GM Badblood's Down the Verdant Path #09-14 (Inactive)

Game Master Lance K

It looks like I misread that. I thought I needed three past swim checks instead of the one for the three turns. Eh. Practice rolls

Holly and Mistletoe are in the equipment section of the CRB. As it has no cost (or weight either) you can be assumed to simply have it at the beginning of the adventure. If the GM wants to waive this requirement then it has no real impact on the game but I just wanted to clear this up if people want to play Druids or Hunters outside of this adventure. :)

Thanks! It occurred to me when I was comparing what the attached PC and the pregen had in common and I didn't notice a divine focus on the rather short list of Adowyn's gear.

Does anyone have any climbing gear even something as simple as rope, pitons, grappling hook, etc.?

I'm afraid I do not. I need to fix that!

Sorry, this encounter is a little messy as PCS aren't all on the map at the same time. And while tracking the rounds is important, there really isn't a good reason to go into initiative right awway. I wanted to get some rolls to start off in order to get things moving.

The obscuring mist spell should help to negate the tactical advantage of the archer in the tree. Ranged attackers can always stand at the edge of the mist and receive concealment and suffer none in return. They can also move further inside the cloud after attacking and be practically invisible to the archer. Anyone else that feels that they could use a little bit more time to heal up or buff can always camp inside the cloud and feel pretty safe from ranged attacks.

This encounter could have been nastier with the archer attacking immediately so it is a good thing that Alecto stalled her with an excellent Diplomacy check. :)

Thanks about the aid and take 10, I didn't know it - probably because I rarely used it.

Hefting his ax over his shoulder, Bahram will trudge forward to escape the fog, and make progress toward the hostiles. Double move

"I really don't want to hurt your pet mister. You're making your own choice, but this guy doesn't deserve it."

Note to self; review subdual attacks...with a great axe.

Which is why I told you a year or two ago to buy a sap!

You can do non-lethal damage by taking a -4 attack penalty. You can do that with any melee weapon, or those blunt arrows Adowyn has, but generally not with missile weapons or spells.

@GM, is something on the map a difficult terrain?

@Alecto - The GM already told us that all of the frozen lake is difficult terrain.

Tis true, I did say that. Everything on this map is either ice, snow, or ice and snow covered trees.

@GM, thanks! Sometimes a person can miss something .)

You people are going to ruin the pathfinder reputation of being murder hobos with all these non-lethal attacks anyways. I almost feel like I am playing in a super-hero genre or something. :)

You people are going to ruin the pathfinder reputation of being murder hobos with all these non-lethal attacks anyways. I almost feel like I am playing in a super-hero genre or something. :)

Less hero, more trying to not piss off the natives and get us all killed.

^And you see how well that worked. ;)

I am fine with trying to use social skills or trickery to avoid a combat but after that watch out.

Pathfinder is a pretty combat heavy game. Sometimes you get a way to avoid a fight, but that's kind of the exception. I try to let you know when social skills are written in as an option or if you're expected to use non lethal methods on an opponent.

Just role playing it out like Jack would. However, his axe is named "Diplomat" just to cover all the bases.

Combat is like the meat and potatoes of Pathfinder with role playing being the gravy. Non-violent solutions are the garnish that the chef may or may not have left on the plate depending his mood. :)

> I have to ask, does Alecto have Improved Trip? You're numbers imply that she does, but I don't see it on the character sheet.

No, she doesn't. Instead, I rely on this phrase:

> If you have a feat or ability that allows you to attempt the combat maneuver without provoking an attack of opportunity, you can instead increase the bonus on your attack roll for flanking to +4 for the combat maneuver check.

I believe that a 15-foot reach against a creature with a 5-foot reach when performing this maneuver quite falls under the definition of "ability because of which you will not provoke an attack of opportunity". Because I really don't provoke it in any way.

I am sorry, but I think you are definitely not correct about that.

Alecto's trip attack still triggers attacks of opportunity; it's just that depending on her positioning and the reach that the enemy has it may not be able to take advantage of that attack of opportunity. If the enemy did happen to have 15 feet of reach, then Alecto has no ability that would prevent it from taking an attack of opportunity.

Think about it this way...casting a spell always provokes an attack of opportunity but it only matters if an enemy happens to be within reach. Casting a spell when you're not threatened doesn't mean that your character has *an ability* to cast without provoking...it's just that no enemies can take advantage of making an attack of opportunity.

I am going to be on the road Wednesday to Saturday. I expect to be able to post daily (maybe more) but I will include a bot button just in case.

I am going to be on the road Wednesday to Saturday. I expect to be able to post daily (maybe more) but I will include a bot button just in case.

Unless we chain you to your desk...

Adowyn, why aren't you commanding your wolf to do anything? It should have the attack command and its only a swift action to command since its a companion.

My thoughts on the matter going all the back to D&D 3.0; I'm also not out to insult anyone.

Given the damage Jack just ate, forcing him from the field for now, it's a risk that now has to be taken. Hopefully you'll agree with my choice of spot for Leryn; although D&D eliminated facing (I'm guessing Paizo continued that with Pathfinder?), I think a wolf would naturally want to flank since it puts the prey in a more vulnerable position.

No worries, Adowyn! I just wanted to make sure you understood that commanding your animal is something you can do while full attacking. I know that ordering an animal to perform one of its known tricks is either a swift or a free action (off hand I don't remember which, but that doesn't matter much).

In 2nd edition, you're required to spend one of your actions to Command your companion.

Yeah, they probably didn't give Leryn barding because they didn't want to spend a feat on getting him Light Armor Proficiency. Only horses and camels get any kind of armor proficiency by default. Leather lamellar would give him a -2 to attack rolls as well as skills. Of course, what a lot of players do is give their ACs mithril chain shirt barding because that is the best armor you can get without the penalty.

GM Badblood, I will accept your point of view! I'm not sure that it's universal and all GM's will come to the same conclusion, but it's definitely a controversial (debatable) idea on my part, so in such cases GM is even more always right than (s)he is always right.

Thanks for the clarification ;)

> Alecto, I'm not sure if you're prone or not because I'm not sure how you have a +9 to hit with the tripping vine.

1) Tanglevine: ...using your sorcerer level plus your Charisma modifier in place of your normal CMB.

2) Creator's Legacy: Ghoran sorcerers with the verdant bloodline treat their Charisma score as 2 points higher for sorcerer spells and class abilities.

3) Dusty Rose Prism (Cracked) Ioun Stone + Wayfinder: +1 competence bonus on initiative & +1 insight bonus on CMB

So CHA +5, sorcerer level +3, insight bonus +1 = +9

Would casting grease on our opponent's bow constitute an attack for purposes of negating his vanish spell?

Taken from the invisibility rules;
For purposes of this spell, an attack includes any spell targeting a foe or whose area or effect includes a foe.

Its kind of a gray area, but I think a good rule of thumb is if you're making an attack roll or they're rolling a save, then it's probably an attack. I think using grease this way would break invisibility.

Fair enough.

@GM Badblood - My understanding of Spell Resistance is that once a creature is vulnerable or not vulnerable to a certain spell cast by a particular caster then this sticks with the creature for the entire encounter. As I am away from my books now I cannot quote chapter and verse for you but when I get home tomorrow night I will have a closer look at my CRB to prove it.

Sorry, I've been having a real trashcan fire of a week. I'll try to get things moving again soon

Hey! (you may have read this message in other shared games) I will be on a trip next week with three possible options: I will post as usual, 1 time a day; I will not be able to post until Thursday; I will not be able to post all week and will return to the gameplay in 7-8 days. In any case, feel completely free to bot me if needed. Cheers!

Honestly, I hate effects that take away a character's actions, and the mechanics for this one is particularly vicious.

I agree, as a GM, I try to avoid this (where possible; PFS does not always have such an option). The worst example is a Suggestion with words like "you won't win this fight, go back to the Lodge to report everything to VC to have someone return the bodies later." Bye-bye, the player who did not win the will save.

The good side is that this is a big problem in IRL games and not so big in PbP. No discomfort - especially when you still have 10-15 other games ))

At the same time, this is a tough fight that is making me approach it very differently than I typically do with Bahram. I appreciate that. I'm also not tripping, which e=heavily influences my opinion. ;)

The party is a bit under level for the 4-5 tier and this seems to be a tougher fight/scenario. There is an enormous difference in capability between a level 3 sorcerer and a level 4 sorcerer and we have two of them in the party. We also lack a true brute that can take down this creature in a couple of blows. Still with a bit of patience we will wear it down. :)

Yeah,as much as people say that martials are underpowered I find that they are really missed when they're not around. There is something to be said for having good hit points and fort saves and reliable, accurate weapon attacks.

Yes, this scenario has some tough fights. I am applying the four player adjustments and they do help, but they don't really go after what makes the enemy dangerous either.

People that say that martial characters lack power clearly have no clue how to build a proper martial character. :)

It is true that there is no one in the party that can lay the mega smack-down. Just a bunch of mystics, a dilettante fighter,a spooney bard and a tree-hugger. Quite a motley crew if you ask me. ;)

To me it's about the 'nature' of 3.0/3.5/PF where martials tend to rule at lower levels and then it's a caster's game (particularly full casters like wizards and clerics) from the mid-levels onward.

People that say that martial characters lack power clearly have no clue how to build a proper martial character. :)

It is true that there is no one in the party that can lay the mega smack-down. Just a bunch of mystics, a dilettante fighter,a spooney bard and a tree-hugger. Quite a motley crew if you ask me. ;)

Many PbP tables tend to be what I called "Last Call" tables in LG and LA where there's just a few players left for the 'last run' of a particular module.

Arrow Recover, High is good: 1d100 ⇒ 56
Arrow Recover, High is good: 1d100 ⇒ 6
Arrow Recover, High is good: 1d100 ⇒ 91
Arrow Recover, High is good: 1d100 ⇒ 79
Arrow Recover, High is good: 1d100 ⇒ 56

> People that say that martial characters lack power clearly have no clue how to build a proper martial character. :)

I absolutely agree. And the wizard's strongest devastation spell is haste. Everything else is childish babble in terms of pure damage inflicted .)

I have a conjurer who would agree that haste should be cast in the first round. He's just not going to do it himself. That's what summoned creatures are for! He's also currently 18th level, so he gets instant summons of creatures who cast all manner of spells in the first round to set the stage for the battle. Using Time Stop to get the most out of that first round of course.

Is the plan to run away now?

@GM Badblood - Is it possible for a flying creature to use the Run full-round action to move 4 times their speed in a straight line?

Yeah, I believe that running is possible with every movement form as long as you can move the whole distance in a straight line and aren't moving through difficult terrain. For flying I don't think you could run through a storm but that's *probably* not good to be relevant anyways.

Is the plan to run away now?

@GM Badblood - Is it possible for a flying creature to use the Run full-round action to move 4 times their speed in a straight line?

I don't know but what's the plan for the PC who only moves 20'?

I could be completely wrong here but I am starting to suspect that a possible plot line of the scenario is to kill the PCs so that they can be brought back to life as we are in the fey wild. Granted this is not something that I would bank on as a player or a character but the dialogue and the NPC tactics do seem to lean in that direction.

I feel as though I should have also tried to flee a second time. I stayed to try and convince the group. Very uncharacteristic for Bahram.