Tuesday, January 28, 2025

Character Creation Challenge: Corvell "Ice" Multane

Corvell "Ice" Multane
Heading into the home stretch and have a stack of Forgotten Realms characters here. I am certainly going to use them in my own games in the Realms. 

"Corvell Multane" is a quintessential Grenda character name.  He comes from the same time period as does the HIVE. And much like the HIVE was influenced by my Spyder Society, this Ice seems (on the surface) to have been influenced by my "Ice" from three years prior. Was he trying to recreate some of my characters for his own game? I don't think so. I have found character sheets of some of my characters in his collection. If he wanted them in his game, he just used them. These characters are inspired by, but not the same as. 

Since I am translating these characters to the Wasted Lands, I think I am going to try to keep them as "Realms accurate" as I can. So that means classes RAW and little to no Heroic Touchstones. 

Corvell "Ice" Multane

Class: Warrior
Level: 1
Species: Human
Alignment: Light Neutral
Background: Warrior 

Abilities
Strength: 15 (+1) A
Agility: 16 (+2)
Toughness: 16 (+2) 
Intelligence: 16 (+2) N
Wits: 9 (+0)
Persona: 17 (+2) N

Fate Points: 1d8
Defense Value: 1
Vitality: 7
Degeneracy: 0*
Corruption: 0

Check Bonus (A/N/D): +2/+1/+0
Melee Bonus: +1 (base) 
Ranged Bonus: +1 (base)
Saves: +1 to all Saves, +2 to Toughness (Warrior background)

Warrior Abilities
Combat Expertise, Improved Defence, Melee Combat, Master of Battle, Ranged Combat, Supernatural Attacks (Melee), Spell Resistance, Tracking

Wow. Ok, I like that. I mean, there are no surprises here, but that is a clean-cut character and would do well in the Wasted Lands or Forgotten Realms. 

I will likely drop Degeneracy and Corruption if I continue these for the Forgotten Realms. Though, one could argue that Szass Tam is the model for both of these. 

This is going to be fun.

You can get the Wasted Lands RPG and the NIGHT SHIFT RPG at Elf Lair Games.

Character Creation Challenge

Mail Call: Even More Mayhem from Dark Wizard Games

 Ok. I totally forgot I backed these. Two new adventures (#10 and #11) from Mark Taormino's Maximum Mayhem adventures from Dark Wizard Games.

Adventures Fantastic Quest of Whimsical One (#10) & Lost Tomb of Mummy Lich (#11)

Fantastic Quest of Whimsical One (#10) & Lost Tomb of Mummy Lich (#11) are his two newest adventures and they fit into that nice sweet spot that Old-School Essentials covers so well. Though Legend of the Seven Golden Demons (#9) goes to the 18th level.

I have been doing so much with Wasted Lands lately, maybe I could try these out with that system!

Maximum Mayhem Adventures

Regardless of the system I choose to use, I am running out of room in my box!

Monday, January 27, 2025

Character Creation Challenge: Amok Silvertyne

Amok Silvertyne, the Cheysuli Beastmaster
 Amok Silvertyne is another Cheysuli Beastmaster. I know that needs translating. I have mentioned Cheysuli here before with Finn DanisVale Warmark, and my own Absom Sark. They are a race of shape-shifting warriors with animal companions known as Lyr (or Lir, I forget).  I have also talked about Beastmasters before. Beastmasters were one of the "Riddlemaster" classes that Grenda created along with Starmasters, Shadowmasters, and Riddlemasters proper. 

In this month of character postings I have found good substitutes for these classes in the Wasted Lands rules, or by dipping into the other O.G.R.E.S. classes. This has not been the case yet for Beastmasters. This is no fault of the Wasted Lands rules, more akin to the nature of the classes Grenda created. For my own Absom Sark I used the Beastmaster from the Complete B/X Adventurer. It works, but Amok here feels closer to the Riddlemasters than he does to the Beastmasters.

In Wasted Lands I think the best way to do this guy is make him a Psychic Warrior (Class from Thirteen Parsecs), give him the Animistic Background, make his species Supernatural (Lycanthrope), and round out the edges with some Heroic Touchstones. Granted, the Beastmaster, like all the Riddlemaster classes, are grossly overpowered, so I am not going to match him up power for power. But I want to get close to his concept.

Amok Silvertyne

Class: Mystic Warrior (from Thirteen Parsecs)
Level: 6
Species: Supernatural, Lycanthrope (from NIGHT SHIFT)
Alignment: Twilight Good
Background: Animistic 

Abilities
Strength: 16 (+2) N
Agility: 19 (+3) N
Toughness: 19 (+3) 
Intelligence: 19 (+3)  
Wits: 17 (+2) A
Persona: 17 (+2) 

Fate Points: 1d8
Defense Value: 0
Vitality: 45 
Degeneracy: 0
Corruption: 0

Check Bonus (A/N/D): +4/+2/+1
Melee Bonus: +3 (base) 
Ranged Bonus: +3 (base) 
Number of Attacks: 2
Saves: +1 vs saves

Mystic Warrior Abilities
Combat Mastery, Impossibly Agile, Mysticism, Lightning Fast, Survivor Skills, Free Running, Favored Weapon: Sword

Mystic Powers
Enhanced Senese, Danger Sense, Supernatural Attacks

Lycanthrope Powers
Shapechange into a wolf.

Heroic Touchstones
Level 1: Psychic Ability: Telepathy (animals)
Level 3: Spirit Guide: Direwolf ("Lorn")
Level 5: +1 to melee attacks

Heroic (Divine) Archetype: Nature

Gear
Longsword, Dagger, Mace, Spear, Bow

This is rather good, to be honest. I was worried I would not be able to capture what this character was in Wasted Lands, but I never should have doubted. 

You can get the Wasted Lands RPG, the NIGHT SHIFT RPG, and Thirteen Parsecs RPG at Elf Lair Games.

Character Creation Challenge

Sunday, January 26, 2025

Character Creation Challenge: Enter the HIVE!

 I wanted to spend a week doing evil characters, but my week got away from me. I was supposed to do these yesterday. Plus I also have another reason for doing these. My oldest is building a bunch of NPC adventuring parties. In his current game these adventuring guilds are akin to the social media celebrities of his world. They are all ranked, with the ones with the highest ranks getting the best sponsorship deals and merchandising deals. Groups with signature-named weapons do better since the weapons can be sold separately for their action figures.  

The Hive here are not highly ranked. But that is fine since he needs a few of them.

The HIVE

I am not 100% sure about the origin of these guys, but the timing and the names of the characters remind me of my own "Spyder Society" I had made a couple years before them.  I don't think they were made to be NPCs, these look like characters he was going to play at some point. Plus a few have what look like "play notes" on them.

What REALLY stands out about these characters though is they were made for the Forgotten Realms. This is interesting because I didn't even know Grenda, a hard core Greyhawk guy, was doing anything at all with the Realms. But they all worship evil gods from the Realms. He also has his city, Rivendell (not the Tolkien one), placed in the Realms somewhere. If I use them, I'll change that to Waterdeep. Though I would have liked to have known where he put his city on Faerûn.

There is a nice variety here, but all are 1st level (or so) and all are fairly standard AD&D classes. So translating them into Wasted Lands is pretty easy.

Cobra
Cobra

Class: Renegade
Level: 1
Species: Human
Alignment: Dark Evil
Background: Warrior

Abilities
Strength: 18 (+3) N
Agility: 18 (+3) A
Toughness: 18 (+3) N 
Intelligence: 15 (+1) 
Wits: 16 (+1)
Persona: 18 (+3) 

Fate Points: 1d6
Defense Value: 1
Vitality: 10
Degeneracy: 0
Corruption: 0

Check Bonus (A/N/D): +2/+1/+0
Melee Bonus: +1 (base), 
Ranged Bonus: +1 (base)
Saves: +3 to Death Saves
Number of Attacks: 1

Renegade Abilities
Improved Defence, Ranged Combat, Stealth Skills, Climbing, Danger Sense (1-3 d6)

Heroic/Divine Touchstones
1st Level: +1 to melee attacks

Heroic (Divine) Archetype: Thug

Gear
Longsword, dagger, crossbow

Widow
Widow

Class: Renegade
Level: 1
Species: Dökkálfar
Alignment: Dark Evil
Background: Warrior

Abilities
Strength: 17 (+2) 
Agility: 18 (+3) A
Toughness: 17 (+2) N 
Intelligence: 18 (+3) N
Wits: 15 (+1)
Persona: 16 (+2) 

Fate Points: 1d6
Defense Value: 3
Vitality: 6
Degeneracy: 0
Corruption: 0

Check Bonus (A/N/D): +2/+1/+0
Melee Bonus: +1 (base), 
Ranged Bonus: +1 (base)
Saves: +3 to Death Saves
Number of Attacks: 1

Renegade Abilities
Improved Defence, Ranged Combat, Stealth Skills, Climbing, Danger Sense (1-3 d6)

Heroic/Divine Touchstones
1st Level: 1 Level of Sorcerer

Heroic (Divine) Archetype: Trickster

Gear
Longsword, dagger, dart

Pi
Pi

Class: Renegade/Necromancer
Level: 1/1
Species: Half-Ljósálfar
Alignment: Dark Evil
Background: Cult

Abilities
Strength: 17 (+2) 
Agility: 18 (+3) A
Toughness: 16 (+2)  
Intelligence: 16 (+2) N
Wits: 17 (+2) N
Persona: 15 (+2) 

Fate Points: 1d6
Defense Value: 1
Vitality: 7
Degeneracy: 0
Corruption: 0

Check Bonus (A/N/D): +2/+1/+0
Melee Bonus: +1 (base), 
Ranged Bonus: +1 (base)
Saves: +3 to Death Saves
Number of Attacks: 1

Necromancer Abilities
Channel the Dead, See Dead people, Turn Undead, Protection from the Dead

Renegade Abilities
Improved Defence, Ranged Combat, Stealth Skills, Climbing, Danger Sense (1-3 d6)

Heroic/Divine Touchstones
1st Level: Psychic Power: Telekinesis 

Heroic (Divine) Archetype: Speaker to the Dead

Gear
Shortsword, mace, dagger

Wasp
Wasp

Class: Renegade/Sorcerer
Level: 3/3
Species: Deep Gnome
Alignment: Dark Evil
Background: Cult

Abilities
Strength: 17 (+2) 
Agility: 18 (+3) A
Toughness: 16 (+2)  
Intelligence: 17 (+2) A
Wits: 16 (+2) N
Persona: 15 (+2) 

Fate Points: 1d6
Defense Value: 4
Vitality: 13
Degeneracy: 0
Corruption: 0

Check Bonus (A/N/D): +3/+1/+0
Melee Bonus: +1 (base), 
Ranged Bonus: +1 (base)
Saves: +3 to Death Saves
Number of Attacks: 1

Renegade Abilities
Improved Defence, Ranged Combat, Stealth Skills, Climbing, Danger Sense (1-3 d6), Vital Strike

Sorcerer Abilities
Spell casting, Aracna (Enhanced Senses, Psychic Power Suggestion)

Sorcerer Spells
First Level: Chill Ray, Extinguish Light
Second Level: Invisibility

Heroic/Divine Touchstones
1st Level: Psychic Power: Bio-feedback 
3rd Level: Luck Benefit

Heroic (Divine) Archetype: Trickster

Gear
Shortsword, mace, dagger

Cottonmouth
Cottonmouth

Class: Renegade/Necromancer
Level: 1/1
Species: Half-orc
Alignment: Dark Evil
Background: Cult

Abilities
Strength: 17 (+2) 
Agility: 18 (+3) A
Toughness: 17 (+2)  
Intelligence: 16 (+2) N
Wits: 17 (+2) N
Persona: 10 (+0) 

Fate Points: 1d6
Defense Value: 1
Vitality: 8
Degeneracy: 0
Corruption: 0

Check Bonus (A/N/D): +2/+1/+0
Melee Bonus: +1 (base), 
Ranged Bonus: +1 (base)
Saves: +3 to Death Saves
Number of Attacks: 1

Necromancer Abilities
Channel the Dead, See Dead people, Turn Undead, Protection from the Dead

Renegade Abilities
Improved Defence, Ranged Combat, Stealth Skills, Climbing, Danger Sense (1-3 d6)

Heroic/Divine Touchstones
1st Level: +1 to melee attacks

Heroic (Divine) Archetype: Assassin

Gear
Bastardsword, morningstar, dagger

"The Shadow"

No idea who this is. "He" appears to be their boss or handler.  His name appears on all their sheets under Patron. It is likely that one of his own characters relocated to the Realms.

I must admit. I am tempted to reuse these characters for my own Forgotten Realms expropriations. A great set of antagonists for my Sinéad.

You can get the Wasted Lands RPG and the NIGHT SHIFT RPG at Elf Lair Games.

Character Creation Challenge


Saturday, January 25, 2025

Character Creation Challenge: Eno Nosrep

Eno Nosrep
 I don't know who this character is ("One Person"), but I do know what he is supposed to be. His class is Adept of the Spirit, which was our attempts to bring the Riddlemaster back down to a reasonable class, and use a name that wasn't going to get us into trouble if we had ever decided to publish it. 

We never got it to that point. I had bugged Grenda about it over the years and then again when the OSR scene first started going strong, but he was not interested in doing it then. It was always, "Yeah, I should do that soon." Well. That "soon" never came. I do admit some hesitation in releasing it now; I really don't, to be honest. But intellectually, I wonder how it would work for, say, Old School Essentials or one of the AD&D 1st clones.

For Wasted Lands, though, this is a perfect time for me to try him out as a Mystic Warrior from Thirteen Parsecs.

Eno Nosrep

Class: Mystic Warrior (from Thirteen Parsecs)
Level: 13
Species: Human
Alignment: Neutral
Background: Scholar

Abilities
Strength: 18 (+3) A
Agility: 17 (+2) 
Toughness: 18 (+3) N 
Intelligence: 17 (+2) 
Wits: 14 (+1)
Persona: 16 (+2) N

Fate Points: 1d10
Defense Value: 1
Vitality: 104
Degeneracy: 0
Corruption: 0

Check Bonus (A/N/D): +6/+4/+2
Melee Bonus: +5 (base), +3 (STR)
Ranged Bonus: +5 (base)
Saves: +5 to all Toughness Saves
Number of Attacks: 3

Mystic Warrior Abilities
Combat Mastery, Impossibly Agile, Mysticism, Lightning Fast, Survivor Skills, Free Running, Iron Will, Favored Weapon (+1 damage die), Mind over Body, Instant Kill

Powers
Danger Sense, Enhanced Senses, Supernatural Attacks

Heroic/Divine Touchstones
1st Level: +1 to melee attacks
3rd Level: +1 to Wits Saves
5th Level:  Luck Benefit
7th Level: Psychic Ability: Telepathy
9th Level: +1 level of Sorcerer
11th Level: +1 level of Sorcerer
13th Level: +1 level of Sorcerer

Heroic (Divine) Archetype: Mental Discipline

Gear
Longsword, dagger, short bow

Yes. This works quite nicely, to be honest. Mystic Warriors do make for a good stand-in for Riddlemasters. I am just sad that Grenda didn't get a chance to see this.

You can get the Wasted Lands RPG and the NIGHT SHIFT RPG at Elf Lair Games.

Character Creation Challenge


Friday, January 24, 2025

Character Creation Challenge: Crystal the Psychic

Crystal the Psychic
 I was going to do a week of all evil characters, but Grenda did not have a lot of them. The ones he did have were fun, but they were the exception rather than the rule. Today's character could have been one of mine, but she isn't. Crystal is a Lawful Good Psionist, and she is giving me New Age hippie vibes. 

I mentioned before that Grenda and I made a lot of character classes. Lots. The Psionist was one of his. I hope there is still some more here to find on it because I would love to read a good psionic/psychic-based class. Especially one Grenda created, he was into psychics the same way I was/am into witches. 

Sadly, there is not a lot to tell here about Crystal. She is a teen (so I think some Teen Titans and X-Men influences are at play here), and she is a short (4'11") blonde girl with green eyes, so I also think she is modeled on a girlfriend I had around then. Kinda weird to see her here, to be honest. 

All of the O.G.R.E.S. games (Wasted Lands, NIGHT SHIFT, Thirteen Parsecs) have psychic classes. So, my cup is full of choices.

Crystal the Psychic

Class: Psychic
Level: 8
Species: Human
Alignment: Light Good
Background: Scholarly

Abilities
Strength: 8 (-1) 
Agility: 16 (+2) 
Toughness: 11 (+0) 
Intelligence: 16 (+2)
Wits: 17 (+2)
Persona: 15 (+1)

Fate Points: 1d8
Defense Value: 5
Vitality: 49
Degeneracy: 0
Corruption: 0

Check Bonus (A/N/D): +4/+3/+1
Melee Bonus: +3 (base), -1 (STR)
Ranged Bonus: +3 (base)
Saves: +3 to all Wits Saves

Psychic Abilities
Psychic powers (3), Supernatural Attacks, Sixth Sense, Supernatural power.

Powers
Bio-feedback, ESP, Telepathy, Precognition (S), 

Heroic/Divine Touchstones
1st Level: Psychic power: Empathy
3rd Level: +1 to Persona saves
5th Level: Spirit Guide: Kyri (hawk)
7th Level: Psychic Power: Telemagery

Heroic (Divine) Archetype: Mind

Gear
Dagger, bracers of protection

Ok. I like this version. Feels more like a psychic and less like a cleric pretending to be psychic (which is what I think Grenda was doing mechanically). She reminds me of the Psychic Healer class languishing on my "To Do" pile for AGES. I don't think she is in that class, but I am sure that the conversations we had sent me down the path of the class and Grenda to this character. 

Yeah. I would use this class and this character a lot. 

You can get the Wasted Lands RPG and the NIGHT SHIFT RPG at Elf Lair Games.

Character Creation Challenge


Thursday, January 23, 2025

Character Creation Challenge: Savalon Blade

Savalon Blade
Now, here is an interesting one. Savalon Blade was a "failed" Riddlemaster. That is, he did not meet the base requirements (Psionics) to join. He would have been a Shadowmaster, but it didn't work out. If I remember right, he initially started out as a hunter of Riddlemasters, but when I used him in my games, he was something different. He hunted Mind Flayers. I based him loosely on Abslom Daak the Dalek Hunter from Doctor Who Weekly.

Neither are "good" characters and they are not around to be liked. I think "Asshole" was used more than once to describe Savalon. But he was good at doing what he wanted to do, and that was to kill Illithids/Mind Flayers.

Savalon Blade in the Wasted Lands

There are no Illithids in the Wasted Lands. There are, however, the Cthulim and other servants of the Deeper Dark. In this world, he would hunt them down for similar reasons. Also his AD&D stats were designed to help him stand up to a similar level of Riddlemaster; so a multiclass of fighter/mage/thief.  That is fine for Wasted Lands, but I think we can do better. 

I was discussing the Shadowmaster yesterday with Jason Vey. He reminded me there was a class perfect for it concept-wise. It is the web-freebie, The Shade. I think this will do rather nicely.

Savalon Blade

Class: Shade
Level: 13
Species: Half-elf
Alignment: Lawful Evil
Background: Hunter/Gatherer

Abilities
Strength: 17 (+2) N
Agility: 18 (+3) A
Toughness: 17 (+2) 
Intelligence: 19 (+3) N
Wits: 19 (+3)
Persona: 16 (+2)

Fate Points: 1d10
Defense Value: 2
Vitality: 89
Degeneracy: 0
Corruption: 0

Check Bonus (A/N/D): +6/+4/+2
Melee Bonus: +2 (base), +2 (STR)
Ranged Bonus: +2 (base)
Saves: +3 to all Agility Saves

Shade Abilities

Assassination, Improved Defense, Ranged Combat, Stealth Skills, Climbing, Tactical Awareness (1d10), Natural Alchemy, Perception, Skilled (4 skills), Subterfuge, Vital Strike x4 (supernatural)

Heroic/Divine Touchstones
1st Level: +1 to melee attacks 
3rd Level: +1 to Wits saves
5th Level: Unique Defence Mode: Psychic Attacks
7th Level: Boost to Defence Mode
9th Level: Luck benefit
11th Level: Reroll
13th Level: Aspect of Sphere: Skilled hunter

Heroic (Divine) Archetype: Hunter

Gear
Longsword, dagger, short bow

Not at all bad. He's not too crazy overpowered compared to his AD&D counterpart. I'll have to play around with this on a bit more.

I can also see this guy moving through time (maybe a subtle nod to his origins) and have him show up in NIGHT SHIFT and Thirteen Parsecs as well.

You can get the Wasted Lands RPG and the NIGHT SHIFT RPG at Elf Lair Games.

Character Creation Challenge


Wednesday, January 22, 2025

Character Creation Challenge: Ander

Ander the Shadowmaster
Let's continue with the evil characters today with another of the Riddlemasters, this time a neutral evil "Shadowmaster." 

I don't know much about Ander. He was one of the Post "Dragon War" characters Grenda created. I don't think I ever saw this one in play, and I am sure I never DMed him. Shadowmasters, though, I do know. This class took features from other classes to make them the ultimate thief-assassin type. Thief skills, assassination abilities, magic to aid them, and, of course, a lot of psionics/psychic powers. Grossly overpowered to the point of silliness. 

Still. They were fun to play.

In a Wasted Lands game, they would be some sort of adept or mystic. A character dedicated to ascetic pursuits of mind and body. Again, with the various Riddlemasters I could rebuild them using the point buy system found in NIGHT SHIFT's Night Companion, or via multiclassing, I do have two other options.

The Mystic Martial Artist from the Night Companion is a good fit here, especially for Shadowmasters. The Mystic Warrior from Thirteen Parsecs is also a great fit, but maybe better for Riddlemasters proper. Mind you, this is the great strength of all the O.G.R.E.S. games; their inter-compatibility.  

After going over both classes I am convinced that Mystical Martial Artists are a perfect, and far more reasonable substitute for Shadowmasters. Sorry Grenda.

You will have to excuse the all "18s" in his abilities. I wasn't there when he rolled this guy up, but I am sure those numbers are legit.

Shadowmasters
Ander the Shadowmaster

Class: Mystic Martial Artist
Level: 3
Species: Human
Alignment: Neutral Evil
Background: Warrior 

Abilities
Strength: 18 (+3) N
Agility: 18 (+3) A
Toughness: 18 (+3) 
Intelligence: 18 (+3) N
Wits: 18 (+3)
Persona: 18 (+3)

Fate Points: 1d6
Defense Value: 2
Vitality: 24
Degeneracy: 0
Corruption: 0

Check Bonus (A/N/D): +3/+1/+0
Melee Bonus: +2 (base), +3 (STR)
Ranged Bonus: +2 (base)
Saves: +1 to all Agility and Toughness Saves, +2 to Toughness (Warrior background)

Mystic Martial Artist Abilities
Impossibly Agil, Martial Arts, Martial Arts Mysticism, Lightning Fast, Survivor Skills, 

Mysticism
Enhanced Senses, Innate Magic (Invisibility), Supernatural Attacks (melee)

Heroic/Divine Touchstones
1st Level: Psychic Ability: Bio-feedback
3rd Level: +1 to melee attacks 

Heroic (Divine) Archetype: Shadow

Gear
Longsword, dagger, short bow

Damn. I like this. I want to go back and redo ALL my Riddlemasters and Shadowmasters now. I should poke around and see if there are some more Riddlemasters in this stack and stat them as Mystic Warriors.

You can get the Wasted Lands RPG and the NIGHT SHIFT RPG at Elf Lair Games.

Character Creation Challenge


Tuesday, January 21, 2025

Character Creation Challenge: Queen Talason

Queen Talason Character Sheet
Evil ruler? Sure why not. I have to admit this sheet jumped out at me for a number of reasons. First, it is a rare evil woman in Grenda's collection. Secondly, she is a Queen, and finally, this sheet looks OLD. I don't know anything about Queen Talason here. She is a fighter, but she also can turn undead and has some spells. She has psionics, like a lot of Grenda's characters. 

Also, I love her character sketch. Grenda was always a good artist, and this one is just fun.

I am not 100% sure what is going on with her. She looks like an anti-paladin but has no thief or assassin abilities. Plus, anti-paladins were all chaotic evil, and she is lawful evil. Her spells are from the Magic-user list and not the Cleric one. I checked the old "Plethora of Paladins" article from Dragon #106. The Lawful Evil "Illrigger" and they do use Magic-user spells, but her spell progression and XP progression do not match our Queen here. 

This sheet is also much older than Dragon #106's Feb 1986 date. This one looks a lot closer to his sheets from the early 1980s; as in 1981-82.

I think re-crafting her as an Anti-Paladin, or at least an evil Divine Warrior, is a fun idea.

Queen Talason
Queen Talason

Class: Divine Warrior
Level: 8
Species: Human
Alignment: Dark Evil*
Background: Warrior 

Abilities
Strength: 17 (+2) N
Agility: 18 (+3) 
Toughness: 16 (+2) 
Intelligence: 16 (0) 
Wits: 17 (+2) N
Persona: 17 (+2) P

Fate Points: 1d8
Defense Value: -2
Vitality: 53 
Degeneracy: 5
Corruption: 0

Check Bonus (A/N/D): +4/+3/+1
Melee Bonus: +3 (base), +2 (STR)
Ranged Bonus: +3 (base)
Saves: +3 to all Wits and Persona Saves, +2 to Toughness (Warrior background)

Divine Warrior Abilities
Sixth Sense, Heal Injury and Illness (8d6), Supernatural Attacks, Protection from Evil, Spot Hidden (1-3 on d6).

Heroic/Divine Touchstones
1st Level: Psychic Ability: Telekinesis
3rd Level: +1 to melee attacks 
5th Level: Favored Weapon, Sword
7th Level: 1 level of Sorcerer

Spells
First Level: Arcane Dart

Heroic (Divine) Archetype: Death

Gear
Longsword, Mace, Battle Axe, Spear, Crossbow, Full plate armor, Holy symbol

I imagine that Queen Talason here was a warrior princess, cleaving a bloody path between herself and her goal, the throne. As a Queen, she was no less bloody. In Grenda's games, she worshipped Hades, the god of the Dead. In my revised Wasted Lands games, Hüter is not really the same deadly god. No, in my new campaign, she would worship Helga, the Ghost goddess in her aspect as the Battle Crone. This would also explain her level of Sorcerer as a Heroic/Divine Touchstone. 

I think as a nod to her history and her near miss as an Illrigger, I'll make her birthday February 14th. 

Again, I am loving the Divine Warrior class.

You can get the Wasted Lands RPG and the NIGHT SHIFT RPG at Elf Lair Games.

Character Creation Challenge



Friday, January 17, 2025

Character Creation Challenge: The Ravenloft Weekend

Characters from the The Ravenloft Weekend
Back in 1991, Grenda and I ran a weekend-long game of Ravenloft. We ran it as the "Dreams of Barovia" variant that combined adventure modules I6 and I10. He was the DM for I6 Ravenloft and I was the DM for I11 Ravenloft II: House on Gryphon Hill. It was a lot of fun to be honest, the problem was I forgot to tell my roommates and girlfriend where I was! When I crawled back to my apartment at 2D Lewis Park, I got an earful. The game was fun, but kind of a hazy memory to be honest. We played from Friday afternoon to Sunday evening straight. I remember sleeping in my chair and eating a lot of Quatros pizza

I am presenting all the characters now to cover my next few days (1/17 to 1/21). But more importantly to me, can I use Wasted Lands with NIGHT SHIFT to play a Ravenloft-style game? 

The answer is, absolutely.

Ravenloft is quasi-Gothic horror. As I have mentioned in the past, it is not true Gothic Horror because the characters are still hero types. They have power, they have agency. The heroes of Gothic Horror typically do not have the same level of power D&D characters do. Out Hunters in Dracula only succeed because they have each other and make use of the "technology" of the time. The PCs can go toe to toe with most Gothic literature monsters.

Wasted Lands is Post-Apocalyptic Cosmic Horror. NIGHT SHIFT is Urban survival Horror. BUT that is just what they are on the surface. They are both toolkit games to add or subtract what you want or need from them. 

I would still give the characters some power, but make the setting "Gritty."

That means no Heroic Touchstones. 

Heroic Touchstones are a key feature of the Wasted Lands and will be part of Night Shift 2nd Edition. But for a game like Ravenloft? I would take them out. Well...maybe one at first level. I'll work on the characters to see. Thankfully, none of these characters have psionics or other "kewl powerz," and all the classes are normal ones. 

I would use all the fear and terror effects from NIGHT SHIFT. I'd use Degeneracy and Corruption rules from Wasted Lands. That might feel like I am stacking things against the characters. I am.

Unlike D&D (esp. post 2000+ D&D) Gothic Horror is not about balance, it is exactly the opposite of that. The Big Bad Guy has all the power. 

Characters from the Ravenloft Weekend

The Characters

I only have vague recollections of these characters. I was spending a lot of time trying to get into grad school, and my focus then was largely on that. Plus, these are really just one-shot characters. So while they do have some good background attached, they were only used (to my knowledge) for this adventure.

Sir Beyrn Silverhelm
Sir Beyrn Silverhelm

Class: Divine Warrior (from Night Companion)
Level: 13
Species: Human
Alignment: Light Good
Background: Warrior

Abilities
Strength: 18 (+3) N
Agility: 12 (0) 
Toughness: 18 (+3) 
Intelligence: 12 (0) 
Wits: 15 (+1) N
Persona: 17 (+2) A

Fate Points: 1d10
Defense Value: 0
Vitality: 98 
Degeneracy: 0
Corruption: 0

Check Bonus (A/N/D): +6/+4/+2
Melee Bonus: +5 (base), +3 (STR)
Ranged Bonus: +5 (base)
Saves: +5 to all Wits and Persona Saves, +2 to Toughness (Warrior background)

Divine Warrior Abilities
Sixth Sense, Heal Injury and Illness (13d6), Supernatural Attacks, Protection from Evil

Heroic (Divine) Archetype: Protection

Gear
Longsword, Field plate armor, Holy symbol

Sir Beyrn is a quintessential Diving Warrior. His stats on his AD&D sheet look like they might have been cribbed from Johan II to be honest! Which makes sense. Looks like Grenda created all these characters in a couple of weeks while working and going to school.

Hile Augarin
Hile Augarin

Class: Archer (from Wasted Lands)
Level: 12
Species: Half-elf
Alignment: Twilight Good
Background: Elf (Wasted Lands) 

Abilities
Strength: 18 (+3) N
Agility: 16 (+2) A
Toughness: 16 (+2) N
Intelligence: 11 (0) 
Wits: 15 (+1) 
Persona: 12 (0) 

Fate Points: 1d10
Defense Value: 2
Vitality: 92 
Degeneracy: 0
Corruption: 0

Check Bonus (A/N/D): +6/+4/+2
Melee Bonus: +5 (base)
Ranged Bonus: +5 (base)
Saves: +6 to agility-based saves

Elf Abilities
Night Shifted

Archer Abilities
Improved Defense, Master Archer, Ranged Combat, Supernatural Attack, Improved Range Damage, Eagle Eye, Incapacitating Shot, Multi Attack x4, Careful Aim, Trick Shot

Heroic (Divine) Archetype: hunter

Gear
Longsword, Longbow, elven chain

I have used Renegades and Warriors in the past for Rangers, in this case Archer is the better choice.

Finneous Sevinhand
Finneous Sevinhand

Class: Renegade (from Wasted Lands)
Level: 12
Species: Half-elf
Alignment: Twilight Good
Background: Elf (Wasted Lands) 

Abilities
Strength: 15 (+1) N
Agility: 17 (+2) A
Toughness: 16 (+2) N
Intelligence: 13 (+1) 
Wits: 11 (0) 
Persona: 10 (0) 

Fate Points: 1d10
Defense Value: 3
Vitality: 87 
Degeneracy: 0
Corruption: 0

Check Bonus (A/N/D): +6/+4/+2
Melee Bonus: +4 (base)
Ranged Bonus: +4 (base)
Saves: +4 vs Death effects

Elf Abilities
Night Shifted

Renegade Abilities
Improved Defence, Ranged Combat, Stealth Skills, Climbing, Danger Sense (1-4 d6), Perception, Vital Strike x4, Read Languages, Stealth Skills

Heroic (Divine) Archetype: Thief

Gear
Shortsword, dagger, throwing knife, crossbow

Renegades have a different feel to me than survivors, though both can be used as thieves. 

Meroc Trothgard
Meroc Trothgard

Class: Survivor (from NIGHT SHIFT)
Level: 12
Species: Human
Alignment: Night Good
Background: Hunter/Gatherer

Abilities
Strength: 15 (+1) N
Agility: 17 (+2) A
Toughness: 17 (+2) N
Intelligence: 12 (0) 
Wits: 14 (+1) 
Persona: 13 (+1) 

Fate Points: 1d10
Defense Value: 2
Vitality: 90
Degeneracy: 0
Corruption: 0

Check Bonus (A/N/D): +6/+4/+2
Melee Bonus: +4 (base)
Ranged Bonus: +4 (base)
Saves: +4 vs Death effects

Renegade Abilities
Improved Defence, Ranged Combat, Stealth Skills, Climbing, Danger Sense (1-4 d6), Perception, Vital Strike x4, Read Languages, Stealth Skills

Heroic (Divine) Archetype: Hunter

Gear
Longsword ("Trollslayer"), dagger, longbow

Mechanically, the Renegade and the Survivor are the same. But in this case, I add in the backgrounds to give them a different feel. With Meroc here, I also decided not to go with their multi-class Ranger/Thief and stuck with the Survivor.

Aristobulous Declan
Aristobulous Declan

Class: Sorcerer (from Wasted Lands)
Level: 13
Species: Half-elf
Alignment: Night Good
Background: Scholar

Abilities
Strength: 11 (0) 
Agility: 16 (+2) N
Toughness: 15 (+1) 
Intelligence: 17 (+2) A
Wits: 10 (0) 
Persona: 13 (+1) N

Fate Points: 1d10
Defense Value: 3
Vitality: 72
Degeneracy: 0
Corruption: 0

Check Bonus (A/N/D): +6/+4/+2
Melee Bonus: +4 (base)
Ranged Bonus: +4 (base)
Saves: +4 vs Magic

Elf Abilities
Night Shifted

Sorcerer Abilities
Beguile, Enhanced Senses, Exorcist, Subtle Influence, Telekinesis

Spells
First Level (5): Arcane Darts, Chill Ray, Gout of Flame, Mystical Senses, Sleep, 
Second Level (4): Conjure Flame, Invisibility, Lesser Renewal, See Invisible
Third Level (4): Concussive Blast, Dark Lightning, Dispel Magic, Remove Curse 
Fourth  Level (4): Conjure Fire, Improved Invisibility, Paralyze Undead, Renewal
Fifth Level (3): Banishment, Shadow Armor, Teleport
Sixth Level (2): Destroy Undead, Dispel Evil
Seventh Level (1): Ball of Sunshine

Heroic (Divine) Archetype: Magic

Gear
Quarterstaff, Dagger, dart

Mages are Sorcerers. This one has a lot spells to help survive Castle Ravenloft.

Father Ercon Valeran
Father Ercon Valeran

Class: Theosophist (from NIGHT SHIFT)
Level: 12
Species: Human
Alignment: Light Good
Background: Warrior

Abilities
Strength: 15 (+1) N
Agility: 18 (+3) 
Toughness: 16 (+1) N
Intelligence: 16 (+2) 
Wits: 20 (+4) A 
Persona: 19 (+3) 

Fate Points: 1d10
Defense Value: 3
Vitality: 87
Degeneracy: 0
Corruption: 0

Check Bonus (A/N/D): +6/+4/+2
Melee Bonus: +2 (base)
Ranged Bonus: +2 (base)
Saves: +5 vs Wits 

Theosophist Abilities
See Dead people, Turn Undead x2, Summon Dead, Channel Dead, Death Knell, Suggestion, Command the Dead

Heroic (Divine) Archetype: Hunter of the Dead

Gear
Mace ("Skullcrusher"), Quarterstaff, shortbow, holy symbol.

I can't help but notice that Father Ercon's Patron Deity is St. Werper. Nice touch Grenda!

I should stat up Strahd sometime as well. But I think he deserves his own post really. 


You can get the Wasted Lands RPG and the NIGHT SHIFT RPG at Elf Lair Games.

Character Creation Challenge


Thursday, January 16, 2025

Character Creation Challenge: Molley Hachit

Molley Hachit
Oh, have I got a fun one today! First off, this is not one of Grenda's characters, it actually belongs to my old Jr. High DM Jon Cook. Jon played with us for a while, but he was the first of our group to get a job (he made enough to buy a new car in high school) and the first of us to get a steady girlfriend. Secondly, this isn't the original version of Molley. It is a version I found with versions of a few of my own characters (Phygora, Nigel, Rogue, and Retsam). I seem to recall a "Greatest Hits" game we played in a few years into High School where we played different versions of our favorite characters. This one is special as well because this one of the very few women characters I can remember Jon playing. 

Molley Hachit (and yes that is the proper spelling!) is obviously based on the band Molly Hatchet. In particular their first album. Jon's older sister Mary (who sadly we also lost last year) had EXCELLENT taste in music. She was also a "Killer DM" so I would not be surprised if one version of Molley had not died at her hands. 

Molley is a fighter, and a pretty buff one at that. Of course, she wields a big axe. Hmm, I bet she would have gotten along with Karlach or Hervor. I can't help but think that the song "Bounty Hunter" was the inspiration for her. I can see her jumping into battle screaming "Hell Yeah!"

BUT. I am going to stat her up in Wasted Lands as a Renegade. This fits better with Jon's playstyle, really, and a nod to Mary, who was the biggest Styx fan in the world. 

Molley Hachit

Class: Renegade
Level: 3
Species: Neutral
Alignment: Twilight
Background: Barbarian

Abilities
Strength: 16 (+2) N
Agility: 11 (0) A
Toughness: 15 (+1) N
Intelligence: 12 (0) 
Wits: 13 (+1) 
Persona: 7 (-7)

Fate Points: 1d6
Defense Value: 3
Vitality: 15
Degeneracy: 0
Corruption: 0

Check Bonus (A/N/D): +3/+1/+0
Melee Bonus: +2 (base) 
Ranged Bonus: +2 (base) 
Saves: +3 vs Death effects (Renegade)

Renegade Abilities
Improved Defence, Ranged Combat, Stealth Skills, Climbing, Danger Sense (1-3), Perception, Vital Strike x3, Read Languages, Stealth Skills

Stealth Skills
Open Locks: 25%
Bypass Traps: 20%
Sleight of Hand: 30%
Sneak: 25%

Heroic/Divine Touchstones 
1st Level: +1 to Melee attacks
3rd Level: Luck Benefit 1d6

Heroic (Divine) Archetype: Warrior

Gear
Big Axe, Dagger, Chain Armor, thieves tools

Ok, so she is not an optimized Renegade, and this character might be better served as a barbarian-like Warrior. But that is not how Jon used to play characters. The concept was key. And the sacrifice of some combat ability for some "thief skills" was always something he liked to do.

In any case. Damn. It sure was fun to see Molley again.  I should make her a member of the Fearless Five, who would then number seven. The Stalwart Seven, perhaps?


You can get the Wasted Lands RPG and the NIGHT SHIFT RPG at Elf Lair Games.

Character Creation Challenge


Wednesday, January 15, 2025

Character Creation Challenge: Briana Highstar

Briana Highstar
After discovering yesterday's healer, I have to admit I went searching through this large stack of characters looking for a witch. I found one and she was not who I suspected she was going to be. So for this special Witchcraft Wednesday of the Character Creation Challenge, I give you Briana Highstar.

Now that name sticks out. Grenda was very, very careful with his family names. He had (and you have seen here) dynasties of characters. The Addingdales are the prime example. So when he names someone "Highstar" especially at the time when Morgan Highstar was such a prominent character of his, it means something. 

Sadly, there is not much here on Briana Highstar. She is listed as an NPC. She does not show up in our shared timeline, and I have not been able to dig up anything else about her. So, a witch (a class I made) related to his major Riddlemaster (a class he made). There is a story here!

I know she is one of my witches, largely due to the spells. I mean, yeah, he could have been using another witch class and my spells. 1993 is about the time I finished my first big "publication" draft that combined all my notes and handwritten playtest documents. I still have it here, I just printed it out on a "new" type of printer, an inkjet. 

So what can I speculate about Briana Highstar?

Her sheet says that she is a diabolic witch and her patron devil is Mephistopheles. She is Lawful Evil. That's about it.

Given Grenda's frame of mind at the time (2/11/1993) I'll make the following assumptions.

She is the younger half-sister of Morgan Highstar; they share the same father but different mothers.  I'll tear a page from Arthurian legends and have their relationship (at least the antagonism) be the same as Arthur and Morgan le Fey's. The attitude would likely be Briana feels wronged by Morgan and Morgan doesn't even know who she is.

To amp up this antagonism, I'd have Briana look a lot like Morgan; black hair, gray eyes. Hell, she might look a bit like Katie McGrath's Morgana from Merlin. I'll admit it, I am a fan of her's. 

Maybe her motivation is to destroy his School of Riddlemasters. Or maybe she just wants to avenge herself on him. I don't know yet. She is Lawful Evil to his True Neutral, so maybe her plans are more complicated. Maybe "her" plans are not her's but Mephistopheles' instead. Who knows, I would have to put her into play and see what she does.

Briana Highstar, Baldur's Gate 3 version

Briana Highstar

Class: Witch
Level: 8
Species: Human
Alignment: Evil Dark
Background: Cultist

Abilities
Strength: 12 (+0) 
Agility: 16 (+2) 
Toughness: 13 (+1) 
Intelligence: 17 (+2) N
Wits: 17 (+2) A
Persona: 15 (+1) N

Fate Points: 1d10
Defense Value: 1
Vitality: 26
Degeneracy: 32
Corruption: 1 (eyes glow an unnatural way, like a cats)

Check Bonus (A/N/D): +4/+3/+1
Melee Bonus: +1 (base) 
Ranged Bonus: +1 (base)
Saves: +4 vs spells and magical effects

Arcane Abilities
Beguile, Precognition, Shadow Walking

Heroic/Divine Touchstones 
1st Level: Additional 1st level Spell
3rd Level: Favored Weapon, Whip
5th Level: Spirit Guide: Cat Familiar 
7th Level: Magical Recovery

Heroic (Divine) Archetype: Domination

Spells
First Level (4+1): Armor of Earth, Black Flames, Chill Ray, Phantom Lights, Read Languages
Second Level (3): Eternal Flame, Invisibility, See Invisible
Third Level (3): Animal Summoning 2, Dark Lightning, Globe of Darkness
Fourth Level (2): Black Tentacles, Kiss of the Succubus

Gear
Whip

Briana has a vendetta against all Riddlemasters. She wants to kill them all, but that is an impossible task, so she will settle on doing as much damage to them as she can. Her Patron, Mephistopheles, is using her to strike a blow to Balance, the force that Riddlemasters represent. 

I will certainly be using Briana more in adventures. Don't worry Grenda, I'll take care of her.

You can get the Wasted Lands RPG and the NIGHT SHIFT RPG at Elf Lair Games.

Character Creation Challenge


Tuesday, January 14, 2025

Character Creation Challenge: Aura the Elf Healer

Aura the Elf Healer
 One of the things I have been looking forward to seeing in this group of characters are the various classes Grenda and I created. You have already seen the various Riddlemasters, but we have not seen a witch at all or one of my classes. Well, today, I change that. Not a witch, but almost as good. Meet Aura, the Elf Healer.

Aura is interesting for a few reasons. First off, her class is "Healer," not a cleric. More on that in a bit. She has no creation date on her sheet, something we always did and I still often do. There is, in fact, very little writing on her sheet at all. This leads me to the conclusion that she was an NPC. 

She is also an elf. Not a half-elf, but a full elf, something Grenda rarely played. He was all about playing humans and maybe the occasional half-elf.  No shock, really, all his characters were part of a large extended family. He later added Cheysuli and Deryni. 

So Aura here is a healer. 

There is not enough detail on this sheet to determine which healer she was. I had made a couple of different attempts at this class. The big clue here is Undead Turning. I went back and forth a lot on whether or not healers could turn undead like a cleric. While I argued that healers could see undead as something like a disease, it is also a key feature of the cleric class. This one is from the time when they could still turn undead. 

OR

Grenda didn't have all my healer class notes (which is possible) and he rolled her up as a cleric and played her like a healer. In any case she also has some of the early weapons choices. I was inspired by the early Dragon magazine article about healers and had healers use only non-damage causing weapons. It made for a difficult class to play in combat.

In any case, it is nice to see one of "my" character classes here. I am still holding out for a proper witch, though.  

How do I know she is one of my healers and not another one? Well, she is from "Glantri," that is the biggest clue. And she is a Lawful Good character who worships Apollo. Most of my healers from this era were followers of Apollo.

Aura

Class: Necromancer (Light)
Level: 15
Species: Elf
Alignment: Light Good
Background: Elf

Abilities
Strength: 13 (0)
Agility: 16 (+2) N
Toughness: 16 (+2) 
Intelligence: 18 (+3) N
Wits: 19 (+3) A
Persona: 15 (+1) 

Fate Points: 1d12
Defense Value: 6
Vitality: 110
Degeneracy: 0
Corruption: 0

Check Bonus (A/N/D): +7/+4/+3
Melee Bonus: +3 (base)
Ranged Bonus: +3 (base)
Saves: +5 to Persona

Necromancer Abilities
Channel the Dead, See Dead people, Turn Undead, Protection from Dead x4, Summon the Dead, Vampiric Augmentation*, Suggestion x4, Command, Vampiric Touch*, Beguile Spirit x2, Call the Reaper.

Heroic Touchstones

1st Level: Psychic Power: Bio-feedback
3rd Level: Light
5th Level: Cure Light Wounds
7th Level:  Psychic Power: Domination
9th Level: Psychic Power: Supernatural Senses
11th Level: Conjure Flame
13th Level: Immunity to disease
15th Level: Cure Disease

Heroic (Divine) Archetype: Healer

Gear
Holy symbol, healer's kit

There is not much to Aura's character on her sheets, but this version of her for the Wasted Lands has a lot of potential. What would an elf, with psychic powers, be doing as a healer trained in the temple of Apollo? In my combined mythos she would likely be a follower of Jäger and most likely a wood elf of some type.

OH. And many people have mentioned I should preserve these sheets, I zoomed out when taking a picture of Aura's sheet here so you all can see that she is in a protective sheet for a three-ring binder. All the characters are going into sheets like this.

You can get the Wasted Lands RPG and the NIGHT SHIFT RPG at Elf Lair Games.

Character Creation Challenge

Monday, January 13, 2025

Character Creation Challenge: Morgan Highstar

Morgan Highstar
Ah. Now, here was a character. Mogan Highstar was more than Grenda's favorite character, he was in a sense his self-insert. His way of experiencing the world of Dungeons & Dragons as himself. He was more than his version of my Johan. He was Johan, Larina, and "Retsam" all rolled into one for him. 

Finn Danis may have been the first "Starmaster" and eventual head of the school of Riddle Masters, but everything Finn learned, he learned first from Morgan.

Morgan Highstar was born CY 637. He was the first Riddlemaster. His first student, Finn, did not join his school until 659 when finn was only 8. 

Morgan was an accomplished card player and a firm supporter of the Cosmic Balance (in the Michael Moorcock sense). Going over the sheets I have here, he had been a worshiper of  Uller (more examples of our blending of Greek and Norse myths), but when he began his Riddlemaster training, he converted to the worship Xan Yae

Riddlemasters, as I have mentioned off and on, were psychic characters who masked their psychic powers by disguising them as magic. They were influenced by "The Chronicles of the Deryni" by Katherine Kurtz and a lot of B-Grade movies about psychic phenomena. They were a cloistered sect that (retconned) had existed for centuries. Morgan was the first Riddlemaster.

Like Finn, I am happy to make Morgan a Psychic, though I will eventually need to post more about Riddlemasters. 

Morgan Highstar 

Class: Psychic
Level: 14
Species: Human
Alignment: Neutral
Background: Scholar

Abilities
Strength: 18 (+3) N
Agility: 17 (+2) 
Toughness: 16 (+2) 
Intelligence: 18 (+3) N
Wits: 16 (+2) 
Persona: 18 (+3) A

Fate Points: 1d10
Defense Value: 1
Vitality: 95
Degeneracy: 0
Corruption: 0

Check Bonus (A/N/D): +6/+4/+2
Melee Bonus: +4 (base) 
Ranged Bonus: +4 (base)
Saves: +5 vs Persona (Psychic)

Background
Additional languages.

Psychic Abilities
Psychic powers: 5, Supernatural attacks, Supernatural power: Astral Projection

Psychic Powers
Bio-feedback
Body Control
Empathy
Telepathy
Temporal Sense

Heroic/Divine Touchstones 
1st Level: +1 to melee attacks
3rd Level: Psychic power: Pyrokinesis
5th Level: Level 1 of Renegade (use of stealth skills)
7th Level: Level 2 of Renegade (increased stealth skills)
9th Level: +1/+5% to all attacks, saves, checks and skills
11th Level: Spell resistance 20%
13th Level: Character ceases to age

Heroic (Divine) Archetype: Balance

Gear
Sword ("Balancer")

Again, while I am very happy replicating any D&D class in Wasted Lands, Riddlemasters, by their very nature, are a little more difficult. Should I do a "Riddlemaster" class for Wasted Lands/NIGHT SHIFT/13 Parsecs? Well...there is a desire, but I am not sure how practical it would be.  The classes were not very practical for D&D to be honest! I would need to distill them to their essence and build them up from that.

Something other than "how crazy can we get with this?"

You can get the Wasted Lands RPG and the NIGHT SHIFT RPG at Elf Lair Games.

Character Creation Challenge


Sunday, January 12, 2025

Character Creation Challenge: Vale Warmark

Vale Warmark
 Here is another character I do not know. He looks like he was part of a campaign of all evil characters called The Black Sun, but that is all I know. This is from his time period of 1988 to 1990 when he made a lot of characters. 

Vale Warmark is a Cheysuli, like Finn Danis. In *D&D a different species is harder to detail since bonuses and penalties need to be considered. Wasted Lands, NIGHT SHIFT, and Thirteen Parsecs new species are all baked into the rules and covered by our "Supernatural" type (from NIGHT SHIFT). Also, like many of Grenda's characters, he has psionics.

His class is listed as "Fighter (Special)." I wonder if this was some sort of play-test character. He has fighter abilities as well as cleric spells and undead turning, but he is not a Paladin.

When I originally pulled this sheet I was going to make him a point-buy character using the Night Companion rules for NIGHT SHIFT. But the results were not satisfactory. Especially since the Divine Warrior seems to do the trick very well. But, given his Lawful bent and the fact that he worships Xan Yae from the World of Greyhawk, he has led me down a different path. I think he works best as a Mystic Martial Artist.

While the Mystic Martial Artist is great for monks (AD&D) or say ninjas, or wuxia like warriors, it is also great for any sort of character that makes combat a way of life. 

Vale Warmark
Vale Warmark

Class: Mystic Martial Artist
Level: 1
Species: Cheysuli (using the Supernatural type from NIGHT SHIFT and other species rules from Wasted Lands)
Alignment: Dark Evil
Background: Warrior

Abilities
Strength: 17 (+2) N
Agility: 18 (+) A 
Toughness: 17 (+2) N
Intelligence: 16 (+2)  
Wits: 17 (+2) 
Persona: 15 (+1) 

Fate Points: 1d6
Defense Value: 0
Vitality: 5 (d6)
Degeneracy: 0
Corruption: 3

Check Bonus (A/N/D): +2/+1/+0
Melee Bonus: +1 (base) +3 (MMA)
Ranged Bonus: +1 (base) +3 (MMA)
Saves: +1 vs AGL and TOU saves.

Mystic Martial Arts Abilities
+3 to Agility, Add AGL bonus to attacks, Martial Arts: Sword (like Kendo)

Heroic Touchstones
Level 1: Psychic Ability: Bio-feedback

Heroic (Divine) Archetype: Order

Gear
Sword (Mailbite), Dagger, Mace, splint mail armor

Ok. He is only first level here, but looking over his AD&D sheet and the abilities that Mystic Martial Artists get as they level up, I see that this is a great fit.  I am not sure how important the cleric abilities were to this character, so I may add them later on as a Heroic Touchstone or not. 

I do wonder what class Vale was supposed to have been.

You can get the Wasted Lands RPG, the NIGHT SHIFT RPG, and Thirteen Parsecs RPG at Elf Lair Games.

Character Creation Challenge