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So, I've seen a few threads popping up where the topic of reflavoring has come up. That is, describing the way your character's abilities work in a different way than they are described in the books.
I personally am a big fan of doing things like this, because it helps make a character your own. What are some of the ways you've changed the way abilities look?
I'll start. I was in a Wrath of the Righteous play-by-post campaign that didn't get too far. My character, Samuel, was kidnapped by a demonic cult when he was young who wanted to imbue him with evil magic to make him a sleeper agent in the Worldwound Crusade. At the last minute, he was rescued, though the demonic taint was still fused to his soul. To counteract it, he was tatooed with the holy symbols of several good gods that helped to purify it. He eventually began to draw upon this purified magic to help bolster his combat abilities.
Mechanically, he was a Barbarian with the Urban Barbarian and Invulnerable Rager archetypes. His "Controlled Rage" ability was not him getting angry, but rather him drawing upon the magic that the ritual had imbued him with. If the campaign had continued, I would have continued taking the more supernatural rage powers that a Barbarian got to represent this.
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I added just a touch of Ginger and Clove to my grandma's French Toast Recipe
Mmm, super good :-)
It's really good! Just a touch tho, doesn't take much :-)
"A tall, wiry human stands before, dressed in mail and wielding a massive sword. Across his back is slung a longbow and quiver. Scars run across exposed skin, from countless battles and traps he just managed to escape. Though no magic appears on his person, he gives you a look of determination, as if daring you to come at him. Then, he grins and asks, "You looking for a sellsword? I'm your man."
I give you the slayer, the classic adventurer.
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Those who know Bleach will perhaps get this reference:
1) I had a witch that used a method called: Hundred Bindings. Everytime she will cast a curse to someone she will say for example ''Way of Binding Nr. 42: *insert dramatic title here* ''. That allowed me to be very creative with names and describing the misfortune and evil eye hex.
The bindings 90-95 were the death bindings which she used on a successful slumber hex (rarely).
Like: Way of Bindings Nr. 92: Earthmother's Betrayal, where a tomb rose from the back of the enemy and bound him with roots to the tomb giving him the same helpless condition as the slumber hex. It needs some discussion with the DM but it allowed for some very dramatic scenes.
The last 5 Bindings were not used often, and they represented super powerful spells that usually had a devastating aoe effect.
2) A big-sized fortune teller-like woman (wizard/fighter/eldritch knight archer) everytime she would full-attack she would reveal a magic card from the floating-around-her cards, creating a magical damaging effect on the enemy equal to the total damage she would do with her full attack.
3) A sacred fist/master of many styles monk buffing monster with super high AC and pummeling style/charge that imitated the way Avatar fought. He made very dramatic moves using the elements whenever he would avoid a hit or do damage. Whenever he did a critical, ánd all attacks where critical via pummeling style, it usually meant auto-kill the enemy which I described using the 4 elements theme (small hurricanes, erupting lava ala mini-volcano from bellow enemy's feet, water waves, massive sunray blasts etc)
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I roleplay Half Orcs like soccer hooligans with cockney accents, Warhammer (40k) style. So far other PFS players have gotten a kick out of working with Tuffgutz Gorefist Da Loudboy, Brawler/Cavalier.
I hope for a positive reception from the players when the Gorefist tribe and their combination holy war/pub crawl becomes a part of the story in my home game.
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I once reflavored a goblin into a banana
My first real character was a just a human gunslinger and he still holds a special place in my heart even though I made a lot of mistakes with him.
Anyway he was raised as part of a demon cult of gunslingers, they all had a third eye tattooed on there forehead which granted them supernatural powers (Grit).
Honestly I have a harder time finding a character which I didn't re-flavor something.
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I had an Oracle of Time which could re-roll failed kn-history checks. I also chose the haunted mystery. We reflavored my re-roll to be a "memory palace", a castle/library in my mind, that I went to when I meditated(re-rolled). It allowed for the DM to describe ancient relics etc as if I physically had them.
My haunted curse was reflavored to a being that would speak evil things to me and lurk in the "memory palace", often terrorizing me.
I got the idea from the movie Dreamcatcher, where Jonsey had the alien in his head "attic".
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I had an Oracle of Time which could re-roll failed kn-history checks. I also chose the haunted mystery. We reflavored my re-roll to be a "memory palace", a castle/library in my mind, that I went to when I meditated(re-rolled). It allowed for the DM to describe ancient relics etc as if I physically had them.
My haunted curse was reflavored to a being that would speak evil things to me and lurk in the "memory palace", often terrorizing me.
I got the idea from the movie Dreamcatcher, where Jonsey had the alien in his head "attic".
Wow, that sounds really fun. I would have entire sessions inside of Headspace if it was that cool. Mind if I snatch the idea?
Mine is boring by comparison, but I made Ninjas in my games simply Monks trained in stealth tactics.
I like switching creature types. The one I liked best was plant to undead one run. Despite actually reading the entry in a supplement the players never recognized it.
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I reflavored a ninja as an 'ulfen hexnail', a witch hunting Ulfen who threw iron nails at people instead of shuriken, and used supernatural gifts to blend in with his surroundings (ninja vanish trick), etc.
He knew nothing about Tien ninja stuff, acting more like a superstitious barbarian.
I had a cursed kitsune (actually a tiefling) maneuver master monk.
He manifested his blackened ki into an orb, which he would use for dirty tricks (ex. launching shadow tendrils to entangle someone, rather than pulling down their trousers).
I enjoyed using dirty tricks without feeling silly about it.
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I once cast prestidigitation on giant spider legs I had to eat to make them taste like eclaires.
Oh, wait...
Right now I'm playing an AWOL child soldier who was abducted, experimented on, and trained by a group of dragon cultists. She uses barely any gear, and creates her own weapons (a pair of blades and a longbow) on the spot. Mechanically she's an elan psychic warrior.
Had a winter witch // summon once who view her eidolon as her dead child (I flavored that she used the babies skull as a focus for the summoning). She viewed it as Winter giving her the child back in a body that could withstand the hard elements. She never really let the eidolon fight in battles that she couldn't save him from because "mommy loves you."
It worked fine until the alchemist in the party lobbed a bombed that splashed fire on her "baby" she was not a forgiving winter witch.
Several of the summoner spells I reflavored to have ice/cold aspects: Grease was slippery ice and Glitterdust became Blinding Blizzard etc.
The Andorran Paladin who grew up in a nation that values ideals like democracy and free speech. This has led her to see public criticism of rulers as a virtue and a necessity for a well functioning society, and she is very suspicious of the idea of hereditary rule. She does not get along well with nobility because of this. Experience has taught her to couch her criticism in faint praise and euphamisms rather than bluntly spitting everything out, but she remains very willing to share her objections. She just prefers to do so via diplomatic insults and sarcasm, and has a generally sardonic attitude. At the same time, she's seen Andorran stray from its ideals of protecting the poor in favor of serving the rich, leading her to become somewhat jaded. Her priority is to serve the poor and downtrodden that the rulers seem to want to ignore, and she does love exposing corruption. She's all for law and order, but the law needs to be applied fairly and for the benefit of all. Nobody can be allowed to be above it.
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I like using the Tentacle evolution and discovery for stuff like a prehensile tail or a Tongue attack with Reach and Grab. The latter wasn't a strong mechanical choice compared to putting those evolutions on the more powerful Bite and Claw attacks, but it really fit the theme for my toad-like eidolon. I could imagine that some groups would have been firmly against having a Tentacle grow out of a creature's mouth and work like a Tongue, but the folks I was playing with were fine with it and seemed to like the giant tongue on the eidolon's customized mini.
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I had a character who was a Paladin of Pelor. Sickened by the perceived decadence of the church after the death of its old leader, his mentor, the PC renounced all earthly possessions except his blade. He needed no armor as he walked in Pelor's light. From that time on he walked the earth helping and converting people by being a living example of righteousness, honor, and humility.
Out of game he was an Invulnerable Rager barbarian with the Dragon Totem talents and Improved Stalwart. He needed no armor (and oh wow he had none with his 5 AC) because he had like 20 some DR at level 12. The only item of value he had was a +3 courageous furious weapon; the bonuses from courageous on top of human favored class boosted Superstition meant that his saves were amazing even without a cloak too.
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Kelsey Arwen MacAilbert - that sounds less like reflavouring and more like just giving your paladin an unusual personality.
Several of the summoner spells I reflavored to have ice/cold aspects: Grease was slippery ice and Glitterdust became Blinding Blizzard etc.
I do enjoy reflavouring spells, it makes it easier to make thematically diverse spellcasters without locking them into a specific mechanical role.
I like using the Tentacle evolution and discovery for stuff like a prehensile tail or a Tongue attack with Reach and Grab.
A friend of mine did that for his eidolon! The eidolon looked a bit like a winged horse at first glance but got... weird.
Wow, that sounds really fun. I would have entire sessions inside of Headspace if it was that cool. Mind if I snatch the idea?I had an Oracle of Time which could re-roll failed kn-history checks. I also chose the haunted mystery. We reflavored my re-roll to be a "memory palace", a castle/library in my mind, that I went to when I meditated(re-rolled). It allowed for the DM to describe ancient relics etc as if I physically had them.
My haunted curse was reflavored to a being that would speak evil things to me and lurk in the "memory palace", often terrorizing me.
I got the idea from the movie Dreamcatcher, where Jonsey had the alien in his head "attic".
Please do, it's a really fun mechanic!
My GM really made use of it, describing parts of the palace that we're underwater where I'd find info on a sea god, or a few old tomes lying in the middle of the hallway when me and my party were stuck on a puzzle!| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
I reflavoured dwarves into formian-like ant centaurs considering their decent number of anti-giant racial features and stability.
I made a blood rager whose (Su) powers and spells were all literally blood magic; such as stone discus being solidified blood, and the like.
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I'm currently playing in a Tian Xia campaign as a martial artist who uses his ki to increase his abilities for a short time and also use it to create effects outside his body. Also known as a bloodrager.
I made a beastmorph alchemist with an Egyptian theme. His mutagen turned him into a Scarab man, and I reflavored his shield extract as his carapace hardening and becoming iridescent, among other spells, that one just stands out vividly to me.
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I play an Aasimar Magus who came from a family of Aasimars who were all divine casters. She thought there was something wrong with her because she had no connection with the gods, so she threw herself into her military training. Then one day she discovered she could cast spells and realized the gods had simply given her a different kind of magic.
I just remembered another one, from when we played kingmaker. One of our DMs didn't like the Imperious bloodline's written explanation (descendant of various rulers) so I explained it as being descended from various Sorcerer rulers.
This evolved when my character referred in Character to his cousin, a lawyer. This was a reference to another campaign we had played where I had played an Infernal bloodline tiefling, who was LN and tried to be a Contract Devil.
This progressed even further when a high level Sorcerer showed up in the campaign, and was explained to be one of my cousins, who I later played as to give him some backstory in a chronologically earlier campaign.
Back to topic, I have had a couple half orc cavalier characters who chose Order of the Dragon, which I refluffed to "Order of the Bro." The Order of the Bro often act like a group of Frat boys and we almost got into some PvP when my character wanted to help out his fellow Bros before helping out another PCs sister and mother, on the grounds of "Bros before Hos."
I had an Oracle of Time which could re-roll failed kn-history checks. I also chose the haunted mystery. We reflavored my re-roll to be a "memory palace", a castle/library in my mind, that I went to when I meditated(re-rolled). It allowed for the DM to describe ancient relics etc as if I physically had them.
My haunted curse was reflavored to a being that would speak evil things to me and lurk in the "memory palace", often terrorizing me.
I got the idea from the movie Dreamcatcher, where Jonsey had the alien in his head "attic".
This works amazingly well in PbP format. One of my players in a Reign of Winter game is an 'old' elf who was jailed for a very significant amount of time and only got through it by reading extensively and teaching himself the basic facets of magic (which is why he is a level 1 wizard at about age 260+) and committing the knowledge to his memory palace. He visits his palace every time he rolls a knowledge check or levels up; opening previously blocked doors, dusting off paintings stored in the attic and so on.
He does it very well to his credit.
This thread is why I rarely have an NPC come right out and intro themselves as a "fighter" or "cleric." I had an NPC that was a hunchbacked, toady-looking fellow. He could hop about (Jump spell), croaked often and sometimes very terribly (Ghost Sound and Ear-Piercing Scream) and had other assorted minor arcane tricks. He was a Sorcerer 1 with the Aberrant bloodline with his acid ray being an acidic tongue attack.
His name was Klaus and his story was a tragic one. He'd been a tall, handsome but vein woodcutter who'd offended a witch. He'd loved her when she used magic to change her appearance to make herself look pretty but when she'd revealed her true face to him Klaus had been repulsed. The witch used her ties to the Fey and unleashed a powerful, progressive curse on him, slowly making him into a terrifying monster.
Klaus didn't know the difference between a "sorcerer" and a witch. He knew the things he did were not normal and fueled by arcane energies, but to him they were just things he could do like running and jumping. His powers were a curse and he wanted them gone but he still had a strong force of character (high Cha) so nothing could be done until he proved himself humble and repented.
I had this one BBEG who was heavily acid themed with geometry themed visuals.
He flew with six wings of sharp dragonly-like wings of floating acid trapezoids.
He fought with a modestly sized aciddic sword that allways formed right in his hands.
He could call forth columns of acid to blast his opposition.
His personality was hectic, secretive and toxic.
He would burn away the layers of your mind and look directly into your soul.
And he planned to corrode the world with an alchemical undead plague with which he would take over the city to rule over.
But in reality he was a Half-fire elemental (3.5 planar handbook/manual of the planes) Mythic Marshal Inquisitor with player wealth and a lot of cool gear. Spells like Holy smite and Detect thoughts represented his mastery over True acid, which he used to corrode mental barriers and souls.
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A character I am playing now is lightly refluffed.
She is Leera the Steely.
When I made her I intended to just make a rather generic oracle, but when the GM dropped my introduction into the group as an accidental summoning things got cray cray.
A dim but honest and good natured fighter from an extradimensional sub plane between the earth and air plane, Leera is self sufficient and strong in body and character. Her skin is muddled with patches of soft metal and her face is a horrid tangle of skin and steel, which she nevers shows if possible.
When she fights she uses her mastery over metal to reconfigure her body and strengthen it against attacks and to strike like a thunderbolt. Her allies benefit too from her unique body altering gifts.
Leera is a combative metal mystery Oracle who is unknowingly blessed/cursed with the wasting effect from the Dwarfen god of smithing.
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I don't reflavour that much as a player, but as a GM I turned a swarm of crows into a swarm of animate bone shards, skeletal hands, and skulls.
This idea is SO FANTASTIC! I am totally going to think more about these kinds of possibilities, thank you!
My own favorite reflavor was turning a First Worlder summoner's skilldolon into his twin brother while he himself had the fey heritage feats. I just play it up that they are inseparable, uncanny twins that looks more like I am playing two half-fey bards instead of one summoner.
New one for the campaign I am DMing. The player joined a session late, so the party already knew they were searching for something, so the new character is an orc bounty hunter. He is a huge guy, carries a morningstar and a crossbow, is out doing the others in combat (A druid with an axe beak AC and a Ranger last night). He barely wears armor but from his natural armor helps with that, and he has 18 STR and CON, lower dex, 12 int and wis, 9 charisma. (rolled stats)
He is of course actually a witch (Scarred witch doctor). He just hasn't done anything in character to make this obvious. (really subtle with spells like the somatic component to his armor spells is brushing off his weapon).
And even with a witches BAB, he has thus far been a complete badass in combat.
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I played a Kobold Sorcerer who transitioned into a Dragon Disciple. He was primarily blasty casty, and the transformation into dragon form for added HP and AC mostly, but the idea was that he was "transforming" into a real dragon.
In game he was Neutral alignment, worshipped Apsu and Tiamat, referred to them as his "Motehr and Father", and was roleplayed as a walking evangelist for the Dragonwright religion.
Just, reflavored arcane caster, his spells were "gifts" from his mother and father, his eventual breath weapon and such were all just manifestations of his final glory, when one day he would join Dragonkind in repayment for his years of servitude to Apsu and Tiamat.
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The beauty of PBP especially is you can describe visuals of spells any way you like.
I've created fists of force that surround me and when I throw a punch from fifty feet away they streak out and slam unerringly into my foe (magic missile)
The victims of a BBEG reaching out of the ground to vengefully caw at him and hold him fast (Black Tentacles)
Summoned a spiritual cannon that sent burning cannonballs at a goblin fortress (fireball cast multiple times over several rounds - the cannon just stayed there and was reloaded by a spiritual crew)
As far as I'm concerned you can take any spell and so long as you don't alter it's mechanics reflavour it to anything you like. And really this fits in with the game. If all magic missiles looked exactly the same why would you need to roll a spellcraft check to identify it being cast, it's the same as all the other magic missiles that pretty much any arcane student can cast.
It's a descriptive game for me, not just a bunch of numbers so I highly encourage this sort of creative description in my players, whether they are casting spells, using skill checks or just attacking - reflavoring just makes it all the more interesting.
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As far as I'm concerned you can take any spell and so long as you don't alter it's mechanics reflavour it to anything you like. And really this fits in with the game. If all magic missiles looked exactly the same why would you need to roll a spellcraft check to identify it being cast, it's the same as all the other magic missiles that pretty much any arcane student can cast.
A neat notion. (Nobody has to roll 'weaponcraft' to recognize an arrow flying at their heads, after all.) But definitely one that assumes a certain level of magic in the setting. In a 'low magic' sort of game, where the average villager (or goblin tribespeep) wouldn't necessarily have seen a spellcaster other than the town (or tribe) Adept 3 in their life, it's possible that they've never seen a magic missile.
Even when not using spell thematics or whatever, we've pretty much always made magic missile, particularly, a 'custom' spell, and varied the appearance by caster, from screaming skulls to tiny imps to 'magic lasers' to tiny weapons of force that strike at their target.
My favorites include bright primary colored platonic solids (basically shooting d20s, d12s, etc. at people) and an astrologer (from an Al-Qadim game) who cast magic missile by creating a representation of the solar system over her hand (complete with burning sun) and then the rotating 'planets' spun out of their orbits and flew into the target(s).
I'm one of those people who just can't play with things right out of the box. I always have to tweak them. I don't even think I've ever made a character that wasn't at least somewhat reflavoured in one way or another.
I need to work on my spell reflavouring, though, as I tend to forget about those.
Instead I just love to subvert expectations and choose classes for different things than what they're intended (like using witch or druid instead of cleric for a priest), and coming up with my own wacky combinations (like paladin + wilder with the Psychic Bodyguard power = the party's mind guardian).
Speaking of the mind guardian, it was neat to describe taking his first level of wilder (where he picks up Inertial Armour and Force Screen, making his ordinary armour and shield useless) as him being possessed by divine inspiration that encourages to use "his will as his shield and his faith as his armour." And now I'm playing the guy's psychic powers as simply being manifestations of his faith.
I also refluffed my witch's familiar's spell preparation ritual as the familiar plane-shifting back to his plane and making bargains with his fellow psychopomps, securing patronage and engaging in part courtly behaviour, part market-stall haggling, part public speaking. It was fun to roleplay.
Oh that reminds me, I am also roleplaying a venerable elf witch with literally 1 point in Constitution as her undergoing a lichification ritual that applies all the downsides first before giving her any benefits. That's also the explanation for a powerful witch starting at level 1 and having literally 1 HP. She's probably my magnum opus in terms of character creation.