Adur Rulklim – Dwarf Fighter/Barbarian
Background:
Priests, bards, wise-women, farmers – they all agree. Loss changes a person. It certainly did in Adur Rulklim’s case. His clan members and countrymen all agree on that point. They speculate (out of Adur’s earshot) as to the cause, though. Was it being part of the army that was defeated by the orc horde? Was it the loss of his brother, who died in his arms? Was it the sight of the captured shieldmaidens being ravaged by the orcs? Or was it the days of torture at the hands of the orcs? None can say for sure, not even his kin, for when Adur returned to home after escaping the orcs, it was a different warrior than the promising soldier who left on the campaign trail in search of glory and honor.
Adur, once level-headed (for a dwarf at least), was now reckless. He was always ready for a fight and if one didn’t find him, he sought it out. Gone was the resolve of the warrior, it had been replaced with the primal rage of an animal. Disciplined for insubordination and fighting, he was passed over for promotion. No one could question his courage or fervor in battle, however.
Once the orcs were defeated, Adur mustered out. Adur was unable to enjoy times of peace, however. A restlessness burns within him. There are battles to be fought and vengeances to be had. Adur has gone in search of adventure, not as the soldier, but as the battle-rager he has become.
Notes:
My expectation is that Adur will take the role of a front-line fighter. Unless I can make an unarmored battle-rager work, he’ll be lightly armored. I haven’t decided if he’ll favor an axe or warhammer. Axe obviously fits both the dwarf and barbarian mold but the warhammer is more of a link to his pre-barbarian past. (Perhaps I’ll try two-weapon fighting if I can get it to work.)
Alignment will be Chaotic Good or Neutral. I’m leaning towards CG. Adur’s a crusading adventurer and it’s his chaotic disposition that alienated him from the orderly dwarven military & society rather than a coarsening of his soul.
I got the idea for the concept from Bad Axe Games’ Heroes of High Favor. Battle-rager was a prestige class. I don’t know if you’d consider allowing it but I figured I’d ask. It appears that it would facilitate the armor-less dwarf concept. If this were allowed, he’d be a fighter 2/barbarian 3/battle-rager 1.
Thanks,
Azgulor
A couple of decisions/modificaitons:
I think the class breakdown will be Fighter 3/Barbarian 3
Feats will likely include: Improved Unarmed Strike, Weapon Focus (Warhammer), Weapon Focus (Battle Axe)
Adur will likley carry both a dwarven warhammer and an orcish battleaxe. The hammer is the weapon he's carried most of his military career and the axe will be the trophy taken from an orcish leader he slew during his escape from captivity.
Background:
Priests, bards, wise-women, farmers – they all agree. Loss changes a person. It certainly did in Adur Rulklim’s case. His clan members and countrymen all agree on that point. They speculate (out of Adur’s earshot) as to the cause, though. Was it being part of the army that was defeated by the orc horde? Was it the loss of his brother, who died in his arms? Was it the sight of the captured shieldmaidens being ravaged by the orcs? Or was it the days of torture at the hands of the orcs? None can say for sure, not even his kin, for when Adur returned to home after escaping the orcs, it was a different warrior than the promising soldier who left on the campaign trail in search of glory and honor.
Adur, once level-headed (for a dwarf at least), was now reckless. He was always ready for a fight and if one didn’t find him, he sought it out. Gone was the resolve of the warrior, it had been replaced with the primal rage of an animal. Disciplined for insubordination and fighting, he was passed over for promotion. No one could question his courage or fervor in battle, however.
Once the orcs were defeated, Adur mustered out. Adur was unable to enjoy times of peace, however. A restlessness burns within him. There are battles to be fought and vengeances to be had. Adur has gone in search of adventure, not as the soldier, but as the battle-rager he has become.
Notes:
My expectation is that Adur will take the role of a front-line fighter. Unless I can make an unarmored battle-rager work, he’ll be lightly armored. I haven’t decided if he’ll favor an axe or warhammer. Axe obviously fits both the dwarf and barbarian mold but the warhammer is more of a link to his pre-barbarian past. (Perhaps I’ll try two-weapon fighting if I can get it to work.)
Alignment will be Chaotic Good or Neutral. I’m leaning towards CG. Adur’s a crusading adventurer and it’s his chaotic disposition that alienated him from the orderly dwarven military & society rather than a coarsening of his soul.
I got the idea for the concept from Bad Axe Games’ Heroes of High Favor. Battle-rager was a prestige class. I don’t know if you’d consider allowing it but I figured I’d ask. It appears that it would facilitate the armor-less dwarf concept. If this were allowed, he’d be a fighter 2/barbarian 3/battle-rager 1.
Thanks,
Azgulor
A couple of decisions/modificaitons:
I think the class breakdown will be Fighter 3/Barbarian 3
Feats will likely include: Improved Unarmed Strike, Weapon Focus (Warhammer), Weapon Focus (Battle Axe)
Adur will likley carry both a dwarven warhammer and an orcish battleaxe. The hammer is the weapon he's carried most of his military career and the axe will be the trophy taken from an orcish leader he slew during his escape from captivity.
Last edited: