I respect your education on the matter. I only throw shade at Hamlet due to spending half my senior year in high school dealing with that particular play in English class. I don't throw shade at the rest of the esteemed bard's works. My apologies.
No worries. And I dig the exhaustion (I saw a really baaad, pretentious production of Hamlet in college). Just drawing a line. ;)
The Paizo site has been a punk lately. Right now I can log on my phone but not PC, which is the second time this has happened. I'm waiting for the site to behave better and giving Wahhe a little more time to respond, and then I'll move the game forward.
I think schools do a real disservice to Shakespeare by introducing the work as reading instead of on stage or film.
Speaking of film, Wonder Woman is... recommended? I wasn't enthralled, but I did enjoy it. It's the first of the recent DCU films I've seen at all, the first one that caught my interest.
Funny thing was, we read Hamlet, then went on down to DC to watch it as a play. It's just...5 MONTHS of the same play, every day....
I'd heard Wonder Woman was pretty good. DC needs to take notes.
And yes, the Paizo boards have been a pain this past week.
There's tremendous value in reading Shakespeare... a great deal to be gained in examining the text in understanding tropes and vocabulary of the time, plus there's a lot of subtleties of studying the poetic style of the writing that you can't pick up easily watching a performance. Both in looking at Shakespeare's specific style to looking at general trends of the time, as well as meta studies of how the texts were written/preserved, etc. and analyzing fun stuff like, "This passage is written very differently compared to the rest of the play. Does this mean someone else wrote it?" All of this value can be gained from text study of Shakespeare's plays (and anyone else's for that matter).
BUT OF COURSE IT IS WORTH SEEING A PERFORMANCE TOO. Especially a live stage performance. And of course it is essential to understand even when reading the text that it was meant to be performed and parse it in that light.
And indeed, every Shakespeare course or unit I've taken in high school, undergrad, and graduate school involved seeing either a theater performance or film of the play being studied, whereever and whenever possible. I've never seen someone teach Shakespeare without involving a viewing of the play--in addition to in depth study of the text. When it couldn't absolutely be included, the teacher urged seeking out a performance on one's own time.
And I would argue it is actually indeed best to read it before seeing it. Especially as, given there are so few stage directions, there are many ways to interpret Shakespeare's text. Seeing a performance first can often deeply color one's interpretations to a play--sometimes to one's detriment (especially if the director's interpretation is poor). For example, if your first experience of "Much Ado About Nothing" is seeing Joss Whedon's film where Benedick is shown in a more heroic light and Claudio played by a reedy dude with little heroic presence, you might miss that in the text, Benedick is written as a deeply intelligent but relatively weak and cowardly fellow, whereas Claudio is a wickedly handsome, strong, and brave war hero---and that THEREFORE the romance between Claudio and Hero is basically a sendup of a cliched romance between the "perfect man" and "perfect woman" (who are both beautiful but dumb) -- whereas the more flawed-but-witty-and-interesting Benedick and Beatrice have a true love and, thus, a much more interesting story and ultimately a much more successful--if tried and difficult--romance. You can miss that whole, very important, point Shakespeare was trying to make about characterization and what makes a good romance because of bad casting and weird interpretation choices.
Another example would be the "Taming of the Shrew." Many interpretations perform Katarina's "transformation" as straight--Petruchio really "tames" her and her impassioned speech to the ladies about obeying your man is truly genuine. Yet some alternately change the interpretation dramatically by having much of the dialogue performed with winks and nudges and, especially in the final dramatic speech scene, a decidedly sarcastic tone (one good example you can find of this is the film version starring Elizabeth Taylor). One interpretation produces a (from some POVs depressing) tale of a man abusing a woman into submissive wifely behavior. Another interpretation produces a tale of an intelligent man teaching an intelligent woman to <i>pretend</i> to be submissive in public, and mock her friends with a sarcastic speech about being submissive, all while the two laugh at their peers behind their back and actually enjoy a fairly equal partnership. The text alone can support either interpretation--but if you see the play first done one way, the other may be less likely to occur to you.
Studying the text and seeing how YOU read it, as well as studying multiple interpretations, can be important to do before seeing a particular performance cements your view of things. Moreover, because the text is often both complex and written in a very early version of Modern English, I think it's valuable for many contemporary audience members to have read the text first so they can understand what's happening -- a very bright person with a particular knack for language might be able to figure out what's happening more easily, but other laypersons might benefit from advance reading.
As for length of time of study... as a graduate-level course, I'd love to study one Shakespearean play for one semester--but that is only three months or so. 5 months in a high school course is ridiculously unnecessary.
Good luck with finals. The boards have been awful.
I will move the game on tomorrow and bot Wahhe as needed.
Good luck with the exams, I understand the fun of taking and grading exams at the same time so you're about in the expected spot.
Re: Shakespeare, I definitely agree with you regarding how you should read it, then watch it, and everything else. I never got to see any of the other Shakespeare plays I read in school.
Someone mentioned some indicator that editing was going on.
I'm afraid I've missed that. Where would I find it?
There's no formal board indicator for editing -- this board is fairly basic (if with a nice die rolling function).
When I post a big long combat post, I often write EDITING IN PROGRESS and save it in my initial post, before editing it again. That way y'all know I'm still processing the action. Especially for combat, I usually roll a die, see the result, edit the post to reflect the result, and then roll more dice as needed, ad infinitum.
Sometimes I forget to do this, though, and folks react to stuff happening in combat before I finish my post. This is rare though--usually we aren't all online at the same time.
A general rule of thumb is if you see someone JUST posted, and especially if it contains a die roll but no or little follow up, wait a few minutes to see if they edit.
I edited a post this morning because I borked some bbcode. I didn't realize it till I posted, but if you see borked bbcode, hopefully that's another thing you might to wait to see correction of.
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Oh, I was too busy nerding about Shakespeare above to respond about the other thing I should be nerding about...
Wonder Woman was AWESOME. I plan to see it again. (Anyone in my general vicinity is welcome to join me if we can find mutually agreeable schedules.) thermopyle wasn't enthralled (but I'm glad you liked it), but I sure as heck was. Gal Gadot really got the feel of the character right. Moreover, it was some of the most FUN I've had seeing a superhero movie in a long time. Okay, GotG2 was fun too but that's a very different sort of movie and to be expected... the balance of dark to light in WW was very good. The storycrafting was nicely straightforward too... BvS and Suicide Squad gave me flashback vertigo, and it was nice for a change just to see the one flashforward framing device, and otherwise pretty much have the plot be... *gasp* chronological. Flashbacks and dream sequences have gotten ridiculousl cliched, and this story was largely nice and clear and unmuddied.
Also, motherf#*!ing WONDER WOMAN.
I want to see Wonder Woman, have to figure out how and when. By the time my vacation rolls around, she'll be out of the theaters. Hm.
Send me an email, maybe we can do a Friday night thing.
Also, I reckon even if WW's left main theaters by your birthday, it will assuredly be in second run theaters... and given as well as it's doing, some main theaters may even keep a showing or two for awhile.
I want to see Wonder Woman.
I'm really glad it turned out to be a good movie and a box office success.
You have no idea what a RELIEF it is that it is good.
You too, send me an email or text. My only plans for the weekend so far is to make a vat of macaroni and cheese for a potluck next week.
I also forgot to make plans for my birthday. So that's something I have to figure out. It's two weeks away, but still. Usually I've organized a dinner by now and I just have not had the energy.
This Friday will probably not work. I got a call from my brother on the way to work last night. My mother is probably going on hospice. I'm going to make sure I can see her Saturday, so I might not be around Friday night, plans are forming....
Absolutely understood. I hope all goes well as it can. Holding you and your family in the Light.
Thank you.
I am still waiting for everyone to declare the plan of approach, what they are wearing, etc. Lee and Wahhe, this in particular means you (though Wahhe I know you're finishing up with finals), but having a final "we depart to meet the dragon" from everyone will be helpful.
I'll wait another 24 hours and move forward. Actions not declared will not be assumed--e.g. if no one declares "I am cooking this dish" then you will not arrive with a cooked dish etc.
If any of you are just too busy to post, please say so.
Also, I know the boards are still being a punk. Try logging on with your phone if computer doesn't work.
Wow, I got to log on this morning, time to jinx it! Woot!
Yay! Obviously I have not posted us moving on yet, because the boards were only accessible by phone yesterday for much of the day. KeefX did declare his intentions in the email I sent y'all so I'll see if he can get on to post them today, and if not I'll push us forward.
Wahhe's player is taking a leave of absence for a few weeks. Apologies for the short notice; I'll bot Wahhe as needed until he's able to return.
On another note, I completely missed that Wayfinder #17 came out for Paizocon a few weeks ago. I have a Skull & Shackles themed archetype in it, and I love the art they put in for it. The pdf is free so check it out.
Deckfighter FTW! That is so cool. We are totally going to be facing some deckfighters next time we try to take a ship, aren't we?
I seem to be back. The site is working for me again.
Welcome back to the land of moving parts!
w00t!
Just a head's up, and our GM already knows, but my mother passed away this morning. I might be a bit slow to post for a few days till we get her laid to rest Tuesday.
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Very sorry to hear.
My condolences.
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My condolences, as well. Take care of yourself.
FYI, I'm out of town this week so I may be slow to post.
Ok, Mom's with Dad now. Time to get back to the everyday affairs of life.
I'll update us in a little bit--and then I'll be out tomorrow through Sunday. Weekends for us are slow anyway so hopefully that will not be too disruptive.
Have a great weekend!
Enjoy your weekend!
Have a good weekend, everyone.
Guys I'm going to hold us on the cliffhanger of entering the water for now; will be on the road a bit tomorrow, then I'll move us forward, then I'll be on the road again. I apologize if things get slow.
Enjoy your drive time...
Speaking of getting slow - this year's family vacation is just over a week away. I'll be gone July 18th through August 2nd. I may have some internet, but safest to assume I won't be able to post for a couple of weeks.
Have a good trip! Hopefully this combat will be a quick one and then we can take a break.
RANDOM REMINDER: please be sure you are updating your loot tracker and character sheets as appropriate with your possessions, treasure, etc. Remember I am not tracking it, and if you don't take note of it, it could be lost. You can search the thread (upper right hand corner) as needed. I think the last treasure noted on your loot tracker was the Drake fight. You haven't gotten massive loads of treasure, but there has been some distribution of coinage once or twice since then, and I know you got the immovable rod from the Gallows. Some of this you may well have noted on your character sheet but if you didn't please check.
(I'm half-thinking of this because in another game I realized I hadn't been properly tracking my own character's treasure so it's not like I'm immune to overlooking this myself.)
Lee has the Immovable Rod.
Ive been thinking, "What could one do, during a naval battle, with a thing that is immovable and can hold 8000 lbs?" Ive been thinking that sinking the rod just below the waterline and having a ship "run aground" on the rod could be interesting. But it just takes a ST check of 30 to move the rod 10'. A ship would have no problem pushing the rod around. But if the hull couldn't handle 8000 lbs of pressure across a, say, 1" cross section? That could cut a ship in half, possibly.
Anyway, just thoughts now. Any input from the group?
You have to activate the rod by pressing the button on the side. Which means, even if it would work the way you would presume (and I don't necessarily presume magic items simulate real world physics, and more particularly I do not interpret the description of the immovable rod to mean it exerts 8,000 lbs of pressure on something, just that it can support up to 8,000 lbs.)... you would have to safely guess the course of the ship, swim ahead of the ship and press the button, and then leave before the ship hits YOU (which can cause all kinds of issues, from a minimum of being scraped by masses of barnacles to a maximum of being broadsided and badly bludgeoned or killed.
And then there would be the issue of retrieving the rod afterward, which would then be in the middle of a damaged ship full of angry people whose ship you just wrecked. Of course you could just leave the rod in the water, which could then also potentially damage countless other ships and wildlife until someone figured out the problem.
Finally, the GM would remind you that anything she determined you could try to do, all NPCs could also try to do to you.
Now see, I'm thinking of crazier things with said rod. Things like someone getting thrown into the air (whether by jumping from the crow's nest or catapulted), activating the rod in mid-air, and having a good anchor point for swinging across to another ship that will hold no matter what you're likely to do to it. But I am more in favor of swashbuckling for this campaign, I admit!
In that vein, using the rod as a stable anchor point when doing repair work on the sails or the hull could be handy too. If a mite more pedestrian.
Awesome, swashbuckly Acrobatics uses of the rod are totally doable (provided various successful die rolls apply, of course).
Using it to weigh anchor would also work. Someone would still have to get in the water to activate (and later deactivate) the rod, and you'd need a good profession sailor check to get the right sort of knot on it, but this would presumably not be in the middle of, say, a ship chase and be much less difficult.
Well, I never said that cutting a ship in half with a rod would be simple. Just funny.
An instant anchor would be handy. You could use it as a pivot point for really tight turns. Even if the ship drags the rod, it would slow the ship to 10' per turn. I think they did it in "Pirate of the Caribbean" only they used an actual anchor. Don't hate me for lifting from that movie series.
I could make myself invisible, set the rod at eye level and let someone walk into it.
I like the swashbuckling, swinging thing. Very clever.
I may have forgotten to mention that I'm out of town this weekend.
I'll check in when I'm able.
Welcome back, Wahhe! I know you're going to be traveling again soon, but I'm glad you checked in.
From the thread: Multiattack is just a feat that lets monsters with multiple attack types (bite, slam, tentacle) fight better, in the same way that the Two Weapon Fighting feat makes it easier to attack with multiple weapons at once. Both feats reduce the penalties applied to making multiple attacks.
When a monster can make a full attack, it can attack with all of its attack types -- the same way a character can attack with multiple weapons or hit multiple times if their base attack bonus is high enough. So just as Lark with his two short swords can attack with both short swords on a full attack (at a penalty), the octopus on a full attack can both attack with his bite and tentacle attack (at a penalty).
The Multiattack feat just affects the math applied to the attack rolls, and, importantly the math is already worked into the statblock, so you don't need to worry about applying the feat--the work is already done for you.
When you can full attack with multiple attacks, you DO roll for each attack, using the stats supplied by the statblock.
I WILL NOTE however, Wahhe, that you have Augment Summoning, which gives your summoned creatures +4 to Strength and Constitution. This means all your summoned creatures have +2 hp compared to the statblock, and you need to remember to add +2 to melee attacks and melee damage-- UNLESS the creature has Weapon Finesse (which applies Dexterity to melee attack rolls instead of Strength), in which case the +2 only applies to melee damage. Since the octopus has Weapon Finesse, he gets +2 to Damage but not attacks.
Regarding Lark's 5' step - he does have a swim speed (10' in water with Swim DC <= 15). I thought I mentioned it earlier and I'm sorry if I didn't. He gets it from the Rogue's Edge skill unlock in our most recent level up (it is on his character sheet). I'll try and remember to mention it anytime Lark moves into water. I certainly don't expect GMDQ to keep track of each and every ability for all our characters.
I'll check in again later tonight and maybe tomorrow morning. After that I'll be out of touch for a couple weeks. Have a great rest of July, y'all!
Sorry, I did look at your character sheet and did not see it. I was looking for a "Movement" section and missed it under your talents.
Never mind then!
I'll try to push to end this combat as soon as reasonable. The sharks are nearly dead so hopefully it won't take long. I'll check back in a little bit and rotate the round.
Maybe we should just put on a hiatus for a couple weeks once the combat finishes.
Maybe we should just put on a hiatus for a couple weeks
Thren, Lee? I think one more hit should take the shark down...