Legacy: Dragon Empires (Inactive)

Game Master Brian Minhinnick

Hi guys. I'm hoping I can rope you all in to another game. If not everyone bites, that's okay, but I've got room for five PCs.

Make sure you read the Gameplay Thread before you get to this.

I'm not trying to get started right away. I just wanted to get this out there for people to ruminate on. If it takes a long time to get the game going that's perfectly fine. Thanks for your consideration.

Also, I made all this on an insane coffee bender. Please forgive any mistakes, and feel free to ask questions.

Sweet!

I'm definitely in, and am excited to play one of the Spheres classes.

For folks who're new to Spheres, I recommend:
Using Spheres of Might
and How to build a practitioner

You'll find that you can use it to build a very wide range of martial concepts that might be tough to pull off otherwise, including martials that can control, buff, or debuff (in addition to just hitting for damage)...all without feeling like casters.

If anyone wants to chat about the system, I haven't played it a ton, but I've built a handful of characters now.

Personally, I might go any of:
- Striker (mobile unarmed fighter, who gains 'tension' through being up close and personal, and uses that to various advantages)
- Sentinel (tanky defender with a variety of ways of punishing foes for trying to pass or ignore her)
- Armiger (versatile switch-hitter who trains with a variety of weapons, and masters different techniques with each)
- Commander (3/4 BAB character who buffs allies and debuffs foes through her tactics and shouts)

Other interesting classes:
- Blacksmith (full BAB + can improve the quality of her own and her allies' gear)
- Scholar (1/2 BAB INT-based martial, often with an emphasis on scaling improved versions of standard alchemical items, and/or traps, and/or beastmastery)
- Conscript (really just a bunch of tools to flexibly build your own martial class, if none of the above does what you're imagining)

Note that each class can be built a ton of ways, and that some of the talent spheres have more of an out of combat focus...but all of that's spelled out fairly well in the first two links above.

My experience: at first it felt a bit overwhelming, but after a bit of reading it clicked. I now think the system is quite elegant, and it does a great job of reusing existing Pathfinder rules wherever possible.

Cheers,

While I'm thinking about it, we're going with the variant rule that only creatures who have an alignment subtype have an alignment. Mortal creatures live in a world of grey. This means there are no alignment restrictions on classes, and that alignment based spells won't work on most things.

For some reason, I still can't post in the main thread. I'm commenting here because that seemed to resolve the issue last time.

EDIT: Finally figured out what the issue was.

Also, please don't mind the text in Kenjakana's current profile; it's all a holdover from an old PbP game.

Just noticed I listed a racial language as Tian-Min, that should be Minkaian. Tian-min is the name of the main ethnicity in Minkai.

Also Sugimatu's ability shouldn't mention auras, they don't have an aura. Sorry.

Also, woodland stride is a little lame compared to the other racials, so Shojinawa can have the following in addition to woodland stride:

A cursed forest dragon can mimic any voice or sound it has heard by making a successful Bluff check against the listener’s Sense Motive check.

I'm very hesitant, only because I feel that I've already exceeded my limit for pbp games. There's a couple games I'm in that are getting short shrift already. I'd hate to hit a breaking point.

Don't write me out just yet, but don't count on me either.

Alright, that's fine. I'm not going to set a start date or anything like that, but at some point as people get further into the character creation process I'll eventually need a decision. For now feel free to continue mulling it over.

If anyone is making a spheres based character, and wants to use a legendary talent, you'll need to get it approved by me first. Most of them look fine, but some are just too weird/anime for me to want in the game (such as using swords as bow ammunition).

RE languages: In case people don't know this, in Japanese there are several writing systems. Kanji is the exact same as traditional Chinese characters. We will be using traditional characters for the Tien language. Hirigana is a phonetic system for writing Japanese pronunciation of Chinese characters. That's what we're going to use for Minkaian. So, anything formal or ancient in Minkai will be written in Tien, and informal stuff would be written in Minkaian.

Every written Tien character has a Mikaian pronunciation, and shares basically the same meaning in Minkaian as the original character in the Tien language. This is because Minkaian originally got its writing system from Lung Wa (originators of Tien).

But Tien writing is not phonetic, so you have to memorize the pronunciation of every character. It also was not intended as the writing system for Minkaian, which originally had no writing system. Thus scholars in Minkai created a phonetic writing system for Minkaian at the same time that they were developing more of a separate unique culture from Lung Wa in ancient times.

Make sense?

Jelani, I'm looking forward to the ways your experience with Asian cultures and languages will influence this campaign.

Anyone have any ideas about the character you're thinking about?

Note, if you have an idea for a character that's more about an image than a class, it might be possible within spheres. For example (if you missed the conversation on r20) Jelani was wishing there was a way someone could impale a foe with a spear, and swing them around at others, and I said "Oh, Spheres of Might" lets you do that. It'll also let you make interesting use of a wide range of combat maneuvers (including things like Bull Rush, that rarely are worth doing)...and a lot more.

Caveat: I've read the system and built some characters, but I've barely played with it so far, so most of my experience is theoretical or second-hand.

All I know so far is I'll use a Spheres class. Still considering any of building as a martial striker, defender, and / or tactician/buffer.

I'm 90% for sure going Scholar, Edit: Based on what they've told me, Thron is going to be an illusion and diplomacy focused sorceress, CDL is going to be a stealth focused sorceress.

My scholar will fly around shooting things with her crossbow, and healing ppl.

You must bring DA BEEF. Moo.

Nice! I think Scholar is a great class (and they are suprisingly good healers). You might want to check out the alchemy sphere for other ranged options. I really like the improved formulae. Check out the Scout sphere too, to take advantage of your INT in improving your to-hit and AC in combat.

I'll look forward to being the front line (and or sharing it with Stalwart)!

Oh, I am going to have Athletics, Alchemy, Barrage, Equipment, Scout and Trap. Trap I don't really want, but get anyway as a bonus.

Eventually I could do flashbang arrows that blind and do 1d6 str dmg....we'll see. Seems a bit OP. My initial build is focusing on movement, crossbow barrages and healing.

I also said her, but meant he. I think so far my character is the only male. We could go Rat Queens and have an all female party I guess. That could be fun.

I really don’t know if I’ll do much with the Sphere stuff. I’m more interested in using illusions as my primary trick, and also being a bit of a party face.

Jelani, would it be possible to get a +2 Ability Score Modifier to a stat of our choice like humans/half-elves/half-orcs? Right now, I'm having difficulty getting a decent stat array on a 17 point buy with no bonuses. In Apollonia, we had that extra 1d3 to help.

Thron, Yeah, the Spheres content Jelani is including is all martial. (There is a great Spheres Illusionist class if you're curious,)

Jelani, Scholar doesn't give Trap as a bonus. Is it coming from a martial tradition you picked?

CDL - No, you're going to be super powerful as is. You'll be fine.

Gyrfalcon - Yes, from a martial tradition.

So, it's been 25 busy days for me, but things are starting to calm down a bit. How is everyone feeling about this? Anyone ready to finish up characters and get started?

So no one is interested anymore?

Just been busy.

Likewise. I'm a little booked for the next two or three weeks.

Alright, that's fine. I should be even less busy by then in theory, as more one-time repairs get accomplished.

Cool, I'm looking forward to this...and think delaying a bit if good for me too.

I'd begun work on Yume and am doing a bit more now. Any chance you're using Background Skills?

EDIT

Nevermind. I'd looked for it in Character Creation but just noticed it in House Rules.

Cheers!

OK, I haven't finished gear but otherwise Yume's ready to review!

Cool, if other people want to start working on their characters that would be good.

I promise to when I get time to sit down and focus on this exclusively. Right now my bulk time is being divided between RotR and my other active games. Soon as RotR closes and I can outnumber my bulk “PC Time” towards it I will get her built up.

Alright, sounds good. It will happen when it happens. I'm busy enough that I'm not in a huge rush, but I also don't want it to fade into memory.

I will be working to finalize Kenjakana this holiday weekend.

Just realized I never specified the size of the racial breath weapon. I'm going to say a 20' line since it's coming from a humanoid mouth.

Behold, the alias I am working up!

A couple of quick questions to the group...

1) Anyone wanna pitch in for a Cure wand of some sort?
2) Would anyone be interested in pitching in for a Handy Haversack? I would be willing to carry it as A) my carrying capacity is abysmal and I could use the help hauling my own s~%$, and B) it would free up carrying space for you guys to let me haul the group loot.

For the record, I don’t anticipate my character being a very “combat focused” type. She would be the pacifist/advisor/diplomat of the group. As well as the healer and cook.

She is very much going to be a support build.

I'd somehow missed/forgotten that I was up in combat. Sorry!

Also, Jelani, I'm happy to see you using Spheres with the NPCs too (at least for significant ones like the leader here).

Well, this is a cavalier challenge...but I may eventually bring in some spheres stuff.

Just looked it up since I didn't recall:

If a creature’s nonlethal damage is equal to his total maximum hit points (not his current hit points), all further nonlethal damage is treated as lethal damage. This does not apply to creatures with regeneration. Such creatures simply accrue additional nonlethal damage, increasing the amount of time they remain unconscious.

...so Yume will take this round's attack as nonlethal. Next round it will exceed her max HP and start switching to lethal damage.

Battered

"Heavy blows have left a creature with this condition vulnerable to further attacks, imposing a -2 penalty to the creature’s CMD and preventing them from taking attacks of opportunity provoked by a creature performing a combat maneuver. Some talents have different effects or activation times against battered creatures. The battered condition can be removed by taking the total defense action, or through the restore ability of the Life sphere (see Spheres of Power), the lesser restoration spell, or similar effects. When inflicting the battered condition on a target that is already battered, the rounds stack when determining duration."

Thanks

Note, Yume needs healing but not urgently. I'd say either Kenmei or Shizun should go offense, and I'd love to get bit of healing from the other. (Whatever I get will essentially count double since it'll clear both lethal and nonlethal.)

Especially if I didn't drop Orange...and I may not have.

I've leveled up in profile, and updated my stat line.

As discussed, I've rebuilt slightly to be a bit more offensive. Specifically:
- Dropped Shield proficiency, and shield talents
- Added Brute sphere (giving me the ability to perform a Shove as a Move) and Focused Might (giving me the ability to recover Martial Focus on a successful Shove).
- Added Swift Challenge and Mass Challenge (letting me challenge more foes at once, and improving the action economy of challenging a bit).

Otherwise,
+1 BAB (which also makes my delayed damage 12/round and THP 7/round)
+10 HP
+perception, sense motive, survival, handle animal, artistry (haiku)*

* putting 1 rank in this gets me to a mighty +0...which I've commemorated by writing Yume's first poem. I tried to write something from her perspective (considering what happens when one lets their guard down).