Nomadsage, I have a question about a potential shield house rule that I saw advertised on the boards.
Currently if you block a hit, shield absorbs up to its hardness and then both the wielder and the shield take all of the remaining damage.
It seems excessive as written and the houserule idea is simply to split the remaining damage 50/50 between the shield and the wielder.
Changes how often the Keg would use the shield and makes them a touch more valuable but I don't believe overbalancing and honestly the double damage bit seems excessive.
The group chose pad300's psychic pretty much unanimously. Build a profile and come join us in discussion where I will work through your and my crunch questions.
To the others, thanks so much. I know quite a bit of work goes into creating a level 10 character and I appreciate your willingness to submit. Alas, we have but one slot.
Mioki, I think pad300 answered your question effectively.
1300 Eastern tomorrow is the cutoff for submittals and then I'll take it to the party for decision.
Some of you have outstanding questions about your crunch and we can work through those after selection, if needed. None of those will be instrumental in the decision process.
Again, I will remind you that my biggest concern is staying power. If you look at my record, I know how to make a game last. You wont see this DM abandon ship on a game. My concern is players who cant go the distance. If your post record doesnt support that, id suggest sending me a note to explain why this game will he different.
In the darkness, one evening Seren grabs his pack and goes for a hike, waving cheerfully to the guards as he does so ... and as he has done so regularly for weeks.
This time, however once out of eye and earshot, he veers off in a different direction, headed to a small copse of trees with a tight thicket of undergrowth binding them together.
The wizard had spied it some time ago, but has spent weeks screwing up the courage to tackle this night.
Worming his way inside the thicket, he sets down his pack and pulls out the well-used black Nidalese tome and partner felt bag. Removing the nightglass from the felt bag, he looks at his shadow, which shivers with anticipation, moving of its own accord.
Behave yourself ... we're in this together now, you know
Staring into the nightglass, he finds the transition to the Shadow Plane easy and comfortable, his power level having increased significantly since his last visit.
Hello Darkness, my old friend ...
Seren smiles as he sings the old tune to himself.
Must stay grounded ... the compass cannot waiver.
Unlike last time, Seren doesn't go looking for anything. He holds out his hand and manifests the book, something he'd never been able to do before. Wavering with purple energy, he opens it and quickly flips to the back.
With a sigh, he finds what he is looking for ... the last third of it ... an area of the book that is filled with gibberish in his own word. It now appears with a second layer of purplish shadow ... forming letters in the Shadowtongue.
Hungrily, Seren reads as quickly as he can, his shadow hovering over him, long, cold claws settling on the illusionist's shoulder.
Seren find the book is packed with advanced shadow magic. Arcane and divine spells, reserved for the highest of priests in Nidal, tht allow the caster to take and form shadow stuff into whatever they need it to be.
For hours, he pours through the book ... learning, absorbing, pulling and all the while confident in his own ability, his moral compass, forgetting the fear that prevented him from looking at this before.
At the end, with a feeling of extreme satisfaction and the knowledge resident in his brain, he closes the book and sits back, looking up.
"SKREEEEECHHHH!!", the sudden, horrific sound causes Seren scrambles back in terror. Metal scraping on metal, as chains encompass the shadowy thicket he is in, echoing the real world. The chains move like snakes, probing searching.
Seren fumbles for the nightglass and grabs it just before the chains reach him. The wizard breaks his projection with the Shadow Plane, but not before he hears two things.
A cold voice simply stating, "FOUND YOU"
... and the lingering chuckle from his shadow that follows him back as he awakes in the thicket in a cold sweat.
"Laws are built to feed the needs of the law makers, not the rest of us. Let's keep all options on the table, we just need to understand the risks and potential consequences of each course of action."
Note, Sam has been assuming he was invisible. He has never cast the spell. He tried to cast 2 spells in Round 0 but had to pick one or the other and he chose fly
Round 6
Fario and Fellian remain trapped. Magma and the wraith continue to wreck the library.
The pale woman shifts stance and takes a deliberate aimed punch with her off hand at Nemoris and then attempts to hook his bow on the back swing. She hits him, but Nemoris is able to hold on to his weapon. She strikes again later including an energy sucking grab where she latches her teeth into Nemoris's neck.
Stunning fist vs Nemoris:1d20 + 18 ⇒ (10) + 18 = 28; HIT!; Damage:1d10 + 5 ⇒ (4) + 5 = 9; make a Fort Save DC18 or be stunned for 1 round and sickened for 1 minute
Improved Disarm vs Nemoris:1d20 + 19 ⇒ (10) + 19 = 29; fail
Mhad vs Nemoris:1d20 + 13 ⇒ (1) + 13 = 14; miss
Mhad vs Nemoris:1d20 + 13 ⇒ (17) + 13 = 30; HIT!; Damage:1d10 + 5 ⇒ (7) + 5 = 12 Mhad Slam vs Nemoris:1d20 + 14 ⇒ (15) + 14 = 29; HIT!; Damage:1d6 + 4 ⇒ (6) + 4 = 10 + Fort Save DC21 or take 2 temporary negative energy levels
Both Epik and Dalamus need to make Reflex Saves DC18 or have your weapons take 1d8 ⇒ 5 of acid damage per hit you made last round and in the future. You can roll your own damage for successful hits later, Babau AC is 19
The horcs depart the room through the northern door. Sam hears more spell casting on the other side of Fario and Fellian, but nothing visible happens.
You have a general addiction to strange fluids. You can sate this addiction by drinking a quart of them (the water in badwater counts ... there are other places too).
After every 24 hours, you take 2 Con damage and you make another Fort Save against addiction; you need 2 in a row to beat the addiction. The DC is 15 + the amount of Con damage you have.
Remove disease will also eliminate the addiction
Lesser restoration or higher will help heal the Con damage
Use benefit: 1d4 Wisdom for 1d4 hours + side effect
Use penalty: After 1d4 ⇒ 3 hours take a -5 penalty to Perception and Sense Motive, -2 save penalty vs mind affecting spells for 1d4 ⇒ 3 hours and another 1d2 ⇒ 2 Con damage
Any time you drink and you gain the Wisdom bonus, all the negative effects are temporarily suppressed
Every time you drink, you open yourself up to additional side effects. If you drink from the same source, roll 2d20 (increase likelihood of getting the same side effect (telepathy) as before. If you drink from a new source roll 1d100
[ooc]Might want to copy this into your character sheet or favorite this post
Description in the spoiler above, duplicated here ... sorry about that.
Description:
A feral looking winged woman with clawed feet wielding a vicious looking bow leans out from behind the western wall of the northern tower, making a poor attempt to hide. She is quite the sight, as beneath a leather breastplate armor the she has taken to wearing a patchwork of clothing items ranging from a torn evening gown to mismatched stockings and a large, exotic hat. Andel identifies her as a harpy
The harpy hisses back at Nalar speaking with a slur as if she has something in her mouth, "Ardocsh wouldn't come here and kill the guardiansh. They'd know the passwordsh and be on the guardiansh no harm lisht!"
Sense Motive DC17:
You see her eyes dart to the door to her left for a moment in rabid fear. The sort a mother has for her child or a man for his spouse
She reaches for another set of arrows as Braelex lights her up, but the alchemist bolt skitters off the building in front of her, leaving a sizzling sear.
Relan and others?
Nalar, technically protection from arrows wouldn't hold here since she's using a magic bow, but since it is such a situational spell and I applaud your use, I'll make a minor house rule that the arrows themselves must be magical. If I forget in the future, feel free to correct me.
What do you guys think about an exchange of diplomats with the kobolds? We could send an emissary to live in the woods nearby with a small contingent (2 or 3 folks). Then one of those folks, unknown to the emissary, could be one of Zeke's spy guys. Could use this model for all our new alliances ... gnomes, etc.
Apologizing now for the wall of text. Recommend you favorite this post, you may want to come back to it at some point.
The man coughs weakly, opening a tome and sitting down on a stool to read from it. He stops every couple sentences to catch his breath, making you all feel a bit fatigued empathically just listening to him.
"Kaer Maga is much as Braelex has told you earlier, but I'd like to move from geographical points to fill you in on some of the gangs for you are likely to encounter some of them and you should be careful in your dealings with the strange politics of the place."
"First is the Arcanists’ Circle: This faction is Kaer Maga’s most powerful collective of magic-users, an elite group of spellcasters who pool knowledge and resources to advance their research while also growing fabulously wealthy by working together to produce magic items in a systematic (and thus cheaper) fashion."
"Next, while Kaer Maga has numerous organizations that might loosely be referred to as “crime families,” the Ardoc brothers actually are bound by ties of blood and marriage. Within their home district of Bis, this loosely democratic organization of brothers, fathers, uncles, and cousins rules with an iron fist—yet one that protects and shields as much as it imposes. No one moves through Bis without their knowledge, and no one operates without their permission. Tread carefully if you need to operate in their domain. They have been friendly to the Society in the past, even offering to buy magic items over market value for those they favor."
"Moving on to the strangest of the bunch, for as long as anyone can remember, the Augurs have been a part of Kaer Maga. Unlike most trolls around the Inner Sea, who tend to be bestial, savage creatures with little use for the society of other humanoids, the troll Augurs of the City of Strangers are the lubrication that helps keep the social machinery of the city running. Through their guidance, both overt and subtle, deals are mooted, business ventures steered in beneficial directions, and internecine conflicts turned toward truce rather than open war. The tool the Augurs use to accomplish this feat is prophecy—in particular, an ascetic form of haruspicy. When a citizen of Kaer Maga is about to embark on some bold or significant endeavor, it’s common to engage the services of an Augur. The troll listens to the client’s situation, then drags a knife across its own stomach, spilling
forth its entrails. In this steaming mass, the troll “reads” a cryptic prophecy, which it delivers without explanation before accepting payment and shuffling away. They are incredibly well regarded and a visit to an Augur is always worth the price of admission, if for nothing more than the experience."
"Next are the Bloatmages. Though not truly a faction, these hemotheurges are synonymous with the city in the minds of many. Believing that magic truly “runs in the blood,” bloatmages overload their own circulatory systems, increasing their power by increasing
the amount of blood in their veins—a dangerous practice that leaves them hideously swollen and blimplike. They are dangerous and unpredictable, dedicated to their gluttonous craft."
"On to the mysterious Brothers of the Seal. For generations, the monastic order called the Brothers of the Seal was sworn to defend an
ancient doorway far beneath the artists’ district of Oriat. Recently, however, we believe a schism has arisen between those men and women who believe that the time has come to open the seal, and those who still cling to its traditional defense. The result is violent sectarian conflict, with the monks bitterly divided into groups called the Faithful and the Scions. I would avoid getting embroiled in this chaos if possible. The Society has no record on what is beyond that doorway.
While of great interest to us, it is far beyond the scope of your trip there."
" The Commerce League doesn't believe in a free market, and this union of local merchants and traders theoretically fosters peace and goodwill in the market districts by allowing merchants to work together to keep prices down. In reality, the Commerce League is a mafia-style coalition devoted to price fixing, protection rackets, and predatory lending, and isn’t afraid to back up its economic policies with violence. If you run afoul of one of their merchants, rest assured you will be visited when you least expect it."
"The Council of Truth was a group of exceptional sages and magic users devoted to unlocking the mysteries of the multiverse. They made exceptional breakthroughs, often selling off the results of their discoveries to the highest bidder, many times us when we weren't outmaneuvered by the Aspis Consortium before disappearing mysteriously many years ago. One of our Sociey contacts, Gadka Burtannon, reports increasingly organized gang activity in one of the old Council of Truth hideouts."
"You will most likely encounter the Duskwardens if you decide to enter the city through the Halflight Path. Sworn to defend the city and to place their duty above all other bonds of blood or loyalty, these expert delvers maintain the barricades that block off all but a select few entrances into the warrens beneath the city. They run the aforementioned Half light Path, a well-traveled underground road connecting the city above to the cliff ’s foot below and are the only group officially charged with exploring and mapping out the dark reaches beneath the city."
"It is highly likely you will encounter someone from the Freemen. Originally a gang of escaped slaves, they have expanded greatly over the last decade, becoming a powerful abolitionist force within the city. Though they know that other gangs won’t tolerate outright raids to free all the slaves in the city, the Freemen still shelter those slaves who manage to make it to their stronghold in the Bottoms, and purchase the freedom of many through traditional means at the Flesh Block in Downmarket. The group has become more and more militant recently."
"Another engimatic group, the men of the Iridian Fold, show up in the city at various points over the years, always in pairs and apparently hailing from the distant east. The men are always chained together in a manner that suggests slavery and subjugation, one of them swathed completely in veils and wrappings, while the other wears elaborate lacquered armor. Though it would seem that one might be the bodyguard or plaything for the other, which partner takes charge depends on the situation, and the veiled man may sometimes be bigger and more physically imposing than the presumed bodyguard. The handful of Iridian Fold men in the city keep to themselves, never joining another faction, and many have tried in vain to discover what motivation the group has in coming to the city."
"Lastly are the Tallow Boys, a secretive alliance of information brokers that exists within the ranks of the city’s young male prostitutes, collecting information from their customers while their guard is down and then selling it to those willing to pay exorbitant prices. The Tallow Boys are quick, smart, and highly organized, maintaining their anonymity by making potential information buyers jump through elaborate hoops. Another solid source of information."
"There are others that I have not finished researching, like the mysterious Sweetalkers who sew their mouths shut or the necromancers of Ankar-Te and their undead citizens who have rights like you and I, but you should be able to find more about those in the city if you need to. personally, I'd avoid both."
The man falls back into his seat, clearly exhausted from the long exposition.
"This man is not your friend. Using the word, friend, and stating what he would do if only he had the chance is not the same. We came. We fought. We removed the Stag Lord from his strangle hold on this community. We slew the troll terrorizing the south, the bear that killed men in the north, we ended the threat of the mites and kobolds nearby. We are arranging an alliance with gnomish allies. These things are tangible, truthful and provable. Some of you have seen it with your own eyes."
Connor lifts his axe and points it at the orator and pokes him in the shield, metal ringing on metal, "There were plenty of shields lying on the ground from the hobgoblin bandits we slew here. Where were you to defend? Where were you when action was called for? No where to be found. And how do I know? Because I was here, risking my life and giving my blood to make this land fertile. Our miniscule gains have been poured into setting up this village, this keep, this inn, these farms and fisheries. Not words. Deeds. This we have done. You are no one. You offer empty words without evidence. Have you given anything to these farmers? Have you offered to toil their lands with them? I have and I will again. If anyone needs my arm, my axe, my shovel, or my horse ... I will come."
Turning back to the crowd, "A few months ago, there was nothing here ... this town is creation, not destruction. This is the beginning of prosperity. From nothing, you must traverse poor to become wealthy. It is a journey, and one that hard work, faith, and trust in each other will get you through. We must come together to succeed, not work to tear each other down when it gets a little hard."
"For you sir, I offered you a job and you offered me insult. You called me a liar to my face. If you wish to continue this matter of honor, take up my blade and my shield," Connor throws a battle axe at his feet. "And face me as the man of action you claim to be."
"Or if you're too afraid to face your lord ... I will allow Cinder to champion, for she most certainly has more honor, valor and candor than you." Cinder snorts and paws the ground in response.
Diplomacy for the crowd:1d20 + 10 + 4 ⇒ (15) + 10 + 4 = 29; I added in Veronica and Seres' aid others here
Intimidate for the man:1d20 + 8 ⇒ (16) + 8 = 24
Connor will shout loudly, letting his voice carry, hoping to stay Larisa's hand just a moment before she lets fly "Who are you, Jare, but a twice-turned traitor? You defected to us to save yourself when we offered to spare you, and then betrayed defenseless an innkeeper once the men you couldn't fight had left. You are a coward and an inviolate leader. The Stag Lord has fled his keep and left his bow with us. His lieutenants are either dead or have pledged their loyalty to us."
To accentuate his point, he brings up Auchs and Akiros and then chucks the body of the third man, Davos? over the side.
He continues, "I give the same offer to all you bandits. You can live free with us by simply renouncing banditry or you can die like this one. Except you Jare, you, I offer 100 gold pieces to the first man or hobgoblin that brings me your head. WE also have the Stag Lord's treasure, and with that, we can offer your mercenaries three times what Jare is paying you ... wait, he isn't paying you, is he? Fear not, although the law is on our side, nature is on our side and even the fae fight for us, we will honor a bargain."
Diplomacy:1d20 + 7 ⇒ (14) + 7 = 21
Connor will let that sit for a moment and see what happens, should anyone move toward the entangling prisoners, he will shout, "Cinder, to me!"
Connor mumbles, "And that, Zeke, is why I wished to have the one living bandit lieutenant left. Hope you got all the loot you needed."
The cavalier winces as he thinks through their options, all bad, to save their allies. "Don't suppose anyone has any ideas. Aldarion turn the plants against them? I'm inclined to hear all other good ones ... except surrender. Not up for that. They will just execute everyone then."
He squints at the speaker and then grabs Akiros, "Who is that?"
Effects: barkskin, shield of faith, bless, challenge
Connor lowers his lance and rears Cinder up for a moment before he leads her on a thunderous run skirting the forest and the river as he levels his lance at the assumed mercenary leader, ignoring the wolves yipping at his heels. He roars a challenge as he closes,
This large room is set up as a crude alchemical lab—planks laid over barrels and crates serve as tables, but the alchemical gear set up on these crude tables appears to be quite high quality.
The equipment on the table constitutes a masterwork alchemist’s lab.
In the back is what appears to be the derro magister's personal chambers—in addition to a large mound of cushions and blankets, she keeps her supply of a bluish substance in vials (3 doses). Also here are several bags of coins. In all, this area contains 232 gp, 1,423 sp, 2,100 cp, a magical lens, a magical scarab, and a wand of spiritual weapon (11 charges).
[Atlatia's Dungeon
You explored this before but I forgot the loot ..
There are several mind-altering substances in a chest near the bed. Within are 3 doses of id moss, 2 doses of striped toadstool, 10 doses of flayleaf, 8 doses of pesh, an elixir of love, and an elixir of truth.
Portioque’s Laboratory
The corridor splits and ends in two equally sized square rooms—a bedroom to the northeast and some sort of abattoir to the southwest.
To reach the lab, you fight your way past a group of darkmantle, hooded octopus-like creatures that drop down from the ceiling.
The derro's injection spear, you picked up earlier, it's loaded with some sort of moldy extract. His lab contains equipment primarily for distilling the inherent qualities of bodily fluids. A strange device, that looks like a fanged box with a crank sits amid the components along with 7 more vials of whatever is in the injection spear.
Injection Spear:
This exotic two-handed weapon allows the user to inject targets with liquid on a hit. The spear’s reservoir can hold up to 5 doses of a single fluid—a single dose is automatically injected when the spear hits a target. A non-proficient user can wield an injection spear as a standard spear but cannot trigger the injection. An injection spear is otherwise identical to a normal spear, save that it cannot be thrown, weighs 8 pounds, cannot be used to brace, and costs 60 gp.
Image of box added to journal
Caedimus’s Laboratory
This twenty-foot-square domed chamber contains a jury-rigged pair of low operating tables, complete with leather straps at both ends to hold the patients down.
You put down a carrion golem to get to the room, a horrible construct of medium size made of rotting carcasses.
Not much treasure here other than surgical tools which if sold would go for 200gp.
Spiral Staircase
This staircase spirals down into the rock before it opens up in the top of a massive cavern of blackness. The echo and a dropped rock let you know that the stairs end 100s of feet above the ground. Looks like this may have been how the derro got up here from the Darklands given the magister's ability to levitate ....
"I put my money on spoiled ass. I've eaten bad donkey before. It makes you do strange things. Horrible after effects for days as well. We should probably watch after the boy. Make sure he doesn't hurt himself. Just a kid after all. Doesn't know better."
Another year and another player I need to replace. I'm a big fan of Relan and his player who was new to Pathfinder and adapting surprisingly well, but due to personal commitments, his ability to post regularly has dropped significantly, and I've asked him to step down for now to get a regular melee character in the party.
My basic character creation rules:
No gunslingers, no guns.
Raise Dead doesn't exist in this campaign. All other reincarnation and resurrection spells do.
I'm currently not using any 3PP material and I'd ask that you don't either. I'm always open to exceptions but expect my initial answer to be no, with justification required on your part, not mine.
The new character will start at 3nd level
1st lev Max HP, 2nd & 3rd lev rolled on the discussion tab once accepted per campaign tab rules
750 gp worth of money/equipment (plus these items: mw chain shirt, mw silver dagger, 2 potions CLW, +1 cold iron ranseur (use or give back to the party to sell)
15-point buy, 2 traits (1 is campaign)
Can use Core Pathfinder races, Core Rulebook, Ultimate Combat, Ultimate Magic, Ultimate Equipment and the Advanced Player's Guide.
Other Paizo produced material can be considered if you ask, I have access to it, and I approve it. I'm not as draconian about this as I am about the 3PP stuff above.
Character will enter the party by DM fiat, essentially taking the slot that Relan left and we will retcon that the member has been with the party the entire time. While this may not be the cleanest nor best way in, it's certainly the easiest and what I'd prefer right now.
Player expectation/how I recruit:
Goal is to be able to post 1/day, but some times the game moves slower than that. That's OK.
Communicate effectively, role play when required, advance the plot when required
Argue your point or your rule whenever you disagree, but once I make a decision, let it go
Your character crunch is only important to me that it meets the ruleset above, it's complete/accurate, and it's something the party needs
More important is how you post. I will look at your other posts on various aliases to see how you interact with other posters and how you play the game.
If you have a low post count, I recommend a PM to me giving me your experience/desire. I've been playing some form of this game for 30 years, I prefer experienced players, although it's not a hard/fast requirement (note Relan above)
The party is currently departing the dungeon to rest and sell, I'd like to have the character swapped in before they return to the dungeon which I estimate will take at least a week. I will make a decision by the end of this weekend (4 May), assuming we have at least one viable candidate.
In response to Lorlenn's query, Sheila thinks for a moment, remembering"She's a dark curly-haired woman with olive skin. She generally wears a red headband along with traditional Sczarni garb. Thin but well-built, average height."
She sighs, "As for connections, I don't know her that well. I thought having a double agent in a Sczarni gang would be valuable but she insisted on autonomy to do so. The Society doesn't have much pull with the Sczarni, so it seemed worth it at the time. I'm not so sure now. I'm not convinced, yet, that she's a traitor. I need some proof of ... something."
"Now the Sczarni themselves, they've been around for a long time, since the city was founded. Criminals, yes, but not generally the worst violent types, just the most noticeable. In some areas they sort of act as a neighborhood protection. There are several prominent gangs: Creepers, Dooulun's Lads, The Gallows (the most powerful of the bunch), The Tower Girls, the Washside Wringers and the Wreckwash Blades."
Sheila snaps her fingers, "That reminds me! When Natalya came to us intially offering to be an informant, she used to work with a man called the Amazing Zograthy, who has a tent down in Dockway on Washer's Row. Perhaps he can help."
Knowledge Local DC14:
The Amazing Zograthy is a sort of middle man between Sczarni and outsiders and often offers services in exchange for gold.
Shrugging she finishes, "Other than that, there has been a string of disappearances in the city. May be connected to the recent tavern rumors of Nidalese slavers. Or, she might have been picked up by the Town Guard. Those are both probably worth investigating. The Lord Mayor is even offering a substantial reward for uncovering the missing persons mystery to include a 500gp bonus for each kidnapped victim found and returned alive."
Moments later, Sheila and Koriah run through the door, Sheila with her staff at the ready and Koriah with both her weapons in her hand, the blade of her sword dripping pieces of ice.
They relax when they see the danger is gone, arriving just before the bodies disappear. Sheila appraises the room and frowns at the mess and at Clarence stomping on the curtains.
Her voice, clearly angry, but not seemingly directed at you is short. Her words are not.
"Please, allow me to apologize for that unpleasantness regarding the gremlins—but it does provide an excellent object lesson. The life of an adventurer is not one for the weak-hearted. That you not only took care of the gremlins but also got the box open in the first place is all the confirmation I need that my gut was right—you’re the perfect group for the job I have in mind. Hmm, looks like you've earned the right to keep these." She walks over to the table looking through the box, sorting out 3 garnets, a masterwork silver dagger and a ring (that she will later identify as aring of feather falling)
She continues "I’ve recently had trouble with one of my informants here in Magnimar, Natalya Vancaskerkin. She’s a half-Varisian who recently approached the Pathfinder Society with an offer to serve as a street informant. She runs with the Sczarni—I’m not sure with which group. A week ago, Natalya sent me a cryptic hint that her gang was on the verge of uncovering an item that would be of great interest to the Society. Since the Sczarnis’ methods of uncovering something often involves an armed robbery or breaking into somebody’s personal chambers, we thought it prudent not to press for further details and instead wait to see what it would produce. Suffice it to say, she hinted strongly that it pertained to Thassilon, and promised to meet with me to discuss this find three days ago.
“She never kept that promise—instead, she seems to have simply vanished. Initially, I assumed that the acquisition of this item was simply taking longer than expected, but now I’m hearing rumors that the Sczarni are looking for her as well.
“It seems likely that Natalya has absconded with this item she’s discovered. And this is where you enter, my friends. I want to know what it was that Natalya and the Sczarni found. In fact, I’m more interested in that than in what happened to Natalya herself. For now, I’d like to keep all of this quiet—if you can find out what happened to Natalya without letting a lot of people know she was also working for me as an informant, that would be preferable—that’s a big part of why I’m coming to you, as new members of the Pathfinder Society, with this task.You don’t yet have a reputation in Magnimar, and as such, the lowlifes and criminals you are likely to encounter may be more likely to talk.
“So... go out there and look for Natalya. Find out what happened to her, and to this item she and her gang discovered. If you can secure the item, all the better—bring it back to me and I’ll have a reward of 500 gold pieces for you. And if you can bring Natalya back alive for me to speak to, I’ll double that!”
Sheila gives each of the injured party members a potion of cure light wounds so you can carry on your task without delay.
You wind down the evening's festivities and each head off to home, encouraged in your own way about tomorrow's potential.
Feel free to continue any evening dialogue as you wish or roll it into the meeting at the manor
Additionally, I assume everyone has a modest place to live in town. If it's more than a room at an inn or a studio apartment, we'll need to discuss recurring costs (which start now). Let me know what type of city area you envision your home to be and I'll give you a good location for it in one of the city districts.
Heidmarch Manor
The party meets up together in the Alabaster district, home of the wealthy and to date, one of the first times you've ever come this far north in town. Relan's time at the Serpent Run was a notable exception, but Heidmarch Manor is much further east than the games stadium, very near the city's easternmost gate.
The manor grounds are surrounded by a stone wall, but the front gate hangs open. Andel joins you at the gate and ushers you into the foyer. Shortly thereafter, two women step into the room. The first is an elegantly dressed human who cuts an imposing figure and moves in a non nonsense way, obviously Sheila Heidmarch. The second is an attractive half-elven woman dressed in leather armor and armed with a distinctive-looking mithral-and-redwood aklys (a hooked club attached to a cord) and a bastard sword strapped to her back.
Knowledge Dungeoneering or Local DC 18:
The half-elf is Koriah Azmeren, one of Varisia's most famous Pathfinders and well-reknowned expert on the Darklands
The five of you have gathered at the Rag and Garter for your weekly gathering with your other pathfinder initiates. This open air cantina is settled in the Naos district where the "new money" of Magnimar has settled. The restuarant is a few blocks north of the Arvensoar, the tallest structure in Magnimar, climbing from the bottom of the Seacleft and soaring high above the city. The Arvensoar is also notably the home of the city guard.
Tonight, in the shadows of the setting sun, the flickering of the Founder's Flame creates an eerie glow at the table and conversation as led to topics of local ghost stories. Braelex has just finished one about the Orphan and the Rider, a harrowing tale from eastern Varisia about a headless horseman named the Dark Rider who emerges from his personal hell to hunt and kill someone every year, motives unknown. Jengali, a Mwangi warrior-scholar, has just started telling a story about Sir Aeryn Darvengian, once the patriarch of the Darvengian aristocrats. His mass murder of his family and four Andoren dignitaries earned him a place in the Hells, and Jengali is discussing the particulars of the paralytic poison the noble used that allowed him to keep his victims alive and fully aware while he sacrificed them to his demon lord.
It's during this conversation, that Andel Gesseran, the first of you to be hired on by the local venture-captain, Sheila Heidmarch, comes rushing up to the table.
Just over a century ago, the god of humanity died. His name was Aroden, and he not only lifted humanity out of the ashes and terror of the Age of Darkness (an age that followed the meteoric cataclysm known as Earthfall), but founded the greatest city in the world—Absalom. He defeated the foul wizardking Tar-Baphon. He drove back the demon lord of the Locust Host from the nation of Sarkoris. He eventually left the world to join the divine host after setting humanity on course for a great destiny. Prophecies said that when humanity was ready to ascend back to the pinnacle it once held in the ancient times of Old Azlant, Aroden would return to the world to usher in a new Age of Glory.
But instead of returning at the appointed time, Aroden, the god of humanity, died.
Welcome to the Inner Sea.
The death of the god of humanity marked the beginning of a new age. The previous ages had names to inspire and bolster the spirit—the Age of Destiny, the Age of Enthronement. But this new age is not a time of plenty. It is the Age of Lost Omens, for if a god cannot fulfill his own prophecy, what chance have any others of coming true? Aroden’s death scarred the world with storms and madness. To the north, the world split open and the festering armies of the Abyss spilled out through a tear in reality known today as the Worldwound. To the south, the idyllic gulf of Abendego was consumed by a perpetual hurricane whose winds and waves drowned nations. And in the heartland of the Inner Sea region, Cheliax, where Aroden had been prophesied to return, civil war erupted and thousands died before the diabolic House of Thrune seized power.
The Age of Lost Omens has now entered its second century, and in the 11 decades since Aroden’s death, the world has become a darker place. A place where ancient, sinful wizards known as runelords threaten to waken from 10,000 years of slumber. A place where nations are ruled by criminals or devil worshipers or worse. A place where once-great empires now wallow in self-indulgent paranoia or bloody, endless revolutions. A place where nothing is foretold, and anything can happen.
This thread is for the start up of the closed campaign led by DM Fflash. If you don't personally know either Fflash, m3mnoch, or nomadicc, please kindly refrain from posting character input here.
Invitees, once you've created a profile (not necessarily a character) please post here and we'll start with deciding which adventure path we will run and then allow the group of you to develop a cohesive party makeup before diving into detailed character development.
Character creation rules to follow once we've determined what we're playing.
A reminder: the PRD trumps all other rules and house rules will hopefully be kept to a minimum, I'm pretty happy with the balance that Paizo has struck. I reserve the right to disallow anything outside the PRD, but most assuredly will not allow anything that isn't Paizo or Fflash produced.
Basic posting rules:
Gameplay Tab: In character commentary only (with small ooc-flagged injects where required)
Discussion Tab (i.e. this one): Out of character discussion, level ups, non role-played loot dissemination and announcement of real-life interruptions to posting ability
"Indicates speaking" Indicates thinking Used for out of character commentary
All rolls will be used with the in-game dice roller.
DM rolls initiative for everyone
All saving throws will be the affected individuals very next post and roll else it's an automatic failure. Prevents abuse of the preview feature and sets priority for rolls.
We will be using flex time and dungeon crawl mode for expedited posting but I'll explain that later. I use Picasa albums for distributing handouts and maps (generally built with MapTools)
St. Cuthbert will become Iomedae, the cult that Epik has been working with will become the Mendevian Crusaders sect, recruiting and training warriors for battle in the Worldwound.
Kord becomes Cayden Cailean
Pelor becomes Sarenrae
Wee Jas becomes Pharasma
Items you own/priests you've met:
Triel's armor now has the symbol of Zon-Kuthon on it.
Skaven's spellbook now has the symbol of Norgorber on it.
Shensen the monk/druid now worships Erastil
Most of that info is available for you to look through/read. I have a paladin code for Epik along with an optional feat and a new spell gained that I'll post shortly. Since the rest of you don't worship anyone specifically (except maybe Nowzai). I encourage others to pick a faith, though... loosely or tightly, as it will make the game more engaging.
Day 1 of the Flood Festival Gonna kinda throw the whole week out here, flex time in effect, so jump around as you wish
Following the Stormblade encounter, you set off to enjoy the festivities and get some much-needed down time
In the evening, Dalamus swaggers into the Tipped Tankard to the roar of many of his hometown supporters, both old acquaintances and newfound fans due to the party’s exploits.
Dalamus/Drink Down the Flood:
The rolls below (and for each of the following days) are your competition’s. These are Con checks, if you make at least one more than him, you win for the day and move on to Day 2, if you fail, stop rolling If you have anything you want to do to help yourself win (i.e. cheat), throw that out there as well
DC:5 1d20 ⇒ 10
DC:6 1d20 ⇒ 13
DC:7 1d20 ⇒ 4
DC:8 1d20 ⇒ 6
In the afternoon, while watching Nemoris take yet more money from another archery game causing the poor man to shut down his shop, you notice a man leaning up against another booth staring intently at the party from about 30 feet away.[/b]
The first round’s festivities start with a ton of pomp and circumstance. The town gathers around as local hedge wizards, artisans, and even some grifters set up games, booths, and entertainment to support the opening ceremony’s of the city’s favorite festival event. A 1-hour display of fireworks and acrobats precedes the first 2 competing teams. Your team (named Magma plus 3 since you lack a party designation currently) is faced up early against a group of Town Guardsman. A couple you recognize, with some distaste, from your time in Prison and they don’t seem eager to see you either. Stripping off their clothes, they chomp at the bit to swim for the win.
The goal is to find the proper match between the chits you’ve been issued and the boats in the water. Again as before, if you wish to aid yourselves in any illegitimate way (magical augmentation/divination etc.), let me know. Barring that, make 5 swim checks and 5 to-hit rolls for each of the 4 competitors (Magma, Nemoris, Epik & either Malcolm or Dalamus(hungover likely)].
You notice a knot of half-orcs in multiple places today, well-equipped, orderly and with a blue-tusked boarhead-emblazoned arms. Cauldron’s population of half-orcs last you checked was less than you could count on 1 hand.
You hear rumors and talk of a fantastic costume party this evening known as the "Demonskar Ball," but try as you might, you can't seem to get an invite. Even Skie, who is invited, says that the invitations are very particular and no "additional guests" are allowed. She seems sad that you aren't participating.
Nowzai:
As a member of the nobility, you talk to a couple lesser nobles and find that the Aslaxins are hosting this event. Zachary Aslaxin, the Stormblade, put out an message to explicitly ensure the members of the party weren't invited.
Day 7
Jenya has returned and is available to meet with you.
Nowzai:
You receive an embossed invitation from the Bluecrater Academy. It says you have an appointment this afternoon for an entrance exam. It mentions bringing an exam fee but doesn't say how. much
RandallC has not participated in any online campaigns.
