Tristan Tarrascon's page

A short walk through a forest takes you to the Fogfen swamp.

The sound of frogs and mosquitos mixes with water sloshing against muddy shores, all muffled by the ever-present mists that linger in the aptly named Fogfen. As the mists clear, a shadow looms from the cloying swamp vapors — a sprawling ruin of stone and wood squats atop an island in the soggy marsh. The upper floors have largely collapsed, leaving only the stone walls of the ground floor intact. Above these ruins towers an out-of-place monument — a colossal lighthouse whose painted walls and iron-cased crown have resisted the corrosive effects of the surrounding swamp.

I'll leave it to you to decide on a marching order and how you want to approach the ruins. I'll try to get a map up shortly.

This is the discussion thread for the campaign. Feel free to finish your characters and adjust them to match each other, hammer out your background or just roleplay a little. I will be using this thread for playing out interactions in Otari or roleplaying longer conversations so as not to slow play down unduly. We will imagine conversations in this thread as taking place during downtime so there may be a little bit of time warp involved

You are all assembled in the strange little collection of tents that make up Wrin’s Wonders. Its perimeter is a ring of standing stones (which at closer inspection turn out to be cleverly painted wood) connected by beams and inside there is a collection of domed tents containing all sorts of strange items. Wrin encourages you to browse and you know that here shop is always open.

In spite of her weird appearance (she is a tall, pale elf with white hair and small ram’s horns, with a thin tail to boot, making it obvious that she has been touched by the supernatural), you have all spoken to Wrin before and found her friendly if a bit quirky, but this time she has invited you all for a spot of tea. While she bustles around making tea in a strangely shaped kettle sporting a carved nosoi psychopomp on its lid that emits a wistful melody as the water boils, you are free to make your acquaintances or just explore the shop.

Wrin happily chatters away even when her back is turned, now and then flinging a little smile in your direction:

“You know, I thought I should just keep minding my own business, but when I saw the light, and the stars spoke to me. ‘Wrin’, I said to myself, ‘remember that day when the demons came for you. You know this light is bad news. You better find yourself some champions.’ But here I am, stuck in Otari, you know there is not much to do in the way of champions. I mean, you could hardly see Lardus Longsaddle or the mayor stomping down to the Gauntlight and performing heroic deeds, could you? I did try to talk to Yinyasmera, but she just laughed at me, and I don’t really trust that bad boy Carman, you know what I mean?” She winks and mimes a pair of bulging biceps before breaking out in a disconcerting giggle. “But it was so nice of you to take the time to come visit an insignificant little lady such as myself. Help yourselves to a biscuit, tea will be ready any minute.”

It has been a while (eight years I think) since I last ran a game but I recently picked up the Pathfinder 2e Core Rulebook and thought I’d get into the game again. I am going to try to run the Abomination Vaults and learn the game as I go along, so I am looking for a bunch of friendly players to share that experience with me. It doesn’t matter if you are new to the edition like me or if you have played it a lot. If you have read or played the adventure before it has never been an issue before.

I am kind of an old-school hack’n’slash DM, not heavy into role-playing, but I try to keep the pace of the game up and aspire to a light-hearted but deadly game. My most redeeming quality as a DM is that I always try to be civil and I have in the past been blessed with some really stellar players, so a few of my games ran for quite a long time. (You can check my post history for my play style).

I am not looking for any elaborate backgrounds or anything, but I am hoping for players who are in it for the long haul. If there happens to be anyone still around that has played with me and liked it, you will get preferential treatment. I strongly suspect that there will be a need for replacements along the line, so if you are interested, please don’t give up if you are not selected in the first place.

Because I just started PF 2e, I would much prefer that you create your characters using the Core Rulebook only (and of course the AP Player’s Guide). I may expand my use of materials later, but I need to master the basics first.

You will be expected to post at least once a day on weekdays, and that is what I commit to too. If you don’t post in 24 hours, I will let any other player take your action for you (or do it myself if it feels obvious). If I hear nothing from you in a week, I’ll assume that you left the game and find a replacement.

Character creation should be quite straightforward, but I’d like to know if you are a native to Otari or why you happen to be there. You will all know Wrin of course, but feel free to invent connections to other NPCs or PCs. You don’t need a fully developed character to apply, just a concept. We can work out the details later.

I'll keep recruitment open at least until Sunday August 15th, but I may accept characters before that. I am looking for a party of four to start with.

... and so the nightmare begins...

Normally I'd invite you to get to know each other and figure out how you know each other, but since you are all in a fugue state, we won't do that. In fact I'd ask you to tone down your background since you don't remember it yet. You may recover it in time, but at that time we will be able to retcon it.

It will be a particular challenge playing characters who are essentially a blank sheet. You will have access to all your abilities though.

Post here, so I can look over your builds and familiarize myself with your characters. Also want to check that everyone is on board.

Again, looking forward to gaming with you. Expected posting rate is at least once each weekday. More is welcomed but not required. I also appreciate if you give me a heads up if you are going to be away for more than a day or two.

Normally I'd invite you to get to know each other and figure out how you know each other, but since you are all in a fugue state, we won't do that. In fact I'd ask you to tone down your background since you don't remember it yet. You may recover it in time, but at that time we will be able to retcon it.

It will be a particular challenge playing characters who are essentially a blank sheet. You will have access to all your abilities though.

Post here, so I can look over your builds and familiarize myself with your characters. Also want to check that everyone is on board.

Again, looking forward to gaming with you. Expected posting rate is at least once each weekday. More is welcomed but not required. I also appreciate if you give me a heads up if you are going to be away for more than a day or two.

I know I will regret this, but I just have to DM this AP, and because of the nature of the first adventure, I think it can stand alone quite well, regardless of how it goes on.

So, I'm looking for five characters. As always, I invite you to look at my older game threads to see if you think you'd appreciate my DMing style, which is rather crude and old school. You're more than welcome to role-play among yourselves but I'm not very good at it. What I am better at is keeping the action running and remaining reasonably civil.

As I said, I'm looking for five characters, and I will reserve three spots for anyone that has gamed with me in the past and liked it, since that tends to reduce the risk of the game falling apart at an early stage. Other than that I will give priority to the first comers, that is, the first characters posted with some degree of detail. Apart from that I intend to be entirely arbitrary in my choices (but I'm looking for a balanced and resilient party).

All Paizo material will in principle be acceptable but I reserve the right to say yes or no on a case-by-case basis. I also prefer old-fashioned, simple characters before weird races and archetypes. I think the AP works very well with traditional adventurers and would recommend you to lean that way, unless you have a really good concept.

20 point buy, two traits, one of which should be from the Player's Guide, and use the Background option for skills. You can go for average starting gold or roll - if I can't trust you to roll, the game isn't going to work anyway.

I intend to keep the recruitment open for a week but I may close it early if I find five characters appealing and think that all my old friends have had time to see this thread. I apologize in advance for all the disappointment that I will cause, but I hope that five of you and myself are going to have a nice and gory game.

Domitian and Damiano shoot each other an uncertain glance as they enter what they thought would be a peaceful village.

The sleepy village of Heldren has rarely seen so much excitement or concern. Hunters from the nearby Border Wood speak of unnaturally cold weather at the height of summer that descended on the forest just days ago. Heavy snow followed, and those who returned spoke of an uneasy presence in the woods, as well as new, dangerous predators. No one knows what this event means, but the town’s soothsayer, Old Mother Theodora, claims dark times lie ahead.

As if in proof of that dire prophecy, a badly wounded mercenary arrived in town yesterday, claiming to be a bodyguard of Lady Argentea Malassene. He told the village council that the noblewoman’s escort came under attack by bandits and strange, wintry creatures near the edge of the Border Wood. He alone escaped, and Lady Argentea was dragged away into the forest. Now the townsfolk cast fearful eyes toward the snowy forest, worried what else might emerge to threaten their peaceful village.

You may all make Diplomacy or Knowledge (local) checks if you want to learn more about what's been happening.

This will be the discussion thread. For now we need to get you together as a party. I think the adventure assumes that you already know each other, but we could make you come together for the occasion if you prefer.

I’ve wanted to try the Reign of Winter path for a long time and now the time has come. I’ve run a few campaigns on this forum – some more successful than others, so you may do well to look into some of the threads to see what kind of game I run. I like to see myself as crude but effective as a DM. I’m not great at roleplaying but I encourage it among players, which tends to work well in PBPs. My job is to keep the pace up and everyone happy as far as possible. With the right players, that has worked as a charm.

I already promised two spots to former players but the rest is basically up for grabs, but if you have played with me before and liked it (and you’re not in my Mummy’s mask game) I will give you preference. Other than that I will consider party balance and try to reward first comers, as well as character concepts that I like. What I like is simple. Preferably core races and not too weird classes, (I’d like to avoid the alchemist, magus and summoner, since they have a tendency to go nova). I’m looking for competent players but not optimizers. This isn’t going to be a high-powered campaign. I will be using the Background skill rules and the unchained Rogue.

20 point buy, two traits (one from the campaign guide) and average starting wealth (or you may roll for it if you prefer). Look to the campaign guide for what races, classes and archetypes might be appropriate. I’m also using a home variant of hero points, but we’ll get to that in time. Expected posting rate is once a day on weekdays. If you’re in combat and don’t post for 24 hours, you will be assumed to be delaying (or I’ll take your action for you if it is obvious). More posts are welcomed and I’ll try to post as much as I can, but I can’t promise more than once a day.

I’m looking for five characters so all submissions are welcome. I hope to be able to put a party together by the end of next week.

It is only a couple of days left until the grand opening of Wati’s necropolis for exploration (some would say plunder), and you are starting to grow nervous. The Order of the Stone still only sports three ill-assorted members, and other adventuring parties are tight-lipped and unwilling to part with any information, let alone share the potential spoils.

On this day you find yourselves – for your own reasons – in the very heart of Wati, the Sunburst Market, right in the center of the town, in the Midwife district. Colorful banners and tent throng between the orderly rows of pillars that demarcate the market space. One of these, known as the Pillar of Second Thoughts, sports a dozen of shriveled hands, the remains of previous violations of the sacred law of Abadar, upheld by the stern women known as the “Marketwives”.

Business is bustling and the whole town is abuzz with rumors, mostly about the coming opening of the necropolis, and here and there tempers flare as foreign merchants try to eke out a space among the native sellers. The scent of spices and rare goods that are being desperately peddled before the expected inflation, and of course the inevitable musty odor of people and animals crowded in a restricted space, fill the air, but most sharply the palpable sense of expectation makes itself felt.

This is the discussion thread. Let's tweak your characters and discuss if we can get your backgrounds to mesh. You don't have to know each other beforehand - I've set up an introductory encounter to bring you together - but it doesn't hurt if you choose to.

You'll need a cool name for your party, so you can toss some ideas about that around here, too.

After a couple of years of hiatus, I found that I need to scratch my gaming itch again, so I’ll try starting up a Mummy’s Mask campaign. I’m kind of old school, so I tend to go for crude but effective in my DMing style. You might do well to look up a few of my old games to see what my style is like. I encourage role-playing but am not much good at it myself. I’ve been blessed with excellent players in the past, so that has never been an issue. What I consider my strengths is simply that I try always to be civil and to keep the action flowing. It’s worked well so far.

If you’d like to submit a character, please keep it simple. I’ll allow most Paizo archetypes, classes and races (but I’d like to avoid the alchemist, magus and summoner) but I prefer to keep things a bit old-fashioned. Just pitch me an idea and I’ll look at it and say yes or no. The game is going to be pretty casual (I hope) so I’m looking for competent but not optimized adventurers.

20 point buy, two traits (one from the campaign guide) and average starting wealth (or you may roll for it if you prefer). Check out the Mummy’s Mask Player’s Guide for what kind of characters would be appropriate. I’m also using a home variant of hero points, but we’ll get to that in time.

Expected posting rate is once a day on weekdays. If you’re in combat and don’t post for 24 hours, you will be assumed to be delaying (or I’ll take your action for you if it is obvious). More posts are welcomed and I’ll try to post as much as I can, but I can’t promise more than once a day.

I’m looking for five players to begin with, and people have been known to drop out so feel free to stick around for a while. As always, if anyone has gamed with me before and liked it, I’ll save a spot for you. Apart from that, I don’t like to hold auditions so I’ll probably take the first comers. So please don’t sign up unless you’re really committed. A few of my games have run for a really long time.

Welcome to Osirion and some really old-fashioned dungeoncrawling!

You started to question whether you were going in the right direction a while back. Since there is no river nearby, it's located far into the wilderness and the land is infested with bandits, it seems like an unlikely location for a trading post. But then, just around a bend in the round, Oleg's Trading Post comes into view, an old fort that has been recently rebuilt.

The trading post is surrounded by a 10 foot high wooden palisade and has watchtowers in each corners armed with derelict old catapults. The gates stand open and you can easily discern the stable and the main building among the buildings in the courtyard.

As you enter the main building you are warmly greeted by a blonde middle-aged woman who offers you a hot hearty stew, warm bread and even a glass of wine. "Welcome to our humble abode", she says with a smile."We do not get much visitors usually. May I inquire what is your business here?"

I'll be back shortly, but please dot here. The first thing you need to determine is whether you know one another before the adventure starts.

You can also ask any and all questions here.

Since my RL group finally went belly-up, I decided to try another PBP campaign. This time I’m going for Kingmaker, and I’m looking for a little intimate group with only three players to start with. If needed, we can always pick up more later.

I’m basically an oldschool hack’n’slash DM, but I like the interaction that always happens in PBPs. What I’m looking for are three likeable characters (not necessarily good-aligned, but that helps), and above all committed players. If you’ve gamed with me before and liked it, you’ll know that I’m pretty persistent (one of my games is on its second year and one lasted longer than that). If not, you can check the threads for my DMing style.

This time I’m going to keep recruitment open for a week, and then take my pick. I have had some excellent players in my games before, so if you are one of them, that’s going to be a big advantage, but no promises. Since the party will be small, it needs to be well balanced. I don’t really need a build at this time, just the basics and a paragraph or two of background. I’m not a great writer so you don’t need to be either. Also I prefer an oldschool feel so I prefer core races and classes (archetypes are fine though), but anything Paizo is legit. 20 point buy, two traits (one campaign).

I expect a post every 24 hours on weekdays, and that’s what I commit to, too. More is appreciated and less is frowned upon, unless you have announced your absence.

It would be a pleasure to game with you. I will announce the players next Tuesday (since I’m out of town this weekend).

Welcome to the Inn of the Slumbering Drake!

Nearly 200 hundred years ago, this location in Byrny was proudly occupied by an inn called The Famished Vagabond. The gnomish establishment was well-known throughout the region for its clean rooms, and savory meals. However, the wooden structure was razed during one of the legendary dragon Benthosruthsa’s random attacks, and burned to the ground. Yet the townsfolk were resolute – they attempted to rebuild on the site several times over the years.

Unfortunately, during each period of construction or shortly thereafter, some sort of accident would occur,usually a fatal one. This occurred seven times, accompanied by another razing by the dragon, and a roof collapse that killed four workers. Eventually, the town abandoned the site, believing it was cursed by the dragon. For over 100 years, the site lay fallow.

Then, about 20 years ago, a mysterious woman with long silver hair purchased the property. Two years later, she opened the Inn of the Slumbering Drake, a twostorey stone building with an attached stable. At first, locals shunned the place, fearing the proprietress, her lumbering door guard, and even her precocious dragon pet. However, travelers soon discovered inexpensive clean rooms, hearty meals, and rousing bardic entertainment.

Eventually, even the townsfolk began to enjoy homestyle meals in front of a roaring fire with a soft lute strumming in the background. The sight of the diminutive “slumbering drake” curled up on one of many strategically located pillows around the taproom was commonplace. Lady Chauntessa is now an accepted member of the community. It is widely known that she is a powerful sorceress, and quite wealthy. She has helped fund many community projects over the years, and even hosts a few annual costume balls open to the whole town, complete with complimentary food and ale. Her generosity has won the townsfolk over to the extent that they look the other way when strangers arrive at the inn during the wee hours of the night and are whisked inside the back entrance. She is also fond of adventurers, and often cuts them a price break on extended stays.

Lady Chauntessa stands at six feet tall with long, flowing silver-white hair. However, she appears to be in her early forties. When asked about her white hair, she explains it was caused by a run-in with undead years ago. She has high cheekbones and slender facial features. She rarely smiles, and if she had a single imperfection, it would be the frown seemingly etched onto her countenance. She always wears fine silk gowns and flowery perfumes. She is pessimistic, sullen, and speaks with a soft, melodious voice. Lady Chauntessa has a soft spot for adventurers, claiming to be one herself, years ago.

Feel free to make your introductions. I'll introduce some more of the patrons tomorrow.

You will all be starting at at the Slumbering Drake Inn (including alternates) near Byrny in the Wilderlands. Please post here as you finalize your characters and ask questions here as we tailor your backgrounds to each other and to the campaign.

It's up to you to decide whether you know each others or not. I will try to get each of you a specific hook, but I'll need a few days for this. I hope to get the game proper started sometime during the coming week.

Since my tabletop game just went bellyup I thought I may have room for another PBP, and I've had my eyes on Castle Whiterock a while now.

This will be an old-fashioned dungeon crawl. I'm better at keeping the action flowing than providing a living environment anyway. Check out my other games to see what my style is like.

I'm looking for five players. I will grant two spots to the two first to present me with characters, and two spots to old friends (meaning anyone that has gamed with me and liked it). Since this is set in my old campaign world (The Wilderlands) retired characters from my other games are especially welcome and may keep their xp and gear. The fifth spot will be picked arbitrarily.

Character creation will be using 20 point buy, standard wealth, no traits. All Paizo books are fair game but no samurai, ninja or gunslingers. I use the Golarion gods. Standard races (there are some odd flavors of human in the setting but that is marginal).

Posting will be expected once a day on weekdays. If you don't post within 24 hours (excepting weekends) you will be considered delaying. More frequent posting is of course welcome.

I don't keep track of initiative after the first round, so you can post in any order. I also use a variant of hero points, but we'll get to that.

Please ask if I forgot to mention anything.

Well, I'm not talking about a TPK nor of a multiple homicide, but I effectively ended our gaming group yesterday. It feels a little weird since we've been gaming together for several years now. Still I think the gaming was a long time a-dying.

The major issues were: just one player willing to DM (me), casual players who can't be bothered to learn the rules properly, lukewarm interest in the RP aspect of the game, difficulty to find gaming time with any sort of regularity and that nobody wants to play a full caster (the last part tends to drag the game down at higher levels). The DM burnout may well pass, but those issues aren't going to go away.

My players are nice guys (and may well be reading this *sheepish smile*) and there is plenty of good fun too (otherwise we wouldn't have gone on for so long) but I think I've had enough of the unfun parts.

I don't see me picking up the DM screen again anytime soon with this group and I doubt that any of the other guys will (except one that may be willing to DM Call of Cthulhu). I don't particularly relish the thought of finding a new group, either. I'm far too old and grumpy for that.

I'm both running and playing in a couple of PBPs, which has been a blast for the last two years or so, and I suspect that has spoiled me a bit, having the opportunity to game with some really awesome players (who both possess system mastery, social skills and a generous helping of forbearance).

Not really asking for advice here, just moping and hoping for some sympathy or that someone would like to share their stories from similar situations. Can you satisfy your Pathfinder itch by just PBP-ing? I guess I'm going to find out.

I've just begun checking out the pdfs and I can't wait to inflict this on my players. One thing I'm worried about though is that I can't find any advancement rate suggested. It just feels wrong running this at fast progression, but will it work at medium? There's a whole lot of levels that need to be gained, especially if you have a large party.

Sorry about the delay. Crazy week and all. Please post here so I can see who is still playing in spite of my best efforts to ruin the game.

Proceeding down the corridor you reach a strange door. This door is different than all the others so far seen in the dungeon. It is finely crafted, made of ebony wood and bound with gold. The door has an obvious internal lock, also of fine quality. Strange runes are rudely carved in the door. Simply looking at them makes one uneasy.

After a while ýou realize that it is because someone has used the Infernal alphabet to spell out words in Celestial. If you can read both languages:

It is New Year’s Eve, and near midnight on this frigid evening the heroes gather in a small condemned tavern in the Free Citystate of Gate Pass. Located in the mountain pass which separates two hostile nations — Ragesia and Shahalesti — Gate Pass has been neutral since the end of their last war, but now from Ragesia a scourge comes for the city.

By now, every magic-user in Gate Pass knows of the Scourge. The Emperor of Ragesia died barely a month ago, and in a move to cement herself as the next emperor of Ragesia, Leska, leader of the Ragesian inquisitors, has decreed that all disloyal users of magic — arcane or divine — are to be tracked down and killed, to prevent future threats to the empire.

The inquisitors, clerics specialized in countermagic, travel with military escorts to the borders of Ragesia. Their first target is Gate Pass, its neutrality long viewed as an insult to the nation’s honor. Those who resist them will have to face the searing power of the Ragesian Empire.

An entire army marches for Gate Pass, and the people of the city fear that they will not be able to resist the might of the Ragesian military. The city leaders are bowing under pressure, and have barred the exit from the city, intending to welcome the inquisitors that come with the army, for they foolishly hope that the Ragesians will reward their cooperation with mercy.

One of my players expressed an interest in playing a magus. He's a pretty casual player, and I get a feeling that the magus is one of the hardest classes to play, even if I like it a lot.

Is there any archetype that would make for more ease of play or should I just gently steer him away from the prospect?

Thanks in advance for any input.

Discussion thread is up, but please post here only when your characters are coming together. If you're unsure about your race and class, stick to the recruitment thread.

Yet again I can't resist starting another PBP, and I wanted to take another shot at DMing War of the Burning Sky.

I will be using the campaign world of the adventure path but Pathfinder deities for convenience. All Paizo material will be allowed, as will the Freeport Companion and Psionics Unleashed. I'm a pretty conservative DM,so I'd like you to stick as closely to core as possible.

Psionics exist but I want to keep it rare, so I'll allow only one psionic character.

I'm pretty old-school and am more concerned about pacing and fairness than deep immersion (descriptions and role-playing). Check out my game threads - two of them survived well over a year and are still going strong, much due to the amazing players (can't stress that enough).

I will offer six spots. Three will be reserved for people who've gamed with me and liked it, and three will be for first comers.

Character creation is 20 point buy, standard gold.

You don't have to convince me of anything to play with me. If you've gamed with me, feel free to jog my memory, and if not, welcome. I found that there are lots of great players out there.

Just one last thing: please don't join if you're not in for the long haul. WotBS is a pretty epic adventure, and my previous experience has told me that it's actually possible to run an entire AP as a PBP given enough time and dedicated players. If that's you, you're welcome, no questions asked.

I expect a post every weekday and a heads up if you're going to be away for several days. Anything above that is appreciated but not necessary. I will tell you more, but it's past midnight here and my keyboard is acting up.

I'm planning on starting my CC campaign soon and my players have been pestering me about intelligent or unique items. I'm also looking for a way to integrate AA better in the AP and I hit upon an idea.

Basically I'd like them to find (early on) some item that allows them to commune with AA, a divination gadget of sorts that levels up with them (going from simple empathic grunts to powerful divinations). A spirit planchette would do nicely.

Of course the crux is that the item in question is tied to AA and is a way he's keeping tabs on them (and Kendra). I figure he's insane enough to actually help them get to him only to defeat them properly.

The thing is that I don't know how to make the mechanics work. I'm thinking either in the line of a Legacy item or simply have the character managing it put ranks in UMD to unlock its powers.

It would be nice to give the thing some personality (having it mock them or so), but that shouldn't come out until it is able to communicate properly.

Anyone have any ideas?

Dungeonaday seems to be down. I can't even access the site. Does anybody know what's happening?

Some days later, while you are still waiting for Elinda to finish crafting the items you ordered, a company of well-dressed and well-armed dwarves arrive to the Citadel. That night you are invited to a grand banquet at the Anguses.

Knowledge (nobility and royalty) 12 and Mahaffy also will know this:

The honors bestowed on the dwarves tell you that this is an important visit. You are introduced to Prince Darnik later. With impeccable manners, he greets each one of you seriously and says that he has heard that you are great friends of the Angus family and of Elinda, and that the citadel is lucky to have friends like you in such troubled times.

Over a bottle of Arb Angus’s finest sherry he tells you that he needs to ask you for a favour and that he will understand fully if you refuse. His brother, Gorsen, was killed many years ago in the battle against the demonic hordes. His body was never recovered. Darnik has never been able to fully recover from the tragedy, but he heard whispers that you were going to brave the infamous dungeon of Rappan Athuk, and he meant to ask you if you could ask the Oracle that supposedly resides there about where his brother’s bones may be found.

He promises to reward you amply, as if anything could compensate for such danger.

You have a long journey ahead of you, so you might as well get acquainted with each other and the rest of the crew and passengers.

Here are the main NPCs for convenience.

Aerys Mavato: This severe half-elven woman boarded in Port Peril, where she immediately got into a scrape with a crude sailor. She spends most of her time in her bunk, seeming to purposefully avoid fraternizing with the ship’s other passengers.
Alizandru Kovack: A Chelish man whose family has made the Magnimar to Eleder run for generations, Captain Kovack is pleasant enough with his passengers, but a strict disciplinarian when dealing with his crew.
Alton Devers: The Jenivere’s first mate is friendly with both passengers and crew, but he sometimes seems to chafe under the strong discipline of Captain Kovack.
Gelik Aberwhinge: A sharply dressed gnome from Magnimar, Gelik spends much of his time writing in the ships’ common areas, and takes every opportunity to tell long-winded stories, boast of past journeys, or quip about anything in his field of view.
Ieana: A bookish Varisian scholar who tends to keep to herself, Ieana is traveling to Sargava to explore the ancient ruins there. Rumors aboard the ship alternately suggest that she’s the Jenivere’s owner, a Chelish agent, or Captain Kovack’s secret lover. Ieana keeps mostly to herself, and grows more intent on her studies with each mile the ship travels closer to Eleder.
Ishirou: A scruffy human of Tian heritage, Ishirou boarded at Bloodcove and waits to reach Sargava with a quiet eagerness. Aloof but not rude, he gives the impression of one who has had a hard life but find himself currently without direction.
Jask Derindi: A prisoner loaded aboard in Corentyn, Captain Kovack sees to this taciturn human’s needs with curt courtesy, but insists he be left alone, sequestered in the ship’s brig.
Rambar Terillo: A taciturn man from Senghor, Ship’s Cook Terillo has served in that capacity aboard several ships, though apparently not on account of his culinary skills, which seem to be limited to watery soups.
Sasha Nevah: This red-haired human boarded the Jenivere in Ilizmagorti. Since leaving Mediogalti Island, the woman’s somber demeanor has gradually faded, revealing a boisterous and optimistic personality. None have yet questioned her about her missing left pinky finger.

You can work out the kinks in your characters here and make your introductions. Later, this will be the place for the meta-discussion about the campaign.

Since it is hard to replace characters in this AP once it’s started I’m going to be clear from the start about what is expected. I’m a pretty old-school DM, and not a great role-player (although you are welcome to contribute with that). I can’t give you flowery prose or deep immerstion. But I do try to keep the pace up and to be civil, and it’s worked for the games I’m running.

I’m bad with maps but they work and I have my own way of handling initiative. Basically the round breaks on the monster’s turn, and after that you can all act irrespective of initiative. That means that initiative will only matter in the first round (that’s why it’s called that). I find that speeds up play more than having to post in order. I try not to make that work to your disadvantage, so you are free to retcon your actions to profit from buffs and so on. Not every player is comfortable with that though.

As for posting rates, I expect a post every 24 hours on weekdays, more of course being welcome. That is also what I commit to. I’m in European Standard Time (GMT+1) and I may post at odd hours, but I do try to post sometime every 24 hours on weekdays. Sometimes I fail to do that and I’ll have to ask for your patience but I do run two games that have run over a year, so I’m fairly reliable.

I’m also a great Freeport fan so I’d like to import some Freeport flavour into the AP, which I think suits it great, although SS is not a naval campaign. Because I’d like to try a gritty campaign, I’ll go with 15 point buy. Books allowed will be Core, APG, UM and the Freeport Companion (but please check with me if you make any odd choices – the Azhar are out). Two traits, one of which should be a campaign trait, roll for gold or take the average. The campaign world will be Golarion for simplicity’s sake.

I’m looking for five players. Three slots will be given to the first characters presented and two I’ll pick arbitrarily. I prefer players who have gamed with me and liked it (I’ve gamed with some pretty amazing people here and I have likewise had some great players drop out on me – it’s just a matter of preference), and I appreciate if anyone wants to try out some of the classes from the Freeport Companion. The Player’s Guide to the AP is a free download and that should give you an idea of what sort of character you should create.

This thread is meant to flesh out Brindenford a little and to give you an opportunity to role-play. Events here are supposed to be happening as you visit Brindenford between forays to the dungeon, so you are welcome to post here even as you are exploring. If any of your actions will have serious repercussions, we'll deal with it in the game thread.

From time to time I will post descriptions of features of the town that you might interact with. You are also welcome to ask questions, like "who is the local blacksmith".

I could use some advice about how to deal with my gaming group. We have a small group of four players, one of which is often unable to attend due to health reasons. The trouble is that with one exception they are very casual gamers, neither optimizers nor avid role-players. They are wonderful people, though, and we’re having a good time together.

The trouble is that I’m starting to feel some DM burnout. The game is going well but being a gamer I’m always looking to improve my game. Now there is certainly room for improvement (I’m a pretty sloppy DM and more hack’n’slash than heavy role-playing) but there doesn’t really seem to be a point to it if the players aren’t following suit.

As I said, they are pretty casual gamers. There is little or no preparation between games (again, with one exception) and they are having some trouble figuring their bonuses, not to mention playing complex characters like spell-casters. Maybe I’m being spoiled by my PBP games, but there I see good tactics, creative use of spells, general helpfulness and some really good role-playing to top it off. Now it may be an unfair comparison, but I find it hard to improve when I am not being challenged to either create more role-playing opportunities or making the game more tactically challenging. As it is now, ramping up the difficulty only threatens a TPK or turns the game into a grind.

I don’t want to bash my players. As I said, they are great guys, we’ve been playing for years and our game is steadily improving. The thing is that I want more out of it. Gaming on a weekly basis, I would like something more than a purely casual game. I would appreciate some good advice. And yeah, I did try talking to my players.

Here is the new thread. Is anyone interested in having Yelm join you?

We're in Skeletons of Scarwall and one player is thinking of taking Leadership at level 13. He wants a gnome sorcerer to round out the party, primarily for some utility and buffing magic.

The party consists of one Arcane Duelist, one Fighter/Hellknight, one cleric of Sarenrae (Good, Fire), and one Rogue/Shadowdancer. As you might have guessed already they aren't very optimized, but it's worked out pretty well so far.

As a DM I get to design the cohort, and the player (a really cool guy whom you may know as Zark) expressed a wish for the Draconic or Verdant bloodline, possibly going for Dragon Disciple.

Now I figured that it would be nice to give him electricity as his element to make him at least a little useful in Crown of Fangs (against the devils), and then it struck me (I'm a bit slow) that the blue dragon bloodline would be fun and leaves all kinds of possible links to Kazavon himself.

I would like to make him a Sorcerer 5/Dragon Disciple 6 to make him tough as nails (good saves, good hp). His spellcasting would suffer but the player indicated that he was OK with that. Is this a really suboptimal build or could I make it fun?

I'm trying to hit the balance between suboptimal and downright useless here. On the other hand, even with a more or less useless cohort they aren't much worse off than before, and they will need the arcane support (if only for the utility spells). Am I missing something?

I'm currently running Skeletons of Scarwall and the party just ran into Belshallam (I'm using the conversions from another thread here).

Basically the party stumbled into the courtyard and were set upon by the gargoyles, whose screeeching alerted Belshallam. He cast Displacement on himself and proceeded to interrogate. The gargoyles took flight immediately rather than being caught in his breath weapon (I suppose that would have happened before).

The fight was really brutal, with the party only slightly buffed. Excepting Sial and Asyra they were a cleric 12 of Sarenrae, arcane duelist 12, a fighter 8/hellknight 4 and a rogue 10/shadowdancer 2. The party is really not optimized as you can see, and didn't use very good tactics (such as not scouting properly although the shadowdancer's stealth is through the roof).

Anyway it ended with Belshallam gobbling up Sial as he was trying to save Asyra (the party were running for their life at this point), and then she went ballistic and was killed too.

I'm not quite certain that they will be able to beat the dragon even after buffing - they scored about 160 points of damage, so by now Belshallam is taking them seriously and will probably be buffed too, not to speak of the other threats in the module.

My players are mostly casual gamers and I'm starting to wonder if they really have the skills needed to tackle Scarwall - or high-level play generally. Or perhaps Belshallam is just really, really tough.

Any advice about running high-level adventures with casual players would be appreciated, as would any funny stories of parties getting their butt kicked in Scarwall.

Following your thirst for adventure you find yourselves at the Lost Shepherd, one of the three inns in Brindenford. The sign over the front door shows a shepherd with a crooked staff but no sheep. From noon until midnight (and sometimes after), the Lost Shepherd is open as an eatery and taphouse. Never burgeoning with customers, the place is never empty, either. Good smells waft from the kitchen, from lamb stew to fresh baked bread, frying bacon to sage-and-thyme roasted vegetables.

The building’s great age cannot be concealed by the frequent repairs, and so the interior is drafty and dusty, but fires in multiple fireplaces keep the place warm. The taproom is large and comfortable, with a high-placed loft above the door offering additional seating. Beyond the taproom lies the kitchen, a pantry, and a small office. The second and third floors offer rooms for rent, about half of which seem occupied at any given time.

The caretaker, Roman by name, is a taciturn middle-aged man with thin hair and broad shoulders, who spends his time quietly but efficiently working. The Halfling bartender Juddelo, with greying hair and a prominent gold-tooth, is the more talkative if you are so inclined. There is also a neat and demure serving maid, Taran.

Among the customers only one besides yourselves looks anything like an adventurer. This is a short, muscular dwarf with a dirty grey beard and ale on his breath, dressed in banded mail and carrying an axe. He exchanges a friendly toast with you and declares his name to be Erlan Furg.

Feel free to make your introductions in character, talk to each other or chat up the NPCs. Please keep the character building and questions about mechanics in the discussion thread.

Post your characters here and I'll brief you on houserules and campaign setting.

You can roll for starting gold or just take the average.

Once again I find myself with a little more time on my hands and can’t resist the urge to start another PBP. This is going to be an old-fashioned dungeon crawl, so I will run Monte Cook’s Dragon’s Delve from Dungeonaday.com. I’m mostly about hack’n’slash, myself, I’m afraid, but there is usually plenty of room for character interaction for those who are interested.

There will be six spots open, and as usual those who have gamed with me and liked it take precedence. I will reserve two spots for old familiar faces. Four (or more if nobody claims the two) will go to the first characters presented. If you happen to have a character from an earlier campaign of mine that you’d like to revive you get to keep your xp and stuff.

I use 20 point buy, core rules and APG only. No traits, sorry. The campaign will run on medium progression. The campaign world is the Wilderlands (points of light) but I use Golarion deities.

I expect you to post once a day on weekdays and to let me know if you are going to be away. More frequent posting is welcome but not mandatory. If you haven’t posted for 24 hours and we’re in a battle, you will be considered delaying until you post.

To say something for myself, I’m fairly tenacious and easy-going and try to keep a reasonably fast-paced game. I have had the honor of playing with some really great people here (you know who you are), but also noticed that some equally great people can’t stand my GMing, so feel free to check out some of my old game threads to see if this might appeal to you before signing up.

Welcome and happy gaming!

I have a sensitive problem here. I'm running SDttG and one of the PCs is a cleric of Sarenrae with the Restoration subdomain. That means that he gets Remove Disease as a second level spell.

Now that in itself isn't a big deal, and actually it would be a nice perk for him to be able to cast Remove Disease once a day. The problem is the repercussions. Sarenrae is a major church in Korvosa, and if Remove Disease is generally available as a second level spell, then the premises of the adventure are changed.

Of course you could make the subdomains rare and mainly a PC option, but I don't like to go that way. If an option is available to the PCs it should be open to NPCs and seeing that Restoration is actually better than Healing, I see a fair amount of NPCs choosing it. How would you handle this?

Gaedren Lamm killed my baby. That’s what all this used to be about. Not any more though. Being dead kind of gives you a larger perspective. The city is speaking to me now. It’s always been speaking to me, but since I was relieved of my body, I have become part of it in a way I scarcely thought possible.

There is a great evil brewing in my beloved Korvosa. I do not know what it is, but I’ve seen it in the cards. There is a wrongness in the air. I always felt it, but now I am part of it. Gaedrem Lamm is just a small boil on the body of the city, a sign of the festering corruption inside. Fortunately the cards led me to my champions. They are not aware of it yet, but they will be my saviors.

There is Sharleena, the Unicorn, a young girl full of swagger and fighting spirit. Gaedren Lamm got her hooked on drugs in her teens, but she recovered and now she seeks redemption through justice.

Then there is Morik, the Midwife, a priest who dreams of a fiery rebirth. Orphaned early he managed to escape from Lamm’s clutches to the temple of Sarenrae. Now he seeks to save others as he himself was saved.

And then Balduran, the Paladin, a young warrior with a pure heart. He was kicked out of the Korvosan Guard on a false accusation when he crossed Lamm’s machinations and burns with ardor to clear his name and regain his honor.

Finally there is Shadow, the Desert, a haunted hero, a half-orc who speaks to his shadow. After both his parents were murdered he withdrew from human contact. Now he seeks his father’s killer, a half-orc with a distinctive scar.

It took time to find them all but eventually I did. Now I will plunge them as knives deep into the hunched back of that hateful scum that is Gaedren Lamm. I shall have my vengeance, in this world or the next.

As you make your way to the Hungry Gar your attention is drawn by a small mob that seems to be pushing an elderly bearded man around. Torches and miner's axes are brandished and harsh words are exchanged.

It seems that the angry miners accuse the old man of unleashing some sort of curse on them.

So far, Wolfstone has been a disappointment. Even though the Emporium is bustling with activity at all hours, and everybody who is anybody shows up there from time to time, there hasn’t been an inkling of proper adventure so far.

Right now the talk of the town is the band of adventurers from the City State who have come here exploring the Stirgenest Cairn right outside the town. As any of you could have told them (but you’re certainly not going to) they aren’t going to find anything of interest In Stirgenest Cairn. Every boy or girl coming of age in Wolfstone (not an enviable situation in itself) has explored the Stirgenest Cairn at some point.

But there is another Cairn only a day’s ride away, one that also has been used for dares by young people of Wolfstone, but less frequently. Occasionally the gaping entrance to the old tomb emits an eerie, hollow sound, which have given it the nickname (among those who are privy to its location) the Whispering Cairn.

Now there is an interesting idea. If the Stirgenest Cairn holds treasures interesting enough to draw the attention of adventurers from the City State, what might be hidden in the Whispering Cairn?

Right now you are sitting around a table in one of the back rooms of the Emporium, sipping beer and pondering your options.

This is where you can introduce your characters and discuss the campaign.

Please post here to iron out your backgrounds and talk about the game.

OK, I can't fight the urge anymore - I'm starting another game. If there happens to be anyone out there who hasn't played, read or DMed the Age of Worms campaign you're welcome to join.

I will be using the Wilderlands campaign setting but Pathfinder deities. 20 point buy, core rules only, no traits, standard gold. You don't really have to know anything of the campaign setting beforehand. You start in a tough little godforsaken mining town on a peninsula that is nominally subject to the City State of the Invincible Overlord.

I expect you to be able to post once a day on weekdays. As a DM I think I have two things going for me: I try to be civil and I try to keep the pace up. Other than that I'm rather old school and like my campaigns zany but deadly.

I've met a lot of great gamers here, so anyone that's gamed with me and liked it will get preferential treatment but otherwise it's first come. I will take six players, and I prefer a balanced party of heroic (good) characters.

I have a pretty long-running PBP here that could use another tank. Some social skills would be nice too, so basically we're looking at a paladin, but a charismatic fighter would do.

The adventure we're running is the Grey Citadel by Necromancer Games and we're hoping to eventually get into Rappan Athuk. The campaign is old school, zany but deadly. There is a great bunch of players and a grumpy but occasionally friendly DM.

Pathfinder core, 20 point buy, starting level 3 with half starting gold. Wilderlands campaign world but Pathfinder deities. Anybody who's gamed with me and liked it or that I promised a spot at some time takes precedence, but otherwise it's first come, first served.

It's early morning and a bunch of very tired adventurers have gathered around Greta Wilkerson's wagon in the marketplace. The elderly lady in question seems to be in a good mood as she is humming to herself while cramming what looks like impossible amounts of crates and barrels into her tiny wagon.

As she sees you she lets out a sharp cackle. "There you are. I must say I doubted that you had it in you. Hair of the ol' dog, anyone?"

You can buy almost anything that your meagre resources allow you in Warwik with no problem. Since you'll be travelling with the cart you don't really need horses. Greta will provide you with meals if you can only stand her cooking (which is surprisingly good as long as you don't ask what went in it). The trip is only a few days long. And some kind of marching order would be good.

You are all gathered at the Temple of Sarenrae in Warwik, (noted here as the Temple of the Sun), patiently attending the morning service and listening to songs about the glory of the rising sun. Looking around you at the lavishly decorated temple, you can't resist thinking that the temple could afford to pay you better.

High priest Thaban, who is conspicuously absent today, finally agreed to paying every survivor 100 gp (apart from restoring Ka'kara's lost level) and a free burial service for those not so fortunate. Of course you may keep any treasure you should happen to find.

As the service ends you look quizzically at each other. Will you be strong enough to prevail where many brave warriors before you perished?