Dolora's page

Dolora was most likely born in Sandpoint, but she was left outside the town when she was just an infant as a gift for the fairies. She would have died of exposure if not for a passing halfling cleric named Father Corwin, who heard her cries and rescued her. He ministered to several small agricultural communities in the hinterlands of Sandpoint as a mendicant priest, traveling between them to preach the dreams of Desna. Since there was no room to raise a child at Sandpoint Chapel, he took her instead to Turandarok Academy. Father Corwin visited her there often, taking special interest in her, and she always thought of herself as part of his family-- though his relatives might have differed. He had several cousins that also lived in Sandpoint (in particular a woman named Bethana that he often talked about who worked in one of the taverns), but they never came to see her or invited her to their homes. Still, she was grateful for Father Corwin's attention.

She was a precocious child, and quickly learned to read and write, though she was slow to finish books because she savored them. She spent a lot of time alone, for she did not make friends easily. However, it was clear she had a talent for arcane magic, and her tutors all said she would do well at one of the specialized wizard schools elsewhere in Varisia, though of course there was no money to pay for such a thing. Then, on Dolora's sixteenth birthday, the headmaster announced that an anonymous donor had paid him to arrange for her to attend the Academae in Korvosa. She suspected it was Father Corwin, but the enigmatic halfling would neither confirm nor deny it. He made her a special staff to take with her to school, especially light and with a hooked end-- just like the shepherd's crook that he carried wherever he went. "The Lady of Dreams wartches over you, Dolora," he said sagely. "Keep Her in your 'eart, an' that way She'll never be far from you."

Her eight years at college were difficult. She found the Cheliaxan-influenced culture of the Academae very jarring with her wholesome upbringing, and though by all accounts it was the best program for Conjuration specialists like her, she refused to summon devils at all and this upset all of the masters. Still, she was at least talented, and she read deeply and remembered everything she studied, and she was able to develop workarounds to the encouraged infernalism. She learned everything she could about the Thassilonian runelords and their specialized sin magic, and over time developed a theory that she was anxious to test: if Thassilonian magic's power is rooted in sin, and each sin opposes two others, and each sin is also opposed by a virtue, then logically it should be possible to simulate Thassilonian sin with a sin's opposing virtues. For example, Conjuration is associated with Sloth, and Conjuration is opposed by Evocation and Illusion. Evocation's sin is Wrath, and Illusion's sin is Pride. The opposite of Wrath is Kindness, and the opposite of Pride is Humility. Thus, she imagines, she can work Thassilonian magic rooted in the sin of Sloth by performing extreme acts of kindness and humility.

Unsurprisingly, her teachers did not think very highly of this idea, and tried to dissuade her from it. Yet somehow she survived the dangerous and cutthroat environment and managed to barely get through her exams. Perhaps this was due in part to her wizard's familiar, a beautiful purple butterfly that came to her while she meditated in the gardens before the Trial of Penitence. She named it Starlight, and believes it is a gift from Desna to reward her faith, which has never waned even in her darkest times. She was granted the rank of journeyman wizard, though it was clear that none of the Great Council thought she was a true conjurer. She was offered no continuing apprenticeship or positions in Korvosa or in the faculty, and so when they politely asked her to vacate her dormitory she decided that she should return home. According to the bursar, there was just enough money left in her account to pay for the journey.

She learned that, coincidentally, Sandpoint had just built a new cathedral in place of the former temple, and that there was to be a dedication ceremony at the Swallowtail Festival in five days' time. She managed to find a group of Abadaran pilgrims who were also making the journey, and she paid them to allow her to travel with them, to feed her and lend her the use of a tent, and to otherwise leave her alone with her thoughts. Finally, late in the morning on the first of Rova 4707 AR, she crested the rise and looked down upon her former home, and a rush of warm familiarity and hope for the future filled her. She couldn't wait to see Father Corwin again, and to tell him all about her adventures.

I invented this character to serve as a mentor figure for young Dolora, and in case you'd like to include him in the story I've added some details about him.

As I imagine him, he is an elderly halfling, maybe 90 years old, and related to Bethana Corwin. He carries a starknife but he never uses it, preferring his long shepherd's crook instead. He served in Sandpoint Chapel for most of his adult life, though he often traveled as is appropriate to a cleric of Desna. This means that when Dolora was a child, he was often away from Sandpoint, and I assume he's away at the start of the adventure path. Presumably he was also away five years ago when the chapel burned down and Father Zantus took over for Father Tobyn.

Dolora's been gone for eight years, and out of contact with Sandpoint, and I'm sure a lot has happened since then. Father Corwin may be dead, perhaps killed by giants. Or maybe he stumbled upon some clues appropriate to the adventure and is investigating them until the right time for him to return. It's possible he moved away and left word for Dolora to find him when she can. In any case, Dolora's strong feelings for him will transfer to Sandpoint as a whole, so there isn't any rush to address where he is any time soon.

Dolora is tall and dark-skinned with very unusual eyes, somehow flecked with gold and silver like precious stones. Her body is skinny, like she doesn't eat much or engage in much physical activity. She keeps her long hair tied back in a simple knot, and wears plain clothing. She carries a spell component pouch at her hip and wears a backpack. She leans on a long and thin shepherd's crook. A very small swallowtail butterfly often perches on her right shoulder.

She is extraordinarily kind and humble, and though she has a penchant for lazily sleeping in and savoring the various pleasures in her life, she makes a conscious effort to curb any evidence of slothfulness. She doesn't like hurting living things, especially people, though she recognizes that sadly it is sometimes necessary. She's always been good at helping others fight rather than directly fighting herself.

Full round:
• withdraw

Standard:
• aid another
• cast spell
• grapple
• trip

Move:
• move
• retrieve stowed item

Standard:
• cast guidance

Concept

These are the fundamentals, the broadest strokes. Every character should have answers to these five, including NPCs. It's the quickest way to give the sense of a full individual instead of a cardboard stereotype.

1. What emotion best describes your character? Find one primary emotion your character expresses. Try to use a colorful, specific word to describe it. For instance, instead of "angry" you might say "vengeful" or "raging," or instead of happy you might say "cheerful" or "exalting."

Dolora's primary emotion is compassion. Specifically she is equal parts humble and kind, which she views as essential to her magic functioning properly, and that compels her to try to be particularly helpful and nice. She views everything that happens to her and everything she does through a lens of how it affects others.

2. What emotion does your character evoke in others? How do others react to you? Do you impress, scare, calm, excite, or perhaps annoy? Again try to find the most specific term you can. Is this reaction different between friends and enemies?

Unfortunately, Dolora's compassion generally encourages others to take advantage of her. Perhaps a good term for this is disdain? Enemies rarely consider her a threat, and allies often take her for granted. Her way of coping with this is usually to ignore the behavior or retreat into herself, rather than confronting it. She tends to rely on others to solve her problems.

3. What does your character need most? If your character had everything he or she needed, why go on an adventure? Most people's needs are fairly universal, although they can change over time. Common needs are survival, security, companionship, esteem, romance, family, or wisdom. Consider what your character's starting needs are, and where you want them to be by the end of the adventure or campaign. It helps to establish this need with the GM, to ensure it fits with the themes of the game.

Dolora desperately needs to belong to a community, and she especially needs a close group to support. At the start of the adventure path, her only family is her adopted father, Father Corwin, and he is missing. She generally sees all of Sandpoint as her extended family, and over the course of the story I imagine she will take on more responsibility of the settlement. I don't think she is particularly interested in love or romance, because she views dedicated relationships as inherently selfish.

4. What is your character's goal in life? This should be the principle, underlying motivation for everything your character thinks, says, and does. If your character were lying on the brink of death, what makes him or her cling to life? What could your character lose that he or she would consider worse than death? This goal is often broad, and sometimes unachievable. Whatever the nature of the goal, it should be something your character can strive for his or her entire life. The best goals are ones that can be threatened, as they will help create more compelling adventures. Ideas include justice, revenge, protecting loved ones, redeeming one's self, or gaining some kind of power. When you think of something, ask yourself "why?" to make sure it isn't because of some larger, more important goal.

Quote:

Dolora takes care of her loved ones (and even her unloved ones!). If she gains power, she uses it to improve the lives of her friends, family, and community. I think this is because she is afraid of losing them. More than anything else, she wants to keep close the people who are important to her, so she is never alone.

DM Salsa wrote:

5. How does your character believe this goal can be accomplished? Because the goal can often be ideological, the method to achieving it is sometimes equally insubstantial. Your character's methods should be strongly tied to beliefs (or lack of beliefs), and primarily be a decision of lifestyle. A character bent on revenge might consider perfecting a fighting discipline, while a character devoted to a cause might consider a religious or philosophical doctrine.

To make sure she is never alone, Dolora believes in fostering her community. She initially follows the teachings of Desna, but because Sandpoint is equally welcoming of many different faiths, so is she.

DM Salsa wrote:

Background

For any campaign, a character should have come from somewhere. Spend any length of time with someone and their history is bound to come up. These questions give your character history, and therefore dramatic and emotional weight.

6. Where did your character come from? Consider your character's initial roots, before he or she was a teenager. These times are what shape your character the most. Who were your parents? Where did you live? What was your family's economic and social status? How were you educated? What were the three most important lessons you learned?

Dolora grew up at the orphanage at Turandarok Academy, and though she thought of Father Corwin as her father, she was neglected and occasionally bullied. She was poor and essentially an outcast. She did have a good education, but it was because of her own talents and efforts. She learned that to succeed, she needed help from others; she learned that to receive anything from others required her to give twice as much; and she learned that there are supernatural rewards for virtuous behavior.

DM Salsa wrote:

7. When did you grow up? Everyone begins taking responsability for their own lives at different times and in different ways. Describe the events related to when your character started taking care of him- or herself.

Dolora had to learn to take responsibility for her own life as a child, since she was an orphan. However, when she left Sandpoint and traveled to Korvosa to attend the Academae, she left behind her entire support system and had to learn how to take care of herself on her own. This was a particularly hostile environment for her, and it drove her to demonstrate her humility and kindness even more.

DM Salsa wrote:

8. What values does your character hold? Name three things your character considers sacred, and three things he or she is idealogically opposed to. These things will usually stem from a combination of your goals and your personal history. Consider especially where the values came from. Was your character taught these values? Did they develop as a reaction to something your character considered noble or diabolical? Establish lines that your character will not cross in pursuit of his or her goal to add challenge to playing your character.

1. Dolora believes that people can always change for the better. No one is irredeemable, so Dolora is reluctant to take actions that kill her enemies, and opposed to using murder as a form of problem-solving. This doesn't usually apply to things like fiends or wild animals or the undead, but Father Corwin taught her that Desna inspires hope in everything that can dream.

2. Dolora respects authority. She believes strong leadership is important for a community to prosper, and that flaunting the rules causes society to break down. She is not a slave to the law, especially if it lacks compassion, but she won't act against those who enforce them without a very good reason.

3. Dolora believes her gifts are for everyone, not just herself. She dislikes selfish behavior, and does her best to set an example by sharing the benefits of her magic and skills with all of those who need them.

DM Salsa wrote:

9. How does your character dress? Start generally with an overall statement of the quality of your character's appearance, such as projected social status, trade, common activities, or how groomed or slovenly your character is. Begin to hone in on telling details, especially those things that most people take for granted. How exactly does your character style his or her hair? What decorative articles does your character wear, such as jewelry, decorated buttons or buckles, a belt, gloves, etc.?One especially telling detail is footwear. Describe in detail what your character wears on his or her feet, including cut, tightness or looseness, heel height, sole hardness or softness, lacing/buckling/tying or lack thereof, toe shape (square, round, pointed…?), color, material, shininess, cleanliness, repair or disrepair, and any other details you can think of.

Dolora wears very simple, practical clothing, like a pilgrim or a scholar but without any pretensions. Her clothes are clean and neat, and made of plain cloth. Her hair is a bit unruly, and pulled back and tied in a simple bunch behind her head. Her shoes are old scuffed leather, possibly hand-me-downs that have seen a lot of use. They are laced with care, and clearly have some degree of padding as if intended for extended travel. They aren't dyed or painted, so the reddish-brown color gives them a very rough, earthy appearance.

DM Salsa wrote:

10. What are your character's means? Consider all the resources your character has. This should include material resources such as money and property, social resources such as friends and allies, and personal resources such as skill, courage, strength, wits, etc. It might help to make a list of all your character's resources that he or she might use to overcome adversity. Consider challenges like fights, puzzles, traveling, persuading (and being persuaded), and any others.

Dolora has little means, though she is not destitute. Her friendship with Father Corwin is substantial, and respect for him affects how she can influence those who know him, such as other members of the church or his extended family. Her magical abilities are impressive, and her mental acuity and strength of will are extremely well-developed. Even though she is generally languorous, she has a finely-honed temperament for drawing arcane power and she reacts very quickly to danger. She knows a great deal of lore about the world and the creatures that live in it. She is also watched over and supported by the goddess Desna through her butterfly familiar, which is no small thing.

DM Salsa wrote:

Details

Now we're picking nits. These five are all about texture and color. These answers take your character beyond an adventure serial persona and into reality. Answers to these make your characters memorable for years.

11. What are your character's personal tastes? Name at least three things your character enjoys for no reason other than personal preference. A good place to start is with each of the five senses. Consider a sound, smell, taste, feeling, or sight that is uniquely pleasing to your character. Also consider activities such as hobbies or habits. Name three things your character dislikes, as well.

Dolora loves to sleep, and especially to dream. She dislikes being woken up before she wakes naturally. She likes the theatre, and considers the plays she saw at Sandpoint Theater once a year when she was a girl to be some of the highlights of her childhood. Conversely she usually dislikes going to bars or taverns because she dislikes barfights. She prefers places that serve food, believing that they have less violence. Finally, she loves the smell and taste of salty, warm bread with butter, and she cannot bear sugary-sweet drinks or foods.

DM Salsa wrote:

12. What are your character's opinions? Decide upon at least three major aspects of local society and your character's opinion on them. This could be generalizations such as rich or poor people, more specific areas like a particular political or religious group, or very specific things like a prominent individual or an aspect of the character's job. Check with your GM for relevant things in the campaign to have opinions about.

Dolora generally believes that rich people and nobles don't deserve their wealth, and should get rid of it through charitable causes as much as they can. She also believes that she should keep this opinion to herself or it will have the opposite effect. She believes that prostitutes are a blight on her community, and that Sandpoint would be better off without any sex workers at all. She thinks they are probably caused by a lack of education in both parties. Finally, due to her experiences living at the Academae in Korvosa for eight years, she thinks big cities encourage vice and sin and that small frontier towns like Sandpoint are inherently better. Her bias upon learning that someone comes from Magnimar or Riddleport is that they are less trustworthy and more corrupt. She has limited experience to help her overcome this prejudice.

DM Salsa wrote:

13. What is your character's comfort zone? What environment, activity, or mindset puts your character at ease? This can add a lot of color to your character during stressful moments, as he or she will have a place to go or a thing to do at these times. It helps to have a comfort zone broken up into the above parts so at least some of it is portable.

Dolora gets comfort from daydreaming, either while reading a book or lounging abed or even admiring her familiar. It invokes Desna to her, and that makes her feel safe and protected.

DM Salsa wrote:

14. Who has had the biggest impact on your character's life? Name and briefly describe at least one person who had a significant impact on how your character perceives the world today. You can name more than one, but they should each reflect different aspects of your character's beliefs. Use this as a reference point when your character has to make difficult decisions (i.e., "What would so-and-so do?").

Father Corwin has been the single greatest influence on Dolora.

DM Salsa wrote:

15. What are some of your character's unexpected quirks? Name three things that are unexpected about the way your character behaves, such as things that go against his or her normal social status, age, or trade. How about three unexpected talents or abilities like being able to sing, or knowing some trivial knowledge, or being good at math? Three things your character can't do that most other people can such as whistling, swimming, or reading well? How about three things your character fears, such as heights, dogs, or insects?

Surprising for a human, Dolora doesn't like bright light or colors. She prefers indirect light, and instinctively avoids especially lit-up areas. She is comfortable in dim light, and likes it best for reading. She prays every night before bed, almost like a cleric getting her spells from her deity, even though she prepares them as a wizard. She scribes her spells in Common, and though she is familiar with several unusual languages, she still speaks with a very obvious Sandpoint accent that she is loathe to change. She is dreadfully afraid of Lamashtu, in particular how the evil goddess can give birth to monsters from the bodies of otherwise virtuous people, and she doesn't like scary stories because she empathizes too much with the victims.

DM Salsa wrote:

Player

These five questions direct your play experience itself rather than your character. What do you want out of your game? If a group answers these together, they can expect dramatically rewarding game sessions, and the GM will know clearly what's expected to give everyone a good time.

16. What kind of story does your character belong in? Who are the characters your character interacts with? What settings does he or she inhabit? What themes are important? What conflicts does your character face? These things are important to understand so your GM can create adventures that will engage your character, and so you will have a better chance at getting along with your fellow players' characters.

Dolora needs other good characters around her, hopefully ones that will reciprocate her care and attention and not take advantage of her. Ideally she will have someone to act as a sort of champion that she can stand behind and aid with her staff. It would probably help if other characters have no qualms about killing enemies that need killing for the story to proceed, since her aversion to murder could hold them back otherwise. She wants to redeem Thassilonian rune magic, demonstrating how her virtuous version is at least as powerful as the old way based in sin, and that could lead to a very interesting result as a running theme in a game called Rise of the Runelords.

DM Salsa wrote:

17. What role does your character fill? Roleplaying is all about the ensemble cast. Make sure you fill a unique role in the party, and you aren't stepping on anyone else's toes. Consider your role in the interpersonal relations of the party, your role in combat, what skills your character is best at, and what thematic note your character hits.

Dolora is a debuffer and support character: her magic mostly delays and hinders the enemy, and her combat actions support her allies in taking down threats. She is a caregiver, and though she doesn't have any healing powers, she is very focused on protecting and helping the other members of her party. Her skills are mostly knowledge skills, with Perception and Sense Motive again to help others. In a stereotypical six-person team, I would guess she'd be The Cutie.

DM Salsa wrote:

18. What should the other players know about your character? These should be major thematic points, your character's general emotion (if it isn't secret), potential surprises or areas that might be difficult, and any other pertinent information. Also start sketching out potential interactions, such as another character you might go to for help (or who might go to you for help), or someone you'll probably butt heads with. Getting these things out in the open is important to ensure there aren't unpleasant surprises.

Dolora isn't a paladin, but she does have a very strong moral code that she keeps, and we'll have to work out what to do when we have human characters who surrender rather than fight to the death, because she won't be happy if we just slaughter people who give up fighting. Her virtuousness is important to her character both conceptually and mechanically, so I would hope we don't have a reason to challenge it.

DM Salsa wrote:

19. What is your play style? Do you like heavy character immersion, or attention to detail in the rules, or perhaps you're especially goal-oriented? Maybe you're a bit competitive. Do you prefer lots of colorful descriptions, or a quicker framework understanding of situations? Do you speak in your character's voice? You may not even be aware of your own play style. Keep this in mind as you play so you can better communicate with your fellow players about the direction of the party as a whole, and the course of the adventure. This also helps your GM understand your personal needs at the gaming table.

I like roleplaying immersed in my character's head, but I also view it as a game and I like to win more than I like to have more fodder for roleplaying. I feel like I've failed if my character fails, even if it gives me lots of stuff to roleplay. I am definitely not competitive, at least not with my fellow players. I want everyone to win.

DM Salsa wrote:

20. How do you want your character to die? Your character won't live forever, although you might not play him or her to the end. If you had your choice of deaths for your character, what would it be? Death of old age, having survived through all his or her trials? Perhaps a bloody, violent death? A noble sacrifice? Happenstance? It can also provide an unusual layer of texture to your roleplaying, as you have a better understanding of your character's fate. It will also tell you if your character is a tragic or heroic one. Finally, it can help your GM in resolving conflicts in-game if he or she has an idea of your comfort zone with threats to your character's life.

I suppose Dolora would best die with a heroic sacrifice or of old age after many years of stewarding her hometown to greatness.

Benedic, a proud nobleman who knows he's descended from one of the highest families in the land
Benedic visits his page Beatrics in a small Kenabres tavern
Benedic emerges from an ordeal to meet Beatrics again
Reunited after clearing out the Gray Garrison
Another uncomfortable exchange
A slow thaw

Yasmeena, Kelmarane's pre-eminent dancer and follower of Sarenrae
Boundless optimism
Water is anathema
Making plans with her friends

Henrika Karthis, Princess Eutropia's steadfast striker, reluctant to give up her seedy underworld connections
Introduction
She looked like a Karthis

Chambawamba, a bloodthirsty toothy goblin with a penchant for jumping on her victims
Poor Garridan
The little scamp

1. What time zone are you in?

Pacific, though I generally keep weird hours. I often respond to posts at one a.m. before going to bed.

2. How long have you been playing TTRPGs?

I guess this gives away my age. :) My first forays into D&D were as a kid, when I took a class at Kids on Kampus at the local university and the teacher used Xeroxed pages from the original Player's Handbook (I remember the illustrations vividly, particularly the barbarian slipping on a banana peel). That would have been like 1982. I played a lot in college, too, and I wrote a large number of books for the Fifth Edition of a game called Ars Magica-- one of the first games written by Jonathan Tweet (who wrote D&D 3ed) and Mark Rein-Hagen (who wrote Vampire et al). I've been playing play-by-post games on the internet since around 2009.

3. What's your favorite part about playing TTRPGs?

I'm an actor in community theater, so I love thinking about character interactions and depicting the way the character is feeling. But I also geek out on game mechanics, so I tend to make slightly complicated and intricate character sheets as I figure out weird ways to do different things. So I guess it's making characters, or at least doing interesting/unusual things with characters I've built. A Johnny, in MtG-speak.

4. What do you expect from this game?

I just wanna have fun! It would be nice if it lasts long enough to get to the meat of the story-- I can't tell you how many times I've seen people play the beginning and then it peters out. I've been in several games myself that never got through book one.

5. What do you expect out of your fellow players?

I want an inclusive, friendly group that is supportive and cooperative, mostly familiar with the system, and willing to roleplay. They try to post every day, are tolerant when we fail, and gently nudge each other to keep the game going.

6. What do you expect out of me?

Familiarity with the game, and it really helps if you push us when we start to lag. And I know it sucks, but it usually falls to the GM to deal with drama that crops up between players, so I hope you'll be fair and not encourage bullying or poor treatment. I had to leave a game once because one of the other players didn't like my character, and she constantly picked on me in and out of character. Not sure what the GM should have done, but I feel like she should have done something rather than let the other players kick me out.

7. (If you don't want this to be public, PM me the answer to this one and just note that you did so.) Beyond the obvious (generally stuff already prohibited by Paizo's forum rules,) what are your redlines? Are there any topics, themes, or imagery that you absolutely do not want to see in the game?

I'm mostly okay with anything, though I think it's usually better if extreme things fade to black and come back after it's over. I don't want to revel in gore, but I can handle it if it's important for the story. Probably my only trigger is pvp-- I really hate it when other player characters turn on me. I don't like competitive arena-style battles, I want to work with a group to win cooperatively.

I know it's against the rules, but I'm wondering if you would allow Dolora a custom item? Basically, it makes the most sense mechanically for her to wield an elven branched spear because she can use it with Weapon Finesse. However, I picture her with a shepherd's crook instead. She is proficient in both crook and branched spear because of her Military Training human trait, so I was wondering if you would let me combine the two weapons, basically making a crook with the finesse property. She'll never use it except to aid another or maybe to trip/grapple, so I'm fine with keeping the lower damage and smaller crit range, and it could weigh as much as both weapons added together. But since it's particularly thematic of her extreme kindness and humility, I hope you'll consider it.