Fine with me as well, although I too have no idea of what mechanic we could use to advance the day without getting confirmation from everyone.
I don't know about others, but I get e-mail a lot more often and easily than I can check PBP threads. It's not hard at all to hit "reply all" and type "go", certainly a lot easier than logging on, etc.
If no-one else minds that, I have no problem with it. I have little to no times currently where I can't check on the PBPs I'm involved with, but this solution should work for everyone.
Fine by me either way :)
I don't have an email listed, so as to avoid spam. Mine is: furius22 at gmail dot com .
I have updated the profile ever so slightly.
Say hello to Kendra Lorrimor.
I think I'm going to temporarily wait for others to post as well. Some of you guys might want to do something specific. This sometimes happens in the Homebrew I'm in because I just sit here and refresh, and other people have jobs and such.
I will be going to bed now. I will most likely post in 12 hours.
I apologise if my replies are infrequent or if my DMing is lacking currently. Summer brings back painful memories, and I'm struggling with nostalgia and depression.
Nah, it's all good, do what you need to do.
Who's in for a glorious death?
I know I am :)
Heck yeah!
I will post this here because this is OOC information - this stage of the AP is a "research" stage. As such, The Whispering Way and Harrowstone are two out of three subjects that you will have to research - this entails knowledge checks. There are locations where you can find information (which I will reveal in-character) allowing you to perform knowledge checks untrained as well.
Rumours may also help.
I will reveal what 2 knowledge skills are relevant for each subject of research here.
Harrowstone is researched with Knowledge (history) and Knowledge (local).
Whispering Way is researched with Knowledge (arcana) and Knowledge (religion).
The last subject is researched with Knowledge (history) and Knowledge (local), though you don't know what this subject is. Yet.
I know this is meta-gaming - and I hope (and expect) that you will all ease into this phase in an organic way. But since this stage is also a little convoluted, I decided that you should all know what this will entail.
I will post my reply shortly.
Damned, 3 Knowledges (dungeoneering, geography and nature) and not one is useful here. I think I'll just have to be the muscle then.
I have dibs on being the muscle already. I am sporting Knowledge: (Smacking things with a big sword), and nothing else. LOL
Damn immigrants, always taking our jobs! :)
sorry Patcher - didn't even know the ooc thread was here - i'll try to read thru it all when things calm down a bit at work.
@Viktor: the tomes in the chest won't help you with the checks, just so you know. You need to dedicate an amount of time to use the untrained checks (and knowledge checks in particular cannot be made untrained).
Knowledge checks can't be made untrained unless the information is DC 10. That just happens to be what I made. In any case, I was planning on taking the RAW 1d4 hours for a check with a library, which his house basically is, if no-one objects to that.
Knowledge checks can't be made untrained unless the information is DC 10. That just happens to be what I made. In any case, I was planning on taking the RAW 1d4 hours for a check with a library, which his house basically is, if no-one objects to that.
I double-checked the rules - you're right. Untrained can be used for any knowledge with a DC less than 10.
You're also right in that the Lorrimor Mansion is one of the places where you can do research (1d4 hours). As per the Knowledge skill rules, you may only do a non-supported knowledge check once - while research at a research spot can be done as many times as you want - though only once per day.
For the other spots, you will have to ask Kendra. GO GO RP RANGERS.
It's totally up to you who rolls what, though I have found that the more rolls the DM makes for the players in a PBP, the faster the game goes.
I can agree with that statement. I'll only roll checks when the situation requires it, however - as mentioned earlier, for any skills you perform yourselves, you need to declare and roll.
For research, if nobody rolls the hours in their declaration, I will do so in the result.
I'm just happy the townsfolk aren't running after me with torches and pitchforks after that horrible horrible result.
Raises a question, though. Do you use any special critical hit/fumble rules, or any effects on 1s and 20s?
I don't. 1 is always a miss, 20 is critical threat and always a hit. I don't find fumble mechanics interesting.
@Nazard/Venedictos: Your aid another action helping Viktor research Harrowstone counts as your daily usage of research - after all, you both spent an equal amount of time researching.
@Nazard/Venedictos: Your aid another action helping Viktor research Harrowstone counts as your daily usage of research - after all, you both spent an equal amount of time researching.
Okay.
So, you guys think we've found enough to head out to the Restlands, or are there more preperations/research we need to do?
Unless anyone can think of a reason not to, let's go for it.
So, you guys think we've found enough to head out to the Restlands, or are there more preperations/research we need to do?
How funny, without seeing this, I just asked that same question in-character! Torsten is a man of action (where possible).
I forget if I notified this group (looking up, it seems like I didn't), but I'm camping right now. I have internet, but not the normal level of time that I'm used to - that's what I get for camping with two kids, no relaxation or spare time, heh. So if my posting is somewhat sporadic, please forgive me.
Additionally, next week I'm travelling on business, so its a similar situation. I usually post during the daytime hours, but won't be able to for a short while, here. Thanks for your patience, I'll be back to normal in no time flat.
Good call on seeking out hephenus for info, Venedictos - hadn't thought of that.
Valerya, I'm leaning on you to answer the "Why are you here?" question. If I have to answer it, it's going to amount to something like "What business is it of yours why we're here?"
So yeah. You're up :-)
Valerya, you haven't posted in a couple of days. Did something happen?
Real sorry folks, the cable TV and internet at my house got disconnected; I'm dealing with the issue so I can get it back. Meanwhile I'll take a ride on my college's wireless.
Heh Torsten, you got your hopes for diplomacy on the hard-ass ranger monster-hunter with no people skills :)
Since the stage is set so perfectly for roleplay, I'm a little loath to simply advance the plot when there is a lot of explanations to do. Tell me when you wish to advance.
Sorry, but for the most part of today, I'm going to be at an IRL game. Feel free to NPC me if you need to, Patcher.
Should Aerys fire up his lantern or do we have enough light spells for us to see by?
The only light I've got are dancing light spells, which are nice, but only last a minute. Also, if/when we get into combat, I don't want to have to be recasting that. I suppose you should probably light your lantern.
How far outside of town are the Restlands? And how tall are the walls that surround them? Do we feel that we will draw attention with a light source once we enter? (or is the moonlight currently sufficient?)
Truth be told there is no mention of the distance between Ravengro and the Restlands - let's assume some odd 30 minutes of walking.
The moonlight is sufficient for dim light.
If no one objects, maybe we should just make do with the moonlight for the time being - don't know if there's a groundskeeper or someone like that. I'll fire up the lantern before we actually enter the crypt.
Fine by me, yay Low-light Vision!
I'm fine with that; dancing is better in the moonlight. :P
Keep in mind: if you declare using a skill, you need to do the appropriate roll or take 10/20 declaration.
I have updated my profile. It now contains your research topics - and what you have left to research. While this is meta-knowledge, the story cannot continue until you research most of the topics anyway.
I am also thinking, a topic can be successfully researched if 3 people Take 20 and spend 4 hours in a locale that grants the necessary bonus. I will also then reveal that Lorrimor's mansion will only grant a bonus for the Whispering Way - so make sure one of your characters ask Kendra about the other places to research.
For now, you have a crypt to rob.
Since we have 10', do we want to keep order but go side by side, with Valerya slightly on point to look for traps/tracks?
*
*
*
**Val
*****Vik
Ven Aer
**Tor
or do we want Torsten up front alongside Viktor?
I realise this is the weekend and it's summer, but it does feel like the campaign is advancing rather slowly..
To make combat flow smoother, I wish to run combat this way:
Thirdly, whenever combat occurs, I will roll your initiatives, calculate the average of your values, and compare it to the enemies' initiative. Because PbP combat easily gets confusing, there won't be individual turns. Instead, you act on a group initiative, and when you post, you act (with "I wait for X to do his/her move before I do Y" if necessary for your actions to make sense). When all five of you have done your actions, the enemy acts as a group, round over, new round. Does this make sense?