We compete our Warhammer party with a wood elf, the last race on the core set's list. In keeping with the game's perpetuation of tried-and-true tropes, wood elves are graceful, somewhat xenophobic and militant nature lovers. Their bundle of goodies includes Forest Walk, which deducts two Misfortune dice from checks made while operating in woodland terrain; Nature Bond, which grants a Fortune die to Initiative, Observation, and Stealth checks made in woodland terrain; Orion's Favored, which lets them treat Ballistics Skill, Nature Lore, Observation and Stealth as career skills during character generation; and Night Vision, which (as with dwarves and high elves) deducts two Misfortune dice from checks made in low light or darkness. Their Agility and Willpower scores start at 3 (the other characteristics at 2), their baseline Wound Threshold is 8 plus their Toughness score, and they get 20 creation points for character generation.
So now we turn to the career deck and draw three options: Hunter and Scout are open to wood elves; Gambler is not, so I turn it in and receive Waywatcher in exchange. This last is wood-elf only; they're a sort of border patrol for the elven forests. It seems a little too narrow for what I'd like, so I let it go. Hunter and Scout are very similar, but ultimately I go with Scout.
The Scout's keywords are basic, menial, rogue, and rural. Its primary characteristics are Agility and Intelligence, so one at least overlaps with racial traits. The skill list consists of Ballistics Skill, Nature Lore, Observation, Ride, and Stealth, which means I get no real benefit from the Chosen of Orion racial ability, but that's OK since it's still more options than I'll be able to use at start. The two Talent slots permit one Tactic and one Focus. My starting Stance track will be three green Conservative tiles and one red Reckless one. That's the third time for this party, IIRC; we're a careful group, it seems. The special Scout ability allows me to add an Expertise die to an Observation or Stealth check once per game session.
With the career bonuses to my primary characteristics, I'll go into the creation-point phase with a 4 in Agility, 2s in Strength, Toughness, and Fellowship, and 3s in Intelligence and Willpower. 20 points spends pretty quickly; I'll bring Intelligence up to 4, then Strength and Toughness up to 3 for a total cost of ten points.
If I let our scout's Wealth start at Poor, it'll only cost one point and they'll still get pretty decent equipment once you include the standard-issue scout gear, which gets me leather armor, a hand weapon, a bow, a dozen arrows, and possibly a horse with saddle and harness (though for this character it doesn't seem like a necessity, so maybe not). Add the simple yet sturdy outfit, a cloth rucksack, and second hand weapon to which my Wealth score entitle me, and I should be good to go, indeed right about at my Encumbrance limit of 15.
That leaves three points each for the other departments. I'll get to train 4 Skills and specialize two of them. Ballistics Skill (i.e., ranged combat) and Stealth seem like good priorities, and I'll add Nature Lore and Observation to round out the set. Then I'll specialize in Bows under Ballistics and Finding Food under Nature Lore.
For Talents I'm not sure whether to take two Tactics and a Focus, or vice versa. A look at the two decks suggests the first option: Shadow Stalker as a Focus (+1 Fortune die to Stealth checks), then I'll Sleep When I'm Dead (tap to recover 2 Fatigue) and Catlike Reflexes (tap to add 2 Fortune dice to an Agility check or 2 Misfortune dice to (an enemy's?) Dodge attempt). If the party tracking sheet ends up having a Tactic slot, either would come in handy.
My three remaining points will purchase four Action Cards to add to the basic set. There are a lot of good ranged attacks, and I spend three of my choices on those: Rapid Fire (for multiple attacks), Sniper Shot (for deadly high accuracy), and the Legolas-y Close Quarters Shot (for putting arrows in people trying to stab or hack me). For a fourth I select Find Weakness, which should make my shooting more effective.
My Stance track, as noted above, will consist of three green Conservative tiles and one red Reckless one
Now for a (thin) backstory and a name. A scout's not well-connected, but might also be part of an intelligence network. Perhaps the elders of Athel Loren have received news of this strange seer and also want to keep an eye on him, even if his visions may just be delusions. The name generator offers up Zolcas, which has echoes of the Valar Tulkas. It'll do.
Stat block!
Zolcas, rank 1 Scout (Wood Elf)
Wound Threshold: 11
Characteristics (trained skills and specializations)
Strength 3
Toughness 3
Agility 4 (Ballistics Skill 1 (bows), Stealth 1)
Intelligence 4 (Observation 1, Nature Lore 1 (finding food))
Willpower 3
Fellowship 2
Special Abilities:
Forest Walk (racial): -2 Misfortune dice when operating in woodland terrain.
Nature Bond (racial): +1 Fortune die to Initiative, Observation, and Stealth checks made in woodland terrain.
Night Vision (racial): -2 Misfortune dice to checks made under low light or dark conditions.
Scout (career): +1 Expertise die to an Observation or Stealth check, once per session.
Shadow Stalker (focus): +1 Fortune die to Stealth checks.
Catlike Reflexes (tactic): tap for +2 Fortune dice to an Agility check or +2 Misfortune dice to a Dodge check
I'll Sleep When I'm Dead (tactic): tap to recover 2 Fatigue points
Action deck: Block, Dodge Find Weakness, Guarded Position, Melee Attack, Parry, Perform a Stunt, Ranged attack, Rapid Fire, Sniper Shot, Close-Quarters Shot
Stance Track: 3 Conservative, 1 Reckless
Equipment: Leather armor, hand axe, short sword, longbow, 12 arrows, rucksack, 1 suit sturdy clothing
Money: 50 silver
Encumbrance: limit 15, carrying 15
Now we have a party, but what kind of party? What party card best suits a group of spies and soldiers gathered to follow (and report on) the visions of a wizard? Gang of Thugs and Swords for Hire are out--not at all the right vibe. Servants of Justice is close; Intrepid Explorers is closer. But the closest is Brash Young Fools, which has a Reputation slot and a Focus slot, and gives the party a Fortune point every time its pool empties.
Tomorrow brings a new game and a new character, and I haven't decided what it's going to be yet, so it'll probably be something simple.
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