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  1. - Top - End - #1
    Pixie in the Playground
     
    DrowGuy

    Join Date
    Nov 2020

    Post I need help creating a mid-campaign character switch (hilarity ensues)

    So just a brief overview of my purpose for this thread. I need help creating a level 5 character that would serve as an aid/leader to help two younger players (9, and 11) get more enjoyment from the game, and keep things a little more in a driven path. Their characters are kind of hodgepodge and they might not level up with attacks/feats/etc that totally make sense. If you don't care to read the details you can throw your ideas below and for the rest of you, here is my eff up...

    I am essentially a rookie player, I've played a few pick up games or times where I sat in with someone else's PC or a pre-made character. However my Brother-in-law bought a bunch stuff to get his sons (my nephews) into the game and I'm currently living with them so I thought I'd join, 3 players is better than 2 right? They are 11 and 9, and while mature and intelligent for their age, I mean they provide a fun and entertaining team, gameplay is just a little slow. Anyway, I made a grave error. We are playing Horde of the Dragon Queen, we are all level 5, and my Drow pulled such a dirty trick its time he abandons the party. So I come here, not much experience myself, I need help and advice on a character replacement. The DM and I agreed it is best for morale if I change strategies. I spent hours and hours on my background, I loved my character's origin story and I got really into it. Because of this I will not let him be killed, but he is about to abandon the party. Keep in my this is my first time through HotDQ so I'll leave out specifics to keep from ruining anything and you can do the same.


    Myself Rycker - Chaotic Neutral Rogue Drow, Super stealthy, sneak attacks/gambling/slight of hand and the like.
    Xanthar (11 year old) Dragonborn Barbarian just loves to rage and "hulk smash" type of fighter. When ask "what would your character do" his character would always apply 0 logic and smash stuff.
    Wyvee (9 year old) Dragonborn Rogue, slight of hand and stealth, very magician and ninja like. He loves to stealth and misdirect and use slight of hand but can't understand why he can't talk his way out of it when caught.

    One night, in a, lets call it a work camp with permanent housing, the 3 PCs were all snooping around independently of each other, at different times and different areas of the structure the workers slept/ate/socialed in. As our players meet up later I discover Xanthar, the brut, was trying to find information and look around and rather than come get one of his rogue friends he broke a large door down that was to a room with lots of valuables in it, and he told the DM "I take as much as I can that won't be noticed." Yeah, so Rycker takes the treasure from the brillant Barbarian, divides it up equally amongst the 3 PCs (as per our party pact agreement at the beginning of the game) with some set aside for me... errr Rycker to cover his tracks. Rycker goes to where Xanthar said he was and finds the broken door, one removed from, and very near the treasure room/broken door, was a sleeping stable boy. So Rycker, cleverly I might add, puts some of the stolen treasure around the stable boy and in the boy's knapsack and goes back to his room to call it a night with the others. The next morning while the PCs attend breakfast, the leader of whatever this mob like cover up of a work crew is bring's the boy out into the public square and makes a spectacle. Rycker advises his comrades to just remain quite and whatever they do, do not interfere in the boy's punishment. The DM then proceeds to graphically explain this boy being flogged to death for the stealing of the aforementioned stolen and planted valuables.

    Some commotion ensued in game but then we halted for a moment, we were at a breaking point anyway to reup on snacks and use the restroom and the younger of my nephews was found to be out right bawling to his mother. Apparently, both other characters had interactions with this particular stable boy and my character was responsible for his death. We never restarted that evening because it was a cluster calming both boys down. Explaining my character's options, how we could play moving forward, the graphic nature of the DM's (awesome, quite frankly) narration of how the events unfolded, the maturity level of the game, all things were discussed.

    So here I am, hoping you will help me build a character (or 3 or 4) that can replace Rycker. After a conversation with the DM, we have decided my character will simply abandon the Dragonborn brother Duo for more dark minded things, and I will be allowed to replace my character with an equal level new character he will write into the story. So I have now decided instead of having so much time and actually caring put into my character's backstory I need to be told how I would best aid them. Help me create a 4E character (playing Horde of the Dragon Queen, I know we are weird) that would best aid the other two Dragonborn Characters. My first thought and attempt here was a Dragonborn Warlord, which I must admit seems to be a pretty good Leader/Healer, But you tell me. What would help a Rogue and a Barbarian be successful. At this point my character does not need to have any wills/desires of his own but to help these two younglings learn D&D, love it, and open up their minds to the possibilities. (so that way in like 10-15 OOC years Rycker can come back and eff them up)
    Last edited by DirtyDrow; 2020-11-21 at 12:42 AM.

  2. - Top - End - #2
    Pixie in the Playground
    Join Date
    Nov 2020

    Default Re: I need help creating a mid-campaign character switch (hilarity ensues)

    Warlord is my first thought too, powers that focus on giving the other two free basic attacks so you're helping them be the stars of the show.

    I notice that the group has no ranged attacks. There's a warlord that focuses on archery in Martial Power 2; ability scores focus on High Str, with a secondary keying off Int or Wis. Races for that are Genasi, Minotaur, Goliath, Shifter,

  3. - Top - End - #3
    Titan in the Playground
     
    Dimers's Avatar

    Join Date
    Oct 2009
    Location
    Boston, MA
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: I need help creating a mid-campaign character switch (hilarity ensues)

    Unless Wyvee's Strength is pretty high, a typical warlord build will have a hard time granting the 9-year-old as much spotlight time as the 11-year-old. Either pick powers that grant attacks Wyvee can use well or go with some kind of build that grants buffs instead of attacks.

    A leader class is best, regardless. Your party is also missing a controller, which says to me that pacifist cleric would be great. A bard or movement-heavy warlord isn't far behind, though. Pacifism doesn't usually make much sense to kids but it might be something they'd love to see after the horrible death of their stable-boy friend ...
    Avatar by Meltheim: Eveve, dwarven battlemind, 4e Dark Sun

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  4. - Top - End - #4
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    BardGuy

    Join Date
    Mar 2007
    Location
    Australia

    Default Re: I need help creating a mid-campaign character switch (hilarity ensues)

    Seems like another dragonborn would be easy to introduce.
    "This is Thrax, he grew up in the same village as [one of the other 2, or both if they tied their background together]"
    I love playing in a party with a couple of power-gamers, it frees me up to be Elan!


  5. - Top - End - #5
    Pixie in the Playground
     
    RedWizardGuy

    Join Date
    Mar 2010
    Location
    Brazil
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: I need help creating a mid-campaign character switch (hilarity ensues)

    Quote Originally Posted by Duff View Post
    Seems like another dragonborn would be easy to introduce.
    "This is Thrax, he grew up in the same village as [one of the other 2, or both if they tied their background together]"
    I back the decision of a Dragonborn, its a great idea!

    But to seal the deal with the theme issues you had, I'd suggest that:

    The new companion is a Dragonborn Paladin. Not only that: the dragonborn paladin have the holy mission to HUNT Rycker down and bring the Drow Rogue to justice for prior crimes, as it has been for a long time now.

    You could develop, little by little, the background where Rycker was not as neutral as he made them believe: he fooled and cheated people before, and the brothers were just his most recent victims. that is why the paladin not only doesn't take the duo as accomplices, but feels inclined to protect them from further deceptions, at the same time it gives them the a chance of redemption about the more questionable aspects of the campaing so far.

    If you don't want roll paladin, you can pretty much strap the motivations on another class/race of your liking with little effort towards the good aligned ways, if you feel it's safer that way

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