Guardians of the Pharaoh (Closed)

[TheKhan]

Death claimed Pharaoh Akhenisis! She began her journey west from the land of the living to the land of the dead, while you journeyed with her. You were but a lowly servant of the living goddess, but you were honored to accompany the Pharaoh into the afterlife.



Though your lungs still draw breath, the mortuary priests metaphorically snuffed out your life through ritual and symbol. Culturally, you are dead, your family mourned you even as they celebrated the final glory Akhenisis placed upon your brow. You will serve the Pharaoh in the hereafter and will never return home.



Briefly, you dwelt in Arcadia, the home of the Netjer gods your people have worshiped for millennia, but you are a servant, and luxury is not your lot. Soon enough, the Sphinx of Wesir-Osiris appeared before you and assigned you to your duty in the afterlife. You were to travel to a far away city, the nexus of realities, to tend and guard the newly constructed shrine of Akenisis, now a god in the pantheon of Pharaohs. 

You have now arrived in your new home.

Welcome to the Cage. Welcome to the City of Door.

Welcome to Sigil.



Now, you tend to the small pyramid-shrine built that serves as your home. Even with your duties, however, you are affored time to explore the city and meet its diverse people. For even the Pharaoh's servents must earn a living...

Rating
Extreme Exotic… but I’d like to explain that a bit. The creatures of the afterlife are varied in their forms, so this game will clearly be in the exotic category. The Extreme category is more of a precaution than anything else. 95% of the time, I’m expecting this game will fit in Bondage quite comfortably, but things like Daemons, Great Old Ones, Kytons, and Yugoloths are some of my favourite villains, and they can get very, very intense. I want to give people fair warning of that and the rating is the easiest way to do so.

With that said, non-con and relations with anyone under 19 (or appearing to be under, or under racial equivalent) are totally off limits for me under any circumstances. They will not be appearing in this game.

The Expectations
Regular Posting: I’m not going to set a specific rate, since shit happens, but please post regularly. An issue I’ve found with Pathfinder PbP is when people just want to post in combat, then don’t interact with other players outside of combat.

Please don’t do that.

I like Planescape because it offers opportunities to explore and interact with the strange and the wonderful. That roleplaying is a big draw for me, so I am perfectly fine with going extended periods without combat. Please make sure you are okay with that too.
Cooperative Play: Basically, don’t be a dick. Don’t troll other people or start fights. We are all here to have fun. Me having to play peacekeeper is anti-fun.
Open Mindedness: This game is open to all orientations and genders. I’m a cis-het male, so I can’t promise I’ll get everything right, but I’m always open to talking and learning more. I just ask everyone bring that open mindedness.
Communication: Talk to me (and each other). Let me know what you’d like to see/experience. If there is something you’d like to see or is killing your buzz, let me know. If something uncomfortable comes up and you need the scene to end. Please tell me.

The Lore
Alignment: Any non-evil. With that said, Everyone in the group need to be able to get along. Preachy good, lawful templar, and chaotic jerk characters should be avoided.
Background: As the introduction stated, you are attendants to a recently deceased who have been assigned to her shrine in Sigil. You do not have to worship the Netjer (Egyptian Gods) but you have been raised in that culture. You are new to Sigil and have not yet joined Factions (although by all means do so soon. Each one comes with bonus abilities).
Personality: As I said above, your character needs to be trusting enough to work with others without trying to screw them over (… screw them on the other hand…). Keep a game cohesive on the boards is hard enough with characters getting sarcastic with one another.
Appearance: As you please, although a picture is required so that I can use it on maps, although it doesn’t have to be a perfect representation of your character.
Aspirations: Please include three aspirations for your character, two short-term and one long term. Note that these are your aspirations for the character, so they don’t have to be things the character wants to happen to themself. Also, these aspirations should be story focused, but don’t have to connect to a larger metaplot. They are just useful barometers for me to try and keep everyone engaged.
Sexuality: The big focus on this game for is to play the game. Planescape is a setting conducive to mature themes and E! gives us the chance to explore those themes if and when they are appropriate. For sex, I'm more interested in seeing realistic (or realistic as possible) relationships develop, rather than "everyone gets laid." It can and will come up, but it won't just be with a random NPC unless you specifically go looking for that.

The Crunch
Books: All Paizo. All of Dreamscarred Press. 
Classes: Any from the above sources.
Level: 3rd.
Races: Any standard race is okay.
- If you are using non-standard races, anything with 15 race points or more has a +1 Level Adjustment (including aasimars), and anything above 25 has a +2  LA. Anything below that can be used as is.
- Merfolk and other races who cannot survive on land will be inappropriate for this story.
Ability scores: Standard 15 point buy. A common question I’ve gotten from PbP is if I will up it to 20 point buy. Often I cave in. This time I’m not. 
Hit Points: Full at first level; Half + 1 after that.
Equipment: 3000 gp. If you are using a lot of non-standard equipment, please give a brief description of the item’s unique properties.
Traits: Two traits at character creation, no more by any means.
Experience: When I feel it is an appropriate time for you to level up, I will tell you to level up.

The Application
Players: 3-4
What You Need: A character sheet that’s at least 90% done, including picture, aspirations, and background. The latter does not need to be super extensive, however.
When you need it by: October 24th. The date may shift a bit based on my own deadlines for work. If it does, it will give you more time to submit your application and I will let you know the details.

If I forgot anything, please just ask!

[Chanticleer]

I love Planescape. Your intro's the most fun way of getting a party to Sigil I can remember hearing.

Definitely interested!

EDIT: I note that after a quick review, while you talk about level adjustment and give WBL as 3000, you don't actually state the starting level for the game. 3000 suggests it's 3rd level, but I thought it best to confirm.

[TheKhan]

I love Planescape. Your intro's the most fun way of getting a party to Sigil I can remember hearing.

Definitely interested!

Thank you! I am particularly proud of this one. I've deliberately gone vague on the details, but think this would be a facinating culture to explore and develop.

Oh, and I did forget one thing....

Cosmology
I love me some Planescape, but the campaign is a bit notorious for overriding the cosmologies of other settings (and real-world religions), then chalking the discrepancies up to being Clueless screed. That doesn't sit particularly well with me. The Great Wheel is true in my Planescape, but so is Golarion's Great Beyond. So is the World Tree of the Toril. So is the World Axis of Nentir Vale. So is the ancient cosmology of Egypt. They are all true and all exist, crossing over like interwoven branes of reality. I expect it won't become a big feature of this campaign unless we get that perfect lightning in a bottle, but the big upshot for you is that you can use any details you like from any setting when building your character.

[TheKhan]

EDIT: I note that after a quick review, while you talk about level adjustment and give WBL as 3000, you don't actually state the starting level for the game. 3000 suggests it's 3rd level, but I thought it best to confirm.

D'oh!

Yes, it's third. I'll edit that in ASAP.

[Chanticleer]

I'm afraid I have found another thing.

If Akhenisis has become a goddess (even a minor one) it's quite reasonable that we might have a cleric or warpriest (Or possibly Ordained Defender...thinking about it!) in the party. I assume that since we can be 'any good' that her alignment is Neutral Good, but it her domains would also be relevant for these classes.

Yeah, the more I think about it, the more I'm liking the idea of Warder (Ordained Defender). It would seem appropriate to provide the sole temple of a lesser god with a heavy hitting tank type, and I haven't played a crunchy-thumpy character in a long while.

[Chulanowa]

Thank you! I am particularly proud of this one. I've deliberately gone vague on the details, but think this would be a facinating culture to explore and develop.

Oh, and I did forget one thing....

Cosmology
I love me some Planescape, but the campaign is a bit notorious for overriding the cosmologies of other settings (and real-world religions), then chalking the discrepancies up to being Clueless screed. That doesn't sit particularly well with me. The Great Wheel is true in my Planescape, but so is Golarion's Great Beyond. So is the World Tree of the Toril. So is the World Axis of Nentir Vale. So is the ancient cosmology of Egypt. They are all true and all exist, crossing over like interwoven branes of reality. I expect it won't become a big feature of this campaign unless we get that perfect lightning in a bottle, but the big upshot for you is that you can use any details you like from any setting when building your character.

-Looks up from two decades of playing Werewolf, Mage, and Changeling crossover games- Makes perfect sense to me!

So question, do all the characters have to be 100% Khemetic, or can they be like, valued slaves from other lands, or what-have-you?  i'm down for it either way

[Roleplay Frog]

You lost me at the spelling errors but had me again at

you can use any details you like from any setting when building your character.

and you clearly being invested.

I presume that the whole living godess bit is metaphorical, because, you know, Sigil. Infact, wouldn't all of us get in trouble rather quickly for being a bit too worshippy, now that I think about it?

I mean this is an intrinsic problem to the writeup. I mean, this is how this story would go:

'Pharaoh and worshippers arrive'
A -> She's not a deity yet, city authorities scoff at and ponder slaying. As soon as the servants try to build a pyramid shrine they find themselfs in a maze of pain, the Dabi fix the affront to the city.
B -> She is a deity, Lady of Pain forbids her entry, sending her off to random egyptian pantheon sidelines where she melds with Horus-Re.

[VonDoom]

I adore Planescape, so I'm definitely interested, but I'm always a bit stumped when the race selection is set to lean towards standard choices, since any of the wierder monstrous races are bound to gain level adjustment; that combined with low point buy and my like for characters who need a lot of attributes at least at decent levels for their job (was thinking perhaps an Investigator) makes me a bit hesitant... but I'll probably give it a go anyway.

Any chance for some clarifications on the whole 'use details from any setting' vs. the built in part of the origin? I assume the latter trumps the former, with non - religious classes still having to be strongly devoted and subservient-to-superiors acolytes?

[TheKhan]

I'm afraid I have found another thing.

If Akhenisis has become a goddess (even a minor one) it's quite reasonable that we might have a cleric or warpriest (Or possibly Ordained Defender...thinking about it!) in the party. I assume that since we can be 'any good' that her alignment is Neutral Good, but it her domains would also be relevant for these classes.

Yeah, the more I think about it, the more I'm liking the idea of Warder (Ordained Defender). It would seem appropriate to provide the sole temple of a lesser god with a heavy hitting tank type, and I haven't played a crunchy-thumpy character in a long while.

The alignment is any non-evil, not any good. Neutral is a valid option.

I have deliberately left Pharaoh’s alignment vague and for now at least I will also leave it vague as to whether she really became deity or if that is just a cultural belief. Are you drawing your power from Pharaoh herself? Or are you drawing it from a powersource that is similar enough to how you perceive her? Your character will have an opinion and NPCs will have other opinions, no matter what.

-Looks up from two decades of playing Werewolf, Mage, and Changeling crossover games- Makes perfect sense to me!

So question, do all the characters have to be 100% Khemetic, or can they be like, valued slaves from other lands, or what-have-you?  i'm down for it either way

Characters can be whatever you want, as long as in the end, they would be someone Pharaoh would trust to be fairly independent while watching over her shrine in the afterlife. Archeologist who won Pharaoh’s favour, loyal slave who worships the Greek gods of her parents, Zoroastrian fire-oracle, warpriest of Abadar, death-cultist of Wee Jas - all would be valid characters.

You lost me at the spelling errors but had me again at  and you clearly being invested.

I presume that the whole living godess bit is metaphorical, because, you know, Sigil. Infact, wouldn't all of us get in trouble rather quickly for being a bit too worshippy, now that I think about it?

I mean this is an intrinsic problem to the writeup. I mean, this is how this story would go:

'Pharaoh and worshippers arrive'
A -> She's not a deity yet, city authorities scoff at and ponder slaying. As soon as the servants try to build a pyramid shrine they find themselfs in a maze of pain, the Dabi fix the affront to the city.
B -> She is a deity, Lady of Pain forbids her entry, sending her off to random egyptian pantheon sidelines where she melds with Horus-Re.

That is a good question for me to clarify. The sequence I have in my head goes:

1. Pharaoh’s entourage departs through portals from the Material Plane to Arcadia, entering the divine realm of the Netjer.
2. Pharaoh’s body is interred in the divine realm.
3. Pharaoh’s servants are dispersed across the planes, some staying in Arcadia, other’s on other planes.
4. You get sent to Sigil, to spread word of this newly ascended god and to guard her shrine, which your people believe to be important to ensuring the stability of her soul (likely through her Ren (name)).
5. The people of Sigil are generally bemused, but leave the shine in peace, as they do with other temples and shrines to the gods

I’m going to leave it vague as to whether or not Pharaoh actually did become a God for now.

I adore Planescape, so I'm definitely interested, but I'm always a bit stumped when the race selection is set to lean towards standard choices, since any of the wierder monstrous races are bound to gain level adjustment; that combined with low point buy and my like for characters who need a lot of attributes at least at decent levels for their job (was thinking perhaps an Investigator) makes me a bit hesitant... but I'll probably give it a go anyway.

Fair enough. I like fish-out-of-water stories with characters who start Clueless and eventually become bloods.

That said, we can do weird things. I’m totally open to using the Advanced Race Guide to emulate things like a troll or dragon or sphinx. Having one of the characters be a “holy monster” would be interesting.

Any chance for some clarifications on the whole 'use details from any setting' vs. the built in part of the origin? I assume the latter trumps the former, with non - religious classes still having to be strongly devoted and subservient-to-superiors acolytes?

See my response above, but basically the characters need a reason to be trusted with this duty. They don’t strictly need to be subservient to other acolytes, but they do need something making them loyal enough to Pharaoh that they don’t just peace out once they reach Sigil. If you want to use a god or a hook inspired by another setting, feel free, just make sure there is some sort of reason your character as been chosen for an accepted this post on the Planes.

Ultimately, for the first little while, this background is justification to keep the party together and explain why they don’t go back to their previous lives on the Material Plane. Whatever accomplishes that for your character is good enough for me.

Does that make sense?

[Roleplay Frog]

Oh I see, I thought the godess was hanging out with you. But is it nice godess? What has this godess done for me? *tips chin*

[Chanticleer]

The alignment is any non-evil, not any good. Neutral is a valid option.

I have deliberately left Pharaoh’s alignment vague and for now at least I will also leave it vague as to whether she really became deity or if that is just a cultural belief. Are you drawing your power from Pharaoh herself? Or are you drawing it from a powersource that is similar enough to how you perceive her? Your character will have an opinion and NPCs will have other opinions, no matter what.

That doesn't really answer the question of domains for classes which use them. Any suggestions? Or is it 'pick anything that feels reasonable to you' again?

[TheKhan]

That doesn't really answer the question of domains for classes which use them. Any suggestions? Or is it 'pick anything that feels reasonable to you' again?

Ah, sorry! Yes, pick something that you think seems reasonable. Law, Good, Nobility, and Sun make sense to me, but almost any combination could work.

[Sain]

This looks awesome. Have been craving for some egypt themed adventure thingy and love planes hopping. Just posting to bookmark thread for stalking for now, hoping that I may have time ::)

[Chanticleer]

No sheet yet, but...

NEDJEMSOBEKHET (We’ll go with Nedjem for short, and because it's also her birth name, as terrible as amputating given names would be in the original culture)

Scaleheart (Skinwalker) Warder (possibly Ordained Defender, haven’t quite decided)

Background

Always a somewhat dour and taciturn child, even as a baby she sometimes bawled in anger, but never cried. Perhaps her family named her Nedjem as a gesture of hope, for it surely did not reflect her behavior. Her family were simple farmers along the great river, and none of her living ancestors knew there was skinwalker blood among them, so it was a complete surprise when she first experienced the change at the age of fourteen.

Crocodiles were a constant threat along the riverbanks, but the tendency of children to play regardless of warnings is at least as constant. When her younger sister was attacked by a white crocodile, Nedjem seemingly panicked in the wrong direction, actually attacking the large reptile with a stick and, without warning, changing into something more like a crocodilian version of herself.

Her sister was unhurt, the creature having fastened its jaws only on her garment, and once this was realized, all of the attention was focused on Nedjem, still standing in the river, staring at her strangely scaled and clawed hands. Of course they reacted with fear, even when the change ended and she reverted to her former self. Nedjem was far more damaged by the encounter than her sister, and despite the long years that have passed, still bears the thin scars left by the rake of the crocodile’s teeth just grazing the left side of her face.

Her family denied her, and she ran. What else could be imagined?

The story made its way to a priest of Sobek, of course. Who else to tell about the sighting of a white crocodile, or a runaway girl who turned into a scaly beast? Eventually, the old man and his acolyte found her, talked her back to the temple, and gradually set about trying to help her put together the disparate pieces of her changed life. 

Unfortunately, she remained stubbornly taciturn and refused to speak most days, but she was clearly marked by the Lord of Waters, so the temple continued to give her shelter. Who truly knew the fates of those the gods touched?

This lasted until one day the Pharoah herself stopped to make offerings at the temple while touring her lands. Hearing of the almost-mute child, she asked to see Nedjemsobekhet, and asked the frightened girl to accompany her for a time out of curiousity. Of course, Nedjem could not refuse.

Somewhere, in the whirlwind of seeing the land so far beyond her home and the dazzle of the Pharoah’s retinue, Nedjem overheard a long conversation between Akhenisis and a retainer, discussing how best to protect and aid one of the outlying provinces that was threatened by both famine and barbarians. By this point, Nedjem had thought she was simply overlooked as being unable to converse, but when Akhenisis had finished and dismissed most of her court, she came and sat on the steps just below where Nedjem had been sitting. Nedjhem was in a silent panic at this unthinkable behavior, worrying whether shifting down the steps would call attention to the Pharoah’s ‘mistake’ and whether that would be worse than simply remaining where she was, unthinkably above Akhenisis. She kept her eyes downcast.

“You overheard,” the Pharoah said to her mildly, and of course the girl nodded. She could ignore priests, but this? This was a goddess.

“It’s difficult to protect people, isn’t it?” Nedjem wasn’t sure what to do, what answer to give…Even if she’d spoken easily, what did she know about such things? And then Akhenisis told her exactly what she hadn’t known she knew about such things.

“Sometimes, we must do terrible things, and people fear us. That does not make us monstrous. You protected your sister, and Sobek himself blessed you. That does not make you a monster. Think on this, little one. A god has touched you when you defended another. I would like it if you would help me to defend those who need it.”

Nedjem nodded. Again, what else could an almost-mute girl do when a goddess spoke to her? She nodded, but she did not yet understand. Even so, the Pharoah’s words would never leave her.

When she returned to the temple, she tried. Her speech was like a tool left too long untouched; it worked poorly and needed much care. But she did try. And she tried to work with the acolytes, to be a part of the temple life.

She grew strong. She became a professional soldier in the army of the Pharoah. Eventually, after years during which she garnered more scars and experience, she rose as high as a soldier could without being noble born, and although she had seen the Pharoah reviewing her troops many times before campaigns, this is when she once again caught Akhenisis’ eye.

Of course, when Akhenisis asked her to become one of her guards, how could Nedjemsobekhet refuse? And even then, after years of service, how could a girl who grew up on a farm by the great river guess that the Pharoah would choose her companionship in the afterlife?

(Just a side note on the culture: If we’re modeling on ancient Egypt, it was surprisingly egalitarian with regards to gender roles. There are records of women who were crafters, merchants, priestesses, and warriors (who were buried with their weapons), and at least one fascinating record of a female ship’s navigator telling a man bringing her food to get out of her face and let her do her job! This varied a bit by class: among the upper class there was more separation and women are shown serving women while men serve men (which has interesting connotations for the court of a female pharoah). So Nedjemsobekhet joining the army isn’t as big of a deal as it might seem.)

[indarkestknight]

Planescape yessssss.

I am definitely interested, just have to see what I can come up with.

The temptation to figure out a shabti character is strong.

Questions regarding allowed material: would you be open to reviewing non-DSP material that builds on the DSP engines? For instance, Akashic Trinity (the Nexus in particular has a strong affinity for the planes) and Classes of the Lost Spheres: Zodiac include four Akashic classes altogether that were penned by Michael Sayre, the same writer who produced Akashic Mysteries for DSP.

What I'm especially keen on trying is... admittedly a huge longshot, as it's still in playtest for Lost Spheres Publishing, but given the planar nature of the game and PoW material being allowed, this is probably my best chance to ever get a chance to play it, so here goes nothing: Any chance you'd be willing to allow The Nexus Commander archetype, a summoner archetype that gives up spellcasting for PoW maneuvers?

[TheKhan]

Planescape yessssss.

I am definitely interested, just have to see what I can come up with.

The temptation to figure out a shabti character is strong.

Questions regarding allowed material: would you be open to reviewing non-DSP material that builds on the DSP engines? For instance, Akashic Trinity (the Nexus in particular has a strong affinity for the planes) and Classes of the Lost Spheres: Zodiac include four Akashic classes altogether that were penned by Michael Sayre, the same writer who produced Akashic Mysteries for DSP.

What I'm especially keen on trying is... admittedly a huge longshot, as it's still in playtest for Lost Spheres Publishing, but given the planar nature of the game and PoW material being allowed, this is probably my best chance to ever get a chance to play it, so here goes nothing: Any chance you'd be willing to allow The Nexus Commander archetype, a summoner archetype that gives up spellcasting for PoW maneuvers?

A shabti would defintely be appropriate!

I also backed City of Seven Seraphs content is defintely fair game, including the Zodiac. The summoner archetype I'm a bit leerier of, since things will change and I'm not sure if it is regular summoner or Unchained Summoner (I'd prefer the latter). There's also the question of how a class based around summoning would function in Sigil... which is doable, but would likely create more bookkeeping for both of us.

[Roleplay Frog]

There's also the question of how a class based around summoning would function in Sigil... which is doable, but would likely create more bookkeeping for both of us.

You cast your spell, calling for aid from the underworld itself. Suddenly, you hear clattering and rustling to your left as an incredibly pissed off looking lesser demon is dragged first through a puddle on the street, then to your side. You realize by the expression of the Succubus you are fighting that you just dagged it's guard-dog from their home here to your side. You consider this turn of events unfortunate.

-Well, lorewise, extraplanar summoning takes the surrounding elements and a spirit from another plane, forming a temporary creature to assist you. There's been an age ago ruling in a dragon magazine whose number I long forgot (has to have been 2nd though) that it works on other planes just the same, you just make very snazzy wolves if you were to for example cast summon nature's ally II on the plane of fire.

[indarkestknight]

My personal pet theory is that summoning conjuration effects (as distinct from calling effects) tap into the Akashic Record and essentially photocopy the Akashic Record of the creature in question.

(For the record, wolves summoned via summon nature’s ally on the plane of fire would have no special protections against fire.)

[Roleplay Frog]

(For the record, wolves summoned via summon nature’s ally on the plane of fire would have no special protections against fire.)

Yeah they don't, though some DM's might give 'em a fiery template, so it's a bit of a borderline thing, but the record is a relatively recent thing so *shrugs*

[TheKhan]

My personal pet theory is that summoning conjuration effects (as distinct from calling effects) tap into the Akashic Record and essentially photocopy the Akashic Record of the creature in question.

Actually, that would be a pretty good solution, and it in line with the way Pathfinder treats summoned creatures (as amusing as summoning a fiendish guard dog would be...)!

Let me take a look at the archetype and see what I think. If not, I did actually buy the Zodiac PDF because you mentioned it, and I would be happy to have one of those around.

[Chanticleer]

Actually, that would be a pretty good solution, and it in line with the way Pathfinder treats summoned creatures (as amusing as summoning a fiendish guard dog would be...)!

Let me take a look at the archetype and see what I think. If not, I did actually buy the Zodiac PDF because you mentioned it, and I would be happy to have one of those around.

I've seen that done. In fact, just a few weeks ago in a game here. Fiendish guard dogs are pretty darned mean when you're up against 2d level enemies.

[Bibliophilia]

-peers curiously.-

[Roleplay Frog]

So before I make up my mind.. where are we actually going? What's actually gonna happen? 'cause sigil is a location, not a campaign. Lore restrictions on character creation plus uncertainty of where things are going, beyond 'We's in Sigil', kind of limits ideas for me.

[Chanticleer]

Hi Bib!

Froggy, the impression I get is that because 1) we're new to Sigil, and 2) we're doing a thing that's not much tolerated in Sigil, that the campaign will probably take place mostly in Sigil.

So Sigil isn't as much a waypoint here as a destination in itself.

[TheKhan]

I'm going to run things a bit more episodically at first, with short adventures rather than grand, far reaching plot lines that PbPs never finish. So initially, the stories will be linked to Sigil. Where they go after that is up to us.

[Roleplay Frog]

plot lines that PbPs never finish.

Is it better to aim high, but never succeed, or never aim high in the first place?

Considering this and the restriction to egyptian slave character backstories, I don't see myself getting inspired, will come back to ya if that changes, best of luck.

[Bibliophilia]

I think the episodic plan makes a lot of good sense.  It allows for the dropping of players and the introduction of new characters without the new players feeling as if they are jumping in at the middle of the story, and planning your game with the medium in mind is always smart.

[Ixy]

Would it inhibit play to have little/no experience with Planescape?  I think the idea sounds amazing, but I'd hate to be a drag or a liability just because of my ignorance to the setting itself.

[Re Z L]

Would it inhibit play to have little/no experience with Planescape?  I think the idea sounds amazing, but I'd hate to be a drag or a liability just because of my ignorance to the setting itself.

Theoretically none of the characters would likely have any real deep knowledge of Sigil (or the rest of the planes) outside of study maybe?  So even if you didn't know anything it shouldn't really matter since your character possibly/probably wouldn't know anything either.

[TheKhan]

Would it inhibit play to have little/no experience with Planescape?  I think the idea sounds amazing, but I'd hate to be a drag or a liability just because of my ignorance to the setting itself.

As Re Z L said. I am 100% okay with introducing people to the weird flavour of awesome that is Planescape. That's actually one of the reasons I like having backgrounds tied to the Prime, it makes it easier to be inclusive of players new to the setting.

[Bibliophilia]

Still doing the crunch, but the fluff is there!

NSFW

Name: Aharon
Sex: Male
Age: 23
Race: Human
Class: Monk (Unchained)
Alignment: Lawful Good
Deity: Wadjet
Level: 3

Basic Appearance: Aha is often mistaken for a woman when he is properly clothed, but the problem seems to amuse him more than anything.  His figure is lithe and graceful, with long, silky black hair and golden, almond-shaped eyes that he lines with khol.  When clothed, he prefers light-weight, gauzy fabrics that leave a good portion of his smooth, tanned flesh exposed while allowing what is covered to breathe.  He could easily be mistaken for weak due to his slender frame, but secret power coils in his lean muscles and anyone who has seen him fight would attest to his skill and strength.

Personality:  Aha is a flirty, good-humored, witty companion who takes immense pleasure in exploring not just new locations, but new people as well.  Gregarious and unrepentantly curious, he enjoys coaxing people's life stories from them through generous application of charm, drink and genuine interest.  He favors beauty and art, seeing them as a sign of civilization and man's creation of artwork an expression of the divine.  Though he upholds a code of conduct and is faithfully devoted to his duties to both his Pharaoh and his Deity, he is not of the mind that all must believe as he does or behave as he does.  Diversity in all things is what makes life worth living.


Basic Background

Aharon served the Pharaoh as one of her guards, protecting her from harm and sometimes warming her bed when she desired it.  He had been born to a builder and a handmaiden, raised in a loving, if chaotic and cramped, household.  He had little in the way of education until he was chosen to serve the Pharaoh at the age of ten.  From then, he tended her gardens and was taught a basic education before his strength and beauty caught the attention of her chief guard.

From the age of thirteen, he was trained in unarmed combat by a master of the art, so that he could protect their queen without seeming capable of doing so to an outside observer.  He became the Pharaoh's sometimes lover when he was seventeen, and thwarted several assassination attempts during his time with her, which is why he was afforded the honor of serving her in the afterlife.  While his heart broke to know he would never again see his family or his home, it soared to know he would be allowed to remain in Akhenisis' service.

His excitement only grew when he arrived in Sigil and saw how diverse the people were.  Here was not just a world of knowledge and new experiences, but many worlds, all simply waiting to be explored.



Aspirations:

- Meet as many diverse people as possible and learn of their home planes
- Join the Society of Sensation
- Shift alignments, multi-class into something more 'barbaric' and find a new deity

[Roleplay Frog]

I can't come up with a good egyptian based character. SOOOOOooo I think I'll just hammer up a random character, have them accidentially rope-a-doped into the Pharaoh's entourage and find a way to make them social... beyond, you know, hitting on egyptians.

[Re Z L]

WIP Planning to have it finished up tomorrow...too exhausted right now.
I'm planning her to be something of a slave-exalted-to-guard of some description.  I'll be using the Harbinger class from Dreamscarred press (and she'll be human).

Lapis Atem

Profile

• Eyes:  Blue
• Skin:  Dark Olive
• Hair:  Dirty Blonde
• Height:  5' 6"
• Weight:  125 lbs
• Age:  28
• Sex:  Female
• Sexual Pref:  Pansexual

Description

Background

Lapis had never really known her parents and instead was soon left to the mercies of the street and its slums.  She survived by her wits--and occasionally a sharp knife--managing to eek out a life amongst the dregs of society.  The harsh life left its mark on her as she grew, though, and it wasn't long until her life of surviving off of others eventually got her caught.  She was a prisoner for only a short while before she was sold into slavery, which lasted for the majority of her life.

It was rare that her owners were gracious enough with her--she was just a simple criminal after all.  Some took more advantage of her than others, but they all treated her with varying measures of disregard.  Hate and pain festered in her heart over time.  Her owners would eventually sell her after they lost interest in trying to rein her in--or after they'd finished having their fun with her.

Her unruly temperament had become well known in the circles of nobility that frequently owned slaves until eventually the only ones that would buy her were the servants of royalty to put her to hard labor.  While she was abused less, the hard labor brought on other pains that still continued to rot in her heart.  Still rebellious, she was often punished for her attitude or contempt of authority over her.  One of the guards seemed to take pity on her, or at least saw less purpose to beating her, and instead showed her a little kindness.  The beatings decreased over time, but her life remained difficult and her outlook slowly dimmed.

During an inspection by the Pharaoh the slaves were to be presented along with the guards as their work was inspected.  One of the other slaves, perhaps in a not-too-different situation to Lapis, had decided to use the opportunity of brief freedom to defy his position.  He had little plan and simply took one guard by surprise, stealing his short sword in an attempt to kill him.  It had been the one that had shown some measure of kindness to Lapis, and she quickly saw what was going on.  Without second thought she lunged after the attacker, knocking the guard away while struggling with the other slave.  He managed to stab with the weapon through her left shoulder, just under the collarbone.  Stunned that she still fought on like some kind of demon possessed, he let go of the hilt giving her the chance to pull the blade from her shoulder and thrust it through the attacker's chest.

Blood loss caused her to quickly lose consciousness, but eventually she awoke under the care of one of the physicians that attended to the Pharaoh.  She was elevated to a position in the palace where she would serve the Pharaoh directly as a guard, though she still needed some time to recover and be properly trained.  It was never clear to Lapis what the Pharaoh saw in her, but she was kind and treated her with dignity and respect--far more than she had ever received in the past.  At times the sorrow of her past would overwhelm her, and the Pharaoh would sometimes try to listen or offer comfort.  Lapis was quickly won over, and her unwavering loyalty became ever obvious.  Her martial prowess grew in unexpected ways as she trained.  She was never the strongest combatant, but she showed a strange, dark tenacity that manifested as a unique fighting style.

When the Pharaoh died she was a natural pick to join the expedition.  She felt as if a part of her died with the Pharaoh, but if she could perhaps where she ascended to perhaps she could rejoin her to continue her service if only in some small way.  For now, though, she journeyed on with the others serving them as much as she served her Pharaoh--her Goddess.

Character Sheet

Myth Weavers Link (Backed up using their backup tool)

To-do:

• Equipment

Aspirations

• Protect the Goddess
• Find where/which plane she may have ascended to
• Protect the other members of the chosen guardians
• Explore their new world

[TheKhan]

Interesting character concepts so far! Looking forward to more (and seeing more of the WIPs)!

[indarkestknight]

Still waiting on archetype approval before moving ahead with a character, but I continue to be very interested.

That said, as a sidebar, a friend from out of town will be visiting for the next few days, so it's very likely I won't have much time to work on a character. I should be back this upcoming Tuesday/Wednesday-ish.

[TheKhan]

Still waiting on archetype approval before moving ahead with a character, but I continue to be very interested.

That said, as a sidebar, a friend from out of town will be visiting for the next few days, so it's very likely I won't have much time to work on a character. I should be back this upcoming Tuesday/Wednesday-ish.

Ah! Thank you for the reminder, it has been quite a busy week for me. I think everything looks good, so you can start building.

Also, thanks for letting me know about the conflict. If things are running a bit late, that's okay. I'm fine with shifting targets if it would be helpful, as long as I know in advance.

[Re Z L]

Mostly done now

Might need to revise the character history/aspirations a touch, and the sheet still needs a handful of things (just gear/maneuvers right now I think)

[TheKhan]

Mostly done now

Might need to revise the character history/aspirations a touch, and the sheet still needs a handful of things (just gear/maneuvers right now I think)

Sounds good. Don't stress too much about aspirations, they are supposed to be guidelines rather than rules. They can change and shift as needed.

[Chulanowa]

I'll have my girl up sometime this evening  ;D I'm going either shaman or oracle

[Chanticleer]

I just realized that I did not have my sheet done for this! Usually I do it kind of while I am working on the story and background. Synthesize. But this time I came up with most of the background while I was away from my books.

I will try to get it done tonight. Hopefully to better than a 90% standard!

[TheKhan]

I just realized that I did not have my sheet done for this! Usually I do it kind of while I am working on the story and background. Synthesize. But this time I came up with most of the background while I was away from my books.

I will try to get it done tonight. Hopefully to better than a 90% standard!

I was just thinking about PMing you to check in! No worries. As long as we have enough people who have sheets and want to play by tomorrow, we should be good.

[indarkestknight]

I'll have my girl up sometime this evening  ;D I'm going either shaman or oracle

Oh thank god we have someone who can cast spells/heal. We still lack anyone for traps, but at least we're not that far up the creek...

Will try to get a character up to par ASAP, though I probably won't be able to pull that off by this time tomorrow night, just as a head's up, due to having been otherwise occupied since Friday.

[TheKhan]

Oh thank god we have someone who can cast spells/heal. We still lack anyone for traps, but at least we're not that far up the creek...

Will try to get a character up to par ASAP, though I probably won't be able to pull that off by this time tomorrow night, just as a head's up, due to having been otherwise occupied since Friday.

Yeah, no worries. I'll hold off on picking players until Friday evening.

[Chulanowa]

[Floatright][/float]Name: Nafisa Nitorê Nayobey
Race: Gnome
Class: Spirit Guide Oracle 3 - Succor Mystery
Alignment: Neutral Good
Character sheet: (Completed!) https://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=1733494

Background: Nafisa is not a native of the Pharaoh's lands; rather she hails from the marshy riverlands to the south. From a young age, she was clearly claimed by the spirits, and so trained with the bone men and death-stealers of the tribes of those lands. She learned to control and direct her gift, and to resist the sometimes overwhelming pull of the wendo spirits upon her.
   Her service to the Pharaoh Akhenisis began ten years ago, and started as politics beyond Nafisa's ken. Ahkenisis' old personal priest had finally passed into the next world, leaving the queen's spiritual defenses unguarded. Clearly the role must be filled, but due to the politics at the time, bringing in a priest from any of the temples would have given that temple far too much influence, and would anger the rest, possibly to the point of revolt. Ahkenisis sent out for a priest not beholden to the Temple Gods; the priesthoods would still be angry, but at least they would not point their spears at each other over the slight.
   For the decade hence, it was Nafisa Nitorê Nayobey whose potions and magics brought health to (or "stole from death," as she put it) the queen's entourage. Her wards that kept evil spirits at bay, and her charms that rebuffed the curses of rivals and made enemies pliable. when the queen began her next journey, she asked that Nafisa accompany her, to continue those services in the next world. What's a little ritual death between friends?

Personality: Some believe Nafisa to be a barbarian. To be sure, she cleaves to the ways and traditions she grew up with in the floating islands of her homeland. Her accent is odd, her clothing even more so, and she would rather you didn't call her by her "court name" of "Nafsetnethnabir," though she'll put up with it. It's not that she dislikes or looks down on the civilization and people she lives among now; far from it, she finds it all fascinating and beautiful. But she knows herself, and that changing herself just to "fit in" would be fake and superficial, and ultimately genuinely disrespectful.
   She's confident and assured, certain in her own abilities and knowledge. She has an outgoing way to her, and is always interested in new people and practices. She agreed to the queen's services not so much out of duty or honor, but out of curiosity, a desire to explore and set her bare feet onto new soil.
   Despite her role as, essentially, a witch doctor, and the sometimes grim or secretive practices her calling asks of her, Nafisa is herself prone to laughter and smiles; she doesn't bother hiding what she feels, and at times, her manner can seem blunt and impolite. Curiously this has given her something of a positive reputation, as a sensible wise woman who "tells you what you need to hear." She's not sure how she feels about that notion.
   
Aspirations:
• Continue ushering Ahkenisis through the next stages of her spiritual life; Nafisa knows a great spirit when she sees one, and regards this as a priority duty.
• Learn what price Death asks of those who steal from it; She doesn't "heal," so much as she wrests life back from its cold clutches, after all.
• Meet and learn from other gnomes; so far she's only seen them from afar in this very odd new city. That's enough to tell they're very different from her tribes.
• Perhaps gain an apprenticeship at that nearby apothecary; when in Sigil, she can't necessarily rely on the herbs from home after all.
• Find a pet, perhaps?

Appearance: Nafisa stands only three feet and a few inches in height, but she'd be terribly difficult to lose in a crowd. Thick curls of black hair spill from her scalp to the middle of her back, and spread out enough to almost form a cloak of locks over and aroudn her shoulders as well. Tucked into this riot are often feathers, cut herbs, and flowers, we well as the occasional strand of beads or small painted bone charm. her round face is set with full, soft lips and a pert nose, as well as almost too-large eyes whose pale color contrasts with the rich mahogany of her skin. Strings of painted wooden beads encircle her slender neck and spill over her chest; in hot weather, these are the only thing she wears above the waist. More usually though she's dressed in a loose, comfortable wrap of pale blue cotton that is snug enough to show the roundness of her hips and soft gentle curve of her stomach; she's certainly no muscular hard-body under there. Even so, she goes carry a carved ebony club at her hip, and an oval shield of wood and hide at her back... Sigil's a dangerous city, after all...

Sexuality: Nafisa comes from a society that does not worry too much about who you wrap your legs or lips around. If you enjoy each other, then do so! The court of Akhenisis seems to have a somewhat different ethos, and Nafisa has had little, erm, activity in the past decade. She personally favors males, but has found no issue with sharing an evening with a lovely woman. For the moment the plethora of odd races and beings in Sigil raise more questions than actual interest in that regard, and unless approached by one of them, she's likely to keep her interests to the beings she's more familiar with. In terms of what she's "into," well, that's more of a mood thing, and she's more than willing to explore a partner's interests.

[indarkestknight]

Names have always been a weakpoint of mine, and I'm still struggling with one for the Shabti. I did have the idea to use the Coptic word for "Tormented" or "Sufferer" as a reference back to the Nameless One of Planescape: Torment, but unless I figure out a way to convert the Coptic word to the English alphabet, it seems better just to use one of the names of the three magi. Maybe Melchior or Balthazar.

Backstory & Aspirations

No shabti's story begins happily, and this story is no different. Like all of his kind, he was created as a simulacrum of a figure of great wealth, great power, and great wickedness – wicked enough to fear for the fate of their immortal soul in the afterlife, and wicked enough to inflict the wages of sin of their sin on a pristine, innocent soul. The shabti does not know whom he was modeled after, the vessel empty of whatever memories he was created to bear, for he was created lacking the ren of his mortal counterpart, but that ignorance did not save him from unworthiness, did not save him from the unflinching judgement of the scales of Anubis, did not save his ab, his heart, another eighth of his soul from the unending hunger of Ammit's maw.

It would have been cruel enough a fate to be doomed to serve out his conterpart's sentence as one of the restless dead in the lands of Duat, though the shabti knows not how long he dwelt in that place before a raiding party of sahkil spirited him and many other pilgrims on their journey through the lands of Duat, finding himself in a hell beyond anything he could have imagined, Xibalba where he served as prey and plaything for the sakhil's terror-filled delights. While all other souls were, over the spans of years and decades and perhaps even centuries warped into undead mockeries of their captors' former roles as psychopomps, the shabti's nature warded him from such a fate, instead consigning him to an unending eternity serving as one of the terrorized of Xibalba, never granted the release of undeath.

The first truly positive event in his long, tortured existence was when he crossed paths with a war party of Anubis' psychopomps. Though most recognized him as one of the restless dead, those whose hearts had been devoured by Ammit, the wisest among their number, having once been a shabti themselves, felt some strange kinship to the shabti. Peering closer, they saw the shabti for what he was, saw the horribly grave error that had led to this bleak infinity of torment. While it was not within their power to undo the great wrong that had been done, it was within their power to remove him from this demiplane of dread.

For the first time in his miserable existence, free, the shabti discovered that something had nestled inside the gouge left behind where his ab and ren should have been, a strange power. Seeking to understand this power and how to restore his lost ab, the shabti found himself drawn to a desert kingdom presided over by the Pharaoh Akhenisis, though he had no memories of the place itself. Though doing so did little to further unravel the mysteries that swirled around him, for the first time, as he laid eyes on this kingdom, its cities and monuments and temples, as he heard the prayers they lifted to their gods, as he felt the heat envelop him, his soul truly felt at ease.

However, when it was time for the Pharaoh Akhenisis to ascend, the priesthood of Anubis advised the Pharaoh to seek out the shabti, for who better to act as guide to the Pharaoh in the land of Duat than one who had made the journey himself before? When this was asked of him, he did not see how he could refuse.

Aspirations
• Discover the identity of his mortal counterpart and in so doing, claim his ren.
• Discover a way to restore the lost ab that Ammit devoured.
• Unravel the mystery of the astral eidolon's nature.

Poorly understood by the people of Akhenisis' kingdom, who are more familiar with more common eidolons of elemental, celestial, fiendish, or even monitor persuasion, it is theorized that the eidolon may have been some astral phantom, an entity so diminished it was unable to fully manifest itself without bonding to a host such as the shabti. There is also the far more chilling suggestion that it is the lingering phantom of some tormented petitioner of Xibalba or some other creature that met a grim fate in the fearful playground of the sakhil.

Charsheet (WIP)

Male shabti summoner (nexus commander) 3
LN Medium outsider (native)
Init +0; Senses darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +3

AC 15, touch 10, flat-footed 15 (+4 armor, +1 shield)
hp 3d8 + 6 (24)
Fort +3, Ref +1, Will +3
Defensive Abilities immune to undeath, resist level drain, shield ally

Speed 30 ft.
Melee cestus +4 (1d4 +2/19-20)
Melee longspear +4 (1d8 + 3/x3)
Ranged sun's gleam +4 (1d6 + 3)
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 3rd; concentration +6)
1/day—suggestion (DC 16)
Summoner Spell-Like Abilities (CL 3rd; concentration +6)
6/day – summon monster II

Str 14 Dex 10 Con 15 Int 12 Wis 10 Cha 16
Base Atk +2; CMB +4; CMD 14
Feats Augment Summoning, Spell Focus (conjuration)
Traits
Skills Knowledge (arcana) +5 (1 rank), Knowledge (history) +5 (1 rank), Knowledge (planes) +5 (1 rank), Linguistics +7 (3 ranks), Perception +3 (3 ranks), Spellcraft +5 (1 rank), Use Magic Device +7 (1 rank)
Languages Aquan, Auran, Common, Infernal, Terran
SQ animus (3 points, enhance maneuver, planar boon), blank slate, eidolon, immortal, nexus, nexus flare, shattered soul
Combat Gear wand of lesser rejuvenate eidolon (50 charges); Other Gear cestus, chain shirt, longspear, masterwork buckler, summoner's kit

Blank Slate Some shabti are bereft of memories of their past lives but can accomplish great improvisations. Shabti with this racial trait can, once per day as a free action, treat any skill as though they had a number of ranks equal to half of their character levels for one skill check (minimum 1 rank).

This racial trait replaces past life knowledge.

Immortal (Ex) Shabti do not age naturally and cannot die of old age. While some might come into being at age categories other than adulthood, they never leave their original age category. Spells and effects that cause aging affect a shabti as normal.

Immune to Undeath (Ex) Shabti can’t become undead. Spells and abilities that would transform a shabti into an undead creature have no effect.

Resist Level Drain (Ex) A shabti takes no penalties from energy drain effects, though he can still be killed if he accrues more negative levels than he has Hit Dice. After 24 hours, any negative levels a shabti takes are automatically removed without the need for an additional saving throw.

Shattered Soul (Ex) Shabti who are killed are exceptionally difficult to return to life. Those who attempt to return a shabti to life using raise dead, resurrection, or similar spells must succeed at a caster level check equal to 10 + the shabti’s Hit Dice. If this check fails, the spell fails and the caster can’t return the shabti to life for the next 24 hours (though the caster can try again after this period).



Serpentine Astral Eidolon
TN Medium outsider (extraplanar)
Init +3; Senses darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +6

AC 17, touch 13, flat-footed 14 (+3 Dex, +4 natural armor)
hp 3d10 + 3 (25)
Fort +2, Ref +6, Will +3
Defensive abilities evasion

Speed 30 ft., climb 20 ft.
Melee bite +6 (1d6+1)
Melee tail slap +1 (1d6)

Str 12 Dex 16 Con 13 Int 7 Wis 10 Cha 11
Base Atk +3; CMB +4; CMD 14
Feats Combat Reflexes, Weapon Finesse
Skills Intimidate +6 (3 ranks), Perception +6 (3 ranks)
Languages Aquan, Auran, Common, Infernal, Terran
SQ evolution (bite, limbs, magic attacks, reach [bite], tail, tail slap), link, share spells

[Bibliophilia]

Ooo...I love that art piece at the end of your Background info.  Tiger...wasp?  Is it Chinese?  It reminds me of the old paintings of Chinese mythological creatures.

[TheKhan]

Alrighty... so we only had five character applications and they all look really, solid, so I'm just going to say that everyone makes it into the game! That gives us...

?? - LN M Shabti Nexus Commander Summoner (indarkestknight)
Nafisa - NG F Gnome Spirit Guide Oracle (Chulanowa)
Lapis - CG F Human Harbinger (Re Z L)
Aharon - LG M Human Monk (Bibliophilia)
Nedjem - F Scaleheart Skinwalker Warder (Chanticleer - who is finishing the character sheet as we speak)

Please post your character sheets in the OOC thread, then head on over the game thread to get this party started!

[TheKhan]

Names have always been a weakpoint of mine, and I'm still struggling with one for the Shabti. I did have the idea to use the Coptic word for "Tormented" or "Sufferer" as a reference back to the Nameless One of Planescape: Torment, but unless I figure out a way to convert the Coptic word to the English alphabet, it seems better just to use one of the names of the three magi. Maybe Melchior or Balthazar.

Backstory & Aspirations

No shabti's story begins happily, and this story is no different. Like all of his kind, he was created as a simulacrum of a figure of great wealth, great power, and great wickedness – wicked enough to fear for the fate of their immortal soul in the afterlife, and wicked enough to inflict the wages of sin of their sin on a pristine, innocent soul. The shabti does not know whom he was modeled after, the vessel empty of whatever memories he was created to bear, for he was created lacking the ren of his mortal counterpart, but that ignorance did not save him from unworthiness, did not save him from the unflinching judgement of the scales of Anubis, did not save his ab, his heart, another eighth of his soul from the unending hunger of Ammit's maw.

It would have been cruel enough a fate to be doomed to serve out his conterpart's sentence as one of the restless dead in the lands of Duat, though the shabti knows not how long he dwelt in that place before a raiding party of sahkil spirited him and many other pilgrims on their journey through the lands of Duat, finding himself in a hell beyond anything he could have imagined, Xibalba where he served as prey and plaything for the sakhil's terror-filled delights. While all other souls were, over the spans of years and decades and perhaps even centuries warped into undead mockeries of their captors' former roles as psychopomps, the shabti's nature warded him from such a fate, instead consigning him to an unending eternity serving as one of the terrorized of Xibalba, never granted the release of undeath.

The first truly positive event in his long, tortured existence was when he crossed paths with a war party of Anubis' psychopomps. Though most recognized him as one of the restless dead, those whose hearts had been devoured by Ammit, the wisest among their number, having once been a shabti themselves, felt some strange kinship to the shabti. Peering closer, they saw the shabti for what he was, saw the horribly grave error that had led to this bleak infinity of torment. While it was not within their power to undo the great wrong that had been done, it was within their power to remove him from this demiplane of dread.

For the first time in his miserable existence, free, the shabti discovered that something had nestled inside the gouge left behind where his ab and ren should have been, a strange power. Seeking to understand this power and how to restore his lost ab, the shabti found himself drawn to a desert kingdom presided over by the Pharaoh Akhenisis, though he had no memories of the place itself. Though doing so did little to further unravel the mysteries that swirled around him, for the first time, as he laid eyes on this kingdom, its cities and monuments and temples, as he heard the prayers they lifted to their gods, as he felt the heat envelop him, his soul truly felt at ease.

However, when it was time for the Pharaoh Akhenisis to ascend, the priesthood of Anubis advised the Pharaoh to seek out the shabti, for who better to act as guide to the Pharaoh in the land of Duat than one who had made the journey himself before? When this was asked of him, he did not see how he could refuse.

Aspirations
• Discover the identity of his mortal counterpart and in so doing, claim his ren.
• Discover a way to restore the lost ab that Ammit devoured.
• Unravel the mystery of the astral eidolon's nature.

Poorly understood by the people of Akhenisis' kingdom, who are more familiar with more common eidolons of elemental, celestial, fiendish, or even monitor persuasion, it is theorized that the eidolon may have been some astral phantom, an entity so diminished it was unable to fully manifest itself without bonding to a host such as the shabti. There is also the far more chilling suggestion that it is the lingering phantom of some tormented petitioner of Xibalba or some other creature that met a grim fate in the fearful playground of the sakhil.

Charsheet (WIP)

Male shabti summoner (nexus commander) 3
LN Medium outsider (native)
Init +0; Senses darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +3

AC 15, touch 10, flat-footed 15 (+4 armor, +1 shield)
hp 3d8 + 6 (24)
Fort +3, Ref +1, Will +3
Defensive Abilities immune to undeath, resist level drain, shield ally

Speed 30 ft.
Melee cestus +4 (1d4 +2/19-20)
Melee longspear +4 (1d8 + 3/x3)
Ranged sun's gleam +4 (1d6 + 3)
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 3rd; concentration +6)
1/day—suggestion (DC 16)
Summoner Spell-Like Abilities (CL 3rd; concentration +6)
6/day – summon monster II

Str 14 Dex 10 Con 15 Int 12 Wis 10 Cha 16
Base Atk +2; CMB +4; CMD 14
Feats Augment Summoning, Spell Focus (conjuration)
Traits
Skills Knowledge (arcana) +5 (1 rank), Knowledge (history) +5 (1 rank), Knowledge (planes) +5 (1 rank), Linguistics +7 (3 ranks), Perception +3 (3 ranks), Spellcraft +5 (1 rank), Use Magic Device +7 (1 rank)
Languages Aquan, Auran, Common, Infernal, Terran
SQ animus (3 points, enhance maneuver, planar boon), blank slate, eidolon, immortal, nexus, nexus flare, shattered soul
Combat Gear wand of lesser rejuvenate eidolon (50 charges); Other Gear cestus, chain shirt, longspear, masterwork buckler, summoner's kit

Blank Slate Some shabti are bereft of memories of their past lives but can accomplish great improvisations. Shabti with this racial trait can, once per day as a free action, treat any skill as though they had a number of ranks equal to half of their character levels for one skill check (minimum 1 rank).

This racial trait replaces past life knowledge.

Immortal (Ex) Shabti do not age naturally and cannot die of old age. While some might come into being at age categories other than adulthood, they never leave their original age category. Spells and effects that cause aging affect a shabti as normal.

Immune to Undeath (Ex) Shabti can’t become undead. Spells and abilities that would transform a shabti into an undead creature have no effect.

Resist Level Drain (Ex) A shabti takes no penalties from energy drain effects, though he can still be killed if he accrues more negative levels than he has Hit Dice. After 24 hours, any negative levels a shabti takes are automatically removed without the need for an additional saving throw.

Shattered Soul (Ex) Shabti who are killed are exceptionally difficult to return to life. Those who attempt to return a shabti to life using raise dead, resurrection, or similar spells must succeed at a caster level check equal to 10 + the shabti’s Hit Dice. If this check fails, the spell fails and the caster can’t return the shabti to life for the next 24 hours (though the caster can try again after this period).



Serpentine Astral Eidolon
TN Medium outsider (extraplanar)
Init +3; Senses darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +6

AC 17, touch 13, flat-footed 14 (+3 Dex, +4 natural armor)
hp 3d10 + 3 (25)
Fort +2, Ref +6, Will +3
Defensive abilities evasion

Speed 30 ft., climb 20 ft.
Melee bite +6 (1d6+1)
Melee tail slap +1 (1d6)

Str 12 Dex 16 Con 13 Int 7 Wis 10 Cha 11
Base Atk +3; CMB +4; CMD 14
Feats Combat Reflexes, Weapon Finesse
Skills Intimidate +6 (3 ranks), Perception +6 (3 ranks)
Languages Aquan, Auran, Common, Infernal, Terran
SQ evolution (bite, limbs, magic attacks, reach [bite], tail, tail slap), link, share spells

Not super helpful, but "Sufferer" in Ancient Egyptian is AHW when the hieroglyphs are switched to English, while "to suffer" or "to endure" is WKHD. So maybe something like "Ahuw" or "Wekhed" would work?

[Chulanowa]

Not super helpful, but "Sufferer" in Ancient Egyptian is AHW when the hieroglyphs are switched to English, while "to suffer" or "to endure" is WKHD. So maybe something like "Ahuw" or "Wekhed" would work?

AHW? Wait... Vowels? in my ancient Semetic languages?!

[indarkestknight]

Ooo...I love that art piece at the end of your Background info.  Tiger...wasp?  Is it Chinese?  It reminds me of the old paintings of Chinese mythological creatures.

Thank you! Glad you likeit. It's apparently a Tigerpede, or that's what the artist labeled the picture anyway. As far as I can tell, the artist, B.R. Guthrie, lives in SoCal, but it does have a bit of a Chinese mythological feel to it, I agree!

[Amarlo]

Oh wow, this is actually pretty neat looking. I'm almost sorry I missed out on it!