Hmmm... We also saved 2-3 dozen grey maiden trainees from city hall's basement/ torture chamber.
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The mob continued to verbally assault the party one going so far as to tell Muli to, “Go to Hell.” He then failed a Will save and “pop” he was gone. *shivers* Tormod's stick room, I've seen it from the hallway. *hmmm* Still have nightmares.
As to Jim, Elam still finds him an enigma. The most loyal of the group, Jim still has his own motivations and is moving along more to route out the evil in and behind the Queen than to save the city which represents a great injustice to his people. +1
I need to work more on my durability, specifically AC. Well don't forget that I wasn't with group #1 during most of 'History of Ashes', so I have no clue what to expect encounter-wise. My thought on increasing my AC more was to further compensate for consistantly being 'large', similar to a Barbarian always 'charging'. Plus being 'large' draws a ton of aggro, but that's sort of the point behind being the guy in Full plate with gobs of health. Anyhow, I'm having fun with the character, but I think the Rakshasa just frustrate the crap out of everyone with their super defenses and silly backwards hands! I bet Tormod would argue they do very significant damage, as soon as he gets done kicking Glorio's corpse in the nuts, LMAO.
while wielding a great sword of destructionI'm a fossil and have a hard time with the above :p I think I am stuck in the age of Blunt only weapons - Clerics with swords is just all wrong. Gorum frowns on your opinion.
...a three headed, six armed woman who invited them in, suggesting each of them choose their torture device and wait by it to be affixed to it <... snip ....> This group brought a Shoanti Cleric with a Bastard Sword and a knack for dramatic swings of luck. He critted and drew a Beheading card from the Critical Hit deck. This battle belonged to Gorum! Rawr! The snakes kept the bulk of the party pinned in the tunnel for several rounds, with help from Tormod’s Black Tentacles that were not affecting the snakes but were preventing the party from moving. I don't care how much people cry certain spells were nerf'd, 'Black Tentacles' is just as nasty as it was in 3.5. A low CMB for it was 29, the best CMD I could get large and buffed was a 28. It was luck that Atrius survived because I couldn't reach him with any buffs except Bless, cuz he was 35 feet away. Glorio challenged Jim, ... This was an unfair place to put Jim’s Player in. He has played this mod before. He knew that every one of those 5 were Rakshasas and that Glorio himself is enough of a match that this was really not the time to be starting this. ... He chose wisely in my opinion and decided to let one of the other PC’s start the fight and he moved to a tactically sound, yet RP sound position by the door waiting for the rest of the party after nodding in agreement, but not saying anything, to Glorio. Uh, yeaaaaaaaa. I honestly didn't know what to do, so I basically mumbled "yea sure" and let the rest of the party out of the passage way. I do enjoy roleplaying, but I would've had an issue with starting what I perceived was going to be a TPK. We managed, though I'm pretty sure the elephant was the key, as Atrius mentioned. I was a bit bummed as I had to cleric-up for most of this fight, but ONLY because I was capable of dishing out the good/piercing damage and we were Hastened. *sad Shoanti strength cleric* Being large was a tremendous help in supporting the team without having to waste entire rounds of movement, not to mention constantly threatening most of the enemies. I need to work more on my durability, specifically AC.
I really don't want to think about what would had happened if Elam had not bought that sacred crossbow. Well, I do have several copies of "Align Weapon" floating about , but it was more in readiness for when/if we see another horse-demon thinger. 'I' knew what/who the fake Orsini was, but 'Jim' had no clue whatsoever, nor have we fought a Rakshasa up to this point. One of the original items I had on my "to buy" list felt a bit too metagamey for my tastes and I removed it in lieu of more common defense magics. Also Jim isn't exactly the sharpest tool in the shed, between piss-poor die rolls and low skill points you may have to point knowledge-like things out to him from time to time. "Hancock?! Bad guys?!" ... "Whatchu want boy, a cookie?!"
There they found a Throne and another Vencarlo Orsini, this one chained to a statue. The party as a whole was very wary of him, Tormod ran up and kicked him between the legs. It took them quite a while to determine that it was indeed Orsini. LOL, it took a Zone of Truth scroll to get Tormod to stop kicking Orsini in the nuts. Short people are so angry!
Tormod is only bloodthirsty because he knows if he isn't the bad guys will just dimension door away and then we will have to deal with them at some other point in time. In an alternate universe, you stepped over an empty wand of Dimensional Anchor probably once or twice during that "Dances with Otyughs" performance. Just be glad Muli took the hit for the team and kept Rolth distracted.
Daughter of Urgathoa (Large Undead) I forgot to mention, but I also managed to slap a massive '-8 BLEED' on this beast, thanks to the "Critical Hit deck". So far using the 2 critical decks has been hit or miss. Losing 'double damage' for CHA damage on a monster, not so impressive... losing 'double damage' for a -8 Bleed, absolutely amazing. Ramoska, Nosferatu This fight was actually similar to group #1's encounter, only difference being the ability to beat his DR. I was happy that I was able to land my Dispel Magic and a Cure Critical Wounds, but being reduced from a 16 STR to an 11 STR while Moderately encumbered(at 16)... that sucks as I was immobilized. The Stinking Cloud was a pain in the balls like last time, not a surprise.
Honestly Jim would've been impressed by her show of strength, as she one-arm lifted a man much larger than herself with her off hand, and considers it a benchmark/goal of sorts. (I won't get into the TWO CALLED SHOTS, as they're obviously in place to ramp-up the drama in a cut-scene.) Emotionally, Jim won't have much to say about Endrin, the Queen and her various lackeys. If asked, he would simply point out (in a very blunt manner) "Commandant Endrin attempted save his city and failed, every battle is not fated to be won by the righteous. This day belongs to the wicked." Given the opportunity Jim will LOUDLY celebrate Endrin's glorious demise in battle with a toast at their next meal.
Oh…One more thing. Jim! I am sorry I didn’t read Ray of Enfeeblement until I got home. Pathfinder has added a Fort save for half! I Guess I owe you an apology and a beer or something… Not worried about it, I've been pretty frustrated with the changes to spells in pathfinder honestly. Not because OF THE CHANGES, but because I KNOW the 3.5E rules. Besides, I tend to 'rules lawyer' enough without having to look up a spell EVERY time one gets cast. The session went well IMO. I will be sending you my purchases shortly, still not sure on some of the smaller stuff. The 250gp reward is allowed to be a 'valuable' right? Gem, Figurine, Jewelry, etc.
Hospice Entrance: I was pretty sure we were sent to the front entrance as a distraction, so I just went with it. Jim is realtively quiet to begin with, but under no circumstance would he even attempt to be more outspoken than Tormod, so he just rolled with it and waited for initiative, lol. It was only a matter of time and it took a grand total of approximately 30-whole-seconds for Tormod to upset the ENTIRE warehouse, patients included. Approximately 30 more seconds later he shot a lightning bolt just above a dozen or so beds to add further excitement and frying a few bad guys in the process. (see combat explanation above) Seriously, how can I compete with that? WHY would I even try? LOL! Subdual Damage: Jim doesn't know what that means. Is there even a word for that in Shoanti? Isn't that the thing that Gorum makes you lose all your powers and atone for? Also, no one told Jim it was a covert-ops mission where we should subdual people, his instructions were... "Go with Tormod, we'll wait here." Which as I explained above, JIM HEARD "When they start chasing Tormod, open a can of Whoopa$$. We'll wait here." Poison, Drink Me: Um, yeaaaa... as a player this was pretty darn funny, even to me. Although after hearing the numbers of CON damage that would've ensued, it was likely a 'SAVE or DIE' situation. With 12 CON and posion that does 1d3x6 CON dmg, glad I saved. A screech from Tormod "OMG! Not THAT one!" (the potion he handed me 10 mins. prior) and a loud belch from Jim later, I drank a REAL Cure M. Wounds potion cuz the first "didn't work". The party honestly doesn't even know what the potion is/was so no harm done... stupid gnome, lol. CMB/CMD: I am enjoying this mechanic quite a bit. Even without Imp. Bullrush and Imp. Overrun Jim has managed to do it successfully a good 90% of the time, typically on minions. They usually can't break his AC on their AoOs to prevent the manuver. I did have to raise an eyebrow when a Necromancer bested my overrun total of 21(MY 13th Sorcerer has 24 CMD with a 20+ DEX and tons of magical defense), but Brutesquad later explained the numbers to me, which made me feel better about both of my characters. I don't expect the BBEGs to be slouches, but wizards/sorcerers aren't suppose to be able to bodyblock STR-based Shoanti Clerics, it's just not right, lol. Interest in Korvosa: Hard to say really. I'd have to say from Jim's perspective, the party has helped him accomplish his initial goal of finding Ghaeken(sp?) and returning his remains to Thousand Bones, even if slightly reluctant. That's significant enough for him to help them for awhile. Also, they allowed him to borrow funds to further his religious beliefs and continuously provide situations which inevitably lead to battle, though he could probably just follow Tormod for that. I think I can safely say, by the time Jim finds himself truly losing interest, the party will be interested in having him around.
Shoanti Jim had rearranged the plumbing. Well Tormod told me the bathroom sink would pass as a masterwork earthbreaker, though he didn't say it would only last one swing. lol, I did no remodeling, it was ooc player ramblings. Perfumery “Lavendar’s Luxuriant Linement” ... Alchemy lab was set up, Muli and Atrius determined that it was merely sugar, cheap perfume, and river water. Never seen poison or alchemy get so much use as it has with Pathfinder, something not so new, but made more accesible to players and getting more use because of it. Back to the shop ...Elam declared them all under arrest. You forgot about Muli's attempt at arresting the entire building, kicking in apartment doors, etc. Pretty funny I thought, Elam's player just shook his head and rolled his eyes a lot, lol. The Shark and Sea Hag I agree this went much, much smoother with group #2 than group #1.
You think it is difficult being the barbarian? Try being the Lawful Neutral representative of "The Man" without knowing what the actual laws are and having a party full of foreigners and chaotic types... Sadly you are nearly at opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of RP from the rest of the party. I argue a party typically needs that grounded, leader-type so they don't get themselves killed. You just happen to get saddled with a WIDE variety of chaos, I wouldn't let that stop you from taking charge when you see fit. I have done my best to play a 'calm' barbarian (I know, silly talk!), its difficult, but enjoyable. Jim has more personal motivation to work with the party than against it... after all, he's not a bloodthirsty madman who saps people tied up to a wagon.
Every vigilante needs a lair and a large bank account. You just got the cool ride (Hippogriff), we're getting there. It's not a big stretch for your alignment or character theme to say a soldier becomes a mercenary/vigilante type, I say just go with it. Time to shop for a mask and a cloak!
I purchased nothing with this loot share(saving), plus I had to pay the party back the 400gp I owed them for the MW Spiked Fullplate I bought 2 sessions ago. I considered it well spent/borrowed and I'm hoping they have as well. In Carowyn Manor I felt bad for not being able to heal our gnome comedian(sorcerer), but I was knee-deep in zombies by that point and using Channel Energies to try and pump out additional damage so they could be more easily destroyed. Fortunately he was able to drink his potion before she shot him the 2nd time later on, lol. I did manage to throw up a Silence for a few rounds to prevent further bolts/casting... also purposely keeping the gnome out of the 20' radius so he COULD cast. As for the crazy woman... Jim is doubtful Zone of Truth will/would've improved our chances, especially if she believes the crazy talk she is spewing. I am doing my best to impress upon the party that Jim is still very much a barbarian by culture/nature, even if he doesn't have levels as one. Also, I am viewing Gorum's beliefs as a sort of 'battlefield honor', to die in battle is glorious, everything else is worthless... dying as a neglected prisoner is shameful on many levels. Had the party promised to tend to her properly, he would've had no problem with taking a prisoner. As soon as I mention starvation = swift decapitation they get a bit jumpy... guess I made that point clear with Cabbagehead-less, lol. Turning her over to the authorities is probably for the best as I don't know how long I can continue to justify the 'out-of-combat' executions. Chaotic Good cleric worshiping a Chaotic Neutral war deity is bound to be a bit of a fine line. I had prepared spells for a WATER encounter(as much as one can), which is where the Summon Monster III came from, it just came in handy for the graveyard. The other 3rd level I had was Water Breathing, aka Cure Serious, lol. I had no idea the sorcerer was going to do the same thing. :)
Uber AC clerics are just not cool. Oh, That's a matter of perspective, lol. Once the wererat boss moved up on me and got his full round of attacks he was whooping me pretty good at 10dmg a round.(38 HP total and I was out of channel energy) But the party did get to see where their -398gp of party treasure got spent since the boss and the swarms were the only thing that hit me. ------------------
After gawking at the paintings we decided to split up and gather information ... kinda... Atrius and Elam were trying to figure out a plan to get upstairs... Tormond(gnome) walks right between the guards and up the stairs seemingly unnoticed or with a complete lack of concern from said guards. Stopping to long enough only to turn and give Elam and Atrius some sort of gang/peace sign declaring dominance. Tormond while upstairs proceeds to declare himself "the entertainment" while searching for his good buddy Bob, then Rob & finally Gary. A few irritated guards and very good bluff rolls later the gnome found himself in a room with several people two of which were Magistrate Garrick Tann and Archbanker Darb Tuttle. At which point he begins the interrogation followed by him being removed from the room and hastily heading downstairs where he gets lost(hides) in the crowd. Jim saw the many Shiver addicts and decided he need to educate them on the concept of "Drugs are BAD MmmmmKay." (His brother had fallen victim to a Shiver addiction thanks to Gaedren Lamm.) What Shiver he had managed to collect(1000gp worth) he then emptied into the river. When the addicts would get uppity and refuse to listen he would simply smash their vial of Shiver on the table and brush it away. "Now see... this is what you have left, NOTHING." *angry druggie* "...and you feel empty inside, you're letting this control your life... etc., etc." The DM said a few of them seemed really pissed, but at the samed time relatively intimidated by the 6 ft. tall Shoanti in spiked full plate. :D Muli declared the entire establishment an unclean den of sin... or something along those lines and left almost immediately after we entered. He waited for us outside across the street. (Player went to get dinner, but regardless it was in-character for Muli to have done so.)
Goblins? Meh. Release the colossal Iron Golems and Fire Elementals! - Shoanti Jim, Battlepriest of Gorum
I'm pretty sure Gorum wouldn't have consented to this background check. When a colossal iron golem stomps your village flat, you know why! - Shoanti Jim, Battlepriest of Gorum
Hey now, don't forget Jim's small act of atonement for poor Bob the guard, took us like 2 days to track that guys family down and give them that 25gp. I felt guilty being CG and all, but he still died in combat and doing his job... Gorum wills it! (AND I still owe the party approx. 300gp from my new armor investment.) ---------------------
A girl the party had rescued had an unfortunate incident at the house, as the only PC present was Tormod when she arrived with a thank you gift, a wand of Cure Moderate Wounds. I must say that a certain Cleric of Calistria in my other game would be proud of the behavior of the Gnome. The girl used the words “I feel dirty” as she fled the scene. I have to elaborate on this scene as it was funny as hell and had everyone red-faced for a good 5 minutes. -Not verbatim- Tormod - "Gee, that's a nice stick, thanks! I'll go put that upstairs in our stick-room, where we play with our sticks!" Girl - "It's a magic stick, for saving us from the Dead Warrens." Tormod - "Oh... a MAGIC stick... WELL THEN, I will put it in the MAGIC-stick room instead, where we play with our magic sticks." At which point I think he invited her to come upstairs play with the sticks or something, and she said "I feel dirty." and ran off. ---------------------
Muli walked into a candy shop and bought up all the inventory then began to sell it to the children, using his Quadiran haggling skills to suck up as much of the silver as he could. This was a fun and different approach from our other group, as well as some entertaining insight at Muli and Atrius in an urban setting. "Stealing candy from a baby" came to mind a few times, but I believe they both behaved themselves. ---------------------
Tormod rushed back to the house to begin researching, using Rolth’s captured library from the last session, the disease and hoping to find a cure. He discovered that it was similar to, but not the same as a magical disease called Vorel’s Phage. Another funny... when we returned home and Tormod's player jokingly said "You see me packing up and if you ask me why I say, 'It's a plague, not just any plague, but a pack-your-sh##-up-and-get-out-town-plague.'" Funny because I know I've seen a few other threads say something similar to that in regards to a few characters at this juncture. ---------------------
Trinia > After agreeing, there came a long discussion on how to disguise her. They finally hit upon shaving her head and painting her up as a shoanti. Lol, she wasn't really keen on having her head shaved, but after we botched the first disguise attempt with something like a "5" total, she folded. I attempted to teach her a few, simple phrases of Shoanti... with suggestions of having her say "I would like to have sex with your monkey and a coconut.", which damn sure made Jim smile wide, but he's not the comedian of the group. ---------------------
Toy Store > The gnome snuck into the crawl space beneath the shop and found some coffins, popped one open and the fight with 4 vampire spawn was on.Elam > Several rounds would go by with him in this precarious position This fight was NEARLY identical to the way our other group did it, was kinda crazy how scripted it almost seemed.(FROM A PLAYER ACTION STANDPOINT, NOT THE AP) I was worried about Elam, he was in a BAD way down there, there was no way to get to him directly AND I was required upstairs if for nothing else a flank-buddy. If there was ever a time for Fate Points so far, that was it, they were well used.
Yea, I would really appreciate elevation numbers in the future, at least for commonly known things like THAT. I was expecting he would smack up against the wall and maybe be disoriented. Instead he fell 60 feet to his death... poor bastard missed the glass of water he was suppose to dive into. ------------------------------------I also had to mercy kill "Cabbagehead" as the party was going to leave him(currently unconscious) to starve to death in the locked(barred) room that the one golem had previously been in. I deemed starvation an honorless death and properly beheaded the foe, such is life and death on the battlefield! Jim has acquired some new armor, with cool spiky things all over it. Gorum wills it so! M.W. Spiked Fullplate, rawr!
In fairness, I'd rather go with an as needed treasure split myself but 30+ years of playing this game shows me that someone always ends up feeling cheated and Ithat feeling!] I personally don't care how we divide treasure as long as it doesn't take a grand jury to do so. I've never seen The Wind and the Lion, but I could see a Sean Connery/Jack Sparrow combination. He was something along those lines in the original Highlander movie... Expert swordsman drunkard extrordinaire.
Another funny point of note was when Muli couldn't understand why there would be a Church for Asthema. (aka Pharasma) Jim would explain it to him, but lacks the INT to effectively do so, he blames it on his Shoanti upbrining and the extensive knowledge of Totem Spirits instead of organized religion. "I'm not saying you're gonna get stabbed if you don't give me your wand, but you might get stabbed if you don't." Stated in a Zone of Truth... Absolutely PRICELESS. I'm pretty sure we have WAY more than THREE Stooges at this point.
Whoops, I should've been healing for 2d6 with Channel Energy. Something always gets missed in the pre-leveled characters sheets as hard as I might try. :p
I'm gonna throw this out there before Brutesquad07 gets around to posting this past Sunday's events. I have to say it's a shame when the Shoanti in an adventuring party is the "NICE" guy, but of course I exaggerate slightly. Sapping, hobbled guys that are tied to a wagon, so they won't "RUN" is pretty damn mean... in a funny sort of way!(see below) For those interested and reading this, the general gist of the characters so far as "I" see them are as follows... Jim the Shoanti Cleric(me); Think Michael Clarke Duncan (Ref: "The Whole Nine Yards" & "The Green Mile"). Not the sharpest tool in the shed, but a relatively intimidating presence through size & appearance. Being Shoanti has its benefits even if it does hurt my diplomacy/gather info checks some right now. 'Gentle Giant/Shoanti Ambassador' is the intent, plus I'm doing my best to not change events too drastically for the other guys as this is my 2nd time through the mod, so I let them decide when it's a combat or a diplomacy situation. Elam the Varisian Ranger/Sorcerer; I haven't quite pegged a character-type for him yet, he's militant, but not angry "Full Metal Jacket" militant. He has a sense of purpose(duty) and is being voiced with a French-Gypsy-like accent, I think. (no insult intended) By far the most "serious" character in the party. He has for the most part, taken up the mantle as party leader. We are still waiting for his paycheck to come in from 'profession: soldier' so we can claim OUR 65% of that too! lol! Atrius the (Cheliax?) Rogue; He's a very angry "vigilante". The reference to Rorschach from "The Watchmen" was made previously during the 1st session. He has a "fondness" for sapping & shanking people, and no it's not just cuz he's a rogue either... it's FUN for him. He attempts to deny it. :P Definitely 'Shoot first, ask questions later' kinda guy. Muli (Insert rest of name HERE) the Quadiran Fighter/Rogue; When I see this character being played I come to a not-so-subtle blending of Sinbad the Sailor(Ray Harryhausen) and Martin Lawrence, LOL! As much as he tries to be serious, he continues to come off kinda silly in that Martin Lawrence 'trying-to-hard' sorta way. We may be adding a 5th player before the next session, that should be entertaining as well knowing the 4 'characters' we have already. That should flesh out events a bit more, enjoy! :)
Hi! This is sneaky rogue. I took the Talent that gave me Weapon Finesse at 2nd level. 65% of it at least. (The joke that got us through the treasure dilemma, probaly had to be there to understand without flooding the thread with silly player antics.)
This tidbit of information made a bit more sense my second time around, with a brief explanation from Brute a few distant future events tied in nicely.
I honestly hope it does not come down to our Fighter/Rogue having "hurt feelings" over the method in which we divvy the treasure, it's a relatively minor aspect of the game. I was the only one that understood what he was even talking about from the get go, however I could not explain it well enough to the other players to prevent the hour+ debate. I'm sure there was a tidbit of "unwillingness" to understand involved as well. I personally made out better THIS way, THIS time because I wanted an armor upgrade, which I wouldn't have gotten the 'normal' way. (152gp normal method, 517gp Living Greyhawk-ish method) Though this method will eventually hurt the party as I will NOT feel the need to soak my share of the loot for Wands of Cure "X" Wounds when they appear. I play a fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants Cleric as it is, but tack on Gorum, Shoanti and Exo.Weap.Prof. Bastard Sword... yea, angry. At one point, our Sable Company Ranger/Sorcerer appeared exetremely fed-up and disinterested in treasure entirely and I turned to Brute and jokingly said... "I'll take my 450gp/ 450exp, screw this." which is how Living Greyhawk would've actually handled the situation. I needed nothing from the treasure list, but I ended up upgrading my armor from a Chainshirt to Bandedmail(+2AC) and my Bastard sword to a M.W.Bastard sword(+1ATK). Movement dropped to 20', next stop Fullplate and/or Belt of STR... possibly Boots of Striding & Springing depending on how the party handles treasure in the future and how frustrated I get with 20' movement.
On his travels Jim learned of other Quahs. He met a man named . This man was not quick to share conversation, nor was he very hospitable as Jim was from the , but still a Shoanti all the same. ERROR: Thousand Bones is a member of the Skoan-Quah (The Skull Clan) and it is not an opposing clan. I apologize to any small children I may have flooded with improper information and Pathfinder scholars I have made cringe in horror as I unknowingly butchered a fact. CORRECTION: ...the premise is the same: two wildly different guys are thrown together, their relationship tested by tradition until they discover an unlikely affinity, forging a bond of friendship... Yea, yeaaaaa so it's the definition of a "Buddy Movie"... get over it. :)
Cleric. Took another level of Cleric, a theme to be seen repeated a lot I am thinking. Though one day here soon the temptation to take Barbarian will probably just be to much. Nah, our mutual explanation/agreement behind the level of Warrior was more than sufficient to keep me from wanting a level of Barbarian. He is from a barbaric tribe, but even they have spiritual leaders from which to seek answers when the problem is not simply hack & slash, blood & guts. We had discussed this previously when the "class dipping" thread was running rampant. Been awhile (13 years) since I've played a Cleric, hopefully I can successfully meet the party's divine(healing) needs. ----------------------------------------------------
On his travels Jim learned of other Quahs. He met a man named Thousand Bones of the Lyrune-Quah (The Moon Clan). This man was not quick to share conversation, nor was he very hospitable as Jim was from the directly opposing Quah, but still a Shoanti all the same. It wasn't until Jim was praying that Gorum's blessings be with his younger brother(and why) that Thousand Bones had suddenly found enough interest to speak to him. Thousand Bones shared a similar story, except in his case, the child had yet to return and was rumored to be working for a criminal known as Gaedren Lamm in Korvosa. Jim recognized this name, he was the one his brother had been getting drugs from in the past. Jim told Thousand Bones that he and his younger brother had been to Korvosa numerous times, that he had more than enough reason to crush Gaedren Lamm on own, but would help find the child he seeks.
Class: Cleric
Feats: Exoctic Weap. Bastard Sword, Quicken Channeling
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