Just a quick query about Winter Eladrin - lore wise they are depicted as often sad and gloomy.
Is there a justifiable way that a Winter Eladrin can still represent its “winter” status by being a bit cold towards others but be instead of being sad and gloomy they could be almost like a very extroverted over the top showman (kinda a little like a Deadpool type)
Nearly anything can be justified. The association of winter with gloominess is purely subjective. For cultures that are native to snowy regions, or those with harsh burning summers, Winter can be a perfectly normal, or even highly anticipated, season.
A Winter Eladrin who is an Olympic snowboarder / mountain climber would presumably be very passionate about their season, regardless of how they feel about other people. The beauty of winter is different from that of spring, but it can still be beautiful.
Just talking out loud, but I'm thinking maybe modeling your winter Eladrin's personality after a snowboarder or extreme skier back when those events were stuck in the X Games and weren't professionalized by the Olympics. Make sure you take Athletics, and make sure you exclaim "Woooo!" a lot. Maybe you drink too much of this green glowing almost too sweet for mortal taste elixir called Dew of the Mountains (it's really why you only need four hours of rest).
But seriously, I think you can take that parody I just outlined and come up with a character who has some charm in expressing extreme confidence bordering on arrogance (because not only do they prefer a time of year many find inhospitable, their feyish essence or whatever is literally bonded to it). But yes the "seasonal affect" in Eladrin's write ups are only suggestions, if you and your DM are good with it (some DM's may prefer a more lore purist take) you can do what you want with your theme.
Bit late but I should point out that Charisma can represent an awe-inspiring leader as easily as a charming socialite. It’s about confidence and the ability to influence people, which comes in many forms. Geralt in the show The Witcher (I haven’t yet read the books) is grim and taciturn, but he routinely uses an impressive demeanor and a few well-placed words to totally change the course of the story. There’s no doubt Geralt’s Charisma is high, even if he’s not flashy, smooth, or outgoing. That’s the direction I would take a charismatic winter eladrin.
Another option is to lean into the feel of winter holidays like Christmas and Yule. Think The Ghost of Christmas Present. That’s winter-associated but also quite happy!
I saw this topic and could not resist the urge to comment.
Just dry puns. Cringe worthy, excalibur-face inducing, dryer than good firewood puns.
Watch your party and DM Facepalm during the game. Watch them remember that character forever after the fact.
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"I once knew this fella, Aasimar raised in the Underdark. Was like a brother to me. When he escaped we couldn't take much with us. Poor, emaciated husks of the living we were. 'ts okay though. We survived and made our ways. I'll never forget the way the people from my home looked at us when we walked in the archway. Though, I'm frighteningly certain the feelings they would have, had they but the opportunity ta see us leave." --Manolovo the Traitor, Memoirs of a Scoundrel
one last thing - I guess it’s safe to assume that it can be justified from a lore perspective that my Winter Eladrin character can characterise the long nights of winter with moon iconography and snowflake iconography? Tying in the theme of him being a gloom stalker
A happy eladrin, slightly overwight, has a love of red and white fabrics and carries bags of random things he finds and hands them out to people as presents, named Xander Klaus.
Edit: also make him a paladin (or a bard using magic secrets) to get hold of find steed to have a reindeer mount and later find greater steed to have a flying reindeer.
A happy eladrin, slightly overwight, has a love of red and white fabrics and carries bags of random things he finds and hands them out to people as presents, named Xander Klaus.
Edit: also make him a paladin (or a bard using magic secrets) to get hold of find steed to have a reindeer mount and later find greater steed to have a flying reindeer.
Oh I'd say St. Nick is definitely some sort of College of Creation Bard with maybe a bit of Artificer in the mix for the fancy toys, maybe, and/or Ranger(Beast), Druid(Shepherd), or Palladin for the reindeer wrangling.
one last thing - I guess it’s safe to assume that it can be justified from a lore perspective that my Winter Eladrin character can characterise the long nights of winter with moon iconography and snowflake iconography? Tying in the theme of him being a gloom stalker
There was a thread here somewhere about a Gloomstalker fighting in a blizzard ... it got heated. You're talking lore/look so might not be an issue but I guess some folks have arguments about what can and can't see a Gloomstalker in blizzard conditions. I've yet to see a Gloomstalker in my game so not sure but I see no problem with "The Land of the Ice and Snow" being where you first plied your trade at holding the line against threats. (I suppose that song is more how a snow originating Gloomstalker's enemies would perceive them).
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Jander Sunstar is the thinking person's Drizzt, fight me.
Also, think about Christmas and the vibes often associated with that. Snow and a white blanket, making the perfect backdrop for the brightest of colours.
Your Winter Eladrin could fit right into Whoville with high charisma.
Slightly off topic but seeing as the new Van Richtens thing is coming out this thread has made my DM side pause for thought.....combine "30 days of night" comic/film + a Winter Eldarin/Elf polar village (+ Kingdom Death aesthetic if you are aware of the game) and you have a wierd demi plane of dread or layer of the nine hells where levistas is entombed, where you have all the coldest of climate conditions, mixed with eternal night and all the monsters have the gloomstalker dread ambusher and umbral sight abilities and you have a pretty cool (and probably lethal) place to go adventuring for the halloween or festive season.
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* Need a character idea? Search for "Rob76's Unused" in the Story and Lore section.
Hey everyone,
Just a quick query about Winter Eladrin - lore wise they are depicted as often sad and gloomy.
Is there a justifiable way that a Winter Eladrin can still represent its “winter” status by being a bit cold towards others but be instead of being sad and gloomy they could be almost like a very extroverted over the top showman (kinda a little like a Deadpool type)
cheers.
Nearly anything can be justified. The association of winter with gloominess is purely subjective. For cultures that are native to snowy regions, or those with harsh burning summers, Winter can be a perfectly normal, or even highly anticipated, season.
A Winter Eladrin who is an Olympic snowboarder / mountain climber would presumably be very passionate about their season, regardless of how they feel about other people. The beauty of winter is different from that of spring, but it can still be beautiful.
Just play it with the personality of Olaf and you're sorted ;)
Yeah exactly it’s very subjective, that’s why I wanted to query it because I myself quite like winter and don’t see it as sad and gloomy.
thank you both for clarifying and your input
Just talking out loud, but I'm thinking maybe modeling your winter Eladrin's personality after a snowboarder or extreme skier back when those events were stuck in the X Games and weren't professionalized by the Olympics. Make sure you take Athletics, and make sure you exclaim "Woooo!" a lot. Maybe you drink too much of this green glowing almost too sweet for mortal taste elixir called Dew of the Mountains (it's really why you only need four hours of rest).
But seriously, I think you can take that parody I just outlined and come up with a character who has some charm in expressing extreme confidence bordering on arrogance (because not only do they prefer a time of year many find inhospitable, their feyish essence or whatever is literally bonded to it). But yes the "seasonal affect" in Eladrin's write ups are only suggestions, if you and your DM are good with it (some DM's may prefer a more lore purist take) you can do what you want with your theme.
Jander Sunstar is the thinking person's Drizzt, fight me.
What ever you do, make sure to name him Robin Williams.
Bit late but I should point out that Charisma can represent an awe-inspiring leader as easily as a charming socialite. It’s about confidence and the ability to influence people, which comes in many forms. Geralt in the show The Witcher (I haven’t yet read the books) is grim and taciturn, but he routinely uses an impressive demeanor and a few well-placed words to totally change the course of the story. There’s no doubt Geralt’s Charisma is high, even if he’s not flashy, smooth, or outgoing. That’s the direction I would take a charismatic winter eladrin.
Another option is to lean into the feel of winter holidays like Christmas and Yule. Think The Ghost of Christmas Present. That’s winter-associated but also quite happy!
Wizard (Gandalf) of the Tolkien Club
I saw this topic and could not resist the urge to comment.
Just dry puns. Cringe worthy, excalibur-face inducing, dryer than good firewood puns.
Watch your party and DM Facepalm during the game. Watch them remember that character forever after the fact.
"I once knew this fella, Aasimar raised in the Underdark. Was like a brother to me. When he escaped we couldn't take much with us. Poor, emaciated husks of the living we were. 'ts okay though. We survived and made our ways. I'll never forget the way the people from my home looked at us when we walked in the archway. Though, I'm frighteningly certain the feelings they would have, had they but the opportunity ta see us leave." --Manolovo the Traitor, Memoirs of a Scoundrel
Thank you, you’ve all been incredibly helpful :)
one last thing - I guess it’s safe to assume that it can be justified from a lore perspective that my Winter Eladrin character can characterise the long nights of winter with moon iconography and snowflake iconography? Tying in the theme of him being a gloom stalker
Also late to the party but what about:
A happy eladrin, slightly overwight, has a love of red and white fabrics and carries bags of random things he finds and hands them out to people as presents, named Xander Klaus.
Edit: also make him a paladin (or a bard using magic secrets) to get hold of find steed to have a reindeer mount and later find greater steed to have a flying reindeer.
Oh I'd say St. Nick is definitely some sort of College of Creation Bard with maybe a bit of Artificer in the mix for the fancy toys, maybe, and/or Ranger(Beast), Druid(Shepherd), or Palladin for the reindeer wrangling.
There was a thread here somewhere about a Gloomstalker fighting in a blizzard ... it got heated. You're talking lore/look so might not be an issue but I guess some folks have arguments about what can and can't see a Gloomstalker in blizzard conditions. I've yet to see a Gloomstalker in my game so not sure but I see no problem with "The Land of the Ice and Snow" being where you first plied your trade at holding the line against threats. (I suppose that song is more how a snow originating Gloomstalker's enemies would perceive them).
Jander Sunstar is the thinking person's Drizzt, fight me.
What’s was wrong about a gloom stalker in a blizzard? Do you mean in terms of the blizzard acting as dark cover?
my gloom stalker aesthetic would be based on the long winter nights rather than blizzards acting as cover.
Also, think about Christmas and the vibes often associated with that. Snow and a white blanket, making the perfect backdrop for the brightest of colours.
Your Winter Eladrin could fit right into Whoville with high charisma.
Slightly off topic but seeing as the new Van Richtens thing is coming out this thread has made my DM side pause for thought.....combine "30 days of night" comic/film + a Winter Eldarin/Elf polar village (+ Kingdom Death aesthetic if you are aware of the game) and you have a wierd demi plane of dread or layer of the nine hells where levistas is entombed, where you have all the coldest of climate conditions, mixed with eternal night and all the monsters have the gloomstalker dread ambusher and umbral sight abilities and you have a pretty cool (and probably lethal) place to go adventuring for the halloween or festive season.