the_redbeard
Explorer
Looking for comments, questions, to improve the concept.
Jynda's Story - as you meet her in a tavern in the Dalelands......
“There's a House of Mystra in Harrowdale, that cute little port on the edge of Cormanthor. That's where I'm from. When the townsfolk first saw the mages in Mystra raising this dark-skinned little girl, they thought I was a drow! But hello, are these ears pointed? No white hair either, if you're paying attention. Plus, I stand quite a bit taller than a drow. I know - I ran into one in the forest once. I ran and hid - Mystra's priests didn't raise a dummy.
(I'm using the Dark Template from Tome of Magic, EL 1. It's something of a half-shadow, a lot weaker than the shadow template. Likely people without a lot of knowledge arcana or planes and haven't seen drow before could confuse Jynda as drow. People that make knowledge arcana or planar checks could figure out she's got some connection to the plane of shadow.)
Usually, what freaks people out are my eyes. My pupils aren't white, but grey. It took quite a bit of badgering until the priests told me why - that there's some shadow in my blood. But that's about all they've ever told me. Prissy priests.
But they did teach me magic. They also motivated me to learn how to sneak, because a lot of time I didn't care to hear about Mystra and all that.
(Note to the DM: I'm starting 1st level as a SpellThief from Complete Adventurer before starting on Wizard.)
I never really planned on staying in Harrowdale. But I couldn't really decide where to go. It was _so_ tempting to stow away on ship taking the "wealth of Harrowdale" away to feed the rest of the world. Me, hiding in a cheese barrel! But I stuck around, I think because I felt sorry for the priests. Sometimes I was their only student in the ways of magic. I think the locals found cheese more interesting than *hollowed voice* "the Weave". They may have a point - their cheese is pretty good. I even took a wheel of it with me when I left.
But I'm getting ahead of myself. I should tell you why I left. I finally got a clue about my mom. I have to go and find her, find out why she had to give me up. I mean, it was 17 years ago, but I don't think she'd forget a child like me. The priests, those meticulous priests. They would never tell me where I was from, but they'd written it down in a ledger book when I was delivered to the temple like a a sack of groceries. I was right there, Jynda, a "a dark skinned new born, tainted with Shadow", listed right next to bottles of ink and parchment being delivered. Hah! They even had the name of the Mystra follower that ran the caravan and where he'd set out from - this Damon guy. So now I'm looking for him - somewhere in the Dalelands.
I did leave the priests a note. After all, they were nice enough to feed me, to teach me magic and to try to help me stay away from the Shadow Weave. So I thanked them and let them know that I'd borrowed a spell book so I could continue my studies. Some day I might even bring it back. Don't look at me like that! Sheesh. Some people. They see my dark skin and think I'm all kinda bad things.
So, yeah. I'm looking for Damon, some follower of Mystra, and hoping that he can point me to my mom. In the meantime, I'm kinda liking not living with *priests* anymore! Of course, everyone freaks out when they see me. So that's why I'm hiding under my hoodie. There's a spell in my spellbook, er, the book I borrowed from the priests, to disguise myself. I'm practicing that so I can be the blonde everyone wants to see (rolls eyes). Maybe then I'll be able to play around a bit more than I can now, and have a bit more fun. Really though, I'd like to go someplace like Waterdeep, where I hear unusual people can have a life without so much *trouble*. What? You think I'd draw attention to myself anyway?"
*
(Details of Jynda's past aren't known to me, the player. These are suggestions to the DM. In making the backstory, I was hoping for long and short term goals and a source of enemies for the DM to use. It's what I want from players when I'm DMing.)
The story that makes sense to me most is that one of Jynda's parents, most likely Jynda's mom, was from Cormyr and was either in a noble family or one of their War Wizards. At some point, she became involved with the Shadow Weave. Whether she did so for altruistic goals, to defend Cormyr or her noble house, or for personal gain is your decision. She may have also investigated a Netherese ruin in the Anauroch, and gotten involved with a Netherese mage (possibly against her will, possibly not). Whichever the case, her family (or the other War Wizards) did NOT approve. At best, she was an embarassment. At worst she was a liability or even a danger. Her presence could be used against (again either the noble family or the War Wizards) in the scheming of the Cormyr Court. Powerful figures that her mother was associated with decided that little Jynda had to be removed. Still, they couldn't bear to kill a newborn, even one tainted with Shadow. So they delivered Jynda to the House of Mystra. Who better to tame a child of Shadow?
Now, when Jynda starts getting closer to her mother, the people who hid her away are not likely to take a kind look upon her. When She was a new born, she was innocent. Now they could see Jynda as a walking, talking Shadow that could prove one of their's had dealings with Shar. Or could Jynda be wanting revenge? She's not - yet. But they could fear that as well as the possibility of her being useful to their enemies just because she exists.
The priests at the House of Mystra kept this hidden to protect Jynda, but they never explained why. For all she knows, her mother might have even died birthing a creature of shadow.
The caravan's origin and her initial goal might not be Cormyr, but a stop along the way. Whichever, she'd be on her way there looking for clues as the follower of Mystra that brought her to Harrowdale.
A second option if Cormyr doesn't fit with the DM's plans but Dale instead, is that Jynda's mother or father was an adventurer based in the Dalelands that had gone delving in a Netherese ruin. Whether the union of human parent and shadow was willing or unwilling is, again, a mystery to me. In this case, as a shadow child might not be the kind of danger to an avowed adventurer as it would be in the Cormyr Court. So it may be that Jynda's mother did die in childbirth. A mother raped by Shadow that died in childbirth? That's a dark story that would motivate Jynda to hunt down some shadow weavers...
Now for the crunchy rules business:
Advancement plans - going for a sneak attack mage with master spell thief and reserve feats. Hide in plain sight to snipe and use miscellaneous spells when necessary to get sneak attacks as often as possible.
Spell Thief 1 -> Wizard 5 -> SpellWarp Sniper 5 -> Unseen Seer 2 -> Arcane Trickster for the rest.
Dark Template from Tome of Magic:
+8 hide, +6 move silently, Base Speed +10 ft, Darkvision 60ft, Hide in Plain Sight (ex) - not usable in full natural daylight, Resistance to cold 10, superior low light vision.
Dark creatures tend to be much duller in color, with more gray and black skin tones and hair highlights than their material plane versions. In general, they weigh less, as if part of their very substance was mere shadow stuff.
Jynda's stats: (DM uses best of two rolls of 4d6 for each stat, rolled in order, can switch one pair, pretty generous but also kinda old school)
Race: Human (dark template, shadow)
Height: 5'6" Weight: 110 lbs Age: 18
Hair: Black as night. Skin: Grey as dusk. Eyes: Grey iris, Deep Black pupils
Class: Spell Thief 1 / El:2
AL: CN
St: 14 (+2)
Dx: 16 (+3)
Cn: 16 (+3)
In: 17 (+3)
Ws: 12 (+1)
Ch: 12 (+1)
AC: 16 (10 +3 studded leather +3 dex)
Hp: 9
Init: +7 (+3 Dx +4 impr. init)
Spd: 40
Saves: Fort: +3, Reflex +3, Will +3
Light Crossbow: +4/1d8/19-20x2
Masterwork Shortsword: +3 1d6+2/19-20+2
Masterwork Dagger: 3(4if thrown) 1d4+2/19-20x2
Studded Leather Armor
Masterwork Thieves' Tools
Feats:
Point Blank Shot (for bows, later ray spells and to qualify for Spellwarp Sniper later)
Improved Initiative (to catch foes flat-footed)
Skills:
Bluff: +3, Decipher +7, Disable +7, Escape +7, Gather Info: +4, Hide +14, Know Arcana +4, Know Local +4, Know Religion (cross) +4, Listen +4, Move Silent +11, Open Lock +8, Search +7, Spot +5,
Jynda's Story - as you meet her in a tavern in the Dalelands......
“There's a House of Mystra in Harrowdale, that cute little port on the edge of Cormanthor. That's where I'm from. When the townsfolk first saw the mages in Mystra raising this dark-skinned little girl, they thought I was a drow! But hello, are these ears pointed? No white hair either, if you're paying attention. Plus, I stand quite a bit taller than a drow. I know - I ran into one in the forest once. I ran and hid - Mystra's priests didn't raise a dummy.
(I'm using the Dark Template from Tome of Magic, EL 1. It's something of a half-shadow, a lot weaker than the shadow template. Likely people without a lot of knowledge arcana or planes and haven't seen drow before could confuse Jynda as drow. People that make knowledge arcana or planar checks could figure out she's got some connection to the plane of shadow.)
Usually, what freaks people out are my eyes. My pupils aren't white, but grey. It took quite a bit of badgering until the priests told me why - that there's some shadow in my blood. But that's about all they've ever told me. Prissy priests.
But they did teach me magic. They also motivated me to learn how to sneak, because a lot of time I didn't care to hear about Mystra and all that.
(Note to the DM: I'm starting 1st level as a SpellThief from Complete Adventurer before starting on Wizard.)
I never really planned on staying in Harrowdale. But I couldn't really decide where to go. It was _so_ tempting to stow away on ship taking the "wealth of Harrowdale" away to feed the rest of the world. Me, hiding in a cheese barrel! But I stuck around, I think because I felt sorry for the priests. Sometimes I was their only student in the ways of magic. I think the locals found cheese more interesting than *hollowed voice* "the Weave". They may have a point - their cheese is pretty good. I even took a wheel of it with me when I left.
But I'm getting ahead of myself. I should tell you why I left. I finally got a clue about my mom. I have to go and find her, find out why she had to give me up. I mean, it was 17 years ago, but I don't think she'd forget a child like me. The priests, those meticulous priests. They would never tell me where I was from, but they'd written it down in a ledger book when I was delivered to the temple like a a sack of groceries. I was right there, Jynda, a "a dark skinned new born, tainted with Shadow", listed right next to bottles of ink and parchment being delivered. Hah! They even had the name of the Mystra follower that ran the caravan and where he'd set out from - this Damon guy. So now I'm looking for him - somewhere in the Dalelands.
I did leave the priests a note. After all, they were nice enough to feed me, to teach me magic and to try to help me stay away from the Shadow Weave. So I thanked them and let them know that I'd borrowed a spell book so I could continue my studies. Some day I might even bring it back. Don't look at me like that! Sheesh. Some people. They see my dark skin and think I'm all kinda bad things.
So, yeah. I'm looking for Damon, some follower of Mystra, and hoping that he can point me to my mom. In the meantime, I'm kinda liking not living with *priests* anymore! Of course, everyone freaks out when they see me. So that's why I'm hiding under my hoodie. There's a spell in my spellbook, er, the book I borrowed from the priests, to disguise myself. I'm practicing that so I can be the blonde everyone wants to see (rolls eyes). Maybe then I'll be able to play around a bit more than I can now, and have a bit more fun. Really though, I'd like to go someplace like Waterdeep, where I hear unusual people can have a life without so much *trouble*. What? You think I'd draw attention to myself anyway?"
*
(Details of Jynda's past aren't known to me, the player. These are suggestions to the DM. In making the backstory, I was hoping for long and short term goals and a source of enemies for the DM to use. It's what I want from players when I'm DMing.)
The story that makes sense to me most is that one of Jynda's parents, most likely Jynda's mom, was from Cormyr and was either in a noble family or one of their War Wizards. At some point, she became involved with the Shadow Weave. Whether she did so for altruistic goals, to defend Cormyr or her noble house, or for personal gain is your decision. She may have also investigated a Netherese ruin in the Anauroch, and gotten involved with a Netherese mage (possibly against her will, possibly not). Whichever the case, her family (or the other War Wizards) did NOT approve. At best, she was an embarassment. At worst she was a liability or even a danger. Her presence could be used against (again either the noble family or the War Wizards) in the scheming of the Cormyr Court. Powerful figures that her mother was associated with decided that little Jynda had to be removed. Still, they couldn't bear to kill a newborn, even one tainted with Shadow. So they delivered Jynda to the House of Mystra. Who better to tame a child of Shadow?
Now, when Jynda starts getting closer to her mother, the people who hid her away are not likely to take a kind look upon her. When She was a new born, she was innocent. Now they could see Jynda as a walking, talking Shadow that could prove one of their's had dealings with Shar. Or could Jynda be wanting revenge? She's not - yet. But they could fear that as well as the possibility of her being useful to their enemies just because she exists.
The priests at the House of Mystra kept this hidden to protect Jynda, but they never explained why. For all she knows, her mother might have even died birthing a creature of shadow.
The caravan's origin and her initial goal might not be Cormyr, but a stop along the way. Whichever, she'd be on her way there looking for clues as the follower of Mystra that brought her to Harrowdale.
A second option if Cormyr doesn't fit with the DM's plans but Dale instead, is that Jynda's mother or father was an adventurer based in the Dalelands that had gone delving in a Netherese ruin. Whether the union of human parent and shadow was willing or unwilling is, again, a mystery to me. In this case, as a shadow child might not be the kind of danger to an avowed adventurer as it would be in the Cormyr Court. So it may be that Jynda's mother did die in childbirth. A mother raped by Shadow that died in childbirth? That's a dark story that would motivate Jynda to hunt down some shadow weavers...
Now for the crunchy rules business:
Advancement plans - going for a sneak attack mage with master spell thief and reserve feats. Hide in plain sight to snipe and use miscellaneous spells when necessary to get sneak attacks as often as possible.
Spell Thief 1 -> Wizard 5 -> SpellWarp Sniper 5 -> Unseen Seer 2 -> Arcane Trickster for the rest.
Dark Template from Tome of Magic:
+8 hide, +6 move silently, Base Speed +10 ft, Darkvision 60ft, Hide in Plain Sight (ex) - not usable in full natural daylight, Resistance to cold 10, superior low light vision.
Dark creatures tend to be much duller in color, with more gray and black skin tones and hair highlights than their material plane versions. In general, they weigh less, as if part of their very substance was mere shadow stuff.
Jynda's stats: (DM uses best of two rolls of 4d6 for each stat, rolled in order, can switch one pair, pretty generous but also kinda old school)
Race: Human (dark template, shadow)
Height: 5'6" Weight: 110 lbs Age: 18
Hair: Black as night. Skin: Grey as dusk. Eyes: Grey iris, Deep Black pupils
Class: Spell Thief 1 / El:2
AL: CN
St: 14 (+2)
Dx: 16 (+3)
Cn: 16 (+3)
In: 17 (+3)
Ws: 12 (+1)
Ch: 12 (+1)
AC: 16 (10 +3 studded leather +3 dex)
Hp: 9
Init: +7 (+3 Dx +4 impr. init)
Spd: 40
Saves: Fort: +3, Reflex +3, Will +3
Light Crossbow: +4/1d8/19-20x2
Masterwork Shortsword: +3 1d6+2/19-20+2
Masterwork Dagger: 3(4if thrown) 1d4+2/19-20x2
Studded Leather Armor
Masterwork Thieves' Tools
Feats:
Point Blank Shot (for bows, later ray spells and to qualify for Spellwarp Sniper later)
Improved Initiative (to catch foes flat-footed)
Skills:
Bluff: +3, Decipher +7, Disable +7, Escape +7, Gather Info: +4, Hide +14, Know Arcana +4, Know Local +4, Know Religion (cross) +4, Listen +4, Move Silent +11, Open Lock +8, Search +7, Spot +5,
