Sorry, I'm here too. Work has been crazy. Next week probably will be too, but I'll do my best.
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Ethulfel looks at all of the halfling’s furry passengers and furrows his brow. “You said you could accommodate four also, Rahlmaat, but I see six…” ”Can you manage that whole crew?”
"Is everyone here able to teleport themselves to an agreed upon meeting place?" Ethulfel asks as he prepares to teleport away. "If not, I can bring four others with me, and we can stop anywhere you might need along the way."
Ok, thank you. Like I said before, I’m not sure how helpful I (a planar traveler) will be in an adventure where I can’t use a bunch of my spells known and spell-like abilities, but I suppose I’m ready to find out.
When I spoked with the creator of the module, he said the ward prevents any extra-dimensional spells that allow *creatures* to enter from other planes. Including personal demi-planes used for resting. Items going into and out of storage are fine. I don't want to beat a dead horse, but I'm still trying to wrap my mind around exactly how this works. By RAW, there's no rule against living creatures climbing into a bag of holding (they just have to be able to fit through the opening, and not need to breathe), so it sounds like maybe the intention is that the effects still work but the ward stops creatures from passing through? If that's the case, could you still use like a rope trick or mage's mansion if only items were passing through the portal? What about something like teleport- could an intelligent item (with the teleport ability) teleport itself within the ward? And, what does all that mean for similacra? They are intelligent, animated objects... can they climb in and out of bags of holding and/or a mage's mansion? Can they teleport if they're not bringing any living creatures with them?
"Perhaps I'm the only one..." Ethulfel says, looking around at the motley crew of beings assembled, "but I would benefit from an opportunity to make some preparations before charging into danger. Should we plan a place and time to rendezvous, or would it be preferable that I make the necessary arrangements and return here as quickly as possible?"
Ethulfel frowns at the witch's answer and falls into quiet contemplation. At length, he glances towards the halfling and mutters, "I have a number of ways to transport us closer... I'm not sure how much help I'll really be beyond that though. I make a great deal of use of exactly the kinds of magic that have apparently been completely blocked within this Sinlord's domain."
I don’t want to enable our GM too much, but I actually make us immune to TPKs… if I die for any reason (and it sticks), my clone wakes up in my permanent demi-plane; if everyone else is dead too, I can resurrect them (though I’ll expect to be paid back for the material components).
This is a busy week and I haven’t had a chance to read through and pick buffs yet but if some of them are going to non-PCs, could I maybe get 1 or 2 of those for Moonshadow and/or my simulacrum?
I’m here! I thought I had made a post and nobody had responded. And yet now I see that it isn’t there…I’ll get it rewritten tomorrow. (I put a lot of time into making this character. No way I’d ghost this campaign…)That is the worst! It's why I always double or even triple check via preview to make sure my post is saved, and then I check again to make sure it's actually there. Cuz sometimes I get weird errors, and they can eat a post. That just happened to me 2-3 days ago, in the weirdest way... I posted, double checked it (and saw it was there), realized I forgot something and went back like 5 minutes later to edit, and there was a completely blank post there that didn't even display my profile name or anything. It wouldn't let me edit it at all, but thankfully it let me delete it and then I had to redo the entire post. This site gets squirrelly sometimes.
Ethulfel frowns at the mention of extensive protections against teleportation and planar travel. well... that's going to limit my options... Ignoring the other concerns that probably should have been a higher priority, he questions, "what about pocket dimensions, with a physical opening, like a bag of holding or--hypothetically--a magnificent mansion spell... like the one I sleep in every night... Or, for that matter, what about a gate spell that creates a physical portal? Obviously, that wouldn't get us in there any easier, but it might allow us a means of escape in case of emergencies, perhaps an easier means of re-entry, should our initial assault be repelled? Though, we'd probably have to open it further out than our point of retreat, as there would likely be extra security measures in place there afterwards..."
"That's a relief, I suppose," Ethulfel mutters in response to the witch's first statement, "though it does mean we won't likely be able to correct the changes he's already made..." He listens thoughtfully as the witch continues and his old friend replies. ...and apparently we still have an artifact we'll have to be careful not to let fall into the demon lord's hands- just a different artifact... I'll have to remember to ask Rahlmaat about this 'Sanguine Locus' later... "If this Sinlord in anything like the Runelords, he will have gathered an army around himself as quickly as possible," he offers nodding in agreement with the sphinx's warning against a direct assault. Turning his attention to the witch he asks, "did you have a course of action in mind when you invited us, or were we simply the most able beings who both have some concern for this world and were willing to accept your invitation?"
Ethulfel thoughtfully considers the conversation as it unfolds around him, falling uncharacteristically quiet as he does. When he notices a lull, he finally joins in. “Of course, if we could get the rod from him, we could use it to go back and stop him from getting it in the first place. That should undo whatever damage he’s doing to our timeline right now.” “And, if my limited understanding of temporal causality has not misled me,” he continues with a mischievously deferential nod to Rahmaat, “that would create a paradoxically sealed, closed loop, resulting in none of us possessing the rod nor remembering its existence…” at least, I hope that’s right… otherwise we’ll need to make sure that it can’t end up in the hands of this witch and her demon lord when all is said and done…
“Please pardon our collective lack of manners,” Ethulfel replies with a diplomatic smile, “some of our number pass great stretches of time with little or no social interaction.” “Nevertheless,” he continues as he sits down at the table but takes no food or drink, “we thank you for your hospitality. Clearly you are aware of who we are, but with whom do we have the pleasure of dining this evening, and for what purpose have you called us all here?”
"Two years sounds about right..." Ethulfel confesses thoughtfully in response to Arykiel's report on the timeline. When contacting Dolora comes up he answers, "I could use a simple sending spell to ask her, though the answer might be too complicated for the spell's allowed response... if you know where in Elysium she is I could take us all there to ask her?" When the voice finally summons them to the newly formed door he smiles and says, "ah, I'd wondered when this would finally happen," before falling in with the others on their way inside.
"New Thassilon?!?" Ethulfel repeats with a mixture of surprise and annoyance. "When did that happen? I couldn't have been gone for more than two... three... What year is it?" "I thwarted Karzoug when he tried to return. How did this happen?"
I’m taking planar traveler as my second background feat. It’s linked in my profile. Also, with the much better assist ally rules I could make some of those DCs (even with original junk rolls), but since they’ve all been made already this time I’m not going to bother rolling them right now.
”The moons rose and set normally,” Ethulfel answers, casually flying along beside Rahlmaat, “each along its own path, and at its own pace, save for the twins: a pair of like-sized moons that forever chase each other across the heavens, one setting as the other rises. If not for that, there would almost certainly be divergences during which no moonlight fell on the living side, but as it is the light waxes and wanes but never fails.”
Moonshadow, whose name I already screwed up in gameplay, has stats up in my profile now. I've the simulacrum's stats about 2/3rds of the way calculated and then I'll cut and paste those in too.
A slight frown comes over Rahlmaat's features. "Ethulfel. Have you at *least* gotten some comprehension of the relationship between probability manipulation and quantum mechanics by means of electron cloud prediction? You've had millenia." Ethulfel chuckles at the sphinx's funny joke and answers, "You know very well that I haven't. I did come across a world, however, where the sun never rises nor sets- on one side its always day and the land is only burning sands and barren rock, but on the other side seven moons provide ample light throughout its endless night and cool, clear waters cut through lush forests and verdant plains. Truly a remarkable place to visit, if one can tear themself away from the library long enough..." When Melkyzadyk arrives, Moonlight (the tiger) bristles slightly but Ethulfel smiles and replies, "A few centuries at least, I think. Welcome. If there's danger ahead your strength will be a nice addition."
An incredibly handsome man with large, blue butterfly wings growing from his back descends to join the growing group. He is wrapped in the star-filled night sky like a cloak and accompanied by a large white tiger (who flies without wings) and a man who appears to be a lesser version of himself. "Well, this is quite the assembly," the man calls out in a clear, friendly voice. "Rahlmaat, always a pleasure. Bolvar, thank you again for the literal star knife- it continues to serve me well." He turns to look at the tiny servant of Sarenrae just as she vanishes again and continues, Arykiel, I don't believe I've had the pleasure yet, but your name is known to me. I am Ethulfel Umbrada, High-Stargazer of Desna. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance, and I suspect that with the power of stars and sun working in tandem we will be well equipped to contend with any threat." Turning once more, he looks at the bearded halfling, one eyebrow raised inquisitively. "I'm afraid, sir, I haven't the slightest idea who you are... nevertheless, since you seem to have received the same summons as the rest of us, I'm pleased to meet you as well. What might we call you?"
Lol! "Thank you all for coming. We're expecting one more and he should arrive in..." <checks pocketwatch> "...six and a half days."
Ethulfel chuckles softly at his old friend's words as he stares off at the cloud of stars hanging in the sky above. He always so enjoyed his time on Cynosure, and the company of Umena- an especially lovely cynosoma whose droll humor he enjoyed. "Sadly," he answers after a pause, "I won't be able to stay long this time." Leaves rustle nearby and Moonshadow--a large, white-furred tiger with brilliant blue eyes--emerges as if called, along with a second, less-handsome, version of himself. "I've just received word that another Sinlord has returned to Golarion," he explains to the moth-winged woman, "and I must go and investigate the claim." "I thought you'd dealt with that already several years ago?" she asks with earnest curiosity. "I dealt with the return of one, yes," he clarifies, "but there were others: seven in total. I was off wandering the planes during their first reign but have determined that I will do what I can to stop their tyranny from spreading again." "Then I suppose," Umena answers with a soft smile, "this is goodbye, for now." He gently takes her hand in his and raises it to his lips, softly kissing her knuckles. "Goodbye for now," he replies as he walks to Moonshadow and his own double. Together, the three fly to a nearby pool of water and disappear into it. The briefest of moments later, they emerge with a faint splash into the air above the Paragon's Torch.
Sorry I haven’t gotten a gameplay post up yet! WiFi in Belize was less common/reliable than anticipated (and free time was harder to come by too). I just arrived back in the states and I will get a post up tomorrow.
I was involved in the events of Rise of the Runelord—or, of the Sinlord, I guess—but not directly with most of the Sandpoint stuff. Still, wiping out a whole town (plus the cathedral honoring Desna within it) would certainly put someone on my sh!tlist. My background mentions Karzoug by name, but I’ll change that once you post the name conversions.
I have WiFi right now so I’m popping in to say hello. Belize has been great so far. I just realized I don’t have Moonshadow’s stats in my profile (and didn’t bring them to Belize with me), but I’ll get those up right away when I get back. I also am planning on having a simulacrum with me, so I’ll probably try to add stats for that too.
Hey all, I hate to do this but I am on my way to Belize right now for a work thing and I just found out that part of our time there is a team-building excursion, during which I might have zero internet access. I’ll do my best to keep up but if I go silent for a few days that’s why, I’m sorry, and I promise I’ll be back soon.
There’s not really anything scary about me. I mean, in a pinch, I could cast miracle 15 times in a day (plus 4 wishes) so, I guess I could dramatically alter the course of a whole nation, but in terms of scaring other people/things of our power level, I’m really more of a heal/utility/support kind of guy.
At this level, expensive components are always something to keep in mind. Diamond/Diamond dust, etc. Tell me about it! Literally 1/4 of my starting gold is invested in diamonds/diamond dust...
Legendary gifts and extra stat points from race were done away with, but the official word from the GM was that we can add up to 15 extra race points to our race (as long as we stick to the benchmarks).
Alright, I’ll keep bluff then (though I’m by no means an expert at it). Honestly, I had completely forgotten about the oaths- if it’s not too late I may take one or two (I think there’s at least one that’s a great fit for the devoted servant of a deity).
Does oath of candor require you to divulge the truth, or could you remain silent while I lie to someone, if it was in our interest? If you (all) do need to disclose the truth, I’ll probably drop my ranks in bluff (and maybe pick up the oath too).
Bolvar, I like that idea in theory, but I don't really want a runeforged weapon at all... I have a (keen) adamantine starknife, largely because I like the idea of it being made of 'starmetal'- maybe back when I found that metal I sought you out to forge it into the weapon for me?
I might have met everyone at least once before, unless anyone doesn’t want to have met me (or only became famously powerful very recently). I wander a lot, and am naturally curious about famously powerful (and especially immortal) beings.
Thanks for the pick! I think what I’m best known for would depend on who you are… like, for Rahlmaat I’m best known as the ‘human’ who randomly shows up at her library/temple/whatever about once a century just to catch up; to others I’m probably a sort of legendary figure in Desna’s church- a high priest who disappears to the outer planes for decades (or centuries) at a time and then reappears still seeming the same age; in terms of epic deeds though, the big recent one (unless it doesn’t fit with something in the plot, or someone else’s background) is that he heard of Runelord Karzoug’s return (at the end of Rise of the Runelord), traveled to Xin Shalast, and single-handedly defeated him. That’s not how he became mythic though. I was picturing him being born mythic, and probably awakened when his brand (his oracle curse, and a clear sign of his having been claimed by Desna) manifested. In terms of the mythic sources from the rulebook, I was thinking Godling (not specifically as Desna’s literal child, but as someone in whose blood the original song of the spheres still echoes; though, with the mystery around his lineage, it could be a more direct connection).If for some reason that’s not alright, my second choice would be the Granted source (with Desna being the grantor and his ascension happening when he received his brand).
Anyone else checking the thread way too often, hoping to see that picks have been posted (and that you’re one of them, lol)?
I don’t want to ‘favorite’ that post (from VoA) because not sleeping sucks, but the hope of finding out if we got picked tonight is pretty exciting. Good luck, everyone!
Sounds good, High Stargazer Ethulfel it is!
I'm guessing that you saw the backstory written out for the previous version of this character, Domina Reigh. That's exactly what happened- I even read the name and was like 'hmm, Mia's kind of an odd nickname for Domina, but I guess if you went to Mina first it could get shortened again' lol. If anyone's curious, here's an image for the other (darker) version of Ethulfel: the yellow prince. He'd have a lot in common with this version, mechanically, but his bloodline would shift to void-touched (the wild-blooded version of starsoul), his revelations would change some, and his spells would include things like black tentacles and suffocation (and inflict spells on the oracle side instead of cures). And, instead of using a starknife (which is Desna's weapon) he'd use feats to get the telekinesis sphere (from spheres of power) and use that for combat. Also, instead of VMC cleric, he’d spend those feats on bard, which would up his knowledges and sense motive considerably (I wanted to do summoner but its execution seems just awful). edit: I didn’t get far enough with him to check the benchmarks, so he might be over some of them, but he’d also be noticeably worse off in an anti-magic field than this version
Just to say, Remember no one knows outside of a god, knows that Azal is LE, I built her so she can play well with others. She presents at all times as LN. Every spell and scry you use will come back as LN. I actually thought you were LN, lol.
*a whole new background* Well, this version of Mia is now the character Eth would have the most in common with philosophically, and probably the one he would have the easiest time working with.
Alright, I (finally) have my fluff posted, and I’ve read everyone else’s. As for which 2 other characters I think I’d work the best with, I’m not really sure how to answer that question… as I’ve mentioned before I think there’s some really interesting roleplaying possibilities between me and Rahlmaat, and me (and Moonshadow) and Melkyzadyk; in terms of shared outlook/motivations, though, Arykiel is probably my closest match, and I could see myself sort of nursing Erasmo’s fledgling conscious. Amon and Bolvar both seem like they want to help people, so there’s definitely some shared motivation, but there’d also be some room there to explore the friction between their more rigid views and my more freewheeling ways, so that kind of brings in elements from both of the previous two groupings. Honestly, I think I could pair fairly well with any of the other characters except, maybe, Mia and Azal who seem like they might be too dark (or, sort of, evil-adjacent) for Ethulfel to get along well with (though, I’m sure I could figure out something if you wanted us all in the party- maybe I’m traveling with them to keep an eye on them, to make sure they don’t turn into the next threats to the world). Edit: Actually, I do have another version of this character that I contemplated early in my process who’s a CN follower of Hastur… if you do want to go for a darker party I could switch a few things around and use that version instead (he’d still be a sorcerer/oracle with deific obedience as his background feat, but I’d have to switch around some feats and spells, and maybe his bloodline and/or mystery).
All of my crunch is finished and posted, though I hope that once a group is selected we might (if part of that group) have a chance to tweak our spells known and whatnot. I have not typed up my fluff yet, and it's only now occurring to me that I've made a huge mistake... I really should have posted the fluff first for those who are still deciding which characters they'd pair best with. Shoot. I have some work to do tonight but I'll get the fluff up either after that or during the day tomorrow. Yeah, Rahlmaat would notice the difference... The big, blue, butterfly wings growing out of my back are a pretty big clue, lol If you don't know physics, mathematics, biology, geology, history, the planes, religion, and more to a level greater than elves who have spent most of their lives studying the topics, she thinks your understanding is too shallow. Sadly, my knowledge of the arcane, history, the planes, and religion are only comparable the average elf who spent most of their life studying it, not anything truly extraordinary (and I know nothing about biology, geology, etc).
Ethulfel… the annoying human who's just living forever and rivaling her spellcasting without really developing the kind of deep understanding of the metaphysical truths behind the universe she has… Technically I’m an aasimar (a native outsider) not a human. I wouldn’t normally bother to correct that but, given Rahlmaat’s commitment to amassing knowledge, it seemed like a distinction she’d pay attention to, lol. Also, for a spontaneous caster, I do have a decent understanding of spellcraft.
I just realized that I never really said much of anything about my companion (in case anyone is swayed by adorable kitties). Moonshadow is a white tiger with a bit of lunar dragon blood who's been accompanying Ethulfel on his travels for the last few decades. Here's an image for her, and she definitely favors her progenitor's chaotic bent so her interactions with a lawful dragon (like Melkyzadyk) would be interesting.
I have to finalize my last few feats and purchases (which I haven’t posted any of yet), and type up my fluff still. Work’s been busy but I should be able to get that all done by Thursday or Friday. And then I’ll get my 2 other people bit done.
Well, it seems kind of unlikely that you’re going to choose two 10,000+ year old magic users—or, at least, in any other game it would seem unlikely, lol—but I think Ethulfel and Rahlmaat could have a really interesting relationship/background connection. Like, after a thousand years or two they ran into each other (probably because I was in her area exploring), and they aren’t super similar in outlook or goals but there’s only so many immortals kicking around in Golarion so I started showing up once a century just to catch up. After scores of meetings, they still wouldn’t see eye to eye on a lot of things but they’d be sort of weirdly good friends. That seems like it would be fun to explore.
I got the bulk of my crunch posted today. I still have a couple of feats I'm hemming and hawing about, and I need to figure out how much gold I've spent already in my head and then spend the rest, but there should (probably, hopefully) be enough there for people to get a rough idea of how he would fit in the party. Basically, he's not a huge damage dealer but he can cast probably 80% of all the spells in the game (thanks to wild arcana and inspired spell). I'll probably try to get some fluff up next so people can get more of a feel for him that way too. In short, long stretches spent on the outer planes have left him a bit detached from mortal normalcy, but he's a friendly (and wildly charismatic) guy who is generally helpful. Maybe a little bit of a 10th and/or 11th Doctor vibe- not shy to help, maybe a little bit silly from time to time, but has a certain self-assuredness that can only come from having seen centuries scroll by.
Wow, thanks for the help with an image! Out of the 10 I got from longears and azal, almost all of them were better than any of the ones I found. And the winner is: this image of Ethulfel (which is more accurate than my profile pic, but this was as close as I could find to the full image linked) The profile is very much a WIP, although I have a lot more done on (literal) paper than I do in here. I'll get more up as I have time. His 5 second background is that he was born mythic/immortal (longevity is his bonus universal path ability) back in the early days of the Azlanti empire. He rose to some prominence as a prophet of Desna and became the first "High Stargazer" (national high priest). Eventually he got bored of human affairs and left to wander the planes, but he comes back every few centuries to see how things are going on Golarion. He was pretty unhappy about the destruction of Azlant and disappeared for like a millennium or two that time. Like I said before, I kept him pretty toned down as I was developing him (he's designed more for long/busy days with a wide variety of challenges than for a few explosive combats) but I did shuffle his spell selection a little bit so that he can add to big combats with a little preparation. That said, if you do decide to go with an arena tournament to get into the party, I'm probably screwed (unless I can start with a few tricks up and running, and honestly, even then, my best hope would be being overlooked until the combat monsters have mostly taken each other out, lol). edit: oh, and for my completely optional theme music, I'm thinking "Starman" by David Bowie
Hey folks,
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