Edited house rules to replace continual flame with continual light. This brings the spell more in line with other light producing spells and making it clear that it is not a fire spell.
Edited Delmoth's FAQ for questions about how pyrotechnics interacts with other spells.
I will get a gameplay post for the next dream quest tomorrow night. I wanted to talk about skipping content. The final 3rd of the book is completely filler, in that it only exists to provide you with exp. You get gear but its Dreamlands gear which is limited in its usefulness. The role playing and roll playing opportunities can stand on their own but if you're eager to forge ahead and meet the Mad Poet I understand.
Theophilus (and the White Rabbit) are really free spirits; and, as such, we shall go along with whatever ride you grace us with!
Totally willing to go along with whatever you want to do.
If you think it is cool and fun content, let's do it.
If it is bland filler, let's skip it.
The Dream Quests have been fun, atmospheric, and enjoyable in their own right. I will trust your judgment as to the other parts of the module.
As to XP... is level 8 coming soon?
Totally willing to go along with whatever you want to do.
If you think it is cool and fun content, let's do it.
If it is bland filler, let's skip it.
I will re-read that section to make sure but after reading it the first time I was on the fence about it.
The Dream Quests have been fun, atmospheric, and enjoyable in their own right. I will trust your judgment as to the other parts of the module.
Yay! I've been enjoying them too.
As to XP... is level 8 coming soon?
I may have forgotten to tell you to level up a dream quest or two ago. So right now.
OK with skipping filler — don't want too miss any cool stuff, though.
I am firmly of the same opinion as Dervak on all counts.
And yay on leveling! It’s even nicer getting all the automatic bonus progression stuff ^_^
Off to see the wizard; the wonderful wizard of Oz!
8th! Sweet!
Dervak's level up:
+1 Str
+9 HP
+1 Fort save
+1 BAB
+4 Skill Points (Perception, Sense Motive, Diplomacy *2)
+2 Background Skills (Knowledge-History, Knowledge-Engineering)
+1 2nd-level spell known (Resist Energy)
Spell Swap (Brow Gasher for See Invisibility)
New Rage Power: Certain Strike (reroll attack roll once per Bloodrage)
Destined Strike increases to +4 insight bonus
Fated Bloodrager bonus increases to +2 (+3 with Fate's Favored)
Power Attack increases to -3/+9 (two-handed)
Automatic Bonus Progression:
Resistance increases to +2
Gain +1 enhancement bonus to natural armor
Can attune +1/+1 weapons, so may attune the composite longbow (+3 Str) in addition to the Furious Falchion.
Mara lvl 8 highlights:
+1 Wis
+1 BAB
+9 HP
+1 Will
+2 3rd lvl spell/day
+1 4th lvl spell/day
Hex: Guiding Star (Su): Whenever the shaman can see the open sky at night,
she can determine her precise location and can add her Wisdom modifier to her Charisma modifier on all Charisma-based skill checks. In addition, once per night while outdoors, she can cast one spell as if it were modified by the Empower Spell, Extend Spell, Silent Spell, or Still Spell feat without increasing the spell’s casting time or level. The shaman doesn’t need to possess the feat to use this ability.
Note: Not to be confused with the spell Guiding Star (really wish Paizo would use unique names).
Greater Heavens Spirit — Void Adaption:
Darkvision 60 ft, can see in supernatural darkness
Constant Endure Elements
Doesn't need to breathe.
@DM_Demoth: We should think about how Void Adaption (not needing to breathe) interacts with saving throws for things like Stinking Cloud and inhaled poisons.
I would suggest that Mara needs to breathe in order to speak, and cast spells with verbal components.
Theophilus Carter Witch 8
Healing Hex
I’m out with visiting family today so I’ll get my stats updated later tonight.
Mara effectively gains the following universal monster rule.
No Breath (Ex) The monster does not breathe, and is immune to effects that require breathing (such as inhaled poison). This does not give immunity to cloud or gas attacks that do not require breathing.
RAW I think you're immune to inhaled poisons even if you speak. Stinking cloud is silent on "breathing is required" so it defaults to no. This seems silly. So I'm happy to add some house rules.
How does not needing to breathe interact with inhaled poisons and spells that create clouds, such as stinking cloud?
You are immune to inhaled poisons so long as you don't speak or cast spells with a verbal component. If you do either of these actions you still count as holding your breath.
You cannot hold your breath to avoid stinking cloud's effects, its effectively tear gas. However it feels right that not needing to breathe should help mitigate its effects. So without needing to breathe Mara would gain a +2 circumstance bonus to her saves vs stinking cloud. Other effects will be ruled on a case by case basis.
How does not needing to breathe affect casting spells underwater?
You gain a +4 circumstance bonus to the concentration check to cast the spell. You're still required to make the concentration check but it should be easier if you don't need to worry about drowning.
Does the silent spell feat affect casting spells underwater?
Yes. You do not to make a concentration check to cast a spell underwater if you are casting a silent spell and cannot breathe water.
Kat picked up a new third level extract that she’ll probably be having up most of the time, Bloodhound. It’ll last for 8 hours so expect it to be an all-day kind of buff. The penalty of scent based saves is def worth noting, but it’s hard to turn down a big long lasting perception bonus and the ability to detect poison by smell with a flat DC 20 perception. With the Bloodhound buff, her bonus more than exceeds that even before accounting for any other buffs, so she should be able to just automatically notice any poison or poison effect within scent range.
Other than that, she just uses her ability score boost for +1 to int and a bunch of numbers go up. She used the new skill points to catch knowledge (planes) up to max, keep other things maxed, etc.... She picked up Vudrani and Ancient Osiriani as new languages (one from linguistics and the other from int up). I figure as a detective, she’d pick all the big local languages and ancient osiriani is popular with Palatine Eye people, which she’s probably had run-ins with before.
When should we have leveled up? Would Mara have had the opportunity to purchase the material component for Divination?
Mara's skill increases for 8th lvl:
Adventuring Skills:
+1 Diplomacy
+1 Perception
+1 Sense Motive
+1 Spellcraft
+1 Survival
Background Skills:
+1 Knowledge History
+1 Linguistics (Necril)
Just a heads up my mom tripped and broke 3 ribs. As you can imagine this may affect my availability.
I empathize with your situation, having been there myself. Take the time you need.
My Aunt is staying with her until Christmas which is good cause I don't have a whole lot of time I can take off of work. So I'm mostly back in action. I probably will be driving there Friday nights and helping on the weekends.
I love that you're inviting me to rhyme.
Looks like Mara will have to borrow the Dreamlands money to buy the material component for Divination (25 GP). Or is their coin that we haven't distributed yet?
There is about 2500 gold in the party stash. And since you're on the Dreamlands will still be there when you wake up, so I wouldn't worry about it.
Net +2 with Heroism. If Mara could see the open sky (night-time), she would get an additional +7 from the Guiding Star hex, but I don't see that happening.
She'd need to be within 30ft of Theo for the Fortune Hex to affect him. She could start the chant a round early to affect herself for the Bluff; still, the odds likely aren't great. As per our agreed house-rule, she could keep up the chant for 8 min, so Theo would have that long for whatever he's planning.
How is your mom doing?
We finished our move over the weekend. Life has mostly returned to normal. The former owners were less handy than me, and we are already understanding what that means. It will all be fine though.
I’ll level up later today or this weekend.
She's alive. It will be weeks before she heals. Luckily my aunt is able to stay there 24/7 at least until Christmas hopefully until new years.
I'm glad you're settled. All the hands belong to my wife in the delmoth hold.
Rowan’s level highlights:
+1 dex
D10 damage
Abundant step (basically dimension door for 2 ki points)
Slightly better concentration check
Rowan is up!
Rowan is no longer with us. As you can see I'm going to bot him for this encounter. For a while now he's not been feeling the game. I'm not sure how I want to approach him leaving after this encounter. I could bot him until the end of the book and then Rowan goes his separate way. The problem with botting him is that his character has a lot of options in combat and it can take a while to figure out a combat post for him. I could have him leave immediately but that has consequences that I'm not fond of for the final encounter of this book. As far as finding a replacement I think I want to wait until at least the next book. We don't need a replacement though as the AP assumes 4 PCs.
I'm always sad to lose a player, but gaming shouldn't feel like a chore. Maybe he feels unwell for a while, and then comes along to meet the Mad Prophet (assuming that's the tricky part)?
The remaining party is well balanced IMHO, so I don't see a replacement as a priority at the moment.
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I'm sorry to lose Rowan and sorry that he wasn't feeling this game. I have to say this game is one of my favorites.
I think you can bot him in a fairly straightforward manner - I suppose the most significant decision is when and how to spend his ki points. And in that regard, during a boss fight for +AC or +extra attack as needed would seem to be the best choices.
If we want him to use a combat maneuver, we can ask in character.
We had some other good potentials from the last recruitment. Several were investigators, though, and may want to revise given that we now have Kat. So I'd suggest re-opening (after this book) rather than just directly picking one of them. I agree with Mara, we are pretty well-balanced.
I’m sad to hear it, even if I felt it coming. I would like to echo Mara and Dervak’s sentiments. I am pretty familiar with monkish people with lots of options, as I have an 11 master of many styles monk/brawler, so I can look him over and maybe write up some combat routines when I have some time.
A tear falls down the White Rabbit's furry face....
I say we wait and see...
More awesome Dreamlands gear!
Wish we had done this quest first. Always wanted to get some use out of a Sunblade. Anyway, Investigators are proficient with short swords, so I would suggest Kat gets the Sunblade.
I don't think any of us are proficient with shields. Anybody can use it, but the -1 ACP will apply to attacks and initiative. Maybe Theo? He can make friends with the lion head.
Necklace of Fireballs is always fun! Who wants it?
Mantle of Spell Resistance should go to Mara. You ignore your own spell resistance, the rest of us rather depend on her being able to cast spells on us.
Bracelet of Friends has some uses, but I am not sure who is best to have it.
Oh wow, that is some damn fine loot!
I could hold onto the necklace of fireballs, keep it in my handy haversack so it’s not gonna go off on us. I also have a good reflex save in case fire does manage to hit it
Mara will take the Mantle of Spell Resistance.
The Bracelet of Friends can be used to rescue someone who's in trouble — sort of like a high-powered Heaven's Leap. Would it make sense for Theo to have that?
What are you saying, Mara?...lol.
Theophilus will gladly keep safe the Friendship Bracelet!
Better not give him the Necklace of Fireballs. The raw power would lead him astray....
The Lion's Shield is for Mara, I guess. She doesn't make a lot of attack rolls, so the non-proficiency penalty is no big deal, and she is a divine caster so the ASF doesn't matter.
Did you want to wait to do the final dream quest?
Mara would worry what the other people on the boat might get up to while we're sleeping. That being said, I'll go along if others want to do it now.
Ok I'll move things along to the caravanserai tonight. Unless someone objects before then.
Mara memorized Divination, but I forgot that she hasn't had a chance to buy the material component in the waking world. The spell would have been helpful to help figure out how get into the prison. :(
Well, we've got a Rod of Lordly Might with its extending-ladder function if we want to climb up on the roof or try to smash down a door.
And possibly some of the other Dreamlands gear could have uses here.
Mara could Heaven's Leap Dervak into a guardpost, possibly, but then he might be stuck inside. Or there could be a secret door there.
Decided to try talking, and see if that gets us anywhere.
Starting to think Mara could charm Asmodeus himself.
I don't mind this sort of table talk if you don't.
This silver charm bracelet has four charms upon it when created. The owner may designate one person known to him to be keyed to each charm. (This designation takes a standard action, but once done it lasts forever or until changed.) When a charm is grasped and the name of the keyed individual is spoken, that person is called to the spot (a standard action) appearing at the user’s location along with his gear, as long as the bracelets’s owner and the called person are on the same plane. The keyed individual knows who is attempting to teleport him, and the bracelet of friends only functions on willing travelers. Once a charm is activated, it disappears. Charms separated from the bracelet are worthless. A bracelet found with fewer than four charms is worth 25% less for each missing charm.
To me, this reads that the wearer can spend a standard action to call a single person to their side. I don't think you can call several people at once.
In terms of action economy, Dimension Door seems the best way to get several people into action quickly.
I see a couple of options:
1. Theo Dimension Doors himself, Dervak and Kat just beyond the double doors (Mara would Haste them first). Then whoever has the Bracelet of Friends summons Mara to their side.
2. Theo Dimension Doors himself, Dervak and Kat into one of the side rooms. Mara could then follow using Heavens Leap on a subsequent round.
Option 2 has the advantage of likely overwhelming the monsters in one room before reinforcements arrive. The only risk is an unexpected internal layout that makes it difficult to quickly move on from there.
@Mara, good points.
It might be good to eventually get some form of scrying capability, like Clairvoyance or Arcane Eye, or Gloves of Reconnaissance.
Happy with either option. Dervak will Rage immediately before going (he has +3 luck bonus to AC, and +2 if he chooses to increase Dex).
In retrospect, Mara should have memorized Clairvoyance, but I didn't think of it at the time.
Who has the Bracelet of Friends?
When you're ready to pull the trigger feel free to place yourselves where you think you want to go with dimension door and let me know.