The Campaign Builder's Guild

Quote from: Humabout
Ok, excellent!  Please rank how often your Duty (Church) arrises as follows:
Almost all the time
Quite often
Fairly often
Quite Rarely

Also, what happens to Malachi if he refuses to perform his Duty?

As for Enemy, it doesn't sound like the vampire really qualifies just yet.  If anything, it has Enemy (Malachi)!  I'd say you have, at least, Obsession (Kill the vampire who turned my wife) [-5].  You also seem to have Obsession (Kill all vampires) [-10], Vow (Suffer not a witch to live) [-10], and Vow (Celebacy) [-5].

Do you see Malachi as being truly ordained in the Church (Clerival Investment and the churchly authority to perform religious rituals, sacriments, etc.) or just an unofficial operative they use to sick on enemies of the church?  Also, to what extent does the Church actually have Malachi's back if he asks for help?

In addition to Navigation, I'd suggest Phisiology (Specialize:  Demons, Spirits, or Undead) and Psychology (Specialize: Demons, Spirits, or Undead).  The former represents your knowledge of where to hurt (or help, I suppose...) the specialty you choose (e.g., where on this specific demon are its vitals, so i can stab them repeatedly?), and the latter represents knowing how your enemy thinks.  - something useful when attempting to decypher the convoluted, machianelian plans of Hellspawn or the incredibly long-term plottings of sapient undead.

For Contacts, I'll toss these one out there:

Contact (Undead Jeb; Profession (Grave Robber)-15; Fairly Often, 9 or less, x1; Unreliable, x1/2) [1];
Contact (; Streetwise-15; Fairly Often, 9 or less, x1; Somewhat Reliable, x1) [2];

And lastly, yes, your definition of a "witch" fits perfectly.  Magic isn't viewed as inherently evil, but any contact with demons most certainly is.

I am inclined to say "Quite Often."  Sometimes he can come finish a job only to be immediately given another mission, but that would not necessarily be the norm.  He would sometimes have downtime to rest, do research, or do freelance or charity work.  The church would have some resources available to Malachi for properly performing his duty, and in circumstances where he is clearly dealing with something big and is completely in-over-his-head they might call in others to assist, or to take over control of the operation.  This is of course assuming their resources are not already committed elsewhere.  So for Mal to need help would be one thing, but to refuse his duty completely would...not go over well.  It might make a difference if he gave a valid reason why he SHOULDN'T, but without a very good reason, refusal would suffer serious consequences.  He could well become a fugitive of his own order.

I would see Malachi as being legitimately ordained.  He may not have any ability in divine magic, but would know the rituals and sacraments (especially things like death rites).  I figure that some of his missions would involve having to say words over victims of monsters, or even over his targets themselves.  I envision the Church wanting to save the souls of the Witches they hunt, or giving last rites to vanquished undead. Of course, his FUNCTION would be as more of an operative than a priest.

And if Physiology and Psychology of demons, undead, etc. are not covered by Hidden Lore, then yes, I would definitely agree that Malachi should have them. 

Regarding the contacts, it would help if I better understood what the stats MEANT, but they probably are good.  The name I gave was "Deader Jeb" not "Undead Jeb."  I was figuring "Deader" might also be slang for one of Jeb's "profession."  Don't have a name for the other yet.  Of course, if he felt he needed serious help (as opposed to just a lead) he would probably go straight to Ezekiel. 

Sorry about Jeb's name; corrected.  I like the profession "deader," too.  Awsomeness.

Stat-wise, a Contact is someone you can try to reach (roll against the frequency of appearance (X or less) whenever you want to reach them.  failure means they are unavailable for some reason).  If you reach them (a success on that roll), they can make a skill roll (Profession (Graverobber) for Deader Jeb) at the level listed on your behalf.  On a success, they give you information related to the roll they made for you.  The results of a failure depend on how reliable they are; the less reliable, the more likely they are to lie or sell you out to yoru enemies or the authorities.  Jeb sounds pretty coerrsed into his position as "contact" so i ballparked him as Unreliable, which means he will throw you under the bus and then drive the bus over you, if he thinks he can get away with it.  Threats, bribes, and such can potentially increase his willingness to not screw you.  :)

I think Rank within the Church probably best models how much the Church is willing ot back you.  It doesn't sound like they currently give you any special treatment a priest or some such wouldn't receive just as part of being a priest.  Yours is tailored to your particular needs.  The rest of your priestiness is represented by the following bits:  Clerical Investment [5], Legal Immunity (Church) [5]; Religious Rank (Church) 1 [5]; Social Status 1 [5].

Your particular Duty looks like the following:  Duty (Church; Quite Often, 12 or less; Hazardous; Involuntary) [-20].  This treats your duty to the church as akin to that of a soldier in the Army; you desert and you are a fugitive who will be arrested and imprisoned at best.  And hunting monsters is certainly Hazardous.

With regard to the following skills, could you score them like you did the others, please (and omit any that you don't want):
Exorcism
Navigation (Land)
Phisiology (Demons)
Phisiology (Undead)
Psychology (Demons)
Psychology (Spirits)
Psychology (Undead)
Religious Ritual

I'll put all of this together with your feedback and post an updated stat block.

Your assessment of Jeb sounds about right, and you are spot on about his Duty.  The advantages and disadvantages all sound good. 

Exorcism--Professional
Navigation (Land)--Amateur
Phisiology (Demons)--Professional
Phisiology (Undead--Expert
Psychology (Demons)--Professional
Psychology (Undead)--Expert
Religious Ritual--Professional

One potential complication for play that I am seeing is that I am unsure how inclined Malachi would be to work with Alexander.  I figure he would see him as more of an annoyance than a help.  He might occasionally know more about things Mal only has peripheral knowledge of, but it would probably be revealed rather quickly that Alexander didn't REALLY know what he was doing in a real fight.  But these can be role playing challenges, I suppose.

Alright, I tweaked your settup a little to squeeze in those last (higher point cost) skill levels.  So you are slightly more intelligent than before and your relative skill levels (Attribute+X) are slightly lower.  It'll matter if we float your skill to a different attribute (floating Lockpicking from IQ to DX for avoiding a poisoned pin within a lock mechanism, or the like).  For the most part, it won't make a difference.  So here's you're updated character:

[spoiler=Crunch]
238 points
Attributes:  ST 11 [10]; DX 12 [40]; IQ 13 [60]; HT 10 [ 0].
Secondary Characteristics:  Dmg 1d-1/1d+1; BL 24.2 lbs.; HP 11 [ 0]; Will 10 [-15]; Per 12 [-5]; Basic Speed 5.50 [ 0]; Basic Move 5 [ 0].
Advantages:  Church Rank 1 [5]; Clerical Investment [5]; Combat Reflexes [15]; Contact (Deader Jeb; Profession (Grave Robber)-15; Fairly Often, 9 or less; Unreliable, x1/2) [1]; Contact (Marcus the Mangler; Fairly Often, 9 or less; Somewhat Reliable, x1) [2]; Danger Sense [15]; Empathy [15]; Legal Immunity (Church) [5]; Luck [15]; Natural Copper 2 [20]; Social Status 1 [5].
Perks:  Style Familiarity (Axe-and-Shield Fighting) [1]; Sure-Footed (Uneven) [1].
Disadvantages:  Callous [-5]; Duty (The Church; Quite Often, 12 or less; Hazardous; Involuntary) [-20]; Obsession (Kill the vampire who turned my wife) [-5]; Obsession (Slay All Vampires) [-10]; Odious Personal Habit -1 (Blunt Asshole) [-5]; Vow (Chastity) [-5]; Vow (Suffer not a Witch to Live) [-10].
Quirks:  Nosy and Accusative [-1]; Suspicious of Others [-1].
Skills:  Area Knowledge (IQ/E) IQ [1]-13; Axe/Mace (DX/A) DX+1 [4]-13; Brawling (DX/A) DX [2]-12; Carousing (HT/E) HT [1]-10; Climbing (DX/A) DX-1 [1]-11; Crossbow (DX/E) DX+1 [2]-13; Detect Lies (Per/H) Per+2 [4]-14*; Exorcism (Will/H) Will+2 [12]-12; First Aid (IQ/E) IQ [1]-13; Hidden Lore (Demons) (IQ/A) IQ+1 [4]-14; Hidden Lore (Magical) (IQ/A) IQ+1 [4]-14; Hidden Lore (Undead) (IQ/A) IQ+1 [4]-14; Hiking (HT/A) HT+2 [8]-12; Intelligence Analysis (IQ/H) IQ+1 [2]-14*; Interrogation (IQ/A) IQ+1 [1]-13*; Intimidation (Will/A) Will+2 [8]-12; Jumping (DX/E) DX [1]-12; Knife (DX/E) DX [1]-12; Navigation (Land) (IQ/A) IQ-1 [1]-12; Observation (Per/A) Per+1 [1]-13*; Occultism (IQ/A) IQ-1 [1]-12; Physiology (Demons) (IQ/H) IQ-1 [2]-12; Physiology (Undead) (IQ/H) IQ+1 [8]-14; Psychology (Demons) (IQ/H) IQ-1 [2]-12; Psychology (Undead) (IQ/H) IQ+1 [8]-14; Religious Ritual (IQ/H) IQ-1 [2]-12; Running (HT/A) HT [2]-10; Search (Per/A) Per+1 [1]-13*; Shadowing (IQ/A) IQ+1 [1]-14*; Shield (DX/E) DX+2 [4]-14; Survival (Mountains) (Per/A) Per-1 [1]-11; Theology (Human) (IQ/H) IQ-2 [1]-11; Thrown Weapon (Axe/Mace) (DX/E) DX [1]-12; Tracking (Per/A) Per [2]-12; Two-Handed Axe/Mace (DX/A) DX+1 [4]-13; Wrestling (DX/A) DX [2]-12.
* Includes the bonus from Natural Copper.
[/spoiler]

I have one last question for you:  Do you have a home base or do you keep ALL of your wealth and possessions with you as you wander around slaying things?

[EDIT]
I'm not particularly worried about that.  You forget that even if Alexander is a bumbling idiot, he has social connections Malachi does not.  Malachi can't just demand an audience before the Senate because he is not a nobleman.  Malachi probably can't even get into a high society ball, and if he does, no one will talk to him, but they certainly will talk about him and probably condescend to him, if they are forced to address him at all.  Frankly, I'm glad the two of you managed to not try to cover similar niches.

Since it looks like ya'll have your PCs sorted out, here's the next bit:  Possessions.

Rule-wise, you either get 20% of your Starting Wealth ($2,000 for Malachi; $4,000 for wealthy little Alexander) and a place to live and common sense household stuff assumed to belong to you (a home, clothes, bed, sheets, table, chair, cooking equipment, etc.) or 100% of your Starting Wealth and no place to live and no assumed possessions - even down to underwear.  From what has been relayed about PCs so far, I'd assume Alexander has a home base and 20% of his starting money.  Also, you can spend 1 point to gain $1,000 to spend however you see fit.

So without having to type up rediculously long item lists, I'm going to just ask it this way:  List, in order of want, your wishlist.  I'll go through the books and see how much it all costs and get back with options for squeezing it into budget.  Remember that armor is heavy but generally well worth the decreased movement speed and dodge; it's also likely to be the most expensive thing you purchase.  Be specific about coverage; we will use hit locations, so you can choose to not cover specific bits of the body, which cuts down on weight and cost at the expense of risking injury.  Lastly, if you know something exists or even think something would be cool if it did, just list it (and explain it, if need be).  We will sort out if it does exist and for how much money.

Zalhrada is a huge city and almost anything can be found there for sale.  There are no personal firearms, though.  The dwarves refuse to sell them to Zalhrada, even if the city is equipped wtih defensive cannon and its galleons with naval guns.  Gun powder and firearms are controled by the dwarves of the mountains.  Otherwise, the city is roughly akin to high medieval/early rennaissance technology levels.  Science hasn't really taken off, but astronomy is pretty well developed when it comes to tracking stars, planets, the moon, eclipses, etc.

Here is a link to some common armors and loadouts in Zalhrada, just for point of reference.

QuoteRule-wise, you either get 20% of your Starting Wealth ($2,000 for Malachi; $4,000 for wealthy little Alexander) and a place to live and common sense household stuff

For me, does this mean 20% of $2000 ($400) or that $2000 is 20% of my starting wealth?

I've been avoiding the thread for a bit, trying to think of what I would want to buy with my 20% besides antique tea sets, and I'm afraid I don't really have any idea.  I feel like Alexander isn't the armor type, namely because he isn't the fighting type.  If not wearing armor is suicidal, I think I would go for one of the cloth sets, and then use the rest of my money to hire someone with better armor to stand between myself and the monsters.

SH, you get 20% of $2,000.  So you either get $400 + basic living stuff like an apartment, a mattress, cooking stuff, etc. or $2,000 and no assumptions about your possessions are made - you have to list everything you own and its cost must come out of that $2,000.  You can spend 1 CP to get $1,000 exta toward your starting cash, which may be divided up however you see fit.  Alexander spent points on increasing his starting wealth, so he gets double what you have, although he still only gets $1,000 per CP spent on extra cash.

Numinous, does Alexander own any musical instruments, a collection of rare books, a particularly nice horse and horse furniture, a falcon for hunting, a hunting dog, etc.?  As for armor, he could wear something that's more ornamental but still protective, just as he probably wears a sword, even if he's not particularly good with it in a real fight.  He needn't be decked out in full armor or even equipped like a soldier.  Even just a vest of brigandine is a good start, and IRL, was often made quite ornately and used by the wealthy as a fashion statement.  It wouldn't be out of place for him to have such armor, even if he doesn't fight.  As for hiring someone goes, it's not a bad idea, but remember that you will have to pay him monthly, (your Independent Income covers your personal cost of living.  It does not account for your butler's or any hirelings, or their pay.  That means you need a job to support more than just yourself.).  A personal guard for daily life would run you $500/mo., and he'll likely not be willing to follow you into the dungeons below the city without at least double that pay.  Of course, the more you pay, the more loyal he'll be and the more he'll risk his life for you.

Wish-List for Malachi

Important for what he does:
Mace
Shield
Crossbow with Ammunition (& a quiver to store said ammunition)
Knife
Holy symbol
Clerical Vestments (things like a stole, and any other necessary ritual garments)
Ordinary clothes of some kind (I envision him with a heavy leather coat and a wide-brimmed hat)
A couple wooden stakes (he'd always have a couple on hand in case of Vampires)
Backpack
Trail Rations
A bedroll and/or blanket
A skin which he can fill with water

Things that would be nice
Chest Brigandine
Cloth Hauberk
Some kind of greaves (either metal or stiffened leather)
Forearm bracers or Gauntlets (again, metal or stiffened leather)
Holy Water (of a kind usable as a weapon against demons & undead)

As for living arrangements, I don't expect he still lives in that cabin in the woods.  I more envision him having a cell at a monastery in the city where he sleeps, eats, prays with the monks (though probably not as often as the monks themselves do), and has access to the library.  The Cabin may still be there, but he has not been back in years.  He would have gone back once or twice since his training to look for clues, but it may have since become occupied by other people (or even animals), been torn down for materials for some other project, or just become a run-down ruin.

So in his cell, he would not have MUCH that he could not carry with him.  A bed with a mattress and sheets, a few changes of clothes, some personal trinkets of little monetary value, and probably one or two things that belonged to his wife.

Pretty reasonable.  We can make the monastic cell and your clothing all part of your Cost of Living, so that it gets maintained and we don't have to track it.  Monthly living expenses are probably $300 a month, considering the spartan conditions.

I'll work out the rest over tonight and tomorrow.  I'm guessing you'll have points left over.  You can spend them or just sit on them until you know what you want to do with them; either is an option.

Finished faster than anticipated.  I took the liberty of adding a coupel survival gear items you missed, as well as boots and gloves (gauntlets don't cover the palms and don't protect against the cold).

I see two options for yoru gear, here, btw.  You can either forgo the brigandine, pick up a level of ST (which lets you use that mace without penalty for insufficient ST), and pick up $515 in spending cash, or get the brigandine, forgo the Strength boots, incurr a -1 penalty to DX for layering armor, incurr a -1 penalty to Axe/Mace because you don't have the ST for your weapon, have $165 in cash, and 9 points to spend or save as you see fit.  Personally, I'd suggest the former.

Alternatively, you can parse your list down however you like.  Mind you, the bulk of your weight is in your armor and shield (as are your costs).

[spoiler=Crunch]

Mace $50 5 lbs.
Medium Shield, Heavy $60 14 lbs.
Fowling Crossbow $450 9 lbs.
Crossbow Bolts (x12) $24 0.72 lbs.
Shoulder Quiver $10 0.5 lb.
Large Knife $40 1 lb.
Holy symbol $50 1 lb.
Clerical Vestments – 2 lbs.
Ordinary Clothes – 2 lbs.
Wooden Stake (x2) $8 1 lb.
Backpack, Small $11 1 lb.
Trail Rations (21 meals) $42 10.5 lb.
A bedroll and/or blanket $20 4 lbs.
Wineskin $4.5 0.75 lbs.
Gallon of water – 8 lbs.
Boots $80 3 lbs.
Gloves $15 0.5 lbs.
Personal Basics $33 1 lb.
Tent, 1-man $50 5 lbs.
Pouch $2 0.3 lbs.
Brigandine Chest $1,350 15 lbs.
Cloth Hauberk $798.75 42.3 lbs.
Medium Hardened Leather Greaves $63 7.5 lbs.
Medium Hardened Leather Bracers $31 3.8 lbs.
Hardened Leather Gauntlets $13 1.5 lbs.
Holy Water Flask (x2) $30 2 lb.

Cash: $515 0.515 lbs.
Totals: $1,885 127.89 lbs. (Heavy Encumbrance)

Cash: $165 0.165 lbs.
with Brigandine Chestpiece $3,235 142.54 lbs. (Heavy Encumbrance)

[/spoiler]

Is my strength currently too low to use the mace without penalty? Well in that case I do think that should be fixed.  I didn't think he should be super-strong, but definitely strong enough to use his weapon appropriately. 

I am leaning towards the former option as well. I am willing to forgo brigandine to avoid penalties on DX and my Axe/Mace skill. 

If this results in my having $515 in spending cash, is there anything that you would suggest I add to my equipment?

Quote from: HumaboutNuminous, does Alexander own any musical instruments, a collection of rare books, a particularly nice horse and horse furniture, a falcon for hunting, a hunting dog, etc.?  As for armor, he could wear something that's more ornamental but still protective, just as he probably wears a sword, even if he's not particularly good with it in a real fight.  He needn't be decked out in full armor or even equipped like a soldier.  Even just a vest of brigandine is a good start, and IRL, was often made quite ornately and used by the wealthy as a fashion statement.  It wouldn't be out of place for him to have such armor, even if he doesn't fight.  As for hiring someone goes, it's not a bad idea, but remember that you will have to pay him monthly, (your Independent Income covers your personal cost of living.  It does not account for your butler's or any hirelings, or their pay.  That means you need a job to support more than just yourself.).  A personal guard for daily life would run you $500/mo., and he'll likely not be willing to follow you into the dungeons below the city without at least double that pay.  Of course, the more you pay, the more loyal he'll be and the more he'll risk his life for you.

Useless Items:

• Antique Violin
• My Glimpse of the Abyss: Memoirs of a Warlock by Frederico Nitchy
• Rich-hikers Guide to Daemons and Spirits by Douglas "Antedeluvian" Adams
• Herod the Falcon (and accompanying glove, cage, etc.)

Useful Items:

• Ornate Brigandine (with heraldry)
• Sword and Buckler (of appropriate style and type for my sport-fighting)

So, how would I go about hiring a ragamuffin exactly, and why can I not spend a portion of my income on hiring him?  Just trying to figure out what the difference is between a disposable mook and a piece of equipment.

Quote from: Numinous

Quote from: Humabout
You don't have to burn more points, but it would put you on more equal footing with your companion, capability-wise.  What do you mean "some cantrips?"

Weak magic.  You said this was a fantasy setting?  With my research into the occult, I may have acquired some parlor tricks, like speaking with the recently deceased, conjuring small flames, or dead pigeons.  Just a thought!

Holy crap missed this post!  So sorry man!  If you want to start to dig into magic, you're dealing with a freeform system that doens't do "cantrips" in the d&d sense.  Anyone with any points in Thaumatology can technically attempt magic, although he's not likely to get too far without being quite lucky.  I'd at least take Magery 0 [5] and put a point or several in Thaumatology for starters and not attempt anything major.  You'll find that with careful planning, you can pull off pretty impressive things, but not really on the fly at this point.  I don't mind explaining the magic system further, but it'd be most easily done in a PM or via IRC Chat, since it could get involved.  Also, double-post coming with your equipment stuff so far.

For what it's worth, with the equipment you've listed so far, you have 59 points left to burn, so I'd say you could totally afford some reasonable magic.  I'll set in on typing up a PM to you outlining how the system functions.