(1) Atalantia - Scourge of Magic

Game Master mdt

Hey all, sorry I realize I didn't post on this game that I was going to be out. I had Surgery on the 5th. Everything went well except for not being able to take my meds for Gout. I came out of surgery the next few days and pretty much up till today with one of the worst gout attacks I have had. Until today I could hardly hold my phone as it was attacking both my wrist, hands, right knee and ankle. I can finally type again and go see the gout Dr. for a follow up today. I will catch up over the next few days as I have returned to work and will be settling back into my routine. I am sorry for being MIA and no notice.

No problem, glad you are feeling better.

Welcome back, Adran!

[ooc](The PCs can either take 1,575 gp, 7 sp, 5 cp each, or leave it to buy cannon with for the Elephant.

I'm sorry, I have to say something.

I just feel completely ignored and powerless in this game. It seems like Connor A) is the only one who actually knows what's going on, and B) is able to give un-debateable directions for which direction the ship is going and C) can make unilateral declarations on how we're handling the money.

I feel that even if I came up with a decent way to fly around and trade goods and make money he'd just say "Nah, we're not gonna be doing that."

...because that's exactly what he's doing now.

I'm adamantly opposed to getting a canon, because he makes it sound like that'll use up all our trading-cash.

And even if we do make money on an adventure, WHY THE HELL WOULD I LET HIM HAVE ANY???

"Hey, I wanna fly to these three places so I can turn my 100 gold into 200 gold"
"Nah, we're not gonna be doing that. We've got a mission an' stuff."

And, ya, there's a "We need a canon to defend ourselves". But that doesn't solve the problem of trading. Were do we get more money for trading? From the quest?

WHAT GUARANTEE DO I HAVE THAT HE WON'T JUST SPEND IT ON ANOTHER F+#@ING CANON?!?!?

I guess what I'm saying is that I -still- don't have a reason to be invested in this adventure. I fell like anything I do can just be overridden at a moment's notice.

I'm sorry, I was trying to get more money for trading and outfitting the ship from the quest, yes. There is an overriding mission, but it's open ended, so how you get there is entirely up to *the group*.

I think there's a problem in that everyone is trying to discuss things IC rather than OOC. IC, Connor should be the ship's captain. However, I expect things to be discussed OOC, and for the Captain to make decisions IC based on what is discussed OOC. I think that would get people more motivated.

Can we please pause the game for a bit so everyone can discuss things OOC on what direction you want to take. I, the GM, like a sandbox approach, which means I throw out a ton of things you CAN do, and I want the players to pick from that plethora of stuff and go with it.

Hunt down Grimjowl.
Avoid Grimjowl.
Gather information on Grimjowl.
Build a temple to a god on an island with no gods.
Gather information on the Weapon Smuggling from Atalantia.
Gahter information on trade and build up some trade to get your cover story more secure.
Begin setting up information brokers in ports you trade from, to get a web of informants.
Completely ignore the GM's threads and force our own thread.

These are just examples of things you can do. I need the group, OOC, to discuss what they want to do, and I can then go with that. Please? Thanks.

I am very sorry that I came across as controlling the cash, Volita. I didn't mean it that way. I am concerned about how we just ran from the last battle, and thought a little more gunpowder firepower would help us. But I wasn't going to force anyone to not take their share of the trading loot.

I think Volita is doing great with the trading responsibility. That way, I don't have to roll my pitiful +2 to Diplomacy each time. You've really grown into taking charge with the trading. Yes, Connor has to play the ship's Captain as well as the "cover story" of merchantman in addition to our "real" mission of Kill Grimjowl. Maybe I got stuck in a rut overdoing that. I apologize for seeming that way.

Adran and Flann, this isn't "my" story - it's all of "our" story. So don't mind me. I hope I didn't come across as overbearing.

-----------------------------------

To answer mdt's request,
- do side mission
- gather info for Atalantia on city/trade/Grimjowl
- get one last trade for the mission home (Volita)
- avoid Grimjowl on the way back (or have another battle), do some crafting(!), level
- grudgingly take the next 'tel Mintakia assignment that will probably get us all killed
- live long enough to fulfill his obligation to build a halfling temple on the main island, probably in the main city

I have done my thing. I enjoy the game and had a good bit of the spotlight last Arc going into the jungle and getting captured so Alys could get away.

The idea of trading and making money mini game bores me the same as it did before we took on this new crew. As a player I prefer grand arcs and adventure like Lord of the Rings, Star Wars sort of stories. The background stuff falls away in these and the story always moves forward. Sandbox is fine, but most and in my experience like 90% don't really want it. They want the illusion of it, I think this is why Adventure Paths are so popular. Things happen that give depth but the game typically always moves forward. From all the games I have played on here I find sandbox is best when a solo to possible 3 people. After that you have others loose interest or not investing.

Adran's initial motivation was a new life with a new face. We were outlaws on the run paying for our salvation through these missions. We did what the big boss told us and this gave Adran an outlet to still practice his skills even though he wasn't being paid as a contract killer any longer. Since then he has become a happy go lucky sort of guy with little care other than completing what was asked of them He likes food, drink, and the ladies.

Myself and Adran are all for hunting down and taking the fight to Grimjaw, but he has proven far beyond us so MDT has forced us to do side quest things as we can't directly advance the story without dying.

So are we good for starting the side quest? Maybe bring out the battle actions people want?

I was waiting for people to confirm they were done with shopping, or werent' shopping. I can start you gusy off as soon as you say 'Go'.

Go!

Proceed! Avail! Start! Begin! Commence! Initiate! Instigate!

Gehen! Mach schnell! Anfang! Beginn!

I'm good to go.

yep good to go.

Argh! Quick shopping.

- Connor going with his full Equipment list (psicrystal staff, psionic haversack, psionic bag of holding).
- Connor refreshes all the drinking water in all the canteens and jugs he is carrying.
- Connor buys another smokestick (20 gp), 2 sunrods (2 gp each), 1 more bloodblock (25 gp), 150 ft of hemp rope (3 gp), and a new shaving kit (15 gp).
- Connor adds another dagger and the bag of caltrops to his belt from his backpack.

Did we get money or not? I didn't really have anything to shop for yet. Just want to account for it on my sheet.

Sorry, did the calculations on the IC side this time. Every character got 1,575.75 gold pieces each. Connor's left his share with the bosun in case somebody breaks something at the inn or we're not back in a day or two.

Connor would definitely get Flann's share back if it's being put toward ballistics.

I think we should kill that scorpion.

Normally I'm not big on farming random encounters. The campaign is usually the level it is, and as we increase, so does the toughness of bad guys, so it's no big deal.

However, for this campaign, we -already- have a BBEG coming after us, so we actually do need to get some XP however we can so we can take him on.

What do you think?

I have only one question:

What am I looking at roll-wise if I fire the sniper pistol from the air? I'm assuming there won't be any scope action, but is there, for example, a Fly roll to stay airborne?

Just to make sure, you're talking about experience working as a team right? Because we're not using XP to level, you're leveling at the speed of plot. If the former, I'm all for it, nobody has fought really together so far.

I'm interested to see if the weapons we have help or hinder our teamwork. But not if it uses up 1/2 our psionic power points or consumables.

Also, don't forget, we'll be hovering or making sweeping fly-by attacks, which are Fly checks. I don't have Ride-By Attack or an equivalent feat for Fly.

Yeah I was going to say we don't gain xp, we level when MDT decides it is appropriate.

LOL, well, it *is* a CR 11 creature. :)

Yeah, plinking at a giant scorpion from above if it's willing to sit there and take the damage is one thing. I'm glad we didn't land where it could charge us.

Thanks for the map, mdt, just in case any of us got stubborn.

By the light of the moon full...
Scroll unfurl, by light of moon glow...
To the Prison of Elements, feel the pull...
'Til sunrise do you have to go...

The key you will need, the door to open...
The door appear will with the Guide in hand...
At sunrise vanish will the dungeon...
Gone 'till 20 and 5 years do span...

So here's the riddle from the scroll. Thoughts?

- we're going to the "Prison of Elements" (elementals?)
- "key" equals the flying blue-glowing scroll?
- we've got until sunrise, or else be trapped within the Prison for 25 years (game over).

And at some point use the other scroll to blow everything up? Or release someone?

A little warning of "oh yeah, I hope you can run or fly fast" would've helped. Or make a swift astral construct to do the chasing.

A few things to point out:
Prison of Elements and Guide are the only words capitalized out of turn.
Due to creative grammar: we need a key, (which is not the Guide) but not necessarily to open the door.
"The door appear will with the Guide in hand" is purposefully arranged. It doesn't look like it's trying to match an obvious meter or rhyme scheme that I can see. Almost enough to wonder if it was a typo.

Well, span and hand are considered a classical rhyme for each other, so it does rhyme (Say Hand and Span alternately really fast).

The wording is a bit odd... hmm, wonder why...

Yeah, that 'will' in the middle is what I meant. Could indicate willpower rather than causality. Could also set up an unusual pattern with 'vanish will the dungeon'... really stood out though.

Sorry out yesterday for wife's surgery. So not really a riddle, as noting is asking it of us. Directions yes.

Hope it went well

Also wishing your wife a speed recovery, Adran/Ashe.

Indeed, she is fine. We both now have had weight loss surgery. It has been a long struggle. It was the surgery I had 5 weeks ago. I am down 45lbs in the 5 weeks since. My heavies was 415 and I had a heart attack 3 years ago at 33 years old. I was 395 at surgery and 349 today. 15 years ago I was a football player, walked on to FSU, I was 315, ran a 5second flat 40yard dash, worked out 2-3 times a day. Ate around 5000 calories a day. When that stopped my eating didn't so much. Now the wife and I will be doing it together. The only bad thing will be not much snacks around for friends when they come over :) Thanks for the well wishes.

Know how that is. In college I biked 20 miles a day, ate about 5000 calories. Got a car, kept eating, didn't bike 20 miles. Went from 215 to 285, got all the way up to 330 a couple of years ago, got diabetes, down to 295 right now.

We were guided here by moonlight, which is reflected sunlight, so maybe a sunrod? They want to make sure you have a light source going in? Light also being an element which is absent here...

Alternatively, "the door appear will with the Guide in hand" If 'will' is a way the door appears only with the Guide in hand, maybe there's a thing we have to drop in order for the door to not appear that way.

"the key you will need, the door to open" Maybe somebody's gotta grab the knob before the door disappears? We need to open the door for it to stay?

The door will appear with the Guide, maybe something else is appearing as well as the door?

Dunno, it's otherwise got me stumped.

Maybe I had the wrong scroll. The first scroll was "the guide" as it flew.

Weren't you the first one to the gate? Technically that would make you our guide.

Maybe we have to take you by the...hand? ;)

Argh. It's the riddle. Just because it rhymes doesn't mean it's straightforward and logical.

And Connor is not the guide - I hope!

We have a wish! But it sounds like a "monkey's paw" type of wish. Who wants what?

I've thought about this in the past, since I've played and am GM'ing Legacy of Fire right now, which gets heavy into wishes, especially in the last book. Generally, I've thought the easiest wishing would be "Somewhere in the multiverse a ________ must exist, abandoned and not claimed by anyone. Teleport to me nearby that _________." In which case, you'd be wishing for a single magical artifact, or pile of gold.

Plot-wise, I'd like to wish that Grimjowl suffer a cumulative -1 to all skill checks, abilities, and attack and damage rolls every time he or one of the creatures under his command targets one of us with an offensive attack. Or that just his head was teleported to the floating isle of Ash in the middle of a magic storm. (Releasing the Balor inside him and incinerating the ship and his crew at the same time.)

But we're talking the possibility of gold pieces here, or a major psionic item, so we should vote.

The "teleport me to something awesome" option sounds like a great way to get lost in multispace. The inverse seems a bit dangerous too.

I'm not a big fan of wishes that resolve large plot points.

Flann wouldn't understand a wish for money, and might even go into a recital of economic inflation theories.

I don't have enough experience with this system to suggest a cool thing to wish for...

I'm all for slaying Grimjaw, maybe even banishing the demon so we can kill him and take his warship and crew.

Yeah, this Grimjaw guy is a buzzkill to everything we do.

Mind you, if we just wanted to play it safe, we already have it on plot-level authority that the wish-granter can "hinder Dargasium". We could just ask for the exact same thing for Grimjaw and leave it at that.

That'd be the safe move.

I'm slammed this weekend, can't post until late Sunday night or even Monday morning.

Okay, back! And are we decided on the wish? So let me see about the missing key...

Sorry, took me a bit to complete the dungeon map. It's a big one.

Ack! Goblins in the Pazio servers and now my logins are timing out, so it looks like there are no new posts until I log back in!

The goblins ate my post from this morning!

Added "sunrod light" and "lantern light" to me & Volita on the Encounter Map, mdt.

GM Note : I'm assuming all 'tension' is strictly IC this time. If not, someone yelp. For those not in the know, the rule in my house is that all kittens are allowed to bite and fight as much as they want until someone yelps, and then play time is over. We plan on using the same rules with kids eventually

My Army training is bleeding through to Connor, but I'm not trying to "drive the show" or keep characters from doing actions.

Connor's thinking of the overall "secret agent" mission, and yes, along with all the baggage he's responsible for because he caused part of it. Right now, because our "pay" would be in the form of a non-benevolent wish, Connor's thinking that this side mission is a wash, other than getting the Regent to think that Atalantians are competent adventurers. Connor does think of the other characters as "new guys on the team". Maybe these actions will change his assumptions.

Connor just saw "oh $*&#, another godling", and wanting Volita to not have the burden that Sam and Connor had with Tenfa from the underground city. But hey, if she's all for it, then Volita can deal with the realization of what she's accepted.

Connor's thinking he may just let Volita decide on the team's wish when the time comes. He was thinking about doing some scavenging on equipment on the way out, but the previous unjailed occupants look tainted.

OOC, I hope we can continue all playing this game from mdt. If Pazio can drop a goblin-fumigate gas-bomb in the server room!

Flann just wants to shoot stuff and study biology. =D

Hey guys sorry this is the first I have been able to get on the board since monday with all there server issues. I will catch up.

@Adran - Must be on your end. The map is there, and I can see someone else looking at it, so people are getting to it. And the others have edited it.