Megan's Curse of the Crimson Throne (Inactive)

Game Master Megan Robertson

I'm sorry about your friend, Sunphoenix. I hope you find comfort for the loss.

Its has been years ...

You think when someone dear to you... passes away that with time... you'll forget or their absence will hurt less, eventually. Most of the time you can convince yourself its true.

But then... its not the talking about them or discussing past times with them its.. the little things... the flashes of memory from the simplest of references... like... 'Ren Fair'.

I instantly remember Paul at my side in his swashbuckling leathers, gloves, flared boots and wide-brimed foppish hat. His rapier at his side and his NEVER Dry ale mug hooked at his sword-belt and me trudging alongside him in my heavy chainmail armor, broadsword, shield, helm, black tabard, red hooded cloak... matching him step for step... laughing at some jibe made by the professional insult-slinger at the Ren Fair...

Or even something as simple as remembering a line of lyrics from MANOWAR {Paul's favorite metal band... and mine too}... that we sang together riding in his car to the McDonald's before a sit-down game of AD&D...

And the pain of his loss is fresh all over again... like it was just yesterday.

Paul was a warrior at heart and like a brother of steel & spirit to me... if not of my blood.

I know its not true... because I'm a Devout Christian and I know the state of the dead... but I like to think of Paul in Valhalla in Odin's Hall of Valiant Heroes - as was Paul's belief and desire for his death. Paul was a Wiccan.

... I miss him a lot.

Sorry to drag on about it.

Thank you for your sentiments Thom... I appreciate the thought of comfort.

Anyways... waiting on post from Arianna before I reply.

OK, I have taken the liberty of playing your Mama, Ashe, to give Arianna a lead-in.

And I know just what you mean, Sunphoenix. Those who have gone before are always lurking in our hearts. We'll meet again...

As it happened I attended a funeral of a church member on Friday. Someone said that just as we rejoice when a baby is born, those who have gone before rejoice (as we mourn) when someone dies, as their spirit is reunited with their friends who have preceeded them through the veil. We are beings of spirit who take on mortal flesh and bones for a short time.

In court today so just checking in. Waiting for our hot bard to post!

...

And I know just what you mean, Sunphoenix. Those who have gone before are always lurking in our hearts. We'll meet again...

As it happened I attended a funeral of a church member on Friday. Someone said that just as we rejoice when a baby is born, those who have gone before rejoice (as we mourn) when someone dies, as their spirit is reunited with their friends who have preceeded them through the veil. We are beings of spirit who take on mortal flesh and bones for a short time.

Paraphrasing liberally I think it was St. Paul who argued that we should rejoice in death since we'll be united with Christ, and I will tell myself that. It does help. But a moment of loss is a recurring thing, and at least for me, emotion overwhelms philosophy for a while.

...

"Let's plan the assault on this warehouse and see what rats crawl out."

I'm assuming we will have a day to prepare?

Varrel and Ashe, you never went into the warehouse? What is the background on our relationship with the guards? Will we be arrested? Does the queen know you are against her? Is she spying on you? Do the documents you have say for certain that something is in the warehouse worth our time?

Just moving this here to unclutter the game thread.

I think I can answer at least one question. Check Ashe' "recruitment " spoiler a few posts up in the game thread. Varrel and Ashe are in with the Guard, though I'm not sure they're in well enough to be immune to arrest. Ashe confronted the queen subtly. We must assume she knows Ashe is against her and therefore all his associates are suspect and that we are spied upon. (Hence Damoc detecting for scrying in my earlier post.)

I think their documents tie Davaulus to the sunken plague ship and Davaulus is known to reside at the hospital. Not definitive proof, but enough to justify a search of the place.

I sure hope we have a day to prepare.

New business -- timing on enhancing gear for the party. It will take days to enhance everything requested. Do we wait for the gear or go without?

I read the recruitment and have read over the thread some. Ashe and Varrel are part of the guard? I missed that part. I figured Ashe was a Korvosan Knight asked to look into matters as his plot hook and Varrel was hired to do so by some person in the government.

If we have to wait for equipment to enchanted, we'll wait I imagine. Deriven is ready to act. He is deeply disturbed by the events. He doesn't want to spend time dawdling while people die. That would be something he would not do.

He's Iomedaen. From what I read they don't hide their faith or do much clandestine activity. If the cause is worthy, they do it in the open. That's his thinking. He wants to assault the warehouse if evil is being done there. Ashe will have to rein him in because he's a bulldog when it comes to stamping out evil.

Damn website wouldn't work for me the whole day.

We are freelancers that the Marshall uses for 'specialist' tasks.
Varrel was rescued by Ashe and the party when my Chelish wizard master found my newfound faith in RAGATHIEL disturbing and arranged to have me killed. I was a slave but since my master left supposing I was dead I am free and the Marshall hired me on with the group.

Same was a real pain. But I've got a less sprotatic internet connection now.

It has it's sluggish moments, this site. Varrel has the right of it, freelancers that the Marshal uses for specific, often sensitive, tasks. So far you have delivered, so she keeps on asking...

Of to bed. Will post in 6 hrs.

Site was down. I couldn't get on for a 12 hours or more.

Thanks for explaining. That's how I read it.

Graxer,

What are your spells known.
Inquisitors are spont casters.

If you don't have some written down, might I suggest:

0- Bleed, Brand, Create Water, Detect Magic, Light, Sift

1- Divine Favor, Expeditious Retreat, Protection from Evil, Bane

2-Blistering Invective (if your Intimidate is high) , Instrument of Agony, (Neaseate is awesome), Invisibility, Surmount Affliction

Between my evil eye, you getting bonuses to Intimidate (Blistering Invective does EVERYONE within range) we could debuff the crap out of people.

With the STEALTH SYNERGY feat you and I could make good scouts, even with your armor.

Damoc,

Re the spell selection.
Basically swapping books lets us not have to pay for scrolls to learn from.
Saves coin.

So you can freely study any spells I have that you want etc.

If I could use yours I would do the same.

Then at level 7 you could use your 2 spells learned for say
Black Tentacles
Gtr Invisibility (good for you since you are going EK)

I could learn for example
Stinking Cloud
Slow.
Both are game changers and appear on your list.

Also for MEGAN.

There is a Magus spell in the Advanced Race Guide called SICKENING STRIKES.

The book says racial spells are only COMMON among a given race but other races CAN learn it with GM permission.

It is a Ratfolk spell. Could Varrel research it via the rules for copying scrolls?

Sorry all, I've been a little preoccupied with work these last few days as I'm trying to get things wrapped up before I go on vacation next week for GenCon. Rest assured I am following along and will respond to anything that needs me. After tomorrow all should be right with the world and I can resume posting on a regular schedule. Thank you for your patience.

STR Ranger, good call on swapping spell books.

Sunphoenix, eyeballing the scale on the map of the City in the Guide -- Korvosa is maybe 3 miles north to south and a mile and a half wide. A little less than 20,000 people. I'm fine changing the size -- I'm no slave to canon -- just let me know.

Varrel - you will either have to ask very nicely at the Acadamae or make friends with a ratfolk spell-caster.... or find someone who has done one of those things. Nobody you've heard of is selling scrolls of it.

And, lifting the curtain a moment, there's a note in the AP regarding city size and healing:

"Page 138 of the DMG presents a way to determine how many characters of each class reside in a city. According to this method, the average population of a large city like Korvosa includes 3 12th-level clerics, 6 6th-level clerics, 12 3rd-level clerics, and 24 1st-level clerics. Of these clerics, only nine are of high enough level to cast remove disease. Even including the average of 24 paladins—of which there are only three of a high enough level to possess the remove disease ability—and disorganized numbers of rangers, druids, and visiting NPCs with access to healing magic, this is still less than 0.1 percent of the city’s population. With far more victims contracting blood veil every day, it’s easy to see how the city’s curative magics are quickly overwhelmed, even if every healer in the city were casting the maximum possible number of remove disease spells each day. To a certain extent, wands and potions and scrolls can bolster these numbers, but only as long as supplies hold out. When faced with a plague as virulent as blood veil, magic alone is not enough to save a city."

That's interesting. I bet the DC to cure the disease is fairly high as well. Now that they changed Remove Disease to make it more like dispel magic it's easier to make a plague harder to cure.

STR Ranger, good call on swapping spell books.

Sunphoenix, eyeballing the scale on the map of the City in the Guide -- Korvosa is maybe 3 miles north to south and a mile and a half wide. A little less than 20,000 people. I'm fine changing the size -- I'm no slave to canon -- just let me know.

@ therealthom, Ah.. too true, but that STILL makes Korvosa bigger than Magnimar in population. Magnimar 16,428 compared to Korvosa's 18,486... only Absalom has such huge populations to rival some modern cities - likely only possible because of access to powerful magics. Remember, the 100,000+ populations of modern city is a wonder of the modern age. Mideval cities were rarely ever that big traditionally. Actually looks to me like Korvosa is perhaps only 1.5 miles from far south gate to the most northern docks on the Old Korvosan Isle. Perhaps, the city is a mile or 4/5ths of a mile across at its widest point?

@ Deriven, Ashe himself only just achieved a level capable of lay On Hands - Mercy {Remove Disease}.

Sunphoenix: Agreed. My point was that the city can be easily walked from end to end in a reasonable time frame. Mounts are nice, but hardly necessary in this town.

@ therealthom, LOLS!...Just page back a bit to see how much running around Ashe does... then consider he does ALL of this in Full Plate armor.. and you will understand why the mount! :)

Hi Megan,

Do you want to go ahead and remove Hytogg from the game. I don't think he's coming back, and I'm so far behind reading what's going on I'll never catch up. I do thank you for the opportunity, and hopefully we'll game together again.

"Gingerfication?"

Really? I just heard about a 'Ginger/Red-Haired' Pride Festival in Ireland that's going to be held. I just don't understand... why would people mistreat someone with such lovely hair?

Its just shocking that people would be so blatantly obviously envious and petty! From what was said on NPR-BBC its a real problem with such bullying in the UK. There is no such... or at least, I never noticed such a thing here in the US when I was in school or in general social interactions! But I'm sure if I saw such a thing... I'd not stand for it!

...Just shocking to me is all.

Quite baffling - and something that I, in the UK, have never encountered. Is the 'discrimination industry' raising its ugly head again?

That is odd.

Now I have this mockumentary playing in my head where ginger people are treated like some kind of outcast minority. Headlines like "Gingers outnumber any other group 4 to 1 in prison." Cops discriminating against gingers. And other such madness. You date a red-haired person and random people yell "ginger lover" as you walk down the street.

A friend of mine that grew up in southern England didn't say much about a prejudice against red-heads. Though he did say Irish, Pakistani and other dark-skinned minorities were not particularly well liked in the rural and suburban parts of England.

Hey Megan I just picked up a new supplement for Pathfinder - "Pathfinder, Player Companion: Quests & Campaigns"

I'd like for Asherick to take a Drawback. Specifically...

Drawbacks are essentially negative traits, and were first introduced in Pathfinder RPG Ultimate Campaign. If you choose to take a drawback, you can take a third trait to which you have access.

I'd like Ashe to take...

Naive: Your perception that everyone is innately good does not bode well in the heat of battle, when less scrupulous foes might take advantage of your misguided optimism. You take a -2 penalty to AC against attacks with improvised weapons and a -2 penalty to CMD against dirty trick combat maneuvers (see the Pathfinder RPG Advanced Player's Guide).

As the third trait I'd like to take...

{Social} Charming: +1 Bluff & Diplomacy, +1DC {Lang-Based spells}

Drawbacks? That's cool. Sort of like GURPS disadvantages system.

Drawbacks? Sweet.

Checking this out...

I'd like: Paranoid
You believe that someone or something is always out to get you, so you have a hard time truly trusting anyone.

Effect: Anyone who attempts an aid another action of any type to assist you must succeed at a DC 15 check instead of the normal DC 10 check.

To take

Student of Philosophy:
You were trained in a now-defunct philosophical tradition—such as that of the now-destroyed magic universities or astrologers—and learned to use logic and reason to persuade others.

Benefit(s): You can use your Intelligence modifier in place of your Charisma modifier on Diplomacy checks to persuade others and on Bluff checks to convince others that a lie is true. (This trait does not affect Diplomacy checks to gather information or Bluff checks to feint in combat)

Sounds neat - go ahead if you like.

Thanks Megan! :)

Cool. Thanks Megan.

You are a kind DM. I'm going to take a look at them.

Edited char sheet to reflect trait changes.

WOOO! Rolled a 20 on the Diplomacy check.

You are awesome as always Megan.

@ therealthom, LOLS!...Just page back a bit to see how much running around Ashe does... then consider he does ALL of this in Full Plate armor.. and you will understand why the mount! :)

You have a point there.

****

Long day in the yard yesterday. You guys have been busy.

This is the trait I'm taking for the drawback.

Signature Spell (Holy Word): Benefit: Pick one spell when you choose this trait—from this point on, whenever you cast that spell, you do so at +1 caster level.

Character sheet updated.

Also Megan...never got an answer about these...

Navigation Charts - from Direption {D4}
Loose Papers/Charts - from Direption {D3}

Do the Invoice shipping records and Navigation charts tell us where the Direption came from? what was its last port of call? And where did it pick up its 'Plague Chest' Cargo of silver coins... do the records and charts say? Do the Coins minting match its pick up location?

And...

Somewhat meta... I've seen the cover to "Seven Days to the Grave"...where do we fight vampires in the streets of Korvosa? :)

Have we bypassed that encounter or something? Well they look like vampires at least! lol!

Lay your plots and plans, dear hearts, I have a couple of job interviews the next 2 days...

Loose Papers/Charts: A collection of ledgers, invoices, and the deed to the Direption, all from a group noted as "B7" titling one "R. Davaulus" with ownership of the ship and a cargo noted only as "specimens."

Good luck on those interviews!

Work is loading up. I'll try to peek in periodically. Please don't expect lush posts.

Parsing the old posts. It seems a thorough recon has been done. This should give us something to work with to develop a course of action. Here is what it seems that we know:

The Hospice of the Blessed Maiden is a former warehouse, mostly single story - higher than a normal building - but with about a third of an upper floor at one side. There is a front door and a loading dock around the back with 3 double doors. There is a strong smell of disinfectant and medicine - enough to make poor Majenko sneeze!

There isn't much to be seen from outside - the place is windowless and nobody seems to be patrolling or standing guard outside. A few people - suffering from blood veil - come up and try the front door, but that seems to be closed firmly as well. Some leave, some sit down to await the morning.

Although they appear to be closed, there are some chinks discernible in the loading bay doors - enough to peer through if not to wiggle through.

The doors are metal, very big (about 10-12 feet high), three sets of double doors. As far as you can tell, they are chained shut on the inside rather than having an external lock which you can pick.

Peering through, the cavernous area beyond is not well-lit, but appears to contain packing cases. There's an internal wall with a door that's closed but brighter light shows around it, whatever lies beyond is well-lit.

It's a remarkably closed-up place: a front door and the 3 loading bay doors, no windows.

Scrambling onto the roof is possible. It's flat and about 30 feet above ground, apart from where about one-third of the building has a second floor... and that hasn't got any windows either. Guess folks build warehouses so as to keep thieves out!

As for detecting magic, there doesn't seem to be any... but wait! Something is magical, but below your feet, Varrel, rather than in the building.

You are right on the docks... the sewers open into the river somewhere below the pilings, but there aren't any of the regular entrances found further inland.

Poor Majenko finds a likely hole - but it has a substantial grille which prevents entry (and doesn't seem removeable either).

Here is what Ashe had to say about Davalus:

{"We did indeed go to Bank Temple of Abadar, and learned that Reiner Davaulus is none other than the Chief Physician in the Queen's employ undoubtedly the same man who is secretly the Field Director of a Cell of Red Mantis Assassins!"}

{"We went to Castle Korvosa and actually met the man personally - along with his cadre of masked physicians. He does not radiate evil... but Varrel could confirm that there was definite magic upon the man it could mean anything but there are many ways to hide one's nature from detection abilities. What was most telling was when I engaged him in conversation... I baited him with telling him about the information gained from the corpse of Rois Vindmel and his direct superior being 'Lady' Andasian of the church of Urgathoa. The reaction of his Physicians and his slip of tongue referring to 'our' goddess Urgathoa... spoke volumes to me. He is involved all the way! I played it off as if I had not noticed... but I'm certain he is a villain! Here are the documents we recovered from the wreck of the Direption its cargo invoices and navigation charts that can tell us where the ship hailed from and this Duvalus - it all here!"}

The enhancement to do list:

Ashe's armor +1
Ashe' shield +1
+1 Lamillar for Varrel's familiar
Varrel's Mithral Agile Breastplate (+1)

Various scrolls --

I couldn't find a spell requirement for enhancing shields and armor. Shield or mage armor makes sense.

*****

I don't think it would be stretching it too much to complete one of Ashe's requests if we make our visit to the Hospice tonight. 8 hours for the 1000 gp bump. Scrolls might be more practical, although Damoc already has a good store of his own scrolls to carry along.

What's our priority?

*****

Also, I'm going with his walking around spell list. He wouldn't have selected for battle today. I should have left some slots open. Darn it. A lesson he'll learn.

Honestly... I think we should take the time to finish our enchantments and purchases and then get back to the adventure. We are 6th level and haven't taken any down time for our level to make use of our wealth or abilities. I'm perfectly fine with taking a day or two to do this so we are FULLY ready.

We DO NOT..in fact I don't think we should bother to RP the days we can just flex time it. We went to the Marshal and she's telling us nothing is really needing our immediate attention. I'd rather us all be fully ready.

Agreed. Take the time to do Ashe's armor at least if you still want to go today.

But since we have to wait for Megan, may as well do all of it.

But since we have to wait for Megan, may as well do all of it.

Exactly! I'm going to Gencon so I'm going to busy for the next few days anyways...

I'm cool with that. I'm sure Ashe talks Deriven into prepping spells and the wisdom of waiting to be properly prepared.

Lessor restoration is a 2nd level spell. I can't afford that.

I have 900 gold.
Any wand ideas since we are sweet on heals?

Ashe can prep lesser restoration as a Paladin spell 1st level.

Ashe you could prep lessor restoration as a 1st level pally spell and use my pearls of power if we need more. ..

The two that need to worry most are Damoc and Arianna with the weak Fort saves. Energy drain requires full restoration, which we can't cast yet. We'll have to deal with that. Most of us have a pretty good AC as well. I think you can hang on to your 900 gold for the moment until we know we might need something specific. Do you guys keep a party treasury or pull coin together if needed? I'll have to remember to keep some on the side in the future to make sure I can put my share in.

Ashe had done a good job of keeping a campaign list of gear.

Generally just give a particular item to who could best use it.
Resources like healing should be an even share but I had 900 and nothing I really needed after the Headband so I was happy to throw in.

I think Graxer may have a wand.
I'll hang on to the 900 for now.

So a day for each +1 = 4 days hard at it crafting. Graxer's going to have a fit!