BG1: Alternate PC backgrounds

[Gorilym]

Besides, isn't the assumption made that the pc is about 20?

 

It is in fact openly stated in the opening text of the Prologue in BG1, it goes something like this: "...you have spent most of your twenty years of life...". Of course, that alone could be troublesome if CHARNAME is anything other than a human.

[NiGHTMARE]

That's one of the reasons I created this thread in the first place .

[Lemernis]

But the BG trilogy only occurs 10-12 years after the ToT, so if the conceptions did indeed occur during that time, all the Bhaalspawn would be at most just over 11 years old.

 

I'm really not sure why so many people prefer to trust a single quote from ToB over two lines from SoA that specifically state otherwise:

 

Bhaal walked the realm before the Time of Troubles, and made preparations for his coming demise.

 

This god strode the land before he was made to, and in his wake left a score of mortal progeny driven to conquer and rule.

 

Sorry, I didn't have time to look up the date for Time of Troubles before I posted. I had it in my head that is was earlier. And I see now that it's 10 years earlier, 1358, the Year of Shadows.

 

My main point is that for all of these Bhaalspawn to cause all their chaos at once, Bhaal would have been out sowing his seed 1-2 generations before 1368. So that would be during the period roughly from 1318-1343. I mean that is if one accepts the premise that he wants to have a whole lot of them in the world at the same time.

[Andyr]

Well, the range of dates would depend on the race of the child. If he all wanted them to reach maturity at similar times, then he'd probably have started with Abazigal and finished with... the Chinchilla.

[Lemernis]

Heh, Bhaal evidently nailed everything that moved. In that vein, how about Boo as Bhaalspawn

[SixOfSpades]

Heh, Bhaal evidently nailed everything that moved. In that vein, how about Boo as Bhaalspawn

Remember the very end of the arcade game Golden Axe III (or whatever version it was), when Gilius Thunderhead, the dwarf who's spent the entire game not doing jack except being carried around in your backpack, suddenly leaps out and kills the final boss?

 

Yeah. Like that.

[Guest Guest_onerous_*]

I know it's a bit late but I thought that I would try my hand at this. Please forgive the fact that though I am somewhat versed in FR lore that I'm not really an expert. Certain events need to be clarified before comstructing Charname's background such as Gorion's backstory and Bhaal's trysts across Faerun. If a reasonable explanation can be given for Gorion raising an elf, which I believe is the longest lived and the longest to mature of the possible choices of races, then the others won't be hard to establish. I'm throwing out the prologue commentary that states Charname is 20 years old because it would only work for a human.

 

So, first, for the sake of clarity I will say that Bhaal knew about his own death well in advanced and had planned accordingly. Really long lived creatures such as dragons were bred first and he worked his way down the list. The plan was to have all of his offspring come of age (or beyond in the case of Abigail or whatever the dragon's name was) around the same time. Since the Time of Troubles was 1358 I would assume that he either had bore his human children near the beginning of the ToT or approximately 10 years before that. I would go with just before the ToT because Amn has that army crisis (Murann overtaken) to the south, other cities are seceding to Tethyr, and I believe that their colonies in Matiza (or wherever to the west) are in a bind (not really sure) so they have their hands full at the moment. This would be the perfect time for Sarevok to bring about the Iron Crisis and start a war with Amn.

 

Now for Gorion, I say he was an adventurer who eventually became involved with the Harpers. I'll assume that elves share a linear scale with humans when it comes to maturity so with a simple algebra problem the elf age that corresponds with 10 human years would be 54. So you know that Charname spent most of his time under the influence of Gorion. The questions are how much time and how old is Gorion. Checking the SRD tables old age is 53 and venerable is 70. If it is assumed that Charname came into Gorion's care when Gorion was a very young adventurer and that he is over 70 then we can assume that an elf Charname began to know Gorion right before the adolescent years.

 

Still there is a bit of a gap in knowledge and those holes can be filled any number of ways. It's not perfect but it's a start. Since the other races have a significantly shorter maturation process it can be safely assumed that Gorion had Charname before he or she could remember.

 

Long winded yes but hopefully helpful to some ambitious modder out there.

[Kitana]

The way I'd come up with for the plot to actually fit with with my elf PC's background (This is sort of for my specific PC, not sure how it'd work for all elves, but it's a try) goes something like this:

 

Bhaal goes around way before the Time of Troubles. PC's mother meets Gorion. Since I assume my elf PC to be about 100-110 or so when BG1 begins, this would be when PC is around 75-85 or so-- giving Alianna time to fall in love with Gorion, who is part of the Harpers. Meanwhile Alianna has been raising Charname. Gorion is convinced that PC can't be evil. Harpers (including Gorion, and possibly also a younger Khalid and Jaheira) attack the temple, -maybe- trying to save the children, but probably not. Chaotic battle, people get killed, Gorion saves PC, someone saves Sarevok. -Maybe- someone saves Imoen and brings her somewhere random for 10 years. Alianna dies in the battle.

 

Side note:

Wasn't the FAI a temple of Bhaal? That might be the one PC and Sarevok were in... If so, Bentley and Gelanna (Not sure if her name's spelled right, but I can't check at the moment) might have been involved with the Harpers.

 

So Gorion brings PC back to Candlekeep. Now the only explanation I can think of for PC not already knowing his/her heritage and her mother and all that is some form of amnesia (After all, PC knows nothing about his/her mother except what Gorion's told him/her in BG1 - in the biographies for example) - maybe a spell triggered by him/her leaving the temple? - maybe something by the Harpers to keep PC from killing everyone? So Gorion raises PC in Candlekeep for 20 years. PC obviously wouldn't be a baby, and would nearly be an adult, but I'd assume there's a lot (s)he wouldn't know and would still have to relearn.