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View Full Version : Roleplaying So, I have an Unlimited Wish...



Mongobear
2016-10-31, 02:16 AM
System: AD&D 1st Edition
Character: Human Paladin 14th Level
Diety: Thor (Norse Pantheon)

((Note: There are very many house-rules and DM quirks, innumerable to list fully, taking place throughout this entire game. The DM has been running a persistent world for 35 years never starting over, or denying a player who takes agency with striking out on their own and finding new regions on the world to make their own.))


Had a huge session over the weekend celebrating Halloween with a special event adventure. Through the course of successfully finishing the DMs challenges, I proved myself worthy to Odin and Thor, and was granted the use of Mjolnir for the final fight against the BBEG. Who was basically the living embodiment of the Negative Energy Plane. During the fight, almost all of the other party members and the DMPC were brought to low and/or critical levels, some were on the brink of death, with single digit HP while the BBEG was very obviously almost untouched, and absorbing our life essence to fuel him further, and create minions out of those of us who fell to his powers.

Being the most well of PC left standing, I ask for a DM meeting, where we walked out of the room and discussed what I wanted to do. To put it shortly, I began by attempting to call out for Divine Intervention, as per the DMG rules for it, succeeded, I rolled in-front of him and got a 99 on the d100. For a single combat round, I was granted to full powers of Thor, functionally using his (buffed up because house rules) stat block. Previously in the world several years ago, my character witnessed Thor level a volcano larger than Mt Everest by charging Mjolnir with his deific power, and throwing it into the crater, fusing the tectonic plates or whatever below permanently, and incidentally wiping out almost everything within a 20 mile radius. I tell the DM, I would like to do that same action, charging all of my granted power, all of Thor's Lightning Bolt Dice (as per 1e Deities and Demigods, but better because gods are much stronger in this world) and throw Mjolnir with all of my might, all of my faith in Thor, and very well, all of the hopes of the mortal world behind it at the BBEG.

Before he makes a decision, he has an In Character discussion with me via telepathy with the DMPC, who asks me what I am doing, sensing the amazing surge of power flowing around through and out of me. I tell him not to worry, get the rest of the party to safety, because the immediate area is about to go away. He protests, but I firmly tell him there is no other option at this point, we are almost all dead and the BBEG is going to wear us all down eventually.

He asks me to roll a d% to see how much power I am able to channel into the hammer, I get an 88 which is the percentage of the Lightning Dice I am able to call upon, iirc the buffed Thor has 250 d6 worth of Lightning he can throw, so I get somewhere near 185d6, plus the Deific bonuses to damage and everything on top of Mjolnir's stats. He has me make an attack roll, and a Nat 20, which causes him to utter "Oh my god..." and slowly walk out of the room and back to the rest of the group.

Catching up in time to the rest of the battle, the DM explains what we discussed, and lets the group know that as they about to succumb to their wounds or the overwhelming negative power from the BBEG, the DMPC casts a spell, teleporting them all back to the city we initially met up in, before setting off to stop this thing, a few hundred miles away. They look around, confused, not knowing why they retreated, then they realize that the Paladin (me) isnt with them. They begin asking worried questions, to which the DMPC merely shakes his head, and tells them "it was his idea to leave, he sacrificed himself so that we all could live."

Back to the battle, sensing that all of his "food" disappeared except for my Paladin, the BBEG looks at me and wonders why I stayed behind, he begins mocking me as I just stand there, when I simply stare back at him, transform into Thor for a breif moment, and make a massive two-handed wind-up throw with Mjolnir, fully charges with a massive burst of lightning. The BBEG doesnt know what he is seeing, and cannot react in time to defend against it, catching the Hammer and all of the surging lightning squarely in the chest, obliterating his physical form, causing a massive explosion almost on par with an A-Bomb, and ripping the land all around us apart for MILES. The rest of the party, several hundred miles away at this point, actually feel the earth tremble under their feet, hear dishes and glass shatter from the tremors, and then the bright flash of light on the horizon in the direction we set out earlier in the weekend.

I return to my mortal form as soon as the explosion happens, and am sent hurtling away through the rubble and cacophany of lightning, fully expecting to die in th blast, but I have accepted my fate, knowing it was worth it. But, as I am about to be torn apart by the force of the blast and crushed by the rubble swirling around me, a dozen Valyries appear around me, shielding me with their bodies, absorbing most of it themselves, only causing my Paladin to fall unconcious and suffer minor injuries.

As I lay unconcious for several days, I am met in a strange dream-state by a being who appears as a human female, clad in the purest white silk gown, platinum blond hair, and pale milky white skin. The room we are in is the brightest light I have ever seen, almost blinding if not for the being standing before me shielding the light from my face. The woman tells me that what I have done was a feat she thought impossible. The BBEG I slew with my faith in the gods and belief in myself was her "husband" although, tainted and twisted from his original form. The two of them gave birth to this world millenia ago, before he discovered some ancient elder being who corrupted him and gave rise to evil. She could not stand before him in his twisted state, for he was her exact opposite, and he would have corrupted her own power eventually, which is why she planted the seeds to bring together my group to see if the mortal children she cared for could stop him.

As a reward for my actions, she is bestowing upon me a single Unlimited Wish as in "rule-breakingly powerful can do literally anything I write down on the piece of paper and hand to the DM" kind of Wish. There is also a HUGE pile of treasure that we had found while searching for the BBEG which we would all split amongst ourselves (I later decline my entire split, telling the group I had my reward, in knowing that the creature was defeated.)



Here is where I am having trouble with thinking of something appropriately in-character. I do not know what to Wish for. My character is not greedy nor does he possess any other vice outside of favoring the Mead hall and feasting like a proper man of the Norse faith. I am the 2nd in command under the High-King of my country, swearing a Blood Oath to follow his word so long as he remains honorable and possesses the Wisdom and Strength of Odin. I am devout in my faith to Thor, willing to follow his word above all else, even my King's if truly told to do so.

I have no family or children of my own, although, I have spent any personal wealth gained in rebuilding several orphanges, shelters, and militairy academy type places across my country, giving homeless children and the poor somewhere to go when they have lost everything. I have even funded large religious temples to the entire Norse Pantheon(that would actually be worshipped by mortal men and women).

Do any of you have a suggestion on what would be "in-character" enough for this Paladin to make such a powerful Wish for? I am at a loss, and dont want to throw it away on "I want to gain a level, and have a really awesome sword" type Wishes.

Knitifine
2016-10-31, 02:24 AM
Perhaps wishing for sacred place dedicated to your deity, for all followers to gather and share drinks and stories.

Kane0
2016-10-31, 02:37 AM
Why not a family and happy retirement? Another worthy to take your place?

BarbieTheRPG
2016-10-31, 06:25 AM
Wish evil out of existence?

Socratov
2016-10-31, 07:02 AM
well, considering you are very much a true believer of Thor, why not wish for the opportunity to personally assist/fight alongside Thor during Ragnarok?

Don't get me wrong, there are many options. However, ironically your character has nothing to wish for: he would love to live long, but not die peacefully (prefering to die in battle). However, that is a long way off (and quite morbid). He has nothing else to really want: he has a nice position of honour, nice family, a nice meadhall. The only thing he could want is to assist his deity in Ragnarok.

Plus this opens up a new plothook for the DM without going all monkeypaw on you.

Frozen_Feet
2016-10-31, 08:26 AM
Wish for all the wishes to go to those who actually need them.

Incorrect
2016-10-31, 08:37 AM
well, considering you are very much a true believer of Thor, why not wish for the opportunity to personally assist/fight alongside Thor during Ragnarok?

Perhaps wish for the death of the great worm Jörmungandr, so Thor will not die during Ragnarok.

Or wish for a duel with Thor himself. Which you will, of cause, loose. But you will die honorably in battle against the most worthy foe.
If no mortal can grant you death in combat, then Thor will.

PrismCat21
2016-10-31, 09:25 AM
I have to second "The opportunity to fight with Thor during Ragnarok".
He's devoted himself, body and soul, to Thor and the pantheon. I can think of nothing else that the character would want more than to serve and fight during their darkest, and most desperate hour.

Now, that being said :) , I would imagine it wouldn't be too far of a stretch for the White Lady and the Gods to make him at least a demi-god. He'd be retired as a character presumably, still be there to fight the good fight, and have the chance to fight alongside Thor when it's needed. - This could easily be how the wish is granted, without your character specifically asking for it :D

Also... HOLY CRAP!! That was a fantastic ending :smallcool: Congrats on your rolls and the other players that survived.

Segev
2016-10-31, 10:35 AM
Why not go Abrahamic with the wish?

Wish for a worthy wife to love and cherish and a line of progeny blessed to uphold your ideals, that you and your posterity may stand together as Einherjar to fight in Ragnarok, side by side.

edit: Heck, it might be a good story if the wish seems to fizzle, only for him to meet and woo a Valkyrie, living an unusually extended life of health and *ahem* vigor to be able to raise 2-3 generations of said progeny.

Mongobear
2016-10-31, 02:43 PM
Hmm, all pretty good ideas, especially the Wish tailored around the legend of Ragnarok and Thor fighting/dying against Jormungandr. The issue, is that the in-world version of the Norse-faith doesnt know ahead of time that those series of events are set to happen. The will happen eventually, but nobody outside of the Gods themselves knows about it. I had thought about making a Wish to serve alongside Thor for all eternity, basically transforming me into a Demigod and removing him from a playable state. However, this sort of has a negative to it, because he would abandon his Oath to his King and all of the people who rely on him in his home country.

As for wishing for a wife of similar worthiness to his own devotion (ideally who is a follower of Sif), I am actualy by now of quite old age for the region I am from. When I first started playing this character ~10 years ago, he was 20 years old and full of life and energy. As of this event, there has been a few timeline jumps between the different campaigns he has ran in the years since, and he is now 46 years old, which for a viking culture is quite old. RL vikings had an average life expectancy of 40-45 years if I remember correctly, and I have not lived an easy life whatsoever. The numerous injuries are catching up with me, and the DM has mentioned that I am beginning to show signs of my age, greying hair, arthritis, and general weakness when not in my battle regalia (because stat boosting equipment and stuff).

I had planned for the final attack to be the last valiant act in a life full of service to Thor, being what guarenteed my passage to Valhalla, but apparently the dice rolls I made spoke more towards there being one more battle I need to fight before joining my ancestors.

I do not play this paladin that often, usually reserving it just for the yearly halloween events since they tend to be massive and epic in scope, not something you would want to bring a low-level to, although it is an easy way to boost a character if you survive. So, I may just sit on the Wish for awhile until something truly cataclysmic happens, then I have a trump card against it, but that seems a bit gamey when, imo, the purpose of the Unlimited Wish was to actually reward the character with something of meaning, and not give me a "Get Out of Jail Free" card for a later adventure.

EDIT: Oh, also I did gain one other reward from the final treasure hoard. Each party member received a Magic Jar filled to the brim with the purest of positive energy. The DMPC wrote us an IC letter explaining what it does, and the short of it is that the energy within can be used to 1) create a super powerful Magic Item (unsure if this means really damn strong, like +5 Sword or even better like Artifact level), 2) Consumed like a potion and be used as a catalyst to become a demigod, 3) Other uses, which would require research to find out.

I initially thought of using the Jar to become a Demigod, and assuming it makes me immortal, being able to serve Thor eternally. But, that doesnt solve the issue of not having anything to Wish for.

Segev
2016-10-31, 02:53 PM
45-year-olds are still quite capable of fathering children. And if the wish came with some added life and energy to enable him to live up to its clauses about raising his progeny...

Mongobear
2016-10-31, 02:55 PM
45-year-olds are still quite capable of fathering children. And if the wish came with some added life and energy to enable him to live up to its clauses about raising his progeny...

You're not wrong, but I was more getting at the point that my character may only be 46 years old, but he looks like a 65 year old. Not exactly in the prime of his life anymore.

Segev
2016-10-31, 02:57 PM
You're not wrong, but I was more getting at the point that my character may only be 46 years old, but he looks like a 65 year old. Not exactly in the prime of his life anymore.

Godlings, a wish for the vigor of his youth (or that includes such a thing) sounds right up a Viking who's feeling aged past his prime's alley. I mean, what could be worse than getting old to the point that you risk dying in a feeble, non-battle-worthy body?

RazorChain
2016-10-31, 10:04 PM
Wish for a valiant death with your weapon in hand so that you may feast in Valhöll until Ragnarök and fight along the Æsir as Einherji.

Stealth Marmot
2016-11-01, 12:03 PM
"I wish you would not grant this wish."

Mongobear
2016-11-01, 01:15 PM
"I wish you would not grant this wish."

Someone made a Wish like this some years ago, it basically created a Paradox which in turn cause the Goddess of Time to rewrite history nullifying that characters entire existence in order to prevent the Planet from being stuck in an inter-dimensional Groundhog's Day movie scenario.

The DM is VERY particular about Unlimited Wishes, trying to take the Wish as literal as possible, or searching for any loophole he can exploit to twist the intent. If you don't word it specific enough to nullify major loopholes or shortcuts, you wont get what you wanted in the way you wanted it.

Example: If you wish for a +5 Vorpal Two-Handed Sword to appear in front of you. It might appear, along with a Frost Giant who has claimed it as his own and you have to fight him in order to claim it as yours.

This creates an issue, because when we make a Wish like this, he wants us to write our request down in a note, but word it in-character. My character is relatively Wise and Charismatic, but he has an 8 Intelligence, so I honestly wouldnt know how to be as specific as possible although I know it needs to be done. So, chances are my Wish may end up a little twisted compared to how it was meant to be.

GrayDeath
2016-11-01, 01:20 PM
"I wish I knew what to best wish for and wish it". :smalltongue:

TeChameleon
2016-11-04, 04:19 PM
It strikes me that there's one obvious use of the Wish that seems to have been overlooked.

"I wish that I knew the uses of this Magic Jar."

Or, if your character is aware of the perils of Wishing, maybe with a little help from one of the more legalese-savvy party members, "I wish that I knew and understood the beneficial uses of this Magic Jar and its contents."

Hmm. And demigodhood is no guarantee of immortality- the gods themselves aren't actually immortal in Norse myth, they need Idunna's Golden Apples to maintain their youth. Might be worth a religion check or two from your character before going that route, just to make sure you don't inadvertently go the Tithonus route. Unless you want your character to end up as a cricket, of course :smalltongue:

Mongobear
2016-11-04, 06:25 PM
It strikes me that there's one obvious use of the Wish that seems to have been overlooked.

"I wish that I knew the uses of this Magic Jar."

Or, if your character is aware of the perils of Wishing, maybe with a little help from one of the more legalese-savvy party members, "I wish that I knew and understood the beneficial uses of this Magic Jar and its contents."


Well, I already know most of the uses for the Magic Jar, I only listed the important (most powerful in-game effect) ones for the purposes of this topic. The rest are actually sort of weird/useless depending on your character class, so I didnt bother listing them.



Hmm. And demigodhood is no guarantee of immortality- the gods themselves aren't actually immortal in Norse myth, they need Idunna's Golden Apples to maintain their youth. Might be worth a religion check or two from your character before going that route, just to make sure you don't inadvertently go the Tithonus route. Unless you want your character to end up as a cricket, of course :smalltongue:


Honestly, Wishing for something like a bushel of those apples sounds a lot more in-character than just Wishing to be straight up immortal. After last session and feeling the effects of his Age when he wasnt in his battle gear, I am starting to think with a mind-set of "I need to find a battle worthy to die in, or find a way to restore my youth." And those would work for that purpose perfectly.

I need to figure out whether the DM has ALL of the relevant Norse mythology legends and stuff present, otherwise I might be forced to aim for generic Immortality anyways.

Quertus
2016-11-04, 06:53 PM
Well, first of, there are other good ends beyond Valhalla. But, if that's what you really want, a wish to that end couldn't possibly end badly.

Personally, in similar vein to rising to ascend, you might wish that, upon your death, your soul be forged into a sentient weapon capable of granting the wielder the full extent of the powers/prowess you possessed while alive.

Heck, if your having that much trouble making a wish, why not wish for wisdom / knowledge / whatever, and drink the portion? Get all the power, and the wisdom to use it?

... Or start sipping the portion now...

Mongobear
2016-11-04, 08:07 PM
My issue with just flat out consuming to contents of the Jar, or making a snap judgement Wish for immortality is that it is out of character for me. Through-out his career, he has always showed restraint/caution when faced with a major dilemma, he never rushed face first into a problem to try and brute force his way through it.

He doesnt lack in Wisdom to know he needs to be cautious with these things, but he is rather "dumb" so he might not be able to think up complex loopholes or strategies that make it easier on him to benefit from these items.

Getting turned into a sentient weapon is something I throw into "I wasnt clear enough with my Wish" as more of a punishment if I am too vague or not specific enough.

GrayDeath
2016-11-05, 11:17 AM
"I wish I knew what to best wish for and wish it". :smalltongue:

In Character: mostlky.
useful: yes, very.
Hence worth repeating.

Traab
2016-11-05, 11:34 AM
How about a 2 part wish? "I wish to eternally regain my youth and vigor and that I be allowed to open a portal to and from valhalla at will until i die in battle or choose to remain." This way you get the best of both worlds. You can remain a young and strong paladin in service to thor, fight as many battles as you want for as long as you want, and see the eventual reward you have more than earned. Because lets face it, even if you DONT die in battle, you earned your spot in the halls of valhalla.

This has the advantage of letting you continue to play this paladin so long as you wish, it opens up new potential story lines from fighting threats in the realm of asgard with your friends and fellows, to maybe even one day getting to take part in ragnarock, which would make for an excellent epic campaign imo.

Reboot
2016-11-05, 02:20 PM
Or simply "I wish for the youth, health and strength to serve as Thor's worthy paladin forever, or until it be Thor's wish that I die in battle"?

Gollumstripes
2016-11-05, 11:32 PM
Oh, I know I know. Wished you replace Thor and get his vast riches

TeChameleon
2016-11-06, 01:35 AM
Honestly, Wishing for something like a bushel of those apples sounds a lot more in-character than just Wishing to be straight up immortal. After last session and feeling the effects of his Age when he wasnt in his battle gear, I am starting to think with a mind-set of "I need to find a battle worthy to die in, or find a way to restore my youth." And those would work for that purpose perfectly.

I need to figure out whether the DM has ALL of the relevant Norse mythology legends and stuff present, otherwise I might be forced to aim for generic Immortality anyways.

Huh. The 'battle worthy to die in' comment reminded me of a couple of old issues of The Mighty Thor (during the inimitable Walt Simonson's run, naturally :smallamused:)- a quick Googling found a review of the first issue of that mini-storyline here (http://takethehelm.blogspot.ca/2010/08/thors-day-6-mighty-thor-342.html). Long story short, the last of a tribe of isolated, old-school vikings was trying to avoid the Straw Death, so he called upon Thor and then laid an ambush in a threatening disguise, hoping to be killed in glorious battle with Thor, since, as he put it (roughly)- 'what opponent is more worthy'?

It was a fantastic story, but there weren't exactly a whole lot of duds in Walt Simonson's run on the book :smallbiggrin: