GM ShadowLord's Reign of Winter

Game Master The Rising Phoenix

Hey guys! It's Timm here. Thanks for inviting me, GM!

I'm reworking Timm to cover the trapfinding thing, but despite that, as a kineticist he'll be a somewhat capable damage dealer especially at range - and hopefully at some point enough in melee as well.

Cheers!

Welcome aboard. Someone hurling flames is likely to be very effective here in the north. ;)

"Those petty fire tricks of yours have no chance to shine with a well greased musket at your side little lively sire" Samuel reloads his device and stretches his eyes with a self-confident stare.

Welcome aboard Timm :)

Ohmg, my bad about not remembering Samuel's promise about Bella. Thanks a lot GM for remembering it for me.

It was a half a year ago, ouch, a tough half a year with a lot of stuff going on.

no worries! it's hard to keep up with stuff like that in a long drawn-out format like this. my IRL players have enough trouble remembering from week to week what the heck they're supposed to be doing and who the NPCs are, and they don't have 6 months between hearing a name and meeting the NPC...

Keeping a close eye now as to my "cue" :)

Aah! Now there's a strange demon joining the fight!!

.
.
Edit: Oh, it's just Callix.

;)

At least it was on our side? ;)

Ohm, sorry, the dice decided to fail Samuel.

Fortunately, the breath barely did any damage, which means Samuel can still handle at least another bite.

Thanks Letitia for the potion, otherwise I would be into trouble right now.

Sorry ive been signed out apparently, didnt notice there were posts because of it

hey all! sorry about my lack of posting lately. I am in Texas and in the middle of this crazy ice storm. we lost power and water for most of the week, just now getting everything back to normal. luckily we avoided any lasting damage so far (burst pipes, trees falling, etc). I will be trying to catch up on all my games today and tomorrow, and as long as we keep our power on I should be back to a normal schedule.

I hope things get better soon!

As for the game... I was thinking... do we want for Alec to die here? It might do for an epic end to the character and it is a natural way to make him out of the campaign. If for whatever reason the player comes back later, we can find a way to resurrect him.

Good luck, Red Sun! Someone needs to find the winter gate that Queen Elvanna set up in Texas and shut it down!

I made a big mistake in that monster of a post with all the eagles. I got the smite damage mixed up with the Augmented Summoning damage (which I don't have).

Every one of those damage rolls should have been 1d4+1, not 1d4+2.

So here's the real breakdown:
Bite, flank: 1d20 + 3 + 2 ⇒ (13) + 3 + 2 = 18
Damage (smiting): 1d4 + 2 ⇒ (3) + 2 = 5 4
Talon, flank: 1d20 + 3 + 2 ⇒ (20) + 3 + 2 = 25
Damage (smiting): 1d4 + 2 ⇒ (1) + 2 = 3 2
Talon, flank: 1d20 + 3 + 2 ⇒ (4) + 3 + 2 = 9
Damage (smiting): 1d4 + 2 ⇒ (4) + 2 = 6

Crit confirm: 1d20 + 3 + 2 ⇒ (11) + 3 + 2 = 16
Damage (smiting): 1d4 + 2 ⇒ (2) + 2 = 4 3

Eagle 2
Bite, flank: 1d20 + 3 + 2 ⇒ (11) + 3 + 2 = 16
Damage (smiting): 1d4 + 2 ⇒ (4) + 2 = 6 5
Talon, flank: 1d20 + 3 + 2 ⇒ (1) + 3 + 2 = 6
Damage (smiting): 1d4 + 2 ⇒ (3) + 2 = 5
Talon, flank: 1d20 + 3 + 2 ⇒ (10) + 3 + 2 = 15
Damage (smiting): 1d4 + 2 ⇒ (4) + 2 = 6 5

Eagle 3
Bite: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (16) + 3 = 19
Damage (smiting): 1d4 + 2 ⇒ (4) + 2 = 6 5
Talon: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (17) + 3 = 20
Damage (smiting): 1d4 + 2 ⇒ (4) + 2 = 6 5
Talon: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (7) + 3 = 10
Damage (smiting): 1d4 + 2 ⇒ (1) + 2 = 3

Eagle 4
Bite, flank: 1d20 + 3 + 2 ⇒ (1) + 3 + 2 = 6
Damage (smiting): 1d4 + 2 ⇒ (2) + 2 = 4
Talon, flank: 1d20 + 3 + 2 ⇒ (19) + 3 + 2 = 24
Damage (smiting): 1d4 + 2 ⇒ (3) + 2 = 5 4
Talon, flank: 1d20 + 3 + 2 ⇒ (16) + 3 + 2 = 21
Damage (smiting): 1d4 + 2 ⇒ (1) + 2 = 3 2

Eagle 5
Bite, flank: 1d20 + 3 + 2 ⇒ (20) + 3 + 2 = 25
Damage (smiting): 1d4 + 2 ⇒ (2) + 2 = 4 3
Talon, flank: 1d20 + 3 + 2 ⇒ (16) + 3 + 2 = 21
Damage (smiting): 1d4 + 2 ⇒ (1) + 2 = 3 2
Talon, flank: 1d20 + 3 + 2 ⇒ (13) + 3 + 2 = 18
Damage (smiting): 1d4 + 2 ⇒ (3) + 2 = 5 4

Crit confirm: 1d20 + 3 + 2 ⇒ (3) + 3 + 2 = 8
Damage (smiting): 1d4 + 2 ⇒ (4) + 2 = 6

If the dragon had a starting AC of 17 (reduced to a 15 by my hex) = 44 damage
If the dragon had a starting AC of 18 (reduced to a 16 by my hex) = 39 damage

If the dragon had a starting AC of 19 or 20 (reduced to a 17 or 18 by my hex) = 31 damage

If the dragon had a starting AC of 21 (reduced to a 19 by my hex) = 23 damage

If the dragon had a starting AC of 22 (reduced to a 20 by my hex) = 18 damage

If the dragon had a starting AC of 23 (reduced to a 21 by my hex) = 13 damage

If the dragon had a starting AC of 24 (reduced to a 22 by my hex) = 9 damage

If the dragon had a starting AC of 25 or higher: what is wrong with you? We're only fifth level!!! ;P

if your in texas dont worry gm, keep safe

Good luck, Red Sun! Someone needs to find the winter gate that Queen Elvanna set up in Texas and shut it down!

That's exactly what my wife said! she's playing in my RL RoW game, which had to be postponed for a couple sessions due to the weather... she said Well now who's going to stop Elvhanna and get this back to normal?

Hope you all like the ending I gave to Alec. I wouldn't do something like that to an active player, but it felt like a good ending for this situation. besides, falling off of a tower is one of those perfect TV deaths that never quite seem to keep people dead, so if Alec ever comes back there's an opening there.

I think it was totally appropriate.

Wow! That was actually the most memorable character exit I can remember :)

As Callix points out in his post we have to exit fast, no collecting the corpse, and so, as you say, that brings a nice opportunity if Alec's player ever comes back!

Gonna have to do some Doctor Dolittle (this last movie with Robert Downey Jr.) to find him... :)

Letitia Frost wrote:

Good luck, Red Sun! Someone needs to find the winter gate that Queen Elvanna set up in Texas and shut it down!

That's exactly what my wife said! she's playing in my RL RoW game, which had to be postponed for a couple sessions due to the weather... she said Well now who's going to stop Elvhanna and get this back to normal?

Clearly a wise woman. ;)

Hope you all like the ending I gave to Alec. I wouldn't do something like that to an active player, but it felt like a good ending for this situation. besides, falling off of a tower is one of those perfect TV deaths that never quite seem to keep people dead, so if Alec ever comes back there's an opening there.

I approve. A good, cinematic death.

going to leave you to your introductions for now, once you're ready make sure you take some action to move forward

Sounds good, GM.

Not trying to be overly harsh, Timm, but Letitia's the party's own "ice queen." She doesn't, ahem, warm up to people quickly.

Oh, I don't get offended. RP is fine, hopefully keeping to a point that it doesn't actually disrupts the flow.

We did not really make it easy for her at the beginning, but she won us over herself in time :)

I think the best way forward for Timm here is stress his lively nature and play dumb so Letitia has to face there is no way to try reason with him. That, and stress his willingness to help a better future for the young ones, should be enough to stick together considering his clear utility to burn the ice of the witches.

great scene all. I like that things got discussed instead of just picking up any random passer-by because they are a PC. always some element of that, but I like when it gets brought up at least.

with the rest here at the Shrine, you are now all level 6!

as always post here the details of your level up, and be sure to update the tracker and dice roller shortcuts in the maps slide deck.

Timm, go ahead and replace the lines for Alec with your own stats. I use the text blocks there anytime i need to roll saves/perception/initiative for you all, so make sure it is accurate!

Woo! Weapon Specialization, here I come. (6th level bonus feat...)

Level 6 Warpriest:

* +8 hp (5 + 2con +1 toughness)
* +1 BAB
* +1 Fort, Reflex, Will (I know, right?)
* Bonus Feat: Weapon Specialization (Throwing Axe)
* +3 skill points +1 FC {Acrobatics, Heal, Perception, Spellcraft}
* +1 level 2 spell
* +1 use of Fervor increase (5/day)
* +1 use of Blessings (6/day) [and DC up to 15]
* +1 use of Sacred Weapons (6 rounds/day)

Here it is, Level 6! The level I'd been alternately looking forward to and dreading, since I have to make a huge decision: Do I go into the Winter Witch Prestige Class?

The biggest drawback of the PrC is that I lose a level of spellcasting. But in exchange, I get some neat stuff regarding ice magic and augmenting my cold spells to bypass Cold resistance.

But that lost level of spellcasting hurts.

To the point that I think I'm not going to take it. I think I'll stick with just being a Winter Witch (the class archetype, not the PrC -- confusing, I know).

Level 6 Winter Witch:
*+6 hp (4+1con+1FCB)
*+1 BAB
*+1 Fort, Reflex, Will
*Hex: Flight
*+8 Skills (2+5Int+1Human)
*+2 spells (iron spike and suggestion)
+1 spell per day 2nd and 3rd level

Level 6

HP 1d10 + 1 ⇒ (9) + 1 = 10
Favoured class bonus +¼ grit
Skills
Acrobatics
Bluff
Perception
Survival
3x Disable Device

@Letitia maybe you already know, but just for your consideration, you can burn 2 feats to recover that spellcasting level with Prestigious Spellcaster. There is also the magical knack trait, that recovers for you +2 CL (without the increased number of slots though in this case).

Hi Letitia! Look at me link here mate! Ahoy!

@GM: Where should I replace "Alec lines"?

Here Timm! :D

Actually, Letitia and Callix, I think you forgot to update the slide.

Interesting! I was not aware of that. Though, burning two feats... Maybe I could retrain, come 7th level? Retrain one of my existing feats into Favored Prestige Class, pick up Prestigious Spellcaster as my 7th level feat, then retrain my Witch Level 6 to Winter Witch Level 1.

I'll have to look up how much that costs.

The greatest thing, as you already mentioned, is being able to bypass cold resistance.

In a different game where I played a Winter Witch, my first level was actually Sorcerer (because of Irrisen Icemage, but I also did it crossblooded for Boreal and Cold Draconic). It really gimped my progression but it was totally worth it, especially since I did VMC Oracle for Freezing Spells as well (lots of synergy). For Patron I did Trickery with infernal contract (free Misfortune Hex at the cost of 1 first level spell slot, basically, of infernal healing).

In the RP topic - very, very happy with being in this group! Thanks for the "hard time" in the first scene, mates. I hope you all grow to like Timm as much as I do, and I hope to be useful to the party :)

I updated my sheet, header and the slides. Kineticist is quite a complex class, so I added to my sheet the different changes depending on how much burn I have (at least 1; please assume Timm starts the day burning 1 point to fill his internal buffer) and a section called "Progress" with details on the abilities. Hopefully it will be enough for me, the GM and whoever is curious to see how the pyrokineticist works!

I did go and edit the slide - did it not save?

I did go and edit the slide - did it not save?

It looks like everything is updated for you

As far as the Winter witch Prestige class goes, I always wish that prestige classes worked better than they do. you end up getting a lot more for a lot less tradeoff by using archetypes in most cases, which is too bad.

Especially for spellcasters, where any loss in spell abilities (which almost all prestige classes have) is a real detriment.

But if there was ever a time to use a full winter witch, this campaign seems like the place to do it!

2 feats is a high cost to recover it, but not as big of a deal as losing spell levels.

I'll be done by tomorrow busy schedule this week

I find that the Prestigious Caster Feat get a lot more "oomph" if you take a PrC with more lost levels (like Vindicator or Rage Prophet that only give you 7).

A single lost level isn't too bad -- I mean, you still gain spells like a sorcerer (especially if you use Magical Knack to offset the lost CL).

That said, the ability to make your cold supernatural is almost a necessity based on ... well.. everything in this AP (so far, anyway) -- to the point that a Rod of Elemental Spell (Fire) would probably be game-breaking. (Of course, we just got a pyromancer, so... yay us?)

Well, I *am* a winter witch already. So the title's covered. And although the supernatural cold is a nice add-on, I've never really envisioned Letitia to be a blaster-type witch anyway. The bonus to the cold-based spells is thematic, and it's certainly nice to be able to ignore cold resistance. But the witch's real strength is in the hexes and debilitating spells.

And that's the part where I think Letitia will continue to flourish. While all her sisters and cousins are busy trying to be the coldest witch in the land, she can use her *other* witch powers that may have been overlooked.

Letitia just echoed my thoughts.

@GM are we entering the 3rd book?

Oh, I very much agree that the strength of witches lie in hexing - especially when Evil Eye gets extra ugly at 8th - and debuffing.

(Though, to be fair, the PrC grants full hexes via "Winter Witchcraft")

At the same time, I think it's totally appropriate, from a character development perspective, that Letitia wouldn't walk that path anymore - reflecting a change in her priorities and faith in the systems in which she was trained -- whereas level 1 Letitia would have sold out Samuel and Alec in about half a second in order to be able to learn to be a PrC Winter Witch. ;)

I get spells this level... considering picking up more languages *cough* Skald*cough*

Ashling's curse gets better. Base attack and stuff. Not much this level

Level 6 total, level 4 Oracle

Oracle: 1d8 + 1 ⇒ (5) + 1 = 6
FCB: Hp +1

Skills: 4+Skilled

Linguistics +2 : Draconic, Giant because i learned i already had Skald, whoops

Stealth: +2

Survival+1

+1 BAB and Will

+1 O level spell known
+1 level 1 spells per day
level 2 Spells 3 per day, 1 Known

Purify Food and Drink
Bonus Mystery Spell Frostfall
Cure Moderate wounds
Bull Strength

Oracle Curse 4 oracle, +1 from 2 levels of fighter.

Clouded vision: Distance increases to 60 ft

I like the character development side of Letitia not going the traditional winter witch path. And it's not like this party is lacking in the damage dealers department!

@Samuel, no we are not quite in book 3 yet. Logorovich was the mini-boss for part 2/3 of the book. once you finish everything in the market square we will be in book 3.

you'll need to zoom in a bit on this map. it's another of those annoying 1 square = 10 feet kind of deals. it's hard to adjust for that with google slides instead of using something like Roll20

Yeah Roll20 is great for these things. Looking at the map I like where Timm is, towards the back.

Loving the rp so far. I just had an idea: Callix needs to get Letitia drunk at some point. Probably not this particular evening since no one needs a hungover witch going into battle the next day, but hopefully soon!

Letitia going drunk over the fey? I want to see that xD

Loving the rp so far. I just had an idea: Callix needs to get Letitia drunk at some point. Probably not this particular evening since no one needs a hungover witch going into battle the next day, but hopefully soon!

I'm in. Who knows, we might even have something Letitia wants to celebrate. ;)

I just think it'd be vastly amusing if Callix got Letitia loosened up some. Drunk Tish should be a lot of fun.