Well, this ambush is going much worse for these goblins than they intended. Good job, us. With that thought, Daiki dashed after Perri, maneuvering around the same goblin, and once again lashed out.
Move: 5 squares S, 1 square SW
Free: 5 foot step W to flank with Perri
Standard: Attack with Wakizashi
The two goblins drop their bows and the one to the west of Daiki moves behind him to get into a flanking position. They both attack Daiki with dogslicers, and one of them manages to land a slice across his leg.
Daiki takes 3 slashing damage!
Whoops, totally forgot about that. Thanks for being on top of things.
Daiki winced as the goblin blade hits him. For such small creatures, they were still dangerous with sharp things in their hands. Carefully stepping into a better position away from the goblin on his flank, he struck out twice.
Free 5 ft step to actually flank that goblin with Perri.
Full round: Attack twice with my two wakizashis.
Filona was surprised to see her spell disabling the leader and their mount. "I did it, I did it!", she screamed in excitement as the paladin and ninja charged forward and made her realize it wasn't over. She focused on the goblin they weren't attacking and attacked his mind.
Experience 1,405/2,000 | Level 1 | #001: Burnt Offerings | Part 2: Local Heroes | Day 2 (Sunday, 23 Rova 4707)
Sonas's shot does not quite connect, though moments later Kano charges up and demolishes the goblin that Filona dazed. One goblin remains and is in dire straits.
Not wanting to give the sole remaining goblin a chance to unleash out in some desperate attempt to escape a battle was now decidedly in their favor, Verona moved forward into range and weaved a stupefying enchantment spell.
Move Action: Moving about 25 ft. directly south. Standard Action: Casting Daze on Goblin 2. DC 13 vs. Will.
The magical abilities of the party seemed to be quite effective at dealing with the goblins. It made Daiki almost want to delve into that world himself certainly full of useful tricks. Almost.
For now, he would content himself to focusing on the task literally in front of him.
Experience 1,405/2,000 | Level 1 | #001: Burnt Offerings | Part 2: Local Heroes | Day 2 (Sunday, 23 Rova 4707)
Daiki strikes down the last goblin, rendering Junk Beach silent. The unconscious goblin and its mount can be dealt with in whichever fashion you choose.
Junker’s Edge—End
If you would like to investigate the beach to look for "treasure" or just to look to see why the goblins may have chosen this as a staging area, go ahead and give me a perception or survival skill check.
The final goblin put down, Daiki breathed a sigh of relief - a sigh that was punctuated by the pain that shot through his injuries sustained in the fight. Fighting through the pain, he retrieved some rope from his pack and went up to the unconscious goblin and their mount, proceeding to tie them up. With a loud thump, he then sat on the sand of the beach to try to rest. "If...someone could...help me out...a little...it would be...much appreciated...otherwise...I'm just going to be...a moment." The words came out in slow, punctuated breaths, as Daiki inspected his injuries.
CMB +0 to tie up the goblin and mount, I have rope in my pack, so I'll take 20 for a grand total of 20.
Filona saw Daiki react fast and helped him tie up the goblin. About the mount, she said "This is just an unfortunate beast. How about we let it be free for once in its life?"
Filona said "Hey, maybe these goblins had something with them that might help us understand what's going on?" and started to search the prisoner and the bodies. If there were pockets and bags on the mount, she searched them as well.
Perception:1d20 + 2 ⇒ (11) + 2 = 13
After that, Filona looked around and found that the junkyard could be a huge treasure pit. She started to look for anything interesting, be it things for her to build, fix, rebuild, anything valuable or just plain signs of goblin activity.
Experience 1,405/2,000 | Level 1 | #001: Burnt Offerings | Part 2: Local Heroes | Day 2 (Sunday, 23 Rova 4707)
Searching the goblins, both alive and dead, Filona finds... I put all of the stuff on our new loot sheet! Check near the maps link for the loot link. Let me know if you have any questions about it.
Filona, unfortunately, doesn't find anything of particular value among the junk. Even to her tinker's eye most of it appears to be garbage.
Waaaaait. Did we just find all that in this group? I almost don't feel sad for not finding anything in the junk pile.
Filona, after looting the corpses and an unfruitful rummaging the garbage, she looks at the others with a sad and sweaty look. "I'm at a loss", she says.
With the last goblin slain and their combat over, Verona immediately went about doing her iatrical duty. In a tone that would have come across as deadpan if not for the fact that Verona, as always, was completely, the healer told the ninja about his injuries. "You're leg has vuffered a vevere laceration, Daiki. Again. But..." the witch put a hand just above the red wound on the ninja's leg and began to concentrate.
Healing Hex:1d8 + 1 ⇒ (5) + 1 = 6
In no time at the leg wound was completely sealed and mended, as if it had never been there. "... I've been able to repair the damage."
With that done, the witch stood back up and scanned beach. She was the one that lead them here. In that sense she was partial responsible for the ambush, at in her mind. To not find anything of note beyond murderous goblins did not set well for her at all.
Once again, Daiki was at a debt to magic for its capability, and Verona for her use of it. "Thank you, Verona. I will do my best not to trip into anymore goblin swords, or at least, not as badly."
Standing up and stretching out his once again like-new limb, he scanned the beach as well, looking for anything that others may have missed.
The large woman catches her breath leaning on her hammer for support, watched in wonder as Verona magically knitted together Daiki. ” That will never cease to amaze me, where I come from most healers are not able to do that. Only a handful throughout generations can heal the way you do. And thank you from me as well Verona. I remember being pierced but it appears that there is no injury. I assume I have you to thank for that. Thank you, may the wind guide your hand and your spirit be filled with the force of the earth itself.”
Kano bows low to the changeling, before stowing her earthbreaker and helping the party to search the beach.
Filona is amazed at Kano's mood swings from when she talks to the party and when she deals with goblins. She decides to not comment on it, as she still hasn't figured out what causes them.
Sonas takes a quiet moment alone as he goes around looking for stuff the goblins had brought with them to Sandpoint.
Perception:1d20 ⇒ 5
After not able find much except the goblins' weapons and bits of armour, Sonas returns to the others and joins in the conversation.
"A miraculous thing indeed, there are of course many healers around the world, but most of them are the clerics and followers of the gods. I hope one day to be able to channel that divine gift as well. You seem to have another source of power though, as I haven't seen you use any obvious sign or symbol relating to a deity."
Sonas takes another good look around the Junk Beach and asks the group.
"Find any thing useful? Any leads on who helped them?"
Experience 1,405/2,000 | Level 1 | #001: Burnt Offerings | Part 2: Local Heroes | Day 2 (Sunday, 23 Rova 4707)
GM Stuff:
1d20 ⇒ 7 1d20 ⇒ 15
→ 2:00 PM Day 2 (Sunday, 23 Rova 4707)
The party examines the beach for anything useful, and it appears that only Daiki and Verona have any luck. Daiki is almost certain that he finds something of value—a glimmer among the garbage. It turns out to just be the broken steel rod from within the log back at the Swallowtail festival. Verona, on the other hand, finds a genuine treasure: a dagger whose blade is made of cold iron.
I will add the dagger to the loot sheet. What would you like to do from here? The play you are scheduled to see starts at six. Madame Mvashti would like to see you for a harrowing at some point or another.
"There are many other sources of power in this world, in addition and separate from the divine, with their own ability to reach and heal people. I have seen just that first hand." Daiki took a second, and thought of the holy symbols he carried with him. Of what they meant.
"Of course, that is not to say the power of the gods is anything to be dismissed. There is something to be said of the existence of a separate plane dwelling existence taking interest enough in our lives to provide aid."
Looking through the items found, Daiki was amazed that such items would be with goblins. Some seemed particularly expensive. He supposed that there would have to be some level of sponsorship behind these goblins that would account for it.
"As for what we do next - it would perhaps be a good idea to search for something about the people in town. Although, I must admit, I am quite interested in attending that play later this evening, should we have the opportunity."
"Any idea on how to approach that then? The questioning of the Sandpoint residents? I'm not a sleuth or detective, but I'd like to help out though. Perhaps the amdame who wanted to read our fortunes may have some useful insights on how to proceed. Prophecies and fortunes have a ring of truth about them, even if one might not see it at first."
At first, Verona had been too distracted to listen to the others conversation about what to do next. She had been looking through the various alchemical concoctions that the goblins had, surprised at their potency and diversity.
Talk of going to the fortune-teller, though, quickly brought her out of her gawking. She still hadn't warmed to the idea of going to Madame Mvashti, but Verona wagered that it beat randomly talking to Sandpoint's natives for clues. "Sonas is correct. Vomething is amiss here and Madame Mvashti may be able to guide us to it," she says touching her Pharasmite necklace.
As the party begins discussing what to do next and how to accomplishment, Kano finds the nuances disinteresting and begins examining the goblin lance. She lifts it with one hand noting the weight and balance, a surprise for something of goblin make, before lowering it and ending with a powerful thrust.
She grunts and places it back with the rest of their finds, patting her earthbreaker smiling and whispering ”Do not worry, no one can replace you Onandowaga.”
Her attention is perked back when talk of the fortune teller is brought into the conversation. ”Yes, I am in agreement. Your elder shall point us in the right direction. One who sees the spirits around can not steer us wrong. We should be most humbled to accept this gift.”
Filona gives in to the party's decision. "Fine, let's go to the fortune teller quickly", she says taking the first steps back to town. She didn't want anybody to know she was curious whether this woman would be able to tell them anything real.
Experience 1,405/2,000 | Level 1 | #001: Burnt Offerings | Part 2: Local Heroes | Day 2 (Sunday, 23 Rova 4707)
→ 3:00 PM Day 2 (Sunday, 23 Rova 4707)
The group makes their way to the massive home of Niska Mvashti, or Madame Mvashti as the locals call her. Her daughter, a quite aged wandering priestess of Desna named Koya Mvashti, is still in town from the festival. She is the one to open the door, and upon recognizing the party, invites you all into her mother's home and into a parlor. Koya leaves you there with some fresh tea and moves to fetch her mother, returning some ten minutes later.
Madame Mvashti sits behind a large, intricately engraved wooden table and lays a cloth embroidered with Pharasmin imagery on it over the top. Drawing a deck of harrow cards from a pouch and holding it with no small reverence, she begins to shuffle the cards.
"Thank you for helping the town yesterday," Madame Mvashti begins, finishing her shuffling. "I'd like to reward you in the best way I know how: a harrow reading. Any who are interested, please come sit here with me."
If you would like to have a harrowing performed, please go ahead and phrase the knowledge you seek in the form of a single question and decide which of the six abilities suits that question. If multiple of you want a harrowing I'll just go in the order that you post. I'll be putting the readings in spoilers, as the others present will be asked to leave the room for the subject's privacy.
Filona taps her foot with increasing speed as the others don't seem to step forward. "Let's get this over with." As the others leave the room, Filona starts to sweat, afraid of what she might hear, but tries hard not to show it.
Is this supposed to be hidden too?:
When Madame Mvashti is ready, the gnome asks "Who betrayed the town to the goblins? Tell me, oh so know it all." With a sneer, she awaited the answer.
Verona span her Pharasmite pendant nervously as she ruminated on what question she wanted to ask Mvashti. Would she ask a question about the town's mysterious enemies or her own? In the end, the thought of Hannah made her choose the former.
Harrowing Question:
"Vat do the goblins vant vith Ezakien Tobyn's bones?"
Reverent as soon as she enters Madame Vshanti’s house, Kano begins debating her question as she waits her turn.
Harrowing Question:
”Elder Vshanti thank you for seeing us. My question is simple. I was only passing through Sandpoint on my way to fight giants. But the raid on the town has me wondering. Do the Great Spirits see my place with this group?” I think Wisdom may be the most appropriate stat for this question
Experience 1,405/2,000 | Level 1 | #001: Burnt Offerings | Part 2: Local Heroes | Day 2 (Sunday, 23 Rova 4707)
→ 3:10 PM Day 2 (Sunday, 23 Rova 4707)
Filona:
Ignoring your slight on her occupation, Madame Mvashti ponders your question and selects nine cards from the deck. She shuffles these by themselves, and then spreads them out on the table into an arc in one fluid motion. She gestures for you to pick one. You select a card from the table, revealing it to the two of you to be The Carnival. ”You are unsure of how you fit into this investigation, aren’t you? Afraid that your innate talents will develop in a way that doesn’t align with your dreams?”
Nistka does not wait for you to respond, and after you relinquish the card to her she shuffles it and the remaining eight cards on the table back into the rest of the deck. After a moment, she lays out the cards face-down in three columns of three. Setting the remainder of the deck aside, she flips the first column. From top to bottom she reveals The Bear, The Unicorn, and The Desert. ”The Desert in opposition, a sign that the betrayer you seek was lost and in need of aid. The aid that they gained was one not to be trusted, and they have likely paid for it quite dearly.”
After this, Madame Mvashti flips the cards in the middle column to reveal, from top to bottom: The Betrayal, The Twin, and The Carnival. ”Here again is your role in this, The Carnival, aligned now to the negative flow of your present. There will be temptation to follow a dream that cannot be, and if you do, the here and now will become increasingly bleak. Misguided ambitions will surely bring ruin,” she says, her previously unwavering tone gaining some trepidation as she moves to the card in the direct center of the spread. ”The Twin, in true alignment, is a sign that someone involved in the raid struggles with indecision. It also means that in the here and now there may be hidden meanings abound—even to the reading that I’m giving you now. Just above we have The Betrayal misaligned, meaning that self-sacrifice and turning away from the temptation of material gains may be necessary for your goal.”
”And now for the future, the thing I’m sure you are most curious about,” Madame Mvashti begins, starting to flip the cards in the final column. The Forge, The Avalanche, and The Idiot. She points to the final card in the spread, the goblins on its face a direct link to the question in the air. ”The Idiot, in slight misalignment. Someone you have already met, someone who may seem foolish or naive, harbors knowledge of something far greater, far more evil than just goblins attacking Sandpoint.”
”That, my dear, is all I have for you today,” Madame Mvashti says, picking up the cards and shuffling them once again. ”If you ever again feel the need to ask a question, my door is always open to the heroes of Sandpoint. Just please remember two silvers next time you come knocking.” She says the last part with a wink, and in a slight hurry to perform four more readings today, she ushers you out to bring in the next petitioner.
Daiki spent the long time on the way to, and waiting for, the harrow thinking deeply about his question. He knew the Kami of home had some ability to read into the future, though he had never before met a human that could do the same. What blessings such a person must possess. When it was his turn, finally, Daiki took a deep breath and went in.
Harrowing Question:
Alone with Madame Vshanti, Daiki bowed deeply. "Greetings, madam. As you may be aware, long and far has been my path to lead me here, standing in front of you. Life as I once knew it has been torn from me, and I am left with a great many questions. But one troubles me most - bears down on my mind, and all my actions. What am I to do, to move on with honor - honor not just for me, but for that of my fallen brother in arms, and my master, on who's account alone I have survived to be here?"
I imagine wisdom is probably the most fitting attribute for this.
Filona gets up without acknowledging Madame Mvashti's last words. If she remembered to open her mouth, it would hang open as she thinks. Just before opening the curtain to leave, she turns back and offers a nod in a late reply.
Filona fumbles with the curtain trying to open it. It seemed too heavy for her, even though it wasn't heavy at all. Looking at the others, she says "Well, that was probably made up..." As she tries to smile, she unceremoniously says "I asked about the two traitors. She did a bunch of stuff with some cards... But she did say something very true about me." As if a chill ran through her spine, Filona shivers.
She continues saying "I had never used my talents in a fight. I've never even been on any fights before yesterday. She said my magic would develop in a way that doesn't fit my dream." At this point, tears start forming up in her eye.
In order to dismiss her seemingly unhappy line of thought, she says "She said the betrayer needed help, but the help they found was bad for them. She said I can't follow my dreams. What does she know about my dreams?", she shouted in rage not caring that the woman could probably hear her through the curtain.
With a surprisingly stern face, she continues "She also said something about indecision. And that everything is a hidden message. Heh, quite convenient for a so called ''fortune teller'', eh? Well, then she said something that could be useful if she's right. That someone knows something about what drove the goblins, or something greater than them. That someone is foolish or naive. Do you think she was talking about you Kano?", she asks foolishly and naively.
She ends with "Well, anyway, next in line can go in, I suppose"
Sonas looks on as Filona comes back after her harrowing at Madame Mvashti and watches the next of the group go on in.
"Still you seem to be troubled by a soothsayer explaining what could lie in store for us. Are fortune-tellers not also people with a power similar to that of certain wizards or spellcasters? Perhaps they don't cast spells, that doesn't mean their inner ability to predict what's to come is a lie. It's like trying to read a language you don't understand, parts may make sense to you, other parts or sentences may not, but until someone points out which sentence means what, you won't know the truth of the words."
Sonas picks a coin from his pocket and throws it in the air and deftly catches it again.
"I for one, have always been lucky. It's a rare trait and a rare thing to say about oneself. Though this is true, my luck is able to rub off onto others. I don't know how I got it, I just know it's there."
When it is finally time for Sonas's turn to go on into Madame Mvashti's tent for a harrowing he does so with a smile on his face and excitement glowing off of him.
Sonas's question:
Sonas walks into curtained room and bows to Madame Mvashti.
"I am truly honoured you would read me my fortune Madame! I've been read my fortune before, by Ol' Pietri Csalogan of the Sun Caravan, perhaps you've heard of him?"
Sonas says as he takes a seat opposite of Madame Mvashti.
"To tell you the truth, I'm a bit torn between two questions. One is a personal touch, the other something more for what's been going on now with the goblins and all. It's difficult to choose." Sonas sighs deeply as he wracks his mind for the right decision. After a short moment he nods to himself and speaks up.
"I've decided, I've always been a team player, you should always choose what's best for the family. At this moment, this town is my temporary family. These goblin attacks are strange, not that out of the ordinary, but they're helped by others from outside. Why is that? What do these people have to gain by helping the goblins?"
Hello! I am looking to recruit 3-5 players for a special journey through a beloved adventure path. I present to all... SUPER RUNELORDS. I would be running the campaign (anniversary edition) for four players with a 15 point buy, content as written in the book, with restrictions on what sources may be used. There is a final twist of the knife here: we will be running the game on the slow experience track. The normal game ends at nearly 18th level on the fast experience track, so on the slow track the game would enter the final stretch at about 15th level. I don’t want to do this because I love to kill player characters. On the contrary, I’ve only ever done so in a face-to-face game a small handful of times in the past ten years of GMing.
I have run Burnt Offerings seven times to completion. The Skinsaw Murders four times. The Hook Mountain Massacre twice. I have finished the entire campaign only once. Six years I spent reading Rise of the Runelords and trying to make it work and eventually it did. That is why I would like to bring my love for this campaign to a group of people that really want to test their limits. Pathfinder 1st edition's production is over, and while I am mostly focused on playing games and converting content into 2e I would also like to do this as a sort of last hurrah to GMing 1e.
Characters:
Characters will be built with a 15 point buy and two traits, one of which will be a campaign trait. No drawbacks, as those were released in Ultimate Campaign. Sources allowed are as follows: Core Rulebook, Advanced Player’s Guide, Ultimate Magic, Ultimate Combat, Advanced Race Guide* and Ultimate Equipment. The list stops there because of the timing of the anniversary edition’s release. The stipulations from the ARG are that any options made available for core races are viable as well as the following additional races: aasimar, catfolk, dhampir, ifrit, kobold, orc, oread, ratfolk, sylph, tengu, tiefling, undine, changeling, grippli, kitsune, nagaji, samsaran, vanara and vishkanya. Starting gold will be average for your class. If you are unsure what options are available in what book, please refer to this site.
Why 3-5 people?:
Short answer is I already have an IRL friend who would like to join since our face to face games have been more difficult to pull off.
Submission Details:
For the submission I would like three things: a character backstory, your finished first level character (in whatever format is most convenient), and why you are interested in joining. Even though this will be mechanically challenging for everyone, I also care about good roleplay since we will be playing through a very iconic campaign. If you have played Rise of the Runelords before please don’t be afraid to share that here. We may go off the rails a bit at times. I don’t want to sound pompous, but I feel very comfortable with the source material and am willing to change things as needed.
I would like to start playing the game by October 28th, so I would like to have all submissions in by October 24th, 23:59 EDT.
Very interested; I haven't actually had a chance to play RotR despite hearing great things about it for years! I'll start on a character submission later today.
I've played through the first book of Runelords, incidentally the first AP I ever played about seven or eight years ago, and I'm thinking of submitting a halfling summoner, something of a rebuild of the character I played in that game.
Dot for interest. I am currently in a RotRL campaign but due to absence I missed everything from the back half of book 1 to where I rejoined at the end of book 3 (we are currently at the beginning of book 4) so I would love the chance to actually play through what I missed.
One question on non-campaign traits: where would be the best place to find them? I seem to remember Ultimate Campaign being the first codified release of the lists, but I could be wrong on that.
Submitting Filona, a gnome sorceress tinker who dreams of having her own shop with toys, tools and whatever else she can think of building.
Backstory:
Filona has lived most of her life in Magnimar. Her mother Penny died of an illness just before her 18th birthday, so Filona knows life mainly as a merchant's assistant, that is, her father Pamon's assistant. She quickly learned her crafting skills necessary to get by and she did know the workings of most mechanical machines. She also learned the tricks of being a merchant from the close relations they had with the Deverin family in Sandpoint.
Her young years were happy, always building things. People often said that she was a building genius, and it would be a while before she began to discover her sorcery.
One day in the market an elf named Malanor noticed a magical aura surrounding the young gnome. With Pamon's reluctant permission, she spent a day with Malanor learning that she had powerful and natural magic pulsing within her. Clearly that was not enough knowledge for her to become a renowned Sorceress, but it was enough for her to be curious about it. The bad news was that she became a daydreamer. Pamon could do nothing to prevent his daughter's ever more frequent visits to the eager elf.
After a few years, Filona grew powerful enough to give shape to some simple spells, but to her teacher's dismay, she didn't seem much interested in her magic in detriment to building things. After one of their discussions, she rushed back to her father's shop and worked til the day's end.
The following morning, Filona packed her things, kissed her father goodbye, and said she was moving away to open her own shop. Pamon was sad, but proud and gave her a screwdriver that had belonged to her mother. Filona then travelled to Sandpoint hoping to open a shop with toys and other mechanical contraptions she would eventually build.
I've played with Filona in a RotR game in these forums, but we never got past level 1 (DM went missing with no previous warning). I really liked the character and playing the AP. I have played the AP once in the past until mid book 2, but it was a very long time ago and I remember very little of the story.
I find the AP very entertaining (the part I played, at least) and I would very much like to play through the whole story. I've once considered reading through the books, but I didn't as I believe Filona deserves to live it all.
This link is probably most of the non-campaign traits pre Ultimate Campaign. Other than that I think there are a few more in the Advanced Race guide, but that's about it.
Submitting Rohan Drake, character sheet and backstory is in profile! This AP is essentially my white whale as I've been in 8 different games that all died before book 2 for various reasons. The farthest I've been is completing book 1.
Doting, GM S.R. what kind of posting rate are you looking for? Also do we know what type of character you RL friend will be playing? No need to duplicate. Like a few others, I've never had the opportunity to play RoTR and would like to while PF1 is still a thing.
Posting rate is a very important question, for sure. I (usually) am not able to post on weekends, so I would like for there to be at least four posts a week from everyone involved. If we are in combat, I would like that to be at least one a day. If someone needs to be absent I will bot them as I would play them or with whatever instructions are left with me.
I would like to keep the same party from start to finish if possible (as far as the player's themselves are concerned—I can't make any guarantees about characters), but if someone is consistently not participating there may be a consideration to replace them. Replacement priority will come from the pool of applicants in this thread first if possible. Since I am running this with an IRL friend as a player who really wants to finally play the campaign all the way through, I have all intentions of finishing this game regardless of the time it takes.
I think this would be a good opportunity for me to mention that I will be sending everyone who gets in (weeks away from now) a RPG consent survey so that I know if there is any type of content people would rather be left off-screen or excluded altogether. I take the comfort level of my players very seriously, which will be especially relevant in the third part of this adventure path.
Additionally, given that slow xp track has the most effect in the first adventure (you would likely only hit level 2 by the end of it) I may include content from other sources to fill in the gap. This may include (depending on interest) both the scenario from the beginner box and the outlined area of the Sandpoint Hinterlands known as "The Pit".
Dotting for interest.
I've played a RotR a long time back, I think we came to level 7-8, with a sorcerer with tripping Magic Missile. Too long ago to properly remember everything that happened though.
Been brainstorming about what character I should make, doubting between survivability and utility.
Two ideas for a Divine Hunter and one for a wizarding type.
Question for you DM, seeing as this campaign would be quite a challenge, are there things you deem too powerful or too wacky?
For example my earlier sorcerer with Toppling spell Magic Missiles tripping 3 to 4 opponents and making them provoke AoO's.Is that too out of the way?
I may come to regret this, but as long as it is within the sources listed it is fine by me. You're going to be pretty behind the curve as time goes on because of the slow xp track, so build whatever feels best. Just please make sure your character will be fun for you to roleplay, as well!
GM S.R., any idea what your friend will be playing? I prefer playing combat or skill characters, with an emphasis on RP, but will play a caster if needed.
@GM, any thoughts on neutral characters worshipping evil gods? It's something I love to roleplay but I know it doesn't work in every game. I'm looking at making a cleric of Urgathoa who would primarily focused on her aspects of pleasure and autonomy, both in life and after death.
@Robert Henry: That is a great question! I just asked them what they will be playing, so I will let you know as soon as I do.
@rutaskadis: I'm fine with it, for sure. My favorite character that I've gotten to play was a true neutral sacred huntsmaster of Urgathoa. As long as your character can exist in a party it is fine by me! Just uh, probably don't be too open about your faith in public. Worship of Urgathoa is illegal in many places on Golarion.
One question about what's available and what's not, since I have a character that'd be juuust perfect for this AP, but she's got the Acadamae Graduate feat. It's quite old, so it certainly predates the RotRL anniversary edition, but it wasn't reprinted in the Ultimate books or anywhere else. Would that be ok or a no go?
@Nemethor: As much as I would normally be willing to budge on this sort of thing, I'm unfortunately going to have to not allow the feat. I want to keep things kind of simple by only using the core line books listed, and I want to make sure everyone is building on the same foot. Sorry :s
I'm writing up a character right now that I've been wanting to play some version of for a while. He's a likeable dullard who's very in touch with nature. I've got a pretty open schedule this morning so I should have him up soon.
Have never played this AP, sounds intriguing for sure. I'm relatively new to the PBP forum here, so as long as you're alright with that, I'd definitely express my interest, at work for a few more hours will try to get something up by tonight.
This is Giant Halfling's submission. All of the crunch is in this alias' profile. The background is also there, but I'll spoiler it here as well.
interest in playing:
I think there's three parts to my interest in joining this game.
1- I've run the first book a couple times and the second book once, and every time I've wished I could play it (don't worry though- I can keep player knowledge and character knowledge separate, plus it's been a while and I've forgotten most of it).
2- I used to be an active pbp gamer (like playing 6-8 games and running 2-3 more) and then got overwhelmed by RL and had to stop; I've been looking forward to picking it up again and definitely have enough time now to join a single game.
3- I really like the idea/feel of this character. Things are a mess at work, and my grandmother recently died unexpectedly, and the opportunity to play a simple, carefree optimist seems really super appealing right now.
background:
Bill is a simple, friendly man. His mother was a druidess and his father was a farmer and a decent herbalist. His birth seemed completely unextraordinary, but it didn’t take long for his parents to notice that he wasn’t developing like a normal child: he didn’t learn to walk or talk until after his second birthday, and by his fourth his two year old sister, Bekkah, was the same size as him. His parents taught him and his sister about the natural world and, while he seemed to have some aptitude for druidic magic, all of his lessons were painfully slow. At least, they seemed that way to everyone else. If his sister learned it in a day, it took him a week, and his parents would repeat themselves until the words tasted bitter in their mouths. But Bill never seemed to notice; he’d smile and listen with the same wonder as the first time he’d heard it, and he was always amazed, never resentful, and how quickly his sister learned everything.
Bill didn’t reach adolescence until he was nearly twenty, around the same time his sister left their home in the Churlwood, married a Varisian trader, and had her first child. About a year after his sister left, a small band of marauding giants happened upon a sacred grove that his mother was tending and she died trying to protect it from them. After that, his father decided that for their safety, and to escape the constant reminders of their loss, they would move south. The two of them traveled down to Galduria where they learned about the recently founded city of Sandpoint on the coast. Together, they journeyed to the young settlement and his father brokered a deal with the Deverins to live as tenant farmers on a small plot in the Hinterlands. For over three decades they lived that way. Bill’s father continued to teach him, and left him home alone when trips into town were necessary, so that nobody would ask questions about why he seemed not to age. He reached his full height, just under 6 feet, in his 62nd year, though he still looks like a man in his twenties.
A couple years ago now, Bill’s father, who was in his 80s, died peacefully in his sleep. Since then, Bill has continued to work the farm and started to venture into Sandpoint. He loves meeting new people (sometimes for the second or third time), and saying hello to those he remembers. The innkeeper, Ameiko, has been very kind to him, even helping him sell things so he doesn’t get ripped off, and he always stays at her inn if he’s in the city overnight. Last spring he got a new friend when a golden-maned young lion wandered onto the farm. Nobody knows where it came from or why it settled with Bill but the two have been inseparable ever since. Ameiko suggested getting it some barding to reassure people that it wasn’t a wild animal and now Bill can often be seen walking the streets of Sandpoint with his armored friend, happily carrying on one side of a lively conversation. The lion’s name, Bill proudly shares with anyone who asks, is Graaar, and it was Graaar’s idea to head into town today for the butterfly party that everyone’s been talking about...
edit: my weekends can be a little spotty but I should have no problem posting 1/day during the week and once over the weekend.
Like many, I started but never finished this AP. The furthest I think I got was the first part of the second book, so to get a chance to play this adventure throughout would be amazing. I am thinking of perhaps a wizard from far-off Mwangi. Will try to get some crunch and fluff up asap!!
I got really close to playing through it with some old friends across the country, doing Discord chat once a week.
Two of us were experiencing some stress with the third, but we were playing through it. One of the two needed to take a break for personal priorities (nobody argued). Then the fourth and the DM had a real-world spat about non-game stuff, and the 4th stopped all interaction with the DM. Seriously.
Game dead.
We had just finished book 4, I think.
We did 15 point buy, too, actually. We were okay with 4 players, but we had access to just about anything, and I was probably the least min-maxed character in the group, which is saying something.
My problem is going to be having the time to give the submission proper attention. But I want to see what I can pull off.
I played the combat bruiser in that group, BTW, so I think I will want to fill a different role.
I have two characters that I've been itching to see play, so I'm very interested in this. One's a aldori front-line (swashbuckler) striker and the other an arcane caster (witch) that can also do some emergency healing in a pinch.
Unfortunately, the former is from a class in Advanced Class Guide while the archetype is from Adventurer's Guide. Both are Core books but both were released after the anniversary edition. That means their not permissible, correct?
@hustonj: My experience with Rise of the Runelords was largely the same for years, I feel you there.
@Delightful: Unfortunately no, I'll be sticking to my guns on this one. Considering there's no way you'd get a normal capstone, however, maybe consider the duelist prestige class from the Core Rulebook if you want a build like that.
Hey guys! I am the aforementioned IRL friend that will be participating in this game.
As a quick intro, I've been playing Pathfinder with Mr. Super GM for a bit over 5 years now. In that time, I've played a part of Burnt Offerings, and a HEAVILY modified final encounter. I don't really remember anything story-wise, and I am ecstatic to get the chance to play through the whole thing proper.
I'm still relatively new to PbP, but I am currently a part of another PbP campaign, and I am enjoying it immensely. My life can get hectic at times, but I don't have a problem at all with 4+/week.
I haven't quite decided on what I want to play for this run. As of right now, I'm leaning more towards a frontline beater, though I am unsure exactly what form that will take. However, I don't particularly mind filling up a certain role/slot in the party if it is needed, so honestly feel free to build to your heart's content without worrying about double dipping in roles.
I'm looking forward to seeing all your guys' submissions and having a fun challenge in this classic adventure!
I have a character I would like to submit, but I have a question on what is allowed. Would you allow Tattooed Sorcerer archetype? It comes from Inner Sea Magic which was released before the Anniversary edition and I don't think it was ever reprinted.
Nice to meet you Pyropaki. Welcome to PBP, glad you enjoy it. GM Super, can I get some feedback? The link to Rohan's Eidolon is in his profile for reference.
Hey guys! I am the aforementioned IRL friend that will be participating in this game...
I haven't quite decided on what I want to play for this run. As of right now, I'm leaning more towards a frontline beater...
Hey pyropaki, Thanks for the quick response and the info. it will let us narrow our choices.
I like the idea of doing a Featured or Uncommon race, so had three different ideas: An orc barbarian, an Aasimar paladin/oracle or a Vishkanyas rogue.
GM S.R. do you mind if I present two different characters, each who fill a different roll? Ether the paladin/oracle (for combat and healing) or the rogue (for stealth and traps) either would also double as a face.
Here is the basic crunch for my submission, the fluff will be coming shortly.!!
Jabilo:
Male human evoker 1 (Pathfinder RPG Adventurer's Guide 63)
NG Medium humanoid (human)
Init +2; Senses Perception +1
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Defense
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AC 12, touch 12, flat-footed 10 (+2 Dex)
hp 7 (1d6+1)
Fort +0, Ref +2, Will +3
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Offense
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Speed 30 ft.
Special Attacks intense spells (+1 damage)
Arcane School Spell-Like Abilities (CL 1st; concentration +6)
. . 6/day—force missile (1d4+1)
Evoker Spells Prepared (CL 1st; concentration +6)
. . 1st—magic missile (2), silent image (DC 14), sleep (DC 14)
. . 0 (at will)—detect magic, light, mage hand
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Statistics
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Str 10, Dex 14, Con 10, Int 16, Wis 12, Cha 13
Base Atk +0; CMB +0; CMD 12
Feats Evolved Familiar[UM], Improved Familiar, Scribe Scroll
Traits focused mind, scholar of the ancients
Skills Appraise +7, Knowledge (arcana) +8, Knowledge (geography) +7, Knowledge (history) +8, Linguistics +7, Spellcraft +7
Languages Common, Erutaki, Goblin, Hon-la, Polyglot
SQ arcane bond (Arcane Familiar, fox)
Other Gear wizard starting spellbook, 90 gp
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Special Abilities
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Empathic Link with Familiar (Su) You have an empathic link with your Arcane Familiar.
Evolved Familiar Familiar gains a summoner evolution
Familiar Bonus: +2 to Reflex saves You gain the Alertness feat while your familiar is within arm's reach.
Force Missile (1d4+1, 6/day) (Sp) As a standard action, magic missile strikes a foe.
Intense Spells (+1 damage) (Su) Evocation spells deal listed extra damage.
Share Spells with Familiar Can cast spells with a target of "You" on the familiar with a range of touch.
Wrath (Evocation) Evokers revel in the raw power of magic, and can use it to create and destroy with shocking ease.
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Arcane Familiar CR –
Fox (Pathfinder RPG Ultimate Magic 112)
N Tiny magical beast (animal)
Init +2; Senses low-light vision, scent; Perception +8
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Defense
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AC 17, touch 14, flat-footed 15 (+2 Dex, +3 natural, +2 size)
hp 3 (1d8+1)
Fort +3, Ref +4, Will +3
Defensive Abilities improved evasion
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Offense
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Speed 40 ft.
Melee bite +1 (1d3-1)
Space 2½ ft.; Reach 0 ft.
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Statistics
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Str 9, Dex 15, Con 13, Int 6, Wis 12, Cha 6
Base Atk +0; CMB +0; CMD 9 (13 vs. trip)
Feats Skill Focus (Perception)
Skills Acrobatics +2 (+14 to jump), Appraise -1, Linguistics -1, Perception +8, Spellcraft -1, Survival +1 (+5 to track by scent); Racial Modifiers +4 Survival to track by scent
SQ empathic link
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Special Abilities
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Empathic Link (Su) You have an empathic link with your master.
Improved Evasion (Ex) No damage on successful reflex save; half on failed save.
Low-Light Vision See twice as far as a human in dim light, distinguishing color and detail.
Scent (Ex) Detect opponents within 15+ ft. by sense of smell.
Share Spells Spells with a target of "You" can be delivered by a familiar with a range of touch.
I just wanted to mention that (if I'm selected) I'm open to being flexible with Bill, in terms of his actual skills/spells/etc. I originally envisioned him as a nature oracle with some face skills but ended up switching to a druid because a more combat-able companion seemed important if we're doing this on hard mode. As he is now, he brings some melee with his companion, is solid on perception and survival, and could bring some buffing/control/healing/damage through spells, depending on what wasn't covered by other casters.
Also, I'm pretty sure everything I picked comes from the listed sources but if you're doing audits I'm open to feedback/corrections/suggestions.
Here is my submission. Fillip Tarnell Human Ranger, bow user. On the fence about using the Guide Archetype or not.
EDIT: Sorry about that, I have never played the AP before. My group in person was going to start it once but it never made it off the ground. I have the Player's Guide and have read it a few times.
Looks like it would be a fun game to play, interested in the slow paced RP style you are talking about. Let me know what you think if I need to make any changes.
Jabilo comes from the distant jungles of Mwangi. Part of the Bekyar tribe found in southern Garund, from Desolation Cape to Sargava, his family are heavily into the slave trade and are very wealthy.
When Jabilo began showing signs of magical ability, his father decided that he would be taught in the best school in the land, the Magaambya in the city of Nantambu. He gathered a caravan together and headed to the great city but was dismayed when they would not take slaves as payment for his son’s admission and instead set his cargo free, much to the anger of Jabilo’s father. Still, being very wealthy, he was able to purchase his son’s position at the school. For several years Jabilo gathered knowledge from the talented teachers and during one of his ancient history classes, became fascinated with a group known as the Thassilonians. The more he was able to learn about this culture, the more obsessed he became until he finally decided he needed to travel to far-off Varisia to see the ruins and learn more about this great empire.
Gaining the funds from his family, with a small amount as a research grant from the school, Jabilo set off for the north. Travelling by ship he was able to buy passage from Bloodcove through the Shackles and up the coast to Azir. Here he switched to a Chelixian Coaster and rode the ship all the way to Korvosa, with stops in Corentyn, Pezzack and Nisroch. Arriving in Korvosa, Jabilo presented his credentials and a letter of introduction to the Headmasters of the Acadamae. More impressed with the man’s money, they allowed Jabilo to study there for several months, but soon they tired of the foreigner’s questions and strange ways and he was banned from the campus. Undeterred, and still maintaining a fair amount of money, Jabilo took refuge at Theumanexus College and continued his studies. After a few years he had exhausted the colleges’ knowledge of Thassilion and he set off further north to Magnimar. He made the city his home for several years; travelling to visit the many Thassilon ruins throughout the region, until a year ago when his funds began to run dry. He was in the city of Riddleport when he began to realize that the money from his family had almost run dry, and the small amount he was making as a researcher was not going to be enough to get him home.
Stopping at the quaint village of Sandpoint, Jabilo now sits in the local tavern, the Rusty Dragon, drinking some ghastly local vintage and listening to tails about some upcoming local festival while trying to discover how he is going to make enough money to get home.
Here is the number crunch for my Halfling Paladin, I've only got to play him one long session and I know he still has a lot of play in him. The concept was just too good.
Sonas his character in short is this: Honest, Good- and Light-hearted and Naive.
He tries to care for all he comes across, especially for the ones that join him to combat greater evils. He is a great teamplayer and looks out in more than one way for his companions. (As any player would find out if you ever play in the same game.)
He doesn't think someone is evil or has evil intentions the first time he meets them, he has to find out the hard way. But, that said, point him towards a target and he'll do his darndest to take it out.
Sonas Adhello, Divine Hunter:
Sonas Adhello
LG Small Humanoid (Halfling), Paladin of Sarenrae level 1 (Divine Hunter)
Init +3; Senses low-light vision; Perception +0
DEFENSE AC 18, touch 13, flat-footed 15 (+3 Dex, +5 armour)
hp 12 (10 + 2)
Fort +5, Ref +4, Will +3; +2 vs Fear
Defensive Abilities ;
OFFENSE
Speed 20 ft.,
Melee Longsword + 0 (1d6-1/19-20)
Ranged Longbow → + 4 (1d6/x3)
STATISTICS
Str 8 (10-2), Dex 16 (14+2), Con 14, Int 10, Wis 10, Cha 16 (14+2);
Base Atk +1; CMB +0 ; CMD 13 (BAB +1, Str -1, Dex +3)
Feats: Lucky Halfling (1st), Precise Shot (1st Bonus)
Skills: Diplomacy 1 ranks (+7), Ride 1 rank (+7)
Languages: Common, Halfling
Combat Gear: Longbow, Scale Mail
Other Gear:
Encumbrance: lbs; Light Load, (Light Load up to 26lbs, Medium up to 53lbs)
Carrying capacity: 15 lbs Light Load
Money Left: 50 gp
Traits: Monster Hunter:
Perhaps you came to the Varisian Gulf in search of the Sandpoint Devil, or maybe you followed fisherman’s tales of Old Murdermaw— regardless, you’ve ventured through Varisia to hunt down famous monsters. While they have all eluded you so far, you made it to Sandpoint to research and restock before heading back out into the wilderness. Because of your training, you gain a +1 trait bonus on attack rolls and weapon damage rolls against aberrations and magical beasts.
Special Abilities
Smite Evil: 1/day: +3 att +1 damage, +3 AC vs target
Racial Traits:
Base Speed 30 feet.
Fearless: Halflings receive a +2 racial bonus on all saving throws against fear. This bonus stacks with the bonus granted by halfling luck.
Halfling Luck: Halflings receive a +1 racial bonus on all saving throws.
Weapon Familiarity: Halflings are proficient with slings and treat any weapon with the word “halfling” in its name as a martial weapon.
Fleet of Foot: Some halflings are quicker than their kin but less cautious. Halflings with this racial trait move at normal speed and have a base speed of 30 feet. This racial trait replaces slow speed and sure-footed.
Low Blow: Some halflings train extensively in the art of attacking larger creatures. Halflings with this racial trait gain a +1 bonus on critical confirmation rolls against opponents larger than themselves. This racial trait replaces keen senses.
Favored Class Bonus (1x ½ lay on hands/day)
Spells:
@GM Super Runelords
I'm unsure about a second trait though, seems to me that all those traits come from books outside of the ones you mentioned in your OP. Else I would have taken Purity of Faith or Honest as that falls in line with Sonas's character.
@Slayde77: Sorry, nothing outside of what is listed in the initial post. I want to kind of avoid the issues that come with opening the floodgates on splatbooks.
@Rohan Drake: Both Rohan and his eidolon seem like really fun characters! Minor nitpick that I have is that the Hermean Paragon trait is not from one of the listed sources. I'll throw a link in at the end of this with where the non-campaign traits are in the APG. You can still be from Hermea, of course, just want to keep the limitations consistent.
@Robert Henry: If you would like to submit two characters, feel free. I'll figure out how I will handle judging the submissions fairly depending on if any other folks decide they want to submit more than one.
@All:Traits can be found here. There are also some listed with each race in the Advanced Race Guide.
I hope that answered everyone's questions! I'll probably do audits of characters over time. I set the recruitment period as long as I did to hopefully get lots of submissions but also because I've got a lot going on IRL that I want to calm down before this games starts.
I have a follow up question. The feat Varisian Tattoo originally appeared in the original rise of the runelords players guide and was later reprinted in Inner Sea World Guide and the Pathfinder Campaign Setting. Would this feat be allowed? I wouldn't ask except for it originally appeared with RotRL
@Robert Henry: If you would like to submit two characters, feel free. I'll figure out how I will handle judging the submissions fairly depending on if any other folks decide they want to submit more than one.
Thanks for the quick response. We have applicants with Paladins and oracles so I will build the rogue first.
I've reread the recruitment thread just to make sure I didn't miss anything. However, I didn't see anyplace that discussed starting wealth. Did I miss it or has starting wealth not been established yet?
@Robert Henry: I feel like I might've mentioned it earlier, but I'm on mobile and too lazy to go back and check. Average for your class.
Sorry, my bad. I rechecked it; your right, it's listed in the next to the last sentence under characters. Thanks for the quick answer though, I'll try and leave you alone for a bit :)
Oh I totally missed that. I switched it out for reactionary which is mechanically the same. Thank you for the compliment though. You should see some of their past posts!
One last question came to me as I was working on the character. Are background skills allowed? I'm going to assume no since that was released in Unchained, however, with the slower leveling the 2 extra skill points could be very useful.
Gonna go for no on anything from Pathfinder Unchained. There will be six of you in the party, so I think you guys should do fine overall.
Friday October 11th Roundup
Completed:
Anthorg—Filona Fiorde—Gnome—Sorcerer—Merchant Family
Giant Halfling—Simple Bill—Aasimar—Druid—Favored Son
Daxter—Rohan Drake—Human—Summoner—Monster Hunter
The.Squirrel.Ninja—Fillip Tarnell—Human—Ranger—Friends and Enemies
Daniel Stewart—Jabilo—Human—Evoker—Scholar of the Ancients
Spazmodeus—Kokam Kawlo—Human—Monk—Monster Hunter
Rocan—Sonas Adhello—Halfling—Paladin—Monster Hunter
Incomplete:
Simeon——Halfling—Summoner—
rutaskadis————
The Emerald Duke————
Robert Henry————
Nemethor————
Aaronackbar————
hustonj————
Delightful————
Slayde77————
Thank you to everyone who has put in a submission! I will do another roundup on the 18th and then a last one on the 23rd.
I'm very interested but I'm having difficulty coming up with a concept, so instead I'll be randomly rolling my concept and background with help from this guide, as well as the background generator in Ultimate Campaign. This is just a guideline and I'll write out things in more detail later on/change things as I want, but feel free to peek if you want.
I am a 65 y/o, 3'9", 135 pound chaotic good dwarf bard lady, ostracized for my religion, cowardly with a distinctive scar. I am represented by the Story Archetypes "Iron Woman" and "Hero's Muse."
I grew up underground, raised alongside my four siblings by my single father, smack dab in the middle of all five of us. My father was a baron and my mother a peasant, as I imagine the mothers of my half-siblings were. I had a habit of winning competitions, and left home early to sing and dance around the world, mentored all the while. I teamed up with an evil spellcaster because I was jealous? And I have no guilt about it. Most of my worship goes to Desna, and I've loved several people deeply in my life. I despise having my trust broken.
Bullet points: CG Dwarf Bard, Desna worship, cowardly and jealous.
Stat Array: 12/10/14/7/14/15, possibly subject to change.
Gonna be wearing medium or heavy armor what with dwarf's alternate favored class bonus (ARG) negating spell failure chance, but focusing largely on buff/heals and direct damage spells.
Too bad Thassilonian Specialist is from Inner Sea Magic, I've always wanted to play this AP with an archaeologist wizard who's fascinated by Thassilon. The kind of guy who's likely to be feeling out over the Runelords even while they're trying to kill everyone and he's trying to fight them.
Granted, I can still do that with a Wizard just fine.
