Skyfall - Colonies of the Shining Sea

Game Master Corerue

I may decide to take a composite longbow as well. I thought about the gunpowder weapon, but I think that they would be repulsive to Num-Rah because of the stench.

Ok cool, do what's best for your character. I've been having some fluff v mechanics hesitations myself regarding whether or not I'll go into the Duelist Prc or run straight fighter. If I choose to prestige I'd have to switch from longsword to aldori dueling sword and dump a bunch of unnecessary feats to make it work: Ex Weapon Pro, Finesse, Aldori Dueling Mastery, Quick Draw (I actually planned to take this but still).

I don't like most exotic weapons because they seem so forced when a GM puts them into loot piles. Besides, I don't think longswords get the love they deserve.

Yeah, that's another thing I wanted to ask GM about: What are the chances of improving our starting items? Num-Rah's equipment consists mostly of ancient relics of the High Ones. He would not throw it away just because he found something better. If possible, I would prefer to enchant it further, perhaps with ioun stones or something. Or if there are a Artificer-like NPCs, that would be great. We could turn our loot into enchantments.

Edit: GM, what are your thoughts about my Gnoll follower? Right now, he is a pup, but when he matures, I plan to take Leadership and take him as cohort. Is that OK? If it is, can you post your rules for Gnoll characters?

Alright history is up for me.

Sheet mostly done. Just need some more info for the rest.

Donovon, I believe your missing you're 1st class level HP (which is maxed)

That should be interesting since my character's got some seriously intense gnoll hate going.I also think firearms aren't likely to exist in the natural world the Tabaxi inhabit.

Well, yeah - but your character is also CN and mine is LN, so there should be a lot of differences from the start.

Aelessaer will be starting gunless. I figure she was allowed to keep some pirate kit but not anything that the airship might easily incorporate into its own armoury: hence chain shirt and rapier.

Donovon, I believe your missing you're 1st class level HP (which is maxed)

Nope; I broke it down:

8 (for 1st) + 10 (fighter lvls, 6+4) + 4 (monk lvl) + 4 (Con) +2 (favored class fighter) = 28

Ah, so just some crappy rolls then, that's too bad

Ah, so just some crappy rolls then, that's too bad

Yeah, I'm noted for having poor luck with the HP rolls. :)

And I think I found a possible solution to my dilemma...potions of mage armor. Best of both worlds, at least when I need it. And cheap.

Yeah, that's another thing I wanted to ask GM about: What are the chances of improving our starting items? Num-Rah's equipment consists mostly of ancient relics of the High Ones. He would not throw it away just because he found something better. If possible, I would prefer to enchant it further, perhaps with ioun stones or something. Or if there are a Artificer-like NPCs, that would be great. We could turn our loot into enchantments.

Agreed! I love the idea of named weapons that grow in power with a character. I wish Pathfinder did a Weapons of Legacy style book.

And I think I found a possible solution to my dilemma...potions of mage armor. Best of both worlds, at least when I need it. And cheap.

50g for an hour of +4 Armor to AC seems a fair enough exchange for the Monk abilities. Just need to become BFF's with some wizard to get a discount.

Just wondering, is the Armored Longcoat the same as the Armored Coat from the APG?

Armored Coat(medium) 50 gp +4(Armor) +3(Dex) -2(ACP) 20%(Spell Failure) 20 ft.(speed 30) 15 ft.(speed 20) 20 lbs.

I think this is going to be a very interesting game. What say all you?

I think this is going to be a very interesting game. What say all you?

H-Yeah! Can't wait for this to start.

First off for the Tabaxi player's: the High Ones left many wonderous things behind and many dangerous things as well.

Num-Rah, being part of the high ranking warrior-caste that he is, knows of several dangers that inhabit the ruins that the City Dwelling Tabaxi call home. The High Ones may have faded away but parts of the city are still defended by their Sentinels. Tall, powerful and leathally fast creatures made of metal and wielding weapons that are lethal to even the greatest of warriors. But these Sentinels remain ever vigilant of only parts of the ruins, guarding them for so long that the Tabaxi in the city have become accustom to avoiding them entirely.

More then once though, quick footed and intelligent soldiers have drawn enemies into these guarded areas and allowed these near invincible guardians to annihilate those who threaten the small population of city dwelling Tabaxi.

Even the Nomads have encountered areas that are marked by stones covered in strange symbols and vigilantly guarded by Wardens made of stones, wood and precious stones for their eyes. These Wardens not only protect the strange obelisks that dot various parts of the land but they seem to also help the land grow and cultivate it with an unknown power.

Neither of these guardians speak, they only warning that they give is their baleful gaze at those who dare trespass. The Eye(s) of the Various Wardens outside the city glow red when they are provoked. Normally they are a sky blue or the color of the precious stone that was inserted for their eye(s).

Not all of the wardens are dangerous though, their are distinctions between them. The city Sentinels are only known for their violent defense of areas while their are a handful of wardens that heal injured creature within their domains. Although once the creature is healed they return to what they were doing and any creature caught lingering for to long can incur the wrath of the larger Wardens.

Num-Rah: Your Gnoll follower is fine and I will post some rules on that later. What age do you hope to start them at? As you sounded like a young character, so the Gnoll is much older then when you found it, I was thinking of applying the young template to the Gnoll and thus keeping its stats down for now until it matures. Does that sound good?

Sorry for the delay everyone 12+ hour days leaves me little time to post and I have quite a bit of obligations to fulfill sadly. >.<; Thank you for your patience.

I need to scroll up and I will answer you guys questions up above. Its been quite active in here so its gonna take me a bit~

As for improving starting items, I don't mind in the slightest. We may need to get creative in how we approach improving them though. ;) But hand waving things is a DM's specialty, I just don't want to do it too much.

A reminder, for those of you in the Old World. Crafting Magic Items has fallen to the wayside since the departure of the Fairer races. For those enterprising wizards that still churn out items of Permanent magical power, they face a daunting 5% chance that they lose 1 hp per 1,000K in the value of the item. So for now whatever items you've applied to your characters are immune to the bump that other items will have in the future. For simplicity sake Magic Items can be anywhere from 1.25% - 1.5% higher in cost to obtain and enchantments are expensive.

For those of you wanting to become crafters possibly, I am fine with 'expediting' crafting and giving characters the down time to get things done. So I strongly suggest a few skill points in profession for those down times, even if no one crafts I will still have times where a week possibly passes or a few days and a few profession checks will put some coin in your pocket.

I took ranks in Profession (sailor), would that be the skill that is used to pilot airships? Whatever that particular skill is, I'll be sure to max it out.

Airship Pilot would be the profession of those who pilot airships. :)

Awesome. Then that is definiately the direction Diyeana will be going in. She was regular Cygnus Military, and was then chose to, or was shunted to, one of the Privateer groups, as it was mutually recognized that her talents and, even moreso her attitude and personality, were more suited to such ranks.

I had considered her having her captain her own ship as well, but that may be a tad too much responsibility for her. Perhaps 1st mate would suit better.

Her and Cassian could easily have met in the mercenary forces at some point. She could perhaps even be helping him get his new ship.

Diyeana is a happy-go-lucky, daring-do sort, definitely CG in nature. She doesn't like rules or restrictions and generally has no problem doing what needs to be done, as long as it's in the name of the greater good. I could see her though clashing with the Cross' over certain of their modus operandi, but again, as has been said, just more RP gravy ; )

Corerue: I love the idea of the armoured longcoat. If Diyeana had been a long gunner, and then was moved to being a privateer, would she have been allowed to keep any of her equipment, as, technically, she's still a member of Cygnus' armed forces?

While the military rifle is awesome, I'd be even more interested in being able to keep the longcoat for her. I am still kinda more attached to the idea of her being primarily a pistol, or duel pistol, wielding sort. Though I suppose she could do both. Military rifle for long range, pistols for up close and personal

Also, is there any kind of equivalent hand gun weapon in the Long Gunners ranks? Say for officers?

The armored longcoat is a standard in the military and merely decorated and adjusted for the needs of the Long Gunners, the only thing they would confiscate is the weapon as it is a very specially designed weapon and few countries have the ability that Cygnus does.

As I posted before, Blackmarket deals can be made but! If you are caught with military grade hardware or stolen military weapons it can bring very real consequences. I'm not trying to scare people away~ from the idea, just reinforcing that I will keep things realistic. If someone bought a military assault rifle, full auto, which is illegal in the states. The Feds would be crawling all over them in no time when they got wind of it.

There is no equivalent handgun among the Long Gunners, they prefer their rifle over any other weapons and only turn to swords or blades if pressed into close combat to protect themselves or others.

I will post info on the Armored Longcoats later, sorry I need to get some sleep. >.<;

Num-Rah: Your Gnoll follower is fine and I will post some rules on that later. What age do you hope to start them at? As you sounded like a young character, so the Gnoll is much older then when you found it, I was thinking of applying the young template to the Gnoll and thus keeping its stats down for now until it matures. Does that sound good?

I thought to be 21 years old at the start of the game. Num-Rah is still young and his honor is not stained or strained by many years and hard choices. Perhaps he is a bit naive and does not realize the full price that the honor demands.

I also had in mind a young template for the Gnoll. I would make him a part of the game, but in non-essential way, such as "Pup, go get me a drink of water!" or something like that. And when I reach high enough level to take Leadership, he would become mature follower, with distinct personality. Until that moment, I planned to play him as half-feral child, essentially.

Cassian Vespertine wrote:

I took ranks in Profession (sailor), would that be the skill that is used to pilot airships? Whatever that particular skill is, I'll be sure to max it out.

Airship Pilot would be the profession of those who pilot airships. :)

I don't see the relation. O well. Rule Zero, right? :p

There's a very real. Chance I'd never have put that together haha

Diyeana Stormwin wrote:

Ah, so just some crappy rolls then, that's too bad

Yeah, I'm noted for having poor luck with the HP rolls. :)

And I think I found a possible solution to my dilemma...potions of mage armor. Best of both worlds, at least when I need it. And cheap.

750 / 50 = 15gp per use.

Buying a wand and asking Diyeana to use it on you may be a better option.

True. That and ranks in Use Magic Device. It's a class skill for rogues so you'd get the bonus.

It's good to that this board is as active as it is. Shows how eager everyone is to start :-)

Dotting

Donovan Lynch wrote:

Diyeana Stormwin wrote:

Ah, so just some crappy rolls then, that's too bad

Yeah, I'm noted for having poor luck with the HP rolls. :)

And I think I found a possible solution to my dilemma...potions of mage armor. Best of both worlds, at least when I need it. And cheap.

750 / 50 = 15gp per use.

Buying a wand and asking Diyeana to use it on you may be a better option.

Yeah, the wand might actually be the way to go there...I didn't really want to invest in UMD because it didn't really fit my character concept (and I have plenty of other skills I'm investing in)...but after looking closer, since there's no penalty for failure (unless I roll a 1) I can just roll a couple times to use it, and get by with investing only 1 point. That's doable. And I could see it as something he picked up in the service, from a warcaster or other military mage.

I don't want to rely on Diyaena (no offense) simply because Donovan's more of a "self-sufficient" sort...but if things get tight and/or I roll bad, I could see him thrusting it towards her with disgust saying "Dammit, can you get this thing to work?" :)

DM, I know you need your sleep, but a couple questions:

1.) can I buy a half-charged wand? I'd assume I picked it up sometime back, and have used some of the charges.

2.) Guns: 10% price for all, or 25% for early only?

And if I'm bothering to take a rank of UMD, I suppose I should look and see if it's worthwhile to pick up any other wands/scrolls.

Also, a question about pronunciations...most of you I think I'm cool with, but a couple...

Cassian: is this KASS-ee-an, or Cash-yan?
Diyaena: Dee-YAY-na, or Die-yay-na, or just Diana?
Aelessaer: AY-less-air?
Num-Rah: first syllable with a "uh" or "oo" sound?

I realize it's not super-important since we're on a board, but I still like to know.

It will definitely be interesting seeing the manner in which the characters advance mechanically with different avaiability to technology or magic equipment.

The activity on the board is great and I'm anticipating both playing and reading the other group's activities.

This should be fun.

Why must I wait for the sgg feats for the shadpw assassin :(

Donovan, you've got the pronunciation right for me. Although a lot of people just call Aelessaer 'Lucky'.

DM Corerue wrote:

Cassian Vespertine wrote:

I took ranks in Profession (sailor), would that be the skill that is used to pilot airships? Whatever that particular skill is, I'll be sure to max it out.

Airship Pilot would be the profession of those who pilot airships. :)

I don't see the relation. O well. Rule Zero, right? :p

There's a very real. Chance I'd never have put that together haha

Hehe, for the particular book I use for my Airship rules. Profession (Airship Pilot) is the skill used to pilot and use special actions with an airship.

Been meaning to post this earlier. Everyone has an extra 2,000 gp to use in the purchase of materials, look at as a bonus to your current character wealth.

For Tabaxi Nomads, coinage isn't the norm for trade. Especially because coins are heavy and quite useless to a Nomad bog themselves down with. Some of the ones that frequently trade with the City Folk may keep some coins for ease of purchasing. For the most part most nomads carry their wealth in the form of furs or tradeable goods, weapons or even precious stones. So you can be creative. ;)

Also I am not trying to say you 'can't' carry coinage. Just a little bit of info as Coinage in general is somewhat rare, especially since their is few actually cities.

Commonplace Guns: While still expensive and tricky to wield, early firearms are readily available. Instead of requiring the Exotic Weapon Proficiency feat, all firearms are martial weapons. Early firearms and their ammunition cost 25% of the amounts listed in this book, but advanced firearms and their ammunition are still rare and cost the full price to purchase or craft.

I am following this rule for the most part, for those of you who were privateers or are part of the Military you can purchase an advanced firearm for 25%. Since this is not a military issued weapon your character can keep it upon their exit from the military.

You may buy half charged items and since they are not permenant items they are not hiked up in price, just break it down for the amount of charges on there as normal. :)

1.) So basically, we each get an extra 2000 gp? Or does that 2 grand have to be spend on "goods"? I mean, can I sink it into a Ring +1? :)

2.) Aha...welp, even at 25%, I'm going to go with a revolver over the pepperbox; mainly coolness factor, but speed of reloading is also nice.

I'm going to say (assuming you're fine with this) that when he left the service, they let him purchase his old sidearm (perhaps they were upgrading to a newer model).

I picture it looking something like this

3.) I need a clarification on ammunition as well.
I initially thought that I needed to purchase the metal cartridge, powder, and shot all separately (that the cartridge was literally just the empty shell casing). After re-reading, though, it appears that the cost includes powder and shot. Is this correct?

If so...2/3 of that 15 gp cost is powder...which should be reduced in price. So I'm figuring 10 (powder) + 1 (shot) + 4 (casing). Since the first 2 can also be used with early firearms, reducing the price for those (but NOT the casing) gives a final cost of 2.5 + 0.25 + 4 = 6.75 gp per loaded metal cartridge. Is this acceptable?

Sorry for so many questions...I just like to be clear on things. :)

Aelessaer wrote:

Donovan Lynch wrote:

Num-Rah: first syllable with a "uh" or "oo" sound?

With an "oo" :)

Also, a question about pronunciations...most of you I think I'm cool with, but a couple...

Cassian: is this KASS-ee-an, or Cash-yan?

I've been pronouncing it KASS-ee-an. A very good question by the way, I find really helpful to know these details on your teammates too.

Since the bombardment of Q&A is still in full effect:

Are there any new skills or skill functions in your setting?

Would it be too much of a hassle to copy/paste the airship maneuvering ruleset you're using to me? I'll probably just put them in my profile for easy access.

Maybe for those with military contacts could use the 25% cost on ammunition for advanced guns? Which would be 3.75 gold per shot. Also personally I'd invest in a wand of abundant ammunition for those of you with the ruinously expensive bullets.

I think that different factions give different discounts/bonuses so that could be incentive to try to join one. I'm interested to see the other benefits and prereq's for the ones introduced and any other secret societies that may or may not be out there.

If we're getting 2 grand extra then that gives me enough spondooliks for a Dawnflower Sash: Corerue, would you be happy with a Desna flavoured Dawnflower Sash (Starsong Sash?)

I'll probably invest the extra 2 grand in a bow. Right now, I don't know when or if Mirrianissa and I will join the main party, so I'm thinking we could use a ranger weapon.

Thanks for asking Donovan, it really was a good question, especially as many of the names are unusual.

First off, no worries, but you've been spelling her name slightly wrong ea not ae. So, it's pronounced Die-yee-ana

As a Gunslinger, Diyeana gets Gunsmithing for free, which allows her to craft her own firearms and ammunition. She may be willing to sell ammunition (assuming she has time to make enough) at cost to trusted team mates and companions. (So better stay on her good side ; )

Ha! I don't need bullets. ;p I could make poisons for people...of course you then run the risk of poisoning yourself, but hey that's one of the worries of life isn't it?

Lol, ya One of them.

Oh, ANOTHER question Corerue, since Diyeana will be crafting her own firearms, I have a special design addition (well at least one, but we'll settle for one for now ; )

I'd like make it a wand rifle as well. Or, ok sort of one anyway. Simply, would like to include two holsters, one each side of the stock or assembly that can hold wands and enable her to cast with one or the other without having to hold the wand in her hand (she would still be touching it with her hand or fingers, which should be the same anyway, yes?)

What do you think of that? And how much extra do you (or anyone) think that should cost to add it?

Ok will figure out what to do with the bonus 2K and how she carries wealth.

Pronunciations: thank you all for your feedback.
--Cassian, spot on.
--Aelessaer, thanks...Donovan probably will just use your nickname, though. :)
--Diyeana, I cry your pardon for my error. Thanks for the explanation.
--Num-rah, I am super-glad to hear that it's a soft U...when I was saying it to myself, I couldn't help but think of this guy. (Even funnier considering you're a tabaxi)

Okay, I've revamped my character sheet...I think I'm pretty much done now. I'm VERY glad I decided to ditch the armor and go with flurry; it really helps my offense...I didn't realize how much until I started crunching some numbers.

On that note, I've been messing around with spreadsheet formulas ever since my brother put me on to using it to generate random numbers...I came up with a damage calculator, if anyone else was interested.

download here

Excellent reflavoring of the sash Aelessaer, very cool.

As a Gunslinger, Diyeana gets Gunsmithing for free, which allows her to craft her own firearms and ammunition. She may be willing to sell ammunition (assuming she has time to make enough) at cost to trusted team mates and companions. (So better stay on her good side ; )

I'm happy to (possibly) have a shared past with you in that case, haha!

I've got a modest Craft(alchemy) so I'll be building up fun things like Tanglefoot bags, Thunderstones and the tried and true Alchemist's fires in our down time or during travel if we're going with a privateer route. I was thinking of dipping levels into Alchemist(Chirurgeon) so we had access to healing spells but I think alchemy, to Cassian, is more of a pastime than it is an art. That being said, everybody stock up on healing potions!!!

Ha! I don't need bullets. ;p I could make poisons for people...of course you then run the risk of poisoning yourself, but hey that's one of the worries of life isn't it?

Since my PC is going for an "honorable" path, I'll probably avoid any damaging poisons but I won't disapprove the usefulness of the knockout effect of a handful of them. Are you planning to give your character more levels in ninja or shadow assassin? Just wondering what differences in specialties there will be between you and Aurora.

... I've been messing around with spreadsheet formulas ever since my brother put me on to using it to generate random numbers...I came up with a damage calculator, if anyone else was interested.

download here

Thanks for the tool! I already know Cassian won't be dishing out the major damage that most of you will be if only because of his fighting style. As opposed to super high STR and Power Attacking while two-handing every weapon I find, I'm mostly going to be dueling with a free hand (making Duelist so tempting). Besides, Acrobatic Dodge doesn't work when you use a two handed weapon it seems to work out to that style's benefit. Not to say I'll never switch to two-handing my longsword, I'd rather reserve that sort of stance for dire situations.

Since there aren't style feats for anything but unarmed I figured I'd try to make the best out of what's available. Aldori Dueling Mastery seems like a good enough fix to that problem. I'd probably go for it if DM Corerue ruled that the aldori dueling sword can count as a longsword for weapon focus feats or that weapon proficiency was something that you could train for. I've never felt like it should cost a feat for weapon pro with a single weapon. Curse You Tabaxi!

I suppose you can count that as another question... Wow, sorry to hit you with all of these inquiries DM. Last one I'll ask. Promise.

Answered one of my own questions!

Treated as: If a weapon’s description says it is “treated as” another weapon, a character lacking the appropriate exotic weapon proficiency, can still use it as if it were the other kind of weapon and feats such as Weapon Focus still apply, as do abilities requiring a certain weapon. For example, the butterfly knife allows a proficient user to open or close it as a free action and is otherwise treated as a dagger, meaning she can wield it as a dagger, gain the benefit of Weapon Focus (dagger) when wielding it, use it as the target of a spell that only affects daggers, and so on.

Trying to site sources to the books but you can scroll down to Treated as: from this link.

Now, to figure out how to make my 29 year old human character qualify for the Breadth of Knowledge feat...

Leon Cross wrote:

Ha! I don't need bullets. ;p I could make poisons for people...of course you then run the risk of poisoning yourself, but hey that's one of the worries of life isn't it?

Since my PC is going for an "honorable" path, I'll probably avoid any damaging poisons but I won't disapprove the usefulness of the knockout effect of a handful of them. Are you planning to give your character more levels in ninja or shadow assassin? Just wondering what differences in specialties there will be between you and Aurora.

I'd say the biggest difference in there specialties out of combat is Aurora's a talker/distraction Leon is a poisoner and trap specialist. In combat Aurora is a focusing on disarm with two sword breaker daggers and Leon is a crit focused fighter especially when I take exotic style again and my katana crita for x3 damage at 18-20 still. It only gets better when I get keen.

Word. I'd like to find a niche for my PC without altering too much of the character. It seems like our party is slightly different shades of the same color so I'm trying to find a way to bring the team to a gestalt.

Ok I think we should each post what we each planned our characters to bring to the table so to speak. So we can then try to mesh them together into one whole.

Thanks for the tool! I already know Cassian won't be dishing out the major damage that most of you will be if only because of his fighting style. As opposed to super high STR and Power Attacking while two-handing every weapon I find, I'm mostly going to be dueling with a free hand (making Duelist so tempting). Besides,...

No problem...as I said, I've been enjoying tinkering around with them. :)

But don't sell Cassian short...until Num-Rah joins the team, you've got the highest attack bonus and highest damage; I think you and Donovan are tied for highest Str, and that's only because I used the extra 2K to pick up a belt of Giant Strength (in lieu of my Elven Cloak). I think your damage output might surprise you.

Ok I think we should each post what we each planned our characters to bring to the table so to speak. So we can then try to mesh them together into one whole.

Sounds good.

I planned Donovan to be a commando, basically...a stealth hitter. Sneak up on people and break their necks. :) Tactics include:
--if I have to move and standard attack, stunning fist is good.
--if I can full attack, flurry is pretty sweet (with or without stunning fist).
--if situation seems right, grapple; with the Strangler feat, I deal my SA damage in a grapple.
--I can also do the takedown routine...trip (my CMB is decent), follow up with Vicious Stomp, then proceed to grapple or beatdown.
--guisarme is for reach (including tripping), pistol for range.

Also, if I stun a guy or grapple him, that makes it easier for our other damage-dealers to do their job.

Outside of combat...my ex-criminal days might come in handy (disable device and sleight of hand), and while I don't have diplomacy, I do have bluff and intimidate. I probably do 'bad cop' in the classic routine. :) My acrobatics and climb are high enough to keep me mobile, and I have survival.

Honestly, I know I'm not really optimized at this point (having 3 classes by 4th; hell, I'm a combat-focused character with +2 BAB). But a few more levels and I'll come together...Ftr3 being a biggie, getting me +1/+3 with close combat weapons.