Party is level 4, and is supposed to investigate a group of masked men that keep wandering around the town at night.
For this session, about half the players didnt show up(one sick, two went MIA), and we had two left over characters from the players who dropped the game due to RL reasons. So the DM put the 3 players who were here into one group, and we were assumed to have split up from the rest to do information gathering.
We ended up at a tavern, and after a while managed to figure out that the masked men just wander through the center of town most nights, but nobody knows anything and leaves them alone. (The rogue refused to roll gather information to talk to the male patrons in the tavern, so i had to do most of the talking)
Then the door bangs open, and one of the masked men appear, with the unconcious(but uninjured) bodies of 2 of our party members. He drops them there then leaves after a while without saying anything.
I run out after the masked man to find him waiting. Rest of the party follows after getting the unconcious members to their rooms. Masked man refuses to say anything and leaves after a while. We decided not to stop him by force since we didnt know how dangerous he was and we had no proof he did anything wrong.
After checking the unconcious ones to see if they were alright, we find arcane marks on their bodies saying "Give up" and "Go away".
The story is that the other party members were out gathering information, ran into the masked men and provoked them, resulting in the characters of the players who dropped the game being killed, and the rest being knocked out via symbol of sleep.
The only possible clue we have is the design of the mask the man was wearing(white with black stars), which no arcane caster managed to recognize, so im thinking we check the local churches for more information, see if they are a religious group.
Any other ideas on how to continue this investigation?
...well, it sounds like the problem isn't with the game or mechanics, but with party attitude. Half the group is missing, the rogue has checked out mentally, the GM might be lashing out at the players who skipped out without warning (3 missing, one of them sick; two of the missing PCs get their butts kicked offscreen) - not accusing, just saying there's a red flag there.
I don't think it's a problem with your tactics, necessarily. I think there's a player/group problem, and you should address it directly before too much longer if you want the group to not fall apart.
The only person who seems to care any more is you.
BobChuck wrote: ...well, it sounds like the problem isn't with the game or mechanics, but with party attitude. Half the group is missing, the rogue has checked out mentally, the GM might be lashing out at the players who skipped out without warning (3 missing, one of them sick; two of the missing PCs get their butts kicked offscreen) - not accusing, just saying there's a red flag there.
I don't think it's a problem with your tactics, necessarily. I think there's a player/group problem, and you should address it directly before too much longer if you want the group to not fall apart.
The only person who seems to care any more is you.
We started with a fairly large group. 2 players dropped the game due to RL reasons, 1 got sick today, 1 was MIA, and another thought the game was on another date.
The guy playing the rogue wanted to make a skill monkey that was useless at combat. However it turns out he also wanted to play a lesbian noble that ran away from home to go adventuring, and whom doesnt like talking to men.
Right now i need to think up ideas on how we are supposed to continue on with the investigation based on what we know. Apparently confronting the masked men head on is suicide.
Ok need a bit more info here to help you out.
1) The mask men just walk around town at night? Other than the offscreen confrontation with the PC, have the mask men even done anything bad?
2) How long have the masked men been wandering the streets at night?
3) How are the towns folk reacting to this? Are they used to the mask men as it has been a common occurance for years. Or has it just started and the towns people freaked out?
3) What was the Masked man's reaction to you guys when he dropped the unconscious bodies of the other PC's at the tavern? You said "afte a while he left", did he just hang around and have quick ale? Did he walk out side and just kind of mill about till you went out to follow him?
4) Were the PC's hired to investigate this situation?
5) Have you been able to ask the unconscious/abscent players what their charactrs remember after the woke up? Or will that need to wait till next session?
Kalyth wrote: Ok need a bit more info here to help you out.
1) The mask men just walk around town at night? Other than the offscreen confrontation with the PC, have the mask men even done anything bad?
2) How long have the masked men been wandering the streets at night?
3) How are the towns folk reacting to this? Are they used to the mask men as it has been a common occurance for years. Or has it just started and the towns people freaked out?
3) What was the Masked man's reaction to you guys when he dropped the unconscious bodies of the other PC's at the tavern? You said "afte a while he left", did he just hang around and have quick ale? Did he walk out side and just kind of mill about till you went out to follow him?
4) Were the PC's hired to investigate this situation?
5) Have you been able to ask the unconscious/abscent players what their charactrs remember after the woke up? Or will that need to wait till next session?
1.Nobody has seen them do anything special other than wander through the town at night.
2.Not really specified, but i would guess at least a week.
3.They are freaking out a bit, trying to stay indoors at night, etc, but since the masked men havent done anything yet, they aren't overly alarmed.
4.He exited the tavern and waited. When the rest of the party and i followed, he refused to speak and mostly just looked at us, although he did stroke the face of the rogue when she started shouting at him, and then walked off.
5.Not officially. The mayor put out a notice, and the party was informed by the local seer about it. The mayor wont be back for a while though(he left the town to go celebrate a festival somewhere else apparently)
6.The DM just told everyone in our IRC channel since the players would just tell us the next day anyway. I dont know whether he gave the players a longer version(probably not). Essentially it happened as i said...the group split up into two, and the larger one(with the unconcious/absent players) apparently bumped into the masked men and provoked them somehow, resulting in 2 unconcious players dumped at the tavern we were at.
Question wrote: 6.The DM just told everyone in our IRC channel since the players would just tell us the next day anyway. I dont know whether he gave the players a longer version(probably not). Essentially it happened as i said...the group split up into two, and the larger one(with the unconcious/absent players) apparently bumped... Provocked them somehow? As in the PCs attack him? Or he attacked. If the PC attacked him first, then he was well in his rights to defend himself. If you could clarify how the confrontation escalated to result in two PC dead and the others unconscious in a tavern it would be helpful.
Ok what we have here is some weird guys wearing mask and freaking out the towns folk. I've watched Scooby Doo as a Kid so its obvious they are just trying to fighten the townsfolk off so they can mine the gold that was found in the coal mine just outside of town. What you have to do is initiate a Scooby Doo chase scene (with the great 70s tunes playing in the background). After the chase you will be able to catch and reveal who the ringleader of the masked men is. That's just how it works. He would have gotten away with it if it wasnt for you meddling adventurers.
Seriously though. I would put that skill-monkey rogue to work and see is she can stack out the streets and follow some of the masked men and see what they are doing. Have the Ranger nearby for her stealthy backup. Also if you have access to a message spell, via spell, wand, scroll it will help coordinate and communicate while being stealth.
Also She may not like talking to men but shes going to have to. Great chance to roleplay. Is the Rogue the only one with any Charisma/Social Skills? Maybe she can talk to the ladies in town and see what they have heard. Tavern whenches are notorious gossips.
Also the Mayor's absence seems kind of odd. Something weird is going on in town so I'm just going to hire some wandering adventures and then go on vacation?
Also the Seer? What info did she provide? Have you tried milking her for more clues or information?
Can someone cast Locate object on the mask?
CunningMongoose wrote: Can someone cast Locate object on the mask? Unfortunately, no, our only casters are a witch and summoner at this point.
Quote: Provocked them somehow? As in the PCs attack him? Or he attacked. If the PC attacked him first, then he was well in his rights to defend himself. If you could clarify how the confrontation escalated to result in two PC dead and the others unconscious in a tavern it would be helpful. The chaotic stupid of the party attacked first apparently.
The rogue's the only one with decent social skills AFAIK.
Info by local seer is basically : "There are some masked men wandering around at night and the Mayor wants to know why because they are making folks uneasy". Thats basically it.
Locate Object is on the Witches spell list if you could get a scroll for her she could use that.
Also if they are able to use Arcane Mark then they have access to magic. Use Detect magic and just wander around the city in the areas were the masked men have been seen. Most likely they may be using magic ward their hideout. Magic shouldnt be too common so you can see what clues that might bring up.
Is the Seer actually a "Seer"? Can she get your party any more info?
Make the Rogue suck it up and talk to people. Roleplay making her, i think it would be a good chance for in-character interaction.
Kalyth wrote: Locate Object is on the Witches spell list if you could get a scroll for her she could use that.
Also if they are able to use Arcane Mark then they have access to magic. Use Detect magic and just wander around the city in the areas were the masked men have been seen. Most likely they may be using magic ward their hideout. Magic shouldnt be too common so you can see what clues that might bring up.
Is the Seer actually a "Seer"? Can she get your party any more info?
Make the Rogue suck it up and talk to people. Roleplay making her, i think it would be a good chance for in-character interaction.
Another idea : you saw the masks and the outfit: craft some (or make someone else do it if you can't craft) and disguise the rogue - next time you encounter them - bluff in order to follow them back to their hideout.
Kalyth wrote: Locate Object is on the Witches spell list if you could get a scroll for her she could use that.
Also if they are able to use Arcane Mark then they have access to magic. Use Detect magic and just wander around the city in the areas were the masked men have been seen. Most likely they may be using magic ward their hideout. Magic shouldnt be too common so you can see what clues that might bring up.
Is the Seer actually a "Seer"? Can she get your party any more info?
Make the Rogue suck it up and talk to people. Roleplay making her, i think it would be a good chance for in-character interaction.
Yea, i could get the witch to cast it, but trailing them would probably be cheaper.
I dont know whether the seer can get more info, but im pretty sure the DM will say she doesn't know anything. I suppose as a last resort we could ask her if she knows anything about the mask design though.
Gonna be tough with the rogue. The player is pretty stubborn OOC and that translates into IC. Also the backstory of our adventuring band is that most of the party owes money to her, which is why they are in the adventuring band(to pay off the debt).
Create a stakeout, find a hiding place and watch all night
Hire a dog, track them
Talk to everyone in town, maybe someone knows something
Hire a spellcaster who can help
Talk to the Masked Men, see what they want
After some discussion with the DM, i think i've figured out a bit more about what hes trying to do.
The masked men are some kind of important NPC group comprised of high level characters. They evidently are an important part of the main storyline, somehow. And the reason why they are showing up now is to try and teach the new players that force is not always the answer.
Now the problem is i dont know how to proceed. Is he going to throw in some plot to change things? Or are we going to keep trying to investigate this high level group that the DM keeps hinting "oh man you guys are totally going to die"(his words) everytime we discuss how to follow or investigate them?
Meh. I hope this goes somewhere by next session. Nothing has effectively happened in 3 sessions and more than 6 hours.
Edit : Also it turns out the rogue player didnt really want to make a skill monkey, but wanted to make a character as useless as possible(his own words).
Question wrote: Edit : Also it turns out the rogue player didnt really want to make a skill monkey, but wanted to make a character as useless as possible(his own words). Sounds like you need a pacifist Fighter, an unbelieving Cleric and a Sorcerer who fears magic to round out the party...
Bwang wrote: Question wrote: Edit : Also it turns out the rogue player didnt really want to make a skill monkey, but wanted to make a character as useless as possible(his own words). Sounds like you need a pacifist Fighter, an unbelieving Cleric and a Sorcerer who fears magic to round out the party... Closest thing we have to do that is a fighter who took 3 levels of cloistered cleric just to do something with the 3.5 version of persistent spell(probably persistent divine favor or something...).
Tried talking to the rest of the party OOC to come up with a plan. We all use IRC so its pretty easy to get hold of them. Heres how it went :
Warforged(Barely sentinient, only follow orders) : I just follow orders anyway, but we should do this in IC, its better
Monk : Yea, we can talk about that, give me 1 hour, im not awake yet(11 hours later hes still talking about random s%++ in another channel, but ignoring anything D&D related)
Summoner : I should be free on that day (I confirmed our next session timing with him, then he went dead silent when i asked if he had any suggestions about what to do next session)
Rogue : I will just go along with it lol
Cleric : I haven't really been far even as decided to use even go want to do look more like yet (then he pretends to go afk, rages when he sees that i said he was pretending to be afk, starts screaming about how he doesnt want to talk about D&D on weekends, and bans me from our group's channel)
Since nobody else seems to be making an effort, i guess i could either show up, not hand them a plan on a silver platter and watch them fail, or just not show up. Although i probably should give the DM a chance to get the party on track, since this group is pretty notorious for spending hours in taverns doing nothing but flirting with barmaids, stealing each other's food or argueing about how good the food is.
The best way to solve this is to find a new group, be the DM, and have it end the way you always thought it should end.
If you don't want to leave the group, I recommend ignoring the rogue completely. That player wants to make a useless character. Purposefully useless characters get ignored. Your party cleric also sounds pretty useless, though for completely different reasons. So you have a summoner, a monk, a warforged, and yourself. Those are your assets. The other two can go into a different column, labeled 'liabilities' until they start contributing.
You could try to talk to these masked men yourself. Sounds like they're not very chatty, but it's worth a shot.
If they don't talk, you could pester one as it patrols the town (be sure you're never alone!) until he either gives in or goes somewhere interesting. If nothing else, this will be fun for your DM and for you.
The summoner should be able to cast divination spells from a scroll, if nothing else. You could get some scrolls of Locate Object. Even if divination is a 'prohibited' school, he can still cast those spells.
One fun thing to do might be to apply to join the masked men.
I was looking forward to posting the 4th session update for this but i doubt its going to happen, or at least i wont be getting the details first hand.
Apparently the cleric complained to the DM that i had accused him of being afk, even though the logs clearly showed that he had spouted random gibberish then refused to respond further. Then he either linked the DM to a thread similar to this one, that i had made on another site, or the DM found it himself. The DM reacted very badly to the thread about his game on a site, apparently because it did not potray the game, or the other players, in a positive light.
This resulted in two days where the DM refused to do anything except insult me over PMs, on the 3rd day he started blaming me for everything ranging from "you live in a weird timezone so we have to accomodate you" to "stop trying to f&!*ing discuss what to do OOC". Nevermind that i actually cared enough about the game to try and figure out what to do.
Long story short, time to find a new group.
Yea um, that is probably for the best. Any dm who lets his players flounder around with no real direction for 3 sessions isn't worth your time. Particularly with potential plans are met with 'you guys are so going to die'. I think moving on is your best course of action regardless of his reaction to forum posts or whatever.
Finding a new group sounds like a big improvement.
Heck, not playing the game at all sounds like a small improvement.
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