I'm playing through RotRL; my PC started as a Quickling Faen (from Monte Cook's Arcana Evolved, used in this campaign as a stand-in for the PF gnome) with the intention of eventually metamorphosing into a Spryte (used in this campaign as a stand-in for the PF lyrakien). Having just completed Burnt Offerings however I'm getting the impression that the campaign (with module titles like "Skinsaw Murders" and "Hook Mountain Massacre" is rather urbane, gritty and grim, and decidedly not fey in tone. Now I'm wondering whether pursuing a fey-themed PC is a good idea or not.
If I were to drop the notion of transforming into a spryte I'd simply retool my PC to make it a by-the-book PF gnome. I'm looking for opinions from those who are more familiar with the overall campaign than I am with my limited player perspective. So, gnome or spryte?
Thanks for the reply; spoiler free opinions is all I'm looking for. So there are certain places that a fey PC would work but, if you catch my meaning, are such instances common enough to make it worthwhile? Do the instances in which a fey PC wouldn't be appropriate outnumber the former significantly?
I'm not familiar with the Quickling Faen, and I do not wish to spoil further adventures, but there are certainly places in RotRL related to fey, or where a fey character would be useful.
I'm running it now, and the party's primary NPC is, in fact a fey, and another party member is courting one, so there's plenty of room for fey interaction and storylines in the Adventure Path.
I'm running it now, and the party's primary NPC is, in fact a fey, and another party member is courting one, so there's plenty of room for fey interaction and storylines in the Adventure Path.
Does the fey NPC accompany the party openly into urban areas such as Sandpoint of Magnimar? If so, how do the NPCs react to such a creature in their midst?
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Rise of the Runelords is dark Adventure Path, and almost obsessively gross. Take the movies Se7en, Deliverance, The Devil's Advocate, Perfume, Lair of the White Worm, Pan's Labrynth and The Name of the Rose - then grind them all together, form them into blood sausage and pour a little Cthulu sauce over the whole mess.
Expect magical treasures of serrated swords, shaving razors, meathooks and flanged spears.
It's a fun AP, but a fey character might start to feel like they're wearing silver hotpants in an abattoir.
It's a fun AP, but a fey character might start to feel like they're wearing silver hotpants in an abattoir.
LOL. I had a sneaking suspicion that the AP would come up short in the dreams, starlight and laughter departments. Sounds like it might be a fun playground for an unseelie fey, but your summation tells me that the AP would crush all the dreams and innocence out of even the most resilient of sprites.
I'm also currently running the AP for my group.
My initial reaction is that a Fey in this AP would be a bit out of place. If you have your heart set on playing one, you certainly can make it work. However, There's decidedly few areas and chances to be skipping about in the outdoors cavorting with wildlife and being generally care-free on a regular basis.
Most of the AP is indoors, underground, or in structures. Urban areas also are predominant. There are stretches of wilderness, but for the most part they are short stretches before you dive right back into one of the above. And as said above, you'll definitely be coming across morbid, gross, and gory situations early in the AP, and the general mood is oppressive and mysterious.
It's a fun AP, but a fey character might start to feel like they're wearing silver hotpants in an abattoir.LOL. I had a sneaking suspicion that the AP would come up short in the dreams, starlight and laughter departments. Sounds like it might be a fun playground for an unseelie fey, but your summation tells me that the AP would crush all the dreams and innocence out of even the most resilient of sprites.
Actually, there is a lot of dark humor in this AP, and a lot of room for some happiness too. It depends on the party.
However, there are some VERY grim scenarios...
But then again, we have singing goblins and happy-fun ogres.
I'm sure they would love to play Mig-A-Mug-Tug with your fey...
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A fey PC it's really up to the DM and you whether or not it's gonna work. In my version a fey PC would be very out of place, just ask the pixie PC we had join at level 6, but then again treasure gotten in the adventure (hat of disguise) makes it almost a non-issue as she just goes disguised into town. Now the gruesome sights of some modules are pretty harsh, but they are also encouragement for a character like that. My PC went through one place claiming how she hated the enemies they were after and couldn't wait to finish because she was done with them a while ago. I'd go for it if I were you, but really the setting questions are more appropriate for your DM to answer.
I'd go for it if I were you, but really the setting questions are more appropriate for your DM to answer.
I agree on this. If I were the DM and you really wanted to play a spryte, I'd try to accomodate to a degree. I'm also a fan of the races from Arcana Unearthed.
I'd also wonder what exactly you were looking to do. If you're looking to interact with a lot of fey-type creatures, this probably isn't the best AP for that character. If you're willing to be a contributing party member in a struggle against evil, then go for it.
I'm running it now, and the party's primary NPC is, in fact a fey, and another party member is courting one, so there's plenty of room for fey interaction and storylines in the Adventure Path.Does the fey NPC accompany the party openly into urban areas such as Sandpoint of Magnimar? If so, how do the NPCs react to such a creature in their midst?
The NPC utilizes a Hat of Disguise to avoid the worst of the 'pointed fingers and whispers' issues, and hasn't really caused a problem (in that regard, anyway). She's amused by the whole 'sneaking' idea, and smart enough to realize that she doesn't want to give anyone a reason to scream and start swinging a sword just because leaves fall out off her hair when she combs it, or her hair, eyes, and complexion change color with the seasons.
She's really far more likely to create an issue by simply talking - she lacks virtually anything resembling the 'filters' that humans have regarding what to say or not say to a given individual in a given situation.
Having just completed Burnt Offerings however I'm getting the impression that the campaign (with module titles like "Skinsaw Murders" and "Hook Mountain Massacre" is rather urbane, gritty and grim, and decidedly not fey in tone. Now I'm wondering whether pursuing a fey-themed PC is a good idea or not.
It depends on how you and your GM view "fey."
Actually, Rise of the Runelords draws a lot of inspiration from the "classic" faerie tales (i.e., the Brothers Grimm, European myth, etc.). Most "real" faerie tales have dark elements/themes and the fey themselves are often capricious and dangerous even if they're not actively malevolent.
As others have said, there's certainly room for fey in the RotRL AP.
You mentioned, however, that the faen was substituted for gnomes. Is this a change in your GM's Golarion or merely a game-equivalent substitution?
If the former, than while perhaps uncommon on the streets of Magnimar & Sandpoint, would not be viewed as alien & otherwordly as perhaps a dryad might be viewed.
If, however, the faen are treated as true fey that do not typically interract with civilization, then yeah, you're going to be stuck with the fish-out-of-water syndrome in certain parts of the AP.