That's probably the best idea. I foresee combat becoming more complex as the leveling continues, so including that sort of "decision tree" helps keep things rolling along relatively smoothly. XD
Then I think for now I'll leave it at that. Consider Active Defense to be automatically applied vs the first 4 attacks to target me every turn. That leaves me 2 AOOs to apply as I see fit, such as if Torsten triggers them with Greater Trip or something similar.
Active Defense is currently raises my shield bonus to AC by 4 points, 2 + 1/4 BAB. Best place to note that?
If there's still room in your header, "Active Defense +4" in the Conditions section would be ideal.
That should be fine
I put an "AD +4" in with the Armor Class values, if you think it's better in with Conditions I can certainly move it.
Was thinking about it. Greater trip, greater brute...they just give +1 CMD/CMD right now. Kind of boring. Rather, I think that I'd like to try something abit different.
Greater Trip replaced with Fencing Sphere with Virtuous Drawback.
- +5 skill points in Sense Motive? Awesome. I was lacking the skill points to boost this, so that's great.
- 3d6 precision damage if flanking with Ril. Great for our teamwork. And what makes it even better? Torsten is all about repositioning. Meaning that his wombo combo can force an enemy into being flanked, which would give both of us extra damage!
Greater Brute replaced with Wide Open (exploit): The target suffers a -2 penalty to its armor class until the end of your next turn. For every 5 points of base attack bonus you possess, this penalty increases by 1.
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All in all? This just makes reposition a much better tactic for our teamwork. If it works, then both of us get extra damage and the enemy's AC gets a -4 penalty and we get a +2 flanking bonus. Everything becomes much easier for us at that point.
I'm trying to keep things as "simple" as gestalt spheres of power can be, while sticking towards themes. And this, feels to me at least, as though it works with what we have been building towards.
Any chance you could be talked into keeping out of Fencing sphere?
(I've spent the past little bit second-guessing, hell, twenty-second-guessing whether to say this, but I'm gonna err on the side of saying it.)
Sure, don't want to step on any toes. And I haven't updated the sheet at all
Ok. Just found that vital strike works with counter punch. So let's make use of that.
Greater Trip replaced with Gazelle Punch Whenever you ready a counter punch, you treat your reach as though it was 5 ft. further for the purposes of being able to make a counter punch. If the triggering action was taken by a creature that is outside of your normal reach, you may move to a square that places the creature within your reach (this movement does provoke attacks of opportunity) before making the attack. At +10 base attack bonus, your effective reach increases by an additional 5 ft. (up to your speed).
A big problem counter punch is that you have to stand still. If the enemy just doesn't do anything to trigger, the turn is wasted. This removes that problem, making it a valuable option.
Greater Brute replaced with Critical Genius
You may select 1 weapon with which you are proficient (including unarmed strike), treating that weapon as though its critical threat range was 19-20 (unless it would be higher) and its critical multiplier as though it was x2 (even if it would normally be higher). In addition, when you confirm a critical hit with the chosen weapon while using the attack action, you deal additional damage equal to your base attack bonus; this additional damage is applied after other modifiers and is not multiplied by the critical hit. At +10 base attack bonus, the chosen weapon’s critical threat range is instead treated as 18-20. Author's Note: The change in critical threat range and critical multiplier from this talent is applied before other modifiers, such as the keen weapon property or the weapon mastery class feature.
This is just great for unarmed attacks. An 18-20 crit range is beautiful. Throw in Keen when he gets the cash and his fists can be 15-20x2. It might even be worth moving into Gladiator Sphere with a 15-20 crit range, just to get the boasts that trigger from getting a critical hit.
Sorry guys, the holiday weekend turned ugly when the dog pulled my wife off-balance, and she took a hard fall on the front walk. Nothing broken but a few scrapes and bruises.
Can you get Keen on an unarmed strike? I forget, didn't you give up the different damage type (Boar something)?
I think working in Gladiator sphere is an interesting idea, it strikes me as a tasty one. Let me ask you this though, I was considering getting one of the war leader shout talents that makes its targets shaken. I want to look later, and make sure we wouldn't run the risk of stacking too much for your on guys, I don't even know if you could or if that's a bad thing if it did happen.
By the way, have either of you noticed recently that after you submit a post, it takes a hell of a long time for it to show up on your browser?
Yes, Paizo's been having all kinds of technical difficulties lately. It's quite frustrating.
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IIRC, you can have keen unarmed strikes by changing the damage type to piercing or slashing. Boar Style, Tiger Style, and Snake Style are a few ways that come to mind.
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Gladiator and Warleader are both fun spheres. I'm not worried about an overabundance of debuffs. Since it's a PbP, everything's written out for me to see, so it's pretty easy for me to keep track. XD
I looked it up, I'm 98% sure that multiple shakens from demoralization don't stack into frightened/panicked (the last 2% uncertainty is due to Spheres).
But it might still be unnecessary, from a duplication of effort standpoint. I don't plan on using shouts much anyway, but let me see what else Warleader has to offer (that Verbal Counter one Torsten had pointed out looks really interesting).
Meta: This is the point in the campaign where you're expected to leave Korvosa and not return for a long while. There's a MacGuffin to find!
There'll be a way to quickly get back to the city when desired, but there are no plot-required reasons to do so until Book Six. As such, now's the time for both of you to get your affairs in order regarding Zellara's Mark and anything else you want to do.
When you're ready, let me know how you plan to help with the sneaking to the river. Blackjack's very stealthy, of course, but Neolandus is just a low-level NPC. XD
Huh, I knew this day was coming, and yet... (sniffles)
Hmm. As to how to handle the shop, Torsten, do you think we could give the priests of Dawnflower House a bag of gold and have them watch over the joint? If not, ideas for a plan B?
As for how to get Neolandus out, let me ask you, GM... how amenable are you to my changing the combat talent I picked up at 10? Because one of the Warleader alternatives I was strongly considering was Covert Operations, which gives everyone a competence bonus to Acrobatics, Escape Artist, and Stealth (it would currently be +5). I was planning on picking up that additional Warleader talent at 11; I could just pick it up a level earlier than I'd planned to, then get Shield sphere at 11.
Any other way of aiding in this context would've required more lead time than this. Like a Ritual to throw some version of the Obscurity Protection talent would've been doable, but that's one of the only other options I can think of off the top.
I'm fine with swapping the talent. You can also use Witness the City to get information regarding safe/dangerous routes. XD
Oh, I like options that don't require me to rebuild most of all! :D
Thanks for helping me keep focus as I make off-the-cuff posts at work.
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We probably could. Though I think we could just have Macaria do it. Former PC, has a reason to stay in the city and has reason to work with us. Simple way to keep our investment safe for when we return.
Let me ask you this: would it be possible to use Martial Flexibility to grab Covert Operations on an as-needed basis? It'd be 3 stamina for a minute's worth of use.
Extra Combat Talent is a Combat Feat, so that's perfectly fine. SoM makes Martial Flexibility even more useful than normal. XD
True, my only concerns were 1) you have to already have the base sphere (I do), and 2) it only lasts a minute, so I was concerned that however much time the Stealth checks entail might not be covered.
Torsten, have you got any thoughts on the idea of whether we should be using the aid another action to help Neolandus? If we're trying to keep this guy quiet, every little bit helps, sure, but the downside is RAW aid another cost to standard action to use each turn, so it would affectively halve our movement speed. I guess the key thing that's really got this up in the air for me is not knowing how far we have to go. GM, would my character have any idea how far it is to get to the boat?
You're looking at approximately 2/3 of a mile.
Thanks. Using that information, let's just say for the sake of nice clean numbers, that number of "approx 2/3 mi" is 3600 feet.
IIRC, Stealth wants you to move at half speed, or take a -5 penalty to go up to full speed (check me on that?).
Assuming we're all 30' movers, overall, that'd be 240 turns (24m) at half speed, 12m if we ate the -5 (which I don't think we should be doing, as it defeats the entire point). This is far too long a distance to cover with Martial Flexibility, unless we rest three minutes for every minute of use.
If GM's amenable, rather than flex into Covert Operations, I'd just as soon quickie retcon to have taken the actual talent at level 10. Shield sphere can wait, this was a talent I was strongly considering getting next level anyway (taking another Warleader talent to keep getting Influence ranks through level 15), and it'd be a shame to miss one of the situations the talent seems tailor-made to cover. In that case, the 24 minute travel time is indefinitely sustainable with the bonus that talent provides.
If not, I'm also more than content to let the chips fall where they may, and make a godawful racket as they do.
Another option is to have Torsten take point. 30ft lifesense will give a round of advance warning that someone's close by. That's enough time to flex into Covert Operations and hide until the coast is clear.
That works for me. For Torsten, he isn't trained in stealth, and he lucked out with his natural 20. It doesn't make thematic sense to me for him to be splitting his attention between that and helping someone else do what he is succeeding in by dumb luck. But taking point and using his magic to help out? That makes sense to me.
Let me just ask this, would you be okay with if I wanted to do it as a revision of my level 10 combat talent choice? Like I said, I was strongly considering that for pickup at 11 anyway.
Sorry if I'm being dense, I just wasn't getting a clear read on your preference from the above, and my own preference would be to just take the talent.
That's fine by me.
I appreciate the patience in me working through that. Stuff is officially switched over, (I left the Shield sphere text in my profile but in with strikethough formatting and a note).
That said, we can take our nice leisurely time, get the full Stealth bonus for moving half speed, and if Torsten sees anyone trying to sneak up on us, we can light them up. :)
Starting next week I am taking a very, very much needed vacation. Will be gone for 2 weeks. Should have internet for most of the time, and will try to post whenever possible.
Cool, have fun & stay safe!
I'll be taking the family to Niagara Falls 24-27th of this month; I'm expecting available time to post will be low, maybe a little bit at night.
Looks like the end of the month will be busy for all of us. XD In my case, I'll be celebrating my birthday and getting ready for the start of the new school year.
That's right, yours is right there too. Mine's the 31st.
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We're officially halfway through the campaign!
Harrow Bonus (Book 4): one-time use to reroll a failed STR-based check with a +2 bonus
Momentous occasion!
As for the barrow deck:
“ The Big Sky
This is the chaotic good card of strength. It represents momentous change, as when all the slaves of a nation are emancipated.[6]
The Forge
This is the lawful neutral card of strength. It represents strength through diversity, or strength from many sources united against a single trial.[6]”
Do you have a preference? If you don't, I could probably write up something for The Forge without too much effort.
Wherever you guys are, I hope you're keeping cool, or as much so as can be managed.
Go for it! I’ll get something written up when I get the chance. Also hope our benevolent dictator’s stomach is feeling better
Indeed. There will soon be cake that demands to be eaten!
It's feeling much better, as a matter of fact. XD
(Rereads Gameplay post.)
Holy God, "listen's?" I hate myself.
Callback to a Level 3-4 quest. XD
Will reach home late tonight from Quebec vacation. But got a gameplay post in to keep us moving.
How was Niagara Falls?
It was awesome! We'd originally planned to stay on the NY side, but we audibled when we got there, changed our reservations, and stayed on the Canadian side. The view from that side is unmatched.
Unfortunately we couldn't squeeze in a Blue Jays game too, Toronto is an hour and a half away and their only game was the night before we left. Next time! (This is my white whale, back in like, '81 my Dad and I were supposed to see a Jays game when we were up there for vacation, and like two days before we got there the players went on strike.)
I hope your Vaca was good too, and GMs birthday!
My stuff was good. Very low key as we're still getting settled in from the move. I'm glad you both had good times as well. XD
Most Efficient Route: Korvosa --> Kaer Maga (230 miles) --> Kallow Mounds (50 miles)
So...about 8-ish days of travel by foot. Once more a ring of sustenance (the Pathfinder diet) pays for itself.
There are horses available here - along with any provisions you might need. I know Ril's wanting some answers from Blackjack as well, so we can move to that when you're ready.
Work starts back up for me tomorrow, so my posting availability will be dropping. Fortunately, we've been keeping a rather relaxed pace for a bit, so I don't think it'll affect anything. XD
Pushing the boulder up the hill...a relaxed pace is good. Keep everyone's sanity in check.
Sorry, the past week has been a very audit-heavy week for me. Sanity has been in very short supply.
But yeah, as long as I can get a horse that won't toss a rider who happens to be throwing fire around, I'm game to try (just about one of the only class skills I haven't put any ranks into!). :) Ril will address Blackjack in Gameplay momentarily.