Help me decide on some PCs

[Samnell]

It turns out I'm going to be one of two players in a new campaign starting up. PCs are to be prisoners of war newly released. We're from basically a european/western sort of D&D continent but we were taken prisoner by a generally asian-themed empire and brought back to be used as slave labor.

But now the war's over and we're free to do as we will. Getting back home is up to us to figure out, though. Adventure ensues.

We're each playing two PCs because the DM wants that four-PC party goodness and we haven't been able to scrounge up any more players. (If you want to play D&D and you live in the Alpena, Michigan area, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE email me and I'll get you in touch with the DM: samnell@chartermi.net.)

The other player has called dibs on a rogue and a sorcerer, so to round out the classic foursome I've agreed to do a cleric and a fighter-type of some kind. But I'm not sure what sort of cleric or fighter type I want.

I've been thinking I might do two dwarves. One would be a cleric of a dwarven deity which the other also reveres. Cleric and Paladin (likely followers of Gorm or Clangeddin) and Cleric and Barbarian (followers of Haela Brightaxe) are the options I'm mainly leaning towards at the moment.

Regardless, I'd like to have some neat way for my two PCs to fit together smoothly so I don't have to worry too much about byplay between them, which would amount to me talking to myself.

Does anybody have any other suggestions? I thought about doing a similar pairing with elves, but the elven gods don't intrigue me so much as the dwarves do. Halflings and gnomes are out for a matched pair because the strength penalty would hurt me too much playing the party's only mainline fighter.

So have at it hivemind. Any suggestions for how to play/create the PCs I'm pondering or neat ideas to explore as alternates.

...before anyone asks, of course I have Wulf's dwarf book. The story hour was the best advertisement one could want for it. Half-orcs I haven't seen yet

 

[Crothian]

Okay take 2 dwarves, the fighter is the protector of the cleric. The fighter feels the cleric is sickly, weak whatever (give the cleric only a 16 con, where the fighters would be much higher like a 20). You can have the fighter aim for the devoted defender from S&F. Also, the fighter can feel responsible for the cleric's getting captured.

 

[Dragongirl]

Well know you said fighter type, don't know if you include monk in that. But my thinking was, since your characters were in essense slaves they needed a way to escape their daily life. One way would be to escape into their own mind. So you could make a monk with say Lightning Reflexes feat (all the better to avoid the taskmaster's whip) and skills like move silently, sense motive and concentration.

Cleric is a good choice, escaping into your religion. Should be VERY into his god, and a god that includes a portfolio about escape, renewal or the like. Probably talks to himself a lot, or constantly saying prayers.

Not sure I helped at all or even if this is what you are looking for, just what I came up with.

 

[boothbey]

One of the dwarves is befriended by one of the asian empire npcs. Another prisoner who is a monk, imprisoned for whatever reason. That prisoner teaches one of the dwarves martial arts starting him down the road to ultimate enlightenment.

The dwarven cleric does not approve of the monk's ways thinking he has turned away from true dwarven fighting. Namely large peices of sharp metal swung haphazardly.

 

[Dragongirl]

The cleric would probably be trying to convert the other slaves, maybe going a bit crazy. Have the monk befriend the cleric and is the thing keeping him sane.

 

[boothbey]

Dragongirl and I did not plan the double monk reply...honest...we didn't.

Great minds think alike and all that...

 

[Jürgen Hubert]

It turns out I'm going to be one of two players in a new campaign starting up. PCs are to be prisoners of war newly released. We're from basically a european/western sort of D&D continent but we were taken prisoner by a generally asian-themed empire and brought back to be used as slave labor.

But now the war's over and we're free to do as we will. Getting back home is up to us to figure out, though. Adventure ensues.

No kidding. I recently heard on a public radio station the story of a German who participated in a crusade as a squire. He was promptly captured by the Ottomans, and was paraded around as an "exotic prisoner of war" until the Ottomans were defeated by Tamerlane. Then the Mongols did the same to him, which "allowed" him to get a look at much of Asia. Then he became the property of one of Tamerlane's successors, who was involved in various conquests as well. Finally, he and several others managed to escape, and managed to get home.

All in all, it took him 30 years until he saw his home town again...

I hope the characters will get home sooner!

 

[Dragongirl]

Dragongirl and I did not plan the double monk reply...honest...we didn't.

You know, they will never believe that!

 

[Samnell]

I would do the monk thing (and I like playing monks and all) except that I'm going to be the group's main muscle. Tumbling all over the battlefield to flank with the rogue might be fun and lethal, but leaving the sorcerer wide open wouldn't be too nice. Also, we've only been prisoners for a few weeks or a month or so. Not much time to go native.

 

[Samnell]

Re: Re: Help me decide on some PCs

No kidding. I recently heard on a public radio station the story of a German who participated in a crusade as a squire. He was promptly captured by the Ottomans, and was paraded around as an "exotic prisoner of war" until the Ottomans were defeated by Tamerlane. Then the Mongols did the same to him, which "allowed" him to get a look at much of Asia. Then he became the property of one of Tamerlane's successors, who was involved in various conquests as well. Finally, he and several others managed to escape, and managed to get home. [/B]

I know a similar story of more recent vintage. Among the prisoners taken by the Allies on D-Day was a young Korean gentleman. It seemed he was drafted into the Japanese army back in the thirties. The fellow fought in the Russo-Japanese clashes along the border of Manchuria in 1939 and was captured and pressed into the Red Army. Then he was put up against the Germans in 1941. Again the poor guy was captured, and pressed into the Wehrmacht. They put him in Normandy where he got captured yet again.

I don't know what finally happened to him, but it was certainly an exciting five years.