GM Baerlie's page

Mirzos knows something about the Tatzelwyrm. Although it is not a true dragon, it still has a breath weapon: it's able to blow some frigid air into a foe's face next to the Tatzelwyrm. which causes the attacked creature to make a Fort save or take damage and get clumsy

Nhorri tries to sneak around the Tatzelwyrm, but the noise of the piece of ice sliding across the floor too obvious to be overheard. The Tatzelwyrm drops the fish and spots Nhorri. "Svaust levaric ve persvek sia duil?" the creature says while looking at Nhorri.

The sunlight which reflects on the ice within the cavern creates bright light in this room.

The group leans around the corner to inspect the creature sitting in front of them. Nhorri attempts to sneak closer, hugging the northern wall of the room. She accidently kicks a piece of ice on the floor which slides further into the room. The creature raises it's head to check what caused the noise.
Crit. fail on stealth check, please tell me if you want to use a hero point for Nhorri.

Mirzos is able to identify the creature as a Tatzelwyrm. The blue and white scales make a natural camouflage in this region of the world. The medium sized creature is already in it's adult size. Mirzos, pleas ask your question.

For Xandian it's obvious, that the wyrm went in and out of this cavern several times. He sees the same tracks that you followed across the bay. While Vicksli readies his armor and trident Nhorri looks for a light source. For now, you can see well in the cave, thanks to the ice which reflects the sun light coming from outside.

Xandian follows the tracks farther inside. Around the corner he sees a bigger room which ends in a tunnel further to the west, two tunnels in the south wall and two tunnels leading north and north-west. I uncovered the parts on the map.

In the room, Xandian spots a draconic creature sitting on the floor, consuming some fish and something which could have been a seal.

How do you approach the wyrm?

Once everybody is ready, you enter the cavern. Rays of light of the high sun reflect throughout the cavern. The cavern’s ceiling is 10 feet
tall, and all of the surfaces are made of ice. The room you entered continues around a corner.

You are in the entrance room of the cave, please check the map linked above. You find the pics of your characters in the lower right corner of the map. Good luck :)

Xandian manages to distinguish between the fals tracks and the correct one while Vicksli almost took the wrong direction. Nhorri watches for any ambushes that might be set, but apart from a big dark fish beneath the clear blue ice she does not see any trouble.

You continue on towards the other side of the bay where you expect the wyrm's lair. Shortly after leaving the place with the false tracks you suddenly hear something cracking. When turning towards the direction the cracking noise came from you see that the ice seems to be very thin in that direction and would probably have collapsed under your weight if you had taken the wrong track.

About two hours later, you get closer to the other side of the bay. You already spot the entrance to an icy cavern in the side of a large upthrust. After another hour you finally reach the entrance. The northern sun is still high in the sky.

4 hours of travelling in total, I will pause here to give you the chance to do the things you want to do before eventually entering the cavern.

everybody on board after the weekend, great :)

Before leaving, Xandian studies the tracks and makes the wyrm his hunted prey. One after the other gets onto the sled, Xandian sits in front as he looks out to follow the tracks of his hunted prey. Mirzos makes sure, that Xandian does not foll off the sled while he continuously tells Xandian and the rest of the party what he knows about dragons. Vicksli takes third place while holding the dog's leashes mounted on their harness. Nhorri takes the rear position and watches out that the other party members are safe in their seats.

The dog team races across the frozen ice of Whitefang Bay. You constantly hear a woosh sound while the sled's skid rush over the ice and snow and the dogs do not seem to get tired.

About one hour into your journey, all but Nhorri (obviously, the landscape is more interesting than the tracks) clearly see, that the wyrm tried to create a false trail to avoid being tracked back to it's lair.

You may do Survival checks to find the correct tracks of the wyrm :) Any bonuses to track (like hunted prey etc.) apply.

Actually, there is no skill check needed to drive the sled or command the dogs.

Also the rest of your group gets a quick training in handling the dogs and sled and once you are ready to leave, Bjorn asks the tracker to show you where she found the tracks. Before you leave, Bjorn and Seshu wish you good luck, all the best and hope you return safely. "Don't forget to collect the creature's head, when the job's done!" Bjorn says.

This is the time where everybody gets his/her first hero point. If you need to do some shopping, you can also do it now, before you leave the village. And don't forget to grab your pathfinder provisions.

Eydna, the tracker, takes you to the frozen ice of Whitefang Bay. She shows you a place where it's safe to get onto the ice with the sleds. She guides you to the place where the tracks are still visible. "I lost the wyrm's track about two hours in this direction." she says and points to the north-west.

Please tell me your exploration activities, if you haven't already put it into your character sheet (or want to use a different activity).

"Puh, we never tried to bring dogs close to a wyrm, so I cannot answer this question, I'm sorry. Bjorn answers to Nhorri's question.

Vicksli can confirm what Bjorn said before. The sleds are in good condition, also the dogs are healthy and well nourished. There's room for three individuals per sled.

Bjorn takes the money and asks one of the dog trainers around to teach Vicksli how to handle the dogs.

Please tell me if you want to rent a second sled or not :) I will proceed later today with the story.

"On of our trackers was able to find evidence that the wyrm came across the frozen ice of Whitefang Bay. But she lost the wyrm's track on the ice. Usually, travelling by sled, it's a few hours to the other side of the bay. Depending on wether you are able to follow it's tracks or not, it might take longer. The trackers usually go on foot so they don't miss tracks when passing by on sleds. It's totally up to you how you want to travel. Also, be aware, that the ice is a bit tricky at this time of the year. It's thin at some spots and might become unstable when somebody crosses, regardless the travelling method." Bjorn answers to Xandian's question.

One of the dogs opens it's eyes and watches the party.

"Sure, you can have a look at the sleds and also at the dogs. The dogs are well fed and quite strong. We selected only the most promising cubs to work with the sleds. They were all trained by Orvur. One of the most experienced dog trainers in this region. He already won some prices with his dogs. The dogs are used to be commanded by strangers. Also the sleds are in good condition. I won't earn much money if my customers don't return, right? But at least the dogs would return, haha." Bjorn says and laughs. He guides you to his shop where you see several dogs sleeping in front of the building. Some sleds are leant against the wall.

GM Baerlie,

Can I attempt to evaluate the status of the sleds and dogs using my Crafting or Engineering skills and/or Nature skill?

Sure! Crafting/Engineering for the sleds, Nature for the dogs.

I'm a bit confused on what is required here for equipment.

Winter clothing was mentioned, but not by the GM.

The sled was mentioned by the GM, but it seems to be in response to a question from a player rather than something actually necessary.

I'm sorry, if I caused any confusion. I mentioned that Aaminiut is at the Crown of the World and I was ignorant enough to think that this is enough information for the players to know that it is a cold region. Some of you mentioned that it's in the far north and also ice floes. So I thought you know that it's cold in Aaminiut.

To clear things up, let me give a proper description of the village:
Aaminiut is a village far in the north. It is used by travelers who need shelter and goods before entering the deadly ice fields and glaciers of the Crown of the World. The citicens of Aaminiut are mainly members of the Erutaki tribe or Ulfen traders. They live in piece side-by-side. A big part of Icefang Bay (a big bay north-west of Aaminiut) is coverd by solid ice and snow. The plains around Aaminiut are also covered by snow, here and there you see moss or small plants sticking out of the snowy ground. Aaminiut is built on stilts and covers several small islets in the river delta of the Taraska River and the nearby Hazalin Marshes.

Everything else is maybe a subject for interaction with Bjorn (an Ulfen trader) or Seshu (member of the Erutaki tribe). I wanted to give you some opportunity to find things out :)

Once again, sorry for the bad start. I will try to make things more clear in the future. Thank you for pointing that out!! You can find a small map of the area on the first slide.

You can see the actual drawing of the wyrm on page 2 of the slides.

"For travelling ice and snow in this area, one uses a sleigh and dogs. You can rent one if you like, for 5sp per sleigh only." Bjorn answers when he hears Vicksli's question.

The Ulfen who nailed the hide onto the board smiles when he hears that some adventurers seem to be brave enough to take the job. "Welcome, I hope you had a nice stay so far in Aaminiut. I'm Bjorn and this is Seshu, elder of the Erutaki." The Ulfen says while pointing at the other person who helped him mounting the hide to the board. "The wyrm got it's name from it's white and blue scales. And from his bright white fangs which fill it's mouth. At least this was the description of the creature we heard." Bjorn says smiles. You see that he has a missing tooth.

"A witness described the wyrm as having a fin running down its spine. Regarding the size, it's hard to tell. Some say it was larger than a horse while others say it's the size of a harbor seal. But it's not as large as a house, for sure." Seshu, the older of the two answers.

Bjorn the Blade turns around and talks to the crowd. "Yes, the treasure is yours when you bring the beast's head! Any questions?"

When you get closer to the board, you see that below the dragon's head there is some text, written in Common, Ulfen and Erutaki.

Hunters needed!
Over the past weeks, a creature some of us have come to
know as the “Whitefang Wyrm” has been spotted lurking
near our settlement, stealing fish from our nets and baskets
and leaving nothing but wreckage in its wake. We believe
the creature’s lair is somewhere on or across the ice floes of
Whitefang Bay. As this creature poses a threat to the survival
of all of Aaminiut’s residents, we have prepared a sack of
ivory and oosik carvings from the Erutaki and silver bracelets
and armbands from the Ulfen, payable to whoever ends the
creature’s attacks on our food supply. Proof of the creature’s
defeat must be presented to claim this bounty.
-Elder Seshu and Bjorn the Blade

You hear the locals talking about the beast. "Yes, this creature killed my cousin's sheep. It ate three of them, but killed the rest just for fun." an elder ulfen woman says. Another one says "This thing scared my wife almost to death when she was collecting herbs on the plains. I have never seen her running that fast! Now she wants to move to Kalsgard.". "Not for all treasures in this world, would I dare to fight a dragonkind beast." a middle-aged tall Ulfen says while shaking his head.

You are currently in the village of Aaminiut in a reagion called Crown of the World, where you recently arrived. While you take a walk at the city's central square, you see two men standing in front of a wooden board. As far as you can tell, this board seems to be the village's public notice board. One of the nails a rolled piece of hide onto the board, next to several older postings.

When the rolled hide unfolds, you see a picture of a dragon head with some text on the hide. Several townspeople gather in front of the wooden board to read the new posting.

It's time to do some introductions and/or interactions :)

And here is the link to my game: The Whitefang Wyrm

I will post the start before end of the day.

PbP Thread for The Whitefang Whyrm:
Gameplay-Thread

Open for discussion!

This is the PbP Thread for GM Baerlie's The Whitefang Wyrm (PFS2 Bounty #1).

Ok, then I will go with the [GM School 2024] tag, just in case I will run this bounty again in the future :)

Thanks for the clarification!

Redelia mentioned a title we have to put in the play-by-post thread we are going to create for the most recent assignment. I cannot find a template or anything we are supposed to follow. Am I blind, or has it be mentioned somewhere else? I would call my campaign "GM Baerlie's The Whitefang Wyrm", similar to GM Hawthwile campaign. Or do all GM School campaigns have to have [GM school] or something similar in the title?

Thanks for the help.

What have other folks done in similar situations?

In the games I played or games I ran people were quite respectful. They mentioned that the rules might state different things and most of the time people also posted the link to the PRD or Archives of Nethys (back in PFS1 times) to make it easier for the GM or other players to follow their thoughts. But it's the same situation in RL games. GM decisions were usually accepted, I cannot remember any arguing or even withdrawal from games because of different interpretation of rules.

No preference.

I downloaded bounty #1, read through twice, have images and maps extracted, ready to start.

GM profile complete.

Yes, that's true.
And that's the reason why I think it has to be agreed on before (either in the rules or for each table individually), if any of the players is willing to bot another character. I, personally, as a player, would not like to bot another character. But as a GM I see it as my duty to keep the game running.

I my opinion that (players botting other player's characters) would have to be an agreement beforehand, because it may put some pressure on the players, particularly in the case when characters die or suffer from serious injury and can't be played in PFS any more.

What I usually do is grouping the character and monsters in combat according to their Initiative results. If a character in a group does not Post with in the 24hrs, I bot them after every body else in the group acted. When one player explicitly mention that their character waits until something happened, i.e. the bard started a courageous anthem, I still bot the character, but put their action in between so other character can make use of the missing player's character's action.

Sorry for the delay, it seems I prepared a post, did a Preview, but never hit the Submit button :( Thanks for the reminder and waiting! (of course the text is gone)

GM Philosophy
My person:
My name is Beatrice and I started my pen-and-paper roleplaying "career" a little more than ten years ago. I started GMing only a few months later and I like it as much as I like playing. I live in Europe, so my posting times are a bit off to people in the America or Asia. Please keep that in mind!

Expectations
Thank you for your interest in joining one of my games. To make the games fun for everyone, I expect you to follow the rules mentioned in the Pathfinder Society Community Standards and Expectations and the Paizo Organized Play Code of Conduct. These guidelines will help us to make the games a good experience for everybody.

Please make character information avalable to the GM before the game starts. This means you have a complete character sheet ready (either in the character profile itself or make PDF link available in the profile). This helps to keep the game running as the GM is able to roll i.e. saves for your character and continue with actions and nobody has to wait for players rolling saves before the game can continue. Also post your standard exploration activities or any reactions you want to take when something triggers them.

The games must be positive and inclusive. If you feel uncomfortable with certain situations, please tell me (in a PN if you don't want the whole party to know about it). If the scenario lists certain warnings, I will make them available in the recruitment thread. Please do not sign up, if you have issues with certain situations mentioned in the warning (like blood, gore, horror, suicide etc.)

Game Rules

* Have fun!
* Post once every 24h on workdays, once every weekend (GM will post twice a day mostly, less on the weekend)
* Use the ooc (out-of-character) tag to give information to the GM or other players during the game
* Use the b (bold) tag to write what your character says. This helps to distinguish between information given to other characters and character "thoughts"
* Make it clear what your character is doing during it's turn in combat, please use the action symbols available below the GM's name
* Please be aware, that your character is botted, if you do not post within 24h to keep the game running
* If you are unavailable (holidays, family, work, studies etc.), please tell the rest of the group and leave instructions for your character. Your character will be botted during this time.
* Use the spoiler tag if you want to make information available to certain characters or the GM, state who may read the spoiler.
* Have fun!

The most important part: Have fun, but let others have fun too! If you don't agree with the rules above, please do not register for my games. There are a lot of other PbP GMs and sessions available.

In my experience people do not want to read a lot of text, so I tried to keep my profile as short as possible, but still include all necessary information.

My GM alias :)

ome 'creative roleplay' is a way for players to avoid being murder hobos. PFS1/2 & Starfinder can lean in that direction unless the GM and players make conscious decisions to do otherwise...

In my games, I usually handle it the way Warah does, if players prefer a non-violent solution. But I also request dice rolls (Intimidation, Diplomacy, whatever applies). And to be honest, I appreciate it if players take the opportunity to bypass a fight this way and don't wait for the next 'Initiative' call while surfing on their phones. Unless the scenario tells otherwise, of course, it is a boss fight or the creatures the characters encountered are mindless etc.

And I also had players in my sessions who took the chance to play one or two games in Organized-play format but then decided to not get back, because it's not their style. Most of them said PFS scenarios don't have enough depth or they feel too restricted by the character building rules. That's ok, but they tried at least. I also met players who said they don't have the time to play long campaigns and PFS is a great opportunity to play a session every now and then.

The points GM Lantern posted in his last post are very interesting. In non-PFS games, as long as all players are ok with that, I usually let them do most of the things on the list.

Stealing from shopkeepers? Why not, but don't get caught or face the consequences. When it comes to killing allies or leaving locations where events are happening, I usually tell them that it's the case and they consider an alternative plan. I ran only PFS scenarios or Adventure Pahths so far, so the players know that there is prepared a plot with certain milestones.

Long story short: as long as there is an agreement between players that this is ok, then it shall be. Although, I never had a disruptive player at one of my tables.

I also think that the main job of a GM is to make the game enjoyable for the players. Players who had fun tend to return to the tables. Further, I think that the job of a GM is also inclusion of all kinds of players, ie. people who need more time to understand things, people who prefer to avoid roleplaying (I know it's a RPG, but still, there are people who don't talk much during a game), younger people (no 18+ talking/content in games with kids), some players don't like blood scenes, others don't like horror, etc. It should be fun for everybody, if it is not, the GM should check where the problem is.

Also, in my opinion, preparation is a big part, to a certain extend. Players expect that the GMs know what the plot is about, know the scenes, the characters etc. There is nothing more annoying than a game that pauses every few minutes, because the GM has to look up things in the plot (unless PCs did really unexpected things). Maps and minis (can also be paper minis) make the experience a bit better and show that the GM put some effort into the preparation.

The GM should have the last decision, they should avoid to let other players decide what happens next in a certain situation (unless it's the PCs choice, of course). The final ruling should be done by the GM to keep discussions between players to a minimum.

Hello! My name is Beatrice and I'm a software-developer, currently studying Artificial Intelligence in Austria. I'm a Venture-Captain and I have quite some experience in running PF1 games, also in PbP, although I stopped some time ago.

My RPG experience started about 10 years ago when I was looking for a regular group that runs Fantasy RPG games. I stumbled across a group in Germany that played PFS games online (on Roll20) and I joined them. After some games I gave GMing a try and it turned out, that I was not that bad.

I'm looking forward to this GMing School, because I wanted to know what changed in the past years regarding PbP, how things are handled nowadays (maps, pace etc.). I signed up for PF2, because I have no experience in runnging PF2 PbP sessions.

Dimak hurts Ironjaw badly but is not able to finish him. Amun sends another magic missile at the remaining foe and the man finally drops.

out of combat

Regarding faction goals: Did we "defy local law or tradition in a way that assists you and your allies without endangering the mission or threatening innocent lives"?

The wrestling match, perhaps? ;-)

I would say yes :)

Please do your dayjob rolls!

Dimak defeats the second fighter while Amun moves back. The Sorcerer releases another magic missile against the Chaplain.
MM damage: 1d4 + 1 ⇒ (3) + 1 = 4

Ayaki also moves back to give way for Dimak's charge and sends a blob of acid against the Chaplain.
Spellfailure thing...: 1d100 ⇒ 57 vs. 10%, low is bad
Ranged touch attack: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (11) + 4 = 15 success
Damage: 1d3 ⇒ 1
The acid burns another hole in the Chaplain's skin and the woman sinks down.

Ironjaw moves up to Ayaki who just brought down his comrade and swings his battle axe against the rogue but misses.
Battleaxe vs. Ayaki: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (8) + 5 = 13 fail

Round 3
Dimak AC13 -7HP
Amun AC16
Ayaki
-----
Ironjaw

turn order correction, because of readied action

Round 2
Fighter blue
-----
Dimak AC13
Amun AC16
Ayaki
-----
Chaplain +2AC -8HP
Ironjaw

The fighter in the blue chain shirt takes a step forward 5ft step and strikes at Dimak.
Blue vs. Dimak: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (8) + 5 = 13 hits
Damage: 1d8 + 1 ⇒ (7) + 1 = 8

Round 2
Fighter blue
-----
Dimak AC13 -8HP
Amun AC16
Ayaki
-----
Chaplain +2AC -8HP
Ironjaw

Dimak uses his chance and kills one of the Blackravens in front of the storage room while Ayaki follows Amun.

The chaplain and Ironjaw rush after Amun and Ayaki and as soon as the chaplain gets around the corner, the magic projectiles travel towards her. You see that she has a glimmering aura around her.

Magic Missile vs. Chaplain: 1d4 + 1 ⇒ (4) + 1 = 5
Ranged touch Ayaki vs. Chaplain: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (18) + 4 = 22
Acid Splash vs. Chaplain: 1d3 ⇒ 3

The chaplain moves up to Ayaki.

Round 2
Amun AC16
-----
Fighter blue
-----
Dimak AC13
Fox
-----
Chaplain +2AC -8HP
Ironjaw

Amun rushes around the corner towards Dimak while the Blackraven guards move up to Dimak. double move

Round 1
Amun AC16 (ready magic missile)
-----
Fighter green
Fighter blue
-----
Dimak +AoO
Fox
-----
Chaplain
Ironjaw

"We are here to kill the goblins as Ironjaw ordered us. Now move back to where you came from, dwarf!" a young man yielding a battle axe answers to Dimak's question.

As Ironjaw and the chaplain hear the discussion on the other side of the longhall, Ironjaw says "Freyr Darkwine* is no king. It is not for him to erase a weregild of a thousand years to convenience the Pathfinders. Kill us all if you must, but you’ll not drag us before his justice. Those goblins will die like the monsters they are!", and he takes his battleaxe.

Also the chaplain gets up and prepares for a fight.

* Freyr Darkwine is the castellan Ironjaw gets his orders from. Can't remember if I mentioned that before.

Round 1
Amun
-----
Fighter green
Fighter blue
-----
Dimak
Fox
-----
Chaplain
Ironjaw

Reminder: there's a map :), Ironjaw is the one with the blonde beard, chaplain is the one with the red coat, fighters have colored borders

Sense Motive would be sufficient.

Dimak gets up and moves towards the exit, but when he looks around the corner to check the storage room he suddenly sees two guards entering the building through a small door in the roof, climbing down a ladder. One of them is already unlocking the door to the storage room. When he sees Dimak looking around the corner he hurries up and tells his comrade to get down quickly.

The storage room does not have windows.

While Dimak eats some food and drinks some wine, Amun pretends to go outside. He has a look around in the entrance area, but does not see anybody. Amun then sends his owl familiar to watch the area before he joins Dimak, Ayaki and the chaplain in the mess hall.

Some minutes later you hear an owl, alarming Amun.

You are in the area around the large table in the longhouse, the storage room is in the eastern part of the building.

After entering the longhouse, Dimak and Amun hear somebody moving atop the roof.

Enrik shows you the storage room where you can secure the goblins before he leads you to the Mess Hall. "Please sit down, we prepared some food and drinks for you." Enrik says. On the table you see roasted turkey, stewed potatoes, and spiced wine. "Have some food. I can imagine that you did not have a warm meal in the past days."

At the table you see a chaplain sitting and eating roasted turkey.

When you move closer to the Blackraven longhouse, a man emerges from the
entrance and greets you warmly. "Welcome, I'm Enrik Ironjaw. You reached the Blackraven waystation. Trollheim's castellan advised us of your arrival. You may secure the goblins in the storage room. Follow me." Enrik says and leads the way into the longhouse.

Dimak does not see anything suspicious.

You move on, leave Irrisen behind and cross into the easternmost region of the Lands of the Linnorm Kings, a barren and well defended land called Hagreach. The map indicates a Blackraven way station along the trackless route to Trollheim where you may rest and recuperate before the last leg of your journey.

The woods open to a clearing where a large, grass-covered mound, like a small oblong hill, dominates the area. A stout wooden door is set directly into the side of the mound, while a thin trail of smoke rises from the very top. Immediately to the south is a wooden horse stable, all of its doors closed.

When Dimak spots the blue quartz the goblins warn him. "Yes, cursed, you are right. Don't touch it! Taking it and you will be hunted and get full revenge of Baba Yaga!" one of them says and looks really frightened.

Dimak knows that the quartz itself is a rare one, worth 1.000gp.