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That's all for now, but this is one of those big, big topics that can fuel never-ending discussions.
The most fun class.... hmmm.... I think that I have had the most fun with my Bard. As I mentioned in the 'Why should I play a Bard' thread, Bards not only pass out goodies to the rest of the party, they get to write the ballads telling of the party's adventures (if you want to, of course)! That's pretty d*mn cool. Plus the fact that you can have believable over-the-top backstories. Evard (the bard I'm currently playing) started his first game being chased out of town by a noble who had caught Evard in his bedchamber with his wife - and part of his backstory was that this was not the first time it had happened. Which is why his initial first-level spells included featherfall, grease, and expeditious retreat. :-)
♫ On the eighth day of Critmas John Compton gave to me: Eight Monks A-Flurrying, Seven Shifters Slaying, Six Quirky Boons, Fi-i-i-ive Quite Damp Fiends, Four Bards Performing, Three Factions, Two Raging Orcs, An Arhcetype and Carnivorous Tree! ♫
Well Todd has been mentioned before, is not an outsider, or from the evil planes. It makes sense, mystery solved:) But he's not from mythology. He may be mythological, but he's not mythical.
Dotting for humor value....
How does that even work? Do they get no bonuses from the feat until they get Draconic Strike, and even then, none directly from the feat? The ability states that it gives a +1 to damage, and that increases in the bonus are tied to caster level. So they would still get the base +1, even if Mathmuse is incorrect, and they are not supposed to count their fighter levels as caster levels for the feat (though, personally, I agree with Mathmuse).
Purify Food & Drink, Create Water, and (most especially) Repel Vermin would make disease much less of an issue for those able to utilize/afford them. Remember that the farming-demiplanes also require another, expensive spell -- Permanancy. Food would not suddenly become a right for all - those able to afford to set up these areas would charge as much as the market would bear.
Dotting... I've enjoyed this, and my wife has been making noises about an AP not being the right vehicle for her as GM, so Elspeth may not get to become Amieko's Marshall.
The spell description states 'You imbue a slashing melee weapon with ...'. This no more permits spell resistance than a weapon with the enchantment Wounding. If you were using spellstrike, for instance, to deliver a Shocking Grasp to the monster, then yes, it would get spell resistance, because the spell is affecting it directly. In your case, the spell is affecting your axe, not the creature directly.
Tacticslion - it seems like what you're trying to say is like Clarke's Third Law (Arthur C. Clarke): Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic. And a lot of our current technology is 'sufficiently advanced' from a Golarian adventurer's point-of-view.
I also got to play a ranger/warlock that wielded a stolen Silver Sword and his favored enemy was githyanki. He had the warlock invocation that let him add his eldritch blast damage to his greatsword damage, which was fun. Oooh, boy. Artixerxa (the Githyanki Psychic Warrior I mentioned above) would have loved the chance to reclaim that little trinket from you.... :-) When we played Kingmaker, I played a dragon-scourged dwarf barbarian 1/magus 6 or 7. He could rage, buff, or blast, so each fight was very different. He also figured out how to do Aggro in PF: 6 Charisma + untrained Diplomacy checks! I need to steal this! Another player in the homebrew game I'm in has been trying to figure out how to do an aggro-draw barbarian, and this sounds right up his alley!
114: I did this one decades ago for Ars Magica - an astrological dungeon, where the area is arranged in a circle, made up of twelve rooms, each one having a theme of the astrological sign that would correspond to the placement of the room. It could be a simple 'get to the twelfth room to find the door out', or some variant of linking pathways based on the elemental correspondences of the signs to find the secret room that has the way out, etc.
I would have to say my 3.5 Githyanki Psychic Warrior who had an amazing backstory - she was the current next body for Gith, and had also been kidnapped by Ravel Puzzlewell and subjected to several years that she could not remember in a fast-time demiplane (both the GM and I were huge fans of Planescape: Torment). Unfortunately, the campaign imploded to InterPersonalBullshit before I could launch my civil war for leadership of the Githyanki.
Unless it's a cleric, or better a full bab class to start with, a dip in fighter won't make the greatsword/curveblade a worthwhile option, liches are not natively built for melee, and if it mainly rose in half bab classes like wizard or soercerer, its attack bonus won't be that great, so might be insufficient against well armored melee fighters...a lich whipping out a greatsword? should that not be a grave knight? how do you build a lich (11 caster levels to start with) so a greatsword is a worthwhile tactic for it? Well, a lich would probably have better options, but a Quickened True Strike would make up for a lot of full-BAB levels....
102. You find a ruins underground, reminiscent of Numeria. One of the chambers is collapsed, and you see these pipes/ cables leading out of it. Upon clearing out the entrance, you find a glass like pod and a red android laying inside, cloaked in a bed of what looks like blonde hair. The purple gem on its forehead pulsates... almost like a heartbeat, and you can faintly see the number 0 etched into the top of the pod.Gorrammit this is tickling my brain for some reason... why ... oh why ... grr You and me both! I know I should know this, but I cannot bring it to mind....
In addition to wonderful, stacking buffs; save enhancers/replacers; skill multipliers (Versatile Performance); and unique spells, you can also get:
IMHO, Blistering Invective deserves special mention. Running a STR-build, half-orc bard, I have an Intimidate score of about 29 at 11th level (don't have the character sheet with me), which allows me to reliably deliver the Shaken condition for 4-5 rounds to mooks, and even to lieutenants/sub-bosses for 2-3 rounds, as well as delivering some softening-up with minor fire damage! AND, I get to write the ballads of our adventures after the fact - including, in at least one case, allowing me to promise a Cloud Giant Oracle (not the character class, a Delphi-type Oracle) that her Gryphon guard that died helping us defend her from a raiding party of Fire Giants would be immortalized for his bravery and heroism in the human lands when we get back. No mechanical benefit (that I know of), but the Oracle was touched by the gesture, and gave us her blessing as we left to follow the directions she gave us to the artifact Frost Brand that will be needed against the Fire Giant horde.... (homebrew game) I am having more fun playing Evard Thrush than I have had in a very long time.
Wow, that's a pretty powerful backstory, and it seems to me that it points plainly to Avenger Vigilante as his class.
Dotting.
Well, Morte pronounces it teef-ling in _Planescape:_Torment_, and Annah's a main NPC (so she gets referred to a lot), so that's always been canonical for me.
I don't see a way to do it short of Craft Wand, although you could fluff that (as said above) as 50 charges of herbal concoctions you have made up. Note that in LoTR, dwarves do not have an extensive knowledge of herbalism! So I'm not sure how you're justifying this for a dwarven character. Your original idea called for extreme rules abuse, in allowing for free usage of spells far beyond what the system permits for potions or wands. I'm glad you're looking for ways to constrain it. Restricting it to "spells you can cast" rather than "spells on your list" is one crucial detail.
Let me start out by saying that my belief is that twisting wishes into pretzels (or, as seems to be the case with some of these suggestions, Klein bottles) is one of the most effective ways known to end a campaign. Now, having said that, the players are certainly being greedy. They are trying to jam at least three wishes worth of effect into one Wish. My breakdown is: 1) Removal of the Insanity effect from all three players. This can be done with one Wish, assuming that the event that gave them the condition was a singular thing (unspecified by the OP, and I'm not familiar with the scenario). 2) Recovery of the lost companion. As stated in the Wish spell description, revival of a companion whose body is inaccessible requires two Wishes. In this case, it sounds like Reincarnate would only take one. 3) Recovery of the lost companion's gear. This would take a separate Wish from recovering the body, but only one, as nothing the OP said seemed to indicate that any gear was lost from the other two companions. Now, I would not have a problem with a being such as the one described accepting the request, and then detailing the number of Wishes it will take, and demanding payment for them. And not allowing them to modify what they asked for after the fact. @Reksew_Trebla: Your wish number 2 is so far beyond the stated limitations of the Wish spell that it should either expend the Wish with no effect, or cause the creation of a small demiplane where the effect would take place, but nowhere outside of it. Or, of course, call down the direct, undivided attention of the chief God(ess) of Fate, Magic, or whatever would be appropriate for the campaign. And do you know what the worst thing about having the undivided attention of a Deity is? You have the undivided attention of a Deity!
I was originally going to suggest the Dungeon Rings as a possible alternate source, but upon review, that's not quite correct either. Further thoughts below....
I don't think so. The flexibility provided by the rod, I think, makes a use limitation more appropriate for it.
I don't know why you're assuming a CL7 to create the rings, when the metamagic rods you're basing the items on are CL17. But having said that, I would say that they can only be used for touch -> close (i.e., not permitting larger range increases), but using the caster's CL to determine close.
I think that an attunement period would be appropriate to the function of the rings. And the typical attunement period is 24 hours.
Yes; the rings simply add to the possible targeting options for the spell. And yes, of course it will take two actions, no matter whether the rings are used or not! (F) The rod occupying a hand vs. the rings occupying a ring slot. Well, that's another way in which the rod is more flexible than the ring. Ring slots are highly valuable, and all-too-frequently overfilled.... So we're looking at (for the rings):
Cons:
Using a slot is a quick halving of the cost right off the top. With the unlimited spell level removed, the rings are actually considerably more limited than the rod, though the unlimited use helps make up for that. I would say perhaps one third of the rod price for each of the spell level ranges.
Well, I think you're going to be dismayed by my vote. I agree with getting rid of Low-light for the base traits. However, Skill Training in Perception and Sense Motive seems very canine, and worthy. So I would substitute Skill Training for Low-Light, and just have the base traits be one less than is allowed -- there is nothing that says that the upper limit must be the lower limit also....
While I am, admittedly, biased, I don't have a real problem with splitting breeds out like this. And as for the Guarder/Herder overlap, well, there's nothing to say that two breeds can't have the same stat adjustments, but different racial traits.
Sheepish Eidolon, I hate when GMs set up encounters that you cannot win and when you make a clever plan to be able to win the GM just won't let it happen. Dalindra and I are experts in making those kind of GMs sweat, because we always come up with the most bizarre plans. I accept those kind of plots, as long as the GM doesn't overuse them. But I'm a longtime superhero gamer as well, and that's an accepted trope in that genre. After all, how can you escape from the villain's deathtrap if he never captures you in the first place? :-) He later married a NPC and had a daughter (named after his dead dragon mount). I wonder how his armor obsession affects his marital life xD It can be done, especially in a fantasy game! For evidence, see Arthur Pendragon's conception in the movie Excalibur (as I reveal my age....).
I agree. And my mom was a medical lab technician also. I come by it naturally! :-) I've never done PbP, but if you ever start one up, I'd be interested in joining. You and Dalindra sound like very fun players/GMs!
I tell people I used to be an EMT (one step below paramedic). If they can gross me out, the rest of the table has usually already left....
Thanks for the vote of confidence on the empiricist. After looking through the guides, I'm actually looking at half-orc for that, to get the weapon proficiencies - falchion is one of my favorite weapons for a non-shield user. Unfortunately, our GM doesn't use splatbooks, so no aasimar/tiefling heritages, and a highly limited selection of curses for bitter lily's oracle. I'm actually waiting for the other players to finalize what they want to play -- I'm unusual in my group for being open to just about anything (of course, that's probably a side effect of having been playing since pre-AD&D 1st ed.), and will tend to pick my character to fill perceived holes in the party. But I'm looking forward to new variants, whichever I go with!
(This should actually have been 13...) I've been using this as a long-term employee at work for new co-workers, and it works just as well here: 13a. The only stupid question is the one that you don't ask, and that comes back to bite you in the a**.
There's just no helping some people. You can lead a player to Truth, but you can't make him think.
Hi, it's the someone who's fed his dice and petted them and coaxed them like above-referenced husband here. And I do not feed my dice! At least not deliberately.... Although I am more than a bit of an animist, and I make sure to praise them after a particularly good showing (like recently, when my 3rd-level magus took a cyclops that was threatening her girlfriend from 3/4 to disemboweled with one SG-enhanced crit from her katana!). I freely admit that I have dice-fu. I've never tried quantifying it, on the theory that trying to would kill it off. So I understand your pain, and wish I had a solution for you. I was, OTOH, amused at having to explain the idea behind slamming the Demogorgon figure down on the table to bitter lily - she started with D&D in 3.5, and had never heard of him. She asked me "Is a demogorgon as nasty as a balor?" "Oh, no," I said. "THE Demogorgon has balors for lackeys! That's not his type, that's his Name!"
Well, OK, four: Greater Dispel Magic.
Dearest, you seem to be operating under a misapprehension. Contingency is not a fifth-level spell, it's a sixth level. And I would suggest it as one of your top three, with Disintegrate and Chain Lightning.
Of what power level are you hoping to achieve with these races? Shapechange for the bear is essentially an at-will 4th level spell that a 1st level character can use. She's planning on making the races of 'Advanced' level, but not 'Monstrous'. I'm not certain that the shapechange is quite as powerful as a 4th level spell, because it's limited to only one shape. You can't cherry-pick for the qualities (or even size) that you want.
Perhaps a better theme for your example staff would have been the Staff of Relocation. Let me suggest a different example: The Staff of Defense, which would encompass any spell that allows for a defensive advantage, such as Blur, Blink, Fog Cloud, Invisibility, Mage Armor, Protection from <any>, and Resist Energy -- but not Blindness, D-Door, or Resilient Sphere. There should not be a damage component to breaking a personal staff. Such an effect is, however you choose to call it, a retributive strike, and that effect has been reserved for a very specific list of items. The caster is still paying a price, in that they lose whatever resources they put into crafting that staff. If an additional price is deemed necessary or desirable, perhaps it could be a set time period before the caster can begin crafting a new personal staff -- similar to when one dismisses a familiar.
The only problem I can foresee is stuff like extra spells for the sorcerer based on a high stat. To use that class as an example, I think we'd have to pre-select spells for a CHA of 18, and then let a player who somehow ended up with a lower stat pick the ones to cross off their list. Dear, you're being confused again. Sorcerers don't modify their spells known by stat, they modify their spells per day. And of the classes that benefit from their Dex bonus, rangers & rogues need Wis too. Yes, rangers need Wisdom. But rogues? OK, they want Perception, but they have their trap-finding bonus. They probably want Sense Motive as well. And Will saves are always useful. But a -1 stat modifier on a non-primary stat is not much of a penalty. It's an impediment to be gotten around, in order to play a character that will be enjoyed. (Admittedly, now that I'm doing pre-gens, we'll have a fighter with two choices for feat options -- archery and 2WF/Weapon Finesse.) I do believe that you are having pronoun trouble in this sentence. It has been made clear that I will be doing the pregens. So no, those options will be for the ranger -- the combat style class abilities make them better than fighters at that. The fighter options will likely be shield-basher and/or multi-striker. The barbarian options will likely be 2-H weapon swinger or grappler. Though I can see that I'm going to be spending a lot of time poring over class guides over the next few days.... Just... wrong. How very helpful. So I invite you to elaborate. What is wrong? The setting? The limiting of choices for a new player? Maybe the concept of introducing a new player to the game at all? From your brevity, we're free to assume any or all of those! As well as whatever you actually meant, which I'm sure I've missed. But you gave us no clues to go by.
I really like your suggestion! It's utterly thematic for the fey to invoke such a curse, and the method of removing the curse was particularly inventive. Certainly the OP can modify the removal condition as needed to fit the story. (50 foes seems a bit harsh.) It would be a supernatural ability to inflict such a curse, so presumably nothing as banal as Remove Curse would help? Perhaps Break Enchantment would, but it may need at least a Limited Wish (which is presumably beyond this party's reach). All to the good. Alternatively, it being the fey, it would be easy to have five or six relatively low-level ones w/ spell-likes vs. Fort or Will overwhelm him in one turn. To set it up, the OP could have a high-ranking fey challenge the swashbuckler, and then switch it to have this mob of low-ranks be his "champion." (And that way the GM gets to show the other players as well that action economy trumps damage-dealing.)
Any oracle can do spontaneous Cures. If you're giving out a special ability extra, you could give a non-Life Oracle a limited number of healing Channels per day, as a swift action. Very limited -- 1 to 3. (Depending on how powerful the goodies are that the other players are getting.) Many Oracle mysteries are fairly compatible with a combat focus. And a spontaneous caster is generally less complicated than a prepared one (like druid or alchemist). My darling wife is fond of making proposals that are way overpowered. The Life Oracle has to spend a revelation to get Channels that are only as good as a standard Cleric's - and those are a standard action! Now, making a Cleric's or Life Oracle's Channels swift actions might (depending on the relative power of the other bennies you're giving out) be a very useful benefit -- but might also be overpowered. You don't say what setting you're using, or what supplemental sources are permitted, but the player may be interested in the Infernal or Celestial Healing spells, from the Inner Sea Gods book. Both give fast healing 1 (or fast healing 4 for the Greater (level 4) version). I do agree that spontaneous casters are less complicated during play (at the cost of being more complicated or angst-driven at level-up, when picking spells known). You should certainly limit any such ability to divine classes -- there are very few ways that non-divine casters can heal, and none are quick abilities (with the exception of things like quickened spells). I'm not familiar with the Witch's Healing Hex, so I'm not certain how well that would work. And none of the GM's that I play with allow 3rd-party books. But from past play experience, the Life Oracle is the ultimate Healing Monkey. Just give them Channel, Spirit Boost, Enhanced Cures (depending on level), and the feat Selective Channel, and any party they're with becomes nigh-unstoppable from CR-appropriate damage effects. Admittedly, they're not all that good at combat, but gee, a player has to make some choices. You really can't be a front-line fighter and the dedicated group healer....
I'm going to be harsh, here. But please realize that this is a harshness born of trying to help you save your game -- because I see it on a death spiral as it is right now. Why are you coddling your players? a) You admit that the warpriest needs to use self-buffs to be as effective in combat as the other characters, and that the player chooses not to use them in the interest of being more generally useful. That's fine, and a perfectly valid role-playing decision. But it has consequences! When you make foes easy for that character to hit (and 12+ really is easy), it makes it trivial for the other characters to hit. b) When you avoid using effects that make the swashbuckler 'helpless', you are negating a major strength of two or three of the other characters (two for Will, all three for Fort). c) You feel bad when you utilize foes that certain characters cannot use their preferred tactics against. The paladin can't punch past DR? He needs to be more flexible in his tactics, or get a set of enchanted spiked knuckles. The swashbuckler can't use precision damage against certain enemies? Nowhere in the rules does it state that precision is universally applicable. You sound like you want the characters to be able to succeed without leaving their comfort zone. That's a valid GM style, but you need to realize what you're doing if that's what you want, and come to terms with it yourself. Otherwise, your players need to step up their game and realize that the world is not going to be handed to them on a mithral platter. One possible way to do this, and realize that you can only do it once, is the dream scenario. Get them into what you would consider a challenging combat, and if the fight goes badly, show them a TPK. Then let them know that their characters wake up in a cold, cold sweat as they see what could happen to them. Good luck to you, and I truly wish you and your group the best!
If you really think casters need a bonus (most opponents don't even have an 'AC' against spells), and your argument is that physical combat characters get a stat bonus, then it would seem to make sense that the bonus to give would be for the casting stat. Of course, if you did that, you should also scale base SR like AC does, as well. And as for going up against Pazazu, well, if you're going up against a freaking Demon Prince, you darn well better have some extra tricks up your sleeve. Or, just make sure that you have an adequate variety of spells that don't take spell resistance. And wizards don't get 'tons' of bonus feats. They get four, of which one comes at 20th level.
Well, our GM is not, as far as I am aware, using the Ultimate Race Guide, (homebrew world) so Strix may not be an option. But I wanted to point out that Ranger could be a possibility - they are usually DEX-based, and get medium armor. Just a quick post before going to work, so not thought out at all.
Depending on when (with regard to rulebooks released) this happened, your response possibly should have been: 'You need to take the Dimensional Agility feat.' (I would rule that any ability that 'works like D-Door' would qualify for the feat.) Or the Ogre (and the character) could take falling damage.
More thoughts on Draconic associations (long post) -- Earth:
Stone Dragons, I think, should be the ones to breathe slashing damage -- they breathe shards of rock. And the Anti-Magic Field still fits well with the association with Abjuration. FYI - the kitten comment was not to say that even young dragons would be un-self-aware. Rather, it was a comment on the fact that the spell as written is a 10' radius, which a lot of dragons would have parts sticking out of, no matter where it originated.Lake Dragons should have the bludgeoning water jet. It makes some sense that the dragons that can't fly have physical damage breath weapons, rather than energy. And you had mentioned the possibility of them getting Conjure Nature's Ally -- perhaps having their spell palette be the Druidic conjurations would make sense. Water:
You are correct in saying that Enchantment should be Fire. Transmutation, OTOH, is usually about giving yourself or someone else an ability, rather than a condition. I think it should still be Water. I like the spell base of Necromancy for Sea Dragons, but think that they should also add Conjuration [healing] -- many mythologies acknowledge the Sea as the wellspring and final destination of life. And, as such, they should breath either positive or negative energy, their choice. Rain Dragons having Transmutation as their base makes sense too, I think. Rain is often shown as a transformative effect (e.g. a storm in the desert). And a driving rain can certainly feel like piercing needles on your skin, so a piercing damage breath weapon fits the model well. Fire:
Well, as I stated above, I think Water is more appropriate for Transmutation. The Lava Dragons, being an import, would not have a specific school as their spell base. Rather, they would get all acid-descriptor spells, as well as spells related to maintaining and recovering a hoard - Alarm, Locate Object, Magic Mouth, See Invisible, etc. The Lava/acid breath is fine. The Rainbow Dragons, I think, would breathe light, changing in hue with the dragon's age. The damage would be treated as fire. And I agree with them having light and enchantment spells as their base -- specifically including the Prismatic series of spells. The Meld Into Stone seems to be more thematic for the Stone Dragon than the Lava Dragon. Perhaps Transmute Rock to Mud instead? And beware of giving opponents easy escape abilities - that can lead to some very frustrated players after the second or third time that the antagonist makes a clean getaway. Or, at least, prepare for having your players research teleportation/portal tracking spells.... ;-) And, since you've smacked me over the head with it several times while I've been writing this, my response to your dismay about not finding Fire dragons in your research into Japanese mythology is very simple: Minkai is not Japan! If you want Fire dragons in Minkai, you can have them. You're the GM. It's not completely accurate to the source material, but every game runs into the issue of 'realism' vs. playability. You have the absolute right to tell the stories you want to tell. To be continued (two elements to go)....
The PC would not necessarily be stuck. If they find that they don't like the consequences of one of their feat choices, well, that's what the Retraining rules in Ultimate Campaign are for! The GM should not simply allow the PC to sub out the feat; rather, they retrain to another feat, costing time and money. Only if they want to have it both ways should they be required to take a trait as well. That seems to me to be an appropriate price to pay.
Well, that's why I used the acronym for As Far As I Remember. But See Alignment requires that you specify an alignment you want to check for, so again, the arcane casters are using the matrices and filters provided to them by the divine casters. Which is not to invalidate any points you're making; I'm just saying that it doesn't have to be the final answer. The iconoclast part is that I do not believe that there is One True and Right Way (TM).
And, for an iconoclast's take on the question.... Deadmanwalking correctly points out that the Detect <philosophy> spells can be used to suss out the alignment system. However, all of those spells are available (AFAIR) only to divine casters, which means that the information, in the end, comes from the Gods. Now, you can point out that the Protection from <philosophy> spells are not just divine, but arcane casters still need some sort of matrix and filter to feed energy into, and the matrices and filters come from the Detect spells. So, since the alignment system is intimately based on the deities populating it, there seems to be nothing preventing a different pantheon of deities from providing different information to their adherents, giving them a completely separate system of alignment/philosophy. Now, admittedly, from a GM's POV, at that point, that part of the world will have/need a new set of spells/abilities, like bitter lily pointed out, and many GM's will be unwilling to put forth that effort. And that's fine! But my darling wife is obsessive about such things. :-)
Well, this is an Imperial Dragon we're talking about. S/He should not need magic to defeat a mere group of adventurers who are denied their magic as well! I wouldn't have a problem with the dragon being enveloped in the field. In fact, I was taking that into account when I suggested that the field expand with the dragon's age, else you end up with the problem of the kitten who thinks he's hidden because his head is, unaware that his little rump is sticking up... :-)
OK, a few more comments. The wording on the Rainbow Dragon's Dimensional Bounce is unclear, or maybe I just have too much blood in my caffeine stream. :-) BitterLily says that it means that the range increases with age. For the Stone Dragon, rather than breathing Dispel Magic (or, rather, Greater Dispel, depending on age), they should get Anti-Magic Field as an SLA, defined to cover a radius sufficient to encompass their body (and, therefore, naturally increasing in size as they age).
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I tried to use the special 20% off GenCon code {gencon) from a recent blog post this morning and was informed it expired on 8/31/2006. Garn says I! 
Here's the scenario: A bandit with the Attack of Opportunity reaction is standing in a hayloft next to the hole in the floor where a ladder emerges. When a PC rogue climbs up and tries to position himself to fight the bandit, his movement triggers the AoO. The rogue can, in turn, use his Nimble Dodge reaction in response to this attack, correct? Thanks in advance.
So, I'm trying to get myself in the Christmas spirit, playing a Christmas album by Martina McBride (great voice, even if you're not into country). "Do You Hear What I Hear?" comes on, and shortly thereafter it happens: Martina sings, "Said the king to the people everywhere...." And my brain immediately thinks: "Dilly-dilly!" Happy Holidays anyways, folks!
Let's go with the "Start with 10" ability score generation system detailed on page 19 of the Pathfinder Playtest Rulebook. For your new PC's backstory, feel free to use the Hell's Rebels Player's Guide and my first post in the Gameplay Thread for inspiration. Also, I plan on utilizing some NPC protagonists in this campaign--young scions from the lesser noble house of Solstine. The Solstines are based in Kintargo's Redroof district and have mostly removed themselves from high society and political intrigue; they are mostly a house of artists and entertainers now, though one branch of the family tree has produced three adventurous souls (who you may work into your PC's backstory, if desired). Jayson Solstine is the eldest of three siblings at age 24. This warrior has served as a caravan guard and a bouncer in recent years, but Lord-Mayor Thrune's proclamations and curfew have curtailed his prospects in these fields. Jayson's mumbled on several occasions about his dislike for Thrunies, and recently coldcocked a Queensman bully who was picking on a street vendor; luckily, there were no witnesses to this affair. Jayson spends much of his free time practicing swordsmanship in the basement of an abandoned warehouse in the heart of Redroof. Jolina Solstine, 22, is a recent graduate of Alabaster Academy in Villegre district across the Yolubilis. She still spends much of her time there acting as a tutor to its newer students. She's more outspoken against the lord-mayor than her brother, going so far as to help organize weekly protests in Villegre Park. Carlissa Solstine, 20, is the youngest of the three siblings. While she seems to be just another Solstine entertainer, singing at dancing for coin at several Redroof and Temple Hill taverns, those who know her best know she's no happy-go-lucky performer. The young lady has already organized a small cadre of contacts throughout the district and is active in supporting those hurt by Lord-Mayor Thrune's policies and rabblerousing to build resistance against the tyrant.
Prologue (7 Gozran, 4716) It’s been two-and-a-half months since Paracount Barzillai Thrune arrived in Kintargo, claiming the mantle of Lord-Mayor, making somewhat preposterous proclamations, declaring a nightly curfew, and generally turning established Kintargo society and customs on their heads. The dottari patrols—once filled with local faces—now feature strangers brought in mainly for their loyalty to Thrune; and these less friendly patrols are augmented by ones from the Chelish Citizens Group (aka the Queensmen), vocal (and often violent) pro-Thrune loyalists. The streets are no longer safe: a citizen can receive a beating for saying the wrong thing or looking sideways at a Queensman. Crime, which dipped initially when the nightly curfew was instituted, is again on the rise as commerce falters and demand exceeds supply for even simple necessities like food and clothing. Sure, there have been rumors of some rebel faction wiping out a band of murderous fey in the tiefling slum called the Devil’s Nursery, and the Red Jills gang has been disbanded, but as the poor grow more desperate, cold-hearted folks fill the vacuum left in the wake of these evils. This is the situation the city finds itself in at the moment, a vicious cycle of oppression and crime. If the city is to survive (and perhaps again thrive), something must be done.
I just noticed in the Hell's Rebels MBs (Community / Forums / Pathfinder / Pathfinder Adventure Path / Hell's Rebels) that the "sticky" topics are no longer at the top of the thread.
Greetings. Our Hell’s Rebels Game recently lost a player and we’re looking for a replacement. We’re nearing the end of Book 1 of the AP, and the players are 3rd level. The current PC roster includes an aasimar investigator/swashbuckler, a hidden priest of Cayden Cailean, a tiefling sorcerer, and a drow paladin. They’re aided part-time by a noble bard/rogue (former PC) but could probably use some muscle, though potential replacement players should submit whatever character they prefer. This recruitment will be open at least until Monday (June 18, noon U.S. Eastern)…longer if none of the early submissions catches the current party’s fancy. Character Creation Rules: No 3rd-party, 3rd-level PC, 20-point buy, no VMC, 3 traits (1 campaign trait from the Hell’s Rebels Player’s Guide plus 2 others (no drawbacks), unchained versions where available, starting cash/equipment 2,250 gp*…plus, roll two (2) d30s^. * The current PCs are a bit below normal wealth-by-level, as they used some of their earnings to liberate a previous PC from slavery and help put the bard through college (not really, but they helped pay her admission fee into the prestigious Kintargo Opera House Society). ^ The previous GM had a boon system, some parts of which I’m not 100% comfortable implementing. I’ll send each applicant a private message detailing what extras they can choose between in creating their character. Feel free to ask questions. 
Why not brand goblins as a BONUS ANCESTRY in the core rulebook and include a HANDLE WITH CARE sidebar to warn GMs of potential pitfalls?
From the Paizo/Message Boards/Online Campaigns page, when I try to click on "Play-by-Post" the system repeatedly tries to load the page before giving the following error message: You have made too many requests for the same page too quickly.
Specifically, the interactive maps for Mummy's Mask: The Half-Dead City. When I bring the file up in reader, the cover page is fine but the next few pages are just tags on white pages and the last page is tags on a black background. I've tried re-downloading the file but had the same problem. Could someone check and see if the map file works on your end? Thanks in advance.
Arr! Me one good eye don't be spyin' no 30% off ye bunch o' scalawags! (Means 'I think you forgot to adjust the sale products for the 30% discount.') EDIT: Yar! That be more to the taste o' this ol' seadog! (Means 'Now I might spring for a PDF on The Wormwood Mutiny.' Thanks!)
So...assuming that a skum (Bestiary, p. 253) either is disarmed of its trident or is too poor to have a weapon in the first place. Do its claws (or perhaps its bite) function as a primary attack instead of a secondary one?
Let's see if I can draw a decent diagram... ...................DMD
PC (P on diagram) opens a door. Right on the other side is a Monster (M on diagram). EDIT: The monster is in the square right above the PC's. Can the PC, on his turn, move diagonally to one of the squares marked D on the diagram? While technically NOT a corner, both sides of a doorway are pretty darned solid and I would think diagonal movement in this case would not be possible. What's the general consensus?
For maps I'll likely use Roll20 unless someone complains; it's free to join the basic platform, though I've heard that it either doesn't work or is challenging to use if you game via a smartphone. Assuming this works for everyone, please send me your Roll20 names when you get a chance.
Disclaimer!:
What follows is my own personal creation, or interpretation, or possible turn of events to make a smooth(ish) narrative transition between where we left off in GM Paladin’s PbP game and where we begin in this one. If GM Paladin returns to again take up the mantle of our storyteller and referee, we may or may not see fit to integrate any of what takes place in this game into his game. So this may end up being nothing more than an ‘alternate reality exercise in What If?’ I can live with that. What follows is my version of the period of the Silver Ravens organization since GM Paladin’s hiatus…an attempt to explain the many tumultuous comings and goings that have happened in the days since the hunt for the invisible creature inside the Nest…. The fledgling rebellion of the new Silver Ravens is all but disbanded! A series of abysmal failures and departures from its roster of core officers has left it fractured and badly weakened. The run of misfortune began when, despite a decent plan, the friends failed to catch the invisible spy that had recently wreaked havoc inside the Nest. The Ravens’ officers had agreed to refine their plan and try again, but the second hunt never happened. Sabrina Sarini, pretty but capricious assistant to spymaster Davina Eradon, suddenly stormed out of Laria’s Long Roads Coffeehouse, despite having been promised by her father to another diabolist in eternal infernal wedlock. Her former bodyguard, Domitius, was the first to go after the wayward young woman but was soon followed by the other Ravens’ officers and some of their recruits. Sabrina and several of her would-be rescuers have not been seen since, and there isn’t even a whisper on the streets of Kintargo as to their ultimate fates. Domitius has vanished, as has the capable Varisian mage Nicolae and two young recruits who accompanied him into the city streets in search of Sabrina. The blame for Sabrina’s brusque departure eventually fell mainly upon her ‘frenemy,’ the young noblewoman bard, Jessibel Aulamaxa, and (to a lesser degree) upon the secret worshiper of Cayden Cailean, Leora Scileana. Apparently word somehow got back to Sabrina that her two friends had snuck off to a tavern for a night of revelry and not asked her along. To make matters worse, Jessi and Leora double-dated that night with the Vashnarstill twins, a pair of decadent nobles (and identical twins), the elder of whom (Angus) Sabrina had dated last summer and discarded by fall. Faced with this ‘betrayal’ by two of her friends, Sabrina quit the Ravens in an angry huff. Other incidents also contributed to the fracturing of the rebel faction. An important document that the displaced nobleman and scholar, Rexus Victocora, was studying and translating—a piece of parchment with a magical secret page cast upon it—vanished mysteriously around the same time as Sabrina’s exit. Only a day after that theft was discovered, a large and rather insistent contingent of dottari showed up at the coffeehouse, demanding access to the establishment’s basement. Although they didn’t find the secret door and passage leading down the Nest, Laria thought it best for the rebels to find another gathering spot for the short term at least, until the heat the dottari was applying cooled off. The Silver Ravens decided to temporarily go their separate ways until a new headquarters could be established (or Laria allowed them to return to the Nest). Of the four remaining officers, three (Kiri Windfeather, Leora, and Davina) relocated to Eradon Manor in Villegre; Jessibel split her time between her family home in the Greens and a rented flat in Jarvis End within a block of the Kintargo Opera House Society, of which she was a new member. Rexus is currently staying at the home of a friend, the place he was at the night he lost his family and home on the Night of Ashes, and he’s still busily translating the remaining documents found underneath the Fair Fortune Livery. The Ravens’ teams (Turl’s Performers, the tengu Fushi Sisters, and Forvian’s Fighters) stayed intact but each went its separate way, awaiting orders from their leaders. The rank and file returned to their old lives, likewise biding time until the Silver Ravens would again arise from the ashes. Yesterday morning, a message arrived via a silver raven figurine of wondrous power from Lydia Tivyr, a rebel and old friend based out of Songbird Hall, the local Temple of Shelyn, saying that she had a request and mission for her old friends, one that she’d need to explain and detail in person. Jessibel, who was checking in with her fellow officers at the time, told the others that she had Opera House Society business later in the day and could swing by the temple while she was on Argo Isle. Although she promised to return to Davina’s home with an update before nightfall, Jessi never showed. The teen girl was still occasionally less-than-dependable and had stayed at her flat near the Opera House Society headquarters when her business with them ran late (rather than risk getting caught on the streets after curfew), so her friends initially didn’t worry too much. When the bard didn’t show up the next morning, however, Davina fired off a message to Songbird Hall inquiring after Jessibel. Lydia’s silver raven reply has just arrived at Eradon Manor. Written in Elven for security purposes, Davina is able to translate it and read it aloud to the others: ”J.A. arrived noon yesterday. Told of missing teens in Temple Hill, Redroof. Was to meet her musical friends, then return to you. Please visit ASAP. L.T.” It’s now an hour past noon.
The dark shadow of the new Lord-Mayor Barzillai Thrune hangs over a series of mysterious disappearances in Kintargo during the time of the Glorious Reclamation in Cheliax.
In honor of International Talk Like a Pirate Day, I penned this seasonal shanty with misadventures aboard the dreaded Wormwood fresh in mind. ‘Tis the most wond—Arrr!--ful time o’ the year
‘Tis the yar-hariest evenin’ o’ all!
(Reset to the next morning) ‘Tis the most craptastic mornin’ o’ all!
Thar’ll be sluggards fer whippin’
‘Tis the most wond-Arrr!-ful time o’ the year!
Thar’ll be sluggards fer whippin’
‘Tis the most wond-Arrr!-ful time o’ the year!
So, a Jinkin Gremlin (Bestiary 2) stabs at an unsuspecting adventurer with its tiny short sword and scores a hit for normal damage plus 1d6 sneak attack damage. Tiny short sword damage = 1d3-4 plus 1d6 sneak attack. Let's assume a roll of 1 on both rolls. What's the total damage? 1 - 4 = -3 (which converts to 1 nonlethal) plus 1 lethal (since nonlethal sneak attack damage cannot be dealt with a lethal weapon)? So...1 nonlethal + 1 lethal?
Hi - I took advantage of the Humble Bundle offer and received a code for the Pathfinder Beginner Box Set (physical copy), but when setting up the shipping and finalizing the order I was offered the chance to continue shopping, so I did...and now I can't get back to my original Humble Bundle order. Help, please!
I think the answer's "No," but.... If a monster has a Charisma score of 15, can it only use SLAs resembling spells up to 5th level (as would be the case for a bard or sorcerer) or are there 12 Cha monsters capable of having, say, Deep Slumber as a spell-like ability? My follow-up question is: if a 16 Charisma monster with SLAs falls prey to a Bestow Curse spell that drops its Cha to 10, can it then only cast any 0-level SLAs on its list? Thanks in advance for the help.
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Secret GM Rolls:
Aghon Will save:
Aghon Bluff if he wants to hide that he's seen through Betty's disguise: Betty's opposed Sense Motive: Aghon Only:
As you chivalrously kiss the woman's hand you notice that it feels softer than it looks. Alarms go off in your head and you take a closer look at the lady the hand's attached to, seeing through her magical disguise. "Betty" is, in truth, about ten years younger than she first appeared, with shorter jet black hair. Her hazel eyes are sharp, intense, and penetrating. The jaded smile her older form once wore has become an amused smirk. "Seein' me in a whole new light, are you, Aghon? Ah, but that's the risk o' shakin' hands now, ain't it? Her voice drops to a throaty whisper. "Lettin' you interact with my disguise gives you a chance o' seein' through it. Oh well--at least now I know you've a decent head on your shoulders and a sharper eye than most." Betty purses her lips as if pondering some deep matter. "If you'd still like to talk over a drink or two, meet me tonight at the Frog & Grog...say an hour after sundown." Another smirk crosses her lips as she adds, "I'll cut me hair an' wear me best duds--I hear that makes me look about ten years younger!"
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"What kind of work you lookin' for?" the woman replies, still smiling but withdrawing her offered hand. "I'm guessin' you don't wanna be a serving wench an' you look too scrawny for the brothels...." "Your magic powers'll get you a job on most any ship sailin' from this port," Betty continues. "An' a healer's touch is welcome in all sorts o' places in a rough-an'-tumble place like this." Her eyes narrow as she gives Moina a closer look. "How are you at sneakin' an' spyin'? Can you be subtle? There's another new arrival I've got my eyes on, and I could use some help if you're game."
Here's some Crescent Harbor info and rumors to get you all started. Not sure if any of your PCs can fail a DC 10 Knowledge (local) check, but feel free to take a peek at that stuff for some basics on life on the pirate island. For rumors, make up to 3 skill checks. PORT PERIL KNOWLEDGE (LOCAL) CHECKS
DC 10: Popular Locations:
Crescent Harbor Taverns, Inns, and Hotspots
DC 10: Local Laws & Rulers:
Port Peril’s laws are handed down by the Hurricane King. Basically corrupt, these edicts say that the Hurricane King, his fleet’s captains, and—to a lesser degree, their crews—can do as they please in town. Pirate Lords of the Pirate Council, likewise, have nearly free reign while in the city. Other Free Captains of the Shackles, up-and-coming pirate crews, and even daring merchant ships and their crews are welcome to make berth…after spending at least a week quarantined on Crescent Harbor isle, where their cargo and crew are examined before they are allowed into Point Peril proper. Visitors must submit to a short interview with a docks official and is afterwards given signed papers that contain the person’s name, age, sex, race, port of origin, and other pertinent personal information. Each visitor must have his papers on his person at all times. Full-time residents of Crescent Harbor are issued identification papers that must be presented to cross the bay to mainland Port Peril. All sailing vessels, even down to makeshift rafts, are required to check the papers of all passengers. Anyone still in quarantine can expect to be turned away at the docks of Crescent Harbor or arrested if they somehow manage the crossing to the mainland city. Small-scale brawling is generally ignored by the Crescent Guard (the island’s small watch force); assault with deadly weapons is more likely to catch their attention. Theft, pickpocketing, and robbery are illegal, but if the perpetrators aren’t caught in the act, the watch rarely provides additional investigation, unless the victim is important or has connections. These crimes are investigated and prosecuted with more vigor in the main city, however. The ruler of Crescent Harbor is generally assumed to be Harbormaster Tjosmin Kreidoros, a dwarven wizard. He and his unknown number of custom agents and cargo inspectors (derisively called Hounds by the locals) have the authority to arrest anyone at any time for any reason (real or manufactured), and are much more feared and hated than the Crescent Guard. The island has two watch stations, imaginatively named North Jail and South Jail. The latter is larger and more secure, and is used for more dangerous criminals—those deemed deserving of a trip across the bay to either the Lockers of Dead Man’s Dancehall. One other unusual law in Port Peril is that every known divine spellcaster capable of casting Create Water must do so each day “for no less than 1 minute and no more than 1 hour” in one or more of the city’s public cisterns.
DC 15: Rumor 1:
Rumor 1: A nutjob lugging a large anchor around with him recently arrived on Crescent Harbor. He’s been getting into brawls regularly, acquitting himself quite well. The big fellow hasn’t been arrested yet because he hasn’t yet used the anchor as a weapon.
DC 15: Rumor 2:
Rumor 2: A recently-arrived ship named the Reef Treader owned by Free Captain Duarnen Stonemaester was seized at the docks, purportedly under orders from the Hurricane King. This event is likely the culmination of a short feud between Capt. Stonemaester and one of the Hurricane King’s lesser fleet captains, the universally-despised Ludvar Barrows, captain of the Bonepicker. It’s rumored that crewmen from the Reef Treader who didn’t surrender immediately were slain by Barrows and his gang of cutthroats. DC 15: Rumor 3:
Rumor 3: The Gypsy Wanderer, a sailing ship out of Riddleport in Varisia, arrived in Crescent Harbor two days ago, bearing a travelling circus crew intent upon setting up shop in the mainland city for an extended engagement. Quarantined on the island for a week, the circus’s owner and ringmaster is seeking permission to put on limited performances at the northeast tip of Crescent Harbor for a few days until the troupe is allowed to proceed across the bay to Port Peril proper. DC 15: Local Traditions:
Local Tradition: Most sailors say a brief prayer to Besmara over a coin and drop it into the harbor before leaving Port Peril on a sea voyage. The amount of this offering varies from a single copper coin for common sailors and pirates to a gold or even platinum one for captains. Rumor has it that the Calistrian high priestess from the Siren’s Lash temple/brothel on the mainland city has a handful of aquatic elf allies who regularly collect this booty for the temple’s coffers. DC 20: Hidden Organizations, Rulers, and Locations: Although there are dozens of smugglers, cutpurses, and other small-time criminals in Crescent Harbor, there is (of yet) no organized thieves’ guild on the island. One scoundrel who’s been gaining influence in recent weeks is Gruepert, a monaciello gremlin who likes to dress in flashy pirate clothing and runs his own small marpetplace in the shadows of Squallshield Hill near the heart of the island. It’s said that—given enough time—the gremlin merchant can pull just about anything out of the magical bag he’s always clutching. The little monster’s backed up by a ripped pech warrior and a female human arcane caster named Archimedae Staal (who has a small booth selling alchemical items and spell components in Gruepert’s Market), as well as a cadre of lesser gremlins, including several mite couriers and messengers.
Full Disclosure: I’m a veteran 3E/3.5 D&D GM who….
This irregular posting schedule will likely result in a slow—ahem, leisurely—game experience. I’m not sure what type of players (if any) will be interested in such a game—perhaps some newbies, folks who can’t commit to the usual post-a-day (or more) requirement, or maybe a veteran or two from other games who’d like to add a low-stress, part-time game to their gaming schedules and gently correct the GM when he makes mistakes (like using a 3.5 rule when Pathfinder’s updated something). I’m also hoping the players will takes matters into their own hands and make RPing posts when the GM’s in one of his lulls. Anyone still reading this post? :) In the off-chance someone still is, let me set down some parameters:
Your PC needn’t be a pirate. Perhaps he’s a local street thief, performer, sellsword, or cleric of Besmara (or some other less represented deity). Maybe she got press-ganged at another port but was such a lousy pirate/sailor that she got dumped unceremoniously on Crescent Isle. How about a down-on-his-luck gambler or mercantile type? Or a Mwangi native recently moved from the jungle into the wonders of so-called civilization? He could even be a “typical” adventurer, just arrived in port and looking for some quest worthy of his time and talents. I’ll pick 5-6 characters from those submitted (assuming I get that many, of course), likely somewhere between Christmas and New Year’s Day. The actual game will start shortly thereafter. Starting Level: 1st
I don’t have the Occult Adventures book, so that’s out. I’ve only glanced at Unchained, and would prefer to learn the basics before jumping into optional/variant rules, so that’s out (probably). I don’t know an eidolon from a Megalon (and am not sure I want to). And no ninjas (Come on—it’s a piratey campaign!) or paladins (problematic in a pirate port).
I have enough store credit for my order, but...for some reason the system isn't applying the full order amount. Help, please!
I tried to grab some GM's Day bargains but the check-out process won't allow me to use my store credit. Help, please!
I just got my copy of CotCT #1 today, and while flipping through it I noticed something a bit odd. Zellara claims that Gaedren Lamm's thugs stole her treasured Harrow deck, yet a few moments later claims that those very cards are the ones in her hands...but she never bothers to say how the deck was returned to her. For those who've already started playing the adventure, did anyone catch this discrepancy and confront Zellara with it? If so, how did your DM have her explain it away?
I could've sworn that I saw a lore table regarding Shadow Pearls somewhere, but now I can't find it. Does one exist or is this just a figment of my imagination? |