Paracosmic's page

I hope you can find some relief!

...only to be all but immediately sidetracked and she finds herself sitting in front of Madame Mvashti.

"So, like, can you really tell my fortune?" she asks, fascinated.

Madame Mvashti, adorned in traditional Harrower garb, sits at a table adorned in cloth of many colors. Her ancient bones creak as her hands cast a simple spell on the cards in front of her. The cards glow and glitter faintly. ”Some of what will be, some of what may be. We are shaped by fate, child, just as we shape it. Will you tempt fate, and behold its mystery?” The cards shuffle on their own, and spread out in front of Wraith.

Still learning about Harrow, but I’m very familiar with Tarot! My girlfriend is very adept at divining with them, and I enjoy using them as abstract thinking tools.

... Filled with the delectables, he sates his thirst with a pint of mead while wandering about the market looking at wares he has no use for and could not purchase even if he wanted to.

Zael is surrounded with the familiar sights of the caravans. Merchants sell all manner of odds and ends from their travels. Young and old alike dance with wonderfully dyed scarves. Prayers and thanks to Desna are heard among the markets. A young Druid dances with his bear as novice bards perform their compositions for passers-by. The townsfolk share news and gossip with the travelers, and the markets are filled with updates, secrets, and lies.

...He joins the crowd watching and finally plucks up his courage to give it a try.

"I'll give it a go Savah! I'm not the strongest person here by far but hopefully some of them have tired you out!"

Before you, at a simple wooden table, sits Savah. Her black hair is in a simple braid. Her skin is bronzed from working a forge, and her muscles toned from the toil of hammering steel. She wears simple laborer’s clothes, adorned with a vibrant orange Varisian scarf. Her blue-eyed gaze meets Talax’s. ”Barely worked up a sweat yet! But luck may be on your side.”

it’ll be a strength check with a DC of 16. You can add your CMB to it. We’ll resolve Talax’s contest and then Nora’s.

After a brief pause and a hushed conversation, the blonde man stands in front of the lectern to say in a sing-songy voice, "Hey everyone! Sooo...little change in plans. Our esteemed glassmaker, Mister Kaijitsu, won't be making it today. I'm sure you're all really broken up about that." The sarcasm is laid quite thick on that last sentence. "I'd like to thank everyone for working so hard on this big ol' church for our little ol' town. Like my magnificent theater, where I'll be hosting the famous and beautiful Allishanda tomorrow night don't miss it, this will outshine anything those folks in Magnimar pray in. I leave you in the capable hands of our very own Father Zantus!"

The blonde man takes a deep and dramatic bow, and the cleric takes his turn. "Thank you all for coming today. After our festivities today, please rejoin us in the town square for the consecration of our fair cathedral. Let the Swallowtail Festival Begin!"

The crowd claps and cheers for their cleric. As the crowd separates to take part in various activities, you take a look at what the Festival has to offer.

+ Tasting Contest! The four taverns in Sandpoint have set out their best dishes for all to enjoy.

+ Arm Wrestling! Savah Bevaniky of Savah's Armory is offering a prize to the champion who can outmatch her strength.

+ Harrowing! Madame Mvashti will read the cards and tell your fortune, should you wish to tempt fate.

+ Drinking! Sandpoint's favorite pastime, besides gossip. Barrels of ale, mead, and rum brewed right here in town are here for you to drink your fill.

+ Market Day! Merchants of all sorts have their finest wares on sale in the streets. Fine clothing, glass works, jewelry, arms and armor, potions, dyes, spices, etc. are available.

And many other things are available for those willing to explore the town. What do you want do to?

Hey y'all quick update! Looks like she's gonna be alright. We'll be leaving the hospital soon and after she's situated and I get some sleep in my own bed, I will be posting again tonight.

Thanks for the well wishes and the patience! Looking forward to getting back into it.

Hey y’all my gf just sustained a head injury so I might be offline for a day or two depending on how things go, I will keep you updated and be back on here as soon as possible.

The man in chain mail takes over for the Mayor, clearing his voice before speaking. His face is somber as he approaches the lectern. "Thank you all for coming. I'm Sheriff Hemlock. Before we start with the festivities, Let's all take a moment of silence to remember the lives lost in the fire that made this cathedral necessary. May they rest with their gods now." He lowers his head for a minute. The crowd follows suit, and the excitement of the mob is hushed for a brief moment.

"Tonight there will be a bonfire to finish off the festival. Please be safe and responsible around the flames." Hemlock nods to the crowd and rejoins the group on the podium. It looks like there's some confusion about who's supposed to go next.

In the town square, many of Sandpoint's taverns have set up stands with all sorts of food. Varisian girls perform traditional dances with colorful scarves to honor Desna, and Sandpoint artisans show off their wares.

In front of the new cathedral rests a wooden podium, upon which stand several prominent town members and a simple wooden lectern:

A middle-aged Chelaxian woman with short red hair dressed in fine formal clothing. A stern-faced Shoanti man dressed head-to-toe in chain mail. A blond-haired, fair-skinned man with flamboyant clothing. And a dark-haired, middle-aged Chelaxian man in Desna's cleric vestments.

The red-haired woman approaches the lectern, and a crowd gathers to listen.

"Good morning! Thank you all for coming to a very special Swallowtail Festival." She points to an older, bald man with a short gray beard. She says, "I see that even old Larz pulled himself away from working the tannery to join us." The old man scoffs as the crowd enjoys a few laughs at his expense.

"I see a few outta-towners in the crowd today. Welcome to our wonderful town! I'm Mayor Kendra Deverin, and I'm ever-so pleased that you're here with us today. Spend some time getting to know us, and you'll love it here. And if you don't, at least spend your money here!" The crowd whoops and laughs at her odd joke, and she takes a very satisfied bow.

No worries!

Waiting on Zael before moving forward, will push on in a little bit either way. Loving the RP so far.

That's a good point!

Also, I realized I should have announced it here...the game is started! Excited to see it all come to life now.

The 22nd of Rova, 4707 AR.

It's bright and sunny this early autumn morning. The salty sea breeze is particularly cool. The people of Sandpoint are busy making ready for the Swallowtail Festival. The smells of spiced meats and freshly baked bread waft through the town. Tents, canopies, tables, barrels, you name it, are set up in the square in front of the new Sandpoint Cathedral. Today will be filled with toasts, speeches, gamess and feasts.

For the morning, you know that the Mayor and a few other important figures of Sandpoint will be making welcoming speeches to start the festivities. How do you prepare for the day?

Paracosmic, I wanted to just say that in Noro's backstory. she was born and raised in Sandpoint. I may play her with some liberties as she knows many people.

I also go with her brother working as a cook in the Rusty Dragon and sometimes takes some liberties there as well.

but I want to clear anything up with you first and adjust accordingly.

in the character profile I have links to past Runelord games and you can get an idea there as to Noro's personality in Sandpoint.

That's totally cool, and honestly to both our benefit. Without spoiling anything, having a story reason to care about Sandpoint as a town is a huge shot in the arm for your GM in this AP.

Alright!

Okay, most of teh crunch is done.

I just a few minor teeny-weeny favors questions to ask...

Yes to armor expert. I don't know much about how often certain skills are used in the field yet, but I will take your word for it and can see how having that opens up rooftop options for Wraith.

I hadn't heard of drawbacks before. I have only fully read the CRB, APG and Bestiaries 1 & 2, so I still have a lot to learn. That seems reasonable, and I will extend the same offer to take a drawback to the rest of the party. Just be careful what you wish for I guess! I will definitely put stuff in the game to challenge your character.

Throwing hammers can puncture a breastplate at 20 feet, which explains why they are so good at killing Mario. I don't see why it should be a big deal to change the damage type of a light hammer "throwing knife" so go ahead, unless someone can point out why that's a bad idea.

Paracomic, is it alright if I know some people in town, specifically any book sellers that I may have traded with in previous seasons?

The old man Chask Hadlan runs The Curious Goblin in Sandpoint. It serves in part as a town library, a bookstore, and chiefly as Chask's own book collection. He's less interested in the store being profitable and more focused on his own enjoyment of collecting tomes, but he is happy to sell tomes to those that have the mind for them.

Go ahead and dot in here if you like.

Just one more day! Get all your last minute tweaks and such done, and get ready for an adventure! I've just finished my second full reading of the AP and I'm so excited for where this might go.

Am I right that this is not an adventure where we are all supposed to know each other at the start?

It’s not required to be strangers, but you aren’t expected to know each other. The AP starts at a festival that you all have various reasons to attend, and through jolly cooperation during the inciting action you are a party from then on.

Happy to have y'all! Looking forward to starting.

ok i think i got things together let me know if it look ok or need adjusting

Everything checks out!

Hey everyone! Please have your character mechanics up to par and ready to go by the 1st. I’ll be posting our first official gameplay post around 8-9AM EST on the 1st and we’ll continue on from there.

Hello everyone! Life issues are squashed for now. I’ve gone back and re-read all the characters, and I’ve made my decisions. It was so hard to decide between all of them, and in part due to some advice I received from a friend, I will be accepting a fifth character on this short notice.

Rise of the Runelords, starring

Jagael as Zael Cairn the Cleric of Desna
Edward Sobel as Noro Kasuri the Pugilist Barbarian
Me’mori as Jairdan Wynn the Juggler Bard
Atlas2112 as Allison “Wraith” Whiteangel the Slayer
WalkerOhmsford as Talax the Witch

Thank you all for participating, and making it a real delight to read about so many wonderful characters. I wish you all the best of luck and hope everyone finds a game their PCs can call home.

Thank you everyone for your wonderful submissions!! I won’t be accepting any more for the time being, and I will announce who’s getting in in a few hours. Got a life issue popping up and I won’t to re-read some of these before I make a final decision. Thanks for your patience. You’re all wonderful character creators and my heart is warmed by your interest in this endeavor.

I hope the week is treating you well! I will stop taking submissions tomorrow, May 28th, at 9PM EST.

Thanks for the input. I think I’ll pass on it for now, since time isn’t an issue. Just a few days left for submissions!

Thanks for your submissions! I've got another question for y'all.

It seems like many of you are using Hero Lab. Do you think it's worth it, as a GM, to get it? The character building, obviously, is very useful. Is there enough utility for a GM to justify the cost?

Thank you for the words of encouragement, and the wonderful characters. I'm looking forward to seeing the submissions that y'all are working on.

I definitely want to have some new players, since that will help exercise some GM skills in a different way. I think that, with all the interest this has gotten, I will be trying to find a party that I think will work together mechanically and narratively. I'm loving all the characters so far, and I think the hardest part of this whole thing for me will be choosing from such a delightful cast.

Hello everyone! The move is over and things are back to normal more-or-less for me. Hope y’all are holding up. Looking forward to playing playing soon!

Just a quick personal life update: I’ll be helping a friend move across state the next two days, so I might not be checking this until Friday. I will try to check it sooner than that, but no guarantees. I am really excited about the characters submitted so far!

Thanks for the submissions, y'all. Don't worry too much about getting your character sheet all set up perfectly. There will be time for that after the party is assembled!

The biggest thing I'm looking at is backstory/personality blurbs. Finding people that are putting interesting ideas on the table and heart in their characters is my top priority. A spot on your sheet or on here explaining your role/how you plan to work with a team doesn't hurt either.

If you are submitting a character that will need to be adjusted mechanically, that's fine. As long as I can tell what you're going for, I'll count it as a valid submission.

Here's a character I had made a while ago. He was supposed to be made for Jade Regent, but I tweaked things to fit the campaign.

I enjoyed reading your backstory. I enjoy Jackie Chan's improvised fighting stunts in movies. I think that'd be very funny and interesting to see in a tabletop setting. Thank you for your submission!

Getting lots of great character submissions. You're all getting my newly acquired Game Master brain going!

That's generally the way it's done. You set a time--say, 3PM UTC on the 28th (because there are people on the boards from all over the world)--and tell people to have their characters submitted by then. You post then, to let people know that applications are closed, and then you post once you've picked a party.

ETA: full disclosure...

Thank you for the clarification. And thank you for your honesty! I'm not too worried about it, and it won't count against you as far as candidacy goes.

I believe Julio is ready to go.

Thanks for your submission!

Thanks for the greeting! Happy to be here. Hope y'all are holding up today.

Submitting Elendyr, a half-elf unchained rogue of somewhat questionable background. The character profile is largely done except for buying gear.

** spoiler omitted **...

here is my submission that will need some editing..

the character is a 20 point buy so will have to adjust that.

Thanks for your submissions!

Quick question for everyone. What's the etiquette of announcing who gets in? I figured, I would let y'all know on the 28th after everyone gets a chance to submit, and start a few days after. Does that sound about right?

Are you OK with Unchained versions of character classes?

Yes, those are fine.

Hi. I've never played a Play by Post on Paizo and would like to since this is the birthplace of Pathfinder. I've been playing IRL for about 2 years with a group and with the pandemic we started a weekly fri night game so I'm really enjoying getting into this game more.

I would like to play but I've never applied for a game here. What do I need to do? Roll up a full character or just submit name, race, class, backstory?

I'm definitely looking for a full character sheet at some point, but you have time to flesh that out. Backstory is going to be the largest determining factor in whether you get into the game or not, so that's where you should spend your energy the most.

Welcome to the best hobby there is!

A great resource for you will be Archives of Nethys which is the official Paizo system reference document. There is the old unofficial srd, d20pfsrd, but it also has 3rd party material and doesn't use copyrighted terms so a lot of it is iffy.

I have wanted to go through Rise since I started playing PF; I've had some build in mind over the years so I'll sift through them and see which ones aren't too overwhelming.

Thank you for the welcome! And thanks for the resource guidance. And finally, thank you for your character submission!

Hello! Thanks for taking a moment and checking this out.

A few months ago, my friends bought the Core Rulebook, Advanced Player's Guide, and Bestiary for me. Life has made the prospect of a face-to-face game complicated, but it's given me time to read those books. And I'm hooked! I've been itching to try running a game, so I bought the pocket edition of Rise of the Runelords. I've read most of it, and I can't wait to play it.

I wound up here, and read some articles about play-by-post campaigns. That sounds right up my alley! So here I am, with a semi-working knowledge of the rules and a general idea of how to run this thing.

Before I go any farther, I wanna say that I'm committed to finishing the first book AT LEAST. Even if I decide I don't wanna do this at some point, we'll get through at least the first book before I call it quits. And every book we start, we'll finish. Pinky promise. And I've only got two of those, so you know I take them seriously.

Recruitment will go on til the 28th! I'm looking for 4 people to start. We'll start playing on June 1st.

Thanks for the welcome! Y'all are sweet.

I'm a hugger, so let the virtual hugs commence!

I've been having a lot of fun in FFXIV. The game looks pretty good, it's not frustratingly challenging, and there's a lot to do. The only complaint I have so far is that high level mobs spawn in low level areas and they'll just one-shot you if you get too close.

Hello everyone.

I'm Talia. I'm a trans lesbian in my late 20's, and brand new to Pathfinder! I love RPGs, MMORPGs, and now Tabletop RPGs. Outside of games, I work as a clerk at a gas station, I try to stay active with an intense bodyweight/sword workout regimen, and I am trying to befriend the ravens that hang out near my workplace.

At the beginning of March, a couple friends tried to get me into Pathfinder by giving me a set of the "pocket edition" books. Due to the ongoing crisis, and the fact that I work third shift at a gas station with very little night traffic, I've read through these books and am itching to try GMing a game now.

Anyways that's all from me for now. I hope your day goes swimmingly.