Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Rudigrrr 02-16-04, 03:21 PM	Hi guys and gals, I'm playing with a brand new character soon in our campaign seeing as my last character died tragically. He is a 12th level aesthetic monk (vow of poverty), he uses no weapons evn though simple non-masterwork weapons are allowed. I'm trying to come up with a good backstory. There are three main questions that need to be answered about him and I was hoping you guys could help me out. Here they are: 1. Why did he become a monk? 2. Why did he choose a life of poverty? 3. Why is he in this foreign land (neighboring country)? I was kind of thinking that he was a child of wealthy merchant, and his parents were killed when he was around 12-14. He then swore off of wealth and moved to a monastary to learn forgiveness and to calm his fiery soul. Any thoughts about this idea, or any new ideas would be great. I want to make this guy really memorable. Thanks in advance. Rudi
CursedMoredhel 02-16-04, 08:18 PM	having his parents being power and money hungry and murder for the very same reasons seems a plausible reason for becoming a monk with a vow of poverty
Rudigrrr 02-17-04, 12:17 AM	Should his parents have been greedy too, or just killed because of someone else's greed?? I don't want him to be vengeful and angry, I want him to have come to peace with what happened and forgiven the killers even though he knows it was terribly wrong.
CursedMoredhel 02-17-04, 01:39 AM	well he doesn't have to be vengeful either way you could make it so he resents wot his parents stood for and became in thier greed and toke the vow of proverty so that he could assure himslef that he would neither becme like his parents or be put in a stituation were he could be tempted...
Citizen Philip 02-17-04, 04:05 PM	Originally posted by Rudigrrr Hi guys and gals, I'm playing with a brand new character soon in our campaign seeing as my last character died tragically. He is a 12th level aesthetic monk (vow of poverty), he uses no weapons evn though simple non-masterwork weapons are allowed. I'm trying to come up with a good backstory. There are three main questions that need to be answered about him and I was hoping you guys could help me out. Here they are: 1. Why did he become a monk? 2. Why did he choose a life of poverty? 3. Why is he in this foreign land (neighboring country)? I was kind of thinking that he was a child of wealthy merchant, and his parents were killed when he was around 12-14. He then swore off of wealth and moved to a monastary to learn forgiveness and to calm his fiery soul. Any thoughts about this idea, or any new ideas would be great. I want to make this guy really memorable. Thanks in advance. Rudi If he doesn't need dead parents a background like this might work: The character is one of the children of the countries most powerful merchantile houses and wield considerable political and market power. Your family's house is in constant competion as "the most favoured" by the ruling goverment. The character's parents/parent are ruthless in maintaining their favoured status. The characters parents are ruthless and callous out of what they percieve to be a need to be "the best", or the "only way to survive in this world." The unfortunate result of the parents' mindset is the the your siblings are not only ruthless, but also corrupt (and potentially evil). In an effort to distance yourself from your family, you began training as a monk. To finally divorce yourself from your family, you took a vow of poverty to severe the material connection that has corrupted your family. To seperate yourself from the family you come from, you have journeyed to another country to develop, free of the misconceptions your family name would otherwise generate. In effort to 'redeem' your family, you adventure as a monk, to show them a noble and good path. A path that requires no callousness or ruthlessness, and most importantly no wealth. In a foreign land you grow and develop your skills and reputation, to one day return and help your family turn away from its current path. Kingdom: Potentially evil (by permitting such "do or die" conditions, in which your family exsists. Parents: Probably Neutral or Lawful Neutral Siblinbs: Neutral, Neutral Evil or possibly Lawful Evil. Character: Lawful Good or Lawful Neutral. Mentor/Sensei: Probably Lawful Neutral. CP
Rudigrrr 02-18-04, 01:04 AM	CP- Not bad.... in fact I like that a lot and I am going to run it by my DM with some slight changes seeing as my country of origin is a fairly nice one.... perhaps they were from an area where the lord was corrupt and were in his favor as opposed to the king, who before dissapearing was a goodly man thanks again Rudi
Wander 02-18-04, 03:43 AM	Originally posted by Citizen Philip If he doesn't need dead parents a background like this might work: The character is one of the children of the countries most powerful merchantile houses and wield considerable political and market power. Your family's house is in constant competion as "the most favoured" by the ruling goverment. The character's parents/parent are ruthless in maintaining their favoured status. The characters parents are ruthless and callous out of what they percieve to be a need to be "the best", or the "only way to survive in this world." The unfortunate result of the parents' mindset is the the your siblings are not only ruthless, but also corrupt (and potentially evil). In an effort to distance yourself from your family, you began training as a monk. To finally divorce yourself from your family, you took a vow of poverty to severe the material connection that has corrupted your family. To seperate yourself from the family you come from, you have journeyed to another country to develop, free of the misconceptions your family name would otherwise generate. In effort to 'redeem' your family, you adventure as a monk, to show them a noble and good path. A path that requires no callousness or ruthlessness, and most importantly no wealth. In a foreign land you grow and develop your skills and reputation, to one day return and help your family turn away from its current path. Kingdom: Potentially evil (by permitting such "do or die" conditions, in which your family exsists. Parents: Probably Neutral or Lawful Neutral Siblinbs: Neutral, Neutral Evil or possibly Lawful Evil. Character: Lawful Good or Lawful Neutral. Mentor/Sensei: Probably Lawful Neutral. CP I think your DM will also appreciate something like this. You've done part of his work for him, providing him with NPCs and a storyline he can inject into events of his own creation. Many DMs really love that sort of thing. FWIW.
Rudigrrr 02-18-04, 11:30 AM	I agree completely, what do you think about using the fact of it being a lord or baron as opposed to like the king that the family was tied to, since this country is not an overly evil one?? Rudi
rogue_lettuce 02-18-04, 04:06 PM	Originally posted by Rudigrrr his parents were killed when he was around 12-14. NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Never have an orphan monk, it's waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too cliched!:rolleyes:
Citizen Philip 02-18-04, 04:19 PM	Originally posted by Wander I think your DM will also appreciate something like this. You've done part of his work for him, providing him with NPCs and a storyline he can inject into events of his own creation. Many DMs really love that sort of thing. FWIW. I am a DM and I don't get to play too frequently. A good background story is like a pile of fishhooks and line. Lots of knots, tangles and sharp dangling ends. :D Writing up a story that has hooks and lines, and not too many sinkers isn't always easy. CP