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Seeing as there are only 1-3 players actively participating, I think we'll pause the game until we'll figure out what happens with everyone and if we want to continue this at all.

I will assume Chan has not mixed Rodrik and Kurst, and named the right brother who sent you?

Kn. Religion 25: Very Nice roll. What do you want to know?

Sense motive 16: You get the impression that she is honest and interested in helping you.

Tyari's face immediately turns somber and her shoulders droop. "Yes, yes, terribly sad business. Follow me, please."

She guides you through the church to a small door at the other end, then down the steps to the basement corridors, then to the room that holds Rodrik's body. This room is mostly bare rock, with 4 tables serving as the only furniture in the room. A couple of torches bracketed on the wall illuminate the remains of Rodrik, pale and still on one of the tables.

Tyari moves aside and waits patiently near one of the walls.

"And that's when I started calling them celestial vegetables!" Tyari finishes with a flourish to the laughter of the locals around her. "Anyway, I shall bid you farewell, and may Iomedae guard you."

She waves at them, then looks at you. "Well hello there friends, how can I help you today?"

Time: Gozran 26, 4715 AR, noon. Location: Sanctuary (“7” in the town map)

Updated the map. All of that data is available on the Player’s Guide, just so you know.

You all head outside. You blink for a few seconds in the bright noon sun, a bit too bright after the gloomy interior of the Ramblehouse. You then head towards the Sanctuary. The white steeple of this impressive church of Iomedae is clearly visible from the Ramblehouse, and as you approach you can see one of the clerics, a young female human, standing on the steps of the church and conversing with a couple of locals. Those of you who have been here for the last few years probably know her as Tyari Varvatos. She wears white robes with the Iomedae’s symbol (a longsword on top a sun-like circle) and her short dark screams “I’m a straight to the point kinda’ girl”

You don't remember encountering this name anywhere.

When you asked Chum about the poem she shrugged and suggested Rodrik's house or at his family's possession

In order to help things run smoothly and progress, I will not require rolls (you already know where the only relevant piece of evidence in that room is hidden)

You quickly search the room of the mysterious unnamed human. Inside the secret compartment in the desk is a slip of dirty old parchment (See Handout 2 in this link)

Cham shrugs. "Why, yes, many of the Ramblehouse’s rooms contain such “trick drawers” in which knowledgeable guests can secure valuable possessions. If you insist you can check it. Which room would you like to see?"

Sense motive 17->You believe her.

so... can i take feat points in fwoosh?

No, but you can point your feet at your friends and say "Fwoosh!"

After a few moments she calms down and explains "There was nothing about him that was particularly memorable. A human of normal build, dark hair, traveled clothes. I.. I didn;t think twice about it last night. And he has already left his room by the time I checked on it this morning."

"As for the furniture, they are identical in every room. Why do you ask? What did you find?"

You don't notice any pattern. You can see Rodrik's name 12 times in the ledger, 5 of which were in that room and the rest in various other rooms.

Cham breaks down into fearful sobs and quickly explains herself. “He refused to give me his name,” she manages between gulps of air, “and he paid me a fistful of gold. He said he’d be gone before sunrise. I didn’t ask any more questions. I had no idea that something like this would happen!”

iFix

Cham, the innkeeper chuckles ”Rodrik was well-loved in this town, I can think of nobody who might hold a grudge against him. The only person opposing their relationship (and the reason they kept it a secret) was Jagrin McJack, Rodrik’s father.”

Manami flips through the registry (which is a thick book, bound in dark leather) and looks at the entries. The only entry of note in the register is a person who rented the Ramblehouse’s last room yesterday. This entry stands out because the guest’s name has not been recorded in the register (while all other entries have full record). The timing of this entry appears right after Rodrik had reserved his room, but before the patrol captain had checked in for the night.

I would prefer if you guys find a reason (in-game) to stay together in your investigation. Would be easier to keep track, and will help you eventually form into an actual party. So not sending individuals to perform parts of the investigation by themselves would be appreciated.

Hugh and Jackie, with those rolls you don’t notice anything unusual.

Jackie: next time declare what you’re trying to notice with a perception roll. Unless you meant a sense motive check? Perception goes to see physical features, hidden objects etc. Sense motive is for people: trying to discern if someone if bluffing, trying to hide something etc.

Cham looks uncertainly at Hugh, but when her gaze moves to manami her expression softens and she replies ”If you want, you can look at the inn’s registry, it’s all written there, every guest.”

do Hopeknifes usually come with a dedication?

Give me a Knowledge (local) check

Cham looks a bit frightened by this line of questioning and answers “Um.. A.. I mean, no one had access to that room but Rodrik and myself. When he stayed here he was in that room more often than not, but it’s not like I could keep this room just for him.. why do you ask?”

You split up and spend some 20 minutes canvassing the room and surrounding area.
While searching under the bed, you find a scrap of paper stuck between the headboard
and the wall (See Handout 1 in this link).
In addition, while searching the writing desk you discover a false bottom in the desk drawer, though the compartment underneath is empty.
You did not discover anything that seems relevant on the roof, and the street outside the room has been recently trampled by scores of feet (both curious locals and Jacksville militia), nothing else is left there to find.

1. My apologies for the delay- had pressing school stuff on my plate. Will try to give you more notice if I see this happen again.

2. You did not ask about perception, just about sense motive and I answered that. For perception, you also can’t use the “aid-another” action, but you can take 10 (when you are not under stress a.k.a. not in battle you can take 10 instead of rolling a 1d20, and add your modifier) or take 20 (similar notion except it takes 20x amount of time a normal check would).

Cham scratches her head. ”Brinia? I think she lives in the area of the Commons. Don’t know about Omast though, he visits here rarely.”

She quietly shows you the directions to Rodrik’s room and leave you for your own devices.

This sparse room contains only a single cot and a writing desk. The cot is a cheap affair with a straw-stuffed mattress, now stained red with blood and stripped of its linens, while the desk is a slightly nicer piece of furniture that has nonetheless been chipped and worn by time. A cracked window in the southern wall is the only exit other than the room’s door.

You can peek into Chan's spoiler above

Cham Larringfass is rather tall for a human, and her wide friendly face looks mostly tiered today. Her long dark hair is tied in a long braid, and the wisdom in her eyes suggest that she is older than she looks. She wipes her hands on her apron and seems somewhat uncomfortable. ”Terrible, terrible. I’d never expect that in a thousand years, such a bright lad.” she clicks her tongue. ”Of course, the militia have already searched the room but you can go up there too.” She looks kindly on Manami and smiles ”You seem like a nice girl, I wish I could help you more. Rodrik didn’t talk with anyone, he just went straight to his room. He was an impeccable guest, not like other ruffians who passed through and vandalized the rooms.”

Perception on Hopeknife:

Hugh: You cannot assist (as in, roll to DC 10 and give another player +2 on their roll) sense motive- there’s no mechanism of working together. If you want to get some bonuses you’d need to find another way (like bonuses from spells, performance, studied target, etc).

Kurst shakes his head at Hugh. ”I did not notice anything unusual. After we left you we played two more games with Ruby, then Rodrik left to spend the night here.”
“He spent the night here because our father.. was not at all happy that Rodrik was courting a half-orc. He’s an old-fashioned halfling, and he does not support such.. pairings. I don’t mind that myself - whatever makes you happy - but I advised Rodrik to heed to his father, just to keep the family at peace.” He shakes his head ruefully ”Rodrik had a mind of his own.”

Kurst sighs, and looks somber. ”Anyway, I need to get going. I have errands to finish, and a funeral to plan. If you need me for anything else I’ll probably be in the Longhouse. Even if I’m not there, leave a word for me there and I’ll get back to you as soon as I can.”

“Good luck!” He waves and leaves.

Time: late morning, Gozran 26, 4715 AR. Location: The Rumblehouse (“13” in the town map)

None of you needs to dumb down ideas, the only thing you need to worry about is separation of player knowledge (So if you as a player knows that X monster has Y special powers but your character can’t possibly have that knowledge, you need to play that character as if you don’t know that piece of knowledge)

Kurst seems slightly cheered by your compassion and enthusiasm to help. For a brief moment he looks worriedly at the fleeing Jacqueline, but then focuses his attention back at you and answers your questions.
”My men have already searched Rodrik’s room here, but you can talk with Cham Larringfass, the innkeeper, about revisiting the room. You can ask her about anyone else who were here last night.”

“Besides her there are two people I think could offer some help in your investigation;
The first is Brinya Kelver, a half-orc weaver who as I recently learned had been conducting a clandestine love affair with Rodrik for some time; Our father disapproved of this relationship, which is why Rodrik spent the night here and not at home.
The second is Omast Frum, a good friend and a patrol sergeant in the militia who was frequently Rodrik’s patrol partner. If anything unusual happened to Rodrik recently, he's most likely to know that.”

He breathes deeply and continues ”If you think it will help to examine Rodrik’s person, we’re keeping him in the Sanctuary until the funeral. His possessions are there with him, with the exception of his hopeknife (with which he supposedly committed suicide). That I have here.” and he pulls out a hopeknife from his cloak. ”I’ll need it back for his funeral, but if you think it might help, you can have it until then.” He places the knife on the table in front of you.

Important Notice: Starting now and throughout the investigation, I will not prompt you to roll checks like I did with the local rumors. The ball is in your hands. You are encouraged to roll Perception or Sense Motive for whatever objective you find pertinent. But you need to initiate this, I will not remind you.

Time: Morning, Gozran 26, 4715 AR.

After the evening dwindled down you each went to sleep in your respective bed (Or wooden bench. Or a soft patch of floor. Pumpkin lives in a simple farmers’ hut, not a 12 bedroom mansion) .
Manami: I know you’re busy moving, so the next piece assumes you stayed with one of the locals like the rest of the gang. If you intended to stay at the Rumblehouse, you wake up to find all of the commotion mentioned below, you are asked to wait and after a few minutes your new friends arrive and join you as written below.

In the mid-morning you are startled by a stern rapping on the door. A grim faced patrol member is standing there, looking very official in uniform and armor as she addresses you. ”There has been an… incident.“ She pauses and takes a deep breath. ”Rodrik McJack is dead. Patrol Captain Kurst McJack would like to speak to you. If you please follow me.”

The grim-faced patrol member allows you time to get dressed and ready, and guides you through the town silently, towards the Rumblehouse. On your way, you can see an unusual number of townsfolk out and about, whispering in hushed voices and looking apprehensively at the patrol member who leads you. When you approach the Rumblehouse you see quite a crowd surrounding the inn. The building itself is roped-off and guarded by the local militia.

By the time you enter the inn, you have already heard bits and pieces of the talk of the townsfolk: ”The innkeeper discovered Rodrik’s body in his room”; “his wrists were fatally sliced”; “his bloody hopeknife in his limp hand.”.

The inn’s bar looks nothing like the cheerful and festive place it was last night. Its stuffy and dark interior is sparsely populated with gloomy militia members, and Cham Larringfass, the innkeeper, looks extremely disturbed. Patrol Captain Kurst McJack is sitting in a corner table, his head buried in his hands. Together with you arrives another patrol member, leading the folks you hung out with last night. As you all approach, he looks up and gestures for you to sit at the table. His eyes are red and he looks extremely pale.

“I’m sure you’ve heard by now that my brother, Rodrik, was f- “ his dry voice breaks, he swallows hard and continues ”-was found dead this morning. I’ve had my hands full since. Right now, the official cause of death is suicide, but I just can’t believe that! Something else has to be going on!”

“Unfortunately, Rodrik was the best investigator in Jacksville; if he were on the case, solving the mystery of his death wouldn’t take long, but with just me left, we might never know what really happened.” Kurst sighs heavily. “I simply can’t handle the investigation and tend to my family duties at the same time. I may be a patrol captain, but right now, I feel my responsibilities as a brother outweigh my other duties. Still, I can’t just let this lie. I’m afraid I’ve exhausted all my other options—the members of Jacksville’s militia are competent defenders during siege times, but they’re not sleuths by any means. Last night you’ve demonstrated that you lot have both the brawn and cunning needed for this sort of task. And you worked great as a team. I need your help. Will you investigate my brother’s death?”

Time: Gozran 25, 4715 AR, late evening/night. Location: The Rumblehouse (“13” in the town map)

If you spent some time mingling with the locals, you might have learned the following pieces of news/gossip:

You can peek into each spoiler tag for which you surpassed the DC. So if you rolled a 17 on your diplomacy or kno. local check, you can look into the “5+”, “10+”, “12+”, “15+” spoilers. I trust that you will not cheat and peak at things beyond your check rolls.

Results of the Diplomacy or Knowledge (Local) check:

I can do that.

I want to remind you that later on today I will conclude the evening at the Rumblehouse and fast-forward to the next day. Manami, please indicate where you will be staying tonight (Inn or local host). Everyone else, if you want to hang around with locals and learn some of the things going on, now is the time to roll.

Eli: there are both stone and wood walls. Since Jacksville is perched on an outcropping of rock, it is mostly surrounded by cliffs that offer more protection than constructed walls, so a low wooden wall is enough for those sides. The important walls on the facets without a cliff are thick stone walls, heavily fortified.

”As you probably know, we here are situated in the frontier in a land infested by Orc and Giantkin."

A rather intoxicated patron (whom you recognize as Jack Daniel, a junior merchant and patrol member) pipes in to your conversation ”That’s actually igcorr.. igor… incorrect.” he starts with an instructive (though somewhat slurred) tone of voice. ”This is an orc country, an’ we are co’stantly harassed by orc tribes who live around us and want to give us a hard time for stickin’ round.” He waves his hands vaguely. ”Giants and trolls are rare around these parts, Ev’y few decades we might ‘counter a random giant mo’strosity, and ‘cause our defenses are suited for orcs, are badly hurt by them giants. So people remember those. Not ‘cause they happen a lot but ‘cause they do a lot of damage. Noone’s seen a giant around here for a decade or so…. Oh…” his voice trails off as he notices Jackie around the table and he looks a bit embarrassed.

Think of Halfling as Yiddish. You mostly speak Common in this town, but since your grandparents use Yiddish Halfling here and there you caught enough to know the language.

There is no "Human" language, most humans speak Common (Taldane). There are regional languages, however we ignore them for now. (Otherwise I'd assume that Manami, Black-Jack and Chan also know Tien). Guys, if you DO want to utilize Tien you can do so.

That roll was for current events. I'll let you all know the results of the rolls after you're done with the evening and whoever wanted to roll, rolled. If you want to recall history roll a knowledge history.

The attack that decimated Chan's family was when a small band of hill giants (5-6 of them) happen to find their path through the town. A very rare occasion, and not at all organized (in contrast to the constant friction with organized orc tribes who harass the town on principle)

I am still not clear at all on what languages do I know...

That's easy. You're technically a human, house-ruled to know halfling languages (Common+Halfling). You have 10 intelligence and no ranks in linguistics so nothing else besides that.

@Terry: That's awesome! (As I already told you before, but this sketch merits repeated praise!)

Now, following Lily's use of Celestial, I hereby offer a system for using languages.

Languages
To make languages fun and engaging we’ll use cool writing systems, with the help of Google Translate to display languages other than common.
You would write the foreign text in bold where everyone can see, and add a spoiler (titled as the language) with the English translation.

Example:
The orc diplomat looks at you and explains ” Սա վարչապետ օրինակ է խոսքի. Քանի որ ոչ ոք չի անհանգստացնել կարդալ հնչյունաբանություն, այնուամենայնիվ, կարող է նաեւ օգտագործել սառը տառատեսակներ ներկայացնել լեզուն” in a harsh voice.

This is just one example. Here's a compilation of other cool fonts we can use for many other languages.

I'll need to preserve some of my L1 spells allotment on healing but it's better than using 750 GP on it .

This is your choice as a player. When I am a player, I look at it as 15gp per use (or 7.5 GP per use for wands found and not sold). I find it very reasonable for level 1, and pocket-change for level 2. The alternative option being - conserving spell slots that could have been utilized for much more efficient uses (e.g. taking out opponents before they deal the damage that requires healing. Or solving problems/puzzles. Etc.)

GM : Please notify me if we pass a stand that sells one of these or a Caramel Apple and state their price:)

You did not see any caramel apple, but there were enough apples and fruits on the tables in the celebration that we can assume you grabbed one or two.

Time: Evening, just before you left the Commons:

I'm a storyteller, an actress and a babysitter at need."

Rodrik smiles at you and says in a decisive voice ”It’s settled then, a storytelling evening at The Killin’ Ground. Looking forward to it. And now, if you excuse me, my little brother insists that we attend to our duties.” Before he walks away, he looks at the Jacks among you and adds ”By the way, have you thought about joining the Jacksville Patrol? We always need excellent defenders, especially nowadays, and you seem to fit the bill. Think about it”! and he waives and walks away.

Kurst rolls his eyes as he follows him and quietly mumbles ”You can stop with the ’little brother’ stuff, you know, you’re just a few minutes older…”

Time: Later evening. Location: Around town, eventually in the Rumblehouse

You venture out towards the Rumblehouse and see some of the more interesting points in the town: The Longhouse, Flame of the Fallen, Inner Quarters (and the Killin’ Ground), Clamor, That’n’Such, Sanctuary and eventually Rumblehouse.
By the time you arrive there the Inn is full and alive, with a motley mix of patrons who plan to continue the celebration long into the night.

Feel free to continue your own conversations for this evening. I will allow up to 2 days of our real time (or less if you so choose). As the activity winds down and everyone retires for the night, please indicate where will be staying t; If you are couch-surfing with a local (such as Pumpkin or Hugh) or staying in the Inn (the Rumblehouse which also offers special accommodations for larger folks).

Also, if you spend some of your drinking time mingling with the other patrons at the inn’s bar, you can roll a Diplomacy or Knowledge (local) check to learn some news/rumors that are circling around.

"The Prancing Goat?" I sent the Giantslayer Players' Guide to all of you so that you would know the town and would not need to invent places that already exist. There is one inn in this town (The Rumblehouse, page 12) and one bar (The Killin' Ground, page 13. Let's just rename the owner Rabus ClarenJack. Hugh has a gig there as a part time bouncer.)

ok, so let me see if I got it right:

At first you want to accumulate loot to create a party pool for things like healing. Once you think you have enough in the pool you want to distribute equally by loot value, correct?

One easy way to implement the latter part is to maintain a list of loot by sell value. Everyone gets their share of the total value, and can "buy" things off that list by paying their sell value.

So in your example every member gets their share of 2,500GP (417GP for 6 people) and can buy those magic items for 750GP each, as long as only one person buys a specific item.
Therefore if you don't want any magic item you get 417GP; If you want 1 magic item you pay 333GP; and if you want both magic items you pay 1,083GP.

And you suggest that members can take a loan from the group funds to do this.

Sounds reasonable to me.

Anyone objects?
And who will keep track of loot?

Not the only excuse to bring you together, just the first one. Eli, if you want Chan to retire early to bed you can do it. I'll bring you together later on.

Chan, please utilize Word spell-checker/review before posting to increase your readability. Hugh, A round is 6 seconds, or 10 rounds = 1 minute.

Manami extends her hand to the halfling "Manami Kimoto, bard, adventurer and author extraordinaire... Well I'm working on the last one" she smiles even wider.

Rodrik shakes your hand enthusiastically. ”Wonderful!” his eyes light up ”We’ll set aside a night for tales! As it so happens, I am also an aspiring writer. While you’re in town, you should check out my latest play Hommel and Brekka which should run later on this week.” He puffs out his chest in pride. He then nods towards Chan, smiles and agrees ”Indeed, Jacksville will host you as one of our own”

Rodrik looks inquisitively at the cryptic elf ”And what about you, my illustrious mystery woman? I saw you enacting some kind of tale to a group of kids earlier. Are you also in the drama business?”

"Nice to meet all of you! I know this spot of mud is nice, but there is actually a very nice drinking tent down yonder, and I happen to know the man in charge, so I can get us some slightly less watered down swill to wash down all this talking"

Kurst looks hesitantly at his brother and replies ”As much as we’d love to spend the rest of the evening drinking with you, we’re patrol captains and have a few more responsibilities tonight”. Rodrik gives him a scandalized, betrayed look.

Daniel, the only reason I ran this scene like this is because the unfolding of this scene didn't matter in the grand scale of things (just a game that introduces you to some NPCs) and there are no real decision variables (you pretty much roll the same check over and over until it's over).

There won't be many occurrences like this. In most cases it would either be a full description from me (describing the beginning, middle and end of an event you have no control over) or full round-by-round event where each and every one of you have full decision making facility. In which case it would take a week, as it should.

Oh, and I don't know any way to change the [tags] presets.

Manami - This was not about jumping the gun; When I wrote "choose" I meant "I want one volunteer to do the rolls for your team, because it would look less exciting if I do all of the rolls for both teams myself and just let you all know the final results". The part of rolling out the tug-of-war is relatively inconsequential and I just needed to get it out of the way. In future events, in cases where choice actually matters, I will allow at least 24 hours for everyone to get a chance to see/respond, and even more if it's the weekend (I won't count weekend days for the 24 hours allotment)

”Teamwork is acquired when people don’t put themselves in front of the team”

Kurst nods in agreement. ”True, for all members of the team and especially for its leader” he adds, and winks at Rodrik.

"To be frank I think we had the luck of the draw" Manami said slightly embarrassed "A good team takes time to build, and to be frank I just met most of these people..."

"As for my origin: well lets just say that I'm from a place so far away it could be considered a different plain."She said with a bit of an appraising weary glance

”You got lucky allright!” laughs Rodrik. ”And now that you intrigued me with such a premise, you have to tell me about such far away land! Another night, perhaps? Over a nice Jacksville mead? I’ll buy.”

Initiative for Rodrik's Group: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (11) + 2 = 13
Strength Check: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (10) + 7 = 17

29 vs 19! You gain 15 feet! (5 extra for each 5 of surpassing their roll)

"I heard yo' mama pulled some mighty rope and lived to tell the ta- OUMPHHH" Rodrik's comment was cut short as you pulled the rope with a sudden burst of strength that sent the brothers flying to the ground, and you immediately drag them both over the line.

Final map

The spectators cheer and clap their hands at the grand finale, and the throng swoops in and pick up Ruby on their shoulders for further celebration. If you look fast enough, you can see her mouthing a quiet "Thank you" before she disappears in the crowd.

The brothers get up and brush the dust off their clothes. Rodrik steps closer, offers his hand sportsmanlike, and beams at you. "That was spectacular! One of the best games I played, and we've done quite a few of these the last couple of years" He smiles happily at all of you, and nods at the visiting girls "The name's Rodrik. Rodrik McJack. And this here's my brother Kurst". The burly halfling standing behind Rodrik nods solemnly.

"Well, I guess I should have expected nothing less from Sara's apprentices. But you lot worked really well as a team!" He looks curiously at the ladies "May I ask where you ladies hail from? And where have you all acquired such excellent teamwork skills??

Initiative for Rodrik's Group: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (17) + 2 = 19
Strength Check: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (3) + 7 = 10

The brothers win initiative so you're tied at 12. Crappy rolls all around.

"You got that right. I admire your spirt, m'boy, but we're not through yet." The brothers suddenly jerk the rope back but with sheer strength you manage to hold on. You spend a few moments struggling in stalemate.

Updated map

Initiative for Rodrik's Group: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (6) + 2 = 8
Strength Check: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (10) + 7 = 17

you won initiative so your team got +2 for 15, but that's still...

The brothers yell "Not that fast, kids" as they coordinate a well formed heave that catches Hugh offguard (he was too preoccupied focusing on keeping his temper in check), and he stumbles and your whole team loses a few feet.

Updated map

Initiative for Rodrik's Group: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (7) + 2 = 9
Strength Check: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (10) + 7 = 17

Fate smiles upon you yet again. Inch by inch, you pull the struggling brothers towards the line that marks their defeat. They huff and puff, bear their teeth, the veins on their neck are bulging - but they are inevitably dragged to the cusp of their defeat. Their toes are almost touching the line now, and they're trying to pull one last effort...

All around you, the crowd yells and cheers even louder.

Updated map

Initiative for Rodrik's Group: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (16) + 2 = 18
Strength Check: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (2) + 7 = 9

Your determination pays off. Again you surprise the brothers and yank the rope when they don't expect, and they give! You gain a few more feet. Rodrik and his brother have a surprised/impressed look on their face. All around you, the crowd begins to cheer!

Updated map

OOhh, tough rolls! you guys are in trouble.

Initiative for Rodrik's Group: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (7) + 2 = 9
Strength Check: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (3) + 7 = 10

*speechless*

"One... Two... Three!" Rodrick announces, and you feel the sudden pull on the rope. Though you are 7, against only 2, the McJack brothers are surprisingly strong. Your pull hard... your hands start to burn... and barely manage to pull them a little closer. It was really close to losing your balance a couple of times, but somehow you were able to pull them in some 5 feet.

Updated map

BTW, I haven't seen a decision about loot: You just mentioned you prefer either option 1 or 3.

how is loot value determined? what about time spent in game working our professions? does that count as loot? also, what about general expenses like healing? - as we have no cleric, our healing will have to be item based - so how does that get calculated? what about hirelings?

All loot has value (except unique named artifacts which are priceless); The value is just the selling price.

Time practicing in professions doesn't plkay into loot, it's something you do individually. By "loot" I mean gear you find together as a group during your adventures.

General group expenses and Items (like wand of Cure Light Wounds, bribing guards to pull off mission etc.) are usually deducted from the loot before it is distributed to the members.

I received some PMs that my previous instructions were unclear. Let me clarify:

1. Pick a volunteer to make the rolls for your team.
2. Each round that volunteer will make two rolls: one for initiative (+6 which is the highest initiative in your team) and one for strength (-2+4+4+3+0+0+0 = +9 total modifier unless someone uses rage/bloodrage/abilities/spells to change that)
3. I will roll for the other team and compare results each round.

Kapish?

Here's a map to illustrate.

As each of you make your introduction, Ruby stares wide-eyed up at you (This halfling child is just over 2 feet tall, even Pumpkin and Chan look impressively large next to her) and shyly courtsies. ”Thank you all for joining” she squeaks ”Let’s show my mother our worth.”

Rodrik laughs heartily and hands you one end of the rope. ”The rules are simple,” he explains, eyeing the strange visitors Ruby selected for her team. ”on the count of three, each team tries to pull the other towards this line-” he points at a line drawn in the center of the stage. ”The team who’s members first cross the line loses” He nods at his teammates - stoic and burly defenders of Jacksville - then looks at you. ”Ready?”

For this game I need one of you to volunteer to make the rolls for your team. For each round you roll initiative (by the highest initiative modifier in the group), followed by a strength check (Add up the strength modifiers for your group. Ruby has a strength modifier of -2).
The team who won initiative gets a +2 circumstance bonus on the strength check. The results of the strength check are compared and the winner of the round pulls the other team 5 ft closer.
Then rounds are repeated (initiative + strength check) until a team has won.

1. No way to add swift actions.

2. Here

2 full BAB attacks is good. You know what's better? 2 full BAB attack+ third attack at -5. So using a move action to intimidate will net you 2 attacks levels 1-5. Level 6 you can nag Cornugon and full attack for 3 attacks.
because you still get a swift action on rounds that you full attack.