Well, Makkasu is a ronin. So of course he's scruffy.
I have to bow at least somewhat to the fact that this is a L5R game.. so he's not wearing a leather costume at least ;)
Now that I've begun the next action scene, I'm thinking that I'm going to give some XP for the first one. I do want to get you guys at least to insight rank 3 before we start the capstone adventure to climax the campaign, so I don't see any reason I shouldn't be fairly liberal with XP awards.
So, for completing the first hour or so of in-game time of the Night of a Thousand Screams, I'm giving you 3 XP each. Facing down a bad-ass Oni is a big deal!
On spending your XP: After this inaugural adventure, I do plan to be a little picky about finding time to train in order to expend XPs. But for the duration of this first adventure at least, I'll let you spend them freely. If I change my mind I'll let you know.. but as of right now those 3 XPs are available to spend as you see fit.
My rule for spending XP is: You must post in this thread how you want to spend them. And update your profile. You don't update your profile, it's not official!
Hooray for liberal xp!
Xiaoxing will however bank hers for now :)
I decided to share the legends you heard from peasants surrounding the Gate of Oni's Teeth (L14) in this thread rather than overwhelming the gameplay thread.
The Gate of Oni's Teeth is one of the primary gates to the city as it is the southern portal for the Mountain Goblin's Rest Road.. a major highway that passes through the city, continuing on to the north to Shiro no Shosuro. It would likely be the gate through which most of you first entered the City of Lies.
The city originally had another gate at that location donated by the local Suna family. This extinct gate was replaced by the current Gate of Oni's Teeth; erected in honor of legendary local heroes Riko and Okami on the occasion of their saving the City from Oni no Hukuro: The Dreaded Owl with Teeth.
This demon was said to be twenty feet tall with the head and wings of an owl, and with human arms for legs. The teeth embedded in the road beneath the modern Gate are as long as a shinbone and give some sense of scale to the monster's size.
Any descriptions you gave of the Oni you saw end up falling short of the legends about the Oni no Hukuro that was vanquished by the City's great native heroes centuries in the past.
Just looked up Riko and Okami on wikia.l5r.com, really like their story, very humorous too :D
Thanks for the history backfill :)
Hehe I thought their story was too good to tell just via data dump. I'll find a way for NPCs to tell you the various tales of their adventures. Researching ways to kill your Oni will probably turn up the tale about how they killed Oni no Hukuro :)
Sorry about my absence. I've had a busy holiday weekend. I'll get back to my posting first thing tomorrow.
-Posted with Wayfinder
Sorry about my absence. I've had a busy holiday weekend. I'll get back to my posting first thing tomorrow.
Welcome back!
I'll also throw a reminder out to everyone.. when you're declaring raises, please remember to say so. I'm presuming that's where Xiaoxing's +1k0 to the arrow damage roll came from.
And a third topic: I'm still unlearning face to face habits for the PbP format.. I have to remember to present answers to likely questions rather than just allow you to ask. Hopefully the current scene is now more easily envisioned with the additional contextual information I've given. But don't be shy about asking questions anyway.. if something is unclear I don't mind clarifying.
GM you're doing a great PbP job, already noting what it took mw a while to realise about presenting more information than you normally might to help keep pace up!
As for the 1k0 mentioned, you are right in as much as I was going to raise for damage, but in between sessions with my phone (darn interrupting phone calls!) I decided against it as wasn't sure I'd hit, so didn't factor in the addl. +1k0 even though it was written in the roll! Her willow leafs normally do 2k2 plus 3k0 from the bow's strength.
Currently my roll and keep probability fu is pretty rusty!
Anyway, onwards with bringing to justice this eta-murdering scum!
I've just thought, where's Makkasu gone!?
I will more than likely not be able to post for the next few days. I have a convention that I'm going to and since I'm volunteering for it, probably won't have that much time to do some posting >.<
Feel free to bot me until around Monday or so.
I've just thought, where's Makkasu gone!?
He kind of vanished right after Doji Oruku showed up, didn't he? Maybe there's some significance in that :)
I will more than likely not be able to post for the next few days. I have a convention that I'm going to and since I'm volunteering for it, probably won't have that much time to do some posting >.<
Feel free to bot me until around Monday or so.
Doji Himeko is going to be a bit hit-and-miss in the immediate future as well. I also got a PM from Soshi Kongming: RL issues aren't giving him time to PbP so he's stepping out of the campaign.
So for the short term, we're down about half the party.
When it rains, it pours.
I too have something that'll keep me busy today.
I'll move us ahead this evening. Sorry for the delay ladies and gents.
Iaijutsu vs Kenjutsu: I don't see any reason you can't attack with the Iaijutsu skill on the same skirmish round you ready a katana as a free action. In Xiaoxing's circumstance this turn, the skills are the same. But in the future, I think it's fair to allow an Iai roll on the same round you "quick draw" a katana by reading it as a free action, even if it's not a formal Iaijutsu duel. And to clarify: if your kenjutsu skill is higher, I'm not saying you HAVE to use Iai in its place. Except of course in a formal duel..
What do you guys think? Seem like a sensible house rule?
Himeko leaves Katsurou to talk with the eta; she had heard enough. She heads into the morgue and takes a moment to survey the situation. The scene before her was madness.
Corpses everywhere, viscera flying through the air, and broken men crawling on the ground for loose bu.
She couldn't think of a more poetic description for Ryoko Owari. She moves next to Chinatsu, sliding into her mizu-do stance.
That, btw, is my favorite post in the entire game thus far. I'm hijacking it as the tagline for the campaign, if you don't mind.
Iaijutsu does make sense as the attack roll for those with the skill at 3 or higher :)
Also, great post Himeko-san!
Thanks. :D
Something came up. Not me a few days. :(
Now that everyone has their own scene until you rendezvous at the Inn, it's probably best for Katsuyoshi and Chinatsu to just go ahead and post their arrival there whenever RL issues are resolved.
I'll PM you some relevant details about your chase and feel free to improv and elaborate from there in your roleplay with the others.
The adventure actually calls for running each chase with the other players out of the room to force the players have to rely on their own memories when they try to compare notes about clues. And also so that they can play down any shameful failures and brag to play up any bravado.
The ability to scroll up-thread and reread posts in PbP makes remembering clues trivial.. but being able to "spin" your heroics in your chases to each other is something I think would be fun to preserve :D
As such, I'm going to up the tempo until the chases are done. Rather than waiting for everyone to get a round in, I'll give feedback chase by chase as often as I can get to them.
Once your characters straggle in to the Inn, feel free to roleplay your tall tales with each other (or unvarnished truth, whichever you prefer) until the gang is all back in the same place at the same time.
The nature of a continuous PbP game requires an adaptation to the Honor roll (and all other mechanics that work on a "X times per session" basis). I'm not sure what a good way to adapt that, however. I'm thinking "per session" abilities recharge every 1st of the real world month. Anyone have other/better ideas on that?
I'm going to point out it's after the first of the month.. X times per session abilities have reset. Any you didn't use, you didn't use!
And Himeko, that means your unluck is freshly recharged too >;D
Hi all, just a quick note to say that Dunedin here in NZ has had record-breaking levels of flooding this last 24 hours so I've been otherwise occupied dealing with various minor-crises! Normal service will be resumed shortly ^.^
Wasn't there just an earthquake down there?
Hi all, just a quick note to say that Dunedin here in NZ has had record-breaking levels of flooding this last 24 hours so I've been otherwise occupied dealing with various minor-crises! Normal service will be resumed shortly ^.^
I hope you're staying safe.
Oh and Chinatsu, Mirumoto Katsuyoshi:
Just go ahead and post some roleplay about arriving at the Inn when you're able to rejoin the game. I'll fill you in on some details you can then share with the party.
Hey! Sorry with the delay of posting. Life has been a bit more hectic for me since I got back. I will try to maintain a good posting rate, just the exact time I post may switch a lot >.<
Thank you for your best wishes :)
So a couple of days back we had literally 24 hours straight of heavy rain, it was 160mm total during that time! Apparently that's a 'once a century' event. Derz you are right, it was certainly an interesting middle to a week that started with a 4.7 quake 30km away and less than 5km deep! (Only lasted 10 seconds and at first I thought it was an animal on the roof until the walls started shaking!) Tis a good thing we've no active volcanoes down here else that would have been the trifecta for the week ;)
We got away quite lightly with just a few leaking windows, soggy carpet and a flooded garage. My neighbors weren't so fortunate, they had over two feet of water in their basement. One of my colleagues was awake at 3 in the morning digging a trench to try and divert the flood water from washing away the foundations of his house. One entire suburb (built on reclaimed land...) was several inches underwater! No casualties thankfully though, and things are slowly returning to normal :)
Somebody must have forgotten to keep the virgin sacrifices up to date. G*! d@+n.
I will be able to post tomorrow. Sorry for inconvenience.
I will be able to post tomorrow. Sorry for inconvenience.
No worries... thanks for letting us know you had to take a hiatus on posting for a little bit.
Looking forward to having you back in the game!
So I copied Xiaoxing's charatcter sheet as best as possible. And created a PC (I think). First time for L5R for me, so I believe I got it right. I dotted in Gameplay just to get it on my list.
I won't be able to post until late tonight. Sorry!
Also, welcome Hideyoshi-san!
So I copied Xiaoxing's charatcter sheet as best as possible. And created a PC (I think). First time for L5R for me, so I believe I got it right. I dotted in Gameplay just to get it on my list.
Welcome to the game!
Everything looks to be in order, but we do need a background story. Why an idealistic Lion comes to the Empire's den of depravity and capital of sin certainly should have an explanation. We also need a hook that explains why it's plausible that the magistrate heading up the investigation takes you on immediately. Since you're new to L5R, here are a couple of spitballs:
Why did you come to the City of Lies when you're Idealistic?: Maybe someone Hideyoshi cares about died to an opium overdose. Maybe he came here with some pipe-dream of a scheme to shut down the opium trade.
Why would Oruku-sama immediately accept you onto his team of super-friends?: Maybe Hideyoshi is a cross-Clan relation to one or more of the dead Cranes. Lions and Cranes may not get along usually, but blood is blood!
I'd like to see a history tab/spoiler with your background story.
(and now that I'm looking at Xiaoxing's character sheet for the first time in a while, I see she's tracking XP gained and Honor gained/lost. It's a neat idea! I support everyone doing so ;)
As for the gameplay: Doji Oruku will ICly be all alarmed that the bandits circled the Crane address and insist everyone rush over there ASAP. However I'm holding the rendezvous scene at the Inn for OOC reasons; I want to get Hideyoshi into the game before we careen off into our next direction. So take Oruku's lack of urgency with that grain of salt, and feel free to spend the next day or so continuing to roleplay with one another!
Thank you, Onnotangu-sama, will have that background up today. Just wanted to make sure it was okay to start posting.
Thank you, Onnotangu-sama, will have that background up today. Just wanted to make sure it was okay to start posting.
No worries.
But, not to put the pressure on or anything, I am waiting on your background and a couple questions I have (see my PM) before I move forward with the game. ;)
If you need a couple days I'll just move the group ahead and have you catch up at the next stopping point.
I replied. Run with the hostage Disadvantage so we can keep moving. Let me rethink the background.
I did try for all of two minutes but it appears my Google-fu is weak tonight, I could not locate a video or picture of a police siren on a horse's head ;p
That accent, Lion? He will be handy in our inevitable combat, but I'll have to work away from his lest his roar drown out my thoughts.
Katsurou begins to speak and suddenly a small eta man enters the inn, bowing appropriately and making sure to step out of the way of any incoming samurai.
Douzo yoroshiku, Hideyoshi-San. I am Kitsuki Katsurou. We are emboldened and honored by your presence and assistance. Ah! My ears tell me that my assistant Watchful is here. He will serve as my eyes as we work.
Katsurou stays quiet as he is pulled by rickshaw.
[dice=Meditation/Void for Void Point Recovery, Specialization, 5k3]5d10
[dice=Specialization]1d10=20.
I have a couple responses to this.
1: I assume you spent your 3 xp on buying an Eta Assistant advantage? If so please update your profile :)
2: The crunch for the Meditation roll was correct. And the TN is 20, which you made. But I wouldn't allow meditation to work during a rickshaw ride, much less a rickshaw ride through revelry-choked streets. Well, MAYBE I would, but it'd certainly involve raises.. which would have made you fail the roll.
But the good news is I'll say you retroactively meditated at the Inn during the quiet wait for the team to re-assemble. So you did indeed replenish 1 void point.
Shinjo Xiaoxing: You've usually got a quick turnaround on posts so I'm going to give you the option to pick your own poison about using Geikeki-ki as a bulldozer to open a path.
In the feedback in my next post is it more important that you:
1: open the path quickly at risk of injuring revelers
or
2: Avoid injuring people at risk of failing to open a quick path
Hrm... Tricky call, compassion versus duty!
Xiaoxing would not want to injure anyone unnecessarily, so unless ordered to do so she would try and take care not to trample anyone.
Any additional speed from using Geikeki-ki as a people-plough is better than just trying to shoulder our way through :)
Xiaoxing, what is the 'ATN' stat you have next to 'Honor'?
Xiaoxing, what is the 'ATN' stat you have next to 'Honor'?
That's Armor Target Number, or basically her Armor Class in D&D parlance. It's a slightly confusing term, since you may or may not actually be wearing any armor.
It's calculated as 5+(5xReflexes), plus any armor you may be wearing
Yes, we're not formally in combat (yet...) so I'm not limiting you to what you can do in one combat round for this roleplay as you initially discover shenanigans at the Crane estate.
I do have a question about your spell: I know you get one free raise on craft spells.. where's the 2nd free raise coming from? Or are you declaring an additional raise on top of the free raise?
Dammit, I was this close to calling an Honor Roll too. Not that it would have helped much. Sneaking past a blind guy isn't very hard for any assassin.
Nope, I still didn't calculate it right. 4k2 katana + Agility = 7k3. 7k3 + Full Attack (2k1) = 9k4. Also, I just read that an extra attack is 5 raises! TN 50 for these podlings!
= 42
= 41
= 44
Lesson = Nope no 50s!
4k2 is the base damage of your katana, to which you add your strength in unkept dice, and also another 1k0 for having kenjitsu 3, so your standard damage roll is 8k2+7.
To hit is agility/kenjutsu + full attack bonus, so 6k3+2k1 is 8k4 (re-rolling 1s as you have the katana emphasis!). You don't have void 5 so you can't make 5 raises for an extra attack anyway!
Hope that makes it clearer :)
Ah, ok. Was using the 4k2 damage as the base for attack.
Totally missed the Void ring limit on Raises.
Was fun making the trial rolls tho...
Katanas have a special rule where void points may be used on a damage roll. Stands to reason that katanas should be special compared to other weapons, mechanically :)
Now that you've seriously wounded one of the podlings though, it's going to have to switch to full attack (assuming it even survives to see next round) to have a shot at hitting anyone.. and thus it in turn will become much easier to hit, too.
If you have mastered a spell and still use a scroll you get a free raise as well.
If you have mastered a spell and still use a scroll you get a free raise as well.
I know older editions of the game had that.. I hadn't seen it in 4th edition though. Where'd you find that?