Character Creation: Enemy Gods

Got some time before dinner.

The Game: Enemy Gods
The Publisher: John Wick Presents 
Degree of Familiarity: None, just read it
Books Required: Just the one (rather, the Big Book of Little Games)

 
This is the last game in this book, as far as my chargen project goes, so that's exciting. Finally get to the take the little sticker off. This is also one of the better-realized games in the book, although it still relies a little too heavily on "make something up, but y'know, cool" than I'd like, but that's fine, tastes vary.

In this game, players play both a God and a Hero, chosen of a God...but not the one they're playing. As such, you've got to do things that make you interesting to your given God (and others in the pantheon, why not). The setting is Conan-esque, sword-and-sandals kind of fantasy.

The first step is design or choose a God to play, but I'm not actually going to do that, because there's not really any mechanical impact during this stage. It's more about building the pantheon, and since it's just me, I'm gonna go with what I know and say it's the Olympians (I did think about Norse, but eh, I like the Greeks better, plus it'll be consistent with some other characters I've made).

So, my Hero! First thing is Description, which isn't so much Description as History. Sure, why not. The arrangement here draws on the Hero's Journey as well as Lord Raglan's twenty-two heroic/mythic traits, but at the end of the day I need to describe my Hero's birth, call to adventure, transformation, and descent into the Underworld (symbolically or otherwise).

My character's name is Filippus. He was born to a centaur and a human father (I know, weird, but it's hardly the weirdest thing in Greek myth). When he was born human, the centaurs killed his father and exiled his mother, and she carried him across a blisteringly cold steppe to deliver him to his grandparents. She died of exhaustion at the end of the journey, and he was raised by his father's parents.

When Filippus was a teen, his uncle Aesop was called off to war, and he snuck away and followed. Filippus was caught by sentries near the soldier camp, and pressed into service. On the morning of his first battle, his uncle tied him to a tree with a bridle, and Filippus was still there at nightfall when the enemy, having slaughtered their foes, descended upon him. Before they could kill him, though, a great warhorse blocked their path, bit through the bridle, and carried him away. The horse carried him back to the steppe where his mother rode tirelessly, and Filippus saw the sacrifice that she made, that any mother makes for her child, saw the fury and the exertion that only a parent can muster. He and the horse wandered the steppe for months, met the strange and desperate nomads that crossed it, and learned to ride, shoot, and fight as they did.

Finally, he reached the other end of the steppe and met the centaurs that were his family. They saw him riding upon a horse and were initially incensed, but then recognized the horse as Arion, the horse-son of Poseidon. They agreed to welcome him as one of them if he could pass their trials, run, fight, and recite poetry as they did. It took him weeks and left him spent and bloody, but Filippus succeeded, and was welcomed by his mother's people at last.

Arion left again for the sea and Filippus made a sacrifice to Poseidon in thanks for granting him the favor of Arion's guidance. He then set out to cross the centaur's lands and find the ocean on the other side.

Cool. Now we do Backgrounds. I get 7 points for these; they're basically skills and professions. I can't set one higher than 4, though. I want Survivor of the Steppe at 4 (useful for riding and endurance like things) and Archer at 2. I'll also take Poet at 1.

Next, Devotions. I get 1 point in Devotion to every God represented by a PC, but of course that's just me, so I get Poseidon 1. Then I get 10 more points, but again, can't go above 4, except I can, because the example of chargen has 5 in their chosen God. I think what you mean is that you can't spend more than 4 of your 10 points on a single God, huh?

Anyway, 3 into Poseidon for a Devotion of 4. 3 into Hermes (I am swift!), 2 into Ares (I am fighty!), and 2 into Demeter (she seems pretty mom-focused).

Heroic Flaw! Lemme transcribe this sentence for you: "Achilles had the most famous Flaw in the world, Lancelot has his blind devotion, and Oedipus suffered from an entirely different kind of blindness (his Flaw is a dark secret from his past) and, of course, Achilles had the most famous Flaw of all." Editors, man.

Anyway, Filippus' Heroic Flaw is his refusal to bow before an unworthy master. He has a kind of unbroken stallion quality to him, and it manifests as stubbornness. That's going to get him into trouble one day.

I start with 2 points of Hubris, OK then.

And now we answer a bunch of fuckin' questions! Whee! (I actually do like this, but I'm not filling out the sheet by hand.)

• What social caste does the Hero come from? Uh, centaurs? I think he's basically an outsider or a nomad.
• Is he poor, rich, a landowner? Poor wanderer. 
• Which of the five senses is most important to your Hero? Sight. He's used to flat plains and spotting trouble before it gets to him.
• How does your Hero feel about his parents? He never knew them, but he's heard stories about his mother and her majestic ride across the steppes, so he's got a kind of hero-worship thing for her. Not so much for dad.
• What are your Hero's favorite foods/drinks/clothes? I think Filippus enjoys grains and veggies. He'll eat meat, but he's not really a fan. For his money there's no better drink than fresh water from an icy spring, and he prefers to wear heavy furs and layers.
• Does your Hero hold any grudges or vendettas? Owe favors or boons? Obligations? The way he sees it, he discharged his obligation to Poseidon with the sacrifice, and that's gonna be a rude awakening some day. He used to hold a grudge against the centaurs who drove his mother out, but they've made peace. 
• What kind of person is the Hero most attracted to? What kind of person drives him to fits of rage? Filippus likes travelers, storytellers, and people who can do back-breaking work. He doesn't trust soldiers (fighting is one thing, fighting for some other man's cause another) and he hates the greedy (gold is worthless). 
• How does the Hero define "love"? Willingness to suffer and die for another's safety.
• If given the opportunity, would the Hero kill for profit? No. He'd kill to survive or protect, maybe to avenge, but profit is pretty crass.
• What is more important, to be feared or loved? Given Filippus' definition of "love," to be loved.
• Who does your Hero trust most? Why? He trusts his centaur family because they accepted him after he proved himself. He trusts Poseidon because the god helped him. He generally trusts horses.
• Which God does your Hero revere most? Least? Poseidon because the dude sent me a magic horse. I think Filippus just doesn't have a lot of use for Aphrodite. 
• To whom does your Hero owe loyalty? The centaurs (they're family).
• What are some of your Hero's mannerisms? Filippus has a habit of clearing his throat when he's thinking, and stomping on the ground when he's impatient.
• What would be the most appropriate death for your Hero? Enduring some horrible trial to keep someone else safe, or participating in some John Henry-esque contest that kills him.

OK, I think that's good (there are more questions, but I think this is enough). That's Filippus, then! I think it's interesting that he hasn't really been to the sea, but he's chosen of Poseidon - what does old Posey want with Filippus? Is Arion his real father? If so, why ain't he a horse? Mysteries abound!