Discussion - Character Concepts

[Verrain]

Huzzah! Welcome Art!

ETA:
Alas, I was really excited about the Folklorist. Many of the dwarves have "Fear of Mirkwood-wise" under the house rules, but you, as the shunned "crazy dwarf" on the edge of Mirkwood, are the only one with actual and true working knowledge instead of just fear and supposition. It would give you a lot of narrative control over what is "true" in the gameworld.

I liked:
Born Noble --> Abdecart --> (Branch Outcast) --> Runecaster --> Crazy Witch
(Born of the aristocracy, he was so fascinated with deep mysteries that he pursued them to his social detriment. He has Dwarven Rune Script, Ettiquette, Runecasting, Foraging, Folklore, Herbalism, and Poisons. Then also Chronology of Kings, Obscure Text-wise, Bad End-wise, Fear of Mirkwood-wise. And, if old enough, Dragon-wise.

Well, if you recall I originally wanted to go Runecaster. If he wants to go family man, I don't mind trading places. Do you have the Codex? I've always wanted to try a Dwarven Spirit Binder if you would allow such a thing in your campaign.

[Marullus]

Does the armor like Dwarven Heavy Mail include a normal shield or is the only way to get a shield the Dwarven Shield?

No, in Burning Wheel, a shield is considered a defensive weapon, not part of your armor. So, your ability to get a shield with RPS depends on you buying "shoddy arms" or "dwarven arms" which gives you appropriate weapons and/or a shield if desired.

The Dwarven Shield is a kick-butt special item, so that stands alone. You can have a "dwarven-made shield" or a "shoddy shield" (only human quality) with your weapons normally.

[Marullus]

Well, if you recall I originally wanted to go Runecaster. If he wants to go family man, I don't mind trading places. Do you have the Codex? I've always wanted to try a Dwarven Spirit Binder if you would allow such a thing in your campaign.

Yes, I do have the Codex.

No, I'd not allow a dwarven spirit binder. Runecasting and Folklore are about as far as I'd go in a Tolkien-based setting. Folklore isn't innate magic, but learning the ins and outs of the world around you - in Mirkwood, it makes sense. I think there's a lot to do, there. (Runecasting and pronouncing dooms and fates is also very Tolkien.)

It is within genre, though, to allow a human spirit binder (as that's effectively what is implied by "the Necromancer" who's evil is converting Mirkwood.) You'd gain the ability by binding yourself to Sauron (aka the Necromancer) so it would be hard to justify how you got into a party of "the good guys." You're more likely to find those things on the enemy list.

[Verrain]

Fair enough. So I leave it to Art. If he wants to swap concepts, I'm game.

[Marullus]

Okay. So, Art? What do you like most?

Overall, we have:
Rusty Tincanne - Salt-of-the-earth adventurer
Ffilz - Axe-bearer/Graybeard
Mynameisart - Outcast Dwarven Folkorist OR Bard
Craigers07 -
Spectreman17 - Durgar (last guard of the gates)
Verrain - Outcast Dwarven Folkorist OR Wordbearer/Horncaller

[Rusty Tincanne]

I love the idea of a bard in the group. Free drinks in every tavern we pull into, and great ghost stories by our camp fires.

[Craigers07]

Okay. So, Art? What do you like most?

Overall, we have:
Rusty Tincanne - Salt-of-the-earth adventurer
Ffilz - Axe-bearer/Graybeard
Mynameisart - Outcast Dwarven Folkorist OR Bard
Craigers07 - Born Guilder --> Wordbearer --> Horncaller --> Foot Soldier.
Spectreman17 - Durgar (last guard of the gates)
Verrain - Outcast Dwarven Folkorist OR Wordbearer/Horncaller

Craigers07 - Born Guilder --> Wordbearer --> Horncaller --> Foot Soldier

I'm considering coming from dwarf society as a soldier. Does this look ok?

[Verrain]

Word bearer to Horncaller is proving surprisingly popular. Out of curiosity, what drew you to it? Wordbearer attracted me for the Iron Memory and Quick Step traits.

[Craigers07]

I was basing that off your Lifepath. This is my first game with BW and I'm a little lost.

I'm going to PM Marullus for the Codex and may make a change. I'm going to stay with the idea of a foot soldier though.

[Marullus]

Ah! Ask and you shall receive. You don't need the Codex (and it turns out they didn't give us the PDF in the kickstarter... Grrr.). If you need a little more help, I'm glad to be a little more loquacious (and others can also chime in!).

I'm considering coming from dwarf society as a soldier. Does this look ok?

So, I'm assuming here that you mean "high society" and ended up a foot soldier - that's not a bad place to start. In that case, you don't want the same lifepaths as Verrain. Born Guilder is the "blue collar" starting point and Wordbearer is the dwarven equivelent of a bike messenger. That doesn't get you where you're aiming.

"Society" for the dwarves aims for Born Noble or Born Artificer. (Artificers are the keepers of prized dwarven craft-lore, and so hoity-toity.) For someone looking to have come from high station, I'd recommend Born Noble. It has the trait "Dvergar" which basically means "I just plain look royal, and everyone knows it." If you want to be someone who lowered their station, then having that trait makes it OBVIOUS you lowered your station, and that's cool! Because in Burning Wheel, causing yourself trouble and conflict usually means good stories.

So, lets assume for a moment that we go with that.

Born Noble -->

Once you're born noble, you spend your youth either hitting the books (Abdeccart) or squiring with the warriors (Ardent). So, that's an easy pick. A good thing to note is that the first skill and first trait are required when you take a lifepath and the rest are required. So, as an Ardent, you get the skill Sing (noble dwarven warriors all learn the dirges and ballads, it seems... go click this for inspiration. You also get "Humility in the face of your betters" which helps form who he is. (It also requires you answer the question 'who do I consider to be my betters'? which tells us a lot about your guy.) You get the option of Whispered-Secrets-Wise - that's really the best High Society skill on the list. You get to use that skill to invent whispered secrets of the court.

Born Noble --> Ardent -->

The odd thing (which I didn't realize until now) is that you can't branch to Host from there. Those born close Durin's line have to continue on to learn to be proper Axe Bearers. (The lesser born dwarven castes branch to Host and can become footsoldiers who are Hammer Bearers or Crossbowmen instead.) So, lets go with it in this example.

Born Noble --> Ardent --> Axe Bearer

At that point, you have combat skills as a soldier. You can rise higher (you could take Dwarven Prince as a your 4th LP), go more common (take the Foot Soldier LP and get the "Salt of the Earth" trait, or take Arbalestor for crossbows), or have a full fall from grace by going into the Outcast lifepaths. (Adventurer, if your interests just drew you elsewhere and you journeyed beyond the Mountain. Oathbreaker marks someone who failed in an oath - it doesn't matter why! Promises are more important than... well anything, for dwarves. So, if keeping your oath would have had a disastrous outcome, you could have done a good thing and STILL get shunned. Similar is the Coward LP. Coward, to dwarves, means anyone who refused to swear an Oath in the first place... again, even if you had a good reason. Taking either of those avenues makes a great tragic character who would fit well with the others.)

What do you like the best?

If none of that appeals (or if you didn't mean High Society and want a more standard birth) we can look at the other Born lifepaths.

They're a little less constricted on non-Nobles. You can be Born Artificer --> Ardent --> and go straight to Host. In host you could take Foot Soldier and stiff have a lifepath left. Or take the Banner Bearer --> Axe Bearer, depending on your preference. Or, you could apprentice as a Smith before going to the Host.

[Craigers07]

Thank you for the detailed explanation and the .pdf file. I've got much better info in front of me now.

The concept as you described it is what I'm aiming for.

Born Noble --> Ardent --> Axe Bearer --> Foot Soldier

This allows for some inner struggles of wrestling with prior oaths and formalities in a new reality. I'll try to get my Character Burner WS completed by tomorrow night.

[Rusty Tincanne]

Late season gardening, several other games and a house full of sick children and a sick wife have left me with little time.

I am loving what you all are coming up with, though. I am happy to have other characters bringing family along, by the way. I am thinking Born Clansman>[insert skill here]>Husband>Adventurer.
Basically, he started learning a trade, got married, then family pressures grew (with his in-laws chiding him about not providing we'll enough for their daughter and grandchildren). So he decided to set out to seek his fortunes on the road. Likely he will have been a teamster, using that skill to haul goods between Erebor and Mirkwood and beyond. He has returned to bring his family to a safe home. (That's right... I'm going to try having a family again... Just not a huge contingent this time. Maybe spend points to make his eldest child or wife to play a bigger part.)

Does anyone want to be has brother-in-law our have other ideas how to connect it stories? Likewise, I am happy to be related in any way to the other outcasts. Perhaps it runs in the family, hence the easy characterization of my character by his in laws.

[mynamesart]

Word bearer to Horncaller is proving surprisingly popular. Out of curiosity, what drew you to it? Wordbearer attracted me for the Iron Memory and Quick Step traits.

For me, it was kind of the possibilities of a sort of historian/chronicler. I play a lot of Skyrim in my free time, and in that game the bards are still kind of drunks and roguish performers, but they also represent the largest knowledge of history and lore outside of mages. That was kind of what I was going for here.

In that vein, I'm flexible. My idea was more of a historian and writer of epic poetry chronicling the dwarves' exploits that would also function as a kind of go-between in terms of social skills for the group, but if that's too close to what somebody else wants to play I'm very willing to change it. I would personally shy away on the build I had in mind from the Drunk lifepath, as in my head I had the character more as a passionate idealist rather than a crazy layabout.

That being said, I also have an idea for a similarly focused character that wouldn't use the same lifepaths, and would be very different. I've got an idea for the following:

Born Clansmen --> Husband --> Tinkerer --> Trader

It's still a very social build, but in going through the thread again I think it has far less overlap with the other concepts. I can still function as a lead character in terms of dealing with outside groups, but in a different vein. And playing off the Curious trait from the Tinkerer lifepath, I can still throw in some of that historian nonsense from my original concept using some general skill points to still have him be a little bit quirky.

How does that sound to everybody?

[ffilz]

Word bearer to Horncaller is proving surprisingly popular. Out of curiosity, what drew you to it? Wordbearer attracted me for the Iron Memory and Quick Step traits.

For me, it was kind of the possibilities of a sort of historian/chronicler. I play a lot of Skyrim in my free time, and in that game the bards are still kind of drunks and roguish performers, but they also represent the largest knowledge of history and lore outside of mages. That was kind of what I was going for here.

In that vein, I'm flexible. My idea was more of a historian and writer of epic poetry chronicling the dwarves' exploits that would also function as a kind of go-between in terms of social skills for the group, but if that's too close to what somebody else wants to play I'm very willing to change it. I would personally shy away on the build I had in mind from the Drunk lifepath, as in my head I had the character more as a passionate idealist rather than a crazy layabout.

Born Noble -> Abecedart -> Chronicler ->

Would hit that idea too...

That being said, I also have an idea for a similarly focused character that wouldn't use the same lifepaths, and would be very different. I've got an idea for the following:

Born Clansmen --> Husband --> Tinkerer --> Trader

It's still a very social build, but in going through the thread again I think it has far less overlap with the other concepts. I can still function as a lead character in terms of dealing with outside groups, but in a different vein. And playing off the Curious trait from the Tinkerer lifepath, I can still throw in some of that historian nonsense from my original concept using some general skill points to still have him be a little bit quirky.

How does that sound to everybody?

Oh, that looks like.

[Marullus]

That's a highly social pathway; I think he'd be a good addition to the party. (Dwarves don't get a lot of social skills. ) The only issue is that Husband can't be the second lifepath, but that's somantic - you can flip Tinkerer and Husband and it works fine.

Also consider the Tinkerer trait as well as the lifepath - it is pretty flavorful.

This trait acts as a call-on for Mending or Black-Metal Artifice when trying to cobble together something new or weird. Restrictions: Dwarven lifepath

I think you can get "dwarven history" through Husband, Wordbearer, or Chronicler, depending on the societal strata. Husband gets Clan-Wise and Wordbearer gets Clan History and Hold-Wise. Check the conversation we had previously on these distinctions for this Tolkien-based campaign: viewtopic.php?f=289&t=4888#p214336

Specifically:

Chronology of Kings - The names, lineage, and deeds of noble dwarves. Records of important decisions of the state. Legacies left by leaders who have gone before. (Primary: Nobles)
Clan History - History and happenings from the middle-class view - holds and hoards, alliances and feuds, oaths and grudges. Knowledge of the things that are "life happening" at a societal level. (Primary: Guilders)
Clan-Wise - Any social or cultural things important to the identity of a clan, i.e. "what does it mean to be a Graybeard? A Broadbeam?" Cultural taboos and norms, beliefs, commonalities, stereotypes of others, ability to identify by appearance, etc. (Primary: Clansmen)

If you want to be a Clansmen and a social character, I think you have the right guy. If you want to be a true historian, I'd recommend you be a Noble Chronicler. If you want to be a Bard, I do recommend Drunk. I don't see "lazy layabout" as a requirement - I do see that "real history" is what the dwarves keep in chronicles and the "tavern songs" are looked down on as crude, and thus Outcast.

The "Drinking" skill vs the "Drunking" skill is an area where I think that Burning Wheel disagrees with Tolkien, and I'd tone it down accordingly. He specifies under the Drunking skill that the dwarven art is to get trashed fastest, which is silly and unuseful, IMHO. He does, however, normalize that drinking is NOT a taboo in dwarven culture, so I don't think that "lazy layabout" is a required interpretation. I do think that Tolkien's dwarves are far, far more proper as-written, but that's already changed in the movies -- Peter Jackson's Gimliinterpretation is definitely Drunking. I take note that both Drinking and Drunking are useful in hiding the effects of inebriation and acting normally, and that Drunking is a standard FoRK for Stentorious Singing with both skills being magical dwarven abilities. (i.e. a dwarf who is drinking has the magical ability to actually sound better!)

[Verrain]

OK, now that things are somewhat settled, I will do the hermit on the edge of the forest character and I'm going to go

Born Noble --> Ardent --> Rune Caster --> Crazy Witch

for my lifepaths. I just like the idea of following the Whispered Secrets of the clan to the forbidden knowledge of Rune Casting rather than finding it in Obscure Texts. It also lets my and Craigers characters know each other before we both slid, me farther than him. Oh, does the taking of Crazy Witch require my character to be a female Dwarf?

[Marullus]

Oh, does the taking of Crazy Witch require my character to be a female Dwarf?

Nope.

[Marullus]

Rusty Tincanne - Born Clansman-- > [insert skill here] --> Husband --> Adventurer.
Ffilz - Born Noble --> Ardent --> Axe-bearer --> Graybeard
Mynameisart - Born Clansmen --> Tinkerer --> Husband --> Trader
Craigers07 - Born Noble --> Ardent --> Axe Bearer --> Foot Soldier
Spectreman17 - Durgar (last guard of the gates). Born Guilder --> Hauler --> Banner Bearer --> Banner Bearer
Verrain - Born Noble --> Ardent --> Rune Caster --> Crazy Witch

Looking for trends...

Rusty and Verrain are both already outcasts - the adventurer on the road and the crazy runecaster with a hut on the edge of Mirkwood.
(As the exodus begins, the other dwarves are coming to 'their turf.')
Do you know each other already?
Do you have common relationships?

Ffilz, Craigers and Spectreman are all legit soldiers from the Host. One high-born, grizzled commander. One Proud, Salt-of-the-Earth experienced footsoldier. One blue-collar, Heavy Drinking, Resigned to Death Gate Guard without combat experience (except losing to the dragon).
Do you know each other already?
Do you have common relationships?

Art is the median: A tinkerer and trader, experienced smooth talker with his wares.

Next Steps:
(If you haven't seen it yet, read the character creation house rules.)

Totalling up and assigning attributes, skills, traits, etc is pretty straightforward once you have the lifepaths. You can all do that pretty individually to shape your character and post the results.

I find the most important "shaping" step is assigning the Resource Points and authoring beliefs. This is where the flavor will come out for each character (and thus influence your other choices and the group dynamic.)

I like making beliefs in two parts: a) an overarching credo, and b) what it drives you to do in an actionable sense (near term and achievable in 1-2 game sessions). [See the previous discussion here.]

Who are you saving? Bringing along? If they attach to your beliefs, buy a Relationship. If you have a helpful group of NPCs that are with you, buy a Gang or Crew (p. 96) - this can a loyal unit of your host. The Trader's wagon company. A husband's wife and passel of children and/or grandchildren.

What Oath do you have, and to whom? (p.119) All dwarves start with an Oath to a Relationship made before gameplay and the current scenario unfold. So, all dwarves must buy at least one relationship. Oaths sworn before Smaug can be interesting and uncomfortable obligations when the social network around them has collapsed. Be creative!

Relationship costs: Relationship with anyone in the actual Tolkien books is likely 15pts. (King Thranduil of the Elves, Thorin the young prince, Thrain the fleeing king with the last dwarven ring of power, Radagast the Brown wizard in Mirkwood.) If you buy them, they will be part of your story. You can modify it normally (related, lovers, hated, etc). Otherwise, the difference in cost of a relationship isn't regarding how important they are to you, but how important they are the NPC scheme-of-things. A 5pt relationship is a minor role in the setting. A 10pt relationship is significant or important to the game setting.

[ffilz]

Ok, this is what I have so far:

Name:
Concept/Bio:
Lifepaths: Born Noble, Noble Ardent, Noble Axe Bearer, Lead to Dwarven Host, Graybeard
Age : 87
Stats: Wi: B5, Pe: B4, Po: B5, Fo: B5, Ag: B4, Sp: B4, Stride: 6
Attributes: Ref: B4, Ste: B6, Hes: 5, Hea: B7, MW: B11, Greed: B4, Circles: B2, Resources: B0
PTGS: Su: B3 Li: B6 Mi: B8 Se: B9 Tr: B10 Mo: B11

Beliefs:

Instincts:

Traits: [Dt] Accustomed to the Dark, [Char] Bearded, [Char] Chuffing, [Dt] Dvergar, [Dt] Greed, [Char] Humility in the Face of your Betters, [Dt] Oathsworn, [Char] Proud, [Dt] Shaped from Earth and Stone, [Dt] Stout, [Dt] Tough

I am strongly considering either Thousand Yard Stare (he's seen a lot escaping) or Dexterity of the Cat (his escape was harrowing along ledges and down sheer cliffs). And then Oddly Likeable with the last point.

Skills: Armor Training, Axe B4, Campaign-wise B2, Command B3, Dwarven Rune Script B2, Field Dressing B2, Formation Fighting, Intimidation B2, Khirurgeon B2, Shield Training, Sing B2, Soothing Platitudes B2, Stentorious Debate B2, Throwing B2, Tunnel-wise B2, Whispered Secrets-wise B2

Affiliations: 1D Dwarven Nobles
Reputations: 1D Reputation as a dwarven noble
Relationships: Wife (Significant, immediate family, romantic love, hateful/rival), Son (Minor, immediate family)

I'm envisioning my wife is not happy with the choices made in escaping and now will be working against me.

Gear: Dwarven Arms, Dwarven Heavy Mail, Clothes, Sturdy Shoes, Travelling Gear

Property: Dwarven Hall (4 cash dice escaped with)

Spells:

Weapons:

[Marullus]

As the party greybeard, I think he's a good candidate to be old, if you like. 170 years ago he would have previously fled from frost dragons... Thoughts?