Merak Spielman's page

Thanks!

I agree that building a dragon requires way too much flipping around and looking stuff up. From the beginning of the dragon section, to the specific page in the dragon section for that color so you can get the base stats, to the PHB for spells/feats, to the end of the Bestiary for advancing a creature rules...

When a dragon goes up a size category it gets 2 HD. Since it gets 6+IntBonus skill points per hit die, it just instantly gets 12+(2 x IntBonus) skill points, right?

But at most of the age categories it gets a higher Int as well. That makes me think that figuring it out as a Juvenile is wrong... I need to figure the skill points it gained at each age category.

(Assuming I want to get it exactly right of course. Spending this much time on a monster that's probably going to die in 5 rounds is... well, I wouldn't do it if it wasn't fun for me.)

He's a juvenile Red Dragon.

OK, his regular bite attack is at +20 and does 2d6+16.

He has Improved Natural Attack (bite) which brings it up to 3d6+16.

He has Improved Vital Strike, so instead of a full attack, he can attack only with his bite, increasing damage to 9d6+16. (am I reading this feat correctly? No limit on usage, just turn an attack action into triple damage whenever you want??)

He also has Power Attack, which changes the attack bonus to +16 and the bite damage to 9d6+28.

He can also cast True Strike 6 times per day. So, every other round for 12 rounds, he can improve that attack bonus to +26, virtually guaranteeing a hit.

I'm starting to think giving him Flyby Attack might be a bit much...

Am I blogging? Wow. I hadn't even noticed. Cool.

Anticipating the player's arrival in Magnimar next session.

The Seven aren't described in the module, except that Ironbriar is one of them.

I think I'm going to flesh out the Brotherhood.

Here's what I have so far:

Secret society. Membership limited to nobility or people of particular wealth and influence.

Only 7 members at any one time. TODO: work out the other 6 members. Are they aware of/complicit in the Skinsaw cult?

Members do favors for each other, but other than that know little about the exact business the others run. Their agreement is to not look too closely, and to disavow involvement if anybody ends up under official scrutiny.

They tend to work the number 7 into their businesses. It's sort of a way to "mark" their businesses so that other members know not to mess with them. Mundane businesses that use the number 7 tend to be bought out and/or shut down mysteriously.

The "Seven's Sawmill" is going to be renamed to "The Seven Planks" or something similar and more inconspicuous.

The above can be learned with appropriately difficult knowledge local checks.

More later.

The fey princess sub-plot isn't related to the Big Plot, yeah. I'm trying to decide if I want to include it.

It would be an interesting "backwards" way of getting the PCs to the adventure -- some sort of sprite or other fey could arrive asking for the PCs help, and they could begin the adventure with the "recover a piece of Lamatar's corpse" quest. Leaning against this, but it's an option.

I might leave it in just as an optional sub-plot. If they discover it, so much the better. More depth in the world, knowing that there are things going on that don't directly relate to the Big Plot.

It's also an opportunity to mess with the characters without worrying about long-term plot damage. I could use her as the Lust temptation for Zenovia, for instance, offering either the gratitude of the fey, OR her Nymphly beauty as a reward.

Speaking of which... I'm trying to tie in the modules into one coherent story.

I liked the link between the first 2 modules, with Aldern Foxglove being a nice tie-in.

But I want to find a more clever way to get from The Skinsaw Murders to the Hook Mountain Massacre.

As written, the characters will simply be tasked by the Lord-Mayor to investigate Fort Rannick. While this is a perfectly logical thing to be asked to do, assuming the characters actions become known, it's going to seem awfully coincidental that they will just happen to encounter more Sihedron Rune stuff when they arrive, including the final boss being Xanesha's sister. That strains credulity a bit. I'm not comfortable with making the players use the "well it's an adventure path, so of course it'll have something to do with the greater plot" rationale! I want to tie them in directly, not coincidentally.

So I'm trying to think of a better way to tie them in directly than "because the Lord-Mayor asked them to."

Maybe I can bring the sub-plot with Shalelu to the forefront, since some of the players have wondered out loud what happened to her. She's a nice connection back to the beginning. Perhaps she could have been off to confront her father at the Fort, but spotted one of the Sihedron tattoos on a villager. Combined with dark rumors about the happenings at the Fort, she might seek out the Sandpoint Heroes who she knows have dealt with that Rune before.

It's probably better to reinforce the character's ties to an existing NPC than to bring in a new one (i.e., the Lord-Mayor). And after Shalelu and her father retire to Sandpoint, the players will feel even more involved/connected when the town is threatened in Fortress of the Stone Giants.

I'm also thinking of the two sister Lamias. Perhaps leave some clue connecting them? Maybe the players could discover some sort of artifact in Xanesha's lair that has a connection with Hook Mountain. A gift from her sister perhaps. Or maybe some sort of communication device, so they could compare notes about souls they've gathered. Or if Xanesha survives, she can be encountered with her sister at the climax of Hook Mountain, and scream in fury at their ability to track her down...

Lots of opportunities here.

OK next session coming up this Saturday. They seem fascinated by the Pug's Contraptions clue (on the bottom of the rat cages), though I don't think the shop is described in the module. I've been reading through the Pathfinder Campaign Setting and there's all kinds of nifty clockwork, steampunk, and "mechano-magical" stuff in Golarion. I figure the shop will be a neat place to introduce some of these things, with a few choice items laboriously collected from around the world.

I'm going to play up the Faceless Stalkers for creep value, having them imitate Aldern and Iesha as best as they can. Of course it will be obvious to the players that something creepy is going on, but they'll probably play along for a little while wondering about the exact true nature of their friendly "hosts."

The encounters at the Seven's Sawmill seem trivial -- the amount of DPS these players seem capable of dishing out is astonishing. I might have to tweak that a bit.

I dropped some hints earlier about Sheriff Hemlock being blocked by the Magnimar buerocracy when he traveled down there to request troops to help protect against the goblins (back in Burnt Offerings). Wondering if I should tie in hints that Justice Ironbriar was behind that. Of course, he's not aware of the greater plot involving Karzoug and the Runewells, so he might not have a reason to. In fact, I'm not even sure Xanesha was aware of the Sandpoint Wrath Runewell, Nuala, and that entire subplot. So I might be making a connection for the players to discover that won't actually lead anywhere, and might break continuity later. But it would make a really interesting connection now. Hm.... pondering....

****

Ah, just remembered another fun thing I did. The description of Sandpoint mentioned Niska Mvashti, a very old Varesian lady. I had her send a summons to the party, and she gave them each a personalized card reading. I decided to play her up as a somewhat senile-seeming fortune teller, but really have her be an exceptionally powerful Harrower.

Each character got a reading, with several cards (I didn't have the Harrower deck at that time. One of my players has virtually all the Pathfinder stuff, so I just made it up with pseudo-Tarot-sounding cards). Their reading directly relates to a sin I have come to associate with each character, and a decision I will have them make involving their sin. The best thing about Prophecy is that, as a DM, I can make it come true however and whenever I want, working it into the plot in new places if they somehow bypass it where I was expecting it to occur.

The party wizard has been making lucrative business deals on the side, selling potions and scrolls at the magic shops in Sandpoint. Or rather, helping stock the shops and working out elaborate schemes with the shopkeepers for playing up his "Sandpoint Hero" status to inflate the price of his items. HAHA! He has "Greed" written all over him. So his cards were "Temptation" and "Death." Why? Because I arranged for him to decipher the clues in the Foxglove Manor that relate to the creation of a lich. I sent him a private email saying that he had figured it out, and that a detailed report on the findings would be worth a considerable sum to the right buyers. But it will probably result in those buyers using the information to attain Lichdom... is it worth the money?

The other characters are a Varesian Rogue/Bellydancer. Mentioned her above. She is used to using her body to seduce people, so I have her pegged for Lust. Her cards were "Lover" and "Demon." I figure I can arrange some sort of demonic offer to increase her seductive powers -- at a cost.

The monk is slated for Wrath. His backstory involves his family being forced into indentured servitude by the Scarnettis. I'm playing it up, and he's completely frustrated with the inability of the law to help. Every time he tries to pay off their debt, it has increased tenfold. He's considering more and more seriously taking the law into his own hands, and simply killing Titus Scarnetti and forcably rescuing his family. His cards were "Betrayal" and "Vengeance." I'm going to keep pushing his buttons HARD, and have the Scarnettis make a deal with him... and then break it. That will be his choice -- punish them vigilante-style (giving into wrath), or letting them get away with it.

And this is my favorite one. The 4th party member is a cleric of... who? His story is that he saw in a vision that he was supposed to travel to the Sandpoint Festival and witness the dedication of the Cathedral, and worship the god to which it was dedicated. But it was dedicated to 5 different gods! His brain slightly cracked, and now he worships a different god every day (determined by random die roll). He tries his best to follow that gods tenets for the entire day, but ends up making conflicting decisions from day to day. His sin is destined to be Pride, since he honestly believes that he can balance the demands of 5 separate gods. His cards were "Madness" and "Ruins." At some point it's all going to fall down around him, and the gods will present him with the choice of choosing a single god, but admitting publicly his failures and renouncing the other 4 -- or of continuing to worship all 5 gods, but with the risk of losing his cleric powers if he can't balance their needs in a consistent manner from day to day. The implication being that this decision might drive him mad and leave him in ruins.

I haven't read "Sins of the Saviors" yet, but from what I gather, having a nice list of sins the players have committed will be a big help in making the adventure work well, so I'm tying it in early.

I'm expecting shock and amazement as Mvashti's prophecies come true, and end up having a bearing on the plot 3 modules down the line. Bwahahahahahaahahhhahaha!

Ah, yes, I had a great time with the Haunts.

I printed out each haunt on a note card, and explained beforehand that if I handed you a card during the adventure, you were supposed to do what it says (usually make a saving throw) and then explain to the other players what they see you doing.

If the other players wanted to interfere (for example, tackle the haunted player before they leaped out a window), they had to make opposed initiative checks to see if they reacted in time.

Human Varesian Rogue, blade-scarf wielding bellydancing beauty. She's used to using her charms to get what she wants, especially out of men (LUST is destined to be her sin, even though she doesn't succumb to it, she uses it to get what she wants). She is the spitting image of Iesha, Aldern Foxgloves murdered wife, and the logical target of his obsessions.

Half-Elf Wizard, eschewing evocation and setting up lucrative business deals on the side (GREED is painted all over this guy). He specializes in using illusions to alter the flow of combat, using buffs to maximize his allies combat potential, and coming up with BADASS plans.

Human Monk, ex-farmer. His "monk weapons" are all farm items, and he has a farming background. His family farm was just "bought" by the Scarnettis, and his family sold into indentured servitude. They're working at the Sandpoint lumber mill, and he'd had several interactions with the manager before the Skinsaw Man murdered him. Immediately suspicious were aroused that this Monk, who had threatened the mill managers and the Scarnettis publicaly and loudly, had committed the crime. (This character is vengeful and holds a grudge, and has WRATH stamped on his forehead)

Human Cleric of... who? He was told in a vision to travel to Sandpoint and worship the god to which the new Cathedral was dedicated. To his confusion, he found that it was dedicated to 5 of the popular good gods. Already something of a basketcase, he cracked a bit further. He worships a different god each day, determined by random die roll. His domain spells shift, as does his roleplaying and motivations. He truly believes that this is his destiny, and that this is no moral conflict, and that he can do honor to each of these gods in turn. His PRIDE will be his downfall, he thinks he's good enough to do anything, and to worship anybody without consequences.

OK, I know it's an older adventure path.

But we're having such a great time I thought I should post.

(We're using the new Pathfinder rulebooks, and converting the adventure path from 3.5 "on the fly" as we go. Most can just be used as written and nobody notices.)

Anyway, the characters just finished clearing out Foxglove Manor in the Skinsaw Murders. Yeah, we got to play the haunted house adventure the night before Halloween. I couldn't have planned it any better if I tried (because I didn't).

And it worked out so perfectly. I set up Aldern way back during the first session of running Burnt Offerings. You won't believe this -- but one of my players is playing a Varesian rogue, complete with bladed scarves and a dancing background. She tied in so perfectly, as the spitting image of Aldern's murdered wife Iesha.

So she was performing at the Sandpoint Theater, and mysteriously all the posters around town vanished. They just found them plastering the walls of Aldern's hideout under the manor. The players were literally WIDE-EYED and RAPT when they figured out that the little things they've been noticing all along actually fit together into the story, tying back to the beginning.

So I was all prepared to run the confrontation with Zenovia (the rogue in my group) and Aldern, but before they entered Aldern's lair, the party wizard had a BRILLIANT idea. He took the Hat of Disguise (which they discovered in the Ghoul Bat lair, and he identified with a Spellcraft roll) and told Zenovia to use it to imitate Iesha. She got a bonus to her disguise check: +10 for the hat, +2 for being a Varesian dancer, and an extra +2 for adding Iesha's scarf to the disguise. She already had a +12 for regular ranks and charisma.

She rolled a 14. With all the bonuses, the result was a 40.

She strode straight into the room pretending to be his wife, and holding him accountable for her murder, and confronting him for the posters of Zenovia on the walls.

Aldern's Sense Motive was crap. He was totally taken in, and completely flummoxed and disoriented. I tend to like to reward Extreme Player Badassery, so his disorientation and confusion dropped his defenses. He spluttered and tried to stand in front of the posters, and to clean off the painting before his "wife" noticed the alterations. "My dear, my love... I thought you were dead! I was... I was expecting... someone ELSE.... I'm so sorry..."

I let it work as well as it did because 1) The Rule of Cool -- if it's a good plan, and the story benefits, I let the players be COOL. They're heroes. And in this case, the die rolls justified it. 2) They drew graphs and charts during the haunted house adventure, figuring out each Haunt, diagraming the family tree, and analyzing the history of the house. They correctly tied each Haunt to the family member it was associated with, and unraveled so much of the backstory I was really REALLY impressed. They totally got into the whole thing. They KNEW Aldern would be totally disarmed by the sudden appearance of his dead wife because they had figured out so much of his family history and what he had done to her. They played directly into the plot and history presented in the module.

I gotta reward that. They weren't just adventurers exploring a dungeon, they were completely enthralled in the house and its history and the people who had lived and died there.

So while Aldern was distracted, the players maneuvered into position, and attacked. They had used the rest of their spells buffing the Monk before they entered the room, and his rolls were ABSOLUTELY PHENOMENAL. He did 57 points of damage SINGLE HANDED in his first flurry of blows, with crits and buffs calculated in.

Then Zenovia herself attacked with her bladed scarf, doing a tremendous burst of sneak attack damage to her disorientated admirer. He died.

The players admire the fact that I play the stats by the book, and that their good rolls were rewarded. They didn't seem let down at all that the "big bad" of the haunted house went down after two attacks. Not after the rolls they made, and after all the preparations and strategy.

It was a total BLAST and I'd just like to personally thank the Paizo folks for one of the most memorable game nights we've had in a long while -- the Halloween Misgivings.

-Merak Spielman