DM Jesse's Temple of Elemental Evil PbP, Pathfinder style

Game Master Jesse Heinig

Fiiiiiiiine

Holy hells y'all got a lot of posting done today while I was otherwise indisposed. Leave it to me to miss the party.

Also, woot woot Level 2!!!

How are we handling HP? Half max + 1?

Buffers and healers, just FYI, I have SR, so probably best to heal me outside of combat when I can lower my SR reliably.

How are we handling HP? Half max + 1?

Yup.

I'm assuming that the blacksmith would not have any weapons or armor already made for me and I would have to order anything I would be interested in. Is he able to make masterwork items? I'm also assuming I won't be finding many magical items for my size and will have to craft them. Will I need to have one of our characters take the appropriate feats or are there NPC's that will be able to do that for a price? My main interest is a greatsword. I also will need better armor eventually.

The blacksmith can and will make items on demand, but he is a village blacksmith, not skilled enough to make a masterwork weapon or armor. You can get specialty items from Verbobonc, which is a major metropolis a few days' ride from Hommlet, and for Fezzik in particular the captain of the Badgers will "bundle" any orders you have with the usual resupply requests for the Badgers so you don't have to hire a messenger/courier/caravan. It will still take time though - anything off the shelf is about a week of round-trip time, anything custom made could be longer (but there are giants in the mountains, so occasionally people bring back Large weapons to the markets in Verbobonc).

I don't know if any party members plan on getting Craft Magic feats. You totally can as long as you don't go crazy making custom items that are designed to break the game's action or bonus economy.

If nobody crafts magic, you may be able to get enchantments via Burne (though he is usually really busy and loath to spend time outside of his current projects), the druid Jaroo, or the canon Terjon at the church of St. Cuthbert. More guaranteed sources are, of course, available by order via Verbobonc.

1) I can totes do teh craftzorz!!1! (I never know what Feats to take anyway. I'm not very good at Pathfinder. =p)

2) In the same vein, I'm willing to let you guys take more of the money now, to order some better, even magical, weapons and armor, with the long-term plan of funneling more money to me later so I can craft. I can't get Wpns&armor until later, but Wondrous Item is at 3.

Oh, Verbobonc has a pop. of ~35,000, so its base limit is 16,000 gp - meaning there's a 75% chance that anything worth that or less is readily available. Hommlet is ~100, which is village size, base limit 500 gp. That means that if Fezzik wants a Large greatsword today, there's a 75% chance that someone in Hommlet has one hanging on the wall in their living room as decoration handed down from their great-grandfather who fought giants in the hills but is willing to part with it yadda yadda... but if he wants a +1 cold iron Large greatsword he's gonna have to get it from Verbobonc.

Also remember that when you get to level 3, there's a second-level spell, masterwork transformation, that will let you turn an item into a masterwork item. So Fezzik could buy a Large cold iron greatsword for 200 gp, then make it masterwork later. (Technically, a Large masterwork cold iron greatsword is 500 gp, so it's exactly at the limit of what you might find in Hommlet.) Anyway, this is useful if you decide to get an unusually expensive weapon but getting a masterwork version would bump you over the purchase limit - you might be able to get the normal version and then make it masterwork later.

I can't recall where we were tallying our total gold, but that 3000 we just banked should outfit us quite nicely. I got the magic sword so I'm happy to let everyone prioritize their shopping first, but if there's enough left over for a composite longbow (+1 Str), that'd be dandy.

http://paizo.com/pathfinderRPG/prd/ultimateEquipment/appendix.html#gems-and -jewelry

Stupid thing keeps forcing an extra space into the link! But that is a url for Paizo's PRD.

It has the quote:

"Gems and jewelry can be bought or sold at their total value, and are sometimes used as currency. For simplicity's sake, assume that 50 gems weigh 1 pound."

Of note, I've been in the school of thought that gems are at full value, simply because the need for some currency greater (indeed, vastly greater) than the PP is needed. In a world without checks and credit cards, if you're a merchant making a 30,000gp purchase (for, say, a new galley), always carrying 6000 PP is cumbersome. Hence, it seems that gems would simply be accepted currency for large transactions, much the way we handle 100 dollar bills.

Jeebus, how many times do I have to say "full value, since many cultures used jewelry for exchange"? (Over on the Gameplay thread, for those who missed it.)

I'll shut up!

Ok. Enoby's sheet has been updated to level 2.

Also, I will echo Zinnath's mention of Spell Resistance: Enoby has it as well, so factor that into tactical decisions.

Well, maybe someday we'll convince the DM to let us have full value for our jewelry and gems, but for now we'll just have to hope. Maybe, just maybe, if we keep harping on this, all day, every day, we'll be able to change his mind. It'll take a lot of work, by everyone, but hopefully we'll live the dream of getting full value for exchange goods...someday.

SO! OPENING RECRUITMENT to replace a player who was blocked!

So are we getting full value on the gem?

So are we getting full value on the gem?

* pat pat * Yes, Deko. I know it's hard to understand with an 8 Intelligence. ;)

I think for now I'm fine with a plain great sword. Eventually maybe get adamantine. Also will wait on armor since large heavy armor will be expensive. The only other things I can think of are potions (magic weapon, mage armor, etc), maybe some holy water, and scrolls - either to use or to expand Kyrie's spellbook.

Actually, Fezzik, go ahead and roll for a MW cold iron greatsword. I can see how that could be massively useful, and it's not so much of our budget that can't afford it.

Yeah, I'll need some seed money for scroll and spells later when I get to crafting, but that's not for a full level yet, and the DM -did- say that there's a high character mortality rate.

Hence, let's spend a little on being effective now so we can live to be effective later. =)

I went back through the gameplay thread and made an inventory of all the items gained. The grand total doesn't include Gremag's swag (I assumed the local authorities confiscated that stuff) and assumes that we bought a cart and not a wagon, which I'm not certain of. Also, I didn't include the 24 crossbow bolts, figuring Bat could store those underneath her bed at the inn in case she ever uses the ones she normally carries around with her.

Also, Bat (+1 heavy steel shield) and Enoby (+1 short sword) have claimed the only magic items we've found thus far.

Unrelated Note: Bat used her last channel positive energy when we got back to Hommlet, so Deko and Fezzik should be back at full hps.

TEMPLE OF ELEMENTAL EVIL LOOT LIST

Gremag – fine chain shirt, poisoned dagger?
Trading Post - +1 short sword (Enoby)
Burne – 250 gp post-raid; free weapons from trading post
PURCHASE – Cart for trip to moathouse? (15 gp)
Snake – 850 gp ornamental dagger (says jeweler will pay that amount; Post #428)
Conference Room – masterwork cutlass (157.5 gp sell)
Lizard - scale armor (25 gp sell value), a light crossbow (17.5 gp SV), a case of 24 usable bolts, and 33 cp
Lizard’s Belly - +1 heavy steel shield (Bataleigha)
Dungeon Cell Hidey-Hole - peridot (500 gp)
Burne’s Bounty – 3,000 gp, six vials of alchemist's fire, six vials of antitoxin, two potions of cure light wounds (caster level 1), and two scrolls of magic missile (caster level 1)

MATH
250 gp
850 gp (dagger)
157.5 gp (cutlass)
42.5 gp (scale armor, lt. crossbow)
500 gp (peridot)
3000 gp
TOTAL = 4800 gp - 15 gp for cart = 4,785 - 500 (sword) = 4,285 gp

EDIT: I either forgot about the peridot or Bat pulled a Bilbo Baggins and unknowingly slipped it in her pocket. :)

EDIT 2: Half-Ogre Boogaloo... Deducted 500 gp for Fezzik's Large mwk (?) greatsword. Easy come, easy go!

Looks like the family and I are going out of town this weekend. Don't expect much, if anything, from me until Monday morning.

Yeah, weekends (and Wednesdays) are always bad for me.)

Also, thanks for doing that Bats!! =D

Great job Bat!

don't be shy folks, if you can use something, speak up!

None of that is overly useful for me.

No problem. Normally, I'm lazy and let someone who knows how to use spreadsheets do the party's treasure tracking but...I had some free time today and can at least make a list document. ;)

I figure each of us can take one flask each of alchemist's fire and antitoxin.

For a future in-game mini-mission, I was thinking that Bat and Enoby could take the peridot and ornamental dagger to the Hommlet jeweler. There, Bat can spin a yarn about having found the weapon in a wooden box in her dead grandpa's attic recently. If Enoby recognizes the jeweler or the jeweler recognizes the dagger...we may have found another cult infiltrator agent.

Re-reading the thread was good for me; reminded me that there are likely more cult agents in Hommlet, especially at the inn. We may want to try some sort of sting there before returning to the moathouse.

I figure each of us can take one flask each of alchemist's fire and antitoxin.

Gahhh! That stuff is too heavy for me to carry! Can someone carry mine?

For a future in-game mini-mission, I was thinking that Bat and Enoby could take the peridot and ornamental dagger to the Hommlet jeweler. There, Bat can spin a yarn about having found the weapon in a wooden box in her dead grandpa's attic recently. If Enoby recognizes the jeweler or the jeweler recognizes the dagger...we may have found another cult infiltrator agent.

Enoby is both surprised at, and quite appreciative of, Bat's devious cunning in this matter.

I'll go ahead and make a Swag Bag shared file and link it in the Campaign tab. Keep an eye out for its sudden appearance.

Hmmmm. A masterwork Comp. Longbow (+1 Str) comes to exactly 500gp.

Archer goodies: 1d100 ⇒ 38

And it looks like we can scrounge one up somewhere! Is everyone okay with dumping 500 on that?

@Bat, if you'd like to be my intermediary for the purchase I can save my Disguise Self for when we go to hawk the dagger: make it less likely I'll be recognized in turn by any cult members.

May I just say, I'm very pleased that you guys took to heart the advice not to tip your hand, since there are cult agents active in and around Hommlet.

This seems to be one of Gygax's go-tos: The PCs show up in the starter town, but there are evil agents in the town as well. If the PCs run around saying "We're going heroing! Here's who we fought! Here's what we've done!" then agents collect that info and take it back to the forces of Evil. It really encourages you to play your cards close to your chest and only open up to specific NPCs that you think you can trust, like the local good clerics and such.

Notably, this trope exists in:
* This module
* B2 The Keep on the Borderlands
* "Necropolis," his giant 3e dungeoncrawl module

In each case there are "agents of evil" in the base of operations, some of whom will report back on the party's activities, and some who will try to get hired on as hirelings and then betray the party when you're weak after a fight.

Incidentally, I was just using a "Large masterwork cold iron greatsword" for sample purposes. This should not be taken to indicate that cold iron is something you need to have. Though it's usually not a bad idea to have a range of materials available for swatting foes.

I know I didn't have to roll for it. I was following Kyrie's advice - No sense saving for that ultimate weapon if I'm dead.

About the only thing I'm wanting right now would be an Amulet of Mighty Fists to help with my combat. Otherwise, the standard magic items would be useful but not something I'm expecting right away. Will probably buy some standard cure potions before heading out again, but other than that, if someone needs a loan I don't mind sharing some of my loot.

Not to be metagamey but...Bat will have a much better chance to sniff out lies if she and Enoby wait until morning to visit the jeweler (I sank a rank into Sense Motive). :)

@Bat: Good point, and that means I could use my 1st level spell for the day to buy my Longbow on my own.

@DM Jesse: I presume there's a bowyer in town? I'll write a short scene with Enoby picking up her new weapon, then move her to the Inn.

@Enoby: Hommlet actually doesn't have a bowyer! You can either pick up a "normal" bow by talking to the guards who confiscated the stock from the traders, or you can ask around the townsfolk and see where they'd go if they wanted a particular special bow.

Was gonna wait until everybody hit the inn and tried my stew, but if we're already starting on some posts for the next day...

Yeah, sometimes with PbP things get out of order. I'd say go ahead and do it. I was going to post something about it too.

Is a wand of cure light wounds available?

75% chance: 1d100 ⇒ 33

Should we invest in one?

EDIT: Brain fart--the wand would cost 750 gp and is thus beyond the village gp limit. Nevermind. :)

I say we should! Wands look great in a dragon's horde!

A few level 1 potions might be a good idea if available - magic weapon, mage armor, etc. Even some holy water could be useful if we run into some incorporeal creatures. Right now, Deko and I would be useless against that.

The temple of St. Cuthbert has holy water (no roll needed) and can also supply two potions of cure light wounds immediately and an additional potion per day if you are ready to pay for them and let them know in advance.

But things didn't turn out that way! :D

I'm going to be without internet access until Monday afternoon (though I should have a brief posting window on Sunday). Bot my character as needed.

At convention, update Monday.

I have an item that Bat will have to travel to Verbobonc to acquire, but it can probably wait. Are we ready to return to the moathouse after shopping?

I'm ready to go and I think everyone else is, too. Any objections?

(Enoby's interaction with Black Jay can be handled via spoiler text as we go as an interstitial.)

Oops--Didn't realize the Black Jay thing was still ongoing. I can wait if Enoby wants to finish that up first (though I'm also good with spoilerizing the exchange as well).

Yeah, I was waiting on my interaction with Black Jay.