Saint Constantine- an NPC (long)

[Shadowking]

The NPC is called Saint Constantine, Seeker of Sin, He Who Sees the Impure. He belongs in my homebrewed world of Gothica, but he can be used in Ravenloft very easily.

History:

Originally Saint Constantine was a priest and was born 200 years ago.
In Gothica he worships the Three, the world's main religion, but in Ravenloft he can easily worship Ezra or even more appropriately the Morninglord. From early childhood and as he rose up in Church heirarchy, all he saw around him were sin and corruption. Nothing was pure, even within his seemingly-holy Church. Disgusted but strong in his faith, Constantine trusted in the Gods to redeem their flock and judge between the Worthy and Unworthy. However, it all changed during the War of Black Tears. Undergoing hasty Justiciar training, Constantine was sent as a medic and Divine support into the field. There, he first-handedly beheld the evil of This World. Treacherous, Dark-worshipping barbarians, deranged mutants and the hosts of the Undead all put a dark stain on his soul. His grim world view grew even stronger as he saw his own Emperor betrayed and wounded mortally by his own son for the sake of worldly gain. On his dying bed, the Emperor inherited his land to the Gods, for he had no heir. And so the Empire of Celenor came to pass.

Shaken by the war's events, Constantine went on to fight this evil which was infesting every good corner of This World. Constantine studied the Codex, and learned of the Radiant Thrones of Justice who brought judgement to the land in ancient times. And thus, he sought to renew that tradition. Gathering like-minded individuals to himself who believed extreme measures must be taken to purge This World of sin, he founded the Holy Inquisition in the Year of Burning Eyes. The fragile post-war political situation didn't allow for the Three's Justiciars to ride openly across the land in search of evil as they did (and besides- so few of them were left after the war), and so the Gods needed more- covert- agents to do their bidding.

The Inquistiors became the Church's White Shadows, scouring city and countryside in search of sinners and supernatural threats and putting them to the sword- or the torch. In the process, they established the Church's might and put fear of the Gods' power in mortal hearts. Their methods were bloody and painful and even some innocents died mistakenly at their hands- but Constantine had believed the ends justify the means. Despite his esteemed position as Arch-Inquisitior and one of the most powerful Priests in the Three's Church, Constantine didn't allow himself to grow lax, mainly because of the flaws he saw in his own companions. He barely slept, barely ate and was rumored to have died chaste- so dedicated he was to the Hunt. Darker rumors even talk about rituals of self-mutilation to purge the darkness in his own soul and repay for all the deaths he caused.

The dread Soul Gazers were Constantine's internal police in his own organization, but the leader was untouchable. Besides them, in his aging years he founded and personally led the Brothers and Sisters of Wrath, fanatical warriors raised on the Three's doctrine since early childhood (as they were all orphans who lost thier family to this World's Evils- or so they were told- and were adopted by the Gods) and trained to become the ultimate hunters of evil, without mercy or rest. While mundane Inquisitors were concenred with both mundane and supernatural evils, the Inner Cloister (as the Borthers and Sisters became known) acted in secrecy in lands where the Church was weak and their sole purpose was bringing down superantural evils of the most powerful and insidious natures. Their mere name was a dreadful rumor in the minds of villains everywhere. At the age of 53 Constantine underwent all the Inner Cloister's rigorous training just that he could lead his faithful into battle against sinners.

In his public view as Arch-Inquisitior (as it was unknown he also personally led the Cloister's operations) Constantine was feared and hated all across the Republic of Celenor, but he didn't care for he KNEW his bloodied hands were doing the Gods' work. At the same time, some have viewed him as a hero, as his grim actions really shifted the balance and cleansed the nations of their wicked. Even the Church officials started fearing his growing influence, his terror and infamy (as he also judged sinners within the Church and greatly criticized their depednace on material wealth), and some even feared he might one day become the Master of Three Virtue- the leader of the Three's Church- by sheer terror and zealotry alone. The Senate didn't support his actions from the beginning, and thought a Church led by Constantine could take over the newly-created Republic and make it into a Theocracy. And so, the two powers had allied to be rid of the fanatic.

While leading the public trial of Clown cultists in the wicked city of Breon, the crowd entered a sudden frenzy- some say at the sound of a mysterious whistle. Others say a figure dressed in white was seen moving amongst the city's water towers the night before, but the rumors are unconfirmed. The Church's guards slipped by one by one as Constantine and his Inquisitors were cornered and beset by the frenzied mob. An Inner Cloister back-up team fought through the crowd, killing hundreds on the way to their leader. They found Constantine, broken and nearly bleeding to death, buried beneath a pile of corpses. "Complete what I failed to" were his last words as he gave his soul to the Three. And so Constantine had died a Martyr, and proclaimed Saint Constantine by the very same Church who hated him- the patron of all those who take up arms against Evil and walk the night in search of it.

However, Constantine didn't die at Breon, and the body that lies buried at Justice Mound belongs to one of the murdered mob. Held in a barely-alive state by strange medicine and applications of Divine magic, Constantine was brought beyond the Bitter Sea by his followers to the desert land of Satura, and there they allowed the heretic Priests of the Undying Light to perform the Ritual of Immortality on their master, so that he could continue his crusade for an Eternity. The price they paid for this "favor" was dire. Constantine became one of the Ancients, and the Mists took him away...

Stats:

I thought about making Constantine an Ancient Dead, perhaps 3rd or 4th rank, with levels in the middle 20s, divided between Cleric, Rogue and Fighter. In my homebrewed world he would be a Priest/Fighter/Inquisitor/Wrathful Brother, but most of these are homebrewed and yet incomplete classes.

I thought about giving him powers of detection and light. As for appearance I imagined him to be a tall and thin, dressed in white robes with chainmail benath them. Runes of divine power would be embedded into each linked chain. His skin would be like stone, hardened in undeath, and two enchanted blades will be grafted to his arms (although he will be able to retract them at will). His eyes will shine with unforgiving white light, and he will conceal his rigor mortis-twisted face with a veil.


What do you say abouth his history?

[Shadowking]

I thought I could at least get some responses. Criticize me, please!

[Rotipher of the FoS]

Looks interesting, certainly. What sort of role did you imagine for him in Ravenloft? Is he already a darklord in his own right, or is he a recently-arrived 'loose cannon' who wanders the Core, trying to impose his beliefs on others, until the darklords do something to get rid of him (like lure him into the Mists the way Soth eventually was)? If he has a domain or is destined to gain one when he enters the Mists, what sort of place do you envision that domain would be?

Neat character, it's just hard to comment when we don't have any context to place him in at present.

[Jester of the FoS]

I thought I could at least get some responses. Criticize me, please!

Patience. It wasn't up when I went to bed and I just got up a couple hours ago, it takes time.

The background is interesting although I feel like I'm missing half the information and relevance, this is for a homebrew right? Other than that the idea of a fanatical, righteous undead is always a fun on. Especially one honoured by his church.
Unsure about the blades on his hands. Is there some religious significance to those? Otherwise it sounds rather fantastic (and like a certain Canadian berserker or that guy from Mortal Kombat).

[Shadowking]

Constantine isn't a darklord- yet, perhaps...

He didn't commit any single great act of ultimate darkness, and his undeath wasn't of his own making (or perhaps it was...)

Constantine went out of the Mists in Darkon, only to find a world filled with evil and corruption to its brink, perhaps as much as his own world. He acknowledged his undead state and newfound powers, and doesn't care much about it- he views the curse of undeath as another sacrifice that must be made for the greater good of the World. Actually, in Gothica Ancients are Deathless rather than undead (as they are animated by positive energy), and their corruption is caused by power and immortality rather than the inherent destructiveness of the energy which animates them. This is also the reason he can't be controlled by Azalin (or the Dark Powers' protection, if you keep him as undead).

Constantine quickly realized that he needed servants and companions to fufill his beliefs. Finding kindred spirits in the local Church of Ezra, he offered his aid to bring down the sinful reign of Azalin Rex and fight the upcoming Time of Unparalalled Darkness- at all costs. In truth, he views them as heretics and fools, although a little better than the rest- and easier to convert to his One True Path. On a rocky island in the Sea of Sorrows not far from Darkon's shores, he built the Cloister of Wrath,
a great cathedral to the Three and training facility for his renewed Inner Cloister. In a land haunted by undead and other malicious creatures of the Night, he has no lack of lost children to brainwash for his cause- these will be his soldiers in the upcoming War of Purging...

Constantine can serve as a patron for the PCs- they might even be members of his Inner Cloister, unaware of their master's true nature and the extent of his zealotry. When the PCs discover Constantine's true plan- the forceful conversion of the entire Core into a life of perfection- he can become a foe, and a terrible one- for individually he is nearly as powerful as the King of Darkon himself (Constantine is low-epic and has the powers of a high-ranking Ancient) and commands some of the most fanatical and well-trained warriors in the Demiplane.

[Joël of the FoS]

I thought I could at least get some responses. Criticize me, please!

Patience. It wasn't up when I went to bed and I just got up a couple hours ago, it takes time.

Yes, patienc indeed. Shadowking, six hours on this board is a very short time

Joël