### _The Trickster Gunbard of the Reaches_ --- ## Overview **Name:** Chains **Race:** Feline Folk **Class:** Bard 14 / Rogue 3 **Alignment:** Neutral **Affiliation:** [[The Heralds of Silver|Heralds of Silver]] **Role:** Trickster, Gunslinger, Battlefield Controller, Face Chains is a walking legend fueled by laughter, smoke, and gunfire. A performer turned revolutionary, he fights with charm as deadly as his bullets—and turns every battle into a story worth retelling. --- ## Appearance Chains is a sleek, expressive feline folk with vibrant orange fur, a constantly swishing tail, and brilliant blue eyes that gleam with wit and danger. His ears twitch at lies, and his whiskers flare when tension spikes. He wears a long navy coat trimmed in silver, layered belts heavy with weapons and trinkets, and a crooked grin that never quite fades. Whether standing atop a tavern table mid-performance or gliding through shadows with pistols drawn, Chains moves with liquid grace—and always leaves rumors in his wake. --- ## Lore & Role Born on the rough streets of a southern port, Chains grew up alongside Omni, Ace, Malcolm, and Emerald—a band of thieves, performers, and survivors who became local legends before adulthood. They stole to live, schemed to thrive, and learned early that stories could be worth more than gold. Chains wanted more than survival. He wanted applause. During a rainy-night performance in a crowded tavern, he caught the attention of **[[Ahria Maritani|Ahria]] Maritani, the Witch of the North**. She saw past the charm and bravado to the spark of destiny beneath—and invited him into the **[[The Heralds of Silver|Heralds of Silver]]**. Chains accepted with a bow, a wink, and a song. Now he serves as the Heralds’ wild card: trickster, morale engine, infiltrator, and living myth. --- ## Personality Chains is confidence incarnate—magnetic, chaotic, and impossible to ignore. He flirts mid-fight, steals mid-speech, and can turn a hopeless crowd into a revolution with a lute and a lie. Beneath the bravado lies fierce loyalty. Chains would burn cities to protect his crew. He masks old scars with jokes and song, and only a rare few—[[Ahria Maritani|Ahria]] foremost among them—see the weight he carries. To Chains: - Every heist is a song - Every fight is a story - Every victory deserves a dance --- ## Tactics & Abilities Chains blends bardic mastery and rogue precision into controlled chaos. He opens fights with illusion and misdirection, empowers allies with inspiration, and finishes enemies with arcane gunfire from **Decimation**, his legendary firearm. He dominates the battlefield through speed, flair, and timing—never where enemies expect, always where allies need him. --- ## Combat Notes - **Opener:** _Hunter’s Mark_ + Sneak Attack + Sharpshooter gunshot - **Blade Flourish:** Uses Bardic Inspiration to boost AC, reposition, or strike multiple foes - **Control:** _Slow_, _Raulothim’s Psychic Lance_, _Synaptic Static_ - **Support:** _Mass Healing Word_, _Yolande’s Regal Presence_, _Power Word Fortify_ - **Mobility:** Feline Agility, Cunning Action, Mobile Flourish --- ## Defenses - **Armor Class:** 23 - **Hit Points:** 183 - **Saving Throws:** DEX +12, CHA +12, CON +4 - **Special:** - Evasion - Cloak of Displacement (advantage vs first attacker each round) - Multiple escape and reposition tools --- ## Features & Traits - **Blade Flourish** – Damage, mobility, or defense enhancement - **Sneak Attack (2d6)** – Triggered through positioning or dueling - **Sharpshooter** – +10 damage, ignores cover, no long-range penalty - **Firearm Specialist** – Reduced misfire risk, bonus action shots - **Thragos’ Blessing** – +3 AC, +2 attack/damage, +2 Insight & Survival, extra attack - **Magical Secrets** – Shield, Fly, Sunbeam, and more - **Skill Expert** – Mastery in Sleight of Hand, Stealth, Deception, Performance - **Feline Agility** – Double movement speed on command --- ## Adventure Hooks - **Encore of the Gunbard** – Decimation may be a beacon for something ancient and buried. - **The Lost Song** – Chains burned a verse that could topple empires. Someone else is singing it. - **Omni’s Last Message** – A coded tune signals his old friend’s disappearance. - **[[Ahria Maritani|Ahria]]’s Choice** – Their bond is tested—and Chains may be the only one who can reach her. --- ## Stat Block **Feline Folk Bard 14 / Rogue 3** **Alignment:** Neutral - **Armor Class:** 23 - **Hit Points:** 183 - **Speed:** 40 ft walk, 30 ft climb |STR|DEX|CON|INT|WIS|CHA| |---|---|---|---|---|---| |13|20|16|13|15|20| **Skills:** Sleight of Hand +22, Stealth +17, Deception +17, Performance +17, Insight +16 **Languages:** Common, Primordial, Thieves’ Cant --- ## Weapons & Attacks - **Decimation (Legendary Firearm):** +18 to hit, 1d10+12 piercing + 2d12 force - **Rapier +1:** +14 to hit, 1d8+10 piercing - **Sword of Sir Tristan:** +11 to hit, 1d8+7 slashing + 2d6 radiant - **Starry Wisp (Cantrip):** +11 to hit, 4d8 radiant - **Dagger:** +13 to hit, 1d4+9 thrown --- ## Magic Items - Serpent Scale Armor - **Decimation** (Legendary Firearm) - Cloak of Displacement - Ring of Protection - Ring of Spell Storing - Canaith Mandolin - Gloves of Thievery - Ioun Stone of Absorption --- ## Notes Chains is the laugh before the shot, the grin before the spell, and the reason hopeless towns start dancing again. When [[Ahria Maritani|Ahria]] invited him into the Heralds, she didn’t gain a performer—she gained a spark. Legends aren’t always born in fire. Some are born in laughter and smoke.