CELESTIAL SUMMONS - GM Angelina's Campaign

Game Master Lady Firedove

Welcome! :)

This thread exists primarily so that those who are playing the CELESTIAL SUMMONS game can chat (about the game and related topics) out-of-character.

If you are playing a character in the game, please only post here using your game alias, so that we all get to know each other based on who is playing which game character. With such a large game, it would be too hard to learn everyone's game alias and other alias.

It is assumed that posts in this thread are made out-of-character, so no [ ooc ] coding is required in this discussion thread.

If you are a non-player who is following the game story for fun, feel free to add comments about the game here in discussion using whatever alias that you would like.

Only chosen game-players should post over in the Gameplay thread when it opens, and definitely only using game aliases.

As usual for the Paizo boards, let's keep it clean and friendly. :)

Wazzzaaaaaaaaaap?!?

See? Totally out of character, here.

Also, greetings, all! :D

So, Cernan gets a total of 11 languages, and there aren't that many racial languages he'd have a reason to start off knowing. It makes sense for him to be a bit well-read, so if anyone has a regional language they're adding in their backstory, I'd be happy to pick it up (and maybe use it as a secret code).

You may well have picked up Embishiu (Eli's tribal language) as a point of curiosity. Two generations back, the Allied Kingdoms were going through an expansionist phase, but were ground to a haunt by the "barbarian" guerrilla tactics of strike and fade, and we're frustrated by their ability to seemingly leave nothing behind of their apparently-advanced crops and animal husbandry skills. They're a curious combination of low-tech items with advanced agriculture and animal husbandry techniques, biodegradable (a word they have no concept for; it's simply "naturally harmonious) materials, and a reverence for cleanliness and nature spirits. The war went no where, and by now trade happens between the two "enemies" all the time. No violence remains these days, only lazy half-curiosity at the exotic ness of the "other", and the drive of unrelenting power of trade to break down cultural barriers. :)

Ah, I'm going to have fun with this. I don't think I quite thought out the consequences of having Perform(Oratory). Speech! Speech!

If the Embishiu have literature, he might have read some of it, but it sounds like they're the kind of fellows a city Aasimar wouldn't know too much about.

Also, Perform (Oratory) and Perform (Acting) are two of my favorite skills across every d20 game. Need to lure some monsters out of a forest ambush? Stand on top of the barbarian, and use your masterwork megaphone for a +2 to your oratory check to shout insults at them so inspired that they break their ambush just to prove you wrong with their swords and spears. Want to drop from a roof top onto an ogre? Use acting to imitate the diving form and shrieking cry of a hawk, and maybe you can convince the local bards that you're a mighty druid to boot.

Plus, oratory covers bragging about your own exploits (if it's not too embellished) to a whole town at once, while acting covers miming—and, if you've got a silent metamagic rod, MAGIC MIMING.

Hello!

Howdy all!

Greetings all

Hey guys! Glad to be a part of this game.

And also happy to see some of my favorites from the recruiting were also called!

I knew picking up Celestial was a good idea.

=)

If the Embishiu have literature, he might have read some of it, but it sounds like they're the kind of fellows a city Aasimar wouldn't know too much about.

They have little literature, though they are literate. Most of their writing is done on stuff, more than paper or books, but the Allued Kingdoms certainly have some samples they've acquired within the last century of contact.

EDIT: none of this is to say you should take the language. Only that a scholarly elder may well do so and have valid reasons for it. :)

And perform is great.

Hello everyone!

Is 1. Sharn
Or 2. Absalom
Ok for me to hail from?

Hey folks. I have work today until 5PM EDT, but I'll try and get a post up on my lunchbreak. :)

Dot...

Sorry, no time for anything else. :(

Wishing every one all the very best.

Hi, all!

Aeryth, you could definitely be from a mega-city to the South-East of here called Sharn or Absalom. It would not be the exact same city as the ones called by those names in other settings, (for example, Sharn might not have the same kind of Planar Ties or quite as advanced magi-tech), but either would work to convey a huge cosmopolitan city of origin. :)

Also, no pressure, anyone! No rush! No apologies necessary. This game isn't meant to be high stress.
You have a week (until next Friday) to respond to the first post and get to know each other, as well as tweak any Background/Homeland/Saint information.

Enjoy. :)

Hi!

Thanks for choosing me!

How many were chosen, anyhow?

Get to know each other? Ok, let me describe Lesith for you.

6'2" 160 lbs, Brown eyes, short brown hair. Very beautiful, with angelic marks on all of her face and body, looking young even at her 88 years old, with a halo over her head, obviously an Aasimar. I think the Alias picture gives a great image of her.

"I have lived my life righteously, I have discovered that truth is the greatest virtue, so I have never lied. I have forsaken violence, so I have refrained myself from hurting others. I have embraced my inner self, so I manifest the powers on my Angelic Inheritance, and I believe that with understanding and love any test can be completed, any achievement met, any challenge defeated. You can trust me because I know who I am, and I won't falter in the face of evil. I might die, but I won't surrender."

She is a sorcerer with Celestial Bloodline.

Lesith won't lie, ever, believing that truth is the source of all virtues, and lie the start of all evils. Also she won't harm, willingly, another living being...

So in combat she will only go for healing friends and incapacitate enemies.

And about healing:

Heavenly Healing Fire (Sp): Starting at 1st level, you can unleash a ray of heavenly fire as a standard action, targeting any creature within 30 feet. This ray heals good creatures of 1d6 points of damage + 1 for every two sorcerer levels you possess. Neutral and evil creatures are neither harmed nor healed by this effect. You can use this ability a number of times per day equal to 3 + your Charisma modifier (that's 7).

Is Sharn, City of Towers still appropriate? (Less Magitech and GM fiat)

Hello all, Azmaria here...

wanted to say thanks for the choosing. as we have a week, I am including much of how Azmaria got the calling and what lead up to her arriving before actually arriving. this way her actions are better understood and gives a frame of reference in case anyone wants to know of her order and the church she is from.

being a paladin, she also has some healing.

also be aware I do make liberal use of descriptive fluff making may things and actions seem way more powerful than they really are. but the game mechanics will be exactly the same as normal. (including spell casting, channeling, Paladin abilities etc.)

makes things sound cool instead of "I lay on hands for x healing" or "I cast cure light wounds on so-n-so" adds a little to the story and character.

(I think Tac and lady dove have seen me do that on occasion in other games)

Aeryth, sounds good.

Natanja, sounds good. We can say it's some ways South of here.

Sister Azmaria, sounds good. Loving the backstory. Putting it in spoiler tags like that so people can read it or not depending on how busy they are is perfect.

In fact, in general, if anyone wants to post more about answering the call or their journey to Theramark, or anything that happened before this moment of meeting at the Green Tree Inn, feel free to do so, but definitely put it in Spoiler Tags called something like How Jane Came to Theramark so that others who are busy and just want to read about what's happening in game right now can easily skip it, while others who are more curious and/or have more time on their hands can read it.

I would like for Lesith to be from the town, and even know the innkeeper couple, would that be ok? How mch "poetic license" can I take?

I'd wait for the GM's response before posting along those lines.
I'm pretty sure she wanted people to be from a fair distance away.
Hope that helps!

It helps, thanks

Wouldn't worry too much about healing; seems like about half of us have it in some form (myself included).

Also, I see that Andrei Volkov is listed as an "Aasimar Slayer." Oh no! Hope he doesn't slay all the Aasimars surrounding him!

:P

Lesith, I'm afraid Eli is right. For story purposes, I'd rather you not be from the Kingdom of Theramark. I already have names/personalities/backstory etc. for the inkeepers here in Vigilant, and the same will apply to various other characters and circumstances you will encounter here and elsewhere in this Kingdom and nearby. You can, however, be from a different small town in one of the other neighboring Allied Kingdoms, if you would like. In general, the farther away from the actual campaign action the place/people you're describing/inventing are, the more poetic license you can take. :)

Natanja, that would be perfectly fine. Sounds good to me! ... Cernan might also be interested in learning your desert people's language.

Also... you can never have too many options for getting healed when you're on death's door and the fiends are swarming. Or when Andrei takes Cernan's interpretation of his title literally. Just sayin'. ;)

I changed it! Sheesh!

Friendly reminder that t-minus 1 level until Sneak Attack.

Oh no! Not Sneak Attack! :p

We'll have to make sure to set up any battlefields we come across, though I be that won't be a problem with all of us. (Or some of us if we break into traveling groups.)

@GM A: Thanks!

@Cernan: Natanja has a regional language of Nirisian, if you would be interested in adding it to your list of many languages? I created the homeland The White Sands of Niris for Natanja. It's a desert nation some distance to the south of Theramark. (I'm putting some info together soon on the nation ... If you're interested, it'll be on my profile shortly.)

Got it! The farther the better...

Just to make things clear, Eli hasn't been talking on purpose. He is, at present, simply listening to things, now that he's said his piece, and waiting for the others to finish.

Great, and how is Azmaria gonna know who you are... and what did you say again?

Got it. I'll be picking up a few of your regional languages (Tien, Nirisian, + 3 more undetermined), and since I get two per point of linguistics (and have a reason to put points into it, thanks to my racial bonus), I can learn any others, as well as any secret or constructed languages the group came up with at level-ups.

Also wow, this is going to be a huge band. I guess tactics will get real interesting in a few levels.

I lost count of that applicants, and I don't think that all the Called have posted in the gameplay thread. RP-wise its going to be cluttered remembering who all is talking. I'm making notes now.

When(if) it comes to combat? I'm thinking breaking up into smaller groups might be better.

I mean, who calls you in a dream? Doesn't anyone else find that odd?"

Maybe someone with a stronger version of this spell?

But I guess only really knowledgeable magic scholars would think of something like that.

Marius is anything but a magical scholar :)

@GM A: I was thinking about making Marius's homeland an analogue to Golarion's Taldor. A wide empire in decline, full of people who are more interested in their own power and prestige than anything else. A warmongering government that wants to revive the nation's glory days through less reputable means, corruption and a love of excess, the whole deal. Putting it on the other end of the world would also be perfectly okay with me, since I wanted him to take a long journey to Vigilant anyway.

Sister Azmaria, if you as a player want to go to the very beginning of the gameplay thread, you'll see my post first, which your character should be aware of, and you'll see Eli's post second, which your character would have missed, but which you might want to know as a player.
Then, since your character just came in late, assume she bursts into the inn/tavern to find random townspeople finishing up lunch. Some of them give you funny looks. Others ignore you. If you ask the middle-aged woman at the counter/bar or the teenage boy cleaning tables about meeting Eli, they will point you to a thick curtain across a doorway over to the side.
When you pass through the curtain to the side room, you find a room with a single very large oval table covered with food and drinks, and about a dozen people sitting around it munching and chatting. A tall man in a stone mask sits silently at the far head of the table. Women, men, a teenage boy, an elven man, a Catfolk woman... all surround the table. A hawk perches on one woman's shoulder and a wolf gnaws on a hunk of meat at another man's feet.
Now, Sister Azmaria, go back to the gameplay thread and have your character either introduce herself or ask where Eli is or something. :)

Cernan, I think Kiwyn will be surprise at someone else knowing her native language. If you read enough from her lands you may even have the best chance of know what she is once it is revealed. Tho she isn't about to just drop her disguise for no reason. She was raised being told to keep herself hidden from the normal population, and only reveal herself around her own kind and other 'spirits of the lands'.

Cernan and Poterol, and anyone else interested,

I've been a player in two PbP games with more than ten PCs, and I've seen things that have worked well and things that haven't, so I have some pretty clear ideas for this game that I think will make both RP and combat manageable and enjoyable, without dragging. At least, that is my hope. If you have other ideas you'd like to propose, please feel free to PM me about them. I'm always open to suggestions.

ALL:
Also, if anyone ever wants to get a feel for what it's like looking around the table at all these people, click on the Characters tab for this campaign, and you'll see everyone's face, name, and brief description. :)

And, Cernan, considering your character is a learned magical scholar, he might very well have an idea that this mysterious Angelina is likely using a stronger variation of that spell. :)

Marius is anything but a magical scholar :)

@GM A: I was thinking about making Marius's homeland an analogue to Golarion's Taldor. A wide empire in decline, full of people who are more interested in their own power and prestige than anything else. A warmongering government that wants to revive the nation's glory days through less reputable means, corruption and a love of excess, the whole deal. Putting it on the other end of the world would also be perfectly okay with me, since I wanted him to take a long journey to Vigilant anyway.

Marius, I have a suggestion for you:

GM Angelina Not having played or GM'd ANY group larger than six, I bow to your experience.

Still going to be making hella notes on everybody. ;P

Oh, Angelina. Is my use of the Golarion: Dragon Empires / Forgotten Realms: Kara-Tur as a base for Kiwyn's homelands okay?

GM: I plan to but been away from the thread for a bit. deciding what the approach will be. also if the pace is slower like you intend then I just figured I have plenty of time...right?

Marius is anything but a magical scholar :)

@GM A: I was thinking about making Marius's homeland an analogue to Golarion's Taldor. A wide empire in decline, full of people who are more interested in their own power and prestige than anything else. A warmongering government that wants to revive the nation's glory days through less reputable means, corruption and a love of excess, the whole deal. Putting it on the other end of the world would also be perfectly okay with me, since I wanted him to take a long journey to Vigilant anyway.

If it's alright with you, could Sharn be part of that empire?

forgot to ask...GM: is Azmaria's little prelude story ok? I made her from a major city a long way off (needed to get here by ship) I picture the city of York a little steampunk-ish (just slightly). hence the guns. and far enough removed to have little influence over the rest of the kingdoms.

I actually, initially, I was picturing Republic City from "Legend of Korra" series - minus the zeppelins and planes and fewer cars

Sister Azmaria, and All - Game Pace:

As for the pace of this game, you are correct. There is no rush. As long as you introduce yourself in-character in the gameplay thread by Friday, you will be considered active in the game, and will be ready to move on from there.

I am still planning to make one big game story update post each Saturday, and as long as everyone responds to that sometime during the following week, they will be fine.

With a controlled pace like this, those who have really crazy busy work weeks can count on the fact that they won't miss anything essential if they can only check in and post on their day off, whichever day that may be. (And they don't absolutely have to read everyone else's posts either. For the most part, as long as someone reads my posts, they should have a decent idea of whatever's going on.)

Meanwhile, those who have the time and desire to do so can read everything everyone says and really get into a lot of fun character roleplaying during the week. :)