Sheriff of Nottingham (Wildwood Tyrant) BG 4, Rogue 17, WM 19

Quote: Note to Readers:

This is the Sheriff of Nottingham, part of our Wildwood (Robin Hood) Series and, as promised, he is a bad-guy/an evil sneaker, with the option for taking on Dev. Crit; before we get into our build, I’d like to present to you first our story – warning: it is quite lengthy, being drawn from (and inspired by) some of the earliest tales of Robin Hood, as later adapted through the ages. The parts concerning Richard I are, well, legendary. As to whether or not Robin Hood and King Richard actually met up in real life, read on, read on; we truly hope that everyone here enjoys the story, and we invite you to further explore the mysteries and the legends of all that which is Robin Hood. The Sheriff (build) follows in a post immediately following the story. Thank you, and now, ready your horses and steady your blades for a journey back in time to the Wildwood Forest … and most of it, enjoy! ~ Tyr (on behalf of the Wildwood Gang)

THE LION'S ROAR: the Tale of Robin Hood and England's Recapture

(b)By Deborah “Tyr” Templar(b)

"Help! I've been robbed! It's treachery and traitorous thievery! Help!"

Awakened by the sound of the screams from the street and fumbling for his sword, the Sheriff arose from his desk to be greeted by one of his deputies, who was a young and rather lankly man named Barns.

"It's that outlaw Robin Hood, m'lord," reported the deputy. "Seems he and his gang broke into the abbey and robbed the ol' monk of his collections, sometime during the night."

"His collections, deputy?" the Sheriff responded, angrily, still fumbling about his desk for his sword "You mean MY taxes which YOU were supposed to collect for me yesterday!"

While new at the job, deputy Barns knew better than to answer, even although it was not a part of his duties to steal money and property from county residents on behalf of the Sheriff, to collect taxes which were not in fact due; no, enforcing unjust tax laws and making things up as one goes along was the Sheriff's job; inflating the amount supposedly due or, better yet, seizing property from an owner while away and siphoning off from it a hefty salary from the much lesser amount if any actually due and passable onto King John was a task far too enjoyable for the Sheriff to assign to anyone else, much less a new deputy as was Barns. Yet, rather than remind the Sheriff of this fact, Barns preferred to stay silent, willingly accepting the Sheriff's tongue lashing as if it were part of the job. The previous deputy who had been dumb enough to open his mouth and interrupt the Sheriff's daily scolding, whether or not it was justified, wound up having his head lopped off by the Sheriff in mid-sentence, and reason for the vacant post which Barns had come to fill. Poor bugger, thought Barnes himself, but at least in death the previous deputy was spared any further such tongue lashing. Oh, if only Barns didn't have a family to feed, else he might on purpose invoke the same wrath of the Sheriff, if only to similarly be released from what Barns soon discovered was to become his daily punishment. Then again, the pay was most decent, far better than being a stable boy in fact, with the ability to earn even more money by being agreeable to moonlight as a security guard for the nobles while they were away on business or otherwise. Such moonlighting, in reality, Barns would do at the behest and on behalf of the Sherriff, acting as his spy of sorts, in order to gather for him information from and about the nobles, including all their dirty little secrets, for which the Sheriff paid Barns quite well. No doubt the Sheriff wanted all this information about the nobles in order to keep them in line, and more likely to bribe them in future, either for money or political leverage; yes, the Sheriff was devious, but he was also politically minded and ambitious. Just the sort of evil cadre with whom King John could place his evil trust, and no doubt the King was likewise interested in hearing about his nobles, all their little secrets, and particularly as they related to his relative, Richard the Lionheart.

Lionheart was the rightful ruler of England, and from whom John had temporarily inherited the throne whilst good Richard went off to join the Crusades, in search of answers for the alleged massacre of innocent Christians, in a small strip of land in the Middle East, known as the Holy Land. After long and bitter warfare, the land had essentially been ceded to the Church by the area's non-Christians in exchange for the Church's promise not to interfere or even venture into the nearby territories. It was a most uneasy and unstable truce, however, Tensions in the area were high, all sides interested in the strip and beyond, due to its religious significance to all concerned; whether the massacre happened as a result of the church trying to expand its authority and control through further conquest and forced conversions in the area, intolerance thus for Muslims (forcing them to defend themselves), or due to a group in turn of intolerant Muslims, known as Saracens led by the Sultan Saladin, deciding instead that it was high time to rid the whole region once and for all of Christians, whether young or old, forcing in turn the crusaders to defend, remains a cloudy issue, and an issue for historians to look back upon and decide. At the time, however, having heard about the alleged slaughter of innocents, women and children, Richard no doubt decided that as a crusader it was his duty to join and reclaim the Holy Land, to seek justice. What exactly happened and why remains unclear except that many died in the desert wars during those harsh and painful years, as a result of the capture, fall, recapture and yet again fall of the Holy Lands; a difficult and controversial affair.

Then again, most everything associated with Richard I was quite controversial; from the day of his coronation which also became the day he allegedly joined the Crusaders, in which case a clergyman took it upon himself to bar non-Christians from the event (in turn leading to a scandal, which Richard I ended by declaring and decreeing that property and personal rights of everyone, whether Christian or non-Christian, in all his kingdom, be respected by all and denied to none; sadly, his decree of tolerance was itself quite controversial, offending some bad apples of the Church, the kind who supported King John and the unlawful expansion of their power and tyrannical control over all lands. Yet Richard's resulting actions in questioning some Church members for their part in the scandal, in what was meant to ferret out the bad apples some say, only wound up infuriating a large number of church members in the process; Richard's actions also invited an off-color comment about himself from a foreign Duke. Such comments were returned by Richard in kind, in the form of an insult directed toward the Duke; above all else, Richard was a gallant soldier and a chivalrous one at that, believing in justice and tolerance, and no one was going to take advantage of him or his England. But his insult only further infuriated foreign powers, bent on wrestling away England, and he especially infuriated the Duke. It resulted in Richard being kidnapped and delivered up to the Duke while he was away crusading, by orders of the Duke, in concert with King John. In fact, some say the Duke held Richard as a prisoner, with the full permission and consent of King John, under pretenses that Richard was being held for a ransom, to be paid by John, but which was said by some to be nothing more than a ruse. This ruse had been concocted by the Duke, with John and the bad apples of the Church, none of whom had an interest in seeing Richard released, much less on the throne, since this would only interfere and detract from their secret plans to extend their tyranny, the forces of evil, to serve their own greedy ends, having no care nor concern for the people, in any land, or so Deputy Barns himself had come to believe.

From the view point of Barns, all these events provided King John and his system of sheriffs, including his own boss who was it seemed to Barns to be the King's personal favorite, a wonderful excuse by which to raise taxes even higher while, at the same time, providing a most fortunate distraction for the public; most fortunate that is for King John and his sheriffs, especially Barns' boss, who was likely the King's favorite because he was the best at collecting the unjust taxes, but not everyone in England was so easily duped. There were those who believed that Richard I would indeed return to England, and many more who in silence remained loyal to their good king despite the negative publicity about him; nothing more than vicious rumors to deflect attention away from the evilness of King John, said the loyalists, albeit in secret. They could not be caught saying anything of the sort in public, for to do so meant they'd be arrested for treason, and be either humiliated publicly in the stocks, or hanged until dead, however the Sheriff saw fit. Under John's system, the sheriffs were given much power and represented the legal authority. But the loyalists believed, albeit not uttered for fear of retribution and punishment, of moral authority the sheriffs had none.

In Nottingham, the most important of these who were loyal to Richard I was none other than Robin Hood, himself a former knight and crusader who had returned to England only to find that his lands had been improperly seized by the Sheriff supposedly on account of unpaid taxes, but which taxes were not in fact due. Like so many families, and in an instant, Robin Hood had found himself homeless and with no food, starving under the rule of King John. It was this, as Barns understood it, which made Robin take to the woods, and hunt deer.

But hunting the deer was a crime throughout most of England, and especially in Nottingham. By order of the Sheriff who himself loved to hunt, the King's deer were especially off limits except to the King and himself, and any who hunted a deer without paying to the Sheriff a hefty license fee, in the form of a bribe, barring the king's personal permission, were seen as akin to a wolf, and outside the protection of law. In turn, such a person once treated could legally be hunted down and slaughtered by anyone, as if he were a wolf, and his head turned in the same way as would be a wolf's head, and for the same ransom, so far as hunting such a person like a wolf was, in the eyes of the Sheriff, no different than ending yet another threat to his and the king's deer. Which is exactly what happened to Robin Hood, so far as he and all who stood with him, or howsoever helped him, was declared by the Sheriff to be a "wolf's head." This declaration only had the opposite of its intended effect, however.

Rather than lure starving people out to hunt down Robin for the promised ransom, or at least make them fearful and stop helping him, the Sheriff's order instead elevated Robin Hood to that of a national hero, which in turn drove the people out by the droves to support Robin and his cause, which was in fact their cause, and Robin in turn stepped up his efforts to support them. The more the Sheriff hunted for Robin Hood, the more people the Sheriff killed, injured or maimed in search of information, in his attempt to cease the people's support for Robin and get them to turn him in, the more the people rallied behind Robin Hood, and the more in turn Robin Hood and his merry band of outlaws were driven to help the people. If anything, Robin and his merry band were anything but silent though, for rumor had it that over a 100 good men and women had joined up with Robin, rallying behind the people, rallying behind Richard I, and yet not a single one of these 100 'wolves heads' were any of the king's sheriffs able to catch, not even Barns' own boss who otherwise was known to be a master at the sword and the setting of traps, and despite having the most resources of all the king's sheriffs.

No, this Robin, he was a clever sort, thought Barns, always staying at least one step ahead of the Sheriff, as if someone "in the know" such as a noble, a member of the King's own Court even perhaps, were aiding him. For not only was Robin able to out-step the law, he did so while continuing to feed the people on a daily basis in stride, providing them with money and clothes which he robbed from the rich to give to the poor. But it was more than that, for Robin was also collecting the gold necessary to pay for Richard's release. So far as the Duke and King John had announced the ransom publicly, it meant that if someone, including someone such as Robin, could arrive and deliver up to the Duke the stated ransom, then the Duke would be forced to release Richard and accept, if only to save face with his own people and the non-bad apples of the Church (whom were assumed by far to be in the majority); it was clear to all, especially to all those in authority, that Robin was supporting Richard not just because he was the rightful ruler per se, but because he was believed to be a good and just king. In other words, a king who would not only dismantle the tyranny of the sheriff system set up by John, but who would also see to it that property and monies were returned to their rightful owners, that taxes were reduced so that families could eat, and to justice would be brought the responsible parties for all the killing, stealing and other injustices occurring in his absence: in other words John and the sheriffs would on Richard's return pay.

Barns had even heard rumors that Robin was close to setting off to free Richard, so very close it was said, that he needed but only a few more coins, 300 pounds more to go or so they said, for Robin to be able to meet the demands of the Duke, and pay him for Richard's release.
But the Sheriff had a vested interest in seeing that that day never happened, hence fueling his hatred of Robin. But in that hatred, the Sheriff was in many ways blinded to the obvious, and like all blinded men, he further deceived himself into thinking that he was all-powerful and more worthy a hunter and tracker than was Robin. Worthy enough even to win the hand in marriage of Maid Marion; a young and fair maiden, yet highly intelligent, not an easy bird to capture was this Marion, being herself an important member of the Royal Court, as the only child of a high ranking Earl, and in her own right an archer, or so the Sheriff was told.

Ordinarily, a man like the Sheriff, born the youngest of eleven children of a low-ranking baron, with no inheritance or land rights in sight due to having so many siblings before him, would never have attracted the attention, much less daily visits, from such a noble lady as Marion; but visit him she did. Then again, why wouldn't she; surely she could see, now that King John was in power, that he the youngest child of a baron was destined for greatness, as the King's favored sheriff and well on his way to heading up the special Royal Guard, or maybe even the King's military. Yes, a generalship and all the attendant properties and salaries befitting such a position, far better than anything his siblings could ever hope to inherit, was indeed to be the Sheriff's for the taking; all he had to do was that which he was already doing, bringing in gold and property deeds to the King, and in turn he'd be rewarded properly. Even better would be the king's reward if the Sheriff could bring down Robin Hood, so much so that the Sheriff would have enough gold to build for Marion a golden cage, a proper glittering cage befitting the wife of a general, and Marion would yearn to be his bride. Clearly, her visits alone told him that the King had nothing but good things in store for him, and that she listened so intently whilst he told her stories about his childhood, and how he planned on capturing Robin Hood, like a tamed bird he believed her to be, and eating from the palm of his hand was she.

That Marion was secretly helping Robin by gathering information, enabling Robin to stay ahead of the law, was of course the reason for her visits to the Sheriff, but not a soul in the whole of England would have guessed this of her, especially not the Sheriff; rather, and understandably perhaps since it was he who was interested in her, the Sheriff took her visits and questions as a sign that it was she who was interested in him, and that they would one day be married.

But now was not the time for the Sheriff to daydream, not when there were screams, pleas for help, ringing in through the streets. Such screams about Robin Hood stealing something or other at bow-point from the rich were, however, rather common fare; what started off as a basic nuisance was now an almost daily occurrence in Nottingham, and no closer to capturing Robin was the Sheriff today than he was yesteryear. Perhaps another peasant flogging was in order, to see what further if any more information he could flush out about Robin from those no good starving beggars; useless, thought the Sheriff, about the whole lot of them. And if they had no more gold to give, no more taxes to deliver, having been bled dry of their money, then at least they could be bled of their information and whatever dignity remained of them. Yes, people belonged in cages, and like a bird, the Sheriff would make them sing; and if they sang pretty enough, gave up information about Robin or his whereabouts, only then might they be freed. Otherwise, and if a few died in the process, so be it. If it was the last thing the Sheriff did, he'd have on a plate for King John the head of the wolf named Robin Hood. But that special serving would have to wait for another day, for first thing was first: the Sheriff had a robbery report to take, yet another sighting of Robin and another robbery had taken place. Indeed, it had become in Nottingham rather commonplace.

"Bring in the monk," demanded the Sheriff of Barns, "and find out just how much of my money did that no good wolf head Robin Hood take."

"It was about 300 pounds, sire," interrupted the monk. "Strangest thing, too, is that there was over 800 pounds worth of coin in me abbey, and yet he took only 300 from the pile. At first, I thought he hadn't time to collect it all due to being interrupted by one of my choir boys, and reason why I know for sure it was Robin Hood. But after questioning the boy, seems Robin left the rest behind on purpose since the boy, not being any threat to Robin, just stood there while Robin wrote out a note and handed it off to one of his men, Little John the Lieutenant he called him, according to my boy that is, and this Little was in turn requested by Robin to hand the note off to my boy, which he did, along with an apple and a few sacks of wheat. After this bit of business, Robin apparently finished filling his sack with 300 pounds of my gold, and winked at his men, before the lot of them climbed back out the window they had broken into."

"I'm sorry, did you say 300 pounds?" the deputy asked, remembering rumors he had heard, which claimed that 300 was all that Robin needed in order to pay for Richard's release.

"Yes," replied the monk, while handing the note scribbled by Robin and given his choir boy over to the Sheriff before continuing. "Odd, isn't it? Over 800 pounds in that pile, just sitting there in the basement of me abbey, and Robin Hood took exactly 300, leaving the rest and this note, which reads: 'give my regards to the usurper, the throne which he wrongfully claims to sit upon as his shall soon no longer be.' Robin wrote that out right in front of my boy, just like I said, time for a note and a midnight snack, but not time enough to collect the rest of the gold. I should be most happy for that I guess, but I've no idea what to make of it."

Quietly, the Sheriff read the note again to himself, studying it for a moment, before turning to his deputy and asking, "have you any thoughts on this in that bird brain of yours, Barns?"

"Not a single thought, m'lord," the deputy responded, preferring not to share with the Sheriff the rumors he heard which, if true, meant that Robin had all he needed to seek the release of Richard, and all that it entailed. On purpose, Barns preferred to remain silent. After all, he had already received a tongue lashing from the Sheriff today, and he had no intention of receiving another. One a day was quite enough, thought Barns to himself, not that the Sheriff bothered to disclose, on hiring Barns, that tongue lashings were a part of the deputy's job description. Some things, learned Barns from the Sheriff, just seemed best when deliberately left unsaid.

Quote:
Author's Note: I would like to thank TM and Grim for their input and review of this story, which was pieced together from some of the earliest surviving tales of the legendary Robin Hood, from medieval times, along with historical facts. We truly hope that you enjoyed our story; what follows in the next post is our build

Edited By Bromium on 10/12/07 20:14

Slashing, Sneaking and Crippling Nations in Search of “wolves heads” PvM (1-40) and PvP

SHERIFF of NOTTINGHAM (“Wildwood Tyrant”)
Blackguard(4), Rogue(17), Weapon Master(19)

By (jointly) Deborah “Tyr” Templar and Tattoed Monk

Pros and Cons:
This character is part of our Wildwood Series, and is unique: being the first (according to our Pulse) to combine the classes. Essentially, this is a str-based sneaker build, chosen for theme reasons, but also makes (we believe) for an effective/str-based/plate-wearing Sheriff, having a very nice AB (especially for a sneaker) and also very good damage output, with 10d6 sneak attack, but by no means limited to sneak alone for generating damage (i.e., being str. based, bolstered by div.might (enh. w. charisma) and having also some decent trapping skills and crippling strike up his sleeve, no worries if your foe, that no good Robin Hood for e.g., should be sneak immune, and even better if s/he isn’t, yes?

While HPs are decent (nice for a sneaker) and AC is good, skills are a bit thin for a rogue-heavy build (although, stealth has been optimized so that the Sheriff can enjoy his sneak even in plate!); that said, a variant for more skills (or dev.crit if you should prefer it) is provided. The main weakness of this build are saves, but which are “savable” thanks not only to BG Dark Blessing (enhance w. cha), but also full UMD. Also has evasion. Without further ado, please meet:

Sheriff of Nottingham (“Wildwood Tyrant”)
Blackguard(4), Rogue(17), Weapon Master(19)
Human, Any Evil (Theme: LE or CE)

Attributes *
STR: 15 (28)
DEX: 13
CON: 14
WIS: 8
INT: 13
CHA: 14

Level Guide
01: Rogue(1): dodge, mobility
02: Rogue(2): {Evasion}
03: Rogue(3): weapon focus: rapier*, {Uncanny Dodge I}
04: Rogue(4): STR+1, (STR=16)
05: Rogue(5)
06: Rogue(6): expertise
07: Rogue(7)
08: Rogue(8): STR+1, (STR=17)
09: Rogue(9): spring attack
10: Rogue(10): crippling strike
11: Rogue(11)
12: Rogue(12): STR+1, whirlwind attack, (STR=18)
13: Weapon Master(1): weapon of choice: rapier
14: Weapon Master(2)
15: Weapon Master(3): blind fight
16: Weapon Master(4): STR+1, (STR=19)
17: Weapon Master(5)
18: Weapon Master(6): knockdown
19: Weapon Master(7)
20: Weapon Master(8): STR+1, (STR=20)
21: Weapon Master(9): power attack
22: Weapon Master(10)
23: Rogue(13): epic skill focus: hide
24: Weapon Master(11): STR+1, cleave, (STR=21)
25: Blackguard(1)
26: Blackguard(2): {Smite Good}
27: Blackguard(3): divine might (or divine shield)*
28: Weapon Master(12): STR+1, (STR=22)
29: Weapon Master(13): epic weapon focus: rapier
30: Weapon Master(14): improved critical: rapier
31: Weapon Master(15)
32: Weapon Master(16): STR+1, epic prowess, (STR=23)
33: Weapon Master(17): great strength I, (STR=24)
34: Weapon Master(18)
35: Weapon Master(19): epic toughness I
36: Rogue(14): STR+1, great strength II, (STR=26)
37: Rogue(15)
38: Rogue(16): epic skill focus: move silently
39: Rogue(17): great strength III, (STR=27)
40: Blackguard(4): STR+1, (STR=28)

Prefer More Skills on your Sheriff?
Then consider dropping cha to 12 (-1 all-saves, and no div.might/shield), pumping 1 point into dex (+1 AC, +1 Refl., and +1 dex-based skills, i.e. stealth and traps), and the other point into intel., et voila: 43 more skills; as for what to take in lieu of div.might (or shield), might we suggest Armor Skin (+2 AC) or ESF: Taunt (+10 on your taunt check), or as you may prefer if you go this ‘more skills’ route …

How About Dev.Crit Instead?
Alternatively, dropping cha. would open up the possibility of dev.crit. (as in, start cha 12, up str to 16 instead, dropping DM for grt cleave, taking OC: rapier instead of ET (-20 HPs), followed by DC: rapier instead of the (now extra) GS (for a dev crit DC 39/41 w. Bull’s/45 capped)…awaiting in stealth mode and/or near your traps, w. your crit-widened dev.critting rapier in hand, when along comes that no good Robin Hood (or other unsuspecting enemy). And now, back to our regularly scheduled program -- i.e., the build

---

Basics:

Hitpoints: 432

Saving Throws
Fort: 20
Will: 17
Reflex: 27 (evasion)

Saving Throw bonuses: Spells: +2, Traps: +4

Other: BG Dark Blessing (enhance w. cha); UMD

Combat Vitals:
BAB: 27, AB (naked): 44 (melee), 29 (ranged)

Mundane Rapier: AB 44, +2 Bull’s
--
Combat (AB): 46, + 6 Taunt: 52 (self-buffed only)
Smite Bonus (vs. Good): +2 (enh. w. cha), or AB 54

Damage (mundane rapier):
1-6 +9 STR (crit: 14-20/x3)
+2 Bull’s
+2 DivMight
+5 pow.attack (-5 ab)
+4 smite (vs. good)
--
+10d6 Sneak Damage

Other: stealth, traps, UMD

* Bioware Caps (assuming STR/CHA and UMD/weaponry):
Combat (AB): 70 + taunt, or 76 AB (combat)/ vs. Good (Smite bonus): AB 84

Defense Vitals:

AC (naked): 19
Mundane Plate and Shield: 30; Assuming +5 items, haste: 59 AC

• Note: if took div.shield (instead of div.might), then add +2 AC as-is (+8 cha. capped)

Skillpoints: 292*

Disable Trap 1(4)
Discipline 43(52), +2 Bull’s
Hide 42(53)
Intimidate 4(6) (wm prereq.)
Move Silently 42(53)
Set Trap 20(21)
Spellcraft 9(10)
Taunt 43(45)
Tumble 40(41)
UMD 39(41)

*Feel free to adjust your Sheriff’s skill-set to suit your own tastes/preferences

Edited By TyrTemplar on 06/18/07 04:31

Unique aside, there's a reason most people prefer Fighter over Bg in WM builds. Pre-Epic feats long into Epic. I understand the rp-side though.

And at least he's finally here, withe the longest story yet in the guild.

Nicely done.
_________________
We are sons of Odin, and the fire that we burn inside
is the legacy of warrior-kings who reign above in the sky
I will lead the charge, my sword into the wind
Sons of Odin fights to die and live again

very much appreciate your comment, Sir Grim!

BG - yes, theme-reasons, indeed. TM and I ran through quite a few builds in consideration of our sheriff here, though BG and rapier in all were consistent (hence, the hold up

-- while it's true that WM w. anything other than ftr is a bit feat-starved, felt it was really worth it due to the AB and crit factor that only wm brings to the build; that said, rogue's boni helps offset in turns of feats, and BG's dark blessing does too (i.e., it's equiv to 3 save feats, when you think about it, even better when enh. w. cha). Also, complimentary sneak ... drawback is gotta wait for some pre-ep feats though, this is true, but it's a level 40 build, so ... we ... gets there ...

As to the story, thank you for that! Yeah, spent a ton of time on this, and it's long (sorry for those of you who ain't into stories, and my pleasure to all of you who are, esp all you Robin Hood fans -- totally my pleasure (and really hope you enjoy it; tried to keep the historical stuff to an absolute min. (re crusade stuff and kidnapping of Richard, sheriff system incl. how folks could (and it's true) be placed outside the law, hence legally hunted down, deer laws, and that robin (or men on whom he is based) were outside the law, as discussed on robin hood build), as it puts everything into context (as the BBC series does, too); the rest, fictional, but what fiction: inspired by some of the oldest legends of Robin Hood, as adapted through the ages (oh, I could go on, but won't 'cept to say, a very good read, if anyone's interested

Sneak/Slash/Hunt Down Robin Hood On! ~ tyr

Edited By TyrTemplar on 06/20/07 19:15