Persistent damage: Imo, if the Eidolon is unsummoned, it would lose that status effect between being summoned and unsummoned. The action economy on summoning is steep enough that I don't see that being abused.
Temp HP: Sharing with the actual HP sounds good to me. Making stuff easier to track is beautiful. Tracking things is the bane of my existence.
I think Activities in Act Together is fine.
With the one last action before the Eidolon is unsummoned...I think that would work for me, but I would maybe restrict it to a single-action move that the Eidolon can make before disappearing. What do you think? I am open to negotiation. I think it has the potential for drama/good RP, so I am interested in letting it play out.
Tandem actions and polymorph sound good. I'm interested in seeing that play out.
Unless otherwise noted in a form, I would say that spellcasting in Polymorph wouldn't happen. However, if the form does specify you have speech or manpiulate or both, I would consider those forms you can do specific spells in. I'm fine ruling on that in the moment.
In regard to the cone/line moves - I think the mounted summoner can absolutely aim it so that they don't get their Eidolon in an attack OR so that they can include their Eidolon in a useful spell.
I think I got everything! Let me know your thoughts.
Kabit, before I go through and answer all those questions, are there any other than the one you already messaged me about that have alterations/answers already that you're aware of?
Hello! I'm excited to be playing in a Kingmaker game, especially with all of you from the AoA gang and some new people. I'm thinking at this moment that I'm going to be making a Monk, since I haven't played that in PF2 yet. Quick question though, will there be a Discord for this?
Your characters will eventually become the rulers of the Stolen Lands (hence "Kingmaker" and all). But before you become the rulers of the Stolen Lands, you are merely individuals in the southern reaches of Brevoy in or near the city of Restov, each of you with your own history and goals.
As this adventure begins, you all and many others have caught the eye of one of the nobles in the city of Restov--Lady Jamandi Aldori.
Lady Jamandi is a wealthy and influential swordlord of the city of Restov in Southern Brevoy. She's come up with a bold and somewhat unusual plan to officially lay claim to the so-called Stolen Lands, an enormous swath of wilderness wedged between Brevoy and the River Kingdoms that have long resisted attempts at settlement. She is planning a "call for heroes" that promises a great and perilous opportunity to claim an equally heroic reward.
As this adventure begins, your characters will be answering Lady Jamandi's "call for heroes" and will be at her manor in the evening for dinner and information about her interesting plans.
Your characters, regardless of background and backstory, should have a good reason for answering this call for heroes.
Character Creation Details
Kingmaker is relatively open and has very few things they explicitly don't recommend.
You need to run any uncommon/rare ancestries, classes, and backgrounds by me.
You all are meant to work together, so I would like your alignments to mesh. I do not want to deal with a murderhobo among mostly good folks.
We will be using free archetype, ancestry paragon, and automatic bonus progression rules. If you are using Pathbuilder, you'll want to be sure to check those when you create a new character. I do believe these things are in the paid version of Pathbuilder. If you can't buy the paid version, I'd be happy to work with you on creating the character and throwing the stat block your way.
Please have a fully fleshed-out alias. This makes my life a lot easier when I need to double-check your abilities. If you need a template, give me a shout.
Please put your vital stats in your alias with this format.
Race: HP | AC | F, R, W | Perc (and special notes like darkvision)
Classes/levels: Speed | Class DC | Active Conditions | Hero Points (you all start with 3)
Gender: Alignment, gender, ancestry, background, classes and levels
Maps/Characters/Etc.
I'll be using Roll20 for maps/combat. I'll get the link up in the description when I get it bought and set up.
I will use Google Slides for character art/portraits/handouts.
I will hold you all to the same standard that I hold myself: I expect you to post as often as is needed, adjusting to the pace of the group, as set by me. I generally plan to post at least once a day--if there is a lot of player interaction going on that I don't need to be involved in, I may just post a little something in the discussion thread so you know I'm there and watching. When you do post, I expect you to be pushing the action/story/RP or leave/pick up some RP hooks.
If our pacing changes to the point where you struggle to keep up, I expect you to talk to me sooner rather than later. I promise to do the same if our positions are reversed.
All that being said, I know Life Happens, and I am willing to slow things down to cut down on player attrition. I am pretty flexible. What I expect if Life Happens is that you contact me in some way - via PM, Discord, text, whatever - and let me know something as simple as "Life is going on, I will have trouble keeping up, please bot me as needed, etc."
I do not expect long novels for posts, so please don't put that pressure on yourself. If we are in the midst of combat, and all you have time for is rolling the dice and indicating your actions/movement, that is totally okay.
All I ask is that we maintain a line of communication.
Combat
I use block initiative for combat. I'll roll the initiative for everyone & resolve whatever needs resolving in summary posts. I may fudge initiative things to make things easier on me, but I always fudge in the favor of my players.
(Almost) all of you know me relatively well, so I will keep my introduction brief:
You can call me Fey or Feyrial, don't care which - GM Fey was taken by someone else, so I went with my "full name" (randomly picked from a name generator way back when I was like...12 or 13). I'm an autistic/ADHD woman, my pronouns are she/her, and I work as a high school English teacher in the USA.
I started and finished The Fall of Plaguestone recently with four players and managed that pretty well. This AP will be a bit of a jump in terms of players - we will have around 7 folks (if everyone who expressed interest joins).
Barring any life-altering events, I am dedicated to seeing this through to the end. The life-altering events would have to be something that impaired my cognitive/physical ability to GM on PBP for me to be willing to give things up.
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I'm opening the discussion thread so that you all can start talking about your character creation and backstory and such so you all can work things out.
Here is the player's guide link, if you need it (it will take you to the download): Kingmaker Player's Guide.
Note: I do not have the 1st edition bestiary, nor do I have the Kingmaker Companion Guide. I will need the majority of the group to be interested in me including these things for me to justify the additional purchase.
For those of you less familiar with me and my GMing style:
I strive to be on the side of the players. I am very much into the collaborative element of collaborative storytelling.
I will always give justification for rulings. I don't mind if you challenge my rulings, either. I am not perfect and will be happy to consider your points should something come up.
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I have asked most of you for your "absolutely do not put this in my game" things, and here is what I have so far:
* Sexual assault is not something that will ever be used as a plot point by me, nor will it ever be used by another player. You are welcome to have it in your backstory, but it is not a plot device I like or will be using. It makes me very uncomfortable.
* Because this came up multiple times in the Skulls & Shackles game I was in, pregnancy is also not a plot device I will be using in the game. As in, I will never force it on a player and am not going to play around with it as a "consequence" for any actions in-game.
* If your character wants to romance another PC, be sure you've gotten consent from the player so nobody is uncomfortable. We have a few folks in here who aren't fans of romantic plotlines. You are more than welcome to hit on NPCs that I play. Keep things PG-13 in Gameplay. I will speak with you privately if I feel you are crossing a line.
* I operate under the rule that when a character snips at another character in the game, it is not reflective of the player's feelings outside of the game. That being said, it never hurts to reiterate that if there's a particularly tense dramatic moment.
Please PM me if you want to see something else on this list, or if you would like to privately let me know that you're not cool with something.
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I'll be posting the adventure teaser and character creation guidelines shortly after I post this.
I don't have much else to add, you guys. I feel thankful that we were able to finish this. I am glad that I was able to share it with all of you. I will be launching both Kingmaker PF2e and Outlaws of Alkenstar in the next few weeks, once I get a chance to work with my spouse on a character for one or both, and I will keep you guys looped in.
Thank you for the amazing time, the patience with my new GMing, and for turning this silly low-level AP into something beautiful.
As you all have seen by now, Fern is leaving the boards. Luckily, we have more or less wrapped Plaguestone. The only thing I had left planned was something for Niss's backstory, and that is completely pointless now.
I would be happy to let you guys write yourselves an epilogue.
I still plan to go forward with Kingmaker, but it'll be a few weeks before I am in a place where I can launch it.
Gregor is easy to find and even easier to convince to help. Once you have lent him the material you recovered from Vilree, especially her formula book with notes, you are able to assist him with removing the stockpile of viridian vapor from the Plaguestone in the center of town. Vilree seemed to have created a barely-discernable hinged opening at the base of the stone where her servants (likely Hallod) filled the stone with the deadly poison.
Disposing of the poison was easy enough–Vilree kept detailed notes and, in a few days, Gregor was able to piece together a way to render the vapor inert. The elf kept the vials under careful guard in the meantime.
Gregor was also very familiar with a concoction to help the orcs break their addiction to the additive that Vilree used in her mutagens. It would take time, but it would be doable.
Baradim
Tamli leans into Baradim’s touch, a small smile crossing her own tusked face at seeing the relatively minor wounds (at least in comparison to previous ones) on him. She would always be proud of his ability to take a hit, but she preferred to spend their downtime doing things other than nursing his wounds. ”Good. I am proud of you.” She pauses, listening to him tell her of the orcs The Princess Guard had rescued. ”Taking in more strays…” She says with a wry smile, chuckling softly. ”We will help them. It seems we will be running more of a rehabilitation operation than a merchant one,” she half-jokes, pulling the orc down for a kiss.
The orcs had made it to town that evening and sent Graytusk in to speak on their behalf. Sheriff Rolth didn’t protest much, especially with Tamli taking them under her wing and The Princess Guard vouching for them.
Everyone
This evening was a night of celebration: relief for Bort’s former caravan…they now had answers and justice for their former illustrious leader. The town was finally free of Vilree’s reign of terror on their land, although the land itself would take some time to heal. Noala assured folks that with some care and cleansing efforts, things would eventually heal. It would take a long time, but it would be done.
You all are free to RP the evening’s celebration. Everyone's in town, everyone's able to be interacted with...there is food and drink aplenty. This is not the end, so when you are ready to move to the next day, I will handle that. :)
Sheriff Rolth looks alarmed at the recommendation, but ultimately settles on skepticism. "I'm going to need more than just 'probably' and such before I panic the entire town with an evacuation. Figure out what is actually going on, and we will stay alert." Delma makes a small noise of agreement, hands resting on her hips in obvious discomfort with the entire situation.
Finoan's Investigations
Aside from the plethora of information you've already discovered, a short skim lets you know that the reason the drudge was heading unwaveringly toward the Plaguestone in the center of town is because all of the viridian vapor was stored there, inert until the ring the construct carried triggered the reaction that would release the vapor.
With the help of someone skilled at alchemy, it would be a relatively easy matter to remove the containers of vapor safely and dispose of them, especially with the formulas handy.
Niss Feelin' Vilree
Niss focuses hard on the ring, exploring the emotions that resonated in the band.
At the surface, Niss feels an overwhelming, sickening sense of hatred and Vilree's face rises to the surface of her mind. Exploring deeper, Niss would also feel old resonance that hints at deep-rooted grief and sadness.
The hatred, however, is so powerful that it hits Niss with a painful, raging spike of mental pain.
Psychic damage:1d6 ⇒ 3
Finoan searches the drudge and finds nothing of note aside from a simple, obviously enchanted gold ring. The real danger is still within the Plaguestone, which is full of vials of viridian vapor.
As the drudge falls, Tamli, Sheriff Rolth, and Delma all approach from different directions, coming to investigate the commotion. The half-orc caravan master makes a beeline for Baradim, stopping at his side and looking him over to assess his injuries.
Sheriff Rolth, along with Delma, stops in front of The Princess Guard, an incredulous look on his face. "What was all this about? What is this?"
Niss killed it - I just need some time to write the wrap-up and stuff. and the brain power. I get that super fun brain fog when I'm dealing with the monthly curse and it's hitting me today, lol.
While Baradim's war cry was, indeed, intimidating--many people in the city who had caught sight of The Princess Guard's return were paying attention to the events unfolding near the middle of town and flinched when he shouted--the drudge did not register at all. It merely kept walking, pausing a moment as Baradim's strike cut into it, hurting it badly. After, though, the drudge kept walking--its relentless, slow pace moving ever-forward.
Actions: Stride x3, triggered Baradim's AoO
It's in single-digit HP right now. You all are up.
Finoan's attempt to trip the slow, relentless alchemical drudge doesn't phase the creature; likewise, Drake's attempt to slash at it misses, the creature dodging out of the way at the last moment.
Niss's attack, however, manages to break through its defenses and a jagged brick slams into the creature. It stumbles for a moment, but its attention stays straight ahead and it continues to move.
Forgive my most RUDIMENTARY map I made by just drawing a shape and putting the appropriate tokens in :P
The Princess Guard tracked the alchemical drudge quickly and easily, able to follow the tracks with ease with the help of the horses they had ridden to Spite's Cradle. Despite the relative ease of the chase, there is a tense, uncomfortable atmosphere in the air--the lives of everyone in Etran's Folly hangs in the balance; depends on their ability to keep tracking this creature and stop it.
After a few hours of tracking, The Princess Guard arrives at Etran's Folly at the same time as the alchemical drudge. You all dismount your horses about 30 feet away from the alchemical drudge, which is itself about 120 feet away from the Plaguestone in the center of town. The construct doesn't acknowledge anyone around it, plodding down the path toward the stone with mindless determination.
Finoan finds nothing new in all the materials he had perused before; still the same rantings that pointed toward the fact that there was a cache of viridian vapor within the stone in the center of Etran's Folly, just waiting for the drudge to set it off.
Give me a DC survival roll if you are planning on tracking the drudge. If not, you all have the horses and will definitely beat the drudge back so you can shore up defenses that way.
DC 20 Survival Check:
After finding the trail, it is a simple matter to follow the plodding footsteps of Vilree’s minion as it makes
its way toward Etran’s Folly. Miles pass, minutes turn to hours, and the unsuspecting town grows ever closer. Vilree’s alchemical servant never seems to tire, and there is no sign that it ever stops for food or rest, but it does seem the distance is closing. The trail looks more and more recent.
Just as Etran’s Folly comes into view, so does Vilree’s drudge. It is close to the town but, with haste, it is still possible to catch it before it can complete its grim task.
I'm not even going to try to top Baradim's lovely description of Vilree's death.
As the orc's blade slides deep into her chest cavity, Vilree Eldara dies unceremoniously--cold, alone, without knowing if her revenge had been taken or not.
On Vilree's body, you find an alchemical crossbow, 2pp, 38gp, 4sp, bracers of missile deflection, 2 daggers, a key, leather armor, a lesser potion of fire resistance, a flask of lesser juggernaut mutagen, another flask of lesser stone body mutagen, a +1 striking dagger, and a moderate acid energy mutagen. She also carries 3 moderate acid flasks, 3 moderate alchemists' fire, 2 moderate bottled lightning, 3 lesser elixirs of life, and 2 lesser tanglefoot bags.
If Vilree's claim was true, a drudge was on its way to Etran's Folly, carrying the key to releasing the cached Viridian Vapor and murdering everyone in town, and it had a head start.
Reminder that you all have horses. The drudge is on foot. It will take them much longer to get there than it will take you. However, if you decide to track the drudge, you will need to find its trail and then hope it doesn't take you too long to do so. Alternatively, you can make it back to town and make preparations to head off the drudge when it appears. Let me know what you all are thinking!
Finoan slams into Vilree, knocking her to the floor with surprise. Then, Baradim's blade came down on Vilree, who managed to keep him from stabbing right into her chest, deflecting the blow to hit her shoulder, instead. She hissed with pain, managing to avoid Drake's three thrown hammers.
The half-elf looked briefly panicked and scrambled to her feet, dodging a blow from Baradim while she dances backward and desperately lobs a flask of alchemist's fire at Baradim.
quick bomber mod alchemist's fire to hit, item bonus:1d20 + 13 + 1 ⇒ (13) + 13 + 1 = 27 damage, fire:2d8 ⇒ (5, 5) = 10 2 persistent fire damage, 2 fire splash damage
Drake's fire bomb, followed by his thrown hammer hit Vilree dead on: the flask explodes against her chest, and the hammer soon follows, knocking the wind out of her. Her cloth armor catches fire and, in a daze, she doesn't notice (just flavor, not actual daze).
Vilree looked annoyed at Finoan's lack of shocked or aghast reaction and reloads her crossbow with another firebomb and fires off a shot at Baradim.
Vilree grins when it impacts Baradim, the firebomb shot spreading searing, burning liquid across the orc's shoulder. She reloads her crossbow and tries again, still aiming at Baradim.
Finoan's bomb exploded against the monstrosity, catching it off guard and leaving it deadly vulnerable to Baradim's strike. The orc's sword slices through the horror's flesh and it collapses with a pathetic, wailing shriek before going limp.
Vilree snarls at Baradim and backs away, deciding to risk the orc's potential strike. She dodges his attack smoothly, his sword swinging past the half-elf as she twists her body away.
She stares down the four of you, her face twisting into a contemptuous sneer. "There is no surrender. I've already won. As soon as you killed my first construct, I sent off my minion to destroy the town. Everyone will be dead long before you ever get there!"
Vilree reloads her crossbow and takes a shot at Baradim to punctuate her own little speech. Her shot goes wide and she makes a frustrated sound, bracing herself for the onslaught.
alchemical crossbow:1d20 + 13 ⇒ (5) + 13 = 18
For context: It's only been about 7 or 8 minutes since the first construct went down. It's an 8-hour walk to Etran's Folly, but you took horses, so it only took 5 hours.
Baradim, 17 hits, so you don't need the hero point. I know I told you this in chat, wanted Drake to see it too. ;)
Finoan's bomb lands at the Behemoth's feet and catches it with acid, causing the creature to make a low, angry sound. When Baradim's sword catches it, the creature screams, turning its mindless fury to Baradim--the closer, more pressing threat than Niss.
The behemoth clumsily lifts its massive, clawed hands and swings them hard at Baradim...
◆◆Massive Strike:1d20 + 12 ⇒ (1) + 12 = 13
...missing the solid, rocky Orc entirely in its rage. It tries to strike at the orc once more, swinging one heavy fist back at the warrior only to miss again.
Niss's telekenetic strike slams into the horrifying, misshapen creature and it grunts softly, looking down at the bruise that was already beginning to form. It turned its mismatched gaze to the psychic, focusing on the one who had hurt it.
Vilree rolls her eyes at the continued speeches, making a quiet, frustrated sound. "I'm not at all interested in your pretty speeches," She sneered, moving confidently forward as she loaded an alchemical flask into her strange crossbow. In one quick movement, the half-elf draws a bomb from her belt and throws hard at Drake.
The bomb explodes at Drake's feet, splashing corrosive, burning liquid over the man's legs and beginning to eat away at his clothing and flesh.
Drake is taking persistent acid damage for 1 minute. DC 15 flat check to handle it. If you can describe something appropriate to handle it (will cost you 2 actions), the flat check will be reduced DC 10.
When you all step out of the winding passages of the bat caves, you see a large cavernous chamber. Running through the middle is an underground river rushing from east to west. A narrow, natural bridge spans over the water; it glistens with moisture and no small amount of mold. On the far side of the chamber are immense formations of the same cloudy, green rock–flaystone–and in front of those formations is a large, black cauldron with a fire burning at its base. Light filters into this chamber from above through a twisting crevasse in the ceiling; the far side of the cavern is lit by glowing green orbs suspended by chains from stalactites.
Finoan wrote:
With everyone else in place, Finoan walks casually out into the next room. "So what's the plan now, Vilree? You seem set on killing everyone in town. Since that includes us, I have to take offense to that."
Baradim Walks-The-Earth wrote:
"Those that you blame for your mother's death have all mostly passed on. Those who still live do not warrant your hatred." He would reach into his backpack, producing the urn that they had recovered. "Even with all that you have done, you can undo this. You have a talent for alchemy...you can be better."
Stepping out from behind the massive cauldron is a thin woman, gently pointed ears rising up from her oily, raven-black hair. She is wearing stitched leathers bearing countless pouches and pockets filled with glass vials. She looks at you with a sneer, shaking her head.
”Finished with your little hero speeches?” She says, her tone dripping with sarcasm. ”You must be the fools that arrived with Bort…Sorry about your friend,” She snarls, cutting her gaze toward Baradim. Her eyes linger on the urn, her face tightening with an anger that she couldn’t keep hidden. She takes a deep breath, body shaking with fury as she continues. ”I’m sure you think you can stop me and save the town. You shouldn’t have bothered. They are a wicked, worthless lot and don’t deserve compassion.”[b] The half-elven woman takes another deep, shuddering breath, her eyes still on the urn. [b]”I was going to give you all a chance to run. To leave, and never turn back. But you had to go and do that,” She snarls, gesturing angrily at Baradim.
”A pity.” She says, and suddenly, from below the waters at the southern end of the bridge, something horrible and massive rises up, dripping with moisture. A behemoth of horrifying, sewn-together flesh, mismatched eyes, tiny little wings and massive hands pulls itself up, screaming angrily at The Princess Guard.
Sorry for the delay on the post getting the last fight started. I played some Diablo with my friend & then my partner woke up, so I've got to spend some time with them. My break has been much busier than I thought.
The bats flutter angrily as the water slams into them, but it seems to do less damage than you would expect from the cantrip. + 3 from area damage, -6 from resistance = 7dmg to the swarm
Then Niss’s cloud of rocks slams into them as well, and while it also doesn’t seem to do as much as it normally would, it’s enough to take out the remaining bats in the swarm, leaving just the giant bat to contend with.
Baradim brings his blade down twice upon the giant bat, but it thrashes about wildly, beating its wings as Baradim’s first strike hits, the wings striking out at both Baradim and Drake.
↺ Wing Thrash vs Baradim:1d20 + 10 ⇒ (17) + 10 = 27 Wing thrash dmg, piercing:1d6 + 4 ⇒ (1) + 4 = 5 ↺ Wing Trash vs Drake:1d20 + 6 ⇒ (14) + 6 = 20
Drake’s final two slashes cut down the giant bat, and the cave suddenly seems rather calm.
Combat is over. I’d say Baradim has about ~7 minutes left on that Mutagen. Revealed the next Area - Vilree's in there and most certainly aware you are in the cave. Prep before moving ahead? Then arrange yourselves as you'd like in the next cavern, but don't go past where I marked on the map.
Does Baradim still have rounds of his potion effect active?
Sorry, he should. I believe it lasts 10 minutes or so? He definitely has it going still. The time between him taking it and this next fight was pretty short.
As for the immunities/weakness/resistance thing, if my math is right...
the swarm is only immune to precision damage
so the area damage would mean +3 to the damage
but its resistance is bludgeoning 6, piercing 6, and slashing 3. would I then reduce that amount with the +3 by the resistance?
so the damage still gets the weakness boost, but it is reduced because of the resistance?
Blocks
Block 1: Vampire Bat Swarm, Giant Bat
Block 2: The Princess Guard
As all of you begin to creep into the cavern, you hear the fluttering of leathery wings as a vampire bat swarm descends upon the first person they locate: Finoan.
The swarm flutters madly around the automaton, attempting to latch onto the cat.
DC 16 Basic Reflex save - take 1d4 piercing and 1 persistent bleed damage.
Blood Feast:1d4 ⇒ 4
After their attempt, they flutter away back to the ceiling, screeching and hissing.
Suddenly, a giant bat swoops in and dives for Finoan as well, but it misses.
Sorry for the time this took, I got interrupted by doing snow things :P
With the lab cleared, The Princess Guard sweeps out of there quickly, feeling the pressure of their time crunch.
Should anyone be interested, The Princess Guard would find 3 minor elixirs of life, 2 lesser elixirs of life, 2 lesser alchemist's fire, 4 lesser acid flasks, 2 lesser tanglefoot bags, 2 lesser frost vials, a lesser cognitive mutagen, a lesser stone body mutagen, and a moderate electricity energy mutagen on top of the lab tables. The formula book on the table is also worth a decent amount of gold.
Because the GM wants you to see it... Within the formula book seems to be an odd slip of parchment sticking out, bearing a simple diagram of a round, flat-topped rock with a depression on top. The diagram depicts a procedure for using acid to create a reservoir inside the stone. There is only one note on the illustration, reading "Mother's ring will be the key."
Also, meant to give you this info earlier, could have swore I typed it out at some point? I could be losing it.
DC 18 Crafting/Alchemy Check:
All the tools in the lab is covered in an oily green residue. Between the information in the formula book and all the ingredients from the ledger you discovered earlier, you can put two and two together: this residue is a side effect of the creation of viridian vapor. The book describes an absolutely lethal disease contracted by inhaling the vapor. The disease causes a horrific fungus to grow in the lungs within hours, leading to a horrific death. The book does not describe any kind of cure. You estimate that with all of the ingredients listed in the ledger and the work being done in here--especially with the dead man in the tube covered in the same oily residue--Vilree has been creating massive quantities of the vapor. Worse still, there seem to be no trace of the final product anywhere within the lab...just empty containers of reagents needed to create them.
The Princess Guard proceeds forward into the next room, descending stairs that lead into a rough-hewn stone chamber, smelling mildly of chemicals and mildew. The far side of the cave looks natural. In the southeast corner, a passageway winds off into the darkness. A sputtering torch is mounted next to the door, and in the distance you can hear the sound of rushing water.
The cave walls are streaked with veins of shining green.
If you made the DC 18 check above...:
This ore is a key ingredient in the viridian vapor, and part of the reason it is so deadly. It is known as flaystone, and when ground up, the green rock deals serious damage to the lungs, allowing an infection to take hold and grow within hours.
More map revealed. If you proceed forward, please arrange marching order.
Okay! Now that my head is on a little straighter, I can look through things and do a nice DM post.
You're heading into the Big Boss Fight and I highly recommend you make sure you're familiar with all of your abilities and what you have available to you so that you are as prepared as you possibly can be. :) This is like when video games are like, "You are approaching a point of no return. Are you sure you're ready to go yet?" with all the save points and healing potions being dropped into your lap.
Let me know if you have any questions after I get this next post put up.
Activating a bomb counts as a strike, so I think strategic strike applies as well, Finoan. Baradim, nothing weird about the mutagen. Just the listed drawback.
The Princess Guard simultaneously turns their focus to the many-limbed abomination and strikes down at it as one.
Finoan makes an expert assessment of the thing’s many weaknesses and aims the lightning flask precisely in the perfect spot to hurt the beast the most, although it does damage Baradim just a tad.
Baradim quaffs the stone body mutagen to bolster his defense, then moves in on the amalgam, stabbing his sword right into the abomination’s massive maw and jerking the blade sideways, nearly cleaving the creature in two.
Niss’s glass beaker follows shortly after, the glass embedding itself into the wound the Lastwall veteran opened up. The shriek that rips out of the creature sounds like several voices at once, a cacophony of horror that rattles you all to the core (flavor, not frighten) as it collapses into a writhing heap of bleeding, steaming limbs.
Drake, who was heading to add his strikes in, sees the beast collapse and instead pivots and turns toward the drudges, cutting the nearest one down in two precise strikes. Hope it’s alright that I took the liberty there Drake, I’m resolving in order of posting and Niss’s hit finished off the Amalgam.
Only one alchemical drudge remains, and it shuffles forward to attack Drake twice with its fists, but only one strike manages to catch the ranger.
Baradim and Drake's strikes hit the hideous abomination, taking a good chunk out of the creature. From up close, you can see that it seems to be made up of the limbs of several different races and species of humanoids. that were exposed to horrifying mutagens, likely the result of Vilree's experimentation.
The two alchemical drudges move forward. The closer one marched ahead, mindlessly attacking the first thing it ran into. One of its strikes connected, acid splashing out of its fist. The other went wide, missing Finoan entirely.
Finoan has never seen anything like this strange, nightmarish mass of limbs, teeth, and flesh. The creature shambles forward, moving purposefully toward the source of the sound that dared disturb its slumber. The creature stops at the first source of annoyance it sees--Finoan--and swings one of its many fists at the automaton.
Fist, to hit:1d20 + 14 ⇒ (4) + 14 = 18
The fist swings widely and just barely misses, moving slow and tired as it had just awakened to the sounds of battle.
Niss, Baradim, and Drake all handily dispatch the poor cinder rat, putting it out of its misery. The sound of battle seems to disturb something from the south...and from the room up to the north. From the south, two more of the constructs come shambling forward,
I'm fudging Finoan's position in the initiative to make my life a little easier. I will reveal things on Roll20 as soon as I have access, which should be relatively soon.
Finoan picks up the formula book and hears an angry squeaking shriek from underneath one of the bubbling cauldrons. A large, smouldering, charcoal-and-flame rat comes darting out from under the cauldron to attack.
New map on roll20. Arrange your marching order please.
Finoan opens the door to the south, past the carving, and sees a large laboratory within. This large chamber contains an alchemical lab, but unlike the one upstairs, it is clear that this is a lab for only one alchemist. Everything is meticulously cleaned and well-organized. Two cauldrons bubble alongside a central table covered in alchemical equipment. The walls are lined with shelves that hold old books and orderly rows of glass bottles, each containing reagents and ingredients. Three pits, their contents hidden from view, fill one side of the room; nearby, a tall glass cylinder contains the blackened corpse of a dwarf surrounded by a swirling green mist.
The room is rife with things to investigate, including what looks like a formula book in the middle of the table (Finoan's That's Odd).
Will need to wait until after school to change the roll20 map up so you can see what I describe, but I'll get this going.
On the central table of the lab seem to be a few crates of items ready to be shipped. Within, there are six vials of lesser alchemist's fire and another with 4 lesser acid flasks. There is also a small, velvet-lined box containing a single dose of lesser stone body mutagen. A note on the table in thin, spidery writing indicates that these items are intended for an address in the Chelish capital of Egorian. Lemme know who's holding on to these if you would like to take them.
Finoan peers down the eastern staircase and sees the stairs spiraling downward, descending about fifty feet into a narrow hallway.
Once the Princess Guard descends (no rush if you don't want to yet), you all see to one side that the stairs go further downwards to an iron door which is barred from opening with a heavy wooden plank, while the hallway continues south to a simple wooden door. Along the wall is a carving of a small farming village surrounded by an immense graveyard. It is easy to see that it is supposed to be Etran's Folly.
Niss's projectile destroys the homunculus in between Drake and Baradim. The half-orc, seeing his prey collapse, immediately pivots and brings his blade down onto the creature, finishing it off in two fell swoops. The constructs collapse without much ceremony, although whoever created the creatures surely knows that someone is destroying them.
One final drudge remains, mindlessly gearing up for its next attack.
Finoan leaps across the water and holds up a magical shield whilst Drake moves out of the pool of acid that was vomited at his feet and attacks one of the drudges twice--unfortunately, only the first attack lands on the construct, the other swinging wide.
The construct swings at Drake in response, but misses. It then vomits a pool of caustic reagents at his feet, just as the other did.
alchemical strike, to hit:1d20 + 10 ⇒ (3) + 10 = 13 acid pool:2d6 ⇒ (5, 3) = 8dc 17 basic reflex, marked on the map again. same as last time. you end your turn in a pool, you get acided. 9/10 rounds remaining.
The drudge between Finoan and Drake (blue) swings once at the cat that just landed near it and vomits in his space, too.
alchemical strike, to hit:1d20 + 10 ⇒ (15) + 10 = 25 alchemical strike damage:1d8 + 2 ⇒ (5) + 2 = 7 plus cold damage:1d6 ⇒ 5 acid pool:2d6 ⇒ (5, 6) = 11dc 17 basic reflex, marked on the map again. same as last time. you end your turn in a pool, you get acided. 9/10 rounds remaining.
Baradim and Niss are up. Sorry for any mistakes. My brain isn't very cooperative today.
Full Name
Mamoru
Race
Human
Classes/Levels
Ninja 1
Gender
Male
Size
Medium
Age
19
Special Abilities
Ninja class abilities
Alignment
CG
Languages
Kozakuran, tbd
Occupation
Servant of "O", secret protector of family
Strength
10
Dexterity
16
Constitution
12
Intelligence
14
Wisdom
15
Charisma
10
About Mamoru
Ninja 1
Current XP:
Next lvl: 1000
Skills:
Spoiler:
Appraise +2
Balance +7 [4r]
Bluff +4 [4r]
Climb +0
Concentration +1
Craft +2
Decipher Script X
Diplomacy +0
Disable Device +6 [4r]
Disguise +0
Escape Artist +7 [4r]
Forgery +2
Gather Information +0
Handle Animal X
Heal +2
Jump +0
Knowledge (Arcana) +2
Knowledge (Planes) +2
Knowledge (Nature) +2
Open Lock +3
Perception +6 [4r]
Perform +0
Profession +0
Ride +3
Search +6 [4r]
Sense Motive +6 [4r]
Slight of Hand +3
Spellcraft X
Stealth +7 [4r]
Survival +0
Swim +0
Tumble +7 [4r]
Use Rope +3
1st level: 36 skill points, Max ranks 4/2
*Armor Check Penalty for # Encumbrance;
Bold=skill ranks taken;
X=Untrained/Unusable
xc=cross class
F= Affected by Feat
Languages:
Kozakuran, Wa-an (65% comprehension), Kao te Shou, Tu' Lung
Feats:
Spoiler:
(1st level)
Weapon Finesse- + Dex bonus to hit with light Melee weapons
Karmic Healing- Karmic Healing(DR351 p87)
(Ki Power class ability) By expending one use of your Ki Power, you may do one of the following to yourself:
1. heal (Wisdom modifier x ½ Ninja level) hit-points; (currently = 3)
2. go from being Exhausted to being Fatigued; or
3. remove Fatigue.
Armor Class: 15
Touch: 15
Flat-Footed: 12
HP: 7
Saves:
Fort: +1
Ref: +5
Will: +4
Special: +2 to will saves as long as one or more uses of KI remain
Appearance and Personal Traits:
Height: 5'4"
Weight: 130 lbs
Spoiler:
Mamoru is of average height, build & looks. He will never be a great leader of men, or a great warrior or spiritual leader. What little romantic interest he has had were won by force of his mental acuity, not his looks or personality. What he DOES have is an unusually rare combination of mental prowess, physical skill and personal code of honor as strong as any samurai.
His only slightly distinguishing feature is a slight scar on his left cheek.
His demeanor appears to be nothing other than a faithful, humble & patient servant. But this is an act that hides the nature of a fun-loving, thrill-seeking, ghost-stopping hero-in-training.
Background
Spoiler:
Mamoru was the son of a long-time retainer of the family. He was very sharp & unusually wise for his age, but very plain of face & speech. He would never be a great leader of men, and he was too small and puny to be a great warrior.
When he was five, a Wu-Jen came to dismiss the evil spirits that had plagued the house, in exchange for Oochai, who was 4. As he was leaving after completing his work, he stopped and looked at Mamura and muttered, "One day, when you cannot go to the mountain, you will call, and the mountain shall come to you." And then he left.
Later that year, Mamura's parent's were killed in a raid by a rival house. A stranger came to visit later, and after a private discussion with the Master, took the boy with him. His training lasted 15 years. And involved as much politics (which he did not do so well at) as physical and mental training (which he did!)
When he returned, he was welcomed back personally by the old Jito. And after a brief, private tea, the house was told that Mamura would be his son's servant. (IE='Personal Assistant' to us Westerners)
Only the old master knew about Mamura's training, and neither of them have told anyone else.
Quotes:
"Now you see me, now you don't!"
"Here, Catch!" (Throwing something, usually sharp and shiny, but sometimes flammable, at his current target.)
