SR's - Great Southern Isles (PbP) (Inactive)

Game Master stormraven

What is Threatening Defender? That sounds intimidating and awesome and I don't recognize it!

I MUST KNOW!!!!

Mike: It's because we like making you click on things, he he.

SR: Ushari will select Birthmark as her trait. It should keep her from worrying about that pesky DF requirement, he he.

Getting to open a spoiler is like getting a tiny birthday present. I thought you'd like it! :D

LMAO! BTW the "I MUST KNOW" thing was a recurring theme with the rogue from the last party I DM'd locally, Din Hîn. He acquired an heirloom weapon possessed by the soul of a 3-headed, extra-planar hound call Kaberus: The Grinning Hound (no relation to Cerberus). Being as his character was mute (and you thought you had it rough with Fin) the only way he could speak is if the hound spoke. However, it had an insatiable curiosity for secrets and was also something of a foul mouth so it was frequently getting him in trouble.

Hey, man. The last monk I played IRL was a mute. Only he didn't have some talking head secret device to help him out. I pantomimed everything at the table.

BAM.

I don't think I qualified for that spoiler... oh well.

Oh the talking tattoo rarely helped him — at least as far as communication was concerned. He kept a little chalk board for that. Usually it would do things like make cat-calls at buxom barmaids, ask blunt questions at inappropriate moments, or threaten to blackmail Din Hîn if he wasn't being a good meat puppet. Of course, in return for the rogue's cooperation, he gained some pretty impressive combat abilities. It was essentially equivalent to a shinigami's zanpakutou from Bleach.

If memory serves me correctly its shikai (first release) state was a pair of acidic silvered claws.

Where the campaign left off, he was just about to discover its bankai (second release) state. That allowed him to materialize Kaberus — a large-size hound with 3 bite attacks and the ability to breath corrosive acid like a green dragon.

I dn't have a clue what to do with my trait selection. Any ideas. I have Reactionary (which is a Combat trait) and Fast Talker (which is a Social trait). So I can pick from any other source, but the pickin's are slim.

Any ideas?

Save it up for 3000 posts then trade them in for a feat! ;D

Hmmm... I'm pretty flexible on traits. Feel free to look HERE for something of interest. I'd just like the chance to 'yea' or 'nay' any of the third-party traits. When I have a chance this evening, I'll pour through my DB in Hero Labs, they've got feats from damn near everywhere in the universe. I'll see if I can find a few that you might enjoy.... and they will be DM pre-approved, a real time saver. :)

He won't need to save it up. If we make it to 3k posts, the feat is free. :)

How about double-dipping into the Combat category. Usually you cant take two traits from the same category, but frankly the pickin's are slim outside of Combat and Social for Jayse.

I'd love to pick up Anatomist and get a +1 to crit confirms.

How about double-dipping into the Combat category. Usually you cant take two traits from the same category, but frankly the pickin's are slim outside of Combat and Social for Jayse.

I'd love to pick up Anatomist and get a +1 to crit confirms.

How do you represent a snort of contempt for 'the rules' in text? :) You can pick a trait from any category! I was scratchin' my head trying to figure out how you couldn't find an interesting trait...

Lol. Then I'm gonna lean into the surgical level of precision Jayse employs with his mindblade and go with Anatomist. (I think that's what it's called.)

Let the crit bonuses stack!

What? Jayse isn't an assassin! Banish the thought!

What? Jayse isn... Banish...

Hm? Oh for a second there I thought you said 'Jason Bourne'. Nevermind...

Oh. Weird. Why would you make that connection?

Drugs - lots of 'em. :) And my Hugh Hefner lifestyle.

Damned socialites... :P

Damned hippy socialites... :P

Fixt that for ya. :)

Oh, how handy!

Taking the trait 'Desperate Focus' for another +2 to my Concentration Checks.

I...
have...
the...
POWER!!!!

COPY CAT! :P

Straehan waves his hands in a mystical gesture summoning the DM Rock of Utter Character Destruction... :)

FYI - I saw your email and I'm trying to figure out some reasonable options.

Hey, Falling Boulders is my deal!

The difference being that MY rocks aren't pleasant to get crushed by and they don't bounce half as much. :p

Gee...I hate to interrupt this fascinating discussion here...but we do have LOOT to divvy up, he he.

Usahri will take the Coin of Finding, if that is OK. There is still the Pearl of Power (1st), the Pouch of Holding, and the Elixer of Fire Breath.

Go ahead and stake your claims, he he.

FWIW, I think Fin should take the Pouch, Jayse the Elixer, and Straehan the Pearl.

Why give the pouch to someone who is already fairly strong? While I could see Fin liking the pearl because it reminds her of the sea, if Straehan doesn't already have a pearl of power, that might be a better choice for him after all.

Heh, I was thinking Fin wanted to make her own sandcastles whereever she ended up :P

Jayse might be better for the pouch, being as he is a monk and all, which would leave the elixer for Fin, just in case any of her suitors get out of line :D

My only thoughts/suggestions would be...

Straehan shouldn't carry the pouch. At 15 lbs, it is pushing him into medium speed if I don't dump equipment. I AM thinking about dumping most of his daggers and going claws and spells.

I'd suggest one of the highly mobile sluggers carry the Elixir of Fire Breath because it requires a willingness to get into combat range to maximize its benefit, so I'm thinking Fin or Jayse.

Any one of the three casters could use the pearl. I can see the argument for giving it to Straehan as the almost pure caster. I can also see having Ushari carry it because who can't use extra healing spells from time to time? The other argument for giving the pearl to Fin or Ushari is that Straehan already has enough casting 'oomph'. He can drop 7 1st level spells. Does he really need to drop 8? If we had two or more pearls - I definitely think they should be split up evenly. Unfortunately, we've just got one to start. So I guess it comes down to approach - do we want more variable/offensive casting capabilities OR more defensive spells when things go wrong?

I have no thoughts on the coin.

I'm happy to take the Elixir of Fire Breath. You might have to remind me to actually use it, but that's just because i'm digging my sword so much. :)

I don't have much preference on the pearl thing, though Ushari has already called dibs on the coin, so i'm inclined to suggest giving the pearl to either Straehan or Fin. Since both of you have a little AoE damage capabilities now, I really don't care which of you takes it.

I don't have a clue on the best use of the pouch. Do we want to simply keep cash in there for now?

Or sand? :)

I'm fine with Ushari having the coin. Since Whoosh already functions like a pearl of power (arcane bond), and since offensive spellcasting is more of Straehan's niche, it make sense to be able to keep him in the fight longer.

Upon smelling the hot sauce, Fin would probably suggest Ushari should drink it but not necessarily for reasons that would benefit us in battle. ;)

So that would be...
F: bag
J: elixir
S: pearl
U: coin

That look good?

OK I will update the Loot list in the tracker, so please add these items to your equipment list.

I wonder if the coin could double as a breath mint...he he

OK, the matrix should be up-to-date right now. Please give it a look over and make sure everything is correct for your character.

Remember Boots of Striding and Springing improve your Acrobatics only for jumping, not for all uses.

These boots increase the wearer's base land speed by 10 feet. In addition to this striding ability (considered an enhancement bonus), these boots allow the wearer to make great leaps. She can jump with a +5 competence bonus on Acrobatics checks.

linky the matrix?

I have the link at the top of Findelgwing's character profile just like I do with Alis'. Might be a good idea if we each have it in ours just for ease of reference:

http://wiki.worldsunknown.com/wiki/Party_Matrix,_Isles

I don't knwo if you wanted this level of feedback, but here ya go:

Jayse doesn't have evasion. it was swapped out with his weapon adept archetype.
He has a +2 to saves vs. Shaudran
Non-slotted items: Stone of awesomeness (my special item from Justin)
All skills look good, though.

I have no idea what a Shaudran is, but I've listed you as having a +2 vs. it. Updated your reflex save and added the stone of pwn. Thanks!

Shaudran is the name of the race/culture that built the Hill Tower and ruled a vast swath of the world before the Elves.

No K:History roll required! :)

Yah, Justin gave it to me when Jayse nat-20'd the very first will save we made when we first encountered the tower.

I assumed it was permanent, but I could be wrong.

OK I was informed in no uncertain terms Usahri never added her +2 stat boost for being human.

That has been rectified now, Ushari's DEX is now 20. Her profile has been updated.

Mike, feel free to update the matrix when you get a chance.

You're too slow. Already updated it 'cause I'm PSYCHIC!

I assumed it was permanent, but I could be wrong.

Indeed, it is a permanent bonus.

Ushari, since you've chosen birthmark as your additional trait we'll say that it was a light mark before but has darkened and filled out fully since you were gestalted. You'll need to pick the location where it appears.

Ushari, since you've chosen birthmark as your additional trait we'll say that it was a light mark before but has darkened and filled out fully since you were gestalted. You'll need to pick the location where it appears.

Since she has said she raises her hand for her channels, I was thinking of having it on one of her arms. Let's see here...Left=1, Right=2 1d2 ⇒ 2 and it is the right forearm.

Will that work?

Sure... although I was hoping you'd go ballsy and put it on her left butt cheek or maybe as a tramp stamp so she would have to moon someone to channel power. :)

Or you could pull a John Constantine and have half on one forearm and half on the other so you have to slap your forearms together to make the whole sigil.

I was hoping it'd be on the backside of the meta-carpal (sp?) of the middle finger of your right hand... so presenting your holy symbol would require flipping your opponent the bird.

Ya know.. the finger?

Well since she has to raise her arm for her channels, then i could certainly work it in there.

Should come naturally to her, he he

OK, gents. We are at the end of the opening material I have prepared. This, then, is the right moment to reflect on the game so far and chart our course before I start building a bunch more content that may or may not interest you. As I told you at the outset, this is a sandbox and I am tailoring it around you. Very few of the things you've experienced were set pieces and many changed as you played through them spawning a variety of new possibilities. Unfortunately, PbP is a lousy way to gain feedback with the lack of visible body language, etc. So I'm soliciting your opinions. This is your chance to effect where the game goes and how we play it.

I want to hear (publicly or privately):

• What you liked
  
• What you didn't like
  
• The direction you'd like to see the campaign go in
  
• The direction you'd like to see your character go in (character development)
  
• Feedback on the basics - Is the pace too slow? Too fast? Want more detailed descriptions of people or places? Were you bored?
  
• Do you like the amount and type of RP? If not, what would you like it to be?
  
• What kind of adventures would you like? More of the same? Dungeon crawl? Outdoor? Sea-born craziness? Haunted House? Some sort of mystery?
  
• For the next series of adventures, do you want to base yourself in Forestal? Move on to other towns and areas on the island? Get off Amador island entirely?

At this point, I can probably steer the encounters in any direction. So if you want to play 'avast matey' and kill some pirates... I can make that happen and give you a reasonable rationale for why you should do it. :) I also think that from a character point of view we can justify most any way you'd like to go. Consider this - you have been unlocking memories through unpredictable, new encounters - hearing the sing-song voice of the shaman, etc. Additional recollections could come from anything new you do or see. So unless you have a solid lead to follow that will trigger your memories, just doing something new isn't a bad idea. The more you see and experience, the more your memories may return.

Going behind the DM screen for a second... I knew where I would start you and where, roughly, you'd end up at the conclusion of this first act. I know where you'll need to be further down the line (8th to 15th level approximately) and there are goals along the way that I expect you'll hit. But the actual process of getting from this moment to that future point is unscripted. We can do it in any number of ways. That's why your feedback is important.

My plan is to have your characters take a little R&R time in Forestal while I build the next couple of adventures. While you're there, it might be a good time to have RP conversations about what your characters have experienced, speculate on what is happening, etc. If you want to work through the possibilities yourselves that is fine. If you'd prefer that I render a little 'extra help' through Straehan's 18 INT, I'm happy to do that too. The idea was to intrigue you and hint at the larger storylines but not frustrate the crap out of you with too many clues and false leads. Again, PbP is not great at conveying all the subtleties you get from face to face interactions IRL - the ones that let you know when you are going the wrong way or the right way. So I'm not surprised if you there is just too much 'stuff' to process.

I can't promise that all your requests and desires will make it into the game. And some I'm probably flat-out not going to do if they will screw up my long-term plans for the campaign and/or visit territory that I don't think is of interest to everyone. But I will try to include as much of your feedback as is possible.

Finally, as I've stated before, I know my style isn't for everyone. If you want to leave the game for any reason now would be a good time to do it. I won't take it personally. So, you can drop public comments here and private ones to my email addy. I look forward to receiving either or both. If you guys want to hash out what sorts of adventures you'd like to pursue next OOC - this would be a good spot for that as well.

First off, I'm enjoying the game. It's a character type I've wanted to play for a while. While I'm still getting used to the sandbox style game, I've had a good time and have't felt like we were just drifting aimlessly or anything. I can't think of anything that I think is not working or that I didn't like.

I did have one suggestion, though, but its' a bit of a blind suggestion, so take it for what it's worth. During a couple of scenes, I think it could have been an awesome chance at what I've heard called a Skill Challenge. The most obvious example of this would have been when we were rushing through the woods hoping to find Isolde and trying to outpace the goblins.

Campaign Direction
I don't have any big ideas for the campaign. I'm happy to see it go where it goes. I'm obviously interested in Jayse's development (see below) and how he develops with the group, but that's driven by us as much as by you. I've expressed interest in the Reaver hook, which seems fun. And it plays to a couple of our strengths and backgrounds at the same time. I'm pretty open to where the adventure takes us. Dungeon-crawling the tower might be fun (whenever you feel it's level-appropriate). You know in general I love action stuff…whether it's combat or not.

I will say, from what we've already seen. We have the obvious adventure options of the Tower and the Reavers. A trip to a more metropolitan area will afford us opportunities to look into both those issues from an academic/information gathering standpoint - as well as an opportunity to ask around about our shipwreck in person.

The Basics
As for pacing, I think it's moving at a comfortable pace. I know that I can post much less in the evenings than you guys - and that might seem to make it slower - but the game has progressed at a good speed for me. If the choice is made to actively speed it up or slow it down, that'll be fine by me, too. If it speeds up, though, I'll just be a bit of a constant speed-bump. :)

I think you do a pretty good job of fleshing out people, scenes, and locations. Your style is your style, and, like i said, i'm enjoying it.

Roleplay
No problems here, either. The people and places have been interesting and believable… which tells me that you're at least doing a decent job of fleshing out the people we encounter and the conversation there-in.

As for the whole me dictating that we skip the goblin/Forestal mediation - I kind of feel like I stepped on your toes there (even if unintentionally). It's not in Jayse's wheel-house, so I was fine with skipping it. That doesn't mean the other guys wouldn't have enjoyed it. (Though a mediation led by Finelgwing is something that could be painful all-around.)

Adventure-types
I love action in all forms. Chases, battle, bar-fights, sea-wars, whatever. And frankly, since we have a whole world open to us, I'm fine doing some exploring along the way. Whether that's wilderness, sea, or cultural/metropolitan exploration. If you wove in elements of everything you mentioned in that question along the way, I don't think I'd ever really have room to complain.

Forestal, Amador, and the World
Forestal is kind of becoming our little back-woods second home. And with any adventure, it's good to have a place that the players feel a lot of loyalty to. I don't want to stay here for the entire campaign. THere's a lot of world to see.

Also, where is our loot table?

I am happy with Ushari and how this campaign is progressing along as well. We have an interesting dynamic too, both class wise and personality, so I look forward to how this all plays out.

I also echo most of what Jayse says about the direction of the campaign. I will say Ushari wants to return to Crux, as this is where she was born. This works well with the boat building thing.

Skill Challenges sound cool, if a little 4e, he he.

Justin, keep up the GREAT work!

Jayse, as for the Loot table, sorry, I was putting it on Ushari's list tracker. Updated the GSI site with the gold found in the pouch, and also the goblin chest, minus what Ushari took for her share, so the remaining gold on there should be split between Fin, Jayse, and Straehan.