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![]() This discussion got me thinking; is there an existing "Unearthed Arcana" style wiki where players can submit their house-rules/alternate rules for _3.x_ (not other versions) in a structure way with sub categories (for easy navigation)? If not, maybe someone should start one? I don't know how to start one (or even contribute to one) but I see people submit them on forums all the time, and then they are lost in the miasma of replies and criticisms. ![]()
![]() In Microlite20 (Microlite20) the skill system is as follows: "There are just 4 skills : Physical, Subterfuge, Knowledge and
Skill rank = your level + any bonus due to your class or race.
For example, Climbing would use Physical + STR bonus. Dodging
The modifiers from class/race are as follows: Humans get +1 to all skill rolls
Now, I'm not suggesting this system as is, it is obviously a very simplified system, but what about something similar where you have "groupings" of related skills and he classes best associated with each grouping get a bonus to those skill checks that the other classes don't? You could use a feat to get extra points at x number of levels to specialize in a skill (or skill set), or at every 2nd or 3rd level you get to pick a skill to increase your "specialization"? ![]()
![]() In my campaign the PCs dropped Filge off at the garrison. I decided to have one of the officers (Lt. Skunt) actually be a cult member undercover in the garrison. The PCs had given Lt. Venderin all the evidence they found at the observatory, and she was going to go to the Captain. Before she could get there, Skunt killed her, stole the evidence, took Filge prisoner, and staged the prison cell to look like Filge killed Lt. Venderin while escaping. The PCs were scared that Filge was after them from that point! Since the evidence was gone, the Captain had no grounds to go into the mines (which are technically within the town limits, so the sheriff's jurisdiction) so he asked the PCs to sneak in to the mines and find evidence so he could go to Mayor Neff. When the PCs were investigating the temple of Erythnul, they found Filge bound and gagged in the chieftan's cave with his eyes gouged out (and sewn into Grallak Kur's eye sockets instead of beholder eyes). The PCs were really creeped out by that when they met Kur! ![]()
![]() My players also didn't seem interested in the mine office. They briefly considered taking over the observatory, but it was pointed out to them that it is technically owned by the town and currently being rented by Smenk. One of the PCs started as a bar wench in a local tavern/inn (we made one up for the game called The Pointed Rabbit because the player didn't like the sound of the other pre-existing bars/inns). After their return from the Whispering Cairn, they found out that the woman who owned the Pointed Rabbit died of an apparent heart attack, and left the place to the PC (a rouge) in her will. Now the PCs have a place to call their own, and with the history they've created with it, it will be that much more interesting later in the campaign. ;-) ![]()
![]() WARNING to players of my AoW campaign (Wilson and Dave I'm looking at you) don't read this! Spoilers below. In my campaign we are almost finished TFoE. The PCs fought their way through the maze and made their way into the inner temple of Vecna. They killed two of the acolytes, and reduced the allip to low hp before it hid in the wall. Being afraid of the allip (after losing a lot of Wisdom) they now stand huddled, back-to-back in the centre of the "inner sanctum" (room 26). While they were in the maze, to make things more interesting, I had a hissing, menacing, disembodied voice (the Faceless One) mock them as they progressed. At the moment we ended the last session, with the group all together in a circle in the center of the sanctum, it seemed the perfect opportunity for a little creative license to heighten the tension, so I had the disembodied voice say "Thank you for cooperating, and being exactly where I want you!" So, my conundrum? How to make good on the Faceless One's disembodied threat and play upon their position in the sanctum. I decided that, since it is a temple of Vecna, the god of secrets, and the former study of Vecna himself, it stood to reason he might have some means of extracting secrets. Thus I came up with the Tome of Secret Extraction, and the new spell "Detect Secrets". At the start of the next session the PCs will suddenly be bathed in green eerie light. Looking up they see arcane symbols painted on to teh ceiling. These symbols create a magic circle 20' in radius from a point directly below. The symbols are connected to the Tome of Secret Extraction, which is activated by reading the incantation on the first page (a standard action). The tome can be used from up to 60' away (the Faceless one can use it from his laboratory next door). Targets within range must make a Will save vs a DC of 10 + 5 + the INT bonus of the person using the tome (in this case +5 for the Faceless One). Anyone making the save feels like something tried to probe their thoughts. Any target who fails the save has a secret plucked from their mind. This secret appears written in the Tome in green ink with the name of the person. It is written in the same secret coded language used by the Faceless One to correspond with Theldrick, which can be deciphered using the information found in the Faceless One's laboratory. The means of making such a tome, and the circle of symbols that go with it, are themselves a secret known only to Vecna, and so potentially lost to the world, so this particular tome can only be used within the temple in TFoE. However, worshippers of Vecna might discover the spell that is a part of the item, which can be used without the tome, but only against one target per casting. The spell appears below. Please let me know what you think. I have based it on Detect Thoughts. Detect Secrets
Casting this spell against a target with intelligence greater than 3 plucks one secret from the mind of the target and makes it known to the caster. The caster "hears" the secret in his/her mind either in a language spoken by the target, or in images if the target has no spoken language. If the caster does not speak the same language, he/she must record the secret phonetically and have it translated. The secret is revealed in one sentence, and hearing it does not necessarily impart understanding of it to the caster, who must interpret what is heard. For example, the caster might hear from a target the secret "I killed Felbar", but won't necessarily know who Filbar was, how he or she was killed, or any other information. The caster can not control what secret he/she gets, or question the target. Material component: A blank piece of fine paper worth at least 1 gp, or a blank page torn carefully out of the caster's spell book. The paper is consumed in the casting, disappearing in a small burst of flame that does not cause combustion of other materials. ![]()
![]() @ Olmac: I read the article, it looks like a great idea, but what about a divine spellcaster doing it? I know that divine spellcasters can spellcraft spells being cast by arcane casters, but it seems to me that a divine spellcaster should not be able to identify, with spellcraft, a magic item that does something (uses a spell) that doesn't appear in the Divine spell lists. Should divine spell casters be able to use this at all? Maybe to do it you should have to have the requisite creation feat? As for the Ebon Aspect, I like the idea I saw elsewhere of the pool bubbling a bit more and more after each temple is defeated. After the last temple falls the pool becomes quite turbulent. You can maybe even have the temple start to shake a bit (à la Raiders of the Lost Ark) and if the PCs stick around to see what happens, to bad for them. If the PCs flee, they get up above and maybe have some time to heal up, but 1d6 x 10 minutes after they leave the mines the ebon aspect claws its way up the shaft and heads in to town, hunting down the PCs and killing ad destroying along the way. Most people, including the town watch, will flee, and it will take too long for the soldiers from the militia to get across town (and they can't _all_ leave, _someone_ has to guard the garrison!). ![]()
![]() Well, the PCs faced the allip and acolytes last night. I decided that the allip could simply "turn" the babble ability on and off as a free action by choosing whether or not to make any noise at all. The PCs HATED the allip! They were scared badly by it. One of them lost 8 Will, and two others each lost 4! (I rolled a lot of 4s) They got the allip down to very low HP and it went to hide in the wall. The PCs don't want to leave without killing it first because they are afraid of allowing it to escape! ![]()
![]() The description of the Allip in the temple of Vecna in TFoE has it wearing wizard's robes, but the Allip is "incorporeal". Please correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't that mean it can't wear clothes unless it has the manifest ability (which it does not)? Also, the MM says the Allip is constantly wandering around muttering to itself with its "babble" ability. Would this be a problem for the acolytes and faceless one, or are we assuming that they keep making their Will save every day, or are we assuming the Allip is _not_ "babbling" all the time like the MM says? ![]()
![]() Okay, so it seems i still need to work on making sure I've accounted for all possible modifiers. There are so many! :-) Maybe someone can then help me figure out this possible errata (Callum?): The Kenku Boss (TFoE pg 40) is listed as a Rogue lvl 4. His BAB is +3, his DEX bonus is +4, and he has a MWK Light x-bow. If my math is right, that's a ranged attack bonus of +8, right? The text lists it as +7 only. This attack bonus would increase to +9 if the target is within 30' because of the Kenku boss' Point Blank SHot feat. Have I missed anything? So far my PCs are exploding the poor Kenkus. ![]()
![]() Well, as mentioned in my initial post, I've intentionally set the story in a very isolated, and small, village, so things they do in the past shouldn't change the greater world too much. In order to account for villagers not potentially leaving the village (to become a madman who takes over the world in the future) this village is sort of like from the Children of The Corn in a way. VERY old fashioned and insular. Very religious, patriarchal, and with lots of rules. So, saving someone in the past won't really "screw up" the future much, if at all. The basic premise is that 1 week before the PCs arrive, _all_ the villagers disappeared, but some restless spirits may remain (the village is haunted). The disappearance is linked to a horrifically evil act committed by one or more of the villagers in the past, but which bonds them all together. The purpose of the time travelling will be to solve the mystery of what happened, and to find a way from stopping the evil act in the past, so that the villagers don't all disappear in the present. At -5 years the PCs can interact with the villagers, but since the evil act has already occurred at that point, nothing they do then will stop all the villagers from disappearing in the present. The only point at which they can stop that happening is at -10 years, but not without first gathering clues, and also accomplishing a specific goal in the _present_ which will give them the info they need to stop the event in the past. I sort of see it being like the series finale of ST:TNG where Picard was jumping back and forth through time, with the solution to changing the past being found elsewhere. The more I think about it, the more I like the idea of having them inhabit the bodies of villagers, but I will have the inhabit villagers who are "like them" (a fighter end s up in a strong person, etc) and allow them to retain their own knowledge, and perhaps even skills like using a bastard sword... if they can find one. ;-) ![]()
![]() Yes, it was either March or April. It had new Chronomancy spells. I guess I'm not really looking for rules, but rather the best way to handle time-travel. Should I have the PCs _themselves_ go back in time? Or should I have them go back in time into the bodies of villagers of the time period (like possessing them). I _do_ want them to be able to affect changes in the past and the present. If I have the PCs themselves go back in time, I was thinking about having the players make up three character sheets for each PC. One at Lvl 1, one at Lvl 5, and one at Lvl 10. ![]()
![]() I know there is a long thread on this subject from last year, but this question wasn't really answered, I don't think. Are there any good rules for running an adventure that uses time travel for 3.5, either from WotC, Dragon, Dungeon, or some third party? I am planning a 1-shot adventure for my players for Halloween ,and I'd like to add some time travel. I know all the caveats about changing the time-line, etc. but this time-travel will be limited in scope. The PCs will stumble into a very small and isolated farming village a week after Wicharrys (sp?) the "Halloween" of Greyhawk. The village is deserted, but meals are left half-eaten. Halloween decorations are still up, so it may have happened on Halloween. The PCs end up trapped in the village by restless spirits who need absolution. In the course of investigating they will be transported back-and-forth between 4 time periods only, and no longer than 10 years in the past. (1. The present. 2. A week in the past. 3. 5 years in the past. 4. 10 years in the past). Over the course of the adventure they (hopefully) discover how to stop an horrific evil from happening. Since it is an isolated village, and the time period is limited, not much can be "changed" other than the horrible act that has left the village abandoned. I am toying with the idea that it is the gods themselves using the PCs as tools to fix something that was so evil that they feel time must be changed to stop it. I'm wondering if any time-travel rules exist? I am trying to decide between having the time-shifting be "event based" or by touching certain items. Thanks. ![]()
![]() Here is the thread: Go to http://paizo.com/dungeon/messageboards/ageOfWorms/archives/kyussSpawnDefeat edByCandles And here: http://paizo.com/dungeon/messageboards/ageOfWorms/archives/mechanicsOfSpawn OfKyussWorms To quote Demiurge 1138: The Ecology of the Spawn of Kyuss [Dragon #336--I think] makes it very clear that Kyuss worms are in fact vermin. Antilife shell works on them, as does repel vermin. ![]()
![]() I went to high school at a school of the arts where I was an art major. A group of us from art class played D&D all the time (2ed) during spare, or after school, until someone found out and told the principal. We were informed we no longer allowed to play D&D in school _unless_ we had a teacher who would be our "patron" and be "around" when we were playing. Even though there were more than a few cool teachers there, it was hard to find one who would do it on a regular basis. Suffice to say we found a way to sneak into the mostly unused "lecture room" (an overflow auditorium for the main auditorium that has a sliding wall to separate it) and played there whenever we wanted. As a result of this particular principal (and another teacher) we started an underground paper called "The Rag". Since we were all art students we filled it with cartoons (some political, some just funny or gross), editorials, and fake "letters to the editor". We didn't get caught until we published about 5 or 6 issues. We were threatened with suspension, but my mom (an educator her self, and VP at the time at another school) came to our defense. Sigh... we had to stop, but it was fun while it lasted. ![]()
![]() Daeglin wrote: I know its tough but I think more than just a bit of patience is going to be required. This is not a problem that can be rectified by Cosmo popping down to the warehouse and dropping a few mags in the mail... Vic has repeatedly said in a number of threads that they are looking for a systemic approach to correcting this problem rather that by individual subscriber. I love Paizo, and I love their product, but your above statement is proven wrong by the fact that every few days Vic or someone else in CS has posted confirmations to people in the threads that they are getting replacements. Other people in these threads have also indicated receiving email confirmations. I was one of the first few people to post that I had not received them, yet people have have posted _after_ me have received confirmations. SO... what gives? Why is it that people who have posted _after_ me are gettng confirmations and I'm not? ![]()
![]() I am also still waiting for confirmation. Vic, Cosmo, or Lisa: I keep seeing on these boards that other Canadians who did not receive 358 and the poster have already been given confirmation (either by email or in the forum threads) that they will be receiving replacements. So why haven't I? Are you waiting until you actually send them out the door before confirming? Once again, I did NOT receive 358, nor did I get the poster with 359. Every time I ask, Vic says "Be patient, we're looking into it, Deimodius" but then i see the next day another person has a confirmation. So, Vic, Cosmo, or Lisa, can you please confirm, will I be receiving replacements for 358 and the poster, or do I need to ask for my money back? Thanks. ![]()
![]() Hi, i know that you guys said there were phone calls and emails going on trying to figure out what happened to the Canadian subscribers and issue #358, and the poster from #359, but it's been a week now since last I received any correspondence from Paizo, with no update. I'm just wondering what's happening. I have seen on other threads that subscribers with this problem have received confirmations that replacements are being shipped, and even though I am one of those subscribers, _I_ still haven't heard here, or by email, from anyone at Paizo that I will be receiving replacements. This is the last _I've_ heard (even though others have been told they are getting replacements) http://paizo.com/paizo/messageboards/paizo/customerService/dragon/358Poster NeverCame Vic, or Cosmo, or even Lisa... Where is my Dragon #358, and my poster from Dragon #359? Will i be receiving replacements? Thanks. ![]()
![]() Thanks, Vic. I was concerned because i saw posts in the other Canadian threads acknowledging the people who didn't receive their items, and that I would be lost in the noise. May I suggest something on the main page, or a sticky right at the top telling everyone what you just told me, so that we Canadians stop cluttering the boards with our plaintiff pleas? ![]()
![]() I STILL haven't received Dragon #358, nor #359!!! #358 was the August issue, which means it was in stores in JULY, and I still don't have it in SEPTEMBER!!!!! Come on, this is CANADA you're shipping too, not Zimbabwe!!! It really pi$$es me off that most other people on these boards will have already received the final issues to discuss, and I will be a month-and-a-half to _2_ months behind everyone!!!! ![]()
![]() My PCs were contacted by Smenk, who arranged to have them snuck in hidden in crates of supplies for the cult. All of them were disguised as Smenk's thugs. Two of them worked the elevator up and down while the other three were taken down in crates (the lids loose). The Tiefling guards, who were somewhat lax as they are used to these shipments (as described in the adventure) and were taken by surprise by the PCs when they jumped up out of the crates and attacked. The PCs stowed the tiefling bodies in the crates, and are preparing to make their next move. What they don't realize is that the guards may be in the negs, but aren't necessarily dead. i am going to make stabilization rolls for them, so it is possible they will escape the crates and go for help at some point. Now I just need to get the PCs to go into the temple or hextor first! ![]()
![]() 1. My AoW campaign has 5 PCs (one of them was originally going to be an NPC cleric run by me for healing, but someone stepped up to play him as a PC) and they are doing _okay_. There have been a couple of near-deaths in the Whispering Cairn (if not for the healing) so i would say it has been adequately challenging without changing anything. They are just staring TFoE, so we'll see how it goes. NOTE: I am NOT using XP, instead I am leveling them where appropriate. This solves a LOT of problems (like whether or not they will be appropriate level in time to face certain obstacles/bad guys). We are also using Action Points, _and_ the Critical Hit Deck. >:-) 2. Wee Jas. Dragon Issue #350 (Dec 2006) has the Core Beliefs: Wee Jas article. If you are making her a big part of your campaign, I suggest checking it out. You can still order back issue. OF IMPORTANT NOTE: The article states that the church of Wee Jas do NOT have a problem with animating the dead/necromancy, as long as a SOUL is not involved, and specifically the soul of a person from the Suel region. Wee Jas is a deity of the Suel of Greyhawk, and the article states that if people are desecrating bodies/animating them, etc, Wee Jas doesn't care as long as a soul is not being forced back against it's will. Even then, if the soul that is used is NOT a Suel soul she _still_ doesn't care. So as far as Filge is concerned, provided no souls are involved with the undead he has created, a cleric of Wee Jas won't bother with him. ![]()
![]() This is actually a pretty cool idea. Go through your Dungeon issues, and put together an "arc" of three, six, or twelve different adventures that work as a complete arc/AP! I would be interested especially is seeing what sorts of arcs/APs Paizo staff come up with, since they are intimately familiar with them. M. ![]()
![]() My favourites so far (not including the ones I posted) in no particular order: - A large exotic water garden filled with beautiful iridescent fish - A chest with gold coins that pour out of it forever - A land-bound lighthouse inside the city - "The Hounds of Eyras" - The Fountain of Torrents - Giants are arising from the water - richshaw drivers - The Aerie ![]()
![]() THELDRIK As with Garras and Kendra, Theldrik is listed as carrying a Mstwk HEAVY flail, but the damage listed is for a LIGHT flail, and Theldrik is carrying a shield. The author likely meant for him to be carrying a LIGHT flail, so change this from HEAVY flail to LIGHT flail, and everything else is fine. ![]()
![]() Callum, there are some corrections to your errata of the CULTISTS There is further errata to GARRAS, and KENDRA. CULT FANATIC The stats in the magazine are correct as they are for a Lvl 1 _WARRIOR_, so the only errata is that these Cult Fanatics should be changed from "Human Commoner 1" to "Human Warrior 1". This would make sense since they have been training to get in to the temple of Hextor. ALL STATS IN THE MAGAZINE REMAIN AS THEY ARE LISTED IN PRINT. GARRAS Callum is correct that with a Heavy Flail (2 handed weapon) Garras would not be able to use his shield, and thus AC should be 17 without his shield. The damage stats listed in the magazine are for a light flail, which may have been the writer's intention 9and would allows for use of the shield), but Callum is right that Garras can take advantage of his strength to get an extra point of damage using the Heavy Flail two-handed (1.5 x Str bonus to dam). So, DMs should choose either to have Garras use a Light Flail with a Shield for an AC bonus of 1, or have him use the heavy flail and NO shield for a dam bonus of 1 instead. Further correction to Garras: Unless I am mistaken, the skill points for Garras are incorrect. The mag lists his skills as: Concentration +7, K. Religion +6, Spellcraft +6 (Callum has these skills listed as Con +6, Intimidate +2, K. Religion +5, Spellcraft +5, but Intimidate is not one of his skills in the mag. Though it might be useful to him). Garras' Int is +1, so for either Fig, or Clr, he gets 3x4 = 12 Skill points at Lvl 1, and another 3 SP at level 2, for a total of 14 SP. Class skills can't have more than 5 ranks at lvl 2, so he couldn't possibly have the skill ranks he does in the magazine. If he started as a Cleric at level 1, and then took a lvl of fighter, he could have the following Skills (the three skills listed are all Cross Class skills for Fighters) Concentration +5 (4 ranks as cleric + 2 skill points as a fighter to equal 1 rank), K. Religion: +4 (4 ranks as Cleric + 0 ranks as Fighter), Spellcraft +4 (4 ranks as Cleric + 0 ranks as Fighter), and he would have one skill point from his Fighter level left over to put into a Fighter class skill. So: Con +5, K. Rel +4, SC +4, Intimidate +1 (for example) If he started as a Fighter at level 1, and then took a level of Cleric and kept the same skills listed in the mag, his skills would be lower. They would be Con +3, K. Rel +3, SC +3. These are all cross class skills for Fighters, so it would cost 2 SP per rank at Fighter level 1. Obviously you will want Garras to be a Cleric at level 1, and a Fighter at Level 2. KENDRA The mag says she has a heavy flail, but lists the damage for a light flail, and her AC with a shield. Obviously she was supposed to have a LIGHT FLAIL instead, so change her Possessions to say LIGHT FLAIL instead of HEAVY FLAIL (which is 2-handed). Dam stays the same, and she can use her shield. Kendra's skills are wrong also. As a Level 2 Cleric she can't have more than 5 ranks in her class skills, so the skills as listed in teh mag are too high. As a human Clr 2 with INT of 11, she would only have 14 skill points, so her skills should be as follows: Concentration +5, Diplomacy +4, Heal +5 Kendra's possessions also fail to mention her Light crossbow, as Callum points out in his errata above. ![]()
![]() F. Wesley Schneider started a thread asking us to help him develop Magnimar, unfortunately he started (by accident) over in the Dragon General Discussion area, and apparently it can't be moved. If you haven't seen it, and want a chance to influence the monuments of Magnimar, check out this thread: Go to Magnimar - http://paizo.com/paizo/messageboards/dragon/generalDiscussion/magnimar ![]()
![]() Callum, some corrections to your skeleton errata: Skeletons have the _Undead_ trait, which specifies that undead are proficient with "whatever armour they are described as wearing", if they are not described as wearing armour, they are not proficient with it (they can't put it on after the fact) Thus these skeletons, since they are described as wearing the armour, are proficient with it. So, no ACP to attack roles (or anything for that matter). Also, under possessions you have listed: "rusted partial plate (as breastplate). The text says it is FULL plate that is rusted (and thus only grants +5 to AC). The difference is that aside from providing slightly less protection, it is still technically FULL plate, and all the stats that go with it. The changes are reflected below. ARMOURED SKELETON (CR 1/3) NE Medium undead
AC 20, touch 11, flat-footed 19
Spd 20 ft. (4 squares)
Abilities Str 13, Dex 13, Con –, Int –, Wis 10, Cha 1
NB. Undead are proficient with any armour they are described as wearing (MM 317)
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