Alright. I had wanted to have more backstory written before now, but I don't anticipate I'll have the ability o have it finished before this weekend. There's definitely enough here to give you an idea of who he is and how he'll play.
Quingong Monk
AC Bonus
Bonus Feats
Flurry of Blows +1/+1
Stunning Fist: 3/day; Fort DC 14 or stunned for 1 rd
Unarmed Strike 1d6
Evasion
Fast Movement +10
Maneuver Training
Still Mind
Psychic Warrior
Path of the Infiltrator
Path Power: Minor Metamorphosis, Chameleon
Expanded Path: Opens up Trance and Maneuver
Trance: While maintaining psionic focus, gain +2 competence bonus to Disguise, +1 competence bonus to damage with natural weapons. Increases by 1 every 4 levels thereafter.
Maneuver: expend your psionic focus when manifesting minor metamorphosis, metamorphosis, or major metamorphosis to gain an intimidating visage. For the duration of the manifestation, you may make a free Intimidate check against any creature that comes within 30 ft. of you. You must have line of sight to the creature and you may only make one such check against that creature per manifestaton of minor metamorphosis, metamorphosis, or major metamorphosis. At 7th level and every four psychic warrior levels thereafter, you gain a +1 competence bonus to this Intimidate check.
Powers Known: *Minor Metamorphosis, *Chameleon, Inertial Armor, Catfall, Offensive Precognition
Power Points: 7/day (3 class + 4 wis)
Mythic: Most likely Champion, with a focus on mobility and unarmed combat
Feats: Dodge (Mnk2), Improved Grapple (Mnk1), Improved Metamorphosis (1), Power Attack (3), Skill Focus (Bluff) (half-elf), Speed of Thought (PsyWar2), Stunning Fist (Mnk1), Up the Walls (PsyWar1)
Traits: Wisdom in the Flesh (Disable Device), Fast Talker
Gear: Sleeves of Many Garments (200g), ring of sustenance (2500g), iuon torch (75g), cold iron kama (4g), mwk thieves' tools (100g), mwk backpack (50g)
description, story and role:
Description
Kidd is an average-looking young man a few years shy of his twentieth year … a kid who just kind of blends into his surroundings. His features are unremarkable. Hazel eyes. Disheveled brown hair. A keen observer might note the hints of his elven blood in his features. He’s slightly above average in height—standing an inch short of six feet with an athletic, long-limbed frame. All of this, however, is likely to change at Kidd’s whim. Kidd’s tendency to blend in is magnified by a supernatural ability to alter his physical shape and appearance at will. He could be an old halfling woman from the Poor District, a powerfully-built giant-kin mercenary in his physical prime, or anything in between, really. He favors attire and gear that reflect his own flexibility … which is why he’s never without his ‘slips’ (Sleeves of Many Garments).
He’s observant and self-aware. He’s generally quiet and sincere (though his few close friends can attest to his surprising talent for bluffing). And when he does warm up to you, he’ll show a warm, wry, often sarcastic humor. Beneath the quiet, sincere surface, and the mutable anatomy, is a determined youth with a competitive streak. He loves to compete. He love to win.
And Kiddrik is fast. He loves to move, and few can match his speed … whether its across streets and boulevards or the less-traveled and far more interesting heights of the rooftops and spires of the Auralis sprawl.
Backstory
For all practical purposes, Kiddrik is an Auralis native. An orphan of a horrible of some war on some world he’s never seen. So he grew up dirt-poor in the Poor District … if not altogether unloved. But he’s a perpetual outsider, especially once he learned of his powers. Ya see, Kiddrik’s a shapeshifter. It exhibited at puberty … a wild, uncontrollable set of abilities that seemed to shift and warp him as his emotions changed.
So in the midst of learning to survive with practically no marketable skills, he had to learn to control his body and his mind.
— i had wanted to get more than this, but this week’s been ridiculously crazy. The short version is this. He’s an orphan who slipped in and out of trouble with the Auralis law due to minor stuff … shop lifting and whatnot. The type of stuff poor kids with no training, no skills, and no respectable authority figures get into. He learned to use the “thieve’s highway” as well as pick locks in this time. He likely would have continued on this path had he not had a run-in with Gareth and Remei. He unwittingly targetted one of their second-story windows one night. Let’s just say he didn’t get away with that particular job. He gave a respectable chase, but the experienced warrior (Gareth) was—in the end—able to take the young man into custody. For some reason, Gareth and Remei took pity on Kiddrik. He works off the debt by doing odd jobs for them, mostly running errands and especially as a information and package courier for the Agency. Nobody’s faster—or knows the rooftops better—then Kiddrik when something absolutely needs to get somewhere else in Auralis in a hurry. Gareth has also been training Kidd in the role of security. The young man’s sharp eyes, natural combat abilities, and willingness to work long hours have gotten him a few choice gigs. The fact that he can become anyone in order to blend in for the job is just one reason he gets used so often on “interesting” jobs.
Life In Auralis
Nowadays, Kidd is a bodyguard, security expert, and courier working out of the Agency (though he’s likely considered a junior member at best). His unique skills make him a good asset to the team, but he’s still rather green.
Party Role
In terms of fulfilling roles, Kidd is built to be a highly-mobile unarmed melee combatant (with psionics & Mythic shoring up the usual monk shortcomings), a trap-breaker/lock-picker/scout skill monkey, as well as a shape-shifting espionage type. And while he’s no party face, his focus on Bluff and Sense Motive (necessary for the espionage angle) makes him a great party-face support. As he levels, he’ll also be able to work as a back-up healer via Body Adjustment & Empathic Healing as well as Blaster (via a few psionic powers and Quingong Monk replacement abilities). I”m also considering picking up Combat Reflexes & Bodyguard (and potentially Mythic MultiPathing into Guardian) to provide the team some interesting “non-traditional support” by blocking/absorbing attacks as they come in (though I’m not sure if he’ll end up with the hp and ac to make that work effectively).
i went ahead and updated Kidd's background and description given the feedback. Let me know if you have any further thoughts, comments, critiques or questions, Crustypeanut.
I"m looking forward to hearing how this group will shape up. :)
Cool. If you have any suggestions, I"m open to them. But I like how he should play within the group that's submitted. :)
Crustpeanut wrote:
Storywise.. I like how he's old enough to remember Sandpoint's founding. However, that would raise numerous odd questions from the townspeople - if he looks so young, why hasn't he aged a day? He doesn't look Elven or to have Elven blood, so his 'perpetual youth' would be an issue he would have to hide. Unless, of course, he moved on for a while, and so no one alive in Sandpoint now would recognize him. You could claim to be your own child, as long as the burns you suffered were 'after' you returned, not before. Otherwise the rare long-lived person in town might notice.
I'd love to retain him being a part of the founding of Sandpoint, but I may need your help to do so. How long has it been since the founding at the beginning of the adventure?
And (though I neglected to actually note it in his backstory… sorry) I like the idea that he recognizes that people find it odd that he didn't seem to age, and that's what drove him to continue drifting through Varisia. So he likely stuck around for 7 to 10 years, then – when he realized it was going to get uncomfortable because he didn't age – he'd have packed up his few things and hit the road. And I figure he stays away for a long time at a stretch… like 5 to 7 years at a time. So while it's likely that people would remember him, it's just as likely that he could get by with some excuse of them just not remember him accurately... though I do like your idea of claiming to be his own son... I just might use that if it comes up. Additionally, he doesn't exactly seek attention. So even when he's in town, he's just as likely only to hit up a few old acquaintances and avoid notice as to engage the issue of his age.
As to your last point about the rare long-lived person noticing; I was actually counting on it. I figure that the few friends that he has in town are all really old. They know something's obviously different about him, but they also know him well enough to know he's a friend… so hopefully they don't make much of an issue of it. I mean, at the end of the day, he has the experiences and perspective of someone their age… he just looks like he hasn't aged a day.
Let me know if this works for you, and I"ll put a few lines into his backstory to mention it all. Also, if you do like this angle, let me know a few old or older npc's in town that could be his few friends.
Crustypeanut wrote:
Another issue is his Varisian Tattoos. Such Varisian-styled tattoos on an outsider, as you thoroughly look Taldan, are quite odd, and might also raise questions. Still, its not unheard of, so you can get by with that. You could always claim to have Varisian blood in you, despite outwardly looking Taldan.
Hmmm… I had originally liked the idea that he spoke nearly fluent Varisian and blended in more, so the tattoos seemed to fit. AS I look at the character now, I tend to agree with you. I'll remove the tattoos from the description. As a person who generally seeks to avoid attention, not having distinctive tattoos is probably wise, anyway.
Let me know about any and all of this, and I"ll update Kidd's page. And thanks for the feedback.
Looking at roles and skill-sets, I could easily switch Kidd's trait to one that gives Disable Device as a class skill, then switch his Knowledge and Linguistics ranks over to a smithing craft and Disable Device. Conceptually, he could have originally come to Sandpoint as a blacksmith who has a fascination with mechanical devices... it would also make him a stronger scout and Trapfinder.
This is Eben's submission... Kiddrik (at least an initial pass at him).
He shifted a bit as I brought his concept together. instead of a Feral Warrior, an Infiltrator seemed to make a lot more sense with the Elan storyline. And the preliminary Path Power is just rocking. :)
I'm open to feedback (from a build, story, or formatting standpoing), though I"m also happy to wait til closer to the submission deadline.
Does anyone know where i can pick up other SAGA .pdf's? I know the line is discontinued, but is there some vendor that still sells the .pdf's or something?
If not, does anyone have them that they'd be willing to send to me? I only hve the core SAGA book and the Knights of the Old Republic book.
Eben - leaning towards a Soldier 3/Jedi 1 - brute front-liner w/ back-up ranged capabilities. Probably able to be a decent Mechanic if no one else wants it. (Can also fall back to using Kidd if we have no other force-users).
Lekku (Six) - re-tooling Six to be either a Scout/Soldier or pure Soldier - basically a strong ranged fighter, potentially our pilot.
James Martin - looking to build something new - TBD.
__
Is everyone looking to build characters with a generally mercenary outlook? Could be fun to do a military unit again. Possibly looking at having no force-users, which, again might be an interesting team idea.
Camris, would a no-force-user group be problematic? (Don't know that that'll be the case, but want to ask in case the team is interested in it)
And has anyone heard from Kalderran? (he's hte only other remaining player from that other game, right?)
Okay, I have two characters I can play here, both of which I think are made of complete awesomeness.
The first is sticking with Kidd. No surprises there, I mean other than the mysterious enigma that he is. :)
1) He's fun to play and already works in the group, though I got the vibe that Smerg was a little annoyed at his combat resilience (I don't think Smerg ever actually caused him but a few points of damage… ridiculously high UtF + block + deflect + evasion = one tough nut to crack).
2) The second one I just cooked up over the last couple of days - a Freeorin mercenary named Desh; deep down he's a bit of a freedom-fighter. I like the idea that he's a part of Six's old crew… maybe he has a numerical designation as well. :)
Basically he works as a primary tank (melee orientation) with strong heavy-ranged capabilities. Big physical defenses, big HP's, and big damage - both with his stolen lightsaber and his array of big, heavy guns.
story:
He was taken as a child (by either Mandalores or Sith) along with a few other Freeorin to be brainwashed and then trained as a test-round for a new type of bodyguard and shock troop. They would be trained along-side force-users to learn to fight with and against them, able to target and nullify the presence of opposing force-users in combat on top of normal shock-trooper training.
The program was a partial success. For Desh specifically, the physical conditioning and training went very well. The mental conditioning wasn't very effective. He was unable to sense or use the force. Furthermore, their efforts to break his mind and imprint a slave-master relationship failed, though he carries a lot of emotional scarring after the ordeal.
In the end, he and a few of his fellow test-subjects successfully killed their 'masters', making a bloody escape. Only a few survived the years to come. Some were hunted by their creators, some died in the bloody lives they ended up leading, and some simply went crazy because of their conditioning - meeting bloody ends.
Desh found himself getting connected to a group of black-ops style mercenaries, where his talents were realized. Now he works as a gun-for-hire, taking or turning down jobs as he wants.
Build:
Desh
Feeorin Soldier 3/Jedi 1
STR 20 DEX 14 CON 16 INT 12 WIS 8 CHA 6
Languages: Basic, Feeorin, ?
Racials
Brutal: 1/encounter, after successful strike, treat target's damage threshold as if it were 5 points lower.
Great Fortitude: +2 to Fort Defense
Inborn Resilience: Use Second Wind even when unconscious (no action required, must be taken on turn). Using it while unconscious moves Feeorin +3 steps on the condition track.
Low-Light Vision
Stronger by Age
Secondarily, if I stick with Kidd, you mind if I rebild him a bit? I'm always a bit annoyed with his lack of skills, and starting with his level of Scout would fix that... only requiring a bit of rebuilding on my part. Ya know.. at the loss of 6 or so hit points (which i'm fine with).
Also, what kind of adventure/campaign is it? (without giving away too much, of course)
"Tell ya what, let's revisit whether or not we're overreacting once we're away from this place." Kidd reaches out with the force, helping Zane feel for dangers.
Kidd shakes his head at the exchange between Kol and Six. "I don't have a clue what to do with'em. I mean, we're not exactly the kid-raising sorts, but then again, this place doesn't look like the best place to dump them. That'd just be cruel."
He looks out a hatch at the space mining ship, "Unless this thing has some surprises in store for us, I don't see that we can do much here except repair up and maybe get some of Six's jobs lined up."
Knowing he's not really going to be any help keeping the ship together mechanically, Kidd makes his way to the bridge. He arrives just in time to hear the exchange between Kol and Vash, "Yah, Vash is right. The 'Hopper needs some help, bad. I'm no mechanic, but I can tell we won't make it much further than this post."
He debates about revealing the next part, "Also, those crystls we took out of that snake-thing are... interesting. There's an aura to them, like a memory. They're from a planet that was twisted kind of like that snake was. Someone started tampering with it... or the creatures on it, really. I'm wondering if Doc would know something about it."
Acrobatics DC 15 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (3) + 10 = 13.
So I guess it's injury for Kidd.
Kidd, still engrossed in searching the crystals, is caught totally by surprise and is slammed back against his bunk. Grumbling, he climbs back to his feet, swiping up the crystals with a discarded shirt as he leaves the room.
"Where do yall need me?" he yells.
Either Mechanics or Use Computer, wherever he's directed (its' the same modifier) 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (6) + 2 = 8.
"Whoever put those kids and that creature there also implanted them with some of these same crystals. If they're imbued with the Dark Side, we'll want your doctor to remove them before they taint the children. What was that place, and why was it important to all of you? Normally, I'd let you have your secrets, but not when innocent children are in danger."
Kidd's Force-based insection pauses at the mention of the crystals in the children. "Well, that's worrying. And I have no idea what that station is, honestly. i think that question would have to go to Doc or Vash. They seemed to know a bit more about the place."
He looks up briefly to watch the Jedi, "So what do we do with the kids? I mean, I wasn't about to let some kids get obliterated, but I'm also not really interested in raising any." Then he goes back to his inspection of the crystals.
Kidd laughs at Six's annoyance, and a thought occurs to him, "Six, keep an eye on the kids, will ya?"
He sets off looking for Zane, tentatively tapping one finger on the crystals pulled from the creature through their cloth wrapping. When he finds the jedi, he waits til Zane's current 'saber form is finished then flags him down.
"Zane, I'd like your help. These crystals I pulled from that snake thing on that planet need to be looked at, but they're pretty powerfully dark-side attuned. I want to know more about them. Their purpose. And if we can use them for anything. I'm just uncomfortable messin' with'em without someone watching my back. The effect of the dark side on them was nearly enough to overwhelm me when I first picked them up. You mind helping?"
If the jedi agrees, they head back to Kidd's bunk, and he reaches into his pocket and pulls out the crystals, dumping them out onto his cot. Gently, he reaches with his emotions, letting them roll along the surface of the crystals, then into them, searching for any clues. UtF 1d20 + 14 ⇒ (13) + 14 = 27.
Kidd's first priority during the downtime will be the crystals, and to continue the group's Force and combat training.
Later that day, he'll check in with Vash about the contents of the documents she pulled from the station.
Smerg:
Secondarily, Kidd will keep his eyes and ears open to the docs Vash pulled. He wants to know whether there was info about the original Kiddrik. And will be hyper-sensitive to attitude shifts towards him by people of the original crew who find out.
Six lets out a breath as the incoming HUD markers blink out and are replaced with starlines. Turning to Kiddrick, he smirks. "Tell me we got something outta that little excursion besides the midgets. I'd hate to think I signed on for intergalactic babysitting."
Kidd, joining Six in the galley (and apparently not aware of how bad of an idea leaving the children alone may be), laughs. "What do you mean? You didn't have any fun?"
Kidd is busy trying to corral the younglings into a bunk as his voice pops over the comm, "SH!T!" He says before he remembers there are little ears around, "Sorry kids... don't repeat that, please. Is it the knights? it's about time we paid them back for the paint job, if you ask me."
"if anyone has any good reason why I shouldn't float Kol out there to get the 'hopper fired up, you should say something now." Kidd says as he prepares to lift the group's leader out from the lift.
If someone points out a flaw in this plan, then Kidd will wait, if no one does...
Move Object 1d20 + 14 ⇒ (16) + 14 = 30. <-- yep, that'd even lift a Gargantuan object.
Kidd will lift him over the intervening space, then in front of the Bridge Escape Hatch long enough for Kol to work his way in. THen he'll help him through the open hatch, at which point he'll let the power dissipate.
Kidd sits idly watching Vash try to circumvent the mines' controls, every second bringing them closer to a quick end. His mind races for a way to help. "Hey, Kol. If I can get you to that escape hatch next to the bridge, think you could jimmy your way in and get the 'hopper' ready for a quick exit? Or maybe you could lift it off and throw a rope down to us once you're airborne?" He eyeballs the distance between their position and the ship, "I think I can carry you that far." He floats his lightsaber hilt a few inches above his palm to illustrate what he means.
Still pushing the child through the opening, Kidd barks out a laugh, "Oh! Doc's got jokes! They teach you that one between crafting and nap time at the old folk's home?"
As he helps a child through Kol's small opening Kidd responds sarcastically, "It took you so long to get back here we went and procreated... ya know, to keep the species alive."
