Lets try and keep as much outta game talk in here rather than in the gameplay thread.
Will do. :)
I will do my best.
Roger.
Sure thing. :)
Gotcha
Gameplay is up
I'm guessing we were expecting a different scene.
What do we know about Tweyd? What were we expecting to see when the town came into view?
It was supposed to be a small fortified town that was the westernmost border of ancient Kodiakborne lands. Few if anyone in the caravan has been there but the chief supposedly grew up with Savol and are old friends. All told a town this size should have at least one hundred people living here.
Wow. the electronic dice don't like str rolls so far.
Question for the DM, does my mount/companion start out at max hit points?
Yes then 1/2 die +1 (d6=4,d8=5,etc) plus modifier
Thanks
I'm still waiting for Ishram to join us but I think I'll continue without him for now.
Fumbles for everyone!
Ah well, best to get them out of the way before any combat begins. :)
Question: How well do our characters know each other at this point?
Looking at backstories, it seems that Zethyris, Jediah (maybe?), and Rutilux have been with Savol for quite a while, Isham had been with Savol until the last two years, and Anastasiya may have had occasional contact with them. Dagmar's brother may have been known to those five. Then we have Andreas and Julian who have just recently joined.
Just wondering how much we need to do in the way of introduction, and what the dynamic between the characters who have been around for a while is.
Related question (for DM): how large was Savol's following previous to this? What would the minimum amount of contact be? (Knowing names, complete strangers, acquaintances, etc.)
Indeed. I am the noodle-armed paladin, unable to lift wilted flowers without the aide of an intricate pulley system.
I think we would all be on knowing each other's names at least
@Andreas - Well, you are a pally of Shelyn...
@Zethyris - Good question and I do think it likely those that had been with Savol for a good amount of time would have known Dagmar's big brother.
Question: How well do our characters know each other at this point?
Dagmar and Andreas liked met soon after he arrived in the LotLK, due to their shared friendship with Jild.
Great questions.
Before Savol left for the North he had somewhere around two hundred followers, of them only about one hundred and forty came with him including you all.
The way I see it with that many people it is possible for you to know everyone but probably not too well. Ill leave it up to you whether you bothered to get to know other characters or kept to yourselves.
It seems to me that Zethyris would know Jediah, Rutilux, and Isham, as well as Dagmar's brother. (Possibly heard of Dagmar from him?) Not sure how long Jediah or Rutilux have been with Savol, but if it has been more than two years I assume they remember Isham.
I guess the four of us (Zethyris, Jediah, Rutilux, Isham) just get to roleplay out our current relationships.
EDIT: Additional question: Ulfen language==Skald ? I want to know if I can read the spoilers :D
That sounds good to me. I'm sure Jediah knows Zethyris,etc in a comrade in arms kind of way
Julian's the new kid with too much to prove, I'd say.
Very likely that Jild and Dagmar have had a few late night gossip sessions featuring Andreas.
Very likely Dagmar's brother (Valborg or Val for short) would have spoken of her.
Yeah Ulfen = Skald I thought I corrected that. Guess I better check my other notes for consistency.
Both Julian and Andreas have much to prove, I'd think. Might be grounds for a bond, though they would differ in their approaches to handling situations despite sharing many of the same driving principles. Perhaps a friendly rivalry would be more likely, butting heads from time to time.
I like that. Paladin/Ninja bonding, heh.
@Jediah - Thinking that Zethyris and Jediah may have bonded a bit due to half-breed nature, the taunting and bullying they received from it, and such. Zethyris would admire Jediah's strength and ability to weather difficulty. Probably the character Zethyris got to know the most.
@Zethyris
Sounds good to me. Perhaps both are searching for a good home and stability.
good to see you all eager to set up some inter-character relations.
And please lemme know if you want any specific info on the caravan or NPCs and such.
I'm so glad I spent that point in linguistics to get Skald.
apologies for holding up the works - I'm here and eager to move forward.
@Rutilux - I know what you mean. I was wracking the character background for a reason, but couldn't come up with a solid reason for Skald. I also couldn't avoid Polyglot from way, way, way down south... <sigh>
Hmm, I just realized that I forgot to choose what languages Anastasiya speaks. Since she comes from Irrisen, it makes sense that she would speak Skald natively.
How is this handled crunch-wise?
Do I get only common for free and have to by my own native language with my INT bonus language? Or do I get both common and my native language for free and can choose another language as my bonus language?
The rules seem to imply the former, but it seems somewhat strange to me that low INT characters would speak common but not the native language of their home lands.
From the recruitment page:
yes I give home regional language free.
Thanks!
I'm going to have to drop a rank in Linguistics at level 2 to pick up Skald, but I couldn't justify the language given my character background either. Oh well.
Are all the bloody trails leading off in the same general direction?
How many soldiers does Bron have at hand?
How does that compare to the original town's defense?
How many outriders does Nayl have?
How big were the groups they split up to?
How do we (the PCs) compare to the rest of the caravan in combat experience?
(I.e. is the average soldier/outrider higher level than us?)
OK, i'm feeling foolish. I was just putting together a 'scorecard' of the characters, with links to profiles & such. Then it occurred to me that I was duplicating the service already available in the 'characters' tab. <sigh>
Character backgrounds and relationships:
Anastasiya - Isham has seen Anastasiya as part of Soval's crew once or twice on the Inner Sea, and heard more about her whil he served with Soval.
Rutilux - Isham has had experience from earlier years, and has positive impressions, and regard for the relationships he knows Rutilux has with Soval's sub-commanders.
Zatherys - is also known to Isham. Isham understands Zatherys has different skills than standard troopers, and has some understanding of where and when he's useful.
Dagmar - Isham knew Valborg from earlier days with Savol, and was saddened to hear of his passing. He hasn't had much opportunity to get to know Dagmar yet, but has a protective regard for her already, and a growing respect for her abilities.
Jediah, Julian, Andreas - Isham sees these folks as new comrades, in the same way as the many others in Savol's horde that he's coming to know. Jediah is interesting, as Isham's experience with half-orcs is somewhat limited. Similarly, Andreas's Chellish background and Julian's Tian heritage are something Isham is intrigued by, and would like to explore.
Savol's Horde: numbers are approximate
Regular infantry (40) - mix of Ulfen raiders, Varissian woodwind and other general fighters
Heavy Infantry (20) - Phalanx of dwarven soldiers from Bron's clan, the Cleft Hammers
Irregulars (25) - Soldiers with special skill-sets or magic
Outriders (20) - Mounted skirmishers and archers (these are Savol's most elite soldiers)
Camp Followers (35) - Support personnel
the trails lead in two directions, north and southwest. Nayl split his outriders evenly to follow both trails.
The town would have had maybe twenty soldiers but mostly able bodied men and women as all Ulfen are expected to be able to defend themselves
You all have class levels. Except for named NPCs all are NPC classes at
Rutilux - Isham has had experience from earlier years, and has positive impressions, and regard for the relationships he knows Rutilux has with Soval's sub-commanders.
One thing I just noticed, both Isham and Rutilux seem to have an orderly streak.With Rutilux, despite his NG alignment, the reason for his orderly tendencies is chiefly heritage. Cheliaxians as a sterotype are orderly people, and despite his disdain for what has happened to his family's homeland, Rutilux can't quite escape that.
He's not anal or anything, but compared to many Ulfen (again, stereotypes here) he probably does look more straight laced. :)
For Isham, it seems to be professionalism, if I'm reading that right.
@Rutilux - good read. Isham is very intent at this point on proving his value in the northlands, despite having been a shipboard marine, and still invisibly junior when Savol was in the southern seas. He was a junior NCO at home, and was very discouraged by lack of professionalism in his 'senior' ranks. So he wants his early impressions to be effective, professional, and 'on the team'.
Isham also has some special abilities tied in with his freebooter archetype that are tied into a combat unit.
I'll try putting up something like Isham's character relation post.
Jediah - Zethyris is well acquainted with the half-orc, and the two have bonded due to their histories of being bullied and marginalized for their half-breed statuses.
Rutilux - Zethyris knows Rutilux as a noble soldier in Savol's group. The two have not had a large amount of contact, but Zethyris has shared time with Rutilux to feel comfortable around him.
Isham - Though it has been two years, Zethyris remembers Isham's name and face. They did not have much contact, but Zethyris recalls Isham leading boarding parties back in the pirate-hunting days.
Anastasiya - Zethyris never really met Anastasiya on the sporadic trips to Absalom. He knows her name, but not her face, as Savol mentioned her on occasion.
Dagmar - I was thinking Zethyris was friends with Valborg, if that works with your backstory. I'm not sure what you were visualizing, but my idea was that their love of adventure brought them together. Frequent drinking partners, they were often the first ones into the fray. Valborg's death shattered Zethyris's youthful sense of immortality and tempered his recklessness and impatience with caution. Zethyris heard of Dagmar from Valborg. Not sure what sort of things he would have heard, but he knows her name and how much Valborg cared for her. Zethyris will be mildly protective of her, as she is the sister of his friend.
Julian, Andreas - Newcomers, Zethyris knows nothing about them. Starting from a clean slate.
Even after rolling him up I had no idea Julian would be this fun to play, heh! What an insolent little shit.
I like him already :)
By the way, Stealth to look for tracks?
So he is just using this "looking for tracks" as a pretense to wander off and hide?
Seems like him.
I like him already :)
By the way, Stealth to look for tracks?
So he is just using this "looking for tracks" as a pretense to wander off and hide?
Seems like him.
Mostly dead on. He's wandering off, and trying to do so without notice, but does want to search for tracks once he's away from the group.
Even after rolling him up I had no idea Julian would be this fun to play, heh! What an insolent little s+%@.
Yes. Yes he is. :P
That's OK, though, Andreas is more than capable of being a sanctimonious a#!. We'll be fine.
This game is definitely going to have some interesting party dynamics. We should probably all try to get a character relation post up, similar to Isham's. I thin it'll help us develop our characters' personalities and perspectives.
That +10 to intimidate... 20 charisma is pretty scary :D
@Julian Haha, he's quite the jerk right now. Insult all his elders, almost get in a fight with a half-orc. Sounds like a good day. ;)
That +10 to intimidate... 20 charisma is pretty scary :D
* nods silently *
As a teenager, he is VERY SURE he is right.
As a player, I am wondering why we are stopping and resting now ...just for flavor is there a game mechanic involved?