Protectors of Golarion (Wrath of the Righteous AP)

Game Master Sensen

With your permission then, Elliot, I've moved Elliot's token away from the doorway, to Jan's former square, to make space for Merixia(?) Also, same deal with Verene's token: everyone has blanket permission to move her around for your convenience if it's clear she would move but for whatever reason it hasn't happened yet on the encounters map. People have different times they are awake to post, this does not always line up with their place in the initiative order, etc. etc.

Also, Azira, it would be great for us if we could draw the schirs out, but if we all spend a turn backing up and waiting for them to come to us (e.g. Irabeth and Azira move one square left and right respectively of their current positions, while Merixia/Elliot/Thesius stay in a line), they might not conveniently come out to fight us. We can't force them to do so, and they are (semi) intelligent creatures that should understand that emerging from the doorway is a very bad idea for them. (Quite a few actions were lost in the dretch fight by readying for when a dretch came in range, when it seemed clear no dretch had the incentive/ability to come in range.) If we back off, the schirs could, e.g., back away from the doorway themselves (out of line of sight for the archers) and start trying to summon some pals or just wait for us to come to them. We don't want that. Since we can't control their behavior, I feel like it's best to just have as many people attack as we can per turn, even accepting the partial cover penalties to AC. The dice roller has really been against us though!

Wow, RNG really hates us this time around.

Oh, Merixia and Azira, you do get to roll attacks for Lorn and Barok respectively if you choose. Maybe the RNG gods will look more kindly on them...

Barok is guarding the other door that has something demonic behind it, so that we can't get surrounded. He has no line of sight to attempt an attack.

That may be a good idea. Though they may not attack, they also might! Who can say?

Nooo, I wasted such a good damage roll! T_T

Thesius will hold until Azira attacks and moves. He'll leave the spot Merixia opened for Elliot.

Not sure I understand where Azira is telling everyone to move to, so if you want Verene or Varel to be elsewhere than I have placed them, Azira, feel free to move their tokens.

Also, I am happy for us to just move along and I'm not at all opposing the current course of action you describe, but mechanically, Azira should not be our usual door-opener in the future. Her flat-footed AC is only 17 compared to Merixia's 21: if she loses initiative, she's pretty vulnerable, as we just saw twice in a row. The peryton would not have hit Merixia on that first gore attack, for instance. In-character, though, Verene isn't going to tell Azira to stop taking point when she is so clearly determined to. But she proposed that Merixia take the ring of protection +1 for a reason — Merixia had been kicking all the doors open for us and Verene thought that would and should continue.

If you're making a character choice to have Azira act recklessly, that's one thing, and like I said, IC Verene won't challenge a paladin of Iomedae about fighting how she wants to. After two fights like this, though, I couldn't not say something OOC.

Elliot and Thesius with shield up are also good door openers, both fairly tanky and wouldn't risk our healer to the enemy's opening barrage. Elliot with active Alter Self and shield has an ac of 25 (flat-footed 21) and pretty respectable HP as well. Next level, he can probably also parry... though not reposte.

I agree though that Elliot in-character would never speak against Azira wanting to take the front, unless this kept backfiring or such. Aside from her paladin code he believes she is a better swordfighter.

Merixia is always happy to kick down doors! But like the others, she doesn't want to step on Azira's toes, plus she's a little distracted right now with blaming herself for not being as good with a sword as Azira or Irabeth.

I don't have to be the one opening doors. In character, Azira would never ask someone else to take a risk that she could take herself, so she volunteers to do it. If someone else said something like 'you took the last two, why don't you let me handle this one' she would let them.

Out of character, I'm still getting the hang of how we're handling opening doors. In most of my pathfinder experience the ones opening the door either got a surprise round if everyone prepared for it (since the creatures on the other side didn't know when the door would swing open, so it was sort of an ambush) or, at worst, opening the door counted as a surprise action so the opener wouldn't be flat-footed even if they lost initiative in the first round (assuming they were expecting something on the other side). I keep forgetting that the way were handling this I can swing open the door to attack (or have someone else swing open the door so I can attack) and still be caught flat-footed.

But, again, Azira won't ask others to take risks she can take--even knowing that she might not be ready for the attack she's expecting--so she'll keep offering to go first until/unless someone else puts themself forward (and in this particular case, her ability to potentially avoid AoOs by tumbling away from enemies could prove useful).

@GM: So... today I was looking at cleric builds with an eye toward the future, as you do when you're consistently rolling low and wondering what to do about that. And I discovered something alarming. Apparently I did not read the Destruction domain's 8th level power, Destructive Aura, critically when picking my domains. I did not realize that it applied to everyone within the radius, including the cleric and her allies. WHOOPS. What was Paizo thinking? Sometimes I wonder about them.

Can I retroactively take the Rage subdomain? Instead of Destructive Aura, I would get what's basically barbarian rage for a number of rounds per day equal to my cleric level. Much safer for the rest of the party. The only spell list differences are 2nd level and 6th level, and I have yet to use my 2nd level Destruction domain spell.

And yes, Ragathiel does offer the Rage subdomain, as befits the Angriest Angel.

Lol- this whole time I’ve been assuming that you had the rage subdomain and that was part of the reason for all the flavor posts about managing your natural rage.

Not sure I understand where Azira is telling everyone to move to, so if you want Verene or Varel to be elsewhere than I have placed them, Azira, feel free to move their tokens.

I'm not picky about specific placement, I was trying to suggest that everyone move close enough to the stairs that something chasing me down the hallway wouldn't see them until it was out in the open. Where Verene is great. If Meri and Elliot moved down/east one square, and Theseus moved to the right/north of Elliot, that would probably work... and then Irabeth could step into the room we just emptied? That way, I (or someone who wants to trade places with me) can open the door and then retreat to draw the demon(s) out to where we can fight them together?

If someone else has a better plan, I'm all for it, but I think we basically need to either draw it out or push it back into its room because if we fight it at the door it's going to be a 1 on 1 fight each round (and asfaik none of us can safely/dependably bullrush a demon).

@GM: So... today I was looking at cleric builds with an eye toward the future, as you do when you're consistently rolling low and wondering what to do about that. And I discovered something alarming. Apparently I did not read the Destruction domain's 8th level power, Destructive Aura, critically when picking my domains. I did not realize that it applied to everyone within the radius, including the cleric and her allies. WHOOPS. What was Paizo thinking? Sometimes I wonder about them.

Can I retroactively take the Rage subdomain? Instead of Destructive Aura, I would get what's basically barbarian rage for a number of rounds per day equal to my cleric level. Much safer for the rest of the party. The only spell list differences are 2nd level and 6th level, and I have yet to use my 2nd level Destruction domain spell.

And yes, Ragathiel does offer the Rage subdomain, as befits the Angriest Angel.

Yeah, that's fine. It's not like we've hit anywhere near where the change will be relevant.

Yeah, that's fine. It's not like we've hit anywhere near where the change will be relevant.

Thank you so much!

Lol- this whole time I’ve been assuming that you had the rage subdomain and that was part of the reason for all the flavor posts about managing your natural rage.

Haha, not quite. Part of what I set out to do with Merixia's character was to explore how extraplanar ancestry might affect a person mentally as well as physically. Most people play tieflings as basically humans with horns and tails, and while that's certainly an option, I felt that there was more to play with. Outsiders have a very alien mindset compared to Material Plane natives, and I think a tiny bit of that might bleed through.

So Merixia has anger issues. Is it her infernal blood, her traumatic childhood, living as a despised and very visible minority? Probably a combination of the three. But she also has the high Wisdom and mentoring from an older cleric with similar issues to be self-aware and use her anger constructively rather than being a murderhobo or cultist of an evil deity out to punish the whole world. (Which might well have happened if she hadn't run into Father Darian. Given that she was living in urban Andoran, I think she could have turned to Norgorber or possibly Calistria's darker aspect.)

Ragathiel is also not a terribly calm celestial. She might have chosen the wrong deity if she wanted to dispel her rage.

Nah, she's not trying to calm her rage, just channel it into an asset rather than a liability.

That’s cool, Meri. I’m trying to kind of do the same thing, but it’s probably less obvious since my natural inclination is to be a do-gooder and I’m a paladin, lol. I am trying to hint at the fact that her lineage is traced back to (chaotic) azatas too though, in her impetuousness and in the way that it’s a struggle for her to not just be driven by her emotions all the time.

Busy day yesterday. I'll be catching up on things later today, so please do not hold things up on my account.

Part of what I set out to do with Merixia's character was to explore how extraplanar ancestry might affect a person mentally as well as physically. Most people play tieflings as basically humans with horns and tails, and while that's certainly an option, I felt that there was more to play with. Outsiders have a very alien mindset compared to Material Plane natives, and I think a tiny bit of that might bleed through.

So Merixia has anger issues. Is it her infernal blood, her traumatic childhood, living as a despised and very visible minority? Probably a combination of the three. But she also has the high Wisdom and mentoring from an older cleric with similar issues to be self-aware and use her anger constructively rather than being a murderhobo or cultist of an evil deity out to punish the whole world. (Which might well have happened if she hadn't run into Father Darian. Given that she was living in urban Andoran, I think she could have turned to Norgorber or possibly Calistria's darker aspect.)

Her chracterisation is great imo. The friendly/spunky attitude is quite endearing, a nice foil for the rage aspect to prevent her being too one-dimensional.

Also, quick note that I will be away for the weekend on a mini vacation trip. Please bot Elliot over the weekend if any combat starts/advances.

Sure thing, Elliot.

Ready to roll whenever the rest of you are, I just wanted to add my two cents to the discussion.

Her chracterisation is great imo. The friendly/spunky attitude is quite endearing, a nice foil for the rage aspect to prevent her being too one-dimensional.

Aww, thank you so much! That was my goal, it's good to know that I'm succeeding so far.

Good lord Jan...

My flat-footed AC is 17… I believe that means yellow missed and I should be at 27 hp?

Yeah, I'm trying to understand it too, Azira. It seemed to me like both attacks should miss. Her flat-footed AC is 17, and with +2 for partial cover would be 19. Green, rolling against the partial cover number because it is on the other side of the doorway, got 17 total, which shouldn't do it. Yellow, rolling against just the flat-footed number because it is out in the hall next to her, got only 16, so should also miss. They both rolled at the same +4, so presumably partial cover was not being included as a penalty in either attack. (As Worldwound GM has quite correctly told us not to do in the past, since it's an AC bonus and not an attack penalty, so it could get double-applied and be confusing.) Neither fly is flanking her, so I don't know where any extra to-hit would be coming from.

Nice crit from Jan with the new cold iron longsword for almost max damage, Thesius!

Unfortunately though, I do think alter self would typically change energy resistance unless you decide otherwise, GM. Energy resistances (see here, under Resistance) are an Extraordinary ability. Polymorph spells like alter self say this: "While under the effects of a polymorph spell, you lose all extraordinary and supernatural abilities that depend on your original form (such as keen senses, scent, and darkvision), as well as any natural attacks and movement types possessed by your original form." It would only be three extra damage, but is something that could affect our decisionmaking later.

Wait, how come I have it at 15 then? For crying out loud, my notes are weird. You're fine, then, Azira.

I clearly need to keep them better updated. Apologies.

Verene: Thanks for letting me know... but it is actually 5 extra damage, I believe, because it dealt 6 and he failed his Reflex save.

Oh right. Somehow I was thinking 6 damage vs. 3 (half) but instead it's 6 vs 1 (resist 5.)

I do wish Verene were more of a quipper. Rolling an 18 right there while the fly is cackling about just being missed is begging for a little "'Prey?' Hope you like the taste of cold iron" type line. But she just tends not to think in those terms. Talking to most of these unswayable enemies is worse than talking to a brick wall because it is a distraction she might not be able to afford — only worth it if what she's actually trying to do is distract them too or draw their attention somehow.

Looking at the statuses spoiler, I notice two things for Verene that differ from what I have: her flat-footed AC should be 15, not 14 (+4 mage armor, +1 Small) and the time remaining on her alter self is listed as 8 minutes, whereas Thesius's is listed as 11. The two of them cast the spell at almost exactly the same time: right before we engaged the vermleks. So whatever the number is, it should be the same for both. (Elliot, who is currently listed at 13 minutes remaining, cast the spell just about two minutes later, right after that vermleks fight / Thesius taking 20 to unlock the door for us, and just before entering the building.) In my admittedly somewhat fuzzy tracking, I had Verene at 11 minutes remaining right before the schir fight, and had now knocked off another minute from all her buffs for the 4-round combat plus a few more rounds of picking up books/detecting fiends through the door/getting in position/what-have-you. But whatever you decide is fine, just let me know so I can update my status line.

Thesius's flat-footed AC in the status spoiler also seems wrong. It should be 16 (+5 armor +1 shield), with a note for Uncanny Dodge: he can't actually be caught flat-footed anymore, so in most circumstances it's no different than his regular AC. (It's still useful to note the flat-footed value for times when he might be denied his Dex bonus for other reasons that Uncanny Dodge doesn't cover.)

Finally, Irabeth is using her father's longsword — do these demonic vermin count as demons for purposes of its bane effect, or no? I honestly have no idea, just not wanting the sword to be forgotten.

Thank you, Verene, for keeping track of this. xD I'll make those adjustments.

It's evil outsider bane, specifically, and they aren't outsiders at all, so the bane doesn't go off, I'm afraid. It's also not cold iron, so it might be better for her to use one of those, honestly...

Thanks, GM (and Verene for noticing the cover thing). I think my touch AC was 15 when I first joined but it went up to 16 then 17 when I upgraded to magical armor/buckler.

Azira, you can also roll for Barok, who has a nice open shot on White.

Thanks. I meant to do that and got distracted at work and totally forgot about it.

Enclosed environments, how I hate you... Okay, since the white fly is next to a door, can Merixia get past Irabeth and Thesius, into the door, and hit the fly from there?

I think you should be able to do that move with no trouble (enemies like the dretch that hit Verene have been able to move diagonally through a doorway 'blocked' by a foe, as long as the space they move to is open), but I don't see any way to avoid provoking an attack of opportunity when moving from Thesius's space to the other side of the doorway. I mean, she can try Acrobatics, but with her armor check penalty that's probably going to fail. Whether that's worth it is up to you.

Hang on, if Hedge hit on a total of 20 when the fly had soft cover from Elliot, why did Verene miss on a total of 22 (melee penalty already applied) when it had soft cover from Irabeth?

I'm apparently not paying enough attention, this is like the third or fourth thing you've had to catch me out on.

... I'm not sure what I was thinking? Maybe I just read the natural dice roll, and not the actual result.

Hey, no worries GM. You're juggling a lot more balls than any of us and I certainly appreciate it. Also Elliot got a nice big crit anyway so it probably didn't matter, lol.

Sorry about that, Meri. I was doing a round of very quick posts and somehow forgot the request to fall back. Nice crit though, by the way.

I was just going to wait for Merixia to get a post in before deciding whether to use the CLW potion for Varel or not. With the potion out and in hand, he'll be able to drink it on the first turn at least, even if something ambushes us from what must be a very tiny room indeed.

Sorry about that, Meri. I was doing a round of very quick posts and somehow forgot the request to fall back. Nice crit though, by the way.

Don't worry, it's fine! Merixia is a bit more stressed and short-tempered right now than I am, hahaha.

Thanks Merixia! That puts Verene at 20/22, which is fine to move forward with, and Varel, who was down 8, back to full.

Corkblocked, ahahaha! Amazing.

I apologize in advance for any typos, mistakes, people I overlooked, etc. Just got done wrestling with maps and datasets for several hours and my brain is fried.

I WILL SUBMIT MY WORK BEFORE THE DEADLINE OR DIE IN THE ATTEMPT! ONWARD!

Go Merixia go!

On the door bashing, I seem to recall that the children each have 15 str, and Thesius has 14. While definitely less than meri's 17, it's only a 1 point difference in the roll for the six of them. I think. So they could probably offer significant aid to the bashing?

To hit a Break DC of 25, Irabeth would have to roll about as well on the Strength check as Thesius would on his lockpicking to hit a Disable Device DC of 30. The GM says up to two people could aid her, which makes sense as not everyone can stand in front of the door at the same time; if we assume she has Str 18* and gets the best-case scenario that both helpers succeed in Aiding Another, she's rolling at a maximum of +8 against DC 25. So she would need a natural 17 or better. But unlike with Thesius, there is additional randomness to what bonus she actually has each time: on some attempts, one or both of her helpers will fail to aid (if it's Merixia and a First Child, each one is rolling every round at +3 vs. DC 10).

Because it's a more certain outcome mechanically over a few rounds, I (and Verene) favor Irabeth** using the adamantine morningstar to bludgeon away at the door until it gives. We shouldn't know all these mechanical details in-character, but it is reasonable for us to know that either Thesius trying lockpicking or Irabeth trying one swift kick could take less time if they get lucky, or quite a bit more time if they don't.

*Since Worldwound GM said she would take fewer maximum rounds than Merixia to do enough damage to the door with the adamantine morningstar to break it, I'm assuming she has Str 18-20.
**It might or might not be obvious to us in-character that she is natively stronger than Merixia based on their builds or something. If it is obvious, Irabeth is the logical choice.

Irabeth does, in fact, have 18 Strength. Narratively, it's probably unclear, given the armor and all.

EDIT: You should prepare your leveling up. This adventure has a weird thing where you will almost immediately jump to level 6 at its climax, but I want you to get at least a couple encounters in at level 5. I think the whole idea is that you hit the Garrison multiple times, but... I'm not sure why.

Sorry for the delay from my side. My week ended with a job offer for the position work has been training me for.

I'm back to regularly checking this week though and will be keeping an eye out for when Thesius' turn comes up.

Thesius is technically at a 16 strength right now as well from the alter self into a half-orc.

Congratulations, Thesius!

Verene and Varel won't be doing much with rolls like that. That's all right though, their contribution likely won't be that important this fight anyway.

Congrats, Thesius!

I did giggle a little when I wrote Irabeth talking about how the morningstar would be just as effective as her sword. It's the little things.

Congrats!