Post/Author/DateTime	Post
TheSacredSquirrel 04-23-07, 11:57 AM	Gwyneth, Female Human Illusionist Str: 12 Dex: 15 Con: 15 Int: 16 Wis: 8 Cha: 16 I wanted a unique roleplaying experience and a mute illusionist that carries no spellbook might just do the trick. She uses the illusion master and focused specialist variant class features and i would like to progress into shadowcraft mage her loose grip on sanity should help me encourage my dm to let a human take it. however i am not sure her story is compelling enough any suggestions would be appreciated. Oh and she has a raven familiar that can help with basic communication it is only an empathic link but still it helps. It was a cold winter night when my mother arrived at the Gargoyles Crest Inn. It was then that I was born... and she died. The innkeeper Jasper decided to take me in. From the moment I was old enough I had to work to earn my keep. Despite the rough crowd work was not to bad most nights. However between my past and my profession I was given the reputation of a wh0re. One day two men decided to exploit that and even as I screamed for help they cut my throat and had their way. I almost died that day, although in another way i did die i lost a large part of myself as well as my voice. I was terribly distraught that people could treat others like that and that i could do nothing to stop it. How could such a thing be real? A few years later as i was serving an old man he stopped me and handed me a choker, it was the most beautiful thing i had ever seen, solid silver with mysterious engravings. He stayed at the inn for a year everyday and after closing he would teach me how to translate the markings; after I had learned how to translate the engravings, albeit very slowly, he left. I am not sure why but something about that man seemed so familiar. Anyway now that i have learned the secrets of illusion i feel i must explore the truth of reality and illusion, unfortunately i know not how to ask the question. However there is one thing i do know the strength i lacked before was merely an illusion and those men will never bother a defenseless girl again.
Westbound 04-23-07, 12:21 PM	Well, without being able to implement Verbal components of spells, not to mention not being able to have a record of the spells you know, this is going to be problematic. Assuming that the choker will enable her to use Verbal components, does it also enable her to communicate verbally with others? Being able to communicate in such a way sort of negates being mute, but if there were limits to that sort of communication (for instance, no singing, no shouting, short statements) it might still be interesting. Without a means of recording spells, and mind you it doesn't really have to be a big thick book, it's only going to make your job harder. The other people in the group are going to start rolling their eyes in contempt for how useless your illusionist is. After a few spells, she can't relearn them. Even if she has Spell Mastery, she's going to be limited by what she knows, not by what she can access; and wizard specializations tend to be limiting in options anyway. Unless she's a Sorcerer-type class.
TheSacredSquirrel 04-23-07, 11:41 PM	I guess i should explain then. First illusion mastery allows her to learn an extra two illusionist spells per level and treats all illusion spells as if mastered by spell mastery at the cost of her wizard bonus feats. Second the choker allows her to speak only when casting a spell or giving a command word it is her desire to use magic that activates the magic in the choker.
Westbound 04-24-07, 01:34 AM	Well, then, I guess you've got it covered. My only problem would be the muteness. I once played a mute samurai hero, but it was rough to role-play because it was rough on my fellow players. They got tired of me constantly having to write out what I wanted to say all the time, and even when I got my follower from Leadership and spoke through him with sign-language it got a little grating. Eventually, I was able to get a wish granted to me to restore my voice (I think the DM was being very nice). You have to be able to communicate with your party, even if it's in the form of a whisper. I know you may have your heart set on this, but believe me that you want your character to be at least tolerable to the rest of your group, not just you. There's a thin line in RPGs that a lot of players don't quite understand. There's a point where role-playing can interfere with playing the game itself, and a lot of players will not like dying or missing out on something significant because someone was merely role-playing their character that has a circumstance concocted purely by the player himself. If you were muted by something that happened in combat and the DM decided to give it to you, that's one thing; you endowing it to your character is another. Not everyone is a role-player in the sense that you are and they will not tolerate such things for very long. I've seen such players arrange a killing of other PCs just for that very reason. Perhaps your players aren't like that, and if so that's fine. But even the most dedicated role-players will want to "win" a victory against the bad guys (or the good guys, if that's the situation). If you suffer or die because of someone's desire to role-play accurately, I assure you that you will not like it one bit. So, perhaps you should consider at least allowing the choker to allow you to communicate with a low whisper. At the very least that'll make you less of a liability.
Fithero 04-24-07, 08:06 AM	Westbound makes a good point, i once had a mute in our party... we just killed him by the end of the first adventure (evil party) Anyway, not wanting to communicate via speech is fine but you need a speedy way to communicate with others. Perhaps you can communicate like the Daibus (sp?) from Sigil (they are in Planescape: Torment alot). They have these symbols that flash above their head (not like Illumians who have a ring of symbols... these are directly above the head and constantly changing). These guys dont talk at all, but can communicate fine (with those who understand the symbols). Being an illusionist, you could pull off this sort of trick, or just say your descended from that race. Also, if your not wanting a spell book, perhaps you could use that tattoo variant from UA. Just tattoo all your spells onto your body... you look like a freak eventually, but nobody can steal your spell book :P Hope this helps. Peace
Westbound 04-25-07, 03:56 AM	Also, if your not wanting a spell book, perhaps you could use that tattoo variant from UA. Just tattoo all your spells onto your body... you look like a freak eventually, but nobody can steal your spell book Be careful with this. My players tried to do this. They read their share of Knights of the Dinner Table, and they tattooed emergency spells on their backs in case of capture or something. I allowed this, and sort of adjusted this scribe scroll technique a bit due to its unorthodox nature. They did eventually get captured, but when my evil-doers capture people...well...they torture them. A lot. My hobgoblins flogged the players with bull-whips. Their backs were so scarred that the wizard couldn't read the spells. They were useless. My players were so mad they actually keyed my car.
Fithero 04-25-07, 07:38 AM	My players were so mad they actually keyed my car. Yeeeeeeeeah :uh-huh: you should probably get some new friends dude...
Westbound 04-25-07, 01:20 PM	Yeeeeeeeeah you should probably get some new friends dude... They're pretty cool otherwise. They paid for the damages. They've done worse to me. When I get a TPK they usually do something like make me walk home in my underwear, or let the air out of my tires, or write an epithet on my forehead with a permanent marker. The girls in my group get especially mad when I exploit their desire for romance and kill their characters as a result. This last point is always a hoot at my table. Somehow, some way, I manage to pique the interest of one of these girls with some charismatic NPC. Once, there was a duke that was trying to regain his land that was taken from him through an act of treachery. He was handsome, debonair, courageous and he cared about his subjects that had rallied to his service. The party's wizard, played by one of my ladies, started seeing the duke, at first just an exchange of gifts, and then to something serious. I usually don't go into too much detail at the table, and I left such liasons to a curt statement, like, "Ok, you ride out toward the duke's area," where she would spend her time with the duke. The party didn't care, so long as she was able to recover her spells and get her chores done as far as her wizardly role was concerned. I wrote a simple note to her and asked her how serious are you willing to get into this? She merely responded "serious." It wasn't really a secret that she was seeing the duke, and she even blabbed repeatedly of her intent to become a duchess. As the duke had finally won back his land from the evil blackguard, the wizard found out she was pregnant. She was so happy about this news that she ran off to tell the duke. "Let's get married!" She told the duke. The duke refused! There was this deathly silence at my table, and the tension was very palpable. "Why?" she said. "I'm sorry, my love, but you're a commoner. You have no royal blood. I cannot wed one who has no political dowry." The bombshell happened a few days later. "I can't be seen with you anymore." he said. "And I cannot accept your child." I swear that the color in her eyes went from hazel to red. Right there, in front of everyone, she hits the guy with a fireball and kills him! The entire table is roaring in laughter, but I was concerned that she was going to do something to me. The party had to fight their way out of the dukedom and they lost their cleric on the way. Later that night, she sucker punches me in the gut, and called me a jerk. We're good friends, but she thinks I'm some sort of evil DM.
Terjon of the Blue Rose 04-27-07, 03:37 AM	Later that night, she sucker punches me in the gut, and called me a jerk. We're good friends, but she thinks I'm some sort of evil DM. She's right. You may be accurate but most def. evil. Personally I'd love to play in one of your games.