Here are four of my five above-L1 PCs - the fifth, Azrien the Dreamer, I'm still working on. She's playing Wheels Within Wheels tomorrow and that will probably strongly influence her retirement plans ;)Yolande Hellingas Van Morgenrood of Hellspaar, the Vanquishing Flame
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Neutral Good Female Human (Oeridian) [Fire] Cleric 7 / Sacred Exorcist 8 / Contemplative 1 of Joramy
Titles and honors:
Leader of the church of Joramy in Perrenland, High Priestess of Hellspaar, and founder of the Temple at Hellspaar and the Shrine of the Primal Flame
Ritter of Perrenland, warrior of Perren's Elite, and Stalwart Defender of Traft Canton
Sacred Exorcist of Perrenland ordained by the Shool of Mayaheine, Favored Daughter and Savior of the Old Kerk
Guardian, Hero, Honored Lady and Saighden of Tenh
Famed Hero of Furyondy and Custodian of the King's Land
Lady Dire of Sterich
Samman and Unter-Graf of the Khund Clan
Veteran of Riberlund and Law's Forge
Defining quote: "Sometimes it's better to light a flamethrower than curse the darkness."
Retirement plans: Yolande retired from adventuring in mid-598 CY to lead the church of Joramy in Perrenland, after undergoing a ritual to infuse elemental fire into her body and soul (granting her the Fire subtype).
Parting snapshot:
Titles and honors:
Leader of the church of Joramy in Perrenland, High Priestess of Hellspaar, and founder of the Temple at Hellspaar and the Shrine of the Primal Flame
Ritter of Perrenland, warrior of Perren's Elite, and Stalwart Defender of Traft Canton
Sacred Exorcist of Perrenland ordained by the Shool of Mayaheine, Favored Daughter and Savior of the Old Kerk
Guardian, Hero, Honored Lady and Saighden of Tenh
Famed Hero of Furyondy and Custodian of the King's Land
Lady Dire of Sterich
Samman and Unter-Graf of the Khund Clan
Veteran of Riberlund and Law's Forge
Defining quote: "Sometimes it's better to light a flamethrower than curse the darkness."
Retirement plans: Yolande retired from adventuring in mid-598 CY to lead the church of Joramy in Perrenland, after undergoing a ritual to infuse elemental fire into her body and soul (granting her the Fire subtype).
Parting snapshot:
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She stands on the snow-covered stone balcony of the temple, looking toward the west. The setting sun bathes the winter landscape in red-gold light. Around her booted feet, the snow melts, with a faint hissing sound.
She is tall and lean, her dark face stern and forbidding. Her eyes glow like hot coals. Her hair is a torrent of living flame, streaming from beneath her shining golden helm, and a corona of fiery light crackles around her. She wears white clerical robes over mithral field plate, and a fire-colored silk sash snakes across her chest like a ribbon of light. Medals hang from the sash, testament to long and bitter battles fought and won.
She has come a long way since that day five years ago, when she left the Yatils with rage against injustice and the desire for battle burning in her heart. She has made her pilgrimage to the Hellfurnaces and bathed in the Fountain of the Elements, she has walked the Plane of Fire and looked on Joramy's face. For seven days she immersed herself in the twisting, singing primal flame that rises from the Oerth's core, chanting the prayers and spells that would keep her alive in the heart of fire, to bind that fire into her spirit and bones. Now she is a creature as much flame as mortal flesh - Hearth Master of the Shrine of the Inferno, the High Priestess of Hellspaar, the Vanquishing Flame.
She has fought the long war against evil in daylight and in darkness, through torture and despair, in the Abyss and the Nine Hells and Dorakaa itself. Regicide and holy knight, sworn fiend-hunter and rescuer of demon queens, cursed by the gods of evil and hunted by the dread Boneshadow - not all her battles have been victories, but Perrenland's skies are now clean of darkness, and the forces of the Old One have been driven back. Her crusade has not been restricted to Perrenland, although it began and ended there: her medals mark high honors from Furyondy and Tenh, the Shield Lands and Sterich.
Yet she knows the war is not won. She has held the Swords of Kelanen in her hands, and seen the Codex of Infinite Planes in Iuz's grasp. But where others are the sword, now she will be the shield: to guard her lands and her people against the powers that will be unleashed.
As the sun sinks beneath the horizon, she grips the cold stone with both hands and begins to softly chant the dusk prayers: that Joramy's beacon fires will light a path through the long night, and bring Oerth safely to a new dawn.
She is tall and lean, her dark face stern and forbidding. Her eyes glow like hot coals. Her hair is a torrent of living flame, streaming from beneath her shining golden helm, and a corona of fiery light crackles around her. She wears white clerical robes over mithral field plate, and a fire-colored silk sash snakes across her chest like a ribbon of light. Medals hang from the sash, testament to long and bitter battles fought and won.
She has come a long way since that day five years ago, when she left the Yatils with rage against injustice and the desire for battle burning in her heart. She has made her pilgrimage to the Hellfurnaces and bathed in the Fountain of the Elements, she has walked the Plane of Fire and looked on Joramy's face. For seven days she immersed herself in the twisting, singing primal flame that rises from the Oerth's core, chanting the prayers and spells that would keep her alive in the heart of fire, to bind that fire into her spirit and bones. Now she is a creature as much flame as mortal flesh - Hearth Master of the Shrine of the Inferno, the High Priestess of Hellspaar, the Vanquishing Flame.
She has fought the long war against evil in daylight and in darkness, through torture and despair, in the Abyss and the Nine Hells and Dorakaa itself. Regicide and holy knight, sworn fiend-hunter and rescuer of demon queens, cursed by the gods of evil and hunted by the dread Boneshadow - not all her battles have been victories, but Perrenland's skies are now clean of darkness, and the forces of the Old One have been driven back. Her crusade has not been restricted to Perrenland, although it began and ended there: her medals mark high honors from Furyondy and Tenh, the Shield Lands and Sterich.
Yet she knows the war is not won. She has held the Swords of Kelanen in her hands, and seen the Codex of Infinite Planes in Iuz's grasp. But where others are the sword, now she will be the shield: to guard her lands and her people against the powers that will be unleashed.
As the sun sinks beneath the horizon, she grips the cold stone with both hands and begins to softly chant the dusk prayers: that Joramy's beacon fires will light a path through the long night, and bring Oerth safely to a new dawn.
Andelle Reasharem, High Herald of the Kingdom of Keoland, Keoish ambassador to the Sheildlands
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Neutral Good Female Human Bard 1 /Cleric 6 / Radiant Servant 6 / Ruthar 1 of Phyton
Significant Acheivements:
Baronettess of Sterich
High Herald of Keoland
Aided in the Restoration of the Brightlands to their natural verdant state
Has reached 14th level without dealing 1 hitpoint in lethal damage
Defining quote: "I don’t care how high your AC is, next time you’re accepting a barkskin when I say you are."
Retirement plans: Andelle plans to continue to serve Keoland and periodically make trips to the Sheildlands to improve relations between the two nations.
Comments:Andelle was my second character after I retired my first one after five adventures. The Bard level represents a noble heritage, and though the dead spell level hurts, it allowed me to put additional emphasis on diplomacy. She buffs well and emphasizes the morning buffs so much that even at high levels there are some rounds where I’m content to delay until someone needs a cure or a resurgence.
Significant Acheivements:
Baronettess of Sterich
High Herald of Keoland
Aided in the Restoration of the Brightlands to their natural verdant state
Has reached 14th level without dealing 1 hitpoint in lethal damage
Defining quote: "I don’t care how high your AC is, next time you’re accepting a barkskin when I say you are."
Retirement plans: Andelle plans to continue to serve Keoland and periodically make trips to the Sheildlands to improve relations between the two nations.
Comments:Andelle was my second character after I retired my first one after five adventures. The Bard level represents a noble heritage, and though the dead spell level hurts, it allowed me to put additional emphasis on diplomacy. She buffs well and emphasizes the morning buffs so much that even at high levels there are some rounds where I’m content to delay until someone needs a cure or a resurgence.
Sir Arrias of Heironeous
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In mid-598, Arrias fell in love with, and married, Medb, a fellow Heironean paladin. The two of them were both Mounted Borderers (the "state patrol" in Verbobonc), and, when Verbobonc's new Viscount, Estival, disbanded the Borderers shortly after becoming Viscount, Arrias and Medb chose to enter Estival's house guard, in hopes of helping to maintain order in the Viscounty.
When it became clear that Estival was an evil man, Arrias (and Medb) left his house guard, and fought to defeat him before he could destroy the Viscounty. After their success, they retired to their home in the town of Guildren. Now recognized as lesser nobles by the restored Viscount Langard, they worked to rebuild the Mounted Borderers.
In late 598, the two Heironeans heard rumors of a planned demonic invasion of Oerth, and left home once more, on a mission that took them to Sigil and beyond (the Demonweb Pits adapted module). As of yet, they have not returned from that mission.
When it became clear that Estival was an evil man, Arrias (and Medb) left his house guard, and fought to defeat him before he could destroy the Viscounty. After their success, they retired to their home in the town of Guildren. Now recognized as lesser nobles by the restored Viscount Langard, they worked to rebuild the Mounted Borderers.
In late 598, the two Heironeans heard rumors of a planned demonic invasion of Oerth, and left home once more, on a mission that took them to Sigil and beyond (the Demonweb Pits adapted module). As of yet, they have not returned from that mission.
Solaufyn Ithilnelle, the Joybringer
Currently Wiz5/Ruathar2/Virtuoso10
Solaufyn has always been loyal to Queen Yolande of Celene, and her policy of isolationism regarding outside matters. Unlike Prince Melf Brightflame, who went against his sister's commands by forming the Knights of Luna, Sol always believed in her wisdom, and wished to willingly risk his own life so the queen's subjects wouldn't have to. After years of adventuring, Sol began to draw Yolande's attention, especially once his arcane ability began to match that of the Prince. Also, her Handmaiden Amerayne (not exiled for including outsiders in Sol's tale, since, well, he's not an outsider!) spoke of his bravery and altruism to the Queen, which led to the decision to have Amerayne sponsor Solaufyn into her circle of influence.
Since then, Solaufyn has started his training in the subtleties of the Faerie Mysteries, enhancing his connection with the Faerie Kingdom and the Queen's influence. He wishes to end the threat of Turrosh Mak (which may eventually play out in the high-level Greyhawk homegame I'm running, in which Sol is an NPC) and expel the plague of orcs from the land, as well as stop Iuz's master plan (CORS8-02, one of these days...)
-Matt
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So in the finale CORS8-02, there was this honking huge artifact called the god trap. My party managed to free the gods inside, while Iuz and one of his Greater Bonehearts fight it out over who gets to become a god. Iuz is going for something a bit higher than Demi and the other fellow (forget which one it is) is just going for some level of Deity. Unfortunately for Iuz, three of the gods we release are whompin' on him and messing things up. So, here is my Aasimar who wandered out of the Portal from Hanging Glacier and has always wanted to pull in enough power to ascend watching a passel of dieties whompin' on each other in the middle of an artifact that *wait for it* turns a mortal into a diety. Sitting next to him is Zagyg, guaranteed to throw his two cp's in for a few laughs. So Brand turns to Zagyg and asks for a little favor. Seems Vatun has finally been released from confinement. Can Zagyg give Vatun a call? Sure. "Hey Vatun, this is your great, great, great grandson. I'm about to use this thing that makes me a God. Will you be my patron so I don't explode on impact? Yes? Great!"
Hi folks, please join me in welcoming the newest Demigod in the Sueloise pantheon. He is the god of battlemagic for the Cruski, Frutzi and Schnai. He is the patron of sorcerers and battle minded shamans. His domains are Magic, War and Tactics.
Hi folks, please join me in welcoming the newest Demigod in the Sueloise pantheon. He is the god of battlemagic for the Cruski, Frutzi and Schnai. He is the patron of sorcerers and battle minded shamans. His domains are Magic, War and Tactics.
Aoaelbrandir Vatunson
I've always wondered... wherever did you find Aasimar?
-Matt
I've always wondered... wherever did you find Aasimar?
Read his description of what happened to his PC Raniel.
-Matt
Yeah, I remember from way back when that it had something to do with the Hanging Glacier, but I'm looking through the ARs and the module and I can't find anything!!! Do I have an incorrect version or something?
Just guessing here, but it may be that only the premiere version of that module (at Winter Fantasy, IIRC) had that reward.
Male Halfling CN Rogue 6 /Ranger 2/Horizon Walker 4
Description: He is the only Land/Air Pirate of all of Keoland. Where he dresses like a pirate and speaks as such. (never did take the levels of Dread Pirate)
He is known to associate with a certain group called Shadowdark Guild.
Gared has settled down in the town of New Silverdeep in Keoland after the pushing back of the invasion of The Returned. He opened a town library/writing supply store before the invasion and came back to reopen after the war was over. There is a bugbear skin for a welcome mat, a door chime that are dogtags for Keoland miltary, Black Dragon skin chair by the fireplace and a clock in the window that reads 3pm.
In the front of the store is a horse hitching post with claw marks and feathers on the ground.
Yeah, I remember from way back when that it had something to do with the Hanging Glacier, but I'm looking through the ARs and the module and I can't find anything!!! Do I have an incorrect version or something?
-Matt
If you did a Heroic Sacrifice (only available at High Tier where you close the portal) there was a special AR just for that, separate from the one everyone else got. It allowed for a new character to be made and get access to all kinds of Frostburn stuff (except for one feat that was a precursor to a bunch of other stuff, Snowcasting IIRC).
Then, once all the Extended Premier events were over, you could apply to the Circle for a special AR. They supposedly had a list of those who did the Heroic Sacrifice. That AR gave access to a new character from a number of Frostburn races (all but the Uldra) plus Frost Dwarf (must be CN) and Aasimar (must be CG). The write up said you wandered in from the other (non-Oerth) side of the portal and were a worshiper of Vatun.
I strongly considered the Frost Dwarf as a fighter, but settled on an Aasimar Sorcerer. Didn't go Paly because I couldn't change to LG. I figured if I came from the other side of the portal (i.e. came from the planes) and must worship Vatun, then why not say he was the Great-great-great-grandson of Vatun? I pretty much played him as a Planescape/Sigil ex-pat who was looking for a way home, any way home. I was going to run him through Demonweb Pits and just not come back to Oerth. Then the finale happened and here was the scion of a god standing next to a god making machine shortly after said god had been freed from imprisonment (in IUZ8-02 IIRC). I figured, "Why not?" and became a god.
I played with one other such character (Eric Menge's Aasimar who was played as a sort of Winter Fey, cool stuff) and was aware of one other somewhere in Australia. Not sure if there were more though.
Bela L2Fighter/L1 Barbarian/L1 Beguiler
Bela was a "Rogue" style character with no levels in rogue. He had all the social skills of a teenage boy whose main exposure to the opposite sex was porn magazines and boasts in taverns. He became an adventurer to get wildly rich, and succeeded well enough to end up as a tavern owner in the town near the barrow he cleaned out...he did that instead of buying that armor upgrade he was thinking about. He'll get overweight and remain obnoxious but will still be able to help chase off the occasional humanoid raid or undead incursion.
Mugwort: L5 favored soul, almost level 6
Mugwort was a gnome whose ancestor won a bet with Procan and his family regretted that bet ever since. Procan singles out a member and makes "interesting" things happen to him until he dies, then some other poor schmuck in the family gets stuck with the "blessing". After several years of tug-of-war with procan (Mugwort wanting to be a nice healer, Procan wanting him to be a force for chaos) Mugwort finally figured out how to shake Procan. Buying a phylactery of Faithfulness, he used it to do the opposite of whatever Procan would want him to do, while also sucking up to Pelorites the whole mod (their priesthood owed him a biiiig favor). In the end Procan got ****** enough to strip him of powers, and he used the interval to get atoned to Pelor...thus putting one over on Procan in the best gnomish tradition, becoming the healer he always wanted to be and finally impressing his distant cousin Teasel, who'd always kinda liked him but thought he was a bit of a stick in the mud till then.
When he dies, the next gnome in line for Procan's "gift" will probably get to choose which of Procan or Pelor he'd prefer. The deal still remains in place, and his family can't avoid the attention of SOME human god or other. But Mugwort got a god he can work with now and be happy about it.
Mogoom Naalkavar Bard-Barian Warchanter, level 8
Mogoom and his sister Saka's final adventure was a classic "orcs overrunning mountain fortress" series. It had many quintessential moments for this barbarian-dwarf pair and you got the sense that their story in LG ended like the Sopranos...in mid-beat. You know it will go on and on. At some point in the next 50 years Moogoom will finalize his engagement with Sweetbud Uglie and get around to reading his giant secret library, while working his gold mine and trying to keep his sister from feeding all the Xorns with the output.
Kadera AKA Katryn Barb1/Druid7...transformed to ranger8 on retirement
Katryn was a baklunish teenager possessed by a tiger totem spirit. Most of her career was spent mastering the tiger transformation. After achieving her destiny at the end of chapter 4 of RHOD, her tiger spirit went off to corrupt the Phylactery of the lion-totem lich, while she returned from the dead with a fraction of her druidic power but much more comfortable in her body, with horses no longer hating her. Freed of her curse, she has returned to her people and is now a powerful warrior and scout for her tribe.
Tillian (cohort) L10 bard - Tillian was a cohort for Olivia for about a year, before becoming annoyed at Olivia's constant meddling in unimportant (ie not anti-iuzian) stuff and finding her own path. She's been doing undercover work destabilizing the bandit kingdoms, and does see her cousin from time to time.
Orofin Elar, L2Rgr/4Ftr/1Wiz/4Arcane Archer. Orofin will be away from his home Phostwood for the next decade or two, holding down a Counciler position in the Greyhawk Merchant Quarter (formerly Thieves Quarter), after outlawing bout the Thieves and Assassin's guild, as final revenge for them putting out a hit on his daughter. From Greyhawk he'll also be in a position to oversee progress in the restoration of Bright Desert, while his Daughter will keep an eye on Tenh from the Phostwood.
Master Burke Pholtan Halforc Monk (monk12/wiz1/ftr2/rgr1) Burke started his career in the Pale during one succession struggle and chose to decline to participate in the current one. Instead after a number of near-death (and soul devouring) scenarios he decided to get serious about his family responsibilities, getting a Clone spell and going home to train his rather large brood of 3/4 orc kids in whichever talents they're best suited for (fighter, ranger, monk or wizard, with his wife doing advanced arcane training or Pholtan religious training (his wife is a theurge...3wiz/3cler/6 mystic theurge of Pholtus). His clan keeps Eagle Crag Pass safe and clear, and is allied with the Pale and has a treaty with Ratik. He and his wife are unusually bright for orcs, and she's even acquired some legal training in the Pale.
Olivia Lusoschenko Telekenetic Sorceress (sor7/rua3/fs4/us2) had put out the word for matchmakers to find her a husband that wouldn't be intimidated by her but would be a nice Rhenee man who wanted a family before the succession struggle in the Pale broke out. She has a tendency to favor mature (ie older than her by a decade to 20 years), confident men. Not wanting to take any sides, she hooked up with some friends and decided to get serious about taking down Iuz. That worked out well, keeping her away from political issues and resulting in the death of several Bonehearts, including one that had terrorized her back when she was level 4. Iuz is no longer a factor but there will be work to be done to encourage chaos in it as the main successor attempts to gather the reins of power. She figures she can get married at this point, and with tricks learned by elves will remain young long enough to keep up with kids, even though she's starting in her 30s. She intends a defensive-oriented support of her homeland, encouraging the BK to split off from the former Iuzian empire and encouraging a Pale/Dimre alliance while not doing anything TOO risky until she's had a chance to have a passel of kids and raise them.
Expect her to be really scary and bored in 20 years or so, when empty nest syndrome sets in. She's mastered magic as far as it's going to for her, the rest is just technique (the road to level 20 will be via Master of Unseen Hand levels)
quoted!
lomiat wrote: