Gaming W/Jemal : Prisoners!!(Inmates Chosen)

[Shayuri]

Ho ho ho! Thus do I confound you!

Also, I may be like...the only non-evil person in the group. HAW HAW...er. Uh oh.

 

[Jemal]

This looks like it should be the best bet. You're right in the sense that smite good might not be the best option, since it's seeming like we're on Double Y Chromo planet from Aliens. I think that's what I'll do, 12th Paladin -> 3 Paladin | 9 Blackguard. I'll just play him with the slow shift even though mechanically he's a dirty bastard.

Maybe have him with the first few level powers of the blackguard, and then 'realize' the rest when it's needed? Dramatically that's a good way to go. (Loosing, loosing... kicking butt. "where'd that come from?")

 

[ethandrew]

Concept: Mei-Ying, offspring of forbidden love between goddess of the Jade Emperor's Celestial Court and mortal.

[sblock=Story (blocked for space, not secrecy)]Sages know of a time before Yun-Ki, God of Luck, when fortune was ruled by the twin god and goddess, Xiao-Gao and Zhing-Yun. They represented the fickleness of fortune, the yin and yang of its essence...and yet also that luck, while often a minor influence on one's life, was one of the few forces that operated outside of Fate, and could even thwart Destiny itself. The story has become an object lesson in the value of obedience to divine will, and an object lesson in what becomes of those that defy the laws set down before them.

Zhing-Yun, as goddess of fortune, was well loved by...just about everyone. Shrines to her dotted the countryside of the mortal realms, and prayers for her aid rose like a fine haze wherever people were gathered. She was fond...overfond, perhaps...of taking mortal form and walking through casinos, arenas, racing tracks, and other places where her worship was particularly strong. Zhing-Yun was admonished against entering the mortal realm too often, but did not listen.

It was in a gambler's hall in the great capital of the mortal, yet divinely mandated Holy Emperor himself that she met who was to become her greatest joy, and ultimate downfall. A man dressed in peasant rags, who scraped and scoured his pockets for each coin he played. He called himself only 'the gambler,' or 'the gambling man,' when asked. And while his appearance seemed pathetic and an easy mark...the Gambler never lost a game unless he meant to. Zhing-Yun noticed this right away, as she could see the rise and swell of his fortunes around him like a cloud. Fascinated by this man who seemed to be in control of his own luck, Zhing followed him and eventually he noticed her. The first of many conversations ensued, and a new destiny was forged; one too strong even for both of them to break free again.

It should be noted at this time that love is forbidden between mortals and gods. In the chaos before the Jade Emperor, humanity was subjugated by the halfbreeds of such unions...lustful and vain gods and spirits who would lie with men and women and bear semi-mortal children possessed of strange and unearthly powers. These so-called sorceror kings were known for their cruelty and love of warring against one another. Constantly vying for the power to rise up against Heaven and steal the divinity of their parents, thus becoming truly immortal. This is the true fear of the Celestial Court...for there are laws older and deeper than those of the Emperor. Laws graven on the deep stone at the world's heart. Laws that give children the right to claim what was their parents'...should their parents surrender it, or be no more.

The Gambler and Zhing-Yun fell in love. The goddess bore him a son, and fearful of what she had done, immediately secreted her away in an all female monestary that taught secret arts and was heavily shielded from detection. To those wards Yun added her own power, clouding her from the senses of gods as best she could. But her old enemy, Fate, had felt the tugging on the strings of destiny...too many threads moved. Too many powerful beings fates changed. Her affair with The Gambler was discovered, and in her testimony before the Jade Emperor himself, Zhing-Yun lied and denied that there was a child. In punishment she was stripped of her power and immortality, and made mortal. Yet when her divine essence was surrendered by her, the accounts were found lacking. A tiny, almost unnoticible fragment of her power was not there! It had, in fact, been passed to her daughter. Using the pull of like to like, the gods used Yun's divine essence to seek out that daughter. Mei-Ying.

Mei Ying had long ago left the nunnery, after learning the female monks' ways. She had uncovered strange, supernatural powers in herself and chose to go forth to explore those in preference to continuing her martial arts training. After meeting and besting many challenges, her power was blossoming. It was that same power that drew her mother's essence across the divide between mortal and divine, and led the eyes of the Jade Emperor himself to her.

The danger was great. Only Mei Ying's ignorance stopped her from laying claim to her mother's essence, and becoming divine herself. The claim of blood was higher than the claim of justice. And yet, Mei Ying also had a mortal soul, and he could not simply destroy her. Killing her would not solve the problem, as her soul would simply reincarnate. But not even the gods of the Court can -destroy- a soul...any more than they could destroy the divine essence taken from Zhing-Yun. There was but one option. Banishment to the so-called Hell of Iron Cages.

It wasn't well named. It wasn't TRULY a Hell...a place of punishment and retribution. It was a prison. A place for beings that had no other place. There was no escape from it...not even the Great Wheel of Rebirth reached there. You might reincarnate, but it would still be in the prison plane. No laws applied there. Not even the Deep Laws. Mei Ying would be helpless to claim her birthright even if she somehow found out, and would be so for all time. Balance would be restored, and the Celestial Court would go on as it always had, perfect and unchanging. Until, of course, Yun's brother vanished. To replace him, an Immortal was promoted to God...this time just one god of all luck, good and bad. A small change to be sure...but as Fate could attest, great avalanches sometimes start with the smallest pebbles.[/sblock]

That's an awesome backstory. Much better than grew up in a monestary and realized you had hidden latent powers. I'm very impressed.

Edit: No need for another post...

Jemal- That's what I figure I'll be doing, both with abilities and spells. It's why I wanted the gradual level shifting from Pal to Black, but I'm with you on this. I'm excited to play this, it sounds very good and fun! I feel like he's lacking in survival skills and I feel guilty, so maybe I can pump him full of profession cooking, but there's nothing like that in his background.

Shayuri- This Pal, while evil in paper, is inherently good in his heart. I'm hoping that he'll be saved, somehow. But I like having non-evils in this campaign, it's a good change of pace.

 

[Jemal]

OK, couple things -
First off, those that are listed as Gear: ?, we need to figure out how (if?) you're getting gear in.
Secondly, just waiting on Sin and LordRaven for submissions.

Rino - I like your 'smuggled gear in with Raven' part, and the rest of your background, just drop the "Been in the prison for a while" part and it's fine.

Shayuri - Yeah, awesome background. Same goes to Avalon and.. well, godamit, everyone.

Ethandrew - Hmm, I don't see cooking making much sense in there either.. Perhaps something else would work, just trying to think of what.

I like the varying worlds you're from, and how they each view the prison in a slightly different manner(Kudos to those who came up with their own world's views/name for it), I think that'll make the party interactions interesting.

 

[Shayuri]

Meep. Thanks, all!

In fairness, this is an well used concept I've had plenty of time to detail, and borrowed heavily from some sources to come up with...but I have a fondness for it. I'm glad y'all like it.

 

[Jemal]

Meep. Thanks, all!

In fairness, this is an well used concept I've had plenty of time to detail, and borrowed heavily from some sources to come up with...but I have a fondness for it. I'm glad y'all like it.

Most of the better characters end up like that (At least in my experience).

Allright, I'm heading to bed now, cya all probably after work tommorow morning. (Yeah i work night shift just in case anybody cares. )

 

[Avalon®]

As I've said before, I'll need a spoiler of what it does.

[sblock= Illumian]-Humanoid (human)
-Medium Size
-30 ft. base ft.
-Luminous Sigils (su): Floating sigils around an illumians head shed off light equal to a candle. Can be suppresed as standard action but sigil benefits and illumian words are suppresed or can't be used. Can be restored as a free action.
-Glyphic Resonance (ex): All symbol-based spells (e.g. all spells with glyph, rune, sigil, or symbol in their name) have no effect on the illumian if his level equals or exceed the spell's caster level (he is rendered immune to their effects) or else he gains a -4 racial penalty to the saves if his level is less than the spell's caster level.
-Power Sigils (su): These sigils can be discerened from the other sigils around an illumian's head with a DC 10 spot check and identified by a DC 15 Knowledge (Arcana) check

The sigils below are the ones that I am planning on taking:

*Hoon: +2 bonus on Wis & Con checks and Wis & Con-based skill checks
*Naen: +2 bonus on Int checks and Int-based skill checks

-Illumian Words (su): Combination of two power sigils grants benefits

The power word below are the ones that I am planning on taking:

Naenhoon: 2/day Divine Metamagic effect

+2 racial bonus on saves against spells with the shadow descriptor

Superior Literacy: Illumians are always literate. Speak Language is always a class skill.

Automatic Languages: Common and Illumian. Bonus Languages: Any except for secret languages

Favored Class: Any. Illumian paladins and monks can leave those classes and return to them w/o penalty[/sblock]

 

[Avalon®]

Xing'dao Li is a combination of Wong Fei Hung the Chinese cultural hero and the antagonist from The One. I was planning on having all his items stored in a portable hole that has been warded with Mystul's Magic aura to be viewn as non-magical.

 

[ethandrew]

Ethandrew - Hmm, I don't see cooking making much sense in there either.. Perhaps something else would work, just trying to think of what.

I was thinking Beastmaster. I'll max out handle animal to do this, whatever needs to be done.

For his gear, small magic items, like periapt of wisdom or things like that, he wouldn't be able to have any along with him, correct? He's making no attempt to smuggle or hide anything, so that would be confuscated, I'm assuming.

 

[Mista Collins]

[sblock=Jemal]Will you allow the Shadow-Walker template and Telflammar Shadowlord PrC from the Forgotten Realms - Unapproachable East book? If you don't know what these are and would like me to describe it, I'll be more than happy to do so.

I've always wanted to play one, and the theme and level of this campaign would be perfect for it. His main class before the PrC would be Rogue.[/sblock]