GM Blake |
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@ Bret: All of them were part of Madame Dusklight's Celestial Menagerie, although none of them were in the same role at the Celestial Menagerie. With the exception of The Professor, who was a fire-eater and juggler, and Cubby, who was in the side show, the rest were barkers, ticket collectors, and roustabouts.
Meet Some of Your Circus Troupe Part 2
All of these were part of the Celestial Menagerie unless specified.
The Kanbali Family: A Garundi family of acrobatic performers going by the stage name of The Featherfall Five.
Eliza and Mister Tickles: Eliza is a young human woman works as a snake charmer. Her large constrictor is named Mister Tickles, but she has a rather large collection of snake that she keeps in her wagon.
Mordaine the Magician: An attractive human woman with blond hair and a well known ego and fiery temper when Myron refuses to give in to her demands about her place in the sequence of acts, pay, her wagon's relative position to the fire, latrines, clean water, etc. (her complaints change weekly). Her signature act is freeing herself from locked chains while in a glass tank filled with water.
Hod: Mordain's assistant. An unassuming middle-aged man who seems to be the best at calming Mordaine down after a kerfuffle with Myron.
Axel: Axel is new to the Circus of Wayward Wonders. He is a relatively young human who joined about a week ago. Since then he has been insisting to Myron that he is ready for the big tent, but Myron, for whatever reasons, insists that he is not ready. Axel is magician who works with birds in his tricks.
Bardolph: He is an old bear. His trainer was the Great Fortunato who unfortunately was robbed and killed in an alley in Escadar a short time before the break from the Celestial Menagerie. Myron was close friends with the Great Fortunato and could not bear to leave the bear behind with Madame Dusklight when they left, so he took the bear with everyone else. He is so well trained that he can do all his old tricks unbidden. His wagon is never locked, and the bear can come and go to get water or relieve himself as he pleases. Myron has opted to leave Bardolph in his wagon for this first, large audience performance as it would be Bardolph's first time in front of a crowd without the Great Fortunato.
The Dwarven Throwers: A team of dwarven acrobats and contortionists. They fashion themselves into living balista and fling each other across the ring and back.
The Flamboni Sisters: Two half-elf sisters with red hair who juggle various objects while those objects are on fire.
GM Blake |
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The Circus of Wayward Wonders was formed one year ago by Myron “Thunder” Stendhal who is as thoughtful and compassionate as Mistress Dusklight is cruel.
I know, I've posted a lot to digest. Or do you mean you want more details on your boss and liberator?
GM Blake |
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Additional FYI: I am building you a visual Rogue’s Gallery that you’ll be able to reference NPCs in one place throughout the campaign.
GM Blake |
Before I describe the people of Madame Dusklight's Celestial Menagerie, I want to provide the following warning and a chance to let me know if there are any specific triggers that I should modify or avoid.
Madame Dusklight's cruelty is described in detail in several instances. Please message me if you need themes of child abuse, spousal abuse, or physical abuse toned down or glossed over.
Contrary to the Circus of Wayward Wonders' practice of not exploiting people for the way they look, Madame Dusklight very much exploits people for the way they look. Please message me if you need depictions of congenital disorders (e.g. achondroplasia), birth defects, or mortification toned down, glossed over, or excluded entirely.
GM Blake |
A point of clarification: these are two distinct questions. The first deals with NPC backstory and exposition. The second deals with NPCs' physical appearances. Several of the have real world conditions (and body art).
Those Left Behind
Daring Danika and Leandrus: Danika works with a trained lion in her acts. She will stop at nothing to stay in Madame Dusklight's good graces or improve her own standing within the Menagerie.
Evora Yarket: A Kellid half-orc strongwoman. She is one of the Menagerie's most dedicated performers, maintaining rigorous exercise regimens every day to stay in top performing shape.
The Heavenly Hosts: Two celestials work for Madame Dusklight, women with wings and the lower torso of snakes. You've never actually interacted with them as they are either in their quarters or in their performance tent.
Jellico Bounce-Bounce: A clown and juggler, Jellico is skilled at ricocheting thrown objects back to himself. He also juggles a number of dangerous objects like knives and hooks.
Viktor Volkano: Viktor is a very talented fire-breather. However, he is cruel and unfriendly.
Adrivallo: A satry, he serves as a barker for the Glen of Uncommon Wonders. A set of cages where Madame Dusklight shows off some of her less cooperative but none-the-less intriguing sideshows.
Gnasher: A surely manticore.
Mistdancer: A pegasus who speaks wise-sounding platitudes.
Virinelle: A dryad.
BretI |
Evora Yarket: A Kellid half-orc strongwoman. She is one of the Menagerie's most dedicated performers, maintaining rigorous exercise regimens every day to stay in top performing shape.
Evora sounds like one of the people who could have had an influence on my character. As a follower of Kurgess, fitness is important to him. I could see Rulean having gained some of his fitness training from Evora. I don’t know her personality, but I could see her being someone that Rulean respects.
Could be a friend, frenemy, competitor, or enemy depending on her personality.
Adrivallo: A satry, he serves as a barker for the Glen of Uncommon Wonders. A set of cages where Madame Dusklight shows off some of her less cooperative but none-the-less intriguing sideshows.
I suspect he is someone that Rulean very badly wanted to get away from. The feelings may not be mutual, from his point of view I could just be yet another brat he had to keep in line.
Hmm |
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Madame Dusklight's cruelty is described in detail in several instances. Please message me if you need themes of child abuse, spousal abuse, or physical abuse toned down or glossed over.
I was an abused child and it is a HUGE trigger for me. Any efforts to tone down such descriptions would be very appreciated! In fact, tone it all down -- birth defects included.
Hmm
GM Blake |
Pathfinder 2 Workshop #2: Skill Checks, Secret Checks
One of the biggest cultural adjustments that I've encountered with PF2 is the concept of Secret Checks. This is not a new concept. GMs have done it at their discretion since at least AD&D. The idea is that the GM makes a roll for the player because the knowledge of the number on the dice could affect their behavior rather than the knowledge that the result provided the character.
You've probably seen it before: the player rolls a Perception check and nets a 5 so they keep checking the door for traps, "Just to be safe," when in the very same dungeon they blithely opened a door after checking once and netting an 18.
PF2 makes secret checks official rule, though it does give the GM leeway to not make secret checks and roll everything out in the open. In PFS(2) PbP, I tend to do a modified version of this and will do so here.
HERE is a list of actions with the Secret trait (as an aside, everything in PF2 has traits that define how they work/interact).
For actions that involve Secret Checks, what I will ask you to do is request the action, list the skill, and state your modifier with any conditionals. I will then roll behind my flimsy GM screen (inside my spoiler), which I will trust you to not peak at for secret checks).
Example: HMM writes: (Recall Knowledge vs. Runes on the Wall, Arcana (E), +7)
Example: Wei Ji writes: (Gather Information about Rufus the Villain, Diplomacy (T), +5)
If you use an action that can be performed with multiple skills and you're not sure which skill is applicable (most often happens with bizarre monsters), list all applicable skills and modifiers.
Example: Ladile writes: (Recall Knowledge vs. these weird dog people, Society +2, Nature +5)
The reason it matters even more besides metagaming failed rolls is because you can get wrong information from certain activities and other surprise bad things due to the existence of Critical Failures (and Critical Successes).
To be continued with Degrees of Success.
GM Blake |
Pathfinder 2 Workshop #2: Degrees of Success
Pathfinder 2 introduces a Critical Failure mechanic into its d20 system, as well expanding and simplifying Critical Successes. Not all Checks have Critical Successes or Critical Failures, but any kind of Check could have a Critical Failure or Critical Success.
The definition of a Critical Success is a result >=10 more than the DC (e.g., 25 vs. DC 15).
The definition of a Critical Failure is a result >=10 less than the DC (e.g., 5 vs. DC 15).
If you roll a Natural 20, it increase the level of success by 1. Critical Failure -> Failure -> Success -> Critical Success.
If you roll a Natural 1, it decreases the level of success by 1. Critical Success -> Success -> Failure -> Critical Failure.
An Attack is a simple example:
Critical Success = Double Damage
Success = Damage
Failure = Miss
Critical Failure = Miss (and some reactions trigger on this)
The Basic Save is another simple example:
Critical Success = No Damage
Success = Half Damage
Failure = Damage
Critical Failure = Double Damage
Recall Knowledge is a complicated (for the GM) example:
Critical Success = "You recall knowledge accurately and gain additional information or context."
Success = "You recall the knowledge accurately or gain a useful clue about the current situation."
Failure = You recall no knowledge
Critical Failure = "You recall incorrect information or gain an erroneous or misleading clue."
As you can see, the GM needs to put effort into adjudicating the result (so much easier to do on PbP than on the fly in a live game). You can also see why a Recall Knowledge check is a Secret check: you and everyone who saw your roll would need to try to not be reacting to the knowledge it was a critical failure and instead to the in-game knowledge.
GM Blake |
Life in the Circus: Non-Performer Jobs
Animal Handler: Care and feeding of the animals, either or both performing animals and work animals.
Backup Clown: Technically a performer role, but only when the better clowns are injured or sick (or missing!).
Bandleader: Conductor of the musical band.
Carnival Barker: Draws in the audience.
Clown Coordinator: Choreograph routines for the clowns and determine when they are best needed during the show.
Lighting: Both magical and mundane lights are used to focus attention and enhance performances.
Medic: Working in a circus is not free of physical risk or illness.
Pyrotechnic: Fireworks, smoke screens, and other alchemical enhancements to entertainment.
Security Guard: Physically prevent non-circus people from accessing places they shouldn't or accosting circus members.
GM Blake |
The circus is not big: it is a one tent circus with one side show. There are adequate NPCs for the circus to function with or without any of the players taking on any of the mundane roles.
I posted the list mainly to help anyone who was interested in a non-performer role for their character.
I neglected roustabout; the people who do put up the tents and do odd jobs.
That said, there are mechanical advantages for one or more characters to perform those roles during another character's act. However, we will get into the mechanics of the circus later. After the first book, you'll have the option to decide how much or little you want to focus on the circus mechanics.
None of those specific jobs as part of the mechanics of the circus require a check, so I guess the answer is either "all" or "none" depending on your perspective.
Lady Ladile |
While it's on my mind GM, any particular restrictions on animal companions?
I like cats but I've already done/do a lot of cat-based familiars and ACs in 1st edition so I figure I ought to branch out a bit. Currently noodling between badger, bear, dog or maybe a nope-rope (snake)...
GM Blake |
None that I can think of right now.*
You might find a mount (e.g. horse, camel) frustrating because you will spend an increasingly significant amount of time in “dungeons.”
*From reviewing the Archives of Nethys list.
Lady Ladile |
Yeah, I'd seen your previous note about mount-focused characters but that's definitely not what I had in mind for Clover.
That's not to say that she might not hitch a ride atop a companion that grows big enough and has the proper anatomy for it but actual mounted combat won't be her thing :)
BretI |
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Rustle of leaves?
Whistling wing or whistling wind?
Wind through the branches?
——
@Lady Ladile, this Guide of Animal Companions in PF2 may help.
I like the idea of the badger, mostly because of the little bit of lore about badgers in Absalom. On the other hand, it looks to me like they have done a much better job of balancing the animal companions in PF2.
GM Blake |
Leaf Theme
Leaf-in-Autumn
Sun-through-Leaves
Nature Music
Water-over-Stones
Waves-Touch-Land
Song-of-Night
Wind-over-Reeds
The Fox |
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I like the idea of the badger, mostly because of the little bit of lore about badgers in Absalom.
I don't know anything about the lore of badgers in Absalom, so I did a google search.
The first two hits were the the dates of birth and death (1813 - 1842) of a man buried in Vermont named Absalom Badger, son of John and Sarah Badger.
I still don't know anything about badgers in Absalom.
BretI |
2 people marked this as a favorite. |
BretI wrote:I like the idea of the badger, mostly because of the little bit of lore about badgers in Absalom.I don't know anything about the lore of badgers in Absalom, so I did a google search.
The first two hits were the the dates of birth and death (1813 - 1842) of a man buried in Vermont named Absalom Badger, son of John and Sarah Badger.
I still don't know anything about badgers in Absalom.
It is in the splatbook Guide to Absalom.
As a result, numerous small businesses cater to badgers and their owners. (Otters are often seen after by the Pilots' Guild, but tend to live out in the Flotsam Graveyard and have less interaction with Absalom natives.) The main businesses at the Fierce Stripe are building setts (badger burrows) for warehouses and businesses seeking to adopt a badger clan, and training bull (adult male) badgers as guard-animals. Badgers can live happily both in clans of up to 15 individuals or in solitary lives (as is often the case for guard bulls). Badger cubs and trained adults can be bought at the small shop, and specialty gear for badger familiars and companions is also available (including badger barding, tiny strap-on metal claws, and belt pouches).
Since badgers lead legally protected lives, natives also occasionally hire badger-handlers from the Stripe to relocate a clan that has moved in someplace inconvenient. Though the animals are generally well-loved within the city (and credited for keeping the city virtually plague-free despite the extensive influx of diseased sailors and the horrible conditions of people living in Puddles or the Precipice Quarter), when badgers move in to a ship (which then can't set sail without exporting them), an unused room, or a local garden, paying someone to safely move them to a better location is the only legal option available.
Badgers and otters are legally protected.
Pip Hip Hooray |
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The lore on Badgers is part of the backstory of Pip whose gnomish family trains them. Seaching for information on Absalom's Badger Leash Laws helped win a case for her family, and led to Pip's love of the law.
You know, it's hilarious that the section on Badgers is probably the number one fact that both Bret and I retained from reading that Absalom book cover to cover four years ago.
Hmm |
"song of air" .. a petomaniac bard? ^^
Can you give me more context on what a Petomaniac bard is? When I googled the term, I found a reference to Le Pétomane, an italian film about Joseph Pujol, a professional flatulist -- or 'fart-performer.'
I do not see my character as a fart-perfomer, despite the name choice of Song-of-Air.
DM Lil" Eschie |
GM Blake |
I haven't forgotten you guys.
The bulk of what I have left for Session 0 revolves around character creation, so I'm sure we're all waiting for the APG.
For those unfamiliar (or only playtest familiar) with PF2, are there any other rules that you've come across--outside of character creation--that you've identified as needing clarification?
GM Blake |
Death and dying is probably worth going over since they are so different than past systems.
Excellent point!
GM Blake |
Pathfinder 2 Workshop #3: Dying and Death
First, know that there are no more negative hit points to track and different threshold for death depending on your Constitution or anything like that anymore. The lowest your hit points can go is zero.
When you are reduced to 0 hit points, you are Knocked Out.
Knocked Out applies the following effects:
1. Your initiative changes to be directly before the turn in which you were knocked out (i.e., right before the creature or environmental effect that knocked you out).
2. You gain the Dying condition (if the damage was lethal). This condition has a value, and it usually starts at 1. It can start at 2 if the effect that knocked you out was a critical success from the attacker or a critical failure on your saving throw. Add the value of your Wounded condition, if any (see below).
Dying Condition: You gain the Unconscious condition and you must attempt a Recovery Check at the beginning of each of your turns. If you take damage while Dying, your value increases by 1 (by 2 if the damage was the result of a critical success by the attacker or critical failure on your save). If your Dying value ever reaches 4, you die.
Recovery Check: It is a flat check (i.e., an unmodified d20 roll) versus DC 10 + your Dying value. Success reduces your Dying value by 1 (by 2 on a critical success). Failure increases your Dying value by 1 (by 2 on a critical failure).
Ways to Remove Dying Condition:
1. Reduce your Dying value to 0 by successful Recovery Checks
2. The spell, stabilize
3. Be restored to 1 or more Hit Points
4. Spend all of your Hero Points
When you recover from the Dying condition, you gain the Wounded condition starting with the value of 1. If you already had the Wounded condition, increase the Wounded value by 1. You add this value to your Dying value whenever you reach 0 Hit Points (by lethal damage).
Unconscious Condition: You’re sleeping, or you’ve been knocked out. You can’t act. You take a –4 status penalty to AC, Perception, and Reflex saves, and you have the blinded and flat-footed conditions. When you gain this condition, you fall prone and drop items you are wielding or holding unless the effect states otherwise or the GM determines you’re in a position in which you wouldn’t.
Removing the Wounded Condition:
1. Someone restores any amount of Hit Points using Treat Wounds
2. You are restored to maximum Hit Points and spend 10 minutes resting
Exceptions:
Toughness Feat: Recovery Check DC is 9 + Dying value
Die Hard Feat: You die at Dying 5 rather than Dying 4.
Hero Point Recovery: You don't gain (or increase) the Wounded value if you remove Dying by spending all of your Hero Points.
Doomed Condition: You reduce the Dying value at which you die by the value of the Doomed condition (e.g., if you have Doomed 1, you would die if your Dying value reaches 3 instead of 4).
GM Blake |
NOTE: Life circumstances have changed such that my free time will likely be significantly affected.
Where for the past month and a half, the county has been offering opt-in physical classroom learning, the county has decided as of today to conduct 100% virtual classes for all age classes. This means that I will essentially be (after figuring out how to make it work) working full time and "teaching" half time. I would love to vent here about my concern for my son's educational and psychosocial development, but you have your own real life concerns to deal with and come here to get away from those.
As a commitment to you (and the other long term campaigns in which I participate), I have recalled my Gameday IX offerings and will not be GMing or, likely, playing in any new games until I have a handle on what my new normal will be.
However, that said, I expect that my posting speed and the amount of attention that I can devote to individual players will suffer. Combat/encounter mode will likely be a 1/day post from me. Reactive posts that require more improvisation may require 1-2 days to prepare and write, which can translate into a 2-3 day delay. I don't want to be alarmist or defeatist, but I want to attempt to give you as reasonable as possible idea of what to expect. I might very well be able to keep up after reducing my hobby load, but I don't want to promise you that and then not deliver.
I completely understand if a slow game is not what you signed on for and anyone would prefer to open their own bandwidth up for a faster paced experience. However, I do intend to provide you with the best experience that I am able to.
My sincerest apologies for the effect this will have on this campaign.
Hmm |
Real life happens. I don't mind a 1 post a day campaign, especially if we can all chat amongst ourselves in the meantime. But if you want to drop this campaign... I also understand. Most people have talked about how during this pandemic you can have either a child or a job. I have been lucky enough to have both my kids be older teenagers when this mess hit.
Hmm
GM Blake |
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Aborting this campaign won't specifically free any of my bandwidth. I would still be putting any new games on hold until I understand how this new normal will work. And I will be getting relief eventually. I don't expect it before Gameday, but it should be here something this fall, at which point things should be back to my current normal with only a few modifications.
Aside from not wanting to flake on you all, I also need some diversion from reality, and I've been looking forward to running this AP with a good group of players since I got the received the first book. So, as long as there are enough players willing to proceed with me, I'd very much like to run it.
Hmm |
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BTW, since three of us are interested in playing tengus...
Know Direction previewed all the pages for the tengu and the oracle from APG.
Wei Ji the Learner |
As an essential worker, I sympathize. May you not get a hosed more by RL.
Now if I can just not get screwed on my APG pre-order because I had to change payment methods...
... the site won't let me because the other part of the order was done.
There is no one to call, and the last email update was 1400+ emails in the queue at the end of June...
If it can get fixed, good to go.
Otherwise, s.o.l., I guess?
Song-of-Air |
Yeah, there is a serious customer service delay here! Those poor folks are swamped. Still, I'd write to them. At least you can see the tengu feats, and you know the CRB monk ones already.
Hmm
GM Blake |
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I have heard that Archives of Nethys will have the APG material loaded at 0001 at some US time zone time.
Leaf-On-Wind |
There'll be two of us acrobatic skyborn tengus...
How do you feel about the 'twins' idea?
Song-of-Air |
I cannot deal with us both having the same face. Sigh. I'll find something else.
Hmm