History

Player: Larry James; integrated campaign (GM: Kelly Berger) character for The North Revealed, created 5/2025.

Background/Origins

No one remembers or uses last names – those old identities are gone.

Helca Origins

Born to a human male and halfing female. His mother was washed out to see from Loamwold, and rescued by his father and nursed back to health. They fell in love and started a family. He has 3 sisters that he barely remembers. His family fled Tarmysia and he was taken as a slave – he is one of the Hardened Tarmysians.

ARRIVAL = Herald’s Quarterly 9168, 2nd Quarter = spaceship crash
At the age of 6, he was brought as a refugee from the war between Gwinn and Dunstrand as a refugee from Tarmysia. His small sailcraft was going up the river, east of Torrelson’s Ford when he was taken by troglodytes and sold to the Neogin slavers. He became close a few of the other slaves, known as “the foundlings”. He naturally developed his affiliation his people have among the group, some with the queen on the seas herself – Elancil (his father was a devout follower) and to the elemental Lady of water, Kaerslein.

The characters share the same experience (North Revealed: The Soul Scourge) in regard to The Soul Scourge of Gruxxand the Necromancer. It is a recurring shared experience of a strange astral ship and crew over and over, with the Eorthna named Binnu-Burr of the foundlings imprinting it. She has done this over and over for years, even on the ones that did not directly experience it, so that it is a defining moment in all their lives.

Connecting to the Powers of Helca:

Triggered Shifting:

Shift Fatigue:

The Reckoning:

The Slaveship Work

The Others:

The Escape:

The Ship:

The Foundlings Together

Community:

Home:

Of Age:

Favored/Spirit Animal Story: Meeting Spirit Animal: The Gleam of Understanding…

As a small boy navigating the refugee camp, my world was filled with gray. One day, a flash of iridescent black and white caught my eye – a magpie, bold and brazen, landed directly on my head, and then said “Hello”…!!!? followed by chattering in a series of clicks and whistles that, for a fleeting moment, seemed almost like words…. It felt strange, like a connection was forming beyond simple animal curiosity.

Drawn by its insistent cries, I followed the magpie to its nest, hidden among the debris of a ruined building. A chick had fallen, its wing twisted at an unnatural angle. A snake, sensing an easy meal, slithered nearby, kept at bay by the desperate attacks of the father magpie. Driven by an instinct I barely understood, I found a stout stick and pinned the snake, giving the parent birds a chance to regroup. Carefully, I placed the chick back in its nest, knowing I’d done something important, something right.

From then on, the magpie family never forgot. The mother would watch me from the rooftops, her gaze intelligent and knowing. Eventually, the recovered chick began to follow me, hopping along rooftops and scavenging at my heels. It seemed to understand my rough life, to offer a kind of silent companionship. Now, I often trade small scraps of food for the shiny baubles it brings me – scraps of metal, bits of glass, anything that catches the light. These little treasures became reminders of the resourcefulness, intelligence, and unexpected friendship in even the harshest conditions, a reflection of my own spirit.

Character – Francisco + Magpie

Do you have a character concept you were thinking of for the next character? I have a list of several integrated character ideas i will try and match with (it looks like we are going in that direction). Im not giving the list out to everyone because i want things to remain a surprise for a while. All the character concepts i’ve outlined have mechanisms to be viable, despite some of their strange appearances and traits (which make for RP opportunities).

Hmmm… not currently… at least that would likely be playable in a cohesive group setting. I take that back… i have had & made a character I haven’t played… halfling cook for army that where occupying his land…. was going to he umback but just have been gwinn… pressed into service (well he “volunteered” to save his skin & maybe something he cared about & hated them. Anyway there was an attack & troop got whipped out & he ran off with the wagon, cooking gear, & supplies across the lines… gambling, lucky, sneak… smuggler… yea.. that’s the racket… rogue… Halbin Thorngage – found the character and backstory… adjust as you see fit if the character fits the campaign that is… currently operating as a traveling junk & 2nd had used goods salesman… I also may just use him as a NPC in the campaign I’ll be running if you have a better character already in mind. https://www.dndbeyond.com/characters/19027574/EFYZpz
I would also be interested in playing a druid…

Well, no place for a halfling, but a Tarmysian fisherfolk rogue is a concept on the pile. They are small, a diver and swimmer since they were 3, shellfish gardener and trader his father was. DEX and CHA just like the DnD beyond char you linked to. The druid has been taken already… but could work the mystic angle by being a shared litany + conviction with the elancil angle. i could actually do a human/halfling hybrid – would that be of any interest?

that works combined with above…

Well, the campaign character concepts are going to be overriding. I will try and merge some ideas.

DICE ROLL; this ia a check for a water bond within the PCs

please state the gender of character you wish to play (i can change it)

Male

ARCHIVED all previous. male, human/halfling hybrid rogue.

All characters are going to have a common background. Please review it and let me know if you have any questions about the background itself and what it encompasses. Any questions beyond that hold off until later. https://incarna.net/feature/experience/background/sailor/
> I’m going to call the background complete.

Msg to ALL players: The basics of your character concept are done – superficial ideas and basic race and class (at least narrowed to a couple choices in a few cases). The next phase is the fleshing out of deeper asapects, concepts and back story. You have 2 options at this point. 1) I’ll present you with enough information for you to finish out the character with nearly complete freedom and agency using standard rules with any exceptions already noted in what you’ve discussed with me so far. Or 2) You can let the GM flesh out the character using the more deeply integrated character concepts and options beyond std. rules. This always nets the character more capabilities but a few more roleplaying and interaction restrictions. Which approach would you like?

#2 let you flesh character out… it that is alright?

ACTUALLY (as i push my glasses up the bridge of my nose in my best Athol voice), #2 is easiest for me since i already have the concept hooks and plot points for campaign characters.

Do you want me to assign your attributes or assign them yourself? Either way you will get to choose where your initial ASI goes on top of that (generally a pair of +1s); i use this for attribute point buy:

any stat mods to a half halfling? think you should assign them… trying to figure character cpmcept now and where they would be… dex, con, cha, str, int, wis in descending order? maybe max dex bonus of +2 but would be nice to get it to +3 if not too many point buys and nerfs the other abilities. so… that would be +2 dex bonus max likely. sailor needs con and str.. maybe cha lower down the lineup…

the race bonus im still working on for a hybrid; dex and con probably. posted to character, con and dex. A character needs less strength for sailing than stamina and and coordination. Ships provide angles and leverage for ropes. I also gave him +1 perception.

With https://incarna.net/feature/experience/background/sailor/, each person should pick a role/position of accomplished activity. It does not mean you are a pro, but it is essentially where you focused most of your experience on.

shipboard positions rigger/timmer A rigger on a ship is responsible for setting up and maintaining the rigging systems used for lifting, moving, and securing heavy objects, including sails, masts, and other equipment. Their duties can range from installing and inspecting rigging equipment to operating machinery and ensuring safety during lifting operations. They work with various tools like cables, ropes, pulleys, and winches, and their expertise is crucial for both construction and maintenance of ships.
Key Responsibilities of a Shipboard Rigger:
Rigging Materials:
Setting up and securing rigging for lifting and moving materials onto or around the ship, as well as within the shipyard.
Crane and Forklift Operation:
Communicating with crane operators and forklift drivers to guide the placement of lifted materials.
Equipment Testing and Installation:
Testing and installing rigging equipment like cables, ropes, pulleys, and winches.
Load Handling:
Safely loading and unloading materials onto the ship and in the shipyard.
Mooring and Docking:
Assisting with mooring and docking operations by handling mooring lines and rigging.
Safety Compliance:
Ensuring all rigging work is performed safely and in accordance with safety regulations.
Inspections:
Conducting regular inspections of rigging and lifting equipment.
Sailboat Rigging:
In some cases, riggers may specialize in sailboat rigging, responsible for installing, maintaining, and repairing sailboat rigging and sail systems.

and Diver… fits me profile both in character and personal.

so if can only select 2 then rigger / diver (which isn’t on your list.. I know).

char updated
you can only select 1. Think of it as an understudy position you had on the boat

hmm… rigger or diver… I’ll take rigger?

AND… Think of an animal you would like to be your “spirit animal”. This is more symbolic of personal meaning – not your faith. Write up a brief 2-3 sentence story that describes the event that it came to have meaning for you in. For instance, “When I was a child, and one of my friends had gotten lost playing, a crow came to me. It kept cawing until I tried to shoo it away with rocks, always flying off in the same direction. I realized it was trying to get me to follow it, and it led me to Timmy, trapped in a well.” The only provision is the animal should be common, mouse sized or larger, not an insect, and it should not be a water breathing /dwelling one.

i should have specified “2-3 (min)”

As a small boy navigating the refugee camp, my world was filled with gray. One day, a flash of iridescent black and white caught my eye – a magpie, bold and brazen, landed directly on my head, and then said “Hello”…!!!? followed by chattering in a series of clicks and whistles that, for a fleeting moment, seemed almost like words…. It felt strange, like a connection was forming beyond simple animal curiosity.

Drawn by its insistent cries, I followed the magpie to its nest, hidden among the debris of a ruined building. A chick had fallen, its wing twisted at an unnatural angle. A snake, sensing an easy meal, slithered nearby, kept at bay by the desperate attacks of the father magpie. Driven by an instinct I barely understood, I found a stout stick and pinned the snake, giving the parent birds a chance to regroup. Carefully, I placed the chick back in its nest, knowing I’d done something important, something right.

From then on, the magpie family never forgot. The mother would watch me from the rooftops, her gaze intelligent and knowing. Eventually, the recovered chick began to follow me, hopping along rooftops and scavenging at my heels. It seemed to understand my rough life, to offer a kind of silent companionship. Now, I often trade small scraps of food for the shiny baubles it brings me – scraps of metal, bits of glass, anything that catches the light. These little treasures became reminders of the resourcefulness, intelligence, and unexpected friendship in even the harshest conditions, a reflection of my own spirit.

Make a DC 10 Dexterity check to see if you grab something from the ships’ captain galley (secure room w/some items) before your character gets off the boat as it sank.

RESULT = 19

wooohoooo!!!!

Major success, 2 items