Character Ideas

Hey guys, I've set some character sheets up in case you want to mess around with any ideas.Let me know whether you prefer to roll for stats or a point buy system? Feel free to post on this forum as you start forming character ideas/backstory so the other players have something to work with as we work at how the characters know each other and why they are adventuring together etc. I'll be making final choices on players over the weekend. I look forward to playing with you all.

Hey everyone! Thanks for the invite Jase. Personally I like letting the dice dictact my life. I am not a min/maxer or power gamer. So I don't mind if my stats don't turn out the best, as long as it doesn't hinder the RP experience for myself and others. So I am happy to roll, but if the majority feel more comfortable with point buy I am happy to go that route too. Bit of a toss up for me atm character-wise. Would really love to test out the updated Mystic or perhaps even a Pugilist (if you are allowing widely regarded home brews), but I will make a final decision when I know what everyone else wants to do. Gladly fill any roll, just happy to be playing. Looking forward to meeting everyone

Hello! I'm very pleased to have been picked for this campaign. Regarding stat generation, I'm happy to go either way, but I lean toward point-buy. Not long ago I joined a group on Roll20 that rolled for stats, and I rolled exceptionally well. I was surprised to note that the other players in the group really seemed to resent it, feeling like my character outshone theirs from day one. Alternately, if you roll terribly, it can be hard to feel heroic. At least with point-buy everyone starts out on the same footing, which can feel more fair. Rolling is fun, though. I usually try to come up with a character concept that fits the setting of the campaign, so at the moment I haven't got very far! My initial impression was that this campaign would be geared toward relatively inexperienced players. As I don't fit that bill so much, I was thinking of a low-charisma character, maybe a reclusive druid or a dour wizard, so that newer players can take an early lead in directing the course of the adventure. But as J.J. said I'm quite content to fill any role. I have plenty of character ideas floating around in the old noggin in search of an anchor.

Well my idea coming in was that I'd treat the players applications on their own merits but thought I'd have a majority 'newbies'. But most of the people that have put any effort into their Introductions post's seem to have at least a little experience. And the initial mini-adventure I had planned was really geared towards total D&D newbies so I'm thinking of going in a slightly different direction. One of the modules included in the new Tales of the Yawning Portal is called Forge of Fury. I'm familiar with it from 3e but its getting updated to 5e and I thought it looked fun. It will take the characters from 2nd level to about 5th level. I modify published adventurers when I use them quite heavily and like to mix it up with stuff that is wholly home brewed. Its a fun dungeon crawl but I like to inject these with a bit more opportunities for role play or personalize it more with the characters backstory's or group history. Does this sound like something you'd be interested in trying? I want the players to get invested in the campaign and move in a direction which maximizes the chances of everyone having a good time and getting a good group rapport going. So if something strikes you as sounding terrible, pleases don't hesitate to call it out.

I do kind of agree with you Ben. I don't have enough experience to know first-hand. But I can definitely see where you are coming from with the rolling for stats, really good point. Wouldn't want to hinder anyone's experience by making them feel like they were behind the group. I mean, the whole idea is that you are a team and what not so it really shouldn't matter. But I'll lean towards point buy too for that reason! That sounds pretty awesome to me, it would be good to experience something from a previous edition. More chances to RP is great with me, I love the immersion factor when DM's incorporate character/group backstories into the adventure. Makes it feel a lot more personal, which really resonates with me. So I am totally down for that!  

I've never heard of the module or the setting, which is fantastic! Always happy to explore an entirely new world. What kind of world is it? Alternately, a short mini-adventure designed for any new players could also be a fun appetizer. Opportunities for interaction are always welcome; I love all three "pillars" but interaction is definitely my favorite. If the module appeals to you and you feel inspired to spice it up even further, I say let's do it!

I've also found that when rolling for stats the numbers tend to skew higher. OK so for the time being we'll use point buy but i'll go with 30 points to use rather than the standard 27. And it costs 3 points to go from 15 to 16 on a stat if you so desire. And the character's will start at level 2. I'm open to players using anything from the published books or Unearthed Arcana. Ben: I think the modules are designed to be plonked down in any of the 'standard fantasy' settings. This will be set in the Sword Coast of the Forgotten Realms setting.The Sword Coast Adventuring Guide is a good resource to anchor your characters backstory in the world, I'll upload a .pdf of it on dropbox: <a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/ctdk11vthqeu6qh/D%26D%20" rel="nofollow">https://www.dropbox.com/s/ctdk11vthqeu6qh/D%26D%20</a>...

Hi guys, thanks for the invite! Happy with point buy, makes it even for the players and won't throw out the power curve. Character-wise was considering playing a ranged striker like an Eladrin or High Elf Ranger, who unknowingly makes a deal with an Archfey while trying to heal his dying father. (Ranger with Warlock multiclass) Or an Aasimar war cleric, who leaves his church after witnessing unjust activities amongst his order - into a life of exile/atonement. (Start War Cleric with Monk multiclass)

Glad to have you on board, Travis. I probably will go the route of a high CHA character (so a bard) if no-one else wants to play the class. If they do I would love to try out the Mystic. Or perhaps even M/C the two eventually. Still not decided on a race yet though.

Oh cool. Forgotten Realms is a great setting in my opinion, lots of lore there.&nbsp; Welcome aboard Travis! I actually have a new idea for a character but it might not be suitable for this particular group. The character I have in mind is named Doris. She is a human who retired recently from the Hall of Records in whatever town or city the adventure starts in. Her retirement party did not go according to plan, her co-workers have not stayed in touch as they'd promised, her grandchildren do not come and visit, and she's pretty bitter about all of it. So what better time to start her second life and join an adventuring party? I'd like to try out the new UA Lore Wizard, or barring that perhaps a Divination wizard.&nbsp; However I think that idea might overlap a bit with what you've proposed JJ, I don't know anything about Mystics but they sound pretty magical. On the other hand I can guarantee that Doris would not have a high charisma...rather an aggressively low one. Another idea I have is a halfling who came to the town as a refugee, survived by panhandling and pickpocketing, and was eventually taken in by an abbot and trained as a Monk. He is blindly loyal to the religious hierarchy that "saved" him from an ignoble life. I'd be happy to play this one as well.

You are fine to go that route man! &nbsp;Mystics aren't spellcasters they more so influence the omnipresent arcane filaments causing magic-like effects to happen. Not overlapping at all! Sounds like a pretty neat character too! I mean, it's a dangerous occupation to be a parent or sibling in the D&D so it's cool that there is all this lore and extra layers to your character with family and children. Makes the RP more real in my opionion, you aren't risking everything all the time because you have important people in your life you need to be safe for.&nbsp;

Had a look at the Mystic class on the UA and wow there's a lot going on! There is so many different ideas and builds all in one class. Definitely a Bear Totem Barbarian's worse nightmare with all those psychic options hahaha.

Oh yeah, it is such a loaded class. Which is why I want to get a bit more experience with a bard before I go diving in the deep end. But I will see what everyone wants to play before I decide. Don't want to encroach on any turf seeing as I didn't specify a character idea in my application.

Thanks for the invite, Jase! Just browsing this thread, our party so far could be a tonne of different things! The possiblities are exciting. JJ could be a bard or a mystic ... Ben could be a druid or an old crusty grandma wizard (which would be incredible) ... Travis is going for either a ranger/warlock multiclass or a cleric/monk ... I'm pretty happy to go with my orc monster hunter wizard.&nbsp;I'd definitely be taking one of those enticing SCAG cantrips if so -- booming Blade fits the character pretty well. However, I was wondering -- can I be an orc from Volo's Guide to Monsters? It's basically a nerfed version of the half-orc from the PHB, except I can carry more stuff and I can run really fast. Importantly, my INT goes down by 2, which is the fun challenge of this character. (as an aside, I've actually got SCAG! ... Which is currently sitting on my bookshelf in another country entirely, ha ha. I guess it means I won't feel bad downloading that PDF you posted)

I'm liking the character ideas guys, deals with archfeys, lore wizards, mystics, bards, orc pc's...from a DM perspective, there's a lot to work with. Without spoiling The Forge of Fury, I will say its pretty old-school in its sensibilities, in that you are going to have to play it pretty smart and use clever tactics if you don't want it descending into a bloodbath (or maybe you do, that's your call :)) I like to work the characters backstory's into the main narrative of the game, personalize the adventures when possible, so the more you give me in this regard the better the story will be. One of the problems I have with the older edition dungeon crawls is they just throw you in, in a very meta kinda way, just hand-wave 'Oh they're adventurers, that's why they are exploring this dungeon" without much of an effort to explain the hows or whys but your class/race choices throw up some intriguing ways to tie in to this particular crawl. It comes out on Friday so I'm interested to see how much Wizards have changed from 3e to 5e because it needs a bit of work. I'll give you more details when you start locking things in. Gaylord: Yep, you can go the Monstrous Adventurer route from Volo's. Just bear in mind the difficulties that kind of character will face. This area of the FR has a long and bloody history of orc raiders/hordes destroying towns and cities so there is a very real risk of being lynched or driven away by the 'common folk', facing serious prejudice and racism, that kind of thing. Which could be fun to explore I guess but as I want forming up the party to be a collaboration, I want to make sure this is something the rest of the group is willing to accept.

Hmm, I think mechanically it works well but for flavour I don't want to be seen as a monster, just a really rough and tumble pragmatic gnarly geezer. I'd like to have a history of doing odd jobs and bounties for common folk, which doesn't work if people scream and run from an orc. He also would necessarily have some sort of education. Do half-orcs suffer the same prejudices? I'd imagine so. Hmm. What about a Goliath?

Welcome to the party Gaylord! Ok, I think with the encouragement of the group and DM permission, I will go with Doris, lore wizard. If human variant is allowed, I will probably take the Observant feat, since nothing gets past Doris. Assuming that she takes Find Familiar as part of her spell selection, would it be possible for Doris to start with a spider named Webster? It's hard for me to picture Doris being especially thrilled by the prospect of an Orc co-worker, but I suppose she could be won over by a convincing backstory/argument if it is objectively in her best interest. Politics makes strange bedfellows.

I imagine half-orc's have a much easier time of it just because their non-orc half softens their features, they don't read so bestial. Its probably easier in the bigger cosmopolitan cities where the inhabitants are used to seeing more of a variety of creatures, safe behind their walls. I think even half-orcs would have a rough time of it in the smaller frontier towns who see raids every few generations. Goliath would draw eyes but more in the 'towering, strange mountain men' than 'monstrous invaders that want to burn, rape and plunder'. Certainly wouldn't attract the same animosity. e.Yeah Doris sounds really fun, as does lore wizard class. Human variant and Webster are fine.

Welcome Gaylord, nice to have you on board. Doris sounds like a hoot. Lore wizards seem really cool, as do Divination wizards for that matter. &nbsp; Is this the extent of the group? Or will we be getting one more PC? As for myself I have decided on a PC Halfling Bard, with a potential eventual M/C to Mystic! Looking forward to travelling with you guys

Okay: Grenn Voe Kell, Goliath Wizard, freelance monster hunter, at your service! Can I use the Urban Bounty Hunter background to justify proficiency with a net and a heavy crossbow instead of the tools it gives?

Awesome, yeah you can customize your background however you wish, I think there's guidelines in the PH, I have no problem with those limited weapon proficiencies in exchange for the tool use. As for equipment/gold, we'll go with your max class roll.(160 gold for the wizards, 200 for the bard, etc) We'll also be using the encumbrance rules, so plan out your gear wisely &nbsp;;)

Hi Jase, was considering playing the Ranger/Warlock character - just wanted to run a few things by you first though: I was considering using the UA revised ranger but I personally think the 1st level abilities are a little much - if you're happy with them, awesome. If not, please feel free to alter as you see fit. Secondly, I'm interested in using some of the new UA Warlock invocations later in the campaign - would you permit these in the game? (eg. Green Lord's Gift and Moon Bow) Last one, race - was considering Eladrin from the DMG, is it ok to use this elven subrace? If not, that's ok - happy with High Elf.

I think it's fair to say the revised ranger is a bit front loaded but I'm not super obsessed with balancing to the point where I'd alter it so yeah, no dramas, use it as it is. I really like the new Warlock invocations, very flavourful. And yeah, Eladrin are fine to use, it's up to you to describe how a creature from the Feywild made it to Faerun. Bear in mind that you'll technically be a creature from another plane, an 'outsider'. Because there's some spells and things that interact differently with creatures that aren't native to the 'prime material plane'. Do you have a particular arch-fey patron you were thinking of going with?

I haven't given much thought about who the patron is. I'd like you to have full reign on the patron and it's angle. Whoever it is, reached out and healed his father on his deathbed. I'm sure we could work a twist or deal that sets events into place. :) Maybe the Archfey has brought him to Faerun for an unknown purpose or an effect from the deal. I understand about the outsider feel, was going for a Strider/Legolas blend.

Hi! &nbsp;I'm quite excited about being asked to join the game! &nbsp;Thanks! I've been thinking about a Dragonborn Barbarian (perhaps something else kind of tank-y). &nbsp;I kind of like the idea of a huge Dragonborn with anger issues. &nbsp;Only have the barest outline of a backstory; perhaps ejected/self exiled from his people or fleeing justice because he lost of control and killed someone? &nbsp; I'm haven't really investigated much other than the PHB content. &nbsp;Haven't really looked at Unearthed Arcana or anything else yet, so not yet sure what direction I'd be going. &nbsp;Bear Totem Warrior?

Welcome Dhakhan, A strong tank-like barbarian is something we definitely need. Totem barbarian is a solid choice. There's a couple unearthed arcana options but you can't go wrong with a totem barb.&nbsp;

Welcome Dhakhan, Yes, definitely seems like the party needs someone on the front line. Do we have anyone who will be healing? I've been mulling over spell selection and I'm wondering if the Elemental Evil spells are also available to us?

I have a healing feature as a mystic. And I will grab healing word or cure wounds as a bard. Saving my souls for bane and faerie fire too  So I can be our semi-dedicated healer, any help would be greatly appreciated though. When do we start working on our sheets Jase?

Yep, you guys definitely need a meat-shield. Ben: You can use anything published and UA. J.J: There's character sheets set up in game that you should be able to edit so you can start on them now.

Just wanted to check with everyone. Am I the only one that lost all their stuff on the character sheet?&nbsp;

This has been an issue with people installing the new add-ons yesterday, fuck thats annoying. I'll have to get the Mod's to roll the game back a day or so, should restore everything.

Jase T. said: Ok they rolled it back to the 23 March to fix it so it's going to have wiped any updates or further work you would have done in the last couple of days which is a bit of a bummer. There was some bug in the first build of the add-on's which they've patched now. I'm having a look through the thing today, they haven't changed practically anything from the 3e to 5e version which is a bit dissapointing and lazy on Wizards part in my opinion. So I'm going to have to modify it a bit. After reviewing it im going to get you guys to start off at level 3 and you should get to level 5 by the end of the module. Few things i wanted to discuss: Everyone gets Max hp's (including familiars) to second level then roll from 3rd and onwards. I'm considering including flanking giving advantage, critical fail chance on a 1, chance of lingering injuries if reduced to 0hps.. thoughts? I'll throw up a few ideas how and where the party know each other or are connected in the next day or so. Feel free to alter it or make up your own bonds if the ideas don't work for you. edit. Shit I'm just realizing how much work with the Bio's for Ben's/JJ's this roll back wiped, I'm really sorry guys, I hope you can at least remember some of the stuff you'd written.

Oh damn. I should have saved a copy of that backstory somewhere. Not a big deal but it will take a while to rewrite. I should remember most of it. I'd prefer to take average HP but if rolling is what you prefer I'm OK with it. Critical fails can make the narrative more interesting so I'm happy with that. Since we are a melee-weak party, I don't think flanking would be much use to us, whereas it could be really helpful to our enemies. But I'll be glad to play by any house rules that you judge will make the campaign better.

I'm with Ben on this one - I'd prefer average on Hp if possible but happy either way. In terms of crit fails and flanking, haven't played many games with it but again happy with whatever the DM decides.

Not to fussed about HP being a bard. Granted I won't be as squishy as those Wizard folk, I happy to just roll. But if majority want average I can do that too. Or even roll but if you get lower than average you just take the average.&nbsp; Level 3 works for me, love me some expertise and 2nd level slots. Flanking rule is something I am used to, but sometimes it feels very meta to me. So I am on the fence with that one.&nbsp; Crit fails are fantastic totally on board. The permanent injury thing sounds really cool and I dig that&nbsp;

I'd take "average" hit points even if it was slightly lower than rolling, not slightly higher. The risk of being super squishy far, far outweighs the chance of being a little bit tougher. Starting at level 3 sounds great. Double the spell slots from level 2, don't mind if I do. I'm not the biggest fan of having extra effects on crit fails/crit successes. Rolling crits is super common and it has the potential to really slow things down if we have to consult a chart and list off an effect every time. Not to mention the fact that the flanking, the crit fails, and the lingering injuries can cripple our entire party and yet have basically zero effect on the enemies we fight.

OK cool so everyone seems to be of similar mind. Hit points: We'll go max hp's first level, average every level after. Flanking we'll leave until you guys suffer a TPK and decide to roll up a bunch of burly meat heads. You're right Gaylord, i don't want to slow things down,&nbsp;so I'll play it by ear and let the narrative or timing drive critical fails rather than rolling and consulting tables.&nbsp; Chance of lingering injuries at 0 hps is something I'm going to implement. I cant stand the yo-yo effect /death buffer of 5e, it starts to feel like a computer game when your character is repeatedly KO'd, healed a couple of hp's back from the brink only to be laid out again, rinse and repeat without any consequences.

Hi guys, Didn't realise we were using the variant encumbrance rules... I mean, just with the starting equipment I'm heavily encumbered and I didn't dump STR... Just with armor most of the party will be encumbered and taking penalties. I'm all for keeping it real, a standard pc shouldn't be able to put an elephant in their inventory and carry it, but consider what we're aiming for. Also, chat-wise - are we using skype or discord? Thanks

Personally, my encumbrance is a-ok. Can't speak for everyone else though. STR was my dump and still below the 45lb limit. I suppose anything over light armour fucks everything up though.&nbsp;

We're using Discord. Here's the server&nbsp; <a href="https://discord.gg/yxHPcPc" rel="nofollow">https://discord.gg/yxHPcPc</a> Re encumberance: I mean, you didn't dump STR but at 11, that'd still be considered 'average'. Are you set on the idea of scale? Because its a particularly heavy medium armor, half again as much as chain and it gives you disadvantage on stealth? You can upgrade to a breastplate when you can afford/find one. If you stepped down to chain and gave a couple of things like rope/waterskin to someone else in the party you'd probably be under. Grenn can carry a rediculous amount as a 'powerfully built' Goliath and has something like 200lbs of spare carrying capacity so maybe if you ask him nicely :)

Thanks for that. Cool, just looking ahead. Just means that kitting out with gear and heavy armor = encumbered unless they're dwarf. Unless you load up a horse or cart with utility gear while you run around in bare essentials. Yeah my guy isn't a strong dude, he's average. I guess most of the weight comes from the armor with an adventuring pack, which I hadn't taken into consideration. I'll consider revising the equipment load out before Wednesday. Chances are I won't be able to get the equipment weight below 55 though. Especially when my Explorer's Pack contents weighed at 59 lbs before I ditched 7 torches. Yeah,&nbsp;Erevan probably wouldn't like the idea of another party member carrying his gear for him. Adventuring comes with the responsibility of being able to look after your own stuff and even more so as a Ranger. Plus he has trust issues hahaha.

Encumbrance does provide limitations on gear and equipment, limitations which our characters may not prefer. But it may push us to make interesting or creative choices to deal with it (including playing with our stats a bit.)&nbsp; A (relatively) low-strength ranger might feel more comfortable in studded leather, which weighs only 13 lbs. With a Dex of 16+, it will provide as much armor as a chain shirt, even more at level 4 if you bump Dex. That would leave plenty of weight left over for gear and treasure. Also, considering that we are starting with a generous amount of gold, a mule at 8gp would not be beyond our means. It might be prudent to invest in one.

Fair call, thanks for your advice. Personally, never played a game that delved deep with encumbrance. I look forward to working with it and seeing how our adventure unfolds. :) Just noticed - did we lose our Dragonborn Barbarian?

There was a bit of an issue there but he may be back by game day, I'll keep you posted. The adventure is balanced for 4 level 3 character's in terms of Challenge Rating so you should be OK if he's not. I've got an Adventure Primer / party relationship kinda thing scrawled up in note form&nbsp;but I've had a really busy couple of days with work and am a bit shattered&nbsp;so I'll have to type it up tomorrow. :) Hopefully we should be able to do a brief introduction and then get straight into the game on Wed night.

I just posted an info dump under the Forge of Fury thread. Let me know if something in it doesnt work for your character, nothing's set in stone. And the other guy that was going to play the barbarian is out. He couldn't commit to being able to attend regularly and didn't give me anything regarding backstory to work with so I nipped the problem in the bud. I don't know why he applied but there we go. I messaged another of the applicants to see if they would be interested so you may get another player next week but 4 people works fine anyway.