Jumbuck the Black (help me play this character) [Archive] - Wizards Community

Jumbuck the Black (help me play this character) [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
The_Dark_One
12-05-03, 03:15 AM I've decided to enter an upcoming game with a remake of a character that I didn't get to play as much as I would have liked the first time. I'm pretty much reinventung the character for the new game. I could use some ideas here.

Jumbuck is a wandering wizard. He wants to be a hero more than anything else. He studied magic under an evil wizard. He stole a powerful item from his master (that he soon lost) and diasppeared into the night. He knew the guy was evil to begin with. He simply picked the wizard most likely to be willing and able to teach him what he needed to know. Also, a young wizard on the run from an evil master is one of the classic stories.

Jumbuck wants to be a hero and doesn't care what he has to do in order to achieve his goal. He isn't above putting innocents in danger so that he can "rescue" them (like ordering zombies to threaten people so that he can destroy them) They aren't in much danger, but he is willing to put them at some risk just to make them like him.

Jumbuck divides everyone into two groups: his friends and everyone else. To his friends, he is helpful, loyal, trustworthy, and just generally a great guy to be around. These are people to be treated with respect, loyalty, and good will.

Everyone else are either tools, obstacles, or sheep waiting to be fleeced.

I was thinking of making him Nuetral Evil. Is that the right alignment?

I was thinking of eventually making him into a necromancer (I love undead). Does this affect what alignment he would be?

If anyone has any ideas for a magical banjo within the resources of a third level character, I could use some ideas there.

Oh, does anyone get the joke in his name?Jumbuck the Black

For those of you who have read Discworld novels, imagine him as someone who would easily fit in at Unseen University (his name may even be Jumbuck Ridcully). I plan to play him as a more comic than dastardly evil. Does that help?(Edited to include this last bit.
Morka
12-05-03, 10:12 AM NE in alignment fit well. However, he is not that evil. He is helpful to his friends, and his menaces toward other people are just bluff. As long as he doesn't hunt people to turn them into undeads, he could as well be CN. Both alignments fit very well for a necromancer.

Since he will interact with people, he should have a decent charisma. Take the feat Cosmopolitan, and have bluff be a class skill. ("Your town is invaded by zombis? Where could they be coming from?")

He should be overconfident in his skills, and tell this to everyone. Have his familiar be a crow who can talk common, so even the crow will tell everyone his master is the best. But when confronted to a real danger (that you didn't caused yourself), you should begin to be less confident in you.

My 2¢.
Avalon
12-05-03, 04:27 PM Evil people are most often helpful to their friends. But your guy sounds like he's lieing to himself to me about how good and wonderful he is toward his friends. And that can be a great hook for yourself. You think you're good. But you are not and so you never understand why people take what you say the wrong way because it was just words... why'd he take it that way. I only asked where his sister was. That's because the people who meet you will be able to tell from talking to you that you have agendas, are not open and honest, and are not someone they like to spend time with.

But actually besides that, I think he sounds chaotic neutral. It also sounds like he's into heroing for the glory which works well too.
spoon242
12-05-03, 04:32 PM If this character's desirous of being a hero, I can't see him as being evil at all. Go the Cn route.
Originally posted by The_Dark_One

Oh, does anyone get the joke in his name?Jumbuck the Black
May I suggest either Ebon or Jet as a first name? Jumbuck may come across as a bit silly. While Ebon sounds like a real name, how can you go wrong with the alliterative 'Jet Jumbuck'?

a word of caution: Just make sure no swagman stuffs you in his tuckerbag.
The_Dark_One
12-06-03, 03:00 AM Well, I'm just back from the first game. It wasn't much, since there was no combat, just the introduction. Turns out that I'm not allowed to be evil (*sigh*), so, I ended up softening the cuthroat aspects of his personality and went for Chaotic Neutral. His name ended up being Jumbuck Ridcully (he is, afetr all, a wizard with a crossbow). Anyway, he has agreed to help the barbarian complete his rite of passage as the chieftan's son, simply because this is the way legends begin.

Any suggestions on using the ubdead without the party paladin throwing a fit?

Oh, I didn't think anyone would get the name joke: :cookie: Good job.
LiXinjian
12-07-03, 07:40 AM If your character makes schemes to acquire fame, conceives elaborate plots to be the hero in the eyes of other, I think he should be LN.

LN means he's got a rigid, disciplined nature. Sure, he might obey laws, but he bends them and uses them for his own profit.

Neutral means you usually care about your friends (as opposed to a true evil character who doesn't have any friends - only temporary allies/tools to be discarded when the time is right), but not about the rest of the world. Either that, or you are commited to a balanced point of view regarding good and evil. Read the PH, it's right there.

If you want to be both neutral and create undead, just make sure your character does good deeds every now and then, to balance his evil deeds (creating undead being evil). Otherwise, your alignment will switch to evil in little time.

Using undead without the paladin throwing a fit is tricky. Even if you wanted to justify it by saying "but they are helping us help others, so their purpose is good!", paladins are famous for not adhering to the "the end justifies the means" motto, even if those ends are noble. They value honour, and frank talk. They don't like sneaks.

There's a spell called Disguise Undead in Magic of Faerūn. If you could mask your undead minions' evil aura, you could have a whole bunch of them adventuring with you.

Paladin: your friends don't talk much, do they?
Necro: well, truth be told, they are all mutes I rescued in a previous adventure. They insisted to travel with us, slay evil beings, rescue princesses, you know? That sort of thing. Because they know I'm a sucker for heroics, and they owe me one.
Paladin: They don't eat much either, do they?
Necro: You ever heard of rings of sustenance? Didn't think so.
Paladin: Come to think of it, I've never seen them sleep...
Necro: Me neither. They're a weird bunch, ain't they? I think we should keep an eye on 'em. Particularly the.. err, brown-haired one. You know? I don't trust the fellow..

Oh, the roleplaying mess when the paladin finds out.. oh! :rofl:

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
The_Dark_One 12-05-03, 03:15 AM	I've decided to enter an upcoming game with a remake of a character that I didn't get to play as much as I would have liked the first time. I'm pretty much reinventung the character for the new game. I could use some ideas here. Jumbuck is a wandering wizard. He wants to be a hero more than anything else. He studied magic under an evil wizard. He stole a powerful item from his master (that he soon lost) and diasppeared into the night. He knew the guy was evil to begin with. He simply picked the wizard most likely to be willing and able to teach him what he needed to know. Also, a young wizard on the run from an evil master is one of the classic stories. Jumbuck wants to be a hero and doesn't care what he has to do in order to achieve his goal. He isn't above putting innocents in danger so that he can "rescue" them (like ordering zombies to threaten people so that he can destroy them) They aren't in much danger, but he is willing to put them at some risk just to make them like him. Jumbuck divides everyone into two groups: his friends and everyone else. To his friends, he is helpful, loyal, trustworthy, and just generally a great guy to be around. These are people to be treated with respect, loyalty, and good will. Everyone else are either tools, obstacles, or sheep waiting to be fleeced. I was thinking of making him Nuetral Evil. Is that the right alignment? I was thinking of eventually making him into a necromancer (I love undead). Does this affect what alignment he would be? If anyone has any ideas for a magical banjo within the resources of a third level character, I could use some ideas there. Oh, does anyone get the joke in his name?Jumbuck the Black For those of you who have read Discworld novels, imagine him as someone who would easily fit in at Unseen University (his name may even be Jumbuck Ridcully). I plan to play him as a more comic than dastardly evil. Does that help?(Edited to include this last bit.
Morka 12-05-03, 10:12 AM	NE in alignment fit well. However, he is not that evil. He is helpful to his friends, and his menaces toward other people are just bluff. As long as he doesn't hunt people to turn them into undeads, he could as well be CN. Both alignments fit very well for a necromancer. Since he will interact with people, he should have a decent charisma. Take the feat Cosmopolitan, and have bluff be a class skill. ("Your town is invaded by zombis? Where could they be coming from?") He should be overconfident in his skills, and tell this to everyone. Have his familiar be a crow who can talk common, so even the crow will tell everyone his master is the best. But when confronted to a real danger (that you didn't caused yourself), you should begin to be less confident in you. My 2¢.
Avalon 12-05-03, 04:27 PM	Evil people are most often helpful to their friends. But your guy sounds like he's lieing to himself to me about how good and wonderful he is toward his friends. And that can be a great hook for yourself. You think you're good. But you are not and so you never understand why people take what you say the wrong way because it was just words... why'd he take it that way. I only asked where his sister was. That's because the people who meet you will be able to tell from talking to you that you have agendas, are not open and honest, and are not someone they like to spend time with. But actually besides that, I think he sounds chaotic neutral. It also sounds like he's into heroing for the glory which works well too.
spoon242 12-05-03, 04:32 PM	If this character's desirous of being a hero, I can't see him as being evil at all. Go the Cn route. Originally posted by The_Dark_One Oh, does anyone get the joke in his name?Jumbuck the Black May I suggest either Ebon or Jet as a first name? Jumbuck may come across as a bit silly. While Ebon sounds like a real name, how can you go wrong with the alliterative 'Jet Jumbuck'? a word of caution: Just make sure no swagman stuffs you in his tuckerbag.
The_Dark_One 12-06-03, 03:00 AM	Well, I'm just back from the first game. It wasn't much, since there was no combat, just the introduction. Turns out that I'm not allowed to be evil (sigh), so, I ended up softening the cuthroat aspects of his personality and went for Chaotic Neutral. His name ended up being Jumbuck Ridcully (he is, afetr all, a wizard with a crossbow). Anyway, he has agreed to help the barbarian complete his rite of passage as the chieftan's son, simply because this is the way legends begin. Any suggestions on using the ubdead without the party paladin throwing a fit? Oh, I didn't think anyone would get the name joke: :cookie: Good job.
LiXinjian 12-07-03, 07:40 AM	If your character makes schemes to acquire fame, conceives elaborate plots to be the hero in the eyes of other, I think he should be LN. LN means he's got a rigid, disciplined nature. Sure, he might obey laws, but he bends them and uses them for his own profit. Neutral means you usually care about your friends (as opposed to a true evil character who doesn't have any friends - only temporary allies/tools to be discarded when the time is right), but not about the rest of the world. Either that, or you are commited to a balanced point of view regarding good and evil. Read the PH, it's right there. If you want to be both neutral and create undead, just make sure your character does good deeds every now and then, to balance his evil deeds (creating undead being evil). Otherwise, your alignment will switch to evil in little time. Using undead without the paladin throwing a fit is tricky. Even if you wanted to justify it by saying "but they are helping us help others, so their purpose is good!", paladins are famous for not adhering to the "the end justifies the means" motto, even if those ends are noble. They value honour, and frank talk. They don't like sneaks. There's a spell called Disguise Undead in Magic of Faerūn. If you could mask your undead minions' evil aura, you could have a whole bunch of them adventuring with you. Paladin: your friends don't talk much, do they? Necro: well, truth be told, they are all mutes I rescued in a previous adventure. They insisted to travel with us, slay evil beings, rescue princesses, you know? That sort of thing. Because they know I'm a sucker for heroics, and they owe me one. Paladin: They don't eat much either, do they? Necro: You ever heard of rings of sustenance? Didn't think so. Paladin: Come to think of it, I've never seen them sleep... Necro: Me neither. They're a weird bunch, ain't they? I think we should keep an eye on 'em. Particularly the.. err, brown-haired one. You know? I don't trust the fellow.. Oh, the roleplaying mess when the paladin finds out.. oh! :rofl: