Sorry for being slow to add my 2cp here, just having my first chance to sit down and give all the applicants a look.
My top 4 picks, in order, are:
1) Lingfeng, Human Dragon Bloodline Sorcerer
2) Shou Hei'an, Dhampir Magus (bladebound kensai)
3) Dunja Hanna - Shaman/Samurai (speaker of the past)/sword saint)
4) Tsume Sasayaku, Catfolk Swashbuckler
I didn't do an intense audit of their character builds or anything, but weighed them more on their creativity in their character creation and a quick look at their overall posting history/longevity.
The top two slots are my far and away most desired picks, while in the third spot Dunja edged out just a wee bit over Tsume. I thought Tsume's approach to reflavoring the swashbuckler was awesome, but Dunja squeaked ahead barely just from my own personal preferences for race-distribution in adventuring parties. I really like a Star Wars approach, where humans (or very nearly human-like, such as dwarves and elves and other Pathfinder CRB races) are the majority with one or two whackadoodle races (droids or wookies, for instance) added in for color and kicks.
That being said, I'd be perfectly content if Tsume got a seat at the table. But yeah, in my view, these four are the best of the submissions.
Say we go with this eastern themed setting of yours, mdt - would you be ok if I wanted to create a new character instead of transplanting Lilandra? Did you have a level range in mind if it's something other than where we're at currently?
Part of my inspiration for Lilandra is I wanted to try my hand at building a non-standard/multi-classed character whose combat focus was on a reach weapon. It's something I'd still like to work at, but I'm wondering if there might be other alternative classes to explore that might also be more appropriate to the eastern setting.
Oh dang! I wasn't tooooo far off then. =)
I had keyed in on the Voice as belonging to a computer or some similar kind of analog, and had been developing the suspicion that we were either in a Matrix like simulation or a Brainiac-type of collection, either of which was breaking down (stable vs unstable hectates). That things were ultimately fixable or what acrete was though totally eluded me.
It's probably a good thing Lilandra never ascended to godhood though. The revelation that she wasn't actually herself shook her up pretty badly and I'd intended for that to really shape her personality down the line. =)
Is this land of many hectates part of your homebrew world or a different one entirely? If you ever care to chat about these hectates and everything that was going on here, I'd love to listen! I confess that trying to figure out what this place was fascinated and intrigued me.
As for what we step into next, I've been exploring the conflict between Law and Chaos a bit more in my own characters recently, and that paradigm really interests me. And while western/tolkien-esque fantasy settings have been my staple and where I have found the most enjoyment, a step abroad might reveal some equally fun and interesting times.
Yeah, I think sand-box elements of adventures (like free-form exploring) tend to not be a great fit for pbp in my experience. The necessary big group decisions tend to slow things waaay down. It can be tough to manage, even with an active group of players.
When you say eastern adventure, you mean like with ninjas, samurai, and oni and the such? That's not a theme or style that I've found overly compelling or interesting in the past, but I'm happy to go there if you've got the itch.
If you'd prefer to start a new game in a new thread, mdt, I'd be up for that. You thinking you'd run another game in this hectate world of yours or are you wanting something different?
Lilandra nods and offers a smile in return. "We'll certainly call on Merionsa and see if she can't give our poor beasts a good home. Thank you kindly."
Lilandra then spends a good bit of time enjoying the hot food in front of her and the act of sitting upon furniture. It's refreshing, and the elven woman seems to relax a bit for the first time since the revelations at the Great Egg. It doesn't last much longer than the meal itself though, and when the others begin to stir and make ready for a hike to the village, the tightness returns to her shoulders as she gathers her things.
Any other conversation here or are we off to the village to offload our donkeys?
Lilandra nods, conceeding the kind woman's point, but adds, "I've no doubt that's true, but the hectates we've passed through to get here have been bitterly harsh climates. We spent most of our time focused on surviving and didn't spare much energy to find or harvest any acrete that might have been nearby." She shrugs and looks at the others before turning back to the elven woman with a smile, "I think our poor beasts have earned their retirement so to speak. I'd be happy to see them pass to you and stay here, in a stable land such as this with kind hands looking after them."
"We've been travelling across the hectates, actually. We've crossed a number so far and the only one we've seen that had any acrete was inhabited and the natives granted us passage through their lands if we agreed not to harvest any we came across. While we are hungry ourselves, we've run out of feed for our animals. Looking for feed or suitable food for them, we met some other elves across that way," she points toward the direction of the dock and the godboat they came over in, "and your island was one of their suggestions. I can't tell you how nice it is just to meet other people for a change. We've been in the wilds for quite a long time now."
I'm clueless as to what we have to offer for trade- so if someone has any suggestions at all, that'd be helpful!
Lilandra reflects the guard's greeting with a smile, "Mohana" Chuckling at Abbas' enthusiasm for breakfast, Lilandra smiles and strides into town, offering a wave of thanks to the guard as she passes through the gate.
She mentions to the others as they move through the village, "I wonder what currency they use or if they'll either accept our own or perhaps trade for breakfast."
Lilandra calls out, "An odd assortment of travelers, to be sure, but I for one am an elf. We've come from a far distant hectate and have need of trade, if you're amenable." Then, as before, she translates the exchange for the others.
Lilandra nods to the elves, thanking them for their help and translating her thanks to the others. "Well, let's hope this island we're headed toward has what we need." With that, she sets to helping load everything in the appropriate boat.
"No, just understandably cautious. They've agreed to help us, and I've just elaborated on our needs. Hopefully they will hold true to their sentiment and welcome us."
"We've been travelling across a number of hectates and the last several have been brutal environs. We've nearly run out of supplies and our animals will be near to starved to death soon. This is the whole of our number, if that eases any of your understandable concerns. And feel free to ignore the green one, if you care to. The dog is actually smarter than he is."
She adds the last with a grin and a playful glance at Palakka.
Lilandra steps forward and raises her hand as she addresses the pair,
Elven:
"Hello there! I don't suppose you might be able to help us? My name is Lilandra, Lilandra Faust. I do hope you'll help us, we've had something of a hard time of late."
"Elves? That sounds the most promising. Our animals are nearly ready to starve - maybe the elves would be willing to help. Or perhaps at least barter."
As their boat returns to the fort, Lilandra explores Cale's suggestion and carves some simple shapes into the neck of the prow - a few curved triangles depicting waves and several wide-bottomed, flat-topped cones with jagged lines above the tops to represent the volcanoes.
As the boat slides into the dock and the prow changes to reflect its new direction of travel, she looks to see if the carvings she made persist.
Looking at the others, she remarks, "So we found a lot of erupting volcanoes and water. I hope at least one of the other boats found a more hospitable hectate on the other side of the trip?"
From the boat, Lilandra waves to Cale, urging him to join her without delay. "Volcanoes... are extremely dangerous. They are like mountains, but they're not stable at all. When a volcano explodes, it sends an enormous amount of fire into the sky, raining down on the area for miles around. With the fire comes choking clouds of ash and slow moving rivers of viscous fire, called lava. I remember excavating a city that was destroyed by a nearby volcano. It... was gruesome." She nods to the mountains in the distance, "And those volcanoes are all exploding and none of them look to be stopping any time soon. This is not somewhere we want to be, now or any time soon."
As Cale climbs aboard she then gestures to the boat's head, and how it's shifted to it's opposite as they prepare to return to the previous hectate. "I haven't taken enough notes or seen enough of the boats to know if there's a universal pattern at play with regard to specific animal heads being tied to specific directions of travel, but the boats each seem to travel in a set path between two static points and the decoration atop the prow indicates which half of the path it will follow."
"Well. Those are volcanoes." Lilandra balks at the hectate and shakes her head briefly before making an abrupt about-face and hopping back in the boat.
"The boats' heads change based on the direction they travel, Cale. Everyone of these boats we've been in has done that. As soon as we arrive, the head changes to reflect the opposite direction it will follow back to the previous dock." Lilandra's tone is patient, but it seems slightly strained.
"If we do as you suggest, Goragg, I'll remain behind here and keep track of how long it takes for each of the boats' opposites to arrive back here. We should be able to tell how long we'll have to wait for the furthest boat as each of you comes back."
Any one think there's merit in 3 of us hoping in separate boats, seeing what manner of hectate is at the other end of each trip, then returning to this fort to decide which way to go?
"Destroyed them, took them, did something to them." She shakes her head and shrugs as she glances around the interior of the fort. "The last frozen hectate we were in seemed untouched for a similar period of time as this fort, didn't it?"
"This pedastal is similar to the central one, before we depart should we perhaps see if our benefactor can be present here? Errr, as much as it ever is, I mean."
Lilandra seems a little surprised at Goragg's suggestion, but apart from a slight smirk she manages to conceal her reaction. As Palakka vanishes into the fort, she calls after him, "Don't rush in, Pa-" but the blink dog is gone before she finishes. "-lakka." Sighing she turns to the rest of the group, "Well, I guess there's no stopping him. Any ideas as to why the ice would be thicker on the walls? I would guess the doors used to be maintained and kept clear but haven't been in a little while?" She scratches her head as she looks at the fort, keeping an eye around the top of the walls in case archers or spearmen or somesuch present themselves.
Lilandra sighs, worried for the animals. "Turning around isn't really an option now so, let's hope for the best I guess." She glances back the way they'd come, across the waters and to the deadly frozen hectate they'd skirted. There was something beautiful in the barren, icy land there - something in how isolated and remote it felt even when surrounded by all the other hectates.
Maybe one day I'll get to see all of it...
She sighed again and, turning away from the water, followed the others through the wall and into the next boat.
Lilandra nods, "That seems a fair plan. Agreed?" She looks to the others for approval before struggling with the donkeys and getting them into the dolphin-boat.
"Oh! That looks like the other docks we've seen. Do you think it could take us back to where our benefactor is? We're pretty low on feed for these poor animals and I wouldn't mind a break from the cold and our clumsy raft."
That's my understanding too, that we spend our days still exploring the edge of the arctic hectate
Lilandra pauses repeatedly during the construction of the ungainly raft, scratching her head at the layout of the logs or puzzling over how best to lash them together so they don't spread apart. Several times, she seems totally lost, and looks at the others plaintively for help. She laments at one point, "I've never been good with building thin-" Her lips draw into a tight line as she cuts herself off. "While that's true enough, I suppose what I was meaning is that Lilandra was never good at building things. The first one." She slips into a sombre mood for the remainder of the day after that, still obviously wrestling with thoughts of who or what she is.
Lilandra seems mystified as Grim suggests a possible connection between the extreme natures of the three adjacent hectates. Shaking her head and offering a helpless shrug, she sets herself to helping with the crazed plan of creating rafts.
"An ocean?" Lilandra seems taken aback by the news. She paces briefly, her booted feet crunching through the ice and snow. She quietly asks herself, "Why are the hectates here so extreme, I wonder?" as she continues to pace. "Rafts? I suppose it could work. We'd need to anchor them somehow. Could a tether pass through the barrier and persist, holding the rafts in place?" She continues to mutter questions to herself as she paces, rubbing her arms against the cold despite the heavy coat provided by their strange benefactor.
Lilandra seems surprised as Goragg emerges from the barrier, "Oh my! What happened, Goragg?!" Her tone is a mix of alarm and concern, wondering what could have possibly soaked the hobgoblin so thoroughly.
Lilandra looks up at Goragg, blinking rapidly as a look of confusion faintly clouds her face. After a moment, she coughs then adds, "That's... that's a pretty good idea actually." She glances at the others wordlessly for a long moment before shrugging, getting up, and preparing her things for the hike back to the barrier.
We have a fire going now, Grim. As neat as blackfire clay is, I don't see how that'd help us now if a full fire isn't enough to save us from freezing to death after nightfall.
Lilandra frowns at the calls for immediate shelter, but seeing some of the others struggle against the cold she relents. "Alright, alright. Follow me. Judging by the grade of the land, we'll likely find something suitable over this way."
lead group to my super-amazing-natural-20-survial-check shelter! =P
"Hasn't snowed in.. months?" Lilandra considers Goragg's words and their implications. "I wonder if this cold came in as a snap frost, but, well- worse. Maybe this hectate didn't use to be so cold and snow-laden?" She points to what appears to be a structure of some sort, coated in snow and ice. "Maybe we can uncover that and learn something of what happened here?" She looks to the others, her obvious curiosity shining brightly in her eyes.
Lilandra shakes her head as the plodding through the icy landscape presses on. She shields her eyes from the sun and it's glare off the ice, then gestures toward the distance. "Do any of you see those? That looks like something's buried under the snow. Look! There's another one!"
How about we skirt the southern border straight across through Row 10? If it gets too unbearably cold, we can pop into the jungle-that-has-no-idea-what-'cold'-is land on the other side of the border.
I don't know why I feel this way, but I think this artic hectate sounds like a lot of fun. Of the three we've seen since crossing through the frog-people's lands, I'm enticed by this one a great deal.
I'm willing to continue exploring for other, less extreme environs if the rest of the group feels strongly about it, but I'd be pretty stoked to give this one a shot, even if it means we need to schlep back to the boat to request more gear from the voice.
Other possible avenues for supplies could be trading with the frog-folk or hunting along the edge of the jungle hectate for furs and fire wood and the such.
Lilandra frowns at both the description of the hectate and Goragg's suddenly sodden appearance. Shaking her head, she agrees, "Yeah, I don't think that sounds like a particularly enjoyable environment. I'm happy to keep looking."
