Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Zousha_Omenohu 04-22-07, 07:53 PM	I've given a rather barebones backstory to my DM, but I'd like some advice on how to flesh it out a little. Here's what I've got so far: Alexander Zosenheim is the adopted son of Ariel (the father) and Helena Zosenheim, who are both instructors at the isolated magic school known as Boccob's Blessed Isle. Alexander's biological father, one Zousha Omenohu :D , left him at the school shortly after the child was born. Zousha is an infamous Necromancer who became a lich shortly after Alexander's biological mother became pregnant. Zousha has since gone into hiding for reasons unknown, and Alexander only learned of him via secondhand rumors and tall tales. Recently, Alexander's desire for knowledge has compelled him to become something of an arcane archaeologist, finding mystical artifacts, determining their functions and cataloguing them for future reference. In order to make some extra cash once he got to the mainland, Alexander agreed to serve as a courier, delivering a proposal of an alliance between the towns of Haven and Solace against the predations of the evil Blackguard, Martin. Shortly after leaving Haven, he was ambushed by Lord Larn, one of Martin's peons, and imprisoned in a run-down fortress out in the woods. It was only a matter of weeks before an adventuring party came and rescued him. He decided to join up with them to further protect himself. My main concern is what happened during his formative years at the school. He's a diviner, who's chosen evocation as his prohibited school. What would be a reason for that? He has dragon scales tatooed on his cheeks. What would be a good reason for that? Why would he leave the school? I've also been wondering a bit on how exactly to role-play him. I've got some basic ideas. He's a skeptic when it comes to religion, and he's a strategist at heart. He also has little patience for the rogue of the party, who is a kender, despite the fact that she's saved his life at least twice. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thank you. :)
jeffseadot 04-23-07, 12:04 AM	Two things stick out to me from your description: 1. His history is intricate, interesting and well-hidden 2. He's a diviner They build off of each other. He gets into divination because every time he finds out something about himself or his father, he comes out of the experience with more questions than answers. He needs stronger divination magic to get answers, but that always leads to more that is left unknown. The tattoos could be anything. He's a bright young man with no familial responsibilities; he could easy have a wild side. Maybe he just got drunk one night and said, "You know what'd be badass? Dragon scale tattoos. Dragons are badass." Maybe arrogant bastard would be a good way to play him. He's at least somewhat famous and he deals in one of the priciest commodities available -- information. He'll always have more information than the rest of the party and they'll always have to go through him if they want some. He sees this as evidence of his superiority, and he does not hesitate to show off.
Zousha_Omenohu 04-23-07, 01:44 AM	Two things stick out to me from your description: 1. His history is intricate, interesting and well-hidden 2. He's a diviner They build off of each other. He gets into divination because every time he finds out something about himself or his father, he comes out of the experience with more questions than answers. He needs stronger divination magic to get answers, but that always leads to more that is left unknown. The tattoos could be anything. He's a bright young man with no familial responsibilities; he could easy have a wild side. Maybe he just got drunk one night and said, "You know what'd be badass? Dragon scale tattoos. Dragons are badass." Maybe arrogant bastard would be a good way to play him. He's at least somewhat famous and he deals in one of the priciest commodities available -- information. He'll always have more information than the rest of the party and they'll always have to go through him if they want some. He sees this as evidence of his superiority, and he does not hesitate to show off. Well, unfortunately not so well-hidden now. The BBEG is using my character to get some gems he wants, and he's basically holding his father for ransom via a Temporal Stasis spell. I initially refused, so I was Geased to insure compliance (he didn't appear to me personally, but it's still forced my hand). I'm not to sure Arrogant Bastard is the best way to run it. Arrogant yes, but he's really only bastard by birth. I don't want to risk alienating the others, especially the cleric who is my lifeline until I get this damn Geas removed. It seems a bit ironic that he should be interested so much in secrets, since Martin (the BBEG) is a devotee of Vecna! :D Actually now that I think about it, I sort of intend to play him as a bit of a strategist. The divination focus is to gather esoteric information, but also tactical information. I don't have any powerful scrying magic, but I like the idea of using magic to spy on a large group of enemies in the room ahead and using assorted spells to rip the ground from underneath them!:evillaugh I'm thinking maybe the reason he eschews Evocation is because he views it as crude and lacks "finesse". Why sling a fireball when you can turn the floor into molten lava instead?:D Thanks for the advice, I'll need to try some of these during the next session.
Terjon of the Blue Rose 04-23-07, 03:07 AM	Dragon scales work for marking him as part of an organization within the school. A mage school equivalent to a fraternity or even a sports team. Being a bit of a strategist maybe he took on a role as assistant coach on one of the more prominent sports teams in school. He couldn't help The Dragons win in fireball shaping competitions but often used his own magic to determine what the opposition would bring to the fore? His formative years in school probably led to a lot of groups of unrelated friends. He hung out with the evokers on the sports team, the diviners who played chess, the conjurers at the breeding stables for magical beasts, etc. He was never really "one of the guys" in any one group but rather was accepted by all. This led him towards the diplomatic role you've put him already and leaves plenty of room for a strategist.
Zousha_Omenohu 04-24-07, 01:32 AM	Pretty cool ideas. Thank you. The thing is, he's not much of a diplomat (no social skills and a Charisma of 12). He wasn't as much a negotiator for the towns as he was a hired courier. I like the idea of being something of an assistant coach to some sort of team. Thing is, it wouldn't be very impressive spells, since he wasn't even first level at that point. Thanks again for the tips.
Terjon of the Blue Rose 04-26-07, 02:46 AM	Well diplomat and strategist don't have to go together so that still works out for the most part. As for the spells not being high lvl he doesn't need them to be. He probably would have used school artifacts combining his role on the team with various projects assigned to him by teachers. He may have even had the teachers casting the actual spell while he focused on learning the art of divining... including choosing when, where, etc. to gain the most information on a target.
TalinXT 04-26-07, 03:06 AM	All the ideas presented so far are fantastic. Here's my take. The divination specialty/evocation forbidden thign: Call it a question of practicality versus, disaster. divination magic gives him soemthign of an edge when it comes to social life and academic pursuits. Evocation on the other hadn is a fantastic way to blow yourself adn our friends up. Perhaps he never saw himself as a combatant or abttle wizard and is simpl content to gather information and use his wits rather then make thigns explode. The Tattoos: It's been mentioned that he couldve been a aprt of some internal organization or team within the school and I still think this is the best explanation as to why eh ash them. Another reason could be to symbolize his admiration of dragons and their arcane power, he's nto a sorceror (and may be somewhat jealous of them) nor does he have any dragon blood but he has a heart adn mind of one (he feels) so the tattoos are to bring out some of the dragon in ihm.