Character Codex Round 8 - Elf Paladin, Ranger, and Rogue

Welcome to another week of the Character Codex, where I'm drawing my way through all 77 race/class combinations in the Pathfinder Roleplaying Core Rulebook, giving each one a Chronicle twist.

As always, you can check out the whole Character Codex Gallery and pick up some free Virtual Tabletop Tokens.

Now, onto this week's characters!

Elf Paladin

First up is the Elf Paladin.  Sticking with the traditional Japanese theme that I've been working with, I felt that elven paladins would very much mirror the samurai of feudal Japan.  They adhere to a strict warrior code of honor all in the service of their lord, in the case of these paladins, the goddess Belagaea.  Belagaea's paladins protect the wild like her druids and rangers do.  But, they also are tasked to aid the temples and keep the peace of nature.

This particular paladin is a Celasyn. Her tight hair bun and composure are signs of a more civilized upbringing.  Sasyn paladins are rare, but not unheard of.  They tend to be a bit more rough around the edges and are seen as a bit of an oddity.

I wanted the paladin to reflect the elf cleric's robes of green and yellow while at the same time being able to wade into battle.  Her samurai-styled armor is made of magically hardened wood called Ironwood.  I went with a basic katana for her sword, but I would change that up to an elven longsword for some flavor if I were to redo it.

Elf Ranger

Second, we have the Elf Ranger.  This is Jade, a Celasyn ranger who spends most of his time in the deep woods hunting lizardfolk.  His green hair is a trademark of his family, House Comet.  House Comet is known for producing only the most elite of rangers.  Somewhere in House Comet's past a minor curse was placed on them that they would always stick out by having unusual hair color.  No one in house Comet has a "traditional" elven hair color.

Jade's bow is a powerful magical weapon with an elven name that translates roughly to "Mother's Tears." It is recognized by the blindfolded, winged, elf whose neck the bowstring ties around.

Jade's protege is Lex, the Elf Rogue below.  His serious demeanor is often a counterpoint to her lively ways.  Both of these characters were to be part of the cast of the original Chronicle comic book series.

Elf Rogue

Finally, we come to the Elf Rogue.  This Lex, a Sasyn elf girl who partners with Jade the Elf Ranger.  Lex is a counterbalance to Jade with her free spirit and feisty attitude.  She prefers the rogue skill set to the ranger skill set, though she has become quite good with a bow.  She would rather be the stealthy scout than the noble hunter.

Her signature two-tone wild hair possibly comes from her human maternal grandfather (technically making her 3/4 elf) who may have had a bit of sorcery in his blood.  She wears the same leather wrapping "breeches" as the previously seen elf barbarian and druid.

Lex made one appearance in issue #0 of the original Chronicle comic book, however she was to be a main character  of the series. I hope to some day revisit her and Jade.

Character Codex Round 6 - Elf Cleric and Elf Druid

Here we are again, drawing our way through all 77 combinations of races and classes in the Pathfinder RPG/d20 core rules!

Elf month continues here at Chronicle!

This week we have the Elf Cleric and the Elf Druid.  If you want to see everything so far, check out the Character Codex Gallery.  Also, for you Virtual Tabletop users, we have free downloadable tokens available!

Don't forget to come back tomorrow for the comic where our resident elf sorceress, Elysia, begins to investigate the Slumripper's Dagger.

Now onto the characters!

Elf Cleric

First up is the Elf Cleric.  In many ways the Celasyn elves remind me of Japan during the Warring Kingdoms period.  There is a monarch who is mostly a figurehead, rival houses vying for the true power, a growing trade with outsiders who are not completely to be trusted, and a fear that they are losing their cultural identity due to these outsiders.  To push that a bit further I designed this cleric of Belagaea to look like a Shinto priestess.  Her ceremonial robes are covered by  her banded mail breastplate.  All of this is colored green and yellow, the colors of Belagaea.  All clerics of Belagaea are trained in Belagaea's favored weapon, the longbow.  To allow for mobility when drawing the bow, the sleeves can be untied at the top and her arm can be pulled free.  The sleeves are actually only stitched to the robe at the bottom to create a hinge.  For the bow's design I went with the asymmetrical yumi or japanese longbow.

The Elf Druid is a Saysyn from the Panther Clan.  I wanted him to seem almost feral and so the drawing has a bit more of a sketchy feel than this style has had with the past couple of drawings.  Here he's invoking his totem animal, perhaps as a precursor to wildshaping into a large panther and pouncing on some hostile intruder into the Old Wood.  The breeches are really nothing more than braided straps of leather.  You can see a similar design on the Elf Barbarian.  Since this guy's a bit more of a wild one, his breeches aren't as neatly wrapped.  For his staff, I went with a smaller stick rather than the usual carved branch.  Something this size can be wielded at quick speeds and still deliver a devastating blow if the defender is caught off guard.  I feel like that's a bit more in keeping with his style.

Elf Druid