Guy Humual's page

You know as I look at the picture more I'm not entirely convinced that it needs to be a mechanical arm, you could call it a weird piece of armour that doubles as a weapon. I still think that's one of the best pieces of art I've seen thus far in Skull and Shackles.

Race a six to ten year old sometime. See how it comes out.

You do realize that a ten year old is comparable to halfling / gnome in size only right? For their size gnomes and halflings are freakishly strong. A 33lb halfling with an 8 STR can lift and stagger around with 120lbs of gear. Keep in mind that's the average halfling. How many 10 year olds you know that can lift nearly 4 times their weight?

A better example would some sort of adult primate. Race a Chimp sometime. See how that comes out.

Guy Humual wrote:

What advantages does being a gnome or halfling have that requires a penalty? Being small? To me that's a self balancing trait. You get bonuses to hit but loose damage capability, you get a bonus to AC but have penalties to grapple. Exactly what are halflings and gnomes getting for their speed penalties?

Being small they get a bonus to ac, and to hit as well as a bonus to hide, also they can use medium sized mounts.

In the end it is about specialization, if you build for it size can be a bonus instead of a penalty.

For a +1 to hit they do less damage

For a +1 to AC they have a -1 to CMB and CDB\

The +4 bonus to stealth doesn't seem to have a direct penalty associated with it, however being small does have other penalties that don't have a counter:

1) reduced carrying capacity. Small creatures can only carry 3/4th as much as a medium sized character.

2) Equipment is usually sized for medium creatures, most small PCs aren't going to find equipment sized for them.

3) Most combat maneuvers are geared towards creatures your size or smaller. Small characters have fewer options and more vulnerabilities then medium sized characters.

On top of all this there is a speed penalty. I'm thinking small characters need the hide bonus because they have no chance of outrunning most monsters in the game.

I think I would have watched this as a kid

What happens to Karrin's attacks? The Jester can't stop her from attacking the spell caster.

This might be interesting for folks here

Honestly I'd say that Katniss was closer to true neutral then good and President Snow was more neutral evil then lawful.

This might be interesting for folks here

Have you guys seen The Joy of Cooking by Old Man Luedecke? The man knows the truth.

Guess that means I am right :)

Guy Humual wrote:

Aroden tragically died getting out of the shower.

this does not answer my question.

The answer you're looking for should be obvious: Aroden left the water running.

Guy Humual wrote:

Aroden tragically died getting out of the shower.

Thats what he gets for not laying down the mat.

Ironically bathmats were invented the following year.

I didn't think the movie was bad, just not as good as the book, and that's usually the case with these things. It was a fair adaptation but I couldn't understand some of the changes. They certainly toned down the brutality and reality of the games. Peeda and Katness were walking wounded by the end of that book, Peeda actually looses his leg and Katness needs an artificial ear, but in the movie they look none the worse for wear by the end of it.

Aroden tragically died getting out of the shower.

I would also like to add some Great Big Sea to this mix:

Captain Kidd

Ise The B'y

The old Black Rum

Lukey's boat

Mari-Mac

Most of these are traditional folk songs and the sort of thing ship crews might sing while working to take the tedium away from the day.

Guy Humual wrote:

I love me some Stan Rodgers.

The Bluenose

Barrett's Privateers

The Mary Ellen Carter

Not all are historically appropriate for some folks, depending on the period that you set your adventure in, but the nautical references are wonderful. Plus he's a local legend :)

You have not been out *drinking* unless you've been to a bar in the Maritimes for some pints and Salty Tunes. The next morning, your hand is sore and red from slapping it on the table to the rythym of the music! Good times!!.

A gusty rendition of Barrett's Privateers is, in almost every bar for the past 35 years +, the highlight of the evening.

"...and the main track carried off both me legs! G%~ d$*n them all..."

Barrett was smashed like a bowl of eggs :P

What advantages does being a gnome or halfling have that requires a penalty? Being small? To me that's a self balancing trait. You get bonuses to hit but loose damage capability, you get a bonus to AC but have penalties to grapple. Exactly what are halflings and gnomes getting for their speed penalties?

Go on a walk with a child some time I'm sure you'll enjoy the fresh air and take note of how the children are just as fast as you with out rushing to keep up :)

Children are not halflings or gnomes. They're comparable in height but gnomes and halflings can be amazingly strong compared to their height and weight. Know any 6 year olds that can lift 100lbs? A better example would be some sort of primate. I'm thinking a chimp could probably outpace me even on the ground.

My assumption has always been because they have proportionately short legs to the rest of their bodies (although current depictions of gnomes and halflings don't actually match that description very well).

Regardless though, why is it that goblins, which are freakishly out of proportion (with big heads and stubby little limbs) are faster then halflings or gnomes, which appear to be in proportion. Back when halflings were still called hobbits you could argue that hobbits were slower because they were fat and out of shape. Halflings are trim and lean. I really don't see any reason to penalize them.

Guy Humual wrote:

The first cannons appeared in China in the twelfth century. That's about a thousand years of firearms for your fantasy games. Not too many people live for over a thousand years even in fantasy. Muskets, for example, are a 16th century innovation...

As I said before, the concept of a "China" in a D&D campaign is basically a non-factor: it is either far outside the normal campaign world, or non-existent.

What I am arguing is that once gunpowder hits "Europe" (read: closely packed group of dozens of competing nations/baronies/etc; also read: most D&D campaign worlds) things progress quickly.

If we're just talking about gunpowder that was a 9th century invention. We're talking dark ages here. The Mongols used cannons in Europe in 1241 and within sixty years European scientists had the recipe. Powder was being made in England at the Tower of London around 1346.

Guy Humual wrote:

Again, magic is really powerful, but it's also a monopoly of power. Not every wizard is going to be altruistic. Not every lord or brute that can hire a wizard is going to be happy with the unchecked power they wield. People without magical or martial training but with money and power are going to want some sort of an edge. Firearms will be developed or you're going to have magical items that can be used by layman. Nothing funds technological innovation like fear and war.

Considering that there are 12 base classes, including an NPC class, with access to 2nd level spells by level 4, I'm not convinced magical access is as rare a resource as you seem to be implying. We don't have the same demographic information in Pathfinder that the 3.5 DMG used to offer us, but I strongly suspect at least 5% of the population of Golarion has some sort of relatively meaningful magical ability. Settlements as small as two dozen people can scrape up a caster capable of 2nd level spells, in fact. That's more than enough to find, hire, or simply learn your way into the basic spells you want for military use. Firearms are only a reasonable alternative when magic isn't - hence, Alkenstar.

5% seems reasonable. Also I'm not suggesting that magic isn't in anyway rare, just powerful (read 7th level or higher) wizards are. Also of that remaining 95% less then 1% (not counting the folks in Alkenstar) are going to be interested in buying these early weapons. All I'm pointing out is that there will be a market for firearms and that this market will have room to grow.

I love me some Stan Rodgers.

The Bluenose

Barrett's Privateers

The Mary Ellen Carter

Not all are historically appropriate for some folks, depending on the period that you set your adventure in, but the nautical references are wonderful. Plus he's a local legend :)

It's ridiculous to decided how fast a creature is based on size. For the life of me I have no clue why halflings have a 20 move. It just doesn't make any sense. Goblins, kobolds, most small fey, in fact almost every single small sized monster in the game has at least a 30 move or an alternate move like climb, swim, or fly speed. The only 20 move creatures in the game are player races and there's no reason for it IMO. Speed should probably be based on stats rather then race or size.

Again, magic is really powerful, but it's also a monopoly of power. Not every wizard is going to be altruistic. Not every lord or brute that can hire a wizard is going to be happy with the unchecked power they wield. People without magical or martial training but with money and power are going to want some sort of an edge. Firearms will be developed or you're going to have magical items that can be used by layman. Nothing funds technological innovation like fear and war.

Guy Humual wrote:

sunshadow21 wrote:

Guy Humual wrote:

Presumably the research isn't being funded for the common man, but rather for the rich and powerful who can afford it. I'm sure you'll agree that nobody wants too much power in someone else's hands, so as a rich and powerful duke I might hire a wizard, but I might also buy a firearm for myself.

For yourself, maybe, but for all of your guards and your army, highly doubtful, and even for you, it would be more of a toy and show piece than a practical weapon.

What we're talking about is how firearms grows in a fantasy world. A first generation gunsmith might have a half dozen sales in a year, but as his work improves and he teaches his skills to another generation the techniques of the art would improve. Perhaps the next generation of gunsmith can build guns for cheaper and then the market opens up. Suddenly a king can afford to equip his elite guard with the weapons. Perhaps in another couple generations there's an entire army using the weapons. What I'm saying is that early on the weapons will be to expensive for the anyone but the rich and/or crazy, but in a few generations you could have a classic arms race that will up demand and lower the price.

Of course, all this neglects the obvious: guns built using magic. Again, I return to the historical perspective that the musket (and later rifle, and then machine gun) redefined warfare three times in the course of about 200 years. Considering that is not even the lifespan of many D&D characters, that amount of change is hard to swallow.

Yes, it requires suspension of belief to operate the standard D&D world - guns introduce yet another layer to that, and one that I am not willing to accept.

The first cannons appeared in China in the twelfth century. That's about a thousand years of firearms for your fantasy games. Not too many people live for over a thousand years even in fantasy. Muskets, for example, are a 16th century innovation which means they were being used at least some 412 years ago but probably closer to 500. That's not too fast in my estimations but YMMV.

Golarion already has a technological level surpassing our own. Both in the past with it's floating cities and in the present in Numeria. I don't like ray guns in my fantasy but fewer people seem to object to that then firearms which are usually historically accurate to the technology currently available.

Guy Humual wrote:

Presumably the research isn't being funded for the common man, but rather for the rich and powerful who can afford it. I'm sure you'll agree that nobody wants too much power in someone else's hands, so as a rich and powerful duke I might hire a wizard, but I might also buy a firearm for myself.

For yourself, maybe, but for all of your guards and your army, highly doubtful, and even for you, it would be more of a toy and show piece than a practical weapon.

What we're talking about is how firearms grows in a fantasy world. A first generation gunsmith might have a half dozen sales in a year, but as his work improves and he teaches his skills to another generation the techniques of the art would improve. Perhaps the next generation of gunsmith can build guns for cheaper and then the market opens up. Suddenly a king can afford to equip his elite guard with the weapons. Perhaps in another couple generations there's an entire army using the weapons. What I'm saying is that early on the weapons will be to expensive for the anyone but the rich and/or crazy, but in a few generations you could have a classic arms race that will up demand and lower the price.

What if that arm was salvaged from under the sea? There are ruins chalk full of ancient stuff I bet. The campaign setting has tons of ancient ruins and near forgotten civilizations after all. It really is a great picture and could spawn all sorts of side adventures for the GM. Don't expect any content from Paizo regarding it though, I was talking to James Jacobs about it tonight in chat and he seemed pretty upset about it. It's content that they didn't anticipate.

Clearly Paizo needs to get to work on some steam punk supplements ASAP. There must be an alternate reality somewhere where the aboleth were defeated and the world is awash with alien technology and magic.

I plan on running a ninja for this campaign, not an atypical oriental ninja, but rather a crazy cat obsessed ninja who's drawn to the shackles in search of a famous grandfather who may or may have given his first born in a deal with rakshasa. My character is a tiefling with rakshasa blood who, despite the disciplined and sheltered upbringing, desperately wants to be a pirate. Basically a neko assassin. A character that thinks they're a cat, and thus hates water, but, despite the outwardly cute appearance, is actually ruthless and remorseless killer. Good times.

Presumably the research isn't being funded for the common man, but rather for the rich and powerful who can afford it. I'm sure you'll agree that nobody wants too much power in someone else's hands, so as a rich and powerful duke I might hire a wizard, but I might also buy a firearm for myself.

However, things that make an entertaining read don't always translate well into gaming... I'm not a fan of guns in my fantasy game: the presence of magic obviates the necessary study of physics, chemistry, and metallurgy that go into the development of firearms. No one is going to spend the needful time and effort to make the breakthroughs that lead to guns when the wizards of the world outperform 'scientific' research.

Look at the time it would take to train a wizard vs the time it would take to teach someone to fire a cannon. That's the reason science would win out over magic. It's also the same reason firearms killed the whole code of chivalry and the knights. Sure a musket could punch through armor, but when you look at the time it takes to train a knight, construct their armor, vs the time it takes to train a peasant to learn the skills to potentially kill said knight it's a no brainer.

Sorry for neglecting this journal everyone :(

I am alive and well (physically anyways) but sadly I just haven't had the gumption to work on this journal. I am still writing but I'm doing something of my own at the moment. I can't say how long before I get around to the next entry but I sure hope it's not as long as my last hiatus.

One of the things that I really love about the show is how it strongly appeals to my inner nerd without pandering to it. It's a show that's not blatantly about anything really, the questions are misleading, impossibly hard, and the show doesn't expect you to know these things. The point of the show is to be interesting, and in that goal it completely succeeds. For example they once asked At what temperature does water boil and I immediately thought "well that depends on how high above or below sea level you are". But as it turns out (as you'll see from the clip) that this wasn't the answer they were looking for, However Dara O'Briain does what the show demands of him and supplies some information that is Quite Interesting . . .

Of course a year or so later when they ask again about the triple point of water the results are quite different. That amused me to no end.

and, the picture for inspiration

I plan on having my tiefling using oil to light his/her hair on fire. Hopefully that fire resistance 5 extends to the tiefling's hair.

I really can't imagine pirates without guns myself. I have no problems putting them on the side for other campaigns, but when you build a campaign around pirates why would you want to play without guns? Could anyone imagine a wild west game without six shooters? A typical fantasy without plate mail? I think Fantasy is a fine fit with fire arms.

Well I think the most famous snafu was in the first season when they asked How many moons does the earth have? This was of course proven to be false, but it did lead me to read up on Cruithne (which I'd never heard of before QI), and any show that makes people want to read up on things is brilliant. I don't think QI would ever claim to be the absolute authority on anything but it is a great jumping point for all kinds of reading and research.

I am convinced that this is the greatest show on television.

Discuss:

Anyone think that Dick Clark was actually beheaded in a long cinematic sword fight while 80s rock blasted in the background? His killer screaming "There can be only one!" before lighting rips through the room?

No? Just me?

RIP Dick Clark, you will be missed.

I'm good to go and haven't been sick for well over a week now :)

If someone honestly has a severe need to frequent religious professionals which may not be available where the military has sent them, they should have considered a different line of work. If that kind of privation is causing them serious mental health problems, they should seek a medical discharge and/or the proper psychiatric help.

Because people that join the military put a lot of thought and research into it and people in the army gain the ability of assessing their mental health.

Guy Humual wrote:

Jean-Paul Sartre, Intrnet Troll wrote:

Guy Humual wrote:

People are free to believe whatever they want here in North America and we should be eternally grateful to our lord and savior Bacchus.

Personally, I'm much more open to religions that use inebriation and orgies as part of their ritual worship.

Not so big on tearing people limb from limb, though.

This is yet another attack by the lame stream media on Bacchanalia. Were there drunken orgies, sure, where men and children hunted down and torn limb from limb? Who can say? A lot of stuff happened that weekend. It's hard to keep track of these things. I think automatically blaming the Maenad for any cannibalism and dismemberment in an area speaks to your prejudices. People have been torn apart and eaten long before our lord and savior Bacchus came around after all.

I am interested sir. Do you have a pamphlet?

Sadly no, but I do have pictures.

M.A.D. EL Tester wrote:

Here on Golarion we play goblin, flumph, pugwampi.

Remind me, what beats what again?

Goblin eats pugwampi, pugwampi flummoxes flumph, flumph out smarts goblin.

Guy Humual wrote:

People are free to believe whatever they want here in North America and we should be eternally grateful to our lord and savior Bacchus.

Personally, I'm much more open to religions that use inebriation and orgies as part of their ritual worship.

Not so big on tearing people limb from limb, though.

This is yet another attack by the lame stream media on Bacchanalia. Were there drunken orgies, sure, where men and children hunted down and torn limb from limb? Who can say? A lot of stuff happened that weekend. It's hard to keep track of these things. I think automatically blaming the Maenad for any cannibalism and dismemberment in an area speaks to your prejudices. People have been torn apart and eaten long before our lord and savior Bacchus came around after all.

The thing that people need to realize is that religion is, and always has been, big business. Con men and snake oil salesmen have always been around to bilk the rubes out of their hard earned cash. The thought of free religion or critical thinking is terrifying to them, they'd loose most of their sheep, and so we have 'scholars' re-interpreting the American constitutions to read "freedom of religion" as meaning Christians only. I'm not picking on the Christians here though, if the founding fathers had of been Muslim, Hindu, or pastafarians I can promise you that these flim-flam men would be arguing their case under those banners.

People are free to believe whatever they want here in North America and we should be eternally grateful to our lord and savior Bacchus.

No biggy, the game is still going that's all that matters :)

I found This interesting.

Pat, most of these games fold after 4 weeks never mind 4 years, I think you're doing more then your part to keep this game alive. I do wish it would update more often but that's only because I love it to death. The story and characters in the game are wonderful and I have no reason to complain. I've been here from day one and will continue to be here for as long as you want to keep running it. Game on dude! You update when you can.

Joey
(A.K.A. Guy Humual)

No updates this week. I caught something nasty yesterday and I haven't been able to finish the next Lidu diary off.

Previews: We find Noltus

After 14 hours of sleep I no longer have the headache. I'm not trusting myself to have solid foods yet but I do feel better. I wanted to play, but after bringing up mostly acid last time I was sick to my stomach, a lot of my will dissolved.

Yes, it's only now that I can laugh at it.

Similar but not quite the same. For example Tristan could use this on an enemy's square.

four or even a dozen words over or under shouldn't hurt you, it's those folks that are off by more that have to worry. Being under or being over by fifty or so is really grounds for auto rejection. Though if it's a strong piece and fits with the theme well then I could see Tim handing it to an editor and seeing if they could make it fit. But that would probably be a rare situation.