Just kinda catching up here still.
Caleb: You said that you are looking for an outcome that allows the game to continue with everyone satisfied. That may not be possible. Someone may have to do something that they do not want to do. In these situations it is likely best if the least changes can be made. In other words, it would be less fair if all of the other players had to make new characters and you did not as your DM suggested. On the other hand, just having one player make a new character would be less intrusive to the game itself. If your character is that pivotal to the story, then so be it. That doesn't mean that the character should be a PC though. It should be relegated to an NPC at that point.
Also, the way he was saying that your character is so pivotal kinda concerns me. To me it seems like he thought that the character was so pivotal to the story that he was not allowing negative actions from the party to affect the character. He was even willing to step in to control other character's PCs and not allow them to do what they think their characters would do. I'm not sure how to put this but that seems like railroading in the way. More like the DM is trying to tell a story despite player input. Not sure if it makes sense the way I said it but as a player this can be pretty offensive. When I say, "My character does X." and the DM cuts in and says, "No, your character can't do X because that will interfere with my story. Instead your character does X." ...yeah, I would probably get pretty irate. If I'm not mistaken that seems like what is going on here.
I do agree that the other players may have taken it too far. But when the players and their characters have reached the point of frustration that they were at and the DM was unwilling to step in to try to quell the inter party conflict (and actually seems to have approved of it up until that point) then I'm not sure if the players had any other option to facilitate a change.
On the issue of what a DM should do when faced with this sort of situation... well, I can tell you what I do. When I start a campaign I typically tell my players that while they control their character's motivations that they have to match with the campaign that I am running or I will not allow the character. I also tell them that I do not plan on DMing for any inter-party conflicts that result in violence against another party member. Meaning, I will simply not DM for it. I'll leave or I'll end the game for the night or I'll just quit. I do not run PVP games unless all players are entering with the understanding that will happen. Characters are not allowed to start being predisposed to not get along with another party member. If you have issues in character work them out. If they are unresolvable then change your character so they are resolvable or talk it out with the player out of character to find a solution that will allow the game to continue running without that level of inter-party conflict. I'm a DM, I'm not here to hold the players hands and play parent.
Cosimo knew that it was safest on his person, as those who wanted it wouldn't dare to take it from him. He just couldn't explain why.
I don't think you mean "couldn't". I think you mean "unwilling". And I think that is the problem the players have. The character is deceitful and they do not want to put up with it anymore. Characters shouldn't be deceitful with their own party. I can't say that I blame them for thinking this.
2. He told me that I couldn't play Cosimo after I made it very, very clear that I wanted to keep playing him. I was already feeling bullied, hurt, and shutting down. He knows me very well and knows how I handle things. Siding with the other players would mean I didn't have a friend to vouch for me. I would have handled things horribly, horribly bad, caused hurt feelings, and spent a week in anger, only to blow at the next game or facebook. If I didn't blow up, I would have been hurt enough to quit the group, end the game I am GMing, and stop talking to everyone for a while. Best case scenario, I would have made a character but played him as a background set piece and hoped the game ended quickly.
That reaction sounds very childish. I would hope that your not being serious that you would react that way because it sounds like a kid-fit that a child would do when he doesn't get his way. Not mature at all. Sorry if that is offensive but that is really how I feel on it. Caleb, if your actions are making the game not fun for everyone else then you can't just always get your way, bud. Sorry, that isn't the way that it works in the real world. Your DM could be your friend but he also has a responsibility to make sure that the rest of the table is having fun too.
3. He sides with no one and has everyone retire. Imagine how that would have gone. Not good.
This may not be a bad option. If people can not get along with their current characters and no one wants to stop playing their current characters in this campaign then starting a new campaign might be better for everyone. Maybe this time some ground rules can be set to avoid this kind of conflict in the future. Perhaps one change can be that characters are not allowed to be constantly deceitful with their own party? I dunno... just a suggestion. Not sure how seriously it is going to be taken at this point though.
4. He sides with no one and let the party work it out. Someone already mentioned somewhere that they have heard of games where this basically happened. It didn't lead to good things and I can't imagine it would have led to good things in our case.
Actually it sounds like this was what was about to happen. I understand that you are upset about it because it was a negative outcome for you. But it could have been a very positive outcome for the rest of the party. From their perspective they could have been getting rid of an annoying thorn in their side. If you would have been willing to play a more team friendly character then it could have been an upgrade for them. This wasn't allowed to happen though. They were forced by the DM to deal with the problem in a different way.
5. Ended the game the moment things got hairy, called it a night, and asked everyone to think long and hard about what had happened. Problem would have been that we would have had a week or two of not knowing if Cosimo was going to be released, or if the party was going to continue without him. This could work out great, but it could also turn into a flame war on Facebook as we discuss how to proceed. Most likely good, I will give you that. However, which GM do you know that would have made that call? Unless they experienced this type of problem before, they wouldn't. Carl has never had a blow up like this, so he didn't know what to do or how to stop it. Now he does.
Another mention of a facebook flame war? Wow, maybe I'm getting old but I just can't even imagine dealing with something like that. It seems very childish to me. It seems like you all might be investing far too much emotion and personal feelings into this game. This isn't healthy behavior, bud. There are more important things in life than your Pathfinder game and this isn't worthy of a facebook flame war. Actually... I'm having a hard time thinking of something that is...
I do like Weirdo's suggestions and comments. I would pay particular attention to what he said about DM favoritism as I think that is very accurate and close to the point I was making earlier. He also has good suggestions for NPC/patron/god interaction to help direct PC actions IC. However, as I believe he is pointing out this is largely something that needs to be discussed OOC first. And finally he is correct that the DM had burdened you with plot specific secrets as this instigated their mistrust of you.
DrDeth has the same opinion about sharing OOC stuff with other players and having enough trust in them to not metagame that knowledge. This is what I suggested as my solution as well. I am a pretty experienced gamer but DrDeth has me beat there. You really should listen to what he has to say, he has been around the gaming table for a long time and has valuable experience to offer. I think you need to listen to what he has to say because he hasn't said anything offensive and as far as I can tell is offering you quality advice. That is what you came here for, right? You have to understand that the advice that we give might not be what you wanted to hear, but that does not mean that it isn't good advice.
Asking him to simply not post any more because you do not like his suggestions shows that your not being very open-minded about this. Remember, we don't have a stake in this issue personally. We have no reason to give bad advice. We are basing our opinions off the information that you give us. DrDeth isn't the type of person who likes to go out of his way to make people's lives miserable. His suggestions are meant to help. As are mine. But also understand that we are thinking about your party, not just you.
Again, Weirdo has a very good point about the DM favoratism that is going on in this game but it doesn't look like you see it. He said, "It's not just the fact that you've summarized this from your POV. If the DM was being accurate when he said that it would be easier for plot-related reasons to retire the entire rest of the party (or even just the 2 most antagonistic) than it would be to retire Cosimo, you've got a problem. And if your DM told the other players that, you can bet they're feeling less important, even if they do have their own things going on."
You responded with:
He never told the party that. That was my own statement, and I am unsure if he has even said it himself. At this time I see how unfortunate that statement is.
What? This is what you said:
He also firmly told them in and out of character that I had really good reasons to keep the scroll from the party and that Cosimo was actually a big part of the plot by now. If they wanted to keep playing, they had to do so with me playing Cosimo.
That certainly sounds like the DM told the other players that.
Look, Weirdo is right. It is very clear that your DM is giving you favoritism here. Hopefully you both realize this and correct it. I think this is one of the major problems with your game. But don't take my word for it: ask the other players how they feel. Do they think you are DM's pet?
A Paladin is still just as guilty as the party member who killed (or atleast attempted to kill) Cosimo...
No character attempted to kill Cosimo. In fact, they assured him that this wouldn't happen. He was detained for questioning and for good reason. He refused to hand over a scroll after the paladin had seen him dealing with a verify-ably evil person and he was clearly hiding key details to the plot from his party.
Semantics aside, the player directs what the character does; of course the character isn't going to say "SMITE EVIL" or "GRAPPLE INITIATING" unless it's some sort of robot (which he isn't), but the player still said what the character was attempting to do. He took the first move in that altercation, and that's that. Unfortunately, saying who started the "fight" doesn't solve anything, so this remains a moot topic.
These are not semantics, bud. You are getting OOC statements confused with IC ones. The player saying "I have my character grapple Cosimo" is not the same as the character actually acting to do so. That is what initiative is for. At the time that initiative was rolled the paladin had not yet attempted to grapple Cosimo. Why? Because he didn't go first in initiative. Cosimo made the first aggressive move against his party member. That is definitely important especially with a paladin involved.
This isn't just a minor issue here. The paladin is able to claim self defense now. Cosimo attacked him. This is a legal issue and paladins follow law. The paladin had it within his rights to defend himself at that point. And, honestly, to keep Cosimo subdued so that he couldn't retaliate afterwords.
If I were in the paladin's shoes I would have made sure that Cosimo was the first one to attack me (casting a spell against me is considered the same thing) so that it was justifiable that I defend myself. Cosimo made it easy for him though.
Weirdo: I read your comments on this but I have to disagree with you here. The paladin's movements in character could have easily been to try to take the scroll from Cosimo as the paladin didn't know at that time that it wasn't on his person. Without having actually laid a hand on Cosimo yet there is no way that Cosimo would have known. Readying an action to respond before an attack doesn't work either, IMO. You have to have something to retaliate against. If the blow never landed then your not retaliating, you are giving a per-emptive strike. And I think we all know what kind of controversy happens when you start throwing around that term. It starts to get into the whole Minority Report "precrime" situation.
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Lune, this is how I interpreted things, and it seemed that everyone agreed I was right do so:
The paladin is a big scary gnoll, Cosimo is a small weak ratfolk. The player said, "I grapple Cosimo," which meant that Eyvinder moved and made motions towards Cosimo that could be considered threatening and indicated he meant to do harm to Cosimo. No matter the initiative order, the paladin initiated combat through his physical, threatening, body language that anyone and everyone agreed meant that he was going to harm Cosimo.
Cosimo reacted in self-defense. He had certainly asked for it, but it was in defense of his life.
I do not see it that way, Caleb. Eyvinder didn't "make motions towards Cosimo" until he had actions to use. His actions didn't come until after Cosimo's. The player saying "I grapple Cosimo" doesn't matter to Cosimo because he doesn't know the Eyvinder's intention. He is making assumptions about what his intention might be and when he used his spell he was making a pre-emptive strike. Cosimo struck before Eyvinder did.
Let me say that again just to make sure it is perfectly clear: Cosimo struck before Eyvinder did. That is true, correct?
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I do not see it that way, Caleb. Eyvinder didn't "make motions towards Cosimo" until he had actions to use. His actions didn't come until after Cosimo's. The player saying "I grapple Cosimo" doesn't matter to Cosimo because he doesn't know the Eyvinder's intention. He is making assumptions about what his intention might be and when he used his spell he was making a pre-emptive strike. Cosimo struck before Eyvinder did.
Let me say that again just to make sure it is perfectly clear: Cosimo struck before Eyvinder did. That is true, correct?
Whose action caused the initiative dice to be rolled? It was not Cosimo, but the paladin. Who won initiative is semantics...
When the first confrontation happened and you as a player were out of wits and could not properly verbal defend you actions, did you guys try Bluff/Diplomacy/Intimidate?
If you character can stay in character (which seems like they can), that could diffuse the current situation for the time being (of course, the other character might feel worse later on if they feel they were decieved). My group who has been gaming for 30 years has used this at times for multiple situations, characters, games, etc.
One of the things I like about the CHA based skills is they can make determinations for our characters where we might not be so skilled, or the character might be completely different from our real world counterparts.
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When the first confrontation happened and you as a player were out of wits and could not properly verbal defend you actions, did you guys try Bluff/Diplomacy/Intimidate?
If you character can stay in character (which seems like they can), that could diffuse the current situation for the time being (of course, the other character might feel worse later on if they feel they were decieved). My group who has been gaming for 30 years has used this at times for multiple situations, characters, games, etc.
One of the things I like about the CHA based skills is they can make determinations for our characters where we might not be so skilled, or the character might be completely different from our real world counterparts.
I wish we had done that. I plan on putting that in the tool box for the next time a debate pops up.
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Lune, I see your concerns but I am not sure you understand the legal backing for pre-emptive self-defence (at least the modern, real-world standards for such).
Weirdo: I read your comments on this but I have to disagree with you here. The paladin's movements in character could have easily been to try to take the scroll from Cosimo as the paladin didn't know at that time that it wasn't on his person. Without having actually laid a hand on Cosimo yet there is no way that Cosimo would have known.
You are also allowed to use reasonable force to defend personal property. (source) The limits as to what constitutes "reasonable force" are lower for your money than for your life, but the limit it not "no force."
Readying an action to respond before an attack doesn't work either, IMO. You have to have something to retaliate against. If the blow never landed then your not retaliating, you are giving a per-emptive strike. And I think we all know what kind of controversy happens when you start throwing around that term. It starts to get into the whole Minority Report "precrime" situation.
Mechanically, you can ready an attack to hit a spellcaster who starts to cast a spell. If you hit your attack, you deal damage, which forces a concentration check. If the concentration check fails, the caster loses the spell. The spell never "lands," but the caster was still clearly casting (or else your readied action would not have triggered) and you thus are responding to their action. If you have not previously threatened the spellcaster and you have reason to believe that the spell they were casting was hostile, you are acting in legitimate self-defence.
There is no rule in law to say that a person must wait to be struck first before they may defend themselves, (see R v Deana, 2 Cr App R 75).
(link)
Pre-emptive strikes are acceptable in self-defence situations so long as the person performing the pre-emptive strike honestly believes themselves to be in danger and does not use unreasonable force, and (at least in the UK) it is up to the prosecution to prove otherwise. The sleep hex is not unreasonable force. It is 100% painless, non-damaging unless used to make a person vulnerable to attack (not the case here) and results in at most 2 minutes of unconsciousness, less if the sleeping person is shaken awake by a friend.Minority Report "precrime" is about punishing people for crimes they haven't actually committed based on predictive evidence. Pre-emptive strikes in self-defence are about preventing crime from happening while doing as little harm as possible to the person with suspected criminal intent.
Given Cosimo's hostile and evasive demeanor, which could reasonably have led the paladin to believe Cosimo represented a threat, I personally see this as a draw in terms of responsibility for the initial altercation. However, you definitely have to look at the whole picture here. Determining fault is not as simple as checking who took the first hostile action once initiative was rolled.
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Indeed Weirdo. I also want to point out that the group agreed that my interpretation was correct. Even the paladin recognized that it was his action that started initiative.
This has little to do with the cause or solution of things though and is pretty much moving into the direction of a few people repeating themselves until there is an agreement to disagree.
I suggest we skip the repeating part and just move on to the agreeing part.
In other words, lets not talk about who hit who first anymore.
(Carl, Caleb's GM, chiming in again)
When the first confrontation happened and you as a player were out of wits and could not properly verbal defend you actions, did you guys try Bluff/Diplomacy/Intimidate?
If you character can stay in character (which seems like they can), that could diffuse the current situation for the time being (of course, the other character might feel worse later on if they feel they were decieved). My group who has been gaming for 30 years has used this at times for multiple situations, characters, games, etc.
One of the things I like about the CHA based skills is they can make determinations for our characters where we might not be so skilled, or the character might be completely different from our real world counterparts.
I actually suggested to the Paladin that he do a diplomacy check on Cosimo, but the player refused.
Also, since it seems to have become an oft-misquoted point, I NEVER told anyone that Caleb should keep his character and the rest of the party should re-roll. Never. It is true that Caleb's character is important to the plot at this point, but so is everyone else. Several people have made poorly-informed speculation about what kind of game I run; let me lay it out for you:
My primary concern is character development. We are a very RP-heavy group, and several times have had entire sessions without any combat whatsoever. I always try to integrate individual character backstories into the overall plot, and frequently adapt events to be more meaningful to individual PCs. I also am not averse to presenting my PCs with dilemmas or situations that may be difficult for their character. As far as I have known, this has been both welcomed and enjoyed by the members of my group: the common maxim has been "If it makes your character more interesting to play, it's good."
If anyone had ever come forward to me with concerns about how the game was going, or how other players were behaving, I would have addressed their concerns immediately---but nobody did.
With regards to favoritism, though it hasn't been brought up before, I should explain now that I have been trying to give the other players plenty of time in the spotlight as well. The Paladin has probably had the most attention given of anyone, with numerous characters and side-plots written in to give him a chance to develop as a character---also, his "lawful stupid" actions have put the party in real danger numerous times. The Gunslinger has, due to a character trait, experienced a number of prescient dreams which have given numerous minor spoilers regarding dangers the party is soon to face; though comments by her regarding said dangers have been made frequently, her character has never explained how she has this knowledge (the player finally explained in one session: "character trait," and left it at that).
Re: Alignments
In the current party, there are (to my knowledge) only two explicitly Good characters: the Paladin (LG) and the Magus (NG).
The Druid, as one might expect, is True Neutral. The Gunslinger is "mmmghfNeutralmmmgfh"---and with money (and the continual, unimpeded acquisition thereof) being her prime motivator, some might say she bordered on an Evil alignment. Cosimo's alignment has been much dicussed, though I am in agreement that for a while now it has been hovering in the Neutral Good range---that his past and present business dealings should require him to work amicably with people of implicitly or explicitly Evil alignments ought to surprise no one, especially in a campaign like legacy of Fire, and in a city like Katapesh.
p.s. Re: Giving the Paladin a vision from Sarenrae
That was actually part of my plan, come next session---I unfortunately did not think of it at the moment the conflict began (though I did try to discourage him in other ways, to the point of telling him that he was getting close to falling from Paladinhood if he followed through with certain actions).
p.p.s.
Believe me, I have no intention of letting Cosimo do anything to deceive the party further.
p.p.p.s. @Lune
I never stepped in and controlled the actions of any PC, with the exception of Caleb's character---and that was only when he specifically asked me to do it.---even then, it was only for a few rounds. The reason I let things go so far was specifically because I didn't want to railroad the characters. When I finally stepped in with NPCs, it was because it was clear to me that the conflict was not going to be resolved otherwise. Nevertheless, no NPC ever forced one of the PCs to do anything.
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p.p.s.
Believe me, I have no intention of letting Cosimo do anything to deceive the party further.
Aww man... But it was leading to such good things!
Kidding. I pretty much decided to cut out the deception as well. I am also working on reshaping the character's personality so that he isn't so abbrasive or closed off to the party. That seemed to cause the biggest harm out of everything, to tell the truth.
*Edit* One note on the Paladin, it really, really hurts the class and the player that they only have a Detect Evil at will. It would have been nice if the player had access to Detect Good as well. That is something I plan on having Cosimo fix.
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There has been good discussion on Facebook, but I won't post what is said there. There really isn't a need to. The only thing that would happen would be people here repeating what has already been said. It should be noted however that the Lune and DrDeth would love and agree with the Gunslinger's responses.
I might not even post the outcome, but I am optimistic that things will work out.
I want to thank everyone here. I took on a mostly defensive stance and worst cast outlook to help prepare to deal with the discussion we will have tonight. That said, I do plan on apologizing and taking responsibility. I was raised to view a problem as you fault when it comes to figuring out how to solve it. For this case, the solution I can personally enact is to change my play style and character for this game.
I have to say though that I am pretty proud that this is the first time in my memory of having such a situation arise because of one my characters. While I can't number the characters or play sessions I have had, I can say that that I am impressed at how long I have gone without being a problem player. Also, considering what happened, it wasn't all that horrible either. No friendships were lost, the game hasn't ended, and we are moving forward.
The lesson learned here:
Be very clear with your party what you want to do, and then do what you can to allow them the feeling that they are in the know. Don't purposefully have the appearance of evil, because that only leads to people thinking you are evil. Also, there is a way to split the party for fun and profit, but you need to have a group that isn't biased against it in the first place.
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Caleb, even tho i have never posted on your two threads, i have read all your posts. I am intersted in the outcome.
The way you waved the hidden plots together was interesting.
I do think this is a bad situation and from what i read, it just happened.
I am glad that you value your friendships over a game, and are willing to do anything to keep that.
Thanks for keeping us updated on whats been happening. :)
Black Lotus
Sadly, when a GM weaves plot and back story so heavily together you get situations like this. I've had no fewer than 3 games break down after going in such a direction and have even lost friends over it.
Remember, this is a game.
If you want to tell a story, write a book.
If you want to SHARE a story then everyone needs to be on the same page.
The PC's are in this together, yes it is a common trope that one or more characters in a STORY will have secrets/commit betrayals. The other players are reacting with their interpretation of the information. They don't want to experience being betrayed/lied too. Why? Because this isn't a book, it's a shared experience. Would you, in their position, really have handled this so much better? I know in my past I've had to completely metagame the whole thing, otherwise it would end in hurt feelings, misunderstandings and actions being taken that cannot be taken back.
The GM needs to swallow his pride and get the other players in on the action. Yes, you've given them all great screen time and yes they should just accept things the way they are and trust you. That's not how humans operate.
It is how characters in a book operate. For the sake of your GAME and your friendships write the book. Then play the game.
Well from the sounds of more recent posts, things are in place to get settled and back to normal. I'd say as long as the rest of the player's characters are given a reason or way to trust Cosimo that there will be a good chance at group cohesion again.
Good luck. Let us know how things went if you can.
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We had a really good discussion. Everyone was pretty upbeat and optimistic, which was the result of waiting a week and having a good discussion on facebook.
Most of the issues were resolved pretty easily, and mostly through discussion of what was going on behind the scenes and resolving some misunderstandings.
What resolved a good deal of the misunderstandings was this bit of in-character monolog:
(Me as Cosimo)
Before we begin, I want to let you know that this place is secured by magic to prevent scrying but it isn't secured against simply walking in, either through the door or walls but we do have securities against invisibility. There may be other ways for certain individuals to listen in on this conversation but I am certain it wouldn't be worth the cost. That said, feel free to say what you will here in the open, though I suspect that your own secrets are not what you expect to discuss here.
"I want to start by personally apologizing to each of you. I issued a public and formal apology already, but I must admit that was mostly to help you save face and avoid some consequences you may not have been aware of. We all hold some measure of power and position and I didn't wish for any of you to lose what you had because I was a rat bastard and no better than any minion of Zon-Kuthon. No matter your actions, even though others may reprove you for them, they were justified considering the situation and my actions. I apologize for the grievous injury I have done to you in every way. My actions and words were not acceptable and I accept any consequence they bring upon me.
"That still leaves us with an explanation. I grew up told I was set apart by the gods. I was expected to do great things, lead people, and even perform magic. This was all because of my flawless white fur, a feature considered by ratfolk to be a divine sign. I wanted little for what I was groomed for but accepted the role, moving in the direction that was dictated to me and doing what was expected. I was cursed to be horrible at arcane magic and had no divine right to the power of the gods, leaving me in a bad position to be what everyone wanted me to be. It was during my early years and amid this trouble that I discovered a patron who would give me power in exchange for services rendered. They desire to be anonymous at this time, but I hope one day soon to introduce you to them and bring you into their trust. They guided not just my magical abilities but also my life. It was them who alerted me to Kalmarne and the the trip out there. I admit that I knew about the monastery before we even saw it, having grown up hearing stories about the Templars and especially Vardishal, but I did not know what would find me inside those walls.
"You mentioned before and so I am sure you noticed, but I acted strangely in those walls. It was after the incident in the alchemy lab that I was given a vision of a weapon buried in the garden. Not long after obtaining that weapon I started to experience flashes of memory and emotion that were confusing. My desire to redeem Kardswan and my grief over his death for example. Little did I know that I was to become closer to my childhood heroes than I ever thought possible.
"Vardishal was a Templar of the Five Winds, and he led the armies of Nefeshti. He also hunted down and destoryed anything and anyone related to Rovagug. For his valiant service he became a saint of Sarenrae. He was betrayed however and killed where the monastery is built. Zayifid was the one who orchestrated his death.
"Kardswan was a friend and fellow Templar to Vardishal, but lost his powers and was not able to resist the corruption the demon put upon him. When we were forced to end his life the world lost a good man. I sometimes think back and try to think of how we could have saved him but I can think of nothing.
"Rebuilding the monastery and setting up a home there meant more changes. You might not be aware of this but a ratfolk has five names. One of those names is that of his community. Because I help found and lived in the community under the monastery my name was changed. The name of the ratfolk community there is Vardishal. However, that was only the reason I responded that name the first time Zayifid called me that.
"When Zayifid first showed up, he recognized me for something I am not but carry with me. You may have noticed, but he was wary of me. He was shocked, taken off guard, and caught by surprise. That was because I wasn't just adopting Vardishal's name, I had a piece of him with me.
"The first time he appeared in the House of the Beast, right after we defeated the Carrion King, I had little more idea as to who he was then the first time. I hadn't remembered, so to speak. I just knew he was a spy and that Vardishal worked with him. I had no idea then that Zayifid had actually killed the saint. The mention of an artifact stirred something inside of me though, and I felt compelled to find it and secure it against Zayifid. Keep in mind I was still very confused as to what was going on. The fact that he called me by a name I had already adopted wasn't strange to me at all. I do remember being agitated, and I apologize for my shortness at that time. I didn't really know what was going on much more than you did, though it did appear that such was not totally true.
"Once we found the scroll, I was delighted. It was as if I had been searching for this for a very, very long time. In a way a part of me had been. It is in deed dangerous, and to even have it means we can't afford to be careless. It isn't going to explode or cause great harm directly, but the people who want it, Zayifid, possibly other templars, the enemy the templars fought, are all very powerful and very dangerous. The second and third time Zayifid showed up, I knew I carried some part of Vardishal and I knew that he shouldn't have the scroll. He didn't take it from me though, he asked for it. I refused him, and ended up calling a bluff of his that he would take it by force. He still might, but at that time I had my patron watching and it appears he is very aware of who they are and just how powerless he would be against them. I wasn't sure if you would be afforded the same protection, and Vardishal's memories meant I was very much against it leaving my person. I couldn't explain it because I didn't understand it. Feeling tired from a long, hot, dangerous, and scary day, and being pulled in many directions, I made a mistake and it ended up blowing up in my face. The fortunate part is that by attacking and binding me you probably kept the scroll safer. I had hid it in a place I knew only I could access, but by keeping me unconscious you prevented any access to the needed information to gain the scroll.
"When you woke me up in a room I had never been in before, I could only guess at how secure it was. I also had no clue or idea if any of you were who you appeared to me. You have never acted against me with such hostility before and so I had to assume that it would be a mistake to say anything. I was also not in the best of moods, but I think you can be understanding as to the reason why. It was with Alma that I felt the most secure and by that time I was able to regain some sense and understanding of what I needed to do to fix the situation. Alma's office, you might not know, is the most secure place in Kalmarne for a conversation. She doesn't put up with spies and I imagine she has more securities than what we have here and now. Because I could not be sure if any of you were Zayifid in disguise at that time, but I was certain she was Alma, I felt safe passing the scroll's location and how to access it on to her.
"And now the last, great mystery. Where was the scroll? There is an organization in the Inner Sea region that claims to be a preserver of knowledge and artifacts. They are also smugglers and theives in the eyes of many, and one item in particular has helped this point of view. A Pathfinder's pouch is a very useful tool to keep items you desire out of sight and securely away from people who want to take them off of you. They do not radiate magic, they appear as normal belt pouches, and they seem to be exactly like them. There is a trick to them though, with a command word you can open up a small extra-dimensional space that can hold small items, like a scroll, and with another word the space is gone and inaccessible until the first word is said again. That is how I kept the item safe and out of everyone's hands.
"Now, I understand that you may not want to continue with me and I understand. I may end up just as a patron or a contact while you go and acomplish this task. If you will have me, know that I am fully aware of Vardishal's influence now. That means a kinder, more open Cosimo. I still have secrets I can't tell, but this is for your protection and benefit. I will tell them to you one day, but until that time I ask you trust that they can't harm you.
"I have a plan to keep it safe from forces inside and outside the party. I can create five identical copies of the scroll. Under all but the most expert study they would appear to be identical. Only one of them would be the real scroll while the others are no more than parchment that radiates intense magic. The scroll cases would also be identical, except for one feature. There would be a small symbol on one part of the tubes that hold the fake scrolls. I can also make four pathfinder pouches. I have my own right here, which already has command words. The other four, which I would be giving to each of you, would not have command words until their first use. The first time you use them, you set the commands. Just focus you will towards the item and speak the word. You don't have to say it very loud either. I suggest once we have both, we each take turns picking up a scroll tube. I would go last. One of us will have the scroll, and the others will not know who it is until we need it again. We keep them in our pouches, with the command words kept private from one another. This way, the scroll is secure, in the hands of one of us at all times, and there is no way anyone could know which of us has it at any given time. Someone would have to corrupt or turn all of us."
-end of monolog-
We are going to continue mostly as we were. Here are some of the changes we are going to make.
- No more characters that don't trust anyone just because.
- No more running off on your own unless the entire party agrees it is a good idea.
- Talk through plans out of character before any action is taken.
- Important plot points will be repeated so that everyone has them fresh in their minds.
- If the party is suspects a PC is going to turn on them to the point of taking extreme precautions, the player of that PC needs to know that. Don't assume they notice.
- If someone feels like they are between a rock and a hard place, the game needs to pause and things need to be talked about.
Before anyone says, "I told you so," to me, I mostly focused here on my own fixes because I have mostly been talking about my own experience. The party actually told me and were pretty clear that they didn't feel like I was hogging the spotlight, and after they understood what was going on they didn't feel like I was acting like a jerk or problem player. Everyone made some changes, and everyone had some hand in allowing the situation to reach the point that it did.
The one thing we agreed upon is that this low moment actually makes for some great storytelling and is a good point to move forward from. We are a heavy story telling, plot driven, and character minded group so this was an easy decision.
Sabbacc, the GM, promises that he had some stuff planned that would help the group trust Cosimo and move forward. He mentioned that in our next game we will be seeing those plans come forth.