Help with a Bard enemy [Archive] - Wizards Community

Help with a Bard enemy [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Kalanth
10-21-03, 03:46 PM Ok, here is what I am looking for help on. I have introduced a future enemy of the party in the second gamming session by having an attempted theft of personal affects for scrying purposes. Well, part of that group was a bard in the band down stairs (whom was fascinating the party, but not all of the party). After they discovered the bard was in on this the imprisoned him, and the bard got ten years. So, my objective is this, 10 years latter the bard is a 20th level character bent on revenge.

There are two things I am really looking for here. The main thing is some good character info (i.e. Manurisms, atttitudes, how he would react to being in society once more). The other thing is stats. I have this posted on Character Optimization as well (for stats), and I figured I would be able to get some help with giving the character a bit more of a memorable feel. After all, he is hunting down some high level folks, and his very prescense is supposed to disrupt them as they head towards the final goal.

The begining of the build is this:

- Monk 2 / Bard 2: I don't want anymore monk levels, but other things are fine (and any PrC is fine as well <except forgoten realms, this is a Dragonlance Game> )

- I have not made a character sheet, so no stats. The Bard become an enemy randomly by the actions of the party. Stats are on a 30 point-by.

- The character is a Singer primarily, and an actor secondly, so no musical instrument.

- I have not decided feets either, open realm here.

- Race: Half-Elf

- I was thinking of a more physical build, but I already have two Arcane Archers (one PC, one villain), an Arcane Duelist (so I don't want duelist either), a Cancer Mage, and a Devil Summoner (Homebrew PrC <in signature> ). I am trying to stay away from those things.

- Finally, the party that he is after consists of a Half-Ogre Knight of the Sword, a Silvanesti Red Robe WoHS, a Kagonesti Shadow Dancer, and a Qulanesti Arcane Archer/Skylord
Morka
10-22-03, 09:19 AM A little question here: Monks are limitted to lawful, bards are limited to non-lawful, how can you mix both?

Beside this, what is fun about this one is your bard doesn't need to be evil to be an ennemy. He could even be a CG character, who was in need of money when young, got this contract, and was caught. By the time he was in prison, he could have shift to CN, but not necessary.

Another thing: he seems to have taken about 15 bard level while in prison . His experience should be on manipulating other prisonners, sometime prisonners much stronger than himself. So he should not be afraid of any physical threat.
Kalanth
10-22-03, 11:23 AM Originally posted by Morka
A little question here: Monks are limitted to lawful, bards are limited to non-lawful, how can you mix both?

I am taking an alignment shift after the levels in Monk. Since this is an NPC I was unconcerned about that shift, and figured it was because of his situation in life, which is why he resorted to becoming a hired gun, in a sense. I really like your ideas about manipulating the other prisoners. Really makes sense, and would benefit him story wise, and may help create some henchmen that work with him.
aldymnor
10-23-03, 09:36 AM HIs voice should be ominous, almost like an Omyo (Buddhist deep chant, very haunting and deep), and his words should be thick, like he chose them over a really nice dinner.

Make him fanciful, direct, and precise. It seems to fit, at least from where I'm sittin.
Vintrastorm
10-23-03, 03:32 PM Hodw does he gain 16 bard levels in jail?
Kalanth
10-23-03, 05:02 PM Originally posted by Vintrastorm
Hodw does he gain 16 bard levels in jail?

Thats easy. If you look into a few optional alternatives to gaining XP (most of the best ideas are presented in the Book of Exaulted Deeds under the Vow of Non-Violence section) then you will find one that states that you could award 75 - 1,000xp (that last number if you want quick levels) for doing non-combative things. This XP is awarded per level of the character, so a 4th level character (in this case, Bard 2 / Monk 2) would gain 300 XP a session. In the case of the NPC I stated it per day (1,314,000 days) divided by 6 (Character ECL when the party met him) to reach a total of 219,000xp gained in prison (at a rate of 1xp per day). This total put him into the 20th level bracket (based on the chart below <typed up completly from memory. Go simple XP system>) and so I was able to justify a 16 level in crease while in prison. Now here comes the complex part, this character is going to have at least one PrC (to a maximum of 2) that he learned from another prisoner, but will be realted in someway to his character persona.

1st - 0
2nd - 1000
3rd - 3000
4th - 6000
5th - 10000
6th - 15000
7th - 21000
8th - 28000
9th - 36000
10th - 45000
11th - 55000
12th - 66000
13th - 78000
14th - 91000
15th - 105000
16th - 120000
17th - 136000
18th - 153000
19th - 171000
20th - 190000

** If you follow this thought process to the letter, the character would actually have an enormous amount of XP, based on the fact that the XP is award at a per level basis. **
Vexxan
10-27-03, 08:14 AM He's grown bitter and spiteful over his imprisonment hasn't he? Are you set on singing as his main performance skill?
Here's what pops into my head:

The early years of imprisonment were rough. What was once an ordered demeanour and psyche have corroded into spite and malice. Under oppressive confinement he learned that physical resistance was less effective than silken words. He used this to curry favor with guards and stayed sane by verbally recounting stories from his past, eventually conjuring up great epics in his mind that were played out through his voice. However everything always came back to the burning need for vengeance he felt in his heart. His stories and words became laced with anger and cruelty. Even when not telling these twisted tales, his words were like poison. He learned how to get what he wanted through manipulation and lies.

Was he released or did he escape confinement?
Mastering the subtle art of deception through words, he smoothly talked his way out of his cell briefly and then convinced the guards to allow him a moments privacy. He had planned this for years and finally made a clean getaway (embellish as necessary).
He now actively seeks those who he blames for his imprisonment.
He probably has several different guises and aliases (who are, in fact, minor reoccuring characters in his story of course).

Now free he feels everything is just a continuation of a tale started long ago. He is the protagonist and most everything else is a backdrop he sees fit to alter based on his own script. He is not deranged, nor is he wicked to the common folk. He is very aware of reality but also very aware that he can change it. He finds setbacks and failure to simply be minor plot twists in his ongoing tale that add to the overall drama. The characters are not the only thing that nags at his mind. He is also somewhat distressed that even he cannot find an appropriate end to his own epic story.

His words are poison. To hear them is to be at his mercy. His performance skill is oration primarily with acting as his secondary (grand gestures, mimicked movement and postures accompany his tales). When using his magic he describes what he sees and what he wishes to happen. For example, when using suggestion to get an opponent to drop his blade he would say "Facing such terrible power, he layed his ebon blade to rest at his feet..." So it is spoken, so it is done. His voice is his weapon and it is dripping with venom. His words seem to echo in the ear, fog the mind and paint pictures of HIS choosing within.

You could perhaps have this BBEM lure players TO him. After all, he's told stories of what was to happen and almost never revises it. Not wanting to have this magnificent story lost to time, he has written a HUGE tome detailing everything... but it is oddly unfinished. Prior to a climactic final confrontation the players could find this book and realize they have been acting according to his plan all along (with a few discrepancies here and there where things didn't go as the bard planned or he embellished). The final pages would let the players know where he was, but not what would finally happen.
At the end of it all the players will have an epic account of their involvement already written for them.

Darn. I think my own PCs will be running into a version of this creepy fella sometime! :D
Kalanth
10-27-03, 11:03 AM Thanks Vexxan, I like your ideas a heck of a lot. I think I will have to do this very thing. As for his departure from prison, he did his full time, released after ten years becuase he did not want to anger such a strong group as the Knighthood, so he did not try to escape. As it stands, he was paroled after 5 years because of good behavior (or acting) based on what you suggested. Course, he will also spend the other 5 years antagonizing the PC's before he finally confronts them.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Kalanth 10-21-03, 03:46 PM	Ok, here is what I am looking for help on. I have introduced a future enemy of the party in the second gamming session by having an attempted theft of personal affects for scrying purposes. Well, part of that group was a bard in the band down stairs (whom was fascinating the party, but not all of the party). After they discovered the bard was in on this the imprisoned him, and the bard got ten years. So, my objective is this, 10 years latter the bard is a 20th level character bent on revenge. There are two things I am really looking for here. The main thing is some good character info (i.e. Manurisms, atttitudes, how he would react to being in society once more). The other thing is stats. I have this posted on Character Optimization as well (for stats), and I figured I would be able to get some help with giving the character a bit more of a memorable feel. After all, he is hunting down some high level folks, and his very prescense is supposed to disrupt them as they head towards the final goal. The begining of the build is this: - Monk 2 / Bard 2: I don't want anymore monk levels, but other things are fine (and any PrC is fine as well <except forgoten realms, this is a Dragonlance Game> ) - I have not made a character sheet, so no stats. The Bard become an enemy randomly by the actions of the party. Stats are on a 30 point-by. - The character is a Singer primarily, and an actor secondly, so no musical instrument. - I have not decided feets either, open realm here. - Race: Half-Elf - I was thinking of a more physical build, but I already have two Arcane Archers (one PC, one villain), an Arcane Duelist (so I don't want duelist either), a Cancer Mage, and a Devil Summoner (Homebrew PrC <in signature> ). I am trying to stay away from those things. - Finally, the party that he is after consists of a Half-Ogre Knight of the Sword, a Silvanesti Red Robe WoHS, a Kagonesti Shadow Dancer, and a Qulanesti Arcane Archer/Skylord
Morka 10-22-03, 09:19 AM	A little question here: Monks are limitted to lawful, bards are limited to non-lawful, how can you mix both? Beside this, what is fun about this one is your bard doesn't need to be evil to be an ennemy. He could even be a CG character, who was in need of money when young, got this contract, and was caught. By the time he was in prison, he could have shift to CN, but not necessary. Another thing: he seems to have taken about 15 bard level while in prison . His experience should be on manipulating other prisonners, sometime prisonners much stronger than himself. So he should not be afraid of any physical threat.
Kalanth 10-22-03, 11:23 AM	Originally posted by Morka A little question here: Monks are limitted to lawful, bards are limited to non-lawful, how can you mix both? I am taking an alignment shift after the levels in Monk. Since this is an NPC I was unconcerned about that shift, and figured it was because of his situation in life, which is why he resorted to becoming a hired gun, in a sense. I really like your ideas about manipulating the other prisoners. Really makes sense, and would benefit him story wise, and may help create some henchmen that work with him.
aldymnor 10-23-03, 09:36 AM	HIs voice should be ominous, almost like an Omyo (Buddhist deep chant, very haunting and deep), and his words should be thick, like he chose them over a really nice dinner. Make him fanciful, direct, and precise. It seems to fit, at least from where I'm sittin.
Vintrastorm 10-23-03, 03:32 PM	Hodw does he gain 16 bard levels in jail?
Kalanth 10-23-03, 05:02 PM	Originally posted by Vintrastorm Hodw does he gain 16 bard levels in jail? Thats easy. If you look into a few optional alternatives to gaining XP (most of the best ideas are presented in the Book of Exaulted Deeds under the Vow of Non-Violence section) then you will find one that states that you could award 75 - 1,000xp (that last number if you want quick levels) for doing non-combative things. This XP is awarded per level of the character, so a 4th level character (in this case, Bard 2 / Monk 2) would gain 300 XP a session. In the case of the NPC I stated it per day (1,314,000 days) divided by 6 (Character ECL when the party met him) to reach a total of 219,000xp gained in prison (at a rate of 1xp per day). This total put him into the 20th level bracket (based on the chart below <typed up completly from memory. Go simple XP system>) and so I was able to justify a 16 level in crease while in prison. Now here comes the complex part, this character is going to have at least one PrC (to a maximum of 2) that he learned from another prisoner, but will be realted in someway to his character persona. 1st - 0 2nd - 1000 3rd - 3000 4th - 6000 5th - 10000 6th - 15000 7th - 21000 8th - 28000 9th - 36000 10th - 45000 11th - 55000 12th - 66000 13th - 78000 14th - 91000 15th - 105000 16th - 120000 17th - 136000 18th - 153000 19th - 171000 20th - 190000 If you follow this thought process to the letter, the character would actually have an enormous amount of XP, based on the fact that the XP is award at a per level basis.
Vexxan 10-27-03, 08:14 AM	He's grown bitter and spiteful over his imprisonment hasn't he? Are you set on singing as his main performance skill? Here's what pops into my head: The early years of imprisonment were rough. What was once an ordered demeanour and psyche have corroded into spite and malice. Under oppressive confinement he learned that physical resistance was less effective than silken words. He used this to curry favor with guards and stayed sane by verbally recounting stories from his past, eventually conjuring up great epics in his mind that were played out through his voice. However everything always came back to the burning need for vengeance he felt in his heart. His stories and words became laced with anger and cruelty. Even when not telling these twisted tales, his words were like poison. He learned how to get what he wanted through manipulation and lies. Was he released or did he escape confinement? Mastering the subtle art of deception through words, he smoothly talked his way out of his cell briefly and then convinced the guards to allow him a moments privacy. He had planned this for years and finally made a clean getaway (embellish as necessary). He now actively seeks those who he blames for his imprisonment. He probably has several different guises and aliases (who are, in fact, minor reoccuring characters in his story of course). Now free he feels everything is just a continuation of a tale started long ago. He is the protagonist and most everything else is a backdrop he sees fit to alter based on his own script. He is not deranged, nor is he wicked to the common folk. He is very aware of reality but also very aware that he can change it. He finds setbacks and failure to simply be minor plot twists in his ongoing tale that add to the overall drama. The characters are not the only thing that nags at his mind. He is also somewhat distressed that even he cannot find an appropriate end to his own epic story. His words are poison. To hear them is to be at his mercy. His performance skill is oration primarily with acting as his secondary (grand gestures, mimicked movement and postures accompany his tales). When using his magic he describes what he sees and what he wishes to happen. For example, when using suggestion to get an opponent to drop his blade he would say "Facing such terrible power, he layed his ebon blade to rest at his feet..." So it is spoken, so it is done. His voice is his weapon and it is dripping with venom. His words seem to echo in the ear, fog the mind and paint pictures of HIS choosing within. You could perhaps have this BBEM lure players TO him. After all, he's told stories of what was to happen and almost never revises it. Not wanting to have this magnificent story lost to time, he has written a HUGE tome detailing everything... but it is oddly unfinished. Prior to a climactic final confrontation the players could find this book and realize they have been acting according to his plan all along (with a few discrepancies here and there where things didn't go as the bard planned or he embellished). The final pages would let the players know where he was, but not what would finally happen. At the end of it all the players will have an epic account of their involvement already written for them. Darn. I think my own PCs will be running into a version of this creepy fella sometime! :D
Kalanth 10-27-03, 11:03 AM	Thanks Vexxan, I like your ideas a heck of a lot. I think I will have to do this very thing. As for his departure from prison, he did his full time, released after ten years becuase he did not want to anger such a strong group as the Knighthood, so he did not try to escape. As it stands, he was paroled after 5 years because of good behavior (or acting) based on what you suggested. Course, he will also spend the other 5 years antagonizing the PC's before he finally confronts them.