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[4maskwolf]

Also, Remuthra: what does your cult believe? What vows must you take and rules must you follow to remain in the order?

[4maskwolf]

You can have up to -50 points worth. You probably want at least -30 or so points worth.

Seeing as you spent an ungodly number of points on IQ, yeah, he'll need those bonus points.

[Angle]

Due to the way that GURPS calculates skills, it's almost always cheaper to put the majority of your points in attributes and only spend 1 point per skill. This character might actually be one of the rare exceptions, because he doesn't need to buy path skills at all, an odd detail of RPM alchemy. Alchemy replaces them entirely when that's all you use.

fakeedit: No, it's still cheaper to get IQ. once he gets those skills to where they cost 4 each, it'll take 12 points to raise all three, versus 10 if he buys IQ and sells of the levels of Will and Per that come with it. I haven't sold the Will, but that's because it's valuable in it's own right.

[4maskwolf]

I suppose, if you sold the will. But as you said, will is important.

[Angle]

Also, Remuthra: what does your cult believe? What vows must you take and rules must you follow to remain in the order?

Also, do you want any melee weapon skills?

Also, what do you want in the way of secondary skills? I'm thinking Occultism, Meditation, maybe Teaching or Public Speaking?

Also(), how bout a quick character backstory?

[Remuthra]

Also, Remuthra: what does your cult believe? What vows must you take and rules must you follow to remain in the order?

Alright. The Way of the Dark Roast worships the Multitudinous Master, Foll-Gears, Bringer of the Final Roast, Master of the Dark Harvest. It is He who claims dominion over all things black and possibly caffeinated. He commands His followers to serve him in many ways, according to order, some of which are outlined in the following passages of the Tome of Dark Brews.

And each of you shall take up the alembic, and the pestle, and the mug, and you shall taste of the Roast with the dawn of each day, that you might be renewed in my compact. And you shall wear the clothes of the servant, the robe of blackest Java, that they may hail you as My servant, and all may know My fell joy... And of the wanting man, who has not yet tasted of the Roast this day, you shall provide for him, for all who walk the Way may yet have felt the thirst of want, and all may yet thirst again... Do not touch the pure flesh to that which is unclean, for the flesh is weak, and weakness shall not be tolerated of the faithful. Take care to avoid its touch, lest your Soul's Brew be spoiled, and you be lost to My sight... And I shall name him Emissary of the Harvest, and he shall be My voice to the faithful. His Brew must be purest, for he is My conduit, and so let him not be spoiled by even the sight, nay the presence, of those who thirst, or even to those of you who may have become now Acolytes of the Harvest, for your Brew is not yet refined, and is wanting. And let from him stem three Orders of the faithful, each caretakers of my Will. First, let from the Emissary spring, as smoke from hot brew, the Custodians, protectors of the Harvest, and let them purify the Brews of their fellows, and let them not reveal their flesh, for the flesh is weak. Let their symbol be as the smoke itself, for where the Harvest goes, they must follow. And then let there rise the Prefects, and let them establish sacred halls for the caretaking of my Brew. Let these be places of silence, for the Brew must not be disturbed, and here let the Prefects work to purify the Brew, and to keep its Records and Recipes. And let their crest be the spoon, which, as it stirs, brings flavor to the Brew. And let there be a brotherhood of the faithful, dedicated to the Harvest, and let them go out among the masses, and staunch the enemies of the Harvest, the heretics, the blasphemers. And let them be called the Threshers, and let their symbol be the alembic, for they shall be the bringers of the Harvest to those who thirst and do not thirst alike. And of the rest, let them be My Acolytes, and let them wander the land, in search of those they might induct to the Faithful, and let them perfect their Brew and their chosen craft, and when they have learned the mastery of their craft, let the Emissary see them at last, and let him touch them, for blessed is he who has dedicated his life in service to Me, and let them ascend to the ranks of their chosen Order, the elite of my Faithful. In Java and Vanilla, let it be.

There, backstory and restrictions and character development potential, all rolled into one.

Also, do you want any melee weapon skills?

Also, what do you want in the way of secondary skills? I'm thinking Occultism, Meditation, maybe Teaching or Public Speaking?

Melee skills vary by Order. The Custodian Order uses various weapons, but primarily the staff and the thinblade, for did He not say that a good Roast was a bit sharp with a woody flavor? The Prefect Order uses the dagger, all the better for the cutting of His Sacred Ungents. The Threshers use the sickle, His chosen instrument for the culling of the fields.

As far as secondary skills go, the primary ones besides related knoweldge checks would be in the realm of speech, for persuasive purposes, particularly for acolytes, of which I am, aspirant to the Thresher Order, as well as Alchemy, which, while specialized by the Prefects, is required of all His faithful for the preparation of Sacred Reagents in the brewing of coffee and other substances.

Here's a short personal backstory, as well.

Joseph Bridger was the child of a small, poor family of tavernkeepers. In his youth, he left in search of fame and fortune, not content with the life of a poor villager, and sought adventure. His journeys were fraught with peril and misfortune, and soon he was reduced to rags, begging on the streets of a small city after having lost all he owned to a vengeful merchant of the city. It was then that he came. Orlic the Gray, he called himself, and he himself was a kindly old Acolyte of the Harvest. He took Joe in, satisfied his thirst, and told him of the dark and unknowable power of the Roast and his part in it. And so Joe was inducted, and took his own title, the Haggard, to remind himself of the perils of unfaithfulness, and has wandered these past five years perfecting his Brew.

[kj1225]

I kind of want the place where we are to not have discovered coffee yet and have everyone be really confused by this coffee wizard guy and then on a quest he finds coffee and then becomes a saint for teaching the heathens the way of the roast.

[Angle]

Niiiice. I'm putting that in the OP. In fact, I'm going to implement a system I'd thought of: I'm going to hand out Plot Points. You get these in exchange for nice snippets like that one, or for other good backstory details. They can only be spent on the things outlined under Power-Ups 5: Impulse Buys. Basically, you can spend them for a one time boost. Remuthra, you get two for that detail.

[Remuthra]

Praise to the Roast, brother.

[Angle]

Aaand it is now midnight for me. I'll finish your character in the morning.

[4maskwolf]

Damn Remuthra, that was good. You inspired me to write up something similar for the creed of my god

The oath of Anura, said by all clergy at initiation and every morning afterwards:
I give my life to the service of Anura, the great goddess, in whose worship can be found love and strength. I give my life to the service of others, particularly the weak, poor, and ill. I release all concern for myself and replace it with concern for my fellows. I swear to heal the injured, treat the sick, and comfort the dying. I swear to heal the pain of injury, be it spiritual or emotional. I swear to place the lives of others over my own, and am willing to lay down my life in the defense of others. I swear to love and cherish the world, for in the world can be found peace. I swear to love and cherish my fellows, and to defend them from the work of evil. I swear to root out those who do evil and expose them, for they are a plague upon our society. I swear to never refuse a request for aid, to give all I have to those in need, and to provide for myself and the church, so the order may continue.

Some clerics add the following lines to the oath, however, they are not part of the standard oath:
I swear on my honor to never initiate hostilities, for those who do give in to evil temptations. I swear to use violence only in self-defense, or in defense of those who cannot defend themselves. I swear to resist using lethal force, for to kill is a sin against Anora.

More militant clerics sometimes add the following lines to the oath:
I swear to seek out evil and destroy it at it's roots, for if you only tear up the plant and leave the roots intact it will grow back. I swear to use the minimum force necessary to subdue of kill evildoers and to bring justice upon them for their crimes. I swear to protect the innocent at any cost, even the life of my foe.

There are three main subgroups of the  clerics of Anora. The first and largest group is the preservers, who follow neither the path of war nor the path of nonviolence. They believe in using words first, healing those who have been harmed, and only resorting to lethal force if confronted. The second group is the Caretakers, to which Alassra herself counts herself a member. They believe that lethal force should never be used by themselves in pursuit of a goal and actively dissuade others from using lethal force. They believe that almost any problem can be fixed with words and spells of healing. The third and fastest growing group, the Justiciars, believe that rather than heal the wounds in the aftermath of evil acts, they should seek out those who would perform or have performed evil acts and kill or capture them. Often referred to as "criminals" by the Caretakers, they nonetheless are granted divine power by Anora. The rise of this group and their seeming enfranchisement by Anora has led many Preservers to believe that the existing theology if Anora could be flawed, for the existing theology would not have permitted such acts. Until the Justiciar order began, it was held that Anora was a peaceful goddess who favored love over vengeance, but her empowering of the Justiciars has shaken that theory. While the Caretakers hold firmly to the old theology, many in the Preserver order are communing and theorizing, trying to explain this seeming contradiction. The Justiciars are too few in number and too busy to care much for the creation of a new theology, being too focused on invoking their power to smite down those who would hurt others.

The symbol of Anura is a dove, with a rising sun in the background.

There is only one prayer that is universal to all the sects of Anura's church. This prayer, known as the prayer of light, expresses the sayer's belief in Anura and confidence that light will overcome darkness.

Anura, great protector, Great Lady of healing and light, guard us. Protect the as we do your work in the world, bringing joy and healing to all those I meet. With your grace, I shall be ever vigilant for the pain of others, and will do all I can to ease their pain. I trust that through you, evil and darkness will someday be defeated, and that peace and light will reign supreme, as it did before the time of mortals.

Within each of the sects, there are clerics who take different roles. The Healers channel the divine grace of Anura into direct relief of suffering. The Silver-tongued heal words of division and strife, serving as diplomats and third-parties. The Gifted channel the might of Anura into making potions and other items to aid the other members of the clergy in their jobs. And finally, within the Justiciar sect exists the Paladins, holy warriors who go forth and fight evil at it's source.

The lay people who worship Anora play a very limited role in the functioning of the priesthood. The majority follow the teachings of the Providers, but for the most part worship of Anora is out of gratitude for help and healing rather than true piety. Those who are truly pious and truly believe in the work of the clerics join their ranks. On rare occasions, Anora has been known to grant power to a pious believer outside of the priesthood:indeed, this was how the Justiciar sect as a whole was started.

While the other Caretakers are only loosely organized, the Preservers and the Justiciars have an established hierarchy and system of organization. The preservers are led by a high council, called the Great Servants, who have proved their right to be on the council through toil and service to others. The council is slightly more political than most priests would like, but their primary goal is to establish the teachings of the church and organize the Preservers to help he most people. The Justiciars are split into three knightly orders, each of which have their own general, who organizes their military arm. The Order of the Blue Dragon is based in the mountain halls and composed primarily of dwarves, though a few more civilized orcs also make up its membership.  The Order of the Yellow Sun is a primarily human group, with a smattering of other races mixed in. The Order of the Red Rose is the elven group, spreading throughout the elven territories.

[My Name is Immaterial]

Welp, I can't touch those.

Morals? Ehh. Who needs them? Certainly not Rachael Nen. They don't make you money.
Same goes for gods. No god did anything for her. They left her to rot in a prison cell for seven years over a harmless prank. Well, the duchess may have broken her arm, and they mayor's house was not set aflame by her, but that's beside the point.
It's not that she hates gods, it's that no god gave her as much as the people in her life. No god showed her how to unlock her sixth sense and understand the flashes of the future like her mother did.
Rachael was the forbidden daughter of a Fortune Weavers of Wareth, goddess of Time and Truth. The Fortune Weavers of Wareth are a hermetic order of female oracles who create massive tapestries of the future. Rachael was born of a union between a lowly acolyte and a regular Joe. Under the pretence of delivering supplies to her mother who lived up on a mountain all alone, awaiting her visions, Rachael was shown the ways of doing the future. However, it became to dangerous for her to continue, as they both saw danger down that path.
Now 13, Rachael found herself motherless and with out any reason to stay on the straight and narrow. Putting her frustration on the loss of her mother on Wareth, she began to lie about anything and every thing. She fell into a bad crowd, who taught her to steal, cheat and fight. She was good at it to, especially with her nose for gold.

[4maskwolf]

Oh, I haven't even gotten to my backstory yet. I'm getting basically no sleep tonight, so I'm probably gonna post it later.

That being said, I like that backstory.

[4maskwolf]

Alassra Silverhair was born to poor peasant farmers, working the fields of the duke of Weselton. From a young age, she had a distinctive mark from which she draws her last name: her silver hair. Nobody knew quite what to make of it, and she was seen as a curiosity and an anomaly.
As she grew older, Alassra discovered a strong calling for helping the people around her. She saw so much pain and suffering and wished there was something she could do. And then the cleric arrived.
She never learned the wandering priest's name, nor what his mission was in her settlement. He arrived, and using powers Alassra could only have dreamed of cured the ill and healed the injured. He was kind, caring, and was willing to listen to any grievance. One day, Alassra approached him, in awe of his powers, and the old man smiled at her and taught her of the goddess Anura. She learned the oaths and the creeds, and before he left the old man told her where she could find a temple. She embarked on a journey, and was ordained a cleric two years later.
Throughout her life, Alassra has strived to live up to the example set by her mysterious mentor. She has traveled the world, helping those around her, but she still felt she was missing something. There was something about her mentor's peace, the calm he exuded and believed in, that she was lacking. She grew too attached to the places she visited, and regretted leaving them behind. She began searching for her meaning, her purpose, which has led he to where she is today.

[My Name is Immaterial]

Yours is good, if not better.

Is there a "Hate" disadvantage somewhere? Or something that will allow me to get pissed at the three religious party members?