magnus "the hammer" burnsides (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
armcollector) wrote2017-05-04 03:54 pm
armcollector) wrote2017-05-04 03:54 pm
app
PLAYER
Player name: Javid
Contact: email: 18morehours@gmail.com /![[plurk.com profile]](https://plurk.com/favicon.ico)
erlking
Characters currently in-game: n/a
CHARACTER
Character Name: Magnus Burnsides
Character Age: 32 as far as he knows, really more like 132 because Shenanigans
Canon: The Adventure Zone
Canon Point: Episode 59
History: Here is his wikia entry, but it only seems to go into his backstory and stops at the very beginning of the actual events of the series, so I'll sum up the rest of the podcast for you.
Hired for "the job to end all jobs" along with traveling mates Merle and Taako, things quickly go south when the person who hired Magnus for the job disappears along the path, leaving behind two dead horses and tons of supplies. The group finds he has been kidnapped and his guard killed, taken by some mysterious people who are after something mysterious. Wow. It turns out to be a powerful magical gauntlet that they needed his blood to access, which takes over his mind, and, though the three adventurers try to talk him down, it causes him to blow up the entire town of Phandalin.
In the wreckage, the gauntlet remains, and the three of them manage to overcome the power of its thrall. Seeing that, one of the people who were after the gauntlet, decides to take them (and the gauntlet) to the people she works for. Who are headquartered on one of the world's two moons. This one is a fake moon. The other moon is real.
The Director of the Bureau of Balance explains that there exist numerous artifacts created by powerful, Red Robed people that have the power to enact destruction like that that took out Phandalin. The three of them were the first to be able to withstand the thrall of one of these Grand Relics, and she hires them on as Reclaimers, who will collect and bring back to be destroyed all seven Grand Relics.
The adventures Magnus, Merle, and Taako go on to reclaim all seven of these Relics take them all over Faerun. Most notably at one point Magnus' body is destroyed and he is forced to take the body of a mannequin. Then the three find out that Magnus was a part of the group of Red Robes, somehow, as well as blast from the past one of the guys who hired them in the first place, and there is more to the story of the Grand Relics than the Director let on. For ssssome reason, a man in the Bureau of Balance headquarters was collecting Magnus' blood and hair to create a clone Magnus, so he just. Took that body now. Right after he wakes up again in the clone body is where I am taking him from.
Personality: Magnus is so entirely reckless, his player has his own catchphrase for Magnus' default reaction to any given situation: Magnus rushes in! Whether it's into battle, into social situations, or into certain doom, Magnus solves his problems by running headlong into them, maybe faceplanting a few times on the way -- but he always manages to get through even the worst of situations this way. He's trained himself to take the big hits so no one else has to, so he can afford to play fast and loose with his own physical and mental wellbeing.
As a protection style fighter, he focuses himself in all kinds of situations to protect those that can take fewer hits than he can. He's always, ever since a very early age, hated those that picked on people and animals who can't defend themselves more than anything else. Starting from the mongrel dog he got beat up by some child bullies for as a toddler, and continuing through his leading a rebellion against the corrupt Governor Kalen of (what he thought was) his hometown of Raven's Roost, Magnus simply will not stand for anyone standing on the backs of the less fortunate. He will always, always intervene when someone is being taken advantage of by a corrupt power.
Even though he's trained himself so much for his fighting role, though, the person he's the hardest on is still himself. He finds through his journey with Merle and Taako, two spellcasters, that he is very jealous of magic users that can call upon the fantastic to do their bidding at a moment's notice. But he uses this jealousy as fuel to improve his skills and gain what new ones he can, immediately going to Carey the super-agile thief for training when he felt he was lagging behind the other boys. It's not just in fighting, though, that he turns focuses inward. When given life-changing information that could change how his two closest friends thought of him, the normally-blunt and open Magnus kept his greatest and most mysterious secret of the image of himself in a Red Robe to himself, and nearly turned against the Bureau of Balance on a solo mission to find out the truth, all without telling the other boys.
But in any other situation, Magnus is carefree and loud, easily becoming the center of attention in any room with his irreverent joking and wild antics. He'll do practically anything to get a laugh, up to and including slapstick comedy. In fact, he has a tendency to lean on the fourth wall to reference subject matter that shouldn't technically exist in his world, or, if they do, are meant to be treated as an abstract game mechanic. He's not aware of his status of a fictional character or anything, but he'll frequently make references to things like Dave Matthews Band (his favorite band, in fact) and "Fantasy" versions of real life media.
In the first episode, Magnus' player states that Magnus is lawful good, but he has not acted lawful at all. I would suggest a more apt description of his moralities would be chaotic good, as he is perfectly willing to break even the most heinous laws to get his way. As selfless he can be, he is also incredibly selfish, to the point of stopping a bank heist only to loot the bank himself, citing "insurance" and "the corruption in the militia" as good excuses for this. Additionally, he has a tendency to kill people if it suits him, such as when militia member Hurley asked the boys to retrieve a necessary item from some gang members and specified to draw the line at murder. The boys did not draw the line at murder, killing a guard and even hiding the body from being found immediately.
However, it isn't quite the case that he will hurt people for entirely selfish reasons, and he is more inclined to trust people rather than not, sometimes even when he's been burned before. In Wonderland, when given the choice between trusting an anonymous stranger or choosing to betray them, he always pushed for the former, even after the first time when his group was betrayed in turn. He tends to be an optimist and generally assumes the best from people.
This shines through especially with people he counts among his friends. He trusts his friends completely, and it's been stated he'd take a "fantasy bullet" for Merle or Taako. He has broken down in tears in the past (in a situation of almost certain death) over the fact that he's found a new family in Merle and Taako, even though he's lost so much in his past.
That said, though he's certainly latched onto people, he keeps a lot to himself. He's mentioned her name once in their company, but he's never explained about his late wife Julia to Merle and Taako. That, on top of his near going rogue entirely alone to find answers, shows that he's also a very private person despite his general openness. He doesn't like showing true vulnerability or opening up about his weaknesses if he doesn't have to.
Inventory: Okay, I was about to list like 800000 items because he normally has a fantasy fuckton, but he also did just wake up in his naked clone body so right now, he doesn't even have the clothes on his back. I'M SORRY. It was either this or bring him in with the most overpowered sword ever imagined by an 8-year-old listener of the show, and I thought this was the funnier/better option.
Abilities:
Protection Fighter - Magnus rushes in, and can always take the big hits for his friends. Tabletop-wise, this means he can cause disadvantages on enemies that attack allies nearby him. RP-wise, this just speaks to his proclivity to priorities others' wellbeing over his own. He's proficient in any melee weapon and can attack two-handed for harder hits or one-handed (with the free hand using a shield) for more defensive maneuvers.
Level 2 Thief - Magnus is mainly of the fighter class, but he has been trained in thievery as well by master thief Carey Fangbattle. Stealing, sneaking, and agility are not his greatest abilities, but he can do alright.
Master Carpenter - Magnus is extremely good at carpentry, woodworking, and whittling. If it's made out of wood, Magnus could build or repair it with finesse.
Vehicle Proficiency - He's really good at driving. This only counts for vehicles that exist in the fantasy world of Faerun, probably.
Animal Proficiency - Magnus' love of animals shines through. Animals tend to like him.
Rustic Hospitality - This is mostly a game mechanic for tabletop, but it's mentioned so often I can't not include it. Magnus fits in with the common folk and they are often very hospitable towards him when he most needs it. In game, I'd use this more as a baseline to play up his own hospitality in return. Manners goes both ways.
Flaws:
On paper, Magnus is "lawful good". He is definitely not played that way. Magnus has, time and again, shown that he is perfectly willing to engage in victimless crimes for his own personal gain, looting a bank even as he tries to save it from being robbed and stating that insurance would cover it. Even more than that, he has a tendency to opt for action over talk, which includes murdering someone who stands in his way. As long as they're bad, anyway, but when you consider how "bad" would probably even include him if he were to truly adhere to his moral code, he comes out of this looking extremely hypocritical.
Magnus is also driven by revenge. The man that killed his late wife Julia and his mentor Steven is still out there, and Magnus has sworn himself to end that man's life without allowing him one word to defend himself. Magnus would offer him no mercy. In stricter black and white morality, this may be considered a dark trait of his.
SAMPLES
Action Log Sample: TDM toplevel and another thread.
Player name: Javid
Contact: email: 18morehours@gmail.com /
Characters currently in-game: n/a
CHARACTER
Character Name: Magnus Burnsides
Character Age: 32 as far as he knows, really more like 132 because Shenanigans
Canon: The Adventure Zone
Canon Point: Episode 59
History: Here is his wikia entry, but it only seems to go into his backstory and stops at the very beginning of the actual events of the series, so I'll sum up the rest of the podcast for you.
Hired for "the job to end all jobs" along with traveling mates Merle and Taako, things quickly go south when the person who hired Magnus for the job disappears along the path, leaving behind two dead horses and tons of supplies. The group finds he has been kidnapped and his guard killed, taken by some mysterious people who are after something mysterious. Wow. It turns out to be a powerful magical gauntlet that they needed his blood to access, which takes over his mind, and, though the three adventurers try to talk him down, it causes him to blow up the entire town of Phandalin.
In the wreckage, the gauntlet remains, and the three of them manage to overcome the power of its thrall. Seeing that, one of the people who were after the gauntlet, decides to take them (and the gauntlet) to the people she works for. Who are headquartered on one of the world's two moons. This one is a fake moon. The other moon is real.
The Director of the Bureau of Balance explains that there exist numerous artifacts created by powerful, Red Robed people that have the power to enact destruction like that that took out Phandalin. The three of them were the first to be able to withstand the thrall of one of these Grand Relics, and she hires them on as Reclaimers, who will collect and bring back to be destroyed all seven Grand Relics.
The adventures Magnus, Merle, and Taako go on to reclaim all seven of these Relics take them all over Faerun. Most notably at one point Magnus' body is destroyed and he is forced to take the body of a mannequin. Then the three find out that Magnus was a part of the group of Red Robes, somehow, as well as blast from the past one of the guys who hired them in the first place, and there is more to the story of the Grand Relics than the Director let on. For ssssome reason, a man in the Bureau of Balance headquarters was collecting Magnus' blood and hair to create a clone Magnus, so he just. Took that body now. Right after he wakes up again in the clone body is where I am taking him from.
Personality: Magnus is so entirely reckless, his player has his own catchphrase for Magnus' default reaction to any given situation: Magnus rushes in! Whether it's into battle, into social situations, or into certain doom, Magnus solves his problems by running headlong into them, maybe faceplanting a few times on the way -- but he always manages to get through even the worst of situations this way. He's trained himself to take the big hits so no one else has to, so he can afford to play fast and loose with his own physical and mental wellbeing.
As a protection style fighter, he focuses himself in all kinds of situations to protect those that can take fewer hits than he can. He's always, ever since a very early age, hated those that picked on people and animals who can't defend themselves more than anything else. Starting from the mongrel dog he got beat up by some child bullies for as a toddler, and continuing through his leading a rebellion against the corrupt Governor Kalen of (what he thought was) his hometown of Raven's Roost, Magnus simply will not stand for anyone standing on the backs of the less fortunate. He will always, always intervene when someone is being taken advantage of by a corrupt power.
Even though he's trained himself so much for his fighting role, though, the person he's the hardest on is still himself. He finds through his journey with Merle and Taako, two spellcasters, that he is very jealous of magic users that can call upon the fantastic to do their bidding at a moment's notice. But he uses this jealousy as fuel to improve his skills and gain what new ones he can, immediately going to Carey the super-agile thief for training when he felt he was lagging behind the other boys. It's not just in fighting, though, that he turns focuses inward. When given life-changing information that could change how his two closest friends thought of him, the normally-blunt and open Magnus kept his greatest and most mysterious secret of the image of himself in a Red Robe to himself, and nearly turned against the Bureau of Balance on a solo mission to find out the truth, all without telling the other boys.
But in any other situation, Magnus is carefree and loud, easily becoming the center of attention in any room with his irreverent joking and wild antics. He'll do practically anything to get a laugh, up to and including slapstick comedy. In fact, he has a tendency to lean on the fourth wall to reference subject matter that shouldn't technically exist in his world, or, if they do, are meant to be treated as an abstract game mechanic. He's not aware of his status of a fictional character or anything, but he'll frequently make references to things like Dave Matthews Band (his favorite band, in fact) and "Fantasy" versions of real life media.
In the first episode, Magnus' player states that Magnus is lawful good, but he has not acted lawful at all. I would suggest a more apt description of his moralities would be chaotic good, as he is perfectly willing to break even the most heinous laws to get his way. As selfless he can be, he is also incredibly selfish, to the point of stopping a bank heist only to loot the bank himself, citing "insurance" and "the corruption in the militia" as good excuses for this. Additionally, he has a tendency to kill people if it suits him, such as when militia member Hurley asked the boys to retrieve a necessary item from some gang members and specified to draw the line at murder. The boys did not draw the line at murder, killing a guard and even hiding the body from being found immediately.
However, it isn't quite the case that he will hurt people for entirely selfish reasons, and he is more inclined to trust people rather than not, sometimes even when he's been burned before. In Wonderland, when given the choice between trusting an anonymous stranger or choosing to betray them, he always pushed for the former, even after the first time when his group was betrayed in turn. He tends to be an optimist and generally assumes the best from people.
This shines through especially with people he counts among his friends. He trusts his friends completely, and it's been stated he'd take a "fantasy bullet" for Merle or Taako. He has broken down in tears in the past (in a situation of almost certain death) over the fact that he's found a new family in Merle and Taako, even though he's lost so much in his past.
That said, though he's certainly latched onto people, he keeps a lot to himself. He's mentioned her name once in their company, but he's never explained about his late wife Julia to Merle and Taako. That, on top of his near going rogue entirely alone to find answers, shows that he's also a very private person despite his general openness. He doesn't like showing true vulnerability or opening up about his weaknesses if he doesn't have to.
Inventory: Okay, I was about to list like 800000 items because he normally has a fantasy fuckton, but he also did just wake up in his naked clone body so right now, he doesn't even have the clothes on his back. I'M SORRY. It was either this or bring him in with the most overpowered sword ever imagined by an 8-year-old listener of the show, and I thought this was the funnier/better option.
Abilities:
Protection Fighter - Magnus rushes in, and can always take the big hits for his friends. Tabletop-wise, this means he can cause disadvantages on enemies that attack allies nearby him. RP-wise, this just speaks to his proclivity to priorities others' wellbeing over his own. He's proficient in any melee weapon and can attack two-handed for harder hits or one-handed (with the free hand using a shield) for more defensive maneuvers.
Level 2 Thief - Magnus is mainly of the fighter class, but he has been trained in thievery as well by master thief Carey Fangbattle. Stealing, sneaking, and agility are not his greatest abilities, but he can do alright.
Master Carpenter - Magnus is extremely good at carpentry, woodworking, and whittling. If it's made out of wood, Magnus could build or repair it with finesse.
Vehicle Proficiency - He's really good at driving. This only counts for vehicles that exist in the fantasy world of Faerun, probably.
Animal Proficiency - Magnus' love of animals shines through. Animals tend to like him.
Rustic Hospitality - This is mostly a game mechanic for tabletop, but it's mentioned so often I can't not include it. Magnus fits in with the common folk and they are often very hospitable towards him when he most needs it. In game, I'd use this more as a baseline to play up his own hospitality in return. Manners goes both ways.
Flaws:
On paper, Magnus is "lawful good". He is definitely not played that way. Magnus has, time and again, shown that he is perfectly willing to engage in victimless crimes for his own personal gain, looting a bank even as he tries to save it from being robbed and stating that insurance would cover it. Even more than that, he has a tendency to opt for action over talk, which includes murdering someone who stands in his way. As long as they're bad, anyway, but when you consider how "bad" would probably even include him if he were to truly adhere to his moral code, he comes out of this looking extremely hypocritical.
Magnus is also driven by revenge. The man that killed his late wife Julia and his mentor Steven is still out there, and Magnus has sworn himself to end that man's life without allowing him one word to defend himself. Magnus would offer him no mercy. In stricter black and white morality, this may be considered a dark trait of his.
SAMPLES
Action Log Sample: TDM toplevel and another thread.