His bio, exactly as he gave it to me, from a first-person standpoint. Here ya go! As far as i can tell he lived on a farm pretty close to a town.
As a little boy i liked reading books at libraries. I didn't care if people think i was strange i just love reading books. I also like being with my dad. Helping him work on the farm:weeding, collecting eggs, plowing, and selling our food for money, but keeping some food for ourselves. It was hard work keeping our family alive. My mother cook breakfast, lunch & dinner for my dad and i. My sister died during birth and every day we pray for her to have a safe trip into the Dome of Creation. One day i was looking for a book to read, I what for my dad to finish buying wood for the winter, when i stumbled upon an old door. Curiously i opened the door to see what was inside. I then found an old chest with no lock on it, so i opened it curious to see what was inside of it. That's when i found a big book and i thought it looked fun to read so i took it and smuggled it onboard, because my dad doesn't like me reading books when there work to do on the farm. So at night i read it under the moonlight or with a dim candle, sometimes i go outside to my shack, when my chores are done, and read it there. When i first looked at the book it seemed strange i felt warm inside but i couldn't understand what the words mean, i now a few languages but i haven't seen this type before. Then all of a sudden i heard an explosion, we get a few adventures every now and then. They practice sword fighting, casting spells, and sometimes archery. This was all done on a field we don't use anymore. So i thought we have some visitors but i didn't go see them just yet, I wanted to hear another explosion and to answer my request there was another one but this one seemed louder then the other one. Then i hid the book under a loose plank in the shack and went to investigate the sound. Then i saw my burning in flame. I went inside the house, after the flames died down, to look for my parents, but to my great horror i saw their skeletons on the ground. When i was trying to get a bed built(Dont ask me why[Thrune]), i heard a sound, and when i looked around a wizard was there. He saw what happened and told me a rouge wizard destroyed my home. He offered a room in a academy, for wizards, for me to live in. I accepted his hospitality and tried to salvage anything from the wreckage, then i went to my shack and got the book i was reading. When Maze, the wizard, saw the book he told me that the rogue wizard was probably looking for such a book. After he a while he transported us to his academy and i started my new life there. After a while of learning the magical arts of wizardry i decided it was time for me to search for (This part blurred). When i was packed and ready to go i said my goodbyes to Maze and my friends at the academy and set out on my first journey.
Ideas for sections of the Test. The stuff in parentheses is what sort of encounter it is per ToHS.
-Have him be haunted by the ghost of his unborn sister, saying that she may only ascend to heaven if he gives up his magic. No matter what the answer is, she transforms into a Imp and attacks him after he makes the decision(Combat).
-Have the renegade mage appear and tell him that he has two choices:death at the hands of the renegade(Duel); or becoming the renegade’s apprentice(Failure).
-Have him ‘wait’ in a crowded room for the Test. Suddenly, flames wrack the entire area as the people turn into fire elementals and attack(Combat).
-He reaches an area in the woods, where he sees a cave. A bunch of people are inside, but a large man is stuck in the cave mouth, his head outside. A river is rising, and the large man blocks the exit so that nobody can exit.(Magic Area).(I got that idea from something posted on these boards)
-A ogre-mage and his companions capture him and tell him that he can live if he can stop a band of other ogres from attacking them.(Magic Area)
-A dragon captures him and forces him to do impossible tasks such as lighting a torch without his magic or flint/steel.(Test)
-He must wait at the end of a long line to enter the Test. The other apprentices treat him rudely. Eventualy, when he finaly is close to the end, someone shoves in front of him to enter the ‘test’ room.(Misc)
-A mage challanges him to a duel in front of his peers. He must either fight(Combat), or find some way to get out of it without ashaming himself(Test).
Well, that's all my ideas/the bio of the wizard in question. Help me with this, please!
There's a few elements to consider in this character's background which would make for a nice test:
1. Fire. How does the character react to fire? Does he have a fear of fire? Perhaps the Test involves fire in some way, and leaves the character permanantly burned - a nice physical scar to have left over from his Test.
2. The renegade. This is the perfect villain to use for the Test. One thought I had was that perhaps it wasn't a renegade who burned his home, but rather his teacher, who was perhaps a Black Robe in disguise, trying to recruit new Black Robes to follow him. This depends on the character's history and prior games, of course. Although....see below.
3. Family. This is a traumatic event in the character's life, and revisiting it may prove to be a good story element. Perhaps he revisits that time, and has to try to save his family.
I would start it out with the spirit of the unborn sister (if I read that right) giving the wizard some sort of revelation about the family, and their demise. Things seem familiar to the wizard, and he soon realizes that he's replaying events.
During the test, he has the chance to save his parents. He now has magic, so perhaps he has a means to do that. Some sort of fire-based creature would work nicely here. If he saves them, then he has to choose between family and magic. If not then he can get burned at this point, and has the emotional trauma of not being able to save them, magic or no.
Somehow, have him track down the renegade and confront him. Now, perhaps the renegade appears as his old teacher for whatever reason. Now he has to confront the idea of facing against someone he trusted, yet who murdered his parents. This is the cool part as he has to face a more powerful opponent.
The magic item he gets at the end of this, provided he survives (Bwah ha ha ha!), should reflect this adventure somehow. Perhaps he gets some item that works against fire.
Perhaps also give him a choice of magic items, one being an item of fire.
I would stress that if he does get burned as the physical scar of the Test, that it should be something that is painful and can't be healed, not even by a cleric. Somehow, it must be the price of magic.
Anyway, that's just some rough ideas on how to tackle this. You've already got your villain, plenty of emotional trauma, potential for character development, and a potentially nasty phobia.
Really, the elements you need for a great Test and adventure are already there.
Good luck!
Hey Dragonhelm! You stole my post! ;)
Was that your post? I could have sworn I had one just like it. :D
I like your idea, Dragonhelm, but i think(Dunno about you) that Tests should be long. Still, thanks!
No prob. I hope my notes are helpful.
Personally, I feel the Test should take up one gaming session. That's just me, though.
Let us know how it turns out.
You could have him get a mission to gard a powerful artifact with the ability to bring people back from the dead (have the pc's play illutions of themselves) well if he runs off with it and uses it on his family he failes (his task was to gard it; tower before anything else) and is attaked by undead vertions of his family. If he survives he will be unable to learn new spells from the guild that is restricted to those how passed the test.
If he gards the artifact "the renage" will make an apperance after aperently massacuring everyone else in the tower. HE will then temped the pc to give up or join him while saying how piontless it is to resist. (realy overpowered encounter). If the pc is still truthfull to the tower then they enter combat and procead to be beaten badly. all the while the Renagade will demand their surrender.
If the pc fights to the end (dies at the hands of the renagade) he will awaken and find he passed the test (proving we was willing to sacrifice everything for the tower no matter how hopeless)
Mast likely the scar will be an emotional one but you could have him have scars from his test (from his combat in the test)
Personally, I feel the Test should take up one gaming session. That's just me, though.
I did that for one test but because I was so rushed the player figured out he was taking his test and it pretty much ruined it. This time I plan on taking it slow and see how it goes. Of course we only have a 4 hour gaming session (it's actually 6 but between always starting late, meals, and breaks it breaks down to 4 hours gaming), I probably could have done it properly with a 6-8 hour session.
Do you feel that it is better to run the Test for a PC mage as a solo adventure or should the rest of the party be included as well?
Just curious on people/DM's opinion's on this.
Do you feel that it is better to run the Test for a PC mage as a solo adventure or should the rest of the party be included as well?
a solo adventure, but I wouldn't make it last more than 15m or so ... or give the other players some NPC opponents to use, that way everyone is involved.
....
....
On a side note, does a wizard's scribe scroll feat count for the requirements to take WoHS? ... I think yes b/c it's an item creation feat.
so a non-human could take WoHS for his/her 5th lvl ...
1st lvl feat: spell focus
bonus: scribe scroll
3rd lvl: still spell (for example)
4th lvl: 7 ranks in spell craft ...
so if Raist wanted to he could have been a wiz4/WoHS2 in the WotL CS ... right? (as a human he'd have one more feat, I'd vote for great fortitude ... he needs it for the Curse of the Magi.)
Just curious on people/DM's opinion's on this.
Do you feel that it is better to run the Test for a PC mage as a solo adventure or should the rest of the party be included as well?
I think that could go either way, and it largely depends on the dynamics of the group, as well as the wizard’s background.
Just curious on people/DM's opinion's on this.
Do you feel that it is better to run the Test for a PC mage as a solo adventure or should the rest of the party be included as well?
I've always run it as a solo. I've a test coming up, as soon as it's my turn to DM again, for the mountain dwarf wizard in my group. I need the player to think he's still preparing for his test so I will be working the rest of the party in and out of his test. They will always be non-combatants unless he specifically asks one or more of them to help him when his testing comes. So while it'll be a solo adventure for him, I have to keep the rest of the party busy as well for their sakes and for the sake of fooling the player. I've found that a player who doesn't know his character is taking a test will do things he'd otherwise not have his character do. This was I get a real feel for what robe he should wear versus the one he thinks he should be wearing.
I think that Tests should be Solo. I am also setting it up as something seperate from the rest of the players. Anyway, the Test is done(I used Dragonhelm's suggestion, modified a little). I like having villains who have a reason for what they're doing, so 'Maze's' reason for destroying it was to get a new recruit. Anyway, the test is done, i'm ready to rumble, and thanks everybody!
So how'd it go? Details my boy details!
Any suggestions or advise is welcome.
- The PC is visited by the ghost of dead lover (tied to PC back story) in the middle of the night, she tells him that her soul has been captured by one of the Silvinesti’s oldest foes. Before she can tell him who an imp appears and shreds her image and attacks. Before the imp is killed it tips PC off that his lover’s soul can be found in the sewers of Al Khurmain. The PC should and will be without spells at this point. (Combat with out magic)
-The PC reaches an area in sewers of Al Khurmain, where he sees a small opening. A dozen or so people are inside, but a large man is stuck in the opening his head and mouth outside. The sewer water is rising and the large man blocks the exit so that nobody can exit. Manages to save everyone (White) Kills the large man to save the others (Red) Leaves them to all die (Black). Not original but I liked this idea when I saw it posted.
-PC encounters a Black Knight Gray Robe in the sewers spying on the Steel Legion. Knight attacks PC to make sure his presents goes undetected. (Magic Duel)
-PC runs across a Steel Legion member is being attacked by a sewer dwelling creature. As PC goes to assist a magical looking staff can be seen floating down the drainage way. The wizard must choose to either assist the SL or go after the staff. If he chooses the staff the Legionnaire dies if he aids the Legionnaire the staff is lost. Aids the Legionnaire (White) manages to get staff and aid Legionnaire (Red) Goes for the staff only (Black)
-Towards the end of the test the PC encounters Cyan Bloodbane (lose part of PC back story) in the sewers and tells PC that he has two choices: forsake magic forever and he’ll release lover’s soul otherwise he’ll banish it to the Abyss to be forever lost. He will insist that the PC takes out his own eyes to ensure he is true to his word. If he attacks Cyan (Red) refuses (Black) takes out his eyes to save lover’s soul (White)