Kirthfinder - Sovalles

Game Master Kirth Gersen

On the subject of botting Cayden - with the holidays in the states, I know several people who took 4-day weekends, so I'm on board with waiting till Monday.

I never seem to get a holiday, but when you put it like that, I certainly can't argue! Agree.

Will post once I get home in an hour or so - I need to review the rules on standing up and they are at home.

Would we be able to take a breather, even though combat is over now? For myself it's only 1 HP, but that's one more than I would otherwise have...

Would we be able to take a breather, even though combat is over now? For myself it's only 1 HP, but that's one more than I would otherwise have...

Yes! You can do it only once per encounter, but nothing says it has to be during that encounter.

When are we expected to level up, Kirth? Are we going by milestone or by EXP? If it's by EXP, then me and Kolmac would probably be a little bit behind Aemur and Dairkul, who fought the ghouls.

When are we expected to level up, Kirth? Are we going by milestone or by EXP? If it's by EXP, then me and Kolmac would probably be a little bit behind Aemur and Dairkul, who fought the ghouls.

Milestone. One should be coming up very shortly.

Holy heck, my last week+ has been insane.

Last Thurs(the 11th) we had a pipe burst in our upstairs bathroom. The water damage was pretty bad(thankfully, terribly so), and on Sat we were given these industrial fans & dehumidifiers to help try and dry out the damage. We had a power surge, which somehow messed up our internet, TVs and phone line. We got it all fixed by Mon, but we were still having issues all week.

We've also had some other plumbing issues, and now I'm having a really annoying time accessing the pbp forums.

I'm probably going to hold off posting till things are hopefully fixed tomorrow.

Sorry that I just keep disappearing so much, Life takes me away from stuff like this a lot and I sometimes end up forgetting about the paizo site in the meantime.

I have a feeling that I didn't read the book as much as I should have. Is Planar Sense a skill? and can I roll for it without training?
(I promise I'm not dead, I just admittedly don't know a lot of specific things I can do most times)

Planar Sense is a trained-only skill.

I'm actually not trained in Planar Sense, lol. Probably why I didn't get anything, heh.

Also sorry if I end up making myself look like I'm really inactive outside of combat or anything.. I again just don't really have skills that help here right now. I have diplomacy, handle animal, knowledge (warfare), athletics, and endurance. I'll definitely have things to do at some point but now is not one of those times.

Barring any useful skills in the group, Cayden has just what they need - an 18 strength and a supply of tools.

Taking 20 to search may take an extremely long time, plus I think Kirth prefers to use relevant skills (construction or engineering, in this case) in place of Perception for this sort of focused search, so we won't even get that high of a result. Given our failure to make any of the rolls, it may be more expedient for Cayden to just start ripping up some boards...

Ah I missed this bit before I made my post...
But I'm just a bit nervous that if I just start tearing up boards that we'll break the floor and all fall into God knows where

Also also being between a lot of other things and often being on late, sorry if I end up just kinda making Cayden "generic fighter man"

Ah I missed this bit before I made my post...

But I'm just a bit nervous that if I just start tearing up boards that we'll break the floor and all fall into God knows where

One thing you can tell is that the floor is in no way shaky. You guess that you could tear out half of it, and the only risk would be that some drunken stumblebum would fail to notice the holes you made.

Hey all, I've been rather busy, and then quite sick since Fri. I will try to catch up tomorrow and make a post. Sorry if I've held ya up any.

Kirth, if we are leveling up should we adjust stats immediately, or wait till we get "back to town", etc?

Kolmac Level 2
-HP +1d4 + 2 ⇒ (1) + 2 = 3; +1 death threshold (heart of the wilderness) for HP 12 LW 6 HW 3 dead -14
-BAB +0 -> +1
-Skill ranks +1 Concentration*, +1 Craft*, +1 Endurance*, +1 Knowledge (lore), +2 Planar Sense, +1 Spellcraft, +1 Survival
-Saving Throws +1 all

-Spells Prepared +1 0th, +1 1st; don't know enough spells to use the 0th, 1st level spells will update to 1x mage armor, 2x bolt of force at next opportunity
-Specialist bonus +1 (add to attack, damage, AC from force effects; gain force resistance x5, add 1/2 to missiles from Ray Splitting)
-bonded item attunement: always know approximate distance and direction of wand

-Spells
Mage armor duration -> 4 hours
Bolt of force -> 2d6 damage, range 30 ft. (argent bolt also gains range but not damage dice)
Force strike -> 2d6 damage.

-Mojo becomes min 780, par 1000, overflow 2000. Would like to request Kolmac's wand improve to a general +1 enhancement bonus to meet par.

Assuming that looks okay, I'll update my profile accordingly.

Also, would it be unreasonable to make a roll using Kolmac's newfound ranks in Planar Sense? Perhaps he studied the topic but never had any practical experience with such matters until now and had a bit of a breakthrough?

I'm just gonna take average HP, rather than rolling. That out of the way, I would like to make a slight change that I think is basically a free retraining.

At level 2, I get a Bonus Feat that can be used on Divine/Domain feats. I would like to switch the feat I got at level 1, Domain Access to the Time Domain, with this bonus feat (so I would still have the feat, just in a different feat slot).

Instead, I would use my level 1 feat on Racial Heritage for the human racial ability, "Defiant Luck." Effectively, I want to have gained "the power to change fate" from my own human heritage.

The thing I was speaking to...was essentially myself. My greater, cosmic self, if you will. Or perhaps it's a personification of the indomitable human spirit. Maybe both.

Is this accurate? Also, how many seed spells do I gain as I level up?

Also, how many seed spells do I gain as I level up?

Assuming the archivist is treated the same as the wizard...none. We explicitly have to find and record new spells and/or seeds in-game.

Kirth,

If I take Mage Hand as a skill trick, does that count as 'having the spell' for the synergy of aspect of the trapfinding general talent?

I'm already thinking about taking the trapfinding talent, but if taking Mage Hand as a skill trick lets me use that ability, that will cinch the choice.

Note as much to myself as anything: As soon as we have some downtime and funds, Kolmac will want to scribe some backup scrolls of mage armor and find a lab to brew up an enhanced batch of alchemist fire. Looking to upgrade from regular (1d6, splash 1, 50 gp) to caster level 2 with lingering damage (200 gp). To clarify, while alchemical items are priced as 'potions', the Craft skill supercedes the need to know the spell seed(s) and metamagic feats, right?

Reviewing my build, not sure we ever actually settled how to handle the wizard's starting spells and thinking I may be short a couple as a result. As written, I receive 3 0-level and 3 1st-level spells, but the wizard class entry doesn't specify if seed spells are handled differently. I currently have one pre-modified 1st-level spell (personal/extended mage armor), one 1st-level seed (bolt of force), and two 0-level seeds (bind, light).

Looking ahead, it appears rather difficult to boost my saving throw DCs--just by increasing Cha and Spell Focus, at least until I can access Inexorable Evocation. Am I missing any options in this area? Trying to evaluate the damage potential of a Reach (medium) Shaped (line) Explosive bolt of force--only does a few d6 on a save, but can result in double or more damage on a failed save if I also make the touch attack roll.

Last question, I promise. Can I retcon my starting spell bind to have the Fell Entangling metamagic built in? It's pretty useless as a cantrip and effectively saves me a feat slot when I start building more complex spells, which will help bring some useful effects online several levels earlier.

Once again sorry for being so quiet, still just life and a lot of other things...
I'll take another Fighter level for not

Hit Dice: 1d10 + 1 ⇒ (1) + 1 = 2
Gain Weapon Aptitude and Weapon Training as class abilities

For my Combat feat, I've picked a few options, but am not sure which of them to go for. would yall have any advice on it?
1: Inspirational victory: In order to sort of emphasize his role as this inspiring leader.
2: Combat Reflexes: One of my important roles would be to react to bad situations I'd assume.
3: Improved Critical: +4 to critical confirms, and an eventual 17-20 x3? sounds good.
4: Power Attack: Seems to be a really common fighter feat.
5: Rallying Strike: Healing HP is important, and I could use this to basically top off as often as I'd need to and take some of the healing heat off of Eshkeval.
My Skill points mostly just go to improving the skills I have, bringing my diplomacy and handle animal up to a +8

Also, I'm a bit concerned about the fact that I have very little I can do outside of a fight (I mean if there's ever an Animal or Person you need someone to like, I'm your guy for that, or if you need some warfare knowledge.) How might I be able to remedy this and make sure that I'm always able to help?

Edit: I see now my extra HP rolled is a 1... I don't want to be a whiner but is there any rule in place to take the average?

Believe hp is choice of rolled or average, alternating rounding down and up. Average would seem to be the wiser choice for those of you with larger hit dice.

Improved Critical makes for some great burst damage, especially if your next pick is a strike feat. Power Attack is strongest for a 2-handed fighter but it's still a respectable damage bonus for Cayden and a solid choice. Inspirational Victory could be good once your BAB is higher, but the impact seems pretty minor right now. Rallying Strike requires a higher BAB, and Combat Reflexes isn't great with your low Dex, so I'd rule those two out.

For diversifying, maybe you could divert a skill point or two into Craft (construction)? It seems like something Cayden might be familiar with, and as we've already seen it could prove useful while exploring/searching areas.

Kirth, if we are leveling up should we adjust stats immediately, or wait till we get "back to town", etc?

No need to wait.

Would like to request Kolmac's wand improve to a general +1 enhancement bonus to meet par.

Weapon enhancement is 2,000, so you'd need to craft the wand yourself and eat up your overflow as well.

Also, would it be unreasonable to make a roll using Kolmac's newfound ranks in Planar Sense? Perhaps he studied the topic but never had any practical experience with such matters until now and had a bit of a breakthrough?

Given recent events, that's not only reasonable but almost a given.

To clarify, while alchemical items are priced as 'potions', the Craft skill supersedes the need to know the spell seed(s) and metamagic feats, right?

Yes - it's assumed that a skilled alchemist can substitute weird ingredients to still get the desired effect.

Looking ahead, it appears rather difficult to boost my saving throw DCs--just by increasing Cha and Spell Focus, at least until I can access Inexorable Evocation. Am I missing any options in this area?

That's (intentionally) pretty much it, aside from metamagic to increase spell level. But keep in mind that saves scale by CR, not HD, so at higher levels the monsters won't auto-save.

Last question, I promise. Can I retcon my starting spell bind to have the Fell Entangling metamagic built in? It's pretty useless as a cantrip and effectively saves me a feat slot when I start building more complex spells, which will help bring some useful effects online several levels earlier.

Don't underestimate the Entangled condition! In one of my PBP games, the -4 Dex made the BBEG no longer qualify for his Improved Two-Weapon Fighting, directly saving at least two of the PCs' lives.

Believe hp is choice of rolled or average, alternating rounding down and up. Average would seem to be the wiser choice for those of you with larger hit dice.

Yes, the rule is to either take the average or else roll and accept whatever the result is (to prevent people from always rolling and then deciding on average if they roll low). If any players were unaware of this (it's sort of hidden in Chapter 1 somewhere), in this specific case I'd let them re-decide.

For diversifying, maybe you could divert a skill point or two into Craft (construction)? It seems like something Cayden might be familiar with, and as we've already seen it could prove useful while exploring/searching areas.

Since at each new level you get a free secondary skill (Chapter 4), there's almost no reason not to assign 1 rank to Craft (Construction).

Kolmac wrote:

Would like to request Kolmac's wand improve to a general +1 enhancement bonus to meet par.

Weapon enhancement is 2,000, so you'd need to craft the wand yourself and eat up your overflow as well.

My bad, must have had a moment while looking at crafting costs.

Kolmac wrote:

Last question, I promise. Can I retcon my starting spell bind to have the Fell Entangling metamagic built in? It's pretty useless as a cantrip and effectively saves me a feat slot when I start building more complex spells, which will help bring some useful effects online several levels earlier.

Don't underestimate the Entangled condition! In one of my PBP games, the -4 Dex made the BBEG no longer qualify for his Improved Two-Weapon Fighting, directly saving at least two of the PCs' lives.

No underestimating here, I'm very into the potential applications of the bind seed (I have a whole 'personal grimoire' of possible spell combinations going). It's just a bit underwhelming all on its lonesome, and Fell Entangling goes a long way towards improving the fail case on the Augmented versions. I see now that I either need the bind seed plus Fell Entangling, or I have to buy each augmented version as a separate pre-modified spell (50 for Fell bind, 750 gp for Fell grapple, 2250 for Fell pin), so I'll have to decide whether the numen or the feat slot is more valuable.

Could you verify the number of spells I'm supposed to start with? Realized that I never got a clear answer during creation whether the wizard's 3 1st-level spells plus Int 0-level spells was written with seed spells in mind.

Kirth,

If I take Mage Hand as a skill trick, does that count as 'having the spell' for the synergy of aspect of the trapfinding general talent?

I'm already thinking about taking the trapfinding talent, but if taking Mage Hand as a skill trick lets me use that ability, that will cinch the choice.

My question seems to have gotten lost in the barrage of them from Kolmac.

My question seems to have gotten lost in the barrage of them from Kolmac.

It did indeed. Apologies, sir. Yes, the skill trick counts as the spell for all intents and purposes, when that is advantageous to you.

Could you verify the number of spells I'm supposed to start with? Realized that I never got a clear answer during creation whether the wizard's 3 1st-level spells plus Int 0-level spells was written with seed spells in mind.

The more I think on it, the more I realize that:

Seed spell + appropriate metamagic feats = modified spell
Modified spell + those same metamagic feats = seed spell
Therefore, modified spell = seed spell, in terms of value.

You begin play with a spellbook containing a number of 0-level wizard spells (except those from your prohibited schools, if any; see Arcane Schools) equal to your Intelligence modifier, plus three 1st level sorcerer/wizard spells of your choice.

In light of the above, I propose we just read this as it's written.

Kirth, I sent you a PM about possibly multiclassing. Would what I laid out be acceptable?

Okay, so if I'm reading the spellcasting table + Rogue table right, Dair originally had 1 first level spell, solely due to his Int being a 16.

Now that he's level 2, and thus has a Skill Trick capacity of 2nd, that means he has 2 spell tricks(1 for having capacity of 2 + 1 for high Int), correct?

And because it's 2nd, I could know a second level Skill Trick? I think?

Sorry, it's slightly confusing for me.

Does the [force] effect duration increase granted by my specialist bonus apply to Sudden Shield, or does the duration reduction/Extend Spell prohibition from Sudden Spell override it? Important for the next few levels until it goes to At Will at 6th...

Added dispel as my missing 0-level spell. Candidates for 1st-level include:

• conductive electric arc (seed for future AoE spells, as they benefit least from my specialist bonuses and it offsets my low-ish save DCs)
• indisputable possession (wand insurance)
• burst of insight (out-of-combat utility, or Concentration booster in a pinch, can Augment to higher bonuses)

Anyone have strong feelings about typical utility spells e.g. alarm, protection from evil, endure elements, or any other suggestions?

Still can't decide if Explosive Spell is a trap or not. The single-target damage potential on a conductive explosive lightning bolt is amazing, but it feels pretty lackluster attached to most other AoEs.

My questions might also have been overlooked. Namely these two:

1.) Can I switch/retrain the position of my level 1 feat, "Domain Access (Time)" with my level 2 Archivist feat, in order to take the feat, "Racial Heritage (Defiant Luck)," as my level 1 feat instead?

2.) The Archivist states that I get a new cleric spell every level. Can I choose seed spells instead?

2.) The Archivist states that I get a new cleric spell every level. Can I choose seed spells instead?

See five posts up--the distinction between seed spells and other prebuilt spells is mostly arbitrary, you should be okay to take your pick of any 1st-level seed, prebuilt, or custom spell.

Kolmac is updated, save for assigning some spare numen. Now that I've had some time to explore the spell system, I switched out bind for push, which should have a significantly higher success rate. I'll come back to bind next level, when I can buy it premodified with the grapple augment and Fell Entangling.

Okay, so if I'm reading the spellcasting table + Rogue table right, Dair originally had 1 first level spell, solely due to his Int being a 16.

Now that he's level 2, and thus has a Skill Trick capacity of 2nd, that means he has 2 spell tricks(1 for having capacity of 2 + 1 for high Int), correct?

Exactly right.

And because it's 2nd, I could know a second level Skill Trick? I think? Sorry, it's slightly confusing for me.

Your number of spells known of each spell level, based on your capacity, is the 1st table in Chapter 8. In your case, it's one 1st level, and you get another 1st level for your Int. When you reach capacity 3rd, you'll get one 2nd level skill trick from your Int. (And yes, it IS confusing, and I tried to make it less so and was soundly berated for it. Early on I lobbied to rename "spell level" as "valence" instead, to reduce the number of things that all share the term "level," but people were having no part of that, so I gave up. I also preferred "mojo" over "numen," and got outvoted on that, too.)

Does the [force] effect duration increase granted by my specialist bonus apply to Sudden Shield, or does the duration reduction/Extend Spell prohibition from Sudden Spell override it? Important for the next few levels until it goes to At Will at 6th...

I'd actually never thought of that! The way it's written doesn't suggest there are any exceptions, so I'd be willing to allow it.

Still can't decide if Explosive Spell is a trap or not. The single-target damage potential on a conductive explosive lightning bolt is amazing, but it feels pretty lackluster attached to most other AoEs.

Nothing in the rules is intended as a "trap" option - that was an explicit design goal. To my mind, the value of Explosive Spell at higher levels isn't in the potential to add a piddly bit if damage, but rather the ability to scatter groups of enemies and/or force them back a long way from you.

1.) Can I switch/retrain the position of my level 1 feat, "Domain Access (Time)" with my level 2 Archivist feat, in order to take the feat, "Racial Heritage (Defiant Luck)," as my level 1 feat instead?

2.) The Archivist states that I get a new cleric spell every level. Can I choose seed spells instead?

1. See Chapter 1 notes on retraining. Your request is in character and creates no continuity issues with the ongoing story, and is therefore rubber-stamped.

2. See response above, re: seed spells = pre-modified ones.

Kirth, I sent you a PM about possibly multiclassing. Would what I laid out be acceptable?

Another design goal was to replace "hybrid classes" and a lot of prestige classes with a multiclassing system that actually worked. Also, "favored classes" were abandoned as being an obstacle to that.

So, overall, multiclassing in these rules is explicitly encouraged, and nobody gets to tell you you're not allowed.

Kolmac is updated, save for assigning some spare numen.

Looks good - I especially like how you left yourself spell notes, to make play a lot easier. "Fist of force" is a great use of the spell construction system, BTW.

Kolmac wrote:

Does the [force] effect duration increase granted by my specialist bonus apply to Sudden Shield, or does the duration reduction/Extend Spell prohibition from Sudden Spell override it? Important for the next few levels until it goes to At Will at 6th...

I'd actually never thought of that! The way it's written doesn't suggest there are any exceptions, so I'd be willing to allow it.

Nice! It scales rather nicely this way:

Kolmac wrote:

Still can't decide if Explosive Spell is a trap or not. The single-target damage potential on a conductive explosive lightning bolt is amazing, but it feels pretty lackluster attached to most other AoEs.

Nothing in the rules is intended as a "trap" option - that was an explicit design goal. To my mind, the value of Explosive Spell at higher levels isn't in the potential to add a piddly bit if damage, but rather the ability to scatter groups of enemies and/or force them back a long way from you.

That's how I was approaching it as well, and it's certainly well in line compared to building a similar effect with Cascade push or the like. I guess I just find it underwhelming attached to common lower-level AoEs--moving enemies 5-10 feet off a fireball is pretty mopey. Direct hits off a range medium line, or Widened cones/bursts are another thing entirely, but now you're looking at quite a high spell level. I did spot one nice synergy for the argent savant--the 8th level Still Spell bonus is perfect for lining up the perfect bolt AoE, though it sadly rules out Conductive. Still need to work out whether AoE damage is even worth it compared to Ray Splitting with my specialist bonuses. Which reminds me, how does the bonus damage from Warmage interact with Ray Splitting?

Kolmac wrote:

Kolmac is updated, save for assigning some spare numen.

Looks good - I especially like how you left yourself spell notes, to make play a lot easier. "Fist of force" is a great use of the spell construction system, BTW.

P.S. I just had a gin and tonic in his honor.

Cheers! I have generalized versions of the spell descriptions offline as well, so I can easily recalculate values when I level up. Practically a necessity with this spell system or I'd forget half the spells at my disposal, and helps map out which metamagic to pick up.

I sincerely hope I never need to cast fist of force-it's one of the least effective things I could be doing-but if it comes to that, I thought it was a nice touch that most of the evocations have no M/F component, making defensive casting fairly reliable.

Leveling up to Level 2:

Aemur is so enraged by the sight of the children’s skeletons that it fills his veins with righteous indignation, driving rational thought from his mind for a moment. As the blind wrath recedes from his mind, he knows he can summon it again at any time; this travesty shall not be forgotten.

2nd level, Multiclassing into Barbarian.
+6 HP, Rage, Totem, Bonus Feats, and Furious Counterstroke.
Ouroboros Totem: +2 to K. Planes, Planar Sense; Favored Terrain: Plains
+1 skill point to Athletics, Endurance, and Perception
6 skill ranks + 1 background: K. Planes, C. Needlework, C. Alchemy, Streetwise, Spellcraft, Planar Sense, K. Planes
Acrobatics as a Class Skill
Endure Elements between -50 F and 140 F.

Aemur feels an urge to work with his needles and thread when he finds a moment to himself, adding stitches representing strength and stability to his cloak. (He will add a +1 to Strength (1,000 numen) to his boots.

Question on Proficiencies: Aemur traded Medium Armor and shields for the Canny Defense feat. Can he also trade Barbarian proficiencies for Dodge and the Exotic Unarmed Proficiency?

Which reminds me, how does the bonus damage from Warmage interact with Ray Splitting?

Warmage is great at low levels, gets less impressive later... unless you start ray splitting. I.e., each ray should get the bonus.