The Saga of Spezzy

[spezzy]

THE SAGA OF SPEZZY

 

 

 

 

 

Spezzy is an Arcane Skirmisher - a Magus / Slayer multiclass (yes, I'm aware this is multiclassing two hybrid classes, but I am my own dungeon master and therefore I make my own rules 😂 ). This build leans more towards my own personal goal, which is to be the most well rounded personI can possibly be, and be able to handle any situation that's thrown in front of me, using both athleticism and wits. While I liked the skìrnir archetype of the magus, I found I was too pigeonholed, and switching to the ranger guild was allowing RangerBrain™ to be a thing, so, here we are 

 

The Arcane Skirmisher gets into battle, gets the job done as efficiently as possible, and gets out without being noticed. She spends most of her time outdoors when possible, in nature, and is constantly studying, learning new skills, and working to hone in and master her other skills. She doesn't care for, or need to be the best at any of them, however, she wants to be proficient enough to excel and to get through any situation that is thrown at her.  She doesn't fight for glory, or to be noticed - in fact, she prefers the opposite. 

 

Spezzy, the Arcane Skirmisher
Alignment	Chaotic Good	Class	Magus / Slayer
Race	Quarter Elf	Animal Companion	Felix Felicis, Luckdragon
Abilities:
STR	21	DEX	17
CON	14	INT / WIS	15
CHA	15
Skills:
Athletics, Swim, Climb, Acrobatics, Stealth, Escape Artist, Stealth, Knowledge (Arcana), Knowledge (Nature), Spellcraft, Survival, Animal Handling, Intimidate, Bluff, Diplomacy

 

 

 

BACKGROUND STORY

 

 

SKILLS

 

 

 

FEATS / SPECIAL ABILITIES

 

 

SPELLS

 

 

ITEMS / GEAR

 

[spezzy]

 

LONG TERM GOALS

 

 

2021 GOALS

 

[spezzy]

PLACEHOLDER POST FOR ANYTHING I FORGOT AND WANT TO ADD HERE AFTER

[spezzy]

Spezzy's Garden

 

Every day, Spezzy must tend to her "garden". 

 

The garden is based off of a concept from the book Seraphina. The main character has visions, and to manage these visions, she creates a mental garden, which is just a form of cognitive architecture, and avatars (grotesques) of each of her visions live within this garden. Each of the grotesques has their own personality, needs, and area of the garden, and she gives them a name based on their personality. 

 

Every day, she must keep her garden in "ard", and if she doesn't, the grotesques will take over and give her headaches, anxiety, and could even knock her unconscious.

 

Here's a (paraphrased) quote about "ard":

"...The human condition is confusing and often overwhelming, and they developed strategies over the years for keeping their heads "in ard".  Ard was a central concept of philosophy. The word itself meant roughly "order" or "correctness"...but the idea was much deeper. Ard was the way the world should be, the imposition of order upon chaos... Human emotions, messy and unpredictable, were antithetical to ard..."

 

Basically, how she tends to her garden is that she cultivates relationships with each grotesque, and gives it a place in her mind to thrive or live - and if she does that, it will stay put and not cause chaos in her mind.  When she tends her garden, she can do the bare minimum some days, or she can do more - but if she doesn't tend it for a few days, it starts to create chaos (and the headaches/visions/etc).

 

In the book, the visions end up being real people - but that doesn't matter for the purpose of this.

 

Spezzy's Garden represents Spezzy's mental health. 

 

Spezzy must always keep her garden in ard, in addition to things she is focusing on on a challenge by challenge basis. This is her baseline. 

 

It looks something like this: 

 

 

 

And here is a summary of its residents and how Spezzy must keep them happy. 

*gifs are an approximation of what I imagine they look like

 

 

Name	Represents	Where they are found / How to tend to them:	Image
Skadi	Daily Movement, Getting Outside, Getting Sunshine, Getting Fresh Air	Skadi can be found walking around the garden, and does not like to sit still./ Walk every day first thing in the morning
Floki	Lifelong injury rehab work to keep me out of pain, lifelong strength work to keep me independent as long as possible	Floki likes building things and is very intelligent, but also is kind of bizarre and unpredictable and very vocal about his feelings. While he's open to change, he likes things a certain way, and if they aren't that way, he can be very loud. He can be found either by the lake, building things, unless he's been neglected, and then who knows what he'll be found doing - but it's probably not a good thing.    Move daily in addition to walking - can be strength, yoga, rehab, etc - but something.
Platypus	Hydration	Platypus can not get enough water, and is always found swimming in the lake.   A gallon of water per day
Pandowdy	Stick to nutritional guidelines to keep body happy and auto immune in check	Pandowdy is always found wandering around, gathering food - apples, mushrooms, carrots, etc., or fishing in the lake.    90% compliance to mostly Auto Immune Paleo protocol
Moon Rabbit	Sleep Hygiene	Moon Rabbit is named after the Moon Rabbit, a mythical rabbit that lives on the Moon. Moon Rabbit hangs out in the Moon in the sky in the garden, and only comes out at night.   No phone within 30 minutes of bed, Stick to bedtime, Get up in the morning.
Ratatoskr	Managing my ADHD	Ratatoskr is often found in the garden doing whatever it is he feels like at that moment. He represents my ADHD - and is named after a squirrel because first, this.  But I wanted to name him after a very important squirrel, because I have found that ADHD, when focused, can be used as a superpower, but left to its own devices, can be destructive.    Work from desk with headphones on 75% of the time, Use ADHD coping mechanisms (timers, etc). Plan next day night before, loosely plan week on Sunday
Holmgard	Prioritizing Family and Connections	Regardless of what shape the garden takes that day, Holmgard can always be found at the very center of the garden, and has three animal companions, and often has a picnic ready for Spezzy when she goes to tend her garden.    Spend time with partner and animal companions each day.
Penguin Man (Master P)	Self Development and Growth	Penguin Man is named after a Grotesque from the book, Pelican Man, who was alway staring into the night sky, and had a great ability to observe other's pasts and futures.    Spending time focusing on myself (for relaxation or growth), breathing exercises daily, taking courses, certifications, journaling, etc.
Miss Fusspots	Anxiety / PTSD #1	Miss Fusspots hangs outside the wee cottage and likes to make a fuss out of things, or over things that aren't in her control, or when Mordred starts to act up. If she's happy, she's just hanging out in the front of the wee cottage gardening, but if she's not, she's fussing a whole bunch, and sometimes she thinks that Mordred has all of the answers to everything, so she starts looking for the lock to the wee cottage so she can unlock it and let Mordred out. That's bad.    So first line of defense - tell Miss Fusspots to stop fussing and that whatever she is fussing about is not worth it, and start using my coping tools to calm her down.   Use anxiety coping mechanisms whenever needed.
Mordred	Anxiety / PTSD #2	Mordred is based after a grotesque that is able to speak, lie, sense fears/dreams, and influence thoughts and decisions. In the book, Seraphina locks her into the "wee cottage" to prevent her from wandering over her mind and take over.    Mordred is my anxiety/panic attack goal.  And I'm creating a "wee cottage", too.    Whenever my brain tries to take me down a negative internal dialogue, or a dialogue that I know will take me down the path to an attack, I work on calming Miss Fusspots down, but I'm also going to "check the lock" on her cottage and make sure it's still locked. And as long as it's still locked, I know I'm safe.    Check the lock, remind myself I'm strong enough and that I don't have to let her out of her Wee Cottage and let her take over.	Pictured with Miss Fusspots, and we don't need a second picture because she's scary enough as it is.