Alni's page

Pre-explanation. Im not big on romance unless it serves a plot point. Occasionally PCs might tell me they're interested in X, and a couple of times per campaign I'll have an NPC say 'Hey, wanna have a drink?' My ranger has been clear she's not interested.

For fun last session after a mess at the palace I decided to throw in for chuckles my usual 'Hey, wanna have a drink after you kill this ghost dragon?'
Ranger player out of game: what the heck, been turning everyone down.
Ranger player in game: Sure.
Tiefling player who just found out where his devils blood comes from: Ranger, lets talk.

Silliness :P

Given that the dragon fight -which they had to retreat and prepare and then take on again- went horribly, and this was the worst session in the whole campaign, at least we had some laughs.

If the Ranger has 3 hits plus 1 from haste what can the guy with this feat block?

https://www.d20pfsrd.com/feats/weapon-mastery-feats/cut-from-the-air-weapon -mastery/

Thanks!

My group plays online and I'm looking to get the FG modules. What will those give me? Will I need to get anything else? Has anyone used them and would like to share their experience?

The FG modules have been the deciding reason for me picking this campaign. I don't have enough time or I'm darn slow and I end up wasting my time making notes, importing maps and images to FG and stating opponents. I would like to be free of that and be able to concentrate on the story and bringing the world to life, which I think I will be able to if I get the "boring" bits out of the way.

We're still in Hells Vengeance, end of book 5, but since two new first time ever players may join in the next campaign I'm looking into it now :)

Soooo... my rogue turned assassin at lvl 8. They weren't doing too well till then and now they're doing worse. Basically, they might as well sit out the battle. What the player has been doing is studying the target for 3 rounds after which (a) the others have already killed said target or (b) the attack fails or the target saves. And that's about how every battle has been going for them. Oh, and they die a lot which doesn't help. They've been very useful in scouting and disarming and stuff but still... So I told the player they may respec (they can't change their stats or the levels they've taken in each profession but everything else can change). I'm unfamiliar with how an assassin is build or played, have never had one in any group I played with. So here's what they have:

Rogue 8 / Assassin 5
CE Human
HP: 50, AC: 18

STR: 16 (+2 item), DEX: 20, CON: 8, INT: 17 (+6 item), WIS: 10, CHA: 14

Death from Above, Dodge, Fast Getaway, Fiendish, Hellcat Stealth, Iron Will, Ledge Walker, Mobility, Shadow Duplicates, Skill Focus, Weapon Finesse

Equipment: Leather armor, Dagger

Any advice on what they should have (feats, equipment, anything)? Any advice on how they should play in battle?

Basically I have 3 players. Used to play solo with my husband every weekend then 2 more people joined in. Since then I've had a 2 months pause because of military duty of Player1. That was ok. Last week Player2 had a relative visiting for a week. We didn't play. This week Player2 has family function and must leave early. Next week Player2 has wedding and Player1 is now taking a summer job and isn't sure if and when they will make it. Husband is getting fed up.

I'm thinking of running the campaign each week same time with whoever shows up, run any missing players as NPCs (silent going along) and posting a summary after each game for anyone missing to catch up. What do you think? How do you handle this?

Any idea how I can incorporate that and give them the opportunity to do so? I see the Order of the Rack featuring quite a bit (we're in the second book) but the player has really put an effort into that bit of their characters backstory and I'd like to give them the opportunity.

Just thought I'd post this as a closing to the worst campaign I have ever played with the worst DM I have ever played with.

Campaign fell out. Which was a good thing.

The GM had foisted a half-orc (other system / world so changing the names) kid on my paladin. The half-orc player wasn't interested. There's prejudice, will you throw a five year old out? So to go along -even though that wasn't what I wanted- I decided my goodie guy takes the kid up as his brother. My paladin is a 19 year old only child that I have made a point through the campaign always wanted a sibling. He sends the kid to stay at his Order, the other members love the kid, my paladin's parent's -both paladins- 'adopt' him. I have till this point made a lot of concessions. Working with shady characters -just protesting and going along- cause I don't wanna play the plot ruining idiot. "Sure let's break into the church vault, of the church my Order is working with, to find evidence of the church's wrongdoings on the say-so of anarchists that are hunted by the authorities. If the church is evil that has to be the only way to find out." Me deskbanging type concessions. Also note I had passed my character concept by the GM when I joined to make sure it fit.

So we're wrapping up -just to have an ending.

GM says "Bad guy isn't really bad, he's also unbeatable, kid is potentially dangerous, please turn it in to be killed."
I explain to the GM that's not happening.
GM starts threatening. There will be war on his Order. Bad guys from all around the world will band against them. Members will die.
I'm "Ok, that's an acceptable ending. His Order goes to war. Np."
GM goes with bigger threats. Then says kid will be assassinated anyway.
I'm ok with that. I tell the GM my paladin would then make it his mission to challenge the bad guy and have his head.
More threatening. Bad guy too strong. Your characters Order will be hunted down.
I'm fine with that and have had enough (its been 30 minutes of him trying to convince me to hand over the kid) so I ask for a roll on the outcome of the duel. Rolls. Paladin wins.
GM very unhappy on that. He loves his NPCs. Threatens more retaliation on my character.
I'm ok with that too. I explain to the GM I'm even fine if my character dies, but he's not hauling a five year old to his would be assassin.
But GM is very unhappy -calls my character a liar, a hypocryte and unethical for seeking vengeance- and retcons almost the whole thing.

Other fun bits.

- He had about 10 plot lines running. We didn't understand any.
- He spoke in a bored slow voice "Umm... the baron... yeah... heeee... umm... gives... lemme see..."
- He is an aspiring author. His characters descriptions went "His tanned body is striking and his deep blue eyes twinkle as he smirks, his ebony hair cascading over his chiseled shoulders".
- He had a whole group of DMPCs he loved. When our rogue pointed out that she wasn't eager to risk her life and freedom to break out amazing DMPC from jail, he messaged the player "Quite a hero you go there"
- He never scheduled games. I did.
- He often cancelled sessions at the last minute.
- In the 11 sessions of this game 3 players quit. The last quit prompted abandoning the game. The GM said "3 players are too few to run a campaign for" and no one wanted to invite anyone to this game.
- His idea of a fun moment was. Me: "My paladin tries to blindly find the invisible foe" GM: "He grabs the invisible guy. By the crotch. Hahahahaaaa! Good one eh? I thought of that myself" Yes he did say all of that.
- Told the mage player he did not like her character.
- Asked the rogue at the 7th session 'what is your characters motivation?' Power! The player had made it clear forever but the DM only cared about his DMPCs.
- Wrote an ending to the game that had no reference to the PCs or anything we did through out.
- Used the game to promote his own "hipster artist" views. He used those words to define himself not I.
- Best one! "IT WAS NOT MY FAULT THE GAME WENT BADLY! I DIDN'T KNOW THE RULES OF THIS SYSTEM!"

And thats why I'm not exactly upset the campaign ended.

Hello! So after last session my fighter complained I ask for too many skill checks and I think he was actually right. I was wondering how others handle the above situations:

1. Perception. The party walks into a room there is a trap, object, something that requires a check to be noticed.

a. Do you roll behind the screen for the party and tell the person that got the check 'Your rogue notices X'?
b. Do you ask the players to roll?
c. Do you wait for the PCs to say 'I roll perception to check the room'?

2. Sense motive. This is where its gone BAD for me. Cause when I ask for a sense motive check and they fail, the wizard goes and preps his interrogation spell. Yes, its metagaming on his part but how could I handle it better?

a. Ask for a roll in EVERY dialog?
b. Roll behind the screen?
c. Just talk to the players and tell them that they 'really really believe this guy'?

3. Diplomacy / Intimidation / Bluff.

Problem 1. I have come across a specific player -that might join our game- that rolls say the warrior with 10 int and 8 wis, with 0 points on social skills and then roleplays a charismatic tactical genius. So I've been doing "Let's roleplay this but you also have to roll a check".

Problem 2. How many rolls should I allow in a social situation? 1 per player? 1 per type? Should I up the DC if the first attempt fails? What I had last session was Fighter tries intimidation and fails, Rogue tries intimidation and fails, Fighter tried bluff, Mage tries diplomacy... well, at some point they'll get it.

a. Ask for a roll in every dialog?
b. Roll behind the screen?
c. Allow one check of each type per situation and only one check per person?

Thank you!

Edit: To say nothing of my undead master who is playing a 'charismatic talker' with a shambling skeleton at his back. How do I even handle that? He doesn't have the undead with him all the time but still... shouldn't it affect this 'charismatic roleplay' and rolls?

Title say it all. Thanks!

Cause they're being hauled down there :)

Hetamon I'm assuming not.

Octavius, Setrona, Rexus? Any of them do you think? Thanks!

Cause sadly from the questions they've been asking they are not gonna read the player guide *grumbles a bit*. I put in:

-Please no backstabbing, pvp, undermining of party members. There's a lot of good guys out there to backstab, gutt n kill ; ) Also for whatever reasons your character wants to be part of this team.
-You may worship Asmodeus or not but you surely know to go along and keep your mouth shut, so that you can keep your head attached to your body.
-"Just like in adventures where you play heroes working together for the greater good, in Hell’s Vengeance you play villains working together for something larger than the individuals in the group—you’re fighting to save your nation."

And linked them to a video on how to play an evil character. They're good players so I don't expect much trouble. Anything other DMs thought necessary to clear up before the campaign starts?

On another note I am starting to wonder why LE characters would take a job that's basically a robbery in the start.

Thought I'd post what my party is doing. After NOT attending the Ruby Masquerade at all, I mean "We were warned its a trap! Were staying clear", the party gets arrested the next day and is kept in the basement of the Opera. Breaks out, after just checking Thrune's room (by chance the third room they entered) leaving Shensen there. Its a statue so? Now the plan is to use the sabotage teams and rig the Opera House from the outside with explosives completely taking it down. Sadly no wizard was available for hire, the initial plan was to hire someone with wish or miracle to do a big boom. Sooooo... Jilia And Shensen stay buried under the rumble for the next few centuries till the next party decides to explore. Along with any treasure. Not the exploring types, the all out war with Thrune types.

Is there such software? Something that will give you a decent build per level?

Playing a solo campaign and my player controls 4 to 7 characters. Leveling them is a pain and I get to do it... :(

This is a continuous argument we've been having with a friend and I'm interested in other people's opinions, just for fun. It's more of a dnd question -real life is a different issue, much more complex so I'd rather not go there.

So in a game setting, where you know NPC-X did something evil, do you really care why?

My take: If I find Evil-boss standing over a bunch of corpses of people that she just sacrificed alive, I do not care why she did it. I do not feel pity for her because she was mistreated as a child, others were mistreated too and they didn't turn into homicidal maniacs. I will cut her head off or drag her to the local authorities to be judged and hanged. I will be thinking less of Evil-boss and more of victim who spend their last moments in agony screaming. If Evil-guy decides to atone, I would still have them dead, for justice for the victims and because if they're capable of it once, they might do it again. I would care about why the beggar stole the bread, yes, but there are limits after which your actions are so horrid it doesn't matter why.

My friends take: If I find Evil-boss standing over a bunch of corpses of people that she just sacrificed alive, I would want to know why. Under certain circumstances anyone could commit evil deeds, so I would want to know why she did it. Maybe it is not her fault. If she's trying to atone I will give her a second chance to put things right. (My friends argument is a bit watered down cause I'm repeating it but you get her point).

What's your take on this? Given a fantasy world where you're the "hero". I get there's no "right" or "wrong" here. Just interested in how people see things.

I don't know exactly how to put this but do you have some combinations that work well? Either used by one PC or more. For example I cast a spell that ups the DC to fear spells, then follow with fear spells. Or cleric using X buff and paladin using X abitily that work well together. Just looking for fun ideas, I hope my post is clear.

By the way party is lvl 11 with

-cleric 10 / sentinel 1
-warrior 4 / paladin 6
-cleric 11
-cleric 5 / ranger 6
-rogue 11
-wizard 11

any interesting combos they could do?

We're at the point where they get handed the Amulet of True Faith, that changes to the god's symbol. I'm between changing his to Sheylyn or just leaving it as is. Thoughts?

When the wizard, magus, caster hits his AoE is there any way to exclude your party from them? I am not referring to taking precautions like "I will be casting fireballs let me cast resist energy for that on the party before hand". More like "My spells don't hit allies".

NPC is mute from birth (bad english maybe...). The reason I want this is because I want the NPC to communicate with other NPCs. My PC communicates with sign language, but I want to be able to leave her in charge, assign her missions etc. Don't care if it's really expensive or difficult. Just would like to know if there's any way to get it done.

How often do you use unwinnable battles in your campaign? Do you make sure your players know they are unwinnable from the start? What about battles where the bad guy runs away? Or where someone else steps in to save the day?

When the battle should be unwinnable -I avoid those as a rule- as a GM I usually pump up the opponents to look scary or give some clue. If you do give clues what kind of clues do you give? The bad guy running away I stopped doing completely since I saw my players faces when it happened, but that depends on the group. Then there's someone else coming in to save the day, which I never do.

I'm looking to see what others do as GMs, what "rules" do you go by when setting up a battle like that and what players think of them.

All in the title. Quick question. =)

The damage effect is enhanced for creatures with the cold subtype. Affected creatures who fail their saves catch on fire.

Only intend to use it to harm living occasionally. Was wondering if having the affected enemies catch on fire is worth sacrificing half damage?

Quick question: Devil subdomain [evil][law]

Only lawful evil can select it? Thanks.

I am trying to help the rogue with flanking -his build revolves around that- but my cleric is based on melee touch attacks with 8 strength. So...

If we are flanking an opponent and I have my mace drawn, does the rogue get the flanking bonus even if I hit with a melee touch attack? I'm assuming I will not get any kind of bonus because it is only for melee attacks not for melee touch attacks, but still it would be great if the rogue gets the bonus...

Thanks!

Looking for opinions. Any good choices in subdomains? I'm looking for debuffer / damage dealer... not to support the party. Was thinking Fire (maybe Ash) for the fireball, or Magic (for mage's disjunction... though there's that small issue of destroying artifacts by mistake)

I made a mistake and put the Evil domain of my god on my neutral cleric so now have to go to the next session and tell the DM I'm changing domains.

Just need a confirmation that I understood the rules...

Copycat (Sp): You can create an illusory double of yourself as a move action.
Grace: Casting Time 1 swift action

So I can cast both AND then cast whatever spell I want to attack?

Edit: Do I also get a 5-foot step? I think not, since copycat is a move action ... but making sure. I assume I get the free actions though.

Cause fear does not specifically mention that I should succeed in an attack. What about other attacking spells that do not say "make a some-type attack".

Inflict wounds for example? Do I need to succeed in a melee touch attack for that? Would that mean I roll touch attack, then the guy gets an attack of opportunity, then I roll concentration (if I'm at close range), then the guy gets a save?

Too much free style, rules are overwhelming.

The cleric is LN. Would freeing their slave make them fall? Would it matter why they did it? Care about her vs. can't afford the upkeep or something else. Would not be going on anti-slavery crusade, just giving freedom to one person. What else would be considered a reason for losing cleric powers from Asmo?

Hello! Is there a way to get my cleric's touch attack higher? Something like the "guided hand" feat that applies to spells?

Up to now I have:

Cleric, LN
god: Asmodeus
race: Vishkanya (so he can also use blowguns, kukri and shuriken)
domains: trickery (not decided on the second one)
feats: I'm definitely getting spring attack.
stats: str 10, dex 16, con 12, int 10, wis 19, cha 10

Hello! The party just reached Neathholm, shrine of Torag consecrated, cleric of Torag buried, npcs helped and treated politely, bodies of the dead not looted because "Not taking rings and weapons off corpses, don't bother describing with that type of loot".

Now to the Lair of the Vile... I can't see the PC killing people at sight. I know they could attack him on sight, but the PC would prefer to talk to them first. Definitely won't kill a whole tribe, most of the attacks in the previous campaign have ended with hauling the bad guys to the "proper authorities". I was thinking instead of finding a way of getting that tribe on his side, any suggestions?

Edit: Also the party has left the backpacks with 5000 gold and three horses at the inn. Any way of "naturally" giving that back sometime further in the campaign?

Hello! Started playing "Gambler's Quest" with one player, played two sessions and from the looks of it there will be probably one more, two if he really stretches it. The story -if anyone is familiar with it- ends with the player getting information on the location of an artifact. Couldn't find any of the 1-on-1 adventures that seem to be a continuation of this. So, I was thinking of playing an actual campaign somehow connecting it to this. The tough bit is that I actually set "Gambler's quest" in Mendev, and the PC is a Wizard with the city guard. The easy bit is that he's hauling an npc fighter and an npc cleric with him (he's playing them in the battles, rolling their checks and everything) so I won't need to scale things much. Any suggestions either on campaigns or any advice on how to play 1-on-1 welcome.

Hello, we just finished Rise of The Runelords and this is the dialog between an NPC Cleric of Erastil and PC Swashbuckler.

Cleric: "You are going to do everything to protect your people, that's not a suggestion. That's a fact, I just want to say that you should never ever forget that your final goal, is to protect people. It's easy for one to loose himself"
Swashbuckler: "What exactly defines everything? What is the limit in what we do?"
Cleric: "I... I really do not think there is one. As long as it is to keep your people safe I think you will do everything. Would you kill a whole family to save many many more? Yes you would. Now would you sleep at night? That's a very different question"
Swashbuckler: "Yes, I would. You are right. It's all about the people. We don't matter if we cant protect them. And yes... I could sleep at night."

After reading this I asked the DM if he's switching both of them to neutral. DM believes they are doing the right thing. You should kill an innocent family, to save a many more innocent families.

I as a player and my LG Cleric of Erastil disagree. My cleric is keeping his family away from both of them just in case they get ideas :P

So what alignment(s) would that thinking falls in, in your opinion?

Edit: To avoid any misunderstanding. Campaign is over. We were having philosophical discussion with DM and other players on the matter. I suggested I'd post on the message boards so we see what others think. They liked the idea.