After Braden points out that he was right-- they should be outside, he returns to sleep.
"If we were ootside, then we'd hae some other beastie tae deal with. Just face it, the world is full o' evil, whether yae hang oot inside or ootside! So what are we suppose tae dae, ignore this one, until yae've all had yer beauty sleep?!"
"Perhaps tomorrow night we can just divide up and sleep where we want. Preferably in a bed back in Hommlett." Ranim says the last as she herself dozes back to sleep.
Male Human Cleric 3 (FC) AC 20 HP 29/29 F: +5 R: +2 W:+5 Perc: +2
Arin pours himself a nightcap, First rule of adventurin', you split up you die!
He then farts rather loudly, grunts about the stinking cloud he just cast, then rolls over falling almost immediately back to sleep...
Not all adventurers are pristine heroes...some of them are just like us. You drink a lot of beer there are reprocussions...
After hearing the movement outside the storeroom, the party settles back down and finishes sleeping for the night.
All spells and overnight HP recovered.
With dawn, or what you are guessing is dawn as you are beneath the ground in an area that generally has the smell of rot and decay that one would expect in a dungeon inhabited by ogres and zombies, Tybek moves out and scouts the area.
The first thing he sees is that the tripwire and trap have been reset and once more there is a bolt with a nasty black substance on it waiting to impale anyone coming down the stairs.
1d20 ⇒ 16
The next thing that Tybek notices when he gets to the tunnel that leads to the crypt is that, despite the voices heard the prior night, there does not appear to be any tracks newer than those left by the party the prior day when they retreated back to rest in the storeroom.
Ok, so you are all rested. Do you want to return to the bugbears, check out one of the other doors in the bugbear room? Check out the angular passage that goes SE from just below the gnoll room? Or check out the passage that leads NW from between the bugbear and gnoll area, or do something else?
Male Human Cleric 3 (FC) AC 20 HP 29/29 F: +5 R: +2 W:+5 Perc: +2
Let's listen at the bottom of the stairs and see if we hear any new guards they have put upstairs.
Guidance on Maegge and Ty for perception.
Let's destroy the trap so it can't be reset.
Finish the areas of around the bugbears? We can go back to the other areas after that.
Braeden, do you have a scroll of a spell memorized to find secret doors or entrances? We may need to do a final poke around we might have missed an entrance somewhere around here.
Arindale has a lot of questions and suggestions but few answers...
Chaos, if I cast Reduce Animal on Gimpy, would he be able to come with us through the narrow passage?
You would have to make a Handle Animal check at the very least. The passage entrance is essentially a 1-2 foot opening at the bottom of a brick/stone pillar and then leads straight down about 8 feet. There are rough stone handholds. Reduce animal would make Gimpy small, so he would fit in, but trying to get hoofed animals into narrow dark vertical shafts is always going to take a little convincing.
"Perhaps we are doing this wrongly. What if we only venture a short ways, make a mess of things, but then return again and set a trap? We know they are fixing the damage we do. Maegge could setup tracks to look as though we left, we break the trap, perhaps engaged one group of denizens."
Braden doesn't ask questions because he knows the answers.
"Ok, let's not hurt anyone. Just poke this from a distance and let us get going. I think first the NW passage, and then the SE passage. We need to find that necromancer so Ty can scare him."
The party stealthily makes its way back toward the bugbear warren, or as stealthily as the Arindale tank can move. Arriving at the passage that angles to the NW, Tybek carefully moves up the passage only to find the way blocked by a heavy portcullis.
Male Aasimar (Angelkin) Paladin of Apsu (Oath of Vengeance) 2/Sorcerer (Gold Dragon Bloodline) 1 Hps 31/31 AC 20 FF 19 T 11 CMD 16 Fort +8, Ref +4, Will +8 Init +1 Per +5
Berashel realizes everyone has left and hurries to catch up with them.
"Did yae nae see the portculis blockin oor passage? Ahh may not be as skinny as yae, but Ahh doubt that even a wee thing like yae could get by that gate. If Ahh did see a way tae open it, we'd be on the other side by noo! So noo, Ahh didnae see anything else. Be mae guest, but if Ahh didnae see anything, then yae certainly arnae gonnae see somethin!"
"Let's follow the gud priest's advice and check oot this other passage doon here!"
Unless Maegge is able to see something, Tybek leads the company onward down the southeast passage.
Not trusting the grumpy dwarf, Maegge adds his sharp hobbit eyes to the search and finds nothing to raise the portcullis. It looks as though it could be lifted, but the gate is iron and would weigh a ton.
As he moves back to follow the drunken cleric to the southern passage, he suddenly notes a rather unnatural crack in the wall. A minute or two more searching and he finds a carefully hidden latch behind a tiny rock outcropping. Lifting the latch, a well hidden door pops open to reveal a narrow passage which leads about 15' north before turning west and ending at a large winch. The winch appears to be in good repair and frequently used. There is even some grease of some sort in a small pottery container next to the winch, apparently to keep it lubricated.
While the winch is completely silent, the portcullis itself does make some screeching noises as it is slowly raised. After a few minutes, it finally reaches the top where it locks into place with a loud click.
Moving down the passage, the passage makes a slight turn to the west before ending in a bare stone wall.
Male Human Cleric 3 (FC) AC 20 HP 29/29 F: +5 R: +2 W:+5 Perc: +2
Cast Guidance on Maegge and help her look for it.
1d20 + 2 ⇒ (8) + 2 = 10 +2 for the assist.
Arindale put his hands on his hip before proclaiming, If it goes down we clear this level first before proceeding. The most horrible creatures in the stories are always on the lower levels of the Dungeon and we haven't found that Necromancer yet.
"If it goes down we clear this level first before proceeding. The most horrible creatures in the stories are always on the lower levels of the Dungeon and we haven't found that Necromancer yet."
"Aye, that's what all the story books say, but this isnae some fantasy we're livin! These beasties have tae fight fer food and try tae survive doon here! Mind yae, let's keep oor eyes oot fer anything suspicious, especially necromancer clothes and trinkets!"
Tybek remains vigilant for traps and takes Arindale's advice of not descending too far.
For this one I am not concerned, but for future reference, I do not usually allow Take-20 on Perception. It just seems that nobody ever finds everything, even the most astute will miss something. Take-10 is similar, but I do not mind this. Just remember, if you take-10, there is no redo if the check was higher. I know that RAW allows this, but with perception being such an important skill, negating the chance of missing something sort of takes away from the mystery of whether players missed something.
Maegge carefully examines the blank wall and finds a poorly hidden doorway. Upon opening it, it becomes apparent that the door is really designed to be hidden from the other side. On the other side of the wall is a 10'x10' room with a stairway leading up. Following the stairs, the party finds the backside of another door, which upon opening they find leads to the room on the main floor of the Moathouse where the bandits first attacked the party. On the other side of the 10'x10' room is the backside of another hidden door, this leads into the room formerly containing the ogre jailor. Apparently the party managed to miss both of these doors when searching the rooms earlier.
You also find Gimpy and the puppy hanging out here unharmed just outside of the ogre's room.
Male Human Cleric 3 (FC) AC 20 HP 29/29 F: +5 R: +2 W:+5 Perc: +2
Looks like you can finally bring your deer in here Maegge! he says with a big smile on his face knowing this will make the little man very happy to have his companion back with him.
Let's go check out the passage that was back to the Southeast.
Same routine, Ty leading the way with a guidance using his Darkvision.
"Let's go check out the passage that was back to the Southeast."
Tybek pulls out his pocketwatch, checks the time, and declares, "Aye, Ahh can dae that, but Ahh think this is takin much mair time than Ahh thought it would!"
Chaos, can you kindly add coordinates to your maps so I can use them for reference in asking you questions. :-).
Male Aasimar (Angelkin) Paladin of Apsu (Oath of Vengeance) 2/Sorcerer (Gold Dragon Bloodline) 1 Hps 31/31 AC 20 FF 19 T 11 CMD 16 Fort +8, Ref +4, Will +8 Init +1 Per +5
"This is an important choice and should not be made lightly...." Berashel keeps a straight face for about 2 seconds until laughing, "Ah who knows any way we pick is likely to have bad guys to dispose of which is all I care about"
"Wait fer me yae daft wee hobbit! Yae jist might get yerself killed! Dae yae ken how important it is fer a professional such as maeself tae check fer traps first?! Noo, following behind me, and Ahh'll keep yae safe!"
Tybek leads the others down the Southeast passage, checking for traps as he goes.
HP 25/25; Per +12 (+2 outside); AC 16, Touch 14, Flat 13; Gimpy HP 28/28; Per +6; AC 18, Touch 14, Flat 14
"Gimpy!" cries out Maegge in happy surprise to find his friend unharmed - and with a way for them to be together in the deep, dark dungeon. Hopping up on Gimpy's back with a grin, he guides the stag back down into the depths, making for the southeast passage.
Looking for more secret doors in the passage like it was some kind of game, Maegge waits patiently for Tybek to report on any traps.
Perception for more secret doors:1d20 + 12 ⇒ (1) + 12 = 13
After recovering their beloved animals, the party decides it is finally time to explore down the angled passage which they have been passionately avoiding thus far. After checking for traps, secret doors, falling oozes, undead, bugbears and gnolls, the party finally makes it to the end of the passage where they find a doorway unapologetically blocking their passage.
You come to the end of the angled passage which ends in a doorway facing to the east.
While grumbling at his companions behind him, Tybek quietly opens the door and peeks beyond. What he sees is a long straight passage with another door immediately to his left (north).
Perception DC17:
The passage to the east appears to gently slope upward.
Perception DC20:
You sense a gentle scent of fresh, or at least swampy, air. It seems to be coming from the passage. After the time beneath the ground, the less stagnant air is refreshing.
Male Human Cleric 3 (FC) AC 20 HP 29/29 F: +5 R: +2 W:+5 Perc: +2
Here take this, probably monster's behind that door.
Arindale takes another pull of his sacred nectar before placing Cayden's blessing on Ty, Berashel, and himself.
Ty don't forget to wait for Arindale when you can. He will try to set up the flank for you. With that 2d6 sneak attack you should be able to put up some damage now.
Male Human Cleric 3 (FC) AC 20 HP 29/29 F: +5 R: +2 W:+5 Perc: +2
Arindale give the crossbow a dubious look, thanks, but with your aim we are better with our Morningstars and Axes! We need to find you a wand that shoots Fireballs...then we can sit back and let you do all of the heavy lifting!
His eyes get big as he imagines Goblins on fire running around screaming.
Tybek attempts to open the door silently and then quietly move into the room. There is a slight squeak as he opens the door and glances down the hall. The hall is dark and eerily silent. As Tybek looks down the long hallway, he sees two barrels on the left side about 30' down, and another pair of barrels a little bit further down on the right side.
Tybek holds up his hand to halt and quiet the party, he then waits for thirty seconds to see if he can hear breathing or any sound coming from behind the barrels.
Perception:1d20 + 7 ⇒ (12) + 7 = 19
If there is no sound, Tybek then cautiously proceeds northward down the hall as silently as a cat.
Stealth:1d20 + 13 ⇒ (18) + 13 = 31
He is ever vigilant and cautious for traps and/or an ambush.
Male Aasimar (Angelkin) Paladin of Apsu (Oath of Vengeance) 2/Sorcerer (Gold Dragon Bloodline) 1 Hps 31/31 AC 20 FF 19 T 11 CMD 16 Fort +8, Ref +4, Will +8 Init +1 Per +5
Berashel waits to see what jumps out of them his time, a rush of excitement making it hard to wait for the dwarf to sneak around.
Suddenly, while the (n)ever alert dwarf attempts to stealthily move down the hallway, which he does quite adeptly and would undoubtedly have succeeded at if it were not for the guard hiding behind the door he opened to get into the hallway, a guard charges out from behind the door with a guttural scream in a horrid tongue. At the same time, two more guards suddenly stand from behind the barrels and fire crossbows at the surly dwarf. Unlike the other creatures the party has met in the moathouse dungeon, these definitely appear to be humans and all are garbed in black cloaks and wearing a black tunic over their armor. Each tunic is emblazoned with a golden eye.
Lingistics DC18:
You believe this to be a really bad attempt at Abyssal.
Perception DC18:
The eye appears to be frozen, yet from the top are what appears to be flames. A lightning bolt pierces the middle of the eye and the eye appears to be resting in a pool of some type.
Both crossbow bolts fly wide, one sticking into the partially opened door near Berashel and the other skittering harmlessly along the wall before falling to the floor. However, the guard with the sword lands a light blow to the unsuspecting dwarf.
Male Aasimar (Angelkin) Paladin of Apsu (Oath of Vengeance) 2/Sorcerer (Gold Dragon Bloodline) 1 Hps 31/31 AC 20 FF 19 T 11 CMD 16 Fort +8, Ref +4, Will +8 Init +1 Per +5
Berashel moves into flank with Tybek 55/AU, surrounding the unlucky cultist.
Braden delays until his friends have taken out the first guard. As soon as they do, he rides Dworkin past their foe. After shifting space he appears next to his dog and he gestures and points at the farthest guard. He gives Dworkin the guard order, and Dworkin looks ready to protect his master as Braden takes cover behind the barrels.
Braden rides Dworkin to AR 56, shifts as swift to AR 55 and casts daze at farthest guard (DC15 Will if HD<5)--Riding dog ready attack vs guards.
First guard goes down. Still alive, but unconscious and bleeding badly.
Please note, the barrels are effectively 4' walls. If you attack over them, the bandits will have partial cover. If you move directly across them, it is difficult terrain. You cannot charge across them unless you have Free Action or something else that negates difficult terrain. (Which I think that pesky cleric probably has.)
I was not using spoilers as much as the title after her name. I am not familiar with Suli, but I'm sure I will discover what they are soon enough. Does she appear to be a human to somebody who has never met one?
I may be gone tomorrow (Sunday) as well, but I'm not sure yet. It depends on the weather and how everyone is feeling in the morning.
Lol - yeh, people are playing their foible well so far:
3 with Cha of 8 or lower - still developing how people play these - so far it is:
- alcoholic and unaware how his actions affect others
- quiet and does not say anything
- loud, rude and unaware how his actions affect others
1 with Int 7 - not the sharpest
1 with 7 Wis - impulsive and questionable judgment
Only our Dwaasimar has a foible that is not a mental stat, fortunately the clumsy one has only 4 feet to fall when he trips.
Keep going, I will give some push later if our wizard and paladin continue to have different views on the same thing.
Sorry for my long post, but there is so much being said that I was trying to see what Tybek would say and do with each of the threads of conversation.
I also want to apologize ahead of time for playing a character with such low charisma. I normally play charming, pleasant, cooperative characters and this is rather different for me. I am actually using an uncle of mine as personal inspiration on how to play him. He is nice enough, but he always says the most inappropriate things at just the wrong time and he just never quite realizes it. I actually find him quite amusing, but many people get rather offended by him easily. My hope is that he will still be enjoyable to interact with and not too annoying for all of you players! :-)
Sorry for my long post, but there is so much being said that I was trying to see what Tybek would say and do with each of the threads of conversation.
I also want to apologize ahead of time for playing a character with such low charisma. I normally play charming, pleasant, cooperative characters and this is rather different for me. I am actually using an uncle of mine as personal inspiration on how to play him. He is nice enough, but he always says the most inappropriate things at just the wrong time and he just never quite realizes it. I actually find him quite amusing, but many people get rather offended by him easily. My hope is that he will still be enjoyable to interact with and not too annoying for all of you players! :-)
ROFL - I can think of two possible uncles you might be speaking of, is it the one from the town where you grew up? or Canada?
- loud, rude and unaware how his actions affect others
I didn't think of Braden as being loud, but rude and unaware sounds right on. But now that you mention it, having Braden have one of those annoying, high-pitched, piercing voices would be amusing.
Speaking of modeling characters on real world people, having went through years of graduate school I ran into many condescending professors that were very intelligent, quite lacking in common sense, and quite rude. Braden was modeled after many of them--he has read and studied and is very knowledgeable in many things, but definitely lacking in social skills. After reading the Dresden Files, I decided a hobbit Harry Dresden would be amusing too.
Besides the pipe, maybe he needs a corduroy jacket with elbow patches.
"ROFL - I can think of two possible uncles you might be speaking of, is it the one from the town where you grew up? or Canada?
I thought you might think about that. I may have to pleade the 5th. I think I will let you see how my character develops and let you tell me your best guess.
Glorfin should be skeptical of joining Tybek. At the moment he is mostly motivated by wealth. He has not found his faith and belief in doing good deeds yet. I think his own childhood was filled with too much bad stuff that he is still in survival mode.
While Tybek is certainly chatty, he obviously does not possess the etiquette or the diplomacy skills to lead the group. I think he could be persuaded to join with you. He just has to let his own damn pride get out of the way. The glass of whisky was a big help!
One way I had kind of seen it playing out was Glorfin taking the task of routing the bandits / dog men himself, then hiring on the other five of you as mercenaries - at least for the first job.
Male Human Cleric 3 (FC) AC 20 HP 29/29 F: +5 R: +2 W:+5 Perc: +2
Just don't phrase as being a mercenary that way to Arindale...he sees himself as a hero, although at the moment he is mainly motivated by money since it is something he can tough and feel...or at least allows him to do so with some of the less savory women in town.
He is going to be good natured, a little un-predictable, and slightly childish. Part of it is that he is a little slow, but seems to be street-wise at times.
I see the bard eventually leading the party, maybe helping bridge the gap between the forces of law and the forces of chaos in the group, certainly at least being the face of the group.
BTW will Glorfin have Lay on Hands? I am not familiar with that arch-type. If so we should be in pretty good shape for healing with 4 people in the group capable of healing.
Arindale is a great character! I like the way you're playing him! There are some nice role playing opportunities that come from his unpredictability. Actually, I like how everybody's characters are developing! I think this is going to be a great group!
Glorfin will get lay on hands - but with less mercies and since his Charisma is alot lower than a typical Paladin it won't be quite as good. Will certainly combine well with his DR to keep himself up pretty well.
Male Human Cleric 3 (FC) AC 20 HP 29/29 F: +5 R: +2 W:+5 Perc: +2
Tybek Odeon wrote:
Arindale is a great character! I like the way you're playing him! There are some nice role playing opportunities that come from his unpredictability. Actually, I like how everybody's characters are developing! I think this is going to be a great group!
Thanks! Just remember that Arindale is not smart...so expect him to say and possibly do some dumb things. At least it is tempered by the fact I have a pretty good wisdom.
Good, with the extra healing in the group Arindale might actually get a chance to do some fighting instead of just healing. I hope he can aggro some of the attacks with a good AC and with him most of the time being a BIG target.
He will probably take craft magic arms and armor at 5th and plan to have those maxed out for items if we get chances to craft but that is a long way off and plan to get input from the GM around 4th...
You can take any feat you want, except possibly leadership. The only thing to remember is that this is, at least if I do it right, a living campaign. In other words, if you take time off, the enemy may well spend that time recruiting.
My family and I are visiting a friend at her camp up in Maine tomorrow. I will be without Internet for a day, but I will be back on Wednesday night. I will be able to update then.
If my posts are too long, let me know. I am attempting to be as complete as necessary and things seem to be getting rather detailed. I hope that things will speed up shortly.
Speed up?! Posts seem to be coming in at a steady rate to me. In my short absence, I came back to more posts here than in any of my other campaigns! I am not sure I can handle speeding things up! :)
Took me a little while to figure out how to get your tokens set up, but seems pretty easy now. Will have to play with the fog of war and stuff at some point, but that can wait, at least for a few days.
Everyone - don't worry about posting out of order, and feel free to put down alternate actions, if you want and you are posting before the enemy goes, feel free to put in contingencies if your actions may depend on how the enemy acts.
The only thing I ask is that you use the d20 rolls in the order you roll them. You don't get to make one set of rolls for melee attacks, and a different set for ranged attacks if the man in front of you is dead. Just make the rolls for the first option, and then reuse the roll for any contingencies.
i.e.
If the guy in front of me is alive, attack with earthbreaker:
Attack(earthbreaker): 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (6) + 4 = 10
Damage: 2d6 + 6 ⇒ (2, 1) + 6 = 9
If he is dead, shoot at the annoying mage with my bow:
Attack(longbow): 6 + 3 = 9 <-- (6 from earthbreaker attack)
Damage: 1d8 ⇒ 2
Yeah it is usually only about a sentence that is allowed...it is only 6 seconds after all :]
Yes, I admit that Tybek talks a lot. Normally I don't say that much in a single round of combat, but I was trying to make the transition from the dialogue before the battle began to the actual battle. Perhaps I took too much liberty. I'm just having fun. : )
Glorfin will need to have a short discussion on appropriate battle tactics assuming we survive this... Dwarves with negative Reflex saves and almost zero ranged capability do not play well with Entangle...
Plus the three we're fighting all have bows... so they aren't hindered anywhere near as much as we are...
HP 25/25; Per +12 (+2 outside); AC 16, Touch 14, Flat 13; Gimpy HP 28/28; Per +6; AC 18, Touch 14, Flat 14
You have a much better chance at making the Break test than the archers who are going to be at like -4 to hit if they fail, and likely be +2 for us to hit at range... IF they fail, I admit.
EDIT: But, yeah. Maybe not the best thing to've done.
"Tybek, if you're going to want finger-wagglers with you, wait til they're done waggling their fingers!"
Hey Maegge,
It's all good! Tybek has mostly been a soloist before and hasn't quite learned how to work with others yet. However, with entangle, he may learn very quickly!
Male Human Cleric 3 (FC) AC 20 HP 29/29 F: +5 R: +2 W:+5 Perc: +2
Yeah, none of the characters have worked together before so don't expect Arindale to not go running into the entangle, he has no idea what you just did. No spellcraft!
Well maybe if he sees Tybek get tied up by it, he might have second thoughts...
Spellcraft would only be to identify the actual spell he cast - the effects will be plain to see... and you can either choose to charge at the mass of plants that just came alive - or be wary of them.
Those are small trees and scrub behind the archers - difficult terrain. It would be difficult to see much past the -B row anyway. But as you have all said, you are yet to sit down and discuss tactics, so this is how one would expect 6 people with very different backgrounds to react. It will be interesting seeing how it plays out.
Time for bed. I will try to get something up early tomorrow, but have to leave early and will be out most of the day. Most likely will get an update tomorrow night once more people have posted their actions.
A thought for all:
With attacks, a 20 always hits and is always a crit possibility. A 1 is always a miss. Basic PF rules.
For some reason skills do not work the same way and I really hate when people get super high skills (I have seen +19 Perception and +20 Stealth in campaigns I am in.) Personally, I think that with skills a 20 should always succeed, or at least have a very good chance and a 1 should always fail.
I am thinking that I would like to modify skill rolls somewhat as follows:
Natural 20 = +10 to the skill (you will just add the +10 when you see the 20 roll in the preview.
19 = +3
2 = -3
1 = -10
In essence, this means that if you roll a 1, the impact will be worse and even with an absurd modifier, there is a good chance that you will fail your check. Likewise, a natural 20 or 19 will give you a bonus. These bonuses will not apply on a Take 20, only when you roll the 19 or 20 on the first check. Thus, if you make 4 or 5 checks to pick a lock, a 20 on the first roll will give you a bonus, a 20 there after is just a normal 20. The failure penalties will always apply (if you keep failing, maybe there is a good reason to stop).
Let me know what you all think. I view this as simply high risk, high reward - you all are not commoners, you take chances and play with fire - and sometimes you will get burned, even with halfling luck.
