There's a new guild on the rise in Amphail...or at least that's the hope of young Jhessana Roaringhorn, scion of the Roaringhorn family from Waterdeep. Scorning the more delicate pursuits commonly expected of young noblewomen in favor a more dangerous and...explosive...pastime, she has made it her goal to establish the Sword Coast's first Rifle Corps. The call has gone out, much to the amusement of her fellows among the noble class who see her goal as little more than a frivolous fad, yet Jhess stands firm in her hope that at least a few brave souls will rise up to join her cause. And with the rumblings of giant activity on the rise up and down the Sword Coast, she hopes to find them sooner rather than later.
This campaign is meant to use the material provided in the Storm King's Thunder campaign sourcebook, but as you might be able to guess, it focuses on a rather different band of adventurers. Specifically, I want all of the characters in this campaign to be part of the Amphail "Knights of Thunder," a fledgling guild of aspiring adventurers who all make use of firearms. As such, there are several limitations to the types of characters that I will be considering for this campaign. At its most limited, every member of the party would be a gunslinger (per Matt Mercer's published guidelines), but I'm willing to consider other classes if a player makes a reasonable case that their character would make sense using firearms. Characters will be starting at level 3.
(Please note, I personally feel that the UA Artificer, either the original or revised version, is a bit overpowered, so I will not likely be allowing Gunsmith player characters.)
Since the class parameters for this campaign are so limited, what I'm looking for here are solid, well built CHARACTERS, not just a class with minimal roleplay details. The more I like the feel and flavor of your character concept, the more likely it is that I'll be extending an invitation to include your character in the campaign. I'm excited to see what sort of things you all come up with.
Please post your basic character concept here in the thread, using the following format:
Character Name: Jhessana Roaringhorn
Race: Human (Variant)
Background: Waterdhavian Noble (SCAG)
Class: Fighter 3 (Gunslinger)
Backstory/Roleplay Elements: Jhess is a rambunctious and independent scion of the Roaringhorn noble family, who has always butted heads with her superiors in the family who wish she would behave in a manner more befitting her station. She has long had an interest in the strange implements of smoke and fire that come to Waterdeep from places like Lantan across the sea, much to the chagrin of her elders. Now entering her third decade of life, she has found herself shipped off to the rural settlement of Amphail in order to keep her eccentricities from tarnishing the family reputation in Waterdeep proper, and she finds this arrangement much to her liking. Amphail offers much more open space for shooting and tinkering with her weapons.
Player Availability and Time Zone: [CST] Available to post and check posts throughout the afternoon on weekdays and most weekends, though family activities may make weekends more hit or miss.
Note: Recruiting will be open through June 22nd at 2400 CST. I will only be accepting 4-6 players total.
Party will be Players only. Jhessana is merely an NPC that serves to help unify and direct the group. She will only accompany the actual party on rare occasions after the first mission.
I would be interested in joining if I can come up with a sufficiently interesting (from my point of view) character. Will post later if I do, if not, I hope others have more creative minds than mine.
Horatio Hirschfeld - Squire imbued with fae powers, in the Coliseum of Conquest (W2/L1) DM for Reavers of Harkenwold, and sometimes The Fighting Grounds of the Coliseum
Right browser this time. I would be interested, but with a fighter heavy crew, could I subclass into cleric or celestial warlock at level 4, or even subclass right away?
Backstory/Roleplay Elements: Hildigrim Goodbody's family have been in the fishing business in Waterdeep for as far back as they can remember — hardworking and well known for their reliability and quality of product. When Hildigrim's father began to try to teach his firstborn twin sons the family business, he became very frustrated very quickly with Hildigrim. While Hildigrim's twin brother, Fortegren, worked hard, Hildigrim had no interest in fishing. He loved to learn about the process, about the boat and how it worked, and about the types of fish in the Great Harbor. But when it came to actually going out on the boat and fishing, Hildigrim became bored, fidgety and distracted. He'd pull out a book and begin reading, not paying attention. Hildigrim's mother took pity on her poor son and encouraged her husband to continue teaching Fortegren the business and to let Hildigrim pursue his own dreams: knowledge and adventure. As Fortegren and the twins' younger siblings helped continue the family legacy on the water, Hildegrim spent most of his time in libraries and in taverns, reading everything he could get his hands on and listening to tales of expedition and heroics. Hildigrim wasn't a complete waste when it came to the family business; his knowledge helped streamline the operation. He was able to encourage enhancements to equipment, strategy and business relationships. His father did finally realize his son wasn't a complete hopeless cause. Hildigrim continued to dream of adventure, though. His father and mother finally decided it was unfair to continue to hold out hope that he would eventually decide to stay home. His father worked out a deal to fund his dream, and Hildigrim left home to become an adventurer. The past two months, Hildigrim has been adventuring with a small band and growing in skill. During their last mission, Hildigrim was exposed to his first firearm, and he instantly fell in love. He very recently traded in his sword for his first gun and has been studying and practicing hard. Hearing of the new guild in Amphail, a Reifle Corps., Hildigrim bid farewell to his comrades of the past two months and set out to apply.
Player Availability and Time Zone: [EST] Available to post and check posts throughout the day on weekdays depending on how busy I am at work and at home, and available most weekends, though family activities may make weekends more hit or miss.
Backstory/Roleplay Elements: Kralith Dorglak was born into a relatively peaceful hobgoblin legion near Amphail that call themselves the Scion of Bloodshed. He was raised to be a shock attacker, and he excelled in this profession that had been chosen for him. When he was 16, he was tasked with killing a cave bear, which he succeeded in doing through an ingenious contraption of pit traps and crossbows. Nearly a decade later, a priest of Bargrivyek, the hobgoblin god of duty, came to the legion with news of incredible new weapons that had recently come to Waterdeep. The legion's Warlord, Diitesh Draguuz, recognized their and sent out Kralith to investigate these 'firearms'. He quickly became fascinated with these novel tools of warfare, and resolved to conquer their mysteries. He spent several months growing accustomed to human society in Amphail and, while maintaining ties to the Scion of Bloodshed, now appreciates the wonders and delicacies of civilization, although that appreciation was often not returned. In his quest to further his knowledge of firearms, he came across Jhessana Roaringhorn and her Knights of Thunder. Discovering that they had similar goals and passions and desirous of proving his skills, he decided to join their ranks.
Player Availability and Time Zone: [PST] Available to post and check posts early mornings, most afternoons and evenings. Weekends are variable, but I mostly I will be able to post regularly.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Horatio Hirschfeld - Squire imbued with fae powers, in the Coliseum of Conquest (W2/L1) DM for Reavers of Harkenwold, and sometimes The Fighting Grounds of the Coliseum
Alfred von Edinburg is a man who hates magic. He's hated it as long as he can remember, ever since a mage rampaged through his small farming village, burning everything in sight, including Alfred's mother, and leaving his life in shambles. He never learned the identity of that mage, but he would never forget his face - calculating, cruel, and scarred - no doubt as a result of tampering with his own magical abilities. For years, Alfred struggled to accept what had happened, but he could never escape the burning question that now raged in his heart. How could the world ever be equal when there were men who could destroy an entire city with a snap of their fingers? Men who could see into the future, fly, and compel others to do their bidding, with only their thoughts? The question sickened Alfred, but he had to know the answer, so when he came of age, he enlisted as a soldier in the national army, desperate to learn the skills necessary to defend himself against the magic users of the world with impunity and find some meager justice for the downtrodden.
Military life suited Alfred, and he served his countrymen well. During his time in the service, he became well known for his dislike of mages, and his eagerness to be sent to the front lines when there were rumors of a spellcaster on the battlefield. He earned the trust of his comrades, and became adept at the art of war, so adept, in fact, that he caught the attention of one Jhessana Roarington, a noblewoman who seemed to see something of value in Alfred beyond his skill with the sword and spear, and told him that she wanted to recruit him to be part of a special unit, one that would specialize in using a specific, exotic weapon that utilized gunpowder to fire projectiles at the enemy. At first, Alfred scoffed at the idea, but at Jhessana's persistence, he picked up a rifle for the first time, and practiced firing it at a target range normally reserved for archery. As Alfred fired that first shot with the rifle, and felt the power of the recoil as it was pushed back into his shoulder, he was stunned. He extended the rifle in front of him and examined it in wonder. This, he thought, is the great equalizer. This weapon, in the hands of the common folk, would finally give those without magic a way to defend themselves against seemingly insurmountable odds. No more would sorcerers and mages rule over the common man with untold powers and sinister secrets. Now, the common man had a fighting chance. Alfred genuinely smiled for the first time in years, and in that moment devoted himself fully to Jhessana's cause. He would prove that these firearms were a powerful tool, one that should be embraced by every army around the world, and he would prove it by being the perfect soldier for Jhessana - and one day hunting down the mage that burned away so much of Alfred's life. And when that day finally came, and that mage was brought to his knees by Alfred's hand, he wouldn't hesistate - he would pull the trigger.
Player Availability and Time Zone: [EST] Available to post most weekdays and weekends, with Saturday and Tuesday being the only semi-exceptions. I can still post those days but I may post less frequently or not at all depending on family activities.
Class: Cleric 3 (War Domain) or Paladin of Vengeance
Backstory/Roleplay Elements: Gimmur Arnskull was born in the Earthspur Mountains. The Great Father of his clan was shieldbearer to Edrog Goldpike, the founder of the tribe that had, over many years, spread a network of dwarven enclaves and mines under the Earthspurs.
Over the years, the Arnskulls became one of the chief mining families of the Goldpike settlements, and Gimmur had been apprenticed to more than one of his uncles, master miners all. The young dwarf struggled with the brutal monotony of the mining life, though, and his father despaired of finding a place for him in the family work. Then, finally, Uncle Barakor invited him into the forge, and his life changed forever. The power of the crafter to create... to reshape stone and metal and to meld beauty and strength into wondrous items that communicate the heart of the dwarf people... Over five decades, the clanging of Gimmur Arnskull's forge hammer and the frustrated cursing as he reworked a whole item because of a single tiny flaw... those were welcome sounds to his family and his clan. When he was not working on the stuff of the traditional dwarven economy, he drew plans for a special weapon... a weapon of smoke and fire and roaring thunder and devastation.
Then The Darkness came.
In secret meetings far beyond the simple dwarf's imagining or understanding, bribes were offered, territories divided, and deals struck. The Cult of the Eternal Flame found ironic balance in their belief that the Light must sear away the impure from the surface of the world, but darkness should naturally rule under it. This convenient theology created an alliance between duergar and Cultist -- for if the nation of dwarves was erased from below, why shouldn't the Cultists, in their zealotry, annex the territory from above and use the rich veins of ores and gems to empower their efforts to engulf the world in flame?
The Darkness boiled up from the deep tunnels and overwhelmed the Goldpike Guardians. Gimmur raced to the shrine of the gods of Dwarfhome and hid his special creation before being captured and set to work breaking stone for the vicious duergar. Those vile grey dwarves had used psionics taught them by their illithid slavemasters to infiltrate the Guardians and corrupt them from within. Beaten daily, mocked for his slowness of mind, he mourned his failure. He was supposed to protect the family -- and he had failed so, so miserably. The captors loved telling how the Cult had sent an Emissary to simply make a deal - that all their hopes and dreams and lives and loves were meaningless, extinguished to feed the glory of others.
For many months Gimmur worked like an automaton, his name and personality receding deeper in his guilt and rage. He would have been lost in those depths forever, if the vile duergar had not been so cruel and foolish as to pit the muscular slave against a giant scorpion in a bit of sport! Fighting the horror reminded him of his old self, his old purpose. When he fully came to himself, not only was the horror shattered, but he had slain a dozen or more of the enemies.
Armoring himself in the group leader's dark chain mail and shield, he fought and fled his way around the fringes of the enclave and slowly up to the surface. He dispatched more than one human miner as well, once he reached the old tunnels of his people. In the passages he knew so well, he made his way to his family's clan secret shrine where the Old Gods of Dwarfhome had been revered. It had been desecrated by Laduguer the Exile, who bathed himself and his fanatics in the blood of tortured dwarves, but he remembered something they never knew: the secrets of the sanctum. In a secret compartment under their deity's statuette was hidden a holy symbol, reserved for a dwarf who would take on a holy calling for his people. Affixing the sigil of Gorm Gulthyn to his shield, he swore that he would not fail again.
"Soon..." he swore to himself. Soon, he would seek his kin - dwarves that would help him reclaim his homeland. But hope turned into frustration as clan after clan turned him down and drove him away, fearful that the curse that befell his people would engulf them as well. After years and years of fruitless pleading, he struck off Gorm's sigil and replaced it with that of Marthammor Duin. If the gods wanted him to wander forever, he would! He got his first tattoo to mark his transition from guardian to wanderer. For six decades, he has sailed the eternal seas. New tattoos, he would add after every battle and in every new port. Landing in Waterdeep, he hears of the Amphail Knights of Thunder and thinks, "I think those folks will appreciate my boomstick."
Player Availability and Time Zone: [EST] Available to post and check posts throughout the day on weekdays and most weekends, though family activities make weekends more hit or miss.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Eshuvenniel Kazander Ravid,Valor Bard and Acolyte of the Goddess of Luck Caradoc Langham, Halfling Rogue - Lost Magics - Epic of Pre-made Proportions! I'm not looking for heaven or hell... just someone to listen to stories I tell...
Backstory/Roleplay Elements: Phillandros was a smuggler. I say was, because he got caught. In exchange for information he was offered a 'reduced sentence'. What he did not realize was that one of the other nobles thought it would be funny to 'volunteer' Phillandros for service in Jhessana's latest past time, the Sword Coasts First Rifle Corp. I mean really, who would expect an 8 foot tall bugbear to be able to use firearms. However Phillandros' craftiness proved them surprisingly wrong, becoming quite adept at the use of these new weapons. Having escaped the hangmans noose, he has agreed to serve the rest of his time in the Rifle Corp.
Player Availability and Time Zone: EST - weekdays from 7am-4pm I am constantly on the forums - occasionally I will be able to check on evenings and weekends.
Eshuvenniel Kazander Ravid,Valor Bard and Acolyte of the Goddess of Luck Caradoc Langham, Halfling Rogue - Lost Magics - Epic of Pre-made Proportions! I'm not looking for heaven or hell... just someone to listen to stories I tell...
how would you feel about a Hexblade Warlock with Pact of the Blade using a firearm (pepperbox) as their weapon? I think that would be a very interesting play out. If not, I'll work up something else instead.
First, I'd be tempted to tell you that you should change your name from Lyrel to Percival. ;)
Kidding aside, I don't have any problem with a firearm-wielding Hexbladelock, but be aware that I've already received one such character application via PM, and I'm not keen on running two of them so it would be a matter of whichever I like best between the two.
I'm going to have to practice my name in the mirror for about a week before I could make that change! Hahaha, I don't know how he could spit out that mouthful like it was nothing.
Excellent. Also, I appreciate you letting me know that so I can plan accordingly for my character. I've got an idea that I hope is unique enough to distinguish itself from the competition.
Saute_Monkey, my primary concern, at least for this campaign, is the progressive damage increase on the Gunsmith archetype's Thunder Monger class feature. It follows only one level behind the Rogue's sneak attack (so a rogue gets 5d6 bonus damage at level 10, while the artificer doesn't get that until 11), but it doesn't have ANY of the restrictions that the rogue's Sneak Attack has. It can literally be used for EVERY attack that the artificer makes, even if that attack has disadvantage.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
To post a comment, please login or register a new account.
There's a new guild on the rise in Amphail...or at least that's the hope of young Jhessana Roaringhorn, scion of the Roaringhorn family from Waterdeep. Scorning the more delicate pursuits commonly expected of young noblewomen in favor a more dangerous and...explosive...pastime, she has made it her goal to establish the Sword Coast's first Rifle Corps. The call has gone out, much to the amusement of her fellows among the noble class who see her goal as little more than a frivolous fad, yet Jhess stands firm in her hope that at least a few brave souls will rise up to join her cause. And with the rumblings of giant activity on the rise up and down the Sword Coast, she hopes to find them sooner rather than later.
This campaign is meant to use the material provided in the Storm King's Thunder campaign sourcebook, but as you might be able to guess, it focuses on a rather different band of adventurers. Specifically, I want all of the characters in this campaign to be part of the Amphail "Knights of Thunder," a fledgling guild of aspiring adventurers who all make use of firearms. As such, there are several limitations to the types of characters that I will be considering for this campaign. At its most limited, every member of the party would be a gunslinger (per Matt Mercer's published guidelines), but I'm willing to consider other classes if a player makes a reasonable case that their character would make sense using firearms. Characters will be starting at level 3.
(Please note, I personally feel that the UA Artificer, either the original or revised version, is a bit overpowered, so I will not likely be allowing Gunsmith player characters.)
Since the class parameters for this campaign are so limited, what I'm looking for here are solid, well built CHARACTERS, not just a class with minimal roleplay details. The more I like the feel and flavor of your character concept, the more likely it is that I'll be extending an invitation to include your character in the campaign. I'm excited to see what sort of things you all come up with.
Please post your basic character concept here in the thread, using the following format:
Note: Recruiting will be open through June 22nd at 2400 CST. I will only be accepting 4-6 players total.
Do you plan on playing a character as well as DMing or will the party consist of players only?
Party will be Players only. Jhessana is merely an NPC that serves to help unify and direct the group. She will only accompany the actual party on rare occasions after the first mission.
I would be interested in joining if I can come up with a sufficiently interesting (from my point of view) character. Will post later if I do, if not, I hope others have more creative minds than mine.
EDIT: What races will you allow?
Horatio Hirschfeld - Squire imbued with fae powers, in the Coliseum of Conquest (W2/L1)
DM for Reavers of Harkenwold, and sometimes The Fighting Grounds of the Coliseum
I would be interested. It looks fun. Can we multiclass later or on creation? If we are all fighters, how would healing work?
Lol this is jess by the way... We did it again...
Right browser this time. I would be interested, but with a fighter heavy crew, could I subclass into cleric or celestial warlock at level 4, or even subclass right away?
I'm open to pretty much any race, and any class combination, as long as the characters are compelling and make use of firearms in some way.
Character Name: Hildigrim Goodbody
Race: Lightfoot Halfling
Background: Sage
Class: Fighter 3 (Gunslinger)
Backstory/Roleplay Elements: Hildigrim Goodbody's family have been in the fishing business in Waterdeep for as far back as they can remember — hardworking and well known for their reliability and quality of product. When Hildigrim's father began to try to teach his firstborn twin sons the family business, he became very frustrated very quickly with Hildigrim. While Hildigrim's twin brother, Fortegren, worked hard, Hildigrim had no interest in fishing. He loved to learn about the process, about the boat and how it worked, and about the types of fish in the Great Harbor. But when it came to actually going out on the boat and fishing, Hildigrim became bored, fidgety and distracted. He'd pull out a book and begin reading, not paying attention. Hildigrim's mother took pity on her poor son and encouraged her husband to continue teaching Fortegren the business and to let Hildigrim pursue his own dreams: knowledge and adventure. As Fortegren and the twins' younger siblings helped continue the family legacy on the water, Hildegrim spent most of his time in libraries and in taverns, reading everything he could get his hands on and listening to tales of expedition and heroics. Hildigrim wasn't a complete waste when it came to the family business; his knowledge helped streamline the operation. He was able to encourage enhancements to equipment, strategy and business relationships. His father did finally realize his son wasn't a complete hopeless cause. Hildigrim continued to dream of adventure, though. His father and mother finally decided it was unfair to continue to hold out hope that he would eventually decide to stay home. His father worked out a deal to fund his dream, and Hildigrim left home to become an adventurer. The past two months, Hildigrim has been adventuring with a small band and growing in skill. During their last mission, Hildigrim was exposed to his first firearm, and he instantly fell in love. He very recently traded in his sword for his first gun and has been studying and practicing hard. Hearing of the new guild in Amphail, a Reifle Corps., Hildigrim bid farewell to his comrades of the past two months and set out to apply.
Player Availability and Time Zone: [EST] Available to post and check posts throughout the day on weekdays depending on how busy I am at work and at home, and available most weekends, though family activities may make weekends more hit or miss.
Character Name: Kralith Dorglak
Race: Hobgoblin (Volo's Guide to Monsters)
Background: Soldier
Class: Fighter 3 (Gunslinger)
Backstory/Roleplay Elements: Kralith Dorglak was born into a relatively peaceful hobgoblin legion near Amphail that call themselves the Scion of Bloodshed. He was raised to be a shock attacker, and he excelled in this profession that had been chosen for him. When he was 16, he was tasked with killing a cave bear, which he succeeded in doing through an ingenious contraption of pit traps and crossbows. Nearly a decade later, a priest of Bargrivyek, the hobgoblin god of duty, came to the legion with news of incredible new weapons that had recently come to Waterdeep. The legion's Warlord, Diitesh Draguuz, recognized their and sent out Kralith to investigate these 'firearms'. He quickly became fascinated with these novel tools of warfare, and resolved to conquer their mysteries. He spent several months growing accustomed to human society in Amphail and, while maintaining ties to the Scion of Bloodshed, now appreciates the wonders and delicacies of civilization, although that appreciation was often not returned. In his quest to further his knowledge of firearms, he came across Jhessana Roaringhorn and her Knights of Thunder. Discovering that they had similar goals and passions and desirous of proving his skills, he decided to join their ranks.
Player Availability and Time Zone: [PST] Available to post and check posts early mornings, most afternoons and evenings. Weekends are variable, but I mostly I will be able to post regularly.
Horatio Hirschfeld - Squire imbued with fae powers, in the Coliseum of Conquest (W2/L1)
DM for Reavers of Harkenwold, and sometimes The Fighting Grounds of the Coliseum
Character Name: Alfred von Edinburgh
Race: Human (Variant)
Background: Soldier
Class: Fighter 3 (Gunslinger)
Backstory/Roleplay Elements:
Alfred von Edinburg is a man who hates magic. He's hated it as long as he can remember, ever since a mage rampaged through his small farming village, burning everything in sight, including Alfred's mother, and leaving his life in shambles. He never learned the identity of that mage, but he would never forget his face - calculating, cruel, and scarred - no doubt as a result of tampering with his own magical abilities. For years, Alfred struggled to accept what had happened, but he could never escape the burning question that now raged in his heart. How could the world ever be equal when there were men who could destroy an entire city with a snap of their fingers? Men who could see into the future, fly, and compel others to do their bidding, with only their thoughts? The question sickened Alfred, but he had to know the answer, so when he came of age, he enlisted as a soldier in the national army, desperate to learn the skills necessary to defend himself against the magic users of the world with impunity and find some meager justice for the downtrodden.
Military life suited Alfred, and he served his countrymen well. During his time in the service, he became well known for his dislike of mages, and his eagerness to be sent to the front lines when there were rumors of a spellcaster on the battlefield. He earned the trust of his comrades, and became adept at the art of war, so adept, in fact, that he caught the attention of one Jhessana Roarington, a noblewoman who seemed to see something of value in Alfred beyond his skill with the sword and spear, and told him that she wanted to recruit him to be part of a special unit, one that would specialize in using a specific, exotic weapon that utilized gunpowder to fire projectiles at the enemy. At first, Alfred scoffed at the idea, but at Jhessana's persistence, he picked up a rifle for the first time, and practiced firing it at a target range normally reserved for archery. As Alfred fired that first shot with the rifle, and felt the power of the recoil as it was pushed back into his shoulder, he was stunned. He extended the rifle in front of him and examined it in wonder. This, he thought, is the great equalizer. This weapon, in the hands of the common folk, would finally give those without magic a way to defend themselves against seemingly insurmountable odds. No more would sorcerers and mages rule over the common man with untold powers and sinister secrets. Now, the common man had a fighting chance. Alfred genuinely smiled for the first time in years, and in that moment devoted himself fully to Jhessana's cause. He would prove that these firearms were a powerful tool, one that should be embraced by every army around the world, and he would prove it by being the perfect soldier for Jhessana - and one day hunting down the mage that burned away so much of Alfred's life. And when that day finally came, and that mage was brought to his knees by Alfred's hand, he wouldn't hesistate - he would pull the trigger.
Player Availability and Time Zone: [EST] Available to post most weekdays and weekends, with Saturday and Tuesday being the only semi-exceptions. I can still post those days but I may post less frequently or not at all depending on family activities.
Submitting multiple character ideas in private. As to not spam
PM sent
PbP Character: A few ;)
Character Name: Gimmur Arnskull
Race: Hill Dwarf
Background: Clan Crafter
Class: Cleric 3 (War Domain) or Paladin of Vengeance
Backstory/Roleplay Elements: Gimmur Arnskull was born in the Earthspur Mountains. The Great Father of his clan was shieldbearer to Edrog Goldpike, the founder of the tribe that had, over many years, spread a network of dwarven enclaves and mines under the Earthspurs.
Over the years, the Arnskulls became one of the chief mining families of the Goldpike settlements, and Gimmur had been apprenticed to more than one of his uncles, master miners all. The young dwarf struggled with the brutal monotony of the mining life, though, and his father despaired of finding a place for him in the family work. Then, finally, Uncle Barakor invited him into the forge, and his life changed forever. The power of the crafter to create... to reshape stone and metal and to meld beauty and strength into wondrous items that communicate the heart of the dwarf people... Over five decades, the clanging of Gimmur Arnskull's forge hammer and the frustrated cursing as he reworked a whole item because of a single tiny flaw... those were welcome sounds to his family and his clan. When he was not working on the stuff of the traditional dwarven economy, he drew plans for a special weapon... a weapon of smoke and fire and roaring thunder and devastation.
Then The Darkness came.
In secret meetings far beyond the simple dwarf's imagining or understanding, bribes were offered, territories divided, and deals struck. The Cult of the Eternal Flame found ironic balance in their belief that the Light must sear away the impure from the surface of the world, but darkness should naturally rule under it. This convenient theology created an alliance between duergar and Cultist -- for if the nation of dwarves was erased from below, why shouldn't the Cultists, in their zealotry, annex the territory from above and use the rich veins of ores and gems to empower their efforts to engulf the world in flame?
The Darkness boiled up from the deep tunnels and overwhelmed the Goldpike Guardians. Gimmur raced to the shrine of the gods of Dwarfhome and hid his special creation before being captured and set to work breaking stone for the vicious duergar. Those vile grey dwarves had used psionics taught them by their illithid slavemasters to infiltrate the Guardians and corrupt them from within. Beaten daily, mocked for his slowness of mind, he mourned his failure. He was supposed to protect the family -- and he had failed so, so miserably. The captors loved telling how the Cult had sent an Emissary to simply make a deal - that all their hopes and dreams and lives and loves were meaningless, extinguished to feed the glory of others.
For many months Gimmur worked like an automaton, his name and personality receding deeper in his guilt and rage. He would have been lost in those depths forever, if the vile duergar had not been so cruel and foolish as to pit the muscular slave against a giant scorpion in a bit of sport! Fighting the horror reminded him of his old self, his old purpose. When he fully came to himself, not only was the horror shattered, but he had slain a dozen or more of the enemies.
Armoring himself in the group leader's dark chain mail and shield, he fought and fled his way around the fringes of the enclave and slowly up to the surface. He dispatched more than one human miner as well, once he reached the old tunnels of his people. In the passages he knew so well, he made his way to his family's clan secret shrine where the Old Gods of Dwarfhome had been revered. It had been desecrated by Laduguer the Exile, who bathed himself and his fanatics in the blood of tortured dwarves, but he remembered something they never knew: the secrets of the sanctum. In a secret compartment under their deity's statuette was hidden a holy symbol, reserved for a dwarf who would take on a holy calling for his people. Affixing the sigil of Gorm Gulthyn to his shield, he swore that he would not fail again.
"Soon..." he swore to himself. Soon, he would seek his kin - dwarves that would help him reclaim his homeland. But hope turned into frustration as clan after clan turned him down and drove him away, fearful that the curse that befell his people would engulf them as well. After years and years of fruitless pleading, he struck off Gorm's sigil and replaced it with that of Marthammor Duin. If the gods wanted him to wander forever, he would! He got his first tattoo to mark his transition from guardian to wanderer. For six decades, he has sailed the eternal seas. New tattoos, he would add after every battle and in every new port. Landing in Waterdeep, he hears of the Amphail Knights of Thunder and thinks, "I think those folks will appreciate my boomstick."
Player Availability and Time Zone: [EST] Available to post and check posts throughout the day on weekdays and most weekends, though family activities make weekends more hit or miss.
Eshuvenniel Kazander Ravid, Valor Bard and Acolyte of the Goddess of Luck
Caradoc Langham, Halfling Rogue - Lost Magics - Epic of Pre-made Proportions!
I'm not looking for heaven or hell... just someone to listen to stories I tell...
Character Name: Phillandros
Race: Bugbear
Background: Criminal/Spy
Class: Fighter 3 (Gunslinger)
Backstory/Roleplay Elements: Phillandros was a smuggler. I say was, because he got caught. In exchange for information he was offered a 'reduced sentence'. What he did not realize was that one of the other nobles thought it would be funny to 'volunteer' Phillandros for service in Jhessana's latest past time, the Sword Coasts First Rifle Corp. I mean really, who would expect an 8 foot tall bugbear to be able to use firearms. However Phillandros' craftiness proved them surprisingly wrong, becoming quite adept at the use of these new weapons. Having escaped the hangmans noose, he has agreed to serve the rest of his time in the Rifle Corp.
Player Availability and Time Zone: EST - weekdays from 7am-4pm I am constantly on the forums - occasionally I will be able to check on evenings and weekends.
Skameros - Bugbear Barbarian - Out of the Abyss - By Kerrec
Follow your Arrow where it Points - Tabaxi Monk - Baldur's Gate: Descent Into Avernus (by Pokepaladdy)
Citron Pumpkinfoam - Fairy Monk - Project Point: Team Longsword
Thread Bump
Eshuvenniel Kazander Ravid, Valor Bard and Acolyte of the Goddess of Luck
Caradoc Langham, Halfling Rogue - Lost Magics - Epic of Pre-made Proportions!
I'm not looking for heaven or hell... just someone to listen to stories I tell...
Hey GM,
how would you feel about a Hexblade Warlock with Pact of the Blade using a firearm (pepperbox) as their weapon? I think that would be a very interesting play out. If not, I'll work up something else instead.
Valaith "Rimehand" Kalukavi - Chronicles of Arden
First, I'd be tempted to tell you that you should change your name from Lyrel to Percival. ;)
Kidding aside, I don't have any problem with a firearm-wielding Hexbladelock, but be aware that I've already received one such character application via PM, and I'm not keen on running two of them so it would be a matter of whichever I like best between the two.
Just curious as to why you think the Artificer is OP? I played one a little at level 5 or 6 and seemed to lag behind the other classes at the table.
I'm going to have to practice my name in the mirror for about a week before I could make that change! Hahaha, I don't know how he could spit out that mouthful like it was nothing.
Excellent. Also, I appreciate you letting me know that so I can plan accordingly for my character. I've got an idea that I hope is unique enough to distinguish itself from the competition.
Valaith "Rimehand" Kalukavi - Chronicles of Arden
Saute_Monkey, my primary concern, at least for this campaign, is the progressive damage increase on the Gunsmith archetype's Thunder Monger class feature. It follows only one level behind the Rogue's sneak attack (so a rogue gets 5d6 bonus damage at level 10, while the artificer doesn't get that until 11), but it doesn't have ANY of the restrictions that the rogue's Sneak Attack has. It can literally be used for EVERY attack that the artificer makes, even if that attack has disadvantage.