Crunchy Goodness
All official paizo material is allowed, yes, including the leadership feat and its derivatives. I got really wordy… sorry about that.
I really don’t care. Good and Evil aren’t really important in Westcrown. You’re just an average Joe trying to scrape a few coppers together before night falls and you’re caught outside when the fog rolls in. You might be bad, the Powers that Be are worse. Hero, antihero, somewhere in between, it doesn’t matter.
All official paizo content is allowed. Core, Base, Alternate, Hybrid, Unchained, and Occult classes and Prestige Classes are permitted. Classes that rely heavily on mounts (like cavaliers and samurai) will have a rough going because there aren’t a lot of open-spaces in the AP.
You have 25 ability points to spend using the point-buy method. You can drop no more than 2 scores to 7 (lower with racial modifiers, of course).
You’ll start at 1st level. We’ll advance using the Ad Hoc method: whenever you hit certain milestones in the game, I’ll advance ya a level. You should be around 16th level by the final fight, although I may figure out a way to push you to 20 so you have your cool toys at the end.
We will also be using gestalt rules. You can find them here. It’s like multiclassing’s bad-ass grandma. You take 2 classes and level them simultaneously, combining the best stats from both. So, a first level gestalt fighter wizard has the the fighter hit points, skills, abilities, and attacks, as well as a wizard’s spell progression, arcane bond, and skills. She’d take the better skill point allotment, and would merge the skill lists of both. Similarly, she’d take the fighters +2 to Fort and the wizard’s +2 to Wil saves
Hit Points: max HD + con mod each level.
We’ll be using background skills. Crafting is allowed. Any pre-game crafts are assumed to be auto-successes. Have fun.
We will also use Skill Unlocks and Occult Skill Unlocks. Rogues get Skill Unlocks for free, and Occult casters get Occult Skill Unlocks for free.
At first level, you get max wealth. Starting at 3rd level, we’ll be using Automatic Bonus Progress. All of those plus gears to saves and abilities and AC don’t exist. You get those bonuses naturally as you level. In exchange you get half of the total amount of wealth you’d get starting at 3rd level (when you get your first bonus). It actually works to your favor in the long run, because you’re not spending gp on static bonuses anymore.
You are allowed to switch Ability boosts for your level with the one immediately ABOVE your level, but you MUST take the other ability boost when you level. For example, at 4th level, Johnny Appleseed gets a +2 to a Physical score. Unfortunately, he’s a wizard, and what he really needs is a +2 to a Mental score (like intelligence). Normally, he’d have saved up for a circlet of undumbification giving him a +2 to his Intelligence by now, but that isn’t going to happen because of automatic bonus progression. He notices that level 5 gives him a +2 to one mental ability stat. Alright. So, he will take the +2 to his mental stat, at 4th level and then take +2 to a physical stat at 5th.
Other gear must be found or bought from loot you acquire.
We’re going to use Roll20. It’s free, and available here, if you don’t have an account already.
I’ll roll initiative, perception checks, saves, and anything that needs to be resolved immediately, you can handle everything else.
If you want an immediate action to go off, you need to tell me when you want that to occur, either during your turn as a condition that I’ll look for the subsequent round (yes you will need to keep stating the condition for the immediate action each turn). I will not, slog through 3 actions to get the immediate action in play. So, if you don’t immediately tell me when you want your immediate action to occur (or the condition that triggers it), it’s not gonna happen.
Please keep track of your own statuses and what not. List essential stats (race, class level, alignment, hp, initiative, and perception) in the alias bar, spoiler everything else.
Please, be civil and polite to each other in these threads. I don’t approve of name calling or anything like that. If you disagree with someone’s opinions, discuss it respectfully in a level tone.
I’m new to PbP. I’m going to make mistakes. Please be gentle when I do :) I’ll try to fix what i borked.
I can't thank you enough for this. I've sent the others the link.
Woohoo. Heyas, just checking in/dotting. Thanks a ton, we almost never all get to be in this side of the GM screen. :-)
Crunchy,
We were discussing on Google hangouts, seems like anti-hero might be the angle we are looking at. I know Clarissa has a bit of pulp heroine in her, and I can play her as either original flavor killy-Batman, or year two won't-kill-Batman. Something in between would be her default.
Any particular rules/guidelines you want to apply to traits?
What about character backgrounds and whether or not the characters know one another?
Other players:
I was considering having Clarissa take a craft feat or two, but one issue with gestalt can be having more feat needs, but no additional feats, so what do you guys think? Bard with scribe scroll, or no?
I'm incredibly flattered. Seriously, it made my day when D'hara PM'd me. ^_^
Rules/guidelines on traits: To incorporate the whole noir feel of the broken (ish) hero, let's say 1 drawback and 3 traits. One trait must be a campaign trait. You can take a feat for more traits. You can also take 1 more drawback for another trait, if you really want a broken hero.
I kind of like original flavor Killy Batman. He's crazy, but he's got a healthier outlet :)
Characters can know each other. that's fine.
I'm pro-craft and pro-leadership, too.
i'll post the Roll20 code when i get home. We'll use that for the map.
So my current idea is a skinwalker (boar) vigilante / alchemist. His day time job / persona would be a dive bartender. Probably take the Rich Parents trait to have a bar/tavern/inn, call it the Razor's Back or maybe the Hambone, although I think I like the Razor's Back more. Background skills could be profession butcher and innkeeper or something similar. I could use the vigilante social abilities to get loyal staff, ease gathering information, and provide a base of operations of sorts.
He would go the avenger side and be focused on natural attacks I think.
This concept would really benefit from a back room medic healer type fixing wounds like a doc removing bullets. It would also need a good arcane caster, probably wizard or arcanist, to help with blocking scrying and increasing defenses. Also gonna need entertainment so the bard always has a stage.
Scribe Scroll could work well on a bard. If you're not sure though, wait and see what the others make. Craft Tattoos could always be interesting too. Alchemist will probably have Brew Potion.
@D'hara: really dig the Rick's vibe from Casablanca. It has the added benefit of providing a perfect background to get everyone connected. They don't even need to be "friends" just people who hear about the case and just going with it. Super-cool!
the roll20 link is...
https://app.roll20.net/join/2794767/crPBVA
You and Clarrisa would be the faces it sounds like. She will be heavy on the bluff, since it works with acting/opera, but also intimidation since both work with her classes. May be terrible at sense motive, since I am considering betrayed for a drawback (only need slight changes to her original backstory) coming from her minor noble family being accused of heresy by a rival who bribed the right Hellknight or Dottari. Maybe paranoid instead, not sure yet. Maybe both. Lol.
She is not a bardic knowledge type, FYI.
I'll probably need sense motive. I mean what bartender doesn't pick up on little innuendos and have a good listening ear. Not so sure about the face skills. Charisma surprisingly isn't really a required vigilante stat and if he was prettier/nicer he'd probably have a joint in a better place of town. Might take a trait to make one or some skill checks with a different stat, but we'll see. I'll start trying to build him tonight after work.
If you've played through CoT before, just be warned, I might change a few things. I really like this adventure, but it's definitely got some rough spots
Please do. Your changes in Wrath of the Righteous were amazing.
Hello, Just checking in. Thank you for GMing we have not all been PC's together in probably 10 years. Looking forward to the fun.
I will be taking the Child of Infamy trait, yeah, predictable, but it will work with the storyline I'm planning with just a little tweaking to the flavor text and incorporation into backstory.
No problems
Is Lore (Chelish Opera) too narrow, or just narrow enough? Feels a little skimp, but Chelish Music or Chelish Arts seems a little too broad.
I guess if it covers history and present, famous patrons and performers, venues, techniques of acting, singing, and even production...it touches on a lot of knowledge areas that way.
Sure that works
Super stoked to see final products!!!
I also really like to see that you guys are trying to link the characters together. I think that's amazeballs.
I really like D'hara's idea for not!Rick's club as a framework for the group.
We should start to see some of the characters start to come to fruition in the next day or two. Most of us have concepts and builds and are working on backgrounds. I'm personally still working out my vigilante identity, normal persona, and bar name. Ironically I struggle the most with names and here I have three to come up with. I'm leaning heavily towards either the Razor's Edge or the Razor's Back for the bar and I'm hoping that the vigilante powers are enough to shield my hero persona if I go with Razor as my hero name.
Also, if you wouldn't mind, could you open the campaign thread for dotting. Just makes it easier for us to get back here. Once you dot, you can delete the post and it will still attach to your campaign list guys.
We should start to see some of the characters start to come to fruition in the next day or two. Most of us have concepts and builds and are working on backgrounds. I'm personally still working out my vigilante identity, normal persona, and bar name. Ironically I struggle the most with names and here I have three to come up with. I'm leaning heavily towards either the Razor's Edge or the Razor's Back for the bar and I'm hoping that the vigilante powers are enough to shield my hero persona if I go with Razor as my hero name.
Also, if you wouldn't mind, could you open the campaign thread for dotting. Just makes it easier for us to get back here. Once you dot, you can delete the post and it will still attach to your campaign list guys.
thread is live.
I like Razor's Back. It's a double entendre, and it's dangerous sounding without being too dangerous or obvious
Okay, Razor's crunch is pretty much done. I've been reading the Westcrown Primer looking for a good spot for the inn. I'm looking for a seedier part of town, potentially near an opera house. His Renown social ability means about 200 people in the surrounding area (1 mile) like him and/or the bar...it's probably more the bar.
Okay, Razor's crunch is pretty much done. I've been reading the Westcrown Primer looking for a good spot for the inn. I'm looking for a seedier part of town, potentially near an opera house. His Renown social ability means about 200 people in the surrounding area (1 mile) like him and/or the bar...it's probably more the bar.
awesomesauce!!! i'll give a once over by the end of the week
In progress still, wanted to be done fully, but on the way. The Google Docs link in the profile is the in-progress end. I just really need a few traits and to make a decision on a few details.
Like Razor, Clarissa has some location needs based on the Chelish Diva's Famous ability. I assume a specific Rego would be a good bet. I'll look at the primer link when I have a chance, but I'm fairly familiar with Westcrown. Choose a noble family name from one of the minor lines.
Don't use Family name Sena, unless you want to be related to me. Will post Janus soon, almost done
*chose, sorry, lol. Nolmon is a minor Wiscrani family, no real details on the wikis so seemed open. I will have full build some tonight. We need the ranger/Spellslinger to check in still too...I will try and catch him later when I am home from work.
This game looks fantastic.
Can I join in, or is it too late for that?
Just been super distracted, Clarrisa's EQ is done, I just need to update her backstory a touch for this incarnation and get the stats on the profile, sorry for the delay.
Ok, so quandary: I’m leaving for Japan on the 27th, and I’ll be back K the fourth. Do we start only to pause, or do we pause and then start after I get back?
I think we'd like to start. Let's aim for Friday. I think we can entertain ourselves a bit while you are traveling and it's the holidays anyways so we'll all be somewhat distracted. The longer we wait, the more I second guess my character choices. Hopefully by Friday the last of the group will check in and we'll be ready.
Ok, jsut making sure.
Yay!!! one more day!!! hopefully we can get all the characters in by friday and then i'll get thing started by friday night/saturday
Clarissa sat before the dusty mirror in her cheap room and began to wipe make-up from her face as she replayed the earlier conversation in her mind.
"You ask why I would want to perform at a venue such as this? Well, the answer is pretty simple actually: any performance is still practice." Not to mention your little roommate back there is rumored to have ties to some corrupt nobles. "Besides, in such an intimate venue as this, I can really connect with my audience." And keep an eye on you two. "Some might say this place is a little rundown," I would say it is a dump, "But it has charm!" And termites. "Plus, the acoustics are really great!" Actually, yeah, they are pretty great.
Her face now clear, she brushed her long black hair thoroughly before placing it into a ponytail.
There is no turning back now, Clarissa. Do it for Gram-gram.
Clarissa grabs a tin of shoe polish and smears it around her eyes, making her look like a racoon before she dons a tight, flat-black outfit complete with a mask. The overall effect is as a person in silhouette.
Do it for your sister.
Janus ready
Sorry So late, will be up soon!
gosh.. am i even NEEDED in this thing?
:p
Ok. 1 more day of letting you guys bounce off each other and then i'll start things for reals.
*sigh* I need to pause here. I'm heading to japan on the 27th, and with the holidays, I won't really be able to post from now until the 4th of January (le sigh).
Feel free to RP while I'm away.
Have a good and safe trip!
Don't sweat delays or slow posting. Life happens.
Hey, gios been pretty quiet is he still with us?
The questions you've probably all been asking: Where the heck is Dragon?
ya.. .
So.. after the bomb threat that wasn't really a threat (seriously, who the heck leaves 2 suitcases in the school parking lot?), and twice-daily IEPs (one of which lasts like 3 hours) for an entire week, I come down with the flu, and end up in bed until now... *sigh* stupid life.
i'll be updating tomorrow.
Glad to hear you're still alive. Been rough weeks all around.
kids got 2 first place trophies, and 1 third place!!
thanks for your patience!
updates tomorrow.
Cool. Congrats.
Anyone else feel bad for Hammond yet? I feel like he is the responsible dad to me and Janus, the trouble making kids. And Gio is the cool uncle that just goes along with whatever.
Yeah, me!
Just realized on review that Westcrown would have river shanties, not sea, oh well, same idea of a dirty-ish song sung by blue collar folks.
i'
ll have updates tonight. I'm trying to get stuff done during work hours, but ... not very well.