Pasha of the Nightsands's Untitled Campaign

Game Master Pasha of the Nightsands

I don't think they're on a vacation, as they said in their Coliseum Morpheuon discussion that they would always give us a heads up when they were gonna be gone for awhile. **Unless** something suddenly came up that prevented them from doing so.

I also don't think they randomly ghosted us. They were posting fairly regularly to both their threads, and nothing occurred in our CM game that might make them abandon the game.

I suppose it's possible they just got overwhelmed with both games, and bounced, but I'm hopeful that's not the case.

Thanks for the info Monkeygod, I agree you could be right, something may have come up. I hope its nothing bad.

My money is on demotivation or mental health issues... but of course speculation won't get us far.

I actually kinda expected the game not to work out, since in my experience DMs launching 2 games back to back don't keep up for long (on average), even more so when these games are high-crunch. But one always hopes!

And the DM reminds me of another, on another board, who disappeared in similar abrupt fashion (and was also offering a Spheres game). Down to the playtest he likes to make with not-yet-selected PCs, which I haven't seen many DMs do, since it's bound to be very time-intensive. Whether or not they're one and the same, they do offer very enticing campaigns!

Still, I don't mind all this since I had fun making Léonie :-D, and I got to dive into the Tinker sphere. I do hope I get to play Zeitgeist some day (*pokes Chris* ;-)).

I honestly expected the same... but not so quickly and suddenly. It might be because I'm also playing in games and the thought of just outright disappearing when these are now my only pathfinder games, is absurd.

I hope nothing but the best to the GM. Regardless of the reasons.

And it was a blast to make the character, so time was well spent as far as I’m concerned.

I'm back and I have a lot I need to go over with you all. Now, there's a lot of information I need to go over, which I've already posted in my Coliseum Morpheuon game's discussion, so I'll probably use some of the text from that since I'd otherwise be saying the same thing in a different way. I do have specific things to say for you folks at the end though, as well as a slew of unanswered questions to get to. I'll put the copied text from my lengthy explanation and plans moving forward in a quote- though I'm obviously cutting the stuff specific to that game from it- then give you folks the more specific stuff after that.

Let's start with where I've been. A family member of mine developed a rather serious issue with osteomyelitis (hopefully I spelled that right) which is basically a serious bone infection. It began when their toe began swelling up and turning purple in the course of a single day. I had it in my head to post and let everyone know what was up that night, but obviously didn't do so. What followed was the bone infection causing things to turn necrotic, a (comparatively) mild case of sepsis, and emergency surgery. I've been with my family member nearly this whole time and, since getting back, have had to basically catch up on everything I've missed and help them out as well. It's been physically and mentally exhausting experience, and I honestly just haven't had the energy to do much of anything besides sleep.

Now let's get into where things are at. I've mentally processed everything that's been on, got most of the duties I had to assume handled, and have gotten things mostly stabilized. There are still three things that need doing before I can get back into the groove of things: cutting up and disposing of two trees that were uprooted and fell in the yard during the storms a few weeks ago, fixing my home air-conditioning unit that sprung a leak somewhere (hopefully the refrigerant line and nothing more major), and replacing my well motor which has been slowly petering out and making popping noises whenever it pumps water (I have determined that it is NOT air in the lines or a dirty filter, so it's probably the whole motor). I can see now why one of the most reviled curses in the East is, "May you live in interesting times". That will take a few days at least, though I can't really give a clear time table because I'm certainly not a trained professional at handling any of those three things.

Now, for where we go from here. I'm still willing to GM, assuming you guys will still have me. I know I screwed up big time not letting people know what's been going on and I don't know how to remedy that, but I want to try and make it right by pushing forward and delivering the experience I intended to before all of this. I would, ideally at least, like to see about maybe finding a way to allow us to communicate so you guys have a direct line to me in case life throws more curveballs my way; probably Discord, although I haven't used that app in so long that I'll probably need to make a new account for it.

So that's where things stand. I'll probably be mostly absent for a few days after posting this so I can handle everything that's cropped up since getting back home: refrigerant-leaking AC unit (currently 82 farenheit in here, so prioritizing that first), well motor going out, and cutting up and moving uprooted trees. I won't be able to do anything major- character reviews, number-crunching, looking up new stuff for people, etc- but I'll try to at least answer questions in between getting things back up to shape around here. On a more personal note, I feel terrible at having left things where they were without so much as a 'can't post right now, more info later', doubly so now that I've seen how much I've worried people and all the speculation about my health or safety, as well as the bad memories it has drudged up of GMs that have been crippled or passed on.

I've got to go to the store real quick to pick up a few things, so I'll back to help answer all the questions I've left unanswered for these last few weeks, but I wanted to go ahead and let you all know where things stood before I did so since you've all been worrying yourselves to the bone over this fool of a GM.

Good to know you're hale!! And sorry to hear about the family health scare.

Take all the time you need - RL first, always.

I'm sorry to hear that your family member got osteomyelitis, but I'm glad they had you there with them. Family (and real life
commitments like fixing a broken fridge) always have to come first.

And I've certainly had times where in the crunch of real life I took longer than I wanted to to check back in with a game, so I totally understand.

As namo says, take all the time you need!

(And since you mentioned it, I'm a big fan of PbP games having a discord. Like most folks here, I've been in plenty games that died quickly. I've also had the good fortune to play RotR from beginning to end on these boards, and am now in the midst of the Kiora's WotR campaign, which is currently the 3rd most active campaign in the history of these boards. Having a discord for OOC planning and for keeping in touch when people need to step away has really helped. It's the kind of thing that's 100% DM's call...but if you're considering it, I'm a vote in favor.)

Echoing the sentiments expressed already. When you're ready, I will be happy to participate. May your curveballs be ever minimal.

Hope things continue to improve for ya, GMotTA =)

I'm tempted to draft up a horrible combination of two character concepts now that I have more of an idea of how spheres works, so my submission isn't the odd magicless one out... but I'll probably leave it be. May I ask how much longer until characters are due, to see if I have time to just randomly switch gears?
Mostly thinking about it because it seems the gestalt rules seem to favor one casting class and one non-casting class.

Thanks for filling us in on your situation, Pasha. Hopefully things improve!

Thanks to everyone who has replied thus far! I'd be lying if I said I wasn't anxious before coming back to post today after such a prolonged absence, but you folks have been understanding as can be. It's not only a relief, but it's also humbling in it's own way. Paizo really does have some great people that have made their home here on the boards!

@Ayreth: Feel free to make that change if it fits your character better, as I'm all for people playing what they want.

@Autumn Longbriar: It's interesting not only seeing a halfling in Zeitgeist- they're rare even in the actual AP- but one that sort of breaks away from the usual stereotypes and embraces something more complex. Well done! I've added your character to the list of ones I need to review in a few days once I get the rest of these responsibilities handled.

@Philo Pharynx: That sounds like an absolutely horrible situation and I'm sorry I worried you folks enough where that sort of thing came to mind.

@namo: Thanks! Hopefully it won't be more than a few days before I can get things back to normal around here and get back to posting.

@gyrfalcon: Thanks! And hey, that's pretty impressive, both the game and the fact that you've kept chugging alongside it for that long. I can tell from your character that you've been at it for quite a long while in forum gaming considering how well put together she is.

@Slyness: Thanks! Hopefully all of us here can avoid life's least pleasant curveballs as much as possible.

@Crisischild: Thanks! Things are definitely on the up and up so far, knock on wood.

@Violant: It's probably going to be a minimum of 2-3 days before I get back to work pulling the review process together and probably a few days from there before I finish up, so probably a decent little chunk of time will be open for people who want to make last-minute 180's on their characters or create entirely new ones.

Regarding Spheres, there's no real right or wrong way to building a gestalt. I've seen people go full Might, Power, or Guile, or blend things like in Champions. You can really make just about anything work, although as with the basic Pathfinder stuff, it can take a little more work to optimize certain ideas. I won't lie though: gish characters are VERY fun in Spheres, so I can see why a lot of people are flocking to that sort of build.

Also, thanks for the tidings! My main concern has been alleviated, so now it's just playing cleanup with all the little things that have cropped up in the meantime.

Mostly thinking about it because it seems the gestalt rules seem to favor one casting class and one non-casting class.

The "traditional wisdom" for gestalt is to mix a full caster and a full martial, but it's not really necessary. Zephyr uses very little of his caster side, which isn't even a full caster, literally just a couple Destruction talents and a feat to augment his Vital Strike. You'll be fine either way IMO.

Glad to see you back, GM! I don't think there's been any changes to folks' characters or last-minute entries since I left for vacation two weeks ago, but I still have my list of applications so I'll post it here for you.

CHARACTERS SUBMITTED

Grumbaki: Kardin Shieldshatter, dwarf Gunsmith blacksmith (Techsmith) 5 // incanter 5 // Mad Shootist 1

Philo Pharynx: Tavius, deva Skyseer elementalist 1 / hedgewitch 4 // incanter 5 // Applied Astronomist 1

eriktd: Lacrimadia, tiefling Spirit Medium incanter 1 / soul weaver (Shepherd of the Lost) 4 // technician (Innovator) 5 // Urban Empath 1

ChrisAsmadi: Annalina "Lina" Vell, deva Docker striker (Voidrusher) 5 // summoner (Champion Summoner / Sphere Summoner / Void Conduit) 5 // Notorious Celebrity 1

Violant: Ana Brunas, catfolk Technologist gunslinger (Gunfighter / Musket Master / Siege Gunner) 5 // technician 5 // Steamsuit Pilot 1

Crisischild: Captain Zephyr Aetherlock, human Yerasol Veteran armorist (Martial Armorist) 5 // conscript 5 // Monument of War 1

namo: Léonie Crouet, human Technologist conscript 5 // rogue (Ghost Stepper / Shade) 5 // Steamsuit Pilot 1

Slyness: Ayreth, changeling Eschatologist druid (Spirit Mender) 5 // hedgewitch 5 // Logos 1

Johnny_Panic: Lady Calista Lisia Da Romano, drow Vekeshi Mystic eliciter 5 // investigator (Detective) 5 // Vekeshi Excoriant 1

Fury of the Tempest: Arcantos Asari, kitsune Docker kineticist (Fusion Kineticist / Legendary Kineticist / Sphere Kineticist) 5 // incanter 1 / hedge witch (Guileful Hedgewitch) 4 // Notorious Celebrity 1

EXPRESSED INTEREST

Master Han Del of the Web
johnsedwa
Monkeygod: eladarin Vekeshi Mystic
ObsessiveCompulsiveWolf
Trevor86
pad300
Hassan Ahmed: Gabriel XIII, human (Theme?) armiger 5 // symbiat 5 // (prestige class?)

DM, thanks for the kind words! Any feedback welcome, either on crunch or ideas how Autumn's backstory might be better woven into your world. When you do review her crunch, hopefully the Advancement Choices spoiler at the top of her profile helps to explain what abilities/talents come from where. (And I'm very glad I made it in under the wire! I think Autumn would be a ton of fun to play, and I'm really interested to see how some of the Dance and Subterfuge talents in particular play out. Fingers crossed as I know you have a ton of great applicants!)

Hey eriktd, I've got a relatively late addition that should be added to the list next time you post it:

gyrfalcon: Autumn Longbriar, halfling Rogue (Canny Scoundrel, Grifter) 5 // Bravo 5 // Notorious Celebrity 1

Thanks!

Glad to see you back! I'm sorry to hear about your troubles, but glad that things seem to be clearing up.

-----

Violant wrote:

Mostly thinking about it because it seems the gestalt rules seem to favor one casting class and one non-casting class.

The "traditional wisdom" for gestalt is to mix a full caster and a full martial, but it's not really necessary. Zephyr uses very little of his caster side, which isn't even a full caster, literally just a couple Destruction talents and a feat to augment his Vital Strike. You'll be fine either way IMO.

Oh, there's lots of advice on gestalting over the years. And spheres adds it's own twist.

In traditional pf1, a dual caster gestalt simply gave you a wider range of spells to cast. You had more flexibility and more endurance, but in each encounter you played much like a single class spellcaster. Dual martial build often stacked features on top of each other. Like adding sneak attack to barbarian rage.

But in spheres some talents modify other talents and amplify them. So you could build wide with flexibility or build deep with stacking abilities. And many spheres classes blur the line between martial and caster.

One point to note is that you have the same number of actions. Some people choose one class that focuses more on combat options and another that has a lot outside of combat. Think about what your combat rounds will be like. Including when you are not in your optimal place. And think of what you'll do outside of combat in different kinds of situations.

We have the advantage of knowing that we're constables. As a party, we need to be good at everything that they do. I expect that over the course of the game we'll do a little of everything. But you should know what benefits your character beings to the RHC.

I was thinking of combining an existing character I'm playing (the most mechanical fun I have ever had with a character by a long shot) with an urban fox druid concept thanks to rising industrialization being a thing in order to get a near-full caster - near-full martial, I'll see if I can draft the concept up in time.

I'll probably test that one to see how fun the spheres combination is

Good to know your ok, and there is no rush GM< RL comes 1st as always :)

Hey DM, FYI, I made a few tweaks to Autumn (all reflected in her profile):
- Instead of 5 levels of Rogue, she's now a Rogue 4 / Professional 1, which captures her pivot from petty thief to constable, and gives some fun abilities (listed on sheet) at the cost of delaying my sneak attack and SoM progression on that side by a level. (It doesn't change my Rogue's SoG progression since both classes use the same progression.)
- I swopped her main weapon from a fauchard to a 'more dance-y' spiked chain.
- I tweaked her skill ranks a bit as well.

Nothing big, but perhaps worth noting.

Oh, and a low priority Q, but if you've answered it I missed it: the Notorious Celebrity gains

Roll With a Posse (Ex) A notorious celebrity adds his class level to

his Leadership score for the purposes of attracting followers. The ce-
lebrity’s followers gain a morale bonus to attack rolls and saving throws
equal to the celebrity’s class level as long as they have seen him in the
last five minutes. A notorious celebrity never takes a penalty on his
Leadership score for moving around a lot or for causing the deaths of his
previous followers.

Since Leadership is banned in this campaign, do you plan to replace this ability?

Cheers,

Since Leadership is banned in this campaign, do you plan to replace this ability?

Answered previously in the thread:

I'd probably rule that particular ability grants a Leadership score equal to your level for the purposes of attracting followers, functioning as sort of a pseudo-Leaderhip. My main goal with banning the Leadership feats was to cut out easy cohort access, although I still allow the Leadership Sphere because it requires heavier investment if you want useful pseudo-cohorts.

Thanks!

Ok I'm bored with this waiting and checking everyday, if it's like this in recrutement, I can't see the PbP game going anywhere. So I'm out, please, GM remove my PC from the list of applicants.

Another campaign recruitment I'm in I'll probably drop out of if it's still even kicking, but this thing seemed incredibly sudden. I'm still in this.

GM literally said:

"That will take a few days at least, though I can't really give a clear time table because I'm certainly not a trained professional at handling any of those three things."

But, I guess some people have no actual patience for IRL stuff, despite claims otherwise...

Now I regret not submitting a character.