A memory returns to you upon seeing the soulsliver take the shape of her Summoner.
”Melisenn?” The name comes from your lips and the dark-eyed woman turns to look your direction.
”You have it.” She says, taking a heavy tome from your small hands.
”I told you, I have the Count’s full confidence.” ”Good. Very good.”
Shield of Faith, Magic Circle against evil. Find the Path. Protection from Fire
Cleric of Desna Level 12 AC 23 w/shield. 21 W/O. +21 Perception
We learned all that we can from her. I am inclined to accept her bargain and put her into the cell with food - in exchange for seeing the visage of Melisenn's companions (He's assuming that the summoner was Melissen). [b]
[b] We also need to be on the look out for the other Skum. We have a leader and a mage to still fight. The Mage probably fled and gathered reinforcements - like the leader.
So, how many Skum have we actually dealt with? If there's a dozen, we still have a lot to kill. Right? Who has a deathcount? Mariner, you are good at killing, did you count them?
BB thinks about an entry to the basements and cells. Trying to picture where it is.
Male Halfling | HP 74 | AC 21; TCH 16; FF 17 | Perc +14
Fearless grabs the Sliver to take her to the cells. As he does a vision takes root once again. "Melisenn is the summoner." He gasps. Looking down his hands shake. "I was working with her. Or I used to. I gave her some tome. She seemed pleased that I had the Count's full confidence."
He looks at all the bodies and grabs the Sliver again. "Do you know who I am? Did I help create all this?"
+1 @ Cats. That deserved an Oscar nomination! Great work.
"Brother Butterfly" wrote:
Who has a deathcount? Mariner, you are good at killing, did you count them?
The Mariner holds up two hands, three fingers on the left, three fingers on the right...whether it adds up to the correct answer, he wasn't sure. Like Brother says, good at killing - not at counting.
He pats Cats on the shoulder, giving him some sense of sympathetic comradeship to bolster against his personal darkness. "Alright, enough banter from you, soulman - and don't try giving me the witch's sight either, or I'll make a pocket mirror out of you."
Tilsitari shakes her head at Fearless. ”I was only recently summoned. If you were part of this I am unaware of it.”
The Mariner’s threats seem to cow the soulsliver somewhat, and she poses no trouble as the Watchmen descend from the study down through the archives, cutting through the dining hall, to a set of stairs in one of the northern passages that lead down into the dungeons of Fort Hailcourse.
At the bottom of the stairs is a store room. The walls of this cool and surprisingly dry subterranean chamber are lined with sturdy shelves laden with chopped wood. A couple of axes sit propped in the corner, and a small hatchet is driven into a stump used to split smaller logs and make kindling. A large door stands across the room and a smaller reinforced door stands to the east.
”The cells are through the smaller door.” Tilsitari informs.
Shield of Faith, Magic Circle against evil. Find the Path. Protection from Fire
Cleric of Desna Level 12 AC 23 w/shield. 21 W/O. +21 Perception
Worried that the fingers that Mariner is holding up don't account for all the Skum and the leadership.
So, this situation calls for divine help.
BB casts CLW from wand to get Mariner almost or at max.
Desna, Of great godess of travel. Protect this member of our vanguard. Cast Shield of Faith on Mariner. Plus 3 to deflection bonus. cast at 5th level.
Male Halfling | HP 74 | AC 21; TCH 16; FF 17 | Perc +14
The Sliver's reply doesn't ease Fearless anymore than he was hoping that it would. "Everywhere we go just adds more questions. This is as bad as the first season of that play where the dwarves in a sky citadel crashed down on a deserted island." Opening the door Fearless helps lead Tilsitari to her cell. Once she is in he tosses in a couple of rations. "We're not monsters anymore."
Still a bit dazed, Cats realizes that Fearless's words draw him back from the point of panic and despair.
"Yeah, we're not catsters anymore. We're redeemed. We can atone for our mistakes. We're different. Catrenrae redeems. Brother said so. And so it will be," Cats mutters to himself, clawing his way back from the precipice.
Brother Butterfly works some healing magic, restoring the Mariner and offering a spell to protect him from further harm. Cats clears the area and Fearless goes to open the eastern door, preparing to throw Tilsitari into a jail cell. He pulls on the handle but finds the door locked.
Male Halfling | HP 74 | AC 21; TCH 16; FF 17 | Perc +14
Disable Device:1d20 + 9 ⇒ (1) + 9 = 10
Fearless tries jamming his dented silver dagger in the lock again. "I really need to pick up some proper tools." Sighing he pulls back. "Can you get this Cats?"
Cats grunts in response to Fearless and gets to work.
Cats will first re-search Tilsitari for the keys to the cell (and anything else that might be used to escape...like mirrors, etc), then ask him where they might be, and only then will begin to address the cell with his masterwork thieves tools.
Cats check’s the door, then goes to work with his tools, taking longer then expected thanks to Fearless attempt to murder the lock with his dagger. The door opens into a dark hallway that leads to a row of three doors along the northern wall, each fitted with a small grate in the middle. A single door stands in the southern wall.
Unfortunately, the this area is not unoccupied. Three skum stand waiting with tridents.
A couple of axes sit propped in the corner, and a small hatchet is driven into a stump used to split smaller logs and make kindling.
The Mariner waits behind the others near the steps, a little bored waiting for the locks to be picked. Glancing at the pile of wood, he shrugs and shoves the axes and hatchet into his belt.
"Gah! Skum! Cat'em!" Cats drops his tools, draws his bow as he moves back 5' and shoots red in his skummy face.
1d20 + 8 ⇒ (20) + 8 = 28 to hit vs. FF;
1d8 + 8 + 2d6 ⇒ (3) + 8 + (6, 1) = 18 damage.
Ah yeah, pot crit vs. FF. 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (7) + 8 = 15 to hit vs. FF;
2d8 + 16 ⇒ (3, 3) + 16 = 22 more damage.
Cats Stats:
AC: 17
HP: 38/38
[ dice]1d20+9+1[/dice] to hit; (+PBS)
[ dice]1d8+3+1[/dice] damage.
Mini Smite: 0/1: Once per day as a swift action, you can add your Charisma bonus to your attack rolls and deal 1 additional point of damage for each class level you have against evil creatures for 1 round. You must have a good alignment to take this trait.
Spoiler:
+4 Bab +4 Dex +1 magic +1 PBS -2 DA -2 Rapid=+6/+6 to hit
+2 Str +1 magic +4 DA+1 PBS = +8 damage
::SPPLOOOGGH!:: expecting nothing more than empty jail cells, the Mariner was taking relaxed gulps from the waterskin. "A TRAP!", he levels the lucerne and drives point through the threshold.
Shield of Faith, Magic Circle against evil. Find the Path. Protection from Fire
Cleric of Desna Level 12 AC 23 w/shield. 21 W/O. +21 Perception
Brother Butterfly reacts rather quickly, as if Mariner's counting session had tipped him off that there were more Skum to encounter. He says a quick prayer and touches Mariner on the shoulder.
Oh Traveler! Let him hunt and defeat.
Cast luck on Mariner. Mariner gets to roll his attack twice and pick the better result.
BB looks at SilverSoul - waiting for her to try to escape or backstab one of us.
Cats shoots an arrow through the heart of the closest skum as Fearless Prepares the group for a battle and Brother Butterfly prays for luck.
Tilsitari replies to Fearless demand with a shrug. ”I hold no command over them.”
Mariner luck reroll:1d20 + 8 ⇒ (5) + 8 = 13
The Mariner steps forward and thrusts his polearm through the doorway. The blade misses, but luck is with him and the weapon catches the creature in the back of the leg as he pulls it back.
The remaining skum fight back, jabbing with their tridents. Neither gets past the Mariner’s defenses.
[ dice]1d20+9+1[/dice] to hit; (+PBS)
[ dice]1d8+3+1[/dice] damage.
Mini Smite: 0/1: Once per day as a swift action, you can add your Charisma bonus to your attack rolls and deal 1 additional point of damage for each class level you have against evil creatures for 1 round. You must have a good alignment to take this trait.
Spoiler:
+4 Bab +4 Dex +1 magic +1 PBS -2 DA -2 Rapid=+6/+6 to hit
+2 Str +1 magic +4 DA+1 PBS = +8 damage
Cats looks for a shot, but fails to connect with his arrows. Brother Butterfly continues offering Desna’s luck to the Mariner, giving him a sudden opening to run through another skum and take it from the fight. Meanwhile, Fearless throws his magical dagger, distracting the last skum in a fight that is suddenly very lopsided.
The creature makes one pitiful stab and croaks in distress.
Alone and outnumbers, the Watchmen make quick work of defeating it.
Combat Over
None of the skum have real possessions of any value, nor have they stored anything of worth in the area. The three cells here are dirty, and the smell of waste and rotting flesh fills the air. The first cell is empty. The middle cell contains the partially butchered bodies of two humans. The last cell contains one a young man, curled up in the corner, hands over his ears, whimpering.
Cats moves into the new room, his bow training on imaginary targets to the left and right. After confirming the area is all clear, he looks to secure the first cell for the prisoner (as described above).
Hearing the whimpering, he looks at Brother. "I think he's catting your language. It sounds whiny..."
Shield of Faith, Magic Circle against evil. Find the Path. Protection from Fire
Cleric of Desna Level 12 AC 23 w/shield. 21 W/O. +21 Perception
Brother Butterfly bends down. Seeing that the man is in great distress and obviously not hearing - or wanting to hear things. BB uses sign language or at least basic hand gestures to convey that The Watchmen are here and he is safe.
Even pointing to the bodies of the Skum and giving a "GAWK" symbol across his throat to indicate that they are dead.
He offers food, and even breaks out two bowls - and magically filling them with water. Taking one of the bowls to Cats to give to SoulSilver.
diplomacy:1d20 + 12 - 4 ⇒ (18) + 12 - 4 = 26
Taking a minus 4 due to communicating without words.
sense motive:1d20 + 8 ⇒ (12) + 8 = 20
WOW, BB is just great with or without words. He's like the anti-Lord Bronin! Knowing what to say or not say in all situations.
With the skirmish squashed, the Mariner looks up from crown to crown, still apprehensive. I don't see any ducks or mallards, he considers as to not be an easy fool.
"Next time, let's try Get Down, Take Cover, Grab Your Socks, hmm?" he ruffles Fearless.
Male Halfling | HP 74 | AC 21; TCH 16; FF 17 | Perc +14
Fearless fails to see the confusion as is perplexed by the Mariner's line of reasoning. "Words mean things. I had time for Duck! You got sea water in between your ears?" Fearless smirks.
"Next time, let's try Get Down, Take Cover, Grab Your Socks, hmm?" he ruffles Fearless.
"'Cat down'? 'Grab your cats'!? Which one of those sayings might Brother listen to? It's like he's been trying to make every shot as hard as possible for me," Cats joins in the complaining.
Shield of Faith, Magic Circle against evil. Find the Path. Protection from Fire
Cleric of Desna Level 12 AC 23 w/shield. 21 W/O. +21 Perception
Hearing Cats,
With this bardic mouth - comes a wide body.
He says just that and smiles. Knowing they need him more than he needs them.
He's getting tired. He wants to sit and rest soon. He's been on his aching feet for like 20-30 minutes straight. It's an endurance record.
Can someone open these two doors?
He says, assuming Soul Silver is locked up and given food and the prone figure is not armed or harmful.
Tilsitari is placed in a cell, and though there are no keys to lock them, Cats is able to eventually work the lock with his tools and seal her inside.
Meanwhile, with soft words and a knack for saying the right thing Brother Butterfly soon draws out the young man from the cell.
”My name is Sholn,” He says, and Brother Butterfly is reminded of a girl that approached him a the Silver Wagon.. ”I was ambushed on the streets of Thrushmoor one evening by a group of cloaked men and women. They beat me unconscious and I woke up here. Guarded by those.. monsters. There were other prisoners, but every night the creatures came and took one away. None returned alive. Sometimes they brought back bodies, and the monsters... they ate them.”
Checking the southern door, you find it locked. When Sholn notices your interest in it he becomes agitated. ”Dddon’t go in there! I heard moans coming from the other side. Even the monsters seemed afraid of it!”
"The door is catted. Who has the key? Who locked these cells?" Cats asks Sholn even as he explores the south door.
1d20 + 10 ⇒ (9) + 10 = 19 Perception - south door
"We're here to clean this place out of evil. And if there is a bad catter behind this door, we'll have to get it too," Cats explains. "But it would be easier if we knew who had the keys for this place."
Cats turns his attention to Tilsitari.
"And you? I believe you owe us some faces. Time to cat up."
Sholn answers the question about keys. ”One of the monsters had the key. I think he was their leader. He was bigger, and wore chain armor. ”
Cats then turns to Tilsitari and demands another face.
”As agreed.” Tilsitari replies, and transforms. The form she assumes is of another human woman, young, pretty, with blonde hair, green eyes, and freckles. She wears trousers, a chain shirt, and long coat frayed at the edges from use.
Cats Flashback:
”You aren’t done yet, are you?” The blonde stands ready on the balls of her feet, a rapier held at classic third position. A thin sheen of sweat beads her smiling face.
”The lesson is over for today Risi.” You hear yourself say.
”C’mon, old man. You can drink with the fool priest later. Show me how you killed all those demons.” The young woman tugs at her sleeve and gives you a seductive smirk. ”Let’s touch for clothes. First one naked, loses.”
You feel yourself grin and ready your curved blade in an eastern waki no kamae position, extending behind you. Hidden yet ready to strike.
”Sneaky.” Risi comments.
”Demons never played fair. Why should I?”
Oh man, Kast is getting kicked in the balls by his past. But apparently, he had some swaggerish charm in his youth.
Kast stares at Tilsitari's form, his mind flashing back to happy(?) memories that he would never recall on his own.
He stares dumbly, trying to assimilate what he has seen. After a few moments, he is able to explain what he's seen.
"I know her. I catting know her. I...I...I used to train with her? Sleep with her? She...she...her name was Risi. She and I trained...and maybe we did other things. I wish I could remember. But...but...I wish I could remember. But her name was Risi. We were close," Kast relates dryly, trying to remember more.
He looks at Brother.
"She said...she said...that I used to like to drink with a catting fool priest. A fool priest," Kast takes his eyes from Brother and to the rest. "It might have been Brother. I don't know. I just don't know."
Have we faced the 'monster' that the prisoner describes that might have had the key?
Cats will unlock (but not open) the southern door (by D22) after others have a chance to respond and maybe Brother does some doorsight or something.
Shield of Faith, Magic Circle against evil. Find the Path. Protection from Fire
Cleric of Desna Level 12 AC 23 w/shield. 21 W/O. +21 Perception
Sorry. I meant D18 door. BB will doorsight the "south door" . but I want to check out D18 first as I gave Mariner a good Shield of Faith (5 min) and Doorsight takes one of those minutes. If we have combat in D18, I'd rather do both back to back. Can someone check for traps D18 and open the door?
Male Halfling | HP 74 | AC 21; TCH 16; FF 17 | Perc +14
Fearless waits for Brother Butterfly to finish massaging his door fetish. "You had a girl Cats?" He thinks for a moment. "I just always kind of assumed you had a cat.......well at least more than 20 of them." He nudges Cats and winks at him "Or are you a dirty old man talking about the figurative Cat?"
I think BB means the south-east door, one that Cats is checking.
"It might be safer for the lass to stay locked while we check the rest of the castle. That's up to you Miss.", the Mariner takes up position with polearm ready to the door.
Pinkie takes a moment to check and clear the door leading south from the storage room.
Brother Butterfly calls upon his holy vision to look beyond...
Doorsight:
Many wooden shelves in this room are stacked with wooden crates, paper-wrapped packets, and small clay jars sealed with wax. Smoked trout and other dried fish hang from metal hooks fixed to the ceiling. A number of boxes and containers have been emptied and smashed, and now lie in pieces on the floor, along with discarded fish bones and other refuse. Three more skum crouch here, devouring a meal taken from the fort’s pantry.
Shield of Faith, Magic Circle against evil. Find the Path. Protection from Fire
Cleric of Desna Level 12 AC 23 w/shield. 21 W/O. +21 Perception
Whispering so as to not give the eating Skum a chance to avert surprise.
There are three more Skum beyond this door. There's also a hallway. That might lead to the leader in chainmail. If we do this properly, we can get the drop on them.
Kast, you might need to be more of a melee warrior for this. The quarters are tight. To aid you - Except this blessing against those that are Evil.
he gives a quick prayer.
oh Desna, Keep those that are Evil with a capital E away from Kast. Grant him the purity that makes truly evil beings recoil.
cast protection of evil. 4 minute duration. +2 deflection bonus. Does kast already have a deflection bonus? I'd cast on Mariner, but he has my shield of faith - +3 deflection.
With that, he preps his Mace. When they are ready, BB opens the door so the others can rush in.
Cats readies his bow, happy to try to catch the skum off guard with a flurry of pinpoint arrows. He shakes off Brother's suggestion to ditch the bow, in close quarters like this, usually only one person able to melee...at least he can attack from afar.
Cats gets into position to shoot and Brother Butterfly casts a spell to protect him. The door is thrown open and the skum look up in surprise. One nearly gags on his fish.
As the dagger returns to his hand he pushes past Cats. "Looks like they were all down here in the basement." He whips it inot the room again to distract the yellow eyed skum before it can close in on the Mariner.
Thrown + 1 Returning Dagger Aid another DC 10; Covering fire; PBS; Precise:1d20 + 9 + 1 ⇒ (7) + 9 + 1 = 17
Mariner gets +4 to AC vs Yellow
Status:
HP 31/34
AC 18 (22 w/ covering fire; 22 w/ mental barrier)
Spells: 1st 0/4 | 2nd 0/2
Inspiration 0/5
Tactician 0/1 (Rounds 2/3)
Challenge 0/1
Phrenic Pool 0/2
Cats fires at red as the door opens, aiming for a delicate underfin area.
1d20 + 8 ⇒ (3) + 8 = 11 to hit vs. FF;
1d8 + 8 + 2d6 ⇒ (3) + 8 + (4, 3) = 18 damage.
Cats Stats:
AC: 17
HP: 38/38
[ dice]1d20+9+1[/dice] to hit; (+PBS)
[ dice]1d8+3+1[/dice] damage.
Mini Smite: 0/1: Once per day as a swift action, you can add your Charisma bonus to your attack rolls and deal 1 additional point of damage for each class level you have against evil creatures for 1 round. You must have a good alignment to take this trait.
Spoiler:
+4 Bab +4 Dex +1 magic +1 PBS -2 DA -2 Rapid=+6/+6 to hit
+2 Str +1 magic +4 DA+1 PBS = +8 damage
Welcome to the Strange Aeons Campaign! All out of character discussions go here.
The Campaign introduction is up, so head over and jump in!
Note: we are using expanded Fear rules, which I have posted under a spoiler on the Campaign Info Tab. I might introduce Sanity rules, but I'd like to see how things go first.
Great start everyone! You're moving almost too fast for me to keep up, but don't stop!
Since we have technically started at a point before the official beginning to Part 1, I'm going to make the Unofficial Official title for this Prologue to Strange Aeons: "One Flew Over the Cthulhu's Nest."
I feel very honored to have such a mix of great players here from both my home and online games. I'm planning to run this whole Adventure Path, which will likely take a couple years, so I would suggest introducing yourselves at some point and getting to know each other. Who knows, we may all bump into each other some year at Paizocon or Gencon.
Though we are all experienced role players, I highly suggest you all read through Painlord's Guide to Play-by-Post. I know some of you have already read it (and of course one actually wrote it!) but I think it's worth rereading on occasion, and Strange Aeons will have plenty of role playing opportunities that could benefit from its tenants.
Shield of Faith, Magic Circle against evil. Find the Path. Protection from Fire
Cleric of Desna Level 12 AC 23 w/shield. 21 W/O. +21 Perception
I just read PainLord's Guide. That thing was a great and inspiring read.
So, here's my PUSH post!
I learned what I need to do. I just don't know how to post as a "Action"
For example: I see the word Withdraw in soft gray. That is obviously the "technical" action the PC is taking. How do I write that out?
Male Halfling | HP 74 | AC 21; TCH 16; FF 17 | Perc +14
Brother Butterfly wrote:
I just read PainLord's Guide. That thing was a great and inspiring read.
So, here's my PUSH post!
I learned what I need to do. I just don't know how to post as a "Action"
For example: I see the word Withdraw in soft gray. That is obviously the "technical" action the PC is taking. How do I write that out?
At the bottom of where your type box is a small spoiler tag labeled how to format your text. Here are a few examples of the main ones.
Bold is mainly used for when your character is speaking out loud.
[b]Type what you are saying here[/b ]
Italics are inner thoughts that your character is thinking.
[i]Type what you are thinking here[/i ]
The blue text I did earlier is the ooc or out of character commentary to better explain what you are trying to come across doing.
[ooc]Type what you are saying here[/ooc ]
Each of these are done in brackets as you can see above though without the extra space. I just put that there to help show the command. There are many more commands in the spoiler below such as linking URL's and quoting though the above ones are a good start :)
GM Rah wrote:
I feel very honored to have such a mix of great players here from both my home and online games. I'm planning to run this whole Adventure Path, which will likely take a couple years, so I would suggest introducing yourselves at some point and getting to know each other. Who knows, we may all bump into each other some year at Paizocon or Gencon.
I wish I could make it to Gen Con one of these years. It is always mere days before my wife's birthday and I get the "Medusa's glare" that literally turns my insides to stone when I bring it up. One of these years though. I think she is softening up to it.
My name is Derek (Tyranius on the boards here) from Iowa (Corn state, though the rest of the world thinks it's potatoes and that Iowa doesn't exist and we are just making it up to be a part of Idaho or Ohio.)
Shield of Faith, Magic Circle against evil. Find the Path. Protection from Fire
Cleric of Desna Level 12 AC 23 w/shield. 21 W/O. +21 Perception
Name is Corbin and I am local to the GM - In Los Angeles.
I have a deep and crazy love for roleplaying, and so I am trying the PbP system for the first time since the great GM RAH is working this.
As you can see, I am not afraid to post and I try to check frequently.... but I regret that work goes bonkers crazy . So if I delay a bit in posting - it's either work or MY wife gave me the Medusa stare too!!!
Male Halfling | HP 74 | AC 21; TCH 16; FF 17 | Perc +14
Yea, this is my first ever dice roleplaying game but have been doing this as a PbP since 2013 as there is not much of a real-life scene in my area. Took me a bit to get the hang of the plethora of rules but these guys have helped a lot :)
Name is Corbin and I am local to the GM - In Los Angeles.
Woah woah woah...you *and* the GM are in L.A.?! Really? Where in L.A.?
I'm in SF (west coast, yo) and have been playing with Rah & Fearless for about 18 months after I butted my way into their Giantslayer game. I'm surprised as heck that Rah is PST because it always seems that he posts at such odd hours. ;)
If any of all y'all are on computer most of the day (like me, or just evenings) and google chat (or trillian), please hit me up at painlordpfs(at)gmail(dot)com.
As I play more and more PbP, I've come to appreciate the side chats and discussion more and more. I hit up The Twin or Fearless to discuss tactics, snark, or RP opportunities on the side and it just makes the game better.
DM Rah wrote:
Great start everyone! You're moving almost too fast for me to keep up, but don't stop!
Like Brother Butterfly, I'm not afraid (and often like) to post frequently, but try to match the speed of the group. I don't want to overwhelm anyone and always feel free to pull me back if I'm going to fast.
DM Rah wrote:
I'm going to make the Unofficial Official title for this Prologue to Strange Aeons: "One Flew Over the Cthulhu's Nest."
+1 to this title. I freakin' love it.
* * *
p.s. I'm working on a good PbP post titled something along the lines of "Top X Mistakes Players & GMs Do" (or something) as I have a passion for creating better players so I can enjoy better PbP games. I have some ideas for the list (how can I not have lots of ideas of things not to do when I'm playing in two games with 'The Twin' ;) ) and if any of all y'all have any thoughts or ideas you want to share, please let me know.
Badged nerd here - been playing D&D since 1E basic set, my first PBP game was around 2005 dndonlinegames.com ran a steady 2E Planescape campaign, then followed the dev owner to mythweaver.com to finish that campaign, where Rah then ran Cyberpunk2020, then moved to PFS in 2011.
I've played in a few scenarios with Tyranius, and many others scenarios with Bold or Rah running. Most recent being in a worst-rolls-ever crew of heroes to ever play Bold's gestalt Runelords, then followed by EndlessForm's disco space pirate game. I'm currently running a Planescape game for Rah along with a couple of IRL bros. One of them is running me through solo homebrew. I'm in Rah's Kingmaker extension of a tabletop game that Brother plays in.
But as we all know well, adult working life kicks in and PBP replaces tabletop time and then eventually PBP starts to run out of time too. Which is why I think Painlord's Manifest (official now) is so spot on - PBP is the deepest character development you can get playing in an active game. For me all my characters are partial reflections of myself, I think this group of veterans surely feel the same.
My daily posting times are never the same across all active games, but usually in bursts or intermittent jabs. I have a desk job as well but limited opportunity; so I sneak away, snort my RPG dust for a quick high and jump back into work. Consequently, I do zero social media or messaging.
We also hit up the game cons here in LA too! I'll let Rah chime in on other details.
Oh yes sorry that was rude to not answer your question. We all have been personal friends since high school (20+ years) . We all lived in the San Fernando and San Gabriel Valley area of Los Angeles County. Each of us lived in same areas but going to different schools between the City of Burbank and Glendale. We all met through a mutual gaming interest at a local hobby shop called the Last Grenadier. Oh yes Mr. Pink is also a local too.
I started role playing around age 10. My best friend played in a 1st Edition D&D game with his older brother, but he wouldn't lean games for other "kids," and wouldn't let us borrow his books either, so we did free form role playing and storytelling without dice. As we grew older, and he grew cooler, we stopped gaming. When I was 16 I learned that one of my friends from high school played with a group that met in the back room of a hobby store in Burbank. It was there that I first met the players behind Pinkie and The Mariner, and a couple years later I met Corbin, the guy responsible for Brother Butterfly. The group was beginning a new campaign "Scourge of the Slave Lords." I was very excited to get into a real game, had read the book like a lawyer studying for the Bar. As I was making my character the group went off script during the introduction, broke their slave chains, and in the process of completely ruining the plot, sank the ship. A few washed up on shore not far from where the adventure began and promptly made their way to the local tavern to replace party members, which is where I officially joined them. However, the GM soon determined the whole thing a wash, and so my first campaign lasted about one day.
Pinkie, The Mariner, Brother Butterfly, and myself all live in SoCal, spread out in the San Fernando Valley from Pasadena to Reseda. We've been friends for over 25 years now and still manage sitdown games every so often.
I work freelance as a location sound mixer, which partially explains my posting habits. I'm also married, which explains that further. And I have one daughter, so sometimes I'm posting from the throne. No, I'm not posting from it now. Or am I...?
m human AC 18 Perception +17 , stealth +19, acrobatics 15 ,disable device +21,escapeartist +17, sleight of hand +17, sence motive +17
hey all sorry posting for me has been kinda slow the last couple days but works been kinda crazy .I think Rah did a fantastic sumup of how we all know each other so only thing i'm going to add is my name is Louie and undoubtedly there will be inside jokes flung around but we will gladly fill you in if you want.
Which is why I think Painlord's Manifest (official now) is so spot on - PBP is the deepest character development you can get playing in an active game. For me all my characters are partial reflections of myself, I think this group of veterans surely feel the same.
Lots of stuff/questions to unpack here. (I hope you don't mind me prying a bit but this kind of stuff is interesting to me.)
1) I know I feel that PbP is the best. It's pretty much ruined me for all face-to-face (F2F) gaming. I just can't do F2F anymore when I know I could be doing so much more, albeit more slowly, in PbP. You're the first yahoo to echo that sentiment and I appreciate it.
2) +1 to having characters as a reflection of a facet of oneself. That's mostly how I approach things as well. I find one detail or factor that I see within myself and amplify and expand upon it as an main element of character. In fact, it's a key element of the characters I play.
Sometimes I push the one facet that I dislike in myself, other times I enhance a facet that I want to be more like in real life. I use this silly game to explore how I different parts of me might interact with the world.
Is this the same with you? Do any of you yahoos have a different process?
DM Rah wrote:
Pinkie, The Mariner, Brother Butterfly, and myself all live in SoCal, spread out in the San Fernando Valley from Pasadena to Reseda. We've been friends for over 25 years now and still manage sitdown games every so often.
Word. I grew up in San Marino/Pasadena and attended Loyola High (just west of downtown LA).
Next time I come down, I'll see if we can rendezvous for some duck burritos(link) or some such. My dad still lives near the Rock of Eagles.
For me, the character needs to feel real - believable, heroic, flawed, imperfect by personal vices, fears and dreams. The last addition shows up in forms of my own (like you) morals, silliness, fantasies, dark sides, bright sides. Ultimately, lifetime characters for me is really alomst a diary. I save all my games and reread them later on like looking at a photoalbum. A great memory I have of my character named Nilu, in a homebrew tabletop that Rah ran for years. During an apex point in the story, Nilu said "Do you not think I would not sacrifice my life for this cause?" while that goes against all gaming paradigm of "But you'll die, your character will not be resurrectable, effectively out of the game." Consequently, I abhor metagaming. I prefer a small 12 points character with a HUGE heart. If you ever get the chance to play with Mu and Shu (me and Rah's alias), they are quite hilarious. In the end though, I still prefer face time with my friends.
Ha! I've live in Pasadena for the last 9 years with the San Marino neighborhood line across the street. AND my dad lives in Eagle Rock as well. I drive past CaCao twice a day.
Rough Around the Edges 2 | HP: 17/17 | AC 17; Touch 13; FF 14 | Fort +2; Ref +3; Will +2 | CMD 15 | Initiative +3 | Perception +2 | Sense Motive -1 | Kn. Arc +8 | Spellcraft +5
Eidolon Stats:
HP: 11/11 | AC 21*; Touch 13; FF 18* | Fort +1; Ref +6; Will +3 | CMD 15 | Perception +5 | Sense Motive +5 | Kn. Religion +8 | Stealth +8
Resources:
Summon SLA: 5/5 | Spells: 1st: 3/3
Since we are doing intros, I will chime in.
My name is Ron a.k.a. Bold Strider. I used to GM and play a lot of PFS here on the boards but Painlord (and a few others) have ruined that for me. The short mission type character just seems blah, especially since I have now somehow picked up several APs to GM as well as play in a few with great GMs like Rah, Tyranius and Lithrac.
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Dammit Barley! I can never remember you are Pathmaker. Haha.
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Also, I live in Indiana, so no duck burritos for me. :(
A little info on the Pathmaker handle. When Pathfinder system was launched, Rah began running Kingmaker. He created an online journal which I had to make a login name. Without much thought, I combine the name of this new system and the module name and used Path/maker. In hindsight, probably should have thought it out more, Bulldog or something not so wink-wink. And my real name is Sam.
And I keep forgetting that it's not Bold, it's rpblue. You took a hiatus for the BAR exam last I remembered.
Lots of stuff/questions to unpack here. (I hope you don't mind me prying a bit but this kind of stuff is interesting to me.)
This stuff is highly interesting to me. As a GM and a Player it really helps to have insight into other player's thought processes.
"Cats" wrote:
1) I know I feel that PbP is the best. It's pretty much ruined me for all face-to-face (F2F) gaming. I just can't do F2F anymore when I know I could be doing so much more, albeit more slowly, in PbP. You're the first yahoo to echo that sentiment and I appreciate it.
+1 to this! Except I still enjoy F2F games because I'm playing them with guys I've known forever, most of whom are interested in really digging into their characters. And I've managed to drag most of them into PBP where another level of the game can be found.
"Cats" wrote:
2) +1 to having characters as a reflection of a facet of oneself. That's mostly how I approach things as well. I find one detail or factor that I see within myself and amplify and expand upon it as an main element of character. In fact, it's a key element of the characters I play.
I sometimes work this way, though I think it might be a subliminal effect. I usually start with some sort of concept, then reverse engineer it to fit within the world.
For example: my android Richard in the Iron Gods campaign was intended to be a sort of Indiana Jones type character, but instead of being a history professor moonlighting as an adventurer, he is an adventurer moonlighting as a robot rock star.
Another example: my PFS character Maximo is a mix between Baron Munchausen meets the Most Interesting Man in the World. His backstory is that he was once a great Taldan Noble so obsessed with recapturing his youth that he experimented with his own alchemical version of the Sun Orchid Elixir. It works temporarily (as seen with his mutagen), but repeated use has left him in a fugue state with delusions of grandeur.
Last example: Kraygan from Giantslayer might be the closest version of myself, except I rarely drink, fight, or fart in public. The thing I see in him is unrealized potential. And a beard.
"The Twin" wrote:
I used to GM and play a lot of PFS here on the boards but Painlord (and a few others) have ruined that for me. The short mission type character just seems blah...
I used to love the short mission aspect of PFS, but after playing in Tektite's (now Tyranius') Iron Gods, and Tyranius' (still Tyranius') Giantslayer, I've pretty much given them up for now.
"The Twin" wrote:
Also, I live in Indiana, so no duck burritos for me. :(
Male Halfling | HP 74 | AC 21; TCH 16; FF 17 | Perc +14
I like all of the aspects. I love Campaign settings as you can really flesh out a character. It is a bit harder in the shorter PFS scenarios but can still be done here and there. Overall I simply like the stories and want to get through them all which may be impossible :)
As for the Adventure Paths with Paizo I wish they didn't have to make them all 6 books. It would be nice if they just made a good story and stopped it were it needed to be stopped. It seems most of the Adventure Paths always has a good chunk that just seems like filler.
I still love the short mission aspect, especially now that there is a meta story, but overall I will play/run any story as overall I enjoy the game and building / seeing new character concepts.
Regarding Adventure Paths and their tendency to stretch out stories like Peter Jackson stretches out Tolkien. As might be apparent with the opening to Strange Aeons, I tend to modify existing material, tailoring it to both my personal tastes and the interests of the players. I believe that "Filler is Killer" and I don't mind skipping irrelevant encounters to get to the meat of the story, or adding material for players to sink their teeth into for a better role playing experience. So far for this Adventre Path I haven't seen much wasted material, but I only have two books in hand at this time.
@Painlord: I'm looking into google chat for off-board communications. I'd like to have a group chat for anyone interested in one, but I have about no experience with it. I'd like to access it through my iPhone, but I'm only finding an app for Google Hangouts. Any idea if that accesses the same chat system as Google Chat?
@Painlord: I'm looking into google chat for off-board communications. I'd like to have a group chat for anyone interested in one, but I have about no experience with it. I'd like to access it through my iPhone, but I'm only finding an app for Google Hangouts. Any idea if that accesses the same chat system as Google Chat?
I use Trillian to parse AIM and Googlechat together. I started using it when I was working at Wikipedia because it worked on Mac/PCs and was a separate window than my browser (so I could chat and surf at the same time).
Trillian is available on the iPhone.And Mac/PC as a free download. You will also, by virtue of downloading and installing Trillian, create a Trillian name that you can also use as a chat ID to other Trillian clients. If you need my Trillian name, PM me. Or you can use my gmail address (in previous post).
If you believe that PF is a social game, then you'll understand why it's nice to be able to chat with others outside of the game. I ping Fearless (aka GM Tyranius, aka Allarnon) to discuss our other games and ask questions. I ping The Twin (aka Torgan, aka rpgblue) to talk trash and shoot the poop. It's good. It makes the PbP experience better.
I believe that "Filler is Killer" and I don't mind skipping irrelevant encounters to get to the meat of the story, or adding material for players to sink their teeth into for a better role playing experience. So far for this Adventre Path I haven't seen much wasted material, but I only have two books in hand at this time.
"Filler is Killer"? Piddlespot, that's gold. That's going into the new guide, because obviously.
A note for everyone: you are dimly aware of all abilities, skills, fears, spells, etc that are on your character sheet. That includes knowledge skills.
I don't normally like to restrict posting, but since the group is in many different places right now, and I'm still setting the stage for the adventure, I'll need a day or two to catch everyone up. Those PCs at dinner can roleplay, but let's not get ahead of that just yet.
Due to the number of NPCs in this campaign I've created a "Guide to Strange Aeons" to list notes on who you have encountered. I will update it as we continue, but it can be edited by players if you so desire.
I've noticed eekends are typically slow-posting times for most everyone. I would like to press on, but I'm going to hold off until around midnight PST.
Regarding spoilers, I don't mind if you want to read the spoilers that aren't for your characters. I trust everyone to seperate player vs character knowledge. However, I think the story will unfold better for you if you don't read them just yet.
I encourage you all to look back through them at a later point to see the full story.
Shield of Faith, Magic Circle against evil. Find the Path. Protection from Fire
Cleric of Desna Level 12 AC 23 w/shield. 21 W/O. +21 Perception
Hey guys, Work is crazy right now. I will be silent, but reading for the next two days. I should be able to post WEdnesday evening.
Keep chugging along.
Hey guys, I was going to post this in Flaxseed tomorrow, but thought I'd open it up here first if any of you wanted an automatic spot.
"I thought it would fun to run a game with all gripplis characters in Reaping What We Sow. Keeping it to 4 seats for challenge and the likelihood that not many players have the gripplis character boon to use. If slow sign-ups then first come and recruiting stays open until 4 seats reached; if larger response, then lottery after a couple of days. Find it here."
