Oh, great, thanks for the reminder! I think I'm in favor of doing the free feat again, with the encouragement that you use it to take something flavorful for your character rather than simply something mechanically very strong (not saying Lucky or GWM can't be flavorful, just that I'd prefer if the flavor were the motivating factor). Cora taking Chef in the previous game is a good example of what we're going for here - it was the perfect feat for her, flavor-wise, and I worked with her to make it mechanically competitive with other options so it wouldn't feel like a huge sacrifice to take it.

I've been experimenting with using Bard, Google's new AI chatbot thing, to suggest ideas for the setting. It hasn't done a great job so far, it tends to suggest pretty generic and repetitive things. For example, I copied and pasted the information about the Constabulary and asked for some NPCs to populate it. Here's what it came up with:

Constable Claghorn: The head of the Coglinton Constabulary, Constable Claghorn is a gruff and no-nonsense man who is determined to keep the peace in his city. He is a skilled fighter and a fair leader, but he is also quick to anger and can be quite ruthless when necessary.

Constable Jenkins: Constable Jenkins is one of Claghorn's most trusted officers. He is a loyal and dedicated man who is always willing to follow orders. He is also a skilled fighter and a good shot, and he is always ready to put his life on the line to protect the city.

Constable O'Malley: Constable O'Malley is one of the newest members of the constabulary. He is a young and idealistic man who is eager to make a difference in the world. He is a skilled fighter and a good shot, but he is also inexperienced and can be quite reckless.

Constable Jones: Constable Jones is one of the most corrupt members of the constabulary. He is always looking for ways to make a quick buck, and he is not above taking bribes or turning a blind eye to crime. He is a skilled fighter and a good shot, but he is also a dangerous man who should not be trusted.

Constable Smith: Constable Smith is one of the most loyal members of the constabulary. He is a dedicated and hardworking man who is always willing to follow orders. He is also a skilled fighter and a good shot, and he is always ready to put his life on the line to protect the city.

Constable Brown: Constable Brown is one of the most experienced members of the constabulary. He is a wise and seasoned man who has seen it all. He is a skilled fighter and a good shot, and he is always ready to offer advice and guidance to his younger colleagues.

Constable Green: Constable Green is one of the most feared members of the constabulary. He is a ruthless and brutal man who is not afraid to use violence to get what he wants. He is a skilled fighter and a good shot, and he is always ready to put the fear of God into criminals.

Constable Blue: Constable Blue is one of the most enigmatic members of the constabulary. He is a quiet and reserved man who keeps to himself. He is a skilled fighter and a good shot, but his motives are often unclear.

Constable Red: Constable Red is one of the most hot-headed members of the constabulary. He is a quick-tempered and impulsive man who is always looking for a fight. He is a skilled fighter and a good shot, but his temper often gets the better of him.

It seems like everyone in the constablery is a skilled fighter and a good shot! They must have the best training program in town! :)

With that said, it at least gens up a few different aspects of characters, even if not overly-deep.

...and for the record I never trusted Constable Jones. He has those shifty eyes.

Trying to figure out which of them broke Kreo's horn at a wildcat strike . . . hmmmm

Trying out this portrait. At first glance, it's kind of a menacing look for Frack. I like to think of this as more of a lovable, sheepish grin than a menacing sneer. Like he's thinking,

"I hope it's okay that I ate the last biscuit"
or
"I hope nobody else can smell that!"

Yikes! Those are definitely not the vibes I'm getting from that fellow :-)

All the goblin portraits I could find were pretty much the same (glowing eyes, angry teeth showing). It's almost as if they were trying to convince players that it's okay to kill these guys because they are mean and ugly.

I immediately have a thought about randomly sticking a knife in the goblin at odd moments throughout the story.  "Oh, sorry about that.  The eyes you know." or "Oops, couldn't help myself.  Those teeth!"

mcm287
mcm096
This message was last edited by the player at 13:00, Fri 07 Apr 2023.

I've got my head on a swivel, former Sikuaq! On a swivel!!!

...and Kreo, thanks for those couple less-aggressive recommendations.

Was there any other guidance for character creation apart from level 3 and one bonus feat? Tinkering with dnd beyond at the airport.

Starting equipment? HP? Normal point buy?

Tentative yes to all three. If something different makes sense for your character equipment-wise we can discuss it.

Had most of a sheet done already, just trying to think of a feat . . . too early for Inspiring Leader?

Any sharp eyed picture sleuths find a good deep gnome portrait on rpol?

Seems appropriate for someone who's already had some leadership role in the union.

In reply to Arvid (formerly) (msg # 37):

Mfd 595 568? Grey, gnome, it's not a great variety sadly

The selection of kobolds is also quite limited. I'll use one of them for the display picture, but the linked image is more like a picture him. I like that he's sort of wearing a uniform. I'm thinking that might be close to a constabulary uniform?

I haven't heard any objections so let's do the "everyone starts with a feat" thing again. Two implications of that:

-No variant humans (moot point, doesn't seem like anyone's trying to be human, which is fitting for the setting IMO!)

-No backgrounds that grant feats. If you're interested in one that does, or if you're just struggling to find anything that works for your character, let me know and we can homebrew a solution.

That a fine pic, Procz. Where do you find such things?

I found this image on Adobe Stock. There was a good selection of goblins as well, but just about all of them have a rather mean scowl.

OK I'm still ironing out details with some of you but we've got six great character concepts nailed down and I am excited to get them out into the world! Now it's time to think about how to get you all to the same place at the same time.

Three of you work for Baz Cinderhorn, so that's an easy connection. Can we start a conversation about how the three of you are connected there? Here's a little more background on Cinderhorn's guild, The Spark:


I'm thinking the three of you will be assigned to take advantage of a strike at one of JP Cognelius's factories to steal something from inside, if that works for you? You wouldn't need to have a longstanding relationship with one another - that part's up to you - but you'd know each from around the guild and maybe even have done jobs together before.

As for the rest of you, we've got Procz the robodog-riding kobold constable, Frack the bumbling goblin paladin, and Kreo the sex worker turned union organizer. It's not essential but you're invited to brainstorm possible connections to one another, to Baz's crew, or the scene I described. The strike could be an easy in for Kreo, trying to make a connection with another union. Ideas for the rest of you? Maybe you know one of the workers at the factory?

Oh yeah if there's a strike Kreo's there. Seems Kreo and Verity are known to each other if that's still on the table

My first notion is that Procz comes across suspicious activity at the factory (or receives a tip), and comes to the location to investigate. While The Spark might seek to go legit, corporate espionage and theft is still technically illegal and Procz is not the type to take a bribe and look the other way. He would seek both to prevent the burglary and arrest the perps.

This might seem to put him at odds with the main group initially. Nevertheless, as things unfold, his allegiances could shift, depending on what they find and what happens. I don't want to speculate in the coming adventure, but there might be situations where Procz might have to ignore minor infractions in search of bigger fish (choosing the lesser evil). He could come in debt to certain characters (or be in one already), if someone has done something for him; saved his life even.

An entirely different proposition is that Procz is working undercover, but that is a little silly on account of his poor health and obvious physical appearance. Of course, he could be there for other reasons. Maybe he has been set up or is investigating a lead to something else in the same facility?

If the labourers at old JP's factories are kobolds, being undercover might not be so strange. Or you might be posing as a member of an allied union or association that employs kobolds which focuses on their skills (tannery, waste disposal and laundresses all make use of alchemical agents and wouldn't require overt physical strength over say willingness to do the job and work long hours)

Heya all, I finally found my character art :D  The knives aren't so much Veracity's thing, but the style and attitude are perfect!

I like a worker's strike for a kickoff scenario.  Vera is a fast-talker mistress of disguise who runs cons and thievery, but in a Robin Hood-esque way of focusing the criminal efforts on rich and powerful scumbags :P  She's 18 now and was a ward of the Sparks gang since she was young, so she'd surely know anybody who has been in the gang for very long.  She's super social and always up to something, so she could really know any of y'all.  Always open to solidify some character connections.  I think we could be friends/acquaintances already, Kreo, as I think Vera will run in worker's rights activism circles and would fit right in at any of his 'red light' locales.

I'd be interested to define what the strike is about and what the Sparks gang's objective is, so we can figure out how we approach it.  It would be nice if the heist could be morally justifiable, just so we can find common ground with Constable Procz :)
This message was last edited by the player at 03:01, Wed 12 Apr 2023.