Welcome to the discussion page! Please dot in here.
Smokeside Quarter, where the campaign starts out, is in a permanently dead magic zone in terms of the lore. Granted... that doesn't exactly bode well for our casters. I do want the fact that this is Alkenstar to play a role in the campaign, but I feel having the entirety of what amounts to two chapters being played without magic would be a massive disservice to some of your characters.
With that said, what percentage of the Smokeside fights would you be okay with being without magic? I want to get that question out of the way before any actual fights start.
Hi GM! Thanks for the selection!
As for your question about magic, I guess I need a ruling from you. My archetype has the following line:
This deformity magically reverts when the vigilante is in his social identity, as do all mutations from his mutant talents, allowing him to hide his mutation entirely.
I can interpret this three different ways:
1) Neither his mutant identity nor his social identity are magic, but transforming from one form to the other is magic.
2) His mutant identity is natural, and reverting to and maintaining his social identity is magic.
3) His social identity is natural, and reverting to and maintaining his mutant identity is magic.
I think interpretations 1 and 2 are fine with me, and I would have no problem with no-magic fights for a while. If he's stuck in his social identity a la interpretation 3, that's less desirable because his backstory that I've come up with has his social identity wanted by the law.
FYI, I'll be maintaining two separate aliases for whichever identity I'm using.
Dual Identity is (Ex), so that puts me in an odd position. None of the identities are exactly natural, in my opinion, so I'm inclined to think it functions a bit like the magic animating constructs, and that the reversion/addition of the deformities is the magical part, but every other feature of Dual Identity (alignment shift et al) is nonmagical. So I'd say pretty much 1.
So, whenever you enter antimagic time/places, your appearance would be locked, but I'd be giving you advance warning of when this is via whispersheets that forecast the day's magic status throughout Alkenstar, so it would also show where the mutations can magically manifest/demanifest. Your identity itself wouldn't be locked, though, but good luck disguising yourself as the other.
Does that sound like a fair ruling? The only problem is if the magic shuts off in your social identity, but I'd give everyone advanced warning of when and where magic will shut off. At the very least I have one fight planned out for dead magic, but everything beyond that point is highly dependant on what you are okay with.
Hello Everyone, and thanks for the selection!
The lack of magic doesn't effect me in the least so I'll stay out of the discussion on it, I'm fine with as much or as little as other folks are!
Really looking forward to this game! Should get a profile put together in the next few minutes and dot in.
There is a real lack of choice for Ratfolk pictures on this website
Dual Identity is (Ex), so that puts me in an odd position. None of the identities are exactly natural, in my opinion, so I'm inclined to think it functions a bit like the magic animating constructs, and that the reversion/addition of the deformities is the magical part, but every other feature of Dual Identity (alignment shift et al) is nonmagical. So I'd say pretty much 1.
So, whenever you enter antimagic time/places, your appearance would be locked, but I'd be giving you advance warning of when this is via whispersheets that forecast the day's magic status throughout Alkenstar, so it would also show where the mutations can magically manifest/demanifest. Your identity itself wouldn't be locked, though, but good luck disguising yourself as the other.
Does that sound like a fair ruling? The only problem is if the magic shuts off in your social identity, but I'd give everyone advanced warning of when and where magic will shut off. At the very least I have one fight planned out for dead magic, but everything beyond that point is highly dependant on what you are okay with.
All that sounds fine to me, thanks. Being locked into one identity sounds like a classic secret identity trope that could be fun. I'll roll with whatever happens.
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Alias made, and thank you very much for the selection, GM Violant!
I'd be perfectly fine with no magic, that said, I believe the Witch's opinion should be the most heeded one here - as a gun-toting, druidic herbalism-espousing Nature Fang pickpocket, the sole thing I lose is the 1st level and 0th level spells.
Thank you SO much! Excited to be here!
About magic ... I mentioned in the Erryll intro post that we should discuss Psychic Magic; I feel like magic is probably magic, and no magic is probably NO magic, but it could certainly make a difference if psychic magic were more accessible.
That said, Erryll is fine without magic every so often. Part of picking the revolver, and choosing ancestors as his patron is that he reveres guns & gunslinging. All good :)
With that said, what percentage of the Smokeside fights would you be okay with being without magic? I want to get that question out of the way before any actual fights start.
Howdy folks! And thanks for the invite, Violant! Really looking forward to this. Much obliged.
As for the question of magic...can't really say it'd be fair for me to weigh in, since my character doesn't really use it. Like, at all.
That said, I'll go along with whatever our "magic people" prefer. :)
Urgh. Accidentally dotted in as Phlynn instead of Fhrank. Sorry.
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Thank you SO much! Excited to be here!
About magic ... I mentioned in the Erryll intro post that we should discuss Psychic Magic; I feel like magic is probably magic, and no magic is probably NO magic, but it could certainly make a difference if psychic magic were more accessible.
That said, Erryll is fine without magic every so often. Part of picking the revolver, and choosing ancestors as his patron is that he reveres guns & gunslinging. All good :)
I'll probably allow your psychic magic to function normally except for select (read: one fight) dead magic zones. Isn't the only psychic spell you have mage hand?
I'll probably also get the first Whisper Sheet up within a day from now, as well as the first post. There's also Surgetime, i.e. a surge of magic, which is in a way like DnD's wild magic table. I found an interpretation of it I found useful, and that's where I'll be generating the sheets from. Those primal magic surges will probably show up more as the adventure continues outside of Smokeside, where primal magic surges are more prevalent than dead magic zones. Bronzetime is when magic functions normally. And the "-" on the sheets represents dead, or almost dead, magic.
Does that sound okay with everyone? If so, I'll have a gameplay message within a day or so.
What is a Whisper Sheet? I've never heard the term before this thread.
What is a Whisper Sheet? I've never heard the term before this thread.
Oh, I thought I had posted what they are in this thread, but apparently not!
Forecasts for Bronzetime and Surgetime further complicate pricing for spellcasting in Alkenstar. Many spellcasters simply won’t offer their services during Surgetime, when whispersheets predict a spike in magical instability and potential mana storms. See the Bronzetime and Surgetime sidebar on page 51 for more details about what kinds of effects these forecasts have on life in Alkenstar.
The actual AP doesn't elaborate much on them, since it's designed for Spellcasters to function as in every other campaign, hence me linking to someone elaborating on them on Reddit. Essentially, they're forecasts of when and where magic will function as normal (called Bronzetime), surge and be unpredictable (called Surgetime), or just be outright dead to a lesser or greater extent. Does that clear it up?
Thank you SO much! Excited to be here!
About magic ... I mentioned in the Erryll intro post that we should discuss Psychic Magic; I feel like magic is probably magic, and no magic is probably NO magic, but it could certainly make a difference if psychic magic were more accessible.
That said, Erryll is fine without magic every so often. Part of picking the revolver, and choosing ancestors as his patron is that he reveres guns & gunslinging. All good :)
I'll probably allow your psychic magic to function normally except for select (read: one fight) dead magic zones. Isn't the only psychic spell you have mage hand?
I'll probably also get the first Whisper Sheet up within a day from now, as well as the first post. There's also Surgetime, i.e. a surge of magic, which is in a way like DnD's wild magic table. I found an interpretation of it I found useful, and that's where I'll be generating the sheets from. Those primal magic surges will probably show up more as the adventure continues outside of Smokeside, where primal magic surges are more prevalent than dead magic zones. Bronzetime is when magic functions normally. And the "-" on the sheets represents dead, or almost dead, magic.
Does that sound okay with everyone? If so, I'll have a gameplay message within a day or so.
Completely correct, Erryll gets Mage Hand from Psychic Adept (from Psychic Sensitivity). I am intending him to take other psychic feats as he progresses.
What is a Whisper Sheet? I've never heard the term before this thread.Oh, I thought I had posted what they are in this thread, but apparently not!
The actual AP doesn't elaborate much on them, since it's designed for Spellcasters to function as in every other campaign, hence me linking to someone elaborating on them on Reddit. Essentially, they're forecasts of when and where magic will function as normal (called Bronzetime), surge and be unpredictable (called Surgetime), or just be outright dead to a lesser or greater extent. Does that clear it up?
Forecasts for Bronzetime and Surgetime further complicate pricing for spellcasting in Alkenstar. Many spellcasters simply won’t offer their services during Surgetime, when whispersheets predict a spike in magical instability and potential mana storms. See the Bronzetime and Surgetime sidebar on page 51 for more details about what kinds of effects these forecasts have on life in Alkenstar.
Okay, yes thanks. I see where you did mention them above, but I didn't understand the context, I guess. I also hadn't noticed that it was a link. Thanks!
I think I have my character sheet(s) updated and ready to go!
Alright. If everyone's ready to go, I'll try to have the first Whispersheet (i.e. when and where magic is dead) and the first gameplay post up before the site is down for Saturday. No promises about that, but I will try.
Does Google Slides suffice for the maps once, we get there?
I'd put hand-outs there such as the Whispersheets that tell you when you'll be expected to be with magic, without magic, or when magic can backfire. Similar goes for maps of Alkenstar City or any other area, and any NPCs you meet.
Google Slides works for me.
Great! Looking forward to playing with all of you!
Google Slides is great for me. Thanks!
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First gameplay post is up!
Woot! Site is back up!
Looking forward to everyone's responses! And yes, the site is back up.
Looking forward to everyone's responses! And yes, the site is back up.
I think that is everyone!
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So we're good to move onto casing and robbing the bank? No more questionsffor Foebe? Sorry for the delay, been planning some things out in advance for this adventure and forgot to... well, post!
I don't have any more questions!
I appreciate that you're working on the adventure. Thanks!
I'm happy to go and rob a bank! I think it's fully natural that the outlaw gunslingers are less verbose at the start. Here's hoping we don't Magnificent Seven before character development happens!
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Alright, post up! Sorry for the delay, my sleep schedule has been hellish lately, and was procrastinating because I've never actually ran such an open-ended opening as this one.
All good GM! Some games pick up steam as they go along, and I feel it might be a little more difficult than the usual to have people find out their voices with the idea of subterfuge.
EDIT: The slides and whispersheets seem to require access. I've sent a request for access, but I've made that mistake with google sheets way too often myself ^^.
Oh, whoops. That should be fixed!
Hi all, I've been knocked off my feet due to a cold or something, so I haven't been up for posting, sorry. I might need another day or two to finish recovering. Feel free to bot me in the meantime.
Apologies all - had a little bit of real life happening, AND wanted to try to look into how Erryll would ask his ancestors/patron about this job. Still sorry to have been longer than I thought though.
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Sorry for the delay, have been preparing things for Uni and have two meetings coming up for the same. I'll likely post something by Friday.
Just dropping in - I'm happy to give it a wait or push forward. I've not been as active on the Discussion side as I should've been, but I'm standing by! Yee to the haw!
I should have a post sometime today. The maps haven't been cooperating as well as they should, so just ignore the label.
Two days late, but finally stopped dragging my feet. The post is up!
@Dunn:
"It's a little early, but a silver tongue might do it. Tell you what, here's the keys, Narl, you've got the gift of gab."
Hey, in my Vigilante identity, my Diplomacy changes to +6 (which is down from my Social identity's +10). I'm assuming you said what's in the above quote because you thought my Diplomacy is +16? :)
Let's assume that Narl doesn't have the keys. He'll be in more of a bodyguard role while others talk and get the vault door open. But I'll post now to get things moving.
Ah! I might've forgotten that we had a map! I've gone and moved Dunn, he's mostly bringing in the rear and keeping an eye on the outside.
I'm deliberately posting only once a day or less so that I don't hog the limelight, and because I wasn't expecting to be the party face. But looking at everyone's character sheets (except for Erryll's, which I don't see on their alias), it looks like only Fhrank has a better Diplomacy than me, even in my Vigilante identity.
So, I'm happy to play the face role (especially since I can bump that up even more in my Social identity), but I don't want to step on any toes in case Fhrank wants that. But he also hasn't posted since February 4th.
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Yeah, that's the main reason I've been hesitant to move on because Fhrank hasn't posted. Will probably DM him, and see if he's still up for this. If not, you can likely meet up with the party member at your next location you visit. I do want a buffer above the normal 4 characters since I'm a bit shaky on converting monsters from 2e to 1e, so having just a bit of an edge action-economy-wise wouldn't hurt.
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Yeah, doesn't seem like he's posted at all since the 4th, so I'm going to open up recruitment on Friday if I don't hear a response back, as I sent a private message to him.
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Seeing as our Cavalier has been missing from the boards entirely for a month and a bit more, I'm going to reopen recruitment for a new 5th character. Would you lot like input to the character that gets selected?
I don't personally need to have input, but I don't presume to speak for the others.
Also, we still have four PCs. If you're up for it, GM, I'm fine with continuing the heist while you're recruiting. If you want to wait until we have 5+, that's fine, too. Just please let us know what to expect.
Yeah, I just want to see how quickly you get through the heist now that I think I'm back on the ball of PbP. If you get through it fast enough, can have them join you in the Junkyard as opposed to in the bank. Going to at least wait to get submissions to decide, though.
Seeing as our Cavalier has been missing from the boards entirely for a month and a bit more, I'm going to reopen recruitment for a new 5th character. Would you lot like input to the character that gets selected?
I would be interested in having a look and making comment, absolutely.
Alright, it's been a month but we've deserted our Cavalier and are finally ready to start combat! I did not anticipate the initiative rolls to be so... terrible on your end, but everyone is up at once which makes it easier on me.
Alright, Thraag has been chosen based on what you all told me. I think we should just have them enter combat, or they might be waiting a while. Also, Erryll, your turn in combat is up, unless I'm missing something.
Hello, thanks for inviting me to the game. Should I roll iniatiative?
If I recall correctly from what my Tyrant's Grasp GM said. New members go at the bottom of initiative order when they enter. So, all you have to do is wait for Erryll to go and then you can bust in with whatever flare you like.
As for fluff to why you're there, I think saying you're working with Dunsmith is enough for now? There's also two clockworks, you can make an Engineering and an Aracana check on them to see what's up with them. If you're going with the Dunsmith fluff, you also get a free Hat of Disguise for now!
Keep in mind, though, right now it's Surgetime, so if you magic, it is possible for it to backfire in your face. Check the powerpoint for the possibilites, I decided to go with some Redditor's solution since it seemed more correlated to the actual spell itself as opposed to 1e or 2e's wild magic tables. The combat after this one will be back to normal magic, for what it's worth.