I would like to submit some version of this character. This character was previously used in a Council of Thieves game that died very early.
I am all for either or both of wounds and vigor and/or Armor as DR. I am not so much a fan of called shot as it seems like it would slow the game down.
I will modify this character as soon as these optional rules are decided.
On another note, I think this character's back story works as an escaped slave. Is this campaign starting in the city of Katapesh or has it recently left the city? I remember something about starting with a caravan and can see the character joining the caravan to escape the city where he was a slave.
Verus finds some privacy and quickly changes into some clean clothes. Making sure his brand on his neck is covered, he rejoins the group, a slight show of surprise on his face when he sees how large of a party has joined them. "Who are these people and what are we now involved in?" he wonders to himself.
"I'll have an ale," he says. When delivered, he makes a show of drinking some, but doesn't imbibe, preferring to keep a clear head. Verus then keeps quiet, letting the others do the talking in an attempt to learn as much as he can.
"I'm sure I smell to high heaven after that trip through the sewers, but I think we deserve some answers first. What was all that about and what have you gotten us into?"
"I agree ... I don't want to get lost down here so up we go." Verus quips while keeping an eye down the path. He makes sure everyone makes it up before throwing his bow over his shoulder and climbing himself.
"And run where? We'd be lost down here. We have to follow the swords and through them is the way. We have no choice." As the creatures start to crawl up the warrior's leg, Verus curses and stores his bow while pulling out a torch and lighting it. He then tries to squeeze by his comrades while swinging the fire at the creatures, hoping it clears a path.
Acrobatics to squeeze by:1d20 + 5 ⇒ (9) + 5 = 14
I'm not sure what rolls are needed for the action I described and it may be too many actions if we are in rounds. But Stow the bow, draw and light torch, swing the fire at the creatures
knowledge local, dungeoneering:1d20 + 5 ⇒ (5) + 5 = 10 "I have no idea... but they don't look friendly," Verus says while knocking an arrow and lining up a shot.
"That is possible, but I must agree with our other compatriot here. I would like to get out of this sewer and to this safehouse as quickly as possible. Perhaps then we can get some answers about what we are now wrapped up in." Verus says quietly, hoping his voice doesn't echo down the sewers.
Verus continues to the right with the rest of the group, thankful that he didn't have to get into the muck. He follows at the back, his ears and eyes looking for pursuit.
As they approach the intersection, calls out to the new party, "She said to follow the sword point. Anyone see any markings?" As Verus begins to search for the markings he thinks to himself, "Please point to the right, I really don't want to have to swim."
Keeping his eyes on trail they just followed, Verus quietly call out to his compatriots. "Lady was it? Do you want to take the lead? I'd rather not have to explain to the hellknights what a group of armed civilians are doing in the sewers."
One of the games I played in that I liked, the DM rolled everyone's initiative. He then averaged the PC's initiative and the NPC's initiative. If the average PC initiative was higher than the average NPC initiative, all the PCs went in any order they chose then all the NPCs went. Vice versa if the average initiatives were flipped.
Previously "F%*!... Hellknights?!? I did not need this kind of heat. Who is this lady and what has she gotten me in to," Verus thinks to himself as he quickly grabs his stuff and heads to the trap door. He makes sure everyone (including the bar keep) is out of the tavern first before descending through the trapdoor himself.
Now
Upon reaching the bottom, Verus has a noticeable scowl on his face. He then addresses Janivent. "I got about a million questions for you but as my compatriot just mentioned now ain't the time, but when it is, I want some answers." He then draws his bow as he addresses the rest of the group. "We need to move now. I'll cover the rear."
Verus narrows his eyes slightly at the mention of owning the boy. He unconsciously rubs the back of his neck where his slave mark is to make sure its still covered. Verus's attention is briefly lost from the conversation as he looks over Uma. "Of course she had to own slaves. At least she seems to treat him well."
As Verus realizes he wasn't paying attention, he quickly refocuses on the conversation at hand. "Interesting. She wants to rid the town of the creatures that stalk the night and free the town of Thrune. Seems to align with my goals. I've been wanting to get to the bottom of those rumors and fears I've heard around town"
Hearing the others reply, Verus concurs with their assessment. "Your goals are admirable Janivent. I myself have wanted to look into the rumors of the creatures that stalk the night. However, I must concur with the others you have brought here. What exactly do you plan for us?"
Verus gives the bar keep 2 sp and couple of copper with a nod of thanks. He then sees his contact enter the tavern and take a seat at the back, only to be joined by two others. "I guess I'm not the only one she's looking to hire."
Verus stands and makes his way to the table with the others. As he takes his seat, he turns to the short woman and says with a grin as he holds out his hand, "I guess you and I were waiting for the same person. The name is Verus by the way. And you are?"
A tall rugged human named Verus enters Visio's Tavern. He's dressed in loose fitting garb that covers his neck and arms. As he enters the tavern he visibly surveys the room. "No one here I recognize, though it's not like I know every slave hunter out there." Verus thinks to himself. When he's satisfied that no one here is an imminent threat, he finds himself a table at the back of the room with clear line of sights to all the exits.
Taking his seat, Verus catches the attention of the bar keep and calls out, "I'll have an ale." Verus then proceeds to keep an eye on his surroundings while he waits for the bar keep. "I don't usually take meetings from people I don't know, but I need the coin. I hope I don't regret this."
I finalized the fluff and crunch. Posted here for your convenience. More detail can be found in the profile.
Crunch:
Verus Sylla
Human ranger (urban ranger) 1 (Pathfinder RPG Advanced Player's Guide 129)
CG Medium humanoid (human)
Init +5; Senses Perception +5
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Defense
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AC 17, touch 14, flat-footed 13 (+3 armor, +4 Dex)
hp 13 (1d10+3)
Fort +4, Ref +6, Will +2
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Offense
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Speed 30 ft.
Melee dagger +4 (1d4+3/19-20) or
. . longsword +4 (1d8+3/19-20)
Ranged composite longbow +5 (1d8+1/×3)
Special Attacks favored enemy (humans +2)
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Statistics
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Str 16, Dex 18, Con 15, Int 12, Wis 13, Cha 11
Base Atk +1; CMB +4; CMD 18
Feats Point-Blank Shot, Precise Shot
Traits ambush training, freed slave, shadow child
Skills Acrobatics +4, Disable Device +7, Knowledge (dungeoneering) +5, Knowledge (geography) +5, Knowledge (local) +5, Perception +5, Stealth +7, Survival +5
Languages Common, Infernal
SQ mark of slavery, track +1, wild empathy +1
Other Gear studded leather, arrows (100), composite longbow (+1 Str), dagger, longsword, backpack, bedroll, flint and steel, hemp rope (50 ft.), thieves' tools, torch (6), 18 gp, 8 sp, 4 cp
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Special Abilities
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Favored Enemy (Humans +2) (Ex) +2 to rolls vs. humans foes.
Mark of Slavery -2 to skills and attacks after failing a skill check, unless you're retrying the skill check,
Point-Blank Shot +1 to attack and damage rolls with ranged weapons at up to 30 feet.
Precise Shot You don't get -4 to hit when shooting or throwing into melee.
Track +1 Add the listed bonus to survival checks made to track.
Wild Empathy +1 (Ex) Improve the attitude of an animal, as if using Diplomacy.
Fluff:
Verus's earliest memory is that of servitude. He was owned by a small noble family in the city of Egorian. There he served as the whipping boy to Janus, the heir to the family. Janus was spoiled rotten and often did whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted, without any regard for anyone else. This often left Verus on the wrong end of a beating. Verus took these beatings silently and without word. Even when not taking a beating from the parents, Janus was exceptionally cruel to Verus, often treating him as his personal plaything. Every night in the privacy of bed, Verus would curse the family and pray for a way out. One night his prayers were answered.
Verus doesn't know why, but he awoke in the middle of the night. He immediately realized something was wrong and quickly rushed to the door. Upon opening the door, Verus was greeted by a wall of flames. The first thought that went through his mind was that the Janus has finally had enough of him and was going to kill him in his sleep. However, not a moment later the thought was gone and Verus's survival instincts kicked in. He immediately began looking for a way out when part of the roof nearest to the door collapsed from the fire, leaving a view of night sky. "If the roof is weak enough to collapse, maybe I can break through." Verus thought to himself. He immediately began piling what he could in the corner farthest from the flames and climbed on top of it. Once he felt sturdy he began pushing at the roof with everything he had. Verus was about to give up when the roof finally gave way. As quickly as he could Verus climbed into the night.
Upon reaching safety, Verus realized it wasn't just his room, but the whole house was in flames. Several townsfolk were running to and from the house trying to get the fire under control. It was chaos. It was his chance at freedom. He could flee and everyone would just assume he was a charred corpse in the rubble, no one would be looking for him. First, with everyone distracted, Verus stealthily made his way to the hunting shed on the edge of the property. There he grabbed some supplies, including a bow and made his way out towards the river. Verus knew he had to put as much distance as he could between himself and the city and using the current seemed the best way to do it.
Verus found himself a small rowboat moored on the bank and quickly made his way to it. With no one around and the cover of night on his side he pushed the boat in and began his journey away. His journey took him many days. He would spend the days hidden in the woods hunting game for food. At night he would continue his journey down the river, making sure to avoid the cities. At the end, Verus ended up in the town of Westcrown. He didn't really have a choice whether or not to stay there as the river opened up to the Inner sea.
Verus quickly adapted himself to the town, hiding his mark so as to avoid questions, and finding work as a freelance tracker and hunter. The curious thing he could never understand was the town's fear of the dark. The town seemed to believe there was some curse upon the town and that evil creatures roam after dark. Maybe I'll figure out whats really going on here, Verus idly thinks to himself.
Appearance and Personality
Verus has the appearance of a rugged male. He has dark brown hair that he keeps cut short and piercing blue eyes. Verus stands six feet tall and has a lithe physique that belies his strength. At its heart, his personality is friendly and jovial, but he is overly cautious. He is always on the lookout for anyone who might recognize him and drag him back into his bondage.
It appears Azih and I are competing for the same spot
Here is Slayde77's character. Crunch is in the profile. For ease I have also copied it here. I will work on the fluff shortly. I assumed 2 traits (one being campaign) and 150 gold.
Crunch:
Verus Sylla
Human ranger (urban ranger) 1 (Pathfinder RPG Advanced Player's Guide 129)
CG Medium humanoid (human)
Init +5; Senses Perception +5
--------------------
Defense
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AC 17, touch 14, flat-footed 13 (+3 armor, +4 Dex)
hp 13 (1d10+3)
Fort +4, Ref +6, Will +1
--------------------
Offense
--------------------
Speed 30 ft.
Melee dagger +4 (1d4+3/19-20) or
. . longsword +4 (1d8+3/19-20)
Ranged longbow +5 (1d8/×3)
Special Attacks favored enemy (humans +2)
--------------------
Statistics
--------------------
Str 16, Dex 18, Con 15, Int 12, Wis 13, Cha 11
Base Atk +1; CMB +4; CMD 18
Feats Point-Blank Shot, Precise Shot
Traits ambush training, shadow child
Skills Acrobatics +4, Disable Device +5, Knowledge (dungeoneering) +5, Knowledge (geography) +5, Knowledge (local) +5, Perception +5, Stealth +7, Survival +5
Languages Common
SQ track +1, wild empathy +1
Other Gear studded leather, arrows (100), dagger, longbow, longsword, backpack, bedroll, flint and steel, hemp rope (50 ft.), torch (6), 23 gp, 8 sp, 4 cp
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Special Abilities
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Favored Enemy (Humans +2) (Ex) +2 to rolls vs. humans foes.
Point-Blank Shot +1 to attack and damage rolls with ranged weapons at up to 30 feet.
Precise Shot You don't get -4 to hit when shooting or throwing into melee.
Track +1 Add the listed bonus to survival checks made to track.
Wild Empathy +1 (Ex) Improve the attitude of an animal, as if using Diplomacy.
