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Post by reefwood on Apr 21, 2011 17:06:21 GMT -5
Re: StavesI'd definitely be interested in making custom staves, but the way the rewards packages are structured now, I'm not sure if it would be worth it. Were you thinking it would replace the "2 wands" line of the Magic rewards package, or were you not sure? Some changes would have to be made for it to be effective at this level. Maybe you could replace the "2 wands" with "1 staff", and fold the non-magical goods section from Magic combat into that line? Or perhaps introduce a new rewards package built around 1 high ticket item; it has fewer options, but 1 limit that's much higher. My original thought a while back was to switch the wand equipment line with a staff equipment line, but this was before I looked too much at how staves were priced. Wands are easy in terms of affordability because this setting allows for any number of charges to be available, so as soon as you could access a new spell level, you could afford and access a wand of at least a few charges. Staves are harder to afford because while they do have limited charges, this doesn't affect the price because the wand always can be recharged to full power. I think the easy way to handle custom staves is to obtain them with the Additional Magic Items equipment line because that limit is already much higher than the Wand one, and this limit is already in line with how I want this to work. Players won't be able to afford most of the default staves in the book, but they should be able to create reasonably priced mid-level staves, and being able to recharge them during Time Off with the same equipment line will help keep them useful for future missions. Also, this helps maintain the trade-off of leveling up faster or obtaining more powerful equipment as well as selecting the reward package that best suits your need instead of being able to get the best of everything. For example, the 100% Level 14 Magic Combat package provides 17,000 gp, and the +2,000 gp increase bumps this up to 19,000 gp. That could easily afford a couple of the low-level staff examples in my previous post, and here is a sample mid-level staff that is also well below the limit: Staff of Abjuration (CL 9, 3 charges each)Dismissal400 gp × 5th level spell × 9th level caster = 18,000 /3 = 6,000 gp Lesser Globe of Invulnerability300 gp × 4th level spell × 9th level caster = 10,800 /3 = 3,600 gp Total = 9,600 Note that a 5th-level spell increases the caster level to 9, and that CL 9 applies to all spells in the staff. Also, you can have any number of spells in a staff, so it could hold 1 spell or 5 spells. The only limit is that a spell cannot use more than 3 charges, and this seems to be how almost every staff spell in the book works too (except for a couple that use more charges but seem to be special exceptions, according to the Pathfinder developers on the Paizo forum). Another thing to keep in mind is that the spells that can be placed in a staff will depend on the CL of the package selected, but with a Magic Combat package (or perhaps others depending on your build), you could actually obtain a staff with a spell level that is higher than you could cast (if you can afford it). Of course, you could not recharge this staff yourself, but with the right reward package in the future, you could pay someone to recharge it until you are able to do it yourself. Which is the idea that Michael brought up: to recharge staves by using the prices for "spellcasting services" in the Equipment chapter. That seems like the perfect way to handle this. The staff can be transported to and fro with other reward equipment and upgrades via the teleport object box. Which reminds me...
Teleport Object BoxI am not going to bother making actual rules for this item. It will simply provide the explanation for how rewards and upgrades and equipment locker changes are handled when a PC levels up while away from the main army. You cannot use it to transport creatures or dead bodies or deliver items to anyone else. This item will only be used by the main army crafters, and "special versions" may appear if the need arises, but this is just a nice and easy way for the DM to say "this happens and nothing else."
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Post by michael on Apr 23, 2011 18:54:58 GMT -5
Reefwood and icnivad, since Rabbit is going to be out of town for a bit, would you be interested in playing another side mission with Nim and Brion? Sahme was absent fairly recently, so it may be too soon to do another main quest without him, but I can certainly think of a few things I'd enjoy doing if I had a day off. It could take place on the 10th day of our extended rest.
Getting the base building process started is one of Brion's priorities, but we could also explore Longtree, look into the Necropolis we found on the Dead spike, or any other interesting things reefwood may have in mind for our characters. In Brion's backstory, his father is a general, so perhaps he asks for help on something he doesn't want handled through official channels? Or something could come up involving one of our cohorts?
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Post by reefwood on Apr 24, 2011 11:51:07 GMT -5
Reefwood and icnivad, since Rabbit is going to be out of town for a bit, would you be interested in playing another side mission with Nim and Brion? Sahme was absent fairly recently, so it may be too soon to do another main quest without him, but I can certainly think of a few things I'd enjoy doing if I had a day off. It could take place on the 10th day of our extended rest. Getting the base building process started is one of Brion's priorities, but we could also explore Longtree, look into the Necropolis we found on the Dead spike, or any other interesting things reefwood may have in mind for our characters. In Brion's backstory, his father is a general, so perhaps he asks for help on something he doesn't want handled through official channels? Or something could come up involving one of our cohorts? I would be up for another side quest, and the timing is good since the relic mini-arc was just finished. Longtree or the Dead Spike would work for me, especially since I already have storylines for those places figured out, but as long as any other ideas are within reason, I should be able to make it work. Although, I don't want to do anything revolving around the cohorts just yet cos they are brand new. Also, I don't have any other ideas, but I'll mull this over to see if anything comes up. This week would be too soon for me, but it looks like we will have the first two weeks of May open for gaming. My availability is somewhat based on the hockey playoffs, but right now, the only evening that may not work is Tuesday, May 2 3, but even that depends on how the games go this week. Anyway, if you two are interested, let me know what days in the first two weeks of May work best. And if a side quest doesn't pan out, we could do some stuff for the base online. |
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Post by michael on Apr 25, 2011 15:24:14 GMT -5
Cool. I'm good with either Longtree or the Dead Spike. Longtree may be more feasible, just because it's closer. We can ride/wind walk to Longtree quickly, but it would probably require a lot of teleports to get to the Dead Spike and back in one day.
First week of May is still pretty open for me at the moment. I'd like to avoid Wednesday the 4th if possible, but I'm flexible. Also, May 2nd is a Monday, not a Tuesday.
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Post by reefwood on Apr 25, 2011 16:51:44 GMT -5
Cool. I'm good with either Longtree or the Dead Spike. Longtree may be more feasible, just because it's closer. We can ride/wind walk to Longtree quickly, but it would probably require a lot of teleports to get to the Dead Spike and back in one day. I'm liking the Longtree idea more for this one. It is still a loose thread with Brion being the only left, and it would make sense to send in a necromancer as well. I'm going to re-read my old notes on this one, and even if we don't get around to it now, it might come up later... cos having Sahme the blaster would make sense for the zombie horde too. So right now the options on the table seem to be: -Create a base for the squad (in or near Verdas) -Longtree |
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Post by reefwood on Apr 26, 2011 18:17:01 GMT -5
Re: Side Quest IIReefwood and icnivad, since Rabbit is going to be out of town for a bit, would you be interested in playing another side mission with Nim and Brion? Sahme was absent fairly recently, so it may be too soon to do another main quest without him, but I can certainly think of a few things I'd enjoy doing if I had a day off. It could take place on the 10th day of our extended rest. Getting the base building process started is one of Brion's priorities, but we could also explore Longtree, look into the Necropolis we found on the Dead spike, or any other interesting things reefwood may have in mind for our characters. In Brion's backstory, his father is a general, so perhaps he asks for help on something he doesn't want handled through official channels? Or something could come up involving one of our cohorts? I like the idea of working General Shaw into this side quest. At least as the push behind it. Longtree has sort of become a "family matter" as well as a blemish. Preston got killed/zombified, and both of the younger Shaw sons were on missions that failed to get a handle on the situation, but now that Brion is a commander, he has a chance to take lead on the mission and set things right. I'm still fine tuning the story details, but basically, General Shaw will pull some strings to give Brion a day of personal leave for getting to the bottom of the zombie epidemic, and since having a necromancer will be handy for this, he'll free up Nimarius too. Like the first side quest, you will have 24 hours to complete everything, but this one will begin at 6am since that makes the most sense for Brion. Longtree will have to be taken care of first, and you will have the rest of the day/night to deal with other matters, though, you have to be rested and ready for duty by 6am the next day. Also, if you do well at Longtree, you will receive a bonus for rolls related to base building. And if base stuff doesn't get finished at the table, but there is still time left in the story timeline, we can finish it online. Brion is the only squad member left who has been to Longtree, and he can convey overall details to Nimarius, but Brion is the only one who would be able to fully recognize finer details like specific people, places, or creatures. Probably the main two things to note happen at midnight: people tend to fall unconscious or run off toward Longtree, and dead bodies rise as zombies. At least these things were experienced by Nero, and later, by Brion too.
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Post by michael on Apr 26, 2011 20:20:18 GMT -5
Excellent. I imagine we'll head out right at 7 am, as soon as Brion's spells are ready. Does Nim know how to call the huge Phantom Steed yet? How long will it take to get to Longtree at 180ft/rnd? (The speed of the Erinyes.)
How big is the forest grove that people were wandering into? (Brion never went there, but he did get the report from Nero.)
Icnivad, is there anything you're looking to do with the day off?
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Post by reefwood on Apr 27, 2011 13:24:57 GMT -5
Re: Side Quest IIExcellent. I imagine we'll head out right at 7 am, as soon as Brion's spells are ready. Does Nim know how to call the huge Phantom Steed yet? How long will it take to get to Longtree at 180ft/rnd? (The speed of the Erinyes.) How big is the forest grove that people were wandering into? (Brion never went there, but he did get the report from Nero.) Icnivad, is there anything you're looking to do with the day off? I forgot that we left things off in New Briar, which is 50 miles from Longtree, so I think it will be best to just say that the squad returned to Verdas during Time Off. Otherwise, you'll have to go the long way around, which is 90 miles, or use up resources in Fast Encounters by going over the swamp. I let it slide a bit a few chapters ago, but going through or over the swamp is extremely dangerous. Also, I overlooked that full-blooded dragons and really fast half-breeds can go faster than the nightmares and even catch up to a windwalker, and mist that is going ridiculously fast at 60 mi/hr is very suspicious to any creature with a decent Intelligence, and there is a 20% chance that windwalkers don't even get mistake for mist. Anyway, the distance from Verdas to Longtree is 30 miles via the road, or 25 miles in a straight shot through the air with a Survival check to stay on track. Nightmares at a light load can hustle fly along the road in 100 minutes or hustle fly directly in about 85 minutes. Nim has the time to finish his spell research during Time Off, if he uses his Level 14 reward package to purchase the remaining research supplies. However, he still needs to make a Knowledge (arcana) and Spellcraft check at the end of the research, and if he wants his followers to make Aid Another rolls, he still needs to figure out their Knowledge (arcana) and Spellcraft modifiers....so, he can try if he wants, but it may not work. The grove is a few miles north of Longtree. Its size has never been measured, but from the spot that Nero entered, the grove curved around and extended for at least a couple miles to his left and right. And it looks like the squad will be composed of 5 medium and 6 large (i.e. 12 medium) creatures if all the cohorts and undead go: - Brion Shaw
-Garm
- Nimarius Steerhelm
-Skeletor (large)
-Ghoul (large)
-Erinyes #1-2
-Nightmare #1-4 (large)
Of course, not everyone has to go, and you can bring followers too because I imagine they are all stationed in Verdas to start.
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Post by michael on Apr 28, 2011 15:23:05 GMT -5
Definitely worth keeping in mind. We haven't had a chance to play it out, but I've always imagined that whenever Brion windwalks over something dangerous, he's a mile or two up. Clouds move at 60+ mph all the time, so he wouldn't look out of place even if he was somehow spotted, and he'd have a clear view of the everything below him.
I also forgot about followers. With my updated charisma, my leadership score is 21. I'm not going to take any followers to Longtree, so if I set them up now, my score would drop down to 20 at the start of the next mission, correct? (Assuming I don't have a base built yet.) I might get them set up by Monday, I might not, we'll see.
For flavor purposes, could we say the resurrection of Brion's younger brother Preston has been paid for by their father, and he's now one of my level 2 followers? The way I picture it, General Shaw is not pleased with Preston, but also has to save face. On paper, he's been given a position of some responsibility. (Maybe he's officially in charge of the unit of alchemists that are also part of Brion's followers.) In reality, he's been put in Brion's care to keep him from screwing up again and tarnishing the Shaw family name. He hasn't been officially demoted, but his rank is strictly ornamental at this point. Does that sound acceptable?
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Post by michael on Apr 28, 2011 17:28:46 GMT -5
If I had a follower with Craft Magic Arms and Armor, could I use the rewards package to cover the cost of him enchanting my equipment?
If a follower were upgrading my equipment, would their caster level count towards the CL limit of the equipment?
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Post by reefwood on Apr 28, 2011 19:54:09 GMT -5
Re: Brion Shaw - Wind Walk & Followers Definitely worth keeping in mind. We haven't had a chance to play it out, but I've always imagined that whenever Brion windwalks over something dangerous, he's a mile or two up. Clouds move at 60+ mph all the time, so he wouldn't look out of place even if he was somehow spotted, and he'd have a clear view of the everything below him. Brion can set his height as long as its reasonable in terms of breathing and whatnot. Being a mile or two up would prevent him from seeing any fine details on the ground, but if the sky was clear, he would be able to see anything that approached. But if he was in the clouds, his view would be obscured. I also forgot about followers. With my updated charisma, my leadership score is 21. I'm not going to take any followers to Longtree, so if I set them up now, my score would drop down to 20 at the start of the next mission, correct? (Assuming I don't have a base built yet.) I might get them set up by Monday, I might not, we'll see. You opted not to accept Followers yet, which was fine since I allowed Nim to hold off a Cohort, so your Follower score cannot receive the "Kill Followers" or "Leave Behind" penalties until you start accepting them. If Brion had taken Followers at the start, he would already have the received the "Leave Behind" penalty because he leveled up without taking any Followers on missions. You have to do it before you level up, so it can be done in one mission or across multiple missions, and as long as you meet the quota before you level up, you're fine. For flavor purposes, could we say the resurrection of Brion's younger brother Preston has been paid for by their father, and he's now one of my level 2 followers? The way I picture it, General Shaw is not pleased with Preston, but also has to save face. On paper, he's been given a position of some responsibility. (Maybe he's officially in charge of the unit of alchemists that are also part of Brion's followers.) In reality, he's been put in Brion's care to keep him from screwing up again and tarnishing the Shaw family name. He hasn't been officially demoted, but his rank is strictly ornamental at this point. Does that sound acceptable? No...Brion has a foot in the door of the new Alchemist division, so he can have an Alchemist cohort or followers and items, and through him, the other PCs can too. And if Brion wants to make the bulk of his followers into Alchemists, he can be in charge of a low-level Alchemist division, but I don't want to work General Shaw into this angle since General Shaw wasn't involved with discovering this new class. Plus, I don't really see a General latching onto the discovery of a child. At least not a good General. Also, if any PC wants to resurrect any dead PC, that expense and effort is on the PCs. But this is something else that Brion can do on the side quest as long as he switches out his rewards for the necessary material components. If I had a follower with Craft Magic Arms and Armor, could I use the rewards package to cover the cost of him enchanting my equipment? If a follower were upgrading my equipment, would their caster level count towards the CL limit of the equipment? Followers are another resource, and they can be put to work. Brion can use his reward package to obtain raw materials, and the followers can attempt to turn the raw materials into items or enchantments, but it will require time and skill checks, so it could take a while and might not even work. Whereas, new items obtained directly through a reward package have already been created. Essentially, a reward package is like access to an equipment locker and crafters, which is why new items are immediately available, while upgrades to existing items still take time. And no, followers don't affect the CL of your reward package. You can turn all your followers into crafters and still get the full CL of your reward package because these are two separate and unrelated things.
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Post by michael on Apr 28, 2011 20:03:20 GMT -5
If I opted to accept followers now, would I have them at the beginning of time off?
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Post by reefwood on Apr 28, 2011 20:25:31 GMT -5
Re: Brion Shaw - Followers If I opted to accept followers now, would I have them at the beginning of time off? At this point, it's a bit late in the game, so to speak, especially since after today, I probably won't have time to look into or work on anything again until Monday, and that day I'll be focused on session prep in between running errands. If you just want the followers for 10 days for roleplay purposes to hang out with them, you can have them from the start of Time Off. But if you want them to do anything, it will have to wait until the side quest.
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Post by reefwood on May 2, 2011 9:29:54 GMT -5
Game Night
Just a reminder that we are set to play Side Quest II at 6pm in the basement. Woo!!!
Lunge
I just want to make sure we have this feat figured out correctly. It sounds like you can only activate this feat during your turn, and it only lasts until the end of your turn. Therefore, it cannot be activated in the middle of a full-attack or during an attack of opportunity, but it seem like it can be activated when you Ready An Action or Delay since that those actions are still part of your turn.
Summoned Spells
I just recently noticed that the summoning subsection of the conjuration rules say: "When the spell that summoned a creature ends and the creature disappears, all the spells it has cast expire." So, if a summoned creature provides bonuses from spells during a combat (or anytime), those bonuses end when the creature goes away (i.e. summon ends, creature is dropped to 0 hp, banished, etc).
Tumbling
Acrobatics is pretty cut & dry for tumbling. PCs usually use it to slow their base land speed as a trade off to move around safely, or at least try, but I saw a question on the boards asking about how to tumble while swimming under water or climbing a tree or flying through the sky. The idea proposed that I liked the most is to use the same Acrobatics DCs, but the type of roll is based on the type of speed used. If you want to tumble around a bird while flying, you make a Fly check. I like this because a Fly check is normally used to attempt any tricky maneuver, and tumbling is a tricky maneuver. Also, creatures with a Climb speed or Swim speed have a racial bonus to these checks, and it makes sense that a spider would be a lot better than a human at tumbling along a wall.
I know there isn't much tumbling in this game, and so far we haven't had any non-land tumbling, but I figured it was best to mention this now than wait until it does come up.
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Post by michael on May 2, 2011 14:41:16 GMT -5
Woo! Game night!
That's good to know about Lunge. I knew it had to be activated on your turn before any attacks, but I have been treating it as though it lasted for the whole round, rather than just my turn. I'll be sure to keep that in mind.
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I'd definitely be interested in making custom staves, but the way the rewards packages are structured now, I'm not sure if it would be worth it. Were you thinking it would replace the "2 wands" line of the Magic rewards package, or were you not sure? 