Two feats and level 16 seems silly for what Martial Mastery gets. I've house-ruled a fighter-only feat I called Weapon Versatility that allowed all of a character's weapon-specific feats to apply to any weapon in the same weapon group.
For a single feat it adds a little versatility but no real power increase - at best, someone wielding a pair of kukris to save on feats might upgrade their main hand weapon to a rapier, for 1 extra average damage. Because weapons within the same group tend to have the same damage types, a fighter be able to get 2 of the 3 types (S/P/B) in a group, but not all three.
The primary benefit is that it makes a wider array of treasure useful - no more "Oh, that's a flaming handaxe, I only use light picks, just sell it." That's worth a feat, but not two - and certainly not at 16th level, when most characters have the money to commission whatever specialty weapon they want - and have already done so.
Two sessions in, the group features a ... uh, variety of naming conventions.
Barael Medyved: Human (Brevic) titan-(orc-)blooded sorcerer
Throk: Hobgoblin ranger
Gurthloyne: Human (Brevic) cleric of Pharasma
Gaul-gull: Half-orc rogue
Verran Kale: Human (Numerian) barbarian
Zorya Svensdottir: Human (Ulfen) bard
Defrens the Vast: Ifrit oracle (metal)
Thanks for the feedback everyone. I just wanted some extra eyes on the issue in case I was overlooking something really obvious. Will let you know how it goes.
I'm considering allowing a nature oracle in an upcoming game I'm running choose spells from the druid spell list rather than the cleric list. Is there a huge power imbalance I'm overlooking?
I'm the one suggesting the change, and it seems to me they'll be giving up some healing/restorative spells and buffs (divine favor, shield of faith, bless) for a few more offensive spells and different buffs (shillelagh, barkskin).
I'm also thinking about allowing the character to pick up a couple of revelations from the Wood mystery, just because they're flavorful. Again, doesn't seem like a big problem but I'm curious if anyone else sees an opportunity for severe munchkinism.
What do folks think of today's blog? Do you like the inside look behind the curtain of RPG Superstar and the guest blogs?
Not really. It seems like all we're getting lately in blogs is:
RPG Superstar
Fiction
PFS
Minis previews
Other than the (increasingly rare) excerpt from an upcoming book, that's about it.
I can understand the excitement about the minis and excuse their frequent inclusion, but the other three (Superstar, fiction and PFS) all have their own sections of the website. None really float my boat as blog updates ... I'd rather see actual new Golarian content (tidbits are fine, not expecting gobs of free content) or design posts as referenced above.
That said, I understand the posts I'd like to see take work on the part of people who don't have a lot of extra time. I'm just losing interest in what's being provided instead.
(Note: Mods feel free to move this, but I put it here to get feedback from posters familiar with the AP).
So, as a break from my Legacy of Fire game I decided to run some 3rd-edition Shadowrun.
Partly to see if I could do it, I decided to use Carrion Crown as a basic road map for a plotline I'm working in between more traditional runs (mostly from the first season Missions adventures on Catalyst's site).
I've not been too worried about following CC exactly. Game's set in Seattle as the runners come together for the funeral of Dr. Peter Larrimer, a mage and surgeon who ran a charity hospital in the barrens and had done favors for each of them in the past. While doing runs to keep the hospital afloat (and arrange protection from the yakuza) the group recovers Larrimer's journals that mention Harrowstone, a private prison complex destroyed in a fire several years earlier.
Larrimer had been keeping an eye on the place, which was the site of clandestine, corporate research into cyber-zombie creation before the "accident" that left it a spirit-haunted ruin. He was killed by agents of the Whispering Way that visited the prison to extract a powerful free spirit trapped in a warded research area.
The group is approached by the Palatine Eye, an initiatory group that opposes the Whispering Way's attempts to resurrect a long dormant spirit of some kind, probably using a modified form of the rituals used in cybermancy creation - at least, that's my translation of the spiritual "MacGuffins" the WW is after so far.
For Trial of the Beast, I'm going with a simplified plotline: A local gang has turned in the body of the notorious "Beast of Leper Street," a barrens monster that has terrorized the locals for several months. The scarred carcass turns out to be a troll incarcerated at Harrowstone when it burned, but the body contains several more recent cyber-mods (in quantities verging on fatal).
The runners eventually will track down the beast's maker, a deranged cyber-surgeon who has been experimenting in hiding since Harrowstone's fall. He's on high alert when the runners arrive after recently being robbed by Whispering Way cultists seeking some magical doodads he spirited out of the prison.
For Broken Moon I'm thinking of moving in Native American Nation territory - have the runners infiltrate a corporate hunting lodge at a time when the local tribal councils (stand-ins for the werewolves) are at each other's throats over succession. I could work in some HMHVV-infected loup-garou or Wendigo to keep the werewolf vibe.
I'm looking for ideas on a MacGuffin for Broken Moon, though, as well as ideas for translating the later parts of the AP. I'm not sure where to place Wake of the Watcher - maybe farther up the coast, or south in Tir Tairngire or California Free State?
The vampires of the Ordo Maximus, with their rumored knowledge of advanced cybermanchy, seem perfect for Ashes at Dawn, so I might sub in London for Caliphas. For Shadows of Gallowspire, I'm torn between placing the endgame in a buried temple complex or in a corporate skyscraper in Seattle or some other megaplex.
Quality looks great and I don't mind random, but not at that price. $1-2 for small-medium and $4-8 for large is about my max. As it is, you're charging more for random minis than Games Workshop charges for multi-piece, posable (albeit unpainted) plastics. That's not the side of that equation you want to be on.
Mask of the Demon Hound Aura moderate transmutation; CL 5th
Slot head; Price 27,000 gp; Weight 3 lbs.
Description
Although some resemble the snarling visage of a fiendish mongrel, a mask of the demon hound gains its name from its function, rather than its form.
Crafted from sulfurous demon-hide, a mask of the demon hound grants its wearer the scent ability against creatures of the outsider type. For the purpose of this ability, outsiders with the evil subtype are considered to emanate a strong scent, while evil outsiders with more than 10 hit dice create an overpowering scent. Particularly foul environments – such as evil-aligned outer planes – may mask lesser scents. Abilities or effects that protect against divination or other magical detection have no effect on the scent function of the mask, which is a supernatural ability.
The mask of the demon hound also obscures the wearer’s alignment, shifting it one step towards chaos and one step towards evil for the purposes of spell or supernatural ability effects and item requirements. A lawful good character, for example, would be considered neutral when targeted by a detect good or holy smite spell and could wield an anarchic weapon without suffering a negative level. The wearer’s actual alignment is unchanged.
Construction Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, beast shape I and misdirection or undetectable alignment; Cost 13,500 gp
My Legacy of Fire campaign just hit a snag, in a good way, when:
Spoiler:
4 of the 5 PCs were turned to stone trying to infiltrate the One Source warehouse in Katapesh after Rayhan's kidnapping.
One PC, an inquisitor of Pharasma, was able to escape, and intends to return to rescue the rest of the party. Unable to go to the authorities for reasons outlined in the adventure, he needs to recruit some help.
The group has contacts in the church of Sarenrae, but I figure the church would be wary of upsetting the peace and bringing down the hammer of the Pactmasters. Instead, he'll have to turn to the dregs of the city's mercenary adventurers.
With that in mind, I'd like to put together a samping of 5-6 temporary characters for the petrified players to choose from. As they'll just be temporary stand-ins, it's an opportunity to include some weirder, potentially imbalanced builds or monstrous races. Non-standard is better, and I'd like to avoid much overlap with the standard PCs (an elven rogue, half-elf witch, suli-jann paladin and tiefling fighter).
Here's what I've got so far:
Dim-witted air mephit sorcerer (stormborn)
Drunken/drug-addled gnome rogue/barbarian
Human (or other) cleric of Sivanha (goddess of illusions)
Gnoll ranger/fighter with hyena companion
Shield guardian golem, maybe a modified aluum, that could be the "pet" of one of the others.
Any other ideas? Strange is good, and I'm especially interested in concepts that fit in well with the Katapeshi underbelly.
I usually give an additional "background" feat, in addition to 2 traits, to 1st-level PCs. Pseudo-PC races like tieflings, aasimar, tengu, etc. give up the background feat in order to take the non-standard choice.
This has worked pretty well for the most part, although not all races are created equal. I have a suli-jann paladin in my Legacy of Fire campaign. In addition to foregoing a background feat, I also ruled that he didn't gain any of his energy resistances or wasn't able to use the "energy hands" ability until he'd suffered damage of that energy type, which "awakened" the ability (the character was unaware of his heritage at first). Worked pretty well by delaying access to a portion of the character's abilities to about level 4-5.
Also, summoning them on the other side of enemies to harass enemy spellcasters are actually pretty funny, since literally dogpiling an evil spellcaster with celestial dogs is great. :P
And you can refer to them in character as "glory hounds."
You don't need to get fancy with green stuff tools - unfolded paper clips or your knife work, or I've carved my own from popsicle sticks a few times.
Water will help you avoid the sticky (you can also use Vaseline, but it gets a little messy and hard to work with). Keep a small container of water nearby and repeatedly dip your modeling tool in the water while working the greenstuff. Dab a little water on any surfaces you don't want the putty to stick to, as well.
Name: Ekhart Baden
Race: Human
Class: Inquisitor (Pharasma) 7
Adventure: House of the Beast
Where: Carrion King's throne room
Catalyst: human-bane greataxe criticals hurt
Spoiler:
After working their way through much of the House of the Beast, the party (who had cornered Rokova/Zayifid and convinced him to show them a back way into the king's chambers/throne room) were in full-on assault mode. The party summoner's eidolon had engaged the Carrion King in melee at his throne while the rest of the party (paladin, witch and rogue) dealt with a horde of minions to the south. The hasted inquisitor, meanwhile, was working his way around the pit, firing gnoll-bane arrows at the king. With the eidolon about a hit away from blinking out, the inquisitor decided to charge the Carrion King. Natural 20 on the attack of opportunity resulted in a critical for about 85 damage, sending Baden (who had been at full hp) to meet his mistress. The distraction allowed the eidolon to finish off the king, however, and the rest of the minions were mopped up quickly, although the paladin took several nasty hits from initiate greataxes.
The death of the inquisitor, who was moldspeaker, allowed me to have some fun during the party's subsequent interaction with Zayifid, who revealed himself after the king's death and told them they needed to get him the Scroll of Kakishon "to truly rid the place of evil." I'd added a few bard levels to the janni, and with undetectable alignment there was little chance the party would see through his ruse (the inquisitor had been the Sense Motive monkey).
I'd already described Tempest fusing to the inquisitor's hand with mold at his death (the rogue starting asking about his dead "friend's" equipment ...), and noted that it was spreading over his body when the paladin went to pick up the corpse. As the party followed Zayifid to a "safe" resting place, the mold was able to animate the corpse just enough to whisper "He lies" in the paladin's ear. The paladin then asked Zayifid (still posing as a priest) to take a look at the corpse, at which point Tempest pricked the janni and the paladin let loose with his greatsword.
Favorite and least favorite nicknames you've been called?
For some inexplicable reason, my brain flashes "Jimmy Jack" when I see your handle on the messageboards. Which is still better than the association made when I see Sean's, which gets translated into something like Shanker.
I just added a feat in my game called "Strong Shoulders" that functions as TWF but only for off-hand shield attacks. Pre-req of Str 15 (rather than Dex) and allows heavy shields to count as light weapons for the purpose of penalties.
It balances out fine, so far. I allow it to count as TWF to meet the pre-reqs for other feats like Double Slice, but they'll need to meet the standard Dex requirement if they want Improved TWF, etc. for additional off-hand attacks.
I think the space probably could be better used (Neil has a lot of good ideas above), but I also don't mind keeping the pregens - but they need to be able to actually function as pregens.
Don't get me wrong, I like the "flawed" nature of many of the iconics - Merisiel's Int doesn't bother me, nor does Valeros' "non-optimal" weapon choice. But I've yet to see a pregen stat block that could actually survive any of the APs they've appeared in. ACs and attack bonuses are too low compared to the foes they would face and their feat and equipment choices often make little sense, either thematically or in a crunch sense.
If those issues were addressed, I think the pregens could serve a useful purpose. I'm not sure to what degree the APs are formally play-tested, but I think the pregens could be used to provide a base-line around which the adventures are written. I'm always beefing up encounters in the APs (not a complaint-I usually run parties of 5-6 with above-average ability scores) but sometimes struggle to determine how much to enhance things. If the pregens provided a more realistic baseline for the adventures, I could compare my PCs to them and get a better idea of how much firepower to add. Built to be actually survivable, the pregens also could serve as legitimate stand-ins or substitute characters.
So, that's my 2 cents - either ditch 'em or improve them so they can actually match the assumed power level of the APs and provide a reasonable baseline for comparison.
Such a thread would quickly devolve into people arguing about whether spell X should be on class Y's spell list. It would stay productive for maybe 50 posts.
So, about 45 more productive posts than this thread.
The Dragonbone Chair by Tad Williams. Good descriptive writing, but God, I hope something happens soon. Two hundred pages in and all I get is a lot of Simon angst.
i hope you're patient, then. :-) i'm nearing the end of book 2, and it's still moving slowly. personally, i like the pace.
but yeah, i hope the climax makes it worthwhile...
Can't say the pace ever ramps up that much, but the pay-off is worth it (from what I remember, it's been a few years). Also, check out Williams' Shadowplay/Shadowmarch series - the third book, Shadowrise, is out in a few months and I think I like this series even better.
I'm currently reading "Best Served Cold" by Joe Abercrombie, after reading his First Law trilogy. Very bleak, but good. I highly recommend the trilogy, as well, which is, by his own admission, a sort of anti-Lord of the Rings. The thing I like best is how takes really nasty, no-good characters and makes them sympathetic (it's strangely cool to be rooting for a crippled torturer who s&%&s the bed each morning) and takes fantasy cliches (the bare-chested barbarian and ancient wizard) and turns them on their heads.
I would love to find a way to have them only get magic items from the adventure, but will need to come up with a way to transfer magic +'s on weapons and armor to other types of weapons and armor so that they can "keep" the items while transferring them to items they can actually use.
-Lisa
I'm in a similar spot in my RotRL campaign (just finished the seige of Sandpoint) and wanted to address the same issue. Here's what I did:
Spoiler:
My PCs took an aerial bombardment approach to the retaking of Fort Rannick, blowing the watchtower and wooden barracks to bits with fireballs and lightning bolts. When the smoke cleared and the main keep had been cleared out, they set to rebuilding ... underneath the ruined barracks, they found an ancient dwarven anvil that had been buried there for safe-keeping. An artifact-level item, it 'captures' the enchantments of any magic item destroyed on its surface, allowing the item's powers to be transferred to another item (at half the normal crafting time). If the PCs don't want to create another item with the same abilities, I let them destroy an item and capture half its value as generic magic energy that can be used for other purposes at full crafting time. If they want to transfer the abilities to an existing magic item (such as destroying a +1 flaming halberd and adding that to a +1 bastard sword to make a +2 flaming sword they have to pay the difference in the final cost with additional gold/gems, but still benefit from the reduced crafting time.
If you wanted to use the anvil idea, I also considered putting it in the forge in the Hook Mountain ogre lair. The Jorgenfist dungeons or Runeforge could work, as well.
The other house rule I instituted that has encouraged the group to keep more of the cool loot they find is to ignore the "+50 percent cost per additional ability" rule when pricing magic items they find, but enforcing it when they craft their own. As a result, they're more likely to keep things like Xanesha's snakeskin tunic even if the whole suite of abilities isn't exactly what they want. Plus, I'd rather the characters have fewer items with many cool and abilities than a boatload of bland stuff that adds up to the same thing.
Also, while I allow the group to purchase magic items (primarily in Magnimar) I worked up a list of what's available for purchase or barter. Custom items are available within limits, but the crafting time has discouraged much of that - with a cleric and wizard with crafting feats, the group mostly makes their own with the anvil.
I'll echo the earlier comments about limiting the Resources allocation at character gen as a way of maintaining a "gritty" game. If you use point-buy from the companion, you could even lower the number of overall points available, which will limit other types of augmentation (Physical Adepts, spell-slinger) as well.
As for lotsa dice vs. low target number, in general I've found a lower target number to be more effective - in Shadowrun, it's better to hurt an opponent severely, as quickly as possible (so they have penalties before they have a chance to inflict penalties on you).
It's situational, however, as mentioned above, due to dodges and armor/damage soaking. Dodging can go either way: If I'm shooting someone with a lot of dodge dice, I either need to 1) hit with so many successes he can't dodge (meaning I want a low TN) or 2) shoot a bunch of times so he has to spread his combat pool among a bunch of shots. But if I have a low power weapon and/or the opponent has a lot of armor, a smaller number of hits with lots of successes is far, far better.
There's also the matter of "sweet spots" in the target number spectrum. IIRC, you can't have a target number lower than 2, so if you have TN reductions (from a smartlink, etc.) you might as well take a couple points of penalties in exchange for more attacks or damage. Also, if your TN is going to be a 6, might as well take on another point or two - TN 6 and 7 statistically are the same, and you're not significantly reducing your chances at TN 8, either. Much above that, though, and it's a risky proposition even with lots of dice.
From personal experience, one of the most effective combat characters I ever ran was a physad sporting two pistols. Laser sights, gas-venting, custom grips and ambidexterity (physad power or a trait or something) offset many of the target number increases and I would tailor the number of shots and whether to use both guns based on keeping my TN in either the 2-3 or 6-8 range. Lots and lots of one-shot kills with that character, which in my mind is about the most satisfying thing about Shadowrun 3 - guns are deadly!
This actually sounds really cool ... er, frosty. Unfortunately, I'm a 3etard when it comes to Shadowrun rules, too. The curse of 4th editions! Still, might not be too tough to convert. I'd be interested to hear from anyone who has this. Does it do justice to the premise? Does it tie into Earthdawn? How are the production values?
It looks like we have 2 potential Bounty Hunters in the midst, which will be interesting as well.
I see Veeta heading more towards Elite Trooper, kind of a no-nonsense professional type, so I think there's plenty to distinguish her from Cuss (who sounds like fun - maybe they know each other from Veeta's time marooned on Tattooine?). Honestly, I built her as kind of a Duracell (takes a licking, keeps on ticking). I'm interested to see how much punishment she can take with her talents (Evasion, Indomitable) and feats (Improved Damage Threshold, Improved Defenses, Shake It Off).
Veeta looks good, but what does being a near human do? Not familiar with that. Is that a race in itself?
Statistically it's just a human, only a little different flavor. Some races, like Arkanians, are described as specific types of near-humans with different abilities, but others are just vanilla homo sapiens with the serial numbers filed off and a new paint-job. All Veeta has is the standard bonus feat and extra skill - and the the mutant ability to shoot Death Star lasers out of her eyes, but I thought I'd wait until the game gets started before bringing that up ;)
I'd be interested if you're still looking for players. I'd like to use this character, from another Pbp that died an early death. I'll probably recast her background to be a mercenary/more generic resistance fighter if the Rebellion hasn't really taken off yet. Might kick her up to 6th level, as well, and sub out her medic skills for Survival or something.
Vitiligo causes the skin to lighten in patches, at least the cases I have seen do, so I ain't buyin' that excuse.
Same with every case I've seen, and I have actually worked with several people who have it. There is also not a gradual lightening, it is straight from dark to pale.
I know a man of Arab descent with vitiligo, and while it was a gradual and "patchy" process, he's now completely white. And at various times while the condition developed, he used make-up (dark early on, light later) to attempt to cover or blend the off-color spots so it wasn't as noticeable. I think that's an entirely plausible explanation for the MJ experience, especially when you consider the guy was a little obsessed with his appearance. Not saying that's absolutely what happened, but I don't think you can just rule it out, either.
As for the child molestation and other stuff, eh, not sure I've seen enough to be persuaded either way.
wow I didnt know they added like that. thanks for the clarification, now I can see why you want to cut them down.
In regular Rifts combat a lot of those attacks get spent "buying" dodge rolls and roll with impact attempts, or spending two actions to make an Aimed Shot. What I basically did was cut actions in half but make dodges and Aimed shot automatic (while eliminating separate rolls for dodge and parry). The end result is pretty much the same, just less rolling.
well; I only have three melee attacks; two normal; one for breed; takes a level or two before I get another;
No, you should have 5 attacks to start:
2 base (which everyone gets, see the next-to-last paragraph on p. 37, above "Saving Throws against Psychic Attacks"
+2 from HtH: Martial Arts at 1st level
+1 from breed
This isn't completely clear in the original book, and there are some contradictory examples, but clarifications and combat examples in Conversion Book 1 and stat blocks in later books show this more clearly. Rifts Ultimate doesn't supe anything up, it just states it more plainly (it actually tones down HtH: Assassin somewhat).
I'm going off the Ultimate book, but I'm 99% certain this was the same in the original book (although the rules might not all have been in one place), but most of the hand-to-hand skills (Basic, Expert, Martial Arts and Commando) grant 4 attacks/melee to start. Hand to Hand: Assassin starts with 3, and someone without any HtH skill only has 1 or 2 attacks, but can take additional actions.
Boxing adds one, so Malcolm would have 5 attacks to start (2, with a floating +1 under my system), not 3. Several OCCs like Juicers, Crazies, robot pilots and some Dog Boy variants, get extra attacks on top of that - Alfie, frex, has 6 attacks (4 from HtH, +1 Boxing, +1 Crazy).
I think it may have been worded differently in the original Rifts book. Instead of plainly saying you got 4 attacks to start, it may have noted that all characters started with 2 attacks, then in another section noted that most HtH skills added another 2.
As everyone is finishing up their characters, I thought I'd go ahead and share a simplified combat system I've used in the past when running a tabletop Rifts game. With most characters having 4-7 attacks/round to start, combat can be pretty unmanageable. In a play-by-post - where d20 games with one move and one attack per character can bog down - I'm a little horrified even thinking about it.
The system below also tries to bring combat a little more in line with the more familiar d20 combat rules, as well as negating the need to keep track of some of the rather arcane combat rules sprinkled around in the Rifts book in no apparent order.
Anyway, here it is - let me know what you think.
Simplified combat system:
Spoiler:
Goals:
1. Reduce number of rolls.
2. Move toward more familiar d20-style combat.
3. Reduce number of rolls.
4. See Goals 1 and 3.
General:
1. Divide number of attacks/actions by 2
2. If that leaves you with a fraction, you gain a floating +1 to apply to any one action or defense vs. one attack each round.
3. A roll of 1 always misses. A natural 20 is a critical hit and does double damage.
Movement:
Movement costs 1 action.(I usually go with a single move getting you Spd in yards - a Spd 10 has a d20-like Move of about 30 feet)
Melee:
Melee attacks normally cost one action.
Attacks are made with normal bonuses vs. a target number equal to 10+target’s Parry bonus (Parry Defense) or 10+target’s Dodge bonus (Dodge Defense), whichever is better.
Flanking: If target is attacked by more than one attacker, each attacker gains a +2 bonus to hit.
Flat-Footed: A target unaware of an attack (due to a successful Prowl, surprise, or an exceptionally long-ranged attack) gains no parry or dodge bonus to defense, meaning the attack is a straight DC 10.
Automatic Dodge: Targets with the automatic dodge ability are never flat-footed and add their class- or HtH skill-based automatic dodge bonus (not including the P.P. bonus a second time) to Dodge Defense.
W.P. Paired: Allows an attacker to make two attacks (one with each hand) per action, but they cannot parry and must rely on their Dodge Defense against all attacks. Alternatively, they may take only one attack with each action and gain a +2 bonus to Parry Defense that round.
Called Shots: A called shot to target a specific body part costs 2 actions and suffers a -4 (or more) penalty to hit. If an attack would have hit without the penalty, it instead hits the Main Body.
Roll with Impact: A target hit in melee may spend an action to roll with the impact. They roll a d20+any relevant bonuses from class or skills – if the result exceeds the attack roll, they take half damage. Rather than spend an action, the target may attempt to roll with impact by accepting a -5 penalty to all actions the following round. This penalty is cumulative if the target attempts more than one roll without spending and action.
Active Defense: A character may spend an action to gain a +2 bonus to either Parry or Dodge Defense for the rest of the round. Multiple actions spent on defense are cumulative for that round.
Ranged:
Ranged attacks normally cost one action.
Attacks are made vs. a target number equal to 10+target’s Dodge bonus (Dodge Defense).
Point-Blank Range: Any ranged attack made within 60’ gains a +4 bonus to hit.
Aimed Shot: A single, aimed shot gains a +3 bonus to hit (sometimes more with certain weapons). An aimed burst, possible with pulse weapons or those designed to fire a specific number of rounds as a controlled burst (ie., most rail guns) gains a +1 to hit.
If an attacker has not yet moved in a round, an Aimed Shot costs a single action. If they have already moved that round, an Aimed Shot costs two actions.
Short Burst: An attacker can fire a short burst (5 rounds/charges) as a single action with a -2 penalty to hit, causing double damage.
Long Burst: A long burst requires two actions (10 rounds/charges). The penalty to hit is the same (-2) but it inflicts inflicts triple damage.
Flanking: If a target is fired at by more than one attacker at point-blank range, each attacker gains a +2 bonus to hit.
Flat-Footed: A target unaware of an attack (due to a successful Prowl, surprise, or an exceptionally long-ranged attack) gains dodge bonus to defense, meaning the attack is a straight DC 10.
Automatic Dodge: Targets with the automatic dodge ability are never flat-footed and add their class- or HtH skill-based automatic dodge bonus (don’t double the P.P. bonus) to Dodge Defense.
W.P. Paired: Allows an attacker to make two attacks (one with each hand) per action, but each attack suffers a -4 penalty to hit.
Called Shots: A called shot to target a specific body part costs 2 actions and suffers a -4 (or more) penalty to hit. If an attack would have hit without the penalty, it instead hits the Main Body.
Roll with Impact: A target by a ranged attack may spend an action to roll with the impact. They roll a d20+any relevant bonuses from class or skills – if the result exceeds the attack roll, they take half damage. Rather than spend an action, the target may attempt to roll with impact by accepting a -5 penalty to all actions the following round. This penalty is cumulative if the target attempts more than one roll without spending and action.
Active Defense: A character may spend an action to gain a +2 bonus to either Parry or Dodge Defense for the rest of the round. Multiple actions spent on defense are cumulative for that round.
Reloading: Typically requires 1 action, more for things like rail-guns or missile launchers.
Hopefully that's all reasonably clear. What this does, essentially, is cut the number of attacks/character roughly in half, while reducing the number of rolls for each attack (which as written could be up to 4 - attack, parry, dodge, roll) to 1 or 2 (attack, maybe roll). At the same time, I've tried to set the target numbers and bonuses so the relative odds of hitting are close to what's laid out in the original system. It's up to Dewn if he wants to use it.
Alfie's all done, with the exception of guns and armor - should I equip him with Coalition gear or can I use stuff from other manufacturers?
I would say equip him with nonstandard equipment. He may draw pay from the coalition, but confirming that they utilize and support methods that they have outlawed (M.O.M.) and rejected does not look good for their overall image.
I would like to play a Undead Slayer; an Atlantean (human) returned to Earth to fight vampires and their ilk. If I remember my RIFTS; the Coalitian is on the boarder with the vampires.
Dewn has said everyone is limited to the Core Book only to start, so slayer is probably out. Also, sounds like he wants everyone to be either Coalition or compatible with the Coalition.
Sounds like we're mostly rolling up members of a Coalition squad of some sort. Could I still make a Crazy, perhaps one who's been hired as a mercenary or assigned to the squad as a sort of social experiment by the CS brass? If that won't work, let me know and I'll roll up a Combat 'Borg.
EDIT: Also, I assume we're just rolling 3d6 in order (with the extra die on 16-18, per the book). Is Invisible Castle fine, or do you want to use another site for dice-rolling?
I was thinking about an RPA pilot, too, but I'll go with a Cyber-Knight instead if that's what David wants to do and we're limited to core book only. I was thinking something along the lines of a knight working incognito in Coalition lands if that's where we're playing.
EDIT: Just saw you're wanting to do a Coalition campaign ... hmmm. Not sure what I'm down for in that case. Always preferred killing the pseudo-Nazis and takin' their stuff rather than being one.
...and then you fall to the ground like a soccer player faking a foul when I push back a little.
ZOMG! You're insulting all the European Pathfinder fans by inserting American-isms into your analogies Mona! I'm so offended I'm just going to take my toys and go pre-order a copy of the PFRPG.
(Yeah, spent way too much time today talking nice to f*@$-wits today. Your candor and ruthless sarcasm is much appreciated, so you get some money.)
All undesired outcomes are the direct cause of Sebastian.
Unless you meant this to say "All desired outcomes are directly caused by Sebastian," this actually translates to: "All the bad s@!$ in the world got together, played peek-a-boo peepee, and nine months later out popped Sebastian."
Terrible that he's dead, but why would he commit suicide? :(
I dunno if suicide is the most likely explanation: he wasn't just hanging in a closet, he was hanging naked in the closet. Sounds like he may have pulled a Michael Hutchens (accidental death in the process of autoerotic asphyxiation).
Sucks either way, but it'd be cooler for a 72-year-old bad@ss to go out while pulling the handbrake rather than just throwing in the towel.
Oh, speaking of hot chicks.. I met this Israeli girl around christmas time.. she was drop dead gorgeous. Avi was her name. Good times.
Speaking of hot Israeli chicks, anyone here watch "Weeds" on Showtime? The Israeli chick Andy bangs (or rather, the Israeli chick that bangs Andy ...) is smokin'. Her name is Meital Dohan, if ya want to do a Google image search (make sure to turn filtering OFF). The fact that all Israeli woman have to serve in the military just makes it that much hotter, I think, if you can ignore the philosophical repercussions.
I too have no interest in the Map Folios that reproduce old maps already included in the Adventure Path volumes. I actually intend to suspend my Chronicles subscription to skip the Legacy of Fire map folio (I hope this is possible?).
That being said, I'm interested in the City Map Folio though: unless I'm mistaken, this specific folio will present new maps that did not appear anywhere else (is that correct?).
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tribeof1
(Pathfinder Adventure Path Charter Subscriber; Roleplaying Game, Campaign Setting, Companion, Tales Subscriber)
