Leif's 4E Adventuring in Encastulum [OOC 1]

[tuxgeo]

The "Dilletante" racial feature of the Half-Elf appeared in the original 4E PHB; it gives the PC one At-Will power of any different class, but usable only once per Encounter. That makes it basically an Encounter power, not an At-Will.

The Essentials book "Heroes of the Forgotten Kingdoms" supplies a different racial feature for the Half-Elf. It is called "Knack for Success," and it's highly complicated:
Once an Encounter, Close burst 5, targeting you or an ally in the burst, choose one of four different effects: (1) make a save; (2) shift up to 2 sq. free; (3) +2 power bonus to next attack roll before end of next turn; (4) +4 power bonus to next skill check before end of next turn.

I didn't want all that complication for Breet, so in the Character Builder I changed his racial feature from default to Dilletante; Eld. Bla. can use either CHA or CON as its spellcasting ability, so it can work for him.

Breet doesn't get any specifically "Daily" attack power; what he gets instead is "Summon Natural Ally" (SNA), which is usable once per day at 1st level. When he would otherwise get a new Daily power, he gets another use of SNA; so it starts being Daily, then changes to twice/day, then thrice/day, etc.
His "Druid Circle Option: Circle of Renewal" makes him a "Primal Guardian" (per the spec.), so he gets minor animals with his SNA: either "a giant cobra or a desert hawk."
(At 15th level it becomes either a bulette or a venomous scorpion, and at 29th level it becomes either a blue dragon wyrmling or a desert roc.)

I'll work on backstory today. (Before SuperBowl XLIX.)

 

[dream66_]

Man I hate Essentials

 

[Leif]

I have mixed feelings about Essentials, but I've always interpreted the situation as being one of "either/or" not "this instead of that," so that way it just gives everybody more options.

Are we going to call him 'Breet' or 'Brianchhtqwdsh'? (Sorry, "Breachtad.")

 

[Leif]

Breachtad will be in "The Qiet Harpy" tavern and hostel, where the others will be arriving soon.

 

[tuxgeo]

I have mixed feelings about Essentials, but I've always interpreted the situation as being one of "either/or" not "this instead of that," so that way it just gives everybody more options.

That would be nice. 'Twas not always the case. For example, during early "Encounters" seasons at game stores, only Essentials-based characters were allowed.

Are we going to call him 'Breet' or 'Brianchhtqwdsh'? (Sorry, "Breachtad.")

"Better Breet than Brute?"
Yeah, I should probably refer to him in text by his given name "Breachtad." However, whenever introducing himself, he's still going to pronounce it "Breet." (I work hard to come up with these idiosyncracies.)

Still mulling backstory. I'm thinking his father was a Hero of Encastulum, but his mother was a pact-sworn devotee of "The Eochaid,"* with her pact leading her to search for old relics of elven civilization in order to return them to the elf-lands. The mother may be dead now. I'm not sure why she would be; first guess is that she went on a lone mission into no-man's-land (where it is wisest to avoid assassins, due to having no help nearby), but was tracked there anyway, and she never came back. With her being a fey-pact warlock, Breachtad might have been able to learn and absorb the rush of energies of Eld. Bla., and the tang and feel of their application, from his mother through direct observation or instruction or osmosis. His not being able to cast the power often would be a natural result of his having no pact-source of his own, causing him to have to replenish his own, personal energies by drawing on his primal power source before he can cast the thing again, rather than drawing on an arcane power source directly.

Also: Slouch Marshes (sorry, Sulch Marshes) -- are they alive like the Florida Everglades, or mostly dead like the Dead Marshes in Lord of the Rings? If Breachtad's Nature skill bonus of +9 gives him an automatic success on foraging for food in the Marshes (DC 10?), his spending time in the area could be part of his backstory -- but not so if the lands are mostly devoid of life. (If I had to guess, the waters of the marshes are slowly moving westward from the hills to the lake; but I don't want to declare that without being sure, in case your world has other physics.)

(* drawing from Heroes of the Feywild again)

 

[Leif]

Ok, doesn't sound bad but you need to settle for sure on a back story and give me your best guess as to whether Mom is allive or dead, just for kicks mostly. The explanation of the warlock power suits me fine, but I'd prefer if you picked either osmosis or direct observation as a reason. Osmosis will require a bit ore explanation as to how he absorbed the energies, and observation will require some explanation as to how he did it by observation, but ordinarily no one else can. Especially in the absence of a warlock's pact! Or maybe we can come up with our own Druid/Warlock Pact With Nature to explain it and give his Eld. Bl. a distinctive flavor all its own? Offhand, I'm thinking that it would probably have much in common with a lightning strike.

BTW, in case you haven't noticed, I don't give much of a rip for "the way things are supposed to be done" with either 4E, Encounters, or any such nuevo-"official" D&D dogma. AFAIC, it's our game and we'll bloody well do what pleases us, mostly pleases ME, of course....

 

[Leif]

Sulch Marshes are more Everglades. The Dead Marshes is pure Tolkien.

 

[tuxgeo]

Re.: Druid pact with nature? So, A pact, yet not a pact? Would that be some sort of "pactoid," along the lines of a "factoid?"

Breachtad could recognize his mother's habitual eagerness to fulfull her pactual obligations, and he could feel enough indebted to her that he would work toward the same general goals without entirely understanding what she was really trying to accomplish. (This inclines me toward thinking his mother is dead; the obligations of the parent do not usually redound upon the child while the parent still lives.)

That redounding of the obligations is a separate possibility from the one about whether he has a sort of pact with nature, isn't it? Hm.

On another tack: Breachtad's blast effect could have a natural feel, despite its simulating an effect that is not originally from the natural world:
Lightning has typed damage, but is much more similar to Eld. Bla. than thunder would be.
How about "wind-shear" as a way to characterize the blast effect? In our world, aircraft are sometimes damaged by wind-shear, and that would be untyped damage per the standard D&D damage classifications. (This might be too "lofty" an idea. )

As to the question of osmosis versus observation: they could be somewhat the same thing.
The observation doesn't have to be entirely visual. . . . <snip for not making sense>

And on a marginally-related topic: . . . <snip for not making sense>

(Obviously still trying to get a coherent idea of all this in my own mind.)

(Edit to add: Please disregard the above flailing on my part. I clearly don't have any clear idea of this guy's background. This character is now withdrawn from consideration for entering the world of Encastulum.)

 

[Leif]

I'm in no state of mind to be posting tonight.

 

[tuxgeo]

OK, I guess that's it for me regarding this campaign.

The complexity was my way of giving more explanation, where more explanation was said to be required. I guess it was too much, though.

Good luck and happy hunting with your adventures!