Arabic Legends, Themes & Phrases

[Dannyalcatraz]

I'm designing a 4Ed Dragonborn Hybrid Paladin/Cosmic Sorcerer (MC: Starlock) or Hybrid Cosmic Sorcerer/Starlock (MC: Paladin), and I decided to go with a Cha-centric build with an otherworldly flavor. I went digging through star names and found one that sounded right: Rigel- one of the brightest stars known to man, a blue-white supergiant star 90,000x more luminous than our sun. Yes, Radiant powers are on the menu for this silvery- white Dragonborn!

But I thought "Rigel" isn't enough as a name. I looked at it further- the name Arabic in origin, like many stars. So I thought about his father being similarly named, with another Arabic star name, finding the arabic name for Spica (a blue giant star that is also one of the brightest we know, but dimmer than Rigel): Azimech. This made me think about Arabic naming traditions, and I came up with the PC's final name: "Rigel Ibn Azimech" (Rigel, son of Azimech).

The next step was obviously to grab more Arabic motifs to round out this PC. So I adopted Arabic phrases I knew of to a more Draconborn viewpoint, so "Bahamut is Great!" and "If Bahamut wills..." have been pencilled in.

I have more ideas, but fully realize my knowledge of Arabic culture is broad but shallow.

So I'm asking the minds of ENWorld for some insights: what can I do to "Arabicize" Rigel Ibn Azimech?

 

[Pour]

Do not allow him to drink either the fermentation of grape or of wheat, as it dulls his senses and prevents a clear view of the stars. Perhaps in a mirror of Islamic prayer, he could pray to the stars every dusk they appear and every dawn they vanish from plain view. Choose certain castes, races, or even the female gender as unfit to directly meet your gaze (could be a social hurtle your character slowly learns to deal with, and it'll sure be interesting with your party members). You could even get a little Lovecraft with it, transcribe unearthed tomes and heiroglyphs in your own Necronomicon ala Abdul Alhazred.

In terms of dress, you could opt for a thobe, sandals and some sort of head-wrap or headdress. A curved, ornate dagger tucked into a wide sash is pretty important to certain Arabic social circles. Mark his smell as hinted with cumin, saffron, and jasmine oil. Give him a partiality to certain Arabic cuisines, like strong, black coffee, and exotic tobaccos.

Borrow characteristics from Nile crocodiles or desert asps when describing the finer details of your reptilian nature.

When I played my dragonborn starlock, one of my most successful characters in my gaming career, the most endearing and sinister quality about him was the idea he did not observe normal social customs or taboos. There was a distinct separation from him, a reptile, and the rest of the mammalian party. Certain emotions did not register quite the same way, there was an inherent coldness in him. And his back story was rather brutal, and his stars more the aberrant overlord types, so he kind of used his assumed ignorance as a veil for jeering others and furthering his own schemes, though the party could never quite tell if his callous nature was borne from genuine ignorance or cruelty. Good times.

I also had him peel the flesh of the strongest enemies' skulls and wear them on a towering headdress, brutal, primal, but oddly supported by the rest of the party, even the paladin, under the pretense it was one of his native customs and therefore should be respected hehe. Fun playing with that sort of polite observation, pushing it as far as it can go.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Good stuff, right out of the gate! I had some of those ideas kicking around up in my head, but not nearly so fleshed out- Thanks!

The idea about the garb is especially good- it actually helps me sort out what I was going to do about his wearing armor as a Hybrid Pal/Sorc. Considering the cultural attire- designed to be cool & lightweight- heavy, Western-style armor simply wouldn't be appropriate.

For cuisine, I'll opt for tea instead- a lot easier to go into a tavern and ask for boiling hot water for steeping tea- and have him carry some exotic spices. Maybe some mint leaves, olives, almonds...

While I don't think Sorcerers start out with Ritual Casting, that might be something to add.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Hmmm...perhaps I'll re-read Eaters of the Dead to gain some insight as to how Crighton reimagined Ahmed ibn Fadlan.

 

[GameDoc]

Hmmm...perhaps I'll re-read Eaters of the Dead to gain some insight as to how Crighton reimagined Ahmed ibn Fadlan.

Half-Orc Barbarian: Blow-hards the both of you. She probably was some scaly faced camp girl. Looked like that one's mother.

Dragonborn Paladin|Sorcerer: My mother was a pure woman hatched from a fine egg. And I, at least, know who my father is, you pig-nosed son of an orc!

 

[GameDoc]

Ghouls originate in Arabaic legend. Since he's a paladin, he could have some particular history with the ravenous undead that set him on that path.

 

[Rechan]

Various social customs that exist today in the Middle East have been present for centuries. For instance, it's an insult to show the soles of your shoes/feet to someone (suggesting they are lower than dirt). It's also offensive to shake hands with the left hand (because in that part of the world, the off-hand is typically used because they lack toilet paper).

Thus design some sort of gesture that he could take offense at which makes sense given the context of his culture and/or species. I like the 'no eye contact with lessers' (reminds me of limited contact with Untouchables).

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Ghouls originate in Arabaic legend. Since he's a paladin, he could have some particular history with the ravenous undead that set him on that path.

I'd XP you if I could. I didn't know ghouls came from Arabic myths...and that could help fill in some spots in his background.

 

[the Jester]

It would be pretty funny to see a dragonborn mounted on a camel. I'm just sayin'.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Here's a specific question: what about weapons & fighting style? We have the following ingredients:

1) as an Arabic-themed hybrid warrior/caster, he's going to be lightly armored

2) his class-based weapon choices are pretty broad

3) culturally, the Scimitar & Kris (dagger) would be iconic, and with the Sorcerer hybridization AND multiclassing into Starlock, a (esp. pact) dagger is a good fit, so he WILL have one in some form. A staff would also be appropriate, and I've seen examples of Arabic fighting/throwing axes that were nice. Meanwhile, the Khopesh could also work as a "superior" Scimitar, a kukri could do likewise for the Kris dagger and a Falchion could stand in as one of those oversized scimitars.

So: should this guy use a big, 2hand weapon, invest in 2 weapon style fighting, or opt for 1 single handed weapon at a time (alternating between a sword or axe and his Kris), leaving his other hand free for implement usage?

All have their advantages and disadvantages, most of which I get- like Paladins aren't set up for 2WF, and that a lightly armored Defender/Striker will have to be veeeeeeeery careful. But I've only played 1 PC (A Starlock with Psion multiclassing), so the nuances of 4Ed melee combat may have escaped me.