Dungeon Master S's "Skull & Shackles" (Inactive)

Game Master Chris Marsh

FML

Maria...

Yeah that sucks dude. Our CAP is a retired scientist for NOAA. He sends his thanks and sympathy.

-Posted with Wayfinder

FML

Maria...

Feel for ya brother... Make sure you get a VP/ Presidential coin out of it... ohhh and about a 100hr overtime check that's tax free... bill your work from Canada. :P

Hey guys. Just touching base. My other games are trucking along, but we haven't really hit our stride here.

Lucky is facing off against a climate disaster. Beer moved and started a new job (though we haven't much heard from Jacob.)

Just checking in. I'll pause until we get word from Jacob. With a family and career, this medium might not be viable. Jacob, if you catch this, you're totally still in the game.

If Jacob decides to drop, I'll likely not replace him and run with 5.

Direct Chris. If I hear from Jaykob Ill let you know.

Im hoping that whatever his issue is, it will clear up soon. Most of his posts have been pretty colorful. Ive been looking forward to reading more about Beer

Me too, me too

So any non story progressing character banter that we can do, or would the GM just prefer to pause?

Oi!

On Aug 24th I was activated for Hurricane Harvey.
We stayed at a Level 1 activation (the highest level) through Hurricanes Irma, Jose, Maria, and Nate. While Jose and Nate let us off easy, the devastation wrought by Harvey, Irma, and Maria was epic. Just as we were looking at standing down and handing the baton to the Joint Field Offices on Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, there was a Firenadopocalypse in California. While it is still ongoing, we have gone to a Level 3 activation and dropped from 24 hour ops to day shift only.

During the response efforts I served as a FEMA Watch Officer and representative in the National Response Coordination Center (NRCC) in DC for about 75% of the time. The other 25% of the time I served in my role as an Army Officer in the NRCC as the liaison officer to FEMA for the Office of the Secretary of Defense. It was quite an honor to serve in each role, and gave me the chance to see the whole spectrum of response operations. Changing my suit for a uniform and back again several times a week was fun, and kept my perspective fresh, even as the weeks dragged into months.

Anyway, it's been quite a rush - we did some fine work, political grandstanding notwithstanding. I'd ask you to push back a bit if you hear anyone question the response on PR. Please tell them you have it on good authority that the efforts of the men and women on the ground certainly saved countless lives and relieved human suffering and misery in great measure. I couldn't be more proud of the two organizations I served with during the past months...

Those who rushed into the breach, both in and out of uniform, and who continue to serve countless hours in the most austere conditions this side of war, deserve our collective thanks. They are doing yeoman's work without pause. While they still toil to bring a semblance of civilization back from devastation, please keep them and the survivors they serve in your thoughts and prayers.

I had my first day off since August 24th on Saturday, and I've slept for many many hours while doing little more than eating and watching tv in the intervening periods of semi-consciousness.

Long story short, I'm back and I see I have some catching up to do. Thanks for being patient, and I'll tell you some "war" stories over a frosty beverage when next we meet!

Glad you are "back" and made it through w/ your sanity intact.

I generally don't talk to many people and don't do much on social media. But IF/When I talk to people who question the American response to such disasters, I usually first ask "What did you personally do?"

I'll stand for you and all our disaster responders.

I just read all four pages to refresh my memory of the game. Im ready!

Are we starting back up? Any word from Beer?

No word from Beer yet. I'm almost ready.

Checking in....

BAZINGA. i'll try to make time to read through the pages again today.

I just reread our entire thread. I'm not just ready to start up again...I'm Sofa King ready.

I’ll be ravaging the waters off the coast of Cabo in Mexico through the 20th in search of Pirate Booty. Feel free to autopilot at will! My flight is tomorrow morning so go for it.

Blanket post for all my PbP games:

My schedule through next week is iffy at best.

I'll be offline from this afternoon until Monday morning, likely not checking games.

I'll be hear at full strength Monday until Tuesday afternoon.

I'll be pretty much completely offline from Tuesday 21 November until Monday 27 November.

Then I return to normal until winter break.

Merry Thanksgiving Buchos!

DMS, please don’t take this as a complaint or anything towards you, but this game mechanic that we are doing right now seems unnecessarily tedious. I will say it would play better at a table. Since I don’t know what the end game of the mechanics is trying to accomplish, my question is, Could there be a better mechanic to hit the end game? Skill challenges, Goal clock? I know we took quite a bit of time off due to natural disasters and other things, but meh it’s like visiting the dentist without Novocain.

I also understand that if you’re going to include this for a PFS chronicle reward that your hands are tied in how you run it.

Lol I was just thinking the same thing. FWIW, PFS credit is not important to me...

I'm not going to take offense to it. (you're totally right, that this works better at a table.)

That being said, this adds up a LOT in the long run, and skipping it means a lot more work on my end, as who likes you and who doesn't shapes the game later. Give me a bit of time to figure out how have my cake and eat it too.

So this entire section should really progress at combat speed. That is to say if we post at a rate of 1/Day we should be flying through this.

I had some time this morning. I went back through and skimmed the game postings. I added up 2010 XP earned.

We just have to be careful as I think I messed up and sometimes gave it to the party, and sometimes had it broken down to "per character"

The best way to do it is for someone to update THIS TRACKER every time it's handed out.

We just have to be careful as I think I messed up and sometimes gave it to the party, and sometimes had it broken down to "per character"

The best way to do it is for someone to update THIS TRACKER every time it's handed out.

I vote for Slappy. I also issue proxy votes on behalf of everyone else for Slappy.

Nicely played Kiltem. Sorry I missed posting during the excitement...RL's a b$&** sometimes ;-)

I hear ya. I just happen to be home and awake yesterday when that all went down.

Posting my holiday schedule:

I'll be posting at full speed from today until Friday afternoon. After that I'll be completely MIA from December 22-26.

I'll return on the 27th, albeit with a slightly slower pace, likely only once or twice each day until January 2nd, at which point I'll be back full speed for the foreseeable future.

Are we ready!

Fyi, Odric did 365 points of damage in one round of attacks.

I came close to that once...when Tor was about 6 hp shy of killing a fiendish cloud giant in 1 round (I know I critted once for about 190)

I came close to that once...when Tor was about 6 hp shy of killing a fiendish cloud giant in 1 round (I know I critted once for about 190)

Ive heard many tales of Tor. I think that was an epic campaign that you guys started right around when I moved away from NH

Who is keeping track of XP?

Might be nice to be 2nd level before this combat

Aye. You ought to be. I'm not sure what happened, this is the only game where XP is messy.

I'm going to Rule 0 that we're level 2.

EVERYONE LEVEL UP THEIR CHARACTER.

HUZZAH!!!!

Level UP!

Going to officially go Storm Druid, I don't love all the storm abilities but I'm not losing much. And this is probably the best chance I'll ever have to have a Storm Druid.

WindWalker: any natural or magical wind effects are treated as one step less severe

Hit Points 1d8 + 2 + 1 ⇒ (7) + 2 + 1 = 10

+1 BAB

+1 Fortitude and Will

4 skill points: Perception, Climb, Swim, Knowledge Nature (or I could spend one point in Healing instead? Its probably the only point I'd spend in it)

Since I have an extra spell I was looking over the list.
I always have Obscuring Mist since its my domain spell.
I have three other first level spells. I'd like to have Shillelagh for combat effectiveness with my club. Then at least one CLWs spell (I also have two CLWs scrolls for emergencies).
I don't mind having a second CLWs spell or their are some other neat utility spells like Touch of the Sea (get a 30' swim movement) or Air Bubble (only two minutes of underwater breathing at this level).

Or I found a spell called Tears to Wine. Would be a pretty good barter spell while on ship.

Guys, I get a teamwork feat that I can grant to anyone within 30ft of me. Here are the ones I am considering. Any thoughts? Or suggestions for other ones?

Distracting Charge
Benefit: When your ally with this feat uses the charge action and hits, you gain a +2 bonus on your next attack roll against the target of that charge. This bonus must be used before your ally’s next turn, or it is lost.

Escape Route
Prerequisite: none
Benefit: An ally who also has this feat provokes no attacks of opportunity for moving through squares adjacent to you or within your space.

Precise Strike
Prerequisites: Dex 13, base attack bonus +1.
Benefit: Whenever you and an ally who also has this feat are flanking the same the creature, you deal an additional 1d6 points of precision damage with each successful melee attack. This bonus damage stacks with other sources of precision damage, such as sneak attack. This bonus damage is not multiplied on a critical hit.

Lucky has sneak damage and could benefit.
What about Delgado? Is any of his stuff precision damage?

Slappy level up info

Class: Bard
Hp: 1d8 ⇒ 6
Versatel Performance: Comedy
Skills: 1 each in acrobatics, climb, craft alchemy, escape artist, know nature, perception, perform comedy, swim,

Spells: 0 level: mending

1st level: I need help choosing, I’m thinking animate rope, but am very open to suggestions. I do not play that many casters, but I think in this setting it might be very useful.

Question for the DM: would there have been any downtime for me to craft? I do have alchemy, and was wanting to make some air crystals and the such. Was there any time to do this?

Leveled.

HP: 6+1=7
Skills (4+2 for int +1 for favored)
Acrobatics; Bluff; diplo; Climb; Intimidate; Sleight of hand; Prof (pirate)

Other stuff: Charmed Life 3/day (add Cha to a save before it's rolled)

1st level: I need help choosing, I’m thinking animate rope, but am very open to suggestions. I do not play that many casters, but I think in this setting it might be very useful.

That's a good choice, considering our environment. May I also suggest to add to your short list Remove Fear? It's a little bit niche, but Fear SUUUUUCKS.

I checked my druid list. No remove fear.

Charmed Life is pretty good (assuming you have good Cha). Three times a day is almost as good as the Paladin's blanket Cha bonus to saves.

Didn’t Art start with a gun? We all should have received all of our equipment back already. Unless you’re looking for another broomstick

Couldn’t afford a gun. Got a gunsmiths kit

Any thoughts on how we carry on with out Joe/Slappy (at least for now)?

Will Slappy now just be a character in the background? Like an NPC?

Or shall we take turns botting Slappy?

He is the only party member to have arcane magic, who also has access to CLWs. Which will be important as we level up.
For the moment Kiltem is happy to be the party healer. Though during combat he is pretty much a front line tank. When he gets to levels 4+ he will be spending a certain amount of time in wildshape. He will not be able to use wands (CLWs wands) unless he is in human form.

In this case, I think we're in a much better spot.

1. Skull & Shackles actually assumes a party of 4.
2. Keeping Slappy in the background is easier here than Edward, and he could level and jump if he comes back.

A rogue can make a good 2ndary healer, with a high enough UMD--great user of wands we find along the way. Lucky. That's you. Keep your UMD high. :-)

A rogue can make a good 2ndary healer, with a high enough UMD--great user of wands we find along the way. Lucky. That's you. Keep your UMD high. :-)

That's not a bad idea. High UMD for wand use. By 5th level Kilt will have the feat to cast spells in Wildshape.

Or just take one level as Cleric of Besmara?

Im happy to go that route. Lucky was never a combat monster...

Im happy to go that route. Lucky was never a combat monster...

I updated the Dramtis Personae with location of each. DMS can you look over the roster of dudes we left on Wormwood to see if we know who lived or died during the fight for Man's Promise? Me not knowing is the reason all those people are listed as either dead or on Wormwood.

FYI, Kilt’s perception mod is now a +8

Not sure how to go in and change it on the “group skill header”