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el_skootro's page
298 posts (304 including aliases). No reviews. No lists. No wishlists. 2 aliases.
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Hey all --
My group in our semi-sandbox campaign has decided they want to recruit the local dwarves and elves to join up in a mission to kill the BBEG, an extra-planar super orc.
Does anybody know of an adventure that involves recruiting armies? Maybe from two groups that don't like each other much? Any edition is fine.
I have a fair idea of what I'll do, but its always nice to sift through a published adventure for ideas.
Thanks!
(And sorry if there's some other forum that's better for this question. I don't come to these messageboards so often anymore.)
In case anyone else is following this thread, so far I've run Death in Freeport and the Dungeon Crawl Classics module Legend of the Ripper (both 3.5) plus a module that I wrote up. Kaer Maga is a great spot for adventure, and the players are really digging it.
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I'm thinking of running a campaign centered entirely in Kaer Maga. Other than City of Strangers (natch), does anyone have any resources or adventures that can be easily ported over? I can deal with switching concepts over from other editions, I'm just looking for ideas as to where to start.
Currently, I'm thinking of ripping off a lot of Freeport and Ptolus, but that's about as far as I've gotten.
I'd love some advice on good urban adventures that would feel at home if transported to Kaer Maga.
Has anyone made a blank map (without the letters and dotted lines) of the map on page 23 of Racing to Ruin?
Thanks.
Hey DMs -- anyone have a write up of what info you gave the players to represent what the found in the temple at the end of Souls for Smuggler's Shiv? There's not a clear listing of what exactly the players will know, and I'd like to be as precise as possible. Especially useful would be a copied and pasted email you sent to your players.
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11 people marked this as FAQ candidate. Staff response: no reply required.
2 people marked this as a favorite.
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A clarification on rules needed here - in the Advance Player Guide it says regarding the Energy Body revelation for Oracles that:
"You may remain in energy body form for a number of rounds per day equal to your oracle level."
So does that mean at first level I can use this ability once per day or that I can only use it one round at a time?
Vic Wertz wrote: el_skootro wrote: When I try to subscribe to the store blog, I get a nasty xml page: http://paizo.com/store/blog&xml=atom
Is this temporary?
Hmm. If it's what I think it is, it will hopefully be fixed late tomorrow. (If it's something else, it might get fixed earlier.)
Fixed! (Well, probably wasn't broken. I was experimenting with using Chrome. Probably a browser compatibility issue.)
When I try to subscribe to the store blog, I get a nasty xml page: http://paizo.com/store/blog&xml=atom
Is this temporary?
The most recent Green Ronin podcast (available at their website) has the Green Ronin folks and Erik Mona talking pretty extensively about the OGL/GSL situation.
El Skootro
PC: Old Grandad, 6th level human fighter/rogue (and keeper of the Migrus Locker)
Adventure: Here There Be Monsters
Catalyst: A hungry T. Rex
After the party washed up on the shore, they spent a few minutes recovering supplies (including a few things they didn't know they had, like a scroll of shrink object). They intended to rustle up the NPCs and make camp when suddenly a great beast came charging from the jungle. Old Grandad, who was very excited about the possibility of pummeling a dinosaur with his fists, leapt to the attack. Unfortunately for Old Granddad, the T. Rex was able to take the punch without losing much steam. Despite dealing 23 points of damage to the dinosaur's insides, Old Grandad was digested.
El Skootro
Andrew Phillips wrote:
Keep the rule changes small, change the fluff.
I think this may be my refrain on these boards from now on.
El Skootro
My biggest concern is non-OGL races. If Pathfinder RPG is going to be truly compatable with 3.5, than what do I do if I want to play an illumian in Pathfinder? Is he weaker because he doesn't have a lot of extra stuff that dwarves now get?
I'd rather have racial substitution levels.
El Skootro
I'm of two minds here. I agree that the very best thing would be backwards compatability that allowed me to use my existing bookshelf, but how many people dropped all of their 3.0 supplements as soon as 3.5 came out? Is backwards compatability truly do-able? If it is, than I want Pathfinder RPG to "fix" the rough edges of 3.5. If it's not do-able, than I'd like to see the Paizo gang open 'er up and see what they can do.
El Skootro
I have a player in my STAP campaign who wants to start taking levels in the Master of Masks prestige class. The class fits really well for him (he's a thespian with levels in bard and swashbuckler) and he loves the idea of getting different cool abilities, but mechanically the class is ... wonky.
We've decided to up the BAB to 3/4 and to give him two "favored masks" that basically give those masks a bit more power:
Has anyone actually used this class in play? Does anyone have any opinions on how this fix would work?
Thanks in advance,
El Skootro
Well, we've had a pretty tough time playing since the New Year, but on Monday night we managed a pretty good sized session, so I figured I'd give an update here about my attempts to subtly introduce You-Know-Who into the STAP:
Although the characters should have reached the Isle of Dread, they keep returning to Ft. Blackwell and its environs (which could derail the entire AP, but that's a different story...). So I've been whipping out modules from my library to modify and throw at them. The most recent one was Curse of the Emerald Cobra, one of the Dungeon Crawl Classics. Reports on the game can be found here and here.
Essentially, there are three main antagonist groups trying to thwart the party's plans: The Brotherhood of the Hopping Frog (the name results from my misremembering the slaad-worshippers in Ft Blackwell), a Cthulhu worshipping sect who consider the slaad to be the best and most mutable creatures to use in their experiments to create an army of mini-Cthulhus; the Brotherhood of the Yellow Sign (my campaign world has grown organically from the Freeport trilogy, so a lot of the mythos of that setting is present) who worship the Unspeakable One, who may or may not be Cthulhu; and the Crimson Fleet, pretty much unchanged from the AP.
The Brotherhood of the Hopping Frog (BHF), are actually making the black pearls for the Crimson Fleet, but the Brotherhood of the Yellow Sign (BYS) are acting as middlemen.
Each organization has its own motivations, but the BHF are trying to raise Cthulhu by unleashing half-slaad creatures that drive people crazy on the world and by helping the Savage Tide to erupt. The BYS want to unleash the Savage Tide to rouse their god (who, again, may or may not be Cthulhu), and the Crimson Fleet want the Savage Tide to happen to unite Demogorgon's two personalities.
What I figure is that Demogorgon has no idea that the Savage Tide may have unintended consequences. I'm basically going to cut out the Wells of Dread adventure and have the PCs go after Demogorgon at that point. They'll get their butts kicked, and he'll let them know who their true enemy is. At that point, they'll start to round up extra-planar allies (including Demogorgon himself) and they'll try and take on Cthulhu. My plan is to give each player the stats for an ally and have them play two characters: the regular PC and the extraplanar ally.
If Cthulhu is defeated (and I know that's a BIG if), the party will still have to deal with Demogorgon and his plans.
Anybody think that'll work? Is it too anti-climactic to fight Cthulhu and then go after Demogorgon? I was hoping for a Mexican stand-off feel: after the initial victory, the party looks around and sees that they're surrounded by demon lords, and with their common enemy gone, they don't have any reason not to try and kill each other.
El Skootro
Nicolas Logue wrote: el_skootro wrote: Nicolas Logue wrote: I think I'm gonna organize a wee game for Sunday. Oooh, I wanna play!
El Skootro Ha...but...
DO YOU KNOW MARVEL!?
BTW, rumors that I am the sole freelancer tackling 4E Marvel Superheroes are completely unfounded...sadly. Don't worry Nick. I ain't trying to ingratiate myself into your game.
Some of my most frustrating memories come from Marvel though. I tried to use the system as a gateway drug to get my comics-fan friends into DnD. They all wanted to play Wolverine. And they kept cracking up over "Beano's Grocery Store" on the map.
El Skootro
Nicolas Logue wrote: I think I'm gonna organize a wee game for Sunday. Oooh, I wanna play!
El Skootro
Turin the Mad wrote:
El Skootro,
Once I have the text done up, I'd be happy to e-mail you my take on the Lady of Dragonhaunt Hollow (the true dragon of the Infamous Seven of the Isle of Dread) if you like. Awesome. Thanks so much.
El Skootro
Someonelse wrote: I once wrote a dragon crawl that would fit this campaign well. I intend to use it myself. I ran it about a year ago for another group, no one in my game right now has played it. If you would like, i can send you the original text, but the map was drawn on graph paper and I have no way of posting it.
the idea is that this was once a pirate base, but now its the lair of a black dragon. he has made some of the pirates into undead minions. this dragon could have connections with other pirate gangs as well.
its mostly just a dungeon crawl, there are a lot of traps, some built by the dragon and some by the pirates. there are plenty of undead pirates and a few other things in the mix as well.
I dont want to post a whole module in the forum uninvited, so let me know if you want to read it.
Someonelse, I wouldn't mind if you emailed me a copy at skooter3 <at> gmail <dot> com
El Skootro
A big seafood fan takes a trip to Boston for the first time. After grabbing a cab, he asks the cabbie, "I'm new here. Where can I go to get scrod?" The cabbie looks at him and says, "I've been asked that many times, but never in the pluperfect subjunctive."
El Skootro
Sean Mahoney wrote: By the way, I think the Paizo layout artists and graphic designers are some of the unsung heroes in the office there. I have been consistently impressed with the work they put out. From Dungeon and Dragon Magazine, to the Shackled City AP HC (an opus of layout), to the new Pathfinder stuff.
Very fine work. Please pass my praise on to them as someone who has worked as a graphic artist.
Sean Mahoney
Just a quick second of the above. One of the reasons Paizo is consistently great is the look of their products. A lot of 3rd parties make good products, but Paizo is just about the only one to make good products that look great.
El Skootro
This thread is now dead to me. I'm newt reading it ever again.
El Skootro
Ggr-rog-nard wrote: el_skootro wrote:
I made it with Ms. Toad once. Things were getting hot and heavy, and then everything got really weird
El Skootro
Toad-licking. You so stole that from us. Just saying. Oh, evolve.
El Skootro
The Jade wrote:
So this is what a liberal take at religion gets you. The glorification of tree climbing harlots. Ms. Toad's wild ride might make a day in the forest a bit more bearable but I never have to go find Mrs. Frog. She's always to be found with the tadpoles or dewinging the beetle roast.
I made it with Ms. Toad once. Things were getting hot and heavy, and then everything got really weird
El Skootro
I don't mean to toady up to the anti-4E crowd, but I really hate how WoTC are slaad-ering all of DnD's sacred cows.
Carry on.
El Skootro
The Jade wrote: el_skootro wrote:
Your comments don't bother me and weren't what inspired my diatribe. I do get frustrated by comments to the effect of, "I'll never switch! I won't even give it a chance!" To me, that sounds very dogmatic.
It doesn't sound dogmatic to me unless you include a dogmatic qualifier. A lot of people detest the way WotC dropped the ball regarding their communications to (certainly not with) fans and that's their reason for not switching over. They feel insulted. Other people don't want to buy new books because they've spent hundreds on their current library. Some people are just happy playing the current version so switching would be this upset to their routine and why bother when you just don't need to? So many reasons owing nothing to a sense of 3rd edition being "The One Ruleset."
"The One Ruleset." I like that.
I agree completely that there are lot's of reasons for not wanting to switch. And that WoTC has done a terrible job in rolling out the new edition. And that 3.5 is the best ruleset so far (I know you didn't say that, but I agree anyway).
The dogma I'm referring to is the pseudo-populist notion that the little guy (the fans) are getting screwed over by the big, bad corporation. Yes, I am still pissed about the yanking of Dungeon and Dragon, but Paizo is still putting out quality products. Yes, WoTC sometimes makes it sound like 3.x sucks, but until they prove to me that another system is better, I have the right to be skeptical. But I will keep an open mind about it. I don't understand why so many people are so unwilling to do that. It's like they're nostalgic for some perfect DnD that never existed. That's the crux of my argument.
El Skootro
Set wrote:
One of the gamers in my group told me last night that he didn't want to switch to 4E for at least six months, as he remembers buying the 3E PHB the week it came out, only to be burned when the rest of us waited a month and got the Revised version, or, as he stated later, 'Until they re-introduce the Druid.' Both seemed like valid reasons to hold off on stampeding the store on release day, although it's not like we'll be waving... [messageboards truncated your message]
If that's your group, then I'm not talking about you:
el_skootro wrote:
I really don't know if I'll switch to 4E. It does seem that a lot of changes are being made from the 3rd edition of the game and I don't know whether I'm ready to make all of those changes. I do know, however, that I don't consider 3E to be the litmus test of what is and isn't DnD and that 4E will be just as much DnD as any other edition. There are plenty of arguments against any particular gaming group converting to 4E (e.g., enjoyment of the current rules system, an unwillingness to spend more money on new books) but claiming that 4E is in someway a betrayal seems to me to be, on the face of it, ludicrous.
(emphasis added)
There are many reasons to not switch, and my group doesn't plan on switching. The arguments I have a problem with are the ones that claim that 4E won't be DnD.
As to what you've already spent your money on and have, that won't be changing. You still have the books and you still can play your version (as can I or anyone else). I think most people will settle into a routine of playing the most recent version with the support of 3rd parties (like Paizo) to give the flavor that makes the group the most comfortable.
Your comments don't bother me and weren't what inspired my diatribe. I do get frustrated by comments to the effect of, "I'll never switch! I won't even give it a chance!" To me, that sounds very dogmatic.
El Skootro
Epic Meepo wrote: el_skootro wrote: I fully expect to get roasted pretty hard for it on these boards, but I didn't post it because I wanted to "troll," "I know I'm posting flame bait, but I'm not trying to be someone who posts flame bait." So, what are we to believe? That you were somehow compelled against your will to start trolling?
Seriously, you need to re-read the definition of the word "troll," because you, sir, are big and green and capable of regeneration. You're at least partially right, but I see a difference between getting people's dander up just to do it and being provacative to make a point. I suppose it's all in the eyes of the troll though...
El Skootro
Whimsy Chris wrote:
Ah, I see - but the following from the OP: "I think that the 3E "grognards" are a bit like the mega-church attending evangelical Christians. They're basically trying to marry a righteous devotion to an original text with a world that is so far removed from the original text as to make it extremely abstruse," may cause confusion.
I think you edited your post before I got a chance to respond.
I'm very intenionally saying that the Bible has as much relevence for some Christians as older editions of the game have for DnD players. There are always revisions and attempts to modernize the Bible (as Jade mentioned, the Vulgate, the King James Version are examples), and there are always people who draw boundaries and say "This is the definitive version."
Much like I think that some Christians probably think Jesus said "thee" and "thine," I think that many DnD players probably think that thieves were in the original rules (they weren't. They're add-ons). It's okay to be a grognard (or a fundamendalist), but if you're gonna do it, do it full-bore. Wanna play an elf wizard? Tough, that ain't in the rules and if you want to be a wizard, you can only cast spells up to 6th level. That's grognardism. Saying that 4E is getting rid of the spirit of DnD because fireball doesn't do d6/level damage anymore is revisionist grognardism. And revisionist grognardism sucks.
El Skootro
Whimsy Chris wrote: Crodocile wrote: 3.5 came out in what, 2004? And you're comparing it to a text written in ancient Babylon? I was going to make a similar argument but you beat me to it. >(
I think this kind of argument that 3.x people are old-fashioned, "behind the times," etc. is equivalent to 3e people calling 4e people unintelligent cattle who play whatever WotC tells them to. These are poor arguments, meant to incite emotions rather than reason. And I wasn't making that kind of argument. I'm really only talking about the narrow set of people who refuse to consider 4E because it's "just not DnD anymore". My argument is that by those criteria, 3E isn't DnD either.
As I said in my post, there are good reasons for not making the switch to 4E and as of right now I don't think I'll buy into it for some time if ever. I just get riled up when people predict the apocalypse and don't recognize that the game has gone through changes pretty constantly (yes, some much bigger than others -- that's why I referenced punctuated equilibrium) since it's inception. Pick which version you'd like to play and play it. There are now a lot out there. But it's a fool's errand to try and parse out which one is the essential DnD.
El Skootro
Crodocile wrote:
3.5 came out in what, 2004? And you're comparing it to a text written in ancient Babylon? Oh noes! It's almost four years old! It can't possibly be up to date with the changes in our culture and lifestyle! Anyone who still likes it is some kind of fundamentalist whacko!
Actually, I'm comparing the Bible to the original boxed set from 1974. It's still a stretch, but a bit less of one. My main point is that if you're going to talk about the essence of a text, use the original text. But if you want to draw on meta-texts and secondary sources, you lose the right to be a fundamentalist about the original source.
El Skootro
Cory Stafford 29 wrote: He should work for WotC. He sounds even more condescending and arrogant than they do, and that's saying a lot. Again, sorry if I didn't make it clear, but the above are my opinions and suppositions, not anyone else's. I stole a metaphor and extended the heck out of it.
Sorry for the confusion.
El Skootro
The Jade wrote: He's limited the rationale of why someone would want to stay with 3e to something petty and indefensible. If you focused that myopically, what he wrote makes decent sense. It's just not true, and stepping back to see the bigger picture... really asking 3e grogs why they feel the way they feel might have enlightened him a bit. Kudos for all that comparative sh!t though. He must be very impressed with himself. I think you misread. He made the comparison to the Amish and the Puritans, I extended it to 3E and evangelical Christians. And I fully expect to get roasted pretty hard for it on these boards, but I didn't post it because I wanted to "troll," I posted it because I wanted to provoke thoughts and discussion.
El Skootro
I just posted this to my blog, but since that's more of a space for my personal thoughts than a public forum, I thought I'd repost it here. It's a bit inflammatory because of the religious stuff, but I hope people will look beyond that and understand that I mention religion to be comparative, not critical.
Game designer James Maliszewski has compared OD&D holdouts to the Amish: they're willfully ignorant of current trends and like to just keep playing their game without any newfangled contraptions like "thieves" and "weapon proficiencies." 1E holdouts are likewise compared to Puritans: they know about the changes in the game and have a jolly good time telling everyone and anyone who will listen why it is inferior and wrong.
I'd like to extend his metaphor a little bit. I think that the 3E "grognards" are a bit like the mega-church attending evangelical Christians. They're basically trying to marry a righteous devotion to an original text with a world that is so far removed from the original text as to make it extremely abstruse. In the same way that it cracks me up to see the current Conservative Christian movement rail against the "War on Christmas" when the Puritans -- who are, at least arguably, their antecedents -- made laws banning the celebration of Christmas, I'm amused when I see people arguing that 3E represents the "true" spirit of DnD. Or that 4E will chuck everything that makes DnD what it is out the window.
DnD was created as a rules set for playing war games with wizards and goblins. A lot of Leiber, Vance, Howard etc., concepts were ported (sometimes wholesale) into the game and some Tolkien was grafted on, and that was the game. But it became something else. DnD became its own genre distinctly removed from those authors. With that process, DnD influenced and was influenced by numerous other sources. 3E was, when it came out, the most recent iteration of those influences. It had some Leiber, Vance, and Howard still, but it also had some anime. And some Indiana Jones. And a ton of other stuff, most of which I probably don't recognize. In essence, DnD had built its own self-referential mythology that separated itself by several orders of magnitude from its own source material. Of course that process didn't start with 3E, and it won't end with 4E, but each edition change represents a sort of punctuated equilibrium in that process.
I really don't know if I'll switch to 4E. It does seem that a lot of changes are being made from the 3rd edition of the game and I don't know whether I'm ready to make all of those changes. I do know, however, that I don't consider 3E to be the litmus test of what is and isn't DnD and that 4E will be just as much DnD as any other edition. There are plenty of arguments against any particular gaming group converting to 4E (e.g., enjoyment of the current rules system, an unwillingness to spend more money on new books) but claiming that 4E is in someway a betrayal seems to me to be, on the face of it, ludicrous.
El Skootro
*edited for clarity's sake
thatboomerkid wrote: Other celebrities who play or have played D&D - and who might be willing to show up for such an event - are Stephen Colbert, <snip> and Barack Obama.
Your kidding, right? I've never heard that Obama played DnD. That would be cool, though.
El Skootro
My only current PC is Sparky Sparkowitz, gnome sorcerer who is based pretty heavily on Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz.
I just love me some gnomes. A high intimidate or bluff check plus spell-like abilities is just about golden.
El Skootro
Dear Brian Harris:
Hey mate. I see that you're fairly new to the Paizo messageboards. Welcome. There are a lot of people who post here on a lot of different topics. One might even call what we have here a community. There aren't any moderators; we mostly self-police. That means that people don't try to upset everyone by making a point, even a good one, with many, many caustic messages that turn into white noise because there are so damned many of them. Seriously, give it a rest. You made your point. Chillout. And Fakey, please stop poking him with your pointy stick. You're better than that.
El Skootro
I would seriously LOVE to see a bowl of balls monster. It could be a kind of easter egg for the message board faithful, and a Whiskey Tango Foxtrot moment for everyone else.
El Skootro
The party doesn't know how ofen a ship needs to stop to get supplies. To accomodate a new player, I invented a subplot about a dire rat infestation that ate through most of the food on the Sea Wyvern. After quelling the dire rat invasion, the party went ashore to do some hunting and gathering and ran into a marooned sailor.
El Skootro
EATERoftheDEAD wrote:
Of course, in true Lovecraftian fashion it's impossible to actually kill an Old One. All a mortal can do when faced against such a creature, regardless of level, is writhe around and die painfully. Cthulhu was fought in one of the stories but was not killed only driven back to sleep and that was only by having a steamliner driven through his head.
Yeah, that's why I'm thinking of having the PCs conspire with the outer planes folks. It makes a lot more sense to me to have the PCs join up with demons if their common enemy is something so alien. If it works out to stage the fight with Cthulhu, it will be with Demogorgon fighting alongside the PCs as an uber-powerful NPC. The more I think about it, the more I like the idea of Demogorgon as a red herring/potential ally.
El Skootro
Heathansson wrote: Cool! What level are your characters?!?!? They're 6th level which would seem to be a bit low by the gp cost of the item, but if it happens to wind up in the players' hands, I'm fine with it.
El Skootro
magdalena thiriet wrote:
Actually, when I was little and just started to read horror, I had read some Lovecraft and then when Stephen King had one or two Cthulhu references in his short stories, and I think someone else too, I didn't make the connection on the level of literature but thought that Cthulhu mythos is actually based on real world.
I'm not sure if I was disappointed or relieved that I was wrong.
I had the same experience. I assumed Cthulhu must be Babylonian or Incan... Ahh, the days before wikipedia
El Skootro
Sir_Wulf wrote: I plugged the migrus locker into my game the other day, in the possession of a swamp hag. The PCs have encountered what appeared to be an undead cat twice now; they're not sure what to make of it. Eventually, they'll run into the owner of the migrus and things could get ugly.
I just dropped ol' Migrus into my game -- in the possesion of a True Necromancer and his boat full of zombies. My players are thouroughly creeped out.
El Skootro
So my thought now is that when the first shadow pearl was broken, it roused Cthulhu from his slumber.
Demogorgon's motivations remain the same. He wants to set off the shadow pearls to increase his power. The production of the shadow pearls will all be done by Cthulhu worshippers, however (the area under the Isle of Dread is already pretty ripe for this). The party discovers this and freaks out a little bit. They realize what Demogorgon is planning, but they don't know whether or not Demogorgon knows he's being used to awaken Cthulhu (he doesn't). Instead of meeting up with Igglwv, the party has to track down a Far Realms expert (It just so happens that I have a candidate: a pc from a previous campaign) who explains that the only way to save reality is to stop the production of the shadow pearls. The party then proceeds to build an alliance to stop Demogorgon as before (with the added incentive that aligning with demons may seem less of a stretch when the alternative is allowing Cthulhu to rise).
This way, the party can also try to convince Demogorgon how dangerous his plan is (he may not listen or even care) via diplomatic means.
Fortunately, the player for my bard character is out of the country for a month or so, so the bard has just gone unconcious and is having some weird dreams.
Thoughts?
El Skootro
I got the book for my wife (who's been gaming for about three years), and we both thought it was great. You just need to remember that it's a genre piece -- but the genre is chick lit. I'm really pretty dissapointed by the negative press the book has gotten on the various DnD messageboards. Basically, if you're posting here, you're not the audience for the book.
El Skootro
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