Character ideas for Spencer

[ehren]

The Brothers are all Blood Sworn, +2 to one attribute, +1 to another, plus Blood Share, Empathic Sense and Thought Link at Rank 1 all for a mere 4 permanent damage. (P 125-126 players guide)

[GM / Malinous]

Normally blood bonds are only 4 two people. I added rules for expanded groups (again, optional and house rules thread). It amounts to I think 2+1 blood damage per group member? I'd have to look. Unless it's 2 per additional person after 2. I'd have to look :-).

[ehren]

I think it was the standard 4. But Blood Share costs more to increase. But, as Tom says its in the House rules thread.

[Mawaris]

4 blood magic damage is the standard amount in the book. Normally you can only do it with one other character (and you can't do it multiple times). The one penalty we applied was to make Blood Share increase as per a Warden level talent (normally it increases as a Journeyman level talent).

[Sveja]

Thanks guys - so safe to say I can count on a +2 and +1 at some point in the future (if not immediately)? Just planning out my stats, and Earthdawn's strict +3 increase limit makes the starting stat rather important

[ehren]

Yeah, thats why I put it in as an assumption on stating out the character.

[Sveja]

Thanks

I had my stat array figured out, but now I shall refigure!

I am planning to focus on the mental stats with moderate strength (to use a pole arm) I do not plan to have much of a dex or toughness.

[Mawaris]

We'll have to figure out the timing on that. The book says 3 years of loyal status and at least 3 "loyal actions" are required. We of course justified that easily as brothers who had known each other our whole lives. A bit tricky for an outsider, but we can figure something out. It just may take a while.

Also normally you can't do this multiple times or expand it, but we're already cheating by making it three, so that doesn't seem like a big issue. Just might have to apply an additional penalty (more blood damage or something) for four.

[Mawaris]

Jul 17, 2013 19:32:00 GMT -5 Sveja said:

Thanks

I had my stat array figured out, but now I shall refigure!

I am planning to focus on the mental stats with moderate strength (to use a pole arm) I do not plan to have much of a dex or toughness.

I suggest your "not much dex" be at least 14, so you have step 6 base and 8 physical defense. This isn't particularly hard for an elf (Mes and Maw both have 19 Dex)

Also, you should consider where your stats will be when increased by 3, which is the maximum you can increase them by with LP during the campaign. For example, I recall I went with a 14 in Willpower instead of 15 because an 18 has absolutely no benefit for Willpower over a 17 (but 17 is worthwhile because that is at least an extra mystic armor).

[ehren]

Jul 17, 2013 19:46:01 GMT -5 Mawaris said:

We'll have to figure out the timing on that. The book says 3 years of loyal status and at least 3 "loyal actions" are required. We of course justified that easily as brothers who had known each other our whole lives. A bit tricky for an outsider, but we can figure something out. It just may take a while.

Also normally you can't do this multiple times or expand it, but we're already cheating by making it three, so that doesn't seem like a big issue. Just might have to apply an additional penalty (more blood damage or something) for four.

Or advance as a master level talent.

[ehren]

Jul 17, 2013 19:55:04 GMT -5 Mawaris said:

Jul 17, 2013 19:32:00 GMT -5 Sveja said:

Thanks

I had my stat array figured out, but now I shall refigure!

I am planning to focus on the mental stats with moderate strength (to use a pole arm) I do not plan to have much of a dex or toughness.

I suggest your "not much dex" be at least 14, so you have step 6 base and 8 physical defense. This isn't particularly hard for an elf (Mes and Maw both have 19 Dex)

Also, you should consider where your stats will be when increased by 3, which is the maximum you can increase them by with LP during the campaign. For example, I recall I went with a 14 in Willpower instead of 15 because an 18 has absolutely no benefit for Willpower over a 17 (but 17 is worthwhile because that is at least an extra mystic armor).

You should also consider how many daily recovery tests you'll have. That is a major issue when attempting to heal.

[ehren]

Jul 17, 2013 19:32:00 GMT -5 Sveja said:

Thanks

I had my stat array figured out, but now I shall refigure!

I am planning to focus on the mental stats with moderate strength (to use a pole arm) I do not plan to have much of a dex or toughness.

Tom, you were worried about us all having identical attributes.

[ehren]

The other thing is that most attacks will be against your physical defense, while comparatively few harmful ones target social defense.

dex also decides:
Initiative
Physical offense
Physical defense
Protection against traps

[ehren]

Ie there is a reason that the fighters in the group have 19s. And with 8/6 durability, you will be a fighter.

[Sveja]

Not really intending to be much of a fighter, durability or not.

[GM / Malinous]

Ah, so I didn't actually specify rules for more than 3 I see ;-).

[Mawaris]

Jul 17, 2013 19:59:40 GMT -5 ehren said:

Jul 17, 2013 19:55:04 GMT -5 Mawaris said:

I suggest your "not much dex" be at least 14, so you have step 6 base and 8 physical defense. This isn't particularly hard for an elf (Mes and Maw both have 19 Dex)

Also, you should consider where your stats will be when increased by 3, which is the maximum you can increase them by with LP during the campaign. For example, I recall I went with a 14 in Willpower instead of 15 because an 18 has absolutely no benefit for Willpower over a 17 (but 17 is worthwhile because that is at least an extra mystic armor).

You should also consider how many daily recovery tests you'll have. That is a major issue when attempting to heal.

Just need an 8 for 2 recovery tests, which is the elf base. But I would strongly discourage going any lower than that.

[ehren]

Jul 17, 2013 20:36:38 GMT -5 Sveja said:

Not really intending to be much of a fighter, durability or not.

Nobody is interested in fighting, its just something that must be done ;D

[GM / Malinous]

You have 50% more durability than me and effectively 4 steps higher on your melee weapons, minimum, 3 steps higher if you have an 11 dex. So . . . there's no way to make yourself less of a fighter than me!

[Sveja]

Brux is naturally a rather gentle soul. He enjoys creation and art, and would have been a natural fit for the life of a song smith had it not been for the inescapable presence of horrors in his life. Since his childhood he has been haunted by horrors: stalking his dreams, pulling at his weaknesses, and instilling a sense of near-paranoia that has at times threatened to tear apart his somewhat delicate mental state.

"Its only natural of course", they say, sharing whispers in the quiet corridors. "You know what happened to his mother don't you?" they say, nodding in silent agreement sharing the sad knowledge as if forbidden to be spoke aloud.

Only devotion to craft, and to the Passion Mynbruje has provided stability to his otherwise rocky psyche. He has channeled his paranoia and fear into an obsession for the truth and a constant vigilance against the influence of Horros. The disciplines of the Nethermancer and the Horror Stalker are the paths by which he walks the way of Truth. His weapon has become knowledge, and a clarity of perception that wash away the obfuscation the Horrors seek to impose upon Name Givers.

He was a natural fit for the Blood Guard, and dove into his duty with an uncommon zeal. The status and respect brought by their red uniform meant less to him than feeling like he was finally doing something to resist and fight back against the enemy that he sees in every shadow. But how long could a man so devoted to the unvarnished Truth, and unconcerned with matters of rank and respect, last in the Blood Guard?


Quick Physical Characteristics: Tall, lanky. A well maintained look of dishevelment. Constant stubble, bed hair, and a pair of tired looking eyes. There is always something about those eyes - just a little unsettling as if they are looking upon a different world. Some would swear that they change colors, the whites fading into an unpleasant purple, the iris darkening to a deep black, but after a quick double take they have returned to their usual appearance.

His eyes bear tattoos to resemble the symbol of Mynbruje. His body bears numerous artistic and colorful tattoos that he has added over the years, none visible in normal clothing.

[ehren]

Sounds awesome.

---

He is certainly going to have a different style (combat and social) than the rest of us.

[Sveja]

Rough Draft of Levelled Up Version:

Disciplines: Nethermancer 3, Horror Stalker 3, Songsmith 2

Dex: 14 (6)
Str: 14 (6)
Tou: 12 (5)
Per: 16 (7)
Wil: 17 (7)
Cha: 16 (7)

Physical Defense: 8
Spell Defense: 10
Social Defense: 10
Mystic Armor: 3

Death Rating: 74
Uncon. Rating: 54
Wound Threshold: 9
Recovery Tests: 2

Talents
Karma Ritual: 3
Nethermancy: 4
Durability (8/6): 5

Astral Sight: 3
Read/Write Magic: 3
Spell Casting: 4
Frighten: 3
Spirit Talk: 1
Spell Matrix: 3
Spell Matrix: 2
Spell Matrix: 1
Spell Matrix: 1


Call of Harrow: 3
Melee Weapons: 4
Steel Thought: 4
Abate Curse: 3
Bear Mark: 1
Silent Walk: 2
Parry: 3
Tracking: 1

Emotion Song: 2
Speak Language: 2 (Human, Open)
First Impression: 2
Performance: 2
Etiquette: 2
Read/Write Language: 2 (Dwarven, Elven)

Familiar Blood Share: 1
Familiar Thought Link: 1
Familiar Animal Possession: 1

Skills
Poetry: 3
Craft (Jewelry): 2
Runecarving: 2
Songwriting: 2
Entertainer (Singing): 2

Knowledge (Horror Lore): 2
Knowledge (Elf Lore): 2

Language: 2 (Dwarven, Elven)
Animal Bond: 1
Bribery: 2
Climbing: 1
Fast Hand: 2
Forgery: 2
Lock Picking: 2
Lip Reading: 1
Research: 2
Rhetoric: 1
Search: 2
Streetwise: 2
Swimming: 1
Trap Initiative: 1

Spells
Astral Spear
Spirit Dart
Spirit Grip
Command Nightflyer
Undead Struggle
Experience Death

Bone Circle
Ethereal Darkness
Gadfly
Shield Miss
Repel Animal

Dark Messenger
Death's Head
Dispel Nethermancy Magic
Fog of Gear
Pain
Spirit Double
Summon Bone Ghost


Starting Info:
Dex: 14
Str: 13
Tou: 11
Per: 16
Wil: 16
Cha: 16

Talents:
Astral Sight: 1
Read/Write Magic: 2
Spell Casting: 2
Spell Matrix: 2
Nethermancy: 2
Spell Matrix: 1
Call of Harrow: 1
Melee Weapons: 2
Steel Thought: 2
Silent Walk: 1

Spells:
Astral Spear
Spirit Dart
Spirit Grip
Bone Circle
Ethereal Darkness

[GM / Malinous]

Some more background on Daiche that has probably not been established yet.
(1) Elf: There are basically three elven power poles right now: Councilor Madeara (our father, guess who we're loyal to?); Vandis (the Elder) Verdant who we keep calling councilor Verdant but He's Actually Not and That is Why he Hates Us So Much. We always forget is first name though. He runs the Blood Guard is his big claim to power. There's also a growing power base around Mi"kael, an ambitious young Nethermancer student of Vladimir's. Odds are just about any elf in the Kaer is at somewhat related to one of the three families, although it may not be a strong or close connection.

(2) Recently the blood guard have started leaning more towards secret police, and less towards monster hunters. This is due in part to of course growing evidence of growing horror influence inside the Kaer. It's starting to kind of leak like a sieve. But anyone in the blood guard or watching from without can't help but notice those on Verdant's political bad side seem to get a lot closer scrutiny . . . so anyone in the lower ranks who is actually only interested in killing horrors might start to get a little disillusioned when more manpower is spent investigating a mere rumor that someone Verdant doesn't like might be acting a little suspicious than on what seem like they might be more genuine concerns on the fringes of the Kaer.

/random

[Sveja]

That makes for a good hook - Brux is rapidly becoming a disillusioned Blood Guardsman. Any interesting on going story arcs that he might be interested in investigating?

[ehren]

Those are a lot of skills. Any particular reason you got melee weapons as a skill?

[Sveja]

Jul 29, 2013 6:23:14 GMT -5 ehren said:

Those are a lot of skills. Any particular reason you got melee weapons as a skill?

To not be entirely useless if we don't have access to magic.

I'll be paring down the skills somewhat when I review them again, I think.

[ehren]

yeah, a lot of skills you can default to. So, that helps.

I don't know what Tom has planned for eliminating our access to magic, but we're pretty well screwed if that happens anyway. (I loose the ability to read for instance).

[Mawaris]

Yeah, even though Tom talks about it a lot, I wouldn't be too paranoid about it. Certainly not to the point of duplicating an ability. If you're really that worried about it, get a skill that isn't duplicating a talent (like throwing weapons or missile weapons or unarmed combat), so it at least has SOME use (even if you never actually use it).

[Mawaris]

Jul 27, 2013 14:38:44 GMT -5 Sveja said:

Skills
Poetry: 2
Acting: 1
Singing: 1
Songwriting: 1

Knowledge (Horror Lore): 1
Knowledge (Elf Lore): 1

Language: 2 (Dwarven, Elven)
Animal Bond: 1
Bribery: 2
Climbing: 1
Conceal Object: 2
Conversation: 2
Downstrike: 1
Fast Hand: 2
Forgery: 2
Lock Picking: 2
Impress: 1
Lip Reading: 1
Melee Weapons: 2
Pick Pockets: 1
Research: 2
Rhetoric: 1
Search: 2
Seduction: 1
Slough Blame: 1
Streetwise: 1
Swimming: 1

A few notes on the skills here in particular...

Just in general, you're putting a lot into skills, and you're already spread really thin for legend points with three disciplines, so although you can do a lot of stuff you're going to be bad at a lot of it. All these skills are practically like adding a fourth discipline. Make sure it's worth it in all cases. You could drop a few of these and easily be a 4th circle Nethermancer or Horror Stalker.

Also, make sure things are going to be useful with a low number of ranks, or make sure you're actually committed to raising that skill frequently. Anything that is rolling against a defense in particular is going to get harder and harder. Slough Blame in particular stands out here; it rolls against social defense, so it often isn't going to be very easy with just 2d6, and there are potentially bad consequences for failure. (Just for examples, to use it against Mawaris requires an 11; to use it against the whole party would require a 14. Yay, it's hard to Slough Blame on us! But only takes a 7 against just Mes or Mal, I guess.).

Language is actually two separate skills, Speak and Read/Write. You don't learn Read/Write for Elven automatically so you'll have to pay for that. BUT, you also have both of these as talents, and so these skills merge with the talents.

I would drop Downstrike. It's very situational, and you don't have any of the talents or spells that make it more frequently useful. And with just one rank it isn't worth trying to plan around, just for one extra step of damage.

Pick Pockets is another really risky one to ever use with just 1 rank, especially with only step 6 Dex. A d12 opposed by your target's perception? Against many targets, you stand an even or higher chance of getting caught.

Melee Weapons has been discussed. But also consider that the 500 LP you're dumping into that could instead raise your Melee Weapons Talent (or any number of other talents) to rank 4.

All this said... there are a few other skills that are often worth having, no matter how many ranks you have in them. Trap Initiative and Sprint come to mind here. There may be others.

[Sveja]

Thanks! Definitely some useful advice, I do intend to pare back the skills next chance I get to go over things, and of course dropping evaluation for, well, for probably nothing.