The exchange happened at precisely midnight, Artimus, so when the peddler vanishes, your shift is probably over, and Alia's has begun.
Durnast, your hidey-hole will vanish around four in the morning. What are your plans for when that happens?
Gurg wakes around 6:00, and dawn will blossom about 6:30. His mood is no better than it was yesterday. He starts looking around his camp. "This morning will see violence," he casually mentions, "and perhaps some answers, too, if we are lucky." His searching intensifies and his mood darkens. "Where is my magical water jug?" he demands.
By the way, Tarlane, I see that you've jumped into the Dungeon-a-Day PbP. I suspect you'll have a terrific amount of fun there.
Taking care of Alia, as her player might be a new parent by now...
Alia advances on the peddler and pays 50 gold piece.
Up close, Alia can tell that the hooded figure has an enormous lower jaw. Alia receives a small cloth bag, inside which is a long-dead catfish, so old it's no longer edible. And the peddler whispers:
"Not only are the Tsar's Black Gates patrolled by undead chill,
But guarded too by forces dire with powers fiercer still.
The desert holds not only heat and barren scrub and sand,
but now a beast comes from the east to lay claim to the land.
His jaw is mighty, claws are sharp, and certain is the death
Of them who mock the fearsome shock of standing in his breath."
And with that, the peddler and his cart are gone, as if he were never there. All the evidence that remains is Alia's bag of fish. (Careful with that, Alia. It cost 50 gold.)
By the way, what's happening at the boarding house is several hours past dinner time, so Durnast's message spell is expired.
Chyressa:
Spoiler:
There are no windows. Bathroom it is, with enough caution to go armed.
Please make a Perception check as you move down the hall.
The bathroom is a small garderobe. It is unoccupied.
The door to the privy is set at such an angle that you need to close it to access the toilet. You lean over, deliberately fail your fortitude save, and begin the process of clearing the bad food --you get the distinct impression it was the hare that had gone bad-- from your system. You also get the feeling that you may be revisiting this privy in the morning, as your bowels aren't going to have any better time of it.After twenty seconds or so, you feel much better.
Please make a second Perception check.
And make a Fortitude save.
Jylan:
Spoiler:
It takes perhaps ten minutes for your stomach to settle. As you're about to drift off to sleep, you hear Chyressa's voice coming from the other wing, shouting something bout a murder.
"What's in there ? And where do you come from in the middle of the night?"
Artimus wrote:
"What is it you offer? And hold back, do not approach until you have made clear just who you are. I welcome friends to my fire, but we do not yet know you are a friend."
The hooded figure says only "Fish. 50 gold coins." There's emphasis on the word gold.
Alia would have to approach the peddler closer, and get farther away from the refuse of the giant's encampment, to get a good sense of the bag's scent.
By your reckoning, the peddler is indeed offering something for sale. You detect no secret messages, and the peddler does not seem to be dominated.
--+--+--
Chyressa,
Spoiler:
once you step out into the hallway --which is lit with dim lanterns but otherwise unoccupied-- you have about 12 seconds to find a place to release the contents of your stomach. Given the high-class guise you've established, where would you like to do that?
Alia, it was almost time for your shift, anyways. And you know that there isn't a natural source of catfish anywhere within a day's journey.
Artimus, you can tell that the cart is full of all sorts of mundane items and junk, a barrel, some rope, an assortment of pans. If you were in any other place, at any other time, you would think this a rather ordinary traveling peddler.
He turns to the two of you and offers a bag. "Will you buy what I offer?"
Durnast: good thinking. In addition to the auras that you would expect from people's gear, there's an area just above the encampment that radiates ... divination. As you approach, it fades out, as if it were at the end of its natural duration.
--+--+--
Artimus: near the end of your watch, you hear something, with a rythmic creaking, coming from the Desolation. I'm going to take a GM liberty here for dramatic purposes. Please forgive me if this isn't a reasonable reaction for the paladin. Artimus does as he's told, and wakes Gurg.
"What is it?" demands the giant.
"Something's coming out of the wastes, my enormous friend."
"I see nothing. What does it sound like?"
"A creaking."
Artimus hears the sound again, closer, perhaps only 30 yards away.
"I hear nothing."
"You don't hear that? It sounds like old wood against wood, shifting its weight."
"I tell you, I -"
At that moment, the wind picks up a little, and various buildings around town sway, the wood squeaking and groaning.
Gurg looks at the paladin. "You did as I ordered you, and woke me on suspicion. But if you do so again, I will kill you. Good night."
As the giant settles back to sleep, the source of the creaking comes round the corner of the tents into view. It's a humanoid figure, hooded, pushing a cart with two large wooden wheels. "Would you be in the market for a catfish?" it asks.
--+--+--
Chyressa:
Spoiler:
You retire to your room after learning that perhaps thirty or forty attempts are made each year to explore into the wastelands. The rangers who make their base in the Camp seem to do a pretty lively job of escorting people through. But nobody can recall any caravan or traveler coming out of the Desolation.
You wake in the middle of the night with a terrible stomach cramp, feverish and nauseated. (You'll need to make a single DC 18 Fortitude check to avoid taking Dexterity damage, and a DC 10 Fortitude check every round to keep your dinner down.)
Jylan:
Spoiler:
You wake in the middle of the night with acute stomach distress. It feels like it will pass of its own accord if you let things settle for fifteen, twenty minutes.
As Jylan and Chyressa sit don to dinner, the other guests are introduced:
The stouter hobgoblin shows gray around te tufts in his fur, and introduces himself as Gaspar, a squadron leader among his people, mustered out honorably, and served as a first assistant to a team of caravan raiders to the south and east. Chyressa, he comes of as a boor who has little to talk about except his own inflated war stories.
The skinnier hobgoblin gives its name as "Hokama," which is the Hobgoblin equivalent of "Mr. Smith." Jylan asks Hokama "What do you do" and the hobgoblin smiles indulgently with the reply, "Water merchant." Hokama smells bad, even for a hobgoblin, and you both get the impression that there are illnesses and perhaps curses responsible.
The other nome shares not only your host's features but also his scowl. "Jebli Benderkauft, proprietor," he offers, by way of introduction. "And cook." The food lives up to its appetizing smell, and there's coffee as well.
After a bit of conversation, Jebli warms to Chyressa. "Did my brother show you around the place?" Jylan nods. "Did he show you the 'outhouses' out back? Ah, that's his ... little joke. Those are tool sheds, and he rigs the hoes and shovels to fall out onto anyone usin' them." Jebli takes a sip of coffee and looks down at his plate, glowering out the corner of his eye toards his brother. "The bathrooms are at the end of each hall. Stumblin' over to the tool sheds at night isn't merely an irritation, it's likely to get a body killed."
Do you ask anything specific during the meal, or just keep your ear open for odd bits of conversation?
--+--+--
Durnast, as you approach the giant's encampment, you get the feeling, suddenly, that you're being watched. Cam wheels around in the air, but doesn't see anything in the vicinity.
Artimus is on watch. Tinthariel and Alia are huddled in their bedrolls, Swiftpaws by Alia's side.
If nobody else is doing anything dramatic, we'll advance the timeline through the night.
The gnome sneers at Chyressa and Jylan. "Two rooms, then." He shows each of you to a secure room, about 8' by 6', taken up mostly with a bed, washbasin, and small lamp-table. Chyressa's is on the east wing, and Jylan's is on the west, near the kitchens.
The gnome shows you the fire exits, and points to the outhouse out back. "There's two stalls there, and no lights, so you humans will want to bring a lightsource with you if you need to use them before dawn."
Dinner is a pretty decent spread: wild hare heavily spiced with garlic, goat chops, fresh greens, assorted nuts, and a custard desert. The other guests include two hobgoblins (one large and hefty, the other smaller and sallow-faced) and another gnome, virtually identical to your guide.
--+--+--
Gurg turns in, leaving Artimus on watch. Off to the west, there's a momentary uproar of dogs barking, but it soon settles down.
Alia, Tinthariel, are you going to try to find someplace tolerable to sleep amid the garbage, or are you using your own bedrolls?
Tinthariel, will you, in fact, be healing Gurg any more?
Two questions: one for the players, and one for your characters.
For the players: we've had some combat, and some interpersonal time. Do you have any questions about the Play-by-post, and concerns about my style, or any complaints? I'm open to suggestions as well.
For your characters: everybody has gear appropriate to your level, but what is the most notable thing you're carrying? Where did you find / buy / uncover it? What peculiarities does it exhibit? If a high-level 3.5-version bard were to recognize it from legends and obscure lore, what would the bard be able to tell you about it?
I'm interested for the purposes of building depth of back-story. I am not planning to use this background against anybody.
If possible, I'd like to take last watch so I'll be awake for the sunrise. It's the best time for me to commune with Arden. Artimus, what will our plan be for tomorrow? I ask just so I know what to beg of the Sun to prepare. Gurg, if we can trust you to not attack us again, I can heal you further and make sure your rest tonight is less pain-riddled...
Gurg grins wickedly at Tinthariel as he pops the end off the barrel and holds his nose over the contents. His voice comes dark and low. "Am I not a giant, with the heart of a giant, and the pride of a giant? Have you not, ah, what is the word in your tongue, humbled me in the sight of all the Camp? Of course you can trust old Gurg." And he takes an enormous drink of what smells like potent whiskey.
He turns to Artimus, and his tone shifts from menacing to grim. "If it is your way to enter the wastelands, then you may stand at my side tomorrow. I will know how it is that I was come back, but my Pounders were not. I rise with the sun to find out. And woe be unto any I find blameful in this, so I swear."
Alia, Durnast still has a wand that can generate mounts for several days. And there's a well about twenty-five feet away from you. I'm not saying that sticking around in Camp is a bad idea, but water and mounts are two things you don't need.
--+--+--
Durnast, you've heard that accent before, back in your metropolitan home, but you never did place it. It strikes you as distant, and stereotypically a people with a "long-fuse temper," slow to show anger, but deadly once provoked. (In real world accents, you can think of it as Russian.)
The man peers at you. "Companions? You are the strangers who dropped that lummox Gurg, yes?" It's really not a question. "I am Isnakomos, second-in-command here. You will come tomorrow, two hours past dawn. Come no closer than where you stand now. Ask for me, or for Skeribar. We will speak then. Now, go to your companions, hurry, while the coast is clear."
--+--+--
By the way, there are two questions for everybody over in the discussion thread.
Once aware of the dogs, Durnast doesn't further approach the tents/dogs, but continues slowly as if moving past them, calling out "G'Evening!" in a friendly voice to whoever owns the dogs (presumably).
Actually, what's my take on them?
The dogs seem to be there as guards, not attackers, if you keep your distance. (That's a guess based on Animal Empathy, rather than a straight Sense Motive.) Your call is answered by a the barks of about four or five dogs erupting from the encampment. Egged on, the two dogs out front bark a warning as well.
You hear several male voices speak sharply to the dogs in a language you don't know, and a man opens a flap in the tent wall to face you. He's just about Durnast's height, with a heavy black beard and a swarth, olive complexion. He's waring dark, lose robes, but you think you hear the "shlink" of chain underneath. He's holding a short torch in one hand and the cutest little crossbow you've ever seen in the other. Its bolt glows dimly in the darkness.
"Who in the Seven Pits of Stygia are you, man?" he demands, in precisely-clipped, heavily-accented common.
--+--+--
Chyressa wrote:
Chyressa looks at the gnome, and gives her best empty headed smile. "Why yes". "Yes I would like a fine room, with a private bath of course, and speaking of that bath, I'd love someone to bring hot water, soap, and scrubbers to the room". "And when I done bathing I'd like a nice hot meal". "What time does the entertainment start, I'd love to socialize with the locals for a bit tonight". "I always find it facinating to interact with the common folk".
The gnome's expression turns gruff. It's likely that he saw through your act, but he doesn't seem to care. "A room costs 5 iron bits per night, payable up front, as we've had too many people leave in the middle of the night to avoid payin'. All the rooms have locks on the doors, and nobody's ever tried to rob our guests.
"There's water and soap there, too.
"Dinner will be served for another hour, so don't be taking too much time. Dinner normally costs 3 iron bits, but," and here he sighs, somewhat theatrically, "my brother prepared a big meal for our other guests, who have not returned from up north today, so tonight's dinner is free, if you like. There's no entertainment, unless your man there sings or tells stories with hand puppets."
Chyressa, you get the feeling that the story is a fiction, that they likely offer dinner free on a customer's first night, perhaps as a way to impress her with the quality of the meal.
"So, just two rooms for you, or are you with that big guy with the black mustache that stopped by earlier?"
Jylan will stick with Chyressa. The two of you head west to the boarding house. Stenciling above the door names it as the "Bender Bros." Walking into the main building, you need to stoop a bit to make it comfortably in the 6'-high hallway. Off to the right is a small dining area, with a half-dozen people having quiet conversations over what smels like pretty decent stew. To the left is a gnome --scraggly beard under his bulbous nose, wearing black leather armor-- sitting at a writing desk, working out what might be accounting ledgers.
"Good evening," the gnome says with something of a sneer. "I'd heard that there might be strangers in town. Is it a room you'd be wanting then?"
--+--+--
Durnast, as you approach the tents, you see two large dogs at the perimeter, well-cared for but certainly trained for war. They are both growling at you, ready to attack or raise an alarm.
That's ... pretty darn stealthy for the pseudo-dragon. Let's pause to see if Chyressa and Jal want to join you in the detour; Chyressa had stated her intention to head for the boarding house.
The sun begins to set at Vespers and darkness falls at Compline. The fight with Gurg began about a half-hour ago. It is now about 10 minutes past Compline.
And no, nobody identified the artificial mound.
The Usurer suggested that the provisioning store as "right on the other side of the Sip o' Blood tavern. That might be the collection of tents and awnings, or something else close by that way that you haven't seen yet.
You'll probably need to ask around for more information.
Gurg takes a hearty sip from Alia's water-skin and then looks confused. He raises the skin behind his head, and his eyes flash with anger, but he gathers his control and merely tosses the skin back to her.
"Water," he rumbles. "It comes to me that you drink that yourself, and mean no offense. But I am a giant, and we drink stronger stiff than that." He tries to rise, and his wounds remind him why he's seated. He says to Tinthariel, "There's a small black barrel behind you. Hand it to me."
To Artimus' suggestion, the giant smiles indulgently. "You? Any stiff--" and he catches himself again. "You are a man of the sword, and you made your offer in truth. Yes, take first watch. Wake me at midnight, or as soon as you hear anything alarming."
--+--+--
Durnast Kal wrote:
"So, it sounds like our friends are holed up with the Giant on the other side of "Camp", near that garbage dump/sewer we walked past on our way in... Do we want to go there directly, or no? - Oh, and Cam says that the two 'friendly' Orcs went into the Vampire bar, in case you were wondering."
To be exact, Bard's Gate lies to the south, which is where you came into the Camp. the giant's "home base" is on the northern side of town, near the Desolation itself.
Starting from the Commons in the center of town, where you are now, we could describe the Camp:
12:00 due north: The wellhouse, and beyond that, the Desolation.
1:00: close by, the smithy. Farther away, Gurg's encampment
2:00: far to the east end of town, a series of several ramshackle building and a fenced-in area.
3:00: near-by: The Sip of Blood in
4:00: a collection of about two dozen overlapping tents and awnings.
6:00: the road to Bard's Gate
8:00: nearby, a sod house complete with thatched roof and fieldstone chimney. There's a couple of lights on, and the hearth is lit. farther away: an old artificial mound rises 20 feet into the air. Its sides are badly eroded from weathering, and a gaping hole opens in its side beneath a heavy stone lintel. The entire place has a heavy, swampy stench to it.
9:00: nearby, the Chapel of the Dying Light and its priests of Orcus. Farther, the Bender Brothers' boarding housecomposed of the dismantled remains of freight wagons. Even farther, the home camp of Clantock's furious fourteen, a collection of hide tents.
11:00: near the wellhouse, a collection of crumbling adobe buildings, lean-tos, and tents There are cookfires lit in the midst of this encampment.
Chyressa is not pleased at the exchange rate, but agrees with a grumble to cash in 100 gp as well. "I can see this town will never grow and prosper". "Who ever heard of a place where my gold is no good". Then she stomps off with a toss of her head.
The Usurer chuckles at that.
Durnast wrote:
Once in in main street/ away from the Usurer's shack, all the party members will hear a whisper in their ear:
"Where did you go with the Giant to? Chyressa thinks to get a room at the boarding house,
though I have magical means if we wish our own hidden space-within-a-space...
The Bender Brothers' Inn is off to the west side of town, just past the chapel to Orcus, and just next to the bundle of tents that the Furious Fourteen call home.
Crossing the Commons, you see that someone, most likely an undertaker, has bothered to come take away the hanged man's corpse, as the giblet stands empty.
--+--+--
Artimus wrote:
"Can you think of anyone who may have cause to ambush your party? It sounds like you had few real friends here, but anyone who may have orchestrated this?"
Gurg looks at you with a puzzled expression. "'Or-ches-tra-ted'?" He shakes his head as he guesses your meaning. "We was just the guards. The little orc-guys were guards, too, so they might have been sore about us getting the job, but, hey, the Stompers is better guards. Or, we was.
"But we was guarding ... a ... I don't know. Can't remember.
"I need to find out what happened."
Alia wrote:
"One last question, maybe. Do you know of anyone living in the Desolation that could know more about what's further north?"
"There's things living out there, yeah. Those ghouls, an' devils an' such. But I never saw anybody that I'd really want to talk to."
Tinthariel wrote:
DM, do you want us to roll for passive skills like Knowledge and Sense Motive or can we expect you to make those rolls when the situations arise? I'd like to know if any of the descriptions of devils or undead sparks any kind of understanding in Tin, and I'm also trying Sense Motive to make sure this guy is on the level.
I've been checking them, but let me know if you want to make sure. In this case, there's not enough detail in Gurg's description to trigger anybody's recognition of a specific outsider. And the giant simply doesn't seem cunning enough to lie. He's not a nice man by any stretch of the imagination, but your impression of him is that he'd consider it doubly wrong to lie to guests who have bested him in battle, unless he were to decide that you'd wronged him somehow.
Speaking of which, has anybody given him a drink yet?
"...I suppose I should change for some of these 'bits'... 20 might do for the night.
What is the story for them? I've never run across IRON bits as a trade coin,
most folks seem fine enough to use whatever minted coin circulates in the area, whatever their age...?"
The Usurer complies. 20 iron bits run a total of 100 gold. "Well, there are stories that you might hear over at the Pint of Blood, each of them offering a different explanation about the iron bits. Perhaps the most entertaining is 'The Gypsy's Curse', a tale of betrayal, death, and revenge from beyond the grave that really ought to be told around a campfire. Or you might hear whispers that coins taken from the Desolation are cursed, and that's the reason we avoid 'em.
"The truth of the matter is far more prosaic. When you enter the Camp, you're either a stranger or a newcome resident. If you're a stranger, we'll insist that you use only our coin, which you'll find next to worthless outside Camp, and almost as worthless to revert back to gold crowns and silver eagles. If you're planning to settle down and be part of our little hamlet, then we feel that exchanging your money is a good sign of faith."
Durnast wrote:
Cam would have been hanging back behind us, so if the Orcs move to leave, he would scoot away out of sight above the roof line, though he may be able to see where the Orcs head (not tracking them).
They join the party going on at the pub next door, the Pint of Blood tavern.
Quote:
What do I know of the areas BEYOND the Desolation, that caravans apparently trade valuable goods with. Are these 'civilized' kingdoms, or what? What goods are sought from them?
Neither you nor your companions know. The lands of "The North" are nothing more than vague rumors, often contradictory. There are no trade caravans that cross the Desolation, only the rare exploration attempt, and perhaps some military convoys once in a great while.
Regarding the Desolation itself, ask Alia the next time you see her. Or you could go into the pub and start buying drinks.
"Dragons? No. If there was dragons out there, I'd have seen one."
"And I don't ... I remember walking in the ashes, and my face felt like it was on fire. And I remember seeing the Camp, and then ... you guys really ganged up on me!"
"I don't know much 'bout the night, either. I just follow the warnings. Those that don't, get found by Hetman in the morning, an' I think he eats 'em or something."
"Skeribar? I don't talk much to those guys; they don't much like us, and the feelin' is returned. Not many people can afford both them an' us."
Gurg continues: "No matter. Keep your secrets. You will not be the only ones in the Camp.
"I would warn you to stay clear of the ash desert, but everybody knows that. And, until today there was little there that we Pounders couldn't handle. I remember guarding a couple of dwarves --as least I think they were dwarves-- over to the mountains," he says, gesturing to the northwest. "We beat the daylights out of a couple of them, whatchacallem, ghouls, and we had some problems with some wispy undead --wraiths or spectres or something-- at night. But nothing our shamans couldn't handle."
"And now they're .. I ... I don't remember. But today was bad. The ... I can't remember. But something just ... it was an ambush, I think. Somethin' must have seen us coming."
"Oh, yeah! And sinkholes, too. We always lost a horse or two to these giant sinkholes. You'd be walkin, just as normal as anything, and then, whoumph! There ain't nothing in this world that sounds like a horse, screaming as it gets eaten by whatever lives at the bottom of a sinkhole.
"Once the dwarves got to the mud place, where there's craters with boiling rock, they all dismissed us, sudden-like. We kept all the gold they were giving us, of course."
"But today was different. We were guarding this group of men and elves, who were looking to, I don't know, make a lot of money, way up north. An' then ... I can't remember the rest. Something came flying at us, out of the sun. And then I was alone ..."
"You know, there are devils out there. Me an' the boys saw one, once, in the distance, flying about, like it was looking for something."
"Do you guys have anything to drink?"
--+--+--
The half-orcs move to leave, pushing past Chyressa, Jylan, and Durnast.
"Be careful out there," says the Usurer, absolutely no humor in his eyes.
"We never walk alone," one replies. "We'll make it back to our base okay."
The gaunt man turns back to you. "If you need supplies or other such things, the place to go is the Celestial Emporium, just on the other side of the Sip o' Blood. If you're looking to buy horses, which might be wise, or other mounts better suited to the wastes, Finn's Livery was one of the first building you saw on your way in to Camp. And I handle all the business in armor or weapons.
"How long do you imagine you'll be in town?" My, but there's a much greater emphasis on that last question than you'd expect.
Gurg lurches at a rapid clip north, past the well, and then a little east, to what you'd presumed, on your first pas through Camp, to be the town refuse pile. The remains of campfires, midden pits, and tent stakes outline what was once half-dozen tents but is now reduced to only one yellowed canvas, covered in caked wax. An inordinate amount of garbage and, um, wastes indicate that it was inhabited by giants.
Gurg pulls up a huge stool and offers you seats on a large, befouled bison hide. His shoudlers stoop as he sets a basin of water on the ground before him and begins sponging blood off his wounds, clothes, and armor. "You may stay here till morning light. Then I will have great work to do, and you do not want to be in my way."
After a few minutes, he asks, "Why have you come to the Camp? Exiles, are you? Criminals?"
--+--+--
In the smithy, the thin man reaches under a counter and removes an empty two-pan scale. "People call me the Usurer, and I'm the man you'll go to if you want to conduct any business in town, because I'm your sole source of iron bits. If you decide to stay in Camp for long, you may want to trade a considerable amount of gold and silver. If you're just passing through, I'd advise you to buy no more iron than you'll likely need. Perhaps ten or twenty bits per day. Converting back to gold wouldn't be to your advantage."
He grins a bit as he loads rectangular iron coins onto one side of the scale. "So, you're the ones that took down Gurg, eh? And right public, too, eh? But keeping him alive, that's an interesting twist, wouldn't you say, boys?" he asks, directing his question to the two sullen half-orcs. "I'm sure he'll have a bit to say in the morning. I'm sure he'll be curious as to why the Bard's Gate caravan led his team into a trap, don't you think? I wouldn't be surprised if he starts to ask questions."
Chyressa, there's an obvious phrase he's implying at the end of each sentence: "...if he survives the night."
Chyressa will take a good hard look at the Blacksmith and try to determine if he's giving her the current rate, or trying to take advantage of her.
She will then turn her attention to the rude individual in the dark corner to try and determine if he is threatening the party, or just being rude.
Neither seems readable. The half-orc hasn't made a move against you yet, but he really hasn't had much of a chance, so there isn't enough evidence. The gaunt man is another story; it would be very hard to read his intentions.
Gurg gets to his hands and knees, and then uses Artimus' assistance to stand upright. "My mind was dimmed by anger, and clouded by pain. My memories are still confused.
"But I am rude. My age-name is 'Gurg'. Come with me to my home. You will be safe from the night terrors, and thereby will my debt to you be cleared."
He takes a few steps north, towards the Camp's well and turns back to you. "Make haste. And, whoever has my club, bring it along."
All right, so Tinthariel, Alia, Swiftpaws, and Artimus are in the middle of the Commons, with the giant.
Gurg the giant wakes, weak and wounded. "I ... how is it that I am come here, back to the small folks' encampment? Why do I smell such blood? I ... and how is it that I am here at night??" There's no acting there, Artimus; he's really spooked.
--+--+--
Chyressa, Durnast, and Jylan approach the blacksmith's shop. The simple plank building wouldn't be out-of-place on a farmstead, and is one of the better-constructed structures in Camp. There's a well-fit door on one end, and a double-sliding panel door on the other, topped with a sign displaying a gray coin and an anvil.
Durnast, according to Chamomile, everyone's assembled behind the double sliding doors.
The left sliding door opens, and you're facing a tall, lean man, silhouetted against the glow from inside. "Greetings, visitors. You're just in time. Please, come in."
Inside, you can see that he has a great hooked nose and a wide mouth. Chyressa, it seems that he man has too many teeth, fit tight together. A shock of pale hair covers his head, and watery blue eyes take you all in. He turns then, picking up his tools --tongs, hammers, scrap iron, bellows-- and continues to speak, not bothering to look your way.
"It's not safe to wander the Camp at night, you know. And you'll be needing the proper coin to negotiate a dwelling place. Around here, that's the iron bit. It's crude, I know, but it's all we have. One iron bit goes for five of your gold coins."
In one of the dimmer recesses of the workshop, one of the Furious Fourteen chokes back a laugh. He shares the shadow with another half-orc, whose features demonstrate a rage barely kept in check. "Are you the people who own the runt of a dragon? Are you the cowards who spy on us?"
All right. You folks have about 10 minutes before nightfall. The streets are deserted.
Who's going to the smithy? Who's going to the Bender Brothers' Bed & Breakfast? Who's going anywhere else --say, the Sip of Blood tavern, or the Clantock encampment?
I'm going to see if I can figure out how to post a map of the Camp. Otherwise, I'll give a description of the layout.
Chyressa, you all have been in Camp for most of the day, and have met a fair number of people. I've presumed, perhaps wrongly, that you were having your discussions as you walked along the paths between ramshackle structures.
Durnast, if it wasn't clear, your clairaudience didn't just get quiet. It was terminated.
Artimus, Hetman looks over the giant. "Huhn. I guess you're right; he's still breathing. Looks like the folks what called me were a bit premature, as they might say. I don't have anything to do with bodies till they're room temperature; then I bring the worms their breakfasts, don't you know? But I see everybody, sooner or later.
"And this man was, or I rather suppose, is, a new arrival in the Camp, making a name for himself and his boys as guards for anyone foolish enough to be going ... well, going north of here. I talked to him a few times, with him standing over bodies much as you are here. I never did catch his name, but he didn't seem too savvy, if you know what I mean. I know one time, two weeks ago, he was tryin' to set a price with the Harvester nomads. Nobody haggles with the Harvesters; they consider it an insult. But there he was, gettin' them all riled up over a few hundred gold. All he needed to do was insist on bein' paid in iron bits", and with that, he gestures towards the shadowed interior of the smithy, "and he'd have had all the money he'd wanted. Instead, he got 'em all offended, and steel as drawn, and then, well, I got to see three Harvesters.
"Well, it's gettin' on time for me to get home to my supper, Stranger. I reckon you'll want to as well. Things 'round here ain't safe out after dark.
Cam reports that there are two orcs in there, talking with a human who's wearing a heavy apron. He delivered your message, and the orcs started talking back and forth to one another rapidly in a fierce-sounding language he didn't understand. The other man looked unhappy.
Alia Wolfsdottir wrote:
For Chris
** spoiler omitted **
Spoiler:
Alia, you know that the Usurer is indeed also the blacksmith, and the people you've spoken with have talked of him with deference, as if he were a man to be reckoned with. You were in and out of town without the need to buy anything, but you've heard of these "iron bits" that he sells, and that most of the rest of the town treat as the only legal means of exchange.
Regarding his connections with bodyguards, you haven't really gotten much of a sense one way or another.
I'm placing these responses under spoiler tags, but I'm wary of people spending too much time being too secretive. From here on in, I'm expecting that most players *will* read through the spoiler information, unless I specifically ask you not to. A spoiler might be a cut for length, or it might be something that other PCs might not know immediately, but some of the storyline might be moving through these spoilers, and I don't want, say, neil, sitting around, watching a whole bunch of private messages splash back and forth, without knowing what was going on.
Artimus, shortly after the rest of the party moves off, a muscular man, balding and with a graying moustache, walks over to you. "Name's Hetman. I'm the undertaker 'round Camp. I understand you've got a body here." He glances at the hanged man. "We need to get him moved off afore nightfall, and he's a deal bigger than the usual. Could you give me a hand with the carcase?"
Edit:Really lay on hands? I don't see Lay on Hands being very friendly to me the rest of this game.
Maybe it's just the oppressive atmosphere of the Camp. Make you a deal, Artimus: if you ever roll all 1's on your Lay-on-hands ability, the power of your patron is focused so inwardly towards yourself that you may immediately refresh one of your cast spells as if you had not used it that day.
Your master must have been mistaken. There's been no change since you arrived here, and there's no response to your inquiry.
Tinthariel wrote:
Using Protection From Evil to cast a Cure Serious 3d8 + 7: (1, 2, 6) + 7 = 16 for 24 total.
The giant rouses to consciousness and momentary fury. Then, before he can stand, his rage passes, he shudders, and falls unconscious. He's stable, but he'll be out for at east a day.
Durnast Kal wrote:
..
I turn at the acolyte's words but don't say anything. ...Adepts of Orcus, shocked at Death? ...In THE CAMP...?!?
The man looks at you, trying to read your reaction. "That's Gurg, the leader of the, what do they call themselves? The 'Smashers'?"
"The Pounders, luv," replies the woman.
"That's right, the Pounders. They hire themselves out as guards for caravans in the desert. Or, at least, they did."
-+------+-------+-
Durnast wrote:
I use Detect Magic on him. Chyressa noticed his club was magic so might as well check that out. Spell Craft: 1d20+14
Spellcraft on the weapon: 1d20 + 14 ⇒ (17) + 14 = 31
You recognize the dwoemer for keen weapons, threaded along the spikes.
Spellcraft on the only other item that radiates magic: a little terra cotta jug: 1d20 + 14 ⇒ (20) + 14 = 34
This item has a simple link to the elemental plane of water, nothing sophisticated. I probably produces water upon a command word, rather than summoning anything like an elemental spirit. A nice parlor trick, and handy in the desert, but not really a "go-to" item in a straight-up fight.
Durnast wrote:
By Standard Operating Procedure, I certainly would have activated Mage Armor before entering town at the least, given it has a 7 hr duration for me. I'll also have Message up (2-way whispering <170' between me & all party members), re-casting every ~70 minutes as necessary...
Check and check.
Alia wrote:
Having said her piece, Alia concentrates on her surrounding again. How are the acolytes and the half-orcs by the smithy handling this new situation ?
The half-orcs have left the blacksmith's forge area. They might have gone inside his place, or they might have other duties.
The acolytes of Orcus exchange some worst with Durnast and then head into the chapel.
Other people pass across streets in sight, gaping at the site of such tremendous violence, but no one asks if you need any help or spends too much time worrying about it.
You think for a moment that there's someone moving behind you, but it's only the corpse on the gallows, twisting in the wind.
Artimus, your sword blow, backed by the unquenchable holy might of your faith, takes the giant down. He's dying. In a moment, he'll drop out of rage and die. Jylan still has a full action to take, and the rest of you have a single action, the same as a surprise round, to act if you want to do something before the lumbering hill giant passes.
It's been almost two days now, and I had three choices. I could wait for neil to post as Jylan, I could assume that Jylan is delaying, or I could assume that Jylan attacks and make the rolls.
I'm going to try very hard not to wait too long in this campaign. That seems to be the primary cause of decay on these PbP games. Particularly during tense situations, our common expectation should be that everybody tries to check in at least once a day, myself included.
My normal inclination is to assume a PC is delaying. That way, when the player pipes up, he can act immediately, and all is good. In this case, though, Jylan's attacks were likely to change the course of the battle, and I think all of you would rather have seen the foe go down in Round Three rather than address the results otherwise.
As things turned out, I needed to roll for Jylan's AoO, but not his full action. But if the AoO had not been enough to drop the giant, I would have presumed that Jylan would just keep hacking away with the axe, and rolled accordingly. I'm glad I didn't need to make that presumption.
Over by the blacksmith's forge, one of the half-orcs Jylan had spoken with shouts: "Kill 'im! Jylan, finish the bastard off!"
Behind Durnast, the two acolytes dare to peek out the door of the Chapel. "By the Rod, they killed Gurg!" gasps the woman.
I looked back through Jason's posts from August till now. He's noted that Vital Strike is incompatible with Charge, but he hasn't said anything about Cleave.
Sigh. I think we're going to play this one as it lies: VS doesn't interface with Charge or with Attacks of Opportunity, but it might well apply to every blow in a Great Cleave sequence. So make sure you're not all standing next to one another.
Having said that, it might be moot for the time being. If Jylan can take this guy down before the giant attacks, or if you folks can figure some way to drop the giant out of rage, the fight should be over.
Taking into account his Damage Reduction, you have so far done 192 points of damage to him, through swords and axes and a fusillade of arrows. (By the way, Alia, what color are your fletchings?) He's unsteady on his feet, but still a dire threat.
Durnast, something catches your eye...
Spoiler:
Off to the east, behind the giant, you see the hanged man at the gallows, the one with the sign reading "CHEAT". His eyes seem to have regenerated somehow. He's looking at the fight and grinning.
In the distance behind him, you see two orcs at the blacksmith's shop. They're also observing the fight, and they look tense.
Jylan still has his Attack of Opportunity and regular actions in Round 2.
BUT Chamomile gets one: 1d20+7 for 1 dmg & Sleep Poison: Fort DC 16. For Chamomile's normal Action, he'll take another jab at the Giant with his stinger, 5' stepping into Tin's square to Flank off me: 1d20+9 (if the first one WORKS, he just Readies a Sting if the Giant wakes).
If this works, Cam is getting a promotion...
The giant succeeds on both saving throws.
And the spell simply doesn't seem strong enough to affect him.
Chyressa wrote:
Seeing her party in danger from the giant, Chyr throws caution to the wind, and charges the beast, hoping it's distracted enough to not pay attention to her. Charge to L20 and attack.
1d20 + 13 ⇒ (2) + 13 = 15
sigh! I hate this dice roller; can we go back to Invisible Castle?
(Laughs) If you want to use Invisible Castle and you link to your rolls, that would be fine, neil.
Closing to L20 means she has to leave M20, which provokes an Attack of Opportunity from the giant.
Attack: hits AC 27. Damage: 40. And another ouch. The giant sees you coming and swings his spiked club in both hands, smashing you in the gut. You continue your charge and reach him with the dagger, but you have a hard time making your hand reach out to land the attack. You cough up blood as you attempt to pull yourself together.
so the last few actions: from Round 2
Artimus: attempts emergency Diplomacy.
Alia: attacks.
Giant: attacks with great cleave and moves, provoking Attacks of Opportunity
Cam's AoO - sting, giant makes his save
Artimus' AoO -
Jylan's AoO -
Tinthariel - no AoO
Durnast - no AoO
Durnast: cast Hypnotic Pattern
Jylan:
Round 3:
Tintheriel: cast Cure Critical Wounds on himself.
Chyressa: close and attack
Giant's AoO - hits Chyressa
Chamomile: Attempt to sting, miss
Artimus:
Alia: Alia's initiative changed so that she acts immediately after Artimus
Giant:
Durnast:
Jylan:
For the rules discussion, let's move to the discussion board.
]I actually think they don't work together. Cleave & Great Cleave are "as a Standard Action", Vital Strike only works with the "Attack Action" Standard Action - C/GC seem to be "their own" unique Standard Action. I just saw this in a thread with Jason (the author) commenting on how it worked/didn't work with different things (it doesn't work on a Charge either, apparently).
I've read through the rules, and for the life of me I can't see how they would not work together. Vital Strike works when you take an attack action, which I understand to be one of the things that you can do with a standard action, as opposed to a full attack. So, charge is "double move, then attack", which allows a Vital Strike.
Cleave says, "as a standard action, you can make a single attack ..." and that attack is an attack action that can use Vital Strike. (But yes, neither Vital Strike, nor Cleave, can be used as part of a full attack action.)
The rules seem pretty clear on this. If you have any citation otherwise, I'd be happy to take a look at it.
--+--+--
Your hypnotic pattern roars up, but it seems unable to affect the giant. That was your attack of opportunity?
Round 1:
Alia: shoots and perceives.
Tintheriel: casts hold person. Giant saves.
Chyressa: moves in preparation to flank.
Durnast: readies Detect Poison.
Chamomile: delays.
Artimus: casts Bull's Strength and moves. (Activates a Smite as a free action.)
Giant: charges, wallops Jylan.
Durnast: at this point, the condition for your readied spell is met, you cast, and you find out if the giant is poisoned.
Jylan: attacks the giant with his greataxe
Round 2:
Alia: delays a full-round attack until after Artimus' Diplomacy
Tintheriel: casts empowered cure critical wounds. (The giant could have taken an attack of opportunity there, but I wanted to see if Artimus' Diplomacy would work...)
Chyressa: I don't mind allowing Chyressa the dagger throw at this point. It misses.
Chamomile: moves and attacks, misses.
I mis-spoke when I said you were delaying here. Your initiative had already changed.
Artimus: attempts emergency Diplomacy.
Alia: attacks.
Giant: attacks with great cleave and moves, provoking Attacks of Opportunity
where we are now
Durnast: your initiative changed so that you act immediately after the giant
Jylan:
Round 3:
Tintheriel:
Chyressa:
Chamomile:
Artimus:
Alia: Alia's initiative changed so that she acts immediately after Artimus
Giant:
Durnast:
Jylan:
Jylan: full attack (Neil, please use the Paizo messageboard dice-roller; I'll roll them this time).
First Attack: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (11) + 11 = 22 (That's a hit!) Damage: 1d12 + 6 ⇒ (3) + 6 = 9
(I'm not sure how you're calculating +7 damage)
Second Attack: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (19) + 6 = 25 (Almost a critical!) Damage: 1d12 + 6 ⇒ (3) + 6 = 9
Alia: Holding his attack till after Artimus's Diplomacy attempt.
Tintheriel: moving next to Jylan and casting a spell on him.
Chyressa the rowdy caravan guard: delaying
Durnast: delaying
Durnast's little friend: attacking, but failing to hit
Artimus: Diplomacy
The hill giant pauses momentarily to consider Artimus' words. His eyes focus, but then he catches something out of the corner of his eye, off to the east, and his vision clouds over again in red-hot rage. He raises his weapon and bellows, "It was all a trap! And you are in on it! All the stinking Camp!"
You came very close to actually getting through to him. But for the vagaries of fate, that would have worked, and it would have been an excellent strategy.
And Alia puts three arrows into his right shoulder, neat as you please.
The giant attempts to take as many of you with him as he can, starting on Artimus:
Attack: Hits AC 34, Damage: 44
The swing is not just terrifically powerful, but it's also surgically precise, shattering the paladin's left kidney.
Then he uses that strike to reflect his weapon off onto Jylan:
Attack: Hits AC 36, Damage: 40
He hits Jylan in the neck; if it weren't for your armor, your larynx would have been torn out.
And then to Tinthariel
Attack: Hits AC 34, Damage: 51 (ouch! James, would you please make a Fortitude saving throw, DC 15; if you succeed, as I'm reading the character sheet, that blow will drop Tin into negative hit points, but not kill him)
The spiked club wallops the elf along the side of his head, clipping his helmet and actually pulling him off the ground for a half-foot.
The giant does not notice Cam.
He then moves 20 feet, moving within range to strike either Durnast or, more likely, Alia. This provokes attacks from Artimus, Jylan, Tinthariel (if he's still conscious), Durnast and Cam the pseudo-dragon.
The previous DM had been going to want to roll our HP for us in some standardized way. Do you wish us to roll them ourselves? Max at first, roll the rest?
Sorry; of course.
Max first level, and then (average + 0.5) for the other levels. So, to use Dvight as an example:
Sorcerer, 1st level: 6 + Con modifier (and perhaps +1 for favored class)
Sorcerer, 2nd level: (average of 1d6 is 3.5; add 0.5) 4 + Con modifier (and perhaps +1)
Sorcerer, 3rd level: 4 + Con modifier (and perhaps +1)
Sorcerer, 4th level: 4 + Con modifier (and perhaps +1)
Sorcerer, 5th level: 4 + Con modifier (and perhaps +1)
Dragon disciple, 1st level: (average of 1d12 is 6.5; add 0.5) 7 + Con modifier
Dragon disciple: 2nd level: 7 + Con modifier
Please post in the discussion board how many of your bonus points for favored class were applied to hit points versus skill ranks.
Artimus wrote:
On his turn, Artimus will glower up at the much larger form fearlessly. "This man has been with us for days travel. He has not slain your kin. Drop your weapon, we may settle this peacefully, and your kin will be avenged."
]If you think there is a diplomacy check there, you can freely roll it, Artimus has a +18 bonus. I figure the creature is beyond reasoning with, but I know Artimus would still try before swinging.
Using Diplomacy is normally a one-minute action. Condensing that to a full round act imposes a -6 penalty. That'll be your action this round, yes?
Are other people giving Artimus' Diplomacy a chance, or are you piling on the giant?
Alia: shoots and perceives.
Tintheriel: casts a spell. No effect on the giant, who is not a humanoid.
Chyressa: moves in preparation to flank.
Durnast: readies a spell.
Artimus: casts a spell and moves.
The giant roars again, in pain and perhaps in anguish, "All dead! All of them!" And in his madness, he charges (on a 5 or 6 he shifts his focus to Artimus)1d6 ⇒ 1 Jylan. He does close so that he's right in front of Artimus. (I've updated the map.)
Durnast:
Spoiler:
No poison.
The giant swings his spiked club, and it's obvious to the warriors among you that he's got some skill there, not just raw muscle.
Attack: hits AC 35. Damage: 42 points. It wasn't as heavy a hit as it could have been, but the giant got a lucky shot and hit Jylan's mail right above his liver. The club's spikes tear out a few of the mail links as the armor turns aside the rest of the blow; it won't impact the armor's functions, but it's obvious battle damage.
All right, folks. Starting with Jylan, it's your turn.
Chyr looks for somewhere to take cover, and hide till the giant is past.
Once the giant is past she'll try to move into a flanking position for her attack.
Just let me know if there is any cover close to the giants path, and she'll take that...immediately moving after the giant as he speeds past.
Good instincts, but a little problematic under these circumstances.
There is nothing between Jylan and the giant that would provide complete cover, but there are broken boxes scattered about, half-buried in the dirt; if Chyressa lay prone behind one of them, it would provide partial cover. (The temple, the "Chapel of the Dying Light", is pretty close to Jylan, off to the west. It's probably the closest actual cover, but Jylan would have to back up behind it.)
The giant is on the road north of the party, halfway between the Commons and the Desolation itself. Before Artimus moved, Jylan was the closest party member, the rest of you were further south. (Maybe that's why the giant picked him?) Chyressa rushes forward, off to the side between Jylan and the giant, and then tries to hide in good light (well, good light for giants; twilight for humans) under direct observation. Did you want to remain standing, which will make hiding much harder, or throw yourself on the ground behind a makeshift barrier?
In her advancing, Chyressa does notice something about the giant
Spoiler:
His club is studded with bronze and brass tacks, in intricate patterns, and it seems to glow ruddy in the dakrness, as if it were just taken out of a fire. Then you recognize the effect as a magical aura.
I just meant mudane old maps of Tsar from before the Great Events of Legend (just for general direction from B's Gate even if the land has changed since then). Are those magically obscured as well?
{In the voice of an Elder of Muir:} Oh, well, yes, of course, those maps are still around. Hmm-mm, yes. But, really, they don't tell us much, do they? Tsar was right around there, ten miles east of the foothills of the so-called Stoneheart Mountains. Hmm-mm, yes. And we've sent some expeditions straight there, yes. By magic. Pop, they're there. Or at least, we assume they're there. I mean, nobody really knows where they went, do we? After all, nobody's ever come back. And just last month,our baroness here in Bard's Gate sent that --what was it, a "delegation," did she say?-- up into the Hell-lands, and they've fared no better, I wager. {end voice}
Durnast wrote:
Well, change my Move to more like L21, and I'm readying the spell if the giant comes into range (and we're acting simultaneously it looks like).
You have the option to act before the giant (your Dexterity modifier is greater than his).
Artimus wrote:
I also have a horse of my own that I picked up with starting gear.
It's not like there aren't MAPS of Tsar's location...
Well, actually, there aren't a lot of maps at all of what lies in the Desolation. Something .. or some one ... is able to interfere with even powerful scrying spells, and different clairvoyance spells have produced contradictory results. You're going into territory that is known only by the daring of scouts and the questionable voices of legend.
Durnast Kal wrote:
The sight of an Orcus shrine at least brings a slight grin to my jaded face: "...Looks like we're on the right trail...", I enthuse to anybody listening.
Now, don't you go peeking under other people's spoilers!
Durnast Kal wrote:
I'm more or less uncomfortable being in the Camp, thinking it's a pointless exercise only liable to get us jumped by brigands or worse, and I'd rather not be bothered with dealing with that sort of thing. I'll be sure to keep our actual destination to myself, acting the part of another "rough rider" brigand on the make.
You may be on to something there...
Durnast Kal wrote:
I focus my third eye upon the Giant, discerning what is affecting him (Detect Poison). If he is affected by some sort of poison, I will inform Artimus & Tinthariel in case they might be able to do something about it.
Detect poison has a short range -- 40 feet for a Wizard of your rank. Am I missing something that would let you use the spell at 90 feet?
Durnast Kal wrote:
How did we get here? Do we all have horses?
Are they with use, or tied up near-by? Do we have wagons with supplies?
It's safe to presume that explorers and adventurers such as yourselves have the means to move about as you please.
In this case, the Elders of Muir have given you a wand of mount, made from dark cherry wood with a series of ivory carvings in the shape of galloping horses embedded along its length. The creator of the wand designed it to trigger the spell as if the caster were 5th Level, so each summoned light horse serves for 10 hours. The horses are all the same color as the wand, with blazes of ivory. You have 45 charges remaining.
Were you planning on stabling the creatures for the few hours remaining, or simply dismiss them when you reached Camp?
Glancing at Artimus, Jylan unslings his Great Axe, holding it loosely in front of his body. "Good to have you here my friend. It seems I may have inadvertently pissed our tall friend off somehow!" He plants his feet firmly in the sand, preparing to meet the giants charge.
Unslinging the axe is a free action, but only when combined with a regular move. You'll be able to draw your weapon on your turn. (See Pathfinder RPG, top of page 187.) Chatting with your allies, of course, takes no time at all.
If you allow it, I would like to rewrite my action and transform it to a full round action with no Perception check.
I'll keep the same rolls and add some more. But it's your call.
Not in this case, as I've told you the result of the Perception check. (I had to double check, that the Pathfinder Manyshot requires a full-round attack.)
Artimus Borne wrote:
Artimus leaves the gnome a nice tip(at least in any other town) of a few silvers with the hope he'll gain more information from him later, and then moves outside.
The gnome smiled. "Oh, I'm afraid we take only iron bits, my friend; it's the local currency. You'd want to see the Usurer, the gaunt fellow maning the smithy, to exchange these. But we thank you for your kind offer.
"We also offer dinner, as well as lodging. Only one meal a day, though. You're on your own for the rest of your care. And because you have a nice way about you --a definite breath of fresh air in these parts, if you don't mind my sayin' so-- we'll give you and your friends a free meal tonight. It's our specialty: roast lamb; and it's on the house tonight."
When he hears the roar, he hurries to get as close to the sound as possible(starting in L20) and readies himself.
Artimus Borne wrote:
Still, there is something of a shock when the large creature bursts forth into the common grounds. He looks to Jylan. "Be ready, it looks as if he comes for you. But I will be at your side to meet him." He then will cast Bull's Strength on himself and step up just in front of Jylan(L17) so that if the Giant is going to swing at the fighter, he'll have to be standing next to Artimus.
Alia is in L23
As it is the surprise round, only a single action.
Attack with composite longbow with deadly aim 1d20+11 , damage 1d8+8
Perception for other enemies 1d20+11
Surprise in Pathfinder is identical to surprise in D&D 3.5:
The Surprise Round: If some but not all of the combatants are aware of their opponents, a surprise round happens before regular rounds begin. In initiative order (highest to lowest), combatants who started the battle aware of their opponents each take a standard or move action during the surprise round. You can also take free actions during the surprise round. If no one or everyone is surprised, no surprise round occurs. Pathfinder RPG, page 178
Neither you nor the giant are surprised. We can call the active Perception your move-equivalent action if you like.
The arrow rises and falls in its arc before it strikes true in his right thigh. You do not, as yet, see any other enemies.
We don't need to post in initiative order. If you want to post a provisional action ("If there's a gnoll near me, I'll try to trip it; if not, I'll drink a potion.") that's fine.
Chyressa, nobody's willing to take your gold; they direct you to the blacksmith "to get some money that's good 'round here."
But before your evening of being memorable, you meet a middle-aged, swarthy-complexioned man who introduces himself as Sammar. He's incongruously dressed in a dirty but fine white shirt, silk black vest and trewes, and good riding boots, clothes more appropriate to an actual city. He notes, with a slight artistocratic lilt in his diction, "The gnomes who run the boarding house are supposed to be twins. Identical twins. Most of the locals can't even tell them apart. And I can't say as how I've seen both of them at the same time. Maybe there's only one of them, pretending to be two."
--+--+--
As you discuss where you'll be spending the night, the late afternoon is shattered by a great bellowing cry of rage. From the north road charges a massive figure. Those few people on the street quickly scatter at its approach. It is a hill giant covered in dust and blood. A great spiked club swings in its hand. Its face is a mass of recent wounds and horrible burns, perhaps caused by acid. One thing is evident, though; the look in its eyes as they focus on Jylan is one of pure insanity.
(Apparently, when I use the [ dice ] command, the results shift after editing, so I'll use the [ out-of-character ] tag for these. Weird.)
Imagine a grid of 5' squares, with letters representing the columns from west to east, and numbers representing the rows from north to south. The giant is standing next to the wellhouse, in M4, M5, N4, and N5. Jylan finds himself on the north edge of the Commons, at K18. The rest of you can place yourselves anywhere in the Commons in a rectangle with corners at J20, J26, T20, and T26 at the start of your turn.
About Spell Components: How do you roll?
Should I just assume I have 'common components' stocked? If we do, just making Eschew Components free would be easiest/most direct/honest (maybe give Combat Casting or something to Sorcerors then?)
But beyond 'common components', how do more expensive ones work?
I.e. some spells require X gp worth of diamond powder: Do I need to purchase that ahead of time specific to each spell component, or can I 'handwave' expensive components by removing them from my gold total when I use them? (I'm talking about "X gp value" components, especially gems, not truly unique components of course)
Likewise, for Scribing Scrolls/ into my Spellbook: Do I need to buy magical inks for this purpose discretely, or can I just remove the appropriate amount of GP?
I'm on the "stickler" side for material components. There is a standard kit of "common, basically free components" that wizards get along with their first spellbook. But if those components get taken away, the wizard needs to improvise on the fly.
The more expensive ones need to be bought ahead of time. If you need 500 gold pieces worth of diamond powder, you will need to have bought diamond powder before casting the spell.
Bard's Gate has an active arcane community, with two wizards (one who's been an academic all her life, and the other of whom retired from his explorations with some fortune and fame) and their apprentices, so there's an easy market there for those particular supplies that spellcasting entails. ("Pearls worth a hundred gold pieces? Yeah, we got 'em.") You're not sure what you'll find in the Camp.
For scribing scrolls, the process is a little more relaxed. Assume you have a bottle of very expensive scroll-inks (you don't want to know what's in there, but it changes color according to the astrological positions of the moon and two of the heavenly wanderers). You can subtract gold pieces when you use up the inks, and assume you restock when you're able.
Although, again, if you're robbed of ll your possessions, you'll need to recover or replace the ink before you can create any new scrolls.
Chris, in view of your last comments, and as Alia is supposed to be more or less local,I have put more SP in knowledge local than I had originaly planned.
Not that time-in-Camp needs to be tightly correlated to familiarity with the locals, but I would prefer having Alia pretty new as well: first arrived only a couple weeks ago, and having spent most of that time leading parties through the Desolation. She may know her way around a little, as in who's the best blacksmith, and where she can find the Camp's pitiful excuse for a marketplace. That puts her to legs up on the rest of the party, but she's still mostly a stranger in town.
