Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Kolo 06-02-04, 09:37 PM	I've been wanting to play a very flavourful githzerai wizard for a while now, and as such I've been absorbing the lore on githzerai available around the 'net and in the books. As a final touch to the flavour, I'm intending to make him into a multiclass fighter/mage going for Eldritch Knight (which for this purpose-approved by the DM- is going to be renamed the Zerth, as in a follower of Zerthimon's teachings). I know this isn't the definision of Zerth, but who says there's only one path of *knowing* oneself... ;) As such, I'm going to take a somewhat unusual approach to my spell selection. I'll be using the standard spells from the PhB and other books, but I want to rename every last spell I take to fit into my theme. To post a few examples; Magic Missile is now renamed Reign of Anger. (This refers to the revolution of the First People, and how their hatred for their masters destroyed the illithids.) Shield-Submerge the Will. (Zerthimon had to shield his thoughts and submerge his will to free himself when tortured by his mind flayer master to discover the uprising of the First People.) Magic Weapon-Scripture of Steel. (The first scripture all githzerai learn is the scripture of how Zerthimon learned that steel was stronger than flesh, and thus how he learned to use this knowledge against his mindflayer slavemasters.) Blindness/Deafness - Vilquar's Eye. ('Vilquar's eye' is something githzerai say when they speak of someone blinded by greed, or simply by single-mindedness, and forget truth in so doing. Vilquar was a traitor to the Githzerai cause of freedom, and died at the hands of his masters.) Confusion-Achali Drowning. (Achali was a young githzerai whose mind was unfocused. As she traveled in Limbo, the plane of chaos and the home of the githzerai, she became stranded and only kept herself from drowning by creating an island with her mind. a planar traveller came by, but instead of asking this person how to get home and leaving, she asked many unfocused questions which eventually made her lose her focus on the island, unmaking it and drowning her. To this day, 'Achali drowning' is spoken by Githzerai to remind their fellows of Achali's folly, and to ask them to be more specific with their questions in daily conversation.) I've got a few more ideas, but I'd also like to hear some more from you- even if unrelated to my character. Renaming spells can speak volumes of how a certain spellcaster views his/her world, and can be pretty character building. So keep 'em coming!:D
Trydan 06-03-04, 05:45 AM	I once designed a high-level character based on the Magic card Dakkon Blackblade. I made the character a Barbarian/Sorcerer (to take Horizon Walker as a prestige class later), and renamed some of the spells to suit. Cat's Grace = Restless Ocean Bull's Strength = Mountain's Power Blur = Haze of the Horizon Arcane Mark = Craftsman's Mark Endurance = Endless Plain Shout = Cry of the Land The others were all as per the normal PHB names.
Cthulu13 06-03-04, 07:45 AM	Just out of curiosity, are you getting this straight from planescape: Torment, or is their another source I'm not aware of?
Kolo 06-03-04, 10:39 AM	Partly from Planescape, yes, but mostly I copied out the entire contents of the Unbroken Circle of Zerthimon from the game, took out some notable phrases and attached them to spells. I still need spells for "In enduring, grow Strong" and "There cannot be two skies"... Then, I plan on combing the entries in the MM for the gith races and the illithd to glean some more. Unfortunately, my DM keeps "misplacing" the copy we have... nevermind the fact that I was the one who bought it... :P Cool names there Trydan... am I correct in assuming that the character is the stoic silent type that prefers nature to the bustle of cities? sounds a bit like that to me... or possibly a monk of some sort. Anyway, I've got some more from my character; True Strike- Zerthimon's Focus (I don't think I need to explain that one...) Fireball- The Green Fires Burning (This refers to the green fires that scoured the fields where the illithid grew their poisonous herbs when the rising was nearing it's end. I also want the visual effect to be the same except the fire it generates is green...) anyway, let's hear some more! :cool:
Trydan 06-04-04, 06:03 PM	Originally posted by Kolo Cool names there Trydan... am I correct in assuming that the character is the stoic silent type that prefers nature to the bustle of cities? sounds a bit like that to me... or possibly a monk of some sort.As I said, the character was a Barbarian/Sorcerer, with the aim of taking the Horizon Walker prestige class. However, you are right about the stoic type, and cities were definitely avoided!
DwarvinJedi 06-04-04, 10:18 PM	Originally posted by Kolo Partly from Planescape, yes, but mostly I copied out the entire contents of the Unbroken Circle of Zerthimon from the game, took out some notable phrases and attached them to spells. I still need spells for "In enduring, grow Strong" and "There cannot be two skies"... Well, for "In Enduring, grow Strong" could be Bull's strength and "There cannot be two skies" could be mirror image(kinda contradictory but, play with it)
Kolo 06-04-04, 10:29 PM	Originally posted by Trydan As I said, the character was a Barbarian/Sorcerer, with the aim of taking the Horizon Walker prestige class. However, you are right about the stoic type, and cities were definitely avoided! And that's just from reading his spell names... see, they do build character. :) @ DwarvinJedi; Well, for "In Enduring, grow Strong" could be Bull's strength and "There cannot be two skies" could be mirror image(kinda contradictory but, play with it) I like your thinking on the first one, but the second I feel should be something a bit more dramatic, since it reflects a very important part of gith history (the seperation of the gith into githyanki and githzerai). I was thinking more of spells like, say, dimensional anchor (punny, I know, but hey) or even something more subtle; Since the proclamation of two skies as one is a reaffirming of githzerai faith in their cause, maybe it could be something like Foresight (acknowledging the way Zerthimon predicted the future of his race and chose his path wisely) or Legend Lore. But that doesn't quite fit the bill either. I'm just not sure yet.
DwarvinJedi 06-04-04, 10:32 PM	I really don't know anything about githzerai or githyanki, the first one just popped out and I had to think of something for the second one