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Funny, in retrospect, story...
A few years back, my girlfriend and I had a driving holiday around California, Utah and Nevada... We had four lovely days in San Francisco and then it was time to drive through to Yosemite (we'd prebooked one of the pioneer tents in the main visitor area)... So, we have a long drive through to somewhere near half way to Yosemite and it's early evening so we book into a hotel... dump bags, freshen up and then it's back in the car for a quick drive to find food...
Cue, blue lights in rear view mirror...
Pull over, wind down window and T.J. Hooker saunters up - mirrored aviator sunglasses, the works...
'Any idea why I've pulled you over Sir?'
...at which point, GM Zed realises this isn't the leafy suburbs of Royal Berkshire anymore... this is the Good Ole U S of A... and we drive on the other side of the road!!!
Things go from bad to plain OMG when I hand over the paperwork for the rental car and it's for a completely different car!!! The rental agency had cars stacked up in their garage and gave us an upgrade to save undoing their automobile jenga... So now we're waiting for about ten minutes while he radios backwards and forwards... fortunately, I do the bumbling brit thing (think Hugh Grant in any one of his not so great movies) and we were finally waved on our way...
...and that is why, three years later when we emigrated from the UK, we went to an english speaking country where they drive on the left hand side of the road!!!
Sorry, it appears we Yanks have mucked everything up, from usings zees instead of zeds and putting them in words like categorize, to taking the u's out of everything, to even getting which side of the road to drive on wrong.
I would like to point out that it was all the Yankees' fault. We Southerners didn't have a thing to do with the cars, er... automobiles, or is it autos? :P
I feel your pain though. I got pulled over twice the first night I was working out of the sandwich delivery shop near campus. One of those times was for turning the wrong way down a one way street.
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A few years ago, my family was playing tourist in London. At the Tower of London, we'd taken the guided tour. Toward the end of the tour, the Beefeater who was leading the tour asked if there were any Americans in the group. All the Yanks raised their hands. He then smiled and said, "Just think: This could all have been yours too, if you'd just paid your taxes!"
I apologize for not having posted anything for a little while. My 7 years old had to be admitted to the hospital and its been a long few days. The good news is that the doctors are pretty certain they've found the cause and it's very easy to treat so he should be fine in a day or two. I'll catch up with reading posts and post something myself as soon as I can (hopefully tonight or tomorrow). Feel free to bot me in the meantime.
As Briana says, glad to hear your son's okay!
Being a space nut, I'm quite happy with having the first manned lunar landings, the space shuttle, the Hubble telescope, and the Falcon 9.
take care of your son, teldon!
Glad to hear the little one's doing okay!
Wont be able to post for most of the day tomorrow, sorry
Just out of curiosity, since I know we have a few different countries represented here, is the international press covering the US elections at all? As I understand it, over 1200 people have been arrested in our nation's capital for protesting against corruption and corporate influence in our political system, lawsuits have been filed in at least two states (New York and Arizona) alleging election tampering with something like 6 other states having some pretty questionable issues, and a petition has been drafted requesting the UN audit our election process. I'm not sure how accurate these statements are because they're receiving virtually no coverage at all in the American media.
I'm afraid that our coverage in the UK is confined to:
- Donald Trump and his Mexican wall (which is unfortunately resonating with the refugee / migration crisis that we are seeing in Europe)... but yeah, and apologies if I'm standing on anyone's politics here, he's seen as a bit of a wild demagogue - and not in a good way.
- and the way in which Sanders / Clinton has slightly echoed the UK leadership election within our Labour Party - Career Politicians vs. Person of Principle...
Sad to say, unless I've missed it, there's nothing about the issues you are talking about Teldon... Although Hilary Clinton seems to be getting a lot of flak for being way more corporately aligned than Bernie Sanders...
The Australian media doesn't cover the presidential election much at all. Our own politics are f@!~ed up enough (the Australian Prime Minister position lasts for four years, and in the last four years, we've had five changes in our PM [Kevin Rudd, Julia Gillard, Kevin Rudd again, Tony Abbott *shudder* and Malcolm Turnbull]), so I'm getting all my information from my boyfriend in Colorado.
Yeah, not missing Australian politics.... At All!!!
Frankly, I wish I wasn't getting so much election coverage here in the States. I just want the damned election over already so I won't have to see any more campaining.
Especially for the Republican party race.
There's the self-aggrandizing, entitled bully who represents absolutely everything that's wrong with the United States; the religious fundamentalist who seems to understand nothing about the message espoused by the founder of his faith; and the boilerplate conservative espousing the same economic nonsense that caused the Great Recession.
Ugh.
And on the other side of the aisle, the animosity between those "feelin' the Bern" and the front-runner is also really getting to me. When you look at the actual platforms of Clinton and Sanders, ther're so close as to be indistinguishable.
I'm slightly more for Bernie than Hillary. According to isidewith.com, my views align 96% with Bernie and 94% with Hillary. But when Hillary gets the party nod, I'll be behind her 100%.
Because she's 10,000% better than any of the clowns who'll get the GOP nod. Especially the vulgar, short-tempered, carnival barker who's inexplicably the GOP front-runner.
*sigh*
Funnily enough, I got Libertarians for my top 4 when I did that.
The sad thing is, I don't think there's a single candidate in the two big parties that I would support. According to the results I got, I'm more closely aligned with Hillary and Bernie than Mr. Trump.
For the curious, here's my results: Just replace "You" with "Adam"
Just for the record, I didn't answer some of the questions because I don't have an answer that I felt happy with. Simple solutions to complex problems just make the problem more complex, the Gordian Knot not withstanding, so somethings are probably skewed. I know the socialism vs. capitalism bit is. I'm of the opinion that socialism and communism celebrate mediocrity. Why should I work my butt off if I'm not going to get any more than the guy sitting on his watching Spongebob? Who's going to decide if the gal with brilliant idea A is more deserving of the startup money than guy with been done to death idea B?
The problem I have is that I believe that people should be judged on their merits. I may not agree with the lifestyle that someone has chosen, but that's not going to stop me from recognizing their talents.
Anyway, I'll be getting off my soapbox now.
Yeah, and I have the added benefit of living in Alabama. I feel disgusted to know I voted for a certain governor who's proven he's a sleazeball through and through.
I'm french, and read a few articles here and now about the election (on "Le Monde" mostly). The few last days have been hectic at work.
I just glanced at it right now online, and there is nothing about people getting arrested (but I just glanced).
Maybe I should ask my wife, who, as an english teacher, watches BBC from time to time.
Hey folks... It's not yet etched in stone, but the Stars May Be Right for me to attend PaizoCon this year.
Is anyone planning to go?
So, did you end up making arrangements for going to Paizocon? I saw the events list on the site today... Looks awesome...
It turns out the Stars Were Not Right after all.
My teenaged daughter has been on international youth exchange in India since July, and she's returning the week after Paizocon. I could take either week off, but not both.
Awwww, shame... Still, there's always next year and you must be looking forwards to seeing your daughter!!! I was kind of hoping you coukd get yourself registered on one of the Legendary Planet tables they're running there... I think they're going to have a playaround with the next adventure along ((Mike Shel and Mike Welham's Scavenged Codex) and I was hoping for a sneak preview!!!
On a side note folks, has anyone tried out the Pathfinder Adventures App yet? It is really good... there's enough in the preview / free part of the adventure to have fun and get a feel for the mechanics, etc... If you've got a tablet / iPad or whatever, give it a try :)
Although, I am a big fan of the Card Game already so this was always going to put a smile on my face :)
Just a heads up, I won't be posting Friday or Saturday. My younger cousin is graduating from college. :)
On a completely unrelated note...
My Tuesday night IRL campaign ended back in February, and I started playing in a new group. We're running a fantasy game using the Dungeon World rules: a rules-light game system which focuses on narrative and communal storytelling rather than character "builds" and tactical combat. The mechanics of creating a character takes about two minutes, while the important stuff is backstory and narrative connections with the other PCs.
I've been contemplating how to translate this system to the play-by-post format. The more I think about it, the more interested I am in attempting a short Dungeon World PbP adventure, set in Golarion, just to see how it would work.
I am considering using the module Murder's Mark as inspiration for the storyline. The adventure format is open and a bit of a sandbox, with a minimum of dungeon exploration, which puts it very much in line with Dungeon World adventure design.
I'm honestly not sure how well this would translate to the PbP format, and I'm relatively new to the Dungeon World rules. I've been playing in a DW campaign for about two months, and I have not yet attempted to GM the system. Consequently, I'm inclined to do a closed recruitment with people I already know on the boards-- people I know will be happy to learn the system along with me.
Would anyone be interested in trying out a PbP adventure using the Dungeon World ruleset?
i'm in the middle of a project that turned out to be much bigger than I originally planned, so I really shouldn't...
on a somewhat related note, the project i just mentioned is revamping the variant multi-classing system. i started doing it for a home game thing and it kind of snowballed... i started separating classes into different 'paths' that focus on particular elements of the class instead of one hodgepodge of abilities for each class, then added some archetype paths, and am now working on versions for all the ACG classes... i think i'm at like 27 pages right now (at the brawler) with 2-6 paths for each class (including some unchained ones). So, now I'm thinking about maybe trying to publish it as a 3pp supplement. I'd love feedback on it if anyone feels like looking at it... it's not formatted for publication (and there's no art yet) but i'd love to hear thoughts on the system and balance and what not if any of you would like to offer it?
Teldon/Nate: I'd be happy to take a look. PM me the link or an e-mail address.
Ziomarra / Haladir - I'd normally be up for a game (playing in your Ravenloft game, I really like your GM style and the amount of effort you put into building an atmosphere... same goes for DM Nate with his divine touched Runelords game obviously) but I really am maxed out at the moment (almost to the point where I am wondering if I need to cull a game or two). But, if you do run something, I will lurk / watch for sure!!!
Teldon / Nate - I'd certainly be up for having a look although I'm far from a rules guru!!!
cool. i have it saved as a google doc (which I believe you should be able to comment on). and even without being a rules guru at all you can say 'this one looks awesome' or 'that one looks too awesome' or 'why would anyone ever play this', lol.
I'll PM the link to anyone who's interested :)
ps- thanks!
As I said elsewhere, Dungeon World doesn't work for me over PBP. Last time I tried, I ended up overwhelmed by waking up to 30+ posts with entire combats resolved.
I'd be interested in taking a look at the doc, Teldon. I'm curious to see what you've done with it.
Shadlah/Veronica: That's actually my big fear with running DW as a PbP, and why I wanted to run an experimental adventure with players I know.
Combats in DW are normally very free-form, and the GM usually has to bounce between characters rather rapidly. I'm not sure how to capture that looseness in a PbP with its asynchronous posting.
Honestly, I still haven't decided whether or not I want to do this at all. I seem to have a bit more free time at the moment, but I realize that could change. If I do decide to go for it, I may try adapting something shorter than a full module, like a PFS scenario.
Woo-hoo! Level 5!
I haven't fully thought this through... but for Zee's feat, it will certainly be Precise Shot. She's been throwing cards into melee for a while now, and that -4 is cramping her style!
3rd-level spells! She's not really a blaster, but it will be hard to resist learning lightning bolt! And, given Zee's general theme, I think bestow curse would be very appropriate as well.
Level 5 Warpriest
No increase in BaB or saves..*sighs*
Fervor heals 2d6 now
Sacred weapon doing 1d8 dmg
Spells
+1 L1
+1 L2
Skills (+5) will think of this..
Feat: don't know yet...
And yes, the fight agaisnt the devil was a GREAT fight!
I honestly thought some of us, maybe all of us, could die.
are we allowed to mix variant multiclassing with regular multiclassing? i'm like 90% sure that i'll level as an investigator, but like 10% really likes the idea of grabbing a slayer level or two for the BAB, saves, and martial weapon proficiency (especially if the devil's glaive stuck around).
assuming I do (or must) take an investigator level, most of the updates will be simple. I just need to figure out what to take for my new talent and my new feat (honestly, there's a good chance I'll take extra talent for my feat).
I have no philosophical problem with people mixing up regular multiclassing with the variant version… I can’t really see how it would break anything so go ahead if you like…
Wow... There are so many investigator talents I want.
Here are the top contenders:
Mutagen (good way to use my brain to be better in combat)
Infusions (can benefit others with my extracts)
Quick Study (use studied combat as swift action, so almost always on)
Effortless Aid (aid another as a swift action, so use often in combat before iterations)
Empathy (roll twice, take better on all sense motive; detect thoughts for an inspiration)
Trap Spotting (free check to notice traps in 10')
Even with the extra talent feat I can only pick two... I'm open to feedback if anyone has thoughts they want to share?
+1 1st level spell slot (Using them for CLW)
+3 Skills
+2 BG Skills
+1 Feat (What to get. What to get.)
+8 HP (Avg + 1 CON + 1 FCB)
And (drum roll please.)
+1 Divine bond
Now the question is, do I get the mount, or the weapon. Common sense says weapon, but I really, really want to see Joanna with a great, big puppy of a dire wolf as her mount. :D I can just see Briana's post when it shows up.
Rowenna: Master! The metal-skinned one smells of dog! DOG!
Rowenna: Why must we put up with this insufferable canine? It is plotting my death. I just know it!
Rowenna: Do you have to be friends with the metal-skinned one? I mean, she got a dog of all things to ride when she knew-- Knew!-- you were a cat person. That's grounds for breaking off a friendship in my books. Besides, it's not like we couldn't find someone else. I mean, all she does...
erm, Sorry. Got carried away.
Okay, took a look and Dire Wolf isn't a mount choice, apparently, but a normal wolf is. It's medium, though, so she can't use it as a mount, but she can use it as an animal companion, and it would be almost as hard to hit as Joanna.
So I guess the question is, does a Paladin's divine bond have to be a mount? Can it be more like a companion instead?
I'm am going out of town for a few days. It will probably be Monday before my next post.
The second type of bond allows a paladin to gain the service of an unusually intelligent, strong, and loyal steed to serve her in her crusade against evil. This mount is usually a heavy horse (for a Medium paladin) or a pony (for a Small paladin), although more exotic mounts, such as a boar, camel, or dog are also suitable.
This really does leave it in the GM's court... Personally, I'm with Briana- I'd like you take a dire wolf pup (statistics of a normal wolf) on the grounds that it's a viable mount at 7th when it's matured enough to ride (when it becomes large, though you'd use the standard wolf companion numbers not any kind of dire wolf stats). But, again, that's just what I would do, it's really up to Zed what he wants to do.
As for talents... I just remembered that Str mutagen (the most useful one) penalizes Int- that's not a trade Teldon is willing to make, so I've eliminated one option. I think I'm going to skip trap spotter too because as helpful as it is Teldon seems like more the stop-and-inspect kind of guy. Empathy I really like but it's probably not as useful as the other options (and I haven't made more than a couple sense motive checks since 3rd level, so I feel like it's kind of hard to justify). So, that leaves infusions, quick study, and effortless aid (which actually make aid other a move action, but i could spend an inspiration to do it as a swift). Quick study is so good I kind of feel like I need to take it (although it could start to clutter my swift actions with arcane pool). Infusions and effortless aid are both solid and both beneficial to the party... part of me feels like effortless aid is a really good fit with Teldon's desire to encourage sound tactics, but infusions would let me pass out a couple see invisibility extracts to other people...
What all are we going to have available for dealing with the 3 imps we know about? I'll have a couple of see invisibility extracts/infusions... does anyone else have that? or faerie fire, glitterdust, or invisibility purge?
So, reading through the paladin’s mount / druid companion, if Joanna did decide to go with a wolf mount… I think I’m with everyone else – it’s cool to have your mount as a Medium sized companion until level 7, at which point the wolf would be increase in size to Large (and be usable as a Mount)… w.r.t. specifically using a Dire Wolf, the rules do somewhat discourage it… and suggest the GM asks for regular Handle Animal checks… so, rather than a Dire Wolf, I’d prefer Joanna just had a ‘regular’ wolf (that becomes rideable at Level 7)…
…in terms of when this might happen, the next part of the adventure will (mild-spoilers!!!) have you out in the wilds for a while – that would be an ideal time for Joanna to find her companion / mount…
+6 HP (Avg + 1 = 5 + 1 Con)
+1 1st Level extract
+1 2nd Level extract
+12 Skill Points (appraise, bluff, craft[alchemy], disable device, knowledge[arcana, dungeoneering, planes], linguistics, perception, sense motive, spellcraft, use magic device)
language: infernal
+2 BG Skill Points (knowledge[history], craft[illustration])
talent- quick study
feat: extra talent [effortless aid]
abp: +1 deflection
edit: I believe my profile is completely updated
HP 5+3 Con+1 toughness=9 HP
skills (+5)
Diplomacy +1
Sense motive +1
Survival +1
Heal+1
Know Religion+1
BG skills (2)
Lore (Famous lovers)+1
Know Nobility +1
Feat
Spell Penetration
So, reading through the paladin’s mount / druid companion, if Joanna did decide to go with a wolf mount… I think I’m with everyone else – it’s cool to have your mount as a Medium sized companion until level 7, at which point the wolf would be increase in size to Large (and be usable as a Mount)… w.r.t. specifically using a Dire Wolf, the rules do somewhat discourage it… and suggest the GM asks for regular Handle Animal checks… so, rather than a Dire Wolf, I’d prefer Joanna just had a ‘regular’ wolf (that becomes rideable at Level 7)…
…in terms of when this might happen, the next part of the adventure will (mild-spoilers!!!) have you out in the wilds for a while – that would be an ideal time for Joanna to find her companion / mount…
Cool! I'm more than happy with this, although Joanna does have the ability to summon her mount to her side once a day. I'll abide by your ruling, I just wanted to point that out if you wanted to wait until is was plausible. Besides the idea of the others finding Joanna sleeping cuddled up next to what is for all intents and purposes a gigantic, fluffy puppy is one that I would very much like to see, and could be explained by her not having full control over her new ability.
Okay, so anyone have any ideas for a name. Snuggles sprung to mind, but Joanna isn't the character of mine that gives her animal pals odd names. That would be Gwynethiel, whose animal companions are a thrush named Fluff and a horse named Imperious Rex.
Feat is going to be Sheild Focus
Skills that have been leveled up: Handle Animal, Ride, Perform (Sing), and Linguistics.
And I chose Celestial as Jo's new language. Briana and Teldon certainly use it enough for Joanna to have begun picking up on the basics.
Stats for both Joanna and her new friend are below in the spoiler
Josephina Annabella Whitehall
Female human (Chelaxian) paladin 5
LG Medium humanoid (human)
Init +1; Senses Perception +1
Aura courage (10 ft.)
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Defense
--------------------
AC 20, touch 13, flat-footed 19 (+7 armor, +2 deflection, +1 Dex)
hp 44 (5d10+10)
Fort +8, Ref +5, Will +8
Immune disease, fear
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Offense
--------------------
Speed 30 ft. (20 ft. in armor)
Melee +1 longsword +13 (1d8+12/19-20) or
. . dagger +11 (1d4+9/19-20) or
. . heavy shield bash +11 (1d4+9) or
. . unarmed strike +11 (1d3+9 nonlethal)
Ranged light crossbow +8 (1d8+5/19-20)
Special Attacks channel positive energy 3/day (DC 14, 3d6), smite evil 2/day (+2 attack and AC, +5 damage)
Paladin Spell-Like Abilities (CL 5th; concentration +7)
. . At will—detect evil
Paladin Spells Prepared (CL 2nd; concentration +4)
. . 1st—cure light wounds (2)
--------------------
Statistics
--------------------
Str 18, Dex 12, Con 13, Int 10, Wis 13, Cha 14
Base Atk +5; CMB +11; CMD 22
Feats Extra Lay on Hands, Shield Focus, Weapon Focus (longsword), Weapon Versatility
Traits alabaster outcast, mediator, sacred touch
Skills Acrobatics -3 (-7 to jump), Appraise +1, Diplomacy +11, Handle Animal +6, Heal +7, Knowledge (nobility) +5, Knowledge (religion) +5, Linguistics +3, Perform (sing) +7, Ride +1, Sense Motive +6
Languages Celestial, Common, Thassilonian, Varisian
SQ divine bond (mount), lay on hands 6/day (2d6), mercy (shaken), sheltered
Other Gear breastplate, heavy wooden shield, +1 longsword, dagger, light crossbow, ring of feather falling, bedroll, blanket[APG], cleric's vestments, explorer's outfit (2), masterwork backpack[APG], noble's outfit, signet ring, silver holy symbol of Iomedae, waterskin, 14 gp, 4 sp
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Special Abilities
--------------------
Animal Companion Link (Ex) Handle or push Animal Companion faster, +4 to checks vs. them.
Aura of Courage +4 (10 ft.) (Su) Allies in aura gain a morale bonus to saves vs. fear.
Detect Evil (At will) (Sp) You can use detect evil at will (as the spell).
Immunity to Disease You are immune to diseases.
Immunity to Fear (Ex) You are immune to all fear effects.
Lay on Hands (2d6 hit points, 6/day) (Su) As a standard action (swift on self), touch channels positive energy and applies mercies.
Mercy (Shaken) (Su) When you use your lay on hands ability, it also removes the shaken condition.
Paladin Channel Positive Energy 3d6 (3/day, DC 14) (Su) Positive energy heals the living and harms the undead; negative has the reverse effect.
Share Spells with Companion (Ex) Can cast spells with a target of "you" on animal companion, as touch spells.
Sheltered You become shaken when you have less than half your maximum hit points.
Shield Focus +1 Shield AC
Smite Evil (2/day) (Su) +2 to hit, +5 to damage, +2 deflection bonus to AC when used.
Weapon Versatility Weapon w/ Weapon Focus: shift grip to alter damage to B/P/S (free act.).
--------------------
Animal Companion
Wolf
CG Medium animal
Init +3; Senses low-light vision, scent; Perception +7
--------------------
Defense
--------------------
AC 20, touch 15, flat-footed 17 (+1 deflection, +3 Dex, +1 enhancement, +5 natural)
hp 45 (5d8+20)
Fort +8, Ref +8, Will +3
Defensive Abilities evasion
--------------------
Offense
--------------------
Speed 50 ft.
Melee unarmed strike +5 (1d3+2 nonlethal) or
. . bite +6 (1d6+4)
--------------------
Statistics
--------------------
Str 14, Dex 16, Con 16, Int 6, Wis 12, Cha 6
Base Atk +3; CMB +5; CMD 19 (23 vs. trip)
Feats Alertness, Improved Natural Armor, Toughness
Tricks Attack, Attack, Attack Any Target, Combat Riding, Come, Defend, Down, Guard, Heel, Hunt
Skills Acrobatics +9 (+17 to jump), Perception +7, Sense Motive +3, Stealth +7; Racial Modifiers +4 to survival when tracking by scent
SQ attack any target, combat riding, hunt
--------------------
Special Abilities
--------------------
+4 to Survival when tracking by Scent +4 to Survival when tracking by Scent.
Attack Any Target [Trick] The animal will attack any creature on command.
Combat Riding [Trick] The animal has been trained to bear a rider into combat.
Evasion (Ex) No damage on successful reflex save.
Hunt [Trick] Hunts or forages for food to bring to handler.
Low-Light Vision See twice as far as a human in dim light, distinguishing color and detail.
Scent (Ex) Detect opponents within 15+ feet by sense of smell.
Trip (Ex) You can make a trip attempt on a successful attack.
If you're good with the stats, GM Zed, I'll get Joanna updated.
Poor Teldon, ever the lone guy in a sea of estrogen...
A lone wolf. ;-)
It would be double funny if Teldon was the only character played by a woman, and every one else was played by a man.^^
I'm still traveling without my laptop. It will be tomorrow before I'll get a chance to level up.
Okay, so anyone have any ideas for a name.
Wolfie McWolfface?
Personally, I like to name animal companions something that sounds kind of like a noise they could make, as if they had told me their own name. Thinking of wolf sounds, though, that seems like it might work better for male companions... maybe Arya (sort of a yawn like sound into a soft growl and back to a yawn)?