Old Marm

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RPG Superstar 2015 Top 8. RPG Superstar 6 Season Star Voter, 7 Season Star Voter, 8 Season Star Voter. 9,761 posts (21,769 including aliases). 6 reviews. 8 lists. 1 wishlist. 34 aliases.


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Half-orc eldritch scrapper sorcerer 1 HP: 7/7 | AC: 13/T13/FF10 CMD 14| F +1, R +2, W +2 | Per: +0 (Darkvision 60 ft.), Init: +2 | Sorcerer Spells Lvl 1 2/4| Hero Points: 1 | Status: ready to kick some ass

Dare catches Lita's reluctance around the Sherriff. She herself has a deep distrust of law enforcement--which may indeed have been a factor in Dare's own failing to linger near him--but makes another mental note she needs a chance to chat with the tiefling. After she deals with the goblins. And then the merchants. And finds a place to stay. And Modi's Teeth, there's just too much going on!.

As she moves ahead is glad others take her up on her forward momentum, she hears the equivocation from Willie. She spins around and, now walking backwards, says, "Come on, Wibblesocks, you ain't run, fainted, or pissed yourself yet, so you've shown yourself in the game no matter what you say. 'Sides, you gonna let your cousin show you up?"


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Half-orc eldritch scrapper sorcerer 1 HP: 7/7 | AC: 13/T13/FF10 CMD 14| F +1, R +2, W +2 | Per: +0 (Darkvision 60 ft.), Init: +2 | Sorcerer Spells Lvl 1 2/4| Hero Points: 1 | Status: ready to kick some ass
DM-Salsa wrote:

Dani nods and limps into the Cathedral to do what she can. She gives you a thankful smile, despite everything turning into a nightmare, as she passes.

The sounds of fighting continue. South of the square, a group of goblins chase a squawking flock of chickens across the street. Down an alley, a goblin tries to drop onto one of the town's guards as he makes his way towards more trouble, but only manages to break its neck when it dives onto the hard-packed ground instead. For a moment, though, it appears that the Cathedral and the square are free of the violence.

Out of sheer spite and need to work off some frustration, Dare spurts acid splashes at the goblins pestering the chickens until they disperse. Amidst the mess they've made, she finds one egg, miraculously whole and still warm on the street, and picks it up, tucking it back in the straw in the open chicken coop further up the alley. She just barely dodges the angry hen that is returning to tend to the remains of its brood. "I know how you feel," she tells the chicken.

Seeing the guards have things in hand and with the fight temporarily worked out of her system, she jogs back to the cathedral to check on everyone. She finds them re-gathering in the square and joins them just as Scrapeknee is introducing them. He calls her fearless and she feels a bit bad that she yelled at him, and it's a shame he will never know that. But what he does know, because she tells him is, "Yeah, 'course I'll go to the gate. Princess was right, then." She nods toward Cailyn with a tone that just veers toward the edge of respect. "Something's up there." She is already walking in that direction.


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Half-orc eldritch scrapper sorcerer 1 HP: 7/7 | AC: 13/T13/FF10 CMD 14| F +1, R +2, W +2 | Per: +0 (Darkvision 60 ft.), Init: +2 | Sorcerer Spells Lvl 1 2/4| Hero Points: 1 | Status: ready to kick some ass

Will Save DC 12 as is only fair: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (16) + 2 = 18

Dare finally shakes off the urge to engage in this macabre hysteria and sits up, groaning, belly aching and tears staining her face. She looks around, seeing the pool of blood forming around Joanna. "F!*%!" I'm dead, I'm dead, I'm dead if they're dead.

Edited dialogue because someone didn't wear their computer glasses at work today She sees Conrad near Joanna. "Help her! I can't heal anyone."

She stands up, looking around Move action. Over yonder there is Scrapeknee, tossing stars. "Oy! Weren't you healing people before? We got dying over here, and more than enough who can fight, so stop f!&$ing showing off!"

Now Dare, Dare is only good for hurting things, or so she believes, so if the blue-dressed goblin that is about 30 feet away from her is still there, she takes one step toward it 5' step and casts acid splash at it.

Ranged Touch Attack, Inspire Courage if that is still lingering: 1d20 + 2 + 1 ⇒ (3) + 2 + 1 = 6

But her eyes are blurred from the laughter still and the blob of acid flies wide.

If the blue goblin nearest her is not still there, then ignore the five foot step and she just moves 30 feet toward the left side of the map.


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Half-orc eldritch scrapper sorcerer 1 HP: 7/7 | AC: 13/T13/FF10 CMD 14| F +1, R +2, W +2 | Per: +0 (Darkvision 60 ft.), Init: +2 | Sorcerer Spells Lvl 1 2/4| Hero Points: 1 | Status: ready to kick some ass

Will Save from Bard: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (9) + 2 = 11

Of course. This is worse than rolling a 1, IMO.

Dare has never taken advice from a toff and isn't starting now. Plus Princess Crinklenose just stole her kill, which is just more to laugh (cry) about, and anyway the sight of that bolt going through the back of his skull is absolute high comedy.


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Half-orc eldritch scrapper sorcerer 1 HP: 7/7 | AC: 13/T13/FF10 CMD 14| F +1, R +2, W +2 | Per: +0 (Darkvision 60 ft.), Init: +2 | Sorcerer Spells Lvl 1 2/4| Hero Points: 1 | Status: ready to kick some ass

Will save dc 12: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (1) + 2 = 3

"Eh heh."

Was a f$~@ing gnome who set the first fire that ruined her life. Would be right to see them in a stew.

"Eh-hee-hee."

And now these gobbos will ruin her life too. Doubly. Destroying the town she hoped to start a new life in. And killing the people she was instructed to protect, which she is hilariously failing to do.

"Ah ha ha ha." So if she's not cooked today, she'll be found face down and bloating in the river by tomorrow morning.

Then she'll be the stew. Get it?

"BWA-HA!"

I mean, if you're gonna die one way or the other, you might as well laugh as do anything else, right? One. Last. Laugh.

"AH-HAHAHAHAHAHAhahahaaaaaaaaa..."

Clutching her side, Dare falls to the ground, possessed by desperate, tearful guffaws.

RPG Superstar 2015 Top 8

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Ed Reppert wrote:
Heh. Nothing special tonight: ham steak and lima beans. I should have roasted some potatoes too, but I was too hungry. :-)

That sounds utterly delicious. Love a good ham steak. They can get weirdly pricey around here sometimes though.

I had a friend keep my company so I would focus on cleaning and got my living room really well cleaned up so we celebrated with a cocktail and a lamb sandwich at the local gin joint. Not low key or cheap, but I'm going to say well deserved for once.


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Half-orc eldritch scrapper sorcerer 1 HP: 7/7 | AC: 13/T13/FF10 CMD 14| F +1, R +2, W +2 | Per: +0 (Darkvision 60 ft.), Init: +2 | Sorcerer Spells Lvl 1 2/4| Hero Points: 1 | Status: ready to kick some ass

Knowledge Local: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (11) + 7 = 18

Dare starts as Cailyn's voice interrupts her concentration. Sparks flicker at her fingertips and she quickly clenches her hand into a fist--not to threaten a punch, but to prevent herself from reflexively casting. "Eh?" She straightens to eye Cailyn. Dare is surprised to see the highborn woman talking to her, but impressed enough she stuck around to help that she's--entirely in her own mind--declared a truce for the moment. "What're you... oh. Right. How did they get in? And, see, there's at least three different clan marks here... I know this one, it's Seven Fangs or something... no, Tooth, I think..."

If Cailyn names the others aloud, she nods. "You ain't just for drinking games, are you? Is it me or is that weird? The goblins, I mean. I don't think of gobbos as that organized. Would the clans work together?" She looks around at the sodden, smoking remains of the joyous celebration. "Something's goin' on."

RPG Superstar 2015 Top 8

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Freehold DM wrote:


I'm getting old. Turning 46 this year.

As a 47 year old who is three months away from being 48, I take objection to this statement.

It may be true, but I nonetheless object.

Quote:
And the health complications that are in both sides of my family are waiting for me around each birthday candle. I already had a bad scare/ incident a few weeks ago with my blood pressure and fluid collecting in my legs. I now have new medication that's helping a GREAT deal- but it can't all be medication. Beets are excellent for heart health and circulation, and I drink a beet tea(with green tea and ginger tea mixed in) most mornings to help me...well, live. I want to avoid future scares and a bitter cup in the morning helps that.

Sorry you had some scary venous thrombosis and other things. Compression socks are good things for that as well (as always no one thing is a panacea). I know you've been working hard to take care of yourself and good for you for sticking with it.

Looking it up, interesting to see the info on beets and blood pressure. Would be interesting to dive into those studies. They are certainly good for you, high in lots of vitamins, fiber, etc. (I just wish they didn't take so long to cook. Can be eaten raw if grated but then you have to peel them raw...)

Do you make your own beet juice or purchase it?


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Half-orc eldritch scrapper sorcerer 1 HP: 7/7 | AC: 13/T13/FF10 CMD 14| F +1, R +2, W +2 | Per: +0 (Darkvision 60 ft.), Init: +2 | Sorcerer Spells Lvl 1 2/4| Hero Points: 1 | Status: ready to kick some ass

The day had gone well enough that the sick feeling she'd had in the morning--whether from previous evening adventures or what Iulius and Jubrayl had asked her to do--had begun to dissipate. Forgetting food had been free (Dare was not used to things being free) she realized she'd nearly doubled her liquid assets which was pretty good.

So no wonder Willie hadn't really gotten to her. She waits for his reply about Joanna and Tera and realizes it's time for the consecration...

And then her stomach drops into her shoes as the screams erupt and the goblin chant grows louder. No. No no no.

The sound of fire growing, crackling. Women and children scream.

For a moment, Dare is 10 years old. Beds are on fire. A child weeps, hysterical. Dare, help!

Dare, HELP!!

She blinks. And sheer terror transforms into searing anger. She walks toward the nearest goblins (and closer to the merchants) who themselves are not close to people or objects she can harm. "You wanna burn things? Then BURN!"

Move and cast burning hands at the red and yellow goblins to the right. I've put on the 15 foot template to show the shape and angle she's using to avoid hitting objects (she shouldn't get the tent). Burning hands will ignite flammable objects so she is taking care not to add to the problem--but if the goblins are carrying torches and/or oil I don't know if that will do anything extra.

Fire Damage, Reflex DC 14 half: 1d4 ⇒ 4

She calls out to Willie and Conrad. "Find anything to smother. Water's fine but also blankets. Dirt! And fire likes to climb! Don't let it!"


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Half-orc eldritch scrapper sorcerer 1 HP: 7/7 | AC: 13/T13/FF10 CMD 14| F +1, R +2, W +2 | Per: +0 (Darkvision 60 ft.), Init: +2 | Sorcerer Spells Lvl 1 2/4| Hero Points: 1 | Status: ready to kick some ass

The child giggles at Conrad, grasping at the token, and then taking and looking at the butterfly carefully etched into it. He looks up at his mother expectantly.

"Keep it. Have fun at the festival." Dare says, waving away as the mother reaches for her purse. If the kid wasn't scared by her that seemed reward enough in the moment. The mother shepherds off the child through the crowd.

As Conrad offers to buy a few, she asks, "You sure?" She hands him another (this is in addition to the one she handed him when she first approached). "I mean..."

And Willie, the man drinking himself senseless the other night approaches. Princess Crinklenose's cousin or something, with the socks. Dare has a sense she should be offended at Willie, except that the words coming out of his mouth seem to make no sense in the order in which he speaks them, so it's probably not worth the energy trying to figure out which ones she should be mad at. She catches the gold piece--that she has certainly no moral qualms about taking money from a toff and definitely presumes he has no idea of its value--and flips one of the wooden tokens back at him. "I've seen the way you drink, mate, so the more coin you spend on other things, the better."

She pauses, and as he walks past, she calls out to him again. "Hang about! You're related to the merchants, ain't you? The creepy weirdo and the nicer one. Don't suppose you know where they are? My uncle wants me to talk to'em." She didn't actually want to know, but she felt a need to prove she did due diligence.


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Half-orc eldritch scrapper sorcerer 1 HP: 7/7 | AC: 13/T13/FF10 CMD 14| F +1, R +2, W +2 | Per: +0 (Darkvision 60 ft.), Init: +2 | Sorcerer Spells Lvl 1 2/4| Hero Points: 1 | Status: ready to kick some ass
Conrad Mendelson wrote:


Conrad frowns. "Why w-would you apologize? I don't g-get it."

He senses there's something more important that Dare is not telling him, and that she's definitely not up for elaborating.

Still, in the hopes that she will explain the matter a little more, he lingers. He smiles encouragingly at the kid. " Have you heard it's g-good luck if one lands on you?" He picks up a random wooden butterfly. "W-want to hold out your hand?"

Not sure how much it's okay to play NPCs; this is an attempt at some scene flavor so hope it's okay.

The child's caretaker, likely from similar features, his mother, gives Dare a wary look, but as Conrad joins in, his friendly demeanor helps her relax. She stands close, but gives the child a nod, who eagerly holds out his hand.

She answers Conrad as Conrad plans to do whatever he is going to do with the token. "Ah, well, my family would like me to help them out, see..."

RPG Superstar 2015 Top 8

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Quelle coincidence, Limey, last night I made my mom's beet soup recipe, which is mainly stock, beets (grated or sliced), potatoes, and sour cream. I was using veggie stock that can be a little bland so I added some onion as well, and I added some dill because I had some and dill is delicious with beets.

I usually boil the beets first and then peel them, as the peels usually slide right off after boiling (although last night they were being problematic but I think it's because (a) the beets were old and (b) I didn't shock them adequately in cold water after cooking). Then I grate them and add them to the potatoes simmering in the stock when the potatoes are cooked.

Today I made other side of the family's recipe, New England boiled dinner, since Wegman's was selling lots of corned beef for St. Patrick's day, and I could find one of a reasonable size for me and dad. So boiled the corned beef, adding cabbage, turnip, onion, and carrot the last 45 minutes. I was supposed to add potato too and forgot so cooked those separately. I know it sounds very plain but it is super yummy. The fat and salt from the meat seasons the veggies and the meat gets super tender.


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Half-orc eldritch scrapper sorcerer 1 HP: 7/7 | AC: 13/T13/FF10 CMD 14| F +1, R +2, W +2 | Per: +0 (Darkvision 60 ft.), Init: +2 | Sorcerer Spells Lvl 1 2/4| Hero Points: 1 | Status: ready to kick some ass
Conrad Mendelson wrote:


He waves at her. "Hello! Any luck with the w-woodburning?" His tone gets a bit more serious. "I saw the two women ag-gain -Joanna and..." He pauses. Gods, he was never good at names. "The other one," he adds lamely. "They said they w-wanted to apologize to you. In p-person, if you want it. Just p-passing the message."

Dare smiles genuinely at Conrad, just kind of chuffed in general at the idea of someone greeting her in a friendly fashion. She flips one of her coins to him. "Sold a few. Given I'm not much good for sales, I'll call it a win."

Her face falls as he brings up Joanna and Tera, but she does not believe in shooting the messenger, fortunately. "I see. Yeah, I have to find them, actually. Turns out they have business with my Family." She quirks an eyebrow, lets that sink in. "So I am apologize to them," she says, her tone making it clear this is not her idea. "'Preciate it if you point them in my direction if you see them first."

She uses the excuse of a human child, toe-headed and blue-eyed, who has stopped to gaze up in awe at the tall tusky, husky woman, to turn her attention away. "Hey chief, want a butterfly token?"


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Half-orc eldritch scrapper sorcerer 1 HP: 7/7 | AC: 13/T13/FF10 CMD 14| F +1, R +2, W +2 | Per: +0 (Darkvision 60 ft.), Init: +2 | Sorcerer Spells Lvl 1 2/4| Hero Points: 1 | Status: ready to kick some ass

Wrapping up the Dragon:

Dare nods thanks to the halfling, but is too proud to accept the offer of a tonic. She mutters to the older woman, "I wasn't exactly expecting single-batch Oldlaw, but I thought a silver'd get me some basic Ol' Dannyboy or something... I think maybe Dare is a closet connoisseur...

"Anyway, thanks, Miss. I know when I've had enough. Time to go catch some kip."

She picks herself up, leaving her pride on the floor behind her, and heads back to the Feedbag.

At the Feedbag:

Dare does not offer any protest to Jubrayl or Iulian, and anyone who says otherwise is unfairly putting words in her mouth.

Indeed, she only says a single word to them, as is her way when she deals with her employer-kin: "Understood." She expends extra willpower that this does not come out with a hiccup or belch. Whether she succeeds or not is left to the imagination of the reader.

What she promises to herself, silently, is that, family or no, one day she will pay for a room with Iulius's teeth.

This is not to say she isn't surprised by the request. First, because she was certainly well aware the lodgings were not for free, but she figured Jubrayl was just going to have her knock the heads of folks behind on their docking fees. Second, because merchants or no, she didn't peg the two softies for having Sczarni connections. Which, ironically, makes her respect them more, but as with all things with the Family, that respect also comes with fear.

The Day of the Festival
Dizzy from the firebreath's aftermath and exhausted from having tossed and turned, she asks an obliging inn-wench for simply warm water in day-old bread and a strong cup of tea for breakfast. She packs up her things--all of her things--leaving the common room corner cot she slept in tidy as she can, and signs herself out of the guest register, should the Feedbag be fancy enough to have one. Either she will eventually find lodging with the merchants or fail to do so, and she understands as implicit, therefore, her complimentary stay at the Feedbag, such as it was, is over.

Conveniently, last night she had been sulking in the corner when the merchants had left, so she uses the excuse that she does not know where they are staying--if only to herself--to carry out her plans for the day as she originally made them: to find a corner and try to hawk some of her wooden butterfly coins. She will make a good faith effort to keep an eye out for Tera and Joanna, but she will also not mourn if she fails. It's going to be a crowded day, so what will happen will happen.

She enters the already crowded town and does her best to hold out the coins to potentially passersby, knowing that while she may have presence, she doesn't exactly have a face for genteel business. "Copper or two for a butterfly?"

Charisma: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (7) + 3 = 10

She might earn at least enough for some street meat on a stick, which is better than nothing. As she eats her hard-earned luncheon, she pushes her way to a spot in the crowd to listen to Father Zantus's speech.

His final words strike her in the gut far harder than any dosage of Janderhoff Dragon's Breath. ... We can all change for the better. So let this year be a new start for Sandpoint and all of us that journey though life. When the hundreds of butterflies take flight, a tear trickles down her scarred cheek as she fervently wishes she could be one of them.


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Half-orc eldritch scrapper sorcerer 1 HP: 7/7 | AC: 13/T13/FF10 CMD 14| F +1, R +2, W +2 | Per: +0 (Darkvision 60 ft.), Init: +2 | Sorcerer Spells Lvl 1 2/4| Hero Points: 1 | Status: ready to kick some ass

Seeing that the merchants have gone and the other two Magnimarians are distracting themselves, Dare gets the plate of mutton strips and carefully balances the two shots in the other hand and follows to where Conrad is watching the spectacle.

Conrad Mendelson wrote:


Quote:
Dare Ashborn]Conrad, are you taking Dare up on sharing a whiskey with her? If so she'll move over to you when the order comes

Sure!

Conrad takes a sip from the much stronger whiskey. He knows instantly that it would be better not to finish it. "You're not d-drinking the tame stuff," he tells Dare with a wince.

She shrugs. "I figured this'd be safer than what the other guy gave me. 'S'just whiskey." She downs her shot in one go.

Fortitude: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (1) + 1 = 2

And her eyes water and she begins to cough. Shoving the plate of meat into the nearest person's hands, she grabs her belly with one hand, clapping her hand on the other as smoke begins to escape from between her fingers.

She shouts to no one in particular, "I asked for whiskey, not goblin piss, you backwater jackanapes!" She lifts the fist that was on her belly to shake it, stumbles, and decides to take a nice, safe seat on the floor. "Cayden's Swinging Cock, this f$#$ing place..." Even as she speaks, tiny puffs of smoke curl and rise out of her mouth.


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Half-orc eldritch scrapper sorcerer 1 HP: 7/7 | AC: 13/T13/FF10 CMD 14| F +1, R +2, W +2 | Per: +0 (Darkvision 60 ft.), Init: +2 | Sorcerer Spells Lvl 1 2/4| Hero Points: 1 | Status: ready to kick some ass

Alone with Conrad:

She shakes her head, picking up the gold coin and eying it thoughtfully. "Not really. Expect he knows Vhiski at the Feedbag," she says, naming one of the prominent patrons of their esteemed lodging place.

She looks at him, ears back, looking dejected, waiting to talk till she is absolutely certain Iulian is gone. "You've been nothing but decent. Unlike most folks. So I feel like I owe you some explaining." She sighs. "Almost 10 years ago, I lived in a hellhole of an orphanage in Magnimar. I was only 10, but I was big in size already and looked after the little ones any way I could. One night, some pesh-head of a gnome mage summons fire elementals into our f*!*ing dormitory. The presence of the elementals woke up my sorcery, and they wouldn't hurt me. So I grabbed who I could and got out. Everyone died except me and the four kids I could take with me. That's not what the rest of Magnimar saw. The rest of Magnimar saw a half-orc orphan--obviously already an evil thug, right?--not as burnt as she should be--even though I was burned," she points at some of the scarring on her face, "They just saw I was surrounded in fire. I don't know what I looked like, the stories just say it was 'unnatural.' Anyway, even though the survivors told the law about the gnome and the elementals, it was easier for them to blame the obvious scapegoat and not bother to investigate.

"The people who unofficially rule the rough end of Magnimar are called the Frallinos. They got me out of going to prison, which the rest of the world was prepared to do to a 10 year old kid for being in the wrong place." She scowls. "They fed me and clothed me better than the orphanage ever did. They protected me. And they also exploited my reputation for being a scary fire-summoning b%+!@ and trained me to be a bodyguard for some of their own. An 'enforcer.' And I did it because no one else was exactly showing up with a better offer, and because I owed them my life and my freedom. But I've never been able to escape being that 'horrible arsonist' and it gets to me, because I actually do just want to use what I can do to help. And I realized if I kept working as a thug in Magnimar, I never would escape it either. So I happened to save my boss's son's life when his son was dead set on getting himself killed, and that alone is a long story--and he owed me a favor. So I asked him to be released from his service and leave Magnimar. He agreed, and suggested I go here for the festival and put me in touch with Vhiski at the feedbag. I reckon Captain Dental-Plan who just showed up a minute ago is a a member of Frallino's extended family, " There is a very firm emphasis on that word, "--as is Vhiski--and he's here to remind me that I may have left Magnimar, but walking away from the Family isn't going to be so easy. In the meanwhile, I run into Princess over there who recognizes my name and is trying to get me to tell my story in front of everyone--why, so she can disbelieve me and make everyone hate me all over again in front over everyone? And then her cousin all but asks me to start setting s#$# on fire in a tavern. So obviously all those gentry a%$$*#$s know who I am and are trying to get me in trouble on top of all else and make sure I can't find a home anywhere." She seems quite oblivious to the possibility she may be the one jumping to several wrong conclusions. Indeed, she largely just seems overwhelmed by anxiety. By the time she finishes her outpouring, she nearly looks in tears. "I just wanted to get away and start over. And obviously, I can't. Those f!*%ers won't let me."

She looks at Conrad. "None of this is your problem. You're the only decent soul I've met here, and I just feel like I owe you the truth. Well," she pauses, "The locals at that table seemed alright too, the Shoanti kid and the tiefling. Anyway. I really wanted to come here thinking this place'd be less of a clusterf+@! than the Feedbag and I was wrong, and I'm sorry for dragging you over here. Just know... I promise you, I've never hurt no one who didn't deserve it, and I certainly have never hurt a kid, let alone set them on fire. And I want to be clear, I don't want to stop being Dare. I like being a f&!!ing fire throwing badass. I just want to have a rep for stuff I actually did, and do those things for the right reasons. When you go find your goddess-worshippers, tell'em to pray for me I get it right."

She shakes her head. "Sorry, that was a load more than you probably needed to hear, and I don't blame you if you want nothing to do with me now. Thanks for not being an a@~%&%+&." She drains her mug and stares into its remains.


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Half-orc eldritch scrapper sorcerer 1 HP: 7/7 | AC: 13/T13/FF10 CMD 14| F +1, R +2, W +2 | Per: +0 (Darkvision 60 ft.), Init: +2 | Sorcerer Spells Lvl 1 2/4| Hero Points: 1 | Status: ready to kick some ass

As Tera presses Dare (verbally if not physically), the sudden torrent of passionate interest unfortunately triggers her street kid "stranger danger" survival instincts--and the request for a demonstration sets her off in an entirely different way. She bares her tusks, snarling, "For the last time, I am not here to 'perform' for bored toffs!"

Joanna tries to save the moment, but by the time Tera apologizes, Dare is standing up and shoving her way through the crowd to try to find as distant corner as she can to finish her ale in peace. As busy as the tavern may be, few are likely to stand in the way of a seething six-foot-four half-orc dead set on being somewhere else.


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Half-orc eldritch scrapper sorcerer 1 HP: 7/7 | AC: 13/T13/FF10 CMD 14| F +1, R +2, W +2 | Per: +0 (Darkvision 60 ft.), Init: +2 | Sorcerer Spells Lvl 1 2/4| Hero Points: 1 | Status: ready to kick some ass

Dare's pointed ears flick when Lita mentions the Sarenites. Her eyes fall on the holy symbol with a sense of recognition... and something else. Almost like longing.

She says nothing, however, and as soon as she realizes she's looking at all, she looks back toward Tera and takes a long drink of her ale, waiting for the others to expound further on Thassilon. She would want to talk to Lita later, but preferably not in front of everyone else.


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Half-orc eldritch scrapper sorcerer 1 HP: 7/7 | AC: 13/T13/FF10 CMD 14| F +1, R +2, W +2 | Per: +0 (Darkvision 60 ft.), Init: +2 | Sorcerer Spells Lvl 1 2/4| Hero Points: 1 | Status: ready to kick some ass

Was typing previous post while DM-Salsa posted, so this is an addendum

As she prays for someone to create a distraction, someone appears!

Knowledge Local: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (11) + 7 = 18

Their accents and dress also betray them to be Magnimarian. *sigh* Modi's Teeth, did we all leave the city at once?

Dare's shoulders slump, though she waves to indicate she has no issue with anyone else sitting there. She looks to see how far away the waitress is.


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Half-orc eldritch scrapper sorcerer 1 HP: 7/7 | AC: 13/T13/FF10 CMD 14| F +1, R +2, W +2 | Per: +0 (Darkvision 60 ft.), Init: +2 | Sorcerer Spells Lvl 1 2/4| Hero Points: 1 | Status: ready to kick some ass

Dare's jaw tightens. She's being invited to air the very dirty laundry she had been trying to escape by coming to Sandpoint--dirty laundry that she had never been responsible for in the first place. Stuff that she did not want even more heartless bluebloods to be gossiping about at her expense. There would be no point in having begged Frallino to pay for her passage here if she would just have to leave again. The air around her heats as part of her starts to panic, half enraged, half frightened--displayed in a dilation of her pupils. One hand clenches on the edge of the table. Part of her wants to flip the table and walk.

Her eyes flicker over to Conrad. His presence is so anxious the space around him practically vibrates. This nudges her to reconsider that impulse. She'd wanted to help the fellow relax in a place less likely to invite a fight. She'd do neither him nor herself no good by revving things up here.

She physically swallows, as though her pride was something that could slide down her gullet. "I am not here to spread gossip to entertain a toff--who looks like she's constantly smelling something awful, by the way--because she's half-drunk and bored." She inhales and exhales, recognizing that was a failure at non hostility. She tries to find the words. "What I am here for is..." Why was she here? "The Swallowtail Release. A day about... about transformation. Hope. If you're not here for the same things, then kindly f#~* off." A triumphant grin opens her face. She successfully did not set this woman on fire. Hooray.

Now she silently prays to Sarenrae that someone else take up the conversation and gets the eyes off her.

I think it's clear but to be certain, any IC hostility is indeed just IC. Indeed, I now actually, desperately need them to be best friends by the end of this campaign.


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Half-orc eldritch scrapper sorcerer 1 HP: 7/7 | AC: 13/T13/FF10 CMD 14| F +1, R +2, W +2 | Per: +0 (Darkvision 60 ft.), Init: +2 | Sorcerer Spells Lvl 1 2/4| Hero Points: 1 | Status: ready to kick some ass
Lita Turandarok wrote:


She smiles to them both, expression closed-lipped and almost apologetic, though the smile falters for just a second as her eyes land on Conrad. The poor kid looks terrified, and Lita doesn't need to think long to guess why. But, he's here. He's here, even if he was dragged, and is waiting to be allowed to sit by her. Sure, maybe he's scared, but Lita doesn't see a threat so much as she sees a mind, ready to be changed. Her smile returns, as gentle as she can make it.

"It's always better to have a little friendly company."

Nodding with thanks to the tiefling, Dare pulls out the chair she had her hand on and the one next to it, gesturing to Conrad to sit. She flops down in her own chair.

"What's good he-" she begins to ask Lita, when she looks up toward the group gathered around some kind of keyboard instrument. She spots Cailyn looking at her. "Oh piss, it's Princess Crinklenose."

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May Aaron's next steps on his journey bring him much success and joy!

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Well, I made the best dang roast chicken I ever made last night.

I had made preserved lemons about a month ago. This simply involves almost quartering them (leaving them held together at the stem end), squeezing a bit of the juice into a mason jar, rubbing kosher salt into the middle, and then squishing them into the jar in between layers of more salt. Refrigerate and let sit, turning over the jar occasionally, for at least two weeks. (I tried googling a recipe to share and they're all those kind where they go 12 pages into the history of lemons and salt and jars before they say "just shove lemons and salt in a jar" at the very end, so I thought I'd spare you.)

I wanted to use the lemons to make chicken tagine and brought them to my dad's to make, but he was sick and I decided to make a roast chicken instead, as it would involve less prep time for me (so I could spend more time with him) and be, for him, more comfort food-like.

So I cut carrots, onions, and potatoes into wedges/3-4 inch length bits and put them at the bottom of a baking pan. Tossed them with salt, pepper, and a tad bit of olive oil (not a lot).

I took one of the preserved lemons and rubbed it all over the outside of the chicken, and then shoved half, pith side down, under the skin of each breast. I then rubbed the outside of the chicken with a bit more salt (which I'd skip next time), a tad bit of red pepper, and fresh thyme. I put an onion and another preserved lemon into the cavity. Laid the chicken on top of the vegetables.

Roasted for 20 minutes at 400 and then turned it down to 350 for another 80 minutes (it was a 5 lb bird, so 20 min a lb).

Skin was crisp, and the lemon juice and salt somehow extracted juices from the bird making the chicken's own gravy in the bottom, and yet the meat was still very tender and moist. The juices cooked the veggies perfectly, which also picked up a lot of the lemon flavor.

The only issue is it was slightly too salty, as I'd underestimated how much of the salt from the preserved lemons got into the chicken. So I think next time I'd skip salting it separately from rubbing it with the lemons and putting one in the cavity. The thyme was also largely unnecessary (though it didn't hurt it any).

Super easy (it takes a little time to make the preserved lemons but that in itself is easy and they're handy to have on hand). And it was entirely a one pan meal with very easy cleanup.


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Half-orc eldritch scrapper sorcerer 1 HP: 7/7 | AC: 13/T13/FF10 CMD 14| F +1, R +2, W +2 | Per: +0 (Darkvision 60 ft.), Init: +2 | Sorcerer Spells Lvl 1 2/4| Hero Points: 1 | Status: ready to kick some ass

Conrad, I was also thinking of moving us to the Rusty Dragon (Dare might mention it in a future post) if that makes it easier for us to meet some more folks.

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Ambrosia Slaad wrote:
DeathQuaker wrote:
Ambrosia Slaad wrote:
Freehold DM wrote:
SCIENCE RULES
Careful, Icarus. </CraigyFerg> Say it twice more and you might accidentally summon the eldritch horror Mr Good Eats himself.

Is he one of the Masters of the Bazaar? Like Mr. Wines?

(Someone may have discovered Fallen London...)

Maybe? I'm not sure what unearthly powers Alton Brown may possess, but the mere mention of his name seems to make Freehold's eye twitch, much like Inspector Dreyfus hearing "Clouseau."

I wouldn't be surprised at all if Alton Brown is a actually space bat in service of the Elder Ones.

DeathQuaker wrote:
It is a small mercy upon this blighted world we live in that those who live further south and west of me now are able to know the love that is an Utz potato chip.
They make a darn tasty chip, but I must confess that my overriding thought in the store was "I'm not going to spend nearly five bucks for a regular-sized bag of Ruffles or Lays." Utz, Wise, storebrand, I ain't that picky about chips. I like Zapps flavors, but I'm adverse to the texture of kettle-cooked chips. The Utz were only $2.79 a bag.

That is a perfectly good reason to get them, and one thing I've been glad as they've become a more national brand is they have yet to be all "look artisanal chips from eastern Pennsylvania, only $8,000!"

But I find them tastier than Lays anyway (not that I will turn away a freely offered bag of Lays). They're less greasy or something.

David M Mallon wrote:
They're not bad, but I'm going to have to go ahead and say that they don't quite match up to Herr's ketchup chips. Utz extra dark pretzels are fantastic, though.
I still don't understand the appeal of ketchup and all-dressed chips. I suspect it's a Me thing, as I rarely have ketchup with fries either.

Those extra dark pretzels are frikkin' amazing. I got my dad addicted to them.

I have not tried the ketchup Herr's but I like Herr's as a brand too, so I expect it wouldn't be bad. But if I want a plain chip I like Utz's the best. I don't know if it's the cottonseed oil or what.

I have too many cooking ambitions this week but I am hoping to make two out of four of these: chicken tagine, four-bean chili, beet soup, and beer-braised bratwurst with mashed potatoes.


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Half-orc eldritch scrapper sorcerer 1 HP: 7/7 | AC: 13/T13/FF10 CMD 14| F +1, R +2, W +2 | Per: +0 (Darkvision 60 ft.), Init: +2 | Sorcerer Spells Lvl 1 2/4| Hero Points: 1 | Status: ready to kick some ass

Fatman's Feedbag

Dare starts at the voice addressing her, and comes a hair's breadth away from jabbing herself with the hot tip of her stylus. She hisses, but looks up to see the young man who had been furtively getting out of her way most of the time she had been here.

She had been torn between introducing herself and not. There was benefit to being seen as intimidating--and she needed the Vhiskis to know she could be useful in that way. Still, something about his shyness reminded her of the children who used to cling to the back her shirt as she stared down bullies when she was younger, and stirred a similar protective instinct. Even if his crooked nose suggested he could at least take a punch, and, given the nature of this fine establishment, probably deliver one.

As such, she holds back on the curse she was on the verge of shouting, and instead gives him an incredulous look. "Am I a what?" She almost scowls, but then her face switches to a lopsided smile. "Doubt the goddess of beauty has room for prayers from a face like mine."

One eyebrow, cut through with ancient burn scarring (that is what the flame tattoo conceals), twitches. "Why d'you ask?" She looks back down at her wooden nickel, and goes to reheat her stylus on the flame.


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Half-orc eldritch scrapper sorcerer 1 HP: 7/7 | AC: 13/T13/FF10 CMD 14| F +1, R +2, W +2 | Per: +0 (Darkvision 60 ft.), Init: +2 | Sorcerer Spells Lvl 1 2/4| Hero Points: 1 | Status: ready to kick some ass

At the Fatman's Feedbag

A 6'4" half-orc woman in a red linen shirt and black leather bodice slouches over a small table. The tattoo of fire on her eye, the scraggy undercut with tips of her black hair dyed red, the huge laced black boots all say, "I hope I look like a badass." The look of intense concentration, complete with tip of her tongue sticking out between her tusked lower teeth, belies the effect almost tragically.

A stack of wooden nickels sits on the table, next to a small oil-burner, with which she is heating a stylus and using to make delicate marks on one of the discs of wood--tracing the design she sketched on it in graphite: a butterfly.

Art: Woodburning: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (4) + 5 = 9

She snarls at the result, tosses it onto the floor, and starts over with a new wooden chip, taking a deep breath and deciding to go slower. Taking 10, perhaps...


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Half-orc eldritch scrapper sorcerer 1 HP: 7/7 | AC: 13/T13/FF10 CMD 14| F +1, R +2, W +2 | Per: +0 (Darkvision 60 ft.), Init: +2 | Sorcerer Spells Lvl 1 2/4| Hero Points: 1 | Status: ready to kick some ass

Fine with me to stay at the Fatman's Feedbag if that suits the setup.

Conrad Mendelson wrote:

Dare: I think that makes it likely that Conrad and Dare would have at least seen each other a couple of times while staying at the inn. It can be just in passing, or maybe they already have first impressions about the other.

Based on Dare's looks, I'd say it's likely that Conrad would initially misjudge her as a trouble-maker

She is shocked, shocked, I say.

Quote:
and be wary of her -in no small part because he hasn't met many half-orcs. But he strongly believes in leaving people alone if they're just minding their business and generally vibing.

She generally would be minding her own business.

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What could completely turn his opinion around would be witnessing Dare doing something really virtuous and/or artistic. If you think Dare would be the type to make her affiliation with Sarenrae and her passion for woodburning very obvious while staying at the inn, they might begin the AP on a good start!

She is not overtly demonstrative of her faith, but now that I think of it, she may well find a quiet corner or spot outside to do some woodburning in hopes of selling some trinkets at the Swallowtail Festival for cash. Which he would certainly notice going in and out.

@GM-Salsa: Is it okay if I add some artisan's tools (pyrography) to her equipment? She's got the money for it (even if she'll be fairly cash poor afterward).

Quote:

Cailyn will come in with Dare, a few weeks ago. She would have been chatty as normal until she learned Dare's name, connecting it to the fire she had heard about.

Then she would have been still polite but standing off more, avoiding her a bit. And since Cailyn has no skill at hiding anything well, Dare could have easily noticed and figured out why.

If you are okay with that.

Dare would at first largely let the young woman chatter on and listen, as she would try not to annoy/pick a fight with someone who doesn't just turn from her based on appearances.

When Cailyn suddenly grows cold, Dare clenches her fists, the air around her heats up a bit--and then she just slouches, mutters, "This is why I was trying to get away from f+*~ing Magnimar," and walks away and avoids Cailyn for the rest of the trip.

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Ambrosia Slaad wrote:
Freehold DM wrote:
SCIENCE RULES
Careful, Icarus. </CraigyFerg> Say it twice more and you might accidentally summon the eldritch horror Mr Good Eats himself.

Is he one of the Masters of the Bazaar? Like Mr. Wines?

(Someone may have discovered Fallen London...)

Quote:


Dinner last night was just fried chicken patties (Aldi's "red bag") baked in the oven with sliced bolillo rolls and sliced tomato, sliced sweet onion, shredded lettuce, and sliced provolone for sandwiches, plus Utz potato chips.

It is a small mercy upon this blighted world we live in that those who live further south and west of me now are able to know the love that is an Utz potato chip.


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Half-orc eldritch scrapper sorcerer 1 HP: 7/7 | AC: 13/T13/FF10 CMD 14| F +1, R +2, W +2 | Per: +0 (Darkvision 60 ft.), Init: +2 | Sorcerer Spells Lvl 1 2/4| Hero Points: 1 | Status: ready to kick some ass
Quote:
she sees them willing to take a hit for them first. :)

That's supposed to say "if they see her willing to take a hit for them." (Slip of the tongue?)

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DeathQuaker wrote:
Baking powder is a premixed combination of an acid and a base (IIRC baking soda + cream of tartar), that activates when wet. The saltiness comes iirc from the ensuing reaction producing sodium chloride as a byproduct.

PS I accidentally implied a backwards assignment of chemical quality. Baking soda is the base and cream of tartar is the acid (IIRC it is also known as tartaric acid).

In completely other news I want to try making You Suck At Cooking's chicken tinga sometime. I need to get chipotle in adobo first though (ran out of what I had on hand).

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Baking powder is a premixed combination of an acid and a base (IIRC baking soda + cream of tartar), that activates when wet. The saltiness comes iirc from the ensuing reaction producing sodium chloride as a byproduct.

Baking soda is generally the ingredient added to soften beans.

Please note the aforementioned is from a person with an advanced degree in English literature and she may be making all of these things up.

I am glad the chili was nonetheless salvaged. You got this, Amby!
(No autocorrect. While indeed, I Am Bi, "Am Bi" was not what I was trying to say.)

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I stir fried the cabbage with carrot, onions, mushroom medley, garlic, scallions, and a little bok choy (for some darker green) and some bean thread noodles, using a sauce made of rice vinegar, oyster sauce, hoisin sauce, sambal oelek, water, a bit of chicken bouillon, and corn starch. Turned out super yummy. It was a lot of chopping but used up all the cabbage as well as the mushrooms that needed to be used up.

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Freehold DM wrote:
DeathQuaker wrote:
Any advice for leftover cabbage?

seasons DeathQuaker subtly, quietly, procures fresh butter for Amby

Honestly, dude, I know you're just messing around, but this is kind of creeping me out. Seriously.

Quote:
Cooked or raw?

It is currently raw.

Quote:

If raw, a stir fry is the best way to go especially if the cabbage is looking old. Make sure there's a loooooot of spices to put in that stir fry, as this is cabbage we are talking about. And you'll need a good, hearty meat to go along with that stir fry, I recommend ground pork or similar. Don't trust yourself with spices overall? Cabbage absorbs liquids quite well, you can add soy sauce or similar to your stir fry.

Cooked? Clean your cabbage, pat it dry, and use it to wrap fingers of (well seasoned) cooked ground beef, and then stick them in the oven for a bit. If you have a lot of ground beef, make several fingers and wrap them all up in cabbage and add some kind of sauce on top- like leftover marinara sauce or something similar.

Thank you, these are excellent suggestions!

I had considered stir fry but miniature/quick gołąbki had not occurred to me. Even though I love gołąbki. (I've sometimes thought about making something similar but rather than do stuffed cabbage rolls, parboil the cabbage and use it like lasagna noodles and layer it and beef and rice and sauce.)

Stir fry is more likely as I do not have any ground beef on hand but do have some nice mushrooms I can use up. Maybe I should go to the market and get some hoisin and make some homemade moo shu-esque something.

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Freehold DM wrote:
Ambrosia Slaad wrote:
Freehold DM wrote:

takes celebratory bite out of Amby

YAAAAAAAAAAAAAY AMBY

You're as bad as the cats.

takes another bite it snowed again last night! We also are expecting even more snow roughly a week from today.

eyes DeathQuaker speculatively

I don't recommend it. You might just get foul wind and little else.

Anyway, sorry I missed thread update but not sorry because I was away on a post promotion celebration by getting a massage at a spa and staying at a fancy hotel.

When I got home I made lamb stew (meat was available at the local store for a decent price for lamb) with mirepoix and a bourbon-barrel aged stout I bought at a local brewery awhile ago. It was phenomenal.

And then for the rest of the week when I wasn't eating stew I was mainly eating hotdogs, cole slaw, and toast and peanut butter (not all in one sitting), so.

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Well I just finished the game last night, well past my bedtime. It was F~!+ING AMAZING. I am obsessed with this game and its characters in a way I haven't been for a piece of media in YEARS. I think specifically the last video game I felt this way about was probably Neverwinter Nights 2, and prior indeed Planescape: Torment and Baldur's Gate 2.

There are absolutely things I can quibble with, and the UI needs some serious organizing (I played on Steamdeck so I've seen both the PC and controller interfaces and both have... issues). Fights with many enemies take too g@!*@$n long. There is one (only one that stands out) ridiculous moment of stupidly rigid railroad plot at an inopportune time just before Act III (which subsequently gets a completely unfair callback to in dialogue for a choice the game literally refuses to let you make). There's a BG2 character who deserved just slightly more justice (not the one discussed in this thread)... well, not justice, but a little more... explanation? And I'm mad there are no references to Imoen outside of a sentence in a book.

But even the moments that stand out as frustrating only do so because the rest is SO GOOD. So good. The gameplay is good. I wouldn't play it if it wasn't fun to explore and solve puzzles and find ways to beat monsters. I thought 5e rules applied to Larian's engine worked super well. But for me 90% of this game is story and it's most worth playing if what you want is the story and the characters.

I'm an English lit nerd and professional wordsmith (for other people's words, not my own, I am well aware of what my own babbling ramble looks like, thank you). Stories feed my soul. Video games allow us to interact and be part of a story in a way a book or film cannot, so I am fascinated by what you can do with the medium to build and make a story come to life. The storytelling, nitpicks aside, is some of the best I've seen in a long time. I think this game had the most character growth I've ever seen in a game like this, and that's saying something. I felt like my own custom main character grew and saw the companions I traveled with grew. The story has so many satisfying moments. I've made new pixel-friends I'll never forget, and got, to my delight, spent some time with old friends I never thought I would see again. There are scenes that made me double over in real tears of pathos and despair. There are so, so many scenes that made me laugh out loud, or punch the air in victory. And moments where I could look at a character and say, "Wow, I'm proud of you."

And I very much doubt Larian reads the Paizo boards, but I don't post in most other media sites I lurk in, so just in case, Larian, Wow, I'm proud of you. I was absolutely utterly of the belief that Baldur's Gate needed no sequel, and when I heard Larian got the job... well, I thought their stuff was fine, you know? But I'd never even gotten around to finishing DOS2. Could they really take on this franchise, so beloved by those who played it, and truly add to the existing themes and story while appealing to a new player base?

And they did. They did it. Wow. (Oh and PS, if you haven't played it yet or haven't played it in awhile, Patch 6 is out and between it and Patch 5, tons of content has been added and tweaked, and many bugs fixed and QOL improvements made.)

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As I sit recently being utterly absorbed by Baldur's Gate III, I have also been reflecting recently on how much the earlier Baldur's Gates (especially 2) and Planescape Torment really hit me hard as well. While the gameplay in all is... fine? the story, characters, and themes carry them head and shoulders above a lot of stuff I've played.

And yet I've also been recently spending hours again in Planet Coaster mindlessly building scenery, so I have complex game needs.

ETA: Upon listening to the Suikoden V soundtrack, I randomly decided to look up Suikoden as I'd vaguely recalled something of a spiritual successor was coming out and wanted to look up the game. And learned that just today, the creator of Suikoden died: Yoshitaka Murayama. May he rest in peace. That was a truly phenomenal series of games.

(That "spiritual successor" is slated to come out in April on Nintendo and is called Eiyden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes.)

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JoelF847 wrote:

I really enjoyed it. It was good all around. I can agree with the fact that they over marketed Daredevil's appearance (that would have been cooler as a surprise anyway).

My only real complaint is that it felt a bit like half of two thirds of a season only. I wanted to see more, and specifically see her go back to NYC with her newfound powers and perspective and continued to make her war on Kingpin and/or carving out her own place.

I thought I replied to this ages ago but wanted to say I agree on all points... I really was expecting a very different show than what we got. I really liked what we got, but I was originally expecting a few episodes in Tamaha and then returning to NYC to deal with Kingpin on his turf, and I'd like to see Echo back in that area as well.

BigNorseWolf wrote:


Besides ** spoiler omitted **

I don't think she cured him of anything, per se, but quelled his rage somewhat, and since Kingpin's sense of self is buried in his rage, he temporarily lost sight of who he was. But that sets him up nicely to pursue his ambitions politically rather than in overt criminal warfare...

Quote:


The main character is evil and I don't think I've seen anything to make me actually like them.

The sentiment that she is simply "evil" is unfairly reductive, IMO. Yes, she was more or less a villainous wildcard at the start (as she was in Hawkeye, so that should have come as no surprise). Obvious the show puts her slowly toward a heel-face turn... I think she has a long way to go before I'd call her heroic, but I don't think "evil" is a fair label either.

But I LOVE comic book characters who are darkness with a bit of light so this is up my alley. If it ain't up yours that's fine--I can understand not wanting to follow a journey of someone who at first can seem so callous, no matter how tragic the backstory. Just noting I think there is merit in the complexity of the tale, including its morality, that shouldn't be overlooked in my opinion. There's a difference between saying "Character is too dark" and tarring with the broad "evil" brush.

==

The "Assembled" of this show was very interesting, and I was particularly interested to see the work they did on the practical effects, and what they did to make things accessible for the hearing impaired actors. Worth watching if one is interested in those kind of behind the scenes things. Plus the behind the scenes combat takes were fascinating--Alaqua Cox did a ton of s!&% I would have thought a stunt double would have taken on but nope... she is badass, man.

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I have not had a chance to play or run in person on a table for years. I do not need another flip mat. I do not need another flip mat...

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I'm sure Goose will round them up eventually. ;)

I just watched the "Assembled: Making of" episode for the Marvels and I really loved seeing how they did so much of the stuff (the bits on the space soundtrack and how they did the space flights with the cockpit on a gimbal facing a giant curved LED screen were particularly fascinating to me). Some of these episodes I find a bit boring but I enjoyed it. I also get the sense from what some folks were saying there was a better movie on the cutting room floor. And, I mean, I loved this movie, but it brushes the surface on a lot of things they could have dug deeper on (and had some time to do so).

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Ythiel wrote:


Oh that's plain messed up.

Seconded; you've just unlocked a new fear.

Sorry for scaring you! Unfortunately I have found it better in the long run to speak openly about such issues.

=======

In other news, I have slightly updated Dare's character sheet with some additional gear updates and some proofreading. Nothing dramatic, just personalizing the gear with stuff like a pack of cards and some food and for some reason I forgot to give her the requisite low-level adventurer's emergency backup dagger.

I like giving my PCs a hobby. Card playing seems appropriate for a low-level Sczarni associate.

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Hello! I am throwing my hat in with Dare Ashborn, a CG Half-Orc Eldritch Scrapper Sorcerer. She will probably one day multiclass and perhaps go Eldritch Knight or something like it if that's allowable. I may need to tweak gear but she is otherwise done.

Her background is on the linked alias, below the statblock.

Roleplaying Samples: You are welcome to look through all of my aliases, most of which are PBP character based, but here's a few:
Misha Keroun, Human Archeologist Bard who explored her heart out during a five year campaign, The Mwangi Expedition
Kalig the Tireless, N Half-Orc Druid, a grumpy but well-meaning soul who supported the party for many years in a game called Beyond the World's Edge
Cannonball Sal, Half-Elf Tidal Hunter: She was in two campaigns (both of which ended prematurely for external reasons) Ruins of Azlant and Skull and Shackles (yes, I was the original GM on that campaign; it went maaaaanny years and I burned out, and one of the players and I swapped places so he would GM and I would play instead. Sal's gameplay starts here and of course you can read through that whole thread and also see how I roleplay as GM and as a secondary PC we added later, Riori)

If you would like me to link to a particular example of something or have questions about what you see let me know.

1. What time zone are you in? U.S. East Coast (EST)

2. How long have you been playing TTRPGs? I bought the Red Box in 1987 but didn't get a chance to play with anyone else until 1994. Since then I have played very regularly, both as player and GM, in PBP and at table IRL.

3. What's your favorite part about playing TTRPGs? I think storytelling is fundamental to the human experience: it reflects who we are, warns us of our failings, shows us what we can be if we try, and expands our dreams. RPGs is one of my favorite ways to engage in storycraft because we are creating stories together while also adapting to the unexpected twists and turns offered by the dice. It evokes creativity, strategy, and collaboration in a way few other interactions can.

4. What do you expect from this game? Fun, collaboration, and a chance to experience one of the earliest APs under the Pathfinder label.

5. What do you expect out of your fellow players? A willingness to communicate openly, share feedback honestly and respectfully, and avoid godmoding (i.e., in an unfair and unreasonable way, assuming control of another person's character or presuming what their reaction could/should be).

6. What do you expect out of me? I've joined at least three different ROTRL campaigns all of which collapsed due to DM fatigue, usually somewhere in first fortress. I know you're a steady poster, experienced gamer, and dedicated to roleplaying, so quite frankly I am trusting you'll last longer. :) While also working hard to tell a good story. (No pressure. ;) )

7. Beyond the obvious (generally stuff already prohibited by Paizo's forum rules,) what are your redlines? Are there any topics, themes, or imagery that you absolutely do not want to see in the game? No extremely graphic violence, no graphic depictions of sexual assault or child abuse, and a check-in/trigger warning should necessary content involving these subjects come up. I don't want players or GMs assuming my character is okay being flirted with/hit on; please check with me first: I have no problem with the idea of flirting in general, but I've had some really weird creepy experiences in the past with this--particularly a GM using "just flirtation" in an attempt to, ultimately, trick my character into a rape/incest scenario against my interests and wishes. Hence I feel a need to be very clear about permissions and expectations.

RPG Superstar 2015 Top 8

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I know most of us have burned out a bit on discussing Marvel stuff, and I know I also tend to respond to most things I see by saying, "I liked it, it was fun!" (Which is genuinely true, but I recognize not always helpful.)

But seriously, guys, I liked this and it was... intense. And really, in my opinion, solidly good. Very much in the spirit of the Netflix shows but with better pacing. (The pacing could still have improved, but if this show had been a Netflix show, Maya would only just be learning of her powers at all in Episode 5).

I've been surprised to see so many people remark on this as meh or middling because coming from my more serious, likes-to-analyze-stories side of me, this had a lot of great narrative beats and interesting character arcs. On the entertainment side the acting is great all around. On the action side of things, really, really good fight choreography IMO (but I am not an expert on those things). And holy cow, Alaqua Cox is just amazing. Just amazing.

Apart from references to Hawkeye and the obvious presence of Kingpin, references to other Marvel series are minimal, and I think that actually does the show a huge favor. I like the idea of this "Marvel Spotlight" imprint and I think it may help Marvel if they want to keep making stuff. You don't have to watch a million movies and shows to understand what's happening here and that's a good thing.

If you haven't watched it, and you just want a good street-level hero story, and/or you don't care about anything else but need more Vincent D'Onofrio as Kingpin, watch it. I can't promise you'll love it as much as I did, as we are all different, but I think it's worth checking out and seeing for yourself.


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Forces of Nature Battlemap

With apologies I am stuck out of town unexpectedly away from my laptop where I have all my notes. Please excuse the delay. If I am delayed too much longer we can just handwave the end of the fight so we can proceed with RP.

RPG Superstar 2015 Top 8

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I thawed out some frozen haddock the other night and had to cook it tonight. Was worried it wouldn't be very good as it had been in the freezer quite awhile. Patted dry, dredged in flour and a little old bay (just a bit), and pan fried in a mix of butter and canola.

I'm not good at cooking fish and I have to say it turned out pretty dang decent. Served with some fresh lemon juice.

Side was Trader Joe's root vegetable "fries" baked in the oven (Strips of beet, carrot, potato, and turnip). So sort of a healthier (if not actually healthy) fish'n'chips.

Downed with some Union Brewery Skipjack pilsner.


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Forces of Nature Battlemap
Lazur Anil wrote:

Was that an SLA or spell he cast? If so I get an attack of opportunity as I have a 15 foot reach. Just in cast I'll roll one and decide what I am going to do based on that.

[dice=+5 Inspired Mithral Rapier PA AoO]1d20+21-4+1 [dice=Damage]1d8+10+8

There is a wall in front of you (the natural cave wall) that would prevent you from being able to attack him with reach from your position. I can't find the reference map and don't have a lot of time at the moment to look, but I'm certain of this: attacks, including reach attacks, cannot cut around corners, especially since you could barely even see him from where you are standing. I don't believe long arms is exceptional in that regard. (OTOH, you would have partial cover from him if the wall of stone were not there).

Trer, flying out is valid, sorry for the disappointment there.

RPG Superstar 2015 Top 8

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And still no one talks to me. *walks away, looking down, crestfallen, at the long road, knowing she will never truly belong.*


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Wise Sleuth 2 hp 19/19 | Init +3; Perception 13 | Defense 15 | Wisdom +3 | Proficiency +2 | Focus 3/3 pts

Ernie thanks for bringing this up.

SuperTumbler, in fairness to you we started with a few more PCs/players who disappeared, including a cop, who could have helped us navigate through this in a different direction. We ended up in a place with fewer tools than we started out with so it's hard to adjust from that. Just Angelyna has a point about maybe seeing if we can recruit one more player--maybe someone on the more fightery side of things, with a dash of rebel.

One of the "problems" is you have successfully established the MIBs as well-equipped badasses who can destroy communications and are willing to kill us, without consequence, for looking at them funny--and we are also surrounded by NPCs who can suffer at the hands of these folks without us being able to do anything significant about it.

I think indeed you have created the likelihood of running away as probably the most obvious option, but based on your drawing of the movie shoot location, there is only one way out of the canyon, and that's the road the MIBs are blocking (and while we've sabotaged one SUV I recall there being several). We can't leave on foot or using small-range vehicles because we're in a desert and have no supplies, so we'll die.

I think that's why "stay put" seemed the obvious option to Ernie (and me at least in part, until I realized they'd probably be looking for Angelyna), especially since the movie set keeps us close to equipment and other people we can use and/or hide amid.

My original idea at the start of the game is that we'd end up all living out of the stolen RV clinic (with its NPCs dead or dropped off) so we could have a mobile HQ, but I don't know if that's plausible given the direction we're taking, especially as there is nowhere a giant RV can flee to particularly easily. I'm willing to dispense with it, and we have other PCs' cars we could use (Ernie's car is here but he can't currently get to it; maybe a DA even went off to fetch Just Angelyna's shiny car and that is now conveniently on the other side of the MIBs' roadblock?), but that still requires getting out of there and my sense of the situation is we are completely boxed in by impenetrable bad guys who can outgun and outmaneuver us at every turn.

My suggestion would be is
1) If the best option is to run, drop us an area description and/or NPC that can direct us to a nearby abandoned laboratory/military base/ghost town that somehow has water. (I'm going to post in game seeking something like this out.)

2) If we can or should stay put, we just contend with either lying low, or make it clearer there might be a way to contend with the MIBs (because right now my sense of them is that if we do anything with them, we're absolutely f%$*ed and it's game over. That my character is a technical pacifist doesn't help). Having a reminder of how many cars, how many MIBs, etc. are present would be helpful.

And meanwhile we can chat about possibly recruiting another PC.

RPG Superstar 2015 Top 8

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Freehold DM wrote:
yells

<cranky grandma>Stop bein' a smartass and actually talk to me. </cranky grandma>

RPG Superstar 2015 Top 8

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Somehow I missed the last few updates to this. I blame Baldur's Gate III, starting a new play by post, and a 60 page document I was asked to "edit" which in this case turned out to mean "nearly completely rewrite so it is actually comprehensible." And the holidays of course.

Mostly it's Baldur's Gate III's fault though. It is holding me down and forcing me to play it. Forcing me.

Ambrosia Slaad wrote:


Freehold DM wrote:
It's just damn good to hear from you. I am thankful for that this year.

I just don't have a connection to PF2E. And I can barely afford one hobby, let alone two. With so many others also drifting away, I just don't have as much drive to visit Paizo so often, especially when I'm not cooking anything new or different.

Belatedly agreeing with Freehold it is good to see you whenever you do come.

Weirdly, I come here all the time but almost never actually look at the threads for the RPGs that Paizo publishes. Like you I don't really play 2e... it's too crunchy for me--and I like crunchy games so that's saying something--plus no one my age where I live has time to learn a new, complex system--and it is significantly different from 1e that there is a LOT to both unlearn and learn anew. If we're going to learn a system it's going to be a fairly simple one. Even if I did play, I tend to stay out of the RPG threads because every time I look at them, it's someone derailing a reasonable conversation to talk about martial/caster disparity or why rogues suck or something (regardless of actual system or the topic of the thread) so it's pointless to get involved.

But I stick around for pop culture convos and am pretty active in PBPs. The PBP community is here is small but overall, pretty good in my experience. I've had negative experiences of course--humans be human--but generally have found a lot of cool people to play with and good games to try in various systems.

And so I don't get yelled at for speaking off topic but on the forum topic but in the off topic boards*:

I decided to try Trader Joe's chicken sausages with Unexpected Cheddar in them. (That is the name of a cheese TRader Joe's makes that IIRC is a blend of cheddar and gruyere.) They are astonishingly tasty. Smokey and brown nicely and as they are precooked don't take long to heat up.

I had them with some smashed potatoes (which are low-dairy mashed potatoes) and sauteed kale. I boiled the potatoes with chicken bouillon (reserving some of the liquid to smash them with) and then deglazed the sausage/kale pan with a mix of the remaining potato cooking liquid and a little corn starch to make a gravy.

Earlier this week I recycled the Christmas ham bone into the best split pea soup I ever made and put some extra ham into a strata made with some rich Ukrainian bread my niece sent my dad that was very tasty but had started to get dry.

* I know no one is actually going to yell at me for this.

Full Name

Vandrare the Wretched

Race

Dhampir HP 40/40 | AC: 21 | FF: 14 | T: 17 | *CMD 20* | Per +8 (+2 Urban) | F: +6 | R: +7 | W: +4 | Init +3

Skills:
Acrobatics +7 | Climb +7 | Handle Animal +6| Knw(Nat) +7 | Stealth +7 | Survival +8 (+2 Urban/ +3 Tracking)

Classes/Levels

Ranger (Beast Master) 4

Gender

Male

Size

Medium

Age

28

Alignment

LN

Deity

Abadar

Languages

Common

Occupation

Bounty Hunter

Strength 16
Dexterity 16
Constitution 14
Intelligence 10
Wisdom 12
Charisma 9

About Vandrare the Wretched

Statblock:
Vandrare the Wretched
Male Dhampir (Svetocher) ranger (beastmaster) 4 (Pathfinder RPG Advanced Race Guide)
CN Medium humanoid (dhampir)
Init +3 (+5 in urban environments)
Senses Perception +8 (+2 vs undead, +2 in urban environments)
--------------------
Defense
--------------------
AC: 21, touch 14, flat-footed 17
HP: 40
Saves: Fort +6, Ref +7, Will +4 (+2 vs. Fear, +2 on all vs. Disease and Mind Affecting)
--------------------
Offense
--------------------
Speed 30 ft.
Melee
. . Greatsword +8 (2d6+5/19-20) or
. . cold iron longsword +8 (1d8+4/19-20) or
. . silver bastard sword +8 (1d10+3/19-20) or
. . dagger +7 (1d4+3/19-20) or
Ranged
. . light crossbow +7 (1d8/19-20, 80ft range)
Special Attacks: Power Attack ( - 2 attack roll, + 6 damage)
--------------------
Statistics
--------------------
Str 16, Dex 16, Con 14, Int 10, Wis 12, Cha 9
Base Atk +4; CMB +7; CMD 20
Feats Iron Will, Dodge, Power Attack (Combat Style), Endurance (Class)
Traits: Bounty Hunter, Courageous
Skills: Acrobatics +7, Climb +7, Craft(Alchemy) +7, Handle Animal +6, Knowledge(Nature) +7, Perception +8, Stealth +7, Survival +8
Languages: Common
SQ: 1st favoured enemy(Undead), track, wild empathy, Combat style (Two Handed), Endurance, 1st favoured terrain (Urban), Hunter's bond

Gear: +1 greatsword, +1 breastplate, cloak of resistance +1, masterwork cold iron longsword, masterwork silver bastard sword with combat scabbard, light crossbow, 20 bolts, potion of inflict minor wounds (7), pathfinder’s kit, mess kit, soap, 50ft rope, filter hood, ink, ink pen, parchment, coffee pot, mug, assorted teas, coffee, 96gp, 4sp, 9cp, wayfinder compass (on loan)
--------------------
Special Abilities
--------------------
Bounty Hunter You gain a +1 trait bonus on Survival checks to find or follow tracks, and a +1 trait bonus on Perception checks to avoid being surprised.
Courageous: You gain a +2 trait bonus on saves against fear effects.
Favoured Enemy (Undead): +2 bonus on Bluff, Knowledge, Perception, Sense Motive, Survival, attack and damage rolls vs./ Undead.
Track: (+2) Add half your level to survival checks to follow tracks.
Wild Empathy: (+3) Influence animals as if using Diplomacy.
Favoured Terrain (Urban): +2 on Initative checks, Knowledge (geography), Perception, Stealth and Survival. You may choose whether or not you leave a trail in these environments.
Hunter’s Bond: Animal Companion (a Roc named Aya)
--------------------
Racial Abilities
--------------------
Resist Level Drain (Ex): A dhampir takes no penalties from energy drain effects, though he can still be killed if he accrues more negative levels then he has Hit Dice. After 24 hours, any negative levels a dhampir takes are removed without the need for an additional saving throw.
Spell-Like Abilities (Su): A svetocher can use obscuring mist as a spell-like ability 3/day. The caster level for this ability equals the dhampir's class level.
Darkvision 60ft
Low-light Vision
Positive Energy Vulnerability: Svetochers take a -1 penalty on saves against effects that deal positive energy damage.
Negative Energy Affinity: Though a living creature, a dhampir reacts to positive and negative energy as if it were undead—positive energy harms it, while negative energy heals it.
Vampiric Empathy (Alternate racial trait): Communicate with bats, rats, and wolves as if under the effects of a speak with animals spell (caster level equal to 1/2 the dhampir's Hit Dice). +2 racial bonus on Diplomacy checks when dealing with these animals. Whenever these dhampirs initiate an exchange, animals begin with a starting attitude of indifferent

Background:
Vandrare has little recollection of his childhood. Vague memories of Ustalav haunt his dreams, and the faces of the city watchmen who would beat him for stealing scraps are a distant echo in his mind. He was still very young when he decided to flee the city with the hope of making a home for himself among the wilds. For months he scavenged berries and fruits, hunted small game with little more than a scrap of cloth and some stones, and learned to become self-sufficient.

A chance encounter with a savage ghoul changed the course of Vandrare’s life forever. Fending it off with nothing more than a makeshift wooden spear proved futile, and it wasn’t long before the child was overcome. As he lost consciousness, he heard the shrill whistle of arrows piercing the air and glimpsed a shadowy figure emerge from the forest.

The man who had saved his life, a ranger named Hendrik, took pity on the dishevelled dhampir child and took him in. He shared his knowledge of woodcraft and swordplay, but also of writing and reading and he took the boy back to civilisation to teach him of the value to be had in living earnestly among the city folk. As Vandrare grew they became a formidable team. The pair took work hunting bounties, whether it be for bandits or bodaks and earned a reputation for slaying mysterious and occult foes who menaced the countryside.

Hendrik eventually passed on, and his final wish was for his journals to be delivered to an old acquaintance in Absalom. He informed Vandrare that he was indebted to this man, and asked that he take it upon himself to repay the favour. This acquaintance (a Venture Captain of the Pathfinder Society) was delighted when he finally received the journals and even more so upon hearing that this young ranger was also going to repay Hendrik’s favour out of respect.

Vandrare now finds himself on his way to Nisroch at the behest of this very same Venture captain…

Appearance:
Standing at just over 6 feet tall, Vandrare is an imposing sight to behold. His broad shoulders and calloused hands give the impression of one who knows the value of hard work. His pale blue eyes, ashen skin and stark white hair lend him an otherworldly air, and his face holds a stern expression. He wears two large blades sheathed on his back, with a smaller one strapped to his belt on the left side. His battered breastplate is scarred and slightly dented, yet looks well-oiled and cared for.

Personality:
Vandrare is a stern, reserved man. He can seem arrogant to those who don't know him, but truthfully he never developed great social skills as a child. He is pragmatic, yet versatile. When working with others he sometimes comes across as impatient. He is a poor leader but a loyal follower to someone who has earned his respect. Van was given the agnomen of "Wretch" or "The Wretched" by the commoners of the town in which he was raised by Hendrik, and he carries it with pride. He has worked hard to create a public persona based around this moniker, to instil fear in his foes and allow him an air of mystery.