I have been considering:
3rd - Antagonize
5th - Two-Weapon Fighting (to shield bash)
7th - Angelic Flesh (pre-req)
9th - Angelic Wings (a level early so I need special approval)
11th - Metallic Wings
Did you miss Angel Blood?
...they require a feat chain (Mounted Combat) to really be effective and the benefits from the Sword chain are pretty useful.
I've found that first thing is entirely untrue. Mounted combat doesn't do anything barding doesnt. the lance is enough of a power boost on it's own and the mount gets feats of it's own to use. That said, I totally agree that the sword is ballin'.
Did you miss Angel Blood?
She's talking about her future plans, not her complete build
Yeah but Angel Blood is the first Feat you need to begin with, and it wasn't listed :)
She has it as her first level feat. :)
Oh ok! Controversial first level pick for a Melee class :)
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I guess it might be controversial. I think 1st level is a great time to take it however, as it gives you a +2 bonus to stabilize. That's probably more likely to happen at low levels than at high.
That wasn't really in my thoughts however. I was trying to build a Half-fey Princess and took feats to play up the racial aspect of her character. I gave up a feat to be an aasimar despite not liking their Paladin Archtype. If you look at her stats, I gave her more dexterity than I thought wise, but she's fey, so I thought it important. I also passed on better armor because I could afford less armor or a long bow. What kind of fey paladin leaves home without their bow? I also have a lance - despite having no horse. Knight has to have a pennon however, and that means a pole to put it on, so I have a lance strapped to my back for no reason.
Sometimes I build characters to be effective. If I have a choice between more effective and more flavorful however, I go with flavor. Our DM had also indicated this was his preference, so I thought it a good choice.
She'll get her wings at the end of the AP but she'll be cool and that's what matters to me. 8)
I liked your introduction Hilde. That was a good post not to lose.
Oh don't mind me, controversial is fine, Elghund took Scent. Not the most combat oriented ability. My cleric/paladin in another game opened with Cosmopolitan.
On a side note, the Aasimar Paladin archtype is horrible, truly truly horrible which is ironic when they released a new 'deity' Ragathiel, General of Vengeance who would make some truly awesome Aasi Pal goodness. NOOOOOO they instead get the archetype designed by Mother Theresa.
I liked your introduction Hilde. That was a good post not to lose.
Yeah, I spent my whole lunch hour writing that one. My posts go much faster when Hilde doesn't have anything to say.
I liked your introduction Hilde. That was a good post not to lose.
Trapspringer is it? Why I aught to... (yes, I liked it too)
I've a friend in town for one night only and a early morning tomorrow for a work based exam - so updates probably won't come until tomorrow afternoon / evening.
Thanks for your patience... I'll think of you while eating this...
Wee question to one and all - does the +1 natural armour bonus of the Cloak O' The Yeti stack with worn armour?
Checked up on rules and the whole natural armour bonus stacking question seems to be a can o' wyrms...
Cheers
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Natural armor does stack with an armor bonus - so you can wear amor with the cloak and get the benefit of both.
Sweet :)
Another night of unsleepy baby - he's dropping a nap which means he's awake during my post timing... sorry again and thanks for continued patience.
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Firstly - post will be incoming whence childer goes slumbering.
Second - advanced warning that your DM will be on vacation starting 27th June all the way through to 17th July. We will be taking our first big ol' vacation in six years and swanning off to Hawaii (both Kauai and Oahu). Our first trip to the US, and despite needing about 16 hours in a plane to get there - we are still super excited :)
However since we'll be travelling with only an i-pad for computer support it will be wholly untenable to keep DM-ing for you during that time. So the thread shall go on a short hibernation while I'm off sinking deep into Kalua pig, malasadas and loco moco. Fear not for I shall return fully recharged and reinforced for the onward push towards frigid lands and the horrors that dwell within.
Thankfully both sides of the adventure are at a relative lull where stocks are taken and batteries recharged for the forward push :)
Hit up Kauai about 3 years ago now, is a truly magical place - loved it. The cockerels are mighty... entirely inedible due to their diet of roaches and poisoned centipedes but they are an impressive sight (albeit one that'll get you up EARLY ;)
BTW If your so inclined try and recreate my shark fishing escapades... which involved two Scotsman, a (barely) two man canoe, one coral blooded shin/foot (mine), and a misguided sense of invincibility... Merely paddle past the reef breakers to where big Tigers had been spotted day before... insert foot in water... one man paddle, one man lookout... tah-dah :)
Luckily pasty Scot's leg was aff the menu that day :)
Regardless - have a great one Mark (just come back in one piece lol)
Heh - I think that shark fishing with leg bait will be solidly off the menu, and given that I'm a parent of two younglings that has worked offshore in the oilfield for 10 years plus I'd challenge the cockerels to get me up at an hour I'd consider early :P
We did fail our "Common Sense" save lol
Aye - forgot your an offshore vet... heh - you'll be getting the cockerels up :)
Have fun on your trip, VoV. Consider me incredibly jealous. :)
Gang am continuing to develop Skäne's belligerent demeanour in game - see him very much as the group's "Begbie" or "Black Dow"; a basterd who you'd not normally choose to be in the company with but has his uses...
He's a mercenary first and foremost, but one whose childhood and life to date has left him... bitter to say the least. In the South he's a Northerner and in the North an exile... square peg in a round hole lol. Out to make a name (for good or ill) and all that goes with it...
Outwith the crunch am curious how everyone else see's the Black Hus developing as characters? The Fae group seem to have a dysfunctional family vibe about them... whilst we o' the Black Hus are anything but...
As DMVoV's aff on his travels, thought in the downtime this might be an interesting parley tae have nei?
Anything but dysfunctional, or anything but a family? ;p
On a side note, Elghund isn't much of a little ray of sunshine either, but hey, he's pretty simple.
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I don't know how your characters are seeming to you two guys, but your descriptions of your characters are pretty on-par with how Kló (and myself) sees them.
Skäne has been the brooding, violent and black-tempered warrior who doesn't seem to like much except for violence. It was an interesting surprise for Kló to realize Skäne had some "culture"… even if that culture was Taldan. :)
Elghund has been the crafty, violent and 'morals what?' hunter who seems to take the job some kind of double-serious. It was a pretty serious turning point in how Kló views Elghund when Elghund stood back over Kló's fallen body during the BBEG fight. "what? the greenskin cares?" (well, you know, it would have been had Kló been conscious… *shrug*)
Still getting a feel for Katherson, though the man's fortunate (or maybe unfortunate) presence of a moral compass of any sort may prove very useful in this crew. The fact that he's an outsider by nature (by Ulfen standards) will actually probably draw Kló closer to him.
Annalisa is an interesting bird. Shows signs of being a good person, wanting to parley at times. But has a seriously black violent streak that comes out when her pride seems to be involved (curb-stomping the caster-much?).
Rikka… well… we're gonna need her back in the game more before Kló can get a real feel for her.
As for how Kló is playing out versus how he was intended to play out… I'm fairly happy with him. I could do with him talking less, but sometimes info has to be passed on, and with me attempting to have him try to step into some kind of leadership role… it's been interesting. Funny enough, how badly that big fight went (from Kló's perspective) is pretty much what I'd expect from a guy grabbing the reigns of such a crew for the first time. Now, will the other characters actually continue listening to what he says? I don't have a clue… I guess it depends on how things turn out for everyone.
I don't know if he's being portrayed well enough this way, but Kló isn't a bad guy. Just doesn't care much for cities or city-folk… or, more specifically, what they think is important. He doesn't like to see innocent people hurt or killed, but has a MAJOR beef with the denizens of Irresen… which so far has brought out his savage side (something that will always be there).
Love to hear any insights or observations you have about how I'm playing him… or responses to my observations of your characters. :)
Either way, I'm loving the game.
Elghund: Even though they have already butted heads, Annalisa enjoys Elghund's presence. She finds something about the simplicity in the way he sees things to be amusing.
Klo: Annalisa actually so far has a soft spot for Klo, though you won't hear her saying so. He showed concern and respect for her after the fight with the wyrms, and made attempts to heal her injuries. You would have to be more aggressive for her to even recognize that you were attempting to take leadership, though. I know, because it's been discussed, but Klo just doesn't come across as aggressive enough for it to really register in her mind. Until the group comes to a conclusion as a group, whether democratically, appointment, or taken by force, but either way until it is respected and acknowledged by the group, she will not see anyone as being the leader.
Also, yes, yes she definitely has a nasty temper and an injury to her pride is one of the easiest triggers. She can be quite violent, and even revels in the bloodshed at times. She does, however, when the option is present, prefer to know what she's going into ahead of time. She does not think it's OK to kill just for the sake of killing, a person or thing must be unmistakenly an enemy in her eyes first. Oddly enough, she can be friendly and pleasant. She loves good company, good food, and good drinks.
Katherson: Annalisa appreciates that Katherson stepped in and joined with people he had no reason to trust to help them in their quest. He seems pleasant enough, and she is determined to see him paid for his services.
Rikka: Annalisa so far feels/felt protective to some degree over Rikka because Rikka is a gentler woman than herself, both in size, aggression, and manners. Plus, Rikka followed her up on the roof, which was kinda awesome.
Alright, against my better judgement, I will take another level of Bard for the moment ;-)
Level 2:
+1 level of Bard
+ hp
FC bonus: +1 cantrip known
+1 BAB
+1 Ref, +1 Will
Skills: +1 Intimidate, +1 Linguistics, +1 Perception, +1 Perform(Oratory), +1 Spellcraft, +1 UMD, +1 Stealth
Versatile Performance: (Perform[Oratory])
Well Versed
Spells: +1 1st level spell slot
Spells Known: Mage Hand, Read Magic, Feather Step
It seems that the dice-bot has rewarded your choice with the bequeathing of max HP ;)
Are we rolling for HP? I just presumed average +1 but if its a roll...
:
It's your choice - either roll or take average plus 1.
Well in that case ;)
Heh. It looks like the forums agree with my decision... this time ;-)
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Meant anything but a family lol... suggesting the fae are dysfunctional by definition but seem also to have a "family" vibe - we rightly so are very much the disparate mercenary band...
Plan to keep playing Skäne as a black mooded, cantankerous basterd :)However brakish waters run deep - he was exiled from the North due to his father's ill name... travelling and a life of fighting in the South have given him a little more culture than anticipated (Taldane Spakker) but also worn him out ahead of his years - hence the bitterness. He'll respect whomever steps up as chief, but is as likely to be a cynical thorn in their side as much as their bloody right hand unless cowed or placated.
See Annalisa as a very spirited young woman. She exhibits both noble behavior and leadership qualities, but has a streak for brutal violence that Skäne appreciates. Agree they may well butt heads as he has baited her before, but she's held her own and set him right - which has registered.
Kló demands respect from his sheer size, but his nature and demeanor don't reflect his jotunn heritage enough for Skäne's liking. Hearing how he protected a downed Skäne does invoke the honour of the shield wall, and as a warrior that goes a LONG way with my boy. As a potential leader he'll need to make decisions that are unpopular, and while that might cause him to butt heads with the vikingr
Elghund is a ferocious fighter and one who shares a crueler streak. However as a Orc, the ranger is much more savage and direct, less melancholy than Skäne - something he envies when reminded of it.
Echo the thoughts on Rikka - too little seen to really have a strong opinion.
Katherson - Skäne is wary of the Oracle and the power he represents. Agree that he and Kló could form a very good counterbalance to the warrior-centric ways of the Black Hus - will depend on Katherson's own motivations...
Likewise I'm loving the game and the roleplay interaction has been great thus far. Will be interesting to see the group dynamics develop as we go.
On a side note - loot and coin... Depending on individual shares Skäne is likely to try and get his armour and possibly shield upgraded to MW. Outwith that there might be some wee bits o' kit he picks up but nothing major.
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Katherson is playing his motivations pretty close to the vest right now. He doesn't exactly trust Skane and Elghund, and details of his past would probably not earn him any good will with them either. For now his bent will be to steer the group towards investigating the cause of winter in the forest and leave it at that.
Have a great trip, boss! If you'd hoped to wrap everything at the lodge up before you left... Sorry! I've been a little caught up with enrollment and stuff, and sat on half a post for most of today.
I hope the dice are as kind to Bastagar as far as hp rolls go. They'll be the difference between being able to stay on the front lines or no given that he'll have no favored class bonus later on.
Any additional stuff should be liquidated, and the resultant gold split between the party.
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I said it before, and I'll say it again, I tend to think leadership should develop naturally, so if people don't want to follow Kló, or he proves inept, that's fair and I'm happy to let that play out in-character.
In general, though, he's a soft words/heavy action kind of guy, and he generally prefers to let people use their strengths and experience in any given situation... so his leadership style (if it continues to play out) will be a fairly 'hands off' style. It won't be until actual issues/arguments come up where he disagrees with people's actions or decisions that he's likely to get vocal. And other than the stag incident – which was what helped him decide he needed to step up – there hasn't been a situation where we didn't figure out our decision pretty cohesively as a team.
I'm sure tough/unpopular decisions are coming our way... just haven't hit one yet that we couldn't navigate fairly quickly.
But all that's really pulling back the curtain quite a bit. ;)
Do I need to spoiler things if Black Hus has completed the encounter? I like to hear their advice, but don't want to ruin their fun.
I want Hilde to be a defensive paladin so her biggest concern is armor class. I foresaw it being a bit of a problem, but I put more points into her dex than I normally would for a melee type because I wanted her to be more "elfy". She's currently wearing Steel Lamellar (+6/+3) and gets 2 of those 3 dex points. Her next worthwhile upgrade then is Full Plate (+9/+1), despite it leaving her with another dex point unused. That's 1,500 gold which I don't see her getting from Part 1 here. She's going to need to go mithril to pick up that other dex point, and that's even further out of reach.
Nothing else that has dropped is really of interest to her either. While she's got UMD, why give her something she has to roll on when there are people in the party who don't have to?
My preference for loot has always been to total up what everything is worth, decide what each share is, and then give everyone the option of buying items out of their share or holding on to the gold and hoping to be able to spend it later. I've always thought that was just the most fair.
Naturally, I'll go along with any other system the party wants, the above is simply my preference. And even with that said, items should be used until we are clear of danger without counting part of someone's loot - so that if we found a bunch of scrolls but Halfhand had to use four of them to get us back to town alive, then he doesn't have to spend his share on them - they didn't make it out of the encounter so they aren't loot.
Anyway, that's how I see loot. Everyone else needs to speak up and say what they want to do.
As an aside, I'm going to work up Hilde's Paladin Oath while Voice is on vacation and I'm on break. I'll post it here once I get a ways into it so everyone can help me out. Voice and I talked about what deity she'd worship early on and decided that she'd worship "That which is good in the fey." I know that sounds vague, but it really just means those celtic traditions which are good - don't lie, don't borrow, etc.
Anyway, I'll bring it up again later once I get more of a start.
So who's doing loot divvy and allocation?
Elghund is Elghund. He knows the party is racist against Orcs due to the double standard treatment (differing reactions between killing a random fey vs killing an absolute source of information), but he's used to that.
The Fey will burn, not because Elghund has any amazing love for the Vaetir, but they have answered when called upon, and with his enemies playing with all sorts of Dark Arts, he will curry favour where he can for powers against them. He has only ever lived amongst violent and superstitious men, and Orcs are violent and suspicious by nature, so therefore everything is suspicious, and possibly solved with violence.
So, a storm came through and knocked my power out earlier this evening. I finally gave in and went to a motel. I'll catch up with it all when my power is back on.
Skäne has an interesting attitude towards Elghund from a racial standpoint. Like I said before he likely respects and is rightly wary of the primal rage that all orcs possess. Elghund is a ranger - a scout and a killer - all things a successful band need to survive and thrive. He knows he's an orc, but cares little for it, other than the odd jibe about being a good "hund" etc - but that's just my boy being an equal opps basterd - and to his credit Elghund has been just as cutting back.
Skäne also believes his name/family are forsaken of the gods - they curry little favour with him and rather than Valenhall he's likely bound for Hel. That's not to say things might change if he makes a name in the North... but at the moment he's a cynic and backslider.
BTW - am loving how Kló is looking to Annalisa as his "second" - reminds me of Crunden Craw and Wonderful from Joe Abercrombie's The Heroes :)
Joe Abercrombie's The Heroes :)
One of my favourite authors.
And i didn't realize it looked like Kló considered Annalísa his second. He pretty much considers everyone equal... it just makes good sense to look to her for guidance on the right way to act in her home town.
So who's doing loot divvy and allocation?
The Black House Booty google doc (linked just below my name) is accessible to us all. We move what our characters want from the loot list (which people seem to have been doing... I see you have your chainmail down there and the studded leather has been moved back up into the general loot list).
At the top of the doc, it adds up the sell-back value of all the items in the general loot section. We'll deduct the sell-back value of all items claimed by any one person, hold that against thier "portion" and split the rest amongst everyone.
We're nearly ready to do all that. There are a number of items on taht list that I can't determine a sell-back value. Once we have those, we can finalize our loot-haul total, deduct the amount of items claimed by everyone, and re-distrivute our loots.
It will just take VoV giving us some numbers for a few more items before we can full do that, though.
EDIT: oh, and Katherson and I would like to use the 750 from Lady Argentea to get a Wand of CLW for the group's use. Anyone have a problem with that? Or have additional "group" items we need to pick up?
If we went with our standard looting/loot-selling method in place, Skäne would be running a loot deficit and wouldnt' gain any of the sold loot... which might make him want to toss the cloak. But the cloak's useful for him and by extension all of us.
My suggestion is that an item can be put on a character – for the good of the group – without it being considered "thier" item. It remains on the group loot sheet (under the carrying character's name) and doesn't get held against that person's portion of other sold loot. The item does, however, remain a "group item" and can be decided to be re-distributed or sold by the group by a majority decision.
From a book-keeping standpoint, this would mean that if a person fully claims an item (and pays the sell-back price for it when the group is liquidating loot), it comes off the Black House Booty doc and gets moved to the character's sheet as their personal item. And from that point frward, they can keep it or sell it as they like.
Thoughts?
Works for me.
IMO:
* Consumables/restoratives such as wands/pots/scrolls shouldn't be considered 'loot' as they are really group assets - otherwise people like healers get a raw deal when they get 'allocated' a wand of bulls strength they are only using to our benefit anyway.
* I'm always wary of 'held loot' because it ends up effectively being the same as 'claimed loot' - it stays with one person forever and they subsequently get even splits of the rest of the pile. All of a sudden every melee claims every melee weapon is useful and ends up holding vast sums of party wealth in 'useful, but not claimed' items.
It works for truly powerful and unique items, but not so much for routine ones; imo you want it, you buy it. I'd prefer the deficit system.
The test should always be 'what does it do for the party?' because ultimately that is who is paying for it.
In case I missed it, did we ever resolve the PFS conversation?
Hey guys, my power is still out. Might be for the rest of the day... I fear even longer. No net, just very iffy cell signal. It's difficult for me to post this way. If I'm needed though, Shifty can reach me through Dragonblood472.
Very luckily for me, the power is back on! Yay! I'm back home with my awesome, dearly missed Internet. I'll be making my rounds shortly to catch up on everything.