Thirst - A Ravenloft PbP

Game Master Celestial Healer

The girl smiles at Leandro and a faint blush rises to her cheeks. "You have a way with words, sir."

She seems reluctant to take her eyes off the strapping (and charming) paladin as Res asks his question. She finally turns to Res to answer, "Do you have an appointment with Monsieur de Monte? That is usually the best way to make arrangements for special orders." She turns back to Leandro, as if awaiting what response he may have for her.

Nathaniel finds his way to the alley that runs behind the row of buildings. The passageway is cramped and choked with rubbish. A few well-fed rats scurry into the shadows as you approach. Making your way down the alley, you arrive at what you expect must be the rear of the shop. An unassuming door leads into the building, as well as a grimy window looking into the alleyway. Nathaniel's sharp eye notices that the window is secured by a rickety shutter that would easily open from the outside.

Volidrian observes the many passersby in the market district. A few have remarked with wonder at the magnificent dolls on display in the window.

Trying to stay mostly out of sight from anyone who might be within the building Stealth: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (3) + 11 = 14, Nathaniel tries to peer through the grimy window. Perception: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (20) + 11 = 31

Leandro smiles at the girl. *bling!*

"We don't have an appointment, no... perhaps you can arrange one for us?"

Through the grimy window, Nathaniel can see what looks like a storeroom. Crates filled with parts, broken toys, and unremarkable excess merchandise are scattered about. The room is unoccupied, but a flight of stairs descends to a cellar. Light streams faintly up from below, along with the faint sounds of hammers and tools. Another staircase leads up, but he can see naught above but shadows.

In the shop, the girl smiles coyly. "I could see if he's available. Let me just call up one of his assistants to mind the shop floor a moment." She curtsies faintly and walks to the interior door. Opening it, she pokes her head inside and calls out, "Felicité! Can you come up?" She looks back at all of you and says apologetically, "Monsieur de Monte does not like to leave the shop untended."

Nathaniel sees a door open in the storeroom as a girl pokes her head through and calls out a name. A drowsy woman with a blank expression slowly lumbers up the stairs, her brow glistening with sweat. Her movements are effortless, but nonetheless even and slow. At a plodding pace, she reaches the showroom door and passes through.

Leandro, Res, and Tybalt see a matronly woman enter with a practiced smile on her face. Her brow is beaded with sweat and her hair tied back tightly in a scarf. The shop girl tells her, "Mind the shop a moment, Felicité. I must speak with Monsier de Monte." With another curtsy, she slips out the door and leaves you with the taciturn workshop assistant.

Nathaniel sees the girl slip back into the storeroom and skip energetically down the cellar stairs.

Res tries to be cordial. He picks up another of the dolls. "Is this some of your handiwork? Such fine detail. What part of the doll do you work on?" he asks.

Nathaniel ducks back down and quietly describes what he sees to Andrzej. “It all looks so normal,” he adds.

"It would. Angalia's good with doors and locks. I'm not but maybe that is where our next move will be." The emotionless magus flicks a look at the back door and looks upwards to see whether there are suitable windows open.

Felicité looks dourly at Res. She responds in a husky voice that is almost comically baritone. "I do the joints. Pinning the parts together so they move life-like. Marcel makes the limbs and bodies. We're not allowed to do the heads. Only Master Gerard does the heads." She displays no joy or pride with any of this.

In the alleyway behind the shop, Andrzej looks up to see a few windows in the levels above the shop, but they are shuttered, evidently to block a view of the grimy alley.

Leandro greets the newcomer with a courteous bow. "Greetings, Lady Felicité. It is an honor and pleasure to meet one of the geniuses who creates these amazing dolls. Tell me, how long does it take to create one? And have you ever watched Monsieur de Monte create one of the doll's heads?"

As Leandro speaks to Felicité, Res discretely turns his back to the dollmaker's assistant and tries to determine if the dolls are magical and what kind magical item it is.

spellcraft w/detect magic: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (2) + 7 = 9

Unfortunately, his efforts to hide his activities hinders his ability to identify the item. (Can he at least tell if the dolls are giving off a magical aura?)

The dolls do not emit an aura of magic.

"We do about two each week," Felicité says joylessly. She mops her brow with a rag, appearing to inadvertently smear something on her forehead as she does so.

Andrzej and Nathaniel see the perky shopgirl ascend the stares into the back room, with a stooped older man following behind her. He is wiping his dusty hands on his dirty apron.

"Surely it must be happy work, creating works of art that will bring joy to children, is it not?" Leandro scrutinizes Felicité closely as she answers. Something seems off with this woman, but what?

Sense Motive: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (8) + 9 = 17

"I wonder Nathaniel if that dollmaker has any children of his own? Or if there is a hidden curse here. Something is not obvious here. Well hidden." Andrzej rubs his face and scratches his chin again unthinking.

Then the vistani realises what he is doing and adds in a humourless voice, "..if I start asking for cheese then...."

The stout woman looks at Leandro and responds without feeling, "Yes. Of course it is."

The door to the back of the shop opens and the girl returns, followed by an older man with a stooped posture. While he carries himself with wearily, his eyes are sharp, and he gives you all a vaguely childish grin. "Well, you're a bit old to be playing with dolls, but then we're all children at heart, are we not?" He looks to see if his humor was appreciated.

Quietly, Felicité leaves through the door through which the old man entered.

From the alleyway, Nathaniel and Andrzej see the old man leave the store room into the shop itself, after which the lumbering woman returns again, headed for the stairs into the workshop. Her expression is blank, and her mannerisms mechanical.

"Well, perhaps 'normal' is not quite right," Nathaniel mutters quietly. "There's something a bit off about that woman ... I'd really like to see what's in that workshop - I wonder what our chances of sneaking in would be?"

Leandro watches Felicité retreat, perplexed at her demeanor. He smiles politely at the old man.

"You must be Monsieur de Monte, the mastermind behind the wonderful dolls?" he inquires, "We were in town briefly and heard of how wondrous they are. We thought to see for ourselves before we departed. In fact, one of our number found a doll of yours discarded on the road, if you can believe it."

"Yes, I am de Monte. I am... I would not imagine why someone would discard one of my creations." He appears hurt by this revelation from Leandro. Clearly he attaches a great deal of significance to his creations. "I do hope the doll was recovered. If any are in need of repair, I am always happy to see to it."

"In any event, did you just wish to see the toymaker in person, or was there something you needed?"

Interesting - so de Monte isn't the toymaker it seems ... I guess we want to see the toymaker then ...

He's just referring to himself in the third person.

Andrzej kneels to wipe his dusty boots clean. The black shine is a little dull and scuffed when he notices the crack along one sole. It feels mushy and there is a faint whiff of swamp water.

Perhaps it will be time to buy new boots, but the rat fever might rip the leather apart. So let these have their day. I wonder what is taking so long? Feels like ages.

He's just referring to himself in the third person.

Ah, ok.

Sensing that the Toymaker is an artiste, Tybalt starts on a different tack; "Inspiration, it comes from many sources. From the people surrounding us on the streets, the smile in a child's face as they handle one of your dolls, the forest gentle breeze, the first dawns light. What is de Monte's muse, I wonder?" He asks in a circumspect way trying to find more out about the Toymaker.

As Tristan and Leandro engage Monsieur de Monte in conversation, Res studies the old toymaker intently looking for signs of deceit. sense motive: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (7) + 13 = 20

Volidrian starts pacing in front of the establishment.
Sure has been a long time, though there haven't been any sounds to indicate combat and they didn't seem the type to go down without a fight.
Nervously he starts unconsciously checking that all his weapons are where they should be.

"Ah! I wish we had known to bring it to you. As it was, one of our party kindly gave it to a child in need of comforting." Leandro watches the man carefully. "The child said the doll talked to her and tried to get her to leave with it."

Sense Motive: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (5) + 9 = 14

Monsieur de Monte smiles a bit at Tybalt's question. "I try to make the dolls a reflection of the children that will play with them. Each should have that child-like sense of wonder, grace, and innocence. I am forever refining my design, making it a truer reflection of that state of innocence."

Then, as Leandro relates the child talking to the doll, the toymaker's face grows more serious. "What you are describing is impossible. Dolls do not talk. If you will excuse me, I must attend to my workshop." He turns to leave, heedless of the abruptness of the interaction.

Res tries to step between the toymaker and the door to stop him from leaving. "Monsieur de Monte, my apologies, we have not explained our interest in your dolls properly. Last night, a murder occurred, and one of your dolls may have been involved. As horrible as it may seem, someone may be corrupting your dolls to perform foul deeds. Is there someone who may wish ill to you and be enchanting your dolls with some nefarious magic?"

diplomacy to gain de Monte's cooperation: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (5) + 8 = 13

Nathaniel says to Andrzej, “There’s a lot of coming and going from the front room isn’t there? I’m going to check on the front for a moment.”

He moves carefully back up the ally to the street at the front, to see Volidrian pacing about. “No trouble?” he asks the half orc quietly. “Do they seem to be getting anywhere inside?”

Volidrian looks up at Nathaniel's question and quickly composes himself, "Nothing thus far, ergo I assume they are still conversing," he responds in a similarly hushed tone. "Did you see anything around back which may aid our investigation."

“There’s a window,” Nathaniel murmurs in reply. “I’m not big on breaking and entering, but it looks easy enough to get in through if that was called for. It looks into a store room – I could see stairs leading down into what I assume is the workroom in the cellar, and another flight of stairs leading up, probably to the toymaker’s abode I would guess. We’ve watched people come and go up the stairs from the cellar – the toymaker and some of his assistants I assume. There’s something sort of off-looking about one of the women, but I don’t know … maybe she’s just tired? Perhaps doll-making is harder work than I’d have thought …”

Andrzej is brought back to reality and cuts back to Nathaniel quickly. He shakes his head and eyes sharpen as he stays in place, watching the ranger's back.

"If you need me.....I am no lookout."

Res tries to step between the toymaker and the door to stop him from leaving. "Monsieur de Monte, my apologies, we have not explained our interest in your dolls properly. Last night, a murder occurred, and one of your dolls may have been involved. As horrible as it may seem, someone may be corrupting your dolls to perform foul deeds. Is there someone who may wish ill to you and be enchanting your dolls with some nefarious magic?"

Leandro steps forward to join Res. "Please stay and talk. We are most interested in how one of your dolls might have learned to slit a woman's throat like sticking a pig. And what is wrong with the lady Felicitè?" He watches carefully for a lie.

S&M: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (11) + 9 = 20

Monsieur de Monte stops abruptly and looks rather stung by Leandro's account. He begins to shake slightly and his eyes take on a misty look. "Please, I..." he begins, then stops with a glance at the shop girl. He breathes deeply. "Enough of your scary ghost stories. Peddle them elsewhere," he says loudly, gauging the reaction of the shop girl, who looks wide-eyed upon this exchange.

He moves close to Leandro and whispers, "Please. Please not here. Meet me after sunset at Marcel's coffee house, just off the marketplace." He looks to Leandro for signs of comprehension.

Refresh my memory - tonight is the full moon. We were supposed to be on board a ship tonight? Sorry, it's been a while.

Refresh my memory - tonight is the full moon. We were supposed to be on board a ship tonight? Sorry, it's been a while.

From memory the full moon IS tonight (so then is when half the party turns wererat) however I think the ship doesn’t leave for another couple of days … and that’s assuming we want to take the ship to return to Mordentshire (??) to consult with the Doctor (?Who?) and not continue to track … whatever it is you guys were tracking here …

Sounds about right for the full moon. And I didn't think we had to be away on a ship for a while.

Leandro nods sharply at de Monte, turns on his heel, and strides from the store.

Once outside, he saunters to the lookouts and waits for those inside to emerge, then explains softly, "He wishes to meet tonight at a coffee house. Some of us will be unable to go, but perhaps a couple can meet him? I think a large group would create suspicion, and those of us under threat of rattiness should be kept constrained and under guard."

I think you guys worked out OOC who is likely to have been infected; has this been established in character? Who needs to spend the night locked up, and how many do we have to meet the toymaker and guard the rats?

Leandro, Andrzej, and Tybalt were all bitten by wererats, so in-character all three would be suspect. Eliva was bitten by a werewolf, but no one quite knows what that means. As a reminder, tonight is the new moon, which the wererat witch said would trigger transformations in anyone of her wererat line. Also, you do have Eliva, Angalia, and Anuqa for guard duty or the like.

The only faces Monsieur de Monte knows are Leandro's, Tybalt's, and Res's, so you may need to include Res in the coffee house group if you want him to know who you are.

I’m not sure of the circumstance of the werewolf bite – does the party have any reason to suspect that lycanthropy is a factor and/or that anything might be wrong with Eliva? Would they associate this with the full moon or the wererat bites in any way?

Thinking in-world, it probably makes most sense to have Res go to the toymaker meeting along with Angalia and Anuqa, leaving Nathaniel and Volidrian to guard the infected PCs (Angalia and Anuqa may appear fairly non-threatening and have good social skills; Nathaniel and Volidrian have good fort saves should the infected get free and bite!). From an OOC point of view if might be better to swap one of Nathaniel or Volidrian with one of Angalia or Anuqa, so as to have more than one active PC in that group?

Volidrian ponders for a moment, then replies, "I would rather be a part of the group which shall meet with the toy maker. Having those familiar with the parties which may transform tonight would be of more comfort and aid in a difficult time. Furthermore due to my personal stake in the matter regarding the toy maker I would feel derelict in my duty were I not to be present."

Andrzej is keen to be chained up. He is likely to turn - there is something of the rat about his face.

“That’s reasonable,” nods Nathaniel. “Well what of this? Res, Volidrian and Angalia – if there’s no chance she was infected by wererats – go to the meeting. The rest of us … we need to find a safe and secure place for the night; I’m not sure the inn is it. Should we go out into the wilderness? Look for an abandoned but secure building here in town? Hire a stable or a loft or somesuch for the night?”

"Mayhap a menagerie," Leandro suggests glumly, "We should probably be caged for the night."

Are you planning to look inside or outside the city?

Nathaniel doesn't know much about the terrain or situation outside the city, but would assume that is a better option unless someone has a better suggestion.

At minimum he suggests the group should purchase ropes to tie up each of the possibly impacted characters - tie hands and legs as well as tying each of them to a tree or some structure.

"I would prefer to be outside maybe in a barn or clearing where none can see the terrible results. If you need to slay Andrzej then that means the act would go unnoticed and with my blessing. I'd rather be dead than a savage killer loose in the city." The magus struggles to remain still without scratching for no good reason.

Nathaniel nods. Would anyone in the group – perhaps Tybalt our bard, with Knowledge (local) – know of a suitable location outside the city?

Know (local): 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (11) + 9 = 20

Tybalt kept quiet by the thought's of what may happen and distant memories of what happened to his liege, decides to interject. "I may know a place..." He adds solemnly thinking of a barn his familiar owl had spotted a couple of nights ago.

"And even have a set of prisoners manacles..." Though with his usual sardonic tone; "Just don't get them confused with the escape manacles."

Hi. I forgot to mention an important rules change.

In keeping with Ravenloft traditions, neither alignment detection nor undead detection will work properly. If you belong to a class with those abilities, we can come up with alternate class features.

Spells that raise the dead will have a risk of the target coming back as undead instead. There will probably be a caster level check involved. I will post firm rules on that soon.

Cool.

I'll post or email some initial concepts / thoughts soonish.

Ah! Finally it appears! I'm thinking inquisitor, for the other players' information. If it's looking like there are any critical "holes" in the party, I'll happily switch as needed.

As usual I have half a dozen ideas for a character, but am also willing to tweak to fit a percieved hole.

I am thinking of either a ranger or a cavalier or on a completely different note a wizard, witch or alchemist!

Doesn't narrow it down terribly does it?

I will probably play a human male character if the ranger or the cavalier, I think that best fits my ideas there. Not sure on race or gender if I go more the arcane caster type.

Must have idea...........

Fighter

Have absolutely no idea, but checking out my PF rulebook for inspiration. Since I've never played under PF and it's been at least a couple of years since I rolled up a 3.5 character, I'm slightly floundering.

Some kind of roguey type maybe?

hmm...maybe we need me to go cleric then instead?

I plan on soliciting one or two more on the gamer connection forums, so if there is a gap, they will be made aware of it. Naturally, choosing a character that fills that gap increases their odds of getting chosen for the PbP :)

In other words, don't worry about it if we don't have a cleric yet.

And most of you have already gotten this, but here it is again, so it's all in one place:

The crunchy bits: Level 1, but starting with 1000 xp. Fast XP advancement. 20 pt buy. Start with 500 gp to spend as you like on gear (about what you would have gotten adventuring for those first 1000 xp.)

I plan on just giving group xp awards instead of individual awards, to keep people at the same level. I don't have the patience to balance encounters for a mixed-level party. Although who knows, I may change my mind later. Like I said on the boards, posting about once a day is fine. In combat, I will give people about 24 hours to post, or I will post a reasonable action for them. That keeps things moving, but at the same time is pretty reasonable.

It will be a pretty story-intensive campaign. Ravenloft is more about terror, atmosphere, and investigation than it is about beating down bad guys. Based on that, I'm not anticipating needing to tell people what they can and can't use to build their characters. Anything in PF is fine, and other things can just be run by me if you have any doubts.

The party will be starting in a rather generic fantasy realm, so we can work in just about any background elements players want to have. That includes gods, organizations, etc. None of that will matter once you pass through the mists anyway. I just need characters who can work together, whatever alignment or disposition they choose.

To give a little more info on where you will be starting:

At the top of the campaign, you have been asked (or begged, or bribed, as the case may be) by the leaders of a local village to stop a nearby minor noble from enacting some foul rite with a kidnapped village lass.

Your motives can be somewhat self-serving, if you prefer (she could be a family member, or you could just not like the idea of some evil dude getting too powerful). I want to start it in media res, so we can hurry up and get you into those mists.

Looking at the inquisitor's Detect Alignment ability - I don't know what to do about that. I was going to suggest a more mundane bonus to sense motive, but she already has that as a class ability.

Maybe a different detect spell? Or maybe detect evil etc. doesn't detect a creture's alignment, but more their immediate intentions.

Evil disguised vampire is hiring us to take out the werewolf plaguing his cattl...er...villagers. He genuinely wants us to take care of this problem, and intends to pay us as promised for this service. He would detect as good and lawful because he's at the moment not meaning harm to anyone, and plans to fulfill his obligations...?

Other detect spells at levels 0-2:

0:
Detect Magic
Detect Poison

1:
Detect Animals or Plants
Detect Chaos/Evil/Good/Law
Detect Secret Doors
Detect Snares and Pits
Detect Undead

2:
Detect Thoughts

If we turn out not to have a rogue, I can trade it in for some of the more roguish detections, like Secret Doors and Snares and pits - but without disable that will be of limited use. Maybe it should go a different route - more like a locate object or person sort of thing?

Hm. Or maybe my first level domain spell as a replacement, so it'll follow my domain theme (inquisitors usually don't get their domain spells)?

I'm just throwing random thoughts out. Let me know if something does or doesn't appeal.

Basic plan for the inquisitor:

Half Orc Female Inquisitor of Erastil (Feather Subdomain (from Animal domain))

She will generally be an archer. Her first domain power is Eyes of the Hawk - bonuses to perception and initiative. Her second will be an animal companion at -3 levels (I'm thinking the dire bat). If you were examining the Domain Spells option to replace Detect Alignment, the ones available to her are: calm animals, feather fall, fly, summon nature's ally IV, beast shape III, mass fly, animal shapes, summon nature's ally VIII, shapechange.

As Erastil is the god of community and rural areas, I figure she was raised much more kindly in a small town than many half orcs, and values such a small town lifestyle when it's cooperative and kind instead of just insular. Her main focus is going to be on protecting the populace from danger and fostering a sense of community between people. Erastil is Lawful Good, so she'll be either Lawful Good or Neutral Good.

I'm liking what I'm seeing so far. I'll look at my APG tonight for those class features.

Quick question (sorry to be a pest!):

The dire bat starts off medium and becomes large. I"m not interested in a giant battle pet - he's going to lag levels behind everyone anyway - I'd rather have him be a scout sort of thing. May I attempt to model him after a smaller companion? For example, the Bird companion stays small, and the dog and small cat companions only get as large as medium. A small pet could ride around on my shoulder - I figure a lot of his size is in his wingspan - though he'd still be a remarkably large bat.

Edit: Traits? No?

I'll think about the bat. I'm inclined to allow it to stay smaller, as that's easier to run anyway.

Traits: I always forget about those things. Sure, have 2.

I got another player expressing interest, so we may be getting to a point where I don't need to reach out publicly for more players. That does mean, however, we may need to be a little more conscious of party makeup. We'll see what people come up with and go from there, though.

Maybe I will be special and be a cavalier instead. Decisions, decisions.

Posting to state my interest. I'll start working on a concept now. I'm thinking Oracle, Cleric or if Mothman goes a different way, Ranger off the top of my head.

There may be some opportunities for mounted combat, for those going that direction, but there will also be crypts, old mansions, and the like. And remember - it's more about the character's story than what they can do.

Tordek, a cleric would certainly have plenty to do. You would never run out of opportunities to channel positive energy.

Also, to all, be aware that Ravenloft is a bit more human-centric than other campaigns. Some people may be more suspicious of non-humans than they would be in other settings, although that can also be part of the fun :)

palm to the forehead Duh! Undead. I wasn't thinking. A human cleric it will be. Any resources online for ravenloft that I can use to help me develop my backstory? Also, will you be using Golarion deities or are their other deities in ravenloft?

My understanding is Ravenloft is generally a place adventurers aren't native to - it's a place the multiverse kinda drops you in.

Actually, some of the settings books assumed native characters- with Calibans replacing half-orcs and half-Vistani available.

Maybe I will be special and be a cavalier instead. Decisions, decisions.

Oo! Oo! Be a hound master cavalier from superstar! :D

"Release the hounds!"

To give some background, if you don't know a lot about Ravenloft:

It is a demiplane that myseriously touches on the material world from time to time (usually when an act of unspeakable evil attracts the attention of the unknowable powers of Ravenloft). It's a realm where the very soil is evil, and those with a bent towards darkness find it nurtured by the land itself. It's very dark, hostile, and dangerous.

While it is possible for a campaign to consist of Ravenloft natives (which may be the case if we find ourselves needing a replacement character at some point), the classic template is adventurers snatched by the "mists" from some other, fairer realm and drawn into the prison-like demiplane, forever looking for an escape.

Thus, you will all begin together in another realm. Because I want your backstories to be your own, the creation of this material plane can be a cooperative effort. You can use whatever deities you like, make up places, people, organizations, etc, for your backstory. Whatever you choose becomes canon. Whatever god you follow as a cleric will be virtually unheard of in Ravenloft, as the gods have no influence there. They will grant you spells and abilities, but will otherwise be distant.

I need to review the sourcebooks again to get a good list of spells that may not work properly in Ravenloft (I want to disclose it all in advance). Off the top of my head, raising the dead will generally require a caster level check, spells that detect alignments (Know Alignment, Detect Evil, etc) just don't work, and planar travel is impossible. There may be circumstances in which teleportation will be impeded (most often when a domain is sealed), or when spells like Commune may be a bit more murky than usual. If you have a class ability that mimics one of these spells, we can work out a substitute. If one of these spells would be a domain spell for you, we can substitute that, too.

Actually, some of the settings books assumed native characters- with Calibans replacing half-orcs and half-Vistani available.

That is true.

I'm going old school, though.

So, if you don't know much about the setting, that will make it even easier to roleplay your character.

My wife used to run Ravenloft years before we met. She like to say, 'In Ravenloft, your Paladin doesn't detect evil- evil detects you.'

My wife used to run Ravenloft years before we met. She like to say, 'In Ravenloft, your Paladin doesn't detect evil- evil detects you.'

That summarizes it pretty succinctly. You looking to join? We could squeeze in one more.

I keep returning to my original idea of a grim and driven ranger with a tragic past and a dark secret ...

But if we are looking at too much overlap with a ranger, an inquisitor and a fighter / cavalier type, I am happy to go arcane instead.

If niel (or someone else) is joining, I might see what they want to play ...

Here's a first general sketch of Eliva the Inquisitor.

She's focusing on perception, intimidation (going dazzling display asap, I think) sense motive and monster identification.

I tried to work backwards to a small bat, and ended up with a crippled thing with a -3 modifier in strength and a -2 modifier in constitution.

The easier route might be to make it just like a bird. Hopefully the loss of two talons, the loss of speed from 80 ft to 40 ft makes up for getting blindsense 40' instead of low light vision.

I find myself compelled to want to join this game... assuming there is room for another. I love Ravenloft so very, very much.

I'm battling a system I don't know and while I'll get my head around it eventually, I'll happily go alternate.

Jess, I agree with starting with a bird and going from there - just tweaking a tad to be bat-like.

I was prepared for 7 in the party: Mothman, Moorluck, CrimJ, Jess, Tordek, Rosey, Fatespinner would be fine. (I'm not sure if niel meant to express interest, or was just checking out the thread.)

Also, Rosey, this game is all about story, which I know you have down cold (it is why I invited you). I know all these folks and they're the friendly type who answer questions and help each other out - if you have any questions, just ask.

On another note: spell modifications are a pain. I reread the part of the campaign guide that deals with them, and I think I'm good with what I posted before. I do like the modification to Gate (it only brings things in - nothing can leave that way), and Remove Curse (which does not apply to "Ravenloft curses").

Also, Jess, the domain spell idea to replace the inquisitor's alignment detection will be fine.

I started statting up a ranger today, then went back and read the thread and realized that mechanically my concept was almost identical to Jess’s inquisitor, down to ability scores, skill choices and focus on archery. So I think I’ll stick with ranger but maybe change some skills around and almost certainly go with a melee focused character.

This is first draft of my cleric of Gorum. He is going to be a melee cleric. I haven't purchased any of his gear yet.

Thanks :)

I'm still thinking rogue, but more because I'd like to build a skill bunny than an arch combatant. Sorry not to have posted earlier - I've been running classes for 8 hours today and will be out again shortly. I'm looking at some pre-gens and not liking any of them much so far.

Will look properly later tonight, but if anyone can point me at a suitable build, I'd be grateful.

That summarizes it pretty succinctly. You looking to join? We could squeeze in one more.

Seven seems like plenty, but if you can sqeeze me in, I would be interested.

Click on Res's profile to see his stats. Below is his updated backstory with typos corrected.

Thanks :)

I'm still thinking rogue, but more because I'd like to build a skill bunny than an arch combatant. Sorry not to have posted earlier - I've been running classes for 8 hours today and will be out again shortly. I'm looking at some pre-gens and not liking any of them much so far.

Will look properly later tonight, but if anyone can point me at a suitable build, I'd be grateful.

Rev Rosey, I'm happy to offer any advise or answer any questions regarding PF or rogues specifically. I've never been much of a rogue player, but have been playing a PF rogue in Heath's Saltmarsh / Isle of Dread / Sasserine game and have been having a lot of fun with it.

The PF rogue is pretty similar to the 3.5 version, but has a few more tricks up his or her sleeve.

It's been far, far to hot in Sydney this weeklend to spend much time in front of the PC (or rule books for that matter), so I still haven't had a chance to do that much on my character. Hope to have something up in the next few days.

You got room for one more? I got an idea for a Sorceress.... ok so maybe I just want to play my beloved Tiffa here as well as at home.

Since we appear to lack a proper arcane spellcaster, here is my character, pending approval.

(Fatespinner)

EDIT: Hah, Moorluck posted while I was in the middle of creating this one!

Since we appear to lack a proper arcane spellcaster, here is my character, pending approval.

(Fatespinner)

EDIT: Hah, Moorluck posted while I was in the middle of creating this one!

I see no reason why two arcane spellcasters can't be better than one, we can cover each others weak points that way. >:D

Here is my ranger character as he currently stands.

Rev Rosey, I'm happy to offer any advise or answer any questions regarding PF or rogues specifically. I've never been much of a rogue player, but have been playing a PF rogue in Heath's Saltmarsh / Isle of Dread / Sasserine game and have been having a lot of fun with it.

The PF rogue is pretty similar to the 3.5 version, but has a few more tricks up his or her sleeve.

Thanks Mothman - I'd really appreciate that.

Mothman wrote:

Rev Rosey, I'm happy to offer any advise or answer any questions regarding PF or rogues specifically. I've never been much of a rogue player, but have been playing a PF rogue in Heath's Saltmarsh / Isle of Dread / Sasserine game and have been having a lot of fun with it.

The PF rogue is pretty similar to the 3.5 version, but has a few more tricks up his or her sleeve.

Thanks Mothman - I'd really appreciate that.

No worries, let me know if you have any specific questions or want to bounce any ideas off me (or the rest of the good folk here).

It's been about 2 years since I built a character that wasn't 4e, so I'm really back to basics here.

As I said, what I'm looking to build is really a skillbunny, and rogue seems to cover that most effectively. Not a trapmaker or finder as such, but someone who in their every day life does something fiddly and mechanical and has translated those skills to other uses.

Rogue is a great choice then. Skill points to spare and oodles of class skills, though you could also consider bard as a valid choice if you're not so bothered with trapfinding (though it is a good ability to have).

Trapfinding is likely to be useful, but I did wonder about bard. I think it might be handy to have someone around who can fiddle about with stuff both for our own safety to confound enemies.

just my 2 copper pieces

I don't think you can go wrong with either the Bard or Rogue. Both have high skill ranks to play with. The advantage of the rogue is the trap finding/disabling capabilities as well as the sneak attack capability. While, the bard does have the ability to control the battlefield with your perform skills.

I really like your concept of the rogue character NOT being a thieving sort of character, but rather more of a McGyver meachanical type.

Whichever way you go is fine with me.