She is a Fox Shifter, and she is also a Kunoichi (ninja girl). She left her clan because she wants to become a Ninja Warrior. However; her families clan won't allow her to follow her dreams, instead, insisting that as a girl, she should respect traditions and learn the feminine arts of seduction, infiltration and information gathering and assassination, or get married and become a mother.
Description
Maple is proud to be a Ninja Girl and dresses in the style of her clan; she is not ashamed of where she comes from or who her family is. However, Maple does not believe in the strict separation of gender roles that are enforced by her family and extended clan. Instead, she believes in a democratic meritocracy, in which ability and skill and the will of the people, not age, gender or socioeconomic status are the determining characteristics of society and one’s place within it.
Maple is a child prodigy. She is the most promising young ninja that her clan has ever produced, or at least she would be, had she been born a boy and not a girl. As a Kunoichi, there are only two paths open to her. Either she can get married and become a mother, or she can study the feminine arts of infiltration, information gathering and assassination; after which, she would most likely become a courtesan.
Neither of these options appeals to Maple as she harbours a desire to become a Ninja Warrior. A significant point of contention between her and her family. Her family have tried their best to appease her while still enforcing the strict laws of their clan.
Maple understands that her family loves her and want her to be happy. She also understands that their hands are tied and if they were caught, allowing her to learn the ways of the warrior, the rest of the clan would severely punish them. She doesn’t want her family to suffer because of her. So she has left them behind, abandoning her family and the closed community of her clan for the outside world, where she hopes to find a teacher and one day become a great warrior whose deeds are worthy of prose and song.
Further Notes:
It is worthwhile noting that despite saying that this character is a child prodigy, I would not be playing her as somebody good at everything. Instead, I would be playing her as somebody who has mastered the skills she has even at her young age and easily and quickly picks up new skills and abilities, which would be represented by the character levelling up. In addition to this, she is slightly arrogant, and self-assured, believing that she can easily do anything she sets her mind to because she always has.
Maple's overconfidence in her abilities and her arrogance about how easily she learns new things are her major flaws and display her lack of understanding about the outside world, the people in it and the level of her maturity. I want to play the teenage rebel, who grows into herself as she matures throughout a campaign; somebody whom, by the end of the campaign, has become a full-fledged adult in terms of not only her level of maturity but her world view.
It is also worth noting that Maple's family are all still alive, and she is very proud of them and their accomplishments. Her family also love her; and despite their disagreements, she loves them with all her heart. Furthermore; Maple had a reasonably comfortable childhood, with friends and relatives that cared for her. Maple did not leave because she disagreed with her family or her clan; she left because she wanted to pursue her dreams of becoming a warrior, something that was not possible while she remained.
Maple's family do not know where she is, but they do know that she went to pursue her dreams and in secret, gave her their blessing to do so.
Your Turn:
Now that I have described the character that I want to create, do you have any hints, tips, suggestions or recommendations that will help me bring this character concept to life? Thoughts on everything from the character's class and sub-class to her backstory and ideas about how I might roleplay her in an actual game setting. As well as general hints, tips and constructive criticisms and any other thoughts you might have, will be most gratefully welcomed.
I am looking forward to reading everything you have to say.
You've.....you've already made the character. Like, what else is there, you've chosen race, class, background, backstory and wrote a tonne, likely more than any DM would ask for. Are you really asking for advice, or just trying to show off your character under the pretence of a question?
You've.....you've already made the character. Like, what else is there, you've chosen race, class, background, backstory and wrote a tonne, likely more than any DM would ask for. Are you asking for advice, or just trying to show off your character under the pretence of a question?
Where it is true that I have written a character concept that could be turned into a character, I genuinely was asking for advice.
Perhaps my question was badly worded as what I was looking for mostly was advice and stuff on improving the concept and turning it into the best character possible.
Things like is there a better class/sub class that might work better than the one I chosen, could I make the theme and backstory more consistent and advice on roleplaying an animal girl in a way that is fun everyone and not just me.
All things like that.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
A caffeinated nerd who has played TTRPGs or a number of years and is very much a fantasy adventure geek.
try giving her 6 levels of the monk way of the shadow so when in darkness she can teleport behind her enemies and stab them in the and with 2 levels of the fighter she can action surge and shadow step back and slip away without harm.
a multi class for the ninja girl would be 2 levels fighter, just for the action surge, 6 levels of monk way of the shadow, just for the darkness spell and shadow step, and 12 levels of rogue, for the other assassin type skills. does that help?
" she harbours a desire to become a Ninja Warrior." Why? Is there some inspiration behind this desire? And to what end? Is it just praise and glory or are there real challenges she needs to address in the world? The "ninja" is not often Good aligned - how does she reconcile the stereotypes with her own moral leanings / convictions?
(I made a CG Rogue Assassin some time ago - also a contradiction - but the direction was forced upon my character by evil circumstances that needed to be corrected - blood for blood was demanded by his Good alignment but Chaotic allowed him to take severe actions outside of the law. Now that those circumstances have largely been corrected, the characters direction has changed - taking on monk levels and switching towards NG - and forsaking the addiction of vengeance.)
" she harbours a desire to become a Ninja Warrior." Why? Is there some inspiration behind this desire? And to what end? Is it just praise and glory or are there real challenges she needs to address in the world? The "ninja" is not often Good aligned - how does she reconcile the stereotypes with her own moral leanings / convictions?
(I made a CG Rogue Assassin some time ago - also a contradiction - but the direction was forced upon my character by evil circumstances that needed to be corrected - blood for blood was demanded by his Good alignment but Chaotic allowed him to take severe actions outside of the law. Now that those circumstances have largely been corrected, the characters direction has changed - taking on monk levels and switching towards NG - and forsaking the addiction of vengeance.)
" she harbours a desire to become a Ninja Warrior." Why? Is there some inspiration behind this desire? And to what end? Is it just praise and glory or are there real challenges she needs to address in the world? The "ninja" is not often Good aligned - how does she reconcile the stereotypes with her own moral leanings / convictions?
(I made a CG Rogue Assassin some time ago - also a contradiction - but the direction was forced upon my character by evil circumstances that needed to be corrected - blood for blood was demanded by his Good alignment but Chaotic allowed him to take severe actions outside of the law. Now that those circumstances have largely been corrected, the characters direction has changed - taking on monk levels and switching towards NG - and forsaking the addiction of vengeance.)
She wants to prove that she can. That she can do anything that the boys can and that her clan's traditions of strict gender roles are stupid because girls are just as capable.
She doesn't want to be a courtesan or a spy, or an assassin. She wants to be a ninja warrior.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
A caffeinated nerd who has played TTRPGs or a number of years and is very much a fantasy adventure geek.
So, a teenage kitsune kunoichi. Not a hard trope to work with. Elvish and Dwarvish don't make a ton of sense here, though. I think Sylvan would be a better pick, maybe tweak your background to drop a language for more tools.
She is a Fox Shifter, and she is also a Kunoichi (ninja girl). She left her clan because she wants to become a Ninja Warrior. However; her families clan won't allow her to follow her dreams, instead, insisting that as a girl, she should respect traditions and learn the feminine arts of seduction, infiltration and information gathering and assassination, or get married and become a mother.
Description
Maple is proud to be a Ninja Girl and dresses in the style of her clan; she is not ashamed of where she comes from or who her family is. However, Maple does not believe in the strict separation of gender roles that are enforced by her family and extended clan. Instead, she believes in a democratic meritocracy, in which ability and skill and the will of the people, not age, gender or socioeconomic status are the determining characteristics of society and one’s place within it.
Maple is a child prodigy. She is the most promising young ninja that her clan has ever produced, or at least she would be, had she been born a boy and not a girl. As a Kunoichi, there are only two paths open to her. Either she can get married and become a mother, or she can study the feminine arts of infiltration, information gathering and assassination; after which, she would most likely become a courtesan.
Neither of these options appeals to Maple as she harbours a desire to become a Ninja Warrior. A significant point of contention between her and her family. Her family have tried their best to appease her while still enforcing the strict laws of their clan.
Maple understands that her family loves her and want her to be happy. She also understands that their hands are tied and if they were caught, allowing her to learn the ways of the warrior, the rest of the clan would severely punish them. She doesn’t want her family to suffer because of her. So she has left them behind, abandoning her family and the closed community of her clan for the outside world, where she hopes to find a teacher and one day become a great warrior whose deeds are worthy of prose and song.
This is a whole lot of text to say 'she was expected to be a courtesan or mother but wants to be a warrior. Also she is really good at things.'
Is there nobody else in the clan who thinks the way she does? Where does the clan live? What is their interaction with other races? Consider that maybe a traveler from another culture inspired her when she was young. Try to imagine why your special OC became so different than the rest of her people.
Also, consider that even at level 1, characters are generally heroic and accomplished in 5e. What are some things she has already done to demonstrate her superiority over all her peers?
Further Notes:
It is worthwhile noting that despite saying that this character is a child prodigy, I would not be playing her as somebody good at everything. Instead, I would be playing her as somebody who has mastered the skills she has even at her young age and easily and quickly picks up new skills and abilities, which would be represented by the character levelling up. In addition to this, she is slightly arrogant, and self-assured, believing that she can easily do anything she sets her mind to because she always has.
Maple's overconfidence in her abilities and her arrogance about how easily she learns new things are her major flaws and display her lack of understanding about the outside world, the people in it and the level of her maturity. I want to play the teenage rebel, who grows into herself as she matures throughout a campaign; somebody whom, by the end of the campaign, has become a full-fledged adult in terms of not only her level of maturity but her world view.
It is also worth noting that Maple's family are all still alive, and she is very proud of them and their accomplishments. Her family also love her; and despite their disagreements, she loves them with all her heart. Furthermore; Maple had a reasonably comfortable childhood, with friends and relatives that cared for her. Maple did not leave because she disagreed with her family or her clan; she left because she wanted to pursue her dreams of becoming a warrior, something that was not possible while she remained.
Maple's family do not know where she is, but they do know that she went to pursue her dreams and in secret, gave her their blessing to do so.
She's a rogue, with expertise. You've already said she is the most promising young ninja her clan has ever produced. She is good at almost everything (beyond magic and taking a punch). When you're good at everything, being arrogant isn't a real flaw. Arrogance is also a really hard trait to make work in a party dynamic. Your character has to be likable by the rest of the PCs unless you've got a pretty good dynamic with the other players.
I appreciate that you felt the need to tell us that her family is alive and well. Usually with this kind of character they've been brutally murdered leaving her the sole, grief and guilt-stricken survivor. :D
Your Turn:
Now that I have described the character that I want to create, do you have any hints, tips, suggestions or recommendations that will help me bring this character concept to life? Thoughts on everything from the character's class and sub-class to her backstory and ideas about how I might roleplay her in an actual game setting. As well as general hints, tips and constructive criticisms and any other thoughts you might have, will be most gratefully welcomed.
I am looking forward to reading everything you have to say.
Thanks
Foxes
Aside from minor quibbles with the concept in general, here's the big thing.
Don't build a character without knowing where you could play it.
I have plenty of OCs, trust me. Characters are not born in a vacuum. A good character is one that the DM will be as excited about as you are, and the best way to do this is to create a character with the setting, tone, and story in mind. I never play my OCs because they're never right for a game - their story has been predetermined. The OC I create for the game is always a better character.
Any DM willing to bring in Maple is going to have to work to make her fit. There are two main problems, which are magnified if your DM is more traditional (read: proud grognard).
One: Race. Shifters are a setting specific race. Shifters are not generally noted as being 'specifically a fox' but that's a minor thing. But the default assumption in any setting other than Eberron is that Shifters (and therefore your kitsune) don't exist in the way you expect. Additionally, while the community is a little warmer towards anthro animals these days, many games are just not suitable for them. The existence of fox-girls necessarily implies the existence of a number of other anthro/furry/kemonomimi races, which has further implications. Not to say that playing a fox-girl demands the setting be Zootopia, but its a consideration.
Two: Culture. Most D&D games are Tolkienesque. My specialty is Eberron, and generally I put asian influences in Sarlona or Droaam, which are lands and countries far from where Shifters hail. Short of dusting off my old copy of Oriental Adventures, I don't know what world Maple would fit in. A paladin of Helm, a wizard with a pointy hat, and kunoichi might make a fun party, but its a little jarring. Consider the grumbling that occurs whenever people bring up the Book of Weaboo Fightan Magic because it's 'not medieval fantasy'. Its nonsense, but I still hear it.
Mechanically?
Straight rogue is probably fine. Paladin doesn't make sense. Maybe consider Shadow Monk if you can make the Wisdom requirements. Bard might be a good choice too, representing some of the courtesan/geisha training Maple probably put up with before she left and would further allow her to expand on her skills. You could also go weird and grab Artificer (Alchemist) for poison and salve manufacturer, as well as reflavoring a lot of 'ninja-gear'. Returning Weapon to cobble together a Kusarigama, Boots of the Winding Path to Flash Step, Alchemy Jug to entertain and injure, etc.
Basic Bio
Art: https://dnd.erda.world/img/maplerose.jpg
She is a Fox Shifter, and she is also a Kunoichi (ninja girl). She left her clan because she wants to become a Ninja Warrior. However; her families clan won't allow her to follow her dreams, instead, insisting that as a girl, she should respect traditions and learn the feminine arts of seduction, infiltration and information gathering and assassination, or get married and become a mother.
Description
Maple is proud to be a Ninja Girl and dresses in the style of her clan; she is not ashamed of where she comes from or who her family is. However, Maple does not believe in the strict separation of gender roles that are enforced by her family and extended clan. Instead, she believes in a democratic meritocracy, in which ability and skill and the will of the people, not age, gender or socioeconomic status are the determining characteristics of society and one’s place within it.
Maple is a child prodigy. She is the most promising young ninja that her clan has ever produced, or at least she would be, had she been born a boy and not a girl. As a Kunoichi, there are only two paths open to her. Either she can get married and become a mother, or she can study the feminine arts of infiltration, information gathering and assassination; after which, she would most likely become a courtesan.
Neither of these options appeals to Maple as she harbours a desire to become a Ninja Warrior. A significant point of contention between her and her family. Her family have tried their best to appease her while still enforcing the strict laws of their clan.
Maple understands that her family loves her and want her to be happy. She also understands that their hands are tied and if they were caught, allowing her to learn the ways of the warrior, the rest of the clan would severely punish them. She doesn’t want her family to suffer because of her. So she has left them behind, abandoning her family and the closed community of her clan for the outside world, where she hopes to find a teacher and one day become a great warrior whose deeds are worthy of prose and song.
Further Notes:
It is worthwhile noting that despite saying that this character is a child prodigy, I would not be playing her as somebody good at everything. Instead, I would be playing her as somebody who has mastered the skills she has even at her young age and easily and quickly picks up new skills and abilities, which would be represented by the character levelling up. In addition to this, she is slightly arrogant, and self-assured, believing that she can easily do anything she sets her mind to because she always has.
Maple's overconfidence in her abilities and her arrogance about how easily she learns new things are her major flaws and display her lack of understanding about the outside world, the people in it and the level of her maturity. I want to play the teenage rebel, who grows into herself as she matures throughout a campaign; somebody whom, by the end of the campaign, has become a full-fledged adult in terms of not only her level of maturity but her world view.
It is also worth noting that Maple's family are all still alive, and she is very proud of them and their accomplishments. Her family also love her; and despite their disagreements, she loves them with all her heart. Furthermore; Maple had a reasonably comfortable childhood, with friends and relatives that cared for her. Maple did not leave because she disagreed with her family or her clan; she left because she wanted to pursue her dreams of becoming a warrior, something that was not possible while she remained.
Maple's family do not know where she is, but they do know that she went to pursue her dreams and in secret, gave her their blessing to do so.
Your Turn:
Now that I have described the character that I want to create, do you have any hints, tips, suggestions or recommendations that will help me bring this character concept to life? Thoughts on everything from the character's class and sub-class to her backstory and ideas about how I might roleplay her in an actual game setting. As well as general hints, tips and constructive criticisms and any other thoughts you might have, will be most gratefully welcomed.
I am looking forward to reading everything you have to say.
Thanks
Foxes
A caffeinated nerd who has played TTRPGs or a number of years and is very much a fantasy adventure geek.
You've.....you've already made the character. Like, what else is there, you've chosen race, class, background, backstory and wrote a tonne, likely more than any DM would ask for. Are you really asking for advice, or just trying to show off your character under the pretence of a question?
Find my D&D Beyond articles here
Where it is true that I have written a character concept that could be turned into a character, I genuinely was asking for advice.
Perhaps my question was badly worded as what I was looking for mostly was advice and stuff on improving the concept and turning it into the best character possible.
Things like is there a better class/sub class that might work better than the one I chosen, could I make the theme and backstory more consistent and advice on roleplaying an animal girl in a way that is fun everyone and not just me.
All things like that.
A caffeinated nerd who has played TTRPGs or a number of years and is very much a fantasy adventure geek.
try giving her 6 levels of the monk way of the shadow so when in darkness she can teleport behind her enemies and stab them in the and with 2 levels of the fighter she can action surge and shadow step back and slip away without harm.
a multi class for the ninja girl would be 2 levels fighter, just for the action surge, 6 levels of monk way of the shadow, just for the darkness spell and shadow step, and 12 levels of rogue, for the other assassin type skills. does that help?
" she harbours a desire to become a Ninja Warrior."
Why?
Is there some inspiration behind this desire?
And to what end? Is it just praise and glory or are there real challenges she needs to address in the world?
The "ninja" is not often Good aligned - how does she reconcile the stereotypes with her own moral leanings / convictions?
(I made a CG Rogue Assassin some time ago - also a contradiction - but the direction was forced upon my character by evil circumstances that needed to be corrected - blood for blood was demanded by his Good alignment but Chaotic allowed him to take severe actions outside of the law. Now that those circumstances have largely been corrected, the characters direction has changed - taking on monk levels and switching towards NG - and forsaking the addiction of vengeance.)
She wants to prove that she can. That she can do anything that the boys can and that her clan's traditions of strict gender roles are stupid because girls are just as capable.
She doesn't want to be a courtesan or a spy, or an assassin. She wants to be a ninja warrior.
A caffeinated nerd who has played TTRPGs or a number of years and is very much a fantasy adventure geek.
So, a teenage kitsune kunoichi. Not a hard trope to work with. Elvish and Dwarvish don't make a ton of sense here, though. I think Sylvan would be a better pick, maybe tweak your background to drop a language for more tools.
This is a whole lot of text to say 'she was expected to be a courtesan or mother but wants to be a warrior. Also she is really good at things.'
Is there nobody else in the clan who thinks the way she does? Where does the clan live? What is their interaction with other races? Consider that maybe a traveler from another culture inspired her when she was young. Try to imagine why your special OC became so different than the rest of her people.
Also, consider that even at level 1, characters are generally heroic and accomplished in 5e. What are some things she has already done to demonstrate her superiority over all her peers?
She's a rogue, with expertise. You've already said she is the most promising young ninja her clan has ever produced. She is good at almost everything (beyond magic and taking a punch). When you're good at everything, being arrogant isn't a real flaw. Arrogance is also a really hard trait to make work in a party dynamic. Your character has to be likable by the rest of the PCs unless you've got a pretty good dynamic with the other players.
I appreciate that you felt the need to tell us that her family is alive and well. Usually with this kind of character they've been brutally murdered leaving her the sole, grief and guilt-stricken survivor. :D
Aside from minor quibbles with the concept in general, here's the big thing.
Don't build a character without knowing where you could play it.
I have plenty of OCs, trust me. Characters are not born in a vacuum. A good character is one that the DM will be as excited about as you are, and the best way to do this is to create a character with the setting, tone, and story in mind. I never play my OCs because they're never right for a game - their story has been predetermined. The OC I create for the game is always a better character.
Any DM willing to bring in Maple is going to have to work to make her fit. There are two main problems, which are magnified if your DM is more traditional (read: proud grognard).
One: Race. Shifters are a setting specific race. Shifters are not generally noted as being 'specifically a fox' but that's a minor thing. But the default assumption in any setting other than Eberron is that Shifters (and therefore your kitsune) don't exist in the way you expect. Additionally, while the community is a little warmer towards anthro animals these days, many games are just not suitable for them. The existence of fox-girls necessarily implies the existence of a number of other anthro/furry/kemonomimi races, which has further implications. Not to say that playing a fox-girl demands the setting be Zootopia, but its a consideration.
Two: Culture. Most D&D games are Tolkienesque. My specialty is Eberron, and generally I put asian influences in Sarlona or Droaam, which are lands and countries far from where Shifters hail. Short of dusting off my old copy of Oriental Adventures, I don't know what world Maple would fit in. A paladin of Helm, a wizard with a pointy hat, and kunoichi might make a fun party, but its a little jarring. Consider the grumbling that occurs whenever people bring up the Book of Weaboo Fightan Magic because it's 'not medieval fantasy'. Its nonsense, but I still hear it.
Mechanically?
Straight rogue is probably fine. Paladin doesn't make sense. Maybe consider Shadow Monk if you can make the Wisdom requirements. Bard might be a good choice too, representing some of the courtesan/geisha training Maple probably put up with before she left and would further allow her to expand on her skills. You could also go weird and grab Artificer (Alchemist) for poison and salve manufacturer, as well as reflavoring a lot of 'ninja-gear'. Returning Weapon to cobble together a Kusarigama, Boots of the Winding Path to Flash Step, Alchemy Jug to entertain and injure, etc.
Another medical problem. Indefinite hiatus. Sorry, all.