This is the character creation site for this game, which will be for PFS credit. As you probably know, PFS rules are not required to still get Chronicle Sheet credit, which can be applied to another character in level range.
For our purposes, we will have four (or five) PC's. Party balance is recommended, so you might want to sort out the spots. The order I recieved responses was:
GM Granta
Qstor
GM Aeon
CariMac
I'd suggest you chose role in that order, but will leave that up to you.
Guidelines for Character Creation:
1) 20 pt buy, no obvious min/maxing please. Shouldn't have stats higher than 18 after racial bonus. Stats lower than 8 are frowned on, and should expect to be role-played that way.
2) Non-evil characters, any other aligmennt is fine, but again expect to role-play it
3) Core races only
4) Any class in a Paizo published book is fair game. Unchained is fine. For Summoners, unchained is required. Any archetype is good as long as its Paizo-published and makes sense for the game and setting.
5) The Reign of Winter Players Guide is a free download which provides some flavor for the game, as well as some suggestions for class/race/build that you might find useful.
6) HP will be done PFS style. Full for level 1, one-half + one thereafter
7) Will have two starting traits and one should be a campaign trait (see the players guide linked above for those). You may add a third trait with an approved drawback.
8) Starting gold is 150gp.
A Bit about Me
I am a 3-star PFS GM, with about half those points coming from PbP play. I have run this entire AP for a local tabletop group and really like it. Am running one other AP (Crimson Throne) on the boards at present. Have been a gamer for about 30 years, starting with 1st Ed. Live in Franklin TN (suburban Nashville) so that's US Central Time. Most of my posting will be from 8-12 PM in that time zone. I do travel a bit for work and have family commitments that might interfere but will usually note those in advance.
Expecations of Players
1) Make great characters! Give rich backstories and tie your feats, traits, skills, and gear instead of just making the best build you can. It's not about optimizing, it's about integrating and enriching.
2) Post and interact frequently. Ideally minimum of one post per day, and one per weekend, but more if its possible, especially during combat times.
3) Push or leave hooks for other players to move the story along whenever possible.
4) Understand that the GM rulings are final. I don't propose to be a rules expert, but I will research any questions and try to make the best ruling possible, usually giving my rationale. If you don't agree, it's fine to link your side of the story, and I'll consider it, but in the end, GM rulings must stand. I am also open for constructive criticism or suggestions about any part of the game!
5) Have fun!
Feel free to discuss your character builds below. Will get the game open as soon as it appears we have some viable characters.
I did agree to add GM Fuzzfoot as the 5th player. I had planned to cap recruitment at 5, but there is one other applicant, Big Joe, who is a 4-star GM and VL from Pennsylvania. If we go to 6, I will buff up the encounters a bit to accommodate the challenge rating.
I will let you weigh in on the decision to move from 5-6. Let me know here or by PM.
again, I think its fair for you to get to choose your role in order of notification to me, so Granta, claim your role and others will follow suit.
|
As long as you keep the combats challenging, I'm happy with 6. My personal feeling is that there should be several character deaths over the life of a long campaign; and that the players aren't being challenged if nobody dies in 15+ levels of play.
I'll go ahead and claim the arcane caster then.
And could you please create a gameplay thread for dotting?
Gameplay is opened for dotting.
Sounds like one vote for expanding to 6.
I will say, in my RL campaign of this AP, we had 6 players. That effort resulted in 3 character deaths, one of which was simple foolishness by a player. In another case, the player sacrificed himself for the good of the group, which was in danger of TPK, it was a very heroic moment. The third death was result of an untimely critical hit. All players got to re-roll and ended the campaign happily after about 2 years of bi-weekly play.
So, arcane caster is taken, Qstor can choose next. We will let Fuzzfoot and Big Joe (if added) make complementary characters to whatever the party needs.
The Players Guide does have some background about the opening setting. Characters should be residents of or traveling through the small Taldan village of Heldren, which lies just across the troubled border with Taldor's long-time adversary, Qadira. The Border Wood gets its name from its location along that tense frontier.
Here is a bit more from the text about Heldren, and some summary facts from the Players Guide:
Like most pleasant communities in Southern Taldor, the people of Heldren mostly keep to themselves far from the politics of Oppara and ever-watchful for Qadirian aggression, Heldren goes on as it always has, as a relatively small and unimportant hamlet of farmers, herders, and woodcutters.
Heldren is located in southern Taldor near the edge of the Border Wood. Taldor’s capital of Oppara is almost 200 miles northwest of Heldren, and the closest sizable city is Zimar — Taldor’s third largest city. This fortified city on the Jalrune River houses a large number of Taldan troops ready to defend their borders from the Qadirans to the south. A small town named Demgazi sits on the other side of the Border Wood from Heldren.
Heldren is a small village of 171 people, mostly farmers, herders, and woodcutters. A small armory sits atop a low hill northwest of the town square, ready to provide a safe refuge in case the village is attacked. Heldren’s town hall and its single inn, called the Silver Stoat, are the two largest buildings in the village, followed by the sawmill that brings income to the quiet settlement. Like many small villages, Heldren contains a general store, a blacksmith, a stable, a butcher shop, a barber, an apothecary, and a wise woman who sees to the village’s needs. To provide spiritual guidance to the village, a small temple stands near the center of town. Though the place is dedicated to Erastil, its resident cleric tends to the
community regardless of an individual’s particular faith.
If your character needs anymore background about Heldren to make their story integrate well, just ask.
Thanks for adding me in! I will wait for everyone else to get class choices made, and then figure out what works best to round us out.
I really don't have any strong preferences - I like to try all sorts of different characters. Very few of my characters stay single class as I try to achieve some sort of flavor.
Being #5, I am not sure I get a vote for a number 6, but here are my thoughts. I am currently running Giantslayer with 6, and the combats do need to be supplemented to provide a challenge... although actually, they have a tendency to split up and have had as many as 3 separate combat encounters running simultaneously, so that keeps it challenging for all!
Big Joe is a fine choice. I play in another AP he is running, and it is one of my favorite games.
About myself, I only play PbP, and am also in Central Time (Illinois). I tend to do majority of posting in the morning. Most days, though, I will check in morning, noon and night.
I'm EST in Cleveland.
Roles so far:
- Granta - arcane
- Qstor - melee?
- Aeon - divine
Is that Razmiran class on the D20PFSRD? I'm curious what it is.
Qstor - you don't have to go melee. Hunter isn't a true melee character with only d8 HD. They are more of skill player. If it's a gnome hunter, I hope that's not your only front-line choice...You make the call. If you'd like to take the skilled spot, others will work around you. If you want a melee ranger, so be it.
Aeon - I am not sure Razmirian priest works well in this setting but I won't outright disallow it. you'd have to have a story that made sense about why such a fellow would care about Heldren or the winter pocket that appears. The false pretense of the concept doesn't seem very heroic and doesn't speak to a strong group dynamic. But you might surprise me.
Sounds like all are okay with Big Joe joining up, so I will formally invite him. I did hear from CariMac by PM, she just hasn't posted officially yet.
Granta - arcane
Qstor - skill monkey or melee
Aeon - Divine
CariMac
Fuzzfoot
Big Joe
That will be the order. Of course, you guys can just work out roles without an order if that's easier. Just harder to manage that via PBP than it would be at a tabletop where you can chatter about it in real time.
I've been wanting to play a witch. Of course the Winter Witch fits here. If we still need a skill money, I've got an idea for an investigator.
Oh I forgot to mention. I'm in the Pacific timezone. I live in the Seattle Metro area. I check the boards from work often when I have a few minutes. I"m also on during the evening 8-10 PT.
So here are some ideas I am thinking about, which could fit in depending on what everyone else chooses. These are in no particular order - I am equally happy to try and make anything work.
Since CariMac mentioned wanting to try a Winter Witch, I found a Ranger archetype called Witchguard that could be interesting. And really, it could be ranged or melee, although I kind of envision it more as a two-weapon fighter.
Another support character I thought about would be a Court Poet, which is a skald archetype. I have never played a skald, but given what appears to be a leaning towards spellcasters here, this version increases Int and Chr rather than Str and Con. Plus, I could easily see playing this up, and probably double as a knowledge base or skill monkey type - maybe even an investigator dip.
Given the theme and some promise of giants in the future (according to the players guide), Goliath Druid seems fun. It seems equal parts big thug and dinosaur master - I wasn't too sure about the latter, but if it fits, it could be fun. I would see this as melee based with some buffs and backup healing.
I am also happy to play a straight investigator, unchained rogue, or some other sort of trap-breaker.
Any thoughts?
|
Qstor's idea for a PC subject to approval. I went melee. If someone else is dying to be melee let me know. I might do a human ulfen unchained rogue instead.
I took Additional Traits as a feat. Let me know if that's ok.
He's a viking fighter archetype. I thought it was fitting. I can post a background if the build it ok.
It looks like Wolfgang fits the bill for melee fighter, I have no issues with him, but haven't looked at it in great detail. How do you end up in sleepy little Heldren?
Hexenhammer inquisitor is not the greatest choice for the divine slot, only a partial healer and gives up domain abilities for witch hexes, when there may be a witch already in the party. Someone is going to need to be a full healer or you won't get very far...You can choose this if you want, but it's not the most party friendly choice in the world. This archetype seems a little schizophrenic -- I become what I hate. It would take an interesting story to integrate this as well.
Here is the list so far, as I understand it:
Granta - arcane unspecified
Qstor - Wolfgang - human viking fighter
Aeon - Divine - inquisitor?
CariMac - witch or investigator (maybe?)
Fuzzfoot - lots of choices
Big Joe - waiting and seeing
Ideally, since I didn't chose characters, but players, you should be working together to create a strong party. Playing off each other woudl be better than a host of individuals, but I'll leave that up to you.
How does everyone feel about this breakdown?
2 arcane (Granta-wizard/sorcerer, CariMac-witch)
1 divine (Aeon-cleric/oracle)
2 melee (Qstor-fighter, Fuzzfoot-ranger)
1 skill monkey (Big Joe-?)
My decision would be based on how well CariMac covers the knowledge skills and Aeon covers the social skills. If we need more knowledge, I'll go wizard; if we need a party face, I'll go sorcerer.
How does everyone feel about this breakdown?
2 arcane (Granta-wizard/sorcerer, CariMac-witch)
1 divine (Aeon-cleric/oracle)
2 melee (Qstor-fighter, Fuzzfoot-ranger)
1 skill monkey (Big Joe-?)My decision would be based on how well CariMac covers the knowledge skills and Aeon covers the social skills. If we need more knowledge, I'll go wizard; if we need a party face, I'll go sorcerer.
That seems to cover all the bases.
I've got five of the knowledges covered: Arcana, Geography, History, Nature and Planes. The big one I'm missing is Religion. I should have a draft character background soon. The build is almost finished.
Would I really need ranks in UMD? I'm thinking about taking Pragmatic Activator as a Trait. I seem to have a fairly wide ranging spell list, and I'm not really sure I need a UMD at all. Thoughts?
@CariMac: Have you made any decisions on spell selection yet? I mean thematically, more than specifics. For example, I don't want us to both build support casters.
@CariMac: Have you made any decisions on spell selection yet? I mean thematically, more than specifics. For example, I don't want us to both build support casters.
I'm going more debuff. Spell choice examples" Ill Omen, Touch of Fatigue, and Hypnotism. I have stabilize just in case, and a couple of cold offensive spells.
I'm going with Winter Witch Archetype and the Vengeance Patron which has fire based spells.
Cool, I'll go support/buff then.
Picture is starting to get a little clearer.
Granta - arcane support/buff; Wizard or Sorceror?
Qstor - Wolfgang - human viking fighter
Aeon - Divine - heal-y oracle?
CariMac - de-buffing winter witch; good knowledges
Fuzzfoot - ranger?
Big Joe - skill monkey?
Once we've got the roles filled, remember the backstory part, which will help me introduce you to the game and provide hooks for you to inter-relate with one another.
Aeon here. Sheet's done, background is on its way.
Succor mystery had a fun revelation that gave me the Bodyguard feat and increased the bonus for it, so I guess I'm going frontline with Wolfgang.
Edit: I also have the social skills and Knowledge (religion) covered, and healing stuff.
Aeon here. Sheet's done, background is on its way.
Succor mystery had a fun revelation that gave me the Bodyguard feat and increased the bonus for it, so I guess I'm going frontline with Wolfgang.
Edit: I also have the social skills and Knowledge (religion) covered, and healing stuff.
Looks like a good Oracle. A few things, after double-checking your build vs Hero Lab.
1) Your FCB is the 5th Orison? Just making sure.
2) Bluff is not a class skill for you, so your bonus should be +4 instead of +7.
3) Your ending gold is 4gp. Agree?
4) Your medium armor makes you medium encumbered, so your base move is 20' while wearing it.
5) The curse you selected gives you a penalty on surprise (no action) or first (staggered) combat rounds. Just making sure we agree about that too.
Looks like a solid divine submission. Hope the healing will hold up, but you can buff that up with potions and scrolls along the way, I suppose. I am interested to see how you tie her backstory into Heldren, and how you RP her curse/mystery/revelation mix and her worship of Pharasma.
I looked at Wolfgang also. He looks fine with one small exception. You have a shortbow, but no arrows. If you want to buy 20 arrows, your gold is 63. Since you have light armor, you are light encumbered now.
Those two spots look good!
Granta - arcane support/buff; Wizard or Sorceror?
Qstor - Wolfgang - human viking fighter
Aeon - Peltra - human oracle of succor
CariMac - de-buffing winter witch; good knowledges
Fuzzfoot - ranger?
Big Joe - skill monkey?
I am basically done, but waiting to see the witch before finalizing traits and backgrounds. I have it narrowed down, but I am not sure if he is from Irrisen, or if he is a local who has ancestry from there and i just now drawn to defending CariMac.
1) Your FCB is the 5th Orison? Just making sure. Yes, human FCB for an extra spell, one level lower.
2) Bluff is not a class skill for you, so your bonus should be +4 instead of +7. Unpredictable social trait makes it a class skill.
3) Your ending gold is 4gp. Agree? 3 gp, 8 sp actually. 20 sling bullets.
4) Your medium armor makes you medium encumbered, so your base move is 20' while wearing it. Good point, I'll add it under movement.
5) The curse you selected gives you a penalty on surprise (no action) or first (staggered) combat rounds. Just making sure we agree about that too. Yep, no action/half action on the first round.
Later Revelations will boost the healing, Combat Healer lets me cast Cures as a swift, and there's one that removes the cap on Cure spells (so CLW is 1d8+level, no limit). Also giving out temporary HP and converting excess healing into temporary HP.
It looks like the only major knowledges we're missing are dungeoneering and (especially) local, so I'll look into a sorcerer.
Fuzzfoot: Does your ranger have dungeoneering covered?
Big Joe: Does your skill monkey have local covered?
I take that back--the few bloodlines that aren't offensive also aren't interesting to me. So, looking at a wizard instead.
@Granta - To answer your question, no - I gave up dungeoneering as part of the witchguard archetype.
Still finishing feats, traits and background, and equipment.
This is my skill monkey. I do have Knowledge (local) per request. Also I am only carrying 4 out of the ten torches due to encumbrance issues.
Also as a heads up for everyone. I am attending and GMing at GenCon this year and as such will be out of contact from August 16-21, 2017. If anyone is going to be at GenCon and would like to say hello or grab a drink I would be glad to meet you.
Here's Irina's character sheet. I'm still working on her background, but here's some information that GM Fuzzyfoot can use for Jack.
She's a Failed Winter Witch Apprentice.
She works at the Silver Stoat as a barmaid and has for the last few years.
She tries to fit in. The rumors keep flying about her hexing people, making love potions or giving them the evil eye.
She's Varisian if it fits your character better to have come from the North, I can work with that.
@GM DoctorEvil: I can email you the Hero Lab file if you'd like.
Her uncle had taught her much about defying expectations, and she defied them again by leaving for a Pharasmin temple rather than learn a trade, hoping to learn more of her prophetic curse. Temple work doesn't pay well, and hard up for gold Peltra fell in with a crime nods in Zimar. A few months of pretending she could predict where the guards would patrol left her miserable, and a jail sentence was just around the corner.
The border skirmishes with Qadira continued, however, and she eventually found herself drafted as a guard. Her hunches and feelings grew, and she found a knack for defending her comrades from harm.
So I guess I'm hanging around on patrol or something? Getting drunk at the tavern would connect me and Irina, and if anyone's fought for Taldor they might have met.
Here's Irina's character sheet. I'm still working on her background, but here's some information that GM Fuzzyfoot can use for Jack.
She's a Failed Winter Witch Apprentice.
She works at the Silver Stoat as a barmaid and has for the last few years.
She tries to fit in. The rumors keep flying about her hexing people, making love potions or giving them the evil eye.She's Varisian if it fits your character better to have come from the North, I can work with that.
@GM DoctorEvil: I can email you the Hero Lab file if you'd like.
Irina looks good to go. I am interested to see her back story. The only thing that's missing from your profile that I need is your spells known but not currently prepared. For some reason, those aren't on the Hero Lab output.
@Granta - To answer your question, no - I gave up dungeoneering as part of the witchguard archetype.
Still finishing feats, traits and background, and equipment.
Looks like Jack is still under construction, but off to a good start. I won't start nit-picking him until you've made final adjustments.
Remember we need a backstory that puts you in Heldren -- possibly knowing some of the rest of the group (though not required).
This is my skill monkey. I do have Knowledge (local) per request. Also I am only carrying 4 out of the ten torches due to encumbrance issues.
Also as a heads up for everyone. I am attending and GMing at GenCon this year and as such will be out of contact from August 16-21, 2017. If anyone is going to be at GenCon and would like to say hello or grab a drink I would be glad to meet you.
Thanks for the heads up about GenCon. Hope you have a blast! We will likely have some intros done in this game before you return, but will wait to begin in earnest.
No issues with Ruso. Just needs some story about how/why he's in Heldren when the story opens.
So this is where we are:
Granta - arcane support/buff; Wizard?
Qstor - Wolfgang - human viking fighter
Aeon - Peltra - human oracle of succor and bored guardsperson
CariMac - Irina - human winter witch and barmaid
Fuzzfoot - Jack - Human witchguard ranger
Big Joe - Ruso - elf rogue
I have Irina and Peltra's stories, but really need background from the rest of you to begin the game.
Word around Hedren is:
"Not much is known about Jack Forrester. He is a large man, with terrible scars on his face and hands. He is quiet, but I wouldn't want to mess with him. Keeps to himself mostly. Lives in a little shack on the edge of town that used to belong to Ole' Lady Freya. Some say he was her grandson, others think he killed her and took to livin' in her house. I don't believe them stories, though. Sometimes I see him out tending his garden, and once I saw him bring three deer in and leave them in the center of town, one bitter winter when food was scarce. Cold didn't even seem to bother him. He never said a word, never came to take credit, but more than a few of us ate much better that week. Sometimes I see him hanging around the tavern, but he don't seem to drink much. Just sits and watches that barkeep girl. Nah, not in a creepy way, nothin' like that. I don't know, can't explain it. Like I said, not much is known about the boy."
Jack Forrester was always a large kid, very strong and athletic. His earlier years were spent with his parents, his mother kind and his father tough, but fair. A man of very few words, his father taught him what most father's needed to teach their sons, including some basic fighting skills and survival techniques. Often they would go out hunting or fishing together. His father never spoke much about his own childhood, but occasionally his mother would tell a story of how they met, or how her mother-in-law was a crazy old woman living in a place called Hedren. Life was pretty good in their isolated cabin, at least it was until that fateful day.
Returning from a rather successful day of fishing, Jack was inside the cabin when he heard his mother scream. Running out to see what was happening, he saw a group of big men beating his father, his mother lying on the ground next to him in a pool of blood. Seeing the boy, a few of the men turned to the house to grab him too, but his father made a heroic effort to tackle both men. Yelling to his boy, the man said "Run!" as one of the bandits put a spear through his back.
Frightened and confused, Jack shut and barricaded the door, trying to keep the men out. In response, they took great joy in lighting the cabin on fire and watched it burn. Jack, to afraid to go face them, waited until the house was burning on all sides. One of the rafters fell on him, burning him badly - the scars still show on his face. He took refuge in the fireplace, and there he found a secret opening in the back that allowed him to escape, unnoticed by the now drunk thugs who were busy collecting horses and whatever of value they could find.
Still hearing his father's voice, "Run!", Jack made his way to a nearby village. The local healer did what he could for poor Jack, but the boy was scarred for life, both physically and mentally. The healer took him in, fed him and clothed him, and helped him return to the cabin to see what, if anything, was left. There was nothing except the burnt remains of his family and their cabin.
Recalling the stories of his crazy grandmother, Jack began the long journey to Hedren. He was quiet, stayed to himself, and used the skills his father had taught him to survive the journey.
Upon reaching Hedren, he was shy and being a large, hulk of a boy with a scarred face, few were readily willing to speak to him. He asked a few curt questions, and found his way to a small shack that might be the home of his grandmother. Upon seeing the boy, the old women broke into tears - "Why you are the spitting image of your father! Come in, come in!" The old woman wasn't very highly regarded in town. Most thought she was just a crazy old lady, but she came into town from time to time and would laugh and tell odd stories of far away lands.
For years, the two of them took care of each other. Jack would hunt, fish and garden, and his grandmother, Freya, would make clothes and tell him stories of the lands up north, where their ancesters all lived. She also taught him Skald, the language of his people, and taught him of the creatures and men that lived in the harsh, winter conditions.
Occasionally, Jack would wander into town, looking for odd jobs or occasionally working as a bouncer at the Silver Stoat during some of the more rowdy festivals. There he met a girl named Irina, and the two of them got to talking. She had a way about her that Jack felt comfortable with, and when she told stories of her past, he would re-tell the stories of his grandmother. He felt very protective of Irina, and would often stop by if he got concerned for her well-being.
After some time, age got the better of Freya, and she died peacefully in her sleep. Jack buried his grandmother according to her wishes, and goes about his daily routine. But he is beginning to feel restless.
Most of my mechanics are done, and the rest should be finished tonight. Expecting to finish backstory and personality tomorrow night.
|
|
A tall ulfen man far from home with a greataxe has wandered into town. What he wants people aren't sure..