Apemantus Oldcastle's page

Ah man, Darrel, that sucks that you don't have a dinner-table group. I couldn't imagine. (PbP is so slow). Do you just live in a small city with few options plus a super busy life?

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As for the Halloween one-shot, it'll just be Sunday night, a quick 5-hour session with pre-gen PCs. Normally we do our regular game and also a Halloween special. This year, blech, the group is canceling our regular game session for the Halloween special, and having a Friday party and Saturday party. My vote, of course, was for three game sessions this weekend. But alas, it's one game and two costume parties.

Awesome. That's a little like what my one-shot is.

While based loosely on the 'Call of Cthulhu' full campaign "Beyond the Mountains of Madness", I changed the BBEG-like encounter to a more 'Lovecraftian-Malgoth'. The canon location is Antarctica which I'm placing in Greyhawk's Land of Black Ice (significantly apropos), and the 'Call of Cthulhu' climax/conclusion is that after the PCs have traveled to (Antarctica) and become tainted with The Malgoth, become carriers or 'incubators' of 'It', they realize that the only way to prevent The Malgoth from spreading to the entire Plane is to make sure The Malgoth stays where it has crash-landed in Antarctica, The Land of Black Ice, effectively hibernating-- too cold, too frozen to spread. If The Malgoth roots or pollen or seeds spread beyond The Land of Black Ice (warmer climate) it will grow and eventually destroy the entire Plane. (Canonically The Malgoth is an Abyssal Tree whose roots, pollen and vines/branches spread out almost taking over the entire Abyss -- let alone a single Prime Material Plane. Dozens of ancient Lords of The Abyss died trying to stop it, ages ago.) Thus, the PCs are sent to The Land of Black Ice to find out what crashed there from The Dark Tapestry, realize it's The Malgoth, observe that they are now carriers/incubators of the cordyceps-like, Lovecraftian, Abyssal horror -- and must choose to stay in The Land of Black ice, burn their ship, and eventually freeze to death in order to keep it hibernating. PCs choosing suicide over fighting to the death. Ayup. Very much more 'Call of Cthulhu' than 'Pathfinder'!

Hope everyone had a good weekend!

This week I have to do a little extra in my leisure-time preparing for two Halloween parties and far more importantly, my Halloween one-shot adventure. But I should still be able to post here almost as regularly.

'By Cayden Cailean's Testes' is not an oath I ever thought I'd hear, but I guess it works'

Outwardly, Apemantus Oldcastle nods to Darrel Stavalos; "We can each target a gambit we think will suit us -- and be available to each other as the need arises.

"I think I like the sound of the first three quite well but four and five seem out of my milieu. I will need help on at least one of the first three, approaching High Strategos Maxillar Pythareus."

Depending on the information I already know, or what Lady Martella Lotheed can answer, the first three are right up my alley for Bluff gambits. Normally with a 1st Level PC I'd be grossly overpowered with my +14 -- +16 Bluff (often with an additional +1d6), but here with a paltrey +2 or +3 depending on the gambit, there's way more room for failure. So depending on the results of my earlier rolls -- the information I have access to -- the better I'll know how much help I may need for #s 1 or 2 or 3.

"It sounds as though we may be separating from each other instead of trying each of these gambits as a collective-three. Is this how you see it? One of us tries X while another tries Y? Or shall we three each stay together and attempt each gambit in turn as opportunity presents itself?"

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In my scholarship of Taldor, what do I know about the following:

(Wow, I never thought I would say something like, 'Meh, I don't want to know the political issues, just want to support someone I trust to know them for me.') First very big difference between PC and Player!

"I can agree with that on the surface of it, but I'm one to want to put trust in the political leadership for that rather than pretend I have enough information to answer accurately. For me, *That* is the reason I'd like to support Princess Eutropia. Between what I have heard, studied, and what others I respect have 'seen' -- including My Lady here -- I like the idea of supporting Princess Eutropia."

Apemantus Oldcastle nods to Lady Martella Lotheed, "I support you, and will accept an appropriately fine outfit from your clothier." He accepts his Bronze Badge.

So, I had been thinking, I don't really have a reason to roll-a-Sense-Motive on any of the things Lady Martella Lotheed has said, so I didn't bother with the rolls.

It could be just a slight difference in play styles that all different groups have. If something seems 'off' to me -- or if an incorrect assumption would devastate me -- I'll attempt the roll.

(read Sun & Mon posts, quite busy at work today, may have time to post later)

I assume there is some 'common knowldge' regarding Princess Eutropia. Could you add that to whatever I may additionally know as a 'Loremaster'?

"Another question, My Lady, these Bronze Badges for the Senate Building, from passed Senator Voritas, well, was he a good guy? Or, more to the point, is it appropriate for other people to ask us where we got our Bronze Badges? Can we answer from Senator Voritas? Is it a secret that we are under you? Should I mention, in attempts to keep our relationship unknown, that I am a distant and minor noble of House Vernisant?"

My weekend looks busy but I ought to be able to get here once Friday and once Saturday. In case the campaign starts in Gameplay -- assuming intros are pretty well done.

Oh Boy'O, that was a trickier Gameplay post to write. One of those my-own-life issues bleeding into my character. The PC is supposed to be Charming and Charismatic. Uh. Something I don't have in Spades. (My charisma has never been the 'make-everyone-laugh/be-charming' kind; it's always been the 'trustworthy/confident/responsible-leader' kind.

Apemantus Vernisant allows a small laugh at the jokes, though it's somewhat obvious that he's more trying to fit in than he is finding humor in such. "I should work on my sense of humor; it helps the world go around, afterall."

I thought for sure it was a Familiar or the like.

If anyone wants to help out:
My call for Advice

Appreciatively allowing Darrel Stavalos to adjust his scimitar, Apemantus Vernisant smiles at Shamsi's lightheartedness. He must remind himself to laugh.

"Well, I'm *trying* to be pious so that I never have to become a Devil. I have no specific memory of my Soul descending to Hell but I remember the terror. It is not something I ever wish to experience again. And I am glad my Vernisant ancestor interceded on my behalf with Sarenrae. .... But truth be told, piety is not going to be sufficient to save my damned Soul. I'm reincarnated to endure some kind of Crucible, such that I must achieve some epic cause for good, for Sarenrae and Taldor, to earn Redemption (after my life of Evil)."

The Oldcastle looks at their host, transitioning the conversation. "I don't know what Sarenrae has in mind but, well, I hope maybe leaving Merciful Bay for the capital may get me started on my Quest. Truly, My Lady, thank you for the invitation to this, well, 'opportunity.' How can I help you?"

Slow this week is perfect for me. I'm designing my group's Halloween Special one-shot adventure and my mind is pretty all-in on making that adventure fun. So I am only half (or, really, 0.0334% into this head space right now. Ah, Halloween time!)

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[ooc](Each year in addition to our normal campaign my group does a Halloween 'terror adventure' one-shot. This year I'm doing a super-condensed version of the 'Call of Cthulhu' campaign, "Beyond the Mountains of Madness." In the Greyhawk Land of Black Ice (our current campaign is in Greyhawk.). Basically a Spelljammer crashes in The Land of Black Ice -- Antarctica -- and the PCs are sent to investigate. Antarctica is scary in a man-vs-nature way especially if I say magic isn't working. But the horror is that -- and this is the part I'm hoping to design well enough for it to *Work* over-the-table -- the only way to make sure the Lovecraftian Horror doesn't escape Antarctica and destroy the world of Greyhawk, is to burn their own ship and allow themselves to die of frostbite. (Not exactly a typical PC thing to do, LOL.). But my design is coming along well. I'm very excited about it.

"That is a neat trick, if you can do it to order."

Apemantus Vernisant pulls his hand away from the candle ashamedly. "Sorry." He releases a sigh. "If I were here by natural causes, well, the flesh should burn. But I'm from Hell." He quickly corrects himself; sometimes it's hard to articulate. "Well, *escaped* Hell. That's where my Soul belongs. But maybe I can fix that."

He looks to Lady Martella Lotheed who knows his story already, raising his eyebrow in a tacit 'Asking-For-Permission" question. Assuming if Lady Martella Lotheed is bringing them together he can trust them as he does her.

"I was some kind of villain, some evil Wizard descended of General Arnisant's bloodline -- joined the corruption so many in Taldor Fell through. .... Honestly, though, I don't remember anything of my first life. I have dreams. Nightmares. Ephemeral visions that are more emotional than visible. But nothing specific. .... I know I repented as I lay dying. I have a fleeting memory of praying to Sarenrae."

"Truthfully, it should Not have been enough. I deserve my damnation. I rightfully belong in Hell." He doesn't pause. "The Soul of one of my Vernisant ancestors interceded, I guess; in Sarenrae's own Court. And Sarenrae plucked my Soul from Hell. Reincarnated me. A new Vernisant in Merciful Bay. Now I have to prove I'm worthy of Redemption. Or, worthy of ascending after this life."

Apemantus Vernisant sits back for a moment again as he stops and apologizes again, "Oh, sorry; I tend to ramble on. The truth is, I've only been alive in this body a few months. I'm not even a year old. Talking like an actual old man is what makes some folks back in Merciful Bay call me "Oldcastle." Fact is," and he looks at his scimitar, "I've never even used that thing in battle."

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"Well met, Darrel Stavalos. A soldier?..." He asks.

Hey I did it!

Yay for the Gen X guy pretending he knows the compootar

How did you guys get the empty-boxes to checklist on your Alias Profiles?

Edit:
Testing,...

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Edit p.s.:
Hmmm

Apemantus Vernisant specifically orders the fig jam and eats an appropriately sized serving without showing gluttony or greed when food is free. He introduces himself, as well as his nickname "Oldcastle," though he has no preference as to how he is addressed.

Clearly some kind of Tiefling, Cambion, Half-Fiend or Hellbred, Apemantus Vernisant is a little self conscious of his Infernal appearance, yet is ready and willing to answer for his Devilish looks as a relief. ('Once it's out in the open it's easier for all to decide how they treat me.') But one must be careful before just discussing such disturbing bloodlines at a first meeting over a nice meal.

As introductory conversation wears on, though, Apemantus Oldcastle appears to be mentally wandering off -- despite participating in conversation and showing interest in the two Lady Martella Lotheed is introducing to him.

You see him concentrating on moving his fingers over the candleflame illuminating the table, and can almost see him working out some internal, mental struggle or emotion as to his finger's reaction to the flame. He apologizes in embarrassment if called out, and is readily open to answer this as well.

Apemantus wears a Holy Symbol of Sarenrae, prominently noticeable. A scimitar of average quality hangs awkwardly at his waist -- moving about it is clear he is not experienced wearing it (or using it in battle).

I'm with Shamsi on the 'romance' thing -- I don't care if every once in a while a single sentence or half-sentence says PC A and NPC B have a romance. But an empty sentence is about as far as I want to read about it. Every once in a while.

Nothing violent or grotesque bothers me in a game, though gratuitous such is lame -- but in a published AP I seriously doubt we'll see anything of the sort here. So we just have to respect each other's boundaries.

Yes, my PC is up to date.

I'm absolutely able to post in-character introductions in Gameplay, kinda like, "Hi Darrel Stavalos and Shamsi, nice to meet you" except you know, with some dynamic and creativity so it doesn't sound like I'm starting Kindergarten.

But I'm not sure if Sarah has a specific way she wants to start, or has designed an opening scene where Lady Martella Lotheed introduces us a certain way.

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So for now,....

My PC worships Sarenrae.

I was hoping at some point in the campaign to do some pro-Sarenrae roleplay for the people of Taldor. (It never felt right to me that Taldor made Sarenrae-worship illegal; it Always felt like really bad design by Paizo.) So in a Taldor campaign I want to try to promote it. .... According to our DM, though, in this Taldor the worship of Sarenrae is just less common rather than outright illegal, and just frowned-upon by older, more conservative elements of Taldor. So *that's* what I'll go for.

I bring it up because with a WorldWound background and a Qadira background, maybe all three of us like Sarenrae?

It can be our first connection after Lady Martella Lotheed puts us in a room together?

I can enjoy Discussion until such a time as our Master of Ceremonies posts our first introductory Text in Gameplay. I'll check each day in Gameplay and once Martella lotheed introduces us to each other -- or we get an opening scene in the Gala -- or whatever -- Discussion is good for us to keep a dialogue on our characters and how we may relate.

I can't tell you how much I'm not into PvP so let's go with the first option!

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This is SUCH good news! I perused your background and was hoping that we could roleplay an immediate friendship, but I didn't want to push anything on you. I wanted to discuss it before Gameplay to make sure we're all good.

But if you take a look at the Recruitment Thread -- the third post in the Thread is mine and the very first thing I say for my application to someone's Play-By-Post, is that I don't like PvP:

I prefer games where the PCs work together and share info and treasure equally ....

From me you'll get someone who can,...
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B:
C: Plays in a team with no PvP whatsoever, sharing info, treasure, and planning. In other words, if I'm a 'Rogue' and scouting ahead I find a treasure box, EVERYBODY gets an equal share of what's inside. If I'm a Cleric and an NPC gives me a boon for removing a thorn from his paw, I share the boon with the other PCs. And I expect the same. If we have a choice between telling the...

So I'm glad!

Looking forward to it!

but I don't watch soccer. ^_^

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Ah, don't feel too bad. Hey, no one is perfect.

;)

Apemantus Vernisant, "Oldcastle", is in Oppara with his golden-ticket from Lady Martella Lotheed after she visited my distantly-Noble-House-branch in Merciful Bay.

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I was vouched for by my family member as a worshipper of Sarenrae.

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I am a scholar and introduce myself as such -- my scimitar indicates that I am likely some kind of Gish. (I get a little Fire (as a Magus) when I hit with my Scimitar, but I don't have any Bonus on my roll To Hit) Mostly I am well read in Nobility, History, Society.

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I clearly have an Infernal Visage (Tiefling or Cambion is a good guess); anyone with the Lore Skill of such can recognize my Race as a Reincarnated-Evil-Person who repented at the last moment before death. Hell is really pissed off I escaped damnation; Sarenrae is not willing to allow my Soul to Ascend. So I get one more chance -- but have to accomplish something truly epic for the cause of Good or, this time around, my Soul will descend to Hell forever if I don't prove my Redemption Crucible.

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I think I could either become really close with our WorldWound Crusader, or he can roleplay that he distrusts me and I have to roleplay to prove I'm not Evil.

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I will look forward to Bluffing villains in order to gather information. I am charismatic.

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As we get familiar with the game system I will be able to do an occasional minor Illusion or minor Enchantment. (We have to get comfortable with how magic works first.) And because the nature of this Sorcery is my Evil past, I get sickened or even nauseated after casting.

For the record for y'all in Europe and the UK -- when Arsenal are playing I am not available ;)
(Unless, as is often the case, I have to wait 24 hours before I can watch the game.)
COYG!

Hey everyone, I'm Ray -- Florida US (GMT -5)

My PC is like a medium-BAB Gish (similar to the PF Magus). He's not great as a front-line combatant but he will do his best to help Darrel during combat. Looks like Shamsi may be our Sneak-Attack combatant???

Anyway, I try to build big Bonuses in Lore of Outsiders/Cosmology(Demons-&-Devils) and Lore of Society/History/Nobility for Taldor.

And my FAVORITE thing is to Bluff to the villains that I'm also a villain -- in order to gather information that I can use against the villains.

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I can usually post one or two times Monday -- Thursday. And as for Fri-Sat-Sun, well, I can sometimes post regularly, and sometimes not get anywhere near the computer. As a small business owner, there will be times where I am too busy to get to the Boards on a weekday or two -- often followed by a day of exhaustion where I just can't read two sentences let alone write two sentences with any cogency.

Anyway, look forward to getting to know everyone and playing WftC with you!

Who all do we have as applicants? (sorry I tried to peruse the Thread to make a list but, with the new system, it's quite difficult to get a handle on the different applicants)

Feel Free to Copy/Paste or Reply to add your PC proposal in a comprehensive list:

PC )

PC )

PC )

PC )

PC )

PC )

* ) Apemantus 'Oldcastle' Vernisant: Magus-like PC -- Lawful Good with maxed Bluff and Knowledge, good Diplomacy. Some Illusion and Enchantment magic as a Magus.

Feel Better Soon!

We're here.

Happy Weekend everyone, and good luck on selection:

I hope my LG 'Magus', 'reincarnated-escapee-from-Hell,' 'Super-Bluff, Super-Loremaster' PC gets a chance to play with all of you.

Is the following agreeable:

Lady Martella Lotheed, the "young schemer looking for fresh talent for her own growing web of intrigue," is perhaps interested in adding a young member of House Vernisant to her cadre of Taldane Heroes for the upcoming 'Exaltation Gala'. (especially after rival Maxillar Pythareus tried to publicly disgrace House Vernisant -- perhaps a Noble Scion of House Vernisant will be open to joining her.) So Lady Martella Lotheed travels to the town of Merciful Bay to meet with Hermione Vernisant (distant niece of the branch of Earl Calhadion Vernisant) whom Lady Martella Lotheed knows and trusts as a servant of Sarenrae and honorable and trustworthy ally.

In Merciful Bay, Hermione Vernisant introduces her, uh, 'Cousin' Apemantus Vernisant, and suggests that it should be he rather than she, that is more suited for such an opportunity. Hermione Vernisant vouches for Apemantus Vernisant, both personally as she has taken him in, familially in their shared bloodline of House Vernisant, and religiously as they both worship Sarenrae.

Apemantus Vernisant often goes by his nickname, "Oldcastle."

In his interview with Lady Martella Lotheed, Apemantus Vernisant, Oldcastle, is fully transparent about his life, his Reincarnation from Evil, his Devilish features, the ancient history of his ancestor, and his quest -- his Crucible to Redemption.

Oh yes, certainly -- I have already started. I needed the Crunch first, as I'm still very new to it. And I wanted to give time for DM-or-other-Player posts on Lady Lotheed. Just in case I needed to adjust or fit in better. But in my Alias Profile I have the beginnings of that. And now I can finish it.

I should post again layer Friday.

Apemantus 'Oldcastle' Vernisant

THEMES:

Redeemable Hellbound 'Escapee'
Through a Reincarnation-intervention from Sarenrae, my damned Soul was brought back from the clutches of Hell after my deathbed repentance.
POWER TAG: Devil-Tongued .... Racially, my first instinct is to lie or bluff, and I'm quite good at it.
POWER TAG: Hellfire-Affinity .... Racially, minor flames and even a touch of Hellfire scorches me not, and I can Conjure a tongue of flames in combat.
WEAKNESS: Infernal Visage .... I look devilish like a Tiefling or Cambion. Prejudice follows me and there is an air of brimstone in my personality.
QUEST: Redemption .... I must achieve for Justice and Righteousness something truly epic against the force of Evil. (returning Taldor to the worship of Sarenrae and advancing Eutropia to the Throne in order to Save Taldor 'might' be good enough?...)

Loremaster
POWER TAG: Scholar of Taldor .... Dedicated student and researcher of History, Nobility, Politics, Society and such Taldoran life
POWER TAG: Scholar of Cosmology .... Dedicated student and researcher of Hell & The Abyss, Demons & Devils, Angels & Celestia, and The Circle of Souls and The Great Beyond
WEAKNESS: Bookworm .... Despite the need to train with my sword for combat and tactics, instead of training I just read more books.
QUEST: Knowledge is Power .... And for me, Knowledge is the key to undedrstand how I can gain redemption.

Magical Acumen
POWER TAG: Illusionist .... I can cast minor illusions
POWER TAG: Enchanter .... I can cast minor enchantments
WEAKNESS: Sorcerous Nausea .... Though my Hellish bloodline gives me sorcerous powers, my anathema against Devils, Demons, and Hell is such that, when I have to use those magical powers, I can become sickened, even nauseated, depending on length, concentration, and power.
QUEST: Use Evil for Good .... Despite the Evil nature of my sorcerous bloodline, use these sickening powers to further the cause of Sarenrae.

Charismatic
POWER TAG: Diplomat .... I am good at knowing what to say and to whom, and of course, how to say it.
POWER TAG: Beguiler .... I an exceptional at inventing gambits of guile, innuendo, bluff and outright manipulation, and I employ this against those who are the antagonists to the cause of justice and righteousness.
WEAKNESS: Physically Weak .... Physically I do not have the Strength (or endurance, stamina) of those who usually wield a sword against evildoers.
QUEST: Fight Fire with Fire .... Naturally gifted in charismatic arts often twisted by Imps and Frauds, use these gifts Against the corrupt and damned -- in order to gain information for the cause of Good.

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This PC is like a LG Tiefling Magus of Sarenrae
(He is built so that, hopefully, in most cases he can have two or more Tags for each Bluff, at least one Tag always for Lore (at least two in Lore of Outsiders), and a +1 Diplomacy. .... In combat he does not have a Tag so it is just the naked roll. But as a Gish he also has a little bit of Hellfire when he hits. In addition to his Sword and bit-of-Hellfire, he can cast minor Illusions and minor Enchantments -- but he becomes Sickened (or worse) for a while afterwards.

Getting back here Wednesday.

My applicant is kinda/sorta Tiefling -- if you know Hellbred from 3.5 you have the idea.

After a long and painful battle today my headache was tragically victorious over all the Acetaminophen Armies I've been eating like pez since morning.

Hopefully the migraine will leave before I have to sleep tonight. And I can type in text what I've been noodling in my vice-gripped brain.

Ah, wrestling with Themes, Tags, interpretations/synergies, Flavor & Crunch.

Hopefully soon I'll have a rough draft you can utterly dismantle and correct. ;)

I briefly glanced at the Players' Guide just now and saw one thing I didn't know / and some stuff I had forgotten about but still fits perfectly!

One, it says worship of Sarenrae is no longer technically illegal. Um, just frowned upon especially by conservatives and old-school folk. It makes my Pro-Sarenrae theme a bit easier, yet, also a bit less epic. Of course, that's just peripheral canon -- the DM (or "Master of Ceremonies") may have a different perspective. Let me know.

And rereading the Traits and such I remembered that for my old PC I chose Disgraced Noble, Child of Oppara, & Taldane Patriot. And my starting Feat was Noble Scion with Vernisant bloodline -- almost certainly where I heard the name "Vernisant."

In this case, my PC's 'disgraced noble' bit is more because I'm a Reincarnated evil guy rather than one who publically disagreed with a certain politician. Probably look like a Tiefling! Combine that with my 'I love Sarenrae' and such, and I've made a PC whose presence in the group for this campaign seems a perfect fit.

What I do not Yet have is a good reason for Martella Lotheed to give me that invitation. .... I think maybe I need to know a little more about who she is. .... Maybe she likes Sarenrae? Maybe she likes House Vernisant and gave the Golden Ticket to a Vernisant noble in Merciful Bay (where I'm from) and I managed to be the one to get it? .... We can figure out an appropriate reason.
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Soon, I'll start working on my Themes and Tags.

I just need a bit more to learn of my character before I can really feel ready to think about Crunch (other than uber Bluff and maxed Lore).

I'm going to find time today to reread the Players' Guide to get a couple campaign traits to help me get a fuller development of my applicant. (That's a challenge to myself)

@Apemantus - I like the detailed background and I'm curious what themes you decide to go with. My only question for right now is how that character ties into War for the Crown as opposed to any ohter AP. Although we aren't using the campaign traits, they're a useful guide as to how your character finds a 'hook' into the game - what campaign trait do you think your character would have taken if this was a Pathfinder game?

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So, I just hurriedly threw my first post together but it's basically an early rough draft of a character that will have a little bit from two previous PCs: The PC I played a bit in the Legends of the Mist game, and a little bit from a War for the Crown PbP that I played in several years ago that lasted about eight minutes before the DM quit.

I have to go back and read the 'Players' Guide' again to get a refresher --I know a Lady gives each of the PCs an invitation to a celebration and that's how we start. I will get to that asap.

The "Themes" of this amalgam of a PC will certainly give me as many Tags as possible for Bluff/gambits/guile and Lore/History/Political-Science and will based on the two old PCs:
ONE, a Reincarnation of an Evil Taldane (descendant of Arnisant) who, on his deathbed, truly repented and converted to Sarenrae -- but a little bit too late for Sarenrae to really trust him for a Celestial afterlife so is allowing his Reincarnation in order for him to have one more try to do something absolutely Epic for 'the cause of righteousness' and 'redemption.'
TWO, a minor, distantly-related noble who wants to purge Taldor of its decadent corruption, moral decay, and overall fall from Grace -- with an emphasis on Brining Back the worship of Sarenrae which should never have been lost.

I have to reread the 'Players' Guide', think about the character a bit more, and re-tackle Themes and Tags as this is still rather new to me.

But my first post with the, 'What-you-can-expect-from-me-as-a-player/player-style' holds.
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Because I am not 100% fluent in Legend of the Mist I am a tad squeamish in starting a full caster. Don't really *feel* this is a full warrior-like PC at all. Not really sure what direction for Real Crunch I will go. We'll see what others, my teammates, go for. But maybe some kind of Gish build.
Edit: ....Yeah, I could easily see this becoming a Gish. Looking at Magus (and Hexblade and Duskblade and Mage-Blade and all such).

The montage joke you posted there is great. It's actually the same YouTube clip that I show people to explain how tournament chess players play chess. I try to explain, 'Imagine you have a table with a 1,000-piece jigsaw puzzle laid out (all face up) and you have to find ALL the pieces and where they connect BEFORE touching any of the pieces.' So it looks like you're just staring and staring at nothingness, but really your eyes and brain are like, well, like that 'Big Bang Theory' joke.
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In other news: I have posted interest in the new Recruitment "Interest" Thread. And,.... Even got a background for a character, though no Crunch.

I am very interested.

I only know the Legend of the Mist rules a little bit, having played briefly in a sadly-dropped Play-By-Post.

I prefer games where the PCs work together and share info and treasure equally -- and I prefer roleplay far more than combat. In the Players' Guide opening paragraph it says PCs will "tangle with magical
monsters, match wits with senators, and play dirty pool
against some of the most skilled spies." For me, I'm gonna try to milk out every bit of roleplay with the 'match wits with senators' kinda stuff. And, you know, try to participate while the other stuff happens, too. Then get back to intrigue, guile, innuendo, verbal gambits and politicking.

The type of character I enjoy is the character who has two primary aspects: Lore and Bluff. I love learning about all the depth and knowledge of the setting and NPCs and being a loremaster of such. And I love, absolutely Love coming up with lies and gambits and tricks to use against villains to learn more about the evil they're committing -- so as to better defeat them.

I have a character background ready under this Avatar/Alias -- but without any Crunch whatsoever. Not even the 'Why does Martella Lotheed give you an Invitation' Macguffin.

All that can come later.

But from me you'll get someone who can,...

A: Post once or twice each day Monday--Thursday, and sporadically on weekends (sometimes several per weekend, sometime never on the weekend). And who also from time to time may have to miss several weekdays as work gets overloaded.

B: Build a maxed-out Lore and Bluff character

C: Plays in a team with no PvP whatsoever, sharing info, treasure, and planning. In other words, if I'm a 'Rogue' and scouting ahead I find a treasure box, EVERYBODY gets an equal share of what's inside. If I'm a Cleric and an NPC gives me a boon for removing a thorn from his paw, I share the boon with the other PCs. And I expect the same. If we have a choice between telling the Captain-of-the-Guard something/somethin' then we all discuss it and vote.

Guys I regretfully have to check out. There just aren’t enough posts in Gameplay for me to have not started looking into other PbP games, and I’ve been accepted into one. (I don’t feel like I can assuredly play in two, for when they both are busy posting at the same time.)

I admit to be in the middle of designing a PC application for a different PbP — having assumed this one was dead. If I get into that second PbP it’ll be a struggle to stay in two. Let’s hope for the best. Meanwhile, let’s get Gameplay going strong here, yes?

I hope everyone's New Year is starting off okay. And I hope everyone is figuring out how to get back on Paizo after the thunderstorm in Seattle made their servers go bonkers. (I had to clear my Cookie History from my computer in order to sign-in at Paizo and start posting again. Now I just need some twenty-year-old to teach me how to retrieve the cleared cookies from a site I Didn't want cleared.)

And, what time of day is it?

looking around, eyes & ears open: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (17) + 2 = 19

I’ll put in for a Happy Stick, absolutely.

Still here

"I guess we go to Parrot Island. ....Not that my concern is at all relieved; that was such an unusual encounter. We search to no avail for Lord Vanthus Vanderboren, and then this scallywag drops upon us and sells us some information. Hmm. We must be cautious. ....But again, I guess we go to Parrot Island.

"....Unless perhaps a sneaky one among you first wants to follow our dear friend Shefton to see to where he goes and to whom he reports...."