Johara's page

About Johara

Johara
Female human bard (dervish dancer) 4
N Medium humanoid (human)
Init +3; Senses Perception +7, Sense Motive +7

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Defense
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AC 14, touch 13, flat-footed 11 (+1 armor, +3 Dex)
HP 33 (8 +6 +8 +5, +4 Con, +4 favored class)
Fort +2 (+1 base, +1 Con), Ref +7 (+4 base, +3 Dex), Will +5 (+4 base, +0 Wis, +1 trait)

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Offense
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Speed 30 ft. (40 ft. while battle dancing)
Melee Kukri +6 (1d4/18-20/x2)
Melee Scimitar +6 (1d6+3/18-20/x2)
Spells Known (CL 4th; concentration +8)
• 2nd (2/day)—allegro, heroism
• 1st (4/day)—cure light wounds, innocence, tap inner beauty, unnatural lust
• 0 (at will)—dancing lights, lullaby, mage hand, mending, message, prestidigitation

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Statistics
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Str 10, Dex 17, Con 13, Int 13, Wis 10, Cha 18
Base Atk +3; CMB +3; CMD 16
Languages: Common (Taldane), Qadiran

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Feats
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Human
Fast Learner: You progress gain extra versatility.
Prerequisites: Int 13, human.
Benefit: When you gain a level in a favored class, you gain both +1 hit point and +1 skill rank instead of choosing either one or the other benefit or you can choose an alternate class reward.

Level 1
Weapon Finesse: You are trained in using your agility in melee combat, as opposed to brute strength.
Benefit: With a light weapon, elven curve blade, rapier, whip, or spiked chain made for a creature of your size category, you may use your Dexterity modifier instead of your Strength modifier on attack rolls. If you carry a shield, its armor check penalty applies to your attack rolls.
Special: Natural weapons are considered light weapons.

Level 3
Dervish Dance (Combat): Prerequisites: Dexterity 13, Weapon Finesse, Perform (dance) 2 ranks, proficient with scimitar.
Benefit: When wielding a scimitar with one hand, you can use your Dexterity modifier instead of your Strength modifier on melee attack and damage rolls. You treat the scimitar as a one-handed piercing weapon for all feats and class abilities that require such a weapon (such as a duelist’s precise strike ability). The scimitar must be for a creature of your size. You cannot use this feat if you are carrying a weapon or shield in your off hand.

Bonus
Charming Performance: Your musical skill, dramatic timing, or mastery of language make you seem more personable.
Prerequisite(s): Cha 13, Perform (any) 1 rank, bardic performance or raging song.
Benefit(s): You can use Perform, rather than Diplomacy, to improve an NPC's starting attitude toward you.
Alternatively, by praising another character, you may use Perform to improve an NPC's starting attitude toward another character, though the DC for doing so is increased by 5. Either use of this feat requires at least 5 minutes of performance. You can't improve an NPC's attitude beyond friendly in this way, but if you would have made them helpful, you gain a +2 bonus on your next normal Diplomacy check against that NPC attempted within 24 hours.
If using the contact rules, seeing you perform can count as up to four of the five positive interactions required to cultivate a contact.

Level 4 bonus racial feat
Improvisation (Racial): You can figure out how to do almost anything.
Prerequisites: Int 13, Fast Learner, human.
Benefit: You gain a +2 bonus on all skill checks for skills you have no ranks in. Furthermore, you can use all skills designated “trained only” untrained.

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Traits
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Barroom Talespinner (Campaign): You grew up listening to tales of adventure and piracy on the high seas and the sea chanteys of old salts in dockside dives. You learned all about what it's like to be a pirate by talking with the sailors on shore leave, and learned how to tell a tale (or perform some other pirate entertainment) yourself. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Diplomacy checks and one category of Perform checks, and one of these skills is a class skill for you. In addition, once per week you can make a DC 15 Knowledge (local) or Intelligence check to see if you know a popular legendary pirate tale, the telling of which grants you a +1 trait bonus on checks made to influence NPCs on the Wormwood.
You went to a tavern called the Formidably Maid in Port Peril to earn a few coins with your tales of the sea. The patrons seemed pleased with your performance and bought you a few drinks. You had just remembered a tale of an unfortunate sailor who found himself press-ganged on a pirate ship after his drink was drugged when suddenly everything went black.
Flavor: Johara listened to many fantastical stories, like Sinbad, during her time as a slave girl. She was drugged and Shanghaied after fleeing captivity.

Charming (Social): Blessed with good looks, you've come to depend on the fact that others find you attractive.
Benefit: You gain a +1 trait bonus when you use Bluff or Diplomacy on a character that is (or could be) sexually attracted to you, and a +1 trait bonus to the save DC of any language-dependent spell you cast on such characters or creatures.

Freed Slave (Regional): You were either born or sold into slavery, but were later freed. Your strong will helped you persevere in captivity, and gave you strength to start again from nothing in your new life.
Benefit: You gain a +1 trait bonus on Will saves.

Mark of Slavery (Drawback): You were enslaved for part or all of your youth, and marked as such with a brand or tattoo that still reminds you of how you were punished whenever you failed to do what you should.
Effect: Whenever you fail a skill check, you take a –2 penalty on any skill check or attack roll you attempt before the end of your next turn unless it is a part of retrying the failed skill check.

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Adventuring Skills
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+1 fast learner feat

Acrobatics +8 (2 ranks, +3 Dex, +3 class skill) Versatile Dance: +14
Bluff +11 (4 ranks, +4 Cha, +3 class skill) {+1 trait bonus vs. anyone sexually attracted to her}
Climb +5 (2 ranks, +3 class skill)
Diplomacy +12 (4 ranks, +4 Cha, +3 class skill, +1 trait)
Disable Device +7 (4 ranks, +3 Dex)
Escape Artist +10 (4 ranks, +3 Dex, +3 class skill)
Perception +7 (4 ranks, +3 class skill)
Sense Motive +7 (4 ranks, +3 class skill)
Stealth +10 (4 ranks, +3 Dex, +3 class skill)
Swim +5 (2 ranks, +3 class skill)

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Background Skills
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Appraise +6 (2 ranks, +1 Int, +3 class skill)
Perform (dance) +14 (4 ranks, +4 Cha, +3 class skill, +1 trait, +2 class bonus)
Sleight of Hand +10 (4 ranks, +3 Dex, +3 class skill)

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Untrained Skills
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Handle Animal +6 (+4 Cha, +2 improvisation)
Intimidate +6 (+4 Cha, +2 improvisation)
Survival +2 (+2 improvisation)

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Gear
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Courtesan's outfit (free)
Silken ceremonial armor (30 gp, 4 lbs.)
Scimitar (15 gp, 4 lbs.)
Kukri (8 gp, 2 lbs.)
Spell component pouch (5 gp, 2 lbs.)
Masterwork backpack (50 gp, 4 lbs.)
[
• 10 doses of perfume, common (10 gp)
• Waterproof bag (5 sp, 1/2 lb.)
•• [
•• Belt pouch (1 gp, 1/2 lb.)
••• [
••• 10x Kahve (2 used, 1 gp, 5 lb.)
••• ]
•• ]
• Canteen (2 gp, 1 lb.)
* Coffee pot (3 gp, 4 lbs.)
• 2 cups (2 gp)
• Flint and steel (1 gp)
• Grooming kit (1 gp, 2 lbs.)
• Sewing needle (5 sp)
• Shaving kit (15 gp, 1/2 lb.)
• 35 gp
]

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Special Abilities
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Human

Ability Score Racial Traits: Human characters gain a +2 racial bonus to one ability score of their choice at creation to represent their varied nature.
Size: Humans are Medium creatures and thus receive no bonuses or penalties due to their size.
Base Speed: Humans have a base speed of 30 feet.
Languages: Humans begin play speaking Common. Humans with high Intelligence scores can choose any languages they want (except secret languages, such as Druidic). See the Linguistics skill page for more information about these languages.
Bonus Feat: Humans select one extra feat at 1st level.
Skilled: Humans gain an additional skill rank at first level and one additional rank whenever they gain a level.

Bard (dervish dancer) 4

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: A bard is proficient with all simple weapons, plus the longsword, rapier, sap, shortsword, shortbow, and whip. Bards are also proficient with light armor and shields (except tower shields). A bard can cast bard spells while wearing light armor and using a shield without incurring the normal arcane spell failure chance. Like any other arcane spellcaster, a bard wearing medium or heavy armor incurs a chance of arcane spell failure if the spell in question has a somatic component. A multiclass bard still incurs the normal arcane spell failure chance for arcane spells received from other classes.
Dervish dancers gain weapon proficiency with the scimitar and kukri.
This ability replaces their proficiency with the rapier and whip.

Spells: A bard casts arcane spells drawn from the bard spell list. He can cast any spell he knows without preparing it ahead of time. Every bard spell has a verbal component (singing, reciting, or music). To learn or cast a spell, a bard must have a Charisma score equal to at least 10 + the spell level. The Difficulty Class (DC) for a saving throw against a bard’s spell is 10 + the spell level + the bard’s Charisma modifier.
Like other spellcasters, a bard can cast only a certain number of spells of each spell level per day. His base daily spell allotment is given on Table: bard. In addition, he receives bonus spells per day if he has a high Charisma score.
The bard’s selection of spells is extremely limited. A bard begins play knowing four 0-level spells and two 1st-level spells of the bard’s choice. At each new bard level, he gains one or more new spells, as indicated on Table: Bard Spells Known. (Unlike spells per day, the number of spells a bard knows is not affected by his Charisma score (See Table: Ability Modifiers and Bonus Spells).
Upon reaching 5th level, and at every third bard level after that (8th, 11th, and so on), a bard can choose to learn a new spell in place of one he already knows. In effect, the bard “loses” the old spell in exchange for the new one. The new spell’s level must be the same as that of the spell being exchanged, and it must be at least one level lower than the highest-level bard spell the bard can cast. A bard may swap only a single spell at any given level, and must choose whether or not to swap the spell at the same time that he gains new spells known for the level.
A bard need not prepare his spells in advance. He can cast any spell he knows at any time, assuming he has not yet used up his allotment of spells per day for the spell’s level.

Fleet: While performing a battle dance, a dervish dancer gains a +10 enhancement bonus to his land speed. This bonus increases by 5 feet for every four bard levels gained after 1st level, to a maximum of +30 feet at 19th level.
This ability replaces bardic knowledge and lore master.

Bardic Performance: A bard is trained to use the Perform skill to create magical effects on those around him, including himself if desired. He can use this ability for a number of rounds per day equal to 4 + his Charisma modifier. At each level after 1st a bard can use bardic performance for 2 additional rounds per day. Each round, the bard can produce any one of the types of bardic performance that he has mastered, as indicated by his level.
Starting a bardic performance is a standard action, but it can be maintained each round as a free action. Changing a bardic performance from one effect to another requires the bard to stop the previous performance and start a new one as a standard action. A bardic performance cannot be disrupted, but it ends immediately if the bard is killed, paralyzed, stunned, knocked unconscious, or otherwise prevented from taking a free action to maintain it each round. A bard cannot have more than one bardic performance in effect at one time.
At 7th level, a bard can start a bardic performance as a move action instead of a standard action. At 13th level, a bard can start a bardic performance as a swift action.
Each bardic performance has audible components, visual components, or both.
If a bardic performance has audible components, the targets must be able to hear the bard for the performance to have any effect, and many such performances are language dependent (as noted in the description). A deaf bard has a 20% change to fail when attempting to use a bardic performance with an audible component. If he fails this check, the attempt still counts against his daily limit. Deaf creatures are immune to bardic performances with audible components.
If a bardic performance has a visual component, the targets must have line of sight to the bard for the performance to have any effect. A blind bard has a 50% chance to fail when attempting to use a bardic performance with a visual component. If he fails this check, the attempt still counts against his daily limit. Blind creatures are immune to bardic performances with visual components.

Countersong (Su): At 1st level, a bard learns to counter magic effects that depend on sound (but not spells that have verbal components.) Each round of the countersong he makes a Perform (keyboard, percussion, wind, string, or sing) skill check. Any creature within 30 feet of the bard (including the bard himself) that is affected by a sonic or language-dependent magical attack may use the bard's Perform check result in place of its saving throw if, after the saving throw is rolled, the Perform check result proves to be higher. If a creature within range of the countersong is already under the effect of a non-instantaneous sonic or language-dependent magical attack, it gains another saving throw against the effect each round it hears the countersong, but it must use the bard's Perform skill check result for the save. Countersong does not work on effects that don't allow saves. Countersong relies on audible components.

Distraction (Su): At 1st level, a bard can use his performance to counter magic effects that depend on sight. Each round of the Distraction, he makes a Perform (act, comedy, dance, or oratory) skill check. Any creature within 30 feet of the bard (including the bard himself) that is affected by an illusion (pattern) or illusion (figment) magical attack may use the bard’s Perform check result in place of its saving throw if, after the saving throw is rolled, the Perform check result proves to be higher. If a creature within range of the Distraction is already under the effect of a non-instantaneous illusion (pattern) or illusion (figment) magical attack, it gains another saving throw against the effect each round it sees the Distraction, but it must use the bard’s Perform check result for the save. Distraction does not work on effects that don’t allow saves. Distraction relies on visual components.

Fascinate (Su): At 1st level, a bard can use his performance to cause one or more creatures to become fascinated with him. Each creature to be fascinated must be within 90 feet, able to see and hear the bard, and capable of paying attention to him. The bard must also be able to see the creatures affected. The Distraction of a nearby combat or other dangers prevents the ability from working. For every three levels a bard has attained beyond 1st, he can target one additional creature with this ability.
Each creature within range receives a Will save (DC 10 + 1/2 the bard’s level + the bard’s Cha modifier) to negate the effect. If a creature’s saving throw succeeds, the bard cannot attempt to fascinate that creature again for 24 hours. If its saving throw fails, the creature sits quietly and observes the performance for as long as the bard continues to maintain it. While fascinated, a target takes a –4 penalty on skill checks made as reactions, such as Perception checks. Any potential threat to the target allows the target to make a new saving throw against the effect. Any obvious threat, such as someone drawing a weapon, casting a spell, or aiming a weapon at the target, automatically breaks the effect.
Fascinate is an enchantment (compulsion), mind-affecting ability. Fascinate relies on audible and visual components in order to function.

Battle Dance: A dervish dancer is trained in the use of the Perform skill, especially dance, to create magical effects on himself. This works like bardic performance, except the dervish dancer only affects himself, and does not need to be able to see or hear his own performance. Battle dancing is treated as bardic performance for the purposes of feats, abilities, effects, and the like that affect bardic performance, except that battle dancing does not benefit from the Lingering Performance feat or any other ability that allows a bardic performance to grant bonuses after it has ended. Battle dancing benefits apply only when the bard is wearing light or no armor. Like bardic performance, it cannot be maintained at the same time as other performance abilities.
Starting a battle dance is a move action, but it can be maintained each round as a free action. Changing a battle dance from one effect to another requires the dervish dancer to stop the previous performance and start the new one as a move action. Like a bard, a dervish dancer’s performance ends immediately if he is killed, paralyzed, stunned, knocked unconscious, or otherwise prevented from taking a free action each round. A dervish dancer cannot perform more than one battle dance at a time. At 10th level, a dervish dancer can start a battle dance as a swift action instead of a move action.
Dervish dancers gain the inspire courage, inspire greatness, and inspire heroics bardic performance types as battle dances, but these only provide benefit to the dervish dancer himself.

Cantrips: Bards learn a number of cantrips, or 0-level spells, as noted on Table: Bard Spells Known under "Spells Known." These spells are cast like any other spell, but they do not consume any slots and may be used again.

Versatile Dance: At 2nd level, a dervish dancer gains a bonus equal to half his level on Perform (dance) checks. He can use his bonus for his Perform (dance) skill in place of his bonus for Acrobatics.
This ability replaces versatile performance.

Well-Versed: At 2nd level, the bard becomes resistant to the bardic performance of others, and to sonic effects in general. The bard gains a +4 bonus on saving throws made against bardic performance, sonic, and language-dependent effects.

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Backstory
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Description: To the untrained eye, Johara looks like a harem-girl from Qadira -- and, indeed, that is what she was, once. Still a youth, she has the taut musculature of an experienced dancer, but also the lush beauty found among the veiled ladies of the oases in the parched lands. When she is making an initial impression, she appears demure, veiled, wearing the flowing garb of Qadiran dancers; when she prepares for bloody battle, though, she becomes a vengeful terror, turning her dancing blades into cutting instruments.

Hair: Brown, long, wavy
Eyes: Green
Height: 5' 6"
Weight: 126 lbs.

Background: Originally from Katheer, the great capital city of Qadira, Johara was a young vagabond girl from a large family. Her parents were ragpickers and occasional cloth-spinners or rope-makers -- whatever mean and unskilled labor could get by. Due to their extreme poverty, her parents sold off several of their children. This was a tear-filled time, with only the hope that perhaps their new owners could provide the children with regular meals, rather than the risk of starvation that held the rest of the family in its constant thrall.
Johara was picked to join a cadre of young girls who would serve and learn in the estates of a vaunted and wealthy merchant-prince. As a child she cleaned, served, and performed various functions about the estate, while also being taught the arts of dance and the ways of society. As a teen she learned a variety of sword-dances and illusions and charms to soothe the day and to entertain. When she blossomed into adulthood, she was taken as a harem concubine.
Though Johara had become accustomed to the life of the harem, she was thrown into turmoil after her master fathered a child with her. Her son gave her a new sense of bliss, but also a desire to build a better future. When the boy turned two years old, he was taken from Johara -- the master, having many concubines, already had an heir -- so that he could be raised as a soldier, perhaps, or a eunuch. Screaming, crying, and struggling were to no avail, and Johara was separated from her own child.
Filled with hatred and revulsion, she plotted her escape, and through the aid of a sympathetic old washer-woman and a besotted baker she was able to slip out of the compound one night with a sack of food and a change of clothing. She quickly made her way west in an attempt to leave her old life behind her.

Personality Traits: Because of her training and history, Johara tends to try to mirror what she thinks other people want when she interacts with them. For many people, this means presenting herself as a salacious dancer and entertainer. When dealing with cowards and criminals, she sometimes reveals the resolve of steel that lies underneath her soft exterior. When pressed into conflict with someone who reminds her of her past, she unleashes the screaming hellion of curved blades that cut away pain.
She has a special fondness for young children and brilliantly-colored birds. She enjoys tropical fruits and still finds dancing an excellent pastime in spite of the fact that it is also how she works and how she fights.