Your Personal 'Eternal Champion' (ie the Trade Mark character)

[Tonguez]

Have you ever had a character your so fond of that you keep recreating him in differint campaigns, perhaps even in different systems? and for DMs have you ever used one of your favourite PCs as a recurring NPC?

In my case Orbril the Gnome, Master of the Grand Circus Maximus has been my eternal champion. Orbril is an alchemist, acrobat and animal trainer with a desire to start his own circus of performing giant hamsters. He has been incarnated in DnD, GURPS, freeform systems and various PbP. I like to see the different ways he develops depending on the different DMs and campaign scenarios

When I DM Orbril is regularily encountered - even if its just the PCs watching as his caravan (pulled by a team of giant carniverous hamsters) pass by on its way to parts unknown. Other times the PCs have been members of the Circus Maximus (and Orbril the Day-man travelling ahead of them). As a PC Orbril once found a singing rock and now the Rock 'Hortence' also regularily appears when I DM.

Is this common or do I have a psychological disorder?

 

[Crothian]

For me it isn't just favored character that I do this with, but with character that I felt never got their day. Sometimes I'll just have a great character in a campaign that just doesn't last long and I feel that character needs to live again. My true Favorite characters have have their day, the campaigns came to a good ending for me and I feel that they don't need anything more.

 

[sniffles]

I haven't done that (although my fellow players might disagree, since I keep playing elves all the time). But one of the GMs I regularly game with does that sort of thing. During a Fantasy Hero campaign he introduced someone else's former PC as a NPC. And now, in our Forgotten Realms campaign (which you can read about in Story Hour under the Shadows of Greatness thread, shameless plug), he's using some of the NPCs and PCs from that Fantasy Hero campaign as NPCs for FR. I think we're actually going through the Fantasy Hero campaign again in a sort of alternate-reality story in our FR game.

 

[Kae'Yoss]

Hm... there is that character that became a god. It was my first 3e Character - Pharaun Craulnober, moon elf bladesinger - the campaign went into epic levels, and I worked with the DM to let him achieve godhood - at the very end of the campaign of course.

He has been in my version of the Seldarine ever since, and in his games also. I even had a PC follower (one player played a bladesinger, and of course I proselytized him OOG).


Other than that, I have a trademark NPC, but not one I play, but rather use as DM. It's a CN Drow Shade Arcanist/Rogue named Jarod "Olath Velve" (Darkblade) Jaelre.

 

[Aristotle]

Aristotle, the character I've named myself after online, was my decker character in Shadowrun. A smart-mouthed teenager with a knack for all things electronic. A year later he figured prominently as an NPC mage (Virtual Adepts) in my WoD game. A pivotal character. The scenes revolving around the death of his girlfriend, and the player characters attempting to bring him out of the long depression that followed after, were some of the most powerfully played scenes my table has ever witnessed.

Several other characters, both of mine and my friends, have been immortalized as NPC personalities in the stories I run as well.

 

[Hypersmurf]

I don't really have any particular trademark. I tend to take a new game as an opportunity to try out a completely different character.

My mother's halfling rogues and my father's human rangers are something of a tradition, however.

-Hyp.

 

[zakon]

I have two well on there way. one is a death slaad warlock/mindbender and the other is a elf barbarian/scout/beastmaster rogue

 

[Wild Gazebo]

I don't think I have any 'trademark' character...but I have several favorites. I don't remake characters but I have been known to make cameos and recurring NPCs. Sometimes the recurring NPCs are just for me, meaning the PCs have no idea who the character is and its relevance tome or the campaign. I guess I'm a bit strange as well.

 

[Tinner]

As a player it would have to be Alistaire DuChamp - The Emereld Cloak.
He started as a WHFRP 1e Highwayman, migated over to a AD&D 2e game. He's made appearances in Fantasy Hero and even a WoD Dark Ages game. Stand and Deliver!

As a GM, I have a whole host of NPC's that my players can count on encountering. Eddie the Snitch has shown up in D&D games, Shadowrun, Marvel Super Heros, etc. Dirty Ernie, Skeeter, Doc (mad)Ness, and many more.

 

[Galethorn]

Well, I don't really have a trademark character per se, but I do have a trademark personality/general concept...

In fantasy, he's the veteran warrior, or the rough and ready woodsman, or the knight-errant.

In star wars, he's the cool-headed Jedi Guardian, or the experienced Soldier.

In 'real world' games he's been a grad student, an honorable pirate captain, and a tough-as-nails resistance fighter.

He's almost always the strong, silent type, but he's never silent when something has to be said. He's self-assured, calm in the face of danger, and slow to anger. He tries to give everyone the benefit of the doubt. When it comes right down to it, he's not just in it for his own skin, and is willing to make sacrifices for the greater good. He may seldom laugh uproariously, but he's quick to grin at even a fairly bad joke. Most of the time, he's the leader of the group, if not the face-man or the one who comes up with complicated plans. He's also stubborn, prone to speaking too frankly, and tends to take tasks by himself even when he has friends to help.

He's always got at least 12 intelligence, and no less than 12 wisdom, and he always seems to have some idea about the 'big picture'. He usually has a fair amount of skill in combat, but not to the point that he makes sacrifices in his other abilities. In fantasy settings, he favors swords, spears, and bows, and in more modern settings he favors heavy pistols, assault rifles, and shotguns.

Physically, he's always been in the 6'4" to 6'6" range, and somewhere between lanky and burly, depending on his strength and con. He's had long hair and at least stubble (more often an actual beard) every time, and usually has red hair, but some variations have had dark brown hair. His eyes are usually bluish grey.

Everything else varies too much from character to character to make any generalizations about. For example, I've used all of the following names...

Galethorn (ranger), Eolan (barbarian), Beowyc (fighter), Jack (student, pirate captain ('Iron Jack Eadie'), etc.), Jorran (Jedi), Kor-Gon (Jedi), Galloran (Soldier), and a few others I can't recall.