Valence's "Into the Icy Jade Yonder"

Game Master Æroden

What does my existing heavy wagon count as, compared to other wagons? And how much cargo capacity does my ~600-ish lbs. of stuff take up?

Good to hear! Also, before I purchase my caravan, can I purchase a Bedroom, Bath, and Lavoratory for my Cart? Am I allowed to say that I "Earned" the downtime stuff to only have to pay 285 for the wagon "House?"

Sorry it took so long. Yes, that's fine. It costs either three passenger slots or two cargo units as well.

Re: Lulu's "stuff" - You can opt for either a Cargo or Covered wagon as your base. The stuff is probably 2 cargo units, but I might expand to 3 after I look at your inventory.

Re: Tense - I'm terrible with this, and I also tend to switch mid-post. That's due to my preference. If I'm reading a post, I visualize the post as happening now, and if it's a recap, or a GM combat round summary post, I'll put it in the past.

If we all prefer full past tense, I'll make an effort to do so as well.

I think I'm going to do some trimming on my equipment, like swapping out my mithril shirt for some studded leather... I'd like to spring for a driver, so Lulu can actually go scouting during the day while we travel.

As for tense, it doesn't bother me if other people use present, or even mix it up. I'm just used to writing past tense, myself.

Ok, slightly bigger change request; so I want to make sure it's ok before I edit anything: switching to studded leather would put Lulu literally 1 lb away from her medium load, which means as soon as she pulls a weapon out of her haversack she slows way down...

And, semi-related, I honestly don't remember what I was intending when I chose the Heavens shaman spirit for her. And her Feral Speech hex probably isn't necessary either, since she can influence animals just fine without it. So, if it's ok, I'd like swap my heavens spirit to the lore spirit, and switch my hex to the Arcane Enlightenment hex from that spirit. This would let her take three sorc/wiz spells as shaman spells, so she can grab Mage Armor and just memorize it once or twice and not worry about wearing heavy, cumbersome armor with her small size and piddly 8 Str. :P

If I can't think of anything else to spend the slot on, I could just cast Mage Armor on her in the morning. If you're willing to splurge on a Rod of extend or a recharge thing, that's 8 hours of +4 armor. She's going to cast it on herself anyway.

Either way, I have my preliminary spell list done, and (I think I added to this sheet) my alchemical equipment, along with languages. Still have about 100 gp to spend (Aside from the gold she keeps on her person, but ya guys think 1000 gp is a bit too much?)

Edit: As for spirits, I think heavens was somewhat intended to be fluff-wise, I think it's somewhat due to her chaotic mind. The Dark Tapestry spirit might be more interesting for her personality, and crunch-wise summoning might be useful to keep all of us alive. Heck, it even has a thing that's basically mage armor.

You could leave the slot open. It wouldn't be useful for combat, but it would give you a lot of flexibility for non-combat situations.

I hadn't seen the Dark Tapestry spirit before; had to look it up on Archives of Nethys. Thank you! That might be a much better fit for her, even if Bitterbeak doesn't like having a few extra eyes or a tentacle.

I hadn't seen the Dark Tapestry spirit before; had to look it up on Archives of Nethys. Thank you! That might be a much better fit for her, even if Bitterbeak doesn't like having a few extra eyes or a tentacle.

No problem. If you want your familiar to be somewhat monstrous, while not *overtly* monstrous, give it the neck of a green Haron. I can see it now.

*'Lo's sitting and drinking tea and biscuits*
*Bitterbeak is sitting 5 feet away."
"Why hello there little bird, it's a lovely evening."
*Bitterbeak steals her biscuit by using it's extendo-neck*
"O.O"

After looking at some gear, I'm thinking that I could probably hire a driver without much trouble. Is it too late to switch? It'd be kind of silly to have one of our primary frontliners stuck driving his wagon during combat.

The interesting thing about the Dark Tapestry mystery is that if you take the right revelations it can be very subtle. It's one of my favorites. Many Forms in particular is fun.

Lulu - Make all the changes you'd like.
Same to you Chalkou.

Erisca dropped out, but I don't see the need for a replacement yet. Everyone cool with 6?

Six seems more manageable, actually. What does that do to our skill spread?

I wouldn't honestly worry about it, I feel like everything important is covered in spades.

E: Phaender, just need your intro and we're set.

EE: And 'Lo, your sheet/header says 5, but you are only 4. Are your skills and abilities correct? Also, please update your header to match the template

I had intended to argue with Valence for a bit about the horses and then give them up. I don't think it's worth bringing them along.

No big deal if you wanted to skip past all that though. I'm easygoing and also looking forward to getting to the action. :P

That is, assuming Valence doesn't say or imply that they'll come to harm if he buys them.

I had intended to argue with Valence for a bit about the horses and then give them up. I don't think it's worth bringing them along.

No big deal if you wanted to skip past all that though. I'm easygoing and also looking forward to getting to the action. :P

That is, assuming Valence doesn't say or imply that they'll come to harm if he buys them.

Up to you; Valence has little else to say about the purchases aside from a few quips I'll throw in. Feel free to make some comment on them if you'd like.

Would you be ok with me implementing some changes as well?
I'd be looking at slapping the Nature Priest archetype on the Druid end with him being a follower of Uskyeria, a giant bear empyreal lord of hunting, prudence and slumber.

In addition I'd like to swap out Lingering Performance for Spell Focus (Conjuration)

I was just too late to edit and add another question, but how do the caravan enhancements work? For instance, according to the player's guide 1 set of cold-weather gear covers the entire caravan yet we already have multiple sets.

Or how, per the player's guide, 'Lo not buying an enhanced under carriage for each of her wagons basically turns all the enhanced undercarriages purchased by other to waste, as they only enhance caravan speed if all wagons have them.

If you'll note the scroll, I changed Enhanced Undercarriage to give a bonus to the drive check of the wagon rather than to speed; you also only typically get 2000gp as a party rather than each, so I've changed the cold-weather gear to be per-wagon.

Go ahead and add the archetype.

Did a lot of number-crunching, and yeah, I got my skills in order after fixing the +14/+15 issue.

As for levels, I know that it's right, because I did everything at level 4 before I mislabeled the level as 5. Level 5's just the more common level for a Wizard.

Also, just realized that I have a +2 bonus on Disable Device checks from Trapfinding, which I removed the points from to put to Intimidate and Disguise (Which kinda makes more sense for a lady who knows makeup). I suppose the +2+1d6 to perception will be helpful to setting up Grial as the one to kill the traps, as the alternatives aren't great. Fluff-wise, it just makes more sense than having her have all the ranks in Disable Device, when chances are she was never particularly mechanics minded. If I feel like it'll be useful, I'll take it when we next level.

Made my changes, I just need to update Bitterbeak.

Got rid of my chain shirt and robe of infinite twine, and made my caravan-related purchases. I opted for two linked carts. I'm not sure how many arouchs are required... The Heavy Wagon I already had said it need 4 large critters to pull it; the standard supply wagon only has one arouch; and the thing on linking says to double the required critters from 2 to 4. So I either need 2, 4, or 8 arouchs to pull two linked carts...so I got 4. Let my know if I need to adjust. :P

And I organized my carts:

I so wanted to splurge for the Campsite Traps. If I get rid of my campfire bead I can afford it, and I can drop two stores/sundries to make room. It just seems like that big, pricy thing on the menu that no one would splurge for, and then later everyone will wish we had splurged for.

Edit - And Bitterbeak is updated. Also fixed a dead link to his cooperative crafting feat a mistake that was never there and you can't prove otherwise! ;P

If you'll note the scroll, I changed Enhanced Undercarriage to give a bonus to the drive check of the wagon rather than to speed; you also only typically get 2000gp as a party rather than each, so I've changed the cold-weather gear to be per-wagon.

Go ahead and add the archetype.

Wait, so if my wagon is a supply wagon only carrying me, and I have endure elements on myself, do I even need cold weather gear?

The cold weather gear is also to defrost the wheels and get the wagon through snow.

Where did you get the linked wagons thing from? That might actually alter what I want to do. Without that I'd be stuck with training an auroch to be able to work without a driver.

EDIT: Oh, and due to my archetype all allies within 60 ft. of me automatically get a +2 on skill check to avoid natural hazards, difficult terrain and rough winds or water as well as a +2 on saves vs natural hazards. Bring on the avalanches!

Click "Campaign Info" at the top.

Click "Campaign Info" at the top.

Ah yes, I was looking at the caravan section of the PG. Thank you.

Hmm... maybe we should link a bunch of the wagons up then.

That is, very much an option. Just extend any wagons we already have by anybody else's companion's wagons. Would be +1250 to at least one person, who might be able to buy a pearl of power, to nab me an extra casting of Mage Armor on you guys, or some other long-term spell.

I don't mind driving the train. I have +12 to the check.

That's probably a good idea, but I spent 800 gp on clothing, so there's a fair bit of insight into how she's spending her money. (Not exactly optimal, but it's just too fluff-fitting), and having a hireling that, in terms of flavor, is her butler, is to fluff-fitting, though I don't know his Handle Animal score.

Speaking of gold, I should buy some trade goods. Fill up my supply caravan, I have 5 slots, after all. The guide says they cost 10 gp each, so that should be good.

No trade goods; they've been eliminated and aren't on the scroll for a reason. You probably should buy stores, or consider a ballista or two.

You can totally link the entire wagon train as one if you'd like. When linked it's 2 aurochs per wagon. This allows you to use only one driver.

It also makes your train much less mobile and at risk from attacks. That hungry white dragon might leave you stranded. Take care with your choices.

Ah, gotcha. Just wondered about it, as I was think about purchasing them, and then seeing if I could, essentially, treat them as supplies for tea and other spendatries. Though I suppose those are what store and sundries are for.

As for number of caravans, 4 caravans should be, functionally, more than enough. Would leave one under Lulu's control via her feral talk hex, one for Joseph, Loreli's Manservant, one for Kazrek, and one for anyone else.

I traded Feral Speech for the Cloak of Shadows hex. I still have Wild Empathy, a decent handle animal, and the alpha instincts spell, though.

I’d be totally down for buying a second wagon with a ballista using the gold I was going to spend on a driver if someone want to hitch my wagon(s) to theirs. I might could even afford two ballistae...

Phaender also has a decent Handle Animal, has Wild Empathy and Speak with Animals at will as a spell-like ability.

EDIT: I haven't bought repair gear, Phaender will do that next time he comes into some funds

I’d be totally down for buying a second wagon with a ballista using the gold I was going to spend on a driver if someone want to hitch my wagon(s) to theirs. I might could even afford two ballistae...

I'm down! Hook it up to my wagon!

Actually, we probably should hook mine up behind yours and I'll drive yours.

At some point, we should do an audit of our total consumption and make sure we don't have too many animals to make the trip. And we should try for a 3ish day buffer at least.

You won't, just make sure you have the money. The NPCs have animals too, and I mentioned an extra supply wagon for stores. Just do figure how many animals you have, and make sure you have the personal stores for yourselves and your personal companions. Large count as 2, Tiny and smaller don't count.

You are also expected to supplement with hunting.

E: Now that we're all in, make sure your character sheets are ready. We can still worry about wagon stuff, but y'all are about to have combat.

We in all kinds of tenses. I guess it's hard for me to remember to flip to past tense for this game. I can make a stronger effort if it's important to anyone.

Alright folks, check out the map; I'm missing a bear or two at least, but make sure I have all of your companions/critters/sh!t that's going into combat with you. If I am, and you want to give me one, go ahead, or I'll just grab one shortly.

You can put a little tear where a pair of horses should be.

;(

Looks good to me.

I dare say that how many bears your missing depends on where this is. If it's when we are making camp you miss both but if we are moving away from the caravan you're only missing the medium sized one. Mother bear stays with the caravan.

I dare say that how many bears your missing depends on where this is. If it's when we are making camp you miss both but if we are moving away from the caravan you're only missing the medium sized one. Mother bear stays with the caravan.

Went ahead and pulled a decent bear image; I'll just blow it up when mama's around. If you want a different one, feel free to provide it to me.

I feel like that camp positioning is good, with Kazrek in between 'Lo and Lulu lol

Grouped init folks, and the dinos won.

Combat will otherwise be by post order.

I'll post 3 hours from now. It'll be better if I wait until the supports go first anyway.

If I go after Chalkou but move to provide him flanking after I cast a spell, can we apply the bonuses to his attacks retroactively?

I'll post 3 hours from now. It'll be better if I wait until the supports go first anyway.

If I go after Chalkou but move to provide him flanking after I cast a spell, can we apply the bonuses to his attacks retroactively?

No. I cant type the detailed reason until I'm home, which may be longer than three hours from now, but I will do so when I can.

How strict are you on animal companion actions? Pumpernickel would last have been told to heel, does Lulu have to take the move action to handle an animal to make him attack?

Link (Ex): A druid can handle her animal companion as a free action, or push it as a move action, even if she doesn't have any ranks in the Handle Animal skill. The druid gains a +4 circumstance bonus on all wild empathy checks and Handle Animal checks made regarding an animal companion.

*Facepalms* Yep, I'm a doofus today. Thanks!

Kazrek Norn wrote:

I'll post 3 hours from now. It'll be better if I wait until the supports go first anyway.

If I go after Chalkou but move to provide him flanking after I cast a spell, can we apply the bonuses to his attacks retroactively?

No. I cant type the detailed reason until I'm home, which may be longer than three hours from now, but I will do so when I can.

I can now.

There isn't much that can be done by way of surprising players after a round or two of combat; they probably know what the monster is by then, and if not and they're that curious, can just look it up. But even beyond that, experienced players have an idea, even if they've never seen a monster, of how much damage it can take. At the table, it'd be my job to describe attacks as they happen; here it's a bit trickier, since it's generally by round summary, but the numbers are still in plain text. Combat strategies will, understandably and reasonably, change based on this knowledge; the mage character isn't going to blow her most potent spell when she knows this minion only has a wee bit of health left, and there might be more fights in the next room. This is expounded when the mage has literal hours, sometimes days, between 6-second rounds to devise strategy, and even more so for the martial folks who rely on such strategy.

Now, if combat were simple yet intense (one NPC, challenging the entire party), I could be persuaded to follow the traditional initiative order. But in literally any other circumstance, to do so would either mandate I be available and checking the page constantly to update as the posts come in, or delay an already slow method of gameplay. As such, actions will occur by initiative clump and subsequent first-post, first-action order.

The other exception to this being the Ready an Action mechanic; however, that takes a standard action to do, and so wouldn't have worked in your case.

RE: Map Icon Movement - Sorry about that y'all; I didn't click the box! :Z

I fixed it, and I'll move your tokens by my next in-game post, if you don't get to it before me and do so yourselves.

In the future, however, provided I do have it unlocked and don't forget again, please take care to move your own tokens, or let someone else know to do so in the event you can't. Not that y'all weren't trying, or didn't, but just noting it officially.