Big M's page

I'm curious how other groups have dealt with ship-to-ship combat. It's great that there is a system, and it's great that it works for some things. But it has some problems, and I'm wondering how your group has dealt with those gaps. I've seen a few posts here and there, but I'm wondering, generally, how folks handled things like broadsides targeting the steering mechanism of another ship, or how folks mitigated against higher level magic, or if you added creative house rules for alchemists and shot, etc.

We are currently punting--gentlemanly agreeing not to engage in certain tactics in the interest of drama and fun, but I'm curious if your group has done something better or just different.

Any opinions on what knowledge skill would be appropriate for a Lore Warden who wants to study the enemy ship with a spyglass a bit before manning the ballistae and catapults (Know Thy Enemy)? Would any of the standard knowledge skills work? If a new knowledge skill would be required, what else would it be good for? The DM is a swell guy, and I imagine he'd buy a decent idea, but I'd rather approach him with a concrete idea at the outset.

And what's the deal with Profession (Siege Engineer)? Is that somehow better than Engineering? Are they duplicative or different?

Thanks!

An angel has a generally nifty aura that includes a lesser globe of of invulnerability. Sometimes this aura can cause serious problems, however, for allies and the angel itself. Can an angel choose to stop evoking its aura? What kind of action is that? Are there basic rules on auras somewhere that I have missed?

Thanks for your thoughts.

http://paizo.com/pathfinderRPG/prd/monsters/creatureTypes.html

Protective Aura (Su) . . . . [I]t functions as a magic circle against evil effect and a lesser globe of invulnerability, both with a radius of 20 feet (caster level equals angel's HD). . . .