Character Creation Thread

[Hot Mustard]

Originally posted by SlowwHand
So I screwed up? Cause I'm fairly rounded.
I DID give some tiny emphasis to a Ranger's strong-suit.
Or should I have emphasized the others instead?
Hell with it. I'm holding what I got.
And from a previous statement of mine, I can't lower constitution and raise Wisdom. Different cost, so I'll raise intelligence.

Human Ranger, good if that comes into play.

Strength = 14 (cost of 6)
Dexterity = 14 (cost of 6)
Constitution = 12 (cost of 5)
Intelligence = 14 (cost of 5)
Wisdom = 14 (cost of 6)
Charisma = 12 (cost of 4)

I guess this will do.

This will be my name. "Kyllight Cindwesdon"

No, you didn't screw up. You're well-rounded, that's all. Look at it this way - you're not going to suck at anything.

[SlowwHand]

Excellent.
So I'm ready?

[Hot Mustard]

Originally posted by korn469
a couple of questions,
when raging would I get a 22 str?
what skills can i take? only the ones listed in the class skills?
how do i indicate i'm literate? (i'll spend skills on it)
how does that look for a character?

Yes, your STR will go up to 22 when raged, giving you a +6 STR modifier. With your CON, your Rage will last for 7 round (3+elevated CON modifier).

Skills to consider for a typical Barbarian:

Climb, Jump, Swim - a raging Barbarian doesn't usually want to let an enemy get away, even if they climb a tree, jump a chasm, cross a river, etc.

Wilderness Lore, Intuit Direction - for when the impulsive Barbarian gets separated from the group, he can find his way back.

Intimidate - Scare the pants off people so they'll tell you what you want to know. (Ask DM if you can use your STR modifier for Intimidate checks rather than CHA - you're a brute, not a smooth talker)

Listen - Always good to have advance notice of something coming.

You can take other skills (aka crossclass skills), but points spent on them will only gain half as many ranks (4 points=2 ranks).

I'm not sure on the literacy question (which skill), but I do know that once you only have to become literate once, not once for every language you speak or learn.

Character looks good, but my, he's ugly! (low charisma)

[Kramerman]

This is my Epic character down scaled . He’s my favorite character:
NAME: (Lord) Braddock of Ahtlaka
RACE: Aasimar
GENDER: Male
AGE (later years of adventuring): 35
CLASS: Paladin
ALIGNMENT: Lawful Good
LVL: 1

GOD: Heironious

Brief Background:
Braddock of Ahtlaka came from humble beginnings in the prosperous commercial coastal city of Ahtlaka. His family was of the merchant class and young Braddock was expected to run the family business when he was of age, so was sent off to schools afar to be educated. Returning home one summer in his teenage years, he found the news he had heard to be true… Ahtlaka was sacked and plundered and its inhabitants slaughtered by a goblinoid horde. Braddaock sulked in the burnt-out ruins of his old home for days… starving, thirsty, depressed, and bound for death, till an eldery stranger passed by. This humble and strange priest of Tyr found it his duty to briefly tend to the boy’s health, before he planned to move on… however he noticed something… a strange glean in the boy’s eyes… the priest sensed a divine presence in this youth and took him in under his wing. The priest nurtured young Braddock’s talents and abilities, and set him on his path to avenge the fate of his city and his family, and to the ultimate yet ever-unattainable goal of the total destruction of evil.
Young Braddock first tested himself in his Battles of Baldur’s Gate, where he defeated Saverok and made a name for himself. And later discovered he was one of the Bhaal Spawn, and his Godly essence was actually that of Bhaal, the Lord of Murder. Braddock became a living contradiction, being a Paladin of Tyr, yet son of Bhaal. After a long and arguous campaign in the Land of Amn against demonic sourcerer’s, giants, dragons, and finally his father, he destroyed the God of Murder and took his thrown.
Lord Braddock, intent on continuing his quest to destroy evil and incapable of holding the throne of the realm of murder, resigned his thrown, and returned to the plane of Middle Earth, reincarnating himself (in game terms starting over at level 1 , after achieving a Godly level 36). Claiming the ruined land that was once the flourishing city of Ahatlaka, he began anew. As lord of this land, new people came to settle, and enjoyed prosperity under his benevolent rule… however darkness stirred in the nearby kingdom of Neverwinter. Lord Braddock, eager to rejoin his quest, leant his trusty sword to Lord Nasher in the fight to save Neverwinter, culminating in the eventual victory of good over evil.
Lord Braddock’s adventures have taken him across the Realm, where he faced death and pleasure, and met friends and foes. His travels brought him friendship through the bond of battle with the famed elvin archer Elec Holimian, the legendary dwarven warrior Cho’Gal Waken, the mighty half-orc Crog the Barbarian, and many, many more. Back to back, he and his fellow adventurers slayed the evil Saverok, Great Wyrm Dragon Klauth, the Creator Race Leader, and a countless number of other foes of both great and little strength, and large and small numbers.
Now in his older years, what will the waning days of this ambitious and bold Paladin bring him? What adventures still await him? What new friends will he meet, and which new foes will he defeat? We shall see…

REGION: Ahtlaka

SPEED: 20ft*
*Hvy armor normal 30 to 20, can only move 3 times speed when sprinting.

ATTRIBUTES:
Attribute: Stat (point cost) [modifier]

STR: 16 (10) [+3]
DEX: 12 (4) [+1]
CON: 14 (6) [+2]
INT: 10 (2) [0]
WIS: 14 (4) [+2] (+2 racial bonus)
CHA: 16 (6)[+3] (+2 racial bonus)

HP: 12 (d10 + 2 Con)
AC: 19 (10 base + 1 Dex, + 0 Size, +5 armor, +3 shield)
INIT: +1 (DEX)

Base Attack: +1
Melee Attack: +4 (+1 base; +3 STR)
Ranged Attack: +2 (+1 Base; +1 DEX)

FORT: +7 (+2 base, +2 con, +3 class)
REF: +4 (0 base, +1 dex, +3 class)
WILL: +5 (0 base, +2 wis, +3 class)

FEATS:
Detect evil
Divine grace
Lay on hands
Divine health
Exotic Weapons Proficiency: Bastard Sword

SKILLS (16 at 1st lvl; +4/lvl; *cross-class skills)
Diplomacy (CHA) - 7 (4 ranks, 3 CHA)
Ride (DEX) – 5 (4 ranks, 1 DEX)
Handle Animal (CHA) – 7 (4 ranks; 3 CHA)
*Spot (WIS) – 4 (2 ranks; 2 WIS)

SPELLS:

LANGUAGE: Commmon
Racial: Common

WEAPONS: Bastard Sword (Attack: +4; Damage: 1d10+3; critical: 19-20/X2)

EQUIPMENT: (240 start gold)

Explorer's Outfit (free) (2 lbs)
Sword, bastard 35 gp 1d10 19-20/X2 - 10 lb. (S)
Chainmail 150gp +5 +2 -5 20 ft. 15 ft. 40 lb.
Shield, tower 30 gp ** - -10 - - 45 lb.
1 flask Holy water (25 gp)
1 Silver Holy Symbol
1 50’ rope (1gp) (10lbs)
1 waterskin (1 gp) (4 lbs)
20 pieces of parchment (4 gp)
5 torches 5 lbs
1 pen (1 gp)
2 vials of ink (1gp)
1 backpack (2 gp) 2 lbs
1 bedroll 5 lbs
1 belt pouch (1gp) 3 lbs

Total cost/weight: 251 gp / 128lbs

Money: 0 (actually –11, but I thought that was negligible )

Carrying Capacities:
Normal - 76 lbs
Medium - 153 lbs
Heavy - 230 lbs

portrait:

[Hot Mustard]

Originally posted by SlowwHand
Excellent.
So I'm ready?

Not quite. There are still skills, feats and equipment to choose. But I can help you pick those real quick with one question - What weapon(s), or type of weapons, do you want to fight with?

The answer will help us pick appropriate equipment and feats. And we can finish off with some typical skills for a Ranger.

[Hot Mustard]

Originally posted by Kramerman
This is my Epic character down scaled . He’s my favorite character:
NAME: (Lord) Braddock of Ahtlaka

Cool. I hope you don't expect to be addressed as "Lord".

Originally posted by Kramerman

Money: 0 (actually –11, but I thought that was negligible )

I took the time to squeeze everything to within 2 or 3 gold for my characters!

[Kramerman]

Originally posted by dejon


Cool. I hope you don't expect to be addressed as "Lord".

yes

I took the time to squeeze everything to within 2 or 3 gold for my characters!

well, i rationalized it like this: i bought stuff according to the book prices, but in (alter)reality, I would have used my 16 charisma to sex the prices down . so actually, i should have like 30 gp left...

[Hot Mustard]

Ok, I've decided to stick with my first charater (the Halfling Sorcerer), so if somebody is too lazy to create a character and wants to use the fighter I posted, go for it.

He's a smart fighter, lacking only in charm (CHA) and wilderness savvy (WIS).

Primary weapon is the spiked chain, which can be used to attack foes at range (10ft) and close in (5ft). His m.o. is a trip attack with the chain. If a trip succeeds, he gets a free immediate attack (Improved Trip) on the enemy, who is now prone (+4 to attack). If a trip fails, just drop the chain (so the enemy will not get an attack of opportunity), step back, and draw the greatsword.

Attacks with the greatsword get 1.5 times his strength modifier for damage (using it two-handed) - I forgot to put that in the original post.

The spiked chain will also grant this character tons of attacks of opportunity - watch for them.

Don't forget to pick up the chain after battles if you drop it!

Have fun

[Hot Mustard]

Originally posted by Kramerman
well, i rationalized it like this: i bought stuff according to the book prices, but in (alter)reality, I would have used my 16 charisma to sex the prices down . so actually, i should have like 30 gp left...

Hey yeah - me too!

[SlowwHand]

As Tubs would say, "ACK!" .
I want to use a sword. Do I need to be more specific?

[Hot Mustard]

Originally posted by SlowwHand
As Tubs would say, "ACK!" .
I want to use a sword. Do I need to be more specific?

One, with a shield? Or two swords/weapons? Something dashing, like a rapier or scimiter? Or basic, like a longsword?

If you have a copy of the PHB, look at page 103 to see the different sword types.

Do you really want to hurt people, exposing yourself a bit in the process? Or do you want to play it safe, and use a shield?

For feats:
Do you want to have impressive offensive abilities? Or valuable knacks that help yourself and the party?

[Kramerman]

Originally posted by SlowwHand
As Tubs would say, "ACK!" .
I want to use a sword. Do I need to be more specific?

maybe. If you want to be a ranger, you'll probably want a lighter sword, as in not a great sword (which is two handed). but here is a summery of each.

Note: differenet weapons do different types of damage. hammers and otehr blunt weapons do Bludgeoning damage, arrows, spears, bolts, and other sharp tipped weapons (including thrusting swords) do piercing damage. cutting weapons like axes and most swords do slashing damage.
this is important because some types of enemies or armor are immune or resistant to certain types of damage.

Great Sword: a large 2 handed sword (like in brave heart) that does a powerful 2d6 slashing damage (+ 1.5 times your strength modifier since it is used in 2 hands) . big and heavy and requires 2 hands to use

Bastard sword (also known as a hand and a half sword. nearly as large as a great sword, but can be weilded with one hand): does slashing damage
does 1d10 damage have to take a feat to use it in one hand, else it is like a weak 2 handed sword

Long swrod (also includes broad swords, your standard medeival style sword): does slashing damage
standard one handed sword does a respectable 1d8 damage not really a downside other than only doing 1d8 damage... it is the most common and well rounded type of sword.

Short sword (thrusting sword, like the galdius used by the romans): used with thrusts, so it does Piercing damage
a light weapon good for the off hand if you are going to use two swords at once only does 1d6 damage

rapier (long slender sword, popular for dueling in renessaince europe): does piercing damage like short sword
a medium sword like the longsword but only does 1d6 damage it has a critical hit range of an 18-20, which is really good compared to the 19-20 of other swords

Scimitar (basically a curved rapier): identical to the rapier but does slashing damage instead of piercing

Falchion ( a exotic weapon, looks like those old fashioned curved and jagged Arabian curved swords): a large two handed sword that only does 2d8 damage (but 2 handed so does an additional 1.5 times your strength modifier, instead of just adding your stregnth modifier with a one handed weapon), but as a critcal threat range of 18-20X2 like the scimitar

hopefully thius helps you choose a sword that will fit your character

[Hot Mustard]

A quick explanation of "critical threat" is probably in order.

Every attack is a roll of a d20 (20 sided die). If your roll is in the critical threat range (usually only 20, sometimes larger), you get another roll. If your second roll is a hit (just a normal hit for the enemy, not another in your critical threat range), then you deal damage according to your critical hit multiplier. It is normally x2, and sometimes x3.

"Crits" make for legendary moments in DnD.

[Kramerman]

"Crits" make for legendary moments in DnD.

oh yeah many a dragon was slayed at the end of a critical hit with my bastard sword

EDIT: a critical hit basically simulates a rare hit when your weapon connects with a vital spot or weak point in a foe (such as the eye or heart or exposed crack in armor or scales or something like that)

also, a few exotic weapons have critical hits with a ultiplier of even X4(!). There are also a feat you can get that increase the threat range of a specific type of weapon. For example, if i took the "Improved Critical" feat for my bastard sword, it would double my threat range from 19-20(X2 damage) to 17-20(X2 damage). so any time i rolled a natural 17, 18, 19, 20 with the 20 sided die, I could potentially do double damage.... that is good. If i had a rapier, which normally has a crit threat range of 18-20X2, its new range after taking the feat would be 16-20X2 (i believe...).

here is the actual feat stats, if your curious. i like to get it eventually (complements my usually Keen magical sword well):
Improved Critical [General]
Prerequisites: Proficient with weapon, base attack bonus +8 or higher.
Benefit: When using the weapon the character selected, the character's threat range is doubled.
Special: The character can gain this feat multiple times. The effects do not stack. Each time the character takes the feat, it
applies to a new weapon.
Note: "Keen" magic weapons also double their normal, nonmagical threat range. As with all doubled doublings, the result is
triple.

[Urban Ranger]

Originally posted by Jon Miller
never heard about a +10% XP bonus

and I don't think it is possible to get a 14 in everything with 32 points

Jon Miller

That's from first edition, I am not sure if they have removed it. You don't need to have a 14 in everything, just in all the primary attributes.