Good enough of an excuse for me! I'll start work on Ironfang's encounters, and see if that's not enough of a framework for others to work with their own.
IMPORTANT NOTE:The DCs for Targets can be unreachably high without the expected untyped bonuses baked into the APs, such as the Historian of the Rebellion trait from Hell's Rebels or Aubrin's bonus in Ironfang. If you are not using such bonuses, or if the PCs miss too many of them, it is advised that you remove the additional '+1 per 4 levels' to the DCs.
New Trait:Leadership - This Target is led by a particularly competent leader. Choose an NPC in the area, or use an NPC of equal CR to the Target, to add one of their stats to one of the Target’s DCs. (While this allows for a much larger bonus than Defended, it also allows PCs to remove the individual in question to make the Target much easier to deal with.)
Ironfang Invasion Targets (Note:Spoilers rest beyond this point)
Book 1
Scarvinious' Camp:
Rank 4 Hard Target
Morale:96
Security:18 (Focus)
Loyalty:19 (+4 Bonus)
Secrecy:15
Positive Traits:Leadership(Scarvinious, Strength to Loyalty), Sole Target (3 actions), Final Assault
Negative Trait:Brazen
Scarvinious' camp is the first major hurdle for the PCs, and may well destroy them if they're not careful. For every 15 Morale the camp loses, remove one Bugbear or Scout to show the loss of personnel. Once the camp is below 36 Morale, remove Garvex the Dog and Kavu instead of a scout. Once the camp is destroyed, Scarvinious will set out to destroy the PCs with his Alchemist and any other remaining forces.
Phaendar is likely a tempting target, but it can be quite a slog to actually recover the base. In addition to that, once Phaendar is attacked directly, it activates two Hobgoblin Scout troops to focus on the Hemlock Army. Retaking Phaendar is a welcome boon to the populace however, and grants the army a +1 bonus to all future checks.
Hobgoblin Scouts are deadly effective, but prone to underestimating the disorganized attack force that is the Hemlock army. They prefer to attack teams to attacking the militia itself, and move on to attacking the militia only once all teams are disabled.
While the Militia rules outlined in Lands of Conflict and Hell’s Rebels are quite in-depth, there’s an obvious flaw with them; they don’t do anything. The most you’ll get out of your rebellion is a little gold and scouting allies, and a handful of random events. Securing caches are useless, restoring characters can be replaced by handing the party Cleric or Wizard a few scrolls at the same price, and activating refuges sounds nice, but it ultimately doesn’t matter. This addition to the Rebellion rules aims to fix that by allowing you to do what you would expect a rebellious force to do-take land back from an enemy, by hook or by crook, by adding a few more activities that revolve around Targets
Targets is a very broad term, chosen because of the use of Militia rules in both Hell’s Rebels and Ironfang, while also allowing a broad selection of opponents. A target can be an enemy troop, a jail you need to break an ally out of, an enemy organization, an entire town, or even an enemy fortress.
Note:This is an addition to the Militia rules found in Rules of Conflict. If you are only familiar with the Rebellion rules in Hell’s Rebels, they are very similar-Training is used in place of Supporters. Advisors, Outlaws, Revolutionaries, and Traders have been replaced with Intelligence, Espionage, Military, and Treasury respectively, and some actions have been assigned to different teams.
Building a Target:
Targets have Morale, which functions as their HP. They also have DCs for Secrecy, Security, and Loyalty. When building a Target, you choose one of these to be a Focused Check, and the other two to be Secondary checks, as well as its rank and whether they are a Soft, Medium, Hard, or Fortress target. When you attack a target, you choose a team to attack its Secrecy, Security, or Loyalty, and deal damage to the Morale equal to the check result multiplied by the team’s rank.
Soft Targets have Morale equal to Rank*4+16, Medium Targets have Morale equal to Rank*8+32, Hard Targets have Morale equal to Rank*12+48, and Reinforced targets have Morale equal to Rank*20+80. Finally, a target’s Focus DC is equal to 14+Rank, and its secondary DC is equal to 13+½ Rank, rounded down. At Rank 4 and every 4 ranks beyond that, they gain an additional +1 to both Focus and Secondary DCs.
It is recommended that there be as many Active Targets as the number of Actions that the Militia gets, not including its bonus action from a Strategist.
Targets also get a selection of traits-ideally, they have three positive traits and one negative trait from the following list.
Positive Traits:
Abductors - If a Militia has a Disabled Team when this Target uses Attack Militia or Attack Team, all Disabled Teams become Missing.
Active Defenses - A Militia attacking this Target loses 1d6 Training, regardless of success or failure.
Adaptable - This target can change what its Focus Check is with an action. If Espionage has not uncovered this trait, this is not known to the Militia.
Allied - When this target is activated, it activates two other Targets that also have Allied.
Aggressive - This Target gains one additional action every turn that must be used on Attack Militia or Attack Team.
Deadly - This Target inflicts additional loss of Training equal to its Rank with the Attack Militia action.
Deceptive - The DC to Gather Information on this target is increased by an amount equal to its Rank. On a failed check to Gather Information, this Target presents a false set of Traits, a lower Rank, and which stat is the Focus.
Defended - This Target chooses Loyalty, Security, or Secrecy, and gains a +2 bonus on that check. This can be taken multiple times.
Elusive - A successful Gather Information check against this Target’s Secrecy DC must be made before attacking it. This target can spend an action to force another Gather Information check to be made against its DC.
Final Assault - When this target loses all morale, it immediately forces an Invasion event against the Militia. This cannot be negated by Sabotage.
Gloryhound - When using the Attack Militia action against a Militia with a Notoriety of 50 or more, this Target inflicts additional Training loss equal to twice it’s rank.
Hardened - This target gains additional Morale as if they were two ranks higher.
Loyal - This target halves morale damage taken from attacking its Loyalty.
Recuperation - This target regains 10% of its Morale each turn.
Secure - This target halves morale damage taken from attacking its Security.
Secretive - This target halves morale damage taken from attacking its Secrecy.
Sole Target - When acting alone, this target can take multiple actions, as if were a Militia of equal rank.
Negative Traits:
Brazen - This target takes 50% more damage from attacking its Secrecy.
Fearful - After being attacked, this target takes one less action. (Minimum 0.)
Flimsy - This target takes additional damage to its morale equal to the Militia’s Rank.
Meek - This target’s DCs are lowered by 5 against a Militia that has a Notoriety of 50 or greater.
No Secrets - On a successful Gather Information check, this target reveals all Intel instead of only one piece.
Proud - This target’s DCs are lowered by 5 against a Militia that has a Notoriety of 49 or less.
Siege - This target can only take the Recover action.
Traitorous - This target takes 50% more damage from attacking its Loyalty.
Unprepared - All DCs to attack this target are lowered by 5.
Unprotected - This target takes 50% more damage from attacking its Security.
Defeating a Target:
Bringing a Target’s morale to 0 destroys the Target. To damage a Target’s morale, you must make a check against that target’s Loyalty, Secrecy, or Security. On a successful check, the Target loses Morale equal to the result of the check. On a failed check, the Militia instead loses 2d6 Training. On a natural 1, the team making the attack is Disabled. (Or in the case of Intelligence and Espionage teams, goes missing.)
When a Target is made known, PCs will often know nothing about it. A Gather Information check from an Intelligence Team must be made against the Target’s Secrecy DC to glean Intel. For every 5 points above the DC, the Intelligence team gains 1 additional piece of Intel. On a natural 20, the Intelligence Team recovers 1 additional piece of Intel. On a failed check, the Militia gains 1d6 Notoriety. On a Natural 1, the Intelligence Team goes Missing.
When gaining Intel, an Intelligence Team gains a single piece of Intelligence on the target. It will typically take 6 successful checks for an Intelligence Team to gain all possible information..
The Target’s Focus and Secondary checks.
One Positive or Negative Trait of the Target.
Target’s Rank, and whether the Target is Soft, Medium, Hard, or Reinforced, along with its current Morale.
An Intelligence Team is needed to attack a target’s Secrecy. If they succeed, they also gain one additional piece of intel on the target. If they have all Intel on a Target, they instead gain a bonus on Secrecy checks against that target equal to the Team’s Rank.
An Espionage Team is needed to attack a target’s Loyalty. If they succeed, they also lower the target’s DCs by an amount equal to their rank until the end of next week. This effect is cumulative, but only with multiple Espionage teams.
A Military Team is needed to attack a target’s Security. If they succeed, they deal additional damage equal to the Militia’s Rank.
A Treasury Team can attack Loyalty, Secrecy, and Security, but they must pay GP equal to the Militia’s Minimum Treasury in order to do so.
Once a Target is defeated, the party gains XP and GP as if they’d defeated an opponent of equal CR in combat. A Soft Target is considered CR -1, a Hard Target is considered CR +1, and a Reinforced Target is considered CR +2. At GM discretion, other gear may be included in the reward.
A target activates after being attacked, having an ally target attacked, or once a random or planned event activates them.
Target Actions:
Once Activated, a Target gets one action per turn. They get access to the following choices.[list]
Attack Militia - The Target forces the Militia to make a check against either its Loyalty, Security, or Secrecy DC. On a failed check, the Militia takes 2d6+Target’s Rank Training Damage. This can lower the Militia’s Rank. On a natural 1, the Militia takes twice as much Training Damage.
Attack Team - The Target forces the Militia to make a check. If the Target attacks an Espionage Team, they make a Loyalty Check against the Target’s DC. If the Target attacks an Intelligence Team, they make a Secrecy Check against the Target’s DC. If the Target attacks a Military Team, they make a Security check against the Target’s DC. If the Target attacks a Treasury Team, they make a check against the Target’s Secondary Check. If the check fails, the team is Disabled. On a natural 1, the Team goes Missing, and requires a Rescue Character action (Or PC intervention) to recover.
Elusive - Unique to Elusive Targets. Once a successful Gather Information check reveals their location, they can take an action to hide themselves again.
Ensure Event - The Target forces the Militia to make a check against either its Loyalty, Security, or Secrecy DC. On a failed check, an Event occurs, the Random Event table is rolled twice, and the Target chooses (What it perceives as) the worse result. On a natural 1, the Random Event becomes persistent if the Target desires.
Recover - The Target restores 10% of its Morale.
Troops - The Target forces the Militia to make a Security Check against its DC or else face an Invasion Event in addition to the other events this turn.
Modified Team Actions:
Espionage
Secure Cache - When using the Secure Cache action, the Espionage Team can choose to permanently lower a target’s Loyalty, Secrecy, or Security by an amount equal to its Rank for one week. This is cumulative. Hard and Reinforced Targets count as a Secure Location. On a natural 20, they lower all DCs by an amount equal to the Team’s rank. On a natural 1, the Team goes Missing.
Sabotage - On a successful check against a Target’s Secrecy, they can remove one positive Trait. On a natural 20, they can also impose a negative Trait. On a natural 1, the Team goes Missing, and requires a Rescue Character action (Or PC intervention) to recover.
Covert Action - Also applies the Team Leader’s Charisma bonus to damage against a Target’s Morale.
Intelligence
Knowledge Check - Does not take an action, but can only be used once per turn per team of Scholars. This can be used to gain Intel as well.
Restore Character - Can also be used to restore a Disabled Team without spending GP.
Military
Rescue Character - Is the only action that can be used to recover teams that go Missing from Targets. Rather than a DC 15 Security check, the Military Team must make a Security Check against the Target’s DC. However, they have 4 Turns to recover a Team rather than only 1.
Activate Refuge - When a Refuge is active, reduce Training Loss from the Attack Militia action by 1d6.
Strike Team - Can also be used to add the Manager’s Strength or Charisma score to damage dealt.
Manipulate Events - Can change a Target’s action to one of their choice with a successful Security check against the Target’s DC. This includes deciding if the Target attacks Security, Secrecy, or Loyalty, and what Team they attack with Attack Team. On a natural 20, they can force the Target to do nothing that week.
Treasury
Black Market - You can choose to make a DC 30 Secrecy Check when making a Black Market. If successful, the Black Market is instead equal to a Metropolis rather than a Small City.
Bribery - New action, unique to Fixers. When an enemy uses the Attack Team or Attack Militia action, Fixers can spend GP equal to the Target’s Rank x10, and make a Loyalty check against the Target’s DC to reroll the result of the check.
Gestapo rely on force in numbers, and the fact that they have few known bases. They excel in capturing forces that are already weakened so that they can extort information from them.
Military Base
Rank 6 Hard Target
Morale:120
Security DC:23
Secrecy/Loyalty DC:17
Positive Traits:Secure, Recuperation, Sole Target
Negative Trait:Brazen
A Military Base tends to have quite a bit of support behind it, and is difficult to assault directly. As they can always request more troops, Sabotage may be an ideal way to deal with one.
If there's interest, I'll expand this with recommended stats for Targets in Ironfang, mostly using locations and enemies seen in the Gazette. One of the first and biggest prizes, of course, should be retaking Phaendar.
Honestly, if you want to give it a notable thing that belongs to only it...let it keep the same amount of spell slots, or at least get spell slots above 6th level.
I am NOT saying to give them spells *known* above 6th level, but instead to give them slots as metamagic fuel-this can be an ongoing thing from the moment you hit 6th level even, having spell slots above your current maximum to use for metamagic.
This gives a 6-level Sorcerer a role-they're more magical than everyone else (They're the Energizer Bunny of spell slots, compared to a Bard or Magus) and able to pump more power into those spells than anyone else can. Though it might help to limit access to metamagic rods, to help the Sorcerer feel special.
The other thing you're overlooking is that Fighter vs. Wizard shouldn't be an Arena Fight. It should be a dungeon crawl, showcasing all the things that Wizards do that mundanes don't.
And let's face it, the Fighter just can't handle half the things a Wizard can. Unless the challenge bleeds, or it's a door that needs battering down, The Fighter just don't have the capability to remove an obstacle in their path.
...So, I've been GMing for many years, and recently decided to get into Pathfinder Society. I'm running a home game for friends to get my feet wet, but there's some information that's escaping me. And I'm wondering if I'm missing something obvious, or if it's not just me. So, without further adieu, the questions I have.
1:Faction goals, especially with the recent change in factions. Do they default to whichever is closest? (Such as the Scarabs being Osirian, Liberty's Edge being Andoran, etc.) Is there some file I've missed somewhere that details this?
2:Aside from have a Pathfinder ID and ensure you report everything, is there anything else I need to do as a GM?
3:Is there a list of modules by level? That would help significantly in deciding what to throw my money at next.
4:One can use items freely during scenarios, I get that. Does this also include a Wizard making use of a scroll and scribing it into his spellbook if he does not purchase it afterwards?
5:Is there a file besides GM101/201 and the Pathfinder Society Guide that I've missed? It does feel like I've missed some kind of secret indoctrination book.
I fully accept mockery of my inability to find the answers to these questions. You will find throwing tomatoes and wedgie gloves by the door.
A good staff is an excellent find. You might end up not selling it, even if it's not quite what you wanted. Because hey, it might not be exactly what you wanted, but you're only getting half the sale price.
But a staff is usually a horrible purchase. I have never needed 50 uses worth of Raise Dead, even in midst of a killer GM campaign, on top of the actual pricing of the staff. At the absolute most, I'd get a staff of Stoneskin/Communal Stoneskin, simply because that's a common, costly buff. If I need more castings of certain spells, I'll generally go for scrolls.
Crafting is another matter altogether, but we know how borked the crafting rules are.
I'm going to follow the train of folks saying that the Medium needs a little more umph, especially at low levels-boost the power of Lesser abilities to give them something to do in combat, make them full BAB, give them 2/3 casting, one of those three.
As it is, at levels 1-3, the only real option you have is to bind the Bear for its two natural attacks-and with your 3/4 BAB, you're still going to be missing a lot. Things get a little easier when you finally have a spell for the day, but only for one combat a day. (Alternatively, if there's a Rogue in your party, The Beating is a solid option to use Trance on. Low level HP keeps you from using the Beating's seance option very well, but it becomes more relevant as you get extra attacks.)
At higher levels, you'll be a rockstar for sure-but the climb from 1st level to 7th is going to be a painful one.
On another nitpick:the Liar's 19th level ability is really lacking. A dual-low-save death effect? Even as an immediate action, it's not worth it. Anything that would be worth affecting with it is going to make the save. Most things that would fail the save, you could probably kill with a standard attack action. At least make it scale like most other class-granted death attacks, and make it a single save.
Makoa himself was following along, scratching at his head for a bit. He retained just enough self-awareness to know something was wrong, that he should be...better...than this. Smarter. More keen. Still, at least he wasn't acting as violently as his brutish looks suggested.
The potential danger wasn't forefront in his mind-Azalia's scowl was. He put a heavy hand on her shoulder, simply saying, "No fight. Fight friend, bad. Find reason for change."
The second would be Rime Spell. I'd normally shy away from such a thing, but if you get some kind of cold-damage (Might I recommend Frigid Touch?) then the battlefield control of no-save entangling becomes fairly nice. Even Ray of Frost can be handy, at low levels.
A rimed ray of frost entangles for 0 rounds.
Er. Whups. Icicle Dagger. Pretend I said Icicle dagger. Entangle people by stabbing them.
Putting damage-dealing spells into wands is actually a very bad idea-not only is it going to be horrendously expensive (That Reach, Intensified, 10th level Shocking Grasp Wand is going to run you 22,500 gold) but the save DC is going to be at the lowest possible, making it unlikely that they'll ever take full damage. If it must be a damage-dealing spell, make sure that it either doesn't allow a save, such as Enervation or Stonecall, or that it only allows a touch attack, such as Scorching Ray.
The real value of wands is typically in buffs and situational spells, neither of which lend themselves well to metamagic. The most useful one is extend...but if you have a wand, you can just cast it twice for a much cheaper price. But with that said, there's still a few corner-cases of good use...
The first would be Tenebrous Spell used on shadow spells. Bonuses to the DC for free? Why not?
The second would be Rime Spell. I'd normally shy away from such a thing, but if you get some kind of cold-damage (Might I recommend Frigid Touch?) then the battlefield control of no-save entangling becomes fairly nice. Even Ray of Frost can be handy, at low levels.
The third would be Reach Spell, the prime spell you've been using already. On a wand, in a dangerous situation, it can be invaluable. That said, the list of spells it improves is...pretty low.
Lastly, a rare option for offensive wands. Merciful Spell, so that you don't accidentally kill Bob the Commoner when you fireball into the middle of the Troll Horde attacking him.
So, I'm wanting to run a campaign that focuses on using Downtime. The only way of gathering cash is via the store the players run, as very, very few opponents will actually have a handy stash of loot for them to raid. If they're very lucky, there's going to be a human opponent with stuff, but even that's unlikely.
That said, the Downtime System seems...lacking in a number of ways, the most glaring of which is that it does not scale well. The second most glaring is that Magic is the only capital that seems worth investing in, and it's far and away the most effective currency.
With that in mind, I'd like those that have used the Downtime system in the past, or that think they can break the system I'm trying to use.
Tweaks to the entire system:
-Simulacrum does not exist in this world. Fabricate does, but only in the form of Wish and Lesser Wish.
-Diplomacy can get Influence or Labor, not all four types of capital.
-The only capital you can purchase with money is Goods. All others must be traded for.
-Magic cannot be used directly for crafting magic items. Instead, differing uses of it are tweaked.
-You are limited in space, due to building in a city. Until you have somehow proven yourself (IE, they level up to a certain point, trying to keep some semblance of WBL here) you do not have more than X amount of squares to build in. Build wisely.
-Prices of goods differ based on your Business Tier. Whether selling or buying, the price stays the same. (Yes, this breaks immersion slightly-but the truth of it is, something has to change with those prices, and I prefer to think of them getting better things as they become better businesspeople.)
Tier 1:Fewer than 100 income-producing rooms (Goal:Less than 6th level):
-Goods are 20 GP, Influence is 30 GP, Labor is 20 GP, Magic is 50 GP.
-You can spend 2x the typical Labor of a building to decrease build time to 75%.
-Magic points can only be spent for Spell Research, Lore research, replacing a familiar, and copying spells to a spellbook.
-You can only spend influence to build rooms that require influence, or to gather information. You are not yet notable enough to get bonuses on Charisma Checks.
-Goods can be converted into mundane items that cost the same as the GP price of the goods.
-You do not take penalties for having low capital.
-Goods are 40 GP, Influence is 60 GP, Labor is 40 GP, Magic is 75 GP.
-You can spend 2x the typical Labor of a building to decrease build time to 66%, rather than 75%.
-Magic points can now be spent to create scrolls and potions.
-Influence can now be spent to give up to a +5 circumstance bonus on charisma-based checks.
-Goods can now be converted into mundane or masterwork items that cost the same or less than the GP value of the goods that went into them.
-If any type of capital falls below 100 units, you take a -10 penalty to checks to generate that particular capital that week.
-If your Influence Capital goes above 1000, you gain a +1 circumstance bonus on all charisma-based checks.
-If your Magic capital goes above 1000, you gain a +1 circumstance bonus on all knowledge(Arcana) and spellcraft checks.
-If your Goods capital goes above 1000, your GP checks are multiplied by 2 rather than divided by 10.
-If your Labor capital goes above 1000, you reduce the amount of time required to build rooms by 2, to a minimum of 1/2 of a day. (0 days for rooms that started at 0.)
-Goods are 80 GP, Influence is 120 GP, labor is 80 GP, Magic is 100 GP.
-You can spend 3x the typical labor of a building to decrease build time to 33%.
-Magic points can now be spent to produce wands, minor wondrous items, and weapon/armor bonuses no more expensive than 9,000 GP. (This is to keep them from putting the biggest and best enchantments on their buddy's sword, and more so they can go 'Well, maybe we should have a Ghostbane Sword for emergencies, or I guess some [Creature]-bane arrows would be nice...)
-Influence can now give up to a +10 circumstance bonus on charisma-based checks.
-Goods can now be converted into mundane and masterwork items of the same price, and can be converted into minor wondrous items.
-If your capital for anything falls below 500, you lose an additional point of that capital every week until you recover, and you take a -20 to generate that particular kind of capital.
-If your influence capital goes above 5000, you gain an additional +1 circumstance bonus on all charisma-based checks, and barring special circumstances, people in the city start with an attitude of Friendly.
-If your Magic capital goes above 5000, you gain an additional +1 circumstance bonus on all Knowledge(Arcana) and Spellcraft checks, and can craft magical items in half the regular amount of time.
-If your Goods capital goes above 5000, your GP checks are multiplied by 10 rather than being divided by 10.
-If your Labor capital goes above 5000, you reduce the amount of time required to build a room by 4 days or hire a team by 2 days, to a minimum of 1/2 of a day. (0 days for things that started at 0.)
Tier 4:1001+ income-producing rooms/teams (Goal:15th level) (AKA, 'The Campaign isn't going much longer at this point, may as well let you guys have everything you want.'):
-Goods are 800 GP, Influence is 1200 GP, Labor is 800 GP, Magic is 1000 GP.
-Managers can be paid in any type of capital.
-You can spend 4x the typical labor of a building to decrease build time to 10%.
-Magic points can be spent to produce whatever you wish.
-Goods can be converted into magic items as well.
-You may have up to a +20 untyped bonus on Charisma checks by spending sufficient amounts of Influence.
-If your capital for any capital falls below 10000, you receive only tier 3 bonuses.
-If your Influence Capital goes above 25000, you gain an additional +2 circumstance bonus on all Charisma-based checks, and barring circumstances, everyone in the city starts as Helpful.
-If your Goods Capital goes above 25000, your GP checks are multiplied by 1000 rather than being divided by 10.
-If your Labor Capital goes above 25000, you reduce the amount of time required to build a room or hire a team by 8 days, to a minimum of 1/4th of a day.
-If your Magic Capital goes above 25000, you may craft magic items for 1/4 of base price by spending magic instead of GP to craft them, so long as the magic capital stays above 25000 by the end of crafting.
As well as tweaking to the random events, since the numbers are going significantly higher than expected...:
Wherever it says 'Lose xdx points of Capital' replace that with 'xdx% of your capital, to a maximum that the building can generate in a week if it puts all resources towards that capital.'
Anywhere it says 'Gain xdx points of Capital' or 'Gain 1 point of Capital,' replace that with 'xdx%' or 'gain a 10% bonus on your next [Capital] roll.'
Anything that requires a DC <20 check is instead a DC (Character level+10) check.
Anything that requires a DC >20 check is instead a DC (Character level+25) check.
Anything that gives money becomes a percentage of WBL.
Anything that gives a flat x bonus on the next roll is instead +(2x)% to the next roll, rounded up.
'Fussy Neighbor' remodeling (House Event) becomes 'For every 10 points of influence you own.'
Taxes occur once every month. You are required to pay 1% of every building's value.
Random items become 'Roll on Wondrous Item Chart for a level-appropriate item. 10% chance it is cursed.'
It was quite an effort to overhaul the system to make it scale with level, and I'm sure that there's still some holes I've missed. Anyone care to take a shot at poking at those holes with a sharp, pointy stick?
