Reed Starling's page

A true Andoren cares not for the vagaries of birth and breeding, and true freedom must include freedom from ignorant superstitions and small-minded prejudices. A dhampir looking to prove the quality of his character could find no better place than among the defenders of liberty, and all true lovers of freedom would be no less grateful for such an unexpected ally.

I must admit, since joining to society some years ago I've seen blessed little of our great homeland, so I can't myself speak to how dire the situation really is. That said, I can't say that I ever placed all that much faith in the People's Council, or the Supreme Elect for that matter. It's in the People that I trust, and if the governments gone rotten it the People who are going to have to do something about it.

Now, I'll certainly pitch in as I can, but ultimately I think that saving the homeland isn't up to you or me or the Major or anyone in the Society. If Andoran needs rescuing, it's those who walk her roads, tend her fields, and labor in her forests that'll have to do it.

Reed raises an eyebrow to Nesod

"Mendev surely is a strange place to be drawn to, no doubt about that. Then again, there are many who have chosen to walk the Pilgrim's Path, and almost as many reasons why they've done it."

He pauses thoughtfully and sips his drink

"I don't know about destiny, though. In my travels I've seen good luck and bad, and by the grace of Desna the balance has favored the former, at least enough so that I'm still alive to talk about. And I do believe that the Song of the Spheres may set a soul to wandering, and sometimes a man knows the destination and sometimes he doesn't. But in my experience the only destiny we have is the one we make, with the help of the gods or no."

He takes another sip from his glass and shrugs

"Then again, they say that the Lady of Graves knows the time and place of every man's death from the moment he's born, and I'm not so proud as to claim it's not so. But she's a taciturn sort, by all accounts, and those who keep their secrets well often breed rumors of stranger secrets still."

Reed chuckles at the Lyrakien's comment

"The life of a pathfinder, eh? Explore, Report, Cooperate, and try not to get eaten along the way."

He turns his gaze toward his drink, seeming to study it thoughtfully

"If I don't miss my mark, I'll be heading up Mendev-way myself soon enough. Seems more and more of us are headed north every day, and I have some small experience tangling with demons and their ilk already. I must admit, I never imagined myself becoming a crusader, but I'll play the part if that's what's needed of me."

"I must assume from your response you are a member of the Eagle Knights? I myself am finishing up my entree qualifications and hope to join your ranks soon enough. The fledgling military force has proven itself since I fought with them during the People's Revolt for Andoran's independence. I had many great friends within your ranks at that time. I cannot remember if you called yourself Eagle Knights then, but the attitude and comradeship was most certainly there."

Taking another drink he uncinches his plate gauntlet, laying it on the table and pulling up the underlying padding to show a rather jagged scar running up his fore arm, "Still have a scar from that war. Hellknight blades cut deep."

The halfling raises his eyebrows, visibly impressed, and rubs his own arm absently through his sleeve. Reaching into a pocket of his cloak, he removes a small figurine of a falcon carved from blue stone.

"Reed Starling, lance corporal of the Steel Falcons, at your service."

He carefully returns the figure to his pocket and looks down slightly, giving a small smile.

"An honorary title, really. I do what I can to help the cause when I'm out in the field, but really it's no more than I'd choose to do on my own. My granddad lived his whole life in bondage to a household that'd owned my family since the days of Old Taldor, and my father did what he could for the Revolt when it came, though he was no fighter. By the grace of Desna I was born and raised under Common Rule, and everything I am I owe to good folk like yourself. I figure it's only right I should give back, and do what I can to share the good fortune that I've had, title or no."

"What's yours? I'm starting to get swayed in by the Eagle Knights, personally."

The halfling smirks and gives Nesod a wink

Yeah, we can be insidious like that.

Me, I love to travel, almost as much as I love to complain about it. I've been to places and seen things as a Pathfinder that I never would've in a wandering troupe or a caravan. Not all of em were pretty, but my lady Starsong says that there're wonders to be experienced in even the most dismal and desolate of destinations, and I've found it to be true.

Plus, being connected with a known and powerful group like the Society makes it a little less likely that I'll be knocked over the head and hauled off to the slave market when I put into a port like Katapesh or Kintargo. That's the hope, at least, and it's been working for me so far.

"That's what most people say. Then they have to go on a cross-continental trek with complete strangers. That's why I take pains to be on as loose a leash as possible, even if it requires sleeping in a stable and talking to a sword and bow."

A tanned and somewhat haggered-looking halfling looks up from pondering his drink and grins

Sleeping in a stable you say? Who's your venture captain and where can I meet him? I would've given my right arm just for a tumbledown wall to cut the wind when I was trekking across Irrisen a couple years back, much less four of em' and a roof to boot! Do you have any idea how deep the snow gets up there in the land-of-always-winter? Well, I'm not sure either, but when you're just shy of three and a half feet tall it's plenty deep!

Take it from somebody with a little experience: as rich as the pickings might be from time to time, you're gonna need a reason better than money if you're gonna do what they're gonna ask you to do here in the society.

"Besides, that we're having this discussion at all speaks volumes about our love and respect for freedom. If one of the Vipers even whispered a word of dissent about *their* masters, they'd find themselves getting skinned by the Hellknights before day's end."

A lean halfling with visible burn scars on his hands and arms raises his pint of ale and laughs.

Here here! What so many of these foreign aristocratic-types don't get is that arguing and complaining is precisely what made Andoran great in the first place, and what keeps us from turning into just another nation of slaves and boot-lickers.

The Major's a smart man and a good officer, and even though it's us out there breaking chains, it's good to have somebody like him around who can focus on finding the weak links. It looks from where I'm sitting like he's earned that fancy hat of his, so I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt about some of his more... uncomfortable assignments.

Still, we aren't soldiers, leastways not when we're out on Pathfinder duty. I choose what to do with those letters the Major sends out according to what my own heart tells me is right, and I, for one, would trust any true Andoren to do the same.

Troubling indeed, not to mention puzzlingly out of character for the good Major. I do recall that I was once called upon to cover up certain... indiscretions at his request, but said peccadilloes were the fault of another member of the Maldris clan and I felt no twinge of guilt in concealing them, political realities being what they are. In general Colson has struck me as an honest and honorable man, though in truth I do not know him well, personally, nor can I say how much say he has in some of the missions that he hands down.

Call me paranoid, but I can't help but suspect some kind of Chelish plot in this. Perhaps some fiend contrived to intercept and replace the missive you received from the major, in order to discredit an upstanding defender of liberty and throw our little fellowship into chaos. I'm sure there are some in that thrice-damned empire who would consider a service like that to be worth a soul or two, especially if the target of the assassination was someone they wanted out of the picture themselves.

In any event, while adultery is hardly a capital crime in our fair republic (as far as I can recall), I certainly agree that someone needs to look into this alleged assassination plot as soon as possible. As concerned citizens, I think it fully in the spirit of Common Rule for us to take up this task ourselves... assuming anyone has any suggestions as to where we could start.

Blast, I could have considered that that confounded cult was concocting some cruel chicanery beyond tampering with out tapsestry! When last we were in Riddleport, my fellows and I went easy on that lot in the hopes that leaving more of them alive and able-bodied would make them a bigger threat to our shared foe, the dastardly Aspis Consortium. Now I can only hope that our misplaced pragmatism doesn't cost more innocent lives than even the Aspis could sell...

You know Aram, I think I see what you're getting at, and I like the cut of your jib, I really do. I'm worried, though, that you're being just a little bit closed-minded about what a Pathfinder should be.

Now, when you're as small of stature as I am, you learn to take every advantage you can get. I've picked up enough tricks over the years to qualify for most parts of your proposed creed, but my Andoren blood cries out for me to stick up for those who might fall short.

You see, some of my best friends in the Society communicate in monosyllabic grunts, and I'm acquainted with a uniquely talented young Tiefling whose been turned away by more than one upper-class type establishment. Truth is though, that there's nobody I'd rather have at my back on a mission, even if they did run off on me during one incident with a bunyip.

With all due respect, I think you're missing part of the cooperation clause in the Society oath. It doesn't take a wise man to know that not everybody can be everything; and I should know! Moreover, there's a reason that Kreighton Shaine isn't the only Venture Captain at the Grand Lodge; the Society needs more than just Scrolls - I'd reckon it wouldn't have lasted nearly as long as it has without a whole lot of (and I hope you'll pardon my phrasing) slovenly Spells and slow Swords.

I think that, instead of devoting their time to shining fancy badges and climbing up on that pedestal, those of us with a broader range of skills should try and help those less fortunate. If you're working with somebody that doesn't write too well, take a little time to help them out with their report, and if your fellow pathfinder can't find his way in the halls of high society, pitch in and be his guide in that baffling maze. Lord knows they've probably helped you out of more than a few jams.

(Ack, don't know how that came out so bad; I gave it a once-over before I posted, but looking at it now I can see that I missed a lot of typos. Oh well, too late to edit it now.)

1. Excitement, fame, fortune... all the regular reasons, I suppose. Plus, there's only so far an aspiring thespian can go in Andoran, and traveling can be rather... perilous, when you're a halfling. With friends like the Pathfinder society, it's a lot easier to see the world and find your place in it... even if you only end up staying in that place long enough to pick up some fresh trail rations!

2. Reed Starling's the name, though I can't say as there's much of a story behind it. The Starling clan's never been real keen on genealogy; not that we had much choice in the matter, considering that my father and all my grandparents were born into slavery. As far as they've ever told me, Starling was a name my folks came up with after the war, when they decided to get married and set up a homestead, and I'm proud to carry it.

3. Andoran, of course! Didn't I already say that? Finest country in the world, and a model for the future of Avistan. A lot of folk complain that Andorens are meddlers, sticking their beaks in places they aren't wanted and stirring up trouble wherever they go. Well, I say to those folk, you're damn right we are! Sure we're not perfect, and even the best of us make mistakes from time to time; we're only mortal, after all. But I've never once had a Chelaxian slave complain when I took the whip from his driver's hand and broke the chains around his wrists. I can't say I'm a man who spends a lot of time thinking about politics and philosophy, but I know this much: all thinking creatures were created free, and one day they will be free again.

4. Well, I don't usually like to blow my own horn, but if past experience has taught me that I've got enough looks to open some doors. I'm fairly tall in halfling terms, not that big folk tend to see the difference, with chestnut brown hair and eyes the color of a summer sky in the Five Kings foothills.

As for clothes, I mostly stick with practical attire, since I'm on the move so much. Given a choice, however, I prefer to dress in blues and greens, and I tend to favor comfort and quality over expensive fabrics and elaborate cuts. That said, I do my best to keep up with styles in Absalom; image is key in show business, after all. Sadly, there's only so much I can do about that, since I never know when I might have to rush off to go splashing through some sewer in Ustalav or to spend a month or two hacking may way through the Mwangi jungle.

5. I guess "freedom" would be far too predictable an answer, and redundant to boot. In all seriousness, though, I really do love to travel, though it's taken me a while to get used to ships. Given the option, I prefer to go by foot; there's something about being able to feel the ground beneath your feet that really makes you feel like you're on an adventure.

Of course, as much as I like the freedom to travel, being in the Society does have a way of making you really appreciate creature comforts when you can get them. A warm fire, a cold cider, and a hot bath... these are the things that paradise is made of.

Then of course there's the thrill of the stage... in the end, I think, that's what I really live for. Like magic or swordplay, acting is a craft in which there's always something new to learn, something different to try, and something to surprise you no matter how prepared you think you are. I appreciate the classics, of course, but improvisation is where I really thrive. As a Bard, of course, I get plenty of chances to show off that talent, though the audience is a little smaller than I would like.

6. Well, as a rule I try save my hate for things have done something to earn it. Those Aspis Consortium clowns are always coming up with new ways to vex me and mine, and it's a pretty safe bet that some folk (demon-worshipers, rabid werewolves, tax collectors, and the like) aren't out to make a lot of friends. I must confess, also, that I've gotten rather sick of wading through sewer water. I'm sure a lot of Pathfinders have the same complaint, but I think you have a whole different perspective on the matter when you stand just a hair over three-foot six. For that matter, I think I've braved enough giant snow drifts to last me a lifetime. I'm sure I'm going to eat these words down the line, but I'll take a rain-soaked, mosquito-ridden jungle any day over the wastes of Irrisen.

7. Well, I've journeyed with a lot of folk during my time in the society, but most often I work with one particular group that the Venture Captains seem to have decided work well together. Aside from myself, there's Thano, a tiefling alchemist who was apparently once a slave in Cheliax, though I've never pressed him for the details. Thano... never really learned how to make a good first impression; he's a little, er, intense, and he tends to smell more than a little off, and his fiendish features are pretty hard to ignore... that mutagen stuff he drinks before battle does a number on him too...

Er, but despite all that he's a good man and a valuable ally. Not as supportive of the Andoren cause as he should be (I think he's one of those "Shadow Lodge" people) but his heart's in the right place. Which is good, because I'd never want to be on the receiving end of those bombs of his. The guy is an absolute demon in battle... er, figuratively speaking, of course. Sorry.

Then there's Winona, a priestess of Sarenrae and fellow freedom-fighter. I personally find guidance and comfort with the Song of the Spheres, but the Dawnflower is certainly worthy of respect and reverence, and Winona is as true a follower as she'd ever had, I'd wager. Winona's a gentler soul than I would have expected from the stories they tell about Sarenrae and her followers, perhaps even too much so, at times, but her blessings and healing magics have seen us through some dark times, so I won't say a word against her.

Next up is Urdonen, the strong arm of our merry band, a berserker from... actually, I'm not entirely sure where. It's a little embarrassing to admit, but I probably know less about Urdonen than I do about any of my other companions, though I've known him longer than most. He's a man of few words, quick to smile at a joke or agree to a plan, but slow to say anything at all about himself. Still, there's nobody else I'd rather have at my side in a fight; the man's a terror with a greatsword; he even scares me a little, from time to time. Without him, I'm not sure the rest of us would still be alive, and as long as he's with us and has the strength to fight, there's no force on this world I've seen that can stand against him.

Finally, there's Ruzel, the most recent addition to our group. A sorcerer from Qadira with more than a little of the djinn about him, he's honestly a little more mercenary than I might like. Don't get me wrong; he's a fun guy to drink with and can spin a tale better than I can, but behind his smiles and his jokes lies a devious and calculating mind, always working the angles to see where he stands to profit. I must admit, I have a hard time understanding humans like him; in my experience the best things in life come cheaper than you'd think, and it seems like a waste to spend so much time and effort on amassing coin.

8. Well, as much as big folk tend to lump us together, we halflings are a varied lot. They say that we're lucky, and I suppose that it's true, but Desna always favors those who truly appreciate the world's wonders. I guess if I had to make a really broad statement, I'm probably more ambitious than most of my kin. My father and sisters seem happy enough to tend the orchard and the chickens, but I've been on the move since I first went down to Carpenden on market day. Still, I'm far from the only halfling in the Society, so maybe I'm not so unique after all.

9. Haven't you heard? Halflings aren't afraid of anything! In all seriousness, though, I suppose I'm afraid of loneliness, more than anything. In this line of work, you worry sometimes that you'll wind up dying in a ditch somewhere, unburied and unmourned, and that your friends and family might go on for years not knowing if you might still be out there. As much as I differ from the rest of my family, I look up to them, too; one day, not anytime soon, mind you, I hope to settle down myself; get married, maybe even give my poor mother some grandchildren. It would be a shame if I never got the chance.

10. Well, for the most part I don't place a whole lot of importance on the stuff in my pack; I have a fine bow and a keen sword, and a few magical trinkets that come in handy in a pinch, but I wouldn't shed too many tears if I lost any of them. I do have a a few interesting souvenirs I've picked up here and there that it would be a shame to loose, but the memories are likely to last longer anyway. I guess the only thing that's really irreplaceable is a brass whistle I wear around my neck. It doesn't look like much, and it's gotten dinged and dented enough that it doesn't really work anymore, but its a gift my father gave me after my rite of passage, and it helps to remind me that I still have a home out there.

the whole world would gain something without france, and in golarion, halflings would become a much more popular choice with all the elves gone... so again a win win for everyone who is NOT the target of falling rocks.

A good point! I think you'll find that we halflings are like cockroaches; you couldn't get rid of us if you tried. ;)

I usually do my best not to go around killing too many folk who aren't asking for it, but when the swords and spells come out I don't pull any punches. One thing I always, always do though (assuming it doesn't slip my mind) is give my more intelligent foes the chance to surrender. It's stunning, frankly, how many of the villain types I've run into in the field seem to have some kind of death wish, leaping into combat despite being outnumbered by heavily armed opponents. It's sad, really, but I'm not gonna take too many pains to make sure somebody stays alive who's not about to give me the same courtesy.

Another problem is what to do with a body after they're knocked out and stable. One thing I will say is that, while I don't always have much use for local law enforcement, it is nice to have some authority figures around so you have a doorstep to drop evildoers on. There's nothing worse than being a hundred miles from civilization and trying to figure out how you're going to feed a prisoner who'd just as soon see you dead.