Yet another 30 day meme

Yeah, I got time on my hands. Ganked from claidheamhmor

( Cut for the meme )

I'll start tomorrow.

A bit of nattering about PC motivation.

I'm currently reading The Oxford History of the British Army. It's a book I've had knocking around forever, and never got around to reading. Now I am, and I'm loving it. The first chapter covers the evolution of English military forces through the Middle Ages, up to about 1460. One of the lines really hit me when it came to PC motivation on FRPGs.

It was about how much of the military power in Europe of the 12th and 13th centuries was made up of roving knights looking for any conflict they could get in on to increase not just their skills, but their renown. Before the formal adopting of primogeniture as the rule of succession, getting a hold of the family estates meant proving you were the best man for the job, and that meant proving yourself in wars. For the English of the period, this meant going to the continent either in one of the King's wars against France or as a knight-errant, looking for any fight that would take you.

So what does this have to do with your average PC? Fighters are highly trained warriors who normally carry "noble" weapons like longswords and wear good armor. Why is this guy wandering around the woods fighting orcs? He's the third son of a minor baron and his only hope of any position is to win fame and fortune fighting monsters and looting ancient tombs. He's setting himself up for bigger things later in life. This is where the Leadership feat comes in handy. At 20th level, he can march home leading a decent company of troops, wearing magnificent armor and wielding a glowing sword wrested from the hands of the Lich-King of Eastermarch. He's out there for a reason.

My point is, given their choice, most people would prefer a safe life at home. There are always exceptions, and they make great adventurers, but most people taking the risks of the adventurers' life are going to be doing it for a reason.

Hârn had a rule for the Shek-Pvar, the mages of the setting, that a newly graduated apprentice had to spend at least a year and a day wandering and couldn't be confirmed as a full member of the order until he returned to his old master with three examples of unique magic. This could be a new or rediscovered spell, an artifact, or a unique magical item. Obviously, very few journeymen mages are going to do this in one year. So you have another reason for the wandering life. It's a requirement. In my Europa setting, the true monks (as opposed to members of monastic clerical orders) are agents of the Great Library at Alexandria. They monks sent out into the world are charged with one thing: acquire information. Everything from mouldering books to first hand accounts, the monk is going to be wandering for a purpose. My version of the Dominican order are charged with protecting the faithful, spreading the true doctrine, rooting out heresy, and fighting the great foe where ever he may be found. You don't do this from a village church! So a lot of adventurers are going to be wandering in a cause.

Then there are the vengeance seekers, the refugees, and the remittance men. Those who had safe homes but were forced from them by circumstance. A war lost, a betrayal at court, a wrongful accusation.. anything that pushes them onto the road. The only difference is the motivation. A half-orc barbarian seeking revenge on the human lord who slaughtered his tribe is going to have quite different motivations than the noble swordsman who is paid by his family to stay away from home, but both are great character concepts. Rogues are great for this motivation. Especially the ones that are more charming than break-in artists; since con men need to move often to avoid the authorities. Even thieves will need to leave town if they offend the wrong person or tick off the guild. These folks will all have reason to seek riches and power.

When building/rolling a character, it's always important to think about why this person isn't doing the safe thing. Motivation writes stories. If your fighter is seeking to avenge his family against a powerful noble who stole their lands, you have a ready standing enemy and dozens of plots to follow in between more traditional FRPG tropes. If the enemy is known to have a large collection of magical tomes in his keep, the journeyman mage is going to want in on the action, while the cleric sees the noble as a threat to the faithful. The rogue simply sees the keep's treasury.

Which brings us to the next point: building a party. That's the next post.

Sad But True

I'm your dream, mind astray
I'm your eyes while you're away
I'm your pain while you repay
You know it's sad but true, sad but true

Looks like I'm pulling an all-nighter. The pain in my legs has reached a steady 7 on the 10pt scale, and I have surged to a full ten several times. Hydrocodone/Acetaminophine tablets aren't even touching it. Now the pain is radiating into my lower back. It seems marginally better when I can both sit up and get a lot of heat on my legs. Since kshandra needs to get some sleep, I'll take this night and sit up. Play some Nethack, watch DVDs with the headphones on, and just hurt a lot.

She did suggest a trip to the ER, but we can't afford it for pain. Even this bad. If I had other symptoms, like a racing heartbeat or extreme nausea, we'd go in a second, but right now I just hurt from the swelling in my legs. A late-night email to my doctor is forthcoming in which I am begging for strong painkillers. At this point I'd be willing to risk Oxycodone.

Hell, if I still had a client, I'd get onto IRC.

Long night, peeps.