Storybreakers characters: Hunter Burrows, a veteran tortle reporter who got too close to the truth
Headlines in a half-shell.
Launching on November 4th, Dicebreaker’s new Dungeons & Dragons actual play show Storybreakers features an exciting cast of original characters played by the Dicebreaker team. Read on to learn more about editor-in-chief Matt Jarvis’ tortle paladin reporter Hunter Burrows, one of the four player characters featured on the show alongside DM Michael ‘Wheels’ Whelan, who created the world Storybreakers takes place in.
A worn, stooped shell stuffed with faded newspaper clippings, a grumble closer to noise than speech and a hardness that extends both inside and out. This is the first impression most people get of Hunter Burrows, Storybreakers’ veteran news reporter played in our upcoming D&D series by me, Matt Jarvis. Oh, and he’s a tortle - a humanoid turtle.
An experienced writer with decades working in the newsroom, Hunter represents the grizzled veteran of the Storybreakers party. Compared to the young, bright upstarts looking to make their name and start climbing the ladder, Hunter has been there, done that, got the T-shirt - and then complained about its suggestion of breaching editorial integrity, no doubt.
Dressed in a hat reminiscent of the golden age of 1940s newspaper journalism in our world and with his scaly fingers darkened and cracked from years of ink, gripping a press card so far past its expiry date that there’s barely anything left to hold, Hunter is resistant to the introduction of newfangled technology and what he believes is a loss of proper technique and care for the job among younger reporters. Of course, it may well be that the Storybreakers crew will eventually soften that shell and invite something other than cynicism and a jaded disillusion into Hunter’s heart. Somewhere in there, there’s a caring, sentimental being who wants the best for those he cares for, right?
In D&D 5E class terms, Hunter is a paladin. In his role as a veteran news reporter in the world of Storybreakers, this means he worships the deities of truth and integrity. Truth and justice must come first - even if that sometimes means stepping outside of what the Ognassi News Corp might consider the correct process. His decades of work also mean that he’s a few levels higher than the rest of the group, starting with his stats and abilities at Level 4 to represent the additional experience he holds.
While Hunter’s journalistic integrity may be of the utmost value, his moral integrity may occasionally waver in order to pursue the leads he requires to bring a vital story to light. Not every story will be served up on a silver platter, after all. Some will require him to make use of his wisdom and practised charisma to help sway possible sources and chase down hidden beats.
This bullheaded (or, at least, turtleheaded) approach can lead Hunter into trouble, however - as he experienced when he came too close to uncovering a story concerning the very organisation he works for, the ONC, and its higher-ups. His wax wings melted, it was a quick and painful fall down the career ladder to the basement of a local paper where he finds himself at the start of our adventure.
Undeterred, Hunter sets out again to finally bring those responsible for his demotion to justice - hoping to see in his second century in style. At the very least, maybe he’ll finally get a good night’s sleep at the end of all this. Gods, he’s tired.