To allow for greater leeway in character creation, it is possible to trade either the D or the E pick down one level to raise either the B or the C pick by one level in turn. Only this trade is allowed, and only in this direction; you can have a less balanced character, but not a more balanced one.

Racial Picks:

A: God – don’t play one of these guys, please.

B: Powerful Servitor – Six levels of Vagaries, none higher than 2; attribute bonus of +3 spread among two or three attributes (conceptually connected to what he was changed for, not WP); either a major flaw or a minor flaw and one attribute of choice at –1 (again conceptually connected what he was changed for); Divine Etiquette at (Best Package)-2; Sign Language (of the Gods) at (Best Package); Theology at (Best Package)+1; Secret Language (of the Gods) at (Best Package)+2; God Lore (actual hard facts!) at (Best Package)+3.

C: Weak Servitor – Two Vagaries at 1; two attributes of choice at +1 (conceptually connected to what he was changed for, not WP); either a major flaw or a minor flaw and one attribute of choice at –1 (again conceptually connected what he was changed for); Divine Etiquette at (Best Package)-1; Sign Language (of the Gods) at (Best Package)+1; Theology at (Best Package)+2.

D: Descended-born – Not really a race apart, but natural selection in the jungle is so harsh as to ensure that only those who are fit and attentive and can think on their feet live to see adulthood; people who did not spend their childhood in the jungle but descended later need not have this racial package. HT+1, Wit+1, Per+1, Survival at (Best Package)-2.

E: Ascended-born – Born in a city and having spent at least the better part of childhood there.

F: Ascended-born – Born in a city and having spent at least the better part of childhood there.

Racial modifiers stack on top of the usual limit of a high-score of 7.


Social Picks:

A: High-ranking priest; Servitor

B: Priest; high-ranking temple warrior

C: Warrior; very rich artisan or merchant

D: Artisan; merchant; Descended chief in a jungle campaign

E: Labourer; Descended in a jungle-campaign

F: Slave; Prisoner; renegade Servitor; any Descended in a city-campaign


Attribute Picks:

A: 50
B: 46
C: 42
D: 38
E: 34
F: 30

You start off better than normal, but you will develop slower than you may be used to. I like this more literary approach to characters better than D&D’s beggar-to-king approach.
An attribute of 4 is considered average to maybe slightly above average.


Skills

Skill rules used are those from Core. Skill packets from the Companion can be used, but not the additional Social packets from p43. Totally inappropriate packages would be Highwayman, Knight, Pirate and Sailor. The Riding and Teamster skills do not exist, and other animal skills are only possible for those who have spent a considerable part of their lives in the jungle.


Proficiencies

A: 15
B: 12
C: 9
D: 6
E: 3
F: 0

Like I said with the Attributes, I like your characters to start out slightly better than normal, but not to progress less fast.
I remember reading that Jake stated once something along the lines that Prof 4 denotes a practitioner who has had decent training and regularly devotes some time to keeping it up and that Prof 10+ could be considered a master. This is also my take, just so you know what to expect.
Possible melee Proficiencies, apart from the unarmed ones, are (Short) Sword & Shield, Pole-arm (spears), Mass Weapon & Shield (maces, hatchets) and Dagger. Ranged Proficiencies are Bow, Dart, Sling, Spear/Javelin, Thrown Knife, Thrown Axe and Thrown Rock.


Gifts & Flaws

All Gifts and Flaws from Core are eligible, and you can also make up your own. Homemade ones have to be approved by the group; the same holds true for any Gifts and Flaws not from Core.
And just so you know: It is not possible to take an “easy” flaw in any of my games. I see a flaw as an invitation, an indicator by the player where he would like his character to be challenged. I will press each and every flaw, and especially major ones are not to be taken lightly.


And don’t concern yourselves overmuch with wealth and money. Your guys have whatever stuff feels right for them.

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My real name is Michael; use it, if you like.

Ok, I’d like each and every one of you to bring forth a conceptual sketch of whom you’d like to portray, no more; certainly no detailed outline. Something as vague is the following would be perfect:

I am thinking of some kind of low-level Servitor, sent to a city as attendant and aide to another, more powerful Servitor, and who now has rising misgivings about the Gods, about the mission, about his own status as slave to the Gods and master over men, and about the state of humanity at large. Somebody who considers rebellion and who will in all likelihood turn against the Gods very soon.

And keep our “What Price Freedom”-theme in mind; somehow, positively or negatively, directly or indirectly, this should be an issue for your future character.

We proceed once everybody has given his concept. In the meantime, everybody is very much encouraged to suggest things for everybody else’s character and speak up with any cool ideas that might strike him about somebody else’s concept. It is to be understood expressedly that any suggestions are no more than that. This kind of input serves to generate interest in the other players’ characters and to possibly open up avenues for tying them together right from the conceptual stage. Also, and this is very important, if you are somehow uneasy with any character concept introduced, please say so immediately, and say why.

Ian, you are for obvious reasons exempted from presenting a concept of your own, but please comment on others'.

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My real name is Michael; use it, if you like.

Is it alright to post several brief character ideas to see which the group likes best and then go from there?

Cheers!

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"It was hard-fought, a desperate affair that could have gone badly; if God had not helped me, the outcome would have been quick and fatal" (115) ~ Beowulf after defeating Grendle's Mother.

Absolutely.

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My real name is Michael; use it, if you like.

EDITED:

My first idea is playing a Slave, possibly one of the Descended. His familly (maybe a wife and son or daughter?) are also enslaved but are owned by different masters. He has the oppertunity to flee to the Jungle without them or to remain and try and free them.

I'll leave it at the for now, I'd like to hear other's feedback, and more importantly their own ideas, I also have ideas for a Priest, and Servitor and even a Renegade god, but like I said I'll wait for others to post first.

Cheers!

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"It was hard-fought, a desperate affair that could have gone badly; if God had not helped me, the outcome would have been quick and fatal" (115) ~ Beowulf after defeating Grendle's Mother.

Hey Grettir I noticed you in here reading just after I finished editing my post, I hope you read the edited version and not the pre-Edited as the idea chaged quite a bit.

Anyway this post is just to alert you incase you don't look back over the Edited one.

Cheers!

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"It was hard-fought, a desperate affair that could have gone badly; if God had not helped me, the outcome would have been quick and fatal" (115) ~ Beowulf after defeating Grendle's Mother.

I've seen both the original and the edited concept, and I like the latter much better; it's very good. Almost all slaves are temple-owned, but I think it would be better if the character's enslaved relation would be controlled by a very different part of the temple than your guy, and "stabled" in another part of the temple. Freeing the relation would thus be harder, and staying behind a graver choice.

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My real name is Michael; use it, if you like.

Me too.



Thankyou for saying so.



Oh okay, I figured that slaves would do most of the work in the city, but being enslaved by the Temple works just as well, especially as see this guy not having had much love for the Priests or their gods (as my first post siad )



Exactly what I had in mind, they may glimpse eachother from time to time, maybe even come close enough to brush their hands together unnoticed, but for the most poart they are completely isolated. His young son or daughter could possibly have a very grave (suggestions welcome) I'm thinking something like the guy on Water World who lives in the Oil Tanker and measures the oil.

Cheers!

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"It was hard-fought, a desperate affair that could have gone badly; if God had not helped me, the outcome would have been quick and fatal" (115) ~ Beowulf after defeating Grendle's Mother.

I'm considering a warrior. He's fairly experienced, having been fortunate enough to avoid being sacrificed thus far and until recently he's been a loyal servant of the Gods. Recently, however, he's getting tired; tired of the screams and pleas for mercy. That there's a young labourer girl who's caught his eye might also have something to do with it.

Definitely fine, usable material. I take you intend to have your warrior to rebel against the temple sooner or later, right? In this case the love affair might be an angle to be exploited; remember that even sexual intercourse between different castes is forbidden and punishable by death, and a labourer is of the lowest caste, whereas a warrior comes immediately below the priests...

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My real name is Michael; use it, if you like.

That's the idea. The form of this rebellion, be it an attempt at armed insurrection or simply an attempt to escape with his love, is something that'll have to be decided later.

Pac Utal is an master artisan. He is capable of shaping godstone, the material of which the city is built. Pac has many reasons for staying within the city. He is wealthy, successful, and he is about to become even more so. But there are also problems waiting around the corner, family ties that will cause him to question the role of the gods in the life of the cities.

P'Tarn Utal is a master artisan, capable of shaping the godstone through a Gift. He is also an elite athlete, driven to succeed in the religious games that are held periodically to select the one to be sacrificed for the cities' safety. He has geared his young life towards this goal but is about to discover that the games are not on a level playing field. This will lead him to question the purpose of the sacrifices, or more specifically why he can't be chosen for sacrifice.

It really wouldn’t have been necesary to take so drastic a step as to remove your initial detailed outline, Ian. Like I said, you presenting a fully fleshed-out person was merely the tiniest of hickups, certainly not a problem of any kind. Thank you for your willingness to cooperate, though.

Anyhow, both of your concepts have great potential; I like them both and can't say which one I like more.

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My real name is Michael; use it, if you like.

An-Ara is a young woman with no real sense of responsibility. She sees her life as just that -- her life, to do with as she will. She chafes at the many rules of governance in particular the rules of caste. She is, however, very bright and so chooses to break rules only where the consequences if caught are manageable -- or the risk of getting caught is negligible. She flirts with the Jungle like it is a paramour, skirting its edges, awaking its desires, its bloodlust. She is about to learn the nature of the Jungle while in the arms of a Descended. And both these secrets will not remain so for long.