Hey, wondered if you guys could help me polish up this background. Character is a Level 1 Swashbuckler who will most likely go into Warpriest (Arsenal Chaplain) at level 2 (as the group has no healers). The GM had all three of us make 2 characters each, this is the second one for Kingmaker
Mortian Azure "The Blue Death" was born as a blue baby in a temple of Pharasma. He was not suppose to survive, but he did, his mother did not. With no known father (assumed a young fool who passed away in a duel) the church took him in.
He never completely recovered from his birth, he is sickly and weak of limb. His complexion is pale and gaunt, while his hair is also sickly in appearance. his eyes are a grey that look almost dead inside.
He has taken up the dueling blade and become quite adept at it, however the sisters believe Pharasma has other plans for him.
A chance encounter a few nights ago with a trapper named Remlin caused a bit of a street fight. Good time, since then he and his new friend has been hitting the taverns in town
Character behind spoiler, we already played the first session so no changes to him is allowed)
Spoiler:
Mortian Azure
Male human (Taldan) swashbuckler (rostland bravo) 1 (Pathfinder RPG Advanced Class Guide 56, Pathfinder RPG Adventurer's Guide 23)
NG Medium humanoid (human)
Init +4; Senses Perception +5
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Defense
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AC 16, touch 13, flat-footed 13 (+3 armor, +3 Dex)
hp 10 (1d10)
Fort +0, Ref +6, Will +1
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Offense
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Speed 30 ft. (20 ft. in armor)
Melee dagger +5 (1d4-1/19-20) or
. . aldori dueling sword +7 (1d8+4/19-20) or
. . wushu dart +5 (1d3-1)
Ranged longbow +5 (1d8-1/×3)
Special Attacks deeds (derring-do, opportune parry and riposte), panache (2)
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Statistics
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Str 9, Dex 19, Con 10, Int 14, Wis 13, Cha 14
Base Atk +1; CMB +0; CMD 14
Feats Exotic Weapon Proficiency (aldori dueling sword), Slashing Grace[ACG], Weapon Focus (aldori dueling sword)
Traits child of the temple, sword scion
Skills Acrobatics +1 (-3 to jump), Bluff +6, Intimidate +6, Knowledge (local) +6, Knowledge (nobility) +7, Knowledge (religion) +7, Perception +5, Sense Motive +5
Languages Common, Dwarven, Elven
SQ swashbuckler finesse
Combat Gear potion of cure light wounds, holy water (2); Other Gear studded leather, aldori dueling sword[ISWG], arrows (20), dagger, longbow, wushu dart[UC] (10), backpack, bedroll, belt pouch, belt pouch, cleric's vestments, flint and steel, hemp rope (50 ft.), holy text (Pharasma)[UE], mess kit[UE], silver holy symbol of Pharasma, soap, torch (7), trail rations (7), traveler's outfit, waterskin (2), whetstone, light horse, bit and bridle, blanket, feed (per day), riding saddle, saddlebags, 45 gp, 11 sp, 5 cp
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Special Abilities
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Deeds Panache (Ex) Gain a pool of points that are spent to fuel deeds, regained on light/piercing crit/killing blow.
Slashing Grace (Aldori dueling sword) Treat chosen weapon as 1-handed piercing weapon and can add Dex instead of Str to dam.
Swashbuckler Finesse Use Dex for att with light/1-hand pierce wep. Use Cha instead of Int for combat feat pre-reqs.
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Mortian Azure "The Blue Death" was born as a blue baby in a temple of Pharasma. He was not suppose to survive, but he did, his mother did not. With no known father (assumed a young fool who passed away in a duel) the church took him in.
He never completly recovered from his birth, he is sickly and weak of limb. His complexion is pale and gaunt, while his hair is also sickly in appearancxe. his eyes are a grey that look almost dead inside.
He has taken up the dueling blade and become quite adept at it, however the sisters beleive Pharasma has other plans for him.
A chance encounter a few nights ago with a trapper named Remlin caused a bit of a street fight. Good time, since then he and his new friend has been hitting the taverns in town
Character plan, subject to change on a whim...
2) Warpriest (Arsenal Chaplain) , Weapon Focus wushu darts
3) Quick Draw Feat
4) Aldori Dueling Mastery Feat
5) Combat Experience???
6) ---
7) Improved Feint???, Aldori Style???,. Alertness???
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Want to help, but my brain's a little foggy at the moment. Having trouble wrapping my mind around "he is sickly and weak of limb" with a guy who picked up any weapon and became proficient with it. Can you explain or develop that a bit more? Does he only appear frail, or is he working with a non-traditional ability array? I see the high dex, but that still doesn't quite mesh with my idea of "sickly". Do you mean he's more wiry, whip-cord, maybe slender? Possibly anime heroin chic? That's the first question I think you'd need to answer.
Weak of limb = Str 9, meaning he has a -1 Str penalty. Sickly = Con 10. Only, Con 10 is as healthy as the average human so I don't know that you'd be able to claim him weak, frail or sickly. Whatever though; those are subjective details so play them up as much as you want.
The part I really like is that he's a swashbuckler that's planning to go warpriest. He was raised by the church... the church of Pharasma. Think about that for a second. The dogma of the church is that their deity is true neutral and impassionate, waiting with foreknowledge (fate and prophecy) of inevitable happenings, only to sort the dead into their final resting places.
I can't imagine a lot of bouncing, upstart "bravos" that learn as much street flair as technique with their Aldori style. Also think about that; this guy, described as "sickly" and "weak" took up melee dueling in the form of light armor while eschewing the buckler, the only kind of shield duelists typically learn to wield.
Yet, we're already establishing that Mortia has a burning desire to be even more warlike, more aggressive, specifically in the name of his faith. What might inspire such reckless, almost unhinged passion?
pre Remlin:
"I should've died" Sister Temperance looked down at her wayward charge, laid out on the table before her. The lad had yet another set of fresh wounds, a scarlet tally of every imagined sin the boy tortured himself with. As always, the matronly nun did nothing more than listen, and sew.
"If she had lived, my mother would've gotten out of this... filth. She wouldn't be squabbling in the gutter, begging for scraps at a convent table. She wouldn't be made to suffer. She deserved better than her death... than me... RGGH! Hey, watch it Sister Temp... NNNGH!"
The sickly lad, Mortia, so named by the Order of the Weeping Lady who had taken him in of the streets of Restov all those years ago, grimaced and swooned at the searing pain Temperance deliberately inflicted as she dragged the catgut between errant flesh. "Oh, I'm sorry boy, have I hurt you? Good! Serves you right for all the self pity you wallow in."
Sister Temperance had watched over Mortia since he was an infant. She'd tended every bump and bruise; tried to console every nightmare and calm every fear the boy had endured over these many years. Yet tonight, with another patchwork to add to the quilt of his self-loathing, Temperance could not sit idly by and endure another moment of his lip.
So boo-hoo, your mother, Lady rest her, died giving you life. So your arms aren't as strong as the other boys. So you... what did you say... "beg for scraps?" Mortia, you have a roof over your head; MANY, in fact, as all orthodox orders of the church hold to the vow of refuge for any of our servants. You've a family who loves you; what strength you do have is coupled with a near unearthly skill that dancers and thieves would deal with devils to have. But more than that is your passion, your will."
The middle-aged woman allowed her veil to drop then. The veil of her order; the stoic façade of indifference all sisters of the order must adopt to care for the sick and dying as they do. For the first time in many years, Mortia gazed upon the real Temperance, the mortal woman who existed behind duty and vows and devotion. There was a sorrow in her eyes, care worn with a hint of... regret.
"You've so many gifts Mortia, but you squander them in petty duels day and night, and for what? To prove to your bullies you are no coward? To prove to yourself you are worth the precious life she gave you? Every scar you've earned is already enough evidence to satisfy any Justicar in the city. No... you torture yourself for something else."
The matron breathed heavily then, closing her eyes around the word. "Fear" she sighed finally, as if exorcising some terrible spirit chained within her breast. "You are driven by this terrible, absolute fear that, when all is said and done, you are just some little boy, unworthy and forgotten. And why should you not? You've never known a proper mother. We sisters must..." Temperance hesitated for a moment on the thought, her eyes suddenly darting from her charge. "... must maintain our distance from those in our care, that we can share our love and skill with all. You've been made to feel as though you were one of many, nameless and common, since the moment you were delivered into our concern."
A need started to rise in Mortia's heart. A need he'd denied for so long, until it became a second skin; the armor of scars and sheer will he'd worn through every duel, every melee. Every beating. "Sister I..." the need was there, so fierce and burning the boy could feel it in his fingertips. The air was heavy with it.
Before he could manage to name it or claim it from Sister Temperance she spoke. "Know this boy: while I may not have birthed you into this world, you HAVE a mother. I have... loved you, as my own, since the first mewling wail you managed from your basket. I know my vows, know my order, but I know also my heart, and it beats for you Mortia. Each day when you saunter out the convent doors, you carry with you a mother's fears, her hopes, and her never-ending worry. Each night when you stagger back, berating yourself for yet another perceived weakness, I seal your wounds with silent tears you never see."
She was on her feet now, shaking. The robes of her order, gray and worn, seemed almost like a shroud framing the wounded mourner within. Mortia could see the sorrow and joy fighting one another in the corners of her eyes. Temperance stepped cautiously toward the boy, measuring every inch against the miles of years she'd endured in quiet desperation.
"You are loved, Mortia. And you will always be. But more than that, you belong. You belong to me, and I to you, bound by these hearstrings that no sword will ever sever. And you belong to the faith, for The Gray Mother waits for us all, not as a specter to fear but as our final homecoming. She has taken you in, as I have, and by her grace and prophecy she has spoken - you ARE alive, like it or not, so you yet have a purpose here, a life that needs to be lived. And I will be proud of it and you Mortia, every step that you take."
The need was there then. Mortia knew it for the first time, like a beast stalking him in the shadows now finally revealed. He craved to be claimed, truly claimed by another. No mere tart of the streets or even comrade in duels could match the need for it was primal, visceral. Mortia needed to know that at least one other soul was with him, that he was not some untethered boat tossed on the uncaring waves.
He didn't want friends or companions. Mortia needed a family. As his mind finally seized upon this realization his head snapped up from the floor to behold Temperance hovering over him. She was smiling through her tears, so close to the boy that he could smell the faint rosewater she anointed herself with hours ago in Service. So close he could reach out, he could embrace her as his mother.
But no, this was not the way of the order. Her vows forbade it. His resolve fading Mortia resigned to the truth of the...
And she had him. Temperance the woman, the mother, bound the boy to her with her arms and her tear-stained smile and the faded rosewater love that ebbed from her like the gentle rain of a summer's day. Mortia sat on the table, a petrified mix of fear and confusion, captured in the taboo of the embrace.
He waited a few heartbeats, fully expecting the sister to remember herself and abandon her foolishness. "She CANNOT love me, not like this." Mortia thought. "Any second now her arms will loosen and reason will win out over her pity." But a hand found it's way to the back of his head, pressing his cheek to her shoulder, even as the other arm coiled tighter around his shoulders.
Mortia abandoned himself then, to mother he'd always needed. They remained in the moment, delivering the answer to questions neither had dared to ask for a lifetime. It was a moment that Mortia had never known in all his days. It was home.
So the point is that the backstory you started with above is pretty typical of a lot of RPG characters: no blood family, raised by strangers, the people in his life are more an obligation than real loved ones. Mortia is untethered to anyone and thus he hurls himself into the most violence he can find. He literally owes himself to nothing per your original backstory, except maybe his faith but even then he starts as a Swashbuckler, not a warpriest; his faith is secondary.
So consider: what would make a guy with no real attachments in this world and an obvious death wish want to actually persist in becoming not only a Bravo but also a GOOD man? Not some faceless deity that comes second to his passion with the blade. No, he has to have some deeper motivation.
Enter: Sister Temperance. She's his rock; the Alfred and possibly even Robin to his Batman. Sister Temperance is the grounding he needs to not spiral into nihilistic thoughts and reckless abandon.
Making her one of the nuns then gives a reinforcement for his duty to the church. To honor her, Mortia takes a second look at his faith. Finding (when he hits level 2) a genuine passion for Pharasma and her teachings, Mortia will take up the cause of fighting in her name, though whether the "her" in this case is Temperance or The Lady of Graves may remain to be seen.
Want to help, but my brain's a little foggy at the moment. Having trouble wrapping my mind around "he is sickly and weak of limb" with a guy who picked up any weapon and became proficient with it. Can you explain or develop that a bit more? Does he only appear frail, or is he working with a non-traditional ability array? I see the high dex, but that still doesn't quite mesh with my idea of "sickly". Do you mean he's more wiry, whip-cord, maybe slender? Possibly anime heroin chic? That's the first question I think you'd need to answer.
Anime heroin chic...never thought of it that way...but prbably the closest. Thin, sunken face, etc..., if you saw him you would think him sick and almost on death's door. He is healthier and stronger than he looks (though not great)
Weak of limb = Str 9, meaning he has a -1 Str penalty. Sickly = Con 10. Only, Con 10 is as healthy as the average human so I don't know that you'd be able to claim him weak, frail or sickly. Whatever though; those are subjective details so play them up as much as you want.
The part I really like is that he's a swashbuckler that's planning to go warpriest. He was raised by the church... the church of Pharasma. Think about that for a second. The dogma of the church is that their deity is true neutral and impassionate, waiting with foreknowledge (fate and prophecy) of inevitable happenings, only to sort the dead into their final resting places.
I can't imagine a lot of bouncing, upstart "bravos" that learn as much street flair as technique with their Aldori style. Also think about that; this guy, described as "sickly" and "weak" took up melee dueling in the form of light armor while eschewing the buckler, the only kind of shield duelists typically learn to wield.
Yet, we're already establishing that Mortia has a burning desire to be even more warlike, more aggressive, specifically in the name of his faith. What might inspire such reckless, almost unhinged passion?
Yep, I'm pretty much always amazed by what Mark brings to this forum...
Although if you're the main party healer, Arsenal Chaplain losing Channel Energy might make things more challenging for you. It's not MUCH, but 1d6/2d6 for the whole party with a single action could be quite meaningful. I found the Proselytizer archetype really interesting, as it adds a lot of very useful spells (Rally Point is great since you can just have each of your party members run through it to get the bonuses on their way to dealing death and destruction, Heroism is Heroism, etc) but also because it really embodies the Warpriest who fights but wears his faith on his sleeve...
Yep, I'm pretty much always amazed by what Mark brings to this forum...
Although if you're the main party healer, Arsenal Chaplain losing Channel Energy might make things more challenging for you. It's not MUCH, but 1d6/2d6 for the whole party with a single action could be quite meaningful. I found the Proselytizer archetype really interesting, as it adds a lot of very useful spells (Rally Point is great since you can just have each of your party members run through it to get the bonuses on their way to dealing death and destruction, Heroism is Heroism, etc) but also because it really embodies the Warpriest who fights but wears his faith on his sleeve...
Healing, or the recovery of HP, won't be an issue for this group regardless of your jump to Warpriest. Sorcerer already has some healing or temporary HP options on their spell list and will eventually be an Evangelist. Paladin, Bard and Ranger all have Cure spells of some kind on their spell lists. Being that this is Kingmaker, make sure someone in the party takes a consumable crafting feat and spend Downtime while exploring crafting wands, scrolls or potions of one form of healing or another. It's not sexy but it solves a problem.
Condition mitigation and recovery from ability damage can be a challenge. The Evangelist will get some of this. Again, make sure you budget a Feat and plenty of resources/time to crafting consumables, then make sure at least 2 people have and can use said consumables. If you're going Warpriest you qualify as the backup to the evangelist, or vice-versa.
Key takeaways and questions to answer for your background would be
1. why are you an adventurer, instead of an NPC? What was your call to adventure?
2. why did you pick the class/archetype you chose for your level 1 selections?
3. what inspired you to plan on jumping from Swashbuckler to Warpriest?
4. Mortian doesn't have super great Str or Con; why did he choose such aggressive, melee-focused classes?
5. what happened to mom? How did having zero family affect Mortian growing up?
6. where did Mortian learn Knowledge: Nobility, and why did he choose Dwarven and Elven as his extra languages?
7. what would Mortian be doing if he WASN'T an adventurer?
8. did Mortian earn every dueling skill he has from personal experience, or did he have a mentor/trainer/teacher?
9. why Arsenal Champion, other than mechanical advantage to the character build? In other words, why does Mortian focus so much on a militant lifestyle in the name of his faith?
10. what, exactly, does Mortian believe in? What are his values, beliefs and what does he hold dear?
11 sure, he's sickly-looking; does this quirk show up in RP? Does Mortian have any other affectations that aren't purely based on his blue-born nature?
12. how in-depth do you want to get into the church/worship of Pharasma?
On that last point... here's the wiki for Pharasma. She's true neutral, favors whippoorwills, daggers, the colors blue and white, and black roses are often associated with the goddess. Her servants are the Psychopomps; masked outsiders that act as the administrators of the dead in the Boneyard. Lastly, she's worshipped by midwives, grave-diggers, morticians, and pregnant women.
How does Mortian fit into all of this?
I mean, he WAS raised as a ward of the church. I'm gonna go out on a limb and say a boy child, raised in a neutral faith of life, death, rebirth and fate likely wasn't trained from day one as a zealot assassin. Maybe he was meant to be a professional mourner (some kind of performer, based on his mental stats) so he served the priestesses, learned all of the dirges and prayers, and practiced the rites, but at some point (since he has no Performance skills) he diverged from the career path the church had for him.
Or maybe I'm wrong. Perhaps he was always meant to be forged into a holy weapon by the more militant aspects of the church. If that's the case though, why was he allowed to indulge in his Rostland Bravo training on the streets of Restov? I mean, the goddess' alignment is true Neutral, so maybe they just didn't care, but then if they have "plans" for Mortian as you suggest it seems like someone, somewhere in the church of Pharasma DOES care.
Finally, how much does Mortian know/care about the circumstances of his birth? You state that this PC is for a Kingmaker game, so its likely that these details won't play into the campaign. However, there are ways you could shoehorn it into the game. If you work with the GM and you really want to go this far, you could tie your character's unique birth story into the larger plots of the campaign. Otherwise, I wouldn't worry too much about this.
Y'know, that's something to consider while making this background. If Mortian is going to be exploring hexes and building parts of his own kingdom, how deep do you want to go with this background? Also, how would THIS character end up on a wilderness frontier?
Like, he's a sword duelist specific to Restov, with an intention of becoming an arsenal champion. In the meantime you're knowledgeable of nobles, with good skills around sensing people's motivations and tricking or scaring them. In other words, you're a people-focused character right now.
And you're heading into the wilds to explore miles from civilization.
So why would Mortian take this gig? Does he intend on building up survival skills later on? Does he want his own kingdom? Is he Running from someone/something, or chasing after someone/something? Is this initially an edict of his faith? Or maybe he's been shunned for his reckless dueling ways and he's out here doing penance?
Of course, this is all just my own commentary and you should feel free to ignore/rewrite any of it. Hopefully the game goes well!
First let me say to Mark, you amaze me and I appreciate your responses so greatly.
Mark I think we are talking about different evangelists. He is going into the "you get all your old class abilities" prestige class.
As for your questions, some have been answered, others I will need to think on
1) His call of adventure is basically that the town guard got tired of him causing problems and said we got a job for you or a stockade for you...your choice
2) All honestly this was a mechanical choice to get level 1 dex to damage. As a matter of role playing I originally saw it as a kid (17 year old) act of rebellion doing street duels etc...
3) So the idea for the character, the idea of a swashbuckler touched/chosen by death herself to become her champion. Warpriest mechanically fit the idea of her giving him certain blessings the best (really wanted Inquition to work, just mechanically did not seem fun to me)
4) First I don't think of characters normaly thinking of themselves as classes (except for a few) but as said above the idea that his agility and general rebellious 17 year old attitude led to that fighting style
5) Mom died in child birth. Growing up as an orphan in a church of Pharasma, knowing that he almost died at birth has defiantly "gothed" him some
6) I figured the skill Nobility is from being in the city, desiring to be a Swordlord (which is something he wants). The languages come from engaging in trade for the church
7) Drinking, whoring, dying, prision ...
8) Probably a bit of mixed in an informal way. Not a school for sure, but probably shown a thing or two by people, but more street duels. Love the idea of him trying to show he is not weak (that you
suggested)
9) This is primarily a mechanical choice. The idea is that he leans more towards Fighter (or swashbuckler) than cleric. Wish I could change a detail or two about it (mainly would prefer death or life to war....)
10) He believes that he should be dead. That Pharasma has a plan for him and that he is only alive because of it. Honestly he has a bit of a deathwish at this point. His faith in Pharasma is actually a little off-putting as it has more to do with him feeling he needs to serve her until whatever she saved him for is done... thus some of the 17 year old rebel without a cause issue
11) Yes it has already, gm allowed it to make a couple goons underestimate him (basically they chose other more dangerous looking targeets...one crit hit later...). Speaks in a slightly respy voice, kind of a goth personality (Early Rastlin Majere if he had been a swashbuckler and a little bit healthier)
I like that he has a nearly superhuman Dexterity, as it ties into the 'blue baby' birth origin. He could be said by some to 'live lightly upon this earth' as if just visiting from the higher realm he saw and almost touched at the moment of his difficult birth, as if every second is one more snatched from his intended fate (born dead), and he lives those stolen seconds fiercely, almost living 'too large' to (over)compensate, moving with a nearly ethereal (spirit-like) grace.
A decent Intelligence and Charisma also suggests that there's a certain burning intensity to this scrawny pale haggard-looking stranger, something that makes others admire (or just stare agog at) his frenetic rush to embrace all the possibilities of the (probably short...) life that he so narrowly bought.
I like that he has a nearly superhuman Dexterity, as it ties into the 'blue baby' birth origin. He could be said by some to 'live lightly upon this earth' as if just visiting from the higher realm he saw and almost touched at the moment of his difficult birth, as if every second is one more snatched from his intended fate (born dead), and he lives those stolen seconds fiercely, almost living 'too large' to (over)compensate, moving with a nearly ethereal (spirit-like) grace.
A decent Intelligence and Charisma also suggests that there's a certain burning intensity to this scrawny pale haggard-looking stranger, something that makes others admire (or just stare agog at) his frenetic rush to embrace all the possibilities of the (probably short...) life that he so narrowly bought.
That is very elegant, he believes that he "Shared his first breath with the Lady of Graves". His second outing was last night, he took A LOT of damage, but did survive the night...about half way to level 2...
