Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Scraths 05-18-06, 01:13 PM	Hi My group have just started a new campaign and i've made a Xeph lvl 9 Soulknife. My character is a traveling bard(a very bad one though) and plays non-stop on his mandolin(inherited from his father and very important to him) annoying everyone. He likes to sing songs about his and other people adventures. My Co-player and I (Only 2 player campaing) are about to board a big ship for some sea-adventures(That's atleast what i think our GM has in his mind). I like my character so far, but i would really like some more history, habbits, personality, flaws for this character. Do you have some ideas?
Sinaz 05-18-06, 01:47 PM	Er, well... for one... thinking that a bard with no talent who plays his mandolin incessently to the shagrin of others is not all that "cool" or clever. It's like how those annoying jocks in highschool thought it was cool to slap the pile of books and loose paper of out of someone's hands was "cool." To him, maybe, but to everyone else in the world, it was annoying and childish. If you're going to play a bard... play a bard. My friend played a bard, and being naturally talented himself, would recap our previous adventure with a little song played on his guitar. It was clever, and probably embarrassing anywhere outside of a DnD session... but it worked for him, and made his character mythical in our eyes. Bards are an interesting character type because they usually represent a type of person naturally far more clever and witty than we, as real people, tend to be in every day life. I always avoid playing a bard, because I feel I'd have to do a ton of preparatory work writing and learning clever aphorisms and meaningful couplets to speak with in character rather than say "I use my diplomacy skill to say something witty and clever that hopefully makes the guy like us better." To which the DM would probably say "oh? what does he say?" ...:blink:... So... my advice still stands. If he's a bard, don't make him suck at being a bard. It's like playing a fighter who cuts his own fingers off while sharpening his sword everyday much to the amusement of his party who has to keep wasting regeneration scrolls on his hands... yeah... not all that amusing after a while.
Dragonsblood 05-18-06, 05:00 PM	Bring a new poem to every session and recite it when appropriate. Bring a CD of actual music that your bard would play and turn it on when you play your bard song. Ask your DM if you can take some creative lisence in the creation of legends, and write a few short stories that you can read during RP (run them by your DM ahead of time though to make sure it's consistant with his campaign world). As for personality quirks, I think the PH2 has some ideas in there that you can look into.
Ichor Spellka 05-18-06, 07:33 PM	Going to have to disagree with how Sinaz compared the character to other examples. In this case, it doesn't matter all that much that he's bad, as it doesn't actually hinder the group in any way, nor is it harming anyone. Of course, the first guy that gets royally annoyed and tries to smash the mandolin and discovers a sword of energy sticking in his gut might inconvenience the party... As for other quirks, habits, etc. Your character seems to be rather oblivious. I mean, if his playing is always annoying and horrible, he obviously is not picking up on how the others are reacting to it if he keeps playing. So play him as oblivious. Think of him as very gullible and easily led astray. Soulknives also tend to be show-offs. So don't be afraid to do some flashy stuff. Maybe pick up some flash-pellets from CAdv. to make your entrances more dramatic. Best of luck.
kelvinaw273 05-19-06, 06:33 PM	Please, please, please tell me that the other player character is called Sir Robin ... ... Brave ,Brave, Brave, Brave Sir Robin!
hmmmm 05-20-06, 09:19 AM	This is one of the reasons that I don't really play Bards.
Scraths 05-20-06, 04:02 PM	Thanks for all the suggestions i will use some of them for sure... But keep 'em comin' can't get enough of 'em