Question on probable character backgrounds (spoilers- don't read if you haven't completed the game)

Wilko

Not sure if this has been posted before so apologies if this is a repeat. I thought about this (because that's just how I roll). Anyway, I was wondering, what would the most plausible character be given the protagonists background? And, what classes and races could also be conceivable? Now, given that the protagonist has been at candlekeep at the start of bg, that would rule out our hero being an elf or dwarf for example. Human or half elf could be possible. The main question for me would be character class. My favourite class is a ranger. Now, given that charname has lived their life behind the walls of a secluded haven, could it be possible that they could potentially grow up to be proficient enough to be a ranger despite never been to or experienced the wilderness? You could argue they would likely follow in gorions footsteps and would quite likely end up as a mage or fighter, but is a druid realistic? Or even what about an evil aligned character? A back story a malicious personality in such hallowed grounds you could argue is bizarre but perhaps not if you consider the bhaalspawn heritage. So, therefore, a more narrow minded view would be that our protagonist would likely be human, a mage, possibly lawful good, given their power (being equal to the '5') high stats (this is my argument for continually re-rolling for a super high score akin to typically 95 plus attribute points) . On the flip side, what does a d and d character need to achieve level 1 in their profession? Could you say, have a plausible level 1 ranger growing up in this environment since level 1= 0 experience in said profession? Mind you, candlekeep has a wealth of books and therefore I would imagine much knowledge of the basics required to meet the fundamental prerequisite of any profession could be learnt from studying the relevant books. Especially in the case of the arcane arts. I realise that game is what you make it and i for one have completed the game with many variations of class/race/alignment but for the sake of a discussion I thought it would be interesting to get some thoughts on this.

dockaboomski

I would say the most plausible classes would be the following
Cleric: CHARNAME was took to the temple of Oghma early on and became a devotee
Figher: CHARNAME wanted to become a watcher
Mage: CHARNAME thinks Gorion is cool

The biggest race issue is that either the opening crawl or the unaltered bio places CHARNAME at age 20, which is ridiculously young for an elf or dwarf.

For alignment purposes, I would argue that any could work. Maybe CHARNAME takes after Gorion and is a cool person. Maybe CHARNAME is more concerned with learning than others. Maybe CHARNAME is a total brat.

I could see why you would think a ranger is unrealistic, but who knows? It all depends on how you justify it to yourself. I could see a CHARNAME who worships a nature god who wants to take a more active stance on it, sort of like a paladin is a more active cleric.

abacus

I've always thought Bard was a pretty apt class... Singing songs in the inn, reading great stories in the library, picking up a few spells from the Gorion and the other scholars and indulging in the occasional spot of petty larceny with Imoen.

I like human or half-elf for race, as I like the idea that maybe you suspected that Gorion might have been your actual father. (I actually thought this revelation was coming in my first run!)

kcwise

Well, assuming the character is allowed out from the keep on occasion there is a lot of wilderness around the area where he or she could practice ranger skills. And, Candlekeep sees quite a few people wandering in and out from all over the world. It's possible a character could be trained in the basics by a visiting adventurer, or that Gorion might have hired a trainer for whatever class the character might have found interesting.

The races are a bit more problematic, but there are no doubt justifications one could imagine. Maybe the Bhaalspawn blood brings a race to maturity more quickly than a regular member of that race?

dunbar

For me intelligence is the key, if you accept that innate intelligence will lead to an enquiring mind then the academic and practical resources at and around Candlekeep could facilitate progression in any field, and for the very intelligent sheer boredom could lead to studying/practising two disciplines at once.

SharGuidesMyHand

I agree with @dockaboomski‌ on which choices make the most "sense," at least on the surface. I think a paladin would also make sense for the same reason(s) as a cleric or fighter.

However, I think that just about any character class could be justified as a starting class - after all, it doesn't require any experience to simply start in a class. For example, the bios for rangers say that you elected to become a ranger because you took an interest in nature while observing the outside from the city walls. The real issue would be that your character would've probably never gained the experience necessary to progress in some of the classes, especially the wilderness-oriented ones, if he or she were to set foot outside of Candlekeep - but that obviously becomes a moot point once you're forced to leave the keep. Also, in the context of the overall story, I think it also makes sense that your character feels like something of an "outsider" among the people of Candlekeep. (Incidentally, being a ranger would also explain how you were able to elude Sarevok throughout the night after he had killed Gorion, using your meager stealth abilities.)

Contrary to what most others would probably say, I also think being a sorcerer or a barbarian also makes sense in the context of the story - after all, the characters who elect to become those classes do so because they have a mysterious innate ability that they're seeking to control or channel, which coincides well with the underlying theme of the story IMO.

Spikeyjoey

I dont really see why race matters (not getting all preachy here! ) as the protagonist was essentially left like a baby in a basket, so even half orc makes sense (perhaps more so - DUMP THE FREAK! :P )

As far as races go, the only thing i would consider being a bit "off" would be a gnome being a credible fighter...

BelgarathMTH

There have been some other threads about this.

http://forum.baldursgate.com/discussion/20972/which-class-makes-the-most-sense/p1
http://forum.baldursgate.com/discussion/10238/which-class-for-the-player-character-makes-more-sense-to-you-plotwise-spoiler-warning

I think the in-game biographies do a pretty good job explaining how charname could be any of the classes.

To me the hardest one to create a good backstory for is the barbarian class, since that's supposed to be something you're born to and raised as. I kind of like @Spikeyjoey‌ 's "baby in a basket" idea, since you can go almost anywhere with that.

Let's suppose our Baby Bhaalspawn Barbarian's mother was from Uthgardt, and was a proud barbarian wise woman, before she got corrupted into being a priestess of Bhaal who was going to sacrifice her own child, who gets rescued by Gorion.

The story of Baby Bhaalspawn the Barbarian's childhood then becomes a conflict between nature and nurture. Gorion tries to raise the child as a scholar of Candlekeep, but the child has a wild streak that just cannot be controlled. Eventually realizing the hopelessness of training Baby Bhaalspawn the Barbarian as a mage or cleric, Gorion apprentices the child to the guards, so that he or she can develop his or her obvious physical and athletic talents.

Bhaalspawn the Barbarian soon amazes all the martial trainers in Candlekeep with his or her physical and martial prowess, but also frightens and frustrates them with a tendency to fly into an uncontrollable rage. The safety of other trainees becomes a constant worry, as Bhaalspawn the Barbarian has almost killed his or her sparring partners on several occasions with nothing but a wooden training sword, during those frightening rages.

Bhaalspawn the Barbarian never feels welcome or at home in Candlekeep, and has a wanderlust that makes the confinement excruciating. He or she is posivtively *thrilled* when one fateful day, Gorion tells him or her to prepare to leave for a long journey out into the world, because they are in grave danger...

Wilko

Interesting. The visiting adventurer is something that you could well imagine occurring along with their stories of their travels. In terms of a character having no experience, this is true I think to an extent however some experience would have definitely been needed to attain some proficiency. A mage has a couple of spells, a fighter is proficient in using weapons (or specialised), a ranger has learnt to hide and move silently to a degree. I would imagine a level 1 character is geared the same way a newly qualified doctor or accountant would be. You've been through a combination of theoretical and practical processes to be 'qualified' minus having any real experience outside of a learned environment. I do feel that race matters though, because whilst yes the char could be found as a baby elf, add 20 years and that elf is still comparatively young. Mind you, as a wild card, you could argue having divine blood can be used to justify any number of things from class/maturity/personality etc. Does seem a bit quirky though if you you imagine the char as a ranger or druid meeting a villager in a pub in say beregost and they ask the character about his/her background "I'm a ranger", "ah, OK, so where are you from?"..... *shrug*" spent the last 20 years practising my trade in a library".... "any forests? Meadows?"...." no but I've read about such places before"... "you're kidding, right? You're a ranger?"..." yes, and a bloody good wordsmith too".

FinneousPJ

@BelgarathMTH Isn't it berserker whose rage is uncontrollable, not barb?

Thanks for the links btw.

BelgarathMTH

@FinneousPJ , neither is "uncontrollable" for a player character. What Minsc does is a different thing than what a player berserker gets.

I was writing a story, not referring to game mechanics. I wrote "almost uncontrollable" to imply that the trainers had a hard time getting Bhaalspawn the Barbarian to calm down and back off, and to suggest that his or her barbarian nature makes him or her very difficult to discipline.

FinneousPJ

@BelgarathMTH‌ I don't mean game mechanics either. I mean DnD rules.

SharGuidesMyHand

BelgarathMTH said:

There have been some other threads about this.

http://forum.baldursgate.com/discussion/20972/which-class-makes-the-most-sense/p1
http://forum.baldursgate.com/discussion/10238/which-class-for-the-player-character-makes-more-sense-to-you-plotwise-spoiler-warning

I think the in-game biographies do a pretty good job explaining how charname could be any of the classes.

To me the hardest one to create a good backstory for is the barbarian class, since that's supposed to be something you're born to and raised as. I kind of like @Spikeyjoey‌ 's "baby in a basket" idea, since you can go almost anywhere with that.

Let's suppose our Baby Bhaalspawn Barbarian's mother was from Uthgardt, and was a proud barbarian wise woman, before she got corrupted into being a priestess of Bhaal who was going to sacrifice her own child, who gets rescued by Gorion.

The story of Baby Bhaalspawn the Barbarian's childhood then becomes a conflict between nature and nurture. Gorion tries to raise the child as a scholar of Candlekeep, but the child has a wild streak that just cannot be controlled. Eventually realizing the hopelessness of training Baby Bhaalspawn the Barbarian as a mage or cleric, Gorion apprentices the child to the guards, so that he or she can develop his or her obvious physical and athletic talents.

Bhaalspawn the Barbarian soon amazes all the martial trainers in Candlekeep with his or her physical and martial prowess, but also frightens and frustrates them with a tendency to fly into an uncontrollable rage. The safety of other trainees becomes a constant worry, as Bhaalspawn the Barbarian has almost killed his or her sparring partners on several occasions with nothing but a wooden training sword, during those frightening rages.

Bhaalspawn the Barbarian never feels welcome or at home in Candlekeep, and has a wanderlust that makes the confinement excruciating. He or she is posivtively *thrilled* when one fateful day, Gorion tells him or her to prepare to leave for a long journey out into the world, because they are in grave danger...

Great story, but I would just add one thing:

According to the in-game bios for barbarians, the turning point in their lives came when an actual barbarian from IWD visits Candlekeep to deliver an ancient scroll. The charname comes to identify with the barbarian, and the barbarian teaches him/her how to connect with spirits of nature and control and channel their wild impulses - the only person that has thus far succeeded in doing so. This is why the charname adopts the outlook and lifestyle of the barbarian, because the "stripped down" lifestyle enables him/her to maintain the connection to nature that allows him/her to control their rages.

Mestar

Spikeyjoey said:

I dont really see why race matters (not getting all preachy here! ) as the protagonist was essentially left like a baby in a basket, so even half orc makes sense (perhaps more so - DUMP THE FREAK! :P )

As far as races go, the only thing i would consider being a bit "off" would be a gnome being a credible fighter...

Actually, when you return to Candlekeep and read the letter Gorion left for you, he reveals he was a long time friend and occasional lover of the protagonist's mother. I would think Gnome, Halfling, and likely Dwarf could be ruled out.

We also have to remember that the race doesn't necessarily have to be based upon the mother. When we got a deity's mortal incarnation forcing himself upon women, he's probably taking in the form of different races at different times, possibly even during a single rape. Which is what the protagonist is a product of.