A Time for Heroes - GM Slowdrifter's Forgotten Realms

Game Master Slowdrifter

Hello everyone and welcome!

I’m very excited (and, if I’m honest, a little daunted!) to be playing with you all but we’ve got some great characters and players here so I think that will translate into a great game.

I’m sure you’re all keen to get things started but I wanted to run through some general housekeeping and things first. Hopefully much of this is ‘common sense’ and what you would expect of other games on the boards, though I know that can be a very subjective term so better to be clear from the start. I know there’s a lot here but I think it’s useful so there’s no tl;dr I’m afraid.

Information

I’m a firm believer that we’re all ultimately playing here together on the same side. My role as GM is to help create and facilitate fun stories and situations, not to be adversarial. This is supposed to be fun for everyone. To that end, I think the onus is on everybody to post regularly and keep things moving, though as GM ultimately I am that bit more responsible and that comes with the territory. I know we aspire to a post a day but I also know from experience that everybody has other things going on and sometimes life gets busy, sometimes unexpectedly. Hopefully we have enough players to move things along and pick up the slack when somebody is a bit quieter. And, if possible, a heads up is always appreciated.

To that end I plan on using Discord for general group chat. I’ve found it to be very helpful in my longest running games and I don’t think that’s a coincidence. It allows for quick communication, gives people a good place to chat out of character and aids group bonding, all of which is useful in keeping a successful game going. Just in case anyone is sceptical - and this is purely anecdotal - I’d never used it prior to my first game on the boards and I definitely see the value it brings so please give it a try.

I’ve not found it has mattered but just so you all know I’m based in the UK so probably operating in a different timezone to many of you. And with two small children I’m usually up before some west coast US folks have gone to bed!

I know everybody will be coming in with different levels of knowledge of the Forgotten Realms - I’m a big fan and this was one of my inspirations for deciding to run the game. Building knowledge is also not helped by edition changes and inconsistencies (maps, deities and the planes are things that seem to change and shift every edition). To reiterate, we’re playing in a 2E/3E era timeline, starting in 1373 DR, so this is all pre-Spellplague. There are plenty of resources online and the wiki is generally a good place to start. It’s full of information though you do have to get used to the fact it’s written in the past tense and bouncing around between articles isn’t always the most coherent way to absorb information. The relative paucity of lore developments in the 4E/5E era also means that the majority of information there should be relevant. I’m also always happy to answer questions and please prod me if I get lost in the weeds with niche lore or information dumps. I’ll always want to make sure that you know the things that are important and anything else that is window dressing but helps with worldbuilding and what’s going on around you. I don’t believe that players should be penalised for not knowing things that their character would. And on a similar note, I don’t think players should be penalised for not remembering things either. PBP is a long form game and weeks or months can pass in real time between critical pieces of information so I’m always happy to prompt and recap things that your characters know.

In terms of tone and content, bad things can and do happen in fantasy worlds with unpleasant people and literal demons. I like to keep options on the table in terms of how people want to develop their characters and the Realms can be an open, tolerant place in some ways and less so in others, often dependent on who and where we’re talking about. In However, there are obviously red lines and the things that you’d expect to be off-limits (sexual violence etc.) very much are. Think Lord of the Rings rather than Game of Thrones. If anybody has anything that for whatever reason they would like the game to avoid in terms of content or themes then please let me know either publicly or privately. I also ask everybody to be respectful and mindful of other people’s boundaries, beliefs and values.

I posted a little bit about myself when I said I was going to run this game but I grew up playing 2E D&D and have most of my experience in the 3/3.5E era, through which I was Forever GM in my regular group and also played a bit of PBP. We started to switch to PF1 when that was just starting but it also coincided with me relocating after university and with a new city, new job etc. fell off for a long period of time. However, I started to dive back into some of my old material a few years ago, culminating in me taking the plunge and applying for a game on the boards. Three years later it’s still going along happily.

All of which is a long-winded way of saying I definitely don’t have as much experience on the boards or with the game as many people here and the PF rules are large, unwieldy and sometimes unclear and open to interpretation. I have definitely made mistakes but am always happy to work with people to correct rulings and retcon things as necessary. And when it comes down to it my inclination is normally to “yes and” and lean towards story and rule of cool over complex rules lawyering.

Player actions

There are also a couple of things that would be useful for you all to please look at before we get going properly.

The game will be starting in Daggerdale, where a call has gone out from the Lord of the Dale looking for adventurers. Can you think please about how you have heard about this and what brings you to answer the call. Realistically such news will only travel so far regionally but you’re all experienced adventurers with friends, allies and information networks. For example, you could have heard about it through your church, the society you’re a member of, or your cousin in Shadowdale town who knows that you’ve been down on your luck recently and in need of coin. I don’t need essays - or even anything necessarily written down - just a basic idea of what brings you here.

Mechanically, I’ll have a look at the previously mentioned stat tinkering and speak to you individually. Now we have the full party you are welcome to make any tweaks in light of the party make up, e.g. spell options if you want to avoid overlap or ensure more bases are covered. I’m sure you’ll be checking out each other’s character sheets but I think it would also probably be worth just giving everyone a brief summary of your build in terms of what you see your role as, both in and out combat.

If anyone wants to do a deep dive into the party’s strengths and weaknesses I’m certainly not going to stop you but given the generous build rules you’ve got a lot of power and flexibility. One of my considerations was trying to assemble a broadly balanced party and with everyone capable of doing more than one thing, I don’t think there are likely to be any major gaps in your capabilities.

If you could also post and then delete in the gameplay thread then it should link your characters to the game.

* * * * *

Apologies for length but I think it’s worth taking the time to do this - plus I’m a natural worrier! I’m also sure that I will have forgotten something so if you have any questions please do ask. A common thread running through a lot of this is communication (and at least 50% of TTRPG questions posted online can usually be answered with “Have you tried talking to them?”) I always aim to be open, approachable and collaborative and feedback is how we improve and make sure everyone is having fun, which really is why we’re here...

Greetings, Slowdrifter, and my fellow adventurers.

Joreld Huntsilver was told of the problem in Daggerdale through the Lathanderian church. Feeling bored of the Cormyr urban life and social politics, the human paladin makes his way to distant Daggerdale, in hopes of curing his boredom and elevating his legend.

Calen is guided by Selune, as an inquisitor he follows his goddess in rooting out evil. He has been drawn to Daggerdale to investigate strange claims coming from the area!

Samara, delighted to be selected and signing in. I'll do a little Daggerdale reading and then get you an answer on that.

Thank you for the selection, DM Slowdrifter! Excited to be adventuring with you all!

Regarding Daggerdale: through his connections in the Council, Ialia's father has had her recalled from her clandestine activities in Selgaunt. Upon her return to Saerloon she learns that, contrary to her original mission of helping to prevent civil war in Sembia, there is a growing paranoia among her city's leaders that war is inevitable, and perhaps Saerloon should strike first. Horrified at having been used to such an end, Ialia retreats to family. Her grandmother, a fellow White Witch, urges her to flee the city or be caught up in the imminent war. Days later, The Red Silk traveling dance troupe make their annual stop in Saerloon, and she learns from them of the recent progress made by Lord Randal Morn in restoring the Dale from the ravages of tyranny. He calls for heroes to help him in this noble fight against evil. With the blessing of her family, she leaves her old life behind to find new adventure.

Hi team!! OOCly, I'm Dien, I'm the lucky sap who didn't have to apply ;) (due to Drifter's kindness in feeling they 'owed' me a game, which I dunno about, but I'll never turn down a free spot in a game).

Pick here already lives in Daggerdale, albeit at the very southern edge of it, and wanders around a fair bit inside the Dale engaged in things like beating up bandits, convincing a wolf pack not to eat ALL of a farmer's sheep, and being (depending on who you ask) either a boon to travelers or a pain in the ass to industry. I wouldn't say he's a local legend or anything, but there's definitely rumors of someone active in the Dale's wildlands. It's possible that many people don't know it's a dwarf, however, since he is often in animal form when doing things.

Anyway, he's well positioned to have the call from Randal Morn. His people have a rocky history with the Morns but Pick has less prejudice on that front and sees answering-the-call as a way to potentially try and make things better.

In combat.... uh... well... we'll see. I took advantage of the generous build rules to try and explore a concept I've wanted to play for a while of a wild-shape focused melee-capable druid. Right now, I'm still not terribly impressive in combat, but I hopefully make up for that with all-around utility and the spells of a full prepared caster. As wild shape scales in power, I hope to be useful as a frontline damage dealer. Beyond that, I have lots of wilderness-oriented skills, scouting utility, decent spells, and so forth.

I'm the lucky sap who…

A druid said ‘sap’…. *snork*

Daggerdale : After nearly a year of roaming between Cormyr and Cormanthor, Samara snuck into central Anauroch to learn how the Bedine fared under the Netherese yoke. She wasn’t able to find her tribe but the stories she heard from other tribes painted a clear picture. Samara left Anauroch along the trade road north of the City of Shade. It took her to Dagger Falls, from there she dropped into Daggerdale to plan her next move. Given the proximity of Daggerdale to Anauroch, it occurred to her that having allies in the region could prove useful. With the Lord of the Dale looking for help, Samara saw it as an opportunity to earn a favor and forge a strategic bond.

Build Summary : Samara is a strong fire evoker BUT I believe in keeping a balanced spell load between offensive, defensive, control, and useful spells. She is built to gain a lot of spells as she levels up. She supplements that with gear and feats that allow her to fire off additional spells each day… from scrolls and (her goal) ‘acquired’ spellbooks. If I build her right, she will be a good mix of sorcerer can-opener and wizard flexibility.

Squishy or not (with her current CON), Samara is not a stand-off caster who relies on meat shield protection. She will have a couple monk levels so she can dance in and out of combat to put her spells to best effect and make it difficult for enemies to simply grapple her.

Not knowing how the party was going to shake out, I made Samara an 'OK' Knowledge Skill maven. If there are any K skills you guys would like to dominate, please let me know. I'd love to shift a few points from general K skills to stuff more in my wheelhouse.

Not knowing how the party was going to shake out, I made Samara an 'OK' Knowledge Skill maven. If there are any K skills you guys would like to dominate, please let me know. I'd love to shift a few points from general K skills to stuff more in my wheelhouse.

I'll be keeping Nature maxed for Pick, at any rate. Doesn't mean others can't be good at it, but if you wanted to free up a point or two that's an area.

Thanks! I'll keep a single point in K:Nature as a back-up or aid roll but otherwise I'll leave that to you.

I look forward to seeing how Joreld will interact with the other adventurers and how the civilized, Big City paladin will cope in a rural society.

I look forward to seeing how Joreld will interact with the other adventurers and how the civilized, Big City paladin will cope in a rural society.

They will definitely be a clash of personalities :D

LOL

A couple city-folk, a backwoods druid, and a desert nomad walk into a bar...

Thanks for stopping by and reading the essay so quickly!

Not knowing exactly what Tara has settled on for her character - and she may have this covered as I did mention it to her - off the top of my head the one thing that I don't think anyone in the party actually has is disable device. Probably wait and see but that might be worth looking at someone picking up. Or you can just find other ways round it.

Pah, locks and traps? How important could that be?

With Ialia, given DM Tara's generous build rules, I set out to do the impossible: make an effective White Witch grappler! Well, it's still sort of impossible but with max buffs and ideal tactical conditions, she's +18 to grapple with her hair, and that's with reach and also flying. I'll ask DM Slowdrifter to check my math on that in the profile and we can take the discussion to PM if you like. One question: do you consider the White Witch Grab ability to be the same as for Monsters, thus giving the addl +4 bonus? That would put her at +22 to grab under absolute ideal circumstances.

That's not her only trick. She can trip too! But primarily she'll approach each combat in a support role, buff and debuff/control with hexes and spells, and she has Brew Potion so everyone can start off with Heroism if that's your drink.

I previously asked DM Tara if she would be open to me changing Patrons depending on the final group makeup and she said yes so I didn't finalize my thinking on that. As it stands I think Healing could be well placed here although I'd like to get the group's input if such a change is still allowed.

Or we could smash the locks. But then, with Joreld's red dragonscale armor; he's not going for subtle.

I could do a trait trade to get us Disable Device. I can trade in "Friend in Every Town" (which will lower my Diplo roll but Joreld has me beat there in any case) for Vagabond Child or Criminal (assuming Slowdrifter is OK with reskinning either of those a bit) to get DD.

Thoughts?

My immediate thought is let's see what Tara wants to bring :3

If we still need DD after that, it's an option, pending SlowDrifter's thoughts.

As an inquisitor, I have most, if not all, of the monster knowledges, and decently good at them.

Additionally have good scouting abilities with my flying owl animal companion and myself.

Some divine spells, mostly utility, and then ranged combat. I'm going with a Repeating crossbow, for flavor and looks, but not above switching to a heavy crossbow if it comes up.

Otherwise, I bring a lot of combat utility with judgements and then out of combat utility with my animal focus'.

My immediate thought is let's see what Tara wants to bring :3

If we still need DD after that, it's an option, pending SlowDrifter's thoughts.

I agree probably makes sense to wait and see first.

I have no problem with someone trading in a trait and making it work, this is the kind of adjustment I was anticipating. If you were working as a group on characters then you'd be having these discussions in advance rather than everyone building individually not knowing the rest of the party make-up.

Pah, locks and traps? How important could that be?

With Ialia, given DM Tara's generous build rules, I set out to do the impossible: make an effective White Witch grappler! Well, it's still sort of impossible but with max buffs and ideal tactical conditions, she's +18 to grapple with her hair, and that's with reach and also flying. I'll ask DM Slowdrifter to check my math on that in the profile and we can take the discussion to PM if you like. One question: do you consider the White Witch Grab ability to be the same as for Monsters, thus giving the addl +4 bonus? That would put her at +22 to grab under absolute ideal circumstances.

I previously asked DM Tara if she would be open to me changing Patrons depending on the final group makeup and she said yes so I didn't finalize my thinking on that. As it stands I think Healing could be well placed here although I'd like to get the group's input if such a change is still allowed.

My inclination is to say no on the additional grab bonus. My reading is that it functions mechanically in the same way but at no point is it called grab (or even mentions the word grab) so I'd say that it's similar but not explicitly that. BUT I also have no specific experience of this ability and how others generally rule it, and while there is GM fiat and we could just roll with that, as already stated I'm happy to revise this is a majority think that I'm wrong.

Very happy if you want to change patron provided it still makes sense for Ialia personally (or make the tweaks you need in order to do so). I'd also say that healing seems a solid choice for the group. The party does have a druid, an inquisitor and a paladin who can heal but there's no cleric or oracle. Having access to status removal spells is never going to be a bad choice.

Hello all! I am really excited to have the opportunity to enter a 3rd edition forgotten realms game as a player. This was most unexpected, and very welcome. I am still working on finalizing my character, as I've mostly been focusing on reviewing everyone else's applications and building a party that would be compatible. With some many amazing applications, I was initially considering launching two games to start, until slowdrifter offered to run a second game. So we communicated on many of the characters that stood out, and helped build the parties together.

I am off today and hoping to have my character finalized by the end of the day. One way or another, I will have Disable Device covered. As a forever GM, I had too many concepts to start, but having insight into Slowdrifter's party has helped me to narrow it down. I am leaning towards a mobile, stealthy archer with lots of skills (Ranger or U-Rogue) who is either a guardian of Cormanthor (wood elf) or a freedom fighter from Daggerdale (human or halfling). I have 20+ other ideas, but I think I have curtailed it down to those (having nixed the ‘peasant’ paladin of torm, the bard–barian, and the knight of death [not to be confused with a deathknight]).

Thank you again, DM Tara for putting this all together. Very happy to game with you!

Re: Ialia's Patron - I'm inclined to go with the build the way it is. I agree that the grab rule was a reach (haha), and her current bonus is more than workable if she has time to set it up, and that's not her primary combat mode. And you're totally right, DM, that access to remove conditions is huge in a party without a cleric. The more of us that can do that sort of thing, the better.

Righto, leaving DD off my 'to do' list for the moment. It also seems like Knowledge skills are more than covered, so I'll shift a couple points around.

Putting on my semi-solicited GM Hat and having both played and GM'd a White Hair Witch... White Haired Witch never mentions 'grab' or mentions it being equivalent to any monster ability, so I believe the answer is no by RAW. WHW gives the power to 'grapple', 'constrict', 'trip', 'pull', and 'strangle'. Grab isn't on the list.

No worries, and totally agree with you on RAW. Fwiw, that guidance comes from the FAQ on the d20pfsrd page for the archetype, effectively making it a GM call, on which she has ruled. I'm good. Kind of interesting to peek behind the curtain at a sliver of Paizo politics.

"
FAQ

With the Witch’s ability to grab as a free action on an attack, is that also a swift action or does it function like the monster ability Grab?

The grab part of the white hair (ability) functions like the monster ability; it doesn’t take an action at all and is a part of the main attack.

[Source]

Note: The Paizo staffer making the above statement was James Jacobs, the Creative Director. It is important to note that James, while very knowledgeable, is not a developer or designer of the Pathfinder rules and is occasionally overruled by one of the designers (like Jason, Sean, or Stephen.) In this case though since this post has been up since January of 2012, it seems that it has not been challenged or overruled by another designer. In any case, since this has not appeared in an “official” errata document, it is up to the GM to determine if this is the way the ability runs in his or her campaign.
"

I changed my mind on patron. Ialia's story aligns well to Ancestors, and Bless and Prayer will be more useful than the spells offered in the healing path.

I plan on using Discord for general group chat.

I'm partial to Discord, so no complaints here.

Slowdrifter wrote:

I plan on using Discord for general group chat.

I'm partial to Discord, so no complaints here.

I've never used it and will need some hand-holding.

No worries, and totally agree with you on RAW. Fwiw, that guidance comes from the FAQ on the d20pfsrd page for the archetype, effectively making it a GM call, on which she has ruled. I'm good. Kind of interesting to peek behind the curtain at a sliver of Paizo politics.

"
FAQ

With the Witch’s ability to grab as a free action on an attack, is that also a swift action or does it function like the monster ability Grab?

The grab part of the white hair (ability) functions like the monster ability; it doesn’t take an action at all and is a part of the main attack.

[Source]

Note: The Paizo staffer making the above statement was James Jacobs, the Creative Director. It is important to note that James, while very knowledgeable, is not a developer or designer of the Pathfinder rules and is occasionally overruled by one of the designers (like Jason, Sean, or Stephen.) In this case though since this post has been up since January of 2012, it seems that it has not been challenged or overruled by another designer. In any case, since this has not appeared in an “official” errata document, it is up to the GM to determine if this is the way the ability runs in his or her campaign.
"

I had seen that, I just read it as 'it can grab', not 'it has Grab', and the answer still says 'functions like' rather than 'is'. I think this is one of those things that monsters can do but PCs by default can't unless it explicitly says otherwise.

Duly noted on the change of patron.

Re. Discord I'm about to send you all links. You'll need to create a profile if you've not used it before but I promise it's pretty straightforward. It's definitely useful for general ooc chat and for making decisions that don't just rely on slow back and forth, and the much quicker dialogue.

In terms of stat adjustments, I set out my general opinions in the original recruitment thread. I also want to make it as easy as possible so you nobody has a ton of reworking to do.

To that end...
Joreld, Calen and Ialia: You may each increase one of your primary stats by +1. The +1s may or may not be immediately useful but they're obviously long-term good.
Samara and Tara: Please reduce one of your lowest stats by 2 points. Taking off the -2 means that everyone will end up with at least one stat that has a +0 or +1 mod (which as dump stats go isn't bad!)
Pick: You're fine just as you are.

I'm also conscious that I don't want to keep people waiting so I intend to get a first gameplay post up today so you can start making in character introductions etc.

I'm assuming that none of your characters know each other, though I welcome pre-existing connections if you think it makes sense and want to work on them. This can be done in the background though, it isn't going to hold up getting started (same with stat tweaking etc.)

@Tara The above also applies if you're still working on your character. No worries if they're not finished but provided you've got an alias you'll be able to jump right in.

Done! CON dropped.

I'm very excited to kick this game off!

+1 to Dex

+1 Int

One last change, if allowed, I moved a single skill rank from Spellcraft to Handle Animal.

Skill change is fine.

Pick: You're fine just as you are.

i'm so fine, i'm so fine i blow my mind HEY DRUID HEY DRUID

Oh Druid, what a pity you don't understand.
You take me by the heart when you take me by the hand!

+1 wisdom

Power Attack is gone as a feat but it is still a combat option anyone can use provided you have BAB+1. It is no longer strength-based so Lunaris can Power Attack. With her BAB+3, she can get the -1/+2 bonus.

Apologies, if I'm stating something you already know but you also have Deadly Aim as a free combat option.

Ah thank you, I wasn't sure if the power attack was only for strength based attackers or all attackers.

In my research I re remembered about the deadly aim too lol

And you are Blessed!

Fwiw, I'd prefer to play it out, but don't want it to be a boring time for everyone else if the wyvern's intent on running away.

I don't mind us playing it out! We as a party have some tricks up our sleeves even for enemies trying to fly away.

Yes, yes indeed.

Very good.

I want Joreld to add more to the conversation, but I'm having a hard time getting it into words.

What sort of topics do you want to discuss/line do you want to take, Joreld? More than happy to throw out any hooks to help. Feel free to DM me or chat on Discord.

I want Joreld to add more to the conversation, but I'm having a hard time getting it into words.

Is it finding Joreld's voice? I would have a hard time playing a paladin!