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When I returned to New Hampshire in the '80's, we used to comment at Thanksgiving and Easter dinners that it always flurried a little on those days, like they were the 'caps' of winter. It was regular enough to seem like a tradition and I never imagined that it could change in a single human lifetime.
This last decade, it's been a 50/50 shot if it's snowed *by Christmas,* and even when we do get a 'white Christmas,' the ground is usually clear by the next day.
I don't miss shoveling snow, that's for sure, but it's funny to see postcards of sleepy little New England towns all covered in snow.
Amusingly, a friend from work left to go to Colorado to go skiing, since 'it never snows up here.'
He got snowed in at the airport in Boston. :)
Back in the late 70s I remember massive amounts of snow over the course of days. Then, in the mid-80s winters became less severe for several years. In the early 90s we went back to terrible winters* for a few years and the pattern has maintained itself. A few years ago it was 70 degrees Fahrenheit on New Years Day and then cold again a week later.
*considering the fact that I live at sea-level in a coastal state.
I remember in the early eighties some very bad winters in the UK. I lived in a low-lying county and all of the UK is next to the sea, but we had snow in the valley so deep that we had to walk miles to school through snow over our heads.
That's the thing, the weather shifts one way, and the winds change so that one part of the world gets colder and another one warmer, and you have to take the whole world into account to really get a long-term trend.
For example, the Little Ice Age in the late middle ages actually didn't involve a change in global temperatures at all. The 'Maunder minimum' was not a change in solar output so much as solar activity. Less UV radiation reaching Earth from this radiation affected the jet-streams, and cold winds from Siberia went west into Europe in the winters and chilled it. The place where they normally went got warmer.
On average, these global temperatures have been slowly inching upward over the decades. More CO2 in the atmosphere is like putting an extra blanket on your bed: I couldn't tell you where you would be hottest or coldest, but I guarantee that enough of them and you will be overall warmer unless you push them off.
And off course the end of the little ice age coincided with the 70 years of the lowest level of sunspot activity ever recorded,which incidently also coincided with the reign of Louis XIV,aptly termed 'The Sun King'
Updated, save for one feat...not sure what to take...any suggestions?
Well...I just took Leadership. We will shortly be joined by a Castelan, and a group of Galtian refugees, forming a legion in foreign lands...
...oh come on, I just had too...
I am searching for a feat to take as well. There is one that will make Inikai a more effective character by removing a significant restriction on his power. But I think it takes away some of the challenge of playing a binder to do so.
Oh, what to do?
Wellard,
What is your take on adding additional languages? I envision the need to spend some time in a library in a place like Magnimar to study. The source that I use for vestiges says that it takes three successful skill checks, not necessarily in succession, in order to learn the language. Even then, I interpret that as learning it just enough to read it to be able to read it for summoning purposes.
Well RAW requires you to take the Linguist feat to learn other languages..I see it as a process of constant study and the point means you have attained a reasonable fluency.
My Halfling Rogue in Legacy of Fire now speaks 14 languages and is the party interpreter
Taking a level of fighter for Romon -- a little skill diversification, two feats yet to be chosen, and what is 3/4 of 10 (HP), Wellard?
7 1/2 - the half rounds down, but if you take another level with a half-hit point then they will combine.
Thanks, Dabs. Quick -- check the game thread.
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What is your take on adding additional languages? I envision the need to spend some time in a library in a place like Magnimar to study. The source that I use for vestiges says that it takes three successful skill checks, not necessarily in succession, in order to learn the language. Even then, I interpret that as learning it just enough to read it to be able to read it for summoning purposes.
From an RP perspective, a Binder seems particularly well-suited to learning skills and languages 'on the fly,' as you are constantly summoning spirits into your body, some of which have very noticable effects on your behavior. It would be right on-theme for a Binder to retain some fragments of knowledge or ability after repeated possessions, so that, even in a game where skill gains had to be justified, the Binder could rationalize suddenly speaking a language he's never even seen before as some sort of side-effect of letting so many spirits into his head. He might even be *shocked* the first time he 'speaks in tongues' and only slowly realize that he know speaks (and can read!) this new language, one that he may have never even heard before, as a side-effect of all the time-sharing he's been doing with unfathomable entities.
Strange flashes of memory or surreal dreams contain hazy and mostly muddled (and possibly wildly fanciful and inaccurate) imagery from his possessors, or, possibly, even *other Binders* (whose own memories and souls have become all 'quantum-entangled' with the vestiges that they all commune with) could also be a possibility.
Or not. Random brain-spewage, brought on by lack of caffeine. :)
That's brilliant. You shpould stay off caffeine all the time!
Think about all the sleep it would deprive us of - AND ALL THE HYPERACTIVE CHILDREN!
Dear god, no. Put my youngest on caffeine and you would have this small, manic blur occasionally pausing to savage people...
Well, Dabbler, I, and maybe Romon, were hoping for fireworks, but I will twist this into a highschool love story yet. He may have thirty-some years behind him, but Romon's still living on the edge of seventeen.
No offense meant to anyone in Romon's evaluation of your PCs as interlocutors.
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Marak? Ha! I'm not sure Marak knows there's a difference between men and women.
Oh, you wound me! (or, Marak, anyway)
So have I been too subtle, or too obvious with Marak's unrequited crush on Romon? I've dropped the occasional hint since the characters met (comments on his colorful armor, the occasional dig about his love life, such as it was, in Sandpoint, etc.), but not actually gone too far with it, because I wasn't sure I wanted to really 'go there' or just flirt with the idea of a gay character. I was never quite sure if you had Roman pretending not to notice, or just... not noticing. :)
I knocked around the idea of him being distinctly chilly towards Esteriande out of jealousy, but that sort of snippy bitterness didn't seem to gel with a dude with a Wisdom score approaching superhuman. Instead he's gone all zen about it.
Another post goes missing. Is anyone else having this trouble?
What I said was:
Set, you've been too subtle for me. I thought Marak disapproved of Romon, hence the jibes.
Oh, and I PM'd back on the other game.
Marak? Ha! I'm not sure Marak knows there's a difference between men and women.Oh, you wound me! (or, Marak, anyway)
So have I been too subtle, or too obvious with Marak's unrequited crush on Romon? I've dropped the occasional hint since the characters met (comments on his colorful armor, the occasional dig about his love life, such as it was, in Sandpoint, etc.), but not actually gone too far with it, because I wasn't sure I wanted to really 'go there' or just flirt with the idea of a gay character. I was never quite sure if you had Roman pretending not to notice, or just... not noticing. :)
I knocked around the idea of him being distinctly chilly towards Esteriande out of jealousy, but that sort of snippy bitterness didn't seem to gel with a dude with a Wisdom score approaching superhuman. Instead he's gone all zen about it.
Boy! Romon's getting all the attention nowadays, isn't he! Must be that Roguish charm.
I'm also quite enjoying all this backstory involving Ali's unsuccessful attempt at seducing Romon. Curious to see where it all goes!
Will be updating Ali to another druid level soon. don't think anything particularly exciting or fancy going on.
So she gets:
+1 Will
1 0 lvl spell and 1 3rd level
Venom Immunity
For her Feat, since she has two claw attacks while in dire wolf form, would you allow her to gain Rend, while Only in that form, Wellard?
Otherwise I'm open to suggestions from anyone.
EDIT: Considering Death From Above.
Also, she has a feat called Big Game Hunter which gives +1 bonus on attack rolls and a +2 bonus on weapon damage rolls against Large or larger creatures. But I just discovered another feat which is almost the same, but significantly better, called Death or Glory, which gives +4 on attack, damage, and critical rolls vs. Large or larger opponents. Any chance she could swap those out? Or replace Big Game Hunter with something else if she takes Death or Glory? Cause it would be slightly redundant to have both, right?
Or maybe Vital Strike. But would that take her 1d6+11 damage to 2d6 or 3d6? The wording seems a little unclear to me.
The Romantic entanglements of this party are getting wierder and wierder
Vital Strike is a hard one..basically it doubles your damage on a sucessful hit but doesn't allow you to do iterative attacks that round..essentially you do all the damage you could do from one attack.In addition because it is an attack action you can use it when charging.
So it would be 2d6 but only one attack.Really it's a feat more suited to weapon users..in your beast forms you do more potential damage on your normal attack sequence
As for swapping out a feat for something more powerful...NO!!!! Good try though
I like Sets justification forthe binder gaining languages...a process of osmosis sounds right.
and sorry there wasn't more loot..the Arrows were not a rich organisation and the ogres didn't take treasure on a raid.I guess your going to have to find where they live and loot that instead.
Most definitely.
Well, Dabbler, I, and maybe Romon, were hoping for fireworks, but I will twist this into a highschool love story yet. He may have thirty-some years behind him, but Romon's still living on the edge of seventeen.
...yet Esteriande isn't, she's been through that phase. Jealousy is Calistria's thing, not Shellyn's. Although it is amusing that Romon (the Playboy) is doubting Esteriande's (paladin of the goddess of faithful love and marriage) sincerity in the relationship.
Rise of the Runelords, an epic 6-part soap-opera for character levels 1-15, available from Paizo
I thought Big Game Hunter was a trait from the RotRL player's guide.
Wellard, remember you more or less set the standard with shopkeeper's daughter. ;)
Romon's just judging Esteriande's reaction against the norms established in his youth. He was half-expecting nails and fists, if not knives.
Role over roll.
And that is why I love PbP..you can do this sort of inner story arc stuff so much easier when you have years to work on it.
Heres what you got in total
From the Chief
+1Human Bane Ogrehook
+1 Large Hide Armour
Belt of Giant Strength+2
2 potions Cure Serious woundsFrom the Sorceress
Potion of Cure Seriuos Wounds
Wand of Acid Arrow 43 charges
Amulet of natural Armour +1
Headband of Alluring Charisma +2
Ring of Protection +1From the Ogre Guards
6 suits of +1 Hide Armour
7 +1 Ogre hooksFrom other sources
+1 Mithral Short Sword
9 +2 Shocking Burst Arrows
3 garnets 120gp each
A map detailing several of the smugglers tunnels under Riddleport worth perhaps 75gp to Sherrif Hemlock
A Map detailing several of the upper levels of the Infamous Viperwall Dungeon worth 600 gold to an interested party
A map of the Lurkwood showing many hidden routes..worth 1000 gp to a group intent on exploring the area.
Anyone mind if Naria takes the wand of acid splash?
35,640gp with the 9 shocking burst arrows.
I'm sure there must be some method of channelling the magic out of existing magic weapons by making them into components...
I am trying to determine where Inikai can make the greatest contribution to the party. Do we need to inflict more area of effect damage on enemies, battlefield control or melee attacks? Now that Inikai can bind two vestiges at once he can branch out a bit. For melee he will only be able to smite once every five rounds with is current choice of vestiges. If Wellard is agreeable, I can propose some other vestiges that give him more attacks at an increased BAB but he will lose the smite ability.
Of course, this all depends on what we are likely to encounter in the future.
I'd say just do what flips your top. It's not like we're not keeping Wellard up nights scheming to vex us in combat.
Seconded. If anything I'd say solid melee is covered by Esteriande and Muchorak, with Ursas, Alli, and Lunas as good backup. Muchorak's many attacks arte good against multiple foes, while Esteriande's smite evil is 'I win' against any single enemy. So if we lack, it's in ranged AoE...
At 9th lvl WBL is supposed to be 46000 so you guys are well behind the curve,and its a wand of Acid Arrow Kevin not Acid Splash..
*** Dreams of weapons upgrades ***
I can get an armour upgrade!
Romon finds a heavy metal shield.
And a battle axe, and a long sword, a bastard sword, and a couple pole arms.
Without doing too much math -- Romon's sitting at about 36k in wealth. + 3 tiny beads of fireball.
We're way ahead of the game on action economy. Sitting a little behind the wealth curve isn't a terrible thing for a big party.
A little is ok 20% or more behind is generally a bad idea
If we're gonna interview the black arrows, someone better be keeping an eye on the traitor the whole time, as he's likely to take off once he knows that all of the arrows will be questioned eventually.
Well volunteered.
Hey all, still here. Been crazy busy and I think, after more than five straight years of PbP, I was a little burnt out and needed a bit of a break.
Glad to have you back, Khaladon. And well-timed. You haven't missed much. We've just been hanging out at the fort.
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I will be on vacation starting, now-ish, to some undetermined time in mid-May. I think. Details hazy, flip the magic eight ball and ask again later.
I may or may not be able to get online during this time, so please feel free to DMPC Marak as necessary to move things along.
(His next rounds action, to attempt to magically un-grapple and rescue the child, is already 'in queue,' so to speak.)
Wellard, anything on all those knowledge checks? Or the new initiative order? Or whether we reach melee range?
I've got an idea for Romon's next move, but am not 100% sure of the situation.
I confess I peaked, so I'll spoiler this too...
This is the DSP psionic blast. It stuns for 1 round, +1 round per 2 point augment, which means in Vancien terms roughly 1 round +1 round per two levels above the 5th.