I'm happy to answer that question since you asked. And lurking is always fun.
** spoiler omitted **
GM Monster:
Most of the experience I have with pbp is outside of the Paizo boards, in a game I’ve been playing since Jan. 2016 where I have just under 5000 posts, currently out in the Tapatalk forums. Though in that case, we stick with 98% CRB and the upgrading process is fairly simple and straightforward.
Part of my reason for coming out here to Paizo is our GM’s rate of posting in that game has slowed down a bit due to RL commitments. We’re still moving forward, but it seems like it takes forever for anything to get done. My main PC there is 50 points away from hitting level 9 in Druid and has been waiting on enough action to happen to level up since last September. I decided to come find something that moves along a little more quickly, though I plan to keep playing there, too.
There’s no way you could have known any of that, and I certainly would not have thought to mention it without it coming up in conversation (though I will in the future if looking at # of player posts is a thing GMs do), but should the time come when you lose someone to attrition and you need to bring in a replacement, I’ll hope you’ll remember my # of Paizo account posts doesn’t tell the entire story.
Thanks for taking the time to respond to my question. :)
Well, I am disappointed to not be selected, but I won’t let that stop me from wishing you who made the cut the cut the best of luck and have fun!
GM Monster: Can you name anything I could have done better that would have given me a better chance of being selected? Did I pick a poor monster? Pick a too cute monster? Not give enough growth/evolution options? I did add some growth options last night to Karkala’s profile, though I don’t know if you saw them. I’m not exactly an expert at this, so it would be nice to be a little smarter for the next time around.
I may also lurk for a while and watch the story unfold. Hope that’s alright.
Yeah, I had to read what ScegfOd said several times before I figured out I was misreading what he(?) said. But I really hope to be chosen, and wanted to make sure I have a legal entry before the deadline.
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Karkala peers around, using both her eyes and her scent ability to make sure that neither Lucian Aldor or her most trusted servants are around. When she senses they are not, she begins making a mad dash around the area where Cindy is, circling her 3 or 4 times. She finally loses her footing and falls into a somersault, landing in a heap right next to the doll. The cub's eyes have a mischievous expression and she butts into Cindy, encouraging her to come join in the play.
Awww, Snowball, don't feel bad because you have a weapon. If you like silly hijinx, Karkala would be happy to indulge. She can be pretty goofy when she gets going. I can see her sliding down any portion of Snowball's back that doesn't have ridges.
There are so many of us applying, I'm trying to not get my hopes up too high. But if we are both accepted, maybe we can hang out as fellow weaklings - Cindy can be the cheerleader, and Karkala can be the mascot! Heehee!
On second thought, I'll just wait a CR increase to pick up mesmerist if I get picked. If I can gray out all of the mesmerist stuff in her profile, I won't have to re-add it later. I think that would be easier than threading in some negative template.
Once my question is answered about whether allowing regular attacks with her natural weapons can lower her CR since it would lower her BAB, I'll take the Drunk template if I have to.
I have no interest in playing a drunken character, but like ScegfOd says, it beats the other negative-CR templates I can find. I guess I could say the wizard has been forcing booze on her to help keep her in line. Then my 3rd CR evolution would become losing that template!
I'm confused why I need a negative template. Dweomercat cub by itself is CR2, and you told us we could take a class level up to half our CR level. You never said anything about class levels adding CRs.
I'll admit this fractional multiclassing business doesn't make much sense to me, because I'm not taking multiple classes. At the very least, it's a confusing label.
Can I get the CR down if I say that sometimes she wants to be able to do normal attacks using her natural weapons? That would be a last resort sort of thing, since she doesn't do much damage with either. (1d2-1 for claws and 1d3-1 for bite). She does have the dweomer leap ability which gives her the option to teleport to a square adjacent to anyone who targets her with a spell and do a pounce attack. Seems to me like using that implies she's going to be doing more than just combat maneuvers.
Since Tiessa's character Xeria is also a Sorcerer of Fey Bloodline, Wildblooded Sylvan archetype and even has a similar dinosaur companion (Hey, great minds think alike, hehe), I think I'll change Karkala to a Mesmerist instead, just so as to be a more differentiated character. When I first chose sorcerer, I had no idea there was already a very similar character, though we did choose different roles.
I've got the redo nearly done, but I'm confused about computing BAB, CMD, and CMB.
As a monster, a dweomercat cub has BAB 3, CMB 3, and CMD 13 (17 vs trips.)
As a 1st level mesmerist, she would have a BAB 0, CMB 1, and CMD 13.
But at BAB 3, she would have CMB 4 and CMD 12 based on her other stats.
So I'm confused. How should these numbers be calculated?
OK, assuming the velociraptor companion is a go, I think I'm done with my character profile. Let me know if you see anything missing or that needs tweaking.
OK, then, Brookside GM. I think I'll go with Fey Bloodline sorcerer with the Wildblooded Sylvan archetype, which means she gets an animal companion at first level, and I'll take Boon Companion as my first level feat so as not to have a negative level companion.
I was thinking she would encounter this animal while working for the wizard. Maybe their handler died trying to kill invaders or something and the animal has been in a cage while waiting for someone else who can work it to show up. I'm thinking some kind of small dinosaur like a velociraptor or deinonychus would fit with the monster theme and would be of a size Karkala could ride if she really wanted to. (A tiny sized creature can ride a small one, right?) Would you be cool with that?
Ok, Cindy, then. Only a mesmerist and medium among the occult classes best fit a dweomercat’s stats and the medium doesn’t appeal to me. I saw the stares are good for debuffing, and figured I’d go with a mix of blasty and debuffing spells. If our GM will allow the class, that is.
@Doll#23: Any spells you particularly recommend for a mesmerist? I want to focus on debuffing/blasting, since we already have a couple of utility casters who’ve applied.
Illusion spells are appealing based on my character’s fey background, but I’m not sure how heavily I’ll dip into that.
GM Monster: I still need my question about whether spells with a somatic (gestural) component are forbidden a creature who walks on 4 legs. Thanks. :)
That said, I’m looking pretty hard at mesmerist because at least some spells can be cast without words or gestures. However, there seem to be two different spell lists, and I’m a little confused about which ones don’t take gestures. Before I go haring down the path of researching that, though, would you even allow a mesmerist? I’ve never played any of the Occult Adventures classes, am happy to research it, just want to make sure you’re okay with that choice.
If Weapon Finesse Mythic is off the table, that leaves some sort of spontaneous caster like a sorcerer with fey bloodline, or a mesmerist or medium as the best fit for Karkala’s stats. No one has applied to be a blaster yet (and I assume blaster means someone who casts a lot of offensive spells), so I could go that route, but I am curious if Spells with gestures are forbidden a creature who walks on 4 legs. That would obviously be a pretty big handicap.
Dumb question here. I’m not familiar with all of the acronyms being used here. What do SLA and VMC mean? I have a background in IT, and SLA means service level agreement in that world. Pretty sure that’s not what’s meant here, hehe.
Would you allow use of the Weapon Finesse Mythic feat? Karkala has average STR (10), and I'm wanting to play her as a fighter. I figure she can specialize in her natural weapons, given that she has 4 attacks. Her DEX isn't great - only 15, but it definitely beats her STR.
Then for her CR templates, I want to give her some fey options, since she's from the Last World (Plane of Fey).
Dotting for interest. Am working up a dweomercat cub named Karkala. I've got the crunch mainly done, just need to figure out the mechanical CR/level advancements, mainly. Here's what I have for the character questions:
Character Questions:
How did you come to be in the employ of an evil wizard guarding her lair?
Hunters came to the First World and killed Karkala's mother, taking Karkala and her two littermates into captivity. She was sold to a man who kept her in a cage and fed her and just left her there. This man gave her to Lucian Aldor as part of a payment for a debt.
What are your character's motivations?
Ultimately, Karkala wants to return to the First World so she can mature into an adult.
What are your character's personality, quirks, habits, etc.?
Karkala is naturally curious and likes to explore, but her time on the Material Plane has squelched that a bit. She is also playful and likes to play (usually) harmless pranks on others, though she would not anger Lucian Aldor with such.
She will help others if she thinks it will lead to her freedom or will help her get back to the Last World, but she would also break her word to another if she thought it meant the same.
What does your character look like?
Karkala resembles a tiger in coat length and face/ear shape, but her base color is chocolate brown. She has a white chest and white splotches on her back and right rear flank. Near her rear, her coloring becomes more red, and her tail is sorrel red. When she becomes an adult, her tail will have a tuft of longer dark brown hair at the end like a male lion's. Her eyes are yellow. She is 1' tall and weighs 13 lbs. Note that on the Material Plane, Karkala's development is stunted unless she comes into direct contact with fey magic.
How might your character develop over the course of the game?
At first, she will be totally focused on getting back to the Last World, but over time, she will become open to bonding with the party. She will also evolve from a somewhat timid and fearful at first into a brave warrior.
