[AP] The Shackled City Adventure Path by GM Rutseg (Inactive)

Game Master Balacertar

Can't speak for the rest of the Watchers GMR, but I'm approaching this encounter with a huge amount of foreboding.

Get the distinct feeling that if we don't hammer them quick and early then the return volley will be plain brutal.

Only shame will be when this game finishes :)

^Yeah, I kind of feel the same, which is why I was going for a strong opening volley as Marigold when that's normally not quite her style.

*foreboooode*

And I also agree with Maxim's second point :)

The worst is when every NPC is different and have very different capabilities. It becomes schizophrenic. If you just have a bunch of pretty similar level 1 goblins is somehow manageable even if it requires some work for all the rolls and descriptions.

What it makes me more ashamed is when the combat ends with the feeling there was no challenge (if that was a boss fight, I am all good for all other encounters being easy and/or skippable), only to find when I hand down the equipment that the boss had a counterspell ring with the exact spell that ruined him. That kind of stuff, forgetting relevant defensive items/feats/class features is what makes me more sorry on those kind of situations.

In the list of shames, only second after the contrary: misinterpreting a ruling that causes a grudge on the players because I forgot or failed to understand something.

Agreed. ;-(

Get the distinct feeling that if we don't hammer them quick and early then the return volley will be plain brutal.

And I think you are doing a great job out of it!

Actually, if I hadn't updated the NPC statblocks to Pathfinder (including adding a class level to keep the CR on par) the only ones standing after that surprise round would be Adrick Garthûn, Mhad, the Shield Guardian and the babaus.

Man, wizards and rogues were really squashy at D&D3.5.

Only shame will be when this game finishes :)

Aww! I really think I will miss it when it finishes. But it is not time for melancholy, there is still plenty of fun and Cauldron heroics ahead!

Huzzah! Here's to many more years of Watching the Cauldron...

Presuming we survive this encounter lol.

And I admit, apart from JJ not liking demons and being not very effective against incorporeal undead... knocking two combatants off that initiative list to make the GMs life easier would be reason enough to try and finish them off.

Rogues are squishy if you catch them, but evasion and improved evasion can make them highly resistant against blasters.

As for abilities, I just ran a SF battle, where I realised at the end, the baddy had an item to semi protect them against cold attacks... which one member of the party had used to help bring them down. Was it called out in the stat block? No.... and in SF, most abilities are rolled into the stat blocks as you can't always work them out from first principals like you can in PF1.

Sorry for the delay, folks. Ma Fitbit records my bedtime yesterday as '4:00pm' for some reason. That's what I get for kayaking 4 hours after waking up at 5:00am, then lavishing the fam with bbq under the noonday sun...

Kythel, note that using ranged touch spells in combat generate attacks of opportunity even when cast defensively. The dread wraith is a Large creature, and thus have reach, which makes a 5-foot step not enough to escape this. You might try to tumble or use a different spell, or perhaps risk taking the AoO, but I would not advise this last one, as a touch attack, it is unlikely to fail.

Also, as a command activated item, the pearl of power requires a standard action to activate its power and recover the spell. No AoO here.

I will note that incorporeals take full damage from channel energy, and due to the way the cure spells are worded, I also interpret them as dealing full damage to incorporeals. Some GMs have a different ruling for this last bit, but I think it was the intention as the D&D3 incorporeal clarification that allowed this was part of a errata which I think was more clear: "except for positive energy, negative energy, force effects such as magic missile, or attacks made with ghost touch weapons." and it was nor properly transferred when "Channel Energy" become a class feature in Pathfinder.

OK, thought it was closer to JJ than me.

I will Tumble back off of the Wall then and fire the spell at the Dread Wraith instead as my Move Action.

Have to use that recalled spell next round I suppose! Sorry Kikinnin. I will though use the last Hero Point to recall that spell with the Pearl so that I can use it next round either on the Vampire or the Dread Wraith once more.

Should I just keep the rolls as is? Using the first Ranged Touch for the Tumble and the Second Ranged Touch for the Searing Light vs. the Dread Wraith and you can just ret-con the action within your descriptive?

Oh, no apologies necessary, Kythel. Would have been a glorious burn for the Pharasman. I’ll give it a go myself- don’t want her answering my righteous blows with vampiric touches of her own... ;)

Fervor for free move, which gives up an AOO to the duke

Blessing of fervor actually gives you a +30 feet speed enhancement, not exactly an extra free move action. That means JJ will be able to strike only once. I will go with that unless you want to take a different course of action JJ.

@Maxim, as scorching ray is a ranged spell, the shield guardian will have an AoO (10' reach). You could instead step to the spot I moved you in the map where I think the wall gives you enough cover to protect you from the AoO. You can also use your move action to tumble if you prefer instead.

Also, the dwarf spellslinger is likely to know the chill fire shield around the golem is likely to reduce by half any incoming fire damage (so it would be x1.5 for vulnerability an /2 for fire shield, a total 25% damage reduction versus fire).

I get the BoF vs haste bonsues confused all the time. JJ will go for the bonus to AC in that case. Or maybe it is a different system's haste. Still, one attack is better than none.

@GMR: Ahhhh. Cheers for the clarification, forgot about the big'uns reach as I was hanging about the doorway. I'll go with the suggested positioning and hope the wall protects me :)

I get the BoF vs haste bonsues confused all the time. JJ will go for the bonus to AC in that case. Or maybe it is a different system's haste. Still, one attack is better than none.

Maybe you confused it with PF2 haste that gives you an extra action? :)

That could be it. Too many different but very similar systems contesting in my head. Actually it is probably the SF version, where if you are taking a full attack, you can have a move action as well.

On the plus side. Extra +2 to hit from no TWF penalty. And extra 3 damage (as the staff counts as a two handed weapon as it is not being used for TWF).

Mmm... Zarn Kyass (the Blue Duke) is an outsider (native, giant, oni, shapechanger) but not an outsider (evil). I see outsider (native) is a different category in the ranger favored enemy table, and thus the bonuses would not apply in this particular case.

So both, FE, Abyss bonus and bane will not work against him.

That said, I think you are missing Maxim's heroism in your attacks and saves.

Working on the round next post...

Those tricky native outsiders. Oh well. Thanks for the reminder about heroism. At least I got to smash two demons in one round. Rest might be slower.

Is it to late for me to use a swift action to LoH to counter some of that AOO damge?

LoH: 6d6 ⇒ (1, 1, 1, 5, 5, 3) = 16

Yeah think this scrap is about to evolve into a war of attrition... they've got the defences in place, now they'll likely start ripping into us... Gonna be one for the ages methinks!

WEll, getting rid of the demons, the wraith and the vampire early on has made this doable. Swings and roundabouts. The next round is doing ugly for JJ. Still got one LoH left, here is hoping that the Blue Duke is on his last legs.

Yes! I'm so happy my idea could actually work :D

It was a great idea, kudos! :)

The telekinetic charge is not a teleportation but rather making Kikinnin fly through the battlefield. It cannot cross through the force wall.

I would have appreciated if the designers had added some clarifications on whether if the travel needs to be in an aproximate straight line (or respect the charge rules for that matter), if visibility is required and if not a straight line, for how long can you move the ally around.

I would say you do not need a straight line, but you need visibility, and Kikinnin will have to endure both the sirocco and the AoO from the Blue Duke (as he basically has reach on all squares the dwarf could go through) and from Tifirane (Vervil is not holding weapons). Is that ok with any of you?

Yeah, the name of the spell has the word 'Charge' in it, so I was on the fence about the circuitous route around the Wall of Force :)

If Maxim drags Kikinnin through all three threats, then there will be a reckoning, I suspect. Kikinnin trusts his bror, to his peril.

Unable to stop him, Kikinnin simply decapitates the Cagewright Lady with his axe Endgammel.

oh snap

Even if the stoneskin was not bypassed by Kikinnin's axe the 109 hp is enough to surpass her HP and her 15 Con, so she is indeed dead dead :)

Out tonight, will update in the morning.

Wow, this battle shifts rapidly. I'm almost starting to feel hopeful of surviving it.

A paladin with an axe that routinely crits BBEG's. Gota love it.

Woof. A paladin with powerful allies capable of getting him into the fight against all magical barriers... gotta love it. Kikinnin could have been spending three rounds just trying to get into battle due to that nasty Wall of Force. Kudos to Marigold and Maxim for making things happen ;)

The telekinetic charge is not a teleportation but rather making Kikinnin fly through the battlefield. It cannot cross through the force wall.

I would have appreciated if the designers had added some clarifications on whether if the travel needs to be in an aproximate straight line (or respect the charge rules for that matter), if visibility is required and if not a straight line, for how long can you move the ally around.

I would say you do not need a straight line, but you need visibility, and Kikinnin will have to endure both the sirocco and the AoO from the Blue Duke (as he basically has reach on all squares the dwarf could go through) and from Tifirane (Vervil is not holding weapons). Is that ok with any of you?

New day dawning here, so just catching up...

Know this is a moot point, but had presumed that the 10ft. Globe extended 10ft. high at apex, so was going to arc the Flying Anvil o'er the globe (if necessary).

Glad it worked out - had been itching to use the spell and saw the opportunity - our version of the Fastball Special lol.

Kythel Spells Updated:

0th – 4 Create Water, Detect Magic, Guidance, Resistance
1st – 5+D (Cure Light Wounds), Detect Evil (Cast), Protection from Evil x2 (both cast), Bless Water. Shield of Faith (cast)
2nd – 5+D (Cure Moderate Wounds), Calm Emotions, Enthrall, Gentle Repose, Hold Person. Silence (cast).
3rd – 5+D (Cure Serious Wounds)(cast), Searing Light (cast), Dispel Magic (cast), Remove Disease (cast), Remove Blindness/Deafness (cast). Invisibility Purge (cast).
4th - 4+D (Cure Critical Wounds) Blessing of Fervor (APG) (cast), Dismissal, Sending. Divine Power (cast).
5th – 2+D (Breath of Life) Flamestrike (cast as Mass Cure Light), Raise Dead (cast).
6th - 1+D [Cone of Cold] (cast) - Heal.

Channels 0/10

Ho-ho. Am loving this. Been waiting for this to come to a head for a while lol. Great stuff :)

Battles are cool, but conflicts are sweeter... ;)

I'm mostly caught up but still mulling over what Marigold might have to say here, if anything...

DM, what is the bonus to casting the Break Enchantment from the scroll? Been buried RL have not had a chance to look it up, I guess only the Monkey and the Rat remain correct?

It is a level 5 spell, thus, the minimum required is CL 9 and Wis/Int 15. The bonus of the scroll would be +9.

I assume we are going to Vhalantru's House next, but correct me otherwise.

Let me know when we are ready to move on!

Super Busy IRL, will try and update tonight but may not be able to. Need to pick spells for the next day as well.

It has been a busy day for me too. But I am here around now.

I think the house sounds about right.

Sounds like Vhalantru's house it is!

Apologies for the slow posting the last day or two; have had things to do on my days off lately.

+1 on the apologies. Work's kicked up a notch, will try and get a meaningful post up forthwith.

Likewise, though it was the last day of term today, so things get quieter. Hurrah.

Happy July 4th to those of you in/from the US and Happy Saturday to those of you elsewhere or those that opt not to celebrate!

This is my weekend off (yay!) but otherwise no special plans on my end except maybe trying to enjoy the sunshine a little bit when it's not too terribly hot :)

My sons birthday today. There is a hot chocolate competition being run by the cafes in a nearby town, so we went out to try one.

Apple pie hot chocolate. Sounds better than it tastes sadly.

article with photo of the one we had

Ooh...it looks good but I'd think that there'd be way too many competing flavors for it to taste good. Or it'd just be way too sweet. Maybe both?

Happy Birthday to your son! :)

Sweet Mercy is does look good tho'!

Happy Birthday to Surabar Junior!

Surabar junior is now officially a teenager.

Family vote was that it tasted nice, but wasn't really a hot chocolate. And in fact, didn't have any chocolate favour at all. It was supposed to be white chocolate flavored, but with the apple - it was more like milk that white chocolate.

Going to have to go back later in the schools holidays and try another one or two at some other cafes.

Did you hit it with the Schnapps? Should have hit it with the Schnapps.

Driving :-(

Ah well. Wait for Surabar Jr to grow some chin hair, and go back for the Schnapps ;)

Also Happy 4th, though this year it’s mainly just become PTSD therapy for ma dogs, last night and likely tonight as well.