Character Creation & World Building

I'm not done with Thomas - been doing bits and pieces as the day goes on - but I thought of submit now so I'm not holding things up.
Wife is driving back from in-laws (2hr drive), so I was able to finish my character sheet. :-)

@Maskcot, quick question. A lot of the moves seem tied up in interactions with the rest of the cult. However, I really like the backstory idea of being a survivor trying to rebuild, especially how it interacts with the chasing the throne story. I had a few ideas for adjustments. Maybe the Initiate move could work with sympathizers? I'll post a few other thoughts as they come.

Sorry i'm so late. I've submitted an elven fighter but if I need to change classes i can. Here's a little back story:

Arras Calanon, Prince of the Elven island nation of Thoronsiire. With two older brothers and a father before them in line for the crown, Arras did not ever expect to rule his great nation. His family had ruled for countless generations and Arras grew up to become a fine young man and represented his people with a sense of morality and justice. His people lived in peace and prosperity.
Then came The Blight. It first began ravaging the forest. The great redwoods and pines were eaten from within by a horrible rot. Not even the great mages could save the trees. The ancient forests rotted and fell. When The Blight was finished with the forests it moved to the elves inhabiting them. Arras' people succumbed to the same kind of rot from within. It took whole families in a matter of days. No one was spared, not even the royal family. Arras could do nothing but watch in horror as it claimed one brother after the next. In a matter of weeks he'd lost almost everyone. Only his grandfather-Calleus Calanon, ruler of Thoronsiire, remained, and he too was stricken by the blight.
In a feverish state and near death Calleus took his only remaining grandson deep into the ancient crypts beneath the high city. There he took young Arras to an ancient burial chamber at the back of the crypt, further into the massive subterranean complex than he'd ever been. Using a key that Arras had never seen, his grandfather opened the crypt. His frail frame wracked with bloody coughs, Calleus told his grandson to open the lid of the sarcophogus before them. When Arras was finally able to pry the heavy lid off he looked inside to find the dry, dusty remains of a skeleton older than time.
On the verge of death Calleus told his grandson, "This is the founder of our great line and that is his spear which he used to bring peace and unification to these islands. Our nation is dead. Our people are dead. Now it is your job to see that our memory doesn't die as well. Take this spear and use it to bring peace to the warring nations across the sea. It is up to you now to restart our lineage and bring unending peace to the lands across the sea."
Arras buried his grandfather in the crypt and took up his ancestor's spear. It's been a long journey across the sea, but Arras now steps ashore on the these foreign lands to claim his rightful place...

Arras isn't familiar with this land but is determined to save the memory of his people. After arriving on the mainland and seeing the corruption and fighting among nations he isn't sure he wants such a responsibility, but he does believe that he was spared from the Blight for a reason.

Why do you desire the Blood Throne? Do you intend to rule? What are your intentions for the kingdom?

1.Ruling is in my blood. My lineage has proven worthy for centuries and this afflicted land needs me. I was spared death for a reason.
2. If I am worthy there will be no choice.
3. To reunite the fractured kingdoms of this land and to found an empire of empires.

@zoomzilla I like your backstory! Thomas would definitely be sympathetic to Arras's story.

Ok gang, sorry I was out of touch today, family outings restricted my personal time a bit more than I anticipated. There is a bit of house keeping to do then I will answer those pending questions you asked.
Ok, there is a small issue here. Both Hageru and zoomzilla have submitted Fighters. Now, the rules state that there should be only one of any given class. This is intended to allow those players to shine in their given roles. Fighters wear armor and wield a signature weapon to kill things. In D&D and other games I wouldn't worry about this as customization allows for individualization, but in Dungeon World, especially at low levels, there isn't a whole lot of individualization. "There may be other magic users in the world, but there is only one Wizard" as it were

If one of you wouldn't mind changing classes that would be great. Hageru has mentioned that he is drawn to the signature weapon feature of the class. zoomzilla has written a good backstory, but other than the spear(signature weapon) nothing about it says Capitol 'F' Fighter. A warrior ready to fulfill his destiny, but other classes could fit that. My first thought, is we could slightly re-skin the Paladin. Rather than worshiping a god, you commune with the spirits of your elven people. Yes it says human is the only race option, but the power the race gives you isn't about being human, it's about serving a higher purpose.

If neither is willing to change, I want to make sure you know that there will be overlap in your characters and you are OK with it.
I like this idea as well, if we can resolve the issue of class above.
The Bonds that appear on the original character sheets were designed for fast play, so you can pick it up and go in a matter of minutes. They were written to reinforce the roles your character is likely to fill in the party/game. That being said, if there is something jumping out at you then go ahead and tweak or rewrite it to soot your character. Once the Bond is resolved anyway you will be writing your own anyway.

Just remember the purpose of the bond: You need to be able to "resolve" them and earn XP. To "Resolve" means it needs to come into play some how at some point in the story. For an example, the Ranger has "_______is a friend of nature, so I will be their friend as well." So the Ranger gets XP at the end of the session when they have been a friend to the other character. This could be in combat when they save their ally from being skewered by a orc barbarian, or a quiet moment when that ally is feeling overwhelmed by the tolls of adventuring and the Ranger offers some comfort.
Yeah, so I agree with the idea. The thought that came to me is something I've seen in a few places. I'm a big Arthurian Lit. nut. In Mists of Avalon, the characters of Morgaine and Merlin are representatives of the old faith that is at odds with the more dominant Christianity that is popular with the upper-class. If I remember my Game of Thrones correctly, they use a similar beat with their religions..the Starks hold to "The Old Gods" and most of Westeros worship "The Seven"...and of course there is the "Lord of Light" in the mix.

So your "cult" will have Adherents, pockets of common people who haven't given up the faith in the old ways. I don't like the word Sympathizers, Adherents is better to me...but it's open to debate. Of course your "old gods" will exact a price for not paying the debt owed. I liked your journal entry, it gave me a few ideas that I on the shape of the story.

Sorry guys, been knocked out with the flu. Given how things are shaking out, I'll go with a human cleric. Should create some interesting tension with the cultist.

I think arcane duelist might work well for zoomzilla. The character has training as opposed to the weapon being mystic, but it would make sense for the weapon to be an heirloom. I think you could swap out the weapon choice for a spear easily, and end up with a Red Viper style fighter, except magic instead of poison. And hopefully you don't get your eyes squeezed from your head....

Though on second thought, it might work well for MaegeruHageru, with the techniques NOT being training, but the powers of the spirits within the blade. The dueling and the noble heritage go well together.

I have no problem changing classes. I'll look into some today including arcane duelist to see what would best fit the back story. I'll try to keep it in the original classes if possible.
Edit: Arcane duelist looks perfect. I would change Arras into a haughty nobleman seeking the blood throne as a path to martial perfection. If anyone has any objections I'll keep looking.

@zoomzilla Cool! One of my players in my face to face DW game is really enjoying it, doing sort of a very bushido take. I'm excited to see angst-ridden elven noble variation!

Can't wait to hear all the nobles whining and angsting. ;)

I don't think arcane duelist works for my character though because I don't actually want him to be able to use the cursed weapon very well, or deal with the spirits. Thank you for changing classes zoomzilla, I didn't know we had to go with different classes each - I should have considered other options more. I owe you one !


First draft of Marrick's backstory :

Marrick is the ninth son out of the twelve children that were fathered by Haerrick of House Palen. It is a fairly known family, but not for good reasons. They have a history of cruelty and unfair judgements. As long as he can remember he did not really like the others. They were all haughty and vain and he wanted to fight and become a knight. He neglected most of his studies, finding them boring and the teachers all arrogant theoreticians. He did practice more than most the dueling and fighting skills but he also spent a lot of his time exploring the streets, countryside and small villages. He thought the commonfolk were much more deserving of the simple rewards of life than his cruel siblings.

One day he fought his own brother Deadrick and took out his left eye because he had tried to "take" an unwilling girl tavern girl. Haerrick was very angry. He promised to Marrick he would make sure he would never be acknowledged as a knight as long as he lived. He laughed at Deadrick's pained expression and cries of rage and told him he wished his tongue was gone instead so he wouldn't have to suffer his pathetic squealing. He then ordered the girl lose both her eyes for taking one of his son's. Outraged by his father's blatant lie to cover for his house and at his siblings for agreeing with him, he remained within the keep of the Palen's but never so much interacted with them again. He hated his father but Haerrick did not try to harm him more than he had already done. His brothers, sisters and cousins though, being all against him, made his life very... uncomfortable.

One day he could not take their cruelty anymore and he left. A few years passed and as he started living the life of a commoner he learned all the gross truths about his family - as well as exaggerated falsehoods. But for him, all the horrible things they had supposedly done were real, because his anger towards them needed fuel and justification. As he heard of the Throne being left vacant and of the prophecy he decided on an impulse to stop his siblings - who were now stirring towards the Blood Throne after their father Haerrick Palen had suddenly become ill and died.

@Maskot: Is it ok to change the weapon from my equipment list to spear?

Yes, a spear can be a duelist weapon...or at least it looked really good in the movie Hero starring Jet Li.

The base spear in the book has the tags reach, thrown, near, 1 weight. This being a one handed weapon, it means if you ever have a need to duel wield two weapons you could. (I'm not sure that is even and option that could be available, just putting it out there.

Alternately, there is the Halbred with the tags reach, +1 damage, two-handed, 2 weight. This might be more in line with your original design. I know a Halbred is closer to an ax, but this is our fiction, so we can fudge it. Call it a Heavy Spear or something if you need to.

Xiara has most likely stolen from Marrick back when he was a noble. Perhaps that's how they met. She will also likely have strong negative feelings towards the arcane dualist who thinks they can just walk into a new kingdom and claim the throne for themselves.

Definitely. Marrick could even have actually let you steal some valuables from his siblings/family as a petty way of getting back to them.

In that case, maybe we also have a con running. This may explain why I have so many precious stones.

Why not ? First thing that comes to mind : maybe I gave you access to the jewels of my rich sister/aunt/random relative but they're difficult to sell because they bear the seal of my ill-reputed family ? Maybe they're worth more than I originally thought and you are trying to make a better margin without me knowing ?

Just to clarify (or summarize thus far) we have
- Arras the elven magic wielding duelist driven by loss and lost glory
- Marrick the human ex-noble with a haunted sword and a bevy of hateful, entitled relatives
- Xiara the human urban thief, spy, and class warrior (meaning Robin Hood, not a warrior character class)
- Sister Rose, who we don't know but is presumably (from Thomas's pov) a figurehead of the blind establishment that bulldozes humanity toward doom... :D

Here are my bonds. I feel like 4 would be good for Sister Rose, and 2 would be good for Xiara.

Oh, and maybe 5 for Arras, though I don't think the blight was associated with the Old One; rather, a long lived elf who has seen a lot and been through the consequences of not giving the Elder Gods their due (even if he doesn't understand that is what happened) would probably be delicious.

Bonds
1. _____ doesn't trust me.
2. I think _____ would be an excellent asset to my cult.
3. _____ believes in my cause.
4. I want to show _____ that their god is insignificant.
5. My master hungers for _____'s (blood, brain, soul, etc.)

These are mine:

I stole something from Marrick.
Thomas? has my back when things go wrong.
Sister Rose? knows incriminating information about me.
Marrick? and I have a con running.

I'll likely write a custom bond for Arras.