Donagar likewise casts a light spell for Drakus to use on any item he designates.
"Drakus I got light too, where yah want it?"
Sgt. Drakus waives Donagar off.
"No thanks Padre. I got these fancy Darkvision goggles that outta work."
She bows
"Just light up my head band and I'll be good to go."
"Goggles! I bet thar great fer swimmin too!"
Donagar casts the light onto Mai instead.
"Thar yah goes bright girl!"
Sgt. Drakus waives Donagar off.
"No thanks Padre. I got these fancy Darkvision goggles that outta work."
I'm not finding those goggles Drakus (I can only find the Goggles of Night for 12k...and goggles, darksight for 20k)
** spoiler omitted **
Gregor follows suit with the others, casting light on the clasp of his cloak. This way the light is always in front of him, but never in his eyes. He prepares to dive in as soon as everyone is ready.
Standing on the dock and looking out over the dark water, Drakus turned to Donagar.
"You sure this is the spot? I don't see it from here."
He tugged here and there at his unfamiliar chainmail.
OK guys, I need to find someone to take over this game. With me working out again, I just don't have time to deal with this game anymore. My apologies. I'll give you guys first shot to see if one of you wants to take it over. In truth, I'll probably not GM Pathfinder again, I would play when I have time; but even when I go to cons, I never jump in PFS games, I like to play other games. Thank you guys for your time and understanding.
Well shoot. Danged sorry to hear it man. Good luck withal!
X-DMX
Thanks for all you have done, as DMing is a mostly thankless job.
Would it be possible for you to continue if Marra was farmed out to someone else? Or would that delay the inevitable?
Everyone
I have seen many games come and go on the boards and eventually and unpredicatbly these things happen.
Most of the PBP DM's I know are already booked up running what comes to very few games.
Anyone who is new to it would be ill advised to "commit" to running an AP. Even I have been hesitant to recruit for an AP, not knowing if player attrition or something else might come up and sink the game.
We could however have an open and continuing dialog which would allow us to work together on something, if not curse then something else.
I honestly can not take over this one. Almost every player in this game has a DM alias, and a strong posting history!
As fer runnin' the game, not me. I'm already runnin' four and it's too much.
Nope, I don't even have time to play Marra, which is the reason why I took over this game in the first place.
40+Hour Job
Freelance Work
My blog & Family (aka helping kids with High School homework!!!)
Working out and blogging that as well (1.5 hours x 4-5 times per week.)
Mongoose Infantry
MiB for Steve Jackson Games
DCC World Tour
Yeah, I can't do it. I run 3 (one of which is a CotCT I took over a long time ago), and play in like 8 active ones (and like 2-3 not so active).
I also have a schedule kind of like Xaaon's:
40 hr work week, 2 college classes, wife/kids and honey-do list, all my PbP's, and a weekly tabletop game. So taking on running another PbP is not an option for me.
I'm currently running a few games myself so I can't take any more on.
Yeah, really sorry guys, life just got to me, and obviously my effort has waned so much it's just not fair to anyone.
RL has a higher priority than games,
and informing us ,the players, that there were slow downs a few times was really responsible of you as a GM.
So those of us left behind, what do we do?
Waiting on input from fellow players in Discussion thread,
as I may consider temporarily being GM while we recruit a new one.
A few notes on underwater exploration (read: combat) - please read carefully to avoid unpleasant surprises later on:
Armour: Metal/stone armour essentially means you will be a as you will not be able to move in 3-dimensions, but will be confined to walking along the bed of the water. Anything that wants to avoid you will easily be able to do so. I'm prepared to house-rule that metal armour comes with padding; you can wear this on its own to get the same effects as leather (+2 AC), with normal movement. If you want to come back to me on this with a creative solution to lighten your armour, I will definitely listen.
Weapons: Water is hard to move through and any slashing or missile weapons are simply ineffective. Piercing or stabbing is the way to go.
What a difference a month makes. 4 weeks ago, even at night, the city and the water-front would be alive with noises. Now? The only sound that really carries is the creak of the plague-carts as they rumble through the streets, the sound being carried to you on the breeze, which blows across the surface of the water, making it ripple in the faint light.
They say that water carries secrets, even memories; it is here that you have come to seek more information on the nature of the deadly plague that has visited this city. Your city. You know enough now to have realised that the plague is not natural; someone has brought it here.
Someone will be very, very sorry. This is your city - you may not own it, but you know it, you know its streets, its taverns, many of its people.
What does the water hold? If the ship did bring the plague, is the water contaminated? You have been exposed to blood-veil many times over thus far, but now you are going to be literally breathing in the water - if it carries the plague, will you not be breathing it in also?
Stoneplates armor question
Good call!
Sgt. Drakus looked at the dark water with some trepidation. He felt utterly naked without his trusty banded armor and bardiche in his hand. He had to make do with studded leather armor and a pilum. He belted on his gladius shortsword just in case. He wasn't sure he could use his tower shield underwater, but he would be damned if he wouldn't try.
He looked over at the others, seeing what they would be using...
Gregor, for once without his guard uniform, had left most of his official attire back at the Citadel. He didn't want it to get soiled. He still had his full complement of weapons and armor, except maybe his bow. He stood by the side of the river, stretching and loosening his joints "Make sure you bind or remove any loose garments, they could get in your way while swimming. Also, it is a hearty excercise so limber up before diving in. The last thing you want to do is get a muscle cramp mid stroke." He takes his own advice by belting his cloak tight to his back.
Drakus:
The docks of Korvosa are empty, deserted: it is said that trade is the lifeblood of the city, but when real life and the blood-veil are at stake, words and trade take on a lower value.
Standing on the shore of the docks some 15 feet above the water, you see a warren of empty piers and jettys from which you might lower yourself into the water. To your right you see the defence emplacements that doubtless sank the ship; therefore, if you proceed left and continue downstream, you should find the remains of the wreck.
However prepared you felt, the shock of the icy water is overwhelming - the air whooshes out of your lungs and you start to splutter. Before you have time to panic however, the spell effects kick in and you find you can breathe normally - although chill water entering your lungs is a slightly uncomfortable sensation and you may need to cough a few times before you acclimatise.
You discover that you can speak normally, although the water deadens the sound - you can be heard within 20 feet or so, but beyond that you will have to rely on gestures.
At the docks, the city reflects enough light for you to see as in low light. As you move away and hopefully toward the ship, it quickly darkens and you must rely on darkvision or (magical?) light sources.
Walking/swimming underwater is tiring and the cold is numbing (no game effect, just texture) , but within half an hour or so, you see the wreck loom up out of the mud and silt, some 100 feet away ...
Donagar takes a big swig of beer before leaping into the water, yelling "Cannon-ball!" as he does so.
Though the water is cold the hearty dwarf barely notices, his stomach filled with alcohol that numbs the cold.
Donagar takes the point knowing no marine creatures eat rocks on purpose.....
"Form up tight an near." he calls to his companions and starts a head count....
Gregor methodically eases himself into the water, holding onto one of the dock's pilings as he prepares to acclimatize to breathing water. Once he has adapted, he casts light on the clasp of his cloak so that it is hands free and shining in front of him, then dives down until he can see the stubborn stone-clad dwarf. Once they are all under he explains. "I will swim above you Donager, Pai and Drakus, you two fan equidistant behind me. I have light, good eyesight, and am still fully armored. You are the only walker, limited in mobility, so we can't expect to be right behind you."
Mai enters the water slowly with quiet whispering of "Cold, Cold ...."
Drakus gritted his teeth and jumped in. At the last moment he retained his tower shield, no matter how ridiculous taking it seemed.
After the cold shock wore off, he pulled the Goggles of Night down over his eyes and started swimming, towing his shield along as he did.
He nodded at Gregor's plan, the environment too novel for him to think of a better one. He drops into formation about ten feet behind and left of Gregor.
The wreck of the Hesperus Direption lies nearly 80 feet underwater, partially sunk into the mud and silt. Its hull is split over a rock outcropping - as you can see from the SIDE VIEW from which you are approaching to keep Donagar company - with the front portion having broken away and landed awkwardly against the rocks. The two portions lie amid the splinters of what remains of its shattered masts.
Even from this distance, the scars of fire and trebuchet are obvious; what is also obvious is how bare the wreck is. You are no experts, but you have heard tales of such things from others and from a ship this size, you would expect more in the way of ... debris. There are no personal effects floating in the current, no visible bodies - the Direption has not been underwater long enough to have been picked this clean.
As you approach, the smaller fish that have been swimming around you, attracted to the light, suddenly flicker and disappear; in the distance, approaching from the shattered front of the vessel, half a dozen large, snake-like forms approach you, swimming in lazy undulations. They are deceptively fast and will reach you very quickly - there is no way you can outswim them.
Knowledge (nature) DC15:
There are half a dozen of them - two of them swim towards Gregor and two towards Mai (who are both lit up with light spells); Donagar and Drakus only have to contend with one each.
Rolling, rolling, rolling... See how the battle's going... Click the spoiler showing... Eel-hide!
Eel 1 (Gregor) Initiative
Eel 2 (Gregor) Initiative
Eel 3 (Mai) Initiative
Eel 4 (Mai) Initiative
Eel 5 (Donagar) Initiative
Eel 6 (Drakus) Initiative
Eel 1 (Gregor) Attack
Oops - confirm critical
Eel 2 (Gregor) Attack
Eel 3 (Mai) Attack
Eel 4 (Mai) Attack
Eel 5 (Donagar) Attack
Eel 6 (Drakus) Attack
Eel 1 (Gregor) Damage
Critical damage
Eel 2 (Gregor) Damage
Eel 3 (Mai) Damage
Eel 4 (Mai) Damage
Eel 5 (Donagar) Damage
Eel 6 (Drakus) Damage
POISON - ANYONE TAKING DAMAGE MUST TAKE A FORTITUDE DC12 SAVE - IF YOU FAIL, LOSE 1D3 CON PER ROUND FOR 6 ROUNDS, OR UNTIL YOU MAKE A SUCCESSFUL SAVE. YOU WILL NOT HOWEVER BE PARALYZED (YOU'RE TOO BIG).
Initiative
"Commer yah slender fish!"
Donagar flails at the fish
attack
damage
The eel - although sluggish - still reaches Donagar before he can act.
It snaps viciously at him, but succeeds only in making the faintest of marks across his sturdy armour.
In turn, Donagar's attack just misses the eel by a fraction of a millimetre. The eel coils and writhes in displeasure, before hissing at Donagar (quite an achievement underwater!) and readying itself to strike again.
Donagar:
DM
Ah - a flail is NOT going to work underwater. Since you're a cleric of Cayden, you're proficient with the rapier - that would work.
AC is only 21 in this armor.
Drakus will wrestle his tower shield around and wait until his target comes into range, then thrust at it with his pilum.
for a possible piercing damage.
Drakus' fighting experience has clearly stood him in good stead, as he is able to avoid the thrashings of the blood-hungry eel. His strike hits, but the eel shies away from the spear point at the last second and avoids being spitted. It is however wounded and bleeds dark blood into the water.
Far from fleeing, the eel seems to be enraged - it bares its fangs at Drakus for another go.
Gregor is little prepared when the eels come at them, the first one getting a solid bite on him, albeit fairly weak in its delivery.
He draws his blade and strikes back at the thing. As his blade slides from the scabbard he is able to drag it solidly across the serpantine body. Sadly for him, much of the power is lost in the drag of water along his arm and blade by extension. Luckily it was enough to cloud the water so that the second eel on him couldn't find purchase.
One eel get a bite on Mai
and counter attacks it
When the flail fails, Donagar puts the flail away and pulls out his short spear....
"Gonna gig me a fish!"
Clearly the alpha eel of the group (pack?), the serpentine form darts at the illuminated brooch Gregor is wearing, catching its teeth on his neck as it does so - narrowly missing the jugular vein.
His return stroke opens up a bleeding gash behind the eel's head, having no other effect than to infuriate it.
This eel is a markedly inferior physical specimen to its shoal-mate and fails to strike Gregor. It circles warily round him, seeking an opening.
Deceptively slow, the snakelike creature almost lazily reaches through Mai's defences and its teeth close around her, somehow failing to break the skin.
Mai's return strike whooshes through the water where the eel just was - is that a grin it just gave you?
Even lazier - if anything - than its companion, the eel essays a bite at Mai almost as if it's too much effort. It watches her blade carefully and waits for events...
Eel 1 has taken 4 damage
Eel 6 has taken 5 damage
Round 2:
Eel 1 (Gregor)
Eel 2 (Gregor)
Eel 3 (Mai)
Eel 4 (Mai)
Eel 5 (Donagar)
Eel 6 (Drakus)
Eel 1 (Gregor)
Eel 2 (Gregor)
Eel 3 (Mai)
Eel 4 (Mai)
Eel 5 (Donagar)
Eel 6 (Drakus)
Eel 1 (Gregor)
Eel 2 (Gregor)
Eel 3 (Mai)
Eel 4 (Mai)
Eel 5 (Donagar)
Eel 6 (Drakus)
Have at it! Remember the poison - if you take damage, Fortitude DC 12 or take 1d3 Con damage per round for 6 rounds, or until you make a successful save.
As the two eels nip and bite at him ineffectively, Gregor offers some supporting advice to his allies. "Watch for their bites, I think they have a little more to them than just teeth. I felt a sting of something more than just torn flesh in my wound. We need to put a little more kick into our attacks, the water is too hindering."
"I have not yet felt thar sting!"
Shortspear attack
damage
"Nor they mine!"
The One eel hits her Armour and she dodges the other and attacks it as she dodges.
And Mai cuts the head off.
Headless, the eel spasms in death before drifting off inert in the current, gouting blood into the water as it goes...