Starfinder: On Blade's Edge (Inactive)

Game Master RuneSeerFenzik

Hello crew and welcome to what I hope will be a very fun campaign! Due to how important tactics and cover mechanics are in Starfinder, we'll be playing using maps on R20. This will not affect the posting expectation of 1 per day minimum, it will just help keep track of everything.

The game has Starfinder character sheets preloaded as well, so if you'd like to track your sheet there let me know and I can assign one. Keeping your own PDF is also acceptable as long as I have a copy to reference!

https://app.roll20.net/join/12527592/8qwuvw

I'll be changing this to an appropriately named OOC thread once everyone has checked in with a post to register.

Some points of discussion before the game starts:

1. Would we like to start at level 1 or 2? I'm flexible on this.
2. Character creation:
-Standard Point Buy from the book
-Archetypes allowed
-All Paizo sourcebooks allowed including Galactic Magic
-We'll be using the Alternate rules for Dynamic Hacking (for tougher computer checks only) and Scaling Cantrips. I'm also debating using the Prepared Caster alternate rules specifically for Witchwarper to give that class a little more versatility/oomph. Open to thoughts on this.

3. The general plot hook/tie that will cause the party to come together in the first place. Several of you have mentioned the desire to have characters that at least start with a corporate background. My thought was to have all of you be employees of one of the lesser corporations on Absolom as a jumping off point. Again, open to thoughts.

4. I'll be posting all my table and house rules in the campaign description. If anyone has concerns regarding the, just send me a message :) Looking forward to playing with you all!

STLE-01 reporting for duty O7

Black Dow, Misericordia-5's player also reporting for duty.

1. Am flexible on either Level 1 or 2 as a kickoff point. Level 2 gives us some "prior" experience under our belts so we could tailor skills picks etc to suit (and potentially 2,000CR starting wealth). I'm big on non-optimising builds so like popping skills or feats into the mix that are more character driven, but am happy to go with the flow.

2. Not up to speed on the alternate rules (will do some reading up though) - with Archetypes in play this might also have a bearing on Level 2 as a kick off point? (should anyone take a dip into an Archetype).

3. With campaign blurb mentioning that refugees are flooding into Absalom, would also make sense for small corporations/organisations to recruit from the influx. That would give some of us another "in" - whether we are already employed by the corp/org or have sought out potentially gainful employment (or been headhunted)? Would give an opportunity for blending the group (whilst still having them all ultimately work for the corp)?

4. Houserules look cool. With Misericordia-5 being a Biohacker defo works :)

Watermelon Slushie, checking in! Will create/update an alias with my final character decision later.

As for the pregame points:

1. Feel free to correct me on this, but I thought most classes get a lot of their defining traits by level 2 so I'm perfectly okay with starting there.

2. I'm always a huge fan of scaling cantrips. Helps keep casters in the thick of it without needing to rely on weapons necessarily. Does all Paizo sourcebooks include the various player choices (like races) certain APs provide?

3. The idea of a group coalescing together from different committees or businesses due to converging interest intrigues me greatly.

4. I'm okay with those house rules! Makes Biohackers feel like chemists and gives heavy weapons more dakka. :D

Watermelon Slushie, checking in! Will create/update an alias with my final character decision later.

As for the pregame points:

1. Feel free to correct me on this, but I thought most classes get a lot of their defining traits by level 2 so I'm perfectly okay with starting there.

2. I'm always a huge fan of scaling cantrips. Helps keep casters in the thick of it without needing to rely on weapons necessarily. Does all Paizo sourcebooks include the various player choices (like races) certain APs provide?

3. The idea of a group coalescing together from different committees or businesses due to converging interest intrigues me greatly.

4. I'm okay with those house rules! Makes Biohackers feel like chemists and gives heavy weapons more dakka. :D

You are correct on all points. Level 1 is rough. There are not sourcebooks to compile options from AP's, but sites like The Hidden Truth have them plus references to the books they are from. Let me know if you need to look at PDFs as I have most of them.

And the houserule for the long arms is definitely necessary. RAW Full attacking with auto weapons is basically never worth it. This way the cost is high but not outrageous.

I'm fine with either level one or two really. My class doesn't need too much tweaking since I don't use magic. Steel is all tech all the time baybay. For good or bad lol.

BTW looking forward to playing with you all.

Excellent! Since I own & read most of the main sourcebook PDFs, I think I have a good grasp on character creation. Now to narrow down what to build...

Oh, points of order:
-Should we be concerned at all about a backstory or no?
-Basic 1,000 starting creds for gear buying or more?

I'm here too, reporting for duty! I'll come up with a name when I've got a more focused concept. But I'm looking forward to enjoying my first Starfinder experience with you guys.

1 & 2.) I am up for whatever everyone else wants to do for starting level, I don't have a preference. I don't know that the mentioned alternate rules will have much of an effect on me, but I'll cross that bridge when we make it there.

3.) I did mention wanting a corpo character, so I'm incredibly down with our hook being how a corporation interacts with wars. I had planned to have my character be an Envoy involved in either HR or PR for a corporation invested in the current environment of fear, so that's where I'm kind of standing.

4.) Sounds good to me!

Excellent! Since I own & read most of the main sourcebook PDFs, I think I have a good grasp on character creation. Now to narrow down what to build...

Oh, points of order:
-Should we be concerned at all about a backstory or no?
-Basic 1,000 starting creds for gear buying or more?

1000 cred starting for level 1, if we have everyone chime in and we are all good with level 2, it'll be 2k.

As for backstory, anything you give me I'll make use of. Even if it's as simple as what planet your character was born on, if they have family or friends from their past I can bring in, etc.

I think what we should figure out first, for everyone's sake, is what sort of company or organization we're all working for. I'm pretty set on either Envoy or maybe Soldier for class, so I've got flexibility as either the face or muscle of the company for characterization, but if we've got a Biohacker and a Mechanic who both work for the same company, we should probably figure out what's got them both working under the same umbrella!

I think level 2 would probably be a good starting point as others mentioned. Leaning towards playing soldier on my end (some manner of mercenary contract bodyguard or the like probably.)

As for plot hooks, if we go the corporate route, we could do some manner of freight company. Some sort of middle-man organization shipping supplies/arms/etc. about (or even smuggling if we don't end up caring too much about staying above board, would be easy to sneak stuff in and out under the cover of all the traffic.)

my character is a mechanic with a bit of a 'former cop' theme. im figuring after leaving the stewards he started working as security for whatever corp we're tangled up with.

have we settled on starting at level 2 then? if so i need to update my sheet.

for those just getting started on your build, if youre not familiar with it i highly recommend using 'hephaistos' for managing your character. it is a website for managing character sheets, drones, and ships, and includes all the content up to galactic magic (i beleive).

including link below:
https://hephaistos.azurewebsites.net/

Misericordia-5 would be offering her services as a paramedic of some kind. She will have been a recent recruit for our corp, plucked from the influx of refugees and those seeking asylum/safety on Absalom.

Regards her backstory I'll reverse engineer and throw in skills/etc to suit.

Looking forward to gaming with everyone as well :)

Out of curiosity where is everyone based? I'm in the NE of Scotland, UK (GMT +0)

Whether I go technomancer or mystic, my character was probably going to have a job or some experience as a detective/private investigator. I could see them being hired to look into some company malpractice, shady back-alley deals, or maybe even some paranormal cultist activity.

I feel like an argument could be made that technomancers would also prepare spells, since they log them all in their spell cache, but I'd be fine doing spells the normal way via core rules.

Also that hephaistos site is incredibly useful for noobs like me. Thank you so much!

Edit: Hello from the Gateway Arch! o/ (American Midwest, CDT/CST -5/6)

At this point we have a majority in favor of level 2, so let's say we're starting at level 2. Provided there's no one that absolutely hates the idea of a corporate theme for the start of our game, that's what we can go with. When each of you have time, I'd like you to reach out to me directly with how you'd like to be connected to the company. You can either be employees, contractors or private investigators/auditors, whatever you would like :)

The company we will be focusing on will be a small corporation named Allied Alloys. The company is a distributor for materials that various weapon and armor manufacturers use for their products, and its one high profile contract is with several of the dragon-owned operations on Triaxus. This contract allows Allied Alloys to be a substantial redistributor of the metal known as Siccatite. Triaxus is rich in that metal since the dramatic climate shifts don't affect it (It's extremely stable versus both cold and hot temps).

The recent war that's broken out on Triaxus has put the company's future in question, as without that contract/Siccatite the rest of your contracts won't be able to cover the overhead.

Sounds good to me.

Also probably a dumb question, but I literally only recently made an account for this game and have never really messed around with Paizo forums before: how does one go about making a character sheet on here?

Not a dumb question at all. I recommend making a character sheet using the website STLE linked above. That, or the roll20 server has character sheets which I can assign out to you if you want.

If working for a pre-existing corp isn't everyone's thing, the thought also crossed my mind that you could have all started a brand new business together right before all these conflicts started popping up, with your mission to help your Corp survive it's fledgling years. Up to the group though.

I think level 2 would probably be a good starting point as others mentioned. Leaning towards playing soldier on my end (some manner of mercenary contract bodyguard or the like probably.)

As for plot hooks, if we go the corporate route, we could do some manner of freight company. Some sort of middle-man organization shipping supplies/arms/etc. about (or even smuggling if we don't end up caring too much about staying above board, would be easy to sneak stuff in and out under the cover of all the traffic.)

I think I've convinced myself to play soldier too. Would you want to loop in together with me, maybe we could be a duo of security specialists that the company has hired on as a package deal?

Not a dumb question at all. I recommend making a character sheet using the website STLE linked above. That, or the roll20 server has character sheets which I can assign out to you if you want.

A roll20 sheet would be nice, will save me a log-in and also tabbing in and out when combat happens. Plus I'll need a token for that anyway.

Arlyn Booker wrote:

I think level 2 would probably be a good starting point as others mentioned. Leaning towards playing soldier on my end (some manner of mercenary contract bodyguard or the like probably.)

As for plot hooks, if we go the corporate route, we could do some manner of freight company. Some sort of middle-man organization shipping supplies/arms/etc. about (or even smuggling if we don't end up caring too much about staying above board, would be easy to sneak stuff in and out under the cover of all the traffic.)

I think I've convinced myself to play soldier too. Would you want to loop in together with me, maybe we could be a duo of security specialists that the company has hired on as a package deal?

Sure, if you want toss a PM my way with what you had in mind and we can work something out.

I created and assigned a character sheet for you on R20 Arlyn :)

Howdy!

1. I'm used to starting at first level, but not married to it.

2. I'm not playing a Witchwarper, so it's not a big deal to me. Looks like I'll have to bone up on the Dynamic Hacking rules, though, since Computers is an important skill for a Technomancer to have.

3. I'm fine with at least starting out in a corporate environment, though my own character would likely be on retainer as a freelancer rather than a true employee.

4. No concerns here! I'll have my character ready tomorrow!

Excellent! Just wanted to say again I'm looking forward to seeing where this group goes!

Did I see someone say they were playing a bio hacker? I love that class!

You did indeed :)

Never played one so looking forward to seeing how she goes!

Like Archpaladin Zousha - Misericordia-5 will most likely have recently signed on to a retainer with the corp (she's not the employee of the month type lol).

Oh yeah, a rundown of classes as they stand now.

Soldier x2
Mechanic
Biohacker
Technomancer
Techno or Mystic

And no worry on the retainer/contractor idea. I have plans formulating.

for those looking to make VTT tokens for your characters for use in the roll20 maps i recommend using this token maker app. it's easy to use and allows for some nice custom work with backgrounds and portraits.

RP TOOLS TOKEN MAKER: https://tinyurl.com/27m9je3k

for those looking to make VTT tokens for your characters for use in the roll20 maps i recommend using this token maker app. it's easy to use and allows for some nice custom work with backgrounds and portraits.

RP TOOLS TOKEN MAKER: https://tinyurl.com/27m9je3k

example of the vtt token i made for STLE01 using token maker:

STLE-01

(just now figured out how to make clickable links... sorry for lack thereof before)

For those of you who like card-style portraits there's also this type I cobbled together using a combination of token tool and good ol' windows paint.

STLE01 Card Portrait

So to tie the group together, I think I have an idea of the initial hook but wanted to get everyone's opinion. I'm thinking of something along these lines:

The war hasn't stopped shipments of Siccatite from leaving Triaxus yet, but the latest freighter has seemingly disappeared. Given how the Starstone works, it should have been a quick flight back to Absolom with the shipment, but sensors readings show the freighter going into the Drift, but not dropping out at the designated location.

The party has been formed from various specialists both within and outside the company: Security details, engineers, an investigator and a local physician who does mercenary work. None of you were necessarily the top picks, but given Allied Alloy's current financial situation, you were all they could afford. They've outfitted you with one of the company's smaller ships, one normally used to fly out and source new materials for the company to redistribute. You've also been given a contact among the priesthood of Triune. Their expertise in the Drift (and a device that lets them track where breaches lead) will hopefully give your group the first clue they need to track down the D.S. Sekhmet.

Aah, a search for a lost freight ship adrift in... well, THE Drift or open space. The mystery begins~ Getting more & more hyped to play with y'all!

Hopefully an Akashic detective can help sniff out this missing metal.

Also, Steel coming in with all the useful tools. No idea where you find all these, but they're greatly appreciated!

Wait, there's a war on Triaxus? When did that start?! O_o

@STLE: Very cool counters and card chief. Kudos.

Will get Misericordia-5 finished up tonight if I can.

Wait, there's a war on Triaxus? When did that start?! O_o

I'm not going 100% by the story in Society play, just drawing inspiration :) It will have just broken out right before the game begins. Things finally escalated between several of the more prominent nations in the Drakelands. It's not a planet scale war and none of said nations have broken their truce with the Pact Worlds as a whole, but it's disruptive enough that it's affecting trade from the Drakelands.

What happened in Society play?

What happened in Society play?

Oh, I just meant I know the last time Triaxus' political climate was really talked about was the Skyfire Mandate. That's still in place, this is all just infighting between dragons and entirely of my own creation, not from any official source material.

to clarify.

1) are you building the ship, or do we need to put someone in charge of that
2) is the contact going to be on board with us or just someone we can contact via interplanetary comms

for the crew:
since we are going to be have a ship available from jump we should probably hash out which starship role should be typically filled by which party member

STLE-01 is a mechanic, and has ranks in several starship applicable skills. the obvious choice is engineer but he can easily fill the science officer, pilot, or gunner roles if that's preferred.

If you'd all like to build the ship out before we start I think that could be a nice personal touch for the party. Or if we want to just pick a premade, up to all of you.

The contact will be on their own ship. Once they help get you started, their part of the story will be done .

Archpaladin Zousha here, posting with my actual sheet now. All the crunchy stuff is complete, I believe, and the delicious fluff is forthcoming!

I know next to nothing about building starships. If the rest of you want to build one, don't let me stop you. I just have little input as to how I'd want it due to lack of knowledge.

As for starship roles, I think I ended up pigeonholing Asla in as a magic officer. Her mysticism is at +9, and the skills for other roles aren't built up to +5. She could try her hand at being a chief mate, but I don't expect her to excel at that yet.

I've determined that I'm going to be up front and in people's guts as a soldier, so look forward to that.

I would also love a Roll20 sheet because I get scared when I'm too far away from Roll20.

Just in case, I made a blank character sheet for everyone in R20 so far.

Lucia'd probably be a security officer, though she can maybe in theory lend a hand on engineering if needed (albeit with just a +4 at the moment). as well as handling anything involving hazardous environments.

Also I have my sheet for her pretty much done and good to go, I think.

As for customizing the ship, I'm leaning towards starting prefab and making tweaks once we've settled in and have an idea what we'll be getting up to with it, but if anyone has a specific design in mind I wouldn't be opposed to that either.

since no one has voiced enthusiasm for ship building if no one minds i'll take the job and put together?

oh, and still just the 1000 cred starting funds? or do we adjust that for level 2?

ok, i went ahead and took the liberty to get the ship built. if thats not ok we can can it but... i had time.

used an 'explorer' class as the frame, which has enough crew space for 6. gave us 'good' crew quarters so it isnt too uncomfortable for you meat bags ;)

i put it together with a basic loadout of light laser cannons in all weapon hardpoints (1 fore, starboard, port, and turret), noting fancy (i cant see the corp giving us something too tricked out for destruction. the turret generally means as long as we have 2 gunners we can get two shots off in a particular arc each round. more if there are enemies in other arcs (since each weapon can generally only fire once per round)

expansion bays are a medlab, a tech workshop, survey scanners (since its originally built for sourcing materials), and a cargo bay.

we got a decent computer, and some medium range scanners, and some decent shields and armor, plus some ablative armor too add some padding to the ships HP.

i will need the following information so i can assign crew slots so the ships sheet will calculate properly:

Name, BAB, Dex Mod, bluff bonus, diplomacy bonus, intimidate bonus, computers ranks, computers bonus, engineering ranks, engineering bonus, piloting ranks, piloting bonus

if i can get all that for each character i can plug the info into hephaistos and then get the GM a sheet with all the relevant into and bonuses calculated properly for us.

if anyone isnt comfortable with making their own roll20 tokens using token tool you can post a link to your character concept art if you like and ill cobble a decent one together for you and shoot it to the GM

So we ARE starting at 2nd level?

Correct, let me reiterate character rules.

Starting at level 2
starting wealth is 2000 credits
Standard Point Buy

Correct, let me reiterate character rules.

Starting at level 2
starting wealth is 2000 credits
Standard Point Buy

woops. i need better gear. -scurries down to the local Kreeg-Co outlet-