Cain
by Chris FurneauxThis is a character I made for my brother in our last game. I asked him what sort of character he wanted to play and how he wanted to play him and then made the character. We played through DDA3 and he did well and survived without too much trouble even though for the most they were outgunned. He used his sleep spell in some well timed places and some quick talking by the party saved them a lot of trouble. We had two elves in the party (OD&D but one I had basically made a fighter, who just happened to have elvish blood) and the (real) elf died gloriously killing two orcs with flaming oil and then getting the third orcs arrow through the heart.
Character Name: Cain.
Alignment: Lawful Evil
Class: Mage
Level: 1
AC: 9
HP: 7
Abilities:
Strength: 15 +1
Intelligence: 18 +3
Wisdom: 12 ~_
Dexterity: 12 ~_
Constitution: 16 +2
Charisma: 12 ~_
Languages:
Darokinian [read, write, speak]
Thyatian [read, write, speak]
Flaemish [read, write a little, speak]
Elvish (Belcadiz dialect) [read, speak]
Elvish (Alfheim dialect) [read, speak]
Skills:
Magic Manipulation
Simple magic
Basic shortspear
Basic staff
Ancient scripts (esp. Alphatian, Flaemish, Thyatian, Elvish)
Magical scripts (read)
Equipment:
The Tome of Esader
Spearstaff
Spellbook
Chainmail shirt. (borrowed from Manag)
Personality:
Cain believes he is gods gift to the world, and while he does not claim so openly, it does give him the belief that he should be in charge (of as much as possible). He tends to be very greedy and scheming, but does this in the privacy of his own head, such that if he were to betray you he would be away laughing before you knew what hit you. He makes friends on the basis of what they can do for him, and when that's nothing he tends to ignore them. He will attempt to ally himself with people more powerful then himself while those that are less then him he views as insignificant and treats them like dirt unless it suits his purposes to do otherwise. His intelligence and caution (or perhaps precautions) are what has kept him alive this far, as well as the fact that going out of his way for revenge is not his style (there's no money in it these days), nor is killing for fun (although killing for money, power, etc....well). He will generally only do things that benefit him (and therefore the greater good) and that he can get away with.
History:
Cain was born in Darokin, the least favourite son of a wealthy merchant. At an early age his father realised he did not have the skills to make good merchant and so didn't really pay much attention to him. At the age of 10 he was sent to Glantri to learn the art of magic at the bidding of his father who felt that it might get the boy to behave in a respectable manner, and that he might make something of himself other then a nuisance. Cain showed to be an adept student and learned fast the art of magic and what happened to those that disobeyed the rules of his teacher. Thus Cain learnt to fear and respect rules and laws, although he still believes that he should be above them. So while willing to break them if he knows he can get away with it, he usually doesn't. Cain is now on the run from his old teacher.
He has been travelled south, through Darokin by the back ways, as contact with his family could be very dangerous in more then one way. It appears that he has not been tracked, but he is being looked for. Deeming Darokin too dangerous, Cain has arrived in Karameikos, a land concurred and ruled by the Thyatians, but also very wild, and full of strange things. It is just possible that he may survive here long enough to learn some of the secrets of Esader's book, enough that he can fix his old teacher for good, putting his worries behind him. Then he will be able to do anything his heart desires. But for now he needs some money.
Signing on with an goods escorting business, he has been assigned to a group going to Luln by Manag, the business owner. Manag has seen that he can fight, and blend in, ideal for the escort business. He has loaned him a chainmail shirt for the trip. Although there are many problems that discourage mages from wearing armour, this suits Cain very well as he is now seen as a grunt, rather then the mage they are looking for. It also makes him harder to track as he is on the move, easier to avoid capture as he has company, and gives him time to study his book with money to live on.
Notes: The book of Esader.
A 12"x10"x1" book bound in red leather, the Tome of Esader is an ancient Flaemish tome that dates back over 700 years. It is part history, part magic, and for the most part undecipherable as it is written in a strange cross between old Alphatian, ancient Flaemish and Magical scripts. It was written by the half-insane mage Esader and is rumoured to contain some of the most powerful spells ever created. It is believed that Esader delved too deep and was driven insane by the magic itself, and this was eventually his doom. Esader protected this tome in two ways, firstly the language that he used was unreadable by any other mortal, and secondly he protected the tome from any magical aids to reading or understanding. Therefore to read any part of the tome one must physically learn the language it is written in. Esader also bestowed the tome with powerful magical abilities, and strong magic resistance. In this way it is quite safe from the effects of spells and other forces that would usually damage a book. It also allows the user the ability to defend himself. Unfortunately you only know that these exist, not how to use them, yet, but in time...
Spellbook.
1st level: Magic missile, Sleep, Read magic
Memorised: Sleep.
Skills Notes:
Magic Manipulation (int, con, str)
This skill allows Cain to mess with others magic, and interrupt their spell casting from a distance. He must roll against his intelligence with -2 for every level that his opponent is higher then him. Also this is a very draining activity. And each time he does it, he must make a constitution check (with the same penalties) or temporarily lose d4 points of strength.
This can only be recovered by rest, and he will recover one point of strength with every 10 minutes spent resting, or 30 minutes spent active but away from strenuous activity.
Simple magic (int)
This skill is the ability to cantrip at will. With a successful skill roll he can do simple things with magic, like light a match, create a slight gust, make torches flicker, etc. The skill roll can however be heavily modified depending on the task.
Basic shortspear
This represents his basic training with a spear and its use in combat. He was taught when he was young by a friend of his fathers who was a weapon master. He was too small at the time and without the heart for shorter weapon combat and the spear seemed ideal. In Glantri he kept up his practice and created a short spear that could be disguised as a mage's staff, and so when cornered he was potentially more dangerous then most mages of the same level. It is partly to do with this that he has developed his physique, as well as a desire to be desirable.
Basic staff
This was part of his training in Glantri, but he never really cared for it. But it does mean he can defend himself using a staff, while casting magic. Ancient scripts (esp. Alphatian, Flaemish, Thyatian, Elvish) Not much use in most situations he had been studying these to help decipher the book of Esader, and he has grasped them fairly well but the combinations in the book have made it difficult.
Magical scripts [read] (int)
He also learnt more of this then your standard mage and so is able to determine more effectively what things written in magical scripts say, and where they most likely.