Responded to your questions by way of description in the gameplay thread, Talia.
A fair concern, Talivar.
Ugh! What are the odds???
And I was so hoping to drive the beast away! Looks like I'm going to bag me a T-Rex.
I have a crazy busy weekend coming up and will be unable to get a post in. Should be back to normal posting Monday.
Thanks!
Roger that. Always appreciate the heads up.
I'm on a business trip traveling to Toronto tomorrow for a few days (hi Kilarra!), my schedule is pretty packed so posting frequency may be reduced.
Thank you for the heads up! Hope your visit with Kilarra goes well. ; )
I hope you had a great trip, Talivar! (Or as great as a busy business trip can be, anyway. Haha)
Just thought I'd roll these here, unless GM wants to.
So with Evil Eye guaranteeing a -4, then Male Mantis is debuffed -6 and female Mantis is -7 on saving throws. They then need to save against Misfortune which is DC 19 (I get 2 shots at Misfortune thanks to Accursed Hex). They then need to make a DC 17 Fort save, with possible Misfortune affliction against Alluring Spores, or take a further -1 or -2 (depending on if they could be sexually attracted to me) against enchantment spells only.
Then its either a DC 19 Saving Throw against Inveigle Person, or DC 18 Suggestion with Misfortune affecting rolls. I am fairly certain that I affect them unless like, they get double nat 20 on saving throws unless they save against Misfortune, in which case its easier.
Who needs Animate Dead :)
Uff this trip has been so tiring with a super packed schedule. Annoying thing is the jet lag is finally wearing off but I go back tomorrow...
Ouch. I hope it was at least productive. I also hope Kilarra didn't impede your work too much.
Ha we're just in the same country, didn't actually meet up. Yeah it's been a productive visit though
Sorry, I should have included another winky face at the end of my post above. Guess I kept that joke going too long... still, it's good to hear it was productive.
Sorry, too busy to post now. Should have time tomorrow. I'll hop in when I can, but don't feel the need to wait for me.
*Knock, knock*
All of y'all still alive out there?
I'm still here, just don't have much more to say to this chap yet until I can see if his girlfriend is of better help.
So, I just discovered a neat spell
Assume Appearance Greater
Means that I can realistically turn into anyone assuming that I have a likeness, with the ability to sound like them if I have also heard them speak before.
Basically it means that anyone I have had a vision of, I can now become, since we can effectively make a likeness since I know precisely what they look like. Handy for infiltration, although its a bit risky since none of you could follow. It also means that we can do cool stuff later, such as pretending to be Alayna or other Mantis if we wanted to be sneaky
Nifty... One thing I thought of just now, capturing some bloodvessels to feed misinformation could be interesting. Right now we don't have a lead for that however.
I’m at a wedding. I’ll try and post but long ones are hard on a phone. Back in 48 hours
Roger that, Talia. Thank you for letting us know.
Attending a PowWow today. I don't have time to post, but I will have a chance tomorrow.
Thanks!
Taking this to discussion, since I think it works better for tactics discussion. There's also a few questions I want to discuss ooc with GM.
Firstly:
GM, there's now quite a few tasks we have on our plate (which is totally fine), bit do you want to give us an ooc guideline in terms of what would be beyond our capacities, or perhaps the order might be? You don't have to give it to us straight if you want to preserve party freedom / choices but I'm still interested.
Taking down Goblin Tribes seems to be #1 on our list, but I do know that we still have to go for that treasure and face down a banshee, still need to liberate Mosquito Island, still need to raid the Citadel, and we probably still want to make a raid on the city / Red Mantis temple.
Some of these tasks I am certain you have earmarked for where we are stronger, is there anything you could tell us regarding order or?
Secondly: Treetop Mission.
Wind Spirit gives you clairvoyance but thats technically a divination spell and so might be blocked.
Way I see it, we have a few options.
Talivar can always blat with fire spells, I think thats a good open.
I can also use spells like Command Plants, Clear Grove, and Wilderness Soldiers to ruin the tree advantages. I can also use spells like Wind Wall / Protection from Arrows, or Fog spells to stop ranged attacks.
One thing that we could do, is sneak through via invisibility, fight big boss, kill boss, I can take his apperance, and then direct the tribe to fight the kobold tribe, and have them walk into an ambush. Might be hard to do though.
GM, what are the kobolds preferred tactics?
As far as order of tasks/quests/missions, raiding the Citadel should be at the very end of your list (assuming you want to continue living for a while). Going for the treasure/facing the banshee/liberating Mosquito Island would presumably take place in close proximity, so you’ll still need something to convince Mother Shaman and the Kaneano that you can actually defeat the Mantis before undertaking those tasks.
Raids in the city and on the Red Mantis temple (on a large and definitive scale) are presumably things you would want to wait a bit on as well, since doing so would likely invite the full wrath of the Mantis. There are other things you can do in the city as well. There’s still the matter of Makori and Sardan. There are also the Jungle Runners to deal with.
I would also recommend reviewing Rix’s Letter, as there are several things in there that you’ve touched on, but not necessarily fully addressed. There’s also the slaver Goldshackle who has come up a few times.
Of course, you have the goblins to deal with as well, which is undoubtedly the most pressing matter, though not necessarily one that will unravel entirely if you decide to do something else in between taking down tribes.
I think that should give you a bit of an idea of what you might consider prioritizing. I try to adjust things to account for your current level, so don’t feel like you have to do things in a rigid order. Of course, I hope what I’ve mentioned above also lets you know which things you should definitely steer clear of for now.
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As for kobold tactics, they prefer direct combat. They are willing to use (or at least try to use) a bit of stealth as well as surprise, but they aren't the best at those things. Most kobold warriors are fighters or rangers, though there are a few magic users within their ranks. Also, I haven't been (that I know of) making exceptions for myself on the 'no divination magic' thing, so I don't think starting now would be a good idea. That problem will eventually come up in the story, but not for now.
Ype, haven't forgotten about Goldshackle, or the Jungle Runners, but everyone has been kinda lukewarm about following up with them so far.
I also want to chat with Hermit, and Jaxira.
Anything to do with Makori and Sardan is up to you though GM, our last interaction made it clear there was nothing more for us to do.
Roger that, Talia. Something might come up... eventually. : )
Been reflecting a lot on this in how we want to do this.
I think the most cinematic idea is charging ahead and taking them on, but I feel that this isn't very elegant. I'm a little worried that they have something silly like fifty archers and Wind Wall wouldn't cover the entire area.
I do think that disguising ourselves as Mantis, on reflection, is still out best bet. We can use the Thunderscale tribes massing as an excuse for an audience, meet with the leader, kill him, and leave them leaderless, therefore crushing them. I'm reasonably confident enough in this for us to push ahead without recon if everyone wants to jump straight ahead.
Also, something really cool, is that I can take the Tribe Wandering Spirit.
It lets me give one Teamwork Feat to any and all allies within 30 feet. There is no numerical limit, which means that if I was with the kobold army, I could give every single kobold within 30 feet of me a teamwork feat like Outflank, Bonded Mind, Ferocious Loyalty, Lastwall Phalanx etc.
This is brutal with stacking bonuses since everyone gets the feat.
As soon as y'all reach a consensus on the plan, I can move us forward, so please continue deliberating (in-character or out-of-character or both). :)
I think we sorta have a plan. Urelleth and Kilarra dress up as Mantis and Talivar and Talia perhaps do the same but rely mostly on magic to pass unseen. Talia's spell choise likely risks analysis paralysis and extensive yack shaving (there are far too many spells!) and like represents the bulk of the actual fighting ;)
Main idea is to get close enough to kill the leader and anyone else unfortunate enough to be in the vicinity.
That sounds pretty good. With any luck, we'll manage to Bluff our way to the leader. The kobolds warned us of fighting him one-on-one, but I figure Uruelleth with some help from Talia's hexes can handle him pretty well, while Talivar deals with crowd control and Kilarra can either help with Gawg or keep Ruel from getting overwhelmed.
I guess the other thing we should arrange for is a force of Kobolds to strike once we're in position to mop up. I guess they are going to be a bit vulnerable. Hmm I wonder if invisibility sphere might be useful...
So are y'all planning to do a scouting mission? Or just going directly to pretending to be Mantis to approach Gawg?
Try to work out the particulars now so I can know how to best push us forward. Makkatat's still there if you want to discuss things with him. You'll definitely want to talk to him if you plan on having kobolds nearby to clean up after your initial strike.
I don't think we need a scouting mission if we are going to approach Gawg directly. We would probably need a signal though or some arrangement with Makkatat about when to trigger the attack.
That works. Let me know when you plan to go and what you say to Makkatat before leaving. If there's anything else you want to do before going, go ahead and mention it as well.
Be thinking about what roll(s) you'll want to make in preparation for going as well (disguise, stealth, etc).
Sorry, kids are still sick, husband's sick, and I'm sick now. Not a good week. I'm good with whatever plan you guys decide on and will hop in when I can. Feel free to bot some skill checks for Kilarra if you need to.
Thanks.
One person can disguise another right? Talivar has a fairly decent bluff skill, I'm half wondering if he should walk in bold as brass with Uruelleth and Kilarra.
If we can't convincingly make him look like one of them, Talivar will be using stealth & invisibility. Probably going to fly too but not until we get close.
Well, none of us has the Disguise skill, but if we all take 10 and assist, we can generate a 21 (with Talivar's +5 Cha, and each of us lending +2 to assist). That would be not including any disguise kits we happen to have/obtain and any circumstance bonuses for wearing Mantis clothing and masks. I'm hopeful that's enough to get us past most of the guards and in to see their boss.
That sounds miserable, Kilarra. Hope y'all get to feeling better soon. Thank you for checking in.
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You can't take 10 on assists, but you can certainly try to aid another. You would get a circumstances bonus for having real Mantis gear, exact number tbd. Feel free to start making rolls in the gameplay thread. You still need to make final plans with Makkatat as well.
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Posted just to get us moving a bit.
Also don't mind me, doing one of our info dumps so we can track the mini missions.
Outstanding Tasks:
Taking on the Goblin Tribes:
Currently doing this mission, but set to be a bit of a long term process since its unlikely we can take on all tribes quickly enough without sustaining heavy losses. Taking on the tribes, and then eliminating Firesinger, eliminates the control the Red Mantis has over the jungle and cripples a little of that information network. Apparently free's up the kobold tribe to stand with us but I doubt we will be at a level to challenge them so openly immediately after we crush the goblins.
Taking on Mosquito Island:
Probably more of a long term goal, but the shark people still want us to eliminate the Mantis on this island, before we get their support. Unknown if we would have the kobolds assistance with this, but its possible a first full scale battle against the Red Mantis, which would need us to be pretty high level. Once successful though, we possible have control over several waterways around the island, which might be able to open up reinforcements / supplies etc should we need it. Expands territory to Jungle + Sea.
Red Mantis Meeting:
Blood Vessels indicate a meeting with 6(?) days with their handler. Unsure if we want to impersonate this meeting, but Talia can handle this with Assume Appearance. Handler might have more information on the Red Mantis but its unlikely to amount to much, as Red Mantis have proven to be resistant to giving up information.
Goldshackle:
This has kinda come up more and more frequently. Goldshackle is the slaver goblin that operates within the city. I don't think many of us care too much about slavery in the city (other than that its bad) but destroying this does reduce the economic strength of the Red Mantis as they do rely on this a little bit. It also sends a dominant message to the Pirate Lords, especially if we do this in conjunction with (say) taking down the Goblin tribes. I think it opens up cash advantages, but I don't know if taking down Goldshackle actually hurts the slave trade the Pirates might also use, and I also don't know how we get the slaves off the island. Might need support of Pirate Lords, or maybe the slaves fight for us. I think its a good thing to do regardless but its probably lower priority.
Treasure Quest:
There is still that treasure quest we can do, provided we can take on a banshee. I think we need to be level 11 or maybe 12 (so Talivar can get 6th level spells) since its going to be a high CR challenge unless we can Diplomacy our way around it which is...risky. Still, possibly has neat items / weapons / wealth we could use in our battle.
Jaxira:
Friendly druid that we know was going to be enslaved by Goldshackle. I don't know if there is much to be gained by befriending her, but she would still be a useful ally and possibly hates Goldshackle. If nothing else, its an extra ally, which is always welcome.
The Hermit:
Revealed to be a sylph, who chose to save us waaay back when we shipwrecked. Could have been him just feeling sorry for shipwrecked travelers, or could have been something else. Undoubtedly fairly powerful though and would rather have him as a friend or ally. If nothing else, we would probably pop over and say thank you or something, but he is still a Mystery Guy that would be worth investigating.
Jungle Runners:
Strongly suspect that they are still Red Mantis, and therefore it probably makes sense if we kill / interrogate them. If they are posing as actual scouts, they might know where the citadel is but would probably be stronger enemies than the Red Mantis we have run into so far.
Pirate Lords:
Talia kinda put her foot in it there, so I don't think there is much we can do to remedy the situation. I think making the Red Mantis look weak makes us look stronger though, so maybe they come around eventually.
Red Mantis Temple:
I want that damn book.
Origent Gamaron:
The Play director. There was a Job Board mission that would lead to us working with him, but I think thats too risky for us now that the Red Mantis are fully aware that we are in the city and what we are doing. I honestly don't know if its worthwhile meeting the guy, he was probably blindfolded when he was taken to perform at the Citadel, and is probably loyal to them out of fear, but I guess he is someone to at least talk to.
Norgorber Cult:
We know its still active in the city, and its worth finding. If nothing else, might be useful to have on our side for any city missions we might be doing (like taking on Goldshackle) but they are unlikely to be very powerful.
Alayna Rescue:
I'm putting this one in a separate category, because In Character, Talia is worried about Alayna being used as a bargaining chip. I know that Talivar isn't going to turn on us or anything, but Talia ideally wants Alayna rescued before we take on the Citadel so that Talivar doesn't have a split focus, or the ability to worry about the Red Mantis leveraging Alayna to make us do certain things. This is more Talia's in character feelings though, rather than a group mission offered to us.
Nice list, I'm wondering if we should look into Goldshackle although I'm wondering if we're approaching Kill on Sight status in town.
Hey folks, just a heads up that I’ll be out of town the 16th through the 19th. I may be able to post some during that time, but can’t promise it. I plan to resume normal posting on the 20th.
Apologies for my absence. I had an important deadline this week and will be at the doctors all day today. Should have time to properly post this weekend.
gimmie a sec team
Got given a super early shift at work this week so been mega tired, but I have a dentist thing tomorrow thats probably nothing but been anxious about for last couple of days.
Fingers crossed should be right as rain after 24 hours. Sorry for my absence
Good to hear from you both! Hope things settle down soon.
I'll give everyone the weekend (and probably through Monday night) to post before seeing about moving us forward again. I want to make sure y'all have time to discuss and plan.
Talivar has 3 level 3 spells left, can't do all of that. I do have 1 charge left of haste on the wand, I guess I might as well use that here.
I think Uruelleth's going to enlarge himself, then bring up shield. A fly would be great. With his reach and fly, he could probably take on the leader for a little while on his own.
Since I'd like to take advantage of reach, if Talivar can bring up the mist somewhere else to keep one side protected, then the rest of the archers will have to move around and we can better force them to bunch up for AoE spells.
Talia, you could probably get four or five of the kobolds' bows, depending on where you place the center of the radius.
Glad to have everyone back, by the way. I enjoy reading your preparations and discussions. Warms a GM's heart. : )
Killara / Urulleth something to think about for the future. Does Telekinetic Charge sound like something you want in your life?
Sounds like fun! More attacks are always good!
Sure!
Regarding tactics:
I enlarged myself to take advantage of the added reach. Combined with fly and Gawg's positioning, I can strike at him quite easily without retaliation since he's on a ledge and if he steps forward, he'll fall. I'm less worried about the archers than taking repeated full attacks from the barbarian.
Speaking of, it's not surprising that Gawg can't be flanked. I can't be flanked, so I wonder if that would have been something we would have been able to predict. Basically it means that Kilarra is in trouble going toe-to-toe with Gawg. She should probably focus on harassing the other goblins. Maybe there's a spot based on my large size that I could threaten other goblins, so Kilarra can flank and do her work on them.
The mist is great for blocking archers, but terrible for me, since more than 5' means I can't see Gawg at all, and it'll be like I'm swinging at an invisible opponent.
Plus, with Talia's warping wood, I'm less worried about the archers. At the very least, have Talia warp one group, and Talivar use the mist against another group.