After looking at this a while, I have to vote Zael, if it counts.
So any and all thoughts are welcome. As an added thought, if Vrael ends up being ressurected so to speak, the mental star's purpose would have to change. I think, given the party would lose it's locksmith, that perhaps it could be used to temporarily release Zael from the blade and back into his old body... say for at most an hour per day. During that hour Vrael would be a conscious observer, and could re exert control upon a sucessful opposed wills check, but until that time or expiration of the hour the character would be the investigator you have come to... love isn't the right word.... loathe isn't it either.... accept? At any rate it would give the party the option of temporarily calling in a locksmith, at the expense of losing their arcane spellcaster for a while.
Off topic, but at recent conference they passed out these books, I found it hilarious since it was written by none other than Baine.
Anyways yes, a wand of knock won't work on some tech doors. But also Tarkov will soon have his adamantine sword which doesn't give an f. As long as he doesn't use it on any grenade filled lock boxes.
Lol, wow, that would have been interesting!
Sounds... surreal would be how I would describe it.
GM has said he prefers Zael (though if he has time I would love to hear reasons for his preference). Does anyone else have preferences? The nutshell differences are that Zael is your skillmonkey type, complete with limited usefulness in combat, whereas Vrael would provide spell and melee combat at the expense of some of the skills sets we do not have spares of.
I prefer Zael, I think incorporating Vrael would need a lot of complex RP and slow the game down hugely. I don't think, "Hey you took over my friend's body, come adventure with us," is a natural reaction, hard to see Tarkov wanting to adventure with Vrael even after Joram has explained things.
Purely mechanically I don't think a Magus suits our party make up particularly well, role wise it is essentially a "striker" and both Tarkov and Krah fill that role.
It's like Landfill never died!
I like Zael, I like his banter with Krah and his secret mission.
Yes also a big heaping of that, the group dynamic at the moment is great fun and Zael is a big part of that.
I can respect that. For the record I like Zael too, it is part of why I would want to have him in the black sword, being the reason it is an intelligent weapon and all. I just also know that he wasn't always Zael, and that off behind the scenes is his former persona's daughter trying to "save" him... or kill him, failing that.
I guess the ball falls squarely in our GM's court as to when or if she ever shows up, and whether or not she is successful. I do appreciate the feedback though.
If anyone is inceptioning into that dark mind, it's Krah.
Fun fact, I almost named Krah's tumor "Dad" for an extra entertaining name. Thought it was too weird. I don't even know if shrimp exist in Golarion.
Its a cool concept, but would Zael really accept that? Would he not be trying to get control back, and convince the rest of the party to help him? He is supposed to be evil and manipulative right?
Zael on his own is, yes. As a black blade he would have to conform, alignment wise, to Vrael (LN). Which is not to say he would be any less manipulative, and struggling against Vrael for control (being an intelligent weapon, he would have an ego and any time Vrael's actions or wishes clashed with Zael's there would be a roll. Details here. GM Infinity has some listed options for Vrael's failure, but I would go so far as to add partial or complete takeover of his body to that list.
And yes, Zael would very much be trying to get Tarkov or Krah or Tess to help 'free' him from his confinement within the blade.
Mantis Shrimp are technically stomatopods, so mayhaps not.
Sorry, where did that come from?
I don't even know if shrimp exist in Golarion.
Just kidding around, but its actually awesome.
I don't think a Brit would know what a crawdad is. It's a southern slang word for shrimp.
I lived in Florida for a decade, plus I think most Brits watch enough U.S TV and Films to have the majority of slang down :)
(though if he has time I would love to hear reasons for his preference)
Just knowing whats ahead, skills + inspiration will be a boon for the party. And yes, Zael is just dripping character and is wonderful. Hmm, I wonder if the Ranged Study feat applies to ray spells cast from wands...
All fair. That said now it is making me want to play a magus with this archetype... not necessarily in this game, but in some game. Perhaps after our wizard game is wrapped up I will seek a slot for a Vrael 2.0, so to speak. (Three games is about my feasible max at the moment.)
I might do Tower of the Last Baron (5th level castle infiltration, RP heavy) after CoE wraps up. Kind of disappointing how much of a crawl CoE is, but I knew it would be I guess...
We'll have to see though, school is about to start again...not sure I can GM 2 here. Plus my club kids will probably want to start playing games again, too (not that they are that intricate/rules-heavy).
How big of an explosion was that last one? I don't want to get Tess or Tarkov covered in slime when I blow this thing apart with Krah's wand.
10 ft radius burst. acid + you get leprosy.
Can I get a ETA on the Adamantine Greatsword please GM Infinity? I doubt Tarkov would wait long for it, maybe a day or so if he can justify it.
Yep, get it at the guildhouse in the morning or wait until chapter end and craft it yourself on the hill.
I'll pick it up, I am probably going to use the magical crafting to make weapons Tarkov's own rather than actual crafting - got to admit I don't want to touch those rules again with the proverbial barge pole.
I'm not sure I see the benefits of using a bomb to hit the warehouse. Seems like we alert everyone to danger instantly probably and have to execute a whole other scheme to get the components, or use a lot of valuable materials of Dolgas.
What about hitting the warehouse a half hour or so before we expect Garmen to arrive seeing what is going on a knocking out or killing any staff, then setting up an ambush. If the set up inside is right we might even be able to set up makeshift bombs either side of the door using fluids and detonate when he enters.
Got to admit that having served in Northern Ireland and Iraq I am not very keep on the bomb thing, especially where it might hurt civilians or even those who work for Garmen in none thug roles. So a controlled blast that would hopefully effect Garmen and his immediate entourage - when we can see them from some vantage to ensure there are no innocents is preferable to me.
Point taken, and at the moment no one knows if there is 100 kidnapped children inside each holding priceless antiques sitting on chairs made of platinum coins glued together or a glass jar filled with dirt.
There's always arson on the cheap. Other alternatives to 'bombs' are also plentiful, this being fantasy. A captured monster, sapping, other energy types, deception, area of effect mind spells, etc could likely accomplish similar ends while being more sensitive to Tarkov's RL history.
Some recon of the place is surely needed, and you have the perfect tool for that in the form of Sanvil's notes, you can pick up where he left off. There is also Doric, as nearly a member of the organization he is certainly a wildcard that could be applied in a number of ways. Wrennie, too. In fact, just about any addict could probably also be manipulated into service, such as Paige from Silverdisk Hall.
Well Tarkov isn't opposed to bombs per say, just collateral damage. And much as my own personal experience with asymmetrical warfare tends to cast the underdog as the villain I do realize that does not necessarily follow - blowing up the Deathstar remains legit ;)
Actually I had a thought on this. The warehouse seems to be a private, secret area... more likely to be only either ropefists or those directly employed by them for less than honest work (unlike the gambling house, where the case could be made that the staff might think it is just another honest job and be sort of correct) which makes is a perfect candidate for Zael's fluid bomb of epicness. We would want to time it properly to ensure that Garmen wasn't home, but was coming in the next few hours, so that we could go through the place, plant explosives, take anything of value that is readily portable, possibly liberate slaves (though truthfully Zael would view that as more of an option than a goal, and it would depend on how escape worthy they were), and then get to a safe distance and wait for him to arrive... ensure the door closes... have Zael run up and lock it while Tarkov places a barrel or crate in front of it... run back to said safe distance, then detonate.
I was trying to find a clip from an awful movie (Formula 51) where the guy is able to set up a centrifuge to heat mixing chemicals to explode after a few triggers are tripped via electrical connection (door opens, seats taken, etc.) but not finding it. Would not recommend buying the movie to see it though (unless it is 3 dollars or less).
The gazetteer has this to say about it:
20. Warehouse District: The majority of the buildings in the northeast portion of town act as storehouses for trade goods designed by the town’s artisans.
So no, not many people there I would think.
Besides Oskah, there is another barrier to getting the fluid down. The road to the torch site is blocked by a long traffic jam of carts filled with the cities backed up refuse that can no longer be burned there. Getting a cart up and down the hill would be just about impossible. There is another path through Dolga's forge and the gondala, though. The same way Oskah runs her smelt down.
Not saying you cant go get the fluid, just letting you know the obstacles that need to be overcome somehow.
Reposting this from page 27:
The easiest way to bring down Silverdisk Hall would require a bit of inspection of the building itself. It is very likely you could find 4-5 load bearing walls or columns which, if broken, would send the entire thing crashing down. For a single load bearing stone wall...you would need to deal 15 damage to an 8 hardness. Energy attacks deal half damage to objects, with a minimum of 1 dmg. Thus, to ensure collapse of a single load bearing stone wall with a single blast you would need to set off 23 pints (roughly 3 gallons). A single pint separated from soil is more flammable than normal oil and would deal 1d8 fire. And who knows what interesting effects could come from the resulting vapor :)
The warehouse is indeed different, being a purely wooden structure. Wood has a hardness of 5, not 8. It also has 10 hitpoints per inch hp, rather than 15. Also, it can catch fire for 1d6 damage per round.
It might just be me, but If I am going to go inside an investigate a building I prefer it not to be on fire...
I favor invade building some time before, set trap wait for Garmen and ambush. That way we get to split our foes into more bite sized chunks, not give the game away with a burning building, and target any explosion at the real threat.
You're definitely right. Krah is just a bit of an obstinate jerk supporting smarter people.
Let's put an OOC deadline of tomorrow morning to hammer out a plan here, I don't want to hold things up being we are so close to both the chapter's end and my summer break's end. Baine is also an arcane bomber and might be able to help with a device if you go that route.
At the very least, even if you don't hammer out a plan by the deadline, you should go take a look. If you guys can't come to a consensus that makes sense/happy, there is always just repairing the coupling and getting the elevator running as well.
Well, this has been a great pbp experience. So thank you for a great first chapter.
Thanks for that; hope it can continue at a reasonable pace after school starts up again (I think Aug 8th is the first day...). Honestly I don't have that much teacher prep and should be able to post in the evenings as usual. Im just not sure about mornings or during school, heh.
A lot of it is that this is a great chapter, but also a lot of it is you guys just messing around and making things fun. Just about everything outside of the dungeons thus far has been totally non-AP, off the cuff stuff. So basically I am proposing some kind of communal kum-bay-yah on that score. I have to say the most memorable events for me so far were Donald shooting himself at the guildhouse, and Krah instantly decapitating Hetuath after so much buildup.
Certainly been great fun thus far :)
Could we just attack the warehouse a few hours before Garmen is due to show up and see what we have to work with?
Actually, given Tark wants his sword and Zael needs help making a bomb of some kind (probably means Dolga and Baine involvement, given fluids are likely to be too hard of an option) why don't we have Tess and Krah scout it out with their contacts while we do that. Find out if what is inside is worth trying to take or if setting up firebombs the next day an waiting for Garmen to enter before setting a Medghar worthy blaze can commence without further intrusion within. This will also give us the time to let Dolga and Baine in on the fact that Sanvil was Technic League, as well as fabricating the parts we need to get the lift working again. Multitasking for the win!
Sounds good to me.
Works for me :) Probably worth talking to Dolga about how to persuade, um, the half orc smelting Lady.
If we are likely waiting for darkness I guess Tarkov can pick up his sword and make the coupling. Is it possible to repair the existing one GMI, or does forging a new one seem easier?
Repairing, though I suppose I don't know enough about real smithing to say, but it is one solid piece of metal of particular circular shape. It's purpose is to hold the button panel on to the elevator.
Once the coupling is detached, the repair process takes 8 hours and requires a successful DC 25 Craft (metalworking) check—at your discretion, related craft checks (like armor or weapon) could be used as well. Failure doesn’t ruin the coupling, and a new attempt to repair it can be made. Characters without the Technologist feat take the normal –5 penalty on technology-related checks.
So sounds like take 20 to me for auto-success. Also Baine can aid another. It is made of glaucite hence the high DC, but normal fires are enough to simply repair it says, so yeah repair.
Cool, thats perfect really. So Krah and Tess go ahead and start RPing your trip to the warehouse and Zael and Tark can do their stuff at the same time.
Did we figure out what those magic items were? The hammer and the the chain shirt?
Yes, they are both +1 versions of themselves
edit: actually maybe the hammer was never ided, let me check back
edit2: confirmed, both ided in game
Anyone else want the armor? I plan on keeping Krah in light armor until I find some mithril or bamf tech. Tess, you should use that tech armor if we haven't sold it, incase you need to do some sneaking with your disguise.
Well, Nevermind. It depends on the size of the armor.
Also, Tarkov. Don't forget we have the rod and your tech rope. That would make the roof top much easier for us. Tess could stay on the street in disguise/Stealth to distract the Ropefists if needed. We all walk across the tech rope bridge and use it to climb down into a back corner or similar dark spot.
Or Tess comes with us on the roof from the start and she can choose a disguise from the people we see to help us gain entry or at least a surprise round.