Weldun Posted April 12, 2006 Report Share Posted April 12, 2006 I'm going ahead with some stuff from the plot seed thread, and I realised that I have one problem with my scenario... DARK KINGDOM BLACK PALADIN/BLACK HARLEQUIN/TALISMAN/DARK KNIGHTS The core assumptions here are that not only has the Black Harlequin found his appreciative audience, but the Black Paladin and Talisman are well into their dark romance and Sir De Morphant has successfully assembled his loyal knights, forming the villainous super-group known as, the Dark Kingdom. I have no idea as to who would make up the Black Paladin's "loyal knights." Any suggestions? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
McCoy Posted April 12, 2006 Report Share Posted April 12, 2006 Re: Brainstorm: The Black Paladin Recruits! Agent level henchmen with a simular shtick but less or no magic. Thugs in black articulated armor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lord Liaden Posted April 12, 2006 Report Share Posted April 12, 2006 Re: Brainstorm: The Black Paladin Recruits! Well, I would think that the best fit would be evil supernatural beings with a "medieval" theme, willing to follow orders. The adventure Shades of Black creates two minions for the Black Paladin, the Gryphon and Lady Crow. I also think Morningstar from Conquerors, Killers And Crooks would be appropriate. I'll have to think about it more, and get back to you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weldun Posted April 12, 2006 Author Report Share Posted April 12, 2006 Re: Brainstorm: The Black Paladin Recruits! Shades of Black? Is that a separate adventure, or is that in one of the numerous books? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lord Liaden Posted April 12, 2006 Report Share Posted April 12, 2006 Re: Brainstorm: The Black Paladin Recruits! It's a PDF Champions adventure by Allen Thomas. 69 pages, new characters and maps, $12.00 US, dowloadable from the Online Store. High quality - award winning in fact. Here's where you can find out more about it: http://www.herogames.com/Products/SOB.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Schultz Posted April 13, 2006 Report Share Posted April 13, 2006 Re: Brainstorm: The Black Paladin Recruits! Humerous suggestion - have one of them say "ni!" occasionally, only to get beatedn down by his fellows, as the rest of them hate Monty Python references. Slightly more serious suggestion: if you want to go with the original definition of "black knight" (a knight errant who painted his armor black so as to not have to spend time polishing it, as his squire wasn't available), they could quite simply be modern mercenaries, complete with heavy weaponry and the like. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheTemplar Posted April 13, 2006 Report Share Posted April 13, 2006 Re: Brainstorm: The Black Paladin Recruits! As Lord Liaden suggested, check out Shades of Black. It's a really awesome adventure, and the Gryphon and Lady Crow NPCs it adds are pretty solid. Not a "knight" per se, well... ok. At all. But you might consider Zorran the Artificer. BP would doubtlessly be impressed by the sorcerers Golems (Lemurian Constructs) and Zorran could easily make them resemble knights if BP so wished, and then begin mass producing them to build as large an army as BP needs. (Zorran can be found in CKC.) Alternately, having grown weary of Talisman's incessant angst and the mindless prattle of Black Harlequin, perhaps BP decides that the only way he will achieve victory is to surround himself with those of knightly blood, just like him. No, seriously. JUST like him. He seeks out everyone's favorite Swedish/ Canadian superscientist - Teleios - and hires the Perfect Man to make clones of Giles de Morphant, then the Black Paladin and his Order ride on to havoc and mayhem (and, if he's feeling extra cheery after cloning himself, maybe he brings his sorceress muse and court fool along for the ride after all.) (Teleios can be found in Champions Universe.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weldun Posted April 13, 2006 Author Report Share Posted April 13, 2006 Re: Brainstorm: The Black Paladin Recruits! Humerous suggestion - have one of them say "ni!" occasionally' date=' only to get beatedn down by his fellows, as the rest of them hate Monty Python references.[/quote'] or "Ecky-ecky-ecky-p'tang-z'woop-noy!" Slightly more serious suggestion: if you want to go with the original definition of "black knight" (a knight errant who painted his armor black so as to not have to spend time polishing it' date=' as his squire wasn't available), they could quite simply be modern mercenaries, complete with heavy weaponry and the like.[/quote'] Except is supposed to be the Black Paladin was the Black Knight of Arthurian legend. Actually the Knight of Black Laund (an obscure term for a glade) was Sir Percard, and he was often refered to simply as the Black Knight. In the book he was slain by Sir Beaumains (actually Gareth of Orkney, youger brother to Sirs Gawaine, Gaheris, and Agravaine, missing 15 years at that time). All of this occurred in book seven of Sir Thomas Mallory’s work, “Le Morte d’Arthur”, I think. (It’s been a while.) Sir Giles de Morphant is a creation of Hero Games, specifically for the Champions Universe. Alternately' date=' having grown weary of Talisman's incessant angst and the mindless prattle of Black Harlequin, perhaps BP decides that the only way he will achieve victory is to surround himself with those of knightly blood, just like him. No, seriously. JUST like him. He seeks out everyone's favorite Swedish/ Canadian superscientist - Teleios - and hires the Perfect Man to make clones of Giles de Morphant, then the Black Paladin and his Order ride on to havoc and mayhem (and, if he's feeling extra cheery after cloning himself, maybe he brings his sorceress muse and court fool along for the ride after all.) (Teleios can be found in Champions Universe.)[/quote'] The point of the Dark Kingdom is that he finds the Black Harlequin to be genuinely entertaining, and he has found a second love in Talisman. One of the things that will make this team so dangerous will be the lack of infighting. Now, and alliance with Zorran, that might work for men-at arms, and I like the idea, but I'm talking about his own version of Arthur's round table. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lord Liaden Posted April 13, 2006 Report Share Posted April 13, 2006 Re: Brainstorm: The Black Paladin Recruits! Weldun, are you looking for specific characters to add to the Black Paladin's roster, or general ideas for the types of villains who would serve him? If the former, do you want published Champions characters, or fan creations, or both? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weldun Posted April 13, 2006 Author Report Share Posted April 13, 2006 Re: Brainstorm: The Black Paladin Recruits! Weldun' date=' are you looking for specific characters to add to the Black Paladin's roster, or general ideas for the types of villains who would serve him? If the former, do you want published Champions characters, or fan creations, or both?[/quote'] It is the former, and I would prefer charcters I have access to, so that generally limits it to those published in hardcopy. I'm open to fan based characters, but then I would require access to them. It occurs to me that I might sound a little "give me this, now", rather than "a little help, please." I assure you that it is the latter, I'm just having a little brainlock. Sidenote: Is it wrong to introduce the Sailor Senshi into a ninja hero campaign? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lord Liaden Posted April 13, 2006 Report Share Posted April 13, 2006 Re: Brainstorm: The Black Paladin Recruits! Okey-dokey. I went back over a few of the current Champions books, looking for characters who might fit with BP's Dark Kingdom, especially as "knights." Here are a few suggestions in addition to the ones above: From Arcane Adversaries, I recommend the Lamplighter. He's a sort of spiritual vampire, drawing power from the torment of others. He willingly works for tyrants or others who give him access to new victims, so I could see him joining with BP if the prospects looked good. From Vibora Bay, I think Deadman Walkin' could work. He's a skilled and ruthless assassin who also happens to be a kind of freewilled zombie, with the durability of the undead. The force that reanimated him is unknown, so that could have some connection to the Paladin. From DEMON: Servants Of Darkness, Cloaca should be useable. She is infected with Qliphothic energy that she projects outward as dark force. She's committed to evil but still unschooled in it; she sought out DEMON so that she could understand her own nature. She could just as easily have encountered the Black Paladin first. From Champions Worldwide, Lightning Man looks like a natural. He's a powerful and brutal warrior armed with twin magic axes which have tainted his soul. He's also a straightforward fighter who would probably make a good footsoldier as long as he's given plenty of opportunities to fight. And he's an Aussie. Well, I guess that's a start. Actually a team of Black Paladin, Talisman, Black Harlequin, Lady Crow, the Gryphon, Morningstar, the Lamplighter, Deadman Walkin', Cloaca, and Lightning Man would be pretty formidable, especially if BP used their varying abilities strategically. All of them are also pretty thoroughly evil, so they'd likely have no objection to following BP's lead. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blue Posted April 13, 2006 Report Share Posted April 13, 2006 Re: Brainstorm: The Black Paladin Recruits! I've reread Shads of Black recently, and made miniatures for the villains too. There's a pretty good assemblage in there with more diversity than you'd get from putting together a buch of sword swingers. You've got (SPOILER)........................Black Paladin, Chantal (a witch), Talisman, Lady Crow, Gryphon, Lesser Demons & Hellhounds (From the Hero System Bestiary). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justicebringer Posted April 13, 2006 Report Share Posted April 13, 2006 Re: Brainstorm: The Black Paladin Recruits! In my time line I had Black Paladin show up at the Pennsic War (the annual gathering for folks in the Society for Creative Anachronism.. about 13,000 of them) and offer enchanted armor and weapons to any who be willing to swear an oath of feality to him. I ended setting him up with twelve dark apostles. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheTemplar Posted April 13, 2006 Report Share Posted April 13, 2006 Re: Brainstorm: The Black Paladin Recruits! From DEMON: Servants Of Darkness, Cloaca should be useable. She is infected with Qliphothic energy that she projects outward as dark force. She's committed to evil but still unschooled in it; she sought out DEMON so that she could understand her own nature. She could just as easily have encountered the Black Paladin first. Yup. She's a good one. You might also look at Invictus out of Villainy Amok. As written, the character might create a power struggle w/ Black Paladin - and the fact that he hates being accused of criminal activity doesn't help either, so he MIGHT need a bit of tweaking to fit your needs, but he's got the whole "ancient warrior" theme (albeit from a gladitorial sense as opposed to a medieval one.) I posted a character to the vault called "Black Enchantress" who MIGHT be a good fit thematically, too. Despite her name, she doesn't stomp on Talisman's schtick too much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weldun Posted April 14, 2006 Author Report Share Posted April 14, 2006 Re: Brainstorm: The Black Paladin Recruits! First, I would like to say thank you to you all. You've all come up with some great ideas, and seem to have understood the spirit of this endeavor. Unfortunately, I do not have access to roughly half of the resources you're quoting (Arcane Adversaries, Vibora Bay, Villany Amok, and as I said before, Shades of Black). On Cloaca and Lightning man, quote Dr. Arkevil, "Excellent, excellent!" And just for kicks, I might just go ahead and resurrect The Tombstone Kid. (Pun intended. Haze away.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weldun Posted April 15, 2006 Author Report Share Posted April 15, 2006 Re: Brainstorm: The Black Paladin Recruits! Do you know who I miss? Mordekai the Unspeakable. I suppose part of his background got rolled into our fav Black Pally, huh? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lord Liaden Posted April 15, 2006 Report Share Posted April 15, 2006 Re: Brainstorm: The Black Paladin Recruits! Say, Weldun, how about listing the books you do have access to? From your remarks I have to wonder whether you'd consider updating Fourth Edition characters? If so, list your 4E books too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FenrisUlf Posted April 15, 2006 Report Share Posted April 15, 2006 Re: Brainstorm: The Black Paladin Recruits! In my time line I had Black Paladin show up at the Pennsic War (the annual gathering for folks in the Society for Creative Anachronism.. about 13' date='000 of them) and offer enchanted armor and weapons to any who be willing to swear an oath of feality to him. I ended setting him up with twelve dark apostles.[/quote'] Just twelve? I figured he'd wind up with the entire Great Dark Horde. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twilight Posted April 15, 2006 Report Share Posted April 15, 2006 Re: Brainstorm: The Black Paladin Recruits! Do you know who I miss? Mordekai the Unspeakable. I suppose part of his background got rolled into our fav Black Pally' date=' huh?[/quote'] I'm pretty sure that's the case. Black Pally didn't have that nifty evil sword in 4th Edition after all. Still Mordekai was a cool villain, somebody ought to update him for FRED. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Victim Posted April 16, 2006 Report Share Posted April 16, 2006 Re: Brainstorm: The Black Paladin Recruits! Just twelve? I figured he'd wind up with the entire Great Dark Horde. He must have run out of magic weapons and armor or something. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weldun Posted April 16, 2006 Author Report Share Posted April 16, 2006 Re: Brainstorm: The Black Paladin Recruits! Say' date=' Weldun, how about listing the books you [b']do[/b] have access to? Book List. 4E Blue Hardcover Classic Enemies Classic Organisations Ninja Hero 5E FRED Champions, Champions Universe, Champions Worldwide Conquerors, Killers and Crooks UNTIL Superpowers Database I & II VIPER, DEMON & UNTIL Ultimate Vehicle, Mystic and Martial Artist. HERO System Equipment Guide Gadgets and Gear Fantasy Hero Grimoire Ninja Hero Hidden Lands HERO System Bestiary I also have Robot Warriors, but I was young and impressionable, okay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enforcer84 Posted April 16, 2006 Report Share Posted April 16, 2006 Re: Brainstorm: The Black Paladin Recruits! Well if you don't mind making your own you could possibly have De Morphant attempt to create his own round table with warriors using corrupted magic or copies of the famous weapons of his mortal enemies, the Arthurian Court. Excaliber (or Caliburn) Arondight (Lancelot's Sword) hmmm...I am not finding any more named weapons. Perhaps this is not the best course of action. Perhaps he could seek warriors who emulated the worst traits of Arthurs Knights, A lecherous Gawain, A sadistic Lancelot, Tristan is an obssessive stalker of some famous beauty... I once created a group of knight styled Morbanes for Mordekai but I don't hav the character sheets anymore. I am no help. Sorry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twilight Posted April 16, 2006 Report Share Posted April 16, 2006 Re: Brainstorm: The Black Paladin Recruits! Well the evil Excalibur idea has merit Enforcer. I can see Black Paladin really getting into something like that. Talisman of course is already an evil Guinivere. Not a bad idea at all really and it would strengthen the evil knighthood vibe in my opinion. I also had an idea of Archimago [who isn't dead in my campaign btw] or somebody like him playing a Merlin-like role in Black Paladin's group. The reasons for this would vary of course, but in the idea I had Archimago does it simply because he gets a huge kick out of the evil Merlin role. It's a hobby basically, he assists Black Paladin's crew when he wants to relax. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enforcer84 Posted April 16, 2006 Report Share Posted April 16, 2006 Re: Brainstorm: The Black Paladin Recruits! I like that idea. *Snort* He appears to them as a short white haired dude in a red robe. Makes Quasi-yoda like observations. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twilight Posted April 16, 2006 Report Share Posted April 16, 2006 Re: Brainstorm: The Black Paladin Recruits! Yes basically, and also supplies them with various and sundry magical gear or tells them where to find it. It's not a villainous plan per se, he's just kicking back and enjoying the mayhem his actions cause. Sorta like some Americans and Monday Night football. Normally in my game, Archimago is an evil Shazam. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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