Despite the ominous troll-talk, this is a good opportunity to get in contact with the Captain. Maybe one of our literate party members can write a message to her?
I guess we'll have to see if Klumpenklug can ruin this one too.
Some information about the area of Ubersreik that you’re living in...
The Precinct is Ubersreik’s military district, centred around the fortress of Magnus’s Tower. It was built using some of the foundations of the town from before it was razed. It is separated from the rest of Ubersreik by stout walls. Though the gates are rarely closed, in cases of civil unrest, they can be used to turn the district into a defacto fortress. In simpler times, the State Army, both the Watch and those guarding the walls and surrounding province, were stationed here. At the time, it was arguably the safest part of town. However, since the arrival of the troops from Altdorf, tensions have noticeably escalated. The uncertainty regarding jurisdiction has led to clashes between the local troops and the interlopers, resulting in fighting in the streets. While there have been no deaths as yet, commanding officers fear it is only a matter of time before one side or the other takes things too far.
The Watch barracks include a number of offices, an array of holding cells, and basic quarters.
Sorry, sick today, hope to post tomorrow
Sorry, sick today, hope to post tomorrow
No worries, I hope you feel better soon.
@Adelaida: All the best.
@Party: Great, we may be caught in a battle between the Watch and the State Army. Just terrific.
OK, let's do this:
Character Creation (with some modifications recommended by Aubster)
- Result (Human): we'll keep that for +20 XP
- Result (Wizard): we'll keep that for +50 XP
- yucky
Rerolling Option for +0 XP:
After swapping results:
Weapon Skill: 33
Ballistic Skill: 28
Strength: 26
Toughness: 30
Initiative: 29
Agility: 34
Dexterity: 30
Intelligence: 34
Willpower: 35
Fellowship: 34
Fate: 4
Resilience: 2
Characteristic Advances: +5 Willpower
Reiklander Skill Advances:
Charm: +5
Cool: +5
Haggle: +3
Language (Wasteland): +3
Lore (Reikland): +3
Melee (Basic): +5
Talents: Doomed, Savvy
- Night Vision
- Hardy
- Lightning Reflexes
Career Advances:
Channelling: +5 advances
Dodge: +5 advances
Intuition: +5 advances
Language (Magick): +10 advances
Lore (Magic): +5 advances
Melee (Polearm): +5 advances
Perception: +5 advances
Career Talent: Second Sight
Starting Money:
Hope you're making a fire wizard :)
OK, let's do this:
Character Creation (with some modifications recommended by Aubster)
[dice=Species but no Elves]1d98 - Result (Human): we'll keep that for +20 XP
[dice=Career Roll (Watch the Hands, not the Dice)]1d1+13 - Result (Wizard): we'll keep that for +50 XP[dice=Weapon Skill]2d10+20 - yucky
[dice=Ballistic Skill]2d10+20
[dice=Strength]2d10+20
[dice=Toughness]2d10+20
[dice=Initiative]2d10+20
[dice=Agility]2d10+20
[dice=Dexterity]2d10+20
[dice=Intelligence]2d10+20
[dice=Willpower]2d10+20
[dice=Fellowship]2d10+20Rerolling Option for +0 XP:
[dice=Weapon Skill]2d10+20
[dice=Ballistic Skill]2d10+20
[dice=Strength]2d10+20
[dice=Toughness]2d10+20
[dice=Initiative]2d10+20
[dice=Agility]2d10+20
[dice=Dexterity]2d10+20
[dice=Intelligence]2d10+20
[dice=Willpower]2d10+20
[dice=Fellowship]2d10+20After swapping results:
Weapon Skill: 33
Ballistic Skill: 28
Strength: 26
Toughness: 30
Initiative: 29
Agility: 34
Dexterity: 30
Intelligence: 34
Willpower: 35
Fellowship: 34Fate: 4
Resilience: 2More coming...
Yay! Now I can read up on how magic works
There is more to do on the new wizard character, but I'll finish details later.
Speaking of fire magic though...why the recommendation? I really don't know much about this.
This is going to be deadly. I don’t know any 4e stats. But in previous editions, trolls were similar to the tabletop counterparts. So I expect WS in the 30s, with SB5 TB4, 30+ wounds, regeneration (around d10) and as it is a river troll we will have a penalty to hit in close combat. Fire, of course, stops regeneration. Luckily no armor. And vomit is scary, as it is an auto hit. I have no idea how that would work in 4e.
Also this is apparently a very large river troll, so the stats might be even higher. If we take this thing on we will be spending fate points unless we have a very well executed trap.
Good news...Vomit is not autohit in 4e.
There is more to do on the new wizard character, but I'll finish details later.
Speaking of fire magic though...why the recommendation? I really don't know much about this.
I’m guessing since they are planning on fighting a troll that vulnerable to fire.
There is more to do on the new wizard character, but I'll finish details later.
Speaking of fire magic though...why the recommendation? I really don't know much about this.
Thilo you’ve been directed to the squad bunk room where you’ll meet your new squadmates. Feel free to join in the gameplay section and start posting. Posting what you’re doing while waiting for the others is a good start.
Crow/Thilo and I were looking over the magic rules just now. It looks like Lore spells are substantially out of reach for the time being.
It looks like you need to choose the type of wind he'll be channelling when you get the skill (now) despite the fact that the talent to start learning lores is out of reach. Can he put off that decision for the moment?
Crow/Thilo and I were looking over the magic rules just now. It looks like Lore spells are substantially out of reach for the time being.
It looks like you need to choose the type of wind he'll be channelling when you get the skill (now) despite the fact that the talent to start learning lores is out of reach. Can he put off that decision for the moment?
That’s fine. I’ve got to admit that I’ve not read the Magic chapter yet, will do tomorrow though.
Very good ideas here. I think that we should start with the Baron. Get access to her territory and maybe even a few men to help throw at this problem. As a mafia lord it is in his interest to show the locals that not only is he to be feared, but he protects. And that not even a troll can stop him. It would surely solidify his influence, which is in his interest. And if we bring back a troll’s hand, it would shut the captain up. We could even spin it to say that we raised hand of “militia” for the hunt. Just patriotic locals who insisted on helping. “No” way that we could have known their mafia ties. ;)
Working on Thilo's wizard more today. The party has gained 60 xp past character creation. Should he have that as well, or is he starting with just character creation xp?
I really like the idea of cutting a deal with the Baron.
I'd vote for new characters to be made with the same as party average xp.
I’ve never been a fan of new players being underpowered because they had the misfortune of joining late.
That, and I’m really interested to see how magic plays in this edition. The sooner he gets to the big spells the better.
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Working on Thilo's wizard more today. The party has gained 60 xp past character creation. Should he have that as well, or is he starting with just character creation xp?
He should get the same 60 I think. I assume Thilo has had his own series of unfortunate events to land him in the watch
I think I’m getting the handle on this magic system a bit. The key skill is Language (Magick) because Casting is a simple skill check of your Language (Magick) skill. So if you’re Language (Magick) skill is 45, you just need to roll a 45 or less to successfully cast.
Advantage adds to chance of success in casting so just like Melee building Advantage increases your odds.
Dart is the beginning Magic Missile. It doesn’t do much damage (Willpower Bonus + SL of casting attempt) but it never misses and remember if a creature takes any damage it’s loses all the Advantage it’s built up. So it’s a handy spell to use in combat.
Channeling is a slow process that allows you to build up SL over time to cast higher powered spells.
Great...Go ahead and post in the gameplay section. You are in a barracks bunk room where you have been told to wait for the rest of your squad. Those angry and frustrated squad mates are coming in...
Introduce yourself and have fun ;)
I shouldn't be sick. I wanted to post talking the truth about the sarge to the Captain and rolled quite low ( 3 on a 1d100)... but can't use it now.^^
It seems like there’s a consensus about what to do next which is to reach out to the Baron for a truce and help dealing with the troll. Correct?
There are a few things to keep in mind as you finalize your plan that the characters know but I want to make sure the players remember.
1) The disappearances have happened up and down the docks, not just under the bridge.
2) No one has seen a troll (or anything else for that matter).
3) If it is a troll, you know that they are almost exclusively motivated by hunger.
Well, river trolls live underwater. So nobody would see it, though they come up to eat. Meaning that we’d need to set a trap for it. A copious amount of meat, perhaps, to attract it.
We could always emphasise the people that we definitely know are from under the bridge and being eaten, as well as the kudos for killing a damn troll.
A fair fight against that thing would be near-suicide.
@GM: how available are things like oil and white phosporous?
We could always emphasise the people that we definitely know are from under the bridge and being eaten, as well as the kudos for killing a damn troll.
A fair fight against that thing would be near-suicide.
@GM: how available are things like oil and white phosporous?
Oil is freely available, every Squad on Watch at night carries lantern and oil. White phosphorus isn’t available though.
Plan. Have bloody pigs hanging up as troll bait. Stuff the pigs with oil. The troll will messily eat said pigs and thus have oil in it’s mouth and on it. Then attack it with torches to light it on fire. Then we “just” need to keep it from getting back in the water while it burns to death.
Sounds good to me. For now, should we pursue the Baron angle though?
I vote for both oily meat trap and sounding out the Baron.
Are we going to do the meat trap every night though? It sounds expensive.
A troll will likely eat decaying meat. The locals won’t be happy though. :p
The locals are *never* happy.
How do, you all want to get the Baron’s attention?
Greazy pig traps might do the trick!
How do, you all want to get the Baron’s attention?
My idea was just to spread word that we're looking for a truce with him while we pursue this investigation: hoping that he'll hear word. We've been told that he's a 'will find you' sort of guy, so I figure he has to have informants all over Dunkelfeucht.
Well V is setting up the trap and talking to the crowd. Anyone else want to handle getting word to the Baron? Or shall we just wait for him to send people to us?
Talther will have a go at finding a likely lad or lass to convey word.
Ah no need!
Noticed a rule that we may have been playing wrong: apparently in order to assist a check, you need to have at least one advance in the skill as well.
So Landolf can't aid on Perception checks yet, for instance.
Ah. Worth remembering, that.
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This is the first battle against a large monster so I thought I’d post some of the rules that you’ve not had to deal with until now.
Size Combat Modifiers
If larger: (which the troll is, it’s large and all the characters are average sized which is a 1 step difference)
Its weapons gain the Damaging Quality if the creature is one step larger, and Impact if two steps or more larger.
So the troll gains the damaging quality to its weapon. That means that when calculating damage from its weapon, use the higher of the SL or the unit die of the weapon attack. Example, if the troll had a 40 Weapon Skill and rolls a 49 that is a success with a SL of +0. If that’s higher than the character parry or dodge SL it’s a successful attack. Then to calculate damage instead of it being weapon damage + strength bonus + 0 for SL it’d be weapon damage + strength bonus plus 9 for the unit die of the attack roll.
Defending Against Big Creatures
You suffer a penalty of –2 SL for each step larger your opponent is when using Melee to defend an Opposed Test. Dodge may be a better choice.
Fear and Terror
If the creature is perceived to be aggressive, it causes Fear in any creature smaller than it, and Terror in any creature two or more steps smaller. The rating of the Fear or Terror equals the Size step difference.
Fear
The Fear trait represents an extreme aversion to something. Creatures that cause Fear have a Fear Rating; this value reflects the SL you are required to pass on an Extended Cool Test to overcome your Fear. You may continue to Test at the end of every round until your SL equals or surpasses the creature’s Fear rating. Until you do this, you are subject to Fear.
When subject to Fear, you suffer –1 SL on all Tests to affect the source of your fear. You may not move closer to whatever is causing Fear without passing a Challenging (+0) Cool Test. If it comes closer to you, you must pass a Challenging (+0) Cool Test, or gain a Broken Condition.
Moving in Combat
A creature that is larger ignores the need to Disengage if it wishes to leave melee combat; instead, it brushes smaller combatants out of the way, moving where it wishes.
Opposed Strength
During Opposed Strength Tests (and similar), if one creature is 2 or more size steps larger, it wins automatically. If one creature is 1 size step larger, the smaller creature must roll a Critical to contest the roll. If it does, SL are compared as normal. All other results mean the larger creature wins.
Stomp
Creatures that are larger than their opponents may make one Stomp as a Free Attack, by spending 1 Advantage, as they kick downwards or otherwise bash smaller opponents out of the way. This attack has a Damage equal to their Strength Bonus +0 , and uses Melee (Brawling).
<checks fate points>
Yup! Ready. :)
Also any chance that we could have picked up anything like a shield in the watch armory? And how do torches as weapons work?
<checks fate points>
Yup! Ready. :)
Also any chance that we could have picked up anything like a shield in the watch armory? And how do torches as weapons work?
You can get bucklers: Qualities Shield 1, Defensive, Undamaging
Shield 1: Shield (Rating)If you use this weapon to oppose an incoming attack, you count as having (Rating) Armour Points on all locations of your body.
Defensive: Defensive
Defensive weapons are designed to parry incoming attacks. If you are wielding such a weapon, gain a bonus of +1 SL to any Melee Test when you oppose an incoming attack. But if you use Melee Basic as your skill and you hold your shield in your off-hand you suffer -20% penalty. If it is held in off hand and you use Melee Parry Skill there is no 20% penalty.
Undamaging
Some weapons are not very good at penetrating armour. All APs are doubled against Undamaging weapons. Further, you do not automatically inflict a minimum of 1 Wound on a successful hit in combat.
Torch as Weapon
Melee weapon count as Improvised 1 handed weapon so SB+1 for damage and have Undamaging Quality. If attack something extremely flammable 70% chance to give it Ablaze Condition 1. Extremely flammable would be something completely coated in oil for example.
Range weapon functions like a rock. Damage is SB+0, can throw SBx3 yards distance, has Undamaging quality. If hit something extremely flammable 50% chance to give it Ablaze Condition 1.
Interesting. Given how bucklers are strapped to an arm, can Valghaz have his hammer in main hand, and buckler/torch in off hand? If not then it will just be Hammer/buckler, and he will trust someone else to handle the fire.
Interesting. Given how bucklers are strapped to an arm, can Valghaz have his hammer in main hand, and buckler/torch in off hand? If not then it will just be Hammer/buckler, and he will trust someone else to handle the fire.
Probably not a buckler + torch off-hand combo.
What is melee basic and melee parry?
What is melee basic and melee parry?
Melee weapon groups
All melee weapons are assigned to a Weapon Group. Each Weapon Group requires a separate skill to master its use. So, Melee (Flail) allows you to use Flails and is a separate skill from Melee (Polearm), which allows you to use Polearms. If you use a weapon from a Group where you have no Advances, you Test your Weapon Skill to hit with the weapon. While you still suffer all the weapon’s Flaws, you cannot use any of its Qualities. Some Melee Weapon Groups also have special rules.Basic
Covers the standard one-handed weapons. Valghaz has a Melee Basic skill of 50.
Parry
Any one-handed weapon with the Defensive Quality can be used with Melee (Parry). When using Melee (Parry), a weapon can be used to Oppose an incoming attack without the normal –20 off- hand penalty. The rules classify shields as one-handed weapons and shields have the defensive quality.
If Valghaz is fighting with an one-handed hammer and a shield and wants to defend himself he could:
1) Use his sword at Melee Basic skill but then lose the defensive qualities of the shield
2) Use his shield to parry with his Melee Basic skill and get the defensive qualities of the shield but since it’s held in his off-hand he gets a -20 penalty
3) Use his shield to parry with his Melee Parry skill and get the defensive qualities and no -20 penalty. Melee Parry skill would be whatever the underlying Weapon Skill Trait is.
At current skill levels, it make sense to go with option 3. Valghaz has a Weapon Skill trait of 45 so his Melee Parry is 45. Using Melee Basic with the shield would effectively be a 30 point skill (Melee basic of 50-20 off-hand penalty). But later Valghaz could have put a lot of skill points into Melee Basic to give a skill of 70 for example and no skill points into Melee Parry then using Melee Basic skill with shield gives you an effective skill of 50 (70-20).
Just to make things more complicated, when you’re fighting something bigger than you like a troll and you use any Melee skill to parry, you have to subtract 2 SL from your success calculation. For a lot of characters then it makes sense to just try and dodge the attack but Valghaz is really bad at dodging so he’ll need to try to parry.
I see, thanks for the breakdown. So option 3 it is. And of course, once I can get a pick, this issue with shields won’t come up again (for me, at least)
I have a couple of questions for the group.
Should initiative order matter amongst the characters? If all the characters have a better initiative than the enemy then everyone will go before the enemy can attack anyway.
During combat, how long should a player have to take their turn before skipping them to keep combat moving along for the other players? And if they are being skipped, should they be a temporary NPC (the DM rolls for them) or should the character be inert that turn?