DM Barcas - Kingmaker: Rivers Run Red

Game Master Isaac Duplechain

As Newhaven rises, threats besiege it from all directions. To the north, the news of the last heir of House Rogarvia threatens the start of a new war. To the south, an empire of trolls and monsters grows.


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I have to give a nod to Khaladon and Vorduvai for making their respective NPC's, makes me want to do the same which makes me wonder what kind of people a drunken steward might attract ;)


Male Human Cleric (Abadar) 7th / Fighter 1st / AC 24/10T/24F / HP 61 / F +10 R +3 W +11 / Init. +0 / Perc. +5 / Sense Motive +14
Berrin Myrdal wrote:
I have to give a nod to Khaladon and Vorduvai for making their respective NPC's, makes me want to do the same which makes me wonder what kind of people a drunken steward might attract ;)

Right -- for example you shouldn't make up an annoying chamberlain or butler to assist Berrin, because he'd get fed up and break said chamberlain, and then you'd just have to make another NPC all over again. Hmm how about the poor guy who has to be the animal handler for Reggie? I want to see who gets that job! :)

Of course to be fair you did come up with the first NPC with DM Barcas, that being Esmerelda of Varisia.


@Akiros - Hopefully the IC post answered your questions?


Male Human Samurai-Ronin 4/ Oracle-Battle 3 | AC 24/ T12/ F23, HP73, F+8/ R +4/ W +7, Init +1(Roll twice), Percep +6, Sense Motive +10
Berrin Myrdal wrote:

I agree with Verik, the gold mine is first on the list, the tower second unless Isaac knows something we don't and ain't telling ;)

Khaladon; The belt has been claimed by Nikolai iirc, with you two on the same credit level you guys either have to roll for it or discuss but note that Verik has craft wonderous item so he can make you said belt for the same cost.

Ah ok, my bad, didn't see his claim on the loot list and don't recall reading it, but if Verik can make one and doesn't mind doing so, that all works out the same for me.


Khaladon; Noted.

Everyone; I'll sell off the rest and finalize the sheet this evening (about 4 hrs max) if I don't hear anything before then I'll be posting your allotted amount of gold here.


Male Human Cleric (Abadar) 7th / Fighter 1st / AC 24/10T/24F / HP 61 / F +10 R +3 W +11 / Init. +0 / Perc. +5 / Sense Motive +14
Berrin Myrdal wrote:

...note that Verik has craft wonderous item so he can make you said belt for the same cost.

Yes and just to state it here I'm perfectly willing to make items at cost for the rest of the PC's as needed. After all, I'm burning the feats on it to see it make some sort of impact for the group, both in character strength and (as little or as much as you'd want it to be) in-game storytelling -- obviously the first item fashioned by Verik and Tandlara for Zander had some major significance.

I defer to Barcas on how he wants to see the time and difficulty for item creation, but just so you know my mind I'm not a fan of the popular interpretation of the rules that if you simply meet a requirement you can do it with a CL check. For example, just because Verik meets the requirements of crafting a item, doesn't mean that he knows "how" to make it or even knows of its existence. It's not like he has a recipe book of all wondrous items for example. Like real historical references to building trebuches, fireworks or gunpowder, I would think the lore on constructing a magical items would be a jealously guarded secret by faiths and arcane societies alike.

So I'm kind of going with the approach of (a) patterning from an existing item that he has identified and deciphered, or (b) spending an adequate amount of time and money on research to learn how to make an item, perhaps with an appropriate Knowledge check if Barcas deems it prudent.

So to make a Belt of Strength because we already have a similar belt would be pretty feasible I think. But a Belt of Constitution should require research, as he's never seen or done one before. That sort of thing. Anything really to keep magic items from being more than a statblock in this game, which is something I think Barcas had in mind when he ruled out random monthly item creation in the Kingmaker rules (which I wholeheartedly agree with).


I do frown upon the full magic-item-economy, so that seems a good system to me.


Corwin's backstory is here. His parentage is not really known, though Nikolai might recall smelling the Surtovan blood in him on the Battle of Stagfall. (It was when Nikolai was a bit more bestial than he is now, the result of the draconic magic and experimentation purged from him in death.)


Male Human Cleric (Abadar) 7th / Fighter 1st / AC 24/10T/24F / HP 61 / F +10 R +3 W +11 / Init. +0 / Perc. +5 / Sense Motive +14
DM Barcas wrote:
I do frown upon the full magic-item-economy, so that seems a good system to me.

I'll make another spoiler under my profile to indicate the Wondrous Items Verik "knows" how to dweomercraft so far, and then I'll ask in OOC what the approx. research time/costs are and any make check for something new that's plausible. For example, I'd like to have Verik research a Hat/Helm of Comprehending Languages and Reading Magic - some context there and probably not a stretch that he'd heard of something like that (Abadar archivists or lore-searchers and the like).


Yeah. Generally, it wouldn't be hard to make Spell-in-a-Can type items. For instance, the Belt of Giant Strength would be fairly easy for Verik to figure out and replicate as a Belt of Constitution or Dexterity. Similarly, the Crown of Charisma could easily be extrapolated into a Helm of Intelligence or Wisdom.


Finished up with New Beginnings at Wealday, 16th Gozran 4708; The Battle of Stagfall, the Rise of a Nation.

Linkedy-link.


I'm wondering, should the gold Jemini gave to start up the farm be out of the groups pocket or just her own. I know Berrin wouldn't object though she did it without asking anyone (which would be her right as a ruler anyway).


Just her own, Jemini intends for the 1000gp to come out of her pocket. The way I see it, a paladin doesn't need overly much in the way of money; so I tend to spend a sizable part of her fortunes on charity in some way. Given that Verik is there to half-price away equipment, it makes me feel all the more justified to be generous in Jemini's wealth.

That... and in most ways she's a noble's daughter, her sense of money is a bit askew.


Alright, too sum up =

Berrin; Gets; Sash of the War Champion and 2123gp 6sp and 3cp in coins and is owed 96gp 9sp and 3cp in coins.

Jemini; Gets; Ring of Protection +2 and took 1000 gp, owing 779gp, 4sp and 3 cp in coins.

Taisper; Gets; Composit Longbow (+2 str) and 3892gp 8sp and 9cp in coins and is owed 177gp 6sp and 7cp in coins.

Tandlara; Gets; 4036gp 3sp and 4cp in coins and is owed 184gp 2sp and 2cp in coins.

Verik; Gets; 4036gp 3sp and 4cp in coins and is owed 184gp 2sp and 2cp in coins.

Zander; Gets; +1 Frost Composit Longbow (+1 str) and 115gp 3sp in coins and is owed 5gp 2sp and 6cp in coins.

Nikolai; Gets; Sash of the War Champion and 2123gp 6sp and 3cp in coins and is owed 96gp 9sp and 3cp in coins.

Akiros Gets; 4036gp 3sp and 4cp in coins and is owed 184gp 2sp and 2cp in coins.

3 cp remains in the party loot.


I subtracted 500gp for the half-plate, don't know how long it will take to arrive but I'm sure you'll let me know.

I'll IC the selling later, Oleg would have an agent looking out for his assets in Sanctuary so Berrin would go with the loot to him.


Male Human Cleric (Abadar) 7th / Fighter 1st / AC 24/10T/24F / HP 61 / F +10 R +3 W +11 / Init. +0 / Perc. +5 / Sense Motive +14
Berrin Myrdal wrote:


Nikolai; Gets; Sash of the War Champion and 2123gp 6sp and 3cp in coins and is owed 96gp 9sp and 3cp in coins.

Belt of Giant Strength +2, but that's the same cost as the Sash so the cash is correct right.


Oh, right. I was copy/pasting to save myself some work. Forgot to edit that bit :)


And Verik; Would you be so kind as to forge one of those belts for Berrin as well?


Male Human Cleric (Abadar) 7th / Fighter 1st / AC 24/10T/24F / HP 61 / F +10 R +3 W +11 / Init. +0 / Perc. +5 / Sense Motive +14
Berrin Myrdal wrote:
Oh, right. I was copy/pasting to save myself some work. Forgot to edit that bit :)

Well I think we all owe you a debt of thanks for reviving not only the loot sheet but also the calendar. I have no talent for a spreadsheet of equitable loot distribution :)

Yep I'll get cracking here on an item creation list with some notion of time expenditure and costs, and then just like your armor we can work that into the story where applicable.


Male Human Cleric (Abadar) 7th / Fighter 1st / AC 24/10T/24F / HP 61 / F +10 R +3 W +11 / Init. +0 / Perc. +5 / Sense Motive +14

Verik's Proposed Dweomercrafting Fun
Verik's Spellcraft (d20)+8, or Take 10 Score = 18

In Gozran:
Verik would not have had much time at all for crafting in the last days of Gozran, but would have feasibly taken a day to requisition the crafting of three wands of masterwork quality from the area's best woodcarver that Jhod recommends. (Perhaps each wand the cost of a masterwork tool @ 50gp each?). Also requesting the creation of three leather belts of masterwork quality from the town's best leatherworker that Oleg recommends (price of a courtier's outfit @ 30gp each?). Finally, a requisition for a masterwork scholar's cap in an Inner Sea style from the town's finest tailor (that Oleg recommends). He would then see about performing research with the tomes and scrolls he has on-hand for insight into the dweomer of the hat for comprehending languages and reading magic. Failing that, he will negotiate with the Bank of Abadar in Restov for additional tomes that may help him to sort it out.
* Three Masterwork Wooden Wands - 50gp ea. x3 = 150gp
* Three Masterwork Leather War-Belts - 30gp ea. x3 = 90gp
* One Masterwork Cloth Hat - 30gp.
* Research into crafting Hat of Comprehending Languages and Read Magic (results below):
Verik's Knowledge: Arcana 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (8) + 4 = 12
Verik's Knowledge: Religion 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (20) + 5 = 25

Crafting in Desnus and Beyond:
So clearly Verik can't get all of this done in Desnus, and there are variables in terms of getting masterwork items made, performing research and having feasible time to craft until they head out again. So I figured this might be a good way to put in his priority list, and then the items can become available whenever prudent in the story's timeline. All of these pass on a Spellcraft Take 10 event, but if rolls are needed for one or more due to time constraints or first-time creation, I'll post those rolls as necessary.

Crafting in chronological order:
1) Cure Light Wounds Wand (CL1) - 750gp base price / 375gp materials cost (paid by Verik). Crafting DC6. 1 Day Crafting Time.
Success would make this Verik's first wand that he would keep for himself.

2) Cure Light Wounds Wand (CL1) - 750gp base price / 375gp materials cost (paid by Verik). Crafting DC6. 1 Day Crafting Time.
Success would make this Taisper's wand that he would give to his cousin, justifying it for hunting Abadar's enemies in the wilds.

3) Belt of Giant Strength +2 - 4000gp base price / 2000gp materials cost (paid by Akiros). Crafting DC13. 4 Days Crafting Time.
Success would make this Akiros' belt - Verik would deny putting Gorum's symbol on the belt as Nikolai has, but would inscribe a LN or LG aspect as Akiros desired.

4) Belt of Giant Strength +2 - 4000gp base price / 2000gp materials cost (paid by Berrin). Crafting DC13. 4 Days Crafting Time.
Success would make this Berrin's belt - as Verik and Berrin would probably disagree on a religious symbol, he would engrave the likeness of Valnyr on it or something else of personal significance to Berrin that still denoted strength and toughness.

5) Belt of Mighty Constitution +2 - 4000gp base price / 2000gp materials cost (paid by Verik). Crafting DC13. 4 Days Crafting Time.
Success would make this Verik's own belt, his first attempt at crafting a belt with a different but familiar aspect to him.

6) Hat of Comprehending Languages and Reading Magic - 5200gp base price / 2600gp materials cost (paid by Verik). Crafting DC9. 6 Days Crafting Time.
Success would make this Verik's own hat, his first attempt at crafting such an item of Abadar's favor.


The belt; A belt of thick, black leather with flat iron studs going around it. The buckle is a piece of solid iron depicting a charging bull.

Later when/if we reach the power levels to make better belts we can change the buckle to depict Valnyr when you make a belt of physical perfection for the big guy. I think a horse stands for power, speed and toughness all in one so he'd make a good motif for that.


Male Human Cleric (Abadar) 7th / Fighter 1st / AC 24/10T/24F / HP 61 / F +10 R +3 W +11 / Init. +0 / Perc. +5 / Sense Motive +14
Berrin Myrdal wrote:

The belt; A belt of thick, black leather with flat iron studs going around it. The buckle is a piece of solid iron depicting a charging bull.

Later when/if we reach the power levels to make better belts we can change the buckle to depict Valnyr when you make a belt of physical perfection for the big guy. I think a horse stands for power, speed and toughness all in one so he'd make a good motif for that.

Yeah I like that. I also like the fact that we can enhance the power of existing items so that they can build their own history.

Verik would probably like to take Craft Arms and Armor at some point, but I think for his 7th level he has to take a feat to give him more defensive prowess in combat, so it's going to be awhile.


* 7th; Leadership we'll see how things progress in regards to who'll be his cohort. I have some ideas there and Emma ain't the only one, I mean, a knight should have a squire right?)
* 9th; Horse Master
* 10tb(b); Ride-by-Attack
* 11th; Spirited Charge
* 13th; Furious Focus

I think this will be the way Berrin progresses, he'll be all cavalier from now on.


You should know that I'm pretty strongly against in-combat cohorts with the Leadership feat. I don't have a problem with the feat itself, but I don't like cohorts who simply follow a PC around and act as a second PC.


Also, way to go with forcing my hand, Berrin. I had an order that this was going to go in!

Everybody put on their roleplaying pants. This is gonna get bumpy.

Zander, you might want to put on a roleplaying cup in addition.


Sorry?


Male Human Fighter (Archer) 6

:P


I should add that Jemini has more than enough unspent cash in her reserves to cover the 1000gp (or 780gp owing). Perhaps it is best to not factor the 1000gp she's spending in on the loot dispersion and just give her what she's due in that way. Then she can simply subtract the 1000 from her private stash.


Boy, this got dramatic pretty quickly. Better than my wildest dreams!


Male Human Cleric (Abadar) 7th / Fighter 1st / AC 24/10T/24F / HP 61 / F +10 R +3 W +11 / Init. +0 / Perc. +5 / Sense Motive +14

You know every time I think Verik has a solid argument for something, Jemini comes along and utterly schools him and forces him to reevaluate. I'll run another post after work, but wow that was something (and nice Diplomacy roll with the HP too I might add)!


I'm getting some funky results when I take away the 1000 gp from Jemini's list so there's an error somewhere.

What can I say, I'm a chef not a mathematician. I'll have to go over the sheet from scratch.


Male Human Fighter (Archer) 6

I got ninja'd by Kesten, but I edited to account his words. It works better now that he called for a trial in a week.


btw. *snifles* ,o.O Berrin got kicked off the council O.o, *snifles*


Male Human Cleric (Abadar) 7th / Fighter 1st / AC 24/10T/24F / HP 61 / F +10 R +3 W +11 / Init. +0 / Perc. +5 / Sense Motive +14

Heh well Council is going to take awhile - we'll get you a new job before it's over with :)

Err to be fair you kicked yourself out of Council and forget to grab a seat when the musical chairs started (snicker). Oops!

That's okay Berrin, because Verik just realized with his Lawful nature that they just pulled a Catch-22 and boxed themselves into a corner.


Male Human Fighter (Archer) 6

How about executioner? 0_o Seems we are going to need one, one way or another. Although I guess that is Taisper's secret role. Although an axe is a lot more merciful that a morningstar.


Male Human Samurai-Ronin 4/ Oracle-Battle 3 | AC 24/ T12/ F23, HP73, F+8/ R +4/ W +7, Init +1(Roll twice), Percep +6, Sense Motive +10

Would anyone be able to provide a link to the posts around the times Gergori was last in town? I'd like to know what, if any, involvement Akiros had with the man.


Link


Male Human Cleric (Abadar) 7th / Fighter 1st / AC 24/10T/24F / HP 61 / F +10 R +3 W +11 / Init. +0 / Perc. +5 / Sense Motive +14

Well this just gets better and better doesn't it?


Male Human Samurai-Ronin 4/ Oracle-Battle 3 | AC 24/ T12/ F23, HP73, F+8/ R +4/ W +7, Init +1(Roll twice), Percep +6, Sense Motive +10

Gracias


Male Human Cleric (Abadar) 7th / Fighter 1st / AC 24/10T/24F / HP 61 / F +10 R +3 W +11 / Init. +0 / Perc. +5 / Sense Motive +14

Okay I'm all worked up today from the turns in the Council and now Grigori, but I'm going to put away the keyboard and get some sleep. Can someone please smack that guy around a bit, verbally or otherwise ;)

Oh and on another note I just realized - Verik's got Glyphs of Warding and Continual Flame spells now for your dwellings and such! Of course, Verik will work to make a nice tidy profit for the Sanctuary Bank with "select and approved" customers in Newhaven, but for you all it's simply 200gp diamond powder cost for the Glyph of Warding, and 50gp in ruby dust for a Continual Flame. Hmm I wonder if I could have figured out a way to Glyph the castle entrance for anti-Grigori...drat no such luck! Ah well!


We really should write up a constitution or something like the 10 comandmends sort of thing. I'm guessing this won't be the last verbal fight we're going to have so I'd like to have some sort of a reference sheet to fall back on.

Didn't the River Kingdoms have something simple like that?


I had a longer post ready but it felt so out of character for Berrin that I shortened it down to Berrin just being b+#+~y to Grigori.


Found the River Freedoms: http://pathfinder.wikia.com/wiki/River_Freedoms


Male Human Cleric (Abadar) 7th / Fighter 1st / AC 24/10T/24F / HP 61 / F +10 R +3 W +11 / Init. +0 / Perc. +5 / Sense Motive +14
Berrin Myrdal wrote:
Found the River Freedoms: http://pathfinder.wikia.com/wiki/River_Freedoms

Yeah I'm thinking the Founders have constructed the laws of Newhaven as a mix from Brevoy (mostly without the 'extra' rights and privileges allowed to the nobility), Absalom (heavy emphasis on areas where power is shared in the Council and citizens rights of property/commerce/land ownership), and Taldor (for historical legal purposes which Brevoy law originates from), with a healthy dose of River Freedoms mixed in for the people, probably heavily influenced by Jhod. So that's what I'm pretending Verik is working with.

The main assumption though is that Newhaven HAS a codified set of laws to cover all main areas of crime, commerce, etc., though it's limited by size and a lack of resources.


I imagine authoring a comprehensive set of laws to govern Newhaven would require well in excess of a year if only a small group of Abadarian clerics are involved. And given that any amount of Abadarian clerics are involved, the law would be a matter of debate and flux for decades to come.


I (and Jhod) am working on an assumption that the laws are Abadar-inspired, not Abadar-governed. I don't think he'd (or most of the characters) would have been on board with an actual theocracy.


Male Human Cleric (Abadar) 7th / Fighter 1st / AC 24/10T/24F / HP 61 / F +10 R +3 W +11 / Init. +0 / Perc. +5 / Sense Motive +14

Well the interpretation here is that Verik is mandated by Abadar to uphold the laws as written, and where they are not written to interpret them based on historical precedent. Assuming the laws of Newhaven do not have a specific provision on whether or not someone lawfully executed but then resurrected by divine right of the gods is subject to a trial of the same misdeeds he was executed for in the first place, he'd make the interpretation that it cannot be done, based on laws that he would know from his homeland of Absalom, Taldor (which seems like the Latin root equivalent to a lot of these cultures), etc.

He's making a pretty bold statement to show as a Lawful Good character that he can't dilute the law to serve political expediency, but obviously the PC's and NPC's will do what they have to do. From Jemini's words though, Verik truly believes if mortals punish him a second time for past misdeeds that he was already executed for, they are violating the law and also the gods who deemed that he should return despite his execution.

What Verik hasn't said yet is that if the second trial finds Nikolai guilty, they can take him outside of Newhaven and do what they want, and though Verik would protest he couldn't do anything about it lawfully. Like an extradition.

To me this whole thing is like Double Jeopardy, but the ability to Raise Dead and Resurrect is divine-inspired, so it has more of a religious take to it. Basically, how can you execute someone more than once, and you also can't execute someone and then also jail them for twenty years on top of it, because they're dead (well I guess you could but that would be icky in the cell there).

EDIT:

DM:
Hopefully I'm not being a real pain in the butt on this, but for awhile now I've had to sort out in my head how Lawful Good Verik would behave, and pretend he knows lots about legal matters and takes for granted he is accustomed to all the boring stuff that most campaigns don't have to worry about. I simply cannot see him standing by while this second trial thing happens given the context, because he would think he'd be betraying his oaths to uphold the law, mortal and divine. I mean otherwise he's just a double-talking, hypocritical coward, worthy of Taisper coming over and taking him out (and taking his eyes too so eww).

That being said, I'm aware that if this is cutting against the storyline or how the campaign should flow, I'm good with a retcon. But I'm going to need an "out" where Verik saves face and doesn't look like he's just some blathering idiot to be disregarded. So maybe Abadar will allow a binding trial and verdict because of grander cosmos considerations, and so he sends the divine word to "allow" the exception (dreams, an intermediary, whatever), so Verik can trust he's not betraying his deity and his oaths.


It's not like the suspense is killing me or anything...


I'm okay with it being a big deal for Verik. Conflict is good for the story. You weren't here when we had a big rift about Taisper killing Orlivanch, but that was a really similar situation. It turned out okay, and in my opinion made a much stronger story.

Although I'd fall personally under the opinion that one's sins would not normally be wiped away by death, not in a world where it's basically a reversible condition.


Male Human Cleric (Abadar) 7th / Fighter 1st / AC 24/10T/24F / HP 61 / F +10 R +3 W +11 / Init. +0 / Perc. +5 / Sense Motive +14

Yes agreed about the notion that sins of the condemned could not be wiped away if returned, and I would say that most orderly societies in Golarion (Taldor, Andor, Cheliax, Absalom, Varisia, Qadira, etc.) would arrange their laws in such a way to prevent that from happening, at least legally. Otherwise, that would be like an extreme form of practice of the medieval excesses of indulgences (though that would be an interesting loophole hehe). The notion of a raising or res is a divine act (unlike an arcane spell), but mortals can still prevent the act from happening, both legally and materially (by rendering the body unusable).

So to prevent wall-o-text and to keep the in-game posts from dragging on about legal drama, I've put some points here so that more of this can be implied...and we can get on to the good stuff right.

How Verik Would Be Trained To Think About Raisings & Resurrections:

So say an enemy of the state is convicted of high crimes and executed, the state is not going to allow the condemned to be raised or resurrected, taking steps to prevent the body from being able to be used (much easier for a raise dead with those conditions, a bit more extreme for the high resurrection scenario) for that possibility - probably more to prevent the body from being animated or rising in undeath for nasty vengeance.

Say also that precedent could exist where the state would declare unlawful any attempt to raise, animate or revive a condemned criminal who has been executed - so trying to do so would put those actors in jeopardy of the law, probably on some level of treason against the state. I'm going to assume Newhaven doesn't have that on their books, but that would be precedent from the larger and older lawful societies.

Now that's a stance of law and doesn't reflect the realities of power, so say a high priest of Zon-Kuthon somehow got their hands on a condemned corpse and raised or resurrected it, well that could happen.

The last part I was thinking is that, well, a raising or resurrection would have to be granted by a deity, so it can't just happen even if someone has 10k of diamond dust for a res and the condemned soul desires to return. The assumption is that the god(s) wouldn't grant the spell to them if it wasn't sanctioned. This makes for a great loophole in my opinion, because I would think an Abadarian, Iomedaean, Erastilian (Deadeye is LG after all) would find it unthinkable that their gods would do this, but a high cleric of a chaotic or evil power (though probably not a LE power like Asmodeous unless there's a legal/contractual loophole) could allow it under the right conditions, causing a big old ruckus.

The fun thing about this story with Nikolai is that Verik and Tandlara did ensure his body was destroyed fully - it was his sacred responsibility to do so as part of the aftermath. Verik felt there was no chance of his return (actually being afraid the Fey they saw would make an undead Stag Lord or something horrible). Hey look but here appears Nikolai anyway! Now Verik would have gone after the responsible party, but as that was the Lady of Graves herself, it's a moot point, and something mortal law couldn't account for.

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