World of Warcraft - Interbellum (OOC Thread)

[BananaPhone]

Posting tomorrow.

[BananaPhone]

Marion doesn't have Investigation, which is a shame.

Investigation: (1D20+4)[12]

Derpity-doo lol.

Was here anything identifying on the bodies that we could return as proof of the expiry? Or perhaps let Felix see them so that he can vouch for it?

[MrAbdiel]

Marion doesn't have Investigation, which is a shame.

Investigation: [roll0]

Derpity-doo lol.

Was here anything identifying on the bodies that we could return as proof of the expiry? Or perhaps let Felix see them so that he can vouch for it?

Felix could vouch, though the terms of the mission were to bring back the bodies, presumably for respectful disposal.

Also, with a VP spend, you could hit a 15! Just a thought!

[BananaPhone]

Hmmm, that core does need grabbing...

Alright, I'll spend a VP.

[WindStruck]

Okay, next order of business.. it's going to be a lot harder stealthily bringing 2 bodies back down from the bluff, isn't it? Is there a way we can get down more out of sight from the village?


(and what would my expertise roll of 25 using the VP say about what Isaera could potentially do to the runestone?)

[BananaPhone]

I think Mor'Lagh should be able to pick both up relatively easily and carry them down.

[Plaids]

(1d20+3)[22] Rolling for counseling Felix by using Presence if need be.
If Felix becomes upset then Jakk'ari will attempt to rein him in and console him so that he doesn't run into the village.

[WindStruck]

Isaera will totally frost bolt Felix if he makes a murderous dash to the ogres...

[MrAbdiel]

Hmmm, that core does need grabbing...

Alright, I'll spend a VP.

Core grabbed. It's too big to conceal (it's literally a big rock - it'd be too big to lift, if it weren't hollow!) so the other characters will see Marion being careful not to touch this watermelon sized grey stone with her skin, and wedging it into her backpack. And it'll be a heavy ol' thing to carry - not enough that it'll slow you under normal circumstances, but enough to give Marion aches to complain about later, and to impose penalties on rolls that require sudden movement or agility. If Marion decides this is too troublesome and merely wraps it in a blanket to fasten to Mor'Lag's big backpack of party gear, she can do that, because Mor'Lah is chonk - and that's pending Mor'Lag's willingness, but based on Mor'Lag's behaviour so far I think they'll be honored to assist Marion in this dark labor. But it means this demon stone will not be in Marion's immediate possession, if that's her primary worry. Lemme know what you decide.

Okay, next order of business.. it's going to be a lot harder stealthily bringing 2 bodies back down from the bluff, isn't it? Is there a way we can get down more out of sight from the village?

(and what would my expertise roll of 25 using the VP say about what Isaera could potentially do to the runestone?)

I'm willing to allow the previous stealth rolls to get up sneaky-like to stand for the effort to head back down. Given the highly distracted nature of the highly distractible creatures below, I don't think it'll be an issue.

As for dealing with the runestone, that very muscular 25 does indeed present some options.

A milder success might have yielded the banal options like a short ritual casting to bleed the magic off more quickly and harmlessly into the earth, or more quickly siphoning it off at the risk of creating visually conspicuous magical pizzazz. But with a 25, you think the best, safest, and indeed most respectful way to neutralize this desecrated relic of your people is to mana-tap it, and draw the magic within into yourself. You've been very disciplined in your appetites, but you are beginning to feel the cold internal gnawing that warns you that your elven vitality is beginning to suffer. The mana in this stone, however, is not only untainted magic, but a beautiful swell of magic drawn from the ley lines of your homeland. It tastes like home, to use the most proximal expression for it; and the purpose of these runestones has always been protecting your people from suffering. It may, in this hour of redemption, protect just one more elf, just one more time, from the peculiar suffering that now hangs over all Thalassian elves.

I think Mor'Lagh should be able to pick both up relatively easily and carry them down.

Given the immediate posts, Jakk'ari has scooped up one body, and asked Mor'Lag to grab the other; though as Marion has suggested, it makes sense that once you're extracted from the area that Mor'Lag is likely the one to carry them. The M&M3e rules for a strength 5 creature permit up to a carry of, like, 1600lbs. And allowing for the spongy fantasy logic of strength (you know, the old 'punch the ground to make shockwaves, but also can be parried by a straining human'), Mor'Lag will still be able to haul two bodies on top of everyone's camping gear, as long as someone takes the time to lash it all together neatly into a pack-like bundle.

[roll0] Rolling for counseling Felix by using Presence if need be.
If Felix becomes upset then Jakk'ari will attempt to rein him in and console him so that he doesn't run into the village.

A wise precaution, oh Shaman.

Isaera will totally frost bolt Felix if he makes a murderous dash to the ogres...

A wise and chilling contingency, oh Mage.

Post coming up soon.

[BananaPhone]

Core grabbed. It's too big to conceal (it's literally a big rock - it'd be too big to lift, if it weren't hollow!) so the other characters will see Marion being careful not to touch this watermelon sized grey stone with her skin, and wedging it into her backpack. And it'll be a heavy ol' thing to carry - not enough that it'll slow you under normal circumstances, but enough to give Marion aches to complain about later

Marion - complain about something? Never .

Marion will hang onto it for now. Saddling it across Mor'lagh somehow sounds tempting, but she's already carrying everything else. Best not put all of our eggs into one basket.

[WindStruck]

So.. Isaera could just "mana tap" the stone, and be done with it? There wouldn't be any more energy left inside for the demons, warlocks, or whatever to harness?

[MrAbdiel]

So.. Isaera could just "mana tap" the stone, and be done with it? There wouldn't be any more energy left inside for the demons, warlocks, or whatever to harness?

That is the case, yes. The mana contained in the stone decoupled from the local ley line has been subliming out for some time - possibly sourcing some of the 'blessing' the idol is meant to produce. It reduces in an asymptotic fashion not dissimilar to the decay of radioactive particles; losing the bulk of its reservoir fairly quickly, and the remnant over a much longer period of time at a lower rate. By draining the mana into Isaera's physiology, she is prematurely ending that process completely, leaving the stone inert.

[WindStruck]

That is the case, yes. The mana contained in the stone decoupled from the local ley line has been subliming out for some time - possibly sourcing some of the 'blessing' the idol is meant to produce. It reduces in an asymptotic fashion not dissimilar to the decay of radioactive particles; losing the bulk of its reservoir fairly quickly, and the remnant over a much longer period of time at a lower rate. By draining the mana into Isaera's physiology, she is prematurely ending that process completely, leaving the stone inert.

Alright. That sounds dandy. Let's do that then!

[MrAbdiel]

I sneaked in another post before bed! I feel good. :)

[Plaids]

(1d20)[19]
To not be terrified by the sight of flaming behemoths emerging from the ground.

[WindStruck]

Wow okay. So I feel like maybe we should have been able to continue a conversation about this demonic stone before the story moved on. But maybe it wouldn't make a difference.

If I had to guess, seems like maybe the object Marion has is similar to an egg? Probably all the more reason to destroy it. But at least, it didn't "hatch" as it was likely about to be doing, thanks to our efforts?

Will: (1d20+8)[9]

[BananaPhone]

Will: (1D20+4)[5]

*sigh*

I think I can make that work in RP without being utterly humiliating.

Maybe being a warlock Marion knows what these things are, which is why she's afraid while the uninitiated are not.

[MrAbdiel]

Wow okay. So I feel like maybe we should have been able to continue a conversation about this demonic stone before the story moved on. But maybe it wouldn't make a difference.

If I had to guess, seems like maybe the object Marion has is similar to an egg? Probably all the more reason to destroy it. But at least, it didn't "hatch" as it was likely about to be doing, thanks to our efforts?

Will: (1d20+1)[15]

I’ll reveal details in the post-combat wrap up, but you are correct in suspecting at that point it was not going to make a difference!

Also, wowzers, is that a Nat 1 from the warlock and the mage? I love it when a scary thing is actually scary! :)

Rolling for Felix: (1d20+1)[15]

[BananaPhone]

Because we know .

[Plaids]

I would like to see what Mor'Lag rolls just to see if the theme of "educated but horrified vs ignorant and unimpeded by crushing knowledge of the occult" holds.
If Mor'Lag become horrified then making a hasty retreat will be a bit more difficult since just carrying Marion and Isaera out with Jakk'ari and Felix is going to be a challenge.

Also should we enter in combat and aid the ogres?
Jakk'ari would not be opposed to it seeing that children are in danger and a former educator wouldn't want to see children imperiled.

If we were to enter to enter combat Jakk'ari can spend some vp to smack some party members out a horror filled glance with his garlic infused hands.
Also did Zachary roll to avoid being horrified?

[MrAbdiel]

I totally forgot Zachary!

(1d20+5)[10]

Also the fear is a daze in this case, and daze is debilitating but not crippling!

Edit: Makes sense; Zach’s seen these things in action. Flashbacks ahoy!

[BananaPhone]

I would like to see what Mor'Lag rolls just to see if the theme of "educated but horrified vs ignorant and unimpeded by crushing knowledge of the occult" holds.
If Mor'Lag become horrified then making a hasty retreat will be a bit more difficult since just carrying Marion and Isaera out with Jakk'ari and Felix is going to be a challenge.

Also should we enter in combat and aid the ogres?
Jakk'ari would not be opposed to it seeing that children are in danger and a former educator wouldn't want to see children imperiled.

If we were to enter to enter combat Jakk'ari can spend some vp to smack some party members out a horror filled glance with his garlic infused hands.
Also did Zachary roll to avoid being horrified?

Drop a tremor totem .

[WindStruck]

So.. how long does that dazed condition last?

[MrAbdiel]

Off the cuff, I’m going to say you’re entitled to make the save again at the end of each turn of action.

[BananaPhone]

Mr GM, I'm assuming Marion knows what those things are? They are rather...iconic of both the third war and her field of study.

[WindStruck]

Would Isaera know what they are too? Perhaps they are magical in nature. She also has some expertise in history and literature.

[MrAbdiel]

Mr GM, I'm assuming Marion knows what those things are? They are rather...iconic of both the third war and her field of study.

Absolutely. She probably has a bobblehead of one in her room.

Would Isaera know what they are too? Perhaps they are magical in nature. She also has some expertise in history and literature.

Almost certainly. Your older brother, Tarien, was killed during the Battle of Mount Hyjal. While you've never been able to find out about the specific circumstances (there were few remaining formal channels for alerting families to losses, after nine tenths of the High Elves were killed by the scourge; and you only learned of Tarien's passing from second hard reports from people who knew his friends in the alliance forces), Isaera seems like the kind of person who would have tormented herself by reading about the Legion's military forces, perhaps to learn how to hate them better.

You can decide how or why, but I'm happy for anyone who wants to know about Infernals - atleast as demonic constructs, shocktroops and seige weapons of the legion. Here, I'll bullet it actually.

Freely available knowledge if you feel it's character appropriate:

-Infernals are the fearsome and devastating shock troops and siege weapons of the legion.
-They deployed in the third war exclusively as falling like flaming comets and crawling out of their craters.
-Fighting them in melee is even more hazardous than the physical differential would suggest, as they radiate murderous heat that can immolate their attackers after sufficient exposure, even if they never land a blow.
-They are not 'true' demons in the strictest sense, but demonic constructs held together with fel magic, with a sub-human intelligence suspended in a state of rage and the need to burn. That said, their fel nature means they are vulnerable to all the countermeasures that apply to demons - holy bindings, a paladin's rebuke, a well executed banishment, or a sufficiently experienced warlock's enslavement.

More than that - particularly how Infernals are made, is a mystery to Azeroth at this point.

[WindStruck]

I think if I recall in WC3, infernals were immune to magic as well. Which is really not good for those of us using magic.

I have never fought an infernal in WoW though, so IDK.

[BananaPhone]

In WoW they're not immune.

[MrAbdiel]

I think if I recall in WC3, infernals were immune to magic as well. Which is really not good for those of us using magic.

I have never fought an infernal in WoW though, so IDK.

In WoW they're not immune.

Both correct! The initial design in WC3 made them immune to spells, but it seems that was more a gameplay conceit to make them not easilly controlled by the player, and also as a salute to their golem-like style regarding the "golem spell immunity" trope. There's atleast 1 mission in WC3 there they're specifically not spell immune; and in WoW they're not immune to spells - though that's as much about game balance for those poor spellcasters as anything. Still, WoW gives us confidence that they're spell-assailable.

I'm going to go with "Some variants of infernals have exhibited a strong resistance to magic", I think; and that's common enough knowledge as well.