prashant panavalli's page

The PCs stand as the stalwart defenders of a newly settled colony against an oncoming invasion lead by a Witch Coven. As such, I need specific tasks that the PCs can acomplish to help fortify the defenses/ make their contribution active. Some criteria for consideration are:

PRE BATTLE-

Find new allies
Find helpful resources
Gather Intelligence about the enemy/or the converse
Sabotage the enemy/or the converse

DURING BATTLE:

Fight specific threats
Rally troops
Prevent key personnel from being killed
Assasinate key enemy leaders or implement intelligent strategy for victory.

I need help with adding details and specificity to any of the above/or anything else that all of your devious minds can come up with. A few plot points of note:

-Ancient Beings lie chained and dormant at the settlement site- an old prison, unknown to most.

- No plant life grows where the settlement is though the settlement is surrounded by an ancient forest

- Pirates abound the coast line

- The PCs suspect certain NPCs to be traitors

- The PCs work for the most dispicable man who is in charge, despite their distate for this (they agreed to this to pull together the alliance of natives, settlers and others).

You can also point me to any published sources as well ( i believe one of the savage tide adventures deal with a similar topic, as an example).

Thank you in advance!

The group that i play in is quite diverse, with some of the people playing in other groups as well. My campaign is a homebrew, and we were discussing the different adventure paths since 5 of the other campaigns that the different folks play in are all adventure paths. I have found the general interest in people wanting to play adventure paths to be very high and attributed this to an AP guarenteeing a uniform play experience with a promise to advance to higher levels.

Some of the others though, noted another factor; that they had observed the other players in their group to have intimate familiarity with the adventures to the point where they seemed to intuit where the hidden treasure was, or what to do next on a consistent basis. In a way, their characters were able to advance and suceed without challenge. Tangentially, i noted that some of the players in some of these groups appear to frequent these forums a lot and also appear to be reading up APs on a regular basis, and even appear to be subscribers. Personally, it rubs me the wrong way. Do others find any validity to this observation?

Are there any products that set forth villainous organizations or groups? I've looked around and can't find anything similar other than the various NPC collections.

Thank you!

On a long sea voyage, one of the PCs, the honorable paladinish sort, had extended daliance with one of the passengers. Unknown to him (well, he had an inkling that she wasn't a goody twoshoes, she was running from a failed assasination attempt of the Empress.

Needless to say, she is now being hunted by the Royal Inquisitors, pregnant, in hiding, and has decided to keep the baby- from the law can make one lonely :) So, how should she inform the father to be? or should she at all?

I have some Nieces who are big Harry Potter fans looking for some good fantasy books. They are 12 and 16 respectively. Any recommendations?

Yoman's Folly- blank stares and shrugs is the common response at mention this name in the Kingdom of Aldavir, even among the most knowledgable of scholars (admitedly there were few due to the the Great Purge few years ago; it all started when King Omarch the 7th, may st. Cuthbert bless he and his many offspring, was corrected by a Scholar about how fast an apple and an anvil would fall. The said scholar, not of his on violation, found himself under an anvil post haste).

Yoman, apparently a thinker and planner of great foresight, had founded his village, on where he expected the Kings Road to be built. Unfortunately, the fact that he had gotten his information from a drunken "lady" of dubious repute had been witheld from those who followed him there. Needless to say, there was no road. Hence, the little village existed in the middle of no where, with the occasional (even occasional being a stretch, the last being passer by was apparently some crazed explorer who had set off to map the Inpenetrable Forest of Black Death.)passerby. Anyway, none of this mattered to the residents of said village, much more concerned about where their next boiled potato was going to come from.

For the past few years, an ogre, a rather ferocious, grey and bloated thing of considerable girth and ugliness, has demanded monthly tribute. Since the demands were ale, sheep, and occasional mundane supplies, the village complied with these demands. The ogre was content
to collect his extorted goods, and leave the people alone.

However, last month, the tribute changed. In addition to ale and sheep, the ogre demanded gold and building materials!(the former in much short supply, curious thing as to what an ogre would do with gold in the middle of nowhere).

But the situation has grown even more grim. The ogre returned yesterday with yet more demands of ale and worse: people! The village is in an uproar and denied the ogre's request. The brute flew into a rage and grabbed two townsfolk and hauled them back to his lair. They're destined for his gullet, no doubt! The fact that one of the two was Alisa, the fairest of the fair, she who made men (and dwarves) week in the knees also might have increased the "uproar" (by village standards anyway- she did have good teeth, a claim few could make).

Bob was the other, but no one cared about Bob.

Hence the brave men and women? of the village had taken up arms (shovels, pitchforks, club); a rather large group it must be said, whose loss might cut the village poulation in half.

They gathered at the Broken Mug, where free ale was in full flow- it was well known that drinking made men braver (in fact the great Paladin Heronus the Just was always sloshed). They knew a little of the darned ogre- his cave was two miles away, in a hillock in the shape of a skull; bleating of sheep had been heard occasionally and apparently the darned beast liked to cook (smoke had been seen rising up through one of the "eyes" in the hillock.

Karly and Kaylin, two "attractive" and buxom sisters, served the wine and ale as "Lord" Merriweather, self appointed mayor, and the rest of the villagers gathered to give their berthen a fond farwell.

"Heresh to the brave heroes! We know you'll kill the beast!"yelled the mayor, the jowls under his chin quivering with each word. "hip hip horray" he cheered, echoed by the more subdued response of the villagers, half of whom looked a bit glum.

For all the OOC chat, discussions, and schedule alerts. As always, feel free to ask any questions and rules discussions (which i am sure there will be plenty of).

I've been reading through the new Dungeon Crawl Classics Beta testing rules and am interested in "playtesting" the system. The system has a very old school feel to it, and was a fun read as well! Here is a brief blurb from the Goodman Site:

Glory & Gold Won by Sorcery & Sword

You’re no hero.

Return to the glory days of fantasy with the Dungeon Crawl Classics Role Playing Game. Adventure as 1974 intended you to, with modern rules grounded in the origins of sword & sorcery. Fast play, cryptic secrets, and a mysterious past await you: turn the page…

Rules Set: DCC RPG, an OGL system that cross-breeds Appendix N with a streamlined version of 3E.

Here is the link for the beta testing download:

Beta Testing download.

I am looking for 5-6 players; have a read of the Beta. Here is a bit from the download about character creation:

DCC RPG generates characters using what the author refers to as a “funnel.” First, each player generates at least two, and possibly as many as four, 0-level characters. It is critical that the characters be generated using the process as described: completely random ability scores, random occupation, random Luck modifier, and random equipment. Each player will end up with an assortment of characters who could potentially serve as several different classes. When all characters are generated, have the players go around the table and introduce their 0-level peons to their peers.

The “funnel” takes place in 0-level play. During the first 0-level game, it is expected that each player will lose some or most of their characters. When mere peasants and yeomen explore deadly dungeons, a high mortality rate is to be expected. By the end of the first game, the players will be left with a motley crew of survivors, and this group of heroic adventurers becomes the 1st-level party.

If interested, post here, and we can discuss who your peasants will be :) Feel free to ask any questions. If things go well, there is every possibility of this turning into a long term campaign. Good gaming.

I need help implimenting an ingame concept. In my current campaign, long ago, a cadre of mages summoned Old Ones into themselves, melding the two together in an attempt to gain power (due to "benovolent" reasons; i need to impliment this in game. Any ideas?

I have someone playing a bard in my current campaign, and it got me thinking about the role of bards and artists in d&d. I find it to be a topic not explored enough (other than the awesome adventure in Council of Thieves). A lot of what the bard is is rightfully focused on adventuring, however, in a world with magic, music and the arts must be wonderous, with music and performance arts augmented by magic. What would be the art scene like in Golarion? Who would be patrons to the art? What would music be like? What about performance arts? I'd love your thoughts and will post mine as i develop it in my homebrew.

I am looking for products that layout dwarven ruins to some degree, but cant find any that fit the bill. Any suggestions for products or sites would be a big help!

Is it possible to have a non traditional AP? I was thinking of this; whether it was possible to have an AP where the end goal isnt necesarily to save the world or some variant thereof, but something different (take over a town, improve racial relations, become filthy rich, prevent a marraige, espionage of the highest order, get married...) or some other non traditional quest.

Anyone buy this? Looks interesting and by Tim Hitchcock.

Thank you

I am starting a new Pathfinder Campaign in NYC, and planning on adding a couple of more people to my old group(took a hiatus from gaming being a new dad). We'll probably be playing on Saturdays, probably every 2 to 3 weeks or so. Looking for mature, easy going people, who are looking to have fun. Here is a bit of color about the campaign.

Raiders of the Savage Coast

I've been to better places in this world, safer places. I’ve been to places with prettier people, more civilized people, to cities that astound you. But you know? I’ve never been to a place that is so harsh and unforgiving; wastelands filled with colossal peaks; primordial forests that have presence; treacherous seas of quicksand; the damp and fog draped moors where the quiet itself seems alive.

Beyond this, the land itself is a treasure, the gigantic Darkwood beckoning those of an opportunistic ilk, not to mention the unique flora and fauna, both dangerous and profitable; where the worst predators and foulest threats are the human tribes, savages, who live there—and those who, in many cases, pass themselves off as humans .This vastness and the sense of isolation have earned the region its name; this is the Savage Coast.”

- Dario Argent, Explorer and Archivist, addressing the Mercantile League, before his last Departure to Sentinel, first settlement on the Savage Coast

“Opportunity knocks!"

“Land, Gold, and Title!” Those are the things promised for taming the wilderness of the Savage Coast by the Mercantile League, for being the earliest settlers of the Savage Coast. For many it is an opportunity to escape; be it from the oppressive debt that once owed becomes a shackle for life and beyond for generations and leads to enslavement, the constant games of power and intrigue of the Great City where even the lowliest commoner gets caught up in the schemes of the wealthy and the mercantile, from religious persecution, or for darker reasons.

You are one of these, one desperate enough to take a gamble, to set off on the long oceanic voyage, to become a pioneer, to be a Raider of the Savage Coast.

Be aware that the campaign heavily features lots of exploration, ancient ruins, political intrigue, man-devouring wilderness, and most importantly, the chance to leave your mark and plot your destiny; be it being dragon chow, cannibal food, or a cannibal. There might be an outside chance of being wealthy, famous, and who knows, maybe a head honcho.

If interested, post here or email me to ppanavalli AT Gmail dot com. Thank you for your time, and good gaming.

I love the adventures that JJ writes and find them perfect for my GMing style. I looked and PNP database and the info there was incomplete. Where, if any, can I find a listing of adventures authored by James? I am planning on running an AP consisting primarily of JJ adventures.

I am currently working on putting together a new campaign. The PCs would be new settlers in a far off, unexplored and mysterious land- leaving their homeland for a variety of reasons (criminals/excommunicated etc.). Any ideas, useful products, and any other suggestions are welcome

A bit unimpressed with this adventure so far, especially the naming conventions- seems very early Gygaxian, the same with some of the language. I think it needs another edit. The continuity from the previous adventures seem rather tenuous and some of the plotline is haphazard and hard to follow (mind, this is just an initial impression, might change my mind on a more thorough read).

Can you please cancel my subscriptions (both pathfinder and Gamemastery). Thank you.

I am currently modifying my ongoing campaign to tie in ST with both the Yuan-Ti and the Sahuagin so as it tailor it more towards the PCs and to make it more "classic" and "oceanic." My current line of thought is the following:

The Olman culture is an offshoot of the Yuanti culture; in fact, the entire area was once part of a Yuanti Empire that worshipped elder evils such as Dgorgon ( i think the aztec culture fits both races well). The culture was very ritualistic and based on caste, considering almost all other races to be fodder and enslaving them. Many of the races were in fact bred for specific purpose ( such as the Darfellan, the humans in the area, the lizardmen etc.).

A time of rebellion came, which lead to the banishment of the "masters."The current savage tide is a precusor to the release of these elder races along with DG. Obivously, it is this part of the plot I would like your help detailing out further. My initial thinking is that the Isle of Dread, and the City of Broken Idols was the main city of the long forgotten empire ( I have also worked in Tamoachan as being built over the older ruins as a foreshadowing for this). Any thoughts are welcome.

I never recieved this order- it is for the game mastery module, Crucible of Chaos. I thought it would ship together with my pathfinder subscription, but looks like it was sent earlier? Thanks.

Here is a question that I have been trying to come up with a reasonable hypothesis, but have been unable to. Certain core classes and races have been left out of the PHB and the MM, presumably so that they can be published in subsequent PHB/MMs. This make sense from a marketing perspective if you want to increase sales of your future products, however you do run into one major issue. If you allow a third party to produce products where they can replicate these "missing" items, it will have a definite impact on sales to some degree. The GSL would have to limit this. How would this be possible, if at all?

Hi folks,

We currently play in North Bergen NJ, which is about 25 minutes from midtown Manhattan. We play regularly, about once every three weeks, on Sundays. There are currently 4 players and we are looking to add 1 or 2 more. The age rangeis from late twenties to late thirties and the players are primarily from NYC. The campaign is currently around 3rd level. Email me @ ppanavalli AT yahoo dot com. Thank you.