Elan Character Background: Comments? (LONG) [Archive] - Wizards Community

Elan Character Background: Comments? (LONG) [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Nessaj
07-09-06, 10:32 PM Before I continue, I have to give credit where credit is due. I really liked the origin idea posted by Gnome_Dragon_Disciple in the Thread Elans? (Origin/RPing Ideas) (http://boards1.wizards.com/showthread.php?t=651840) , how the Elan were a race created by Ao. Since this is a Faerunian campaign, it seemed quite fitting to take this as a base and go further with it. Anywho...Enough talking.

Story Time!

The Cult of Ao:

"Hear our plea, Exalted OverGod.
Your chosen Race has bidden its time over the centuries, as Your scriptures have commanded thus far. Give us a sign. How might we better serve your timeless design?"

Such prayers have come forth from the hearts of the Elan since the beginning of it all. According to their teachings, for His own inscrutinable reasons, Ao, the overdeity of Toril, placed a race created by Him and thus marked as his chosen on Faerun, just as the lesser gods of Toril had. An ageless race, one unbound by the constraints of time. A race of historians capable of witnessing the full scope of history, a possibility allowed to no mortal race. Then, when the Overgod makes his presence known once more, as is Prophesized, He will lead his Chosen people to their glorious destiny. Such is the fate of the Elans. But the Elders of the race, those who still remember the separation from the timeless glory of being One with Ao, grow impatient for his return. An end to it all would be an end to our Vigil, would it not?

Is that our Destiny, then? Did Ao then, leave his Children to bring an end to his grand design? It seems foolish, if not terrible, to comprehend, at first...

And yet...Plausible?

An Elan is not born in the normal sense. They are created through a secret psionic ritual requiring at least one Culler, or racial Elder. New "members" are chosen through psionic divinations the Elan truly believe to be directed by Ao. Young and old, male and female, the only requirement is that they were once human. Humans alone seem capable of surviving the process; other races will simply fail, or worse, be utterly annihilated by the psionic influx. Elans who survive the process find themselves in posession of a host of new mental
abilities, as well as the basic knowledge needed to use these new powers, at the expense of some of their former skills and lives. They recieve their instruction from the resident Culler, which generally consists of a history lesson from the racial archives and instruction on their new purpose in the form of a mantra:

"Immortality is our gift and our purpose. Our blessing and our curse. We exist to watch and wait for His return, for we are the eyes of the Overlord."

Jebfodel Dumein:

In Year _____, some of the orcs, trolls, and lesser creatures inhabiting the Northern borders of the Silver Marches grew restless, as they often do, and a sizeable warparty was causing much havok in the Nether Mountains, haunting mountain passes to plunder and kill passerbys, razing towns such as Deadsnows and Everlund, and burning smaller mining towns to the ground.
The mining colonies of the area decided after three winter months that it was time to put these beasts back in their place. Silverymoon and the Dwarven kingdoms were unwilling to commit troops during this particularly harsh winter and another month might cause the downfall of many, if not most of the towns only on local maps that depended on a steady trickle of trade to survive at all. Jebfodel was the captain of the guard for the town of Jalanthar. His town was reported to be the next target of a raid and he would not let that happen. His hometown's future hinged on his success, to say nothing of his wife and daughter. After a week of fighting, the defense of the town was a success. The hordes were repelled, and duty was done. Similar thoughts flashed through Jebfodel's mind as he lay bleeding in the snow, breastplate split across the chest by a stray falchion that slipped past his guard.

"Cold...But...Duty...Done. Calanddra and Meree...Are safe."
In his dying trance he hardly noticed the tickle at the back of his mind.
"Numbness...Going...Good thing?"
"It could be," came the telepathic reply.
"Sun...Darkening...Ghfmsleeeep......"
"Not yet...You have a choice to make. You gave your life in the defense of your town, yet you have the Potential to be so much more, Jebfodel. You could choose not to die, for I have the power to grant you Eternal Life. If you wish to take it, you can live again to protect those you care about. Will death take you from your chosen path so easily?"
"Wait...Proteeecct themmmm..."
The equivalent of a telempathic smile took Jebfodel in it's warm embrace, and all went black.

"A carrot dangled in front of a starving man is not the way to gain a favor," as Jebfodel would come to say quite often down the road.

Jebfodel became the immortal guardian of Jalanthar. He joined the local enclave of Elan based just outside the city in a building fortified with magic and psionic wards to completely avoid detection. Indeed, Jebfodel himself had passed it's location more than a few times during scouting missions and was quite suprised by the alien presence on his lands. A small group of Elan were placed under his command and together, they were able to repel any minor threats to the town with their newfound abilities long before the town even began to suspect intrusions. An era of peace and prosperity took hold for Jalanthar over the next decade. But Jebfodel was not content. The conditions of his new existence were that he was to devote his efforts to protecting the town and was never again to see his family.

"They cannot understand what you have become. They will fear and hate you for what you have become. We have seen it so many times before...Do not attempt reunition, lest you bring about our, or worse, THEIR destruction."

He was forced to watch his wife remarry to Hank Basinth, a local trader, and his daughter Meree grow into a woman in her own right. The time eventually came that enough was enough. He would reveal himself and take the consequences apon himself. No need to involve his new family in this, but he had to make amends with the old before he did anything else. Priah, the telepath of his group, "listened in" on these thoughts and reported them to the Culler.

"Jebfodel's family has given him an unneeded distraction this past decade. He sees them forget about him yet still clings to his past by wielding that greatsword...He still cannot let go and embrace his psychic heritage...What needs to be done will done."

They say a tipped lantern was the cause of the fire, or perhaps it was a small, organized band of orcs attempting to cause chaos and confusion before a raid. Either way, although the fire did not spread to any other nearby houses, all of the occupants of the house of Calanddra Basinth were killed. No survivors. His companions, eager to start anew with their comrade gone astray, told him without emotion what truly happened and how things were going to proceed. When Jebfodel found out, his powers finally manifested fully and he had little trouble (or choice in) scouring the mountain clean of his former companions. His raw emotion and lack of control were enough to bring down that entire building and tear up the surrounding landscape with bolts of fire, ice, electricity and sound. It was enough to start a landslide that escalated to the extent of burying the market district of nearby Jalanthar in rubble. Jebfodel never learned how many people died that day because from that day forward he became a wanderer, struggling to get as far away from that day as he possibly could, his traveling companions a broken bottle and a rusting greatsword. That was 60 years ago...

The Character is a Gestault Wilder 5/Psychic Warrior 5. Opinions? Personally, I'm rather proud of it, but I'd like to get ideas nonetheless. As of now Jeb is a hobo ("Crazy Jeb," to the locals) living a life of "asceticism" as he would put it. I'm currently trying to come up with "hobo-like qualities" to give him, but I've never known a hobo before so its rather difficult. He has a slight paunch, being a master chef he has to at least sample his work (and being an Elan, he doesn't need to eat, so anything he does eat is in excess). Physically 35, actually 95, so has lots of fun calling older people "boy" and "kid;" locals just think he's crazy...Somewhat tolerable hobo aroma; and quite fond of debating the fact that the discarded top of a muffin is far preferrable to the softer bottom, and the philosophy of "moonshine." Non-hoboes have no idea what this means; extreme age does funny things to the mind. His hair never grows past the length it is always at; frozen in time by the process that created him. Being type "aberration," animals tend to get uneasy and nervous around him, sensing his unnatural-ness. Or his hobo aroma. Unlike the Elans of recent times, Jebford has black hair and gray eyes (with swimming motes of blue apon closer inspection). The changeover to red-haired Elans is unknown to him thus far as he has not yet encountered other psionicists in his travels.
Nessaj
07-11-06, 11:44 PM ..Cmon, I typed for 20 minutes+ here...At least ONE comment would be awesome-tastic! Bad...Decent...Way too much character background to bother reading?

Just send me a sign that I'm not wasting my time here... :weep:
kabof
07-12-06, 11:19 PM I don't know. He seems... overpowered. I mean, he killed all the village?
I think it would be cool if he only believes he did that, but actually another thing did. Something like he's keeping a seecret from himself. I don't know if you understand what I'm saying... my english sometimes sux.

And you're not wasting your time here. ;]
Nessaj
07-16-06, 07:36 PM I understand what you're getting at, but you're somewhat mistaken. He didn't destroy the entire village. He destroyed the market district of the town inadvertently with a landslide caused by the release of his Wilder powers.

No, I'm strongly beginning to suspect I'm wasting my time, but since you were nice enough to reply I should do the same ;)

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Nessaj 07-09-06, 10:32 PM	Before I continue, I have to give credit where credit is due. I really liked the origin idea posted by Gnome_Dragon_Disciple in the Thread Elans? (Origin/RPing Ideas) (http://boards1.wizards.com/showthread.php?t=651840) , how the Elan were a race created by Ao. Since this is a Faerunian campaign, it seemed quite fitting to take this as a base and go further with it. Anywho...Enough talking. Story Time! The Cult of Ao: "Hear our plea, Exalted OverGod. Your chosen Race has bidden its time over the centuries, as Your scriptures have commanded thus far. Give us a sign. How might we better serve your timeless design?" Such prayers have come forth from the hearts of the Elan since the beginning of it all. According to their teachings, for His own inscrutinable reasons, Ao, the overdeity of Toril, placed a race created by Him and thus marked as his chosen on Faerun, just as the lesser gods of Toril had. An ageless race, one unbound by the constraints of time. A race of historians capable of witnessing the full scope of history, a possibility allowed to no mortal race. Then, when the Overgod makes his presence known once more, as is Prophesized, He will lead his Chosen people to their glorious destiny. Such is the fate of the Elans. But the Elders of the race, those who still remember the separation from the timeless glory of being One with Ao, grow impatient for his return. An end to it all would be an end to our Vigil, would it not? Is that our Destiny, then? Did Ao then, leave his Children to bring an end to his grand design? It seems foolish, if not terrible, to comprehend, at first... And yet...Plausible? An Elan is not born in the normal sense. They are created through a secret psionic ritual requiring at least one Culler, or racial Elder. New "members" are chosen through psionic divinations the Elan truly believe to be directed by Ao. Young and old, male and female, the only requirement is that they were once human. Humans alone seem capable of surviving the process; other races will simply fail, or worse, be utterly annihilated by the psionic influx. Elans who survive the process find themselves in posession of a host of new mental abilities, as well as the basic knowledge needed to use these new powers, at the expense of some of their former skills and lives. They recieve their instruction from the resident Culler, which generally consists of a history lesson from the racial archives and instruction on their new purpose in the form of a mantra: "Immortality is our gift and our purpose. Our blessing and our curse. We exist to watch and wait for His return, for we are the eyes of the Overlord." Jebfodel Dumein: In Year _____, some of the orcs, trolls, and lesser creatures inhabiting the Northern borders of the Silver Marches grew restless, as they often do, and a sizeable warparty was causing much havok in the Nether Mountains, haunting mountain passes to plunder and kill passerbys, razing towns such as Deadsnows and Everlund, and burning smaller mining towns to the ground. The mining colonies of the area decided after three winter months that it was time to put these beasts back in their place. Silverymoon and the Dwarven kingdoms were unwilling to commit troops during this particularly harsh winter and another month might cause the downfall of many, if not most of the towns only on local maps that depended on a steady trickle of trade to survive at all. Jebfodel was the captain of the guard for the town of Jalanthar. His town was reported to be the next target of a raid and he would not let that happen. His hometown's future hinged on his success, to say nothing of his wife and daughter. After a week of fighting, the defense of the town was a success. The hordes were repelled, and duty was done. Similar thoughts flashed through Jebfodel's mind as he lay bleeding in the snow, breastplate split across the chest by a stray falchion that slipped past his guard. "Cold...But...Duty...Done. Calanddra and Meree...Are safe." In his dying trance he hardly noticed the tickle at the back of his mind. "Numbness...Going...Good thing?" "It could be," came the telepathic reply. "Sun...Darkening...Ghfmsleeeep......" "Not yet...You have a choice to make. You gave your life in the defense of your town, yet you have the Potential to be so much more, Jebfodel. You could choose not to die, for I have the power to grant you Eternal Life. If you wish to take it, you can live again to protect those you care about. Will death take you from your chosen path so easily?" "Wait...Proteeecct themmmm..." The equivalent of a telempathic smile took Jebfodel in it's warm embrace, and all went black. "A carrot dangled in front of a starving man is not the way to gain a favor," as Jebfodel would come to say quite often down the road. Jebfodel became the immortal guardian of Jalanthar. He joined the local enclave of Elan based just outside the city in a building fortified with magic and psionic wards to completely avoid detection. Indeed, Jebfodel himself had passed it's location more than a few times during scouting missions and was quite suprised by the alien presence on his lands. A small group of Elan were placed under his command and together, they were able to repel any minor threats to the town with their newfound abilities long before the town even began to suspect intrusions. An era of peace and prosperity took hold for Jalanthar over the next decade. But Jebfodel was not content. The conditions of his new existence were that he was to devote his efforts to protecting the town and was never again to see his family. "They cannot understand what you have become. They will fear and hate you for what you have become. We have seen it so many times before...Do not attempt reunition, lest you bring about our, or worse, THEIR destruction." He was forced to watch his wife remarry to Hank Basinth, a local trader, and his daughter Meree grow into a woman in her own right. The time eventually came that enough was enough. He would reveal himself and take the consequences apon himself. No need to involve his new family in this, but he had to make amends with the old before he did anything else. Priah, the telepath of his group, "listened in" on these thoughts and reported them to the Culler. "Jebfodel's family has given him an unneeded distraction this past decade. He sees them forget about him yet still clings to his past by wielding that greatsword...He still cannot let go and embrace his psychic heritage...What needs to be done will done." They say a tipped lantern was the cause of the fire, or perhaps it was a small, organized band of orcs attempting to cause chaos and confusion before a raid. Either way, although the fire did not spread to any other nearby houses, all of the occupants of the house of Calanddra Basinth were killed. No survivors. His companions, eager to start anew with their comrade gone astray, told him without emotion what truly happened and how things were going to proceed. When Jebfodel found out, his powers finally manifested fully and he had little trouble (or choice in) scouring the mountain clean of his former companions. His raw emotion and lack of control were enough to bring down that entire building and tear up the surrounding landscape with bolts of fire, ice, electricity and sound. It was enough to start a landslide that escalated to the extent of burying the market district of nearby Jalanthar in rubble. Jebfodel never learned how many people died that day because from that day forward he became a wanderer, struggling to get as far away from that day as he possibly could, his traveling companions a broken bottle and a rusting greatsword. That was 60 years ago... The Character is a Gestault Wilder 5/Psychic Warrior 5. Opinions? Personally, I'm rather proud of it, but I'd like to get ideas nonetheless. As of now Jeb is a hobo ("Crazy Jeb," to the locals) living a life of "asceticism" as he would put it. I'm currently trying to come up with "hobo-like qualities" to give him, but I've never known a hobo before so its rather difficult. He has a slight paunch, being a master chef he has to at least sample his work (and being an Elan, he doesn't need to eat, so anything he does eat is in excess). Physically 35, actually 95, so has lots of fun calling older people "boy" and "kid;" locals just think he's crazy...Somewhat tolerable hobo aroma; and quite fond of debating the fact that the discarded top of a muffin is far preferrable to the softer bottom, and the philosophy of "moonshine." Non-hoboes have no idea what this means; extreme age does funny things to the mind. His hair never grows past the length it is always at; frozen in time by the process that created him. Being type "aberration," animals tend to get uneasy and nervous around him, sensing his unnatural-ness. Or his hobo aroma. Unlike the Elans of recent times, Jebford has black hair and gray eyes (with swimming motes of blue apon closer inspection). The changeover to red-haired Elans is unknown to him thus far as he has not yet encountered other psionicists in his travels.
Nessaj 07-11-06, 11:44 PM	..Cmon, I typed for 20 minutes+ here...At least ONE comment would be awesome-tastic! Bad...Decent...Way too much character background to bother reading? Just send me a sign that I'm not wasting my time here... :weep:
kabof 07-12-06, 11:19 PM	I don't know. He seems... overpowered. I mean, he killed all the village? I think it would be cool if he only believes he did that, but actually another thing did. Something like he's keeping a seecret from himself. I don't know if you understand what I'm saying... my english sometimes sux. And you're not wasting your time here. ;]
Nessaj 07-16-06, 07:36 PM	I understand what you're getting at, but you're somewhat mistaken. He didn't destroy the entire village. He destroyed the market district of the town inadvertently with a landslide caused by the release of his Wilder powers. No, I'm strongly beginning to suspect I'm wasting my time, but since you were nice enough to reply I should do the same ;)