Should I approve this player's backstory?

[Sitrein]

I told all of my players that I want to approve their characters before play, mostly as a formality

However, one player who decided to read the Inner Sea World Guide stuff wanted to play a Dhampir Rogue who's birth was engineered by the Whispering Way. He doesn't know this and is a worshiper of Pharasma but, given the WW's involvement in the game, that could be a bit... well...

It also has the potential to really tie the character to the story nicely which could be good but the problem is that I have only read HoHS so I have no idea how it could effect the other 5 parts.

Please let me know what you guys think. Thanks! =)

[The_E]

This seems like a good idea to me. One thing Carrion Crown lacks, at least in its early installments, is a concrete link between the PCs and the big bads of the Whispering Way; this gives you a plot hook to have Adrissant and Vrood be known to the players much easier and more elegantly.

[Sitrein]

The_E wrote:

This seems like a good idea to me. One thing Carrion Crown lacks, at least in its early installments, is a concrete link between the PCs and the big bads of the Whispering Way; this gives you a plot hook to have Adrissant and Vrood be known to the players much easier and more elegantly.

I don't think he would know that his birth was engineered by the WW, though, so I'm not sure how much it would really help in character until there would be some sort of big reveal. Just not sure how all that would tie in with the other 5 modules of this AP since I haven't read them yet >.<

Would it throw a wrench into anything? Would it be something that I could tie in as we get ready to tackle the other APs and not have it feel out of place, weird, or forced?

[Icyshadow]

Never think of a player's backstory as a wrench thrown to your plan.

If you ask me, a good DM should see it as a tool to weave more into the plot.

[Sitrein]

Icyshadow wrote:

Never think of a player's backstory as a wrench thrown to your plan.

If you ask me, a good DM should see it as a tool to weave more into the plot.

Yeah, you're probably right. This is just my first time dming pathfinder so it's mostly just me worrying that I'm very much /not/ a good dm D= Regardless, I really should be able to work with it. It can't be too much trouble. Besides, the WW has no central leadership or anything so Adrissant or Vrood may very well have not had anything to do with this players birth.

[Icyshadow]

I'm curious as to how much time you have to plan it out.

Anyway, don't worry too much. I'm wishing you the best of luck! :D

[CaptainJandor]

yeah I wouldn't stress over it, it sounds cool!

when we ran it, we had a player who was a dhampir. didn't come up much (aside from having to be careful with healing bursts :P), but:

Spoiler:

when we got to the last book, during the final fight, our GM had the character making saves ... when she failed, she turned into a full vampire (the overwhelming necromantic energy of the place did the trick). then, she was making will saves each round to resist the urge to hunger. it gave some drama to what was otherwise a bit of a curb stomp (which tends to happen when you dimension door to the top of the tower and ignore, like, all of the badguys that are supposed to soften you up first).

you could do something similar, but at almost any point where the PCs encounter the big bads (like the end of Book 3 for example). as long as either a) the player wants to retire the character or b) there's a way to reverse it.

[Redneckdevil]

Easy way without spoiling much.
He is an experiment that they "lost". The purpose of them engineering him was so that they could bypass kidnapping a person in book 5 so thatbthey didn't havevto rile up a certain group of individuals. Have vrood reconize him and have some dialogue pertaining to experiemnts and maybe the prodical son coming home etc etc.
It can add some tension in book 6 when the party feels like they stopped the process by rescuing a certain someone, only for it to he short lived as they can use ur dhampir instead. U could play it up as the dhampir even getting captured and the end boss becoming even more powerful if ur grp is curbstomping their way thru.

U could have it as the nonundead side of the dhampir is the recreation of the actual peraon they needing genes from. Like he's basically a clone etc etc.

I would definitly agree to it but I wouldn't make any moves in the story yet until u have read all 6 of them. Could work quite nicely.

[ThatEvilGuy]

Spoiler:

There is a certain person that needs to be captured by the Whispering Way to complete their big bad ritual. If his birth was engineered by the cult, and then he was subsequently lost/off their radar for whatever reason (no coffee--creativity ebbing; perhaps one had a change of heart and couldn't bare to have this innocent child be groomed for such a destiny so s/he used his/her great magical skills to bamf away with the kid, change their identity and evade the cult until now, unbeknownst to the player of course), he could potentially be the candidate for the ritual they're looking for, they just don't realize it's him until late in the adventure.

Or, more appropriately, one of the candidates for the ritual since, if he croaks, well, it's pretty anticlimactic unless they dig him up and rez him, which would make for a pretty interesting situation later on. The party breaks into the cultists hideout, expecting someone else and there's a former companion of theirs.

[captain yesterday]

Redneckdevil wrote:

Easy way without spoiling much.

He is an experiment that they "lost". The purpose of them engineering him was so that they could bypass kidnapping a person in book 5 so thatbthey didn't havevto rile up a certain group of individuals. Have vrood reconize him and have some dialogue pertaining to experiemnts and maybe the prodical son coming home etc etc.
It can add some tension in book 6 when the party feels like they stopped the process by rescuing a certain someone, only for it to he short lived as they can use ur dhampir instead. U could play it up as the dhampir even getting captured and the end boss becoming even more powerful if ur grp is curbstomping their way thru.

U could have it as the nonundead side of the dhampir is the recreation of the actual peraon they needing genes from. Like he's basically a clone etc etc.

I would definitly agree to it but I wouldn't make any moves in the story yet until u have read all 6 of them. Could work quite nicely.

I have no comment, just love the name:) a bit disappointed you don't have a devil as your avatar tho:) still good stuff

[Yossarin]

An absolutely good background, GM. Be sure to scan through Books 5 and 6 of this AP, especially 5, which will give you some insight into Ustalav's vampiric traditions.

[Rakshaka]

Spoilery Stuff:

The Dhampir in our group has had repeated dreams of the Vampiric Inquisiton that took place when the agents of The Tyrant tried to bring the vampires under their heel (Malyas). I also have had Ramoska Arkminos make an early appearance in Lepistatd, trading some of the Dhampir's blood for a few much-needed potions of Inflict Light Wounds. I plan on having him be related to one of the Vampiric Inquisitors of old, which should bring some pretty interesting role-playing and history-giving to the encounters with the Vampires in 'Ashes at Dawn'.
'Ashes at Dawn' does mention the possibility of Vampire PCs by the end, so I don't think it would be too unbalancing to become a Vampire (at least after book 5). Afterall, unless he's taking his coffin with him everywhere, the ability to survive by going gaseous isn't going to work if he can't get to his coffin in time. I'd say roll with it.

[Fjuri]

Spoiler:

You can use the party as a back up for Vrood... I will be introducing AA in the first module and then have him ask the players to go after the killers of Lorrimor. A way to ensure Vroods mess is cleaned up by people he knows (and can eliminate when wanted). Combine that with the other idea’s posted around here and you’ll get a very immersing story. AA wants his sacrifice for the whispering tyrant to have a fighting chance, giving him the possibility to know about what lies ahead while at the same time ensuring nobody else is on the job of stopping him.