[PF-1e] Rise of the Old Ones

[LeoByron]

[CrystalMists]

Originally Posted by dbaque

Interest also piqued. I also had been playing with a similar dragon form idea as Crystal's (though more teeth/claws, less wizard). I might have to think of something else.

Hey, Xildur! Long time no see.

Ugh. go at it there dbaque.... I got the mechanics part more or less done... then utterly stalled.

Ves'ka is sent back to the bin.. I need to make something that feels more gritter and fitting for this I think.

Ok I got a new Idea I feel is way more fitting and a little less...self involved.

Druid is the base sofar. I got the idea and looking at the chosen characters already that it seems what they could use was a bit of mobility...least outside of combat.
Mounted seemed a bit confusing working between character and and mount..and neither feeling left out in the cold..but then I got to thinking of a character that could sort of fit both of those roles..as one character.

So..Druid of the Hierophant or guardian Path. ..the other half..I have no idea.

[dbaque]

@Crystal: Sorry to hear that. Good luck with idea#2!

[Xildur]

[LeoByron]

[dbaque]

[UngainlyFool]

Application Complete

Tess's Theme

Name: Tess Valdron
Race: Angel-BloodedAasimar
Classes (Side 1): Strait PalyPaladin 8
Classes (Side 2): Succor Mystery, Merciful CurseOracle 8
Intended Role: Teamwork Bodyguard/Aura Buffer/Healer
Source of Mythic Power: Angels
Alignment: Lawful Good
Traits: Whenever you channel energy, you gain a +1 trait bonus to the save DC of your channeled energySacred Conduit (Faith), You may use Charisma in place of Wisdom when you use your Heal skill, and Heal is always a class skill for you.Compassion (Social)
Flaws: Tess leads from the front and does not have confidence at rangeShaky, Her focus is on protecting others, often at the expense to her own defenseVulnerable

 

Tess is neither a great beauty nor an impressive figure from afar. But the closer you get to her, the more her calm presence and inner strength washes over you. She does not appear to be anything other than human, with dull brown hair and fair skin. There is a grace there, however, that does not come from time in court or cloister; it is some touch of blood beyond Origin. Her smile can lift hearts and her touch can mend spirits. A world weariness shows about her young eyes as if she has lived through events beyond her years. She wears her full plate and longsword casually like someone trained in warfare and long of battle. The shield she carries depicting a scene from the Heavens and bordered with the angelic chorus is noteworthy in its own right. It gleams with an otherworldly green metallic luster and stands undented and unmarred by time or combat.

 

Despite being steadfastly strong in her own convictions, Tess is surprisingly lenient with the morality of others. She believes there is no Grace in beating your own will into another and that each mortal must come to their salvation on their own and on their own terms. She sees her role in life as being the vessel of her patron and guiding others by her bright example and gentle support. Some view her mild and soft-spoken demeanor as a failing or lack of character, but she does not rise to the insults or judgement of others. Tess knows she is not worthy of her calling or her patron and her own doubts and worries seem to weigh on her like a physical chain. She is quick to bolster and raise the spirits of others even while her own soul remains tortured and conflicted. Duty is her strongest motivation and it is duty that has driven her into this mythic struggle. She seems to have taken up the burden of all those who will not or can not stand before Evil and every failing at this impossible task leaves her slightly more broken.

 

It has been 30 human generations since the last great war, long enough for tales that were once stories to become legend and then myth. It is told that once the battle for the soul of Origin itself was waged on the ground where this story starts and that Angels descended the spire and fought back the grasping claws of the Hells and other equally terrible things from beyond in that time. The Wardens of House Valdron, they say, are descended from the celestial blood that once walked the earth. The first Valdron was the child of the Archangel whose name is Purposefully removed, one could guess.lost to history, the very one who left the holy artifact within the great oak. If you walk the halls of the keep, you see the tapestries and statuary bearing the angelic halos over the line of Valdron. Once that was not an affectation of symbolic art, but a holy aspect of the noble and just rulers. It was in this keep just over 20 years ago that Tess was brought into the world. Her birth was fraught with difficulty.

When it was clear that the mother and baby were both at risk, of Iomedae or similar god. Not the God of the Emperor or Gaia in the north unless Gaia is the equivalentpriests were brought in to lend what aid they could. Though aasimar, the bloodline of Valdon was never inbred for purity and the celestial blood had been diluted over the long years with humanity. The power of the house was steeped in the history of their origin to be sure but like other nobility it was the long tradition of rulership that kept them in the seat of power. So when the room flooded with a holy light beyond that brought by the clergy moments before her birth, it was a surprise to all. That healing light saved child and mother and indeed kept her mother alive through the first five years of Tess's life. Eventually she succumbed to the strain that had only been delayed but not before passing on her love and protection to Tess in her formative years. It was that guidance that set the young girl on the path she was to take.

Tess did not find it odd that she was visited on occasions by the spirits of angels or heard their wisdom in times of trouble. It wasn't until later that she realized the blessings she was given to hear their word. When she did come to recognize her special place in the world, she devoted herself to that cause and helping others through the mysteries revealed to her. She trained in war knowing that the fight against evil demanded it, but in her early years, she spent most of her time healing the sick and bringing comfort to the people as she was able. Sometimes that aid was in the form of healing succor and at other times it required bringing the fight to the source. Over the years, she left her father to govern though she was the heir but he was always there to pressure her to return and perhaps more importantly bear an heir. "It is your duty to your people and the line of your family." He knew just the words to twist the knife, for duty was foremost in Tess's mind. But as soon as she would return, she would leave again because suffering is felt more acutely by those in the wilderness or away from the comforts of just rule.

Tess's self-appointed charge brought her within the scope of the strife brewing on Origin. She did not concern herself with the politics of the Emperor and those who wanted to free themselves from his rule, but the effects of that conflict did draw her into it. Gaia is a good deity and she found herself on the side of those who worshiped her, especially as Baalzubul's undead armies marched across the north. She joined the Guardians of the North in their efforts to push back that evil though she was directed by her own, higher power. It was on that last battleground among the hoards of undead and the powerful lich dragon, her shield broken and attempting to find those on the battlefield left to save, that she was visited by the Archangel Amziel. Tess's healing energy was unending as the Archangel lit the sky overhead. When he left, she felt the draw back home and to the Tree of Valdon though she did not know why.

It was there she retrieved Heaven's Aegis from its long dormancy within the great oak and received her final direction from the celestial plane. Though still very young, the world was poised on the verge of the next great war. It was one she did not believe she would walk away from. But Mercy demanded she heed the call. She headed north to the next fights, the Gith and the aid of townspeople who had been forced into exodus. It was there she would join with unlikely champions to reverse the flow of evil into the world. Only time would tell if she could save them...

 

The plane of Heaven and the Angels and Archons that call it home are and always will be the source of Tess's mythic power. They are called to and look upon Origin as the endless battleground between good and evil. But their power and grace is ethereal to the mortals there, even one with celestial blood. It is through the artifact known as Heaven's Aegis that Tess was granted their full boon. She was touched by the spirit of light as a child and shown the mysteries of merciful sacrifice, but it was not until that ancient relic was transferred to her in order to confront the epic terrors waging their newest assault on the world that her path was truly revealed.

Mythic Tradition: Heaven's Champion
Drawbacks(3): Relic-Bound (Heaven's Aegis), Radiant Power, Unfit for Power
Qualities: Aura of Power (Aura of Comfort)
Boons(3): Legendary Item (2), Expertise (Martial Flexability)

Mythic Path: Hierophant
Divine Surge: Inspired Spell
Path Abilities: Channel Shockwave, Overflowing Grace, Sustained by Faith

Legendary Item: Heaven's Aegis, minor artifact
Light shield + 3, Living Steel, Reliquary, Benevolent
Dedicated Bond
Legendary Fortification
Powerful
Returning
Unyielding (Hardness 38, HP 145 vs Mythic)
Upgradable

 

The Tree of Valdron stood as it always had in the family cemetery. Tess wondered which of her ancestors had named it that in their hubris No doubt someone like her father. On this overcast day, it was difficult to make out the buds at the branches high overhead, but they were there. The Abbey here was different from others in the region. Everything had been built around the Tree and nothing, it was decreed, would stand above it. Indeed, the tops of the sparse branches could be seen from the keep a half a mile away despite the buildings built in its shadow.

A lay man of the church was unloading a cart full of water vials onto a simple stone altar near its base but stopped. He bowed to her silently and made his way to leave her to her prayers or meditations. She waved him back to his work with a gentle gesture and a warm smile, "Please, Brother, finish your duties. There is room for all here." To his credit, the young monk did as she bade without betraying nervousness around the Valdron heir. Rites would be performed and the water blessed for services, though not by this man even though he was likely capable. Sometimes she wished the Abbey had never been built and the area left for wilderness. As she knelt for prayer as she had countless times before and stared up at the tree, she was overcome with the memory of her first time, looking up from this same height.

"It is a symbol," her father said, "Of our ancestry." Her mother carried that blood, but by rights the man she married would always be Valdron. A point he carried with a great deal of pride. Even Tess, only 7 years old, saw it in how he dealt with others, not just commoners but even in court.

The tree was impressive on its own. Ancient, the trunk was easily thicker than she was tall and the lowest branches were twenty feet overhead. But what caught her eye and everyone who came to this place was the round shield embedded in the wood as if the tree had grown around it. To the girl who was used to seeing all sorts of precious metals and jewelry and crowns in court, it looked to be priceless. Untarnished, it seemed like it had just been placed there after polishing. "Heaven's Aegis," he father said, looking down at Tess with a smile spread on his lips. "You will learn of the great war from the governess in time. This shield, they say, was borne by the first Angel in that war. The source of your blood. He placed it here to honor his children on Origin before he ascended again."

Tess felt it. She was nervous around the strange tree and the impossible shield. She looked up. He said,"The Tree never changes. It has been this way for hundreds of years, frozen in time as the Aegis is frozen in the living wood. The blossoms that have not bloomed are forever buds and those that have will never die trough fire or frost."

"Don't you worry someone will steal it?" she asked and he smiled. Every generation asked the same thing about this precious artifact. But every generation before them knew there was no reason for worry.

"Like the shield, the tree is immortal now. No blade or magic known can harm it or what it holds to its breast."

The squeaking of the brother's cart as he wheeled it away pulled Tess from her memories. She said her prayers. There were many to be had after the long and terrible battle with undead. She lived. The Angels seemed intent on it. But so many had died. So, so many. And she said a prayer for every one she could remember and more for those whose faces she couldn't. After the long hour, she stood again, and as she had so many times before, approached the Heaven's Aegis and sealed her communion by placing her bare palm on the living steel. But unlike the countless times and hundreds of years before, it moved.

[LeoByron]

Sorry about the delay folks. Christmas and all that.

Announcement:

I have modified the character creation rules slightly in that I am specifying that characters cannot purchase an item which grants an enhancement bonus to an ability score greater than +4 (No +6 items)

Also, once the game starts, characters will keep a maximum of 1,000 gp + 25% of any amount over 1,000 gp that they did not spend at character creation. (If you have 2,000 gp after character creation, your character starts with 1,250 gp, losing the 750 gp.

[CrystalMists]

Took me a Bit; but I got something. Will be putting it up in a Sheet likely tonight and fluffing it.

Spirit Mender(Druid)//Incanter.

She was; once upon a time; a human until Gaia granted her an Air Elemental Form (Form of Power) Healer with a More...Down to earth Conjuration companion and just a smidge of Destruction. She has Elemental Souls that surround her and assist her in her endeavors.

[UngainlyFool]

[SelfAwareNPC]

Still lovingly crafting away at mine. Lots of changes mechanically, but kept to theme. Skill-blessed, broad dabbler, good DPS but nothing crazy in terms of defences or HP. Glass cannon compared to S-Tier builds

[Xildur]

I have finished my character sheet.
Maybe begin to create the background story tomorrow.

[dbaque]

[LeoByron]

Originally Posted by CrystalMists

Took me a Bit; but I got something. Will be putting it up in a Sheet likely tonight and fluffing it.

Spirit Mender(Druid)//Incanter.

She was; once upon a time; a human until Gaia granted her an Air Elemental Form (Form of Power) Healer with a More...Down to earth Conjuration companion and just a smidge of Destruction. She has Elemental Souls that surround her and assist her in her endeavors.

Although I did not ban the Form of Power Mythic Boon, in a case like this it may be more appropriate to select Mythic Sphere Mastery: Alteration for such an unusual form:

Originally Posted by Mythic Sphere Mastery: Alteration

Mythic Sphere Mastery: Alteration
You may transform into a different form as if you possessed the Transformation, Hybrid Transformation, and Improved Transformation feats, except that the form you choose may be one that normally costs one or more spell points. You do not need to pay spell points to transform into the form provided by this ability. You may take this ability even if you already have any of the feats listed above—this transformation is separate from the one normally granted by those feats.

It should grant most of what you are looking for for the Air Elemental form but it would not be permanent. This would be a better option for story-telling purposes since it would make it easier for other characters and players to connect with a character with more humanoid characteristics at least some of the time. An Air Elemental walking around may present awkward challenges if interacting in cities and such as well. This would be a personal subjective preference of mine so YMMV for what other Players might prefer but this is my 2 cents.

Originally Posted by SelfAwareNPC

Still lovingly crafting away at mine. Lots of changes mechanically, but kept to theme. Skill-blessed, broad dabbler, good DPS but nothing crazy in terms of defences or HP. Glass cannon compared to S-Tier builds

Looking forward to the final result!

Originally Posted by Xildur

I have finished my character sheet.
Maybe begin to create the background story tomorrow.

Awesome!

[CrystalMists]

Thats Fair. I'll change it around.