GM Netherpongo's Warhammer Fantasy

Game Master Nathan Goodrich

The holidays are a tough time for lots of things. I'll plan for us to restart in the new year and make a post tonight so you'll have something to respond to.

In the meantime, we'll give everyone a holiday season gift! All players can add one extra point! (Fate or Resilience)

Happy new year all. Ready to resume.

Which should I add for a spell caster? Fate or resilience?

For a Witch I'd be looking at whether I had enough Resilience to take the the Witch! talent. But mechanically Axel is a Wizard now, right? For a human Wizard I'd lean toward being Fate heavy & try to rely on having 2-3 Resilience. More Fate means more Fortune which can help to avoid casting mishaps.

Good response Zarine.

I had 4 fate and 2 resolve but noticed another character had it split into specific groups.

I’ve done that here and added the extra point but is this the right way to do it or does it stay in broad categories rather than specific

I'll take another Fate point.

Sorry for the silence, just started a new job, having much to learn

COVID. Out for a few days to a week if last time is any indication

Sorry for the absence. Back-ish.

Didn’t the expedition leader who died on basilisk island where we ran away? I am getting vague stirrings of altzemers

Someone stole the money and everyone bailed, right? I still don't remember a map.

I honestly haven't got a clue

About Axel getting some wizard training: it's slightly awkward right now due to a number of in-world considerations, any number of which we could choose to ignore.

It's largely an issue of time. It takes time to train a wizard's apprentice to the point that they'd be let out of the Colleges of Magic. Years in a normal case, probably. We could skate around that some by saying that Axel is being trained 'in the field' rather than in the Colleges, but I'd still imagine in such a situation that the training wizard likely shouldn't let Axel run off on adventures by themselves.

We have a salvage operation that could wait (the Earl of Harwich hasn't been going anywhere for hundreds of years) but I don't see a good reason at this point why it should wait. Even if one of their shareholders (Axel) went missing into the Colleges for a while, I doubt that the Greater Reikland Trading Company would see that as a reason to stall the whole project.

Some possibilities come to mind:
* we ignore all in-world considerations and just handwave everything. I'm not a fan of this idea (or I wouldn't be writing this post I guess) but it's there.
* we could have Axel be trained 'in the field' and the training wizard accompanies the group. I've already established something that is believed to be on the Earl of Harwich that the Colleges of Magic would be interested in (alchemical silver--a made-up MacGuffin to get the compass to work) and so they could be motivated that way. The training wizard wouldn't be working under Zarine, so we'd be introducing a shared-power dynamic to the party.
* we could have Axel be trained by an elf through Zarine's contacts instead of by the Colleges of Magic. This would likely be viewed as a stopgap method--something to allow Axel to still move about freely while getting him at least some training so he doesn't continue to pose such a danger. In my current thinking, this wouldn't help Axel be any less illegal since he'd be working outside of the legal frameworks of the Empire.
* In theory we could have Axel play another character while Axel is trained, but that might be effectively retiring Axel, as I'm not sure whether the campaign will extend beyond recovery of the Earl of Harwich.

Outside of in-world considerations, I'm currently planning to have a plot relevant adventure and then some Downtime that would cover the winter season in-game. After that, we'd likely have the party actually go to find the Earl of Harwich. The Downtime is probably the most convenient moment to Axel do some wizardly training and if we do the adventure first, that will give him some xp to do it with.

The others can probably chime in, but mostly for Axel: how do you want this to go down?

Zarine, we've been handwaving your character's motivation for the Earl of Harwich salvage project for a while. I think we discussed at one point the notion that an important wood elf relic is believed to have gone down with the ship. Do you have any ideas for what that might be? Is it a family momento, an emblem of authority or a relic with magical powers?

we could have Axel be trained 'in the field' and the training wizard accompanies the group. I've already established something that is believed to be on the Earl of Harwich that the Colleges of Magic would be interested in (alchemical silver--a made-up MacGuffin to get the compass to work) and so they could be motivated that way. The training wizard wouldn't be working under Zarine, so we'd be introducing a shared-power dynamic to the party.

This works best for me. Pbp moves very slowly and it’s taken me from start of game till now (nearly 4 years RL time) to get to this point - removing him ‘temporarily’ could be the last time we see him. Yes, it is a shared power dynamic… with an authority figure no less, that is as much a danger to the group as any other outsider. It also is potentially an unbalancing factor having a trained wizard along. Maybe have him crippled in someway and used as both subject matter expert (we could use more literacy) and double up as a trainer. Maybe both the college AND trading company see this as a net win… they can’t afford to send a full able bodied wizard but a broken wizard and a semi trained apprentice? Seems to vaguely equal a full one.

Any assessment the college does do of Axel will show I have very good fundamentals, and just lack the formalities that make up the training of an Imperial wizard (IMPORTANT formalities to be sure) - so the broken, damaged, or very old wizard (ie not @100%) and a newbie is not so far fetched… to make up one “functional” wizard.

Realistically there is A LOT that Axel has to learn beyond the scope of spell slinging. Imperial history and lore, literacy, politics, social etiquette/diplomacy, law and so on. The college of Wizardry is the power it is for reasons beyond the scope of magic, and in particular my preferred school of magic (Grey wind). Taking an unknown outsider apprentice, uncorrupted by college allegiances and politics might even be seen as a good thing by this college of magic in particular.

Elf training could be a good stop gap but we still butt heads against a) My wanting some sort of status to use magic without being burned at the stake b) We would still need to take the character out of play later.

Got a link here for my RP guide to Ulgu, the Grey wind. The college also hunts chaos as a secretive side mission… which I think suits the overall game (even though it’s taken us 4 years to get this far)

Grey Wind..

Let's let the others chip in since that option will influence group dynamics. I thought you mentioned the purple wind before, which would be amethyst/death. Was that a mistake, or do you need them for some other reason?

Let's let the others chip in since that option will influence group dynamics. I thought you mentioned the purple wind before, which would be amethyst/death. Was that a mistake, or do you need them for some other reason?

It was a mistake, I meant Grey. The secrecy I lived under most of my life seems to fit… they normally do not take apprentices so long in the tooth as Axel but hey, maybe for some reason I am an exception. The grey wind wizards travel, don’t accumulate wealth, and try to stay under the radar. The adventuring lifestyle would fit nicely. As we go along we will hit more chaos stuff… which grey wind wizards take great interest in. It keeps me a) in the party and b) hunting the plot elements of the story line

I posted a link to the grey wind video for those who are curious about the lore.

I'm good with having a training wizard along, although Zarine would probably be offended that an elven trainer is "illegal" ... more stupid human ignorance and hate. The most important thing is protecting Axel and getting him the training needed so that he can be an asset to the team, so she is willing to bring someone along. Power balance doesn't seem like it would really matter for most things... doubtful that a training wizard would outrank her overall, but perhaps he would have more human contacts and influence, which could create interesting situations, depending on how it is handled.

I think a relic would work for Zarine's motivation... some magical relic stolen from the elves in the past and which will make her look good if she were to recover/claim it and get it back into elven hands?

I had big distractions last week, including a live WFRP session I ran. I'll try to get our next post up later today.

All good

Are we in Downtime activities mode? Or the calm before it (ie the time of selling stuff before we go into downtime)?

I wouldn’t mind finding a sword instructor and buying a sword… gold makes XP cost cheaper.

For that matter, a sword is Basic Melee or some other skill?

Edit. It appears it’s basic melee skill… which ain’t cheap xp wise. Soooo, I’ll hold on instruction atm.

Buying a sword and short bow wouldn’t hurt.

****

Note: Short term ambition.

Short term ambition: To make some serious money... magical education is expensive.

Once we split up money it’s likely my character will see gold coins for the first time in his life, between that and the book that’s going to be used to pay for his education (assuming he doesn’t get gutted by the Grey Wizards and taken on as an apprentice), would that count as completion of this objective?

In which case I’ll make a new one shortly.

We're not in Downtime right now. I have a plan for when Downtime will come next.

For your short term ambition, how would you define its completion? The party is currently getting quite a bit of money.

In terms of finding a wizard, I've got some plans on how to make it happen.

We're not in Downtime right now. I have a plan for when Downtime will come next.

For your short term ambition, how would you define its completion? The party is currently getting quite a bit of money.

In terms of finding a wizard, I've got some plans on how to make it happen.

I figure completing it would be paying off the price of entry for magical tuition and being able to buy all the trappings for the new class… thus being able to call myself a Apprentice Wizard in every respect, as a result of money/resources earned.

Notes to self… need to learn ‘Classical’ as a language as well.

Grimoires, or Book, Magic cost 20 GC… and I don’t think they are just available off the street. Maybe newbie grimoires are cheaper and largely blank pages? Can we just call it ‘mission complete’ :) once I can get in the program so to speak? I’ve been driving on this short term goal for a loooong time and need another one

Cool. So, do you roll to see if items are available, or do we? And if we have downtime here, is there just the one elf to hang out with, since I am forced to do an elf downtime option?

... Also, work is going to be awful for at least another week. We are moving our site over to a new platform, and I am in charge of the community, so it is crazy. I am not sure I am going to be able to engage meaningfully with the story before then, because my mind is scattered, but would like to continue to talk to the people we need to.

Anyone else have an idea about what you want to do about the marsh? Seems like we will need to go there, but should we go confront the bad guys first, or anything else we haven't already mentioned?

For availability: go ahead and roll. In a live game I'd probably roll as the GM so I didn't have chaotic player rolls all over the place, but it'd be a waste of time in a pbp environment. Just keep an eye out to see whether others have rolled for the same thing you have. The availability rules state that in a town once something is available it usually has 1d10 of the item available if quantities are important.

There is a wood elf community in Grunberg, but not an embassy. I looked up the town's entry again and Grunberg's industries are first in boat construction (something I'd forgotten) followed by trade. It's not a major political center, though. The one guy I brought up is the longest-settled wood elf in town who'd best be able to arrange your letter & answer your questions but there are others.

I'm not intending a Downtime right now, but the story could make space for one. Does the party want a Downtime? There'd be an opportunity to get some things done, but you'd need to deal with the Cash to Burn issue as well.

I'm possibly being a bit too coy in my last post. My intent here is that the party can choose which activity to focus on, kind of choose-your-own-adventure style. There won't be any huge negatives to not choosing an option. The options are:

1. Go to the Reiker Marshes, begin looking around & set up a base camp.
2. Investigate who is intruding into your affairs in Grunberg.
3. Go to Stimmigen and try to find out more about why the Earl of Harwich started behaving mysteriously before it disappeared.

The idea is whichever option you choose will take the party into wintertime, and we'll have a Downtime after. The Greater Reikland Trading Company will work on the two options not selected.

No problem if you will be busy for the next week. Take care of things!

Does anyone have a preference for which activity they'd like to pursue?

I'd like to know who our foes are (2-Investigate)

Should post tomorrow…

Willl send you a PM. I have a few thoughts regarding short and long term plans

I think we need more information first... are there rumors about some lady being kidnapped by pirates from her wedding... or a young boy being abducted, that could be Konrad? We need to get Axel into school, Make sure Magda's license comes through, etc.

I like all of the adventure ideas, so if Magda has a preference, I am fine with going with that, but also want to finish up loose ends.

We need to be able to get everyone else the things that they need as well. We have about 5 gold for each person (whatever is left to theoretically be put in the bank for interest), and what we need dictates what we do with the finery... whether we need to sell it. If not, we keep it as a trapping (and immune to between adventure tragedy) until we have a reason to sell it in the future.

Moved this to ooc.

I think that items needed to improve careers etc should be allocated/allowed to keep.

For instance. The surgery book. Expensive. Sure, we could sell it but we have a doctor who can use it and progress. The magic book… I can’t read buuuut in theory I could use it to progress, it’s worth a lot but by trading it? I can get (hopefully) entry to wizard.

The finery? I believe you need it for trappings to get to Noble. Take it, please.

I'd like to know who our foes are (2-Investigate)

Me too… and I think it could be a fun adventure arc… though we are NOT suited to espionage or urban combat lol

Oh, definitely, not selling the books you need. I was just thinking about getting a bow rather than keeping the dress... trying to make sure everyone gets what they need rather than keeping the most valuable thing.

How does crafting work in this game? while i dont have bower/fletcher per se. I do have carpentry and engraving. would it be possible to make a bow?

also sorry for being a way so long. needed to change my meds. my depression is getting really bad. but ill keep up best i can till that balances out.

Hey man, I seriously feel ya. I don’t medicate (work related) and so my dips hit hard. Sleep hygiene and dedication to getting better quality sleep has been pivotal for me, as has intermittent fasting (and cutting down sugar).

If you ever want to PM me, feel free.

For the choice of adventure, it sounds like the vote is going to investigating those who are looking into your affairs.

For the trappings discussion, a lot of the treasure on the pirate island was meant to help with your career trappings. The trappings we should be short on currently are:

* Magda: only her guild license
* Axel: the magic book he found wasn't meant to be a grimoire for him, largely because I didn't know what choices you were going to make for his Wind. I'm planning to handle Axel's issues (need a wizard to teach him and a grimoire) in-game
* Calph: the pirates had everything he needs I think
* Zarine: she's still missing the horse-or-coach item, and the party can't budget for that. Since the campaign has been river-centric, both of those trappings are a little dubious. We could substitute something else in for that. There was some discussion about who the fine dress belonged to and so forth. I'm leaving it ambiguous on purpose, but Klara von Holgau (the ghost lady) was supposed to have been on her wedding barge when she was killed. It isn't necessarily her dress, but that's a solid possibility. If Zarine doesn't want to use the dress of a possibly-dead woman (even modified to no longer be a wedding gown) then she can probably trade it to the tailor she got a recommendation for instead of using the actual cloth.

If there are trapping items you are missing and aren't in the easily bought range that I haven't mentioned above, let me know.

For the choice of adventure, it sounds like the vote is going to investigating those who are looking into your affairs.

For the trappings discussion, a lot of the treasure on the pirate island was meant to help with your career trappings. The trappings we should be short on currently are:

* Magda: only her guild license
* Axel: the magic book he found wasn't meant to be a grimoire for him, largely because I didn't know what choices you were going to make for his Wind. I'm planning to handle Axel's issues (need a wizard to teach him and a grimoire) in-game
* Calph: the pirates had everything he needs I think
* Zarine: she's still missing the horse-or-coach item, and the party can't budget for that. Since the campaign has been river-centric, both of those trappings are a little dubious. We could substitute something else in for that. There was some discussion about who the fine dress belonged to and so forth. I'm leaving it ambiguous on purpose, but Klara von Holgau (the ghost lady) was supposed to have been on her wedding barge when she was killed. It isn't necessarily her dress, but that's a solid possibility. If Zarine doesn't want to use the dress of a possibly-dead woman (even modified to no longer be a wedding gown) then she can probably trade it to the tailor she got a recommendation for instead of using the actual cloth.

If there are trapping items you are missing and aren't in the easily bought range that I haven't mentioned above, let me know.

I sent a PM visa vi long/short goals

Hoping for something to shake loose on that gossip check

Should be back next week. It’s been a stressful week but hopefully coming back to normal… for a given value of normal.