Oblivion's Scion's page

Game Concept: Another Night at the Broken Broadsword
Character Themes: tavern regulars, classic fantasy tropes, tropes remixed
Campaign Arcs: anything is possible
The Broken Broadsword is a rundown, ramshackle tavern and flophouse that has been repaired and rebuilt so many times, a first time visitor might wonder how it even stands. Smelling constantly of stale beer and body odor, it is nevertheless the fabled watering hole of countless heroes throughout the ages. On any night you can find a rogues' gallery of characters awaiting the next bit of trouble - a hooded man stumbles out of the rain and with his dying breath drops a relic from a forgotten ruin, a demonic fiend is accidentally summoned by a drunken warlock, pirates storm in and press gang the passed out guests into a crew, the King's chamberlain sneaks in seeking volunteers to rescue a missing royal child, a pickpocket opens a seized scrollcase and discovers the legend of a mystical artefact, praetorian city guard storm the place to arrest the entire house, hordes of zombies come marching out of a nearby crypt seeking one of the Broadsword's guests - it all could happen on any night!

Game Concept: You get a kingdom… and You get a kingdom… and YOU get a kingdom!
Character Themes: bastard children of monarch
Campaign Arcs: new frontier, castle owners
The King has always been known for his womanizing ways. Given that the kingdom has a history of internal fighting because of its inheritance laws, the king is keen to maintain stability. He obviously can't openly acknowledge his many illegitimate offspring, yet wants to provide for them as well. The discovery of a distant island, complete with an ancient, not-quite-ruined castle, has prompted his high counselor to come up with a solution: grant the bastard children the island, with responsibility to rebuild the castle and explore and defend the land! Surely his offspring will all get along, right?

Game Concept: Fortune, Fame, and Honor… among Thieves!
Character Themes: same class/class category
Campaign Arcs: thieves' guild, oppressive monarchy, occupied country
Every grand city, full of amazement and wonder, is not without its beggars, urchins, and orphans. The destitute try to eek out a living in whatever way possible. From the ranks of the flee-bitten souls rises a band of intrepid rakes, looking to make a name for themselves. But in the shadows of the city prowl many a danger: rival gangs and powerful guilds, and worse things can be found if you pry too deep. Then, of course, there is the oppressive city guard. Can the hopeless rise to be lords of the city's underworld?

Game Concept: Holding out for a Hero
Character Themes: new batch (children/apprentices of past heroes), childhood friends
Campaign Arcs: recover artifact, stop evil plot, defend the kingdom
The tragic fate of the greatest adventurers is that with success comes responsibility. Many end up with duties and titles to kingdoms, religions, and major organizations. Gone are the days when they can deal with whatever problem they choose. But, they are often served by the best pupils, perhaps even their own offspring. And when such threats arise, who better to send then your best and brightest.

The Forgotten Realms has sooooo many famous NPC parties, any could be the inspiration for this game: Lord's Alliance, Chosen of Mystra / Seven Sisters, Heroes of Highmoon, Companions of the Hall, Harpers, Force Grey, Knights of Myth Drannor, Company of Crazed Adventurers.

Game Concept: Born Under a Twice-Cursed Moon
Character Themes: secret society, last members of forgotten bloodline
Campaign Arcs: discover lost city, race against time
In the era before these times, the world was torn asunder by the elemental powers of chaos. The world nearly crumbled, but a band of brave heroes ventured to the city at the center of the shattering energy, and bound the chaos to hold the world together. They're very essence, the blood within their body, was changed in this process. Eons have passed since this day, and the bindings that hold chaos within are slipping. But if precious few descendants of those original heroes, who still bear touch of the blood, remain. Can they be united to once again fulfill the heroic destiny of their ancestors?

Game Concept: Stonefall: the Beginning
Character Themes: single race (norse), isolated population, clanbound
Campaign Arc: discover the unknown, race against time
Your clan are a proud people, a mighty people, who have survived for generations in the harshest mountains in all the world. Far from lands called civilized, you face innumerable dangers on a daily basis. Several other clans, like your own, have maintained a position elsewhere in the mountains. Get in recent months, your plan is lost touch with each of them. Uncertain what has become, your cleanse air has foreseen dire prophecy. Now is the time the mightiest must rise up, save your people. Now is the time of Stonefall, it has begun.

Game Concept: The Felonious Few / Your Last Chance...
Character Themes: misfits, convicts / dirty dozen
Campaign Arcs: impossible odds, race against time
Desperate times call for desperate measures, and there is no one more desperate than a nation that is losing a war. In such moments, one might consider the most likely of allies, perhaps even those inhabiting their own prisons. You have been given the choice, rot in jail til the end of your days, or help defend the country and win you're freedom. The odds are stacked against you, but the chance to return to your own life, free of shackles? That might just be worth the risk.

Game Concept: The King is (un)Dead, Long Live the King
Character Themes: refugees/exiles, monster hunters
Campaign Arcs: old king/god returned, guerilla warfare, horde (undead)
In days long past, our kingdom was ruled over by a cruel wizard and his vile arcane minions. They stood as gods above our ancestors, demanding worship. After centuries of slavery, the people rose up and defeated them. But they were not completely destroyed. Three years hence, their cultist followers, long working in the shadows, achieved their goal and saw their god-king reborn an undead ruler. The realm was swarmed by a plague of undeath, and those of us who escaped have plotted to bring down the fiend. The weapons used to defeat him are still secured in vaults within our once great kingdom, but we need to brave the horde of undead to recover them. Can a few nimble, daring souls make it in and recover the key to reclaiming our kingdom and laying low this tyrant?

Depending upon which campaign is selected, some of these may vary slightly (race, for instance, in certain settings), but the below will serve as the core for character creation.

Ability Scores 30 point buy
Level 4th
Race all common are welcome, uncommon and featured will also be entertained, assuming the character history fits the game.
Class all core, base, and hybrid classes are welcome. Summoner must use the Unchained rules; Barbarian, Monk, and Rogue can chose to. No 3PP material. We will be using an in-development ruleset I have been working on, [i]Demi-Gestalt. It occupies a space partway between full Gestalt and Variant Multiclass (neither of which are available in this game). The demi-gestalt system in fleshed out in the linked spreadsheet above.
Background I pulled these from PF2e and adjusted them for 1st edition. You gain a +2 to one ability score, and a -2 to another. You cannot apply a +2 to a score that also gains a bonus from race, but you can apply it to a negative from race to cancel it out. You also gain to skills as class skills; they also count as Background Skill when determining how you can spend your skill points. The backgrounds are fleshed out in the linked spreadsheet above.
Traits two, taking a drawback allows a third
Skills 2+int increases to 4+int, all others remain the same. We are using the Background Skills optional rule. We will also be using Athletics in place of Climb and Swim.
Feats Elephant in the Room feat tax rules are in effect.
Hit Dice modified minimum die (1d6 = 1d3+3, 1d8 = 1d4+4, 1d10 = 1d5+5, 1d12 = 1d6+6)
Equipment 7000 gp, no single item worth more than 3000 gp

History I expect a fleshed out character background, you can select the format that works best for you (freehand writing, appearance/personality/background, 10 minute background, bullet point list, etc).

While I include a lot below detailing the mechanical needs of your character, I encourage you to focus on your character as a concept, building a story and personality that truly defines them. You can write in freeform, use the “10 Minute Background”, the classic “Appearance / Personality / History”, or any other format, as you so choose.

Source Materials Paizo published Pathfinder material, no 3PP at this time.

Level 3. You have had some significant life experiences, including the moment you were exposed to the ‘world beyond the veil’.

Ability Scores 2d6+6, roll two sets.

Races Human only. The setting is late 19th century Earth, and players will be human. That said, you will get a chance to choose a Background (a sort of variant racial package, based on the Backgrounds in Pathfinder 2e) that will help to flesh out your character. You gain the standard human package (+2 to an ability score of your choice, a bonus feat, one bonus skill point per level), plus the benefits of the Background (detailed below in spoiler).

Classes In some games, GMs expect a good character backstory to justify playing an Advanced or Featured race over the core races – in this game I will be looking for a similarly dynamic backstory for any applicants applying with classes beyond the ‘common’ label below.
*** Common: barbarian, brawler, cavalier, fighter, gunslinger, ranger (archetypes which give up spells), rogue (unc), slayer, swashbuckler
*** Uncommon: alchemist, bard, investigator, medium, mesmerist, occultist, oracle, ranger (archetypes with spells), vigilante, witch
*** Rare: cleric, druid, hunter, inquisitor, monk (unc), psychic, shaman, sorcerer
*** Unique arcanist, bloodrager, kineticist, magus, paladin, summoner (unc), warpriest, wizard

Equipment I am still working out the details on equipment and wealth. I would like to discuss with those chosen the option of using a typical money/coin system versus an abstract wealth rule.

Summary of Variant Rules
*** Athletics Climb and Swim skills have been combined into Athletics.
*** Background Skills are in effect.
*** Skill Unlocks Everyone can use Skill Unlocks once they reach the required skill rank, no feat required. Unchained Rogues now gain access to unlocks at 4, 8, 12, and 16 ranks respectively.
*** Elephant in the Room feat tax rules are in effect.
*** Guns Everywhere rules are in effect.
*** Defense Bonus in the 19th century, armor was rarely worn. In its place, characters will get a defense bonus to AC based on your class’s armor proficiencies and level (will link in campaign notes). When armor is worn, it will not increase AC but will instead grant DR equal to its AC bonus.
*** Automatic Bonus Progression will be in effect. To balance the near total lack of magic items, it will be applied at one level higher than normal.

Your Background will grant a +2 to one ability score, a -2 to another ability, and two class skills. Note that you cannot pair your racial +2 from being a Human with your +2 from your Background, but you can pair it with your -2 from your Background to in effect cancel it out.

Acolyte
Ability Scores Wisdom or Charisma (+), Strength or Intelligence (-)
Skills Diplomacy, Knowledge (Religion)
You spent your early days in a religious monastery or cloister. You may have traveled out into the world to spread the message of your religion or because you cast away the teachings of your faith, but deep down you’ll always carry within you the lessons you learned.

Acrobat
Ability Scores Strength or Dexterity (+), Intelligence or Wisdom (-)
Skills Acrobatics, Athletics
In a circus or on the streets, you earned your pay by performing as an acrobat. You might have turned to crime when the money dried up, or simply decided to put your skills to better use.

Apothecary
Ability Scores Constitution or Intelligence (+), Strength or Wisdom (-)
Skills Craft (alchemy), Know (nature)
As a formally trained apothecary or a rural practitioner of folk medicine, you learned the properties of various herbs. You’re adept at collecting the right natural cures in all sorts of environments and preparing them properly.

Barkeep
Ability Scores Constitution or Charisma (+), Dexterity or Intelligence (-)
Skills Craft (brewing), Diplomacy
You have five specialties: hefting barrels, drinking, polishing steins, drinking, and drinking. You worked in a bar, where you learned how to hold your liquor and rowdily socialize.

Barrister
Ability Scores Intelligence or Charisma (+), Strength or Constitution (-)
Skills Diplomacy, Profession (barrister)
Piles of legal manuals, stern teachers, and experience in the courtroom have instructed you in legal matters. You’re capable of mounting a prosecution or defense in court, and you tend to keep abreast of local laws, as you never can tell when you might need to know them on short notice.

Bounty Hunter
Ability Scores Strength or Wisdom (+), Intelligence or Charisma (-)
Skills Intimidate, Survival
Bringing in lawbreakers lines your pockets. Maybe you had an altruistic motive and sought to bring in criminals to make the streets safer, or maybe the coin was motivation enough.

Charlatan
Ability Scores Intelligence or Charisma (+), Strength or Wisdom (-)
Skills Bluff, Sleight of Hand
You travel from place to place, peddling false fortunes and snake oil in one town, pretending to be royalty in exile to seduce a wealthy heir in the next. Becoming an adventurer might be your next big scam or an attempt to put your talents to use for a greater cause. Perhaps it’s a bit of both, as you realize that after pretending to be a hero, you’ve become the mask.

Constable
Ability Scores Strength or Charisma (+), Dexterity or Intelligence (-)
Skills Intimidate, Perception
You serve in the constabulary, out of either patriotism or the need for coin. Either way, you know how to get a difficult suspect to talk. You may still be an active officer, or perhaps you’ve left your role, drawn to some other path.

Craftsman
Ability Scores Constitution or Intelligence (+), Wisdom or Charisma (-)
Skills Appraise, Craft (Any One)
As an apprentice, you practiced a particular form of building or crafting, developing specialized skills. You might have been a blacksmith’s apprentice toiling over the forge for countless hours, a young tailor sewing garments of all kinds, or a shipwright shaping the hulls of ships.

Criminal
Ability Scores Dexterity or Intelligence (+), Strength or Charisma (-)
Skills Disable Device, Stealth
As an unscrupulous independent or as a member of an underworld organization, you live a life of crime. Perhaps you’ve turned over a new leaf and are trying to go straight. But more likely, you’re still in the thick of it.

Emissary
Ability Scores Intelligence or Charisma (+), Strength or Constitution (-)
Skills Diplomacy, Sense Motive
As a diplomat or messenger, you travel to lands far and wide. Communicating with new people and forming alliances are your stock and trade.

Entertainer
Ability Scores Dexterity or Charisma (+), Intelligence or Wisdom (-)
Skills Bluff, Perform (any one)
Your art is your greatest passion, whatever form it takes. Adventuring might help you find inspiration, or simply be a way to survive until you become a world-famous artist.

Farmhand
Ability Scores Constitution or Wisdom (+), Intelligence or Charisma (-)
Skills Athletics, Handle Animal
With a strong back and an understanding of seasonal cycles, you tilled the land and tended crops. Your farm could still be your driving force, or you might have simply tired of the drudgery, and found your way to London for a new opportunity.

Fortune Teller
Ability Scores Intelligence or Charisma (+), Strength or Constitution (-)
Skills Know (arcana), Sense Motive
The strands of fate are clear to you, as you have learned many traditional forms by which laypeople can divine the future. You might have used these skills to guide your community, or simply to make money. But even the slightest peek into these practices connects you to the occult mysteries of the universe.

Gambler
Ability Scores Dexterity or Charisma (+), Strength or Wisdom (-)
Skills Bluff, Sense Motive
The thrill of the win drew you into games of chance. This might have been a lucrative sideline that paled in comparison to the real risks of adventuring, or you might have fallen on hard times due to your gambling and pursued adventuring as a way out of a spiral.

Groom
Ability Scores Wisdom or Charisma (+), Constitution or Intelligence (-)
Skills Handle Animal, Ride
You have always felt a connection to animals, and it was only a small leap to learn to train them. As you travel, you continuously encounter different creatures, befriending them along the way.

Guide
Ability Scores Constitution or Wisdom (+), Strength or Charisma (-)
Skills Know (geography), Survival
You called the wilderness home as you found trails and guided travelers. Your wanderlust could have called you to the adventuring life, or perhaps you served as a scout for soldiers and found you liked battle.

Hermit
Ability Scores Constitution or Intelligence (+), Dexterity or Charisma (-)
Skills Know (arcana, nature, occult, religion),
In an isolated place—like a cave, remote oasis, or secluded mansion—you lived a life of solitude. Adventuring might represent your first foray out among other people in some time. This might be a welcome reprieve from solitude or an unwanted change, but in either case, you’re likely still rough around the edges.

Hunter
Ability Scores Dexterity or Wisdom(+), Intelligence or Charisma (-)
Skills Stealth, Survival
You stalked and took down animals and other creatures of the wild. Skinning animals, harvesting their flesh, and cooking them were also part of your training, all of which can give you useful resources while you adventure.

Investigator
Ability Scores Intelligence or Wisdom (+), Dexterity or Constitution (-)
Skills Perception, Sense Motive
You solved crimes as a police inspector or took jobs for wealthy clients as a private investigator. You might have become an adventurer as part of your next big mystery, but likely it was due to the consequences or aftermath of a prior case.

Laborer
Ability Scores Strength or Constitution (+), Intelligence or Wisdom (-)
Skills Athletics, Know (local)
You’ve spent years performing arduous physical labor. It was a difficult life, but you somehow survived. You may have embraced adventuring as an easier method to make your way in the world, or you might adventure under someone else’s command.

Merchant
Ability Scores Intelligence or Charisma (+), Strength or Constitution (-)
Skills Appraise, Diplomacy
In a dusty shop, market stall, or merchant caravan, you bartered wares for coin and trade goods. The skills you picked up still apply in the adventuring life, in which a good deal on a suit of armor could prevent your death.

Miner
Ability Scores Strength or Constitution (+), Intelligence or Charisma (-)
Skills Athletics, Profession (miner)
You earned a living wrenching precious minerals from the lightless depths of the earth. Adventuring might have seemed lucrative or glamorous compared to this backbreaking labor— and if you have to head back underground, this time you plan to do so armed with a real weapon instead of a miner’s pick.

Noble, Dilettante
Ability Scores Constitution or Charisma (+), Strength or Wisdom (-)
Skills Bluff, Perform (any one)
To the common folk, the life of a noble seems one of idyllic luxury, and you have embraced this lifestyle to the fullest. Growing up with barely a care, you have experienced and indulged, seeking whatever passion moves your heart. Now, it has brought you into a world of danger.

Noble, Military
Ability Scores Strength or Dexterity (+), Intelligence or Charisma (-)
Skills Athletics, Ride
Your family holds a strong military tradition, and from an early age you dedicated yourself to intense training and rigorous study to become a great soldier. They may have attended an elite military academy, been trained by private tutors, or even served in a prestigious military unit.

Noble, Political
Ability Scores Intelligence or Wisdom (+), Dexterity or Constitution (-)
Skills Diplomacy, Know (nobility)
To the common folk, the life of a noble seems one of idyllic luxury, but growing up as a noble or member of the aspiring gentry, you know the reality: a noble’s lot is obligation and intrigue. Whether you seek to escape your duties by adventuring or to better your station, you have traded silks and pageantry for an adventurer’s life.

Sailor
Ability Scores Strength or Dexterity (+), Wisdom or Charisma (-)
Skills Athletics, Profession (sailor)
You heard the call of the sea from a young age. Perhaps you signed onto a merchant’s vessel, joined the navy, or even fell in with a crew of pirates and scalawags.

Street Urchin
Ability Scores Dexterity or Constitution (+), Strength or Wisdom (-)
Skills Bluff, Sleight of Hand
You eked out a living by picking pockets on the streets of a major city, never knowing where you’d find your next meal. While some folk adventure for glory, you do so to survive.

Surgeon
Ability Scores Dexterity or Wisdom (+), Strength or Charisma (-)
Skills Medicine, Perception
In the chaotic rush of battle, you learned to adapt to rapidly changing conditions as you administered to battle casualties. You patched up soldiers, guards, or other combatants, and learned a fair amount about the logistics of war.

Thug
Ability Scores Strength or Charisma (+), Intelligence or Wisdom (-)
Skills Athletics, Intimidate
The tough life has taught you the value of your muscle. The strong get what they want. Before you attained true fame, you departed—or escaped—the arena to explore the world. Your skill at drawing both blood and a crowd’s attention pay off in a new adventuring life.

Tinkerer
Ability Scores Dexterity or Intelligence (+), Strength or Wisdom (-)
Skills Craft (any), Knowledge (Engineering)
Creating all sorts of minor inventions scratches your itch for problem-solving. Your engineering skills take a particularly creative bent, and no one knows what you’ll come up with next. It might be a genius device with tremendous potential... or it might explode.

Scholar
Ability Scores Intelligence or Wisdom (+), Strength or Constitution (-)
Skills Know (any two)
In an isolated place—like a cave, remote oasis, or secluded mansion—you lived a life of solitude. Adventuring might represent your first foray out among other people in some time. This might be a welcome reprieve from solitude or an unwanted change, but in either case, you’re likely still rough around the edges.

Soldier
Ability Scores Strength or Constitution (+), Intelligence or Charisma (-)
Skills Athletics, Profession (soldier)
In your younger days, you waded into battle as a mercenary, a warrior defending a nomadic people, or a member of a militia or army. You might have wanted to break out from the regimented structure of these forces, or you could have always been as independent a warrior as you are now.

- Acrobatics (Acrobatics, Contortionist)
- Athletics (Climb, Swim)
- Awareness (Awareness, Lip Reading, Search)
- Charm (Charm, Performer)
- Command
- Commerce (Barter, Commerce, Evaluate)
- Common Lore*
- Deceive (Blather, Deceive)
- Dodge
- Forbidden Lore*
- Inquiry
- Interrogation
- Intimidate
- Linguistics (Ciphers, Literacy, Secret Tongue, Speak Language)
- Logic (Logic, Gambling, Tactics)
- Medicae (Chem-Use, Medicae)
- Navigate
- Operate (Drive, Pilot)
- Parry (Not previously a Skill; any character with WS advances should have the Parry Skill)
- Psyniscience (Invocation, Psyniscience)
- Scholastic Lore*
- Scrutiny
- Security
- Sleight of Hand
- Stealth (Concealment, Silent Move, Shadowing)
- Survival (Survival, Tracking, Wrangling)
- Tech-Use (Demolitions, Tech-Use)
- Trade*
- [Toughness*] (Carouse -Carouse has been removed and should now be resolved with a Toughness Characteristic Test)

As agents of the Inquisition, combat training is an available option for all character. All weapon trainings can be taken at the rank and cost at with your career grants it, or at the below listed rank for 300 xp.

Rank 1: Las, Low-Tech, Solid Projectile
Rank 3: Launcher, Shock
Rank 4: Bolt, Chain, Flame, Heavy*
Rank 6: Melta, Plasma
Rank 7: Exotic, Power