ArcanaGuy
2012-10-19, 10:09 AM
So, I'm running a searfaring D&D game based mostly on D&D 3.0, but with the Pathfinder rules for skills. My players are having fun - a 'good' pirate gang who wants to sail the seas sinking orcish warships and goblin catamarans, stealing the loot and returning to port to wench and drink. They're also all cursed with a different random curse. They're a scruffy, haphazard lot and they like it that way.
My goal is twofold:
First, make a series of 'rival' heroes, the upstanding, noble, epic variety - not that this precludes them being thieves or whatnot, but the sort you might find in a David Eddings book. And like a David Eddings book, these rival heroes, every time they need to take a ship to another island, always find that the *same ship* just happens to be in port - the ship owned by our piratey heroes. I want the group to look at these heroes as "Oh, geeze, what is it with these guys?" and perhaps a little annoyance whenever the rival heroes end up outdoing their own escapades - but with an eye towards having to save their posteriors someday down the line, showing who the real badasses are. What I *don't* want to do is have them feel the DM is overshadowing them with these NPCs.
But I definitely want to have 'comparisons' able to be drawn between these two groups. The barbarian and the barbarian. The holy warrior and the holy warrior.
Second, I want a series of enemies. Persistant villains that keep coming back time and time again ... and keep escaping just before they die. A Linear Guild, if you will, either of 'dark reflections' as in the OotS ... or of direct opposites - the fighter with a magic-repelling sword versus the ship's mage, or some such.
I'd love some input or ideas, using mostly basic classes, as to ideas for these characters.
Home Team:
Captain - fighter/rogue
The captain is a pirate at heart. She's also the dragonblooded princess of a lost kingdom, seeking revenge on the black kobolds - and, eventually, the black dragon - who killed the her gold dragon ancestor and brought her kingdom to ruins. She has high dex, weapon finesse, and owns the ship they sail on. She also has been making money hand over fist with some clever merchanting - which has a higher profit rating when you get to steal half your cargo. She is a *classic* pirate, complete with cutlass and dirk, a poet's shirt, and the ability to swing across on a rope to the enemy ship, land on the sail, stick her knife in, and cut a huge gash as she rides the sail down to the deck. To her great and mighty annoyance, her curse causes her to be terribly *clumsy*, all the time. (she has to make a skill check or saving throw for mundane actions that would normally succeed automatically.)
Second Captain - wizard/rogue
DO NOT call him First Mate. This ship doesn't HAVE a First Mate! He's the Second Captain! An elf of his upstanding and noble heritage deserves to be captain. He seeks magical power, recognition, and all the finer things in life. And to be Captain of a ship.
Ratling - barbarian/rogue
The sea is awash with rat-people, they're everywhere. This is one of them. He's a survivalist, an outsider, and absolutely vicious against his enemies. Most of the time he's pretty calm, actually ... despite the fact that he has a different curse every day. He wants to be the ship's cook ... but no one else wants that. Not cause he's a rat - but because he has this disturbing habit of calling everyone he meets "Not Meat," with the implication that once they die, they become "Meat." (as long as it's not a Ratling, cause that'd be cannibalism.) And he keeps wanting to cook up *every single thing* they fight. Including giant centipedes or water-spiders.
Dwarven Cleric - cleric/rogue
This bald and shaven dwarf was cast out by his clan and his temple for being just a little bit *too* harsh. When he was put to work administering alms and soothing the ills of the poor ... he refused to heal anyone he felt was rude, unlikable, or just plain didn't deserve it. They sent him out into the world to learn humility ... but it really didn't take. He'll heal the party when they absolutely need it ... but really prefers to leave a few unhealed hit points so they'll learn to be more careful next time. HATES WIZARDS.
---- ---- ----
Rival Heroes (my intial ideas. New ideas welcome)
---- ---- ----
vs Captain: I accidentally made this one when they needed their ship fixed. A sorcerer shipbuilder who used magic to simply jump to the top of the mast, examine the ship from above, then slid down the sail by magically adhering his palm to the canvas with a custom spell varient on Featherfall. To which the Captain stared in jealous awe and whispered, "What are you?" "A shipbuilder!" "Riiiiiight, of course."
vs Second Captain: An elven wizard / artificer type who has allllll the toys.
Mary Fields vs Ratling: http://www.badassoftheweek.com/fields.html - a felan gourmet, barbarian rogue like he is.
Holy Avenger vs Dwarven Cleric: A half-elf paladin/rogue based off of Zorro: (dramatic music) "The Holy Avenger!" (/dramatic music)
---- ---- ----
Dark Enemies (I have much less of an idea here)
---- ---- ----
Dark General vs Captain: Half-dragon black kobold, son of the dragon who killed her own ancestral ruler. Fighter/sorcerer, dedicated to the betterment of his race.
Nullblade vs Second Captain: I'm thinking a fighter who has an anti-magic sword of some sort. Maybe can 'parry' spells to counter them, charging up the sword to do extra damage.
Psion vs Ratling: mental versus physical
Cultist vs Dwarven Cleric: I'm not sure yet, but I think 'foul and mutated worshipper of ancient powers' is pretty good.
My goal is twofold:
First, make a series of 'rival' heroes, the upstanding, noble, epic variety - not that this precludes them being thieves or whatnot, but the sort you might find in a David Eddings book. And like a David Eddings book, these rival heroes, every time they need to take a ship to another island, always find that the *same ship* just happens to be in port - the ship owned by our piratey heroes. I want the group to look at these heroes as "Oh, geeze, what is it with these guys?" and perhaps a little annoyance whenever the rival heroes end up outdoing their own escapades - but with an eye towards having to save their posteriors someday down the line, showing who the real badasses are. What I *don't* want to do is have them feel the DM is overshadowing them with these NPCs.
But I definitely want to have 'comparisons' able to be drawn between these two groups. The barbarian and the barbarian. The holy warrior and the holy warrior.
Second, I want a series of enemies. Persistant villains that keep coming back time and time again ... and keep escaping just before they die. A Linear Guild, if you will, either of 'dark reflections' as in the OotS ... or of direct opposites - the fighter with a magic-repelling sword versus the ship's mage, or some such.
I'd love some input or ideas, using mostly basic classes, as to ideas for these characters.
Home Team:
Captain - fighter/rogue
The captain is a pirate at heart. She's also the dragonblooded princess of a lost kingdom, seeking revenge on the black kobolds - and, eventually, the black dragon - who killed the her gold dragon ancestor and brought her kingdom to ruins. She has high dex, weapon finesse, and owns the ship they sail on. She also has been making money hand over fist with some clever merchanting - which has a higher profit rating when you get to steal half your cargo. She is a *classic* pirate, complete with cutlass and dirk, a poet's shirt, and the ability to swing across on a rope to the enemy ship, land on the sail, stick her knife in, and cut a huge gash as she rides the sail down to the deck. To her great and mighty annoyance, her curse causes her to be terribly *clumsy*, all the time. (she has to make a skill check or saving throw for mundane actions that would normally succeed automatically.)
Second Captain - wizard/rogue
DO NOT call him First Mate. This ship doesn't HAVE a First Mate! He's the Second Captain! An elf of his upstanding and noble heritage deserves to be captain. He seeks magical power, recognition, and all the finer things in life. And to be Captain of a ship.
Ratling - barbarian/rogue
The sea is awash with rat-people, they're everywhere. This is one of them. He's a survivalist, an outsider, and absolutely vicious against his enemies. Most of the time he's pretty calm, actually ... despite the fact that he has a different curse every day. He wants to be the ship's cook ... but no one else wants that. Not cause he's a rat - but because he has this disturbing habit of calling everyone he meets "Not Meat," with the implication that once they die, they become "Meat." (as long as it's not a Ratling, cause that'd be cannibalism.) And he keeps wanting to cook up *every single thing* they fight. Including giant centipedes or water-spiders.
Dwarven Cleric - cleric/rogue
This bald and shaven dwarf was cast out by his clan and his temple for being just a little bit *too* harsh. When he was put to work administering alms and soothing the ills of the poor ... he refused to heal anyone he felt was rude, unlikable, or just plain didn't deserve it. They sent him out into the world to learn humility ... but it really didn't take. He'll heal the party when they absolutely need it ... but really prefers to leave a few unhealed hit points so they'll learn to be more careful next time. HATES WIZARDS.
---- ---- ----
Rival Heroes (my intial ideas. New ideas welcome)
---- ---- ----
vs Captain: I accidentally made this one when they needed their ship fixed. A sorcerer shipbuilder who used magic to simply jump to the top of the mast, examine the ship from above, then slid down the sail by magically adhering his palm to the canvas with a custom spell varient on Featherfall. To which the Captain stared in jealous awe and whispered, "What are you?" "A shipbuilder!" "Riiiiiight, of course."
vs Second Captain: An elven wizard / artificer type who has allllll the toys.
Mary Fields vs Ratling: http://www.badassoftheweek.com/fields.html - a felan gourmet, barbarian rogue like he is.
Holy Avenger vs Dwarven Cleric: A half-elf paladin/rogue based off of Zorro: (dramatic music) "The Holy Avenger!" (/dramatic music)
---- ---- ----
Dark Enemies (I have much less of an idea here)
---- ---- ----
Dark General vs Captain: Half-dragon black kobold, son of the dragon who killed her own ancestral ruler. Fighter/sorcerer, dedicated to the betterment of his race.
Nullblade vs Second Captain: I'm thinking a fighter who has an anti-magic sword of some sort. Maybe can 'parry' spells to counter them, charging up the sword to do extra damage.
Psion vs Ratling: mental versus physical
Cultist vs Dwarven Cleric: I'm not sure yet, but I think 'foul and mutated worshipper of ancient powers' is pretty good.