Way of the Wicked - a Tale of the Fall of Talingarde
Game Master Mark Sweetman

I'm game to jump ahead, makes sense and will inject some energy back into the campaign. Like Mi'Dre, the opportunity to become a full bloatmage beckons so its two sausage thumbs up from Crux.

Also provides a useful jumping on point if replacements are required (although I hope they won't be :)

Yeah, but still nothing from Black Jack isn't a good sign :s

Hey guys, first off I would like to say I've been a lurker on this thread since the beginning. I have been a fan of each of your characters, and the AP. I hope you don't mind me commenting here at all.

I have been planning to run this AP myself in real life, and have been watching a few threads on this, dedicatedly, to see any problems that may arise from this. Being a 'sandbox' style AP, I have concerns that players could get to a 'quagmire' situation.

I hope your game does continue, I enjoy seeing how you guys fare.

Might I offer some insight as well?

I have been thinking a lot about how to answer your question DM Voice. And about this game in general.

I really enjoy reading you guys posts and playing in one of your campaigns DM VoV. I have been doing pbps for over a year now and looking at the games going on on paizo its clear you guys are some of the best roleplayers around. It is really fun to see what you guys came up with your characters everytime.

The late pacing have definetively been a problem but looking back at my postings I see that I also have my share of the guilt for it. I have not been as frequent in this campaign as I have been to the others that I am part of. Its not that I dont like it, I think the ideas of the AP are really nice and I love the way you spin its tale DM VoV. My problem with it is kind of silly actually.

Its been too long since the last time I put my evil hat on as a player and now it feels awkward in my head, like it shrinked with the passing of time and now its not my number anymore. Together with my hard recent work schedue I had some family problems and it aggravated even more my inability to get into Black Jack. I guess what I am trying to say is that I am having difficulties in getting behind my character and it is showing in my commitment to the adventure.

I am sorry not to have been able to be here 100%. Insted of keeping slowing down the game I think its best if I step down and open the spot for someone more committed. Feel free to NPC Black Jack as needed. I hope to play with you guys again in the future , it has been a blast. I will lurk around to see how things go, good luck to you all.

You say that you are having trouble getting into the headspace of playing someone evil like it's a bad thing, Merck. :)

Sorry to see you go, regardless.

Black Jack - thanks for the response, and I do understand. Playing evil characters does require a certain way of partitioning off the mind and at times a little dark spark within you that needs to be fed.

It's no shame to admit an inability to get into character - and I've personally stepped away from PbPs when I haven't been able to get into the appropriate mindset for them. Thanks for the time that you did spend with us on this campaign and for your contributions, and also for the courage to choose to step away after you realised it wasn't resonating for you anymore.

The Way Forward:

Ok, so after consideration, discussion, casting of runes and what not I've decided on the way forward. I will post up a collation of a mixed victory at Balentyne - where you are able to open the gate and progress the plot, as well as giving a montage style advancement. This will clear us from book one and also give you guys sufficient XP to progress to Level 5.

I will also allow for a player wealth distribution to get you back on track for the start of the second AP - so everyone can keep their iron circlet (for free) and adjust the rest of their gear to meet the 10,500gp marker for a 5th level character.

It's ham fisted and a little disappointing play wise - but it also gives the benefit of allowing me to move past a section that I've been significantly frustrated with and meld in the new players more easily. I'm not joking when I say that the second part of the AP is one of my favorite premises that I've ever seen, so lets start with that to help keep everyone energised.

I know that Mi'Dre and Cruxcarr are in, and the door is open for Albina to stay on as well (I really hope you do Set).

Tark - you know that I enjoy playing with you (wait that doesn't sound legal)... but I also know that your workload has picked up over the last few months. To keep things rolling I'd really like to push to get the posting frequency rolling again so we can build some energy and momentum back into the campaign. That would mean back up to 1 post per day during the work week.
Do you think that is something that you'd be able to commit to?

I'll re-open a recruitment thread to pick up an extra 1-3 players as well.

Any comments or issues?

I will be out for a couple of weeks at the start of July when I go to Hawaii for a holiday though.

You say that you are having trouble getting into the headspace of playing someone evil like it's a bad thing, Merck. :)

Sorry to see you go, regardless.

A couple of years ago me and my friends from my real life game use to play an evil adventure from time to time and we use to have a great time. My character was a vampire spawn elven prince fighter and his main goals in undeath were to kill his vampire master and take his place and get revenge on his still alive family for exiling him.

As time went by I guess I changed, or my life did or maybe its just this phase of it... Sometimes things that used to have a great appeal lost some of its charm, sometimes you find new ones other times you rediscover the oldies. I dont know, too complicated. :P

Anyway thanks for the game guys. Show those Talingradians who is the boss!

@Grollub we did do that a bit, we have a month and spent the first 4 or so days on reconnaisance and heard some helpful rumors, still hard to pick how best to approach things though.

-=-=-=-=-=-

Well it's always a shame to lose characters, but I'm glad we've had the chance to discuss this. Hope you stick around Marck and enjoy the show if nothing else :)

As to the skip I prefer to think of it more as handwaving in the interest of progress than hamfisted :p Set and Tark I hope you can recommit to this, otherwise thanks for the game so far and hope you continue to enjoy yourselves.

So 5th level and 10500gp eh? Muahahahahaaaaa

Can I echo the words already detailed by both DMVoV and Mi'Dre; really enjoyed your playing and hope to be lucky enough to do so again :)

As a latecomer to the game I've enjoyed the dynamic the group already had and (hopefully) integrating myself into that well - which I think is a measure of both the DMVoV and you guys - something that I'm sure any newcomers will also find.

@Mi'Dre: Muahahahahah indeed my fellow blackheart ;)

I'll try to up my posting a bit. Thank you for your patience.

Well I've thrown up the great fast forward in thread, so feel free to weigh in when you can and we can start to lurch forwards once more. The new two (whichever may they be) shall join in Farholde.

If anyone has any preference about the players, feel free to PM me.

Bit busy with my own recruitment to go over the applications for this one, but who knows, I may get around to it :p

Can't figure out whether I want to go Inquisitor or Ranger with Mi'Dre. They both get some nice things... Ranger gets full BAB, d10 hit dice, Favoured Enemy (Humans of course), and Track; Inquisitor onyl 3/4 BAB, d8 hit dice, but Judgement, Monster Lore, Stern Gaze and spells (More healing :))

As to the recruits, I haven't looked at any of their character sheets but it would be good to get someone else with some social skills (I think Albina is the only one with any now) and another front line combatant. Blackjack had filled both of those roles, and while Mi'Dre might get a bit more social after a transformation he's still not going to be heavy into anything but intimidation.

Am planning on throwing some more social skills into Cruxcarr unless we have them covered deep in the new recruits.

Like Mi'Dre as a Torture Master Inquisitor? Either are pretty cool though and fit with his modus operandi going forward...

Yeah I do like that Archetype, but you don't actually get anything from it until level 3, and it may be a while before he gets that high (depending on transformations, etc.)

Well if it's okay with DM-VoV I'll hold off on deciding until we see what the new recruits are. Same skill ranks either way, so it'll only matter if we get into a fight. What do you think VoV?

any archetype combos spring out? Torture Master/???? I'm running a Superstitious Drunken Brawler in another pbp; the superstitious element is playing up on his godforsaken paranoia and the drunken brawler element is when he's in his cups...

Am chipping away at leveling Crux, but also will tailor some picks etc to reflect in the new recruits and what they bring to the sweet blackhearts ;)

Once I've done that I'll add to your great post Mi'Dre... have some cool item ideas to furnish Cruxcarr with heheheheh.

Will post tonight.

Reporting for duty :-)

Hey-ho. New recruit here. Gonna need to cook up some new numbers for Sholano, but I should have that done by the end of tonight. What may take me somewhat longer is reading through the giant backlog of posts.

VoV - is there any particular background information I and Jethryk will be needing to get rolling?

Welcome welcome - feel free to throw up a dot in the main thread when you've a moment to help keep track of the campaign.

As far as background - there isn't much you need to know, I'll offer a couple of bits of extra info once we get to the appropriate point in story for your introduction (which shouldn't take long) - but you're both recent arrivals to Cardinal Thorn's inner circle and were sent in advance of the others to establish contact with Baron Arkov Vandermir in Farholde.

You don't need to tie Sholano to Jethryk in your backgrounds unless you want to.

Welcome new Blackhearts - relish the time when we all shall meet :)

@DMVoV: Scrap the mooted feat we talked about - will likely go Combat Casting for my 5th level advancement feat as Cruxcarr is leaning more and more to touch attack spells... he does so enjoy that tactile skin to skin engagement with foes...

Wizard feat I've yet to decide upon...

Alrighty then. While we're still in the wings, a minor change or two to Sholano's background is in order, I think. Fairly simple stuff: Rather than actually get caught in his latest scheme and sent to Branderscar, he figured out they were on to him and started making plans to leave town before they sprung the trap, when Thorn contacted him and offered him another way out.

A fairly simple reflection of him being a higher level when he tried this (higher Sense Motive score and all that), as well as a decent excuse for currently being in the Cardinal's employ. I'll hang on to the campaign trait (Fraud), if you don't mind - his crimes and identity (one of them, anyway) are still knowledge to the authorities, plus I adore the bluff bonus.

While finishing up Sholano's 5th level numbers, something has occurred to me to ask. I've occasionally toyed with the idea of heading for the Master Spy prestige class. It is, however, a pretty irritating feat requirement for a fairly specific niche (not to mention slower sneak attack progression), so before I start going that direction, I thought I'd ask if the sorts of things that class can do, like avoiding truth/alignment detection, better and faster disguises, bonuses against mental control, etc., seem like they'll see play?

It definitely makes sense, character wise, for him to go either way, and both choices keep me amused, so I'll leave it up to you. If this is the sort of thing that stands a chance of being relevant, then I'll probably start heading that direction. Otherwise, I'll just go my merry Roguish way. It's totally understandable if this option seems a bit too solo-oriented to be reasonable, and I kinda know that, but like I said, it makes sense, so I'm throwing it out there. Anyway, at this point in the level progression, it's a difference of one feat, so no big deal just now, but it's a choice I need to make.