Right now, I have two concepts in mind:
1) The above Phantom/Ghost Rider. Likely build: Legendary Cavalier/Legendary Gunslinger. Some sort of spooky mount. Very possibly Hellfire spellcasting via the Magic-User HOPF.
2) A shape-shifting savage warrior. Likely build: Legendary Shifter/Unknown. Might branch out into lots of different creature types via the Polymorph Savant PrC. Would likely be a natural weapon user.
I won't have time until at least this weekend to properly flesh out Razan but his outline is much the same as the one I posted earlier in the thread.
Character Concept: Devout holy warrior, dedicated to God as the Church of the East (Nestorians) understand Him. Fights using extreme mobility, blade, and channelling.
Race: Hybrid Human // Custom Race "Bloodline" (from a Syrian Roman general perhaps)
Class Levels: Paladin 12 taking Virtuous Bravo archetype and Weapon Champion archetype for free , and taking Oath of Charity replacing Paladin features as appropriate. //
Bard 12 taking Arcane Duelist and Dervish Dancer archetypes for free
Mythic Tiers: Champion 2 // Guardian 2
Prestige Class Levels: Holy Vindicator 2 // Mystic Theurge 2
Feat Plans:
* Variant Multiclass into Cavalier (Order of the Star) to improve channeling
* Dimensional _____ feat chain for rapid assaults using plentiful Dimension Doors. [/b]
Legendary Item: Razan wields an ancient weapon that he inherited from an elder knight. It apparently originated in Hispania, and migrated east over centuries. Legend has it that the first Roman soldier to be baptised in Edessa once possessed it.
Concept:
A young shamanistic alchemist intent on helping the army to follow the will of Tengri. Intellectual, somewhat quiet and enigmatic but energetic and enterprising.
Mechanical role:
Wizard/alchemist
Very high knowledge checks. Probably like +80 to all of them.
Kind of ok at all non-int based skills, probably in the +10 to +30 range.
Great at ranged damage, utility spells, some buffs, battlefield control, and debuffing the enemy
For my familiar I'm considering oracle/bard for granting a billion buffs and healing everyone like crazy.
Daryun claims to be the child of Erlik, and the god of destruction.
He's a mountain of a man who is insanely strong and fast and can snap people in half with his bare hands.
Mechanically, he's a fighter | monk (Guardian | Champion on the mythic side) who just wears pants and sandals (because it's easier to get new sandals when he wears out a pair).
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Erkliğ is a traditional Mongol warrior -- good at wrestling, great at riding, fantastic with a bow. Two of his souls have been given physical expression outside his body (though killing them does not destroy that soul).
@Coinshot, I highly recommend the acquisition and use of the Bonded Mind feat. I have it (and can share it for 5 rounds 1/day), but since I'm going to have a speaking familiar who's going to be my mouthpiece, well ... ;) You might want a method for communication with others.
For what it's worth, since the 'link' of Bonded Mind was, essentially, sight-based, I always thought of it as being able to read each other's micro (or macro) expressions with a high degree of accuracy. Maybe not to have complex discussions, but certainly enough to have a certain level of conversation ...
I think I'm going to go full on savage warrior shape shifter. Probably going to the player friendly werewolf(not lycanthrope) template from Lords of the Wild from DSP, and a few PrCs from that book as well.
Class wise, definitely Legendary Shifter. Unsure what the 2nd class will be. Possibly Barbarian, maybe Ranger, perhaps something else. Need to go through my options.
|
My (as of yet unnamed) character concept is that of a Zoroastrian worshiper (I am unsure of the exact name for the role, but I believe that it would be Magi) of Persian descent. He would be accompanied by a Div who serves him, which would be serving him after the main character had overcome them in some kind of a challenge.
Mechanically, the character would be a Human/Half Elf Hybrid race-wise. For classes, they would be a Summoner on one side of the Gestalt, with the other side being either Cleric, Druid, or Oracle. For Mythic, he will probably be an Archmage//Heirophant.
Meanwhile, the Div (the Eidolon) would probably have levels of Wizard and some other as of yet undecided class, although it would probably be either Alchemist, Druid, or Magus depending on how exactly the concept turns out. If that is the case, the base character wouldn't be a druid. They would probably also be a Archmage, but I don't know what their other Path would be yet.
I think we already have more than enough players right now -- I'm going to wait a few weeks to check who finishes a character before I potentially start a new recruitment thread -- we don't need any more characters right now.
My (as of yet unnamed) character concept is that of a Zoroastrian worshiper (I am unsure of the exact name for the role, but I believe that it would be Magi) of Persian descent. He would be accompanied by a Div who serves him, which would be serving him after the main character had overcome them in some kind of a challenge.
Mechanically, the character would be a Human/Half Elf Hybrid race-wise. For classes, they would be a Summoner on one side of the Gestalt, with the other side being either Cleric, Druid, or Oracle. For Mythic, he will probably be an Archmage//Heirophant.
Meanwhile, the Div (the Eidolon) would probably have levels of Wizard and some other as of yet undecided class, although it would probably be either Alchemist, Druid, or Magus depending on how exactly the concept turns out. If that is the case, the base character wouldn't be a druid. They would probably also be a Archmage, but I don't know what their other Path would be yet.
The daevas/dews are the demons of the traditional zoroastrian canon. If you're planning a diabolist type character, that's fine, but otherwise you should definitely do the ahura as your companion.
There was some kind of split between early Zoroastrianism and Vedic Hinduism -- in the latter the ahuras/asuras are the bad guys, so it's reversed (deva/daeva comes from an Indo-European root ziyun which is the same root as the name Zeus, and has to do with divinity, it's also found in Hittite). You might want to consider being some kind of Vedic character if you stick with the div idea -- I can help with fluff for that too.
I think I'm going to go full on savage warrior shape shifter. Probably going to the player friendly werewolf(not lycanthrope) template from Lords of the Wild from DSP, and a few PrCs from that book as well.
Class wise, definitely Legendary Shifter. Unsure what the 2nd class will be. Possibly Barbarian, maybe Ranger, perhaps something else. Need to go through my options.
Seb, thoughts on this concept, and any suggested material I could look into for it?
|
|
Alright, that will probably be what I do in that case. I was originally working off of some of the sections of this page from the Encyclopaedia Iranica, where it talks about the Daeva's serving people who beat them in challenges. However, the concept wasn't too built around that focus, so it should be easy to switch to a Ahura instead for the Eidolon.
Alright, that will probably be what I do in that case. I was originally working off of some of the sections of this page from the Encyclopaedia Iranica, where it talks about the Daeva's serving people who beat them in challenges. However, the concept wasn't too built around that focus, so it should be easy to switch to a Ahura instead for the Eidolon.
I wasn't actually aware of those traditions from the Shsh-nameh -- I'm fine with that, but that is still kind of an idea of a demon binder -- there are also early Jewish traditions about Solomon commanding demons and that sort of thing. You can pick whichever you want.
Num has updated information. Like, bunches. Like, for example ...
Born in 1193, even early the boy-child was clearly talented. Horses liked him, his very first word was 'bow', and he loved staring up at the sky -- especially at night. His clan (the Besud, of the Tayichiud tribe) had a tradition that their line was descended from Erkliğ Han, god of the far sky (not, of course, the Eternal Blue Sky, the great god of whom is Tengri himself), and the essence of that inheritance seemed to make itself especially known in the toddler. Fast on his feet, wide-eyed and always watching, always with his little bow in his hand, his father Зургаадай (Jirqo'adai), a smith by trade could only smile and call him 'бяцхан Эрклиг', 'Little Erkliğ' -- and so when it came time for him to be named, Erkliğ it was; Erkliğ it could only ever have been.
As he grew, he only increased in intelligence and agility, in wisdom and strength and endurance; only when it came to interacting with others did he lack, and though his spoken words (which came less often as he grew) were well-said and sent to the heart of the matter like arrows from his bow into the heart of a Зээр (zeer, the Mongolian gazelle, an extremely fast runner and good swimmer), he never became wholly comfortable with words. For a trade he learned those of the bow-and arrow-maker, also turning his deft hand to the crafting of instruments and leather-works. Of course, this latter is nothing unusual; most Mongol riders did their own leather-work, so as to make certain it would not fail in battle. He learned also the stories of the people, the dances and the songs, the beating of the frame-drum (tuur), the bowing horse-fiddle (morin khuur), the blowing of the flute (tsuur), and though when he recited he spoke strongly and clearly, that was the only time; in all others, he was reticent at best.
By the time of the Tayichiud's defeat by Temüjin of the Khiyad Borjigids in the Battle of the Thirteen Sides in 1201 when he was eight, he was rarely known to speak more than a few sentences a day. By the time his father Jirqo'adai -- renamed by Temüjin, Genghis Khaan, as 'Jebe', meaning 'Arrow' and 'Weapon' -- had become one of Temüjin's generals three years later, he spoke barely a word a day. This apparent withdrawl culminated when, during a traditional meditative retreat, this one of the offspring of the Khaan's highest officers at the 'Nature Lake' (Байгал нуур, Baigal nuur, what we call 'Lake Baikal' in south-eastern Siberia), undertaken by all youths of the various Mongol tribes during their early teens, he had a vision -- or perhaps a visitation.
What, specifically, the thirteen-year-old youth saw he has never said; in fact, Erkliğ no longer speaks. However, he returned to the Tayichiud bearing a golden eagle chick that those who saw him leave the camp on Baigal Nuu swear they never saw. Like the many other youths who were entrusted with their own bird in the Mongol tradition of eagle-hunting, Erkliğ took care of his eaglet with care and diligence, but the thing that truly proclaimed the spirit-touched nature of the bird was when it began to speak. Not in occasional word-croaks the way a raven might, but in real words, real sentences. It said that its name was Үхаантай (Ukhaantai, meaning Wit, Intelligence), and when it spoke, its words were as insightful and perceptive as those its master had once spoken, though far, far more eloquent.
After extensive consultation with the shamans, it was recognized that Ukhaantai was a physical expression of Erkliğ's mind-soul, his sünesün ruhu. At the end of their pronouncement a white horse of wind galloped out of the low clouds and as it descended was met by the eagle -- and in an astounding turn of events, by Erkliğ himself as turbulent mist erupted about him and sent him soaring up into the air. Upon the trio's return to the ground, with Erkliğ now astride the wind-horse, Ukhaantai introduced the shamans to Манан (Manan, meaning Cloud, Mist, Vapor, Haze, Fog), the expression of another one of Erkliğ's souls, that of his personality, his sülde ruhu. Such supernatural events could not be ignored, and even as his father Jebe led the Khan's elite forces in battle, Erkliğ's training with horse and bow intensified.
In the intervening years, his exceptional skills have combined with the information that Ukhaantai can gain him and the mobility that Manan gives him have earned him the use-name of simply Hум (Num, meaning 'Bow'); though in his youth he was aware of his tribe being independent of Temüjin's empire, he has trained and worked as a warrior for all of the Mongols for too long to think of himself as Tayichiud first and Mongol second; for him, it is firmly the other way around. Now 26, he serves as a small-force leader of the cavalry elites his father commands, though often he is sent out on his own to solve a problem as a trusted trouble-shooter.
Like most Mongols, Num has high cheekbones, a broad jaw, a distinct (almost exaggerated) epicanthal fold to the eyelid, broad teeth, and dark hair. His facial hair is well-grown in, though he has not allowed it to grow long, so as to not interfere with his archery. His hair he does wear hair long, however, with braids just in front of both ears and another at the base of his skull. Hours before a battle, he will often comb his hair back and oil it well with fat to prevent strands from blowing in his face and potentially distracting him, rebraiding the hair in front and drawing them back to tie behind his head and restrain the rest of his hair. Unlike many of his compatriots, he only wears enough to keep himself warm, counting on his speed and foresight to keep him safe.
Notably, Num does not carry any sort of sword or spear; while he does carry a few knives for utility purposes, the only weapon he uses in battle is his bow, and that to great effect, whether firing arrows to intercept others or using the length of it to sweep incoming shots from the air. For more vigorous melee applications, he actually prefers to use his feet, defending himself and, more often than not, either kicking his foes' legs out from under them or their weapons from their hands.
The first (and, to him, most important) is his bow, Салхитай Хазах, 'Salkhitai Khazakh', which means 'Bite of the Wind' (or perhaps 'Teeth of the Wind'). This name has stuck with the bow since its creation by Num himself, first as an exceptionally-fine (though oversized, meaning 'his size') horse-bow, then through the blessings of wise totems and the bindings of spirits of strength and power to its sinews. Lacking the great flamboyance one might expect from such a powerful weapon, Salkhitai Khazakh (or just Salkhitai) carries only a few wrappings of fine grey wolf-fur, a couple feathers (one of a rare ghost-eagle, another of a snow-owl) on the upper limb's tip, and countless precise tiny engravings of arrows, clouds, and the wind.
The second is a fossilized-amber-encased insect, a grasshopper of some sort, with etchings on the back of it. A long golden pin pierces the amber, the insect inside, and is typically meant to hold Num's cloak closed; the name of the talisman is Үерийн Алах Царцаа, 'Üyeriin Alakh Tsartsaa', which means 'Flood Slaughters Locusts'. (An aside -- broken down, the term for 'locust' or 'grasshopper' is 'scale-reindeer' -- and since a grass leaf does indeed look something like a scale, this makes poetic sense.) When worn, Üyeriin produces a ghostly watery echo of the wearer's physical attacks against swarms of insects and other pests, allowing him to destroy such things much more easily. This was given to him by his mother's father, a herdsman who narrowly survived the unification of the Mongol people, and who has 'retired' by spending his days looking after the herds.
The other four are similar, albeit in different ways.
Mянга Cум Xэрэг, 'Myanga-Sum Khereg' or 'Thousand-Arrow Case', is a leather arrow-quiver whose form was made by Num, but which has had its capacity ... exaggerated by his spiritual companions. Embossed and stitched with prayers to Erkliğ Han, it is able to carry (though not produce) many more arrows than it should, and brings to his hand precisely the sort which Num is reaching for.
Зуу Жил Өвс, 'Zuun Jil Övs', or 'Hundred Years of Hay', appears to be a simple leather sack with several flaps to be untied and opened, large enough to carry and dispense a day's hay and feed for three or four horses. While this is true, the magic layered into the designs (carefully stitched by Num) outlining prayers to Ұмай (Umay/Eje) the goddess of fertility ensures that the hay the satchel dispenses for those four horses will last for months, even years.
Ёроолгүй Цүнх, 'Yoroolgüi Tsünkh', is the 'Bag With Bottom'. Once again a leather sack of simple design (though exceptional make, and by Num's hand), the stitchings and embossing on this good-sized bag resembles Myanga-Sum Khereg in many respects, as prayers and praises to Erkliğ Han make up a large number of them. The sack can, however, hold far more than it appears that it would be able to.
Finally, Гэр Олон Өрөө, 'Ger Olon Öröö', is 'The Home of Many Rooms'. Although the finely-made yurt is clearly the home of someone important, with many blessings attached to its walls (as well as charms to drive away dangerous animals and spirits), it does appear to be somewhat small, only about 10' or 11' across. This, however, is deceptive, for the inside is almost thirty feet across, with a great central area and several alcoves for private retreat. Warm in the winter, cool in the summer, properly staked down the yurt can withstand the worst of storms and may provide shelter for several horses as well as their riders.
Game Stats:
Salkhitai Khazahk, Wind's Bite, is an adaptive distance guided ki shot Large mongol horse bow (orc hornbow). It is a Legendary weapon, with the Unyielding and Upgradable abilities. Its legendary surge is 1d6, and its wielder can use its power on all attack rolls and combat maneuver checks. Of note is the fact that it is a Large weapon; Num is capable of using Large weapons due to his CDtCT Knack 'Powerful Stature'.
Üyeriin Alakh Tsartsaa ('Flood Slaughters Locusts') is a swarmbane clasp.
Myanga-Sum Khereg ('Thousand-Arrow Case') is a homebrew variant on the efficient quiver, designed for someone who specializes in archery rather than fiddling around with a bunch of different things.. Instead of carrying 60 arrows, 18 javelins, and 6 bows, it carries 300 arrows and 4 bows.
Zuun Jil Övs ('Hundred Years of Hay') is a Type I satchel of plentiful feed, working in more durable leather rather than mesh.
The 'Bag Without Bottom' Yoroolgüi Tsünkh is a leather-base Type IV bag of holding.
Last but not least, Ger Olon Öröö, 'The Home of Many Rooms', is a milieu-appropriate version of the expedition pavilion, round instead of square (11.28' diameter on the outside, 33.85' diameter inside, with the three curtained-off areas still on the 'back wall').
150 durable angel-quill arrowhead arrows, 50 each of cold iron, silver, and adamantine.
500 blunt arrows
5000 regular arrows
3 knives, one on him, two with various kits
Much, much more to come; I still have 1587gp to spend, a great facility at doing so, and a keen realization as to the fact that y'know, being able to actually make and serve tea or whatever is a GOOD RP Thing.
From 'Mongol: The Rise of Genghis Khan'
The Waves Mystery
Perhaps the most problematic element of Num's background / class choices is that of the Waves Mystery choice. To be frank, I selected this specifically in order to acquire Water Sight, allowing Num to see through fog, mist, and (by extension) clouds -- after which he could select Obscuring Mist as a spell and be able to see through it without penalty. (And then acquire the mythic version of the spell, amp it up, and be able to blanket large forces (and at 6th Tier, armies) in it, functionally using it as an offensive weapon.
The interaction intended between his 'wind self' (per se) and his 'water self' is complex, however; while 'wind horse' is a Mongol poetic phrase for 'soul', one of a person's souls -- the only one that reincarnates, as a matter of fact -- is that one which specifically moves through water, the sünesün ruhu; I have decided that this is the intellect-soul, and thus the eagle's name of Ukhaantai. Gaining that air-allied familiar at the great Nature Lake of Baikal, clearly a place of influence of water and waves, was meant as an awakening of his awareness to his mystic self, one which developed in the gaining of the wind-horse as well as his use of ki. Such significance is also placed on the name and mistiness of the wind-horse Manan -- Cloud/Mist/etc. -- as such things are a blending of water and air. (Likewise the 'eruption of turbulent mist' which is the awakening of his half-celestial ability to fly.)
For a horse nomad, while the great Eternal Blue Sky (and space beyond it) is ever-present and thus of vast importance, a more ready and daily concern is, well, water -- water for yourself, and water for your horses. This central consideration is, to an extent, why I allowed myself the use of the Waves Mystery.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------- -
STR 23: 14 base + 2 racial + 4 advanced + 2 half-celestial + 1 CTtCT
DEX 36: 20 base + 2 racial + 4 advanced + 4 half-celestial + 1 CTtCT + 2 CTtCT + 1 standard increase + 2 Physical Prowess (ABP)
CON 25: 16 base + 2 racial + 4 advanced + 2 half-celestial + 1 CTtCT
INT 36: 20 base + 2 racial + 4 advanced + 4 half-celestial + 1 CTtCT + 2 CTtCT + 2 mythic + 1 standard increase
WIS 50: 25 base + 6 racial + 4 advanced + 4 half-celestial + 1 CTtCT + 4 CTtCT + 2 mythic + 2 standard increase + 2 Mental Prowess (ABP)
CHA 18: 13 base -2 racial + 4 advanced + 2 half-celestial + 1 CTtCT
----- Defense -----
Wounds:
Vigor:
AC 61: 10 base + 3 CTtCT + 1 deflect + 13 Dex + 1 Dodge + 2 Enhancement + 2 Monk + 1 ABP + 1 Half-Celestial + 2 Advanced + 20 Wis +5 Class Defense Bonus
. . . Combat Expertise: +5
. . . Fight Defensively, Crane Style: +4
. . . barkskin ability (1 ki, 90m duration): +4
. . . Typical Active Total: AC 74
DR 10/adamantium or Huge: 1 hit dice + 5 Class Defense Bonus + 4 Natural Armor
. . . barkskin ability (1 ki, 90m duration): +4
. . . Typical Active Total: DR 14
Obviously still working here ...
Male advanced half-celestial human (erkliğ han bloodline)
zen archer unchained monk (master of many styles) 9//luring cavalier (hussar) 4/oracle 1/Ilsurian archer ranger (toxophilite) 4
Mythic: Champion 3 // Trickster 3
LG Medium outsider (humanoid, human, native)
Init +38; Senses darkvision 60 ft., see in darkness; Perception +34
--------------------
Defense
--------------------
Defense 57, flat-footed 38. . (+1 deflection, +13 Dex, +6 dodge, +20 Wis, +5 miscellaneous)
Armor DR: 10/adam or Huge. . (+1 HD bonus, +4 natural armor, +5 natural DR)
Critical Defense: +44. . (+10 DR, +13 Dex, +1 deflection, +20 Wis)
Vig 105 (9d10) Wnd 50 (Threshold 25)
Fort +38, Ref +44, Will +50; +4 vs. poison, +2 vs. enchantments
Defensive Abilities hard to kill, improved evasion, share will; Immune disease; Resist acid 10, cold 10, electricity 10; SR 35
--------------------
Offense
--------------------
Speed 90 ft., fly 120 ft. (good)
Melee knife +25/+25 (1d3+6) or
. . knife +25/+25 (1d3+6) or
. . knife +25/+25 (1d3+6) or
. . unarmed strike +25/+25/+25 (1d10+9) or
. . (L) windshot (in melee) +19/+19 (2d6+10)
Ranged (L) windshot +34/+34/+34 (3d6+35/×3)
Special Attacks careful aim, cavalier's charge, challenge 2/day (+4 damage, +2 to ranged attacks), combat style (mounted[APG]), far challenge, favored enemy (them rat bastards +2), flurry of blows (unchained), flurry of blows (unchained), mythic power (9/day, surge +1d6), powerful build, smite evil 1/day (+4 attack and AC, +9 damage), stunning fist (9/day, DC 34), style shot, style strike, tactician 1/day (Bonded Mind, 5 rds), zen archery
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 9th; concentration +13)
. . 3/day -- holy aura, protection from evil
. . 1/day -- aid, bless, cure serious wounds, detect evil, dispel evil, hallow, holy smite (DC 18), holy word (DC 21), mass charm monster (DC 22), neutralize poison, remove disease, resurrection, summon monster IX (celestials only)
Arcane School Spell-Like Abilities (CL 9th; concentration +13)
. . 16/day -- diviner's fortune (+4)
Monk (Unchained) Spell-Like Abilities (CL 9th; concentration +13)
. . -- barkskin (self only, 1 ki)[UM]
Oracle Spells Known (CL 1st; concentration +5)
. . 1st (4/day) -- cure light wounds, murderous command[M,UM] (DC 15), obscuring mist[M]
. . 0 (at will) -- create water, mending, purify food and drink (DC 14), stabilize
. . Mystery Waves
Expert Archer Ranger (Toxophilite) Spells Prepared (CL 1st; concentration +21)
. . 1st -- endure elements[M], gravity bow[APG], hanspur's flotsam vessel, pass without trace, tireless pursuit[APG]
. . M mythic spell
--------------------
Statistics
--------------------
Str 23, Dex 36, Con 25, Int 36, Wis 50, Cha 18
Base Atk +9; CMB +25 (+27 dirty trick, +27 disarm, +27 grapple, +27 reposition, +27 steal, +27 trip); CMD 67 (69 vs. dirty trick, 69 vs. disarm, 69 vs. grapple, 69 vs. reposition, 69 vs. steal, 69 vs. trip)
Feats - Custom Feat -, - Custom Feat -, - Custom Feat -, - Custom Feat -, - Custom Mythic Feat -[M], - Custom Mythic Feat -[M], - Custom Mythic Feat -[M], Agile Maneuvers, Alertness, Bonded Mind, Bullseye Shot, Catch Off-guard, Clustered Shots[UC], Combat Expertise[M], Combat Reflexes[M], Craft Magic Arms & Armor, Crane Riposte[UC], Crane Style[UC], Crane Wing[UC], Cut From The Air, Deadly Aim[M], Deflect Arrows[M], Deft Maneuvers, Dodge, Dual Path[M], Empty Quiver Style, Endurance, Extra Path Ability[M], Far Shot[M], Hammer The Gap[UC], Healing Factor, Heroic Grace, Horse Whisperer, Improved Initiative, Improved Precise Shot, Manyshot[M], Martial Focus, Master Craftsman, Mounted Archery[M], Mounted Combat, Panther Claw[UC], Panther Parry[UC], Panther Style[UC], Perfect Strike, Plains Nomad[UW], Point Blank Master[APG], Power Attack[M], Powerful Stature, Precise Shot, Quick To Act, Rapid Shot[M], Relentless Shot, Storm Breaker, Stunning Fist, Unarmed Combatant, Weapon Focus, Weapon Specialization
Traits disciplined body, heedful readiness, patient calm, reactionary, wisdom in the flesh
Skills Acrobatics +25 (+49 to jump), Bluff +9, Climb +11, Craft (bows) +27, Craft (jewelry) +22, Craft (leather) +22, Craft (musical instruments) +19, Diplomacy +9, Disable Device +15, Escape Artist +18, Fly +29, Handle Animal +16 (+18 with horses), Heal +32, Intimidate +16, Knowledge (geography) +25, Knowledge (local) +22, Knowledge (nature) +25, Knowledge (nobility) +19, Knowledge (religion) +22, Linguistics +15, Perception +34, Perform (dance) +11, Perform (oratory) +11, Perform (percussion instruments) +11, Perform (string instruments) +11, Perform (wind instruments) +11, Profession (soldier) +32, Ride +32 (+34 with horses), Sense Motive +34, Sleight of Hand +15, Spellcraft +18, Stealth +25, Survival +32 (+34 to Survival vs. getting lost), Swim +11
Languages Common; telepathic bond
SQ adaptive strike, agile warrior, aim for the eye, always a chance[MA], amazing initiative, arrow-splitter, bonus feat, distant barrage[MA], expert trainer +2, fast mount +10 ft., fast movement (unchained), favored terrain (plains +2), finesse weapon attack attribute, fleet charge[MA], forewarned, fuse style, hunter's bond (horse named Animal Companion), improbable prestidigitation[MA], intercept arrow, ki archery, ki arrows, ki pool (25 points, cold iron, magic, silver), ki powers (abundant step, qinggong power, wholeness of body), legendary item[MA], legendary power, legendary surge, limitless range[MA], monk vow (vow of silence[UM]), mount (horse named Animal Companion), mythic bond, mythic spellcasting[MA], oracle's curse (mute), order of the land, precision[MA], recuperation, reflexive shot, revelation (water sight), specialized school (divination), style shots (knockback kick, knockback shot, leg shot, leg sweep), track +2, unstoppable shot[MA], unyielding, vicious aim, wild empathy +8
Other Gear arrows (4760), arrows (240), blunt arrows[APG] (970), blunt arrows[APG] (30), durable angel quill arrowhead arrow (270), durable angel quill arrowhead arrow (30), knife, knife, knife, windshot, windshot (in melee), archer's quiver (type i), bag of holding vi, satchel of plentiful feed i, swarmbane clasp[UE], 1,287 gp
--------------------
Special Abilities
--------------------
Abundant Step (Su) As a move action, use 2 ki to dimension door (self only).
Adaptive Strike (1/combat) (Ex) As a swift action, foe becomes flat footed vs. improvised weapon attacks for 1 rd.
Agile Maneuvers Use DEX instead of STR for CMB
Agile Warrior (Ex) Gain Acrobatics, Escape Artist, Stealth, and Survival as class skills.
Aim for the Eye (DC 26) (Ex) Ranged sneak attacks at up to 60 ft. Spend 1 power on critical vs. flat-footed to blind. (Fort neg.)
Always a Chance (Ex) You don’t automatically miss when you roll a 1 on an attack roll.
Amazing Initiative (1/round) (Ex) As a free action, use 1 power to gain an extra standard action (can't be used to cast a spell).
Animal Companion Link (Ex) Handle or push Animal Companion faster, +4 to checks vs. them.
Arrow-Splitter (Ex) +1 bonus on ranged attack rolls vs. creatures or objects 2 or more size cat smaller than you.
Barkskin (self only, 1 Ki) (Sp) Self Only. Costs 1 ki point to activate.
Bonded Mind You and ally you can see that has this feat can trade nonverbal messages.
Bullseye Shot You slow your breath, calm yourself, and hit the bullseye, just as you were trained to.
Careful Aim (Ex) Ignore penalties for firing up to three range increments; firearms target touch AC up to two range increments.
Catch Off-Guard Proficient with improvised melee weapons. Unarmed foe is flat-footed against your improvised weapons.
Cavalier's Charge (Ex) Mounted charge grants +2 to hit and -0 AC rather than +2/-2.
Clustered Shots Total damage from full-round ranged attacks before applying DR
Combat Expertise [Mythic] Use 1 power to eliminate attack penalties of Combat expertise for 1 min.
Combat Reflexes [Mythic] As a swift action, use 1 power for movement AoO vs. foes who already provoked one for moving.
Crane Riposte Lessen fight defensive attack pen. Gain AoO when deflect att/lose crane wing dodge bonus.
Crane Style Fight defensive pen reduced to -2. When in style, dodge bonus increases by 1.
Crane Wing Your sweeping blocks and graceful motions allow you to deflect melee attacks with ease.
Cut from the Air AoO: Stop ranged attacks against you or an adjacent target
Darkvision (60 feet) You can see in the dark (black and white only).
Deflect Arrows [Mythic] As an immediate action, use 1 power to deflect a single ray.
Deft Maneuvers You don't provoke attacks of opportunity when tripping.
Distant Barrage (Ex) As a swift action, use 1 power for ranged att (+3 bonus, ignore cover/conceal & bypass all DR).
Divination Diviners are masters of remote viewing, prophecies, and using magic to explore the world.
Diviner's Fortune +4 (16/day) (Sp) As a standard action, touch grants ally +4 insight bonus to many checks for 1 round.
Empathic Link with Familiar (Su) You have an empathic link with your Arcane Familiar.
Empty Quiver Style (Hornbow, orc) Make melee atk with chosen weapon as if heavy or light mace.
Endurance +4 to a variety of fort saves, skill and ability checks. Sleep in L/M armor with no fatigue.
Energy Resistance, Acid (10) You have the specified Energy Resistance against Acid attacks.
Energy Resistance, Cold (10) You have the specified Energy Resistance against Cold attacks.
Energy Resistance, Electricity (10) You have the specified Energy Resistance against Electricity attacks.
Expert Trainer +2 (Ex) +2 to train mounts, reduced training time option.
Familiar Bonus: +4 bonus on initiative checks You gain the Alertness feat while your familiar is within arm's reach.
Far Challenge +4 (2/day) (Ex) +4 to damage target, target gains +4 to attack rolls vs. cavalier
Far Shot [Mythic] Use 1 power to ignore range increment penalties until the end of your turn.
Fast Mount +10 ft. (Ex) When riding any mount all modes of movement increase speed.
Fast Movement (Unchained) (+30 ft.) The Monk adds 10 or more feet to his base speed.
Favored Organization (them rat bastards +2) (Ex) +2 to rolls vs. members of them rat bastards.
Favored Terrain (Plains +2) (Ex) +2 to rolls when in plains terrain.
Finesse Weapon Attack Attribute Finesse weapons use Dexterity on attack rolls.
Fleet Charge (Ex) As a swift action, use 1 power to move speed & attack (+3 bonus, bypass all DR).
Flurry of Blows (Unchained) (Ex) As full-rd action, gain extra attacks with unarmed strike/monk weapons.
Flurry of Blows (Unchained) (Ex) As full-round action, gain extra attacks with some weapons.
Fly (120 feet, Good) You can fly!
Forewarned 4 (Su) Can always act in surprise rounds.
Fuse Style (3 styles) (Ex) At 1st level, a master of many styles can fuse two of the styles he knows into a more perfect style. The master of many styles can have two style feat stances active at once. Starting a stance provided by a style feat is still a swift action, but whe
Hammer the Gap With a full-attack action, each hit against the same opponent deals extra damage
Hard to Kill (Ex) Automatically stabilize when dying, and only die at neg Con x 2.
Healing Factor You have a mutant healing factor.
Heroic Grace You are destined for greatness, and are thus unlikely to be petrified by a wandering monster.
Immunity to Disease You are immune to diseases.
Improbable Prestidigitation (Su) You can use Sleight of Hand to hide or retrieve objects in a personal extradimensional space.
Improved Evasion (Ex) If succeed on Reflex save for half dam, take none instead. Failure deals half dam.
Improved Precise Shot Ignore AC bonuses and miss chance from anything less than total cover/concealment.
Intercept Arrow (Ex) You can ready ranged attack to deflect ranged attack vs. ally within 30'.
Ki Archery (Su) 1 Ki point: +50' range increment for bows.
Ki Arrows (Su) 1 Ki point: bow deals the same damage as unarmed strike.
Ki Pool (25/day) (Su) You have a ki pool equal to 1/2 your monk level + your Wisdom modifier.
Knockback Kick (max 30 ft.) On kick hit, CMB chk moves foe 10 ft or more away. Foe provokes no AoO and is not prone.
Knockback Shot (max 30 ft.) On kick hit, CMB chk moves foe 10 ft or more away. Foe provokes no AoO and is not prone.
Land's Challenge +4 (2/day) (Ex) +4 to damage target, -2 AC vs. others when used, +2 to ranged attack rolls.
Leg Shot On successful hit, free trip attempt.
Leg Sweep On kick hit, free trip attempt.
Legendary Power (2/day) A pool of power - at least two uses - that recharge each day.
Legendary Surge (+1d6 to Attack Rolls - All, Combat Maneuver Checks) Roll a die and add the result to certain rolls.
Limitless Range (Ex) Throw any melee weapon as if it had a range increment of 20 ft.
Manyshot [Mythic] When using Manyshot, your second shot also fires 2 arrows.
Martial Focus (Hammers) You have honed your skills with a group of related weapons.
Master Craftsman (Craft [bows]) +2 to chosen craft skill, its ranks count as CL for Craft Magic Arms and Armor and Craft Wondrous Item.
Mount (Ex) Gain the services of a special animal companion.
Mounted Archery [Mythic] As a standard action, make 1 att if use mount as cover. Use 1 power for no mounted pen to att.
Mounted Combat (1/round) Once per round you can attempt to negate a hit to your mount in combat.
Mute (Ex) Your cannot speak, but all spells are cast as if using the Silent Spellmetamagic without modifying the spell's actual level.
Mythic Bond You have a bond with a legendary item.Panther Claw Retaliate as a free action instead of as a swift action
Panther Parry Retaliatory attacks are resolved before the attack
Panther Style (20/round) Retaliate against opponents that take attacks of opportunity against you
Perfect Strike (2d20, 9/day) With certain weapons, roll twice, higher is attack, lower is confirmation roll.
Plains Nomad Gain a +2 bonus on Constitution checks attempted as a result of a forced march; bonus is doubled and applies on other checks in plains terrain.
Poison Resistance +4 (Ex) You have the listed resistance to poison.
Power Attack [Mythic] Use 1 power to eliminate attack penalties of Power attack for 1 min.
Powerful Build Can function as one size larger where advantageous.
Powerful Stature You count as one size category when beneficial.
Precise Shot You don't get -4 to hit when shooting or throwing into melee.
Quick to Act Gain an insight bonus to initiative checks equal to half your BAB.
Rapid Shot [Mythic] Rapid shot allows 2 extra attacks, or 1 extra attack with no penalties.
Recuperation (Ex) Fully heal after 8 hrs rest, use 1 power and 1 hr to heal half and restore all non-mythic abilities.
Reflexive Shot (Ex) Make AoO with bow.
Relentless Shot When trip opp with ranged atk within 30', you threaten opp untl your next turn.
See in Darkness See perfectly in darkness of any kind, including magical darkness.
Share Spells with Companion (Ex) Can cast spells with a target of "you" on animal companion, as touch spells.
Share Will (Su) When your or familiar fails a save vs. mind-affecting effect, the other can roll in their place, but failure affects both.
Smite Evil (1/day) (Su) +4 to hit, +9 to damage, +4 deflection bonus to AC when used.
Spell Resistance (35) You have Spell Resistance.
Storm Breaker +2 sizes to calc if moved by wind or currents.
Stunning Fist (9/day, DC 34) You can stun an opponent with an unarmed attack.
Style Shot (1/round) (Ex) During flurry of blows, one or more shots has an extra effect.
Style Strike (1/round) (Ex) During flurry of blows, one or more unarmed strikes has an extra effect.
Surge (1d6) (Su) Use 1 power to increase any d20 roll by the listed amount.
Tactician (Bonded Mind, 5 rds, 1/day) (Ex) Grant the use of one of your teamwork bonus feats to all allies within 30 ft.
Telepathic Bond (1/day) (Sp) You maintain a telepathic bond with one specific creature.
Track +2 Add the listed bonus to Survival checks made to track.
Unarmed Combatant Always considered armed, no attack of opportunity on grapple attempts.
Unstoppable Shot (Ex) As standard action, ranged attack affects all creatures in a line. Spend 1 power to bank shot.
Unyielding A legendary item with this ability has double the hardness of a typical item of its type and triple the hit points. Furthermore, it's immune to all attempts to sunder it made by non-mythic creatures. This is a persistent ability.
Vicious Aim +2 (Ex) Bonus to ranged weapon attacks & damage equal to half highest favored enemy bonus.
Vow of Silence (+1 ki) The monk must speak no words and attempt to be quiet in his actions.
Water Sight (1 rounds/day) (Su) See through fog and mist. Can use a calm pool of water for .
Weapon Focus (Bows) Choose one weapon group. You become better at using that type of weapon.
Wholeness of Body (1d8+9 hp) (Su) As a standard action, use 2 ki to heal damage to self.
Wild Empathy +8 (Ex) Improve the attitude of an animal, as if using Diplomacy.
Zen Archery (Su) Use WIS instead of DEX for ranged attacks with a bow.
@Sebecloki -- regarding familiars and animal companions, I'm presuming that we (and they) still get at least some of the benefits, correct?I think I'm fine with all of that, I just need to ask a question about the nuncio archetype -- I'm not clear what you're asking. Is this a homebrew mix of things you want to use as one of the stacking archetypes?
That ... wasn't the idea, no.
Normally, a familiar gets certain benefits -- their AC and Intelligence improve as their master goes up in levels, but particularly they get a suite of familiar abilities that help keep them alive and which help their master -- an empathic link, speaking with their master, communicating with other creatures of their kind, but also spell resistance, the ability to deliver touch spells for their master, and share in 'personal' spells if they're touching their master when they cast the spell.
Familiars do, in a less advanced game, have available to them certain familiar archetypes, many of which replace one or several of the standard familiar abilities.
The Discreet Nuncio is a homebrew mashup of three of those familiar archetypes, removing what was all but useless to me when I first created it (such as 'share spells', 'deliver touch spells', and 'communicate with their own kind') and adding in things I thought useful from the other three archetypes (the sage, the emissary, and the infiltrator).
Animal companions have these too -- both the various abilities and archetypes to tweak them to your liking.
Functionally, the question is this: Do our familiars and animal companions still receive some of the abilities standard familiars / animal companions do? If so, would you allow us to trade some of those abilities out as they are in familiar archetypes or animal companion archetypes?
Considering the fact that these become full characters in and of themselves, many of them -- the AC, Saving Throws, Feats, Tricks, Attribute bonuses, etc. -- are and should get tossed. But other things perhaps not: the empathic link, the ability to talk to their own kind, have a secure personal conversational line with their master, share spells, deliver touch spells, etc. It's up to you, natch.
Okay I understand your question now -- I've never played a caster so I wasn't really aware of the details here, and I flat out didn't know there was such a thing as a familiar archetype. Now that I've looked through it more closely -- apply these rules:
*Hit Dice: For the purpose of effects related to number of Hit Dice, use the master’s character level or the familiar’s normal HD total, whichever is higher.
*Attacks: Use the master’s base attack bonus, as calculated from all his classes, whichever is greater, to calculate the familiar’s base attack bonus. Use the familiar’s Dexterity or Strength modifier, whichever is greater, to calculate the familiar’s melee attack bonus with natural weapons. Damage equals that of a normal creature of the familiar’s kind.
*Saving Throws: For each saving throw, use either the familiar’s base save bonus (Fortitude +2, Reflex +2, Will +0) or the master’s (as calculated from all his classes), whichever is better. The familiar uses its own ability modifiers to saves, and it doesn’t share any of the other bonuses that the master might have on saves.
*Skills: For each skill in which either the master or the familiar has ranks, use either the normal skill ranks for an animal of that type or the master’s skill ranks, whichever is better. In either case, the familiar uses its own ability modifiers. Regardless of a familiar’s total skill modifiers, some skills may remain beyond the familiar’s ability to use. Familiars treat Acrobatics, Climb, Fly, Perception, Stealth, and Swim as class skills.
*Intelligence only applies if for some reason you give the familiar a lower intelligence score than this value.
*Natural Armor Adj. stacks with the Defense Bonus.
*All "special" abilities apply: alertness, improved evasion, share spells, empathic link, etc.
For the archetype -- I guess I'm okay with a homebrewed familiar archetype if no one else thinks what you cooked up is over-powered.
I'm not really sure how to treat a familiar archetype w/ these rules -- it's not really the same as a class archetype.
I'll update the rules page with some of this, I'll have to look through the specific traits of animal companions and eidolons -- what are the possibilities for buddies with traits like this:
eidolon
familiar
animal companion
mount
phantom
am I missing anything? I'd like to go ahead and make rulings for all that stuff too.
Yeah a shadow. Because I have a really weird idea there...
Maybe we should do a summary of applicants, their characters with classes and builds and a primary and secondary roll they want to focus on.
That might help everyone to refine their characters and get a good working and cooperating party together.
Honestly Seb, the familiar and animal companion archetypes aren't really all that powerful.
You could easily allow them to acquire several just like the normal class ones, and it wouldn't increase their overall power.
Also, did you see my above question about my proposed shape shifter concept??
Seb, thoughts on this concept, and any suggested material I could look into for it?I think I'm going to go full on savage warrior shape shifter. Probably going to the player friendly werewolf(not lycanthrope) template from Lords of the Wild from DSP, and a few PrCs from that book as well.
Class wise, definitely Legendary Shifter. Unsure what the 2nd class will be. Possibly Barbarian, maybe Ranger, perhaps something else. Need to go through my options.
You already mentioned legendary shifter.
For fluff, apparently there's a creature called a"Erbörü – A creature like Werewolf. It is a mythological or folkloric human with the ability to shapeshift into a wolf or an therianthropic hybrid wolf-like creature, either purposely or after being placed under a curse or affliction (e.g. via a bite or scratch from another werewolf)." That's in a wiki, I can't find any additional info.
Characters coming among nicely -- I think this is going to be one for the ages people!
Honestly Seb, the familiar and animal companion archetypes aren't really all that powerful.
You could easily allow them to acquire several just like the normal class ones, and it wouldn't increase their overall power.
Also, did you see my above question about my proposed shape shifter concept??
It was more mechanical -- they're not equivalent to class archetypes (presumably?), so they can't be gestalted in exactly the same way b/c they're not really built on a common chassis.
So, I have to decide whether you can also gestalt 2 famililar archetypes. I'm not even sure there's enough material here to make that a useful idea. Are there extra e-books with more options (including 3pp?).
Familiar Archetypes function just like a class archetype. They give up or add to the abilities the standard familiar gains.
There's also about 20 of them it seems?
There don't seem to be any eidolon archetypes.
I guess for familiars you can just gestalt 2 of those. I need to look up the rules for phantoms and eidolons and stuff and update the build page.
Folks, I'm going to try to keep up with this page -- I work more than 50 hours a week right now in my lab b/c we're having a lot of staffing shortages right now with turnover and medical issues, so if there's some delay, it's because I'm doing a 12+ hour shift multiple days in a row.
I'm still thinking about the initial area -- I found this near article about a Xiongnu city ruins (https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2018/01/archaeological-excavat ions-at-khermen.html#GiCsO1CeUf9BuxGA.97). I'm thinking maybe instead of the Chinese castle the mongols just knocked down, the party will start in a camp near these ruins (which will be old even during the 13th century).
Maybe we should do a summary of applicants, their characters with classes and builds and a primary and secondary roll they want to focus on.
That might help everyone to refine their characters and get a good working and cooperating party together.
I think people have been doing that above after I asked for a 'round up' of current applications. Maybe someone can do a summary post?
I'm getting even more excited to run this looking over some of the character ideas -- I'm loving all the proposals I've seen so far -- there's a lot of tremendous energy here for a great campaign, and I think I have some ideas for settings and scenarios you'll also find really engaging.
That actually raises a good point about schedule I should clarify -- I try to post 1/day. The 'regulars' from my other games probably already know I have a very unusual work schedule -- I work on 3rd shift/weekend option in a 24/7 clinical lab, and I'm mostly free during the week. That's my life situation to be aware of for my posting habits. I try to make quick posts when I come home briefly between shifts on the weekend, but sometimes I'm so tired after a 12-16 hour shift that I just have to sleep and get back to it during the week.
I aim to spend some hours tomorrow hashing out the details of Razan.
Inspired by coinshot, an example of what I intend for his roles:
Melee combat focus with anti-demon and anti-caster specialty
Channeling (both for mass healing and for harming demons/elementals)
Mobility
Social skills
Bardic abilities (including emphasis on knowledge history, religion, and planes)
I'm probably missing stuff that he will also be solid at.
Taking Bonded Mind is an idea that I like a lot. I'm in a Way of the Wicked game where the party is using it to great effect to plot in utter secrecy.
As for availability, I can usually post 1/day. Sometimes more often, sometimes less often.
As mentioned above, Daryun is a melee combatant who is pretty impossible to kill (he gets to make an AoO if anyone shoots at him with anything, including spells, to deflect the attack; he's immune to fire, cold, charm, and compulsion, no one can flank him, he's got improved evasion, he's immune to enemy aid other actions, he has DR, and regen).
Familiar Rules
Well, you've already stated that Familiars, Eidolons, Animal Companions, etc. (mounts being a sub-category of Animal Companions, really) are their own (powerful!) characters, the main things that should transfer across really are only the special abilities -- alertness, evasion, share spells, etc. (The ability of familiars and animal companions as their own characters to communicate normally with other characters is somewhat presumed, but 'communicate with master' and 'communicate with others of their species' might apply as special abilities.)
Applying all of the above as well as the full 6/6::3/3::+6 they're receiving may well actually make them more powerful than the characters they're the side-kicks of.
Regarding the 'discreet nuncio', the one thing I'm really aiming for is that telepathic bond at L13 -- that way I can have one to my horse and one to my familiar. ;) I could just take Infiltrator for it.
Thinking about it, might I suggest that if people wish to take familiar/animal companion/whatever archetypes, it uses up one of their 'class' archetype slots, and they get it for free (without any replacements) the way the class archetype slots do?
Location, Location, Location
When working on a game based on Earth, I tend to use Google Earth a lot, because it lets me save place locations, get an idea of placement, measure distances, that sort of thing. The problem with using the excavations at Khermen is that Ogiinuur Sum in Mongolia is almost 2000 miles away from the siege of Bukhara.
I would instead check out the two maps -- one of the Western Liao Empire (map being 60 years old as of game time), which the Mongols were in the process of conquering (finishing up in 1220), but much of the western portion of which had been taken over by game time, the other of the Khwarezmian Empire, which had been established (and clearly taken some territory from the Western Liao) in 1190. On the latter map, in the upper-right corner, the label 'Kara-Khitai' is the Western Liao.
Of note, at the very start of the war Genghis Khan sent Jochi and Jebe (the latter being Num's father, and didn't we have a daughter of Jochi here?) south across the Tien Shan mountains to invade and raid the fertile Fergana Valley (to the east of Samarqand -- it's labeled on the Western Liao map). The following spring saw the Mongols come through the Altai mountains and then through the area known as the Dzungarian Gate (on the Western Liao map, this is the gap south of the Naiman / Altai mountains, the area extending between Yizhou/Hamili and Emin, in the north-east of the Western Liao Empire). Performing an end-run around the cities on the Syr Darya (the river coming out of the north end of the Aral Sea, which is on the upper left corner of the Western Liao map), they then '... traversed 300 miles of the seemingly impassable Kyzyl Kum desert ...' and fall upon Bukhara, which is where we are at game start.
We might perhaps not be in a formally-fortified camp, but instead at a camp of a group that's been sent further to the west, perhaps to scout out Darganata, Khiva, or Kheti (found on the Western Liao map), and issues happen there?
Taking Bonded Mind is an idea that I like a lot. I'm in a Way of the Wicked game where the party is using it to great effect to plot in utter secrecy.
You don't say ... ;)
Just as a note, I saw the 'Hybrid Human // Custom Race' thing. If you build a custom race like I did (max 31 points), you don't get to hybridize with the humans. It's kind of presumed you take the human ability baselines: Type: Humanoid, Size: Medium, Speed: Normal, Language: Linguist (1 RP), and with Skilled (4 RP), and Flexible Bonus Feat (4 RP), but since you're building it custom, you can put the attribute boosts where and as you want them. And of course there's plenty of magical enhancements for you to play around with ...
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
Razan Al-Amin (Decimus Observet): Human // Custom hybrid -- Paladin (Virtuous Bravo*, Weapon Champion*, Oath of Charity) 12 // Bard (Arcane Duelist*, Dervish Dancer*) :: Holy Vindicator 2 // Mystic Theurge 2 :: Champion 2 // Guardian 2. No templates; 1/1 Mythic given over to 2/2 Prestige classes. Devout holy warrior, extreme mobility, blade and channelling. (Desert horse nomad, perhaps an Arabic Bedouin?) Christian, but don't hold that against him. Probably great social skills.
Altani the Smoke (caster4life): Human (?) -- Wizard 6 // Alchemist 5, Magus 1 :: Unknown // Unknown (mythic). Templates: Smoke creature, Mutant, Outer mutant, 3x Advanced**. Shamanistic alchemist; ranged damage, utility, some buffs/debuffs, battlefield control. High knowledge skills.
Daryun (Vrog Skyreaver): Human // Hobgoblin hybrid -- Fighter 10 / Unchained Monk 10 :: Champion 4 / Guardian 4. No templates. Furious charger, immense speed, pure fist-fighter. Natural disaster on two legs. Intimidation, singer, good perception and sense motive.
Num (The Wyrm Ouroboros): Customized human bloodline -- Monk (Zen archer*, Master of Many Styles*) 9 // Oracle 1, Luring Cavalier (Hussar) 4, Ilsurian archer* ranger (Toxophilite*) 4 :: Champion 3 // Trickster 3. Advanced half-celestial templates. Wizard VMC. Mobility, ranged (bow) attacks, close-in ally defense against same. High initiative, good perception, sense motive, other skills.
. . . Ukhaantai, wizard familiar: revamped/reskinned (golden eagle) rhamphorhynchus. Aqueous, boreal, half-celestial, advanced templates. Will be a sky-hunter, some spells, lots of intelligence, and socially adept.
. . . Manan, animal companion: wind-horse. Likely druid or elementalist // barbarian or monk.
Unnamed, Art Burd: Human / Half elf hybrid -- Summoner ?? // Cleric/Druid/Oracle ?? :: Archmage ?? // Hierophant ??. Unknown templates. Zoroastrian of Persian descent
. . . 'Div' (?) Eidolon: Wizard // ?? :: Archmage // ??. Unknown otherwise.
Unnamed, Monkeygod: Legendary Shifter // Barbarian or ranger. A shape-shifting savage warrior.
Unnamed, Coinshot: Human // Samsaran or Aasimar -- Monk (Tetori Monk*) 12 // Druid (Ancient Guardian*, Halcyon Druid*) 12 :: Trickster 3 // Hierophant 3 (uncertain on both). No templates. Stealth assassin, wildshifter. Loyal to and hates Genghis Khan. Mute. Expected to have no social capabilities at all.
Unnamed, Ouachitonian: Human -- Barbarian (Invulnerable Rager*, Mad Dog*) ?? // Sorcerer (Elemental (Water)*, Sage*; Tattooed, Crossblooded, Wildblooded) :: Archmage ?? // Champion ??. Advanced Aqueous Boreal Giant Mutant Water-Infused templates. Rides a woolly rhino or mammoth, may go into Mammoth Rider. Likely a 'charge into them, then lay about' sort.
Sechen Spirit-Speaker, Timeskeeper: Human -- Oracle ?? // Medium ?? :: Unknown // Unknown (mythic). Unknown templates. Spirit-caller, shaman, buffer/debuffer. Unknown otherwise. Jochi's daughter, grand-daughter of Temüjin.
Unknown, Hayato Ken: Unknown.
* -- Free archetype.
** -- Can Advanced be applied three times to the same character?
Is this everyone?
you can apply a template more than once.
I think the idea was that you were a normal human with the hybrid feat as a freebie -- I'm not sure if that's what you're indicating your understanding is here.
Thanks for the map notes -- I'll have to take a look at that.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Re: Human/Hybrid -- I think I figured that you'd meant (from this) that the (powerful!) race you built (like Erkliğ Han bloodline/race is) would be a replacement for the Hybrid; adding on +2 to any attribute, an additional skill per level, and an additional feat ... well, it overshadows other races, yea mightily. :P :)
-----------------------------------
Gettin' the band together
Going by what I can see of the backgrounds and flavors, I see three groups.
The mercenary / travellers from the West:
Razan Al-Amin, Christian
Art Burd (Zoroastrian).
Ouachitonian (Norse by way of the Eastern Roman Empire)
Ouachitonian's Norseman could have been simply wandering east, into new/uncharted lands (from his point of view); as an (ex-)Varangian Guard, he may have turned mercenary when he left and headed east instead of back west to the Nordic areas. Razan and Art Burd's character might have been mercenaries as well, or even known each other for a long time; Khwarezmians (it appears) were often mercenaries, particularly in the west of the country. Returning to their homes, they may well have made common cause against the Khwarezmians, being potentially-suppressed religious minorities; I can't find any particular information save that the Khwarezmian Empire was chiefly Sunni Muslim. But either fleeing further east due to persecution, being recruited as spies and heading to hook up with the Mongols, or just looking to help the Mongols destroy the Khwarezmians (perhaps for having destroyed your home town(s)) gets you into the group with the rest of us.
The wildmen:
Monkeygod (Savage Shapeshifter)
Daryun (Unspecified 'barbarian' sort)
Daryun is, clearly, also a Tengrist, as his (claimed) father is a Tengrist god; he might be a Turk from the Qara-Khitai, in the area recently taken over by the Khwarezmians, or someone from further north of the Mongols, in the wilds of Siberia. The former would be more likely (considering the dog story), though imagining someone like him traveling the wilds is an easy thing to do. Meeting up with the savage shapeshifter that is Monkeygod's character seems to me to be a very possible thing, wandering the northern forests and, becoming friends (perhaps after a spectacular 'unstoppable force / untouchable object' brawl) they wander together until (gasp) the Khwarezmians kill Daryun's dog (bad move on their part) and the two move to join up with the Mongols.
The Mongols:
Altani the Smoke:
Sechen Spirit-Speaker
Coinshot (Druid Monk)
Num (Horse archer)
Though I'm not completely clear on Altani the Smoke's background, at least the other three are firmly Mongols. With that in mind, and considering that there should be some experience in the outside world, I strongly suggest that Sechen Spirit-Speaker is not fresh off the farm / out of the shaman's camp. Even if she is, though, considering the magic in both Coinshot's druid and Altani, it's entirely possible Sechen has known them for months, even years.
Presuming Sechen comes down out of the mountains a year or two before game start, though, Num (and the men he's leading, if he's leading men -- who would of course be reassigned, since I haven't taken Leadership) might have been detailed as the other three's escort, and they're part of the scouting force for where-ever we wind up starting from.
Thanks for the summary!
I planned my character to be barbarian/monk/ranger thanks to the gestalt hopf. There's a little trick involved which gives me favored enemy humans (which most everything should be in this game) +10, which i then also get to some skills. Quite a boost.
I'm currently also planning on taking 3 levels in shadowdancer, which would give me the shadow companion. I want to sell that off as some dark creepy shamanic magic.
The question is if the game will mainly focus on the physical conquest of that city and will we have mass battles? Or will there be a more social and maybe intrigue side to it?
This might influence my character creation a lot.
I'm planning a mix of things -- the first scenario I'm imagining involves the missing caravans and is going to be a wilderness hex crawl kind of set up that draws inspiration from Michael Crichton's Eaters of the Dead and Bone Tomahawk.
The siege of the city isn't going to be so simple as real life where, as I understand it, it was basically a lopsided Mongol wipe out.
There are going to be 40,000+ highly trained Khwarazem troops, including heavy infantry and cavalry that ride scaled rhinoceros-like creatures from Persian legend called karkadann. They're also going to have an aerial cavalry of legendary simurgh birds and other large avians. There are also jinn-binding sha'ir-type summoners in their forces.
Now, the mongols are going to have their own casters and megafauna warbeasts as well, so it's not like they're not bringing a serious gun to the fight as well, and they seriously outnumber the city defenders. Still -- it's not going to be such a wipe out.
I was imagining an infiltration scenario where the players have to sneak into the Ark of Bukhara, the legendary fortress in the middle of the city.
Re: Human/Hybrid -- I think I figured that you'd meant (from this) that the (powerful!) race you built (like Erkliğ Han bloodline/race is) would be a replacement for the Hybrid; adding on +2 to any attribute, an additional skill per level, and an additional feat ... well, it overshadows other races, yea mightily. :P :)
-----------------------------------
Gettin' the band togetherGoing by what I can see of the backgrounds and flavors, I see three groups.
The mercenary / travellers from the West:
Razan Al-Amin, Christian
Art Burd (Zoroastrian).
Ouachitonian (Norse by way of the Eastern Roman Empire)Ouachitonian's Norseman could have been simply wandering east, into new/uncharted lands (from his point of view); as an (ex-)Varangian Guard, he may have turned mercenary when he left and headed east instead of back west to the Nordic areas. Razan and Art Burd's character might have been mercenaries as well, or even known each other for a long time; Khwarezmians (it appears) were often mercenaries, particularly in the west of the country. Returning to their homes, they may well have made common cause against the Khwarezmians, being potentially-suppressed religious minorities; I can't find any particular information save that the Khwarezmian Empire was chiefly Sunni Muslim. But either fleeing further east due to persecution, being recruited as spies and heading to hook up with the Mongols, or just looking to help the Mongols destroy the Khwarezmians (perhaps for having destroyed your home town(s)) gets you into the group with the rest of us.
The wildmen:
Monkeygod (Savage Shapeshifter)
Daryun (Unspecified 'barbarian' sort)Daryun is, clearly, also a Tengrist, as his (claimed) father is a Tengrist god; he might be a Turk from the Qara-Khitai, in the area recently taken over by the Khwarezmians, or someone from further north of the Mongols, in the wilds of Siberia. The former would be more...
The Khwarezmians were founded by rebellious Turkish Ghilman that were once pledges of the neighboring Ghaznavid Sultanate -- they were basically like mamluks and other slave solider castes in the wider islamic world. They were Sunni, unlike the later Ithna-ashariyya civilization created by the Safavid rise to power.
That makes it sound like mammoth rider is an interesting Prestige Class as well.
Man, my week was not easy! I got most of Sechen down on paper, I try to work on her while at work. I just need to do a bit more, double check, and then get it from paper to computer! Hopefully I can do it sometime this week! XD
I completely forgot about my legendary item. I'll have to give it some thought.
@GM: is there any way I can get a LegendaRy Item with Foe-Biting for my Unarmed Strike?
I don't know the rules answer to that -- anyone have any suggestions?
That makes it sound like mammoth rider is an interesting Prestige Class as well.
I'm explicitly intending to include a mass combat on a field in several places for mounted mongol warrior builds w/ fire lances and or artillery to make full use of their abilities.
I also want to maybe try out the Ultimate Intrigue social combat rules for some of the urban scenarios. I'm trying to look through it now and see if it's something I think can really be implemented in this format.
@GM: is there any way I can get a LegendaRy Item with Foe-Biting for my Unarmed Strike?I don't know the rules answer to that -- anyone have any suggestions?
Seb, as I suggested earlier, I strongly recommend banning foe-biting. It's way too powerful, especially when every PC gets a legendary item. Most martial PCs will make their weapon their legendary item, and there's literally no reason not to take foe-biting. It's just far too good to pass up.
Just in case people were wondering, the person who wrote the mythic solutions that include banning foe-biting was Jason Nelson of Legendary Games. Among his credentials to speak on such matters mythic include being one of the main writers for Mythic Adventures from Paizo as well as a literal slew of mythic books from LG.
One of the main reasons he took the time to explore these fixes is because one of the biggest complaints about the Wrath of the Righteous AP was that mythic PCs were generally able to destroy most challenges thrown their way.
Speaking of legendary items, here is what I put together. I certainly welcome feedback:
Description: This is wide Girdle, the front of which is made of Dragon Leather, while the length of the belt is made of the sinew of Dragons.
Legend has it that one day Daryun was walking his dog when one of the massive land Wyrms appeared before him. Daryun calmly tied his dog's leash to a tree before punching the rather rude creature to death for scaring his dog.
Daryun then took a chunk of it's hide and thread sinew through the sides to make a rather impressive girdle, the appearance of which almost screams raw physical power.
Base Legendary Abilities:
*Major Artifact
*Hard to Destroy: must be worn by the physically weakest man in the world who then dies from the strain of trying to lift something. The belt will then shatter into individual strands of rope.
*Mythic Bond: Bonded to one creature at a time, and a creature can only be bonded to 1 legendary item at a time.
*Legendary Power: 6/day
*Legendary Surge: d6/d8
*Purpose: Belt (str- or dex-based skill and ability checks)
*Legendary Item Abilities:
- Adroit (Acrobatics, Climb, Swim; taken three times; can spend a legendary surge to add +20 to a skill check.)
- Everlasting (grants the user limited immortality; user does need to eat, drink, or breathe; immune to effects from extreme heat or cold; user doesn't age)
- For purposes of carrying capacity, the wearer's size is increased by 1 category (can be taken multiple times, to a maximum of colossal; taken 4 times)
- Powerful (adds 2 additional legendary surge per ability; taken 2 times)
I enjoyed making ideas for this game but I think I'll bow out of recruitment. Managing the very high power level and complexity will be a bit more book-keeping than fun for me personally, I think. Have fun, all!