HP 33/33 | AC 14, T 12, FF 12, CMD 15 (17 vs Grap, Trip, Overrun) | Fort: +2, Ref: +6, Will: +4 | Init. +2 Perc +6 Human Bard (Sea Singer) 5
Keith S. wrote:
I am not sure I agree with Willie and Amaru.
Some folks like detailed, in depth posts.
Some like to role play a lot.
Some folks (on the other end of the spectrum) treat the game like a miniature based combat system.
I'm fine with everyone's style, I was just stating my personal preferences. The posts I linked to were meant as a help to like-minded folk that would find a good guide helpful, I wasn't intending to impose my world view. Trust me, you don't want my world view ;-)
Keith S. wrote:
I am interested in telling a fun and entertaining story. And roll some dice along the way.
HP 33/33 | AC 14, T 12, FF 12, CMD 15 (17 vs Grap, Trip, Overrun) | Fort: +2, Ref: +6, Will: +4 | Init. +2 Perc +6 Human Bard (Sea Singer) 5
I've always imagined Wilma to be the ghost of the ship, only that she's still alive. She emerged out of nowhere without any reasonable explanation why she was there, after all.
She is your typical support bard, except that she is a bit poor on feats with all the gunnery skills she has to expend feats on. (And the archetype really adds favour, but little power). Not that I mind, really.
HP 33/33 | AC 14, T 12, FF 12, CMD 15 (17 vs Grap, Trip, Overrun) | Fort: +2, Ref: +6, Will: +4 | Init. +2 Perc +6 Human Bard (Sea Singer) 5
Amaru, Ekujae half-elf wrote:
Keith S. wrote:
So give me some feedback (and I am an adult so I can take it)
Is this campaign what you want it to be?
We are off the rails from the Skull and Shackles storyline a bit (or more than a bit).
I am sort of going with "Kingmaker with Ships" sort of format.
Is it working? Is everybody involved enough?
Is the map(s) too complicated / too small / good the way it is?
Ok, here we go.
I think the campaign is really good.
The maps are fine and I think everyone is involved in the game.
I would bot players sooner, especially in combat situations. Give us 24 hours or bot us along.
Something I would do is give us a something to focus on. And maybe this is just me getting on the campaign late but what is the overall goal here?
Are we trying to be the best pirates? (kind of broad...)
Are we trying to get revenge on someone?
A tighter focus may help us (me at least) out.
Good job overall!
Game on.
If I can add to that (thinking aloud here):
- I like enjoy having our own ship, and roaming around the shackles for loot. Willy is very fond of her ship, you know!
- I noticed that I've been drifting off a bit. I'd enjoy having a bit more role-playing interaction, but that admittedly also requires me to put some more time into it. I had great ideas for Willy, I just need them to come out.
- I can really recommend Painlords guide to PbP and Painlords guide to PbP GM-ing. I don't use all of his advice (and I don't necessarily agree with everything), but he does have a good number of ideas on how to make PbP smoother.
- My own favourite is 'the push and the hook' (I guess this goes for players more than the GM, but it's a good way a GM can interact with his characters). My chinese-new-year's resolution is to use this more:
Push/Hook:
Good players push...rarely leaving a post that doesn't move things along or offer a hook. That momentum will make it easier for the GM and other players to act and react as necessary. It's easier for a GM to slow things down if necessary, rather than create something from nothing. Do this because it can make your GM's job easier.
Embrace hooks: leave them everywhere. In PbP terms, a hook is a call to action, a point of interest, a *something* that someone else can react. It's hard to react in a vacuum, much easier to react to what others are doing and what else is happening. So try to have a hook in every post!
Compare the following two posts and pretend you're next to post:
Post #1: Hektir enters the room and looks around. 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (12) + 4 = 16 Perception
Post #2: Hektir enters the room, spits, and looks around. "Smells like goblin farts in here," Hektir says, sniffing the air. 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (7) + 4 = 11 Perception
Which post would you rather respond to? The second sets up a few more opportunities, if ever so slight. You might react to the spit on the ground, noticing it only when you make (or fail) your perception check. Or you might ask how Hektir knows what goblin farts smell like. Or comment on Hektir sniffing. When you reply, you should try to leave a hook (or 2) of your own.
Always look for other people's hooks when you're setting up your own. Try to respond to them in a way that can both encourage their character to elaborate while expounding on yours. An excellent Play-by-Post isn't simply the combats, with each characters' stories bordering it like a frame- it is a rich tapestry of a thousand threads, woven together to create the beautiful whole.
- I'd enjoy having a bigger goal. I think we have a nemesis roaming around somewhere, but we could always go for claiming our own island and setting up our base from there. Build our own little armada. Boss around some other pirates. Capture the Cheliax treasure fleet.
- I like that you take the effort to make the enemy captain in this encounter an actual NPC. It's the details that matter, and it adds great flavour
- Would it be possible to have all non-game discussion in 'ooc' tags? It's really far easier for me get what is going on if I can quickly distinguish description from comments.
- In my games, I use an initiative tracking list during encounters. It makes it easy to see who is up for actions. here is an example (link).
HP 33/33 | AC 14, T 12, FF 12, CMD 15 (17 vs Grap, Trip, Overrun) | Fort: +2, Ref: +6, Will: +4 | Init. +2 Perc +6 Human Bard (Sea Singer) 5
You heard the captain! Man the ballista! Loads the cannons! Get out there you lazy swabs, we got ourselves a whale to catch! Let's show them what nightmares this Hag brings!
Crew! the monkey squeaks as Wilma runs over to the ballista. Wilma takes eager aim and waits for the enemy ship to be in range...
HP 33/33 | AC 14, T 12, FF 12, CMD 15 (17 vs Grap, Trip, Overrun) | Fort: +2, Ref: +6, Will: +4 | Init. +2 Perc +6 Human Bard (Sea Singer) 5
Crew! Ready the cannons! The monkey squeaks as Wilma starts ordering crew members to the gunnery deck. Let's make sure we have a hot surprise for anybody wanting to take us on!
HP 33/33 | AC 14, T 12, FF 12, CMD 15 (17 vs Grap, Trip, Overrun) | Fort: +2, Ref: +6, Will: +4 | Init. +2 Perc +6 Human Bard (Sea Singer) 5
Wilma casts heroism on Noonan.
Heroism:
This spell imbues a single creature with great bravery and morale in battle. The target gains a +2 morale bonus on attack rolls, saves, and skill checks.
HP 33/33 | AC 14, T 12, FF 12, CMD 15 (17 vs Grap, Trip, Overrun) | Fort: +2, Ref: +6, Will: +4 | Init. +2 Perc +6 Human Bard (Sea Singer) 5
Let's see what's inside first, perhaps? Did I ever tell you the tale of those pirates in Port Peril, who dragged back a chest of rotten leather boots? "The great booty of Kelvin the Soapy-mouthed"?
HP 33/33 | AC 14, T 12, FF 12, CMD 15 (17 vs Grap, Trip, Overrun) | Fort: +2, Ref: +6, Will: +4 | Init. +2 Perc +6 Human Bard (Sea Singer) 5
Actually you should roll a stabilise roll every round
Dying:
Dying: A dying creature is unconscious and near death. Creatures that have negative hit points and have not stabilized are dying. A dying creature can take no actions. On the character's next turn, after being reduced to negative hit points (but not dead), and on all subsequent turns, the character must make a DC 10 Constitution check to become stable. The character takes a penalty on this roll equal to his negative hit point total. A character that is stable does not need to make this check. A natural 20 on this check is an automatic success. If the character fails this check, he loses 1 hit point. If a dying creature has an amount of negative hit points equal to its Constitution score, it dies.
Somebody help the captain! Wilma runs up to Darvan, but without any healing skills, all she can do is improvise some bandages and hope somebody has better skills.
HP 33/33 | AC 14, T 12, FF 12, CMD 15 (17 vs Grap, Trip, Overrun) | Fort: +2, Ref: +6, Will: +4 | Init. +2 Perc +6 Human Bard (Sea Singer) 5
Wilma tries to plink it off with an arrow, while keeping up her singing
On the day I was born
The nurses all gathered 'round
And they gazed in wide wonder
At the joy they had found
The head nurse spoke up
Said "leave this one alone"
She could tell right away
That I was bad to the bone
HP 33/33 | AC 14, T 12, FF 12, CMD 15 (17 vs Grap, Trip, Overrun) | Fort: +2, Ref: +6, Will: +4 | Init. +2 Perc +6 Human Bard (Sea Singer) 5
We're not really flanking him unless you 5' step sw
Willie, not being able to move through the pillar, stays put and swing with her rapier, hoping more to aid Darvan than that she's confident to score a hit.
HP 33/33 | AC 14, T 12, FF 12, CMD 15 (17 vs Grap, Trip, Overrun) | Fort: +2, Ref: +6, Will: +4 | Init. +2 Perc +6 Human Bard (Sea Singer) 5
Great! Nice to have an interactive map. The way it looks, I'll just 5' step to behind the pillar (I get cover from it, right?) and switch bow for rapier. Position adjusted
HP 33/33 | AC 14, T 12, FF 12, CMD 15 (17 vs Grap, Trip, Overrun) | Fort: +2, Ref: +6, Will: +4 | Init. +2 Perc +6 Human Bard (Sea Singer) 5
Wilma stays next to Dewyn, holding her rapier and guarding him.
On a side note, I usually use google doc drawings when I GM, which lets people move their own tokens. If you want, I can take your map and turn it into such a document. It's also great for handouts and overview maps (such as the map of the shackles.
