DM rel20's page

Problem #1 is using the spheres wiki.

Let's use Spheres of Guile as an example. In the first paragraph, it says that "Any character can gain skill talents at character creation in exchange for some of their class skills using an option called a trade tradition, or from the Extra Skill Talent feat."

Note that trade tradition is not capitalized, nor does it link to the definition. In fact, there is no indication that this is a Key Term to be used. Searching the rest of the page sees the use of trade tradition, but no where is this really defined. After looking in the spheres themselves showed nothing. The wiki search doesn't work, so you can't do that. Finally by chance I noticed it's buried in the bottom of a table under the heading "Other Rules", which makes it sound more like optional rather than a necessary component to use the system.

I hope the actual PDF does a better job of this, because this disorganization is a real time suck.

Problem #2 is your documentation.

There's very little left of the rogue with the selection of your two archetypes, which essentially grafts Skills of Guile and Skills of Might onto a d8 class. If these replacements were 1 for 1 ability replacements, it would be intuitive to figure out where the new abilities came from, like what happens for most archetypes. In this case, however, just looking at the end product does not indicate how you got there. This is/was compounded by not using the list of defined traditions.

Trade Tradition
1. Trade: Cutpurse
2. Trade: Dungeon Delver
3. Trade: Gambler
4. Trade: Mage Hunter
5. Performance (Dance): Entwining Prance
6. Body Control Sphere

Recall that you're playing with a party that does not have access to the document and aren't familiar with the system, so this short hand doesn't help much. Listing Trade for an archetype swap is poor word choice. What, you're trading an ability for Cutpurse? Which ability? Why Trade the first 4 and not the last 2? After looking at the rules further, what you're trying to distinguish here are Vocation Sphere -> Trade Talents from other Spheres and Sphere Talents.

The rules point to using an existing Trade Tradition, so the first inclination looking at this is which one did you use. The next step is to see how this list came about. Searching for these terms is painful again because of the wiki, so it required manually scrolling through sub-pages and manually querying via browser search, only to show that this list doesn't match. This lead to more digging before concluding it must be "home brewed".

Marking what else this Trade Tradition provides would be helpful. For example, listing the skills provided from the Trade Tradition -> Vocation Sphere -> Trade Talents. Especially since duplicate skills can increase the class skill bonus with that skill from +3 to +4.

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Note: you have Skill Leverage listed here with some skills, but I don't believe you get access to these. A Trade Tradition does not give you Skill Leverage. The only thing I see is your 3rd level archetype ability:

Swindler (Ex)

This replaces danger sense.

And when you gain Skill Talents from leveling for Skill Expertise. Per the wiki, Whenever a character gains a skill talent, they must choose a skill sphere to spend it on. The first time a character spends a skill talent on a sphere, they gain that sphere’s base abilities rather than gaining any of the talents within the sphere. This is referred to as gaining a base sphere.

It's unclear if Trade Traditions give you all aspects of a base sphere or just the Skill Talent. I suspect Adroit Bonus Skill Talent: Bluster sphere or the Navigation sphere (Fleet Movement) talent, the former, a Skill Sphere, might be intended to give both, but the latter is a Skill Talent, and might give just the talent and not the associated Base Sphere benefits, including Skill Leverage.
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RE:

Sebastian actually *also* designed his own casting tradition–Somatic Casting x2 + Verbal + INT-based casting is NOT one of the standard traditions or even the sample custom casting traditions–but that's fine; it's not overpowered

This isn't a fair comparison. I own Spheres of Power and the concept of Traditions isn't there. It looks like the "Ultimate" version revised the original and retroactively applied Traditions. I can't speak to which version Sebastian was looking at, but it certainly wasn't on my radar because it's not in the original version.

I've placed the party at the top of the stairs on the next slide (upper floor) based on dialogue. The party's room is marked in green and Autumn's room is marked in turquoise.

Sebastian starts moving up the stairs. Crrreeeeaaaakkkkk. The air is noticeably more humid; mildew mixes with putrid smell from below.The noise thumps again, noticeably louder.

Action on the party...

@Bam/Manfri/Sebastian - I'll let you guys chime in here as well. Do you want Autumn to rebuild, using the system as intended? Or is it not worth it at this point?

The spheres system inherently gives a lot of abilities to characters early on; most with unlimited use per day. Skipping this limitation only adds to it (whereas the official Trade Traditions tend to include fluff or non-combat options that might not pop up as often). Overshadowing could happen.

Here's where documentation of character building is an issue. You've built a character that essentially replaces every aspect of a character; even then, those replacements go back and change previous items. And then you're expecting others to look at it with nothing but the wiki. The wiki is a terrible source for cross checking a build; even the search is broken. It's not linear, and even with a "how to use" section added, it's extremely light weight and skips over sections. I've already spent 3-4 hours on the build and that's more than I really need to do. It's also not fair to the rest of the players because that's time I can allocate to running the game and moving everyone forward.

Right, but then at the bottom of the archetype it says

Greater Training
The grifter may choose to lose rogue’s edge to gain a virtuoso skill talent progression instead. He may not take this option if he possesses an archetype that would alter or replace rogue’s edge.

This (optionally) replaces rogue’s edge.

...I can make it clearer on my profile if you like that I've chosen that option.

EDIT--

And terse is fine, especially since I'm realizing that you allowing 3p is creating a lot more work for you...and I won't be surprised if you help me discover some mistake I've made.

EDIT 2--

Ahhh. Yes, it's DM's discretion. I haven't played in a game that allowed Spheres but didn't allow creating traditions so I didn't think to ask...but if it's important to you, let me look at the pre-made traditions. Hopefully I can change it without charging too much. I'll at least take a look.

I allow 3rd party products to allow people to utilize things that might be sitting on shelves, but at the same time, I contain the use to the product to prevent the abuse of cross-product interactions that typically show up by power gamers/character optimizers. After all, the designers aren't looking at all gaming material that exists, just their own newly developed rule set. This includes home-brew and home-brew options/customization, especially without prior discussion.

The designers clearly made a choice to encapsulate Sphere Talents and Sphere access within an object called "Trade Traditions". If they intended to give direct access to Spheres and Sphere Talents (without the consumption of another resource), there would be no need for this layer.

Getting direct access to Spheres and Sphere Talents gives the character access to more desirable skills or skill combinations earlier in their career. For a 1-of low level game, this is especially problematic.

Allowing this now would be unfair to the other players who built their characters by more limiting standards.

I'm being terse here because it's late, but I wanted to post some things that stood out:

There are basically 3 progressions for Spheres of Guile (listed in the Using Spheres of Guile page). Virtuoso is the fastest of the three progressions.

But you're not a Virtuoso level operative. The grifter is a journeyman.

Skill Expertise (Ex)

This replaces the rogue talents gained at 2nd, 6th, 10th, 14th, and 18th level.

RE:

The book lists a lot of examples, but one can define one’s own as well, according to the above rules. In my case, I took the 4 trade traditions you noted, and then two base spheres: Performance, and Body Control. For Performance, I chose the Dance package and Entwining Prance.

Yes, the book allows for the creation of new Trade Traditions, but these are in the realm of the GM, not the player.

Creating New Trade Traditions

All of the bonus talents granted by a trade tradition to characters of adroit rank should be either base spheres or [utility] talents from spheres automatically granted by that trade tradition. Two of them are generally (trade) talents.

There's customizing by using the spheres system, and then there's cherry-picking the elements of the system. I prefer to use the defined elements before stepping into the home brew area of a 3rd party system.

Autumn springs forth from her chair like a cartoon acrobat and plunges a dagger into the back of the risen patron. Metal scrapes against bone as the patron goes limp, falling heavily like a slab of cold meat. Its head continues to rotate awkwardly, eyes glowering upward in frustration. Blood starts to pool on the wooden floor.

Combat Over

What does each person do now?

@Autumn - I spent over an hour trying to deconstruct your character sheet last night and I still couldn't figure out several things.

When you make replacements/substitutions, can you please explicitly list the replacement out in your sheet? Without these call outs, it makes it extremely difficult to figure out where everything is coming from.

Why do you have 16 skills with 29 ranks? As a rogue, you get 8 skills. You replaced these 8 with Trade Tradition, which says "if you choose a trade tradition, you do not gain any of the class skills listed for your class". I see that you have various syntax to indicate some break down, but no key. The Trade Tradition should provide a list of skills you now gain access to, but how are you coming up with 29 ranks? You should be getting the (8 - 1 for Int) per level + the free ranks from Base Sphere(Associated Skill) access?

What trade tradition did you take? Nothing on the wiki maps to the 4 Trade Talents you list and the associated skills that would be replaced.

1. Trade: Cutpurse
2. Trade: Dungeon Delver
3. Trade: Gambler
4. Trade: Mage Hunter

How are you gaining access to the rest of the Performance Sphere? "A base trade tradition will typically contain 3 skill talents: two (trade) talents and a base sphere. Certain skill-oriented feats may substitute for this base sphere." When a Trade Talent is listed, it does not appear to provide the base sphere abilities.

The only way this could work is if the Trade Tradition provided the "Automatic Skill Sphere: Performance (Dance package)" and the Adroit Bonus Skill Talent was a sphere instead of a sphere talent.

Is this Trade Tradition defined in the book that's not posted on the Wiki?

How are you converting the Racial Ability -> Run feat to a Sphere equivalent?

What is "Virtuoso Operative" and the associated modifications?

I've added Autumn to the map. Please go ahead and make the fort save DC 13 - we'll assume you were there from the start of the encounter. Autumn's action will close the PC side...

Manfri struggles with the zombie as it maintains its grip, threatening to topple over the hurdle. However, Sebastian is able to send a burst of magical force that ripples flesh upon striking while Bam surrounds herself with spiritual force.

OK! Autumn Longbriar is ready for your review, and–if you don't have questions or concerns–to show up.

Backstory'll be fleshed out a bit more, but I think Autumn had to leave the last town in a hurry (when someone–quite unfairly, of course, accused her of cheating at cards), and recently ended up here.

Her biggest passion is dancing, and her biggest weakness is a sometimes difficult-to-control appetite for risks and thrills. The latter shows up particularly in her gambling, and sometimes in pocketing something that doesn't, strictly speaking, belong to her. In the past it also showed up in a tendency to get into fights...but now she's trying to follow Chaldira Zuzaristan's example and focus her mischief on those who deserve it.

Those are broad strokes. More to come...but her build's in her profile now. (I copied the full text of her Spheres of Guile and Might talents, since they're new to many folks...and the Guile ones are still fairly new to me too.)

reference image here.

Cheers,

Try to think of motivations and fears. Is Autumn brave? At what level does the thrill stop?

For a starting city, were you planning on sticking with Karcau?

Here is the general idea on how you ended up in Marais d'Tarascon:

When you left town, you boarded a paddleboat/riverboat. The boat had shows as well as gambling. At some point in the trip, the night air turned cool, bringing a heavy fog that surrounded the vessel. The boat got turned around in the fog and eventually ended up in Port d'Elhour.

From there, you made your way to Marais d'Tarascon.

Timing-wise, you would have arrived at Port d'Elhour before the rest of the group. You can decide if you were in Marais d'Tarascon before the party arrived or after. Feel free to embellish the story on the boat as you see fit. One idea is that people started disappearing mysteriously from the boat. Arriving in a town no one heard of was alarming, but it was better than staying on the ship.

The rancid fumes weaken the body and the head pounds with a dull pain, making it difficult to maintain focus. The inside of the inn spins, making it difficult to aim.

The deceased throws itself at Manfri, arms flailing over the top of his shield as the weight of its body presses against it.

Slam: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (1) + 4 = 5
damage: 1d6 + 4 ⇒ (3) + 4 = 7

Round 2
==INIT==
Sebastian: 29
DM: 20
Manfri: 13
Bam: 12

The party is up. Autumn Longbriar can roll for init.

That'll wrap the order to the next round; Sebastian can act normally this round. @Bam - DC 13 here, so yes, a failure. You can act normally the next round as well.

Ok, looks like a VERY good time for me to arrive. ;-)

DM, the most pressing Q to help me finish my build is crafting. Knowing your thoughts on why I'm here would help too. I'd initially planned to my character be from Karcau, but I'm open to other options. That mostly just helps with RP and finalizing backstory.

Looking forward to diving it!

Following the same path as the party to Marais d'Tarascon isn't required. Whatever background/backstory you can come up with can probably be worked to have you arrive at the inn. You can be travelling by ship for some reason, get lost in the woods, etc. I can fill in the story on how you arrive at the Inn.

High level, where am I? Thoughts on why I'd show up? Make sense for me to be a Pathfinder still?

You don't even have to be a Pathfinder. You can be a local opportunist that caught wind of the job and went after it yourself; you can be an agent of the Aspis Consortium seeking to recruit the target; a simple fisherman that got knocked off a boat in a rainstorm; a halfling slave on the run, escaping from Cheliax.

If you want to be local, you can be from the neighboring town of Port d'Elhour on an errand to Marais d'Tarascon. Or both, where you arrived in Port d'Elhour some time ago but haven't been able to find your way back yet, so you've been taking odd jobs to survive.

About Sebastian Amanar wrote:

hp 18 (2d6+6)

Or did we choose max HP for first *two* levels; or allow a roll option at some point.

I can't recall how I ended up with the max figure.

I went looking for the character creation discussion on discord, but nothing came up :(

If I knew it was going to run this long, I would have copied the character creation questions into the game description. Did anyone else see it?

Ooooh, one more Q: can people with the relevant crafting skill have crafted nonmagical things (e.g. mwk weapons or armor) at the crafting cost?

I'm going to say no to this because it wasn't an option for the rest of the group.

The newly deceased rights itself. It's mouth opens, causing thickened fluid to slide down over it. It's head rotates slowly, cracking vertebrae with a series of loud pops before lunging forward.

Stands up.

A female scream comes from within the kitchen area, "Aaah! Not again!".

The other patrons continue to gasp. One stumbles toward the exit, stopping every few steps to hunch over in a coughing fit.

Bam - please make a fort save again to recover. If you do, you can take a move action this turn. The party can post actions, to be processed in turn order.

==INIT==
Sebastian: 29
DM: 20
Manfri: 13
Bam: 12

[dice=Fortitude]1d20+2 Scrolling back, I can't find a DC for this, but I'm quite confident that's a fail anyway.

Sebastian continues to be overcome with the stench and unable to collect himself.

DC 13.

Hey, how are yall doing HP? PFS standard (Max at 1, then 1/2+1)?

Everything else per PFS, I believe.

@gyrfalcon - if you're close to ready, there's a combat that you can jump into...

Back from Scout Camp. Catching up.

Welcome back. Get any badges?

Leandrie has to make a save as well, even though her location may be outside?

The soup adorned man remains unresponsive. Bam and Sebastian continue to struggle against the stench as Manfri attempts to rally the crowd for aid. As Manfri investigates the villager, his body convulses with a sudden jerk. His arm swings wild to one side as his body follows, sliding off the table and dragging his head and soup bowl along with it. The bowl wobbles with the sound of heavy glass before toppling over the table edge, shattering on the ground. The man's clothes smears curd and gravy like a mop, leaving broad strokes of slop as it slowly rises back up.

@Manfri - yes, the man appears to have rapidly progressed to a zombie. With a 20, Manfri probably knows the standard zombie stats pretty well.

@All - See the last page of the slides for the battle map.

@Sebastian - please make a fort save again to recover. If you do, you can take a move action this turn.

==INIT==
Sebastian: 29
DM: 20
Manfri: 13
Bam: 12

BTW, a related Question: If we multiclass, do you use the unchained fractional bonuses rule?

I don't. 3E had some ridiculous builds with 6-7 classes. Plus I'd rather view 3pp material with the same baseline.

What are you leaning towards for your background? It would be easy to insert you into the current encounter if you think you'd be close to ready.

In case this helps, 3rd edition introduced an Outcast Rating for races. Humans are 0, Halflings are 1, Dwarves are 3, and Half-Orc equivalents are 5. These ratings map to penalties for certain social interactions. Mentioning this isn't to limit you to standard races, but the scale should give you an idea of what might put you past your comfort zone.

Thanks! How do half-orcs fit in that "non-traditional race" regard? I kind of like the idea that my half-orc PC has suffered some discrimination and suspicion...but I certainly *don't* want to set us up to be thrown out of town or attacked with pitchforks from places where we could otherwise find shelter! ;-)

Half-orc is better than kobold, but portrait selection shouldn't change anything mechanically.

Deformities are often seen as corruption or exposure to foul magic while in the womb, resulting in ostracization. Large teeth, green skin, or other unusual features will trigger this regardless of classic ugly or revised "sexy" orc. Villagers might not try to kill you upon sight, but some may keep their distance and watch suspiciously.

Some locations in Ravenloft react better than others; I could explain more, but a few players are new to it so I don't want to ruin the discovery of the world setting. That said, this adventure is primarily in Marais d'Tarascon, so if I'm doing my job, it should come off as a small, backwater swamp town mixed with southern plantation.

Apologies once again to everyone involved for the subsequent late posting from over a month ago since the last time; pretty much have only checked in just today from my last posting due to the unpredictable schedule resulting from my eldercare duties.

I wouldn't worry about it. If you find the time again to re-join, it won't be a problem. But until then, do you want someone to bot your character or would you prefer to remain at the inn?

Oh, and sorry, peeps. I have been neglecting this game because I thought someone said we were slowing down for the July 4th holiday.

I will get a post up for Manfri within the next 24 hours. Sorry about that.

No worries. I was trying to bang an encounter out, or at least something suspenseful, before leaving, but it didn't pan out. This group is active so picking things up again should be painless.

Hi yall, Paledim mentioned this game, and I'd like to put my hat in the ring if you're still looking for a player.

Welcome. I saw the post while I was away but responding from a phone in spotty connectivity would have been futile...

I haven't read any of the Spheres of Guile yet, but if everyone is ok with spot checking the build/rules, we can give it a go.

RE: race, I do not advise playing a non-traditional race without having a method to disguise yourself.

Most of Ravenloft's folk live and die within a score of miles from their birthplace and can spend their entire lives without ever knowingly encountering the supernatural. When combined with cultures rich in suspicion and superstition, the result is xenophobia.

Kobolds are asking for the villagers to grab their pitchforks and torches. If you want this risk hovering over your character (and the party), consider constant and reliable means of remaining disguised. Even then, one of the themes of Gothic Horror is The Unkindness of Nature.

Nature is not your friend. It is no one's friend. It does what it wants, and its wants often conflict with those of the needy. Rain seems to fall when dryness is needed. The sun disappears behind the clouds when light is necessary. The wind starts to blow when that hat of disguise is needed.

RE: background, you can choose to be a Ravenloft native or from Golarion. I think the easiest is to place your character in the inn; another guest, waiting out the imminent threat of severe rain. We can tweak how or why you're there. Otherwise a non-native would most likely enter washed up on the shores of the swamp.

Hmm... I have CON damage in my header, but I can't remember what that was from. If it was from another day, it should've healed overnight and I just forgot to update the header.

This is from the stirge encounter, I believe. You've rested since then, so this would be gone before the newly applied damage.

Ability damage, or permanent ability drain?

Bam's is ability damage. Sebastian's is, unfortunately, ability drain.

Sebastian and Bam start convulsing, hands grasping empty air as they fall to the floor. Bright red welts start to form and a sickly sheen covers their face. Patrons at other tables appear to be suffering from the same. One man falls face first into his bowl with a sploosh, spraying it's contents upward and outward. Manfri continues to cough uncontrollably, straining to get breaths in between, but is able to remain standing.

To be fair, I'll let Chuufa roll for himself...

Bam and Sebastian are currently unable to act. Manfri, what do you do?

I'll be in a similar situation this weekend, although I can't have anyone bot for me :P

I moved the game play up a bit, just to get a little more eventful before what looks like a holiday slow down. A cliffhanger would be appropriate for such a delay :)

Anyways, enjoy the camping Bam and to everyone, have a great 4th. Dig out the smoker, make some great BBQ, and pour the beer and sangria.

Sebastian peeks inside; Brucian is there, apparently paging through some books.

---

Evening arrives and the sky is black and blue. Hunger pangs remind you of the missed meal, and the Full Moon Inn offers a welcome break as well as food. Jerald gives a grim nod as you enter, mentioning that they're short staffed for the night as Renee never showed up, so he'll be helping out as well. After taking your order, he heads back to the kitchen. A handful of other patrons share the common room, most likely other villagers given their clothes. Jerald returns to deliver simple bowls of hearty stew that emanate a rich tomato and pepper base. As he places the last one down, the inviting aroma is replaced with a vile stench; rancid garbage that's been baked in the summer sun all day. The smell is over powering, and the urge to cough and retch replaces the hunger pangs.

I need everyone to make a Fortitude save.

As you fight down the urge, you see the rest of the room is suffering similarly. Jerald starts to fall to one knee, planting his arm forcefully on the table. The bowls rock and spill over, plopping sauce and various bits in large splatter patterns. He then grabs his apron, pulling it to cover his face as he runs back to the kitchen.

The group stakes out the church, hiding in odd poses akin to Japanese game shows before Sebastian gives up on the futility of the process. No one enters or leave the church during this time (we'll say 20 minutes?), nor do any of the villagers come to investigate the odd cry.

Feel free to allocate X time here if the 20 minute estimate is off. Otherwise, what does the party want to do next?

Hastened by urgency, the group heads back to town. The earthen streets are almost as empty as the plantation.

I'm assuming the group is going to hide somewhere around the church to wait to see if/when Father Brucian leaves? How long do you plan to wait?

Can I get stealth checks from everyone please, assuming you're trying to be discreet? With the little activity in town, standing around a corner is going to look suspicious or out of place quickly.

It was close to noon before leaving to Mordu's and then the plantation, so I'd say it's 1:30ish now.

roll4initiative wrote:

Colin_Mercer wrote:

I'm thinking about introducing Play by Post to my players. Any recommendation on scenarios that can showcase the advantages of PBP playstyle?

Master of the Fallen Fortress & The Confirmation are really easy on new PbP players. Easy for a new GM, too. I also found that a couple of those Quests with 5 or 6 encounters in each one were nice for new players.

Edit: Silverhex Chronicles & Phantom Phenomena. They were great when I was first learning PbP.

The rest of the Free RPG Day adventures are also good for this. It's a good excuse to break traditional heroic roles and play some goblins in the We Be Goblins series.

Colin_Mercer wrote:

I'm thinking about introducing Play by Post to my players. Any recommendation on scenarios that can showcase the advantages of PBP playstyle?

Master of the Fallen Fortress & The Confirmation are really easy on new PbP players. Easy for a new GM, too. I also found that a couple of those Quests with 5 or 6 encounters in each one were nice for new players.

Edit: Silverhex Chronicles & Phantom Phenomena. They were great when I was first learning PbP.

I agree. Keep it short. PFS scenarios and short adventures will help maintain posting momentum before real life can take a toll.

@Bam doesn't appear to see any signs of movement. The house is well kept, like a hotel room awaiting arrival. There are no signs of perishables being left out, cobwebs, etc.

@All - assuming the party heads back to town to follow Father Brucian, what is the plan? Do you want to stake out the church? If so, from where? Or do you intend to cover the paths to the swamp? Split the party and do both? What time to you plan to start? Upon return, dusk?

Walking the perimeter highlights the difference in wealth between the homes in town and the founding family. Large windows reveal opulent rooms decorated in the Louis XVI style, adorned with dark wood furniture and intricate patterns. Wood molding frames the upper and lower walls and divides the room into equal spaces with rectangular shadow boxes. Furniture remains vacant, awaiting the return of guests to warm the currently hollow domicile.

There are two other entrances. Investigating them reveal the same level of security.

@all - Any leads on adding a 5th?

Fair enough. I was just trying to save a couple of rounds of posting.

Sure, it's worth a shot. Might as well see where that goes, although it's unlikely given the DC. If it fails, the party will have to decide if it wants to come back at a later time, literally break in, or break in under the cover of darkness (or something creative). I know having the battle map out there might trigger some player meta gaming, but it's mainly there to make distances and placement easier.

Note that an amazing lock has a DC of 40. I would have given it to you guys with a natural 20. That said, the difficulty is the usual game mechanic of saying "try again later" or "find another way" or "dead end". As a conversion, the RAW is a -60 to pick the lock, but 2E uses percentiles for thief skills, so it maps more to a -12.

Also recall what I mentioned about allowing timing...

As impressive as the total roll is, the door remains locked. The mechanism is just too complex for Chuufa.

So it looks like the PGRiS Discord isn't drawing any attention, so if anyone knows a good candidate, please let them know.

Sure, it's worth a shot. Might as well see where that goes, although it's unlikely given the DC. If it fails, the party will have to decide if it wants to come back at a later time, literally break in, or break in under the cover of darkness (or something creative). I know having the battle map out there might trigger some player meta gaming, but it's mainly there to make distances and placement easier.

The manor house feels eerily empty. The only signs of movement come from the swaying of tree limbs and shadows cast upon the gloomy grey walls. Approaching the front door comes a familiar feeling that all little kids know; that the knock will go unanswered, yet still, there are eyes watching your every move. The knock lets out a hollow, resonating sound that reverberates through the emptiness behind it. Grasping the ornate handle of the door, you realize that the mechanism is elegant yet complex, a subtle piece of complexity barring your way in.

"The way is shut. It was made by those that are Dead, and the Dead keep it, until the time comes. The way is shut." Maybe not, but it felt appropriate :P

As expected, Luc doesn't answer. He pauses and stares east with the road. Bam notices that his pupils appear to be slightly larger; was that a slight twitch in his upper cheek? After a few seconds, he turns and starts walking back towards the heart of town.

After checking in on Mordu, the group starts to head east from the village. The plantation looks impressive from afar, but signs of neglect become apparent as you get closer. Sugarcane and cotton are striated with withered tan; weeds and other vegetation have taken root in patches. A stately two-story manor house with impressive columns overlooks the abandoned field as thick clouds hover across the sky.

The slides have been updated.

First item of note - I don't see signs of another PGRiS session running, so is it worth polling someone in here? It might be a nice cushion for Chuufa to deal with RL stuff.

Second - I see Bam wants to check in on Mordu first, but the previous suggestions were to check out the plantation. If I say that you're able to see him talking to the constable when you near his house, would that be sufficient or did you want to ask for more questions/possible update? If the former, I'll transition you guys to the plantation...

@Sebastian - we'll say the time is close to noon, so yes, the party can do a bit more before nightfall. @Bam - yes, that's 18 copper.

"Magnifique. Dat'll be 18 toothchips. Lemme just dress the beignets and then I'll get that wrapped up to go. Nothin' like some sweets for a gloomy day, right?" she says with a soft laugh. Powdered sugar floats in a white haze as it's dusted over the beignets before they're wrapped in paper. The licorice is tucked into a separate bag as Louise brings them to the counter.

I'm assuming that wraps up this conversation, so where to next?