DM_Scholar's Kingmaker (Inactive)

Game Master Asmodeus' Advocate

What’re the rules for a staring contest? Opposed fortitude saves?

Opposed perception checks, obviously :P

While Jen is staring down a tree (which sounds about as interesting as watching grass grow), Ozzy retrieves one of the bandits' polearms and holds it up to the door. She then moves the end down until it is lying on the floor, periodically touching the floor of the cave where the butt of the weapon meets it as she goes. In each place she touches, "Ozzy" appears in swirly, glowing letters. She instructs whoever's handy (Dharak, I guess, since the kobolds don't speak Common), to quietly carve out small divots in each of the marked spots, large enough for the end of the weapon to rest in.

Kn: Engineering: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (19) + 5 = 24

Edit: Forgot I was going to take 10, but I'll gladly take the 19 instead. It certainly justifies her coming up with the ratchet idea.

Dharak retrives a shovel from one of the kobolds (“Mind if I borrow that? Nope, not a clue what you’re saying. Leggo of the shovel. There we go.”) and digs holes where Ozzy instructs. He moves earth as quietly as he can; and you can barely hear him over the sound of everyone talking.

Abaos chitters something in draconic at the two kobolds "

Finally, the nondescript, ordinary- looking man-the one who spoke first, but remained quiet after, so much as to be forgotten- speaks again, but not to the one he's been staring at. Instead, he replies "Awn, buddy, who is she? Can we trust her?" His oddly colored eyes seeming to flicker, darting quickly from one side to another, never looking straight ahead, though his head does not move.

In fact, beyond his discolored eyes, it's almost odd to see the man here. He's wearing brown breeches and a tan shirt, the same as most of the bandits, and he doesn't seem to have a single weapon on him, despite every other person in the room carrying at least three. However, there's at least 15 pairs of eyes on him, and that gets your attention.

Not going to lie, I'm really struggling to describe his image, here. He's a pretty nondescript character. He's MEANT to be a nondescript character. He's only got one distinguishing feature- his eyes, which, belie his heritage. Or maybe I'm just a bad writer- I make no claims to excellence here! Anyways, hope that's maybe slightly more helpful than the last one?

I still don't have a good picture of Abaos in my head, either. How old does he look? Is he fat or thin? Short or tall? Handsome or homely? What color is his hair, and does he have any on his face? What about his skin tone? Is he usually smiling, or does he look more serious? There's probably more variation in appearance between humans (or people that look human, in this case) than among any other race (or, at least, more subtle variations are more apparent among them).

30, give or take a few years. Thin, average height. Average- looking. Brown hair, brown eyes, no facial hair. Caucasian, but burnt in the sun- turning to brown. Usually smiling, but probably not right now- as ya'll have seen, he does have his fits of melancholy.

I tend to picture characters based on the forum images, with details fleshed out by writing. But regardless, Iorskan has made it abundantly clear how Abaos looks. Tasty.

Y’know, I should practice what I preach.

I was taking advantage of this opportunity to get a better idea of what everyone’s characters looked like, partly ‘cause I was curious (not many players gave super-detailed physical descriptions at the start of the game, it wasn’t until we were well underway that we learned that half the party wasn’t wearing pants) but mostly so I could write more interesting narration. But I haven’t described the named NPCs here in any more detail than “has hood” and “is half-orc”. Most’ve you’ve seen a picture of Happs Bydon, but Dharak’s never gotten a proper description, ever.

Speaking of Bydon’s handsome (that’s sarcasm, in case you couldn’t tell) mug, here’s a link to an image search of his name, for that of you who don’t know what he looks like. Most people who play this adventure path kill him before he ever says his name, but there are plenty of pictures of the guy on the web for some reason.

The hooded man who’s been hissing at everyone who speaks above a whisper sighs. “Like herdin’ cats.” his voice is low pitched, though that might just be him trying not to be overheard. He speaks slowly and slurs his words together. “If’n there’s anyone around ta hear us, they’ll’ve’had heard us already. My guess is they’d’ve tried t’kill us or somethin’ were that the case.”

He looks Jen over. “Ya look effin’ creepy.” He glances at Bright Awn. “Whad’ya think, Awn, think she’s a plant?”

Dharak leans on his shovel. It’s just the right height that he doesn’t have to bend his arms to place both on top. He does, however, have to bend his back. Also, the shovel could be more accurately described as a spade. And by leaning on the shovel I mean he stooped down to shovel some dirt. It looks fairly uncomfortable, but he’s not complaining.

The congenial half-orc has a smile on his face, as is typical for him. He wears a brigandine vest (perfect for a brigand like myself, he’d tell you), leaving his muscly and vivid green arms bare (contrasting Guthruc’s ugly grey-green skin, Dharak’s as green as the leaves of a tree), though he’s wrapped some manner of discolored cloth around his wrists and hands. (They’re fistwraps, so he doesn’t hurt his knuckles punching something armored or bony.) He has a number of scars, pale scar tissue criss-crosses his dark green skin. They’re mostly erratically placed, as tends to be the case, but along the tops of his forearms there are neat lines of short, shallow cuts, cutting horizontally across his skin, like a ladder climbing from his wrist to his elbow.

”Don’t worry ‘bout Bydon,” the half orc flashes a toothy grin. His voice has a lilting cadence to it, de-emphasizing or dropping unimportant syllables to keep time to an inconsistent rhythm. With his mouth closed, the half-orc looks like he has something of an underbite, due to his small tusks pushing his lip out. That might be why he smiles so much; he looks much nicer that way. (Both as in more attractive and as in less mean.) Or maybe he’s just a cheerful person. Probably that. Dharak isn’t terrible looking by human standards, has a strong jaw and an easy smile and despite living in what Bydon terms “the godsforsaken Greenbelt” he keeps his beard trim and hair neat. Compared to the scowling and unkempt Happs Bydon, the half-orc looks positively cultured. ”He’s just a grouch.”

He looks Jen over. “Ya look effin’ creepy.” He glances at Bright Awn. “Whad’ya think, Awn, think she’s a plant?”

Ozzy furrows her brow and glares at Happs, balling her hands into fists and bringing them up to press against her hips. She opens her mouth as if to shout, then thinks better of it and keeps her voice low, but stern. Happs! That's not very nice.

Side note: While it's fun to play Ozzy very young, I'm looking forward to our first significant chunk of downtime, so I can start aging her up. Btw, she looks younger than she is, even for a fetchling, for reasons that will become clear when said up-aging begins.

Abaos' head never moves, though his eyes once againn dart over to Ozzy, to Jen, then back to Happs, and then to Jen. "He makes a good point, though, Ozzy," he says suspiciously. "We don't know who she is, or why she's locked up."

"Dharak," he says lowly, almost giving a fake out since he's not looking that direction "let me know when you're ready to move it."

Awn considers Happs' question. The woodborn's smile fades and he scrunches one eye, part wink, part signal to Jen that he intentionally disengaged from their impromptu ocular challenge.

"Definitely not botanic. As for her loyalty, given her state, probable duration of incarceration and the answers she's given to questions posed...as well as the likelihood of the Stagnant Lord OR his cronies being witful enough to arrange such erudite chicanery...I would say no. Not a plant."

The smile returns.

"Which isn't to say she doesn't have an agenda or that she's completely trustworthy. Then again, who smong our ragged band of liars, cheats, ne'erdowells and ruffians is?"

The wink follows.

”I am.” Iorskan said. His stomach growled. He knew that Guthric had feasted before the battle to build his strength. Iorskan intentionally went in (somewhat) hungry. It would make him all the more savage when the fighting started, and it would make the feast of corpses taste all the better. Just thinking about all the dead humans made his mouth water. He was certain that it was going to be a very good day.

"Definitely not botanic. As for her loyalty, given her state, probable duration of incarceration and the answers she's given to questions posed...as well as the likelihood of the Stagnant Lord OR his cronies being witful enough to arrange such erudite chicanery...I would say no. Not a plant."

The hooded man nods sagely as Bright Awn speaks over his head. Is that even Common? he wonders.

“Good t’hear.”

He nocks an arrow on his bowstring, and points it at the ground. “Ready t’go when y’all are.”

Bright Awn, I’m assuming that you’ve your aura of alacrity active right now. Is there a different aura you want to be using instead?

Jen's spells prepared:

level 0:

Resistance
Acid Splash
Bleed
Mage Hand
Flare
Read Magic

level 1:

Grease
Color Spray
Minor Image

level 2:

Mirror Image

Awn winks at and Jen realizes everyone is staring at her, from the shifty hooded man to the golden dragonling.

"He makes a good point, though, Ozzy," he says suspiciously. "We don't know who she is, or why she's locked up."

She pulls the awkward face of someone being discussed while they're in the same room and realizes that, no, she can't really prove she isn't working for the Stag Lord... Her eyes drift back towards the wild-eyed, brooding orc... Guthruc if she remembers correctly, and realizes that, though he doesn't look hungry perse, he does seem just as ready to stick her with an axe regardless.

Still, they're going through with helping her out, it seems, and being out of her cell and able to escape if necessary is an improvement on her current situation... Compulsively, she taps her fingers on the bars in rehearsed motions, one at a time, but there's no discernible pattern to it.

"Which isn't to say she doesn't have an agenda or that she's completely trustworthy. Then again, who smong our ragged band of liars, cheats, ne'erdowells and ruffians is?"

Jen lets out a laugh with no real amusement in it. "What agenda could I possibly have? I'm at your mercy, I have no weapons, and if any of many spells were dangerous enough to wipe out your army I could've escaped by now."

Hmm. It didn't bluetext anything other than "Jen's spells prepared:"? Sorry, still new to this >_<

“Agendas tend ter be long term things,” Happs Bydon growls, as if spitting accusations at people whether or not he believes them himself is a habit of his.

The ooc text stops automatically at paragraph breaks, I think.

level 1:

Grease
Color Spray
Minor Image

Minor image is a second level spell. I assume you meant Silent Image? Color Spray probably won't be particularly useful down here, since we'll be going up against a couple of their higher-level guys and (presumably) no minions, but it might be really useful upstairs. Grease is more likely to come into play down here.

Iorskan eagerly moved towards the door, and the inevitable conflict ahead.

Whoops, yes, silent image. Also, Jen is still imprisoned, right?

The indiscriminately average man shrugs. "Well," he says, "I guess if you're willing to not cause trouble, than you'll do. We're going that way," and he points to beyond the barricade to the fortress underground, "and so are you, it seems. Try not to die, right?"

He smiles a tight- lipped smile, and leans back, almost as if settling in for a nap. However, a close observer will note that he's poised on the balls of his feet, ready to spring at a moment's notice.

@DM: yes, aura of alacrity for now...

Guthruc cracks his neck and knuckles as he walks up to the porticulus.
before I make the roll, A) can I take 20 to lift the gate, just not to hold it up? And B) why don't we push the porticlus out of the wall? Isn't it the same or a lower DC?

Guthruc cracks his neck and knuckles as he walks up to the porticulus.

before I make the roll, A) can I take 20 to lift the gate, just not to hold it up? And B) why don't we push the porticlus out of the wall? Isn't it the same or a lower DC?

You can take 20 to open the gate, that's fine. Ozzy thought that knocking the porticullis over might alert more people to your presence than lifting it.

Alrighty guys! Time to rock and roll! I've positioned everyone so that the Player Characters are all in the cell, which left most of their minions in the tunnel. I tried to put tankier people nearer to the front, though Ozzy had to be next to the exit so that she could prop the door up.

Guthruc makes his way near the door. Everyone stands in a state of readiness, spreading out so that they have a little room to maneuver, under the theory that it'd be better to get to a fight a little later than to slaughtered while packed into a room like sardines in a can. 'Course, you can move through allies squares as long as they aren't in melee.

The orc pops his knuckles, and then his neck, and then he squats down and grabs near the bottom of the porticullis. Lifting with his knees, not his back, and biting back all but the smallest grunts of exertion, Guthruc stands up abruptly and lifts the porticullis over his head.

Ozzy, moving quickly, props Patton's Bandit 23 greataxe under the door, sliding the haft into the hole prepared and using the wide head of the weapon to hold the portcullis open. Earlier, I described the greataxes as poleaxes, which is accurate enough if the weapons are five or six feet long. The polearms the bandits carry are glaives, which don't have the kind of head you could hold something up with. Just clearin' that up now, not that it's the most important thing. Everyone holds their breath for a moment, waiting to see if it'll hold.

It does.

Beyond the portcullis is the rest of the subterranean layer. It's dingy, and dark, though there seems to be a faint light coming from area b, around the corner. What're you guys using for a light source? The humans with you will need something. Those with a clear line of sight can see a rickety wooden staircase leading out of the underground layer, as well as a portcullis not unlike the one you just opened blocking off Area A, thought you can't make out what's behind it. Area B does not appear to have a door, though none of you have line of sight to see into it.

It's eerily silent.

Nothing springs out to attack you in the surprise round. Top of the order, Abaos/Bright Awn/Ozzy. Give orders to the NPCs if you want them to do something in particular, otherwise I'll use my best judgement. (Best judgment as to what they'd do. Not necessarily my best best judgment.)

Before Guthruc lifts the gate, Ozzy places a hand against Mr. Blinky's fur, causing a shifting network of interconnected shimmering lines to appear briefly in the air around him, encircling the creature's vaguely canine frame, before quickly fading out of sight. Ozzy casts Mage Armor on Mr. Blinky. She'll also cast Light on the lead bandit's weapon... I guess that would be Happs.

The pair moves cautiously out into the center of the new room, the strange beast standing guard over its master, readying themselves to deal with any threats. Both ready melee attacks for any non-allies who come into range. Ozzy's has 10ft reach, because longspear.

Since you didn't describe what we can see outside our portcullis until after we opened it, I assume that they're pretty solid? I had been picturing bars, but if it's like a solid door, the guy in area A shouldn't be able to see us.

Naw, they’re bars. Prolly shoulda given you more description when you tunneled into the cell, that’s my bad.

We should have 2 bandits armed with longbows, while the rest are armed with polearms/axes/weapons. So, this will make sense when I tell those two+ Happs to run to the front, then fall back.

Before Guthruc opens the gate, Abaos quietly whispers to the hooded, irritable man. "Take your two men up front. First sign of trouble, fire and back off. Let the guys rush them. You take pot shots when you can, right?"

And with that, he rushes forwards. As soon as the gate's big enough to duck through, he swims in, exhilarating bursts of adrenaline flooding his system. He hangs back just long enough for Ozzy and her pet wolf to rush in, running alongside them and alert for signs of the two they've come to kill.

Rushing in and readying a ranged attack to throw a knife first sign of trouble.

Alrighty! I'm going to move Happs up to the front of the initiative order with the bandits, on account of the plan being for him to lead the way into the room. I'm also gonna have the archers take their actions before Ozzy and Abaos, so that the archers got their arrows off before everyone came along to spoil their shots.

Happs Bydon and bandits 24 and 23 (Henceforth Patton and . . . Sally. That's a good bandit name. Sally, the Butcher of Badger's Glade.) make a beeline for the corner of the room near the stairs. Bydon grimaces as he runs, half-expecting a gout of wizard-fire to take him from behind before he has a chance to get his bearings. With their backs to the wall, the archers scan the room for threats.

The see one. It's roughly humanoid in shape. Roughly. Very roughly. It's like someone took a human (or a hobbit, judging by the size; it isn't very tall), and then stuck a bycicle pump in their mouth and inflated them like a baloon, distending their flesh. And then, because this hobbit was made out of wax, the same person in need of a hobby took a match and just melted all of the disturbing creature's distinguishing features off. It's a horrifying thing, a mound of quivering blob-like flesh stumping forward on malfomed legs.

Bydon makes a snap decision. "Kill it!" he instructs Patton and Sally. "Shoot that son of a bachelor!"

Following his own advice, he draws his bowstring to his ear and lets fly.

Bydon's Attack: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (6) + 5 = 11 damage: 1d8 + 2 ⇒ (8) + 2 = 10
miss chance from cover (he doesn't have a very clear shot): 1d100 ⇒ 7 low hits, but 11 doesn't.
Bydon's arrow sinks into the earthen wall concealing most of the monster from his sight.

Patton's attack: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (6) + 2 = 8 damage: 1d8 ⇒ 6
Sally's attack: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (9) + 2 = 11 damage: 1d8 ⇒ 6

Moving with astonishing deftness for a creature of it's shapelessness, the deformed being jerks to one side like a puppet being pulled by some external force, the arrows flying wide. It stares at the archers with one unblinking eye. The other hides beneath it's drooping flesh, if indeed it exists at all. It opens it's mouth and a low, baleful noise comes out.

Ozzy, Blinky, and Abaos come bounding out of the cell. (Or running, in the case of those who aren't Mr. Blinky.) Ozzy and Blinky ready their weapons, Abaos, having heard Bydon's shout and seen the direction they were shooting, whirls about on his heel and, a starknife dropping out of his sleeve and into his hand, throws his weapon at the malformed monster.

Abaos's attack is too sudden for the creature to anticipate, and the starknife embeds itself in it's forhead. Right between where it's eyes would be, if it had two. Diverting it's attention from Happs and crew, it stares at Abaos instead, seemingly unslowed by the knife in it's face. It hasn't stopped moaning.

At this point a number of actions readied in the surprise round of this combat will be taken.

The small lumpish creature with the knife sticking out of it's face raises it's hands over it's head, it's moaning increasing in volume.

Jen and Bright Awn, yet to react to the shouting and shooting, see a thick black smoke pour into the cell through the newly opened portcullis. You can just barely make out Iorskan's shape through the dense fog. Of Guthruc and those beyond him? You see nothing.

Fortitude saves from Happs, Patton, and Sally:

Happs Bydon: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (18) + 5 = 23
Patton: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (13) + 3 = 16
Sally: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (9) + 3 = 12

The poisonous vapors overwhelm Sally, and she can't keep her bile in her digestive track, opting instead to spew it all over her clothing and the floor. Patton is almost in tears from the sudden and unpleasant sensory overload, but he squints into the impenetrable miasma, looking for his target.

Happs Bydon snorts. "That's it?" he wonders. He's been anticipating all manner of destructive magics that might burn his flesh off his bones or peel his skull off of his brain. This seems pretty tame in comparison.

Bydon regrets tempting fate a moment later.

Everyone inside the cloud, give me a reflex save.

Silk strands, stretching between the floor, ceiling, and walls, weave themselves into a trap, growing thicker and more numerous by the moment as they create a tangled spiderweb. They anchor themselves to all solid surfaces within the effects of the miasma, including people.

Happs Bydon: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (14) + 5 = 19
Patton: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (3) + 1 = 4
Sally: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (12) + 1 = 13

Happs notices the silk strands attaching his feet and hands to the floor and ceiling before they grow thick enough to bind him, and he lashes out around him with his bow to split the strings in his immediate vicinity before they can entwine him. The other two archers are less skilled and less fortunate.

Bright Awn is up.

EDIT

Nevermind, brainfart. Readied actions change the initiative order. Bright Awn, Iorskan, and Jen are up, as well as Dharak and the kobolds. I'll have them react to your actions/instructions.

Ozzy Reflex: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (20) + 4 = 24
Ozzy Fort: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (13) + 1 = 14

Ozzy turns up her nose at the stench, but honestly, she's smelled worse. She nimbly dodges the sticky strands that attempt to encircle her limbs.

Mr. Blinky Reflex: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (17) + 5 = 22

At a quick mental signal from Ozzy, Mr. Blinky, too, is able to avoid the sticky strands.

Mr. Blinky Fort: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (10) + 4 = 14

He, too, has smelled worse things.

Since the cloud blocks vision, does it also block light sources that are inside the cloud?

Also, attacks against Ozzy have a 50% miss chance in dim light (instead of the normal 20%). Does that apply to the miss chance from the fog?

The fog cloud was cast before the web spell. Mr. Winky is trapped by the silk strands.

I'm going to assume that it also blocks light sources, but most of you have darkvision (I'm also going to assume that someone had the presense of mind to leave a light cantrip with the bandits who are still in the tunnel), and since it's dark Ozzy's shadowblending is in effect, yes.

The fog cloud was cast before the web spell. Mr. Winky is trapped by the silk strands.

So it was. In fact, the way you narrated it, the creature was visible when Ozzy and Mr. Blinky went through the portcullis. If that was the case, they would have stopped 5 feet closer to it and both would have attacked it instead of wasting their standard actions waiting for something to show up, which might have prevented the stinking cloud entirely... ,':\

Also, I'm assuming you meant stinking cloud and Mr. Blinky.

Fortitude: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (11) + 8 = 19
Reflex: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (4) + 2 = 6
Guthruc lived as a "pet" to worgs with several other unbathed orc and boggard children growing into adulthood. he has smelled a lot worse... not to mention he eats raw flesh.
However, after lifting the porticullus, he had to briefly restore his strength and grab his club at his side, which lands him last in initiative, and caught in a web.

so, are we in for a retcon then?
Winky has Wings if it helps DM

Yup, meant Blinky.

@ Ozzy: That’s reasonable! Mr. Blinky doesn’t have a straight line to pounce, so I’ll assume he uses his bite, since it’s his strongest attack.

Ozzy: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (15) + 6 = 21 damage: 1d8 + 4 ⇒ (7) + 4 = 11

Mr Blinky: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (1) + 5 = 6 damage: 1d6 + 5 ⇒ (3) + 5 = 8

Mr. Blinky couldn’t react fast enough to attack the creature before it cast it’s spell, but Ozzy hit it with her spear. Despite appearances, it’s flesh is quite unyielding. She thinks she gets why Abaos’s knife didn’t seem to hurt so much as annoy the monster.

Feel free to move Ozara and Blinky to somewhere they could have taken their attacks from, still within the cloud. And it’d be wonderful if you could also move the enemy five feet backwards, out of the cloud, since it would have taken a five foot step backwards before casting so as to not provoke.

Fort Save: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (14) + 2 = 16
Reflex Save: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (2) + 6 = 8

Abao's isn't worried about the fog coming out. In fact, he's pretty certain every seedy tavern and gaming table he's passed through- And that's been like, every one from here to Rathun Attak! -has had at least one drunkard that's smelled worse.

Now, what's really concerning him is how that big ugly keeps moaning. I mean, that thing is absolutely hideous! It's like someone shaved a cat; then gave it a bath. Plus, it keeps moaning at him! He swears he's seeing those eyes glaring right at him; not at anyone else, just at him. It's giving him the heeby- jeebies, for certain. Probably because he nailed it right between the eyes. It was a nice shot, after all, and the thing was just reflecting on that. He hopes.

As such, Abaos' typically unaware self is completely taken aback when the webs grasp his arms, pinning him. He struggles for a second, then gives up, and yells "Oh, come on! Now that's just not fair!"

He continues his struggle against the ill get of a spider.

1st Spellcraft check: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (14) + 12 = 26

"Get out of that cloud or it'll keep poisoning you!" Jen yells.

How wide is the area? Is the cloud filling up its entirety?

I'm assuming the stinking cloud and web spells were centered on the same point. So, if I'm reading the pathfinder grapple rules (which are notoriously complicated) and the web spell description correctly, Mr. Blinky can't move while grappled, and he can't attack anyone but the grappler (which is the webs)? Since the grappler is the webs, and the webs don't have any stats to roll an attack against (though they can be cleared with a flaming weapon), the only standard action he's allowed to take is a combat maneuver or escape artist check to break the grapple? Or could he attack if there was an enemy in range? The rules seem contradictory on this point.

Since there isn't an enemy in range, and none are likely to enter the webs (btw, the creature should have been in the webs if the two spells did cover the same area, but since he moved in the retcon, that's no longer the case :S ) Mr. Blinky's only option will be to try to escape. Might as well get rolling that escape attempt out of the way...

Grapple: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (20) + 6 = 26

The spell description is also ambiguous as to whether those in the web who have already saved or escaped need to roll a check to move through it, or whether they simply treat it as difficult terrain. In any case, the bandits probably aren't going to be of any use at least until the webs are cleared, I'm starting to think our best course of action would be to take up position to block the exit so that the others upstairs can't be alerted and wait for the spell to run out before proceeding...

Abao's isn't worried about the fog coming out. In fact, he's pretty certain every seedy tavern and gaming table he's passed through- And that's been like, every one from here to Rathun Attak! -has had at least one drunkard that's smelled worse.

Rathan Attak xD

The big draw of the spell, since the DC isn’t huge (I figure it’s about as debilitating as skunk spray; pretty damn debilitating especially if it’s sprung on you. But seasoned adventurers like the PCs are unlikely to mind overmuch.) is that no one knows what’s going on outside the cloud. Controlling what people know and how they can act is key when you’re outnumbered to this degree. :) Of course, web makes stinking cloud somewhat more dangerous, since if you can’t leave the effect you’ll fail a save eventually.

How wide is the area? Is the cloud filling up its entirety?

If you look at the map linked to at the top of the page, you’ll see the effected squares traced out. Oh, and while on that subject; big thanks to Ozara’s player for making it finding the outline I’m using to show the twenty foot radius spread. That made my life much more convenient. :D

So, if I'm reading the pathfinder grapple rules (which are notoriously complicated) and the web spell description correctly, Mr. Blinky can't move while grappled, and he can't attack anyone but the grappler (which is the webs)? Since the grappler is the webs, and the webs don't have any stats to roll an attack against (though they can be cleared with a flaming weapon), the only standard action he's allowed to take is a combat maneuver or escape artist check to break the grapple?

I believe that’s how it works, yes.

The webs are difficult terrain, so they take two squares of movement to go through. But you also need to make a combat maneuver check or escape artist check (which you get to make for free as part of your move action) whenever you move through the webs, if you fail you’re caught in the first square you try to move through and have to spend a standard action to disentrap yourself.

Hmm... Question, regarding these communication issues. So, looking at the silent image spell description, it says nothing about having to actually see the place you're casting the spell on. Personally, I'd think it possible to cast a blind silent image without knowing where it'll be or who will see it, but you're the boss; what's your ruling?

Iorskan, can you give me a reflex save? The web spell was readied to be cast right after the cloud, sharing an area of effect.

Fort: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (13) + 9 = 22

Ref: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (15) + 4 = 19

Iorskan prided himself on many things. His sense of smell was one of the many attributes which made his love for himself so strong. But at that moment, his self-described blessing had turned into a curse. Even worse than the smell, he couldn't see anything. So he stepped out of the cloud, and the foul smell. It was magical, he was sure. Simply stepping out of it shouldn't have removed the foulness so readily. With his appetite momentarily suppressed, the wyrmling waited until he could see what was in front of him.

Sure, sorry about that

Bright Awn and Jen are up!

Jen moves up by Iorskan and squints at the stinking cloud, only to be met with absolute magical darkness that even her fiend-touched eyesight cannot penetrate.

The things that I typed last time occur now, sorry about falling out of turn order -_-

1st Spellcraft check: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (14) + 12 = 26

"Get out of that cloud or it'll keep poisoning you!" Jen yells.

She doesn't know if they can hear her, so she continues with, "Yell back if you can hear me!" just to be sure.

Jen then looks at the gold dragonling. He hasn't spoken much at all in the brief time she's known him, which makes her wonder if he's laconic or just... draconic.

Agh, shut up brain, now's not the time, anything could be happening in there!

draconic "Any ideas, o king of serpents?" she says with a note of urgency in her voice. She doesn't have much, so if the dragonling has nothing to offer she intends on waiting out the spell and hoping for the best.

You can make knowledge checks or speak at any time; I was just wondering if you wanted to cast the silent image you asked about.

Bright Awn is up!

Iorskan, taking 2d4 damage is probably going to be better in the long run than being stuck in these webs until the spell ends, and being unable to move more of our guys in through them. Can you light them up?

My reading is that if Iorskan breathes fire on the webs, the webs in the area of effect will immediately burn away. Then next round, the ones adjacent to any of those (that haven't already burned themselves) will catch fire and burn away, and so on. Anyone in a square with webs the round it burns takes 2d4 fire damage. Ozzy can go into healer mode and run around with the infernal healing wand to help any of our people who get too badly singed.

Realistically, that should probably do something to the gas in the air as well, but mechanically I don't think it does. That's a much shorter-lived spell, anyway.

Alternatively, doesn't Iorskan have an ability to add fire damage to his natural attacks? If he activates that, I would think that for the purposes of the Web spell, that would count as a flaming weapon, and he would be able to move freely through the webs that round, clearing them as he goes (the spell seems to indicate that clearing them with a flaming weapon does not start a fire or make anyone take the 2d4 damage).

Iorksan doesn’t know the details of the spell. Setting things on fire is what he does, so if anyone tells him too he will breath fire everywhere with glee.

Iorskan turned around and looked at the newcomer. Nearly the size of an adult human, the wyrmling ‘smiled’, showing his sharp teeth. Humans like showing teeth. It made them happy. His reptilian eyes looked over the strangly colored one.

”I like you, human.” Turning back to the unnatural fog he squinted. ”I can fill the room with fire. But I think we have friends in there. Otherwise we wait for the spell to end.”

Ozzy isn't any good at spellcraft either, but Jen rolled a really good spellcraft check.