Darkworld OOC

[Zed's Dead]

Ok. I've decided to post the rules, etc. of Darkworld here so we won't have to hunt down the recruitment thread if we have questions about the rules.

The World:
Imagine Earth's dark ages if the old tales were true. The denizens of this world are accustomed to hardship and heartache. Life here is nasty, brutish, and short. Food and resources are scarce, and folks survive on their wits, strength, and cunning. All who have lived more than a few winters have seen true monsters firsthand, and those who survive here are either lucky or have banded together to find strength in numbers.

Warlords call or force the able-bodied to swell their hordes, and they ravage the land for what they need--unless they, themselves, are ravaged by the horrors that walk the night.

Some believe in magic, though most of the stories are of cruel mages who bend both the elements and reality to their will, to the peril and suffering of the common folk under their heels.

A very few have found some tenuous safety in remote regions, where disciplined learning can take place, but even fewer have seen what good could ever come from such wasteful efforts.

The landscape dotted with an ocasional fortified town. That is where all the "civilized" people live--behind the walls that are built and guarded day and night by both average citizens and millitiamen--the few hundred surviving souls who are the decendants of a vast, learned empire. But none now know much about that ancient history.

Somehow, humanity has survived. Some believe that the creatures of the darkness allow them to live so they can continue to feed. Others believe that the hands of the gods protect them from the outer darkness. Wherever the truth lies, these small communities do continue to eke out an existance year after year, though the numbers of these settlements dwindle with each passing winter.

The only hope one has in this life is to accomplish something so great that he will be remembered by those who follow him. The only comfort one could take from this life are the momentary earthly pleasures of the body or whatever spiritual succor his beliefs allow him.

Technology:
The technology is on the low end of the D&D player's handbook. I'll not allow any technology of the renaissance, such as spyglasses, etc. Think Beowulf (the epic poem, not the CG movie). If you have a question, ask.

Geography: The physical map is identical to Earth. Of course, political maps have little or no meaning, since Human and Humanoid existence has been reduced to a question of survival, rather than progress. The few warlords who have scraped together enough resources and mercenaries to matter call themselves kings, but they are only savage barbarians, most of whom have no vision beyond a day or two into the future.

Culture: In all respects, Darkworld is culturally identical to rural europe of two thousand years ago. Demi-humans do live among humans in the scattered towns, but they are more likely to live in the woods (elves), underground (dwarves) or on the steppes (Uruks).

Story:
The story begins in the town of Stone, located in modern-day Austria. Your character has come to this place for one of many possible reasons:

1. Stone is home to a healing "hot spring," which provides fresh water, curative properties, and a holy site for the worship of Ashar, the god of the earth.

2. Garvan, a dwarven smith, is regionally famous for his weapon and armor making. His works are the best, but are quite expensive.

3. The Lord of Stone, Harvalld, has sent messengers to the surrounding towns of Svalt, Morgh, and Vilth for warriors to help him complete a special mission. He promises fame to those who answer the call and successfully complete the mission.

4. A strange, bright rock from the sky was reported to have fallen near Stone, and its fragments were collected and brought to Stone. Learned people could perhaps benefit from the knowledge gleaned from its composition.

Darkworld Campaign Setting Appendix:

There are places where women are treated like property, but in Stone and surrounding communities, they realize that not to use the skills and abilities of women would be tantamount to suicide. Treat women as equals for this region.

Travel between the walled towns is extremely dangerous, and most humanoid travel takes place in a kind of caravan of necessity. When enough people decide they need to travel to a town, they arm and provision themselves, band together, and form a temporary fighting unit in order to improve their chances of surviving the trek.

The game begins in the middle of winter--around the first week of January. Stone lies in the foothills of the Alps, about 50 miles northeast of Innsbruck, so the temprature hovers around 20 degrees fahrenheit at midday and falls to the negative digits fahrenheit at night.

Material components
I want all arcane casters to use material components for all spells. Collecting and using these components is a matter of fluff, however. Modify or replace the specific material components listed in the PHB, if you wish, in order to fit your character concept, but please write in some description when you cast a spell. At this level, all divine spells are cast using only a holy symbol (unless you have cool fluff to add). This ruling is purely for flavor--to add savor.

Languages
The trade languages of the old empires have suffered linguistic shift, so the Common Trade Language, Varsa, is not universal. However, in the course of your travels, you have picked up enough to make yourself understood to anyone who speaks Varsa. The degree of difficulty of understanding is up to you--ranging from fluent to quite basic. The fluctuations between regional versions of the Varsa can be as narrow as the dialectical shifts between the United states Yankees and Southerners or as wide as the difference between Modern English and Middle English (or even as wide as Modern English and Old English).

Varsa is a bonus language for every player.

Homelands
Thanks to those who have described their homeland/tribe and pinpointed their Earth-based geographical location. If you haven't done this, please do so.

Creatures (this denotes any living [or non-living] beings)
I'm assembling a list of creatures that you would be likely to have encountered in your travels and in your homelands. I'll give this list only to the players I select, because it's a lot of work. This is not Faerun or Greyhawk, so many of the standard D&D monsters will be absent or rare, while those which are lesser-known or more common to Earth may be more prominent. Knowledge skills (bolstered by high intelligence) will be necessary for you to have any idea of what you face, unless they are common creatures. However, after you have faced a creature and see how it operates, you will have no problems. General rule: low DCs for common creatures, high DCs for uncommon creatures.

Equipment
I'll allow you to have single-use magical items. Five single-use magical items count as one of your two allowed magical items.

Some notes on death and dying:

1. It's permanent. No exceptions.

2. EDIT: CHANGED "MODIFIER" TO "SCORE" When HP fall below zero, the character dies when reduced below his/her con score, not -10.

extreme example: Ulric, a barbarian, has a con score of 15 -- 19 when he's raging. He takes a hit that reduces him to -19 HP. If he is healed to -15 hp or higher before his rage would normally end, he doesn't die. If he isn't healed in that time, if he loses one HP from not making his stabilizing roll, or if the healing gets him only to -16 or lower before his rage ends, he dies.

normal example: Lars, a druid, has a con score of 19. At -19 HP, he is still
alive. If he loses one HP for any reason--not being stabilized, lingering spell effects, etc., he dies.

3. This permadeath is mitigated somewhat by much stronger healing rituals and full HP at all levels.

4. If your character dies, I will allow you to roll up a new character and begin play in a timely, yet (hopefully) believable way, and without the usual -1 character level "adjustment" that RAW stipulates.


You could certainly trade any number of items for things like food, lodging, etc. on your travels. The items could be as simple as jewels, old coins, beads, pottery, etc. I'm not interested in bogging down the thread with a GP by GP accounting, so we'll make those kinds of transations purely as colorful description. Barter is the only effective mode of commerce. Other characters might trade furs or minerals or supplies of other sorts. Let's say 5 GP per week to pay for upkeep if you're staying in town, and zero if you're out of town, assuming you make your survival checks!

Druidic Language
There is not a single druidic language, but instead a set of divergent languages which at some time in the distant past branched away from Old Dreyitic. You may call your Circle's "Druidic" tongue what you will (if you're playing a Druid), but it would be extra cool if you made the name phonemically similar to Old Dreyitic. Consider the Romance languages' departure from Latin as a model.

Though all true Druids consider their language to be secret (for different reasons),some of the written forms of the language have died out, while others have proliferated. In Darkworld, Druids from different traditions and different parts of the world do share a common Runic alphabet, which they can all use to send simple, private messages with one another and leave each other signs in the wilderness.

The abilities to write and speak the local Druidic language and write the common Rune language are free to Druids.





The Rules:


1. What game system are you running?

3.5 core with a few exceptions

2. What 'type' or variant of game will it be?

Darkworld, a homebrew fantasy setting -- as gritty and dark as you could possibly wish.

3. How many Players are you looking for?

Only two to three players, tops -- hence, the gestalt build. This should help with game lag. Perhaps 1 or 2 alternates, if there are several entries of quality.

4. What's the gaming medium (OOTS, chat, e-mail etc.)?

OOTS

5. What is the characters' starting status (i.e. experience level)?

Level 3

6. How much gold or other starting funds will the characters begin with?

equivalent of 4,000 GP. There is not a viable monetary system in Darkworld. Gems, old coins, etc. are only as valuable as the person you're trading with would believe them to be. There is no government or empire to mint coins or establish elaborate trade practices. All exchange is based on straight trading or barter.

7. Are there any particular character classes, ...?

No bards. Yes, I'm hatin' on the bards. I'm not against a character having ranks in perform--in fact, that would be quite cool, but there is no magical ability in such performances. Also, no professions, orders, etc. which would not fit the game. See the World Description for guidance.

8. What races, subraces, ...?

Core phb only. No gnomes, halflings, or half-elves. Half-orcs are exactly the same crunch-wise, but call them Uruks and take away the -2 cha penalty. They are a viable race of their own, not some kind of half-breed race based on rape.

9. By what method should Players generate their attributes/ability scores and Hit Points?

32 point buy. full HP every level.

10. Does your game use alignment? What are your restrictions, if so?

No alignment, period. No alignment-based spells, etc. We'll work with allegiances. put your 5 most important allegiances on your character sheet as a numbered list in your backstory, in order of importance, greatest to least.

11. Do you allow multi-classing, or have any particular rules in regards to it?

Gestalt, but you have to stay with your 2 core-only (phb) gestalt classes for the entire game. No PrCs and no changing classes.

12. Will you be doing all of the die rolling...

You roll all your own rolls. I roll everything else. Roll in the IC thread in a spoiler. If you cheat, you're out. Roll attack, damage, and crits at the same time to avoid double posts and to avoid game lag.

13. Are there any homebrewed or optional/variant rules...

Gestalt

core only (with a few specific examples)

full HP all levels

extremely rare magic items (I'll allow two magic items per character at
3rd level

no alignment-specific spells or effects. we'll use allegiances instead.
XP is based on successful accomplishments and not monster killing (though there will be lots of combat)

no Grease spell (I hate that spell)

Some class variants from Unearthed Arcana are available (just ask)

You may trade two weapon/armor proficiencies for one feat at first level (ex: a fighter can trade heavy armor and martial weapon proficiency for one extra feat at first level) no spiked chains or other cheese builds--I'll figure out other stuff as I go.

No flaws/traits

All skills are available as class skills to all players, except spellcraft, which will
only be available to casters.

Add one skill-based bonus feat at first level. This MUST be tied directly to your backstory.

Spoken languages are as normal, but reading/writing literacy must be bought for FOUR skill points per language, as very few folks are literate in Darkworld.

Casters are extremely rare in Darkworld, but absolutely welcome in the
game. Work it into your backstory and be prepared to deal with
suspicious NPCs.

Arcane casters will get one 0-level spell already selected as an at-will supernatural ability. This is a one-time choice, and the spell selection can never be changed.

Healing Rituals

Healing spells in Darkworld are exactly the same as RAW, except as follows:

The healing ritual is a divine ability which allows a cleric or other divine caster to use her healing power to its best advantage.

A divine caster may perform the ritual once per day, and may heal a number of persons equal to her wisdom modifier (including herself, if she wishes). For example, a cleric with a Wisdom mod of +2 could either heal two others during the healing ritual, or heal herself and one other.

The subjects of the healing ritual must be within reach of each other to be affected by the ritual. If a subject leaves the circle, he benefits in proportion to the amount of time he spent in the circle. If he returns, he may continue to gain the benefits of the ritual.

The divine caster must cast a healing spell in order to begin the ritual. The benefits gained by the subjects of the healing spell depend upon the level of the spell being cast. Clerics with the Healing doman do no have to cast a spell in order to perform the healing ritual, but in order to accomplish this, they must make a sacrifice to their deity or spirit worth the equivalent of 20 GP.

The specifics of the ritual are up to the individual caster and her deity, but they must be described with appropriate detail (at least the first time the ritual is performed).

The time of casting depends on the level of the caster, not the level of the healing spell being cast.

aster Level 1-3= 1 hour
Caster Level 4-6 - 3/4 hour
Caster Level 7-9 = 1/2 hour
Caster Level 10-20 = 1/4 hour

0 - Cure minor wounds - cures 8 HP+1/caster level.

1 - Cure light wounds - cures 16 HP+1/caster level.

2 - Cure Moderate Wounds - cures 24 HP+1/caster level.

3 - Cure Serious Wounds - cures 32 HP +1/caster level.

4 - Cure Critical Wounds - cures 40 HP +1/caster level.

5 - Cure Light Wounds, Mass - Cures 48 HP +1/caster level.

6 - Cure Moderate Wounds, Mass - Cures 56 HP +1/caster level.

7 - Cure Serious Wounds, Mass - Cures 64 HP +1/caster level.

8 - Cure Critical Wounds, Mass - Cures 72 HP +1/caster level.

9 - Heal, Mass - Cures 100 HP +1/caster level as well as any diseases or mental conditions.

Toughness Feat gives +1 HP per level.

Put all mods (such as rage), equipment weight and cost, detailed backstory, etc. on a hyperlinked character sheet.

14. Is a character background required? If so, how big? Are you looking for anything in particular (i.e. the backgrounds all ending up with the characters in the same city)?

Yep. I want you to tell the story of your character's life up to this point. The more detailed, the better. Avoid cliche. Go creative. Avoid simple archetype stories. See the world description to see where you fit in, and just write away. Writing ability is a big factor in getting in this game. It's all about the flavor. You must all have traveled to a small villiage called Stone by the beginning of the game. Feel free to name and create your town of origin, the names of important people and places in your life, and even the mythology of your particular region. Your gods are your own to create, as are your cultural influences, based on rural Europe of about three thousand years ago. If you are from a learned tradition (monk, certain styles of cleric, wizard, etc.), then you must be from a part of the world at least a thousand miles away, and from a southern latitude. Feel free to imagine this as you wish. It will become part of the world. If I need to change something specific, I will. Remember, absolutely no high middle ages/renaissance technology, knowledge, or culture. Even a civilization such as Rome would have been devastated by the effects of the Great Catastrophe (whatever it was--you wouldn't know, unless you have a VERY good reason) which happened so many years ago.

15. Does your game involve a lot of hack & slash, puzzle solving, roleplaying, or a combination of the above?

Roleplaying and fighting will be the rule.

16. Are your Players restricted to particular rulebooks and supplements, or will you be allowing access to non-standard material? What sources can Players use for their characters?

Core 3 books, some UA--and weapons from the Arms and Equipment Guide, but no others. {Edit: I'll allow the Oriental Adventures for those who have traveled from the East, but make sure you're using the 3.5 updated version from Dragon Magazine #318. Contact me if you have questions}.

Spell preparation - The fragility of the spellcaster with regards to spell preparation is sharply defined. I don't like it because I don't think it takes into account the possibility that a mage could be physically healthy, fit, resilient, or otherwise able to deal with some sleep loss. My rule is simple:

If a character gets less than a full night's sleep, he or she will have to make a fortitude saving throw (DC determined by me on a case-by-case basis). If the caster fails the throw, he/she can only prepare 1/2 the number of spells which would normally be available to him/her. If he makes the save, the caster has his full spell list available.

Only in extreme circumstances would an experienced mage be unable to conjure magic. Note the DC 20 Fort Save after THREE DAYS of interrupted sleep I posted in the IC.

[harmonictempest]

Woo-hoo! I'm pumped. Also, this setting looks hella intense. :-)

For my own benefit, can we all post our characters here, just 'cause I don't remember everyone's class?
I'm Arlen (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=44606), a black elf Ranger//Wizard.

[Zed's Dead]

That's a good idea. Let's all post our linked character name and class. Welcome aboard!

[Zimmia]

Indeed, I'm way geeked about this game. I am going to wait until tomorrow before I make my first post though, just to make sure it's at least somewhat coherent.

I'm Daar (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=44439), Uruk barbarian/cleric

[harmonictempest]

Forgot to ask; are we encouraged to dive right into the IC, or wait until you've got the list of creatures handed out and suchlike?

In either case, I'll be waiting till tomorrow - 'tis my bedtime.

[Zed's Dead]

My Gift:

I want to give you guys a small gift for all your hard work. You may each choose one of the following benefits and add it to your character sheet. Please explain exactly which benefit you decide to take, and explain exactly how you will apply it. If you don't want to put it in the thread, you may PM me with the info.

1. You may change one masterwork item currently in your character sheet inventory into a magic item for free (no GP expense).

2. Bonus Feat: Unburdened Caster - You have a reduced arcane spell failure chance, due to extensive spellcasting practice in armor (-5%). This feat only works in one type of armor (light, medium, or heavy). If you wear a different type of armor, this feat has no effect.

3. Bonus Feat: Skill Focus (+3 to any one skill). You may take a bonus Skill Focus feat which applies to one of the skills for which you have already spent at least one skill point. Just as in RAW, you may not use two Skill Focus feats to improve one skill for a total of +6.

4. You may add one ability score point to one ability as if you were becoming a 4th level character. You may still add an ability score point when you become a 4th level character.

5. You may add one of the following feats: Great Fortitude, Iron Will, or Lightning Reflexes.

Enjoy!

[Zed's Dead]

harmonictempest:

You guys can dive right into the IC.

I'll get the list up in a bit.

[GeekLord]

Here's Kralkar (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=44615), Uruk barbarian/sorcerer, whose character sheet I'll be keeping updated from post to post over the course of the campaign: current hp, temporary ability scores, money/equipment, etc.



Edit:
1. By "into a magic item" you mean "into a +1 magic item", I assume? Not sure if your intention is that my MW greatsword become a +5 keen fiery greatsword of magical creature slaying... :smallbiggrin:

[Zed's Dead]

Here is an abbreviated list of creatures which would be known to you, depending on where you came from. Of course, you haven't actually fought all these creatures, but you would have some general knowledge of these creatures, at least in the form of myths or legends.

I lumped Europe together because the hour is late. I also am interested in you guys adding to the list if you're interested in helping me create the flavor here.

You would definitely have encountered many of the mundane creatures on your list. If you live in Africa, you have certainly encountered dinosaurs, though they are concentrated on the equator almost exclusively.

It depends on where you've been in Europe whether you would have encountered undead, but in Africa, undead are quite dangerous and wide-ranging.

Magical creatures do exist, but they are extremely rare in this part of the world.

Aberrations exist, though they are not as prevalent as in Faerun or Greyhawk.

Outsiders are unheard of outside myth and legend.

Dire and giant versions of mundane animals are more prevalent than their mundane cousins.

Constructs are unheard of outside myth and legend.

If you have questions about specific creatures, please let me know.

African creatures

Ape
Giant Ape
Baboon
Bear
Cheetah
Crocodile
Crocodile, Giant
Elephant
Leopard
Lion
Lizard
Lizard, Monitor
Monkey
Hyena
Octopus
Octopus, Giant
Rhinoceros
Shark
Snake
Constrictor Snake
Viper Snake
Squid
Squid, Giant
Tiger
dinosaurs of all kinds - too many to list
Undead (especially zombies and incorporeal undead)
Dragon (mostly myth and folklore, very little verifyable contact)
Vermin of all kinds
Swarms of all kinds
Were-creatures (especially were-cats of various kinds and were-rats)
Giant Sloth
Lizard-Folk
Aberations of many kinds



European Creatures
Badger
Bat
Bear, Black
Bear, Brown
Bison
Boar
Cat
Dog
Dog, Riding
Donkey
Eagle
Hawk
Horse
Mule
Owl
Pony
Porpoise
Rat
Raven
Snake
Constrictor Snake
Viper Snake
Toad
Weasel
Wolf
dire Wolf
Wolverine
Wolly Mammoth
Wolly Rhinoceros
Sabertooth Cat
Undead (especially vampires and incorporeal undead)
Dragons (mostly myth and folklore, very little verifyable contact)
vermin
shape changers
fey
were creatures (especially werewolves and werebears)
Neanderthals
Ogres
Trolls
Gnolls
Giants

[Zed's Dead]

By "into a magic item" you mean "into a +1 magic item", I assume? Not sure if your intention is that my MW greatsword become a +5 keen fiery greatsword of magical creature slaying...

Yep. Thanks for the clarification, Geeklord! Game balance, anyone?

[Zimmia]

I'm going to guess that there's no real place that we can put up a better defense and not be totally exposed but I'll wait to finish that post until I know for sure - I certainly don't want us to miss an opportunity!

[Zed's Dead]

Geeklord: Yep. It means you can cast 1/2 your usual number of spells per level (round down).

Zimmia: Please make a spot check.

[harmonictempest]

Dang it Zimmia, you took all the good rolls! :P

Well, with that Fort save and exhaustion penalties (-6 Str/Dex :smalleek: ), this is certainly going to be a fun battle.

Oh, and with that creature list, I don't see anything except favored enemy (animal) being appropriate. On that note, I've always found it strange that the favored enemy bonuses didn't include Knowledge checks, of all things. Thoughts?

Ok, I woke up late today and I'm a smidge behind, but I'll try to get my post up ASAP.

[Zed's Dead]

Zimmia and Geeklord: Please post your character name and class in bold at the top of all IC messages.

harmonictemptest: You're not exhausted at this point, only fatigued. You'd have to do something which would normally fatigue you in order to become exhausted at this point.

Regarding animals as favored enemies - the animals list is long because it is the most varied, and because more is known about mundane animals (and their giant and dire cousins) because one is more likely to live through an encounter with a bear than with a gang of trolls. Feel free to take a favored enemy which would make sense for your backstory

Zimmia: You didn't roll your spot yet. I can't tell if it's the boards being slow or not.

[Tura]

Well, with that Fort save and exhaustion penalties (-6 Str/Dex :smalleek: ), this is certainly going to be a fun battle.
Why exhausted? I thought we were fatigued (-2 str/dex), and the fortitude check was only to determine spells prepared - half or all of them. Am I missing something?

In any case, I'm very glad to be here, human druid/wilderness rogue (http://www.thetangledweb.net/addon.php?addon=Profiler&page=view_char&cid=9595&sid=b7f271d929b88ab8c82251e8d2883374) at your service, and now if you'll excuse me, I'll go dive into the IC. (wheeeee!!!!:smallbiggrin: )

PS- I'll roll first and then edit the post accordingly, don't be upset if you check in the meantime and see only a spoiler tag.

[Zed's Dead]

Tura:

I'm glad to have you here, as well. Welcome.

You're correct about the exhausted/fatigued condition. You are all fatigued.


PS- I'll roll first and then edit the post accordingly, don't be upset if you check in the meantime and see only a spoiler tag.

Nothing like this ever upsets me.


Geeklord: The forum dice roller doesn't allow you to make rolls in an edit. Just make a new post if you need to roll.

Everybody: I'm not opposed to double posts for this purpose. Do what you can to use edits to keep from cluttering up the thread, but it's really no big deal to me unless it gets excessive (multiple posts in a row that could have been edits).

[Zimmia]

Sorry, I had to drive to work and then I had to put out a couple of fires.

Spot: [roll0]

[Zed's Dead]

Everybody: Please decide by the end of the day today which of the gifts you are accepting, and explain exactly how you will use them in the OOC. If you don't reply to the gift post, I'll assume you don't want be benefit.

Zimmia: Whoa. Good spot. I'll reply IC after lunch.

[Tura]

Crunch
Gift: I took Skill Focus Knowledge (nature), it seemed appropriate.
Character Sheet: I actually hadn't tweaked equipment, will do.
Animal Companion: by RAW, I think the DM roleplays them, but.. ughhh... whatever you prefer is fine by me.
Map: I'm not saying I desperately need a map, but I'd like to be able to visualize the area a bit. Is the forest to the East? (No, it isn't, Cullen is running away to the woods, so that would mean away from the wolves, right? So, we expect the wolves to come from an area with "sparse trees"?) Is the way north uphill, presumably?
Boards: They are, indeed, frustrating.*
*EDIT - Ah, new OotS. Makes sense...

Fluff
I just wanted to say that, as far as immersion in the story goes, this was the equivalent of a shock therapy. And I mean that in a good way. :smallsmile:

[Zed's Dead]

Ok. I'm looking over my map options, and I'm not satisfied yet, so I'm whipping this up in order to give you guys some idea of what's going on.

There are sparse trees in your general vicinity (bottom center of the map). You are currently moving forward to the top of a rise, where you could see the forest to the north and West pretty well, if the snow wasn't coming down so hard. The breaks in the trees are metagame, unless Tura points it out.

The howling is coming from the west/northwest, around rows 5-11 or so. P

f=forest
w=wolves
n=npc
D=Daar
K=Kraalkar
A=Arlen
E=Elva
G=Gray the Elkhound
S=Sul, the Owl
C=Cullen
M= Merchant



Let's do it this way: I'll paste this map into the IC thread in a spoiler when the Oots traffic dies down, and when you move, you will post your grid position thusly: "I move to 14-k". I'll edit the map as often as possible. If you move to take cover behind a tree, I'll just put your alphabetic avatar next to the tree.

To begin, please place yourselves.


N
W + E
S
a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z N is up
1 fffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffff fff f fffffffffffffffff ffffffff
2fffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffff fffff fffffffffffff fffffffff fff
3fffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffff fffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffff ffffff
4fffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffff ffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffff ff
5fffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffff ffffff fffffffffffff ffffffffff ffffffffffffffff f
6fffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffff f f f f f f f fff
7ffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffff f f f f f f
8ffffffffffffffffffffffffffffff
9 fffffffffffffffffffffffffffff f f f f f
10 fffffffffffffffffffffffff
11 ffffffffffffffffff f f f f ff fff f
12 ffffffffffff
13 ffffffff C
14 f f ff f f M f f ff f f f
15 f
16 f f f f f f f
17
18 f f f f
19
20

[harmonictempest]

Crunch:
Gift: I'll be taking Unburdened Spellcaster, naturally. :-)
Favored enemy: Well, honestly, I'm torn, and I think Arlen would be, too. It seems like his interests run a little more toward magical beasts, but that what he actually encountered during his travels would have been mostly, if not overwhelmingly, animals. If I'm mistaken, and there's actually a good mix of magical beasts, then I'd go with that - otherwise, it's gonna be animals. I just...yeah, I don't want it to be a useless choice.
Oh, and any thoughts on getting +2 to Knowledge checks against favored enemies as well? I'm okay with it either way, but have always been baffled that a rangers doesn't actually *know* any more about his favorite enemy.
Map: Slight confusion - are we heading east (i.e., what does "forward" mean?)? Why is Cullen fleeing *toward* the wolves? Arlen would have placed himself roughly in the middle - ranged attacks and all, you know. Sul is circling overhead toward the sound of the wolves. Arlen's going to urge everyone to head for the forest, but I'm not sure which direction to run yet.

Fluff: Is awesome. :D

Edit: Oh, and I'm pretty sure I read somewhere that putting that sort of stuff in a code block {code}{/code} will keep your formatting a lot better.

[Zimmia]

Crunch: Wow, that was a hard decision to make - such torment over a gift! I think that I'm going to go with the +1 wis so that I can bump that to 18 at level 4. Explanation: on this almost 950 mile journey it was her common sense and prudence that has helped her survive more than anything else.

Fluff: is super-fab. The level of detail is immersive.

Map: It would be fiddly but you could put all of that into a table and as long as they were all one character long it would be the same size.

[GeekLord]

Thanks for the information about posting etiquette. I'm afraid I'm a little rusty. :smallredface: But I'm excited about this experience! Our current circumstances make me want to start chanting "Now for wrath! Now for ruin! Now for a red dawn rising!" Maybe I'll save that for later. :smallbiggrin:

Kralkar will take the bonus Skill Focus feat, and apply it to Disguise. He's learned in the course of his travels that sometimes it's not worth making people accept you as you are; usually it's easier to show them something they're already comfortable with.

[Tura]

I made a map full of trees. :smallbiggrin:

{table]|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|2 0|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20
|
A|
B|
C|
D|
E|
F|
G|
H|
I|
J|
K|
L|
M|
N|
O|
P|
Q|
R|
S|
T|
U|
V|
W|
X|
Y|
Z
01|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f |f|f
02|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f |f|f
03|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f |f|f
04|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f |f|f
05|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f |f|f
06|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f |f|f
07|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f |f|f
08|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f |f|f
09|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f |f|f
10|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f |f|f
11|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f |f|f
12|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f |f|f
13|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f |f|f
14|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f |f|f
15|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f |f|f
16|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f |f|f
17|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f |f|f
18|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f |f|f
19|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f |f|f
20|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f |f|f[/table]

Zed, you might want to quote and copy/paste that to your post and replace the effs with whatever. Ignore the first line of 20s, but keep it, because it keeps the table aligned. (there's a proper way to do that, but I don't remember it right now...)

[Zimmia]

Holy potatos Geeklord, you nailed that perform check!

The board roller gods smile on our game!

[GeekLord]

I posted in response to Zed's response. Hmm, there's potential in that line...

I have to confess something...

I'm a computer addict.

I'm online 20+ separate times throughout the day, and I'm already hooked by this story. So let me know if I start posting too often and I'll rachet it back a notch. Fair warning. :smallwink:

[GeekLord]

Holy potatos Geeklord, you nailed that perform check!

The board roller gods smile on our game!

Woot woot! *crosses his fingers*

[Zimmia]

I posted in response to Zed's response. Hmm, there's potential in that line...

I have to confess something...

I'm a computer addict.

I'm online 20+ separate times throughout the day, and I'm already hooked by this story. So let me know if I start posting too often and I'll rachet it back a notch. Fair warning. :smallwink:


Well since it's addicts un-anonymous time, I'll admit that I'm in a similar situation :smallbiggrin: I'm here throughout my workday and when I get home I'm more often than not in front of the computer, playing MMOs and when I find myself waiting, I come back to check and see what's going on here and other places.

I will agree - we're off to a rampaging good start, and I have a feeling that it's only going to get better from here.

[harmonictempest]

Yay addicts!

Um...that could have sounded better.

My post does assume that the way Cullen took off was towards Stone, away from the wolves' sound, and *not* the way Arlen is urging people to go. Will edit if I'm wrong (i.e., when the map goes up). Also, should I be making Perform/Bluff checks as well? Just 'cause Arlen's dead right about the better thing to do doesn't make him convincing (or his advice popular).

Here's hopin' we survive! :D

[Zed's Dead]

Ok, guys. educate me. I'm trying to make this cool map work. :smallmad:

Thanks much, by the way! It looks much better than my improvised bit.


20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
01 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f
02 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f
03 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f
04 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f
05 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f
06 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f
07 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f
08 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f
09 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f
10 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f
11 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f
12 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f
13 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f
14 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f
15 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f
16 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f
17 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f
18 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f
19 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f
20 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f

[Zed's Dead]

All:

Wow. Thanks for the overwhelming votes of confidence. I've had this story in my head for a while now, and I'm glad I have some folks who appreciate it. Really.

I'm also glad you liked the gifts. You guys earned it! I mean, check out those backstories! Smokin'!


harmonictempest:

Magical beasts are just a tiny part of this world. You'd be more likely to run into them in the ruins--places of ancient power--than in the wilds. The undead are always a concern. Vermin are quite troublesome. Just don't go for outsiders, and I guarantee that if the campaign goes long enough, you'll get your chance.

I like the idea of knowledge. Why don't you trade it for one of the other bonuses? That would be fine with me. Let me know.


Map: Slight confusion - are we heading east (i.e., what does "forward" mean?)? Why is Cullen fleeing *toward* the wolves? Arlen would have placed himself roughly in the middle - ranged attacks and all, you know. Sul is circling overhead toward the sound of the wolves. Arlen's going to urge everyone to head for the forest, but I'm not sure which direction to run yet.

Ok. Sorry for the confusion. The wolves are howling in the woods to the West/Northwest. The leader howls, which are louder and longer, are coming form the woods directly west of you. Cullen and the Merchant are heading North (the direction you guys were headed already), only at a greater speed. Assume what you will. Sul is giving you the sense that the woods to the North might offer refuge.

[Zed's Dead]

Based on Tura's awesome map (not my first or secont pitiful attempts), let's say you guys are on or around rows 16-20, between columns k-0. At the moment of the final howl in my IC post, Cullen and the Merchant are at 9-N and 10-0, respectively.

Place yourselves, please, and I'll get the map up.

[Zimmia]

Zimmia: Whoa. Good spot. I'll reply IC after lunch.

Did I miss this - what doth I see?

[GeekLord]

Place Kralkar at L16. He's walking and leading his light warhorse, on whose back is one of the seriously injured members of the caravan.

[Zed's Dead]

Zimmia: it's in the IC.

Geeklord: duly noted.

[Tura]

Ok, guys. educate me. I'm trying to make this cool map work. :smallmad:
If you want a map-table, like the one in my post, quote the post with the map, delete the rest and keep the {table] part, replacing the effs with letters or hit [space] if there's nothing at that square.

If you want a map with code, that's fine too and less complicated. Don't quote anything, just copy/paste this, wrapped in a
tag just like you did before. (The only difference with yours is that this one has an extra space in the first line, which keeps it aligned.) Again, replace effs accordingly.

Tip: For your convenience, I suggest you first clear the way, leaving nothing except the trees, and then add the characters (and the wolves!) (Because when you add a capital letter in there, the line stretches and it'll be difficult to calculate distances. It will come out fine in the code, but you'll have a hard time placing everyone correctly.)

[code]
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
01 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f
02 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f
03 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f
04 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f
05 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f
06 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f
07 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f
08 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f
09 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f N f f f f f f f f f f f
10 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f M f f f f f f f f f f
11 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f
12 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f
13 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f
14 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f
15 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f
16 f f f f f f f f K A f f f f f f f f f f f
17 f f f f f f f f E f f f f f f f f f f f
18 f f f f f f f f G f f f f f f f f f f f
19 f f f f f f f f D f f f f f f f f f f f
20 f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f

Elva is in M-17, and Gray in N-18.
Reading it again, I am entirely certain that my explanation was more confusing than useful. :smalleek: Sorry, I can't think of a better way...

Crunch: Do any of the NPCs have bows? Or torches?

PS- My IC post is based on the assumption that the wolves are too close for us to run for the forest, but not so close that we won't have time to, say, cast a couple of spells before they jump on us. We do have more than 2 rounds before they come out of the trees, right? If not, I'll edit the post (Sorry, I was a bit confused with how time passed between the posts.)

[harmonictempest]

Magical beasts are just a tiny part of this world. You'd be more likely to run into them in the ruins--places of ancient power--than in the wilds. The undead are always a concern. Vermin are quite troublesome. Just don't go for outsiders, and I guarantee that if the campaign goes long enough, you'll get your chance.

I like the idea of knowledge. Why don't you trade it for one of the other bonuses? That would be fine with me. Let me know.

I'll take magical beasts for 400 then, Alex*. :-) I'll trade Bluff for the Knowledge bonus - so the favored enemy bonuses are now Knowledge, Listen, Sense Motive, Spot, and Survival checks, as well as the +2 damage.

Arlen is at N-16. Given that he heard the wolves about a half mile away, two minutes seems a safe bet for how long they'll take to get to us.

PCs: Can we describe our chars? I went to write about how Arlen turned to look at Kralkar, and realized I had no idea at all what he looked like, and I think that sort of thing really helps RP, especially as we probably already know each other's names.
Edit: D'oh - the descriptions are already in the char sheets. Mah bad. :smallredface:

*Sorry to be indecisive - I'm just hesitant 'cause you said they were extremely rare, and I don't want to throw away a class feature if 70% of the time, we'll be facing Animals, y'know?

[GeekLord]

Doh, weak Spot check. Oh well, they'll be pretty obvious soon enough. :smallbiggrin:

[Zimmia]

Daar is in K19ish or wherever the end of the knot of people is - she'll take rear guard. Daar's horse right now is in the care of one of the more stable-appearing members of the group, with one of the more injured people on it.


That's her 1st level domain spell done for the day.
Spells remaining: 0-5, 1st-4, 2nd-1 domain

[Tura]

Zed, you need to be brave: you'll have a lot of reading to do. :smalltongue:
Please, see what you can do with the map before the battle. The position of the trees is important. I can't cast Entangle in the snow, now, can I? :smallsmile:

Positions (and relative positions): Elva will have tried desperately to keep line of sight to the direction of the wolves - I mean the direction she judges they will appear from, based on the howling, any other noises and Daar's pointing (nice checks, Zimmia, the forum roller loves you. :smallsmile: ) So, if there are NPCs around there, please assume she's more to the left. (But always next to the Elkhound).

[Zed's Dead]

Guys, the boards are giving me fits. I'm going to wait until things clear up before I try to fix my IC post.

Grrrrr!

[harmonictempest]

That moment ("blood...blood...blood...") is now vividly etched on my memory. Bravo, Zed.

The map would be nice for me as well - Web needs a good anchoring point or two. :-) Arlen doesn't mind being behind the two people who just got Large, either.

Zimmia, how'd you get your spells per day that high, even with spontaneous cleric-ing? I've got spell slot envy. :smalltongue:

The boards are slow right now, but I'll try to post my action soon.

[Tura]

:/

My IC post is based on the assumption that the wolves are too close for us to run for the forest, but not so close that we won't have time to, say, cast a couple of spells before they jump on us. We do have more than 2 rounds before they come out of the trees, right? If not, I'll edit the post (Sorry, I was a bit confused with how time passed between the posts.)

Zed, since that bit wasn't answered by you before initiative, I suppose I can't edit my post now, can I? On the off chance that I can, Entangle (which I had in mind, but I was waiting for the map...) is obviously out of the question now, but maybe a buff would make sense. Really sorry for the mess, I'll understand perfectly if you say no. [Turns out I was really confused with how time passed between the posts after all...]

Initiative: [roll0]

I'll post actions after the map. Sorry to be anal about this, but the useful things I can do rely on knowing where are the characters and where are their friends and foes. (and the trees.)
On the bright side, awesome description. :smallsmile:

[Zed's Dead]

Some pre-battle notes:

1. As long as you are back-to-back in a pretty tight formation, the wolves will get no flanking bonus.

2. Combat will work this way:

a. Once everyone has rolled initiative, I will post initiative in a spoiler on the IC.

b. In order to keep this as straightforward as possible, I will have all enemies use the same initiative, with the exception of leaders/uber monsters, etc.

c. I know that D&D has to be turn-based in order to work. However, pbp rp is quite a bit different than tabletop in that we can't smooth over the inconsistencies verbally in real time. I am very interested in keeping things going. You are reasonable, interested, intelligent folks, so I propose the following solution to the initiative problem: You may post your actions once per round. If there is a question about what you might do depending on someone else's action, post alternatives in a spoiler. If you need to change your action because someone who should have acted before you changes the scenario, please edit your post accordingly.

You may post dialog in combat as a free action, but try to keep it of reasonable length. Long speeches can't be made in 6 seconds.

d. I'll move your avatar on the map every round as you instruct.

e. Diagonals count as 5 feet of movement, not double.

f. Please include only flavorful descriptions in the IC thread. Any number crunching, contingencies, etc. must be posted in a spoiler.

g. I will end the round, describe the events of the round, and begin the new round.

h. please roll attack and damage at the same time.

i. No confirmation of critical hits is necessary.

3. Roll your spell failure chance any way you want -- %die or d20. Low rolls for failure, please. Please type your failure chance next to your roll so it will be convenient for me to see if you failed or succeeded.

4. Make spot/listen checks and other rolls as you wish. I'll never be irritated by someone rolling for something that I didn't explicitly allow. If your roll is irrelevant, I will ignore it, and it won't count against you.

[Zed's Dead]

Tura has brought up a good point. I'll allow those of you who haven't cast spells yet to cast one spell before combat officially begins. The first howls, you now know, were of wolves farther off (about a 1/2 mile or so, though it's hard to tell, with the snow dampening the noise). The wolves you see now are not the same wolves you heard early in the thread. Yes, the wolves across the clearing have been stalking you since before the thread joined the action.

Pretty much, when we're in that nebulous time before combat, you can cast spells, make speeches, act, etc. without worrying too much about time limits on spells, etc. For instance, I'm going to say that for practical purposes the enlarge spell timer begins now, when you sight the wolves--which incidentally happened at about the same time Kralkar was pumping up the group. On the other hand, if Kralkar had flown into a rage at the first wolf howl at the beginning of the thread, he would be exhausted right now. I will err on the side of the heroes rather than assume that you guys were casting spells with short duration that will run out before combat starts. Your characters aren't noobs.

I'll try to give you guys better time indicators. I was trying to do that with the light fading, but it was too fluffy.

I should have posted this earlier, but I was a little caught up in the moment.

Tura:
If you want a map-table, like the one in my post, quote the post with the map, delete the rest and keep the {table] part, replacing the effs with letters or hit [space] if there's nothing at that square.

When you say "quote the post," do you mean for me to copy your map, paste the map into my message, and then put the quote brackets "[]" around it? I'm just getting the syntax wrong, I guess.

[Tura]

Tura has brought up a good point. I'll allow those of you who haven't cast spells yet to cast one spell before combat officially begins.
Thanks, that's great.


Pretty much, when we're in that nebulous time before combat, you can cast spells, make speeches, act, etc. without worrying too much about time limits on spells, etc. For instance, I'm going to say that for practical purposes the enlarge spell timer begins now, when you sight the wolves--which incidentally happened at about the same time Kralkar was pumping up the group. On the other hand, if Kralkar had flown into a rage at the first wolf howl at the beginning of the thread, he would be exhausted right now.
That's very helpful too. I like very much the way you handle combat. And with the 1 post/day rule, I think we'll have a fast game that has the best of both worlds: tabletop speed and pace, and PbP quality/collective writing. Wonderful!


When you say "quote the post," do you mean for me to copy your map, paste the map into my message, and then put the quote brackets "[]" around it? I'm just getting the syntax wrong, I guess.
Ah, I think we had a terminology failure here. I think what I call "post" is what you call "message". So when I said "quote the post" I meant "quote the message", you know, find my message with the map in the previous page, and press the quote button, just like when you want to quote someone's sentence. The code for the map is there, and you can use it. It uses [ table ] syntax, and the symbol | (shift+\) is used to separate fields.

Alternative: if this is too much of a fuss, just give us the co-ordinates and I'll make the map, no prob. :smallsmile:

[Zimmia]

I'm about ready to pout - I've been trying for five hours to consistently get back on these boards to no avail and it seems like no one else is having trouble. It might be our connection, but it's not wise to go to IT to ask why my gaming site isn't connecting. I'm lucky enough it's not behind the wall of fire.

I will post actions again soon, I promise.




Zimmia, how'd you get your spells per day that high, even with spontaneous cleric-ing? I've got spell slot envy. :smalltongue:

I've never really tried this variant before and I've really wanted to. From the spells per day it definately isn't horrible :smallbiggrin:

Actually now I have a question. My 2nd levels known are 0 + domain. Do I get repeated castings of the domain spell, or is that the only 2nd level spell I have today? Now that I've had time to think it over I think it's the latter - I can update my post/sheet once that is definitive.

[Tura]

I'm about ready to pout - I've been trying for five hours to consistently get back on these boards to no avail and it seems like no one else is having trouble. It might be our connection
Naah, it's the boards. It's been like that all day, infuriating really.
I'll go to bed now, and post tomorrow.
Zed, in case the map doesn't work out, I'll opt to shamelessly meta-game, by asking you: is entangle likely to work by the time I get to act (probably last)? Are there enough plants around the wolves, at least some of them?
You don't need to answer that if I get a visual.:smalltongue:

[Zed's Dead]

I'm about ready to pout - I've been trying for five hours to consistently get back on these boards to no avail and it seems like no one else is having trouble. It might be our connection
Naah, it's the boards. It's been like that all day, infuriating really.

No joke, guys. I had more troube today than ever. Nightmare, really, especially since I had to post, post, repost, and then delete the posts that somehow made it through the static.


Zed, in case the map doesn't work out, I'll opt to shamelessly meta-game, by asking you: is entangle likely to work by the time I get to act (probably last)? Are there enough plants around the wolves, at least some of them?
You don't need to answer that if I get a visual.

I'm going to try the map now! :smallwink: Thanks for all the help with the map.

[harmonictempest]

Wanted to echo Tura's sentiments about this being a good way to run combat.

Tura: I don't see it as too shameless a metagame - after all, your character would know whether it was worthwhile to cast Entangle, just as mine would know whether it was worthwhile to cast Web. That said, I have known players who make all their choices based on "Does my character think it's a good idea to...?", so I can see your apprehension with saying that. :D

Zimmia: After rummaging around the SRD for 20 minutes, I have proved conclusively that I'm a dunderhead and that your spell slots are perfectly in order. :-) About the 2nd level thing...I found this:
With access to two domain spells at a given spell level, a cleric prepares one or the other each day in his domain spell slot. If a domain spell is not on the cleric spell list, a cleric can prepare it only in his domain spell slot. So if your 2nd-level domain spells are on the cleric list, you can prepare them in non-domain slots. Otherwise, not.

Edit: Through some ninja magic I was completely unaware of possessing*, I appear to have posted my initiative roll and first action before the DM even notified us of the combat. Sweet.

*I'm actually pretty sure I know how it happened.

[Zimmia]

Zimmia: After rummaging around the SRD for 20 minutes, I have proved conclusively that I'm a dunderhead and that your spell slots are perfectly in order. :-)

LOL, you are not a dunderhead. When I first put it together I looked at it for several days thinking 'surely that can't be right'. And I'm glad someone checked my math!


So if your 2nd-level domain spells are on the cleric list, you can prepare them in non-domain slots. Otherwise, not.

I'm pretty sure it's what I thought - that at 3rd level a spontaneous cleric gets a 2nd lvl domain slot and no other 2nd lvl spells, gaining their 'usual' second level spells at CLvl 4 - just as a sorceror would gain their second level spells. That is really the only way it makes sense to me - otherwise I have a bunch of castings available for my spiritual weapon domain spell which seems overpowered to me.

[Zed's Dead]

Tura: I don't see it as too shameless a metagame - after all, your character would know whether it was worthwhile to cast Entangle, just as mine would know whether it was worthwhile to cast Web. That said, I have known players who make all their choices based on "Does my character think it's a good idea to...?", so I can see your apprehension with saying that. :D

I agree. Feel free to ask me what your character would be able to tell about his/her surroundings. Not a problem.


Edit: Through some ninja magic I was completely unaware of possessing*, I appear to have posted my initiative roll and first action before the DM even notified us of the combat. Sweet.

Ha! I wondered about that. Actually, in the future, please wait to roll init. until I ask for it, please. No biggie.

[Zed's Dead]

Tura: I hope this helps. Thanks for your patience.

Everybody: I'll put up initiative as I see it now in the IC. When Tura rolls init., go ahead and begin the first round of combat!

{table]|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|2 0|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20
|
A|
B|
C|
D|
E|
F|
G|
H|
I|
J|
K|
L|
M|
N|
O|
P|
Q|
R|
S|
T|
U|
V|
W|
X|
Y|
Z
01|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f| | | |f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f
02|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|F| |f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f
03|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f| | |f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f| |
04|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f| |f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f| |
05|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f| | |f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f| |
06|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f| | |f|f|f| |f|f|f| | |f
07|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f| | |f|f|f|f|f| | | | |
08|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f| | | | | | | | | | | | | |X|
09|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |X|
10|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f| | | | | | | | | | |f| |f|f| |f|f
11|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|w|f| |f|f| | | | | | | |f| |f|f| | |
12|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|w|w| | | | |f| | | | | | | |f| | | |
13|f|f|f|f|f|f|w|w|w| |w| | | | | | | | | | | | | |f|
14|f|f|f|f|w|f|w|w|w| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
15|f|f|f|f|f|f|w|w| | |K|K| | | | | | | | | | | | | |
16|f|f|f|f|f|w|w| | | |K|K|i|A|N|N| | | | | | | | | |
17|f|f|f|f|f|w|w| | | | |U|E|n|n|N| | | | | | | | | |
18|f|f|f|f|f|w| | | |D|D|N|@|G|n| | | | | | | | | | |
19|f| | | |L| | | | |D|D|N|O|n|N| | | | | | | | | | |
20|f| | | | | | | | | | |N|n|N| | | | | | | | | | | |f[/table]



f=forest
F=firey light in the forest
w=wolves
n=weak or injured npc
N= NPC who is battle-worthy (you know they are, because they proved themselves last night.)
D=Daar
K=Kraalkar
i= Imbris - kid Kraalkar tells to stay with him, and he'll be ok.
A=Arlen
E=Elva
G=Gray the Elkhound
S=Sul, the Owl
C=Cullen X = dead
M= Merchant X = dead
L=Wolf leader
Uluia = The woman with the spear who is interested in fighting with Kraalkar
@= Edder
O= Old Woman
H=horses

Several of the NPCs are actually huddled in one square. A rider and a horse, for instance. I'm not going to make horse avatars at this point, but if there were, they'd be H.

The "N" NPCs wield a combination of swords, ash wood spears, and bows of various flavors.

Combat Addendum:
a. You can move through a square occupied by a friend, even if that person is in combat. You move 1/2 speed when moving through that square.

b. The 5-foot "adjustment" is fine here. Even in melee combat, it doesn't provoke an attack of opportunity.

c. If a melee combatant moves through a square threatened by an opponent, that opponent does get an AoO, just as in D&D.

d. Your actions in combat can turn the tide of battle in the form of a morale bonus. If you crit the leader of a mob, for instance, the enemy may be demoralized. If one of you (the BA combatants here and the best hope for your friends) dies on the battlefield, a sense of hopelessness could overwhelm the npcs. This is a bit of fluff and crunch, though you'll never see the numbers associated with the morale bonus or penalty, unless you yourselves recieve one! :smallwink:

Edit: I forgot to make Kraalkar and Daar large! By the way, guys, it's pretty interesting that you have made characters with phonetically similar names. It gives your characters a nice barbarian feel and keeps the "fragmented culture" idea intact.

[harmonictempest]

Ha! I wondered about that. Actually, in the future, please wait to roll init. until I ask for it, please. No biggie.

Well, like I said, I know how it happened. I posted soon after my thread subscription notified me of your post. Almost immediately afterward, I got *another* "Zed has posted" notification, and realized that somehow, with the board weirdness yesterday, your battle intro post had either reposted itself and deleted the earlier copy, or spontaneously moved. I definitely waited until I read the DM saying "roll init" before I did anything, and will continue to do so, no worries. :smallbiggrin:

As to the map (it is great): Arlen was aiming for the center of the wolves, so the Web is centered on the grid intersection 14/15 G/H (i.e., the center of those four squares). This area looks like it covers all the wolves except the ones in 13K, 18F, and the leader. The area of a 20-ft radius is on DMG 307, if you need to check. And you probably want to read the description of Web, it has weird save and movement rules.
Spellcraft checks to know what Daar and Kralkar cast (one for each casting, DC 16. [roll0], [roll1].

[Zed's Dead]

TESTING...TESTING...


Tura: I hope this helps. Thanks for your patience.

Everybody: I'll put up initiative as I see it now in the IC. When Tura rolls init., go ahead and begin the first round of combat!

{table]|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|2 0|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20|20
|
A|
B|
C|
D|
E|
F|
G|
H|
I|
J|
K|
L|
M|
N|
O|
P|
Q|
R|
S|
T|
U|
V|
W|
X|
Y|
Z
01|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f| | | |f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f
02|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|F| |f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f
03|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f| | |f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f| |
04|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f| |f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f| |
05|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f| | |f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f| |
06|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f| | |f|f|f| |f|f|f| | |f
07|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f| | |f|f|f|f|f| | | | |
08|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f| | | | | | | | | | | | | |X|
09|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |X|
10|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|f| | | | | | | | | | |f| |f|f| |f|f
11|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|w|f| |f|f| | | | | | | |f| |f|f| | |
12|f|f|f|f|f|f|f|w|w| | | | |f| | | | | | | |f| | | |
13|f|f|f|f|f|f|w|w|w| |w| | | | | | | | | | | | | |f|
14|f|f|f|f|w|f|w|w|w| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
15|f|f|f|f|f|f|w|w| | |K|K| | | | | | | | | | | | | |
16|f|f|f|f|f|w|w| | | |K|K|i|A|N|N| | | | | | | | | |
17|f|f|f|f|f|w|w| | | | |U|E|n|n|N| | | | | | | | | |
18|f|f|f|f|f|w| | | |D|D|N|@|G|n| | | | | | | | | | |
19|f| | | |L| | | | |D|D|N|O|n|N| | | | | | | | | | |
20|f| | | | | | | | | | |N|n|N| | | | | | | | | | | |f[/table]



f=forest
F=firey light in the forest
w=wolves
n=weak or injured npc
N= NPC who is battle-worthy (you know they are, because they proved themselves last night.)
D=Daar
K=Kraalkar
i= Imbris - kid Kraalkar tells to stay with him, and he'll be ok.
A=Arlen
E=Elva
G=Gray the Elkhound
S=Sul, the Owl
C=Cullen X = dead
M= Merchant X = dead
L=Wolf leader
Uluia = The woman with the spear who is interested in fighting with Kraalkar
@= Edder
O= Old Woman
H=horses

Several of the NPCs are actually huddled in one square. A rider and a horse, for instance. I'm not going to make horse avatars at this point, but if there were, they'd be H.

The "N" NPCs wield a combination of swords, ash wood spears, and bows of various flavors.

Combat Addendum:
a. You can move through a square occupied by a friend, even if that person is in combat. You move 1/2 speed when moving through that square.

b. The 5-foot "adjustment" is fine here. Even in melee combat, it doesn't provoke an attack of opportunity.

c. If a melee combatant moves through a square threatened by an opponent, that opponent does get an AoO, just as in D&D.

d. Your actions in combat can turn the tide of battle in the form of a morale bonus. If you crit the leader of a mob, for instance, the enemy may be demoralized. If one of you (the BA combatants here and the best hope for your friends) dies on the battlefield, a sense of hopelessness could overwhelm the npcs. This is a bit of fluff and crunch, though you'll never see the numbers associated with the morale bonus or penalty, unless you yourselves recieve one! :smallwink:

Edit: I forgot to make Kraalkar and Daar large! By the way, guys, it's pretty interesting that you have made characters with phonetically similar names. It gives your characters a nice barbarian feel and keeps the "fragmented culture" idea intact.

[Tura]

Woo! Map! :smallbiggrin:
I'll post later, gotta run now, I just wanted to say that I did roll initiative, in OOC (see above), and it was an impressive natural 2. (4 total).

[Zed's Dead]

harmonictempest: I enlarged Kraalkar on the map after you told me where you'd center the web. Sorry.

You can move the center of the spell if you wish. I doubt Arlen make such a rookie mistake (especially since he's so careful and crafty).

Also, I'm looking for a fluffy spellcasting description in the IC before I post the effect on the map.

Tura: Sorry. I didn't see you init. Got it.

All: here's a general rule for posting IC -- make sure not to step on toes by saying what effect your attack or action has. Describe what you do, what you attack or spell looks like, etc., but not the effect it has.

[harmonictempest]

harmonictempest: I enlarged Kraalkar on the map after you told me where you'd center the web. Sorry.

You can move the center of the spell if you wish. I doubt Arlen make such a rookie mistake (especially since he's so careful and crafty).

Also, I'm looking for a fluffy spellcasting description in the IC before I post the effect on the map.

All: here's a general rule for posting IC -- make sure not to step on toes by saying what effect your attack or action has. Describe what you do, what you attack or spell looks like, etc., but not the effect it has.

Um, let's move the origin one square west (to 14/15 F/G). It will now miss and hit one additional wolf (the northern- and southern-most, respectively), as well as falling short of our group.

There's a fluffy description of the casting up in my last IC post, which covers the moments just before combat and my first-round action (the line between the two is denoted in the spoiler).

Apologies if I stepped on any toes by posting the Web as if it succeeded. What I posted will in fact happen whether the wolves make their saves or not (as they'd still be entangled), but I will make sure not to assume anything in the future. I've edited the last phrase of my IC post to help that, hopefully. If that's not enough or not what you were looking for, say the word and I'll change any errant, toe-stepping ways. :-)

[Zed's Dead]

Um, let's move the origin one square west (to 14/15 F/G). It will now miss and hit one additional wolf (the northern- and southern-most, respectively), as well as falling short of our group.

Sounds good.


There's a fluffy description of the casting up in my last IC post, which covers the moments just before combat and my first-round action (the line between the two is denoted in the spoiler).

You're right. Fluffy post.


Apologies if I stepped on any toes by posting the Web as if it succeeded. What I posted will in fact happen whether the wolves make their saves or not (as they'd still be entangled), but I will make sure not to assume anything in the future.


Thanks.

[Zed's Dead]

Here is the new Map (http://s272.photobucket.com/albums/jj174/ulricgantai/?action=view&current=Wolfmap1.jpg). I'll be updating every round. This was just to see if it worked.

[Zimmia]

Some pre-battle notes:
c. I know that D&D has to be turn-based in order to work. However, pbp rp is quite a bit different than tabletop in that we can't smooth over the inconsistencies verbally in real time. I am very interested in keeping things going. You are reasonable, interested, intelligent folks, so I propose the following solution to the initiative problem: You may post your actions once per round. If there is a question about what you might do depending on someone else's action, post alternatives in a spoiler. If you need to change your action because someone who should have acted before you changes the scenario, please edit your post accordingly.


I have a question about this. Since I rolled so poorly on my initiative roll (we can't all be winnders) I'd like to wait until I see what the wolves do before I make my action. Would this be okay?

I'm really not trying to break the rules already (viva chaotica), but depending on what happens to the innocents with us, I might have a different move to make.

Is that okay, or should I go now?

[Zed's Dead]

I have a question about this. Since I rolled so poorly on my initiative roll (we can't all be winnders) I'd like to wait until I see what the wolves do before I make my action. Would this be okay?

I'm really not trying to break the rules already (viva chaotica), but depending on what happens to the innocents with us, I might have a different move to make.

Is that okay, or should I go now?


Sure. See what the wolves do. I was just allowing you to post if you're dying to post. Think of it as a permission, not an edict to post at your earliest opportunity. Having fun with your character is certainly more important than posting at every opportunity.

[Zed's Dead]

Once Zimmia and Tura have acted, I'll try to officially end the round asap with the NPCs' actions. I'll check tonight when I get home and tomorrow when I go to work.

[Zed's Dead]

Spoiler
Spellcraft checks to know what Daar and Kralkar cast (one for each casting, DC 16. (1d20+11)[23], (1d20+11)[18].


Great shot, by the way, harmonictempest. You know that they are both casting the same spell, which causes the subject's body to quickly and painfully grow supernaturally large. With magic as rare as it is, you might not have seen it before, but you certainly would see it for what it is, and that the two casters (as do most casters in Darkworld) used very different methods to fire off their spells.

[Zed's Dead]

Regarding the Uruk language, Zimmia: nice touch.

[Tura]

Well then. Clarifications:
1) A white wolf is a wolf, mechanically. I obviously chose it to avoid it being attacked by our own people, but if you think that's not allowed, I'll edit it right away.
2) If you want to do the rolls for Gray and Nature's Allies, no problem whatsoever.

[Zed's Dead]

Well then. Clarifications:
1) A white wolf is a wolf, mechanically. I obviously chose it to avoid it being attacked by our own people, but if you think that's not allowed, I'll edit it right away.
2) If you want to do the rolls for Gray and Nature's Allies, no problem whatsoever.

1. It's cool. If you'd said he was neon yellow or had contrasting fur which spelled "property of Elva" on her side, I'd say no. Color counts for a lot.
This development will be especially interesting to Geeklord, who has made some mods on his character backstory. We've been working out the details.

2. Nope. You roll your stuff, I'll roll mine.

All: By the way, you are in charge of your own familiars/animal companions. I have enough to do, believe me.

[Tura]

This development will be especially interesting to Geeklord, who has made some mods on his character backstory. We've been working out the details.
Intriguing. We'll wait and see.


I have put Gray at I-20 because she can't effectively occupy the same space as the NPC at J-20.
Agh, sorry about that, I went blind there, I-20 was what I was aiming for.

A question about movement: we can't run (we can't hide) and we can't charge, but is snow impeding our movement too? Or can we move our speed normally?

True story: As I was typing Elva's actions, and in particular the part where she points the way to Gray, I got a bit too much into the role apparently, and raised my left arm to point left and forward. Result: my dog, who was sitting behind me, got down from the couch, moved left and forward and ended up in front of the stereo, looking utterly confused. Aren't they adorable?:smallamused:

[Zed's Dead]

A question about movement: we can't run (we can't hide) and we can't charge, but is snow impeding our movement too? Or can we move our speed normally?

No. Although the snow would actually impede your speed in real life, you guys are tougher than that. It just take a little extra effort. I realize that you're fatigued, but with your survival at stake, I'd like to imagine that you could still move your speed.

I like realism, but considering all the other tough circumstances I've put you in, I don't want you to be extra low, too. TPKs aren't all that fun...even for me.

By the way, the wolves are already faster than you.


Aren't they adorable?

Yep. I always had dogs, I don't have any pets at home now (I can't count my three kids), so the wolves in this game are as close as I've come in a few years. Cold comfort, that. :smallwink:

[harmonictempest]

Spot checks before deciding on action, i.e., "Arlen glances around the field before firing off a volley of arrows", and so forth. Mainly trying to get an idea of what threats are coming from where. I think you said the wolves that killed Cullen were over a hill, but if I happen to Spot them, that'd be useful to know and all.
[roll0]
[roll1]
The fact that a creature who already has Alertness, good Wis, and a huge racial bonus on Spot checks *also* gets to use my ranks in the skill is way awesome as far as I'm concerned. :smallbiggrin:

[Tura]

The forum roller refuses to co-operate with me. I'll roll for damage here, I'm afraid to edit the post...
1d6+4+2d6

EDIT- OK, obviously the syntax is wrong. I'll try again. (Sorry for the double post).

[Tura]

damage:
[roll0]

[harmonictempest]

Grr, the boards are giving me hell as far as putting up an IC post - hopefully this post gets through. I'll try to put an action up in a few hours.

[Zed's Dead]

harmonictempest:

I feel your pain.

Good Spot rolls, by the way. I'll give you this spot check as a free action because I had never explicitly stated this, but usually, taking time to look around a battlefield will be a move action. I'll prompt any spot checks made to detect invisible or hidden creatures in the future, but you may certainly call "Spot" any time you wish as a move action.

Here are the results of your spot checks

1. Sul flies North and back to you, communicating a sense of urgency.

2. You clearly see something that looks like fire through the trees to the north.

3. Kraalkar slices a wolf's ear and part of its scalp off, and would have cleaved his skull, had the wolf not dodged at the last moment.

4. Edder looks worse for wear. He's staggering.

5. Imbris is holding his arm, petrified, unable to fight or flee from the wolves.

6. Two wolves at F-18 and G-17 look as if they are about to break free of your web.

[Tura]

I'll give you this spot check as a free action because I had never explicitly stated this, but usually, taking time to look around a battlefield will be a move action.
*cough* Quick Reconnoiter: spot/listen as free actions *cough*

I bring that up because, if you have changed your mind about this feat, now would be a good time to know.
This was the first combat round I used it, and I intentionally checked only the area Elva would have in front of her as she was moving to position. Turning around to see behind her would be within RAW as well (and I expect it to become useful in the next rounds), but maybe that's a stretch, so I thought to ask first.

[harmonictempest]

I forgot to say specifically, but I'm shooting at the she-wolf leader.

Edit: Oh, man - totally forgot that Sul already moved and made a Spot check this round. My bad.

[Zed's Dead]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Zed's Dead
I'll give you this spot check as a free action because I had never explicitly stated this, but usually, taking time to look around a battlefield will be a move action.

*cough* Quick Reconnoiter: spot/listen as free actions *cough*

I bring that up because, if you have changed your mind about this feat, now would be a good time to know.
This was the first combat round I used it, and I intentionally checked only the area Elva would have in front of her as she was moving to position. Turning around to see behind her would be within RAW as well (and I expect it to become useful in the next rounds), but maybe that's a stretch, so I thought to ask first.

Qute a good point. I didn't want to penalize harmonictempest at this point, since I hadn't talked specifically about spot/move action stuff. In many of the games in which I play, Spot is considered a swift or free action, so I wanted harmonictempest and everybody else to know I was going with RAW.

As for your Quick Reconnoiter feat, you absolutely may use it. It would be pretty useless if I were to let everybody do it, eh? Dont' trouble yourself about spot/listen and facing. I think if you took a feat, you should be able to have your antennae up all the time. I'll post your info ASAP.

If, somehow, you've changed your mind about quick recon, since you haven't really used it until now, let me know, and we'll work something out. I like to be generous with abilities, fixing builds, etc. when I can. :smalltongue:

[Zed's Dead]

I forgot to say specifically, but I'm shooting at the she-wolf leader.

Edit: Oh, man - totally forgot that Sul already moved and made a Spot check this round. My bad.

That's ok. We'll move her and spot next round. Asking her to do it is perfectly fine.

[GeekLord]

I edited my post, just FYI. I attacked and then Raged. Exhaustion be damned. :smalltongue:

[Zed's Dead]

Geeklord:

There's no reason, since you can rage as a free action, that you couldn't take your whirling rage 2nd attack this round. I know you posted an attack earlier, but you made it in order to allow those lower on the initiative to act.

Zimmia:
The She-Wolf will act after Daar posts. Sorry, Zimmia. I accidentally trumped Daar last round. I don't want my interpretation of initiative to work against you. I think it should be a perk for the PCs.

[Zimmia]

Zimmia:
The She-Wolf will act after Daar posts. Sorry, Zimmia. I accidentally trumped Daar last round. I don't want my interpretation of initiative to work against you. I think it should be a perk for the PCs.

Do I need to redo my actions? Can I see that the she-wolf is headed my way?

[GeekLord]

Geeklord:

There's no reason, since you can rage as a free action, that you couldn't take your whirling rage 2nd attack this round. I know you posted an attack earlier, but you made it in order to allow those lower on the initiative to act.

Sounds good, I'll roll my second attack then. Thanks.

[Zed's Dead]

Do I need to redo my actions? Can I see that the she-wolf is headed my way?

No. We're just in round 2, and I didn't want the she-wolf to act before you. I was just saying that it's your turn, miss.

<low bow, doffing cap>

The She-Wolf is being attacked on all sides, reacting to the blows (or not). She will act/react to these attacks with certainty.

[harmonictempest]

We seem to have gotten a little out of initiative order. I'm around - someone poke me when we get around to Round 3.

*gets out popcorn to spectate in the meantime*

Also, D'OH! I *knew* I should have just readied an action/arrow and waited for those other wolves to come back. I thought about it, but decided Arlen thought they'd take a little longer to come back. I'm sorry, villagers! Please don't die!

[GeekLord]

Yeah, I'm not sure if we're supposed to wait for the person ahead of us in the initiative order to post, or just post whenever during the round and let Zed untangle it. I've not been waiting to post, since I have no self-control. :)

However, if you'd like me to wait until after Arlen's post, I'm happy to do so.

[harmonictempest]

Mine is not to wonder why, mine is just to follow the DM's guidance. Left to myself, I like everyone posting in order - it keeps things clearer. That said, posting when you can and having the DM sort it out when he post results lets the round as a whole go a ton faster.

So...whatever Zed says, I am down with.

[Zed's Dead]

We seem to have gotten a little out of initiative order. I'm around - someone poke me when we get around to Round 3.

We're just waiting for Daar. I'll allow us to get out of order in the interest of propelling the story forward. See my above post. This is something I'm playing with, so if you guys all hate it, let me know.


*gets out popcorn to spectate in the meantime*

I like to munch while I'm waiting for posts as well. I'm eating cake, though...heh.


Also, D'OH! I *knew* I should have just readied an action/arrow and waited for those other wolves to come back. I thought about it, but decided Arlen thought they'd take a little longer to come back. I'm sorry, villagers! Please don't die!

Sorry. The wolves made short work of the two fools on horseback. They killed them and then wanted to join in the fun.

I was impressed with the defenders. It was smart to set their spears against the charge.

[Zed's Dead]

Mine is not to wonder why, mine is just to follow the DM's guidance. Left to myself, I like everyone posting in order - it keeps things clearer. That said, posting when you can and having the DM sort it out when he post results lets the round as a whole go a ton faster.

So...whatever Zed says, I am down with.


On initiative order, I really will do what you guys want.

I propose a vote on this thread:

If you want to run initiative in exact order, vote Aye.

If you would rather post as you can and have me sort it out, please vote Nay.

[Zimmia]

I can't believe I didn't see the "This is round 2" for like a day and a half. EEK!!!! :smalleek: Seriously though - if I'm that stupid again, feel free to hit me quicker.


On initiative order, I really will do what you guys want.

I propose a vote on this thread:

If you want to run initiative in exact order, vote Aye.

If you would rather post as you can and have me sort it out, please vote Nay.


I say Nay - I vote to let you do the work :smallsmile:

[harmonictempest]

On initiative order, I really will do what you guys want.

I propose a vote on this thread:

If you want to run initiative in exact order, vote Aye.

If you would rather post as you can and have me sort it out, please vote Nay.

I also vote to let Zed sort it out, not because I want to pile work on him, but because it'll let us post when we're free, rather than having to refresh and wait and make the round take three times as long. If you're doing that, Zed, you might consider making one big IC post per round, to put all the actions back in their order and lay out what happened. Help keeps a cohesive sense of what's going on better.
/back seat driver off

That said - Daar has gone. Yay round three. I can post after 7 when I get home. I'm going to wait for the map to go up - don't know who Arlen's attacking yet.

Did anyone else laugh when Zed was impressed with the cleverness of his own NPCs?

[Tura]

I'll vote Nay, because with Real Life obligations on one hand and the boards crashing all the time on the other, I really can't give you my word I'll be able to post on my turn without delaying the round. We have different schedules and timezones (I'm from Europe for once), and it's difficult to synchronize.. err.. watches.

That said, this method can prove a bit confusing, even with a contingency plan. For example, in Round 2, did the she-wolf run off before Elva's attack? But if Gray and the white wolf act on my turn, and they got to attack, how is that possible? Should I post a "correction" for round 2, where Elva discovers that she didn't have time to attack and does something else instead? And by the way, didn't the she-wolf provoke any AoO from anyone?

I'll post in IC when this gets sorted out. Until then, I'll roll a spot/listen check right away. (It's for round 3, I'll put it in the fluff later.) That "Dozens of howls" part got Elva worried. :smalleek:
spot: [roll0]
listen: [roll1]
Edit-meh, why did I bother...


Did anyone else laugh when Zed was impressed with the cleverness of his own NPCs?
Oh yes. :)

[Zed's Dead]

And by the way, didn't the she-wolf provoke any AoO from anyone?


Yep. I didn't have time to add that to the thread, so actually, she provoked AoOs from every one of you who surround her. Please roll your attacks on the IC thread, and make sure you specify that it's the She-Wolf AoO.

[Tura]

Yep. I didn't have time to add that to the thread, so actually, she provoked AoOs from every one of you who surround her. Please roll your attacks on the IC thread, and make sure you specify that it's the She-Wolf AoO.
OK, will do. What about my animals? Did they hit before? Did I hit before? I ask because I'd like to add it to the fluff. (And keep track of her hit points maybe...)

[Zed's Dead]

Ok. I've thought about this quite a bit, and I have a plan for initiative.

Issues:
1. We like to move pretty quickly when possible because we're hardcore. :smallwink:

2. We especially like our combat to be linear, because if it isn't, it messes up the story.

3. Posting out of order causes confusion, and, worst of all, makes those who rolled higher initiative feel gypped, because they were offline when I was posting (like I did to Zimmia--the She-Wolf acted before she did in the 1st round).

4. If we post in-order, we sometimes have to wait longer than we'd like.

SOLUTION:
Initiative is no longer made on an individual basis. Instead, initiative is rolled for the party as a group.

Here's how it works:

1. I post with the message, "ROLL INITIATIVE!" in the IC. I roll a d20 on the OOTS dice roller. This sets the initiative for the enemies, adding the highest dex/initiative bonus of any enemy combatant at the scene.

2. Some amount of time passes (probably not long, the way you guys check the thread). The first player to post after my "ROLL INITIATIVE" message rolls initiative for the entire party (1d20), adding the highest dex/initiative bonus of any character at the scene (right now, it's +2). If the character with the highest initiative bonus just happens to have improved initiative, then that bonus is added to the initiative roll. In-character, this would be like one of you warning the others before your enemies have a chance to strike.

3. If the enemies roll high, they get to act first. If you roll high, you ALL get to act first.

Example:

Your party is in a deep, dark wood. You are refilling your waterskins at a river's edge. There is a small group of kobolds (members of a hostile tribe) farther downstream. Both parties spot each other simultaneously.

1. I send a message to roll initiative, which includes a d20 dice rolll +3 (one of the kobolds is a ranger with a high dex).

2. Tura logs on, checks the thread, sees the "roll initiative" message, and posts her party's initiative roll, which at this moment is 1d20+2.

3. If Tura wins initiative, she may post her character's actions immediately.

4. If she doesn't she will wait until I post the actions of the kobolds.

Example 2:
Kraalkar takes point in your trek through the woods. He rolls a natural 20 spot check and sees a Dire Bear through the bushes. He notifies you all with a hand signal that there is danger ahead. You all stop and prepare to attack the bear because he's flat footed. Your party automatically goes first. When the Bear becomes aware of the attack, I ask you to roll initiative and then roll initiative for the bear. If he rolls high, he gets to act next. If your party representative rolls high, you all get to act again before the Bear acts.

Surprise rounds:
If there is a surprise round, it will work normally, according to the SRD. Once the Surprise round is over, We both parties will roll initiative, as stated above.

Benefits:
This system, I believe, will simplify combat immensely. It will also do away with the idea of ret-conning the round. The events that occur happen in the order they are posted. I won't have to split my rolls, either, which will keep the actions of my characters straight. The waiting to post will be minimalized.

If there are three factions in a fight, the third faction would simply roll initiative as described above, and fall into the order where his initiative roll falls.

Suddenly, Improved Initiative becomes incredibly valuable, but don't worry. Improved Initiative will be a rare ability.

Final note: If one of you wishes to change any single feat to Improved Initiative, I will allow it.

What do you think?

[Zed's Dead]

OK, will do. What about my animals? Did they hit before? Did I hit before? I ask because I'd like to add it to the fluff. (And keep track of her hit points maybe...)

1. Your animals will have attacks of opportunity, just as you guys did.

2. I'll post the result of the animals' attacks later tonight. Sorry. I've been thinking about solving the intitative problem.

:smallwink:

[harmonictempest]

I like the initiative changes. It makes me want to take Improved Init (+3 dex already), except...the only thing I'd switch it out for is Skill focus (Know arcana), which is also a unique talent in the party. So, I'm torn (and I think Tura and I are the ones with 16 Dex).

Other than that, just waiting for the map to fire off some arrows. :-)

[Tura]

Group initiative sounds great.
(I might change my mind if we lose initiative against a big dragon from the days of yore later on, but it sounds very very practical.)

@harmonictempest
Arlen has higher Dex. Elva has only 12, BUT! gets another +2 bonus due to Quick Reconnoiter. If I add Improved Initiative (assuming Zed doesn't smack me on the head for cheesiness), it becomes +7, just like Arlen's would.

Now, what to drop... Augment summoning is out of the question, so it could be either Track or Skill Focus:Survival. Perhaps Skill Focus: Knowledge (Nature), if we choose to politely ignore the fact that I've already rolled some knowledge checks.

Hmm... We have a ranger for Track, so I could drop it, but then Survival becomes less relevant. It has other uses of course, but still... On the other Hand, Knowledge (Nature) is pretty much covered by Arlen, too.

So yes (I guess), if Zed allows it, I could take Improved Initiative and drop Knowledge (Nature). It was the feat I chose for my gift, but I already have another skill-related feat, so I think it's within HRAW (House Rules As Written.:smalltongue: )

Other opinions?

[GeekLord]

I got a message from Zed asking me to post the next map, so here (http://s272.photobucket.com/albums/jj174/ulricgantai/?action=view&current=Wolfmap_6.jpg) it is.

By the way, I want to clarify the order of my attacks in the last round. When I raged, I got two attacks due to my Whirling Rage ability, and the second attack dropped my target. I didn't know that until Zed posted and I had responded with the next round of attacks, at which point I asked to roll my Cleave attack from the previous round against my new target.

So IC, it was [round 1] attack (damage) + attack (killed wolf) + Cleave (vs new target), then [round 2] attack + attack the new target.

I really don't just roll extra attacks on a random basis. :smallsmile:

[Zed's Dead]

So yes (I guess), if Zed allows it, I could take Improved Initiative and drop Knowledge (Nature). It was the feat I chose for my gift, but I already have another skill-related feat, so I think it's within HRAW (House Rules As Written. )


Yep. You're right. It fits HRAW. Heh.


About the map. I'm at work right now, and the filter doesn't let me access photobucket, so I asked Geeklord to post it.

The big brown striped thing is the road, which veers off to the right, as you can see, in order to go around the rise in the upper right-hand quadrant of the map. It eventually turns back north and heads right into Stone.

The big, orange F is the fire the spot checks are spotting.

So that's two for group initiative...do I hear any other takers?

[Zimmia]

I'm quite for group initiative - have used it in the past to very good affect.

I have thoughts on the other pieces but I'm too overtired to be coherent.

I will have to post my rd 3 actions tomorrow too.

[Zed's Dead]

If you guys vote for group initiative, we'll just imagine that you are at the top (since most of you are already), and that the wolves are at the bottom.

That way, I'll go last! Yay!



Arlen has higher Dex. Elva has only 12, BUT! gets another +2 bonus due to Quick Reconnoiter. If I add Improved Initiative (assuming Zed doesn't smack me on the head for cheesiness), it becomes +7, just like Arlen's would.

Nah. Not cheesy, just a nice, solid initiative! :)


I like the initiative changes. It makes me want to take Improved Init (+3 dex already), except...the only thing I'd switch it out for is Skill focus (Know arcana), which is also a unique talent in the party. So, I'm torn (and I think Tura and I are the ones with 16 Dex).

I'll let you guys work this out.

[harmonictempest]

I say go for it, Tura. My Know (nature) is at +14 right now, and you've got +13 with Skill Focus. Dropping it, you still have +10, which should be enough to back up times when I fail my roll. Also, my familiar gets to make any skill checks I do, with the same ranks and it's own ability modifiers, which means it's got a decent check as well. So I'd say you're safe dropping that in order to raise the party's initiative modifier by 4. :D

I'll go ahead and post some third round archer craziness. :-D

Go Elva and Gray! Smack down that wolf! (nice AoOs, guys :smallsmile: )

Actually...she did survive that extra 20 damage from the AoOs...right?

[harmonictempest]

Woo critical threat! Rolling confirmation and damage...
[roll0]
[roll1]
If that confirms, then second attack in third round does 14 damage.

[GeekLord]

I like that idea for initiative. It'll smooth out the developing plot quite a bit, I think. No need to retcon actions anymore to fit with this thing called "logic". :smallsmile:

[Tura]

"Logic can be very useful, so long as you recognize it, and manage to evade it."
- Umberto Eco, The Name Of The Rose
(couldn't help it :smallbiggrin: )

PS - The boards are... shaky again. I wrote this message half an hour ago, and I'm still trying to post it. I'll post in IC when I can.

EDIT - Zed, if you check the thread before Zimmia, please inform us if Gray managed to get Eddar out of the way, so that she can position herself correctly. Thanks. :)

Oh, and I took Improved Initiative, yay!

[Tura]

Rolling...

White Wolf: attack (the wolf in G-19) [roll0] for [roll1] damage.
Gray: moves to K-20, charges diagonally to N-17 (where Eddar is) and bull rushes him 10ft, sending him to P-15, so that now Gray is in O-16. AC 17, Strength check: [roll2]
Hippogriff: position O-18 (O-19, P-18, P-19). Full attack: claw [roll3] for [roll4] damage , claw [roll5] for [roll6] damage and bite [roll7] for [roll8] damage. AC 15.
Flanking bonus applied.

PS- OK, I know I would get a million points for style if the hippogriff dived from above... but I thought we needed the full attack.
*sigh*

[Zimmia]

I'm paying for those good rolls early on. I suppose now would be a good time to ask if there are critical fumble rules in place? :smallfrown:

[Zed's Dead]

Dang. I tried ALL DAY, and I just now got on the forum.

Wow. You guys are whipping some wolf tail.

Looks like it's time to call in the flying monkeys.

I'll not have a chance to finish the round until tonight. I was hoping we'd be into round 4 by now. Double dang!

[harmonictempest]

S'ok, Tura. Except for Dashing Swordsmen, too-stylish characters tend to die faster.

Zed, could you look over a variant rule from the Giant himself? There's a variant Knowledge (http://www.giantitp.com/articles/paBcfg1YaEccDMQACfu.html) rule that lets you get a variable bonus against a single specific situation once per day per Knowledge skill by passing a difficult Knowledge check. The meat of the text is below if you have little time, but reading the linked page is very informative. Let me know what you think.

You can attempt a Knowledge check to give yourself an advantage in a situation. You may attempt one such check per day for each Knowledge skill in which you have ranks. A basic check (DC 20) gains you a +1 competence bonus to AC, attack rolls, damage rolls, or the save DCs of your spells against one particular opponent , or a +2 competence bonus to one saving throw against a particular effect (a certain wizard's spells, poison, or to avoid traps, for example), or a +2 competence bonus to one skill check to accomplish a particular task. A DC (30) check increases these bonuses to +2/+4/+4 respectively. You must specify the opponent, effect or task upon making the check, and the bonuses last until the conditions are met or a day passes, whichever comes first. You must describe how your knowledge produces these results; a knowledge skill which is incompatible with a particular result increases the check DC by +10, at the DM’s discretion. If you fail the Knowledge check, you may not attempt to gain an advantage through that Knowledge skill for the rest of the day, though you may still use a different Knowledge skill.

[Zed's Dead]

I'm paying for those good rolls early on. I suppose now would be a good time to ask if there are critical fumble rules in place?

No critical fumble rules per se, but on attack rolls, a 1 is a miss, no matter what.



Woo critical threat! Rolling confirmation and damage...
[roll0]
[roll1]
If that confirms, then second attack in third round does 14 damage.

No need to roll confirmation. A critical is a critical. I like to sweeten combat a bit.


EDIT - Zed, if you check the thread before Zimmia, please inform us if Gray managed to get Eddar out of the way, so that she can position herself correctly. Thanks. :)

Yep. Edder is not resisting, so it was really no contest.

[Zed's Dead]

Zed, could you look over a variant rule from the Giant himself? There's a variant Knowledge (http://www.giantitp.com/articles/paBcfg1YaEccDMQACfu.html) rule that lets you get a variable bonus against a single specific situation once per day per Knowledge skill by passing a difficult Knowledge check. The meat of the text is below if you have little time, but reading the linked page is very informative. Let me know what you think.

I like this idea, but I don't like the effect it has. I'd rather have knowledge give you an edge in tactical ways (if in combat) rather than a straight numerical bonus. For instance, if you knew a particular creatrure was vulnerable to fire, that would be a specific advantage. Or the knowledge (nature) check you made against the wolf. You have an idea of how she'll act during this encounter, so you can plan accordingly. It's a lot more in line with my vision of Darkworld.

[harmonictempest]

You da boss. I'll definitely be making more tactical Knowledge rolls, then. :-)

[Zed's Dead]

You da boss. I'll definitely be making more tactical Knowledge rolls, then. :-)

Awesome. This is one of my favorite aspects of RP: the rules are there to give the story structure, and the story is the focus. Yeah!

[Zed's Dead]

I'm having mucho problemos with the forum.

I will have to post tomorrow. I'm going to bed.

I'll hit it hard tomorrow!

[Zed's Dead]

zimmia:

I had Daar take a five-foot step so she could attack. If you'd rather her not, let me know. I'll edit.

A note on summoning: There may be different planes of existance in Darkworld's cosmology, but they certainly aren't available to low-level spellcasters. Only the most powerful spellcasters in the world would even attempt such a thing.

Instead of summoning, spellcasters actually are temporarily creating a magical beast through their magical and imaginative powers, as well as their knowledge of animals and the arcane.

Crunch is exactly the same, as far as abilities and attributes and causing and taking damage. The process of bringing them into existance is just different.

It's fine that Elva summoned the wolf and hippogriff. We'll assume Elva has enough knowledge about these creatures to bring them into being.

Those of you who plan on "summoning" need to write about how you'd know enough about creatures like this to be able to construct them magically, seemingly out of thin air. Think of this as a way to deepen your character backstory.

[harmonictempest]

Lovely cinematic description, Zed. A map would be great when you get a chance. :-) I can't believe the she-wolf just keeps soaking up damage - this is intense.

Thanks for the warning about Sul - I'll think about it. I like the idea of her having good enough AC to flank occasionally, but it is rather dangerous with her low HP total.

[Tura]

Great, great. Oh my god we're all going to die, but still great.

Zed, if you don't mind, I'll decide what to do after the result of the skill checks. I also wonder if a map is coming. (The maps are awesome by the way.)

Spot don't fail me now.
Spot: [roll0]
Listen: [roll1]

[harmonictempest]

Rolling Spot/Listen here while I think of what to do IC.Arlen:
[roll0]
[roll1]
Sul:
[roll2]
[roll3]

[Zed's Dead]

The map is on the way, but photobucket is screwed up. Use the old map as much as possible. All of you can attack wolves in this round. I'll change the map to fit the action.

I'm glad you guys are enjoying this. I certainly am.

:smallamused:

[Tura]

Instead of summoning, spellcasters actually are temporarily creating a magical beast through their magical and imaginative powers, as well as their knowledge of animals and the arcane.

Crunch is exactly the same, as far as abilities and attributes and causing and taking damage. The process of bringing them into existance is just different.
I love that concept. And it fits perfectly a setting I had in mind with very few planes. Mind if I steal it? :)
Afterthought: Would that, by any chance, have something to do with the fact that, once you get rid of alignment, celestial and infernal planes don't make much sense? Because I'm trying to deal with that, too.


It's fine that Elva summoned the wolf and hippogriff. We'll assume Elva has enough knowledge about these creatures to bring them into being.

Those of you who plan on "summoning" need to write about how you'd know enough about creatures like this to be able to construct them magically, seemingly out of thin air. Think of this as a way to deepen your character backstory.
Fair enough. It always bugged me how druids summon (or turn into) creatures they've never heard of. ("I am the Mighty Druid of the North Pole and I summon... an elephant!") But I didn't invest at all in spellcraft and arcana. So for the hippogriff in particular, I'll resort to the Power of Imagination, and the fortunate fact that druids spend a lot of their time retelling stories. Elva may have never seen a hippogriff, but she has memorized accounts of a clansman's encounter with one, generations ago. She knows about horses, she knows about eagles, and can, with some effort, imagine how a crossbreed would be. Let's say this is the first time she managed to do it, and she now feels very proud and thankful to Alsaz, the elder druid who taught her the story.
(I hope that reconciles the "summoning" with the lack of arcana skill points. Does it??)

As for the white wolf, well for one thing Elva knows about wolves, and it also resembles what (she reckons that) one of Gray's ancestors would look like. (Gray is a northern breed.)

Wolf:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/07/Canis_lupus_laying.jpg/200px-Canis_lupus_laying.jpg

Arctic Wolf:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ed/Polarwolf004.jpg/250px-Polarwolf004.jpg

Elkhound:
http://puppydogweb.com/gallery/norwegianelkhounds/norwegianelkhound_skell.jpg

[Zed's Dead]

Tura:

Uber-cool idea, to make some of the more exotic creatures accessible by the oral tradition, which once was so much more powerful in everyday life than it is today.

[Tura]

A second talon sweeps in from the left to finish the grisly work, and this time the She-Wolf doesn't even try to avoid the blow. Her heart pumps what must be the last of her blood--a river which flows down her neck and forepaws. Her knees buckle. Her heavy body collapses into the snow.

Time slows perceptibly. The combatants pause, realizing the gravity of this moment.

A long how of anguish and vengeance, a mournful keening cry, cuts the air from the West. It is answered by countless howls. If you look at the moon you can just make out the silhouette of a giant wolfen form standing on a small hillock above the battlefield. He surveys the scene with giant, burning eyes. In the woods, the eyes of his followers smolder with the same eerie shine.
Dude. You just scared the crap out of me.

[Zed's Dead]

Good. Thanks for the pics, by the way. I'll be doing more of that in the near future.

[harmonictempest]

Dude. You just scared the crap out of me.

Agreed. CrapcrapcrapcrapcrapRUNNNN!!! was my first reaction, though fortunately Arlen's a little more battle-hardened. Anyway, I'll go try to do something intelligent with Arlen. Do we at least get a morale bonus for taking out the she-wolf?

On an RP note: You guys are in luck. I took a day trip to Innsbruck in December, and got some pictures that should give a good impression of what the land is like, so enjoy! (Edit: grar, how do you get the photos to embed in the message?)http://photos-b.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sctm/v216/228/26/1509028/n1509028_35532833_5955.jpg
First, why crossing the Alps is *hard*.

http://photos-d.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sctm/v216/228/26/1509028/n1509028_35532831_5316.jpg
A forest similar to what we're traveling through, I hope. The two dark figures in the middle are people.

http://photos-a.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sctm/v216/228/26/1509028/n1509028_35532832_5636.jpg
The side of a mountain. You can't really tell it, but the slope is over 50 degrees.

http://photos-c.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sctm/v216/228/26/1509028/n1509028_35532830_4948.jpg
http://photos-b.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sctm/v216/228/26/1509028/n1509028_35532829_4545.jpg
What a village nestled in the mountains might look like (like Stone, say).

http://photos-c.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sctm/v216/228/26/1509028/n1509028_35532834_6326.jpg
And lastly, a sunrise over the Alp foothills next to a lake, just because the area is that incredibly beautiful. Sorry for the telephone pole, the train was going pretty fast.

[Tura]

Do we at least get a morale bonus for taking out the she-wolf?
The hardcore role-player inside me demands that this particular druid waivers any morale bonus that could apply, as she has been scared to death. As was I. (And what freaked me even more was that, as I was reading the post quickly, at first I thought there was a wolf-like image on the moon. Brrr... )


grar, how do you get the photos to embed in the message?
You wrap with [img] the link of the picture, not the page. You can't right click on the image and choose "copy link location" in Facebook and some other sites, but you can choose "Properties" and copy the link from there (Image properties-->location). Great pictures!

[Zed's Dead]

Thanks, harmonictempest. I have some pics like this, but they are of the Rockies. This will fuel our imagination, I hope.

I'm also interested in embedding pics.

Take a +1 attack and AC bonus for against all wolves who witnessed the death of their matriarch until the end of the encounter.

[harmonictempest]

Cool - so there you go Tura, it's not that you're bolstered, it's that the wolves are afraid of you. (*high-fives Tura for excellent Knowledge rolls*)

I'm going to wait until I hear back on the Knowledge checks to say that my action is complete.

I'll go back and embed the images in the next few minutes here - thanks for the tip, Tura!

Edit: Pictures embedded!

[Zed's Dead]

Ok, harmonictempest. You challenge me with your knowledge rolls to really solidify more of this world than I would expect to at this point, and I like it. Thanks for keeping me on my toes and helping me to invent more about Darkworld. Keep it coming.

By the way, Zimmia, it's not actually the 5th round yet, and since you already attacked this round, I'd guess you'd probably need to edit or something. I feel your pain about being exhausted. I was having a tough time on Thursday night this week.

If you want me to, I'll apply the attack to next round, but the wolves and NPCs get to act first.

[harmonictempest]

Ok, my last IC post is updated. Let's see how scared those wolves are of a Dragon! :smallamused:

Oh, and as far as Knowledge rolls go, Tura's not far behind. :-)

[Zed's Dead]

harmonictempest:

You're right. This knowledge stuff makes for great RP.

Ok. Funny! He can actually "throw his voice." Heh, heh.

[GeekLord]

Those are fantastic pictures, Arlen.

By the way, Zed, the latest map link takes me to the main photobucket page. No map in sight, for me at least.

And great plot twist! So much for being predictable... I have the urge to puff on my calabash, nod sagely, and say, in my best Sherlock Holmes voice, "As I suspected! The plot thickens!"

And you have given me the dilemma of trying to decide how Kraalkar, hopped up on Rage as he is and given his cultural and specifically tribal beliefs, will respond to this terrifying sight. Well played, sir!

[Zed's Dead]

Thanks, GL!

I'm trying to edit the map again, but it's just not right.

I'll have a new one up tomorrow. Good night, all.

[Tura]

By the way, Zed, the latest map link takes me to the main photobucket page. No map in sight, for me at least.
The map of round 4 is here (http://s272.photobucket.com/albums/jj174/ulricgantai/?action=view&current=wolfmap10.jpg).

EDIT-

Zed, this "small hillock above the battlefield" is how close, roughly? In the map for all to see? Near the end of the map? Up up and away? And is it straight west?

Also, do I have an incoming knowledge check result?

And finally, about the map. If a second wave of wolves comes from the west, they won't materialize again in front of the forest, will they? :)
I mean, technically, a square with a tree may not be occupied by a creature, sure, but the wolves pass through the trees. Can I ready an action which triggers with "seeing or hearing a group of wolves in the woods, around squares so-and-so", for example?

[Zed's Dead]

The map of round 4 is here (http://s272.photobucket.com/albums/jj174/ulricgantai/?action=view&current=wolfmap10.jpg).

EDIT-

Zed, this "small hillock above the battlefield" is how close, roughly? In the map for all to see? Near the end of the map? Up up and away? And is it straight west?

Also, do I have an incoming knowledge check result?

And finally, about the map. If a second wave of wolves comes from the west, they won't materialize again in front of the forest, will they? :)
I mean, technically, a square with a tree may not be occupied by a creature, sure, but the wolves pass through the trees. Can I ready an action which triggers with "seeing or hearing a group of wolves in the woods, around squares so-and-so", for example?

The wolf is standing due West, about three or four squares off the map at this moment. The hillock becomes level at about the western edge of the map.

Yeah. at full speed, they could be on you in seconds, but wolf packs have different strategies at times, so they may not attack for several minutes.

When you see specific wolves, I will simply replace the "f" trees with wolves. The symbols (especially for trees) are not on a one-to-one ratio. For instance, there could be two or three small trees in a five-foot square, just as a group of soldiers could easily stand shoulder-to shoulder (2 to a square). It will be clearly described once I get the danged map up.

Apologies to all: I am re-making the map, or at least trying to find a good way to show you the updated map. It won't be up until tonight (possibly late.

Description of the scene: All the wolves that were caught in the web have pushed themselves at least one square away from the dragon noise and away from you guys (if that's possible, from their position.

The caravaners are on the ground all around the fire. The brutish humanoid disappeared to the north.

The wolves who were engaging you in combat ran off to the east. I'm keeping initiative going at this point in case you guys decide to take shots at the still-webbed wolves, and so that I can keep actions straight and crucial events in a time perspective.

Like I said, I'll be back on tonight. You may post or not, depending on your comfort level regarding mapless action (not in direct combat). If you choose not to post int he IC, please post in the OOC just so I know you're there, and so you adhere to the rules of the Darkworld campaign.

Tura, once I get a new map up, will you please tell me where you threw the ghost sound wax figure?

You certainly can ready an action, as long as it's as specific as you stated it above.

[Zimmia]

I really think I'd like to wait until I can see where things are at before I make a move - I'm a little fuzzy in my head as to where things are all right now.

Unless that wolf from the last action is right in front of me - then I'll attack that one. Honestly I'm really not sure at this time. Sorry.

[Tura]

Tura, once I get a new map up, will you please tell me where you threw the ghost sound wax figure?
That was harmonictempest, not me. :)
He wrote "hurls the wax into the woods directly between the giant wolf, his pack, and the party".

I'll be waiting for the map too, not because I desperately need it, but because I'm not entirely sure what to do. Maybe a visual will give me an idea. Should we roll AoO (I count 4) or is it... unnecessary?

[Zed's Dead]

Sorry, Tura. I'm out of it today.

I'm workin on the map now. I'm going to paste it in the thread so it will be easier to access.

No AoOs, by the way. They retreated.

[harmonictempest]

Yeah, sorry I didn't give more specific mechanical details of what I did. This is Ghost Sound, obviously, and while the fluff I wrote said that I threw the wax, which would seem to imply that the sound is stationary, I can actually move it around within Close range of me. I "threw" it about 30 feet directly toward the new arrivals (assuming they're in a more or less unified location - if not, then toward the giant leader) from my new position, which is a little bit farther north - Arlen was moving toward the fire without leaving his companions behind or getting out of range of the new wolves.

Edit: Round 5 action up. Um...if I don't make it, be sure to remember in song your brave but foolish comrade, who attempted to drive off a level-appropriate encounter by himself. With two cantrips.

[Zed's Dead]

I cannot make my map appear at full size on photobucket. Honestly, I'm sick of trying. I have a perfectly servicable map, but I can't even attach it to the thread unless I have a URL to paste. Grrr!

So, here is my fix: I will email you the picture. Just email me at [email protected], please.

I'm looking into new options now.

[GeekLord]

Ugh, flubbed those attack rolls. Hopefully their entanglement will lower their AC, but I think the great barbarian's image just took a ding. Oh well. :smallbiggrin:

[harmonictempest]

Hey, if the great barbarian wants to keep the wolves to his immediate northwest off of the dashing and handsome wizard's exposed flank, that wouldn't go amiss at all. ;-) I actually realized only after I moved that there's three wolves very close to me - still stuck for the moment, but very close nonetheless.

[Tura]

GitP Forum: The horror... the horror...
It was impossible to get to the boards today. It's 3:45 pm here, and I just managed to post. Thank god I'm nocturnal.

In other news, a small correction: I was in N-16 in the previous round but the map shows me in J-17, where I was two rounds ago.

And now, bedtime.
*falls and sleeps on the keyboard*

[Zed's Dead]

Tura:

Was that a double move for the hippogriff? Can they charge through the air? Did you make an attack roll for it that I missed? Is this the wolf in the south that you wanted it to attack?

If the answers to these question is yes, please let me know appropriate info.

Zimmia:

Did Daar move? I didn't get where, if she did.

roll a diplomacy check, if you will, to win the NPCs trust.

Harmonictempest: Yep. it seems to me that there are enough trees so that Arlen would assume that the wolves would not have a solid line of sight to the "dragon."

Also, where might Sul be?

Geeklord:
Sorry you weren't able to slaughter THREE wolves this round. :)

All: Make spot and listen checks.

[harmonictempest]

Sul's default location is in my square, either riding on my shoulder or fist, or circling about 30 feet above, keeping an eye out. In this case, she's circling.

I'm going to make my Spot/Listen in the IC thread, but only because there was some RP fluff I wanted to put in that didn't make it into my last post. Ergo, the post contains nothing but fluff and a free action (and not my round 6, for instance).

[Zed's Dead]

harmonictempest: I'll move Sul next map.

Does your map location suit you?

All: You guys are doing great with rp. Spell descriptions, the effects of fatigue, attacks, etc. This is quite fun.

I'm going to stick with the email maps for now. I haven't yet found a map maker I like for a permanent solution. Do you guys know of any good, quick, (free) map makers? Do you have Acrobat reader? Do you have MS Word? I'm thinking I'll just circumvent photobucket if I can.

[harmonictempest]

Nearly. I'm actually one square to the east, next to that tree. Otherwise, spot on. :-)

[Tura]

Was that a double move for the hippogriff? Can they charge through the air? Did you make an attack roll for it that I missed? Is this the wolf in the south that you wanted it to attack?
I'm not sure if that was a double move. Hippogriffs have average maneuverability and 100ft fly speed. That's 50ft going up in 60 degrees angle and 200ft going down in any angle. I thought it can fly, dive and attack in one round. Doesn't it work that way? If not, sorry. Umm.. let's keep the flight for fluff reasons, and it's going to puff out of existence when the round ends, anyway. Is that OK?
If yes, it seems I did forget to roll for attack and damage. Sorry again.. I'll roll now.
Attack: [roll0], damage [roll1]
Add two to attack if charge is applicable.
(And yes, it was for the wolf in G-17.)

As for maps, I found this thread (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=47290) and this program (http://www.gryc.ws/autorealm.htm), but I haven't used any of them to tell you something more useful.

Do you have Acrobat reader? Do you have MS Word?
Yeap. :smallsmile:

Oh, and the spot/listen checks. (At this point I remind you that I rolled a 25 spot in the previous round, I must have seen something, right??)
spot [roll2]
listen [roll3]

[harmonictempest]

Impressive, Tura. :P 20 and a 1, back-to-back.

[GeekLord]

Okay, sorry for all those posts in a row. Lack of foresight on my part. :smalleek:

[Zimmia]

*growls at boards which show my post didn't appear and then is there when I repost*

I would normally just delete the 2nd, but the first has my rolls in it. If those rolls aren't necessary then I'll delete the second one as usual.

[Zed's Dead]

Geeklord and Zimmia: No big deal on the extra posts. Try to edit when possible, but really, I don't mind.

Tura:
Oh, yeah. I think the hippogriff could take an attack with that action, but since you didn't roll, I wasn't sure what you wanted to do.It actually hit with charge and its negative to AC due to being caught in the mire.

harmonictempest: I'll move your avatar next time I update the map.

All: I'll be out tonight. I'm GMing a Star Wars game. I'll end the round tomorrow and send an updated map.

By the way, is the email map working for you guys as a temporary fix?

[harmonictempest]

Emailed map works for me. I'll have my round 6 action up sometime tonight.

[Zimmia]

The emailed map is working fine for me too.

I checked and I can get to Flickr through the firewall so that works too.

And I'm jealous - I miss our star wars game. It fell apart after some of our players got stupider. But it was great fun while it lasted - especially when I tried to substitute for our pilot!




Zimmia: it's no problem for her to hoist him on her shoulder, if she wants. He weighs about 170 lbs.

She'll go ahead and do that then

[Tura]

@zed: email is just fine. What is that "S" on Q-16?

@harmonictemest :

Tura, can you or your hound try to drag Edder along?
Who is this "Tura" you speak of? :smalltongue:

[harmonictempest]

D'oh. Is fixed. :-) Honestly, though - you both have four-letter names that end in A. :P

Also, the S is Arlen's owl, Sul. Her position should be updated soon - she's been above his head, and is now circling the fire, on the lookout for wolves.

[Zed's Dead]

I'm glad to know I'm in good company!

[Zimmia]

I'ma roll my spot and listens here so I don't clutter up the ic thread.

I have to say that I haven't had a game this intense in a long time - just looking at that map drove me to take off my glasses and pinch my nose. Well done!


spot: [roll0]
listen: [roll1]
edit: ya'know... I'm not all that displeased that I can't see just how many wolves are knocking at our door right now. :smalleek:

[harmonictempest]

Also rolling Spot/Listen here. Sul already rolled hers this round, so I'll just use those.

I'm...scared to death, and confused as to how we're going to survive. Glad to see a DM not pulling punches!
[roll0]
[roll1]

Once again, I present Arlen and Sul, the All-Seeing. Some day when the boards are a bit more cooperative, I'm going to go find my average Spot/Listen rolls, 'cause I feel like they're around 13 or 14 instead of 10.5.
Edit: Ok, I did the math - my average is about normal, but the standard deviation is way high. Either I roll 18-20 or 1-4 when it comes to Spot and Listen, apparently. :P

Aaannd now Arlen knows exactly how screwed we all are. Great!

[Tura]

I'm...scared to death, and confused as to how we're going to survive.
d6s. Lots of them. No, wait, it was a point-buy. :smalltongue:

Strange as it may sound, I'm glad to see you guys as alarmed as I am... for a minute there I thought I was being paranoid. I haven't posted yet because I'm waiting for a clarification from Zed (I sent an email because the boards were a mess earlier). I might write something fluffy just to keep a steady pace, but no actions for now.

[Zed's Dead]

I'ma roll my spot and listens here so I don't clutter up the ic thread.

Zimmia: Spot/Listen
There are wolves all around you. You can't sense any to the east.




All: I'm going to be out on Friday and Saturday. I'll post Thursday and Sunday, however. Easter weekend get-away!

On a personal note, I'm glad the game is fun so far. It makes all the effort worth it.

[Zed's Dead]

Tura: what was the diplomacy check for?

[Tura]

On a personal note, I'm glad the game is fun so far. It makes all the effort worth it.
Yeap, Zed has heard about "level appropriate encounters" but considers them bad karma and wants nothing to do with them. :smalltongue:

PS- I'm not nagging, I actually love this (in a twisted, masochistic sort of way...)

The diplomacy check was to convince Edder to move along at full speed. Let me know if that 3 made him fall down in the snow and refuse to get up...

[Zed's Dead]

Yeap, Zed has heard about "level appropriate encounters" but considers them bad karma and wants nothing to do with them.

Exactly! Why would the big monsters/NPCs ignore you just because you're low level? Darkworld is scary and...dark...and stuff...


The diplomacy check was to convince Edder to move along at full speed. Let me know if that 3 made him fall down in the snow and refuse to get up...

Nope. He's not really "with you" right now. You're pretty much pulling him along.

[harmonictempest]

Yeap, Zed has heard about "level appropriate encounters" but considers them bad karma and wants nothing to do with them. :smalltongue:

*deep breath, expelled through lips*
Well...let's see what we can't do with this...wait! Hark! My familiar is channeling the DM and offering words of hope!
*scampers of to IC to spread the good news*
...I guess we're going down in the hole...

Zed: From my earlier Knowledge check on the giant wolf...can he understand speech? If I need to make a new Knowledge roll for that, I will.

[Zimmia]

I want to give everyone a heads up - we were planning on moving on the 1st April. Because life is ever-changing we are now looking to move the 26th or 27th March. There may be a couple of days when I have limited internet access (still trying to figure all this out) and I'm feeling a great deal of stress about the move in general right now. I may not be as ever-present on the boards but I will defiantely make a concerted effort to post at least once a day. If the boards themselves don't cooperate I'll send an email.

The good news is that this game is one of the things that is keeping me from "losing it" completely :smallsmile:

[Zed's Dead]

Zimmia: I want you to enjoy the game, and use it for positive escape time. Just let me know. The "everyday" timeframe is really there to keep the irresponsible players out. Just let me know when you'll be out, and all will be good.

harmonictempest: the wolf doesn't understand speech.

[harmonictempest]

Tura, I'm impressed with our battlefield control - we appear to have completely locked off an entire side of the field.

*high five*

[Zed's Dead]

I'll agree, harmonictempest. You guys are surprisingly effective against an overwhelming force. I have been pretty diligent in allowing the wolves specific rolls every round to free themselves, and they have sucked wind. Hard.

I'll see you guys on Sunday.

Happy Easter!

[Tura]

People, sorry if that last Entangle squeezed the battlefield too much (without taking care of most of the wolves...) It seemed the marginally best option at the time.
Zimmia, I know Daar is a bit dangerously close to it, but with Elva's warning and the obvious visual effect, I hope it won't be a problem. :smallsmile:

I'm putting the map here, in case you can't access imageshack.
http://img89.imageshack.us/img89/81/round8aagl5.jpg

[harmonictempest]

Tura, I think you've got a move action left over that you could use to try to grab Edder, right? You've used a standard (Entangle) and a free action (Spot/Listen), if I'm not mistaken.

[Tura]

Tura, I think you've got a move action left over that you could use to try to grab Edder, right? You've used a standard (Entangle) and a free action (Spot/Listen), if I'm not mistaken.

Hmm.. I thought that grabbing anything at all counts as a standard action by RAW. (Though, logically, if you have time to move 30ft, you should have time to grab someone right in front of you...) Since I'm waiting for Zed's approval on that, I think I'll keep the fluff flexible, and sort the crunch in the spoiler.

[Tura]

Yet another double post. :smallredface:
Edit - bad....
Edit 2- OK, that was really dumb of me, I rolled a d20 (and it was a 6), then I edited to comment how bad it was, and I deleted the roll by mistake, causing the nice red message to appear... Zed, I'm really sorry, take that as an automatic failure to get done with it. :smallredface:

[Zed's Dead]

Tura: Not a big deal on the double/flubbed/erased posts. I don't think you are into faking rolls or anything. :) Mistakes happen.

Yeah. Let's stick with RAW in this instance. You could move, though.

By the way, thanks for drawing in the area effect. That job is tedious to me.



All:
Now we're just waiting for harmonictempest.

[harmonictempest]

IC, is it apparent that Imbris is dead, or might Arlen think he has some chance to staunch the bleeding? He's pretty handy with a bandage, so presumably he'd have a good idea whether Imbris is already dead or just bleeding out.

If it's going to need an action for him to take time and determine that, I will make the appropriate IC action, but I wanted to find out first if it was just plain obvious one way or the other.

[Tura]

Yeah. Let's stick with RAW in this instance. You could move, though.
Cool. At this point I'd like to note my infinite confusion about how exactly one moves in occupied squares. Not through (half speed you said, I remember) but in. :smallconfused:

[Zed's Dead]

harmonictempest:

Arlen could make a heal check to see whether it would be helpful to try to staunch the bleeding. Yes. The brute is dead.

Tura: Very few people or trees or even wolves take up an entire 5-foot square. Of course, a large creature would come a lot closer to doing that. The 5-foot square is mostly about one's reach and "fighting space. So if I were moving through a forest, there might be two trees in my 5 foot square, but I am still able to move within the square with no problem. The trees are stationary. They aren't trying actively to impede me (unless Entangle has been cast!). They are only maybe a foot or two at the most in diameter.

Generally, I imagine that all characters move pretty fluidly within their fighting square--dodging, parrying, even taking steps forward in order to strike their foe--without actually taking a move action.

Does this help? If not, let's pursue it to clarify.

[Zed's Dead]

I'm sorry to leave you guys hanging without a map, but I just don't have any more time. I'll work on tonight (monday night).

[Zimmia]

Today starts the 24 hour period when I will largely be without internet access. I will be checking this thread (only) at work and post if I'm able - sometimes the site bogs well down while I'm there. If I can post again today it will be before 9pm EST (-5 GMT). If not, then I'll be back after we install services at the new house, and should be able to get online tomorrow night, however the actual move pulls itself off on Wednesday morning. Since this would be a really bad time to have to NPC Daar or for the game to bog down I'll get back here the best I can.

I hate moving and I hope I don't have to do it again for a very long time!

[Zed's Dead]

Thanks for letting us know, Zimmia. Daar is safe from NPCdom, but not from the wolves...or the dark.

--Zed

[Tura]

Questions:
1) Where is that fine old woman, Meg?
2) Will everyone please start getting into that darn hole? (LOL)

...
Oops. Zed posted IC when I was typing. Am I mistaken or is Kraalkar at 5 hp now? :smalleek:
Spot check: can Elva see how badly wounded everyone around is?

[Zed's Dead]

Meg is the O on the map. She's to the west of the fire.

Ummm...yeah...Kraalkar and Daar both look a little worse for wear. Kraalkar especially. Jed is shaken, but not too critically wounded. Others are hurt or dead.

[harmonictempest]

Whew, drama abounds. :D Let's get in the hole, especially as those wolves' average damage per hit is equal to my remaining HP. :smalleek:

Your minstrations have slowed the bleeding, but it will take something just short of a miracle to save Imbrus now.
Hate to be picky, as I do like the descriptions rather than just a straight mechanical statement. But...is he stabilized? Should be, with an 18, right?

[Zed's Dead]

harmonictempest:

Yep. He's stabilized, but his body's natural healing wouldn't allow him to heal on his own. His intestines are basically hamburger.

I know that RAW allows for stabilization followed by pretty swift healing, but certain kinds of wounds in Darkworld just can't be healed without some serious intervention.

If the PCs are injured, they will heal according to RAW or my modified healing rituals, but as you know, I like it gritty. The grittier, the better. :]

By the way, I like your new avatar. The old one was BA, but the new one is more OotS.

[Tura]

Hey, I was wondering... Is the "hole" just a hole in the ground, flat? Or is it more like a cave entrance? Basically, my main question is this.

Do the wolves north of the hole threaten the square? If Kraalkar for example withdraws right now, will he provoke an AoO, or simply fall in, safe from the wolves on the surface and ready to face the horrors that undoubtedly await us in there? :smalltongue:

Edit- Come to think of it, that's a 5-foot step, right? Sorry, my bad, but the question still stands for anyone else who might do the same.

[Zed's Dead]

http://www.m-c-g.org.uk/expeditions/argentina/capient.jpg

Here's a picture of what the cave might look like. Imagine the rock which has been rolled back is instead on the right side of the cave.

There would be no AoOs from anybody behind the cave, unless they had reach or something.
I don't see a huge mound of earth over the entrance. It's really more of a small opening in the ground. It leads back, but it must slope swiftly, because the three who have already entered the cave disappeared as if they were decending.

Actually, unless he took both attacks (cleave and his AoO doesn't count against his movement), he can still move after his attack.

[Tura]

Actually, unless he took both attacks (cleave and his AoO doesn't count against his movement), he can still move after his attack.
Yeah, I realized it later, I was half-asleep when I wrote that and I promise to refrain from doing so in the future.

Great visual. :)

[Zed's Dead]

Thanks, Tura!

Please ask questions and ask for clarifications. It keeps me on my toes.

Don't hesitate. The richer the discussion, the more fun!

[Zed's Dead]

By the way, I'm just going to wait for Zimmia to post in the IC before I have the wolves and NPCs act.

However, I'll try to get a reply to Kraalkar's action up today, even if Zimmia is still out. He'll be the first PC to make it inside the cave. Oooooo.

[Zed's Dead]

Zimmia has asked me via email to post for her, because giantitp was screwed up during her windo of opportunity, so I'll do it now.

Ok. Posted.

The wolves, the NPCs, the end of round 9, and the new map will come tonight.

[Zimmia]

Greetings from the flipside (almost)

I'm happy to say that we're all moved and that I'm finally managing to catch up on my sleep which will stop me from becoming a total psychopath. That's the good news.

The bad news is that as of right now there's only one computer in the whole house that's actually online. The wireless network that was supposed to be installed was the wrong - the tech was an idiot who named my network after a porn star and other loveliness. We've got new router and cards and we might be able to get it up this weekend and at the very latest Monday. Now, it's actually my computer that's online but everyone is in and out of my room as we're all trying to keep up with active online lives. So while I'm sharing with the rest of my family, I might not be as always-on as I usually am, although I will definitely be checking at least twice a day. I can definitively say it's good to be back though, although the roller has obviously been irritated by my presence and I will keep good thoughts that it will soon forgive me!


Spell count: # left (of total)
0 lvl: 5 (of 5)
1 lvl: 2 (of 4)
1 dom: 0 (of 1)
2 lvl: 0 (of 0)
2 dom: 1 (of 1)

[Zed's Dead]

I'm glad all is better, Zimmia. If I'd held off a bit longer, you would have been able to post for yourself. Hope I didn't mess up Daar's actions too much.

All: Please post here the number of spells you have left of each level.

[harmonictempest]

0th: 1/2
1st: 0/1
2nd: 0/1

Only half spells today. :-/

Edit: *sucking in air between teeth* Ouch, Tura - not even a full withdraw will get you out of AoOs at this point...

Edit2: Whew, a decent attack roll.

[Tura]

Spells left:
0: 4/4
1: 1/3
2: 0/2

Edit- *marvels at harmonictempest's arsenal and awesome move*
Wow. Thanks, that was great. Man, this is intense.

Edit2- Since the roll was high, I'll tell you why (in the name of the infernal hells) I bothered with a spot check at this point. Elva tries to estimate the terrain's formation, I mean where in the map (or as far as she can see, in any case) there is higher ground, where lower ground, and roughly where it's rocky and where it's soft. Yes, I know it's snowed :smalltongue:, but maybe a rock protrudes somewhere north or maybe there are more trees.

[Tura]

Wait, wait, I can tumble, can't I? (Ah, I should have kept the good roll for this.)
[roll0]

[Zed's Dead]

Tura: Excellent tumble roll. I'm happy for you. I had already made the wolves' attack rolls before I saw the OC tumble check, and...let's just say it's a very good thing you thought to tumble.

What is Gray's push/drag max load, and how much does Elva weigh? (Kind of a moot point now that you tumbled successfully, but helpful info nevertheless.)

All:
By the way, I'm working on a new map for the cave. It's getting pretty crowded there at the entrance with two large folks, a dog, two humanoids, and an owl(?), but I'm assuming that you guys are all standing near the entrance, but not right on top of one another.

A note for enlarged characters: you can only squeeze through the entrance, but the passage opens up just inside the cave (about 8 feet across).

harmonictempest: Where is Sul?

[GeekLord]

Cantrips: 3/6
1st level: 0/2 (I cast enlarge and shield, both of which last for 30 rounds)

Edit: Can I use my move action to reach out and pull the spear into the cave? I have 10' reach. Then my standard action will be to ready that action to move the rock when Arlen (or whoever) tells me to, since I assume I won't be able to see the entrance clearly with my face pressed up against the side of the boulder...

[Zed's Dead]

Geeklord:

You could squeeze through the entrance to get the spear, but you can't effectively reach around the rock without moving through the entrance. You're not reaching through empty space, if that makes sense.

If you take this action, you will end your turn outside the cave with the spear in your hand.

Tura: By the way, your spot check allowed me to add some flavor to your escape. You can Spot/Listen every round if you want. It won't bother me. Sometimes, I'll only have time to give you just what you need.

The ground is mostly flat with occasional jagged rocks. There is no high ground within 30 feet, unless you count the mound of rocks that makes the cave's "roof."

[GeekLord]

I'll stay where I am, thanks. :smallwink:

[Tura]

Tura: Excellent tumble roll. I'm happy for you. I had already made the wolves' attack rolls before I saw the OC tumble check, and...let's just say it's a very good thing you thought to tumble.
..Will the big scawy DM stop scawing me now? :smalleek:
Seriously, I thought that with Withdrawing, I had only one AoO to worry about, and was feeling kind of relaxed. I mean, like playing russian roulette with only one bullet in the chamber instead of, say, five... that kind of relaxed.


What is Gray's push/drag max load, and how much does Elva weigh? (Kind of a moot point now that you tumbled successfully, but helpful info nevertheless.)
Gray's max load is in the character sheet, Other Notes section: Push/Drag: 1725.
EDIT- The "DM's discretion" part wasn't for the weight, but because by RAW you don't have a say about your animal companion's actions when unconscious...

As for Elva's weight and height, you're right, I never wrote that down. Truth is, I almost never do. :smallredface: It's the metric system. (Ah, here I am, responding to Zed's Dead of all people with a Pulp Fiction quote.) Inches and pounds confuse me. I think in meters and kilos. What's average weight and slightly short for a 24 years old woman? That should be it...
*thinks it over and googles converters*

@rest of the party:
Hey! We made it inside! We aren't we celebrating? :smallsmile:

[Zed's Dead]

..Will the big scawy DM stop scawing me now?
Seriously, I thought that with Withdrawing, I had only one AoO to worry about, and was feeling kind of relaxed. I mean, like playing russian roulette with only one bullet in the chamber instead of, say, five... that kind of relaxed.

Yeah. Good point. You would have been attacked by one wolf. I like having smart players to keep me honest. :smallwink:


Yep. I thought you guys would never make it to the cave. :smallamused:

[Zimmia]

@rest of the party:
Hey! We made it inside! We aren't we celebrating? :smallsmile:

We are celebrating in a sort of take-a-breath-and-realize-we're-still-alive kind of way, and wondering just what is next. :smallbiggrin:

Just a clarification - if Daar followed Kraalkar into the cave then she's the one nearest the stone right? I think that will work since she's not wearing off her rage and Kraalkar is.

[harmonictempest]

The last thing I posted for Sul, she was basically in my square and about 5 feet above my head. I did not in fact post what she did this round, but given that she has near-human Int, I think we can presume she made a swoop for the cave. If I ever completely forgot to post for her again in the future...she's probably on auto-follow. :smallbiggrin:

[Zed's Dead]

Zimmia: Well, this may be the problem. The entrance, as I've said, is tight for an enlarged person. Once inside, there is enough room to maneuver. Tell you what. Since Geeklord posted first, let's assume he's ready to help move the rock. He might be squatting while Daar stands over him. That would allow enough room for the two of you to aid each other to move the rock...if you get the chance. Heh.

harmonictempest: Yep. I think you said that before. I just didn't want to assume. I'll assume auto-follow in the future.

I might be able to post tonight if Zimmia posts in the IC.
If not, it'll be tomorrow night. I have some home repairs to do tomorrow.

[Tura]

We are celebrating in a sort of take-a-breath-and-realize-we're-still-alive kind of way, and wondering just what is next. :smallbiggrin:
Yay! (I love your new avatar, by the way.)
On a semi-related note: I have taken Cure Minor Wounds for my spell like ability. Now, we can use that as a 1-hour ritual whenever we feel like, for 8 hp+1/caster level, right? But can we also use it as a standard action for 1 hp, as by RAW? I ask because :

1)it's a full-proof method of stablizing
2)it might be prudent (if somewhat ridiculous) to spend as many standard actions as possible doing exactly that, at this point (after/if we effectively block the entrance).

PS- Zed, if it isn't too much trouble, could you add this (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=4032916&postcount=87)message to your first message in OOC, the one with the rules? Because recruiting threads expire after a couple of months, I think.


Tura: By the way, your spot check allowed me to add some flavor to your escape. You can Spot/Listen every round if you want. It won't bother me. Sometimes, I'll only have time to give you just what you need.

The ground is mostly flat with occasional jagged rocks. There is no high ground within 30 feet, unless you count the mound of rocks that makes the cave's "roof."
Yeah, the flavor was fun, heh. However, the reason I made that check (and thanks for your patience, spot checks in every goddamn round can be pretty annoying for most DMs) was for a possible advantage in future cave-exploring.
For example, if we go 50 ft north while underground, and find a shaft going up, it's useful to know if the surface is 10 or 100ft up from there. But I guess it's flat for as far as the eye can see (which isn't very far, admittedly.)

[Zed's Dead]

Tura:

You may use Cure minor wounds as normal. However, you can't use it at will. See my new rules on healing. If I haven't put the info in your link in my thread starter, I'll do it.

The ground beyond the cave, as far as you could see, was flat.

[harmonictempest]

Bravo, Zed, bravo. You make me want to use words that I'm sure wouldn't make it past the profanity filter. Excellent job making us care about the NPCs. You know, right before you made it really tempting for us to make a suicide charge to try and save them.

I assume neither are dead yet? Are they both conscious?

[Zed's Dead]

Uluia is trying to get up on her ruined arms and legs.

I didn't have time to add that to the thread.

Meg is surrounded by wolves, and you can't really see her very well through their hairy legs. Make a spot check.

[harmonictempest]

[roll0]
And I haven't done this yet, but in case an Aid Another strength check is needed later this round for pushing the stone: [roll1]

Edit: Dang, Arlen's a beast. *rawr*

Pretty sure my action is going to stand, though, sad as that is.

[Tura]

You may use Cure minor wounds as normal. However, you can't use it at will.
I got confused again. You mean I can use it as normal only if I have prepared it, and I can use it like a ritual at-will?

EDIT
Fenris who?? The famous one? End of the world stuff?

[GeekLord]

... Guess that rock stays open one more round...

[Zed's Dead]

Tura:

Sorry. My reply was rushed, so it was unclear.

This is from the "rules" section of the OOC 1st post:


Arcane casters will get one 0-level spell already selected as an at-will supernatural ability. This is a one-time choice, and the spell selection can never be changed.


I changed the "0-level spell as an at will supernatural ability" thing for casters right before the game started. I'm sorry you didn't see it.

The healing ritual kind of mitigates your lack of that 0-level ability.

When I said you can still cast Cure Light Wounds as normal, I meant you can cast it according to RAW. The healing ritual doesn't change the way healing is done. It just adds to the flexibility and power of healing.

I hope that clarifies.

Thanks for sening me the link. The healing ritual info is actually already in that thread, but it's under "The World" rather than "The Rules." You are a very considerate player. I appreciate any and all help regarding recordkeeping and minutiae.

Fenris is a legend in Darkworld, just as in the ancient real world.

Who knows if it has any relevance to our story? :smallwink:

Geeklord: We'll see.

Harmonictempest: Arlen is suddenly beastlike! Good roll.

Zimmia: I love the new avatar.

[Zed's Dead]

About the rock being moved: Since at least three of you are poised to attempt to roll the rock back (Daar positioned herself, kraalkar failed, and harmonictempest made an "aid another" check to be used if needed) I'll leave it to the other players to decide if they wish to roll the rock or not. If Daar or Elva attempt to roll the rock and succeed, then the rock will roll into place.

If you both decide to do something else or if you fail in your roll, the rock will not move, even though Arlen made a solid roll.

Even if harmonictempest hadn't specified that his roll was an "aid another roll" a 16 is not enough to roll the rock.

Remember that before, when you rolled it back, you had several folks helping.

[Zimmia]

Thanks for the comments on my new avatar, I quite like it myself!

Wow, that was a hard decision, and I hope I didn't just make it unilaterally. The way things stand I really couldn't see Daar keeping it open, no matter how much I wanted it to.

That was...intense. I think I need a nap

[Tura]

The healing ritual kind of mitigates your lack of that 0-level ability.
A-ha! So there is no "0-level spell as an at will supernatural ability" at all. Dang! Sorry, I totally missed that, thanks for the clarification.

[harmonictempest]

@ Zimmia: Agreed about the nap. Allowing faithful NPCs to die is tiring stuff.

Hopefully a 22 is enough for that stone :-)

As my edited IC post indicates, after the Aid Another action, I'm using the remaining move action for Spot/Listen checks.
Arlen:
[roll=Spot]1d20+16[/roll
[roll0]
Sul:
[roll=Spot]1d20+18[/roll
[roll1]
Also:
Knowledge (nature) to think about what kind of creatures might inhabit a cave like this: [roll2]
Knowledge (geography) to see what general information Arlen knows about caves in this region: [roll3]
These probably can't yield more than general information, since specific info on caverns in the domain of Knowledge (dungeoneering). If I can't use the above rolls because of that, then I'll make an untrained Knowledge (dungeoneering) check (can only return DC 10 or higher info): [roll4]

[harmonictempest]

Aaaand my posting skills fail on multiple levels.
My modifier for Know (nature) is +12, not +13, so the actual result there is 33 (second time already that I've nat 20'ed a Know nature roll :smallbiggrin:).

Rerolling Arlen and Sul's Spot checks due to formatting errors:
[roll0]
[roll1]

Hopefully that works better. I've got an itchy return key finger today.

[Zed's Dead]

Whoa. This was pretty intense for me, as well. I couldn't believe those wolves just kept coming and coming. The last slaughter of the NPCs was pretty surprising to me, as well. I honestly expected several NPCs to join you guys in the cave, and they just weren't quick or hardy enough to make it.

As it is, there are three NPCs who made it into the cave. That was a few rounds back, so I thought I might remind you.

harmonictempest: You truly are hitting the knowl. (nature) check on the head. Dang.

You know that caves could be home to any number of creatures -- wolves, bears, saber-cats, yeti, smaller mammals of many kinds, humanoids, Gnolls, Orcs, Trolls, etc.

All: great roleplay for Act I, Scene i. Earlier today, I actually quit three other pbp games I was playing because you guys make them look so superfluous. Well done. This will give me more time for Darkworld, too.

By the way, do any of you have torches lit?

[Tura]

All: great roleplay for Act I, Scene i. Earlier today, I actually quit three other pbp games I was playing because you guys make them look so superfluous. Well done.
It was great. Kudos to you guys, DM and players. (Damn, I've been longing for such a game for about a year...)


By the way, do any of you have torches lit?
Cross my heart and hope to die, I lit that torch before reading this. :smalltongue: (And I think I'm the only one without low-light vision, thus the only one carrying torches...)

[harmonictempest]

Wow - I neither have torches (just flint and steel) OR Light prepared. I failed an Int check somewhere along the line there...

Do we need to make two separate Listen checks, or just one DC 25?
How big is the opening? Can we look out? Can Sul get out?
[roll0]
[roll1]
Second roll will be voided if only one was necessary.

[Zed's Dead]

Luckily, Elva has a torch or two.

Let's say you missed the 1st check, but made the 2nd.

The enlarged ones can look out. Arlen could pull up and look out.

Sul could squeeze through without a problem.

[Zimmia]

Frankly I didn't even think about torches since Daar has darkvision, although I am a little suprised to see that I didn't choose light for one of my 0- level spells. Lucikly Elva came prepared!

So it's two listens then, yes?
Listen: [roll0]
Listen2: [roll1]

[Zed's Dead]

Yep. Made the 1st, missed the second.

[Tura]

2nd Listen check: [roll0]

[Zed's Dead]

Cool. Got it.

Tura: Thanks for the Autorealm suggestion. This is truly a great program, and it's so much more flexible than what we were doing. I finally have the tools to do what I want with the map.


All:
Ok. Check the jpeg map I emailed you. Let me know what you might want to change as far as your avatar, etc. Is there a color you prefer? I can change it with a click. I just used your IC speech colors as a guide.

Regarding IC:

The cave is pretty standard. Rock walls, dusty floor, warmer than the outside air, musty atmosphere. It's still freezing inside, but it could be that with the rock over the entrance, it will get warmer. Gray has yet to bark if that helps.

You can do anything you feel like doing at this point. Converse, explore, look for the NPCs, etc.

Don't have time to stick this on the IC yet.

[Zimmia]

Sorry I wasn't really around yesterday. I had a total of 5 days off for my move and when I went back to work I had rather a lot to do, combined with the fact that a pay-per-view event makes last night the busiest night of the year.


Spells left:
0' - 5
1' - 1
1' domain - 0
2' domain - 1

[Zed's Dead]

Glad you're back, Zimmia.

[harmonictempest]

Nice IC rolls, Tura. :D

Spellcraft ftw. I'm damn curious to know what spell list Meg's stuff came off of. :P Too bad we didn't get a chance to exchange notes - would've loved to have Meg's Wolf Barbecue in *my* spellbook!

[Zed's Dead]

For flavor, I like to take certain liberties with description. I especially like the idea that spells aren't standard--that they can take many forms. I'd like to build some flexibility into spellcasting for Darkworld--with you guys' help, of course. We'll have a conversation about this soon when I decide how I'd like to approach it.

[Tura]

...So it was a fireball? :smalltongue:

[Zed's Dead]

Yep. A hell of a fireball.

:smallamused:

[Zimmia]

I really like the idea of customizing magic and effects. I always thought it strange that one casters fireball was identical to another, magic has always struck me as much more personal than that.

I have a question about the healing ritual Zed. Did we ever determine a duration? I may have tossed out a message I didn't mean to; can you give me an idea of how long it takes to initiate, and the duration of the ritual itself. I seem to remember something about an hour, but I'm not sure about that. I mention it now becase it's something that we all could use right about now. My thinking is even if we get interrupted before it's over, it might be the most efficient way to get Daar, Kraklaar and Elva healed.

[Zed's Dead]

Here is the text of the healing ritual, straight from the DRAW (heh, heh).

I put it in the World section rather than the Rules section. I'll change it tonight.

I'll get to the task of personalizing magic soon. I'll definitely want your input, but please wait until I make my first proposal.




Healing Rituals

Healing spells in Darkworld are exactly the same as RAW, except as follows:

The healing ritual is a divine ability which allows a cleric or other divine caster to use her healing power to its best advantage.

A divine caster may perform the ritual once per day, and may heal a number of persons equal to her wisdom modifier (including herself, if she wishes). For example, a cleric with a Wisdom mod of +2 could either heal two others during the healing ritual, or heal herself and one other.

The subjects of the healing ritual must be within reach of each other to be affected by the ritual. If a subject leaves the circle, he benefits in proportion to the amount of time he spent in the circle. If he returns, he may continue to gain the benefits of the ritual.

The divine caster must cast a healing spell in order to begin the ritual. The benefits gained by the subjects of the healing spell depend upon the level of the spell being cast. Clerics with the Healing doman do no have to cast a spell in order to perform the healing ritual, but in order to accomplish this, they must make a sacrifice to their deity or spirit worth the equivalent of 20 GP.

The specifics of the ritual are up to the individual caster and her deity, but they must be described with appropriate detail (at least the first time the ritual is performed).

The time of casting depends on the level of the caster, not the level of the healing spell being cast.

Caster Level 1-3= 1 hour
Caster Level 4-6 - 3/4 hour
Caster Level 7-9 = 1/2 hour
Caster Level 10-20 = 1/4 hour

0 - Cure minor wounds - cures 8 HP+1/caster level.

1 - Cure light wounds - cures 16 HP+1/caster level.

2 - Cure Moderate Wounds - cures 24 HP+1/caster level.

3 - Cure Serious Wounds - cures 32 HP +1/caster level.

4 - Cure Critical Wounds - cures 40 HP +1/caster level.

5 - Cure Light Wounds, Mass - Cures 48 HP +1/caster level.

6 - Cure Moderate Wounds, Mass - Cures 56 HP +1/caster level.

7 - Cure Serious Wounds, Mass - Cures 64 HP +1/caster level.

8 - Cure Critical Wounds, Mass - Cures 72 HP +1/caster level.

9 - Heal, Mass - Cures 100 HP +1/caster level as well as any diseases or mental conditions.

[Zimmia]

Here is the text of the healing ritual, straight from the DRAW (heh, heh).

I put it in the World section rather than the Rules section. I'll change it tonight.



That's where it was! I looked everywhere in the your first OOC post except in the world info. Sorry about that.

I'm honestly not sure what Daar's next move is going to be at this time - I think she needs to see what happens next.

[Zed's Dead]

Regarding Magic, Part One

A. Darkworld is not, of course, Faerun, Greyhawk, or Eberron. I see magic, even divine magic, as much more personal or individual than it would be in these campaign settings. Sorcerers and other spontaneous casters, when they learn new spells, are improvising. Wizards and standard clerics would have learned their powers through long practice, memorization, etc. However, there are no overt "wizard schools." While there is certainly a tradition of religion in almost every society in Darkworld, these traditions vary widely.

B. Material, verbal, and somatic components would vary as widely as the traditions and individuals who use them. To borrow a suggestion from Geeklord, a Druid from the plains might snap a grasshopper's hind leg in order to cast Entangle, while a wizard from the jungle might wrap a vine around his thumb. I want material components for all but the most powerful spells to be readily available or at least obtainable in the environment where the spellcaster finds him/herself.

C. I would be interested in allowing you guys to personalize your spells to some degree. The spells in the PHb are classic, and I don't want to abandon them in any way. I would, however, like to create a system where you guys would be able to modify one spell per level so that it fits your character concept even better than it does now.

I certainly don't want to make the spells more powerful. I'm just talking about modifying the spells' effects. For example, if Ray of Frost would make more sense as a spell that caused sonic damage, for instnace, I would like to allow you the freedom to modify that spell, so that wen you cast it, it is always a sonic effect. Another possibility might be reducing the size of an area of effect spell in order to increase the amount of damage dealt. You could rename the spell to fit its effect, or you could keep the same name if it fit.

Of course, this is a slippery slope, and your ability to do change spells like this would be severely limited.

What do you guys think?

[harmonictempest]

Reading through the magic stuff and will reply soon. Before that, though, Zed, you may have missed my action. I stated that I'd be moving down a little past Gray and calling to the villagers down there. If you got that already, and they're just not responding, that's fine, just wanted to check first.

[Zed's Dead]

harmonictempest: Oops. I missed it. :smallredface:

Can you RP what exactly Arlen says? It will be easier to describe the effects.

FYI: You may (your choice) know that a young trader named Jedda and a middle-aged man named Horeld were two of the ones who made it down. You aren't sure who the third person was.

[harmonictempest]

Yes, I'll edit it into my last IC post. Hold please...done!

[Tura]

Regarding Magic
[...]
What do you guys think?
I like it, but at first glance (at the druid spell list) I couldn't think of anything spectacular. I'll come up with something, eventually, so if the rest of you want to, go ahead and modify your spells, don't mind me. :smallsmile:

[Zed's Dead]

I'll edit the map tonight, now that a couple of you guys are able to see past the "fog of war."

[harmonictempest]

Life has struck. Between a dress rehearsal tonight and a test tomorrow morning, I won't be able to post again until midday tomorrow. I have a concert and formal banquet on Saturday as well, so if I post that day (which I hopefully will), it'll be late in the evening. After that, schedule will be back to normal. :-)

[Tura]

I'll roll the knowledge checks here and wait for the results before I act, if you don't mind.

knowledge (nature): [roll0]
knowledge (local) (untrained) : [roll1]

[Zed's Dead]

harmonictempest:

Thanks for the heads up.

Because you guys are not in combat, but are in a confrontation in tight quarters at the moment, I'm going to assume that Arlen is at the back of the group, ready to act when he can.

[harmonictempest]

Sounds good.Might as well roll the checks while I'm here:

[roll1]
[roll=Local(untrained)]1d20+3

[harmonictempest]

Formatting error. :/
Knowledge local, untrained: [roll0]

[Zed's Dead]

Tura:

You actually know quite a bit about these humanoids. They are of a wide-ranging and somewhat successful species known to you as "Walkers," or "the People who Walk." These primitive semi-human creatures are much larger and stronger than humans, and make fierce combatants when cornered or threatened. Usually, though, they keep to themselves as much as possible.

Walkers are nomadic, clannish, suspicious, independant, and hearty. They winter in caves or geographically secure locations such as this, and their tribes can reach as many as 20 or 30, but sometimes dwindle to just a handful, depending upon the food supply. If their wintering location as been taken by a monster or a pack of wolves, etc., they will fight fiercely to take back what is theirs.

Walkers use stone tools and weapons, and they cook their meat. They occasionally trade with other peoples, but usually only if it's a matter of survival. Though they aren't known for their intelligence, they are quite knowledgable about their world, and are crafty in their way.

[Tura]

You CLOSE CAAAVE! GOK OUTSIDE WITH WOLVES!
[politically incorrect]
Now, where is a Calm Animals when you need one? :smalltongue:
[/politically incorrect]

I'll wait for the others' reaction before anything. :)

[Zed's Dead]

Heh, heh.

:smallamused:

[Zimmia]

Rather than jump in to sort things out with my whopping 8 charisma, Daar is content to see how things go.

Int check to see if I can make out anything: [roll0]

[Zed's Dead]

Daar would also have to squeeze into the next chamber. They might see this as threatening. :smallamused:

[Zimmia]

Daar would also have to squeeze into the next chamber. They might see this as threatening. :smallamused:

She's only - what... 11'10 and 310 lbs. How could that possibly be threatening? :smallbiggrin: