The Quintessential Aristocrat

Author	Martin R. Thomas
Publisher	Mongoose Publishing
Publish date	2004
OGL Section 15	qari

The material below is designated as open game content.

Borderlands Noble

A minor member of the nobility, the borderlands noble has been sent to the frontier as a representative of the king. He has been given his own territory to govern, however the vast majority of his time will be spent repelling invaders, be they barbarians, monsters, or armies from an enemy state. While possessing a noble title and his own territory to rule, assignment to the borders is often seen unfavourably among the rest of the nobility. Many borderlands nobles are actually not well liked at court, and are sent by the king to the farthest reaches of the kingdom to get them out of the way. Given the amount of warfare on the borderlands, it is expected that the border lord may meet with an “unfortunate accident” in the course of his duties.

Adventuring: Border lords are adventurers from the moment they are assigned their task by the king. The border lord is constantly adventuring, often as the party
leader, to sweep through his territory and clear away bandits and other raiders. An adventuring company fighting invaders on the borderlands will benefit greatly from the border lord’s intimate knowledge of the terrain and enemies in his realm.
Role-Playing: The life of the border lord is a tough one. Stripped away from the luxury of court-life and thrust into a daily battle for survival on the farthest reaches of the kingdom, the border lord must often learn to make do with a lack of equipment, personnel and information. Gone from the capital for months to years at a time, the border lord slowly begins to lose touch with the courtly lifestyle of parties, rich foods and fine attire. Eventually when he returns to report to the king in person, many of his former friends and even relatives may not recognize the border lord, weathered by the environment and months of constant warfare.
Bonuses: Border lords learn to adapt to their surroundings quickly, receiving a +2 competence bonus to all Survival checks while in the territory over which they rule. He also receives a +2 competence bonus to all Ride skill checks. Lastly, while he is a very minor noble, his family rules a small area of land along the borderlands, and he is able to call upon the wealth generated by this land. At first level the borderlands noble receives the maximum amount of starting money for an aristocrat at first level (480 gold pieces).
Penalties: Living in the wild borderlands keeps the border lord out of touch with the current happenings at court and bestows upon him a brusque demeanour, generating a –2 circumstance penalty to Bluff, Diplomacy and Gather Information skill checks. He also loses Perform as a class skill, as there is little time for him to devote to the performing arts while on the borderlands fighting invaders. Lastly, if following the rules for Status presented in Chapter 9, the borderlands noble suffers a –2 penalty to his status score due to being relegated to the wild frontier.