Game Discussion
Hey all! Rictor is an Aragorn wannabe, lost prince of a fallen country and all that, who has made his way back to Qadria after his defeat of the black dragon Esaolathus. Level 17 is getting up into "you are already kickass, world hopping adventurers" territory so his backstory is dramaaaaatic.
He was the Swordprince of Alkir, a mountainous country sandwiched between Taldor and Galt, so he's about one country away from Qadria demographically. I'm seeing a lot of Ibn's and Als in the cast list so it will be cool to add in an outsider perspective on Qadrian culture as well.
Esaolathus, uncommonly cunning and wily for a black dragon, infiltrated and began to co-opt the court of Alkir when Rictor was a boy. Rictor began to suspect something sinister beneath the dragon's human guise but before he could act Esaolathus had Rictor exiled. He began a wandering journey seeking the means to break the black dragon's hold on his homeland and free his family from the beast's clutches.
This is mostly the nebulous 'wandering around doing adventury stuff to get up to level 17' portion of his backstory, and when he would have likely encountered everyone else's characters. He certainly would have sought the expertise of the world famous Qvan Ibn Hamid for a way to pierce his nemesis' magical disguise, or sought wisdom in meditation with Vahid al-Mavari to steel himself for the battle ahead. Perhaps Zhira al-Darea remembers a taciturn ranger from far to the north, traveling with her caravan and seeking a mystical oasis with the power to bless his arrows with the strength to penetrate dragon hide.
He climbed to the top of Mhar Massif in search of star iron to forge a blade capable of slaying Esaolathus. He sought and reassembled the seven shattered fragments of the Mirror of Xin to give him some clue to his enemy's weakness. He forged alliances with knights and priests and seekers on their own journeys. And at last, when his skill and power and the tools in his arsenal were sufficient to the task, he returned to his homeland.
But his return was not triumphant. The seven spires of Alkir were crumbled and fallen. Only the tallest, now the Black Tower of Esaolathus, remained. The people were gone, enslaved or sold or driven off by disease and hunger and Esaolathus' troops of madmen and zealots. Of the royal family only the princess, Rictor's sister, remained--trapped at the top of the tower, thrall to the black dragon. He climbed that lofty spire, fought through Esaolathus' traps and nightmare denizens, and in a mighty battle smote his enemy to ruin at the peak. But the dragon reached out with its dying breath to curse his vanquisher one last time. The tower crumbled, and while Rictor miraculously survived the fall his beloved sister was crushed under the rubble.
Now, prince only of a land of dust and ashes, he turns his journey to the warm lands of the south.
Dramaaaaaatic.
I figure his closest tie to the group and the current adventure is probably Vahid. He remembers his teachings and, lost and grief stricken, is seeking his council once again. He's traveling to Qadria for a little grief counselling when whatever is the inciting incident of the module crops up and he steps up to his ally's aid.
Mechanically he's a stealthy scout/ranger type. His favored enemy is obviously Dragon, so hopefully there's one or two of those somewhere in the module, but luckily his bow works on things that aren't dragons too. A bit. Utility wise his biggest bring-to-the-table is Survival. With +52 when tracking he's getting up into "+20 DC to do something impossible, like swimming up a waterfall or bargaining with a deity" territory, so if one of our objectives is anything like "find a dude" we should be covered. Otherwise you can mentally slot him into the "Big dumb melee guy" pigeonhole.
Color wise I like green for rangers, but that may be a little close to seagreen. Eh, brown is sort of earthey too. I'll reserve that one.