OMB's Bonekeep 1 - Nostalgiacon! (Inactive)

Game Master James Martin

Sympathies for both the sick child and the snow.

Just a heads up everyone, I've been sick the last two days so my post rate may start to taper off for a bit. I'm getting tested for Covid tomorrow, so here's to hoping I'm just normal sick.

Get well soon!

The broken penalty negates the enhancement bonuses, so as long as we don't encounter any more caryatid columns, they're equivalent except for magic vs. cold iron.

There's also the limited crit range of broken weapons - always just x2 on a 20.

Get well soon Vrothum!

Get well soon! My son's and my tests came back negative, and there's a lot of nasty winter stuff out there right now.

Just a heads up everyone, I've been sick the last two days so my post rate may start to taper off for a bit. I'm getting tested for Covid tomorrow, so here's to hoping I'm just normal sick.

I'm currently recovering from COVID myself; positive test last week Monday, back to work this week. Thankfully, vaxxed and boosted, so not much more than a weird cold that made everything taste and smell funny for a couple of days.

Things for the kind words everyone, I haven't got my results back yet but I am feeling better tonight than I have the last couple.

Like a shirt button or a switch button?

A switch button!

The casting time on Lesser Restoration is 3 rounds.
That is also the casting time for a wand.

So, that is generally not an in-combat spell. Good to know that we have it to heal up, though.

I have a weekend trip upcoming; I'll be leaving in just a couple of hours and won't be available to post again until Monday.

As far as botting goes, Mun prioritizes getting Selune ready for battle with Improved Spell Sharing. He likes to have mirror image and bull's strength up on both whenever they're in combat, and makes sure that Selune is always protected with mage armor (from a wand). He likes to have heightened awareness up on himself, and shield of faith and divine favor are also good Spell Sharing options.

Prayer and dispel magic are his most common spells to use in combat that aren't part of his Improved Spell Sharing strategy.

He's got a lot of wands to use and the Use Magic Device skill to use them with. From a roleplay perspective, he's kind of selfish with his consumables--especially now, as his alignment was recently moved from CG to CN due to magic item he got--but he'll eventually share with the party after being asked. The best place to see his wands (and other consumables) are under the "Resources" tab in his profile.

If he has nothing else to do, he will step into combat, preferring his longspear for melee and his adaptive composite longbow when he's able to use it without firing into melee (no Precise strike, so firing into melee is rarely effective).

GM, just in case it becomes relevant, here's the text of the chronicle sheet magic item that Poh carries:

Diamond of Demon Seeking: when any creature of the demon subtype comes within 30 feet of this flawless gem, it glows with a blood-red radiance as the light spell. The diamond does not reveal invisible or otherwise hidden demons, but rather simply alerts the wielder to their presence. Spells or effects that protect a demon from divination or alter a demon's alignment prevent a diamond of demon seeking from detecting a demon under such an effect.

Consider Poh to be holding the diamond in his hand.

Just a heads up my posting will be very limited, we were hit by a blizzard and I'm working around the clock plowing roads and spreading salt. Bottling instructions are stick to the back of the group protecting squishy's and charging when possible in combat to set up a rage full attack.

I've lost power. Stupid polar vortices.

Stay safe out there on the roads Vrothum! Stay warm Pig the Runt!

(Happy to be in Florida, even with the freezes)

I assume we are still in rounds. @GM, are you waiting on anyone?

Group decision:

We either go forwards, straight through the fog and out the other side into the "rat room", or we retreat and allow the fog to dissipate (or maybe Mun dispels it).

Either way, worst thing to do looks like to sit in it.

Views?

I vote to push through to the next room, maybe Mun can dispel the fog on the way? I have like 4 flask to deal with a swarm and that's it. Maybe we can run through and close the door once we are through? If there even is a door.

The rat swarm will probably take 1/2 damage from weapon attacks (we'll see what Khugron has managed). Rats are big enough.

Only doors we know about are the ones to the area Aroden wasn't able to scout - who knows what's on the other side. Best not to combine encounters, generally, but this fog and the swarm I think originate from the rat-people immediately south of us and we are effectively encountering them now.

I'd be inclined to back into the slime room. If the cloud follows, then we can push through.

If there haven't been any more opinions by the time I get back to my office, I'll double move to the rat room, then.

I am abstaining from any OOC strategizing in this case.
Aroden will go with the group decision.

@GM - does Bonekeep have a timing component to it? If so, can you share how that's being tracked so we have an idea of whether we're on pace to finish on time?

With the healing, has it been 4 minutes or so since we entered?

Because this is PbP and not tabletop, there is a variation on the timing mechanic of the original Bonekeep runs. I'm not supposed to share what that is, however, as we are guinea pigs for it. Which means these two tables may be the only PbP Bonekeep ever, or they may be the first two.

Four minutes sounds about right.

Anyone any good at stealth? Do we have Invisibility or a summons that might pinpoint the alchemist/mage's location?

Poh has a moderate Stealth bonus and could try sneaking. He could also go in Gaseous Form which might grant a bonus (none is specified in the spell description but as a floaty cloud you're not making much sound).

If these are not options, I'd suggest Dim-dooring right into Area 9 from where we are now, taking the slowest party members whilst the rest of us run up the passageway. Hit us with another Haste first and everyone should be able to get into melee pretty darn quick. There might even be time for Poh to pop up a True Strike before the off.

I don't have any Invisibility options left, nor any summons.

Anyone else?

No; neither

@GM, based on when the spells below were cast, I think Mun probably needs to refresh mirror image, and may need to refresh bull's strength and shield of faith (links go to the posts where the spells were cast).

Can you please advise? Mun will re-buff any of these before the dimension door.

I'm going to say we're at 5 minutes after searching, well-spelunking and healing. It's a good round number. Re-up your buffs as needed.

With Inspire Courage +2, Pig's primary attack does 17 damage.

And his iterative (which was a miss against AC 23) instead hits AC 25 for 23 damage. Is that a hit? Pig hit these guys on AC 24 before, so I am hopeful, although these ones could have buffs up.

I will endeavor to post a full buff tracker in my Gameplay posts - I suppose anyone else who wants to attempt to do so can as well, and between all of us we'll get it straight.

I missed that we had Inspire Courage in effect.

Aroden knows that the Alchemical Golem has DR/(Adamantine OR Bludgeoning).

Shouldn't Selûne have done full damage? Bite and claws can both count as Bludgeoning.

Edit: also, would Aroden know if the Ring of the Ram effect is subject to Spell Resistance?

Drain that ring, Aroden! Blast all the rat monsters with it. 3d6 force damage should go through any resistances.

Good catch! I thought claws were P/S. Turns out they are B/S. I'll make the adjustment to damage dealt.

As to SR vs the Ring of the Ram, it is not clearly a spell or SLA, so maybe it is a judgment call - but wow, SR or no, it's a pretty lousy item in PF.

I had thought it was a ranged touch attack, but it's not.

A ranged attack against regular AC for 3d6 damage?

I guess the Bull Rush is the main thing it is useful for.

I remember it being cooler in AD&D2E.

Good catch! I thought claws were P/S. Turns out they are B/S. I'll make the adjustment to damage dealt.

I include the damage type in every dice expression for damage that I roll. I'm happy that it was 'caught,' but that only means that the information in my original post was either ignored or overruled.

Mun, you did and I missed it when I was assembling my posts. Thank you for including that, it is very useful to have!

Alright, we are approaching the end of Nostalgiacon! Please roll a d20 for possible boon winning.

Boon?: 1d20 ⇒ 3

monkeyboon?: 1d20 ⇒ 1

Test
Boon?: 1d20 ⇒ 11

Boon: 1d20 ⇒ 15

Okay, still need Mun and Pig's boon rolls. I'll report this by 3/6, but we should be done by then or shortly thereafter.

Yeeeoowch! Both the alchemist and the golem are heavy hitters.

We've really got to focus fire.

AOOs always happen before, and can prevent, the completion of the action that triggers them.

This is universal - for spellcasting, for movement, for ranged attacks, for standing from prone. I can't think of any case where an AOO happens after the action.

Specifically on ranged attacks:
Here is one discussion of it.

Here is a similar discussion if using Disarm as the AOO.

Here is another posting noting Sundering a bow as an AOO, again preventing the attack.

@Poh - I would have Dim Door'd everyone to the alchemist if I could so we could focus fire on her. But I didn't think it wise to have all of us in melee with the golem while giving the alchemist free reign to buff and bomb.

Okay, realized that the act of alchemy provokes specifically before the ranged attack occurs, so Poh interrupts and trips!

The alchemist can't Fly away - she already took a 5' step this round and so cannot move.

. . . she already took a 5' step this round and so cannot move.

Thus escaping my Combat Reflexes! Grr. >:)

Boon?: 1d20 ⇒ 12

Thanks for following up with the research / links whilst I was sleeping and working :)

Aroden is also right about the alchemist not being able to fly off - unless she can do so as a swift or free action :o