Myriana turns on Kalimac with a look like a snarling Attatoq, glaring at him from under her bangs. "She said she got it, alright? Back off!"
"But... but...." stammers Kalimac, as large tears begin to well up in his eyes. "No fair! You're always taking her side!" Kalimac storms up to his room and slams the door.
*tap,tap,tap* "I..I'm s..sorry. I...I...I d..d..didn't m..mean t..to g..get you upset." Myri says towards the door. She slumps against the wall, tucking her knees up against her chest. ... ... Until Attatoq comes up the stairs to check on Kalimac. She throws her arms around him, burying her face in his fur.
Wild Empathy:
After a while, she draws back and looks into Attatoq's eyes. "He's right, you really are good for this." She says conspiratorially, "Think we should let him know? ... ... Nah, I didn't think so either." She gives him another squeeze. Takes out the brush she bought for him at Galduria & begins carefully and thoroughly brushing out his fur.
Hey ~ that wasn't 20 hours, was it?
Just about. Hrithik's last email was about 3:45 am Tucson time. Add 20 hours and you get 11:45 pm. About when Hrithik just posted. He may have been a couple of minutes early. But a good estimate on his part, I'd say.
Darn Paizo boards... When someone first post, it shows up in the reader's time zone... and then at some point it switches to PST.
I was calculating off of 3:45 am Hawaii-time. :P
Really? That's an interesting design choice. So for now, when Tucson is on the same time as California, I can rely on the times listed. Later in October, when we go to Mountain time, I'll have to pay attention to that.
Not that I ever really care except to be a smart-ass about Hrithik's comings and goings.
Not that I ever really care except to be a smart-ass about Hrithik's comings and goings.
Do you always harass your in-state friends via the internet as well?
OK, guys. This is a tricky thing for the GM to weigh in on, because I do not want to imply that you shouldn’t do *any* kinds of legitimate IC actions or comments.
But things are getting way slowed down here, and it is my opinion that this is Death for a PBP game. I’m at the point of having to DELETE informational GM update posts I just made because people are STOPPING THEIR ACTIONS based on what other people are doing or saying.
This is a nine-character party playing a PBP game. You can assume that you will NEVER achieve complete group consensus on ANY even mildly controversial plan of action. Doing so could literally take weeks and have little point.
Some strategies that work to ameliorate this problem in tabletop are not practical for a PBP. For example, appointing a leader usually sucks as an idea in PBP because of the time-zone/posting differences. The idea is to reduce time spent hanging around waiting on someone else, not increase it.
However, the counter-benefit is that some things that are poor strategy in a tabletop game aren’t so much, here. It’s not really all that bad a strategy to split the party (there’s NINE of you, if nothing else.) It’s also, more to the point, much less boring than in a tabletop game, since I can handle both/all three/all nine groups at once.
In addition, flexible time means that if people move on but are retroactively convinced to do something else for a bit first, they GENERALLY STILL CAN.
So. You don’t need to wait for consensus to announce an action. Really, you don’t.
Now, if you don’t want to go haring off alone, you can of course SAY that. (“My character Ed suggests that exploring this area is pointless and we should head directly for the enormous pyramid. If anyone else agrees, I go.”)
If in that scenario you don’t want to join them, SAY that (“Well, MY character Sue thinks that’s idiotic and says we’d better see if there’s a Sarlacc in this Sarlacc pit before we move on. If anyone else agrees, I stay and continue to poke it with a stick.”)
But wait, you say. What if there IS a Sarlacc in the Sarlacc pit and by poking it Sue wakes it up but now half the party is away looking at the pyramid and now they have to rush back and ...
Yeah. That’s exactly what I’m telling you isn’t a big deal. Not that it can’t happen, simply that it isn’t that big a deal.
So. If some scouts want to explore the woods? Great. Go. If some less stealthy characters want to follow along behind them at a distance? Great. Let ‘em. You don’t need to constantly second guess the decisions of others, you don’t need to always wait to see what others think, and you don’t always need to discuss the merits of your own plans. What I'm really basically saying is that Optimizing Your Approach Strategy simply ISN’T ACTUALLY IMPORTANT ENOUGH IN THIS GAME to waste all this time on it.
Does that mean you should never discuss a plan, make a suggestion for an alternative approach, ask for advice, wait for someone else, or yell at someone you think is being stupid? Of course not. Play in character. If your character would do that, do it.
But if you have something you want to do, go do it (bearing in mind you can specify alone or with others) and stop worrying so much about everyone else is doing or whether everyone is coming with you or not. Seriously.
So. If some scouts want to explore the woods? Great. Go. If some less stealthy characters want to follow along behind them at a distance? Great. Let ‘em. You don’t need to constantly second guess the decisions of others, you don’t need to always wait to see what others think, and you don’t always need to discuss the merits of your own plans.
I feel I should clarify this point since I brought up a specific instance.
If Myriana telling Hrithik to stay back was primarily a Strategic attempt to Optimize Approach, rather than an in-character response she definitely would have had, then it might have been best to have just let it go as not really all that important.
If it was, in contrast, an in-character response, as it probably was, then the "problem", from a GMing point of view, wasn't with Myriana telling Hrithik she thought he should stay back. The "problem" was with her then stopping her OWN action to wait to see how people would respond to that. It would have been reasonable to stop if Hrithik had argued SHE shouldn't go, and she decided she agreed, but that isn't what happened.
Speaking as GM, what I might have considered more optimal for that kind of scenario might be:
1) Myriana goes to scout (specifying with others)
2) Hrithik announces intent to follow at a distance
3) Myriana tells Hrithik she thinks this is a bad idea, explains why, and then CONTINUES ON rather than waiting to see what his/others' response is and waiting for consensus
4) Hrithik decides for himself whether he thinks Myriana's advice was useful and stays behind, or decides his plan is better and continues with it and follows
5) Subject is then dropped as not being worth wasting any more time on
This post and the previous were also not meant to be specifically calling out anyone in particular. Similar things are happening quite a bit right now from multiple characters, and they are not necessary.
...This post and the previous were also not meant to be specifically calling out anyone in particular. Similar things are happening quite a bit right now from multiple characters, and they are not necessary.
Sorry about 'having to delete posts' & even more so to the group for slowing play. My problem is that Myri is not yet ready to act on her own, unless she actually is 'on her own'. She more or less does what she is told and I felt Hrithik was saying 'stay with the group, don't go off by yourselves' and so, in the absence of her sister or possibly Lio there to tell her otherwise, she did as she was told and stopped.
I see your point, and will try to keep such disrupting instances to a minimum.Formal apologies to the group for play stoppage. (Regardless of the "not calling out anyone in particular.")
Huh. Not how I read that situation at all, or I would have used a different example.
To me, that read as:
1) Myriana and others: We are preparing to go off to scout.
2) Hrithik: Great! I will follow you at a distance.
3) Myriana: No, don't, that's dumb, here's why.
(Myriana, rather than continuing with her planned action, waits for Hrithik's response)
In any event, the general point still stands.
In this instance, if the concern was that Myriana wouldn't have "gone off alone", I'd suggest just specifying that you're only going scouting if a scouting group is going with you, rather than just stopping.
Has nothing to do with her going by herself or with a few other people (she already assumes Mel (& probably Lio as well)) would be going with her, whether or not the group followed behind them.
Because of how I read, or quite possibly misread this
(Hrithik says, "My understanding had been that we didn't wish to greatly split the party, and would agree to consult the entire party rather than unilaterally splitting it, lest a nasty surprise descend on those on point while everyone else is too far away to help.")
Myri has stopped (as I perceived at the time that she was told to ) and she needs a nudge to get going again....in a language she can understand...even if it's Attatoq pulling her towards the forest.
...never mind Rhost posted. bye.
Because of how I read, or quite possibly misread this
(Hrithik says, "My understanding had been that we didn't wish to greatly split the party, and would agree to consult the entire party rather than unilaterally splitting it, lest a nasty surprise descend on those on point while everyone else is too far away to help.")
Ah. My understanding was that was effectively followed by "... so I will follow you rather than stay here."
But god knows that you and Hrithik, especially, are the two characters I seem to misinterpret the most, so in a dialogue between the two of you especially, I could TOTALLY be missing what's going on. And apparently at least partially did. :)
But we are moving on now, and Hrithik will follow or not, so this water seems to be well under the bridge, with the simple addendum that the GM is effectively saying that:
"agree[ing] to consult the entire party rather than unilaterally splitting it"
is both unnecessary and basically impossible in a PBP game and should not and cannot be employed as a working method of group strategy going forward.
Not speaking Hafling, Lio has no idea what Kalimac just said... but
"Mu sõber, jään siia koos Lio. Ma helistan kui mul on vaja teie abi,"
sounds like, sober/ helistan (raising hell in another country maybe?) and abi... alibi?
"I'm going to have a drink with Lio and then raise hell! You need to stay sober and give us an alibi."
;)
I must mention that I love Kalimac. He's always so friendly and good and stuff. Lio would totally raise hell in another country while getting drunk with him. Just sayin.
Note -- I have checked the rules and they are not particularly clear on whether wolves can climb ladders.
The climb skill states that climbing requires "both hands". On the other hand, most snakes have a climb speed, and climb is a class skill for all animals.
My ruling is therefore to punt and note that both Liothonae and Rhost are perfectly capable of carrying a wolf up a ladder on their shoulders.
(Be glad he is not a pony. They weigh 600 pounds.)
Seriously though, my dog, who I'm sure would have been a bit smaller than Attatoq, was perfectly capable of climbing ladders or fences...with the proper motivation.
However, like I said, lacking any game mechanics. Myri is fastening a harness in case he slips.
Yes, but the rules are similarly vague with regards to, say, horses and dolphins, so I'm going to close my eyes and wish the whole question away for now.
There is, however, absolutely no rule that says a mule can't play football. I checked.
Lio has no problem carrying Attatoq :) and since she has all that animal empathy with him, it would probably be better for her to do it than someone else.
Lio is probably right--if someone needs to carry Attatoq, it should be her. And given Kalimac's last order to Attatoq (stay with Lio), he's probably standing next to her when it's time to go up.
I figure he'd try himself, with the harness, and with Lio as backup.
Lio is probably right--if someone needs to carry Attatoq, it should be her.
...and I'm not sure I could have made a Stealth roll while carrying a wolf up a rusty ladder with a straight face.
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Lio is probably right--if someone needs to carry Attatoq, it should be her....and I'm not sure I could have made a Stealth roll while carrying a wolf up a rusty ladder with a straight face.
Don't forget the unexpectedly squeaky, waterlogged boots, and all the precariously stacked pots and pans he's holding with the other arm. Nothing could possibly go wrong.
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Ah. My understanding was that was effectively followed by "... so I will follow you rather than stay here."Because of how I read, or quite possibly misread this
(Hrithik says, "My understanding had been that we didn't wish to greatly split the party, and would agree to consult the entire party rather than unilaterally splitting it, lest a nasty surprise descend on those on point while everyone else is too far away to help.")
Pretty much.
One point of confusion may be wildly divergent ooc / in-char interests. Player would like things to keep moving, but not have the group miss helpful stuff - hence all the GM spoiler request for details on the castle approach while characters were talking to Spivey. Character would prefer safety first and looking out for each other, so eventual surprises don't wreck someone he cares about without backup at hand. End result is desire to stick together as a unit, but willingness to be a link on a Flex Time chain as backup option, if Togetherness isn't the outcome.
No, it was purely an in-character reaction to Hrithik's comment. & yes, we did understand he was giving options on what he would be doing should the group decide to move on as a group.
First part of above comment is not necessarily wrong.
Note to clear up some apparent confusion. based on OOC discussion with some players:
My comment about resting in a dungeon or leaving and coming back referred specifically and ONLY to the action of resting in a dungeon and leaving and coming back.
It is not meant to be applied to any other situation, such as, for example, pounding on the outside of a flaming Hellkeep and shouting, "EVILDOERS! COME OUT AND FACE YOUR DOOM!" That is a perfectly fine and reasonable strategy in D&D, although of course it is not the only one.
My comment was NOT meant to be taken as: you are screwed if you wake up the whole dungeon because that is poor strategy. My comment WAS meant to be taken as: you may be screwed if you rest in dungeon or leave and come back later because doing so is generally boring and unnecessary so as a GM I try to set things up so that it is an unpalatable option.
I hope this clears things up.
'favored lance' ~ this implies possession of multiple lances
Yeah... It makes sense since she is a melee fighter, but the sorcerer has a higher strength score than about half the people in the group.
So Netflix is insisting that I would like a movie called Gor. Which is from before... My movie going time frame. (Yeah, I'm gonna word it that way)
So... any opinions?
'favored lance' ~ this implies possession of multiple lances
I think I should buy more, just to make the phrase fit better. But the current and only lance will always be favored, as it was the lance that scored first blood on that ogre.
So Netflix is insisting that I would like a movie called Gor. Which is from before... My movie going time frame. (Yeah, I'm gonna word it that way)
So... any opinions?
*snort*
John Norman's "Gor" is special. The movie is fun in a generically-bad way.
So Netflix is insisting that I would like a movie called Gor. Which is from before... My movie going time frame. (Yeah, I'm gonna word it that way)
So... any opinions?
I actually just reviewed this one not too long ago. I think I got in a couple good ones at a relatively soft target, but the best review of this film I ever saw was while watching it for the first time at a friend's apartment. Now, this is a lot funnier if you could see my impression, just because I do a dead-on one of this specific thing (and absolutely nothing else). Anyway, partway through, I turn around and look into the face of a friend's four year old. She had this look of confusion and disgust as she watched.
"Are you enjoying the movie, Panther?" I asked. (Yes, her name is Panther. She drew me a picture for my birthday and it's awesome.)
She glared at me and mutely shook her head.
After that moment, I wanted to do a movie review show that was nothing but that.
So... not the kind of movie that gin and good friends makes watchable?
(And Panther sounds... adorable. Of course I'm picturing dark hair, long bangs and much glaring.)
It's your basic swords and sorcery kind of thing with a sunny attitude about slavery. And maybe the worst taught college physics course ever.
Panther's pretty cute. She does have dark hair, but it's very curly and there's a whole lot of it.
I don't want to slow things down... and I really really enjoy playing, but I'm getting texts from players telling me to post for combat, and I kind of have real life things going on right now and the texts are starting to stress me out. I had intended to post tonight, and I did, but I screwed up the first post, and after deleting, still didn't remember to erase all that stuff from the reply to your message, and had to edit that too... and who knows how long before the edits take effect... so now my post is like a mile long... all for a move action.
I know the players in question are not trying to hassle me, but it sure feels that way when I have things going on. I don't want to be a jerk about this, so if it's an issue with me not posting fast enough in a given day/combat round, I give you permission to auto run my character if necessary.
And so it begins. Having broken into these creatures' home, the burglars begin their rampage, attacking with deadly force.
Admittedly, one had the courtesy to shout at them, in a language they probably didn't understand, that he considered them under arrest because they happened to live in a place where a crime probably occurred 30 years ago, and that he was appropriating to himself the authority to slay them if they chose to resist this "police action".
;)
And so it begins. Having broken into these creatures' home, the burglars begin their rampage, attacking with deadly force.
Admittedly, one had the courtesy to shout at them, in a language they probably didn't understand, that he considered them under arrest because they happened to live in a place where a crime probably occurred 30 years ago, and that he was appropriating to himself the authority to slay them if they chose to resist this "police action".
;)
Which proves that you can be excused just about anything if you're a hero, because no-one asks inconvenient questions.
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one had the courtesy to shout at them, in a language they probably didn't understand, that he considered them under arrest because they happened to live in a place where a crime probably occurred 30 years ago, and that he was appropriating to himself the authority to slay them if they chose to resist this "police action".
Actually, they're under arrest, surrender or die, for trespassing. Cheliax never lets a property claim go without a signed treaty. No signed treaty for Brinewall = Ownership claim in full effect. Property must be vacated, fines paid, and a Notice of Violation added to their permanent records.
They are only *accused* or murderkill by the Desnan cleric in residence in the village. That's one for the Courts to decide. Obviously we, as the arresting Citizen and allied enforcers, must investigate thoroughly and impound all property we find that could in any way be related to these heinous accusations.
The dire corbies are free to prove their innocence before the Imperial Magistrate set to review their case, and they have had their rights read to them.
I stand corrected. It has been shouted at them in a language that they probably didn't understand that they must surrender or die because several hundred years ago, a foreign country now run by devil-worshippers, with no current official, governmental, or controlling presence in this area or any area even remotely nearby, invaded the area and decided to declare that they owned it.
Whatever helps our heroes sleep at night. :)
why does the dice roller on this thing seem to hate me so much in combat?
It hates my healing as well.
It thinks you are too pretty.
Both of you.
Stopping my healing has the side effect of making us all uglier! Or at the very least, more recognizable.
See ~ this is why Mel constantly downplays her looks, so she can actually be competent in combat. :)
And why she dresses like a peasant with her older brother's hand me down shirt.
The same reason it won't let Rhost get off a good Stealth roll, and always does bad things to Kalimac in combat.
Because it's funny.
Well... so far Kalimac is uninjured. Of course, I've now probably jinxed that.
How'd I do? Click me!
And... green puppy dog eyes... finish random, slightly awkward and painful IC conversation?
Great, now they're whispering to each other on this thread. Sheesh.
Hey, I whispered to everyone earlier on the thread so :P
Oddly enough, not the Facebook page. I think it's the engineering mutations from college, they object to anything created at Harvard.
So ... I had Vampire Dentist at the top of my Netflix queue, and returned two discs.
Netflix skipped it. Twice. I'm getting #2 and #3 from my queue instead.
It's a Festivus miracle!
It's a Festivus miracle!
...because nothing says "Miracle" like Breeders and Full Metal Yakuza.