shaventalz's page

Shiva Parashurama wrote:

Firewarden Yanda wrote:

Shiva Parashurama wrote:

Song of Arcane Manipulation, two 4th level spell slots and 4 rounds of raging song to counterspell as an immediate action.

Why 2 4th level slots? I think you could do 1 4th level slot or 2 2nd level slots, as long as the total is 4 spell levels. The example in the ability description only has the charcter expending 1 3rd level slot to counter a 3rd level spell.

because I don't have a 4th level evocation spell yet. It's one spell if I match or two if I don't. 11th level my greater counterspell will let me counter 1 to 1 regardless of school.

Moving to discussion...

I'm trying to parse the ability as shown below. Nowhere does it say that you expend two spells of one level less if you do not have a spell of the level being dispelled, only that it may take more than one spell slot. Frankly, I just assumed the sum of the lost spell levels had to match the dispelled spell level. In these cases I am usually missing something. Why do you think it takes 2 3rd level spells to dispel the 4th level spell? Is it somewhere I am not reading? Did you find an explanation elsewhere on line? Am I just missing something in that paragraph?

Song of Arcane Manipulation (Su): At 10th level, a spell warrior can sacrifice his own rage magic to counter an opponent’s spell. When using raging song, he can counterspell as an immediate action without interrupting his raging song. However, in addition to expending a spell slot (or spell slots) to attempt to counter the opponent’s spell, the skald must expend 1 round of raging song per spell level of the opponent’s spell (for example, if attempting to counterspell a 3rd-level spell, the skald must expend one of his own 3rd-level spell slots and 3 rounds of raging song). This ability replaces the dirge of doom raging song.

Song of Arcane Manipulation allows counterspelling quickly, rather than as a readied action. However, counterspelling usually requires either the same spell or a specifically-designated counterspell. So she's falling back on the archetype's 5th-level ability, "Greater Counterspell." That lets her throw twice the spell slots at the problem to get around not having the right counter.

Taking a breath now that she is out of the smoke, she says, "Mind if I add this to your weapon, Mykel? It should help against the mummy."

Note that there is smoke in this room - enough to have nauseated Mykel.

so...haste is still up and we have flame and frost on our weapons? if so, really cool...i'm gonna do a boat load of damage...

Which means your oil of Bless Weapon is still up, too (same duration as Shiva's Haste, and activated on the same round.) Might give you some automatic crit confirmations from that.

No one has tried the far door yet. There doesn't appear to be any diminishment in the oil supply that you have noticed. So far. It isn't flowing out the door into the pit area yet but it looks like that is likely to occur very soon.

Opening what seems to be a formerly-sealed door while still wounded from the bebilith fight and the sudden fire seems like a terrible idea.

Blessed weapons? Got it... Mykel grabs a vial from his bandolier and applies the contents to his blade.

been holding on to that oil of bless weapon since like 3rd level..lol

You know what would be appropriately swashbucklery? Cutting Onjatan's rope as far out as you can reach, grabbing the cut end, and swinging down to engage the spider in melee. The length is probably about right.

GM Abraham wrote:

Yes you could fly through your friends' squares and then through the doorway and then fly up. Although you can't see it from your current position, Onjatan could relay to you that the ceiling appears to be 40' above. Though clearly there are some shenanigans afoot since that is also where the rocks that fell down into the depths would reappear.

I'm actually asking if Yanda could just fly 5' straight up or 5' forward and 5' up and be above Shiva and STOP THERE and not share a square with Shiva because Yanda is occupying the square 5' above her. And if she did would she have an unobstructed shot at the creature. Though I suspect if she went too close to the creature that she would invite an AoO which, in light of the DO NOT GET hit suggestion might be a bad idea.

Basically, how high is the ceiling where she is now and above Shiva and Mykel. If it is 10' high I think Yanda can do it.

Given the enemy is 15' down, the edge of Mykel's square probably counts as a hard corner, which would prevent AoOs. Probably. Maybe into Mykel's square, then 5' straight up, and hope it doesn't have 20' reach?

Poke?

shaventalz wrote:

Shiva Parashurama wrote:

Ah yes, the Bracers of heavy nerf.

Originally printed as a continuous effect before the got an errata down to once per day.

When they were first printed, I had a low-level archer. I thought, "great, now I know what to get once I save up enough!"

By the time he had enough money, they'd been long-since nerfed to their current state.

GM Abraham wrote:

What a useless item to include as loot in a dungeon!

Checking the review and errata dates, it looks like Emerald Spire was published before the nerf. The text that the author expected to be used was:

"They continually grant the wearer the benefits of the aspect of the falcon spell, though without the spell’s physical transformation."

Yeah, +3 perception, +1 to hit, & improving your critical to 19-20/x3 would be great for any archer.

What Paizo should have done was increase the price.

Objectively, I can see how they were probably overpowered in their initial iteration. The improved critical range is literally the equivalent of a feat, which is per guidelines supposed to be around 5k in a slotted item. The attack bonus isn't untyped, so it's worth less than a feat, and the Perception bonus is maybe worth 1500, based on Eyes of the Eagle. If you look at it by the bonuses granted and not as a spell effect, the guidelines would probably it it around 13k. That's probably too high for it to actually get used, but somewhere around that area.

Checking the guidelines... a 1/d command-word-activated slotted item that casts a 1st-level spell at CL1 should cost... 360gp. Which seems low, but that's still their own guideline. And that's not counting any discount from the "must be worn 24h to work" restriction.

Ah yes, the Bracers of heavy nerf.

Originally printed as a continuous effect before the got an errata down to once per day.

When they were first printed, I had a low-level archer. I thought, "great, now I know what to get once I save up enough!"

By the time he had enough money, they'd been long-since nerfed to their current state.

What a useless item to include as loot in a dungeon!

Checking the review and errata dates, it looks like Emerald Spire was published before the nerf. The text that the author expected to be used was:

Firewarden Yanda wrote:

LOL. If that will save is over 20 we will all be running. Not likely, but that would be a hoot.

Running? you wish. Prepare for something much, much worse.

Yeah, I had the same thought.

"Good news, Yanda!"

here i am...this site has too many bugs...

Your post from Tuesday only just now showed up for me, so... yeah.

GM Wolf wrote:

9d8 Let me know if HP is handled differently.

Here is what I have so far!

For Society games hp per level is always average rounded up. So a d8 class will always get 5 per level.

Except level 1, which is max HP.

shaventalz wrote:

Static modifiers are done. He's got several once-per-scenario types of bonuses he's collected, but those aren't always active. He also has +2 AC vs rays, and there's nowhere to note that.

Check out Yanda's Fort save. After the roll, she has an OOC add on that says +6 vs. poisons, +1 vs. acid and cold, lesser talisman of freedom, greater pentacle talisman (2nd save). That is how you would note special ST bonuses. There are other examples on slide 2 like that.

I read that as "always has additional +1 vs acid and cold". I've got some of those, but I'm talking about the type of thing that says "once per scenario, may add +2 on a save vs a fire effect."

Onjatan, please add your token to the map on slide 1 (and you all should discuss marching order - who is opening the door?).

Token is present. Given that Onjatan has 20' move and prefers melee, he should probably be near-ish the front. I don't know what your order has been until now.

Also, please fill in your Init, Perception, and Saves modifiers on slide 2, as well as any conditional modifiers that apply to those.

Static modifiers are done. He's got several once-per-scenario types of bonuses he's collected, but those aren't always active. He also has +2 AC vs rays, and there's nowhere to note that.

Allies should note that Onjatan has the Stoic Dignity trait. He has a 10' aura of +1 vs mind-affecting effects unless he's already suffering from that effect.

Also, Onjatan, if there are buffs from spells/items/boons/abilities/etc. that you would have activated when you arrived in the dungeon, please tell me what they are, along with their durations.

I've also noted them in the "active spells and effects" section of his character page.

How much in-game time has the party generally spent on each floor so far? If less than an hour per floor, Onjatan might stock up on antiplagues and antitoxins to drink before we kick the door in.

Lastly, for everyone, swapping Onjatan in for Dolgar requires a little hand-waving because, as you may recall, you are all locked in to this dungeon level. Strictly speaking, there was no way for Dolgar to have left and no way for Onjatan to enter after the door was locked. I'm going to handle this by just saying that Onjatan was with you from the start, and Dolgar wasn't. Hope this makes sense and let me know if you have any questions.

How "locked in" are we talking? Should I be prepared for several levels of healing and food?

shaventalz wrote:

So a suli, a sylph, and two oreads walk into a dungeon...

Sounds like we're trying to be the planeteers

Well, Onjatan does do earth and fire. Sylph for wind, but who's water and heart?

Onjatan would nominate his familiar for heart, but he's biased (and Araga would hate it.)

So a suli, a sylph, and two oreads walk into a dungeon...

Chronicle printed! A bittersweet conclusion (I'd forgotten about the other Boon; not bad).

Hmm; gotta wonder exactly how a Traveler's Any-Tool helps with Profession (Gambler)....

Automatic card shuffler?

I've got mine - thanks for the game.

Sorry again for going quiet a couple times there. I got busy and distracted, and Hskomoro isn't one of my "high RP" characters (intended for IRL groups on a time limit.)

Would our dealings with the local (official) assassins count as "securing an alliance with a powerful political figure or a governing body"?

Anyway, very unfortunate happened over the past 4 days; I'll not share details since too many seem to have lost sight of the essential boundary between public and private life, BUT please be prepared for my reduced participation for a while; no guarantees either way, we'll see how I feel.

Real life comes first

"Guys, guys, we're under attack, get out here and help me fight them off!"

"...guys?"

Hskomoro tries to effect his target, but the lingering smoke obscures his sight!

From the map, it looks like there's only part of one square between me and the target. Obscuring Mist does say creatures 5' away have concealment, but I've always read that as "creatures with at most 5' of mist between you and them have concealment". Is that not how you read it?

I assume they were shooting us with actual bows of some kind, rather than, say, hand crossbows?

What kind of melee weapons?

Are the squared-off (possibly barrel-like?) shapes anything, or are they too just artifacts of the map pack? One of them could affect our positioning.

...anyone have a scroll of hold portal?

As the blood paints the walls, the last assassin steps into the other room and slams the door shut!

Well, if he 5' stepped into the room, he can't have moved away from the door. So if you can get the door open, he's right there.

Knowledge Nature to ID the hostiles.

Hskomoro knows these aren't humanoids and they aren't nobles... and that's about it.

Water spaces are treated as deep bogs, while the blue lines can be moved through normally with a Reflex save to avoid the flowing water stopping progress

The rules for bog terrain are over here. Swim or move at quarter speed, no acrobatics, small creatures must swim.

What direction is the blue-line water flowing?

Are you taking the extra initiative bonus from dismissing the spell?

Yes.

...and I suppose I should probably specify. Since we're moving through hostile territory, Hskomoro's weapon is drawn.

It honestly looks like noise to me, but if it helps others by all means keep it. My monsters aren't bothered by it. :)

Those that haven't can roll perception, I'll get initiative up shortly.

I don't think I got an answer to my earlier (IC) question. How far do we think it is to the hideout?

If this is within 50 minutes from the expected hideout, Hskomoro has antitoxin and antiplague active. If this is within 10 minutes, he also has heightened awareness up. That's presumably not going to help his Perception check enough, but it'll boost his initiative.

Does Hskomoro's Diplomacy check here (or the "bluff for secret message" earlier) count as "a bluff or diplomacy check that is written into the scenario"?

Don't split the party, especially when we're dealing with a shapeshifter!

"Oh hey guys, our group found the assassin, but we were separated in the chase. Good thing I found you!"
Disguise: 1d20 + 20 ⇒ (9) + 20 = 29

It took half an hour to get to the safehouse, and another half-hour to get here. I assume you're thinking that was a detect thoughts or something in the bar? Even if not, the bartender wasn't exactly being subtle, and this assassin was kicked out for being sloppy. Ilchok doesn't seem like the kind of person who'd take more time than necessary to plan. If he wanted to kill the bartender for her loose tongue, he's had plenty of time to do so.

IC, Hskomoro thinks going to the hideout is probably the better idea (unless the bar is on the way.) If they're planning something subtle, get to them before they carry it out. If they went with something unsubtle, the bartender is already dead.

OOC, shaventalz could easily see the author wanting us to go back, and "coincidentally" catching Ilchok in the act, leading to a chase through the city back to the hideout.

Apologies for the delay this week. We were hit with a one-two punch this past weekend, picking up our new puppy shortly after our elder pup needed to be put to sleep. The puppy training is taking up a lot of time along with ruining my sleep schedule, but he's at least distracting from the loss. I will try to keep up a steady schedule, if not a fast one.

That's rough. Take what time you need.

Huh; so anyone can have a Familiar now for the investment of a few feats?

I'm not sure whether to call "HAAAAAXXX!!!" on that or not....

The two-feat version is basically just a non-combat pet with more HP. You don't get the full familiar package until Improved Familiar Bond - and if someone's willing to spend three feats on it, I'm perfectly fine with giving them a secondary ability from a different class.

Yeah, when you said "safe" I imagined something of the "hide it behind a picture" size. Not something with filing cabinets worth of documentation.

Hskomoro has a wand of heightened awareness, and will allow anyone making a Perception check on the paperwork to use it (if they can.)

Were your questions answered? I feel like our communication styles are mismatching and want to clear that up.

Yeah, I'm thinking one or both of us isn't understanding what the other's saying.

The question hasn't been answered directly, but from your responses I believe the answer to be "there are no other vials in the desk."

Alright I've done "dot-and-delete"; still waffling a little on which character to actually bring.

I'm presently thinking my premier contenders are my Druid, my Investigator, or my 'Dark Lord'.

We're heading into somewhere known for its roguish types, so maybe someone with Disable Device? I'd expect "poisoners and assassins" to be more the stabby type of rogue than the trap-focused one, but there could be some overlap.

Khāṇa find the negative-channeling Akkina a reminder of home, too.

Given that this is going for the high subtier, and other PCs having Intimidate but maybe not Diplomacy, I'm going to go with my level 3 instead of my level 2.

Or 1-2. Whatever brings the APL clearly into one or the other tier.

As a player, I'd prefer low-tier, simply because neither of my available characters is in the 4-5 range and the GM's already talking about killing people.

But that's just me.

I've got mine. Thanks for running, and thanks to everyone else for the game.

So the rolls were... 6,7,8,8,9,9. Yeah, that looks like this game's rolls.

Natula's magic and Gaius's deadly arrows end his life. The person who was killed before the fight was Baron Jacquo Dalsine, cousin of Chalfon and leader of Taldor faction within Society.

I was checking the whole thread to see if that name had been mentioned before, plus checking the handouts. Then I noticed the Taldor faction mission handout.

Didn't start playing until early in (realtime) season 4, I've only got two Sovereign Court characters, and together they've played a grand total of three scenarios published before this point. Jacquo was just a non-existent entity for me. Same deal for what's-her-face the Qadiran assassin.

John also can’t be healed, channels don’t go through walls. If that effects your position.

Nah. You moved out of easy blasting range, and Byron doesn't want to move over to the door to affect you. That would risk everyone else a little too much, and make it less likely that he gets to punch Chalfon in the face.

Byron considers the map and Natula's HP. "Also, in case Natula fails her save... can I stand in the space with a chair, one square south from where I'm at now?"

Waiting for this and the results of Natula's save. If she goes unconscious, I'd like to keep her from dying. If not, I want to get right up in the caster's face.

You have no idea of the spell he cast on himself. When he sees bats appearing and a man throwing shurikens, Chalfon unleashes searing firestorm on you.

First, rude.

Secondly, did that cause him to be visible?

So we're dealing with something like a 9th-level wizard vs a group of 5s and 6s. He's presumably got all his spells still, too, which... yikes.

GM:

Byron has Dragon Style, which allows him to ignore difficult terrain and allies when charging. Does the table northwest of John count as difficult terrain or as blocking terrain?

When you enter foyer of the manor, you witness fierce fight between Jacquo Dalsine and Muhlia Al-Jakri. Before you could intervene, Al-Jakri sliced clean through the Taldan noble’s throat. Chalfon Dalsine stands laughing at the top of the stairs, an awkwardly aloof look on his mustachioed face. Pasha Muhlia al-Jakri stands in a pool of blood over Baron Jacquo Dalsine’s beheaded corpse, twirling her twin kukris around her nimble fingers.

I'm not sure what the map is trying to say here. Does the 'C' stand for "Chalfon" or "corpse"? Is '1' Chalfon at the top of the stairs, or is that something else?

Is there a spellcraft check to know whether that was a teleportation or illusion effect?

EDIT: Moved Byron's token to the door

Gaius rises to his feet and fires an arrow at the remaining wolf!

[dice=+1 Composite Longbow (+1 Str), Coordinated Shot]1d20+10+1; 1d8+1+1

Fetch the high-speed pointy stick! Go get it!

No, they ignore completely whats happening.

"Say, think we should do something about that?"

"Above our pay grade."

"But someone's going to get killed in there. Probably one of the boss' dogs!"

"Look, what's our job?"

"To... guard the gate?"

"Right, and that's what we're doing. What happens to guests after they're through the gates has nothing to do with us."

"But-"

"We're not paid enough to get involved in that mess. Just keep your head down and don't make waves. Now pay attention, I think those Qadirans are coming back for another argument."

The guards that let us in are presumably standing just outside the gate. Are they reacting to the growling and snarling and attacking that's happening just inside the gate?

Yes, I know, season 2... still has to be asked

At some point, Byron would continue the search for Ahan (started here). Other issues have been more pressing. Just leaving this here so it doesn't get missed/skipped.

Quick info question for any GMs: How many scenarios/modules have maps with squares this small? My eyes don't work well and I had to magnify the map a crazy number of times just to find the grid lines to move Gaius's token.

It seems pretty normal to me. 20x30, roughly. Just counted a flip-mat, and that was 25x35.

This is one issue I have with the "just use Google Slides" standard - the maps end up being pretty tiny unless the GM jumps through some hoops. Magnification is a must.

I think this one feels a little worse because it's horizontal, rather than having the map's narrow dimension completely fill the slide width, and running off the top and bottom of the screen. That, and the floor tiles could work equally well as "four tiles to a square", tricking the eyes.