I'll be off for a few days starting tomorrow and I'll be back on Monday.
Feel free to NPC Aku as needed. In combat he'll stay out of harms way and blasts things.
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Aku starts handing out amulets. "These are a safety measure to protect you from the guards. Don't lose it or we'll be cut in revenue." And it might cost you your life. Once evryone has their amulet and he is wearing his own Aku unfolds the map. "Now, where are we."
"We did and we do." Aku grinned sheepishly, "I bet Shae can find some things in the books, but first let's get the others so we can get started. If we're lucky we even have money to spend after getting grandmother a cure."
Aku tries hard to hide his amazement at the sum they are offered but his eyes betray him. That was more than he had ever seen together, more than he had ever dreamt of. "I think that will suffice yes. We will need some more details on the job though, so that we know what to expect." While he tries to keep his voice calm and collected, Aku can't help some enthusiasm seeping through.
Aku comes along dressed in his usual bright red. He keeps an eye on all those around him, already trying to find escape routes, though it seems people always keep an eye on him as well with his bright colors and tattoos. When they get offered a drink he declines the alcohol and instead requests a cup of black tea. Instead of Tarek's brash words Aku decides to use honey, "Please Tarek, don't insult our most gracious host." In his limited experience politicians seamed to like people sucking up and one that supposedly used magic to enforce his appeal even more so. "Yes you can trust us Councilman. We will execute the task at hand to the best of our considerable abilities but remain quiet as to the one on who's order we work. We are discrete as that benefits us most." Selfish people could most easily relate to selfish motives.
While Aku is made of Diplomacy he'll stay back if the others ask him to.
Still here, but a bit swamped atm. Got quite a bit going on atm so posting is slow :S
Aku follows Anton inside. "We are worried about you grandmother. All we want is to help you. Please tell us how we can do that?"
"If we're going by rumour: Know that mansion on High Road where the merchant just got kicked out? Apparently the guy is pissed and is willing to part with a guide to his security system, and the new tenant hasn't replaced it yet. The new guy is a noble of some sort, so profit should be fat."
"She's getting worse? I mean she's behaving oddly. but getting worse?" It was all quite a bit to take in. "I'll talk to her. We need to know what's going on in order to help her. Anyone else talk to Minnow yet? You said she knew more about this."
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"A shame, those warwolves are nothing but thugs." He nodded to Shae.
"It was nice of you to think of grandmother Minnow, but next time think of yourself as well. We couldn't stand losing you you know." A broad smile appeared on Aku's face. When Weyland asked for healing he gave him a quick apologetic look before turning back to Minnow.
Just a question: Why is everyone ignoring Aku?I answered your question, but you may not have been talking to me. My remark was referring to the situation before that. Tarek edited his post to include Aku.
Aku raised an eyebrow at Tarek's response. He must have been hit pretty hard. He chose to stay silent and just nodded at everything the wounded boy said. When they reached Minnow he knelt down as well, "So what actually happened with the stone?" He then turns to face Minnow, "And why did you take it?"
Just a question: Why is everyone ignoring Aku?
Suddenly a high pitches scream appears out of thin air. Once it passes Aku looks at the others, "I hope that drew your attention. Now please, what in the nine hells just happened?"
Aku, who only saw what happened from a distance, finally approached the group. "Can anyone tell me what the hell is going on here?" Sometimes it seemed they were eager to hasten grandmother's departure from this world.
Seeing as no one gives him any answer Aku acts purely on what he sees and rushes forward and past Minnow. The girl had a penchant for getting in trouble but that didn't matter, they protected their own.
Once Anton's sister had taken over Aku rushed outside. There he found the rest of older kids facing off against some idiot Ulfen. He moved in behind them, "Please bring me up to speed, what's going on?" He held his hands ready to burn those idiot Norsemen if they dared approach.
Aku had been helping Grandmother in the kitchen like he had done many times before. The first step always was simply lighting the fire, which meant snapping with his fingers and mumbling some words. Grandmother was always convinced it was good training for him but for Aku it wasn't even an effort these days. When the shout came from outside Aku yelled for one of the other kids to come help him, specifically one big enough to be able to keep an eye on the food while he checked what was going on outside.
Map is fine.
The only thing I'd like added is Belka, Aku's friend who is both an Oni-spawn tiefling and a Witch. She'd probably deal more in visions and portents than healing.
Both Diplomacy and Intimidate are pretty much what Aku has been groomed for since before he can remember. Crafting doesn't fit him in any way shape or form nor would he be good at it. I'd rather make use of the high Charisma score. He has everything else covered anyway (Knowledge skills don't really fit a character who has almost no memory from before coming to the City) Besides, with a +14 Diplomacy he can talk his way out of just about anything at this level.
The evil, self righteous guy being the face, I wonder how that could go wrong. Like I said before, Aku makes a great face. He has 18 cha and both Diplomacy and Intimidate are pretty high (+14 and +8 respectively). He may look odd, but he's charming and a nice guy. EDIT: Not saying there can be only 1 face, but you don't have to sacrifice things to be a "face", though covering Bluff and Sense Motive would probably be nice.
Aku already stands out with his weird hair and tattoos and it will only get worse in time. But this was a high magic setting wasn't it? Then loud noises like roars coming from a cellar and explosions shouldn't really surprise people too much.
If the GM allows Wildblooded bloodlines via Eldritch Heritage he'll be very tough eventually though.He will Woot! That will help make him quite a bit sturdier. DM: Basically I'm working on an idea as to his second bloodline, via the feats. Fluff-wise it'll be his original bloodline that was altered by the Oni experimentation. The idea is that it's closely linked to his mother.
Aku is neutral, but he might slide towards evil due to the influence of his bloodline and heritage. Don't worry though, he won't ever side with the Old Ones. The Oni (his blood) need mortals to dominate and a world to enjoy, both don't work with Ctulhu and the gang. As for being without spells, I'm toast in that case atm. Even with spells I'm not that fantastic yet.
Aku will start in the back to eventually fly above it all. I'll most likely turn him into a blaster (with control via Dazing Spell). He'll also be using quite some illusions and things like Alter Self. If the GM allows Wildblooded bloodlines via Eldritch Heritage he'll be very tough eventually though.
I'll be picking up Craft Wondrous Item for sure, just not sure when. Probably 5th. As for healing hex, I think we'd indeed be better of with just healing spells. I'll even pick up the Infernal Healing spell if we're really desperate (at lvl 2 that is). The smite on the other hand, might actually turn healing hex into something worthwhile.
Oh I definitely agree shouldn't do anything along the lines of child traficking, I was merely stating that where abuse it's concerned Aku already has had his fair share, and probably more. That does sound good Treize. As for Nic, also sounds good though there isn't a whole lot Aku knows. Other things would be that if any of you happens to have a tattoo Aku could have done it or he would at least comment on it (if visible). As far as his own tattoos go, he'd happily explain most of them, though he can't tell where to two lines on his face come from or what they mean nor does he know where he got the bird, but he'll animate it to show off (it's his familiar) Another thing is that it's likely he would have been sent to get people out of trouble with the law whenever Grandmother was otherwise occupied, simply because he's a smooth talker.
A little too late there, that actually already happened to Aku. The perpetrators were Oni though, so evil beyond redemption. Basically he was a slave to Oni and was tortured while they tutored him. He doesn't remember anything though, not yet at least.
If all goes well Aku's position in group will change dramatically over time. While he has fairly modest ambitions at the moment, things will change once his bloodline kicks in more as his behaviour will become more like an Oni. Beyond that Aku is a perfect face. Once you look beyond the tattoos and the weird hair he actually is quite agreeable, though he can also be very threatening. As far as the arcane caster thing goes, Aku doesn't really care about all that. All he knows is that his abilities are tied to his nightmares and as such there are times where he'd rather lose them altogether. EDIT: Depends on what you see as exploitation. I think child labor is pretty much as given as far as I can see, but I also think that's the farthest it will goes. Unless you count us getting hurt as molestation.
If you need weaponry, clubs and quarterstaffs are free :) As for the name, that sounds about right for Aku, especially once I get invisibility.
Sweet! I think I'm done with the character, but please tell if I missed something.
Aku will get Profession (Tattooist) then, fits the Tattooed Sorcerer Archetype. He just needs to get a (primitive) tattoo kit then.
As far as those goals go: Three short term goals:
* Save grandmother or at least reduce her suffering * Acquire an Armored Kilt * Find a decent place to live Two mid term goals:
* Find out what happened to mother * Figure out his past Long term goal:
* Settle down and live to old age. I realize his goals are rather modest, but the idea is that these are his current goals and that it mutates and shifts as he discovers his past, what happened to his mother (and who she is, hint: he's not only tainted by Oni) and how his abilities, both natural and infused, develop.
Finishing the last bits on Aku Background: Born in the Oni Kingdom of Chu-Ye in the Dragon Empires, Aku is the result of a slave breeding program run by Shogun Tsuneni himself. Born to a Varisian mother and a Tian-Sing father, Aku was selected by the Oni caretakers for his innate magical talent. They renamed him Aku and removed him from his mother's side shortly after he was weaned. They tattooed him with a single red line across the left side of his face, marking him as a successful breed. From that they on they started training him, testing him even further, pushing him to the point that it became torture. They learned him to understand and speak their languages, writing the words in his skin where they burned until he pronounced them correctly. They also trained him physically, having him spar with weak, nascent Oni using nothing but a simple wooden staff. In effect this was more an endurance test than actually sparring as even a young Oni was more than strong enough to mortally wound him. Once his masters were sufficiently pleased they marked Aku with a second red line right under the first. He was only 6 years old at that time. Once sufficiently pleased the Oni started training him to tap into his innate abilities. Instead of just tutoring him though, he became the center piece of many rituals, changing his heritage and infusing him with the essence of the Oni. His power swiftly grew, though he was still a child. In time he managed to take down some of the weaker newly formed Oni he was forced to face, using the magic of his own kind against him. Pleased with his success the Shogun wanted him to perform one more feat before accepting him as one of the few non-Oni in his personal entourage: kill his mother. His mother was presented to him a week after he had heard what he was supposed to do, both so he could prepare and to torture him with the idea for a full week. When he finally saw his mother he did not recognize her, being taken away before his first year, but she recognised him. Not knowing what was supposed to happen she ran to him and hugged him. It was then that he whispered in her ear that he was supposed to kill her now. She pushed him back a bit, looked at him again and a tear started to run from her eye. She nodded but insisted she gave him a parting gift. When he agreed she touched him on the cheek and from there a beautiful tattoo started to spread, starting at his jawline and spreading over his shoulders and back a stylized bird appeared, though it wasn't a bird Aku recognised. Then she bowed her head, ready for her son to kill her. It was then that disaster struck as some weird thing came crashing through the wall behind the Shogun. When it unfurled it showed dozens of maws and groping tentacles, grabbing onto the Shogun and his people. It was then that his mother got up and touched Aku again on his forehead. Then all went black. When Aku woke up he was somewhere else entirely and an elderly lady stood next to him. She asked him his name and when he couldn't tell her she told him he was Aku Markus, a refugee from Golarion. He asked her more about himself as he no longer knew but all the woman, who insisted on being called Grandmother, told him was that his mother had left him in her care. From that day on and for the 6 years that followed Aku worked with and for Grandmother. He helped take care of the little ones that pushed her patience, especially Leander and Redneal, the halfling rascals who he saved on several occasions, like saving their behinds when they trespassed on the territory of some goon named Pavo and his gang. At other times she helped him, like the day two rabid dogs chased him down and she scared them off. Most of the time though, especially when Aku got a bit older, it was he who helped her and the others instead of the other way around. Recently Aku has been having nightmares, flashes from before coming to The City. He does not know what they are about, just that they are painful and he'd rather not have them. It was these nightmares that also brought him into contact with Belka, a Tiefling witch tainted by Oni blood and plagued by similar nightmares.
Aku has now officially become a human, though there is Orcish blood mixed in as well. I'm working on the extended background which will be in the alias. Basically Aku is the product of Oni slave breeding.
I'll make Aku an Oni-blooded Sorcerer, maybe grab some Samurai levels to add the bit of martial flavor that comes with an Oni. It would mean I'd have to rely on those robes to even get my capstone, so not entirely sure yet. I might turn him into a human though, or a quarter Orc with the Racial Heritage feat, simply because I want to go for a more Gish type character so not only can I really use the extra 5 points of point buy, I will also have an easier time either qualifying for Eldritch Heritage to get the Orc Bloodline or compensating for the downsides of Cross Blooded (through alternate favored class bonus). It's a shame, but so be it. Questions:
Spoiler:
Actually it isn't one, but two: The Halfling twins Leander and Redneal. Both are more or less identical, which in this case means double the mischief and double the noise. No one knows if their names are real or made up by them. The both of them look up to Aku, seeing him as a sort of older brother, going to him for advice and to get them out of trouble. They both have auburn hair and freckled faces and prefer to wear clothes that are as much the same as they can manage. A time when Grandmother (old Female Human Witch 4) saved you.
Spoiler:
When Aku was still very young and had only just arrived in the city he got hunted down by two wild dogs. Grandmother cursed them and gave them the evil eye, which resulted in the dogs running with their tails between their legs. A name and description of an enemy in a gang whose territory borders yours.
Spoiler:
His name is Pavo, he's a big goon leading a small but brutal gang. While he claims to be a half-ogre Aku doubts it and claims he's an eighth of an ogre, if that. It is this claim combined with the fact that it's actually true that earned him Pavo's enmity. While the guy is only 17 years old, he already is over 7 foot high and weighs more than 300 pounds, a size he uses to his advantage. An ally or friend you have made in the area outside the gang who will help you out. Spoiler: Belka, an Oni blooded tiefling Witch or Kellid origin. She recognises a kindred spirit in Aku considering they are tainted by the same vile blood and are both struggling not to give in to it. She also sees Aku as an inspiration as he seems to bear the burden of his blood better than she does.
I had already abandoned Fast Healing simply because of the immense cost and grabbed the toned down version of Ferocity that Half-Orcs get. Best I can come up with is 12 points, grabbing +2 Str and Cha (balanced set, 2 RP), Orc Ferocity (the Half Orc version, 2 RP), Claws (2 RP), Outsider (3 RP) and Lesser Change Shape (3 RP). That said, Oni Blood Sorcerer does look interesting, maybe grab Orc Bloodline via Eldritch Heritage to get the Strength bonus at some point. It actually fits an Oni type of guy better than Summoner does. It's just a shame there is no Magus version of the Sorcerer, that would have been perfect.
I made a mistake though, it's 38 as the change shape should only be the lesser version. Theoretically I can reduce it to 19 while still have the most basic Oni-touched and Orc bits (Claws, increases mental stats compared to Orc, Charm Monster spell-like ability, Change Shape, Ferocity and Weapon Familiarity.) Stripping it further would remove any connection between the two though. I did cut the Light Sensitivity though, so with it it's 18. Spoiler:
Orc based Oni - stripped Type
Size
Speed
Ability Scores
Language
Racial Traits
Lesser Spell-Like ability Charm Person 1/day 1 RP
Orc Ferocity 2 RP
Low-Light Vision 1 RP Total 19 RP
Still, it has investments in places where it matters so it is quite strong. I was mainly looking at this as a way to not make a Summoner, since there seemed to be quite an interest in those, and still keep the Oni. But I guess it wouldn't be doable to keep the Oni feel without getting to a strength that should be beyond 1st lvl PC's.
Cuàn here Because you list custom races as "optional" I figured I'd try and build an Orc based Oni. The result is, well, probably not playable. I'll post it in spoiler for your amusement. I used the weakest printed Oni as a guideline. Spoiler: Orc based Oni Type
Size
Speed
Ability Scores
Language
Racial Traits
Natural Armor +1 NA 2 RP Lesser SL ability Charm Person 1/day 1 RP
Fast +10 ft speed 1 RP Orc Ferocity 2 RP
Low-Light Vision 1 RP Weakness
Total 41 RP
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