RPing Charname, what class to choose?

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Actually im tempted to say bard here, It is actually teh logical choice Oghma is the patron of bards, bards are some of the chief collecters of lore.

Ill agree on Wizard, Cleric, Fighter, Thief.
I'll say that Paladin, ranger, druid would be the most unlikelly ones. If he had become Paladin he would most likel yhave trianed under another paladin (and no paladin gods are present at Candlekeep) so he would almost certainly have ha to leave the area. Would have been much easier with some less "restricted" multi/dual classing, to start as fighter and later convert them to paladin levels heh.

 

@raptor: Paladins rely on being unlikely.

@Bion: Perhaps it would be handled as a non-weapon proficiency in 2E. The XP system and levelling up was made for adventurers, so perhaps for those people who stay home and learn stuff, have a job etc, a different system should be used. While you don't walk around killing monsters, you spend the time learning. Some of the things you do in life would qualify for quest XP, though. Still, levelling up is for overall improvement and we're much more about honing specific skills. There isn't really any way to reflect our normal learning process in D&D terms.

 

@Shrikant: I assumed that most PC would be human (except for the odd Ranger/Cleric).

@Bion: "the singing Lord of Murder" hum to me that sounds nice. All children of Bhaal don't have to be clones of their father (assassins) so perhaps it wouldn't be nonsensical especially if we consider the most serious aspect of a bard, not a jolly fellow in an inn but rather a fearsome adventurer slaying enemies and singing battlesongs at the same time? As a deity he could kill with a song [humming] 'killing me softly with this song' sorry got carried away!
I like the idea of Clerical abilities coming naturally to a child of Bhaal (IMO it makes sense to dual to cleric the more so since Charname -sorry Harbourboy - gains Clerical abilities)

@Chevalier: The retired Ranger idea is great. It's a very good solution!

@Raptor: Why shouldn't a Lawful Good Fighter raised by a Lawful Good Mage in such a holy place (Alaundo and all) become a dedicated Paladin? The way I see it, paladinhood is a calling and would be independent from the taint itself (in BG2 Undead Hunter would be suitable) besides it would be interesting in the long run... such a character (@Harbourboy: see I remembered this time and I didn't mention Charname) would have to strive not to fall, and that would be interesting.

Still I can't really imagine a Druid at home in Candlekeep. I agree that after meeting Jaheira it would pose no problem, but I can't figure a bookish druid (though the idea is appealing).

 

The thing is that while the DnD system is based on above average characters who go off for a life of adventure, you are actually an exceptional character as you have the blood of a God running through your veins. So, why wouldn't you have the ability to take up any career you wanted?

The argument about clerics/druids is fairly simple as far as I see it ... being either is a calling and a belief in that God. It's not so much about the training, but the belief and praying as the God grants you your spells, but your training. So, the only real difference between a Druid and a Cleric is the worship of a nature God compared to another type of God. Once you have decided you want to worship a nature God and begun this process, the God would give you your spells and any abilites to start you on your way to being a Druid.

Most people's beliefs are absed upon what they have read and seen, so why should it be any different in this case?

The same applies to a Paladin and Ranger. You can get basic fighting training anywhere, but your code/behaviour and spells are determined by the God you worship more than your basic training.

 

Well I don't know much about Dungeons and Dragons, but accourding to history and myth, Bardic (Bion from what I understand Irish bards were poets and storytellers, while the Welsh loved to break into song like Bollywood movies ) and Druidic training takes 20 years so both of these classes would be out, unless they are training as they travel. Charname would be likely to be a 'man at arms' living in a keep so he would have some sort of fighting abilities so a multi-class could be a good consideration. Unless Charname was sneaking in and out then a ranger would not be so good.

 

@Bard: I don't believe all spawns of Bhaal should be as powerful as Sarevok (Deathbringer!). Remember the little guy in the intro, he doesn't put much of a fight (think about ToB and the weaker children of Bhaal). (In ToB Sarevok keeps rambling about how he is disappointed that he who was so powerful was beaten by a weakling like Charname who has no idea of his own abilities.) I believe that it is more a question of fate (or Tymora) watching over Charname that allows him/her to get through all these adventures. Sure there is about Charname more than meet the eye, nevertheless he/she shouldn't really stand out until his/her abilities become known?

 

(Leaving aside how little the D&D classes resemble history)

Yeah, Cesard, but D&D didn't consider you a real druid until level 9... before that, you were an initiate. Heck, even Bards, in 1st edition, had a lengthy training period and still had several levels until they could be called real bards.

 

I think bard would be the ideal profession for the PC.

They learned all manner of fighting skills from the Watchers, pickpocketing & resourcefulness from Imoen and magic from Gorion.

Until the events of BG he/she would likely be naieve & sheltered, singing gaily about what a wonderful life they have in Candlekeep unaware of the evil lurking inside or hunting them down.

 

To me the sorcerer makes the most sense. Born with the power in the blood. With Gorion as father and the best library in the realm at your fingertips, for your entire life, some form of mage should be the most natural.

 

@Arawn if that were true then they'd be an uber mage to begin with.

The PC starts at level1 which means they know virtually nothing about everything. Barely wield a sword without dropping it, cast 1 magic missile/cure light wounds per day. A pitiful weakling, its once they begin testing their skills in the real world and following their destiny that the training and heritage kick in.

I presume that the effect of Bhaal's blood is to enhance and fuel the person. They begin with strong natural power (i.e. high stats) and once they start fighting they advance and adapt quickly, growing to love the violence and bloodshed.

EDIT: woot, new gem.

 

Why would he have to be uber? The sorcerers powers awaken over time, they are inherent like the standard bhaalspawn abilites.

The PC starts at level1 which means they know virtually nothing about everything.

Of course, that is the premise for the game, but the original question was about what class would make make the most sense given charname’s heritage and upbringing. Those should point to academic pursuits, possible comported with charnames inherent powers. Which screams sorcerer to me.

Nothing stops charname from embarking on another career they just doesn’t seem that likely to me.

 

You see, Arawn, Sorcerer is the antithesis of academic pursuits, to me. It's throwing the book out the window. I would point more towards wizard or bard, based on your argument... the PC has innate ability to work magic, and is constantly surrounded by some of the greatest store of knowledge in the world. The wizard threw himself into that; the bard learned a bunch of stuff, but was able to get some magic in because of his innate power.

 

Ok, wizard make a lot of sense to, but the sorcerer is a mage class, it's primary stat in BG is intelligence and the sorcerers power is inherent fitting the child of bhaal concept extremly well.
A bard on the other hand is a foremost a performer not a scholar.

 

Depends on the bard, really. Remember, Bards have a huge lore skill; they have to know this somehow, and if you're growing up in Candlekeep (which has very restricted access), you're going to have access to a lot of lore through books. Given that Bards also learn Wizard magic, and cast it via memorization, there's another indication that they are somewhat learned.

 

Just because the PC had access to the Candlekeep libraries doesn't mean he took advantage of it.

Afterall, seeing Gorion spend day after day pouring over books ancient tomes may have made him resentful. Neglecting his magical tuitalage or shunning it entirely to:
spar with the guards or
debate religion with the clerics or
frolic with the woodland creatures nearby.

 

MrNexx, good points about the bard. Game mechanics wise, a bard would make sense. Yet to me a bard is flamboyant and outgoing there shouldn't be much much space for someone like this in the fortress library. Moreover the the dark undertone of the saga makes someone who sings and tell stories, somewhat queer IMO.

Pseudospawn, sure the protagonist might have rebelled against his enviroment, that's entirely plausible. But if so charname could be anything. And once again, this topic was about what the most likely class and race is for charname given his/her traits and upbringing.

 

Actually, a bard is starting to make more sense to me. Everyone needs entertainment, and a PC bard playing at Withrop's would be the perfect thing. A bard is also a jack-of-all-trades, and considering all the various things that the PC could have picked up at Candlekeep (in a piecemeal fashion; he wouldn't be seriously studying anything) a bard makes perfect sense. He's got the magical powers (Gorion) and the pocket picking (Imoen).

As for the dark undertone, there are PLENTY of ballads about death, destrution, etc. that would more than fit into an evil (or chaotic) bard, and an NG bard could be played as someone whose constant internal struggle against the taint has turned him delusional.

 

Father: Assassin but as lord or murder had wide range of powers.
Mother: (play ToB and find out for yourself)
Foster father: Mage
Environment: Libraries, watchers training, all classes passing through candlekeep.

You just can't put a case for one class being likelier than another, since it was probably the designers idea was to have the PC's origin as vague & open-ended as possible.

..but as i said in my first post here, the mix that the pc grew up is better reflected by being a bard.

[ July 10, 2005, 22:59: Message edited by: Pseudospawn ]

 

A bard CAN BE flamboyant, and they certainly need an expressive talent (high Charisma), but I don't know if flamboyance is a necessity. After all, you can be a great performer without being a 70s-era Elton John, and being able to draw attention to yourself at the right time in a performance can give you a lot of power.

 

I've been through the game one more time and this is what I read in chapter 6 (SPOILER ahead if you've never completed chapter 6):

According to this, it is IMPOSSIBLE that Charname has been playing as a teenager in the catacombs.

By the way, there are some characters who are supposed to have acted as teachers for Charname: Karan, Reevor, Parda. A pretty mix of classes.