[D&D-5e] Into the Heart of Decay

[Chaucer]

I supposed I should put a close date on this, its a halloween type game so 31st October it is.

[Chaucer]

Sorry everyone, I’m having a few issues IRL at the moment and am not really in the emotional and mental brain-space to run another game at the moment, more looking to take a small step back from my site activities. For that reason I’m putting this game on hold for now but might come back to it in the future when things settle down and I’m in a better place.

[Grouchy]

Hope everything works out for you Chaucer, thanks for the opportunity.

[Onward]

Yeah same, hope everything is alright.

[Jumil]

No worries. It's important to take care of yourself. I hope things get better for you.

[Seekr34]

Hope things get better soon

[Chaucer]

Ok folks, sorry for the slight delay in this. I'm in a somewhat better place now to pick this up again, so if you have previously posted an application and are still interested in being considered for the game then let me know below.

Otherwise, for any new applicants who want to apply for this, the new closing date is Friday 26th November.

[Onward]

Heya, I'm still interested. Put Walter Paleglow in the group of applicants

[delpinator]

Definitely still interested

[O2CXt3]

Still interested

[Begon Ugo]

Yup! Count me interested!

[Hal Hammerhand]

Still interested.

[The Dark Star]

Still interested!

[Seekr34]

Still here and interested!

[Grouchy]

Originally Posted by Chaucer

Ok folks, sorry for the slight delay in this. I'm in a somewhat better place now to pick this up again, so if you have previously posted an application and are still interested in being considered for the game then let me know below.

Otherwise, for any new applicants who want to apply for this, the new closing date is Friday 26th November.

Glad you are feeling better!

Still interested, although I will be applying with a different PC. App complete!

Character Concept Name: Doomguide Draco, Church of Kelemvor Race: Hill Dwarf, although he often passes himself off as Human Class: Cleric 3 (Grave) Alignment: Lawful Neutral Age: 51, but looks almost twice his age. Background: Hermit (Graveyard Caretaker) Personality Traits: I am fatalistic and believe everyone's destiny is already laid out before them. I strive to treat others with compassion and respect, and share with them the will of Kelemvor. Ideal: Destiny. Nothing and no one can steer me away from my higher calling. Bond: The temple and my friends are all the family I have, and they are worth fighting and dying for. Flaw: I am slowly dying of a terminal disease that has made me unpleasant to look at, and dissuades me from making long term plans. Appearance: Draco is a very short, powerfully built man with a hairless head and an ashen pallor to his skin. His face is mottled with boils and skin fissures, giving him a diseased appearance and making him repulsive to look at. For this reason he often wears an iron face mask with his cowl up to conceal most of his features, leaving only his blemished chin and mouth visible. He favors the somber grey robes and tabards befitting a proper cleric of Kelemvor, with a long black cloak and cowl thrown over his shoulders. On the visible flesh of his arms you can see medicinal wraps on certain areas, as well as the occasional boil. Around his formidable torso is a black leather belt from which hangs a finely crafted hammer of war. The handle and head resemble a skeletal arm and fist, and each head of the hammer is designed to look like the measuring bowl of a scale. On his left arm is a well polished but plain looking circular shield, its only ornamentation being a small ring of studs around the outer brim. He is slightly hunch backed in appearance, and barely stands over five feet tall. Personality: Despite the disease slowly ravaging his body, Draco is a surprisingly kind and compassionate man with a strong sense of tradition and honor. He believes in predestination and that everyone has their fate lined up in front of them - the best a man can hope for is to live the most virtuous life one can before you pass into the afterlife and are judged by Kelemvor. He knows his own disease will eventually kill him, as even the most powerful of Kelemvorites have tried to heal him to no avail, but he does not feel brooding and melancholy befits a man of his position. One must be a comforting presence and a warm friend to those in need, to be the shoulder to lean on and to help those who cannot help themselves. He has nothing outside of the Church of Kelemvor and the trusted companions he meets as he executes his duties as a Doomguide - consequently, those are the most important things in his life and he would gladly give up his own life defending them. After all, a man who has already resigned to the fact that his days are numbered short has little to lose otherwise. He is self-conscious of his appearance and recognizes it makes others uncomfortable, thus he tries to conceal his gruesome looks as much as possible and occasionally refers to his mask as "my face". He is a healer and a comforter, a friend and a confidant, and a stalwart opponent of those who corrupt the dead and plague on the dying.   Backstory: Despite his human-looking appearance, Draco is in fact a dwarf and was born into a family of travelling merchants in the Moonsea Lands. The only knowledge he has of his parents was from the healers at the Shrine of Kelemvor in Skull Crag, who stated that they seemed a pleasant couple and that Draco also had an older brother and a sister. When the family was found by travelers, all were deathly sick and practically comatose from a mysterious wasting disease. Draco's parents and older siblings could only babble and were restless with fever, as boils and fissures erupted on them and split gruesomely, shedding blood and pus everywhere. Tremors plagued their bodies and soon frothy pink blood emanated from their mouths as their lungs collapsed. In the end, their bodies distended horribly as their internal organs swelled and burst inside them, killing them in a most horrible fashion after ten days. Only the young Draco recovered, with the only effect on him at the time was that all of his hair follicles seemed to die off due to his illness. None of the healers could identify the disease nor determine how to cure it - the only information they had was from Draco's own father, who during a brief lucid moment stated he bought a pitch black urn that was icy to the touch from a strange traveler, and Draco's sister opened it of curiosity. From the urn flowed a magical purple cloud which infected the entire family. When the wagon was searched to discover this urn, however, the faithful at the Kelemvor shrine discovered it was already gone, either stolen or taken back in the night. Now an orphan at the age of 10, Draco was taken in by the Church of Kelemvor and raised by the members of the church as one of their own. He began his training as an acolyte and was a steadfast and devout worshipper, but in his twentieth year the boils and fissures appeared. It was the same disease his entire family had died from, yet somehow Draco's symptoms appeared much slower than the rest of his family. Scribes of the church researched the old notes of the healers who had worked on Draco and his family, and began documenting his symptoms as they appeared. Even the most powerful of all healers within the Church of Kelemvor were unable to cleanse the poor hairless dwarf. Draco's appearance was now unsettling to others, but his faith was so strong and with their honor on the line the church knew they could not cast the poor man out. Thus Draco became a part of the Most Solemn Order of the Silent Shroud and assisted in tending he Valhingen Graveyard outside of Phlan. Draco's duties included grave digging, embalming, and the maintenance and upkeep of the graveyard. And he performed it well. For the next twenty years he served in his humble position with pride, doing the job to the best of his ability and showing courtesy and respect towards all. His appearance became more uncomely as the time went on, so to reduce the risk of upsetting any grieving visitors on his own accord Draco began to wear his iron mask when in the public eye. As the scribes documented his symptoms, they theorized his symptoms were appearing a rate five times slower than the rest of his family, so by their calculations Draco's demise would come soon or shortly after his sixtieth year. Kelemvor, however, had bigger plans for Draco than just being a medical anomaly. It was during a work party where they were digging a grave for one of their own deceased clergy when the Lord of the Dead appeared before them and called for Draco to pursue the path of the Doomguide. With the witnesses present, the Church of Kelemvor quickly embraced this vision from their Lord and began training Draco intensely. He proved to be a dedicated and talented student, and thus by his fifty first birthday he had became a full fledged Doomguide in the Church of Kelemvor. Now on his own for the past six months, Draco goes where Kelemvor guides him and aims to do as much as he can for the church before death takes him and he is one with his master for all eternity.   RP Sample: Sweat trickles down the inside of his iron mask as Draco hums quietly to himself - the Lament of the Fallen, one of his favorite hymns to sing along to as he was digging. Throwing another shovel of dirt over his head, Draco eyeballs the hole he is in and begins evening out the northwest corner to make it as perfectly square as he can. He enjoyed the digging - the feel of his muscles as he worked, the pride of assisting another into the afterlife, and the challenges he set on himself to make the hole precise in every manner, to fit the coffin perfectly and be pleasing to the eye. A few more expert tosses from his shovel, and Draco is satisfied with his work. Standing on the wooden bucket he has in the hole, he pulls himself out of the empty grave and raises the bucket out of the hole with the thick twine tied to it. Seeing him exit the hole, the elderly Keeper Garris, his superior and friend, smiles at him as he approaches. "A fine work indeed, Draco. When I heard of the passing of Head Mortach Marcus, I knew exactly who to turn to to prepare his final resting place. He always admired your faith and dedication, as well as your work ethic. He would be honored at the work you did for him today." "He was an honorable man, and will be sorely missed," replies Draco, his iron mask giving his deep voice a slightly hollow tone to it. "He always said that my affliction was a test from Kelemvor, and to keep my faith strong and my heart on him so as to show the Lord of Death I am worthy. I have always tried to take his advice to heart, even on the most burdensome of days." Giving Draco a fatherly pat on the shoulder, Keeper Garris gives him a sad smile and a nod of familiarity. "Indeed, all of us would be wise to keep his advice in mind. I am glad that he was able to bring you peace during his short time here." Then, gesturing with a wave of his hand, he says "Come! The procession has arrived. The Remembrance is about to begin." Draco follows behind Keeper Garris to where the other grey clad members of the Most Solemn Order of the Silent Shroud awaited. Typically they did not get to take part in ceremonies due to their duties, but because the fallen was one of their own, they were excited and honored to be a part of it. The procession made its way into Valhingen Graveyard and towards the final resting place of Elder Mortach Marcus as the members of the Silent Shroud stood respectfully with their arms crossed behind them and their heads lowered in reverence. The coffin was placed at the head of the empty grave and soon flowers and herbs were thrown onto it as they were accompanied by solemn vows and chants of comfort. After a time, the priest leading the Remembrance announced it was time for the Lament for the Fallen, the final hymn to sing as the coffin would be lowered into the ground, and encouraged the Silent Shroud to join them. Draco immediately joined in with the others, singing his most beloved song and feeling the presence of Kelemvor on that date. As the song finished, the coffin was supposed to rest on the dirt in the bottom of the grave, but to the awe of all involved the coffin rose back out, almost to the ground level. Those still singing the final bars of the hymn immediately stopped, and everyone could feel powerful divine energy surrounding them. It was as thick as mud in the air, and their skins and ears buzzed with its presence. From inside the coffin rose a spectral figure, a tall majestic man with silver hair and long dark robes that were so pure of darkness it was hard to tell if they were black or purple. His face was heavenly and strong, with youth and age merged in one, and pure white eyes that looked directly into the soul of Draco as the figure stared at the diseased man behind the mask. Slowly, his left arm raised and pointed directly at Draco, and the voice spoke. It was a voice that sounded like both a child and an old man in one, one of timeless wisdom and eternal comfort. Draco could not only hear the words, but he felt them to his very core - from his toes to his head and deep within his heart. "The masked one... shall be ordained... a Doomguide... and serve me... in the struggles ahead..." And then, with an audible sigh as if one were taking their last breath, the spectral figure laid back down into the coffin and disappeared. The coffin immediately dropped into the dirt below, creating a giant thud and shocking everyone back to their senses. Draco was still in awe when he realized the other members of the Silent Shroud had stepped away from him. Even the procession of acolytes and priests were staring at him in wonder and disbelief. It was Keeper Garris who broke the ice. Approaching Draco and putting an arm around his shoulder, he announced to the others "So! Kelemvor has spoken! Draco is to become... a Doomguide!" Then, turning towards Draco, he whispers into his malformed ear "It would seem Elder Mortach Marcus spoke wisely to you, and has spoken to Kelemvor on your behalf. Congratulations, Draco. There is a divine path laid ahead of you." Draco was once again grateful for his iron mask, because now no one could see the tears of joy streaming down his face. He was chosen. And his life was to become of even greater service to the Lord of Death. This was the happiest moment in Draco's life.