Vi moved 60 last round. Shoot, move, and bonus dash. Why did Palisade only move 30? I don't see an attack in his action.
I'm not sure what I'm rolling here. Can I shoot, move and dash 4 times for the first 4 chase rounds, then deal with obstacle on the 5th? Or are we rolling them all into one longer chase turn?
Vi moved 60 last round. Shoot, move, and bonus dash. Why did Palisade only move 30? I don't see an attack in his action.
I'm not sure what I'm rolling here. Can I shoot, move and dash 4 times for the first 4 chase rounds, then deal with obstacle on the 5th? Or are we rolling them all into one longer chase turn?
Palisade failed his first save to plow through the thorny bush so he 'wasted' his move action. He saved the second time so he moved 30'.
We are rolling everything in one long chase round so you all move and dash during the first four rounds and then deal with the obstacle in the 5th round. I now realize that this screws you because you waste your cunning actions for the first four rounds.
If this doesn't work then we'll go back to a round by round chase. I now remember that we did with these characters when you were being chased by the vampire (and his dwarf zombies) in the Mournlands (Cannith enclave) and it wasn't that bad.
@Bronwyn: yes, you can try to set the jungle on fire. We'll do this next round if you wish.
Questions?
Game on!
Vi dashed through the jungle, making sure not to get too far ahead of the others. She helped when she could, lifting branches so Bronwyn didn't get knocked out as Palisade bounced her through the jungle.
Seeing the lizards pulling closer, Vi stopped for a moment and loosed another arrow. This one also went wide. Cursing, she turned to run again and stepped directly into an enormous mound of loose wood. Stumbling free of it, she suddenly felt the pain of dozens of tiny bites. Cursing more loudly, she danced around for a few seconds, wiping insects from her legs. As she finally forced herself to start running again, she felt a bit loopy from all the bites.
Bronwyn would have stamped her foot in frustration if t wasn't dangling mid-air in front of Palisade. Grumbling to herself she said, "Fine! If my fire can't reach the lizards then I'll make the jungle burn!". She spread her hands wide and flames erupted from her palms, bathing the greenery behind her and Palisade in fire.
Squeak continued to charge on, his untiring legs pushing his hundreds of pounds adamantine with surprising speed.
Squeak slowed, spun around and knelt. With quick motion he put crossbow bolts into the trees near the closest lizardfolk, his crossbow reloading itself as fast as he could pull the trigger.[/ooc]
Holding its shield before it with one hand and using the other to secure Lady d'Deneith, Palisade kept running with mechanical precision that cared little for obstacles that it believed its mass and speed would carry it though - not that spotting obstacles in this dense forest was an easy task anyway, since rocks and tree roots had a nasty habit of materializing from behind bushes and leafy branches. Thus the 'forged didn't see the massive mound of twigs and mud in time either, and its headlong dash caused it to hit the termite nest, shield leading. The glancing blow wasn't enough to stop the heavy runner, but it did result in an explosion of angry insects, their eggs and the remains of what had just recently been one quarter of their nest high into the air.
"Lady d'Deneith, you might with to close your mouth and cover your nose," Palisade said calmly while biting insects began landing all over them. "This one may have made a misstep."
[ooc]Hmm - so we're using the 2019 version of Artificer, right?
Yes, we are. It may change come the new 5e Eberron official book but we'll tackle that later.
You do get two atacks as long as one is made with a magical weapon of your'making' so your repeating crossbow would qualify.
So on the fifth round, you would only move 30' since your other action which is normally used for 'dash' would be used for 'attack'.
The save to 'miss' the termite mound was either acrobatics or perception so I think it would not have mattered since Squeak has +2 on both of these checks (acrobatics +0 proficiency +2 DEX mod) (perception +3 proficiency but -1 WIS mod).
OK, I'm going to try and make sense of all your intentions and rolls. We'll see, we may go back to round by round and using a combination map/theater of the mind.
Recapping...
Questions?
Game on!
We got it!
Read the OOC.
Questions, comments, and/or suggestions?
Game on!
, fail
, fail
, pass
Mei'Vi leaned over, hands on knees, breathing heavily. It seemed the little lizards had stopped the chase, at least for now. "That was too close. I don't know if we're up for this. How much is that guy paying us?"
Looking at the others, she saw that none of them had come through unscathed. "We should try to get back to camp," she said, motioning behind them. "Hopefully we can figure out how to get there without going back through the clearing. But those little bastards are probably good at tracking, we'll have to cover our trail as best we can."
Bronwyn squealed as she got covered with disgusting termites. "Get them off! Get them off! I hate bugs!"
Once they had stopped and Palisade had put her down, she continued to shake out her skirt and hair. "Ugh! It feels like they're still on me."
She nods at Vi, "We need to get back to camp and rest and heal. Then we can come back to the Temple. Maybe they'll think we've given up and won't be expecting us to come back. And yes, I don't think we're being paid enough for this."
Squeak looked at the dancing Vi "I'm afraid they're fleeing the repellent protected parts of your skin for the only part not treated - your face."
"I concur that we should recover. It will take me some time to effect repairs on the four of us - at least a day. Fortunately the more fragile members of our troop seem to have taken the least damage and..." he paused to delicately pluck something off Palisade's exposed wooden strut "Oh! a Queen! Hmmm. I think she was trying to make a nest."
"Also, more repellent." he announced "For everyone."
he paused to delicately pluck something off Palisade's exposed wooden strut "Oh! a Queen! Hmmm. I think she was trying to make a nest."
"That is not acceptable, unit Squeak," Palisade said, focusing its single eye on the little creature between Squeak's fingers. "Will you convey to her majesty this one's armor is already claimed as a nesting ground by its elder brother? And this one doesn't believe he'd want to share."
So... back to camp to lick your wounds and rest. I'm assuming you'll spend the night there and head back to the temple next morning but let me know otherwise.
Anyone helping Vi cover those tracks? These are locals that will be tracking you...
I intend to recap later today.
Questions?
Game on!
Hopefully we can figure out how to get there without going back through the clearing. But those little bastards are probably good at tracking, we'll have to cover our trail as best we can."
Bronwyn' s face brightens, "I can help. I can burn away any evidence of our tracks!"
"That is not acceptable, unit Squeak," Palisade said, focusing its single eye on the little creature between Squeak's fingers. "Will you convey to her majesty this one's armor is already claimed as a nesting ground by its elder brother? And this one doesn't believe he'd want to share."
Bronwyn' s face brightens, "I can help. I can burn away any evidence of our tracks!"
Alarmed, Mei'Vi spun around, and cried out, "No! No burning. Burned away tracks are still tracks." Turning to Squeak, she said, "Don't let her burn anything! Or generally try to help. Palisade, can you help me with this?"
Read the OOC.
Questions, comments, and/or suggestions?
Game on!
Perception DC 20
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Bronwyn crossed her arms. If she had been ten years younger, she probably would have stuck her tongue out at Vi. "Fine! But don't say that I never offer to help.". With that she stalked off a short distance and busied herself with cleaning the dirt and dust off her clothes with the use of magic.
Bronwyn approached the door cautiously. Her hands tingled in anticipation of magic, not knowing exactly what she would find. There had been many theories of what she'd find behind the door and apparently only she, being dragonmarked, was qualified to open the door. The paint had peeled ages ago but the wood was still solid. She could feel multiple presences behind her waiting to both see and react should it be necessary. The door was indeed locked so she used fire to burn away part of the door where the lock was. She took a deep breath and slowly pulled the door open.
The wizard had been expecting a skeleton and this is precisely what she found. A skeleton with tattered rags scattered around his ankles, slumped forward and bent at the waist, sitting on what appeared to be a toilet. She started to turn to get the attention of the 'forged when she caught movement out of the corner of her eye. Very slowly, the skeleton began to upright itself and it turned it's empty eye sockets towards her. Faster than she expected, it reached out a bony hand and grasped the fabric of her skirt. It began to drag her towards itself. Termites spewed forth out of its mouth and began swarming all over Bronwyn, consuming her flesh. She screamed.
Bronwyn sat bolt upright, sweating from fear and jungle heat in a very unladylike manner. It took her a moment to realize where she was. She pulled her knees to her chest and hugged them to herself. She buried her face between them and murmured as she rocked back and forth, "I should have never opened that bathroom door.
Good stuff. Thank you!
Game on!
Hey guys,
I don't know if it's the 5e system, this story, time constraints, PCs no longer being 'fresh', something else?, or a combination of these factors, but this game isn't flowing like it once did.
We've had a great game, and I don't want to just fade into an 'OK game'.
Should we call it quits and reconvene in another game perhaps?
"Don't let her burn anything! Or generally try to help. Palisade, can you help me with this?"
"Gladly, companion Vi Olaro, although this one is not well versed in counter-tracking. It will, however, do its best to assist you as you direct," Palisade replied, very carefully squeezing termites against its body with one finger, one insect at a time, then used its Decanter of Endless Water to pour gallon upon gallon of water over its head, to wash out any termite looking to hide underneath its armored skin.
"Suggestion. Lady d'Deneith, if you require a bath, this one will gladly borrow its decanter to you," the 'forged said after a moment, as the thought occurred to it. Bronwyn's personal hygiene had never been a subject of particular interest to it, as it had seemed unlikely to affect her survival unless taken to quite drastic levels of inattention, but it had noted that mammal females in general seemed to pay particular attention to their grooming. "If you require aid in washing your back, this one is naturally available, or can at request use the Creator-Goddess' blessing to craft for you a bathing implement of your choice. This one believes tiny yellow rubber ducks are considered standard bathroom accessories, although the reason for which has remained a mystery."
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Action 1
Mei'Vi tilted her head as she heard the strange whistle. "Uh oh, that can't be good. An alarm of some kind? We might be facing reinforcements when we go back." She hesitated. "If we go back. Let's scram."
Action 3
Bronwyn's gasp of fear as she woke up brought Vi to full attention. Recognizing the signs of bad nightmare (after all, she'd been living with them for almost a year before finally ditching the cursed dagger), she moved to B's side, rubbing her back for a moment before offering her a drink of water. "Was it the 'your-date-turns-into-Palisade-mid-snuggle' dream again?"
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I don't want to end the game either, but I also don't want you guys to feel like the game is a chore.
Should we end this, I'll certainly start something else and you all would be first on list of invitees.
We'll keep this game going unless I hear otherwise.
I also want to introduce a 5th player but there really isn't a good place story-wise to do so. I think five players helps with keeping the game going when someone needs to drop off for whatever reason. I also feel that you guys could use someone with more outdoor-type skills.
I'll reach to a couple of people and see if anyone is interested. I think you may find a prisoner inside the temple...
HEALING
Let's simplify this. You all have a pool of 'healing hit points' equal to your maximum hit points to 'heal' during the day. In order to heal you either have to take a short rest (1 hour) or a long rest (6-8 hours). You just tell me how much of that pool you want to use.
Your 'healing pool of hit points' is renewed 'after' you finish a long rest but it can never be more than your total maximum hit points. That is, you will forfeit any 'healing hit points' you didn't use before taking a long rest.
I really didn't change much except replacing 'healing hit dice' with 'healing hit points' but it hopefully cleared things up a bit.
Questions?
Game on!
Sounds good, on all counts. This game is never a chore. Life is a distraction.
So basically we can all heal up to full before bed each night, assuming we haven't healed ourselves earlier in the day?
So basically we can all heal up to full before bed each night, assuming we haven't healed ourselves earlier in the day?
Yes, assuming you haven't used your 'healing hit points' so other types of healing (potions, spells, etc.) still exist.
Game on!
"Logically they will have increased their security. They may also have started putting out patrols to find us. Organics are capable of some impressive action, but it is not sustainable long term. A few days of hard work will leave them exhausted."
Squeak gestured around the camp "I suggest we begin to build a secure area here, in case a Patrol finds us. This should included traps that warn us if a scout locates us, and also traps that we can use as defences if we can lure a larger group back."
"My calculations show that if we augment our food stocks from the local area we can 'lie low' for up to sixteen weeks. Alternatively, as we know where they are located, we can stage raids on their base and fade back to here."
RECRUITMENT UPDATE
I've invited two players to join the game. I've asked them to start posting here and bouncing ideas on the new PCs.
Here are my ideas:
- two PCs that were part of a larger exploration group;
- the other members of their party were either killed, captured, or just decided to turn back;
- the party was NOT here initially for the Temple of Kah'shazul but honed in on it when they saw the coldsun lizardmen paying tribute;
- one of the PC must posses strong outdoor skills (jungle guide?);
- the other PC was part of the expedition so its requirement are a lot more relaxed (scholar, greedy merchant, bodyguard, etc.);
- given that Virtual Tao is playing a ranger in my other game, I think Virtual Tao should be the 'other' of the expedition with Vrog Skyreaver being the 'outdoorsman';
- the easiest way to get the two new PCs together with the party is have them run into each other like "Wait, are you here to raid the temple too?"
Thoughts? (from anyone)
Up to the others, but I see we could justify heading back to town to pick up some more members of the team and return. Better a smaller share of a reward than 100% of nothing.
We don't know how much trouble we were in (how many more encounters there were) but everything we had, plus a distraction, was about enough to get us 10 feet inside the door. For all we know that goes on for a hundred more (underground) rooms - right?
I'm fine with throwing down as a outdoorsman.
What are your thoughts on the revised ranger from UA?
Thanks you for the suggestion Fabian, and thanks Vrog for volunteering to be the outdoorsy type!
So my initial concept is somewhat influenced by Fabian's description of the campaign, and I'm keen to keep that whole explore!discover!adventure! feel to things :)
I'm thinking of an estranged dragonmarked elf/half-elf PC who has essentially run away from her family (and responsibilities) as she finds raiding temples archeology far more exciting than her family's affairs. She owns a shop but she's never there. She's driven to keep moving, keep finding new things :)
Still deciding on a class... could I ask if you feel as a party that you could do with someone with more Face skills? Or are you pretty ok in that department? (I notice Bronwyn has good persuasion and Vi Olaro deception too!)
Is there a combat or support role you would like to see filled?
A little info:
So this group of PCs has been running around Eberron for the past three years with a break or two in that time thus these characters are well developed at this point. However, the gist is that Bronwyn is a Deneith heir that wants to have fun. However, her house assigned two warforged, who had served Deneith together in the Last War, to 'keep her safe'. Bronwyn went to Sharn and met up with the changeling Vi who showed her around town. They then get involved in a series of adventures (original ones from Eberron, L2, L4, and L6). After coming back from Xen'drik they split up to do their own thing for a few months (Vi and Squeak open up a restaurant, Palisade preaches for the Creator-Goddess, and Bronwyn just parties it up). They were recently approached by a man to do a job for him, to retrieve some things from a temple in Q'Barra. This is where they are.
@Vrog: which ranger from UA; weren't there a couple? The one that they revised was the one with the animal companion? Is that what you are thinking of?
@Tao: thrill-seeking PC sounds about right and would fit right in with the other 'gals' in the party. Bard maybe?
@Squeak: going back to town is another option but maybe finding them in the jungle is more cinematic? Either would work.
Thoughts?
Game on!
"My calculations show that if we augment our food stocks from the local area we can 'lie low' for up to sixteen weeks. Alternatively, as we know where they are located, we can stage raids on their base and fade back to here."
"Agreement. There is animal life in plenty in these woods. This one concurs we could spend an extended amount of time here. Cautious. This one does believe, however, that the enemy forces will eventually be able to gain reinforcements, and thus waiting too long would only nullify our current advantage of having killed or caused to die several hostile lizardpersons while avoiding fatalities of our own. Furthermore, the basic situation has not chanced. We need to get into the temple. The temple has only one entrance. Said entrance is guarded. The terrain makes stealthy incursion difficult. We do, however, now have a reasonable count of the enemy forces and can plan to make better use of our available resources."
When people mention the revised ranger, This is usually what they're referring to.
"Was it the 'your-date-turns-into-Palisade-mid-snuggle' dream again?"
She shook her head, "More terrifying than icky this time. I must just be over tired and my brain is punishing me for it." Bronwyn clutched the stuffed rat to her chest as Vi rubbed her back. She smiled weakly at her offer of water. "Nothing stronger than water?"
"My calculations show that if we augment our food stocks from the local area we can 'lie low' for up to sixteen weeks. Alternatively, as we know where they are located, we can stage raids on their base and fade back to here."
Bronwyn looked aghast, "I am NOT going to spend up to sixteen weeks in this horrible place. Let's just regroup and head back. I have a few scrolls and a spell that can get us in relatively undetected. I can make Palisade bigger and then invisible so that he can carry Vi and I. And I can make Squeak gaseous so he can just float by unnoticed. If we don't have to fight to get into the temple, we'll have better success."
"If you require aid in washing your back, this one is naturally available, or can at request use the Creator-Goddess' blessing to craft for you a bathing implement of your choice. This one believes tiny yellow rubber ducks are considered standard bathroom accessories, although the reason for which has remained a mystery."
Bronwyn rolled her eyes as she brushed off ever inch of her body. "Taking a bath would be glorious but taking a bath in the middle of the jungle is not. I will pass on being soaked by cold water while being surrounded by creatures that want to kill us."
When people mention the revised ranger, This is usually what they're referring to.
I don’t think there’s much of a change unless you want to have an animal companion. However, since there will be six PCs, I would steer you away from that option since I don’t want to complicate things more than necessary. You can have an animal companion as a pet for role playing if you wish.
Can you work with the non animal companion official ranger?
Yes to everything except UA. I rather use things that have been published. Your general concept seems fine.
Ask away.
Game on!
For Dragonmarks, are you using the UA released by Wizards for them or is there another source I should be looking at?
I'll take a closer look at his stats later today but everything looks OK from a first look. At first I was afraid that this war veteran would be similar to the war veteran that you are playing in my other game but I see that they are different.
Barbarian with a rapier, eh? That's something you don't see every day.
Once Tao's PC is in, we'll work in getting you too into the game as quickly as possible.
I think it would be best if both parties sort of run into each other. I also think that the most congruent way of getting this party in the game is that you were looking for some other ruins, which you found but didn't have the riches you were expecting. You then honed in on lizardmen paying tribute to this larger, well-guarded temple, which you assumed had something worth guarding. Thus your interest.
Questions still outstanding:
- was your party larger? if so, what happened to the others?
- was Fendir local (or already was in) to Q'Barra? Is Tao's PC local (or was already in) Q'Barra?
- if either of them NOT 'local', how/where did you meet?
Thoughts?
Game on!
Vi agreed with Bronwyn. "Let's go back right away, before they recruit the other scale-skins to beef up the security. Let's approach from a different angle this time." Turning to the 'forged, she asked, "Do you think that'll work? Can you carry me and B if you're not biggified? Or do you need her spell to do it? If we could get to the temple uncontested that would be great."
That's fine. Where were you when you got hired? Were you in Karrnath still? Here in Q'Barra? Someplace else?
If you were not here then you and Tao would have to coordinate where you met/entered into the contract.
Tao???
We need your input here... :)
Questions?
Game on!
Ok sorry about the delay, my 5e chargen-fu is still pretty basic so I'm taking a while to gen the numbers!
Presenting Rainn Lysander :) (although at the moment she's just going by 'Rainn'!)
I agree with Fendir (great name btw!), Rainn is lying low in Q'Barra (so Fendir will have to decide how he go there from Karrnath!) and taking the opportunity to explore some ruined temples. She would have hired on with a group and easy to have had her and Fendir split from the other party if there was an incident. I like the idea of the same sort of thing having happened to Rainn and Fendir's group as happened to the main party, overwhelming numbers etc. That provides instant grounds for 'better to team up if we want to survive' sorts of shenanigans :)