The Road to Glory - the story of Janus Aurelius

[Carbondk]

Janus' thread of screenshots, text bits and other relevant character information.

Click the pictures for larger versions.


Janus Aurelius


Janus in his armour and with his loyal sword

[Carbondk]

Part I:

"So this is the Prime. No matter how much I have read of it, no matter how much I was prepared, I suppose you can never truly be prepared to travel from the harmonic order and serenity of the higher planes into . . well, this.

Surely, The Sword Coast and the lands around Baldur's Gate are not the worst places on Toril, but yet everything seems so . . dirty. And why in the heavens do they allow these filthy tieflings to walk about everywhere? One would have think that my archon guide had missed the Prime and brought me directly into the lower planes instead. But I digress.

My mission is . . unclear. I feel that I have deliberately been put in the dark. Metaphorically speaking, that is. Wait for a sign, they said, find the answer in your heart, they said. But do I truly understand my heart? I am unsure.

She kissed me, she really did. I suppose it was all fun and games to her, and it certainly was . . fun. Underneath all that jesting she seems really, well . . nice, I suppose.
We talked, well, she talked, I mostly listened. But she has such a fine voice, and a way with words, I could listen to her for a long time, I imagine. I am not good with words, never have been. I hope I meet her again.

There is someone else I hope to meet again, though my heart is indeed in twain regarding her. How can I listen to my heart when it speaks in two voices, each trying to draw me in different directions, till I feel as if I am going to be torn apart? She is . . peculiar, enigmatic, innocent, and . . She makes me feel something that I have not felt before. I do not know what it is. But . . I am unsure of her feelings. She seems to find my company somewhat . . unsettling, she leaves after a short while, she looks at me funny, and my mind races on and on to try and make sense of it all. I am unsure. I should not let such distractions come between me and my sworn duty. Certainly, I was not sent on the Prime merely to explore the minds of maidens and damsels.

PS: Remember to ask home if that halfling Jack can be allowed a tour of the Heavens."

[Carbondk]

Browsing the web for images that I thought would represent Janus the best, I eventually came across this one, and immediately found it extremely fitting for the character.

The image is clearly a young man (Janus is around 17 years old), and he is clearly a holy warrior. Also, his haircut coincidentially resembles the model I chose for the character in game extremely well.

The person on the picture seems strong (Janus has a very high strength) as well as attractive (He also has a very high charisma). And even though he is wearing the platemail of a fighter and wields a huge greatsword (like Janus), he still has a sort of innocent and almost sad look in his eyes that I like very much.

[Carbondk]

Misc info about Janus that might help explain some of his behaviour and abilities:

- Janus is extremely strong (strength 20+), and as such, has little trouble wearing a full plate mail armour, as well as wielding an immense greatsword.

- He has average constitution, and as such, is prone to being hurt in melee (he is still a teenager, thus not that battle hardened). However, due to his call as a paladin, he is completely immune to all diseases and illnesses of mundane or supernatural nature.

- He has average dexterity, that is, not particularly clumsy, and not particularly agile.

- He has average intelligence. That is, not dumb, but not very interested in logic and rational thinking either.

- He has high wisdom (18), meaning that he is very spiritual, has a sense of calm about him, and often appears well-thought or deep. He often reflects on things like morality, ethos and philosophy. This trait, however, has also made him quite prone to bouts of melancholy and resignation, as his emotions and feelings reflect the nature of his mind. Sometimes he simply thinks too deep and too much about things.

- He is very good looking (both being an aasimar and having charisma of 20+), and almost appears as the epitome of human physique. Or maybe not human, for his eyes are just a little too blue, his hair just a little too blond, his features just a little too immaculate, and his presence just a little too overwhelming and tangible for him to be entirely human. Especially those with fiendish blood in them would find him uncomfortable to be around, as if staring directly at the sun. Even humans and other humanoids may notice the aura of supernaturalness about him.

- Janus is actually quite educated, and knows a lot of history and geography, as well as being somewhat of a scholar on the lore of all things extraplanar (he has a high lore skill). He especially collects information about abyssal and infernal fiends, his arch-nemeses, to better combat them.

- Janus has a certain ability to often read people, see their needs before they even speak them aloud, sensing the true words and nature of people even if they try to decieve him (high sense motive skill). He is no thought-reader, and you can always roll an opposing bluff to his sense motive, but in general, he is good at getting hunches about people, and acting on those hunches.

- Somehow, Janus often seems to be blessed with good luck. Even in dire situations, he often comes through regardless, and one would find it hard not to believe that he is indeed being watched over by a guardian angel (He has luck of heroes feat as well as high saves).
This has also made him slightly rash, and he might choose battles that are much beyond his skills, believing that his faith, righteousness and guardian angel will see him safely through.

- He does not smoke, drink alcohol or ingest any other mind-altering substance. He has taken a vow of abstinence in order to not have his mind and judgement clouded by drugs.

- Janus has very little experience with the opposite sex, which often makes him nervous and perplexed when around women. He had, until recently, not ever been kissed.

- He is extremely tolerant and forgiving, and often admonishes himself for the few times that he does show hostility or anger. The only exception to this being creatures of fiendish blood (Tana'ri, Baatezu and tieflings), whom he considers his primary foes. Regarding such characters, his fury is unrelenting, as they represent the opposite of everything he stands for and values. While Janus has come to at least accept that tieflings walk about the lands freely, he will never treat them with more than distanced indifference, and would never consider one a friend, nor conciously share the company and conversation of one of these fiendlings.

- Janus speaks common and Celestial, the native language of his home plane, the House of the Triad.

[Carbondk]

Part II:

"I did meet her again. We went north, to battle the trolls and monstrous inhabitants of the wild. That was where we met him. The drow. Disguised as he was, we did not know his true identity, and he . . well, he helped us. Torm knows why he did, but he helped us against the monsters, and did not assault or attack us. It was himself that brought up the subject of drows, and when I confronted him and asked if we was one, he merely replied that "he did not wish to lie to me", and then took off his disguise. I can still recall that face, black as charcoal, and with hair as white as chalk. None of it makes any sense, why seek us out and act like a friend? I know not. He refused to draw a weapon and face me in combat, so I told him to run, far away, and never to come back. I am still unsure of whether it was the right decision.

I have been thinking much about good and evil these days. As well as the nature of man. Can people chance? Really change, genuinely? My heart wants me to say yes, but my experience tells me that is is rare. Can a drow really change his murderous nature and become something else? Can a Thayan forsake the ways of his evil overlords and become a good man? Why do good people who do good deeds often end up worse than before? Avarie tells me that her fellow elves have ostracised her due to the company she keeps. Anu also tells me that the elves shun her now, for trying to help someone change his evil ways.
Is this how we are supposed to treat kind people, people who try and make a difference?
I do not agree. I know that I am a better man for knowing both of these women.

I am starting to forget the House of the Triad. As if waking from a dream, the memory of my time in the House is slowly fading. Places that I have known all my life are suddenly harder to recall in detail. Faces I used to count as my friends and family suddenly seem distant and obscure. And most of all, I feel . . alone."

[Carbondk]

Part III:

"I met Avarie again. I find myself enjoying her company more and more. I admire her . . well, her cheerfulness and her good mood, and her theatrical antics. She also seems to enjoy my company, though I know not why. I must seem dreadfully dreary and sombre compared to her. Oftentimes I have compared my duty and my call to an iron mantle, weighing heavily on my shoulders, and I fear that the weight has taken its toll on my personality as well. Perhaps that is why I cherish her company so, that whenever I am with her, I find the weight upon my shoulders to be just a little less . . heavy.

As we walked down the Trade Way, just outside the city gates, an elf approached us. I do consider it quite rude when someone immediately starts speaking in a language you do not understand, and only after pointing out that fact several times, did the elf speak in the common tongue. Apparently he accused dear Avarie of having once slapped at him in his home of Doron Amar, and he now wished to persecute her and demand an apology. I told him that apologies are not demanded, but freely given, and that if we wished to persecute my elven friend after his own customs, he would have to file a request with the Dukes, and that simply dragging her off public streets to be tried in some elven court was not the way of lawful men, and that I would not have it happen.
Then, by Torm, he startet threatening us, rather obviously, and right in front of the Fist guards! That we would 'face the consequences' if we did not comply, that 'force would be used if necessary'. I could not believe my ears. Is this the way of the so-called fair folk? I am starting to believe that poor Avarie and Anu are only the most recent cases in a long story of elven narrow-sightedness and pettyness. He finished off by stating that Avarie was not to return to Doron Amar under pain of death. Pain of death! For a woman to slap a man? These elves are worse than any Thayvian or Zhentish tyrrany!

Once again, I am confused. All that I have learned of the Prime seems to be, well, less crystal clear once here than it was when I lived in the heavens. Elves are not all the benevolent and magnificent creatures I was told, and I start to wonder what else I have not been told. I do not like the feeling it gives me, I do not like it at all . ."