eximius' Character

I will open by saying, again, that I'm sorry for the spooky beginnings. I'm over-defensive about this little darling, which operates under the working-title of Oldest World. Hopefully soon all of you will see why. I see it as a thing of beauty, and hope that the input I get from my players will make it shine even brighter. I've already learned so much!

(that being said, more material will be edited in here when you're ready)

Water under the bridge! Excited to be a part of it and I can already tell it's going to be special from what I've skimmed in the other threads.

I tend to play mages, so the Galura (soul magic?), Porph (cosmic magic? - I tend to shy away from mind magic), and Sorcelled stood out, I think. But I'm open to guidance as I haven't had the chance to read through what you've posted everywhere.

I'm also not opposed to a character that requires preparation - i.e., their magic is slower or in rituals or in items, etc. That isn't my first choice, but I want to keep my options open and let you know I have an open mind :)

I'll leave it at that for now and skim through some more of the other threads to see what I can pick up.

I also see that magic is kind of separate from the races. So I could pick a race that isn't naturally inclined towards magic but complements the magic I do choose?

Alright, addressing a couple of my flubs here, before we get started. First of all, I have opted out of using the term "Race" to describe who is playable: in today's social climate, it has come to carry an uncomfortable connotation. Instead, I'm going with Birthright. This is what you were born as, and all that it implies; hence the name. If you see "race" anywhere, I wrote it out of habit, please ignore. I also very much encourage looking through the other threads, because everyone has gone on their own journey through character creation, and with exceptions, they've been almost entirely unique!

If you tend to play mages, something I think you'll enjoy is that there is NO wizard whatsoever. By that I mean, every option presented to be played is non-magical by default. However, every single one of them without exception has a "magical variant," where you lose a few of their special non-magic features and gain magic instead. The idea is that mages lack the variety of special abilities, the height of combat prowess, and some other features, that all characters would otherwise possess. This helps emphasize the dynamic, living nature of the magic system, and keeps things balanced. That being said, I encourage you to put magic on the back burner for now, and focus on other aspects of character creation.

Since your party has barely received definition so far, I will remind you that there are non-human options available as well. Not to put too much pressure on. I do understand if you would prefer to stick with a human for starters. Since you haven't gotten a chance to read through everything, the non-human options are the Blackwing and the Choaster. The former is a fallen angel that has taken a more humanoid form, with a perfect body and two functional wings. The latter is a giant, quite like a sasquatch if you know what that is.

If you are looking to play a human, those are divided into the Purebleed (six options), Modified (one), and Impure (one). The Purebleeds are all basically normal, they just have stats skewed in favor of a certain build. Each one favors (and lacks) one main one, but the predominant example of their people have pluses and minuses in others too.
The Modified sub-Birthright available for play is the Sorcelled, a human who has become permanently enchanted, and is thus a magical being by nature. They have magical powers, even if you do not play a magical variant of your subclass.
The Impure sub-Birthright available for play is the Felbreed, technically a human, but born from a human and a non-human. While not endowed with the kind of flashy magic powers of the Sorcelled, they gain special gifts from their non-human heritage.

So to answer your question, while there certainly are options that have magic worked in, you could still choose to play them with a subclass that is entirely non-magical, leaving that solely to their innate power; if that's what you wanted. Or you could play a human that doesn't have any magic built-in, and take the magical variant of any subclass of your choosing. Your options are wide open!

I doubt you flubbed, it was probably just habit from my own RPG experiences.

Not so much interested in the squatch, so tell me more about the Blackwing, the Sorcelled, the Felbreed, and the Porph? Particularly the social ramifications of the first three...

Does the world anvil you linked in a different thread have more about the geopolitical/demographics, etc?

Porph with a ph, but yes. When complete, the World Anvil will contain most of my written setting, but it is in the very early stages right now.

The Sorcelled is not considered Impure by Purebleed society. They are just "Modified" humans, who some people look down upon, others fear, some hate. In the particular case of the Sorcelled, this is born of jealousy, because everyone would love to have supernatural powers to control some aspect of their world. Some of them can transform into hulking forms of power, or gain many arms or legs, while others have eldritch powers of shadow, the elements, healing, or other arcane forces. The main problem is that being permanently enchanted like this removes the spiritual gifts of the Purebleed. If you had orange blood before, or green, or whatever color, you now have red.

The Blackwing is...different. I will start off by clarifying that a Blackwing is not half-human, they're not totally human, they're not even 1% human. When cast down from on high, they solidified into a form that, on the surface, looks very human. But it is not. Their strength and speed and health are truly superior, their minds are clear, and any weapon or tool they come in contact with, they instantly understand. In a few select civilizations, the Blackwings rule as gods. But in others, they are regarded as demons, or at best some kind of freakish winged person. Even if you hide your wings, people will know by looking at you that you are something truly special. It's like the feeling of looking at a bodybuilder or supermodel, multiplied by 100.

Felbreeds are more complicated. In Purebleed society, there is something called a Baseborn. This is someone who is not born from two Rudhir, two Galura, or some combination like that. A Baseborn is somebody born from two separate Purebleed lines. An important distinction to make is that blood color is not tied to ethnicity. There are black people with red blood, white people with red blood, every combination under the rainbow; same goes for the other five blood colors. But when you mix the two, you don't get a mixed blood color, you get red. The gifts given to each bloodline are seemingly lost. They are deemed Impure because of this, and hated except in countries that are run exclusively by the Baseborn themselves.

A Felbreed is the next step beyond that. It's bad enough if a Rudhir marries a Galura, or a Porph. But if that Rudhir were to instead seek an Elf as a mate, or a Blackwing, or a Demon? The results are far more...interesting. And profane. Felbreeds are seen as monsters, though perhaps not to the same extent as their non-human parent.

Fair Demures are half elven. They are like the Baseborn, but have extraordinarily long and healthy lives. Many look fairly convincing as humans, but some elf traits like strange eyes or pointed ears make it through.

Wild Demures are half Pix. They are similar to the Fair Demures, but can control one of the elements, and will be resurrected from the dead by having any magic cast on them. They are often very short and petite.

Changelings are half Starshine. A Starshine is a half-breed between an Elf and a Pix, and if that offspring then mates with a human, what you get is a human with pointed ears, none of the coloration rules of humanity (they could have violet skin and beige eyes, with rainbow hair, if you really wanted to get outlandish). And also, they rejuvenate from any harm in a specific terrain (like the woods, for example).

Foul Demures are half Dwarven. They have excessive facial and body hair, are on the shorter side, and often overweight. They heal twice as fast in Autumn, and are exceptional craftsmen.

Putrid Demures are half Goblin. They greatly resemble Wild Demures, but with oily earth tones instead of bright pastels, darker greasy hair instead of bouncy bright hair, otherwise goblinoid features, and limited goblin magic powers.

Wretched Demures are half Hobgoblin. They are ugly, heal at a 5x rate of normal humans, and will live forever unless they encounter something powerful enough to utterly destroy them.

Nephilim are half Blackwing. Because true Angels cannot have offspring, this is the closest you get. They are very tall, very powerful, and some are known to have flight-capable wings.

Cambions are half Demon. They are even more powerful than Nephilim, in many ways, but a demonic messenger will always hunt them for the rest of their days.

Djinnar are half Yon, the genie race. There are two kinds: Court-Born and Ghoul-Born. The Court-Born Djinnar are protected from one of the four elements, and by that element, and they have natural good luck. The Ghoul-Born Djinnar cannot have their life force fed upon, and they drain the luck of others.

Haha yeah I noticed and edited right as you posted. Must have been autocorrect on my phone this morning. :)

So, I'm out and about but have my phone so I'm gonna try to rapid fire some question/answers with you so I can catch up a bit. If I'm a little direct or short, its cause I'm trying to type quick on my phone.

Is there any other codex or compilation I should read besides the other threads?

I think I can rule out Felbreeds and Blackwings. I'm tempted to do a Blackwings adept of radiance, but I just feel like the Blackwings bit will overshadow the rest of the character and id like to get more human political action. So either Porph or Sorcelled.

Right now, I have no published or publicly available materials. For reasons of which you have been made aware, I am keeping a tight hold on stuff until I feel safe releasing it. Anything I appear to paraphrase or quote is a limited, often rephrased version of things from the written material. Short answer: no, you don't need to read anything. Just follow along with me in your own personal thread, and everything will go swimmingly.

Let me tell you a little more about my darlings the Sorcelled. They have PV 4 in everything except Nemesis, which is a 5. They are protected against ranged attacks and magic spells, their energized blood is hazardous to touch, and they occupy one of a few formats.

Champion Arcana - Can transform to temporarily increase their Leon PV
Beast Arcana - Come in the varieties of Extra Arms, Centaur, or Tail
Velocity Arcana - Can transform to temporarily increase their Eyrie PV
Magical Energy Arcana - Develops magical powers of Chaos, Earth, Fire, Life, Shadows, Weather, Sun, Water, or Wind.

How does the protection work? That's pretty neat. I had imagined a really defensive character, so maybe a magical energy arcana Sorcelled?

It's a projectile ward, natural magical shielding created by the magical presence their body exudes from every cell. What it does is that, when a ranged weapon hits you, whether it be thrown, Power (like a bow), or Locked (like a crossbow or musket), the protective wards cause the weapon to deal half damage.

Does the sound of Chaos, Earth, Fire, Life, Shadows, Weather, Sun, Water, or Wind work best for you?

What's the difference between Fire and Sun?

(Sorry, dunno why I thought I'd be able to reply quickly while GMing another game.)

(Not a worry)

Fire Sorcelled are charged with the energies found in the Great Radiance, the sphere of energy that encompasses the planet -- such as heat and light. By exerting their force of will, they have a limited capacity to ignite, immolate, and superheat objects around them. They can fire bolts of magic to burn the target, which can be fired a set number of times per day. If someone or something comes in contact with their blood or skin, it burns. They are resistant to wind magic and fire magic, but take more effect from water magic.

Sun Sorcelled are charged with the Void energies provided by the Sun - as seen in the Helios discipline. By exerting their force of will, they can intensify the power of the sun in the surrounding area. They can fire bolts of magic to melt and irradiate, which can be fired a set number of times per day. They take less effect from fire, water, and helios magic, but more effect from destruction or selene magic.

Okay, I'm still kind of leaning towards am Exemplar Predominant Porph (maybe Reduced Grand (depends if this affects non-physical endurance) and Boosted Eyrie?)... maybe Sage Visionary given what I recall from PhoenixScientist's thread, though let me know if there is a better option given what else I say... let me tell you a bit about the character I have in mind and maybe you'll see why I'm leaning away from Sorcelled (which is sad because I like the concept, I just don't have a compelling character in mind for one yet).

If you're familiar with the Dresden Files, the head of the White Council specializes in Wards. Wards are inherently defensive, but when triggered they can essentially counterattack as well. Similarly, I've always though that teleporation/distance/spatial control would be an amazing power - who can hit you when you control space! Then you mentioned Lumina and that reminds me of the Ultraviolets from the Lightbringer series (no spoilers, I've only finished the first book!) and secret societies...

So the character I've had in mind is one that specializes in defense and manipulation, though not overt social or mind manipulation (i.e., crowd control instead of mesmerizing). Mechanically, he aims to be untouchable through wards, teleportation, secrets, and knowledge. He doesn't want to fight you on your terms. He wants to make you think he's avoiding the fight until you're exhausted, you're politically ruined, and he's already orchestrated your demise one of ten different ways by kiting you into an alley where his lackeys or his powers are stronger or by assassinating you two weeks after the encounter was apparently a draw. His methods are esoteric, indirect, and even sometimes slow, but to his enemies his progress seems inevitable once they realize the trap they're in. Each hit he makes on you may seem small, but when the hits never stop and you can't lay a hand on him, how can you help but lose?

To support that kind of methodical character, I can't help but imagine him be in some kind of high station. A wealthy merchant, powerful diplomat, noble, or power broker working behind the scenes to further his own interests and that of the Porph nation/agenda/secret society/business/criminal organization/whatever. Basically outwit and outlast to the max. That just screams Porph to me, given what I know so far.

If it isn't, I'd love your direction to get something like I'm describing. I've had this character in mind for a while but this is the first system that seems like it might support something similar. Any advice on where I should start reading in the world anvil to get a better idea of where such a character might be from? I'll admit, the Exemplar bit is partially just to be a foil to PhoenixScientist's Dissent Porph (not in a combative way, necessarily, maybe one will convince the other of something, or maybe it will turn out combative - time will tell).

Hm. Just read some of the Porph background from PhoenixScientists thread. Now I'm a bit unsure what to do.

But rereading the Porph description from AshDrunbar's thread still fits with what I was aiming for, I think. I think I need your guidance. :)

I'll have to pick apart your post one step at a time. There's a lot to go through here, and that's not a bad thing. Just prepare for something at least as long as the one you sent me.

Honestly, I have been pleasantly surprised by the choice made by the seven of you thus far. The first character made in this system, back in its earliest days, was a Rudhir Fighter. Big fella with a magical sword that would light on fire. Second character was a Starshine (I think a Rogue) who fought with a Dagger and had a magically high Eyrie PV. They fought briefly, and I mean VERY briefly, in a little combat test I threw together. Starshine easily won initiative, sprinted up to the guy's face, and slit his throat. From that moment, it seemed like players would always want to play non-humans, even if the party combos wouldn't make much sense. But every single one of you has picked Purebleed humans; maybe that's because of the limited selection I allowed, maybe not.

I am woefully unfamiliar with Dresden Files, but I need to get into it. I just don't know anybody in person who I can talk to about it. What you're describing in the second paragraph is definitely stuff my magic system gets into, but there's a lot of ways to go about it. While Sector magic seems like the logical choice (teleportation based; used to be called Position magic), there's also the other three aspects of Space magic. The Motion subschool allows you to control how things move in a linear way, including yourself. The Dimension subschool is perhaps the least related, but you might find it appealing anyway. Finally, there's Parameter, which alters the "rules" by which space operates. The example I like to give is the video game concept of an invisible wall. It looks like you should be able to go that way, because something appears to be over there, but you try and just run into something invisible. With Parameter magic, you could turn a normally passable doorway into one such invisible wall. I worried that no one would like Parameter, but I think you might actually be the right personality for it.

Interestingly, the character you describe is not quite the style of most Porphs, or their nation of Heramar. At least not their preferred style. The Virtue of Enlight, and the Porph who are so closely aligned with it, is about reason and realization. They like to show people the truth, and teach about all the wonders of the world. Even their powers are about miraculous displays that get attention. Now, what you're describing sounds a lot more like a Nemesis-based character, or even someone who favors the shadowy, deceptive Virtue of Daimon.

I like your thinking about being in a powerful organization, where he is meant to become powerful, but I have a counter-proposal. Sort of a S.H.I.E.L.D. or Hydra thing, if you get the references. Some kind of agent who is working their way up the ladder of their organization. I'll describe some options in a post below.

What I will say is that the World Anvil doesn't have much to offer at this time. If you want to read it (which is not recommended or necessary at this time), just read anything you like. I will note that locations are divided into Continents, Countries, and Settlements, so you may want to read about them in an organized way with that in mind.

Your best bet for Birthright is either Predominant Galura, Neutral Zeel, or Predominant Sini. Let me simplify things somewhat: PG would have the advantage over the other two in Nemesis, but disadvantage in Leon, Eyrie, and Daimon. NZ would have the advantage over the other two in Eyrie, but disadvantage in Nemesis (which is not fantastic for your purposes, but acceptable). PS would have no advantage over the other two, and disadvantage in Grand, so I'd say only take that if you're attracted to what the blue-blooded Sini represent.

PG would have Leon 3, Eyrie 3, Grand 4, Enlight 4, Nemesis 6, Daimon 5
NZ would have Leon 4, Eyrie 5, Grand 4, Enlight 4, Nemesis 3, Daimon 6
PS would have Leon 4, Eyrie 4, Grand 3, Enlight 4, Nemesis 4, Daimon 6

Now, if you didn't take any boosts and reductions, PG would give you the Sage basic class. You would have a power to ask inanimate objects questions, a power to change your appearance, and a power to avoid harm. The subclasses available to you would be divided into three categories for simplicity: Insight, Recondite, and Martial Master.
Insight is the at-a-distance category, which has: Visionary (or Magic Prophet), and Patron (or Mystic Sovereign).
Recondite is the alternative category, which has: Monk (up close Visionary), Therapist (up close Patron), or Deliverer (basically a Visionary on a horse).
Martial Master only has one subclass in it: the Nemesis Master. Unlike its less-violent counterparts, it uses its experience and abstract thinking to enhance your ability to kill.

NZ and PS would give you the Aesthete basic class. You would have a power to hypnotize, a power to deceive the senses, and a power to evade capture. The subclasses available to you would be divided into three categories for simplicity: Socialite, Winsome, and Martial Jester.
Socialite is the at-a-distance category, which has: Hellraiser (or Magic Fool), and Diplomat (or Mystic Savant).
Winsome is the alternative category, which has: Scapegoat (up close Hellraiser), Escort (up close Diplomat), or Standard Bearer (basically Hellraiser on a horse).
Martial Jester only has one subclass in it: the Daimon Jester. Unlike its less-violent counterparts, it uses its deception and madcap antics to enhance your ability to kill.

The magic option I was considering was essentially one of Adpet of Space, Adept of Radiance, ... I suddenly forget what you called the specialist.. sage or scholar or something... But if I did one of those it'd probably be of Parameter or Light or something obscure, and I'd branch out a bit later into some nearby subschools to kind of replicate the Adept starting points. My concern is whether it makes sense to take Parameter on it's own or Light on it's own - are they best used in conjunction with others?

What are the neutrati's like? The Porph culture is very confusing to me.

So what do you think? Maybe Galura? A weird sect of the Porph?

Okay, where or what would this organization be from? Without knowing which country/culture I'm hailing from, I'm not sure what to choose for his motives (power obviously, but to what end? Does he have a family and kids, does he simply want to see his country advance, etc).

Edit: ah, you already posted again. I should have read closer. Let's proceed with Predominant Galura... Will I be disadvantaged if I end up choosing cosmic magic as a Galura? Tell me about the Prophet and the Sovereign?