A smart and charismatic Undine born of elven parents. The
stats alone left many class options to choose from. The background rolls—love
of magic items, influenced by a wanderer, and loyal to a fault—didn't do much
to help narrow my choices down. It was a line in the write up for Svarozic on
the Pathfinder Wiki page that read, "To inspire great deeds with
the younger generation." that eventually led me to picking Bard as this
character’s class. In particular, I decided to go with the Undine specific
Watersinger archetype.
On a mechanical note, I decided to use some alternate
racial traits. Amphibious—which allows the character to breath under water—replaces
the Undine's spell-like ability trait, and Terrain Chameleon—which gives a bonus
to spell checks under water—replaces the Undine's energy resistance.
Uka'mbe
The Mwangi expanse is more than just the jungle which
bears its name. Although colonists, pirates, and smugglers have divided it into
a few different lands, Sargava, the Shackles, and the Sodden Lands were all
once inhabited by the Mwangi peoples. The human Mwangi are not the only people
to inhabit these lands. Savage demon worshiping halflings and aggressive tribal
elves, as well as more exotic creatures, make their home among the many jungles
and rivers here.
The colonialist Chelaxians of Sargava have displaced many
of the native people of the lands they now inhabit. Included among those are a
tribe of elves in the Laughing Jungle called the Abebi a distant offshoot of
the Ekujae tribe of the Mwangi Jungle. This tribe is often at odds with the
traitors in Sargava's second largest port, Port Freedom.
Uka'mbe was born in the tribal village of Abebi. His
mother died while giving birth and his father never revealed to him the secret
that he was conceived when a group of colonist warriors captured and assaulted
his mother. Being born of full elven blood instead of a half-elf, hiding his
mother's traumatic encounter, made this omission easier. It wouldn't be until
later that his true father's ancestry would be made apparent.
All throughout his childhood Uka'mbe was enamored of his
mother's brother. Unlike many of the other older Abebi members, Uncle Wakandi
bucked many tribal traditions and traveled the world. Stories of the other
lands of Garund, including the great Osirian cities, the strange devices of
Alkenstar, and the godless folk of Rahadoum filled the child's mind with
thoughts of adventure. His uncle had even piloted a ship on the inner sea and
stopped at some of the strange lands of Avistan.
On one particular visit his uncle bequeathed him a small
feather which had belonged to his mother when she was a child. Uncle Wakandi
told him the feather had magical properties which his mother never used. Even
his uncle was unsure what properties it had, but he warned Uka'mbe that
whatever they were they could only be activated once.
Conflict with Port Freedom ebbed and flowed. Rarely was
there ever a full out assault from either side, and never in young Uka'mbe's
lifetime. Young members of the tribe, however, would tease and dare each other
to make their own little raids on the port. This infrequently amounted to
anything more than vandalism, mischief, or at the very most, petty theft.
Entangled in games that adolescents play, Uka'mbe found
himself caught up in a twilight "raid" on Port Freedom. Using colored
paste made from plants, he and a few of the other young Abebi invaded the
outskirts of the town, painting obscene remarks and warnings in their native
tongue on the sides of buildings. This attracted the attention of Port
Freedom's guard, who chased the children out of town. A few of the guardsmen
almost caught Uka'mbe and in desperation he used the feather that had belonged
to his mother. An incredible gust of wind blew the guardsmen off their feet
allowing him to escape, leaving the feather bereft of magical energy and ever
after inert.
It wasn't until after puberty that Uka'mbe's true
father’s racial heritage showed itself. While causing mischief he gained the
ire of other colonialist explorers. Outnumbered, he headed for the river in an
attempt to lose them. Diving in, he had not the time to swim away but when they
peered into the water around where he had submerged they seemed to completely
overlook him. It wasn't until after they left that he realized he had been
underwater for a full five minutes without losing breath. And when he looked at
his skin he saw that it had turned from its usual dark brown to a mix of
greens, blues, and grays that matched the vegetative bottom of the riverbed.
This soon faded but his flesh and even his hair retained tinges of watery
green.
Upon return to the Abebi village his people were
fascinated by the changes that overcame him. Elves being a bit more forgiving
of the differences granted by having the blood of an Outsider saw Uka'mbe's
unique abilities as a gift, but Uka'mbe was unsure how he felt about this
newfound racial heritage. It wasn't until one of his uncle’s return trips that
he decided how he would use his powers.
Uncle Wakandi told his nephew that change is an important
part of life. One of the reasons he left the tribe to wander was that often the
tribe refused to change. He spoke to him of leading the younger generation,
inspiring them with great deeds and helping to redesign obsolete traditions.
Uncle Wakandi left him to make his decision with many
books, including those about singing, oration, and texts on the many Empyreal
lords of the great beyond.
Uka'mbe took his uncle's words to heart. Finding his own
inspiration in the stories of the Empyreal lord Svarozic, he decided to end his
mischievous ways, mostly. To lead his
people he needed to know more about the world he wished to bring them into.
Taking after his uncle, Uka'mbe decided to spend a few years traveling before
returning to his tribe.
Bard may not have been your first thought as it was mine.
What class would you have chosen for this character? What background would you
have written to match these random rolls? Why did you make these decisions?
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