Gm Aest's Kingmaker: To Forge a Kingdom

Game Master Aest

Hey folks, Graelem's player wanted me to let you know that he's out of town until Sunday and probably won't be doing much if any posting until then.

Ah, thanks for the heads up! I want to give him a chance to post before I do, since I think Graelem's going to be a lot more talkative than Lali lol

All it took for this game to become active was for me to leave it.

I think that Cyanne was somehow smothering gameplay and making it harder for others to come up with posts. I'm glad that all of you have finally found your groove again!

:)

You're right that it took you leaving, but not because you were smothering. I'd gotten really complacent about the game, and didn't really realize how close it was to dying.

I dunno about anyone else, but my slowness was mostly just complacency and generally having real life interfere with my drive to write. Having this whole Cyanne and Daen leaving thing happen probably did help jump start me, but that doesnt mean I have to like it.

I miss you too, Luthor.

I think that I would like to send letters to Luthor the moment that Cyanne reaches Oleg's trading post, proposing the use of a musical code or something to communicate. Maybe Aest could even allow us a silver raven figurine to deliver mail.

Also remember that I can totally be recruited as an NPC for your kingdom!

I don't think you were smothering either, I think there were just a lot of RL things that happened to nearly everyone but you all within a short span of time that threw things off track and left people little time, little creative drive, or both. I'm glad that things are hopefully back on track because I've enjoyed reading along as a lurker and I'm enjoying getting to play now, but I'm sorry that it took two PC 'casualties' to do it.

And by the way, I know it's highly unlikely that we'll see Cyanne or Daen ever return to the story in any official capacity but I did like the idea of eventually having them as NPCs with kingdom roles in the future, depending on how the story progresses. It also may seem a little blasphemous for me to suggest it, but I'd also imagine that if you ever have a flash of inspiration for another character for this game that everyone would love to have you back :)

Then again, I might have a slightly more cavalier mindset regarding my characters than some folks do. As much fun as I'm having with Nah & Boo should she ever die and not be brought back for whatever reason, I might revisit that 'Bokken's daughter' idea as a backup!

Oh, I probably should tell everyone that I passed my blackbelt test in Aikido last Friday. Just so you all know, I finally crossed that milestone.

Hugs,
Hmm

Black belt huh? So youre like practically sensei levels of badass now? Theres only like one or two belts past black right? Or I guess it depends on which martial art it is.

Congrats.

If people are interested, Cyanne and Daen were originally supposed to be Grand Diplomat and Spymaster, respectively. Those roles would allow them to spend most of their time away from the barony, but still keep them in the story. Up to the players, of course, and active players get first pick on roles, but something to consider.

I don't have any problems with that; remind me what our other original PCs were aiming for? I'm guessing Kaz as Ruler, Lali as Warden, and Luthor as Magister perhaps?

Also congrats again Hmm! :D

Cyanne: Grand Diplomat
Laliytsa: Marshal
Daen: Spymaster
Kazimir: Baron
Luthor: Treasurer

Wow, totally off-base on most of my guesses! Oh well :)

Hum...of the other options, I think Nah would probably end up being most effective as Magister.

(Though the idea of Royal Enforcer also makes me giggle a little.)

I think Graelem could slide into the Grand Diplomat role here. He certainly has the Charisma and the skillz for it.

Thoughts?

I think that Cyanne was somehow smothering gameplay

I disagree. My issues were complacency/real life/being lame. We love you and we're going to miss having Cyanne as a regular, but please pop in whenever you feel like it. :)

I love the idea of Cyanne and Daen being NPCs in our kingdom. I'd also love getting letters from them. Maybe a guest appearance along the way?

Oh, I probably should tell everyone that I passed my blackbelt test in Aikido last Friday.

Congrats! That's a serious accomplishment. :D

Hum...of the other options, I think Nah would probably end up being most effective as Magister.

(Though the idea of Royal Enforcer also makes me giggle a little.)

I have to admit, seeing her as the Royal Enforcer is tempting; it'd be hilarious. Maybe we need to recruit a gang of kobolds to be our Royal Enforcers. It's not a practical idea but it'd be fun!

I think Graelem could slide into the Grand Diplomat role here. He certainly has the Charisma and the skillz for it.

I could see him doing that, being our High Priest or our Councilor, although I don't think Councilor comes with a proper Star Trek uniform. ;)

My issues were complacency and stress - that one still hasn't let up. I'm trying to be more vigilant, but I need to replace my car battery and my phone within the next couple of weeks =(

Congrats on the black belt, Hmm! :D

I have to leave town to help my BFF as her mom is in the hospital. I don't know how long I'll be gone for; at least until monday but beyond that I'm not sure. I'll check in when I can but please bot me as needed

Take care Lali and I'll keep your friend and her mother in my prayers.

Take care, Lali! I wish your friend and her mother health and healing.

Hmm

Alright, since this is where we're at, we need to come up with a plan or something for how to assault the Stag Lord's keep. I can probably give you a little Tyg/Perli perspective, but not much more than you have, and I don't know what I can do from here until you're ready to rock. Sorry.

Being one of the newcomers to this game, I have only a vague idea concerning the nature of the Stag Lord but Graelem would definitely favor a scouting mission to locate/test their outer defenses.

I'm back, sorry about the long silence. My friend's mom is doing good, although she might need back surgery later. Super fun :/

How big is Graelem's refugee group?

Yeah, I think trying to do some scouting was something Cyanne had wanted to do anyway and I definitely think it would be a good idea. Of the party I think Lali and Nah/Boo are probably the best-suited to try and scout around to get an idea of numbers and defenses.

And speaking of, welcome back Lali! I'm glad your friend's mother is doing better and I hope back surgery won't be necessary for her.

Luthors best bet for scouting would be Rikka. I suppose she could come along and lead the scout team, if she gets spotted theres atleast a good chance whoever sees her wont care, and she can go back to warn the others.

Best wishes for friends mom.

There were about a dozen refugees or so that Graelem led to the camp. GM Aest could you let me know if that is correct?

Yes, that's the correct number. Sorry for missing your question, Lali. Work's been crazy the last few days.

I may not post for a couple days here. We're visiting my brother pre-Christmas because we won't see him during the holiday.

Okay Aest, thanks for the update and have fun! :)

I mean, Kesten doesn't think burning the fort down is a good idea, but if the party wants to, I'm all for it, really. Not trying to squish your ideas.

Hah! No, Nah might think it'd be the easiest thing to do but neither she nor I are married to the idea :3

Oh yikes, I thought I posted here but apparently that was all in my head. Anyways I'll be a bit spotty until after Christmas. Happy Holidays everyone! :D

Id like to say "same for me", but really I have no excuse. Gonna see about a gameplay post some time tomorrow.

Also, merry Christmas!

Sorry about the lack of posts. The time approaching Christmas through New Years' is a tough time for posting in general for me. I'm going to put this on pause until around the 2nd of the new year, then get going in earnest.

That works for me as I've been busy with work and holiday shenanigans myself. Looking forward to getting started again in the New Year! :)

Happy Holidays everyone! I hope you all have an awesome New Year. :)

Alright. Break was good. Back now.

So, my understanding of the plan is that Kali and Nah are going to check out the fort more closely, while the rest of the party gets the travelers ready to go and moves in closer? Is this more or less correct?

Welcome back everybody! And yes, I think that was more or less the plan; scouting and sending the refugees away.

Aaah, a nice quiet new years for me for once, felt good to get back to the normal everyday flow.

And yes Aest, that sounds about right to me as well.

Happy New Year, everyone!

Hope that your holidays were fabulous!

Hmm

Graelem heartily approves of this plan!

I have the next post written out, but still need to build the map. It'll be up tonight after work.

Dang it where's a chainsaw when I need it?

Dude, although Nah has no problems running away she's not opposed to lighting some zombies/bandits up first - they already know we're there so it's not like we can make it much worse for Graemlem's poor friend...

I figure we run for now, and hopefully nothing catches us before we meet up with the two divine casters.

Hehe okay, sounds like a plan!

I forgot to put zombies on the map! Sorry! If you're running, I guess I don't really need to, though.

Did someone call for a chainsaw? :D

Yo, GM, this may be a bit metagamey of me considering the campaign, but a while back you mentioned that I could rebuild Kazimir a bit during the downtime between books, and I found this archetype that could be more mechanically viable for this campaign. Thematically, it makes a bit less sense, but it might be mechanically stronger in the long run. However, in the book it appears in (Divine Anthology), it's called the Iomedaean Enforcer and is locked to worshippers of Iomedae. Would you consider opening it to paladins of Erastil as well? I'm only considering it as one option of many right now; I don't know yet what direction I'll end up going in.

As a heads-up, the keyboard cover of my Surface has carked it. I'm relying on handwriting recognition, which is useless and cramps my hand, so I have to post from my (cracked) phone. As a result, I'll be spotty for a few days while I wait on a replacement.

Awh man, thats the worst. I keep telling myself ill get a replacement early for my parts and then never do. The wait is so annoying.