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JoeNotCharles Can I have a pony? Please?
EDIT: May I please have a
Sickle for a dagger?
You may have had a pony when you arrived in Lake-town, but alas, it sickened and died. Or merely was lamed. The long journey from the Shire was too much for it...
Yes, you can retheme any of the weapons to anything reasonable.
Con: would three Hobbits hamper combat?
With 7 players, I'm already having to increase the encounter difficulty a lot. If you have lots of non-combat characters, I just won't increase it as much.
Man: The only con is that I can play a human in any setting. Barding could be fun, but are they just humans who are less-good at crafting than dwarves?
Bardings are nobility, cast down by the dragon and living as poor fishermen until their fortunes were restored by the dragon's fall. Now they are quickly rebuilding their heritage and making their kingdom grow again. They have a mix of bitterness at their losses and pride at their heritage. They're the buffer between the Dwarves and the Elves, having gained the friendship of both, but that also means they need to carefully balance between the two factions. They're making a fortune from trade, which sometimes undermines their noble intentions. They're somewhat similar to the Rangers (once kings who spent a period in exile and are now being restored), somewhat similar to Gondor (a human city of noble bloodline), and partly their own thing. They're not just dwarves-light, they're an interesting faction in their own right.
Also they get one of the cooler Virtues,
Woeful Foresight - following Smaug's destruction of their city, some of the Bardings became sensitive to coming disaster, and can foresee looming catastrophe. (Which makes me think of Wormtongue: "Lathspell, I name you: Ill-News. And ill news is an ill guest.")
JNC: do you have a plot-role you need covered? Like scholar of lore, a hobbit cook/storyteller/innkeeper of the Green Dragon? Or someone affiliated with a particular patron, like Radagast? (I could see a wood elf doing that as well as a woodsman)
Basically what I need is for everyone to have a reason to accept a mission from the Dwarves of the Lonely Mountain. The 3 dwarves are covered; any Barding is close enough to them that they'd have a reason to help the dwarves out. The Elves are toughest, because they're supposed to be insular and suspicious of dwarves, but I've got an idea on how to fit them in already. For hobbits and other men, it depends on why exactly they're in Lake-town, but the reason will probably be "seeking adventure, or knowledge, or fortune", and any of these would give them a reason to jump in when they find out there's a quest that needs doing. Or they could already be friends of the group of dwarven PC's so they can just join them out of friendship.
