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14:39, 29th March 2024 (GMT+0)

Party Design.

Posted by Dungeon MasterFor group 0
Ghorza Arminel
player, 7 posts
Fri 28 Dec 2018
at 05:18
  • msg #67

Re: Party Design

Kella Stravnos:
@Ghorza - Power as a curse is Kella's whole theme, so that is definitely a point of commiseration.  The difference between being the vessel for the will of the divine and being a conduit for the nature of an elemental plane isn't very big, in practice.  Definitely some talks about how to maintain a sense of independent Self in the face of channeling something so much bigger.


Love this sooooo much! I think Ghorza has problems with the divine influence which is Grummsh. It is both the source of her power and a force which poisons her rationality, thought and serenity. Tactically learning how to maintain a sense of self in the face of something so old and so powerful would be a keystone of Ghorza's development. Does Kella use any particular technique's ie mediation or something like that? I would say that Ghorza would adapt something like that (in a little sister to Kella type of way) and use that technique in her continuing battle against the "fire within her blood".

Thanks again--great tie in!
Kella Stravnos
player, 7 posts
Fri 28 Dec 2018
at 07:58
  • msg #68

Re: Party Design

@Ghorza: Uhhhhhhhhhhhhh not as such.

  The point where the difference is meaningful is that nothing Kella contacts is malicious, just indiscriminately destructive.  At least as far as I've considered, her actual coping methods amount to putting herself in positions where most possible targets are legitimate ones, partying her ass off to avoid thinking about the families those bandits won't be coming home to, and keeping on the move so she won't actually get to know anyone enough to care what happens to them.  Obviously, being a part of something like Silver Company changes that, but I'm still trying to work out how so.  She'd always have stayed dangerously reckless, at least.  Bleeding a little along the way makes killing hurt less.  And jumping between the weak and the lash of the strong.  But ultimately, every. single. spell. she casts. reminds her of why she doesn't trust herself, and she's a straight sorcerer, so that's a lot of rubbing her own face in it.

  In those situations where she managed to be both vulnerable and coherent, I imagine the advice largely hewed to 'find out what gruumsh wants, warn everyone you don't agree with him about, and use the others as peace offerings'.  Kella is very open about who and what she is, to the point that she probably opted to stay away from any missions where they might have to blend in.  She wants to let people get tf out of her way whenever possible, and she'd suggest the same.  If you make choices when your head is clear that limit what you can do when it isn't, it's almost like being able to make choices in the moment.  Almost.  For everything else, there's whiskey.

@Acanthya: yeah, actually, that would matter a lot, but not for tactical reasons.  She didn't want a melee she could safely blanket; Kella was always the type to teleport directly onto the enemy commander and start dropping fireballs at her own feet.  And even if you're pulling that shit because part of you is hoping this will be your last fight, it's pretty terrifying to enact.  Not being completely alone when going for broke would be a direct counterargument to her understanding of the world.
This message was last edited by the player at 08:10, Fri 28 Dec 2018.
Satari Creed
player, 2 posts
Fri 28 Dec 2018
at 13:34
  • msg #69

Re: Party Design

Ok, so i’m Working with what i’ve got here; everyone feel free to correct me ifbi’m Wrong about anything!

1. Hargrim: i’m So sorry, but how you must hate Satari!  She would be the one to play Devil’s Advocate to your every suggestion, and i’m Guessing it would grate a little that she refuses to treat situations with the gravity they deserve; she recognizes it, she just refuses to admit it!  FWIW, Satari actually would like and respect him, she just can’t help her sense of drama!

2. Aycantha: I can easily imagine Satari being Aycantha’s honorary Cool Big Sister (why no, she didn’t get a choice there; why do you ask?).  They’d definitely have bonded over music and battle, though Satari May never forgive Aycantha if her flute playing hasn’t improved; what will people think?! ;)

3. Ghorza: Oh no, looked down on for a part of your nature beyond your control, and mistrusted for/about it despite it not even coming close to defining you?  I think Ghorza is probably the first of the Conpany to ever get Satari’s actual history in a moment of vulnerability.  Sure, being the chosen priestess of an evil war god is different from merely looking like the chosen priestess of an evil war god, but for Satari, it’s close enough to open up.

4. Kella: Here i’m Not quite sure!  Satari’s general “live hard, party harder, it’s all gone when you die anyway” philosophy might clash with some of Kella’s Need for control and (what Satari would view as a) martyr complex.  But if Hargrim is the angel on her shoulder telling Kella to put down the tankard of ale, Satari is definitely the devil buying rounds for the tavern!

5. Marcus: I got nothing yet! :)  i’m Working on it though!
Kella Stravnos
player, 8 posts
Fri 28 Dec 2018
at 14:05
  • msg #70

Re: Party Design

Satari Creed:
(what Satari would view as a) martyr complex.


I won't deny that at all.  She never handled her shit well, and it left her making a lot of bad choices for stupid reasons.  One of the dangers of being mortal.
Hargrim Steelsplitter
player, 11 posts
Fri 28 Dec 2018
at 20:03
  • msg #71

Re: Party Design

Aycantha: that could be fun.  Though expect one of her first dwarven phrases to have been "Hargrim is my ally, not my father".  I think Hargrim has officially become reluctant Team Dad, though it does fit well with his drive to establish order in a sea of chaos.  She'd be the one he saw the most potential in to step in as a second-in-command (frankly, because Marcus has outright stated in his background that he's a great warrior, but not a leader).

Ghorza: I think Ghorza and Grim are probably a bit aloof.  Though Grim will outright admit it's based on ingrained biases, and nothing she's ever done personally.  I'm not quite sure how to phrase it.  Grim would trust Ghorza with his life implicitly; they've been through too much for him to doubt her, but he's still just a bit more distant from her.

Satari: Headache With Legs, got it!  I think you probably just summed up their relationship handily.  While Grim may appreciate having his ideas challenged to make sure they're sound, I'm sure he wished it was less.
Markus Stern
player, 19 posts
Infamous Bounty Hunter
"I do a job, I get paid."
Sat 29 Dec 2018
at 02:46
  • msg #72

Re: Party Design

My first attempts, sans the people I've already ironed things out with:

Ghorza Arminel - I could see the two of them, if not explicitly becoming friends back in the day, at least having a great mutual respect over being willing to get bloody and dirty for their goals. And seeing as Ghorza is creating an orphanage, and Markus is a father, I could see them bonding over the role of parenting. What do you think?

Kella Stravnos - Dark pasts, emotional trauma, and hiding behind masks of our own making? Hello soulmate! :p

But seriously, misery loves company, and I could see them being close without being too outwardly expressive about it. "Sharing loneliness," as Holmes would say. Yes? No?

Satari Creed - If it's not too much, I could see Markus actually disliking Satari to a great degree, at least right away. Initially from a (in his opinion) healthy caution around those of demonic blood, and a great aversion to joviality and revelry. But years and battles pass, and she grew on him. And maybe vice versa? The grumpy grump that was (kinda is) Markus would be a great source of amusement and the butt of humor for Satari?
Ghorza Arminel
player, 8 posts
Sat 29 Dec 2018
at 03:15
  • msg #73

Re: Party Design

Markus Stern:
My first attempts, sans the people I've already ironed things out with:

Ghorza Arminel - I could see the two of them, if not explicitly becoming friends back in the day, at least having a great mutual respect over being willing to get bloody and dirty for their goals. And seeing as Ghorza is creating an orphanage, and Markus is a father, I could see them bonding over the role of parenting. What do you think?


Great--I think that sounds fantastic!
Ghorza Arminel
player, 9 posts
Sat 29 Dec 2018
at 03:15
  • [deleted]
  • msg #74

Re: Party Design

This message was deleted by the player at 03:15, Sat 29 Dec 2018.
Kella Stravnos
player, 9 posts
Sat 29 Dec 2018
at 03:40
  • msg #75

Re: Party Design

Markus Stern:
Kella Stravnos - Dark pasts, emotional trauma, and hiding behind masks of our own making? Hello soulmate! :p

But seriously, misery loves company, and I could see them being close without being too outwardly expressive about it. "Sharing loneliness," as Holmes would say. Yes? No?

Yes, definitely.  There is definitely a specific look that says 'You shouldn't do this, but I wouldn't be able to hold back either.'  And possibly more important are, as you say, emotional responses in common.  They probably pushed to take/avoid a lot of the same jobs.  Get out of town before the same festivals.  Self-regulation techniques in common.  One thing though:

Markus Stern:
and Markus is a father, I could see them bonding over the role of parenting

Markus wasn't initially a father, was he?  Kids are not a conversation Kella would have been a part of for, like, at least the first couple years.



@all - Actually, good question.  How long was the company together at first?  Who was about how old when they first came together?  Are we ready to talk retirement and the details of reuniting yet?
This message was last edited by the player at 03:41, Sat 29 Dec 2018.
Markus Stern
player, 20 posts
Infamous Bounty Hunter
"I do a job, I get paid."
Sat 29 Dec 2018
at 03:54
  • msg #76

Re: Party Design

Ghorza Arminel:
Great--I think that sounds fantastic!


Yay! Glad you like it.

Kella Stravnos:
Yes, definitely.  There is definitely a specific look that says 'You shouldn't do this, but I wouldn't be able to hold back either.'  And possibly more important are, as you say, emotional responses in common.  They probably pushed to take/avoid a lot of the same jobs.  Get out of town before the same festivals.  Self-regulation techniques in common.  One thing though:

Markus wasn't initially a father, was he?  Kids are not a conversation Kella would have been a part of for, like, at least the first couple years.


You totally get it, excellent. We are on the same page with that.

And Markus was not a father until after their "retirement."
Acanthya Starblade
player, 36 posts
Reason, sword, and spell
The tools of resolution
Sat 29 Dec 2018
at 04:04
  • msg #77

Re: Party Design

I've pretty much stated in my backstory we've been retired for about twenty years. I'm not sure how long we were together. My character is eighty-four years old and started adventuring when she was thirty. So, that is about a thirty-four year span of adventuring time. I'm open to discussion about how long we actually adventured together. I would say it would have to be at least ten years to become as famous and awesome as we want...:-D
Markus Stern
player, 21 posts
Infamous Bounty Hunter
"I do a job, I get paid."
Sat 29 Dec 2018
at 04:11
  • msg #78

Re: Party Design

Us humans have to at least be young enough to at least theoretically continue kicking ass.

How about fifteen years of adventuring, and five years of retirement?

At least in my case, that would put Markus at 43. Still well within ass kicking age.
Kella Stravnos
player, 10 posts
Sat 29 Dec 2018
at 04:55
  • msg #79

Re: Party Design

Yeah, Kella was a hard minimum of 19 when she left home, and every year below about 24 on joining SC makes a big difference in her relationships. But I'd honestly conceived of her as a late addition to the group, someone who already had an established reputation as a weapon for hire* before she met this band of misfits who also had a name built up. And especially someone who thought she knew how to get by without those troublesome "emotional bonds" things. On the other hand, she runs on pure willpower. The, uh, incredible stats aside, she could be pushing 60 now but for one stark problem: rpol.net doesn't think human women over 28 exist, so the portrait is never going to be right. And god help you if you didn't want to be white.

Anyway, 20 years since first link-up works for me, and makes her about Markus' age, maybe a little older. If we'd been A Group for longer than about 5, though, let me just dial back the shell-shock and drowning-in-the-bottle notes. Those were early. Not that she really got better, mind you. But the emotional heft of mutual dependence and ass-saving and basically being a Family would have softened (distracted) her a lot. By the close of a decade, she'd have emerged as more of a caretaker. If we had a base of operations, it was Kella who made it cozy: good furniture, a garden plot, serious meals, maybe even holiday decorations. Twice, because the first time someone brought up that she was turning the place into a real home, she'd have incinerated her own work. Secret chagrin for the next three weeks, eventually she'd have given it another stab and just pretended to not hear anyone who pointed out that her grieving had become less dramatic. I think she'd have spent a while ashamed of betraying her old family by loving this one, but a person has needs.

*-I promise I am not trying to be edgy. I'm honestly just reconstructing some tropes: what kind of person does become the sort of optimization-bot munchkins love? 5e doesn't really give space to min-max, which is good. Makes the exploring of themes less obnoxious.
Acanthya Starblade
player, 38 posts
Reason, sword, and spell
The tools of resolution
Sat 29 Dec 2018
at 06:04
  • msg #80

Re: Party Design

I'll just alter my age to fifty. That would accommodate me starting adventuring at thirty, fifteen years of badassery, and five years of quaint, tranquil life as a diplomat/teacher. That would mean I would have married to Kadrian for twelve years of the fifteen years we were a company. Then we had four years of retirement before he died. So, I've been living alone and grieving for about a year then.

-A note on Kadrian. I just made him up from whole cloth. He was a member of the Company. A fighter who was older and wiser than Acanthya. He could have been the original founder of the Company before we joined. He was a bit older that Acanthya. I'm going to say he was fifty-five when Acanthya became a member of the company, which would have mean he died at seventy-two while I was still forty-nine. Unless anyone has a problem with that scenario...:-)
Ghorza Arminel
player, 10 posts
Sat 29 Dec 2018
at 10:35
  • msg #81

Re: Party Design

Acanthya Starblade:
I've pretty much stated in my backstory we've been retired for about twenty years. I'm not sure how long we were together. My character is eighty-four years old and started adventuring when she was thirty. So, that is about a thirty-four year span of adventuring time. I'm open to discussion about how long we actually adventured together. I would say it would have to be at least ten years to become as famous and awesome as we want...:-D

This time frame burns through the entire life of a half-orc unfortunately.

 14 years maturity (still pretty young but I am open to it) =D
+34 years of adventure
+20 years of retirement
 68 (Half-orcs age noticeably faster and rarely live over the age of 75)

* We could do some hand waving and say something about divinity, but from Gruumsh it doesn't seem super likely.

But I am totally open to the timeline if it gels with everyone's. Perhaps Ghorza is the second bearer of this bloodline curse and part of the reason for the long downtime was laying an old comrade to rest?

I think this adjustment would allow me to say yes to the timetable and to and an additional layer to the character story.

Thoughts?
Dungeon Master
GM, 28 posts
Sat 29 Dec 2018
at 12:23
  • msg #82

Re: Party Design

I’ll leave most of this to all of you, but based on my timetable, you’ve all been retired at least 10-15 years. Assume magical or divine intervention could’ve extended lifespans and/or regressed the ravages of again to an acceptable degree. :)
Kella Stravnos
player, 12 posts
Sat 29 Dec 2018
at 12:31
  • msg #83

Re: Party Design

tru.

Baubles and potions and spells aplenty.  Maybe a leveraged curse, or a favor owed.
Markus Stern
player, 22 posts
Infamous Bounty Hunter
"I do a job, I get paid."
Sat 29 Dec 2018
at 14:15
  • msg #84

Re: Party Design

What about a simple ten adventuring, ten retired?

A decade is a long time...
Ghorza Arminel
player, 11 posts
Sat 29 Dec 2018
at 16:52
  • msg #85

Re: Party Design

10 and 10 sounds cool for me
Satari Creed
player, 3 posts
Sat 29 Dec 2018
at 17:24
  • msg #86

Re: Party Design

Oh a decade’s not that long; Markus has been saying it feels like a decade since about three days after Satari joined up!

As far as why we split, i’m getting the impression it was more of a gradual breakup, with people dropping off in ones and twos, like Kella thinking she burned everyone, or Satari’s oath of pacifism.  Though for all we know, the Silver Company could still exist in name.  There’s a non-zero chance (read: it totally happened) that some brilliant, enterprising soul liscensed the rights to the name once the real Company split!
Acanthya Starblade
player, 39 posts
Reason, sword, and spell
The tools of resolution
Sun 30 Dec 2018
at 19:23
  • msg #87

Re: Party Design

I think 10 and 10 is a very good compromise...:-)
Hargrim Steelsplitter
player, 12 posts
Mon 31 Dec 2018
at 01:38
  • msg #88

Re: Party Design

10 and 10 works for me too. Grim has been in circulation a lot longer, but a decade as a member of the Silver Company certainly seems sufficient to create some legends!
Kella Stravnos
player, 18 posts
Sat 5 Jan 2019
at 22:40
  • msg #89

Re: Party Design

It's also worth pointing out for us flashes in the pan that any place you see "rarely live past", a violent end is the only thing keeping us from being guaranteed rarelies.  With how the stats work on the ability rolls, I will be genuinely surprised if any of us has under 14 Con, so we'd have been much less often sick than other members of our races, heal faster from injuries, and generally be the best chances for some top-end lifespans.  But sure, a decades split.
Acanthya Starblade
player, 43 posts
Reason, sword, and spell
The tools of resolution
Sun 6 Jan 2019
at 00:19
  • msg #90

Re: Party Design

I actually have a 12 Con. With such a low score, I might only make it past 160 or so...:-p
Kella Stravnos
player, 19 posts
Sun 6 Jan 2019
at 00:28
  • msg #91

Re: Party Design

How positively dainty.
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