Commander Kyan Kain

Marcellano Kain's page

469 posts. Alias of Crustypeanut.




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Hey Everyone!

So, my players are finally on Book 2 of Reign of Winter so I've decided to share one of my favorite maps I recreated for the Book 1 of the campaign using a combination of Photoshop and 2-minute Tabletop's paid assets (totally worth it btw).

This map is made primarily for Roll20 but certainly can be used elsewhere.

The Pale Tower.

Size(Pixels): 2800x3500 (w x h)
Size(Inches): 40x50
Resolution: 70

This map took me literal hours to recreate - you'll notice that the shape is a bit different in a few places as well as the layout is not 100% the same. I made the shape more 'uniform' to fit the grid better and everything is mostly the same. If anything, the first floor got hit the hardest with the changes.

You'll also note a ton of little details all over the place to fit the various occupants. My players LOVED it - and murdering all of its occupants (Except Radosek which they managed to befriend!) Yeah that's a story in its own right, lets just say they know how to diplomacy.

I have a number of other maps I use either once-off or sparingly. Some of them I was still figuring things out - but Camp Ambush Nighttime #2 was my personal favorite of the bunch here. All are 70 resolution.

Camp Ambush Nighttime 1
Size: 30x30 Inches or 2100x2100 Pixels

Camp Ambush Nighttime 2
Size: 30x30 Inches or 2100x2100 Pixels

Snowy Trail (I use variations of this one a lot)
Size: 44x32 Inches or 3080x2240 Pixels

The White Weasel
Size: 22x16 Inches or 1540x1120 Pixels

Snowy Trail 2
Size: 22x44 Inches or 1540x3080 Pixels

Snowy Glade
Size: 30x30 Inches or 2100x2100 Pixels

I can't wait to do some of the Book 2 ones.. Huehuehue.


Ey guys! Question for all of you. I can't seem to find anything on the sort in the rules anywhere, even though it makes a ton of sense to ask this question in this particular campaign.

During the various points of heavy snow in the campaign, it might be prudent for the players to make a campfire to stave off the cold. How long would it take to gather the necessary materials (Assuming the players did not bring firewood of their own) and what would the Survival skillcheck be to get it up and running?

As far as the getting it lit, would Burning Hands work even better and negate a survival check?

I'm running a playtest of the first part of the campaign and my Test PCs are dying of Hypothermia, with one of them on the brink of unconsciousness, thus me bringing up this question.


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So, as there have been a few mentions that The Choking Tower doesn't quite fit in with the rest of the campaign (Not that its a bad adventure by any means!), I'm taking the effort to completely rework Book 3 into something that not only features Iadenveigh more directly, as well as tying the adventure directly into Book 4, and the entire campaign to a lesser extent.

The following outline is spoilered partially to protect my players from accidentally stumbling upon it in case they are looking at my posts, and partially to keep the post tidy and organized.

Adventure Outline:
Following clues gained from Scrapwall, the players head towards the secular town of Iadenveigh to seek out the Android Oracle known as Cassandalee. However, as they arrive, they find that the town is having problems of its own that delay the player's search for Cassandalee.

Between mutilated livestock and pets, sightings of strange lights in the night sky and half-remembered nightmares of close encounters of the third kind, the entire town of Iadenveigh is panicking as they are unable to find the source of these strange phenomenon. As the players arrive seeking information of their own, they are quickly hired on by a man named Redfang to investigate the disturbances in exchange for whatever help the town can offer in searching for this 'Cassandalee'. The players are joined by a conspiracy theorist named Lorentian Kairn, who arrived one day ahead of the players and is also investigating the disturbances. In reality, this man is a Technic League Spy who not only is spying on the town, but is also genuinely interested in the ongoing disturbances.

The players investigate numerous examples of livestock mutilation, crop circles, and interrogate an eccentric local who claims to have been touched by "Those from Beyond", only to find that their trail grows cold. It isn't until later that a small mechanical bird is shot down by one of the hunters that the trail picks back up and leads towards a group of Varisians camped within the town; confronting the troupe reveals evidence that they were the ones causing the disturbances and are thusly arrested.

In thanks for their part for finding out who was causing these disturbances, the players are told about a hidden spaceship beneath the town. (Cue Part 2: Into the Aurora) At the end of the Aurora, their trail of Cassandalee goes cold. (There is no Invisible Stalker at the end of the dungeon, and no clue leading to the Choking Tower). However, as they try to leave the Aurora, they are confronted by Redfang and a number of townsfolk, who open fire on them claiming that “They have seen too much”. After the battle is over, the townsfolk that attacked them are shown to be reptilian humanoids in disguise - creatures that Lorentian dubs “Reptoids”. He claims to have been right about these aliens all along, and that the players can trust no one in the town before they can figure out who are real and who are Reptoids in disguise.

However, before they can truly figure out who is who, the next day they are charged for the murder of Redfang and numerous other citizens by Ivek Gunnette, who tells them to stand trial. If they try to prove themselves innocent, they have the chance to oust Ivek (And numerous other councilmembers) as being Reptoids in disguise in front of the entire town. However, now that their subtle efforts are blown, the aliens launch an assault against the town in order to subdue it. After defending the town from robots and alien creatures, they discover a trail that leads them to a spaceship landed a few miles outside of town. Boarding it and taking out its crew of small, gray aliens, they are rewarded by becoming stuck on the ship as it lifts off and heads into orbit to dock with its mothership.

Hilarity ensues and the players get the chance to explore and wreck things on the mothership, crewed by alien Grays, Reptoids, and other aliens, before confronting the cybernetically enhanced gray that serves as the captain. While exploring the ship, they discover information about another alien presence in Numeria (Dubbed “The Enemy” by the Grays) in a region known as the Scar of the Spider; information on these aliens is that they have discovered some sort of important artificial intelligence and that liberating this technology is next on the Gray’s list of actions. In truth, this AI is Cassandalee - exactly who the players were looking for. However, by confronting the captain and slaying him, the players are unable to control the ship *The captain was psychically linked to the navigational computer) and it finds itself performing an emergency crash landing in Numeria. As it so happens, it lands relatively near the Scar of the Spider, allowing the survivors to continue their journey, possibly after salvaging tech from the crashed ship.

---------------------------------------------------

What do you guys think? I’m still working on the crunch and the minute details, but I feel that Book 3 being about aliens fits right in with Book 4’s theme, allowing the middle section of the Iron Gods’ trilogy to be all about aliens.

Plus the players get to go to space, if only for a short time. Miiiight see if I can include a space walk somewhere in there.

As far as the Choking Tower goes, I feel it would be better served as a stand-alone adventure, since it doesn’t quite mesh well with the rest of the campaign. Furkas Xoud is an awesome foe and the tower itself is a ton of fun, though.

Once finished, I fully intend to post links and maps so others can enjoy this adventure as well. Inspiration for the adventure is from X-files, general alien conspiracy theories, and of course, XCom.

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Alien Races Involved:

Grays: The Grays are the leaders of this cabal of aliens; it is their ship they use, they perform most of the experiments on specimens and they’re the ones who often go and collect specimens for examination and experimentation. They use a number of high-tech weaponry and technology, many of which differ from the Androffan technology found in Numeria in ways that allow it to interact with the psychic abilities of the Grays. They are lead by a cybernetically modified Gray known as a “Zeta” that is psychically connected to the ship itself and controls it; without the Zeta’s assistance, the ship cannot be controlled except by a more powerful ship. As a result, killing the Zeta forces the ship to either go on lockdown mode, making it effectively inert although most of the processes on the ship continue to function (life support, experimental facilities, etc), or perform an emergency landing (the latter happens in this case)
Brain Moles: Although not necessarily ‘alien’ per-say, Brain Moles are used by the Grays to collect psychic energy that the Grays can then extract and store. The Brain Moles are lead by a Brain Mole Monarch that has created an alliance with the Grays, providing them with psychic energy in return for not only safety, but plentiful food sources.
Emotion Ooze: A number of Emotion Oozes are held captive in the Gray’s ship in order to allow the Grays to study the effects of various psychic emotions on humans. The Grays themselves are curiously immune to the effects of the Emotion Oozes, but nevertheless have taken precaution with containing the oozes; each ooze is kept in a secure vat that can psychically block the emotion aura of the oozes, allow a limited amount of it to leak out, or to allow its aura to penetrate it fully, at the command of the Grays.
Griefgall: A small number of Griefgalls have aligned themselves with the Grays and help the aliens study emotions and psychic emanations; One such Griefgall infests a Lashunta Psychic that leads the study of the Emotion Oozes.
Reptoids: A number of Reptoids are amongst the aliens, although most of them are now amongst Iadenveigh’s population, having infiltrated and replaced numerous citizens. Unlike the Grays, who prefer to interact with the humans as little as possible or at least do so from a hidden standpoint, the Reptoids are focused on infiltration and learning more about the humans through direct interaction, as well as focused on locating suitable targets for experimentation, not to mention studying the curious fertility of the town. Although they keep what little technology they bring to the town a secret, they maintain constant contact with their allies in the ship above the village.
Thorgothrel: A single Thorgothrel accompanies the Grays, acting as biological scientist to assist in studying the humans. The Thorgothrel doesn’t much like working with the Grays or Reptoids, but nevertheless has been convinced to cooperate provided it can genetically regress a few specimens here and there, to which the Grays agreed.
Robots: A number of robots assist the Grays onboard the ship and elsewhere. These range from guardians, to medical drones, to scouts, to psychic-amplifying support robots. They differ from Androffan Robots in that they often project a psychic force-field and can store and even use psychic energy. One such type of robot is the “Robotic Mage”, a variant Clockwork Mage with the Robotic Subtype that uses psychic magic.
Other: A number of alien plants and other creatures are kept as specimens for study and research, including at least one Rhu-Chalik and a few Flumphs. Others include numerous Lashunta and Shobhad kept in stasis as trophies of sorts. Some of these captive aliens can be rescued as allies, while others might be antagonistic, even to their rescuers. One captive in particular, while not alien, is a Tyrannosaurus Rex that was taken from the Mwangi and kept in stasis.


Dotting to turn this thing on.


Welcome to the Hell's Rebels: Flight of the Silver Raven's Discussion thread!


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A cold, wet dawn rises on the morning of the seventh of Abadius in the Silver City of Kintargo. Those waking up early find themselves greeted by the morning fog rolling in along with an unusual sinister feeling. Normally smelling of brine and seaweed, the morning’s air instead reeks of sulfur and brimstone tinged with the smell of smoke - and what would be later be described as burnt flesh. What seems to be an eerily oppressive silence blankets the city, broken by the cacophonous ringing of the Devils Bells atop the Temple of Asmodeus as soon as the morning’s sun reaches its dim gloom through the thick fog and shines upon the massive temple located at the apex of Temple Hill.

And it is with the start of the new day when Kintargo finds itself a different city than the night previous - for as the city’s residents would quickly learn, a new Lord-Mayor has taken office: Paracount Barzillai Thrune.

        

Later that morning, as the morning fog begins to lift and Kintargo’s citizens begin travelling out of their homes in earnest, they begin to gather in front of numerous places of interest as they discover groups of Dottari stationed near town criers posted around the city. One such location is in front of the famous Kintargo Opera House, a massive building built in the Egorian style of severe, pointed spires and a central dome topped with Kintargo’s distinctive red-tiled roof. In front of the building are no less than a dozen Dottari standing guard, their black and red leather and mail outfits glistening from the moisture and each standing in stern silence, watching the growing crowd. Between the two groups of Dottari, standing on the top of the Opera House’s steps and next to a red-robed figure is one of the town criers outfitted in typical Chelish colours of red and black. Compared to the city guard on either side of him and the hooded figure bearing a spiked, inverted pentacle of black iron hanging from a chain around his neck, the town crier appears nervous, his eyes shifting and sweat glistening from his brow.

At precisely seven minutes after seven in the morning, the Devil’s Bells ring out seven times, eliciting a nod from the red-robed priest to the town crier, who steps forward and opens a thick scroll of vellum emblazoned with the symbol of House Thrune. He clears his throat before speaking in a loud and slightly shaky voice, gaining confidence as he continues to speak.

”Hear ye, Hear ye, loyal citizens of Kintargo! By the order of Her Infernal Majestrix, Queen Abrogail II of House Thrune, Kintargo has, upon further notice, been placed under a state of martial law in order to better protect its citizens and the empire from the ongoing threat of the terrorist group known as the Glorious Reclamation. By the same order, Paracount Barzillai Thrune has been assigned the office of Lord-Mayor of Kintargo, due to the abandonment of office and unknown whereabouts of the former Lord-Mayor, Jilia Bainilus.” At this first announcement, cries anger and disbelief rise up from the crowd, though the town crier continues, either oblivious or in spite of the interruption. ”Lord-Mayor Thrune hopes to ensure Kintargo’s support and its citizens’ safety, and as a result has enacted the following edicts. First, the southron gate known as Rust Gate is to be closed at all times, opening only at scheduled intervals four times per day. A toll of two silver shields is to be paid by all those wishing to pass through the gate without the proper paperwork. Secondly, a toll of three copper pinches is to be paid upon anyone crossing Bleakbridge without the proper paperwork. And thirdly, the Kintargo Opera House is closed until further notice, as Lord-Mayor Thrune has taken it as his current residence within the city -” At this, the town crier is interrupted by an outcry from the crowd that dwarfed the previous one, as the Kintargo Opera House is a much beloved venue and place of arts for the city. The town crier tries to regain control of the crowd and finish speaking, eventually succeeding after a few minutes as they settle down. ”The Lord-Mayor hopes to work with the city and her citizens on keeping the peace so that we all may face the hardships that lie ahead for our magnificent nation.”

At the closing of the announcements, the crowd lingers for a short time before finally dispersing at the encouragement of the Dottari; from then on, Kintargo’s residents can easily note an increased number of patrols within the city as well as the arrival of a new force of law enforcement: A contingent of Hellknights of the Rack arrive in the city via horseback later that day, taking up residence at Castle Kintargo; rumors spread like wildfire across the city at the current events, and as a result, the city’s various taverns and hot spots are filled to the brim with rumormongers and gossips.

One such location finding itself packed to the brim is the oldest tavern in Old Kintargo: The Tooth and Nail.

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Situated across the street of the Old Kintargo Cemetery, the Tooth and Nail is easily the oldest surviving tavern in Old Kintargo; this single-story tavern is marked by nothing but a wooden post outside, four bent and rusty nails and six rotted wolves’ teeth hammered into its weathered face. Although certainly presenting the facade of a run down tavern, it is in fact a fixture of Old Kintargo as a popular hangout for the district’s artisans, merchants, and adventurers. The tavern shares the building with a confectioner’s shop, identified by the words “Sweet Tooth” painted at its entrance on Tuce Alley.

Inside, the Tooth and Nail carries the stink of stale beer, tobacco smoke, and less discernible odors hovering in the air like clouds of gnats. Narrow windows, stained yellow, allow in little natural light, and a few sputtering candles do little to disperse the gloom. The furniture is dilapidated and was of poor quality even on the long-ago day it was fashioned.

Though the tavern is crowded the afternoon after Barzillai Thrune’s appointment as Lord-Mayor, its owner, a rather short but bombastic woman of Chelish origins named Setrona Sabinus, can be seen bouncing around the tavern, yelling and greeting customers as she serves stale beer to quench their thirsts; Behind the bar, a lumpish man with close-cropped blond hair serves drinks. This man is the tavern’s almost comically buffoonish bartender, Insome Filas. Known more for his slow wit, laziness and easily-distracted attention span than his questionable talents at laughing at jokes for the wrong reasons and forgetting to ask for payment for drinks, Filas is nevertheless well liked by both the tavern’s regulars and his employer.

A light drizzle wets the streets outside causing those eager to stay dry to enter the already packed tavern to discuss the recent ongoing events - although not readily apparent as the martial law, rumors are abound about the numerous fires that occurred during the night. Rapidly being named ’The Night of Ashes’ by the rumormongers discussing it, three buildings burnt down during the dead of night; the Silver Star, a musical instrument store well known as being owned by the famed local opera performer Shensen, the Victocora Estate located in the Green Way, and the Thrashing Badger, a tavern located in the Yolubilis Harbor district, formerly a very popular haunt for the city’s rowdier laborers and sailors.

____________________________________________________________

 
Welcome to the prelude of Hell's Rebels: Flight of the Silver Ravens! This is a purely roleplaying experience that lets me see the players in action as they talk about the recent events in Kintargo and interact with one another and well as some of the locals. I ask that no mechanical checks are made, as this is entirely a roleplaying experience!

I intend to further along the prologue later in the recruitment phase, but for now have at thee!


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       HELL’S REBELS: FLIGHT OF THE SILVER RAVENS

 

Welcome to the recruitment thread for the Crustypeanut’s Hell’s Rebels: Flight of the Silver Ravens campaign! Set in the silver city of Kintargo along the northern coast of Thrice-Damned Cheliax, Hell’s Rebels takes noble Kintargan residents such as yourselves and pits them against some of the most diabolical leaders of Cheliax - yes, that’s right, a Thrune has come to town and he’s setting up shop to stay! Or so he thinks.

Hell’s Rebels is a campaign rife with political intrigue, espionage and sabotage, and of course outright rebellion against the powers that be - in this case, Paracount Barzillai Thrune, the Church of Asmodeus, and their lackies. It is a mix of roleplaying and rollplaying, with a great combination of both combat and noncombat encounters, some of which are added or modified by yours truly.

Do you think you have what it takes to rebuild the infamous Silver Ravens of Kintargo? Do you think you have what it takes to fight the Thrice-Damned House Thrune and the Church of the Lord of the Nine Hells? Do you think you have what it takes to avoid turning this into a repeat of the Red Revolution of Galt? And do you think you have what it takes to look absolutely dashing while doing so?

If so, Hell’s Rebels: Flight of the Silver Ravens might just be the campaign for you!

HELL’S REBELS CHARACTER CREATION

Your character in Hell’s Rebels will be a native of Kintargo, unhappy with the current state of martial law set forth by Paracount Barzillai Thrune. An unfortunate set of events that will occur early in the campaign will set you - and others like you - on a direct path to rebuilding the infamous rebel group known as the Silver Ravens, previously known for defending Kintargo against all attacks during the Chelish Civil War that occurred over eighty years ago before succumbing to the might of the Thrice-Damned House Thrune’s victory during the civil war. All but eradicated, it will soon be time for their return!

Set roughly a week after Paracount Barzillai Thrune’s arrival to the city following a night of arson and murder now known as the Night of Ashes, the campaign will be set entirely in Kintargo and the surrounding Archduchy of Ravounel - a backwater region located along the northern coast of Cheliax, separated by the heartland by the impressive Menador Mountains and adjacent to the southern border of Nidal. The campaign will begin at the largest and latest protest since the onset of martial law, set in front of the famous Kintargo Opera House at Aria Park - known aptly as the Aria Park Protest.

The character creation outline for Hell’s Rebels characters will be as follows:
Rules for character creation marked with a ‘*’ will have additional notes below the overall outline.

Starting Level: PCs will start at 1st level.
Alignment: Any Non-Evil. The campaign is Chaotic Good themed.
Ability Scores: 15 point buy.
HP: Max HP rolls at 1st level. Players will roll for HP or take Average from level 2 onward.
Traits: 2 traits, one of which must be a Campaign Trait. A third “Reason for Protesting” mini-trait will also be required to explain why you are attending the Aria Park Protest.
Drawback: Drawbacks are allowed.
Base Starting Money: Average Starting for your class.
Races*: Any Core, plus Tiefling and Tengu. Other races may or not be allowed at the DM’s discretion, though any beyond the above mentioned ones will carry certain penalties for the rebellion.
Classes: All classes from Paizo Products, including Occult Adventures. Unchained versions are mandatory for those classes that have unchained versions.
Firearms: Firearms are allowed, but operate under the standard rules, and thus are not commonly found in Kintargo or Cheliax.
Crafted Items: Any character able to craft items through a feat may do so at the reduced prices. Characters with craft skills may craft items ahead of time at the reduced price if they can craft the item by taking a 10 and succeed.
Background Skills: All players gain an additional 2 skill ranks per level to be used in Background skills.

Unusual Races: Races that go beyond the above-mentioned choices will see a penalty to the rebellion - most notably, unless steps are taken to hide one’s unusual race, the group’s Notoriety will see a greater increase each time Notoriety is gained, and the organization’s starting Notoriety will be higher for each unusual race.

When you create a submission, please create a character alias and include your character information in the form of a bestiary stat block like Theodric Rothnt’s Profile. An easily copied and modified version can be found here. Alternatively, Hero Lab format or something very similar to either works as well.

Also, include the following information in your profile:
1) Appearance
2) Personality
3) Background

When reading backgrounds, I’m looking for ways that you as players tie yourselves into Kintargo; Where do you live? Do you have family here? How long have you lived here? Do you have any special haunts that you frequent? Do you have friends or rivals? These sorts of things I’m looking for, and the better tied to Kintargo your character is, the better chance you have at being selected. This also helps me see who has read the player’s guide and the ‘Kintargo at a Glance’ article within it.

For anyone having a hard time coming up with a Chaotic-Good Concept (or something similar), I’d highly recommend this guide as a read. Of course, I’m more fond of this one myself.. but that’s for another time, another place, another campaign.. hu hu hu.

OPTIONAL RULES IN EFFECT

Automatic Bonus Progression: As introduced in Pathfinder Unchained, this campaign will be modified to use the Automatic Bonus Progression system, removing the need for the ‘Big Six’ items. However, the ABP system will see a few minor modifications. First, we’ll be using the optional rules for magic armor/weapons as seen here. I will help players understand these rules better if they are having trouble understanding them once we get to it. Secondly, at 6th, 11th, and 15th, when players are given a +2, +4, or +6/+2 to mental abilities, they may instead choose either mental or physical scores to boost; at the level after, instead of getting a bonus to physical scores, they instead get a bonus to either mental or physical, whichever one they did not choose the level previously.
Words of Power: Players may choose to use Words of Power if they wish to do so. The feats based around them are available as well.
Called Shots: Both players and enemies may use Called Shots if they wish to do so – the feats based around these called shots are also allowed.
Leadership Feat: Players may take the Leadership feat if they wish to do so at the appropriate time. The DM, however, will create and control Cohorts; though the players may specify what they’re looking for in a cohort.
Retraining: Given time and money in an appropriate locale, players may retrain as per the Ultimate Campaign rules.
Downtime: The downtime rules for building teams and organizations will not be in play due to the players’ already having to manage the Silver Ravens. That being said, there will be ample time for downtime activities such as crafting or using skills to make money on their own time.
Background Skills: As mentioned in the character creation outline, Background skills are in effect.

PENDING OPTIONAL RULES

The following rules are potentially going to be in effect - Once I’ve picked my players, I’m going to discuss the rules for these and have a vote on them. In addition, I need to read them in more depth to make sure I understand them properly before applying them.

Dynamic Magic Item Creation: Since the Big 6 magic items no longer exist, greater emphasis will be placed on magic items that provide additional options to players. This ruleset looks interesting at first glance and might be put into effect for non-potions/scrolls/wands.
Alternative Crafting and Profession Rules: A quick read of these rules shows a promising alternative to otherwise bland and complex Crafting rules.
Alternative Diseases and Poisons: I need to take the time to read this in more depth before I decide, but I’d also like player input on these alternative rules. At first glance, however, they look positively grisly.

LAWS AND REGULATIONS OF THRICE-DAMNED CHELIAX

The following laws and regulations are commonplace in Cheliax, and although Kintargo has always been lax on enforcing these laws, with Barzillai Thrune enacting martial law, the city’s Dottari have begun enforcing them properly to an increased extent.

Laws and Regulations of Thrice-Damned Cheliax:

1: Weapons made up of alchemical silver are proscribed without a license or special permission; licenses can be obtained at government facilities for a price. Failure to uphold this law can result in confiscation of the weapon(s) in violation, fees depending on the weapon in question and possible jail time and/or public humiliation or excruciation.
2: The following alchemical substances are proscribed: Holy Water, Silver Weapon Blanches, and any other sort of substances that are anathemic to devil-kind. Licences to create or carry such substances may be obtained from sanctioned government facilities. Any non-licensed person in possession of said substances can be subject to confiscation of goods, fees, and possible jail time and/or public humiliation or excruciation.
3: The worship and possession of paraphernalia related to these deities is proscribed: Calistra, Cayden Cailean, Desna, Milani, Sarenrae, (and as of recently) Iomedae. Possession of such paraphernalia or proof of worship can result in confiscation of goods and/or property, fees, possible jail time and/or public humiliation or excruciation.
4: The following magical items are proscribed: Weapons aligned to the alignments of the holy and chaotic realms, weapons enchanted with devil-killing abilities, and armor enchanted against devils, as well as any magical item created for the explicit purpose of opposing devil-kind. Licences to carry any such magical item can be obtained via explicit permission by a government body. Failure to comply can result in confiscation of goods and property, fees, possible jail time, and/or public humiliation or excruciation.
5: The summoning, calling, or bargaining with outsiders of the good- or chaotic- realms is proscribed except by licensed practitioners. Licenses may be obtained from either a governmental body or the Church of Asmodeus. Failure to comply may result in fees, jail time, and/or public humiliation, excruciation, and/or the removal of the fingers necessary to the completion of somatic spellcasting components. In the case of those without removable fingers, the tongue may be substituted.

POSTING CONSIDERATIONS

When the campaign begins in earnest (not during the prelude/recruitment period) you will be expected to post at least once every 48 hours (24 preferred) If you are going on a vacation, very busy, or otherwise unable to post just let me know and I will consider you on "standby" for the amount of time specified and you will be DMPC'd for that time.

If anyone disappears for 7 straight days without posting or leaving notice your character will be retired at the earliest possible opportunity - if not outright killed by an unfortunate accident.

SELECTION

I will be selecting six characters to round out the Silver Ravens; each will be expected to fill a single leadership position in the Silver Ravens, although with the Recruiter allowing more than one person, it means not all positions will be filled at all times - not to mention the fact that players may change positions each week as they see fit by using the appropriate organization action.

As far as party composition goes, I will only be looking marginally at team composition; I would much rather pick six excellent characters over a few excellent characters and a few poorer ones that fill out the composition properly. Know this and make sure your character can either be versatile or work as a team with possible overlap. Since retraining is available, this is always an option to help fill out weak points in the team.

In addition, characters who catch my eye yet end up not making it into the campaign may be brought into the campaign as special-guest NPCs with the permission of the players who created them. These special NPCs might see themselves becoming allies or even rivals of the players, depending on circumstances. As a result, any such guest NPC’s player will be invited to keep tabs on the campaign as a guest - should a previously chosen player drop out of the campaign, these guests will be the first to be chosen as replacements should they be interested.

Once you have created and submitted a character (and only one) for consideration, please head over to the gameplay thread and participate in a roleplaying encounter at a local tavern known as the Tooth and Nail. More information on the old, yet popular tavern will be in the gameplay thread. This prelude will take place the afternoon after the Night of Ashes occurred - the very same day Paracount Barzillai Thrune takes office and enacts martial law.

Please refrain from rolling dice or otherwise making any sort of mechanical check during this prelude period, as it is unnecessary. This prelude is to help me get a feel for everyone’s writing style and their ability to interact with others.

The recruitment period for the campaign will run until the 28th of January, at 11:59 PM Mountain Standard Time (Use Google to see what it is for your time zone)

I of course, will be available to answer any and all questions either via posts here or private messages. Don’t be afraid to ask! I won’t bite!

...Much.. maybe just a nibble.. Licks lips.


Welcome to the Ruins of Pathfinder: The Tower of K'rthos Gameplay Thread! Please do not post anything in this thread for now, except a single post to dot it for future visibility. I will let you know when you may post!


Durp


Welcome to the Throne of Night: Overlords Discussion Thread!


Been having a debate with one of my players and we are at a disagreement on how Grab works. Note, I am not including Constrict in this example, as the creature in question (A Goblin Feral Gnasher) does not have Constrict, only Grab.

The Goblin has 14 strength, only one natural attack (excluding unarmed) that deals 1d6 damage with +3 from strength since it is a single attack. The Goblin has Grab that goes along with its bite, and can use Grab on enemies who are medium or smaller.

Here is how I argue it rules:

Turn 1: Goblin Bites Player, dealing 1d6+3 damage and succeeding with his Grapple Check. Player and Goblin are both grappled.

Turn 2: Goblin successfully maintains grapple. He deals 1d6+3 damage from the attack used to establish the grapple, then using his grapple action, may choose to either: Move the player, attempt to pin or tie up, or deal damage to the player equal to an unarmed strike, a natural attack, or with a light or one-handed weapon (or armor spikes).

As a result, the goblin, if it chooses to deal damage equal to the natural attack, effectively does 2d6+6 damage per turn AFTER the first that it maintains the grapple, yes? (If it chooses to deal damage equal to its bite attack each turn with its grapple action, which it doesn't have to do)

Instead, the goblin can do 1d6+3 damage (with grab) and choose to move the target, pin, etc.

================================

My player, meanwhile, argues slightly differently:

Turn 1: Same as above

Turn 2: Goblin successfully maintains grapple. He can then use his grapple action to move the player, attempt to pin or tie up, or deal damage to the player equal to an unarmed strike, a natural attack, or with a light or one-handed weapon (or armor spikes).

In this case, the goblin can only do 1d6+3 damage per turn and only if he chooses to deal damage with his grapple action.

=================================

I am well aware that this question has come up many times in the past; I've done thorough research on it, but in all of the cases, Constrict was used in the examples, and I'm not using Constrict (At this time, at least).

What do you guys think?


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The town of Torch has long enjoyed a singular claim to prosperity - a violet flame that burns atop Black Hill in the heart of town. This flame burns incredibly hot, and while it’s usually the size of a bonfire, several times a year the fires spew up into the heavens in a brilliant beam of purple violence. These are eruptions are presaged by about an hour of soft rumbling, giving nearby smiths a chance to retreat before the flames can consume them. At all other times, the violet energies allow for the smelting of all manner of skymetal. Torch is one of the only locations where Skymetal can be worked with relative ease outside of Starfall, and its entire economy has risen around these enigmatic purple flames, with traveling smiths coming from across Avistan to pay for the opportunity to work with them. Of course, Torch needs all the visiting trade and coin it can gather, for while the town’s distance from Starfall makes it inconvenient for the Technic League to maintain a permanent residence here, the taxes and tariffs it charges the Numerian town on a monthly basis are significant. The town prospers, but the bulk of its income does not belong to it.

Which is why, when the fires atop the hill suddenly go out, the town is in trouble.

It has been eight days since the town’s singular source of income has gone out; Later that day, Council Khonnir Baine discovered a series of previously-unknown caverns beneath Black Hill, accessible through a short underwater tunnel in the Weeping Pond, the town’s tainted water source. With a promised reward of four-thousand gold pieces to anyone who can rekindle the precious violet flame, the town saw no shortage of volunteers - at first. After four separate adventuring parties went missing beneath the caves, one lead by Councilor Baine himself, the town now finds itself with a lack of volunteers and a dwindling hope of ever rekindling their livelihood - and with the next shipment of the town’s taxes to the Technic League due soon, Torch may find itself in deep trouble.

Perhaps their hope lies in the newest band of rag-tag adventurers to grace the city; a band calling themselves Hoots’ Hellions. Perhaps, however, the Hellions will find themselves facing the same fate as the previous adventurers, and Torch’s last hope will die with them.

But first, the Hellions must meet with the councilmembers to let them know of their interest in taking the job, and it is here where their journey begins.

 

              P A T H F I N D E R  P R E S E N T S
                        I R O N  G O D S
                     Book I: Fires of Creation
­­­                       Part 1: A Dying Torch

 

     << Torch, Numeria | 10 A.M. | Mild, Sunny, Daytime | Toilday, Desnus 3rd, 4714 AR >>

As the Hellions make their way towards what is one of the grander buildings in the town, the Town Hall, with its large watch tower and marbled architecture, they find the town sullen, with an air of anxiousness and foreboding. Theres also the fact that the town has lost its primary source of waste disposal; As a result, filth has begun piling up in the streets and the smell of decay is growing.

Thankfully, they put the smell behind them as they enter the Town Hall, seeking an audience with the councilmembers. Inside, they find only a single one not off pursuing some other work or task: The oldest councilmember, Dolga Freddert. This dwarven woman, well into her 200th year, is surprisingly stout and muscular for her age, possessing a certain energy and alertness not often seen in one so old. At her side, hanging from her belt, is the weapon she’s so fond of, a gleaming adamantine warhammer imbued with magical enchantments.

As she sees the group, she raises one of her bushy gray eyebrows at the odd assortment of newcomers; a burly orc who appears so dimwitted as to have gorged himself on Numerian Fluids, a sour-faced dwarf bearing the symbol of Gorum, what appears to be a humanoid owl wearing a brown poncho and matching wide-brimmed hat, and a small, slight and dainty-looking Kellid woman with an ornate walking stick. Beside her walks a white tiger, easily as big as she is.

”Well, shit, what’ve we here? You the newest volunteers I been hearing about, eh? Got to say, didn’t believe the rumors of just how damn rag-tag you were. Heard there was a dwarf travelin’ with an orc travelin’ with a gun-totin’ bird, but with the troubles and headaches as of late, I figgur’d they were far-fetched. Guess my ass I was wrong, eh? Well, welcome to Torch, as best of a welcome as we can give ya, considerin’ the troubles. Sorry the rest o’ the Councilors can’t be here to greet ya; Ol’ Kyte and Otterbie are coordinatin’ ways to get rid of all the shits thats been pilin’ up, while Olandir’s been nursin’ a headache she’s had for the past three days. And of course I don’t need ta tell you about Baine, who’s gone an’ got himself missing down beneath the Hill. So, all you’ve got is me - Dolga Freddert, at yer service.”

Despite her foul language and rough demeanor, the dwarf shakes each of the group’s hands, friendlier than one might expect, though her iron grip leaves a painful sensation afterwards.

____________________________________________________

Welcome to the Iron Gods Campaign! Feel free to make your introductory posts, although I’m well aware that your characters already know each other. Dolga is here to provide answers to any questions you may have, so ask away!

In addition, on your way here, each of you heard rumors pertaining to the town. These are listed below.

Groog:
A pair of dwarves got drunk at the Foundry a few nights ago and went up to Black Hill to drink some of the sludge up there on a dare. One them grew massively stronger for a few minutes after drinking the stuff, but the other one nearly died after the fluids burnt a hole in his gut!

Hoots:
All of these weird headaches folks have been having lately? I bet they’re being caused by someone tampering with Crowfeather Palace. I’ve been drinking only rainwater and I’ve not had a headache yet!

Vallan:
The mechanical creature Councilman Baine found under Black Hill wasn’t the only one. Others have been crawling out of the ground around town and attacking people!

Dahlia:
Wonder what happened to that good-looking woman with the purple hair? Doesn’t anyone else find it strange that she showed up a few days before the torch went out, and no one’s seen her since?

Dice Rolls:

Groog: 1d100 ⇒ 71
Hoots: 1d100 ⇒ 35
Vallan: 1d100 ⇒ 85
Dahlia: 1d100 ⇒ 18

Groog: 1d20 ⇒ 6
Hoots: 1d20 ⇒ 7
Vallan: 1d20 ⇒ 17
Dahlia: 1d20 ⇒ 4


Back during the Inner Sea Bestiary when we got our first glimpse of robots; The Annihilator, the Gearsman, and the Myrmidon, specifically.

At the beginning of the Robot entry it talks about the Robot Subtype and includes things such as force fields and integrated weaponry.

Now, looking at one new robot we see in Fire of Creation (Collector Robot), it doesn't mention anything about integrated weaponry or force fields, though to be fair, neither does the Gearsman (Which didn't include those in the ISB either, but didn't actually HAVE any integrated weaponry)

Would it be fair to assume that the Collector Robot and the various Drones have the integrated weaponry ability as per their Robot Subtype? What about giving one a Force Field? Since the Gearsman specifically lacks a force field despite appearing in the same book as force fields were introduced, I can reasonably understand them going without one. And yes, I'm aware that the drones are technically variant Clockwork Servants - but they ARE given the Robot subtype, after all.

For those unaware of the Robot Subtype's specific rules, you can find them Here on the PFSRD.

What do you guys think?


Alright guys, start discussing character ideas here! :D


Greetings everyone! I'm going to be running Shattered Star soon here on the boards, and though I've read the first book, I've come to you all for possible assistance in making it work.

For those unaware, I will be modifying the campaign to be set in Robert Brookes' Ruins of Pathfinder setting - meaning that, the players are working for Karzoug, rather than the Pathfinders. In fact, the group the players are now working for is none other than the Cyphermages, who have expanded their area of expertise in this alternate setting, replacing the Pathfinders in the newly reborn Shalast.

As a result.. this campaign's going to be needing some changes, obviously. First, I'm running with 6 players - their exact class/race combinations are currently unknown, and we're possibly going to be testing out the new classes with the upcoming Advanced Class Guide playtest. In addition to the 6 players, they're being given 25-point builds, due to the hardier nature of Ruins of Pathfinder denizens.

One thing also that has changed is that the region is being affected not only by Karzoug's influence, but also the Reign of Winter that is currently choking the life out of the region. Food prices have quadrupled, cold-weather gear prices have doubled, and the region is constantly beset by snow and cold weather - Magnimar itself is more crime-ridden than ever, as well, due to increased taxes thanks to Karzoug.

Normally, running 6 players is relatively easy to modify for - simply add 50% extra minions here and there, enough to equate to 50% additional experience. However, combining that with an increased stat build, how would I go about making things more dangerous, without further increasing experience gains?

My thoughts are give the NPCs more 'disposable gear' (Alchemical weapons), better tactics, and possibly better terrain here and there, etc - but I've come to you, people who have run this campaign already, for this question.

Thoughts?


Welcome to the Ruins of Pathfinder: The Shattered Star Gameplay Thread! Please do not post anything in this thread for now, except a single post to dot it for future visibility. I will let you know when you may post!


Welcome to the Ruins of Pathfinder: The Shattered Star Discussion Thread!


Weeee! It be here!


So guys, since Redemption plays a large part in this campaign..

Share your redemption stories! Which bad guys have your players (or you, if you're a player but don't mind spoilers, thus your presence in my thread), have helped along the path of redemption?

Me.. I'm running a single-player game with 4 randomized PCs.. and they're working to help Chaleb Sazomal along that path. After capturing him, they took the time to turn him from his ways - currently, he's Indifferent to the party. I figured asking him to repent would be considered "Give Aid that could result in Punishment".. and even though that would make the DC 30..

My halfling Bard succeeded on the check with the help of a few assists. Little bugger can really talk to people! So, now we have Chaleb following us around, helping us out and trying to repent.. time will tell if he succeeds or dies in the process - or turns back to evil, which might be likely due to his personality.


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As the title mentions.. has anyone made/seen a hex map of the Shackles?

So far, I've been searching around for one, and haven't had any luck finding anything.. though I've certainly seen mention of people wanting one.

If there isn't one.. or one that encompasses all of the Shackles, well then I'm just going to have to make mah own! I'm working on my own modified S&S campaign.. one that, in reality, is more like a sequel to a failed S&S campaign - one where the PCs lost, and the big-bads won.

:P


Welcome to Ruins of Pathfinder: Road to Damnation's discussion thread!


Eto – city in the middle of the desert, a central point for caravans heading to Thuvia. Few cities have become as important to the survival of Osirion as this one. For while its location is an important stop for caravans between Shiman-Sekh and the ruined capital of Sothis, its location is even more important as a nexus for the brave and foolhardy adventurers that seek their fortunes and often, their deaths, in the sands of Osirion. With the capital of Osirion half destroyed from Xotani's rampage four years ago, Eto and its lure of adventurers has brought in large sums of money to the nation. This year will be the biggest yet.

With the Khamsin season in full swing and Aucturn nearly in alignment that happens only once every 56 years, the small city of Eto is bustling with activity. Starting today, Gozran 8th, is the week-long celebration of the influx of foreign commerce, trade, and investment that will kick off the beginning of the many foreign expeditions heading out into the sands. For an entire week, merchants, laborers, and tradesmen from all over Osirion meet in Eto to supply the many treasure hunters and explorers everything they might need – and many luxuries they don't need. The celebration, hosted by the local clergy of Abadar, features food and beverages from all over northern Garund, dancing and other festive activities, and merchants hawking nearly every type of ware one could ever want, and many more. It all ends a week later with a swoop of cleric-escorted tax collectors and a massive feast on the day known by the Abadar faithful as 'Taxfest' – shortly after, most of the foreign expeditionaries are long gone, off to seek their riches or their doom.

After a four-day journey by boat and then camel from Sothis, those entering Eto pass through the cities' sandstone brick gate and are then greeted with the festival on the third day of its celebration. Immediately they are accosted by the smells of innumerable different foods, fine incenses and tobacco, and the relaxing sounds of harps, flutes, and other instruments half-droned out among the crowded, busy streets of Eto. Everywhere are merchants, mercenaries, and foreigners of all shapes and sizes, some hawking wares, others hawking spellcasting services, with spells helping to endure the heat being a particular favorite on such a hot day. Everywhere, there is something different to see, to smell, and to taste. Everywhere, there is someone new to meet.

Tired, dirty, and hungry from their trip, the new arrivals have much to do. The celebration awaits!

 

 

<< Gates of Eto | Mid-Morning | Dusty, Very Hot | Wealday, Gozran 11th, 4713 AR >>

 

 

_____________________________________

Welcome to the prologue of Road to Damnation! This is a purely roleplaying experience that lets me see the players in action as they explore the last of the festivities currently happening in Eto. During the recruitment process, I ask that no one makes any mechanical checks. Nor do you need to worry about spending any of your starting gold! Feel free to roleplay yourself purchasing your starting gear or any services you wish to 'acquire'.

Over time I will further along the days of the celebration. The campaign will start in earnst on the final day of the celebration during the feast.

Map of Osirion


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"If you have men who will only come if there is a good road, I don't want them. I want men who will only come if there is no road at all." 
   
-David Livingstone

 

Ruins of Pathfinder: Road to Damnation

 

Welcome, one and all, to the recruitment for The Road to Damnation, a Pathfinder adventure set in the post-apocalyptic Ruins of Pathfinder alternate reality. In this variant of the Pathfinder setting, numerous apocalyptic events have ocurred due to the failure of heroes to stave off disaster as presented in Pathfinder's published adventure paths, up to (but not including) Shattered Star.

For full information on Robert Brookes' Ruins of Pathfinder alternate reality, please follow this link. A wiki for the setting is a work in progress and can be found here.

The Road to Damnation focuses on an expedition of archaeologists and adventurers under Professor Dr. Henric Archibald Pinkerton - more commonly known simply as 'Dr. Pinkerton', one of the last remaining members of the Esoteric Order of the Palatine Eye - as he heads deep into the Parched Dunes of Osirion in search of a lost stone sepulcher that supposedly held a secret, immortal sect of Sages that venerated an ancient, fallen Angel.

You are among the best and brightest Dr. Pinkerton chose for this once in a lifetime expedition. The Aucturn Enigma has nearly begun, and adventurers and archaeologists are arriving in Osirion by the droves to seek out the many ancient ruins that will be uncovered by the raging sandstorms that follow. What Dr. Pinkerton doesn't realize, however, is just how far this journey will take them - it might just take them down the Road to Damnation.

Where in the Apocalypse are we?

Those familiar with the Ruins of Pathfinder alternate reality will know that it is currently 4715 AR in the Reign of Winter campaign, roughly two years ahead of Road to Damnation. In the current timeline, Sothis, capital of Osirion, has been devastated by Xotani the Fire Bleeder, and the Ruby Prince has been killed. With more than half of the city having been destroyed by the short but brutal rampage of Xotani, and the Aucturn Enigma fast approaching, the remaining leadership of Osirion has been keenly interested in bringing in traffic to their nation to bolster their economy, and the droves of adventurers are the perfect solution.

With the elementals of Osirion stirred up by Aucturn's alignment, ne'er do well adventurer teams and rival expeditions causing up trouble in the sands, and vast tribes of Gnolls spewing forth from the hidden oasis temple of Lamashtu's Flower, the deserts of Osirion are an exceedingly dangerous place - one in which only the most resourceful will survive. Dr. Pinkerton and his crew will have their work cut out for them.

Into the Mirage and onto Glory!

Please pay close attention to the character creation guidelines below.

CHARACTER CREATION

Your character in Road to Damnation will belong to Dr. Pinkerton's Expedition, a small group of roughly 30 people under Dr. Pinkerton's employ who will accompany him into the Parched Dunes of Osirion. You will need to not only be capable at defending yourself and others from the dangerous of this sun-blasted land, but also survive the ancient ruins and outer planes that you will end up in.

This campaign will begin just a week or so before Dr. Pinkerton's expedition sets out from Eto.

Characters in Ruins of Pathfinder come from a harder, more cut-throat world than normal. Character creation options help outline this:

Starting Level: PCs will start at 2nd level.
Alignment: Any Non-Evil
Ability Scores: 25 point buy.
HP: Max HP rolls at 1st and 2nd level. Players will roll for HP or take Average from level 3 onward.
Traits: 2 traits plus one Mythic Campaign Trait (See Below)
Drawback: 1 Drawback required. This helps offset the more powerful Campaign Trait.
Story Feats: One free Story feat at 1st level
Base Starting Money: 1,000gp
Races: Any Core, with others allowed on a case by case basis.
Classes: All classes from Paizo products.
Firearms: Firearms operate under the "commonplace guns" rule* (See Below for Exception)
(see Ultimate Combat for more details).
Crafted Items: Any character able to craft items through a feat may do so at the reduced prices. Characters with craft skills may craft items ahead of time at the reduced price if they can craft the item by taking a 10 and succeed.

When you create a submission, please create a character alias and include your character information in the form of a bestiary stat block like Dr. Logem's Profile.

Also, include the following information in your profile:

1) Appearance
2) Personality
3) Background
4) Mythic Path you plan on taking (Including Dual Paths if you go that route)

*Firearms - Any character from Alkenstar may consider firearms as "Guns Everywhere", and may use the lower prices when purchasing early and advanced firearms.

MYTHIC CAMPAIGN TRAITS

Considering this will become a Mythic campaign early on, the campaign traits both explain why you're in Osirion and represent what Mythic Path you will hopefully be choosing. While you do not have to pick a campaign trait matching your planned Mythic Path, you will find that the campaign trait will upgrade in power if you do choose the same mythic path at your moment of Ascension. These traits are more powerful than the standard traits you may normally see. These are not set in stone - I'm willing to work with the players to tailor the lore behind each trait to an extent.

Archmage: Nexian Prodigy:

Nex is known far and wide for its arcanists. You distinguished yourself early on as a prodigy among your kind - skilled in the arcane arts, however you chose to practice them. With the Aucturn Enigma fast approaching, you and other like-minded individuals set out on an expedition into the heart of Osirion to research the effects of the aligned planet on the lay-lines and elementals that inhabited the region. What you didn't realize, however, was the ferocity of the region's elementals - you are one of the last survivors of this failed expedition, after having encountered and survived a brutal attack by elementals protecting their territory. Limping back to Sothis, the ruined capital of Osirion, you tended your wounds - these, however, were not enough to halt your curiosity or thirst for knowledge, and you now seek to find a new expedition headed into the sands.

Bonus: +2 Trait bonus to CL Checks vs Spell Resistance

Hierophant: Rahadoumi Exile:

You are a heretic. A blasphemer. Or, at least, thats what the Pure Legion of Rahadoum would call you. Whatever the source of your faith, you were prosecuted and nearly executed for your beliefs. But, as chance would have it, you escaped. To this day you still do not understand how you escaped. The only explaination was that some higher being had to have helped you. You never met this supposed rescuer, but your belief in your faith has only been empowered by this feeling. Fleeing Rahadoum as a refugee, you eventually came to Osirion, hoping to help the survivors of Xotani's rampage where you can.

Bonus: +2 to Will Saves

Champion: Mana Storm Survivor:

You once lived in the Mana Wastes - perhaps in Alkenstar, or perhaps in a smaller, less known settlement. Magic was foreign to you, though mana storms were a very real threat. You lived there as a mercenary - fighting to earn your keep, killing whatever you were told to kill. Once while out on a mission, you and your group were beset by a suddenly manifested Mana Storm. The rest of your group were killed in variously horrific ways. You, however, were spared - only to be wisked away to Osirion by an odd teleportation effect. Eager to see the wondrous world at large, you never went home, instead choosing to stay in Osirion and work as a mercenary until you gained enough money to travel abroad.

Bonus: Pick one Fighter Weapon Group: Gain +1 to Attack with all weapons from that category

Guardian: Former Risen Guard:

You died, once. You gave your life defending the cause of Osirion. At the order of the Ruby Prince, you were resurrected back into the world of the living. From that day forth, your previous life meant nothing - your past family ties, allegiances, and friendships - all nothing. You became one of the Risen Guard, fanatically devout protectors of the Ruby Prince and his family. You witnessed the Princes descent into madness and paranoia - you also witnessed his butcher of thousands of innocent refugees after he called forth Xotani the Fire Bleeder. You survived the destruction and chaos - your faith in the royal family, did not. You left their service and sought to defend Osirion in your own way.'

Bonus: +1 Hit Point per Level

Marshal: Katapesh Refugee:

You witnessed the destruction of Katapesh when Xotani the Fire Bleeder was reborn into the world. You survived the destruction, leading other refugees to Osirion to seek refuge. You were seen as a hero and praised by those you saved. When the Ruby Prince came forth with a plan to lead you to new lands, you were willing and eager, and helped get others' minds along this path. What you didn't realize was the Ruby Prince's plan for betrayal. You witnessed tens of thousands of your fellows die, along with the Ruby Prince himself. Somehow - by some miracle or sheer luck - you survived a second encounter with the Fire Bleeder. Since the disaster, you have vowed to lead others to prosperity, not ruin.

Bonus: +4 trait bonus to Initiative

Trickster: Thuvian Adventurer:

Thuvia, the land of the Sun Orchid Elixir - you were once one of the adventurers hired to seek out the precious Sun Orchids in the blasted deserts. You faced the scorching suns of Thuvia, bandits, and rampant Divs - in the end, your team was successful, but only partially. While you were able to obtain a single, precious Sun Orchid, your team eventually fell to a Div ambush. You alone escaped, though you lost the plant in the process. Reputation ruined as a failed adventurer, you left Thuvia and went eastward to Osirion - with rumors of adventurers being hired in droves for expeditions into the deserts, you sought new work in a new location where your reputation was unknown.

Bonus: +2 Trait bonus to any three skills

Campaign Theme

Road to Damnation will be a Mythic Campaign that revolves around a road trip through the Outer Sphere. During this campaign, the players will face off against the varied inhabitants of these planes, survive some of the harshest landscapes of the Outer Sphere, and do their best to resist the corruption within their souls from this journey.

As a result, there are three major themes to Road to Damnation:

1) Planar Travel and harsh landscapes.
2) Outsiders representing each of the alignment axis - Good, Evil, Law, and Chaos, with Evil being the most represented.
3) A custom Corruption Mechanic, similar to the Redemption mechanic found in Wrath of the Righteous.

In addition, the religions and faiths revolving around Nurgal, Charon, Trelmarixian, Dispater, Vildeis, and Tabris will all make appearances in the campaign – for better or for worse.

This is not a sandbox campaign, and you will not have ample opportunity to craft or research – there will be places and times when you can, of course, but they will not be common. You will be in the wilderness for a good chunk of the time, while dungeon-delving most of the rest of the time.

Finally, this campaign will not use experience, and instead the players will level and gain mythic tiers based roughly on check-points. As a result, there will be fewer combat encounters, but each encounter will further the campaign along – there will be no 'filler' combats that serve no real purpose except to use the party's resources and give them experience. All combats will be more or less dangerous and harrowing. We will be leveling at a rapid pace compared to most Play by Posts. My goal is roughly one level per month, though it may go slower or faster depending on circumstances.

OPTIONAL RULES USED

Though not everyone will be required to use these as part of their character design, certain optional rules will be used or allowed in Road to Damnation. These are as follows:

Words of Power: Players may choose to use Words of Power if they wish to do so. The feats based around them are available as well.
Called Shots: Both players and enemies may use Called Shots if they wish to do so – the feats based around these called shots are also allowed.
Leadership Feat: Players may take the Leadership feat if they wish to do so at the appropriate time – finding cohorts and followers may prove a more difficult task, however.
Retraining: Given time and money in an appropriate locale, players may retrain as per the Ultimate Campaign rules.
Bargaining: For rare or unique items, players may find merchants to bargain with, potentially gaining more or less money for their rare items.

POSTING CONSIDERATIONS

When the campaign begins in earnest (not during the prelude/recruitment period) you will be expected to post at least once every 48 hours. If you are going on a vacation, very busy, or otherwise unable to post just let me know and I will consider you on "standby" for the amount of time specified and you will be DMPC'd for that time.

If anyone disappears for 7 straight days without posting or leaving notice you will be killed off without hope of resurrection. This is extremely generous in terms of time span, so please don't let it get to that level of uninvolvement.

EMBARK FROM SOTHIS TO ETO!

Once you have created and submitted a character (and only one) for consideration, please head over to the gameplay thread and participate in the caravan passage from the Ruins of Sothis to Eto. This scene takes place mere weeks before Dr. Pinkerton plans on leaving on his expedition - you will be traveling among a caravan filled with adventurer-hopefuls who head to Eto to find work among the numerous expeditions being planned. The journey takes place over four days from Sothis to Eto by foot or camel.

Please refrain from rolling dice or otherwise making any sort of mechanical check during this prelude period, it is unnecessary. The gameplay thread will be up very soon, either the 26th or 27th.

SELECTION

I will be selecting 7 expeditionaries from the submitted characters who participate in the gameplay prologue journey. An eighth player, a close real life friend, will also be joining the party. Recruitment ends on September 8th 2013 at 11:PM Mountain Time Zone (UTC-7). Late submissions will not be considered.

ITS TIME FOR A ROAD TRIP!


With the Mythic Adventures book to be released soon, I have been devising a homebrew campaign set in Robert Brookes' alternate history of Golarion, Ruins of Pathfinder, where all previous heroes have failed, causing the world to spiral into a post-apocalyptic setting.

With the coming of a Second Darkness, return of the Runelord of Greed, rebirth of a Spawn of Rovagug, and innumerable other catastrophes, the world is in shambles as entire nations crumble. And yet, despite this, one of the last members of the Estoic Order of the Palatine Eye prepares to mount an expedition that he hopes will bring salvation to a world that desperately needs it.

Missionary, scholar, and gentleman adventurer, Dr. Henric Pinkerton gathers some of the best and brightest to venture deep into Osirion's deserts in search of the very same sages that his order's founder studied under over 700 years previous. What he doesn't expect, however, is that this journey may very well bring him - and those following him - down the Road to Damnation.

-------

Ruins of Pathfinder: Road to Damnation will be a Mythic campaign set originally in Osirion, but will end up spanning numerous Outer Planes in a journey that will test the very limits of the soul.

One major aspect of this campaign, besides planar travel, will be a custom mechanic similar to Wrath of the Righteous's Redemption mechanic - Corruption. Instead of redeeming evildoers, players will have to resist the corrupting influence of evil on their souls - or let it consume them, granting them power at the cost of eternal damnation as they sink deeper and deeper into evil.

Outsiders will also play a strong role in this campaign, but will not be limited to mainly Demons as Wrath of the Righteous will be. The faiths surrounding Nurgal, Charon, Trelmarixian, Dispater, and Vildeis will each play important roles throughout the campaign, as will other faiths to a lesser extent.

A third major aspect of this campaign will be terrain - First venturing forth into the dangerous sands of Osirion, and then into some of the harshest landscapes of the Outer Sphere, this campaign will test the resourcefulness of adventurers who must travel there. Even the Worldwound's rough landscape will pale in comparison to what the players will face in this campaign.

I plan on starting recruitment in early September, provided enough people show interest.

So who's up for a road trip?


Welcome to Crusty's Psionic Rise of the Runelords Campaign!

This campaign will be set in an alternate Golarion - one where Magic does not exist, while Psionics does. Normally, this would radically change how we know the world - for ease of running this campaign, and so I may keep my sanity, instead, history happened as it happened, but simply Psionics replaces Magic.

As a result, the campaign will run very similar to a normal RotR campaign - it will just have a twist of Psionics instead of Magic! I will be working Psionic Races into the world as well, so they are not left out. As a result of this change, all Magic items will instead be Psionic items, and all Spell-Like Abilities of creatures such as Outsiders will be replaced with Psi-like abilities of a nearly identical nature.

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Character Creation
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Starting Level: The PCs will start at level 1.
Alignment: Any Alignment is allowed, although evil characters need to be able to play nicely with others, and have a realistic reason why they'd help Sandpoint.
Ability Scores: 20 Point Buy
Hp: Max Hp for 1st level; Players will roll for HP on every level onward or take what would be Average + 1 for your Hit Dice. (I.E., 7 Hp for a d12, 4 Hp for a d6, 6 Hp for a d10, etc)
Traits: 3 Traits, one of which must be a Rise of the Runelords campaign trait.
Drawback: Players must pick a drawback. No one is perfect, and flaws are fun! Not to mention, Sins are an important part of this campaign, so sinful tendences are expected based on the drawback chosen.
Base Starting Money: Average for your class.
Races: Any race from the Core Rulebook and Psionics Unleashed Books except see below. Any others must ask for permission!
Classes: All Psionic Classes, plus Core and Base Classes with no spellcasting capability.

Class List:

Core: Barbarian, Fighter, Monk, Paladin (Certain Archtypes), Ranger (Certain Archtypes), Rogue
Base/Alternate: Alchemist, Cavalier, Samurai, Ninja, Gunslinger
Psionic: Aegis, Cryptic, Dread, Marksman, Psion, Psychic Warrior, Soulknife, Tactician, Vitalist, Wilder

Downtime: Downtime Rules from Ultimate Campaign will be utilized when and where appropriate.
Retraining: Retraining Rules from Ultimate Campaign will be utilized when and where appropriate
Crafted Items: Any character able to craft items through a craft feat may do so at the reduced prices. Characters with craft skills may craft items ahead of time and start with them at the reduced price if they can craft the item by taking a 10 and succeed.
Psionic Races in Golarion:

Blues: Despite their more civilized and organized tendencies, Blues are met with distrust around Golarion. Most races, with a few minor exceptions, put Blues in the same category as their non-psionic cousins, the Goblins, especially in places where Goblins are common. As a result, Blues have few allies; They get along best with Hobgoblins, who they often work together with. Playing a Blue in this campaign will be difficult - people in Varisia, especially in Sandpoint, have a general hatred towards Goblins, with Blues being 'just another type of goblin' in their eyes. Anyone playing a Blue in this campaign will be met with distrust, racism, and sometimes outright hostility. At least, until they can prove themselves worthy of respect.
Dromites: Rare in Varisia, most Dromites are found in Garund, particularly in the Mwangi Expanse. As such, when they are encountered in Varisia, they are seen with curiosity by some, disgust at their insectile appearance by others. However, thanks to their liberal attitudes, they are often viewed positively by native Varisians, while quite the opposite by Chelish Colonists. Playing a Dromite in this campaign will mean standing out from the crowd as much as a Blue might. But instead of being hated, most people in Varisia just don't know much about Dromites, just as they might not know much about a Wayang or Kitsune.
Duergar: The Psionic variety of Duergar are a different breed altogether than normal Duergar - still, they are universally hated by Dwarves, as in their eyes, they are no different than the normal Duergar. They are generally distrusted by other races. More often than not, Duergar are much like their nonpsionic brethren, so the distrust is understandable. Playing a Duergar would mean instantly being hated by any dwarf encountered - most other outsiders generally look at Duergar with wary eyes, even if the Duergar means well. Most Duegar are found deep underground, so they are rarely encountered by surface folk.
Elan: (No, not the bard from OOTS) Elans are more often than not, hard to differentiate from most Humans. As a result, they are found anywhere and everywhere Humans are. Their secret society is spread far and wide. Most Elans look like Taldans, as that is what the current council's 'trend' favors. Playing an Elan will be very similar to playing a Human when regarding how others treat you. At most, they may be slightly put off from a 'wierd vibe' from an Elan, but most will not realize an Elan's aberrant nature. Elans will always recognize one another on sight.
Half-Giant: Half-Giants are in fact, native to Varisia. All Half-Giants are of Shoanti descent, as they are the result of Ancient Thassilion's attempt at breeding a more superior warrior caste. They are rarer than full blooded Shoanti, but live very much in the same way. Their culture is nearly identical to Shoanti, and the two are friendly with one another more often than not. Despite their willingness to trade, negotiate, and ally with Shoanti, it is extremely rare for the two to interbreed. Half-Giants wish to keep what Giant-blood they have and do not wish to water it down with human blood.Those living in Varisia look at Half-Giants the same way as Shoanti. Playing a Half-Giant will be similar to playing a full blooded Shoanti. Some Varisians respect Shoanti, others, especially Chelish Colonists, distrust them. Half-Giants will get along well with Shoanti when encountered. Full blooded Giants often view them akin to full blooded Orcs viewing Half-Orcs. They consider them weak and not fit to live. That being said, Half-Giants still have the best chance at diplomacy with Giants thanks to their shared ancestry.
Maenad: Rumored to be an offshoot of the ancient Azlanti, Maenads can be found all over the Inner Sea. They are common in all coastal regions, from the Shackles in the south to the Lands of the Linnorm Kings in the north to Absalom at the heart of the Inner Sea. They claim no home to be their homeland, further bringing evidence to their Azlanti origins. As a result, Maenads are comfortable everywhere, but not truly welcome anywhere, thanks to their distant attitudes. More often than not, their homes are on relatively isolated strips of coastline or islands. Playing a Maenad means keeping your emotions in check at all
times. Most people in Varisia are wary of Maenads, but rarely lash out against them. Often, Maenads are treated similarly to the more aloof of elves, such as the Mordant Spire Elves.

Ophiduan: Another race rare in Varisia, Ophiduans hail from Southern Garund. Not much is known about their society that far south, but small isolated pockets of Ophiduan can be found here and there along the Inner Sea, where adventurers sometimes emerge. Most races give them a wide berth thanks to their alien appearance, though Dromites get along quite well with them, despite their more liberal nature. Playing an Ophiduan is similar to playing a Dromite - it means standing out from the crowd and most people not knowing anything about you or your culture. Since your culture is not well known, feel free to be creative when coming up with it!
Xeph: It is not well understood where Xephs originated from. The most widely accepted theory is that they come from another world in Golarion's system - which one, however, isn't known. Even the Xephs themselves do not know, though they too believe the alien world theory. Xephs form small, unassuming communities all over Golarion, with their largest concentration being within Andoran. Despite their odd appearance, they make friends easily, and have few enemies. Playing a Xeph means playing someone with a good sense of humor, a positive outlook on life, and the love of freedom. They have a unique philosophical outlook on life, which is poorly understood by most non-xephs. Those living in Varisia have no particular love or hatred towards Xephs.

When you create a submission, please create a character alias and include your character information in the form of a bestiary stat block. For an example of how I'd like it done, see Marcellano Kain.

Also, include the following information in your profile:

1) Appearance
2) Personality
3) Background

At your option, you may put background info on your traits and drawbacks.

Recruitment will be open until July 14th, at which time recruitment will be closed and I will pick the four or five players who I feel will best fit the campaign. I am giving everyone two weeks to give everyone plenty of time to flesh out their characters. I approve of well written out backstories, though I'm not looking for small novels. Although I am allowing core and base classes, I will put preference on Psionic classes over non-psionic classes, unless they have a particularly awesome background. For races, I honestly prefer Core Races or the more 'common' Psionic races as seen above. Players wishing to play a race beyond that, such as full blooded orcs, will need a good backstory. I will be here to help with your backstories, if you have any questions.

Players will be expected to post once every two days at minimum, though once a day is preferred. If a player has not posted for five days in the gameplay thread, I will DMPC their actions as I see fit until I hear from them. When I do so, they will take more of a background role, but I will be cautious with their characters, and will try not to kill them off.

For an example of my DMing, see Crusty's Skull and Shackles Campaign. Do be warned, there are Spoilers for the Skull and Shackles Campaign in that thread.


Personally? I'm aiming for a LN Cleric/(Un)Holy Vindicator of Asmodeus from Cheliax. Bit of an odd choice for a campaign revolving around what we assume to be good guys kicking some demonic ass, but I've always been into anti-hero types..

So what about you guys? How do you wish to kick some demonic butt while becoming what will amount to being what I assume to be one of the most powerful mortals on Golarion?


Greetings fellow Paizo forum-goers!

I'm posting this to check potential interest in an all-psionics alternate Rise of the Runelords Anniversary Adventure Path. While the AP is normally quite awesome, I've decided to mix it up a bit, as Psionics is something I've always loved but could never get my RL group to touch.

So here's what I'm thinking:

Numerous monsters will be modified to fit this new world, using the Psionic Monsters available from various sources. All spellcasters in the campaign will be replaced and modified to fit a Psionic world. No Clerics, Wizards, Druids, etc. This goes for the players, too. In fact, I'm thinking on only allowing classes from Psionics Unleashed and Psionics Expanded.

This list would include:

Aegis
Cryptic
Dread
Marksman
Psion
Psychic Warrior
Soulknife
Tactician
Vitalist
Wilder
Plus all Prestige Classes.

All Core Races (Dwarf, Human, etc) plus all Psionic Races (Elan, Blue, etc) will be allowed, although I'll warn you right now, Blues will not have an easy time at first. I may allow Featured and Uncommon Races from the Advanced Race Guide on a case-by-case basis, although they do not have alternate favored class bonuses for the Psionic Classes, so will be limited to Skill Points or Hit Points in that regard.

Many magic items will be replaced with similar Psionic items, and those without a Psionic version will be simply turned into a Psionic version through houseruling. In addition, I'll be allowing Retraining, Drawbacks, and Downtime Rules from Ultimate Campaign, should they be needed.

What do you guys think? Questions, Comments? I can't honestly say when I'll have this ready, if there is interest, but I'd hope sometime this month, at the least.

Also, I would like to add, that this would only be my second time DMing a PbP campaign here on the Paizo Forums, though I've DM'd a few times in person with friends. For those interested in an example of my DMing style, see my Skull and Shackles Campaign Here. (Warning: Spoilers for that AP)


So as I've been searching through information on the subject, it seems that Summoners really have little to no place in Golarion right now, right? They're a class, for sure, but they don't have much actual 'lore' behind them.

So I was thinking.. perhaps their form of magic is a bit more 'primal' than say, Wizards or Sorcerers? Surely it comes from within, like a Sorcerer, but since they're able to tap into other-wordly beings, perhaps their magic is older? If that is the case, perhaps Summoners have a more solid place in Azlanti lore?

Right now, Paizo is being 'mysterous' on everything Azlanti. And, on purpose or by accident, they've left out lore on Summoners as well - so perhaps there's a connection?

We know so little about the Azlanti - They have so many similarites to "The Lost City of Atlantis" in modern myth.

That brings me to another point: Words of Power. We know little about Words of Power as well, as they were mentioned in Ultimate Magic but we've seen little to no trace of them since. WoP are an archaic form of magic - perhaps then, the Azlanti used them as well? We know that they were masters of magic, but it never states what 'kind' of magic. Aboleths, the ones who rose the Azlanti from barbarism, are known to be skilled in glyphs and runes - What are Glyphs and runes but words and meanings?

Just wanted to throw this out there and see what others think, as I've been brainstorming some of this stuff for a campaign I'm working on. Input and opinions are always welcome :D

*Edit* Not to mention, both Eidolons and their Summoners have glowing runes that appear on their heads when the Eidolon is summoned, further potentially connecting Aboleths/Azlanti to Summoners.

Sovereign Court

Male Taldan Human Sea Singer Bard 1
Stats:
HP 9/9; AC 13, Flat Footed 12, Touch 11; CMD 12; Fort +1, Ref +3, Will +3; Perception +5; Initiative +1

The calm before the storm.

Off in the distance, thunderclouds, black as night, flash with lightning and rumble with thunder. A storm is brewing.

”Looks like the Eye sends her love to Port Peril tonight, eh Zair?” A small, bronze creature, that looks cross between a tiny dragon and a lobster, chirps cheerfully in agreement. The creature, whose bright blue eyes look in the direction of the storm, rests on the padded shoulder of a man who looks to be in his late fifties. His medium length gray hair is well combed and nearly reaches his shoulders, and he has a magnificent tricorne hat, colored a deep blue with golden trim, in which rests a feather from an exotic bird. The hat matches his similarly colored velvet vest worn over a white cotton tunic, worn with light-brown breeches.

”Best we be getting inside before she hits port. We might be singing the whole bloody hymn tonight! I know just the place!” With that, the man walks away from the pier he was standing on and heads along the docks to a building whose sign reads, 'The Formidably Maid'. Zair chirps fearfully at the building's rough, ramshackle exterior and the noises of rowdy sailors within, just before the two enter.

Immediately they are greeted with the smell of sweaty sailors, alcohol, cheap perfume, and a variety of spiced foods in addition to the laughter and yelling of a large crowd of drunken pirates. Exactly as they had remembered this place. ”Oye, Kroop! A bottle of your finest wine, and tell your father to get his fat, wrinkly, old hide down here! I haven't seen the old salt in ages!” The man's voice is like a cannon going off, easily audible even over the crowd's noise.

At his yelling, the tavern goes quiet, and the bartender, a pudgy half-orc with more hair than a gorilla, lets out a toothy grin. ”Haha! Robint'n, still alive, eh? Figur'd ye'd be croak'd by now, th' way yer always chasin' them adventures! One bottle o' wine, an' then I'll see if'n I can' git me father pry'd out o' that bed o' his.”

Robinton nods, and then notices a good portion of the tavern, still quiet from his yelling, staring at him. Most of the patrons look to be keenly interested, as if they are anticipating his next move. ”What? Ah, of course, you all want me to bust into song, or perhaps play some music, is that it? No.. not on this stormy night! Instead, I've got a tale for you sods!”

About the same time as Robinton finds a seat amongst the eager crowds, one of the serving wenches brings him a fine bottle of wine marked with the symbol of Andoran. ”Ah, some of Andoran's Finest, eh? A good year, too! 4713.. what a coincidence, at that! This is the very same year the story takes place in. Kroop! Drinks on the house for my listeners!”

A cheer of applause drowns out any sort of reply from Kroop, as the tavern rejoices for free booze.

”Alright lads, take a seat and listen up. This is my favorite story.. in fact, it is my own story. It all started thirty-five years ago.. in this very city. In this very tavern, in fact! It's a tale of blood and booty. A tale of plunder and infamy. A tale of betrayal.. and of adventure. A tale of pirates! And a tale.. of a Skull and Shackles. This is..”
  
  
  
  
                          S K U L L  A N D  S H A C K L E S
              T H E   W O R M W O O D   M U T I N Y  
  
  
  

  <<Lower Hold of an Unknown Ship | Mid-Morning | Clear, Warm |Moonday, Desnus 11th, 4713 AR | Day One>>
  
The creaking of wood and sloshing of waves – and the sound of someone emptying the contents of their stomach – are the noises that greet five of the six occupants of the dark hold of some unknown ship. Each can vaguely remember the previous night – the ringing laughter of a wild night, the heady joy of excess, the scents of rich stewed meat and perfume linger in their nostrils. Now, however, all that is left is a pounding headache, the sickly taste of cheap wine, the hard floor, and a feeling of the room swaying, as if they were still inebriated.

All but one of them are bound by the hands with hemp rope – the sixth is bound in manacles. The manacle-bound woman is short and thin, but well toned with alabaster skin. What is most odd about her is not the metal scales on her arms and legs, but the barbed chain-like tail that seems to be protruding from her backside. The second bound occupant is a large, dark skinned man bristling with muscles. A third occupant, similarly bound, is another well-endowed man covered in tattoos, with a long bright-red beard. The fourth person is a thin, slightly disheveled man whose face is covered in burns on the right side. The fifth prisoner – and the last of them who are not currently retching on the floor, is a tall, slender man with a chalky complexion and white-streaked black hair.

The poor sod who is vomiting in a conveniently placed backpack is a well-tanned man with medium-length pitch black hair. He's a bit pale from the apparent hangover, but his face is obscured, as it is currently buried in the backpack he's using as a disposal for last night's dinner.

Before they are even able to sit up, however, they hear the sound of heavy footfalls headed their way from up top.

It seems as if their new 'employer' is on his way.
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Welcome to Skull and Shackles! You are free to RP among yourselves, although you have only roughly a minute in-game before those who are headed towards you will reach you.

All of you except Caerlei are bound with Hemp Rope. Your feet are untied. Caerlei is bound with her own manacles, although her feet are also unbound. All of your gear is missing, except the clothes on your backs. If you had any spells prepared the previous day, you still have your spells - not that it matters much because you're tied up!

I'm going to be copying down your gear here shortly, but dont' worry about deleting it from your character sheet. Do, however, find a way to note that it is missing, so you can keep it separate from what gear you DO have. Also, Osir, your animal companion is no where to be seen. All you can do for now is hope that he is still alive!

The room itself is dimly lit - there are a few dozen hammocks hanging about, which are tied mostly to the numerous smaller pillars that go through the room. The room itself is 30 feet wide and 70 feet long - three larger pillars, likely part of the ship's masts, also are in the room, one in the middle and two evently spaced length-wise on either side. Stairs leading up are on one end of the room, and there are two additional hammocks tied up near there. A trap door exists right behind the middle mast, and the walls are lined with about 40 lockers - some are locked with padlocks, while others hang partially ajar or do not have locks on them. Numerous barrels and crates also line the walls here and there.

I'll let everyone get at least one post until I continue the story.

And yes, the layout does look similar to Lucent's campaign. He doesn't mind that I copied it, and I figured it would be nice to keep things familiar, since we're all in the same campaigns. :D


Male Huuuman. I think Expert 2

Alrighty guys, use this discussion thread to talk to me and each other aboot your characters. I'll get to work setting up the campaign tab itself.


So, my players just encountered good ol' Whalebone Pilk yesterday. After he said hello on the 3rd night by ramming and grappling one of their two ships, they boarded his ship, fought a rather long battle against zombies, then finally killed Pilk without taking out his Bell. Oddly enough, despite Pilk standing in the back ringing his bell every round, they didn't decide to try and destroy it, even though they thought the bell was the source of his ungodly steal life ability that they feared horribly after their captain nearly took a long, long nap from it.

However, they didn't just kill Pilk. They took his only, if rotten, ear (As seen in his picture), then the Undine Rogue (who is the Captain), stayed on board the ship as it sunk so he could destroy this "Creepy Ass" collection of 670 Skulls Pilk had. They then figured, as a ghost ship, he'd come back, so they pinned a note in waterproof materials to Pilk's corpse basically telling him "You messed with the wrong crew." Then they crushed his skull into fine powder.

Needless to say, when Pilk returns in 1d3 weeks, he's going to be pissed. He spent 80 years amassing that collection to pay off his debt-curse, and since he knows the name of the person who destroyed it, he's going to be back with a vengeance. So heres the idea:

Pilk returns as something bigger and nastier. I don't know what yet, but something partially incorporeal sounds nice.. maybe something headless even, since he lost his head. His crew will no longer be Brine Zombies, since many were destroyed, but instead be something worse.

He will hunt the sea actively, taking out a new ship every 3 days, mainly aiming at pirate ships. When he eventually does find the players, he will haunt them for 6 nights before attacking.

On the first night, he'll leave a single pirate ship for them to find. This ship is undamaged, completely empty of everything, having no bodies, no bloodstains, or even damage. All that will be on it will be a single fleshless skull nailed to the Mainmast.

On the second night, he'll leave them a second pirate ship, similar to the first, but filled with fresh, headless, fatless bodies in the lower deck, along with another fleshless skull nailed to the Mainmast. This one will have a ear tied to it.

On the third night, he'll leave them a third ship, complete with everything like the first two, but this one will have the captain's headless, fatless body laying under its skeleton with a note attached, saying something witty.

From there he does his usual 3 bits of haunting, until he attacks. This time however, he's much more aggressive and dangerous.

Now, I need from you guys - what should I make him? What should I make his crew? I want to challenge a higher-level group of players, so it should be far more dangerous than the original version of Pilk. I'm thinking level 9-10 is when they'll encounter him again.


So, my players have finally finished Part 1 of the adventure path. The Mutiny, which took our entire session, was quite a bit of a turn from our usual hilariousness, and instead was quite gruesome. I think I made the players evil.

I had wanted this to be a true grand finale of Part 1, so I changed it up a bit to try and challenge the party. They're made surprisingly well and have so far passed through most of the campaign without 'too' much trouble. I blame myself giving them 25 point builds and offering them different races. But we're having fun so its aight.

The party consists of:

Hobgoblin Pistolero Gunslinger (LE)
Undine Rogue (CN, now CE)
Dwarf Witch (Not sure what Alignment)
Human Fighter (N, Borderline NE)
Human Summoner with Bipedal Eidolon (NG, not so much anymore)
Ifrit Oracle of Life (Not sure what Alignment)

The Rogue and Oracle are played by the same person, as we lost our Halfling Cleric due to school reasons, and the oracle was made quickly one session before this to replace him. As such, the Rogue has become a "Redshirt" - but hasn't died yet.

Anyhoo, the session begins just after the players had finished rescuing Sandara Quinn and the now-legless Narwhal Tate from the Grindylow. It was about noon one day before they had to get back to the ship, and they decided, with information given to them by Narwhal, to attempt a mutiny late that night.

Onboard the ship, if you include the PCs, they had a total of 13 people on each side - On the player's side, they had Kroop, Sandara, Rosie, Cogward, Owlbear, Jack Scrimshaw (Made into a gunslinger), and Ratline Ratsburger (Made into a Ratfolk Rogue). On the other side, there was Scourge (Given an extra level of rogue, and rearranged his feats a bit), Mister Plugg (Now a rather bad ass level 7 Two-Weapon Warrior), Conchobhar (Level 4 Sea Bard, with Pluck as a familiar.), Syl Lonegan (Now a Fighter), Jape (Cosair Fighter), Chumlett (Brawler Fighter), Giffer Tibbs (Rogue), and five other non-modified people. Narwhal was on their side, until he had defected.

Unbeknownst to the players, Conchobhar had been spying on them with Pluck (They never noticed him) and Pluck was able to overhear their plans to mutiny in the dead of night. So, Plugg and them came up with a rather mean counter attack. Tibbs and Conchobhar would be in the crows nest, with Tibbs keeping an eye out with a spyglass and Conchobhar concentrating on an illusion of Owlbear being chained up in the crow's nest, to cover Tibbs keeping watch.

Meanwhile, after the crew friendly to the players had gone to bed, the five less important crewmembers had barricaded Kroop, Rosie, Ratline, Crimson, and Scrimshaw in the Crew Berths. Syl Lonegan had taken up residence in Kroop's quarters and barricaded herself in there, with the trapdoor to the Captain's Quarters unlocked. Maheem (One of the less important crewmembers), was keeping 'watch' up on the Foredeck, pretending to be busy fishing. Meanwhile, Scourge, Plugg, Jape, and Chumlette were hiding in the Captain's Quarters' two small storage rooms. They had drugged Owlbear with taggit oil, dressed him up as Plugg, and put him in the captain's hammock laying face-down. The doors and windows to the Captain's Quarters were left unlocked.

The players, meanwhile, had their plan - They would use their original boat as a decoy, having just the rogue and a fake-made up dummy with one of the suits from Aaron Ivy's Stockade. The ship had the water barrel in it, as well. The rogue, and the dummy, were supposed to be the 'last two survivors' of the island. However, the rogue faked collapse, fell down in the boat, drank his potion of invisibility, and slipped into the water to push the boat closer to the ship. Meanwhile, the rest of the players, including Narwhal and Sandara, would row under the cover of darkness in the Besmara's Tricorne boat and slip to the other side of the ship, board it, and take out the crew as they were focused on the other ship.

Most of it went well, as the five unimportant crewmen were fixated on the decoy ship. However, as they knew something was up, Giffer was able to spot the real group in time. It was a clear night with a near-full moon, and she was quite a good spotter. As the players boarded the ship, the gunslinger, oracle, rogue, and summoner snuck into the captain's cabin. The gunslinger promptly coup-de-graced the captain without looking to make sure it was the captain, only to find that it was Owlbear (The players were horrified, as they loved Owlbear, and were glad that he was safe in the crows nest). This was the que, and Giffer attacked with her Screaming Bolts given to her by Plugg to begin the attack.

--------------------

Since I was managing the entire battle instead of having the two crews fighting behind the scenes, this was a clusterf+!!, but a very fun clusterf~%&. This entire fight took a few (4-5) hours, but was easily the most fun fight we've had so far, with everyone basically on the edge of their seats.

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One major mistake the players made was locking themselves in the captain's quarters with the chain they procured from the Stockade. This likely would've caused those four players to die horribly in the captain's quarters as they fought Plugg and the other three, but they had enough sense to quickly open the trap door, dogpile on Syl (who became unconcious after two ~180 pound people body-slamming her, with a third roughly the same size jumping feet-first and landing on the pile Mario-Style).

They fled like this after having faced only one round in the cramped quarters fighting Plugg, and they decided that it was a bad idea to continue this way. Plugg was a beast and had a surprisingly high disarm skill. He disarmed the gunslinger, whose pistol fell down the trap door. He was able to get down there and, when plugg was looking down the hole trying to intimidate them, got a crit off on Plugg for ~40 damage. Needless to say, Plugg decided he wasn't going down there.

On the topside of the ship, the fight was going very well, with the Eidolon and Fighter ripping up the unimportant crew. Giffer was continuing to rain bolts down (Missing most of the time), and Conchobhar had gone invisible, feather-falled from the Crow's Nest, and had joined in with Inspire Courage, his Foppish +1 Glamoured Studded Leather Armor and Dandy +1 Flaming Cane Sword.

Meanwhile, the friendly part of the crew was working on bashing their way through the barricaded doors. Kroop was working his way into his room from the galley, and Rosie was hacking apart the door to the armory. Took them about three rounds to do this. Once they broke through, all of them but Kroop ran up to the top deck and started helping, while Kroop helped get his friends out of his room and up deck.

Since the players had retreated through the trap door, Jape and Chumlette were working on breaking through the captain's door, while Scourge and Plugg went through the captain's windows and were going to climb up on the Sterncastle. Well, Plugg was. Scourge decided to abandon ship, as it wasn't going well, and he began to swim away. He only made it 60 feet though when they had taken out Plugg (Damned Slumber Hex and a bad will save), then the Undine swam circles around Scourge and demanded his surrender. With seething rage, he did.

Meanwhile, Conchobhar was fighting a losing battle against the Eidolon, Crimson (Who was stabbed fairly hard with that cane sword), and the Fighter. The Fighter was determined to get Conchobhar's ears, as it was a thing with the party (mostly the Gunslinger) to get the ears of certain enemies they hated. Conchobhar was no exception. So, the Fighter successfully grappled Conchobhar, the Witch put him to sleep, and then the fighter ripped -both- of his ears off, which of course, caused Conchobhar to awaken and begin screaming in pain. The Fighter then went and punched him to 1 hp for a few turns, when finally Conchobhar was able to scream for mercy.

With that, they had taken the Man's Promise. Overall, only three crewmembers died (three not-important ones on Plugg's side), the rest were stabilized and captured, then punished by being hung over the side of the ship until morning, when the Rogue asked them who will be turning to their side. Everyone did, of course.

But.. they weren't allowing that mercy for Plugg, Scourge, and Conchobhar.

Conchobhar got off easy. He had his voice-box disabled through the Heal skill (He was screaming too much), then was simply tied to the front of the ship to serve as the ship's new Figurehead. Before that, though, they captured his bird, forced alcohol down its throat, then shoved Conchobhar's flaming sword up into it, roasted it from the inside, then the Fighter ate it slowly, all while Conchobhar watched.

Scourge was poisoned with his own punching dagger, flogged until unconciousness, healed, flogged until near-unconciousness again, had his gold teeth ripped out while he was alive, then tied up and waterboarded numerous times by dunking him in the ocean until he succumbed to 'scraping against the coral a bit too much'. He was shark-food from there.

Plugg is the ship's new mascott. His left ear was taken, his right-eye plucked out, his name branded on the back of his neck ('Captain' Plugg), his fingers removed just above the first knuckle, his tongue cut so he has a permament lisp, and they disabled a few tendons in his legs so he has to hobble from now on. He was then assigned as the ship's 'runner', so he was forced to move constantly, which was painful. They plan to parade him around various ports while telling their tales. I don't think it will end well.

The Rogue, who was infected with Ghoul Fever this entire time (still is, but has had his attributes healed by Sandara), and was also the group's redshirt, has been voted captain by the rest of the players and has since changed his name to Ghoulbeard.

They are now on their way to Rickety Squibbs.


Fairly straight-forward subject.. Which Class at release (or possibly beta) are you looking forward to trying the most, and why? Assuming, that is, all of the base classes from the core rule book make it, including prestige classes, and that they are as true to the pen and paper version classes as possible in this game.

What do you think will be fun/difficult about playing this class in what is very similar to an expanded Kingmaker Campaign (i.e, exploration, mining, etc)?

What kind of non-class specific skills would you look into?

Basically, I'm curious as to what everyone's looking forward to trying first, and get a discussion going about their hopes on the class specifics.

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I personally am primarily looking forward to a Wizard (Dwarf, of course), as not only am I currently playing one in a campaign with friends, but they've always been a favorite. Though, a close second would be either a cleric or ranger.

I think what would be difficult for a wizard is their general lack of solo-ness. I could see Conjurers and possibly Enchanters being good soloists (For summons and Charms, respectively). What would be fun about them? Being a hoarder of spells and know-it-all of magic. >:D

As for the non-class specific skills I'd look into.. probably magic-item creation (Especially golems, if its possible.. and man do I hope it is) for the most part. Though food preparation and brewing would be close seconds if they're available.