Mothman's Adventures in Darkmoon Vale game

Game Master Mothman

Adventures in Darkmoon Vale


1 to 50 of 386 << first < prev | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | next > last >>
Liberty's Edge

Male Mothman Expert 5

Discussion thread for our Darkmoon Vale campaign. We can start discussing character concepts and do character creation here.

Post to this thread to confirm your interest in the game. I believe we have six players; Nevynxxx, Aubrey, Pixie Rogue, Aardvark, therealthom, and Brashen (who plays in my face to face Skull and Shackles game and has played in some of my past pbp games). No further players needed at this point.

Shortly (hopefully) I’ll post up some character creation guidelines, and later in the week I’ll post up some additional campaign information which may also help inform character concepts or details.

Liberty's Edge

Male Mothman Expert 5

Darkmoon Vale Character Creation

The adventure begins in the small town of Falcon’s Hollow, a small town in the Darkmoon Vale region of northern Andoran. The town is almost wholly owned and operated by the Lumber Consortium, who oversee large scale logging operations in the nearby Darkmoon Wood, and is, as far as most of its residents are concerned, a rather poor and miserable place. Darkmoon Wood is an old and forbidding forest, famed for its great number of valuable darkwood trees, and inhabited by hordes of ravenous wolves, devious fey, and fearsome beasts – or so whisper the fearful townsfolk of Falcon’s Hollow.

Ability Score Generation
I suggest a 15 point buy, but if players prefer they may use the 4d6 method (drop the lowest, 6 times, assign as preferred), with rolls to be made using the dice roller in this thread.

Classes
All Core classes allowed. Non-core base classes will be considered on a case by case basis.
Below are some suggestions on how different classes might fit into the area or the campaign. If a class is not listed, it either doesn’t fit well with the region or campaign style, or I’m not familiar with it (or both). However, just because a class is not listed below, it doesn’t mean it can’t be chosen for play, it just may need more discussion.

Alchemist: There aren’t many alchemists in Falcon’s Hollow – glassware and reagents are expensive in such a small, out of the way town, and most locals put greater trust in traditional herb lore than ‘new-fangled’ alchemy. However, Darkmoon Wood is said to be home to many rare plants and herbs, many of which might be just as useful to an alchemist as a herbalist.

Barbarian: Barbarians are few and far between within the borders of civilised Andoran, even in out of the way areas like Darkmoon Vale. Barbarians in Falcon’s Hollow (if any) might be half-orc outcasts from one of the orc clans in the mountains north of the Vale; ‘wild man of the woods’ type loners; or drunken brawlers who fight better when they’re really angry.

Bard: There are few opportunities to make a living as an entertainer amongst the grim lumberjacks and poor townsfolk of Falcon’s Hollow, although reasonably comely young men or women willing to dance in revealing (or no) clothes or sell their bodies at the Rouge Lady in town can bring in enough coin to get by. Some bards may seek employment with Quinn’s Carnival, a travelling fair that traditionally winters near Falcon’s Hollow. More scholarly bards might come to the region to learn its history and stories.

Cavalier: Cavaliers are common enough in Andoran, though few make the ride up as far north as Falcon’s Hollow. A cavalier might be looking out for the Andoran government’s interests in dealing with the Lumber Consortium, or aiming to protect the ‘innocent’ locals from the machinations of the same. Or they might just want to slay monsters.
Note: Although a Darkmoon Vale campaign is sure to include a lot of wilderness adventuring, it is also likely to include a lot of dungeon adventuring, meaning that a cavalier (or other characters for that matter) is likely to have to leave his or her mount behind for significant parts of the game.

Cleric: Religion is not a significant part of life for most people in Falcon’s Hollow. There is a small and under-resourced church of Iomedae in town, but the Lumber Consortium strongly discourages its workers from worshipping there. Despite not having proper churches in the town, the worship of Gozreh or Sarenrae are more popular than Iomedae. Other religions might be represented by a small shrine at the rear of a shop or in the countryside near the town at best. A cleric PC who worships Iomedae or a closely aligned god may be based at the church of Iomedae, or if a follower of another deity they might tend one of the small shrines, or be hoping to build up enough money and influence to build a church of their own. An itinerant cleric might have travelled to Falcon’s Hollow having heard rumours of a sickness sweeping through the town, or even more vague rumours of undead having been seen in the region.

Druid: A druidic circle called the Greenfire Circle operates within Darkmoon Vale, with some members of this circle dwelling in or close to Darkmoon Wood, and often acting as intermediaries between the Lumber Consortium and the fey of the forest. Rumours abound of one or more evil druid circles also operating in the region. Most druids in the region follow the Green Faith (though some may worship gods such as Gozreh or even Erastil instead).

Fighter: Fighters in Falcon Hollow might be well paid by the Lumber Consortium as guards or stand-over men; they might find employment as bouncers at the Rouge Lady or the Sitting Duck tavern; they might be deputies of the town’s sheriff; former lumberjacks who have decided to trade splitting timber for splitting skulls; lone members of the Andoran’s Diamond Regiment on a rare mission north of the River Foam (or deserters from that regiment); or simply mercenaries passing through.

Inquisitor: Falcon’s Hollow – far from the centre of Andoran civilisation and without a powerful church – has been known in the past to be something of a magnet for heretics, cultists and members of fringe or outlawed religions. Established religions may send an inquisitor into the area looking out for such individuals, or to investigate rumours of dangerous cults growing in the area.

Oracle: Oracles don’t need a reason to be somewhere – usually they don’t even have a choice in the matter. After all, the gods choose them, not the other way around.

Paladin: A paladin character may be associated with the town’s church of Iomedae, or may have travelled to the area hoping to protect the townsfolk of Falcon’s Hollow from monsters or injustice.

Ranger: The Lumber Consortium employs a number of rangers to explore Darkmoon Wood, seeking out new copses of darkwood trees, or to kill fey or dangerous forest monsters that might attack its workers or operations. Other rangers actively oppose the Consortium, or independently patrol the areas around Falcon’s Hollow to try to keep the town safe. Some rangers in Darkmoon Vale belong to a group called the Aspodell Rangers (these hunt giants in the mountains between Andoran and Cheliax, west of the Vale), while others belong to the Fangwatch (who hunt werewolves in the Arthfell Forest in the southern part of the Vale). However neither organisation tends to operate in the area around Falcon’s Hollow or Darkmoon Wood.

Rogue: Falcon’s Hollow is the sort of place where people who are trying to escape their past (or their crimes) tend to end up; as such it has more than its fair share of roguish types. Rogues of dubious morals might find work with the Lumber Consortium or the half-orc business owner, money-lender and crime boss Kabran Bloodeye, while others might try to make a more honest living.

Sorcerer: Arcane magic users tend to be viewed with some suspicion in Falcon’s Hollow, and sorcerers tend to keep a low profile, although they are common enough. Many sorcerers born in this region tend to have fey, draconic (particularly red, green or copper) or elemental (often fire, earth or air, but rarely water) bloodlines, though others are possible.

Witch: Witches are no better (and perhaps worse) than sorcerers in the minds of most in Falcon’s Hollow. This prejudice perhaps stems in part from tales told of Ulizmila, the witch of Darkmoon Wood, who is said by some to be a grand-daughter of Baba Yaga, and is rumoured to have the ower to kill with a word, turn a man into a goat, and to shoot lightning from her eyes. Some witches have been known to travel to the area to try to seek out Ulizmila, hoping to learn from her, although it is said she will demand in trade the thing the aspirant is most loathe to give up. There are other local witches apart from Ulizmila – many strange things come out of Darkmoon Wood, including from time to time, talking animals that offer to impart the power of mysterious patrons.

Wizard: Wizards are given perhaps a little more respect than sorcerers or witches locally, given that one of Falcon’s Hollow’s more prominent (and wealthy) citizens, Sharvaros Vade is a wizard, although most locals think of the man as odd at best and sinister at worst. Wizard PCs might be former apprentices of the man (although he probably taught them more about cleaning his tower, cooking his meals and looking after his neglected son than actual magic), or they may have come to the region hoping to find old magic or lore amongst the ruins said to be found in the area.

Races
All Core races allowed. Non-core races will be considered on a case by case basis, but unusual races are not likely to be welcomed with open arms in Falcon’s Hollow.

Humans: Are by far the most populous people of Falcon’s Hollow – well over 90% of the town’s population is human, a percentage greater than the Andoran norm. Most humans in the Vale come from Chelish stock, although Ulfen blood is also readily evident, with a smattering of other ethnicities represented.

Dwarves: Some say that the region now known as Darkmoon Vale was once part of a dwarven kingdom, and there are said to be dwarven ruins around Droskar’s Crag and the hills north of Darkmoon Wood, but the kingdom is long since gone. Very few dwarves live in Falcon’s Hollow, although a few dwarven families of farmers or miners do dwell out in the hinterlands, and occasionally dwarven traders or archaeologists come down from the still existent dwarven kingdoms further north in the Five Kings Mountains.

Elves: Although there have traditionally been no significant elven settlements in the region since at least the long ago Age of Darkness, in recent years several groups and individuals have moved into the area. At least some of these elves seem to be trying to oppose the logging operations in Darkmoon Wood or establish contact with the fey of the forest. These goals tend to make elves in the area unpopular with the human majority, and even those elves who know nothing of the so called ‘elven agenda’ tend to be viewed with suspicion.

Gnomes: Few gnomes live in Falcon’s Hollow, but some are said to dwell amongst the forest fey, and others are connected to the Greenfire Circle. Gnomes who do dwell in or visit Falcon’s Hollow are often thought to be spies of the fey, and are treated accordingly, even when it is not the case.

Half Elves: Where you have humans and elves, you tend to have half elves. Despite the prejudice many non-humans receive from the majority of humans in Falcon’s Hollow, half elves tend to be viewed quite favourably, and some even achieve positions of prominence in town, such as Sheriff Deldrin Baleson.

Half Orcs: More than a few half orcs – outcasts in many places – end up in towns like Falcon’s Hollow. As the race has a reputation for physical strength and toughness (even if this is not accurate 100% of the time), half orcs actually tend to do quite well in Falcon’s Hollow, usually able to find work as lumberjacks or hired thugs working for the Lumber Consortium or half orc crime boss Kabran Bloodeye.

Halflings: Probably the next most populous race in Falcon’s Hollow after humans (although still only a tiny percentage of the population), many halflings in Darkmoon Vale have fled across the Aspodell with Cheliax, escaping slavery. Unfortunately, in areas controlled by the Lumber Consortium there is less focus on the Andoran ideals of freedom and more on making folk work as hard as possible for as little coin, and many halflings find low paid drudge work only marginally a step above slavery. To add insult, halflings seem to have an undeserved reputation in the Vale of being lazy and shifty.

Alignments
PCs should choose an alignment that would make them willing to help others (although not necessarily without reward).

Traits
Each character may begin the game with two traits. One can be chosen from the Advance Players Guide or any appropriate source (although campaign traits from other campaigns will generally not be suitable). The other trait should ideally be chosen from the below list of ‘Darkmoon Vale Campaign Traits’ – but let me know if none of these suit your character concept. Most of these traits either give a character a reason to be in town and/or provide a bit of background to the first adventure. I have no problem with adjusting the ‘fluff’ of these traits to better suit character backgrounds – for example, quite a few of these traits assume the character is a visitor to Falcon’s Hollow rather than a local, but for the most part they probably work just as well (or better) for local characters.
Note that these traits were originally published in Wayfinder Magazine Volume 2, credited to Mark Becker (arazyr).

Bad Day in Town

You live somewhere in Darkmoon Vale and had to come in to Falcon's Hollow recently to purchase supplies, sell goods, hire some help, or some other mundane reason. You'd been in town for a couple of days before you heard about the sickness going around, and found yourself beginning to cough. Catching this disease steeled your resolve.

Benefit: You begin play infected with blackscour taint; assume you have only had to make one saving throw so far and failed, thus beginning with 1 point of Constitution damage. You gain a +1 trait bonus to Will saving throws, which increases to +3 as long as you are infected by blackscour taint.

Company Lumberjack

You have been logging in the Darkmoon Wood for a few years now, and whether you were born there or not, Falcon's Hollow has become as close to home as any place you could name. You frequently come into town for supplies, but this time there is something different. The town has never been what you would describe as friendly, but people are even less outgoing than normal. You have heard some rumors about people getting sick lately, but the coughing is more widespread than you would have expected.

Benefit: Your years as a lumberjack may not help with what is going around, but it has given you a great deal of experience with an axe. You deal an extra 1 point of damage when using any sort of axe.

Family Hero (Dwarf only)

Your family tells stories of a great heroic ancestor of yours, and you have traced the route of his or hers quests along a long and winding path. The journey was long, but you used the time to study about the history and current affairs of the region.

Benefit: You get a +1 trait bonus to all Knowledge (history), Knowledge (local) and Knowledge (religion) checks.

Infected Family Member

You have always been very hardy, but one or more members of your family have recently fallen ill. You have seen—and heard—a number of other people around town with similar symptoms – hacking coughs that eventually produce blood if not treated. No real cure has been found, but most of the people in town have been turning to Laurel, proprietor of Roots and Remedies, for poultices and spiced teas they say seem to help.

Benefit: You have always been very healthy; you get a +1 trait bonus to Fortitude saving throws.

Pathfinder Recruit

You were discovered at an early age by an agent of the Pathfinder Society due to your natural talent with a critical adventuring skill. The local Pathfinder Venture Captain sent you to investigate rumors of ancient Azlanti ruins in Darkmoon Wood.

Benefit: Pick one of the following skills: Disable Device, Diplomacy, Handle Animal, Heal, Intimidate, Perception, Spellcraft, or Stealth. You gain a +1 trait bonus in that skill, and that skill is always considered a class skill for you.

Scion of the Light

Your family can trace its genealogy back to a notable hero of the Shining Crusade. While not all of your ancestors lived up to the progenitor’s legacy, you show great potential. Your patron, a religious figure with ties to the Crusaders of Lastwall, sent you to Darkmoon Vale after receiving visions of a great evil in service to the Whispering Tyrant taking refuge in the area. You are to do whatever you can to ensure its plans are foiled.

Benefit: You received a special blessing: any time you rest to heal, you recover an additional number of hit points equal to your Constitution bonus. This additional healing is not increased by resting for an entire day, nor with a successful Heal check.

Werewolf Hunter

You spent a great deal of your life hunting lycanthropes. You may have lost a loved one to a werewolf attack, or you survived an attack by one yourself, and you have sworn to prevent this from happening to anyone else. To that end, you procured a silvered weapon. You came to Falcon's Hollow to pick up this weapon from a local smith just as the town seems to be coming down with some sort of plague.

Benefit: Choose one weapon (not a double weapon) with which you are proficient; you start play with an alchemically silvered version of this weapon.

Starting Gold
Use average for class

Background
It would be useful (though not essential) if the characters had some sort of connection to each other (or to at least one other character in the group) prior to the campaign starting. Characters could be family members, long-time friends, they might work together, or they may have had a chance meeting due to recent circumstances. It may also be useful (though again, not essential), if one or more characters had some connection to an authority figure in Falcon’s Hollow (such as Sheriff Baleson or Lady Cirthana of the church of Iomedae) and / or if they had a family member or close friend sick with the disease (known as blackscour taint) that is spreading through town.

Liberty's Edge

Male Mothman Expert 5

Just to let you all know, I am going in for heart surgery in mid-May, and probably won’t have the opportunity (or inclination) to post for a week or so following the surgery. I figure it will take a couple of weeks for people to pin down character concepts and create their characters, and it seems kind of silly to start the game then need to go on hiatus for a week or more almost immediately, so I propose we aim to finalise character creation and kick off the campaign thread somewhere towards the end of May.

Dark Archive

Wintergreen's CE PA IT Geek 10/Daddy 9/Physicist 3/Cartographer 1/Runner 3/Cub Scout Leader 2/Musician 1

Yipee!

Sounds like a good plan.

Mothers if I don't get chance to say it before then, I hope all goes well with the surgery.


Aye! Here's hoping all goes well with your procedure; I don't care how common they become, 'heart surgery' just gives me a shiver. That said, a friend just went through a successful heart transplant and both of my in-laws have had very successful procedures at rather advanced age for such things, so I know the odds are better than instinct would indicate.

Godspeed. Listen to your doctor and do what s/he says.


Mixed Umm, Aardvark.. DUH! Barbarian 8/ Senator 2/ Pope 5

Yes, much dispensing of well-wishes for successful medical procedures from this earth-pig born.


Cookie Jar Pilferer 9 ; Dimensional Explorer 4

Best of luck with the surgery, Mothman. I hope it goes really well.

Liberty's Edge

Male Mothman Expert 5

Thanks guys. I am relatively young, not overweight, don't drink excessively, don't smoke, eat well and lead a relatively healthy life style, so there is no reason the surgery shouldn't go well - but then, by the same metric there's no reason I should be having heart problems requiring surgery so ... Anyway, I think it will be ok.


Mixed Umm, Aardvark.. DUH! Barbarian 8/ Senator 2/ Pope 5

I personally love the randomness of rolling for ability scores, but I can play with 15 pt buy just as well.

If we roll:
4d6 - 2 ⇒ (6, 5, 5, 2) - 2 = 16
4d6 - 1 ⇒ (3, 4, 6, 1) - 1 = 13
4d6 - 3 ⇒ (4, 6, 3, 3) - 3 = 13
4d6 - 1 ⇒ (2, 1, 2, 5) - 1 = 9
4d6 - 2 ⇒ (5, 2, 6, 4) - 2 = 15
4d6 - 2 ⇒ (3, 5, 2, 5) - 2 = 13

I would like to play a Half-elven Lame Loracle that I failed to get into a few PbP's before.

The profile was already built a while ago, I would just need to update it. I would likely take Bad Day in Town or Infected Family Member (Father).

Oliver Hoffman

The Exchange

No peeking, please Rarely Accountant 2/Auditor 4/Waster 30

Hi Mothy, along with everyone else I hope the operation goes fine. But on to more serious matters - I'm thinking half-orc brawler, multi-classing with barbarian.

Liberty's Edge

Male Mothman Expert 5

Right, so far we have:
therealthom thinking of playing a warrior type (barbarian, ranger or fighter) who uses an axe and shield and is nasty, narrow, shallow and sallow;
Aardvark wanting to play a half elf Oracle of Lore – the character is generally built but needs a bit of campaign modification;
Aubrey is thinking of playing a half orc brawler, multiclassing as barbarian.

All fine choices so far, it looks like we have melee combat well covered at least.

Liberty's Edge

Male Mothman Expert 5

Therealthom, any of those classes would be suitable for the campaign, though ranger might be the best fit. The personality you describe would certainly fit right in to Falcon’s Hollow, but might present some obstacles to the ‘hook’ for the first (and to some extent second) adventure – as written, the PCs are kind of doing things out of the goodness of their hearts. Now, depending on the party composition I can change things if necessary, otherwise the character may need to have some other built in reason for helping the town (taking the ‘bad day in town’ or ‘infected family member’ traits are possible reasons, but there could be others).

Liberty's Edge

Male Mothman Expert 5

Aardvark, the dice rolls are fine if you want to use them – either way. The character looks fine, though I assume you may be making some tweaks. The skill selection looks good, but you should check the numbers, some of the modifier totals don’t look right to me, though I may be missing something, (such as trait bonuses). You may wish to reconsider Thassilonian as a language choice for this campaign, as we will be unlikely to veer into territory that Thassilon ever had any dominion over.

In regards to the background:

Spoiler:
You could probably keep things similar to what you have now, with a few tweaks. Falcon’s Hollow is not a nice, friendly town like the one mentioned in your character background, but your character may well find something that attracts him to the place – there are good people there. The town’s apothecary, Laurel, could fill the role of Tesserae from your background. There is no town hall or town council as such, but your character could be taking notes for the town magistrate or sheriff.

Edit: Dex bonus to AC also looks off, but I assume you will be adjusting ability scores anyway.

Liberty's Edge

Male Mothman Expert 5

Aubrey, I’m not overly familiar with the brawler class, but based on a quick browse it looks fairly straightforward and the sort of class that fits well with a place like Falcon’s Hollow - I have no problem with it. If you are planning to multiclassing as barbarian, you might consider the Brutal Pugilist archetype from the Advanced Players Guide, there could be some good synergy (or maybe too much overlap, I’m not sure really).

Dark Archive

Wintergreen's CE PA IT Geek 10/Daddy 9/Physicist 3/Cartographer 1/Runner 3/Cub Scout Leader 2/Musician 1

I'd like to go Witch, there's a feat in the old Campaign Setting that is Darkmoon Vale specific that buffs a bird, which I think translates to "Master of Falconry" which would work well with a hawk familiar.....

not got much more than that, but a de-buffer would seem to fit in well with what we have so far.

Probably go for either the Elemental or Animal patron, depending on if we get a blasty caster at all.....


As always, I'm bouncing around a number of ideas.

Bard of as-yet-undetermined race, probably human or half-elf, using the Pathfinder Recruit trait, playing the part of the down-on-his-luck itinerant entertainer - which is pretty much what he's been ever since he hit town. Primary interests: Knowledge, Buffing allies, Investigating things

Leading me to a new-to-me class, investigator, the alchemist-rogue hybrid, possibly with the sleuth archetype, the Pathfinder Recruit trait, and either human or halfling race.

A straight-up skill-monkey rogue would not be out of the question, but I'm unsure of the trait - perhaps A Bad Day in Town - likely human or half-elven.

I always like rangers, but I think that role has been sufficient covered, so I move on.

Of course, the aforementioned blasty-caster can always be fun. Arcanist as a class looks interesting, but a narrowly-focused wizard would be easier to manage with my time issues lately.

I'm not married to any of these, so if Brashen has something s/he wishes to play or wants to cherry-pick from these ideas, they are available for the taking. Just makes my selection easier if one is already done.


Mixed Umm, Aardvark.. DUH! Barbarian 8/ Senator 2/ Pope 5

Mothman,

Some of the numbers that may be off are likely based on my revelations.

I have one that uses my Chr instead of my Dex for AC and Reflex

Another allows me to use my Chr instead of Int for knowledge skills.

The backstory was last written for a Reign of Winter campaign, so it will be tweaked (same as stats based off my rolls), to fit the campaign. I just didn't make any changes until I knew you were okay with me using the profile.

Liberty's Edge

Male Mothman Expert 5

Nevynxxx, a witch character seems fairly thematically appropriate to me for this campaign. I have no issues with the Falconry feat.

People have played witches in the last two campaigns for my main face-to-face group. The witch in Curse of the Crimson Throne seemed really powerful / effective, whereas the guy who played the witch in Carrion Crown found the class limited compared to wizard. Neither played particularly 'blasty' witches, so I'm not sure if the comparison helps - just my two cents.

Liberty's Edge

Male Mothman Expert 5

PR, bard or skill-monkey rogue would be fine, and either of them could fill a useful role in the party and the campaign. I'm not overly familiar with investigator (I still haven't cracked open my copy of Advanced Class Guide), but I wouldn't have a problem with the class. Note my comments above on alchemist, which may apply to a degree to this class too. Also note that the adventures I am planning on running are mostly more 'action' based than investigation (but being good at knowledge and similar skills is always an advantage regardless).

I don't see a major problem if you wanted to go ranger - if therealthom does go with ranger I get the impression his character will likely be a melee and strength skill focused guy, you could very easily play a ranged combat and dex / wisdom skill based ranger, almost fitting more of the bard role - just a thought.

Yes, blaster wizards (or sorcerers) are always fun.

Any of the races mentioned would be fine.

If and when Brashen joins us (he has a new baby in the family, so may be a bit time poor), I'm sure he'll be happy to work around whatever others have decided.

Liberty's Edge

Male Mothman Expert 5

Aardvark - no worries, I figured I was probably missing something - didn't consider revelations. Happy for you to use the profile.

Reign of Winter is the one Paizo AP I have not read at all (most I've read, played or at least skimmed), so if anyone was thinking of starting a campaign ...


The investigator's sleuth archetype actually trades the alchemy for a pool of luck points that are used similarly to a gunslinger's grit or swashbuckler's panache to possibly enhance a roll or perform a special deed. I actually thought the class was a combination of rogue and bard, not rogue and alchemist, so it may not be quite what I had in mind.

I would be fine with a more scout-and-stealth-oriented, skill-monkey, ranged weapon sort of ranger, but I will wait to see what therealthom's plans really are before I set anything in stone. I do suspect a trapfinder would be a useful individual in the party, though.

Has Brashen provided any hints regarding his preference? Or does he typically play a certain type?

As you pointed out earlier, there's no crushing hurry, I just enjoy this aspect of the game - brainstorming the character - and so I'm bouncing things around.

Liberty's Edge

Male Mothman Expert 5

He has a tendency towards sneak-thief type rogues or burly, bad tempered melee warrior types, but I think he'd be happy to fill whatever gaps might exist in the party line-up.

Dark Archive

Wintergreen's CE PA IT Geek 10/Daddy 9/Physicist 3/Cartographer 1/Runner 3/Cub Scout Leader 2/Musician 1
Mothman wrote:

Nevynxxx, a witch character seems fairly thematically appropriate to me for this campaign. I have no issues with the Falconry feat.

People have played witches in the last two campaigns for my main face-to-face group. The witch in Curse of the Crimson Throne seemed really powerful / effective, whereas the guy who played the witch in Carrion Crown found the class limited compared to wizard. Neither played particularly 'blasty' witches, so I'm not sure if the comparison helps - just my two cents.

Cool, I shall keep having a fiddle. I've worked up an Elf Witch, but not sure I'm entirely happy with that...

I think there's a knack to using witches that if you deviate from, makes them much less effective in combat, but done right makes everyone else's job miles easier.


Cookie Jar Pilferer 9 ; Dimensional Explorer 4

I can change my idea if we are looking combat heavy. Eljoy can wait to afflict the world another time.

If I play Eljoy, he'd take the Company Lumberjack feat. And hate the company. If joining the party is a chance to spit in the company's eye, or even annoy management slightly, he's your boy.

There is a lure to the idea of rolling in order and taking whatever comes....

Liberty's Edge

Male Mothman Expert 5

I don't think combat heavy is necessarily a problem - they are combat heavy adventures at times.

Rolling in order can be fun, but don't feel locked into a fixed order if you get something subpar or leaning to a class type that you don't want to play.

The Exchange

No peeking, please Rarely Accountant 2/Auditor 4/Waster 30

We seem fairly well set. We've got a healer (oracle), an arcane caster and back-up healer (witch), and a fighter-type. While I thought about brawler, I'm also happy to "go rogue" - I don't have a fixed concept in mind at this stage, and I'm happy to roll with whatever (whereas other players have names and all sorts sorted). So I'm happy to fit in.

A word to AG - investigators can be a little bit under-powered.

Also, what level are we (I'm assuming 1st)?

The Exchange

No peeking, please Rarely Accountant 2/Auditor 4/Waster 30

So I'm thinking of a rogue. Not sure of the race, but he or she is hiding in Falcon's Hollow until the heat dies down. Not sure what has caused the heat. But it gives us a trap-finder, which might come in handy. Clearly, an expert burglar with nothing much of value to burgle in a company town of down-trodden workers is going to have a lot of time on his hands... Also thinking of Bad Day in Town trait.

Lets get some stats:
4d6 - 1 ⇒ (2, 2, 1, 4) - 1 = 8
4d6 - 1 ⇒ (6, 4, 1, 1) - 1 = 11
4d6 - 1 ⇒ (1, 2, 5, 1) - 1 = 8
4d6 - 2 ⇒ (2, 2, 3, 4) - 2 = 9
4d6 - 2 ⇒ (2, 6, 5, 3) - 2 = 14
4d6 - 2 ⇒ (3, 6, 2, 6) - 2 = 15

OK, fairly craptacular stats, but you know what, I can work with them. Human rogue on the way.

STR 8
DEX 17
CON 11
INT 14
WIS 8
CHA 9

So we are looking at a weedy runt, clever with his hands, smart but not cunning, trusting the wrong people and saying the wrong things at the wrong time. So now he's washed up in Falcon Hollow without any money or prospects. Add some self-pity too, just to make him that bit extra annoying. And to add it all, he's now got a bad cough...

Dark Archive

Wintergreen's CE PA IT Geek 10/Daddy 9/Physicist 3/Cartographer 1/Runner 3/Cub Scout Leader 2/Musician 1

Ok, decided to give rolling stats a go rather than point buy... Preview says it worked out quite well!

4d6 - 1 ⇒ (6, 6, 5, 1) - 1 = 17
4d6 - 1 ⇒ (5, 5, 4, 1) - 1 = 14
4d6 - 1 ⇒ (1, 6, 4, 6) - 1 = 16
4d6 - 1 ⇒ (5, 1, 3, 1) - 1 = 9
4d6 - 3 ⇒ (4, 4, 3, 5) - 3 = 13
4d6 - 1 ⇒ (1, 6, 5, 2) - 1 = 13

Would lead to

Str: 9
Dex: 16
Con: 13
Int: 17
Wis: 14
Cha: 13

Liberty's Edge

Male Mothman Expert 5

Yes, 1st level.

Ha! From brawny half orc brawler to weedy human rogue. Cool, a trap finder and skilled character will certainly come in handy.

Liberty's Edge

Male Mothman Expert 5

A suggestion for anyone looking to take the 'Bad day in town' trait - I would suggest you make sure you have an average or above constitution if you take this trait, as otherwise you may find your character going downhill fast.

Either that or make sure you finish your quest quickly!

Still, it is an excellent hook for characters who might otherwise by disinclined to help the town find out how to end this sickness ...


And here he is... So far.


Female Human Witch 1 AC 13 HP 8

Ok... something to be working with.... Human version. Need to pick some spells....


Male Human Fighter / 3

Hey guys, sorry for the delay will make sure I'm a bit more on the ball moving forward. I'm happy to play anything really, looks to me like we have most of the bases covered to a degree with arcane and divine caster, a rouge and a few fighter types. Can you see any holes that would be good to fill Moth? Could step into the barbarian/tank role, and the options Pixie Rouge suggested sound good as well - I'm easy

Liberty's Edge

Male Mothman Expert 5

Ok, we have (at this point)

Aubrey - Rogue
therealthom - Fighter (or ranger or barbarian) - melee focus
Nevynxxx - Witch
Aardvark - Oracle
Pixie Rogue - maybe ranger or rogue or arcane caster

Liberty's Edge

Male Mothman Expert 5
Brashen Trell wrote:
Hey guys, sorry for the delay will make sure I'm a bit more on the ball moving forward. I'm happy to play anything really, looks to me like we have most of the bases covered to a degree with arcane and divine caster, a rouge and a few fighter types. Can you see any holes that would be good to fill Moth? Could step into the barbarian/tank role, and the options Pixie Rouge suggested sound good as well - I'm easy

Someone with some outdoor skills would certainly be useful (though it may already be covered). Otherwise, an additional divine or arcane caster could be useful. You could also consider a character that could kind of fill in for more than one role (multiclass, something like a magus or a bard, or one of the hybrid classes from Advanced Class Guide).

Sovereign Court

Male Human (Andoran); Percept +0, Sense Motive +0; Init +1 ; AC 18 T 12 FF 16; F 6, R 3, W 0 (+2 v emotion spell and effect); HP 28/28

I was planning to start Eljoy as a barbarian. Take a couple levels of ranger for skills and 2 weapon fighting, then finish out in fighter. Aiming for TWF with shield and ax. Melee will be his thing, but he probably won't be a real melee monster. There's always room for more fighter types in my opinion.

He's been in my head for a couple weeks, but he's still pretty rough.

I am still totally willing to change if we do get too melee heavy. Let's see what rolling in order would give me.

Str: 4d6 ⇒ (1, 2, 6, 5) = 14 13
Dex: 4d6 ⇒ (2, 4, 3, 5) = 14 12
Con: 4d6 ⇒ (2, 4, 2, 6) = 14 12
Int: 4d6 ⇒ (3, 5, 3, 6) = 17 14
Wis: 4d6 ⇒ (5, 2, 1, 4) = 12 11
Ch: 4d6 ⇒ (6, 3, 6, 5) = 20 17

Nice array. That 17 says paladin, bard, or sorcerer to me.

Liberty's Edge

Male Mothman Expert 5

Excellent stats for any of those classes if you did decide to keep them in order.

They wouldn't work so well for Eljoy without some re-arranging I am guessing.

Liberty's Edge

Male Mothman Expert 5
Reekis Gool wrote:
And here he is... So far.

Looks good Aubrey - lots of skill points there!

I like the background.

Liberty's Edge

Male Mothman Expert 5
Anor wrote:
Ok... something to be working with.... Human version. Need to pick some spells....

Looks good. Have you assigned your favoured class bonus to skills?

I notice that you haven't chosen a campaign trait - don't worry, it's not essential if none of them appeal, just making sure its not an oversight.


Male Human Fighter / 3

Had a look through the Advanced Class Guide, and the Hunter, Skald or Slayer all look like they could be viable options. May depend also on the rolls

4d6 ⇒ (3, 1, 4, 6) = 14 - 13
4d6 ⇒ (5, 1, 5, 6) = 17 - 16
4d6 ⇒ (2, 6, 2, 2) = 12 - 10
4d6 ⇒ (2, 1, 3, 6) = 12 - 11
4d6 ⇒ (4, 4, 1, 4) = 13 - 12
4d6 ⇒ (3, 6, 4, 2) = 15 - 13

Can't complain with those.

Liberty's Edge

Male Mothman Expert 5

Decent rolls; don't feel you must take a hybrid class, just a suggestion.


Female Human Witch 1 AC 13 HP 8
Mothman wrote:
Anor wrote:
Ok... something to be working with.... Human version. Need to pick some spells....

Looks good. Have you assigned your favoured class bonus to skills?

I notice that you haven't chosen a campaign trait - don't worry, it's not essential if none of them appeal, just making sure its not an oversight.

No, to extra HP...

Ah! I hadn't looked at the campaign traits will see if there's something fun, basically just picked two fairly useful ones.


Well, I'll follow the crowd. Maybe it will inform my character build.

4d6 - 1 ⇒ (5, 2, 4, 1) - 1 = 11
4d6 - 1 ⇒ (3, 6, 1, 4) - 1 = 13
4d6 - 3 ⇒ (4, 4, 3, 6) - 3 = 14
4d6 - 1 ⇒ (3, 1, 5, 5) - 1 = 13
4d6 - 2 ⇒ (4, 6, 2, 5) - 2 = 15
4d6 - 2 ⇒ (3, 3, 2, 2) - 2 = 8

Surprisingly close to the standard array. A bit improved, not crazy good.

I'm leaning toward a halfling. He keeps to himself, but has befriended members of the community that make an effort to befriend him - I'm thinking Laurel in particular, which would be his hook.

He's the sort to watch over someone lost in the woods and try to herd them home if they appear to be lost and there might be a few stories in town of a child leading other children to safety before disappearing.

He may have been born a 'slip', a slave in another land, that was freed when his owners traveled through Andoran and got in trouble with the law. He lives with the slight worry that they will send someone to pick him up and return him to them, so he remains in this out-of-the-way place, many miles from where they last saw him.

Mothman, do you have a suggestion for a favored enemy? I don't want my prior knowledge to color my choice. I could go with human, which I think would be reasonable and reasonably useful at the same time.

I'm considering the Combat Style (Erastil) as a follower of that deity. It's similar to the Combat Style (Archery) with fewer choices, but I haven't compared them point-for-point. It does look like it trades Rapid Shot out in favor of Deadly Aim at 2nd level. It's from Paizo's Inner Sea Combat, so it might not be an allowed source.


For first-level feats, I'm considering Improved Initiative, Go Unnoticed, and Weapon Focus (Longbow). Or maybe he will do something interesting with the halfling propensity for slings - I just can't see a reasonably-priced way to make it anything other than suboptimal as a choice.

A halfling sling staff could be both his ranged and melee weapon and he could pick up some sling-based feats.

Large Target: +1 damage with any sling to target for each step in size difference
Halfling Slinger: +1 racial bonus to attack rolls with a sling
Weapon Focus (Sling): Would this apply to sling staves, or would that be a separate feat for each type of sling?

The only thing that saves the halfling sling staff for me is the damage matches the Small longbow and it seems thematically appropriate.

Liberty's Edge

Male Mothman Expert 5

The Erastil combat style is fine. Freed 'slip' from Cheliax works.

I'm planning to post something about 'dangers of Darkmoon Vale' which may help inform a favoured enemy list, but if your character has spent much time in the area they would probably get a good feel for favoured enemy choice.

Humans is not a bad choice for the area (and doesn't suck for the campaign), but may not be terribly useful for the first adventure or two.

There are lots of dangerous animals (particularly wolves) in the area, as well as magical beasts (such as worgs and manticores) and dragon-kin (drakes etc.).

Humanoid monsters often raid into the region, including kobolds, hobgoblins and hill giants. Vermin are a danger, including poisonous insect swarms and giant vermin.

The Exchange

No peeking, please Rarely Accountant 2/Auditor 4/Waster 30

Here's a headline you don't see every day:
Eagle carries off policeman's kangaroo

Liberty's Edge

Male Mothman Expert 5

My take on weapon focus is that it would relate to a specific weapon - so you could take Weapon Focus (sling staff) and get the bonus when used either as a sling or in melee, but it wouldn't apply to normal slings.

I'm happy to hear other opinions though, or be pointed to clarifying text in the rules.

Liberty's Edge

Male Mothman Expert 5

I spoke to Brashen off-line the other day, he is thinking of going for something fairly simple and straightforward, possibly a fighter.

Liberty's Edge

Male Mothman Expert 5

So far:

Aardvark - NG Male Half Elf Oracle
Aubrey - N Male Human Rogue
Nevynxxx - N Female Human Witch
Pixie Rogue - maybe halfling ranger
therealthom - Barbarian, Paladin, Bard, or Sorcerer
Brashen - maybe fighter


Mothman wrote:

My take on weapon focus is that it would relate to a specific weapon - so you could take Weapon Focus (sling staff) and get the bonus when used either as a sling or in melee, but it wouldn't apply to normal slings.

I'm happy to hear other opinions though, or be pointed to clarifying text in the rules.

Nope, that makes sense for the double weapon. I will work with that. Thanks!

1 to 50 of 386 << first < prev | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | next > last >>
Community / Forums / Online Campaigns / Play-by-Post Discussion / Adventures in Darkmoon Vale Discussion All Messageboards

Want to post a reply? Sign in.