RPG Superstar Season 9 Top 32
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Hey all, I'm trying to fulfill a Pathfinder Society Liberty's Edge faction card goal that's very difficult for my kineticist. Here it is:
In a region where slavery is legal, deliver a speech against tyranny, slavery, or corruption to a crowd of at least 20 participants. Doing so requires a successful Diplomacy or Perform (acting, comedy, or oratory) check (DC = 15 + your character level).
My halfling kineticist is level 4, has 9 Charisma, and has no ranks in the relevant skills. So in order to hit the DC 19 Diplomacy check, I would have to roll a natural 20, and after level 4 it will be impossible.
What I need is suggestions for ways to temporarily and cheaply increase my bonuses on the relevant checks. They also can't require any ranks in UMD (on my character at least). If they're from hardcover source books, that's also a plus. If I play scenarios on the slow track I have 5 scenarios to do this in.
Here's what I've come up with so far:
Parade armor (UE): 25 gold, +2 circumstance bonus to Diplomacy in a specific country.
Crystal-sweet concoction (AA2): 50 gold, +2 alchemical bonus to Diplomacy
Mulberry Pentacle (Cracked) Ioun Stone (SoS): 400 gold, +1 competence bonus to Diplomacy (and Bluff)
Potion/Scroll of eagle's splendor (CRB): 300/150 gold, +4 Charisma
Aid another action: ask people to come with me and aid another to increase my result
Class selection: try to convince people to play their bards or glory/luck domain clerics, etc.
Any other low investment ways to try to help me make this check?
Note that a masterwork instrument costs 100 gp and adds a +2 circumstance bonus to perform.
A Magenta Prism (Cracked) Ioun Stone costs 800 gp but it adds a +2 competence bonus to a skill of your choice and can be changed once a day. That means you can use it to add +2 to day jobs and while adventuring +2 to a skill of your choice.
Halfling jugglesticks +2 circumstance bonus (stacks) to Perform Comedy 25gp
Juggler's kit +1 unnamed bonus to perform act or comedy 15gp
Pathfinder Chronicles - Volume 14 150 gp +2 circimstance bonus (stacks) to perform comedy
Ventriloquist's dummy 100gp +2 circumstance bonus (stacks) to perform comedy
So +3 for just 40 gp.
MW slide whistle or Ventriloquist's dummy 100gp
Ask your allies to participate in your comedy act. Save your reroll. It should be fine.
Also GMs are supposed to be a bit lenient on these. You could find someone who needs the same goal, ask your GM if you can do the goal together, and just aid the other player.
Enhanced Diplomacy (Taldor, Echoes of Glory) - +2 competence bonus to Diplomacy (10 gp hired spellcaster)
Borrow Skill (Advanced Player's Guide) - +1 rank to Diplomacy (10 gp hired spellcaster)
Telempathic Projection (Occult Adventures) - +5 insight bonus to Diplomacy (10 gp hired spellcaster)
Adoration (Ultimate Combat) - +2 morale bonus to Diplomacy (60 gp hired spellcaster)
Shroud of Innocuity (Heroes of the High Court) - +2 untyped bonus to Diplomacy (150 gp hired spellcaster)
Eagle's Splendor (Core Rulebook) - +4 bonus to Charisma (150 gp hired spellcaster)
Total: +14 Diplomacy, 390 gp
Also consider Bestow Insight (Advanced Race Guide) to gain the better of two rolls on your Diplomacy check for an additional 150 gp cost.
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A bit more expensive but useful for any number of things:
Four-leaf clover, Occult Adventures, 3750gp
3/day before rolling add +2 Luck bonus to ability check/saving throw/skill check
I would also second the Cracked Magenta Prism over the mulberry pentacle. Costs an extra 400 but the versatility is worth it. Though one thing to keep in mind with the "Change skills 1/day" is that they can be changed "At a time unique to each stone, typically sunrise or sunset". It's not a "1/day change the bonus when you need it", you have to plan ahead.
Also of Note: The Hiring services are cheaper than the scrolls/potions, and since Slavery is technically legal in Absalom, you can attempt that check in Absalom itself, meaning you have essentially full access to buffs beforehand. This is the good news.
The bad news is that You'd have to talk to the specific GM about which ones are viable, for various reasons, and I don't think most of those suggested are.
First off, keep in mind that you have to get the buffs (Hopefully all from the same guy or a group that's willing to stand together and cast at the same time so there's no travel time between), then get to where you're going, then find and gather a crowd of at least 20 who're willing to listen, then give a speech!
Personally as a GM myself, I would only allow any purchased buff with a duration of 10 or more minutes to be usable that way.
Even if you can convince the casters to come with you and cast right before you head up, I still would think the spell would need to last a couple minutes for a proper speech.
so lets look at the buffs:
Enhanced Diplomacy - 1 minute
Borrow Skill - 1 round! Besides that, it doesn't work b/c it transfers the skill TO THE CASTER, not to another target, so you can't hire someone to use it on you.
Telempathic Projection - 1 minute and doesn't give you a buff, it is a SINGLE TARGET spell, and if they fail a saving throw you get a bonus to checks against that target. This goal specifically requires making the check against a crowd of at least 20, so... Good luck getting 20+ people to stand there and let your army of hired mages cast spells on them before you give your speech...
Adoration - 1 minute
Shroud of Innocuity - 1 hour ! Finally we've got one!
Eagle's Splendor - 1 minute
So the only one for sure that would work is Shroud of innocuity.
If you've got an exceptionally friendly GM who's going to allow you to get from the caster to the speech (Or bring the caster to the speech), AND make the speech in under 1 minute, you could add Enhanced Diplomacy, Adoration, and Eagle's Splendor, but I wouldn't count on it.
Borrow Skill and Telempathic Projection won't be useful for this purpose at all.
So to your conundrum, for the examples from what's been put forward so far:
PERFORM:
Halfling jugglesticks +2; 25gp
Juggler's kit +1; 15gp
Pathfinder Chronicles - Volume 14 +2; 150 gp
Ventriloquist's dummy +2; 100gp
Total: +7; 140gp
DIPLOMACY:
Parade armor +2; 25gp
Crystal-sweet concoction +2; 50gp
Shroud of Innocuity +2; 150gp
Total: +6; 225gp
WORKS FOR EITHER:
Four-leaf Clover: +2, 3750gp
Cracked Magenta Prism: +2, 800gp
My personal Suggestion would be to go the perform route, buy the 140gp worth of perform items, spend the 800 on the cracked magenta prism, and end up with a +8 total bonus (+9 from items, -1 from your charisma). At that point, you have an even 50% chance, 75% if you use your reroll, and that's not counting allies assistance, such as aid another or bardic music.
Total cost 940gp, and most of that is from an item that you can also use to buff your day job checks AND whatever skill you think you may need during play.
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So I have to ask, are you wanting to actually make the role for roleplaying or personal reasons? Or is the end goal just to get the box marked off on the faction card?
As I mentioned before, you can spend 1 prestige point (equivalent to approximately 150-375 gold worth of value) to automatically complete any one faction goal (check one box) for the scenario. To me that seems much cheaper and more efficient than jumping through all of these hoops. If it's a pride thing or just a desire to actually complete the check instead of an auto success, then I think there are lots of good suggestions here.
I'll track down the text for the rule to spend prestige in a few minutes when I'm back at my computer.
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So I have to ask, are you wanting to actually make the role for roleplaying or personal reasons? Or is the end goal just to get the box marked off on the faction card?
As I mentioned before, you can spend 1 prestige point (equivalent to approximately 150-375 gold worth of value) to automatically complete any one faction goal (check one box) for the scenario. To me that seems much cheaper and more efficient than jumping through all of these hoops. If it's a pride thing or just a desire to actually complete the check instead of an auto success, then I think there are lots of good suggestions here.
I'll track down the text for the rule to spend prestige in a few minutes when I'm back at my computer.
It's from the faction journal cards season 8 sheet:
Some faction goals require a successful skill check commonly associated with that faction; however, every faction agent has a different skill set, and not all agents can accomplish those tasks unaided. In place of attempting a goal’s skill check, you can instead spend 1 Prestige Point to succeed through other channels (2 Prestige Points if the DC is 20 plus your character level or higher)
And thank you for mentioning that, I actually hadn't even heard of it until you mentioned it and i went looking.
I love the DC. DC= 15 + Character Level.
Because it gets harder to convince people the stronger and more renown you become...lol
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RPG Superstar Season 9 Top 32
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First of all, thanks everyone for the suggestions!
I will probably just go with spending the 1 PP to fulfill the goal if I can't manage to make the check for free in the next few sessions. Thanks to y'all who pointed that out. Since 1 PP is in the same range of gold value as all the items and spells and such, I think that's the easiest option here.