Yeah, I don't think the spider has been placed on the board yet since it's super dark in that room... but that's just theory, speculation or pulling something out of another dark place...
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I have a question about flanking and sneak attacks just so the party knows that positioning is key to getting bonuses. I may be wrong on this and this is why I thought it would be good to bring it up here. From what I read, if we can get someone on the backside of a monster then everyone who's line of sight is blocked by that monster gets a +2 to hit as long as a player threatens the space the monster is in. So if there is a group of people at 12 o'clock and 6 o'clock then they all get +2 but if you were at the 3 o'clock position then the bonus does not apply unless another player moves to the 9 o'clock position. I think the bonus sneak attack damage is applied during flanking even if they are not flat footed.
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ok, I know I may be driving everyone crazy with posting, but it is a rain day and I am working on my computer today at home.
I have another question regarding size of a creature, reach and the spaces they threaten. How large is the spider and how far is it's reach? I am curious because I do not want to move within a space the creature can reach and give it an attack of opportunity. If I don't know what the reach is until the creature actually reaches me, then I will try to give it a 5-10 foot buffer.
I have a question about flanking and sneak attacks just so the party knows that positioning is key to getting bonuses. I may be wrong on this and this is why I thought it would be good to bring it up here. From what I read, if we can get someone on the backside of a monster then everyone who's line of sight is blocked by that monster gets a +2 to hit as long as a player threatens the space the monster is in. So if there is a group of people at 12 o'clock and 6 o'clock then they all get +2 but if you were at the 3 o'clock position then the bonus does not apply unless another player moves to the 9 o'clock position. I think the bonus sneak attack damage is applied during flanking even if they are not flat footed.
Correct. As long as you can draw a line through the target to an ally, you are flanking. When you flank, you and your flanking ally get a +2 attack bonus. In certain circumstances, sneak attack will also apply. As for sneak attack, note that it will only be applied on a ranged attack if target is within 30 feet, though there are certain feats that can extend that limitation.
I have another question regarding size of a creature, reach and the spaces they threaten. How large is the spider and how far is it's reach? I am curious because I do not want to move within a space the creature can reach and give it an attack of opportunity. If I don't know what the reach is until the creature actually reaches me, then I will try to give it a 5-10 foot buffer.
The spider is medium sized, which is still a big giant bug in my book. Large creatures typically have a 10' reach, which means that they can attack a target with a melee attack if their target is up to two squares away. As for Attacks of Opportunity, just remember that you are only subject to an AOO when you LEAVE or PASS THROUGH a threatened square, not when you enter one. So, you may be subject to an AOO if you close within melee range of a large creature. Remember though, most creatures only get 1 AOO a round absent special abilities or feats.
FYI, I probably won't be able to post until late on Saturday.
Sorry for late post folks. It is a Holiday weekend, so I expect posting to slow a bit. I should be able to post normally though so post away if time permits. Hope everyone has a good Holiday.
Happy Easter all.
Sending from my tablet... It looks like my hard drive got fried when I lost power recently. Yay storms! The OS won't load and it is stuck in the Startup Repair program. No idea when I can get into a repair place or how long it will take to get it fixed. On the flip side, I do have a Kindle and WiFi so I can try to keep up here. This is not my favorite way of typing, but at least I do have an option.
Yep. Got the WiFi for Xmas last year thanks to a snarky comment I made otherwise I would be SOL right now.
Thing is, we're supposed to have heavy rain tomorrow and I have a detached garage so am probably going to have to wait until Friday when the rain finally stops to take it in.
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I just had a few things I wanted to discuss.
I am assuming it is ok to post outside of initiative order and the dm will try to make sense of the madness and put everything together, since we all live in different time zones and post at times that are convenient for us. If we didn't then I can see that last combat taking a week or more to complete. If I am wrong, then I will do a better job at following initiative order.
I also read in the forums that it is suggested that people add "flavor" to their posts rather than just making die rolls. I know I may add a lot of content, but part of that is flushing out flawed character traits and part is to relieve the dm of trying to figure out what my character is actually trying to do.
Is speaking allowed at any point during the round or does it only take place during your initiative order?
Let's say my character is the last to act but sees a player advancing to a position that may be dangerous. Am I allowed to say something to that character to make them aware of the danger before they take their action?
How much detail does the dm want? I don't want to write a 6 page story of how my character is going to enter a room only to find out that everybody decided to head back to town. I just want to find a nice balance that will make everybody happy. Maybe it is just me, but something in the last few posts of our adventure feels a little off.
Is and El just leaving the room, Have having a death dream and things like that. I just want to be sure that nobody has lost interest and is still having fun and if there is something I can do to help with that then I will.
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I think everything is going well and it is acceptable to post whatever and whenever you have the time. An inherent drawback to this medium is timing but I find that just accepting things is OK. There were a few posts where we contradicted something that another player did but Brew will keep everything on track; be flexible.
I think that Isador and Eloraind's actions were quite appropriate. Caoilte had just dispatched the last Trog and only the shock lizard was left and it was already injured. Isador would not offer much to the fight in his current state and he assumed that 4 remaining party members could finish off the Lizard.
I try to react / provide as much information as Isador would in any given situation and let that be guide on what to post.
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OK. I just wanted to be sure that my actions have not thwarted someone from doing something they wanted to do because of something being posted out of initiative. I am having a great time and have no issues with how the game is being run or progressing.
I just hope Havelockk realizes he is still alive and is not laying on a cold wet floor :-)
If he is still on the floor is it OK to drag him in front of the door and change his name to Matt?
I am assuming it is ok to post outside of initiative order and the dm will try to make sense of the madness and put everything together, since we all live in different time zones and post at times that are convenient for us. If we didn't then I can see that last combat taking a week or more to complete. If I am wrong, then I will do a better job at following initiative order.
I totally expect for you guys to post out of initiative order for the reasons you state. When I resolve a combat round, I list actions in order of initiative and try to logically resolve the intent of the action if something changes. For example, if you post an attack against target one and target one is taken out before your turn I will assume that you would then attack target two. I will always action in best logical way and not place any character in further danger unless the action specifically says to do so.
Is speaking allowed at any point during the round or does it only take place during your initiative order?
Let's say my character is the last to act but sees a player advancing to a position that may be dangerous. Am I allowed to say something to that character to make them aware of the danger before they take their action?
I may have to look into this further, but I do not believe you can speak before your initiative order. Speaking during combat is considered a free actions and a character cannot act before his or her initiative turn. This makes sense, as characters who act first are generally quicker or trained to allow them to react quickly. If you find anything to the contrary, let me know and we can always revisit the issue.
I also read in the forums that it is suggested that people add "flavor" to their posts rather than just making die rolls. I know I may add a lot of content, but part of that is flushing out flawed character traits and part is to relieve the dm of trying to figure out what my character is actually trying to do.
How much detail does the dm want? I don't want to write a 6 page story of how my character is going to enter a room only to find out that everybody decided to head back to town. I just want to find a nice balance that will make everybody happy. Maybe it is just me, but something in the last few posts of our adventure feels a little off.
Flavor away my friends. I rather enjoy everyone's in character descriptions and action descriptions. Please make them as detailed as your inspiration allows. One of the great benefits of pbp, IMO, is that it allows people to fully act out their character without fear of doing it in person. It is one of the things I see players on the forums talk about quite a bit. I have no issues with the way folks have been posting, so keep at it. I think we are doing some great stuff here.
I know I have posted this link before, but it bears repeating. Painlord's Advanced Ply-By-Post Play does an excellent job of breaking down how to post in pbp games. I follow these guidelines as a player and especially hold true when playing with people you do not know. We all have a shared history which is a huge advantage when interacting with the characters. Our familiarity really shows in the posts as they are very fluid and form a good cohesive narrative.
I guess that is a long winded way to say go crazy and have fun in your posts.
DM
This is certainly not to be nit picky and I have no issues with continued use of DM, but I wanted to let you know that the official term for the dm in Pathfinder is Game Master or GM. Apparently, the term dungeon master is still a proprietary term owned by WOTC as is not included in the OGL that Pathfinder is based on. As such, you will always see the term GM in all books published by Paizo. As I said, I personally do not care, but some folks do so I just wanted to give you guys the info in case anyone finds themselves in any other games.
In any event, I think things are going great and I personally am having a blast running stuff for you guys. The pace and flow of the game takes some adjustment and things will get disjointed from time to time just due to the way the posts get laid out over time. I am sure that will also resolve itself as we all get more comfortable with the format. I am still relatively new at all this myself. Hope this provides some answers. As always, let me know if you have more.
I have not been checking or posting as often as I normally do the last couple of days. Just non-standard activity going on. I normally try to get on at lunch and in the evening and I don't think I did that at all yesterday.
Sorry to hear about your computer Kat. That blows.
I think things are probably working about as good as they can and personally I am enjoying playing so often.
On the computer front, after about five-six hours of running repairs and restores the OS finally loaded... only to lose power an hour and a half later... But this time the OS loaded to the safe mode option so I can eek out a bit more of the MoBo before having to get a new one.
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I think Havelockk may have missed some key pieces of dialogue
Tarek channels positive energy into Havelock. The energy instantly revives Havelock who sits up suddenly taking in a deep breath.
Tarek slaps Havelockk on the shoulder Time to get up, nap time is over. He smiles slightly and heads in the direction of Eloriand and Isador
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I’m having fun too. This is a good group, has fun, good banter, descriptive without being onerous. I enjoy playing with you all and having Dave as GM.
I prefer dialogue over onerous description “Caoilte’s flowing locks of brown hair glows scintillatingly in the scintillating autumn sun. The wind blows with the scent of peach blossoms and cinnamon. “ Which brings me to a rant, I’m sure you’ll allow me. Why the heck can’t anybody who writes anything imaginative just say blue, green, yellow, red, black and white? No, no, no, you have to have azure, verdant, amber (or ochre), crimson, ebony and ivory. All this wordiness to describe folks who in all likelihood smell like a sixpack of ass. Oh yeah, references to smiles. Riiiiiight, with your ochre teeth. Hell just check out some of the first photographs in history. Do you see smiles? Nope, because folks looked like they chewed rocks and ate crap. Even DaVinci didn’t show the Mona Lisa’s teeth. Know why? Because she had dental work like the sarlacc. I feel better now, thanks.
n now my eybor oen't wor....
t et I ept the wiree PO or emergencie...
requesting a sidebar. Can we all go over to the discussion forum?
Sure. What's up?
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ok folks, just got a little confused here and saw a few things I wanted to clear up.
Since my character uses a sling, I had read a little about it. A sling is a simple weapon. If your class can use a simple weapon then there should be no penalties for non proficiency. It is a missile weapon so it uses dex modifiers to hit but it uses strength modifiers for damage. You may want to check Eloriand's attack and see if he did hit the skel.
I am also confused about initiative. I know sneak checks may have failed and the skel rolled a 20 on perception, but didn't our preparation for the attack give us any advantage? I could see if the skels moved from their original location but I thought maybe with the party knowing what to expect would have given us an advantage. I am just curious what is best for the future scenarios we may encounter. Would we have fared worse if we all ran in screaming?
I am also trying to figure out how my character can maximize his abilities to help the party. When I suggest using an orison, it is something I am not going to do in the middle of battle. This was the perfect moment for Tarek to give everyone a much needed bonus. I assume that by sharing dialogue and stating his intentions that no player would act before he is able to cast it on all players who wanted it. I would leave it up to the GM to figure out how it would all happen. Since the spell lasts a minute(10 rounds?) and takes 1 round to cast, I figured there would be enough time to cast it on all players. Once cast there should be a minimum of 4 rounds to use it, for the first player to receive it, and 10 rounds for the last player. I just need to know if this is possible or not. I do not know how much in game time is passing by as we discuss things as a group in character.
I am also uncertain as to what Caoilte was saying about stating actions in character. All the in character things Tarek was going to do, he stated in character. The out of character comments were me stating what I thought and not how Tarek thought the party should proceed. Two players mentioned wanting to use stealth to enter the room and one player mentioned entering first to prepare for melee. I simply stated that if individuals were going to use stealth then they should go first because there was no need to use stealth if they entered last. I was just giving input and was waiting to hear back from other players about how they wished to proceed. I did not want my ooc comments to be what dictated the party's actions because Tarek's actions were going to be the same regardless of what the other players chose to do.
Since my character uses a sling, I had read a little about it. A sling is a simple weapon. If your class can use a simple weapon then there should be no penalties for non proficiency. It is a missile weapon so it uses dex modifiers to hit but it uses strength modifiers for damage. You may want to check Eloriand's attack and see if he did hit the skel.
You are correct, I totally missed that. The action has been retconned and resolved accordingly. My bad.
I am also confused about initiative. I know sneak checks may have failed and the skel rolled a 20 on perception, but didn't our preparation for the attack give us any advantage? I could see if the skels moved from their original location but I thought maybe with the party knowing what to expect would have given us an advantage. I am just curious what is best for the future scenarios we may encounter. Would we have fared worse if we all ran in screaming?
Unfortunately, that is the risk you run when you go skulking about. Mind you stealth in Pathfinder is not like stealth in WoW or even in NWN. You cannot just turn in on and stay "in stealth mode" rather you have to be able to hide and have something to hide behind. One of the skells got lucky and noticed the entire party. When that happens, the scouts will be exposed. That is a risk of that tactic. Also, when you send a scout ahead, you are banking that whatever beastie lurks in the dark does not have some special ability or spell that will detect such an intruder instantly. While there are advantages to scouting, there are also substantial risks for the scout or scouts.
I am also trying to figure out how my character can maximize his abilities to help the party. When I suggest using an orison, it is something I am not going to do in the middle of battle. This was the perfect moment for Tarek to give everyone a much needed bonus. I assume that by sharing dialogue and stating his intentions that no player would act before he is able to cast it on all players who wanted it. I would leave it up to the GM to figure out how it would all happen. Since the spell lasts a minute(10 rounds?) and takes 1 round to cast, I figured there would be enough time to cast it on all players. Once cast there should be a minimum of 4 rounds to use it, for the first player to receive it, and 10 rounds for the last player. I just need to know if this is possible or not. I do not know how much in game time is passing by as we discuss things as a group in character.
I suppose there was some confusion there. I have no issue with the the osirion being cast on those who accept it. Just add a line in the next post to let me know if you accepted the blessing and you will be able to use the bonus in the fight when you announce you are doing so. From here on out, if you say you are casting it on the party, I will assume everyone is ok with it unless they say otherwise. That is a full minute of game time to cast in on everyone and if you are going to do that, please post a list of the order in which you cast so I can track it. Guidance is the spell you are referring to I take. casting that spell is a standard action, and each character only gets one standard action a round. It helps me if you include at least the name of the spell in a spoiler to remind me what it is. Please note that casting the spell on everyone may not always be possible due to in-game actions. I hope this provides a framework going forward.
I am also uncertain as to what Caoilte was saying about stating actions in character. All the in character things Tarek was going to do, he stated in character. The out of character comments were me stating what I thought and not how Tarek thought the party should proceed. Two players mentioned wanting to use stealth to enter the room and one player mentioned entering first to prepare for melee. I simply stated that if individuals were going to use stealth then they should go first because there was no need to use stealth if they entered last. I was just giving input and was waiting to hear back from other players about how they wished to proceed. I did not want my ooc comments to be what dictated the party's actions because Tarek's actions were going to be the same regardless of what the other players chose to do.
Recently I have noticed folks indicate their action in character. For example, "Frodo will enter the room behind Samwise and ready an attack if they meet hostile forces." That is one way to do it. What I see mostly in my other games is a mix of IC announcing of actions with OOC follow ups. Either way is fine with me, but it is up to you guys as a group to find what works for you. Just bear in mind that at some point I have to move the game forward and kind of go with what is being talked about act accordingly. If we spend days trying to plan every encounter to the last detail, we will not complete this scenario until December. That being said, I usually will allow everyone a post or two to hack out how they want to proceed, then I will pull the trigger.
Hope this helps, let me know if you have any other quesitons.
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Thanks for the input. I just wanted to clarify a few things for myself so I can better explain my actions and make things less confusing
I was referring to the guidance orison. I was unsure if a round was 6 seconds or 10 seconds. I assume it is 10, if it would take a full minute to cast on everyone. I wanted to let everyone know the limitations by posting here just in case I use guidance on players again. I know I need to be done casting on the last person before the first person takes an action. I guess 4 people would be the max to allow enough time to use it before it wears off. My biggest question was if it was even possible to cast multiple times before combat and it seems like I should be able to if players are ready to act the next round and we are not already engaged in combat.
Ack, you have exposed my poor math skills. You are right, a round is considered 6 seconds and there are 10 rounds in a minute of game time.
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It helps me to think of IC as the bright line that, when crossed, indicates an action or an attempt at an action pending a dice roll. OOC is everything else. It definitively tells everyone else what you are doing or trying to do. Think of it like chess. I can say I’m moving my queen all day long, but until I actually move it nothing counts. That move is “IC”. Look at the below example.
OOC > “I moon Izzy”, is across the table poking at Izzy.
IC > “I moon Izzy”, Caoilte actually gives up his shield and dex bonus for however long it takes to bare his posterior in Izzy’s direction.
This helps everyone else also. The OOC just requires a ‘LOL’, the IC requires everyone to react, they either need to state that they avert their gaze or join Izzy in having to make a saving throw or become totally awestruck with this never before revealed anatomy of a Greek God.
Dionysus, right?
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Tarek, revisiting the IC vs OOC discussion. I looked at your comment again. It’s good to have this conversation before we start popping off area of effect spells or throwing grenades. Reread the posts, nobody said they were stealthing into the room a second time. Eloriand ooc’d a question of whether or not he could, Izzy suggested a tripwire but didn’t get support for the notion and Kat stated she’d enter last.
My stance is that IC is you speaking or acting. What you say or say you’ll do in IC is what you say or do, pending ability, possibility or applicable dice rolls. OOC is everything else and can include modifying an action that helps Brew develop the outcome and helps fill in the detail for the rest of us. It’s just my opinion but it’ll help prevent the “But I thought you said….” incidents that are likely to occur if we don’t clear this sort of thing up.
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Initative
I understand that some things just don't go the way you expect no matter how much planning you do. I should have phrased my question a little better earlier. Is there a way for us to ever get a bonus to initiative based on knowledge of a situation and how players plan for an attack? I was just curious if we ever encounter a similar situation where someone does recon, is not seen and returns with valuable information, would it ever provide us with a bonus to initiative? I am not suggesting that we should automatically act before the enemy but would it be worth a +1 or some other modifier to our initiative order?
OOC and IC Comments
Sorry if there was any confusion. I know that dialogue gets missed from time to time so I wanted to pool all the information I read and give my opinion on it. I thought I had read that Kat was thinking about sneaking in and searching the altar and Eloriand wanted to use sneak as well. Both comments were made OOC. Tarek replied OOC that if two players were planning to sneak then maybe they should go first. Every OOC comment that was made by Tarek was meant to be OOC. I was thinking that if nobody made an IC comment on how they were proceeding then we would stick with the original plan. I think the GM wanted to keep things moving so he went with what seemed to make the most sense. I don't want to dictate how anyone should do things, but I also don't want someone to miss out on an action because something was overlooked.
Tarek, revisiting the IC vs OOC discussion. I looked at your comment again. It’s good to have this conversation before we start popping off area of effect spells or throwing grenades. Reread the posts, nobody said they were stealthing into the room a second time. Eloriand ooc’d a question of whether or not he could, Izzy suggested a tripwire but didn’t get support for the notion and Kat stated she’d enter last.
My stance is that IC is you speaking or acting. What you say or say you’ll do in IC is what you say or do, pending ability, possibility or applicable dice rolls. OOC is everything else and can include modifying an action that helps Brew develop the outcome and helps fill in the detail for the rest of us. It’s just my opinion but it’ll help prevent the “But I thought you said….” incidents that are likely to occur if we don’t clear this sort of thing up.
Sorry again of there was any confusion on the last action sequence, but I do want to reiterate that at some point I do have to make a leap and post an action. I do my best to coalesce what the party's actions are, but there will be variance at times due to the pbp format.
Sorry, got home late tonight. Catching up now.
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Brew, that was a confusing sequence (at least for me) to resolve. No issue from here on how you did so. I was proposing a standard for communicating that I think most of us are using. When you say “Two goblins and a three-legged mule walk into the room.” Sand starts moving through the hourglass and all of us need to be clear on what we want to do. For me, clarity is important. I’m a one-trick-pony (charge to the fore) and it helps me greatly to know whether I’m going to do that one trick or not.
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I think things have run very smoothly and if any of you all have played some of the other PnP you will know that I mean for sure.
Actions and evens will never be as neat or as clean as they were in NWN or on a pencil and paper game with everyone sitting at a table.
BTW, we could actually use Skype for a tournament sometime. Might be fun...but not sure if we would get as much of the IC/RP out of it.
I like the story segments we each craft up.
gives me some good stuff to read while on the Metro or during my 15 minute authorized lunch break....if anyone ever gets asked to work at where I am...(Caoilte) .the answer is NOOOOOOOO.
I think so far we are safe to run things as we have been. Brew does a great job is putting it all together...Initiative works great for combat when actions can in a few heartbeats...determine outcomes...and the higher initiative trumps the action of the lower initiative rolls. In normal snooping around or other actions...I think its really fine in the order we posted.
It will never be perfect....we will step on toes once in a while ad as long we are all having fun....I wont cry too much if my PC gets his but handed to him once in a while.
FYI, I am traveling all weekend and have limited access. Please advance the story as you see fit Brew. I will check in and add what I can, but don't make everyone wait for me. I'll be back home on Monday.