Bob
Bob is a surprisingly common name for Fighters from this game of epic, fantastic role-play and adventure known as D&D. I've been in two separate groups with a Bob who was a Fighter, and have know of two others. In this campaign, Bob might be seen as the leader of the group, unofficially assigned the position due to being the only remaining original character and the character with the most knowledge of the campaign thus far. In addition, this has allotted him more interactions with NPCs, making him the most recognizable face to most NPCs they encounter more than once.
Bob is a human fighter, focusing on the spear. He has a magical fire spear which he inherited from his father before passing away. This fire spear is his legacy item. A common component of my campaigns are that I like to give characters a legacy item, which levels up with them and is at least slightly better than a generic magical item of it's type. Bob started out uncertain of his goals and direction, knowing only that he didn't want to remain in the small town of his birth forever. It was obvious to him and everyone else that his competence as a warrior weas far greater than his small town could utilize, so he left. His plan was not to become a hero, but after saving several people and recovering some artifacts, that's what he began to be known as. A wolf he raised since childhood as his own (Steve) was awakened by a druid, and has become important in at least several plot points, even though the wolf no longer travels with the party. A mysterious woman who they found wondering through the wood, with goals but unshared motivation and no name, was named by Bob and has grown to be effectively his girlfriend.
Bob has also grown to be known as a dumb, clumsy, brute of a man, even though his statistics indicate he's almost as coordinated and balanced as he is strong, and even though his intelligence is average his wisdom and charisma are both a tad above average. Regardless his actual strengths, he has earned this reputation through a simple lack of forethought or investigation. As the group was exiting some ruins, they began getting shot at by some hobgoblins in a guard tower which was mostly still erect. Between them and the tower, slightly to the side, was an old stable which they might go around to avoid getting shot as they approached the tower. Instead of doing that, however, the group simply charged, led by Bob. Bob found the rope tied from the stables to a rock that used to be part of the town wall the hard way. Bob tripped over the rope and gave the hobgoblins a prime target, which the very reason the rope was placed there. If the group had gone around or even simply approached slowly, they may have noticed the rope. After this, Bob became the one who always tripped the trap due to having the tendency to charge in or simply miss details, hence the reputation.
Dravis
Next on the list is the next earliest created character who's still around, Dravis the gnomish illusionist. Dravis is a reasonable, knowledgeable gnome, but he tends to keep his knowledge to himself. Given the makeup of his group, that's not necessarily a bad thing, but it has lead to some unnecessary problems. However, there's at least one member of the group who would probably not listen anyway, which makes his plans safer being unknown to them anyhow. Dravis is known for using his powers only when it appears the rest of the group does not have the combat in hand, otherwise staying in the background and aiding his companions minimally. This tactic has lead to his continued survival, so it must have merit.
Dravis was with the group when they discovered "Fort Siege", which is a keep from the days of ancient Thymasia (the evil empire). Several strange things about this keep were obvious from the get-go. It was in surprisingly good shape for being an almost 300 year old building which has been abandoned for most of it's existence. Further, it was still guarded by it's original guardians. Those guardians were not undead or something like that, they were animated weapons. The group could not enter the keep the normal way, due to the circle of animated swords around it, so they went underground, through the natural cavern leading to the basement. They dispatched most of the kobalds and discovered several important plot points. Firstly, they discovered their first "keystone", which is a magical gem of unknown origin or purpose at this point, but was being used to power the magical defenses. When they tried to remove it, it crumbled into residuum. The other important plot point they discovered was another of the character's brother; a dwarf who has studied magic against his clan's wishes and seems to have something to prove. At this point, his wickedness was ambiguous, and this antagonist's brother soon left the campaign. Oh well, his loss.
Dravis dealt with the situation with some quick diplomacy and intimidation, then continued on to acquire an unofficial deed to Fort Siege. Of course, Fort Siege was abandoned, and no nation had authority over the land. If the nation he got the deed from did have that authority, it would have been an official deed. This deed would lead to a formal direction for the nation to expand into, as well as provide Dravis some power as it happened. Of course, that may take generations.
Dravis's legacy item is a jesters hat he discovered blowing in the wind, one day. He grabbed it and put it on before he was aware it was magical at all. As he travelled and got into fights, the more he realized he sometimes got lucky. It took him a while, but he eventually realized that his hat was a powerful defensive item.
Titania
Titania joined the group in an attempt to find her lost brother, Ellowin. She is an Elven shaman, and she was originally a pacifist. Her pacifism was a point of contention in the group, but the more she adventured with them the less opposed to violence she would become since the group showed her that sometimes it really was necessary. Titania's legacy item is her "Flutterfly", which is a spirit that takes the form of a butterfly which constantly orbits her. It can be used to give her bonuses to her defenses and helps her notice things she otherwise may not.
Even though Titania is unambiguously the most perceptive member of the group, she seems to have ADHD and cannot concentrate on anything long enough to remember what their goals are or what information they need to acquire. She was once in an ancient, abandoned, gnomish city with the legendary technology the ancient gnomish kingdom was known for, and it was still functional. They found a control room deep underground, where they played with several buttons and discovered a bunch of robo-gnomes, or gnome-golems... something they didn't quite understand. It was apparently a hastily constructed defense against the ancient Thymasian empire, as they attacked the gnomes first. The gnomes had the most powerful and advanced kingdom, so they were the most capable of retaliation if given the chance. Due to being rushed, the defenses failed and backfired, wiping out the gnomes before the Thymasians even arrived. After some un-methodical toying with every button she found, she eventually caused the explosion of the entire city, which she claimed was inevitable anyhow... though she has no reason to suspect that. They fortunately had enough time to escape the explosion.
Toryc
Toryc is a gnoll fire-wizard. He grew up in the desert, where most of his kind come from. He was gifted with an intelligence unnaturally high for his kind, which has lead him to survive for long enough to get out of the desert and meet up with the rest of our group. Toryc has the unusual philosophy that good and evil don't really exist, it's all just how you view things. He actively attempts to create chaos, to show that good and evil are essentially irrelevant, or outdated ideas, rather. Unlike Dravis, he uses his powers as frequently as he can, relishing in the destruction and confusion they create. Toryc borders on evil, making no secret of his cannibalism or willingness to deface or mutilate anything or anyone, taking parts of them as trinkets, trophies, food, or whatever else he can think of.
Toryc has shown that he cares at least slightly about how the world is, however, as he willingly helps the group in their goals, one of which is preventing the escape of a giant, horribly evil and powerful demon. The release of this demon essentially promises the destruction of most of the continent at least. While he doesn't specifically care for or against the group he travels with as a whole, he has a respect for Bob which makes him willingly follow and help the unofficial group leader. Toryc's legacy item is his magical book, which he uses as an arcane focus. It empowers his fire spells as well as his summons.
"Gun"-Jack
A Warforged fighter who seemed to have randomly animated several hundred years after creation, Jack is introspective and rarely gives his two cents to the group. However, when he does, he tends to be the voice of reason and calmness. He has recently begun having flashes of memories from a lost past. The memories are short and confusing for now, when they flash into his mind. They're a major source of his introspection, and lead him to continue adventuring to see if he can uncover what they mean and why he gets them.
Jack's initial reason for adventuring were that he had no home upon animating, and he finds the rush of a fight both exhilarating and purposeful. He desires to become a great warrior, even though he has yet to understand his own motivations and existence. He is the typical sword and board fighter, who's best fighting occurs when he's trying to get the attention of enemies off of his friends, attempting to reduce overall injury during combat. Of course, he's also decent at offense as well, making him a well rounded fighter. His legacy item is his sword, the history of which he's ignorant of. He simply awoke with it. It sometimes freezes his enemies.
This is the group as it currently exists, in order from oldest member to newest. If I mention something involving a character no longer in the group, I'll describe that character upon their being mentioned, and not in as much detail as the "main cast", here.
Next time on Gnome Skulls, The Plundering of the Ancient Gnomish City of Pergon
