New Discussion thread, wee! Hopefully the Gameplay doesn't go awol this time.
Hm did you know you can effectively Dot a campaign by posting in the gameplay thread then deleting your post? You can stay current with the campaign without messing up the hot roleplaying action with ooc Dot posts!
Dotting.
Correct Crustypeanut, that's how I dot gameplay threads to avoid clutter.
So, I boned it up when dotting in actually, I dotted in with the wrong alis. I deleted it, but poor Branson now shows as a PC in this game.
Brimley, when you get a chance can you kick him out of the party please?
Got a post in as Skrioth though.
Do all of the APs begin at a festival/party or inn/tavern?
Hmmm, I suppose Legacy of Fire doesn't.
WotW starts in a prison.
WotW starts in a prison.
And is published by Fire Mountain Games, not Paizo.
I know, I wasn't specific. I guess I meant, do all of the Paizo ones start that way?
Second Darkness starts in a gambling hall, Curse of the Crimson Throne starts in a Harrower's home.
I could name all of the campaigns, but I can tell you right now that not all of them start with a festival and most don't start in a tavern. Paizo has a theme going on with a campaign starting off with a festival, though. Then something horrible usually happens to f#%% it up.
Yai. Weather forecast for the tug-of-war competition: light snow with a chance of boulders.
Of those I've played, Kingmaker starts with the character reaching a remote trading post... which is functionally very close to an inn (indeed, it's going to be the only roof over their heads for the rest of adventure). Serpent's Skull however starts off with a shipwreck. By the way, there was a merfolk character in that one, too. A Calistrian worshiper to boot. Her greatest weaknesses were on the record as being: jewels, nasty critters, and stairs.
Paizo has a theme going on with a campaign starting off with a festival, though. Then something horrible usually happens to f+@! it up.
I'm about 95% sure that's what's going to happen here.
So, the hulking form of Arctorus watched on in silence over the heads of most in the crowd, when he spotted someone he had not seen before. A woman who also managed to stand almost a head above the crowd, her hair the color of a roaring flame. She was perhaps the most beautiful thing he had ever seen, and his mouth gaped slightly as he spied her at a distance. He blinked a couple of times before turning his head slightly so as to not be caught staring.
Who IS that? They aren't from here, that is for certain. I'd have...
It's then that he catches sight of the flame-haired Skrioth, and his eyes go large. Tharok may fancy himself as tough as the mountains and as calm and collected as the most stoic of patrol leaders, but still Skrioth turns his head so that he almost trips.
Abashed, he fights to regain his dignity and turns to Qytheerah by his side.
"Who is that?" He shoots her one more glance, and then fights for a nonchalant tone. "Has she been in town long?"
"I think I can safely say today's the first time anyone in Trunau has cast his gaze upon her. Though it sure looks they're trying their best to make up for the lost time."
cannot help but try to move closer to the red haired beauty, as a moth drawn to a flame.
They must not get many elves up this way.
Or women.
With 18 charisma and unique physical features. :-P
With 18 charisma and unique physical features. :-P
Isn't Charisma 10 - 12 the human norm? I'd think anybody, man or woman, would draw eyes with Charisma 18. Skrioth is about as attractive and appealing as is humanly possible. Be criminal to ignore her!
She has over triple my charisma score.
I'm good at derplormercy.
Also, as our good GM already pointed out during recruitment, a readhead.
Jokes aside, I'd say an elf-like woman with 18 CHA would stand out in a crowd in the same way as Arctorus' massive 20 STR makes him difficult to ignore. Perhaps even more so, considering Trunau's relative abundance of burly warrior types and lack of... well... readheads.
GM, I have a question. Would the Raging Vitality feat have any effect on your Injury Table? I'm probably going to pick it up at level 3 or 5, as it seems like a good feat for staying alive.
I don't find it odd that folks picked her out of the crowd given who she is. Very thematic, we've all seen such things in film. Seemed very reasonable.
I put a 5' "smoking hotness" aura around Skrioth on roll20
What's funny is that a 5 charisma usually attracts as much attention as an 18 charisma. Just a different kind of attention.
I had a dwarf with 5 Cha. Just ask Brimley or Arctorus. He was.. fun.
And then he died.
Not trying to ignore anyone else, fyi. I just figure Arctorus is used to being ignored and avoided so is likely not actively seeking to talk with anyone in particular ATM. Feel free to prove him wrong! Lol
No problem, if my 35+ years of playing this game makes me a judge of such things, I'm sure that circumstances will throw us all together at some point.
Not trying to ignore anyone else, fyi. I just figure Arctorus is used to being ignored and avoided so is likely not actively seeking to talk with anyone in particular ATM. Feel free to prove him wrong! Lol
Ditto. Morgder is a loner by nature. Doesn't mean he'll avoid a conversation though. Not prompting anybody to start one either, just letting you all know I'm here and following along.
I'm up on roll20 if you guys wanna bs a bit..
GM, I have a question. Would the Raging Vitality feat have any effect on your Injury Table? I'm probably going to pick it up at level 3 or 5, as it seems like a good feat for staying alive.
You'll still get the Con bonus to Fortitude Saves (and an extra smattering of hit points to buffer the going down danger zone). Beyond that, it won't have any added effect on the injury side of things. But there's the benefit of not just dying when your rage ends or you go unconscious, of course.
All aboard the AP Railroad, choo choo!
In the Campaign Info tab, you will find an NPC Roster that will have links to images added over time. Usually when you come in contact with someone worthwhile, I'll add an entry/picture to it.
No problem, if my 35+ years of playing this game makes me a judge of such things, I'm sure that circumstances will throw us all together at some point.
It's like I'm an oracle, or something.
No problem, if my 35+ years of playing this game makes me a judge of such things, I'm sure that circumstances will throw us all together at some point.It's like I'm an oracle, or something.
Speaking of Oracles..
We happen to need a support/healer (Or someone who can use our goddamned Wand of CLW we have) in my Iron Gods campaign. A friend of mine was going to join, but ended up not being able to. As a result, I'd like to see if any of you guys would like to join? Arctorus and Grafelda are both in the campaign as well, but our group is completely lopsided.
The campaign itself is being ran a bit light on the roleplaying standpoint, especially in comparison to this one, but we're focusing more on actually getting through the campaign. Currently we're just about to begin Book 2 and are starting at level 4 - if any of you are interested, its a 15-point buy, any alignment (Though make sure you work well with others if you go CN or Evil), Starting gold of 6000gp and two traits (No campaign trait required since you'd be a new addition). A third trait with a drawback is always allowed.
Basically, first person who gets a fully completed char with a background (Doesn't have to be long) is fine by me! And.. yeah.. currently we have a Barbarian (with 5 int/wis/cha I might add), a Pistolero Gunslinger, a Fey Sorcerer with Tiger Companion, and a Barbarian/Alchemist/Kineticist that zaps things.
Jelani's Kineticist hasn't joined the group yet, but he and the new player will be doing so in Hajoth Hakados, which I'm going to be moving the group to once they get their gear done.
So who's up for it? Iron Goooodssss! Feel free to hop over here and chat with the guys if any of you are interested. Spoilers abound in the gameplay thread though.
Appreciate the offer, I'm knee deep (5th level) in an Iron Gods campaign with an Oradin, so I can't.
Hey Morgder, how are you envision your dwarf's CHA 5 manifesting? I'm working with the assumption that it's mostly due to his mangled post-giant appearance, but are there other factors at play that make him so unpalatable?
Hey Morgder, how are you envision your dwarf's CHA 5 manifesting? I'm working with the assumption that it's mostly due to his mangled post-giant appearance, but are there other factors at play that make him so unpalatable?
You didn't ask, but my 18 is just that I'm insanely hot and have a powerful personality. I'm the complete package!
I would like to take a moment and point out that we're like 2 days into playing this AP and nobody has died yet. I think this speaks to the overall competence of the three spellcasters, as well as the fact that all of them actually have CLW on their spell lists!
Go Team!
I thank you for bringing up that point and indeed would like to extend my appreciation to our sensibly-built front-liners, always ready to take one for the team.
Hey Morgder, how are you envision your dwarf's CHA 5 manifesting? I'm working with the assumption that it's mostly due to his mangled post-giant appearance, but are there other factors at play that make him so unpalatable?
Perhaps it's not just the fact that he's terribly unpalatable... Usually CHA is considered the mental analog of STR, the ability allowing one to exert his will upon the others. A creature having 2 CHA or less has no sense or self, and getting to 0 CHA means you're incapable of interacting with the outside world. Rather than repulsive, he can just be very demure and unwilling to impose his point of view on the others, maybe considering such an effort a waste of time. His WIS of 12 though makes him no pushover – indeed, he's the second wisest of all of us!
He'll probably have to do a lot of facepalming during this AP... It's never a good sign when the two most charismatic PCs have a cumulative WIS modifier of -4...
Hey Morgder, how are you envision your dwarf's CHA 5 manifesting? I'm working with the assumption that it's mostly due to his mangled post-giant appearance, but are there other factors at play that make him so unpalatable?
Maybe he's just a jerk?
I envision Skrioth as being hot, with a strong personality, but not necessarily with people skills. I've tried playing that so far. I didn't put points into most of the "face" skills. If that's needed, I suppose I can adjust, but others might be more suitable as our face, Qyth as an oracle of battle might be a good choice.
Hey Morgder, how are you envision your dwarf's CHA 5 manifesting? I'm working with the assumption that it's mostly due to his mangled post-giant appearance, but are there other factors at play that make him so unpalatable?
Well there's the the assortment of scars and whatnot that have not helped his appearance. He has one of those "resting b#$&! faces" so he's basically always scowling when he's not talking to people. However the biggest piece is that he's a loner who doesn't know how society works very well. He's spent a large portion of his life in the wilderness completely by himself.
Which will boil down to his completely lack of tact, being blunter than a giant's forehead, and believes that talking gets nothing done, only actions.
Apologies for all of the interior monologue on Skrioth. She's folowing a foreign god that she knows little about, and without an Avatar having shown up on her doorstep dropping off commandments and a trip-tik.
In some ways, she could be considered a crazy religious zealot, I suppose. Making it up as she goes, and able to justify whatever she wants based in her own interpretation.
We'll see where it goes.
Which will boil down to his completely lack of tact, being blunter than a giant's forehead, and believes that talking gets nothing done, only actions.
Anyone with 16 hit points at first level can be as blunt as they want!!
@Skrioth: Nah it's actually been very interesting, getting to know our characters right at the beginning so that we can start making informed decisions about our interactions from the start. Moreover, Skrioth is the only true "outsider", so a round of introductions was in order.
I envision Skrioth as being hot, with a strong personality, but not necessarily with people skills. I've tried playing that so far. I didn't put points into most of the "face" skills. If that's needed, I suppose I can adjust, but others might be more suitable as our face, Qyth as an oracle of battle might be a good choice.
I wasn't actually planning on this, but after I rolled a +2 racial bonus to Diplomacy checks as my Aasimar special ability I decided to just roll with it. Lacking a true skill monkey, it might be sensible to avoid skill superpositions wherever possible (I'm in a Kingmaker Campaign where virtually everyone has a +9/+12 Diplo modifier at 1st level). I envision Skrioth as being smoking hot (also considering her physical stats, far above average), with Qyth being more of an over-enthusiastic people person (as well as probably cleaning up quite nicely, to the point that she might be considered pleasant enough to look at everywhere but around Skrioth ;) )
I think I've already more than depleted my round worth of interactions, so for now I'll refrain from posting until our GM advances the action ;)
Hahaha, I missed that we were given a round, ahh well!
DM, how much would I know about Angradd, as a dwarf?
Skrioth appears momentarily perplexed, "Anchor? Because he has no father?" and then her face lights up, "Oh! Because of his size, he will keep us from moving! His lack of a paternal parent is not the reason for his choice as anchor at all! This now seems both an obvious and a necessary strategy. What other tricks are there to winning this game?"
Glancing back and forth between Qytheerah and Morgder, "let's see how this goes," and Skrioth states simply, "Angradd," as if it is all the explanation needed and hoping to see some reaction in one or both.
In which we discover absolutely no-one has any ranks in Knowledge (religion). Lol.
Hahaha, I missed that we were given a round, ahh well!
No worries. I was the first to be carried away!
Well, best to discover these problems early, hahaha.
Someone take a Bard cohort and we're all set!
I have to say, I'm really excited about our group. It feels like we've got a great dynamic already, with distinctive characters, interesting personalities, and a potential to forge a really tight group once we unite and prevail against some initial adversaries.
Yeah we do!
DM, how much would I know about Angradd, as a dwarf?
He's a God of the Dwarven variety. Beyond that, I'm afraid a lack of relevant Knowledge skills and an atrocious Intelligence aren't particularly helpful. Would probably take Morgder a moment to remember, given his wilderness based lifestyle, but I don't imagine a dwarf would be beyond remembering one of their more known deities.
Will post an update to the Gameplay thread when I get home. Couple of notes on that: 1.) Average Initiatives and 2.) Sum Strength Modifiers.
I will explain in more detail in the update, but mechanically guidance won't have an impact. It would probably look a bit odd if a stranger started casting spell after spell in the middle of the entire town too. Whether Skrioth would care or realize that is another matter, but in the meta front the spell is not applicable.
Yeah, heh, thought he might not know much.
I don't like average initiates, mostly because it devalues certain feats and abilities and can make it harder on certain classes. I usually do "before enemy", "enemy", and "after enemy" blocks. For instance, say you get these rolls.
Rogue: 18
Wizard: 16
Fighter: 2
Cleric: 5
Enemy (averaged): 10
So it would look like this.
Init Order
Rogue
Wizard
Enemy
Cleric
Fighter
After the rogue and the wizard post their actions, take the enemy actions. And then immediately reset the init order, putting whoever acts directly after the enemy at the top.
Init Order
Cleric
Fighter
Rogue
Wizard
Enemy
Or
Init Order
Party
Enemy
It still allows combat to go by pretty quickly by making sure all of the allies/enemies are grouped together, but allows init-reliant classes to make use of a high roll or modifier.
Just my 2 coppers. I'll go with whatever you decide, but this method is my personal favorite. Something like the rogue getting in an early sneak attack or the wizard being able to get that haste off earlier can make a huge difference.
I've ran with that model in the past, but the Average Initiatives method moves along so much quicker. If we had some Initiative fiends in the party I'd consider leaning that way, but all of you are in the +1-+3 ballpark, so it shouldn't be a big deal.