Drabardi Adria's page

I'm a fan of intentional design. While I know not every situation can be planned for, especially in a tabletop game where the players are apt to surprise you, I like to have intricate encounters that I know my players will face prepared ahead of time. However, I suck at creating those encounters in a timely manner.

I don't like just copy-pasting a bunch of vanilla baddies onto the field and rolling attack rolls until one side drops. When I design an encounter, I usually build it with the roles of a standard adventuring party in mind unless it wouldn't make sense to do so. I also like to include environmental hazards and options to keep the field dynamic. And if I get the inspiration, I'll include a unique mechanic or objective to make the encounter more memorable and exciting.

This all works particularly well for me in the end result, but getting there is a slog. I can spend hours, even days designing only a small handful of encounters, and it's very time-consuming.

Any tips or tools to speed up the process? I'm GMing over Roll20 and am very familiar and proficient with the tools it has to offer already. Mostly, I think my design process is too scattered, but I'm not sure how to reel it in.

Each of you spent the previous night drinking at the Formidably Maid, a notorious drinking establishment in Port Peril, where a press gang from the Wormwood marked you as targets. After drugging you into unconsciousness, the press gang dumped you in the ship’s hold to sleep it off, where you soon get a rude awakening.

You wake up the following morning in the dark hold of the Wormwood. You all remember the night before—the ringing laughter of a wild night, the heady joy of excess, the scents of rich stewed meat and perfume lingering in your nostrils. you feel a pounding headache, the sickly taste of cheap wine in your mouth, the hard floor, a rhythmic creaking noise, and the feeling of the room swaying, as if you were still drunk. Before the you can do much more than sit up, however, several pairs of heavy footsteps enter the dark room, and the harsh light of a lantern painfully spears the your eyes.

Master Scourge, the Wormwood’s boatswain, master-at-arms, and infamous disciplinarian, has entered the hold to wake you and get you up to the main deck. Six rough-looking Wormwood pirates, armed with saps, accompany him. An expression that might be mistaken for pain but which is clearly an attempt at a smile bruises Scourge’s face as he cracks the whip in his hand and screams at you.

“Still abed with the sun over the yardarm? On your feet, ye filthy swabs! Get up on deck and report for duty before Cap’n Harrigan flays your flesh into sausage skins and has Fishguts fry ye up for breakfast!”

You may chat with each other freely about the game here.

This is a recruitment thread for a Skull & Shackles AP play-by-post game to be GMed by me.

I am looking for a party of four players total, however one slot is already filled by a friend of mine (CN halfling swashbuckler).

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Application Rules

• Paizo only, no 3rd party material. Advanced Class Guide classes allowed.
  
• Level 1, 20 point buy.
  
• No guns, no gunslingers. No summoners.
  
• The Antagonize feat is banned
  
• Two traits, optional drawback for a third trait. You must take one (and only one) of the ten campaign traits.
  
• Any non-good alignment.
  
• Max HP first level, half+1 afterwards.
  
• Start with 200gp.
  
• Core races are always allowed. Other races are subject to approval on a case-by-case basis. Discuss it with me first. Tiefling and Aasimar variant heritages are allowed.
  
• Nonsensical flavor prerequisites based on race/deity/region/etc may be waived on a case-by-case basis. Discuss it with me first.
  
• Minmaxing is acceptable.
  
• Include a backstory for your character.
  
• Post a sample of your roleplaying style (in-character) when you submit your character. Keep in mind that grammar and spelling matter just as much as an interesting character!
  
• Give a general description of what your plan for your character's role in the party is.
  
• Once the game begins, you will post at least once per day unless notice is given.

Character selections are my own, and by posting in this thread you agree to be a good sport if you're not selected for whatever reason. If you really want to know why you were passed up, you're welcome to send me a polite PM after selections are made, and I may respond.

For several weeks, excitement has been building in Kenabres- Armasse is coming! Traditionally an opportunity for scholars and priests to come together to study the lessons of history from wars past, since Aroden's death, this holy day has become more about training commoners in weaponry, choosing squires, and ordaining new priests. Over time, Armasse has grown to encompass jousting competitions, mock duels, battle reenactments, and other festival events. In Kenabres, the festival (which takes place on i6 Arodus) is eagerly anticipated, for it provides distractions from the horrors of being on the front line of the war. Smiles on faces normally marred by downcast eyes and furrowed brows do wonders for city morale in the weeks leading up to the event.

Armasse is a citywide celebration, but the majority of the event, including its jousting matches and other entertainments, takes place at Clydwell Plaza, just west of the cathedral. You are in attendance near the cathedral's facade, and you've been lucky enough to get good a good spot to observe the opening ceremonies at noon.

Armasse officially began at noon, with the blessing of the festival by Lord Hulrun himself, ruler of Kenabres. The crowd gathered in Clydwell Plaza quieted as the aged inquisitor took the stage, clad in shining, resplendent armor. He cleared his throat, but just as he was about to speak, a bright light shone from the west, as if the sun were rising from the wrong direction. Hulrun’s shadow fell huge and distorted across the cathedral’s facade. A moment later, the sound of a thunderous explosion ripped through the air and earth, along with a violent tremor.

To the west, the fortress known as the Kite—the location of Kenabres’s wardstone—had vanished. In its place, a brilliant plume of red fire, lightning, and smoke erupted into the heavens. A moment later, a powerful roar accompanied a welcome sight rising from the crowd—Kenabres’s greatest guardian, the ancient silver dragon Terendelev, who had until that moment been attending the opening ceremony disguised as a human. Above, another form appeared, as nightmarish as the dragon was breathtaking. A humanoid shape three times the size of any man, with skin coated in fire and lightning, gripped a flaming sword and whip. The creature’s identity was immediately obvious: Khorramzadeh, the Storm King of the Worldwound, had come to Kenabres!

As the ground continued to shake and disgorge demons into the streets, the dragon and the balor lord clashed above. The fight was over in a few harrowing moments, as the balor cut deep into Terendelev’s body, swooping down to strike the dragon and arresting her charge. A few more blows, and the titanic duo spiraled downward toward the crowd.

The sight of the dragon smashing into the facade of the Cathedral of St. Clydwell is one no witness would ever forget. At that moment, a titanic demon erupted at the far end of the plaza, reducing several buildings to ruins as it smashed into this world. The rift it created shot across the plaza, and this time there was no escape—it opened below your feet, angling away into darkness. Even as you fell, the dragon noticed your plight. Though she saw death standing over her, she seized this final chance to save a few more souls. After she uttered a few arcane words and stretched out a bleeding talon, you felt her magic take hold of you, slowing your plummet into the darkness as if you were feathers falling into a pit. Yet the fall remained as inexorable, and as you drifted downward into the depths, the last thing you saw was the Storm King standing before the ancient silver dragon, his sword lashing out and cleaving full through her neck. As her severed head fell, the rift above you slammed shut, and the light of the world above was gone.

Your head throbs with a thunderous headache. Your ears ring. You're having trouble breathing. After a few moments, the sounds of rocks clattering, coughing, and moans of pain, as well as the choking smell of dust, become apparent as your senses seem to return, but it remains pitch black. Feeling around in the darkness, you feel rubble all around you, and realize that your body is covered in dirt and filth. Despite general aches and pains, you can tell that you are undamaged.

You may chat freely with each other and ask questions about the game here.

This is a recruitment thread for a Wrath of the Righteous AP play-by-post game to be GMed by me.

I am looking for a party of five players total, however one slot is already filled by a friend of mine (role pending).

.

Application Rules

• Paizo only, no 3rd party material.
  
• Level 1, 20 point buy.
  
• No guns, no gunslingers. No summoners.
  
• The Antagonize and Leadership feats are banned.
  
• Two traits, optional flaw for a third trait. You must take one (and only one) of the six campaign traits.
  
• Alignment must be any non-evil.
  
• Max HP first level, half+1 afterwards.
  
• Start with 200gp.
  
• Core races are always allowed. Other races are subject to approval on a case-by-case basis. Suffice to say that any typically evil race will be vetoed, whereas others will likely be perfectly fine. Discuss it with me first.
  
• Nonsensical flavor prerequisites based on race/deity/region/etc may be waived on a case-by-case basis. Discuss it with me first.
  
• Minmaxing is acceptable, just be prepared to roleplay accordingly.
  
• Include a backstory for your character.
  
• Post a sample of your roleplaying style (in-character) when you submit your character. Keep in mind that grammar and spelling matter just as much as an interesting character!
  
• Give a general description of what your plan for your character's role in the party is.
  
• Once the game begins, you will post at least once per day unless notice is given.

Character selections are my own, and by posting in this thread you agree to be a good sport if you're not selected for whatever reason. If you really want to know why you were passed up, you're welcome to send me a polite PM after selections are made, and I may respond.

I absolutely love the flavor of the White Haired Witch archetype, and I want to make a character that utilizes the hair as the main focus!

But... Well, when you take a look at it, it's a pretty rotten archetype, huh? You lose all your hexes and turn a low-BAB class into something physical. It'd be one thing if the Int bonus added to your physical attacks with your hair too, but sadly it only adds to damage and grapples made with the hair. With a lack of armor proficiency and spell failure being a reason not to invest in armor proficiency, it's squishy too. Dipping monk and adding in Wis helps, but spreads the stats too thin. And finally, with no bonus feats, the White Haired Witch will have to dip to attempt to be any kind of threat. Which is a shame, because the coolest part about the hair is the length added every 4 levels. With a level 12 soft cap, that's not so great.

So, I'm looking at a Str/Int heavy build at the very least (Or Dex/Int if I were to go with weapon finesse). But I don't really know where to go from there. I've mixed and matched it with a few options and haven't found a way to make it even viable. I'm not looking to turn the White Haired Witch into some incredible master on the board, but I'd like to, at the very least, make a PLAYABLE character that won't be a detriment to my party. I would prefer to get at least 8 levels of White Haired Witch in, but I'm willing to settle with a minimum of 4 for the sake of it being usable.

Could I get a bit of help working this out? My google-fu was weak and I couldn't find any build information that didn't use non-PFS material or bent/disregarded the rules, and I'm just having a hard timing coming up with anything that'll make it work.