Screw it, I'm gonna tell you about Torrin Graystone
Sort of a sequel post...
Full disclosure reader; I’m frantically banging this out in a coffee shop hours before I’m supposed to post. I did not schedule my free time well this week. To that end, I don’t have a set plan for this week (or the month, honestly) on my Substack.
Double full disclosure; I got home, forgot I hadn’t posted, and now at my dining room table chugging water and ignoring my growling stomach.
Part of why I had no time is I was preparing for my PathFinder AND my Dungeons & Dragons game this week. That’s right, two role playing games run by Blake! In one week! I’m back baby!
Now I double checked, and while I have posted about D&D characters I’ve played, it was also a post where a sentient presence became aware within my block quotes. You can read that below.
D&D Characters Blake has played.
On this Substack I write about D&D and other table-top role playing games as a Game Master. That’s the key viewpoint I have for most of these games I play. While I do run more games than play as a single character, I do have a few characters I’ve played that I think of fondly.
But last night, while hanging with friends and enjoying beers and bluegrass, I lamented to my friend Dan (I know he reads; Hi Dan!) that one of my favorite characters I’ve ever played, Torrin Graystone, is officially retired from me playing him.
For those who don’t play TTRPGs that may sound lighthearted, even silly. And I am both of those things. But when you’re pretending to be a character for an extended period of time, sharing stories, triumphs, failures, and everything in between you get a little attached to that character. And Torrin Graystone was a fine man and will live on when groups of nerds gather and say “Oh man, I played this guy once…”
Where he started
When I used to live in Norfolk, Virginia, my D&D group at the time planned to hop on the growing D&D podcast train. We had minimal gear and big plans, and I figured I’d play something I’d never seen in D&D at the time.
Most adventurers are within the early teens to late 30’s age range, since those are the most adventure friendly ages. But I thought about Gandalf, a man with some years of lived experience, going on epic journeys and doing just fine. And I was told my voice was too similar to someone else in the group. So I figured I’d lean into an exaggerated Southern accent, like caricature levels.
So the thrice retired, once widowed, working man turned Cleric Torrin Graystone was created. At the pushing retirement (for dwarves) ages of 367, Torrin began the campaign that only lasted 4 sessions as any great adventurer should; snoring loudly during a midday nap.
Armed with a holy mace, southern adages, and a will that won’t quit until he collapses. Torrin was the calmest of the group, didn’t have time for fancy city traditions (the mace can live in a hole in the wall, why buy a holder for it?) and the support of the classic D&D dwarven god, Moradin. I made him a cleric, but realized years later he makes more sense as a paladin.
Torrin’s History-Part 1
I’ve never fully committed to paper (computer screen) Torrin’s history. If I did I’ve lost that document to the hungry jaws of the void (the internet/cloud/whatever is under my couch).
Most of this is in my head, where it has been living since I improvised it when Torrin was a Non-Player character in my first full home brew campaign.
Torrin grew up in poverty, in the fantasy equivalent of West Virginia. I say that because he mined to make a living. Over the years work was good, the magic helped make mine work safe, and Torrin was happy. Over the decades, and eventually a century later Torrin grew bored mining and fighting off errant underground monsters. He set out with his warhammer, holy symbol of his god Moradin, and traveled the continent of “Whatever name Blake changed it to he can’t make up his mind.
While he had a strict religious upbringing, Torrin was never evangelical. He was that sort of religious person who always softly invites then says it’s cool when you decline, and you can tell they mean it. Boy I sure got on a tangent. Anyway, back to Torrin, here’s where he met his wife!
After another near century of travel, battle, adventure, and whatever else fictional characters do, Torrin was looking to settle down. I don’t have firm details of how he meets his wife, Dolores, but she was either working in a tavern or as a farmer, something blue collar like. They were married within a year, which is incredibly fast for dwarves.
Torrin as an NPC
We’ll take a breather to show y’all what he was like as an NPC.
When my party arrived at a dwarven run city and won the strength competition the king asked to speak with them. When they arrived to the gilded and gothic architecture of a grand king they were met with an old dwarf wearing the equivalent of a sports jersey and sweatpants.
“I ain’t one ta put on airs, y’all wanna snack? Got some elven breaded chicken wings, damn good stuff.”
I kept playing up how he’s just a guy and sure he’s the leader/king/whatever of a city, but he’s still just Torrin.
I imagined if I continued with him, this is where he would retire. Eventually take his earnings from adventuring, meet Dolores, eventually found a city, yadda yadda yadda. but you, dear reader, have an incredible memory and recall how I said at the beginning “thrice retired, once widowed”. Well let’s go ahead and get into the later half of Torrin’s history.
Torrin’s History- Part 2
Torrin and Dolores settled in whatever city would make sense grow a family. Seven children later they found happiness in part time work and engaging with their offspring. As the kids went off, built their own families, and grew the Graystone name, Torrin only knew joy. Playing with his 22 Grand children and 53 great grandchildren (dwarves live a long time) Torrin and Dolores were having a great go of life.
Until Dolores passed due to something not even magic could reverse. I don’t have details of how she passes, which is probably a fault of my writing not giving a female character a defined end, I don’t know if I want to pick any particular death. Maybe I will one day when I write an entire novel from Torrin’s perspective.
But Torrin was devastated. His family was there for him, of course, but he felt empty. For the next few years he grieved and mourned and looked for what his life’s new purpose was.
He found it when one of his grand children found his old warhammer in the attic. When they asked him about it Torrin took the kid (and as many as could fit in the dining room) and told them the tales of their Pappy Torrin adventuring.
He spoke with dragons, battled evil, sometimes got mixed up in trouble, and made so many incredible friends that he’s never want for someone to talk to. As he told these tales Torrin realized he could go adventuring, be the old war dog for some young adventuring pups.
So Torrin got his gear together, had it adjusted to his granddad body (eating too many baked goods will make anyone fat, fantasy or not) and Torrin set back out into the world and explored a world changed by time and parties of new adventure seekers.
Umm, you said “thrice” retired?
Oh yeah! So Torrin retired from the mines, then retired from adventuring, but before either of those he tried to work in a kitchen and quit within the first hour. It sounds fancier to say retired instead of quit, though honestly he may have been fired, it was a long time ago, he was only 74 years old then.
Thanks for reading! Hopefully there aren’t too many typos!