GM Watery Soup |
Discussion thread.
Please post your name, character name, PFS number, faction, and level.
I don't know if any of you are changing characters, but if you do, that's fine. There will be more combat and less socializing than The Blakros Matrimony, but less combat and more socializing than a typical PFS scenario. Primary objective is still Influence FWIW.
Melea Shemroe |
Player: Crunch
Character: Melea Shemroe
PFS: 150618-40
Faction: Silver Crusade
Level: 6
Vaylen Eldarun |
Player: Ben
Character: Vaylen Eldarun
PFS: 72911-5
Faction: Grand Lodge
Level: 7
GM Watery Soup |
I am open to starting earlier than the target date. I filled the sixth slot very easily , my GM prep is going well and I am hoping to finish this scenario before Outpost begins. I'll PM Mykel and Palakar and make a first post tomorrow.
Kahwen |
I am open to starting earlier than the target date. I filled the sixth slot very easily , my GM prep is going well and I am hoping to finish this scenario before Outpost begins. I'll PM Mykel and Palakar and make a first post tomorrow.
The earlier the better, in my opinion. I'd much rather have a week of downtime between finishing this and starting an Outpost game than have to duck out of an Outpost game because we didn't finish in time.
Melea Shemroe |
I wouldn't mind starting sooner than later.
GM Watery Soup |
Unless Mykel jumped to level 9, I believe we will be playing down. Elado, Vaylen, and Palakar will be OOT.
GM Watery Soup |
Please put your icons to the right side of Slide 3 and fill in your Perception and Initiative modifiers on Slide 1.
Also, please make sure your profiles are updated, especially for those who leveled up between Blakros Matrimony and this scenario. I will be periodically be making secret checks, and be drawing your modifiers from your character profiles.
GM Watery Soup |
Influence
The primary success criterion for this scenario is the Influence of the guests listed. In order to make an Influence check, you must first specify who you are attempting to Influence, and the skill with which you are attempting to Influence. You may - and are greatly encouraged to - roleplay that interaction. I personally prefer to roll first, and then roleplay accordingly; you are also welcome to roleplay and then roll. I am allowed to give a circumstance bonus for roleplay, and frequently do. As those of you who played Blakros Matrimony with me already know, I try to drop a lot of hints during the roleplaying portion, as it's one of the huge advantages of roleplaying by PbP.
There are two skills that are always relevant for Influence: Bluff (to pretend to be friendly) and Diplomacy (to be genuinely friendly). Unlike the Blakros Matrimony, Intimidate is not always a relevant skill. Additionally, each NPC has a third skill which is relevant; I will hint at this skill during roleplay or you can get it through a Discovery check.
I've included a scorecard on Slide 2 of the maps. I'm not 100% sure this is kosher, but this allows you to audit the score and remember who has attempted what.
Discovery
Each NPC has a discoverable secret or exploitable flaw. On the scorecard, below the NPC's name, is a skill that is relevant for Discovery.
A Discovery check takes place in lieu of an Influence check, and roleplay is not required (you won't know how to roleplay it, anyway). If successful, a Discovery will make it easier for the whole party to Influence in the future, giving each subsequent Influence check a +4 circumstance bonus.
Palakar Macridi |
Unless Mykel jumped to level 9, I believe we will be playing down. Elado, Vaylen, and Palakar will be OOT.
Not quite. Mykel said at the end of the last one that he'd be 7 now. 6,6,7,7,7,8 is an average of 6.83, rounds to 7. For a 5-9 in season 5, that means high tier with the 4 player reduction.
GM Watery Soup |
One of the encounters does not have a scaling for 4 sidebar. Does that mean there is no scaling for that encounter?
Palakar Macridi |
One of the encounters does not have a scaling for 4 sidebar. Does that mean there is no scaling for that encounter?
I thought they all had them. If not then you are correct.
GM Watery Soup |
6, 6, 6, 7, 7, 8 is still up with the 4-person adjustment. For that matter, 6, 6, 6, 7, 7, 7 is still up with the 4-person adjustment. (That doesn't seem RAI, but I've re-read the rules several times and I'm pretty sure that's RAW.)
I don't think it will be a problem. The social DCs are higher, but you guys were not in danger of flunking the primary in Blakros Matrimony. And although admittedly I had doubts mid-battle, the final encounter was not close either. (I was a little concerned the round where the minions critted 2-3 times, but then you guys critted right back.)
Palakar Macridi |
For that matter, 6, 6, 6, 7, 7, 7 is still up with the 4-person adjustment. (That doesn't seem RAI, but I've re-read the rules several times and I'm pretty sure that's RAW.)
There's an out for that FYI. They were using a 1-5 for the example here, but still works. "In the fringe case where there are no PCs that are high enough level to have reached the subtier level (such as a party of six 3rd-level characters), the group can decide to play the lower subtier."
Vaylen Eldarun |
Do the discovery checks only happen during the interaction phase with the NPC in question and retroactively add their bonus as part of the interaction, if successful? I'm just trying to figure out if we need to get the Discoveries done ahead of time and if we need to be interacting with the NPC to make the discovery checks.
GM Watery Soup |
The Discovery checks happen in lieu of an Influence check, so there's a strategic element to them - you're giving up an opportunity to Influence for a better chance to Influence in the future.
You cannot do them ahead of time.
GM Watery Soup |
I'm at the same convention but I am on a far more casual schedule and will post normally for a weekend.
Melea Shemroe |
I knew some of these names sounded familiar! I'm saying what I'm saying to the Grand Ambassador because:
Do let me know if I shouldn't do this specifically, or if I should use a different skill modifier (Bluff to pass on a message, maybe).
GM Watery Soup |
1. I am pro-fun, and this sounds fun.
2. I am unfamiliar with the scenario.
3. The product description has some information. I consider that public knowledge.
4. My main concern is that I would not be able to roleplay her reactions well enough to make it fun from your side. Will the contents of the spoiler contain what I need to know? If not, can someone make a spoiler with content that hopefully straddles the line between spoiling the scenario for me and making this one fun for everyone?
5. Worst case scenario it wouldn't be the end of the world to spoil the scenario for me. There are a lot I haven't played so it's not like I'm going to run out in the next few years.
Melea Shemroe |
The spoiler doesn't have much in it, and nothing that isn't in the product description. I'll admit, I played it (and prepared it to GM, but didn't have to) almost 4 years ago. I only just remembered some of the names involved, not any plot twists or similar such things.
Considering that, I'm not too invested, and you needn't go out of your way to work up a new interaction. I figured it could be a good avenue of attack, as it were.
GM Watery Soup |
I'm happy to try to incorporate it. I mean, we're playing this scenario because continuing storylines is fun!
Palakar Macridi |
The bird's flown the coup!
The Ruby Prince thing refers to the overall goal of the Osirion faction missions in season 4. The Prince had contracted a powerful magical illness and tasked his advisor Amenopheus with finding a cure. Most of the faction missions for the season then became "pick up this thing that might help." At the end of the season, none of them did, and the Prince had to use a significant portion of his own power to heal himself. For his failure to cure the prince, Amenopheus was demoted.
Vaylen Eldarun |
I worked up a quick and dirty spreadsheet to track our progress in the perceptions throughout the house.
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1UUoH9ayMQLHIj1xOCIOsorCBSXj4mbCx-Yp 76D3C_Vc/edit?usp=sharing
Palakar, I wasn't exactly sure which rooms you were searching based on your post, I'll take a look again though.
GM Watery Soup |
Oops - I didn't see this and used my own. Everyone ended up reasonably close, and you dodged a +15 attack against FF and a +10 attack against FF/T, so I can't really imagine a better outcome.
The link appears to be broken, BTW.
Kahwen |
On the Parry/Riposte thing, the way I've usually seen it done is that the player posts a spoiler with the trigger (which is usually the first attack against them in a round that hits) as the title then the parry and riposte rolls inside the spoiler.
I thought Castinus from my campaign was doing it, GM, but I went back through and couldn't find it so I may have been thinking of someone else.
Melea Shemroe |
That's what I do with my swashbuckler, but you can't say you're parrying specifically if you're hit. It's just a choice to activate whenever you're attacked, before the roll. Considering that's a bit infeasible in PbP, I just post one set of P/R rolls in the spoiler against the first attack to come my way (more or less if I know I want to be defensive in a given round).
GM Watery Soup |
It has been pointed out that I forgot to make the level adjustment on this combat encounter. I will make some other semi-equivalent adjustment.
GM Watery Soup |
I think there's a difference between how I'm imagining the staircase and how at least some of you have interpreted it.
I had imagined an open staircase, so that someone in Mykel's current square can move east into the room. Regardless of whether it makes sense, I think it's the way we should proceed; people on the stairs (currently Mykel, Elados, and Palakar) can fire into the room with a partial cover penalty, and people in Mykel's current square can move directly into the room without going through the Facelicker's square (but will move through a threatened square).
GM Watery Soup |
I don't know what Society rules are on rolling back, but it's pretty far down my list of preferred options.
FYI, this is how I had imagined the wine cave, minus the handrails.
GM Watery Soup |
Looking dire folks.
You missed the Blakros Matrimony; this group put out a surprising (to me, at least) amount of damage in a scenario where combat capabilities were intentionally throttled (being a wedding and all).
To be honest, I think the worst thing that's going to happen is that the rest of the group won't get to see what your character is capable of.
I, for one, am looking forward to seeing you parry 5 attacks in a round.
GM Watery Soup |
PSA: I will be on vacation Fri-Sun. I'll probably still post, but a lot less often than I have been.
Kahwen |
PSA: I will be on vacation Fri-Sun. I'll probably still post, but a lot less often than I have been.
Most of us just call that "the Weekend..."
;-)
GM Watery Soup |
I believe you call it "holiday" - going places without cell phone reception?
GM Watery Soup |
Heh, for whatever reason I thought you were in the UK.
---
Logistical question: are there PFS rules regarding when PP can be spent mid-adventure? One of the socialites is a cleric, presumably of high enough level to cast restoration. Can Vaylen heal his Con damage with PP mid-adventure?
Kahwen |
Heh, for whatever reason I thought you were in the UK.
---
Logistical question: are there PFS rules regarding when PP can be spent mid-adventure? One of the socialites is a cleric, presumably of high enough level to cast restoration. Can Vaylen heal his Con damage with PP mid-adventure?
You probably had me confused with Castinus.
And yes, you can spend PP mid-adventure.
I've been in a scenario where a character died in the first battle and got resurrected so he could finish out the adventure.
Palakar Macridi |
Easy there. Charm Person / Monster is not Suggestion or Dominate. It means he likes Orielle, that's it. It doesn't give her direct control over him. It also doesn't mean that he now likes Zyesha or dislikes the party. It doesn't stop you from acting on active threats. While it has good uses outside combat, inside combat it's use is almost negligible.
Mykel and Kahwen are still perfectly within their rights to attack Zyesha or the purple Alu-Demon. In fact, it doesn't even stop them from attacking Orielle if they think she's a threat - they'll just feel bad about it.
After casting the spell, she didn't actually ask anything of Mykel, though that is a simple fix.
Also, Zyesha has now attacked someone - that arguably breaks all the active charms. "Any act by you or your apparent allies that threatens the charmed person breaks the spell." A threat on the party is a threat on each member of it.
Oh, Mykel should also have a further +5 to his initial save on it too. "If the creature is currently being threatened or attacked by you or your allies, however, it receives a +5 bonus on its saving throw." Zyesha is a threat.
If you want to use magic to move people around like this, and don't want to use a full-round Dominate, try Suggestion instead.