Ghul, Doomed Knight's page

Ghul begins clearing out the debris, and re-arranging the shrine itself.

Athletics (E) vs DC 17: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (17) + 12 = 29

Ghul goes to investigate the shrine, sensing it's energies with his undead heart, and stepping closer, solemn.

Religion (T) vs DC 17: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (17) + 8 = 25

Ghul places some moistening fluids wrapped in leaves across his flaky skin…

Treat Wounds (Nature, Natural Medicine) vs DC 15: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (11) + 8 = 192d8 ⇒ (7, 4) = 11

”Surrender - you are wounded and cornered” Ghul suggests, pausing a moment the rhythm of his odd fighting style…

Savaging around, Ghul stirs into a clobbering frenzy!

◆) Raise Shield
◆◆) Strike x2 (melee, but will throw shield if white down - subtract 2 from attack rolls)
↺) Shield Block (only if damage is significant - hardness 11, HP 90)
↺) Glimpse of Redemption (Repent or DR 6 plus Enfeeble 2)

Shield Boss w/ Everstand (d8) w/ Anthem (+1/+1) against Concealed (Flat 5) vs White: 1d20 ⇒ 91d20 + 11 + 1 ⇒ (20) + 11 + 1 = 322d8 + 4 + 1 ⇒ (6, 8) + 4 + 1 = 19
Shield Boss w/ Everstand (d8) w/ MAP (-5) w/ Anthem (+1/+1) against Concealed (Flat 5) vs White: 1d20 ⇒ 81d20 + 11 - 5 + 1 ⇒ (10) + 11 - 5 + 1 = 172d8 + 4 + 1 ⇒ (4, 3) + 4 + 1 = 12

Guardedly, Ghul hops forward and slams down, posing his shield defensively, and keeping his eye on his team around him...

◆) Step
◆) Raise Shield
◆) Strike
↺) Shield Block (only if damage is significant - not "1" or "3" - hardness 11, HP 90)
↺) Glimpse of Redemption (Repent or DR 6 plus Enfeeble 2)

Shield Boss w/ Everstand (d8) w/ Anthem (+1/+1) against Concealed (Flat 5) vs White: 1d20 ⇒ 131d20 + 11 + 1 ⇒ (2) + 11 + 1 = 142d8 + 4 + 1 ⇒ (4, 3) + 4 + 1 = 12

Reflex vs Dazzled (DC 17): 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (9) + 7 = 16

Unable to look down at the rainbow bridge below his feet, our doomed hero takes a stride of faith, first positioning his shield in both hands and adopting a feral, almost four-legged stance, and races into danger with superhuman steed like some aberrant predator!

"Come"

◆) Everstand Stance
◆) Raise Shield (to AC 24)
◆) Stride
↺) Shield Block (hardness 11)
↺) Glimpse of Redemption (Repent or DR 6 plus Enfeeble 2)

Ghul follows diligently...

Nodding, Ghul proceeds towards the blue door…

”The spirits are already angry”

Even as it was likely that Moist meant the comment in humor, his response was given in solemnity.

Ghul stands by, and nods to Olegaro…

Nature (T) vs DC 17: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (14) + 8 = 22
Religion (T) vs DC 17: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (8) + 8 = 16

”I spoke with the angered spirit. And found the case she made to be sensitive to only a single fact: that of the source of the Fog being the sole reason of invocation of her wrath. This means that to re-enter her good graces, you can help us find what we seek…”

About to give a direct response - “No” - Ghul abides by the more diplomatic pathfinders’s approach to answering the simple question.

He stands stoic like a statue, and waits.

Ghul follows Olegaro up a tree from another vantage point…

Athletics (E) vs DC 17: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (14) + 12 = 26

”Be at peace with your deaths. To linger here is to wallow in what was, not face what is to come” spoken like a creature almost envious of release from coil…

Religion (T) vs DC 15: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (14) + 8 = 22

”Those we meet filled with rage enough to attack will be redeemed. You have my word Sakura” a final bow and Ghul stows his bow, grabs his shield, and pushes through…

Survival (T) vs DC 15: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (16) + 8 = 24

”Sakura, I am called Ghul” he bows, a stiff, simple hinge over jutting hip bones of armor-clad torso ”We have been sent to re-open the routes between the villages through the forest, and so, in alliance over stopping this ‘miasma’, we have shared purpose”

He pauses, considers, speaks again ”Any insight into why the villagers would harbor such a plague would greatly help us to that end”

Nature (T) vs DC 14: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (14) + 8 = 22

”This little creature is a messenger” Ghul follows it slowly, stopping every few seconds to look behind and check if anyone follows.

Provision: Lesser Oil of Unlife

As horse-pulled wagon approaches Hokkōshi, Ghul remains in the back, longbow drawn. He hunts in the forest nearby while most of the other team canvases the locals, on the outskirts of the fog...

A statue? Was it there all along, unmoving, quiet? How long? No matter. A stranger not yet accustomed to travel with the company present. It awaits an introduction from Amara Li before sitting before you - the silent grace a palpable "sound" of swift movement by omission, the gently concealed unmistakable smell of rot just a layer beneath the sweet aroma of woodsy preserving oils.

It raises the visor of it's helmet to reveal sunken eyes which meet yours, tiny specks like a nearly-starless night over a too-bright city, signifying some semblance of life within this poor wretched creature, ugly, silent, still; still not unlike death, the miniature unconscious movements of healthy endothermic vitality noticeably absent. His face - you presume the creature to have once had a male sex - wrinkled like an onion, layer upon layer upon layer, dotted with what seems to once have been age spots, now faded and spread, a disease of spoiled flesh encroaching the curves around his jaw, his cheeks, his brow, the holes that might have once been a nose and ears, his neck.

And the rasp! "I am Ghul. You must be the others" The remnants of his thin lips curl into an unnerving smile as he looks at each in turn. To the untrained, this might seem an intentionally malicious gesture, but a closer examination yields an honest expression unfortunately cast upon a face incapable of preventing the skew of any warm sentiment, purposeful or otherwise. "I will keep you alive" the tiny emphasis on the word is somewhat disturbing - the exclusion of self in it's subject nefariously curious.

Then: The table manners, otherwise, of an aristocrat! Ghul waits patiently for his tea to arrive, cups the brew in his withered hands, and sips gently, slowly, the liquid spilling down what you presume to be his throat. If he feels the sense of being watched, he doesn't react.

Ghul follows brave Yuranosuke's lead, strains his eyes as the mist rolls in...

...when he observes the missing statue, he crouches before where it once stood, looking for clues...

Ghul nods gravely towards Xi Jiang and Ayane Xio.

”Perhaps the Festival didn’t succeed in performing it’s function” he lifts part of the corpse with his hand, mussying himself in guts inappropriately absent-mindedly for a ‘civilized’ creature ”Perhaps it is we who have failed…”

The scratching rasp of his voice like serrated metal dragged over a steel beam!

Trained in Nature and Survival: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (5) + 5 = 101d20 + 5 ⇒ (1) + 5 = 6

”Neither blade nor haft, Brave Yuranosuke. Something does not sit right, but I cannot place upon it any purchase”

Fortitude vs Giant Centipede (DC 14): 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (13) + 6 = 19

◆) Everstand Stance
◆) Raise Shield (to AC 20)
◆) Strike
↺) Shield Block (hardness 6, HP 16)
↺) Glimpse of Redemption (Repent or DR 3 plus Enfeeble 2)

Crouching low, Ghul shifts from an upright to a feral, wild stance, gripping his shield in two hands and pounding the closest centipede to pulp!

Shield Boss w/ Everstand w/ Anthem (+1/+1) vs Centipede: 1d20 + 7 + 1 ⇒ (15) + 7 + 1 = 231d8 + 4 + 1 ⇒ (4) + 4 + 1 = 9

Ghul Fortitude (Expert) vs Giant Centipede Poison (DC 14): 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (8) + 6 = 14

Ghul's undead constitution staves off the poison for now - chucks of rotted skin go missing from him, unleashing a terrible smell!

Ghul hunts these creatures with his bow, loosing arrows at Centipede 1 as it closes with the party ”Stay close by” he warns them ”that Ketephys may keep you”

Longbow (P, deadly d10) vs Centipede 1: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (5) + 5 = 101d8 ⇒ 31d10 ⇒ 9
Longbow (P, deadly d10) w/ MAP (-5) vs Centipede 1: 1d20 + 5 - 5 ⇒ (4) + 5 - 5 = 41d8 ⇒ 81d10 ⇒ 3

Seeing them charge, he stows his longbow, and draws his shield!

◆◆) Strike x2
◆) Interact to Swap to Meteor Shield
↺) Glimpse of Redemption (First ally w/in 15-ft to trigger)

Hunting Lore (Trained): 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (6) + 3 = 9

”I do not recognize this clearing” tossing his blindfold to the ground ”We are lucky it didn’t rain” he rises, pulling out his longbow ”No sign of Choe Chun-hu yet?”

…and to that effect, what better way to “normalize” his condition than to volunteer himself in a community undertaking - one of the top celebrations of the year: the Reenactment Festival!

Usually avoiding the event, Ghul decides this year to sign up to be an “abductee”, inclusive, presumably, of having supplied for him a face-covering to mask his decrepit, bestial features. And spending most of his participatory time away from the village itself. Whereupon returning, having built suspension at his disappearance, smoothing over the transition of having to present for gazing upon his horrid visage!

Sunken sockets into which have settled tiny pale specks of photoreceptive tissues, signifying some semblance of life within the unnaturally strong but thoroughly rotting vessel, his body, ugly, silent, still; still not unlike death, the miniature unconscious movements of healthy endothermic vitality noticeably absent. His face - you presume the creature to have once had a male sex - wrinkled like an onion, layer upon layer upon layer, dotted with what seems to once have been age spots, now faded and spread, a disease of spoiled flesh encroaching the curves around his jaw, his cheeks, his brow, the holes that might have once been a nose and ears, his neck.

Dropping fresh game onto the counter, as a simultaneous offering and distraction, our wretched hero searches for his disguise amid the other four volunteers present in the room…

Ancient but cursed, Ghul divides his life into chapters thousands of seasons long each!

Those early chapters little more than a fading dream, his humanity in an age lost to time, vibrant of skin and wholesome of appetite, civilized, with passions and interests of mortal mirth, only to persist and decay slowly, everyone he had ever known dying, and even himself, his body, spoiling but never fully spending. For ghul is a dhampir gifted with eternal life but not eternal youth, and despite having lived a full life, lost himself for a time proportionally longer by an order of magnitude beyond even his own comprehension.

Those middle chapters - indeed the greatest span of his time under the hated sun by far! - also a blur, dimmed by a different perception altogether, for Ghul had devolved into a beast of the wood, slaking his sanguine lust upon game and fowl and rodent, and living as an animal, crawling on all fours like a dog, his body weak and yet powerful, his awareness of time only an ever-present "now", living by pure instinct, and losing his ability at speech, as years, decades, centuries without contact with other society-dwelling beings withered the very muscle of complex communication from his bloodthirsty tongue, all-the-while the flames of undeath keeping his undead heart paradoxically ice cold, and the entirety of his being reduced to a simple, primal emotion: hunger.

This late chapter, now, perhaps not even a few decades in length, of his being discovered once again by beings also blessed with longevity (but not cursed by depravity) - a group of elves stewarding the Silvermist Lodges (W5 in Player's Guide) - pitying his very soul, and trapping him for an extended period, nursing him back to some semblance of sentience, and with only the patience a race known for living well beyond the ken of other kin, reteaching him how to speak, to listen, to learn...

...in their absence, Ghul remains, and eventually integrates himself into the quaint community of Willowshore's south side, a huntsman sticking to the edges of the civilization, grateful for his own second chance at a simple life...

Ancient but cursed, Ghul divides his life into chapters thousands of seasons long each!

Those early chapters little more than a fading dream, his humanity in an age lost to time, vibrant of skin and wholesome of appetite, civilized, with passions and interests of mortal mirth, only to persist and decay slowly, everyone he had ever known dying, and even himself, his body, spoiling but never fully spending. For ghul is a dhampir gifted with eternal life but not eternal youth, and despite having lived a full life, lost himself for a time proportionally longer by an order of magnitude beyond even his own comprehension.

Those middle chapters - indeed the greatest span of his time under the hated sun by far! - also a blur, dimmed by a different perception altogether, for Ghul had devolved into a beast of the wood, slaking his sanguine lust upon game and fowl and rodent, and living as an animal, crawling on all fours like a dog, his body weak and yet powerful, his awareness of time only an ever-present "now", living by pure instinct, and losing his ability at speech, as years, decades, centuries without contact with other society-dwelling beings withered the very muscle of complex communication from his bloodthirsty tongue, all-the-while the flames of undeath keeping his undead heart paradoxically ice cold, and the entirety of his being reduced to a simple, primal emotion: hunger.

This late chapter, now, perhaps not even a few decades in length, of his being discovered once again by beings also blessed with longevity (but not cursed by depravity) - a group of elves stewarding the Silvermist Lodges (W5 is Player's Guide) - pitying his very soul, and trapping him for an extended period, nursing him back to some semblance of sentience, and with only the patience a race known for living well beyond the ken of other kin, reteaching him how to speak, to listen, to learn...

...in their absence, Ghul remains, and eventually integrates himself into the quaint community of Willowshore's south side, a huntsman sticking to the edges of the civilization, grateful for his own second chance at a simple life...

Ghul is an Outskirt Dweller Champion (Redeemer) of Ketephys who will have skillset similar to that a Ranger.

Currently borrowing my PFS version of him to apply - will finalize if chosen.

GMing this AP as we speak!

Interested

This is my PFS Champion whom I am thinking about rebuilding into a Guardian, and open to trying it on to see if it fits!

As he has already played this, he would be earning credit for a different character, just using this alias as requested.

Ancient but cursed, Ghul divides his life into chapters thousands of seasons long each!

Those early chapters little more than a fading dream, his humanity in an age lost to time, vibrant of skin and wholesome of appetite, civilized, with passions and interests of mortal mirth, only to persist and decay slowly, everyone he had ever known dying, and even himself, his body, spoiling but never fully spending. For ghul is a dhampir gifted with eternal life but not eternal youth, and despite having lived a full life, lost himself for a time proportionally longer by an order of magnitude beyond even his own comprehension.

Those middle chapters - indeed the greatest span of his time under the hated sun by far! - also a blur, dimmed by a different perception altogether, for Ghul had devolved into a beast of the wood, slaking his sanguine lust upon game and fowl and rodent, and living as an animal, crawling on all fours like a dog, his body weak and yet powerful, his awareness of time only an ever-present "now", living by pure instinct, and losing his ability at speech, as years, decades, centuries without contact with other society-dwelling beings withered the very muscle of complex communication from his bloodthirsty tongue, all-the-while the flames of undeath keeping his undead heart paradoxically ice cold, and the entirety of his being reduced to a simple, primal emotion: hunger.

This late chapter, now, perhaps not even a few decades in length, of his being discovered once again by beings also blessed with longevity (but not cursed by depravity) - a group of elves stewarding the Silvermist Lodges (W5 is Player's Guide) - pitying his very soul, and trapping him for an extended period, nursing him back to some semblance of sentience, and with only the patience a race known for living well beyond the ken of other kin, reteaching him how to speak, to listen, to learn...

...in their absence, Ghul remains, and eventually integrates himself into the quaint community of Willowshore's south side, a huntsman sticking to the edges of the civilization, grateful for his own second chance at a simple life...

Ghul is an Outskirt Dweller Champion (Redeemer) of Ketephys who will have skillset similar to that a Ranger (to balance party DX / INT / CHA skills) and whose negative healing trait will play well with the healing capability of Li Jie Qiang while he contributes lay on hands and stands protectively at the frontline with Kwan Tai seeking cooperative opportunities for Hooli Jinowarui!

Currently borrowing my PFS version of him to apply - will finalize if chosen.

GMing this AP as we speak!

Ghul nods to Haohji.

Unifax races over to stand as close to the tree as possible.

Void.
It's what powers that which opposes light.
It's what infuses unlife into the souls of the corrupted undead.

Snow.
It's what opposes the sun.
It's what breaks the year into it's seasons leaving nothing green in it's path.

Ghul contemplates his existence while he trudges through the frozen tundra, void powering his rotted and cold legs throw the frigid snow.

Athletics (Trained): 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (19) + 9 = 28

* a list of supplies they should procure before the race begins:

** [code] winter clothes, tent, hatchet, rations, healer's kit, 100 feet of hemp rope, repair kit[/code]

Ghul uses coins from the purse to procure winter clothes, tent, hatchet, rations, healer's kit, 100 feet of hemp rope, and repair kit.

GM - how much time (of the 3 hours) does that take?

Contrast to the young fighter's cheer, Ghul's consternation and gloom carry him along in pursuit.

Protect my companions, I am sworn to do

Politics.

A warmongering Lich rises in the east, and the Society sends him to play games with the Northerners.

Ghul remains silent - the frigid chill of the weather leaving icicles in the joints of his rusted heavy armors - his thin desiccated skin unable to provide insulation to his cold dead heart...

Clanging in heavy armor, if it isn't the sound of heavy metal that first penetrates one of your six senses, then perhaps it is the rank and unmistakable smell of rot, even tamed somewhat by the frigid cold of the north.

With an uneven and unstable gait, the creature approaches, and to your utter horror, raises the visor of it's helmet to reveal sunken eyes which meet yours, tiny specks like a nearly-starless night over a too-bright city, signifying some semblance of life within this poor wretched creature, ugly, silent, still; still not unlike death, the miniature unconscious movements of healthy endothermic vitality noticeably absent. His face - you presume the creature to have once had a male sex - wrinkled like an onion, layer upon layer upon layer, dotted with what seems to once have been age spots, now faded and spread, a disease of spoiled flesh encroaching the curves around his jaw, his cheeks, his brow, the holes that might have once been a nose and ears, his neck.

And the rasp! "I am Ghul. You must be the others" The remnants of his thin lips curl into an unnerving smile as he looks at each in turn. To the untrained, this might seem an intentionally malicious gesture, but a closer examination yields an honest expression unfortunately cast upon a face incapable of preventing the skew of any warm sentiment, purposeful or otherwise. "I will keep you alive" the tiny emphasis on the word is somewhat disturbing - the exclusion of self in it's subject nefariously curious.

Shutting his visor once more, our wretched hero looks ready to depart. Or rather. To make his own trek down the Tarnbreaker's Trail!

Holding his ground, Ghul bashes through the minion with his shield, offense born of defense, keeping his protection of the others vigilant!

Everstand Shield Boss (2h, blunt) vs Skeleton: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (19) + 9 = 281d8 + 4 ⇒ (2) + 4 = 6
Everstand Shield Boss (2h, blunt) w/ MAP (-5) vs Skeleton: 1d20 + 9 - 5 ⇒ (12) + 9 - 5 = 161d8 + 4 ⇒ (3) + 4 = 7

◆) Raise Shield (to AC 23)
◆) Strike
◆) Strike
↺) Glimpse of Redemption (resist all 5 to ally; choice for foe 0 damage or enfeebled 2)
↺) Shield Block (only if 11 damage or less)
~) First to trigger

Everstand Shield Boss (2h, blunt) vs Red: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (13) + 9 = 221d8 + 4 ⇒ (7) + 4 = 11

◆) Lay on Hands
◆) Strike
↺) Glimpse of Redemption (resist all 5 to ally; choice for foe 0 damage or enfeebled 2)

Touching his angelic companion, vitality flows through the shining unicorn - and Ghul takes a hefty swing, eschewing additional defenses for the moment!

(Unifax +2 status to AC for one round, +6 more positive healing)

Ghul's strangely-wielded shield softens the brutal attack - then he is showered with pain!

DC 17 Fortitude Save vs Grotesque Gift: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (19) + 7 = 26
DC 17 Fortitude Save vs Grotesque Gift: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (10) + 7 = 17
Basic Fortitude (DC 18) vs Healing Hands (6 positive): 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (17) + 7 = 24

"Tis' what I deserve, for many lives have I taken, even as now I seek redemption..." he murmers to himself as positive energy strips the already-feeble skin from his hunched bones...

(-3 positive damage)

His erect stance crumbling into a feral slouch, Ghul grabs his shield with two hands and lurches forward, ready to defend his party!

◆) Stride
◆) Raise Shield (to AC 23)
◆) Everstand Stance
+
↺) Glimpse of Redemption (resist all 5 to ally; choice for foe 0 damage or enfeebled 2)
↺) Shield Block (hardness 9, 20/20 HPs)
~) First to trigger

"Hadrimos, you are forcing our hand - there is a request to hold off on opening this door"

Unwilling to halt or harm his strident ally, Ghul informs him of the impact of his independent action.

Nodding to Achurius, Ghul guards the door, still as a stone statue.

Ghul nods gravely at Achurius' assessment.

Perception (Trained) vs DC 18: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (16) + 7 = 23

Ghul examines the overlooked document.

"Another torn page in the rubble" he reads it "Another journal page of Alystair Caskwater's" he keeps reading "They continue to hunt the mage across Shadow Kortos, and through the dark reflection of the Uromaz Citadel" narrowing his eyes "The last entry indicates that they planned to trap her within by collapsing the citadel above into a massive pile of rubble to kill her and return home"

Looking up, he examines the stonework above him, as if it will suddenly collapse.

Religion (Trained) vs DC 10: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (14) + 7 = 21

"This depicts the god Aroden raising the Starstone and the Isle of Kortos from beneath the sea... I am unsure of it's significance..." Ghul rasps.

Clutching his holy symbol to Mother Vulture, Ghul kneels, his rusted armor creaking to accommodate the movement, and whispers a prayer that what has stewed here be prepared to be distributed into the soil back on his home plane.

"We must empty this pool"

Disable (Religion, Trained) vs DC 17: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (7) + 7 = 14
Hero Point!
Disable (Religion, Trained) vs DC 17: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (9) + 7 = 16

Ghul silently trudges on, his shining steed of equal solemn trotting shortly behind...

"ត្រឡប់ទៅផ្នូរជាមួយអ្នកវិញ។"

Demoralize (Intimidation, Trained) w/ Necril: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (3) + 7 = 10

In a low rasp, Ghul orders the creature to banish itself. He then crashes down upon it with his shield, and readies to defend the counterblow!

Everstand Shield Boss (blunt) vs Probably White: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (4) + 9 = 131d8 + 4 ⇒ (8) + 4 = 12

◆) Raise a Shield
◆) Demoralize
◆) Strike
+
↺) Glimpse of Redemption (resist all 5 to ally; choice for foe 0 damage or enfeebled 2)
↺) Shield Block (hardness 9, 20/20 HPs)
~) First to trigger