"Perhaps there are maps to be found in this city.", offers Malan. "We can add that to our list as we prepare for the cold climate."
Ah, the irony of the subsystem. Maps give a bonus to Survival checks to avoid getting lost but do nothing for Knowledge (geography). (The only item which gives a bonus to Knowledge (geography) is an astrolabe, at a hefty 50 gp per +1 bonus.) So, per the caravan rules, a map-making kit would help the scout but not the guide. Then again, since the caravan rules only require one rank in the relevant skill and never actually involve making a roll, any bonus granted would be useless, and thus the purchase a waste of money, in any case.
Considering she's a second-level character with total wealth of 143 gp in coins and gear, she's not in a position to buy anything anyway.
"Perhaps there are maps to be found in this city.", offers Malan. "We can add that to our list as we prepare for the cold climate."Ah, the irony of the subsystem. Maps give a bonus to Survival checks to avoid getting lost but do nothing for Knowledge (geography). (The only item which gives a bonus to Knowledge (geography) is an astrolabe, at a hefty 50 gp per +1 bonus.) So, per the caravan rules, a map-making kit would help the scout but not the guide. Then again, since the caravan rules only require one rank in the relevant skill and never actually involve making a roll, any bonus granted would be useless, and thus the purchase a waste of money, in any case.
Considering she's a second-level character with total wealth of 143 gp in coins and gear, she's not in a position to buy anything anyway.
Yeah, but sometimes you have to let common sense override rules as written. Using a map to help plan a caravan route seems a perfectly reasonable thing to do, and allowing a bonus to Knowledge (geography) as a result fits quite nicely under a GM's purview to throw in circumstantial bonuses when appropriate. And we've already thrown out the caravan rules anyway.
Hey folks,
Sorry about the slowness over the last few days. I had some last-minute things come up. Things will probably remain slow until Monday, but then my schedule clears right up for a few weeks (well, weekends will still be busy, but weekdays will be good), and I'll actually have free time! Yay!
Didn't expect a post on Monday due to Canada Day weekend, but when you missed the Fourth as well, I thought maybe you had dual citizenship. ;)
No problem. I've been unusually busy lately too. My rare post has been little more than taking a breath for air before diving back into the madness.
I was out on the first myself, having hosted a barbecue for thirty some friends, then out for the next while dealing with the stomach flu some of those friends decided to bring instead of the requested "salad".
If Gilfroy could hop along with Melon for one of her extra-dimensional eavesdrops, he might mention something about the stone in the pile of rocks that drunk in the alleyway beside the Cyphergate just perd on was probably as old as the stone in the Cyphergate, but nobody there was marveling over their age or running their hands over them.
Just a head's up...work has been getting increasingly crazy for me and I'm not able to keep up with non-work stuff as easily as I once had. I'll certainly be able to managed a post or two a day but it could take longer for me to respond than usual. Hopefully it won't be a problem but I just wanted to let y'all know.
Tevyn suggested we "keep our weapons in hand and look formidable." Corinna merely stated that she and Gilfroy are not in any position to "look" formidable. Doing a search of her posts, I can't find any disparaging remarks she's made about Gilfroy's usefulness at all.
And it's morning, so we're eating breakfast, not dinner. :P
Once again, I can't help but feel that this whole journey could be a whole lot more interesting than "let's go to some lame place in the middle of nowhere just because Ameiko wants to" if I'd only rolled a three on the Knowledge (history) check.
Ah, the legacy of poor dice rolls. There'll be opportunity soon to learn a little of the history of Brinewall. :)
Well I guess knowing what to expect ruins the surprise and spontaneity of adventuring. ;)
Tevyn's staying out of that one. :)
Once again, I can't help but feel that this whole journey could be a whole lot more interesting than "let's go to some lame place in the middle of nowhere just because Ameiko wants to" if I'd only rolled a three on the Knowledge (history) check.
You could run with the angle of "the great unknown" is interesting.
Besides. Corinna isn't there for Brinewall - even if she made the history checks, there is nothing pulling her there other than that her convenient lift to Karlsgard is making a pitstop there.
Tevyn's staying out of that one. :)
Fair enough. :)
Since two people posted without attempting the roll, it occurred to me that there might have been a misunderstanding, so I just wanted to be sure.
Besides. Corinna isn't there for Brinewall - even if she made the history checks, there is nothing pulling her there other than that her convenient lift to Karlsgard is making a pitstop there.
True. So I guess that means she's staying behind with Sandru and the caravan since there's no IC reason for her to go into Brinewall. :P
Besides. Corinna isn't there for Brinewall - even if she made the history checks, there is nothing pulling her there other than that her convenient lift to Karlsgard is making a pitstop there.True. So I guess that means she's staying behind with Sandru and the caravan since there's no IC reason for her to go into Brinewall. :P
Hah! ;) just means Melon has to convince Sandru to join the trip into Brinewall
Pssh, like anyone could get him to leave Ameiko's stricken side. I think everyone's contractually required to stand around weeping and draping her comatose form in fresh flowers every day, like the Seven Dwarves. ;P
Hey, Tevyn, this is your chance to see if you're her One True Love by kissing her and seeing if she wakes up! :D
Ungrateful peons. A princess used to be able to count on people adoring her for free and appreciating it! I suppose Worshipful Underling is a unionized position now. You get dental with that?
Pssh, like anyone could get him to leave Ameiko's stricken side.
Now that it looks like the way to cure her is to go into Brinewall... I think convincing Sandru will be a snap.
"What you can do to help is come and help! Nobody's asking you to solve the whole thing on your own with however much of your precious power you do or do not have. You stop being a petty, self-centred know-it-all and help a fellow sentient being who's never done anything bad to you except in your own little imagination!"
At pointed out by the DM, Corinna has gone along with everyone else as far as you have. If you have a problem with me, Nazard, I'd appreciate you handling it OOC rather than IC because I'm tired of the constant stream of undeserved abuse you're pouring out on Corinna. It's rather passive-aggressive.
Posted in the discussion thread for the other game that this whole issue is really about. Would have deleted the post, but kids' baths and bedtimes intervened and I missed the edit window. Nothing to see here; move along.
Yep, you're right. Sorry, I am being a bit of a jerk here.
Not really much to offer everybody here by way of explanation, so hopefully a public apology for some rather juvenile behavior and a promise to do better will have to suffice.
I sent private messages to both Navior and Joana, but I was reflecting on them and realized that neither really said what needed to be said, which is that there really is no excuse for that sort of behavior, so I sincerely apologize to both of them and the rest at this table, and hope we can continue on.
Plus, Galt doesn't have its own language, which is the main problem. Hallit isn't Galt-specific and certainly doesn't fit the role French does in society.
I think Taldor is obviously french. Oppara, decadent society of nobles vying for the attention of other nobles. Fashion and whatever is all the rage at court currently. Is French with capital F.
So what language was Melon speaking when she mangled 'noblesse oblige'? ;)
I think Taldor is obviously french. Oppara, decadent society of nobles vying for the attention of other nobles. Fashion and whatever is all the rage at court currently. Is French with capital F.
Spain, England (Elizabethan and Victorian), and several other European countries also fit that description, too, at one time or another.
Perhaps she was simply mangling an archaic turn of phrase, one so old that it's been incorporated into the common tongue, but nobody knows its origin (like Latin sayings today, which most average schmoes wouldn't have a clue was Latin at one point). Maybe it was Thassilonian or Azlanti.
Or maybe she's just making stuff up.
I think Taldor is obviously french. Oppara, decadent society of nobles vying for the attention of other nobles. Fashion and whatever is all the rage at court currently. Is French with capital F.
Spain, England (Elizabethan and Victorian), and several other European countries also fit that description, too, at one time or another.
Essentially they were all copying the French courts though.
If you focus on the opera aspects, then Italy and Germany also push to the forefront considerably.
If I were to guess, I'd say that Melon was mangling archaic Taldan.
I've got a really busy day lined up today so I might not be able to post until later this afternoon or evening.
So if we need to vote on who to feed to cannibals, we all know which way to let the ballots fall...
Before you decide who to feed to the cannibals, you need to decide which direction to go. North or south? If you make the right decision, you might not even have to face the cannibals.
Nah, who am I kidding? There are cannibals in both directions. ;)
Seriously: If Corinna had suggested Ameiko would be fine as she was for a couple of days, it wouldn't have been 'sensible'; it would have been 'omg you horrible selfish person how dare you even suggest we let her suffer a second longer than necessary.' I guess the decade or so setting yourself up with a quasi-believable alibi as Ameiko's "best friend" is worthwhile if it means you can get away with remarks like "Eh, it's not like she's getting any worse; let's just leave her comatose for a while." I am impressed. ;)
But it takes all the fun out of the game, Lore, when you let slip meta-knowledge that we're not actually on a clock. Why not just send a rider back to Riddleport or somewhere for help if there's no hurry? :P
Sorry if it came across like that, Melon stated her opinion on the matter. Ameiko is not in fact on a timer as far as we know, for all intents and purposes her condition is stable to our knowledge. Perhaps you and I did not read the same sense of urgency into Navior's description of the events.
If Melon were chaotic-good; sure she'd run down the castle doors in the blink of an eye. But instead her lawful/wise side thinks that doing things slow and methodical is going to yield best results for Ameiko.
Possibly there's also aspects of me as a player: I usually opt for the slow way of doing things.
We've been traveling for fifteen days and had ONE encounter. I'm not sure it's actually possible for us to move any slower. And now there's finally something to do, and it's all, "Whoa, slow down there, let's sit around and wait another couple of days. What's our hurry?" :P
Corinna, at any rate, wants to get to Kalsgaard as soon as possible. As far as she's concerned, the quicker we get Brinewall taken care of, the sooner she can get on with her journey that Ameiko has so rudely interrupted.
I think Corinna's newest post nicely nails why you should think of yourselves as being on a timer. While you don't know whether Ameiko's illness is on a timer or not, the longer the caravan sits in one spot, the more likely it is to be noticed (either by creatures from the castle or by other local hostiles). I don't want to sound like I'm dictating any course of action (which is why I've sat back and stayed out of the discussion so far), but you should try to come to some sort of consensus soon so that we can move things along. :)
Hey folks,
Things might be a little slow over the next few days. My wife's health issues have reared their ugly head again.
Thanks for your understanding.
Melon! I've just noticed you've inspired the PC of one of my Riddleport applicants! 8 Charisma, and you've still managed to collect a fan! :)
He was not fat as some Halfling tend to be as often as they ate. He was small, but Sabyl was not a large woman and he had heard stories of how she stood against goblin raiders in the town some years back, and there was another woman (Mellon he thought) among the mercenaries Sheriff Hemlock had commissioned to investigate goblins stealing a bunch of local dogs. She and others drove the Licktoads from the Brinestump for said killings and even fought other creatures if the Stories from the Rusty Dragon can be believed.
So a co-worker has asked me to help introduce his teenage son and a friend to rpgs via Pathfinder and since I've got few and far opportunities to game off-line in my barren gamer part of the world I was happy to agree.
Now I'm stuck trying to figure out what to run. I want to try and find a decent way to introduce them to the game without overwhelming them with complications or giving them the impression that rpgs are all about combat. I also want to give them time to get used to the game before immersing them in anything so complex as an AP.
Do any of you have any suggestions in terms of modules? I know the Beginner Box is set-up to introduce people to the game but these guys have already bought the Core Rulebook and seem more interested in playing the complete rules rather than an abbreviated version of them. Would any of you recommend that I try running one of those adventures first even without using the abbreviated system?
Any advice would absolutely be welcome. I like introducing people to roleplaying but I don't have a lot of experience with present day teenagers.
Crypt of the Everflame is a good introductory module that covers a lot of skill uses as well as combat.
I was part of a group that introduced an elevenish-year-old boy to gaming with a Pathfinder Society Scenario; it was The Devil We Know, Part One. Scenarios are good in that they're short and let people try out a character without getting stuck with it too long if they don't like it. You could run scenarios and let them try out different classes and races for a while until they get experience with a wide range of options and find out what they like.
Alternatively, you could use the Beginner's Box module and just run it with core rules; nothing stopping you from adding in AoOs and the like. It's a simple, straight-forward dungeon crawl and gives the thrill of ending with a fight with a way-powered-down dragon. I ran my 9 and 6 years olds through the mini-dungeon in the free download GM kit last weekend, and they had a great time. It's quite short, though; you could string the Beginner's Box dungeon straight through to the GM kit one and make a decent session with some IC chatter, if you started with character creation/selection.
I second the suggestion of Crypt of the Everflame. It's a very good introductory module, easy to run, with a straightforward quest for the PCs that still contains a variety of options.
Thanks for the recommendations. Crypt of the Everflame was one of those I'd been thinking about, but I was concerned there wouldn't be much opportunity for roleplay. My preference, of course, is to introduce the game as more than just a lot of combat to kill stuff. On the other hand, I'm worried that killing stuff is exactly what a few teenagers would be looking for and that the roleplaying stuff would just bore them.
I might just look over CotE, some Pathfinder Society Scenarios and the Beginner's Box and maybe craft something fairly straightforward out of those, providing opportunities for a lot of different fields of play but not requiring them too focus overmuch on any one thing.
Sorry; didn't see it in your skills. Forgot about the size bonus.
Oh, that was completely tongue-in-cheek. He's sneaky, but it's a verbal sneakiness.
Well, it got you into Team Sneaky because I was writing the most recent post before you posted that snippet, and I noticed it on previewing, so I edited you in. :)
@Wander Weir: consider running one or two Pathfinder Society scenarios. They tend to be not overly complex and there's a big list to chose from.
Regarding not combat heavy, the scenario "Temple of Empyreal Enlightenment" is absolutely brilliant with deep and heavy roleplay emphasis. Though it may be perhaps too hard for newcomers. I recall its the only scenario where we both succeeded in the quest, but also ran for our lives. Only 2 of the 4 of us made it out alive in the end.
Anybody that doesn't play PFS should still take the opportunity to play that particular scenario. It is definitely worth your time :)
Melon's Jade Regent AP party is an awesome read!
That's right! You're all part of Melon's entourage! :D
Or are the corbies on the castle roof itself, and not the wall?
Ghost post. Didn't show up for me in thread.
Shhhhh!! Don't reveal how Melon can be in 2 places at once!
Did Melon's questions to Corinna get through (separate post)?