Repented noble turned Paladin? [Archive] - Wizards Community

Repented noble turned Paladin? [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Nephite
07-24-05, 02:41 PM Hello and thank you ahead of time to all that help. The character bio as I have it is below.

First, though, I am going to pose the questions I have for this character. Do you think the bio would fit better with a first level Fighter that becomes a Cleric, or a pure Cleric? Do you have any ideas for how Armin can go about "repenting" (besides taking Sacred Vow)? Does Vow of Poverty (taken at 9th level, more than likely), seem too extreme for this character concept? And finally, would the Leadership feat fit well with him? Also, I have more questions at the bottom, by the skill/feat section.

Concept: A stuck-up Fighter, born as a noble, sees how the world truly is and tries his best to repent from his old ways.

Edit: This is the new version of his story. I also changed his feats/skills, but I put those in a new post.

Name: Armin al’Skah
Sex: Male
Age: 18
Appearance: 6 feet and one inch tall, weighs about 210 pounds. Has dark brown eyes and hair. Skin is a tan shade of white.

Armin was born into a wealthy, upper class family. His family consisted of his father and mother and two older brothers, Gabe and Ridic. His family lived on, and was supported by, a large horse ranch. Due to this, Armin spent much of his youth with the horses. When not out with the horses, Armin was receiving an upbringing worthy of a noble. He learned to read and write, learned some knowledge of the world around him (only upper class matters, of course), and eventually learned the skills that would allow him to survive in the culture to which he was born.

Armin's older brothers enlisted themselves in a war when Armin was seven. Gabe proved successful in the war and quickly rose up through the ranks, finding his life’s calling and increased glory for his family name. The exact opposite was true for Ridic, who was disillusioned by the atrocities committed in the name of the war.

After returning from the war, Ridic was a shell of his former self. He took no pleasure in the material things that he was showered in, and secluded himself from the outside world. Gabe seemed remote and detached from his family, much came with the titles that had been showered upon him in the war. Armin became Ridic’s only comfort, and Ridic became Armin’s only mentor to the outside world. Ridic filled Armin with fantasist stories of the outside world when the ex-warrior was in a good mood, but when he entered his worse mood’s he showered Armin with stories of the horrors he had seen in the war.

Only a few years after his return, Ridic felt the holy call of Heironeous. He left shortly after, forsaking his parent's lifestyle and leaving his home to journey, to find someplace where the good guy’s acted good and the only enemy was evil. Armin was only 11, too young to follow along. On the day his brother left, he also took up a sword. Not to fight, but to learn, so that one day he might join his brother. He swore a sacred oath on that blade, that he would one day follow in his brothers footsteps.

Armin turned to the only person available to him in this period, his other brother Gabe. Gabe was more than happy to teach his younger sibling matters such as sword fighting and battlefield tactics, and now that the two had a common hobby they managed to bond to each other. The bond Armin shared with Gabe was no where near as strong as that he shared with Ridic, but with the oldest of the three gone Armin soon forgot his oldest brother’s almighty presence.

Armin is 18 now, and has long forgotten about his younger years, oath and brother's influence included. He has decided to leave his parent's estate, following Gabe’s example closer than Ridic’s. He seeks wealth and glory all his own, not just for being an al’Skah, but for being Armin. The oath he swore has lain dormant in the forgotten reaches of his brain for seven years, and the Gods are starting to take anger at Armin’s alienating actions. They have sent Armin small notices to change his ways, but he has not paid attention to any. If he continues down the path he has taken, who knows what the Gods could throw at him.

Personality:

Armin has a stuck up, stubborn personality. He confronts the lower classes with a "It's your fault for not being born rich" attitude, and believes that all who suffer lose are well deserving of it. He believes that he is more than worthy of all that has been bestowed on him, and that he should be honored due to his position wherever he goes.

Skill/feat selection:

As of right now, Armin's first level skills are ride, handle animal, and diplomacy (taken cross class). His feats are Power Attack, Weapon Focus (Longsword) and Sacred Vow (since Armin has drifted from being LG, this one will not have any effect until his alignment changes).

Should I change my skill selections to include something besides diplomacy, then drop one of my feats for Negotiator? And, given a fighter's skill selections, are there any alternatives that would fit his history?

Thank you again to everyone for your help!
Morka
07-25-05, 09:55 AM After loosing 2 sons, I wonder why his parents let him go for nothing more than "glory". After all, they would need their son to run the ranch and direct all those commoners. I wouldn't make the middle brother die in war. Perhaps meet glory, bringing back war treasure; his parents are very proud of him, as everyone he knows. The older brother (who doesn't need to have lost a brother to be close to your character) was in the same war, but was struck by its uselessness and cruelty. Every time someone congratulated his brother, it was a slap in the face for him. Sick of preaching in the desert, he left and joinned a paladin's order, abandoning his sole follower: your character.

For the rest, you can shift the hired weapon master for the middle brother, who in addition to sword teach your character how to bring glory on yourself. At 18, your character follow the tracks of your middle brother, and leave to bring back fortune and glory on your familly.

I don't think you should take Sacred Vow at 1st level, especially if you do not start as a Good character. At first level, you could raid some goblins encampment for the glory, then either show remorse or be convinced by some LG character that you are wrong, slowly shifting to LG. Then taking Sacred Vow at 3rd level.

If you take Vow of Poverty, there is a great roleplay concept I see: you return to your familly, and throw your MW sword and MW armor at your Middle Brother feet, explaining him that if he wants money and wealth, he can keep the adorned familly's weapons.
Nephite
07-25-05, 02:02 PM I really like the sounds of that. Let me go tweak my story, and I'll post the new one.

Also, Sacred Vow would have no effect at 1st level. Basically, I have 3 slots for feats, and I'm only going to take two of them until Armin switches to LG.
Nephite
07-27-05, 07:59 PM I've decided to drop Sacred Vow for Negotiator. Now I'm just wondering whether I should drop the cc ranks in Diplomacy to take ranks in something else (though, from looking at the Fighter's skill selection it looks like I'd be taking something else cc instead).

Also, I'm thinking of drop Weapon Focus (Longsword) for something like Exotic Weapon Profiency (Bastard Sword).

I believe that my skills/feats fit in well with Armin's background story, but if anyone has another take on it (or comments on the story in general), please let me know.
Jammin8915
07-27-05, 08:48 PM Well, vow of poverty can be a real pain, the affects you get out of it arent worth it, in my opinion. dont think you need the ftr class lvl, because a palidan isnt an all out fighter to start with. one ftr lvl wouldnt be that helpful. clk lvls is the way i would go, all the way.
Nephite
07-28-05, 10:45 PM The point of the character isn't to be strong in combat though, it's much more based around the background story and the roleplaying aspect.

I start with a fighter level because I need Armin to be something while his story takes place, so that he can change his heart and repent (thereby hearing the call to become a Paladin).

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Nephite 07-24-05, 02:41 PM	Hello and thank you ahead of time to all that help. The character bio as I have it is below. First, though, I am going to pose the questions I have for this character. Do you think the bio would fit better with a first level Fighter that becomes a Cleric, or a pure Cleric? Do you have any ideas for how Armin can go about "repenting" (besides taking Sacred Vow)? Does Vow of Poverty (taken at 9th level, more than likely), seem too extreme for this character concept? And finally, would the Leadership feat fit well with him? Also, I have more questions at the bottom, by the skill/feat section. Concept: A stuck-up Fighter, born as a noble, sees how the world truly is and tries his best to repent from his old ways. Edit: This is the new version of his story. I also changed his feats/skills, but I put those in a new post. Name: Armin al’Skah Sex: Male Age: 18 Appearance: 6 feet and one inch tall, weighs about 210 pounds. Has dark brown eyes and hair. Skin is a tan shade of white. Armin was born into a wealthy, upper class family. His family consisted of his father and mother and two older brothers, Gabe and Ridic. His family lived on, and was supported by, a large horse ranch. Due to this, Armin spent much of his youth with the horses. When not out with the horses, Armin was receiving an upbringing worthy of a noble. He learned to read and write, learned some knowledge of the world around him (only upper class matters, of course), and eventually learned the skills that would allow him to survive in the culture to which he was born. Armin's older brothers enlisted themselves in a war when Armin was seven. Gabe proved successful in the war and quickly rose up through the ranks, finding his life’s calling and increased glory for his family name. The exact opposite was true for Ridic, who was disillusioned by the atrocities committed in the name of the war. After returning from the war, Ridic was a shell of his former self. He took no pleasure in the material things that he was showered in, and secluded himself from the outside world. Gabe seemed remote and detached from his family, much came with the titles that had been showered upon him in the war. Armin became Ridic’s only comfort, and Ridic became Armin’s only mentor to the outside world. Ridic filled Armin with fantasist stories of the outside world when the ex-warrior was in a good mood, but when he entered his worse mood’s he showered Armin with stories of the horrors he had seen in the war. Only a few years after his return, Ridic felt the holy call of Heironeous. He left shortly after, forsaking his parent's lifestyle and leaving his home to journey, to find someplace where the good guy’s acted good and the only enemy was evil. Armin was only 11, too young to follow along. On the day his brother left, he also took up a sword. Not to fight, but to learn, so that one day he might join his brother. He swore a sacred oath on that blade, that he would one day follow in his brothers footsteps. Armin turned to the only person available to him in this period, his other brother Gabe. Gabe was more than happy to teach his younger sibling matters such as sword fighting and battlefield tactics, and now that the two had a common hobby they managed to bond to each other. The bond Armin shared with Gabe was no where near as strong as that he shared with Ridic, but with the oldest of the three gone Armin soon forgot his oldest brother’s almighty presence. Armin is 18 now, and has long forgotten about his younger years, oath and brother's influence included. He has decided to leave his parent's estate, following Gabe’s example closer than Ridic’s. He seeks wealth and glory all his own, not just for being an al’Skah, but for being Armin. The oath he swore has lain dormant in the forgotten reaches of his brain for seven years, and the Gods are starting to take anger at Armin’s alienating actions. They have sent Armin small notices to change his ways, but he has not paid attention to any. If he continues down the path he has taken, who knows what the Gods could throw at him. Personality: Armin has a stuck up, stubborn personality. He confronts the lower classes with a "It's your fault for not being born rich" attitude, and believes that all who suffer lose are well deserving of it. He believes that he is more than worthy of all that has been bestowed on him, and that he should be honored due to his position wherever he goes. Skill/feat selection: As of right now, Armin's first level skills are ride, handle animal, and diplomacy (taken cross class). His feats are Power Attack, Weapon Focus (Longsword) and Sacred Vow (since Armin has drifted from being LG, this one will not have any effect until his alignment changes). Should I change my skill selections to include something besides diplomacy, then drop one of my feats for Negotiator? And, given a fighter's skill selections, are there any alternatives that would fit his history? Thank you again to everyone for your help!
Morka 07-25-05, 09:55 AM	After loosing 2 sons, I wonder why his parents let him go for nothing more than "glory". After all, they would need their son to run the ranch and direct all those commoners. I wouldn't make the middle brother die in war. Perhaps meet glory, bringing back war treasure; his parents are very proud of him, as everyone he knows. The older brother (who doesn't need to have lost a brother to be close to your character) was in the same war, but was struck by its uselessness and cruelty. Every time someone congratulated his brother, it was a slap in the face for him. Sick of preaching in the desert, he left and joinned a paladin's order, abandoning his sole follower: your character. For the rest, you can shift the hired weapon master for the middle brother, who in addition to sword teach your character how to bring glory on yourself. At 18, your character follow the tracks of your middle brother, and leave to bring back fortune and glory on your familly. I don't think you should take Sacred Vow at 1st level, especially if you do not start as a Good character. At first level, you could raid some goblins encampment for the glory, then either show remorse or be convinced by some LG character that you are wrong, slowly shifting to LG. Then taking Sacred Vow at 3rd level. If you take Vow of Poverty, there is a great roleplay concept I see: you return to your familly, and throw your MW sword and MW armor at your Middle Brother feet, explaining him that if he wants money and wealth, he can keep the adorned familly's weapons.
Nephite 07-25-05, 02:02 PM	I really like the sounds of that. Let me go tweak my story, and I'll post the new one. Also, Sacred Vow would have no effect at 1st level. Basically, I have 3 slots for feats, and I'm only going to take two of them until Armin switches to LG.
Nephite 07-27-05, 07:59 PM	I've decided to drop Sacred Vow for Negotiator. Now I'm just wondering whether I should drop the cc ranks in Diplomacy to take ranks in something else (though, from looking at the Fighter's skill selection it looks like I'd be taking something else cc instead). Also, I'm thinking of drop Weapon Focus (Longsword) for something like Exotic Weapon Profiency (Bastard Sword). I believe that my skills/feats fit in well with Armin's background story, but if anyone has another take on it (or comments on the story in general), please let me know.
Jammin8915 07-27-05, 08:48 PM	Well, vow of poverty can be a real pain, the affects you get out of it arent worth it, in my opinion. dont think you need the ftr class lvl, because a palidan isnt an all out fighter to start with. one ftr lvl wouldnt be that helpful. clk lvls is the way i would go, all the way.
Nephite 07-28-05, 10:45 PM	The point of the character isn't to be strong in combat though, it's much more based around the background story and the roleplaying aspect. I start with a fighter level because I need Armin to be something while his story takes place, so that he can change his heart and repent (thereby hearing the call to become a Paladin).