GM Blood's Savage Tide

Game Master David James Olsen

Here is the important stuff to talk about and junk

Stuff. Junk. Got it.

Does it put it in the list when you post in discussion?

Na, post in the gameplay, and then immediately delete the (dot). It registers the post for showing up under the campaigns tab, but does not clog the Gameplay with a bunch of polka dot posts.

This will be my alias for my small aasimar goblinoid.

Need to find a pretty goblin.

I don't think those words go together...

"pretty" goblin as pretty for a goblin? or "pretty much" a goblin

I am thinking of becoming a skald with a free perform and skill focus perform.
And I mean a pretty goblin.

The background generator was from Central Casting by Paul Jaquays made by Task Force Games.

They have a background generator or Fantasy, modern, and future as well as a dungeon generator.

Pretty cool when you get it all done. It gives some random bonuses that may never even help your character other than some add role play moment. I've been wanting to try it out and I think it is a given for any future game I run!

Ok, so, I think I'm done.

I mean, not quite, I still have 2 choices to make: between air and water blessing, and my level 1 feat -- but I've hammered all the random events into a backstory and am otherwise ready to go, crunchwise.

OK, I am mostly recovered from being sick. I have a lot of work to catch up on and a home game tonight. Hope to begin to catch up on things here by tomorrow.

Ok where is everyone at right now with their characters? I think we are getting closer to a starting point, but it may be another week or so.

I'm 80% likely going with the grippli inquisitor. I have that 1st level build complete and the background about 25% complete (though of course the bones are there for the whole thing). I could finish him up tonight if we wanted to get going in the next couple days.

I'm still toying around with a couple investigator ideas particularly because I've never played one before. I've backed off the android idea because of the sci-fi chocolate in the fantasy peanut butter concern, but I'm seeing if I can come up with a viable idea with a ratfolk or lashunta (which is still sci-fi but less so than an android). The specific idea I'm trying to put together is a character who would be very strong in out of combat skills and in combat would play more of a support role (aid another, infusions, etc). I'd probably need until Saturday to finish that one up.

I know what I am doing, and should have some time to get it going in the next day or two. Life has been insane the past few weeks, but seems to be changing a bit now.

I'm at least next week away from being ready, so no rush. Just didn't want to ignore it for too long.

I just need to flip a coin or something to determine between water and air in terms of the second blessing and then pick a feat that works for me. (Power attack, I suppose, but it's so cliché -- and there don't seem to be feats that increase access to the fervor class feature for some reason -- not that they'd be helpful at level 1.)

GM Blood, I think someone asked about drawbacks, but I'm not sure if it was answered. I think you said no to using them for additional campaign traits since those are more powerful than usual traits, but can they be used more generally?

BTW, I had just about solidified an interesting Vashunta Investigator idea who would have used the meteor hammer as a weapon when I saw that the new Ranged Tactics Toolbox has a Clinging Climber trait that sounds like it gives exactly what I would have pictured the Grippli Inquisitor doing. Looking over the composition of the group again, I think that a ranged character who can add some more divine casting is going to help more given that we have three melee characters already.

For regular traits sure. Try and get the drawback to fit the background or be meaningful if possible

Ok, a couple things to work out. Age 17 is where the evil, despotic ruler orders all persons of your gender, birth and approximate age put to death and I think we had a note that it was still "many" years before the character escaped through a portal to Eleder.

However, for a grippli, adulthood begins at age 12 and ends at age 19 (middle age begins at 20 and old begins at 30). The events up to age 11 all work pretty well, but I'm wondering if your preference is to change either the age at which the "age 17 event" occurs (to perhaps age 12 or 13 with the escape to Eleder at perhaps age 16 or 17) or to leave the "age 17 event" where it is and have the escape to Eleder occur in his early 20s (middle age) or we could leave the "age 17 event" alone and change the "many years" and have him escape around age 18.

Second item. I'm tying one other PC into my background. Looks like the mysterious portal period of Julian Binetti's background is the best period to work with. However, 20 years for me would take my character all the way to 29 and then we still have some of Julian's years back in his normal timestream to deal with. So, I'm inclined to suggest that my time with Julian accounts for only part of his missing 20 years (which probably works pretty well since it still leaves some other mysterious years for GM Blood or Julian to deal with.

Third item. I'm not sure whether Julian should remember his time before stepping through the portal. The whole pirate thing is interesting and could help further influence my background, but its not critical and a blank slate Julian would work just fine so thought I'd see if Julian or GM Blood have opinions on that.

Fourth item. Julian, I'm thinking your time in my character's homeland begins with him as the gang leader for a young mixed gang of gripplis, goblins and kobolds running various heists and cons before most of the gang gets conscripted into the fight against the evil despotic ruler in my timestream. Want to make sure that doesn't sound completely crazy and out of character for you (even though you'll have no memory of that time.

Last item (I think). Should Lavinia's meeting be the first time Julian and my character become reacquainted? I think that's a nice twist. It probably infers a fairly short period in Eleder for my character (which works fine).

If Julian ran a group of gripplis as a pirate crew in his youth. Then if he was in another universe where time moved slower, that would make things work out.

There is always just modifying the Grippli's age categories to make is the same as humans, that is the easiest technique.

These backgrounds generated are becoming quite interesting...

Yeh, because of mine, I have to change my original ideas, but will figure something out. One of the hard parts is that hobgoblins are not exactly common in Golarian, so finding a reason one would be civilized is a little tougher.

Tirion, not sure if you'd have a way to get from Tian Xia to Eleder, but how about Kaoling?

So I was thinking of starting of Dec 1st. How does that sound to everyone. I have overcome the strep, but still not feeling great, or sleeping good, or eating well so that has put a damper in things. I also have a couple big projects for work in mid December so been trying to get ready for those.

So thinking this should give enough time for everyone, including myself, to get the energy to be ready to go!

Sure, Dec 1 sounds great to me. I should be able to round that background into shape over the next few days.

You agree with Tirion about ignoring the grippli aging tables or would you rather have me work within it?

Dec 1 works for me.

It was in my background that I aged mysteriously with no time passed.

Dec 1 sounds good. I smoothed my background. I was thinking of picking the country my family was exiled from by falling afoul of a despot. I thought of The Shackles.

I figured Julian and grandparents could have escaped into the Mwangi jungle.

Sounds good!

I will be ready. Have a long flight on Saturday and hope to be able to get the background together and to finish the character sheet.

Yeah you can ignore it.

Julian's background is smoothed out. I will think of a few more events to describe in detail.

Besides seeing another master Aaron Rogers performance today, looking forward to getting started.

Packers are looking tough. Looks like my Buckeyes lose another quarterback and a shot at the national title. Should make for a close game against Wisconsin for Big Ten Championship.

While I went to Purdue, I'm bummed about the Buckeyes too. Was really looking forward to seeing a competitive Big Ten team in the playoff.

I was looking forward to a full strength Ohio State team to play against this weekend. I hate seeing someone so good go down like that.

Otherwise been a good month of November for Wisconsin Sports. Packers playing lights out, Badger football continuing to win and getting to the Big Ten Championship, Basketball Badgers #2 in the nation and playing like it, and even the Milwaukee Bucks, who I don't even really watch are above .500!

Yesterday's Packer-Pat's game was strange. Brady made more strange errant throws than I have ever seen. I only watched about 1/4 of the game, but I saw at least 4-5 throws which missed the receivers by 5-10 feet, into the ground, wide of the mark, high, etc. The commentators attributed it to pressure, but he was rarely under any real pressure during the throws that I saw, at least any more pressure than in any other game.

Yeah he was a little off. Rodgers was off in the beginning some as well. Maybe the stakes were in their head a little but.

Who knows, the Packers did get some pressure of him or made him move even if they didn't get to him, maybe it got in his head. He was jawing a lot on the side lines at players all game and the F Bombs at the end. I don't get to see many Pats games, but it seemed like he was over emotional all game.

Rodgers throw to convert 3rd down and run out clock was epic.
Commentators should have stressed its importance more.

Two cases that I expected to be pleas of guilty over the next two weeks are now apparently going to be trials. I will try and sneak a post in every now and then but am likely to be very unavailable for the next couple weeks.

Sorry.

That's ok, I am still getting this thing ready to go

I'm in good shape once we are ready, but a couple more weeks is aok. I would like to do a little more with my background, but its pretty solid at this point.

Yeh, trials are never any fun. Had one two weeks ago that was a real pain in the (north end of a south facing donkey).

Just as a head's up, I'll be out of town and travelling in a "not getting online to check on games" sort of way for about a week, December 12-20.

I'm wondering based on Crellan's trial, my awayness and the upcoming holiday if we might set a "start" date in the early new year when everyone would be ready to go, one hopes?

[Something like Monday the 5th, for instance...]

Works for me. I finally have some time to get my character together in the next few days.

OK, how about we do that. I'll aim for Jan 5th, 2015 as the start date. That should give us time to make it through the holidays!

Works for me!

Tomorrow is the DAY!!!! We start another awesome GM Blood campaign!!!

Bengals and Cowboys will win for me today and the Big Ten will prepare to dominate he PAC 10 next week.

I will get a better background together to justify such an amazing history. I watched an interesting Netflix show, the 4400, that seems similar to my background. In the 4400, 4400 people mysteriously disappear from the earth over hundreds of years and all appear in a crater with strange psychic powers. The people of earth seem to treat them like the X men, unsure if they should trust them.

I am moving to the skald/spell warrior archetype as I can give the entire party magic weapons, and this is the party that can really benefit from this. Starting with amazing perform skills and being an inspiring leader fit better with the skald archetype and my starting trait. So everyone will have +1 weapons at first level for a few rounds a day!!!!!

And note, the brawlers unarmed strikes are treated as natural and manufactured, so +1 to the brawler too!!!!!

Character is done down to the encumbrance and last gold.
I spent 600gp on a CLW wand with 40 charges. If we need to buy a full wand, I need another 150gp from another moneybags.

I grabbed the trapfinding trait from mm if allowed to be trapfinder.

Skald fit the background so much better. It turns out I can really play the harp like nobody's business.

I went with the sword cane for coolness and some cold iron kukris for coolness too. Doing 1d4-1 or 1d3-1 I will not be significantly aiding in melee combat until slashing grace at level 5.

Cowboys and Packers next week!!!

You already know....soon!

Go Pack Go!

I guess Quartle and I overlap on the disable device. I dropped disable device--but I still have masterwork picks to help out.