Character creation.

So, a bit of setup: most or all of you will be starting this game holed up in an old oil refinery in the Crimson Badlands, run by local tyrannical warlord Rodney. Now Rodney's not well liked, and he's kind of a reclusive dick, but he keeps the lights on somehow and the refinery's the best shelter for miles around in this desert, even if that does make it a prime target for raids by the likes of Krunch and his small army of goblin bikers.

---

Now onto what this thread is for; making your characters. The one ironclad rule I have for this setting is: no clerics, or anything resulting from a direct divine connection giving you your powers. Anything else is fair game, and I do mean anything. PHB material, character options from any of the other official books, Unearthed Arcana articles, maybe even homebrew material if you can give me a really good case for it.

Also important to know is that this setting at the start does not have magic. This won't stick the entire time, but initially everyone is normals(psionics excepting). That isn't to say you can't start as a caster class or with stuff that gives you magic, but you'll just have to wait a bit to use it.

1st level? Should we roll stats, point buy, something else?

Yes, first level, and decide your scores however you like. If you're rolling them, this is the place to do it.

So I'm thinking of this for a character: Grevvn "Red Fist" Qarsk a half-Orc monk who was (or is) a pit fighter/gladiator in one of Rodney's arenas.

You know, I wasn't thinking it was a huge amount of territory, but screw it, the refinery's got a fight club hidden away in the basement somewhere.

I mean can you really call yourself a warlord if you don't have some kind of blood sport? :-P

Whoa...this has a LOT more "tech" than I originally thought... O_O I am going to have to do some thinking in order to find a character concept that appeals/fits...

Define "tech?"

Oil refineries, electricity, motorcycles, etc.

If it makes things easier, most tech isn't advanced very far beyond diesel engines.

Hmm, well let me see if I can think of a character concept that will "fit" the setting...hopefully some kind of inspiration will hit me...

Dieselpunk D&D? *swoon*

I'm building Louvan Fox, an elf rogue. Louvan sees the world somewhat differently from the rest, seeing grand adventure and fantastic magic in the mundane and dreary. He's a swashbuckler out of time; An elvish Don Quixote in the wasteland of Rodney's bleak territory.

What kinds of weaponry are going to be in use? Standard/classic D&D weaponry or more advanced types like guns, etc.?

Both. Guns and explosives exist, but there isn't exactly an abundance of available ammunition for them, so more traditional weapons are the norm.

Starting to get some potential rough ideas bouncing around...crossbow and sword-wielding female barbarian who distrusts "tech" remnants since they seemed to be "linked" to (responsible for) the current condition of the "world"...

How is that sounding?

Will we know each other before the start of the game?

That's up to you guys, though it would likely make things easier.

Sounds pretty cool to me!

This is the character image I am considering using... :)