Feel free to discuss tweaking your builds, or any other out of character discussions here.
Sooo... hello! How do you wanna go about figuring out what survived the storm and washed up with us?
(I loooove the castaway survival story as a campaign opener. It's sooo goood.)
Hello! I'm going to be doing a bit of a re-build--I'm thinking Unchained Rogue/Arcanist leading to Arcane Trickster will better fit the concept I'm going for with Aki than her current Magus build (which does almost no damage at all at present...).
I was thinking the best approach would be for each of you to make two lists of equipment - what you had with you on the ship, and what you didn't have on you but might have been stored away.
If you were a slave, really you would have had nothing.
If you were posing as slave, but had partners posing as deckhands or slavers, then your partner might have had a chest for your belongings - so still probably nothing like a suit of platemail, but perhaps a spellbook or such.
If you were a slaver (or posing as one), you could have been wearing leather or studded leather, but no more.
I don't expect you to start with much, but sometimes additional things float to shore...
Meloriel here, checking in!
Echo had the following gear on her at the start of the storm:
sailor's clothes, a dagger, a belt pouch with her four potions of cure light wounds, her centering jewel which takes up a headband slot and it worn on her forehead, and her aegis of recovery which is worn around the neck (obviously I don't expect all that to make it through with her)
Stored in her lockbox was the rest of her equipment:
a backpack, bedroll, holy water, second belt pouch with 8 gp, 8 sp and 8 cp inside, flint and steel, grooming kit, tent, waterskin, whetstone and traveller's any-tool.
Let me know what makes it through!
Malothor reporting for duty.
I made a few tweaks to the character: changed drawback to - Mark of Slavery, and moved a few skills around. Nothing major.
Also updated Personality, Background in alias. I am still working on the animal Companion: Smoke. My idea here (I am thinking Big Cat - tiger or lion, etc.) is that the Captain would not allow such a powerful and dangerous beast on board his ship.
However he saw the value of the animal while onshore (capturing more/new slaves) so forced Malothor to cast spell "Carry Companion" on Smoke before re-boarding the ship, and then would hold on to the small stone statuette himself while sailing. This had the secondary benefit of keeping Malathor "in check" as he feared the Captain would crush or throw overboard his cherished companion.
Finally as the ship was sinking, Malothor cast Monkey Fish on himself and found the Captain as he was sinking to his death. The Captain's face lit up as he thought his docile servant had come to rescue him... instead Malothor grabbed the pouch holding the stone cat, and kicked the Captain deeper into the deep sea!
Hey, I jumped in on the gameplay thread while the website's actually WORKING for once. Sorry if I'm early.
No, that's just fine, Echo.
Malathor - nice story, but Monkey fish doesn't last very long (the storm raged for days), and the statue was not recovered. So for now, you will be without an animal companion.
Echo finds her centering jewel is missing, and the lockbox is no where to be found. The other items were secure enough that you managed to hold on to them.
Aki was posing as a rigger on the slaver ship, so she had a limited amount of freedom in carrying things. She still kept most of it hidden, however, as she didn't want to draw attention.
She kept her weapons hidden on her person--her wakizashis, Yin and Yang, hidden up her sleeves in wrist sheathes, a dagger hidden in the small of her back, one on her thigh, and one in her pack, as well as wearing her spell component pouch stuffed in a normal belt pouch. She kept her magic pack in her footlocker with the rest of her supplies, listed below:
*Bedroll
*Flint and steel
*Ink
*Inkpen
*Iron pot
*Mess kit
*Rope
*Soap
*Torches (10)
*Trail rations (5 days)
*Waterskin
*Artisan's Outfit
*Explorer's Outfit
*Traveler's Outfit
*Peasant's Outfit (a different one)
*2 Disguise Kits
*2 Spellbooks (Disguised as Tien romance novels)
*Silk Rope
As an Arcanist it's not *as* critical for her to get her spellbooks back quickly--she can just keep the same spells prepared (depending on how you interpret things--it's possible she needs to study her spellbook to get spell slots back, depending on how you rule on Arcanist spellcasting). But obviously she'll need them (or a replacement) eventually.
I think I've finished her rebuild, by the way, and I'm definitely happier with it than the Magus build.
Got it! Gear and weight lists under my alias are updated accordingly.
Malathor - nice story, but Monkey fish doesn't last very long (the storm raged for days), and the statue was not recovered. So for now, you will be without an animal companion.
Yes ok no problem. I will still write up Smoke in alias.
Will add the story with the Captain in gameplay, and loss of statuette once washing up on shore.Equipment will be limited to sailor's outfit (rags), his holy symbol (around his neck), a pouch with spell components and maybe a dagger. In his 'privileged' position would he have been allowed a weapon? If yes would have had a scimitar on his back.
Aki - the haversack (and everything in it) is lost, but all of the blades and your belt pouch are secure.
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Hi all! So happy to be here with you!
Sorry, the forums were screwy for me yesterday.
Pharithstilis, being an escaped slave being returned to his master in Nex, was stripped of all his belongings but his clothes, which include a dilletante's jacket in which is hidden a ring of protection +1. Being a sorcerer, he was bound, gagged, and blindfolded when put on board.
The only thing I was unsure of is what his craft skill should be. I chose jewelry thinking he'll take the wondrous item creation feat. Does this gel with everybody? Would wands or scrolls be better?
Hm, we have a lot of magic to go around. :) Aki might go for making scrolls or wands, as Arcanists struggle with having a limited number of spells they can have prepared at a time. So I think it's better if you handle wondrous items.
Hello! I'm going to be doing a bit of a re-build--I'm thinking Unchained Rogue/Arcanist leading to Arcane Trickster will better fit the concept I'm going for with Aki than her current Magus build (which does almost no damage at all at present...).
Note that this will put us stepping on each others' toes quite a lot, as the eldritch scoundrel is a literal half-rogue, half-wizard.
As far as gear, if I have nothing, then that presumably means no spellbook, which means I'm essentially just a half-rogue. ;)
Unfortunately, no matter if I go more Rogue or more Arcanist, I'll be stepping on someone's toes to some degree. We can definitely talk spell selection to try to cover different bases, though. Aki is supposed to be more of an infiltrator type, using her innate shapeshifting abilities combined with her spellcasting and some decent Disguise, Bluff, and Diplomacy to get her close to targets, then eliminate them and vanish into the night. So her spell selection is going to focus on illusions, enchantments, and single-target damage... but given that infiltration seems unlikely to be helpful (at least at present), she's open to changing focus in her arcane investigations.
As a side note, she can serve as a decent party face if no one else is trained for that spot.
So far we've seen posts from a druid, a sorcerer, and a psychic. Nobody is a frontline combatant in the way that the magus is.
But I can easily solve the problem for you by withdrawing from the game.
No, that's not necessary! I could re-build again if necessary--I'd actually briefly toyed with a Warpriest or Cleric (or maybe even Monk) build for Aki, I could always try that instead if needed. She was never intended to be a frontliner (the druid will be way better than she ever would have been, especially once he gets his animal companion back), but she's not really a rogue, either--she's only going to take enough Disable Device to qualify for Arcane Trickster, for example, and she doesn't have Perception trained, meaning she doesn't really make a good trapspotter/disabler nor scout.
So I really don't think we're going to step on each other's toes. Aki is only going to have a single level of Ninja--she's going to be much more of an "Arcanist with Sneak Attacks" than a "Wizard-Rogue" like an Eldritch Scoundrel. She'll never be as great at skills, and quite frankly she's never going to be as good at most of the classic rogue things. But if you still feel like stepping on toes would be inevitable I can rebuild again. Given that she's mostly relying on racial abilities for her infiltration capabilities, she can go with almost any class and still retain the feel I'm going for.
Aki go ahead with your current rebuild. I knew at the time you were selected that you would not be a magus.
Celebeth, thank you for your consideration, but I think if this isn't what you were signing up for, I understand. There were a lot of solid options to choose from, so I have no problem bringing the next one on.
I am looking to have a useful role that I can fill in the group. It's a little awkward to have Aki say not only that she's totally rebuilding her role, but that she has decided to occupy the same role that I built for (skills/magic hybrid, with ranged sneak attacks for damage).
If that's the case, and this roster represents the entire party (5 people so far?), then I might as well also rebuild into a main combat role, since we don't have anyone doing that.
Really, it's my fault for not noticing that you were an Eldritch Scoundrel when I did my rebuild. I saw "Unchained Rogue" and figured I'd be avoiding your niche by leaning more on the magic side of things, not noticing your archetype.
I'm still quite willing to rebuild Aki. It was occurring to me that I could get a fairly good Swashbuckler build out of her, with maybe a level of Ninja for the wakizashi proficiency and class skills. She could get just a dash of magic from feats by going down the Magical Tail feats.
You can't know in advance who the DM is going to pick for their roster, though. You had no way to know that you'd wind up in the same group with me. Based on our illustrious DM's statements during the recruitment, he is less interested in our designed role than in our background, personality, and character motivations. That in turn means that class is less important than having a character who will bring interesting development to the group dynamic. So, it's not a big deal to change roles, I just bring it up because overlapping roles can leave people feeling like they have limited opportunities to contribute or participate.
Thanks for picking me. Need to get my alias made. Will do so shortly.
You can't know in advance who the DM is going to pick for their roster, though. You had no way to know that you'd wind up in the same group with me. Based on our illustrious DM's statements during the recruitment, he is less interested in our designed role than in our background, personality, and character motivations. That in turn means that class is less important than having a character who will bring interesting development to the group dynamic. So, it's not a big deal to change roles, I just bring it up because overlapping roles can leave people feeling like they have limited opportunities to contribute or participate.
If you're fine with overlapping roles, I'd be fine with leaving things as-is. Myself I think it's fun to have two roguish-types who can either try to one-up each other or use their similar talents to support each other, but I'm also fine re-building again--as you may have gathered, I've though of about half a dozen ways to build Aki with the Arcane Trickster just being the one that won out for the moment.
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If it helps, Pharithstilis has the fey bloodline which gives him a boost to enchantment-compulsion spells. In combat i expect this to look like a lot of debuffing and taking people out of combat without violence. There are a lot of creature types immune to this tactic though. Out of combat this amounts to lots of charm.
Part of every game is learning to work and grow together, and adapting to the situation as it unfolds. Pharithstilis really isnt built for wilderness survival so he's going to have to rely heavily on others to make it as a castaway. He'll get some more nature-themed powers down the line.
Listen, folks. I knew how Aki was to be rebuilt BEFORE selecting her. While I might not mind a few minor tweaks here or there, no one is allowed to just redefine their character now. If you did that, then I would go back to the selection process, and it could be a very different makeup.
Of course, you will have complete freedom to choose new paths (classes, skills, etc) as you level, etc., but I was looking for a balanced and interesting set of individuals. "Frontliners" might not even be useful in this campaign. So don't try and balance yourselves yet - you have no idea what is in store :)
I did intentionally overlap certain skills to make sure you had some basics covered more than one way.
I hear your concern about anyone feeling useless, and will be doing my best to avoid that. But as Aki points out, two wizard/rogues don't have to be that similar.
I did a minor change from the water processing ability to kinetic healing since hydrokineticists already get purify water as a basic ability. I hope that is OK.
Yep- that’s fine.
Well, if it winds up being troublesome, I can always die horribly and try a different character type!
That's the spirit! Or, you can play a spirit!
I will be traveling tonight (10 hour flight - groan) and then at work meetings most of next week. Will try and post daily (evenings) but may not be able to every day.
@GM: not sure if Malothor has his dagger and/or scimitar. Please confirm. Thanks!
@GM Fuzzfoot: I have reviewed the Action Rules detailed in the Campaign Info tab and have a few questions on how some of Malothor's Druidic spells may help/enhance the checks:
0. Day 1 on the beach: everyone already has the fatigue condition? The only way to recover from that is to rest in a proper shelter? Would a Web Shelter spell allow the group to rest the first night and recover from fatigue? I can cast the spell twice which would allow for 6 hours of good rest.
1. Shelter: Malothor does not have any Craft/Knowledge/Profession skills to help with the construction of the shelter. However would Expeditious Construction count as assisting / aiding someone who does?
2. Food: My preference will be to use Survival (2 actions) to feed the group. However there are a few spells that could be used to enhance nutrition:
The first would provide for a full day of food and the second one meal, so will be looking for berries and nuts during Malothor's foraging for food checks, to supplement the food he is hunting/gathering.
Also reviewed the rules. Few questions.
Can I use craft carpentry to improve our shelter with the rules for making shelter. If
I can, I also have the ability self reliant, which allows me to use my carpentry with improvised tools at no penalty and with no tools at all at a -2penalty. If I can, am I correct that it will take me two days of labour. Since we're fatigued I can only make one 4hpur action, and it takes two actions to make a proper shelter. Yes?
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also, the -4 penalty to food gathering seems to apply to hunting, but what about gathering fruit, nuts, root vegetables etc.? If we explicitly state we are foraging for edible plants (with a kn. nature check maybe?) can we forego the penalty?
Can I use the spell Mending to make improvements to the shelter?
Lots of questions, I know, but I'm trying to figure out the best way for Pharithstilis to contribute.
Ok, lot's of questions, but pretty much yes to everything. Craft(Carpentry) works fine for the shelter, and Expeditious Construction can certainly speed things up. Mending will be very useful for maintaining it.
Regarding food, both spells work as stated, so you can survive on just those if you are willing to cast them every day.
You can use Knowledge(nature) to forage for edible plants, but a failed check could have consequences - you might end up eating something poisonous. But you can make the check without the -4.
It sounds to me like 2 days of working together like this, and you should have a pretty nice and comfortable camp set up.
Regarding movement: The time it takes to travel or fully explore a hex is based on the slowest person's move rate. So, if you are alone in the jungle, Pharothstilis, then you might make better time. But only if you are going solo.
Your initial beach hex is not considered fully explored yet.
The beach hexes contain water, beach and jungle. There is not 12 miles of sand between water and jungle, that is correct.
I didn't actually plan to start you as fatigued, but probably should have. However, Malathor had a way for you all to rest from the start, so you should not be fatigued after that anyway.
Apologies, I never can post on Sunday and it seems like it was a busy day. :D
No worries. My normal expectation is a post at least once a day on weekdays, and once per weekend. Any slower and things start to slip away, and too much faster and we start to leave people behind. However, feel free to post as often as you like, especially if you are interacting with each other or get me on a slow day...
My family often hijacks my weekends :) so I post more often during the week. My work schedule varies greatly (technically it's a 9-5, but rarely does it work that way!) so I will have occasionally times when I go quiet. I will usually let you know ahead of time, though.
Thanks for the headsup. Actually, I am going to be travelling Nov 17 & 18, and then again Nov 21-26, during which I will not be posting (or maybe just short blips by phone).
The crafting rules in Pathfinder are not very practical. D20PFSRD has Alternative Rules (3rd party) for crafting that make a lot more sense:
Changes are mainly related to timing. They have time of crafting based on the complexity of items. So simple items can take a few hours to craft, while complex may take months.
Scroll half way down the page for the Rules.
Yah, I can live with those rules. Never really worked out the math before.
Using alternative crafting, a longbow is DC 14 (base DC 10, +4 as a moderate complexity item: martial weapon). 14x15 = 210 sp of progress every 2 days, for a total of about 8 days of crafting if I take 10.
Shortbow's 3 days if you want something quicker.
Yes a short bow would be better. Thank you!