To Live in Infamy - a Skull and Shackles AP

Game Master Nayr Trebrot

Thanks giving WEEK!!

Indeed! Posting will be light of course, starting Weds evening, and through Sunday.

Sunyatta, you around?

she told me that she'll post soon.

No worries; just whenever she can.

Guys, we'll be slow over this holiday and weekend; hope you all have a great holiday. I'll have family to entertain, but will try and check in.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone.

Have a safe and happy thanksgiving holiday all!
(And if anyone is not in the USA, have a safe and happy Thursday!)

Thanks and Happy Thanksgiving to you!

Remember to set your bathroom scales back 15lb before going to bed tonight.

Sunyatta, you around?

Here, work ate me again.

I'll catch up over the break.

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone.

Hope everyone had a great week.

I have a technical question about how to best maximize combat.

Sunyata will attack the B3-B4 area... I see a baddie in that corner.

How do I use the bonuses to "combat maneuver"? Like in a dice expression how do I use this? Does this stack with attack? Or does it impact how Sunyata takes damage?

Sunyata will want to pull out martial arts to neutralize the creature (aiming to break bones, choke, or eliminate vital bodily functions).

Also how often can I use any given feat, is it per round?

Also is "combat maneuver defense" with +21 useable to counter combat attacks? I have various Feats that seem like they could be nifty... Still trying to understand how to best use my stats with my character in combat.

What do you think GM? Or anyone else? Suggestions welcome!

Hope everyone had a great week.

I have a technical question about how to best maximize combat.

Sunyata will attack the B3-B4 area... I see a baddie in that corner.

How do I use the bonuses to "combat maneuver"? Like in a dice expression how do I use this? Does this stack with attack? Or does it impact how Sunyata takes damage?

Sunyata will want to pull out martial arts to neutralize the creature (aiming to break bones, choke, or eliminate vital bodily functions).

Also how often can I use any given feat, is it per round?

Also is "combat maneuver defense" with +21 usable to counter combat attacks? I have various Feats that seem like they could be nifty... Still trying to understand how to best use my stats with my character in combat.

What do you think GM? Or anyone else? Suggestions welcome!

In order of your questions:

Combat Maneuvers are specific actions in combat. Some replace your standard attack action, others can be used in place of one or more of your attacks during a series of attacks. (Once you access multiple attacks per round)

You use your CMB in place of BAB when making a combat maneuver check.
For example is your CMB is +4, and you have improved trip which adds +2 to trip maneuvers your dice expression would be (dice=Trip that fool]1d20 + 6(/dice] (Replacing the ('s with a [ to close the expression)
You can be more specific in your breakdown of where the numbers come from, (dice=Trip, + 2 Improved Trip]1d20 + 4 + 2(/dice] some GM's prefer to see the math, others just care that you're accurate.
Obviously if GM Nayr has a preference he'll likely speak up.

Generally your CMB has no impact on damage taken.

Combat Maneuvers are the in game representation of Martial Arts. Things like choking out an enemy or breaking a sword are simplified into things like grapple or sunder maneuvers or might require a specific feat to accomplish such as stunning fist.

Most feats are usable as often as you have an action to use them, for example improved disarm applies its bonus every time you attempt to disarm someone. Others have specific limits such as x times per day, or require a specific circumstance, such as successfully using a trip maneuver on an enemy to trigger an attack against them.

Combat Maneuver Defense (CMD) is your "Armor Class" against combat maneuvers.
That is the number an enemy must beat to succeed on using a combat maneuver against you.
For example if you have a 21 CMD, and a pirate tries to disarm your weapon, their CMB + d20 roll is compared to your CMD . If higher, they succeed, if lower it fails. Failure to complete a combat maneuver can have consequences so please read up on the specific maneuvers you're thinking of using.

In general, I suggest picking one or two maneuvers to focus on and take the improved and greater versions to focus on.
(My fighter used disarm, and re-position maneuvers, as I found those covered most of what he was doing in fights.)

One thing I forgot to include is the Monk class feature that lets you use use your monk level in place of BAB to perform combat maneuvers.
Monks are a 3/4 BAB class so at level 4 your BAB is 3 (iirc).
Because of that class feature, when attempting a combat maneuver, your character gets to add their level in place of their BAB to the check when calculating combat maneuver bonus or CMB.
In your case this would be 4.
If you have any specific questions or need more clarification I'm more than happy to answer via PM or here, whichever you prefer.
I'm also happy to look up any specific feats or class abilities you have questions about because I have way too many sourcebooks for my own good.

Edit to add:
CMB = Base attack bonus + Strength modifier + special size modifier
You use your monk class level in place of BAB, so 4 + Strength mod + any size modifiers (should be none at the moment)

Thanks for the assist Malvessa!

I don't really care if you break up the modifiers - I trust you to add them up on your own. It's a given that I'll spot check if they seem wonky though.

Sunyata, until you get used to if, feel free to just state what you want to do, and we'll chime in with what rolls you need to make if you want to achieve it, and if you'll have any issues (like attacks of opportunity) should you try them.

Malvessa, for the extended Misfortune - your cackle extends it, but does that mean the wasp gets another will save this round, or does it extend it as an auto-success?

Guys, feel free to read the spoilers, some fun debuff mechanics in there from the witch.

Malvessa, for the extended Misfortune - your cackle extends it, but does that mean the wasp gets another will save this round, or does it extend it as an auto-success?

Guys, feel free to read the spoilers, some fun debuff mechanics in there from the witch.

There is no additional save, Misfortune typically lasts just the one round. (It increases to 2 rounds at level 8)

Using Cackle allows me to extend it for another round each turn, but must be repeated each turn because Misfortune can only be used once per day on any given target. Once allowed to drop off, that's it.

My wife runs a Witch in PFS and in my Carrion Crown game. Against the right targets she can shut down encounters in two or three rounds.

Sadly, wasps are not the right target for me.

Awesome, thanks!

I once GM'd a PFS game with a witch and a mesmerist in it. Between the two of them every combat basically came down to waiting for the PC's to kill off the bad guys.

NPCs you mean?

One of the first PFS games I played, I was running a Half Orc Skald.
We had a Mesmerist in the party, and we're underground fighting a Derro who'd cast darkness. I'm the only one in the party with dark vision, and I'm chasing this thing around the room calling out what square it's in for the rest of the party to try and hit with ranged weapons because they wouldn't go into the dark.

The Mesmerist casts sleep, and catches me in the effect, so I drop and the Derro made the save by 1. I'm thinking I'm about to take a Coup de' Gras at level one, but the Mesmerist remembered that before the darkness dropped, he'd hit the Derro with a -2 to saves, and the Derro ended up dropping as well.

NPCs you mean?

I don't know all that much about Mesmerists, but my wife's go to move on her witch for enemies she can affect is:

Even without the slumber hex, a cast of black tentacles or other save or suck spell is usually enough to wrap things up pretty quickly.

I'd say this could be an unfair combo, but honestly she rarely is able to get all three off before the group's Paladin and archer Warpriest demolish the enemies anyway.

I'm thinking my dice roller is broken...

It happens like that sometimes.
I'd appreciate you not making a habit of such high rolls, but you gotta play the cards you're dealt.
Worst case there might be another arcane caster type sitting at Rickety's looking for work right?
:)

Lol, I'm sure there is!

GM is the Wasp still within 30 feet of Malvessa?
Or does she need to move to remain in Cackle range?

Some decades ago, Sunyata was my GM for a live game that I jumped into for a session or two. I don't remember the system we were playing, and I didn't know any of the rules. Sunyata advised me to play something simple to start out with, like a fighter. That sounded boring, so I insisted on some esoteric scholarly class whose powers came from inscribing mystic runes. It went about as well as you'd think, and all and all, it was a drunken disaster, was what it was.

Anyway, given my friend's Sunyata's Monk situation, I cannot but chuckle, just a little, at the irony. :)

I learned all about combat maneuvers for my PFS Fighter I ran in Emerald Spire, and playing PFS with my friend's grapple focused Monk.

In full honesty after looking at Sunyata's sheet the psionics stuff is like trying to read stereo instructions in a foreign language without any pictures.

I get that she can sort of rage, but no clue for how long, or how it actually works

So if she gets all that, but needs a bit of help with another complex bit of the rules, I'm not judging at all.

If she wants my opinions or suggestions, I'm happy to help, if she doesn't I'm happy to not help.

Malvessa, you'd have to move up just a bit - 5 feet.

I'll take a look at Sunyata's sheet and bot tomorrow.

Okay. Based on that info, were my actions in the last post good or was I out of range for the cackle?

i.e. Could I have cackled as part of/during the movement as a standard action?
I have about 30 feet of flight movement unused this round so a 5-10 foot drop, Cackle, then finish out the rest of the fly movement should be feasible if you allow it.

If not, I'll just move into minimum range and use cackle.

Yup, I'm definitely good with that. Things get a bit loosey-goosey with flight and distance and a 2-dimensional map, but that sure sounds reasonable.

Okay then my post will stand as is.
In the future I'll also try to be more clear as to height so there's no confusion.

Gotcha; same here

Jack, you expertly simplified that...thank you