This is the second post of my new solo campaign using Strider Mode for The One Ring™ roleplaying game, published by Free League Publishing. It is unofficial fan-made content and not affiliated with or endorsed by Free League Publishing or Middle-earth Enterprises. All trademarks and copyrights remain the property of their respective owners. Shared freely, not for sale.
You can find a list of all posts pertaining to this campaign on my page The One Ring™ 2nd Edition.
NAME: BARÂZ-FELAK, THE RED-HEWER
Náli, son of Barzunâk the Hammerer, is one of the Dwarves of Durin's Folk. He is also known as Náli the Red-hewer, a proud cousin of Bofur the Miner (Erebor: The Lonely Mountain 21-22). He earned his name during the years after the return of King Dáin Ironfoot to Erebor, when the hammer-song echoed in the halls once again.
I needed some inspiration to complete my character's backstory. I already knew (made up) that Náli was a miner who was named the Red-hewer after he split hard rock with his mattock and uncovered a treasure seam filled with rubies and garnet. However, I wanted to tell it in a way that felt Tolkienesque and incorporated a bit of Khuzdul (which I admit I am no expert in), so I asked ChatGPT for some help. Since this was entirely for brainstorming purposes and ideas for my game, I felt that it was completely appropriate. What I got back surprised me, so I used it (some of it word-for-word) to help me write the following to tell the story of his naming.
Náli was skilled in hard rock and set to work in the old lower deeps, where the rock was black with age. There, his famed uncle Bofur was an overseer, and he had marked a stubborn wall of felak-zahar (axe-stone as the Dwarves called it), for he was sure that richer seams lay beyond.
For three days and nights Náli hammered, the head of his mattock ringing like a bell throughout the tunnels. The sparks leapt in the lamplight, and chips of grey stone flew like shards of ice. On the fourth day, as his pick bit into a stubborn seam, the rock split with a sound like a smith's anvil cracking, and out poured a scatter of barâz—rubies like frozen fire and dark-red garnet glinting like the heart of a smoldering coal.
Bofur, a hardy soul, led a rousing song among the miners that day.
Barâz felak! Barâz felak!
(Red hewing! Red hewing!)
And so it is told among the Dwarves of Erebor, that some win honor by the red of battle, and others by the red of the earth; but in both, the mattock writes the name in stone.
CHARACTER SHEET
Here is an image of my character sheet after I have made all the hard...easy choices.
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| Character sheet designed by Jez Gordon, modified slightly by me. |
I decided to use the character sheet by Jez Gordon, rather than the one provided by Free League Publishing mainly because I liked the layout better and it was easier to modify. I am somewhat of an aspiring perfectionist. I like all my Fields to be centered and so on, but I fall short myself at times.
I won't go through every decision about this character as you can see the results for yourself, but I will say that I followed Strider Mode recommendations and gave Náli a set of Target Numbers based on 18 − Ratings rather than 20 and I gave him 15 Skill points for previous experience rather than 10.
My choice to improve his Athletics was due to how strong and agile I imagined him due to his work in the mines. Also, Treasure-hunter seemed to be a good pick for Calling because of his love of exploration and discovery of gems. The Fell mattock and Dark for Dark Business were perfect. I look forward to being inspired often with that Cultural Virtue and on journeys due to the Strider Distinctive Feature.
Eventually, Náli's fate will lead him to go on an expedition with Balin himself, but for now Balin was an obvious choice for Patron since he is “eager to know anything that can be learned regarding Dwarf-holds fallen to the Enemy” (The One Ring™Core Rules 213).
And that's that. Let me know what you think of my choices. Would you have done something different? Why? I'm open to suggestions.
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