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Just in case anyone else is reading this and wondering why everything is still up, the announcement was updated to say the boards are going down at 12 pm Pacific (approximately 35 minutes from now).
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Let's hope we can get all of our PBPs restarted.
lol
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Stay safe, everyone!
Get better soon. I've been sick myself all week.
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This is something I should have written a while ago.
Over the past few years, my interest in tabletop RPGs has waxed and waned. As of late, it's reached a nadir. I have nearly zero interest currently. I've tried to push through, to finish what I've started, but I must admit that I cannot. It's not a complete lack of time, though I have much less free time as of late, but there have been many days where I've stared at the campaign page with all its unread posts, trying to will myself to do something, but ultimately giving up and dong something else. It's not fair to other players/GMs to have a player that posts one sentence updates once or twice a week.
While I have struggled with depression, this isn't it. I have other hobbies, other social outlets that I actually look forward to.
Maybe some day my interest will return and I can come back for a game or two (but I should probably stick to one game at a time), but for now I need a break, a long break.
I do have one game that will need a new GM if you can find the time to help them. 6-17: The Devil in the Details
Thank you to all the players and GMs now and in the past that have been patient with me.
Feel free to reach out via PM or Discord, but I don't know how often I'll check back in here.
Best of luck and good gaming,
Mike
Hey, good on you for not just letting the game stagnate!
Sorry to see you go, Michael. I’ve played with you in several games. If things change and you decide to come back later, I would certainly welcome you.
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This is something I should have written a while ago.
Over the past few years, my interest in tabletop RPGs has waxed and waned. As of late, it's reached a nadir. I have nearly zero interest currently. I've tried to push through, to finish what I've started, but I must admit that I cannot. It's not a complete lack of time, though I have much less free time as of late, but there have been many days where I've stared at the campaign page with all its unread posts, trying to will myself to do something, but ultimately giving up and dong something else. It's not fair to other players/GMs to have a player that posts one sentence updates once or twice a week.
While I have struggled with depression, this isn't it. I have other hobbies, other social outlets that I actually look forward to.
Maybe some day my interest will return and I can come back for a game or two (but I should probably stick to one game at a time), but for now I need a break, a long break.
I do have one game that will need a new GM if you can find the time to help them. 6-17: The Devil in the Details
Thank you to all the players and GMs now and in the past that have been patient with me.
Feel free to reach out via PM or Discord, but I don't know how often I'll check back in here.
Best of luck and good gaming,
Mike
I'm in that game so I can't take it over. And when I read the scenario I couldn't really figure it out from one end to the other, which is why I decided to play in it before running it.
EDIT -- I'll have a look at it... Though Kat will mysteriously disappear if I take it :)
EDIT 2 -- just skimmed it. It's a bit complex for me to grab it mid-stream... I'd love to finish the adventure though so if a brave GM could grab it... :)
@Michael I'm sorry to see you go, but I understand and hope you have fun with these other hobbies you look forward to! I've enjoyed our many games together and wish you the best.
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Re: 6-17. Quickly looking at the scenario I don't think I could take it over since January I'll be working double shifts and can't run any games during that time.
Is there a Cottonseed equivalent of "loaned scenario" that someone could provide?
I'd consider taking the game over with three caveats:
1. I've never played the scenario, so I don't know what's left.
2. I don't own the scenario, and I'm not thrilled about buying it if it's just a little left.
3. I'm traveling for two weeks over the new year and will likely have extremely limited Internet access.
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Michael, I am sorry to see you go! You were my first venture officer and a great sounding board. You helped me build the PBP region into a thriving community. However, I will say that sometimes all you need is some time off to rekindle interest. So... Maybe we'll see you in a few years. And if we don't... know that this community loves you.
Hmm
This is something I should have written a while ago.
Over the past few years, my interest in tabletop RPGs has waxed and waned. As of late, it's reached a nadir. I have nearly zero interest currently. I've tried to push through, to finish what I've started, but I must admit that I cannot. It's not a complete lack of time, though I have much less free time as of late, but there have been many days where I've stared at the campaign page with all its unread posts, trying to will myself to do something, but ultimately giving up and dong something else. It's not fair to other players/GMs to have a player that posts one sentence updates once or twice a week.
While I have struggled with depression, this isn't it. I have other hobbies, other social outlets that I actually look forward to.
Maybe some day my interest will return and I can come back for a game or two (but I should probably stick to one game at a time), but for now I need a break, a long break.
I do have one game that will need a new GM if you can find the time to help them. 6-17: The Devil in the Details
Thank you to all the players and GMs now and in the past that have been patient with me.
Feel free to reach out via PM or Discord, but I don't know how often I'll check back in here.
Best of luck and good gaming,
Mike
It happens. A passion change.
Michael: You've been a fixture of this community and we are all sorry to see you go, but you're going in the way I can respect most, not just fading away. As a guy who has been where you are, I say go and do what you love. Maybe we'll see you around and maybe we won't, but we will respect and remember you.
Best of wishes from all of us.
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I'll defer to GM Watery Soup, but if that game needs a GM, I'm willing. Let me know, please, Watery Soup!
- Tarondor
I've not played it, but more importantly I've never run a 7-10 scenario. Is that feasible for someone who's never run above 3-6?
If so, I'd still need prep time, probably until the weekend.
I'll defer to GM Watery Soup, but if that game needs a GM, I'm willing. Let me know, please, Watery Soup!
I haven't committed to this, and I probably won't, so if you're willing, please do.
Michael, I've enjoyed the games we have shared over the years. You're decision is understandable, but you will be missed.
Also, I am grateful for those other GMs who have expressed interest in taking over Michael's table. I believe I am at my capacity for running tables at the moment and would have to wrap one up before I start another.
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I'll defer to GM Watery Soup, but if that game needs a GM, I'm willing. Let me know, please, Watery Soup!I haven't committed to this, and I probably won't, so if you're willing, please do.
Done. I'm only "very busy", not "overwhelmed" so it should be fine. :-)
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I've never run a 7-10 scenario. Is that feasible for someone who's never run above 3-6?
Just my two cents, but it's neither easy nor unfeasible. It's solidly in the feasible-but-difficult territory.
A big part of it is the sheer number of things characters have going on. You'll need to track weapon crit specializations and a lot of temporary conditions like frightened and persistent damage. If you've got a good system / tracker, it's fine. It's easier in PbP and can be downright maddening in person.
You'll need to remind characters of things like S->CS on saves, as many become Master at those levels. If the PCs are responsible, or they are willing to accept consequences if they forget, there's no problem. But I find there's a lot more "oh wait I forgot" retcons or potentials for retcon.
The major variable is how well you know the classes and especially the archetypes/dedications. So, for instance, you might know how an Investigator's Devise a Strategem works, but do you know how the Investigator Dedication's Devise a Strategem works off the top of your head? Again, you can count on PCs to be more responsible at these levels, but also, it just adds to the mental load to constantly having to look things up.
In my home games, I jumped from GMing a Level 8 homebrew to a Level 11 AP, before any of my PFS characters got up that high, and I found a significant learning curve with all the changes. The saving grace was that my PCs (my kids) made the same jump, too, so they didn't squawk too much when we all ended up forgetting about features that weren't built into Pathbuilder, and I did end up nerfing several encounters from Levels 11-12 as we all grew into the new paradigm.
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Correct. There are WAY more moving parts as you go higher up. Lots more feats, spells and abilities you're going to need to look up because you're going to see them for the first time. DC's that you think are high are only "achievable".
Combat is going to be a bit more complex due to the added capacities of the monsters (and the PCs). As a whole, the PCs remind you (e.g. Halgur's PC Astrid has a Dread Rune, and she leads off with intimidating strike with Paragon Stance [?] which is a perpetual shields up posture) but you do constantly have to retcon until you get used to it.
Technically, the "easiest" 9-12 I can think of is 04-15 (In Glorious Battle). It's essentially Lions of Katapesh on Industrial Strength Steroids. The premise is the same. Combat and skill checks. The combat has a ton of moving parts though. The first time I ran it, my first combat tactical map looked like an Excel graph that went haywire :)
What you're seeing is multiple overlapping explosion effects where the hostiles explode when they hit 0 hp. While they're immune to fire, they're not immune to the physical damage. They're hp were low enough that the physical hits took them below 0 as well! :)
I kept this because it's the first time I've had a tacmap look like that! :)
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To my tables -- apologies I wasn't able to update last night. Had a dermatological procedure done on my face yesterday -- my face was stinging and I looked like I face blocked a Dragon Mouth pistol at 5'... (or for those who hunt/shoot, I look like I took a load of bird shot to the face)... I'll catch up today :)
Thank you both for the insight. Broadly it's what I expected but the concrete examples help me see what to prepare for specifically. It looks like Tarandor is taking over 6-17, but I'll take the advise on a "first" 9-12 and look into it, gauge my readiness, etc.
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The way I describe it is that higher level scenarios themselves aren't generally more complex than lower level scenarios. But the higher the level PC's and NPC's are, the more working parts and interactions there are. The 'difficulty' comes from just knowing these well enough to keep the game going without getting bogged down. Of course, you don't have to be perfect, and it is player responsibility to know their own sheets, but if you can head off issues then that can save headaches.
My personal rule of thumb was to not run the higher tier scenarios until I had my gm blob high enough to technically play at that level if I wanted. Some GM's do the higher stuff sooner but that's just what felt right to me. I think it also just helped having played (as a player) at those levels before too. In some sense just having any high-level experience can help.
Related to this as a player add plenty of notes to your post, especially when using rare abilities.
By level 10 we probably all know how electric arc works, but when you start using weirder and less common abilities, leave notes for your GM, or link to the AoN page, or both.
Here's a recent example from my level 12 ranger (No meaningful spoilers)
Arrus then fires a Penetrating Shot at Blue Barney (range 110), finding a nice soft fleshy spot of yellow to fire though.
Crossbow vs Blue Barney: 1d20 + 23 ⇒ (19) + 23 = 42
Piercing+fire+force+Precision: 3d10 + 2 + 1d6 + 1d6 + 2d8 ⇒ (8, 10, 3) + 2 + (1) + (2) + (4, 1) = 31
It doesn't note the names of the abilities, that was the first time and maybe earlier in discussion regarding the interactions. So this is the "shortened" version on the notes with just what's going on.
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That post looks familiar... :)
I ran 03-15 (Cavern of the Sundered Song) as a challenge basically. After running low-tier multi-table specials, I thought 'how hard can it be?'. I've found that running the high tier scenarios are "easier" because your players are going to be 'helping' you along the way.
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Doing my best to make all my wackiness easy to understand.
It's been a tough year for me and IRL PFS this year, your pbps (and others) are what's keeping me in the game.
My live PFS game count this year:
Jan: 1 Play, 2 GM
Feb: 1 Play
March: 0
April: 0
May: 0
June: 2 Play
July: 5 Play, 1 GM (including 4 Plays at EBBG Con)
Aug: 1 Play, 1 GM
Sept: 1 GM
Oct: 0
Nov: 1 GM
If you need help running the game, I'd be happy to jump in. I'm busy, but not super busy. While I don't know the scenario, I do have experience with high-level play (although more live-action than PbP).
Same, happy holidays to those celebrating! TO those not, happy break ;)
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We're about to get into the Christmas\New Year fun!
Ive just changed jobs and the good thing is everyone went on leave so its pretty quiet until they all come back in 3-4 weeks :p
I keep thinking I've got enough bandwidth to run a game, and then I wait a day and life catches up.
Eventually I'll get another pbp going, but who knows when.
Happy New Year everyone - from 2026!
To my games: as I feared, I have Internet (mostly) but not really the opportunity to post. So I'll be back next week.