One of my PCs is a half-orc scout, who was discovered abandoned as an infant on Vanderboren lands outside Sasserine by the Vanderboren's gameskeeper, and was raised as his son. His true parentage remains a mystery, but we've just finished Lightless Depths, and the PCs are going to head back to Sasserine for a bit of networking, shopping, trading, etc, and it seems likely that the PC is going to want to use some of his new financial and magical resources to do a bit of research into his family.
Any ideas what I can do with this? How does a half-orc foundling end up in Sasserine? I'd kinda like to play with the stereotype and have his mother be the orc and his father human, but I'm not sure how to do this or how (if at all) I can tie it into the main plot. Could mum be one of the orcish captains of the Crimson Fleet maybe? What of dad, in that case?
Brainstorming and ideas greatly appreciated...
What if dad was an Olman?
Mother could have been a pirate sentenced to death. Historically a female pirate who was pregnant, could not be hanged.
What are you prepared to deal with, as far as the character's parentage?
If the father is an authority figure, and the PC starts poking around, asking questions the father doesn't want asked, that could bring some heat down on the PC/party.
Consider this: A young, aspiring wizard, son of a well-to-do family, goes off on a lark, joining an adventuring group and running off to gods-know-where. One of his companions is a half-orc or orc. Despite the differences between them, one bottle of rotgut later, they have a tryst. Being fertile, the orc bears a child, our PC.
The family, outraged by this bastard child, has the mother killed, and they send the father away to silence him. The assassin who murdered the PCs mother would not kill a child due to a personal code of honour ('No women, no kids. That's the rules.'). Instead, the infant is taken to Sasserine and dropped off at an orphanage in or near Sasserine.
The assassin could still be in the region for the PC to look up, eventually. The father could feel guilt over the actions of his family all those years ago. The family may still want the bastard child (our PC) dealt with, and could hire another assassin or just try to bribe the PC into not pursuing the matter any further.
It all depends on what you think you might want to deal with as the campaign progresses.
Cant go wrong with the Bard:
PCs parents (shall we use R&J?) were in love but both their families refused the relationship based on some fued. Carrying the relationship secretly had its dangers and the PC was soon to be. A priest helped to wed the two, to prevent the bastard birth and to hide the pregnancy from her family helped J fake her own death. R not knowing of the ruse, killed himself when he found out she was dead. When she comes out of confinement J discovers R's death and kills herself. Preist takes the baby to safety.
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