Picking a class is always the hardest part. The high dex
and con read as a dexterity-based fighter of some kind, to be sure. But the
harrow reading and the choice of deities read a very religious person, one who
dedicates themselves to ceremony. Although it may not be the most optimal
choice, the background screams some kind of spirit speaker to me so I went with
the one hybrid class I really dislike, Shaman. In this case I’m going to go
with the possessed shaman archetype. Like his own airy and ephemeral nature, so
too the spirits blow through him like the wind.
Signifier Card:
The Dance card show someone who likes to stay in order, but an order that has
meaning and purpose. This could have a direct meaning of dance, but with the
Empyreal Lord Winlas as the character’s patron deity, i see the “order” as
religious ceremony. I think it also interprets to a person who has certain everyday
rituals that they do in an almost compulsive manner.
Card One: The
Empty Throne tells us where the character is from, and he is from a place of
loss. This card represents the loss of the character’s birth parents. Although
they are gone, they are still with him. I can see this as showing that the
character’s parents either somehow haunt him, or come to him as spirits to
guard him.
Card Two: An
event in the character's life is portrayed by The Rakshasa. Although it can
mean literal mind control or enslavement, it can also mean being enslaved to an
idea. This goes well with a character who gets stuck in needing to complete
certain everyday tasks and rituals. Along with the conflict rolled on the
background table I see it as he took action on his promise to his parents to
look out for his sisters, no matter how detrimental it was for him personally.
Card Three: A
talent represented by The Idiot. The character has a low intelligence, which
matched with this card. I can see it as representing innocence and naivete.
Although this may not be considered a talent, it’s an important aspect of the
characters personality.
Card Four: The
Demon’s Lantern shows where the character is going. For some this may be a task
they must perform or overcome, but for others it can represent who they will
become. For this character I’m going with the latter. I see this character as a
man who chases the ephemeral. This really helps boil down the character’s class
to divine spellcasting class, in the case Shaman.
Chidubem Roundpond
Chidubem was born in the trading town of Kibwe. His
parents had arrived with his older sister as part of a trading caravan from
Nex. His parents so loved the small, to them, town that they set up shop there.
His father was a wainright, much sought after on caravan trips to repair wagons
if a problem occured while in transit. But many years of travel left the family
tired of the open road.
The young boy was born soon after they settled and to the
amazement of his parents he was born with a full head of white hair. Even from
an early age it was apparent that Chidubem had the blood of the djinn in his
veins. Although, his parents didn’t know from which side this infusion of
genie-blood had come from.
Life in Kibwe was mostly unremarkable, and even Chidubem’s
ancestry didn’t make him stand out among the myriad of odd folk who came into
town to trade. His introverted nature probably added to the fact that he didn’t
stand out. The young Sylph wasn’t the sharpest spear point, but he made up for
this by keeping his life quiet and incredibly organized.
As with any life hardship comes with joy and soon after
his younger sister was born his parents took ill with some sickness that was
going around. They didn’t last very long, but they did manage to set up care
for their children. Before they passed they made Chidubem promise to look after
his sisters and his mother gave him a locket that she had worn as long as he’d
known her.
Chidubem’s father’s cousin was a sailor, he lived in the
city of Bloodcove on the coast of the Mwangi Expanse. Although he himself was
gone often, his wife stayed home to take care of the children. His adoptive
parents couldn’t bear children of their own but they took in orphans to fill
that void. A half-orc older than Chidubem, whose father was a drowned shipmate
of his new parents, and a younger half-elf that never spoke of her parents, or
spoke at all, were already living in the Sylph’s new home.
As he grew older, Chidubem found that he heard voices in
his head. Sometimes it was the voices of his mother, other times it was the
voice of trees or animals. Although the Garundi still cleave to the old ways,
in many cases worship of the gods have overtaken their spirit worship. But the
Mwangi people still practice many forms of shamanism and in his quest to put
his life back in order he sought out one of these spirit speakers.
Rather than the old crone medicine woman he expected to
find, Chidubem was confronted with beautiful young woman. She was everything he
was not; messy, disorganized, outgoing. But she helped him gain control of his
powers. She claimed he was Boorii, someone who became a vessel for spirits. She
taught him how to let them in without giving them complete control. She also
taught him to let her in.
Keeping the spirits in order was something Chidubem was
good at, his own orderly mind helped keep him in control of his body when he
allowed spirits in. The rituals and rites needed helped to guide him toward
worship of the white orisha (Empyreal Lord) Winlas. Every song, every dance,
every ritual an act of service. Finding his power, finding his orisha, and
finding his love had finally made his life whole.
Even a perfect life is not without some trials or
conflict. Even Chidubem’s quiet, some would say naïve, nature could be pushed
to the wayside when family was involved. When a local tradesmaster took a
liking to his older sister, one which she did not reciprocate, and would not be
dissuaded, it raised Chidubems ire. Enough so that his control over the spirits
lapsed and one angry spirit drove him to vandalize the tradesmaster’s house.
The outburst and the loss of control made Chidubem fear
for his own abilities. With deep regret in his heart, the young sylph sought
penance. He also looked to protect his family from other possible outbursts by
the spirits that could ride him. Filled with regret he left home, setting out
into the world. His travels would however not be alone, as his love joined him,
as well as his ancestors in the form of his spirit animal, a fish eagle.
The hardest part, of course, was choosing the name. But
here you have Chidubem. What class would you have chosen for this character?
Why does this does this sylph choose to worship Winlas? How did you interpret
the harrow reading?
Like the spirits speak to Chidubem, the stories of these
character speak to me. If these character backgrounds spark your imagination
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