| 8 people marked this as a favorite. |
I've always been fond of collaborative forum threads like 101 Thaumaturge Connections, and one of my preferred ways to pass the time is to write and roll up characters that I'll probably never play. Golarion provides a rich enough palette, and enough endless variety, that I'm pretty much never bored!
So that's the premise for this thread: I'm going to be dropping parties of four characters, each aligned around a Meta-Region and some core theme, and you're invited to do the same! I'd love to see your characters, and I hope mine can provide some inspiration for you all.
| 10 people marked this as a favorite. |
I'll start us off with a group from a region I'll freely admit isn't my favorite: Absalom and Starstone Isle! Finding an anchor in an area that's never caught my eye was an interesting challenge, but my brain wouldn't let me do anything other than start with the alphabetical first of the bunch. Without further ado, let me introduce the Seekers of the Final Prophecy.
Kathera ran away from home to escape cruel parents, no thoughts in mind other than putting everything familiar far behind her. Exhausted and starving, she dreamed of a man with purple eyes leading her to safety, and found the same path in the waking world led to the Arodenite monastery of Saint Sarnax. The monks took her vision as a sign from their vanished patron, and after deliberating for a week and a day, decided to train her in the sword-and-spell tradition of the Knights of the Aeon Star. Kathera threw herself into these studies, relieved to finally find some sense of power and purpose, and today is a mature young warrior whose discipline tempers her considerable anger. Azlanti runes decorate her beloved shield, while her sword is a replica of an ancient Arodenite relic. (Human, Sparkling Targe Magus).
Balnor Blessed comes from a long line of village priests, tending to the everyday spiritual needs of a meager flock with kind words and honest effort - without the aid of any magic, since the death of Aroden. Despite his efforts, Balnor could do little to stop as the young moved on to more interesting places and the old passed away, until the aging shoony realized he was the only one left. Alone in the humble family chapel, he prayed for the wisdom to find his way - and was shocked when he felt a warm hand affectionately pat his head. Miracles have flown from Balnor's fingers ever since, and he believes Aroden needs the help of his family's reliable lineage. (Paddler Shoony, Cloistered Cleric of Aroden; no, this shouldn't be possible).
Raznak was exiled from a kobold clan in Absalom's sewers in the days before they were recognized as people, not pests. Driven into the darkest, oldest, and most dangerous parts of the undercity, Raznak once stumbled into a crypt unlike anything she'd ever seen before. Glittering treasure abounded, but she could only grab one thing - a bronze icon of a winged eye, Aroden's holy symbol - before a tide of human ghosts rushed forth. Raznak escaped with her prize and her life, and has never found the site again since, but she insists her "lucky eye" tells her anything else she wants to know. (Spellscale Kobold, Amulet Thaumaturge).
Lazu hails from Kienek-Li, an azarketi city off the coast that deals with close ties the land-dwellers of Kortos, and serves her people as a minor ambassador to the city of Escadar; in reality, this "service" largely consists of picking up girls in Escadar's bars with her innate magic and supposed 'Azlanti heritage.' Lazu's antics hide a surprisingly brilliant mind, one with a genuine fascination for both Azlanti history and surface culture. The question of her sorcery is a continued mystery; no one in her family history has ever shown any sign of it before, and her instinctual runes are oddly archaic to other mages. (Mistbreath Azarketi, Imperial Sorcerer).
Kathera's continued prophetic dreams, Balnor's interpreted omens, Raznak's talking trinket, and Lazu's quest for answers led each in turn to an overgrown roadside shrine, where they all quickly surmised that something to do with the Last Azlanti has brought them together. Lazu and Raznak share a profound curiosity, and the elegant azarketi finds her uncouth kobold companion endlessly funny. Balnor worries endlessly after Kathera, who he sees as terribly young for all this, but she's quietly relieved to have someone watching out for her for once.
| 7 people marked this as a favorite. |
At least for my first run through the core 10, I'm going to stick to alphabetical order, which brings us next to the Broken Lands - my favorite spot in Avistan! My first Pathfinder love was Numeria, but I'm going to wait on androids and aliens for today, and instead give you a party living in the shadow of the Worldwound.
I've been obsessed with all things Sarkorian lately, and settled on a heroic band of Reclaimers, those heading up the efforts to purify the Sarkoris Scar. The Thunderwell Reclaimers take their name from Thunderwell Cairn, a burial site they drove a demonic cult out of on their first quest together, and are only the "field" side of the group, working with the help of a sage camped in Gundrun and the elders of the nomadic Rainblack Clan.
Brannah Clanless had a rough upbringing in Nerosyan, shunned by other dwarves for her tiefling horns and finding little sympathy among the other crusader folk. Gundrun's hardscrabble settlers proved less discerning, and she earned a living taking dangerous scouting jobs no one else dared touch. Brannah survived everyone, herself included, by proving a natural at it, quickly becoming one of the most sought-after guides in town. While she's happy to work for the Reclaimers, her true goal is Jormurdun, hoping to find dwarven community in the recently-recovered Sky Citadel. (Tiefling Dwarf, Precision Ranger).
Florin Sweyn was a Mendevian orphan with dim prospects who joined the crusade only through a lack of alternatives. When a vrock mauled her nearly to death, Florin accepted her end, but the spilled blood awakened a dormant huzuri, the spirit within the canine skull healing her. Lacking anywhere to return to and now bound to a fallen Sarkorian god, she sought out the Rainblack Clan, who adopted the haunted young woman after she proved the spirit’s existence and her willingness to learn. (Taldan Human, reflavored Lantern Thaumaturge - the Lantern is a wolf skull that emanates light and smoke).
Gawlya Rainblack is the child of the Rainblack Clan’s god-caller, but their mother was killed by demons some months back. Grief has driven Gawlya - a somewhat ephemeral mage, showing clear signs of Pulura’s divine favor - into aggressively pursuing the Reclaimer cause, but they can’t help but feel torn between their chosen duty and the role birth demands in their clan. Tattoos detailing the Rainblacks’ history extend from their hands to their forearms, unfinished; their mother was the artist. (Sarkorian Human (Sylph), Cosmos Oracle - representing a non-Cleric faith in Pulura, a popular Sarkorian deity).
Victory, a fleshwarp from beneath Kenabres who was too young to join the Fifth Crusade before it succeeded. Healing the land is as noble a quest as conquering it, Vic figures, so he hopes to grow his legend as one of the greatest Reclaimer heroes, far away from anyone who remembered the lanky girl he once was. He wields his patchwork body like a well-honed weapon; kicks from his goat leg can stave in skulls, while the talons on his right hand cut like razors. He lets friends call him Vic, but only lovers get to say Tori. (Mutant Fleshwarp, Monk - his Stances are just mutant physiology).
Florin and Gawlya have forged a bond through practicing languages together (Florin learning Hallit, Gawlya learning Taldane), and the grieving god-caller rarely talks about their Sarkorian faith other then when teaching Rainblack ways to the crusader-convert. Vic can't help but constantly challenge Brannah to dares; she's too professional to ever indulge him, but fumes whenever he beats her anyway.
| 3 people marked this as a favorite. |
For my head cannon impossible lands party, there's a group of four.
First is an automaton inventor who is trying to reverse the bio-transference of it's remaining countrymen.
Second is a human gunslinger from alkenstar looking for a payday.
Third up is a flesheshwarp wellspring sorcerer sorcerer from the mana wastes who just wants to be the mother figure of her new quasi nuclear family.
Lastly is is a rhino lady from jalmeray looking to do her walkabout to gain deeper perspective of the world.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
For my head cannon impossible lands party, there's a group of four.
First is an automaton inventor who is trying to reverse the bio-transference of it's remaining countrymen.
Second is a human gunslinger from alkenstar looking for a payday.
Third up is a flesheshwarp wellspring sorcerer sorcerer from the mana wastes who just wants to be the mother figure of her new quasi nuclear family.
Lastly is is a rhino lady from jalmeray looking to do her walkabout to gain deeper perspective of the world.
I like the Automaton a lot, and I'm a big fan of Fleshwarps... but your Impossible Lands party has nobody from Geb or Nex? :>
| 3 people marked this as a favorite. |
I like the Automaton a lot, and I'm a big fan of Fleshwarps... but your Impossible Lands party has nobody from Geb or Nex? :>For my head cannon impossible lands party, there's a group of four.
First is an automaton inventor who is trying to reverse the bio-transference of it's remaining countrymen.
Second is a human gunslinger from alkenstar looking for a payday.
Third up is a flesheshwarp wellspring sorcerer sorcerer from the mana wastes who just wants to be the mother figure of her new quasi nuclear family.
Lastly is is a rhino lady from jalmeray looking to do her walkabout to gain deeper perspective of the world.
Just realized jiksta imperium was golden road. Hmmm I guess sub the inventor for a skelton fighter from Gebs eternal fight pit looking for challengers that actually have something to lose (their lives) in an effort to find worthier opponents
| 4 people marked this as a favorite. |
The Knights of Lastwall stand between the Eye of Dread and utter ruin, and will be our dubious heroes today! While that order is famously varied, today's party members strain the image of a Knight to its furthest extent, and some have heard a few of their human comrades crack wise about the so-called Monster Squad in their midst - a name they, of course, immediately adopted.
Aushak was only a youth when her people, the Spirit Skull orcs, took a haunted ruin as their own, beating out other nearby tribes. The lingering curses within brought a grey pallor to Aushak's skin, but she nonetheless grew strong and healthy, proving herself a capable warrior. When the time for war against Tar-Baphon came, she found the undead crumbling beneath her blows, a strange mist pouring off her body as she made war against the rot and horror. For her successes, Aushak found herself presented as a gift to the Knights of Lastwall, a dubious honor she suspects was meant to keep her from making a play for leadership. She doesn't mind; they'll welcome her back when she takes the Tyrant's head. (Grave Orc, Spirit Barbarian).
Imakht proved a talented archer, a dependable war-mage, and an absolutely miserable soldier, her considerable talents squandered by Oprak's military due to her attitude problem and the hobgoblin disdain for "elf magic." When word reached the former Ironfang Legionnaire about an alliance with the fragile non-hobgoblins of the region, Imakht was among the first to volunteer, and her commanders were all too happy to reply. Imakht has thrived under the looser discipline of a more informal force, and appreciates that nobody here whines when her spells save their skins... but she still enjoys complaining just as much as before. (Elfbane Hobgoblin, Starlit Span Magus; she adores her composite bow).
Offering was once a human of some sort, but their living past is long forgotten; their flesh fed the Fangwood's soil, and healthy roots embraced their bones. Gendowyn, fey master of the Fangwood, wove a spell to join new life with old, and presented Offering as a gift to the Knights of Lastwall, who welcomed the unnerving creation with commendable grace. Duty to their creator, their home, and all living things (in that order) guides Offering's actions in this world, but strange thoughts have begun to bloom so far from Gendowyn's leash. (Heavily reflavored Ghoran, Leaf Druid - but with Wood Kineticists on the horizon, that's certainly an option to consider).
Scarsnout was the sole survivor of a raid gone bad, caravan guards putting all her fellow bandits to the sword for their attempt. Lacking any skills other than violence, she took up as hired muscle for a dozen employers, slowly being drawn north. Molthune was the first to offer citizenship, and the grizzled gnoll decided she'd like having a home again, serving admirably for years. Mouthing off at some pompous noble who'd never seen battle got her demoted and transferred out to the Knights of Lastwall, which suits the veteran just fine. (Great Gnoll, Fighter with the Marshal archetype).
| 5 people marked this as a favorite. |
Okay, so I had a little bit of time this afternoon and wanted to make a potential ally/rival crew to throw at my players for a small arc in our Skull & Shackles game, and this is what I came up with. Meet the Rebounders (of very little shame), and their many adventures across Golarion's High Seas!
In another lifetime, Miss Nettle was an accomplished wizard teaching at one of Rahadoum's acclaimed arcane colleges. While respected in her own fashion, it was her infamous, spiteful rivalry with Professor Flenda that truly animated her career, with each going to extreme lengths to outdo the other. On one fateful day, Flenda succeeded against Nettle in lobbying for a contract to manufacture and refine a complex illusion spell, funded by the Vizier of Qadira himself. When Nettle realized Flenda had bested her using divination magic to steal key elements of her own research, Nettle had had enough. In a sudden fit of rage, she stormed into Flenda's office, setting ablaze everything she could see. Yet her rash actions only cemented her defeat. Cast out of the university she'd called home while Flenda's career only continued to soar, Nettle wandered into the desert and cast herself to the mercy of the blazing sands, preferring death to seeing Flenda succeed where she had failed. That was year 4642, AR.
Ten years ago, Nettle rose again, remade a mummy in her relatively preserved form under the sands. Waking to a world where her hated rival no longer lived, and furthermore deprived of taking her sweet vengeance upon discovery of Flenda's collapsed career after unsuccessfully plagiarizing another scholar's work ("another bested hateful Flenda where I could not?!"), Nettle was forced to come to terms with her undeath, and a world that no longer cared about and barely remembered the fiery rivalry that once defined her. Deprived of much social opportunity in Azir, Nettle sailed south, past a great hurricane, where she determined to make her fortune in this new life as a dashing, spiteful, undead pirate professor. Wearing thick veils, heavy layers of perfume and makeup, a small amount of illusion magic, and no small amount of ruthless skullduggery, Nettle soon procured for herself a ship of her own — the Shameless Rebound.
Today, Nettle captains her crew of misfits among misfits — the Rebounders — tempering and disguising her undead nature purely because of a spiteful conviction that Flenda would surely gloat to see her in such a sorry state, succumbed to the base addictions of undead appetite. Instead, she hosts semi-weekly lectures aboard her ship from port to port, taking on subjects who interest her, risks their lives preying on merchant vessels to refill her coffers, and repeats the cycle all over again. Someday, Nettle will find a rival worthy of her time. Then, and only then, will dastardly Flenda finally be replaced, and Miss Nettle can at long last earn her final, victorious laugh.
Te·chuo was always lucid, even as a young boy. Growing up among the Kuru of Zhenbarghua, he knew pain and death, the ways of the Blood Queen, and saw the face of evil for what it was — a plague. But to cure disease, one must also consume poison, to make the blood strong. His home had been defiled, brought low by the evil his ancestors fought to contain. Even now, they fight it, warring among themselves so that war may not spill beyond what remains of their borders, into the world. They clash with blade and mind, becoming vessels for the Blood Queen's hunger, and just as quickly, become consumed by it. The many live short lives, providing short relief to the tremors and aches that announce her hunger pains — and distract her from greater ambitions. It is the only power left to protect the world — the very power that has sacrificed their future — for "the greater good." They dream of just wars, of justice, of vengeance, of reclamation. And when they wake with the Queen of Blood's eyes, they see it everywhere — the darkness in people's hearts, a plague to be burned from existence. An endless war. Yet even now, when severed beyond their hopes, beyond their dreams, by this terrible curse...they fight. They protect. They contain. On this island, they make their stand, and her predations follow no further. That is their way. That is the way of the warriors of Kuru-Maku, those who chose the way of the spear, who still remember this one thing, even when all else has been taken.
It is not Te·chuo's way.
Yet neither is his the way of the Kuru-Toa, who chose defeat before accepting the Blood Queen's gift. They would see the Shackles overrun by these invaders, these pretenders, before unleashing the full fury of their battleminds — for fear that they would become like her. But why accept peace if peace brings only more war, more suffering? This is the great paradox of the Kuru, forever struggling against gods and kings and monsters, and their own potential to become the same.
Te·chuo was never one for riddles. Not when he could cheat them.
So it was with this child prodigy, raised among Toa philosophers infiltrating the Maku community of Zhenbarghua. The wisdom of Toa holds much sway within this place, offering peace and sanctuary to the victims of the Blood Queen's ire, teaching a path of pacifism. This too, Te·chuo observed, was a trap. What good is peace, when peace hardens your mind to the evils of the world? What advantage could it offer over the Blood Queen's own desensitizing bloodlust, when in the same way this philosophy too prevented the terrors of evil from piercing the heart, from stirring the blood to rage at the injustices against the innocent, at the unnatural wrongness of their enemy? Peace, he could only discern, was selfish. He was right to feel this fire, this un-peacefulness, and he would suffer neither demon to invoke it nor angel to quench it. Whatever happened, he would learn the secret of their true enemy's strength: The Blood Queen. His spear would find exultation driven into her very heart, the heart of a god. The heart of the great paradox. He would break her Shackles. Or he would die trying.
Te·chuo prepared his mind and his body, learning the secrets of healing alchemy from the Toa, and the way of the blade from the Maku he trained with secretly, away from his parent's watchful eyes. Then, as soon as he came of age, he took to the sea, and he never looked back. Or so he wished.
To defy a god is to invite a god's wrath. Te·chuo's extensive alchemical knowledge grants his mind a blade to wield against her call, but not to silence it. Even far away from home, she lurks within his mind, waiting for the right time to strike. If Te·chuo is to expel her from his mind for good, he must rediscover a formula lost centuries ago: the Dreamlight Mist. It is said this incense was potent enough to grant ancient Kuru heroes the psychic strength necessary to breach the Blood Queen's own mind, and imprison her malevolent thoughts within the cage of her sleeping body. Te·chuo can only hope it will be enough. But first he has to find it.
Maddy never wanted this life. From her youthful days as a goblin child growing up among the Dark Hook tribe of Raingale Isle, Maddy was enchanted with tales of her father, the dread Captain Dalmatian Jack, who tamed a vicious, forbidden beast to ravage his rivals, and unleash terror across the high seas. All her life, she wanted to be just like her father. So, the day a smoking ship made berth upon her remote isle to make a last stand against predaceous pirates, young Maddy Muffer saw it as a sign her father was finally taking notice of her, and took the bait. The explorers made a valiant stand, one among them wielding a mighty weapon that cracked like thunder, causing pirates to fall defeated in their tracks merely at the sound of its mighty roar, wounds trickling red from fangs never there. Such a mighty weapon, thought Maddy, must surely be worthy of her legacy, the ferocious, havoc-having daughter of Dalmatian Jack the dread!
Maddy snuck up on the lone warrior, fending away his foes with such valiant, desperate force to save his companions — that he failed to notice the young goblin sneaking up on him, until it was too late. Maddy stood there, holding this miraculous weapon — a blunderbuss, she would later learn to call it. She continued standing there as the pirates approached, and suddenly felt a strange, almost alien presence within her she had never known before. She needed to run. She barely escaped with her life.
That was the beginning of Maddy's many troubles. For it was within this cursed relic that a repulsive entity stirred, a horrible, far-too-bright creature calling itself an "angel." As Maddy soon learned, it was this angel's divine purpose to bring salvation to the many downtrod and lost within the Shackles, and had taken this form believing a destined hero would use their power to protect the most vulnerable. Disgusted with this nonsense, Maddy nearly threw the weapon back to the sea from whence it came...but the power within this relic proved far too seductive to resist for long.
Today, Maddy Muffer is a local hero among the Shackles, living a miserable life protecting the weak and vulnerable from predations by evil pirates. Maddy knows her father would wretch to see how far she has risen, but the power her weapon, "Hallowind," has left her with is all she has. Even more disturbing, Maddy has even lately begun feeling such strange, previously unknown feelings as "guilt" and "regret," for her past indiscretions. Yet whenever she takes a brave stand against Hallowind, demanding her weapon submit to the malevolent legacy she wishes them to forge, the gun jams and malfunctions incessantly, refusing to work. Without Hallowind, she's just one goblin, in a big world filled with big, scary people. So Maddy Muffer bides her time, playing the hero, struggling against these heavenly temptations...until one day, she can finally catch her big break, and be the terrible, rotten, legendary pirate empress she knows she was always destined to be.
Kip has no parents, no family, no memory. Few friends. Barely a grasp of time. Not long ago, they woke up on a ship bound for Varisia. During that time, Kip learned of the world and people. In the day, they worked as a member of the ship's crew. At night, they would dream of a place far away. A place they couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling that they remembered. Or perhaps more accurately, remembered them.
Ten years ago, a lonely soul drifted across the Astral Plane, bound, as all souls are, to the river that flows to the court of the Gray Lady, the Mother of Souls. This passage is safe, but not perfectly safe. This particular soul, about which nothing else is known, was found by a predator: a nightmarish hag, spiriting away souls for insidious purpose. As soon as the predator attacked, it fell prey to a predator of its own. Not a pyschopomp - the guardians and ferriers of the dead - but something much worse: an “outer goddess,” named only in myths as the Nhimbaloth, The Empty Death. She watches over the dead jealously, consuming soul and thief alike in her alien-sense of retribution. One psychopomp, ever loyal to the decrees of his mistress, made flight with the lonely soul as soon as the ancient one neared. He was not too late to save the soul, but sadly, the same could be said of him. As the outer goddess devoured, hag and psychopomp alike faded to nothingness, and the nascent soul bound for its afterlife was marred and maligned beyond recognition with them. The lonely soul drifted, bleeding spiritual essence and absorbing astral energy just as quickly to prevent its own dim light from fading into nothing. No thoughts passed through its mind, no identity, no moral compunctions or alignment. Just the last psychic imprints of a dying servant of Pharasma, ferrying the dead until the end. And a will to go on.
In time, the lonely soul finally drifted into Pharasma’s court. Taking notice, a psychopomp decided that this soul should have a second chance at life — as it no longer bore the remnants of whatever former identity that first comprised it — and mended the soul’s wounds, allowing it to manifest on the material plane, on Golarion. Reborn with the body of a mortal, imprinted with the instincts of a psychopomp, and infused with strange, astral energy, Kip was remade.
Kip doesn't know where their body came from, fully matured when they awoke to it. Truth be told, the waking world feels less real to them than the one they wake to when their eyes close shut. In this world, they finally feel close to the place they belong. Up until a year ago, Kip served aboard a ship known as the "Skylark's Roost." One fateful day, when the ship was beset by pirate hunters, and all hope seemed lost for their companions, Kip felt a deep well rising up within them, which suddenly exploded outward, unleashing astral energy. Demons erupted from their body, causing chaos, and one of their own crewmates, whom they would have until that time called friend, attacked them. Kip fought back, and to their horror, won all too easily. Watching with dread as this awesome power snuffed out lives with such effortless whim, Kip took flight through the air (something they had never done before, and have failed to replicate since), abandoning this roost, and arrived upon a lonely island, where they returned again to their true home. That night, stranded upon the lonely island, Kip dreamed of ferrying that lost crewmate across the starry skies of the Astral Plane, to Elysium.
As Kip neared the idyllic shores of paradise, they felt good. Literally.
The next night, that feeling was gone. Kip moved on with it. On to their next high.
The Rebounders (of very little shame) are defined mostly by their obsessive search for one thing or another — be it an elusive rival, a celestial gun, a legendary missing formula, or getting dream high — and their frustration with being something (or somewhere) they don't want to be. Nettle doesn't want to be a failure, Maddy doesn't want to be a hero, Kip doesn't want to be awake, and Te·chuo doesn't want to live in a world where the Blood Queen lives. They bond and clash over their obsessions, and find a strange kinship in each other that at once intrigues and repels them. Te·chuo's quest, of course, brings everyone together: in it Nettle sees a way to distinguish herself again (and potentially earn a worthy rival in the Blood Queen), Maddy sees a power that may be enough to kick her dependence on celestial weapons, and Kip sees a means to better understand their own nature, whose purpose yet eludes them.
Nettle and Maddy bond mostly through a shared rough experience forcing them to be something they are not, and by a mutual fear they are failing their destined purpose. Te·chuo helps guide Kip through their dreams back into the present (sometimes with a little help from his crab familiar Eek), and Kip likewise keeps an eye on Te·chuo through his sleep, suppressing Te·chuo's many nightmares (against his wishes). The two respect each other, but suspect there is more to the other than meets the eye. Kip suspects something is wrong with Nettle, and is frustrated by their inability to peer into her dreams, but is loyal because she gives them safe bedding; all the while, Nettle herself views Kip as an arcane anomaly to be studied. Maddy is annoyed with Te·chuo's do-good attitude, but is infatuated with his strength and resolve, and wants to see him become the dread pirate hunk she knows he can be, if he just learned to let himself go sometimes. For his part, Te·chuo sees in Maddy the same weakness plaguing many of his kin, and pities her, desiring to help, but also wary of her celestial ally. Te·chuo is the only one who has discerned Nettle's true nature, but hasn't revealed it to anyone, caught between conflicting emotions of repulsion with her undead nature, intrigue with her disciplined habits, and his plans to use her experienced mind for his own ends. Nettle, likewise, sees Te·chuo as a stick of dynamite ready to blow at any moment, but is interested in his mission and hopes to use it to get what she wants. Maddy and Kip get along best of all, being inveterate tricksters poorly understood by everyone around them. Kip helps Maddy explore her fantasies through lucid dreaming, while Maddy sticks up for Kip in the waking world, seeing in him something of a little sibling. Altogether, they've somehow managed to keep the Shameless Rebound in one piece, against all odds.
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
This is such a great idea for a thread, btw! Thanks Keftiu for setting this up! I adore Balnor Blessed, and all of these parties do such a good job capturing the storytelling flavor of their respective regions. I'm super tempted to try my hand at these characters in my home campaign if my party moves around to those regions. Beautiful stuff. Particularly enjoying the Monster Squad. I have such an affection for Hobgoblins.
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
This is such a great idea for a thread, btw! Thanks Keftiu for setting this up! I adore Balnor Blessed, and all of these parties do such a good job capturing the storytelling flavor of their respective regions. I'm super tempted to try my hand at these characters in my home campaign if my party moves around to those regions. Beautiful stuff. Particularly enjoying the Monster Squad. I have such an affection for Hobgoblins.
You’ve made this thread worth it already with Te•Chuo! Most of that is original, rather than canon info, right? The Kuru would be lucky to have you writing them! Desperately overdue for some nuance and depth, and you absolutely delivered.
Maddy’s disgust at her own heroism has me in stitches. This party comes together so well - I’ll definitely talk through their relationships a little more thoroughly going forward, I loved reading yours.
I’m glad you like! Pleased to not just be wallowing in self-indulgence.
| 3 people marked this as a favorite. |
You’ve made this thread worth it already with Te•Chuo! Most of that is original, rather than canon info, right? The Kuru would be lucky to have you writing them! Desperately overdue for some nuance and depth, and you absolutely delivered.
Maddy’s disgust at her own heroism has me in stitches. This party comes together so well - I’ll definitely talk through their relationships a little more thoroughly going forward, I loved reading yours.
I’m glad you like! Pleased to not just be wallowing in self-indulgence.
Yeah, fun times! Most of it is indeed original.
Glad you enjoyed, and thanks so much for the kind compliment. Looking forward to reading more fun adventuring parties from everyone!
| 5 people marked this as a favorite. |
The Sayaduun are a haunted band of survivors, chasing a desperate thread of revenge through the alleys of Northern Garund's greatest cities. This motley band - euphemistically named the fishermen in a local dialect - were brought together through sheer chance in Katapesh, each having narrowly escaped the wrath of the alghollthus, alien horrors pulling strings across the entire Golden Road. They don't trust each other - but they trust everyone else even less. I LOVE the hinted-at alghollthu plotline in Lost Omens: Legends, and so this cast is wrapped around that conspiracy - I hope you like them!
The affable, flirty charlatan her family once knew is gone, replaced with a woman who almost never sleeps, wracked with frayed nerves. Pesh, once an indulgence, is now a vital medicine, steadying her when the tremors and visions become too much. A lifelong penchant for lying, augmented by a clumsy grasp of her telepathic gifts, has kept Hamza alive this far, but she worries her efforts only delay the inevitable. Her understanding of the Sayaduun's foe, gleaned from amid all the falsehoods the cult once spouted, only fills her with terror.
Hamza is an Althameri woman with fine features and a striking profile, but her beauty has been tarnished some by unrelenting fear as of late. Kohl-smudged eyes only serve to make her look more exhausted, but she remains aware and alert. A number of layered veils and skirts allow her to quickly change outfits, but the Qadiran finery is now threadbare and road-worn. She's a head shorter than average, and a petite frame has now become outright gaunt.
(Althameri Skilled Human, Wandering Reverie/Silent Whisper Psychic).
Her last client was a witchwyrd, of a people famed for interplanetary trade, and Qatitesh quietly thrilled at the chance to see another world as they stepped through the portal to Golarion. Alghollthu agents waited on the other side, devouring the merchant and melting Rag-Nesh; Qatitesh was the only one to make it out, grabbing her friend's gun as she dove through a window to escape. Alone on a foreign planet, Qatitesh patiently plans her next move, burning for a chance to hurt them back but knowing such a thing would certainly kill her. She needs allies and new strength if she's ever going to see home again.
White furred, red eyed, Qatitesh bears a shobhad gun that barely fits in her two hands that she wields with confidence. A leather duster (stained crimson by Akitonian dust) is her signature - and a liability, but the ysoki is reluctant to abandon one of her last familiar possessions. Her longrifle is adorned with scales and clan marking; guilt over her inability to bring it back to the shobhads eats away at her.
(Akitonian Snow Ysoki, Sniper Gunslinger).
Wahet wisdom demands Kertesh return to her tribe, and have them strike together against their ancient enemy... but she's certain abandoning her brother now is leaving him to die. The grim amurrun hunter is unfamiliar with the ways of cityfolk, but has spotted the glassy-eyed thralls who attempt to shadow her in the markets, and knows threats lurk on every side. She trusts in her instincts to carry her, but knows anything capable of waylaying her brother can absolutely take her.
Kertesh resembles a desert lioness, white paint marking the symbols of her tribe under each eye against sandy fur. She's tall and broad-shouldered, with lean muscle (she's proud of her arms, despite traditional Wahet disdain for vanity), obvious even in the motley crowds of Katapesh; this isn't unintentional, as she hopes alien agents will reveal themselves to her. Both of her kukris are beloved family heirlooms, allegedly forged back in Murraseth.
(Shemtej Liminal Catfolk, Flurry Ranger).
A well of anger motivates Carashir, disgusted that their fellow mortals would ever serve such vile creatures, but it's hidden beneath an analytical, professional mask. They're still adjusting to the loss of state authority, having been roughed up once or twice for being a "wannabe constable" in lawless Katapesh, but have quickly learned to blend in with the endless crowds. They don't know how far their enemy's influence reaches, so they assume everyone and everything is suspect - a constant wariness that's slowly taking a toll on their health.
Unremarkable aside from a long face, Carashir could fit in among any stratum of Rahadoum's society, a talent the Pure Legion made ready use of. They prefer to keep their long, dark hair in a fuss-free ponytail, and favor plain clothing in the local style - their Pure Legion uniform, sorely missed, has been wisely hidden at a safehouse for weeks. Vials of alchemical solutions sit in concealed pockets, their secrets learned from a Thuvian emigre comrade who died in the raid.
(Garundi Versatile Human, Alchemical Sciences Investigator).
The four's investigations led them together, and they quickly allied against their common foe - but each remains prepared for a betrayal. Carashir is uncomfortable with Kertesh's spirit-faith and Hamza's addiction, but possesses enough tact to stay silent on both, knowing they need help to succeed here; the latter's limited understanding of alchemy was an intriguing surprise, and something the two sometimes talk about. Qatitesh and Kertesh are both nomads from very different deserts, the pair of beastfolk sharing stories of home and working well together in a fight - the longrifle catches those the kukris can't reach. Hamsa, for her part, is afraid of all of them, she but has complicated feelings about Carashir's first aid saving her life after she caught a dagger in the ribs; she mistakenly thinks Kertesh was being condescending when the amurrun hunter complimented her willpower.
If the Sayaduun can learn to trust one another, they can quickly become quite the anti-alghollthu threat, but none quite realize the imminent danger Katapesh poses to the four. They'll need potent allies to avoid alien wrath, and they need them soon if there's to be any hope of survival - but their cause is just, and their pain is profound.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Was this just for heroic/neutral adventuring parties or would evil rival parties also work? :O
Evil parties are welcome! It’s just not what I reach for myself most of the time.
|
| 3 people marked this as a favorite. |
I mean there are three types of rival adventuring parties xD Nice friendly one, rival group in conflict with you and jerks that you love to hate (its easier for me to think in that way than as "if I made entire group of PCs" since I usually make my characters to specific campaign I'm playing in. Maybe if I get super hyped to run adventure I might imagine hypotethical party especially for different backgrounds ^^; I can imagine also nice cast of characters in hypotethical show)
But let's give this a try.(note: took me few hours to write this x'D I need to figure out less generic teamname ;P) I'll try the "hypothetical PC party" approach but that means I have to imagine campaign for them xD Time for Shining Kingdoms with The Pact group of vigilantes and spies out to discover true identity of a kalistocrat who wronged them and stop their wide spanning international conspiracy.
Edit:...Sidenote, I just now started to read the Golden Road party(yeah, I read few of first parties and then was like "Ooh ooh this is fun thread" x'D) and I'm like "dagnabbit, they also had conspiracy plot with team united vs common foe" thing even if it was different style one x'D Maybe I should have gone with villain party to avoid accidental overlapping, but I already used two hours to write this blergh. I'll just edit it out because even if after sleeping I feel like different enough(dagnabbit I did party of ranger, investigator, summoner and bard x'D so two same classes, occult caster and only last one is odd one out, how the heck), I'm still embarassed by overlap, I'll put text I wrote somewhere else safe and decide what to do with it after sleeping
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
I don't think there's anything to be embarrassed over! There's only so many possible motivations for a team of four fantasy violence-doers. I'm excited to read whatever you decide to bring :>
| 5 people marked this as a favorite. |
Maddy Muffer, CG/CE Monkey Goblin (Vanguard Gunslinger, Legendary Parents background):
As an aside, this makes me wish even harder that champion oaths weren’t alignment locked. The idea of a champion swearing an oath that they have to fight their own nature to fulfill (or in this case, gets Jiminy Cricketted by their celestial ally) seems like a compelling bit of roleplay, and I’ll forever be annoyed that you can’t play that character.
There’s barbarians I suppose, but not quite the same thing.
| 3 people marked this as a favorite. |
Maddy Muffer, CG/CE Monkey Goblin (Vanguard Gunslinger, Legendary Parents background):As an aside, this makes me wish even harder that champion oaths weren’t alignment locked. The idea of a champion swearing an oath that they have to fight their own nature to fulfill (or in this case, gets Jiminy Cricketted by their celestial ally) seems like a compelling bit of roleplay, and I’ll forever be annoyed that you can’t play that character.
There’s barbarians I suppose, but not quite the same thing.
Champion’s Alignment ties are soundly among my biggest gripes with PF2. Give me my poor Liberators of Cadandalee!
|
|
| 3 people marked this as a favorite. |
I mean, Casandalee was "Customize your own deity", Paizo just happened to customize one that doesn't directly support liberator cause ;D
I don't think there's anything to be embarrassed over! There's only so many possible motivations for a team of four fantasy violence-doers. I'm excited to read whatever you decide to bring :>
Eeeh I probably overreacted before sleeping since it was past midnight brain going on then x'D But yeah here is the text I cut (behold my bad naming skillz)
Ever since then, he served the Kyonin emissary's family as butler and a regular gardener, but tragedy that happened upon Gladiola family prompted Gregario to pick up his axe and mask again and bring bloody justice upon the culprit. He has always believed he will burn in hell for what he has done, but he will do his utmost that Ferisha won't follow him to there because of revenge.
Bloodthorn had been with Ferisha for centuries before that, so they were just as affected by loss of her family and the damage to nature caused by cruel attack. However, Bloodthorn is being further twisted to vindictiveness and thirst for blood by Ferisha's wrath upon the culprit that she tries to suppress. As Rosalio eidolon was quite gentle being and not fearsome mass of thorns it is now.
Either way, she went on run, but she never stopped investigating what happened so she could clear her name, this wasn't type of international infamy she had ever dreamed of. Years later she almost lost her head to pair of masked vigilantes, but luckily she managed to convince them of the truth and three of them joined forces together to discover the true culprit.
In truth Joss Kandor was born in Andoran and is undercover Twilight Talon who has worked on this case even before tragic attack on Gladiola family. His original plan was to be recruited by Blackjackets and thus infiltrate the mastermind's operation, but he had to improvise when others crashed in. He actually has best grasp on how wide mastermind's web runs, but his almost compulsive need to secrecy causes him trouble on how to deliver this information without compromising his true allegiances. Either way, he seeks to focus group on preventing mastermind's plan rather than on the bloody revenge against them. Hopefully his secrecy doesn't cost him group's trust at the critical moment.
Thus far, The Pact has narrowed down culprit's identity being among Kalistocracy, but will they manage to work together and uncover their shared foe?
(Yep I managed to name drop all six Shining Kindom nations in party of four)
| 6 people marked this as a favorite. |
Just a little late today - I was horribly sick! I'm admittedly not a big fan of pirates, but as my partner's a massive One Piece fan, I dug deep and made a crew I quite like. Sadly, my favorite bit of the High Seas (the Mordant Spire) just didn't fit this time.
Valurian Haask is a bastard of a pirate, an arrogant Chelish exile who sought to grow his legend (and his coffers!) raiding across the Shackles. He attracted a crew who likewise sought fame, but Valurian had no intentions of sharing the glory - all but a core of ruthless loyalists found themselves abandoned on the Cannibal Isles, their sacrifice a smokescreen for him robbing the ancient Ghol-Gan ruins nearby. Three survivors escaped, aided by a renegade Kuru who joined in their flight; now, they hunt Valurian across the High Seas, the lean cutter Bitterthorn's sails swell with revenge.
To make him pay, she had to live, and that meant aligning with the other survivors. The Bitterthorn is her vessel, and its crew all answer to her - Liriana is never taking orders from another captain again. She’s going to ruin him: destroy his relationships, steal his ship, and have the last laugh as he dies. A part of her is very, very eager to leave him on the very same beach as he once abandoned her, letting the cannibals take his sorry hide.
The Bitterthorn’s captain cuts a dashing image: wind-tossed blonde hair, flawless tanned skin, and a smile that’s led no few people to their deaths before. Rings cast in black metal mark her ears and bottom lip, while a simple icon of Calistria dangles from her neck. Her beloved sword has an elaborate hilt of elven make; Liriana never talks about where it came from, but she’d sooner die than part with it.
(CN Cavern Elf, Laughing Shadow Magus)
She hates her father, and will stop at nothing to see him dead. His continued existence is a continued insult, one Neria hopes to rectify with the biggest bolt of lightning the Shackles has ever seen. Nothing else matters but wiping out the monster whose blood runs in her veins - ironic, considering her ignorance of her hag mother, who Valurian bedded as part of a dark pact. The sea hag keeps a careful watch on her daughter from afar, but won’t wait much longer to reveal herself.
Magic of storm and wave is Neria’s birthright, constantly present in the form of small winds or an electrical charge. Her dark, straight hair stands out against her pale skin, still more prone to sunburn than tans despite her time on the ocean. As a girl, she was fascinated by the wild fashions of foppish pirates, but her dress these days is entirely practical; no-fuss breeches, sturdy boots, and the other pragmatic wear.
(N Changeling Human, Tempest Oracle).
Valurian Haask recruited the despondent tengu, seeking to employ him as a “jinx-eater” in the Shackles tradition, and Washi had nowhere else to go. His expertise in curses proved valuable (most jinx-eaters are wholly ceremonial and often quite lazy), but Valurian quickly judged the young onmyoji much too soft to be part of his inner circle. Washi considers his betrayal to be merely the worst expression of the curses wrapped around his soul; he hopes slaying the pirate, the most recent incarnation of his burden, might even purge its mark from his spirit.
As a tengu, Washi resembles a short, stout, humanoid crow, his face and beak usually hidden by a wide-brimmed hat from Genzei that keeps the water away. His once-pristine onmyoji vestments (in shades of midnight blue) have definitely suffered from their time at sea, he keeps them well-mended, and fills the folds with assorted “lucky” trinkets. A bright red paper lantern holds much of his magic, implausibly safe from ocean spray.
(N Jinxed Tengu, Lantern Thaumaturge, Curse Maelstrom Archetype).
Helping the outsiders escape got Ka-Pakaru out of the hell that had been their entire life thus far, and yet they ache to return. Their gift and their curse is perspective, an understanding of exactly what their people could be without the parasite that rules them; Ka-Pakaru intends to return home with a hundred ships to slay the monster, and is happy to aid in the hunt for Valurian until that day can come. In the meantime, the open ocean (and wider world beyond!) are a source of endless fascination, and no one ever threatens to eat them anymore.
Lifelong malnutrition kept Ka-Pakaru almost skeletal, a spindly shadow often easily overlooked. They’re never seen without a beloved waterproofed cloak acquired in port, with little of their face showing other than a pointed-tooth frown beneath the hood. Tattoos of strange glyphs mark their fingers, copied from broken temple walls and done by Ka-Pakaru themself with ash.
(NG Kuru Emotional Acceptance/Infinite Eye Psychic).
Liriana was skeptical at first that Valurian's own child could ever be trusted, but was quickly won over, and has come to be quite protective of the girl, privately delighting in using his daughter against him. Neria is deeply fond of Washi, having loved whenever jinx-eaters came through her home port as a child, and thinks of him as being infinitely more wise than he actually is. Ka-Pakaru is fiercely loyal to Neria - she's the one who advocated for taking their help in the Cannibal Isles - but they keep a wary eye on Liriana's cruel streak. Washi is afraid Liriana views him as disposable as Valurian did, but she's superstitious enough to never abandon him for fear of bad luck.
| 3 people marked this as a favorite. |
snip
I love Witness/Rogar! The idea of this Andoren agent's plans completely falling apart and him having to build a completely new scheme with these three randos is a delight. You can just imagine what his reports look like, the poor guy...
| 8 people marked this as a favorite. |
The Impossible Lands are indelibly defined by ancient wars, but Garund's wondrous northeast coast has enjoyed millennia of uneasy peace; a resumption of hostilities now would kill hundreds of thousands, and not only destabilize the entire region, but also all the nations that rely on Geb's grain to survive. With the ghost-king's return to active rule and signs of the vanished archmage's return everywhere, secret channels have bloomed with an unlikely pact, wealthy elites allying to avoid losing everything.
Zamita Sanction is the name of one crew of troubleshooters in their employ, currently operating out of a fake exports shop in the Jalmeri capital of Niswan. They report directly to Phasanaash, a spirit naga exiled from Nagajor who's become quite wealthy in the Jalmeray, and is loathe to see her new life go up in flames. They're primarily spies, searching for military plans and signs of Nex's seeming-imminent, but have assassinated no few loyalist warmongers on all sides of the brewing conflict.
Zamita Sanction is dimly aware of their other patrons - Alkenstari industrialists, Dongun nobles, members of Nex's governing Arclords, a cabal of Jalmeri Mauyra-Rahm bureaucrats, several of Geb's own Blood Lords, and, according to rumor, at least one reformed rakshasa - but know better to ask questions, keeping any suspicions private. The team is a crew of hardened professionals, and none want to be the first to slip up.
At the risk of some vanity, I'm quite proud of this team. I'm a sucker for good espionage stories, and that's the direction I hope LO:IL goes with the region.
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
snipped the Bitterthorn description awayI really love this group - I'm not normally a huge fan of the Shackles, but this is an excellent draw to the region for me.
Thank you much! As I said, pirates aren’t my favorite thing to play with, so a group who had more of a direction than “go be pirates in a new spot each week” felt like a good fix. I’m very glad they landed for you!
| 7 people marked this as a favorite. |
I think the Mwangi Expanse is still the feather in 2e's cap, in terms of just how killer that Lost Omens book was, and it's so hard to figure out just one part of it to focus on! I've probably thrown a half-dozen Magaambyans into the Strength of Thousands subforums, so that ground was well trod... but demon hunters, hoping to break the threat Usaro (or Nagisa) for good? Agents of the Vane, Vidrian's fledgling intelligence agency, chasing down colonial criminals and the Order of the Coil? Caravan guards out of Kibwe, making the long and dangerous run out to Alkenstar and Geb?
But for my first run at it for this thread, there was only one option: the Bright Lions, holy rebels in the temple-city Mzali! The Old Sun Gods are SO cool, and Walkena is one of my favorite baddies in the entire setting. I hope we get their story in full once 2e Mythic comes about, but until that day, the New Zakhuna have to make do with merely their mortal might. They know of other Bright Lion cells, but staying distant keeps them safe from discovery if one of their number falls into the hands of Walkena's inquisitors; theirs is a lonely fight for the soul of their people.
I'm tapping out on appearances and relationships for now - thank you to everyone enjoying this thread!
| 3 people marked this as a favorite. |
Thanks for making this thread! It's an absolute delight to read.
| 5 people marked this as a favorite. |
Old Cheliax is a region I'm glad exists, because it's home to so many great bad guys, but it's not a spot I ever really reach for when daydreaming about campaigns. I've run rebel/revolutionary campaigns in other settings so many times that those elements are just too familiar for me now, and the particular flavor of nastiness in Nidal sadly lands squarely on some of my triggers. I despaired a little when I saw that this was today's prompt... until I remembered our favorite spiky jerks, the Hellknights!
Legends sets up a brewing clash between Toulon Vidoc, the Order of the Scourge's master, and Abrogail Thrune II herself. As I'm a little desperate for Hellknight stories that aren't "be the worst fascist murderers imaginable," this has a ready appeal! Officially, these four Hellknights are collaborating on the Scarlet Ink investigation, a nonexistent case to do with a treasonous Chelish trade magnate - in reality, an excuse for their inter-Order cooperation and travel across the empire's breadth. They take to the grim task of investigating Abrogail II's wrongdoing with typical Hellknight precision, but each is well aware just what agonies await if they are discovered.
Itaarik chafes at Nimalia's cruelty, but is quite content to see it directed at the loyalists of House Thrune and their loathsome allies. Purity and Zashka enjoy an aloof friendship, their commonality in both being planetouched offering some empathy, but that bond manifests more as tight cooperation than any real warmth. Nimalia constantly pushes the other three to be stronger, the restless warrior demanding they be greater than mortal. Purity has significant doubts about Itaarik's loyalties, and those concerns are hardly unfounded; the strix would sooner see Cheliax dismantled than purged.
| 4 people marked this as a favorite. |
This is a fun thread indeed. Good idea.
| 8 people marked this as a favorite. |
I have the fine folks of this forum to thank for helping me understand what's cool about the Saga Lands in another thread, and we turn to that frozen north today! I don't have the same nostalgic fondness for Varisia as a 1e veteran, and Norse stuff has always left me cold (ha!), but the unique palette of Ancestries and cultures at play has a real sneaky appeal. Here's me trying to do more than just classic, pop culture Vikings - I hope you like this nameless band of dragonslayers!
The flighty, emotional gnome is ostensibly the leader of the group, but her volatile ego and lack of long-term foresight means she often leads them astray. Despite Resh's infamous temper, a number of Ulfen nobles respect the diminutive Throneseeker's unflinching dedication to her own glory.
(CN Gnome Bloodrager (or failing that, Dragon Instinct Barbarian with a Sorcerer multiclass), favors a huge axe almost as large as her body).
Spite kept her going, just as it had in life, her charred bones pulling a broken blade into a familiar grip. The work continues - proving herself tougher than mortals and linnorms alike, by strength of arms. Sometimes she daydreams about a throne, the life of an undying Linnorm King, but Yera learned long ago not to dream. Her current companions are fools, but they tolerate her unlife and value her steel, and can help rectify the mistake she made as a living warrior.
(NE Skeleton Fighter, still carrying the same bastard sword she died with).
Uluk awoke days later, alive and in the company of a great construct scrimshawed in her style. The tupilaq quietly insists on returning to the great swamp to make itself "real," but it and Uluk aren't yet strong enough to survive another attempt; traveling with these would-be dragonslayers should be trial enough.
(NG Erutaki Human Summoner with a Construct Eidolon, heavily based around the Tupilaq Carver feat and the awesome real-world myths behind it).
Having outlived the Frozen Shadows and her long-ailing mother, Oyuki found herself rootless, trained as a ninja but lacking any use for the skills. She's taken to work as a wilderness guide, and it's in that role the dragonslayers hired her; they're ignorant of her criminal past and Kitsune nature, but all have noticed her few Tian magics by now. Oyuki doesn't know how long she'll do this, but has to admit it feels better than robbing people.
(N Kitsune Monk with a Rogue Multiclass, to try and approximate a 1e Ninja).
Incidentally, this is 9/10 - tomorrow's Shining Kingdoms party marks one complete lap! Thanks to everyone playing along with me on this :>
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
Oh man Uluk is super cool. I like that one a lot.
| 4 people marked this as a favorite. |
Oyuki looks vaguely familiar...I may or may not have had a character concept for Reign of Winter just like her! *smirks and waggles eyebrows*
Great minds! :p
| 5 people marked this as a favorite. |
It can often feel like the Shining Kingdoms are nobody's favorite, but there's a lot of potential in what appears at first to be the most generic of Golarion's regions. Kyonin outshines the rest for me by far, an alien kingdom rich with portals and menaced by a stranded demon lord - that beats the snot out of the average "high elf" tropes, and so will be my focus for today.
The Briarburners are an experiment in the eyes of Kyonin's elite, an attempt to see how well elven experts can work alongside outside agents. Queen Telandia is desperate to avoid open war against Treerazer, and the potential to have others bear the brunt of such a crusade's cost is an appealing one to many who fear the thought of mass elven death. Others take a less cynical view, hoping that the group can prove to skeptics that cooperation can lead Kyonin to great heights and spark reform.
Unlike many of Kyonin's conservative citizens, Aiduil's time in the Army of the Open Road has made him significantly more open-minded to outsiders. He welcomed the help of the Knights of Lastwall, and is one of the more outspoken voices for further cooperation with them; he's considered the leader of the Briarburners by the nation's authorities, a role he takes to with more sincerity than grace.
(NG Aiudeen Elf Ranger)
The drow hunter does not disclose what made him stay in the sunlit lands, devote himself to an elven god, or walk into Kyonin with weapons sheathed, but Phaereth had the good fortune to find the Lantern Bearers in the midst of their reformation. They're one of a growing number of drow within that organization's ranks, and among the first to be revealed to outsiders - scrutiny that Phaereth barely acknowledges, content to serve Ketephys as they see fit. Tanglebriar poses a a worthy challenge; nothing more needs to be said.
(CG Drow Inquisitor of Ketephys)
While still outwardly the image of a blessed knight, his armor hides scars and doubts - too many of his friends are buried in Sarkorian soil for him to relish the thought of war with Treerazer orTar-Baphon, let alone both. A part of Mathen is terrified he'll outlive his companions again, or that he'll falter and directly cause their deaths. These thoughts are never spoken of, and his voice is steady when he leads morning prayers or deals with Kyonin's folk.
(LG Taldan Half-Orc Paladin of Iomedae)
That's the cover story, anyway. Gray Corsairs did save her life, but her service to Andoran was through the Twilight Talons, that nation's famous espionage wing. Keeping an eye on the Knights of Lastwall was originally all that was asked of her, but the chance to spy inside of historically-impregnable Kyonin was a massive intelligence coup. "Andi" is content to play the role of the enthusiastic assistant for as long as it takes, but can't escape the idea that the Tanglebriar and its demon lord are above the pay grade of a humble halfling.
(CN Halfling Rogue)
Aiduil and Ser Mathen are old friends from their shared time in the Crusade, and both are incredibly pleased to be alongside the other again; Aiduil dimly understands that he has romantic feelings for his trusted comrade, but that infatuation blinds him to Mathen's hidden pain. Andi does her best to get along with everyone, fawning over the "legendary crusaders" she spends her days with and peppering Phaereth with prying questions. Mathen fears Andi is going to get herself killed, and has privately sworn to protect her at all costs. Phaereth doesn't give away much of anything, but respects Aiduil as a kindred spirit - each are hunters sworn to greater things than themselves; Aiduil hopes Phaereth lives up to the expectations heaped on them, and considers those expectations profoundly unfair.
A knight in shining armor, an elf Ranger, and a halfling Rogue... 3/4 ain't bad, for trying to hit the classic notes? The Shining Kingdoms are a fun challenge - I'm bummed I didn't fit any Galt into this bunch! The Briarburners mark one full run through the Inner Sea; thank you to everyone humoring me in this. I'll have more parties to come!
| 3 people marked this as a favorite. |
Now that I'm free from my "gotta be in order" compulsion, I can do whatever I want! The immediate draws for me are: a crew of Lady Altouna's Numerian alien troubleshooters (Broken Lands), a task force of Vidrian's Vane tasked with destroying Sargavan hardliners (Mwangi Expanse), a party with any reason to host a Mordant Spire elf as a PC (High Seas), and an anti-Usij group focused on protecting Osirion and Thuvia from div destruction (Golden Road).
I'm also a little embarrassed to have utterly dodged most of what makes Varisia iconic, and to not have dabbled in Brevic politics. Rest assured, I'll have more parties for you yet!
In the meantime, I'd love to see more contributions from other folks here :>
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
Now that I'm free from my "gotta be in order" compulsion...
Ah the joy such freedom brings! I still remember what it felt like to have one each of all the levels (1-20) in my character gallery, and then later at least one of each of all the classes (alchemist through wizard).
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Now that I'm free from my "gotta be in order" compulsion...Ah the joy such freedom brings! I still remember what it felt like to have one each of all the levels (1-20) in my character gallery, and then later at least one of each of all the classes (alchemist through wizard).
I can relate! In my case, it’s autism and ADHD holding my leash… we normally get along, but sometimes they call the shots for me.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
For a Kingmaker party - would folks rather I do a sample Kingmaker party (trying to create the perfect "average" version of Narland), or a party in 'modern' Golarion, where the kingdom was founded 12 years ago and they call it home (a post-Kingmaker party, essentially)?
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
For a Kingmaker party - would folks rather I do a sample Kingmaker party (trying to create the perfect "average" version of Narland), or a party in 'modern' Golarion, where the kingdom was founded 12 years ago and they call it home (a post-Kingmaker party, essentially)?
I'd like to see your take on a post-Kingmaker party. (Though I hope there won't be too much in the way of spoilers if you do; I never made it past the 2nd module, but still intend to play the 2nd Edition version of it.)
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
For a Kingmaker party - would folks rather I do a sample Kingmaker party (trying to create the perfect "average" version of Narland), or a party in 'modern' Golarion, where the kingdom was founded 12 years ago and they call it home (a post-Kingmaker party, essentially)?
Why not both? Only 12 years ago -- barring deaths, the original Kingmaker party should still be around, and could be patrons for the post-Kingmaker party.
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
Fun thread.
Some time back I put together my “iconics” for a Ris of the Runelords campaign, which iirc starts at a festival in Sandpoint.
My party included a Chelaxian colonist (diabolic sorcerer running from his past), a Shoanti exile (bear instinct barbarian), an Ulfen raider (ruffian rogue), and a Varisian Harrow reader (curse witch).
Yes, all human, but the diversity was within the human ethnicities,
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
With my efforts to imagine that Kingmaker's end result, I need a hypothetical party to head up the efforts in the Stolen Lands! I wanted to make sure they hit the thematic high notes: connections to Brevoy that aren't overpowering, a comfort with both the wilderness and the court of rule, and an ability to play nice with the many "monsters" of the region - my Narland is trying to unite people, not cleanse the River Kingdoms with flame.
The Narland Charter connects these four "heroes," but all were perfect strangers before the turbulent events of Jamandi's grand feast - they agreed to stick together in the aftermath, with none expecting all the chaos that would follow. The look at them below is mid-Kingmaker; I'll need to daydream some more on what they look like as venerable, established rulers as of 4722, 12 years after Kingmaker.
Regna is Neutral Good and a Human Sorcerer, learned in the ways of courtly etiquette but driven by her circumstances to be more pragmatic than any lofty blueblood. She values loyalty and promises over coin and class; a kobold who can be trusted is worth infinitely more than a two-faced aristocrat. While Regna is in no hurry to insult Jamandi Aldori or Rostland, she doesn't feel like her or her kingdom should be beholden to another land - no one talks down to Regna, and no one deals with her kingdom as anything other than an equal. Once Narland can stand on its own two feet, Regna abandons any claim to being a Surtova heir; the Redmane dynasty begins with her.
(Kellid-Taldan Human / Brevic Outcast / Draconic Bloodline Sorcerer)
As fits a pious follower of Erastil, Badger is fond of a trying, honest hunt, and the Stolen Lands offers no shortage of worthy prey; despite this, they consider its untamed nature as something worth preserving, and why Badger uncharacteristically volunteered for the role of Warden. They personally tutored a number of Narland's first rangers, and care as much for the health of the land itself as the people on it.
(Feychild Gnome / Borderlands Pioneer / Precision Ranger (Longbow) + Cleric of Erastil Multiclass)
Properly schooled in the ways of war by family tutors, Shae quickly took command of Narland's defense one such a thing became necessary. War brings them no pleasure - every dead Narlander is a burden Shae bears in silence - but they will not allow theirs and Regna's dream to be snuffed out. Gifted with spell and steel, Shae hopes to supplement their hardy soldiers with a number of war mages, but is unsure how to recruit such specialized talent.
(Taldan Half-Elf / Sword Scion / Laughing Shadow Magus (Aldori Dueling Sword)
Her time spent carousing in Pitax's courts and swindling the River Kingdoms has borne surprising fruit: intimately familiar with Narland's neighbors and quite accustomed to making deals, Petia has thrived as the kingdom's Emissary, handling foreign relations and managing a small handful of spies. She hopes to use her influence to make the kingdom a refuge for orcish folk like her, and others derided as 'monsters' - her knack for languages proving a vital boon in the Charter's many adventures.
(Taldan Half-Orc / Local Brigand / Enigma Muse Bard)
Narland originally rises as a haven for second-chancers and those who want an alternative to Brevoy's ceaseless feuds. Surviving the untamed and accursed Stolen Lands required cooperation whenever possible: with defeated rival kingdoms, with native 'monsters' like kobolds and centaurs, and with no few incredibly powerful fey. Regna and Narland's other leaders welcome any who will contribute honestly to their project, learning to respect the diversity of perspectives and power such a kingdom offers, and leading it to ultimate success over the trials that birthed their nation.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
{. . .}
Regna Redmane:{. . .}
The sorceress-monarch plays up a royal temper, but does quietly hold grudges dear due to a half-hearted faith in Calistria.Regna is Neutral Good {. . .}
These seem incompatible . . . .
|
| 3 people marked this as a favorite. |
I think a half-hearted faith is a good example of someone who may view themselves as a worshiper of a deity, but who the deity wouldn't necessarily agree with (or empower, as those stat blocks are for). Anyone can worship anyone - a fallen champion may still view themselves as worshipping their original deity, but they won't be given powers. I don't think there's any implication in Regna's write-up that she actually gets divine power from Calistria :)
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
{. . .}
** spoiler omitted **These seem incompatible . . . .
She’s a Calistrian in that she thinks sex is fun and revenge is worthwhile - not devoted enough to be getting any Cleric spells, that’s for sure.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
She’s a Calistrian in that she thinks sex is fun and revenge is worthwhile - not devoted enough to be getting any Cleric spells, that’s for sure.{. . .}
** spoiler omitted **These seem incompatible . . . .
So...not a Calistria worshipper at all then; just someone who enjoys the same things?
|
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
So...not a Calistria worshipper at all then; just someone who enjoys the same things?She’s a Calistrian in that she thinks sex is fun and revenge is worthwhile - not devoted enough to be getting any Cleric spells, that’s for sure.{. . .}
** spoiler omitted **These seem incompatible . . . .
To quote core rulebook
"Anyone can worship a deity, but those who do so devoutly should take care to pursue the faith’s edicts (behaviors the faith encourages) and avoid its anathemas (actions considered blasphemous)."
So strictly speaking, LG character can "worship" Lamashtu, but all Lamashtans would be offended at character constantly acting like opposite of what faith encourages and Lamashtu might curse the character if they break her anathema while claiming to worship her.
Alignment requirement is more required for getting mechanical benefits and representing someone who is faithful follower of the faith.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
It's rather disingenuous of you to omit the relevant parts appearing in the very next sentence.
Oh, I don't know. "Alignments permitted by followers" sounds pretty restrictive to me.
By that reading, I'd say you can't be a worshipper of any kind while possessing an unpermitted alignment.
|
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
It's rather disingenuous of you to omit the relevant parts appearing in the very next sentence.
Oh, I don't know. "Alignments permitted by followers" sounds pretty restrictive to me.
By that reading, I'd say you can't be a worshipper of any kind while possessing an unpermitted alignment.
Yes? I'm annoyed you think I'm being disingenuous instead of stupid though. Though I'd like to think I'm neither. Because that is what god permits, you don't need permission of god to worship a god, but its unwise to do so.