Mummy's Mask

Game Master Samy

If anybody still wants to get an app in at the last minute, you have until Sunday 4 Jan 2015, 6pm EST. I've been going through apps the past couple of days, and unless there are any surprise new entries, I think I've pretty much settled on a list, so I expect to announce more or less right after closing apps.

How many will you be selecting?

I think I will be selecting six, to have a little bit of buffer, so that we'll be able to continue with a full party even if we have 1-2 dropouts.

Camus, what's your (the character's) region/nation of origin? "Camus de Sable" sounds European.

Well he is actually from Osirion, I really did not tought much on making it "arabian like" it was just a name that poped out of my head, I can change to be more fitting if needed I guess

By the way, I'm not sure this is useful to any of you, but I just wanted to put it out there that I am open to official WotC 3.5 material such as feats, on a case-by-case basis, so if there's anything from there that you want to bring in, feel free to ask me.

Well feats I like from 3.5 era are Leap Attack, Karmic strike/Robilars Gambit, Shock Trooper and Combat brute.

Not gonna ask for all of that Im just leaving to see which of this would be ok, also I wouldnt be using it right of the bat, probably on the next levels.

Not a bad idea hope it goes well for you.

Sooo just out of sheer morbid curiosity on my part I'm trying your character creation.

Int: Taking an 18 and for the remaining stats . . .

Stat 1: 10
Stat 2: 14
Stat 3: 14
Stat 4: 11
Stat 5: 11

Its not green so I'm sure I'm not using something I'm supposed to but I assure you the rolls were genuine and rolled in the order posted. Could have been worse I suppose.

You are suppoused to use the dice roler, instruction are on "How to format your text " You pretty much need to use it for pbp games anyways si shiukd get used to it

Well feats I like from 3.5 era are Leap Attack, Karmic strike/Robilars Gambit, Shock Trooper and Combat brute.

On a quick glance-through I'd say that Leap Attack seems too powerful, but the others seem pretty okay.

Senko: What ElementalXX said...you need to use the dice roller, like this:

(dice)3d6(/dice)
(dice)3d6(/dice)
(dice)3d6(/dice)
(dice)3d6(/dice)
(dice)3d6(/dice)

Except with square brackets instead of curved brackets.

"Oddly enough, I've not found the heat quite as harsh as I was expecting - honestly, the sheer dryness of it is a nice change of pace from the humid heat that I'm used to. Now, as for the sun itself...well, so far I've been trying to keep out of it as much as I can. The downside of doing that is that it makes it a little difficult to explore Wati properly," Aleris laughs. "If any of you have any better suggestions on adjusting to the climate here," she nods at Turel and Tuneya, "then I'd love to hear them."

Her expression seems to darken slightly when Turel suggests that she share the story of her travels at some point. "Well, there's nothing particularly interesting that I could tell you about Sevenarches aside that it's a trading town located on the Sellen River. As for the quality of the uh...prostitutes there, I'm afraid I couldn't tell you," she adds, trying to look serious but unable to control the slight twitching of her lips. "My year spent with the caravan might make for more a more entertaining story."

Okay, everyone, listen up. I have thought about the traits, and I decided that maybe I was rewarding being from Osirion too much with the one extra trait. Rather than going back on what was already given out and yanking the extra regional trait, here's what will happen: everyone can pick a free regional trait, regardless of their region. So, four traits for everyone. You don't need to be from Osirion to get the extra trait. You can be, but you can just as well be from Irrisen, Cheliax or Qadira, and still get the free regional trait.

This is meant to encourage syncing your name with your region. If you don't have an Osirion-sounding name, you can now consider being from a more appropriate country, and still get the extra trait. Of course, you can do it the other way too, and adjust your name while keeping the Osirion regional trait. Or, you can keep both the non-Osirion name *and* the Osirion regional trait -- after all, not everybody who is born in a country has typical names for that country. Overall, the intent is to give you guys more options.

But do be aware of the fact that I do notice things like a "Sven Sigurdsson" in Arabia or a "José de Campos" in China or a "Fatima bint Sallah" in Wales. Obviously, it's a fantasy world, so there's some leeway, but still. I hope this does not come off as too hard-assed.

Ok It would be too much of a hassle to change my chars name at this point specially since Ive grown fond of it. Instead I will make him native from the isle of korthos, since Absalon is very cosmopolitan, I think all kinds of last names can be seen around then. However while native to absalon Camus would have spent most of his life in Osirion

That sounds great!

Thank you, GM Samy! I'm going with Survivor, a regional trait that oddly enough does not specify a region(?) It gives me Sense Motive as a class skill -- not a bad skill for a socialite to have -- and a +1 to initiative.

Harmose is an actual ancient Egyptian name. It means, "Son of Horus." However, I've found when traveling that the upper classes of most countries adopt a cosmopolitan air and talking style, especially when trying to impress.

__________________

"Alright," Harmose said. "Time for a new game."

He had noticed that Regina, unlike the others, did not volunteer where she was from. Best not to press her for the information. Everyone has secrets... And that one likely more than most.

"Tell us something about yourself that might be a surprise, or failing that, share a story or a party trick. Maybe you have a special talent for bending spoons or playing cards." He peered mischievously at Camus. "Maybe you know all the words to 'Those Go-Getter Golarian Gals.'"

Harmose grinned. "Here's mine," he said, pulling off his shirt, glad to be rid of the sweaty, sticky thing. His back and arms were covered in tattoos of ancient Oririani pictographs. "Like any good magician, I can pull out a rabbit -- even without wearing sleeves!"

At his words, one of the tattoos, a stylized Osiriani picture of a rabbit, started to shift, becoming more realistic and detailed every passing moment until it looked exactly like a little brown desert rabbit. The rabbit peeled off Harmose's arm and hopped around the table. It was a friendly little thing, and it paused in front of Aleris and Tuneya, clearly hoping to be petted.

"I call her Wenet, which means the swift one," Harmose said, doting on the creature.

______________

Did you know that rabbits are native to Egypt, and that they even had an ancient rabbit-headed goddess? I just found that out, as I was trying to figure out what familiars were local to the area.

Knowledge(history): 1d20 + 6 + 1 ⇒ (14) + 6 + 1 = 21

Tuneya grins to Harmose. "I'm teasing."

She chuckles a bit, looking around for their server, when Aleris speaks.

"It's best to be out in the early morning and evening until you adjust. People will be out and about during the day, but you can easily get the majority of your business done before midday." She considers for a bit, then remembers something. "Do you have warm clothes for the evening? It tends to get chilly at night. Most outsiders remember that deserts are hot and are not prepared. The local dress style may be best to adopt; it works well for both." She smiles. "I don't know as much about wilderness survival, but I know how to deal with everyday temperatures."

I figured that an Osirion native who is more desert-native would at least know about the day-night temperature differences and how to deal.

She watches the rabbit form and grins, then reaches over to pet it. The name it takes her a moment to place, and then she nods. "Very appropriate name for this nation. It fits your messenger well."

"Tuneya, that's good to know. My jacket is warm enough for evening wear but it is stifling at midday. What you say about adopting local dress is undoubtably wise advice."

Surely, they must have something that does not resemble like a dirty bedsheet in this town...

He smiled as he watched Wenet shamelessly bump her nose against Tuneya's hand. "That's a hint that she wants you to scratch behind her ears. She's a shameless pleasure seeker, that one."

________________________

Okay... Wound up double-checking the original sources and discovered that Survivor is actually a Taldan trait. Bah. Under the rules for regional traits in PFS, it is usually assumed that someone spent a year in a country to get the regional trait.

GM Samy, is it okay if I write into Harmose's background that he spent a year in Oppara fostered to one of the noble families for "polishing" and to acquire social graces? I still want him to be Osirion. Just an Osirion who is severely out of touch with the daily life of common people.

Harmose: I'm a little reluctant about the idea, because it's kind of the whole point of regional traits that they're for people from that region. It feels a little like gaming the system to be from one region, yet pick a regional trait of a different region. Is that specific trait really a must for you?

Regina: It appears to me that in order to have the Alabaster Odalisque trait you'd need to be an oread from Jalmeray.

Regina: It appears to me that in order to have the Alabaster Odalisque trait you'd need to be an oread from Jalmeray.

Ah, yes. My source didn't mention these, but I see them now. Changing to Osirionologist with your permission. Father had many stories of the old days.

Yeah, pfsrd leaves out the requirements quite often... Archives of Nethys is much better for that.

Nope... It's totally not needed. I'll go look at the Osirion traits again and pick one. :)

Edited to add: I keep finding Osirion Faction traits rather than regional ones on Archives of Nethys.... Aaargh. It's confusing. Faction choices are not legal choices for this, correct?

I don't actually do Pathfinder Society play at all, so I'm not sure what the factions are or how they are supposed to differ from a nationality. Off-hand, I'd be inclined to say that PFS Faction Osirion traits would be okay, especially since we have many Osiriani characters so we need a decent repertoire of trait options for people to pick from.

Harmose: I think you have two racial +2s on top of your rolls -- am I correct in assuming you have the ARG alternate racial features that give human two +2s in exchange for the bonus feat and bonus skill?

This is the main Oririon faction trait I am looking at it:

1 Tomb Raider

2 I am also interested in Blood of Pharoahs, which appears to be a campaign trait in Mummy's Mask, but a regional Osiriani trait from People of the Sands, so I don't know if it's a legal choice.

3 If neither of those work, I could probably take: Osirionologist.

Nope -- I'm not dual-talent, just going through multiple edits and got messed up.

I'll drop dex back down to a 13. After I read that I couldn't increase Charisma above 18 if I didn't pick it at first level, I decided that I needed to shift it.

Edited to add: I will run the whole thing through hero lab if I get selected and make sure all the math works for CMD, AC, etc.
Hmm

Here's a quick list of the Osirion traits I could find:

Antiquities Smuggler: Appraise, Bluff or Sleight +1 and class
Child of Mumia: +1 saves vs curses and diseases
Child of Wati: +1 cleric level to channel positive energy
Elemental Endowment: 1/day when casting elemental spell, gain temp hp equal to spell level
Numerologist: 1/day use Perception to determine trap DC and Reflex save
Offspring of the Ascension: +1 Will vs fear, reduced confusion duration
Osirionologist: Engineering and History +1, one of them is class, can take Ancient Osiriani language
Runaway Slave: +1 saves vs fear, +10' low-light vision

Faction:

Attuned to the Ancestors: limited hide from undead
Dunewalker: +4 Fort vs hot conditions, not slowed by nonmagical sand
Mummy-Touched: +2 saves vs curses and diseases
Secrets of the Sphinx: 1/day +2 on one Knowledge check, one Knowledge as class
Tomb Raider: Dungeoneering and Perception +1, one becomes class

I left out a couple of halfling-only traits.

I think for the purposes of this, I will allow the faction traits to count for regional traits.

Then I am taking Tomb raider and shifting my other traits a bit.

Turel face grows redder as a blush creeps around his ears. He again was not quite sure what to make of her words. Is she playing with me? Truly she is a fascinating woman, like none I have seen before!

"Perhaps when the time is right we may share tales, but for the moment we should prepare for the task at hand." On mention of the equipment needed to survive in the desert, Turel nods. "A set of hot weather clothes is a must should you decide to venture underneath the sun. Also..." here his face quirks as a small grin appears, "water is crucial for survival, several waterskins worth per person. While there are magical means to replenish water, it is not wise to depend on such means for the sole source of water."

While looking at Aleris
Camus says with a smile"Hey I dont mind if you take some clothes off"

Then he looks at Harmose trick"Whoa thats a fine trick mister comando, see Aleris? thats the spirit "

"Well talking about hidden abilities and interesting stories, well one thing you may not know is that I do have a hidden ability, you see I sleep with my armor all the time, I shower with it and do everything with it" " you may ask why, is he crazy?" Camus takes his fist on the air " IS BECAUSE A MAN'S ARMOR IS HIS SOUL" he says that in quite a weird way." So I learned to take of my clothes while still wearing my armor. LIKE THIS!"

Acrobatics: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (20) + 10 = 30

With a twist of his arms and legs Camus takes all of his clothes with a single pull from his hand

"Tada!" "Aint't that a fine trick!?"

LOL WELL i had to admit I totally did not expect a crit in THAT

Note:I added a chunk of bg which explain more of his relationship with kema and how he decided to go to osirion EDIT: Added formting

I'm thinking about either Holy Tattoo, Varisian Wanderer, or possibly River Navigator since those are the ones that make the most sense for her character and background. She grew up in the River Kingdoms but she's also spent a few years in Varisia, so I looked at traits for both regions.

Aleris blushes profusely at Camus' words, but attempts to maintain some degree of composure. "I'm sure, but that sort of thing might be best left to those who follow The Unquenchable Fire," she murmurs as she reaches over to pet Wenet, grateful for having the small rabbit available as a distraction.

This man is...odd, to say the least! Perhaps I'd better sing them a song or something rather than dance...

She looks at Harmose curiously. "How do your tattoos work? I've heard stories about such things but I've never actually met anyone who had them."

Harmose: I can't find "Fashionably Dressed" trait. Can you help me find it?

Harmose: I can't find "Fashionably Dressed" trait. Can you help me find it?

I think he meant this one

Found it. My source was using a different name. I should just default to Nethys.

Extremely Fashionable

My apologies for all the errors. I threw this together quick and dirty. If selected, I will run the whole thing through my boyfriend's copy of Hero Lab to make certain the math comes through correctly.

Edit: Ninja'd by Camus. But what else can you expect from a man who can take off his clothing with his armor still on using an acrobatics roll?

Hmm

No worries, I pick through things with a fine toothed comb so I'm bound to catch a lot of nits. It's no big deal. :)

Found it. My source was using a different name. I should just default to Nethys.

Extremely Fashionable

My apologies for all the errors. I threw this together quick and dirty. If selected, I will run the whole thing through my boyfriend's copy of Hero Lab to make certain the math comes through correctly.

Edit: Ninja'd by Camus. But what else can you expect from a man who can take off his clothing with his armor still on using an acrobatics roll?

Hmm

Haha lets just say I got free time xD

Anything problematic on my sheet?

I'll get to each of you in turn. ;)

Harmose stands with his jaw open as he watches Camus do his trick. Then he claps.

"Very impressive! But doesn't that chafe?"

Don't think of naked Camus under that armor... Don't think of naked Camus under that...

"Two questions... One: how do you get your clothes back on again? Two: Can we watch? I am more than willing to purchase you another glass of..." Harmose pauses, trying to find a more polite phrasing, and then gives up, "...god piss if you can show us how you reverse the trick."

_______________

Harmose turns back to Aleris, and raises an eyebrow. "Has anyone ever told you that you ask very good questions? You get right to the heart of matters, don't you? It's quite remarkable." He takes a deep breath. "I know that you are widely traveled, and I can see that you bear a Shelyn holy symbol."

Untrained Knowledge Religion Skill, Common Knowledge: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (12) + 1 = 13
Yeah, he should be able to recognize Shelyn's songbird.

BTW, feel free to change this to a holy tattoo if you wind up taking the trait, Aleris.

"I'm guessing that you might know something then of magic, if primarily the divine variety, correct?"

He waits patiently for her answer, then continues.

"Wizards do magic. Sorcerers are magic. My gift manifested after... I came back. These little tattoos began manifesting on my body. Each one is a spell that I know. They appear to be inked, but sometimes they move and change. My parents thought that maybe I was destined for the priesthood, since all the symbols are ancient Osiriani pictographs... And they had prayed to Horus for my return. They even renamed me in his honor."

"But my magic is entirely arcane. I know that it is an extension of my will... but it is also something organic, instinctive."

He looks embarrassed. "All this is a long-winded way of saying that magic manifests in the physical world in very different ways. Mine appears in ancient Osiriani symbols, perhaps as a reflection of who I am, deep inside."

He says, "Does this help?"

"A set of hot weather clothes is a must should you decide to venture underneath the sun. Also..." here his face quirks as a small grin appears, "water is crucial for survival, several waterskins worth per person. While there are magical means to replenish water, it is not wise to depend on such means for the sole source of water."

Harmose looks down at the one little iced coffee he had been nursing through most of the gathering. Other than the soup... Have I had anything else liquid since this morning? Harmose, you fool.

He quickly orders a water from the harried server.

"My friends, should we be fortunate enough to be chosen for this year's lottery, perhaps we could organize a joint shopping expedition to find Aleris and I new clothes?"

If I must pick a bedsheet to wear, it will be the very best bedsheet I can find.

He pauses to look at Aleris again, speculatively. She has such striking skin and hair, but the colors she's wearing now wash her out. She's been so kind, it would be a pleasure helping her find something really nice. Maybe a pretty scarf to bring out her eyes?

"Perhaps we could get all of us proper supplies? I'd defer to your guidance in matters of survival."

Then Harmose smiles at the rest of the company. "Who else has a talent to share today?"

Here's some more details on how I am intending to run the campaign. I hope these aren't dealbreakers to anyone, but if they are, it would be good to let me know.

* I generally won't keep track of encumbrance. If you want to, you are free to do so, but I won't enforce it. Of course, common sense applies. Carrying around an elephant will slow you down.

* I generally won't keep track of inventory items below a certain price limit. Tentatively I'm thinking the limit will be level squared, so at first level you don't need to buy anything that costs 1gp or less, you can just automatically assume you have it. At level 2, you can automatically have items 4gp or less. At level 3, 9gp or less. And so on. This only applies to mundane gear, not magic items like scrolls or potions. It does apply to ammunition.

* Regarding relationships, I will be keeping a spreadsheet cross-referencing PCs versus NPCs and you will have a relationship value with each NPC you've encountered. The initial value for all relationships except your initial contact is 0. The value for your initial contact is 6. The relationship levels are as per Ultimate Campaign. Unlike the official rules, these levels are not modified by your Charisma. Every day that you spend in Wati, unless you are prevented from socializing (for example spending the entire day in a dungeon), you may attempt a Diplomacy roll to improve the relationship value with a single NPC of your choice. I haven't settled on exact DCs yet.

Do failed diplomacy checks may worse your relationship with npcs or contacs?

I figure Tuneya would know Terhk Fourwinds, due to being a relatively recent arrival herself.

Tuneya nodded to Harmose, falling silent for now as she just contemplated her companions.

Then came Camus's trick, which forced her to cover her mouth to avoid laughing aloud. She chuckled a bit as Harmose asked questions and grinned.

"I just wonder how it is one bathes in armor without... problems cropping up."

This guy is a loon, but an entertaining loon!

I'm fine with all of those things, Samy. Also, I believe I'll go with the Holy Tattoo regional trait for Aleris. Sadly, I'm not in a good spot to respond with another RP post just yet but I did want to check in before recruitment officially closes.

Do failed diplomacy checks may worse your relationship with npcs or contacs?

There may be horrible days when you roll really badly and you may suffer a setback, yes, but I will be trying to set the DCs so that those should be very rare.

Here's our cast:

Harmose Al-Nefer, male human sorcerer
Tuneya Fahardid, female human alchemist
Aleris Somciel, female sylph inquisitor
Turel Garaldo, male human monk
Camus de Sable, male human cavalier
Regina dei Dannati, female dhampir cleric

You may continue the tavern RP in the gameplay thread here. Please make a post there to register your acceptance to the campaign.

We'll hash out further character details in the discussion thread here.

I'll be going over your characters in detail over the next days and recreating them in my own sheets to catch any problems, so expect a lot of random questions in the discussion thread as I go over each character.