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Messages - Wildfire

#61
In Character Discussions / Darkening Shadows
September 04, 2013, 07:25:31 PM
"I would say it was a great idea." Gibble stated as he helped his odorous friend remove his bulky cloak. "Especially considering the nature of the conversation between Lasher and me. You can't be too careful in our line of work." Gibble's face soured as he got a full face of the stench coming off of Laren. "Gurden did some impressive work on you and this disguise. I bet even Oscar would be proud!" Gibble laughed.

Gibble, in an effort to distance himself from the smell of Laren's disguise, went to his desk an filled two glasses with whiskey from a crystal decanter. He brought Laren a glass and spoke more seriously, "I don't know how much of the conversation you heard but I can tell you that an unsavory sort by the name of Vasago is involved. Vasago is believed, with good reason, to be of the Black Wolves." Gibble took a slug of his whiskey and continued, "I really do like this stuff. Made in the Wildlands it is. They know how to make a drink. Anyway, as I was saying, The Black Wolves are a nasty organization that deals in assassination and other, well, services."

Gibble looked at his fellow Hawk with his eyebrows raised in concern. "There are questions that arise based on the company involved. Furthermore, does it involve you?"
#62
In Character Discussions / Darkening Shadows
August 27, 2013, 09:28:27 PM
Gibble made certain that Lasher had fully ascended the stairs before standing up and moving about. With the weight of the haggard dwarf's boots it wasn't too hard to determine when that moment arrived. Subtlety was never the the dwarf's forte. His strength was in sheer power and, Gibble admitted, his likeability! He was as a father to kids whose parents were either brutal, dead, or just unable to see after their own. Despite his lessons in street surviving tactics he genuinely cared for those that were in his fold. It was both an advantage and disadvantage. Gibble secretly feared that Lasher MacTeague might one day find that his empathy could be his undoing. He feared this for Lasher as he feared it for himself.

"Well, methinks it's time for a drink!" Gibble proclaimed aloud as though talking to himself. "Much to think about, much to discuss." The barkeeps voice was growing louder towards Laren's direction. "T'would be nice to have the company of an odd friend to manner over odd and dare I say, exciting, times." Then Laren could hear Gibble state, with barely a whisper, "The door is open my friend." Laren could hear the near silent release of the secret door that lead into The Half Pint's underground chamber.
#63
In Character Discussions / Darkening Shadows
July 23, 2013, 09:54:58 PM
Laren had heard the name before, though only in whispers between his father and others in the Ring. Judging by the slightly extended silence from Gibble, Laren knew that the name "Vasago" was deadly business.

"The boy is done here." Gibble stated plainly to Lasher. "Off with ye lad. An dunna ye be goin' far." Lasher commanded as he pulled a "Griffon" (the name of a silver coin in the Tri-state of Vychia) from his belt pouch and flipped it to the boy. "Darren, git yerself a meal. Ya done had a long day already." Laren could hear hurried steps up the stairs immediately after Lasher gave his order.

"So ye be tellin' me Gibble, what's tha' name be meanin' to ye?" Gibble smiled and looked at the concerned dwarf. "Lasher...dear Lasher. You need to get some better contacts in your life if you and your adopted kin are to survive the streets of Kurr." Gibble patronized. At first the advice sounded to Lasher like the Halfling was mocking him. He then realized that Gibble wasn't at all kidding. He came to understand that Gibble was offering him genuine guidance.

"Wull, ye gonna tell me or are ye just gonna keep it to yerself?" Lasher asked impatiently. The halfling could see the look of worry on the dwarf's face despite the attempts to hide such a betrayal of emotion. "Vasago is a major agent of the Black Wolves. Rumor has it he's in charge. No one really knows that for sure though." Gibble answered with a touch of mirth though the situation was anything but comical.

Lasher breathed deep knowing well the reputaion that surrounded the Black Wolves. "What's he...they...them be wantin' with yer tavern ye think?" the one-eyed dwarf posed. Gibble sat down and cradled his chin in his hand in thought. "I have some thoughts on that Saorse, rest assured. Another thought I have is that the Duskshrouds and the Hawk Ring are about to become close indeed. Now go get a drink." Lasher looked at Gibble with a wide toothy grin and winked with his one good eye at the smirking halfling. Lasher took the advice of his new friend- for rarely could any underground organizations call each other such- and departed up the stairs.
#64
Out of Character Discussions / 3.5 to Pathfinder
July 08, 2013, 09:47:27 PM
3.5 to Pathfinder

As most of you know, I've been researching the Pathfinder Game System. It's D20 based and is the next evolutionary step of 3.5 if Wizards of the Coast had continued to carry that torch.

I've decided to loose the Pathfinder arrow and put it into effect. For those familiar with 3.5 I have no doubt that you'll appreciate the differences. For those less familiar with 3.5 it'll be an opportunity to expand your toolbox. For those that know virtually nothing about any of it, it may present an opportunity to fondly relive your first days of ever playing.

So what exactly does this mean?

It means you'll need to retool your 3.5 characters a bit to comply with the Pathfinder system. Now, before anyone twists their knickers about this let me say that this will be a nearly seamless conversion. The game system mechanics are pretty much the same. It will also mean some research. It does not mean you'll have to buy new books. All of the Pathfinder information is on www.d20PFSRD.com and accounts for all of the information in the Pathfinder books. Since 3.5 is so very similar to Pathfinder the material developed for 3.5 is available for use in character creation and evolution but does not override Pathfinder. While the 3.5 material is not available on the specified site, it's certainly available online and, of course, in books you already own.

In this conversion you have an opportunity to retool your character(s) if you'd like. I'm not talking about changing races and classes just in case you were wondering. I'm thinking more like feats, skills, skill ranks (which change a little bit in Pathfinder as noted below), etc. If your character wasn't what you thought they'd be or there are other additions to the game that you prefer, have at it.


Races

Races have changed only slightly from the base statistics in 3.5. That said, Pathfinder offers several variants to each race that allow you to depart from the base stats.


Classes

I encourage you to review the classes in Pathfinder as there are some changes from 3.5.

To touch lightly on some of the changes:

Class Features- These change in some ways but not in others. Please review the class of your characters in Pathfinder to note the differences. Naturally there are variant options in the supplemental books and these are also listed on the noted website.

Experience Point Progression- Pathfinder offers 3 different tracks of level progression: slow, medium, and fast. For purposes of existing campaigns we'll be taking the fast track. It aligns most closely to the 3.5 advancement. Now, when converting your character take the better of the two between level and actual experience points. For example, let's say in 3.5 you're 3rd Level (which requires 3000 xp) with 3100 xp. In Pathfinder you need 3300xp to be 3rd level. When you convert your character to Pathfinder you're still 3rd Level but with the minimum amount of xp's to qualify. Now let's change your 3.5 xp's to 4500. In Pathfinder you're still 3rd level but you keep the xp's you have since they are more than what is required to be that level.

After looking at the difference in the experience needed for level advancement (level 8 is the big shocker and where it really changes) you may wonder "WTF? How will this work?" Pathfinder calculates xp's a bit differently than 3.5. It reverts back to the old flat rate of experience for creatures rather than the sliding scale of 3.5 and is far more generous in regards to the point at which high level characters stop getting experience for creatures weaker than the PC's.

Favored Class- Each character gets a favored class. You're not bound by predetermined favored classes like in 3.5. Rather, you get to choose your favored class ("I want my favored class to be Science...")! One caveat, Prestige Classes are not to be taken as a favored class. That's a no-no. So what's the bonus of a Favored Class? The bonus is, every time you level up in that class you can gain either 1 hit point or 1 skill rank. There are variants of favored class bonuses per race and class listed also if you wish to explore these options as alternatives to the normal bonus to hit points or skill ranks and all are interchangeable.


Feat Progression

These are now every other level rather than every three...hip-hip-hooray! The list of feats is vast. Some are broad in application others narrow. Many, if not most, feats in 3.5 are also in Pathfinder and Pathfinder has added many of their own. The number of feats can be intimidating at first glance. Breath deep and try to focus.


Skills

Some skills have been combined into one skill (ex. Hide + Move Silent = Stealth). So if you don't see skills that you know are in 3.5 then odds are they're not gone but they've got a new face and name. Also, your skill ranks are no more than your level (but you get all manner of bonuses by ability modifier, feats, race, etc). For class skills that you have ranks in you gain a +3 bonus. If you are not trained in a skill you can still make a skill check (provided you can use the skill untrained, see the skills list) but you do not receive the +3 bonus.


Bass Defense Bonus

This is a concept that was introduced in 4e and it's one I like a great deal but it will be a slight bit different in this application.

The basic concept behind this idea is that as you increase in level, so does your armor class. As the game is currently designed, your armor class doesn't scale with your level but the difference is compensated for in the way of magic items. What if you don't have a campaign world that operates that way? What if magic items are a rare thing and your Armor Class, even at higher levels, is the consistency of Jell-O? That means that a Glabrezu Demon who is +20 to hit (and has multiple attacks) is going to be roasting the party's chestnuts on an open fire even if their levels claim them as an even match. Not entirely fair methinks.

As you, hopefully, know every class gets an increase in it's base attack bonus at specified levels. In 3.5 and Pathfinder these are broken down into slow, medium, and fast. Martial based classes are on the fast track, martial / support hybrid style classes are medium, and non-martial classes are slower. Well, pay attention to that bonus because that's the bonus you get towards your Armor Class.

By virtue of experience in fighting you learn how to attack but you also learn to defend. So why wouldn't your AC increase? It only makes sense to me. So not only do you get a Base Attack Bonus (BAB) you also get a Base Defense Bonus (BDB). This is not noted on any pre-made character sheets so you have to figure this bonus probably in the Miscellaneous Modifier box of your AC equation. You may notice that a class eventually gets multiple attacks. Only the first number applies to your AC. If you multiclass, add the two BDB up and apply it.


Hero Points

I don't know which game first came up with the concept but it offers players a little extra oompapa to perform heroic deeds...with success.

I was first introduced to Hero Points in the original Star Wars RPG only there they were called Force Points (naturally). What Hero Points allow a player to do is bump the pinball machine a little.

Need a reroll? Use a Hero Point. Need a bonus to your roll? Use a Hero Point. Need your character to cheat death? Use two Hero Points. Need to act before your turn? You guessed it. Stuck in an adventure rut and need a clue to get you back on the trail of the villain? Definitely use a Hero Point. Basically you can use Hero Points to accomplish something impossible...or so far beyond the normal capacity of characters that game mechanics allow. It's tantamount to the Blues Brothers being able to save their own asses because they were "On a Mission from God".

Hero Points are awarded for various reasons and there are even feats that operate from them.

This is something I like and I'm certainly willing to put in place but I want your feedback on it. Not everyone may like this idea. In order for them to be used, the majority of folks has to want them in the game. Be warned, there are no downsides to having them except the suspension of disbelief in a gaming environment.


Questions

If you have questions about any of the aforementioned information please, please, please ask. I'm here to help make this easy for you. I know it's been a while playing this system for some of you and all of this information must be daunting to take in. I get it...I really do. Ask for help or advice if you need it. You can ask here or send me a PM.

#65
Game Log / Session 25b - Traitors Betrayed
July 08, 2013, 08:03:12 PM
Excellent work and thanks!

You guys played a great game of cat and mouse, cloak and dagger, smoke and mirrors, and Marco Polo.
#66
General Info / Chasm
June 28, 2013, 12:36:34 PM
Lots of space for the Garachi!
#67
Game Log / Session 25: On the Trail of Traitors
June 28, 2013, 12:28:57 PM
Thanks for this Johan!
#68
Zurn was there. We may have staked out in the Shrine of Dannobar (that's what I'm calling it) or that may have been a different session.

Also, on the way to the old gargan hangout did we encounter a giant and some orcs? I recall being proud of casting off a heat metal on the giant and being dim on realizing that it didn't work.

It's not much but that's what I recall.
#69
He loosed his arrow and quickly ducked behind the thicket of newly leafed bushes. He was as silent as the passing of the moons. He needed to keep the oafs off balance and guessing where he was. He could have easily dispatched them with a few of Mahiya's blessings but he enjoyed the hunt- lived for the hunt. He would keep at least one alive to bring back the tale of the "forest ghost".

With the speed of a rabbit he dashed towards the next tree but not before letting fly a volley of arrows all of which hit their mark. The howls the brutes made were answered by the call of his falcon, Spiritwind- which seemed more as a laugh- that circled above. He knew they would either frenzy and try to find him or they would flee. Their patience for this cat-and-mouse game would only go so far. Little did they know that they were actually the mice.

Maragarn stepped from behind his tree waiting for the confused pair of ogres and squad of orcs to notice him. He smirked his sly satyr smirk and measured the sharpness of one of his horns by playfully tapping the end of it. His mischievous nature would not let him stand idle for very long. He pulled his two sickles from his sides and fitted them over his shoulders. Then he pulled out his flute and whispered to himself, "How I wish I had my little harp. This flute is so...cliché." From the flute came a melodious tune that sounded like wind and water blending together. The notes were of perfect pitch and the falcon above would call out in praise.

The group of confused ogres and orcs all stopped and looked at the devious satyr gleefully playing his sonorous flute. Maragarn lowered his instrument and grabbed his sickles. "Gentlmen, let us dance!" yelled Maragarn and off he rushed to meet them all.

Maragarn teased them, all of them, through the fight. He would feint, duck, parry, and appear as though he was far weaker. It was all a ruse. For in those moments of overconfidence were an enemies undoing. Now he would strike. His focus immediately switched from playful to deadly. Strike, move, strike move was his tactic. The orcs could barely follow him much less the ogres. Soon it was that the two ogres were lying dead as bloody heaps and only five orcs remained standing and now fleeing. Maragarn quickly pulled up his bow and set two arrows. Away they went both hitting their targets tumbling the orcs into the grass. The satyr was on the move after the other three.

As he pursued them he noticed that they quickly changed course and that they did so not expecting to. What did they see? What are they avoiding? He thought. Torn between his own curiosity and seeing another two orcs to their fate, Maragarn chose to satisfy his own curiosity. Spiritwind landed on his shoulder and let out a curious and questioning coo. "So there will be an extra two to tell the tale this day" he answered. "Worry not. They will eventually meet their fate as most do. My questions lay ahead."

Cautiously and silently Maragarn crept forward. Ahead he could see hazy light gleaming through the trees. 'There was no clearing here to my recollection' he thought. He could feel a sadness emanating from the trees around him and a queer energy getting stronger as he approached the clearing. Something was wrong.

Spiritwind seemed to growl a warning to his partner. It wasn't a growl of fear but of anger. Maragarn gently swept a branch aside with his sickle to reveal the cause of the orcs fear and the falcons ire. It was a circle of black and grey ash. Not from a fire but from something sinister- and it reeked of the foulness of anti-life.
#70
General Info / Happy Birthday!
April 09, 2013, 07:55:44 PM
We really are a strange bunch...and I wouldn't have it any other way!
#71
"Why must we go?" asked the acolyte, Yarlia. The question sounded harsh to Varshya's ears. It wasn't the actual inquiry that soured her but rather, the pronunciation of the words. They were in the ancient tongue, the language of the druids, what was known among the elves as the Avaranae, the maker speech. The acolyte's implementation of the words was clumsy and unrefined to her ears. It always took time to master the art of the speech and that could only be done with practice. Varshya wished that Yarlia was a quicker learner.

The Vallenbrush steward continued to carefully pack her essential belongings for what was her lengthy annual journey. "We go because it is our responsibility. We go to meet with those we count among our family of Tra'Baellyan." answered the venerable druid and water arcanist purposely in her native elven tongue. She wanted to avoid hearing any further mispronunciations of the sacred language.

"This will be my first journey beyond Karyn'Zyth. I think it will be exciting!" Yarlia exclaimed searching for something to talk about with her honored Tra'Baellyan. She sensed that her mentor was not overjoyed to be leaving. "That remains to be seen. It is always a blessed event, the meeting of this druid coven, but I suspect that your excitement extends beyond your inquiries to our devotions." Varshya replied confidently while she packed the necessary trappings- which were few.

"I want to see the world outside of our forest. I want to see the large dewy meadows and human towns." With her back to her student, Varshya's eyes closed upon hearing about Yarlia's interest in the human settlements. She breathed deep and stopped moving for a moment. Yarlia furrowed her brow and wondered if she crossed into forbidden territory with her instructor.

"This trip is not about satisfying some whimsical curiosity, Yarlia." Varshya quipped turning around to look her student in the eyes. "Keep your mind on the task at hand and your curiosity on how better to serve our Life Mother-Father. You'll find little good in other settled places." Varshya said with a bit of venom in her voice. She regretted being so callous with the youngling in her charge. Neither did she like harboring anger as it so often led to irrational actions.

She smiled at her humbled student and nodded her head acknowledging that her inquisitive nature was testimony to her young innocence and wonder of the world. "There are many great things to see beyond our borders Yarlia- that much is true. See them you should. As the deer at a water pool, be cautious. That is what I mean by my words. Go now and fetch the others to be ready. The Grove of Needles waits for us."

Varshya felt the delicate leather pouch that hung around her neck and rest against her chest. There were five distinct Vallenbrush berries contained within the pouch. They were five berries that were the first of their kind to travel beyond the borders of Kaaryn'Zyth in centuries. It was indeed an important meeting this year. Varshya looked up at the Blood Tear while she waited for her enclave to assemble.
#72
She looked out over the grey, ash laden wasteland. Nothing grew here. Nothing lived here. Nothing except the children of The Nameless Void and it's first born, Zyxu Archeon. The edge of the wasteland of Archea was rimmed with black skeletal remains of trees and the twisted and gnarled tendrils of bushes. She could sense their thirst for life as they futilely reached for her. They reached not to enjoy life but rather to drink it in offer to the Void. The once beautiful and lush forest that prospered here had been mostly consumed but what little had remained was changed into perverse, life-hungry shells of what they once were. They were aberrations and insults to all she held dear. They mocked Mahiya and the natural world. Cailyder looked across the expanse trying to see the Three Towers of Zyxu but her vision could not penetrate the dust.

Gripping her sickles tight she breathed deep and crinkled her brow in an angry sadness. A snort of derision blew out of her boar, Grubar. Never one to be overshadowed, Koth, her wolverine, growled in ominous warning. "Be still my children." The vigilant hybsil replied, "Our time of retribution will come. The Blood Tear has arrived and soon we will vanquish the enemies of Mahiya."

The light and familiar voice of one of her "fronds" as she liked to call them asked from behind her, "Grenvardaien, are you ready for the journey to the meeting?" Cailyder glanced back and nodded. "Are you, my frond Sharrewn?" she asked knowing the answer. She pulled five berries of her Vallenbrush from her belt admiring their significance. "Our time of retribution will come." she whispered.
#73
In Character Discussions / To the Vallenbrush
March 01, 2013, 06:40:54 PM
Now we can move on.
#74
In Character Discussions / To the Vallenbrush
March 01, 2013, 06:40:34 PM
Ashe smiled big and wide and were it not for the limits of his face, Shankaria could see that his grin might well have swallowed the land itself! His mind began to calm and although his spirits had certainly not diminished it was a comfort to have it reinforced by this remarkable gnome. It was as though seeds of the ancient cabals of Druids had been interred and would begin to grow again. Although the druids influence in Elsenban had only strengthened in the past few centuries it had been some time since they were a united front facing their nemesis. Ashe felt this his service to Mahiya in this capacity was an honor he was born for.

He placed his hand on the shoulder of Shankaria, who was quickly becoming a close friend, and nodded his approval. "That'll do nicely my sister."
#75
In Character Discussions / Following the Trail
March 01, 2013, 06:13:21 PM
fin