Character Spotlight: Nosey Newsy (plus a brief update for Lex) · 1:14am Apr 23rd, 2018
Note that this blog post will reference events through chapter 212 - Fixing What's Broken.
One thing I've been remiss about doing is providing stats for the supporting characters in this story. While Lex has a full write-up over on my other blog, as does Sonata, virtually every other character has been ignored. Given that I use d20 RPG stats to measure what other characters can do, and that several supporting cast members have taken on very important roles in the story, it's time to start fixing that. As such, we'll start with one of the first new characters I introduced in the story.
Nosey Newsy, 3rd-level ace reporter
Introduced at the end of chapter 17 - The Pathos of Lex Legis, Nosey is a Canterlot unicorn whose special talent is investigative reporting. Loving how it feels to have everypony pay attention to the headlines she writes, she left her hometown after her last hard-hitting exposé (a piece on a bakery that advertised their use of white sugar, when they were actually using brown) ruffled a few too many feathers. Waiting for the dust to settle, she headed to Vanhoover, intent on writing some pony-interest stories about one of the cities that had been hardest-hit in the recent elemental bleeds. It was there that she met Lex Legis, changing her destiny forever...
This unicorn mare has a coat of dark grey, the color of charcoal, in sharp contrast to her blonde mane and tail. Her cutie mark is a magnifying glass over a newspaper, making it clear that she's a reporter. Her green eyes lock onto you from behind her glasses, and she smiles as she whips out a quill and notepad. "Can I get a quote?" she asks eagerly.
Available Character Points: 96 (level 3 base) + 12 (levels 1 and 3 feats) = 108 CP.
Nosey was 1st-level when she met Lex, rising to 2nd after participating in the massive battle against Tlerekithres' aquatic minions in chapters 97 through 105. She reached 3rd-level after Xiriel's defeat at the end of chapter 211 - The Beneficent Curse, having played a small but vital role in helping Lex overcome the belier devil.
Ability Scores (25-point buy): Str 10 (-2 racial = 8), Dex 14, Con 12, Int 14, Wis 10, Cha 13 (+2 racial = 15).
One thing that needs to be absolutely clear is that, unlike Lex and Sonata, Nosey is built to D&D 3.5 standards, rather than Pathfinder (save for her experience point requirements at each level, which use Pathfinder values). In this case, her ability scores are built using the 3.5 point-buy standards from page 169 of the Dungeon Master's Guide. Despite being an NPC, she's given a 25-point value due to her growing importance as the story moves along.
Unicorn Pony Traits (30 CP/+0 ECL)
- Attribute Shift, +2 Charisma/-2 Strength (6 CP).
Innate Enchantment, caster level x spell level 1 x 2,000 gp (7 CP; 6,000 gp)
- Greater mage hand (2,000 gp).
- Greater mage hand (2,000 gp).
- Light (personal-only, 700 gp).
- Enchant quill (+1 circumstance bonus to Profession/reporter checks, 1,000 gp).
- Immunity/stacking limitations when combining innate enchantment effects with external effects (common/minor/trivial; only covers level 0 or 1 effects) (2 CP).
- Immunity/the normal XP cost of racial innate enchantments (uncommon/minor/trivial) (1 CP).
- Immunity/needing to concentrate on spells (common/major/trivial – only for spells of level 0 or 1), specialized for half cost/only applies to innate enchantments (1 CP).
- Immunity/verbal, somatic, and material components when casting spells (very common/major/minor – only for spells of level 3 or below) (10 CP).
- Eldritch, a unicorn’s horn glows when using innate enchantments or spellcasting, and a matching glow surrounds the target (0 CP).
- Skill Focus/Gather Information (6 CP).
- Accursed. Any damage, or other harmful effect, that befalls a unicorn’s horn (e.g. must target their horn specifically, rather than the unicorn overall) causes all innate enchantments and spells cast to immediately end. No more can be used until the effect is healed (-3 CP).
To be clear, enchant quill is a tool-specific variant of the enchant tools spell from The Practical Enchanter, page 12.
Basic Abilities (73 CP)
- Proficient with light armor and all simple weapons (6 CP).
- 1d6 Hit Die at 1st level, 2d8 Hit Dice at 2nd and 3rd level (10 CP).
- +2 BAB (12 CP).
- Fort +2, Ref +2, Will +3 (21 CP).
- 24 skill points (24 CP).
Nosey initially focused on purchasing a large number of skill points, giving scant thought to her saving throws and Hit Dice, and none at all to Base Attack Bonus or weapon and armor proficiencies. After having been on a few adventures with Lex, she's reversed that stance, and has since bought up her Hit Dice, BAB, and saves as much as she can reasonably afford.
Newsmare (18 CP)
- Adept/Gather Information, Knowledge (local), Knowledge (nobility and royalty), Profession/reporter (6 CP).
- Action Hero/Influence, specialized/can only spread information and help shape public opinion, not control the outcome (3 CP).
- Speed modifier for Skill Focus/Gather Information (6 CP).
- Privilege/press access (3 CP).
Having taken Action Hero/Influence at 1st level, Nosey gained three action points then, four at level two, and five at level 3. However, she's spent three in the course of her career as a reporter, and one with on a Stunt during Lex's fight with Xiriel (buying Reflex Training so as to be able to throw him all five of the belier's ioun stones at once), leaving her with eight remaining.
Lessons of Hardship (17 CP)
- Awareness (6 CP).
- +2 on saves vs. possession or compulsion effects (3 CP).
- The Stunts ability for Action Hero (6 CP).
- Contacts/Lex and Sonata (2 CP).
This rather eclectic collection of abilities reflect what Nosey has gone through since meeting Lex, with many of them being a reaction to having been possessed by Xiriel. So far Nosey is primarily focused on being able to react to threats and reach out to the ponies she knows can handle them. It remains to be seen how she'll grow from here on out.
Derived Stats
- Hit points: 7 (1st level) + 11 (2nd and 3rd levels) = 18 hp.
- Speed: 30 ft.
Saving Throws:
- Fortitude: +2 (base) +1 (Constitution) = +3.
- Reflex: +2 (base) +2 (Dexterity) = +4.
- Will: +3 (base) +0 (Wisdom) = +3 (+5 vs. possession or compulsion effects).
- Armor Class: 10 (base) +2 (Dexterity) = 12, touch 12, flat-footed 10.
- Attacks (melee): unarmed strike +2 (BAB) -1 (Strength) = +1 (1d3-1 nonlethal).
- Attacks (ranged): +2 (BAB) +2 (Dexterity) = +4.
Skills: 24 skill points (24 CP) + 12 (Intelligence) = 36 skill points.
- Appraise: 0 ranks +2 (Intelligence) = +2.
- Balance: 0 ranks +2 (Dexterity) = +2.
- Bluff: 2 ranks +2 (Charisma) = +4.
- Climb: 0 ranks -1 (Strength) = -1.
- Concentration: 0 ranks +1 (Constitution) = +1.
- Craft (all): 0 ranks +2 (Int) = +2.
- Diplomacy: 2 ranks +2 (Charisma) +2 (synergy via Knowledge (nobility and royalty)) = +6.
- Disguise: 0 ranks +2 (Charisma) = +2.
- Escape Artist: 0 ranks +2 (Dexterity) = +2.
- Forgery: 0 ranks +2 (Intelligence) = +2.
- Gather Information 6 ranks (3 skill points) +2 (Charisma) +3 (Skill Focus) +2 (synergy via Knowledge (local)) = +13.
- Heal: 0 ranks +0 (Wisdom) = +0.
- Hide: 3 ranks +2 (Dexterity) = +5.
- Intimidate: 2 ranks +2 (Charisma) = +4.
- Jump: 0 ranks -1 (Strength) = -1.
- Knowledge (local): 6 ranks (3 skill points) +2 (Intelligence) = +8.
- Knowledge (nobility and royalty): 6 ranks (3 skill points) +2 (Intelligence) = +8.
- Listen: 3 ranks +0 (Wisdom) = +3.
- Move Silently: 3 ranks +2 (Dexterity) = +5.
- Perform (all): 0 ranks +2 (Charisma) = +2.
- Profession (reporter): 6 ranks (3 points) +2 (Intelligence) +1 (circumstance) = +9.
- Ride: 0 ranks +2 (Dexterity) = +2.
- Search: 2 ranks +2 (Intelligence) = +4.
- Sense Motive: 2 ranks +0 (Wisdom) = +2.
- Spot: 3 ranks +0 (Wisdom) = +3.
- Survival: 0 ranks +0 (Wisdom) = +0.
- Swim: 1 rank -1 (Strength) = +0.
- Use Rope: 1 rank +2 (Dexterity) = +3.
Nosey's class skills are the fifteen skills in which she's placed ranks. Although her Intelligence modifier entitles her to speak two additional languages in addition to whatever the Equestrian version of Common is ("Ponish," I suspect), the show has been extremely cagey about revealing much in the way of foreign languages, with most of the ones they've alluded to being dead. As such, we'll leave those be for now.
As a 3rd-level NPC, Nosey should have 2,500 gp worth of gear. At the moment, however, she has no notable items, and is effectively broke. This is entirely due to her present circumstances (i.e. being in Vanhoover), and will likely change once she gets back in touch with civilization.
Lex Legis, level 11 (ECL 13)
Defeating Xiriel, a CR 16 creature, was worth 76,800 experience points. Being effectively 12th-level at the time, Lex - who uses the fast progression since he so often fights alone - this is more than enough to bring him up to the threshold for 13th level. However, Nosey also participated in the fight, and so earns some XP also. While technically the XP should be split between them evenly, I've elected not to do so here. Not only was their participation decidedly unequal (Nosey provided a brief distraction when Lex was trying to slip back into shadow form, and she later threw him Xiriel's ioun stones), but also because it made little sense: giving each of them 38,400 XP would have not only meant that Lex wouldn't level up, but Nosey would have lost most of that anyway, since you can only gain one level at a time and any excess XP is lost. Hence, Lex gained the vast majority of this XP, with Nosey receiving just enough to get her to 3rd level.
So what does this mean for Lex's progression? Well, he's earned an impressive 33 Character Points: 24 for gaining a level, 1 for his ongoing restriction against wearing armor, 2 for his continuing duties to Vanhoover, and 6 for earning a feat this level. As for how he's spending those, well...here's what I can show you about the breakdown:
- 1d4+3 hit points (0 CP).
- +6 skill points (Intelligence bonus), +1 skill point ("favored class" bonus), +1 skill point each for Knowledge (arcana), Knowledge (planes), Spellcraft, and Use Magic Device (Fast Learner and Adept) (0 CP).
- +1 sorcerer magic progression levels (Intelligence-based; arcane magic; components and restrained limitations), corrupted for two-thirds cost/must locate or invent new spells to be able to prepare them, specialized for one-half cost/can only replenish spell levels with Rite of Chi (4 CP).
- +1 caster levels, specialized for one-half cost/sorcerer progression only (3 CP).
- 6 CP for a new development that will be unveiled in the relatively near future.
- 20 CP banked toward another new development that we probably won't see for quite some time.
There's something to be said about how quickly Lex is gaining power. Although it's shaping up to be over a hundred chapters between each actual level gained (notwithstanding his goddess-given template), which is almost a year of real-time, this is incredibly fast from an in-character standpoint. Remember that, so far, everything has happened in less than a single month!
At some point, I really need to do a new write-up for Lex, considering that he's gained two levels now. But I think I'll let the story progress a little further before I start entertaining that idea. There are quite a few new twists and turns that I've been thinking about, and I'm eagerly awaiting being able to reveal them.
Looks like Nosey is shaping up into a adventure type ace reporter, one who could go on her own little investigative reporting/adventures that requires more than just diplomacy to learn what she needs for her articles. Well, provided she ever gets over her traumatic experience with Xiriel.
4845484 Right now, Nosey's character is a little all over the place in terms of her development; her racial customizations (i.e. her enchant quill Innate Enchantment and her Skill Focus) and her levels 0 and 1 Character Points were extremely skill-focused, and those were on social skills at that. Now, that's certainly viable as a character build, but her levels 2 and 3 CP expenditures represent a hard shift towards a more combative focus, as all of a sudden she's pumping up her Hit Dice, saves, and Base Attack Bonus, along with buying powers to prevent her from being caught off-guard, strengthen her against being possessed again (understandably), taking a grab-bag of different potential powers (i.e. Action Hero/Stunts), etc.
It's entirely possible to reconcile these two approaches. As it stands now, her strong focus on urban/interpersonal skills could easily be merged with a light-skirmisher style if she wanted to keep focusing on combat, making her something of a rogue or "urban ranger"-type character. Or she could go into something more esoteric, and try and blend her social focus towards some sort of skill-focused magic. Sonata might be able to give her at least a little bit of help there, since she has a moderately-similar role (though Nosey would be more investigative/divinatory in what she does).
But as you noted, all of this presumes that she can get over what happened to her. Luckily, she has ponies around her who care about her well-being. Hopefully they'll be able to help her.
4845484 Nosey reminds me a bit of April O'Neill, from what little I remember of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles as a kid.
4846004 ...you know, I can't believe that never occurred to me before now.
4846004
Only no ninja turtles...of which the araneas could have been a decent substitute. I can somehow imagine the inn the araneas free loaded at being their unofficial hangout, much to the owner's chagrin,
4846047 I'd look for more parallels by googling "April O'Neill Mind Control," but we both know I wouldn't want that in my search history.