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OgyJoe
Novice
Joined: 23 Oct 2008
Posts: 40
Location: Nashville / Hermitage / Estill Springs, TN
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 Posted: Tue Oct 28, 2008 10:32 pm Post subject: [DLR] Need Help on a Couple of Things (Blessed Related) |
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I have a couple of questions. First off, I am trying to clarify the Blessed skill Faith. Is it a standalone skill purchased just like any other? And is it linked to any particular attribute (i.e. shooting is an agility skill)?
The other question is regarding a particular character's background. Over lunch, one of my players who had not even read the setting information proposed the idea of a physician with some sort of extra powers. We worked up a character with a high medicine and an Arcane Background (Miracles). This evening he blew me away with a well-detailed background story. I have a couple of questions to pose following the story.
| Quote: | Just for the sake of sharing, here is my character background.
Rev. Josiah Smithson, MD.
Born just outside of Springfield Illinois, Josiah went to college in Chicago, including Medical School. He practiced medicine for several years, mostly in Milwaukee and Mineapolis. He moved west when a wagon train of settlers, intending to found a new mining town in northern Nevada, invited him to come along as their doctor. They actually gave him a contract, promising to pay him for his first year of work for the town and for the trip.
While difficult, the trip out west was mostly successful. Of the 153 individuals who set out from Mineapolis, 117 survived the journey to the mine site. All seemed well for the first few months, through the late spring and summer. "Doc J," as most of the settlers called him, treated everything one would expect in a new mining town, a few broken bones, some lung illnesses, and a few births. Then, on July 3rd, as the town was getting ready for its Independence Day celebration (such as it would for such a small, isolated place), Josiah was called to the mine for an emergency.
What he found down in that black hole shattered his soul. An entire shift of workers, 15 men, was dead -- dead in the most gruesome way Josiah had ever heard of, let alone seen. The men's eyes were burned from their sockets, their skilled blistered as if boiled, and their chests torn open, leaving an obvious open where their hearts had been. No instrument or weapon Josiah knew of could have caused such damage. The only clue was a 10 ft cavity just off the right of the end of the shaft the men had been digging. The walls of this nearly spherical space looked melted, as if the chamber had contained something extremely hot.
For days, no one would go into the shaft, fearing that whatever had happen would happen again. When work did resume, there were no further incidents in the mine; still, the event seemed to smother all the town's enthusiasm and optimism. Even Josiah's confidence was shaken, nothing in all his advanced education could explain what he had seen. Within another week, hunters began to report that they were finding dead, mutilated animals, and even whole clearings that appeared charred. As days past, these reports increased and seemed to be getting closer to town. Fear began to grip the townsfolk. They began speculating that something had been released from the mine, something malevolent, something demonic.
22 days after the mine incident, the last 35 living towns people were huddled in the small church. Everyone else was dead, killed in similar ways, some in their homes, others on the job. In each case, no one had seen whatever had done it. For three days, they were holed-up in that small church, as a strange howling sound roared outside. Then, during the third night, the roaring reached its highest volume yet; the front doors to the church began to tremble, and smoke curled around the frame. The town parson bravely stepped forward, brandishing his crucifix and bible. He ‘rebuked’ the ‘demon,’ invoking the entire Trinity.
The doors suddenly burst inward, shattered into splinters. In the doorway was something nearly indescribable. To Josiah, it looked like a living flame, roughly shaped like a large man. Gouts of smoke poured off its back forming what appeared to be wings. Unearthly heat radiated into the room. The parson, though ashen from fear, stood his ground. The rest of the folk cowered under the pews, some silent, some sobbing. The creature howled again, seeming to actually be saying something in some demonic tongue. The parson actually seemed to understand. He responded by stepping forward a pace and again rebuking the thing as before, using even more of the various names of God. The flame seemed to enlarge, and a few tongues of flame flew out of it and began to touch some of the people, who immediately began crying out in pain.
Then, the parson did something Josiah would never forget, and, at the time, did not understand. He held his crucifix and bible in front of him and lunged at the flaming creature. As he was literally engulfed by the fire, he continued to invoke God’s name and power. Almost immediately, there were flashes of blue and white within the red and orange flame. It seemed to withdraw on itself, swirling faster and faster. In a few seconds, it looked like a tornado of flashing red and blue. Then, with one final flash of light and rush of heat, it disappeared, followed by the quiet metallic clink of the parson’s crucifix landing on the floor.
A month later, the town was abandoned, the survivors taking what they could and heading for other towns and cities in the territory. Josiah was the last to leave. He was both troubled and curious about the fate of the parson. He spent most of his remaining days in that unnamed town in the parson’s office, in the back of the little church, reading everything he could find, never letting that crucifix out of his sight.
When he finally came down out of that high valley, ‘Reverend’ Josiah Smithson had a new purpose, a purpose not opposed to his previous occupation, but complementary to it. Healing bodies wasn’t enough to truly help people; until the soul was cured, the body’s health really didn’t matter. He also knew that there were many ‘powers’ in the world that actively worked to destroy the souls of people. The only way to ensure the health of souls, Josiah had to get involved in fighting those powers, where ever they could be found.
Josiah, once a focused individual, with a strong optimistic outlook, is now a driven and serious man, often projecting an air of one carrying the world on his shoulders. He knows that having gotten a late start on his true calling, there is not much time to get the job done. Don’t try to deny that there are demons out there; he as seen them, and seen them defeated. |
How's that for someone who did a quick once-over of the setting? Anyway, here are the questions I had:
1. Is there a real town that would fit this occurance?
2. Has this ever been a real event?
3. Specifically what creature could this have been? Just a demon?
Thanks in advance for any assistance you can offer.
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OgyJoe
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Joined: 23 Oct 2008
Posts: 40
Location: Nashville / Hermitage / Estill Springs, TN
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| Posted: Tue Oct 28, 2008 10:48 pm Post subject: |
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Also, I am considering some sort of reward for such a detailed background. Maybe extra skill points or experience points. What do you think?
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shadd4d
Legendary
Joined: 24 Sep 2003
Posts: 3990
Location: Charlottesville, VA...I miss Deutschland and Chicago.
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| Posted: Wed Oct 29, 2008 2:15 am Post subject: |
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Faith is linked to Spirit (pg 82 in SWEX).
Based on the background, guy should have some Healing skill, and possibly the edges Conviction and Holy Warrior. Tell me, has he taken veteran of the wierd west?
As for the creature who caused it, maybe it's a unique servitor of some sort or a vanilla demon.
Maybe the same reward as taking a major hinderance, but I would also extend the opportunity to the rest of your players; character deaths notwithstanding, I'm not someone who will reward just one player and not leave open a possibility for other players to get the same reward.
Don
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Don
"But there is a difference between fear and horror. An important difference.
Fear is when you worry about what might be.
Horror is when you are certain." Dannyboy01 |
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OgyJoe
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Joined: 23 Oct 2008
Posts: 40
Location: Nashville / Hermitage / Estill Springs, TN
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| Posted: Wed Oct 29, 2008 5:22 am Post subject: |
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If others give me detailed backgrounds like that, they too will be rewarded.
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Karnaze
Seasoned
Joined: 08 Dec 2006
Posts: 299
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| Posted: Wed Oct 29, 2008 8:23 am Post subject: |
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| Our GM usually gives out 5xp for a good background, or maybe an item that we normally couldn't afford but was written into the background. In this case maybe have the crucifix give him a +1 bonus to casting miracles when it is held, or if that's too much, just a bonus when dealing with supernatural evil. Or given what he's witnessed, a bonus to Guts checks. |
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OgyJoe
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Joined: 23 Oct 2008
Posts: 40
Location: Nashville / Hermitage / Estill Springs, TN
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| Posted: Wed Oct 29, 2008 9:13 am Post subject: |
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| Karnaze wrote: | | Our GM usually gives out 5xp for a good background, or maybe an item that we normally couldn't afford but was written into the background. In this case maybe have the crucifix give him a +1 bonus to casting miracles when it is held, or if that's too much, just a bonus when dealing with supernatural evil. Or given what he's witnessed, a bonus to Guts checks. |
I was thinking about a 5 xp bonus. The crucifix is already worked into the relic he got from drawing a Joker in the card-generated character method. That's good info.
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Clint
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Joined: 13 May 2003
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| Posted: Wed Oct 29, 2008 9:28 am Post subject: |
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As noted above, I'd say the character is a prime candidate for Veteran of the Weird West. As a "bonus," I wouldn't even have the player draw for the effect, but just base it off the backstory.
Off the top of my head, I'd say he's Hunted by the original demon. The preacher stopped it, but only by trapping it within his body. The demon is in control, but doesn't have access to a lot of its supernatural powers. Oh, it's tougher and stronger, but it longs for fire. So the "preacher" is basically a psycho arsonist now, but the demon discovered something, if it can get the preacher's crucifix back and break it in a ritual, it will be released. So now, it's after the person who bears that cross.
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shadd4d
Legendary
Joined: 24 Sep 2003
Posts: 3990
Location: Charlottesville, VA...I miss Deutschland and Chicago.
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| Posted: Wed Oct 29, 2008 9:40 am Post subject: |
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| Clint wrote: | As noted above, I'd say the character is a prime candidate for Veteran of the Weird West. As a "bonus," I wouldn't even have the player draw for the effect, but just base it off the backstory.
Off the top of my head, I'd say he's Hunted by the original demon. The preacher stopped it, but only by trapping it within his body. The demon is in control, but doesn't have access to a lot of its supernatural powers. Oh, it's tougher and stronger, but it longs for fire. So the "preacher" is basically a psycho arsonist now, but the demon discovered something, if it can get the preacher's crucifix back and break it in a ritual, it will be released. So now, it's after the person who bears that cross. |
...Which could also be a nice long term goal of a caregiver of trying to solve the problem and possibly free the parson who sacrificed himself.
@Clint: that's beautiful...in a horrofic way. Props, dude.
Don
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Don
"But there is a difference between fear and horror. An important difference.
Fear is when you worry about what might be.
Horror is when you are certain." Dannyboy01 |
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OgyJoe
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Joined: 23 Oct 2008
Posts: 40
Location: Nashville / Hermitage / Estill Springs, TN
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| Posted: Wed Oct 29, 2008 9:50 am Post subject: |
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Any further ideas as to a real location or creature that may fit the story?
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