I woke up floating in an all black space. There were four dials, like from an old-fashioned stove, just hanging in the air before me. I tried to reach out to touch them. Nothing happened. Wait, I don't think I have a body. A period of existential dread directly followed this realization.
Kind of freaking out for a while, I got myself back together. It was still my intelligence floating, disembodied, with four dials. Am I dead? I hadn't been to church in a while but is how how heaven was described. The first dial had COMBAT written in the middle of it. The second had FORTUNE. Dial three said MAGIC. The fourth said SKILLS.
I tried to mentally turn a dial, only to hear a buzzer. There was pain. No light, no sound, no other feeling. Only pain for what seemed like a long time. I eventually came back to consciousness and a sign saying 0th Level Character Creation Selected written over the dials in big block letters.
The dials and letters slowly faded. A gallery of statues appeared. As they came into view on the side of my vision, a chart appeared. Scanning the various images, the numbers on the chart adjusted.
Attributes
Agility 3
Brawn 3
Health = (Brawn + Agility) x (combat priority +1) x Level
Acumen 3
Perception 3
Spirit = (Acumen + Perception) x magic priority x Level
First were three dwarves. One with bronze hair who was a bit taller and slimmer than his fellows (-2 agility, +1 brawn, +1 racial modifier to combat priority to determine health, +1 acumen. Darkvision 30’). The second had golden wire for hair and was alabaster pale (-2 agility, +1 strength, +1 racial modifier to combat priority to determine health, +1 Perception. Darkvision 60’). The third had silver hair and was nearly as wide as he was tall with oversized eyes (-2 agility, +2 brawn, +1 to magic priority to determine spirit. Darkvision 90’).
In the next group were three of what were obviously elves judging from the long pointy ears, almond shaped eyes and fox sharp faces. Elf one was extremely tall and slim with proportionately long arms and legs (+2 Agility, +1 Perception, -2 Acumen, -1 Brawn, Low light vision). The next was very short at around three and a half feet tall with a compact swimmer’s build and webbed hands (+2 agility, -2 Brawn, +2 Acumen, Low light vision Sonar 60’, -1 to combat priority used to determine health minimum 1). The third was tall for a human but not outrageously so, with a slim build and sharp features (+2 Agility, -1 Brawn, -1 Acumen, Low light vision)
Next was a cat man that seemed to sort of blur between types. At first it looked like a lion man, then tiger, ocelot, etc sort of like one of those paintings you look at for half an hour, then suddenly see a boat. The attribute chart modified by +1 to Agility, +1 to Brawn, -2 to Acumen and listed Low Light Vision. He stared at the felinoid for a while before going on to the next.
Next was a little person, slim in build and very short with a dramatically long and pointed nose and oversized eyes (-1 brawn, +1 acumen, Low Light Vision). There was a cluster of statues all together that looked like normal humans in its various ethnicities, Asian, Black, White and a few that seemed to blur the line between them. None of them changed the attribute chart at all. They all just listed +1 talent, +1 to attributes.
The final group was a bunch of lizardmen. There was a small birdlike reptile around four feet tall (+2 agility, -2 brawn). Then a squat, crocodilian that is around five and a half feet tall and broadly powerful with a thick tail (+1 agility +1 brawn, -1 acumen, -1 perception. +1 to combat priority to determine health, -1 to magic priority to determine spirit). The third is a long-necked serpentine lizard with a cobra style hood extending from his neck and large powerful legs with relatively slim arms and a long whiplike tail (+1 agility, -2 brawn, +1 perception).
“So I guess I have to choose one of these?” I tried to say but, lacking a mouth, couldn’t speak. “I’ve done zeroth level character generation before. I think that means you start from a basic peasant and work your way into a first level character.” I paused for a long time. “What to play? This doesn’t seem like a game.”
Mike scanned the statues again, looking over the way each one modified the attributes. “I normally play wizards, but they can be something of glass cannons. If it’s actually me, is that something I want?” Hmm, thinking, thinking.
“If I’m going to play a fighter, maybe an ogre? If you’re going for toughness, go all the way, right?” I rolled around the idea, imagining myself as a studly warrior like Conan the Barbarian, posing like Arnold. I metaphorically shook my head.
How about skills? If no one knew I was there, I couldn’t get hit? Like a ninja! Ha, or a farmer. Nobody wants to mess with a farmer. Scratch that. If I’m presuming a middle ages fantastic society everybody messed with farmers. They were like the base of the screw with version of the food chain.
That fortune category seemed pretty good. It would be awesome to be rich. Quite a change from my actual life, too. I could be like Batman, with devices to mess with the mentally ill. Well, of course I’d feel bad about that. No, not fortune. It would be cool to have extreme wealth as my superpower though.
If I have the option, I have to choose magic. Coming from my world that doesn’t have any magic. Well, I did get kidnapped by a dwarf so let’s say minimal magic. The idea of wriggling my fingers and something happens is too cool to pass up.
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Silver Dwarf. I mentally selected. Suddenly, I had arms and legs, eyes and hair. My skin is deep brown with fine red veins and arteries all through it. This bristly beard feels like wire, being very stiff, and shines like silver. My hands seem really large and I can touch my shins without leaning over. Do I have long monkey arms? Speaking of monkey, my feet look like hands with a huge thumb-like toe coming off the outside. Weird.
Attributes
Agility 1
Brawn 5
Health = (6) x (1) = 6 hit points
Acumen 3
Perception 3
Spirit = (6) x 1 = 6 mana points
Select Magical Tradition appeared before me, written in cursive with old style curlicue letters. There were four statues of silver dwarves, I suspect all looking a great deal like me. The first statue had Arcane written above it. As I looked at the statue, it began to move. The silver dwarf unrolled a scroll and read it over and over, making notes in a book. Finally, it rerolled the scroll and pulled something out of a pocket. He held his hand up and opened it. Glowing fireflies streamed out, coating everything in the area.
The second silver dwarf statue said Divine over it and wore a breastplate with roman style battle skirt and carried a shield. When I looked at it, the figure came alive, first kneeling with hands clasped as if in prayer. He held his hand out with a symbol of some sort clutched in it. A white beam shot out from that symbol, was visible for just a moment and vanished.
The third statue had the word Chi written over it and wore leather armor. When looked at directly, the silver dwarf assumed the lotus position with head bowed. After a moment, he got up and went through a complicated martial arts form with his hands, which glowed. He punched forward with a loud kiai and resumed the lotus position.
The fourth statue had the word Sorcery written over it and had on field plate and carried a shield. When I looked at the statue, the silver dwarf animated. At first it reached up towards the sky and pulled down then leapt high in the air. Then it stood, putting its hands on the ground. Those hands took on a gray, stony pallor and it punched. Then it rubbed its hands together quickly until they burst into flames and it tossed a small mote of flame. Then it reached down into a pool of water that suddenly appeared and its entire body took on the wavy appearance of something seen through the waves. CHOOSE ONE stamped across.
Okay, that’s interesting. I normally love traditional wizards, but this is a lot to consider. The priest just being able to call on spells is pretty cool. It can also wear armor. Put that against having to deal with a God’s morality system, which would inevitably conflict with mine in some way. If I go with my own system of morality then I’d lose access to spells.
Chi seems to be like kung fu theater I watched on TV when I was a kid. Getting my Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon on would be awesome. Most of that magic seem to effect the caster or be touch, that would mean I’d essentially need to be a fighter to do it right. If I wanted that, I’d probably just play a warrior type. So no on this one.
Sorcerer. From what I saw that seems to be an elemental caster and you only get to choose one element. That seems terribly limiting. Of course, limiting your abilities does mean you’ll get better at them rather than being mediocre at a bunch of things. So, for example, I could be the best fire spell caster even though I’d have no ability at water. Jack of all trades or master of one? I shook my head, the wire hairs of my beard making a faint skritching noise.
Huge decision. Character defining decision and I have to make it right out of the gate. I guess I’ll go for versatility. Arcane magic it is.
As soon as I thought that emphatically, my mental viewpoint zeroed in on the Arcane statue. Moving around to the back of the statue there were several columns of words. At the bottom were words in all caps. They were ABJURATION, ANIMATION, CONJURATION, DIVINATION, ENCHANTMENT, EVOCATION, ILLUSION, NECROMANCY, SHIFTING and VITALITY. I read over them a few times. Some of these are recognizable from my gaming history. I suppose they were schools of magic?
From each of the capitalized words a column of names went upward. At the left side of the columns, just above the names of the schools of magic, it said Zeroth Order. Above that a few spaces it said First Order, then Second Order all the way up to Tenth Order. Okay, these are the levels of the spells I’m guessing.
A handful of spells were written in gold letters with the rest in gray. There were three scribed in gold. Above Conjuration in gold was Candleflame. Above Divination written in gold was Discern Magic. Above Shifting written in gold lettering was Snow Ball.
There were so many here. Written above Snow Ball was Tough Hide, Bioluminescence and FireFlies all in gray. I noticed an enormous book at the base of the statue. It said Book of Spells on it. I eagerly opened it and each thick piece of parchment paper was blank. Flipping through it was blank page after blank page.
On the first page it said 0/3 Zeroth Order selected. Okay, so I can pick from these. I touched Tough Hide. Nothing happened. I lowered my finger a bit and touched Snow Ball.
Snow Ball
30’ range
1d3 + Brawn Damage
Material Component Required: Water
This spell freezes the material component into a hard ball of snow the caster may hurl at the target. If it strikes the target’s armor rating subtracts from the damage.
Okay, basic attack spell. I mentally selected it, and the chant and mental exercise of the spell burned into the first page.
Discern Magic
10’ range
Allows caster to see magic.
Caster may see magical effects. With a Lore{Arcane} roll additional information may be derived.
I pushed it and the chant and mental exercise burned itself onto the lower half of the first page. This was cool!
Candleflame
Touch
1d3 + Acumen Damage
Duration: 2 rounds per level
A candle sized jet of flame appears. It may burn a struck target or ignite a flame.
Since this was the only remaining gold written spell and I had a slot left I selected it. It burned into the second page of the spell book.
Select Talent
Okay, let’s check out what talents might be. Talents Available: Combat Awareness, Dodge, Dwarven Toughness, Great Will, Iron Health, Lightning Reflexes. Combat Awareness grants an additional attack if an opponent moves through your threatened area or doesn’t pay attention to you in melee. Dodge allows you to designate a number of targets and have increased defense against them. Dwarven Toughness adds +6 to hit points +1/level and allows you to take half damage from bludgeoning strikes. Great Will adds to CONCENTRATION skill and fortifies your acumen against attacks. Iron Health adds to resistance from diseases and poisons as well as resists massive damage effects. Lightning Reflexes adds to your ability to avoid area effect attacks and get out of the way of surprises.
Wow, these all look great. Let’s see, I don’t have the agility score to take Dodge or Lightning Reflexes. Don’t have the Acumen to take Combat Awareness or Great Will. I guess that narrows it down to Dwarven Toughness or Iron Health. Dwarven Toughness has a continuing benefit and more hit points are a good thing. Dwarven Toughness it is!