Greetings and welcome to everyone. I wanted to take a few minutes to say hello as well as to spell out some guidelines for the game that I feel will be instrumental to the tempo and feel of the adventure path as well as some of my own custom ways of handling specific things within the game.
I will be handling tactical movement in Roll20. I feel this will be the simplest way to allow scenes to evolve without me constantly updating images in a Google doc or other such tool. It also allows me to use some line of sight tools and the like as well as show off pretty maps! I ask that everyone maintain a level of honesty when using this tool, and not to move unless otherwise told to. I’d prefer to keep some things secret and peeking around corners can spoil surprises!
Campaign details will be kept on my website that I try to use to organize details of games. For those who played in Kingmaker you might have some memory of this. I will post maps, handouts, NPC details (for easy tracking and referral later), and other such things here. When required in a post I will typically link back to the respective page, but you should feel free to check the site whenever you need a refresher on something you have discovered or someone you have met. If something is missing, let me know or feel free to register on the site and add it yourself. It’s in Wiki format so adding content is very simple.
For ease of play I will always assume that you are taking 10 or 20 when possible. As experienced players I assume everyone is familiar with how this works, but if not you can do a quick Google search to find the answers. If you are in a situation where you can take 10 or 20 and you are performing an action that would allow so, simply give me the result in a format like where XX would be your result. Remember you can almost always take 10 on most skills, with very few exceptions (Use Magic Device being the primary one). Taking 20 is reserved for those instances where you have plenty of time and resources at your disposal. Most commonly taking 20 is used for things like Perception checks. Remember that in combat you cannot take 10 or 20, and if the result of a check could result in a negative effect for your character you cannot take 20. If for some reason I determine that you cannot take 10 or 20 after you make a post I will let you know so that you can roll your result.
On the subject of rolls, I will be rolling for any of the typical stuff that you shouldn't know the result of. Disable device, trap-finding activities, etc. I will also be rolling these in person with real dice. So yes, that means you truly will not know the result, even if you find yourself tempted to peek at a spoiler. :) This will go the same for typical checks hidden from the party like Stealth and the like. Just be forewarned on this. Just because you don't see the roll doesn't mean it didn't happen. This will not only remove excessive spoilers from posts but should lend more of a storytelling feel to the game.
How you all choose to handle loot, gold, etc will be entirely up to you. I leave that for the group to figure out. I will be using some guidelines from the adventure path as well as changes of my own to determine where you are in terms of level. When it is time to level up I will let you know. When leveling up be sure to run any feats or choices by me that do not appear in the Core rule book so I can approve them for play. I’m sure I won’t have a problem with this but I want to make that part clear. When you level you will also have the choice to add (HD/2)+1 in hit points (Just like Pathfinder Society) or tempt fate with me rolling the dice for your HP. In either case the choice will not be reversible.
I will not make you track mundane items like food and water, but anything else must be on your character sheets. I will maintain a copy of these on the Wiki site that will update as the game goes on. You should be tracking encumbrance but you can ignore coin weight unless it is due to loot gained during an adventure. I will assume cash on hand has been exchanged for high denomination coins or trade-able gems.
When you are in a city and there is downtime announced you are free to shop, create items, and so on. I will generally announce how much downtime will be available before the next plot hook takes place and will allow you all some time to handle housekeeping activities. This is also typically when you will be leveling up. Cities will have limits to what can be purchased, so keep that in mind when planning your shopping. You won’t just be able to waltz into a shop and pick up a +2 Giant Bane Greatsword.
In the event that a character dies, and you do not have the means to bring them back to life, that player may choose to create a new character for the game that must adhere to all of the rules I set forth during recruitment. That character will start one level behind the existing party in terms of experience and will at some point catch up and be equal to the party.
With that I will turn it over to the group. Make any adjustments you would like to your backgrounds before we start and come to an agreement on how you met, why you are in Trunau, etc. Before we start I will need to know where each of you spends your nights while in town. There are several available places to stay which can be located in the Player’s Guide. Just because you might be a resident that doesn't mean you own a home.
Good luck and I look forward to the upcoming adventure!
Here I am!
Thanks for having me. ^^
Finch spends his nights in his room at Ivory Hall. Thus is the advantage of being one of Halgra's children.
He takes far more than his fair share of nightly watches, often offering to cover for anyone injured or ill, putting his strong sense of sight to good use.
I bet if I check all of your aliases they are half-elf clerics. :)
Hello, all. Sasha is ready to go when everyone else is. Thank you, Captain, for the invitation to the game.
Loot: I recommend a loot spreadsheet. I'm not too skilled with making such, though I could probably whip something up in a pinch. When it comes to magical items, I'm all for giving them to whoever can make most use of them. In the interest of keeping things on an even keel, they should be "paid for" through loot gained.
Spoilers: I do not read them unless they are addressed to me, or if Sasha can speak the language in question. As I noted in the Recruitment thread, immersion is very important to me.
IC vs. OOC: If I am speaking "in-character," then that is Sasha speaking in reference to the game. I will avoid being outright offensive, but she is very opinionated and may not always agree with everyone else. (or in the Discussion thread), you will find that I am a pleasant fellow and I always try to be polite to my fellow gamers. I try to avoid cluttering the Gameplay thread with [ooc] chatter as much as possible.
Absences: I lead a very active life and there are times I will be unavailable. I will check in at least once a day and will give warning if I know that I will be unable to do so. I trust Captain Tripps to run Sasha in my absence, but I will try to leave general instructions for her.
I try to keep myself a little distanced from loot split. I'll defer to whoever wants to take control of that and merely make my claims. I have a tendency to go overboard and make things too complicated when I get too involved, ruining my own fun and that of others.
Nice to play with you again, Sir Karse. ;)
While in town, Sasha has a room at the Ramblehouse, naturally.
One thing to add for you John, if you missed the messages, was that Rufus' player had the idea of playing children of Halgra. Obviously this is an option not a requirement, and I'm fine with Sasha just the way she is. Honestly, I think any adventure involving giants really needs at least one dwarf and one halfling, so I'm a fan of the character you put together. For pure genetic reasons a halfling wouldn't qualify to be a part of that blood tie.
Just wanted to toss that out there before we got trucking if you had any ideas as to how you might tie into that group. You don't have to, its just an option. :)
A child by adoption, perhaps?
That leads me to wonder: does Halgra have a last name?
Should we get a party mule to help with the carrying? I'm willing to chip in if everyone else is. It always surprises me how restrictive the carrying capacity is.
I like the idea, but I also really like the thought of a little halfling facing down giants. I think I'll stick with Sasha as she is.
"of the Blackened Blades" is all that is ever specified in any of the books referencing her, and I've read them all at this point.
Alright. Guess I'll stick with my own "of the", then.
Last names are a holdover from those silly Taldorians anyway. Titles and surnames are unimportant to the real folk. :)
For the record, I'm pretty busy right now but I should have my spells compiled sometime today or tomorrow.
A heads up: It has dawned on me that I'm about to start playing a Summoner in my tabletop group, and that I really don't want to be playing a summoning focused druid here on top of that.
I've swapped Finch's archetype to Storm Druid from Mountain druid, and his first level feat from Spell Focus(Conjuration) to Improved Initiative.
Thats fine, now is definitely the time to make any adjustments.
Oh right! I wanted to ask.
Would the Family Ties have sufficient impact, or should I choose a different one?
No, that will be just fine for the things I have in store. Evil cackle
It's almost like we got the band back together again!
Almost! :)
I'm hoping that Den drops in soon so I know he's still about. Which reminds me, I need to stop referring to everyone as their old characters. :)
Recruitment will lock soon, and I've already been making some passes. I'm pretty sure at this point I have the group picked, barring any last minute dot follow ups that simply amaze me.
It will definitely be a bit of an unorthodox group this time around. Hoping you all stand a fighting chance against all of the death and dismemberment that I am going to be throwing your way. :)
Ok, the group is set. I'm going to be doing a final once-over with any comments I have. We have three children of Halgra in the group, which should be an interesting angle and will add a fun element to some of the character dynamics.
I'll likely throw up the first post in the gameplay area this morning, but I have a tabletop game today so I likely won't be following up on any posts until later this evening.
I'll also be reaching out after my once-over to discuss any boons your character might have.
Two things to resolve:
@Johan - Need a different drawback. I don't feel the Pride drawback is really that negative to the character. With an 8 CHA and untrained Sense Motive its likely not to come up often, if ever.
@Bellanie - You have 4 traits. Meticulous as a drawback ok, but that still means you have one extra trait you need to dump.
Everyone else should have a message at this point in your inbox with some details about your time in Trunau.
Thank you for choosing me.
Thank you for choosing me.
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Yay, two older brothers to keep me in line. :-P
Wait, uh, question: From what I'd read in the guide, there was nothing against using a hopeknife for other purposes. I was sort of planning on making mine my goto melee weapon.
Roleplay-wise, would I be better off getting another melee weapon?
Also, with a penchant for nicknames and the fact that I've been watching "Animaniacs", as of late, I am very tempted to start refering to Iacobus as "Yakko".
It is against tradition to use a hopeknife as a weapon, however it is not completely unheard of. If your character wants to use their hopeknife as more than a device of ritual suicide I leave that completely up to you. I'm not going to split hairs on that subject at all. Hell, a javelin is mainly for combat, but some have used it for diplomacy.
Ok, that last part was a bit of an inside joke and will make no sense to most of you. :)
Hello everyone, it's great to have the chance to game with you all.
Corentin will be my first attempt at mounted combat. It always seemed interesting but I've always felt most runs don't allow for it too well (oh look another narrow descent into a cave/temple/dungeon). This AP specifically called itself out as being a bit more mount friendly so I figured it was time to give it a shot.
Cor spends most of his evenings at the Ramblehouse where he resides. His days are generally spent on patrol, outriding, caring for Resolute, training or tending the few rose bushes he's managed to get to grow near the Ramblehouse wall.
Cor is the sort of person who is friendly to everyone and generally well liked. This is partially due to his easy going manner but more because he's the type of person who genuinely enjoys helping others without thought of personal gain. He has a good relationship with Cham despite his repeated evasion of her attempts to set him up with "the right girl" (carefully limiting his dalliances to women who, like himself, seek a nights pleasant company rather than something more long term), and with the Grath brothers who respect his martial skill and efforts for the town.
Sasha if you've been staying at the Ramblehouse as well I'm sure the two have made each others acquaintance. Her ruggedness, ties to nature and past tragedy in many ways reflect Corentin's own past (though he rarely speaks in detail about the loss of his company).
As far as loot goes I'm of the mindset that it's best to get items to those who can use them. Beyond that we can split it up. I do like to keep a party fund for things that support the group (healing wands, restoratives and eventually raise deads)
Sasha would probably have acquainted herself with a fellow cavalry member, yes (she has been known to ride her wolf into combat). She is open about her past and would probably have mentioned it on occasion.
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Hello all. Please excuse my tardiness. I have been up at Con Nooga helping run PFS this weekend. Had a good time but am pretty beat. Cons are exhausting. I think I failed my fort save. :) I look forward to the game and gaming with all of you.
Loot: I am ok with any reasonable division. But I have been playing long enough to believe I can propose a fair system. It works like this. If we find something that is on your "Must Have Someday" list then ask for it. If its not contested you get it, and we will track it, charging it to your account at its sell price. If it is contested then we will discuss it. In many cases its very clear and agreeable when two or more people want something that the party will benefit more if one of them get it and it resolves itself. If we really cannot choose, we can let the loot totals decide. Then, as we accumulate wealth the person with the lowest wealth total can spend from the party loot fund for any item up to the maximum of either the most expensive item we have or up to 1/3 of the loot total, whichever is greater. (the 1/3 is negotiable). I can run the spreadsheet if you like. Its not that hard. Crafting makes it a little more complex, but overall adds to party wealth so its a good thing. Thoughts?
Dwarves - Johan is not a dwarf, but was raised by one. That is his campaign trait.
He is currently in town with some dwarves to offer their services (for some compensation I am sure) as mountain scouts. He would be staying with his fellows, likely barracked in some bunkhouse. He is a little green for such assignments, but, since he was human, he was sent along thinking his presence might bridge any cultural issues between dwarves and humans. So far it has not worked well as the beds assigned are way too soft and the beer is hardly suited to wash a good dwarves arse with. But Johan is trying.
On the party mix - First I want people to have fun and play what they want, but I am a little concerned about lack of arcane power. Bards can be very good (we 4 manned a 10-11 this weekend at levels 9-10 partly because we had a good bard). So I am sure it will work out ok, but I will worry. :)
Johan was raised by dwarves. His background has his parents being killed by orcs, but I could change that to maybe only his father was killed and his mother was Halgra. Perhaps she was just too busy adventuring and give him up some dwarves couple who could not have children to be raised?
Drawback - Trips - I am fine with you picking one for me (that is not too crippling. :) )and I'll do my best to play it.
Klan? If those dwarves start lynching people, I will be concerned. :-p
Re: Hopeknife: With that knowledge in mind, I'm going to add a scythe to Finch's gear for use as a melee weapon. I'd rather stick to tradition.
My apologies for being a little late to post as well. My IRL group usually gathers on saturday, but this weekend was special and we were on sunday instead.
@Johan - I'm fine with your parentage as is, but if you want to incorporate Halgra that is fine as well. Since you were raised by dwarves, and they are notoriously stubborn, why don't we consider the Headstrong drawback? It works in a similar fashion to Pride, but makes a little more sense to me at least. And I know for a fact you can play a Headstrong character. :)
I think dwarves refer to themselves as clans, but how you want to flavor that is totally up to you. Note, orcs use clans as well, so that is a common grouping in this specific AP!
May take me a bit to post. I'm still trying to get a hang of exactly how Finch thinks and acts, and I have evening class class tonight.
Posting as soon as I get a chacne.
Excuses excuses! I'm going to whip Shawn when I talk to him tonight. Bellanie has been far too absent already. Getting my "you are voted off the island" speech ready!
Heh, you and me both. I think I have five runs awaiting him atm. `Suppose we all get busy sometimes :)
Checkin' in. Oh so sorry for the delay. Catching up and posting soon.
Oh! Thanks for pointing that out. I'd missed that one instance of Mountain when I switch.
I liked the environmental part of Mountain Druid for this campaign, but the Storm Druid was more in line with how I intended to play Finch.
Alright, think I am all caught up.
For loot, we can use my sheets that I use for all my other games. Ideas/suggestions welcome, but essentially this splits up the loot amongst the seven of us minus anything we denote as party loot. The only nifty thing it doesn't do is automatically adjust for any negatives that people take too much loot so those have to be handled manually. Otherwise, from what others have suggested this should meet our needs: LINK
@Trips I removed the reactionary trait (it was a hold over from another recruitment) also made the adjustments in your message.
For Bellanie, she has also been staying at the Rumblehouse and with Sasha and her both being halfling I think it makes sense that the two of them are already very friendly. Otherwise, she is pretty common in the tavern and often "sings for her supper" when she wants something a little nicer. Would also very likely know Cor from them both staying at the Rumblehouse.
Any one who is willing to handle that is good in my book.
Thank you for offering, Bellanie.
I agree with Iaco. I don't really mind how we handle loot so long as it's fair and I don't have to do a ton of it myself. :P
And the hammer drops!
I know we're only a few days in but I wanted to take a second say that this is really kicking off to be a great group and AP. I'm loving all the different characters and am looking forward to seeing them develop.
The AP itself has a nice start with some time to build some attachment to the town leading to our current murder mystery. Should make for some good character ties to NPCs and the area.
Plus to top it all of the posts are flowing nicely. Pretty much an all around win :)
FYI, we are getting a lot of party split without any sort of arrangement to meet up and share information. I'd definitely prefer to have some sort of plan there before everyone scatters to the four winds.
I agree with Captain Trips here.
I'm pretty much at a loss to post right now, because I've completely lost track of who's doing what, and everyone is going everywhich way.
I believe we currently have :
Upstairs in the Ramblehouse : Cor, Finch, Sasha, Bella and Jo
Just outside the Ramblehouse and headed to the temple : Hannah
Off to see a girl : Iacobus
I think we're about done in the room so we can all head out and pickup Hannah on the way to share info. I'm not sure where Iacobus actually is physically at this point though. Did he come in the Ramblehouse or did he leave from when we were speaking in the alley?
If I'm not mistaken, Cor, Sasha, Bellanie, Johan and Finch are still at the Ramblehouse in the room, Hannah is outside talking to towns folk but going to look for a book and Katrezra, Iacobus is looking for Bryina. I think?