As we're getting whopped on, Eles, we might want to use Smite Evil, (swift action). The +5 to damge might be enough to push it up above the 10/DR.
I do 1d8+4, so the +5 would likely help my miserable rolls.
If we were sitting around a table, I would say this. So I'm working on the premise it's okay on this tab and not metagaming.
Let me know if that's wrong.
These rats may be tougher than cr2, since lycanthropy can be applied as a template. 1v4 a single rat wouldn't be too tough to take out for a low level party. In a group like this they are pretty scary. We are completely unprepared, too, not a silvered weapon or quicksilver between us. that'll have to change after this encounter.
Gave my Ravenmoor ranger a silver dagger. Should have thought to make Alviss' mace silvered instead of masterwork.
I thought it was CR2 with the template: Wereat
Big difference between the human and hybrid form with the 10/silver, though.
Regardless of the target, smite evil attacks automatically bypass any DR the creature might possess.
@Alviss: Note that in Pathfinder (as opposed to 3.5) smite evil automatically bypasses any DR.
I'm a little out of practice at GM-ing, this is a warm-up for all of us. We can go over this encounter in the discussion tab after it's over and I'll let you know what you were up against and what was in the module as-written/how I arrived at the Pathfinder CR. I don't mind a bit of table talk, feel free to speculate about the game rules behind what you're dealing with and work out tactics (as long as those tactics make sense in-character...)
And I'm out of practice playing. If I'd gone with Smite Evil instead of misreading the Divine Bond for my first move on the map I might actually damaged the rat when I roll a hit. But I'll admit that my first thought was: Rats. Not too tough...
And read more Order of the Stick at lunch today. That is a very intelligent, well-plotted strip. And being seriously smart about RPGs makes it awesome.
I have activated my smite evil now, during the round I charged, against the pincushion.
I am mostly worried about the AC: I need a 14 to hit during normal circumstances so I can't power attack to overcome the DR.
Regarding the AC, I was expecting to see more use of flanking (by the PCs, not on the PCs...) and combat maneuvers (keep in mind it doesn't provoke an AoO if successful, per my house rule) to overcome that. Or you might just press on with lucky rolls...
You only ignore the DR of the target that you are smiting, not all DRs in general. Pincushion is in deep trouble, the rest of them still have a chance against you.
Flanking. Hmm. If I stood on top of Lummel....
Now I'm hooked on Order of the stick can't stop reading lol but it is great am loving it :)
and swing my falchion in a vicious arc toward the pincushion wererat.
attack1d20 + 12 ⇒ (10) + 12 = 22
You threw me off with this! Lucky for you, the bad guys went from doing quite a bit of damage to you and Alviss to scoring 1 HP of damage :)
It may be helpful to start including a summary of your active defensive and offensive bonuses in your combat posts, something like ... or whatever format works for you. It might make it easier to notice if you're forgetting something.
...and swing my falchion in a vicious arc toward the pincushion wererat.
attack1d20 + 12 ⇒ (10) + 12 = 22
You threw me off with this! Lucky for you, the bad guys went from doing a lot of damage to you and Alviss to a 1HP scratch.
It might be useful to start including a summary of your defensive and offensive bonuses in combat posts, something like +4STR, +5BAB, +1Enhancement, +2Flanking, +1Smite = +13. I find that it helps prevent me from forgetting my various bonuses and buffs...
Assuming I did the Crits right, WOOHOO!
...and swing my falchion in a vicious arc toward the pincushion wererat.
attack1d20 + 12 ⇒ (10) + 12 = 22You threw me off with this! Lucky for you, the bad guys went from doing a lot of damage to you and Alviss to a 1HP scratch.
It might be useful to start including a summary of your defensive and offensive bonuses in combat posts, something like +4STR, +5BAB, +1Enhancement, +2Flanking, +1Smite = +13. I find that it helps prevent me from forgetting my various bonuses and buffs...
Sorry for that, wrote the flavour text before rolling, didn't mean to mislead.
Got it. Thanks. I got confused by this wording on the PRD:
'Note: When you multiply damage more than once, each multiplier works off the original, unmultiplied damage. So if you are asked to double the damage twice, the end result is three times the normal damage.'
"Double the damage twice" apparently acted as a Confusion spell. Or the semi-permanent Feeblemind as I continue to adapt to Pathfinder from my AD&D memory of the rules...
Alviss will refrain from yelling "Who the dwarf" after his successful attack.
Simon,
Unless something happens during the rats' turn to change the plan, I'm going to lay hands on Lummel (I don't mean shaking him by the collar and saying "Wake up, man!") when my turn rolls around.
Since you've been watching the last few rounds, wanted to give you a heads up so you can start thinking about doing something again.
Of course, groaning will probably be one of your options...
Tactics comment: I went with healing Lummel because it's going to take Alviss at least three rounds to get his short legs over to the rest of the battle. I figured Lummell might be able to help somehow if he's upright and not too dazed.
I'd use my crossbow from here but it looks like I've got some obstructions to get around first.
You could climb on top of one of the overturned wagons to have a clean shot with the crossbow. I don't think it will be an issue though... 3 PCs vs a nearly helpless wererat and a single dire rat should make for a quick finish.
I was pondering that. Then picturing the laughter as I rolled a 1 on a climb check and fell butt-backwards....
On that note, I'd like to mention that I follow the RAW for taking 10s and 20s
Taking 20: When you have plenty of time, you are faced with no threats or distractions, and the skill being attempted carries no penalties for failure, you can take 20. In other words, if you a d20 roll enough times, eventually you will get a 20. Instead of rolling 1d20 for the skill check, just calculate your result as if you had rolled a 20.
Taking 20 means you are trying until you get it right, and it assumes that you fail many times before succeeding. Taking 20 takes 20 times as long as making a single check would take (usually 2 minutes for a skill that takes 1 round or less to perform).
Since taking 20 assumes that your character will fail many times before succeeding, your character would automatically incur any penalties for failure before he or she could complete the task (hence why it is generally not allowed with skills that carry such penalties). Common “take 20” skills include Disable Device (when used to open locks), Escape Artist, and Perception (when attempting to find traps).
Ability Checks and Caster Level Checks: The normal take 10 and take 20 rules apply for ability checks. Neither rule applies to concentration checks or caster level checks.
I like that if you filled out the race/gender/class/level parts of the alias form, it now shows up with your post.
Small but nifty improvement.
My Neverwinter Nights 2 party was given three options:
1 - Attack the Fire Giants
2 - Attack the Red Dragon (who we were loosely allied with)
3 - Attack Both
I can definitively state that option "3" was NOT the best choice!
Paizo added private messaging.
http://paizo.com/forums/dmtz56kf?Introducing-Private-Messaging
Presumably this could allow the GM to pass on 'ears only' info more securely than with the SHOW feature.
@HolmesandWatson: Every few years I load up Baldur's Gate/BGII and the expansions, generally once everything's faded enough that I can rediscover the plot and characters. I never got around to NWN2, I might have to look it up...
PMs certainly offer a lot of interesting options, but for the most part I prefer to keep things "on the table". One part of PbPs that I like is that everyone gets to see the whole story, and we can all go back to read up on it months later if we want to reference something. I'd rather tell one big story than 5 separate stories...
That said, if there's something you prefer to chat with the GM about in private feel free to drop a PM.
@All: Do you have any preference on posting GM rolls in OOC blocks at the bottom of the page? I've seen some groups prefer it, and others feel that it breaks immersion. Would you prefer that I spoiler it to keep it out of the way?
I absolutely LOVED BG1 and 2. I've been playing RPGs since the days of Temple of Apshai. At 44, I may well be the oldest person in this PbP. If you youngsters want to see a couple screens of what RPGing was like way back when, check out this entry in my blog:
I'm fine with posting rolls however you want. Works for me either way.
I'm 28, roguelikes are my drug of choice when I feel like playing something old-fashioned. I spent quite a few hours playing Angband when I was younger and I love that it is still being actively developed.
34 here and also played rougelikes on, what I think was one of the first laptop that was sold to the public.
About rolls I have no preferences.
in all the commotion, I lost where Elesandira is.
I watch the healing going on, assisting with any lifting (or flying) which might help.
When all of the magical healing is spent from those skilled in the arts, I offer up healing to any remaining injured, prioritising Lummel:
healing 3d8 + 5 ⇒ (8, 6, 4) + 5 = 23
She was with you helping to clear the rubble and assist the injured. I assume she is coming back with the rest of you when Ziz calls, but she can let us know for sure...
I'm starting a series on my blog based on a Gary Gygax book I found. Gary took his roleplaying seriously!
about how much time has passed since the initial attack at this point? im curious if my spells are still active.
@Ziz: It has been about 20 minutes
There have been a combined 282 gameplay posts in the other two PbPs I have a character in without a sniff of combat so far.
Just wanted to say I'm happy with the action at the outset in this one. Even if it was an inverted butt-whupping at the start. After much running on short legs...
Yeah, I thought I'd start things off with a bang :)
The module begins with the party entering town and exploring the fair, but I couldn't think of a way to pace a narrative like that and keep everything interesting in a PbP. So I just threw you into the thick of it- I'm glad it worked out!
yeah, im really enjoying the game, its been great so far. keep up the good work ;)
@Alviss: Charlie Bronson's always got rope...
The Order of the Stick reprint drive is breaking records all over Kickstarter. And the cartoons are cute.
Had first ever Wrath of Ashardalon session tonight. That is a fun game.
I'm not gone anyway, but I'll wait for the GM to tell me when Lummel catches up with the group (or if he runs into a wandering monster : ) )
I am in three PbPs. In one, I had my ranger buy a silver dagger, but he hasn't needed it. In this one and Pathfinder First Steps, both characters very much could use a silvered weapon but don't have one.
My cavalier is facing an invisible imp. And no Smite Evil available there. At least the bard is singing and has his rapier out. It's like having Elan in the party!
I am going to default to one silver weapon at every character creation opportunity.
Anybody here a fan of Necromancer Games? I've started updating a couple modules to Pathfinder. They are very much Gary Gygax, Tomb of Horrors-ish. More traps and combat than role playing.
I'm in quite a few games, and I've only had one where a weapon made out of a a special material made a difference. In that case my primary weapon was mithral, which counts as silver for DR purposes...
Imps are one of the most annoying creatures in the book. I had the chance to play one in a mini-campaign where we all played evil minions. I had a wild time kidnapping princesses and terrifying townsfolk, it really opened my eyes to why one would take the improved familiar feat. Now that Paizo has added suitable extra-planar familiars for each alignment I need to see how the others work out.
Why isn't Lummel using the silvered weapon? No damage reduction.
I believe he mentioned earlier that his strategy would be to take advantage of the reach and trip bonus from his polearm, and leave the majority of the damage dealing to you two...
Mostly, if I get to trip one of those to get back you'll get AoO plus the attack when prone. I just have to give the silver weapons to you.
Sorry, I got caught up in some RL stuff that is occupying a lot of my time. I've managed to drop in for updates on a few of my games, but haven't had the time to update combat yet. I'll try to have something up tonight, or tomorrow at the latest. Things might be a little slow for the next week or two but it should be smooth sailing after that.
No problem. That was the PbP equivalent of tapping the microphone and saying "Anyone? I know you're out there. I can hear you breathing."
RL trumps PbP by a 1000x. I'll never complain about that. I couldn't RPG if it wasn't for PbP.
@Lummel: I exported the wrong map. I've updated it to include the rat's 5' step... if you read this within the editing window you can adjust your post appropriately, otherwise just post where you would move to.
Lummel will stay put then, there is no need for him to step five
Does it appear that Eles killed the wereat she hit? If so, Alviss will be going after the big one. If it' still up, he'll stick with the small one.
Posting from work so I don't have my notes in front of me, but I'm 99% sure that she did. Go ahead and tackle the big one!