Recruiting - Shards of the Silver Flame (recruiting re-opened)

Eberron - Shards of the Silver Flame

Opinion on Lord Reverend Alistair ir'Indari was split into several camps. There were those who considered him a harmless eccentric; certainly most of those in his domain thought so. Many of the High Cardinal's friends said he promoted dangerous, radical, and unsound notions regarding certain points of doctrine; he had proposed Lord Alistair as theocrat of a remote border village primarily to get the man out of Flamekeep. Those closely allied with the Keeper of the Flame thought the man had interesting ideas; that Jaela Daran seemed to regard him as some sort of a kindly uncle may have influenced them in this.

And as for you, well, his eclectic interests and his family's money had led you on more than one adventure over the years. Those who thought him a fool were sadly mistaken, and if his ideas on some points of doctrine were a bit odd, there was no doubt of his conviction to aid the cause of Good, Thrane, or the Silver Flame.

And he was asking for your help again.

* * * *

System: D&D 3.5

Expected Number of PCs: 5-6.

Edit: Recruiting is not first-come first-serve; I'm trying to select a party that will work well together.

Starting XP: 21,500, which gives you 500 XP past level 7. The extra XP beyond 7th level is there for those with item creation feats to have something to work with.

Ability Scores: 32-point buy (plus your 4th-level ability bonus; please indicate which ability score you raised @ level 4). If you wish to make your character middle-aged (and you're not playing a warforged), with the bonuses to mental stats and penalties to physical stats, you can do so.

Equipment: PCs started with standard wealth for 7th-level characters (19,000 GP). Characters with item creation feats can make their own items at cost, but no single item should be worth more than 5,000 gp (whether purchased or manufactured).

Alignment: Characters must be Good-aligned or Lawful Neutral.

Background/Religion: This game will be based in Thrane, and your primary patrons will be theocrats and/or Thrane nobility, so following the Church of the Silver Flame is encouraged, though followers of the Sovreign Host, the Path of Light, and the Undying Court (as well as characters that aren't particularly religious) are also okay.

It's also possible the PCs will be working as agents of the Argentum (and may have done so already, whether knowingly or not).

The PCs should be an established group at the start of the game; you've known each other for some time (at least a year).

This game starts about two years after the end of the Last War, as per the standard Eberron timeline.

Classes: All core classes from the Player's Handbook, Eberron Campaign Setting, and Expanded Psionics Handbook are allowed, as well as the Swashbuckler from Complete Warrior, the Warmage from Complete Arcane, the Scout from Complete Adventurer, the Favored Soul from Complete Divine, and the Archivist from Heroes of Horror.

Prestige classes are allowed on a case by case basis (ask me if you've got something in mind), though the general rule of thumb is that if I like your character concept, I'll probably be fine with your PrC. The Silver Flame Exorcist (Eberron Campaign Setting) and Silver Flame Pyromancer (Five Nations) are especially approriate to this campaign, as are the Shadowbane Inquisitor and Shadowbane Stalker (from Complete Adventurer).

Any prestige class must be in a book I own or open content; I own the core rulebooks, the Expanded Psionics Handbook, the Complete books, all of the Eberron hardcovers (I'll generally pick up a new Eberron hardcover when it becomes available from Amazon or soon after), and some other materials.

Races: All player charcter races described in the Player's Handbook and Eberron Campaign Setting are allowed.

House rules:
- If anyone wants to play a half-orc, they may get a slight power boost as I considered stock half-orcs to be seriously underpowered. If anyone wants to play a psion or wilder, note that some psionic powers will be slightly toned down.

Posting notes:
- I work about 8-5 pm Pacific Time (US), Monday-Friday, and I play in a tabletop game on Tuesday evenings. So while I'll check in on the game from work when I'm not too busy, major DM posts will be on evenings and weekends.
- I'll expect at 2-4 major posts/week from players, and that's what you'll be getting from me as the DM.

* * * *

Please post a character concept and a quick mechanical summary if you're interested. I'm holding one spot open for a friend of mine who's not an ENWorld regular, but is looking for an online game.

Edit: If you're proposing a character that's neither from Thrane nor a follower of the Silver Flame, some explanation of why you're working on their behalf (and have for some time at the start of the game) would be good (if you're figuring on developing a reason once you see the other PCs, just say so).

Example:

Lord Reverend Alistair ir'Indari is the third son of a wealthy noble family in Thrane. Intensely curious, very intelligent, and prone to ask inopportune questions, his parents shuffled him off into the clergy of the Silver Flame. He was able to put his talents to some use in that role, but is more librarian and administrator than crusader for the Silver Flame; it's not that he lacks faith, just that he is more gifted with a pen than with a sword.

Alistair is a Cleric/Aristocrat, possibly with a level or two of Loremaster. He's got lots of ranks in Knowledge skills, and probably a Skill Focus or two.

* * * *

Edit: A summary of characters already proposed is in this post: http://www.enworld.org/showpost.php?p=2608582&postcount=28

I hereby express interest in playing a cleric of the Silver Flame. Probably. That's subject to change, but I'll post something... tomorrow.

Dave, I've never played in an Eberron game... but I have the books in storage. (That doesn’t mean I’ve read them but I could probably be persuaded to pull the book out of storage and play.)

I know nothing about the more unique races of Eberron so I can only post that I’m interested.

I'll get on it tonight

Got a couple of ideas; i'll get to them tonight. I gots all the books...

I'm in. Let's see, I haven't played a member of a dragonmarked house in forever so I think I'll go with that. Here's the some of the concept:

Alarich d'Deneith

Son of the late Markus d'Deneith, Alarich is a member of the illustrious house Deneith and a citizen of Karrnath. Originally showing potential as a paladin his tendencies were put down by a combination of cultural influences and the terrors of the Last War. Originally thought an orphan the young Alarich was adopted by the Kessler noble family, little did anyone know Alarich was a member of the Deneith family. Signing up with the Rekkenmark academy at thirteen years of age. Becoming an officer at eighteen the young man was sent to the front against Cyre.

Alarich was as a demon against Cyran units, charging along side undead regiments he struck deep into the enemy lines. That is until the battle of Lake Arul, in the midst of riding forward Alarich was blinded by a great flash of light. When he awoke Alarich was atop a hill surrounded by several of his skeletal soldiers. When he looked to the battle field he saw only dead grey mist. The skeletons had carried him from it and cared for him until he could recover naturally. Mounting a light horse the warrior rode toward Karrn as fast as he could. On the way he met many other soldiers from the Cyran front who recounted similar stories concerning the dead grey mist. Upon arrival Alarich, now twenty three, met with King Kaius III and told his tale. King Kauis thanked the boy and sent him to Fort Bones to await orders. After nearly two years of glorified guard duty with the skeleton soldiers Alarich heard a knock upon his barracks door. Answering he saw several members of house Deneith and his commander. The young man had been lost to the house but due to the closing of the Last War they had time to track him down.

Following his inclusion to the house the Rekkenmark graduate was sent to Sharn as bodyguard to a Wayfinder prior to and during his mission to Xen'drik. The expedition was almost destroyed during a battle with drow in an ancient giant city, however the guerilla warfare techniques of Alarich and his ability to direct troops allowed the expedition to escape with minimal casualties. Upon return to Sharn, Alarich was set to aid in the escort of a house Tharask member into the Mournland. Alarich doesn't talk about what happened out there but when he was found by a patrol of Valenar Elves they said he "looked like the grave had refused him". He also had a small company of Karrnathi undead escorting him away from the Mournland which gave rise to rumors of his former unit still fighting the Battle of Lake Arul. Following that he asked for leave from his house superiors and went back to serving Karnnath for several months before being recalled to house service and sent into Thrane to work for various noble patrons.

Concept

Saalin Corleis is an Khorvaire Elf Wizard 5/Cleric 1/Silver Pyromancer 1. Originally from Aundair (when Thaliost was part of that Nation), he feels no ties to it since it abandoned Thaliost. He has found faith in the teachings of the Flame, and is a devoted arcanist in its name.

Background

Saalin Corleis was once a loyal son of Aundair. Raised in Thaliost, an accomplished student at Arcanix, he joined the ranks of the Knights Arcane in defense of his beloved city. But all that changed in 926 YK, the year Thrane seized beloved Thaliost.

Saalin loved Thaliost. He loved the people, the city. When Thrane initially seized control, they were not cruel. Yes, there was conflict, but it was war. Saalin, separated from his unit during the fighting, was drawn more to helping the remaining Thaliosts, not to fighting the war for Aundair. It was during this time he realized that he did not feel himself to be Aundarian; he was just a Thaliost.

It was during this time that Saalin first met the cleric of the Silver Flame, Lycia Neskdros. Attached to the Thrane military detachment, she found Saalin tending to the wounded as best as his he could. She saw this care as a sign from the Silver Flame as to Saalin's devotion. She took the fledgling mage under her wing and brought him into the fold. Aundair has abandoned him and Thaliost; the Flame gave him and the city what it needed. That was enough for Saalin.

Of course, things were not so simple in Thaliost during the rest of the war. There was significant unrest, atrocities committed by both sides. But Saalin came to view this as a weakness of spirit, and tended to the Thaliost as best as he could. Some of his former neighbors called him traitor; they spit on him for abandoning the country that had abandoned them. But Saalin accepted them all, confident in his newfound faith.

For most 50 years, Thaliost worked under Lycia. While not nominally part of the Church hierarchy, he tended to the faithful and protected them from threats both Aundarian and Thranish. Eventually Lycia passed, but he maintained contact with the Church. But Thaliost was turning ugly. The appointment of Solgar Dariznu as Archbishop and the continued unrest soured Saalin to the ongoing war. He started wondering if he was best serving his faith in this land of unrest. When the Treaty of Thronehold was signed, Saalin felt as it was a sign for him---a sign to move on a truly begin to serve the Flame.

Before passing, Lycia has shared with him the knowledge of a group of fervent Flame followers who were also arcanists---Silver Pyromancers. Though not large, they were an elite group attached to the Order of the Pure. Saalin had seen corruption from all angles in Thaliost. He felt a calling to the Order, and he followed.

Wrap-Up

It would be during these years of training that Saalin would have made contact with Allstair and gained his cleric and silver pyromancer levels; his levels of wizard he would have developed slowly during his years in Thaliost. Note, since the battle of Thaliost was 70 years before the start of the game in 998, Saalin is most-likely middle aged or very close to it.

Generally, the concept (ex-Aundarian arcanist now devoted to Thrane) is the important point; background can be changed to fit.

Character stats probably later on Sunday.

Concept

Aichkay, A warforged warmage; a prototype unit among the last to be made during the Last War. Recovered from the Mournlands, he made the acquaintence of a paladin of the Flame and adopted her as his 'master'. Eventually she convinced him to join the Church proper and become an agent of Thrane. Aichkay is stolidly lawful neutral in bent, having no concern about good and evil (at least not yet), but utterly obedient to any recognized authority (in this case, ranking members of the hierarchy of the Church of Thrane). He still bears a rather troubling...enthusisam towards boasting of his destructive prowess, and enjoys demonstrating this prowess as often as orders permit. To this end, his orders are usually constructed like legal contracts, with highly organized paragraphs to govern when he can or cannot utilize lethal force to achieve objectives. In an odd counterpoint to his checked violence; his personality is cheerful and friendly...sometimes to the point of self-parody. Sometimes it seems as if he's making fun of others, but if he is, he does it with a completely straight delivery and -never- admits it.

Aichkay has no memory of his existance prior to being awakened by a salvage gang. What's more, he has no memory of what he can do. As he gains experiences though, they trigger memories in mind; especially memories similar in content to what he's doing at the time. Because of this, Aichkay likes to keep active. His 'spells' are incorporated into his body itself. So as he stimulates mind and body through adventures and danger, he also uncovers new functionality of his chassis, and new knowledge bubbling up into his memory.

Definitly interested. My basic concept is a Warforged Psionic Warrior(6) Juggernaunt (1). Thinking along the lines as a Knight of Thrane. Possibly as one of Capt. Otherro's shock/special troops. I will put something brief together and post it. Let me know if this is is agreeable to you.

-Blood

A few comments so far -
One general comment -- if you're proposing a character that's neither from Thrane nor a follower of the Silver Flame, some explanation of why you're working on their behalf (and have for some time at the start of the game) would be good (if you're figuring on developing a reason once you see the other PCs, just say so). I'll edit the first message to that effect.

Brother Shatterstone - I wouldn't have posted a note about this game in the OOC thread of the KotOR game if I weren't hoping you could come up with something
Lord Wyrm - Alarich looks like he could be intersting, but probably needs some kind of motivation to stay with the group.
stonegod - Saalin looks good
Shayuri - When I played KotOR and KotOR II, I left HK-47 on the ship as much as possible, because violence in a bottle was usually problematic.
Bloodweaver1 - A pisWar/Warforged Juggernaut? Eek.

Hee. Caught redhanded.

In seriousness though, the intent of this character is not to reproduce in exactness. The obsession with violence isn't necessary to the central idea of this character (which really circulates around self-discovery and warforged/other race relations). I mainly included the reference for humorous purposes.

On the other hand, as there are significant mechanical issues to the build as well (the cha penalty is hurty), if that idea just doesn't resonate, I'd be more than happy to provide an alternative.