Rusty:
Rusty Tincanne wrote:Name:
Concept/Bio: Could have been a nice, average life, except for love. The family of the woman he loved disapproved of him, saying he would not be able to provide for their daughter, so he followed his cousin out of the mountain, taking an oath to return with fortune enough to support a family.
Lifepaths: Born Guilder >> Hauler >> Tinkerer >> Adventurer
Age : 71
I will find my fortunes outside the Mountain; enough to satisfy my fiance's family that I can provide hearth and home for their daughter.
Your relationship is with your Fiancee - it makes the most sense to turn this into your Oath and make it to her. How that's written matters a lot. After all, with the fall of Erebor, it just got that much more difficult.
Perhaps:
"I swear I will find my fortunes outside the Mountain; enough to satisfy you that I can provide hearth and home for our children."
Your Cousin - he's significant to the setting. How so? How is be both Significant and also a wandering adventurer? (I'd suggest making him Significant and settled somewhere, or an important man in the Diaspora; or go with the "Squire or Bodyguard" rules and have him be a companion.)
Born Guilder >> Hauler >> Tinkerer >> Adventurer
Straight from your Lifepaths...
Age: 21+10+1+35+1+5 = 73
Attributes: +1P +1M +1M/P
Skill Points: (4 general) 5+4+12 = 21
Resource points: 5+7+15+10 = 37
Trait points: 1+2+2+2 = 7
Traits:
Required: Lifting Heavy Things, Curious, Adventurer
Optional: Tinkerer, Boaster
Skills:
Required: Hauler, Stuff-wise, Survival
Optional: Wagon-wise, Cargo-wise, Road-wise, Mending, Scavenging, Climbing, Knots, Herbalism, Haggling,
Firebuilding, Brawling, Knives, Sword, Crossbow, Lock Pick, Appraisal, Obscure History, Symbology, Lost Treasures-wise
Beginning the math...
Attributes:
8 mental and 15 physical from age +1M +1P +1M/P.
* You have +1M/P. You can decide to put it in Mental or Physical pools.
* You have 9 Mental and 16 Physical.
* You'll divide these pools up among attributes. Your attributes will define your starting skill levels - skills that root off that attribute start at half the attribute level. So, an attribute of B2 or B3 gives a B1 skill. B4 or B5 give a B2 skill. B6 or B7 give a B3 skill.
You divide your Mental pool between Willpower and Perception. Choose:
B4 Will / B5 Perception
B5 Will / B4 Perception
B3 Will / B6 Perception
B6 Will / B3 Perception
...or spend your +1M/P into your mental pool to add one more.
You divide your 16 Physical pool between Power, Forte, Agililty, and Speed. Assume they're at B4 each (good baseline). They're all important. If you want to raise one, lower another.
Traits:
* You have seven trait points. All traits listed on a lifepath are 1pt. You can buy any other available trait in the book for the book-cost.
* You must buy the three required traits -
Lifting Heavy Things, Curious, Adventurer. Go look them up in the book and read their full descriptions.
* That leaves you with 4 trait points left. You can buy the optional traits for only one point each: Tinkerer, Boaster.
* Curious and Boaster are character traits - they don't impart specific game effects but are useful for Artha. (You gain a Fate point for roleplaying your trait and having it alter the direction of the story in an unforeseen way or having it
make life difficult for your character.) Lifting Heavy Things is a "Call On," which means you can use it to reroll failures on a Power check once per session. Tinkerer is a call-on for Mending if cobbling something together that's weird. Adventurer gives you a +1Ob for circles tests with Nobles and Artificers and gives you a free 1D Affiliation outside the dwarven hold.
* You can also spend your 4 discretionary points on a trait besides Tinkerer or Boaster. (Or buy Tinkerer, and spend 3 points discretionary.) Go look at all the traits in the Appendix to see which are the right values, then look up their descriptions. Make it flavorful for your character and something that you can use to make the story harder or more interesting for yourself (to earn the Fate points).
Skills:
You have 21 lifepath skill points and four general skill points.
* The four general skill points can be used to open any skill - including ones not on your lifepaths. Set them aside and use them to fill out your desires at the end.
* The 21 lifepath skill points must first open your three required skills. Required: Hauler, Stuff-wise, Survival
* You then have 18 to spend on your optional skills: Wagon-wise, Cargo-wise, Road-wise, Mending, Scavenging, Climbing, Knots, Herbalism, Haggling, Firebuilding, Brawling, Knives, Sword, Crossbow, Lock Pick, Appraisal, Obscure History, Symbology, Lost Treasures-wise.
* It takes one point to "open" the skill, which sets it at the starting level determined by its root attribute. (Example: If you have Perception B6, all Wises open at B3. If you have Perception B4 or B5, all Wises open at B2. If you have Perception B3, all Wises open at B1.) You can then spend additional skill points to raise above that starting level 1 for 1.
* You don't have any special skills (which would require two points to open) so don't worry about them. If you choose to spend General Points to open a special skill (it has a symbol next to it in the book, like Excavation, Black Metal Artifice, Stentorious Debate, or Coarse Persuasion), it takes
two to open, then 1 for 1 to advance.
*
Take Note: You have 19 optional skills and 18 points to spend on them. Oh, the life of an Adventurer. So, first pick which skills you DON'T want to open. Then spend one point to open all the rest. If you have any skill points left, spread them around, 1 for 1.
Resource Points:
* You have 37 resource points.
* You get a 1D Affiliation for free with a group beyond the Dwarven Hold. (Men of Dale, Men of Mirkwood, Elves of the Woodland Realm, Men of Rohan, Necromancer's Servants, Dwarves of the Iron Hills, etc.)
* You must buy a relationship. Your Cousin is 4 RPs. (-4 = 33 RPs)
* See page 96. An attending companion costs 10pts (see Bodyguard/Squire). A Gang or Crew costs a Relationship (5), Affiliation (10), and Reputation (7), or 22 points to get you a group of guys at your command. You can also buy these things individually on their own merit which help with future Circles checks to find helpful people.
* Review if any of your skills require Tools. If so, they Shoddy Tools require 5 RPs per skill.
* Review page 124 for the remaining point costs. Clothes (1), Boots (1), Travelling Gear (1), Shoddy Arms (5), Dwarven Light Mail (9), are worth considering.
* As a wandering Tinker, you also might consider how your travel. If you have a pack mule (or small mule cart) carrying your tools and wares, but nothing truly of trade value, that's 8 RPs. If you have a mule-drawn large wagon loaded with your current trade goods, that's 15 RPs. If you spend nothing, you arrive as a hobo-with-a-backpack.