I've seen a few different ways of portraying Pathfinder sorcerers, and with their bloodlines at high levels they may differ from your standard race by as much as a half-whatever template.
If you play a sorcerer, does your character bear any physical marks of this mystical evolution? Does the awakening bloodline bring about dramatic changes or is it all internal? This is not a rules question at all, but one of style.
I'd like to get ideas of how people like to play the appearance of their sorcerers as they develop powers.
I'm playing a starsoul sorcerer right now, and though his bloodline is reflected in his appearance in subtle ways, he mostly appears human. When his latent sorcerous talent manifested, his eyes changed to a brilliant shade of blue that's practically unheard of in Varisians, but beyond that he seems normal.
I try to achieve the flavor of his bloodline through the form his spells take. His mage armor spell creates hundreds of little lights that surround him and move to intercept blows, and his color spray fires out arcing tendrils of light that might be reminiscent of a distant supernova.
It depends on the blood line but its almost unnoticeable at first level. Fifth level its like thats a little weird. Then its like Woah man what is that? at tenth. Then at fifteenth its like I dont even know you anymore. At twentieth level I have no friends because everyone judges based on physical appearance....
Draconic (red)
1st - slightly slitted pupils with red eyelids
5th - teeth become more jagged, deeper voice, longer sharper nails
10th - small randome spines and small patchs of red-tinted skin that resembles scales
15th - large patches of scales full red glowing eyes
20th - RAWR! Im a monster!
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Not that it is a reflection of her bloodline, she's a Dreamspun, but her eyes are gold with orange flecks. When she cast fire spells the orange flares flares brightly like embers lighting flame. I describe her spells as manifesting in her dreams first, i.e. she dreams about fire alot, and if she were to have dreams about flying it would mean I would select Fly as spell.(she's only 3rd level so she hasn't got there yet.)
Not that it is a reflection of her bloodline, she's a Dreamspun, but her eyes are gold with orange flecks. When she cast fire spells the orange flares flares brightly like embers lighting flame. I describe her spells as manifesting in her dreams first, i.e. she dreams about fire alot, and if she were to have dreams about flying it would mean I would select Fly as spell.(she's only 3rd level so she hasn't got there yet.)
Thats actually a cool take on dreamspun, you dream it you do it. Kinda cliche haha but I totally dig it.
I'm generally in favor of having a sorcerer's bloodline impact their appearance in a visible but minimal way. I think it ought to be enough to make them look a little weird or cultivate an air of mystery, but even at 20th level they should be visibly human (or demihuman). I think that their bloodline should subtly influence the visual of their spells - and especially of their special abilities.
I'm generally in favor of having a sorcerer's bloodline impact their appearance in a visible but minimal way. I think it ought to be enough to make them look a little weird or cultivate an air of mystery, but even at 20th level they should be visibly human (or demihuman). I think that their bloodline should subtly influence the visual of their spells - and especially of their special abilities.
I agree, but the permanent class abilities that take place should by definition make you look nothing like a human for some bloodlines.
Some grant you wings and immunities. Hell I think Aberrative lets you resist criticals and other crazy stuff. Doesnt sound terribly human to me but YMMV
I think the aberrant bloodline should be really creepy once you start to scratch its surface. They appear more or less human on the outside, but if they take a nasty hit or something, you might notice that none of their organs are in the right place or that they're growing vestigial eyes.
I think the aberrant bloodline should be really creepy once you start to scratch its surface. They appear more or less human on the outside, but if they take a nasty hit or something, you might notice that none of their organs are in the right place or that they're growing vestigial eyes.
ew.
I think the aberrant bloodline should be really creepy once you start to scratch its surface. They appear more or less human on the outside, but if they take a nasty hit or something, you might notice that none of their organs are in the right place or that they're growing vestigial eyes.
I think I remember someone on this board mentioning their abberant sorcerer grew tentacles to represent the long limbs power.
A high level Infernal sorcerer I made, Ashley Chandler, normally just appears as a stunningly beautiful pale brunette half-elf. When he uses his bloodline powers, however, his fiendish taint shows - the taint of the beautiful Erinyes, shown through his near-angelic features and large, feathery black wings.
Also, he's a total bastard, just to be clear.
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I just created a char for a PbP game thats starting tomorrow. hes a Varisian Sorcer with the Arcane Bloodline. I hadnt considered how to mention the bloodline manifesting in his physicaly appearance, and maybe arcane is bland for that, but it sounds pretty cool.
Anyone got suggestions for what to do to him, lol?
I just created a char for a PbP game thats starting tomorrow. hes a Varisian Sorcer with the Arcane Bloodline. I hadnt considered how to mention the bloodline manifesting in his physicaly appearance, and maybe arcane is bland for that, but it sounds pretty cool.
Anyone got suggestions for what to do to him, lol?
radiating magical energies. Maybe with whatever school is his favorite/energy type.
A force sorceror might just have random manifestations of force when he was younger, perhaps some bullies got to close... but I would say raw magic power is kinda what he should "look like" but that is tough to put an image on so its really your call/dm call.
Eyes are a great starting point for subtle traits. Runic symbols circling the irises?
Arcane may sound bland but you can do a lot with it. If you have played any of the Fable series, that could be an example of an arcane bloodline. As power grows, more lines of magical energy and mystical writings manifest on the body. They become brighter and more elaborate as the spells you learn are written on your skin.
Treat the arcane bloodline like you're a living spellbook. :D
I personally think the tale-tell signs should be subtle and relatively easy to conceal unless the character is doing something like dragon disciple.
However when they are actively using their magic or bloodline abilities then the various special fx tied to the bloodline should be readily apparent. Power Animas, bestial/angelic features, etc should all make it very clear to the viewer that this isn't your average wizard but is instead some sort of sorcerous abomination.
However if a player wants their bloodline to be less subtle I'm okay with that. However I typically have a fair amount of social discrimination vs weird looking characters and obvious arcane casters especially in small provincial communities so a tiefling sorcerer with the abyssal bloodline is probably going to want to wear heavy clothing and a hood ;)
A high level Infernal sorcerer I made, Ashley Chandler, normally just appears as a stunningly beautiful pale brunette half-elf. When he uses his bloodline powers, however, his fiendish taint shows - the taint of the beautiful Erinyes, shown through his near-angelic features and large, feathery black wings.
Also, he's a total bastard, just to be clear.
I'm playing an Infernal, as well, who is physically based off of David Bowie. His hair features two small white streaks just above his temples. As he gains levels, they will extend further backwards, and will seem more and more like devilish horns. He also has a huge birthmark on his chest that pretty much screams "Hi, I'm a Satanist! Ask me how!"
He isn't one, of course, but his birthmark doesn't care.
A high level Infernal sorcerer I made, Ashley Chandler, normally just appears as a stunningly beautiful pale brunette half-elf. When he uses his bloodline powers, however, his fiendish taint shows - the taint of the beautiful Erinyes, shown through his near-angelic features and large, feathery black wings.
Also, he's a total bastard, just to be clear.
I'm playing an Infernal, as well, who is physically based off of David Bowie. His hair features two small white streaks just above his temples. As he gains levels, they will extend further backwards, and will seem more and more like devilish horns. He also has a huge birthmark on his chest that pretty much screams "Hi, I'm a Satanist! Ask me how!"
He isn't one, of course, but his birthmark doesn't care.
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Eyes are a great starting point for subtle traits. Runic symbols circling the irises?
Arcane may sound bland but you can do a lot with it. If you have played any of the Fable series, that could be an example of an arcane bloodline. As power grows, more lines of magical energy and mystical writings manifest on the body. They become brighter and more elaborate as the spells you learn are written on your skin.
Treat the arcane bloodline like you're a living spellbook. :D
I like the runic irises idea. I had been thinking about something with the runes. I chose to take a platinum ring as his focus item, so I think I'll have it start with the eyes, as thats just pretty dang cool, and then, as he levels, a sort of runic tatoo starts spreading from the ring and gradually starts to cover his body.
I like the runic irises idea. I had been thinking about something with the runes. I chose to take a platinum ring as his focus item, so I think I'll have it start with the eyes, as thats just pretty dang cool, and then, as he levels, a sort of runic tatoo starts spreading from the ring and gradually starts to cover his body.
Off topic, but you know bonded object does pretty much nothing for a sorcerer, right? D:
It lets them cast a free spell per day and enhance said item as if they had the appropriate item creation feat. Admittedly it's less useful for sorcerers than for wizards, since that extra spell must be drawn from those they already know.
Sorcerers don't get free item creation feats, so that's probably a part of the allure.
I've been playing a fey-blooded sorceress that is quite frustrated with her 'stupid sparkly fairy blood', as it's often called. :P
It's hard to be dark and terrifying when you leave a trail of cheerful flowers everywhere you go.
(that's just treated as prestidigitation; creating minor mundane objects of no use that last one hour)
Well playing an undead bloodline gives you an easy out, your deadish looking, people know what you are at that point
I've got a half-elven sorcerer NPC with the elemental (fire) bloodline that I run for my RotRL game.
Her bloodline first started manifesting with little things like flashes of arcane fire in her eyes and being a bit warmer to the touch than other people. In her mid levels she started to have the odd flicker of flames in her hair. Now that she's high level, her hair's completely changed from raven black to a fiery red, and gets the occasional 'heat shimmer' coming off of her body or a spark of fire briefly appearing in her hands when she's in a fight (or otherwise agitated).
Pretty standard stuff, to be sure - but it's always fun to watch my PCs back away from her when the air suddenly warms up... ;D
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"Bringing Big D**n Justice to the Bad Guys Since 1369 DR"
I plan on bringing in an Elven Verdant Bloodline sorcerer for our FR campaign.
Since he is starting at a higher level, I'll just skip the whole transformation, and have people mistake him for a crossover from they Fey world.
I plan to visually just have its hair being made of vines and tipped with leaves, and it's skin to have rings like bark that harden and darken when casting spells. Occasionally he will be able to turn his arm into a wooden whip-like tendril and trip people from range.
I'm playing a starsoul sorcerer right now, and though his bloodline is reflected in his appearance in subtle ways, he mostly appears human. When his latent sorcerous talent manifested, his eyes changed to a brilliant shade of blue that's practically unheard of in Varisians, but beyond that he seems normal.
I try to achieve the flavor of his bloodline through the form his spells take. His mage armor spell creates hundreds of little lights that surround him and move to intercept blows, and his color spray fires out arcing tendrils of light that might be reminiscent of a distant supernova.
That sounds like a great way to show a sorcerer's bloodline to me; sorcerer spellcasting should work differently from wizards IMHO.
In a PbP here I play an Air elemental Sorceress..her signature is that a slight breeze seems to ruffle her hair even when indoors..off course it can't be felt by anyone..When angry the breeze seems to grow stronger whipping her hair around.Little tendrils of electricity also run through it ocassionally
As she gains power I expect the invisible winds will grow stronger and the electrical discharges will become a full nimbus..no game effect off course just purely for show..
I must the only one playing a Celestial Sorcerer. No effects so far at Sixth Level, but when he runs out of spells I'm playing the Heavenly Fire ability as a horizontal Flame Strike to explain the good/neutral/evil effects. People are far more likely to notice his full-arm Varisian Tattoo for the Conjuration bonus.
He'll be far more exotic once the Wings of Heaven ability comes into play at 9th level. I'll have to start wearing looser shirts.
This is one place where sorcerer bloodlines - my favorite new part of Pathfinder from 3.5 - disappointed me. I really like playing up the idea of "sorcerers as mutations/freaks" and having a bloodline that changes them physically is a great way to do that.
Still, the existing bloodlines usually tend to have some physical changes in them somewhere, so it's not a total loss on that front.
To be honest, I'm glad they didn't put that down in detailed rules. Sorcerers are very much individuals, and some of the bloodlines are even fairly broad. I doubt two abyssal sorcerers would show the same trait. Or two fey sorcerers. Or two abherrant sorcerers especially.
It's your character - just be creative with it, and if you have any ideas that are really out there, run them by your GM first if you want to be on the safe side.
This is one place where sorcerer bloodlines - my favorite new part of Pathfinder from 3.5 - disappointed me. I really like playing up the idea of "sorcerers as mutations/freaks" and having a bloodline that changes them physically is a great way to do that.
Still, the existing bloodlines usually tend to have some physical changes in them somewhere, so it's not a total loss on that front.
To be honest, I'm glad they didn't put that down in detailed rules. Sorcerers are very much individuals, and some of the bloodlines are even fairly broad. I doubt two abyssal sorcerers would show the same trait. Or two fey sorcerers. Or two abherrant sorcerers especially.
It's your character - just be creative with it, and if you have any ideas that are really out there, run them by your GM first if you want to be on the safe side.
+1
Let your imagination run riot, we don't need rules for everything
I got an Arcane bloodline Sorcerer. Since I also chose to create him with a Strength of 6 ( 7 naturally, age category middle age ), my take on it is that the arcane magic which flows through him is eating away at him, which is why he can build up barely any muscle mass. He also has to eat almost twice what other people eat per day.
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I love the idea of an aberrant bloodline sorcerer's arms erupting into masses of tentacles permanently upon hitting a specific level, both for the visual and the reaction of the character.
"OH @#$% OH @#$% OH @#$%"
"Gaeryn, you okay in there?"
"Uh....fine...just fine!"
Kind of want to play one now.
Not to mention awkward urges when visiting the Acadamae.
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Simply saying that I wish some small aspect of the game had been addressed that wasn't doesn't mean I want detailed rules for it.I'd have been happy if they'd simply listed some broad possibilities for what different bloodlines made a sorcerer look like - noting that those were only examples, and other physical changes were possible.
But, they (sorta) did.
- Celestial, Infernal, Draconic - You can grow wings.
- Draconic, Abyssal - You can grow claws.
- Undead - You start to rot.
- Aquatic - You grow fine, slippery scales.
- Deep Earth - Your flesh becomes as hard as stone.
- Aberrant - Your body becomes truly unnatural. It's an aberration; go nuts.
- Deep Earth, Orc, Protean, Fey, Shadow - All of these mention either an emotion manifestation that ought to be license to play up, or some other intangible quality to your character.
Plus you can't disregard the fact that a) some people think Charisma = Appearance and they don't want their Sorcerer with a Charisma in the mid-20s to look "strange" and b) some people would read a suggestion that the bloodlines can physically change a sorcerer's appearance and immediately take it as gospel and then they would feel the need to annoy others with this "fact".
Not every instance of a fan saying "I wish Paizo had done X" needs to be answered with "you're not being creative enough" and "we don't need rules for everything" from other fans.
It's the internet, sometimes you type something and go "Ah, nobody can possibly take this the wrong way" and within minutes somebody takes it the wrong way due to a lack of tone, body language, inflection, etc...
Plus you can't disregard the fact that a) some people think Charisma = Appearance and they don't want their Sorcerer with a Charisma in the mid-20s to look "strange" and b) some people would read a suggestion that the bloodlines can physically change a sorcerer's appearance and immediately take it as gospel and then they would feel the need to annoy others with this "fact".
I agree that a high Charisma doesn't necessarily mean your character has to "pretty," per se, it just means that your character can interact well with others. This can mean any number of things - perhaps he might get his way because he looks good or be particularly reasonable (Diplomacy), or maybe he just looks right out frightening or has the tendency to convincingly threaten others (Intimidate). He could be as ugly as a rock, but he could still be a damn good pretender (Bluff and Disguise). Heck, it could just refer to his ability to impress others with his talent (Perform).
The Core book does indeed give you a general guideline of what your character resembles with their bloodline - like anything else, the specifics regarding appearance are really up to you.
Not to mention awkward urges when visiting the Acadamae.
I lol'd. XD Excellent timing.
I didn't play one, but I had planned to create a boreal sorcerer who was, for reasons unknown to him, obsessed with winter and snow. He would start out with an odd fascination with snow fall, sitting in it for as long as he could. Long term he would be trying to carve out his own frozen kingdom, gripped by an eternal winter. Sounds evil right? Nah. Good guy, just a little nutters.
Cliche white hair, icy blue eyes. Considered a case of argyria as he leveled. Wanted him to make a crown of ice, and announce himself as the future ruler of [insert name of wintery kingdom here; I didn't get that far].
I went with a silver-tongued rogue-merchant instead.
SO
How would a protean sorcerer likely Show his Protean Heritage.
SO
How would a protean sorcerer likely Show his Protean Heritage.
Crazy teeth and hair?
An ever-changing sigil above his forehead?
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I had an abberrant sorceror. I had purpilish skin and a small horn growing from my head. The DM refused to allowed me only one eye. they made me re-roll when the found out the reference. I guess no one likes cheesy 80's movies.
If I had gotten high enough for fly, I would have sand the movie's theme song, in game.
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How would a protean sorcerer likely Show his Protean Heritage.
Roll on a random chart every morning. Not just hair and eyes, but maybe skin color, height, weight, tattoos that move and change shape/color...
Arcane Bloodline might be visible chakra/chi/arcane lines, which glow with an eldritch flare when casting spells.
Fey bloodline can be seelie court or unseelie court.
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As power grows, more lines of magical energy and mystical writings manifest on the body. They become brighter and more elaborate as the spells you learn are written on your skin.
Treat the arcane bloodline like you're a living spellbook. :D
That's hawt! I like the visual a lot. As you cast spells, the letters and diagrams flow along your body, rippling across your skin, until they spiral down your wrists and fly off of your hands in glittering patterns of ink as the spell is cast. (For spells with a flashy visible effect, anyway. Having your detect thoughts spell result in flying inky letters all over the place would detract from subtler uses of it...)
Arcane doesn't always mean 'magical,' it can also mean 'strange,' so perhaps the arcane sorcerer is a bit off-putting, having a presence that is not only striking to humans, but also to animals. Horses shy away, until they've gotten used to him, cat's arch their backs and raise their hackles, dogs bark, and non-swarm non-monster insects (flies, mosquitos, etc.) scuttle away, or avoid landing on his skin.
Weak prestidigitation type effects might occur in his presence, even when he isn't deliberately using that cantrip. He'll walk into a barroom, and the candles will flare up or the hearth-fire will emit an ominous crack and spit some sparks into the air. His hair or robes might be ruffled by non-existent winds. The GM would be the one to mention these occurences, they wouldn't be under the player's control (unless he's actually cast prestidigitation, in which case he controls the manifestations as normal for that spell, and, while a wizard casts the spell, he's actually using the power of the spell to seize control of the otherwise uncontrolled arcane effects that occur in his presence!).
If a specific race of men was (in)famous for magical arts, such as Golarion's Azlanti or the Realms Netherese, he might have physical features reminiscent of that vanished culture, even perhaps odd ones, such as the skull-manipulations of the Vril, from Sunken Empires, who would deform the skulls of their children with special helmets worn during childhood, to reshape their brains and afford them advanced mental abilities. (Give the arcane sorcerer the elongated square-topped skull seen on Karzoug, for instance.)
Or it could be something simpler and less flambouyant. Perhaps the ancient magisters had 'eyes as black as ink, that drank in the light, the way their masters drank in ancient lore.' Solid black eyes might be a setting-appropriate way to represent those with an arcane bloodline. (Or being born with permanantly ink-stained hands and yellowed skin that increasingly smells like old parchment.)
A quirkier option would be to have the arcane sorcerer with an animal familiar increasingly take on aspects of his familiars race. As his cat becomes more human-like in intelligence, he becomes more prone to cat-like behaviors, and even begins to develop some cat-like features, like cat's eyes, or pronounced canines, or twitchy ears or a brushy moustache that sometimes rises like whiskers when startled. One with a raven familiar might tilt her head to look at something, see her hair turn raven-black, and repeat words spoken to her before she replies in a conversation.
Weak prestidigitation type effects might occur in his presence, even when he isn't deliberately using that cantrip. He'll walk into a barroom, and the candles will flare up or the hearth-fire will emit an ominous crack and spit some sparks into the air. His hair or robes might be ruffled by non-existent winds. The GM would be the one to mention these occurences, they wouldn't be under the player's control (unless he's actually cast prestidigitation, in which case he controls the manifestations as normal for that spell, and, while a wizard casts the spell, he's actually using the power of the spell to seize control of the otherwise uncontrolled arcane effects that occur in his presence!).
That's the kind of thing I use for a rough guideline on what's appropriate for minor magical effects. Prestidigitation is unlimited and free, after all.
My fey sorceress leaves trails of flowers (they disappear after an hour), which annoys her quite considerably. She's been trying to cultivate a magnificent and terrible dark sorceress image but the sparkly fairy stuff throws it off. :P