In Pathfinder, there is a group known as the Pathfinder Society. In short, they are “a loose-knit group of explorers, archaeologists, and adventurers who span the globe in search of lost knowledge and ancient treasures.” Reading a little bit more on them, I found a passage in the Campaign Setting that stated:

Agents are expected to provide detailed written reports of their exploits to their venture-captains, who then forward the most compelling records to the Grand Lodge in Absalom for consideration by the Decemvirate.

And this got me thinking that I could use this to reward my players while, at the same time, encourage further development of their characters. I sent the following note to my players:

If you want, you can write up a recap of a session, a specific portion of an adventure (for example, a dungeon crawl that only takes place as the middle third of the adventure), or of an entire adventure and post it; pretend you’re writing it for an audience.

For every recap you write for a session, you earn 1 Hero Point. If you write about a specific portion of an adventure, i.e. the dungeon crawl example above, you will earn 3 Hero Points. If you recap an entire adventure, you earn 5 Hero Points.

Also, in game, you might end up seeing them published for folks to read.

Personally, and I’m probably a little bit biased here, I think it’s a great idea. It keeps the players engaged out of the game, rewards them for character development, and provides material for the in-game world.

I Am A: Lawful Good Human Fighter (5th Level)

Ability Scores:

Strength-14

Dexterity-14

Constitution-15

Intelligence-15

Wisdom-16

Charisma-16

Alignment:
Lawful Good A lawful good character acts as a good person is expected or required to act. He combines a commitment to oppose evil with the discipline to fight relentlessly. He tells the truth, keeps his word, helps those in need, and speaks out against injustice. A lawful good character hates to see the guilty go unpunished. Lawful good is the best alignment you can be because it combines honor and compassion. However, lawful good can be a dangerous alignment because it restricts freedom and criminalizes self-interest.

Race:
Humans are the most adaptable of the common races. Short generations and a penchant for migration and conquest have made them physically diverse as well. Humans are often unorthodox in their dress, sporting unusual hairstyles, fanciful clothes, tattoos, and the like.

Class:
Fighters can be many things, from soldiers to criminal enforcers. Some see adventure as a way to get rich, while others use their skills to protect the innocent. Fighters have the best all-around fighting capabilities of the PC classes, and they are trained to use all standard weapons and armor. A fighter’s rigorous martial training grants him many bonus feats as he progresses, and high-level fighters have access to special melee maneuvers and exotic weapons not available to any other character.

Find out What Kind of Dungeons and Dragons Character Would You Be?, courtesy of Easydamus

For those who have played M:TA before, I ask you look over my character and give any advice you think would help (This is the first time I’ve ever played M:TA).

Shadow Name:

Virtue: Justice

Vice: Pride

Concept: Private Investigator

Path: Arcanus

Health: 7

Willpower: 4

Gnosis: 1

Mana: 7

Wisdom: 7

Size: 5

Speed: 10

Defense: 2

Armor: 3 (when Shielding spell is cast)

Initiative Mod: 9

Attributes

Intelligence: 2
Wits: 2
Resolve: 2

Strength: 1
Dexterity: 4
Stamina: 2

Presence: 3
Manipulation: 3
Composure: 3

Skills

Computer (Hacking): 2
Investigation (Crime Scene): 5 (Rote Skill)
Occult: 3

Firearms: 1
Larceny: 1
Weaponry: 2

Empathy (Lies): 3 (Rote Skill)
Intimidation: 1
Persuasion: 2
Socialize: 1

Arcana

Fate (+): 3
Time (+): 2
Mind: 1
Forces (-)

Merits

High Speech
Eidetic Memory
Fighting Finesse (Knife)
Disarm
Fast Reflexes (2)

Rotes

The Perfect Moment (Fate 2)
Fortune’s Protection (Fate 2)
Postcognition (Time 2)

Nimbus

Time seems to slow a bit

Dedicated Magic Tool: Silver Knife

Combat: Silver Knife

There are literally hundreds, if not thousands, of websites out there that specialize in art. However, a lot of them, well, suck. But that’s where I come in. Here are some really good websites that specialize in fantasy art and examples of what you’ll find at each. (Thanks to my wife for most of the links!)

Julie Bell and Boris Vallejo

You can’t go wrong with the mistress and master of fantasy artwork. If you’re looking for ripplingly-muscled men and scantily clad women, this is the site for you.

Source: Boris Vallejo and Julie Bell (c) 2003

April Lee Illustrations

Gorgeous artwork.

Source: April Lee (c) 2003

Claudio Pozas

I would be seriously remiss if I didn’t mention my friend Claudio. You’ve seen his art a lot lately and he did the cover work for Fire and Brimstone!

Source: Claudio Pozas (c) 2008

Donato Giancola – Donato Arts

If you’ve played M:TG, you’ve probably seen his work.

Source: Donato Giancola (c) 2007

Epilogue.net

Lots and lots of fantasy and sci-fi artwork by many different artists.

Source: Scott Findlay (c) 2008

Jennifer Meyer Illustrations

Beautiful work by a freelance illustrator.

Source: Jennifer Meyer (c) 2008

Justin Sweet

I love this guy’s work.

Source: Justin Sweet (c)

Larry Elmore

The one and only.

Source: Larry Elmore (c)

Cris Dornaus

He’s done a lot of work on the 7th Sea line.

Source: AEG (c) 2000

Studio Uriel

Portraits of Diablo characters.

Source: Patricio Soler (c)

The Art of Douglas Shuler

Another artist who did work on M:TG.

Source: Douglas Shuler (c)

The Art of Todd Lockwood

One of the best artists working today. If you’ve ever played D&D, you’ve seen his pictures.

Source: Todd Lockwood (c) 2008

Tom Martin Art

Another friend of mine with great talent.

Source: Tom Martin (c)

Tony DiTerlizzi

Personally, my favorite artist in this list.

Source: Tony DiTerlizzi (c) 2008

Daydreams Graphics

A handful of different artists are represented here.

Source: Matt Cavotta (c) 2008

CG Choice Award Gallery

The best digital art as chosen by the Society of Digital Artists.

Source: Sven Geruschkat (c) 2008

Joe Pekar

This guy definitely has talent.

Source: Joe Pekar (c) 2008

And last, but definitely not least:

The ULTIMATE D&D Gallery Links List

A great lists on Gleemax to tons of fantasy art sites.

So there you go. I hope that you’ll be able to find the character portrait you’re looking for on one of these sites. Have fun!

Note: The 4E Character Builder only allows you create characters for levels one through 3. Of course, the full version will allow you to build them up to level 30.

Installation of the program was relatively straightforward. I downloaded the setup file and ran it. It then downloaded the install file and ran the installation program. Why you can’t just download the installation program directly is weird to me, but there ya go.

• You need Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5 SP 1

This is a must. The program simply will not work without it. If you don’t have it installed, the first part of the Character Builder install program will download it and install it and then install the Character Builder itself.

Once installed, you can run the Character Builder. The first screen gives you the option of loading an existing character, creating a new one, or creating a quick character which will auto-build it based upon things like race, class, etc. Great option for building some quick NPCs. Also, on the main screen, are links to the latest news on D&DI and the Character Builder.

I chose to create a new character and it brought me to a screen that allowed me to choose a Race. However, at the top of the screen are tabs to move between different sections. So, for example, if I choose Elf for a Race and moved on to the next step, I don’t have to start over if I want to change it. Instead, I simply click on the Race tab and make my change.

There are many races available, not just the races from the PHB. Those are all there, of course, but it also includes races from the Monster Manual, Forgotten Realms, and Dragon Magazines. When you click on a race, the right side of the screen will give you all of the related to that race. There will also be a picture of the male and female versions of the races from the PHB at the bottom of the screen. There are no pictures for other races but there is information on the right side of the screen.

I chose a race (Human), clicked on a button labeled “Choose Human,” and then chose a language. The languages were all from the PHB. I clicked on a language (Draconic), clicked a button labeled “Choose Draconic,” and clicked on “Next Step” to move to my class selection. You can change your choice without having to start over. You simply need to go to that section and click on the arrow next to the heading of the column to see the complete list again. Then choose another race and click the “Choose ….” button at the bottom to make the switch.

The class list gives you all the classes from the PHB plus one from Forgotten Realms and one from Dragon Magazine. I chose the Fighter, keeping it simple, chose a Build (Great Weapon Fighter), and chose my Talent (One-Handed). I then moved on to the next step.

Next I am able to pick an optional Background for my character. This really only applies if you are using the backgrounds in Forgotten Realms or ones presented in Dragon Magazine. I didn’t choose a background and moved to the next step.

I moved to Ability Scores next. Here I have a few options. I can allow it to Auto Pick for me, I can Roll Dice, or I can Use an Array. Regardless of the option I choose, it keeps track of how many points I’ve spent. This is great if I’m using a point buy method of ability generation. I can click the Reset Points button at any time to reset my abilities. I also, at this point, choose where to place my racial ability modifiers. I picked an Array to use and put my racial mod in Strength. Time for the next step!

Skills are next. As a human fighter, I see four “Train a skill” options at the bottom of the screen. I click on a bold skill name (these are the skills available to my class) and click the “Train …” button to train in that particular skill. I noticed that when I clicked on a skill, it gave me the complete PHB entry on the right side of the screen. Very convenient. I did this four times and then move to the next step.

Up came Feats. Lots and lots of options. I really liked the Search feature which allowed me to search for specific text in feat names or descriptions. I typed in “proficiency” and it went to the first Weapon Proficiency feat. I hit Enter and it went to the next one and so on. Very nice. At the bottom of the screen, just like with skills, it listed two “Choose a Feat” options; one for being a Human and another for Fighter. I clicked a Feat, clicked “Choose…” and did it again before I moved on to the next step.

Powers were next and the process was essentially the same as before. I have options at the bottom to choose a specific type of power (at-will, encounter, or daily). I click on one and see the powers to choose from. I click on a Power, click “Choose Power,” and it adds it. I also have the Search option on this screen as well.

Equipment is next and the list is huge! I’m glad there’s a Search option here. It automatically gave me 100gp to spend. I also have the option of “Shopping Mode” which allows me to buy stuff at 100% and sell at 20%, just as you would in-game. Nice little option for tracking your equipment through here. You can also click Auto Pick. When I did that, it purchased armor for me, a weapon, and the Adventurer’s Kit.

The next, and final, step is where you enter your character’s details. Name, gender, alignment, deity, height, weight, etc. You can also enter your name and your RPGA number. You also Level Up from here, Retrain, enter a Character Portrait, create Journal Entries, and other things like that on this tab.

I filled out the info and then clicked the Save button in the bottom left-hand corner to save it in a format usable in the Character Builder. I then clicked the Character Sheet button to view it and print it. Here’s a shot of the first page and the last page.

Conclusions

All in all, this is a very, very nice product and it definitely makes my subscription worthwhile. It is very easy to use and beats the tar out of the 3E Character Generator. I highly recommend you get this when it becomes a stable product or you can get it now if you want to create characters level one to three.

I’ve seen multiple complaints posted across multiple boards on the lack of choices for character creation in 4E. I’ve heard, from my own players, how frustrating it is to be so limited on the choices available to them.

Granted, I understand where the frustration is coming from. By the time 4E hit the shelves, we had a plethora of sourcebooks for 3E.

1. Players Handook
2. Players Handbook 2
3. Book of Exalted Deeds
4. Cityscape
5. Complete Adventurer
6. Complete Arcane
7. Complete Champion
8. Complete Divine
9. Complete Mage
10. Complete Psionic
11. Complete Scoundrel
12. Complete Warrior
13. Dragon Magic
14. Expanded Psionics Handbook
15. Heroes of Battle
16. Heroes of Horror
17. Magic of Incarnum
18. Races of Destiny
19. Races of Stone
20. Races of the Dragon
21. Races of the Wild
22. Sandstorm
23. Tome of Battle – Book of Nine Swords
24. Tome of Magic
25. Unearthed Arcana
26. Weapons of Legacy

And those are only some of the official supplements published by Wizards for D&D 3.5 since 2003.

So now all the players who were used to spending hours poring over supplement after supplement trying to create “the perfect character” spend less time figuring out how to develop their PC.

Personally, I like the limited scope of character creation from both a DM and a player perspective. As a DM, it makes it easier to manage the characters without having to look at infinity plus one source books. As a player, I find it forces me to be creative with the choices I’m given, even if I can’t make the exact kind of character I want to make.

And therein lies my question; is there a happy medium? How many supplements are too many? Would you be happy with just the PHB or do you want to run the gamut of options using, for example, the Advanced Players Guide or Fang, Fist, and Song that are available now?

Fluff before Crunch

Kristobar Chelton was a good man. From an early age he had trained as a squire, idolizing the knights that he saw every day. He was especially enthralled with Sir Cooper, the knight for whom he worked. Every day he would brush Bolt, Sir Cooper’s handsome grey steed, making his coat shine like glass in the bright sunlight. He would polish Sir Cooper’s armor for hours on end, sometimes catching himself in the reflection, and daydreaming of when he would be in the saddle, protecting the needy from the monsters that roamed the countryside.

When he reached the age of manhood, he decided that he was ready to become a knight. He approached Sir Cooper and told him that the time had come. Sir Cooper agreed and said he would arrange for Kristobar’s training to start as soon as possible. Kristobar was ecstatic. He raced home and told his parents of Sir Cooper’s promise. That evening, their home was full of food, wine, and song. Unfortunately, it was to be the last happy moment for a while.

Kristobar’s training did not go well. He had trouble weilding his weapon while in full armor, the horse he was to ride would buck him off constantly, and his problem solving skills, while good, were not good enough to reconcile the practice disputes he was sent to resolve.

After two months of failures, Kristobar was called into Father Thomas’ office to discuss his future. Father Thomas took pity on Kristobar and told him that, while he was eager to learn, eagerness was not enough.

“Perhaps a life in the clergy would be good for you,” it was suggested to him. But Kristobar did not want to hear it. He told Father Thomas that he would be a knight and would continue to practice until he was either a knight or he was dead. There was no middle ground for him.

That evening, Kristobar had the most vivid dream he had ever had before. He was in the middle of a field of tall grass, surrounded by nothing but the wind and the chirping of birds. In the distance, a man in full armor with a symbol of a right-handed gauntlet help upright with the palm forward walked towards him. He came within a few feet of Kristobar and stopped.

“You are not ready, Kristobar. You will be in the future, but not now. I know your heart is pure and, when you are ready, I will welcome you into my ranks. For now, take this.”

The man held out a small golden key which Kristobar quickly took. The man continued.

“You will know when to use this. For now, you must serve me in the clergy, spreading my word and helping the defenseless. Go, my son. Do my bidding.”

With that, Kristobar awoke and sat upright. In his hand was the key. He knew what he must do.

The next day, Kristobar walked into Father Thomas’ office and told him what happened. It was the beginning of a wonderful journey for Kristobar.

So now we have the backstory for Kristobar Chelton. Now we do the math. We know he will be a human cleric with asperations of being a paladin. We’re playing D&D, so let’s use the standard array (16, 14, 13, 12, 11, 10) to fill in the attributes.

Strength – He needs to be able to defend people in trouble so he has to be pretty good with a weapon. We’ll make his strength a 14.

Dexterity – Clerics can wear relatively heavy armor to protect them, so dexterity is not a critical attribute for them. We’ll make it a 10.

Constitution – Just like with strength, he needs to be hardy so he can defend people. Let’s give him a 12 constitution.

Intelligence – Kristobar is not stupid but he’s also not the smartest person out there. He was raised to be a squire. While he may have had some formal training, most of his education will revolve around what he learns as a young cleric. Intelligence will be set to 11.

Wisdom – Kristobar knows people and wants to help them. He wants to use the power of his god to help those in need. He studies the books and passages of his god and learns to let his god’s will flow through him. His wisdom is a 16.

Charisma – Kristobar is good at helping people and talking to them. He geniunely cares about what they have to say. He’s not great at it but he’s learning to be better. We’ll set his charisma at 13.

Str 14, Dex 10, Con 12, Int 11, Wis 16, Cha 13. Not bad for a first level cleric. Because of his personality, we’ll say that he is best trained in diplomacy, healing, and insight. And given his background, I will definitely make him Lawful Good.

All in all, this is a pretty well rounded character with a fully fleshed out backstory. Personally, this would be a fun character to roleplay given his ultimate goal. I would just want to make sure I worked with the DM to realize his potential.

Crunch before Fluff

Ok. Time to sit down and make a character. Let’s see. What do I like to play? I like wizards. Ok, let’s make a wizard. I also really like Eberron, so I’m going to make him a changeling. I’ll use the standard array (16, 14, 13, 12, 11, 10) to fill in the attributes.

Strength – Not that important for wizards. They usually stay out of combat. Let’s make it an 11.

Dexterity – Can’t wear armor but I need that 16 for intelligence. Better put the 14 in dexterity.

Constitution – Wizards have relatively low hit points, so I want a relatively high constitution. A 13 should be good.

Intelligence – Most important attribute. Definitely a 16.

Wisdom – Well, I have a hard time playing stupid or naive characters, so I’ll put the 12 in wisdom.

Charisma – I have a 10 left. Guess this is my dump stat.

Str 11, Dex 14, Con 13, Int 16, Wis 12, Cha 10. I’m thinking knowledge in arcana, history, and nature should work for him, since he’s so smart. I also want to play a pretty impatient wizard, so let’s make him Chaotic Neutral. Now the story for him.

Evershade Venuur was born in the city of Celene to a changeling father and an elf mother. He lived a good life and always showed an affinity for magic. However, he was also impatient and always wished that his magic abilites were innate, like the sorcerer, so he wouldn’t have to spend time researching and memorizing them. He was patient enough, though, to complete his training.

His goal is to bend magic to his will the way he believes sorcerers do it. He had learned some ways of doing it (i.e. metamagic feats) and wishes to learn more.

He is traveling trying to better himself. He is in Erybend because he has heard a alchemist named Grumbles needs help finding some flowers to go into a concotion of sorts. If nothing else, it’s a good opportunity to earn some cash and practice mage hand.

Not bad. Nice numbers and the story, while not too terribly fleshed out, does give me an idea of how to play him. Should be fun.

So what does Tony do?

Both of the characters I’ve presented are characters I’ve created and played. Both were created in the manner listed and both are the most memorable, and fun, characters I have ever played. In each instance, I analyzed what kind of DM would be running the game (would there be more roleplaying than action or vice versa) and made the character based upon that.

Typically, I create characters using the second method. I come up with a character concept insofar as what character class I would like and then the numbers to fit him or her. I then come up with a fleshed out backstory, again depending on the DM. I don’t want to spend a lot of time coming up with a backstory if I know it’s not going to matter in the game. But, if it will, I definitely will spend a lot of time creating and adjusting said backstory to bring a fully fleshed out character to the table who has many options for the DM to use in the campaign.

Conclusion

There is no right way or wrong way to make a character. Some folks prefer to flesh out a character first and then make the numbers fit. Some folks prefer to input the numbers and create a backstory to justify the numbers. Either way is okay as long as you’re having fun with them.

So what about you? Do you prefer “fluff before crunch,” “crunch before fluff,” or something completely different?

Play a charismatic character

All sarcastic heroes are charismatic and come across as self-confident. The first step in you being that hero is to try to be charismatic. However, I realize that it’s difficult for some to play a charismatic character simply because they don’t have much practice at being effectively charismatic. But there’s no time like the present to try it! And even if you’re not great at it, the rest of the tips below can help overcome your lack of presence and add to your character’s memorability.

Prove yourself to the group as soon as possible
No matter how much of a sarcastic hero you want to be, the rest of the party won’t care if you haven’t proven that you can handle yourself, whether in a fight or socially or both. If the first thing you do is mouth off to the rest of the party, they’re not going to be very happy. In fact, they’re probably going to ignore your character because “they’re just an a-hole.” You need to prove yourself. When the first opportunity presents itself, whether it’s fighting, planning what to do next, investigating a local mystery, or something else, you need to show that you can be trusted and that you’re good at what you do. That way, you are no longer “the a-hole” but rather “the character with the attitude” that people know they can trust.

Know your characters limitations
One problem I’ve seen with people who fail to play the sarcastic hero is that they don’t know their character limitations. For example, you’re in combat and your character sees a door. You know that the rest of your group is still fighting for their lives. So do you open the door or do you go help you group? Here are some things to think about.

If there’s an enemy behind the door, will you be able to handle it by yourself?
Don’t expect the rest of the party to run to your aid. Remember, you’re the one who decided to open the door.

Can the rest of the party do without you for a bit?
Are they in deep trouble or can they handle it by themselves?

If there’s a staircase behind the door, what will you do?
If you’re in a dungeon, this is a definite possibility. The answer to this one is never go down the stairs. Never abandon your party. That’s the act of an a-hole, not a hero.

If you answered yes to the first two questions and know that you won’t go down the stairs in question three, open the door. Otherwise, go help the rest of the party.

Never screw over the party
Once you do this, you’ll never be able to play the kind of character you want to play. Let’s look at a perfect example; Han Solo. In Star Wars, Episode Four, he took his money and ran after delivering the princess and R2-D2 to the rebels. The rebels really needed him. He was a very, very good pilot and could have been a great asset. Instead, he took his reward and left, rather than fight for a good cause. Of course, we know now that he did come back and ended up helping Luke save the day. But what if he hadn’t? What if he had left and never came back? Would he have been the hero as we think of him today? I say no. He would have just been regarded as a gun-for-hire who helped them and then left when the going got tough. Don’t let your character become that gun-for-hire. You want to be Han Solo? Help your party.

Be funny
This one is really a hard one to give good advice on since everyone’s idea of humor is different. But think of all the sarcastic heroes you’ve come to know and love. All of them, at one point or another, made you laugh. Maybe not “roll on the floor” laughing but laughing nonetheless.

Make “playing your character” beneficial to the party
A lot of people who run characters others think of as “a-holes” do so because “that’s what my character would do.” I’m all for roleplaying ones character but there needs to be a good balance here. When you do things that “your character would do,” keep the advice I’ve given in mind. Make what they would do benefit the party. You may have written your character’s backstory as them being a slave and that’s where you developed the attitude because you needed it to survive, but now you’re in a group of people who are all working towards the same goal.

Put it all together
If you put all of these tips together, it will go a long way in helping you play a memorable character. The character with the attitude that really stood out and held their own but still worked with the rest of the group to defeat the bad guy and save the day. Remember, no matter what your character’s story, you can keep the attitude, but make your character realize they need to work together. That’s the true mark of a sarcastic hero.

What about you? Have you played, or witnessed someone else play, a memorable sarcastic hero? Why are they so memorable? What advice would you give?