Something Wicked This Way Comes (Inactive)

Game Master Fanguar

Adventurers are all about looting the bodies, but when I do it suddenly there's a problem.

You're just so literal about it...

For the next week and a half, I am going to be in the process of moving. That means my time online may be spotty since I’ll be off work (where I am often able to post on breaks) and without home internet as utilities are switched. I’ll try to post regularly still, but feel free to bot me at any time if I am holding things up.

I apologize for the short notice, but I have a really crazy week of work that is happening. Please bot me. I'll be back next Wednesday.

@All: Slammed at work, busy phase of ops going on with skeleton crew (alas not the undead, ceaselessly working kind). Likely tail end of the week before I get some clear air - please bot me as necessary.

Fang,

I think you're doing a heck of a job running this game, and I enjoying Haruk a lot.

I think the issue in game currently is that this is sort of slog or at least it appears that way to me. There's just a lot going on, but most of it is kinda filler/background stuff.

How sandboxy are we allowed to get? There's definitely some goals and objectives Haruk would like to purse, that might be outside the initial scope of the game.

I think my insistence on finishing out to-do list before we start the ritual is part of what's slowing things down.

Getting the Horn defensible requires a ton of downtime stuff, and we tend to make every one of the different things on the list into a scene. In PbP that takes forever.

I think that all of us should be more liberal taking the reins of the story when we aren't in combat. Fang has shown us that he's fine with that, and that he can roll with whatever we do. We're al just very programmed not to backseat-GM, so we're afraid of doing anything that might feel like we're assuming the actions of other players, or taking over as GM. In general that's a good habit for a player to have, but in this instance it's getting in our way.

The chunk of time I just posted was nebulous. Somewhere between 3 days and a week, probably. If all of us did that a few times, just dropping a scene framed to move things forward, concentrating on our pet projects, Fang could summarize our gains and whether we succeed just by saying "everything goes as planned" or "but there was a complication!"

Fang nailed it that this section needs to be player driven, so lets drive.

Drive away. :)

Next order of business-

Click the Annotated Map link and take a look around.

I've set all of the Minions to be controllable by anyone, so you can use your own token, or any of the minions to cruise around the horn and take a look at the changed I've made to the architecture. It's relatively minor. Mostly I just beefed up the defensibility of the first two levels.

In case it isn't completely clear, the light green color is "floor. It's as close as I could get to the color on the map. Most of the new floor I've added just covers up all the clutter and damage that the original artist put in as detail. By now we've cleaned the place up pretty thoroughly, so I figured I'd get rid of it.

I've scoured the game thread for descriptions of the rooms and labeled everything as clearly as possible, and I've left all the doors "off" to make it as easy as possible for everyone to look around.

Please let me know if anything seems wrong to you, or if there are any changes you'd like to see.

When you're done, please drop your character token into the room that you'd like to claim for your character. I'll label it later.

Once everyone's signed off on the renovations and claimed a room, I'll add in all the rest of the details and get all our minions on the map as well.

This point in the game is pretty much right where the previous, furthest along WotW game I've been in died. I found that having a good visual of all the creatures int he Horn was fun and useful.

Can't access the map right now and likely won't for a while... Sari will take something small, easily defensible and out of the way ideally. :)

Sorry I'm not contributing much to this, Sari is already likely to live forever and she's more a 'live in the moment' kind than an elaborate planner.

Thinking that 3-5 or 3-11 will be best suited for where my vamp will nest.

Albrέkt will feel most at home amongst the foul iconography present in 3-5. He is also near the favoured lurking spot of the wraiths - however makes sense for him also to leave the place of foul worship to his Undead Mistress and take over the defaced chamber 3-10 (he'll likely wish a connecting door to be constructed).

Once his coffin is finished in all its necro-baroque glory he will reside here more and more when not acting for the Knot.

@GMF: He'll be looking for a large sized coffin - one that can accommodate the vampanzer and perhaps a concubine/snack (or any of the other Knotters who wish to cuddle up on those long, slow ritual nights ;)

Here's the access link for anyone who still isn't able to get into the map for some reason.

While you folks take a look at our new improved evil lair, I'm going to take care of the bookkeeping on raising my full allotment of minions.

Step 1: I'm taking my basic human skeletons down to the 1st floor capture cage, and turning them loose inside. They are locked up, but now Uncontrolled (they essentially become a trap hazard now)

Step 2: I'm going down to the Boggard bone pile and waking a bunch of them back up. Mechanically, they'll be the same as the bloody, burning boggard skeletons I already control. I'm just going to have a lot more of them now. It will take me 5 separate castings of Animate Dead (over the course of three days), but eventually I'll have 15 of them total.

The redecorated building looks lovely to me. Thanks for the room and whore queen shrine!

@Xanos: "Love what you've done with the place" :)

Looks perfect to me - think us "making our mark" on The Horn (and like you touched on - seeing that visually will help galvanise us)

Looks excellent (now that I can look at it properly!)

Sari, I've laid out a few coffin options in the room you've claimed. Just drop your token on the one you like and I'll get rid of the rest.

The one that looks like a floor grating is exactly that. I thought it would be a handy thing to set your coffin into the floor and access it via mist form.

Sari, I've laid out a few coffin options in the room you've claimed. Just drop your token on the one you like and I'll get rid of the rest.

The one that looks like a floor grating is exactly that. I thought it would be a handy thing to set your coffin into the floor and access it via mist form.

Sneaky and cunning! Exactly as I would expect from ancient evil.

I totally agree; it looks great!

Does anyone else have Leadership yet?

I do, hence how we're doing the Evil Organization Team Up !!

Becoming a proper vampire is more important! Besides.. negative Cha.

@Haruk: This particular adventure can be pretty sandboxy, as there is a lot of in game time passing. So if you have personal goals, they can be advanced. As written, it is episodic with large time jumps between events. The problem has been that the timer doesn't start until the ritual has begun. The next adventure is on a shorter timeline and should run smoother, but still as written, the whole campaign takes place over a couple of in game years. Also, I'll RP the Grumblejack upgrade during the ritual sacrifice and pass his stat block onto you.

@Xanos: The map looks good. Thanks for putting that together. Just note, that Hexor and Vexor can be stationed wherever the party wants them to be. As is, they are free to roam the area. Also the wraiths can be found anywhere.

@Albrekt: Coffin is not a problem. Consider it done.

Haruk, can you give me a basic description of your followers so I can add them to the map?

My guess is you have a handful of 1st level mooks who are pretty much identical, and one or two 2nd level mooks who might not be identical.

Are we using the various downtime rules that let you had add/upgrade various rooms, defenses, etc to a building, or this all more freeform?

If we are allowed to use said rules, is that something we should consider making use of ?

Also,

Xanos, Occult Rituals? Moar powerz?

I thin the original intent was to use those rules, but they were taking forever and we mostly circumvented the various time/money costs with the Lyre of Building, so I've been treating it like a montage for the cosmetic changes. So, freeform. If the GM wants to do it differently we can. I'm just trying to take the reins and get shit done.

Once I get the final OK on that stuff I'll do the cost breakdown on the big defensive installations like traps and the ballistas.

I'm not sure what you mean about occult rituals.

These occult rituals!! MOAR POWERZ!!! <evil villain cackle>

I love those. If they're allowed to use, I'd love to. All the really useful ones are well outside our power level right now, but they'd be fun things to work towards.

I still need the numbers/description of Haruk's followers.

Sorry Sari. This game moves slow enough, and I've been through so many variations of the storyline, that it's hard to remember everything.

It's hard to play an immortal genius when you're a mortal dumbass.

Xanos:

Micah was a handsome Paladin, mighty in both word and deed. His sister Rafaela was a Cleric, whose beauty few could match. And their younger brother was a Heaven's(Celestial) blessed Sorcerer by the name of Gabe.

Yes, they are purposefully named akin to the 3 of 4 archangels. It sorta makes his corruption of them a bit more vile in my eyes, even those names don't carry the same weight in this setting.

So you have 3 Followers right now? I'll add them to the map.

Seems like you should have more though.

Xanos has 10 first level and 1 second level followers. What's Haruk's leadership score?

Those are the ones who are specifically named in his background. He does have others but they aren't as important.

I just need to know how many of them there are so I can put them on the map.

Sorry Sari. This game moves slow enough, and I've been through so many variations of the storyline, that it's hard to remember everything.

It's hard to play an immortal genius when you're a mortal dumbass.

I don't mind, Sari just likes snarking at Xanos in character! :)

Okay, so looking over Vile Leadership, Haruk would definitely qualify for the Rewards loyalty/success bonus.

What's considered a 'special power'?

Base Leadership score would be 13, for cohort 14, and for followers 16. If Haruk is considered to have a 'special power' that would be 14, 15, and 17 respectively.

I just have to say, does this really play out a giant battle scene between all of our minions and all of the enemy's? Because that would be completely insane!

Have you ever played Dungeon Keeper?

@Haruk: Considering that you have a custom prestige class, I would yes, you have a special power.

Okay, awesome!

So that means I have one 4th, one 3rd, three 2nd, and 30 first level followers.

I'm assuming we do not yet count as having 'great renown', right?

Also, Fang, if I take a draw back, could I take Wicked Leader as a 3rd trait?? It's absolutely perfect for Haruk. The drawback would be Power Hungry which is also thematically perfect for him.

Have you ever played Dungeon Keeper?

Oh! I at least know the concept. Though if we're basically creating a dungeon for a party to attack, doesn't that mean all of our followers are going to die?

Xanos Doom wrote:

Have you ever played Dungeon Keeper?

Oh! I at least know the concept. Though if we're basically creating a dungeon for a party to attack, doesn't that mean all of our followers are going to die?

Guess that depends how engaged we get in it! :)

Xanos Doom wrote:

Have you ever played Dungeon Keeper?

Oh! I at least know the concept. Though if we're basically creating a dungeon for a party to attack, doesn't that mean all of our followers are fodder is going to die?

Fixed that for you. And the answer is yes. :)

Rose Silversting wrote:

Xanos Doom wrote:

Have you ever played Dungeon Keeper?

Oh! I at least know the concept. Though if we're basically creating a dungeon for a party to attack, doesn't that mean all of our followers are fodder is going to die?

Fixed that for you. And the answer is yes. :)

Not to mention all the sub-bosses on Levels 1 & 2 that will need to be defeated before a final battle with the vampiric uber-bosses ;)

Welcome to the Horn! Here's your red shirt. Or here's your garnish and cracker.

Pretty much, yeah. Personally, I plan to go full on Tucker's Kobolds and use smart tactics and planning to turn low level enemies into adventurer bane.

Added all of Haruk's minions to the map. Had to take some guesses as to levels and classes, so take a look and let me know if you want anything changed.

I'll finish the set dressing once I'm back from thanksgiving vacation.

Perfectly done, save that Micah wouldn't be an Antipaladin.

In fact, if he could be a Lord of Darkness, which is an archetype created for WotW(in book 5), that would be perfect.

Isn't Lord of Darkness an Anti paladin archetype?

Yeah, but it's Asmodeus themed, and not chaotic evil.