Unless you guys do or say something to change the attitude and lower it there is no need to make further Diplomacy rolls once you have maxed them out at helpful.
Insulting them, telling them a lie, or some other action might call for a social interact roll, but since you're accomplished moving him to helpful, you don't need to roll further diplomacy checks.
Basically Social Combat is over... and you guys achieved your goal here!
Exploration Mode
Rule
While encounters use rounds for combat, exploration is more free form. The GM determines the flow of time, as you could be traveling by horseback across craggy highlands, negotiating with merchants, or delving in a dungeon in search of danger and treasure. Exploration lacks the immediate danger of encounter mode, but it offers its own challenges.
Much of exploration mode involves movement and roleplaying. You might be traveling from one town to another, chatting with a couple of merchants in an outpost along the way, or maybe having a terse conversation with the watchful city guards at your destination. Instead of measuring your rate of movement in 5-foot squares every round, you measure it in feet or miles per minute, hour, or day, using your travel speed. Rather than deciding on each action every turn, you’ll engage in an exploration activity, and you’ll typically spend some time every day resting and making your daily preparations.
Actions and Reactions: Though exploration isn’t broken into rounds, exploration activities assume the PCs are spending part of their time using actions, such as Seeking or Interacting. If they have specific actions they want to use, they should ask; you can decide whether the actions apply and whether to switch to encounter mode for greater detail. PCs can use any relevant reactions that come up during exploration mode.
So, to answer your question... almost any exploration activity can be used for this. All of you are seeking this pool. Most are at 1/2 speed, but it is difficult to move faster than that on this trail anyway. You can use hustle... but you'll likely miss everything. Again, there is no timer on this... There is a list of available Exploration activities in both the Player CORE, and the GM Core... but as an example.
* Avoid Notice: You are moving from tree to tree trying to stay out of sight.
* Defend: Expecting trouble you have your shield raised (Or as a house rule your weapon raised), as you explore.
* Detect Magic... Is this a magical pool?
* Follow the expert: If you have someone really good at Survival, Nature, or a applicable Lore skill, this gives those who follow a bonus to rolls. NOTE: The PC you follow must be at least an expert in the skill.
* Investigate: You can use RK rolls to notice things. Wait this area seems a bit boggy, maybe the pool is this way.
* Scout: I'm going to look out ahead for danger (+1 to initiative for everybody.
* Search: Use Perception to look for hidden things.
* Cover Tracks: Ensure that nobody is trying to follow you (Survival).
* Sense Direction: Let's keep heading Northeast (Survival).
* Track: Find and follow tracks. (Survival) Let's follow these wild boar tracks they often lead to water sources.
So there is no "Find hidden pool" activity, you just state what you character is concentrating on as they explore.
@ Brennus: You have to pick one or the other. Either you trying to stay hidden or you're trying to scout ahead. This isn't as critical as something like a skill test... it's just a general overview of how you are acting since you're not in encounter mode.
Also Looks like we've lost a cleric. If any of you know someone who might fit in and would like to create a cleric, please feel free to invite them. Otherwise, we'll move forward without one.
I must have reset my cookies and need to be let into owlbear again.
Remember all. If you need to be let into OBR you need to let me know on Discord... as it notifies me when there is a message. Does everyone have access to the Discord Channel?
Also, Scout doesn't allow you to make perception rolls in Exploration mode. That is the Search action. Scout only gives everyone a +1 to initiative rolls... so I'll disregard that nat 1. If you take a "Seek" action outside exploration it allows a perception roll.
I know it seems a bit flawed, but with the 3-action economy there aren't many freebies.
So just a reminder that there are no buffing or preparatory actions in PF2e. Everyone starts from scratch when the encounter begins. Might not seem right... but that is the way the balance of the system works. Remember the Monsters can't ambush, prepare, or surprise you either. So, there are two choices here.
The exploration mode rules are designed to keep the party from spamming rolls... ie You come to an intersection in the corridor. Player 1 I make a Perception roll, (Rolls a two), Player 2 I make a Perception roll... and so on. Everyone is doing something until they enter encounter or downtime mode.
NOTE: Hazards are the exception to this rule. If there is a hazard, I make a secret perception roll based upon your proficiency in Perception. If the Hazzard is standard, I automatically make these rolls for you. If you are "Trained" but the Hazard is "Expert" then you need to be using the "Search" Exploration to get a roll or take the "Seek" action in encounter mode.
Telurion either switched his Exploratory action to "Defend" which would allow him to either have his shield raised, or his weapon ready (House Rule), but the +1 bonus to initiative for scouting is gone, or he drew his weapon therefore sending us into encounter mode... in which case I roll initiative for everyone, and we get things rolling.
Brennus Either switched his Exploratory action to "Search" or we have begun encounter mode with his first action going to be a "Seek" action as one of his three actions. Also, keep in mind it would be a "survival" roll (Track) to interact with any tracks in the vicinity, and a "Nature" roll to determine what they might be. Making Nature rolls in exploration mode is using the investigate action... so in summary Brennus is attempting three exploration mode activities at once. (Search, Avoid Notice, Investigate).
Rail: Still hasn't given me his default exploratory actions either in wilderness or in the dungeon (See Campaign Info Thread).
Caks: Takes inventory and continues in his "Avoid Notice" Exploratory mode.
We've not had encounter mode in a while so unless I hear otherwise, I'm going to forward to initiative roll and get things moving. I'm working under the assumption that the party waited for Rail as Brennus let them know he was coming.
Hmm, I should have made it clear, I was thinking of it as a Search action--Brennus wasn't trying to track or determine what the prints were, just checking for their presence or absence.
SB, I'm not trying to be argumentative but I've said twice that Rail's default exploratory mode is Investigate. Here and here. That holds for wilderness and dungeon.
No problem... and I apologize. It's easy for things to get caught up in the wash. I'll add it to the campaign information now so I won't be confused going forward.
Since you are using the "Investigate" Activity you get a free RK check as part of your exploration activity, so you don't need to take an action to do so unless you're trying to find out something else. That frees up one additional action for you.
Rail. If you sign into Owl Bear Rodeo you can move your own token. No need to download anything, just follow my link, Send me a permission request on Discord. I'll let you in and you can move as you wish.
OK, yeah I've been able to get in I just wasn't sure if we were supposed to move our own token. Will do that now.
I'll review the first round of combat and move things forward when I'm back in the office this afternoon.
I'm going to change my one house rule about allowing the "Defend" Exploration activity to allow you to have a weapon readied as an option to raising a shield. I think it just involves too much conflict.
In the previous combat Telurion said earlier that he had his sword out and was waiting... which to me means he had switched to the Defend action.
I know there is an argument that having your weapon out in a potentially dangerous situation makes sense, and I won't argue that... but for game balance you MUST spend an action at the beginning of the combat to ready your weapon. I understand this gives natural weapons and unarmed strikes an advantage... but that it built into the balance of the game. There are ways to get the Quick Draw Feat and other things, but everyone... enemies and allies has to spend that action. It is a prep action, and those are for the most part not allowed in PF2e.
I know many struggle with the whole "Exploration" mode vs. "Encounter" mode, and it could be debated endlessly, but to summarize. If you are adventuring you are either in Downtime mode (Camp), Exploration mode (not camping or in initiative order, or Encounter mode where the three-action economy is in effect. You don't have to like it, agree with it or argue against in... but I've found that it simply works, and is required to keep the game balanced.
Now I'll jump off my soapbox, and continue the game.
Just a note on reactions... If you have more than one option for reactions, you need to let me know up front if you're planning on using it. For instance, in this combat probably Telurion needs to say something like... "If I get hit, I'll use my Reactive Shield Reaction". Don't want to automatically assume you're going to use it instead of saving your reaction for a Reactive Strike or something else. Also, it's not right to know what your damage is before you make that decision.
You guys are doing a great job coordinating your attacks BTW. One other thing to keep in mind is that mobility is your friend. Making the creature use an action to stand or have to move to hit you is a great option. Use up those actions!!! In this case it's tough because with its aura of mud you can't stick and move, but something to keep in mind. If you move away it has to move if it wants to melee you... but since it moves to you it's not necessary to use a move to reach it. Not always applicable but something to keep in mind.
NOTE: Do you guys want me to recruit a "Healer" type character, or are you good to go with what we've got?
@ Rail,
So just to verify you had (2) Focus points and you've spent (2) Unless you have something I'm not aware of... so you can't cast another Focus Spell (Focus Cantrip is still available), until you restore your focus points.
With you success your Courageous Anthem lasts for (3) rounds correct?
That's correct, he's out of focus points now.
Yes, 3 rounds.
Rail... You're up! I'll move things along if you can't post soon.
We are running identify RAW. In this case the ring is the only item that makes sense, so I'd allow you to roll to identify... just not getting the +2 from Read aura.
Here is the way I rule on RK for identifying magic items. You can try every day, but unless you do something to change the game (speak with someone, research, etc., the DC goes up every day.
Rail intends to go to a library or book store to do research; there have to be enough different arcane libraries in town to be able to check a different one every day, right?
Perhaps if you were anywhere close to a town. Bards Gate is the closest city of any size and it's a three-day journey away.
I'll leave you guys to introduce yourselves to the new PC till Wednesday, as I'll probably be tied up most of the day tomorrow.
As you may have noticed I throw out a bunch of plot hooks, and I'll try to keep them updated. You don't have to follow any of them, but if you find one you like feel free to chase it down. We're not really on a timeline... and you'll probably see them down the line.
You all might want to check the Filthy Lucre (Loot Sheet) now and then. Remember you have holy water, and (4) Heal Wounds Scrolls (Divine or Primal only). Remember the "Trick Magic Item" feat lets you use items not in your spell school.
Happy Thanksgiving to all who celebrate it! I'm very thankful that we seem to have a stable group more concerned with uncovering and creating this story than the nuances of the rules.
A couple of reminders.
* Things will proceed as your normal exploration activities unless you actively change them for the scene.
* Check the Loot log in Campaign info, and feel free to modify if you take anything or add anything.
* Keep an eye on the Plot hooks and Quest logs in the campaign info. If at any time you want to convert one of the hooks to a quest just let me know.