The City Arcana [3.5][Mature][Dark]

[moritheil]

Those both look to have a great deal of potential. Decide on one and stat it

 

[OnlytheStrong]

I was making the Mystic Knight....... and couldn't seem to find a way to make it work. It seems like a good class, I just don't know how to make it. The way I figured it, the melee character would have an AC of 12-13, with either no strength mod or no int mod.

The feats were giving me fits also. I wanted to make him melee, but with only simple weapons and no armor prof, that seemed to be where my feats would have to go...... until I read the later level descriptions. His bonus relies on no armor.

I'm gonna have to pull outta this game, just because I'm stumped on this character. He's not martial, but he's not arcane.


Good Luck to everyone.

 

[InVinoVeritas]

Growing up on a farm on an isolated island, Finvir never thought much about the scope of the world. He lived with his parents and his older sister in, well, not quite comfort, but peace. The family would regularly travel to the local monastery for their spiritual needs, row to shore to sell their wares, and otherwise lived in harmony with their little world.

That all changed when his sister Glanya started to manifest sorcery.

The family knew that arcane magic was evil. Her parents tried to make her stop, toss aside the Gift, and devote herself to a life of piety. Eventually, they took her to the monastery, and asked the devoted to cure her of her affliction. The priests looked down with disapproval on the witch-child, and spirited her away.

One of the monks stayed long enough to explain to the family: if their son starts to show signs of the Dark Pact, he will have to be removed and cleansed as well. The family understood.

Finvir was worried about this. How could he keep the horrors of the arcane at bay? As a boy of twelve, he told his parents that he could not risk letting the Gift claim him, too, and vowed to become a monk. Although the parents wanted to keep their only remaining child around, they did not stop him.

He joined the monastery and learned about the signs of the Arcane, and how to identify them, and that such people must be destroyed. He did indeed realized that the signs were present within himself, but that he vowed not to join with the Dark Pact. So, he threw himself into solitude and contemplation, fasting and starving himself, so that the Gift would not manifest. Somehow, the gods saw fit to grant this deeply devout follower the chance to break free, and rewarded him with Dragon's Divinity.

Once he emerged from his seclusion, he showed his fellow brothers his newfound power. At first, they feared him, but then they discovered that indeed, he is Divine, not Arcane.

Yet, that spark of the Arcane never quite left him. He still feels it in his soul, a stain he tried to keep hidden. Over time, he also learned of his sister's fate--she was taken to the religion's holy city to be cleansed by fire. Surely, her blackened bones would have been ground to dust so as never to rise again.

So, he stood conflicted. His familial bonds chafed with his divine bonds... but in the end, he chose family. He knows that one day, he too may manifest, and all of his sacrifice would be for nought. So, he hid and made his way to Arcana to help. He carries a lock of his sister's red hair to remind him of the sacrifices he has made.

Finvir Malinsson, Human Favored Soul

 

[moritheil]

I was making the Mystic Knight....... and couldn't seem to find a way to make it work. It seems like a good class, I just don't know how to make it. The way I figured it, the melee character would have an AC of 12-13, with either no strength mod or no int mod.

The feats were giving me fits also. I wanted to make him melee, but with only simple weapons and no armor prof, that seemed to be where my feats would have to go...... until I read the later level descriptions. His bonus relies on no armor.

I'm gonna have to pull outta this game, just because I'm stumped on this character. He's not martial, but he's not arcane.


Good Luck to everyone.

Hmm. I'm a little chagrined to hear you say that. It certainly isn't a primary tank the way that a paladin is, but I'm not really sure why you say you can't come up with an AC better than 12-13.

If you take human, Luck of Heroes, 14 dex, and Dodge, you'd have 10+1+1+2 = 14 AC to start with. Get a mage armor from an arcanist in your party and you'll have 18 AC. Even if you don't want to be human or don't want the Dodge feat chain you'll have 17 AC. That's enough for first level, isn't it? You do drop behind at third level or so when people can start affording plate mail, but at fouth level you start getting deflection bonuses.

Alternatively, you could simply give up on the weapon bonus at lower levels and use armor. The weapon style is the only class feature that relies on not wearing armor or using a shield.

EDIT: And you don't really absolutely have to play that class. You're welcome to pick some other class instead of locking yourself in.

 

[moritheil]

Yet, that spark of the Arcane never quite left him. He still feels it in his soul, a stain he tried to keep hidden. Over time, he also learned of his sister's fate--she was taken to the religion's holy city to be cleansed by fire. Surely, her blackened bones would have been ground to dust so as never to rise again.

So, he stood conflicted. His familial bonds chafed with his divine bonds... but in the end, he chose family. He knows that one day, he too may manifest, and all of his sacrifice would be for nought. So, he hid and made his way to Arcana to help. He carries a lock of his sister's red hair to remind him of the sacrifices he has made.

Finvir Malinsson, Human Favored Soul

Very interesting - a human with sorcerous potential who has been taught that it is something to be deeply ashamed of. Please stat him

 

[pathfinderq1]

So, with the loss of our potential mystic knight, is anyone else a bit concerned that (in a possible meatgrinder) our melee seems to consist of a ninja and a favored soul? The idea of trotting out a warforged fighter or orcish mercenary barbarian is a temptation, I'd say.

I'm working on my elan psion for now- I ought to have some stats up later.

 

[ethandrew]

How would a druid be received in this society? I could attempt to fill the melee void with that.

 

[crazy_monkey1956]

If we survive to level 2, Grimm will be multiclassing as a fighter.

 

[InVinoVeritas]

Finvir Malinsson, Favored Soul (in progress)

Still working...

[sblock]
Finvir Malinsson
Human
Favored Soul 1

Str 10
Dex 16
Con 12
Int 10
Wis 12
Cha 16

12 skill points
2 feats
4 0-level spells
3 1-level spells
[/sblock]

 

[moritheil]

How would a druid be received in this society? I could attempt to fill the melee void with that.

I've actually been wondering if I should mention this, so very good of you to ask.

While many druids historically have no love for arcanists, the fact of the matter was that the purge was ultimately about power and control. Many of the magic-wielding fey were decimated and many forests were put to the torch. This did not endear the dogmatic clerics of Fa the Sun-Tyrant to druids. However, isolated and cut off from each other, they were not in a position to do much about it. The average druid probably keeps his head down and avoids contact with society now more than ever, embracing isolation as a way to survive the viciousness of demihuman politics.

The druids that were in the immediate vicinity of Arcana have no great love for any city - they are, after all, places of refinement and civilization. However, Arcana has never put its neighbors to the torch, and has made many friendly overtures to the fey, both now and in the past. Furthermore, the lords of the city (including the current one) have historically been Wu Jen, not Wizards, and thus more respectful of nature than one might assume. As such, druids tend to look upon Arcana as merely misguided, or at least by far the lesser of evils.