Doomriders: A Campaign Journal

[SethFahad]

Plus, coincidentily you received your 1000th reply in your thread. Congrats!

...and sorry for the useless post.

by the way, great journal. :smallbiggrin:

[Bharg]

Does that mean the campaign is over? :smallfrown:

[Fayd]

It finished back in May, actually. Don't worry though, things were epic, and plans for something new in the fall have begun. After all, the system needs beta testing! I don't know many details... and what I do I'm not at liberty to share. But don't worry too much. :smallbiggrin:

And thank you Seth.

[Bharg]

So how many doomrider episodes will be there in total?

[2xMachina]

Will there be another campaign journal after?

[Fayd]

2 and an epilogue. EDIT: That's how many are left and unpublished.

And yes, I plan to write another for the campaign in the fall... whatever it is.

[Bharg]

Will there be a different set of characters or is that still a secret?

[Fayd]

Oh, I already know that. A different cast, a different place, and a different time. Same world, however.

[flabort]

Have you decided on your new cast yet, then?

[Bharg]

I meant... is it supposed to be kept a secret to us... But alright.

[Fayd]

Have you decided on your new cast yet, then?

Nope! Things are still up in the air. Its more fun that way!

[AtwasAwamps]

Nope! Things are still up in the air. Its more fun that way!

I'm totally going to pretend I'm playing. I will secretly achieve mod powers and edit my character into every one of your posts.

And then I will RE-EDIT THE POSTS to make all my shipping dreams come true.

FAYD X BOX OF DONUTS 4EVER.

[Fayd]

. . . OOOKAY then. . .

[Tam_OConnor]

Just a little more on next year. I'm planning on running two campaigns, one serious, one silly.

The Serious Campaign
Adenar By Cometlight: What happens when the magic goes away? Featuring the !chan tribes, the severed Qen clans and more martial artists than you can shake a tiger hook sword at. Serving as the testbed for the new martial arts system.

The Silly Campaign
Pirates of the Wispwater: Something in the water makes this section of the Underdark just a little loopy. Featuring dark elves in milkmaid outfits ("Ve haf vays of making du talk"), armor-clad dwarves ("I AM DER-RO! I AM THE SU-PER-IOR BE-ING! ALL OTHERS WILL BE EX-TER-MINATED!") and stone giant bankers.

We still don't know who'll be in what campaign. But Fayd might be able to persuade someone to write up the one he isn't in.

Also:
FAYD'S DOUGHNUTS: AN ELEMENTAL EXPERIENCE
There are seven doughnuts in this white box. Each doughnut is aligned with one of the elements (Air, Cold, Earth, Fire, Metal, Necrotic, Plant and Water), and is tastefully decorated in such a way as to suggest the element.

The doughnuts can be eaten in two manners: scarfed or savored. If you scarf a doughnut, taking a full-round action, you get +4 on MPM and Spellcraft checks on the next spell you cast of the appropriate element. If you savor a doughnut, taking a minute, the bonus is only +2, but it lasts for ten minutes.

(MPM affects damage, duration, and so on. Spellcraft affects how hard a spell is to dispel or how likely it is to penetrate SR).

[RdMarquis]

Ok, I'm running a 4th ed. campaign at the moment, but I am seriously considering using that item in my game just for laughs. Both campaigns sound great, by the way, especially the martial arts one.

[Fayd]

Pastries. An excellent way to live on in a game world, if I do say so myself!

[Feichi]

Napoleon had a pastry named after him, and now you do too!

[Bharg]

Pastries. An excellent way to live on in a game world, if I do say so myself!

Probably not in this context...

[Fayd]

Well that entirely depends on how one read it, doesn't it?

[Bharg]

Sorry, but is there an other link between Fayd and Dounuts than the Fayd/Dounuts, then? I don't know...

[Fayd]

Well... no, not really... but did you take a look at the item? It is a REALLY solid buff, especially to a blaster caster (which is highly viable)... for example, I can think of at least 2 situations where the savor option would have been really helpful during the campaign!

[Bharg]

Of course, I did! They're great, but I actually don't want to know how to make them...

[Feichi]

Probably enchanting for the effect... a basic cantrip for the decorations and flavor...

And, of course, the most vital part, Craft (Doughnut)!

[MountainKing]

I think it'd probably fall under Profession/Craft (Baking) or Craft (Alchemy), mixed with Brew Potion/Craft Wondrous Item. That's just my take on it though.

[Fayd]

For 3.5, yes. Under our system, it's probably Craft (Baking) or (alchemy) along with the enchanting sphere (which takes up the place of craft magic item feats...it's rather nice, actually)

[Bharg]

So there is no "magical", Fayd/Dounuts themed ritual?

[Fayd]

Not that I'm aware of!

[Feichi]

If there were, it'd be too ironic and the whole thing would just blow up, seeing as how most rituals involve circles and or standing around them.

[Bharg]

I thought so.
When will we be able to read the next chapter of "Doomriders: A Campaign Journal"?

[Fayd]

An excellent question. I'm still waiting on my editors. I'll ask again tonight what their progress is.

[Doppelganger]

Nooooooooooooooo! :smallfrown:
Well, once you finish, it will be worth it.

[Bharg]

It definitely will be worth it...

I'm looking forward to your next journal, Fayd.

[Fayd]

Chapter 27: Familiar Faces

We begin the session with a lovely dragon dissection. Cade collects the skin to modify the Ducal Breastplate as well as making other fun items; I collect the blood, bile, gastric acid, and one ulna (for a staff) of the creature, and give the bile to Morchana. Dragonsbile is one of her favorite poisons. (And no wonder, it deals huge CON damage) The ulna is rather messy, so I try to Prestidigitation it off. Which, in retrospect may have been a bad idea. Random magical interaction and all that. When the blood drips on the ground, the grass suddenly grows astronomically quickly, nearly hitting me square in the jaw. But, you know, at least it didn’t explode.

Fluffy, when he’s visible again, announces that he “feel funny.” And it’s true… he even looks the part. He is now, from head to toe, covered in small pointy scales and has vestigial wings growing out of his back. He can fire the scales in a cone as his “breath weapon.” Fluffy ate the dragon egg, and from it got the Dragonblooded heritage feat. When he noticed that the party was busy making lists of things we wanted to make from various Dragonbits, he made a list himself: Dragon Steak, Dragon Soup, Drag’on-min-ya, a necklace of dragon teeth, Dragon Legs (cooked), Dragon Sausage, Ground Dragon Meat, Dragon A-juz, and a pony.

Meanwhile, we detach the spines and teeth to make daggers for Morchana. She has a lot of them. I’m beginning to wonder if there is more dagger there than assassin. (Morchana note: There may need to be costume modifications to allow for this. Stay tuned.)

Thezzick is singing praises of the dragon as a species. “Every part of them is useful!” He flicks some of the blood against the wall. It is suddenly covered in … scales… which fall off shortly afterwards. “Well, at least it didn’t explode this time.” Random magic tables! FUN! He cuts out the dragon’s heart and Fluffy looks at it hungrily. He picks Thezzick up by the hand holding the heart, and they decide to split the wishbone for it. Fluffy wins, but when he goes to look at it… the heart is gone. He is not happy. Keito appears out of nowhere, and asks “Did anyone drop this?” Fluffy greedily devours the ‘heart’, and succeeds on the Fort save against nausea.

(Meanwhile, Keito prepared and ate the REAL heart, gaining the same Dragonblooded feat as Fluffy.)

We head out after preserving the body of the dragon in the keep for further item making later. I, for example, will be extracting the ability to use Earth magic from it… eventually. We don’t have time to dally much longer, and we get as close to Tiborem as we can in a day. There’s an ‘inconsequential village’ along the way, and we’ll reach it a little after nightfall.

The ride is smooth and calm on our horses … except Fluffy, who’s running with the aid of the magical collar. To keep him motivated, Cade and Keito have the idea to put a HUGE dragon steak on the end of one of Cade’s spears, keeping it held out in front of Fluffy. The magic of the collar means that he travels at EXACTLY her speed. It keeps him motivated for a LONG time.

Eventually, night falls (and Fluffy is otherwise occupied chasing the ever equidistant steak, otherwise he’d try to make the Strength check to pick it up) and we’re still on the road. As we are approaching the inconsequential town of Barrowmead, Keito, who has darkvision, spots a figure moving, and motions to the party to stop. We all ready to approach, and Keito WANTS to take him out quickly and quietly… she can tell that it is Gabraal the Elder. Cade approaches on the faintly glowing Ignisibrae, and Morchana appears out of nowhere, hoping to speak with him. I approach as well, not quite sure what I’m going to do, but guessing it involves a couple amperes applied to specific places.

Gabraal looks BAD. Shoes are torn up, he’s acting strange, and bleeding from a number of small cuts and abrasions. Something happened to him and whatever it is, it isn’t good. The strangest thing, though, happens when Morchana addresses him. It takes a good while for him to even remember her, but when he does, “Oh, it’s you. Whore.”

Suddenly, Keito licks a bolt, and fires her arbelast. The poisoned bolt goes straight through his leg and Gabraal collapses. Morchana still wants to believe she can convince him to cooperate with her, and rushes to help him, secretly ready to pull a knife. He pushes her away. Fluffy, meanwhile, is entertained by an illusory steak. We discuss what needs to be done, and Cade and I push to keep him alive… we might be able to get some information out of him us and he’s now our prisoner. He’s incoherent at the moment, from pain and poison, and quickly falls unconscious before we can get any information out of him. Fluffy carries him for us.

We get into Barrowmead and scare the daylights out of the poor guard. He wasn’t expecting anyone tonight, I think. Much less a Large Ogre roaring in his face. The roar wakes up the town, but no townsperson actually wants to come outside to investigate.

That said, two people did come out to greet us. Karl (you remember --the anti-nobility priest from River’s Bend?) and Aethan Rentyr, Cade’s elder brother, hurry out of the biggest building in town (not saying much) and Karl is carrying a glowing and floating sphere of water, providing illumination. I know that Aethan, according to Cade, had been acting strangely. Now, to me, acting strangely around a powerful spellcaster of unknown abilities… What happens next was strikingly stupid, but the logic, at the time, seemed sound. I begin casting a simple dispel on Aethan.

Keep in mind, I’m a strange one-eyed, blue-skinned magician astride a dragon-bred horse accompanying a goliath of a barbarian orc who has just roared at the top of his lungs, and I begin an unknown incantation before any of us says a word.

Unsurprisingly, everyone who isn’t us panics and/or jumps into action. Aethan dashes behind a building (but I still have a visual line, so the spell is still good.) Karl begins channeling what appears to be a massive water spell, Lossëlen draws some arrows, and Cade starts trying like mad to diffuse the situation, including stopping Morchana from putting daggers through Karl’s throat after she appears from nowhere. (She likes doing that lately, appearing out of nowhere.) My spell does go off, and if there was any magic affecting the older Rentyr, there isn’t now. I nat 20ed the spellcraft roll, for a grand total of 41.

Our highly-irritated paladin does succeed in shouting everyone down so ‘we can at least exchange greetings first!’ He identifies us and our purpose, assures that we’re not here to fight, and convinces Karl to let us come in and discuss our plan of action. He’s peppering his brother with several ireful glances the whole while, but the other Rentyr seems totally unperturbed.
We have to struggle to all fit in the small hut, but manage to in the end. In the back corner, a heavily bandaged man is lying on a bed. Cade casts a curative spell on him, and the man thanks him for it. He is, apparently a storyteller. When we asked him how he got hurt (the bandages are covering his chest and abdomen) he says that he “fell out of a tree.” We’re in the plains. There aren’t many trees to be had. Something is fishy…

I begin poking and prodding like I normally do, being very bold as to call the storyteller by his various other names. Grannoc, Taliesin, Hiram, Marley… at first he plays innocence, but Karl eventually tells him “Just give it UP!” I am correct; this is the very same blue dragon we’ve been encountering all along. In fact, as it turns out we’d all had interactions with various faces. Even Keito… he asks her for a “report” on what she found at the Burning Woods… aside from the fact that they aren’t there anymore… interesting.

I also ask Karl how he earned his promotion. Apparently, he found his predecessor eviscerated on one of his own altars. Being the ONLY ranking member of the Church around… he sort of assumed the mantle of Archprelate. And he isn’t too pleased about that fact… he does not want the power and responsibility that comes with it. We get into a little theological discussion about his aims and goals… we were mistakenly under the assumption that he wanted to off the nobility and raise the peasants. This was not the case. He wants to depose the current nobility because they failed THEIR end of their divine contract --to protect the people. He wants to set up another Nobility in the prior’s place, one that will respect their responsibilities. (Aethan Rentyr is nodding agreeably throughout this explanation.) Unfortunately, this includes overthrowing the current Grand Duke Vellan, which our paladin tends to frown upon. He tries to make the point that Vellan hasn’t exactly had a chance to effectively try his hand at ruling, what with being perpetually poisoned to infirmity by a certain treacherous advisor. (He nudges Gabraal’s unconscious form with a boot.) Karl and Aethan look supremely unconvinced, but Cade urges them to at least wait, watch, and give Vellan a chance --assuming we manage to save him. If he does not rise to his responsibilities when this is all over, then we can ask him to step down and appoint someone else.

“Who, like you?” Karl replies. Cade hesitates. This is not sarcasm; the new Archprelate is honestly asking if Cade would be willing to take the reins. And everyone in the room (who is not unconscious or Fluffy) has realized by now that the paladin has the ability, background, legitimacy and mindset to be exactly the sort of ruler Karl’s divine agreement requires. He is still technically Vellan’s man though… Cade deflects the question, states that we need to wait until this war is over before we decide anything.

And in any case it’s well past time to begin with the interrogation of Gabraal. We have a bit of trouble bringing him back to consciousness, Karl fixes this problem for us by forcing all of Gabraal’s blood (or at least a good portion of it) to his head. Our interrogation does not go well. He mostly spends the time rocking back and forth muttering “I don’t know. I don’t know! I don’t KNOW!” When we ask him about his son, he responds that “He’s not my son anymore.” Something BAD happened to his mind. He doesn’t have the force of personality he used to; he tried to lie a couple of times but just couldn’t the way he used to. Eventually we just get tired of getting nowhere, and Lossëlen uses her divination magic to pull and project the information we need. She rolls poorly on spellcraft, but we still manage to get visuals. (Sadly, no sound.) Lady Erin and he were confronted by Andris and Mia. After attacking Mia, Erin hurries out of town, with Gabraal in tow. They meet with Gabraal Jr. in a tent outside the city. A fair bit of arguing happened (without sound … sadly) and, Gabraal Sr. is kicked out of the tent and left to wander. The images fade as Gabraal lapses into unconsciousness again.
Karl wants to kill him then and there. Cade argues that he should face lawful trial and be executed, to make a statement. It goes nowhere for a bit, so Cade manages to get everyone to leave the matter for the morning.
We also discover that Karl has a similar augmentation to Cade. The glowing sphere of water? The Heart of the Adamant River. Taliesin/Hiram is the Dragon of the Adamant River. Explains where the sudden jump in power comes from, at any rate.

We detail the situation as we know it: The Grand Duke is in danger, the Doomriders are converging on Tiborem, and we need all the help we can get. Running off of some of his previous statements about the nobility and such, Karl informs me that he’s not “Theologically inclined to assist.” …A thought occurs to me.

I create a replica of the symbol seared into the back of Blacktusk’s eye sockets out of mist and wind asking if this is familiar to anyone. Karl and Aethan shrug it off, as it means absolutely nothing to them… but Taliesin/Hiram/Dragon responds with a string of profanity. “AGAIN! It’s like every time I wake up, there he is again!”

This is promising. We get the details in short order. If Prince Twister is doing what he’s been trying to for ages, he’s trying to get himself summoned bodily to the Material Plane. A demon prince on the Material? Yeah, we can’t let THAT happen. The ritual involves the mass slaughter of innocents … check. They’ve got the army marching to Tiborem. They need to ritually sacrifice someone of “temporal importance,” typically the ruler of the land. Also within their grasp if they get much farther. And if they can’t get the Grand Duke himself, they could just take the city, declare themselves rulers, and sacrifice themselves.

I ask Karl if the feels “Theologically inclined” to help us now.

“Now I’m theologically compelled to.”

In our current state though (out of mana, some low on health) there’s nothing we can do without a good night’s rest. And we end the session there… I sleep on the roof to get out of the cramped space.

[Cisturn]

awesome update fayd. tell me though, if there's a sphere of fire and water, do you think there's a air or earth sphere somewhere in the world? Because a Air-Sphered Fayd or a Stone-Sphered Fluffy sound pretty epic.

[RdMarquis]

This was definitely worth staying up to read. I love where the story is going. That comment about Morchana's growing collection of weapons calls to mind Neo's equipment in the lobby shootout scene from The Matrix, but with daggers instead of guns. Also, the dissecting of the dragon was pretty funny, in a morbid way.

A similar thing happened during a campaign I was DMing. The second the dragon was dead, one of the players said she had been craving dragon steak for a while.

[Bharg]

Can't wait 'til the final now... :smallsigh:

[Fayd]

awesome update fayd. tell me though, if there's a sphere of fire and water, do you think there's a air or earth sphere somewhere in the world? Because a Air-Sphered Fayd or a Stone-Sphered Fluffy sound pretty epic.

I would assume that there are. But... I didn't find one. If there was, it probably would be in a place where the element air was exemplified, similar to fire at the Burning Woods, or water at the Adamant River. So a perpetually stormy place maybe? The only thing left to do is explore the region and... a.) find the orb floating somewhere surrounded by nasties or b.) make friends with the region's dragon.

As for earth? No idea where to look. Mountains?

It shouldn't be too much longer of a fight, folks.

[LordShotGun]

[QUOTE=Fayd;8999604]
As for earth? No idea where to look. Mountains?
QUOTE]

Now what mountains where you recently at, and who did you meet there? The dwarves. What do dwarves do? They mine the earth in impossible ways for treasure.

Sounds like a side quest if you REALLY wanted fluffy to gain yet another subtype on top of giant and dragon. Then again an earth orb would probably give fluffy more constitution/ DR which is always a good thing.

[Fayd]

As for earth? No idea where to look. Mountains?


Now what mountains where you recently at, and who did you meet there? The dwarves. What do dwarves do? They mine the earth in impossible ways for treasure.

Sounds like a side quest if you REALLY wanted fluffy to gain yet another subtype on top of giant and dragon. Then again an earth orb would probably give fluffy more constitution/ DR which is always a good thing.

...and ignore the demon lord trying to get summoned bodily to the Material?

[Grimlock]

Yet another crackin' update Fayd! Really enjoying this read...it will be a shame when it is over!

[Bharg]

Just start digging and you'll probably find your earth orb sooner or later.

[LordShotGun]

...and ignore the demon lord trying to get summoned bodily to the Material?

Sure!:smallbiggrin: Thats what adventurers do right?

[Kaulesh]

...and ignore the demon lord trying to get summoned bodily to the Material?

As we all know, except in very rare cases, evil masterminds halt their plans until it's convenient for the heroes to come stop them.

[MountainKing]

Not mine; if I actually give my players a timetable, it's serious business. :smallwink: Lucky for them, it doesn't seem that the DM gave them such a frame of time; or unlucky... Depends on how he rolls.

[Fayd]

Actually, we HAD to finish the next session, because classes were ending. So...yeah.

[Fayd]

Chapter 28: Into the Storm, Or: Pros and Con Damage

During the middle of the night, Gabraal Andromacht Sr. passed into eternity. Morchana … tripped. Yes. Let’s go with tripped. With that many knives, it isn’t terribly surprising what happened next. Keito, who had decided that Gabraal was too much a potential for trouble to be left alive, snuck in at some point later in the night; she was displeased to find him already deceased. She expresses this by painting a target on his noggin and shooting him with her arbalest.

The grim sigh and the look on Cade’s face in the morning are utterly devoid of surprise. Before Fluffy has a chance to eat it he drags the aristocrat’s body away and performs something resembling a proper burial.

(Also, we got an explanation of what exactly happened to Gabraal’s mind after this session. In short? Morchana. Her “intelligence gathering” exploits the night of the gala and fireworks show and gnoll attack had some… interesting… repercussions. Gabraal critically failed his first save (Nat 1, really) against the forgetfulness potion Morchana employed. He failed his secondary save later. He went from a man with an INT of 16, a WIS of 16, and a CHA of 19… to having INT 11, WIS 8, and Cha 14. A total of -5 to INT, -8 to WIS, and -5 to CHA. This is why you do not mess with Morchana.)

We ready our attack on the city. I’ve formulated a plan, and to that end, I send Swift off to the remains of the Burning Woods in the event that it will work/be necessary. This is the last I see of him in campaign. (And no, he doesn’t get eaten or crispied or otherwise killed.) Last night, I had coordinated our arrival with Martin, and he’ll teleport to meet us. Karl and I debate how to get to Tiborem. I want to conserve my mana as much as possible, and… as it happens, Karl has the Blood Mage feat, burning HP to get mana. I ask him if he’s got a link to a place, and he reassures me with a quick glance at Taliesin, who nods. Karl creates a massive wall of water.
“Hold your breath!” Karl yells as the wave of water crashes over us… I meanwhile, nearly collapse from laughing at the situation. Not having to breathe: surprisingly handy. We appear, only slightly damp, in the vault of the Ivory Club… filled to the brim with treasure. Our draconic friend advises us to not touch.

Outside… things look BAD. Not only is it overcast, dark, and somewhat stormy (by random dice rolls, no less) and the town is the wrong kind of quiet. People are apparently… mopping… the walls. We carefully get closer and see that they’re mopping… blood… all over it. In patterns. And sigils. Morchana and Keito do a little scouting, while the rest of us sneak around to the other side of the keep.

They see demonic Doomriders herding the citizenry towards the keep, busting into homes and dragging folks out, standard procedure. The fiendish horses do most of the shepherding, while the soldiers do the collecting. It’s… rather brutal. And there is more sigil marking being painted on the outer walls.

We meet up, and out of the remains of the front of the keep come Andris, Mia, and Kara. Cade and I breathe a sigh of relief. From a building behind us, Thezzick, Martin and his Battlemages appear. When Keito asks how he (Martin) has a link to Tiborem, Tam mimes looking around, pulling a brick out of the wall, putting something back behind it, and putting the brick back. “He’s been doing this for a while.”

We find out what happened: Gabraal (Jr.), Tamshen, Erin, and some Doomriders are inside, and they have the Grand Duke. The Grand Duchess is nowhere to be found, but she is assumed safe for the moment. They’re preparing the ritual now. Apparently there is some sort of psychic link between the Doomriders… if one knows something, they all do. Meaning that we cannot pick off patrols and small groups at a time; meaning that once we launch our attack on Doomrider Central, the horde will swamp to our location in moments.

The only spot of fortune in the situation is that the keep we’re about to assault has only one gate through which any significant number could quickly and effectively pass. To take advantage of this, while our party moves in to end it, Andris, Karl, Thezzick, Mia, and Taliesin, the Dragon of the Adamant River, will defend the gates. By themselves. Against, effectively, hundreds of demon-riding demons. I ask Kara if she can help with the defense. “Before or after I ran out of mana?” Oh. Right. Dang.

Martin pipes up: “This is a standard summoning ritual, right Fayd?”

“Yes…?”

“A bunch of concentric circles with glyphs and sigils?”

I begin to see where he’s going with this… “Yes.”

Martin grins, “Perfect!” He tosses a wand to Kara and motions for her to join him. Martin, Kara, and the surviving battlemages are going to be roaming around the city, teleporting to stay ahead of Doomrider patrols, erasing and defacing their sigils and circles. The ritual will be messed up but good!

And that’s before the party has a say in things.

From what we know of the situation, the ritual will be taking place in the main hall where we had that post-tournament feast. Instead of busting in the front doors all heroic like, we’re going to sneak in through the servants’ doors and hopefully catch them off guard. The room is T shaped, and there are doors on each of the horizontal bits of the T. We are going to split up, using Keito and Fluffy’s connection to coordinate the attack. Before we split off, I grant a VERY long duration DR buffing spell to the entire party, and set up a healing contingency spell on myself.

We get into position. Morchana, Fluffy and I are on one side, Keito, Cade and Lossëlen on the other. The room is FULL of soldiers and cultists, arranged in semicircles. We can’t see down the stem of the T yet, but we assume that’s where the Grand Duke, Tamshen, and Gabraal Jr. are.

From my side, Morchana strikes first. She slinks up behind a soldier in full plate, pulls a small poisoned armor penetrating dagger out of its hiding place in her bosom (I kid you not), and shanks him in the neck. The guard falls instantly and silently. She quickly re-sheathes the dagger and draws another poisoned one, performing the same trick on another nearby guard. Then, the rest of the team strikes. Keito unleashes her “Breath Weapon” on the other side. Lossëlen fires an arrow storm through the door, and Cade charges on Ignisibrae, wielding his two flaming sabers (one dripping Holy Water, remember). He actually gets to apply Hordebreaker for the first and only time with this action, though he doesn’t manage to fell the second guy so it stops short. (Insert player sigh here)

Fluffy performs his once-an-encounter version of Whirlwind Strike, which enables him to make one attack to hit everyone in his reach along the path of his movement. He is Large Sized, wielding a Large Weapon that has reach when built for medium creatures, and is a Barbarian, with the extra movement speed that entails. A LOT of soldiers die instantaneously. I unleash a cone of Cold damage, tearing up some of the soldiers Fluffy could not reach.

Do we know how to make an entrance or what?

We hear the cultists yell something in code, and… Morchana is able to decipher it, as she’s already heard it once. A simple translation is “CRAP! THEY’RE HERE!” Yes. The random fake priests in the inn from so long ago? The ones we thought were a thieves’ or assassins’ guild? They were cultists of Prince Twister, and they killed the previous Archprelate of Laeros. IT. IS. ON!

From our new vantage points, we can see our main focus: Temshan is hovering in midair, readying to charge with an enormous lance made of carved bone. Gabraal Jr. has sharpened spikes of metal whirling about his head. A circle of cultists surrounds the grand duke, and a High Priest of some sort is standing over him.

Well, it’s a good thing we didn’t wait much longer, eh?

Temshan charges with his lance --and nearly kills Fluffy in a single blow. Cade: :smalleek: Lossëlen: :smalleek: Morchana: :smalleek: Keito: :smalleek: Fayd: :smalleek: Fluffy: :smallconfused: We are… surprised, to put it mildly. He apparently has the Mounted Combat feat and can use it basically all the time (as he’s perpetually “mounted”; the advantage a centaur has over a horse-and-rider arrangement). He also has an aura effect. The first round that he is within range of any of us forces a will save; if we fail, we have to start running from him. Lossëlen, one of the few affected by this, doesn’t manage to roll high enough. She flies up into a window to hide. Keito rapidly patches up our barbarian. Morchana continues her spree of destruction, knifing soldiers. She isn’t getting sneak attack damage anymore, but the Con damage… kind of makes up for it. Cade attacks some soldiers, and Ingisibrae breath weapons the enemies. They’re a little resistant to fire, but she still makes them hurt. I attempt to banish a soldier, to see if I can, and I fail. Oh well. DAMAGE TIME! I sidle over to Morchana for safety on both our parts. The enemy horde? Mostly entirely misses with about everything they do. We are hard to hit, apparently. Some have bows, some of the cultists cast acid spells at us (kind of like their spitting it at us… nasty.)

Keito continues to heal Fluffy, getting him into a more or less stable state. Temshan charges her. He criticals…and she is killed, outright. Because of his BAB, Temshan got two attacks, and in an act of mercy, Tam let Keito attempt to avoid the second hit because she collapsed from the first one (we could have saved her) if her player called a coin flip right (had to leave it a little to chance, of course.) Luck was not with Keito today. She is pinned to the wall and splattered. NONE of us are pleased with Temshan. I believe rage is an appropriate word for how I feel. Cade leaps off Ingnisibrae and attempts to land on Temshan’s back and wrestle the lance away; we can NOT continue taking charge attacks like that.

I notice that a good deal of the cultists have lined themselves up to attack us, in a perfect horizontal line behind the high priest and grand duke, and Gabraal is behind them. This picture adequately expresses my train of thought:

http://simplyxmas.files.wordpress.com/2007/12/grinch.jpg

I walk forward to cast a spell, when the readied action of the entire line activate. They spit their globs of acid at me (there are more than ten of them) and I dodge every. Last. One. I cast a Line of Cold spell down the corridor until it hits the first cultist. Then it bends 90 degrees to the left, hitting each and every cultist along the way before exploding at the end of its area to hit every other soldier I could, and empowering the spell on Gabraal’s square. I love Spell Shaping. So much. (Of course, this fight convinced Tam to significantly nerf the feat, but…)The Grand Duke is perfectly safe, as he is 5 feet forward of the area of effect. The cultists simultaneously drop, and some of the other soldiers are hurting.

Gabraal is less than pleased about suddenly losing a large portion of his forces. He gets close to Morchana and me and attacks both of us, levitating his rapiers and flinging a them and a couple of metal shards at us, from range. Metal magic. Fun. They hurt, but they would hurt a LOT more if focused on one target.

I get a bit of a fun plan… I use wind magic to hurl the high priest at Gabraal’s face. I’m hoping to destroy a couple of the shards with the high priest. Sadly, this does not work, but I do damage both of them and knock them both to the ground. Morchana attacks Gabraal with a poisoned dagger and hits. She can’t penetrate his skin, as he has some kind of magical DR, but she does drip the Dragonsbile poison from the dagger into his eyes as she slashes past them. He shares his father’s affinity for resistance to Morchana’s poison. As in: none --he nat 1s his fort save. Major Con damage. Tam even proclaimed this save roll loudly to us, showing us the die. We are pleased. Morchana replaces the daggers and draws more. These too are poisoned. She has over 20 poisoned daggers that she keeps cycling between. It’s … rather epic, actually.

“HRAH! FINALLY, A GOOD FIGHT!”

A spare glance toward Temshan’s exuberant boom reveals that he is now wielding a blazing, enormous two-handed sword of unique design in solo combat against Cade. (Apparently the action that triggered this gleeful declaration was a triple-critical from the paladin, who is by now getting four attacks because of his two swords and BAB.) The Doomrider general begins to trade blows with Cade with an enthusiasm edging toward mania… Still, our paladin seems to be holding his own for now. There is a LOT of flashing metal and dancing streams of fire in that corner of the hall.

Meanwhile, in our corner, Fluffy decides to help us, by bull-rushing the high priest into Gabraal. The high priest dies from the impact damage and splits in half along Gabraal’s face. Now, I’ve heard of angular features, but this guy takes it to the EXTREME! (… ok, that was a bad pun. I’d say “Quoth the paladin, ‘Wow. That sucks,’” except his player is more likely to applaud… he enjoys puns. A lot.)

In any case, Gabraal is knocked to the ground again, having been on his feet for mere seconds. Fluffy takes the opportunity to slash him with his greataxe. We are informed that we think the blood spray is really pretty and artistic. And he’s pretty too. (Remember, heavy hints of Succu-/Incubus here.) This thought was directed into Fluffy’s brain. Fluffy is greatly disturbed; he vows to hit “Pretty Man” harder, so he stops thinking of him that way. I pull off a quick heal, using touch attacks to heal only myself, Morchana, and Fluffy. (It’s too cramped for any AoE to work without healing my enemies. Cost a little extra juice, but it was worth it.) Morchana takes advantage of the extra vitality to stab two different soldiers and explode them in fountains of blood as their arteries explode from the Dragonsbile. Ah, sweet Con damage.

Before Fluffy gets a chance to make good on his vow, Gabraal turns to Morchana and hits her. Hard. He strikes with all of his remaining floating shards, both rapiers, and she is knocked into unconsciousness. In fact, she is knocked passed the point of “dead.” However, Tam ruled that if we could heal her to not dead before her next round, she would live. (He’d have done the same thing for Keito, but there was no way the party could heal 150-300+ HP in one round. We’re good, but not that good --especially since she was our primary healer.)

I get ready to rush over and heal her. The archers take note of this and turn to me. They hit me hard, but the contingency healing spell I set up before the fight goes off and I’m in good shape. I pump out an AoE healing spell for Fluffy, Morchana, and myself, empowering it on all of us with spell shaping. Did I mention that I love spell shaping? Morchana’s near death experience went as follows: “You’re in a dark tunnel. Off in the distance is a light… to your side is a big pile of money.” She ponders her metaphysical choices for a bit, and then thinks “Aw, screw it. I’ve got someone to kill.” Upon waking, she chooses to fake unconsciousness for a while longer, and does so with a fantastic Deception roll.

Gabraal, satisfied that he has one less pest to deal with, has turned his full attention on Fluffy and myself. When her turn rolls around, Morchana rolls, jumps up, and stabs her daggers deep into Gabraal’s stomach, getting a rather epic sneak attack. He gasps as the poison claims his system. Death from Con damage. Gabraal Andromact Jr dies, like his father, on the end of Morchana’s daggers, poisoned and bleeding. (Though Morchana does get the sudden thought of “Wow. He’s pretty when he’s dying like that.”)

Cue sudden surge of hope. One über-boss down; one to go. Our half of the party turns toward Temshan --just in time to watch him launch Cade off of Ignisibrae with a powerful blow that knocks him unconscious on impact. From a high window comes a gasp; the image of Lossëlen perched there combined with the large number of pin-cushioned cultists near the duel suggest what she’s been up to.

I hurry to get Cade back on his feet as Temshan takes the opportunity to whirl and charge Fluffy again. Thankfully, without the lance, his charges aren’t nearly as powerful; Fluffy is only MOSTLY dead. (“There's a big difference between mostly dead and all dead. Mostly dead is slightly alive. With all dead, well, with all dead there's usually only one thing you can do --go through his clothes and look for loose change.”) Cade immediately gets Fluffy back to operating condition. We’re going to need him; Temshan has a number of deep gashes and scorches peppering his frame, but from the near-crazed grin and stream of bellowed challenges they don’t seem to be slowing him even a fraction.

Fluffy, by the way, was so impressed by Morchana’s strike from the ‘dead’ that he attempts to duplicate it. Unfortunately, I’ll bet you can guess what kind of Deception mod he has; remaining full prone, he reaches over, pokes Temshan’s leg insistently, looks up at his face and solemnly informs him, “Fluffy dead.”

Lossëlen takes a gamble. From her vantage point in the window, she can probably nick Temshan if she gets lucky (trying to hit his touch AC to deliver something with an arrow instead of trying to deal any damage at all) and so, she fires a Dragonsbile poisoned arrow. Oh, did I forget to mention that? Morchana also poisoned some of Lossëlen’s arrows with Dragonsbile. The arrow not only hits, but Temshan fails his Fort save, and eats some Con damage, with some secondary damage coming in about 10 rounds.

I’m at 4 Mana by this point. I’ve got next to nothing left I can do… when a sudden thought hits me. A brilliant thought.

http://simplyxmas.files.wordpress.com/2007/12/grinch.jpg

It may be that Unhelpful Secretary (I never DID get is name…) helped save the universe. I remember that I’ve got my fully charged protective amulet, with 5 uses of Magic Circle Against Evil. Insert manic laughter here. I lay the circle down with the amulet as a standard action, and when Temshan gets his turn, he gallops forward and smashes his face into the force field generated by the circle. So long as the circle remains unbroken, he can’t do anything. The party can’t attack him either, but we’re safe for the moment and we can regroup.

Then Temshan takes his sword and shatters the force field with two quick swings. Apparently he has the Juggernaut feat --allows one to break force effects at epic. Well rats.

Fluffy uses the ever so slight break in combat to dispatch the final remaining mooks.

Suddenly the main doors burst in from a powerful impact, and the body of a Doomrider soldier slides across the floor, propelled by a column of water. The body is followed by several of his (unfortunately live) companions. We look through and see Karl in bad shape, but everyone is mostly all right. We hear a dragon roar, and all of the Doomrider soldiers cower and flee. (We also hear at some point Thezzick’s gleeful bellow of “That’s EIGHT that time!” Guess which other Rentyr also has Hordebreaker. :smallamused:)


This defense, by the way, was actually run as a one shot during the week before this session, with some of the DM’s other friends. That really set us on edge; we had no idea what was going on, but we walked by the door and heard “You’re literally swimming through a sea of bodies.” Yeah. That isn’t disconcerting or anything, especially since we didn’t actually KNOW what was going on, other than it had something to do with our campaign.


I lock Temshan down with another Circle. Temshan breaks out, again, but Lossëlen has another shot lined up. She performs a similar action to what she did with the poison, except this time, she has attached a single rose seed, imbued with the power of her plant magic, to the tip of the arrow. The arrow nicks an open wound and deposits its deadly cargo into Temshan’s bloodstream. Now, as long as Lossëlen focuses and uses her power, he will take damage from the thorny rose bush growing inside his arteries and veins. This damage cannot be mitigated in any way, except, I suppose healing, but that’s rather unlikely given the current scenario.

I use the last of my mana in an attempt to use the enemy Doomrider solders as projectile weapons against their leader. I fail, miserably, but I’ll get a shot again every round they’re in the AoE. It also attempts to throw Temshan, but I might as well have attempted to throw the building out from under him. He takes a spare shot at me apart from his main focus on Fluffy, and it hurts.

Cade, meanwhile, has decided to switch tactics. During his duel with the centaur, Temshan proved difficult to hit and even more so to damage significantly, aside from some very lucky rolls. Cade himself had been likewise nigh-untouchable, until Temshan started taking penalties from his excessive damage in exchange for attack bonuses. Realizing that we were nearing the end of our collective rope, so to speak, and the fact that his healing could not keep up with the damage we were rapidly taking, he gambled to exploit the irresistible. He remounts Ignisibrae, focuses on defensive fighting for the both of them, and prepares to Aid Another --for Ignis herself. On their next round they charge; Temshan whirls around to pick off the attack-- --but they brush by with only a glancing touch.
A glancing touch that delivers a Celerity spell, which increases Temshan’s metabolism, causing the rosebush’s damage to become Empowered as the seed’s growth is accelerated and the secondary Con damage from the poison to happen sooner. And this is the advantage the horse and rider team have over the centaur. I lock Temshan down in yet another Circle. And he breaks out again. I repeat until the amulet is exhausted of all but its secondary powers (+1 to all saves.)

Ignisibrae performs another charge attack spell, aided by Cade, casting a VERY powerful Smite Evil. Temshan’s skin is, for lack of a better word, rather crispy, and roses have bloomed from his open wounds. I… am hurting, out of mana, and out of options. I consider lobbing some vials of dragon gastric acid at him, but I doubt I’d hit anyway. For cover, I fly up and try to hide in the window. He flies up with me and activates his sword’s ability. He transforms into a meteor, dealing some damage in passing, and landing next to Fluffy and Cade, creating a violent explosion. They’re hurting, and I’m barely conscious, but I am. Fluffy uses his “breath weapon,” and it rips part of Temshan’s skull away… we can see his brain, and he is somehow still standing.

Temshan is mad. He begins to yell and roar at us when a rose bursts out of his mouth and blooms before our eyes. Temshan drops dead. Lossëlen’s last tick of damage from the rose bush killed him. With EXACTLY enough HP worth of damage. With the psychic backlash of their leader dying, the remaining Doomrider troops in the city disperse, running from the place and soon-to-be-angry mob.

We stare at him in stunned silence for a short time. Cade dismounts, and crosses to Temshan’s corpse. He glances over his shoulder at the splattered remains of our healer, pulls out his short spear and slams it into Temshan’s head, growling “Pike this.” Thus we are certain that Temshan is dead. I float down from the window, hurting, but rather pleased, on the whole, to be alive. Cade cuts the Grand Duke free (who, aside from mild panic, looks rather better than he had.)

By now our gate defenders and the rest of our extended party stagger into the hall, some in much better shape than others but all walking on their own power. Andris gratefully accepts the weakened Grand Duke from Cade, and the Rentyr clan members embrace, Lossëlen hovering nearby. Martin, Kara and I and our classmates share a similar greeting. Fluffy begins to munch on dead Doomriders.

At some point we turn our attention back to Morchana…who is inexplicably more beautiful than she had been and with an even greater force of personality. Apparently, at some point during the chaos, a vaguely succubus-shaped shadow had oozed from the body of Gabraal Jr. and crept its way across the floor, following Morchana’s movements. Twice she was startled to notice it trying to crawl up her leg and twice she shook it off and returned to the fray.

We don’t see this shadow anywhere any more. Cade and I begin talking of exorcisms and such… and she turns to us and says, “I want to see a priest. Right now.”

Well. We’re… somewhat taken aback. Apparently she wants to get married. Right now. As there are currently no priests, and her fiancé (Connaught the Younger; yes, apparently they DID get engaged at some point along the way) is still a little ways off, she deigns to wait.

Right about now, we notice something on the very back wall of the hall, and it’s moving.

The five remaining party members warily draw closer to examine it. It is a painting of the final battle, and it’s replaying all the action in real time, explicitly showing each of us where we were and what we did. Things are a little blurry, but it’s there alright. The bottom right hand corner of the painting bears Erin’s signature. Suddenly, the magicks of the painting awaken, and we’re forced back through the paces of the fight at high speed, and at the very end, we are forced to make a fort save. Those of us who fail (Morhcana and I included) are bodily torn apart by the magic. We are then given a will save to mentally pull ourselves back together in the weird space that these events are occurring in, alive, but barely. Morchana failed her will save as well. However, Tam granted her one last boon: She could attempt a charisma check. Though Morchana was technically erased from being, she forces back into reality through “bloody single mindedness,” hurt, but not dead. (That, and the universe generally agreed she was too pretty to die.) In fact, though Lossëlen, Morchana and I drop into deep unconsciousness, everyone survived this final devious trap.

Campaign end.


All right, ladies and gentlemen! The main story has completed, though the epilogue remains... loose ends that must be tied together and all that.

[Doppelganger]

Say it with me everyone:
EPIC!
:smallfrown: about keito though. She died for a good cause.

[2xMachina]

How's Raises?

[Bharg]

Say it with me everyone:
EPIC!
:smallfrown: about keito though. She died for a good cause.

Damn right!

How do you deal like 150+ dmg with one hit, though? :smallfrown:
Poor Keito... Right at the beginning...

[Fayd]

Damn right!

How do you deal like 150+ dmg with one hit, though? :smallfrown:
Poor Keito... Right at the beginning...


Mounted charge attack criticals with a lance, when one has the Mounted Combat feat. Temshan rolled high has a huge strength (he was also Large sized) and had a x5 multiplier. And he hit twice. After the campaign finished, Tam decided to tone down the damage on that combination.

And Raise Dead can only be performed 2 ways in our system: With Necromancy magic (which people tend to frown on) and a magic ritual which requires one's true love to kiss them and give up 1 level of experience.

[Bharg]

Mounted charge attack criticals with a lance, when one has the Mounted Combat feat. Temshan rolled high has a huge strength (he was also Large sized) and had a x5 multiplier. And he hit twice. After the campaign finished, Tam decided to tone down the damage on that combination.

And Raise Dead can only be performed 2 ways in our system: With Necromancy magic (which people tend to frown on) and a magic ritual which requires one's true love to kiss them and give up 1 level of experience.

x5 auto criticals!?

[Fayd]

Not auto. He got lucky. Sadly, he got lucky.

[AtwasAwamps]

Great campaign journal Fayd, with an excellent ending…great job for you as well, Tam, and to the rest of the team.

As to the mounted combat…yikes! Though that’s not necessarily hard to get. Using a lance + spirited charge adds up to 3x basic 3.5 D&D and Tam creates scaling feats, it seems…so this guy was clearly using the mounted combat string of feats to get a high multiplier and then crit on top of that. Nasty, certainly, but not unexpected. This was high level combat and he’s a charger. If he gets his movement, he’s going to KILL YOU.

[Bharg]

Phew.

Also unfortunate that you startet using your amulet so late...

Why does an attack push someone to -150 hit points? Impossible to heal, right. Why not stop at - amount of damage that kills you? This - 40 or something...

[Fayd]

Thing is, had it been anyone BUT Keito, we could probably have saved them, even at -150. Keito, Cade and I would have spent both our standard and swift action on heals, which, at the time, amounted to 5d10+Keito's MPM (min 5) + 1d10+Keito's MPM (Min 5), 5d8+my MPM, 1d8+my MPM... and whatever Cade's healing was. Both Keito and I had MPM of over 10 at the time, and I could have Empowered my spells by making them AoEs and using spell shaping. We could easily have patched them up to the point of not dead. ...though, given what happened, they'd be right back to it in no time.

[Bharg]

I hope there will be a nice funeral for Keito and a party and cake... at least. :smallmad:

[Cade Rentyr]

Nasty, certainly, but not unexpected.
It was for folks who've never done this before. :smallfrown:


Nasty, certainly, but not unexpected. This was high level combat and he’s a charger. If he gets his movement, he’s going to KILL YOU.
Thus my attempt to stop the charging. I don't think it worked all that well, if I recall --my CMB came nowhere near his CMD-- but he wound up dropping the lance to fight me hand-to-hand anyway, likely for no other reason than it seemed more fun than just exploding us one at a time.

Ironically, I just remembered that the reason he was close enough to Keito to decide to target her was because he went straight from Fluffy to charging me, but I managed to evade it completely. I had a lot of AC toward the end there.

[Cade Rentyr]

I hope there will be a nice funeral for Keito and a party and cake... at least. :smallmad:

Ah, but funerals are for dead people. :smallwink:

...~E-pi-logguueee~...

[Bharg]

Probably Keito should have climbed the walls to avoid the charging like some kind of SPIDER elf!

You should have bought her a nice gravestone anyways, Cade. He/She earned it.

[Fayd]

Temshan was flying. Trust me, I made that mistake myself. He charges JUST as well through thin air as on the ground.

[AtwasAwamps]

It was for folks who've never done this before. :smallfrown:


Good point. Mounted combat was one of the first things that drew my eye in D&D when I picked up the player's handbook ("I can do TRIPLE DAMAGE on a horsey? YAY!"), but that's not standard for everyone. If you haven't faced off against serious mounted opponents before, then the sheer physical damage output can be terrifying to see.

[Bharg]

Why would that still count as a mounted charge if he was flying? :smallconfused:

[Cade Rentyr]

You should have bought her a nice gravestone anyways, Cade. He/She earned it.
Ah, but there it is again; gravestones are for DEAD people. :smalltongue:

I shall say nothing more on the topic until the epilogue.

[Bharg]

He/She still earned it!

You know like a souvenir, a little momento [mori]. "I died that day. Once. Back then." - "Damn right you did! Splattered all over the wall, he/she was!"

[Cade Rentyr]

Why would that still count as a mounted charge if he was flying? :smallconfused:
I'll field this one since I'm online anyway.

Temshan also had a feat called Winddancer, if I'm remembering the correct one. Basically, whether I've got the name correct or not, it allows its user to move freely through the air in any sort of looping, sweeping, whatever path, so long as they begin and end their turn on solid ground. One of its level-upgrades (before the feat system rework over the summer) reduced the restriction to anything solid regardless of stability --like a flagpole or someone's head. Finally, at its strongest it basically allowed flat out levitation/flight --like Superman. Since a Winddancer's movement range is now entirely 3-dimensional, he can technically 'charge' upward, downward-at-an-angle... literally any direction.

Therefore, since Temshan is a centaur and thus always qualifies as 'Mounted' --by fundamental racial trait-- he can make a Mounted Charge any which way he pleases, so long as he has the space to build up the speed.

...Yeesh. Didn't mean to slap you with a wall of text like that. I tend to overexplain these things, which is why I typically leave it to Fayd. I'm also a bit rusty on the particulars for this feat --and all feats have been reworked/reorganized since then so I can't look it up-- so I'll trust Tam or Fayd will correct any discrepancies.

[Cade Rentyr]

He/She still earned it!

You know like a souvenir, a little momento [mori]. "I died that day. Once. Back then." - "Damn right you did! Splattered all over the wall, he/she was!"

That, is an excellent point. :smallsmile:
Hmm...

[Bharg]

He is basically a super balancing Ninja Sword Sage Horse?

I think that kinda leads to some questions like...

Why is there a differentiation between mounted and unmounted combat (charges in particular)? The main difference is speed, right? Horses are fast. Ergo charging horses with mounted lances hit harder. But what if you are just as fast as a horse anyway and wouldn't other weapons also receive a bonus if you increase impact by moving fast in charges or run by attacks?

[RdMarquis]

Say it with me everyone:
EPIC!
:smallfrown: about keito though. She died for a good cause.

I will second that. I've just finished reading your latest entry, and some NPC writer of songs and heroic poems had better pen something featuring you guys in the epilogue.

Implanting a rose seed into Temshan and then blowing him up with the resulting bush may be the coolest way of dispatching a final boss I have ever seen. All of you did awesome in this fight. Your team took on a small army and won. On another note, I had to laugh at the image of the Grinch.

[Fayd]

I will second that. I've just finished reading your latest entry, and some NPC writer of songs and heroic poems had better pen something featuring you guys in the epilogue.

Implanting a rose seed into Temshan and then blowing him up with the resulting bush may be the coolest way of dispatching a final boss I have ever seen. All of you did awesome in this fight. Your team took on a small army and won. On another note, I had to laugh at the image of the Grinch.


Naw, the epilogue is by me. Just have to tie a few threads together, tell about character futures, that kind of thing. It should be noted however, that this period in history comes to be known as the Hellfire War.

[MountainKing]

He is basically a super balancing Ninja Sword Sage Horse?

I think that kinda leads to some questions like...

Why is there a differentiation between mounted and unmounted combat (charges in particular)? The main difference is speed, right? Horses are fast. Ergo charging horses with mounted lances hit harder. But what if you are just as fast as a horse anyway and wouldn't other weapons also receive a bonus if you increase impact by moving fast in charges or run by attacks?

Force = Mass x Acceleration. So no, a man with a lance running as fast as a man with a lance and a horse will not hit as hard. The real trick to lance charges wasn't even hitting the target, it was staying in the saddle.

[Fayd]

Force = Mass x Acceleration. So no, a man with a lance running as fast as a man with a lance and a horse will not hit as hard. The real trick to lance charges wasn't even hitting the target, it was staying in the saddle.

...And when that is an actual physical impossibility (see: Centaur)...The charge attacks HURT.

[2xMachina]

A medium centaur(compression), riding a large centaur riding a huge centaur (expansion) triple charging? :smallwink:

[Bharg]

What about a fat man with a lance running as fast as a horse?

[Doppelganger]

Well, the fatest man every recorded weighed about 1,400 pounds, and horses tend to weigh around a thousand pounds, but I doubt that Jon Minnoch could run at 20 mph. But if he could, then he'd do about as much damage as a mounted knight. On a poor horse. A warhorse would probably still out-perform him though.

[AtwasAwamps]

Well, the fatest man every recorded weighed about 1,400 pounds, and horses tend to weigh around a thousand pounds, but I doubt that Jon Minnoch could run at 20 mph. But if he could, then he'd do about as much damage as a mounted knight. On a poor horse. A warhorse would probably still out-perform him though.

Sometimes mechanics discussions get silly.

[TheAmishPirate]

Well, the fatest man every recorded weighed about 1,400 pounds, and horses tend to weigh around a thousand pounds, but I doubt that Jon Minnoch could run at 20 mph.

Ah, but what if he had sufficient levels in Monk first and had a reliable source of Haste? :smallwink:

(on-topic) Great journal! It's been a good read, and a fittingly epic ending.

[flabort]

If you had fire and water, I guess the centaur had wind?

But a 5x critical... yeowch. That hurts.

[Morchana]

If you had fire and water, I guess the centaur had wind?

But a 5x critical... yeowch. That hurts.

Well, Gabraal the Younger had sexiness.

[MountainKing]

...And when that is an actual physical impossibility (see: Centaur)...The charge attacks HURT.

Oh come on, a Centaur is basically a man on a horse. Sure, they're stitched together, but, it's just about the same thing. :smalltongue:

[Bharg]

Do you people think about continuing the story of FAYD, CADE, MORCHANA (after her litter or some random ersatz that is epic nontheless), FLUFFY, KEITO and the BLUE BUTTERFLY ELF GIRL in another EPIC campaign?

[MountainKing]

You forgot popscicle. :smallwink:

[Snowstar]

I believe he means that I am now "blue butterfly elf-girl"

[MountainKing]

Right, but he forgot that you're also a popscicle! :smallbiggrin:

[Bharg]

Well, I don't know how to make that "e" with the two dot things...

You're character is still one of my favorites, right?

[RdMarquis]

It's called an umlaut, I think (didn't even know we could make those on the forums).

[Bharg]

Errr, yes, but not the kind of umlaut you find on a german keyboard.

[Morchana]

Do you people think about continuing the story of FAYD, CADE, MORCHANA (after her litter or some random ersatz that is epic nontheless), FLUFFY, KEITO and the BLUE BUTTERFLY ELF GIRL in another EPIC campaign?

Well, the story does continue a bit, and there may one day be a one-shot. We'll see.

Litter? Heck, no. Morchana just got the element of sexiness and also decided she wanted to get married.

(This confused all players in the room. They started to discuss an exorcism.)

[Bharg]

I never really considered Morchana to be marriage material anyways... Black Widow would be a nice title, though.

Wedding night? Your husband might need an heir?

[Morchana]

I never really considered Morchana to be marriage material anyways... Black Widow would be a nice title, though.

Wedding night? Your husband might need an heir?

Heh, Black Widow.

Of course there will be an heir someday. I will allow him to have one, but not for a while. I have greater ambitions than motherhood!

[RdMarquis]

Okay, that statement brought one thing to mind.


In the place of a Dark Lord you would have a Queen! Not dark but beautiful and terrible as the Morn! Treacherous as the Seas! Stronger than the foundations of the Earth! All shall love me and despair!

Is that anything close to your future plans? :smalltongue:

[Morchana]

Just a bit. :smallamused:

[Fayd]

RdMarquis...

She outright SAID that at one point. I think it was about something else, but the point stands.

[RdMarquis]

Heh, I only thought of that because I had the DVD on at the time.

[Fayd]

Well, I don't know how to make that "e" with the two dot things...

You're character is still one of my favorites, right?

I actually have it in Microsoft Word and copy-paste it into the forums... I'm not actually sure how to make it any other way.

[Morchana]

I actually have it in Microsoft Word and copy-paste it into the forums... I'm not actually sure how to make it any other way.

Alt + 393 = ë, on most computers with a numpad on their keyboards. :smallcool:

[Bharg]

Thanks, now I can write Lossëlen or just use Snowstar, anyways... I liked popsicle and butterfly better, though.

The widow thing might be a bit overused already and you probably don't plan on killing your husband. He even knows that you are an assassin or at least a kinda sneaky fighter, so you didn't even have to create an alter ego.

Your child would probably become a bit succubus, too.

[Morchana]

Popsicle and Butterfly are fun!

Cannaught was attracted to me because of the assassin thing It works. Succubus child? Likely, but not entirely. We'll see what happens.

[Bharg]

I'm sure there would be some demon influence.

A noble that is into attractive female assassins? Now that's just great! :smallbiggrin:

[Fayd]

I'm sure there would be some demon influence.

A noble that is into attractive female assassins? Now that's just great! :smallbiggrin:

A noble FAMILY. Both father and son!

[Bharg]

Ah, a thing that still bugged me about the end fight was that Fluffy tried to pull off this play dead stunt... Did you at least hit him with a book?

[Fayd]

Ah, a thing that still bugged me about the end fight was that Fluffy tried to pull off this play dead stunt... Did you at least hit him with a book?

Nope... at the time it was too hilarious, and he didn't have any other action he COULD do other than do nothing, and there's always the ... rare ... chance that the deception check could have worked.

[RdMarquis]

Now I'm a little disappointed that he didn't pull it off, if only for the picture of Fluffy claiming that he was dead, and Temshan believing him completely ("Fluffy dead." "Alright, then.").

Cannaught was attracted to me because of the assassin thing It works.
:smallbiggrin: Heh, that sounds like the premise for a movie (action adventure or a romantic comedy I'd actually consider watching).

[Bharg]

Yeah, while he is negotiating, she is poisoning the other party. :3

...

And she is sexy doing so!

[Fayd]

Epilogue: Temporal Significance

Those who failed their fort and beat the will, or in the case of Morchana, were deemed too pretty to die, were left at 1 HP from death, in vile damage, leaving Cade and Fluffy as our only ambulatory party members. Fortunately, between Cade’s healing and Ignisibrae’s divine assistance the rest of us eventually recover completely. The Grand Duke and Duchess go back to their lives and the Grand Duchery is rebuilt, and Aralt’s land is given to Andris. The Grand Duke basically oversees the ruling of things now, with no actual land of his own. He does a pretty decent job too, now that he’s not being perpetually poisoned and manipulated; there’s no more talk about ousting him from rule.
All former Doomrider soldiers are declared criminals of the realm and are hunted with great enthusiasm. Blacktusk’s remains are used to enhance as much armor as absolutely possible… not a part of her goes to waste, and Tiborem becomes one of the most well equipped cities in the world, and a veritable fortress of a city. Items produced from Blacktusk’s remains include a draconic emblem worn like a badge with the same fear effect as the banner, a necklace whose main accoutrement is the lucky coin pierced through by that last fatal arrow, further reinforcement to the Grand Duke’s personal breastplate… and an earth-bending shovel. (The paladin had a shovel --and about a couple dozen other random knickknacks-- all the way from campaign start, and he ‘just wanted to put one to use, for the heck of it.’)

Though the Duke rules well for a number of years, he and his wife never do manage to produce an heir. Eventually they name their loyal general Cade ‘Fireheart’ successor, and he takes the throne with his wife Lossëlen at his side. The two rule with strength and benevolence for many long years before abdicating in favor of their own children and wandering from the land, vanishing into history. Cade, due to the Heart of the Burning Woods, has longevity equal to or even surpassing an elven lifetime. Around 100 years after the final battle (a little sooner), the Weeping Blade vanishes from his side, presumably to find a new champion. His personally crafted saber, the Dragon Brand, remains behind in the Duchery’s armory alongside Orcripper, the trusty bronze breastplate, the dragon banner and emblem… and the earth-bending shovel. The Brand is a powerful weapon in many hands in the years to come, but it only comes ablaze in the possession of the famed paladin’s descendents…

After the final battle of what comes to be known as the Hellfire War, Morchana is almost immediately married to the new Baron Connaught. To explain her sudden charisma enhancement and large boost to prettiness: At some point during the final battle, the succubus shadow absorbed into her by crawling into a “publicly unmentionable place.” (It apparently felt. . . rather nice.) This thing, called the Andromacht Demonseal, boosts both the charisma and comeliness of its bearer, as well as functioning like the Heart of the Burning Woods (a separate mana pool) with Charm magic instead of Fire. At the wedding, an old friend appears in such a thin yellow dress that no weapons can be hidden on her person: The West Wind, who pledges her loyalty to the Baroness. Morchana also…eventually… deigns to produce an heir, and then lets Connaught have his fun, so long as he’s back in time for dinner. She handles all of the paperwork and rules her part of the Duchery almost entirely without his help. (Though she and her elven friend do occasionally disappear for various ‘errands’, sometimes even for months at a time) Eventually, when Connaught passes away (of old age, surprisingly), she gives the Barony to her children and casts her lot with the West Wind toward parts unknown.

Fluffy has a moment of political genius. And I do not make that statement lightly. He takes the huge tusks he harvested from Blacktusk to the remnants of the Gloweaxe tribe to forge them into an axe, which he has the Ghostdancer shamans enchant. (It’s exactly like the Gloweaxe, except any bonus damage dealt is now Vile instead of unresistable.) With one move, he now has an artifact of succession for all three orc tribes of the region, and cemented himself as the collective Chieftain and absolute Warlord. Eventually, he rescues what is basically the “female copy of himself” from some unfortunate travelling circus during one of their raids of the human lands, and thus does his line continue.

I should note that the human lands they raid do not include the Grand Duchery, as even as early as the end of the war and Vellan’s days of rule Fluffy and his orcs all enjoy an alliance with his friend Shiny Guy. Years after the end of the Hellfire war the Independent Counties, the Grand Duchery’s most aggressive neighbors, begin to mobilize to attempt a takeover; the whole of the orc tribes begin to mobilize as well, and suddenly the Independent Counties decide that an invasion is not such a good idea. For the Duchery’s part of the bargain, well… on a regular schedule throughout the year, carts of food are delivered to various locations and left for the ‘wildlife’. Fluffy eventually passes away of old age, and is buried still wearing the collar that was connected to Keito’s ring.

Keito… disappears. Not an hour after the final battle subsides, her body vanishes. Though lacking her mortal remains, General Rentyr orders a fine headstone crafted in her honor --though he refuses to have it planted. “Call it a hunch,” he supposedly remarked to one curious citizen, a cryptic smirk on his face. Plans for the new art conservatory continue as if nothing happened, and a new half-elf sculptor appears on the scene whose work is described as the spiritual successor of the great Taliesin. (Read: he took on a new face). He is joined by a young elven/half elven apprentice. She’s rather quiet and prone to disappearing for long periods of time, but her silk tapestries and weavings are absolutely stunning. Without a place in the ground, Keito’s headstone (a true work of sculpted art!) is donated to the conservatory and hung in the young apprentice’s studio. :smallwink:


Resurrection in our setting is possible, but heavily restricted. It’s either necromantic magic (and thus frowned upon) or is a particular magic ritual: By sacrificing one level worth of XP, a caster with Ritual Magic can revive their true love with a kiss. Keito’s player was passed a note saying “No love is truer than that of a mother.”
I’m half tempted to make a “Kiss it to make it better” joke here…


Shortly after the battle, I call Swift back, and he is followed by another falcon. In the years to come, a Burning Woods falcon becomes a major status symbol for the nobility, due to several factors, none in the least being that the species is slowly going extinct/evolving away because its home no longer exists as such. (Shrug) And because the diving hawk is the Rentyr family crest. (Though Cade adapts his personal emblem to that of a watchful hunting bird perched protectively over a nest --an attempt to seem less aggressive, he says.)

Kara and I are married shortly after the hubbub dies down. We decide to stay in Tiborem instead of returning to the Gemstone Towers, and when asked what I desired for my reward, I merely ask to have a bit of land for a Library; I had some thoughts of how to run something, and during my travels, I discovered a passion for books and knowledge. I am not given this… instead, the current curator of the Repository of Knowledge “retires” and I am given the job. I begin my work with some massive restructuring. It now runs on the Candlekeep model (or, I suppose, the Spirit Library of Wan Shi Tong from Avatar: The Last Airbender -- bring a book or artifact and you can get in.) In addition, over time, I make some significant modifications to the structure… standard magical library things like interior dimensions greater than external dimensions, spirits of knowledge bound inside magical skulls, the whole nine yards. And as Kara is a master of protective and abjuratory magicks, the Repository can become a nigh-impenetrable fortress in times of danger. In addition, I open another wing as an orphanage and academy for Genasi children, much like myself. Fayd dies of old age, taking the bits of his essence from the Bluepine Javelin and Stormwrack the thundering mace with him. As he prepares to leave the mortal coil, Taliesin, a.k.a The Dragon of the Adamant River, is making his own preparations to return to his slumber.

Karl, acting in his newfound (and rather undesired) role as Archprelate of Laeros, has a difficult task ahead of him: Calming the citizenry he riled up, and explaining to them why a peasant revolt is no longer necessary. I do not envy him.

Thezzick disappears, for the most part. The Rentyr family, with the exception of Mia and Cade, become embroiled in a vicious crusade in their lands against the heathen Kadashari (rumored to be cannibals). Mia and Andris live a tortured existence for several years, as they are deeply in love but Mia’s vows are irrevocable… that is, until news arrives of the demise of Thaddeus Rentyr, Mia’s husband and cause of the first Crusade. The details of his death are mysteriously unexplained, though two elven women from strange lands were seen journeying in the area. Nor is the event investigated with much scrutiny; the Rentyr do not see the death as that much of a loss. For clarification, There Are No [Evil] Rentyr… but if there ever was one suspiciously close, Thaddeus was it. He married into the name and tradition, and though he wore a slick smile and ostensibly performed his duties to a tee, his personal affairs were always shrouded in secrecy and precious few of his new relatives grew to trust him. Prior to the Crusades the primary frustration for Aethan Rentyr, one of the clan’s foremost detectives, was the inability to pin anything conclusive on his brother-in-law.

Regardless, with Thaddeus’ not-quite mourned death Mia and Andris swiftly married and enjoyed many long years together. Aethan Rentyr disappeared on a journey to determine his own sense of justice, just as his younger brother Cade had before him.

Several hundred years later, the Rentyr war bands would be assisted in battle by a clan of barbarians, and after the battle ended, they would attempt to convert them to the worship of the god Laeros… only to discover, much to their confusion, that the barbarians already worshiped Laeros.

Shortly after the conclusion of the Hellfire War, a rather dramatic and troubling event strikes the Thousand Kingdoms (the nation southwest of the Grand Duchery, across the Chromatic Ocean). Referred to as the Year of Regicide, each and every one of the 1000 rulers of the land mysteriously drops dead. No cause is ever found, and there is little to link the murders together… save that shortly before their death, each ruler had a portrait painted. It is hypothesized that lasting peace may have been achieved in the region had this not happened.

And thus does the story of the Doomriders and the Hellfire War end. Thank you for your patience and I hope you enjoyed our telling of the adventure as much as we enjoyed playing in it! You have my sincerest gratitude. Thanks are also owed to both Cade’s and Morchana’s players for helping me edit this massive document, and to Tam, for without him, this entire thing would never have happened. Also: Lossëlen, Keito, and Fluffy… thanks. You made the game fun.


-Fayd.

P.S. Please join me wishing Morchana's and Fluffy's Players many happy years together. Today is their wedding day!

[Drothmal]

Just wanted to say thank you on a fantastic read. It has been a GREAT time reading your campaign and I (and presumably a lot of other people in this forums) want to thank you for taking the time to write it all up to share it with us

Best to Morchana's and Fluffy's players!

Now to wait until the next adventure....:smallbiggrin:

[Eldariel]

Woah, congrats!

[Bharg]

My best wishes to Morchana's and Flurry's players! Congratulations!
I am pleasantly surprised and kinda confused. Hopefully I will get the strange picture of Morchana and Fluffy out of my head soon enough since I am (automatically) picturing all of you as your characters.

Thanks to all of you for your effort. A great journal and I hope it is not your last one. :smallwink:

Also kinda surprised how everything turned out for your characters. Cade and Loss�ëlen, Morchana and Cannaught, Fluffy and female Fluffy, Fayd and Kara, Keito, yeah, probably Keito... and they lived happoly ever after. Didn't expect that kind of epilogue.

[MountainKing]

This has been one of the best campaign journals I've ever read, and frankly, it was fantastic! Thank you guys so much for sharing the story; it was definitely worth the waiting. :smallsmile:

Two more things:

1.) CONGRATULATIONS FLUFFY AND MORCHANA!!!

2.) ...Fluffy... hungry? :smallamused:

[Tam_OConnor]

And now that everything's wrapped up for that campaign, I'm open to questions on what might have been. I'll also post stat-blocks of villains or NPCs you're curious about; you'll have to ask PCs for theirs, though.

A bit on the plot arcs that weren't taken:
The first real divergence point was if the party had followed the Doomriders after the raid on River's Bend, before or after the defense of the Longpipe farm. This could have led to the party figuring out what the Doomriders were doing much earlier, and maybe prevent the fall of Castle Aralt. They would also have discovered the orcish involvement much sooner, having a chance to intercept the Ghost Dancers before they took over the siege of Castle Aralt. They would have had to meet more of the NPCs in the field, though, and the tournament arc would have been missed entirely. Erin and Taliesin would probably have been less on-screen. At this point, though, the campaign would have been a fundamentally different beast.

By the time the party left for Eight Ape Isle, Morchana at least knew where the Doomriders were encamped. They could have used those three (?) weeks for advanced scouting (or potential infiltration of the Doomrider camp), or trying to break the Aralt or Connaught siege without the benefit of an army. The original plan was for them to attempt an assassination against either Temshan or Gabraal the Younger (though this could also have been part of the previous arc).

I was surprised they didn't go after Gabraal the Younger when Swift saw him near Fort Connaught. Could have made the final battle much easier.

The PCs also never saw the Ghost Dancers in action, or their chieftess (who had a really nice magical item). Two of my friends took on the roles of Connaught the Elder and Younger when commanding the defenses of River's Bend, and they more or less wiped out the clan, warriors, necromancers and undead. They were also the brains behind the Knowledge (tactics) checks in breaking the siege of Fort Connaught.

The party never went to Stinging Bay, something I was expecting Morchana to insist on. Jellyfish poison! They might also have been able to find out the source of the bay's heat.

Karl's rebellion was less significant than it otherwise would have been, because of the a) dismissal of Karl's Fanatics at River's Bend, b) burning of lands between River's Bend and Tiborem and c) that the party confronted him with news that a Demon Lord was trying to enter the material plane.

Lossëlen's sub-plot got chopped off before the end (again, because I thought the school year was longer). The Prince was a potential ally in the battle for Tiborem (ice golems), or might have teamed up with the West Wind to harry the party.

The entire campaign end had the timeline rushed. The party was supposed to have enough time to actually direct the liberation of Tiborem, and fight Temshan (and Gabraal the Younger, if he was still alive) outside of the keep. Temshan would be fighting a holding action, trying to keep the PCs outside long enough for the cultists to finish the ritual. If he'd held them long enough (win or lose), Prince Twister would've been the final battle. At level 10 (Temshan was 9th, Gabraal the Lesser was 7th). Twice (once as the spell-focused Prince Twister and second as the combat-focused Oncoming Storm). So the original ending battle was going to be even more ridiculous.

There was a small unit of Yavanna dervishes from up north that was attacking the Doomriders from that direction. They were stupidly well equipped; I believe their leader (Captain Piroska) was using Yavanna's own sabers. As in, the weapons of the girl that took down Malconflagrat. She might have been willing to loan them out.

Some things from the final battle that the party didn't see: If the cultists had managed to live longer, demons would have started slipping in. Fluffy-sized ones. No one managed the Observation checks to catch Lady Erin in the act, so no 'HOT ELVES WITH KNIVES! TODAY ONLY! THERE WILL BE SNEAK ATTACK DICE!'


On the defense of the gate:
Thezzick, Taliesin, Andris, Mia and Karl vs 25 Doomriders. Per wave. All told, they destroyed two complete waves, with a bare few from the second wave breaking into the main chamber. Malconflagrat's roar scattered a third wave. But by that point, they'd been pushed back to up against the door to the main chamber, instead of holding the keep gate.

Thezzick has Hordebreaker. While power attacking, he couldn't not kill a Doomrider with one blow from Squisher. His record was eight kills in a row. That was the context of the 'You're literally swimming in bodies" quote.

Mia had a close call, a charging critical that left her in the single digits. That was one of the reasons for the retreat.

Karl was grappled and pinned, with another Doomrider about to start with the disemboweling when Mal's roar sent both foes running. That was the other reason for the regrouping on the gates.
Fayd and I are working on a wiki for my system; I hope to have the wiki presentable by the time Fayd starts the next campaign journal (two to four weeks?).

Thank you all for the wonderful support.

[RdMarquis]

Congratulations on your wedding, you Fluffy and Morchana. I wish you both the best.

Incidentally, to whoever bet on Morchana/Fluffy being canon, the wager was for the characters, not the players to get together, so no winnings for you.

Also, I'm a little confused by what happened in the 1000 kingdoms. Is this an "Or is it?" ending where there is still evidence of people trying to summon Prince Twister? Or did the bad guys give you one last kick in the face?

Either way, thank every one of you for some of the most fun I've had reading in a while.

[Fayd]

Also, I'm a little confused by what happened in the 1000 kingdoms. Is this an "Or is it?" ending where there is still evidence of people trying to summon Prince Twister? Or did the bad guys give you one last kick in the face?

Actually, it was Lady Erin. She has a magic paintbrush that destroys whatever she paints... she used it on us at the end of the campaign... and in fact, the only reason we had a chance to survive it at all was that it was little more than a quick sketch. Tam can explain the artifact (and its previous/future uses) better than I can.

[Fizban]

Excellent campaign journal. While the entries might sometimes seem short for how long they were in production, any disappointment is made up for by knowing that every single person involved had input, so you know you got all the details (and really, only so much can happen in one session). Having both the DM and players comments makes for a much better picture than just one side. I look forward to reading your system wiki and the next journal.

Happy Wedding Morchana and Fluffy! ('s players).

[Bharg]

Is there going to be another journal, Fayd? :smallredface:

[Cade Rentyr]

Is there going to be another journal, Fayd? :smallredface:

Yup. We'll try to be a bit better about update speed too. In all honesty, it's mostly been my fault for all the delays --I'm a stickler for detail, I edit slowly, AND I've generally been dragging my feet concerning the topic. I'm starting to figure out how to work more efficiently, however, and with us all going back to school together again the whole process should be a lot more streamlined.

[Feichi]

I would like to snark-tastically point out that Knowledge (Pokemon) effectively won the battle against the evil centaur.

Popsicle used toxic!
Popsicle used leech seed!
Fayd used protect!

Repeat! XD

[Fayd]

I do have to admit... that is about as close to the situation as we could get!

... Though, what are the odds of 5 consecutive Protects atually working?

[Snowstar]

LEECH SEED! That's awesome. :smallsmile:

[Alleine]

That was truly an amazing campaign journal! Thank you very much for sharing it with us.

And congrats to Fluffy and Morchana's players!

[Bharg]

I'll miss popsicle... :smallfrown:

Cade/Lossëlen... I didn't expect that. Did they do stuff together during the campaign. How?

[MountainKing]

...well you see Bharg, when a man and a popscicle love each other very much... :smallbiggrin:

[Bharg]

How as in how did they become a couple... :smallfrown:

[Snowstar]

We had a nice (romantic?) conversation in front of the burning woods that Fayd might not have recorded. I've also been trying to spike his drink with love potion since the day we met.

[Bharg]

Oh, I remember... and did it work?

[RdMarquis]

We had a nice (romantic?) conversation in front of the burning woods that Fayd might not have recorded. I've also been trying to spike his drink with love potion since the day we met.

Is Morchana being a bad influence on you?

[Bharg]

Why didn't Fayd record tis conversation? Air... -head.
(You know... Since he's a genasi, right? :>)

[Grimlock]

Great journal Fayd and co. I've reallyenjoyed reading this! Looking forward to the next campaign and congrats to the happy couple. :smallsmile:

[Fayd]

Why didn't Fayd record tis conversation? Air... -head.
(You know... Since he's a genasi, right? :>)

One, it being my perspective, I wasn't privy to the conversation. Two, I mentioned it in passing. Three, excellent joke, good sir.

No, the love potion didn't actually get used... he had caught wind of it earlier and moved to cut off the situation before it occurred, largely by making it completely unnecessary.

And love potions don't exist anyway. Lust potions certainly, but I don't believe there can ever be a potion that creates true love. And as the only readily available "Love" potion uses Red Origigert as a primary component... well... you can guess where that's headed.

And there WAS a detail in the epilogue I forgot to mention. The Longpipes. They are rewarded by the Baron Connaught (So, really, by the Baroness) with a title of minor nobility (enough to reward them, but not enough to make them uppity.) They complete their river redirection project in record time, almost as if the river itself is helping them. They (the actual original family and their new refugees) never stop fortifying their farm, and in time, the farm of Longpipe becomes the village of Longpipe, which becomes the city and fortress of Longpipe. Being RIGHT next to the River Adamant is very good for business.

And yes, I fully intend to relate our next set of exploits to you all (and to badger some poor person in the other campaign to do the same!)

[Bharg]

I'm sorry. I actually knew you mentioned it in there. :smallfrown:

The small fanboy inside of me cries for more info...

[Fayd]

I'm sorry. I actually knew you mentioned it in there. :smallfrown:

The small fanboy inside of me cries for more info...

Hey, to be honest, I thought your comment hilarious, so I'm sorry if I sounded annoyed. I wasn't. :smallbiggrin: And I can't recall any details, or I would gladly give them, sorry! My own memory is my biggest stumbling block as a chronicler. I remember battles and actions just fine. It's conversations that slip by me.

[Bharg]

Yay! :smallbiggrin: Let's ask, popsicle!

[RdMarquis]

And yes, I fully intend to relate our next set of exploits to you all (and to badger some poor person in the other campaign to do the same!)

Great! Hope your next journal is as fun to read as this was (I'm actually tempted to write about the campaign I'm running now after reading your journal). Do you have any idea about what the setting will be?

[Fayd]

Great! Hope your next journal is as fun to read as this was (I'm actually tempted to write about the campaign I'm running now after reading your journal). Do you have any idea about what the setting will be?

Same setting... I don't know which campaign I'll be in though. We either have Pirates of the Wispwater, set in our world's Underdark's vast underground ocean, or Adenar by Cometlight, over in the country of... Adenar... when a very particular, and peculiar, celestial body decides to visit.

[Bharg]

Wow, there is probably nothing cooler (or hotter) than an underdark drow pirate queen. :smallamused:

I thought Tam wanted to test his martial art system? Is that one of those games?

[Fayd]

Well, not to spoil too much, but in Adenar by Cometlight, we are HIGHLY suggested to play martial characters. VERY HIGHLY SUGGESTED.

[Bharg]

Only unarmed martial arts or is there also some sword sag-ery?

[Fayd]

Let me put it this way. In Adenar by Cometlight, due to a story event, the entire world (and everything in it) has it's Caster Level reduced by 5. In a system where mortals only ever reach level 10, and there are no ways to increase caster level above character level... Yeah.

The martial arts system affects every class to an extent. Martial Artists, the closest thing our system has to monks, (oh, and they are not sucky by any stretch of the imagination...) are the best with it, but Swashbucklers and Knights also use the system to a great extent. Rogues have slightly more limited access, but they too have some martial tricks. Mages... really don't get much at all, as it should be. The system is unlike anything I've ever seen, and in a good way.

Expect swords, daggers, meteor hammers, hook swords, and all manner of interesting and odd assorted weaponry. Expect crazy action!

[Bharg]

Some elemental bending stuffs, too? :\

You all decided against hot drow underdark pirate queens?

[Tam_OConnor]

I'm all for hot drow pirate queens. Fear the dreaded corsair Nobeard!

[Fayd]

Some elemental bending stuffs, too? :\

You all decided against hot drow underdark pirate queens?

Elemental bending stuff is easily possible, and in more than one way.

And characters/players have not been chosen for either campaign yet. Just saying.

[Bharg]

I'm all for hot drow pirate queens. Fear the dreaded corsair Nobeard!
You so have to use those, Tam. :smallwink:

So elemental bending if not affected by the -5 casterlevel?

[Fayd]

You so have to use those, Tam. :smallwink:

So elemental bending if not affected by the -5 casterlevel?

It's not magic, which is the brilliant thing!

[Bharg]

So the dragon used earth bending and not earth magic that looks like earth bending? :smalleek:

[Fayd]

In her case, it was earth magic that looked like earthbending. However, there are ways to mimic it, in some capacity, without spellcasting.

[Bharg]

I knew dragons couldn't kick high enough to become decent earth benders.
Anyways, are those martial arts user really supposed to co exist with the other normal classes? So you are combining Avatar with normal Fantasy?
Hard to balance and offer enough fun stuff for everyone without just handing out a spell list to the fighters as well...
(You should also watch Afro Samurai... Feudal Cyber Japan is an awesome setting! It's a bit violent, too.)

[Fayd]

I knew dragons couldn't kick high enough to become decent earth benders.
Anyways, are those martial arts user really supposed to co exist with the other normal classes? So you are combining Avatar with normal Fantasy?
Hard to balance and offer enough fun stuff for everyone without just handing out a spell list to the fighters as well...
(You should also watch Afro Samurai... Feudal Cyber Japan is an awesome setting! It's a bit violent, too.)

They coexist rather well, actually. All of the stuff is built on the same system hub, so... it works out. ALL of the classes are really flexible. A Rogue is more than a sneaker in the shadows.

"The Rogue is a clever fellow, who could design a bridge, build a bridge, charge taxes for the bridge, encourage a city to grow up around the bridge, rule the city, and contract out adventurers to defend the bridge, then backstab them once they come to collect their payment. The Rogue is a master of skills, and specializes in less than fair fights: whether taking each and every cheap shot or fighting a running battle."

Barbarians aren't all illiterate strongmen. They're people who fight with passion, almost literally. Mages cover everything from the dark necromancers, the archmages in their ivory towers, and those holy men chosen by the gods themselves. Gish covers everything from spellblades to paladin to arcane archers. Martial artists are weapons masters, bar brawlers, Benders, and other such things.

[Bharg]

How is that different from the normal D&D rogues?

[Fayd]

How is that different from the normal D&D rogues?

More skill points with less total available skills? ...though you have a bit of a point.

[Tam_OConnor]

A short list: 10 + Int mod skills per level, all skills as class skills, a choice between sneak attack and skirmish, and an ability at 6th and 10th that increases Base Attack, Class Defense, Magical ability, Martial Arts ability, saves or more skill points.

Other than that, though, the Rogue has changed the least.

[Bharg]

Did you try to make skills more useful and powerful?

(for example by easier access to some useable, quicker feinting, translating climb and swim into swim and climb speed, higher maximum ranks?)

[Fayd]

The entire skill system got an overhaul, with the DCs changing appropriately... skills can be very powerful. Highlights:

Max ranks=Character level. If a skill is a class skill, and you have a rank in it, you get a +3 bonus to it (which increases to +6 at level 6). Cross-class skills only costs 1 skill point. Synergies are given at 2 skill ranks and again at 6 ranks. Some martial arts styles and feats grant bonuses to skills, and some grant bonuses to rolls, making for very powerful skill rolls.

And for feinting and such, we borrowed Pathfinder's Combat Maneuver system.

[Cade Rentyr]

And characters/players have not been chosen for either campaign yet. Just saying.

Hey now, speak for yourself Fayd. Personally, I'm set to visit the other corner of the alignment pool with a Chaotic Good swashbuckler. Where I was previously investigating aristocrat household robberies, now I will be sneaking away with the goods. :smallbiggrin:

[Bharg]

So shiny guy stays shiny guy? :smallbiggrin:

The skill system sounds nice: some pathfinder in it, new dcs, synergies (I hope there a synergies for everything). What I also really don't like about the old system is the treatment of the knowledge, profession and craft skills. They weren't important at atll since in the end it's just a hack 'n' slash system, but they could be a nice tool to personalize a character. And I think each character has to know at least something.

[Fayd]

So shiny guy stays shiny guy? :smallbiggrin:

The skill system sounds nice: some pathfinder in it, new dcs, synergies (I hope there a synergies for everything). What I also really don't like about the old system is the treatment of the knowledge, profession and craft skills. They weren't important at atll since in the end it's just a hack 'n' slash system, but they could be a nice tool to personalize a character. And I think each character has to know at least something.

In our system, they're important if you don't want to be poor. Our system has a heavy combat focus, but at the same time, confrontations can be "won" entirely through skills. See Morchana's exploits with the whole gala. Not a single dagger used.

Crafting allows us to make equipment for less than we can buy it. Knowledges are broad and distinct and can very definitely help in the situation. Profession... I got nothing. I'm not sure how they help one beyond a source of extra income, which, because monsters don't bleed gold coins... is rather helpful.

[Bharg]

I'm sure Morchana could writer her own journal filled with all her exploits and social life, information gathering. :smallbiggrin:
I also find individual language skills quite interesting. In Shadowrun you even have hobby skills just describing an activity your character likes or related knowledge for example about elven pop music.

Professions are not really useful in standard D&D and closely related to Craft as far as I know. Craft Woodwork -> Profession Builder. Stuff like that.

Seperating the points you can spend on practical knowledge and skills and theoretical knowledge and skills could be an interesting option.

[Tam_OConnor]

The way d20 Modern put it, which I felt was very helpful: Craft is manufacturing industry, Profession is service industry. Service industry jobs tend not to be helpful to adventurers, since their 'profession' is adventurer.

Craft, Perform and Profession are class skills for everyone. There is, however, some overlap between the skills: cooking muffins for yourself is a Craft (cooking) check. Working in a tavern kitchen is a Profession (Cook) check. Cooking steak with flair and pizazz for an audience is a Perform (Cooking) check. Note that a dedicated chef may well have ranks in all three skills.

In a few cases, Profession doesn't cover a given service: sages use the various Knowledges, architects use Knowledge (engineering), adventurers use a whole bunch of things, translators use Language, and so on.

As far as the practical/theoretical divide: isn't that pretty much what separates Craft and Knowledge already?

[Bharg]

Huh, I guess your are right. I just never found knowledge skills worth it, but that probably depends on the style of the campaign anyways.

[MountainKing]

Odd; I recently had my wizard take Open Minded just so I could get more skillpoints for Knowledge skills. In a world where custom monsters float about and the players are kind of in the dark about the big question words, even having just ONE rank in a skill can help a ton.

[Tam_OConnor]

Oi, MountainKing, random question: whereabouts on the Michigan Mitten are you? I'm a native of A^2.

[MountainKing]

Dead in the center, mate. If you're interested in finding out further details, shoot me a PM. :smallbiggrin:

[Fayd]

Hey now, speak for yourself Fayd. Personally, I'm set to visit the other corner of the alignment pool with a Chaotic Good swashbuckler. Where I was previously investigating aristocrat household robberies, now I will be sneaking away with the goods. :smallbiggrin:

True. That isn't to say I don't have a (half-dozen) ideas that I'm toying with myself... quite a few fun thoughts.

[Bharg]

So it's possible or even likely that you guys split up? :smallconfused:

[Fayd]

So it's possible or even likely that you guys split up? :smallconfused:

As it happens, we are a little, but we're still all friends! Stay tuned for more details!

[flabort]

Staying tuned, DON'T WORRY!

[Tam_OConnor]

DON'T PANIC.

Groups for this year have been decided. Fayd/Cade/Losselen and three-ish more are in the serious campaign (first session this Friday) and Morchana/Fluffy + two to three are in the silly campaign (first session this Sunday).

I only have gear and spell specializations to post to the wiki, and then we'll supply that URL.

GO ABOUT YOUR BUSINESS, CITIZENS. THE COMPUTER IS YOUR FRIEND. PANICKING IS TREASON. TREASON IS PUNISHABLE BY EXECUTION. HAVE A NICE DAY.

[RdMarquis]

Great. I'll look forward to reading it.

[Fayd]

Aye, and I look forward to playing/journaling Adanar by Cometlight.

[DancingMonkey]

.. I don't see Keito's name in that list? :smalleek:

[Fayd]

Ah. Her player is with me in Adanar. He'll be playing a man this time, for far less pronoun confusion.

[Cade Rentyr]

.. I don't see Keito's name in that list? :smalleek:

Woops, sorry, her player's in Adenar with Fayd, Losselen and me.

[Bharg]

Time to introduce the new cast! :D

[Kaulesh]

DON'T PANIC.

...

GO ABOUT YOUR BUSINESS, CITIZENS. THE COMPUTER IS YOUR FRIEND. PANICKING IS TREASON. TREASON IS PUNISHABLE BY EXECUTION. HAVE A NICE DAY.

So, does the silly campaign involve Paranoia at all? :smallamused:

And one of the players of the silly game should be bribed to also do a campaign journal.

[Morchana]

And one of the players of the silly game should be bribed to also do a campaign journal.

What will you give me? :smallbiggrin:

[Fayd]

Time to introduce the new cast! :D

Once they all exist? Sure thing.

[Kaulesh]

What will you give me? :smallbiggrin:

How about a nice selection of sharp daggers and rare poisons?

[Eldariel]

How about a nice selection of sharp daggers and rare poisons?

Don't forget to include some dull ones. Real professionals use those for the particularly pestersome individuals.

[Fayd]

So: Adanar by Cometlight begins tonight. First session will be posted as soon as I finish (and Cade's player gives it a good look-over).

[flabort]

Sweet!
new threads for the new campaigns, or same thread?

[Fayd]

New thread, I think. De-clutter and all that.

[flabort]

when you start it, could you post a link here?
twould help find the new one, since a lot of us have lazily "subscribed" to this one, and can't be bothered to check the "roleplaying" games page itself.

[Fayd]

Oh, of course. If Pirates of the Wispwater ends up getting a journal, we will post a link to that here as well.

[Fayd]

I present to you, Adanar By Cometlight (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=166176)

[Gothmog]

...and there was much rejoicing, and anticipation of awesomeness...

Thanks for sharing your fun with us !
/back to lurk mode

[Tam_OConnor]

On the off chance that someone is still reading this thread: the wiki (http://umzamo.wikia.com/wiki/Umzamo_Wiki).

[flabort]

thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouth ankyou