DM Barcas - Kingmaker: New Beginnings (Inactive)

Game Master Isaac Duplechain

Lots of new applications for both PBPs!

Glad I don't have to make choices ;)

Ditto! Who are you leaning towards for this game Oh Mighty DM?

I will finish deciding tonight, but Alexius will get one of the spots. I really think he'll add a lot. I predict that he'll be closest to Taisper (with a less good-aligned morality) and Jemini (with similar views on law, though obviously harsher) and clash with Herein and Tandlara.

Okay, we have Alexius and Corwin joining us. Hopefully they will check in soon, so we can start planning how to get them mixed in the party.

@Alexius Let's leave your blade's agenda unknown for now, except that the Hellknight trainers were not surprised and immediately integrated it into your training. I'm a little wary about naming him Rogvaria-Thrune. I prefer his original name, as well as some of his details about his 'father'. How up-front do you want him to be regarding his ambitions for reclaiming House Rogvaria's assets?

@Corwin I like your story as-is. I especially like that we have a Surtova. I don't know if everyone will trust you.

Thank you for selecting me. I will finalise Corwin's sheet.

How would you like to do starting wealth? I presume I'll need a horse out of it. Roll for hp or half?

I am flexible about joining particulars. Corwin is sufficiently unshy to simply offer his services.

Corwin would certainly not be upfront about his parentage although there may be some clues (apperance, accent which is probably half way between noble and commoner and the simple fact that he is too straight forward to be good at deception). If quizzed hed probably reluctantly admit it rather than lie.

Welcome to the game guys! I look forward to having some fun with you both!

Any idea what kingdom roles you'd be aiming for?

I think Tandlara will go for Magister, or Spymaster*! Treasurer wouldn't suit her at all, and it will be an Int-based role.

*ASIDE: She would use magic and have birds and animals as spies, or at least convince people she does, as well as a traditional spy network. She'd also probably train children from youth to do the job, she can think in long terms of time. She'd actually make a great spymaster, especially is Jemini is queen/ruler, as she'd love to watch Jemini's back and keep her informed. Also she will live for hundreds of years, so the nation will always have all of her spying power and knowledge.

I see Jemini going for Ruler/Councillor, Verik for HighPriest/Treasurer, though he may be an NPC for now, Zander a Marshall (same), Taispar a Spymaster or Royal Assassin, Berrin a General or Warden. But they will chime in soon enough themselves!

Hah! With Verik and Zander those things will have to be renamed. Maybe Jemini can be "The People's Representative" or something. Maybe everybody can have a new denomination in the nation: "Face", "Right Hand", "Left Hand", "Heart", "Mind", etc

I like the idea of Hand! A nice tie to Game of Thrones, which Brevoy is.

My vote is and has always been that we balance the two and enstate a long term ruler and an elected Councillor called a prime minister. A pure democracy can come in later years when we replace the ruler with a president, but for a while at least we'll need a firm hand on the nations formation. I think a parlimentary monarchy is the best way to set it up in north Avistan, and pure democracy will make a target of itself.

And we can have a royal assassin. They are someone who does the hard graft of keeping the nation under control, they kill monsters, and preform legal executions. I think Taispar would be ideal at that, as its waht he wants to do. We can call it the Hand instead of the Royal Assassin though, to show that we are a Good nation.

The spymaster would be the EYE! :p

Yup, Berrin would go for a strength based general but he'd act as warden untill an army was raised. If the concept of monarchy vs. republic would ever go to the vote Berrin would vote monarchy, we're sheading blood and sweat for this land so he feels we are entitled to it. Although good-natured he has no high-minded ideals of equality for all, he believes in the individuals right to earn his own. He really doesn't have any high-minded ideals, just stick with your friends wich will serve as the basis for his chivalric ideal to become a chavalier of the order of the dragon.

Btw, Barcas; I've been going on about the order of the lion for Berrin (as in the depiction of lions on the armor he ordered out of Restov) but I meant the order of the dragon. My bad. Berrin intends to stick with his friends, not pledge to a monarch (even Jemini), so can we retcon that? Make it dragon motifs on his armor f.ex.?

Anyway, look forward to what you guys will bring to the boards :)

Spymaster would be "Ear" in my books. Though cannot think what "Eye" would be. AMG! I'm so excited to head back to Oleg's - even without much action we should neatly start into level 3. Which means it is time to pay a certain bandit lord a visit!

Yo dudes. Been too busy to post or anything, but I'm glad to see you guys are still moving along. Also, I'm still alive :)

Fantastic!!! So glad you're doing okay. Any idea when things will settle down? If not, that's cool. I'll NPC Zander until you're ready to pick up the reins.

Yay! Zander! Good to see you man, hope things quiet down for you.

@Dan E Not necessary. I think Corwin still has an interesting story to tell.

I wouldn't say I'm returned, just alive :)

You have been missed, sir. I hope all is well.

I been meaning to ask, Taisper, you mentioned that you started Death Note - did you finish it? What do you think? :)

Ach, just saw this, I'm sorry. :-/ I actually did not finish and RL has prevented a return. I'm terrible about finishing stuff sometimes. Things are settling a bit after June so I'm planning on getting back into it along with some other summer reading. Gonna start it over again. :-)

Hey, guys. I just got back last night.

Barcas, thank you for accepting my character. I have begun to read the game thread and I can finish the character in a day or two. Do I have that much time? (I'm a bit tired from that trip.)

Sure, not a problem. I'll get you an intro post when you're done. You'll both probably meet at Taxfest at Oleg's.

Barcas, there is an interesting feat from the role playing perspective, but it's prohibited by the Bladebound archetype. Here it is:

NOBLE SCION
You are a member of a proud Chelaxian noble family.
Prerequisites: Cheliax affinity, member of Chelish noble house.
Benefit: You gain benefits based on the noble house to which you belong.
Thrune: You gain Infernal as a bonus language. In addition, at 9th level you may bind to yourself an imp servitor in a ritual that takes 7 days. Your imp servitor grants and possesses all the benefits and abilities of a 1st-level sorcerer’s familiar.
Special: You may only gain this feat at 1st level.

Bladebound prohibits having any familiars, but this feat seems like a great fit for Alexius. The imp would be both his servant and a way for his infernal masters to keep a tab on him. Of course, I do not insist on it, since it is in collusion with the rules, but I think it's not overpowered since I'd have to wait 'till 9th level to get that imp.

You don't have to take it at 1st, since it's basically 1 skill point at that point. Frankly, it could be a trait rather than a feat, if you were so inclined.

Did you decide on going Morai-Thrune or Rogvaria-Thrune? I'd prefer the former, as it is a bit more subtle (easier to say, too). I think the long-term quest to prove his heritage will be more interesting if it's not appended to his name. (Not to mention the danger early in his career from those who like Rogvaria being gone.)

Did you settle on a backstory? I rather liked the first one. Perhaps Nathaniel went looking for his relatives, only to find that they disappeared just a year prior with the rest of House Rogvaria. During his research, he found a single heir remaining, in the care of a maid or retainer of the House, the 10 year old Alexius. Preventing an assassin from killing the boy, he took him back to Cheliax with a view to groom him for a return and the reclamation of Brevoy as a Cheliaxan vassal state. (Just an idea.)

Since the Black Blade is basically an NPC, I have plans for it. (Backstory, too.)

@DM

As above I was looking to confirm starting wealth and hp to complete my character.

Take average hit points or roll, your choice. Just has to be the same every level.

Take standard 3rd level wealth, which I think is 3000.

BTW, I'd appreciate if everyone would tally up their wealth so I can see if I'm doing well in treasure distribution.

You don't have to take it at 1st, since it's basically 1 skill point at that point. Frankly, it could be a trait rather than a feat, if you were so inclined.

Did you decide on going Morai-Thrune or Rogvaria-Thrune? I'd prefer the former, as it is a bit more subtle (easier to say, too). I think the long-term quest to prove his heritage will be more interesting if it's not appended to his name. (Not to mention the danger early in his career from those who like Rogvaria being gone.)

Did you settle on a backstory? I rather liked the first one. Perhaps Nathaniel went looking for his relatives, only to find that they disappeared just a year prior with the rest of House Rogvaria. During his research, he found a single heir remaining, in the care of a maid or retainer of the House, the 10 year old Alexius. Preventing an assassin from killing the boy, he took him back to Cheliax with a view to groom him for a return and the reclamation of Brevoy as a Cheliaxan vassal state. (Just an idea.)

Since the Black Blade is basically an NPC, I have plans for it. (Backstory, too.)

Thanks for this - I'm gonna take it as a trait, then. I'm gonna go with Morai-Thrune, since it allows me to further develop a PC noble house, since Nathaniel was my PC in Wellard's game.

I'm gonna expand the first backstory and bring it more in line with the Brevoy situation and go with your suggestions. I think that I'll be able to finish everything by tomorrow evening.

Take average hit points or roll, your choice. Just has to be the same every level.

Take standard 3rd level wealth, which I think is 3000.

BTW, I'd appreciate if everyone would tally up their wealth so I can see if I'm doing well in treasure distribution.

hehe - where does Zander keep the loot sheet? I think its pretty much fully up-to-date.

Here is Corwin. Still fiddling with gear and last feat. I originally had toughness which is mechanically nice but kind of boring. I have intimidating prowess as a place holder as I see him as being more physically intimidating and was thinking of building toward barb intimidation rage powers and cornugon smash (assuming that is Ok to take) but I see that Jemini has all the intimidation skill one could hope for.

In terms of leader role I don't want to step on any toes but I see Corwin as leaning toward General or Marshall (more likely the later if its available as I can see him having fun trying to build up the army). He's probably too impatient and illsuited for Warden. Royal Assassin could work I guess although it would be an unsneaky walk up and axe to the face kind of assassin.

Cornugan Smash is really, really strong. You have a Cheliaxan to teach you the principles, though.

Cornugon Smash is rather strong - but I imagine there'll be opportunity to find someone that knows how and is willing to teach. Maybe. :)

Jemini is keen on Dazzling Display - but other than that isn't really going to pursue intimidation overly. On the other hand, the new Ultimate Magic lay-on-hand feats are really enticing too. Radiant Charge, Greater Mercy, Ultimate Mercy... - I can see those in Jemini's near future.

Thinking long-term that could be:
3 - radiant charge
5-or-7 - dazzling display
5-or-7 - greater mercy
9 - ultimate mercy

Greater Mercy nicely offsets that Jemini loses a bit of lay-on-hand progression from the oracle level. Handy :)

Cornugan Smash is really, really strong. You have a Cheliaxan to teach you the principles, though.

I agree. Hence the reason I thought I'd mention it upfront :) The chelaxian regional requirement is rather odd though.

The feat I can't believe they didn't stick a level requirement on is radiant charge. If the paladin doesn't need do the healing its a dead baddie a day at low levels. Add it to a smite and an actual lance charge and its nuts, albeit limited. Of course if you have to heal it can make for some tough decisions.

I really like what they did with greater mercy though.

Ya, radiant charge is all-eggs-in-one-bucket that makes it really easy to make mistakes. Jemini could once a day (at level 3) - and assuming she didn't spend any on keeping herself and allies alive - deal an additional 6d6 + 5 damage on a successful charge. That equates to about 26 damage which is rather impressive at that level. Definitely powerful in a scenario where you know you're only doing one fight. In situations where encounters are followed with more encounters - an extended adventuring day - the feat loses appeal quickly.

Consider at level 7: Jemini could do a once-off 8d6 + 5 damage, or she could heal as a swift action 4d6 for 8 rounds in succession (that is counting the benefits of Greater Mercy).

Listen to me... I'm actually talking myself out of taking Radiant Charge. LOL :D now I'll have to think it through again. I'm still keen on the two mercy feats... so perhaps 3> greater mercy, 5> dazzling display, 7> ??, 9> ultimate mercy

In fact, it sounds more-and-more likely. Since Jemini will be a warrior of the holy light, she'll need lay-on-hands to activate her special abilities. Oh, but warrior of the holy light also gets more lays... a simulationist's dream

Sounds like the charge that Jemini had during the first fight with the bandits.

<<---- eyes glowing :D

Corwin's looking good! Where's Cornugon Smash from?

Its from the cheliax regional guide.

IMO the regional feats are a really odd design choice. You have smash which is mechanically really strong. You can construe slapping a regional requirement on it as a balance thing but then again its not much of one because you can just say your from cheliax or have a cheliax teacher or what not. Then you have other regional feats which are really weak so the regional requirement is insult to injury. With my GM hat on I tend to ignore the regional part and assess the feat on its merits but different GM's take different views on it and I'm comfortable with whichever as long as I know to guide my build.

Thinking more on the leadership roles Corwin could probably do without one at all if they are filled up. He could probably evolve into a Queen's champion or bodyguard type (although that might also make for a rebranded Royal Assassin).

With LN alignment I'm using 20 point buy, right?

With LN alignment I'm using 20 point buy, right?

22 I think, its only N that gets 20 in Barcas' game.

This is Nightflier's Magus. I have made him with 20 point buy, just in case. I'll put finishing touches today. Starting wealth is 3rd level, right?

22 point buy. 3000 gold for starting wealth, not counting the sword. (The sword will be a +1 Bastard Sword at this point, following the chart on page 47.)

I'd appreciate it if you used to same format that the other PCs have. (If you don't have HeroLab, you can just copy it.)

Also, his backstory still has him as a tiefling.

22 point buy. 3000 gold for starting wealth, not counting the sword. (The sword will be a +1 Bastard Sword at this point, following the chart on page 47.)

I'd appreciate it if you used to same format that the other PCs have. (If you don't have HeroLab, you can just copy it.)

Also, his backstory still has him as a tiefling.

I just wanted to create a rough draft for your inspection. Alas, I don't have Hero Lab, so I'm doing everything by hand. I'm gonna finish everything tomorrow, including background, so we can introduce him right after you check everything out.

ALEXIUS MORAI-THRUNE
Male Human (Chelaxian) Magus 3
LN Medium Humanoid (Human)
Init +1; Senses Perception +X
--------------------
DEFENSE
--------------------
AC 11, touch 11, flat-footed 10 (+1 Dex)
hp 27 (3d8+6)
Fort +5, Ref +2, Will +3
--------------------
OFFENSE
--------------------
Spd 30 ft.
Melee +1 Sword, Bastard +8 (1d10+5/19-20/x2)
Special Attacks Spellstrike
--------------------
SPELLCASTING
--------------------
Magus Spells Known (CL 3, 6 melee touch, 3 ranged touch):
4/4 1st:
4/4 0:
--------------------
STATISTICS
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Str 18, Dex 12, Con 14, Int 14, Wis 10, Cha 10
Base Atk +2; CMB +6; CMD 17
Feats Alertness, Exotic Weapon Proficiency: Sword, Bastard, Extra Arcane Pool, Weapon Focus: Sword, Bastard
Skills PENDING
Languages Cheliaxan, Common, Infernal, Varisian
Combat Gear +1 Sword, Bastard;
--------------------
SPECIAL ABILITIES
--------------------
Arcane Pool (+1) (5/day) (Su)
Spell Combat (Ex) Use a weapon with one hand at -2 and cast a spell with the other.
Spellstrike (Su) Deliver touch spells as part of a melee attack.

Wow, thanks! Where can I get this software? My email is i.jovanovich@gmail.com, so you can mail me there.

Shall we level up now that we are back at the post?

Hows our running XP totals?

Yeah, you can go to level 3 since you're at "home base". I haven't tallied in a while, but I will soon.

The software is Herolab. It's totally worth it, especially if you like making test characters or NPCs. For instance, I have an NPC that I made that you'll be meeting very soon.

hp gained: 1d6 + 1 ⇒ (6) + 1 = 7

New Spells: blindness/deafness, web
New Feat: Scribe Scroll

Barcas, I am done with the character. Take a look and see if there is anything missing.

Jemini's been updated to level 3 by taking her 2nd paladin level. The feat taken is Dazzling Display (I realized she doesn't qualify for Greater Mercy yet since she doesn't have mercy at paladin level 2).

Summary:

hp: 6 (avg) + 2 (con)
bab: +1
saves: fort +1, will +1
skills: 4 (bluff, diplomacy, intimidate, ride)
feat: dazzling display
class: lay on hands: 6/day (1d6), divine grace

Fighter 3
BAB +1
Saves +1 Ref/Will
HP +9 (6 +2 con, +1 FC)
Skills 4 (2 class, 1 human, 1 int)
+1 handle animal, +1 knowledge (engeneering), +1 ride, +1 survival
Class Features; Armor Training 1
Feat; Cleave

Link to Loot Sheet