feat Specifics
Unarmed Combatant (Combat)
You are skilled at grappling and fighting while unarmed.
Prerequisite: Dex 13.
Benefit: You are considered to be armed even when unarmed - you do not provoke attacks of opportunity when you attack foes while unarmed. Your unarmed strikes now deal 1d6 damage if you are medium sized or 1d4 damage if you are small sized, and you can deal lethal or nonlethal damage, at your choice. You do not provoke an attack of opportunity when performing a grapple combat maneuver. In addition, you receive a +2 bonus on checks made to grapple a foe. You also receive a +2 bonus to your Combat Maneuver Defense whenever an opponent tries to grapple you.
Normal: Without this feat, you are considered unarmed when attacking with an unarmed strike, and you can deal only nonlethal damage with such an attack. You provoke an attack of opportunity when performing a grapple combat maneuver.

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Dirty Fighting (Combat)
You can take advantage of a distracted foe.
Benefit: When you attempt a combat maneuver check against a foe you are flanking, you can forgo the +2 bonus on your attack roll for flanking to instead have the combat maneuver not provoke an attack of opportunity. If you have a feat or ability that allows you to attempt the combat maneuver without provoking an attack of opportunity, you can instead increase the bonus on your attack roll for flanking to +4 for the combat maneuver check.
Special: This feat counts as having Dex 13, Int 13, Combat Expertise, and Improved Unarmed Strike for the purposes of meeting the prerequisites of the various improved combat maneuver feats, as well as feats that require those improved combat maneuver feats as prerequisites.

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Dodge (Combat)
Your training and reflexes allow you to react swiftly to avoid an opponent’s attacks.
Prerequisite: Dex 13.
Benefit: You gain a +1 dodge bonus to your AC. This bonus increases to +5 against attacks of opportunity caused when you move out of or within a threatened tile. A condition that makes you lose your Dex bonus to AC also makes you lose the benefits of this feat.

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Stunning Fist (Combat)
You know just where to strike to temporarily stun a foe.
Prerequisites: Dex 13, Wis 13, Unarmed Combatant, base attack bonus +8.
Benefit: You must declare that you are using this feat before you make your attack roll (thus, a failed attack roll ruins the attempt). Stunning Fist forces a foe damaged by your unarmed attack to make a Fortitude saving throw (DC 10 + 1/2 your character level + your Wis modifier), in addition to dealing damage normally. A defender who fails this saving throw is stunned for 1 round (until just before your next turn). A stunned character drops everything held, can’t take actions, loses any Dexterity bonus to AC, and takes a -2 penalty to AC. You may attempt a stunning attack once per day for every four levels you have attained (but see Special), and no more than once per round. Constructs, oozes, plants, undead, incorporeal creatures, and creatures immune to critical hits cannot be stunned.
Special: A monk receives Stunning Fist as a bonus feat at 1st level, even if he does not meet the prerequisites. A monk may attempt a stunning attack a number of times per day equal to his monk level, plus one more time per day for every four levels he has in classes other than monk.

Class Features

Weapon and Armor Proficiency

Monks are proficient with the club, crossbow (light or heavy), dagger, handaxe, javelin, kama, nunchaku, quarterstaff, sai, shortspear, short sword, shuriken, siangham, sling, and spear. Monks are not proficient with any armor or shields. When wearing armor, using a shield, or carrying a medium or heavy load, a monk loses his AC bonus, as well as his fast movement and flurry of blows abilities.

AC Bonus (Ex)
When unarmored and unencumbered, the monk adds his Wisdom bonus (if any) to his AC and his CMD. In addition, a monk gains a +1 bonus to AC and CMD at 4th level. This bonus increases by 1 for every four monk levels thereafter, up to a maximum of +5 at 20th level. These bonuses to AC apply even against touch attacks or when the monk is flat-footed. He loses these bonuses when he is immobilized or helpless, when he wears any armor, when he carries a shield, or when he carries a medium or heavy load.

Unarmed Strike
At 1st level, a monk gains Improved Unarmed Strike as a bonus feat. A monk's attacks may be with fist, elbows, knees, and feet. This means that a monk may make unarmed strikes with his hands full. There is no such thing as an off-hand attack for a monk striking unarmed. A monk may thus apply his full Strength bonus on damage rolls for all his unarmed strikes. Usually a monk's unarmed strikes deal lethal damage, but he can choose to deal nonlethal damage instead with no penalty on his attack roll. He has the same choice to deal lethal or nonlethal damage while grappling. A monk's unarmed strike is treated as both a manufactured weapon and a natural weapon for the purpose of spells and effects that enhance or improve either manufactured weapons or natural weapons. A monk also deals more damage with his unarmed strikes than a normal person would, as shown above on Table: Monk.

Bonus Feat
At 1st level, 2nd level, and every 4 levels thereafter, a monk may select a bonus feat. These feats must be taken from the following list: Catch Off-Guard, Combat Reflexes, Deflect Arrows, Dodge, Improved Grapple, Scorpion Style, and Throw Anything. At 6th level, the following feats are added to the list: Gorgon's Fist, Improved Bull Rush, Improved Disarm, Improved Feint, Improved Trip, and Mobility. At 10th level, the following feats are added to the list: Improved Critical, Medusa's Wrath, Snatch Arrows, and Spring Attack. A monk need not have any of the prerequisites normally required for these feats to select them.

Stunning Fist (Ex)
At 1st level, the monk gains Stunning Fist as a bonus feat, even if he does not meet the prerequisites. At 4th level, and every 4 levels thereafter, the monk gains the ability to apply a new condition to the target of his Stunning Fist. This condition replaces stunning the target for 1 round, and a successful saving throw still negates the effect. At 4th level, he can choose to make the target fatigued. At 8th level, he can make the target sickened for 1 minute. At 12th level, he can make the target staggered for 1d6+1 rounds. At 16th level, he can permanently blind or deafen the target. At 20th level, he can paralyze the target for 1d6+1 rounds. The monk must choose which condition will apply before the attack roll is made. These effects do not stack with themselves (a creature sickened by Stunning Fist cannot become nauseated if hit by Stunning Fist again), but additional hits do increase the duration.

The sensei is a revered teacher who imparts lessons on the oneness of mind, body, and spirit, along with occasional correction that is subtle and swift. Rather than using wisdom for his own benefit alone, he uses it to better those around him.

Skills: A sensei gains Diplomacy, Linguistics, and all Knowledge skills as class skills.

Advice (Ex)
A sensei’s advice is identical to bardic performance (using oratory), allowing him to inspire courage at 1st level, inspire competence at 3rd level, and inspire greatness at 9th level, as a bard of the sensei’s level, usable a total number of rounds per day equal to his level + his Wisdom modifier (minimum 1). This ability replaces flurry of blows, fast movement, and improved evasion.

Insightful Strike (Ex)
At 2nd level, a sensei may use his Wisdom bonus in lieu of his Strength or Dexterity on attack rolls and combat maneuver checks with unarmed strikes or monk weapons. This ability replaces evasion and the bonus feat gained at 2nd level.

Mystic Wisdom (Su)
At 6th level, a sensei may use his advice ability when spending points from his ki pool to activate a class ability (using the normal actions required for each) in order to have that ability affect one ally within 30 feet rather than the sensei himself. At 10th level, a sensei may affect all allies within 30 feet rather than himself (spending points from his ki pool only once, not once for each target).

At 10th level, a sensei may instead spend 1 point from his ki pool (as a swift action) while using advice to provide a single ally within 30 feet with evasion, fast movement, high jump, purity of body, or slow fall. At 14th level, a sensei may spend 2 points to grant one of the abilities listed above to all allies within 30 feet, or diamond body, diamond soul, or improved evasion to a single ally within 30 feet. These abilities function at the sensei’s level and last 1 round. This ability replaces the bonus feats at 6th, 10th, and 14th level.

Racial Traits

+2 Dexterity, +2 Wisdom, –2 Charisma
Vanaras are agile and perceptive, but are also rather impish and mischievous.

Vanara
Vanaras are humanoids with the vanara subtype.

Medium
Vanaras are Medium creatures and have no bonuses or penalties due to their size.

Normal Speed
Vanaras have a base speed of 30 feet and a Climb speed of 20 feet.

Low-Light Vision
A vanara can see twice as far as a human in dim light.

Nimble
Vanaras have a +2 racial bonus on Acrobatics and Stealth checks.

Prehensile Tail
A vanara has a long, flexible tail that she can use to carry objects. She cannot wield weapons with her tail, but the tail allows her to retrieve a small, stowed object carried on her person as a swift action.

Languages: Vanaran, Taldane, Polyglot, Cyclops
Vanaras begin play speaking Common and Vanaran. Vanaras with high Intelligence scores can choose from the following languages: Aklo, Celestial, Elven, Gnome, Goblin, and Sylvan.

Traits
Acrobat (Basic - Social)
Having trained from a young age, you’re capable of amazing feats of daring. You gain a +1 bonus on Acrobatics checks, and you take only a –2 penalty instead of the normal –5 penalty when using the Climb skill to attempt an accelerated climb.

Jungle Guide (Region - Sargava)
You’ve made your living outfitting and guiding expeditions deep into the Mwangi interior in search of ancient ruins and lost cities. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Handle Animal checks, and a +1 trait bonus on Survival checks in jungle terrain. One of these skills is a class skill for you.

Ancient Explorer (Campaign)
You are a student of the ancient history of Golarion, and you’ve come to the Shackles to explore the crumbling and vine-choked ruins of the cyclops empire of Ghol-Gan, which have lain abandoned among the isles of the Shackles for thousands of years. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Knowledge (history) and Knowledge (local) checks, and one of these skills is a class skill for you. In addition, you gain Cyclops or Polyglot as a bonus language.

You went to a tavern called the Formidably Maid in Port Peril last night to meet a contact who supposedly had an old map of lost cyclops ruins to sell, but the drink was stronger than you had expected and you passed out before making the deal.