Conquest of the Vale (Inactive)

Game Master leinathan

Oops, sorry -- I jumped the gun I guess, since I somehow got away with it when we went out to where The Battle of Shrah's Fall took place.

I will put in hock my two Potions of Cure Light Wounds, which sell at 1/2 value, to cover the cost.

....But I'll have to go back over my PC sheet very soon. I remember doing my math when making the PC and ending with that 112gp remaining. But then you said you had done an audit, found an error, but were less concerned with the error since, according to your math, I still had 500+ gp left to cover it.

It's also why I haven't started taking time to Scribe Scroll for another spell or three, since I just don't know. I'll get to it tonight or tomorrow; I promise.

The trip out to visit the dead PCs' resting place was taken at the pace of Sven's posting. I would have preferred he let me move things forward, but alas.

Okay. You can sell your potions and spend 75gp to purchase the horse and saddle.

Also, you must buy scribing supplies ahead of time in order to scribe scrolls.

I've recolored the owlbears for convenient identification.

Wulfgar, I've noticed you've called them bugbears several times now -- is that a purposeful mistake?

Also: Pavo and Talia, I'd appreciate it if you'd put up a header with relevant statistics I'm likely to need, like the others have done.

Talia, Wulfgar, and Portia: I'd appreciate somewhere on your profile where you track your own spell expenditure, and if you would keep it current. Everyone else that has daily resources should also have the same thing, so you know what you have and have not used.

I am waiting for someone to take an action.

I will likely cast my Create Pit since it seems to be the best tactical option for our Surprise Round -- at least, no one has jumped in to offer another suggestion. ....That is, unless Talia can cast Slow, which was suggested. If Talia can cast Slow (and is willing), we can do that. If I cast Create Pit it will be nine squares up from Tanu, and one to the right. Those four squares will get that Owlbear and make a nice little hole for the one to its left to get across.

Regarding my daily spells: I assume my Spells Prepared tab in my profile, with strikethrough , is what you're looking for?

.

EDIT:

Slow isn't on Talia's sheet, so I'm assuming she can't cast it. I think when Pavo said "A spell to slow them and direct their advance", he didn't mean literally the slow spell, but rather that a giant pit would slow down their advance against us. A pit spell seems like the best opening move!

Ah, that could be it. Over the years in our various home-games we've gotten so used to trying to make tactical and metagame language as natural-sounding as possible in Roleplay. I'm so used to it that tat's exactly where my mind went.

Slow isn't on Talia's sheet, so I'm assuming she can't cast it. I think when Pavo said "A spell to slow them and direct their advance", he didn't mean literally the slow spell, but rather that a giant pit would slow down their advance against us. A pit spell seems like the best opening move!

Strikethrough will work just fine, Portia.

If you're ready, Portia, go ahead and post your action. Indicate which owlbear you mean by their color, please.

Whoops sorry leinathan, I normally do set up a tagline with relevant information. I'll get that done now.

Talia does not have slow. She'll be using glitterdust to hamper the bears, as well as her performance, which will up Portia's Int by 2 (and give better DCs for her spells), and provide all listeners with outflank and precise strike (though staying close to Tanu is probably the better plan of action in general).

Wulfgar, I've noticed you've called them bugbears several times now -- is that a purposeful mistake?

Sorry, totally by accident, fighting bugbears in two other games so I have them on the mind. Get so wrapped up with the accent that I miss other stuff. I will pay better attention. Of course if the other characters just assume it's because he is a drunken moron, I guess that's fair as well.

Talia, Wulfgar, and Portia: I'd appreciate somewhere on your profile where you track your own spell expenditure, and if you would keep it current. Everyone else that has daily resources should also have the same thing, so you know what you have and have not used.

Sorry I will put the number of spells in the header or a spoiler below and cross off the spells on his page as he uses them. The wands are numbered, I will keep track of that as well.

As I recall, DM rolls one Initiative for everyone?...

Initiative has not begun. You may continue to act until the owlbears recognize that they are under attack.

Been busy with midterms and a few projects, I'll have Casamir ready soon, probably within the next few days.

No worries. I wager I will have some things for you to review, so I think it's realistic for you to be introduced upon the group's next return to Fort Thorn.

I've got a busy day of meetings tomorrow and may not be able to be along until the afternoon. Feel free to bot as needed. Talia will cast glitterdust, catching both owlbears if possible and then as a move action start her insightful contemplation:

At 1st level, affected allies gain a +2 morale bonus to Intelligence and Charisma and a +1 morale bonus on Will saving throws, but they also take a –1 penalty to AC. While under the effects of insightful contemplation, allies other than the court poet can’t use any Strength-based skills or make any physical effort that requires a Constitution check. At 4th level and every 4 skald levels thereafter, the song’s bonus on Will saves increases by 1; the penalty to AC doesn’t change. At 8th and 16th levels, the song’s bonuses to Intelligence and Charisma increase by 2. (Unlike the barbarian’s rage ability, those affected are not fatigued after the song ends.)

This ability replaces inspired rage.

Total of +2 int, +2 cha, -1 AC, +2 moral bonus to will saves, no str-based skills, gain feats precise strike and outflank. PCs can decline the song if they'd like.

Ended up on a long date yesterday, so the post was a bit delayed -- i'll post on my lunch or this evening.

Take your time Ieinthan, we're not going anywhere.

A long date, that sounds like a good thing. That was rhetorical, I don't really expect you to tell us about your date :)

Was that a question???

Sounds good GM, hope you enjoyed your date!

So because I was mounted when the owlbear grappled me, he gets a free reposition out of it to move me out of my previous square? Am I prone now as well, since I was pulled off my horse? Do I take falling damage?

Edit to add: I realize this post could be read as petulant, that is not my intention. I've never actually played a mounted character before, learning the rules as I go, and would legitimately like to know if I am now prone before I decide what actions to take.

As a standard action, you can attempt to grapple a foe, hindering his combat options. If you do not have Improved Grapple, grab, or a similar ability, attempting to grapple a foe provokes an attack of opportunity from the target of your maneuver. Humanoid creatures without two free hands attempting to grapple a foe take a –4 penalty on the combat maneuver roll. If successful, both you and the target gain the grappled condition. If you successfully grapple a creature that is not adjacent to you, move that creature to an adjacent open space (if no space is available, your grapple fails). Although both creatures have the grappled condition, you can, as the creature that initiated the grapple, release the grapple as a free action, removing the condition from both you and the target. If you do not release the grapple, you must continue to make a check each round, as a standard action, to maintain the hold. If your target does not break the grapple, you get a +5 circumstance bonus on grapple checks made against the same target in subsequent rounds. Once you are grappling an opponent, a successful check allows you to continue grappling the foe, and also allows you to perform one of the following actions (as part of the standard action spent to maintain the grapple).

The rules about being mounted are pretty ambiguous, especially as they relate to which square you are in and which squares you threaten. I feel like a possible interpretation is that you stay in just one square, and thus three of your threatened squares are your horse, but I think a more generous interpretation is that you share your horse's squares and threaten adjacent to the horse. Because I had you sort of in the middle, you weren't really adjacent to the owlbear when it grabbed you, so I moved you.

If you've got a different idea, I'd love to hear it and implement it in the future, I just thought this particular action made sense narratively and was within the bounds of the rules.

You are not prone, and you do not take falling damage. If either of those things were true, they would be noted in the post.

I see, that makes sense. I figured that I did share the same spaces as my horse, and therefore would have already been adjacent to the owlbear, causing me to remain mounted but also be grappled. Then, if I had Nisha move on my turn, that would cause me to be dismounted, because Nisha would move but I would not. I don't think it makes a ton of difference, given my ride skill with Nisha is high enough to pretty reliably remount as a free action, just my two cents on it.

Alias is up, will be putting background notes in over the next few days. Overall though, Casamir should be good to go mechanically.

busy at work

GM, question: Is the climb check necessary to move every round, or only while we're in the place we're in?

I’m gonna be super busy Thursday as well; hopefully I’ll be able to squeeze in a couple fun combat posts.

If, however, it looks like I’m missing the show, my first choices are Fireball for the big girl (and other two in the area as possible), and Hypnotism on the big girl. Bot as needed.

Of course, my *real* first choice is coming up with a clever gambit to steal or threaten to damage, or something an egg — and use it to get out of combat. But I’m way too mentally exhausted to do anything now and tomorrow looks Loooong.

I'd like to procure some eggs, personally. Those things have value, IIRC.

Some glitterdust on the mama bear would probably be pretty effective as well. Hard to throw boulders if you can’t see!

Any square that has gray "cliff" areas on it needs to be climbed. Areas that are green and clearly flat can be traversed normally.

Portia -- I will bot you until Friday, unless otherwise directed.

Some glitterdust on the mama bear would probably be pretty effective as well. Hard to throw boulders if you can’t see!

Sounds like a plan!

Silvanshee agathion is added by the summon good monster feat.

Decided to take this over here, so not to clutter up the game thread.

Wulfgar is the only cleric I've played beyond first level, and he was at 5th level the last game he was in. I haven't used him before to summon. at least I don't remember doing so. But I thought if we ever needed to retreat that summoning something to run interference would be good.

I've read Brewer's Guide to Reach Clerics which also discusses the positives of summoning, but I've not done much of it. So thank you for the explanation. Usually I just use the buff spells. Hopefully he will survive long enough to put his armor back on and get back to hitting things instead of being only good for casting spells :)

Just want to make sure I understand the current situation - the huge owlbear has a 15ft reach because he is huge, yes? Which means that with the map as it is right now, everybody except Wulfgar is in melee range already? It also means he can't charge, because charge requires you to go to the closest spot you can attack from, which has to be at least 10ft away for a legal charge, right? Does it have a choice to not use its reach and charge anyway?

Marked off Lightning Bolt for the day.

I would not have moved closer to the Owlbears -- Lightning Bolt has a LOOOOOOONG range. I could have started it anywhere. (But as long as one of those things don't come after me,....)

I am not going to describe details of the statblock in order to let you inform your actions. You are correct that larger creatures usually gain increased reach and that you must move 10' in order to charge. If you are curious about specific creature abilities you should roll appropriate Knowledge in Gameplay.

Portia -- you will certainly get the chance to move again, but if you had lightning bolted from where you were, it would have struck all your allies.

I assumed the fact that it was Huge was a given with the size of the token on the map, and the amount of reach that a Huge creature has is a basic rules question, not a statblock question. I will switch up my remaining questions to be hypothetical to make sure I am not crossing any lines.

Hypothetically speaking, if a medium sized creature is positioned 15' away from a huge sized creature with a 15' reach, is it possible within the rules for said huge creature to perform a charge? They are more than 10' away, and so are able to move the required 10', but my understanding is that a charge must stop at the closest spot that you can melee attack, which for the hypothetical huge creature with 15' reach that would be its present spot, so it wouldn't be able to move the required 10'. Is my understanding of the charge rules accurate?

You do not need to stop at the closest available space, as long as a straight line at least 10' long clear of obstacles exists between you and the person you wish to strike. For example, you could charge past a line of people to strike someone on the end of the line if there was a clear path.

Tanu -- two diagonals is 15', so Tanu can't reach the owlbear. If you want to re-do your action, you have until Wulfgar posts.

Yikes, maybe I should have waited a little longer :(

OK, Spiritual weapon says " It strikes the opponent you designate, starting with one attack in the round the spell is cast and continuing each round thereafter on your turn." so attacking this round should be cool. Asked in game if inspire command or the banner helps with either spell things. Like I said before, don't play a lot of casters, so any recommendations here for an armor-less cleric would be awesome.

Somehow I or the map got moved after my post. I was previously two diagonals away from the owlbear, and after the 5’ step I was diagonal one and down one, which is 10’ and within reach. No idea how that happened, but I know I was two diagonals away before my post.

I'll add another 10 damage to the owlbear, just as long as you know that you ought to be moving your own token on the map.

Wulfgar -- I believe the bat should benefit from banner and inspire courage, but not the sword. The difference being that the sword is not a creature and cannot benefit from being inspired.

Wulfgar -- I believe the bat should benefit from banner and inspire courage, but not the sword. The difference being that the sword is not a creature and cannot benefit from being inspired.

Thank you,

I was planning on healing Pavo, but the last time I looked at the map I thought he was very near Wulfgar and Tanu. He seems to have been moved. But I don't see any post where that movement took place. Did I miss it, or has his icon been moved for his next attack?

Did you read my last post?

Did you read my last post?

yes, but maybe I did not relate it to the map, brb

Edit
Thank you for the explanation Tanu, apparently I had not read the GM's previous post well enough. I will heal Tanu

The GM botted Pavo:

In the face of a cliff that he's not trained to climb guarded by a massive beast, Pavo decides to take the long way around. Talia's performance is for naught if nobody could get over to the other side of the creature, but he also doesn't want to be attacked. Pavo runs north, stopping just inside the creature's reach.

After that, Pavo responded saying that he thought he had posted a full attack, and the GM posted that he couldn't have done that anyway.

Ultimately, though, the map position is currently correct given the GM's botted move. I wouldn't mind a bit of healing, if you are looking for something to do! That owlbear bites hard...

Sorry, HellKnight -- like I mentioned earlier, I don't buff."

I don't think I caught that earlier. I was wondering if she would 'enlarge' him. If we can keep everyone alive, Wulfgar may enlarge him the next round. but wulfgar will need to move within 40 ft of him.

Keep in mind that enlarge person takes 1 full round to cast, and finishes the following round.

@ Wulfgar, It's possible I mentioned it in Gameplay before the three new arrivals. Perhaps I should, after this fight, reintroduce myself. You know, post-first-combat roleplay bonding.

@ DM,
Also, my 5-ft-step went diagonally backward -- immediately under Talia's square. Looking at the Battlemap a second ago I saw Portia's icon moved over; I just moved it back. (Obviously if there is some obstacle or something in that square that prevents me from taking the 5-ft-step,... But even then; I'd probably have taken a Move Action and hoped like hell the Huge Owlbear doesn't have Combat Reflexes (It already took one AoO.). But if that Is the case, I'd like to see the map. Anyway, I trust you to be fair.

Keep in mind that enlarge person takes 1 full round to cast, and finishes the following round.

It is not my day. When I counted the squares for distance, I didn't move the horse and failed to count spaces accurately. I thought I moved Wulfgar out of range to heal the owlbear. I was mistake, and healed it :(

If nothing else I should have moved closer so I could enlarge Pavo the next round.

Sorry folks I Feel like a moron, I'm usually not this incompetent. Hopefully we'll live to joke about it later.

Haha, no need to apologize, Wulfgar, mistakes happen. This is a tough fight and rolls aren't going our way, but that has to change at some point. Or we'll get to try out new character concepts ;)

Win win in my book :)

My HP total should be 6 right now, not 3:
46-21+18-23+9-23=6

Wulfgar heals everyone for 24, heals Pavo for 45, and heals Tanu for 46. 8 wand charges expended.

I don't know that it will make much difference but the rolls no Pavo were 11+13+3+6+6+4+6 = 49 so he was healed +4 more.

The weekend is here again so it’ll be at least Sunday before I get back.

A blanket is large enough to contain two three-foot masses, and Wulfgar's knot is secure enough that the two eggs can be laid across Nisha's back with ease. The horse can take the weight easily, but not a rider at the same time. Not without constantly kicking the eggs, at least.

I was thinking two blankets one egg per blanket. Using rope between them they would be like a saddle bags and should be able to be tied to the back of the saddle with the sashes there. Preventing them from falling off and keeping them from being kicked. Would that work as well?

Any items not specifically taken and written on character sheets will be left behind.

Thanks for the heads up! I actually prefer that, it makes more sense, but few play that way :)