I want to know your party!!!
My party's APL is 18th level and consists of:
Ezekiel Hellbane; male human LG ranger 4, cleric 6, knight of the chalice 8
Cadamont Spellmason; male human LG wizard 15, arcane interceptor 3
Azryn Balderk; female dwarf NG fighter 4, cleric 14
Theldon; male elf CN rogue 10, shadowdancer 7, wizard 1
Elnac; male human LG monk 18
Gustev RedBjorn; male dwarf CN fighter 12, red sentinel 6
Kargon RedBjorn; male dwarf CN fighter 18
Razjem; male gnome NG fighter 9, rogue 9
Jaycen Keenword; male human LG bard 9, fighter 9 (NPC)
Together they are known as the Ironguard, fearless protectors
of the cauldron region. As of now, the Ironguard embarks on a
journey to the ruins of shatterhorn with a well deserved vengeance for any lingering cagewrights. Obviously with a party
of this magnitude I have added a lot of opportunities for extra XP, which is great, a trio of nightwalkers and a nest of banshees in the mines beneath the haunted village can be a lot of fun for a struggling DM :D
8 players? Wow. That's sure to throw off some of the CR's of the encounters isn't it?
Anyway, I have 4 players right now but would like to add a 5th:
Norin male dwarf Bbn 1/Ftr 2
Dane male half-elf Rng 3
Ahzemeer male human Wiz 1/Rog 2
Rufus male human Clr 3 (played as a PC)
They just entered the Malachite Fortress.
We also have 8 players:
Knuptar, male half-elf CG ranger 5/fighter 5/rogue 4
Pyro, male human N fighter 13/wizard 1 (don't ask...)
Qadi, male dwarf NG cleric 8/Risen Martyr 6
Gorgon Zola, male dwarf CG wizard 14
Jackie Woo, male halfling LN monk 14
Tylis, male halfling CG bard 14
Ankh-sa, female tiefling/dragon hybrid of some kind CG rogue 9 (not real sure of the level...)
Our 8th player is currently between characters.
We are currently on a quest to retrieve the Cup and Talisman of Al-Ackbar.
We've got 5 characters:
Ayunken-kocoi: male gold dragon 8
Lord Ulskorn: male green folk noble 6
Kong: male anthropomorphic ape barbarian 6
Lilith: female weretiger 8
Aureas: male half-celestial paladin 4
The current makeup is this-
Tenar of Hollowsky; male human N druid 5/sorcerer 4/geomancer 3
Zarn Stonearms; male dwarf CN fighter 6/weapon master 6
Shazar of the Claw Clan; male human weretiger NG ranger 2
Paxanni; female gnome CN rogue 3/bard 8 +smoking eye template
and the fallen ones-
Maltrose, human fighter 2
Darius, human druid 2
Legolas, elf fighter 2
Dmytrius Grigori Gunn, half-elf sorcerer 7
Danzig, orc barbarian 5
Rivvyl Xyndus, half-drow fighter 1/sorcerer 6
Ulfgar Splintershield, dwarf paladin 4
Quarion, elf wizard 6
Maeglin, elf rogue 9
and the retired ones- (players have left us)
Rurik Splintershield, dwarf fighter 3
Aramil, elf wizard 8
Tenar of Hollowsky is the only original PC. He's never died. Some of the dead ones died more than once. The Stormblades have started up a rumor about the Curse of Tenar...
At one time the group was known as the Eldritch Warriors when the party was made up of Tenar, Quarion, Aramil, Dmytri, and Maeglin. They don't have a gruop name anymore.
I have run one group of characters through the adventure path and am in the process of running a second group as well. The first group consisted of the following PCs:
Sorin Jaerth, male human barbarian/fighter/rogue with the Smoking Eye.
Ogg, male half-orc ranger/cleric of Kord.
Beldin, male halfling wizard/elemental savant/archmage.
Felinor Quickblade, male human samurai/kensai.
Ivan, male elf druid.
Cailin, male human rogue.
"The Pixie King", male pixie sorcerer/incantatrix.
The current group consists of the following PCs:
Sovaliss, male human fighter.
Lindle Ghelve, male gnome bard/rogue.
Ildil, male human evoker.
Endeem Jalan, male changeling cleric of Wee Jas.
J'Quleon, male human spirit shaman.
Six players:
Swyth Deribor, male human bard 6
Misha Thundergrove, female human cleric 6
Heion Lia, male sun elf wizard 5/incantatrix 1
Erold Lynn, male human barbarian 4/fighter 2
Vlada Nightrunner, male human rogue 2/ranger 2/swashbuckler 1
Darius Lionheart, male human barbarian 1/fighter 2/wizard 2
They are currently in the Korpu Ruins and last session they took out Skaven. The only fatality I've had so far was Vlada who saw the blunt end of a Hammer Automaton in the Malachite Fortress. The party decided to raise him though, so he's still around.
I think that one of the reasons the party has done so well so far is because of the bard. Every combat Swyth is giving the other party members +3 to hit and +3 damage with his bardic music, making even the wizard quite accomplished with his bow.
I am currently in two campaigns, both where I GM.
The first is around level 25 on average.
The campaign is approaching four years in age and is just finishing Chapter 29 out of 32.
Male Half-Orc Fighter 1/Sorceror 8/Shadowcrafter 6/Shadow Adept 10
Male Gnome Illusionist 7/Rogue 9//Arcane Trickster 6/Epic Infiltrator 3
Human Female Fighter 6/Rogue 10/Order of the Bow Initiate 10
Dwarf Male Favored Soul 6/Fighter 10/Hammer of Moradin 10
Dwarf Male Sorceror 4/Favored Soul 5/Mystic Theurge 10/War Mage 4/Runecaster 1/
The second is around level 11 on average.
The campaign is about two years old, with fairly sporadic play.
The group is just finishing Chapter 8 of 15.
Male Couatl 10/Countermage 1 (Custom PRC)
Male Svirfniblen 3/Cleric 8
Male Hobgoblin 1/Monk 10
Male Troll 7/Rogue 5
Male Half-Dragon 3/Fighter 8
Male Pixie 5/Bard 7
We have a small group and at the moment I'm DM'ing the AP series. I run the Arcane Trickster NPC.
They were pegged "The Fiend Slayers" by Kristof Jurgenson when they returned from Occipitus.
Avarion Tath, Aasimar Sentinel of Pelor 14 (NG Paladin from Dragon Magazine #310.). His Celestial Minion is a leopard named Maehdros. His backstory includes his uncle being one of the priests of Pelor who mysteriously perished/vanished and he journeyed to Cauldron to investigate once hearing about it from an uncaring high preist in Sasserine. Avarion is death to fiends of all types and a paragon of good, an example to be followed. Avarion is soley responsible for the current rise in popularity of the Shrine of Pelor in the city with the fall of the Temple of Wee Jas.
Krelthass, Lizard Folk Ranger 14. Krelthass has a monitor lizard companion named Skrel. Krelthass journeyed from the jungle swamps at the behest of his chief, who was slowly losing sanity due to recurring visions of the "Eye in the Darkness, The Eye Wreathed in Flame." Drawn to Cauldron upon seeing patrol members wearing the city's emblem he soon teamed up with Avarion and Quarso after fighting off a small group of goblin bandits riding dinosaurs. Krelthass is an archer without peer and an absolute menace with a two-handed weapon, his chosen style of combat. Krelthass hunts fiends like some men hunt small game. In his off time, Krelthass provides guard services to Maavu Arlintal in exchange for room and board.
Quarso Westkey, Half-Elf Rogue 7/Wizard 5/Arcane Trickster 3. The son of the owners of the Westkey Map Market, Quarso is an adventurer first, and a cartographer/archaeologist second. He eventually plans on settling into the family business, but he is currently too enbroiled in the intrigues of the city to actually get much finished beyond merely making notes. There are some who feel he might make an excellent Lord Mayor in time.
The all have the smoking eye template due to the selfless act of sacraficing themselves as a team to the plasms. I couldn't resist. The added benefits also offset their lack of a fourth team member.
Great Fun!
Currently we have a small party (three or four players) that experienced some change during the course of the AP:
At the beginning we had a:
- Human Male Paladin of Heironeous (died in the travel to Cauldron);
- Aasimar Male Cleric of Heironeous who decided to retire in meditation at the end of the Soul Pillars adventure (he was 14th level) because he was somehow tainted by the evil in the place, thus losing the benevolence of Heironeous. He is now a NPC living and waiting to receive an Atonement in the Spire of Glory (Chendl, Furyondy);
- Human Male Monk who took the Vow of Poverty. Currently he is 13th level. During the course of the adventure he was raised twice.
The Paladin was first substituted by a Barbarian/Champion of Kord (was Gwynharwyf) sent by the Temple of Might in Cauldron. He fell victim to the three hags in Demonskar's Legacy. Thrown in the Starry Mirror without equipment, he luckily managed to escape after 5 days wandering in the Mirror. He was able to reach Cauldron, but Vhalantru turned him to stone placing the new statue in one of the halls of its estate.
Viewing his champion lost, Asfelkir Hranleurth sent the "Kordian" (Favored Soul of Kord, new PG in substitution of the Champion) to rescue him. The Kordian failed and fled back to Cauldron where he actually stays as an NPC (no Omar Tiskinsen in my campaign).
After the Kordian, we had a half-celestial Samurai 6th who joined the group in the Occipitus. The H-C has got the Smoking Eye Template. When in Cauldron, he hides most of the times and when in public, he uses a large cloak to hide his wings and an eyepatch to cover the flaming orbit. He is seen in Cauldron as a sort of Notre Dame hunchback.
After the turn-over, at the beginning of the Soul Pillars installment we started with a fourth player and the party was thus made of:
- Human Male Monk 13th (Vow of Poverty)
- Aasimar Male Cleric of Heironeous 13th
- Half-Celestial Male Samurai 6th/ Kensai 1st
- Human Male Sorcerer 1st/ Fighter 4th/ Green Star Adept 7th
The last player is now on quest to find the Starmetal needed to gain the new level, so he will not be part of the beginning of the Lords of Oblivion we start playing tonight.
Here follows the actual party:
- Human Male Monk 13th (Vow of Poverty)
- Human Male Cleric of Heironeous 13th (who replaces the Aasimar and comes to Cauldron sent by the Heironean church to find the compassion he lost during earlier adventures)
- Half-Celestial Male Samurai 6th/ Kensai 2nd
WE have 5 players
illumian fighter
illumian rogue
halforc rogue
Gnome cleric (wants to be a divne prankaster)
Human scorcer
we just started sunday night and are half way threw Jzarden
The Company of the Westering Sun are:
Hawkstone, Human, CG, Barbarian 7
Beor Tynade, Half-Orc, CG, Cleric (Kord) 7
Krictor Stoneshoes, Dwarf, CG, Fighter 7
Cambyses Ral Athor, Elf, CG, Ranger/Fighter 7
Brymenn, Human, LN, Monk 8
And sometime character:
Osborne Underborough, Halfling, CN, Rogue 8
They are 1/2 way to Crazy Jared's in Zenith Trajectory.
The Iron Watchmen are:
Kroh - Half-Orc Fighter 6/Mighty Champion of Kord 5
Haigh - Human Cleric 5/Just Inquisitor of Cuthbert 6
Xav - Ghaele 10 (with Smoking Eye)
Thron - Elf Rogue 10
They just finished the Test of the Smoking Eye.
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I'm the DM in this campaign, and we're just about to start Thirteen Cages. The group consists of:
Uujvala, LG half-doppleganger human cleric 5/spellfire channeler 1/faithblade scion 8 with the Smoking Eye- the lawful good ones always get the Sign, don't they? This character is my fiancee's, and is the only one to survive from 1st level. Her blade, a holy lawful longsword, killed the morkoth in one round.
Avilda, N female human enchanter 5/barbarian 5/fighter 1/acolyte of the skin 2/spellsword 2/loremaster 5- run by me to augment the group during the loss of a player, I was going to retire her and the group vehemently refused. She's sold her soul twice to save the group, and since then, the group won't let her touch anything that would let her do it a third time. As you may have noticed, I have an addiction to multiclassing.
Rach Valarion- CG female half-copper dragon elf ranger 6/rogue 2/fighter 1/Order of the Bow initiate 3- she maintains a collection of every major villain's cool weapon and currently likes hitting things with frostburn instead of using her bow, which gets her almost killed a lot.
Shatner Nimoy- NG male dwarf sorcerer 9/arcane devotee 5- as revenge for Kaurophon killing his necromancer, this player decided to give his new character a dumb name. The dumb name seems to have kept him alive, thus mocking the work other characters put into their character's names. His seven free Empowered spells per day have turned many a foe into crispy deliciousness. He also uses teleport as a solution for everything that can't be killed.
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The Storm Wolves are:-
Avin Arad, Male Human Barbarian 3rd/Ranger 2nd
Cho-Sen-Wan, Male Human/Werebaboon Monk 4th level
Mason Crow, Male Human Ranger 5th
Karr, Half-Orc, Rogue 3rd/Sorcerer 2nd
Krylscar Endercott, NPC Male Human Warrior 1st/Fighter 3rd
Currently they are in the ruins in Flood Season having just killed Triel Eldurast.
One PC, Kraith Vibross Male Aasimar Cleric of Tyr 2nd, died in Life's Bazaar at the hands of Pyllraak Shyraat.
The Adventure Path is the GREATEST THING published in Dungeon and the WISEST investment I have ever made. Thanks to Paizo I won't need to purchase another gaming product for over a year!
Reebo
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I want to know your party!!!
OK! Still in Life's Bazaar, a few hours from finishing...
Bog, male human Bar3
Joe, male human Rog3
Naryana, female avariel (winged elf) Clr1 (due to ECL+3)
Solara, female sun elf Sor3
Lone, male half (moon) elf Rgr3 (NPC)
(I don't necessarily like some of my player's choice of names, like Lone the Ranger (har har), but what're you gonna do?)
Lone is a Strider of Shaundakul (we play in Forgotten Realms), and he's about to slip away from the party. A 5th player, unnamed is waiting for the party in a cell in the Malachite Fortress:
?, male thri-kreen Ftr1 (ECL+3, all told)
Should be interesting!!
Still no commitment to a name or title for the group, but as of the most recent fatalities, we now have:
6 HD Golden Dracotaur (SS style racial progression for a fire-variant-Behir/Half Gold Dragon...9 levels down, 8 to go).
5HD Winged Wemic (SS style racial progression for a Winged (SS template) Wemic, 8 levels down, 1 to go, then Ranger).
Goliath G-Bar 1/Sor 4/Rage Mage 1
1/2E Rog 3/Sor 4 (Building for Arcane Trickster)
Human Druid 5/Master of Many Forms 2 (next level in Warshaper)
Human Rogue 7 (have to double-check this, might have a Ftr level or two instead)
And...unknown. Was going to play a Dwarf Ftr 7, but may have bailed on that concept. I'll find out tonight.
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***SPOLIERS FOR PLAYERS***
I DM. The party are thinking of calling themselves The Triad
Only three players but I ran Evil Unearthed from DUNGEON #82 first (converted to 3.5) and placed it in Kingfisher Hollow as the party travelled to Cauldron from Sasserine (a sort of road stop intro adventure).
Halbarand: male human (Oeridian) Ftr1/Clr2 (Saint Cuthbert) LN; a total zealot who wants to become a Pious Templar for the Church of Saint Cuthbert in Cauldron (he has already taken the True Believer feat). His brutal approach to the unlawful has already caused a stir with the guards (particularly the three off-duty ones that attacked Ruphus), as well as his own Church. Striding around half of Cauldron at midday, covered in blood, to get back to the Church after dealing with the skulk at Ghelve's Locks (to update Jenya) means that most of Cauldron's folk will hear of this zealot down at the pub over the next few days. Not a subtle man. The party's Intimidate man.
Xia Sacari Kurruth: male human (Amedian Suel orphan) Cloistered Cleric2 (Wee Jas)/Wiz1 LN; a learned man, more used to books and study, he is beginning to realise the power he is starting to command. With the Tomb Tainted Soul feat (which took some explaining to the paladin: "Don't touch me!") and the Death domain (as well as a focus on necromancy), his ambivalence to the undead (and the attitude of "if the undead are already there I might as well try and control them"), are all going to create problems with the other two. He aspires to become a Mystic Theurge (and secretly a True Necromancer!), which Embril encourages, as she secretly knows he is Shackleborn (player asked for a "cool secret background") and has thus brought him to Cauldron as a reserve (she keeps this knowledge secret for now, to her own benefit, from the other Cagewrights at this point). The party's Sense Motive man.
Stern Bloodwood: male human (Oeridian/Suel mix) Pal3 (Pelor) LG; the friendly and reasonable face man of the party, but zealous and wrathful in the battle against evil. He has interesting theological discussions with Xia, mostly around undead and their use. Since Xia used command undead on a skeleton, that was part of an enemy group, that ended effectively saving the party from certain death, these discussions have become more focused on the practical applications of necromancy as opposed to the theoretical, much to Stern's discomfort. The party's Diplomacy man.
They have just killed the skulk and interrogated Ghelve. They are about to enter Jzadirune after preparing and informing temples, know it's trapped to hell, but they have no rogue. They are worried to say the least but brave (or foolish depending on how it all pans out). Lot's of roleplaying opportunities, I am having a riot, and so are they. We like the Adventure Path, owning them all when you start running is good for bringing all of Cauldron to life, with no keyed map (they want to commission one from Westkey Map Marker already) they do wander around quite a bit (although I have the poster map framed and we track their strategic movement around the town on that, although they have no idea what all the buildings are so have started placing keyed stickylabels on the glass).
Fighter/Rogue half-elf 3rd
Figher half-orc (the half-elf's brother) 3rd
Barbarian human 2nd
Wizard human 3rd
Cleric dwarf 3rd
Rogue human 2nd
They are wrapping up life's bazaar currently (Read the thread AP:Shackled City Journal and Advice for much more detail)
WE had 5 players
illumian fighter
illumian rogue
halforc rogue
Gnome cleric (wants to be a divne prankaster)
Human scorcer
However the Gnome died in jzarden
The player is now a Elve cleric (using archery as his mane fighting style)
They are going to finish life's bizzar next session...
The party I'm currently running through 'Life's Bazaar' have taken to taking semi-democratic votes to resolve impasses, generally in the middle of combat, which seems to be responsible for increasing the character turn over.
"Princess" Irulan the Impaler (F Human Cl 2)
Montpellier (F Human F 2) - MIA
Llorth Argunson the Pedantic (M Human midget Rog 2)
Heiyu (F 1/2 Elf Sor 2)
Luthor the ...mighty (M Human Wiz 2) - MIA
I never realised a single angry Skulk could be so devestating to a democracy...
As are so many of you, I'm in the process of running through Life's Bazaar. This is my first attempt at running the Adventure Path (as my biweekly gaming time had previously been occupied by play in a 43-session Forgotten Realms campaign that culminated in the completion of the City of the Spider Queen mega-adventure). Party composition is (currently) as follows:
Kristoph Waukeen, male human Warlock 2
Desmond Arathi, male human Bard 2
Brother Anton of Pelor, male human Cleric 2
Tomas Krown, male human Rogue 2
Hrothgar Guntersson, male human Fighter 2
This is undoubtedly the lightest peppering of demihumans in any game I can remember. Reggie, have you gamed with the group you're taking through the AP very much in the past? If so, do they typically eschew demihumans in favor of human PCs?
The Regulaters are currently storming the Kuo Toan shrine of Bhal Hamatugn.
AKONDO NG Human Rogue8, he is beginning to discover there are Gods.
DEXTER KNAPP CG Human Ranger6/Order of the Bow 1, his animal companion Cyric was eaten by the Kuo Toans.
SIR WILLIAM of St. Cuthbert LN Human Fighter7/Pious Templar1
CORAN MANDRAKE LN Human Cleric7 of Farlaghn, may be recruited by the Striders
DRAAK VON HEL CN Human Warmage6,"You look trustworthy, would you care to join us on our noble quest?"
Also, Onyx Firestone Dwarven cleric killed by Tarkilar
Morik Human rogue killed by Tarkilar
Skyler Human fighter killed by Aushaana the Eryines
Overall, they are doing quite well.
My campaign is set in the FR, the group just finished "Flood Season" but they want to go back down into the ruins because they didn't find all of the wands.
Helder Fire Elven Swashbuckler 4/ Wizard 1
Rashid Human Eogue 4/ Fighter 1
Alaric Human Cleric of Horus Re 5
Kabil Human Monk 5
Cyric Human Druid 3/Barabrian 1
So far Tarkilar has give them the biggest run for their money, although the Mudd Slaad in "Flood Season" put several of the party down with its screech.
In response to Hendoronomy, yes, I have played with all but one of this group before and they tend to be generally very humanocentric in their characters, with the occasional 1/2 Elf or Gnome thrown in. In response I tailored the game world around this, setting humans and elves up in a state of cold war, leaving the dwarves to stick mainly underground and having Gnomes as the largest non-human race in 'civilised' lands.
Has made for some interesting tweaking of the AP...
And having just finished LB on the weekend, I was terribly impressed that my party decided it was easier to just offer Kazmojen gold for the kids and walk out with them. Less blood that way.
My young gaming group are:
Callis Dewtreader: CN Human Male Druid 2 (the running joke is that he's more "callous" than "Callis," he's on the hunt for a staff known as "Shalm's Song," which was stolen from a family he helped, and I added a fifth stormblade, Annah's younger brother, an Aristocrat/Wizard to wield it).
Jayna Ashborn: CG Human Female Rogue/Enchantress 1/1 (aiming for 'Arcane Trickster,' the 'Ashborn' is her appelation from being raised at the Lantern street orphanage, and being a foundling from somewhere on Ash. Turns out her folks are former adventurers who Vhalantru added to his stone garden)
Gaspar Freeman: NG Human Male Fighter/Cleric of Pelor 1/1 (aiming for 'Radiant Servant of Pelor,' he's the son of the two higher up level priest types who had that 'tragic accident' that is never explained; I decided it was arranged by Ike Iverson)
Ev (her full name is elven and long and I can't spell it): CG Elf Female Ranger 2 (aiming for 'Beloved of Valerian,' and boy is she a tad haughty and virtuous)
Draken Merchant: CG Human Male Wizard 2 (aiming for 'Incantatrix,' a tad greedy and power-hungry, but stuck with morals about the little guy suffering)
Dryden: CN Halfling Male Rogue 1 (joining us mid-way through 'Life's Bazaar' as a rescued prisoner, who ran afoul of the Last Laugh guild and wouldn't mind a bit of evening up)
and
Talia Half-Elven: N Half-Elf Female Bard 1 (also a mid-way joiner, like Dryden, who once was the focus of a romantic triangle between Fellian and Fario, and took off before she could make up her mind, she's being scouted for the Striders, though she doesn't know it, and I'll do everything in my power to have her fall for Skiriol prior to his throat-slashing. Not that I'm cruel).
I <I>adore</I> the setting of Cauldron, as snooping ahead to the other adventures let me plant contacts and seeds throughout the character backgrounds. Also, it's fun to listen to the groups chat away with Cauldron-themed discussions (including Ev's rather undiplomatic use of the term 'Ash-hole' to refer to lesser born people from the lowest street).
I ran two groups through the SCAP (Shackled City Adventure Path), but the first group moved right after we completed Test of the Smoking Eye.
Group 1: The Outsiders
Male Human Dagger Kensai (fighter variant from Dragon)
Female Cat Hengeyokai Druid
Male Drow Wizard
Male Human Delver (rogue variant from Path of Shadow)
Male Half-Orc Ranger (archer)
Group 2: The Replacements
Male Drow Wizard
Male Drow Fighter/Ranger (two-weapon, with Vow of Poverty feat)
Female Elf Druid
Male Human Warmage/Fighter/Eldritch Knight (with a d20 Modern flair)
Male Yuan-ti Fighter/Dervish (home-brew crossbow variant)
Female Human Wererat Rogue/Guildmaster (from Path of Shadow, picked up the wererat template during Zenith Trajectory)
Male Aasimar Paladin of Heironeous
Both were great groups of role-players. We had a lot of fun.
The current group that I'm running through the AP consists are all 8th or 9th level and consist of:
The Children:
Fithrisir: Catfolk Wizard/Rogue going for Arcane Trickster
Baylan: Human chain fighter that loves to trip and disarm
Thait: Young human wizard that loves fire spells too much
Val: New replacement player. Elf Fighter/Cleric that is a ranged fighter
Stonebeard: Dwarf Fighter/Cleric who hoards the parties gems when he gets the chance
We are starting Demonskar Legacy on Sunday. I'm looking forward to Dominating the chain fighter with the Hags. :)
We are running lifes Bazaar like many others and we have the following fellowship.
Gondar DunMorag LG Dwarven Fighter 2.
A part time officer of the citywatch/Couldron army. Recently lost his cusine to a hungry mimic and has not dealt with the issue yet.
Kaldûn Bess LN Tiefling Wizard 1.
Passing himself off as human for now but the charade is getting difficult to pull off. Feeling the pull of his fiendish blood towards Law and Evil. He has a great fear of not "fitting" into human society.
DRAAK VON HEL CN Human Warmage6,"You look trustworthy, would you care to join us on our noble quest?"
2 newcomer in the spirit of "You look trustworthy, would you care to join us on our noble quest?" ;)
Meôrel LN Elven Scout 2 and Elhina NG Elven Druid 2.
These two elfs have worked with Fario and Fellian and it seems they have made a good impression. Both are being scout for the striders but are still in the tryout period.
The group has/(had) only 4 members and the going in Jzadirune has been though but with Fario and Fellian as backup we'll see if it gets easier. I'm planing on playing the devils box after Lifes Bazaar to give them some added levels and lighthearted fun before the Couldron area takes a turn for the worse. :)
My group now consists of:
~+~ Cauldron's Faithful ~+~
Dane - Half-elf Rog1/Rng4
Cortan - Human Clr4 of St. Cuthbert
Damon - Human Evoker 4
Rufus - Human Clr5 of St. Cuthbert (yes, that Rufus)
Dorn - Dwarf Bbn2/Ftr3
do you have a player playing rufus? or is he an NPC?
do you have a player playing rufus? or is he an NPC?
He is a PC.
The problem was that the day we started the AP, one of my friends was really sick and had to cancel at the last minute. I knew he was going to play some kind of cleric so I asked him if he would be ok with playing Rufus once he got back.
It's actually been pretty cool to see Rufus with a real personality. He's sort of the young and naive cleric but his abilities have been improving considerably since he began adventuring. He also likes to carouse with some of the female acolytes at the temple and has a bit of a mean streak at times (he Intimidated the dark stalker leader they had captured).
that's way cool
Lessee here. My party has just rescued Shensen from the Lucky Monkey and is 4th level.
Simon Trueblade (Male Human, LG Paladin of Heironeuous 4) Simon is the son of a swordsmith from Hollowsky. He was the squire of Alec Tercival (who is also a paladin of heironeous IMC), but hasn't had many pleasent intereactions with Alec since the begining.(Alec has already consumed the elixer)
Bonebreaker (Male Goliath, CG Barbarian 3) Bonebreaker was abandoned by his tribe after breaking his foot. His name is derived from his shame, but he tries to use it to intimidate instead. He wandered down from the mountain to Hollowsky and befriended Simon and currently, the two are nigh inseperable.
Zook "the Fnipper" Turren (Male Gnome, NG Wizard 4) The Fnipper is originally from Sasserine. It was there that he accidentally blew up his entire alchemy class including one of his brothers. He fled to Cauldron and changed his name to it's current incantation. He has been trying to redeem himself and thus got wrapped up in the orphanage and all.
He also has met with the MTA who are gnomes from sasserine who seem to think he's oddly familiar.
Azurius Foundling (Male Aasimar(kind of), NG Ranger 4) Azurius is from the Lantern Street Orphanage. He is some sort of half-celestial. He has silver skin, glowing golden eyes and an inablity to control the volume of his voice (i'm thinking he may be part trumpet archon). Thus, he tends to disturb the unfaithful while endearing himself to the good (Simon Trueblade). His ancestor was definetly involved in the war over Occiptius and I'm hoping that Azurius takes some interest in the dominion of the domain.
Erasmus Bufont (Male Human, NG Rouge 4)
Erasmus is from Redgorge and the son of a mason (who unbeknownst to him is in the Chisel). He always hated masonry and this was exasperated by the fact that his father tended to force it upon him. He trained with an elderly ex-adventuring rouge in Redgorge and came to Cauldron for the flood festival. He was asked on a date by one of the ex-members of the party and introduced. This was only a few days ago.
NPCs
Dworil Splintershield (Male Dwarf, LG Cleric of St. Cuthbert 4)
Yes, that Splintershield. This dwarf was gung ho about going to the Malachite hold to protect what his brother could not. He has just found the dead body of his high priest and is hell bent on justice. Like his brother, he is a shackleborn. He will be dead by the end of flood season (we can't have any Splintershields identifying Davked).
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I have 7 players, and yes that throws off CRs quite a bit. Right now (2nd level all around) I can add one level to the ELs and it's not too bad. A bit easy, but also not individually deadly. I'm considering moving to the 3d6 "Bell Curve Variant" from Unearth Arcana later on, in order to smooth out some of the large-scale combats where player leathality would be high... but we'll see.
That said, I have a fairly even mix. Cleric (Pelor), Paladin, Ranger, Wizard, Sorcerer, and two fighters (one who will probably pick up some levels in Barbarian, as he has the background to make it make sense).
We're starting off in the Verbobonc area of Greyhawk and moving around quite a bit. I have plans that involve a lot of travel, so we should get a chance to really tour the setting.
Ultimately I might even do some planar stuff, or involve one of the alternate settings for a few sessions, though the mechanics of that aren't something I've thought about yet.
My group is:
Dauble - dwarven sorcerer 20
Flame - human sorcerer 18 (NPC)
Semerkhet - human paladin 20
Stein - (Lifespark Construct) Flesh Golem fighter 10 (NPC)
Lobadi - dwarven favored soul 19 (no longer with us)
Indie - halfling rogue 20
Sasha - elf fighter (archer) 19
I've found the CR's to be pretty uneven. I've had 5 players (now down to 4) but with a couple of NPCs... We (myself and the 2 other DMs in the group) have about decided to give up on CR/XP... We just decide how many sessions we want it to take to "level the group" then divide the XP needed by that number of sessions. That way we still have XP so those casters that burn it like gasoline still have some penalty associated with it.
When the group was about 5th level, they walked through a relatively large group of stone giants (CR8) but a small group of ogres (CR4) gave them fits and nearly resulted in a TPK!
After finishing Secrets of the Soul Pillars, the party is currently made up of:
Tenar of Hollowsky, male human N druid 5/sorcerer 4/geomancer 4
Soveliss Xiloscent (cohort), male elf NG cleric 11 of Elhonna
Shazar of the Claw Clan, male weretiger NG, ranger 4
Paxanni, female gnome CN, rogue 3/bard 9 +Smoking Eye Template
Zarn Stonearms, male dwarf CN, ranger 2/fighter 4/dervish 7
I've been running the Shackled City campaign since last August or so, and we're having a blast!! Over such a period, there has been a bit of a shuffle in my players, but we've maintained the group's purpose despite some personnel changes along the way. Because of the size of our group, I've run some minor side adventures between the AP adventures, and now we're just starting the Umber Hulk attack in "Zenith Trajectory." Our group is currently made up of:
Corwyn, male human Fighter4/Warmage1; favors spiked chain as weapon of choice, strong and agile; current courtly love interest of Alexis Tercival (yes, I changed Alex to female for contrast to my androcentric PC group).
Brunell "Bruno" Grymlar, male dwarf Barbarian4 (read: BattleRager); rolled 15's for every stat (except a 12 Int), modded to 17 Con (now 18), and 13 Cha. Favors waraxe and punch-dagger, never waits for back-up when he can charge in headfirst. Turned to stone by Vhalantru at end of first adventure for mouthing off. Recently restored (player rejoined the group).
Tor, male half-orc Cleric6 of Istus; 18 Str and 8 Con, tremendously strong, but gets chest pains when he exerts himself too much, suffers from chronic asthma. Prefers longspear or two-mace combo as a 2-fisted fighter. Best puzzle solver in the group, slow to anger, chooses words carefully.
Moonhawk, male half-drow Rogue1/Cleric4 of Wee Jas; uses short sword or short bow, functions as party's spy and face-man. Originally a Rog/Sorcerer, but killed by grell at 2nd level, when raised at church of Wee Jas, he chose to become a cleric. Current love interest of Shienisae (you know her as Shensen, but I hate that name) who has been changed to a Monk3/Druid4.
Saito, male human Ranger3/Cleric3 of Fharlanghn; Mongol-like warrior from the Far East of Greyhawk (whatever THAT is), modelled in appearance after Subotai from the Conan movies. Uses composite longbow or scimitar, usually takes point in most explorations.
Dilligaf Foxkettle, male gnome Bard3/Artificer2 (no, it's not an Eberron campaign); curious and intelligent, problem-causer and problem-solver, likes to touch EVERYTHING; uses light crossbow and favors enchantment spells. Extremely protective of Onyx, his cohort.
Sergoth, male human Wizard6; intelligent, but rash and impetuous, very egotistical, made more evident by very Chaotic nature. Uses scythe in battle far more often than a mage has a right to. Has mournful Raven familiar named Black Arrow who is CONVINCED that his master will get one or both of them killed.
Kelista, female human Fighter3/Rogue3; swashbuckling type, maxed out in Tumble, Jump, Bluff, Balance, Sleight of Hand, etc. and has the Able Learner feat so she can still max out during her Fighter levels. Has no idea how to pick a lock or disarm a trap, and not great at being sneaky, either. Compulsive flirt (humans and elf-kind, anyway), bar-room brawler, experienced carouser. Uses rapier to disarm and whip to trip. Rumored to come from a noble family in either Geoff or Urnst, although she refuses to comment.
Cade, newest member/player, male halfling Rog3/Sor1; still getting used to him, but favors short sword and crossbow, and focuses on counterspelling 1st-level attack spells when possible. Tries desperately to prove his worth to the party.
Onyx, male-personality warforged Fighter3; NPC cohort of Dilligaf. Was imprisoned in a locked room in J'zadirune, kept in stasis till PCs freed him, so he joined out of gratitude, stays out of loyalty to the gnomes who "created" him. Favors greatsword or heavy pick and shield in battle, and has two ranks in Adamantine Body for feats (current DR 4).
There have been a few others who have either fallen along the way, or wandered off, but that's who we have right now. I have to say, as a DM, I'm really proud of these guys and they always give me 100%, roleplaying-wise!
Half way through Lords of Oblivion My Group includes( we've had some reincatnates)
Ezra Schoen:Human Wizard 7/Loremaster5 one of the starting characters ans a unknowing shackelborn.
Jennica :Halfling(Formally human) Fighter6/Dervish7 currently managing the Lucky Monkey for Meerlithan. Also starting character.
Kai: hermaphrodite(sp?)1/2 elf (formally elf and 1/2orc)druid 12 actually came up with a decent story as to why. New palyer and will be a Master of Many Forms next level.
Nix: Raptorian fighter4/Rogue6 replacment character, the kid wanted to play a raptorian. Kids first game
Rage: Human Barbarian 8/exotic wpn Master3 Uses orc double axe . Another first time player
Whisper Human Cleric of Pelor 11 Replacment character when the group found itself without a cleric.
Human Scorcer 12 Another replament character for a guy who seems to go through alot
Human Cleric of St Cuthbert 10 Newest player, one guy wanted to leave and this guy jumped in.
With the following deaths witout bringing back:
Torm dwarf cleric of pelor: eaten by a T-Rex
Kar Elf Ranger: destroyed by Ike
Argagdal human paladin of Heronious/ Shining blade:Disntagrated by Vahalantru
Monk, that died to the Test of the smoking eye
Seifer Amsley human rogue
I have 12 players, of which two died several sessions ago and are about to rejoin with new characters; the remaining ten are:
- Will: Hill Dwarf Wiz8 -NE-
*Most experienced player and strategic leader of the group*
- Indarin: 1/2Elf Pr6 (Vecna)/Master of Shrouds2 -NE-
*Competed with Will's predecessor, a 1/2Fiend priest of Erythnul, for spiritual leader of group; obviously is the winner, but still not spiritual leader...*
- Charaine: Human Wiz5/Wild Mage3 -CN-
*Reputation for blasting the party as much as their opponents - in other words, a perfect Wild Mage*
- Woodrow: 1/2Elf Rng6/Wiz1/Arcane Archer1 -CE-
*New character that succeeds his predecessor, a 1/2Ogre fighter who retired to start his own micro-brewery*
- Sizul: 1/2Dragon(red/Elf) Ftr6 -CE-
*Party slugger who had himself enchanted up to Large size to gain flight and strength*
- Topaz: Tiefling Ftr6/half-fiend1 -LE-
*Professional fetish/dominatrix/prostitute who hangs with the worshippers of Loviatar during party downtime and commands top prices for her "services"*
- Irrattouos: Human Wiz5/Acolyte of the Skin3 -NE-
*Replaces his predecessor, a Human Rogue who never missed a trap...by triggering all of them*
- Busta: Human Monk8/Ninja1 -LE-
*Replaces a pair of Barbarians, one dwarven, the other a 1/2 Dragon twin of Sizul*
- Stroud: Human Warlock9 -LE-
*Replaces a string of experimental characters, including an Evil Werebear, a Samurai and a Corrupted Elf Fighter*
- Sharnistival: 1/2Fiend/Human Ranger4 -CE-
*Replaces a female Drow Sorceror*
I've begun to post the chronicles of their exploits:
http://paizo.com/paizo/messageboards/dnd/campaignJournals/anAdventurePathEv ilVariant20042005
Everyone should join in with their own Adventure Path results, so we can compare stories!
Marc
12 players? I can't even imagine what's that like. Is it an in-person game?
12 players? I can't even imagine what's that like. Is it an in-person game?
Yes, it is...a dozen players every Wednesday night FILL my dining/kitchen and compete for my attention, as I maniacally keep track of the battle order and actions.
I created a combat spreadsheet to log each round's activities; it keeps actions/spell durations organized and helps with the writing of the weekly synopsis for those who miss the session.
Each session is fairly short (7-11 pm) by geek standards, but my brain would fry if we ran more than 6 hours.
My record party size is 15 people, for two sessions.
My players are in the thick of (about halfway through) Jzadirune:
Bigberry - 3rd lvl Dwarven Paladin
Isharra - 3rd lvl Wild elven Rogue
Zook - 2nd lvl Gnome Bard
Rawthon - 3rd lvl Dwarven Cleric
Aydin - 2nd lvl Half elf Sorceror
Zirkodbe - 3rd lvl Barbarian
We play every Thursday night for about 4 hours. Short sessions, but it keeps the DM fresh and pleasant! :) We've had no deaths so far, although we had a couple of close calls with traps and the choker in the theatre. My team should enter the Malachite Fortress in about 2 weeks.
I use DM Genie to run the campaign; although it takes a bit of time to learn and set up, it's been a godsend. I had considered creating a spreadsheet like you, Mark, but found DM Genie when I scanned the web for a tool.
Hurm.
I use DM Genie to run the campaign; although it takes a bit of time to learn and set up, it's been a godsend. I had considered creating a spreadsheet like you, Mark, but found DM Genie when I scanned the web for a tool.Hurm.
My group cleared the Malachite Fortress and turned it into their lair :-)
I've seen that DM Genie is one of the top software assistants out there, but call me a purist - I'll probably stick to paper, pencil & dice until I die. I even still use plain graph paper and hand draw both my DM maps and player tactical maps freestyle, as we go.
Marc
Just started Adventure Path on Wednesday, and here they are. . .
Xanthrax, Rogue Doppelganger (He found one that you could play and it would be a normal first level)
Aust Nightbreeze, Elven Conjurer
Gotrek, Dwarven Barbarian
And the nameless cleric, because I have to NPC one for them. We have another player coming later, so I made this guy a cleric of Fharlanghn. that way he can go off and join the Striders because they were interested in him!
Okay... This is my third group to take a run at Cauldron and they just started on Saturday. And they are....
FU Zakennayo: Human Male, Monk 1
Graham: Human Male, Fighter 1
Tonic: Elf Male, Ranger 1
Persephone: Human Female, Rogue 1
Parminion Boken: Human Male, Fighter 1
VLHUURG!!!: Human Male, Barbarian 1
Galstaff Wizard of Light (snicker, snicker): Human Male, Wizard 1
Astrid Amakir: Elf Female, Druid 1
Yeah, 8 people. The guy playing Galstaff (he he, sigh, oh 8-bit theater...) is a DM too and will take have the party and DM something with them to lighten the load 'cause 3 other people want to join. yikes.
Yeah, 8 people. The guy playing Galstaff (he he, sigh, oh 8-bit theater...) is a DM too and will take have the party and DM something with them to lighten the load 'cause 3 other people want to join. yikes.
I feel your pain, man; one of my players broke off a second game with three friends to save me from going up to 15 people. Even with that, I have 12...
Marc
Like I said this is the 3rd! group I've tried to run through this thing, let's hope this own sticks.
The first group I ran made as far as Bhal-Hamatugn and we're about to fight Dhorlot when it all fell apart. This was them at the time they stopped playing.
Ik: Half-Ogre, male, CG, Barbarian 5. Strength of 29 and an intelligence of 4. He didn't talk much and let his Greataxe talk for him. He was so big, he took out most of the walls in the Lucky Monkey just to get around.
Aradyl: Pixie, male, CN, Psion 3, Ectocrafter 1. This guy was the bane of my exsistance. He's the main reason I am loath to allow non-PH standard races into the fold of my games.
Ter'iane': Farie Dragon, female, CG, Psion 2. This was the Pixies' cohort and mount, and God the headaches they caused me...
Dahnia Greensboro: Human, female, N, Sorceror 6. She was only in for a couple of sessions. She was an agent for the MTA who hooked up with the group in exchange for helping her investigate suspicions aroung Vhalantru.
Machiel Lightbringer: Assimar with Vampiric bloodline, male, LG, Paladin 4. I really liked his concept, the vampire bloodline was starting to influence his daily life and he was paranoid the church of Pelor was going to find out and excommunicate him.
Skang-key-ho (get it?): Human, male, LN, Monk 6. A grappler, this was the smart-ass of the group, more so than even the Pixie, he liked to beat up on the groups Rogue constantly.
Cade Underhill: Halfling, male, CN, Rogue 6. The groups resident Rogue, until he and the Monk got into a big fight over a sword they both wanted and Skang beat him to a bloody pulp, tied him up, and threw him into the pit of the seven jaws. That was a fun day.
And the 2nd to last group I tried to run through only made inside Jzahadirune and no farther. (Sigh). The party was made up of two pairs of couples, in real life and in game. And the two couples really didn't like eachother from the start, so this didn't last too long...
Ecyrial Drathamore: Human, male, CG, Tantrist 2 (from The Book of Erotic Fantasy put out by Valar, check it out, its good.) This was the guy who played the Pixie in the last group, to his credit, this was a much less annoying choice.
Cora Thorngage: Halfling, female, CG, Rogue 2. Ecyrial's significant other in real life too. She had a feat called limber, where in if she didn't have sex with Ecyrial everyday, she would lose a +2 modifier to Dex score. Yeah.
Aust Nailo: Elf, male, NG, Ranger 2. The melee combat specialist, he had a two-bladed sword and got knocked out every combat.
Xilo Xilocient: Elf, female, NG, Wizard 2. Aust's lover in real life as well. Yeah, she hated Ecyrial in real life too and it split the group up fast.
Iria Uluuathass: Drow, female, NE, Necromancer 2. The who played her made up his own Necromancer class from several different sources. He played this character in the first group as well, I just liked his class and conniving little drow antics that I asked him to bring th character back, unfortunatly, he wasn't able to play that long...
Like I said this is the 3rd! group I've tried to run through this thing, let's hope this own sticks.
The first group I ran made as far as Bhal-Hamatugn and we're about to fight Dhorlot when it all fell apart. This was them at the time they stopped playing.
IMHO, you seem to have player issues, not character issues...
It's a fair assumtion that, regardless of character alignment, the party should have a reason or desire to be together as a team - unless having your players cycle through characters like guest stars in a sitcom is OK with them...and I'm not even mentioning the feelings between them as a result being an issue... You also have to deal with the "character is a clone of the previous, with all memories of his past life, as well as the unexplained need for revenge" problem.
I've regretted allowing monster races before; I reserve veto-power over any non-standard race presented. A good start is to check the stat-block; if there is no 'Character Adjustment' modifier, then playing it as a character is forbidden - if there is, it's still subject to your approval.
/rant
Marc