[GameDay IX] GM Hawthwile's Ungrounded, but Unbroken (Inactive)

Game Master Hawthwile

Alrik looks mildly impressed at his comrades stunts and cheers along with the rest of the troops. When all the attention finally focuses on him, he blanches to a sickly brownish white colour. Squaring his shoulders, he stomps forward to the centre of the room and offers a wicked grin to the group.

"Don't forget - you asked for it!"

Throwing his shoulders wide, Alrik's mouth opens and he fearlessly launches into song with a truly awful voice!

Perform (Oratory): 1d20 - 3 ⇒ (8) - 3 = 5

Charisma 5 here!!!

My apologies folks, i had no idea. well shoot. Should I switch characters? No combats yet. I have at least 2 at lvl 4 I can offer. Or if this too egregious and i have to bow out, i understand.

Feh. You still have two legs. Walk like a normal scrub!

Damhán ignores Larssok and walks over to the serving line. Unfortunately, by the time he arrives there is nothing left but gruel. A thin earth fae known as a pech ladles some into a bowl and passes it to him, her eyes dead but her smile wicked as if daring the recruit to ask why.

Alrik gets partway through the first verse of his song before a large hand clamps over his mouth. "Got a voice like a nightingale, he does!" Larssok yells over the growing boos and jeers as the other mercenaries take their fingers out of their ears. "A dead one, that is! Go stuff some food in your gob before you kill us all with your singing, eh?" The half-orc slaps the dwarf on the shoulder and pushes him gently towards the serving line where a plate of meat and potatoes rests next to a mug of ale.

-----------------------------------

After dinner, the Pathfinders retire back to their rooms for the evening. The mattresses are thin and the bedrock hard, but everyone is able to get to sleep. That is, until what feels like midnight, when Captain Othis barges into the room banging a soup ladle against a metal pot. "On your feet, soldiers!" she bellows.

What do you do?

P:Soldier: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (12) + 1 = 13
Ebonfeather quickly straightened his bedding before snapping to attention

prof soldier: 1d20 - 2 ⇒ (6) - 2 = 4

"Ehh ... what?" Taariik says in sleepy mode.

Taariik hears Ebonfeather and immediately starts to copy the Tengu’s actions.

Damhán makes no fuss about the gruel. He's endured worse, from worse. These wannabes were no match for the abuse his own countrymen heaped on him when he was younger.

"My favorite." He mutters, as he takes the ladled portion, and spoons a little into his mouth with two fingers. "Could use more lumpy bits." He adds, as a critique, returning the pech's look, but without the smile.

Divining the intent behind Othis's interruption, Alrik quickly follows suit and makes his bed before snapping to attention.

Profession (Soldier): 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (9) + 2 = 11

Conig whips himself into a standing position and straights out his fur.

Profession (soldier) untrained: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (17) + 3 = 20

Ayo has been in her share of barracks before, as suggested before, so she knows what she is supposed to do and begins doing so well in advance of the others.

Captain Othis scowls as Ayo, Ebonfeather, Taariik, and Alrik leap into action, then turns her gaze on Damhán and Conig. "Useless!" she roars. "You can't even make a bed! How can I trust you to oil a sword or maintain armor, let alone fight for the empire?" The captain grabs the offending bedding and leaves with it, slamming the door shut behind her.

So we had 5 bedding originally minus 2 bedding that has been confiscated plus whatever bedding was brought. How are we doing on bedding? Those beds look awfully uncomfortable without any.

What do you do?

Taariik is a little ashamed.

“Should I go out and buy a bedroll or would that be rude?“

Can I use my sleeve of many garments to create a parka-like coat to sleep in?

"Nope, we adapt. They expect us to take care of their equipment and would have no problem supplementing their supplies with anything we provide. Soldiers through out history tend to have light fingers as the smarter middle and upper classes tend to be officers, leaving the poor to serve on the front lines. Ebonfeather said.

"Move the racks over. Open up the bedrolls, lay them out and make it one big one. Those that tend to get cold during the night, you might want to sleep next to Taariik since he naturally cranks out heat. Conig and I can take the ends since we have fur and feathers to keep us warm.

Sleeves of many garments create illusory clothing, they are not going to provide any sort of comfort or protection =)

Ha, forgot to even roll it! Profession (soldier): 1d20 ⇒ 8
Nope, it all worked out as it should have =)

"Moving the beds will just give them more to b$$&% about." Damhán says. I know this type well.

He pulls out his own bedroll, to replace the one that Othis made off with.

"Because we all need to know how to kill someone with a bed." He growls.

"No, that is incorrect. They do that in order to get everyone to work together. You must have not been at the refresher classes that the Master of Swords offered recently." Ebonfeather said. "So far they told us where to sleep, but never how they wanted it. We need to show them that we can do the job. So far we are off to a bad start. We have survived tombs, undead and agents of the Aspis Consortium, basic training should be a cakewalk. With our experience, each of us is more than qualified to be an officer. Stick together and observe Damhán and Conig. If you see us doing something, follow along."

Damhán just snorts at Ebonfeather's comments. "You know nothing of this." He mutters.

The Pathfinders are perhaps not at their most cooperative and cheerful after being awoken by the captain and yelled at.

The beds are part of the stone floor and cannot be moved unfortunately. Taariik is also pretty sure that there won't be a shop open to purchase a bedroll from at this hour.

So we've got 3 bedrolls + 1 from Damhán and +1 from Alrik for 5 bedrolls total right now. Does anyone else have one? If not, someone is going to be sleeping without one tonight - who will it be?

What do you do?

I have one

Conig will volunteer to sleep on the ground. I've come ill-prepared in many ways. I'll take the penance.

Ebonfeather passes his extra bedroll to Conig, allowing the ratfolk to sleep restfully through the rest of the night.

In what feels like the early morning, the door to the Pathfinders' room bursts open again and once more the sound of loud clanging echoes off the stone walls. "On your feet, you lazy sacks of lard!" Captain Othis bellows. "Still sleeping at this hour? Don't you know there's work to be done?" She doesn't stop either the clanging or the yelling until all six Pathfinders are on their feet, then allows them to make their beds and get dressed before sending them to the kitchen for a bowl of gruel.

After they finish eating, the Pathfinders are escorted by Dell to the backside of the kitchen. "C-captain says you'll be unloading these," the young oread explains, patting a full wagon and pointing at a mostly-empty larder on the far side of the room. "Th-they go in there. A-and yes, it all fits, s-so don't try to tell anyone it doesn't." He smiles ruefully before leaving the Pathfinders to their work.

Once everything is inside, Captain Othis hands each of the Pathfinders a small brush. "Your quarters are a disgrace," she announces loudly. "Get some soap and buckets from the kitchen - I expect it to be spotless before you eat any lunch." As the Pathfinders get to work, the captain takes her leave before returning a few hours later to observe their progress, the mud from her boots tracking across the freshly-cleaned floor.

This work is also very tiresome - could everyone roll a Fortitude save for me? And no, Damhán, your telekinesis does not give you enough fine motor control nor finesse to scrub with your mind - nor can you just "lift" the dust and dirt out of the floor. XD

What do you do?

fort: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (2) + 12 = 14

Taariik will not cheat and do as requested!

Certain this is yet another attempt to provoke them into doing something stupid, Alrik continues to clean the floors as if nothing has changed.

Fort Save: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (6) + 8 = 14

Ya, the scrubbing part I would have to do manually. =) But the hauling of the unloading of goods he can do easily enough. With a helper to align them more exactly as they go into the larder.

Fort save: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (10) + 9 = 19

Fort: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (17) + 9 = 26
It was a good workout for Ebonfeather as he hardly broke a sweat.

fort: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (4) + 5 = 9

Conig is not used to such strenuous labor and struggles scrubbing the room.

Fortitude Save: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (3) + 8 = 11

Ayo takes to the task with intensity and drive, but perhaps too much. She finds herself losing steam, having not managed her exertion level to keep herself from tiring out in the long term.

Conig and Ayo find themselves fatigued from their morning efforts as the Pathfinders join the rest of the Ungrounded for a simple lunch of dark break, salt pork, and lentil stew. After they return their dishes to the kitchen for washing, Dell escorts the new recruits outside to a large yard of packed dirt.

Captain Othis waits, her face still wearing its seemingly-permanent scowl. "Listen up, you lazy slobs - if you're going to fight with the rest of the Ungrounded, you have to know how to coordinate with them. There are over a hundred hand signals and verbal commands used, though I'll be lucky if I can get even one of them through your thick skulls. Now march!"

How well do you master all the commands, chants, and cadences? Find out with a Perform (oratory) or Profession (soldier) check! This is another instance where the Profession check can be made even without ranks in the skill.

What do you do?

Taariik really tries to push the signs and phrases into his head by reciting them all the time!

perform oratory: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (4) + 5 = 9

Profession (soldier) Untrained: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (5) + 3 = 8

Blech, not in the mood to fail one of these again. Time for my reroll

Reroll (3 stars): 1d20 + 3 + 3 ⇒ (9) + 3 + 3 = 15

Ayo does her best to follow the array of signals with her usual focus and intensity.

Fatigued as the condition or some other penalty?

prof soldier: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (15) + 1 = 16

Conig offers a simple military cadence to march to.

The condition... fixed by a full nights rest.

faux Profession (soldier): 1d20 ⇒ 9

Damhán seems no more dedicated to this particular task, than he has most of the others, since you're arrival.

You're starting to wonder if he's messing up on purpose.

Well, they're sure staying off the regular skill check list so far =)

P:Soldier: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (1) + 1 = 2
Ebonfeather had a hard time trying to follow the commands but with a bit of work, he started to understand the meaning of the signals.
P:Soldier reroll: 1d20 + 1 + 1 ⇒ (17) + 1 + 1 = 19
At least the reroll did its job.

Alrik recognises the chants and marches and tries his best to match them.

Profession (Soldier): 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (11) + 2 = 13

Correct - Fatigued as in the condition:

A fatigued character can neither run nor charge and takes a –2 penalty to Strength and Dexterity. Doing anything that would normally cause fatigue causes the fatigued character to become exhausted. After 8 hours of complete rest, fatigued characters are no longer fatigued.

"Well at least some of you aren't complete wastes of air," Captain Othis bellows after over two hours of drills. "Maybe they can teach the rest of you sorry lot how to put your pants on in the morning too. Now move!" She marches the Pathfinders outside the city to a rocky field where what looks like an obstacle course has been set up.

"Alright you sacks of wet noodles, it's time to show me what you're made of!" Captain Othis orders. She points at a 4-inch wide log spanning a pit gouged into the rocky ground, then a tangled mass of metal wire filled with glass, sharp rocks, and broken bricks, then to a 30 ft high stone wall, and finally to an abandoned quarry filled with muddy water. "Your goal is to get to the other end of this obstacle course without making yourselves look more incompetent than you already have." She blows on a shrill whistle and looks at the Pathfinders impatiently. "Get to it!"

We're not really in initiative, but I'm going to put up a tracker to help me keep track of where everyone is.

The log is the first obstacle - a thin piece of wood straddling the two sides of the pit. It will take some grace and skill to cross this without losing one's balance. Make an Acrobatics check!

The Obstacle Course
Turn 1! Bold may act!
Alrik (Balancing Act)
Ayo (Balancing Act)
Conig (Balancing Act)
Damhán (Balancing Act)
Ebonfeather (Balancing Act)
Taariik (Balancing Act)

What do you do?

Taariik removes his full plate before starting the exercise but then starts immediately to be able to show his worth!

Using Forgotten Trick ninja talent to emulate acrobatic master ninja trick with 3 ki to get +20 on acrobatics.

acrobatics : 1d20 + 20 + 2 ⇒ (2) + 20 + 2 = 24

He focuses his ki which allows his body to become flexible and agile!

"Beware, the log is slippery." Ebonfeather said. Taking an old cloak, he used it to wipe the greasy substance off the log as he made his way over.

Acrobatics: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (7) + 12 = 19

acrobatics: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (20) + 5 = 25

Conig takes his little rat feet and skitters across the log.

Alrik follows suit and removes his full plate as well. He's not well suited to balancing acts at the best of times - best not be wearing a heavy set of metal while trying!

Acrobatics: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (10) + 1 = 11

Can I use my telekineses to try to prevent my allies from falling, if they slip? There would be no visual evidence =)
At the very least, have it act like an aid another for folks?

Damhán looks at the log and frowns. He holds back the urge to just throw the log off into the distance somewhere... though it's close.

With a put upon sigh, he waits until Alrik has made his attempt, then steps up to get it over with.

Acrobatics: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (6) + 11 = 17

"Stop trying to put on a show and cross it already!" Captain Othis bellows crossly as Taariik and Alrik laboriously remove their armor. "A salamander chasing after you will not be as patient as I am!" She scowls as Ebonfeather wipes the log. "Didn't get enough cleaning in this morning? I can certainly remedy that tomorrow!"

@Damhán - I looooove the idea, but Basic Telekinesis only works on objects and not creatures. And while I suppose that you could move the log rather than the person, that seems like it would be even harder to balance on than a stationary log. XD

Taariik once again moves lightly on his feet, followed by Ebonfeather and Conig. Alrik, however, finds the narrow log and his wide frame do not work well together and his foot slips!

Alrik Reflex: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (12) + 4 = 16

The dwarf grabs onto the log, keeping himself from falling onto the stones below. Damhán takes the opportunity to hurry over the top, stepping quickly over Alrik's fingers.

The Obstacle Course
Turn 1! Bold may act!
Alrik (Balancing Act)
Ayo (Balancing Act, Fatigued)
Conig (Bear Crawl, Fatigued)
Damhán (Bear Crawl)
Ebonfeather (Bear Crawl)
Taariik (Bear Crawl)

What do you do?

Acrobatics (acp, fatigue): 1d20 + 1 - 4 - 1 ⇒ (16) + 1 - 4 - 1 = 12

Ayo takes to the field in her armor but without her shield on her arm, and she will not keep the instructor waiting, especially since she needs to take a moment to clean the log. She does admirably well for her condition and equipment, but probably not well enough.

Ayo's confidence rapidly diminishes as she wobbles on the log, her foot slipping...

Ayo Reflex, Fatigued: 1d20 + 3 - 1 ⇒ (3) + 3 - 1 = 5
Falling damage: 1d6 ⇒ 1

...and the warrior hits the ground with a clang. Captain Othis scowls. "Figure out how to not fall on your face!" she barks as Ayo pulls herself out of the pit. "Now show me how badly you can fail again." She points at Alrik. "You too."

Conig, Damhán, Ebonfeather, and Taariik find themselves at the entrance to the bear crawl. Ducking down, they easily spot a crawlspace shorter than even the ratfolk which seems to be the only passage through the tangle of wire, broken bricks, glass, and rocks. This challenge takes two (2) Escape Artist checks to pass!

The Obstacle Course
Turn 2! Bold may act!
Alrik (Balancing Act)
Ayo (Balancing Act, Fatigued)
Conig (Bear Crawl, Fatigued)
Damhán (Bear Crawl)
Ebonfeather (Bear Crawl)
Taariik (Bear Crawl)

What do you do?

Nodding to Othis, Alrik trots back to the start of the log and tries again.

Acrobatics: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (15) + 1 = 16

Taariik is clearly a little lost.
He concentrates and his Ifrit blood that allows him to use a spell to reduce his size!!

Reduce person, 5 minutes. +2 dex, -2 strength.

He then calls the spirits to his aid!

Escape artist and profession soldier 1 rank. +1 to all skill checks. I have to track this per round. I have max 18 rounds. Is that enough to get through?

Escape artist, rank/class +4, dex -1, trickster +1 : 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (14) + 4 = 18

Escape artist, rank/class +4, dex -1, trickster +1 : 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (14) + 4 = 18

And tries to get through!

Ebonfeather greased himself up using the cloak before entering to try helping him wiggle through the crawlspace.
Escape Artist 1: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (2) + 8 = 10
Escape Artist 2: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (5) + 8 = 13
Not sure if there is any bonus but might help

Acrobatics (acp, fatigue): 1d20 + 1 - 4 - 1 ⇒ (6) + 1 - 4 - 1 = 2
Reflex Save (fatigued): 1d20 + 3 - 1 ⇒ (12) + 3 - 1 = 14

Ayo continues to have difficulty with the balancing maneuvering.

Having gotten the hang of balancing himself, Alrik crosses over the log with only a few close calls. Behind him, another clunk echoes from the pit as Ayo slips, falls, and can't quite force her tired muscles to respond quickly enough to catch herself.

Falling damage: 1d6 ⇒ 5

"If that simple log is too much for you to handle, you can flunk out and move on so we can all watch you can fail at something else," Captain Othis suggests. "You could get stuck like that bird," she pauses to gesture at Ebonfeather as the tengu carefully extracts himself from a mass of wires, "or perhaps you'll come up with your own unique display of ineptitude." She scowls as she sees a miniature Taariik on the other side of the tangle, but says nothing.

@Taariik, we'll say that took 5 rounds to get through.

The Obstacle Course
Turn 2! Bold may act!
Alrik (Bear Crawl)
Ayo (Balancing Act or Bear Crawl, Fatigued, -6)
Conig (Bear Crawl, Fatigued)
Damhán (Bear Crawl)
Ebonfeather (Bear Crawl)
Taariik (Climbing Wall)

What do you do?