Thank you for being willing to wait, guys! I sent off a 92-page grant application today. I will be happy to never do that again. :P
Anyway, back on the road for us!
Glad it's done (well, I hope it's done, anyway). :)
Ha, funny you should say... I just got woken by a phone call to incorporate some last minute files. But it will be mailed today!
Thanks dice roller!
Okay, sorry this is coming so soon after the last slow bit, but:
From Friday to Monday I'll be at Strategicon, and the gaming slots are scheduled to run until 1 am. *makes gurgly noises* So, while I will try and check the boards each night, I doubt I'll manage GM posts the next few days. I'll get a post up tonight to try and give y'all something to react to the next few days, anyway.
*toddles off to try and prepare for forty hours of PFS game slots*
Get some good rest, Dien. Or at least get some well-deserved time away from work, anyway.
So! I'm back! (from outer space!)
I had a really great time at the con; I also dropped my laptop and broke the screen. At the moment, I'm hooked up to an external monitor but it's far from ideal. A new laptop has been ordered but won't get here for a while, alas. I will try and get a post up tomorrow, if I can stand doing extended typing like this, but for tonight I'm giving up on it and hitting the hay.
Glad your back!
For information's sake... though not as critical as it'll likely have very minor to no impact on the flow of the thread at the moment... I will be heading away on holidays tomorrow!
Myself and family will be travelling off to London for both the Rugby World Cup, and taking my mum back to the UK for the first time since she emigrated about 50 years ago. Will be fun... not so much the transit (kids plus planes = tired parents) but once we get there much fun and frivolity should ensue.
We have wifi at the accommodations I'm going to, but I can't promise that I'll be around often enough to get frequent posts in, nor verbose ones if the situation calls for it. If I can lean upon DM generosity of spirit as needed then that would be appreciated.
I'll be back in KL and ready for resumption of general service on the 9th-10th ish of October.
I am currently having my character run through Hero Lab, the official Paizo character generator.
I think you'll find, if you select Configure Hero under the Character menu and scroll down, that you have either the optional rule No Encumbrance or the house rule Ignore Armor Check Penalty checked.
Well, for one thing, Hero Lab is not actually the "official" Paizo generator, heh. Paizo doesn't have an official generator. Hero Lab is just a third-party program that you can buy the data packages to build a Pathfiner character through.
That said, I love Hero Lab and use it myself all the time; the weight figure I quoted to you in PM came directly from my adding in the gear in Hero Lab. I didn't have all the special materials taken into account, but still, as mentioned in PM, you were substantially into medium encumbrance, and I think pauliel, etc, would only save you a few pounds here and there.
Anyway, I suggest you take Joana's suggestion and make sure nothing wonky is enabled in the character configuration rules that might make your encumbrance read as light in the program. I am happy to mail you my Hero Lab file showing the medium encumbrance if you need to compare things.
Okay, I have to apologize, Dien was right. Hero lab has me at medium with all my gear including a spool of thread which weighs .5 lbs (8oz, which seems quite heavy for 50 ft of thread, but I digress). The problem came from the bedroll, pot and spare clothing not being added in. 5, 4, 10 lbs respectively which his a big difference. 19 pounds is a lot!
I would like to spend some of my starting money (50gp) if The DM allows to get a MW backpack which helps carrying weight quite a bit. I would then leave the pot, bedroll and extra clothes back at Knute and my campsite when we were waiting for the others, or at the point when we were climbing ropes. That would put me at 35.84 pounds/43 for light load.
Sorry again, but my character is in Hero Lab now.
Works for me. I should probably have PMd you specifically earlier about the encumbrance rather than just posting a general for-everyone thing.
A lot of things in Pathfinder weigh (or cost) different from what I think they should.... don't get me started on the price of a journal, ink, and stylus...
Anyway, make what changes you need to make to put Tassidar at light load, and we'll proceed forward accordingly. (That said, the 'campsite' you're referring to back in the cave is one that you have no guarantees of returning to anytime in the immediate future. Just letting you know.)
I mean the one on the little Mesa we went up to with the fey creatures help
Sorry, update will be later today. I spent most of the day getting my replacement laptop squared away and updated to Win 10, and then trying to figure out how to do things in Win 10, but all my files for this game are still transferring over and I'm sleepy. *yawns demonstratively*
Hey folks,
I'm going to be traveling on vacation from this Wednesday through 10-Oct. I'll try to check in and toss in some small posts but it may not be realistically possible. Feel free to 'bot or sideline my character as seems appropriate. Thanks!
That's how the cookie crumbles. I was hoping Lief would get the Orc before he gets me. Also I was taking a gamble I could take one hit and get into position to cast some more useful spells.
Tassidar's ations have something to do with his backstory which may or may not come to light depending on how things progress :).
Just answering up here to let people know I am still here.
Okay, sorry for the lack of updates in two days. I'm doing some re-evaluating of this game right now.
Of course, that sounds like GM code for "I'm gonna drop this game!" and that is... not my intent, not at all. When I say I'm re-evaluating, I mean I'm having to do some rejiggering of my plot on my side of the curtain, and I'm considering a number of small changes, both on logistics issues like maps and other such things, and in my GMing attitude on this game.
I have found myself frustrated at several points while GMing this, and I want to stress that is not aimed at ANY single player, past or present, but is a general, non-specific observation; I think some of my frustrations are stemming from finding myself going "okay, how do I make the party get from point A to point B" -- and if I'm treating the PCs, even in my own head, as a group of children that I'm having to drive through my story, then I'm doing something wrong, because I need to help PCs drive the story, not be passengers for it.
I realize that the set-up and structure of the game so far has some elements that bog things down: the presence of the NPCs changes dynamics, since, understandably, the Ulfen PCs are having to defer some to Thorgal, to a greater or lesser degree based on their own social standing, etc, and that means that good roleplay on that front can lead to actions that feel kind of boxed in. I will say that it is definitely not the goal to keep the PCs shackled to NPCs forever (honestly, I'd planned to have the separation done by this point already), but I can see how it could be putting a drag on play in some respects.
Even once the separation is accomplished, there will still be the issue of several different social strata among the PCs. We have characters from vastly differing social backgrounds-- actual slaves, like Halla, with a lot of legitimate resentment towards the Ulfen, all the way up to an elf prince who comes from a position of privilege. This is, of course, different from the 'usual' adventuring party where everyone's assumed to be more or less social equals, and things are decided more-or-less by democratic agreement.
Exploring how those social conflicts manifested was one of the things that I was interested to see play out in this game, but it does have the effect of creating inter-PC conflict, and the things that work awesomely in a movie or a novel don't always translate as well when you're actually playing out those characters. The classic story trope of "disparate group of strangers are thrown together, must work together and learn to trust one another to solve a crisis" can be less charming to experience first-hand, especially when it's not just a narrative but also something on which your mechanical success is riding.
I'm not saying I regret the social-structure stuff-- I've been delighted to see some of the play that's resulted (I'm especially fond of Halla and Eysteinn's rocky road to teamwork/"bonding"), but I can see it being a mixed-blessing thing.
Anyway, that's a bit of a tangent: the upshot is, as mentioned, that I'm gonna take another day or two to figure out where I'm at, figure out the things I want to change to make this game be as cool as it is in my head, and then I'll jump back in with some revised and better-labeled-and-executed maps, and a better attitude.
If any part of the game isn't working for you, feel free to PM me. I can't promise I can fix it, but I might be able to try, or help; if I know what issues you're having. Thanks for your patience and sorry for the delay, guys.
Hey, I appreciate the heads up, and I'm sorry for the frustration. That's never a good thing. Let us know how we can help move this thing in the right direction as players, too. :)
Obviously I can't change how you feel about your game, but my experience has been really positive.
For what it's worth I have felt like the NPCs have added a lot of flavor and the caste system. Your game has had a 13th Warrior style feel to me.
The perception for me as a player is that we have been moving through the dungeon at a nice pace with a lot of unique actions and role playing opportunities. Your descriptions are so interesting it makes me want to know more about each room we have been in.
Tassidar knew many of the humans still distrusted him. He was taking a bit of risk (turned out to be a critical hit risk) to help generate some trust by showing that he was in fact an enemy of the orcs.
This is my favorite PbP, I like all of the characters and the world you have presented us.
While I'm very much enjoying the game, I have to admit to being occasionally frustrated with Halla's lack of agency. Running around Hofn when everyone was in a panic was fine because she could pretty much do what she (I) wanted, but being part of an organized rescue party where she's the lowest-status character in the group stands in the way of her contributing much to gameplay; the best I can manage sometimes are passive-aggressive interior monologues. ;)
Thanks for the feedback from those who offered it. :) Update coming later today, had a busy weekend.
OKAY, update coming LATER THIS day because doctor appointments and grandmothers starting to leak liquid from their skin and things. O_o Sorry, bear with me just a little longer, guys.
Also, I sent a few of you PMs.
Woah. That don't sound good at all.
I am thinking of you Dien. I have had to deal with that. I am guessing swelling around the feet and ankles to go with it?
Hang in there.
Thanks-- and yes, you got it in one, Tassidar. Chronic edema swelling, etc. It's just never manifested like this before. Doctor says it's harmless, but it was definitely a 'wtf??' thing yesterday. Anyway.
I have thankfully never dealt with that. :/
Please let me know when Tassidar is conscious. I am still actively keeping up.
Tassidar had 14 hp, assuming he hadn't taken any damage before he was hit by the ork, and took 19 damage, leaving him at -5. He was fed a potion which gave him fast healing 1 in round 5, so on Yngvi's turn in round 9, he should be at 0 and conscious though staggered, I believe.
What Joana said. But yes, I will be mentioning your HP in every post when I do my status notes at the bottom, so you'll be able to clearly see when you're able to come back into the fight.
Back in the KL saddle... and back to work tomorrow. Jet lag is slowly easing and normalcy resuming... just Rugby World Cup to keep me up now ;)
Hi! I'm still here... just catching up on the ridiculous load of work email accrued while I was gone. I'll try to post tonight. Sorry for the delay.
No worries!
Sleepy GM is sleepy, so I'll post tomorrow. *faceplants* I made part of a ship today, though.
Welcome back, stormraven! Good luck with the mountain'o'email.
And nice boat, Dien. I'm hoping this is for an upcoming gaming opportunity? Or have you decided to train a tiny crew of mouse pirates to savage the pacific coast line?
Wow, that is really cool. is that for Warhammer or just general gaming. I bet gaming at the real wood table with you is a blast.
We've been hearing about virtual reality for decades now. When are we finally going to have it for virtual sitting at a table.
Yeah, we've got a small local con this weekend and I was like 'ooh, I'll make 3-D terrain for my players!!!!' because I'm a masochist and a moron. It's for Pathfinder Scenario, an old scenario, Sniper in the Deep. Might turn out to be a TPK, in which case, I will give my players the honor of dying in a nice coffin. ;)
Anyway, you can see I did not post today. Sorry-- aside from the games I'm running, I'm also the PFS organizer for this con and spent a long time today getting paperwork printed and sorted out to hand off to my GMs on Saturday/Sunday. I'd prefer to post in here when I'll actually do it justice, and not when I'm half-awake, so I'll try to get a post done tomorrow, before abandoning you all for the weekend and four PFS slots. ;)
You'll have to tell us about your weekend gamerconfestivus when you come back Dien.
By popular demand...
It's supposed to be on top of the wreckage of a second ship, as that is not necessarily clear just looking at it. Also, my players were happy to point out to me that I did, in fact, glue the ship's wheel on in the wrong direction, lol. Silly three a.m.!
Con was pretty good. Most of our twelve scheduled PFS tables went off. I killed a PC with a slay living from an invisible cleric. I got to play in the True Dragons of Absalom special, where you play kobolds. Overall, pretty good times!
It's not on backwards... it's just designed for a rakshasa?
Cool ship by the way!
As a small FYI - I'm off on a short trip tonight and tomorrow to a rugby tournament for my son (well... depending on whether there is breathable air or not...). Thusly I'll be a less wordy / potentially silent for a couple of days.
... everyone still alive?
Yes... ish.
Here. Just crazy busy over the last few days and weekend. Trying to catch up.
Sorry, meant to get up a post today but I'm falling asleep where I sit. Tomorrow.
Sorry for the delay-- I had what was actually a pretty good day today, as I got some fantastic news (the grant that I was busting my butt to write a few months ago successfully funded! ^____^ ) but it resulted in busy, too. Going to post now!
Huzzah! - Congrats on the funding GM!
Thank you! It means I... more or less doubled my income for the year, so, yeah, I'm jazzed.
RE: in game right now - I'm guessing people are just just getting slammed and/or busy right now, as opposed to the current delay being an enthusiasm issue, but, for the record, please let me know if the game's not working for you, etc, or if you're just not clear on what to post.
Also: from the 3rd to the 11th, I will be in glorious Hawaii!!!! I am told I will have Internet, so, I intend to post during that time, but.... well... Hawaii. Cough. I might be, you know, a little slow here and there. Because of basking. On beaches. In Hawaii.
Nice one, Eben. Mark gave the game away by posting in character, but until I saw the GM addressing "Klo," I was desperately trying to figure out how we were going to get Eysteinn out of this and if the GM was really planning on running a grape-stomper NPC for the duration.
I presume you preferred running a character of your own design to someone else's brainchild? I like Eysteinn, though.... ;\
Yeah I liked Eysteinn too, but I'm sure the new character will be interesting as well.