tim yeh's page

Speaking of Ravenloft, I made my own "Drawvenforge" dungeons with thin styrofoam after looking at what it would cost if I were to get enough pieces for the whole castle. My players really loved it and I was able to customize the pieces to fit the map.

I guess I would have to get 2 8'x4' board side by side as well as a few minor changes in order to fit the map on it.

Thanks Tels and everybody else for your input. From what I'm hearing it does not seem to me that converting to Pathfinder is an absolute necessity at the moment. I will go with 3.5 for this session while learning Pathfinder on the side.

At which AP does Pathfinder rule start to appear?

@Lakeside, just curious how did you know that I paint miniatures. In fact miniatures and the visual components of D&D is important to me and I've planned on spending a month to work on the minis and the dungeons for the 1st book. Our group usually play board games in between adventures so that I can work on the dungeons.

I would run it in 3.5 to avoid all the conversion work.

I am running it now and converting it to Pathfinder.

Not knowing too much about pathfinder, what do you do for conversion?

My players and I are new to Pathfinder and I would like to ask fellow members whether switching to Pathfinder is advisable for this campaign.

Pro of staying with 3.5
-We are already familiar with 3.5 so we can basically start right away
-No need for each of us to fork out the money for the Pathfinder rulebook
-we enjoyed playing with 3.5

Pro of switching to Pathfinder
-stay current as well as making it easy to play future scenarios
-more support from this website
-looking at the Pathfinder rules, I see a lot of similarities so it may not be too difficult to switch

Other factors to consider.
As I recalled, CotCC was written during 3.5 so it may make sense to use 3.5.
How superior is Pathfinder over 3.5 or is it just a few minor tweeks.
In addition, any advise or suggestions on running this campaign will be greatly appreciated.

Tim

Made the change.

Thanks

Tim

tim yeh wrote:

Hi,

I've moved to a new address and would like you mail it to my new location. Please email me at timyeh at usa.net for more info.

Regards,

Tim

I apologize for the delayed response!

You can change the address (and/or payment method) for any and all of your subscriptions at any time by going to the My Subscriptions area of your Paizo account. You can always find that link at the top of every page whenever you are signed into Paizo.com.

Thanks,
cos

I'm finishing BWG and already the players are really bonding with the Sasserine setting. For me, I loved the old school Isle of Dread (IOD)setting which was my 1st experience with DnD.

The pirate theme are another favorite especially coming at the time of Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean.

Another really cool idea was the ability to interact with such legendary figures such as Iggwill, Demogorgon, & Orcus. These were my favorites monster back in the ad&d period.

Now if only, you guys could include Asmodeus in the mix ;).

One easy solution that I did was simply to keep on adding HPs on Vanthus during the battle to keep things intersteing. Of course, the Pcs did not know how many hp he has. I would keep adding hp to the boss until a pc is near death so that created alot of tension as well as great exuberance when I "let" Vanthus die.

I've resorted to this method several times on bosses but be very careful not to let your pcs know about it.

Hi,

I've moved to a new address and would like you mail it to my new location. Please email me at timyeh at usa.net for more info.

Regards,

Tim

I am a fan of your works as well as Paizo and your prompt response will only reinforce that view. With the trouble that I have to go through to read this adventure, it has to be good (or should I say bad but in a good sense).

regards,

Tim

Please excuse me if this has been discussed before.
Just received issue #95 from the 1-2-3 sale and would like suggestions on how to remove the Porphyry House adventure without damaging the magazine too much.

Regards,

Tim

Hi Aron,

For the street battle between Daimondback and the stiltwalkers, I used several figures from the megamini townsfolk set to give them an idea of how busy the streets were. I believed that I had about 40 miniatures on the table. Although the figures were not painted, it still gave a very good impression of a crowded environment.

I would love to see pictures of your skull cove set as I might follow your example.

Tim

SPOILER ALERT

Rowyn & GT was way too weak even against 4 standard pc.
She was killed after the 3rd hit by a barbarian that crit her so I just kept on adding extra hps on her & GT until there was some semblance of a challenging fight. Only when 1 of the pc got down to 3 hp did I then decided to let the pcs win. Of course the pcs were not aware of this. However the pc got 1 more hit on her and it just so happened that it was another crit for about 30ish hps. At this point, I couldn't let her escape by gaseous form as this would stretch believability too much especially with the number of damages that she was taking. She died in her chamber with GT and the players were all congratulating themselves on a very hard fought and close victory. I don't think the players would've been happy if I were to use Rowyn as written in the book.

The other problem that I had was the size of the room. Although she had a fairly good tumble skill, the place was just too small for her & GT to fight effectively. She basically killed herself just by moving 1 square to another. If I were to do this again I would place them in the practice room as others suggested.

Fortunately, I introduced Rowyn's sister to the pcs in an earlier session and so she will be making an appearance in SWW for vengeance instead of Rowyn.

I've also planned on including the Shellandrak Mansion for my BWG.
I am half way thru building the mansion and its pretty time intensive.
One thing that i did differntly was to use 2 boards so that I can include the the outside wall and garden. I think that my players will enjoy planning their approach thru the garden. Another thing that i did differently was to use poster board for the outside wall. This way there was no sagging or bulges. I literally followed the exact plans on the scenario and thus the room were somewhat cramped and i was not able to get their beautiful grand stairwell in. If I were to do it again, I would increase the room dimension by another 5-10 ft.

I've also used Worldworks' village set for the battle between the stiltwalkers/ Daimondback and the PCs. I was able to impressed them when they enter the room to find the whole table covered by village terains.

http://www.worldworksgames.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&c Path=4&products_id=24

I will post some pictures as soon as I complete the Vanderboren Mansion.

I've been absent from the messageboard for some time so I'll have to reserve judgement until I can sample some of the cookies.

Sorry to hijack this tread but my experience is a bit different. We're about to finish Bullywug Gambit and so far my players are loving this adventure. They cannot wait for the next session.

A big part of it is that these are the same players who I've Dm for over 10 years and I know what they like and want so will cater the adventure to their taste. I've always tried to incorporate something for all of my players. I can understand that if you to change players in the middle of the game, you will loose the continuity. I made sure that if any 1 player is missing then we will run some other game such as board game or miniature game so that no one will miss out on the story (fortunately i only have 3 other players).

I also try to make the game exciting/different by presenting something new every time. For every session, I've presented new painted miniatures of their opponents or npc. I love painting miniatures so this is a side bonus for me also. I've also produced 3D settings to keep their interest high. So far I have a mockup of Sasserine using Worldworks.com's excellent cardstock buildings for the battle with Daimondback and the stilt walkers. I've also constructed the Vanderboren mansion so that they can fight in it. I'm currently working on a model of the Sea Wyvern for the next episode. This is rather time consuming but we play about once every 3 weeks so its not a big problem. Nothing can get the players more excited then when they enter into the game room to see a full mock up of the Vanderboren Mansion in 28mm. The Ohhh and Ahhhs are also not too bad on my ego.

I'll try to post some pictures as soon as i can find a site to host it on.

Kind of unrelated, but has anyone tried the XBox game Call of Cthulu: Dark Corners of the Earth? I just bought it used, but haven't gotten around to playing it. Reviews were positive when it came out. It's supposed to be a pastiche of a lot of Lovecraft stories, Shadow Over Innsmouth being the most prominent. You actually have to play through the chase scene in the hotel from aforementioned story. It's probably closer to the role playing game than the stories, but sanity (and the loss of it) is supposed to have all kinds of impact: like your vision blurring, the screen greying out, talking to yourself, putting away your weapon without realizing, hearing the voices of people you've met, the controller vibrating randomly and then finally killing yourself once you hit your wit's end. Also, in keeping with the Lovecraft flavor, your character is quite fragile; definitely not a "run and gun" type of game.

As far as atmosphere, Dark Corner of the Earth really nailed it headon. It really has the 1930s look and feel. Innsmouth is as I imagined it from the book. I think that this is the best visual adaptation of HPL world.

Unfortunately, the gameplay lags behind somewhat. I do have to give it credit for not making this a 1st person shooter. In fact the 1st few part of the game is all about investigating and story building. You are not given any weopon early on and so must rely on stealth to sneak past enemies. The problem with this game as a few others mentioned is that there are a few part of the game where it is just too difficult and it will discourage a few people to stop playing. Worst yet is that once you die you have to start back again. I had reload about 15 times before I was able to get out of the Gilman Hotel scene.

I would still recommend this game to anyone who wants to see how a proper HPL world would probably look like.

I'm currently on Krakens cove of Bullywug Gambit. It took us 10 sessions to get to here. We play about 1.5 times a month but my players are still eager each time they play so its not a problem.

Saw the movie last night with friends and I really liked it. My friends on the otherhand didn't. Their reaction is no surprise to me as this is not your typical hollywood action movie. It does not spoon feed you info like most other movies. It does not have a satisfactory conclusion to wrap up the movie (to most people). The ending is a bit abrupt. As a few poster noted, the shaky camera work can be very distrating but I had no problem after a while.

For me this movie works because I did care about the characters. The long intro was fine as it set the groundwork for the characters and we all know things will hit the fan soon.
The creature was very original and the obscure camera work really made it even more creepy. However I can't say the same for the smaller guys as i've seem them before in other movie (you know the one about a bunch of soldiers traveling to another planet to combat a horde army).

But probably the best comment I can make about this movie was that I was on the edge of my seat most of the time and after the show my heart was still going pretty fast. I watch a lot of horror movie and there is not many that can do that.

Just got my GR stuff in and I just want to say that Paizo ROCKS!!! It was well worth the wait once I found how heavy the box was.
My hearty thank goes to Corey, Cosmo, Vic ans Lisa for their excellent customer service.

Now that we have that cleared, so when is the next GR like sales :).

Happy New Year.
Tim

From my experience, I find thatthe majority of players in dnd are male with my group being 100% male.

But then again my survey is not totally represetative as I only have 2 buddies and my brother in my group :)

tim yeh wrote:

Vic Wertz wrote:

Tim,

You should have received an e-mail letting you know that we cancelled two books from your order; the rest should ship within the next couple of days.

So only 2 books cancelled or will there be more?

What is the status of my order.
What book am I waitiing on and what are the chances that I'll be getting them.
Thanks in advance for updates.

Hi Tim,

An email has been sent in response to your latest message board post.

Thanks for the update.

I am disheartened by the way this GR sales is handled especially after reading the thread on your inventory system. I have seen items that I've ordered go from backorder to available and then to cancellation. I asked that backorder items be placed in another order so that my order can ship and the end result is that I got only 1 book. I've received email saying that my products are ready to ship in a couple of days and that time has come and gone. I have been patient since Nov 15.

Now that I've vented my frustration, what is the status of order 831180?
How many books are available in my order?
Which one are on backorder so that I might decide whether to split order again.
Those that are on backorder, what are the chances of me getting them?
Any updates will be appreciated.

I mostly used the roll up grid map but it gets boring after a while and so I prefer to go thru a more visual route. I am currently trying worldworks product. They make really good stuff.
http://www.worldworksgames.com/store/
I am using their villagework (Bullywyg Gambit)and Maiden of the sea (SWW) for my Savage Tide Adventure path.

I am also a collector of miniatures and have spent anywhere from 30-80 dollars on Reaper/Rackham figures per adventure. The only problem is that I'm the only figure painter in my group so my work load is pretty heavy in addition to DMing.

Tim,

You should have received an e-mail letting you know that we cancelled two books from your order; the rest should ship within the next couple of days.

So only 2 books cancelled or will there be more?

What is the status of 831180?
Which item is holding up the order.

Regards,
Tim Yeh

tim yeh wrote:

Cool!! Thanks a lot for the info. Now I can talk with some authority to my players. I just hope that they won't ask me to explain what passing a hawser over to the quay is :).

Hawser = thick rope made from twisted (manila) hemp, usually tarred for protection against rot. Sailors will call any rope used for towing or securing/tying a ship to a specific position a "hawser". Short end of it (cut off), are favourites of boatswains to "motivate" crew, like a short flexible baton... so called "starting" (no kidding)

quay = pier or other construction extending from the land into the sea, or the build up/reinforced shore, usually made of stone or wooden pilings.

passing = think football =)

The method described - passing a hawser than eating up one's momentum by slowly pulling that hawser taught, braking (mind you not breaking !), the vessel by using the rope (which is made frok several smaller cords, which provide it with a significant amount of yield when stretched) as a sort of coilsping - is pretty common.

if you want to talk the talk, I recommend trying to find "A Sea of Words" at your local library, which explains the naval terminology for the land-locked laymen who reads the "Aubrey maturin Series by Patrick O'Brian. Wonderful stuff.... copy you favourite phrases and keep a shortlist handy with your adventure notes. THAN practise your tovbacco chewing sailor mumble and mad glare !

And as for your players if they don't _know_better, just threaten to hang them from the yardarm, or have them whipped around the fleet, the noi'some buggers !

Since I got the Talk like a pirate book, I might as well get the Talk like a sailor book. Once again, thanks for the info.

tim yeh wrote:

Thanks for tha info Vikingson. I noticed that you changed your avatar so did'nt recognize youat first.

I don't know anything about sailing so when i say confined space, i meant piers and harbor instead of open ocean.
What exactly is clubhauling?

Tim

lol, my avatar got crowded so I changed appearances

As for piers and docking usually the vessel would approach those with the wind spilled from its sails (such no propulsion gained from them ), fluttering loosely, very slowly using up its momentum. If done right, the vessels comes to a full top with just a slight bump (usually cushioned by nets filled with old canvas or oakum ) , or by passing a hawser over to the quay, then loosing its momentum by drawing that taut. this does require some skill and experience with the vessel to judge its drift, loss of speed and maneuverability with dimishing effect of the rudder.
Serious ramming of dockside installations may occur if done with haste and misjudged parameters - which will likely result in sever damage to the vessel (toplling of masts, chrushed hull and underlaying spars, collapsing piers etc. ).

There usually wouldn't be space for sweeps or rudders anyway between the ship's hull and the quay - but the same principles may applied for docking a rowed vessel - if the sweeps are pulled in prior to the final approach.

But, generally, larger vessels would drop anchors some distance from the shore, and use small craft to transfer its crew to shore. As for its cargo, that would be unloaded into lighters and barges, mostly a necessity since larger vessels draw a sizable of water ( their keel being 10' or more beneath the wtareline) making close approach to the shore impossible without running aground. And dredging harbours to the requisite depth is very labour-intensive activity, and also mostly a thing of the modern age (and steam power )

Cool!! Thanks a lot for the info. Now I can talk with some authority to my players. I just hope that they won't ask me to explain what passing a hawser over to the quay is :).

Tim

Hi Cosmo,

Can you add order 845231 to this order.
Are the preorder gamemastery modules ready for shipping yet?
If yes then can you please ship my order and i'll take the GR backorder at a later shipment. I would also like to know which of my GR books are currently on backorder.

Regards,
Tim

Thanks for tha info Vikingson. I noticed that you changed your avatar so did'nt recognize youat first.
I don't know anything about sailing so when i say confined space, i meant piers and harbor instead of open ocean.
What exactly is clubhauling?

Tim

To those of you with some nautical knowledge, how does a sailing ship like SW navigate in enclosed areas like harbors or reefs. Do most sailing ships come with the capacity to use oars or do they use rowboat to toll them around as in the movie Master & Commander.

This order has been outstanding for some time. I tried to go to the GR sales to see which item is on backorder but i guessed either due to heavy traffic or my slow connection I was not able.
1) Can you tell me which item is holding up my order
2) What is the estimated ETA for those backorder/ unavailable items
I will then make a decision as to whether I want to wait for those backorder items.

You might want to check out the Conan comic by Dark Horse Comic. Make sure that the author is Kurt Busiek and artist Gary Nord. They really got the Conan thing going a few years back. In fact, I felt at times that they even improved on REH character and story. There are a few graphic novels out by now by them.

Tim

Thanks for the update.

Tim

tim yeh wrote:

Can I have a copy also

I have sent out a copy to all those who requested it except for Yeh...no e-mail address....enjoy!

ooops sorry.

Thanks again

1)I would like to know if its possible to combine the 3 to save on shipping.
2)Order 831180 has a lot of the Green Ronin sale items. What is the status of the back order/ unavailable items. I'm pretty sure many people would like to know.
3)Can you give an ETA as to when my combined order can ship

Thanks
Tim

Can I have a copy also

Lets end this maddess and close this tread.

In conclusion: STAP is a very good adventure and its up to the DM to make it work for their group. There are many ways to give the players the illusion of choices (derailroading) and still keep the story flowing but like i said its up to the DM to make it work.

The OP does not listen or has some problem so it does not warrent any further discussion.

Ok will do. I just want to make sure before I do.

Being a normal person, I did not read the agreement form when i sign up for this forum and so would like to know if I will be violating any copyrights by posting pictures of my painted miniatures. I am currently Dming the Savage Tide adventure path and would like to post my figures for the characters and monsters in the scenario.

Can someone who decides to multiclass as a fighter get the bonus feat that fighters usually get when they start at 1st lvl. In the PH it says that multiclass can get feats every 3 character lvl but does not say anything about bonus feats.

Thanks guy. So Feint will work even on one with uncanny dodge.

I can't seem to find any thing that says no in the PH.

Spoiler alert.

My players had no problem with Lavinia, in fact I suspected that my all male players don't mind the damsel in distress situation. One of my player who played a rightuous priest of Moradin actually gave all of the loot from the Lotus Dragon hideout to Lavina. He rationalized that these were the gold looted from the Vanderboren vault and all of the other players agreed.
I also made it so that Lavinia does not appeared incompetent. After the players raided the Lotus Dragon hideout, I had Lavinia use her oratory skill as well as her connections to the other nobles to mount a campaign against the Lotus Dragon that the players started. She was able to get the Dawn Council to outlaw the Lotus Dragons. She claimed that if Islaran can be assassinated then whats to stop the Lotus from targeting any of the other Dawn Council members. She also got the temple of Heironious to provide security for the trial as well as protect witnesses. She got the temple of Wee Jas to use their magic to speak with dead members of the Lotus Dragons and thus incriminating the Kellani family.

This title is so appropriate. Rowyn & Guttugger went up against 4 pcs, 1 half orc, a cleric, druid and a rogue. Rowyn was able to get only 24 hp of damage while the pcs did about 60-70 hp of damage on the two of them. I had to give her about 20 more hp just to prevent her from dying in the 2nd round (of course the pcs do not know about this)and thus making this a very boring battle. The main damage was from the half orc barbarian who raged while under bull strength and carrying a 2H axe who crit and rolled high for damage which resulted in about 40 hp of damage. And since the 40 hp damage was near the end of the combat, I could not fake her escape and so she will not be showing at in SWW. I'll probably replace Rowyn with her mom or perhaps a twin sister.

i just finished reading Pathfinder #1 Burnt offering and I think that this would a great 1st lvl adventure. It has a great story, very interesting NPCs, good encounters, Pc chacarcter hero worshiping and it even has sex. The town of Sandpoint also makes a good base for future adventure. Just ignore the campaign stuff.

Ok, thanks guy so stack it does.
The only reason why I asked for reference is because I read it somewhere that Str bonus from spells do not stack.

Just out of curiosity.
Does a str bonus from barbarian rage stack with the spell bull strength.
If not can someone point to the page number or general area where I can find the info?