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McClintock
2008-02-27, 04:12 PM
Background for Hagen Wolfhart (Hu: Warblade1):



300 years ago... A man named Haggard Wolfhart founda huge cache of gems & gold. He decided to move near to Calder and build a strong hold for him and his family. Delving into many different avenues, finally Wolfhart decided on an import/export business. His name was known to the local lower class peoples as a place to find work and shelter. He was cherished by all, and his business grew. He succeeded at building an empire that will span centuries.



250 years ago... Wolfhart's grandson, Cedric, saved a diplomats heir from certain death at the hands of marauding orcs. He received a title and lands from the local lord, and the lifelong gratitude/friendship of the diplomat.



200 years ago... At the height of its influence, Wolfhart Wares & Trading is the most powerful import/export company in Calder. A group of merchants band together and conspire against Wolfhart, planning on taking down the company. In a bitter battle of deception and intrigue, Wolfhart's company was victorious, but at a high price. Many of the contacts the company had are leery to do business with Wolfhart, and the lies have stolen the hearts of many formerly loyal employees.



150 years ago... Time and deception have continued to destroy what was once the greatest company in all of Calder. Hector III, 6th generation descendant of Wolfhart, decides to use his considerable magical power to summon minions from the lower planes to rid Calder of the influence of his enemies. It does not go well. Using much of his wealth in the bargain, Hector III succeeds in ridding the city of his enemies, but the demon he summoned left a trail that, after much investigation led to Hector. Stripped of his land and title (gifts from a noble diplomat generations ago), Hector III is forced to retire and turn the company over to hit witless son, Zedarai. The fate of house Wolfhart is tentative at best.



100 years ago... Zedarai and his sons do a decent job of running the company for a few years, but Zederai's wife is an expensive woman and proceeds to bleed all profits out of the company's coffers. She was siphoning the money off to her lover, a descendant of the very merchant who had set out to destroy the Wolfhart Company 100 years ago. His name is Alletair Blythle. Blythle, a despicable and evil man, who is charismatic and ruthlessly cunning, was out to finish what his ancestor started; the complete destruction of the Wolfhart family.



50 years ago... Fearing for his very life, Zedarai's great-grandson, Lucious, runs to the very same caverns in which his ancestor found the cache of gems and gold he used to build his empire. Lucious' wife had gone into exile with their son, Delitrove, and with the company long since taken from the family for some contrived crime against the king, Lucious was running for his very life. Before he could disappear into the wind, he hid the sole heirloom remaining from Haggard, his sword. It was a bastard sword with exquisite workmanship and sigils that seem to represent a wolf charging. Lucious' life was forfeit, this he knew, but perhaps his son or grandson can avenge their family. Lucious was finally captured in the foot hills of the mountains north of Calder. He was executed and all memory of him and the Wolfhart family are removed from the record books. Their name was never to be spoken again on pain of death, so said the high inquisitor, Blythle.



Present Day... Lucious' wife was able to get to safety, and from there, out of the region. She raised their son Delitrove with stories of Haggard, Cedric and the others. She paid close attention to the details, being sure that her son knew who was to blame, and where to find his ancestors sword.



Delitrove grew up near Greyhawk and became a scribe for a local lord. He lived a long and happy life with his wife, Merrilai. Delitrove married late in life and had three children. His older two children were girls, both were intelligent and beautiful like their mother, but Delitrove's true heart was with his third child, Hagen.



Hagen is named for his great ancestor Haggard (Hagen was his family's secret name for him). Hagen is a brilliant child. Charismatic and eager to learn anything that people are willing to teach him, Hagen's father used his contacts with the Lord to find his son a master to teach him the use of the sword. The master, as it turned out was teacher of the Way of the Nine. Schooled in the arts of blade magic, Hagen was a fast learner and quickly became the best pupil his master had ever seen.



When he was ready, Hagen's father told him the stories that his mother had told him. Delitrove followed the story from Haggard to his father, Lucious. He told Hagen that it was now on his shoulders to return the family to their former glory and to track down & avenge the wrongs that were done to them by the Blythle family. Hagen accepted his duty with honor and pride. He retrieved the hidden blade from the caverns and headed to Calder to once again make a name for his family.

Grug
2008-02-27, 05:25 PM
Woot! that is all.

Kol Korran
2008-02-27, 07:13 PM
first of all, i commend you on your work- it seems you put some effort into this, which is good. i never read the "nine swords" source book (i think that is how it's called), so i can't comment on that. (though it doesn't matter, the background can easely fit any class and most races if need be). i do have a few other comments/ suggestions:

- you've gone over about 300 years. most world's history have quite a few major events happening in that time. did it affect your family or background? when i play a character i like to link at least some of it's history to the world events- it helps shape her views on nations, organizations, races, religions and more. it may also give you additional conversation points with your fellow adventures.

[side note, not entirely relating to this thread: way too many "roelplay emphasised" players tend to create elaborate backgrounds, personality and motivations, and so on for their characters, without any regard to the other players, or how they connect. this often leads to a somewhat "detached" feeling about the character during game. the other players feel he is following his own unrelated goals, and that s/he stages cinematics monologs and solo scenes while they wait, while the player himself gets frustrated most of the time because he doesn't get enough "screen time" to justify his/ her work, and aspirations for the character's development and roleplay... as a simple example: Roy hiring the OOTS to help him complete his blood oath. this might work well only if the other party member's approach is "we're here to kill peopel with a different skin color and loot their bodies", as Belkar said in one of his blatantly honest moments. (probably not a correct quote, i can't be bothered to look for it now)
what hard core "roelplay" players need to understand (heck, all players realy) is that it's a group game, and also group interactions. in movies and books many of the greatest moments come from the dialogues, fights, disputes, cooperations and more between the characters. (though there are some great solo moments, but that's not the point). direct a rolepaly opportunity towards another player, incorporate the others into your game, thought, emotions, decisions and more... this changes the gaming experience entirely!]

ok, back to the subject:
- can your background be incorporated into the DM campaign? to what extent? check this with him so you won't feel cheated. the DM should work with you to find a way that this might work.

- as to the DM and your goals, and history- make sure he understands what you're aiming for, wat sort of experience, since many DMs might play hay and fire with this idea, if they feel that "it's just a background" (for example- your ancestor didn't find the gems, but killed a dragon for it, a noble dragon... one of your enemies is actually the dragon's estranged offspring, seeking his own revenge, a righteous revenge. this might make you feel crappy, or make it more itneresting, depending on what you seek to accomplish).

- one very crucial piece is missing- why go adventuring? (my suggestion- you work under a different name in guise, learning of the situation, and trying to gain allies, power, and reputation. perhaps some of the patrons you may work for are former allies of your family, that were turned.)

- a background is not a personality, though it is the start for one (many people of nearly idnetical backgrounds can become very different people. it all depends on your interpertaions, conclusions, and decisions made towards that background). how do you usually apporahc those you don't know? your opinion on moral issues? religions/ races/ magic/ bla bla bla? by the way- "my character doesn't realy care about that/ didn't think about it" is a fine answer. it just help rolepaly later on, and might reflect back on your background.

- if possible, talk with the DM to give you some contact or someone in the new place (who might nudge you towards your first adventure as well). it would give you soem grounding).

- the many names and gradual change of your family's history is fine ,if youliek doing it for yourself, or if the DMcan actually use i. most chances though- only some will be used, and then but a few times (at some side quest/ adventure based on your background). so be ready for some of the complexity to go to waste in the actual game... (that said- one of my players like writing bloody novels for each character. he knows i use only some of it, but he just like doing it... more power to him i say. if you let your creative urges run free while writing about the character, then go for it!)

- my last comment: my emphasis when creating a character's background, is the character's own experiences, defining moments, people, places and events that influenced him/ her and so on. the former history is importent, but not as importent as the character... most of what you wrote details his family's history, not his own. from my own experience (as limited as it may be), by working on the characte, it will gain mroe substance, more depth, and eventually- it will becoem more fun to play (at least for a "hardcore roleplayer").

i hope i didn't ruin your mood, because the stuff you wrote shows very nice possiblities and potential. all of the above was meant to (hopefully) enhance your gaming experience, not to quelch it. it's far better than what of my better players did for a background ("i'm a shifter and grwon in the forest. i didn't like it there, so i went outside. found monestery, looked cool, so i started training being a monk. then got bored, decided to go adventuring"...)

Prometheus
2008-02-27, 08:54 PM
As dramatic as the blood-feud is, there doesn't seem to be a lot of motivation on the part of the villains to either crush the remnants of family line or for the hero to take vengeance against the children of villains. Maybe your character is more lawful than my line of reasoning is, but is just doesn't add up

Perhaps you could include something even more inherently adversarial. Maybe there is a false claim to the throne which your family knows about and threatens the Blythle family or could be jeopardized my the knowledge of the past. Maybe the Blythle profit off of slave labor which is threatened by the rise of a magic item business. Maybe Blythle have a contract with a fiend and your family rightly hates fiends, and therefore destroying fiends destroys the power sources of the Blythle. There could be a lot of reasons, you could decide on one yourself, or let the DM know that it is information that is his domain.

McClintock
2008-02-28, 12:31 AM
Kol Korran, many of the issues you presented are justified and understandable. I have presented a copy of this to the DM and he is willing to work this into the background of the actual story. I am not familiar with the area we are going into, we are all going to work together to interweave our characters histories into the story...

which brings me to your point Prometheus... I started thinking about why Hagen is going to avenge his family, with the help of the DM I am hoping to find the richeous and justifiable answers to why the Blythle family set out to destroy mine. I think it will play all the way back to Haggard's original find.

He may have found the treasure after over hearing another adventurer speak of its location, or it was meant to be a pay off for services rendered from a powerful dragon or demon. The "adventurer" was an ancestor to the Blythle family (or which ever noble it may get changed too), and he set into motion events that led to the down fall of the family.

Kol - on your side note - my DM likes extensive backgrounds so he can try to weave people and places from your history into the game. It doesn't always work, but the last set of adventures it worked out well for a couple of the characters to have had contacts and dealings in many of the cities we visited. Without the backgrounds, we would have been hard pressed to get some of the stuff we needed. But I do see your point, I have known those people that need to monopolize the DMs time and detract from everyone else's fun.

Thank you both for your help. I'll report back here after of session on Sunday and let you know how it went. Shackled City here we come.

Kol Korran
2008-02-28, 06:33 AM
glad to hear things are going along, and with what definetly seems like a positive outcome. have fun!