“Little” Bear, Wrestler of Magic

Magic is everywhere. It flows through the earth, the air, and the water. Fire unbinds it, letting it shine forth – discharging, as random energy always does, to light and heat. It can be trapped in crystals, through alchemy, knotted into “prepared” spells, and shaped in a myriad ways. It flows in from some planes and out to others. Everyone, everywhere, is always encased in a sea of radiance for those that have eyes to see.

Most Wizards claim to see magic clearly in their spell-preparing trances; they draw upon and bind it, weaving it’s gossamer threads into an arsenal of readied effects – racking them in their minds like a shelf full of wildly-varied ammunition. With a phrase, a gesture, or some other subtle trigger, they send them on their way.

“Bear” never did see the magic that way, and never got any formal arcane training – although he DOES have a wonderful knack for finding spell-shapes that work. He feels it instead, rather like clay beneath his hands – and he never was much for fine muscular control. When Bear starts stockpiling his spells, he wrestles and pounds the magic into the forms he’s found that work, squeezing it with brute strength rather than finesse, than wrapping more “clay” around his creation to hold it safe. To release HIS spells he needs few subtle gestures or arcane words; instead he simply shouts – and hammers his spell’s containment between his hands or crushes it’s shell within his fist.

While this crudity has it’s advantages – Bear has found that light armor hinders him not at all – the shards of his shattered spell-containments tend to manifest as randomized magic and environmental disruptions. As a professional spellcaster this makes him QUITE unpopular in towns and cities. Adventurer’s however… Adventurers often do not mind a few side effects as long as he can help them remain alive.

Remember The Princess Bride? Remember Andre the Giant as Fezzik? Now think of him as wrestling magic instead of people. Bear’s magic is powerful, and he has an unusual talent for teleportation magics, but it’s a wee bit sloppy…

“Bear” L6 Mage

“Bear” grew up in the wilds; his parents were foresters and trappers who spent much of the year working their traplines – and they took him along an awful lot. (To this day he has an affinity for the wilds, and for the light protective gear of trappers and hunters). His parents were pleased when he showed magical talent – that was a very valuable knack! – but were less pleased when it turned out to have such destructive side effects. He was still quite young when they left him with a local druid in hopes that another mystic could teach him to control his talents properly. The druid… was not pleased to find that the child’s talents were quite unresponsive to his tutelage. He was on the verge of sending the child back to his parents when he heard that they’d both been lost, and were presumed dead somewhere along their lines.

Bears situation got rapidly worse – until he ran away a couple of years later.

Bear’s race is unspecified; pick one to suit yourself.

Basic Attributes: STR 14, DEX 12, CON 14, INT 18, WIS 8, CHA 8.

Available CP: 144 (L6 Base) +10 (Disadvantages: Poor Reputation, Valuable – wanted for murder (I didn’t do it and I don’t know I’m wanted), Untrustworthy) +12 (Duties) +24 (L0, L1, L3, L6 Bonus Feats) = 190 CP.

Basic Abilities:

• Proficient with All Simple Weapons and Light Armor with the Smooth Modifier (9 CP)
• Hit Dice: L1d20 (16 CP), L2d10 (6 CP), L3-5: 3d6 (6 CP) 1d4 (0 CP).
• +3 BAB (18 CP).
• Saves: Will +4, Reflex +2, Fortitude +2 (24 CP).

Other Abilities:

• Seven Levels of Wizard Spellcasting, Corrupted/his spellcasting is highly physical, as he wrestles the magic into shape – and thus is poorly controlled; his magic has destructive side effects on the environment around him (65 CP).
• Action Hero/Crafting, Specialized in Spell Research for Double Effect, Minor Variant/covers monetary costs of researching and recording a spell rather than the (nonexistent) XP costs (6 CP). “Bear” usually uses a collection of whittled sticks and talismans to store his spells on rather than a book – but the effect is pretty much identical.
• Fast Learner, Specialized in Skills for Double Effect (6 CP). In conjunction with his level that will give him a base of 54 skill points – although eighteen of those are pretty much committed to his Adept skills.
• Adept: Buy Arcana, Perception, Linguistics, and Stealth for half cost (6 CP).
• Occult Ritual (6 CP). This character is using the Condensed d20 skills list.
• 1d6 Mana, with the Resilience Natural Magic Option (6 CP).
• Inherent Spell/Warpspace (L3, produces teleportation effects of L2 or less, 1/Day), with +2 Bonus Uses (9 CP).
• 1d6 Mana, with the Spell Enhancement Natural Magic Option, Specialized and Corrupted for Triple Effect (need only spend one point for +3 spell levels); Only to boost his inherent Warpspace Spell (6 CP).

This leaves him with one point left over. Save it for something or buy a contact or a skill point. If you make him human (or any other race that gets a bonus feat) I’d recommend putting it in Rite of Chi.

Spellbreaker Martial Art (Int):

The Spellbreakers Art is oddly alien to most wizards; it involves focusing their magical perceptions and strength of will on shattering spells and redirecting the flow of magic – rather than on binding that magic into effects. It’s few physical movements are startlingly brutal and direct as practitioners batter the universe around them into submission.

• Requires: Arcane Spellcasting of second level spells or above and at least one Inherent Spell.
• Basic Abilities: Attack +2 (Adds to Caster Checks to penetrate Spell Resistance), Defenses 4 (Adds to Saving Throws versus Spells and Spell-Like Abilities), Synergy/Arcana, Toughness 2 (Versus damage from Spells and Spell-Like Abilities).
• Advanced Techniques: Breaking (May roll his Spellbreaker skill instead of a caster level check when Dispelling), Weapon Kata/Staff, Rapid Shot (once per combat may cast a first level spell as a free action), and Whirlwind Attack (with Touch spells only).
• Occult Techniques: Inner Strength, Healing Hand, Ki Focus (Intelligence), and Light Foot.
• Known Techniques (presuming 9 skill points, 7): Attack 2, Defenses 2, Breaking and Rapid Shot.

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