This post is for Arduin's female human fighter.
Adjusting your scores for age, you gain a point of constitution and lose a point of wisdom, being that you're 17. This gives you:
Strength: 18/26 +1 to-hit; +3 damage
Intelligence: 11
Wisdom: 11
Constitution: 15 +1 hp/level
Dexterity: 14
Charisma: 13
As a fighter, you get d10 for hit points. Starting at maximum, you add one for your constitution, making 11 h.p. You weigh 143 lbs., which just barely gets you into a d8 for mass. I've rolled a 5. That starts you off with 16 h.p.
Your birthplace is Christiania, Norway, which is modern-day Oslo.
Your maximum encumbrance is 163 lbs. You do not suffer any movement penalty if you carry 65 lbs or less.
Natural armor class is 10. Your THAC0 is 20.
Because of your background, you start with an extra proficiency, or five in total. Let me know what you'd like ~ and because, apparently, there's a feeling that people have that I wouldn't let someone just change their mind, just assume the list you choose is "soft." But you have the price list already, so you can figure it out.
Then, have a look at the Fighter Sage Abilities. You will need to pick a field and then a study in that field. When you let me know, we'll calculate the knowledge points you have.
NEXT:
Further notes about your character. We've already covered your brother Lambert. But please let me know what instrument among those listed that you wish to take. This may, when I get started on bardic skills, have some influence in the future.
Regarding your hunger and dehydration, the exact phrasing is old and comes before my recent rules; let's say that your character needs 1/2 lb. less per day, per activity. For example, only needs 1 1/2 lbs. a day when resting, or 3 1/2 lbs. a day when travelling.
You're very slow with a bow, so it is better that you took a crossbow . . .
I will probably forget about your sensitivity to a bright, flashing light; it is the sort of thing that comes up rarely. Please, if you're willing, remind me. I can't make you do it. I wish I had the memory necessary to remember this small stuff.
Your increase in obtaining hirelings is a 50% improvement on your wisdom: thus, you make a wisdom check against your increased wisdom to see if you can find a good hireling, someone with a positive outlook. This is subject to a -2 penalty per degree of hireling above a common light footman, but you can make a check once per day. I'll set a maximum of one check per thousand in population that a city, town or village has (with a minimum of one roll).
These are rules I've just made up. Sound good?
34 comments:
Looks hell of solid, like a Fighter should.
Can I ask you what the percentile next to Strength is for? Why does it only apply to Str 18's?
It is called exceptional, or percentile strength, and tends to be only available to fighters who roll a natural 18 in generating their characters (sometimes, a half-orc of the right age can improve a natural 17 to an 18/10 strength, but that's the only possibility, since no other racial benefit adds to strength).
Exceptional strength is rolled on a d100. It is divided into the following tiers:
18/01-50 +1 +3
18/51-75 +2 +3
18/76-90 +2 +4
18/91-99 +2 +5
18/00 +3 +6 (often referred to as eighteen-double-naught)
I've heard a lot of reasons why the idea was first advanced in the Greyhawk book back in the mid-70s. I continue to use it because it provides a proper gain on bonuses from ordinary humans up through ogres and giants. An ogre has an 18/00 strength. A hill giant has a 19 strength (+3+7), a stone giant has a 20 strength (+3+8), a frost giant has a 21 strength (+4+9), a fire giant has a 22 strength (+4+10), a cloud giant has a 23 strength (+5+11), a storm giant has a 24 strength (+6+12) and a titan has a 25 strength (+7+14).
Getting a huge strength bonus is a terrific benefit to a fighter, both in damage done and the potential for experience ~ but it is of such value to the party at large that I have long let it stand. I have had three 18/00 characters run in my world . . . and strangely, none of them ever stayed with the campaign for more than a few months. The highest strength I have ever run was an 18/94. I loved that fighter, but the campaign died after about 18 months. That was back when I was 19.
I have to ask myself, would I ever get rid of the rule? Possibly, but at worst I would tone it down. But the massive bonus is so rare that it has come up only a few times and where I have seen it, the bonus did not unbalance the party. There is a feeling, going back to when I began running D&D in 1979, that if you roll a natural 18, you ought to be a fighter. Not everyone agrees with that.
If I could get some expanded details on the nature of Logistics and Puissance, those are the two I'm most interested in.
Puissance mentions increasing skill-at-arms, does that mean it's similar to "doubling up" on proficiency as introduced in 2e and later editions, or do you have other bonuses in mind?
Logistics seems amazing, but a specific sort of example on how/if I could repair something or stretch food farther would be ideal.
Unrelated to either, but related to my proficiencies, I mentioned in the previous post I was interested in the Tech Level of Stavanger and surrounds: I'd like to revisit that question. As a fighter, what do I know about the people of this area and surrounds? What's the prevailing equipment and method of battle?
I have expanded Puissance somewhat. I'll work on Logistics now.
There's an increased write up on Logistics. I hope its enough to help. At the beginning, you're likely to have some very basic skills in managing animals, repairing and strengthening items, foraging and greater endurance when on guard.
Alright. I invite others to comment on something they'd find useful here, but I'm currently leaning towards Puissance.
You know, just straight fuck'em-up-fighter.
Soft list of Proficiencies is Dagger, Longsword, Spear, Light Crossbow, and Club.
Longsword for most fighting, Dagger for "oh shit" fighting and possibly throwing, Club because I'm poor and I know a corpse where I can get one, Spear because it can be thrown and -I JUST LIKE IT OKAY-, and Light Crossbow for fights we can prepare for, where that brutal damage could stun someone in one round and then I just toss it aside or pass to some young squire to reload.
MMmmmmscrew it, I'm really pumped to get in the thick of it again. My gut says Puissance, I'm takin' it!
To clarify I'm choosing:
Field: Mastery of Arms
Study: Puissance
Let me just say that the national weapon of Norway is the battle axe; taking puissance, this will be the most advantageous weapon you can use in terms of hitting and damage (ultimately). I'm to write the amateur skill for this, giving +1 to hit when using a battle axe.
Against men, that would give you a +3 to hit.
I've updated the Puissance List again. At the moment, none of the list shown has links that give information, but this is one of the easiest sage studies to outline.
I may add more abilities as they occur to me, but probably in the upper tiers, which are noticeably left blank for the time being (need 60 points for Expert, anyway).
Given that I'll be getting a sixth proficiency from Puissance, I'll go ahead and take Battleaxe.
If by some happenstance I am not amateur level in Puissance when we roll my sage studies, Battleaxe will replace Longsword.
What sort of hireling would my younger brother be, and do I need to fetch him from Christiansand, or would he begin in my entourage?
First, if you wish to use a shield as a weapon, you'll be subject in proficiency penalties for that too, unless you take shield as a proficiency. You may not want to bother, as you may prefer a battle axe.
As regards to your brother, he is 15. I've been using this [unwritten] rule that siblings will have nearly the same stats as the player character, rolled on 2d6, with 7 being equal and the deviation from 7 determining the alteration.
To see if your 15-year-old brother (call him 'Lambert') is a level, I have to start with his wisdom (did he make good decision?). I rolled a 4, which makes his wisdom an 8. A wisdom check shows he is not a leveled character. Another check shows that he has no combat training.
You would have to go to Christiania (not Christianstad, that's a different place in Norway, spelled with a 'k') to get him.
I have updated the sage abilities file in the drive. You automatically start with amateur status in your chosen study.
Damn. I can hardly ask my fellows to travel so far just for an unleveled hireling.
I've got a 50% bonus to gaining hirelings. About how long would I need to hang around Stavanger to find someone willing to hang back with my things and occasionally fire a crossbow at my foes? A spear carrier or a shieldbearer or squire or whatever you'd like to call it.
I'm not really certain how acquiring paid followers works in your world.
If you want a hireling, please roll a d20. Please indicate if you want them to be a light footman, a heavy footman, a sapper, an artillerist, a bowman, a crossbowman or some other specialty unit. The price for a light footman is 6 g.p. per month. Everything goes up from there.
Will I be expected to provide their equipment? What sort of treasure share is typical in your world, if any?
I'm pretty sure I've decided, but I want to make sure I'm not stressing my potential funding, especially since I'm certain I WILL need to feed them regardless of how they gain their equipment.
On second thought, while I'm interested in the answer, I think my funding won't be as much an issue as I previously guessed, and I'll make the roll now for a Crossbowman.
I'll stipulate here that I don't intend to actually hire a crossbowman unless they can use a Heavy Crossbow, as after looking through the equipment list I think I'm going to revise some of my choices.
d20: 12
I'll finalize my proficiencies when I provide the link to Pandred's blog page.
Hirelings will provide their own armor and weapons, wear their own clothes. Everything else you must pay for.
I'm already adjusting the system. In fact, I'm changing the cost of the men-at-arms as well, dispensing with the DMG as a guideline and building my own. I'll be publishing it on the wiki, along with the scheme for hiring, this evening.
Your roll of 12 will give you the following choices for hiring. I'm afraid you missed a crossbowman by 2 points.
~ light archer, no armor, short bow and club, 86 s.p./month
~ light footman, leather & shield, hand axe and spear, 120 s.p./month
~ slinger, studded leather armor, sling and quarterstaff, 132 s.p./month
~ heavy archer, leather armor, long bow and dagger, 144 s.p./month
For the purpose of the game, I'd rather that this was your last roll before the game started. You can search again, but I'll have to file some sort of price for searching after that (5 g.p. per day of searching and frequenting taverns). This search you can have for free.
That sounds fair. I'll convene with the party when Lothar and Engelhart make it back to Stavanger about our plans then. I'm very keen that whomever I hire is able to use my Heavy Crossbow in my stead.
Alexis, could one of my two friends use the Heavy Crossbow?
And Pandred, did you snag some strings for that crossbow?
Afraid not, Embla. The companions you have are non-leveled and are proficient only in short bow and hand axe. Their penalty for non-proficient weapon is -6.
Yeah, got my strings. How could I possibly forget? What else would make the satisfying *twang* before someone gurgled their last will and testament?
Here, Pandred, is some content about enlisting hirelings, newly minted.
Here, Pandred, is some content about enlisting hirelings, newly minted. Since Embla seems to be here as much as Pandred, I draw the attention of both of you to the page on Mercenary Hirelings.
Embla, regarding your shortbow archers, please adjust them according to the table shown under mercenaries (and confirm with me please that you've seen this). You can leave them with short bow and hand axe, but discount the leather armor they were wearing and take note of the much reduced cost. The content on the character generator has just become apocryphal (as so much content there is becoming as I make changes).
[I'm going to go do other things now for the rest of the evening. I will pick this up tomorrow evening and give Embla the rest of the content on her character once she chooses that rogue study given by the generator]
Thanks for the new content, Alexis. I'll bring what I have in line to the new wiki entry.
I'll pick the study this evening, before I head to bed.
http://pandred.blogspot.com/
Got a character blog for Pandred up and running. All six weapons listed are my proficiencies, namely Battleaxe, Handaxe, Heavy Crossbow, Spear, Dagger, and Club.
Horn is the musical proficiency, and I'll share Lutheran Protestantism as religion with my cohorts. Allies can see I've purchased no food. I figured I'd wait until we'd all reconvened and figure out what our plan is.
What are the benefits versus the penalties for hiring an agent, by the way? As near as I can tell, I pay 10gp to get what I'm looking for now, rather than chancing it on 5gp per day. Does it take longer? Are the hirelings found this way of poorer quality or disposition? It seems too good to be true, but I might not be understanding the whole picture here.
Ah, the key is that it takes longer. I forgot to include that. I'll update the wiki.
We'll say it takes an agent will provide the right hirelings after two weeks.
The benefit to doing it yourself depends on your wisdom and how many people you need. After all, if your wisdom is quite high, you only need one or two people, you're not particular, why hire an agent?
For the system, I'm assuming a hireling is a hireling. I don't want to get into tables for obtaining "great" hirelings as opposed to "good" hirelings or "amazing" hirelings. What you get is adequate hirelings ~ it is up to the player to encourage them and make them better (increasing their morale, their skill set, etcetera).
Also, Pandred, I dub us the battleaxe bitches, if that is acceptable to you.
"Aaaaaaand in this corner, you know them well: the scantily clad Scandinavians, the fuck-'em-up Fighters, it's-
the Baaaaaaaaaattleaxe Bitcheeeeees!"
I need more hirelings to herald my arrival. Someone find me a bard!
Yup. Bard necessary for our entourage. We are going to rock so hard.
I sense an anachronism warning.
Well, at least they're happy.
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