Shanker from 'Of Leaves and Stewed Hobbit'

[mirkwoodfalcon]

Hello all,

I'll try to avoid spoilers in this post, but stay away if you've not played through 'Of Leaves and Stewed Hobbit'!

During our group's play-through of 'Of Leaves and Stewed Hobbit' we encountered Shanker and the dynamic between him and our group was phenomenally funny. Our LM is looking for ways to bring this character back in future adventures or for us to have continuing run-ins with Shanker, but sadly TfW does not flesh out his character in-depth. I was curious to see how others have handled this, if they have handled this at all.

1. What is Shanker's past in your play-throughs? (In other words, who is he? Why does he act the way he does?)
2. How have you used Shanker in other encounters?

Thanks for your input.

[zedturtle]

I haven't actually used Shanker in my games yet (we skipped over Of Leaves), but I know some folks have subbed him in for Cenric in Theft of the Moon (see my sig). If y'all haven't done the rest of Tales yet, I could find a place for him in Kinstrife and maybe Crossings. And/or in Darkness, if your LM goes the route some of us have.

I'm not sure what all to say, as I don't want to spoil you.

[Bram Corolev]

When Shanker first showed up and plopped down at the fellowship's fire, it was one of the few moments in our campaign when nobody knew quite how to respond. He went from potential enemy to occasional ally and the players' favorite NPC. As LM, I brought Shanker in a few times to provide needed info or help the group out in a tight spot. I never spelled out who exactly Shanker was and I purposely left him ambiguous even in my own mind. If you asked the fellowship, they came to the consensus that he was probably a ranger from west of the mountains.

[Majestic]

I left him pretty ambiguous as well. The only appearance he's made for us so far was in "Of Leaves...". My PCs were pretty startled and I don't think they knew what to do, either. That didn't stop our Hobbit burglar from pickpocketing a good portion of Shanker's Longbottom Leaf, though!

[jacksarge]

I haven't actually used Shanker in my games yet (we skipped over Of Leaves), but I know some folks have subbed him in for Cenric in Theft of the Moon (see my sig). If y'all haven't done the rest of Tales yet, I could find a place for him in Kinstrife and maybe Crossings. And/or in Darkness, if your LM goes the route some of us have.

I'm not sure what all to say, as I don't want to spoil you.

I have turned Cenric in Theft of the Moon into Shanker - I will be running that part of the adventure next. At this stage I have used the stats Zed has given in the adventure, however I have already formed a "cunning plan" for Shanker to give him more of a back story.
When my players first encounter him in "Of Leaves..." he came across as quite a cynical character who knew of the attack on the Hobbit caravan and had scarpered when things turned nasty.
Shanker in my game is actually a Ranger who has fallen into shadow. His real name is Caladir. Caladir lost his family in an orc/troll (not sure which yet), raid on their settlement - he was absent from his home at the time & when returned found them gone. Caladir hunted his foes into the foothills of Carn Dum only to find he was too late to save his family - found some evidence of their demise. These events led to great anguish and despair and desire for vengeance, coupled with the fact that Caladir is the bearer of a lesser magical ring and his use of it in his hunt attracts the eye of the enemy....you get the picture. Caladir's descent into shadow/misery/despair has caused him to turn his back on the home he once knew and he has wandered into Wilderland, seemingly as a rogue and mercenary. I have ideas for him being searched out by a fellow Ranger who wants to bring back from the shadow, perhaps planning to bring him to Master Elrond for healing? My players may assist in this search & rescue- could be a good lead into eventually getting them over the Misty Mountains into Eriador.
I plan for Shanker to escape in "Theft..." and appear again with the bandits in "Kinstrife...".
Here's the picture of Shanker I've borrowed for our Roll20 adventure:


I know my concepts aren't particularly original, and I haven't read Ruins of the North to know if there is anything similar in there. Anyway we'll see how it goes My players don't inhabit this forum so I'm pretty safe in posting this.

[Majestic]

That's a great picture and backstory, jacksarge!

[Pangea]

Shanker became quite important in the campaign I am narrating, simply because, as others have stated here, the PCs reactions to him were very intense and torn between helping him and offing him (thus I moved to create a story for him and have him return).
My feeling is that he is a character in a grey-area, and there are not many like him, neither a champion of good nor an actively evil person (I am talking about how he is written in the "Of Hobbits…").
The backstory I worked on has him being embittered and not caring for the fate of the caravan and such because he lost his family (wife, children…) due to the absence of help from fellow men. My idea being that the PCs feel he is not striving for Good, but that his bitterness stems from pain and the feeling he was betrayed and not helped, which they can understand (they could be where he is at if circumstances were different).
Also, he seems like someone who can be redeemed.
Go Shank'!

[shipwreck]

I made him a Ranger.

[jacksarge]

Sounds like the Ranger idea is quite popular. Has anyone come up with stats for Shanker as NPC or adversary?

[jacksarge]

I now have some stats that I'm using as a basis for Shanker (Caladir)- basically using the Dunedain character build as my starting point. He has wandering-madness as his Shadow Weakness & is cunning and grim.
He has in his possession a very minor ring of power which I have decided gives him the same ability as the Hobbit's "Art of Disappearing" virtue. He spends a point of hope (or hate if played as adversary) and is able to slip away or be concealed. He may use it to aid in a cunning escape or fleeing from danger or battle.
This should make him a slippery opponent if encountered by my players