:-)
Hey guys, my job has pounded me flat at the moment, and it's probably going to take a day or so to get me feeling something like human again. I'll move things forward again Thursday morning.
Shisumo wants us to discuss distribution of the items in the chest here, so I tried to locate the posts about what we'd found. With some minor editing due to context changes, here's what I found:
Inside the chest are a series of velvet-lined trays, stacked neatly atop one another. Although indentations reveal where several items were apparently removed from the chest or perhaps never placed in it to begin with, others hold still-intact potion bottles, fireworks, jewelry and coin pouches, and still others show where additional finery or alchemical items once lay but did not withstand the passage of time. Concentrating on his detect magic spell, Tybus identifies ten potions in all (five of one type, two of a second and three of a third variety), plus a wand and some kind of magic ring. The mundane contents include an extremely well-made chain shirt, another one of the short curved blades like the one wielded by the skeleton but made of cold iron, 11 Desnan candles and four skyrockets, plus a mix of pearls, jade rings and bracelets, gold and silver pendants and other fine accoutrements no doubt worth quite a bit to the discerning buyer.
and
Tybus' examination of the magical items is somewhat more fruitful, however. The wakizashi is called Whispering Shrike, and is a +1 wakizashi that can be used to cast shield other once per day by touching the blade to the chosen target. The wand is, perhaps ironically, a wand of identify with 19 charges remaining, and although the magical ring and two of the set of potions confuse him, he is able to determine that the set of three potions is a set of potions of lesser restoration.
and
Gan determines that the five potions are potions of cure light wounds, while the ring is a ring of climbing.
It appears that we still need appraisal of the various jewelry-type items and identification of the pair of matched potions.
Lamsfel looks appreciatively at the contents of the chest, but he does not step forward to claim anything yet.
In addition to the loot discussion, this would also be the time to start talking about the caravan mechanics - so you might dig out your copies of the Jade Regent Player's Guide to help with that bit.
Also, lest we forget the other items:
Mister Proudstump's Wand of Mending
A red chest, lacquered and lined with velvet. The etchings of cranes and frogs that decorate the chest are done in an unusual style (you can make a Knowledge [geography] check to recognize it), and the entire thing is beautiful enough that it likely has some value.
A selection of coins - a few hundred silvers and perhaps a hundred or so gold - all stamped with writing in Minkaian and the image of a chrysanthemum.
A long hairpin, similar to the one the witch wore and topped with a large red pearl
A tattered and faded silk fan; The front of the fan shows a gecko climbing the branch of a cherry tree, surrounded by blossoms, but the back side appears to have one held a crudely-painted map. It is at this point faded enough to be unreadable, however.
Six shuriken, such as you have seen some monks use before. They appear to be quite well-made.
The Chief's magical armor
The Chief's spellbook
Lamsfel's currently carrying his masterwork small katana, but will put it back in the pile to be claimed and/or sold
Was there anything else?
Quick note--the wand of mending has 42 charges remaining. One charge was used to repair the fan, so it's not broken anymore.
Me and Tybus can try to ID the 3 remaining potions on the following day. If we both fail, we'll use the wand of identify, sound good?
I read the caravan rules--much more complicated than expected.
Here's my thoughts (I'll type what I can now, but I'm watching both of my kids so it's difficult, hehe):
Party wealth: In the past we've divided up everything equally, or close to equally, but I just wanted to say that we can move away from that if it'll help the party. As we gain level, the martial guys will need more and more gear to keep pace with the casters. I'm fine with letting Tristan, Lamsfel, and Tybus gets a greater share of treasure than me (and Cal, I guess, but Cal can use armor so we should get him some upgrades at some point). I can't use armor when I have the eidolon out, so I'll just stick to my wand of Mage Armor.
That being said, I'm always big on a "party" item wand of CLW. If we can find one in town before we leave, I think we should buy one with the proceeds of the items we sell before we buy anything else. Give it to Cal, have him show me where he's keeping it in his bag in case he is dying and I need to use it on him, and we're good to go. Then y'all can divvy up the rest.
As for the caravan: It looks like ours will start at Level 2. I think we might want to see if Bethana can come with us and be a cook (it seems that cooks are good, and cheap). I think we should hire NPCs to do the cheap jobs (cook, driver, wainwright, etc) and all of us should take the more expensive jobs (spellcaster, guard, etc).
I'd like to prioritize mobility, defense, morale, and attack, in that order (just my opinion). Maybe buy an armored wagon and a supply wagon at the start (we start with a supply, covered, and fortune-teller's wagon).
We should buy ample repair supplies, and maybe go for reinforced undercarriage.
What do y'all think?
The caravan comes pre-equipped with a couple of drivers - Bevelek and Vankor, two Varisian guys that have driven for Sandru for years; also, don't forget Ameiko, Sandru himself, Shalelu and Koya.
Ameiko can perform the following caravan jobs: cook, entertainer, fortune-teller, guard, passenger, spellcaster, or trader.
Koya can perform the following caravan jobs: fortune-teller, guard, healer, passenger, or spellcaster.
Sandru can perform the following caravan jobs: driver, guard, passenger, trader, or wainwright.
Shalelu can perform the following caravan jobs: guard, passenger, and scout.
Ah yes, the always popular CLW Wand. Don't leave home without it! I swear, if I somehow get transported into a D&D world by riding a shantak or deciding to go on a theme park ride or something, my first goal will be to learn just enough clerical magic to make these wands. I shall be rich!!! Now, if I can just figure out a way to sell it for more than it costs me to make it...
So, onto treasure. I don't think either Song of Sparrows or Whispering Shrike should be sold. Ameiko might have given them to us, but we'd be dishonoring her family's memory by selling them off. The wand of Identify is kinda nice - it saves us from having to spend money on the scroll, saves Gan from having to waste a spell slot on it, and keeps Tybus from having to buy the scroll for awhile. I wouldn't mind the ring of climbing for myself, since I'm not really Strength oriented, and my armor weighs me down. Plus, we could give it to someone who needs it if we want to set an ambush or something. Much more useful if we keep it than sell it for 1,250 gp, I think. We keep all the potions. Lesser restoration and cure light wounds never goes out of style. Tybus can plunder the spellbook for spells. Everything else we sell, and what we don't use to kit out here in Sandpoint, we invest in the caravan.
As for roles, I can fill out the following: entertainer, fortune-teller, guard, healer, hero, passenger, spellcaster, trader. I'm leaning towards having Koya take up fortune-telling duties, Sandru driving, Shalelu guiding and Ameiko either cooking or entertaining - those are all rather natural fits for the NPCs. What's everyone else able to cover? Once we know that, we'll be able to see what we need to hire out for.
Oh, our caravan should have two feats as well. I'm thinking the second level one should be Enhanced Caravan to increase our stats. Before we make any modifications, I'm showing that we've got 70 hp, capacity 10 and 18 for travelers and cargo respectively, and consumption 4. Mobility's nice, but the feats it grants are probably better once we get on a bit. Maybe prioritize for Defense for now, and work towards Mobility. Circle the Wagons at first level doesn't seem a bad option to me, but it involves sinking two of our three points into Defense. The other point can go into Morale - Offense is easily generated by guards.
Thoughts?
As a quick reminder, I would point out that buying at least one additional wagon is absolutely necessary, as you have 11 travelers in the caravan before any additional hirelings and space for only 10 people with your three wagons.
Also, all the PCs more or less automatically count as heros in addition to whatever else they decide to do for the caravan.
I have not looked at the caravan info yet, so I cannot speak to that topic.
Regarding the points Callomeleth makes about treasure, I think I'm in agreement. Thought: If no one can or will use Whispering Shrike, a healer could hold it, cast Shield Other on someone in or going into melee, and heal themselves as necessary. That alone, even without swinging the sword, gives the warrior some staying power.
Of course, Lamsfel is a fan of light weapons and magic makes it more tasty, but then the Shield Other is less attractive because he should be taking damage of his own.
Reviewing Gan's post, I think his points are good, too. We can give him first dibs on non- armor AC items considering his special requirements. Tybus and Lamsfel will both be light armor users, so anything heavy probably falls to Callomeleth. I assume Tristan will not want to go more than medium armor.
I will look at the caravan rules later so I know what the heck you guys are talking about. Sounds like a spreadsheet is in order, though. We could put one on google docs if everyone has access.
Oh yeah, I should have said this already: the sale of the Rusty Dragon nets Ameiko 2000 gp, which all goes toward getting the caravan kitted out as well.
While the armored wagon is definitely something we'll need, I'm not sold on buying it right away. That's ten times the cost of a regular covered wagon for +40 hp and a +3 to CAC. We'd probably get more bang for our buck at this point just buying a regular covered wagon. And we'll need to get someone to drive the wagon, possibly increasing our merry band to 12 people. That would make our totals become 90 hp, traveler capacity 16, cargo capacity 22, consumption 6 (+12 for the actual travelers, for a total of 18). That means we're going to be using almost 2 stores a day. Hunting and magic can help with that, but create food and water is a bit beyond my ability at the moment, so that storage wagon is going to be mostly filled with foodstuffs. We might have to look at taking a second supply wagon, but that might be overkill at this point, and would also increase consumption again, probably to 20 should we get a driver for that wagon as well.
I guess one thing to do at the moment would be to have Sandru start making the rounds in Sandpoint to see if any of the townsfolk have goods they want to sell. That would help us find out how much of our storage space we can devote to food.
After looking back through the postings, I see that Tybus already worked at learning the spells he didn't know. Copying can be done with a minimum of time spent, and 30 gp spent. Therefore, we can probably throw the spell book into the pile of things to be sold.
Keep in mind that at later levels, Magus can learn heavier armors, so it won't be forever that he's in light.
Tybus is interested in holding onto the fan, and using some gold to buy a military saddle for Tomodachi. And he's in full agreement about not selling Song of Sparrows or its mate. He's still balancing on its edge about taking it up. We'll see how the story goes.
As far as Tybus's jobs in the caravan, he's really only good for being a presence as a hero, and can either be a spellcaster or guard.
Sorry for the wall of text, been trying to wrap my head around this caravan stuff.
Lamsfel's potential jobs on the caravan at this time are guard, hero, scout, or trader.
I did not mean to sell Tybus' armor choices short. I was mostly thinking of right now and near future (though I'm sure my kensai magus' lack of armor proficiency probably skewed my judgment, too).
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Current caravan before adjustments:
Covered Wagon: 20 hp, 6 passengers, 4 cargo, consumption 2
Fortune-Teller's Wagon: 30 hp, 2 passengers, 4 cargo, consumption 1
Supply Wagon: 20 hp, 2 passengers, 10 cargo, consumption 1
Travelers
Sandru: driver, guard, passenger, trader, wainwright
Koya: fortune-teller, guard, healer, passenger, spellcaster (entertainer, guard, guide, healer, or scout)
Ameiko: cook, entertainer, fortune-teller, guard, passenger, spellcaster (entertainer, guard, guide, healer, or scout), trader
Shalelu: guard, passenger, scout
Bevelek: driver
Vankor: driver
Callomeleth: entertainer, fortune-teller, guard, healer, hero, passenger, spellcaster (entertainer, guard, guide, healer, or scout), trader
Gan: guard, healer, hero, spellcaster (entertainer, guard, guide, healer, or scout), trader
Lamsfel: guard, hero, passenger, scout, trader
Tristan: driver, guard, guide, hero, passenger, scout
Tybus: guard, hero, spellcaster (entertainer, guard, guide, healer, or scout)
Consumption 11
Minimum scores: Offense 1, Defense 1, Mobility 1, Morale 1
Minimum bonuses: Attack +4, Security +4, Resolve +4
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Requires another wagon (I'm inclined to go with another store wagon and a driver for a total additional consumption of 2 and room for stores to trade later)
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I've been through the caravan rules twice and I still don't know what Mobility is used for. What's a better Mobility score do for us? The others are explained or obvious - maybe I just missed it. Not knowing what Mobility is really used for, I have to agree with Callomeleth - Defense and Morale, then Mobility. Offense we can provide, as stated, with guards - thought they are expensive if we hire them.
It looks like guards and scouts are the more expensive of the hired jobs, but we only have to pay those wages on a monthly basis, so I don't know how much that should factor into our decisions of kitting up the caravan. Those are roles that the party and the main NPCs can fill pretty well.
I like the idea of using scouts to augment our supplies, so the Scavengers feat appeals to me at some point. Enhanced Caravan at second level seems wise.
Mobility is the "base stat" for Security checks - I admit the relationship is distinctly less intuitive than it could be, but if you read the rules looking for Security references, you'll get a better sense of what Mobility's value is.
If you want to be able to use the caravan to make money at all, the Merchant Mastery feat, purchased as many times as you can afford, is probably going to be important. I've looked through a few of the threads on the problems in the caravan rules, and I might adjust them as we go, depending.
Just so's you know.
Yeah, that's not intuitive at all. I found the reference in the guide, though. Considering how often we make Security checks, it appears, Mobility would need to be strong, too. I guess I agree on not augmenting Offense yet, but I'm not sure whether I would want to not augment any of the others. It might be best to wait for any feats requiring three points until after we've reached level three. It would help if our NPCs have any insight into our early challenges, of course.
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At a glance, it seems to me that some jobs will be needed at different times, so the same person could perform them. When we are in town trading, a scout is probably not needed, for example. When we are stopped for repairs, a driver can act as a wainwright.
A driver cannot also be a scout, however - so while Tristan can be a driver, that would mean he is not available for any of the other jobs he qualifies for. I think it would be better if he was available as a guard or a scout considering the relative costs of those jobs to the cost of a driver.
If I understand correctly, the fortune-teller is only necessary on occasion, so either of our NPC fortune-tellers (or a PC, for that matter) does not need to fill that role every day.
A scout that spends a day getting provisions basically takes care of his food needs for that day and two more. Does he also cover his own food needs when he is concentrating on Security?
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Trying to summarize the waiting treasure lest it be forgotten in the excitement of the caravan.
Five potions of Cure Light Wounds
Two potions of ??
Three potions of Lesser Restoration
Wand of Identify (19 charges)
Wand of Mending (42 charges)
Ring of Climbing
Well-made chain shirt
Cold Iron Wakizashi
Eleven Desnan candles
Four Skyrockets
Pearls, Jade rings and bracelets, Gold and silver pendants
Whispering Shrike, +1 Wakizashi that can cast shield other 1/day
Song of Sparrows
Two fancy chests
Few hundred silvers, perhaps a hundred golds
Long hairpin, topped with large red pearl
Repaired fan
Six well-made shuriken
Chief's small magical armor
Chief's spellbook
Chief's masterwork small katana
If the caravan doesn't have a fortune-teller, it takes a -2 to basically every roll it makes while the position is vacant. It's unwise to risk it, I think.
Gan and Tybus, would you go ahead and roll me another Spellcraft check each so you can try to figure out that last set of potions? You might also make one for Chief Rendwattle's armor.
The chain shirt, the cold iron wakizashi and the shuriken are masterwork, and can be sold for the appropriate price. If you want to get as much as possible out of selling the chests and the gems/jewelry/etc., you should probably make some Appraise checks as well. Firework rules and prices can be found in Ultimate Equipment, or you can just click here - the "star candles" are Desnan candles (thanks to world-neutrality in the hardcover rulebooks).
The coins you accumulated in the two chests combine to total 533 gp and 4149 sp.
If the caravan doesn't have a fortune-teller, it takes a -2 to basically every roll it makes while the position is vacant. It's unwise to risk it, I think.
Wow. At the rate I'm understanding this, I'd have been better to not read the guide and let the rest drive. You are correct, I saw it, but it did not sink in.
Updated with purchase prices
Five potions of Cure Light Wounds
Two potions of ??
Three potions of Lesser Restoration
Wand of Identify (19 charges)
Wand of Mending (42 charges)
Ring of Climbing
Masterwork chain shirt
Masterwork Cold Iron Wakizashi
Eleven Desnan candles
Four Skyrockets
Pearls, Jade rings and bracelets, Gold and silver pendants
Whispering Shrike, +1 Wakizashi, casts shield other 1/day
Song of Sparrows
Fancy chest from Licktoad village
Fancy chest from Cave
4149 silver pieces
533 gold pieces
Long hairpin, topped with large red pearl
Repaired fan
Six masterwork shuriken
Chief's small magical armor
Chief's spellbook
Chief's masterwork small katana
Appaise aid rolls
Hairpin with red pearl
Fancy Chest from Licktoad village
Fancy Chest from Cave
Miscellaneous jewels and jewelry
Yeah, I guess I just assumed Koya was the default fortune teller.
Spellcasters are versatile, so as I read it we want to fill those roles first. Also, if possible we should hire drivers (one to replace Sandru so he can fight, and more for any additional wagons we get). We don't want to waste our good soldiers on driving, IMO.
As I read the rules, scouts always cover their own Consumption, regardless of their focus.
1d20 + 7
1d20 + 7
The potions are cure moderate wounds; the armor is Small-sized +1 leather lamellar.
Updated with Gan's identification
Five potions of Cure Light Wounds
Two potions of Cure Moderate Wounds
Three potions of Lesser Restoration
Wand of Identify (19 charges)
Wand of Mending (42 charges)
Ring of Climbing
Masterwork chain shirt
Masterwork Cold Iron Wakizashi
Eleven Desnan candles
Four Skyrockets
Pearls, Jade rings and bracelets, Gold and silver pendants
Whispering Shrike, +1 Wakizashi, casts shield other 1/day
Song of Sparrows
Fancy chest from Licktoad village
Fancy chest from Cave
4149 silver pieces
533 gold pieces
Long hairpin, topped with large red pearl
Repaired fan
Six masterwork shuriken
Chief's small +1 leather lamellar armor
Chief's spellbook
Chief's masterwork small katana
Ooh, another bit of info that should be considered - it got mentioned briefly in the game thread, but should be repeated and expanded on here. The hidden compartment in Whispering Shrike's hilt was added when the hilt itself was replaced at some point in the sword's history; however, that replacement has not handled the intervening years all that well, and has come loose. At the moment, it has a -2 penalty to attacks until a swordsmith (or someone with mending or make whole and a caster level of at least 5th) can fix it. Mundane repair costs 600 gp; magical repair follows the usual costs for a caster, and would therefore be a lot cheaper, except that I don't think there's anyone in Sandpoint with a caster level high enough to fix it. (Madame Mvashti could have, but she is no longer available...)
Also, there's one more thing to throw on the loot pile - the scroll case that the letter in the sword came in was actually made of pure mithral, and is likely worth a decent amount of money if sold as well.
Ah, I thought the loose hilt was actually a misunderstanding of the enclosed secret.
-2 to attack due to broken condition, -4 to attack due to exotic proficiency, +1 to attack due to magic for a total -5 to hit. Sounds like something Lamsfel would try to use, doesn't it?
Is anyone planning to claim either wakizashi? Lamsfel's two-weapon fighting might have just take an exotic flair...
I agree with Gan, hiring drivers is probably pretty cheap. Plus it frees up Sandru to do something else in the caravan.
No interest in a wakizashi. If you want it, it's yours, Lamsfel.
I blame the DM - I think he did this on purpose. But now I'm looking at EWP: wakizashi, weapon focus: wakizashi, improved critical: wakizashi. Any other plans I might have had? Gone!
He does this every time. He's great that way. (Yeah, I am sure he did not add these to the treasure just for me to find. I like to give him a hard time. Just don't tell him.)
Proposed or requested 'keepers'
Callomeleth
Potion of Cure Light Wounds
Potion of Lesser Restoration
Ring of Climbing
Gan
Potion of Cure Light Wounds
Potion of Lesser Restoration
Wand of Identify (19 charges)
Wand of Mending (42 charges)
Lamsfel
Potion of Cure Light Wounds
Potion of Cure Moderate Wounds
Masterwork Cold Iron Wakizashi (sells for 185 gp)
Broken Whispering Shrike (+1 wakizashi, casts shield other 1/day)
Tristan
Potion of Cure Light Wounds
Potion of Cure Moderate Wounds
Tybus
Potion of Cure Light Wounds
Potion of Lesser Restoration
Masterwork chain shirt - or sell for 125 gp
Song of Sparrows (+1 katana(?))
Repaired fan with map (from Licktoad Village)
Proposed 'sellers'
Chief's small +1 leather lamellar armor
Chief's masterwork small katana
Six masterwork shuriken
Chief's spellbook
all 0-level magus spells: acid splash, arcane mark, dancing lights, daze, detect magic, disrupt undead, flare, ghost sound, light, mage hand, open/close, prestidigitation, ray of frost, read magic, spark**, as well as color spray, magic missile, mudball, ray of enfeeblement, shocking grasp, shield, stone fist, and true strike = 15 + 15*5 + 8*10 170 gp
4149 silver pieces
533 gold pieces
Known totals: 1833 gp, 9 sp
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Unappraised proposed 'sellers'
Pearls, Jade rings and bracelets, Gold and silver pendants
Fancy chest from Licktoad village
Fancy chest from Cave
Long hairpin, topped with large red pearl
Pure mithral cylinder from hilt of Whispering Shrike
--------------------------------
Keep or Sell?
Eleven Desnan candles
Four Skyrockets
Sale value: 127 gp, 5 sp
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Purchasing a Wand of Cure Light Wounds makes a lot of sense, leaving a bit more than a 1000 gp to split. I know Gan indicated that he thought treasure should skew toward the warriors to they could 'keep up' with the power levels of the spellcasters, but Lamsfel is way ahead this time if he takes both swords, so I would suggest that he not get any of the cash this time around. I'm not worried about fixing the broken hilt on Whispering Shrike at this time - I have plenty of blades, I can wait until we can address it later - when we are not trying to outfit a caravan.
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These are only suggestions. It's no skin off my nose if we trash it and start over.
That's a great breakdown, Lamsfel. Thanks for doing that.
Here's some (untrained) Appraise checks:
Thanks. I don't feel like I have a good grasp of the caravan, so I thought I'd work on this while y'all figure how we'll roll.
I blame the DM - I think he did this on purpose. But now I'm looking at EWP: wakizashi, weapon focus: wakizashi, improved critical: wakizashi. Any other plans I might have had? Gone!
He does this every time. He's great that way. (Yeah, I am sure he did not add these to the treasure just for me to find. I like to give him a hard time. Just don't tell him.)
I'm afraid I can make no claims to this one, my friend. The only loot-related conundrum I have personally manufactured is Tybus'. Both wakizashis are part of the listed loot in the mod as written.
With regard to the Appraise checks, none of you are trained in them, but Sandru has a +7 modifier, and would be willing to help you out at this point, especially since the money would be at least partially going to help fund his caravan. So one of you can roll for him, if you like.
Appaise aid rolls
Hairpin with red pearl Appraise: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (19) + 1 = 20
Fancy Chest from Licktoad village Appraise: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (4) + 1 = 5
Fancy Chest from Cave Appraise: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (15) + 1 = 16
Miscellaneous jewels and jewelry Appraise: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (17) + 1 = 18
Tybus' checks would be successful for aid, as well. I'll include those aid anothers separately so you can discard them if they are not appropriate for this skill check.
Sandru estimates the hairpin at 150 gp, and the chest from the Licktoads likewise once it's been cleaned off from the goblins' poor housekeeping. The chest you found in the cave he puts at 200 gp, the jewels and gems within it at about 560 gp, and the mithral tube at 100 gp even.
Of course, the next question is if we have a buyer in town.
Safe to say you can find someone to take all of the loot you want to get rid of in Sandpoint.
So... what's the plan here, guys?
Update to Proposed 'sellers' with the appraisals included
Chief's small +1 leather lamellar armor
Chief's masterwork small katana
Six masterwork shuriken
Chief's spellbook
all 0-level magus spells: acid splash, arcane mark, dancing lights, daze, detect magic, disrupt undead, flare, ghost sound, light, mage hand, open/close, prestidigitation, ray of frost, read magic, spark**, as well as color spray, magic missile, mudball, ray of enfeeblement, shocking grasp, shield, stone fist, and true strike = 15 + 15*5 + 8*10 170 gp
4149 silver pieces
533 gold pieces
Pearls, Jade rings and bracelets, Gold and silver pendants
Fancy chest from Licktoad village
Fancy chest from Cave
Long hairpin, topped with large red pearl
Pure mithral cylinder from hilt of Whispering Shrike
Known totals: 2993 gp, 9 sp
--------------------------------
Keep or Sell?
Eleven Desnan candles
Four Skyrockets
Sale value: 127 gp, 5 sp
--------------------------------
Purchasing a Wand of Cure Light Wounds makes a lot of sense, leaving a bit more than a 2200 gp to split. I know Gan indicated that he thought treasure should skew toward the warriors to they could 'keep up' with the power levels of the spellcasters, but Lamsfel is way ahead this time if he takes both swords, so I would suggest that he not get any of the cash this time around. I'm not worried about fixing the broken hilt on Whispering Shrike at this time - I have plenty of blades, I can wait until we can address it later - when we are not trying to outfit a caravan.
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These are only suggestions. It's no skin off my nose if we trash it and start over.
Sorry about the delay here - I was limited to phone posts yesterday and did not want to update this through that medium.
Question: Would the fireworks sell like gear at half price or are they commodities sold at full price? I assumed the former, but they are obviously not used, so I'm wondering if they should not be the latter.
I will try to summarize the points of view expressed thus far. I think we have a general consensus on many of the questions, but there are a few big ones remaining - that might have been waiting for us to determine how much money we have.
Question for the party: We have basically 2200 gp that I am proposing we divide up 500 gp per person except for Lamsfel who gets 200 gp for preparing for the trip. Is that acceptable?
If so, how much do you want to contribute to the outfitting of the caravan? At this point, we have 2000 gp to use. Once we know what we have, we can start budgeting for our costs - what type of wagon are we buying, how many and what type of labor are we hiring other than a driver (or probably two so Sandru can perform another duty).
No worries, mate. That's a fair breakdown, as I see it.
As far as extra hires, the only ones I'd see us doing is adding another wainwright along with a driver. The only potential wainwright is Sandru as it currently stands, though that might be his preferred spot for the caravan if we're adding another driver.
Wainwrights should be a low priority, because you only need them when you're stopped, much like you can only use drivers when you're moving. If you want to hire a driver who can also function as a wainwright, you can do so - I'll borrow from the magical item rules and say you can "add" that sort of functionality to a hireling by increasing their wage by 50% of the lower-cost profession. Thus, a driver who also knows enough carpentry to do repairs requires 15 gp/month, and can basically switch between the two as needed.
I like that. If we are stopped, we still need guards; it is more cost-effective for that guard to be Sandru than a hireling.
Tybus, what are your thoughts on another wagon?
Shisumo, what are your thoughts about someone riding Tomodachi rather than a wagon? Does that negate the immediate need for a fourth wagon?
What's the sale price for fireworks? Do we want to sell them?
Tybus is cool with the proposed split of treasure. Gan? Callomeleth? Tristan? (I know Tristan's been tied up by real-life again, so we need to proceed without his input.)
Fireworks sell like everything else, for half their purchase cost.
Hey guys, I was visiting my buddy in St Louis this weekend and tried to drive home yesterday, had to stop halfway at a hotel and just got home a half hour or so ago (I live in Chicago). Anyway, just wanted to give you a heads up. I should be able to post my final thoughts on the caravan and everything tonight, maybe in 7.5 hours or so.
Another wagon will probably help us stay supplied, unless with Tybus riding we're completely set with the wagons we've got. I haven't been able to study the caravan rules in depth.
I think Callomeleth and Gan had a better handle on them, and I think it would be in Lamsfel's character to accept the majority's opinion.
But Lamsfel is played by someone a little more obsessive, so - would it be helpful to draw up a spreadsheet for estimating costs? Maybe a GoogleDoc we can share?