I've found Pathfinder 2e quite fun too, though the play-by-post campaigns using it keep dying... (then again *most* PbP campaigns die...) Yep…and that’s why we appreciate you for sticking with us, GM. This has been such an awesome experience, I can’t believe we’re fixing to start Book 6, I’m excited for it…but I must admit, I’ll be a bit sad when it’s all over… Thanks again, GM, much appreciated…
“How lucky are you, to have had so much to lose?” she said at last, the words quiet but sincere. “It sounds better and nicer in Vudrani, but… the idea is to appreciate even the pain.” Fin’s face goes slack, nodding slowly, as he considers Maka’s words…words he’s never heard, nor considered before…
Fin’s face scrunches up as he tries to keep it together, giving her a weak smile, murmuring ever so lightly that he doubts she can even hear him, ”You’re a good friend, Maka…” He manages to hold on to his bearing till she clears the room…only then do the tears break, flowing unabashedly down his face as he slumps down deeper into the water…
Here’s my take on a song I’d relate to each character, with a 70’s / 80’s emphasis… Quasit:
Pat Benatar (Hit Me With Your Best Shot)
This came to me pretty quick, as both the singer and song seemed to be a perfect match for Q. During the 80’s, Pat Benatar was short, skinny, and cute with bobbed hair; Q’s avatar even favors her. And the song has the lyrics and tone of a spunky lass who won’t stay down, whom life has hit hard in both relationships and in general, just like Q… Maka:
Super Freak (by Rick James)
This also came to me quick, not the artist but the song seemed a great fit for Maka. She’s a super freak in all phases of life; i.e., combat, Lanet Hai, flying, spewing fire, cooking pancakes, you name it, she’s awesome at it. She’s a stone cold badass on the battlefield and a fiery badass in the bedroom… Selena:
Back In Black (by AC/DC)
This song seems to fit Selena; she’s resilient, like a fungus, or perhaps a cat, she’s always coming back. She’s had to leave our party a few times but always came back. She’s died twice now and she’ll soon be coming back from the dead for the second time (‘nine lives, cat’s eyes’)… Kalchine:
Werewolves of London (by Warren Zevon)
There’s a single line in this song that, to me, is a dead ringer for Kal, who is, by all means, a first class gentleman: ‘He's the hairy-handed gent who ran amok in Kent’ Bulvi:
Simple Man (by Lynyrd Skynyrd)
Bull is the definition of a man’s man and this song reminds me of him. Strong, and brave but also a good man, a good friend, and a simple man; not too complicated, what you see is what you get. Sakitu:
Goody Two Shoes (by Adam Ant)
Saki is the most virtuous one amongst us which is why I tagged this song for her. She’s prim, proper, always does the right thing, always helps her friends…at the same time, she is very naive, albeit in a cute and sometimes humorous way, of the ways of the world… Fin:
Desperado (by the Eagles)
I really liked the song that Maka tagged Fin with; even though I had never heard it before, it just fits. But when Q mentioned the Eagles for Fin, I immediately thought of Desperado; always on the run, from his past, from his relationships, from the law, never settling in one place for long… …and speaking of songs, here’s an old disco tune I had forgotten about that should’ve been our theme song for Book 5 of this AP:
Yeah, Warah, been a lot of fun…beach and food during the day, games and a beer (or two) at night, and trying to keep up with the young ‘uns all the day long… The internet’s been down all day here due to a cut line…we just got back up…will try to post later tonight or first thing tomorrow…
(I should really learn what Poker hands are good... XD) Hmm, if I’m remembering correctly, this is the hierarchy of poker hands: Royal Flush (A thru 10 of the same suit)
Should be resolved now; I pulled up my desktop, changed the settings, and copied the link and it was a different link from what I was getting when trying that same thing from the app on my iPad. I logged out of my Google account and tried the link and it would let me edit without having to sign in... For those that observe it, hope y'all all had a Happy Thanksgiving...
For those of you I haven’t GM’ed before, just wanted to give you an idea of what you can expect from me. I don’t pretend to know everything when it comes to Pathfinder rules; most of you likely have been playing longer and know the rules better than I. Several of you are GMs that I've played under...and I realize you're better GMs than I. If, more likely when, I err, call me on it as you see it and I’ll fix it; I have no qualms about retconning if I screw something up. You won’t hurt my feelings as I like to think I don’t have too much of an ego. By rule of thumb, I’ll retcon if my mistake is detrimental to the PC/party; if my mistake is beneficial to the PC/party, I tend to not retcon unless I catch it fairly quickly. I also try to give my NPCs a bit of flavor when the opportunity presents itself. My main goal is that everyone will enjoy themselves and have fun. As a GM, I usually post at least once or twice a day, sometimes more depending on the situation, and I try to keep things moving along. I don’t expect that much posting from my players, although you’re welcome to do so if you are able to and wish to. I’d appreciate if you could post at least once a day and once over the weekends. Real life comes first though so please let me know, if possible, when you may have a hard time posting. And, with the holiday season vastly approaching, we can go a little slower, if needed as that’s usually a busy time for everyone… If I have to bot you, I’ll check your profile for botting instructions; lacking that, I’ll bot you conservatively equally considering the best interests of the character and the party. I don't like to delay characters while in combat as that can be detrimental to the rest of the party... As far as initiative goes during combat...for those players in the same initiative block, I usually play things out in post order as opposed to initiative order as I’ve found that moves the combat along more quickly. But if it’s a situation where it’s more beneficial to the party to play the block in initiative order, I will do so. Looking forward to running y’all through this scenario...
Alanossë returns Relia’s grin, murmuring, ”I can think of worse ways to work out energy…” Nodding to the girls, he adds, ”Good job, ladies, you handled the mercs well enough…I was just gonna shoot ‘em…now let’s check out the boat…”
”Hmm…the boat has been moored here for at least 20 years, perhaps longer…serviceable though…” He leans the boat to one side to empty the boat of any water… ”Shall we see where this boat can carry us?”
Since this is my first time GMing outside my family and over PbP, I'll probably make mistakes and do things in less-than-ideal ways. Kindly point them out so I can improve. :) You’ll do great, Warah; you roleplay your characters well and I’ve noticed that’s a trait of several good GMs I’ve played under. And don’t worry about making mistakes; I’ve GM’ed a decent bit and I still make ‘em a decent bit… Character name: Inlé Ebnalli and The Black Rabbit I love this name, Eeeeka; Watership Down is one of my favorite books…
Sakitu snuggles into Fin and falls to sleep almost immediately. Strange images of walking rocks and exploding trees fill her dreams yet she is able to sleep soundly. As Sakitu snuggles into him, Fin smiles contentedly. As she falls quickly back to sleep, he can hear her murmur lightly, and assumes she’s dreaming…while he wonders what she might be dreaming of, he drifts off, and soon dreams himself…and a disturbing one as well… Troubled Dreams:
Fin dreams back to his first brush with death…the images of the mummy come back to him…ripping out his father’s throat and then backhanding him sending him falling in the pit…and then darkness…
He is back in the forest of Kyonin, not long after they moved after his father’s death, gathering herbs with his mother, when they are ambushed by 4 goblins…warned by his faithful hound, Huan, Fin drops one goblin with his bow while Huan dispatches a couple. The remaining goblin rushes him before he can bring up his bow, so he ducks but gets grazed with the beast’s club, dazing him for a moment. It sneers at him drawing his dagger and starts to stab sown with it, when Huan, in a flash, come flying out of nowhere, his jaws locking on to the goblin’s throat, crushing its windpipe, killing it quickly; all the dazed Fin can do is breathe heavily before darkness takes him… Fin is breathing heavily after dropping what he thought was the last Razmiran, on his knees, bleeding from a bolt in his right shoulder and a scimitar wound in his side. He turns to see the Razmiran patrol boat captain letting loose a bolt meant for him…too fatigued and wounded, he cannot move fast enough…but Keshia can and jumps in front of him catching the bolt in her left breast…Fin screams in agony as this vision too fades to black… Both wounded, Fin and Bulvi are blockading the stairs, the zombies in a frenzy trying to reach them. Fin alternates between healing Bull and firing over him, fighting the clock as Quasit, Sakitu, Ibona, and Alexia are all out and perhaps dead or dying. As they finally dispatch the last undead, Fin swings down p from the stairs, reviving all but cannot reach Alexia in time as she bleeds out…another anguished yell and this too goes black… He is struggling in the Maiden, in the grasp of that bastard satyr’s giant plant creature; heavily wounded and fighting though barely conscious, when the creature is slain, Fin falls into the murky pool. Seeing Kezhia pull him out of the pool, he thinks he must be dead…till he realizes it’s not Kezhia but Q…and then he’s out… He is defending the Dragon Legion’s castle, when several evil dragonkin triple charge him, wounding him nearly to death…in shame, Fin has to tuck tail and withdraw…or he will die… Rasputin glares at Fin. "I grow tired of your archery skills. Die."
His near death visions end…but his father, ripped throat and all, along with Kezhia, bolt still in her breast, appear. They smile initially, then turn grim… His father says, ”This Rasputin is powerful, my son…he can kill with but a word…” Kezhia continues. ”Yes, my love…more deadly than anything that has come close to killing you…tread lightly, Uncle Fin…” And then they too fade away… Fin awakens in a sweat. Not wanting to wake Sakitu, he quietly moves to the next room, still in his skivvies. He nods to Bones, murmuring lightly, ”Bad dreams, Bones,” as he goes through his monk forms to clear his brain and ponders his dream…
Living in pine country, I know if you plant a pine cone, you nestle the bottom of it in the soil with most of the pine cone extending out of the dirt. I was guessing, when this particular pine cone was exposed to fire, its seeds would be released into the soil…just assuming that, aside from the fire, things work the same in Golarion in that respect…but I could be wrong…
”So, Q, we leave at dark tonight? Anything, besides finish up sleeping, anything we need to do till then?”"I dunno. Not really. Make spell boxes if you want. Think up jokes about a man with a wooden leg." says Quasit. Fin: ”There once was a man with a wooden leg named Smith…” Q: ”What was the name of his other leg?”
I didn’t see this coming either, Grunjar; giant worms aren’t known to be particularly smart, so I’m assuming it was either nearly dead ran away or this Jathyl creature is controlling it. Too bad I couldn’t get a full attack in last round, think I could’ve dropped it then… I don’t think we have to worry about it coming up underneath us by surprise though; it caused a lot of commotion before when it appeared so I’d assume it’ll do the same unless it comes up by the same hole it created before….
Wincing, as he’s hit with several bullets, he quickly assesses their situation. Recalling the scrolls they’ve acquired, he knows, We must retreat… Seeing Kalchine and Chest Thumper start to move north, he cries out, ”Kal, you and Chest Thumper get near Sakitu…Selena, wherever you’re at, get your butt over here!” Turning to the tower where his friends reside, he yells even louder, ”Q…SCROLL…HANDY HAVERSACK!” Then he puts the haste spell to good use, running north till he’s out of the spotlight, then circles east around the building Sakitu’s at, joining them… ”Hlao-roo, retrieve that scroll of dimension door and read it; we must escape and rendezvous with the others at the Hut…”
I recall one PBP session several years ago that I got to play with him, Debt to the Quah; I distinctly remember his gnome cleric in that one as he was such a witty and quirky character. I can still recall his name: Glastor Gilderhoff III. His character and mine had some witty repertoire about seemingly missing vowels in my name…and he also saved my character in the big boss battle at the end. T’was a memorable session with a most fun and memorable character of his; very fun to play with… Godspeed…
That’s a wrap, y’all! Hope y’all enjoyed it and thanks for hanging in there with me. Definitely the most challenging session I’ve ever GM’ed, ‘preciate y’all’s help with navigating the rules… I’ll leave this open for a couple of days to see if there are any issues with the Chronicles; the reporting was done at the close of Gameday but you can let me know if you have any issues there as well… See y’all around in the forums!
Janira agrees enthusiastically to buy rounds for everyone; it is clear that she was here for the shortest amount of time and didn’t suffer quite the depredations of the ones who had been held longer… Osprey informs his saviors that the Insatiable Queen has been questioning him extensively about the Pathfinder Society and specifically about the Decemvirate, with whom the Pathfinder has a unique relationship. He assumed Izmiara intended to indoctrinate one of the Ten, and fears she may already have done so—a fact made nearly impossible to investigate given their anonymity behind their magical masks. Utomo describes to you how he witnessed Izmiara break one of the strange statues littered about while he was looking out from the mirror. The shattered figurine emitted an eerie light and a visible burst of raw magical energy. What the statues do or mean, however, he doesn’t know. In fact, these are mindbind figurines—unique statues linking the Insatiable Queen to some of her most highly placed sleeper agents on Golarion. The intact figurines located here represent a Vudrani maharajah; a sinister looking Chelish man in the raiment of an Asmodean cleric, who is a high-ranking member of the House of Thrune; an elegant female drow; a Mwangi chieftain; and a male dwarf whose skin is etched with runes. In addition to the intact mindbind figurines, the shattered remains of many more statuettes, some centuries or even millennia old, lie strewn about the chamber or displayed like prized trophies (these are the ones Agata identified with her History check)… Then the lillend you rescued early on, Vintari, who followed you a little while only to mysteriously disappear, flies towards you and lands next to you, a look of contrition on her face. ”Sorry for abandoning you…but you have no idea the things they did to those of us imprisoned…I fear you did not have the strength to prevail and I feared being under her torture again… “To show my gratitude for my rescue and your efforts, I can offer but a small service…I was nearby when you set off the disjunction trap and noticed it destroyed several items. While my magic is not great, I have enough to restore one broken item each back to you, if you wish…”
The prisoners shake their head at Marta’s pursuit proposal, Osprey saying, ”Izmiara has more resources than those you faced here; I presume she’ll be back and in force. And while you performed most excellent, I doubt the lady will underestimate your abilities next time. We should head back as soon as possible; you have a way back, I presume?”
Finally made it to Texas…I’m wore out… First off, bad choice of words for the succubus on my part; she flew up from the pit as well…Izmiara has a telepathic link to each creature in this fight so they know where everyone is…as for the succubus ranger, she knows the layout of the fight via telepathy and I didn’t see why she couldn’t delay her turn till her mount moves…as for Izmiara, she has the Quicken Spell-Like Ability feat; did I alter it a bit to make it fit for her? Yeah, I did… is all this playing fast and loose with the rules? Perhaps but it’s a cakewalk as written, so you can choose… Look, guys, I ran this module because Alie mentioned she’d like to have this as a retirement session and I’ve enjoyed playing with and GM’ing Gerald’s characters over the years; I thought it should be memorable. I found out pretty quickly 95% of this module’s encounters would not challenge you at all; for example, survivors of previous encounters showed up for the finale (not as written). In fact, I gave most creatures you’ve encountered (that didn’t already have it) the advanced template (not as written). I could’ve hand-waved just about every fight as written…but I didn’t think that’d be enjoyable for any of you, perhaps I’m wrong… If y’all want me to retcon the finale, let me know, and I’ll hand-wave the rest of it as you’d have killed Izmiara in the first round since, as it was written, Betcezia wouldn’t have been around to give her displacement; it would’ve just been Izmiara and her mount… Y’all let me know how y’all wanna play it out; I’m beat after that drive and I’m gonna crash…
OK, hope I did this right, I’ll retcon if not… The General had a Cape of the Mountebank that allows him to use dimension door on command once a day…the spell itself says it’s only a verbal component so I don’t see, nor could I find via Google, anything that would prevent him from activating it while shackled & bound… That being said, let me know if I missed anything…
What ever happened to Oparal?: Arriving back at the hut after an overnight celebration at the Centaur camp, Fin was in a great mood. Upon leaving cursed Artrosa, he had been able to send Oparal a message via Tezuzu’s magic, letting her know approximately when they’d be arriving; she promptly responded saying she would be there. To top things off, Fin was able to dance at the Centaur camp, one of his favorite activities… After freeing Ratibor from Baba Yaga’s hut using her book they retrieved from Artrosa, Fin went out to the porch with Izzy, sat down, scratching between the croc’s eyes, and watched for Oparal’s approach. A few minutes later, Ratibor came out on the porch, all packed up and ready to leave the hut and journey back to his home… ”Fin…I’ve already thanked the others and said my goodbyes. I know we didn’t get off to a good start…but thank you…” Fin grinned at the man. ”No worries, my friend. I didn’t like you much either to start with; many a time I wanted to put an arrow in your eye. But then I figured if I’d been guarding this damn hut for a thousand years or so, I wouldn’t be pleasant either…” Ratibor grinned slightly before going on. ”Here, meant to give you this when you arrived…but when you mentioned you had the book, slipped my mind,” he said handing him a note with a wax seal. He saw the his name etched in the Elven style, knowing it to be Oparal’s handwriting… Sensing ill news, his heart sank. Sighing, Fin looked up to Ratibor, somberly asking, ”When did it arrive?” Ratibor answered. ”Less than an hour before you arrived…I saw her approach and toss it on the porch, but she had disappeared by the time it took me to open the door…hope it’s not bad news…I’ll be going now…” Fin clasped arms with him. ”Farewell…safe journeys, my friend…” As Ratibor walked away, Fin sat back down, staring at the letter, turning it over and over between his fingers, as if delaying reading it would make it go away…finally, he opened it and began to read… My dearest Findurêl, Where to begin? So many things have happened in the days since I replied to your message. I was truly excited to receive it and couldn’t wait to see you again…and the others as well…but mostly you. My good friend, the gnome I told you I traveled with previously, Kromgnite, had miraculously recovered from his injuries due to our crash, so it seemed nothing could prevent me from joining you…alas, I was wrong… When I had packed my things into my backpack, I went to tell Kromgnite goodbye…and he cried. When I went to comfort him, I cried as well; we had journeyed long together and he had been my friend for many years… He confessed that he loved me…and didn’t think he could go on living without me…I was surprised by his passion…but then it dawned upon me, that I loved him as well…and I could not leave him alone…I knew if I tried to tell you this in person, my resolve would fail and I’d leave with you, hence this note… I will not try to justify this to you…but I want you to know my feelings. My feelings for Kromgnite are no stronger than my feelings for you…but I’ve known him so much longer. And, while I know you’re very fond of me, I know he loves me…and his occupation at present is a lot less dangerous than yours, Fin… I will say so long, for now, but not goodbye…we Elves live longer than gnomes and other humanoids…perhaps we’ll meet again in later years…or decades…or even centuries. If so, you’ll find me much the same as I purchased a ring similar to yours… Sorry for disappointing you… Till we meet again, Oparal Fin doesn’t realize till he’s finished this letter that he’s been weeping…drying his tears, he hears this faint, flute-like music coming across the wind from the south. He perks up hopefully, and then, after murmuring, ”Izzy, stay,” he goes dashing off to the south, following the sound of music… As Fin gets closer to it, the music suddenly stops…and so does he, listening for it to start again…but it never does…and, after a while, he knows it never will. Knowing Oparal from before, he doesn’t bother trying to track her as she never left much in the way of tracks before, she was too skilled for that… Morosely, Fin walks slowly back to the hut. When he arrives, he sits on the porch, looking off to the south, his eyes red. Unconsciously scratching his animal companion between the eyes, he murmurs lightly, ”Everybody leaves, Izzy…everybody…leaves…”
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