Fantasy Characters

Pon Zinjon

(submitted by didaskei)

Cliches:

Half-Human Storm Elf (4)
Archer with an Attitude (3)
Exile trying to regain his honor (2)
Young Scout (1)

Tale: Pon Zinjon is an exiled storm elf (able to speak Elven dialects, live a long time, recite Elven lore, uncanny ability to predict weather, and receives occasional help from the storm gods) reticent to share his story with those he meets in the world of men. He can occasionally be heard muttering "someday I will return, someday . . ."

Pon carries a unique multicolored and intricately carved longbow that he is especially protective of. When asked about his bow, he simply responds by saying "it was a gift."

Balabar Gree

(Submitted by Guy Hoyle ghoyle1@airmail.net)

Cliches:

Remarkably Unremarkable-appearing Rogue (4)
Sometime Beggar (3)
Tight-fisted Street Survivalist (3)
Persistent Ladies' Man (1)

Questing Dice (Lookin’ for love in all the wrong places): [][][][][]

Hook: Notoriously tight-fisted with his loot until the "right girl" comes along (the "right girl" being someone completely unsuited to life on the streets).

Tale: Balabar Gree grew up hungry on the streets of Pork Hill. He followed gang after gang as a sort of mascot, never actually a member of any particular group, yet learning the tricks of the trade from a number of sources. Balabar learned to sham muteness, deafness, lameness, and a variety of other complaints by observing beggars after he saw how much they could make in an afternoon by preying on the mercy of others. He learned to hoard his wealth by example, after he watched seemingly callous and cunning thievs and beggars lose their hard-earned cash in bars, games of chance, and in confidence rackets. His features are generally unmemorable, which has helped himescape the law on more than one occasion (“He was sort of average; no, no distinguishing features; no, he was just wearing sort of ordinary clothes…”) Balabar has a soft spot (in his heart, maybe, or his head), for beauteous maids of other social classes. He has fallen hard for a princess, a sorceress, a rich merchant's daughter, a Magic Girl from Madame Ona's school, and others who are not suited to the grim life of a beggar and thief. Though he has squandered huge sums of money on all of them, Balabar's heart and wallet have been broken every time. Nevertheless, he keeps trying, hoping that one day he'll meet the lady of his dreams. Whether he’ll leave the streets to join her, or he’ll convince her to share his life of roguery, remains to be seen.

Noble Quinn

Description: Rugged warrior in his late 30s who seems to always be concentrating on something else. He walks with a slight limp and uses a quarterstaff as a walking stick/weapon (he sometimes pretends it has magical powers too).

Clichés

Exiled Warrior King of Fuhsaz Seeking to Regain The Throne (4)
Dabbler in the Magical Arts [3]
Inventive Prankster (2)

Tools: quarterstaff, sword, light but functional armor

Hooks: Hunted by bounty hunters sent by the usurper of the Fuhsaz throne.

Tales: Noble Quinn was always seen as a kindly ruler; that is until he took an interest in the magical arts. The people grew fearful of a ruler engaging in magic and a revolution took place which took him out of power. He was able to escape, but he is still haunted by this betrayal of his people (not to mention hunted by the bounty hunters). However, he has been contacted by many loyal subjects who want him back (the new guy is a real problem).

Goron Nalitaj

Description: Unlike most rangers, Goron is outgoing and freindly (to the point of almost being annoying). He spends most of his time guiding people through the forest (telling them stories about just about every tree along the way) and gambling away his money.

Clichés

Overly Friendly Ranger (4)
Trustworthy Gambler (3)
Elven Trained Archer (3)

Tools: none

Hooks: n/a

Tales: n/a

Gikhav Tunnelslasher

Description: Gikhav Tunnelslasher grew in the brewing tradition of the Tunnelslasher family (and grew large, he is big for a dwarf). He has faught against the goblins during the Great Tunnel Invasion. It was during the war that he became an Acolyte of Rlag. Someday he hopes to be a renowned poet (but he keeps that secret so he doesn't get laughed at).

Clichés

Dwarven Ale Brewmaster (3)
Acolyte of Rlag - Dwarf God of the Ax [3]
Secret Writer of Poetry (1)

Tools: dwarven battle ax, flask of ale, pen and paper, scroll case

Hooks: n/a

Tales: n/a

Askele Essetde

Description: Askele appears rather average, especially for an elf. He seems to blend in, but once he gets going on something, look out.

Clichés

Elven Shadow Sorceror [3]
Sneaky Thief with a Heart of Gold (3)
General Rabble-Rouser (1)

Tools: lock picks, dagger, quater staff, magical knick knacks

Hooks: n/a

Tales: n/a

Max the Dog

Alignment: Loveable Good

Description: Max doesn't know how he learned to talk. He just sort of picked it up, hanging around the wizard. He's friendly, though perhaps not the brightest crayon in the box. He always seems to disappear around the new moon.

Clichés

Magician's Loyal Talking Dog (3)
Latent Were-creature [4]

Hook: Garbage Gut: Max has a tendency to eat things he should not.

Saffron the baby Dragon

Alignment: Fire Good!?

Raised from an egg by the Wizard Stuynex after her mother was killed by a knight errant. She's a favorite at the Leprechaun underground, a pub where her singing ability has earned her a reputation as great entertainment.

Clichés

Baby Fire Breathing Dragon (5)
Psychic Creature (3)
Karaoke Singer (2)

Tambor the Lame, Proprietor, “The Broken Leg” Playhouse and Inn

(Submitted by Hank Harwell cleireac@netzero.net )

Clichés:

Actor (5)
Entertainer (4)
Innkeeper (3)

Description: Tambor is a slight man in his mid-fifties, with graying black hair and deep blue eyes. It has been said that he has “a presence” about him…

Story: Tambor was once a great actor, until an accidental fall off of the stage during a performance of “The Shepherd of Wakefield” (often referred to as “The Wooly Play” by superstitious thespians; it was perhaps his greatest role!) left him with a severely broken left leg. Unfortunately, it was not set properly, leaving Tambor with a painfully crippled leg. Forced to retire from the stage, Tambor traveled to the frontier city of Stonegate to escape the sorrow of his past. But there, he became determined that he should bring civilization to the “uncultured” citizens of Stonegate and introduce them to the pleasures of the theater. As a result, he opened the Broken Leg Playhouse. Sadly, he overestimated the interest of the Stonegate residents in the theater. This reality forced Tambor to convert some of his boxes for the more well-to-do patrons into rooms. The resulting “inn” helps to pay the bills.

Often, Tambor will hire traveling players to perform productions on his stage. He also contracts entertainers for variety acts.

Hook: Crippled left leg

Adventure Ideas:

An actor is found murdered after a performance. Was he a royal spy, a philanderer, or was he simply just a really *bad* actor?
The PC’s take rooms in the inn, but their money is stolen in the night by burglars. They will not be able to pay, and Tambor employs them on his stage (as either actors or stagehands) to pay off the debt.

Ombre

(Submitted by "Yragael" <email not available>)

Cliches:

Streetwise freelance thief (4)
Acrobatic darts-throwing-and-dagger wielding martial artist (3)
Disturbing shadow wizard [2]

Side Kick: Shadow elemental (3)

Hook: Ombre is amnesiac and he cannot stand bright light as it hurts his eyes, and more specifically the sun, which can also harm his skin.

Tale: Ombre is a slim middle sized human, he is very pale and even though he gives the impression to be very ill he still proves to be very agile and athletic, and one of the best thieves in the city. Ombre chose his name shortly after he woke up in a dark alley, not remembering anything of his past and of the world, and bearing a dark scar of a mysterious shape on his chest. Being without food or shelter and not knowing anybody, he had to rely to theft to survive. Very soon he realised that he was very good at it, stealing, and he discovered that he had a most incredible asset in his endeavour: a shadow elemental appears from his scar whenever he summons it and serves him in his best interest. The Scar also gave Ombre the power to manipulate the shadows at a low level.

However Ombre developed an aversion to bright light, which hurts his eyes, and to the sun in particular, which as well as hurting his eyes can harm his skin easily. Whenever seen during the day Ombre always wears a thick cloak under which he protects himself from the sun.

His talent as a thief and his `oddity' made him well known in the underground world. This allowed him to do a few well-paid jobs and to become very streetwise.

Though he is building a good reputation in his field, Ombre is tormented by his amnesia. He feels that his life is going nowhere. He has got questions that need an answer. Who is he? Where does he come from? And what is that scar on his chest?

Erik Ebonskin (Darkling male)

(Submitted by JadeKnight)

Clichés:

Theologically Lax but Altruistic (and banished) Monastic Scribe of Arcane Tomes for the Militant Order of the Knights Raven of Our Lady of Darkness (4)
Nightmare-haunted Abandoned-for-dead-apprentice of Yet One More Darkling Shadow Sorceress of Excessive Ambition, Talent, and Hubris [2]
Sushi Chef to the All-girl, Merchant Clan Barracks of Pain and Delight of All Things Even Remotely Edible Within the Sunless World (1)
Former Slum Dwelling Tailor to the Nobility of Exotic Hand-spun Spider Silks (1)

Tools: backpack, bo, jo, sai, tonfa, kama, 51' rope; paper, quills, nibs, inks, scroll case; shadow-spell book; measuring tape, thread, needles; sushi knife, rolling mat, paddle, rice, pot, assorted unidentifiable "ingredients" etc.

Hook: Erik is haunted, and hounded, by the thoughts and actions of the tri-partate demonic nemesis summed by the fracture of his soul during his participation in a failed summoning ritual. (Octopi and cuttlefish play prominent roles.)

Tale: Having been recruited from the slums by a merchant clan and purchased his freedom with years of toil as a sushi chef in the barracks, Erik found the academic life of a scribe intellectually stimulating with all of its diversity. At least until a guild magus (to whom he was consort) recruited him as an assistant to summon an extra-planar familiar for herself at a long forgotten temple. That's when a concussive feedback from the interaction of the ritual and long forgotten wards fractured Erik's soul into three diametrically opposed extra-planar fiends. Left for dead, Erik eventually made his way to a monastery that put him to work as a scribe and rehabilitated his body, mind and soul through rigorous daily training. Unfortunately, Erik's world view, and arcane dabbling, were not compatible with the order's focused doctrine, and he was eventually banished for heretical believes (after finishing several dozen more transcriptions of tomes written in Darktongue).

Nemesis:

- Tiny Demon: Anarchistic, aberrant, extra-planar trouble maker bent on inflicting chaos and destruction [3].
- Tiny Devil: Rule manipulating, diabolical, extra-planar trouble maker hell-bent on inflicting misery and woe [3].
- Tiny Dragon: Nature loving, live-and-let-live, forest denizen content to smell the sun and listen to the flowers grow [3].

Spud

(Submitted by Dan Suptic)

Kobold Potatomancer (4)
Cook, specializing in potato-based dishes (3)
Farmer. Of potatoes, mostly (2)
Novice Juggler. Guess what he juggles (1)

Spud is an excitable, hyper little kobold, mostly indistinguishable from others of his race, save for his bizarre obsession with potatoes. Despite belonging to a carnivorous species, Spud's digestive system seems to be able to handle the tuberous crop just fine.

He spent his young years as a cook for a local tavern run by a very open-minded, middle age couple, but wanderlust came upon him as he reached kobold adulthood. He taught himself Potatomancy and joined the Adventurer's Guild, where he supplies his companions with potato-based meals and potato-based artillery support.

No one knows how he taught himself this odd form of magic. Potatomancy doesn't even technically exist - there's no school that teaches it, and no naturally talented sorcerer has ever stumbled upon it. His powers are apparently a divine gift for this kobold who really, really, really loves potatoes.