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Nadja, I hate you, officially. :) I've been mulling this one over all day long. Let's see how it goes.
Alright, I've looked through the entries and I've picked the two that I'm going to take: Please head over to the Discussion forum, you two. Please create an alias if you already haven't. I'd like to discuss your characters a bit and where they'll be entering. My thanks again to everyone who applied. I appreciate your work and effort. If you have any questions as to why I didn't pick your character (or, hell, why I did), feel free to PM me.
Also, Pai, the song is George Harrison's Pirate Song from the Rutland Weekend Television show. Just watched it on YouTube. Entertaining. :)
This is a character I submitted for the Avatar of Mitra's Way of the Wicked game. The idea for the character was that he was raised in secret by a member of the Mitran clergy for use against the man's competitors and has only recently become introduced to other faiths. I wanted him to become a follower of the Asmodean faith as part of the gameplay. I'm curious if there's a way to work this into what you've outlined or if I'll have to either submit another character or wait for another Way of the Wicked game to open up. Ten Minute Background:
Six Important Things about the Character 1. Arash was raised in secret by one of the bishops of Mitra’s clergy, Bishop Buram Landrhew. Bishop Buram had him raised as a secret “inquisitor”, whose goal was to strike at evil in the very heart of the country without raising suspicion. Arash’s seclusion allowed Buram to tightly control Arash’s development as a person and to easily manipulate Arash’s worldview. 2. The tales of Arash’s parentage are that he was born to a devil-worshipping mother and a cambion father who had aided the hidden cell of Asmodean worshippers. He was taken by the Bishop when he was but a child and secreted away from the inquisitors so that he might have a chance at redemption. 3. Arash was trained by Moran, an archer with an unorthodox approach, but one that worked well. As Arash was trained in the bow, Moran also provided lessons in stealth, traps, and more esoteric ways of killing and manipulating others. He took to the lessons well, but the more spiritual pieces have evaded him for the time being. 4. After being confined for so long, Arash longed for the outdoors. He kept to himself outside, but occasionally had close calls with others. On a few instances, he was spotted by hunters, trappers, and others that travelled in the wilds. He ambushed them, determined to keep his existence a secret and praying that Mitra would forgive this as all other things would eventually be. 5. Arash wanted to know more about his past, so that he could hunt down his father, who had supposedly escaped. He investigated it from time to time, but during the reports he read over for another mission, he came across something overlooked in the archives. One of the inquisitors had looked into a report of a mother who had given birth to a fiendish child, but the child had disappeared before the inquisitor could arrive. This occurred in the town that Bishop Buram, then just a Father, served and the vague reports of the baby seemed similar to that of Arash. He was intrigued, but thought nothing of it until recently. 6. He truly believed that what he was doing was striking down opponents of the faith, but in reality it was those that prevented Bishop Buram’s rise in the ranks of the clergy. Even when pursuing the king, he had been convinced that the king was corrupted, much like Markadian III had been. 7. This came crashing down around him when he was taken. He’s spent the time since going over the events of his life again and again. Everything has been a lie. The salvation he sought has been ripped from his grasp, his own actions taking it further from him. In this state, he’ll probably lash out at things that remind him of what was done to him, but eventually he’ll stabilize and channel that hatred and rage into a new goal. Four Goals:
Two Secrets, One Known and One Unknown:
Five People that are tied to Arash, Three Friends and Two Enemies:
Four Mannerisms:
Writing Sample/Background: "The bow and you are one. Think not of it as a tool, but as an extension of yourself." Moran examined Arash’s form, nodding slightly and mumbling to himself all while adjusting Arash’s posture with slight pushes and slaps. "What does that mean, teacher? I don’t understand it." Arash asked, careful to keep his eyes straight, focused on the target. Avoiding a beating was almost as important as learning the lessons taught. His volatile teacher ensured that he learned quickly or earned a new scar to remind the boy. "You will, Arash, or you will suffer, but this is a lesson best grasped over time." He looked once more at the boy, giving a final examination. “Perfect form… Now release. Let the arrow take flight and follow it. Never let it leave your sight.” The arrow flew straight, striking the target perfectly, nearly a hundred feet from where student and teacher stood. He followed the arrow the entire time in its flight, letting his arms sink as the arrow flew. Yes, Arash thought, that’s sure to please. He turned to look at his master, but found Moran staring at the target, a frown on his face. Moran lashed out at Arash, striking the boy in the face. "When did I say let your weapon fall?! Always be ready for the next shot! Learning new lessons is no excuse to forget the old!" Moran sighed and shook his head, "You may never be ready to receive the grace of Mitra, Arash, so foolish are you. Your heritage will never be forgiven." Moran smirked slightly, just out of sight of his young pupil. Arash righted himself and with grim determination he nocked another arrow. I am a faithful believer. I will one day be worthy. Focus. Concentrate. Follow the arrow. Remember your lessons. I will be ready. I will serve. My place in the light will be secured. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------- The king sat in this throne surrounded by shining kinghts. The palace itself was a testament to the glory of Mitra, and the opulence of the aristocracy. Arash kept his eyes low, not out of shame, but a distaste for the décor around him. It reminded him so of his tainted heritage. His tail lashed back and forth wildly, his frustration evident. How was I caught? Arash asked himself. I followed the plan outlined by Moran. The king stood up from his throne and stepped forward a couple of steps. "Did you think you could take my family and I here in the palace, devil spawn?" Markadian shook his head. "Fortunately, I was forewarned about your plan." Forewarned? Arash raised his head to meet the boots of the king. Who? Moran, Tunivel, Rana, and maybe a few others knew the plan, but... He kept his eyes low as he swept his gaze about the room. "Looking for your co-conspirators? They’re being rounded up as we speak." Arash lowered his eyes to the floor again, confused and searching for possibilities. It was all he had now. He had failed and the tainted king had him. He would never see Mitra’s glory. Markadian’s boots appeared in front of him. "Lift him up. I wish to look him in the eye as I tell him his fate." Arash felt the cold, sharp metal of the knights’ gauntlets as they roughly lifted him to his feet. I will at least deny him this. He kept his gaze at the king’s feet. "Lift his head! Make him look at me!" More metal, enclosing grasping fingers, was on his head and his face now. They forced him to look the king in the face. "There, spawn of evil. You now know the face of the man who orders your execution. You will die for your sins, for they are many. Extortion, kidnapping, and murder, but the most recent is high treason. You will die for all of these, and I wish that you had multiple lives so that I could take them all, but for the charge of high treason you will be drawn and quartered. May the pain give you clarity of the magnitude of your damnation as you die." The king gestured to the guards, looking away from Arash. "Take him away. I wish him to taint this room no longer." The only clarity that I need is th- The thought died in his head as the guards spun him about and he saw Bishop Buram. Why is father here? The guards pulled him on, taking the bishop and the king out of his sight. The king spoke as Arash was being dragged from the chamber. "Bishop Buram Landrhew, I thank you for your aid in this matter. It was fortunate that your men discovered this plot in time." The world became muted for Arash. Assistance? But father was the one that I aided. I... He... We... destroyed evil. He set me on the road to redemption... right? I... The bishop’s words broke through his malign reverie, "Of course, my king. I am only too glad to serve. It was through the guidance of Mitra that I and my men were able to discover that foul creature’s plans before they could come any closer to fruition. His punishment is just." Pain flooded Arash’s world, drowning out everything else. The palace was filled his screams, unholy rage given voice for moments before the knights dragging him gagged the tiefling. He raged and sobbed as he was thrown in the wagon. Death. Death to them all. It was all he had left.
So I'm taking over a pre-existing game of S&S here on the boards, but we've lost a few people. I'm looking to recruit 2, perhaps 3, good players to round out the roster. We've currently got a bones oracle, a gunslinger, and a witch, so a melee character and maybe a skill monkey are preferred. However, I looking for good submissions before the roles they fill. My expectations of a player:
Stat Stuff
Building a Character:
I’m usually good with anything from Paizo, but I’m typically leery of 3rd party stuff. That said, feel free to ask about anything. I reserve the right to veto anything. Point-Buy: 20 points Races: Core, APG, UM, UC, ARG, BoA, BoF. Classes: Core, APG, UM, UC, ARG. Hit Points: Max at 1st, Average + 1 after 1st Starting Level: 2nd Traits: 2, 1 must be a campaign trait Alignment: Any, although see above about teamwork. Alignment cannot be used as an excuse to not get along with the party and contribute. Backgrounds: I expect a well-written background that ties the character into the AP. At least a paragraph in length, although what I’m looking for is an entertaining read I'll keep the recruitment open for a few days. Probably looking at starting back up by Monday or Tuesday.
Ahhh... Inspire Courage. I love that ability.
There's a couple of charts on the SRD that someone made for how to handle grapples that are fantastic. They're in the sidebar to the right. Excellent game aids.
My experience has taught me that the threat of death is the important part of the game, not the death itself. You only need enough death to create a suitable level of threat that shows that the player's actions have consequences. One issue is that eveyone's threshold is different, but in general, most people hate loosing things, like characters, that they've put work into. I've found that NPCs who know the world and its workings, tend to finish off characters if it'll remove a threat (or at least make it harder to make that character a threat again) if the removal doesn't place them in further danger. I can understand not wanting the final attack to kill the player outright, so if they're separated enough from the player group, I could see the villain forgoing the final attack that should mechanically kill them, to make a coup de grace that will almost certainly do the trick. More cinematic in my mind. Most animals won't risk significant harm to themselves unless they are direly hungry, sick, frightened, or defending the young. It's too difficult to heal from such wounds and leaves them less able to defend themselves. When talking about food and depending on the animal (or monster), I'd see them as likely trying to feed on the character or drag the body off elsewhere to feed in peace. Sick animals often have poor judgement, frightened ones lash out until allowed to remove themselves from the situation, and those defending the young lash out until the threat is gone. Frankly, I see it more boiling down to the DM's style. Everyone plays and runs games differently. Even those DMing styles that I might not like are still good styles, because they fit a different personality type and play style. |