Ah, well as long as there is some territory near the mountains then that works for me. I know that area is plagued by bandits and I plan to work that into the background. :P
Mentath Pioth was the spoiled daughter growing up, but earned some minor respect by taking on her 4 brothers (and winning). When at school, she took up defending the underdogs against the bullies during unsupervised times, but let the underdog feel her wrath when her protection was abused. Her strength of body was tempered by her faith in civilization being preferable to savagery (another reason to despise bullies). When it was time to serve and protect the community, she leaped at the first opportunity, but felt disappointed when no opportunity for greater service than basic patrol arose. Her wealthy father, patriarch of the Pioth merchant family and candidate for local high-office, paid for finishing school (where she learned the archaic language supposedly of dragons, as well as excelling in religious studies) after service was over, but his plans to have her married off (preferably to someone who would provide him some political gain) were thwarted when she sneaked into the tournament and defeated all her would-be suitors. Disowned, she left her father's household, and is seeking to make her own way in the world, with help from any worthy of her protection.
Mentath Pioth is slight of build, and young, with a mop of short curly brown hair. Aside from some basic equipment, she carries only the plate armor and great sword that were to be the other prizes of the tournament. A bright red surcoat with no coat-of-arms drapes over the top.
Mentath grew up privileged, and more than a little of her attitude continues. She is sometimes haughty, but knows that her station is now no higher than that of an average Mercenary. Her faith holds that the powers and benefits of civilization should be spread to all, even by force if necessary. The concept of "Killing them for their own good" doesn't seem to phase her. She is loyal to those who prove themselves worthy, and ferocious against those who force others into obedience. This seeming hypocrisy is not something she notices.
POWERS Lay on Hands: minor: target regains HP by spending one of my surges Divine Challenge: Minor: cburst5, 1 enemy marked (-2 to attack if does not include me, takes 5 damage first time) Holy Strike: +8 vs AC, 1d10+5 Radiant Challenging Strike: If I am bloodied, I can target AC or Will--whichever is lower, +8 vs 1d10+5 + marked Ardent Strike: +8 vs AC, 1d10+5 + divine Sanctioned, can be used with charge. Valorous Smite: +8 vs AC, 2d10+2, each enemy within 3 Divine Sanctioned Divine Strength or Divine Mettle: +5 to next damage roll or ally within 10 makes save at +2 Noble Presence: Move: CBurst 3, one or two allies can shift 2 and gain +2 power bonus all defences Blood of the Mighty: +8 vs AC, 4d10+5, I take 5 damage
You are both rational and emotional. You value creation and discovery, and feel strongly about what I create. At best, you're innovative and intuitive. At worst, you're scattered and unpredictable.
Bow down, my subjects, for I am your master! Yesss.....Show
Dossk is a warlord, so his primary role is Leader. His skill-set lends itself to working well as a great partner for a defender or a striker, with his large amount of attack enabling. -Brash Assault, when combined with Harlequin Style (Picked up at Level 2), gives Dossk a fair amount of tankiness when using this ability. -Intuitive Strike is for those mobs that have a high AC but low will, like Soldier enemies. In addition, you can set up some strong attack bonuses for flanking. -Vengeance is Mine is another ability I love for warlords. I get hit, he gets hit twice. The attack enabling for this build is nuts. -Lamb to the Slaughter is more of a lazy-lord ability with its massive amount of enabling. Can make for some awesome positioning in battle. Just pull a guy out of the group and focus him down.
Not much reflavoring needed for this PC. He's a dragonborn reflavored to a big, beefy human, which is pretty easy. I picked dragonfear instead of dragonbreath, because it is easier to RP than spitting out a bunch of fire at an a enemy. The dragonfear goes along with how Dossk is: a large, intimidating warrior that will shout in your face in battle, giving free CA. Other than the race, the warlord's powers are all martial and don't need any reflavoring, really.
A tight-knit village on the borders of Fellenor, along the edge of the Wolfwood. Kjurfell is located in a shallow valley, between two large hills. Over the past century, it has come to be known to brew up many naturally-gifted warriors from its gene pool. The men from Kjurfell are strong, fast, bigger than average, making them overall physically superior in a combat role than the average Fellenoran. The endurace of the residents is also renowned. Kjurfell's weather is snowy for most of the year, barely melting off during the short months of summer in the realm. It is said that Kjurfelli are born in the snow, and that their blood runs steaming, offering them resistance to the harsh cold, but such myths are old wives' tales.
The Kjurfelli are known for their harsh family relations. The parents believe in the idea that, like a nesting bird, children should be thrown from the nest. If they can fly on their own, they will succeed and become strong and moral warriors. If they plummet, unable by instinct to fly on their own, then the child is doomed to mediocrity and shunned by the warrior-culture. The intense pressure on maturing children has led to a few rare failures. These children that grow to become a shunned, non-warrior are called the Urgalans. They take upon civilian duties in the village and usually live on the edge of town in pitiful shanties, or move deeper into the Wolfwood to escape the hostilities opressed onto them.
Kjurfell's architecture isn't particularly impressive; the residents focus more on functionality then aesthetics. Thick log cabins and irregularly paved cobblestone roads dot the valley, and the massively thick Wolfwood is drawn upon for supplying the great amounts of firewood needed to keep the residents warm through the near-permanent winter.
Recently, rumors have made their way to the reaches of Fellenor that some of the villagers have disappeared. Most of the disappearances have been smaller children, but the worst of the rumors say that a whole hunting party of 5 or 6 men went missing just a fortnight ago. Kjurfell isn't the only hamlet that has had missing people, but it shows that whatever is taking them is able to take on even the strongest and hardest-enduring of men.
Dossk was born in Kjurfell, and was no different physically from the rest of the male babies that originate from the harsh-weathered warrior-hamlet. In his first few years, he exhibited the traditional Kjurfelli strength, development, and yearning to succeed as a warrior. As a young child, before he was of age to don the traditional armor and practice with a real blade, he watched his older brothers Trask and Felenc in their training. He'd always wanted to be as strong as them one day, when he grew up. Maybe then they would stop messing his hair up and calling him "little brother." They practiced in the hard-packed snow outside the cabin, calling their swings and taking turns learning to block them without taking too much of the hit in their forearms.
Dossk's parents were classic Kjurfelli material. His father, a stern man that showed little love for his sons outside their training, always seemed to have his dark, watchful eyes on Dossk as he grew up. The boy felt that he had been born a runt, his brothers being well above 6-feet tall even in their middle teens. Because of this, Dossk grew to harbor cold feelings toward the man, in response to the watchful, silent eyes. His mother was much more yielding and loving than Dossk's father toward her youngest, but she too was of the Kjurfelli mindset that the children should not be coddled and over-praised. She chose to let her child grow up his own way, learning from his older brothers and from his own instinct.
Dossk, despite his father wanting to have nothing to do with him, and his mother barely helping him along his journey, was determined not to become an Urgalan and fall from all possible glory in life. He grew to be very independent boy, only relying on his older brothers for advice, and not to fight his personal battles for him.
At the age of 9 Dossk began his own training after joining a small group of boys in the village. They'd meet every morning near the stables with their wooden weapons. They tried to make do with what oversized or hand-me-down armor they could get their dirty hands on. Dossk came across one of Felenc's practice shields; it was a thin, fragile metal, but much more sturdy than a wooden buckler, and it was heavy too. The extra weight satisfied Dossk, as it'd help him build his arm strength as well.
The group sparred and practiced mock skirmishes. Occasionally, one of the boys' fathers would arrive in the morning, fully suited in real armor and with a Kjurfelli blade or axe holstered or sheathed on his belt. The fathers who chose to participate in the training were looked upon as role models, and the sons glorified. Dossk, however, never had his father show up to the training. Because of this, he felt a bit isolated from the others, and only tacked on to the disdain he held for his father. Even with his father continuing to ignore his training, Dossk proved himself amongst the group of boys. After months of training, he could best just about every one of them with his footwork and skill at blocking. His sword arm was weak still, and using a light wooden blade wasn't helping anything.
Finally, at the age of 10, after having trained with the boys for a full year, Dossk felt like he had some serious potential as a warrior. However, some of the older boys had started getting their growth spurts, and were already sporting a few chin hairs and bulging chest and bicep muscles. A particularly rough 13-year old had even managed to obtain a dull blade from his irresponsible father. During a spar with Dossk, the older boy took his advantage to the limit and brought the dull blade down on Dossk with unwarranted force. Dossk was quick to react, but the blade snapped his raised shield in half and gave him a quite nasty injury to his shield arm. With rage in his heart, Dossk leapt at the older boy and viciously struck him with the wooden blade, snapping it on his head and punching him in the face with his shield arm. Crying and sputtering, the 13-year old finally had a seething Dossk pulled off of him. His nose was broken, he had a gash in his head, and a tooth was missing.
Dossk's father took his outlash as an easy way to get the boy out of his sight for good. The boy was immediately pulled from his combat training. Dossk's father's silent contempt of the boy finally manifested itself when he let the boy know how much he disliked him, and didn't value him as a true son of his. "Might as well have been a bastard, you."
Once he had gathered his stuff, and had said a brief, confused, and frightened goodbye to his brothers and mother, Dossk was picked up by a carriage and brought to Caragane, the nearest town. The sudden action on his father's part hurt Dossk, and he knew that it would be a long while before he would be able to return to Kjurfell to see his brothers. With this in mind, he rethought his mindset and sought to prove himself to whoever would be watching over him in his teenage years.
Dossk was taken as a ward of one of the nobles in Caragane because of his status as a Kjurfelli recruit, and treated as such. The noble family promised him a lucrative career in being a bodyguard for the young sons and daughters of the nobleman - the Illsens, they were called. Dossk's last adolescence years were spent training in the art of being a guardsman for the family, despite his youth. He was taught to use a real blade, and after being granted usage of a suitably sized one, Dossk truly began to gain some arm strength and feel confident in his abilities.
At age 14 he was given an Illsen uniform and he was overjoyed. This confirmed his role as a bodyguard for the noble House, and he wore it with much pride. He had also begun his growth spurt and even had a few chin hairs growing. Sheathing his longsword in his belt-scabbard and holstering his shield to his back, he looked the part as a noble guardsman, even at his young age. Becoming friends with the younger Illsen children, he was looked up to as a sibling to the ones he was closer with, and the father was pleased with his charming behavior toward his children.
When he turned 17, Dossk became of age and Master Illsen himself purchased a beautiful bastard sword for the young man. It was heavy, almost too heavy to wield in one hand, but Dossk was prepared for this. He was already looking very much like his older brothers, with signs of a scraggly beard and toned muscles showing through his tunic. He accepted the blade with honor. It was dark, gilded from a more refined variant of iron that gave it its shadowy lustre. The hilt was square and chunky, which made it look very regal and powerful. Engraved into the gold-colored hilt was "Protector of House Illsen" on one side, and "The Blade of Kjurfell" on the other. Confused, Dossk questioned if the blade was made in his hometown by the smiths there. "No, Dossk," Master Illsen responded. "You are the Blade. The Blade of Kjurfell," he said, smiling.
At the age of 19, Dossk was drafted into the militia of Caragane for his mandatory 2-year-service. He was disappointed when he was forced to remove his Illsen raiment and don the new, tacky-looking uniforms, but he was able to keep his blade. Upon gaining access to his shield again through his charm and a few oddjobs, he started to not mind his service. Growing to enjoy the presence of his allies in his squadron, he made friends and felt the ties growing as he once did in his training group in Kjurfell.
As he turned 20, he became fully matured in his figure, and looked quite the man with his full beard and general hairiness. Already having been nicknamed "The Blade," after toting around his special sword, his friends teasingly dubbed him the "Bearblade," due to his size and beard. The name stuck, and Dossk grew to like it after he couldn't do a thing about being called it over and over.
The Militia years passed quickly for Dossk, and with his new training and conditioning, he returned to the Illsens for a few years to continue being their bodyguard. Master Illsen was impressed with his development as a warrior, and the young children loved his new title. "The Bearblade is here! He's here!" They would shout as he saw to their morning routines.
Dossk had all but forgotten about his homeland until recently. A messenger had arrived at the Illsen Manor, and the Master pulled Dossk into a sideroom, pain written on his face. "Your brother Trask... He has gone missing, as well as a handful of other men. They were on a hunting excursion in the Wolfwood, and they haven't been seen in a fortnight. I fear it is another of the uncanny disappearances that the hamlets have been victim to. Something foul is afoot, my Blade. The rumors speak of... creatures in those Woods."
With the grave news in mind, Dossk sets out for the city-center to learn what he can about the rumors before he returns to his home, the first time in a decade.
Dossk's spirit is a rambunctious one. His heart lies in the heat of combat, and is usually itching to get into a new one when he can. Because of this, he places great respect and loyalty to those he acknowledges as peers in battle, especially when they are able to do things he could never do, such as sorcery or unparalleled archery. For this reason, he is very loyal to the motley group of allies he made during the two-year service in Caragane, having had his hide saved by them a few times.
Dossk might be intimidating and a furious warrior, but he is not without his "chivalric" values and good-temper outside of the battle. The Bearblade will never miss his chance to crack a bawdy joke or tease one of his allies about their new, strangely undergarment-shaped piece of armor. However, when battle does erupt, his head is already in the planning mode, deciding between charging in no holds barred or fighting tactically and cautiously.
Dossk stands at 6-foot-2, and is built a bit stocky, but lean enough to still be a bit agile in his movements. He isn't as barrel-chested as he would seem, decked out fully in his armor, but his many layers add to the powerful figure he looks like in battle. His has strong arms and legs, having continued his conditioning even after his mandatory service, so as to buff up to be a bodyguard for the House Illsen again.
Dossk has dark brown hair that, when not tied into a bun to wear his helm, hangs loosely down to his shoulders. It is stringy and thick, and sometimes adorned with thick leather ties around pieces of it to keep it from his eyes outside of battle. He has dark, thick eyebrows. His eyes are a dark green, with a slight grayish tint to them. His eyes are set deep into his skull, making him look slightly more aged than 24. His sharp nose isn't very thick, and looks a bit crooked from a previous fracture. His thin lips are pulled taut, ready to give away a smile or to bare his teeth, depending on friend or foe. Along his strong jaw is a thick beard, grown both for warmth and for the intense look it gives him. It is because of the beard and his general hairiness in general that has earned him the "bear" in Bearblade.
Dossk wears thick leathers, layered for warmth. On top of this, he has a very densely-ringed suit of chainmail, held in position by small clamps that attach it to his underarmor, and a thick, dark leather belt with a chunky, dark iron belt buckle. He wears large pauldrons for shoulder protection, but are covered by large tufts of fine fur that mark the neckline of his thick, heavy black cloak that hangs to his calves. His leather leggings are coated with a plate of metal on his thigh region. The boots themselves have engraved metal greaves, and come up to his mid-thigh level. Dossk's boots are made of a very tough leather that restrains some mobility in exchange for extra protection, but offer nowhere near as much of either trade-off as iron or steel would. In battle, Dossk wears an iron fullhelm that cuts off just at the tip of his nose, allowing his mouth and beard to be seen from the outside. This is to shout orders, taunt his opposers, or even bite, should it come to that.
EDIT: Say, LM, you wouldn't happen to have read or watched the Game of Thrones series? Your intro reminds me a lot of it :D
As a matter of fact, Game of Thrones was indeed one of the inspirations for this campaign. Having come to love both the books and the tv show, I had been interested in a human-centric campaign for a while, and I finally decided to run it.
"I don't like X, they should remove it." "I like X, they should keep it." "They should replace X with Y." "Anybody that likes X is dumb. Y is better." "Why don't they include both X and Y." "Yeah, everybody can be happy then!" "But I don't like X, they should remove it." "X really needs to be replaced with Y." "But they can include both X and Y." "But I don't like X, they need to remove it." "Remove X, I don't like it."
Until you've had an in-law tell you your choice of game was stupid, and just Warcraft on paper, and dumbed down for dumber players who can't handle a real RPG, you haven't lived.
Lady and gentlemen.... I present to you the Edition War without Contrition, the War of the Web, the Mighty Match-up!
We're using standard edition war rules. No posts of substance. Do not read the other person's posts with comprehension. Make frequent comparison to video games, MMOs, and CCGs. Use the words "fallacy" and "straw man", incorrectly and often. Passive aggressiveness gets you extra points and asking misleading and inflammatory questions is mandatory. If you're getting tired, just declare victory and leave the thread. Wait for the buzzer... and....
One, two, three, four, I declare Edition War Five, six, seven eight, I use the web to
D&D should not return to the days of blindfolding the DM and players. No tips on encounter power? No mention of expected party roles? No true meaning of level due to different level charts or tiered classes? Please, let's not sacrifice clear, helpful rules guidelines in favour of catering to the delicate sensibilities of the few who have problems with the ascetics of anything other than what they are familiar with.
Just a quick note on the MMORPG as an insult comparison...
MMORPGs, raking in money by the dumptruck full. Many options, tons of fans across many audiences, massive resources allocated to development.
TTRPGs, dying product. Squeaking out an existence that relys on low cost. Fans fit primarily into a few small demographics. R&D budgets small, often rushed to market and patched after deployment.
You're not really making much of an argument when you compare something to a MMORPG and assume people think that means bad. Lets face it, they make the money, have the audience and the budget. We here on this board are fans of TTRPGs but lets not try to pretend none of us play MMORPGs.
Something like Tactical Shift is more magical than martial healing.
Telling someone to move over a few feet is magical now? :|
I weep for this generation.
Given the laziness and morbid obsesity amongst D&Ders, being able to convince someone to get on their feet, do some heavy exercise, and use their words to make them be healthier must seem magical.
Alright, Lore question: Fellenor is now an oligarchy, but exactly what form does it take? Do the nobility now rule in place of the royal family? Or, is it more democratic than aristocratic? Or, is there some sort of council of elders or something along those lines? Something else? I ask because I want to know how important/powerful old noble lines awould be, in general, now that there is no longer a king.
Alright, Lore question: Fellenor is now an oligarchy, but exactly what form does it take? Do the nobility now rule in place of the royal family? Or, is it more democratic than aristocratic? Or, is there some sort of council of elders or something along those lines? Something else? I ask because I want to know how important/powerful old noble lines awould be, in general, now that there is no longer a king.
Democratic process, but one that favors elders. The seven members of the ruling body hail from the seven largest settlements in Fellenor, including the capital, New Hyer Callanar.
Both men and women can be elected, but they must be at least forty years of age and have proven themselves outstanding members of their respective communities in some way. Terms last for eight years, but a person can secure any number of terms in his/her lifetime and effectively serve until death.
The old nobility were cast down during the revolution. The few noble families spared from destruction - Ulross, Tather, and Hyrada - were those desperate folk who realized the royal family was doomed to collapse and jumped ship early on in the fighting. Today, they retain their great wealth, but hold no political power whatsoever. Though eligible to seek a seat on the ruling council, none of them have had any success, and the families have not tried to make a bid in generations.
"I don't like X, they should remove it." "I like X, they should keep it." "They should replace X with Y." "Anybody that likes X is dumb. Y is better." "Why don't they include both X and Y." "Yeah, everybody can be happy then!" "But I don't like X, they should remove it." "X really needs to be replaced with Y." "But they can include both X and Y." "But I don't like X, they need to remove it." "Remove X, I don't like it."
Until you've had an in-law tell you your choice of game was stupid, and just Warcraft on paper, and dumbed down for dumber players who can't handle a real RPG, you haven't lived.
Lady and gentlemen.... I present to you the Edition War without Contrition, the War of the Web, the Mighty Match-up!
We're using standard edition war rules. No posts of substance. Do not read the other person's posts with comprehension. Make frequent comparison to video games, MMOs, and CCGs. Use the words "fallacy" and "straw man", incorrectly and often. Passive aggressiveness gets you extra points and asking misleading and inflammatory questions is mandatory. If you're getting tired, just declare victory and leave the thread. Wait for the buzzer... and....
One, two, three, four, I declare Edition War Five, six, seven eight, I use the web to
D&D should not return to the days of blindfolding the DM and players. No tips on encounter power? No mention of expected party roles? No true meaning of level due to different level charts or tiered classes? Please, let's not sacrifice clear, helpful rules guidelines in favour of catering to the delicate sensibilities of the few who have problems with the ascetics of anything other than what they are familiar with.
Just a quick note on the MMORPG as an insult comparison...
MMORPGs, raking in money by the dumptruck full. Many options, tons of fans across many audiences, massive resources allocated to development.
TTRPGs, dying product. Squeaking out an existence that relys on low cost. Fans fit primarily into a few small demographics. R&D budgets small, often rushed to market and patched after deployment.
You're not really making much of an argument when you compare something to a MMORPG and assume people think that means bad. Lets face it, they make the money, have the audience and the budget. We here on this board are fans of TTRPGs but lets not try to pretend none of us play MMORPGs.
Something like Tactical Shift is more magical than martial healing.
Telling someone to move over a few feet is magical now? :|
I weep for this generation.
Given the laziness and morbid obsesity amongst D&Ders, being able to convince someone to get on their feet, do some heavy exercise, and use their words to make them be healthier must seem magical.
Alright, thanks for the info. That raises one more question: are you opposed to me increasing that last of old noble families by one? Lacking the power, still, and really only being a lesser titled family with one small area of influence.
Alright, thanks for the info. That raises one more question: are you opposed to me increasing that last of old noble families by one? Lacking the power, still, and really only being a lesser titled family with one small area of influence.
"I don't like X, they should remove it." "I like X, they should keep it." "They should replace X with Y." "Anybody that likes X is dumb. Y is better." "Why don't they include both X and Y." "Yeah, everybody can be happy then!" "But I don't like X, they should remove it." "X really needs to be replaced with Y." "But they can include both X and Y." "But I don't like X, they need to remove it." "Remove X, I don't like it."
Until you've had an in-law tell you your choice of game was stupid, and just Warcraft on paper, and dumbed down for dumber players who can't handle a real RPG, you haven't lived.
Lady and gentlemen.... I present to you the Edition War without Contrition, the War of the Web, the Mighty Match-up!
We're using standard edition war rules. No posts of substance. Do not read the other person's posts with comprehension. Make frequent comparison to video games, MMOs, and CCGs. Use the words "fallacy" and "straw man", incorrectly and often. Passive aggressiveness gets you extra points and asking misleading and inflammatory questions is mandatory. If you're getting tired, just declare victory and leave the thread. Wait for the buzzer... and....
One, two, three, four, I declare Edition War Five, six, seven eight, I use the web to
D&D should not return to the days of blindfolding the DM and players. No tips on encounter power? No mention of expected party roles? No true meaning of level due to different level charts or tiered classes? Please, let's not sacrifice clear, helpful rules guidelines in favour of catering to the delicate sensibilities of the few who have problems with the ascetics of anything other than what they are familiar with.
Just a quick note on the MMORPG as an insult comparison...
MMORPGs, raking in money by the dumptruck full. Many options, tons of fans across many audiences, massive resources allocated to development.
TTRPGs, dying product. Squeaking out an existence that relys on low cost. Fans fit primarily into a few small demographics. R&D budgets small, often rushed to market and patched after deployment.
You're not really making much of an argument when you compare something to a MMORPG and assume people think that means bad. Lets face it, they make the money, have the audience and the budget. We here on this board are fans of TTRPGs but lets not try to pretend none of us play MMORPGs.
Something like Tactical Shift is more magical than martial healing.
Telling someone to move over a few feet is magical now? :|
I weep for this generation.
Given the laziness and morbid obsesity amongst D&Ders, being able to convince someone to get on their feet, do some heavy exercise, and use their words to make them be healthier must seem magical.
