Sigh... another d20 character...
- Thread starter Delemental
- Start date
howandwhy99
Adventurer
Depending on what your DM will allow you have plenty of options. Both settings are well-defined and can be quarried for background and personality ideas. And with the new race books, monstrous races book, and all those prestige classes out there, you should be able to make a unique character in terms of the rules.
OTOH, if you're looking for something unique in the core books, take a gander at the spells in the PHB. There're 150 pages of crunchy core rules in three-columned pages for ya. Back before prestige classes, kits or any specialty race entered the scene, players could use these to make interesting classes.
One of the classics is to use the Reincarnation spell to become a race wherein your class was restricted. In 3e, Reincarnation can be balalanced now with the Savage Species book. The spell allows for a unique background, interesting rules play, and typically a strong motivation.
Imagine a dwarf-hating Elven racist who is killed and reincarnated by a druid as a dwarf. Cast Quest on him to redeem himself of the evil acts committed in his past life and champion the qualities of dwarves everywhere. Pretty standard stuff compared to the ideas the designers put up on WOTC's site.
Instead of thinking of a quirky character, though, it sounds like you are stuck on what is compelling about playing in D20.
So, think of what is fun about roleplaying for you. Imagine the cool and awesome things you (not a character) would do. Then build a character who would do these things. Or take a break. Clear your head. It'll come back around...
OTOH, if you're looking for something unique in the core books, take a gander at the spells in the PHB. There're 150 pages of crunchy core rules in three-columned pages for ya. Back before prestige classes, kits or any specialty race entered the scene, players could use these to make interesting classes.
One of the classics is to use the Reincarnation spell to become a race wherein your class was restricted. In 3e, Reincarnation can be balalanced now with the Savage Species book. The spell allows for a unique background, interesting rules play, and typically a strong motivation.
Imagine a dwarf-hating Elven racist who is killed and reincarnated by a druid as a dwarf. Cast Quest on him to redeem himself of the evil acts committed in his past life and champion the qualities of dwarves everywhere. Pretty standard stuff compared to the ideas the designers put up on WOTC's site.
Instead of thinking of a quirky character, though, it sounds like you are stuck on what is compelling about playing in D20.
So, think of what is fun about roleplaying for you. Imagine the cool and awesome things you (not a character) would do. Then build a character who would do these things. Or take a break. Clear your head. It'll come back around...
Nightfall
Sage of the Scarred Lands
Course the ultimate fun for a SL fan, play a Charduni cleric. (LE) You go around healing the humans and don't stray from a fight. However you make them carry your stuff around, make it very clear you only healed those that were ACTUALLY fighting, and don't mind listening to you spend five minutes a day extolling the virtures of using pain and loss to overcome evil, even if you do evil in the process. 
So let's say the human fighter gets attacked by a pack of low gorgons. You wade in, warscepter high, scatter them to the winds and then heal the fighter. He says "Thanks good cleric." You say "No problem. Now pick up their corpses I want to animate them and send them back to scare our foes into submission."
So let's say the human fighter gets attacked by a pack of low gorgons. You wade in, warscepter high, scatter them to the winds and then heal the fighter. He says "Thanks good cleric." You say "No problem. Now pick up their corpses I want to animate them and send them back to scare our foes into submission."
Delemental
First Post
Well, I think I've figured out the FR character I'll be playing, so all I have to worry about now is Scarred Lands. (For those that are curious, my Realms character will be a druid).
Here's the criteria for the SL: starting at level 3, with 2700 gp, magic items purchased subject to approval (most likely limited to minor items). Good or neutral characters only. All SL races allowed except Dark Elves, Charduni, and Forsaken Dwarves. We are starting in Fangsfall in SW Ghelspad. All classes allowed, including splatbooks, SL classes, and a few others, but obviously at 3rd level there aren't many prestige classes I'm going to be getting levels in. No psionics. The GM is using a homebrewed mana system for spellcasting, so casters of all types don't prepare spells.
I've been tossing around the idea of playing a carnival performer - likely a rogue with all his skill points in Jump, Balance, Tumble, etc, with concentration on "entertaining" combat styles (knife throwing, whips, etc). However, the group I'll be in will be rather small (4-5 people), so I don't know how well a thief with no ranks in Open Lock or Disable Device will go over. These kind of "odd" characters tend to go over better when there's a 'real' rogue in the party.
Here's the criteria for the SL: starting at level 3, with 2700 gp, magic items purchased subject to approval (most likely limited to minor items). Good or neutral characters only. All SL races allowed except Dark Elves, Charduni, and Forsaken Dwarves. We are starting in Fangsfall in SW Ghelspad. All classes allowed, including splatbooks, SL classes, and a few others, but obviously at 3rd level there aren't many prestige classes I'm going to be getting levels in. No psionics. The GM is using a homebrewed mana system for spellcasting, so casters of all types don't prepare spells.
I've been tossing around the idea of playing a carnival performer - likely a rogue with all his skill points in Jump, Balance, Tumble, etc, with concentration on "entertaining" combat styles (knife throwing, whips, etc). However, the group I'll be in will be rather small (4-5 people), so I don't know how well a thief with no ranks in Open Lock or Disable Device will go over. These kind of "odd" characters tend to go over better when there's a 'real' rogue in the party.
Saeviomagy
Adventurer
Open locks? Pshah - that's why there's a 'portable battering ram' in the phb. Disabling devices? Pshah - that's why rogues get good reflex saves (just make sure you boost your ac for those pesky attack-roll based traps...)
Play the character you want to play, and the group should be able to adjust play-style to fit whatever composition they end up with.
Play the character you want to play, and the group should be able to adjust play-style to fit whatever composition they end up with.
Nightfall
Sage of the Scarred Lands
Delemental said:
Okay no offense to you or the DM but Mana system?! Why doesn't he just then play in EQ? Anyway, ignoring that, if you want to have a decent carnvial type guy, you could have him come be "touched" by the Dark Carnavial on Termana, and thus he tends to be a little...off. Just a thought for character info. As for actual character, try out something like a human barbarian or a forsaken elf. Another one to try out is you actually work with the underground elements in Fangsfall, especially the Goreguards, who are a group of shadowy figures that sponsor underground pit fighting. Any of those strike your fancy?
Mustrum_Ridcully
Legend
Perhaps you should really consider a very simple, basic concept, like Human Fighter.
Everything else you make from it will be the special - maybe he has a unusual style (uses Reach Weapons? Uses only light weapons? Not so typical feats?)
If you like Wizards and Rogues, try to blend it - take Bard!
A tragic Bard might be awesome (with his high Perform ranks, everybody will pour when he sings from his past... )
I think the most unusual character I play is a Kobold Sorcerer - it is not really unusual to have a Kobold hat is a Sorcerer, since it is their favored class, but it is unusual as player character.
He has even, to some extent, a tragic background - his parents were - among several dozens of other kobolds - kidnapped by a pair of Ogres (well, a Ogre and a Ogre Magi), and where killed by the heroes group that thought that they would work together. (Later they saw their mistake, but it was too late then).
This hero group were our player characters, but the died later (Total Party Kill, IIRC), and we had to roll up new ones. I liked this twist. (And the kobold later went on to find the dead bodies of these "heroes").
These events make the kobold certain in his believe that something has to be done to make the kobolds not just some poor weaklings but a force to reckon with. Preferable without enslaving other races (because this will only cause problems later), preferable together with some dragons as help.
Mustrum Ridcully
Everything else you make from it will be the special - maybe he has a unusual style (uses Reach Weapons? Uses only light weapons? Not so typical feats?)
If you like Wizards and Rogues, try to blend it - take Bard!
A tragic Bard might be awesome (with his high Perform ranks, everybody will pour when he sings from his past...
)I think the most unusual character I play is a Kobold Sorcerer - it is not really unusual to have a Kobold hat is a Sorcerer, since it is their favored class, but it is unusual as player character.
He has even, to some extent, a tragic background - his parents were - among several dozens of other kobolds - kidnapped by a pair of Ogres (well, a Ogre and a Ogre Magi), and where killed by the heroes group that thought that they would work together. (Later they saw their mistake, but it was too late then).
This hero group were our player characters, but the died later (Total Party Kill, IIRC), and we had to roll up new ones. I liked this twist. (And the kobold later went on to find the dead bodies of these "heroes").
These events make the kobold certain in his believe that something has to be done to make the kobolds not just some poor weaklings but a force to reckon with. Preferable without enslaving other races (because this will only cause problems later), preferable together with some dragons as help.
Mustrum Ridcully
Thresher
First Post
Just jot down a basic idea for a character, so maybe just pick a base class you like and let the ensuing campaign mold the rest of your career.
And maybe, just maybe dear Delemental you will stop hearing the screaming of the metagamers when you close your eyes chanting 'gimp, gimp!, GIMP!'
And maybe, just maybe dear Delemental you will stop hearing the screaming of the metagamers when you close your eyes chanting 'gimp, gimp!, GIMP!'
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