Wandering Wastrel posting in with alias. Crunch/background etc will follow!
In the meantime, a reminder: Why. We. Fight.
So, presumably you've heard Disturbed rendition of The Sound of Silence? I want them to use the same tone to Sing the full Misty Mountains song. I was pissed to see how much the movie butchered that song.
That would be pretty cool to hear.
I like the idea of ancestor worship, or rather, hero worship in dwarven culture. I think it suits the depiction of dwarves in most fantasy settings. Even Golarion and the Five Kings Dwarves, who carved the likenesses of the original Five Kings into the mountainsides! However, in mechanical terms, theyd function more as saints than demigods, since they couldn't grant domain spells, unless you want me to homebrew that???
I have a suggestion for one such hero this expedition could venerate, considering the facts. That would be the great Khadon the Mighty, who drove out the orcish incursion of the Five Kings and founded the last great dwarven empire of Tar Khaddurm, whose capital was Jernashall, built at the heart of the mountain once known as Torag's Crag.
The dwarves of Taggoret would specifically venerate him considering thwir kingdom was overrun with orcs for something like 750 years.
Now doesn't that dovetail nicely into the story ahead of us?
Further fyi, im going camping this weekend so i'll be out of touch. Feel free to dot into the gameplay thread if you have an alias put together. I'm hoping to have things ready to roll sometime next week.
However, in mechanical terms, they'd function more as saints than demigods, since they couldn't grant domain spells, unless you want me to homebrew that???
Why not?
In Pathfinder, Greater gods have 5 domains, lesser gods have 4. Why not have the Dwarven ancestral heroes each grant 1? Sort of a "some assembly required" set of domains and behavioral codes for Clerics and Warpriests.
Shamans would revere one main hero, and swap around their overs with Wandering Spirit. Inquisitors might call of different spirits for each different Judgement. Oracles might get powers from one specific hero, a small group, or the pantheon as a whole.
Paladins might be trying to emulate specific righteous heroes.
All that's just off the top of my head. Feel free to ignore it if you don't like it.
Feel free to dot into the gameplay thread if you have an alias put together.
There's no gameplay thread created yet.
Feel free to dot into the gameplay thread if you have an alias put together.There's no gameplay thread created yet.
My bad. It's there now.
Mythic characters with the Divine Source ability can grant domains. Maybe these heroes had Mythic tiers. :) They never died, just got called up to serve the gods directly on the higher planes.
I was pissed to see how much the movie butchered that song.
I think we'll have to fight to the death over this, as MEN once did agree to disagree on that one :-)
But as a (wannabe) basso profondo myself, I appreciate a good low note so I'm probably biased ^_^
I should have been more clear with my meaning, the singing was beautiful. They didn't sing the entire song and chose what felt like random verses instead of staying true to the song.
When I got my home copy, I opened my Hobbit book and waited...and I was right in that they butchered the song by not singing it all.
Ah, now THAT I agree with entirely! There is a group that remedied that, although they added instrumentals in which I'm not sure is an improvement. Let me dig out the link.
EDIT: Link
Not sure I have ever heard the Disturbed rendition of The Sound of Silence.
Interesting. I am a big fan of the original. I was going to say this one did little for me, but about half way through the emotion level picked up and I did enjoy it. Thanks for sharing.
One of the other recommended links to the side of the utube was the H.P. Joalcraft link. Re-listened to it again too. Its pretty great.
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Upon branching out my reading a bit more, I'm a bit taken by the idea of a Shaman of stone(speaker for the past.) Calling down divine might, communing with the ancestors, learning and preserving the history of those who tried and failed before us and turning the earth itself against the wretches who'd lay low our kinsmen--it just speaks to me here and now.
That does sound quite great. :)
In another game our group is just wrapping up an expedition to Droskar's Crucible (which is on the edge of Droskar's Crag, I think). Does the Crucible exist in this game?
Yes it does. I've only glanced at the CotKK adventures, so I wont be pulling much from it directly.
The other game im running is set in the verduran forest and i'm treating the events of DD as something that happened in the past. I can do the same with CotKK or kust make something else up entirely if yall are interested in it at all.
However you want to handle the game's history is fine with me.
I was thinking that it would be fun to give Boomer a direct connection to wherever it is that we are drying to reclaim. (I thought that it might be Droskar's Cricible, but it could be anywhere really)
What do you think? Something like: "Boomer was born in , but tragidy forced him and what remained of his family to flee when he was barely more than a lad. Now he's ready to retake his former home."
It would give him a rough idea of the layout of the place (or at least what it used to be), which could be handy for us as we try to figure out our exploration goals.
Rosc here, now with 30% more Dwarf. Urist (no relation to the king) is a work in progress. I know he's going to be a Spiritualist, I know that his backstory is that he's the sole survivor of a previous colonization effort, and I know that his phantom comes from the captain of the guard at his previous home. I know that his phantom will be the muscle, while he generally provides support. I also know he will start with Breadth of Experience, and he will likely take crafting feats to help the party out.
Naturally, I'm stuck at the [angry dwarf noise] point buy. Not sure if I want to go decent strength so he can support in melee, or focus on wisdom and keep him in the backline. Once I figure that out the rest should come quick.
Whatever actually happened, it had a lasting effect on poor Urist. Supernatural phenomena would manifest around him at times, leading to the dwarf having to spend most of his time alone. Even still, the voice of an angry woman could sometimes be heard from his remote home, leading some to believe it was haunted.
That wasn't far from the truth. Somehow, the spirit of a dwarven woman found itself bound to him. Helga Silverbrew, usually known as Commander Silverbrew, was one of the final soldiers to die at Urist's old outpost. A talented recruit who leapfrogged up the ranks over the bodies of her fallen compatriots, she was all that stood between the last survivors and complete annihilation. While a proud and steadfast warrior, she ultimately failed, meeting her fate like so many others. It was her fury in battle and her resentment at the perceived incompetence of her local leaders that dragged her back into the material plane, with the overwhelming emotions muddling her mind. As a result, her memory of the failed expedition is no more reliable than Urist's. All she knows is that THIS time, she's going to make sure they do it RIGHT.
With a slightly unhinged mind, a phantom bound to this world by a task yet incomplete, and a desire to "swing back by the old home on the way there," Urist McFatson was more than delighted to sign up for the new expedition.
tl;dr, Unhinged dwarven everyman with a love of telling stories from the Old Fort and an angry ghost that bosses him around.
This song (and the slow-pan picture that goes with it) does a good job of setting the mood.
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I'm gonna put some info together here on the history of the are to help with character backstories. Consider this the player's guide to the campaign. Sorry I hadn't done this earlier.
Also, yesterday was much busier than I expected getting ready for the weekend, and today's been hectic at work, so I'm feeling kinda scattered too. I haven't had the chance to give the builds more than just a glance. I just want to let y'all know, I appreciate the enthusiasm getting your builds together and all, but, please, no stress. I'd like to be all ready to go sometime next week, but that's not a hard deadline. To be honest, I'm not 100% on my end. We'll be ready when we're ready, and we'll begin when we begin.
History
Tar Taargadth was founded by the great general Taargick in -5133 AR during the dwarves' Quest for Sky. Arguments and infighting had brought the great drive for the surface of Golarion to a halt. Taargick consolidated power under him and declared himself king, refocusing his people's attention and completing the drive out of the Darklands in -4987 AR.
In the thousands of years that followed, dwarves spread throughout Avistan and Garund, controlling their territories from Sky Citadels and battling their orcish and goblinoid enemies wherever they found them. Eventually the power of the Tar Taargadth began to wane due to infighting, and the empire was finally defeated by an overwhelming orcish horde in 1551 AR. The Sky Citadels were either overrun by the enemy or so effectively isolated from each other that dwarves began to no longer see themselves as members in a greater empire, a view which exists to this day. The heart of the empire was located in today's Five Kings Mountains, and even though the dwarves still dominate the region today, they no longer have the unity of Tar Taargadth.
Description
The sturdy haft of the dwarven waraxe called the Axe of the Dwarvish Lords shines with veins of silver and its two blades depict images of ancient dwarven glories.
History
When the dwarves completed the generations-old Quest for Sky under the lead of their great king Taargick, the success was not without implications. Many dwarves feared the all-revealing light, the exposure to the weather, the open sky and the countless weird creatures of the alien surface. For thousands of dwarves, reaching the surface only convinced them that they should have stayed in the deep earth. Taargick sensed the fear growing and he gathered the leaders of his people in a hidden cavern, remembered as the Conclave of the Final Deep and together they constructed a simple forge. With ore they brought from the depths of their ancient homeland and strange new metals discovered on the surface they crafted a symbol of their people and poured into it their strength, resolve, legends, memories and the blessing of Torag. When it was done, King Taargick addressed his people, raising the Axe of Dwarvish Lords. He convinced them that the traditions of the old nations might forge wonders from the riches of the new world and emboldened them to face the challenges of the surface.
The Axe of Dwarvish Lords passed through the hands of many kings but was stolen by unknown thieves during the chaos of the Five Kings Wars. It was found in the hands of General Eurad Dberryl but was claimed by Theocrat Ordrik's followers during the Forge War. Knowing the threat to his rising regime that the axe represented, Theocrat Ordrik hid it away deep beneath Droskar's Crag.
After the empire of Tar Taargadth collapsed in 1551 AR, a new dwarven civilization flourished around the Sky Citadel of Highhelm in the Five Kings Mountains. Five separate dwarven nations were established, each led by a different brother. Within the space of six years, Baron-mayor of Highhelm, Gardrick I founded the Kingdom of Gardadth (1557 AR), Saggorn the Holy established the Pious Kingdom of Saggorak (1559 AR), Doggon created Doggadth, the Impenetrable Kingdom (1560 AR), Grak the Younger oversaw the founding of the Laborious Kingdom of Grakogan (1561 AR), and Taggrick I built the Everlasting Kingdom of Taggoret (1562 AR).
Five Kings Wars
A mere nine years after the founding of the last of the five kingdoms, the first of no less than nineteen civil wars broke out in 1571 AR. These Five Kings Wars lasted over 700 years, only ending when the dwarves tired of the carnage and decided to go to negotiations. With the help of a human delegation from Druma, the dwarves negotiated the Kerse Accord in 2332 AR. This treaty ended the civil wars and began a long-lasting peace. Great towering sculptures of the five kings were carved at the highest peaks of the mountains to celebrate the treaty.
Orcish invasion
The peace sadly lasted only 160 years, before the dwarves' ancient enemy, the orcs, invaded the dwarven kingdoms in 2492 AR. The orcs besieged Highhelm for five years and although they were never able to take the city, the Kingdom of Gardadth collapsed. After their failed assault on Highhelm, the orcs then moved on to Doggadth. The dwarves defended their city for 19 years, but eventually Doggadth fell. The orcs moved on, blockading Saggorak and invading Grakodan simultaneously in 2507 AR. Grakodan fell after two years, but the siege of Saggorak ended only when the last dwarf starved to death in 2519 AR. Taggoret was the last kingdom to fall in 2526 AR after 17 years of war; the Era of the Five Kings was over.
Wild Era
The subsequent period following the fall of the last of the Five Kingdoms, became known as the Wild Era. During the nearly 700 years of its existence, the orcs controlled the Five Kings Mountains and only Highhelm remained to defend the dwarven and human civilizations in the area.
The Rending
The seismic and volcanic event known as the Rending destroyed Jernashall and its sister city of Raseri Kanton. In Jernashall, a river of lava spewed forth from the great magmafall in the center of the city and killed every citizen within minutes. The fate of Raseri Kanton was just as horrifying: the whole city fell into the earth.[4] Due to the Rending, King Sidrik III of Tar Khadurrm moved its capital from Jernashall back to Highhelm.
The Rending did what centuries of war and conflict never could: it finally broke the spirit of the dwarven people. The Rending marked the beginning of the decline of Tar Khadurrm, as the dwarves fell into apathy and indifference. For the next 500 years, the dwarves of the Five Kings Mountains carried on, but at the end they fractured and tried to wrest power for themselves and their families.
Originally founded in 3312 AR by the dwarven hero Khadon the Mighty, Jernashall became important enough for the nations of Cheliax and Isger to petition the dwarves to help them build the surface city of Raseri Kanton near Jernashall, for the purposes of trade and diplomacy. They agreed, and in 3451 AR, the sister-city was completed.
Within a few decades, Jernashall was declared the new capital of Tar Khadurrm, replacing Highhelm as the most important dwarven city. In 3332 AR, the engineers of Jernashall completed the first magmafall, one of the greatest feats of engineering of its time. For 500 years the importance and prosperity of Jernashall grew, and it became the center of dwarven life in the Five Kings Mountains.
By the 3900s, whispers began to circulate that the volcanic Droskar's Crag (then known as Torag's Crag) may be set to erupt. The dwarves paid no heed to these warnings however, convinced that the engineering skills of their forefathers would protect them from any natural threat.
The end finally came in 3980 AR. Jernashall was battered and shaken by the inevitable eruption, but remained standing. Under the mistaken belief that their stronghold had withstood the great tremors unscathed, the dwarves shrugged off the event and continued unabated. Unbeknownst to them, however, the initial quake had weakened the foundations of the city. The next day another eruption occurred and the devastation was immense. The great magmafall in the center of the city spewed forth a river of lava, spilling throughout the city slaying its residents. Raseri Kanton was not spared the disaster, and fell into the earth. Only a handful of buildings in the uppermost reaches remained intact, and nearly every resident in either settlement perished. The event became know as the Rending, and marked the decline of the empire of Tar Khadurrm.
In response to this, King Sidrig III made Highhelm the capital once more, abandoning Jernashall completely. The sealed ruins eventually became populated with monsters.
The last great king of Tar Khadurrm, King Talhrik the Industrious, tried to inject the spirit and ethics of dwarvendom back into his people but after his death in 4277 AR, the dwarves once again fractured. Garbold Talhrik was son of King Talhrik the Industrious. Upon his father's death Garbold was crowned but only after much infighting and passionate negotiation. Unfortunately became a victim of treachery. Ordrik Talhrik was King's cousin and closest advisor but also a cleric of Droskar. He was controlling his cousin with addictive substances and making him to cede more and more power to the priests of Droskar. Ordrik murdered his cousin and seized the throne of the Five Kings Mountains kingdom in 4369 AR and attempted to create a theocracy. The resulting Forge War raged for 13 years. Generals loyal to the true crown fought to keep their kingdom but they failed and in 4382 AR, Ordrik declared himself theocrat and all dwarves had to work in Droskar's name. For nearly 100 years the dwarves of the Five Kings Mountains lost all every sense of art and beauty and their craftmanship became merely adequate. Many dwarves fled to the other dwarf kingdoms, as well as settlements in Druma and the Mindspin Mountains. In the end priests could not maintain their hold on the other dwarves and Ordrik's theocracy crumbled in 4466 AR, with entire settlements abandoned.
Collapsed Era
In the 250 years since the fall of Droskar's Kingdom no dwarf has achieved to unite his people. The remaining four Sky Citadels are great metropolises but none can claim to be more than a city-state.
Taggoret fell to the orcs in 2526 AR during the invasion of orcs right into the heart of the Five Kings Mountains, which began in 2492 AR.
Nowadays Taggoret is a thriving city with iron gates and stone walls on the surface and refined great caverns within the mountain. It is located at the north end of the long trail of dwarven tunnels that run beneath the Five Kings Mountains. Its main industry is iron mining and smelting. Taggoret's iron is known as the finest in Druma and Andoran.
Several rivers originate or are fed from glaciers on the Crag, including the Coldforge River (from the Coldforge glacier), the Slagiron River (from the Slagiron glacier), and the Goldmelt River (from the Gold glacier). The crag also hosts the East Gold, Sunset, Silver, Peakcrest, Eastrise, and Deaddrop glaciers.
The volcano last erupted in 3980 AR in a massive explosion known as the Rending, which transformed the entire region. At the time, Droskar's Crag was known as Torag's Crag, though its name was changed to reflect the more hostile nature of the volcano since that time (the evil dwarven god Droskar is the patron of endless toil and suffering). To date, it has shown no major activity, though the peaks constantly spew ash and smoke into the air as a constant reminder of the threat that exists beneath the snow-capped mountain.
Sorry for the info dump. That's all copy and pasted from the Pathfinder Wiki, btw. Hopefully that can help to cement some backstory ideas. When I get another moment I'll try to get a timeline together, which I find helps when trying to find your PCs place in all this rich history.
By the by, here's the campaign map.
That's the twin peaks of Droskar's Crag right there in the middle at J4. Droskar's Crucible is in around F7. You'll be entering the map at B2. The red squiggle through the middle is the boundary with Andoran. You'll notice, Droskar's Crag, although once the heart of all Dwarven civilisation, now lies within the borders of Andoran. The scale of this map and the campaign is smaller than the hex exploration rules. The larger hex groups (denoted by letters) are the 12 mile diameter as explained in the hex exploration rules. The smaller hexes (denoted by numbers) are only 4 miles in diameter. So, the rules will be adjusted accordingly.
Further note, you enter the map at B2, but the adventure starts in the city of Taggoret to the north. Getting from there to B2 will be the most linear part of the campaign, I promise. You make the decisions where to go from there.
Gm, can you put all those spoilers into the Campaign Info tab so it doesn't get lost in this thread?
Gm, can you put all those spoilers into the Campaign Info tab so it doesn't get lost in this thread?
done. And I'm about done for now. I'll be back late sunday, plus I have monday off, and unless my partner has to take the ipad into work again, I'll try an wrap up all the prep work on my end.
Thanks DM, that's excellent work! I will read through and make sure my character is tied into the background. I'll have him completed some time tomorrow, hopefully.
... I have currently chosen Extended Range over Kinetic Blade, but am wondering about this as I could use Weapon Finesse for free with the Feat Tax rules and have a 1d6+5 melee weapon.
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I'd appreciate the group's thoughts on the choice of Extended Range (120ft) for Kinetic Blast OR Kinetic Blade. Without the feat tax I'd go with range for sure. But The Feat Tax lets me finesse Kinetic Blade so my melee would be 1d6+5 vs the light mace at 1d6-1. Which is going to be more useful?
That is purely up to your play style. Beyond that, I can't really comment. There is very few build ideas out there that aren't viable.
@Glor - reasonable question. I'm going to be a melee fighter, and I think Boomer is going for ranged (alchemist bomber). Toulbe doesn't look melee (no offence!). Urist's phantom is going to be melee, I assume, from his post. Hezek is a brawler.
So it looks like we have a reasonable mix of melee and range, so it really is up to you. The only question I have is whether your Kinetic Blast has an area of effect, in which case it might be nice to have something that can hit multiple enemies from a reasonable distance (we've got short legs).
But it's ultimately your call!
Lol, no offense taken. Toulbe is going to be a buffer healer for the most part.
At Sixth level I'll be doing single target burst damage at little higher than an Alchemists bomb and at 8th (12,16,20th) it can stack to do some massive damage. (I think it's 4d6 at 6th, 2 targets at 4d6 or 1 at 8d6 for 8th level and so on till it's 20d6 per round on a single target. It can get stupid nasty.)
So I'm looking at all the errata to make sure I'm playing it right for when the time comes but other than that I'm going be a pretty support heavy bard.
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Best part about feat taxes is that LOTS of builds suddenly become viable. Even builds that were thematically amazing but mechanically impossible become not only usable but completely reasonable.
Upon initial selections, I feel like my shaman will end up being a strong melee caster with good battlefield control, especially once I start getting spells and effects that create barriers and let me shape the encounter to our advantage. A little help from our ancestors now and again certainly won't hurt either.
Alright. Got an alias with a myth-weavers link. Just crunch for now; I'll put in spells prepared and the fluffy bits in the very near future.
@Glor - reasonable question. I'm going to be a melee fighter, and I think Boomer is going for ranged (alchemist bomber). Toulbe doesn't look melee (no offence!). Urist's phantom is going to be melee, I assume, from his post. Hezek is a brawler.
So it looks like we have a reasonable mix of melee and range, so it really is up to you. The only question I have is whether your Kinetic Blast has an area of effect, in which case it might be nice to have something that can hit multiple enemies from a reasonable distance (we've got short legs).
But it's ultimately your call!
Hezekh will definitely be all about punching things. I was thinking we had more melee and going to suggest going ranged, since we look a bit melee-centric.
Glor, if you do decide to go melee, you might check out the Kinetic Knight archetype, which grants proficiency with better armors and shields, but requires you to use the Kinetic Blade. You'd probably need mithril to get the most use out of it, with your dexterity, but something just feels right about a dwarf in mithril fullplate with an earthen sword, y'know?
I'd recommend range, personally.
My ranged stuff doesn't do single target well. It's pretty much all AoE. Having someone who can do more precise ranged damage seems like a good idea.
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I'd appreciate the group's thoughts on the choice of Extended Range (120ft) for Kinetic Blast OR Kinetic Blade. Without the feat tax I'd go with range for sure. But The Feat Tax lets me finesse Kinetic Blade so my melee would be 1d6+5 vs the light mace at 1d6-1. Which is going to be more useful?
Honestly, I'd say you eventually want both. Staring with Blade means you can switch-hit effortlessly, and Kinetic Blast is going to do much, much more for you than any kind of backup melee weapon that you can buy. Then again, 30 feet is a pretty narrow window, especially with a 20 foot move speed, so I wouldn't be surprised if you wanted to go for Extended Range at the start. At the end of it, I'd suggest Kinetic Blade because you can literally dunk on people with it.
Kinetic Knight is a fun archetype, but keep in mind you'll be gving up any and all range capabilities. It's a very pivotal choice to make for a variety of reasons, but if you do, I strongly suggest high strength and not much dexterity boosting.
Oh I almost forgot: I'll also be working on building a proper brewery. Dwarves gotta have a drink now and then, aye?
Thank goodness someone's covering that. Clearly the most important role in the group.
Thanks for your thoughts. I think I'll stick with my instincts and go range for now. I agree with Rosc though and will eventually want both.
OK, background and crunch are in the profile - I'm basically done apart from my gear.
Let me know if you want me to tweak anything, DM.
I think it’s appropriate for a spirit to also have background skills applied.
Wow, looks like a mighty group of straight up badarseness. I love it. Here's the list so far.
Barik Everast - M Dwarf - Ranger (Dungeon Rover) 1 - Wandering Wastrel
Boomer Bellowpiper - M Dwarf - Alchemist (Grenadier) 1 - Doomed Hero
Glor Stonebeard - M Dwarf - Geokineticist 1 - Skorn
Toulbe Hilnack - M Gnome - Bard (Arcane Healer/Soundstriker) 1 - Vitaliano da Riva
Hezekh Ironfist - M Dwarf - Brawler (Constructed Pugilist, Steel-Breaker, Winding Path Renegade) 1 - Ouachitonian (Background Skills?)
Urist McFatson - M Dwarf - Spiritualist 1 - Rosc
Gunnar Brewbane - M Dwarf - Shaman (Speaker for the Past) 1 - Daynen
Rosc, I'll change the name of the King to Dal Dberryl if you want to have Urist.
Hezekh looks like he's missing the background skills?
Other than that, everything's looking good so far.
Any lingering questions gone unanswered?
I still need to, and am looking forward to creating Glor's background. Soon. I am off the rest of the week. :)
My background skills are Craft (weapons) (got to be able to tinker with me arm, after all) and Knowledge (engineering).
Would you mind making one of those Profession(Weaponsmith) or Profession(Engineer). With you background i think weaponsmith would be more applicable. Its a nitpicky request, but youd be able to substitute one skill check for the other.
Sure, no problem.
Ok, I’ve made good progress over the past couple of days preparing this adventure, making random encounter charts, filling out the hexes with info, etc. Today I’m going to work on some dungeon maps, but I’m nearly ready.
How’s everyone else doing?
Still need to complete my background but ready to start.
I’m ready to go.