Suggestions for Dwarf Battlemind Background

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Hi all!

I've just lost my character in the current campaign and now I'm starting a new one. It will be a dwarf battlemind named Jormglorm.
Now some things are already set. His alignment will be good, he is worshipping moradin and he will act primarily as the bodyguard of our groups cleric who is a priest of moradin (we have a second defender to take care of other mobs). The group is on its way to a castle of a noble woman where my character will meet them and probably join them because they have the same interests.

Now I usually dont have problems building up background stories but this is my first psionic character and I am kind of stuck with where did he get this power from or how did he discover that he can use this kind of power...?
Maybe some of you have already dealt with psionic backgrounds and can give me some inspiration, that would be really helpfull!

Thank you!



 You could simply fluff it that his powers are the result of his intense faith and that he discovered and honed them in a monastery somewhere. He could have been a simple monk (the profession, not the class) charged with the defense of his monastery before his spiritual awakening. His rigorous routine of constant prayer, meditation and martial training as a warrior of his faith has allowed him to unlock abilities beyond those possessed by others.
 When his superiors learned of his abilities they sent him for special training to further improve them, and the character has now accepted a new calling using his mental powers as a defender of his faith.

 Alternately, perhaps he was a simple miner who was trapped in a cave-in, and in seeking a way out stumbled into the Underdark. After many weeks or even months of wandering and surviving down there, the strength of his faith and the strange nature of the Underdark combined to allow him to develop his abilities. Upon his finally returning to his community, he joined the monastery where his superiors in the Church of Moradin asked him to put his abilities to use as a defender of the faith.

 Also, don't confuse his narrative role as a bodyguard for his mechanical role in combat - a cleric doesn't need a meatshield standing directly in front of them during combat, and the party's interests would be better served by having both defenders up on the front lines - which, depending on how the cleric is built, may well be where the cleric himself is as well.


I am the Magic Man.

(Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain.)


I am the Lawnmower Man.



I am the Skull God.

(Koo Koo Ka Choo)


There are reasons they call me Mad...

Hey, thanks for the input.

Well I'm not planning that my character will be right next to him 24/7. Our cleric is one that is not on the frontline, he actually doesnt like trouble and tries to stay out of it. I will act pretty normal in encounters but when I see the cleric is in trouble I will probably do everything as fast as possible to make sure he is safe. I've chosen powers that enable me doing so - but thanks for the tip anyway.
Our second defender is a beast and I'll just pick up whatever slips past her.
Mad_Jack's idea is similar to what I'm about to suggest. You can take basically any characteristicof a race and put a psionic spin on it. For, instance, I tend to think of dwarves as superb smiths, artisans engineers, as well as being fierce but precise and logical warriors. These can all be woven into your character, for example perhaps he focused on honing his technique while working the forge, augmenting his natural abilities to produce superior quality goods.

Also,  you might want to consider howother dwarves view psionic users, do they have the same prejudices that they hold for arcane magic, or as psionic magic comes from the individual, do they approve of it? In the former case, perhaps you had to hide your abilities from your kin, or perhaps you were cast out of your village/hold to surviveon your own and you developed your psionic prowess as a means of simply surviving in the harsh world. Here, the "Victim of superstition" or "Dwarf-Outcas" backgrounds could be what your looking for

In the latter case, you might have studied in a psionic university alongside other psionic dwarves. In this case, "the Path of 37 Obstacles" or "Guiding Hand" backgrounds might be more for you.

Alternatively, your abilities might only have shown themselves after youunderwent intense pain, perhaps you were captured and "interrogated" by Duergar, or even a captive of an abolith. In this instance, the "Calamity" background might be for you.

Hope this helps 
I'd do it with an Anakin Skywalker or Disney's Hercules kind of backstory to it.
You were born with a talent. Someone discovered it, or you were sick of it being uncontrollable and sought out someone who could teach you to use The Force your inhuman strength your psionic powers. During your training, you unlocked the true power of it and decided to use it for good.

There. Simple, reasonable, and very customizable.
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