Among the Nine-Tuiled Gods (Inactive)

Game Master VixieMoondew

Discussion thread for GM Nine-Tuiles's Among the Gods!

Kitsune Skulk: ASSEEEEEMBBLLLLLLLLLLLLE!!!

I'll also need this info from you:

Paizo Name:
Character Name:
PFS Character Number:
Faction:
Day Job Roll:
Slow Progression?:
Anything I need to know about your build in advance?
A 5-paragraph essay on why I'm your favorite GM:

Paizo Name: TriShadow
Character Name: Sionnach Brummagem
PFS Character Number: 151777-22
Faction: Grand Lodge
Day Job Roll: Perform: 1d20 + 15 ⇒ (13) + 15 = 28 [ooc]Might use a reroll if I have one left at the end.
Slow Progression?: Nope!
Anything I need to know about your build in advance? I am totally engaged to a super buff farmgirl.
A 5-paragraph essay on why I'm your favorite GM: My rough draft features words like 'snugs' and 'big spoon'. Still working on it though.

Player: RePete
Character Name: Utara Yuu
PFS #: 126566-10
Faction: Dark Archives
Day Job: Profession (Infiltrator): 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (5) + 6 = 11 If available at the end, will reroll
Progression: Normal
Anything I need to know about your build in advance?: Umm...I bite, can eat 1 soul per day, and have negative energy fervor stuff. Maybe at higher levels something interesting will go here...Blessings are double and hand of the acolyte.
A 5-paragraph essay on why I'm your favorite GM:
Hey, I just met you
And this is crazy
Here's Utara
GM me....maybe?

Paizo Name: Pete H.
Character Name: Kenta Faux
PFS Character Number: 123584-13
Faction: Liberty's Edge
Day Job Roll: Profession: Coachman + MW Tool: 1d20 + 5 + 2 ⇒ (17) + 5 + 2 = 24
Slow Progression?: Neyope
Anything I need to know about your build in advance? With Hiiragi taking a session off, Kenta has the prettiest muscles in the group.
A 5-paragraph essay on why I'm your favorite GM: Well mainly because you love dogs so much. Love them because they are great hunters. Hunters of all sorts of vermin and terrible creatures in the wilds. Stinky furred predators that need culled. That's why you love them so much, because of all the critters they hunt down and kill.

I just want to specify that I'm a kind and magnanimous GM, and that if Kenta is slain it's entirely because the dice rolled in that direction. *innocent whistles*

Paizo Name: supervillan
Character Name: Ikari Hateshinai
PFS Character Number: 75577-14
Faction: Exchange
Day Job Roll: profession (farmer): 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (7) + 5 = 12
Slow Progression?: Normal
Anything I need to know about your build in advance? Oh, you know. Gets angry. Grows to SUPER-MEGA-KITSUNE size. Kills stuff with a christmas tree.
A 5-paragraph essay on why I'm your favorite GM: Well, I've got two words: "fox brush" ;)

Paizo Name: Abraham Z.
Character Name: Phidöe (pronounced like Fido, but with a French accent)
PFS Character Number: 100198-16
Faction: Liberty's Edge
Day Job Roll: n/a
Slow Progression?: Nope
Anything I need to know about your build in advance?

No Gameplay thread quite yet! I'll mention it here when it's ready. Got a lil reading to do and some slides to set up.

He'll also be Climbing on foes, either from within their square, or from the adjacent square (how that works is a good question), using his Limb Climber ability.

Is this open to GM interpretation? I feel like that was designed with Not-Tiny creatures in mind, but......................... conversely, y'know, it does say "within their square or an adjacent square," so... I guess????

If you climb somebody while Tiny, do you enter their square automatically as part of the process?

I'm starting to see why you mentioned a lot of not-necessarily-clear things here...

negative energy fervor stuff.

Just as a quick Q: are you one of those folks who gets healed by negative and harmed by positive? Played with one or two of those before and it's always interesting.

Gameplay Thread now created and active!

Also, Slides are up; feel free to assign yourself along Slide 2. Been a while since I GM'd PFS, so forgive me if this ol' jalopy is jerking across the starting line here!

I am healed by positive energy and damaged by negative still. I just have the bad touch negative stuff due to following an evil deity.

Swarms beware!

Looks like y'all are ready to go! :D

I just wanted to say thank you for the great times/memories and that I'll reach out when/if I start doing PbP again in the future. I don't think I've done this yet, so I'll be PMing each of you my email address if you ever find yourself in London and/or the wedding happens!

We'll miss you! See you when we see you-- and if you're ever in the States, let me know!

Phidoe wrote:

He'll also be Climbing on foes, either from within their square, or from the adjacent square (how that works is a good question), using his Limb Climber ability.

Is this open to GM interpretation? I feel like that was designed with Not-Tiny creatures in mind, but......................... conversely, y'know, it does say "within their square or an adjacent square," so... I guess????

If you climb somebody while Tiny, do you enter their square automatically as part of the process?

I'm starting to see why you mentioned a lot of not-necessarily-clear things here...

Yep, the rules don't really spell out exactly how this should all work and it will get even more up in the air when I add the mouser swashbuckler's underfoot assault after this adventure. I'll be fine with however you want to interpret the rules. The basic idea of the build is to climb on enemies and harass them while standing on their heads; to that end I've pumped up Acrobatics and Climb skills, while also adding some useful abilities. For example, from the Scrambling Servant trait, he doesn't lose his Dex bonus while Climbing - given that Climbing on foes is the Vexing Dodger's whole shtick, I strongly suspect that the designers probably intended the archetype to not lose a huge chunk of their AC when they do so, but RAW they do - but this trait takes care of that.

I think probably the two main things that will need rulings (though I'm guessing other stuff will come up that I'm not thinking of at the moment) are:

* Do I need to be in the same square to climb on a foe since I'm Tiny? If not (since the ability says you can do it from adjacent), if I Climb them from adjacent, can I still not attack them (until I move into their square - and is that a 5' step? a move? a climb?) or if I Climb them from adjacent is it now understood that I'm "on" them?

* What happens if I'm Climbing on a foe and they move? Do I move with them?

Okay, so, Rulings:

-You can climb on a foe from adjacent, but doing so moves you into their square.
-Yes, you move with them (and your weight will contribute to their Encumbrance movement penalties in the process, but that’s unlikely to make a difference)

Just my 2cp, though I'm sure I'll be GM'ing Phidöe at some point:

I'd say you can climb from adjacent regardless of your size, just so long as you're at least one size smaller than the creature you climb on (per limb climber). I think using limb climber is a move action; it doesn't say differently and using the Climb skill is normally a move action. If you have a Climb speed maybe you can use limb climber with a 5' step. Once you successfully use limb climber, yes you are on the creature. And then if it moves, you move with it (like a halfling riding an Ent). It would have to use some kind of combat manoeuvre to get you off.

Paizo Name: Ietsuna
Character Name: Toshiko
PFS Character Number: 204997-22
Faction: Liberty's Edge
Day Job Roll: Profession Sailor: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (3) + 3 = 6
Slow Progression?: Nope
Anything I need to know about your build in advance?: I drink and I throw things.
A 5-paragraph essay on why I'm your favorite GM: Can I get an extension on this assignment please. I have many university assessments due at this time.

When I was building this character, I did consider taking the negative healing affinity stuff. Primarily I could heal myself that way.

However, I do believe at this point, I made the right call. Not sure Kenta could have handled healing as undead on top of worshipping the Prince of Darkness. :-P

Oh, he'd be happy with it. :P

*Channel... Channel... Channel...*

"Why isn't he getting better? Whoops, my bad."

Poor Kenta. We replaced the used-to-be-evil Itami with currently-kind-of-sort-of-associated-with-a-Lawful-Evil-deity Utara.

I'm sure that redemption arc is just around the corner! Any minute now... aaaaaaany minute now..............

Worth noting: I'm enjoying Kenta having someone to snarl against. I'll let you know if you go too far, but so far I don't see any actual risk of that.

Oh, I just really really hope we face a devil soon and Kenta smites the crap out of it as Utara is trying to negotiate a contract and just gets devil guts sprayed on his face.

"Whoops, sword slipped. Were you doing something there?"

But we shall see how everything plays out. I don't see any major issues going forward. I'm assuming pretty confidently that he won't be doing 'evil' acts in the game, so there won't be much for Kenta to get after him for.

Just a whole lot of Kenta snarling in the corner while Utara goes about his not-evil, not-especially-good business. It's a good dynamic and I'm excited to see how Hiiragi plays into it (assuming, of course, Utara decides to remain a permanent addition to the Skulk)!

Oh, I just remembered:

The Skulk has a Discord server (completely optional) that you can join for idle chatter, build discussions, cute pet photos, whatever. If you'd like, feel free to join here!

No pressure at all, of course. There are a few long-time members that aren't in it either :P

So now I have get to go back through two years of posts. Pretty interesting so far. Reading about all the paths Hiiragi could have taken.

I'm glad you appreciate it, because I always feel like I was too annoying, being so indecisive with her!

Good thing Onna helped her decide she wanted to be a demon-slayer :P after that, I stopped questioning!

That was really my true plan all along, lol. Happy to be of service.

Up to May 2019.

That is one thing Society seems to fail in over home games and APs. It's much harder for character's to develop and grow on their own as opposed to building it out for purpose "x".

That's one of the reasons I'm so addicted to PbP's! In-person PFS sessions tend to be with a fairly random assortment of other PCs, and the time limit means that while there's usually time for some roleplaying, usually that has to be put by the wayside in favor of getting through the whole scenario in 4-6 hours before people start having to go home.

But with PbP... well, even with randos, you'll often find some time to develop your PCs a little or a lot. And sometimes you fall into groups like this one!

I stay back from one mission and you can't even make it to the mission briefing without making Toshi cry. Tsk, tsk...

Yes, I really like how PbP facilitates role play in a way that real time society play is just too crunched for time to allow. It's probably going to take me a bit to sort out all the interactions between your various characters - I'm already a bit lost - but it's certainly entertaining.

I will fill you in on my side at the very least.

In our very first mission Toshi got caught up with the rest of these people. She didn't want to be a Pathfinder. She just keeps getting drunk and winding up in the briefings and stuck on these missions. Most of the scenarios open with her drunk in a bar or being pulled out from under a table drunk. She has gone through her Confirmation and is an agent, but a reluctant one.

We usually get her to stay by reminding her that the Society pays very well.

And money can be exchanged for drinks and services.

And then the cycle continues.

When Ikari questions his dog-ness, Phidöe merely growls threateningly, but inwardly his mind is racing: He's seen through my disguise! What gave it away?!? I wonder if he's the sort to turn me in for the bounty? I could kill him but then there's me vows to think of, not to mention he doesn't look like the easy killin' kind...

A talking dog shows up for a Pathfinder mission briefing :)

Ikari doesn't see through the disguise as such but he's sure that the Pathfinder Society doesn't Confirm dogs as agents. Phidöe is probably a druid or a rougarou or something, another species of shapeshifter.

I'd like to get Fox Shape for Ikari too, mainly for stealth and surprise with vulpine pounce, but there are too many rage powers I want so I don't know if I'll fit the feat in.

Yeah it’s tough when playing a barbarian to not have all your feats go to extra rage powers.

Toshi will buy a cold weather outfit. In terms of resisting cold damage I am not sure.

Ikari will make Kenta and Utara his two Caravan Bond buddies. (Prayers were said earlier, but only two of the participants may benefit).

Yay!

Putting them into a group to make them work together? Hiiragi would be proud!

Sometimes, we can still hear her voice...

"No Kenta, don't touch that! AHHH RUN AWAY!!!"

Sorta like that?

If there's general agreement among the group (and it sounds like maybe there is) that Phidöe can use Disable Device with his paws then I probably will invest some skill ranks in it in the future.

I do not agree that paws are suitable appendages for manipulating thieves' tools. Paws are not prehensile. They have no opposable digits. They cannot grip lockpicks, let alone other fine tools used for sawing links, depositing gum and so forth.

I would allow a character in fox shape to attempt to disarm some types of traps (chew through a tripwire and dodge the falling axe for example) whilst applying a circumstance penalty similar to or potentially greater than the penalty that applies for using improvised tools. Depends on the type of trap. Most often it would be a no though.

(Of course, Phidöe could always assume humanoid form in order to use Disable Device unhindered).

Paws are not suitable appendages to grip lockpicks.

A vulpine mouth capable of human speech thanks to a magical amulet (iirc), however...

It's a Ring. One that uses Divination magic, rather than Transmutation. (Really nice item btw, my barbarian/hippo wears one :D )

Hate to be a party-pooper, but a fox ain't picking locks with its mouth. No, not even a magic fox ;)

Yep, Phidöe is wearing a Ring of Eloquence - the need for that and the agile amulet are the reasons why he wouldn't really have been playable before level 4.

And I think that as a GM I would likely rule the same as Ikari. Honestly, I think that figuring out how to play a character without hands is one of the things that made the concept for Phidöe interesting to me. I could see an argument for some sorts of Disable Device but I think I would also rule against lock picking. Similarly, I would probably allow activating a wand (with UMD) by holding it in the mouth and saying the command word but there are probably lots of other magic items that I would say he can't activate (though of course some that provide a constant benefit, like a cloak of resistance, he can put on before he enters "dog" form.

::nods::

Is the devil worshipper in league with this monster? He shows up. We go on a mission. Suddenly we are attacked by an monster that reeks of evil and he makes no move to attack! Fox or not, he will not catch me unaware.

Fear not. I'm just trying to decide if I want a thigh or a wing. ;-)

This is where buffalo wings come from, fyi. They are actually Manticore wings and the spice is their poison (I actually don't know if they have a poison, but probably?). Enjoy!

Phidöe, I just want to say, your freaking build is a masterclass. Like dang, fitting three different classes together so smoothly is incredibly impressive. I thought I was doing something crazy awesome getting a super smooth balance between two classes when I built my zen archer monk/empiricist investigator for another game, but now that just looks simple! :P

I love your AC and Save synergy, not to mention the very nice attack setup. And that doesn't even include the limb climbing, permanent tiny size and pending Mouser stuff.

So, other than the plan for a level in Mouser, any other crazy shenanigans looking good to you or will you just start digging into one of your four classes for the next few levels?

Aw, thanks. Yeah, I had a lot of fun in PF1 figuring out how to work various crazy multi-class build together, though this might be the craziest. Even though I think PF2 is probably a lot more balanced, I do miss the opportunity for shenanigans that the old form of multiclassing provided. Most of my characters would just dip one level in something else and then see how they could play with that but this one was more about how can I make a tiny handless character work.

Going forward I think a lot of it will be about stacking debuffs. After one level of Mouser Swashbuckler, I take three more levels of rogue will give him Debilitating Injury and the ability to make a dirty trick as a swift action. Three more levels of monk gives him a ki pool for more attacks and elemental damage on the unarmed strikes. That'll take him to level 11. Beyond that - if there even is a beyond that - the only thing I've thought about is some levels of vigilante. Mechanically, I'm not sure that it does much, but I just love the idea of putting a mask on him so that even his "dog" identity is hidden.

I agree with Kenta-- for all the questions it proposes, once it's actually in motion, it's pretty smooth to run for.