[PF-2e] Rondo of the Stolen Moon

[abc123]

[The Rat Queen]

Application Name: Moriel Ancestry: Sylvan Class: Necromancer Background: Bibliophile Backstory: Moriel was very young when her mother died, even by non-elven standards. Her name wasn't Moriel back then; that name has not been uttered for many years, nor is it likely to be. She still has very vivid memories of her mother; young and vivacious, so beautiful and full of life. How she fell ill, nobody knows, nor could the best healers of the elves of Erynduin find any way to counteract the wasting away of body and spirit. Perhaps a rare disease, maybe a magical curse they were unable to counter, or poison, or even an ancient and forgotten pact with an otherworldly being. It was never discovered, and thus never countered. Moriel watched her mother wither and die, and saw her father's spirit do the same over the years in grief for the loss of his young wife. By the time Moriel was past her adolescence, her father was a mere shell of who he had been, as if he were trying to follow his love across the veil of death. Moriel herself became fascinated, even obsessed, with death - a force so powerful that it could claim both her parents and take them away from her. Growing up, she began consuming books, specifically any book having to do with death, the spirit, and - disturbing to the elders - reclamation from death. Elves love to read as a general principle, but Moriel read without joy; she read to rip information from its pages, hoarding knowledge the way a dragon hoards treasure. The elders attempted to reach both father and child, to intervene lest the girl's obsession with death overtake her and drive her mad or toward evil. But her father had all but withdrawn from the world and the girl had no desire to gain power in this life. It was power over death she sought. Moriel was aided by her maternal grandmother Leilatha, a member of the council, who understood the girl's grief all too well. Her grandmother pointed out that clerics also had power over life and death, as well as the spirit. Who could argue the study itself? And the girl wasn't desecrating bodies of deceased elves or fouling holy sites; when her experiments began, she used creatures of the forest for her study. While skeptical, the council bowed to Leilatha's wishes , who was deeply respected and held significant influence. With her grandmother's protection, Moriel's study continued; her first animation was a squirrel that had run afoul of a bird protecting her nest, and while it disturbed many (the elven phrase is 'Al von nailis Arta salen kai' - 'an icy breeze upon my skin'), her activity was monitored and endured, if not fully accepted. Study of the animation of flesh, however, was not the girl's goal. To her mind, any fool could learn to manipulate a corpse. Her interests lie in the study of the spirit, touching the very spark of life. Deep down, she longed to speak to her mother again, perhaps even to allow her father to speak with her in hopes that she could reclaim him as well. Though her body had grown to that of a young woman, her spirit was still a little girl clutching her stuffed toy with one hand, and her mother's frail hand with the other. Moriel would not rest until she had pierced the veil between her and her mother's spirit. This, of course, was too far for the elves. To study death, even to reanimate dead animals as potential tools, was one thing. But once the girl was found experimenting with the summoning and control of spirits, she was given a choice. Despite her grandmother's influence and arguments, Moriel had pushed the council too far. The girl could turn her studies away from anything that would manipulate spirits; she could study to become a cleric and limit her dealings with passed souls that way; or she could leave. The day she made her choice is the day she stopped being a girl of Erynduin and instead became Moriel - 'spirit maiden'. She has wandered far since Erynduin, always seeking 'research' to improve her craft. In some areas, she is a welcome arrival, particularly if there is trouble with the undead. Some consider her an expert in dealing with the restless deceased, and there are churches who welcome her knowledge of funeral rites. She is always happy to lend a hand. Other areas are considerably less welcoming, seeing her as a dealer in the unnatural, tampering with the order of things or accusing her of being a witch. She knows better than to change the minds of such, and generally makes a quick exit if she feels unwelcome at dangerous levels. Here in this small village that Moriel isn't entirely sure she ever heard the name of, she found the quaint tavern called 'Turnabout Tavern'. Within the tavern, she found some fellow travelers who showed an interest in resolving some of the local trouble. Moriel has agreed to aid them in hopes that they will in turn help her investigate the rumors of the undead. This is the first lead she's had where there was an actual source of undead activity, rather than individual occurrences, so she is hopeful she can gain some information and insight. Personal Contact: Aduial Mithrinan, Moriel's father. Despite what everyone thinks, he has not completely lost his mind. Once he realized his daughter had left and not come back, it snapped him back to reality. The only reason he has not left in search of Moriel is because he fears that she will return while he's gone. He still searches locally, and entreats the local wizards to use their magic to try to locate her or send her a message. They do so out of pity for his loss, but are honestly beginning to grow a bit impatient with him. Perhaps rightfully, they feel that - to some extent - he brought his circumstances upon himself, and begin to lose their sense of charity for him. Personal Contact: Thanasius, the necromancer whom Moriel studied under after leaving Erynduin. A failed cleric who has forsaken the gods after his village was obliterated, he was on the path to madness and vengeance, seeking to use necromancy to undo all the gods had done before Moriel found him and pulled him away from the brink. Moriel sees him as a second father of sorts, and the two share a strong bond. Personal Contact: Leilatha Shaeremae, Moriel's maternal grandmother. She sat on the council of elders in Erynduin, though the scandal Moriel brought upon the family has significantly weakened her position. Additionally, the grief of losing both her daughter and granddaughter has diminished her will to remain active in politics.

[The Rat Queen]

I think that, barring any review and recommendations, Moriel is ready.

[briar]

Sure, can do. Will probably be a bit later tonight.

[briar]

@The Rat Queen:

 

@abc123

 

[The Rat Queen]

 

[briar]

As of the time of posting this, we have just over 76 hours before the advertisement officially ends. I'm tempted to simply close it now since there haven't been any new apps or interest in a few days, but there are a couple unfinished, and I know some people wait till the last minute. Plus, I don't like breaking my own rules, so I'll leave it open for now.

A word of warning, though: it behooves anyone still thinking to get something in sooner rather than later. The longer you wait, the less time I have to mull over your character and how they might best fit. I like to stew on things and consider lots of angles when putting together a party, so the less time I have to do that, the less likely I am to accept that character.

As far as the timeline, we'll officially stop taking applications at 11:59 PM PST on Saturday, Feb. 15th. I'll then give myself Sunday to make a decision on who my 2-3 party members will be for the game. Players should receive invitations either late Sunday night or at some point Monday afternoon.

I've already set up the forum a bit, so chosen players will be able to craft character sheets once they've been accepted. There's no solid deadline for this, but I'd like for everyone who does get accepted to try and get their sheets in within a week or so. Since RPGX does not have PF2e character sheet support, I recommend using either Pathbuilder or a form-fillable PDF, and posting it as an attachment to your character's bio.

There will also be an OoC thread where you can collaborate and workshop, if you so choose, as well as ask any further questions they may have.

I'll also be posting the in-game thread as well, in which chosen players can immediately join and start roleplaying as their character, even if they haven't finished their sheets, as introductions and the opening scene in the tavern will likely take a few rounds of posting anyway.

Finally, I appreciate everyone's diligent efforts so far. Most people posted and finished applications fairly quickly, which gave me plenty of time to digest them and consider how the characters will work together. Though still somewhat useful for encounter balance, party composition is much less important to me than diversity in terms of origins/heritages, cultural representation, motivations, and personality, so I'm glad to see a lot of different styles coming together. Thanks to everyone who has applied!

[ekidnu]

Sorry, I’m not slacking/disinterested—really! I’ve just been super busy with work, and it doesn’t help that I’m a bit of a perfectionist.

Anyway, let's call my application complete. I'd appreciate any feedback you'd be willing to share.

[MoldyNolds]

Originally Posted by briar

A word of warning, though: it behooves anyone still thinking to get something in sooner rather than later. The longer you wait, the less time I have to mull over your character and how they might best fit. I like to stew on things and consider lots of angles when putting together a party, so the less time I have to do that, the less likely I am to accept that character.

Umm... well? Am I going to be one of those people? Yep, I guess I am. In my defense I only starting browsing this forum in the past few days. That being said, I fully understand and appreciate that my application will carry less weight because I'm now coming in under the wire with 48 hours to go, and behind so many other amazing applications!

At the very least I enjoyed dipping into your homebrew world and imagining what kind of character I would drop into it. I know next to nothing about PF2e and used Pathbuilder to help flesh out some of the potential mechanics and how that would translate into a semi-realized person in the narrative. I could keep fleshing Garth out more, but I figured this is a good place to leave him and see what comes of it. Feedback is certainly welcome, time permitting, of course!

Application Name: Gartholomew Glaszton Ancestry: Dwarf Class: Bard Background: Fortune Teller Backstory "A bard?! Hah! Stars, no child. Just a humble entertainer, I am. I pluck a string or two most nights. Flip cards when someone needs to know which crop to plant next season or if their beloved returns the sentiment. But a bard... a true bard? That's someone special. They's the type can soothe a blood-thirsty manticore right to sleep with a lullaby. Entice celestial bodies to alter course through the heavens. Bend the ear of the House lords and ladies... 'haps e'en our own High Queen E'erwind herself, should she be willing of course!" Hailing from the Mythril Hills, Gartholomew is a man in search of, well, anything. And everything. The next dangerous adventure. The next amorous tryst, with whomever meets his fancy in the moment. The next inspiration for a tune. The next coin for a meal or a roof over his head for the next night. His parents would (mostly amicably) call it a curse from the Eternal Wanderer, but Garth isn't complaining. With begrudging blessings from his family the wanderstruck dwarf set out to see the world and all it had to offer him. Ever-curious about people, places, and cultures that he knew existed but had no concept of, Garth is most comfortable watching horizons come and go. As of late he seems to show up at Turnabout one or two nights a week to busk for coins before disappearing from Summerside only to return once more. Personality Open-minded and optimistic are qualities Garth has taken to heart. Short of explicit, personal insults or immediate tragedy it's difficult to ruffle his feathers. Most of the time the bard can be found idly strumming his lute or blowing into his harmonica, trying to work out whatever half-formed melody he's got stuck in his head. That's not to say he's lazy or timid, though. When there's danger afoot, especially if his friends or innocents are in danger, Garth is quick to intervene. With a quick, disarming word, if possible. If not, then he's just as quick with a blade or a spell! Contacts Kisol: One of the adolescents in Summerside seems to have taken an interest in Garth. Always catching him as he's just arriving or just leaving town, Kisol latches onto the dwarf's movements with uncanny providence. He isn't sure if she's actually an urchin or just good at sneaking away from whatever family she might have. Though she has asked many times, Garth always dodges requests to read the cards for Kisol. Kids can be... unpredictable when it comes to fortune telling. Eagle: His real name is Eagan, but the town's baker seems to like the nickname that lovingly pokes fun at his hawkish nose, or so Garth tells himself. Incredibly humble, Eagle's fresh-baked croissants are an absolute delicacy to the dwarf, and how they first met. Now, whenever Garth breezes through town he almost always spends the night at the baker's home, and not just for his bread...

[briar]

Can't promise [detailed] feedback this late in the process, especially considering this is a holiday weekend, but I'll see what I can do.

[briar]

@ekidnu

 

@MoldyNolds

 

[The Rat Queen]

[MoldyNolds]

[Kepheren]

Good luck to everyone!

[ekidnu]