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Pathfinder #17198 here. I'll plug in the premade tomorrow when I'm more awake (I live on Euro time and right now I'm sorta running on fumes...)
GM: WRT Mythic Path, both Marshal and Guardian are decent matches for what I have in mind for Michael -- both a leader and the immovable object that holds the line no matter what the enemy throws at him, providing a natural rallying point for his allies. Basically the tank, in MMO holy trinity terms.
Dotting for interest, and echoing the request to not need a campaign trait. I've got a Paladin mostly worked out in backstory and mechanically. EDIT Had another look at them, Child of the Crusades probably matches Michael's temperament best. I'll have to rework the background a bit, though.
Congratulations to the lucky winners. I'll keep on tweaking Michael for another opportunity sometime.
Also, might be polite to check with the characters' players before doing so, just in case they have their own plans with the characters if they're not picked for this PbP.
Answers: 1) I originally didn't give it much thought -- it was more of a potential plot hook for the GM as well as a good excuse to drive the story where I wanted it to go, but thinking about it more... Michael doesn't know. His father never told anyone, including him. Iomedae never answered him either when he asked in his prayers -- because it's a test of Faith, and one that Michael is struggling with somewhat. He's still somewhat young and more than a little angry and he wants to know "why?"; once he accepts that whatever it was, Iomedae still favored his father and Her judgement in this matter should be enough for him, he'll be well on the way to finding his own path. (NOTE: The lesson here isn't unquestioning obedience so much as "You may ask questions, but if I decline to answer, such is My prerogative, and your duty is to have faith in My reasons even when I don't share them with you." as well as an inversion of Doing Good Feels Good -- sometimes, doing the Right Thing comes at great personal cost and you may hate yourself for it, but it still needs to be done. Yes, not entirely fair to the poor lad but as another LG deity is fond of saying, the hottest fires forge the strongest steel, and She needs Michael to be strong indeed -- because, well, Worldwound erupting, legions of demons breaking out... It's not going to be a good place to be if you only ever see black and white; She needs Her champions to be able to hold on to their faith even things go gray and murky all around them.) My basic plan for Michael's development as a character (as opposed to development in terms of stats and levels) involves the realization that everyone has burdens to bear, and that you shouldn't let the chip on your shoulder get in the way of doing what's right; once he realizes that here he's not accountable for his father's actions he'll be able to make his peace with it, having grown stronger from the tempering. This may take some time; I fully encourage people calling him on it when he's being a sulk or a jerk as neither of them are very Paladin-like behaviors and he needs to snap out of them (and he will acknowledge his behavior as such and apologize if someone calls him on it). 2) The way the paladin variant of the Detect Evil ability is written, it indicates it takes him about as much time to scan as it takes to glance at someone, so I suspect he'd pretty much include the scan in the usual 'sizing someone up' glance people tend to give anyone they haven't met before. That said, he's not the "See Evil, Smite Evil" Lawful Stupid variant of Paladin -- and he's very well aware that a single look rarely tells the whole story. Sure, detecting active malignant Evil on someone will put him on his guard, and if it's bad enough he'll challenge them to explain themselves (and/or surrender to judgement), but he's very much in favor of talking first, as long as no innocents are in danger. 3) Looking over the background again I realize I hadn't made it as clear as I thought that the current temperament is very largely due to Michael being in something of a low point in his life right now; The build I'm working on (when I'm home; I can't access my Hero Lab files from my work comp) has both the Natural Born Leader and the Ethical Leader traits picked. Note that even despite a social environment that could probably be best described as 'toxic' he did well enough to lead a squad...
Michael Carenae
background:
The Carenae were a well-respected Andoran family, descended as they were from a long and proud line of warriors, paladins and clerics in Iomedae's service, with rumors that many generations back one of Iomedae's divine servants had contributed to their bloodline. In fact, Michael's grandfather had been a minor hero of the People's Revolt, which earned him a distinction and a grant of land near the capital... Until Michael's father infamously fled the field during a pitched battle, abandoning his allies without a word. He never spoke a word of why he'd run, or why he returned the next morning, and accepted the accusations and imprecations without comment -- and although the fact that he appeared to retain his abilities as a Paladin indicated that he had not left Iomedae's grace, the tale of the "Coward of Darkmoon Vale" spread like wildfire and the family fell into disfavor with his exile. That should have been the last of it...But several years later his son showed up at the barracks in Augustana, bearing Iomedae's favor brightly enough to be visible to the mundane eye, and invoked his right as an Andoran citizen to serve in the military. They didn't particularly want him, but by their own laws as long as he proved capable and willing, they couldn't deny him -- he had to quit on his own volition, or prove himself unfit for duty. They did their absolute best to make him quit in any way they could -- lousy assignments, being passed over for promotion time and again no matter how competent he proved -- but he was Carenae and the Carenae do not shirk their duty. Still, military life turned out to be a poor fit for Michael. Not because he lacked martial skills -- in fact, he was something of a literal holy terror on the proving grounds, as well as having a definite talent for keeping a squad together -- but a lot of the older rank and file still remembered the Coward of Darkmoon Vale and wanted no truck with his son. Michael had anticipated some resentment over his father's legacy, but he'd seriously underestimated how bad it would be. Still, Carenae did not shirk their duty, and he persevered... Until one sergeant with a steeper grudge than most decided that Michael needed to understand why they didn't approve of him and sent his squad to patrolling the Darkmoon Vale area. Those survivors of the battle that didn't immediately recognize "the Coward's Son" were soon informed of his identity by those who did, and things went rapidly downhill. Insults and jeers were the order of the day, and squad morale plummeted as it's hard to respect your squad leader when he's regularly scraping rotten vegetable residue or worse off his breastplate. Pile on enough straws and sooner or later any pack animal, no matter how strong, will revolt. In Michael's case, this revolt took the form of walking up to the sergeant that had assigned him there, telling him in no uncertain terms that regardless of what his father may or may not have done, taking it out on him was unfair, unjust and unbecoming an officer in the Andoran army, followed by formally resigning his comission and then slugging the sergeant. Thoroughly disgusted, Michael wanted to wash his hands of the country of his birth... But he found that he couldn't abandon his oaths to Iomedae quite so easily -- and more importantly, that he didn't want to. Even if the world was full of far too many judgemental jerks and ungrateful scum who didn't deserve to be saved, plenty of people remained who did. Children, innocents, even people who just didn't know any better... It should be made clear that Michael never expected or required gratitude -- most Paladins who do tend to fall in fairly short order -- but several years of never receiving any tends to wear on the soul, and while he wasn't about to give up on his calling, he decided he could exercise some personal discretion as to where to apply himself. It was around that time that word reached him about the disaster that had befallen the Fifth Mendevian Crusade. A clear-cut fight against evil in someplace where no one knew his name sounded like exactly what he needs right now...
Personality/Tropes:
From the Four Temperament Ensemble, the closest match would be Choleric/Melancholic. It should also be noted that at the start of the campaign we're not exactly seeing him at his best, but that's what character growth is for. Years of being blamed and judged for his father's actions have left him something of a Knight in Sour Armor and a Cynic -- he doesn't have a terribly high opinion of humanity in general anymore and he's depressed at how often the people he protects lived down to his expectations -- but despite everything they threw at him (sometimes literally), he keeps doing his duty anyway, although on particularly bad days he decides to spend a night getting too drunk to care. Code of honour:Like all Paladins of Iomedae, he lives by Her tenets, or at least generally tries to; some tenets are easier to live by than others, and he's just a bit out of practice when it comes to living as an example to others. Good Is Not Soft: Michael will accept the surrender of a defeated enemy, if it's a sincere and unconditional one. However, an enemy that breaks their parole will not receive another opportunity to try to surrender. Lawful Good does not mean Lawful Stupid. Angelic Beauty: Michael's Aasimar heritage manifests itself in the glow behind his eyes and sleek gold-red hair. Chronic Hero Syndrome: It kind of goes with the job... Sophisticated As Hell: Celestial speech is usually considered a caress upon the ears of those who hear it. Michael primarily uses it for swearing when he's in a foul mood.
Appearance:
Imagine, if you will, your idealised image of a Paladin with an angelic heritage flowing through his veins. Let your mind's eye rest on the sculpted muscles moving easily as if the plate armor they're wearing weighs nothing at all; picture the lantern jaw and blue eyes shining as if lit from within, framed by hair that looks like spun gold set alight... ... Now add three-day stubble, a perpetual grumpy scowl and bear in mind that the hair is unkempt, and while the armor is in working order it's seen better (and cleaner) days. That's Michael.
Recruitment: "... given how bad the situation is out there, why are you even asking this question? You clearly need all the help you can get, so... *sigh* No, fair enough. Let's start over. "... Imagine spending your entire life being judged by what your father did. Blamed for it, even though he's been dead for over a decade. No, not everyone, and not all the time... But enough of them, and often enough. There's only so much of that you can take and stay sane. And Iomedae's mercy is famously reserved for the weak, the helpless, the innocent and the repentant. Those She chooses as Her champions on this world are expected to take the abuse and deal with it. Fair enough. Someone has to. But She also expects us to know our limitations, and if I stayed in Andoran for much longer sooner or later I'd wind up giving in to the impulse to just punch some pompous ass whose only crime was being an ignorant twit, and that's a line I don't plan on crossing. I still love my home -- I think -- but right now it's probably best if we spend some time apart... "... and like I said at the start of this conversation, this is a place where my help is desperately needed, and best of all: Absolutely no one here knows who my father was, or cares." "What I can do? I'm a Paladin of Iomedae, and I wield Her righteous wrath in battle. I can hit a demon so hard its spawn-mother curls up in agony. I can smell out hellspawn and as well as mortal scum from twenty meters away. I can act as a conduit for Her grace and mercy as well to bolster my allies and banish evil. I am exactly what this Crusade needs more of -- and as ever, it is my Duty to be where I'm needed."
Dotting for interest while I sort through character ideas. Currently leaning towards Paladin in build, with tropes like Good Is Not Soft, Lawful Good(obviously) and a bit of Knight In Sour Armor looking at the way his/her backstory is gelling in the back of my head.
Ah well. Thank you for the opportunity to try, at least. To those of you who won, good luck with the game. To those of us who lost... There's always next time.
The works:
Nadira Female Half-Elf Ninja 1 CN Medium Humanoid (elf, human) Init +4; Senses low-light vision; Perception +7 -------------------- Defense -------------------- AC 16, touch 14, flat-footed 12 (+2 armor, +4 Dex) hp 8 (1d8) Fort +0, Ref +6, Will +2; +2 vs. enchantments Immune sleep; Resist elven immunities -------------------- Offense -------------------- Speed 30 ft. Melee Battle Poi +2 (1d4+1/x2) and . . Battle Poi +2 (1d4/x2) and . . Dagger +4 (1d4+1/19-20/x2) and . . Dagger +4 (1d4+1/19-20/x2) and . . Dart +4 (1d4+1/x2) Special Attacks sneak attack +1d6 -------------------- Statistics -------------------- Str 13, Dex 18, Con 10, Int 10, Wis 12, Cha 14 Base Atk +0; CMB +1; CMD 15 Feats Weapon Finesse Traits Earning Your Freedom (Will Save), Strip the Veils Skills Acrobatics +8, Bluff +6, Diplomacy +6, Disguise +6, Escape Artist +8, Perception +7, Perform (dance) +6, Sense Motive +6, Stealth +8 Languages Common, Elven SQ elf blood, poison use Other Gear Leather armor, Battle Poi, Battle Poi, Dagger, Dagger (3), Dart (5), 209 GP, 5 SP -------------------- Special Abilities -------------------- Elf Blood You are counted as both elven and human for any effect relating to race. Elven Immunities +2 save bonus vs Enchantments. Elven Immunities - Sleep You are immune to magic sleep effects. Low-Light Vision See twice as far as a human in low light, distinguishing color and detail. Poison Use You do not risk poisoning yourself accidentally while poisoning a weapon. Sneak Attack +1d6 +1d6 damage if you flank your target or your target is flat-footed. Hero Lab® and the Hero Lab logo are Registered Trademarks of LWD Technology, Inc. Free download at http://www.wolflair.com
Background:
Nadira does not blame her parents for any of it. That's important to remember. They made a mistake in trusting Crafty Mahoud, but they were hardly alone in that. The man could be very persuasive when he wanted to be, and his proposal certainly sounded lucrative enough -- and it was, right up until the other shoe dropped, the debts came due, and they suddenly discovered they owed Mahoud more than they could ever hope to own... Nadira still remembers the earnest, sympathetic look he gave her parents when he expressed his sympathies for how everything had gone wrong before regretfully informing them that he had other obligations to think of as well and he couldn't possibly forgive their debt -- and there was no point in granting an extension, because there was no way they could repay it even if they worked to it for the rest of their lives. But perhaps, he suggested, there might be an alternative way to pay him what he was owed. And then he looked at her, and smiled. Nadira learned the meaning of rage that night -- unbridled fury at the complete lack of fairness in the universe -- but there was nothing she could do. It wasn't even a choice for her parents either; if they refused, Mahoud could simply call in the debt and take them to court, which would strip them of all their possessions and send all three of them into debtor's slavery. There was nothing in the next few years that she particularly cares to remember; suffice it to say that Crafty Mahoud had exactly the kind of uses for a pretty young slave girl that you'd expect from a middle-aged man with a taste for vices. Nadira learned to obey when he called, to cultivate her inborn agility to near-supernatural grace, to dance when he ordered, to entertain whom he ordered... And to never, ever let on how much she hated him, burying her rage underneath the certainty that as long as she endured, she would have the chance to be there on the day he finally stepped on his own dagger. That day finally came three years later when Mahoud tried his craft on the wrong person and found himself imprisoned and his property confiscated before he ever realized the person he'd taken for an easy mark was a plant in the employ of the Pactmasters. While his final fate as a penniless prisoner gave Nadira a great deal of satisfaction, all it did for her was trade in one master for another. At least Farad had enough wives to attend to him already, and his tastes ran towards somewhat more mature women. He did, however, have a keen appreciation for the art of fire spinning, and he quickly discovered that Nadira had a talent for it. Then one evening as she was finishing up her performance, the caravan was attacked by raiders who'd managed to take out the guards undetected, and when one of them leered at her as he reached out to grab her by the veils something finally snapped. She doesn't recall what happened beyond a red haze settling over her vision and the realization that she was holding to burning torches at chain's length and she needed to hurt someone for everything that the universe had done to her... And by the time the haze lifted and she staggered to her knees in sudden exhaustion, two of the bandits were dead, a third was barely alive with third degree burns over most of his exposed skin, and the other two had dropped their weapons and fled. Farad realized he owed her his life -- and while he wasn't allowed to unilaterally set her free, he did know of a way in which she could earn her freedom. Nadira bristled internally at the need to 'earn' something that should never have been taken from her to begin with, but this was as close to fair as she was likely to get. It'd have to do.
Personality:
Nadira was a cheerful and optimistic thirteen-year-old, but very little of that survived the first year of her "service" to Mahoud. She learned how to fake a smile well enough to pass casual observation, but the only time in the past five years that she wore a truly honest smile was when she watched her former master being dragged off in chains. Still, she hasn't quite given up on the possibility that things might turn around; after all, her current situation is a marked improvement in almost all aspects. Aside from the whole being sent into an area overrun with gnoll raiders, that is, but hey - can't have everything. Mechanics:
Nadira Human Barbarian (Urban Barbarian) 1 CN Medium Humanoid (human) Init +4; Senses Perception +4 -------------------- Defense -------------------- AC 14, touch 14, flat-footed 10 (+4 Dex) hp 13 (1d12+1) Fort +3, Ref +4, Will +1 -------------------- Offense -------------------- Speed 30 ft. Melee Battle Poi +5 (1d4/x2) and . . Battle Poi +5 (1d4/x2) and . . Dagger +5 (1d4/19-20/x2) and . . Dagger +5 (1d4/19-20/x2) and . . Dart +5 (1d4/x2) Special Attacks rage (5 rounds/day) -------------------- Statistics -------------------- Str 10, Dex 18, Con 12, Int 12, Wis 11, Cha 14 Base Atk +1; CMB +1; CMD 15 Feats Exotic Weapon Proficiency (Battle Poi), Weapon Finesse Traits Earning Your Freedom (Will Save), Strip the Veils Skills Acrobatics +8, Bluff +3, Perception +4, Perform (dance) +3, Sense Motive +5, Stealth +5 Languages Common, Kelish SQ controlled rage, controlled rage: constitution, controlled rage: dexterity, crowd control Other Gear Leather armor, Battle Poi, Battle Poi, Dagger, Dagger (3), Dart (5), 149 GP, 5 SP -------------------- Special Abilities -------------------- Controlled Rage (Ex) May gain lesser bonus split as desired, but without normal drawbacks. Crowd Control (Ex) If 2+ foes adjacent, +1 to hit & AC. Unslowed by crowds & bonus to intimidate. Rage (5 rounds/day) (Ex) +4 Str, +4 Con, +2 to Will saves, -2 to AC when enraged. Hero Lab® and the Hero Lab logo are Registered Trademarks of LWD Technology, Inc. Free download at http://www.wolflair.com
Likewise dotting. Running ideas through my head, still trying to finalize what I'd like to do and how to fit it into the campaign. Reading up on the AP setting as I type.
Here's my submission: Hana, human ninja and former member of Lamm's Lambs -- and now that the scars have healed, she wants some payback.: The stats:
Hana
Female Human (Chelaxian) Ninja 1 CN Medium Humanoid (human) Init +3; Senses Perception +4 -------------------- Defense -------------------- AC 15, touch 13, flat-footed 12 (+2 armor, +3 Dex) hp 8 (1d8) Fort +0, Ref +6, Will +0 -------------------- Offense -------------------- Speed 30 ft. Melee Dagger +3 (1d4/19-20/x2) Ranged Shuriken +3 (1d2/x2) Special Attacks Sneak Attack +1d6 -------------------- Statistics -------------------- Str 10, Dex 17, Con 10, Int 13, Wis 10, Cha 14 Base Atk +0; CMB +0; CMD 13 Feats Two-weapon Fighting, Weapon Finesse Traits Holy Schemer, Unhappy Childhood (Tortured) Skills Acrobatics +7, Bluff +6, Climb +4, Disable Device +7, Disguise +6, Escape Artist +7, Perception +4, Perform (dance) +6, Sense Motive +5, Sleight of Hand +7, Stealth +7 Languages Common, Varisian SQ Poison Use Combat Gear Dagger (4), Leather armor, Shuriken (5); Other Gear Belt pouch (empty), Tanglefoot bag, Thieves' tools -------------------- Special Abilities -------------------- Poison Use You don't accidentally poison yourself with blades. Sneak Attack +1d6 +1d6 damage if you flank your target or your target is flat-footed. The Background:
Hana's mother did not survive giving birth to her, despite the healer's best -- and as her father discovered afterwards, prohibitively expensive -- efforts. Her father was given just enough time to name her before being sent to debtor's prison for being unable to pay the healer, and thus the Milk of Human Kindness' orphanage was given yet another mouth to feed.
She grew up as yet another unwanted child among many, and not a terribly obedient or respectful one either. The matron frequently had to admonish her and tell her how grateful Hana should be for how much worse it could have been. Then one day, it got worse -- her father died in an accident with his work crew while still in Debtor's Prison, and the stipend the orphanage drew from his 'pay' dried up. The matron spent quite some time savoring each word as she explained to the eight-year-old girl how the orphanage could no longer afford to waste its 'generosity' on an ungrateful, disrespectful girl when there were so many other children who would certainly appreciate it much more. 'Luckily', she knew of a man who had 'generously' decided to take her in and give her a chance to become a productive member of society... Sarcasm aside, Hana did live better under Lamm's 'care' than she had in the strict regimen of the orphanage. Lamm quickly discovered that her agility and quick fingers had the makings of a very talented pickpocket and burglar, and as long as she brought him his due, he didn't care what else she did... ... Until the day she slipped up and was almost caught while lifting a lady's precious gems. She got away and managed to shake off pursuit, but one of the guards had recognized her as one of Lamm's Lambs, and the Korvosan Guard was dispatched to search for her at his home. Lamm had managed to talk and bribe his way out of being accused of anything, as usual -- but by the time Hana arrived home empty-handed he was in a mood to set an example to all of his little lambs as to what happened when they let him down. Hana doesn't remember much of the beating that followed. She vaguely remembers begging him to stop, and the realization dawning that he wouldn't. She doesn't remember how she got away, either, but the priestess of Calistria that found a thirteen-year-old girl unconscious and on the brink of death in an alcove in the temple proper (despite the fact that the temple had supposedly been locked down for the night) insists that she only found one knife concealed in her clothes when she treated her injuries when Hana distinctly remembers never carrying less than two. Calistria, as a rule, isn't known for Her generosity either, but She does have a soft spot for those who hold vengeance in their hearts. And from her part, Hana found Calistria's honest selfishness a refreshing change from the orphanage's for-your-own-good hypocritical benevolence, and the concept of personal freedom appealed a great deal -- as did the notion of one day exacting suitable vengeance on Lamm... Nowadays she's still an excellent pickpocket and burglar, although since the temple doesn't really need the money she is more likely to be asked to recover embarrassing information or blackmail material. At eighteen, she recently became old enough to do service... And discovered with mixed feelings that Lamm never even recognized her -- rage because he obviously didn't even remember the girl he nearly beat to death, and delight because the lack of recognition will make revenge that much easier to carry out. Personality: Perhaps unsurprisingly, Hana doesn't have a very high opinion of laws -- as far as she's concerned, the law has never helped her when she needed it, so why should she care? -- or of people in general, with what few friends she has managed to make as strong exceptions.
In many ways she's a consummate Calistrian: Pretty, clever, and selfish... And nurturing dreams of the vengeance she'll mete out on old Lamm. Soon.
Right now, just dotting my interest; once I get home from work and have more time to think and finagle mechanics I'll write up a character proper...
SHUT UP AND TAKE MY MONEY. NOW. |