Hell Hath No Fury (Inactive)

Game Master The Morphling

I assume this doesn't apply my precious little babies spiders?

The spider's bite won't kill whoever it hits, but its poison is 1d2 Str/round, which will help with incapacitating whoever's about to come out of the buidling.

Also, I hope we didn't lose Vance as well.

This will also apply to your spiders. They know who Amatsu's enemies are, and they attack them to the best of their ability. Even though they're vermin (and not animals), I'd still allow a Handle Animal check to work on them too if you want to give them more precise instructions. (But, you as a player are the one controlling them, so I'll leave it to your discretion what they do. They're just going to be pretty single-minded when they fight.)

(And yeah, I sure hope we don't lose Vance. I'll give him at least through the weekend - I usually can't post much on weekends anyway.)

Ghivinus has confirmed he is unable to make the time for this game, unfortunately. I hope Vance returns to us soon!

My apologies, I've had a busy weekend :) I will post as soon as I am in front of my computer and not on my phone (Roughly 6-10 hours from now). Been a joy reading the posts so far though ^^

Hurrah! I'm very glad you're still around. :) Looking forward to your post.

Is it possible we can have the Roll20 link in the header? It'd make it a bit easier to navigate back to it.

So now that we are down to four, is it to keep it as such, or reach are there plans for re-recruitment or reaching out to other submitted characters?

I think this will be a good-sized group. Paizo designs its APs for four players, after all.

I agree. 4 players should be easier for the GM to handle as well.

I was thinking we could put the Roll20 link in the "Campaign" tab instead? Give it a reason to be there ^^

Vance, my fellow Lawful man, you took my next action out of my mouth. We aren't criminals, we are agents of the law. Good show.

The spider clings to the dying hound with fierce tenacity even as the shadows begin to pull it back in once more. Fiendish claws clatter and scrape across the wood floor, gouging long marks in the smooth planks as the horrific arachnid is dragged against its will back into whatever horror-scape spawned it into the tannery office. The dog's body leaves a long, wet stain against the planks as it is dragged along, stopping only when the last of the spider's legs is sucked back into the void and it is torn violently free of its catch.

Good stuff. Suffice it to say, Arruk is going to be terrified of Amatsu.

Aww, scared of little ol'me? Why, I wouldn't harm a fly! Well, maybe that's a bad example...

We have a good group between us all. And you all are pushing me to evil faster than I anticipated.

J respects Vance for being dignified and well, more regularly Chelish than the rest. Arruk I believe Justimar will come to rely upon, a relationship built off of gold is still a relationship. Already getting a good "the muscle" and "the mouth" relationship going. If Amatsu continues the summoning, Justimar will be unable to ask her about it. After all, while Justimar isn't a real noble, he is a bonafide caster. It is at least something they share.

I was going to formally introduce myself, and pull the "I'm Justimar Leroung, I only tell you as no one will believe you if you say I was here assaulting your tannery." I might later, but I always feel I am stretching the six-second-round time limit in dialogue.

Aww, scared of little ol'me? Why, I wouldn't harm a fly! Well, maybe that's a bad example...

Arruk is evil, but he's just run of the mill, greedy, opportunistic evil. Not, pull things from the Abyss by sheer will and love every second of it evil.

J respects Vance for being dignified and well, more regularly Chelish than the rest. Arruk I believe Justimar will come to rely upon, a relationship built off of gold is still a relationship. Already getting a good "the muscle" and "the mouth" relationship going. If Amatsu continues the summoning, Justimar will be unable to ask her about it. After all, while Justimar isn't a real noble, he is a bonafide caster. It is at least something they share.

Arruk has no illusions about what he is, despite his swagger. He knows that most Chels see him as little more than an animal, and he knows why Cimri chose him to accompany the group. And by and large he's OK with that. There's gold in it for him, he's loyal, until someone else pays him more.

However, though he'd never admit it to himself, Arruk craves respect probably more than anything, so once Justimar comes around on that, he'll gain a lot of real, not monetary loyalty from the orc.

I always feel I am stretching the six-second-round time limit in dialogue.

Yeah, I usually keep my combat posts very short for just that reason, and then offer more narrative in other situations. Otherwise, I can get carried away.

It was a celestial giant crab spider, I swear! Didn't you see the halo?

At some point, Justimar will probably figure out that Amatsu is speaking Abyssal. Hopefully after he's been snared by the powers of a kyton so he won't immediately rat her out to the authorities.

Interestingly enough, Amatsu is actually a noble, though being Minkain nobility might not count for much in Cheliax or in Justimar's eyes, though it could make for some interesting interaction between them. Amatsu hasn't brought it up b/c she largely doesn't care, and she did deliberately leave her estate in ruins (chaotic evil!)

Also, I think I may have found a better image than the one I originally linked for the spider I summoned...

I like that we have different kinds of evil. Everybody represents a different aspect of how a person can be corrupted and lose their morality.

So, what's are escape plan? Justimar mentioned casting grease in front of the door which is a good idea; is there anything else we could do before running off?

I can burn another dog summon off if need be, cast Protection from Chaos on it just in case, cast light on it to draw attention to it and away from us.

Amatsu, we might want to do a quick scan of detect magic for any goodies before we go.

If I give him my name, I might be able to both take the blame/attention and deflect it all if the Sheriff does indeed arrive. If I contact my slave on the way to the drop-point, I can form an alibi, and if I can go to a bar an get a receipt, I might be able to forge a document saying I was there at the time of this event. I'd deny outright working with "thugs," have testimony of being elsewhere, and documentation perhaps to prove it. Amatsu killed one of the dogs with a crossbow, perhaps if we leave his crossbow here it will look like he shot his own dog.

For what it is worth, both Vance's (sorry, my bad) and Arruk's name have been said aloud, and likely noted by Louslik. If I give a full name though and make an impression, I bet he'd remember mine and possibly forget the rest.

Amatsu has dancing lights and message prepared, I just remembered. She could use dancing lights to make it look like we've already started to escape and are running in the opposite direction, and with message she can communicate with one other person essentially silently. Other than that I can't think of anything else; your plan works for me.

I contemplated having Cimri refer to Arruk as "Orc," but realized she wasn't clever enough to think of avoiding his name. Mostly though, she seems confident in her mysterious employer's ability to get you all out of any trouble - as long as you can deliver Louslik's gold to him.

As for getting a receipt, it would be unusual to draw one up for any small purchase, like a few drinks. Buying a slave (for example) certainly comes with accompanying paperwork, but it might raise eyebrows to request one for smaller expenditures.

Additionally, Amatsu is the only Tian in town; it's not like Louslik is going to have a hard time identifying her when the time comes. Let's hope Cimri was telling the truth about her patron.

I'm not overly-trustworthy on what Cimri believes, both in and out of character. The documentation is twofold: a backup in case Cimri fails, and also to protect myself from the mere accusation. Justimar doesn't want to sully his name, even if protected from the law. I can't have family hearing about this and believing it. I want to make Jabral look like he is lying, perhaps even try to make it seem as though he did the thievery himself in order get out of taxes or for other gain.

Looks like I'll need to buy a round of drinks for a tavern. That might justify a receipt, and lead to many a witness who will see me there. Hopefully these machinations and conniving will pay off.

Job interview today, so I'm a bit busy. I'll get a post up later, but if things need to move along, just assume Arruk snarls and insults Louslik and carries the box (and papers) with him.

Alright! Finally got my hands on Ultimate Intrigue. I will start reading once I hit homebase, and keep you posted on whether or not I wish to retrain.

We might, as a group, want to consider tweaking our skills/traits somewhat, to cover the niches that Ghivinus and Ryde were going to fill.

I would be more than willing to allow retconning of skills and abilities like that while we're getting started.

You have each earned 285 XP / 2,000 XP necessary to reach level two.

We might, as a group, want to consider tweaking our skills/traits somewhat, to cover the niches that Ghivinus and Ryde were going to fill.

As we'll have Cimri with us for a bit at least, could we get a general overview of what her skill set is, GM? Of course, we don't need specifics, but it would help me know what needs to be replaced in the event that Arruk levels up as a rogue or similar class.

And when it comes around, I will have an Eidolon that can cover some skills as well. I get four Skills of my choice to be his class skills, and can a 1-point evolution dip to give him +8 to a skill.

Also, I have the spell Guidance, which I should be casting on all of us at all times as a cantrip. Most the Summoners spells aren't too good skill wise, and with my limited spell knowledge (moreso from Unwavering Conduit), I am not too privy on dipping into them. Much prefer haste, buffs and the like.

A Wand of Bestow Insight would be pretty good, essentially Amatsu or I could give you a good bonus (and one use of a reroll, take better) to a skill in which we are trained. We should aid another each other often. I'm not sure if there is an opposite Ill Omen spell (short of the Fortune Hex, but Amatsu has already taken healing hex, don't burn everything on support for us), but if there was, that'd be great.

Cimri's stats are available for your perusal in her character profile.

How Viviendi reacts is up to you. I'm still learning her personality.

Who is Viviendi? Did I miss something?

Justimar's slave, I think

That's right.

Justimar makes me smile.

Justimar makes me smile.

:) which in turn does the same for me. I have some plans I thiunk you'll like for the future, Arruk, scheming a way to get you the respect you deserve in a manner that Justimar would approve. Right now I am big picture, but I think this Dandy is going to develop some very specific plans to either watch crumble or bring to fruition.

GM, good job with the Razelago introduction, I am very, very hesitant on saying anything to the man, as I am near certain that both he and Justimar are aware of who is in charge here.

On that, do you have any creative writing history outside PbP games? You do well establishing scenes, and you said the term "a beat passes" which I have only encountered in screenplays. I thought you may have been a screenwriter at first, but from what I've gathered from our WoTR game, there isn't a huge hub of script-writing or production communities nearby you.

Well, the phrase "a beat passes" was copied directly from the published adventure, but I'm aware of the term. I've probably used it before in something else. I don't have any formal training in writing, aside from nearly twenty years of D&D (I started young) and writing stories just for my own amusement. I have always dreamed of becoming an author. I find that I'm much better at building a world than telling a story - which is probably why GMing has such a strong appeal for me.

I'm really pleased you like my style. I've probably learned more from running and playing in PbPs than anywhere else, so everything stems from that. A PbP is a performance, and you four are both the actors and the audience. I aim to present the greatest entertainment I can offer - because performing is its own reward.

I am very, very hesitant on saying anything to the man, as I am near certain that both he and Justimar are aware of who is in charge here.

Hey no worries, that's what Arruk is for. Low charisma intimidator for the win!

I'm really pleased you like my style. I've probably learned more from running and playing in PbPs than anywhere else, so everything stems from that. A PbP is a performance, and you four are both the actors and the audience. I aim to present the greatest entertainment I can offer - because performing is its own reward.

Indeed, it is very nice. I've already picked up a couple of things from my short time in this game.

I'll have to postpone my post until I get home from work tommorow at noon. I may be able to post from work, but I've had a long day and I need to get up early. The burden of overtime I'm afraid. I hope you will forgive and be patient with me, and I will try to have the post up at about 12:30 CEST or earlier.

I am always super busy on weekends - there are very likely going to be a bunch of weekends where I can't even post at all. No worries, Vance!

I'll get a post up tomorrow if able.

Ugh, that got later than I would have liked, and while I have something to add, I think it would be more prudent to have Razelago answer Arruk's question first xD

Fair enough! :) I had a long, busy weekend with lots of fun stuff going on so I'm glad there's not too much to read through! I'll post soon.

I'll get the next post up soon - the email server went down at work and it's my job to fix everything in the aftermath, so I'm a bit busy this morning. :)

That was a fun post. I'm really getting into Razelago's personality - he's a very interesting character, whom you'll all get to know better as the story progresses. It's fun to be in his shoes.

They spared no expense making those sashes look evil. Maybe it is just the Chelish colors though. Razelago is interesting, and I have some ideas for who he might be.

Question: Can I have multiple message spells going at one time? If I cast it four times, can I make a network with me as the hub, capable of relaying whispers/info across the party (one at a time, I'd assume) for the duration of their casting?

Finally got myself a copy of Inner Sea Faiths, which has more information on my goddess Alseta, a sort of Roman god Janus-parallel. Will likely start incorporating that a little more, probably just phrases, small prayers, taking special notices to new beginnings/doors.

Edit:
So summoners have this trick, which revolves around the idea that a summoned monster can act as soon as I summon it. Imagine I am 5th level with a lesser quickened rod.

Round one, I summon 5 dogs as a standard (SM3, +1 for Superior Summons). They go out and attack.

Round two, I have those 5 dogs attack (they act on my turn), Swift action to use the wand (this time using the spell SM2, not the SLA as it can't be quickened) to summon monsters again, three more dogs come out (replacing the 1st series of dogs), and attack.

Then, I use my standard to summon five more dogs via SLA, which act on this turn, go out (replacing the 2nd series of dogs) and attack. Eight dogs go out, eight come in, one turn.

I don't have to use dogs, I could send out a flurry of whatever combination of my summons, maybe end it with a pouncing leopard for a finisher, or an ape for defense, or a wall of 3 small earth elementals. So with that two-turn maneuver, I used 2 of my Summon Monsters, 1 2nd level Spell, but essentially bringing 3-13 creatures in and out of existence for a flash-assault. This is 1/3 of my SLAs and Spells at 5th level.

RAW, it works by my count, but I want to verify with you are fine with me going nova on Summoned Monsters. I end the turn with what I've summoned last, essentially using each use prior use for only one attack per creature before they are dispelled.

Yeah, that totally works. Summoners can get pretty crazily strong. Go nuts. :)

As for message - while technically I can't see anything that would prevent you from casting the spell on multiple targets, the spell scales with level by adding more targets, and it's a zero-level spell. There'd be nothing preventing you from casting it constantly on the whole party and circumventing any benefit the spell gains from an increased caster level. Because of that, I'm going to say that each caster may only have one message spell active at a time.

As of concluding the tannery heist and gaining your payment from Razelago:

Current XP: 435 XP / 2,000 XP

Justimar, upon reading your post again, I wanted to make a clarification on "going nova" with summons. I would prefer that if a summoned creature (from your SLA) has taken its turn, you not dismiss it (after its actions are concluded) and then immediately attack again with another full round of actions with a new summon. Essentially, your Summon Monster spell-like-ability gets only one full round of actions each round - even if you cast it again after the first summon has done its attacks. The new pack of dogs would have no actions available on their first round out, because the first pack of dogs had already expended it.

I don't think I clearly read what you were proposing the first time, so sorry if this comes as a reversal of what I said earlier.

With summoning spells you can go crazy, since those spells don't instantly dismiss the summon that was out before when cast.

Does that sound fair?

It is most certainly fair, yes. The strategy must be a hole in the rules or the thought of how someone could use them, but I've heard of some GMs allowing it before and some summoning guides point it out. I might need to invest in some Summon Monster Spells if I wanted to pull some summoning shenanigans.

The most I could do would be Summon SLA from previous round, Summon Evil Monster for Standard Action summon, Quickened Summon Evil for swift. Without a wand, I'd need spell perfection, which would be very late-game.

Darn, thought I'd posted. I'll get a post up once I get back from work. Sorry about that.

Not to be pedantic, but I assume you meant a rod, not a wand?