Flaxseed Lodge (PFS1)

Game Master Redelia

Can someone explain to me how to roll dice? Or give me a link. I tried the main page but all I found was the spell postings. :/

{dice=attack}1d20+3{/dice}
{dice=damage}1d8{/dice}

If you replace all of the { brackets with [ brackets, it will roll like this:

attack: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (15) + 3 = 18
damage: 1d8 ⇒ 3

DebugAMP wrote:

I'm probably going to hold off on GMing another special until at least Solstice Scar C. I GM'd several of the specials up until now, but before I was able to play through the specials Face to Face, and get a good idea about the plot and pitfalls of each before running it on the boards. These days I'm unable to get out to conventions so while I'm planning to up my GM presence on the boards in the near future, I suspect specials are off the table for a while. Thankfully, there are quite a few kickass GMs here on the boards so I'm sure my disappearance won't be an issue.

:(

No frownies please! It's for good reasons, not bad reasons! I have a new baby boy, and priorities change accordingly.

The "How to format your text" box just below the posting space is also invaluable.

In google chrome, at least, for me that box doesn't work. The button does nothing.

Seconded what Paladin of Baha-who says, the button no longer works in chrome (it used to like 4 months or so ago though, at least for me)

Doesn't work in Firefox either.

Doesn't work in Brave, either.

But it's so nice to have the button!

what I copied and pasted till I got them memorized

Paizo Posting FAQ

It doesn't work anywhere. The onClick function doesn't exist. They apparently messed something up when they reworked the site.

Quick shout out to VL Magabeus for sorting out an admin issue for one of my players and I within … gee … two hours(!) of my e-mail to him.

Thank-you PbP VO team for everything you do!

Proven experience running and more importantly completing PbP adventures is the only real prerequisite. Multi-table specials are a different beast from regular scenarios, so we definitely want reliability for our players. (I am not sure the SFS special is a multi-table, but either way a good track record is the most favorable qualification.)

Awesome! Well I hope I'm developing a favorable reputation in that regard. I'll at least venture an application to GM the SFS special when the time comes.

Excuse me but do any Dm's have a google slides version of the Rise of the Runelords Book 1 maps? If so could you please help DoubleGold out and lend them an empty set of those map tiles, we're using a custom drawn map right now but it's better and more accurate to have the real thing on hand. If anyone could that'd be awesome and would get lots of love from this kitsune. <3

If I can get RSP, well then maybe we can at least offer RSP checkoffs for those event that happen outside of our conventions. From this point forward, we only get two official conventions a year in the PBP region (unless the constraint is lifted), so we might as well make the most of them.

Just so you know I was explicitly told it did NOT work this way and that the special was neither a con(and thus eligible for boon support) nor a regular retail event (and thus eligible for RSP) when I ran a similar meatspace event (to the chagrin of my gms).

I admit to being on the fence about whether we even should be eligible for RSP (we arent actively supporting retailers unless we are gonna start calling VTTs/paizo.com retailers which i guess is half the battle), but on this point in particular I support you because I thought it was really dumb that we had to forego RSP support to run a special.

Quick shout out to VL Magabeus for sorting out an admin issue for one of my players and I within … gee … two hours(!) of my e-mail to him.

Thank-you PbP VO team for everything you do!

PBP VO team: 24/7 on duty ;-)

Glad I could help you guys out.

Hmm wrote:

If I can get RSP, well then maybe we can at least offer RSP checkoffs for those event that happen outside of our conventions. From this point forward, we only get two official conventions a year in the PBP region (unless the constraint is lifted), so we might as well make the most of them.

Just so you know I was explicitly told it did NOT work this way and that the special was neither a con(and thus eligible for boon support) nor a regular retail event (and thus eligible for RSP) when I ran a similar meatspace event (to the chagrin of my gms).

I admit to being on the fence about whether we even should be eligible for RSP (we arent actively supporting retailers unless we are gonna start calling VTTs/paizo.com retailers which i guess is half the battle), but on this point in particular I support you because I thought it was really dumb that we had to forego RSP support to run a special.

Regional Support Program not Retailers Support Program, the latter one is the RIP: Retail Incentive Program

Policies page

Hey all —

OutPost is done! It’s the end of the con as we know it!

I want to thank everyone who GMed and Played with us. If your games are still going, please roll for boons and report so that we can close out the convention and do all our Paizo-mandated reporting! You should find all the information you need to report if you scroll below.

Meanwhile, help us out by filling out our handy-dandy OutPost Evaluation Form!

Thanks so much!

★ --- ★ --- ★ --- ★

FOR GAMES RUNNING LATE

If your game is running late, please report it now anyway and then complete it in the time it needs. This will let us process all boons, run our statistics and close the convention.

If you think you can finish by the due date, though, please do so. Some of your players may have characters that are committed to the Second Session of the Special that starts up right after OutPost, or to games in other conventions.

BOONS & REPORTING

If you have not done so yet, please roll for player boons! A 1 or a 20 wins a boon. If you have boon winners, collect their email addresses and roll to see which player boon they get.

When you report your games with the handy-dandy reporting list (linked below), please remember to also tell us which GM boon you wish to get in the comments: Aquatic, Vine Leshy or SFS.

Thanks again for GMing for us!

★ --- ★ --- ★ --- ★

IMPORTANT STUFF TO REMEMBER:

OutPost I: Back to the Future
EVENT #253109
March 5 - April 30, 2018
Handy-Dandy Reporting Link

Evaluation form link doesn't go anywhere. :(

But on a more positive note... I loved outpost, well run!

Evaluation form link doesn't go anywhere. :(

But on a more positive note... I loved outpost, well run!

Okay, let’s try this again — OUTPOST EVALUATION!

Thanks for putting Outpost together! I really enjoy the pbp games and appreciate all the hard work you, the staff, and the GMs put into making this and all pbp games a success.

Just so you know I was explicitly told it did NOT work this way and that the special was neither a con(and thus eligible for boon support) nor a regular retail event (and thus eligible for RSP) when I ran a similar meatspace event (to the chagrin of my gms).

The way it used to work was that you could source convention support if you were running 15+ tables at your event, and if it was less than that then you could apply for the old Regional Support (which you may or may not have gotten).

The 'new' redesigned RSP was intentioned to be more robust, and was broadened out to be able to be assigned to venues as an ongoing concern, my understanding is that you can still request RSP for coverage of an event that would not meet the 15 table minimum on the proviso that it meets the usual criteria of being 'a public event' etc.

Your RVC would be able to give you some better guidance.

Getting RSP into the PbP space would be ideal, as the new Con limitation in the online space was pretty harsh. That was what drove my decision to discontinue organising any game days or specials in the PbP space and just stick to running meatspace cons.

Yep I am hoping to lobby the organized play crowd to release the convention limitation when I see them at person at both PaizoCon and GenCon.

It’s a good thing that James Bartlett and I are both cooperative team players. After a moment of shock, we sat down and worked together to come up with a decent solution to the con limit between the two of us. It’s working, but it’s a really rigid requirement and seems... Well, arbitrary.

On the other hand, becoming a region in our own right has been awesome in that I was able to double the online team and make my workload bearable. And our conventions go long enough in PBP land that we do need to have some time off!

Hmm

I wish Paizo would understand that the digital market is a pretty big sector and will continue to grow whether they support it or not. If they support it, they will gain market share and increase sales. If not, they will lose out on what I think will eventually be the biggest sector of the gaming world.

I am still irritated with the lack of attention paid to the Roll20 system and the Pathfinder players there. I know there were other things going on, mainly the 2.0 playtest development, but they really need to increase their presence there in the community.

Oh, they understand. But there’s lots going on here, too. They don’t want in person conventions to feel invalidated or in competition with the virtual ones. They also don’t want us in continual convention mode, churning out endless GM boons.

One of the things that I’ve been trying to do as an Online VC is sell the opportunities that this region offers. One RVC changed his mind about us when I told him about how two of his GMs had GMed in our specials, and that it was helping them earn their way to 5 star. I shared excitement about all we have to do, and the great stories we have to tell. We’re a unique format for gaming, and we offer a completely different experience.

Helping folks see that... That’s important. One thing that made me happy is that our current leadership crew is very friendly to PBP and Online. Thurston practically lives on the PFSchat.com discord channel. Tonya, John and now Linda have all played PBP, as has Dean, their director of technology.

We take steps forward, and sometimes we have to take a step or two back. It’s a dance, but our overal movement has been forward.

BTW, thanks to everyone so far who has submitted OutPost Evaluations! The feedback, both positive and negative, has been really awesome so far!

Hmm

Yeah I echo that sentiment, I'm a local VC, but part of the reason I had happily stepped up to that was off the back of running 'Shifty Cons' with Magabeus here in the PbP forums and then started running them locally as well.

Our push was to help GM's get to 5 star who wouldn't otherwise be able to attend the cons and get their specials count up (which was otherwise practically impossible for us).

The idea that we can be a boon factory churning out boons is just not in line with the reality, and really, boons are toner on paper - and that's an otherwise exceptionally easy token of gratitude that can be provided to those who volunteered their time to facilitate the enjoyment of others.

Shifty, it's not PbP that is the 'boon factory'.

It's VTT.

However, because Online is treated as a region as a whole...

Online's an interesting region with two very different sub-kingdoms. Our personalities and needs are different too so sometimes making the rules work for one can make things challenging for the other.

I honestly think that's what held up RSP for us.

Hmm

Online's an interesting region with two very different sub-kingdoms. Our personalities and needs are different too so sometimes making the rules work for one can make things challenging for the other.

I honestly think that's what held up RSP for us.

Hmm

It sounds like leadership should consider having two different online regions, a region for realtime online play (VTT) and a region for protracted online play (PbP).

I agree with the above, it is clearly two different worlds.

Yes, PbP and VTT are very different. Being grouped together in a region with VTT is better than before when we were grouped with VTT and in person play in part of the USA, though. All we can do is think about what we need to grow, and politely and gently push for that as much as we can.

Calling for Luke_Parry to please check in >>here<< for Solstice Scar B, CORE 5-6 at your earliest possible convenience, please! If I've not heard from you by tomorrow night (Thursday, May 3rd) then I'll begin looking to fill that last spot. Thanks!

I agree splitting up Online Region into VTTs and PbP is a good idea. No way PbP games will turn into a boon factory, even fast track games take a few weeks to run through usually. I am sure people can try to game the system, but to what end really? I agree with Shifty that GMs deserve those boons for running games for the enjoyment of the community. I bet most GMs who regularly run games have a stack of race boons that they will never get to use now that PFS for PF1 is being discontinued. If people are going volunteer their time and effort to run games, I say give them stacks of boons.

Anyway, +1 for more PbP cons.

I'd actually rather see fewer pbp cons, not more. In fact I would not be disappointed if we only had one pbp con per year.

The problem is that when a pbp con happens, other recruitment dries up. In a smaller lodge like Myth Weavers, this has proven to be a problem. New people wander in from time-to-time, looking for a game, but with a con going on most GMs are already running at capacity. In the 6+ weeks it takes for the games to finish and recruitment to happen again, those new people lose interest and wander off.

I have to agree with Michael there, I've been trying run some non-outpost games during the con to keep people playing, but I can only run so many while still playing in the con, and the games I do recruit for fill up quite fast, usually only a couple hours.

I'll be the voice of opposition here. We used to have one a year - so for 12 odd weeks there was a con, and for 40 weeks there was nothing.

The hassle is that when the cons come by all the GM's throw their full capacity into the con, rather than just run a few in the con, and a few outside the con. I can't help but think that this is to maximise their opportunity to win boons and prizes, which wouldn't be as essential if we had the RSP (which we don't).

In that void it was easy to throw on a MTS, and I kept a cap on how many GM's we had participating. That meant that whilst there was certainly a draw you could feel, it wasn't tapping everyone out.

The new cons exacerbate the problem by signing people up for session one AND session two, which means if you didn't get in on sign up day you are now waiting months for tables to open up as everyone has already booked everything going.

In short, more cons is fine - but single sessions, and maybe one/two GM opportunities per con. Keep the cons to short sharp shocks, not 200+ tables over 16 weeks or whatever we are doing.

There was certainly space to run the Siege of the Diamond City in Jan, and Runecarved Key went neatly in Jan-Mar without upsetting any applecarts.

With the iterative nature of #8-99 The Solstice Scar, we have need of more cons or at least organized events. Within the next year we will have three new PFS specials and to run (#8-99C, #10-00, and #8-99D) and one from this current season (#9-00). That means, if we want folks to have a chance to play those (#8-99C and D will have expiration dates), we either need to (a) have more than two events or (b) we need to run more than one special per event (which seems like asking for trouble).

With the iterative nature of #8-99 The Solstice Scar, we have need of more cons or at least organized events. Within the next year we will have three new PFS specials and to run (#8-99C, #10-00, and #8-99D) and one from this current season (#9-00). That means, if we want folks to have a chance to play those (#8-99C and D will have expiration dates), we either need to (a) have more than two events or (b) we need to run more than one special per event (which seems like asking for trouble).

And will ruin my plans since they involve having my main PbP character play all the specials.

Of course, this problem is the same that drove Paizo to come up with 2E. You constantly have to strike a balance between respecting the needs and wishes of your loyal and long term players with drawing in new players.

There is no perfect answer because one or the other or both will suffer.

And, ironically enough, the best option is for both to suffer because it means that the both are getting attention.

I'm not really sure what the problem is with having a 'boon mill.' The fact that people are organizing an environment where truckloads of PFS games are played, even just to churn out boons, seems like it meets the goals of providing them anyways. I do agree that pbp cons create strange peaks and troughs in recruiting for games, but I think that can be easily resolved. The fact that PbP provides a place for players who can't get out to meatspace cons a chance to play these specials I think is something that should be focused on here. Outpost was a good example (in my mind at least) of a way to limit the scope of the con and keep non-con based games recruiting. Of course there's always the opposite approach of scheduling PbP cons with 4 sessions so it's all con all the time...

You could do multiple sessions of each Con, too. Stagger the start dates by a week and have 4 sessions...then by the time the last ones are starting up some of the first ones would be done.

Alternatively, while a Con is running have a GM or several volunteer to offer games ONLY for new players. And they can just fill in with new players as they go.

Remember there is a limit on GMing one MTS at a time. So staggering Cons start dates by a week won't necessarily help folk with getting their ten MTS for 5 stars.

Debug,

Boons in PFS1 are built around a scarcity paradigm.

There should only be 'x' percentage of a given Boon in play. This is to help incentivize folks to go to conventions and play PFS, or even GM PFS.

The problem with 'churning out boons' via the electronic media is two-fold:

1. It produces another environment where only a select few can get All The Boons They Want and Whenever they Want

2. It encourages GMs (in particular, but based on the very LACK of any successful Boon rolls this Outpost...) to only sign up for events that have Support, which has a chilling effect on the amount of 'non-Supported' games that go off.

These issues are magnified and expanded in a VTT online convention, where the amount of games one may play is significant(Since the games happen in 'real-time'), and diminished/reduced in PbP, where the amount of play/GM can do in a given time frame is much less.

It is my understanding that you do not need 10 MTS to reach five stars, just 10 specials. That's what I was told, so I could be wrong.

^That's correct. Things like Through Maelstrom Rift and Serpents Rise count as well (though you can't GM them until you get to 4 stars).

Dennis is on the money.

Specials are annoyingly difficult to rack up in local play as by now all the 5 Stars before you have already saturated the market with Bonekeeps and Serpents (aspis) scenarios, leaving you the MTS.

Add in that a bunch of th eother specials require 4 stars to even run, and all of a sudden MTS is the way to go.

That is whay I was running the Shifty specials, each time its 15-20 GM's scoring one of those coveted 10 towards 5 Star (which was part of how I got mine).

Well, I still haven't played in True Dragons of Absalom or Through the Maelstrom Rift... so if anyone is looking for a special...

*Whistles*

True Dragons unfortunately requires five stars. There are not many of them online. I got half way through a run of it before our GM vanished. :-(

I am already looking ahead at next year's activities. That's going to be the hardest part. Thank goodness I play online.

True Dragons unfortunately requires five stars. There are not many of them online. I got half way through a run of it before our GM vanished. :-(

It requires 5 stars — or VL and four stars, which was how I got to GM it. I was so bummed when your table fell through Aerondor.

:(

Hmm

I have yet to play it myself.