I mean that the character Mel might choose to do something she wouldn't do normally due to circumstances, and that has been happening pretty much the whole campaign from what I can tell. Mel is a fish out of water learning to fly.
The description says that it does not radiate as magic, so detect magic wouldn’t pick it up.
I stand corrected.
The towel example might still be problematic. A greatsword is rigid, while a towel is floppy; and since the item retains all of its other properties, you'd wind up with a rigid, inflexible towel, which is certainly weird.
Beyond that, though, the enchantment seems considerably better than I thought it was.
I am not convinced.
It does not RADIATE magic, but e.g. Magic Aura does state that close inspection gives a will save.
That, and as pointed out the spell does not change weight, so that towel will be very suspicious if you need to hand it off.
Also, lingering magic auras are a thing, so that best be a very low-level greatsword.
And there, we are not in Speak with Dead or Blood Biography-Territory, nor in Truthtelling Magic or similar gimmicks.
I do agree that glamour has great utility, and I love me a Hat of Disguise, I just think your example has been chosen poorly.
Baseless paranoia in the gameplay thread.
Perhaps not entirely unrelatedly, we had our first session of Rappan Athuk a few days ago, and I didn't mention it then. So far we've avoided any deaths in the party, and while you might not initially be impressed by that seeing as we've yet to actually enter the dungeon, I'm rather proud of it. We did go through a grueling random encounter against a pair of ghasts and fifteen ghouls at level three, but since two thirds of the party can fly and the third is a warforged immune to paralysis and sporting a bit of DR, the only person in serious danger was the druid's animal companion. All things considered, I'd love to have a few more deceptively easy (if time consuming) fights like that, and put a few levels under our collective belts.
I have a work trip on Thursday-Saturday and might not be able to post much from Thursday morning until later in the day Sunday.
When I started this game, I thought the excuses invented by these civilized, would-be Invaders were far too flimsy. In the past couple of years, however, I've read more about how colonial powers seized their colonies and realized that this story is a little too utopian, if anything.
Just goes to show you how the past was a horrible place
Just goes to show you how the past was a horrible place
The past?
I'd reword that: Just goes to show you how real humans are a horrible race.
Touche
It's an interesting philosophical exercise comparing humanity to nature. On one hand we are capable of incredible cruelty. Usually we don't ascribe such behavior to animals, but there are times when animals are cruel seemingly without reason.
On the other hand, the fact that we would feel remorse for the terrible things humanity has done/is doing even when it may be to our own personal benefit is a testimate to the goodness of humanity.
Yeah, humans. I reread The Prince the other day, which always makes me want to run an intrigue campaign.
The 5,000 gp figure Muse needs upfront was calculated from a crew of twenty making a profession check a week for twelve weeks - which comes out at about 1,000 gp. (Very rough “about”, by the way - there was a lot of guesstimation going on.) Figure Muse sells in Iustia whatever he bought in Helm for about x1.5 the original cost, whereupon the crew get their payday. The crew is paid out of the profit but isn’t paid all of the profit, so Muse needs to buy more than 3,000 gp worth of stuff. Then you figure that Muse and Tiyeri will have a higher profession checks than the rank and file, and you round up to 5,000 gp for random miscellaneous expenses (and feeding everyone until their payday months from now). The Sonder made zero pokebucks on it’s last outing, so it needs this money to make another one (a reason why Muse hasn’t spent his personal profit from Kazad Gravr yet - he’d rather not borrow hundreds of platinum if it can be avoided).
The twenty thousand gp figure, meanwhile, is Muse expecting to be bartered down to substantially less than that. His goal in asking for such a ludicrous sum is mostly just to move the conversation away from the five thousand he wants up front, and have it accepted as comparatively reasonable.
Also, this was all typed on a touchscreen, so forgive atypical typos. I probably haven’t caught them all.
As nice and clean as Arial is as a font there are reasons to use a font with a bit more detail. I now understand where I went wrong with Iustia's name. It's sad it took me this long to realize it wasn't just people forgetting to capitalize it. <slaps forehead>
Hey, for a while there I was calling Kazad Gravr, Kazad Gavr. I don’t have any excuse there!
I can beat that though, I changed my name for a while, writing it Frytor instead of Fyrtor. That is pretty dang bad. Lol
The 5,000 gp figure Muse needs upfront was calculated from a crew of twenty making a profession check a week for twelve weeks ...
I'm betting that the best route to Count Aral is overland.
Or, theoretically, the Bishop could arrange for magical transport.
Wouldn't that take the wind out of your sails?
Maybe! In which case they’ll be flapping listlessly in the breeze. But it’s a pretty rare case that land travel is at all better than boating, in a world without trains. The Sonder can cover about three hundred miles in a day (assuming an average speed of about eleven knots), and while I don’t know anything about horses I can’t imagine one covering more than 80 miles in a day as an absolute upper bound - that’s assuming they can maintain a 10 mph pace for eight hours without rest. When Americans were colonizing the West, after all, it wasn’t it faster (if more dangerous) to sail all the way around South America than it was to cross the country by land?
But on land, they had to deal with Ox Carts and Dysentery. Oh how many of them died of Dysentery in that Oregon Trail...
Plus, sea travel was not without problems, either...storms and co...overland horse was simpler and more comfortable where roads existed(less people needed, proper beds, fresh food...) - and we are not colonizing using trails...
If we're going to a coastal city, then sure. Travel by sea would make sense.
But looking at the map, I see a moderately sized city in Iustia which is pretty much dead center in the continent. If Count Aral is hanging out there, well, the fastest way there would be to bounce over to Brookside and follow the river downstream, perhaps by boat of it's navigable, then pop on over.
For that matter, a river journey down that way would also get us to the big city at the north edge of the map, which I presume is their capital. And, honestly, our most likely destination.
I proffer the following:
1) The map has no scale.
2) It took Mel several months to travel overland from the north west Concordat to Brookside, but only 2 days to travel from Brookside to Helm. Though undoubtedly much of that was her just bouncing around excitedly seeing new things along the way.
3) When we sailed from Helm to Kazad Gravr, it took us a week of sailing to get to the mouth of the river, and two more days of upstream travel. That included a side trip to the closest of the Serpent Isles to deal with Van Beem.
4) When we returned from Kazad Gravr to Helm, it took a week: the same amount of travel time, even though we were now able to take a direct route instead of bouncing off the Serpent Isles.
From this, I conclude that the GM isn't terribly interested in working out precise distances to places. We'll be traveling at the speed of plot; time and space are only obstacles when the GM decides they are.
So ... it's a matter of taste, really.
We can do whatever floats your boat!
I just want to add 3 thoughts:
* If the Sonder poses as a trade ship to cover our real reason, then having her idle at our destination for several weeks will be suspicious - especially if we have to travel on by foot and the ship stays there even longer.
* If negotiations don't go well, the ship is vulnerable - they could use it, and the crew, as leverage to impose their will on us - take it hostage.
* There's also the chance we'll simply get handed passenger tickets for a fraction of the cost on some other ship going that way - rather than booking the package deal to have the ship idle while we do our business.
Not discounting Mel's analysis, there are a lot of factors that can make what seems like the same distance travel in very different amounts of time. With sailing to the Servant isles, then back without stopping by them, wind direction or strength may make the difference. For overland travel the presence of a good road makes a huge difference in how quickly a person can travel. Also old maps are notoriously out if scale. It's expected that there are inaccuracies.
All this is to say that whether Brookside has a solid idea for travel distance and times in this world, or not, the inconsistencies are easy to justify.
I just want to add 3 thoughts:
* If the Sonder poses as a trade ship to cover our real reason, then having her idle at our destination for several weeks will be suspicious - especially if we have to travel on by foot and the ship stays there even longer.
* If negotiations don't go well, the ship is vulnerable - they could use it, and the crew, as leverage to impose their will on us - take it hostage.
* There's also the chance we'll simply get handed passenger tickets for a fraction of the cost on some other ship going that way - rather than booking the package deal to have the ship idle while we do our business.
Ah, but 1) the Sonder wouldn’t be posing as a trading ship - it would be one. Whether or not the bishop hires us, Iustia’s the Sonder’s next stop. If the party tags along, we’d have an airtight alibi for being there.
2) Taking a boat hostage is pretty hard, especially a fast ship like the Sonder. If negotiations go so poorly that people are trying to catch and keep an unrelated merchant vessel, I’d worry more about our own hides.
3) The Sonder’s an easy way there and, importantly, back again. It’s on its way to Iustia already, both because Nelly likely won’t be dragging those dwarves their weapons across all of the continent and because Muse is worried that Iustia might be less amenable to trade in the future, with a possible war looming. The Sonder will likely be spending a fair chunk of time in port buying and selling, likely more time than we’ll need to discreetly contact the count.
RE: travel times, I assumed that we’d be going at least as far as the Serpent Isles, just looking at the overmap, which is why I assumed we’d be using a boat. But I was assuming that the map was drawn to scale, which it seems it is not.
And in times of political strife, the government will probably be watching for groups of armed people teleporting around.
1.: That is the point. It would be a trading ship that unloads its cargo and then lingers around idly for weeks while waiting for us to return.
Instead of taking on different cargo and setting sail somewhere else.
Cargo ships did not usually pander their goods on a local market - the operating cost of crew and ship were too high to make that worthwhile - they sold to a local merchant/reseller, took on other goods and moved on.
2.: A vessel in harbor is VERY vulnerable, especially if they are surprised. Unless you mean to say the Sonder will depart the Harbor and then cruise near the coast, which will ALSO be suspicious.
3.: I am not opposed to the idea. As you say, those heavy crates will be more easily moved that way, if we want to deliver them ourselves and not give that task to Algric and Kelian.
But we should be cautious about some things - you seem to assume that the count is in or near a harbor city? Do we have some basis for that?
Because that time buying and selling in port will no longer be reasonable if we have to acquire land transportation for the boxes, de-tour to deliver those, then move further towards wherever the count resides - you calculated with 12 weeks - I doubt the sea travel would be more than 2 weeks. That leaves 8 weeks of time on land, going there, convincing him, probably doing some errand for him - and 2 months of harbor time is long.
I'm all in favor of having a mobile base, moving there with it. You're a captain and the Sonder is effectively part of your leadership character perk. I am just saying we should try and find solutions.
Maybe we 'sabotage' the Sonder before limping into port, claiming a storm or pirate attack and obviously needing repairs(no real structural damage, just stuff that looks time-intensive - that would give the ship a reason for an extended port stay - maybe even leave some superfluos damage unfixed now, then fix that there.
Have them do real work in putting up temporary/mobile fortifications and set guards - if there is an assault, use the fortifications to delay the attack while getting ready to make a run for it. That kind of stuff.
Being a ship’s captain is a big part of his character. An opportunity to be a ship’s captain is hence good for the story. It might not be the most optimal, but I’m ok with that.
Aye, thats what I say - I'm perfectly fine with the ship, but the puzzle pieces need to fit. It has to make sense.
We don't want to draw suspicion, and we don't want to leave our assets vulnerable.
I don't know Claudius enough to suggest that - but maybe we could ask him for a "Resurrection Voucher"? I know we said Raising the Dead was not easily available and costly - but I would assume he could perform such a deed. Having one "booked" for when we need it may be worth more than a monetary reward...and be in his interest if we act as his agents, too.
Could ask him for a favor for each of us.
It’s open ended enough. It could include a resurrection. And we have the cash on hand to buy trade goods anyways, right?
Sorry for the delay! I've been somewhat under the weather for the past few days, a phrase which here means puking out of every orifice, ears excluded. Think it might have been something I drank. I'm feeling somewhat better now, and I'll have a post up in the Gameplay promptly!
That sounds HORRIBLE :( Get better soon.
Yeah, it hasn't been fun. :\
Was talking with an IRL friend about what sometimes feels like constantly illness of one stripe or another, and they, despite being demonstrably less cleanly than myself (or, indeed, what I'd consider baseline human cleanliness) said that they usually get sick once every nine years. (Seeing as they're only ~twenty, I've no idea how they've enough data to amp such a pattern). I'm jealous, since it seems like I get seriously sick at least a handful of times every year.
I feel your pain. Son had a very nasty stomach bug. Now I have it. Not enjoying the blessings of grandfather Nurgle at all.
Anyways, glad you’re getting over it. Hope to follow in your wake soon.
Yeah, it hasn't been fun. :\
Was talking with an IRL friend about what sometimes feels like constantly illness of one stripe or another, and they, despite being demonstrably less cleanly than myself (or, indeed, what I'd consider baseline human cleanliness) said that they usually get sick once every nine years. (Seeing as they're only ~twenty, I've no idea how they've enough data to amp such a pattern). I'm jealous, since it seems like I get seriously sick at least a handful of times every year.
Urk. That could be posted to r/ihadastroke. If it were funny, that is.
Question for the GM - can we find a wizard to teleport us across the continent? When we heard that raise dead was hard to come by, I kind of wrote off getting NPCs to cast high level spells for us as a viable strategy. If we can ‘port places that changes a lot.
To explain Muse’s reasoning here, as a character, he’s not an adventurer by trade, and doesn’t know that there’s a GM who’ll keep his WBL semiconsistent. He doesn’t know that he’s likely to find money or treasure in Iustia (and in fact is counting against it - there’s no visible source of revenue, and any number of foreseen and unforeseen costs). He thinks he has a point of pressure with the bishop, and is looking to secure funding enough to make this win-win.
As a player, I’m not trying to “break” the WBL. At all! I’ve just been playing Captain Muse as I’ve thought he’d react. There’s no point in trying to get more gold or useful items than the GM doles out, since the GM arbitrates reality completely and totally - they could give your character less money later, or have them fight tougher foes, or kill them with lightning. Any money Muse convinces the Bishop to part with would go towards feeding and clothing followers and cohorts, or expanding business. Because my idea of Muse as a character is someone with business savvy, a merchant with a policy of calculated recklessness who can’t help but see that without the implicit promise of found loot inherent to Pathfinder - a game system he doesn’t know he’s a part of - this is a pretty raw deal. He’s levying specialized skills and taking risks he knows are worth more than a few thousand gold piece to Helm, and a few thousand gold means the difference between having to borrow money to outfit the Sonder next time it leaves port or not - whether or not it’s now or later. The difference between what he sees as acceptable and unacceptable risk. If he sees a way to make this win-win, he’s going to at least ask.
Of course, he wouldn’t actually refuse the Bishop (not that he’d ever undermine his position by saying that aloud). This is too important.
Part of the problem for Brolin is the bishop is pretty dang high level and sense motive is far and away his best skill...
"...As to your suggestion for a competent second-in-command" his eyes twinkle "don't you agree it would be ideal if such a second drew little attention to him or herself?"
Hehe, I didn't mean to prompt Kelian to ask for something - I was wondering if he would volunteer for the position *gg*
Ah funny. That didn't occur to Kelian. The Bishop was implying he already has someone in that position but it's not very obvious.
I'm not going to type up anything of any particular length or quality at this juncture. Don't let me hold up the action by not posting things. I'll be better soon, I'm sure.
And happy Halloween, all.
Sorry to hear you're still feeling poorly. Get well soon! Happy Halloween!
Happy Samhain!
And get well soon, Brolin.
GM, with the conversation with the Bishop drawing to an end, what is the next phase? Are we writing small expositions glossing over the time waiting for the crafting to be done? I'd like to write something about taking the interested orc to Sarenraen temple and such.
I'm going to have you head out pretty soon so yes go ahead and write up what you do as you prepare to leave. Also choose how you want to travel to Bannerhold.
Mel has some shopping she'd like to do. Now that she has an in-game reason to do so, she'd like to get some intrigue-type gear. GM, are the following available?
Sleeves of Many Garments (200 gp).
Hat of Disguise (1,800 gp).
Book of Puzzles (50 gp).
Dreamtime Tea (120 gp/dose).
Of all these things, the dreamtime tea one is the least likely to be available (or easy to find) since it's a drug. Basically, drinking this stuff renders you unconscious for 2d12 minutes, no save. While you're out, you get the benefits of an Augury spell (60% chance of useful info), presumably in the form of a surreal vision. On waking, there's a DC 20 Fortitude save to avoid addiction.
I'd like three or four doses of the stuff if it can be found -- combined with a Negate Aroma spell (level 1 Druid spell) to hide its distinctive odor, it could be useful for quietly incapacitating someone, allowing ample time to tie them up and stuff them in a closet. Or similar.
I would really have liked to get a Seducer's Bane bracelet, mostly for the Sense Motive bonuse; but it's far too expensive.
I may buy a Cloak of Resistance +1 though. We'll see how my funds are looking after the above.
I would be very interested in that mirror, yes. I did mention earlier that I'm intrigued, but was unsure if it's something that may be asked of our host directly since I had no idea about the nature of what is hidden away.
Please do show and tell :)
Well to me it makes the most sense to travel there by sea. Whether that is on the Sonder or not I think should be up to Brolin.
Now, what are we going to do with the ship and the orcs? There are going back to the barbarian lands? What of the ship? Did we sell that? Should we sell it.
Edit: GM, how much time, effort and money would it take for Fyrtor to research oath of anonymity? Can he?
Mel, let's see if the tea is available. I'll make it 50:50.
Available.
Fyrtor, I'd say that with a week and 300 gp you can learn that cantrip.
Ok, I'm not surprised about the books not being available in orcish. I'd commission a translation, but that would take too long given we will be parting soon.
How long are we in Helm waiting? If there's time for learning that cantrip I will definitely do so.
Well it's up to you guys how long you wait in Helm, I suppose. You don't have a deadline for once but things are happening in the world so I wouldn't have you wait an excessive amount of time.
How long are our various projects going to take? Also I suppose I could work on the spell on the way during travel time.
Enchantments take one day per 1,000 gp in the price. So, the Shadow property on Mel's armor will take 4 days, and the +2 on Nelly's barding will take another 4. Those are both being done by the same person, so that's 8 day.
I don't remember exactly how much the enchantments on Fyrtor's sword and Kazador's armor cost, but just total those up and divide by 1,000 to get the number of days it'll take Pippi.
Either way, I think there's enough time to research that cantrip before we leave.
My enchantments total 7k. So that's quite a while if Pippi is the only one working on these, and not using apprentices.
Edit: Turion, I'd like to engineer a discussion between Fyrtor and Turion regarding learning this spell I feel like it'd be very natural for Turion to be an resource for Fyrtor in learning this. He may be an arcane caster, but he draws his power from fey powers and that's tied to nature and all that. Also oath of anonymity seems very much like a fey spell.