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Organized Play Member. 956 posts (6,738 including aliases). No reviews. No lists. No wishlists. 4 Organized Play characters. 42 aliases.




Does anyone know if there is or is going to be an online Starfinder SRD similar to the one for Pathfinder?


I took over as GM for one of my PbP games, Gameplay thread here. I emailed to have ownership of the thread moved to me, but it hasn't transferred yet. Is there more I need to do?

Also, the same GM had another game I was involved in, Gameplay thread here. How long will this take to move to inactive status? Can I request ownership of it in order to move it to inactive status? We have no intention of continuing that game.


On March 16, I placed my preorder (order 3905920) for the Curse of the Crimson Throne hardcover and put it in my sidecart. On May 8, I placed an order for three GM screens (order 3955174) and also placed them in my sidecart.

Later, I tried to remove the GM screens (and not the Curse of the Crimson Throne hardcover) from my sidecart to be shipped as soon as possible, wanting to have the screens ready for a group I'm starting. But when I attempted to move the GM screens, it took everything out of my sidecart, including Curse of the Crimson Throne, and put everything into an order together (order 3953790), which means it's not set to ship until Curse of the Crimson Throne is released in September.

Can order 3953790 be separated, with Curse of the Crimson Throne in its own order and the GM screens in another, so I can get the GM screens shipped as soon as possible? I'd appreciate it greatly. Thanks!


Since the Red Raven's now morphed from a rogue to the iconic vigilante and because I'm now running the module with the changed character and needed a statblock ;), here's what I've come up with for a new and (maybe?) improved version of Aric of Halvon/the Red Raven.

A few notes:

  • I used the heroic stat array.
  • I stayed as faithful as possible to the original version of the character in terms of statistics, feats, skills, etc., only changing what needed to be changed.
  • Since he no longer has hand crossbow proficiency I switched that for a shortbow.
  • The change from rapier to paired daggers was in keeping with his new-and-improved iconic look.
  • With the introduction of equipment kits in Ultimate Equipment, I gave him a couple of those instead of "miscellaneous camping gear", because I like specificity. :P
  • He is not compliant with the wealth-by-level guidelines for a level 5 heroic NPC, but with the Red Raven's cape, it's actually not possible for him to be (it's worth 5000 on its own). If you disregard the cape, his wealth-by-level is correct.

Please feel free to point out any inaccuracies - I'm not good at statblocks and I was fairly distracted, so I'm sure it's rife with mistakes. ;)

Aric of Halvon/the Red Raven, stalker vigilante 5:

Aric (The Red Raven)
Human stalker vigilante 5
CG (CN) Medium humanoid (human)
Init +3; Senses Perception +5

----- Defense -----
AC 17, touch 13, flat-footed 14
hp 33 (5d8+5)
Fort +2, Ref +7, Will +3

----- Offense -----
Speed 30 ft.
Melee 2 mwk daggers +5 (1d4+2 plus hidden strike/19-20 x2) or mwk dagger +7 (1d4+2 plus hidden strike/19-20 x2) or sap +6 (1d6+2 nonlethal)
Ranged mwk shortbow +7 (1d6/x3)
Space 5 ft.; Reach 5 ft.
Special Attacks hidden strike 3d8 (3d4 for flanking/denied Dex)

----- Tactics -----

Before Combat The Red Raven prefers to avoid combat through stealth and acrobatics.

During Combat As soon as Kidu is distracted by combat, the Red Raven attempts to escape from his bonds (DC 20 Escape Artist check). As this takes at least a minute, he keeps an eye out for incoming attacks, dodging as best he can. If freed, and the PCs don’t appear to also want to capture him, the Red Raven aids them as best he can.

Morale The Red Raven withdraws to hide if reduced to 5 hit points. (From his encounter with Kidu, he learned the hard way that the cape doesn’t work inside the prison.) If he doesn’t have the Vernal Key, though, the Red Raven stays near whomever does, waiting for his opportunity to reclaim it.

----- Statistics -----

Str 10, Dex 17, Con 12, Int 14, Wis 8, Cha 14

Base Atk +3; CMB +3; CMD 16

Feats Two-Weapon Fighting, Deceitful, Weapon Finesse (bonus), Stealthy, Run

Skills Acrobatics +12, Bluff +12 (+16 in social guise), Climb +6, Diplomacy +8 (+12 in social guise), Disable Device +9, Disguise +13 (+33 to maintain current identity), Escape Artist +14, Intimidate +7, Knowledge (local) +7, Perception +5, Sleight of Hand +9, Stealth +13, Use Magic Device +7

Languages Common, Elven, Varisian

Gear mwk dagger x2, mwk shortbow, 20 arrows, sap, mwk chain shirt, minor bag of holding, chime of opening (3 charges), cold weather clothing, mwk thieves’ tools, survival kit, rogue’s kit, Red Raven’s cape, 94 gp

----- Special Abilities -----

Vigilante Specialization A stalker gains an ability called hidden strike, which allows him to deal an extra 1d8 points of precision damage on melee attacks (or ranged attacks from within 30 feet) against foes who are unaware of his presence, who consider him an ally, or who are made flat-footed by startling appearance (see page 17). This extra damage increases by 1d8 at 3rd level and every 2 vigilante levels thereafter. A stalker vigilante can also deal hidden strike damage to a target that he is flanking or that is denied its Dexterity bonus to AC, but in these cases, the damage dice are reduced to d4s. A stalker can deal hidden strike damage against targets with concealment (but not total concealment).

Case the Joint (Ex) The vigilante can use his social identity to learn important facts about a location before returning later in his vigilante identity. If he spends at least 1 hour in a location while in his social identity, he can attempt a DC 20 Knowledge (engineering) check. If he succeeds, he gains the ability to later reroll any one failed skill check involving the location’s layout (such as a Stealth check to sneak into the location, a Disable Device check to disable an alarm, or a Sleight of Hand check to snatch an object from a pedestal). For every 10 by which the check exceeds 20, the vigilante gains an additional reroll. If the vigilante fails to return to the location within 1 week, the situation changes too much and he cannot use the rerolls. A vigilante can’t case the same joint more than once a week.

Lethal Grace (Ex) The vigilante combines strength and speed into incredibly deadly attacks. He gains Weapon Finesse as a bonus feat, and if he already has the Weapon Finesse feat, he can immediately swap it for another feat for which he qualified at the level he chose Weapon Finesse. When using Weapon Finesse to make a melee attack using his Dexterity bonus on attack rolls and his Strength bonus on damage rolls, he also adds half his vigilante level on damage rolls. This bonus damage is not reduced or increased if the vigilante is wielding a weapon two-handed or in an off-hand.

Unshakable (Ex) Starting at 3rd level, a vigilante adds his class level to the DC of any attempts to Intimidate him.

Social Grace The vigilante selects any one Intelligence-, Wisdom-, or Charisma-based skill other than Perception or Use Magic Device. Whenever the vigilante is in his social identity, he receives a +4 circumstance bonus on checks with the selected skill. At 5th level and every 4 levels thereafter, he can select another skill (with the same restrictions) to gain this bonus. (Bluff and Diplomacy)

Up Close and Personal (Ex) When the vigilante attempts an Acrobatics check to move through an opponent’s space during a move action, he can attempt a single melee attack against that opponent as a swift action. If the Acrobatics check succeeds, this attack applies the vigilante’s hidden strike damage as if the foe were unaware of the vigilante. Otherwise, the vigilante applies the hidden strike damage he would deal if the target were denied its Dexterity bonus to AC. Only a stalker vigilante of at least 4th level can select this talent.

Startling Appearance (Ex) At 5th level, a vigilante learns to use the element of surprise to his advantage, startling foes that are unaware of his presence. Whenever a vigilante with this ability attempts an attack against a foe that is completely unaware of the vigilante’s presence (usually due to Stealth or invisibility), the foe is treated as flat-footed for the rest of the vigilante’s turn (uncanny dodge or a similar ability prevents this effect unless the vigilante is at least 4 levels higher than the foe with uncanny dodge). The foe also takes a –4 penalty on attacks made against the vigilante until the start of the vigilante’s next turn.

Mockingbird (Ex) The vigilante can mimic almost any sort of voice, or even animal calls and sound effects, and he can throw his voice at a distance. This functions similarly to a combination of the ghost sound, ventriloquism, and vocal alteration spells. A vigilante must be at least 5th level to choose this talent.


I'm working on a bard character who's just earned her way out of slavery through gladiatorial fighting. I want her to fight with a net and some kind of weapon, as flavor-wise it's awesome and I like nets. (Is bard optimal for this setup? Probably not, but the idea appeals to me.)

But here's what I'm seeing:

  • I take Exotic Weapon Proficiency (net) through the human racial trait (along with one other weapon, TBD) and Two Weapon Fighting as my first level feat.
  • Third level, I take Net Adept:
    d20pfsrd wrote:
    You can treat a net as a one-handed melee reach weapon with a 10-foot reach. Further, you take no penalty on melee attack rolls for using an unfolded net, and you can use one full-round action or two move actions to fold a net.
  • The next feat in the line is Net and Trident, whose prerequisite is Net Adept:
    d20pfsrd wrote:
    You can treat a net as a one-handed ranged weapon, allowing you to wield a light or one-handed melee weapon and still make ranged attacks with your net. When you use your light or one-handed melee weapon to attack an entangled opponent, you gain a +2 bonus on damage rolls and on attack rolls to confirm a critical hit.

My question is...does Net and Trident actually do anything (beyond the bonus to damage and crit confirmations)?

  • Net Adept makes a net a one-handed melee weapon with a range of 10 feet; being a one-handed melee weapon, I can then wield another weapon and TWF with the pair, with a light or one-handed weapon depending on whether I want -2/-2 or -4/-4 for penalties.
  • Net and Trident means I can make one-handed ranged attacks with the net...with a maximum range of 10 feet, same as using it as a melee reach weapon...that would provoke attacks of opportunity, since it's a ranged attack...that I couldn't threaten with, since it's a ranged attack...

The way I see it, I can do net-and-weapon fighting just as well or better without the feat that supposedly enables it as I can with the feat...is there something I'm missing? (Again, without the consideration of the damage bonus and crit confirmation; it's nice and possibly worth it, but I'm thinking about what the feat mechanically changes in terms of net function.)

EDIT: And besides Net Maneuvering and Net Trickery, are there any other fun abilities I can pick up to use with my net? Just looking for ideas. :)


I'm running Carrion Crown, and my group's gotten to Harrowstone prison, where they're fighting the animated scythe on the west balcony. Being an animated object, it's treated as a construct, but it also has the haunted flaw, which reads as follows:

Haunting of Harrowstone bestiary wrote:
Haunted (Ex, +1 CP): The object is haunted by a malevolent spirit. It takes damage from positive energy as if it were an undead creature and can be detect by detect undead.

Ordinarily, energy attacks do half damage to objects before applying hardness, but there is the caveat that some "particularly effective" energy types might do full damage before hardness, and I can see that caveat applying here. But in both cases, hardness still applies - in this case, would the "takes damage from positive energy as if it were an undead creature" override the animated object's hardness? The answer makes the fight very different - from difficult to a one-hit wonder.


I am attempting to place an order for the list of 20 items currently in my shopping cart and cannot get the order placement dialog to go through. Is there a maximum size for orders? Can the order be input by someone with customer service?

Also, I have a current Adventure Path subscription order pending. Is it too late for the items in this order (should it be placed) to be shipped with that Adventure Path shipment?


It's the morning of the 15th of Lamashan, and an unseasonably warm one even for sheltered Azurestone. The sun is bright in the sky and on the pavilions taking shape in the town square, and the mood in town is just as bright - for the Harvest Festival is about to begin!

Dot in and delete, and when you're ready, bring yourself to the party. I'll set the scene more completely tomorrow night. Happy Harvest Festival!


Welcome, everyone, to Flight of the Red Raven! Over the next day or so, we'll have everyone introduce themselves, finalize any PC and NPC connections anyone wants to draw, and do final checks of character sheets before getting the first gameplay post up late tomorrow night. Thanks for joining in, and let's make this a great game!

Also, everyone go ahead and post in the Gameplay thread, then delete the post. That way you'll get the campaign in your My Campaigns tab, but we don't have six posts of "Dot" to start the campaign.


It’s time for the Azurestone Harvest Festival! The town is gearing up for their annual celebration of family, prosperity, and the change of seasons, and it promises to be quite the party. Storehouses are bursting with produce, merchants prepare to showcase their wares, and the bards rehearse all their greatest stories, for every festival-goer is ready to hear them - from the fabled exploits of the Red Raven, the noble bandit who steals from the rich and corrupt holdouts of the Galtan nobility and spends his wealth among the poor and free, to the mysterious tales of the Jarl of the North Wind, a strange creature with a fabulous treasure horde whose home only the canniest can escape.

With this festival, Azurestone marks the end of the harvest season and prepares for winter, although they’re sheltered from the worst of the season’s ravages by a remarkable artifact - the Vernal Key. No one knows where the Key came from, but they’re grateful that it locks the otherwise harsh winters of the area out of their sleepy town. But no one wonders if perhaps it’s another lock that the Key was made for, nor do they consider who else might be seeking to open a door…

Hello! I’m GM Rennai. After finishing my first campaign on these boards recently, I find myself with some time and attention freed up, and I figure, why not work on maintaining my current 100% campaign completion rate? ;) I’m preparing to run the Pathfinder module Flight of the Red Raven, a survival- and investigation-themed module that takes place starting in the town of Azurestone in Galt. I’ll be looking for 4-6 fourth-level characters.

Introduction to Azurestone:

The town of Azurestone is named for a giant tower of striking blue stone that stands watch over the area. The same blue stone snakes in veins through the land surrounding the standing stone, and mining it is one of the town’s chief industries alongside farming. Tourism is another major presence; the Deerstalkers’ Lodge is a popular destination for wealthy urbanites looking to “rough it”, and the Sahtisauna bathhouse and brewery is renowned as a great place to unwind and be pampered, especially since the town is mostly untouched by Galt’s newfound religious fervor.

Dwarves consider the stone north of town a religious relic, believing it to be a spear thrown from heaven by their creator Torag. As such, religious pilgrimages draw dwarven visitors to the area; merchants use the town as a stopping point on the way to nearby Edme, and adventurers of all sorts are drawn by tales of hidden chambers beneath the stone outside town. The Lattice Inn caters to many of these travelers, while the Sun’s Rest pub is the favored haunt of the people who call Azurestone home; it’s a great place for visitors to soak up local flavor, if you don’t mind standing out like a sore thumb.

The locals are primarily human, although a significant minority of dwarves are also present as well as a smattering of other races. Most townsfolk are miners or farmers. Azurestone is remarkable for having much milder cold seasons than the area surrounding, with a light breeze creating a tangible dividing line between the warmer and colder areas. The people of the town credit a curious artifact called the Vernal Key, a nested group of latticed orbs carved of the same blue stone as the menhir outside town, for the mild weather. The Key is kept in the town’s primary church, the Inclusive Hall, in a reliquary above the primary altar. Erastil is the town’s patron deity, but the Inclusive Hall facilitates worship for nearly all nonevil gods in the Common tongue, while the Stone Shrine, another church, provides services honoring many of the same deities in the Dwarven tongue.

Some of the well known figures in Azurestone are:

  • Ost Untamoinen, half-elf, a well-known hunting guide and owner of the Deerstalkers’ Lodge
  • Ilmanu Luuko, human, head priest and caretaker of the Inclusive Hall
  • the Lekainen family, owners of the Lattice Inn (nearly all the staff at the inn are part of the family)
  • Marja Stonehands, dwarf, hostess and brewmaster of the Sahtisauna and the town’s midwife
  • Ilda Seppatar, dwarf, high priestess of the Stone Shrine
  • Tahvo Rahla, owner of the town’s tannery
  • Antero Ikonen, human, reeve of the town council
  • Matti Jarvinen, dwarf, town elder
  • Larno, half-orc, farmer and laborer and one of very few half-orcs in Azurestone

Character creation expectations:

  • Builds will be 20-point buy, fourth level. You will level up once during the module.
  • Classes: all Paizo are allowed (although Occult classes will be a learning experience for me). I’ll consider third-party, but I make no guarantees, and I do prefer Paizo material.
  • Races: all Core, Featured, and Uncommon races will be considered, although I tend strongly toward traditional races.
  • Hit points: PFS style (max for the first die, half+1 for the following). Or, if you’re feeling adventurous, you can roll for all Hit Dice but the first in the recruitment thread (you’ll still get max for the first).
  • Traits: two traits, with a drawback allowed to take a third. See below for some campaign traits; you aren’t required to take one, but it will help with connecting to the action.
  • Alternate rules: Background Skills from Pathfinder Unchained will be used. If you’re uncertain what that means, let me know.
  • Alignment: I’ll consider any, but much prefer non-evil.
  • Starting wealth: 6000 gold. I won’t allow magic item creation feats to give you discounts on starting gear, and there won’t be time to craft in the module.
  • Hook: Your character should have a reason to be in Azurestone for the harvest festival and to care about its well-being. See the Introduction to Azurestone section above for more information about where the game starts; if you need or want more, let me know. Also, see below for a list of campaign traits, designed to help give you a reason to be in Azurestone preparing to celebrate.

Module campaign traits:

Farmhand: The harvest this year has been truly spectacular, and while your family, farmers all and dependent on the crop, are thrilled at the bounty, it has meant long hours of work to bring it all in. Whether you’re a homebody or ordinarily away from Azurestone, this year you’re here to help, and now that the work is done, it’s time to play. Your childhood labors on the farm have accustomed you to heavy lifting. You treat your Strength score as 2 higher when determining your carrying capacity.

Traveling Merchant: Your time is spent traveling with a merchant caravan, whether as a trader, a guard, a teamster, or any number of other jobs. The Azurestone harvest festival is one of your annual stops, and usually a lucrative one at that - the produce and minerals the area produces are of top quality. Traveling with the caravan has brought you into contact with all sorts of people, and you’ve had a chance to hone your skills of persuasion. Once per day, when you roll a Diplomacy check to improve a creature’s attitude, you may choose to re-roll the check after the first roll is made, but before the result is revealed. You must accept the second result.

Show-Stopper: The Azurestone harvest festival is a chance for you to show off your talent on the stage - the townsfolk are always eager for a good show, whether it be singing, dancing, or storytelling. And the skills you’ve learned for the stage transfer well. Choose one Perform skill; you may use your total modifier for that Perform skill in place of your modifier in one related skill, as per a bard’s Versatile Performance, except that you must choose one skill to receive the benefit instead of receiving it for two.

Hunter: Whether for food, for trade, or for something to do, you relish the hunt. The woods outside Azurestone prove an abundant stomping ground, and the town itself is a convenient resupply point - and a good place to relax after the rigors of the outdoors, especially with the festival in town. Unfortunately, not all of the Boarwood lies within the mildness that surrounds Azurestone, and you’ve grown accustomed to the hardship of weather. You gain a +1 trait bonus on saving throws against cold effects and a +2 trait bonus on Fortitude saves against the effects of cold weather.

Life of Adventure: You make your living as an adventurer, and right now it seems you’re between adventures. Whether you’re passing through on your way to somewhere else or interested in the fabled hidden chambers beneath Azurestone’s namesake menhir or the stories of the Jarl's fabulous treasure horde, you’ve arrived in town just in time for a celebration, it seems. The festival seems like a perfect chance to unwind, take a load off - although if your travels have taught you anything, it’s that surprises always come when you least expect them. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Perception checks.

Expectations for play:

  • You should be able to post at least once a day; I will be on and posting every day, including weekends. If you won’t be able to post once a day fairly consistently, leave the opportunity for someone who will be able to. (I am flexible when it comes to weekends depending on the players, and I understand that sometimes life happens and PbP posts drop to bottom priority.)
  • If you haven’t posted for 24 hours during combat or if your delay is holding up gameplay in some other way, I’ll GM-bot you to keep things moving. If you’ve not posted for a week without advance warning, I reserve the right to take over your character as an NPC and replace you with a more active player if appropriate. So please, do your best to let me know if you’ll be missing for some time.
  • I’ll hold myself to the same expectations for posting frequency as I do you. My posts tend to be late night/early morning American West Coast time, although I check the boards fairly frequently and may be on at other times as well.
  • I tend toward longer, fairly detailed posts, especially during non-combat periods, so be prepared for the occasional wall of text. On that same token, be prepared to put some effort into your posts as well; I don’t need novels, but I’m looking for more than “I swing my sword” every turn.
  • I don’t judge based on grammar, spelling, or writing ability, but I do want evidence of some thought put into your character. If you post nothing but a character sheet, you will not be chosen.
  • Feel free to post character information from your main alias - I won’t make you create a separate alias just for recruitment (although you can feel free to if you wish).
  • When we start play, I’ll want character sheets either in text format or with an easily accessible link on your alias. I have a character sheet template available if you don’t already have a format you prefer.
  • I’m glad to take on newer players as well as more experienced players.
  • Above all be polite, friendly, and willing to have fun and help tell a good story. There’ll be plenty of combat, but I’m looking for players who will have fun with the non-combative times as well.

Recruitment will be open until April 4, 2016 at 00:00 Pacific Standard Time; if that changes, I’ll give at least 24-48 hours notice. Good luck, and I look forward to meeting everyone!

Side note: I prefer not to have back-and-forth roleplay in recruitment posts; it quickly grows near-impossible to interact with everyone, and it makes it difficult to follow new application posts. Feel free to introduce your character in-character if you like, but please, no actual interactive roleplay.


I cannot go to the check-out process when I have a large number of items in my cart. It seems to work with smaller quantities, but I have several small items I'm trying to order and it just keeps taking me to the Sign In screen when I try to hit "Proceed to Checkout" from the Shopping Cart. (I might be adding a few more items; I'd been trying to get to the cart to price-check the order with shipping and the holiday discount.)


Gameplay will begin shortly. Dot in and delete, please.


This is the place where discussing happens! I'm starting up the Gameplay thread now; go ahead and create a post in that thread to dot in, then delete it so we can keep Gameplay neater without six posts of "Dot."

One of our major points of discussion over the next day or two will be any personal connections that may exist between characters. I know Perry and Jetta already know each other, and Amund is acting as a bodyguard for Perry, but I don't remember any connections beyond that.

A two-to-three-sentence introduction may be helpful, although I know several of you were following the recruitment fairly closely and may already be fairly familiar with each other. A couple of possible hooks for connections between characters could be useful as well.

The campaign will be starting in late summer - dealing with overgrowing plants seems less likely for winter, Perry, although it's certainly quite likely that the campaign could end up extending into the colder months, and being a mountain pass, early snows are a real possibility.

What would everyone prefer for the opening - traveling in a caravan together or arriving separately and meeting up at the fort? The module's quite conducive to either, so I wanted to leave the option up to you guys.


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LAND, GOLD AND TITLE!

IN THE NAME OF HIS MAJESTY EODRED ARABASTI II AND THE GREAT KINGDOM OF KORVOSA, THE TRADE ROUTE THROUGH THE BLOODSWORN VALE MUST BE OPENED. IF YOU BE OF STOUT HEART AND ABLE BODY, CAPTAIN TOLGRITH NEEDS YOUR HELP. REWARDS APLENTY FOR THOSE WHO HELP TAME THIS WILD LAND. INTERESTED PERSONS SHOULD REPORT TO FORT THORN, INSIDE THE VALE, IMMEDIATELY.

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

Greetings! I’m GM Rennai, and I’m preparing to run the Paizo module Conquest of Bloodsworn Vale, a survival- and exploration-themed story that takes place in the Mindspin Mountains, on the border of Varisia and Nirmathas. I’ll be looking for 4-6 level 6 players.

About the Vale:

The Bloodsworn Vale was the site of one of the bloodiest battles of the Chelish war of expansion, fought between the area’s native Shoanti inhabitants and a detachment of the army of Cheliax led by Field Marshal Jakthion Korvosa. The story is that for every soldier that fell on either side of the conflict, a blood-red rose sprang from the ground to mark the grave. If that’s the case, then reports of the battle’s ferocity and deadliness are certainly not overblown - the Vale is covered in rosebushes so thick that travel has become nearly impossible.

During the Chelish empire’s height, the Vale served as an important trade route, a connection between the heartland of the empire in Cheliax and their more remote holdings in Varisia. Chelish soldiers held the dangerous creatures of the Vale at bay, and laborers painstakingly maintained the road’s navigability - but then the Chelish Civil War threw the empire into disarray, and the pass was forgotten. Now, the once well-worn path has all but disappeared, retaken by time, monsters, and the ever-present roses.

But the Vale is not completely forgotten. King Eodred Arabasti, the aging monarch of the once-Chelish city of Korvosa, has turned his eye to the abandoned path, seeking to reclaim the Vale for his crown and re-open the once-great trade route. To that end, he has dispatched one of his most trusted vassals, Sir Gyrad Tolgrith, a hale and hearty fighter with years of campaigning experience, along with several squads of conscripts. These men and women have met with somewhat limited success over the three months they’ve been working - while they have managed to re-establish an outpost in the area, Fort Thorn, the magnitude of their task is daunting, and they’ve fallen behind schedule. Stories trickle back to Korvosa of workers and caravans being attacked by strange creatures or simply going missing, water supplies mysteriously fouling, and the rosebushes - always the rosebushes.

Character creation expectations:

  • Builds will be 20-point buy, sixth level. You will level up once during the module.
  • Classes: all Paizo are allowed (although Occult classes will be a learning experience for me). I’ll consider third-party, but I make no guarantees, and I do strongly prefer Paizo material.
  • Races: all Core, Featured, and Uncommon races will be considered, although I tend strongly toward the more traditional races.
  • Hit points: PFS style (max for the first die, half+1 for the following). Or, if you’re feeling adventurous, you can roll for all Hit Dice but the first in the recruitment thread (you’ll still get max for the first).
  • Traits: two traits, with a drawback allowed to take a third.
  • Alignment: I’ll consider any, but much prefer non-evil; do not use alignment as an excuse for being a jerk as a player.
  • Starting wealth: 16000 gold. I will not allow pre-game crafting for higher starting character wealth, but there should be time to craft during the module.
  • Hook: Your character should have a reason to trek out to the middle of nowhere and work with a team to reclaim a remote piece of wilderness, whether motives are altruistic or selfish. See “About the Vale” for information; if you need more, let me know.

Expectations for play:

  • You should be able to post at least once a day; I will be on and posting on weekends. If you won’t be able to post once a day fairly consistently, leave the opportunity for someone who will be able to. (I am flexible when it comes to weekends depending on the players, and I understand that sometimes life happens and PbP posts drop to bottom priority.)
  • If you haven’t posted for 24 hours during combat or if your delay is holding up gameplay in some other way, I’ll GM-bot you to keep things moving. If you’ve not posted for a week without advance warning, I reserve the right to take over your character as an NPC and replace you with a more active player if appropriate. So please, do your best to let me know if you’ll be missing for some time.
  • I’ll hold myself to the same expectations for posting frequency as I do you. My posts tend to be late night/early morning American West Coast time, although I check the boards fairly frequently and may be on at other times as well.
  • I don’t judge based on grammar, spelling, or writing ability, but I do want evidence of some thought put into your character. If you post nothing but a character sheet, you will not be chosen, and the more I know about your, the deeper I can draw your character into the story.
  • Feel free to post character information from your main alias - I don’t expect you to create a separate alias just for recruitment (although you can of course feel free to if you wish).
  • When we start play, I’ll want character sheets either in text format or with an easily accessible link on your alias. I have a character sheet template available if you don’t already have a format you prefer.
  • I’m glad to take on newer players as well as more experienced players.
  • Above all be polite, friendly, and willing to have fun and help tell a good story. There’ll be plenty of fighting, but I’m looking for players who will have fun with the non-combative times as well.

Recruitment will be open until December 18, 2015; if that changes, I’ll give at least 24-48 hours notice. Good luck, and I look forward to meeting everyone!


Thread open for dotting. First post tonight.


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A place for discussion! For those newer to Play by Post, this thread is intended for out of character conversation, while posts in the Gameplay thread should be kept in-character (except for brief comments).

This is how I generally use formatting in my posts:

  • Bold text will be used for speech.
  • Italics will be used for internal dialogue and thoughts. (As such, I probably won't use it as extensively as the GM.)
  • Bold and italicized text will be used for more unusual forms of speech (think mental communication, speech that's translating itself in your head, that sort of thing).
  • Faded text will be used for brief out-of-character communication in gameplay posts.
  • Bigger and smaller text will be used to indicate volume changes as necessary.
  • Spoilers (everyone click here ->):
    will be used for information that only particular people are privy to, or information that requires passing some kind of roll. Please avoid reading spoilers that aren't marked for you, or that you didn't pass a check for. (And if you do peek, please keep that information out of your decision-making.)

    If you need any help with formatting, speak up and I'm happy to explain it. You can also click "Reply" above this post to see my source code for how I've formatted it, or you can click the spoiler button next to "How to format your text" below the text entry box to see other examples.

    Everyone take a second to introduce your character in here, so we can get a good feel for everyone. I should have the first gameplay post up by morning. And, last but not least, I hope everyone has a great time!


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    The sleepy town of Karpad in shadow-haunted Nidal has long been overseen by the Boroi family, and until a few weeks ago, the citizens under Baron Stepan Boroi’s rule have lived uneventful lives of relative peace. Recently, however, the outbreak of a virulent and fatal disease and a number of mysterious disappearances have left the people of Karpad paranoid and fearful. Even Baron Stepan has been acting strangely, and now the tenuous balance of racial tensions between Karpad’s human and fetchling populations stands on the verge of collapsing into total anarchy. The young Baroness’s mother has sent a team of Pathfinders to look into her daughter’s well-being after an unexpected silence - can they uncover the root of Karpad’s problems and put an end to the deadly virus, the terrifying disappearances, and the miasma of fear and distrust that threatens to overwhelm the region?

    Hello! I’m Rennai, a first time GM on the Paizo boards. I’m looking for a group of 4-6 players to run The Midnight Mirror, an investigative/horror adventure that takes characters to the town of Karpad in Nidal.

    Character creation guidelines:

  • Build requirements: 20 point buy, 4th level. We won’t be leveling up in the module.
  • Classes: all Paizo. I’m not very familiar with the Occult classes, but I can learn them if need be. Please note that for a significant portion of this adventure, summoning will not work. (I may be able to bend this for a summoner’s eidolon if it’s necessary.)
  • Races: all the Core, Featured, and Uncommon races are allowed, although I do tend to be sort of a traditionalist where race is concerned. (Be warned that playing a fetchling will have roleplaying consequences, as there is some anti-fetchling discrimination in the town at the moment. That’s not to say don’t play one, just be prepared.)
  • Hit points: maximum for the first hit die, then either roll in Recruitment for the other three hit dice or take half hit die +1 (plus other modifiers as usual).
  • Traits: two traits. I’ll allow a drawback to take a third trait.
  • Alignment: any non-evil. I don’t tend to police lawful v. chaotic super closely.
  • Your character should be a member of the Pathfinder Society, and will be sent first to the city of Nisroch in Nidal. Your venture-captain hasn’t said much, just that you’ll be performing a favor for an old friend of the Society, and that she will tell you more. (Note: this is NOT a game being run for PFS credit.)
  • Starting wealth: 6000 gold.
  • Play guidelines:

  • Please be available to post at least once per day, and expect that the module will last two to three months. If you are unable to meet either of these expectations, please leave the opportunity open for someone who can. (I do understand that sometimes, life happens. You won’t be booted just for missing a day.)
  • I will hold myself to the same standard as I expect of players for posting frequency. My posts tend to be during the late night, American West Coast time. I am sometimes on at other times, though, and am usually on the boards frequently checking for updates. I’ll post as often as necessary to keep the action going, although I will pace my responses so everyone has a chance to respond as appropriate.
  • I will act for your character if you haven’t acted in over 24 hours and it’s delaying the action of the game (e.g. during combat). If you haven’t posted in a week with no explanation, I reserve the right to switch you out for a more active player.
  • Don’t expect PvP. It rarely leads to good things, and I don’t know everyone well enough yet to trust that it’ll be handled well.
  • I won’t judge solely on writing ability, but I’d like well-thought-out characters.
  • I’m perfectly willing to take on newer Pathfinder/PbP players as well as more experienced ones.
  • Above all, be nice, friendly, and willing to have fun and help to tell a good story. I very much enjoy roleplaying. While there will certainly be combat, I’m looking for people who will enjoy the times in between as well.
  • About GM Rennai:

    I’ve been playing Pathfinder (my first tabletop RPG) for about a year and a half, and doing Play by Post for about four months. I’m still definitely learning the ropes, especially when it comes to running games, but I have run several sessions over Roll20 before, and I’ve been part of PbP games with some fantastic GMs. Poring over all of Pathfinder’s rules and seeing all the possibilities is quite fun for me, and I’m looking forward to getting better at helping other people play out the possibilities in their minds. :)

    Recruitment will be open until October 14, 2015 or until I receive a suitable number of entries from which to choose. If I decide to end recruitment early, I will give at least 24-48 hours notice for a last call.

    Good luck, and I look forward to seeing your characters!


    I've only recently gotten into PbP roleplaying (like, within the last month), but I'm already IN LOVE with it - I communicate much more easily, and I think more effectively, through text than I do in person. I enjoy it a great deal, I'd like to do more of it, and I know there's a deficit of GMs to players. It's something I'd like to be able to help remedy, so I'm considering attempting to run a PbP module.

    However, the issue is, I have very little experience GMing, only a handful of sessions, and I've only been playing for about nine months total. My husband is considering the same thing, but he's never run a session at all.

    I feel like I have a reasonably good handle on rules; that's not the issue, because rules can always be looked up. My question is this - how does learning to GM PbP compare to learning to GM IRL? Is it easier, harder, or just different to run a game by posts rather than around a table? Is it something that can be done by a first-time GM, or is in-person experience running a game necessary?

    Also, does anyone have any tips or tricks? I've already reviewed Painlord's sticky guide (which is fabulous, by the way), but I'd like any advice I can get from people who have done it. Thanks, everyone!


    I had a friend bring up the idea of a succubus cohort, and it's not one of the ones on the premade list of monstrous cohorts. The idea seems fine, especially since there's a precedent for monstrous cohorts, but I wouldn't want the cohort to be drawn in at a point where it would be overpowering the rest of the party. Is there any consistent way to figure out what level cohort a bestiary monster should be, or will it just be a matter of comparing it to what's already on the list and going from there? If so, any opinions on an appropriate level?


    Looking at the Equipment Trick (rope) feat, it says that in order to use the lash trick, I have to have weapon proficiency (whip). Does this mean I need to have proficiency in the whip just from somewhere, or do I have to actually take the feat in order to qualify? (Same idea for the trick related to the spiked chain.)

    EDIT: Equipment Trick feat for ease of reference.


    I'm working on a sacred huntsmaster inquisitor of Calistria with a giant wasp companion, focused on two-handed melee combat. I can either

    -go half-elf and get Martial or Exotic Weapon Proficiency to open up some fairly nice weapons (thinking elven curve blade or elven branched spear, plus I'd get low-light vision and other goodies), or,

    -go human and get the Eye for Talent racial trait that will give a +2 ability score increase to my animal companion, which I can use in Int to make the wasp no longer mindless (which opens up feats, way more tricks, skill points, etc.)

    I really would prefer half-elf - it's what she is in my mind. But that would mean that the wasp companion would be mindless, which I know has non-trivial effects on gameplay. So my primary question is, how much does it hurt to have a mindless animal companion?

    This will be my first character with an animal companion, so I have little to no familiarity with how they work. I know the wasp isn't necessarily the strongest animal companion there is, but I like the idea of the character and would like to do what I can to make the wasp companion work. Any ideas?


    How much is ordinary paint? I've been digging through all the equipment pages and can't seem to find it.


    I'm working on a half-orc oracle 1/paladin x for my next campaign. I have three feats set aside for Selective Channeling (5th), Greater Mercy (7th), and Ultimate Mercy (9th) because of group needs, but the rest of my feats are fairly open. We already have a couple of front-liners, so I'm looking at setting up for reach combat (flavorfully appropriate as well since I'm a paladin of Shelyn fighting with a glaive or possibly glaive-guisarme).

    I've seen a few threads concerning tactics (and quite excellent ones; tip of the hat to you, Magda), but none that discuss feat selection much. The only one I know for sure is Power Attack, which I'm planning on taking at 3rd level (I don't have +1 BAB at first level). What are the 3-4 best feats besides Power Attack to take when looking at reach combat? Is there anything else I can get (traits, weapon enhancements, etc.) that will be highly useful?


    My friend is looking to build a character based around throwing elven curve blades. He's thinking half-elf for the free weapon proficiency, and I'm guessing Two Handed Thrower would be useful. I'm guessing Throw Anything as well, unless it applies only to completely non-weapon things and not thrown melee weapons. Other than that, what other feats are needed? Are there any classes that lend themselves to it (besides obviously fighter for feats)?


    A quick question:

    I am putting together an Oracle 1/Paladin x (as far as we end up going). According to the Oracle entry on the SRD, "Oracles do not need to provide a divine focus to cast spells that list divine focus (DF) as part of the components."

    My question is, would the "acting as your own divine focus" apply to the Paladin spellcasting as well? Or would it apply only to Oracle spells, necessitating carrying a separate holy symbol for Paladin spells/channeling? Or is it something I'll have to have the GM make the final decision on?

    She'll most likely be carrying a holy symbol anyway, just for flavor, but I'm curious as to whether it's strictly required. Thanks!