Uleg's page

Dwarf
Bard 1 (Arcane Healer)
LG Medium humanoid (dwarf)
Party Role healer, support, knowledge

Init +2
Senses darkvision (60 ft.), Perception +1

DEFENSE
AC 15, touch 12, flat-footed 13 (+3 armor, +2 Dex, )
hp 9 ((1d8)+4)
Fort +1, Ref +4, Will +3

OFFENSE
Speed 20 ft.
Melee: Rapier -1 (1d6-1 18-20)
Ranged: Shortbow (1d8+2 /x3)

Spells Known
Level 0:
Detect Magic, Ghost Sound, Mage Hand, Spark

Level 1 (2/day):
Alarm
Cure Light Wounds

STATISTICS
Str 8, Dex 14, Con 12, Int 13, Wis 13, Cha 15
Base Atk +0; CMB +2; CMD 11
Feats Extra Performance, (Armor proficiency light, shield, weapon proficiency simple)
Skills
Unarmored Acrobatics 6, Appraise 1, Bluff 2, Climb -1, Craft 1, Diplomacy 2, Disguise 6, Escape Artist 2, Fly 2, Heal 2, Intimidate 2, Knowledge (All Others) 2, Knowledge (Local) 6, Knowledge (Nobility) 6, Knowledge (Religion) 6, Perception 1, Perform (Stepdance) 6, Ride 2, Sense Motive 1, Stealth 2, Survival 1, Swim -1
Languages Common, Dwarven, Terran
Special Abilities
Bardic Knowledge, Countersong, Distraction, Fascinate, Inspire Courage +1

EQUIPMENT
Consumables
Potions: Cure Light Wounds (1)
Ammunition: Arrows, common (20)
Gear Leather Armor, Buckler, Rapier, Shortbow
Backpack (common), Bedroll, Journal, Ink, Inkpen, Mess Kit, Dancing Shoes (Musical Instrument), Peasant’s Outfit, Pot (iron), Belt Pouch, Rations (trail) (3), Rope (Hemp, 50ft), Waterskin
currency PP0 GP31 SP1 CP0

1) I'd like 5 points that capture the concept and story of the character. More are welcome, but no less than five.
a) Uleg grew up at the court of General Hayla Sagginsdottir in Rolgrimmdur, underneath the five king mountain. He is the only son to two loving parents and the older brother to his much younger sister, Kotri. His father, Norik, is a tax clerk at court, who is very proud of his excellent work but commonly not well regarded in the warrior city. His mother, Mirala, though not formerly a priestess, is often found at the local temple of Torag to serve in his honor and pray for her family.

b) As a kid, Uleg never could keep his feet still. He was bullied by his classmates and quickly gained the very unflattering by-name “the fidgety” (sometimes, he claims that the worst part of the insult was the lack of a nice alliteration).

c) When a troupe from the Umbra Carnival stopped in Rolfrimmdur, he knew he had found his destiny: steppdancing. Unfortunately, none of his classmates, who dreamed of becoming famous warriors or engineers, with some bold ones wishing to join the faith or become artists (proper artists, that is, smithing or maybe cutting gems), felt any sympathy for his unusual dreams. If anything, the bullying became much worse.

d) Uleg kept on practicing, spending his free time steppdancing in one of the abandoned mines around the city. He quickly learned to keep an eye out for any one of his classmates looking to make a name for himself by showing him what a proper dwarf would behave like. Of course, a proper dwarf would never dare to doge, but Uleg was proud of his quick feet.

e) When school had finally finished, he was ready to take on the world. Thanks to his father’s connections, he was asked to perform at the court of General Sagginsdottir herself. Unfortunately, the show was a disaster. Uleg was too exited and kept missing his steps, while his audience could only mock his strange dance. To make matters worth, his arcane abilities manifested for the first time when his tapping feet set of sparks, that quickly caught in the priceless antique rug.

f) Finally realizing that Dwarfen society was not yet ready for his genius, Uleg announced his decision to head for human lands, to find a proper teacher and a more willing audience. His father was even more quiet than usual, giving him a deep frown, while his mother stealthily packed him a few rations and added a bit of coin to his pack. Only his sister, who had always been his greatest (and only) fan, cried bitterly, for she was sure his success would keep him away for decades to come.

g) Uleg traveled from city to city, dancing in the market squares and drinking halls, trying to earn a few coins. He dreams of one day owning his own venue and leading his own troupe, with dwarfs and all other races traveling from far and wide to see him play. One day, he promises himself every day, even the dwarfen High King Borogrim the Hale will travel to see him dance.

h) For now, however, the coin is sparse and his savings almost exhausted. Uleg finally decided to use his other talent, magic, and the good name of Rolfrimmdur warriors to earn a living as an adventurer. First, however, he would travel to Ilsurian to see the Umbra Carnival play again.

2) Two goals that you'd like the character to accomplish in-game.
a) Obviously, I’d like to expand upon his dancing performance. I’d love to see him develop from a poor, unknown street performer, maybe find a teacher or a mentor, slowly building up reputation before, in the very far future, achieving his dreams outlined in 1d).

b) Contrary, I’d like Uleg to slowly realize the importance of home, family and ones origin. As he travels these strange lands, he will begin to yearn for home, seek out dwarfs in exile and eagerly await each letter his little sister manages to send him.

3) Two secrets, one the PC keeps to himself, and one kept from the PC. This is a module, but I always like to have the flexibility of adding in some homebrew into everything I run.
See below (sep. spoiler)

4) 3-5 people that are tied to your PC by blood, love, rivalry, honor, etc. Only one should be a rival.
a) Sworos the Swift, the stepdancer of Umbra Carnival, who, even though they never spoke, inspired Ulegs dream. With dwarfen live spans, Sworos is probably quiet old by now, but Uleg still wishes to see him dance again.

b) His father, Norik. Uleg never doubted his father loved him, but his elder believed in pure honesty (a trait passed to his son) and never held any love for dancing.

c) His sister, Kotri, who remains the only one to not only love him unconditionally, but also to enjoy his dancing and believe in his success.

5) Three key memories that define your character as the person they are at the time of submission.
a) The dance of Sworos the Swift. Even though it’s been 30 years since the Umbra Carnival visited the city, Uleg can still picture every patch of the dancers blue and yellow costumes, hear every tap of their shoes on the ground and picture every step they made.

b) His own performance before Gurku, the chamberlain, and his aid, the pretty Agna. He had expected their initial skepticism, but seeing them joking about his performance caused him to stumble all the more.

c) Dancing in the mines around Rolfrimmdur, Kotri squeling as she watched him tap out more and more complicated rhythms before the noise attracted his classmates. Seeing them advancing upon his sister and telling her to run while he stayed still, dancing around his attackers and poking their sides before finally missing a step and getting the beating of a lifetime.

6) What a fear or paranoia that causes your character to shiver, cower, or panic.
Uleg planned his whole life around dancing. In school, he did not pay attention but instead planned dance moves. He made no friends, took no lover and did not pay homage to the gods. If dancing did not work out, Uleg would have wasted his life, and he does not dare to think about that.

To himself) If asked, Uleg will proudly tell you of the day he performed at the court of General Sagginsdottir (see 1c). While factually correct, he auditioned for three minutes in the anteroom of the office of the deputy chamberlain, as a personal favor to his father. Even that, however, was a disaster.
From him) While the deputy chamberlain did receive him as a favor to his father, that favor was not to give him a fair chance, but instead to smack him down so harshly that he hopefully would stop his foolishness and take up a proper study. His father originally wanted him to follow after him at court, but these days, he would be happy with a miner or a trader, if only Uleg would stop dancing.