| Kai_G |
In a world where necromantic magic has been empowered and the strength of the sun has waned, mindless hordes of zombies, skeletons, and more malefic undead have plagued the living for the past several decades. In the face of such horrors, few settlements have survived...and one of those is the walled city of Brindinford (See the 3.0 D&D module "Speaker in Dreams").
Brindinford Defenses - Long ago, Brindinford was a major trade center on a major river with no fields in the immediate vicinity and its food came from small farming villages scattered in the nearby countryside. Forestation had been cleared about a mile outside of town on the east side of the river, but much of the west bank was still heavily wooded. When the dead began to walk again, an aging Baron Euphemes II prepared the city for the horrors to come, ordering the deforestation of Brindinford’s west bank to create a stockpile of lumber and arable farmland. Since then, the survivors of those small farming villages have come to till the fields just outside the city walls and under the vigilance of the town guards, whose bell tower remains ever ready to sound in warning.
Heirs to Power - It has been 35 years since Baron Euphemes II, the noble and imposing leader of Brindinford in St. Darius’ time, would have passed away many years ago. Without a wife or any children to take his place, who took up the reins of power afterward? Thirty five years ago, Sir Balder stood as the right hand to Baron Euphemes II, executing the Baron’s will as his health declined with age. Known by few, Sir Balder was a prince, the 7th son of a kingdom far to the northwest, a land of snowy mountains, deep forests, and noble werewolves, including Sir Balder himself. After many years of service to Brindinford and his noble lineage, Sir Balder perhaps makes the most sense as an heir to Baron Euphemes II. However, his duties before the Baron’s passing may have put him in an early grave, or perhaps Sir Balder’s sense of duty to family would show itself to be greater than his duty to the city and his personal ambitions, leading him to take up the journey to return to his father’s side, alongside his brothers, and defend his homeland instead. If so, the question remains, who leads Brindinford today and how did they find themselves in such a position?
People of the Land - Using the powerful tool that magic is, a cult devoted to the restoration and maintenance of agriculture might be created from the necessity to maintain farmlands and livestock with less daylight and few defenses from the relentless undead throughout the world. While not particularly well suited to taking up the mantle of repelling the undead or defending the land, they have made great strides in enhancing nature’s bounties to support settlements of survivors.
As believers of most, if not all, gods perish in great numbers, the knowledge of such faiths may disappear along with them. Some People of the Land may choose to worship specific deities from earlier times, particularly those with the plant, earth, or water domain or the seasons subdomain, but others may not care where their power comes from, perhaps even drawing tainted strength from among Infernal Dukes, Abyssal Lords, or worse that hold sway over nature. This may lead to People of the Land with less scrupulous motivations for joining the faith. In a world of decreasing supply, the demand for food would grow high. Those with the valuable knowledge and means to farm and create a steady supply of food would become significantly more elevated in station as they could sell for higher prices or barter for more goods and services than ever before. A city on the verge of starvation may find itself held hostage by a single person, using the city’s hunger as their only leverage. For those who seeks comfort through station rather than wealth, skilled spellcasters may find themselves on a city’s retainer to provide regular enrichment of the city’s crops throughout the year. In the case of the exceptionally rapacious, they might take over a smaller settlement as their leader, extorting and effectively enslaving those beneath them.
Though druids might be thought of as more suitable for this role, their focus on preserving nature rather than supporting mankind would likely prevent them from enhancing crops from an ethical standpoint. Similarly, druidic proclivities regarding building defenses on from naturally growth wood and shaped stone might put them at a disadvantage when undead hordes pass through the area faster than those defenses can be erected.
A cleric of light prepares her companions, a young gypsy woman in constant pursuit of arcane lore alongside a quiet warrior dedicated to helping humanity survive. It's this quiet warrior that I'd like advice for.
Angel-blooded Aasimar Paladin 3
LG Medium Outsider(Native) and Humanoid (Human)
Init +3; Senses Darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +2
Aura courage (10 ft.)
DEFENSE
AC 20, touch 13, flat-footed 17 (+6 armor, +3 Dex, +1 shield)
hp 27 (3d10)
Fort +11, Ref +11, Will +9; +2 vs. death effects, energy drain, negative energy, and necromancy spells or spell-like abilities; +7 vs. charm and compulsion effects; Immune disease, fear; Resist negative energy 5
OFFENSE
Speed 30 ft.
Melee longsword +3 (1d8+2/19–20), quickdraw shield, light steel +3 (1d3+1/20) or longsword +5 (1d8+2/19-20)
Ranged dagger +6 (1d4+2/19–20)
Special Attacks smite evil 1/day (+7 attack and AC, +3 damage)
Paladin Spell-Like Abilities (CL 3rd; concentration +10)
At will—detect evil
STATISTICS
Str 14, Dex 16, Con 12, Int 12, Wis 8, Cha 24
Base Atk +3; CMB +5; CMD 18
Feats Combat Reflexes, Two-Weapon Fighting
Skills Craft(Alchemy) +5, Diplomacy +13, Handle Animal +11, Knowledge (Geography) +5, Knowledge (Religion) +5, Perception +2, Ride +2, Sense Motive +7, Survival +3
Languages Common, Celestial
SQ aura, code of conduct, deathless spirit, divine health, favored terrain (plains +2), lay on hands (1d6, 8/day), scion of humanity, truespeaker
Combat Gear mw agile breastplate, longsword, light steel shield (quickdraw) with a mw boss, dagger, cestus, sling, various alchemical thrown weapons; Other Gear signal whistle, wayfinder with a cracked dusty rose prism (ioun stone)[resonance +4 Cha], harlot sweets, clear ear drops, magic weapon oil, enlarge person oil, protection from evil oil, lesser restoration oil
Traits Defensive Strategist, Finding Your Kin, Irrepressible
Drawback Righteous Indignation
My initial thoughts for this character are a grizzled man, apparently in his early 30's despite a century of life, missing the pinky and ring finger of his left hand, and bearing a rope-burn scar across his neck, which has damaged his vocal cords. I'm not sure how to roleplay the voice yet though.
The group won't know this at first, but the rope-burn scar is from a failed suicide attempt after his sister's death, which both he and his family blamed him for. (Haven't quite figured out the details for this yet either. I'm open to suggestions.) At some point in that part of the story, his family disowned him and he left in disgrace, perhaps due to his inexplicably slow aging by human standards. As the world falls apart, he's drafted into the militia to fight the growing number of dead rising throughout the land. Though the army unraveled in the ensuing chaos, the warrior's heart pushed him to continue defending people as they simply tried to survive. He's sees the way so many people take advantage of others' situations and weaknesses and begins to keep of list of those criminals and predators who have escaped his grasp or whose crimes have gone unpunished before his arrival. However, he eventually came to accept that the world and those in it are not as noble as his ideals, including his father who had long-abused the warrior's sister before her passing. Now, his father's name sits at the top of that list and the warrior still searches for him, fully intent on punishing his father for his past crimes.
Would anyone help me clean this up a bit and make it a bit more coherent?