Do What You Want 'Cause a Pirate is Free! [[S&S PbP]] (Inactive)

Game Master Rorrix

This is a recruitment thread for a Skull & Shackles AP play-by-post game to be GMed by me.

I am looking for a party of four players total, however one slot is already filled by a friend of mine (CN halfling swashbuckler).

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Application Rules

• Paizo only, no 3rd party material. Advanced Class Guide classes allowed.
  
• Level 1, 20 point buy.
  
• No guns, no gunslingers. No summoners.
  
• The Antagonize feat is banned
  
• Two traits, optional drawback for a third trait. You must take one (and only one) of the ten campaign traits.
  
• Any non-good alignment.
  
• Max HP first level, half+1 afterwards.
  
• Start with 200gp.
  
• Core races are always allowed. Other races are subject to approval on a case-by-case basis. Discuss it with me first. Tiefling and Aasimar variant heritages are allowed.
  
• Nonsensical flavor prerequisites based on race/deity/region/etc may be waived on a case-by-case basis. Discuss it with me first.
  
• Minmaxing is acceptable.
  
• Include a backstory for your character.
  
• Post a sample of your roleplaying style (in-character) when you submit your character. Keep in mind that grammar and spelling matter just as much as an interesting character!
  
• Give a general description of what your plan for your character's role in the party is.
  
• Once the game begins, you will post at least once per day unless notice is given.

Character selections are my own, and by posting in this thread you agree to be a good sport if you're not selected for whatever reason. If you really want to know why you were passed up, you're welcome to send me a polite PM after selections are made, and I may respond.

Amid the clamor and bustle of the busy port town, Jack was delighted. Stepping off the deck of the Grizzled Grindylow, the trade vessel that had carried him all the way here from Devil's Arches, Jack tipped his tricorn hat to the boatswain before strolling down the dock, whistling a jaunty tune. Port Peril, along with all its dangerous delights, awaited him!

From the grinning cutthroats to the bar toughs, he could see that this place was the spitting image of a pirate port. Rapier at his side, he sidled into a tavern whose appealing-seeming sign bore the image of a buxom serving maid with the type of bosom a charming young halfling man could get lost in. "Formidably Maid," he thought to himself. "That's either a good pun or the spelling's a bad joke."

As his eyes adjusted to the gloom of the busy tavern, he sidestepped past a serving wench carrying a platter of drinks and made his way to the bar. It wasn't long before he caught sight of a beautiful red-haired human beauty with a gleaming cutlass at her hip, whose fierce glare told the drunken mass to keep its distance. That obviously didn't apply to Jack, he reasoned, so he downed his drink, ordered two more, and strolled over to her table with both of them. In the hours that followed, the two of them learned a great deal of things from one another. She learned that size isn't everything, and one should never judge a halfling by his cover. Jack, on the other hand, learned that you shouldn't trust strange pirate women you meet in bars, as he was ambushed by several thugs leaving her room, and knocked unconscious before he could even draw his sword.

Dotting...

Alright so I gotta ask being that skull and shackles is paizos most neutral and marginally evil adventure path. Is this pirate crew going to be run in the style of errol flinn, captain jack or barbossa?
Because I have a concept for an unkindly druid who would likely be the big NE. He would likely play out as something of a nature empowered cult leader, utterly ruthless but entirely aware that allies are very important.
I wouldnt ask normally but I know S+S could be an absolutely perfect place for him.

Any Non-Good. Mmm. Dotting. I need to think on how 'mean' I wanna be, but I think I can be a good team player with any alignment.

Question: Are we allowed to apply even if we're in another S&S game? The one I'm currently in is very much in the 'good guys' and looks to be more 'free sailors fighting slavers and the like' than pirates.

The crew will reflect the alignments/goals of whatever PCs are selected and how they are played. I'm avoiding good alignments for the reason Ridge stated. I want this to be a very piratey kind of adventure. It can be as neutral or evil as the players make it out to be. I hope that answers your question.

Edit: And yes, you may apply if you've played/GMed before or currently.

Hehe... I see little Jack got himself a crew. Best of lucks to you fellaws and have loads of fun!

Hrmmm.... ok I can rock this Im on my phone right now but I will have a prospect written up in the next day or so. Suffice it to say though, if my entry is selected pain and darkness will be my bread and butter.

Despite being pirates (Normally 'forbidden' from being lawful) would Lawful Evil be allowed to reflect a selfish character but one that has a set of principles they live by?

Secondly is this simply a play by post campaign where we write and describe our actions or will there be dice rolls involved? It's been a few years since I've done any online RPing and I know that no tow are alike.

Shenar awoke sore and bruised, last night was a blur at its best and his headache did nothing to help his memory. There were scattered rays of light breaking through the treated wood that was overhead, 'far too close for the ceiling of an inn' the half elf realized as he slowly sat up. The sounds of the creaking wood, rocking motion, and salty smell assaulting his nostrils made Shenar come to one conclusion...that he had been press ganged.

Crawling to the other end of the diminutive and sorry excuse for a room he tried the door...locked. Shenar instinctively grabbed for his belt pouch only to find nothing there. His chain was missing as well, the constant jangle no longer offering the comforting feeling of one's weapon being nearby. Trying not to panic Shenar found the corner of this cell, for surely he was a prisoner with none of his affects and no bearings of where he was, closed his eyes and began to listen.

At first there was nothing but gulls in the sky and the waves below. An occasional groan in agony from the walls as if they protested to having a half blood in their domain. Finally, after accustoming his senses to the backrounf noise, Shenar began to hear what he was really after. "Bilgewater made us" a wave crashed agasint the sip harder this time "musta picked up half a dozen 'least."

'So there are others, alright the first step is finding them.'

"Cap'in is lookin' ta break em in today I s'pose. Here come's Fortune now eh? Is it that time already?"

"It is Green Tongue, so get the squabs on deck before the glass is turned."

The discussion stopped, in its place was the steady approach of footsteps coming closer by the second, and something told Shenar he wouldn't have a choice about taking this new job or not.

About race, would you be ok with a Seascarred (wereshark-kin) skinwalker? The race just screams pirate to me.

I'm most likely looking at a devotee of Besmara or Hei Feng(in which case he/she was adopted by the many Tengu of the Shackles), of the Cleric/Druid/Inquisitor kind. Not sure which one as of yet.

EDIT: Another idea would be the Changeling daughter of a Sea Hag. In that case she'd be a devotee of Besmara or Sivanah, either an Oracle or a Cleric.

Dotting - I have an idea for a Freebooter Ranger I'd like to flesh out.

Stats done, (I think) Human Female Ranger (skirmisher/falconer),... Background to follow.

This looks interesting, although I'm mildly off-put by a pirate campaign without guns. That said, there are more to pirates than guns and swashbucklers, so maybe I'll make a barbarian. I'll call him Bartholomew, for luck.

RP Sample
Alessa was just as appalled at Helneladrel, although her concerns were not for the lack of material luster in Brill, but for the emotional and spiritual wellbeing of the inhabitants. As she scrambled out of the inn that morning, she, like every other morning, was met with a swathe of expressions that ranged from scowls, to evil snickers, and everything in between. It looked bad. She'd decided to do something about it, and the best way would probably not be to sit around, wallowing in her misery.
What these people - her people - needed, was an examplar.

And so, Alessa found she was looking to prove herself as a champion of the forsaken.

I wonder who else might answer the call, she thought. As she scrambled trough town, her right leg dragged heavily, although it did not seem to slow her down much. Her old, battered armor and tattered, dirt-soiled tabard fit in nicely with the rest of the inhabitants.
End Sample

Not related to this game, obviously, but it's how I post.

Edit: I see we already have Jack as a frontliner - I'll see about something arcane or divine.

Dotting for interest. It's been a while since I've had a chance to sail the seas (was in an S&S game a long time ago). Rather than rehash that character (a freebooter with the driver feats), I'll go in a different direction for a different experience.

I'm thinking a cross blooded sorcerer (draconic[blue or bronze]/stormborn) with the intent of eventually going dragon disciple (assuming surviving for that long).

This guy failed to get into another S&S game. Let me know if he is too out there and I will make something else. maybe an alchemist. Just thought I would give him a shot again. xP

*Waves*

Here be somat I made fer another Skull's and Shackles game whut din't get pickled.

Is tha' DM aprovin' of tha' race type?

Lookin' forwards ta' checks, perusals, comments an' such.

Much cheers to all. (^_^)

About race, would you be ok with a Seascarred (wereshark-kin) skinwalker? The race just screams pirate to me.

I'm most likely looking at a devotee of Besmara or Hei Feng(in which case he/she was adopted by the many Tengu of the Shackles), of the Cleric/Druid/Inquisitor kind. Not sure which one as of yet.

EDIT: Another idea would be the Changeling daughter of a Sea Hag. In that case she'd be a devotee of Besmara or Sivanah, either an Oracle or a Cleric.

I love both of those ideas! Wereshark makes me think of these guys from back in the day haha.

This looks interesting, although I'm mildly off-put by a pirate campaign without guns. That said, there are more to pirates than guns and swashbucklers, so maybe I'll make a barbarian. I'll call him Bartholomew, for luck.

Guns are very few and far-between in this AP. The first time you encounter one, it's supposed to be Kind Of A Big Deal if I remember correctly.

Is tha' DM aprovin' of tha' race type?

Just looks like elf to me. If you mean flavoring it as an "island elf" then yeah, I really don't mind.

Ye dun't be mindin' with me swimmin', then?

Tha' plan is on swingin' a rilly big sword with tha' Magus class.

Be that okeys?

Much cheers ta' all. (^_^)

Oh, wait, that's some kind of custom malarkey. If you're looking to play an aquatic elf, I suggest the already-existing Sea Elf.

Edit 1: Just realized that's 3PP. Sorry, no, none of that.

Edit 2: Just read the thing for aquatic elves. That would be fine, but you seem to have extra things tucked in there such as Deep Sight. Play it how it's written, not how you wrote it.

*Nods*

Actually...that were a previous DM's writing/creation.

Okeys, deep sight is gone. (^_^)

T'is all okeys t'other wise?

In case no one got the link to the DM's heading...

You are a Pirate!

In case no one got the link to the DM's heading...

You are a Pirate!

Dat crotch ninja.

*looks at link*
Bah, that's just what spawned THIS

Woohoo! There is finally another S&S game! At least once a day, huh? Well, considering me interested!

I do prefer the Alestrom version as opposed to the original Lazytown song. :3

@Sunny: There are still a few things off. If you can't be bothered to comb through your character, then neither can I.

Presenting Ri'el, a dour Shaman seeking to loose his pursuers by traversing the high seas, or rally a crew around him strong enough to permanently impress upon his enemies that that he's not to be trifled with. But damn his eyes if he ever lets his guard down so they get the chance to stab him in the back. (Background is in the profile.)

With its fearsome reputation as the 'capital' of the Shackles, Port Peril was hardly a place one would expect to find beauty. But as Ri'el stood by the docks and gazed upon the setting sun lighting up the sea in a dazzling blaze of crimson and gold, he found himself marveling at how the beauty of the natural world could brighten (albeit just a little) even this sordid cess-pit of humanity.

"Or maybe I'm just well and truly sloshed."

"Hmmph. Port Peril, they call this place. I've heard the other sailors talk about it, but I gotta say, I ain't too impressed. Isn't much different from most of the other ports we've been to. Loose women and lying braggarts at every corner, watered-down ale sold for too much and 'friends' sold for too little."

He pauses in the middle of his slurred soliloquy to spit in disgust, then moistens his mouth with another hearty swig from the bottle in his hand.

"Well, at least it's honest, in its own bloody screwed up way. Least they don't pretend they're any better, unlike the bast**ds in the imperial courts and royal palaces. At the end of the day, all these cities and ports are alike. As long as people inhabit them, they will always be cess-pits."

The rather feral-looking thrush on his shoulder cocks its head towards him, regarding him curiously. "If you hate these ports so much, why do you keep stopping at them, might I ask?" the thrush cooes softly.

"Food, repairs, supplies, and coin, my feathered friend. We gotta cash in our goods and restock so we can go out there again to get more goods. It's the way of world, Thali. Just like in that forest of yours'. The strong eat the weak. It's just that for us, the seas are our hunting grounds," Ri'el replies as he gestures to the waters before him with a sweep of his hand, "and we drag our catches to these here ports to eat."

"You almost describe these ports as if they were your home dens."

A spray of grog spurts from Ri's mouth at Thali's observation.

"Bahahahaha! Home? Not unless you have a habit of sleeping on a bed of venomous asps and scorpions. No, these ports are hunting grounds too, in their own way. Men here would gut you for your coin if they thought they could and get away with it, even if they'd called you 'brother' 2 seconds ago. Hell, they'd do it even as they called you 'brother'."

"Should you be drinking quite so much then, Ri'el?"

"Hmmph. I've been around. I can hold my own and I know how to take care of myself."

"I assume then that you are aware of the men coming up behind you."

"Yeah I uh...wait, whu..."

Ri'el struggles to rally his senses as he realises the significance of Thali's, but his limbs feel heavy and he is barely able to move his neck before pain explodes in the back of his head and the sea rushes to meet his face. His last thought before passing out is that if he survives this, we will make sure to gut the lowlife that sold him that bottle of grog.

Post above and profile have been slightly amended. RP-post was based on the campaign trait. =)

dotted
I'll roll a bard for the occasion

I'm almost thinking a magus could be very fun. Now what variety of magus he'll be...that I don't know.

I think it's gonna be a hexcrafter magus coming shortly from me.

This feels like a silly question but just to be on the safe side...I assume archetypes are okay?

I think the DM missed my last post. So is this guy's race and such good or make something else?

@Ridge: Of course archetypes are okay!

@Shisen: Whoops, missed that. I'm going to go ahead and say no on Merfolk. While they're somewhat thematically appropriate, they're too strong compared to other races, especially for this adventure.

Fair enough, I thought as much but had to try. ;)

So how do you feel about ratfolk?

Ratfolk are cool, and there's lots of room to get piratey with them! I totally support making ratfolk.

Thinking of bloodmarked (were-bat) skinchanger of the hexcrafter magus variety. Is that ok?

Thinking that his blood line has been cursed, and he is managing to pull on his cursed blood and manifest it into his magic and arms training.

I love the gang-like cohesion implied by the bloodmarked fluff for this AP. Definitely don't let that opportunity go to waste if you make one! I am very okay with you making one.

Yay! Oh yeah. Having played this AP before (which I hope is ok) really made me want someone who would cling tight to his friends. His colony, as it were.

I'm definitely going to get this character brought together soon.

On Ri's role in the party crew:
Ri'el will take on the role of a melee scrapper/magic support. With the druid spell list at his disposal, I'm seeing spells like warp wood and control weather being particularly useful in ship-to-ship combat, while spells like goodberry can make meager provisions go further.

With a high wis, he will have good profession:sailor and perception modifiers as well. He's not particularly built for healing in mind, but can help with that in a pinch.

Would love to hear your thoughts and questions about Ri'el for this adventure. (RP sample was a few posts back and history is in the profile.) Feedback would be welcome and considered in any amendments. Cheers mate.

Serenna was born the daughter of Ricael Stanthrop, an Andoran trader who owned a fleet of ships that sailed throughout the Inner Sea. The family was rich, very rich, and Serenna and her much older half-brother, Ristren (the illegitimate product of an affair in her father's youth), were provided with the best education, clothes and food that money could provide, though of course, for reasons of taste, it was obvious that Ristren would not inherit their father's wealth. It was when she was still very young, only twelve years old, that Serenna for the first time, set foot on a ship, on a trip to see family trading partners in Varisia. As she watched the her home, the city of Almas, disappear over the horizon, she had no idea that she would not return for years.

During the journey there was an,... accident. One day whilst Ristren and Serenna were crossing the deck, Ristren tripped, knocking Serenna to the rail and pitching her overboard. Serenna struggled in the waves, shouting for help and feeling herself being pulled underwater by her heavy dress, when suddenly, as if from nowhere, she felt an explosion of pain and passed out....

more to follow. Trying to write this on my ipad so its going slowly.

When she awoke, Serenna found herself on her cot in her cabin , her bankets were bathed in sweat and her leg felt,... strange. As she stirred her mother, cheeks stained with tears, quickly leant in from her seat at the bedside and wiped her brow, breaking into uncontrollable sobbing. Serenna pulled back the sheets to discover that her left leg was gone, severed below the knee.

For days Serenna stayed below deck, crying to herself and refusing to see anyone. She was only drawn from her malaise when the sound of fighting from above decks alerted her that something was wrong. Soon her mother burst in. Together they huddled against the cabin wall as the sounds of fighting grew inexorably closer. Just as the hammering started on the door, Serenna's mother pushed the young girl under the cot to hide. It was from that vantage that Serenna saw her mother die, cut down by a pirate's cutlass.

Serenna remained hidden below the cot for what seemed like an eternity, listening to the sound of fighting and watching her mother's blood spread in an ever-growing pool....

still more to go...

Here is what I have so far, forgive me for the basics. I should finish the crunch tonight. ;)

That being said, say hello to Risam the ratfolk alchemist.

Eventually she was roused from her rivière by voices. One was gruff and his words were coarse. " Nah, we ain't found no bloody girl, 'Red' reckons there was only 'yer mam in the cabin, but I'm sure we'll git 'ear soon enough. There're only so many places to hide on a ship."

"Just so long as you kill her," came the clipped reply, "or else I won't be able to pay you. Will I? Now, make it look like I put up a fight, or no one will believe the story."

Moments later there was a thud and Serenna followed by footsteps drawing closer. Then a bearded and scarred face appeared in front of her. "There, there, little miss. I won't be 'urting you, no matter what yer brother wants. I always like a bit of insurance."

For the next few years Serenna lived aboard the ship. The pirates, a group of bloodthirsty villains, though not without their own code of honour, came to see her as a mascot. She was looked after most of all by the ship's cook, an old lady called "Mum" by the crew. The carpenter "Thumb" even made her a peg-leg to help her get around. Aboard the ship, Serenna soon became known as "Peg" or "Peggy". She helped with the cooking, and was even allowed to join the quartermaster's hunting trips when they found small islands (it wasn't one of these trips that she found an Osprey nest from which she stole the egg that would hatch into "Pipsqueak".

Last part to come...

Dot.

Is drow ok? and of course I assume drow noble is a no no.

Gp: 4d6 ⇒ (4, 6, 4, 1) = 15

Drow yes, Drow Noble is definitely a no-no haha.

Bane88's character. Decided to go Fletchling Ninja. Background is a work in progress but crunch is done. Was torn between the levitation of drows because floating to enemy ships... and shadow blending, 50% miss chance in dim light...so cool for below deck fighting!

Peggy turned from the bar wench and looked around the crowded tavern room for the handsome sailor that the buxom lass had said might know of a ship bound for Andoran. She pushed past a halfing who seemed, somehow, to be successfully chatting up a good looking redhead at a nearby table, and pulled up a chair next to the handsome man.

"I'm Peg, and this is Pipsqueak", she said with a grin and a quick wink "I've been told yer might know've work aboard a ship heading' fed Andoran. I know my way 'round a ship, an I'm a hard worker. Can I buy you a drink while we talk?"

... Hope everything's looking good Rorrix. If you have any suggestions or questions let me know. :)

Well, here's a placeholder for ShadowyFox's skinwalker magus.

Question while I throw something together; I'm considering Dervish Dancing. How do you feel about using a cutlass instead of a scimitar (as they are identical in stats and damage type) and flavoring as more of an... Outlaw's jig or something.

Convenient! I made this character for this AP originally but didn't get in, and I just happen to have the right stats, budget and traits all set (Buccaneer's Blood, Acrobat, Worldly, Hedonistic drawback).

Front line fighter with some nice reach who can eventually pull her weight with various handy buffs.