Priest from Cyre and the Mourning - Downloaded from the Wizards Community, all coding removed by Solauren

Priest from Cyre and the Mourning

Post/Author/DateTime Post
#1
lonewolf
Dec 05, 2009 15:00:25 Im developing a character concept for a new campaign and have a problem defining the characters personality and views on a specific issue: The Mourning.

Long story: For our new campaign, the group decided that all of us are going to play cyrish survivors of the Mourning, including a minor noble of Cyre(Paladin of Dol Arrah) and his "entourage". Long term goal of the campaign would be probably the Paladin taking the "Mourning Saviour" Epic destiny and all of us helping to reclaim the Land and bring peace to it again. To reach that point the draconic prophecy will play a big part, but any more details will be up to the DM. We also will probably start the campaign some time before the Mourning actually happens.
The character I am creating is a longtooth shifter cleric of the Souvereign Host, with a minor focus on Balinor. So here is the problem: How would my character feel about the Mourning? He lost so much and the Horrors of the Mourning would deeply affect him, and I can easily see him having a massive crisis of faith because of it, but thats a direction I really dont wanna go. So what Im looking for are ideas about how this character could feel about the Mourning without questioning his faith. Also Im looking for ideas what kind of explanations that character could have for the Mourning which also could work whithout damaging his faith.

thanks for any pointers
#2
RedRider
Dec 05, 2009 19:01:33 Well, the gods aren't nescessarily believed to be omnipotent and even a loyal priest may sometimes have to admit a wicked Raksasha Rajah may have more power on this plane than his deity can excercise from the Realm of the Soverigns.

You could make your character's attitude "There is evil abroad in the world which even the gods do not have the power to stop. So it is up to us to do something about it."
#3
naturax
Dec 05, 2009 21:00:13 I'm under the impression a lot of people turn to their faith in times of crisis, so you might want to invert the scenario. Your character was not devout before, but became a paladin after the Mourning occurs.
#4
Hellcow
Dec 05, 2009 23:35:13 The priests of the Sovereigns have never claimed that the Sovereigns will stop all evil. The Sovereigns embody the positive concepts of the world. The Dark Six embody the horrors. Sovereigns and Six can both inspire and empower mortals, but at the end of the day, the mortals need to solve their own problems. Dol Arrah inspires warriors to fight the darkness; she doesn't just wipe the darkness away herself.

So the Mourning is proof that people NEED faith in the Sovereigns. Perhaps if they had been stronger in that faith, the Mourning would never have happened. Regardless of that, in the wake of the Mourning, people NEED the compassion of Boldrei, Aureon's guidance, Arawai's bounty, and so on. Meanwhile, those responsible for the Mourning may have been inspired by the Shadow or the Traveler - so if you want to prevent it from happened again, stamp out the cults of the Six.
#5
dulsi
Dec 08, 2009 8:06:39 Your priest could believe that Cyre was destroyed because of corruption within it. You survived to allow you to rebuild a better Cyre.

Maybe you believe that mankind has gained too much power from magic and not enough wisdom to use it. I once played a cleric in a homebrew world who wanted to find powerful magic items/artifacts and destroy/hide them so that they wouldn't be abused. I could easily see a Cyre survivor blaming magic for the destruction of their home. Perhaps give his a dislike of warforged as an example of the abuse of magic.
#6
Plaguescarred1
Dec 12, 2009 14:04:36 Why would there be a crisis in your belief. It could well reinforce it instead...

You're a Shifter. A devoted to the Sovereign Host and Balinor. With animal features over a Human body. With wild instincts over Human reasons. The Mourning has nothing to do with some godly intervention in your mind, whatever the truth is. It's about human crazyness that went to the border of annilation. They spoiled the land with their war, this with raw eldritch magic. The mankind failed to keep the balance of nature in their conflict and blew up the place. You feel sad about it for what was left was nothing but death and desolation as well as some unatural hazards, an affliction the land is stuck with. The land is sick. The land suffer and you can feel it's sorrow, it's sadness.

You will have to do something to lift the curse so the land can finally heal and recover. it suffocate under the foggy smoke. You can hear the cry in your inner self. Where some wants to reclaim the mighty empire of men from the lost days, you want to give nature a chance to stand up and breath again, for the animals and the wildlife to flourish again as the precept of Balinor have teached you so they all can take back their place in the ecology of life. But you know you won't be able to achieve this without some help. For the nature, for the wildlife, brothers and sisters, let's clear the mist...

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 lonewolf Dec 05, 2009 15:00:25	Im developing a character concept for a new campaign and have a problem defining the characters personality and views on a specific issue: The Mourning. Long story: For our new campaign, the group decided that all of us are going to play cyrish survivors of the Mourning, including a minor noble of Cyre(Paladin of Dol Arrah) and his "entourage". Long term goal of the campaign would be probably the Paladin taking the "Mourning Saviour" Epic destiny and all of us helping to reclaim the Land and bring peace to it again. To reach that point the draconic prophecy will play a big part, but any more details will be up to the DM. We also will probably start the campaign some time before the Mourning actually happens. The character I am creating is a longtooth shifter cleric of the Souvereign Host, with a minor focus on Balinor. So here is the problem: How would my character feel about the Mourning? He lost so much and the Horrors of the Mourning would deeply affect him, and I can easily see him having a massive crisis of faith because of it, but thats a direction I really dont wanna go. So what Im looking for are ideas about how this character could feel about the Mourning without questioning his faith. Also Im looking for ideas what kind of explanations that character could have for the Mourning which also could work whithout damaging his faith. thanks for any pointers
#2 RedRider Dec 05, 2009 19:01:33	Well, the gods aren't nescessarily believed to be omnipotent and even a loyal priest may sometimes have to admit a wicked Raksasha Rajah may have more power on this plane than his deity can excercise from the Realm of the Soverigns. You could make your character's attitude "There is evil abroad in the world which even the gods do not have the power to stop. So it is up to us to do something about it."
#3 naturax Dec 05, 2009 21:00:13	I'm under the impression a lot of people turn to their faith in times of crisis, so you might want to invert the scenario. Your character was not devout before, but became a paladin after the Mourning occurs.
#4 Hellcow Dec 05, 2009 23:35:13	The priests of the Sovereigns have never claimed that the Sovereigns will stop all evil. The Sovereigns embody the positive concepts of the world. The Dark Six embody the horrors. Sovereigns and Six can both inspire and empower mortals, but at the end of the day, the mortals need to solve their own problems. Dol Arrah inspires warriors to fight the darkness; she doesn't just wipe the darkness away herself. So the Mourning is proof that people NEED faith in the Sovereigns. Perhaps if they had been stronger in that faith, the Mourning would never have happened. Regardless of that, in the wake of the Mourning, people NEED the compassion of Boldrei, Aureon's guidance, Arawai's bounty, and so on. Meanwhile, those responsible for the Mourning may have been inspired by the Shadow or the Traveler - so if you want to prevent it from happened again, stamp out the cults of the Six.
#5 dulsi Dec 08, 2009 8:06:39	Your priest could believe that Cyre was destroyed because of corruption within it. You survived to allow you to rebuild a better Cyre. Maybe you believe that mankind has gained too much power from magic and not enough wisdom to use it. I once played a cleric in a homebrew world who wanted to find powerful magic items/artifacts and destroy/hide them so that they wouldn't be abused. I could easily see a Cyre survivor blaming magic for the destruction of their home. Perhaps give his a dislike of warforged as an example of the abuse of magic.
#6 Plaguescarred1 Dec 12, 2009 14:04:36	Why would there be a crisis in your belief. It could well reinforce it instead... You're a Shifter. A devoted to the Sovereign Host and Balinor. With animal features over a Human body. With wild instincts over Human reasons. The Mourning has nothing to do with some godly intervention in your mind, whatever the truth is. It's about human crazyness that went to the border of annilation. They spoiled the land with their war, this with raw eldritch magic. The mankind failed to keep the balance of nature in their conflict and blew up the place. You feel sad about it for what was left was nothing but death and desolation as well as some unatural hazards, an affliction the land is stuck with. The land is sick. The land suffer and you can feel it's sorrow, it's sadness. You will have to do something to lift the curse so the land can finally heal and recover. it suffocate under the foggy smoke. You can hear the cry in your inner self. Where some wants to reclaim the mighty empire of men from the lost days, you want to give nature a chance to stand up and breath again, for the animals and the wildlife to flourish again as the precept of Balinor have teached you so they all can take back their place in the ecology of life. But you know you won't be able to achieve this without some help. For the nature, for the wildlife, brothers and sisters, let's clear the mist...