Javell, I feel somewhat chagrined as Aurora came to the party with full WBL :s
So I have a suggestion for you, and it's even something plausible IC!
Now, presuming that OOC you agree it would be useful to you, Aurora is going to visit Magnimar and purchase a gift for Thordak. She didn't like seeing him get hurt during the recent fighting, so her thoughts lie in a protective manner, towards a minor cloak of displacement. This would give him a permanent blur effect, and whilst not boosting AC in any way, would then offer a 20% reduction in hp loss during combat. From what I've read about it, I think with 'to hit' versus AC scaling you're better off finding ways to mitigate the damage rather than boost AC by a few points. Then again this is the highest level I've played so I stand to be corrected!
Aurora already has the two most important items for her, a cloak of arcane heritage and headband of charisma, so honestly I was struggling to find other items to buy and was likely going to bank the gold. Much better that it is used to help the party! If the cloak doesn't suit, then let's find something that does!
Also to be clear, the gift is offered both IC and OOC as exactly that, no strings attached :)
So Lym and Tomaru are hooking up, and now Aurora and Thordak.
Guess the old elf is all alone. Are there any shelves in this Jorgenfist place? O' Praxim can just perch himself there and watch everybody. Shouldn't be creepy at all.
A serious suggestion though: get Thordak a non-magical composite longbow with a strength rating appropriate for his raging state. That would be relatively cheap at this point and we have a literal pile of +1 arrows that Praxim doesn't need.
For those times the bad guys are flying around and Thordak can't get to them.
'Hooking up' might be a bit strong for Aurora and Thordak, at least as yet ;)
However I do envisage them both, many years from now, acting like an old married couple whether or not their relationship remains platonic over time :)
Excellent idea on the bow, it gives Thordak another combat option which is great!
Javell, I feel somewhat chagrined as Aurora came to the party with full WBL :s
So I have a suggestion for you, and it's even something plausible IC!
Now, presuming that OOC you agree it would be useful to you, Aurora is going to visit Magnimar and purchase a gift for Thordak. She didn't like seeing him get hurt during the recent fighting, so her thoughts lie in a protective manner, towards a minor cloak of displacement. This would give him a permanent blur effect, and whilst not boosting AC in any way, would then offer a 20% reduction in hp loss during combat. From what I've read about it, I think with 'to hit' versus AC scaling you're better off finding ways to mitigate the damage rather than boost AC by a few points. Then again this is the highest level I've played so I stand to be corrected!
Also to be clear, the gift is offered both IC and OOC as exactly that, no strings attached :)
Heck no! No worries at all. That would be crazy for you to come in at a certain level and start 3 or 4 levels under wealth. Plus, it's saved Thordak's hide a time or twenty so he WILL NOT complain. ;)
And I appreciate the offer, Fiendish, that is really cool of you. But honestly, I would just feel WAY too guilty accepting something that expensive.
The cloak actually only gives a 20% chance of not being hit. So every time he gets attacked, the bad guys would have to roll 20% or less on any "hit" to see if they still miss. It doesn't actually reduce hp damage in any way. But I will say, while 20% really isn't a high percentage, with the multiple attacks that would be heading Thordak's way, odds are it might actually get rolled a time or two. Typically if you roll enough times... :P
'Hooking up' might be a bit strong for Aurora and Thordak, at least as yet ;)
However I do envisage them both, many years from now, acting like an old married couple whether or not their relationship remains platonic over time :)
HA! I could TOTALLY see that. Such much fun those two. :)
You know, Fiendish, I would say take one of those +1 ring of protections that we have for Aurora but heck, you could just buy yourself a +2 ring as far as that goes. OH WAIT! This just hit me. How about a Ring of Freedom of Movement! Those are freaking awesome. Heck, you could by both! That would be pretty cool. Free movement is mighty expensive. I'd get one in a heartbeat if I didn't have other pressing concerns.
Thordak will be good. Working on a different angle right now. It'll be a slow process but hard earned which will make it all the more worthwhile. :) (And I won't feel near as guilty bugging the crap out of Tomaru to make everything. Hey! Speaking of which, if you want, Tomaru, you can switch out CWI for something else, bud. Because Extra Channel and Quicken Spell would be far more useful that's for sure).
And I do agree with y'all about the bow. Definitely gonna do that. A crossbow is just too slow so that's why I sold it. He's never gonna use it.
@OG: Can we have folks at Magnimar "upgrade" our items?
And just to have my questions together, can I retrain one of my barbarian rage powers?(I asked this a few posts back, but you might have missed it due to the numerous posts in the discussion thread, so that's why I threw it out here again)
Okay, the only thing I could use help from Tomaru would be the Headband of Vast Int +2. It's 6000g to combine it with my current headband. Which is 6 days and 3000g crafted if that's cool. I figured that would be fitting considering it was recommended, waaaaaaay back when, that you folks would invest in one of those for Thordak. Though I'm unsure why. ;P
So.... nobody wants a spell tattoo? :(
Not even an emergency Protection from evil-tattoo?
....
Well. More for me, I guess.
Praxim wanted a tattoo of feather fall. He has 1400 gp left.
Praxim likes his armour when he gets it from Lym, but after a few days, he realizes the shininess of the silver could be a problem, so he takes a trick into Magnimar to a reputable elven mage and has the shadow property added to it.
Okay, the only thing I could use help from Tomaru would be the Headband of Vast Int +2.
But that's only if Tomaru keeps the feat(As I mentioned in a previous post that I totally forgot about. :P). If not, I will adjust accordingly.
@Praxim: Why not just have Lym add the Shadow while she's at it?
I mean, I get your "meta-gamey" point, but what's the point of these players having the feats if all we're gonna do is take our items into town and pay full price? I thought the point of taking the feats so that we could create our own stuff and help offset the cost.
I get Thordak 'cause he's got a million things(and I feel kinda guilty now) to do but if you're getting your armor fixed up might as well get it all done and save you some cash.
Because there's no way Lym takes Craft Magic Arms/Armor for herself. My guess is, she did it to aid those of us who use arms/armor. Otherwise, she might as well switch that feat out for something more useful for herself because it's just a waste of a feat.
So while I see how they can be perceived as "loot factories", isn't that, in a way, the point of the feat? That's how I always figured it. I had a cleric in an RL game who could craft everything under the sun for the team and did so. Personally, I've always found it fun. Otherwise, why even have the feat? *Shrugs*
But that's just me and my take on it, nothing more.
So.... nobody wants a spell tattoo? :(
Not even an emergency Protection from evil-tattoo?
....
Well. More for me, I guess.
I think I would like it more if you could use it like 1/day or something. That would be cool. But I guess that would be too overpowering. Then you'd have to limit it too a number of spells you can have "inked" on your body at one time. Otherwise, everyone would be a walking tattoo. :P
But I don't know. It cost money to have it done every time; eventually you would run out of cash I guess so maybe it wouldn't be too overpowered? *Shrugs*
Lym, appreciate the offer and Aurora is no stranger to ink on her skin :) Just she can create two tattoos on the fly herself each day. Though thinking about it, would always be good to have some emergency spells ready to go, after all they never expire until they're used... hmm, ok, I'll definitely order a tattoo to add to Aurora's collection, give me a bit to think what spell(s) :D
Javell, honestly no worries, let me know if Thordak needs spotting for a shopping spree! Also thanks for the freedom of movement suggestion, will think on it! Regarding the cloak, I should have explained my fuzzy logic better! If Thordak was being hit for 20 hp damage every swing, then over 5 attacks he would have taken 100 hp total. Probability-wise we'd then expect the cloak to have affected one of those attacks, hence saying a 20% miss chance is essentially the same as a 20% reduction in damage taken :)
Sorry I was out this weekend, let's tale care of some business:
1) Thordak you can train a new rage power, cost is 650 gp I believe.
2) IMO, there is nothing 'gamey' about having party members craft for you. That's why the feat is there. They have to spend a precious Feat slot to be able to do it, so I expect that they would.
3) There are folks in Magnimar who will help you. But, as they are a business, they will charge you more than the crafting-only cost. The break down will look like this:
- Lym and Tomaru can craft (obviously)
- Brother Pietro and the temple of Iomedae can craft one item each at crafting cost
- There are craftsmen in Magnimar to handle the rest - at a 20% discount from book price.
Remember I did say you can take the time you need. The only restriction is what you place on yourselves. This is your chance to get things taken care of. The 'calm before the storm' if you will.
Are they far enough from other Varisian cities out here to not offend anybody about who is protecting whom? Where exactly are we?
Are there any resources nearby that could support a settlement? Farmland, etc.? What about the strategic nature of the location? It's all well and good to say we have our own fort, but is there any real reason to have a fortress in this place? If so, perhaps they could also spend this downtime recruiting warriors, craftsmen, and farmers to move here and settle down.
Okay, going to do some tallying. Tell me if I've gotten the wrong end of the stick, and please keep in mind: I need one day per 1.000 gp of crafting price. The process is faster than you might think.
Praxim: Tattoo of feather fall, cost: 100 gp, done in one day.
Add the Celestial plate mail, and that's a total of 14 days and a total of 12.600 gp.
Thordak: +3 vital guard armour, cost of 6.250 gp; +1 keen furious longaxe, cost of 8.000 gp.
Add another 15 days, total of 29 days.
Lym is scribing herself a couple of magic tattoos: Protection from evil for 100 gp, takes one day, and False life, 600 gp, total of two days' work.
If at all possible, I'd like to 'port over to Magnimar to get scrolls of Plane shift and Create lesser demiplane. I'm going to set us up a permanent hideout on the ethereal plane, unless anyone can think of a better use for the money.
Are they far enough from other Varisian cities out here to not offend anybody about who is protecting whom? Where exactly are we?
Are there any resources nearby that could support a settlement? Farmland, etc.? What about the strategic nature of the location? It's all well and good to say we have our own fort, but is there any real reason to have a fortress in this place? If so, perhaps they could also spend this downtime recruiting warriors, craftsmen, and farmers to move here and settle down.
This is the map of the region. You are in the circle at the upper right. The Black Tower was here by the Therassic Monks (the 'Black Monks') because it was remote. Mokmurian built Jorgenfist here for the same reason. Remember he incorporated the Black Tower into the fortress to guard the library underneath. This is the Storval Plateau. Rocky, dusty, lots of megafuana and giant tribes. This the 'badlands' of Varisia. All the good land is out west - check the map!
If you note, you aren't that far from Fort Rannick. The river leads to the Storval Deep - the lake held back by Skull's Crossing dam. Past the dam is the Skull River, then Turtleback Ferry.
So basically if we did make a settlement out here, the people who protect Turtleback Ferry would object.
It might be worth finding out if there are any valuable minerals in the Iron Peaks...like maybe iron. They could setup a prosperous mining town.
Let's go ahead and get everything settled. I'd like to get the 5th book going by the end of the week if that works for everyone.
Let's go over what we know:
1) map and note from Mokmurian's room. Of note it has Sandpoint circled on it, and mentions the 'Hellstorm Flume', whatever that is. Perhaps someone there would know? anyone remember Brodert Quink?
2) "dominant weapons" what are they? how do you get one? the research would indicate they are needed to defeat a runelord.
3) find the way to xin-shalast. (helpful note: that's book 6!)
Did anyone figure out how much we got from all this?
How much as in loot or as in information and research?
Lym, appreciate the offer and Aurora is no stranger to ink on her skin :) Just she can create two tattoos on the fly herself each day. Though thinking about it, would always be good to have some emergency spells ready to go, after all they never expire until they're used... hmm, ok, I'll definitely order a tattoo to add to Aurora's collection, give me a bit to think what spell(s) :D
Javell, honestly no worries, let me know if Thordak needs spotting for a shopping spree! Also thanks for the freedom of movement suggestion, will think on it! Regarding the cloak, I should have explained my fuzzy logic better! If Thordak was being hit for 20 hp damage every swing, then over 5 attacks he would have taken 100 hp total. Probability-wise we'd then expect the cloak to have affected one of those attacks, hence saying a 20% miss chance is essentially the same as a 20% reduction in damage taken :)
Ah, okay, I gotcha. I see what you mean now. Oh and also...
...DO NOT DO THIS! Bad, bad idea. Thordak WILL NOT like this idea at all. No reason. ;)
I wasn't going to roll with the +4 belt but with the ominous words of OG, "The calm before the storm" I figure I better at least give it a shot. :P
Add +2 Str(for a total of +4), +4 Dex and +4 Con to current belt: Craft cost 30,000
Amulet of NA +1 to +2: Craft cost 3,000
Cloak of resistance +2 to +4: Craft cost 6,000
Headband of Vast Int +2 add to current headband: Craft cost 3,000
And Muleback cords(I remembered!) added to Cloak: Craft cost 750g
Armor is 6,250
Weapon is 8,000
Rage power switch: 650g
57,650g. I've got... 3,675g left(Had some cash left over from previous)
As Lym already said for the armor/weapon, 14 days. For the rest, 43 days.
Maybe we could extend our 3 months to 4 months, maybe? :P
So with a 5-way split, everybody gets 57542.61 gp. This link should take you to the Google sheet I made for the loot. The spread sheet does not include any consumables, since I assume we will keep them as party loot, and it seems kind of petty to make individual players pay for items that benefit the whole group, and given the sheer size of this treasure hoard, I don't think we need to track potions of CMW too closely.
Just declare here what items you want for yourselves. If you are exchanging something (like taking a +2 ring and giving up your +1, just sell the +1 at 65% market value and add it to your own cash.
With enough downtime, and means of magical travel, we can probably assume that we can go anywhere we want to buy things (including as far as Absalom??) which should mean no buying limit other than stupid stuff we can't afford anyway.
Follow the link in this post to a spreadsheet with share amounts.
Dax:
As per Praxim's kind calculations in his post here: 57,542 gp!
Javell: It's all good, appreciate Praxim's suggestion, but whilst it was free the extra AC didn't hurt, however paying for such a minor plus when she relies more on miss chance and energy protection to stop from getting damaged doesn't seem efficient :s
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Make Blessed Book for Lym out of red dragon scales. 6250gp
8000 Ring of Protection +2
-1300 sell Ring of Protection +1
4500 Wand of Cure Moderate Wounds
5000 Upgrade armor from +2 to +3
-650 Sell Cloak of Resistance +1
4500 Cloak of Resistance +3 (dragonskin cloak)
1000 Handy Haversack
11000 Rod of Giant Summoning
20000 Headband +4 Wis and Cha
-2600 sell Headband +2 Wis
5000 Belt +2 Dex and Con
5400 Wand of Cure Disease (CL 12, 10 charges)
As Lym already said for the armor/weapon, 14 days. For the rest, 43 days.
Maybe we could extend our 3 months to 4 months, maybe? :P
I don't think there's need. See my post above about the crafting breakdown. Lym/Tomaru; temple of Iomedae; other craftsmen. Should be plenty of time, Lym/Tomaru get the big expensive stuff, the temple also does one item each at crafting costs; the cheap stuff is done by the others at a 20% discount from list cost.
Bottom line, I expect you to get the stuff you feel you need to get close to WBL, AND have some to get a whole-party item like a CCW wand, AND be just about out of cash.
Unless you are like Aurora and don't have a lot to spend it on, then you bank it.
Gang, your PCs have crossed the line into some of the most powerful people on Golarion. There are very very few NPCs at level 13+, and you are only going to go up from here. You have epic things to do, do not be ashamed to have the epic gear to get it done! That's what WBL is for, right?
Per the "4 months" I mentioned, you're right, there's no need. I was half asleep and was thinking we only had 60 days for 3 months instead of 90. :P Totally my bad.
So in case anybody's wondering, I am not replacing Praxim or anything. Praxim has taken leadership. He'll be setting out to recruit a small militia of bowmen and pikemen, but he has also picked up a cohort to accompany them: Rexil, the orphaned stone giant. Feel free to check out his profile and backstory.
Concerning Praxim's Leadership score for followers, I figure he has renown, fairness, and a stronghold, giving him a total score of 22. I'm not sure if he counts as having special power which would put him to 23.
A score of 22 (23) gets him:
75 (90) level 1 (divided into squads of 12 (10) archers/crossbowmen, 12 (11)pikemen, and 15 (17) scouts)
7 (9) level 2 (3 (4) sergeants in charge of archers, 2 (3) in charge of pikemen, and 2 in charge of scouts)
4 (5) level 3 (2 lieutenants for archers, 1 (2) for pikemen, 1 for scouts)
2 (3) level 4 (2 (3) captains, each in charge of one arm of the forces (1 for scouts))
2 (2) level 5 (1 major second to the colonel, and one cleric of Erastil chaplain)
1 (1) level 6 (1 colonel in charge of the forces when Praxim isn't there)
HA! That's awesome! Man I just figured I was talking to OG the whole time. Didn't even realize that was you, Praxim.
Oh man that just trips me out. Good stuff, dude. :)
HA! That's awesome! Man I just figured I was talking to OG the whole time. Didn't even realize that was you, Praxim.
Oh man that just trips me out. Good stuff, dude. :)
;)
Concerning Praxim's Leadership score for followers, I figure he has renown, fairness, and a stronghold, giving him a total score of 22. I'm not sure if he counts as having special power which would put him to 23.
A score of 22 (23) gets him:
75 (90) level 1 (divided into squads of 12 (10) archers/crossbowmen, 12 (11)pikemen, and 15 (17) scouts)
7 (9) level 2 (3 (4) sergeants in charge of archers, 2 (3) in charge of pikemen, and 2 in charge of scouts)
4 (5) level 3 (2 lieutenants for archers, 1 (2) for pikemen, 1 for scouts)
2 (3) level 4 (2 (3) captains, each in charge of one arm of the forces (1 for scouts))
2 (2) level 5 (1 major second to the colonel, and one cleric of Erastil chaplain)
1 (1) level 6 (1 colonel in charge of the forces when Praxim isn't there)
You have options here: Jorgenfist or Fort Rannik
Do we feel like we are ready? Gear gathered? Characters corrected? Items...itemized? I won't know until you guys tell me to move ahead.
You have options here: Jorgenfist or Fort RannikConcerning Praxim's Leadership score for followers, I figure he has renown, fairness, and a stronghold, giving him a total score of 22. I'm not sure if he counts as having special power which would put him to 23.
A score of 22 (23) gets him:
75 (90) level 1 (divided into squads of 12 (10) archers/crossbowmen, 12 (11)pikemen, and 15 (17) scouts)
7 (9) level 2 (3 (4) sergeants in charge of archers, 2 (3) in charge of pikemen, and 2 in charge of scouts)
4 (5) level 3 (2 lieutenants for archers, 1 (2) for pikemen, 1 for scouts)
2 (3) level 4 (2 (3) captains, each in charge of one arm of the forces (1 for scouts))
2 (2) level 5 (1 major second to the colonel, and one cleric of Erastil chaplain)
1 (1) level 6 (1 colonel in charge of the forces when Praxim isn't there)
Not sure what you mean by that. Are we consider d the lords of Fort Rannick? I thought we gave that back to the Black Arrows.
I just don't know if being a paladin counts as having a "special power" which boosts his Leadership score.
Praxim and Rexil are ready. I gave Rexil Praxim's old ring and cloak, and Praxim has prepared greater magic weapon which he can use on his cohort's great club each day (lasts 13 hours). The rest of his money I'm assuming is spent on his personal army.
General Praxim is ready to ship out.
By the way, I fleshed out a few of his followers with names and classes. I snuck back to sandpoint and recruited the guardsman he had had his beef with back in the Skinsaw Murders (and subsequently was reconciled with). Hope that's okay.
57,542 gp
- 55 gp (masterwork artisan's tools; tattoo kit)
- 100 gp (spell tattoo, Protection from Evil)
- 600 gp (spell tattoo, False life)
56,787 gp left.
- 2,275 gp (scroll of Lesser create demiplane)
- 2,275 gp (scroll of Plane shift)
- 980 gp (scribing costs)
= 5,531
51.256 gp left
- 500 gp (forked metal rod)
- 17,500 gp (Permanency lesser demiplane)
- 12, 500 gp (Permanent mage's private sanctum)
= 35,500
15,756 gp left.
- 7,500 gp (Permanent Arcane sight)
8,256 gp left.
- 2,000 gp (upgrading falchion to Evil outsider bane)
6,256 gp left
Basically, I plan on using my funds to set up a headquarters we can access from anywhere, and that is completely hidden from magical scrutiny. We can customize it as we see fit - and stock it with all such supplies as we find needful.
We'll have 13 10-ft. cubes of space.
Do you guys like it?
I don't know if it's according to the rules or these are just house rules I've always played under before, but a cohort's treasure is the leader character's responsibility and it comes out of the leader character's share. Otherwise, you end up taking a feat that doubles your share of party treasure, which is really unfair to the other players.
Cohorts are like super-familiars. They improve our action economy in battle, and RP opportunities (which is why I asked OG to let me have a stone giant cohort when admittedly an 11th-level skald (my first inclination) would probably have been way more optimal). When Praxim gains another level, Rexil will advance to being a full-sized adult stone giant (right now he has the young template to make him 11hit dice-ish) which will make him a bit tougher. Then I'll start adding barbarian levels which will very quickly make him nasty, if he survives. If he doesn't, 11th-level skald it is.
If Fort Rannick is an option, I'd also vote for it - less isolated, more useful. But beggars, choosers, etc.
Looks good Lym. Is the private sanctum in the demi-plane?
Yes, indeed. That way, we can't be scry'ed on once we're in there.
I'm going for optimum security. ^_^
Did you get anything for Thordak so he can fly or just be more mobile? And what's his AC now?
Tomaru, would you cast Hallow on the demiplane?
I'd be happy to keep casting Fly for Thordak, and I can give him a few tattoos of Cat's grace! My treat. ^_^
What would be a useful spell to connect with the hallow spell? I assume they don't continue to affect us once we leave. Invisibility purge to make sure there are no hidden intruders? Remove feat so when Lym loses it at the next dragon she can retreat there? ;)
Hallow seems like a useful spell more for an area you expect to defend from attackers.
I'd go with Invisibility purge. :)
And you never know what might happen. Karzoug hails from an era of magic beyond our knowledge. We might wind up having to defend Caste Lym at some point.
At which point our first to third level spells probably aren't doing squat.
Invisibility purge is nice though because there's no save or spell resistance.
I appreciate the flexibility. However, I'm good with how things are. We have ready access to teleport now, so popping back and forth to civilization (barring some unexpected plane hopping) shouldn't be a problem. Praxim should be able to outfit Rexil when they take in new treasure. Selling the stuff we got to buy powerful things for the principal players is more important than pimping out Praxim's new stray pet.
Which reminds me, OG: are stone giants proficient in wearing armour? There's no indication of them wearing armour in their stat block, so I'm guessing no.
@Lym: Good call on the hidden digs, I gotta say. Pretty cool stuff.
While I appreciate the offer of Cat's Grace, it won't stack with the belt. Bear's Endurance, Bull's Strength - all useless now.
But I think I'll copy Praxim and take a Feather Fall tattoo as well. That might turn into a life saver at some point.
@Tomaru: 27 on the AC. Still probably not great, but gives me relief and it's way better than the 20 I was rockin'. But vs. Giants? 34. And that's what really counts. BOOM. :)
As far as Jorgenfist or Rannick, makes no difference to me.
Working on getting Thordak updated. Got him done in herolabs just got to put on his profile. Outside of working on that, I guess I'm good to go.
You did give Rannik to the Black Arrows..because you had the authority from Magnimar to do so. So, yes, you have control of the Fort and of Jorgenfist. What I meant was you could place your troops in either. They are both good options. The Hook Mountain region still needs a forceful presence, and the Library should be guarded.
It is NOT ok to be casually traveling to Sandpoint at this juncture. If it isn't obvious by now, the next flashpoint for you is back in Sandpoint, so there can't be any 'casual' trips. Once you get there, you will be checking into the Hellfire Plume, and...things...will happen.
Giants are not proficient in armor. Barbarian would be a good choice.
The demi-plane/sanctum is a good idea. Being honest, I've never seen that used before, so I'm curious as to how it will work out. I may be taking that idea on to my RL game!
I'm reserving the right to make adjustments on it's use, but that's just my GM legalese. I don't anticipate any abuse of Castle Lym!
One final thing: Lym wants to scribe a few scrolls, but she also wants to give everyone a spell tattoo of Protection from evil.
My treat.