AEW: Creating MJF as a Dungeons and Dragons character

AEW on TNT premieres tonight, including competitor Maxwell Jacob Friedman vs. Brandon Cutler. Considering MJF’s recent comments about his disdain for Dungeons and Dragons, we present MJF as a Dungeons and Dragons character.

AEW on TNT is only a few hours away, and many eyes will be trained upon Maxwell Jacob Friedman. The 23-year-old has set the wrestling world on fire as of late, but he’s also drawn the ire of quite a few who do appreciate Dungeons and Dragons.

This simple tweet by MJF a few weeks ago got things rolling, and the responses came in from everyone from Joe Manganiello to fellow AEW talent Brandon Cutler. The latter of the two will actually be facing MJF tonight on AEW on TNT.

With MJF’s lack of enthusiasm about Dungeons and Dragons in mind, there was simply no better way to celebrate the debut of AEW on TNT than by creating Maxwell Jacob Friedman as a Dungeons and Dragons character himself.

Using a free character sheet from Wizards of the Coast’s own website, I’ve detailed Maxwell Jacob Friedman as if he were a real character inside a 5th Edition Dungeons and Dragons campaign. You’re welcome to take a deep look at the character sheet in the tweet above, but I’ve got some more details for those wondering what the process of creating MJF as a character actually included.

MJF made his wrestling debut on February 13, 2015, which means he has over four years of experience. In that timeframe, he’s wrestled 411 matches (per Cagematch). As a result, I provided him with a 4,110 experience points to begin, placing MJF at 4th Level.

Character choice wasn’t difficult. A loudmouthed performer is perfectly suited as a Bard. MJF is, of course, quite human. Background choice was a no-brainer, as he’s definitely a Noble. Alignment was actually a difficult choice for MJF, but Lawful Evil feels most appropriate.

“Good” and “Evil” have the potential for gray areas, as they likely will within AEW, but MJF is a bad guy at his core. He’s also shown loyalty to the man in charge, Cody Rhodes.

Add to that his nobility, and a belief in law, respect, and tradition certainly push him towards the Lawful end of the spectrum. He’s also the kind of character that manipulates rules, and laws, to work to his benefit.

Perhaps the most interesting calls came with detailing MJF’s actual personality and the things that likely drive him. The following characteristics were chosen, and these were the reasons behind them.

Traits: No one could doubt by looking at my regal bearing that I am a cut above the unwashed masses. If you do me an injury, I will crush you, ruin your name, and salt your fields.

These two traits were chosen because of the disdain with which MJF regards anyone not at his level. He believes he’s simply better than everyone else, and he’s not afraid to take someone down to prove it.

Ideal: Responsibility. It is my duty to respect the authority of those above me, just as those below me must respect mine.

Bond: My loyalty to my sovereign is unwavering.

This ideal and bond could actually be the root of MJF’s loyalty to Cody, seemingly the one person he desires to actually protect.

Flaw: In fact, the world does revolve around me.

Finally, this flaw was too easy to select. Of course, this is MJF’s biggest flaw. Of course it is. Have you seen the dude?

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Other decisions weren’t quite as complicated. The rapier, traditionally seen as a more elegant weapon and the kind of one that would make MJF feel superior to those with a “clumsy sword,” was an ideal choice.

Of course, experienced Dungeons and Dragons players will dislike the fact that his ability scores have more in Strength than Dexterity. Considering his in-ring style, MJF leans more towards strength, but would certainly be willing to use finesse weapons despite that.

Choosing spells was fun, with things like Resistance, Barkskin, and Enhance Ability being the kind of actions he’d love to use in-ring to help himself in a match. Others fit differently, with Shillelagh paying homage to legendary heel Fit Finlay’s usage of the weapon, one MJF might be open to using if it helps him take the win.

Faerie Fire was a very specific choice, as the description lends itself to AEW’s recent videos featuring blasts of color during big moments.

Faerie Fire: Each object in a 20-foot cube within range is outlined in blue, green, or violet light (your choice). Any creature in the area when the spell is cast is also outlined in light if it fails a Dexterity saving throw. For the duration, objects and affected creatures shed dim light in a 10-foot radius. Any attack roll against an affected creature or object has advantage if the attacker can see it, and the affected creature or object can’t benefit from being invisible.

Other spells, like Hold Person, Charm Person, Longstrider, all fit back into things MJF would love to use in-ring if given the opportunity. Finally, there was Animal Friendship, which comes from the clear bond MJF has with Pharoah.

There was also the decision of languages, of which his character knows three. Common (or English) was augmented with Elvish and Celestial, languages with an air of nobility that he’d have been given the opportunity to learn at a young age.

Keep an eye on TNT tonight as AEW goes live at 8 pm ET, where you can see the real-life Maxwell Jacob Friedman take on experienced Dungeons and Dragons player and fellow athlete Brandon Cutler.