Curse of the Crimson Throne / Edge of Anarchy (Aardvark DM) (Inactive)

Game Master Troy Malovich

Hello :)

This is a follow-up to the recruitment thread . Thanks to everyone for completing their characters earlier on . I think they'll mesh really well within the story and hopefully as a group as well.

This is the thread to discuss any questions that you might have about the game , both before and after we start.

The game should start on the 19th as I said earlier . Do you have a preference in terms of how often people post ? Once a day seems to be a regular number on the boards , but we could do a faster or slower game depending on what everyone's schedule is .

There's a reasonable amount of combat throughout the AP , do people have any preferences about running combat on a PBP basis ?

Initiative might be an issue , I think for groups of monsters I will simply have a flat initiative number and basic tactics (essentially just attacking or fleeing) after the PCs have acted and reserve round by round initiative for NPCs. This is closer in a way to "cinematic" systems and their "mooks" but it should speed up the process and allow the story to flow more smoothly

Do have preferences about the combat to story/NPC interaction ratio ? I will mostly be running the AP as written , ad-libbing some of the dialogue to flesh out the NPCs a little bit .
That being said if people prefer more NPC interaction I can reduce the number of combat encounters (e.g when exploring a dungeon or building) , or if you prefer a bit more combat (NPC interaction still forms a good part of the AP , especially early on) I can avoid some of the sidequests .

For XP I was planning to follow the AP's general guidelines (There are various points in it when party levels are suggested , i.e "The PCs should now be around level 2" or the like) and have the characters level together as the story progresses (in line with XP gained obviously) , but I'm open to a more traditional breakdown of XP if people want to keep track of their character's own XP .

Finally I was wondering if you could tell me if there's anything specific you'd like to see in the game , which I'll do my best to incorporate while using the AP as written . More swashbuckling or more investigation/film noir ? NPCs as companions ? Any other ideas ?

Personally I'd like to see a heroic CotCT where villains are suitably villainous and heroes are suitably heroic (of course some of your characters are Neutral like Nekogami's Inquisitor, their alignment will definitely have a part to play . CotCT doesn't have Dragonlance-like levels of moral conflict) The game opens with a plague on Korvosa which makes for some potentially altruistic or tragic interactions with some NPCs. Some of the NPCs will have a more nuanced viewpoint however and negotiation will of course be possible if you want it to.

Thoughts and comments welcome :)

A minimum of once per day posting is fine by me. Keep in mind, the boards pretty much die on the weekends.

As far as combats go, it seems to be pretty typical for the DM to roll everyone's initiative and run the combat just as you would in a face to face game. Some DMs like to use Maptools to put maps on line to show terrain and placement, typically I just use a googledocs spreadsheet. (here is an example)

Combat/Story Ratio: I would leave that determination to you and the way the AP plays out.

Using the book's guidelines is fine by me, just keep in mind those guidlines were meant for 4 PCs, you have 6, so you may have to adjust the encounters a bit if you want the progression to match up.

Thanks again for running the game.

Woot! Glad to see this kicking off.

I am pretty open to anything. I haven't actually ever played in an Adventure Path, you could do it exactly as written and I would be happy. Roleplay is great, though I am not as well versed as some on these boards. Playing a Paladin, I plan on being very heroic so I think it will fit this AP very well. The XP issue is great however you want to handle it. I don't necessarily care if I keep track or not.

Rutter is decidedly non-heroic. I modeled him on the character in the movie, "Payback".

As for NPCs to be included, I would like to see Rutter's former friend in there somewhere, so he can kill him. He should be pretty low-level (both as a character and within Lamm's organization), and not a traditional thief, since he had to enlist Rutter to do the thieving on the job (maybe a charismatic fighter?).

Thanks for your feedback about posting speed and experience . I'll definitely make use of your backgrounds to make the adventure more 'realistic' for your characters so Rutter's friend will get his comeuppance at some point .

As I said before I think this is the ideal party story-wise for this game since the characters are all linked thematically with some aspect of the adventure path . I couldn't have suggested a better spread of characters.

I hope this AP PbP will be a good experience for everyone and a good introduction for you Celestial Half-Porc . Some parts of it are better written than others but I think the NPCs are compelling and it helps redeem some of the less exciting parts.

I haven't really got any experience with using online maps . From what I can remember of the first volume the first few encounters can be managed without a map but depending on how it turns out I may use one later on in "Edge of Anarchy"

We're set to start on Sunday but I'll be keeping an eye on this thread in the meantime :)

I agree with generally leaving the amount of combat to rp as it is in the AP. Adding a bit here or there to hook our characters better is always good though.

For exp, its up to you. If I need to keep track of my own, fine. if you are just going to tell us when to level, thats fine as well.

I agree with Arianna about initiative, generally easier for you to roll for everyone. Also, if combat were to begin with a Perception check for a surprise round, or something like that, I think that falls the same way. Just easier for you to do it for everyone, instead of waiting for us, individually.

I can probably guarentee at least one post a day on any day except for maybe Saturday, though if Im not able to, I'll try to post an extra action for combat on Friday.

I like the Google maps idea that Arianna showed, though obviously its up to you.

Really looking forward to this game! Ive been considering reworking some of Copper's stats and such, but if I do, I'll make sure to have him done by Saturday, and his backstory wont change, nor will his race/class/ etc.

I agree with generally leaving the amount of combat to rp as it is in the AP. Adding a bit here or there to hook our characters better is always good though.

For exp, its up to you. If I need to keep track of my own, fine. if you are just going to tell us when to level, thats fine as well.

I agree with Arianna about initiative, generally easier for you to roll for everyone. Also, if combat were to begin with a Perception check for a surprise round, or something like that, I think that falls the same way. Just easier for you to do it for everyone, instead of waiting for us, individually.

I can probably guarentee at least one post a day on any day except for maybe Saturday, though if Im not able to, I'll try to post an extra action for combat on Friday.

I like the Google maps idea that Arianna showed, though obviously its up to you.

Really looking forward to this game! Ive been considering reworking some of Copper's stats and such, but if I do, I'll make sure to have him done by Saturday, and his backstory wont change, nor will his race/class/ etc.

Sounds good . I agree about the initiative , it will be easier for me to roll it en masse . Google Maps sounds intriguing and relatively simple to use so I might use that , but as I said I think the first few encounters are probably manageable . I'll check again once I have access to my books

The XP question was mainly because I know the feeling of achievement that adding up XP individually usually brings , but I think thematically it will be easier for me to add up XP over the course of the AP and have all characters level together.

Copper (and indeed anyone else) . Tinkering with your character's stats is fine within what you suggest . I'll look over everyone's characters again on Sunday to set the stage for the introduction .

Looking forward to the game as well !

i beleive everyone should level together as well. i went for kind of an anti hero type.

i can guarantee a post once per day almost every day except thursdays and saturdays.

i could go either way with combat/npc interaction though i would like a little more of the latter (my saturday gm covers most of my combat needs)

i have another question, do spiked chains have 10 foot reach in your game? (like they did in 3.5 edition) i would reccomend giving them the reach anyway because they are an exotic weapon and need some kind of benefit. it will also save you some trouble adapting the adventure path (i heard that a certain npc has 10 foot reach with one)

i would also recomend adapting the treasure to the pcs. especially primary weapons on boss encounters and specific magic items that party may not benefit much from using should be swapped for ones that actually benefit the party. multiple smaller items is better than one big item and don't feel too constrained to the wealth by level chart.

i live in rancho cordova california. pacific time. and may have to do a few chores first from time to time.

Leveling together after milestone events is fine by me. To me, story is more important than combat, but of course as a melee character I hope to see a fair amount. But interaction between characters and npc's is what I really like. The above comments on Initiative and Perception and such, are fine. Anything that will speed things along, especially with a group our size, is appreciated.

During the week, I am available for posting all day. Weekends, usually just the mornings. I am in Santa Fe, NM (GMT -7).

Senjin has led a deluded childhood, and is probably seeking to escape that with a more heroic path to follow, but his means may be a bit harsh from his upbringing on the streets.

Sounds good to me as well . Story and NPC interaction are also more important to me , although the AP is such that combat will be present.

Adapting treasure is a given , I'll definitely make sure you come across magic items you can use as well as those you can sell. Thanks for the suggestions about treasure.

I'm not sure about the spiked chain , I wasn't really aware they'd changed since 3.5 so I think I'll allow them to by default.

I should clarify that I meant something more like a 'swashubckling' game (with duels , standing up to evil and criminals, and so on which CotCT has a lot of) when I said heroic , although from your backgrounds all the characters are also plenty heroic enough for the game . As i said I couldn't have hoped for a better group (and group of players I'm sure)

I'm in West London (UK,GMT) and Luxembourg (Central European Time, GMT +1) alternatively which are earlier but I'll bear everyone's timezone in mind for the game.

Expanded and cleaned up background a little and added description. Just to let you guys know, I will be moving at the end of this month, but most of my posting is during the day at work, so it shouldn't be hurt too much.

Changed out a couple spells, a trait, and a trained skill to try to better represent someone who is just coming into his magical abilities without the formal training.

Also, is there some way of doing Private Messages on these boards? I cant seem to find any way of contacting another member of the boards directly, other than posting in a thread they are in, and hoping they read it.

Changed out a couple spells, a trait, and a trained skill to try to better represent someone who is just coming into his magical abilities without the formal training.

Also, is there some way of doing Private Messages on these boards? I cant seem to find any way of contacting another member of the boards directly, other than posting in a thread they are in, and hoping they read it.

I don't know of any way to do that , but I could be mistaken . If you want to send me an email , my email address is awasila (at) mac (dot) com

Wasnt meaning I needed to get ahold of you, was just curious in general. Thanks all the same though.

Just to give everyone an update on the game . I was stranded at London City airport until last night . It's unlikely I'll be home until tomorrow evening so , allowing for a day or so to let me review the first module the game will start on the 22nd ,sometime in the evening GMT

Sorry about the delay , it was quite unexpected - At least I managed to get a hotel room and a place on a flight unlike so many other people .

Changed up background and appearance a bit, hopefully makign it a bit more apparent that the ring is his focus, and beginning how Im going to portay his Arcane Bloodline into his appearance (beginning with a runic circle surrounding the irises).

Im at work right now, but I leave at 1pm today, (CST) and may not be on again until Monday. My pc at home seems to be having some kind of problem where it isnt recognizing that there is any drive whenever I boot the pc.

I can try to post from my phone, but Im not sure how well itll work.

Merry Christmas, all.

With many apologies about the late start (preparations for Christmas and then the actual holidays , plus feeling incredibly tired since I came back from the UK) the first post is now on

I hope you'll enjoy the introductions and the game . I will definitely be posting more regularly , checking the boards several times a day .

I hope you've had a good Christmas and look forward to the game :)

Adrien

Just realized Concentration isn't a skill in PFRPG...so; I'll fix that on Monday when I get back to work....sorry lol

Fixed. Trained in Knowledge (arcana) once again.

Not to sound impatient or anything, Mr DM, but its been close to 10 days since you posted. Are you traveling again? Should we expect another post in the next couple days?

I guess we had the unavoidable delay of the holidays messing with people's posting schedules. But after Damersel checked in on Monday, I too hoped things might pick up.

Yeah, sorry for the wait everyone. I have some unpacking to do, but am good to go none the less.

At what point should we look for another GM? I had to withdraw from the game I was GMing, but suggested my group look for another and continue, and they had great luck. It was very encouraging.

I was wondering that, too, but didnt know how soon to bring it up. On the one hand, he may be traveling again, as the holidays are now over. On the other hand, its been like 12 days.

Rutter, I actually have that thread on one of my lists, and was reading through it. When I saw you were dropping, I was hoping you wouldnt have to drop this game as well.

I really liked how you started the game, btw. Gave me a couple ideas for how Im going to run things in my RotR homegame, which starts tomorrow.

If I remember correctly, DM Amethyst is a college student, and may not settle back into things for another week or so. That being said, I would propose we give him a few more days before seeking a new DM.

Alright, it has been over two weeks. It appears that our DM has left us after one post.

Shall we try to find another?

I'm good with whatever you guys want to do. If we can find someone to DM that would be awesome.

I definitely hope Adrien is OK. He seemed so up for this, and then he has dropped off the site completely. I went back looking at his postings, and he seemed a bright and clever fellow. Shame really.

I think we should go ahead and look for another DM. If Adrien shows up again, he can find another group of players to run through the AP. There's no shortage of players. I'm not trying to sound harsh. I'm just not as surprised that someone's disappeared from the board without a word - it seems to happen quite a bit.

I agree as well. Id even be ok with him continuing on with our game, as long as he gets back to posting before we pick out another dm, though if he does want to continue, I think we shouldnt wait 2 full weeks before looking for someone else, again.

Not trying to sound harsh, just wanna get to playing.

I too checked his profile to see if he had been posting in other areas of the boards while ignoring us, and was surprised to not have seen any activity since he posted. Very odd.

I went ahead and posted an ad seeking a new DM. Hopefully someone will take pity on us.

Seeking replacement DM

New DM here!

Several folks have already posted over in the new DM recruitment thread:

Yamiko
Copper
Damersel
Senjin

Can anyone that hasn't checked in post here to let us know that you're still interested?

Full disclosure, this is the first time I've DMed a PbP, although I have a lot of experience DMing IRL and playing PbPs. I'll probably post a few times a day during the week and sometimes on weekends. I'm in the US, Pacific time.

I'll give folks until Tuesday (Jan. 18) to check-in and then commence posting over in the game thread.

Yamiko, I'll have to think about the spiked chain having reach. In my experience, it was a bit too good in 3.5 and is a bit too blah in Pathfinder. Off the top of my head, I'm not sure what the right balance is.

Rutter is still here, as he posted the search for the new dm (thank you for that) and Thank You Cloud for taking over.

It does look like we lost Arianna, our witch. As Talomyr just bowed out.

Of course! Thanks Senjin, I should have noticed that. Okay, well everyone is accounted for one way or another. We still have five, which I think is fine. Do people have a preference to recruiting another player?

I say, whatever makes your job easier. We still have arcane covered with a sorcerer.

I don't mind looking to fill the slot, but I could also just push ahead. The group we have, has hung on to this hope of playing for over a month, I think they are pretty dedicated to seeing this happen.

New DM here!

Several folks have already posted over in the new DM recruitment thread:

Yamiko
Copper
Damersel
Senjin

Can anyone that hasn't checked in post here to let us know that you're still interested?

Full disclosure, this is the first time I've DMed a PbP, although I have a lot of experience DMing IRL and playing PbPs. I'll probably post a few times a day during the week and sometimes on weekends. I'm in the US, Pacific time.

I'll give folks until Tuesday (Jan. 18) to check-in and then commence posting over in the game thread.

Yamiko, I'll have to think about the spiked chain having reach. In my experience, it was a bit too good in 3.5 and is a bit too blah in Pathfinder. Off the top of my head, I'm not sure what the right balance is.

just giving the spiked chain back it's reach/threaten adjacent will save you loads of trouble with early adaption and will make the spiked chain worth the feat rather than being a misplaced martial weapon. the problem wasn't that the 3.5 spiked chain was overpowered, it was that most of the other exotic weapons were not worth the feat tax. we could always come up with multiple variations as well. based on how many links you add. i promise i won't make a broken lockdown build in this game if you allow the 3.5 version. the only 3.5 builds that utilized the spiked chain were tripping based lockdown fighters.

I agree with Senjin. if you want to add another player, its fine with me. Whatever works for you.

Also, thanks for volunteering!

i beleive that since the meteor hammer, elven curve blade and falcata exist, the spiked chain should be given back it's 10 foot reach/threaten adjacent ability it had in 3.5. the meteor hammer still has it, elven curve blade and falcata are amazing DPR enhancing weapons for 2handed power attacking builds.

it also doesn't make sense that 15 feet of barbed chain wouldn't have 10 foot reach (with 5 feet devoted to grip).

i also promise that if you allow the 3.5 spiked chain, i won't disruptively abuse the privelege with a lockdown build.

i took the background, deity, alignment, and "ask the original dm" taxes. the original dm approved the 3.5 version.

Regarding more players, I think that going with the five we have is probably best. The bases are all covered reasonably well and everyone is obviously dedicated to getting it kicked off. I'll need the weekend to read over the module to make sure that I'm running it in a coherent manner, so I should be able to resume posting in the game thread on Monday.

Yamiko, regarding the spiked chain with reach, I'm willing to give it a shot.

Just to be sure, it looked like the allowed resources in the original character creation thread were the Player's Guide and the APG? I was surprised to see you mention meteor hammer.

Yamiko, regarding the spiked chain with reach, I'm willing to give it a shot.

Just to be sure, it looked like the allowed resources in the original character creation thread were the Player's Guide and the APG? I was surprised to see you mention meteor hammer.

nobody in the party uses a meteor hammer, i just mentioned it as an example to help me case. but it was player's guide, core rulebook, APG, and maybe other things case by case. meteor hammer is in another pathfinder sourcebook but it is basically a 3.5 spiked chain with a bigger base weapon damage die.

Are you going to start new threads or just continue the ones we have?

I'll just keep the same threads. It's been useful for me to review the old posts and I don't want to have to chase down posts in multiple threads. I guess that DM Amethyst will live on in the thread titles :)

I looked over the characters and I think that for the most part things look good. I did have two specific questions:

I will post in the game thread shortly and we can start the plot moving again!

http://www.d20pfsrd.com/feats/general-feats/expanded-arcana

To me, that reads as if I can gain 1 spell at my highest level, which is 1 atm, or 2 spells from my list as long as they are at least one level lower than the highest I can cast.

Am I misreading that? If so, I might like to take a new feat, please.

Ah, missed the first part, you're right. Everything looks good.

Awesome, thanks.

Here's the relevant rules for the game effects of Harrow points. Note that any points that you don't spend during the first adventure will be lost.

Dexterity Rerolls: Spend a Harrow Point to reroll any one
Initiative check, Reflex save, attack roll modified by Dexterity, or
Dexterity-based skill check. You must abide by the new result
(although if you have additional Harrow Points remaining, you
can use them to attempt additional rerolls).

Dodge Bonus: Spend a Harrow Point to gain a +1 Dodge
bonus to your Armor Class for one encounter. You can spend
up to 3 Harrow Points per encounter to increase your Armor
Class in this manner.

Speed Increase: Spend a Harrow Point to increase your
base speed by 10 feet for one encounter—you cannot spend
multiple Harrow Points to increase your speed multiple times
in one encounter.

Are there ways to gain additional Harrow Points, or is it just all or nothing from Zellara now?