Character motivation and goals: CG, the Liberator

[MarkusWolfe]

Something very strange has happened to me...or at least my character. A CG human male barbarian, he was majorly ticked off by some ice elves last mission. He knows that they have a system going on with the humans (who are a lot like the people he grew up with, except no metal) where the humans provide meat and the elves provide finished metalwork. He saw them trade a handful of steel arrowheads for an entire elk. He told the human that trading was much better in the south, but they are not people of boats.

This has really ticked him off. Not only is it tyranny, but they're doing it under the supposedly LG ice god the humans worship. It's an outright abuse of the system; they treat humans as lower animals, pets and serfs. No one EVER gives humanity the short end of the stick. NO ONE!

I've decided he's first going to try and resolve this peacefully. His first tactic will be to apprentice a child or 2 from each clan under a skilled blacksmith, and 3 or more under a smelter. If they can find a raw source of metal, they should no longer be dependent on the elves for metal, and can start demanding, oh say, boats in exchange for their meat. Then they can cross the sea and get some good trading in. At this point, the elves will have to start giving up objects of actual value for their daily meat. While all this is happening, I'm turning them away from their ice god and to the glory of Kord....

Failing that, I will give the elves enough time to evacuate their city before I burn it to the ground.

Thoughts/advice?

[Dichotomy]

Thoughts?

Rock on.

Advice?

Use lots of fire and scream bloody murder in Kord's name if things go poorly.

[dsmiles]

Thoughts/advice?

Be positive that their leader isn't a high-level wizard first, maybe? That could be a total buzzkill (and probable character kill).

[PopcornMage]

Don't forget the option of getting somebody to come up and trade with them.

[Saintheart]

I've decided he's first going to try and resolve this peacefully. His first tactic will be to apprentice a child or 2 from each clan under a skilled blacksmith, and 3 or more under a smelter. If they can find a raw source of metal, they should no longer be dependent on the elves for metal, and can start demanding, oh say, boats in exchange for their meat. Then they can cross the sea and get some good trading in. At this point, the elves will have to start giving up objects of actual value for their daily meat. While all this is happening, I'm turning them away from their ice god and to the glory of Kord....

Failing that, I will give the elves enough time to evacuate their city before I burn it to the ground.

This is gold sig material. May I steal this?

[MarkusWolfe]

Be positive that their leader isn't a high-level wizard first, maybe? That could be a total buzzkill (and probable character kill).

No wizards, but they do have a population that's 30% sorcerer, not necessarily good ones. They also have a level 20 cleric of their ice god. I made the unfortunate mistake of trying to intimidate him. He made a touch spell on me that put me down 13 DEX, no save. I only had 14 to begin with.....wore off in a few minutes, but may have killed me in a combat situation. All the more reason to wait until level 20 until I go down the burning path.

But aside from him, they're not very tough. The sorcerers we ran into only knew a few ice based spells and ray of enfeeblement. Only 10% of the population are guards. Aside from some very artsy stuff and the guys who make the metal objects, none of them have done a day of real work in their lives.

The city is on top of a hill, and has a ice ramp leading up to the gates. The walls are 50 feet tall all around and the ice ramp takes quite a while to get up. Siege towers and battering rams are out of the question....I'll have to hire some siege engineers to construct ballistae and trebuchet to pummel the city with burning ammunition. Give them a week to leave the city, then fire a few calibrating shots in, give them another week, then destroy the walls, pillage the place for all it's worth, and bombard it back to the stone age.

Depending on what the DMs think, I may have to do this with my companions alone, or I may succeed in becoming a leader figure to the 18 or 19 tribes, sort of like a Ork Warboss from Warhammer 40k, and invoke aggression from the elves, who are ticked off that they're not getting handouts anymore.

This is gold sig material. May I steal this?

Go ahead.

[dsmiles]

Depending on what the DMs think, I may have to do this with my companions alone, or I may succeed in becoming a leader figure to the 18 or 19 tribes, sort of like a Ork Warboss from Warhammer 40k, and invoke aggression from the elves, who are ticked off that they're not getting handouts anymore.

WAAAAAAGGGGGGGHHHHHHH!!!!!

Remember, paint the trebuchets red. They'll go fasta!

[MarkusWolfe]

Still need something that is LITERALLY going to stomp all over the buildings though.....what's the Train Animal DC on a Dire Woolly Mammoth?

[Starbuck_II]

Failing that, I will give the elves enough time to evacuate their city before I burn it to the ground.

Thoughts/advice?

While doing this sing Carry on Wayward son, All Right Now, or Everyday Superhero.

Either way, rock on.

[MarkusWolfe]

WAAAAAAGGGGGGGHHHHHHH!!!!!

Remember, paint the trebuchets red. They'll go fasta!

But green is best....

Speaking of orcs, there may or not be any in the area, and we all know elves and orcs hate each other. Perhaps I can recruit them to my cause? There might be some dwarves; if they are neither foes or allies, they can at least provide blacksmiths for the children to apprentice under. Halflings....oh, poor halflings, stuck out there on the tundra with dire animals everywhere. The elves are jerks for not trying to help them at all.

Pretty good army I can work up here. But aside from getting a cleric of Kord to cast Crown of Glory on me every time I talk to the troops, I have no idea as to how I can pull this off with 8 charisma, no ranks in bluff, a penalty to diplomacy and no Leadership feat.....it just wouldn't be right to intimidate them all the time.

[dsmiles]

Still need something that is LITERALLY going to stomp all over the buildings though.....what's the Train Animal DC on a Dire Woolly Mammoth?

Have a druid summon one? No Handle Animal involved.