In this post I continue to write up the Pathfinder iconic characters for use in the Dungeon Fantasy Roleplaying Game. Links to all of them will appear in the project page, which also contains links to the GURPS Dungeon Fantasy versions.

Today’s template is the Scout, not because it’s in order but because it’s the one I’ve written. This means today’s character is Harsk the Ranger. Here he is:

By Wayne Reynolds, Copyright 2008 Paizo Publishing

Just Look at all that compressed rage! His bio does give him plenty to be angry about. Harsk’s official stats are here. From these we can learn the following:

  • Harsk is a Dwarf from Varisia, a “wild frontier” region that doesn’t have any blatant ties to real-world cultures. He was a bit of an outsider to his own stereotypically Dwarven community, and appointed himself a keeper of justice in the wild places after his brother was killed by raiding giants.

  • He carries his brother’s axe with him, but his preferred weapon is a heavy crossbow he made himself. Understandably, he has giants as a favored enemy and gains bonuses to fight them.

  • He’s skilled in wilderness survival, particularly in mountains, and very perceptive.

This puts us in something of a pickle. DF Scouts are excellent at shooting bows, but Harsk’s preferred weapon is the crossbow. While that’s much more in line with the dwarven idiom, it’s not supported by the standard Scout template in Adventurers. Fortunately, it’s possible for me to add new material to support him without copying anything printed in other GURPS books! Even in standard GURPS the traits below were only sort of implied, so I also had to do this for the previous version of the character.

Heroic Crossbowman (20 points)

This is just like Heroic Archer, but for crossbows instead of bows. You can choose this version instead of Heroic Archer when making a Scout. It gives almost exactly the same bonuses: simply replace the Bow skill with Crossbow where applicable. The only difference is that there isn’t a corresponding Weapon Master specialty for crossbows. All other advantages described under Special Scout Traits are compatible with this one.

Quick Reload (1 point)

If you have Heroic Crossbowman, you can also purchase this advantage. It allows you to reload a crossbow of your ST or lower in a single turn with a successful Fast-Draw (Arrow) row, reducing the total ready time of the weapon from 4 to 2 seconds: one to reload, one bring the weapon into position. If you do this and use Heroic Crossbowman’s fast-firing technique, you can fire your crossbow every turn!

Harsk, 250-point Dwarf Scout

ST 13 {30}; DX 14 {80}; IQ 11 {20}; HT 13 {30}

Damage 1d/2d-1; BL 22.5kg; HP 12; Will 11; Per 14 {15}; FP 16 {9}; Basic Speed 7.00 {5}; Basic Move 6 {-5}.

Dodge 10; Parry 12 (Axe).

Advantages

  • Dwarven Gear {1}
  • Heroic Crossbowman {20}
  • Lifting ST 2 {6}
  • Night Vision 8 {8}
  • Outdoorsman 2 {20}
  • Pickaxe Penchant 1 {5}
  • Quick Reload (Crossbow) {1}
  • Resistant to Poison 6 {6}
  • Strongbow {1}
  • Tough Skin 1 {3}

Disadvantages

  • Greed (12) {-15}
  • Honesty (12) {-10}
  • Intolerance (Giants) {-5}
  • Loner (12) {-5}
  • No Sense of Humor {-10}
  • Odious Personal Habit (Dour & Gruff) {-5}
  • Sense of Duty (Adventuring Companions) {-5}
  • Stubborness (12) {-5}
  • Vow (Own no more than what can be carried) {-10}

Skills

  • Armory (Missile Weapons) (A) IQ-1 {1} - 10
  • Axe/Mace (A) DX+4 {12}1 - 18
  • Brawling (E) DX {1} - 14
  • Camouflage (E) IQ+3 {2}2 - 14
  • Cartography (A) IQ+1 {4} - 12
  • Climbing (A) DX-1 {1} - 13
  • Crossbow (E) DX+5 {16} - 19
  • Fast-Draw (Arrow) (E) DX+1 {2} - 15
  • First Aid (E) IQ {1} - 11
  • Gesture (E) IQ+1 {2} - 12
  • Hiking (A) HT {2} - 13
  • Jumping (E) DX {1} - 14
  • Mimicry (Bird Calls) (H) IQ+1 {2}2 - 12
  • Navigation (A) IQ+1 {1}2 - 12
  • Observation (A) Per {2} - 14
  • Prospecting (A) IQ {1}1 - 11
  • Search (A) Per-1 {1} - 13
  • Shadowing (A) IQ+1 {4} - 12
  • Stealth (A) DX-1 {1} - 13
  • Survival (Mountain) (A) Per+1 {1}2 - 15
  • Tracking (A) Per+2 {2}2 - 16
  • Traps (A) IQ+1 {4} - 12
  • Wrestling (A) DX-1 {1} - 13

Equipment

$1000.0, 21.45kg. No Encumbrance!

  • Ordinary Clothing [Torso, Limbs]: Free, 1kg.
  • Light Leather Jacker [Torso, Arms]: DR 1. $78, 4.6kg.
  • Crossbow [Torso]: ST 17. Damage 1d+6 pi; Acc 4; Range 340/425. $150, 3kg.
  • Crossbow Sling [Crossbow]: $200, 1kg.
  • Hip Quiver [Torso]: Holds up to 20 bolts. $15, 0.5kg.
  • Bolts x 20 [Quiver]: $40, 0.6kg.
  • Dwarven Axe [Torso]: Damage 2d+1 cut. $225, 2kg.
  • Backpack, Small [Torso]: Holds 20kg of gear. $60, 1.5kg.
  • Blanket [Backpack]: $20, 1kg.
  • Canteen [Backpack]: $10, 1.5kg.
  • Personal Basics [Backpack]: $5, 0.5kg.
  • Rations x 4 [Backpack]: $8, 1kg.
  • Rope, 3/8” (10m) [Backpack]: Supports 150kg. $5, 0.75kg.
  • Torch x 2 [Backpack]: $6, 1kg.
  • Tea Set [Backpack]: $7, 1.5kg.
  • $171 in coin.

Design Notes

Strongbow and Lifting ST 2 allow Harsk to fire a ST 17 crossbow despite only having ST 13. While he’s also a pretty good axe fighter in a pinch, his main focus is reaching out and touching people from very far away.

Changes from the First Iteration

The dwarf racial template changed slightly, and following the DFRPG guidelines I just mixed its traits in with the professional template rather than taking the time to mark what belongs to the racial template and what doesn’t. And since there’s no general purpose Mortal Foe trait here, this version of Harsk doesn’t have it. Instead, he sees in the dark a lot better, and is able to shoot a bigger crossbow.

His gear actually doesn’t change all that much, as he only had a DR 1 leather jacket before too. There’s no tea set listed in DFRPG, I believe, but I didn’t think there would be any harm in keeping it.

  1. +1 from Pickaxe Penchant. ↩ ↩2

  2. +2 from Outdoorsman. ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5