This thread is for asking questions of the GM, or the players, once they are selected.
Ok everyone,
You can still make minor tweaks to your characters, until I tell you to level up. I probably won't worry too much about XP the first couple of levels, a lot of it's going to be RP, so I'll just level you all up at the same time. Once you are all together as a group, I'll get more specific about XP.
NOTE!
Edgar Lamoureux, please move your background to your alias, and don't forget to update the feats if you're really going to change out Bludgeoner.
Whack-a-Rogue. Please create an alias, and either expand your background, or send me an expanded one in a PM.
First post is up.
STATUS
McIntyre plot is on hold until Edgar's character is updated.
Assassin's Guild plot is on hold until Whack-a-Rogue's alias is created.
Mintakia plot is active.
Yay. All I can say is thank the never present gods I went high on the int score we have a lot of guys I have to shove in my brain.
I barely know you and you're already giving me cause for concern.
Was that directed at Selvan for the comment about shoving you into his brain, or me for beating your character up in character?
Selvan
Selvan
Didn't upset me either way, was just curious. :)
Oh now "Classes/Level" code works. I've only been trying for days using different aliases...
I'm in North Carolina, USA, Eastern Time Zone. I'm seeing a lot of "after midnight" posts compared to me. :)
Given Sammark's and Selvan's intro, Connor may end up regretting the Rich Parents trait. Or maybe Call Item will be a lifesaver. Or Sleight of Hand would have been a better skill pick. Or mdt could have a different introduction planned.
I'm surprised given our theme that Sammark and Selvan (and everybody else) doesn't have psionic restraints, lesser while in the jail cell.
(Please let Connor have a 'normal' type intro. Not an abduction that has him lose all of his gear. He doesn't need 2D6 subdual to join the party. Please, please.) ;)
Why would a level 12 enlightened monk bother with a psionic restraint when dealing with two rookies?
As to normal intro's *shrug*. There's a reason for their intro, and there'll be a reason for your intro, and a reason for Whack-A-Rogue's intro. :)
OH, and the reason you're seeing a lot of late posts from me is I've got a jaw infection and it's keeping me awake. I've had about 12 hours of sleep since Friday of last week. :(
Sorry to hear that, mdt.
And, humor is one outlet for the desperate. :)
Sorry for how long it took to get that up. I had to type it up on my phone, as my home connection is having a ton of issues. In any case, it's up.
STATUS
McIntyre plot is Active.
Assassin's Guild plot is on hold until Whack-a-Rogue's alias is created.
Mintakia plot is Active.
NOTE!
When you have NPCs (such as animal companions, bonded mounts, crystals, etc) that I need to sometimes emote, I'll pick a personality that seems to fit your character (Connor's crystal being a bit sulky and childish, based on his background for example).
If you are not happy with the personality I project, Say Something. I don't mind changing them, or even reposting. But you have to say something. :)
I do try to add a bit of humor to things, and NPCs are a way of doing that at times.
I don't mind your interpretation, mdt. I had Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen) from Toy Story in mind, but psicrystals tend to be "children" until three or four Improved Psicrystal feats make them more like the PC.
I think I have a prestige class picked for our Shaper - Psicrystal Imprinter. It fits Connor's gemologist theme, and still lets him be a crafter.
Curiously enough, an Astral Construct maker is all set to go at 1st Level. Just two feats, and the 1st-level power is augmentable. No idea if mdt has Astral Constructs as being common in this setting, or if they are rare but recognized. Not enough to overcome the McIntyre prejudice, obviously. Maybe they've never been used decisively in battle yet.
Here's a high-level fantasy picture for Connor: walking down the street, surrounded by six Large beefy astral construct bodyguards, all with the same face - his.
Constructs exist, in fact, it's quite common in Clans to have actual merged crystal/clockwork constructs working for the clans. Many of them are quite old, and the older they get the more quirky they get. :)
The biggest problem Connor has is that McIntyre is a very traditional group, and traditionally, Shapers and Crafters are from the smaller ally clans that specialize in it. If he'd married into a smaller specialty clan, then he'd have been ok. But, trying to keep his McIntyre name and be a shaper is a combination of not fulfilling his clan duties (to be a leader) but also perceived as an insult to their allies (trying to take on the roll the ally has performed for centuries).
There are likely quite a few sympathetic to Connor in the clan, but, they will not insult a clan ally by having a clansman take their traditional place.
Inspiration
McIntyre House Clockwork Defender
Skyship Inspiration
Cool. The marriage thing into a smaller clan may be a final exit for the character, in the future.
"Construct" is not "Astral Construct", however. I've noticed the same misconception with the Reconstruction power in PU. Even looking at the Psion-killer, the closest thing to a golem in the psionic world, the Reconstruction power makes no sense because the crystal golem is immune to psionics!
The Reconstruction power at 2nd level is a nice idea, but why use it on an Astral Construct that is only going to last a single minute at the most, two if Extend Power is used? (The hour-long Utility option from Advanced Constructs notwithstanding.) Especially when 1-17 power points can bring it back? Dreamscarred Press needs to clarify clockworks and psionic golems better. I'm not sure if they ever got around to these in the new books.
The clockworks are a neat idea.
Yeah, the way I've handled it so far is to allow psycrystals to be put into the clockworks.
Basically, you need to be able to create thinking psionic constructs of some kind, even if they are normally temporary. Then you need the Craft Construct feat from the Bestiary. With that feat and some way to create psionic constructs of some kind (psicrystals count), you can make a sentient clockwork construct. This results in your psicrystal being consumed of course (but you can remanifest it 24 hours later). Any astral construct that can last for 24 hours can also be used instead.
Hope everyone is enjoying the game so far.
Some people are getting treated pretty rough right now, some more than others. That was part of the request for the background having something that put you in a bad odor.
The criminal covers need to be convincing, or you'd all be dead rather quickly.
Man apologizing to the crippled murderer for being in my company. That's a low blow.
Kalvant is not a nice man. He's competent, efficient, driven, hard as nails, dependable, honest to a fault, yes. All of these.
But nice? Urr... not so much.
He's one of those types that if he thinks you're slacking off he'll kick you and insult you until you get up and punch him.
Basically, he's a drill instructor without any of the compassion.
Hah, drill instructor with compassion. That's funny.
Connor's Chaotic Good but living in the major Clan of McIntyre probably meant a structured upbringing. With their heavy emphasis on honor and glory in battle, I'm guessing that using your psionics 24/7 was probably frowned upon. What I'm getting at is that Connor didn't show his Astral Construct power off to anyone and everyone - he was private about it. In an allied Clan he might have had a mentor, but not in the major Clan. Connor's only "offense/defense" powers right now are Energy Splash and Inertial Armor, hardly remarkable to a Clan of warriors and ship commanders. Going the merchant-school route and then graduating as a journeyman was the last straw.
Everybody probably thinks Connor has no powers, only the ones fit for a lesser merchant Clan. Astral Construct is "Small" at 1st level anyway, and at 2 rounds duration he can only help out with flanking and such once the meatshields get in place.
Any last words on Call Item, mdt? I don't want to start using it and then have to retcon it to Ectoplasmic Creation.
Sounds reasonable. I'd assume they put Hero in a box more because he looked like a valuable gem. :)
Ok, you can go with Call Item, just don't abuse it too badly. :)
So the Mintakia Plot has them 'escaping' in a day or two, but the McIntyre plot has to wait a week in prison? And the Assassin's Guild plot hasn't even started.
Just wondering how long it will take for all of us to meet up.
A reminder: I have a "working weekend" starting tonight, but I should be able to post at least once a day.
Yes, but remember, nothing says all the plots started at the same time. McIntyre's took less time to set up, but the Mintakia plot required finding a dead Strix nobody would miss and framing Sammark.
And, it may be that you don't all meet up until the end of the introductory job. Just depends on how things go. Kalvant isn't following protocol. He was supposed to find recruits and let our field agent interview them. Instead he just recruited and hired people without telling her. :)
I just realized I never bought gear for Sam. Not really an issue I guess.
From mdt's long McIntyre plot thread - Connor, Reaghar, and Alister are released.
#1.) Connor can sell his Noble's Outfit (but keep the jewelry) for 37.5 gp. That gives him and his new-found buddies enough gold to avoid the gold cache drops for a little while. (100+100+1000 gp each? Very generous, and I'm not touching them until needed.)
#2.) From mdt's post, I recommend B) Council Enclave's Southern Quarter. We can get a inn room there, then ask around. A) The Docks is an easy second choice, but C) Reville Enclave sounds like you need a hefty Intimidate check just to begin.
Ah, we need a Bard. Psion (Shaper) has Knowledge skills, not Gather Information. The "dead drops" are for when we get information. None of the three of us has Telepathy, unless I send my psicrystal with one person. But I don't recommend splitting up.
So Alister our psionic Barbarian and Reaghar our Cryptic - do you want to try using your Intimidate, or hit the gambling establishments?
I just realized I never bought gear for Sam. Not really an issue I guess.
Not at the moment. But you'll get it all back eventually, and you have coin cache's for replenishing your equipment.
#1.) Connor can sell his Noble's Outfit (but keep the jewelry) for 37.5 gp. That gives him and his new-found buddies enough gold to avoid the gold cache drops for a little while. (100+100+1000 gp each? Very generous, and I'm not touching them until needed.)
Yes, 1200 gp each. That's basically your WBL for level 2, since you'll have little chance to really get money on this assignment. Add in replacing some minor stuff and bribes and purchasing of illegal things (which are expensive due to being illegal), and it won't go far.
NOTE!
Can everyone put something like this in their character profile in the Classes field?
HP (##/##) | AC/Touch/Flat ##/##/## | Fort/Ref/Will +#/+#/+# | Init +# | Per +# | Class (Level)
If you already have something like this, great. If not, please do the mod when you have a chance.
From mdt's long McIntyre plot thread - Connor, Reaghar, and Alister are released.
#2.) From mdt's post, I recommend B) Council Enclave's Southern Quarter. We can get a inn room there, then ask around. A) The Docks is an easy second choice, but C) Reville Enclave sounds like you need a hefty Intimidate check just to begin.
So Alister our psionic Barbarian and Reaghar our Cryptic - do you want to try using your Intimidate, or hit the gambling establishments?
Pardon me, i didnt realize that since i had never clicked the discussion thread, it wasn't updating me on new posts. i wasn't ignoring you all, i just now saw all of the discussion posts. /facepalm
RE: money: it costs me 25gp in materials to scribe a psionic tattoo of a ML 1 power of first level. Just saying this since you expressed interest (or someone did)
RE: Where to go: sounds fine to me. i was also thinking that the enclave would be better placed last.
Are the dead drops for info or money or what? that wasnt exactly clear to me.
RE: post times: I am in Hawaii so i am 7 hours earlier than the east coast of the US. my post times tend to have 12 hour dead zones during the week due to work, then about 5 hrs where i post nearly constantly, then i go to sleep and usually check once really fast before going to work. on the weekends, i post all day.
Dead drop - a drop used for the clandestine exchange of intelligence information; "a dead drop avoids the need for an intelligence officer and a spy to be present at the same time"
It was me about the crafting, Reaghar. Unless you see a need for a specific power on our 3 lists, I'd hold off with our limited funds until we're ready to meet with a magical contact or bust down the doors on a place. I'm super-cautious right now, as we are supposed to merge with the criminal element.
well i would like claws of the beast from Alistair since i wanted claws to begin with, but it isnt a rush. ideally i would get my cestus or some gloves enchanted with the power constantly (or at least a good number of uses/day)
and yeah i know what dead drop is but i was under the impression in this game it was more for exchange of goods. i didnt know we were getting intelligence from our handlers.
I think we're the ones dropping info, not getting it. The whole operation screams "plausible deniability". We're doing someone else's dirty work.
We can always say we chummed up during the 2 weeks in prison. I'm waiting for the right moment to roleplay my psicrystal, Astral Construct, Call Item, etc.
mmmk so i guess we head to #2. unless Alistair has a different idea.
#2 looks fine to me. On my phone atm, will post something more substantial when I get home.
The dead drops are primarily for you to get information to them. Each has 3 dead drops to leave information at. Each is different (giving 9 locations total).
Each does have one dead drop for them feeding you information, but it's phrased as 'In the unlikely event we need to send you information...'. It involves you keeping your ears open for word of a specific ship (The Merry Fool) being late to put in and believed lost. If that rumor is heard, then they have information for you, including a new rumor for the next dead drop, if it becomes needed.
Nice
-Posted with Wayfinder
Ideas before I post in the IC thread:
1.) Connor can hit up the common inn staff for an Elixir of Truth (500 gp), in order to get his good name back. Or Bracers of Armor +1 (2,000 gp) in case he gets beat up again. Connor doesn't have a Bluff skill!
2.) Alister or Reaghar have a background reason for magical protection?
3.) We hit up a gambling casino, and ask around for a way to magic a weapon to +1 (2,000 gp) for protection.
no reason other than just being smart about one's own survival.
it'd be cheaper for me to get +1 armor, but i can wear armor whereas armor would cause you some minor problems.
but it's all in a day's work, as we are supposed to be asking about magic items anyway.
Alister doesn't have a particular reason for magical protection of any sort, no. As far as a weapon goes, it'd be nice to get a lead that way, but as far as I'm concerned, the earth breaker that I've got should be enough for me for a while, maybe upgrading to a masterwork one, but even so, that's fairly insignificant.
Regarding the earlier conversation about powers, I'm not going to be picking up claws of the beast as an actual power, and I don't know if Psi-like abilities can be used to craft. If they can, it's a bit odd, because item creation feats can't be used while raging, and I'm not sure how that interacts with cooperative crafting. Alister's also not in particular need of any powers in tattoos or what have you, though that'll likely change in the future.
I do plan on multiclassing, potentially Aegis, or maybe Psychic warrior, if the manifester level stacks with that gained by my barbarian levels, since they're "as a pyschic warrior of half your level", though that stacking is up to the DM.
Since Spell like abilities can be used for crafting, psi-like can.
Psychic warrior levels would stack with the barbarian levels, the aegis wouldn't.
Oh, no, I wasn't talking about the Aegis levels stacking, I knew they wouldn't. Good to know, however, that Psychic Warrior would.
I wonder if it's wrong that I find it amusing that someone with a +5 perception didn't notice he mis-spelled perception. :)
I also hope everyone is enjoying the game so far. And for those who were in prison, I hope you are now of the opinion that it could have always been worse. At least the people recruiting you were sane. :)
Define sane.
heh
Oh snap. I filled that stuff in while I was on my phone, so I'm a little surprised that auto-correct didn't pick it up for me. I'll fix it now.