Heya. Thanks and very sorry for the delay.
I'm back home now, and back at work, so no more hold ups.
Alicia retrieves her thieves' tools and looks around, then gets to work on the lock.
Using the Start/Complete Full-Round Action option, she can start this round, finish the beginning of the next round, and still have a move action left.
That hit was almost a lot worse, if I hadn't corrected my typo, Dave. ;)
[dice=Channel Energy to Heal (exclude Twisted Nail 12, 13 and 18)] 2d6
Excellent job keeping up with which enemies are injured and which aren't! :D
The squeezing thing is totally a judgment call on my part. I beleive it's something of a gray area what happens when someone is healed while a character is standing over their helpless body. In a Legacy of Fire game I was in, the GM ruled one of them had to be shunted into an adjacent square a la Accidentally Ending Movement in an Illegal Space, but the squeezing rules don't get used enough, in my opinion, so we'll try it this way.
54 damage would have been a bit rough, to say the least. Glad I only took the 10.
And as for keeping up with the injured- I spent most of my lunchtime reviewing those posts. (still, not much else to do at work during lunch- not enough time to go anywhere... and free internet :-)
Kagak finds himself surrounded by Twisted Nail tribesmen and a fierce roc without clearly remembering whose side he's on and cowers helplessly in the road.
"Welp...," he starts, looking upon his orc enemies, "Gotta go! Reaver! Fi!"
Well, I tried. :-)
You critically hit him... for 7d6 damage. What was he? Did he even have a second level?
I should have known my NPC was doomed as soon as I asked for his name. :-)
Yeah as soon as Kagak started talking about retiring and spending more time with his family... you just knew he was toast. :)
You critically hit him... for 7d6 damage. What was he? Did he even have a second level?
XP 135
Male half-orc warrior 1
CE Medium humanoid (human, orc)
Init +1; Senses darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +0
--------------------
Defense
--------------------
AC 14, touch 11, flat-footed 13 (+3 armor, +1 Dex)
hp 6 (1d10+1) (currently -21)
Fort +3, Ref +1, Will +0
Defensive Abilities orc ferocity
--------------------
Offense
--------------------
Speed 30 ft. (20 ft. in armor)
Melee falchion +2 (2d4+1/18-20) or
. . longspear +2 (1d8+1/×3)
Ranged javelin +2 (1d6+1) or
. . longbow +3 (1d8/×3)
Space 5 ft.; Reach 5 ft. (10 ft. with longspear)
--------------------
Statistics
--------------------
Str 13, Dex 13, Con 12, Int 9, Wis 10, Cha 8
Base Atk +1; CMB +2; CMD 13
Feats Weapon Focus (longbow)
Skills Acrobatics -2 (-6 to jump), Climb +2, Intimidate +5; Racial Modifiers +2 Intimidate
Languages Common, Orc
SQ orc blood
Other Gear studded leather, arrows (20), falchion, javelin (4), longbow, longspear
--------------------
Special Abilities
--------------------
Darkvision (60 feet) You can see in the dark (black and white only).
Orc Blood Half-orcs count as both humans and orcs for any effect related to race.
Orc Ferocity (1/day) If brought below 0 Hp, can act as though disabled for 1 rd.
Adding insult to injury is that the boulder critically missed one of the orcs and rolled low enough damage not to kill another. It just had a grudge against poor Kagak.
"Aren't you the lucky one," Marikel sneers, and lashes out with his sword at the orc before him.
[dice=Masterwork Longsword]1d20 + 7
[dice=Damage (Enlarged)]2d6 + 4
*looks at the two 1's Marikel rolled for damage on 2d6*
Yes. Yes, he is the lucky one.
I figured I was cursing myself. So I was surprised I hit him. :-)
Wow indeed. I am cautiously optimistic.
Mark has been absent for more than two weeks. While I am absolutely hopeful he'll come back, I think we should recruit for a new player, who can be our fifth party member if Mark returns or our fourth if he doesn't.
Unless anyone has any ideas (you may PM me or post in-thread, if so), I'll see about putting a recruitment thread together by the weekend.
Has been a whirlwind of circumstance and obfuscation on my end. Work remains a no go re: logging on, and I've had family visiting for a couple of weeks as well. We still don't have a home computer set up - and my wife's needed our one laptop for her night job... so all up a bit of a balls up. Won't get fundamentally better overnight - but should smooth out a bit once my folks drive back westwards on Monday.
Still dealing with the change of career as well - even though I'm three months into the role. Getting up earlier, working till later and coming home more tired and half brain dead.
I do apologize for being that arse that disappeared without word and didn't let people know what was going on. Don't have much of an excuse for that, but to be fairest to Joana and everyone else though, I'll have to respectfully hand in a withdrawal from this game. My free computer enabled time is limited, and I'm paring back to just two PbPs - which are the longer running on the boards. It's been a trip, and I'll likely log on of occasion to see how it's going.
Farewell. :-(
See you in Riddleport :-/
Speak of the devil and he appears. ;)
I'm sorry to lose Vhailor, Mark, but happy Phillip is sticking around in Riddleport.
I've had a couple of suggestions made for replacement players. If those don't pan out, I'll put up a recruitment thread. This is an easy place in the campaign to pick up an extra defender of Trunau or two.
Hi folks!
I'm going to be joining your adventures, so I thought I'd say hello. I still have to put together a character, but I'm thinking of a human witch at the moment. I'll get it finished soon.
Welcome, Navior!
Both the players I reached out to were interested in joining the game, so it looks like we will have a 5-member party (my personal optimal number, anyway).
Background recap:
If you haven't, please have a look at the Giantslayer Player's Guide, as it has campaign traits and a gazetteer of Trunau. I have made some minor changes to Trunau as written, the most visible of which is that Jagrin Grath and his twin sons are now half-orc rather than human ... because Reasons. Also, the Grath twins' mother did not die at the hands of an orc raiding party in my version of Trunau. My first read-through of this module gave me a very Western vibe, so think along those tropes.
Trunau is overwhelmingly a human town, with smaller communities of halflings and half-orcs, and a handful of dwarves, half-elves, and gnomes; I would prefer that you restrict yourselves to those races. I have a prejudice for core classes, plus oracles and witches, as I'm not as familiar with the newer classes and it's one less thing I have to research and pay attention to while DMing. If your heart is absolutely set on something else, pitch your concept and try to sway me.
If your PC is a permanent resident of Trunau, you get a free masterwork dagger (your hopeknife) in addition to the gear you buy. I'm aware that this steals half the thunder of the Trunau Native campaign trait. If you want to take that trait anyway, we'll work up a little extra bonus to make up for it.
If the new PCs are not citizens of Trunau, they will have to have had a reason to stay and defend the town, even knowing that the Twisted Nail orc tribe was planning an attack.
I have a houserule going back to AD&D to reroll any 1s rolled for hit points or healing.
Hey, Navoir! Long time! Let me know if you end up going with the witch, and I'll work up something to round out the team. Thanks for the invitation!
Wait a minute! Nobody said anything about bringing these scoundrels in here. Great, there goes the neighborhood. ;)
What's up, fellas! Long time no see, Navior!
Hey Javell, markofbane! It has indeed been a long time!
I'm definitely going with a witch. I'm just reading through the Player's Guide info on Trunau to decide how best to fit the character in.
Wait a minute! Nobody said anything about bringing these scoundrels in here. Great, there goes the neighborhood. ;)
It's okay. The neighborhood was a bit dodgy to begin with. ;)
Lol!
Rolling for hp:
Level 2 and 3 hit points
Do you want us to use wealth by level, or another amount for gear?
Wow, max hp! I'm going to have to work hard to kill your character. ;P
I'm going to say standard WBL. If there turns out to be any discrepancy with the existing PCs, we'll make it up after the battle.
(Existing PCs, if you want to do a quick audit at some point to see where you stand, that would be great. I think Alicia and Marikel have gotten the "best" items so far. Hm, looks like Vhailor's carrying a bunch of scrolls; I'll have him hand those over before he departs.)
(Did you guys not sell the excess treasure from Asvig's farm yet, or did I just not get it marked as sold in the loot list?)
Navior here. The character is done and ready for review!
Some thoughts that don't necessarily need a direct answer; just to think about her backstory:
Does Levvy worship a deity? What are her religious views? The deity most worshipped in Trunau is Erastil, but informally, as there's no temple to him there. Some of the Who's Who of the Upper Quarter worship Abadar. The only official church in town is that of Iomedae, but it's a mission that has been viewed with some suspicion by the citizenry, as they suspect Lastwall of wanting to stake a claim to their Hill. Marikel is one of those missionary priests, and his and his fellow clergy's assistance during this recent crisis has gone some way toward winning at least a grudging respect and trust for Sanctuary. Alicia is an outsider/orphan who grew up in the mission under the guardianship of the Iomedaeans. If you want to worship another deity or none at all, that's fine, of course.
I love message! Douena had so much fun with message.
Did Levvy grow up on Bloodmarch Hill itself, or on one of the outlying farms? What did her grandfather do? Did he have a home or property that she may have inherited, or did he (and does she now) rent a room?
Trunau has a local urban legend about the Plague House (aka the Burned Church, the ruined former church of Iomedae at the foot of Bloodmarch Hill) being infested with ghost-rats. It's one of those things kids tell each other without being sure if it's true or if the adults just encourage it to keep them from sneaking into the Plague House and getting hurt. I mention it because it may give you some concepts about Neddy, or at least about what other people or children may have rumored about him.
** spoiler omitted **
For the scrolls, I was figuring she scribed them herself, although I paid full price for them. I've had a few GMs in the past who have required full price on starting equipment regardless of whether you have appropriate crafting feats, so I just went that way out of habit. Though I'm happy to get 75 gp back! :)
Levvy's not actively religious, though her leanings would be towards Erastil. She grew up on Bloodmarch Hill itself, though I haven't given a lot of thought yet to what her grandfather did for a living. A local herbalist or something. I'll give it some more thought and expand her background a little.
I love the legend of the Plague House and it's definitely giving me ideas for Neddy! I'm thinking that during the ritual to summon her familiar, Levvy found herself drawn towards the Plague House. She found Neddy in the area around it, though not inside. She doesn't know for sure if Neddy is in any way related to the legends or if it was just coincidence that he was in that area. However, a link wouldn't surprise her. Other residents likely believe there's a link.
Greetings Navior.
Greetings markofbane.
I look forward to gaming with anyone recommended by Joana.
Greetings Navior.
Greetings markofbane.
I look forward to gaming with anyone recommended by Joana.
Thank you! I am working on Mahath, an evoker, to join the fray. I will get him posted here for review as soon as I can.
Edit: In his backstory, I have him tied to Agrit Staginsdar with the dwarf-trained trait.
Looking forward to seeing him!
Markofbane here with Mahath. Please look him over when you get a chance and let me know what needs to be adjusted.
Thanks, markofbane. Will take a look at him tomorrow and get back to you.
I came up with 20 gp fewer than you did left over (155, 8, 6), but I'm not going to go over everything with a fine-toothed comb for a twenty-gold discrepancy. Don't spend it all in one place.
Some thoughts that don't necessarily need a direct answer; just to think about his backstory:
I'm excited to get a couple of Trunau natives in the party! The other PCs are outsiders, so this gives me a chance to involve some local politics in a more overt way.
Did Mahath ever attend the school in town, or would his (non-magical) education have been gained more informally out on his uncle's farm?
There is a definite divide in Trunau's present Council of Defenders between the scions of the town's oldest families (Lessie Crumkin, Kessen Plumb, and Baseil Sabesk) and the less-traditional party more open to outsiders (Halgra Blackblade, Sara Morninghawk, and Agrit). Mahath could agree with his mentor, take the other side in spite of her, or not be politically engaged on the matter.
Does Mahath worship a deity? The deity most worshiped in Trunau is Erastil, but informally, as there's no temple to him there. Some of the Who's Who of the Upper Quarter, including the traditionalists of the Council, worship Abadar. The only official church in town is that of Iomedae, but it's a mission that has been viewed with some suspicion by the citizenry, as they suspect Lastwall of wanting to stake a claim to their Hill. Marikel is one of those missionary priests, and his and his fellow clergy's assistance during this recent crisis has gone some way toward winning at least a grudging respect and trust for Sanctuary. Alicia is an outsider/orphan who grew up in the mission under the guardianship of the Iomedaeans. If you want to worship another deity or none at all, that's fine too, of course.
As Skyreaver takes off toward another orc, Ali calls after him, "Go for the eyes, Boo!"
LOL!
** spoiler omitted **
You get an additional language known for each skill rank you put in Linguistics, which means you should pick three more languages.
For his training and education, I was thinking it would come through Agrit lending him books and giving him enough lessons that the books would make sense to him. If that doesn’t work, then I would say attending the school.
Mahath would side with Agrit when it comes to town politics, but not only because he considers her a treasured mentor. Though he was raised locally since he was an infant, his aunt and cousins never let him forget that he’s something of an outsider. But he has another reason as well. A part of him deeply hopes that his father isn’t actually dead and may return for him, or that his mother will come for him, even after all of these years. In that respect, he would hope that they, as outsiders, would be welcomed into the community. He would never admit this to most, though. In arguments or debates about the subject, he uses more generalized arguments to make his case.
Mahath does not worship a deity. He has some mannerisms and habits that confirm to worshippers of Erastil, but that is mostly because he was raised around his uncle, aunt and cousins who are devout followers. He occasionally throws out appeals to various deities relevant to his needs at the moment, though he doesn’t really expect any sort of divine aid to come from them. Depending on his mood and whatever is going on at the moment, his opinion of the deities varies widely.
For his training and education, I was thinking it would come through Agrit lending him books and giving him enough lessons that the books would make sense to him. If that doesn’t work, then I would say attending the school.
"Homeschooling" is fine by me, and it makes Mahath just that little bit more of an outsider, in relation to his peers, if that's what you're going for. (His cousins growing up on the farm would likely have been taught at home as well, as walking into the town and back every day would take too much time away from their chores, but they jumped right into the swing of the community when they joined the Patrol.)
If I don't get you introduced in the gameplay thread before the end of this combat, you will show up right after.
I am pretty sure that we have at least crossed paths before. I can't imagine the arcane community in this town is very big. If Levvy doesn't have strong feelings against outsiders or Agrit, then they certainly could have been friends before this started.
The immediate assumption of suicide, however, was quickly questioned by a group based out of the mission, as the Hopeknife found atop the cliff proved not to be Kerst's and the half-orc's wounds didn't appear consistent with a fatal fall. Investigation proved that Kerst had been killed in one of the caves and abandoned mine tunnels honeycombing the back of Bloodmarch Hill after stumbling upon a secret plot to carve a path to the top of the cliff under the pretext of a mining operation.
Local half-orcs, as well as outsiders from Freedom Town and a flood troll, were involved.
At Kerst Grath's funeral,an event attended by the whole town, the current Chief Defender of Trunau, Halgra Blackblade, made this announcement. It was followed the next morning by a more detailed plan of action. Halgra left a former Patrol Captain, the aged dwarf Omast Frum, in charge of Trunau as interim Chief Defender to head the town's defense.
Following these events, most outsiders in Trunau left before the Twisted Nail could arrive, if they had anywhere else to go. There was an ugly incident when a drunken mob threatened a boarding house known as the Howling Hound, where some of the known saboteurs had rented rooms, which was peaceably calmed by the group from Sanctuary, along with a general sense of distrust toward outsiders. After ten days, a rider returned from Halgra Blackblade's expedition, with a message to prepare for an attack. Families (and livestock) from the town's farms have come inside the palisade, adding to the tension and discomfort. A few days later, the Twisted Nail arrived, Halgra Blackblade's party still harrying them, and attacked. Non-combatants have withdrawn to the Longhouse, while able-bodies citizens are defending their walls or homes.
Agrit regards Halgra Blackblade's selection of Omast Frum as interim Chief Defender as a master political move to prevent Sawyer from taking advantage of her absence to convene the Council and pass measures with his party's three votes to Agrit and Sara's two. The old dwarf is as progressive as they come, as well as old enough to remember every embarrassing misstep Sawyer's father and grandfather made in their days on the Council.
Were the PCs part of Grath's patrol to bloody the nose of the Nails?
Knowledge (geography)
Knowledge (local)
Knowledge (local)
Were the PCs part of Grath's patrol to bloody the nose of the Nails?
No.*
*Not current PCs. An ex PC went out with the patrol. Their status is currently unknown.
As Marikel says, the current party stayed behind in Trunau and were able to discover and eradicate a group of undercover saboteurs who were working to take down Trunau's defenses from within. They are now fighting orcs that breached the palisade.
(Technically, two former PCs went with the expedition. Kaleb was sent back as the rider, and Banny's status is presently unknown.)
My assumption is that Mahath stayed to defend Agrit's place of business, the House of Wonders, near the town gate, and we'll say that Levvy's home is also in the relatively-humble neighborhood of the Lower Quarter. The two of them will enter the game having been sent with a vital message from the front lines for the acting Patrol Captain.
Kaleb! I knew I was forgetting someone. How the years fly. :-)
*bump* for Alicia. I'll act for her tomorrow, if Ansha hasn't checked in.
Boo, Patrol B! How do you completely miss a blind, sparkling orc?