In case you didn't look at those articles I mentioned, the "Reckoning" the Signifer refers to is essentially the Hellknight's version of 'confession' for not adhering to the principles of the Hellknights and in particular, your order. In downtime, i've really just assumed that Ricter is having quite a lot of Reckonings, as will many Hellknights under his command; for not purging chaotic elements such as the Fey (and perhaps Kip himself!) living in Kardas. You all know that its for the greater purpose of the alliance with Kardas and adhering to the legitimate authority of Baron Malthir and the Statkari, but these ritualised punishments are sacred nonetheless.
The Order of the Chain's particular reckoning is a fairly gruesome one that is said to harden the body and spirit. Chains are placed around your limbs and tightened to extremely painful levels- and this punishment is not permitted to be healed naturally.
I'm also assuming you'll go find the Signifer sometime soon to have a chat, if not he'll come find you. More than happy to add more depth to the Hellknights including additional NPC's if it would make the game more immersive for you- I have a few in my mind already.
Kip hooks up with Sootscales and Mikmek inside the castle. Lord Sirian's body has been quietly moved into one of the empty chambers on the castle's uppermost floor, and laid upon a simple stone table. Jhod makes himself available at your earliest convenience and performs a ritual of Gentle Repose to prevent the body decomposing any further and sanctifying it.
Kip:
Sootscales is especially pleased to see you safely return. Since your combined efforts in destroying the Gyronna Cult you have seen very little of the agile, resourceful Kobold; but you get the impression you are held in high regard by both him, Mikmek and his kobold underlings; and perhaps by extension, Kardas' kobolds.
The fifty warriors silently rise, the Hellknights themselves once more donning their helmets. They raise their arms in a grim, silent salute to Baron Malthir after his speech. Signifer Grachius shakes Malthir's hand with his plate gauntlets, replying in his grim tone of voice-
We have, my Lord Baron. Baroness Vaysh is a virtuous and wise ruler and a most worthy lady. A few of the men were teleported off-target, but every man is now accounted for. Forgive my frankness, but the sooner we have a permanent base of operations a little detached from Swordhaven itself the smoother our alliance will go in the eyes of your people. Kardasholme is a fine castle, but we need a dedicated haven of our own, especially to test our armigers for suitably among our ranks. Field Maralictor Vorsk would be better placed than I to explain our needs, but some of our necessary rituals will merely frighten the common people.
Grachius shakes Kalev's hand perhaps even more firmly than Malthirs. The man's grip is strong and firm and he seems to be openly testing Kalev's strength; he grunts in satisfaction as the Half-Orc easily matches his own.
You honour us with your words, Marshall Kalev. It is indeed sad that force of arms must be used to guarantee peace, but the hearts of men are weak. Perhaps all men's hearts. A man is nothing but a creature that has learned how to be dishonest, even to himself. If only every man could master dominion over himself, there would be no need for Hellknights at all and the burden we bear. You have taken many lives- I have little doubt you know of what I speak he replies sombrely.
We have heard many stories of the prowess and abilities of each of the Guardians of the Greenbelt in our short time here.
The Iomedean slowly salutes each of you in turn, his voice almost sounding ritualised as he says a sentence for each of you, except for Ricter himself.
The piety and unwavering courage of Baron Malthir. The potent magic and calm grace of Councillor Fenna. The quick wit and swifter blade of Lord Casimir. The arcane might of Magister Kip. And the mighty strength and endurance of Marshall Kalev. Field Maralictor Vorsk's deeds have also reached our ears, but we expect no less from him.
Reaching forward to give Kalev a warrior's handshake once more, Grachius smiles. Its a cold smile with his ruined face, almost a little challenging in nature, but his words hint of camaraderie.
Our Order has been hoping to fight alongside you in particular, Marshall Kalev. The tales say you have been dealt blows that should have killed you many times over and that you have brought Kardas' laws to the Greenbelt on the edge of your blade dozens of times when hope seemed lost.
Grachius looks up at Casimir with another toothy smile.
Of course, these stories were all originally told by your friend Lord Casimir and have likely been exaggerated as they spread. My Lord Casimir, would you honour my men with a tale from your most recent exploits?
In response to Fenna, Grachius nods eagerly.
I have men ready to serve as scribes to commit your new laws to magically preserved parchment, if you will forgive my presumptuousness Lady Thistleswade.
Even with the harsh visage his armour gives him and his grim smiles, Grachius does seem very likeable, almost despite himself. His mannerisms reek of dependability and fierce loyalty and despite his scars his force of will and charisma is evident in a similar manner to Ricters own. Just before Ricter gives his speech, he presents the newly promoted Field Maralictor with a set of manacles and an amulet. The amulet is a length of dense and heavy chain, leading to a small metal gauntlet. The gauntlet is designed so that it is firmly wrapped in the dense chain and is clearly recognisable as the symbol of the Order of the Chain; a symbol of Ricter's new responsibilities.
Shatter your old chains, Field Maralictor, and embrace willingly your new Grachius intones solemnly. The eyes of every Hellknight and Armiger in the courtyard fall upon the newest member of the Guardians.
Guys, as long as these miniatures are based on Adventure Paths, we're going to pick the appropriate creatures to run the campaign, whether they're humanoids OR monsters.
I get it. I get that a lot of people don't want any more humanoid miniatures.
So noted.
But you're going to get loads more of them over the next several years, so harping on the issue is not going to change much.
You're also going to get TONS of monsters. TONS of creatures you do not already have, and TONS of creatures that have never been made before in plastic.
Be patient, please. This is not a one-and-done thing.
This is a set of miniatures designed to support a complete campaign that involves monsters AND humanoids.
We are in this for the long haul.
If this strategy does not appeal to you, I invite you to purchase singles.
Those extra tiny arms seem like they might be useful for holding potions or whatnot, in combat. "Do I have a free hand? Why yes, I have *four* free hands, why do you ask?"
"Another ARG preview" we can hardley say we had one yet let alone say "darn I wish they would stop". Besides APs do not need previews, you are ether going to buy them when you hear about them or not at all.
I am going to guess that it is because the ARG doesn't release for TWO MONTHS.
I'm guessing it has more to do with the fact that the acronym for the Advanced Race Guide sounds like something a pirate would say. "ARG!" Yes, it needs more "R's" and it might not actually need the "G"...but it's still rather ironic that it reads the same. No wonder the pirates commandeered the blog. The ARG practically summoned them!
Just paging through the guide and I may seem lowbrow for saying this but am I the only person who chuckled upon seeing that the weapon Hook hand has the Disarm special?
It is admittedly on its very last legs right now, and probably won't survive to our actual tenth anniversary, but considering it wasn't brand-new when we got it, it has held up very, very well.
Hey Vic: In case you're not aware, many copiers contain hard drives holding an image of everything that has ever been copied on the machine. If your copier does die, please be sure to securely erase, degauss, or destroy the hard drive therein. ;-)
The idea of our copier having a hard drive in it is equivalent to the idea of a Commodore 64 having a cold fusion hyper-processor.
From the pictures, it seems to me like the Scanderig would look better with the "grill" on the back. It seems to me like it would look strange to have the entire backside of the monster just be open.
I suspect the problem is that the rear bars are painted on as opposed to textured. If it was raised opaque plastic matching the rest of its body it might work. Either way, I trust Eric's judgement.
Never been a fan of them. I realize that the point is to have some simple statement that you can measure grand decisions (or even small decisions) against, but to me, the whole concept essentially presupposes that the people in charge don't have the brains to figure out which ideas are good and which are bad (or at least have such a complicated organization structure that decision-making is spread out over more than a reasonable number of people).
Paizo staff, here's a big Canadian "stay safe" well-wish to all of you.
You're spot on about the physicality of your area making all the difference. Where I'm at, we're used to basically what you've got now, through most of January through March. Thing is... here's it's the flattest area you can find. No hills, no valleys, no third dimension for a couple hundred kilometers. Despite that, and despite "knowing how to drive", when it's slick, getting up and down my driveway can be entertaining. And that's with snow tires. And maybe a 5 degree incline.
I wouldn't trade with you folks.
So stay warm, stay healthy, and wait it out. My big-butt January shipment isn't urgent. I've waited this long for the minis... what's another few days? Especially when compared to the inconvenience the weather's throwing your way.
This is a conversation recently overheard in the halls of a secret society for Ustalavic nobles between the adult sons of aging lords:
Spoiler:
Robert (mocking): So, Renee, where's that horse I hear your father was going to give you?
Renee: Hmmph.
Lucas: Horse, what horse? Renee, when was this?
Renee: ::ignores::
Robert: Lord Giovi was in negotiations with a trader to have a horse shipped in for Renee here. Beautiful animal, they tell me. Qadiran stallion. Lithe as an elven dancer. The color of a fresh-minted gold coin. And then he sends it back.
Lucas: What?! What'd you do?!
Renee: mumble mumble...
Robert: ::smirks::
Lucas: No, really, what?
Renee: The second floor maid, all right?! She's with child. Father's trying to teach me just how inconvenient bastards really are. ::grumble::
Robert: ::laughing his ass off::
Lucas: Renee, Renee, how many times have I told you? That's why you go after the men down in the stable.
Renee: ::whining:: But they smell like horse!
Robert: ::still laughing::
Lucas: But you can't get bastards out of them, believe me I've tried.
Scandal is what makes a man interesting. Otherwise he's just a bore. Likewise, scandal makes this game interesting.
So I often use scripts. These are out-of-character cut-scenes that allow the PCs to get some flavour or some plot without experiencing it first hand. In my current game, one of the PCs is a Varisian follower of Desna, so these take the form of dreams to her, but they could be delivered in any number of ways, or even without explanation. We don't use these every session, just every now and again.
To use them, simply print out a few copies, hand them out and allocate characters. If possible, the DM should not be a character (ie, entirely player read), but otherwise you can just read a minor character.
* Script 1 can be used as the very first action in the campaign. It allows the PCs to feel an immediate bond for the Professor and Kendra, which is useful I think. It foreshadows Judge Daramind (II), Estovion (III), and Modd (V).
* Script 2 is useful if your PCs haven't solved the Ravengro murders by the first time you escalate to a human. It throws suspicion on a bunch of characters in Ravengro in a murder-mystery style. (NB: the Lorrimor cheese collection was an in-game joke.).
* Script 3 deviates a little from the plot in that we have the Whispering Way kill Aleece and also have Luramin the money-lender a necromancer. To me, one of the changes the campaign needs is more of a prominent villain and more encounters with the Whispering Way. This allows for some WW action in Ravengro as well as framing a big bad evil guy for the PCs. (It also allows you to mask the real big bad, so Vrood is sleight-of-hand in a way).
* Script 4 is my take on a Count Caromarc origin story. Both Koch and Werner are added characters. Werner was the father of one of my PCs and Koch was an NPC at the University who could help out with various alchemy things related to the module, as well as enroll Kendra in class.
More scripts to come for later modules. The one I regret not doing is a script around the night of the fire in Harrowstone. I think there is a lot of cool information in the first module that goes to waste, and having that dramatic evening as a flash-back would work well.
We know that he's from Ardeal. So I'm reading that chapter and basically making him the stereotypical Ardealian noble who moved to Caliphas.
He's got a "summer home" back in the old capital (sprawling mansion grounds falling into rot), which is really the traditional family estate, and lives most of his time in a fancy condo in Caliphas.
I'm working on a module that takes place between Broken Moon and Wake of the Watcher that goes into Adivon's Father's story a little bit. I'll share what I got once I get that thing hammered out (will take a month or more though).
Cartigan, you've made it clear that you think this is a stupid thread. Why not leave it alone instead of repeatedly telling everybody how stupid it is? Apparently not everybody plays the game exactly the same way you do, and that's OK.
Keep in mind that neither Paizo nor Wizards of the Coast are likely to post in this thread any secret future plans, so everything posted in here is going to be pure speculation, based on pure speculation.
So when you feel like disagreeing with someone (and you probably will, I can tell it has the potential to be that kind of thread), keep in mind that it's just their opinion. They're no more privy to the truth than you are.
And when you post your awesome idea that Paizo absolutely must do or else we're going to go out of business, please have faith in Lisa, Erik and the rest of us that we got to this point because we're not stupid.
For those of you who are disappointed in the random aspect of the miniatures, please read the following taken from the FAQ attached to the press release. You still may not agree, but at least you will understand why we are doing what we are doing.
-Lisa
Q: Why prepainted plastic miniatures in randomized packs?
A: Prepainted plastic miniatures are expensive to make. Sculpting and painting are costly, and making molds for plastic figures is costlier still. To make all these costs work, you need to spread them out over a large number of miniatures. If these figures were released individually, some would sell better than others, and some--or even many--of them would lose money. Randomizing the miniatures ensures that you sell predictable quantities of each figure, and it also allows you to price them reasonably without losing your shirt. Another benefit of averaging out costs over a large number of figures is that it allows you to spend more money on some miniatures--you can make them larger or more detailed, or add more complicated (and thus more expensive) paint operations than you could otherwise justify. In short, selling more of the common minis allows you to spend more money on the rarer figures.
Randomized miniatures also allow you to provide more variety. Not only can you introduce more figures at once, but the fact that you make make some of them rarer than others means you can produce plenty of the figures that everyone needs, like goblins or skeletons, and fewer of the figures that have narrower appeal, like strange monsters or iconic figures.
Another factor to think about is the brick-and-mortar retailer. It's much easier for a retailer to stock single booster packs than individual packaged minis. Our first set, Heroes & Monsters, contains 40 miniatures. Selling them individually would require a lot of retailer effort to keep them all in stock--and it would also require a lot of space to display those miniatures. And if next year's 60-figure Rise of the Runelords set were released as individual minis, the retailer would then have to track and display 100 individual items. As the line continued, individual minis would soon become impossible for most retailers to keep up with. Because randomized miniatures are distributed to retailers by the case, there's usually only one item for them to order for each set, so it's easy to maintain stock. And since it doesn't take much space to display a handful of booster packs, retailers can easily continue to stock and display the entire line of miniatures as long as they're available.
Retailers who have a greater inclination toward managing more complicated inventories, or who have more space to display miniatures, will almost certainly break open random boxes to sell singles, groups of individual figures they can tailor to their customers' needs, and even complete sets.
A lot of thought has been done on the topic of the best way to produce prepainted plastic miniatures, and the random packaging method, supplemented with the occasional small boxed set of non-random figures, has proven to be the most successful. Paizo is committed to working with WizKids to ensure that customers will be able to purchase the miniatures they want at a fair price.
I encourage you all to read the press release and FAQ linked in the first post. In addition to explaining why random packs are the only viable way to have a decent-sized selection of minis, it talks about how we will supplement them with non-random packs like the Beginner Box Heroes set. (We will also be selling single non-random minis here at paizo.com.)
Rob: "Us Redmondites need to stick together. Everyone who lives in Seattle looks down on us!"
Sutter (who lives in Seattle): "Oh, Rob."
Rob: "I meant Judy!"
Sutter: "Judy doesn't look down on you because of where you live."
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