#abjurer

Tarokka Deck Commission (30/55): Abjurer

The Abjurer card is the fourth of stars, and it represents those guided by logic and reasoning; warns of an overlooked clue or piece of information.

I didn't think that I'd like working on this one, but turns out I really like it. Sure, a lot of the details ended up covered by the magic shield, but I'm quite proud of how they turned out (especially the water, I feel like I'm getting a pretty good grasp on it).

Some classes and backgrounds mesh naturally, from a conceptual standpoint.  Soldier and Fighter, Entertainer and Bard, Sage and Wizard.  But backgrounds aren’t class-restricted, and so I wonder what it would look like if you paired every class with every background, even the ones that seem at odds, like Sage and Barbarian, or Outlander and Wizard.  So I thought about it, and this is what I came up with. Some character concepts for each class, and each Player’s Handbook background for each class.

Wizard

I think it’s pretty uncontroversial to say books are magic. Thoughts, feelings, stories, facts, and even images laid down on paper to be passed on without the author, to br read by anyone who chooses to do so.  And books aren’t unique; rune-stones, clay tablets, inscriptions in iron, pictograms incribed into cave walls and heiroglyphs on the walls of tombs are all much of the same, knowledge laid down to be taken up by the willing.  Wizards at their core are all about the gift of knowledge, and the application thereof.  To a wizard, magic might be an end to itself, a useful tool to accomplish other tasks, or a combination of the two, but it’s pursued in its own merits as an art and science- not a gift, but a labor to be undertaken and mastered. I’d encourage a new wizard to think about the direction of their studies, and see where that takes them. Why did you start studying magic? Under what circumstances?  Are they more of a reader or a writer- would they rather understand magic as it is laid down by others, or lay it down to be understood later?

The Acolyte Wizard is their temple’s record-keeper.  Every successful alloy for ductility, strength, and weight needs to be recorded, every scrap of iron and copper accounted for, every process and task to be recorded so it may be reproduced.  Surrounded by creation, they’re driven to create things of their own- not metalwork, but manuals for the layperson and instructional manuals to make this magic of creation accessible to all.  And when their temple’s work is written down, there’s a world’s worth more.

The Charlatan Wizard was taught the meanings of the tarot and tarokka young, to make ends meet faking up noble fortunes for star-eyed customers.  However, the cards tell a story of their own, and much of her free time is spent in card readings of her own, consulting a dog-eared book of interpretations as she goes and adding arcane marginalia where she can.  Now, she uses the cards as inspiration for her spells, pulling the magic from the theoretical into the real by sheer force of will.

The Criminal Wizard grew up in a country where kenku learning to read was a crime.  Naturally, some laws are meant to be broken, and curiosity has always been his greatest curse- the first book he read in full was a tome on handwriting, and from there his career as a forger took off.  Ravenous to learn about his new craft, he eventually stole an apprentice’s spellbook and has since become a novice wizard in his own right, supplementing mastery of handwriting and accent use with magic.

The Entertainer Wizard loved stories more than anything else as a child- those told and those read, it didn’t matter. There was a hunger in him for fiction, and the power to make people feel or believe things based only on the tales themselves.  Apprenticed to a wandering minstrel as a child and miserable with a lute, he took to books for the answer.  With their help, he taught himself how to captivate a crowd, sway the opinions of others, and even- someday- to make people think as he does.

The Folk Hero Wizard made her name with an act of trickery- namely deceiving a troupe of bandits menacing her hometown into avoiding her home with a display of modest magic and flashy swordplay.  For her brass she was given a ceremonial brass key for her town, and word of the exploit spread far and wide- not bad for a farmer’s daughter.  Now, she follows the spreading word to find work that might put some real experience- either with her magic or her aunt’s old sword- under her belt.

The Guild Artisan Wizard followed her apprenticeship in woodcarving with one in arcana, surprising nobody.  As her master was a crafter of staffs, wands, and rods for a nearby wizards’ union, she had an ‘in’, and as her familiarity was with the more physical tools of a wizard’s trade, she pursued wizardry by way of the order of scribes.  Now, her wand and spellbook are her pride and joy, both for their craftsmanship and their powers.

The Hermit Wizard spent a lot of time with his eyes on the stars before his sojourn into the wilderness.  In isolation in an abandoned border keep, he spent time throwing the diviner’s sticks, rolling knucklebones, and reading tea leaves until the signs showed it was time to leave.  Taking up with the first adventuring party to pass was admittedly not the wisest course of action, but the signs all said they were the ones to bring him where he needed to be to follow the whims of fate.

The Noble Wizard has been trained in the arcane arts her whole life- under the tutelage of the finest duelists that her parents could find.  Now, she’s a fine spell-duelist in her own right, in the classical defensive style.  Her talents are well-geared to keeping her safe, and she is as keen to put those skills to use winning duels as protecting her family’s serfs.

The Outlander Wizard was taught to interpret the winds of his home plane in all of their varying glories: the sirocco from the Plane of Fire, the boreal winds from the Frostfell, the movements of clouds safe and poison across the infinite sky of the Plane of Air.  He calls upon these forces in his own casting, to bring the winds with him wherever he wanders- and like a wind blowing hither and yon, he lays his head wherever he wishes, rambling far and wide.

The Sage Wizard learned his craft at the feet of his country’s spirit-talkers. Ryuko is home to nature spirits in every wild place, and they have insight that mortals lack.  Consulting with them is part science and part art, but a decade of training has enabled him to do all that must be done to understand their messages.  While he’s at home among bamboo scrolls of arcane lore and transcribed prophecies, the Tower of the Owl has always needed travelers to collect more prosaic wisdom, and it’s his turn to roam.

The Sailor Wizard is a veteran of many a naval battle in what remains of Shattered Arde- Eastwall and the Dragonhead Peninsula are always contesting over lengths of coastline there, and both sides train war-wizards to man their galleys.  Although the spread of gunpowder weaponry from the Scarred Lands is making their trade more and more dated, there is much to be gained from one who can set fire to an enemy ship or prevent their mages from doing the same.

The Soldier Wizard served in the armies of Jessar as a student, her scholarship funded by the understanding that she would head a corps of zombies to field in battle when she was ready.  In the meantime, she provided intelligence via familiar scouting and swept battlefields before and after engagements for magical traps or other preparations. However, after a glyph of warding wiped out her sweeper unit’s guards and her partner, she deserted, hiding her crime with a body from the field altered to look like her.

Wiz Warrior

The second public batch of minis for today, which includes spooky villains, whimsical fey creatures, and more wizards than I know what to do with. Check them out on my Patreon for an easy downloadable folder.