Clebsch GM Wrath of the Righteous Adventure Path (Inactive)

Game Master Clebsch73

We should definitely be taking someone alive. Really, if they are for repenting, I feel what we are doing now even seems a bit much. I feel like the next few rounds might determine any need for a retreat. As of now, I feel we are in a good position, and if we get Horgus/Our Little Blind Elf/Anevia alongside us, they'll need quite the force to outnumber us.

It might be wise to stabilize some of the dying foes, particularly the Kobold. With the exception of Karas' rage, all of our dailies are in the green. For the tactical retreat, I still have caltrops should we need them.

If we get these two out of the way quickly, we can have some prepared actions ready to strike down anyone coming in while the mages/Healers stabilize the ones we have downed thus far.

Anarya can use stabilize at will. So far, she's been more concerned about her allies than their fallen foes, but she doesn't want unnecessary deaths if they can be avoided. Her real concern at this point is accidentally reviving an enemy with channel energy if she's forced to use it in combat.

I have made the rolls for stabilizing. You can determine the status of anyone with a heal check. Since Franti has been doing non-lethal damage, some might just be unconscious, rather than dying.

There are three closed doors leading deeper into the lair, so once everyone is healed and stable, decide what to do about going further. The mongrelmen at Neathholm estimated the population of the traitors to be about a dozen with an unknown number of human cultists. They might also have animals/vermin as guards.

Edit: The DC for the heal check to determine status is 10, so anyone with any bonus in the heal skill can take 10 and count on success.

We all do have potions in the meantime, if a situation shows channelling might do more harm than good.

If we are afraid they might come to, Ellena tying someone up is a DC25 Escape, 26 if we Alter Self to Medium on her. Some of our foes might not be able to escape that at all. Might be good to tie one up, get them conscious and do some questioning.

We might want to think about "breaching" each room we go forward. Someone pushes the door, I give a quick check for traps, we move in, big guns first. Alternatively, someone pushes the door open, and Anevia and I shoot a surprise round sneak attack volley to soften the foes up.

Franti, I think I basically typed out your first strategy in the gameplay post without realizing it.

I'm on board with you checking for traps, and Ellena opening the door and she and Karas entering the room. With the place on alert, I don't think we are going to be able to get the drop on anyone in here.

Franti will never fail to be excited by snakes. Gods save me if we encounter a Basilisk.

Edit: It is funny that this snake is winning and is possibly the most deadly thing Franti has encountered. This is Revenge of the Kobold for me stealing his form, I know it.

Note: the viper is tiny, which means it cannot attack anything that is not in the same square as it is. It can move into an adjacent square as a five foot step (slither?) without provoking an AOO. But it cannot make attacks of opportunity against anything in an adjacent square.

Currently, Franti and the snake are in the same square.

The mist provides no cover if attacking a target in the same square, but if attacking the viper from five feet away, the usual 20% miss chance applies.

GM, you can fight defensively as a full round action too.

Fighting Defensively as a Full-Round Action

You can choose to fight defensively when taking a full-attack action. If you do so, you take a –4 penalty on all attacks in a round to gain a +2 dodge bonus to AC until the start of your next turn.

Good to know, I thought it was a thing. I still shouldn't do it too often, my attack bonuses aren't great to begin with. This snake ordeal is still funny to me. All I wanted to do was get a spellbook to give to Rabbit, nice guys finish last I suppose.

Can you imagine if one of us died from something like a snake? The storyteller saying "Oh yeah, I forgot about that snake... Remember Franti? He wasn't important after all. So there was this Gunslinger on the surface, okay? He was the important one."

I was mid-writing a post in the discussion saying Franti represents my impulsive side and that sometimes it kills me to not act tactically. Then a familiar handed my ass to me.

Just start five-foot-stepping, and you'll do better against the Viper. It provokes whenever it enters your square, and can't attack without entering. Leaving its square doesn't provoke, because you're doing a five-foot-step.

Anarya will help as soon as she's able to notice you. And next time, call for help immediately, not two rounds after you're poisoned. :P

Can you imagine if one of us died from something like a snake? The storyteller saying "Oh yeah, I forgot about that snake... Remember Franti? He wasn't important after all. So there was this Gunslinger on the surface, okay? He was the important one."

I believe things like that are just what Hero Points were made for. :P

GM, you can fight defensively as a full round action too.

My bad. I misinterpreted the phrase "Fighting Defensively as a Standard Action" to mean it was a standard action option only. I did not search for further mentions of the fighting defensively. Another case of the Pathfinder rules being written as if by lawyers. I've played the game almost since it was published and I'm still encountering rules I thought I understood but did not.

Just start five-foot-stepping, and you'll do better against the Viper. It provokes whenever it enters your square, and can't attack without entering.

That reminds me I need to give Horgus an AOO against the little snake.

So say I speak a different language in-game (which I can), say Franti says the same thing thrice in his three languages. They are rather mundane languages: Taldane, Skald, Varisian.

Taldane is simple. I just say what I mean to say.
"This snake is proving more trouble than it's master." Franti exclaimed.

Skald is trickier. It is described as sing-songy/chanting-like. It also uses a mix of Dwarven alphabet and a couple Taldane characters. I figured it to be rather tonal, but most European languages/languages associated with Dwarves don't have this. Swedish kind of fits the bill.

"Denna orm har visat mer problem än det är mästare"

Varisian is a hodgepodge, it part Taldane, Orc, Thassilonian, giant and a few others. The language is also known for double meanings. The Varisian people seem like an analogue for the Romani people, but my efforts to find a translations were difficult. Other Indo-Aryan languages bear similarities, so here would be Varisian as Sinhalese, phonetically.

"mema sarpa eya svāmiyāgē vaḍā karadara oppu kara æta."

What I am trying to say is that if I eventually use these languages, would you prefer I do something like the above or just say "Franti spoke in the rhymic, songlike language of the Ulfren:" then what I say.

Languages are fun, but I only know one.

Good to know, I thought it was a thing. I still shouldn't do it too often, my attack bonuses aren't great to begin with. This snake ordeal is still funny to me. All I wanted to do was get a spellbook to give to Rabbit, nice guys finish last I suppose.

Can you imagine if one of us died from something like a snake? The storyteller saying "Oh yeah, I forgot about that snake... Remember Franti? He wasn't important after all. So there was this Gunslinger on the surface, okay? He was the important one."

I was mid-writing a post in the discussion saying Franti represents my impulsive side and that sometimes it kills me to not act tactically. Then a familiar handed my ass to me.

Remember the hero points for situations like this.

In such a situation, you could use it to act out of turn and take an immediate move action to get far from the danger or you can use the "extra action" option to get extra movement to get away.

Or if you have a must-make saving throw, use the hero point before you roll to get a +8 luck bonus or after the roll to get a +4 bonus. Or you could just use the point to reroll the save.

As for the familiar, it is tougher than it may look, being tiny and all. It has a high AC and as a familiar it gets half the hit points of its master. It's also smarter than a typical snake. This one is a little special: being fiendish it gets a use of smite good, which it was using against Franti.

Only a fool would have this question:

Can I change my Craft(Props) skill into an actual Craft ability, such as Craft(Alchemy). The RP is exactly the same, me making goodies to enhance my performances, and flows well with my Stage Magic trait. If not, I am getting close to a dozen skill points next level, so it isn't essential, just trying to minimize waste.

Going off that, what are your thoughts on Spontaneous Alchemy?

I meant to get back to this. I would change the Craft (props) to Craft (devices). It would mean you could make small mechanical devices, which could be props or other things. I would allow it to be used to craft a trap, a lock, or something that puts a weapon in your hand from up your sleeve. Anything with level arms, gears, cables, etc. Whether using it on adventures or in-between adventures, it will give you lots of options. Take the Craft (Alchemy) next level up and then you can cover more ground. Craft (Alchemy) is more useful on adventures and can be used between adventures as well.

As for the spontaneous alchemy, I don't have the book that appears to have the recipes, but if it just provides a different way to get the same product and you're willing to invest in the book and the time and trouble of following the recipe, I'll allow it. It don't think it will allow you to make things while adventuring, but if you have the alchemical supplies during down time, knock yourself out.

So say I speak a different language in-game (which I can), say Franti says the same thing thrice in his three languages. They are rather mundane languages: Taldane, Skald, Varisian.

Taldane is simple. I just say what I mean to say.
"This snake is proving more trouble than it's master." Franti exclaimed.

Skald is trickier. It is described as sing-songy/chanting-like. It also uses a mix of Dwarven alphabet and a couple Taldane characters. I figured it to be rather tonal, but most European languages/languages associated with Dwarves don't have this. Swedish kind of fits the bill.

"Denna orm har visat mer problem än det är mästare"
** spoiler omitted **

Varisian is a hodgepodge, it part Taldane, Orc, Thassilonian, giant and a few others. The language is also known for double meanings. The Varisian people seem like an analogue for the Romani people, but my efforts to find a translations were difficult. Other Indo-Aryan languages bear similarities, so here would be Varisian as Sinhalese, phonetically.

"mema sarpa eya svāmiyāgē vaḍā karadara oppu kara æta."
** spoiler omitted **

What I am trying to say is that if I eventually use these languages, would you prefer I do something like the above or just say "Franti spoke in the rhymic, songlike language of the Ulfren:" then what I say.

Languages are fun, but I only know one.

For Varisian, I'd use Romanian (available in Google Translate): Acest sarpe se dovedește mai multe probleme decât este maestru.

As for going to the trouble of posting with spoilers, it preserves the experience for players whose characters don't speak the language, but if no one understands the language, then it won't mean much either way. I've role-played with PCs who share some of the languages as my characters. In one case, some of us knew draconic and it allowed us to talk with some kobolds. After a few exchanges using the spoilers, we just dispensed with the spoilers and wrote what we were saying in English with the implication of using Draconic and telling those who don't speak draconic what we were saying. Can get tedious unless there is some strategic benefit.

In another case, a character was borderline evil, with a thing for gnolls. He would say things in Gnoll, but put the meaning under a spoiler. When I leveled up, my character learned gnoll, so I could read what he was saying without him realizing I could tell what he was saying. Didn't develop into anything interesting as it happened and I quit that group partly because I didn't like running with evil characters. So pay your money and take your choice, as the saying goes.

I agree. It's usually only worth it if there's some strategic benefit or you have some RP reason.

For example, I have a core PFS wizard who is a bit absent-minded, and she ran through all her languages to see if a creature spoke one of them, but getting all of the languages mixed up, as she had forgoten which one was which. It was just a one-off gag, though.

I won't be bouncing between them unless someone doesn't respond to common and is humanoid so I can see if they respond to something. Unless someone else first uses Skald or has Varisian languages (Or god forbid, tells a joke in them) Franti will be speaking in good ol' common.

I plan to take most-all mundane languages, lord knows I have the skill points for it. If I can't tell a joke in every language, I'd be lacking in one or two of the endgames I have in my head. If we reach the end alive, a 20th Level 10th Tier Mythic fool needs to be the biggest clown around. If the Fool act runs 'till the end, I'll either be a legendary wandering jester, the loyal fool of a court, or hell, end the game with a jump over to the Starstone Cathedral. Display of Dexterity will likely be my first mythic ability, I'll be quite the jumper!

There's also a level 6+ universal mythic tier ability that gives you a permanent tongues effect that you can put up again as a free action if it gets dispelled :)

By the time we hit 20/10, Rabbit will have quite her own collection of languages, though her initial focus will be on extraplanar and non-human languages. Despite her fondness for Franti, she will be judicious when translating his jokes, especially if the audience is dubious and heavily armed. :)

In almost every case, my wizards are very open to be translators and see no reason to conspire in other languages. I will typically post something that makes it clear they are serving as a translator, relaying everything said exactly just to help keep the game flowing smoothly. I do like it, however, when all of the PCs have a secondary less common language that they can converse in during combat so they can plan out loud in front of most enemies.

We need to go track down a Chaotic-Good-Drow-Rebelling-Against-His-Heritage-With-Two-Scimitars-And-A-C at to teach us Drow Sign Language to use in-combat. Anarya would probably appreciate it :)

There's also a level 6+ universal mythic tier ability that gives you a permanent tongues effect that you can put up again as a free action if it gets dispelled :)

I missed that! Now it boils down to which is more important: Tons of skill points put into Linguistics, or a Mythic Path ability. "This just might work" might lower some of my skill necessities. My early/mid build is largely determined, but late game things I still have some specialization. Luckily, the Trickster's 6+ path isn't anything special, short of Bloody Streak and maybe Class Mimic, or something I can get through path dabbling.

Really, the only mythic I see as "essential" is Mirror Dodge and Vanishing Move.

As for a shared language, sign language may be the best. I swore there was a way to teach someone a language without spending a skill point, but I can't find the rule now. OOP! Avelina beat me too it, all while playing Match-Maker again.

FOUND IT! Of course it was under retraining rules, my favorite set of rules that only I look at.

You can spend time to learn an additional language. It takes 20 days of training to gain a bonus language, and these days need not be consecutive. Each language requires a trainer who shares a language with you and knows the language you want to learn, or a book written in a language you know that explains the basics of the language you want to learn.

The new language does not count toward your maximum number of languages (racial languages + bonus languages from Intelligence + Linguistics ranks). You can train this way only a number of times equal to 1 + your Intelligence bonus.

Sooo, with only twenty days...eight hours a day...

I like the idea of posting in Google translate other languages. As long as a spoilered translation is there.

@Franti Ah, you have a lot more freedom than I do with tier abilities then. Dual pathing will make Avelina spread a bit thinner.

In regards to her matchmaking, her concern with matchmaking is part of her making sure everyone has Happy Endings, which is part of how I justify Avelina being going down the Marshal path. It's kind of selfish in a way, as it's partly her just trying to make the world conform to her vision of it. If and/or when she does learn the world isn't like that, she will learn that she really does want the best for everyone.

I want her to eventually get a rude awakening in which she finds out she is nearly as virtuous or wonderful as she has built herself up as, but then I want her to realize she actually is a decent person still, and she doesnt need to be perfect to be a good person.

I might have said this before, but I have had zero experience with Mythic gameplay. You guys are going to have to give me a guiding hand, assuming Ellena makes it that far!

Danny Kaye is my favorite fool and he was a master of many tongues.

Plan for the mythic stuff if you like, but remember that it is rumored to be over-powered and so some limits may need to be put on it. Don't be too rigid in what you expect to take.

It's nice to have a character build plan, but I find it often is helpful to change directions as role-play makes certain options more desirable than one might have foreseen. Sometimes its better to pick a new ability based on what has happened rather than to try to force something that doesn't connect to anything. While it's not required, it is nice when the abilities one gains at a new level represent things the character could have learned during his adventures rather than appearing out of the blue.

I've learned languages when my character ran with another character who knew a language and it turned out useful to know. I took knowledge (Nature) for one character when she had to slog through a jungle for a whole level.

Luckily we have been in a cave, so dungeoneering will be somewhat natural. Franti just falls in a cave, picks up an exorbitant amount of knowledge about rocks and minerals, and everyone asks "does he just really like it down here? Did one of the mongrelmen talk about rocks for hours and he just listened while he applied his makeup?"

When I do pick up languages, I'll have to get a Dummies (fool's) Guide to Conversing with Golarions or something. I am sure there is a smashed to hells library somewhere in Kenebres that I can take a book from that no one will miss.

As for Mythic and continuity, there is this 6th level Champion mythic abilities that let's you jump miles in minutes. Like, acrobatics roll divided by two miles at the speed of a mile per six seconds, a bit under the speed of sound. Franti recklessly jumping over things alludes to the fact that I might take that far in the future with Path Dabbling.

Danny Kaye was the perennial showstealer. Even in movies with the likes of Gene Kelly and Bing Crosby he was a standout.

My favorite is The Court Jester, with such classic bits as "the vessel with the pestle has the pellet with the poison" and the bit where he is hypnotized into thinking he is an expert fencer but the effect comes back and forth with each snap of the fingers.

Side note: While finding these clips, I came across this which shows the first bit followed by a nearly identical bit from an old Bob Hope movie but involving dueling pistols.

Sorry I haven't been on for a few days. I have four people staying over in my tiny apartment since Thursday. It might be Monday before I can reliably post with much attention.

I am looking forward to that eventual channelling ;)

Once we drag the unconscious mongrels out of an area, she's gonna channel to heal everybody, but she's being conservative with the cure spells. A healer without her magic is no healer at all, so she knows when to conserve it. But if Franti takes another bad hit, he'll get a direct heal from her, don't worry. :)

Two levels to selective channel. Two levels to selective channel. I need it so bad. D:

The question of whether a tiny creature in the same square as an enemy can be flanked by any ally of the enemy is not clearly indicated in the rules. There is a discussion of this that draws opinions on both sides. I'm ruling that flanking does apply. One might just as easily rule that hitting the tiny creature is made harder by the close proximity to the ally, similar to the rule about shooting a ranged attack at an enemy in melee with an ally. So I could see the reasoning of not allowing the flanking bonus.

Opinions?

Technically, you're not "opposite" the enemy, so technically, you're not flanking it. A lot of GMs rule that you can, though, because if you don't, there's no justification for allowing the reverse - tiny flankers with their own sneak attacks.

The snake does provoke an AoO for entering one's square, though. Five-foot-stepping only removes the AoO for leaving a threatened square - entering someone else's space still provokes. (I've played a tiny-sized Kitsune Mouser who needed to jump through a lot of hoops to avoid that AoO, which sadly 5-foot-stepping doesn't do).

Good to know about the AOO for moving into one's own square. I guess this is part of the reason for getting an AOO against someone who tries various combat maneuvers against him.

I'll be using Guidance on my next attack roll, if the snake doesn't die by then. Otherwise, I will use it on a Perception check for traps if we reach one of the rooms in time.

Should we all get a guidance before moving to the next room? Just in case, there isn't any harm besides like, half a minute wasted.

My opinion? my opinion is that I've learned more about the finer points of the rules playing this campaign than at any point since first picking up the core rulebook. Just another plus to having gotten accepted for it. :)

So close. Horgus would have killed the viper but for the mist and the 20% miss chance. The positioning does show a clear case of flanking with the viper between Horgus and Ellena.

I find it just amazing when a familiar is more of a hassle than its master and the master's mooks! :)

The joke isn't lost on me. If I rolled an attack roll like that when Horgus first came over, we'd already be up to our knees in Mongrelmen deep in the lair.

When I Alter Self, are my belongings shrunk with me? Does their weight lower? Is my carrying capacity also lowered? Should I just shut up and not worry about it?

Was busy all day, still on a weird schedule but returning to normal. Gonna make a quick post for now and then catching some sleep. Karas and Franti are the only ones hurt, right? She'll channel to heal everyone in the party who's been injured.

Your gear re-sizes with you when you use any polymorph effect that doesn't absorb the gear.

@Franti: What Anarya said.

I've added a marker to the map and I'll add more as new rooms come into view. It is a red plus sign. Think of that square as the origin of a coordinate axes system. If you can't move your character, you can use the plus sign as a reference point to indicate a precise square.

Consider the plus sign the (0,0) point of the room. The square to it's right would be (1,0). The square north of it would be (0,1). The square NE of it would be (1,1), etc.

So, for example, if someone wanted his token moved to in front of the Southeast door in room H2, that would be square (3,2) or 3 squares to the right and two squares up from the reference point.

I placed all the mongrelmen and the kobold in H1, since that would put them far enough away that Anarya could use her channel energy without healing any of them. They may come conscious eventually, or they may be munched on by a wandering chaotic hungry monster.

Only about a minute passes after the end of the last melee with the viper. Aravashnial thinks the mist will last about another minute or two.

One last note: After you defeat the next challenge, you will have enough XP for 2nd level. I will let you level up in the middle of the lair, as long as you are not in melee. No need to be in a safe location. So be working on your next level up.

Do we get an additional skill point for our craft/profession skill, or was that a one time thing at first level? If not applied, this will be my advancement. Is so, Craft(Devices) is now at +6.

You can take 1 rank for craft/profession skill.

I just now realized I never gave Anarya her free craft/profession skill like I'd planned. Gonna give her one in Craft (Alchemy) to represent her familiarity with healing potions.

Question, is it possible to occupy the square directly above the lizard?

I think it would provoke an Attack of Oppurtunity from moving through a threatened square, but I believe you can.

Barring acrobatics, I agree with you.

My rule for whether a square can be occupied is if the very center of the square is open, the square can be occupied. If the center is in a wall or other impassible object, the square is not available for movement or standing.

So square (4,5), (5,5), (6,5), and (5,6) are open, all others in H3 are not.

Moving through multiple squares threatened by the same enemy only counts as one opportunity for an AOO. In this case, the acrobatics result was above the creatures CMD, so it successfully evaded any AOOs.

It might have been better for Franti had he not. Franti doesn't seem to be having much luck with reptiles. Perhaps it's karma for imitating a reptile.

The cave lizard is essentially a monitor lizard or komodo dragon, which is very dangerous animal. This one was apparently being kept as a pet of sorts, so it knew not to attack mongrelmen.