The game thread is for things pertaining to the scene and people’s immediate actions and rolls. This thread is for talking out of character and asking questions. From things like the Lions game, to asking about each other’s rhetoric rolls and if anyone has tracking skill.

So we don’t clutter up the game thread.

Nice shooting Totsu!  Let’s see if Arashi can steal the prize from you.

Thanks I am very happy with it myself. :)
I was worried I’d botch the first one and be done.  I was happy to make the first two, after the 3rd I was thrilled.

How do you get your rolls to pop up in the main thread?
I started the reply but then when I selected the dice roller it dropped me out of the main thread and I lost what I started.

You can’t. You gotta open another window and copy/paste results.

In reply to Chiisai Tori (msg # 5):

OK Ron time is moving widely fast. in the time that the Samurai has set up shot and completed their competition. I've written a letter and had a 10 second conversation with Ayare. Now it appeara its the middle of the night and I haven't been able to get it to Usa's father yet.

This message was deleted by the player at 00:44, Tue 30 Oct 2018.

Hiro is just writing a letter to Usa’s Father explaining that Toda is in town, staying at the inn, and will meet him tomorrow. This was an attempt to make certain no offense was taken when Toda didn’t go there first.  The letter does nothing else.

Honorifics:

Name only:  When speaking to an inferior, or often peasant to peasant, or to equals if you don’t wish to give honor to someone, you use a name only.  E.g. Arashi would refer to Hiro-matsu as Hiro-matsu.  Arashi referring to Toda as Toda is acceptable, but not always friendly and mildly insulting unless they are friends.

-San:  When speaking to an equal (Buke are usually equals, Heimin are equals), you often add the suffix honorific –san.  This is polite.  E.g., Totsu would refer to Arashi or Toda as Arashi-san or Toda-san.  It’s like calling someone Mr. rather than, Hey you.

-Sama:  When speaking to your lord, a daimyo, or someone significantly above you in status (by, let’s say, 50 points or so), you would use the suffix honorific –sama.  It’s like saying Milord.

Can I assume Toda is less than 50 points higher than me?
If so then I can use san instead of sana

I'll warn people when sama would be appropriate.

This message was deleted by the player at 14:02, Tue 30 Oct 2018.

In reply to Chiisai Tori (msg # 11):

I'm posting this because I have a question about actions when starting combat. I am not there now but that really doesn't matter because later I might be and other players are there now. I am going to lay out a hypothetical combat situation.

All 4 have a zanshin of 1 so if the have more then one action the second is a secondary.

Players A has a deftness of 10 and a speed of 20 so he would have a primary action in 5 and a secondary action in 2.

Player B has a deftness of 24 and a speed of 20 so he would have a primary action in 12 and a secondary action in 6.

Player C has a deftness of 20 and a speed of 10 so he only gets 1 primary action in 10.

Player D has a deftness of 6 and a speed of 20 so he would have a primary in 3 and a secondary in 1.

So A is going to be the first to strike with everyone else delaying their actions.
Player A strikes in 5 with a primary action and would still get his secondary action in 2.

Play B that was delaying would now lose his primary because he delayed into his secondary but would get a secondary action. So even though he is faster then player A he loses an action and it is dropped to a secondary.

Player C who has a lower speed would get to go at the same time as player B but because he only has one action he is not penalized with a secondary and gets a primary action. So because he has a lower speed he benefits.

Player D who has the lowest deftness is not penalized at all and will get both his primary and secondary at the same time he would normally.

Now I will play whatever rules you want to play but doesn't it seem a little wrong. Wouldn't it make more sense that when you delay you just lower your action phase accordingly as if your deftness score had went down. In other words if player B delayed till action phase 5 he would get a primary in 5 and a secondary in 2.

I will play what ever rules you decide though.

It does seem odd, but the rules are rather specific and basically say what you've paid out its correct.

I'd like to stick to the rules and give them a shot before nesting with them though.

As a side note, the Ronin could have chosen to go in a higher action phase with something like a parry option but if they were unwilling to strike first, they'd have to delay for Toda anyway.

Yes, it's odd. Lets see how it works for a few battles though.

For this current fight with the Ronin what happens if I decide to parry on my secondary action phase?  What do I roll against and what is my target number?  If I parry I can still attack on my next bap, correct?

If I attack for a second time what will be my chance to hit?  Is it 11/2=5.5 rounded to 6 then +1 for my level then -3 for opponent modifiers = 4?  Does my opponent get any bonuses to hit me if I attack on sap?

All secondary bcs are 50% and all bcs are always rounded down. So your chance to parry you roll a 5 bcs.  Note the rules though, since even failure can increase your ac.



Yes. But note the parry is only good until your next ap, not a full turn.


I already mentioned your bcs for secondary phases. When you say ‘a second time’ I assume you’re talking about atemi-Waza second strike. The rules for that are slightly different.

If second striking on your BAP, both attacks get a -1, and the second is at 50%. So your first attack is bcs 10, and your second is bcs 4. ALSO, attacks against you are at +1 and you lose your defense UNTIL YOUR NEXT BAP.  Defense, btw, is your level if your using a budget that is a bonus skill. So, at first level using atemi-Waza, your ac goes down one AND people are at +1 to hit you until your next BAP.

If second striking in an Sap, same rules apply but you’re already at 50%. So first attack is 11/2=5-1=4 for sap, and 5/2=2-1=1for the second bcs.

And please note that while the +1 to hit you is cumulative if you second strike on both BAP and sap, you can only lose defense once.



No.  Not unless you second strike him on your sap.  See above.

Thanks for the clarification on the attacks.
For parrying, you said my number to hit is 5, correct?  So I’m rolling against my Atari-Waza skill divided by 2 then do I add + 1 for my level?  Do I subtract my opponent s ac or defense?  How did you get 5?

If I roll a 2 to 5 I improve my defense by 1, if I roll a 1 then it improves my defense by2, correct?

If I attack with just one punch using Atemi-Waza then my opponent does not receive any bonuses to hit me, correct?
This message was last edited by the player at 00:29, Wed 31 Oct 2018.

In reply to Totsu (msg # 17):

You have a 5 BCS to parry only because it was a secondary action.  Essentially, your parry BCS is exactly the same as you attack BCS depending on second strikes and Type of action phase.

You do not subtract opponents AC or defense when you parry.

Parry bonuses are: No bonus for crit fail, +1AC for failure, +(effect/5) for success (min 1), and an additional +1 if crit success.

If you attack with just one punch, your opponent gets no bonus to hit you and you retain your defense.  UNLESS you also parry using ‘second strike’ with atemi waza, then the second strike rules apply, you lose defense, and people are at +1.  But to be clear, if you’re only attacking with one strike and no parry, your opponent does not get bonuses

Totsu and Arashi's verbal jabs are pretty fun to watch. I get the impression neither of you like thugs.

I will go out of my way to fight someone who has a reputation of picking on people they know are weaker than themselves. These 3 sound like just the kind of people I would love to beat the crap out of.

Now’s a good time for a post about healing and damage.  The rules are on page 49-50 but here are the big hits:
Subdual cannot kill.  However, any subdual damage done after someone’s unconscious is Lethal damage.  Also, a critical hit does critical damage, even if done with a subdual weapon.

For lethal damage, your Healing Rate (HR) is the number of HP’s you get back each day.  This is adjusted greatly based on how much you can rest, travel, fight, study, what comfort level (Inn or campfire for example), and if a doctor attends them.

I am using the optional rule that says each application of healing spell will reduce the base healing rate of the recipient by 1 point.  This is restored at a flat rate of 1 point per day.  If a characters healing rate is 0, healing magic will not work for him.  This is to combat a priest always infinitely healing people.  So, if your HR is 3, a 1st level priest could heal you for 1d6 once, then twice, then a third time.  You would have a HR of 0 at that point, but it could go up based on the various adjustments.  It just means you can no longer be healed by magic until you get some standard HR back.  (Also note that a 6th level priest could also heal the same character once, then twice, then a third time, but his healing would be 6d6 rather than a first level priests 1d6.

Critical damage is tracked separate and heals at half the adjusted HR rate.  While it does not say so, I’m ruling that HR is applied to subdual damage first, then lethal damage, then Critical damage.

Subdual damage uses the same formula.  However, if inactive, they recover every 10 minutes rather than every day.  If active, they still recover 1/hr.  Meditation speeds subdual healing rates but cannot slow it.  Massage and physician can both speed or slow it depending if effect number is positive or negative.

First Aid may be applied immediately after a combat for small immediate gains.

Also, a critical hit does critical damage, even if done with a subdual weapon.

I did not know this. This had me confused. Now it makes sense how Toda got his arm broke

Totsu, I'll call you to make sure I understand you jujitsu question. Per the skill, jujitsu party never increases ac.

Mike (Ayare) is going to bow out of the game for personal reasons.  I've NPC'd her at this point so her character is still in the game.

Did I ask too much with the apologies and asking them to pay?
Would there be a more reasonable compromise?

I’ll only speak from a GM/culture perspective, but you didn’t ask too much of Ronin. Samurai, yes. Ronin, no.  It was a brawl with masterless men, not some duel between peers of the realm.

Possible reasons is that he’s either calling your bluff and you won’t kill him, so getting knocked out is better than what you asked him to do (he might have been in a few brawls in his life).  Or, he wants you to abuse him because he likes it :).

Good to know. I’ll teach him some manners later.
I’ll tie all of them up and wait for Toda to decide what he wants to do with the leader.
Either way they all need to be taught not to pick on the townspeople. I will make sure they learn this painful lesson.

I’m still trying to figure out why the priest is sticking up for them.

In reply to Totsu (msg # 27):

Arashi out ranks Toda?
I thought Samurai always out ranked Ronin?
Is their special cases where this doesn’t apply and if so when?

In reply to Totsu (msg # 28):

I consider toda too drugged to be in charge and he's being moved to his room.

In reply to Chiisai Tori (msg # 29):

Updated picture. Found a more representative picture. I would have thought they would have a picture of Bruce Lee under warrior. Who knew that “rugged “ was the place to look.

In reply to Totsu (msg # 30):

Is Toda with us?  I asked him to come. If he did not come, what was the reason behind him not coming?

In reply to Totsu (msg # 31):

I think it was because if he came and signed it would be a done deal regardless of what we found this allows us to move forward but still be able to tear up the doc if we find something else is going on

In reply to Hiro-matsu (msg # 32):

Ok that makes sense.
At least the one Ninja is here so we won’t have to worry about him poisoning Toda.  Hopefully there are not any others back in town.  I’ll make sure this one isn’t going anywhere.

In reply to Totsu (msg # 33):

I was babysitting Toda while the rest of you were investing. Has anyone shared any of the information you have learned with Totsu?  Any other suspicions?  What else do we expect to find in this house?
What do we know about spirits?
Will we be able to see them?
Can we fight them with standard weapons sand attacks?
Can these spirits possess us?  How will we know?
How many other people are in this house?
Do we suspect any others of being possessed?

We transitioned from the Inn to the house quickly. I would have asked for updates on the walk to the house.


If not my character would have to start asking questions before we proceed further
This message was last edited by the player at 22:55, Fri 23 Nov 2018.

In reply to Totsu (msg # 34):

All that was said was that there was spiritual energy at the house, Which is why we are investigating. We don't know (or it was not said) that there are spirits in the house. As we walked up neither the priest or the mage was able to see anything from a distance. So I think we are all on the same page there.

If anyone else wants to add to it they can in case I missed something. You would probably have to ask questions if you felt there was something more going on.

In reply to Hiro-matsu (msg # 35):

I intend to look again astrally when done questioning Goshen.

Rich, see posts 174 and 180 in the main thread.
Takeshi saw some spiritual energy, we do not know its source or any other information about it. We don't know if it is good or bad or possessing anybody.


What else do we expect to find in this house? We do not know
What do we know about spirits? Nothing
Will we be able to see them? I think only Takeshi will be able to see whatever is giving off the spiritual energy when he looks astrally.
Can we fight them with standard weapons sand attacks? I don't think so.
Can these spirits possess us?  How will we know? We don't know.
How many other people are in this house? It is assumed just Badu
Do we suspect any others of being possessed? No

We know very little about the spiritual energy.

Note: Takeshi said that Goshen may be possessed so that we can take charge of him. He may or may not be possessed, we do not yet know. I decided to cast a truth spell first, when that is done I will look astrally.

In reply to Takeshi Oshiro (msg # 37):

Thanks for responding.
I did read both of those looking for how we thought goshen was a ninja and why we suspected he was possessed. There were never any specifics that stated this. I knew there was a ninja involved and poison was found but I did not see any mention of us thinking it was goshen.
I also knew about the yakuza being involved and wanting to maintain their interest.
If we suspected goshen, I would have suggested getting him outside the house and then grab him to find out what he knows.

If you are using the possessed story so you could cast the truth spell on him that is fine but it would be helpful to know this.

It would also be helpful if there were any plans discussed among any individuals as to anything we are trying to discover in here.
All Totsu knows is that there is a spiritual energy in this house and it may be affecting Badu.  He also knows nothing about spiritual energy or what this implies. It was stated that we don’t even know if it is good or bad energy.
If that is all we know then that is fine, we need to investigate further, but if we know more it would be nice if this was shared.

I’m just looking for more justification to barge into probably the most important person in towns house and possibly insult him based on limited information which could seriously screw up this whole marriage deal if we are wrong.

In reply to Totsu (msg # 38):

Totsu, two things:

First, nobody is planning things in private. Some of the pcs are improvising right now and some others are rolling with it to see what happens. You know as much as everyone, nothing has been held back. You ARE barging into the an important persons home. Some PCs are just guessing that this won’t get them in trouble because of what they might find inside.

Second, if you’re not willing to barge in on the guess that doing the opposite of what the ninja is trying to do, that’s fine. Have your character take actions he normally would in that situation.

I guess what I’m saying is play your guy with the knowledge he has for the situation at hand.  You have been correct about the situation so far.  The question is only, do you want to improvise with the others, trust that it works out, or do you want to not be a part of this B&E and say something, or not take part, or even try to stop them.

In reply to Chiisai Tori (msg # 39):

Ok thanks for the clarification

Totsu, I think you missed post 228 in the main thread.

In reply to Chiisai Tori (msg # 41):
FYI
Everyone keeps making comments about my size. I’m basically bruce Lee. 5’ 7” 157 lbs and wearing loose fitting clothes. Underneath I am ripped. All muscle. 31 strength.

Totsu grapple updated with Hiro ac and defense

If Hiro-matsu was an NPC, Rich would be PISSED at this point.

In reply to Chiisai Tori (msg # 44):

I should have stayed with Goshen. At least I could have pounded him.
Well at least I haven’t hurt anyone yet.  If Hiro was the enemy I would be very annoyed right now.  Just throw me already and be done with it.

In reply to Totsu (msg # 45):

Aaaahhhhh!
I’m supposed to be pounding on Badu not my own people!!!!!

While there is some clean up, possibly a contract and wedding to coordinate, and wounded to tend to (thanks a lot Totsu!), we are approaching the close of our starting adventure.

Now that we've played a little, I'm giving time for everyone to revisit their characters before the adventure completes and before handing out ON and EXPs.  You may change ANYTHING, including profession, except your initial rolls for birth caste.  If you have questions, just let me know.  I'll try to keep the rules changes updated in the rules post (and maybe organize it a bit better).

Also note that this game is more subjective than most.  The rules are scant, sometimes confusing, sometimes non-sensical, and sometimes contradictory.  The DM has more decisions to make for things like being thrown through walls and such.  Understand that this game is not as much about hard and fast rules as others and try to consider it the charm of the game rather than an annoyance.  I will continue to try to balance the rules as they are strictly written, with game balance, and with vague realism.  Probably in that order.

I’ll walk people through the training time. Just let me know what you want to learn and I’ll see if someone is around willing to teach you.

Note:  Ayare and Hiro-matsu will not be around during this downtime.

Got some bad news.

After some thought, I'm going to rule something against Arashi and Totsu.  I want to do it now, since I'm allowing adjustments of characters at this point.

Unarmed Combat is defined differently than Weapon Combat in this game.  Because of this, and more importantly because of game balance after I thought long and hard about, I have clarification of the Damage Bonus rule:

Unarmed strikes to not enjoy the Damage Bonus for weapons.  The damage increase due to strength is already embedded in the base damage based on strength.

Therefore, a person with a 31 strength hitting with a Katana, and one hitting with unarmed are:

Katana would be 1d6+2 for Katana, +3 for Damage Bonus = 1d6+5
Unarmed would be 1d10 for fists, possibly +2 or +3 for Yawara or Shuko =  1d10+2.

Both attacks do about 9 damage on average.  A Budoka adds his level which offsets the likelihood of the bushi having a Good or Superior weapon eventually.

The Katana can Thrust special attack and range, but Atemi allows 2nd striking (which is amazing if flanking or back-attacking).

This all seems balanced to me, so that's my ruling.

Adjust characters if you desire.  Sorry about the late, but not too late, ruling.

In reply to Chiisai Tori (msg # 49):

Yawara specifically says it adds +2 to the effect for unarmed combat. I'd say that is not damage. but your call.

I think it says damage for atemi and effect for jujitsu.

In reply to Chiisai Tori (msg # 51):

Almost like you read the rules dang you.

Yawara The yawara is a small wooden dumbbell-shaped object used to enhance the effects of certain unarmed combat techniques. When used with Atemi-waza, it adds 2 points of Subdual damage to what is otherwise done. When used with a Jujutsu Hold, it increases the user's Effect Number by 2
This message was last edited by the player at 23:10, Fri 07 Dec 2018.

In reply to Chiisai Tori (msg # 51):

That is way too much of difference for me. I would have to switch to a bushi if you do this.
At least for the bows rated for damage you went up an extra die.
I do agree that at lower levels the Budoka definitely seems to have an advantage over bushi in damage done but it seems like the game is set up to even this out with better okudens special abilities, better Ki powers and better quality swords. Plus if you look at the bigger picture the Bushi have more skills to start with way more honor and more money to get better armor.  They also get the easiest learning rate so they make it easier to increase your skills.  Plus Bushi will always have the advantage over Budoka in ranged combat. Plus I’m guessing it is easier to find master to train you in swords and bushi type skills then the Bodoka skills.  I think if you look at the overall picture you will see all kinds of benefits for Bushi over Budoka to offset that they could do more damage under the right circumstances.
If I’m a bushi and I see someone with no swords out in combat the first thing I would do is attack him at very long range. Once he is engaged he cannot move more than 1 yard so this immediately takes away him using his first along with any gauntlets or yaraw. It would force him to use his feet and even if he moves forward one he is still at -1 to hit. If the Budoka already had his primary action and then I move in I have a full turn to slice him apart and he can’t even touch me.  All those damage bonuses you were talking about are nothing if you use a little strategy.  I just gave away my biggest weakness as a Budoka so if you leave the rules the same and I’m still a Budoka then no fair using my strategy on me.

If after looking at the big picture and seeing that bushi are given the advantage over the Budoka in all those other areas is not enough to convince you that it appears the game actually is balancing out the additional damage provided to a Budoka then I would recommend a much less drastic change. If you are so concerned about the damage Die then what about leaving the punch standard at a d6. do But make this for a 10 to 14 strength and then add or subtract a point for every range above or below this level. you have a 10 strength. Then you could subtract a point.

Basically I understand your reasoning and see the difference now but I think your proposal shifts the balance too far that the Bushi will now be a better fighter at all levels and the difference will become even greater as he gains levels and improved weapons. If this is what you want then I think you have accomplished this.  Plus the Bushi will be more rounded and have more benefits outside of combat.

I beg you to go back and reconsider this change and what I said. I’m fairly certain if you make your proposed change and I stayed Budoka you would see this change shifts the balance more than you wanted, but unfortunately I won’t be a budoka for you too easily see this.
It’s a shame I really wanted to be a budoka. He is a much more limited character than a Bushi but my goal was to do one thing. Do as much damage as possible to opponents in battle.  I didn’t care about having higher status and more honor or any of the other benefits that come along with being a Bushi so the Budoka fit perfectly what I wanted out of my character.
Unfortunately with your proposed rule change the bushi would be a far better fighter, so much better that I would have to switch over.

Remember when we created my character The philosophy was hit them hard with everything you have and hope it was enough so they can’t hit back.
my character was Taylor made to maximize this philosophy and to being the best possible but kicker at first level so the advantage I have now is magnified.   Also because of this he has serious weakness in many other areas, which was obvious against the spirit attack.

In reply to Hiro-matsu (msg # 52):

Hiro should be using the razor claw weapon if he has Atemi Waza. It is +3 to damage and you can fill it with poison.

i disagree with most of your points. I’m surprised you’re describing your budoka as helpless at range when his bow beat Toda and Arashi in competition and did more damage.

And again, with our first fight in he bar, you were the best fighter despite two samurai being there.

And again with the final fight, despite Hiros taking in two of you, you still ended up doing the most damage.  Although Arashi got there late.

I do look at the big picture and have been playing this game awhile. Bushi, the supposed center of the campaign, tend to be the worst fighters. It is a common theme. They are driven toward bow and sword, with no grapple, entangle, throws, trips, or any decent special abilities.  They can’t even keep budoka at range due to budoka ki powers.  And to top it off, they do the least damage.

I’m tempted to keep the rule change just so you make one and realize how limited you immediately become. Arashi, when retooling his character, bumped up strength, got a Shuko, and took Atemi, even though it’s not bonus for him, because it is so powerful. And he doesn’t even get the +1 per level you get.

That said, I’ll retract the ruling.  The one thing that Bushi get that you don’t  get is social power. Access, information, favors, and being treated as elite. And in this game, while they might not be the best fighters, it does make them powerful in other ways.

Also, magic items are more likely swords since they are often the only people who can afford to have them made.
This message was last edited by the GM at 12:45, Sat 08 Dec 2018.

In reply to Chiisai Tori (msg # 55):

I’m sorry I got so emotional I was just getting really excited about my character and was really disappointed that I was going to have to change him.
I didn’t mean my Budoka was useless at ranged attacks what I was trying to say was the Budoka who stays within his Budoka skills is going to get destroyed by a Bushi if it turns into a long range combat and they are both using skills only available to their class.
Creating my character the biggest weakness of a pure Budoka were addressed by taking the bow and taking the chain if I’m kept out of range.   What can I say except that you helped me create the ultimate damage producing machine.  I could easily knock my self out in a round with a couple good rolls.  But I was designed to dish it out and not designed to take it.

I have no doubt that if we worked together we would create a Bushi that would kick some serious butt. He probably wouldn’t be as damage producing as my current Budoka but he would be really close and then would have advantages in many other areas over the Budoka.

I was working on a Bushi who fought with both my swords and then was going to take either jujutsu or Atemi Waza as his optional skill. I’d be happy to work with you on creating this guy to see how good we could make him.  Then we could have a bunch of combat fights with different classes to see how he would do.  I don’t know much about the other classes as I was focusing on just the two classes.

Maybe this would convince me that your change is needed.  I wouldn’t bet on it since it seemed to go to far but you might be able to convince me that something less drastic would be better.

Anyway thanks for rescinding this rule change. I’m really excited about my character and seeing what he can do.

In reply to Totsu (msg # 56):

Also what did you think about my proposal to keep the damage die a d6 and just subtract or add for every 5 points of strength?  This is how all the damage for other weapons seems to be done and I would not object in anyway if you did this.
It does seem kinda like you are double dipping with both the damage die going up and getting the strength bonus as well so if you made the base damage for a punch/kick work the same as the other weapons I would not disagree with this.  Of course if you keep it the way it currently is I won’t complain because it helps my character.
If you think the balance is two far out of whack making a smaller change like this would not bother me at all and possibly down the line if you can show me that all the points I argued about are not accurate then I would support you in the more drastic change.
Thanks

GROUP
FYI, these are Takeshi's current abilities if we need to incorporate any into planning.

Skills         Score  RAW   Bonus   BCS   FIS
Magic, Metal     45     9    YES     11   Yes
Magic, Wood      28     5    YES      7   Yes
Magic, Water     28     5    YES      7   Yes
Yadome           40     8    No       8   Yes
Tantojutsu       38     7    YES      9   Yes
Rhetoric         80    16    YES     18   Yes
Commerce         53    10    No      10   Yes
Dance, Popular   53    10    No      10   No
Katakana         99    19    YES     21   No
Hiragana         99    19    YES     21   No

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Name: Arashi Fukushi             Caste: Buke/Ronin                Level: 2
Profession: Bushi                Rank: Middle                     Budo: 10
Age: 18                          Social Status: 15(.6 Sam)        ON: 18
Height: 5’9”                     Personal Status: 25              KI: 2
Weight: 160                      Group Status: xx

                ST
STRENGTH: 31     12             Unarmed Dmg: 1d10                Damage mod: +3
DEFTNESS: 20      9              BAP: 10    PAP:     SAP: 5       Zanshin: 1
SPEED:    20.85   9              #Actions: 2                      Base Move: 7
HEALTH:   15      7              Healing Rate: 3
WIT:       4      3              Learning Rate: 1                 FIS: 4
WILL:      5      4              Power: N/A                       Perception: 3

Skills:         BCS   Score   Bonus   FIS
Kenjutsu         14    61      Yes    Yes
Kyu-jutsu        14    64.5    Yes    Yes
Atemiwaza        11    56      No     ???
Iaijutsu         11    45      Yes    Yes

Armory            6    24      Yes    Yes
Dance, Court     10    44      Yes    ???
Rhetoric          2    14      No     ???

Katakana          5    18      Yes    ???
Hiragana          5    18      Yes    ???

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

AC: 3              HP: 29

                  BCS   DMG        RNG        Size   Wt   minStr   Attack forms
Katana (inferior)   13   d6+2L       M         1.5H    5    15      Thrust
Wakizashi (Good)    15   d6+2L       M          1H     3    10      Thrust
Dai-kyu             16   See notes   2-10       2H    10    31      5d6 For Willow.  See below for others.
Dai-kyu             14   See notes  11-60       2H    10    31      4d6 For Willow.  See below for others.
Dai-kyu             10   See notes  61-180      2H    10    31      2d6 For Willow.  See below for others.

Note:
If Armor Pierce arrows, +1 BCS but instead of d6, use d5.
If Bowl Raker arrows, -2 BCS but instead of d6, use d6+d3.
If Humming Bulb arrows, -1 BCS but instead of d6, use d3.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

GP: ?    SP: ??    CP: ???

Equipment:
Samurai Garb, Average
Winter Garb, Average
Armor, Partial Light Samurai
Katana, Inferior
Wakizashi, Good
Dai-kyu, 3 man

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Brawling: 8
Climbing: 10
 Leaping: 10
Swimming: 11

=-=-=-=-=

KI:
Damage.  Focused.  Add effect # to all damage done.  No archery.
Defense.  Focused.  Increase AC by effect #.
Swift Arm.  Focused.  Increase BAP by half effect #.
This message was last edited by the player at 12:57, Mon 10 Dec 2018.

In reply to Arashi Fukushu (msg # 59):

Essentially it's sneaking and jujutsu. I didn't change anything of note

Skills of note
Ninjitsu 15
Jujustus 15

Abilites of note
Deftness 30
Speed 20

In reply to Arashi Fukushu (msg # 59):

Is the damage on your Katana correct?  You do get to add your strength bonus, don’t you?

In reply to Totsu (msg # 61):

Yes, I would add +3 for strength.

In reply to Arashi Fukushu (msg # 62):

So both your swords should do ad6+4, correct?
Don’t short change yourself.

This message was deleted by the player at 03:35, Wed 12 Dec 2018.

In reply to Hiro-matsu (msg # 60):

In reply to Chiisai Tori (msg # 25):

Before we split up I want to make sure I talk to everyone in the group to get to know them better and to find out more about what skills they have and a ballpark of how good there are. Also want to know if they have any outside affiliations, like Hiro.
When I talk with Takeshi i also try to get an idea of some of the things he can do with magic.
I definitely want to find out more about Ayare because she is very resourceful and is much better in combat than she keeps stating she is.
I’m trying to get a good assessment of who could do what in combat and who would need the most help so her saying she is useless bothers me. If she wants to play the poor helpless girl in front of everyone else that is fine I encourage her to do so but I just want to know how well she can really protect herself so I don’t unescessarily rush to her aid leaving others unprotected when she was doing just fine on her own.

I freely share my skills with all of you that ask. I’m a Budoka
Atemi Waza 60% bonus Budoka skill, +2
Kusari-jutsu. 60% bonus
Jujitsu 49% bonus
Kyu-jutsu 60% non bonus
Kenjutsu is only 5% and I will be looking to improve because my family swords are well above average quality (I request that you keep this confidential because you will not see me pulling them out in public because I don’t want a bullseye on them, in fact I probably go out of my way to make the scabbards they are in look a little dirty with some surface scratches on the outside) and I would like to use them occasionally.   However I would always prefer to get up close and pound people with my fist.
I also have a little skill in hunting and bowyer around 25%, and I did learn court dancing around 50%.

My clothes are lose fitting on purpose hoping people will underestimate my strength (which is a 31) so I can catch them off guard.  Hopefully it would be some bully who likes to pick on people they think can be easily pushed around.  Nothing gives me more pleasure then having some bully think he can do whatever he wants to people and underestimate myself and pick a fight with me so I can pop him right in the jaw.
Also my training has been almost exclusively in the physical skills so my mental attributes have suffered because of this so I would be susceptible to spells against wit and willpower. Like spirits taking over my brain.

ayare says she’s good at commerce mostly. She is a scribe by profession.

She doesn’t talk much about herself though.

Character sheets are all input and I think correct at this point.  Please review in case we disagree on something.  I have made minor tweaks to all sheets, based on the rules and rounding mostly.

Arashi, use the RPOL version since there are still some kinks in the excel you have.

Hiro, congrats on the zanshin increase ;D.  I bumped your perception up since Ninja get to add level and increased your ST’s to add level.

Takeshi, I messed with your skills some, and adjusted some capabilities.  I think you get bonus skills for your arts due to Heimin/Merchant rather than Shugenja.  You also need to increase a mental attribute for your increase from study.  .05/%

Totsu, since we went back and forth some, let me know if anything is off.  Also, make a note on your sheet that you put Wit up with downtime.  I’m bound to forget when I review next level.

Added Group and Society status to character sheets.

Group is all 0 for you guys, until someone becomes the 'campaign dependent'; meaning they are the center of most social actions and goals in the group.

Hiro, you have a special situation.  Since they know your clan, when with the group, your society status is higher than everyone's.  Your clan lends you prestige.  The second number on your sheet is public society status assuming they do not know clan.  At that point, you're equal to Takeshi.

Rich,
If you have a plan that allows us to talk to Hiro let us know what it is. The rest of us have not heard an idea that will work so we will continue with our current course of action unless a good idea presents itself. We can not simply say that we talk with Hiro before the ambush happens, we need a plan to make that happen and one doesn't exist.

In reply to Takeshi Oshiro (msg # 69):

I thought we had a plan in place that we were going to have Hiro sneak out on a specific night at a predetermined spot.
I thought that was the original plan then the next thing I knew we were already separated and had no plans in place.  I would have objected to us splitting up with no plan in place. But everyone else just kept moving along with the story and by the time I realized that we didn’t have a plan we were already split up.
I’ve seen all kinds of proposals about signals as well. Was any of this ironed out before we split up?
If we have no plan and nothing set up to meet with Hiro then I would just recommend following the path hopping we run into the caravan so we can at least get a look at how many there are and what is there marching order and what weapons they have. Maybe we could actually interact with them and ask them where they are headed and find out if they plan to spend the night at a town or camp on the road.
We could say we are headed to talk to a person in the town or village that they have just passed then say we have to hurry back with that persons response to another town that they would probably be close to by the end of the night and say we will be meeting that person at the local inn. Hoping Hiro will hear the conversation and we will go to that inn and we spend the night there hoping Hiro sneaks out and goes to that inn and updates us on what he knows of the caravan. If he doesn’t then we at least got a look at the Caravan and how many there were and can come up with some kind of plan based off the encounter.
As of now it seems to me that we have no plan in place and have no idea how well protected this caravan is.
We can say that Yashi is the person that needs to talk to the people and we are just along with you to make sure you are not traveling alone in case someone tried anything.
I’m just thinking in the real world just randomly trying to ambush some caravan you know nothing about is usually a recipe for disaster. Or we could just ambush people we know nothing about and hope Ron didn’t have anything set up that we cannot handle.  We can’t really blame Ron if we all get killed doing this.

... or we could just do the plan as laid out which covers everything. We find out about the caravan from Hiro when they approach our spot at the side of the road. We can decide to attack melee, ranged, or not at all. It gives us all options and verifies it is the right caravan.
Why are you opposed to this plan?

I don't want to argue about every course of action. Once somebody presents a valid plan we go with it unless there is a valid objection.
Does everybody agree???

In reply to Takeshi Oshiro (msg # 71):

How do we know if we are supposed to attack meele or with bows from a distance?
Is Hiro going to signal us when to attack?
How do we know if we should not attack with our bows?
Will Hiro signal this before they get in range?
What if Hiro knows we should not attack with bows and we start shooting arrows before Hiro is in range?

If we know nothing and you still want to attack then I say we at least pick a point on the map and say when the first person in the caravan gets to that point we start shooting arrows. I would recommend a point where the closest person is 40 yards away.  This should put the whole caravan within 60 yards which means they are all in medium bow range.  At least then we would be able to coordinate from our side when the fight starts and hopefully catch them by surprise.
I would also recommend having just one person watching (Takashi, since he has the highest perception) and have him be just having the top of his head and eyes not behind coverage then describe to the people with the bows the situation and where the people are. Then have him
Count us down as they approach and then when they hit the spot Arashi and Totsu will know exactly where to shoot when we pop up and probably give away our position.
We should also have some kind of code or phrase to decide to abort the plan if things look really bad. But we would have to do this before Hiro or Ayare perform any actions

In general, since online play needs a certain pace, there are two options for the DM moving action along.

Option 1 is when nobody is in charge, I'll move the action once everyone has had their say, and there is a consensus between players.  Not 100% consensus, but at least 50%.  Depending on the situation, of course.

Option 2 is if the team puts one person as their leader (even if they rotate whom that is).  At that point, I'd hope the leader would listen to everyone's thoughts, and then call a play.

Online gaming is clunkier that way.  There is not smooth conversations or discussions.  It's much choppier.  So I make allowances for that a bit as well.

For example, I think Totsu is correct, that the group set a point where Hiro was to meet them on the east side of the mountains in the hills.  Practically, this could be rife with problems since you just have a map, and the scale makes it so Hiro could be looking for hours to find you and might not have hours.  Or he might be dead.  But, it could work perfectly and at least he'd know when to start looking.

I also, personally, see no problem with Takeshi's plan of forcing a meeting, because the plan was also for Hiro to try to travel with them as an entertainer if he could.  Takeshi's plan has the advantage of there being no 'misses' of travelers; and covers if Hiro is already dead or simply cannot act as he'd hoped.

I moved action along since there was consensus and I felt everyone had said their argument.  At that point, either someone has to make the call, or I'll likely move action forward so that people don't lose interest in the game because the pace is too slow.

In reply to Chiisai Tori (msg # 73):

What is this lost talk?  Pigman missed me every time and I smacked him good twice.   If I wasn’t worried about having to fight another battle soon I would have kept going until I knocked him out or got electrocuted.
The only time I took damage (which was lethal even though he agreed to a non lethal combat) was when I touched him and he had bolts of electricity shoot out of his butt and into me.
If it wasn’t for his electric butt powers I would have kicked his butt.

In reply to Chiisai Tori (msg # 73):

Totsu’s current hit point status is 26 - 6 lethal from pigman - 5 lethal from pigman +1 from bandage = 16.  I will not heal anymore back until next morning and I think it will be close to zero because I traveled today and was in combat.

In reply to Totsu (msg # 75):

I’m trying to remember, why are we attacking this caravan?
What are we trying to accomplish?

In reply to Totsu (msg # 76):

Totsu its to uncover arms smuggling, but we need to insure we have accurate information so I believe a little discretion in our operation is called for.

In reply to Arashi Fukushu (msg # 77):

Ok thanks. We got sidetracked by pigman and I forgot what the original mission was about

In reply to Totsu (msg # 78):

Try to find out where the arms are going, who they are for, how many have shipped, where they are stored,  and particularly curious about how much the Shrine's Gakusho knows of all this.

In reply to Hiro-matsu (msg # 79):

Thanks

In reply to Totsu (msg # 80):

Healing
Buddhist clergy casting a basic Healing spell receive Shugendo =
(.1 x Level of Spell), if successful. Using a Yoga in Healing receives
Shugendo equal to Knowledge used/100, rounded to the nearest
tenth. Shinto clergy receive a flat 1 Shugendo for Healing as their
doctrines declare the sick and injured to be ritually impure, and thus
they gain less merit for such activity.

So they still heal they're just not thrilled about it.

Finally back!

Hope everyone had a good relaxing holiday and gained at least 3 pounds.

Happy New Year all.

Indeed, Happy New Year!

In reply to Takeshi Oshiro (msg # 83):

Yes, Happy New Year!

In reply to Arashi Fukushu (msg # 84):

Happy New Years everyone.
I stopped weighing myself over a year ago.  This way as far as I know I haven’t gained any weight.

FYI,
Takeshi's WOOD dart spells reduce strength, they do not do any physical damage.
Takeshi was trying to reduce Bobune's strength to make it easier for the truth spell to work on him.

His METAL dart spells do damage.

Alright.  Finally back and catching up at work.  I don't remember if I'd sent out a map for everyone, so I'm emailing that this morning.

Ron,
Can we attack from above the cave, getting close and attacking from behind?

Once answered we can finalize plan. If we can not, we can go with plan as it is beginning with Hiro stealthing in.

The slope of the hill is not sharp but you could likely attack from above.  Getting there undetected would not be easy though.  The cave entry is, essentially, an eyebrow in the hill; so the guards can see up the hill fairly easily - if it were light out.

In reply to Chiisai Tori (msg # 89):

If we did attack from behind it gives us a great chance of hitting each guard with an arrow but then there is a good chance they run into the cave and from there they could shoot at Hiro and their is nothing else we can do. We would have to retreat and then sneak all the way around to the other side and wait for them to either come back out or to wait for them to appear in the cave opening. While this time is passing there is a chance the priest could heal them.

What we really need is to draw them out of the cave.  If we attack from the front there is always the possibility that they run back in the cave as well but if they can see us I think it is more likely they will come after us. Hopefully Arashi and I can drop some of them before they get to us.  If not we are going to be in serious trouble.

I'll post a new map and results of Hiro's actions Monday - since my map is still on my work computer :(

In reply to Chiisai Tori (msg # 91):

Great job Hiro.
One down one to go.

I just want to add a voice to the scene.

I haven't spoken with Arashi, but his action was both very Japanese and very honorable.  In game terms, it might have stolen the show from others a bit and made decisions for them, but unlike other games, this one has an intense social hierarchy and actions like that are exactly what a bushi gets in place of not being the best at anything else.  Budoka are better fighters, ninja are the only ones that have real stealth, etc, etc.

Throwing down a gauntlet is a bushi's realm like dispelling magic is for a shugenja or recon is to a Ninja.  A Budoka is unlikely to be taken seriously in such a situation since there is no honor in fighting a budoka regardless of caste.

While it might have been nice for him to discuss that first, my guess is that it was impromptu.

Your characters can certainly be mad it him, but culturally, such an action will actually bring his character ON and get him up levels just like winning combats are for Totsu and dealing with magical threats will for Takeshi.  This is one of a Bushi's roles within the group.
This message was last edited by the GM at 11:12, Wed 08 May 2019.

Please let us know passage of time for those studying. Thanks.

In reply to Takeshi Oshiro (msg # 94):

Are we staying in this town for training or should we move to a town where we won’t be recognized as people who destroyed and took the weapons that originally came from a caravan that left this town.

Takeshi will try to find a riding horse.
If one is available he will start haggling. If prices are high here he will wait for a larger town or opportunity.



11:47, Today: Takeshi Oshiro rolled 18 using 1d20.  Commerce roll for riding horse: DC12.

In reply to Takeshi Oshiro (msg # 96):

Did anyone ever post what the actual cut was for everyone?
I’m guessing we gave Ayare an equal share and everyone got around 30gp.

Two new threads will open, one for each group. After their respective missions, we will meet back in the HopSkipJump thread.

In reply to Chiisai Tori (msg # 98):

If we don't lose our heads.  I can not post in the new thread as it is closed.

Sorry.

Thread is open now.

In reply to Chiisai Tori (msg # 100):

Mr. Tori,
Arashi is going to trade Takeshi half his interests in the tea house for assistance in procuring an armor upgrade.  Also, a man 3 Han-kyu(30sp)and assorted arrows for it.  I believe we had arrows covered from the cave. This Gives us his 34 gp and my remaining 5gp to shop with.

10:26, Today: Arashi Fukushu rolled 5 using 1d20.  Takeshi commerce roll for Arashi armor upgrade bcs 13.

Also, Arashi would like to ask for outfitting from Jizai in the form of supplies and maybe a heavy warhorse with tack and a lance.

It would be nice to get bajutsu as a bonus skill if possible, NEH?

In reply to Arashi Fukushu (msg # 101):

You already have like an ac of 7.  Are you trying to get all the way up to the max ac of 10?

If you have any armor piercing or bowl raker arrows from your original bow I’ll by some off you for 90% of cost.

As it stands right now:

Arashi has been made an offer.

Totsu is battling a Pigman Kami that he thinks is illusion although it did seem to do damage.

Ayare has wandered off the trail chasing something.

Takeshi and Hiro-matsu find themselves alone on the trail and decide to follow the trail on their own?

Actions.

Takeshi went down the trail first, ahead of Hiro.
Hiro was going to follow after a minute.

If you can, when you have a private message, please keep it in the game thread using 'private line' rather than an actual private message.  I lose track quickly.

In reply to Chiisai Tori (msg # 105):

Ron, Does Arashi still have the gold that Jizai gave to him?

In reply to Arashi Fukushu (msg # 106):

Ron, Arashi would like to train in Iajutsu first and Kenjutsu as a backup plan.

In reply to Arashi Fukushu (msg # 107):

I have 16 gp plus some copper and silver. I will buy all that I can to facilitate my training.

In reply to Arashi Fukushu (msg # 108):

Good shooting Arashi and Takeshi.
I can’t believe my luck when shooting a bowl raker arrow. I think that brings my total up to at least 6 shots with at least a 50% chance to hit and not one has hit yet (unless this last one hit because I missed some bonus).
Pretty soon I will be moving into lottery type odds if this keeps up.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:29, Sat 01 Feb 2020.

In reply to Totsu (msg # 109):

Haven't seen anything from Ron in a while, is he on vacation?
Is he ok?  Do we need to send out a search party for him?

Even I can recognize a boot in my butt.

In reply to Chiisai Tori (msg # 111):

LOL

In reply to Totsu (msg # 112):

Shooting over the storm.  That is one way.  I was curious if it was possible to shoot through the wind storm.  I was hoping to find out if it was just going to be negative modifiers or if it was impossible to shoot missles through the wind.
If it was maybe you and Takeshi could still continue with the range attacks and then I was curious to find out if the person who cast the spell dies if the spell disappears with them.
Would be helpful to know this if we ever run across this situation again.
Well let's see what we learn from your method.

In reply to Totsu (msg # 113):

Any updates on our training?
I see a possible Jujutsu scenario playing out.

In reply to Totsu (msg # 113):

Good job Arashi. Now we know one way around that spell.

Ken's back, so we'll get the boulder rolling again.

Sorry for the delay.  I'm back on the wagon boys.

In reply to Chiisai Tori (msg # 117):

When will the toilet paper panic end???
Luckily I bought a 12 pack a month ago so I've got probably another week but this is ridiculous.   2 weeks non stop and no toilet paper anywhere.  Walmart told me that I have to be in line at 8am when the store opens because they usually sell out within 20 minutes.  Meijers says the trucks arrive about noon and they unpack supplies around 1 pm and it is usually all gone within two hours.
I'm going to have to tell my boss i can't attend meetings because I have to take time off work to stand around and wait for toilet paper.
I think some of these people actually believe that toilet paper is the cure to everything.  I heard people are buying guns and ammunition.  I think this is to protect their toilet paper.

Heard there are a few people that show up every day to wait and get their one alloted case.

Rationing cards are coming soon if people don't pull their heads out.

In reply to Chiisai Tori (msg # 119):

The one thing I really love is that Costco has so no returns on toilet paper or hand sanitizers.  So hopefully all those hoarders will still be forced to use this stuff when it is 5 years old or throw it out.  I think all the other stores need to adopt this policy.  A year from now instead of seeing people out on the street trying to charge extra for this stuff you will see it at garage sales all over the place.

Rich, regarding post #466

Please reference rules pg 61 for actions allowed.
You are in a Base Action Phase (BAP), you can ONLY shoot the Dai-kyu in a BAP:

UNDER BAP
Use Dai-kyu
This Option, available to Unengaged characters, allows the
character to loose one arrow with a Dai-kyu. No movement is
allowed.

You will not be allowed to change weapons until your next BAP
(you do not have a Primary action phase - PAP)

UNDER PAP
Exchange Weapons
This Option, available only to Unengaged characters, allows the
character to sheathe or put away one weapon or pair of weapons and
ready another. The character is allowed to move up to 1 yard when
using this Option.

FYI-DRAWING OR SHEATHING A WEAPON WHILE ENGAGED:
Draw Weapon
This Option allows a character to ready one weapon for combat. If
the character attempting to do this is Engaged, he must make a
Deftness Saving Throw to succeed in getting the weapon ready. If he
fails, any successive attempts will have a positive modifier to the
Saving Throw equal to the number of failed attempts. Thus, his
chances increase as he continues to get his weapon ready. A Critical
Failure will indicate that he dropped the weapon while trying to
ready it.

In reply to Takeshi Oshiro (msg # 121):

I thought I was allowed to draw my bow and shoot an arrow in a bap. That is why I thought I could shoot and put it away.

Plus many of the things list only one thing and the minimum phase you can do something but is doesn’t specify if you do something in a higher phase if you can do more.
For instance drawing a weapon can be done in a secondary action phase and then you can do another thing in a primary AP, does this mean you could do both of these in a bap?
It seems like you are allowed to do more in a bap so I was guessing that if things are listed under lower action phases and you do them in a bap you would be able to do more than one item. Rules are not clear on this and is confusing to me as far as exactly what I can or cannot do in higher AP.

In a Secondary Action Phase (SAP) you can only do actions listed under SAP.

In a Primary Action Phase (PAP) you can do actions listed under PAP or SAP, only one action

In a Base Action Phase (BAP) you can do actions listed under BAP, PAP or SAP, only one action

It will state in an action if you can perform any other actions.

In reply to Takeshi Oshiro (msg # 123):

Ron can you please confirm if this is how actions work because I thought I was allowed to draw my bow and shoot an arrow in a bap?
Are there any times you can do more than one action in a bap or can you only do 2 things if it specifically states you can do this?

Takeshi is correct.

In the rules thread, you can take any action listed on that type of phase, as well as any action listed on an 'inferior' phase, but not two actions.

Drawing a weapon is a SAP action.  You can do it on a BAP, but it counts as the action.

In reply to Chiisai Tori (msg # 125):

Way to go Yasahi!
I was not even counting on him. That makes 3 down already.  We are kicking butt.  Everyone keep up the good job!

Yea Arashi!  You remembered!

In reply to Chiisai Tori (msg # 127):

Landed two punches on that guy and rolled a combined total of 1 point above minimum (2d10 for a total of 3) on that guy. Let me guess, he had probably 1 hit point left when Ayare finished him?

I will snap his next with enough force to rip it clean off.

New game thread now avail. (and no longer closed)

In reply to Chiisai Tori (msg # 129):

Arashi will pay for private instruction and a learning scroll if one is available.

He currently has 16 gp 5 sp and 23 cp.

For general questions/updates/and actions, please use either this OOC thread, or the actual game thread, rather than Private Messages  (although private LINES within one of the regular threads is certainly allowed and encouraged for questions and secret information).  I delete the PM's regularly since there are so many, and therefore have no history - besides it's easy to have things get lost or out of synch with what's happening in the game.

Thanks.

Two things:
First, I’m making a small rules change. After adventures, I will formally give out EXP and ON.  The rule change is: I will also give out ‘equivalent downtime’.  I will give a generic instructor, bonuses, and number of weeks that simulate the ‘school of hard knocks’ you learned during the adventure.  There is no actual instructor or weeks spent.  This would just be getting credit for, essentially, learning to be a plumber by doing jobs as opposed to learning to be one by going to school.

Since I have not been doing that, we will set everyone at 60 EXP and 60 ON, which is why you’re 3rd level.

I’ll give out the following awards for the trip to Hell, which will also be an example:
EXP: 20 (which will put you at 80)
ON: 20 (which will put you at 80+your starting ON)
Downtime: 8 weeks worth.  Assume private instruction with a teacher who has your desired skill on a 70, is superior level to you, and is at an academy.  So, for a skill with no hinderances, your Learning Rate + 2 + 1 if it is a bonus skill + (70-your current skill)/10 if your skill is under 70.  You cannot learn ninja skills or Okuden unless another player character is willing to teach you.  And, they should answer ‘NO’ unless something extraordinary has happened.

Second, we may try Roll20 for combat and stay on rpol for role-playing.  Kinda a hybrid approach to the game.  I might test this after you guys have a game plan for the village of Hota/Artifact.  Everyone is familiar with Roll20 except Totsu.  Totsu, PM/text me and we’ll get an evening where I can teach you the basics.

Also, you can TEACH EACH OTHER with these 'phantom' weeks.  For example, if Takeshi gets permission to learn Kenjutsu from Arashi, the same bonuses apply except you'd use Arashi as the teacher instead of whatever I list.  For this first one, since I gave private instruction of a teacher superior level who has it on a 70, Takeshi would have to decide if he, instead, would want private instruction from Arashi (not superior level), but who might have it higher than 70.

In reply to Chiisai Tori (msg # 132):

What happens when your skill goes over 70?  Is it just the pluses or do you subtract 70-your skill to that value?  My Atemi Waza is at 69.9 so I'm sure the first week will be to move that up but after that I'll have to think about what I will do.  Depends on how much things will move up.  If anyone is interested in learning I would be teaching Atemi Waza the first week for sure.  I also have Jujutsu on a 60.9 if anyone wants to improve that.  I'm sure Hiro has me beat on this.  I will either be focusing on 1 of these 2 skills or probably Yadomejutsu or physician.  Is there a skill for battle tactics?  I didn't see anything listen for this.

What about personal status and group status?  I have not been tracking this and my character has not updated this since you updated it after 1st level.

If your skill is over your teachers skill, you get no bonus from private instruction.

Remember that being over 60 is an automatic hindrance to learning:
(Learning rate + Learning bonuses)/(2*Learning Hindrances)

Hindrances include:
Not studying with a teacher (not the case).
Current score over 60.
Not studying a Freely Improvable Skill (if you have not designated these yet, let me know and we'll walk through the process)
Not studying full time (not the case)
Wounded/Ill (not the case)

Takeshi Training for 8 weeks:

Week 1, Water magic skill from 43 to 51
Week 2, Water magic skill from 51 to 58
Week 3, Water magic skill from 58 to 64 (future training at a hindrance)
Week 4, Magic skill from 60 to 66 (future training at a hindrance)
Week 5, Magic skill from 66 to 69 (hindrance so learned 3 instead of 6 points)
Week 6, Learn spell: Binding of Limbs KN:32 BCS:16 rolled 8... +8 task points, 8/32
Week 7, Learn spell: Binding of Limbs KN:32 BCS:16 rolled 8 and +1 for focus ... +9 task points. Total Task points to learn Binding of Limbs 17/32.
Week 8, Learn spell: Binding of Limbs KN:32 BCS:16 rolled 18... -2 task points. 15/32.


Takeshi also put up his Wit by 1 to 30.
This message was last edited by the player at 14:16, Wed 05 Aug 2020.

In reply to Chiisai Tori (msg # 135):

So I'm assuming this means that once my skill goes over 70 then the private instruction will become 0 (not a negative value).

Thus the first week Atemi Waza would be LR+2+1(if bonus skill) + (70-69.9) then divide the total by 2 since it is over 60.  Thus [1+2+1+(0.1)/10]/2 = 4.01/2 thus 2.005 assume round off to 2 decimal places bringing the total to 69.9+2.01=71.91.
If I continue the second week then it would be 1+2+1+0(private training) then divide the total by 2 since it is over 60.  Thus 2 points per week for all remaining weeks.
Week 2:  71.91 + 2 = 73.91
Week 3:  73.91 + 2 = 75.91 (went up 6.01 after 3 weeks)
Week 8:  75.91 + 2 = 77.91 (went up 8.01 after 4 weeks)

Jujutsu 60.9
Week4: [4+(70-60.9)/10]/2=(4+0.91)/2=4.91/2=2.46 for a total of 60.9+2.46=63.36
Week5: [4+(70-63.36)/10]/2=(4+0.664)/2=2.33 for a total of 65.69
Week6: [4+(70-65.69)/10]/2=(4+0.431)/2=2.22 for a total of 67.91
Week7: [4+(70-67.91)/10]/2=(4+0.209)/2=2.10 for a total of 70.01 (went up 9.11 after 4 weeks)

Put increase of 8.01+9.11=17.12 towards health (thus increase health 1.712)
Let me know if I did anything wrong.
This message was last edited by the player at 03:16, Wed 05 Aug 2020.

I believe most of us have shares in a tea house, cost me 15GP which was %50 of Arashi's share in the tea house.

How is our investment?

In reply to Takeshi Oshiro (msg # 138):

Totsu invested 5 gold in the tea house as well.

In reply to Totsu (msg # 139):

8 weeks of training.

Bajutsu here I come. I will for sake of ease just start after the previous week of training even though this would technically be before, if ok?

Week 1 of Bajutso training:1+2+1+(70-28)/10=4+42/10=8.2 for 36.2
Week 2 of Bajutso training:4+(70-36.2)/10=4+3.4=7.4 for 43.6
Week 3 of Bajutso training:4+(70-43.6)/10=4+2.6=6.6 for 50.2
Week 4 of Bajutso training:4+(70-50.2)/10=4+2.0=6   for 56.2
Week 5 of Bajutso training:4+(70-56.2)/10=4+1.4=5.4 for 61.6
Week 6 of Bajutso training:4+(70-61.6)/10=4+0.8=4.8 for 66.4
Week 7 of Bajutso training:4+(70-66.4)/10=4+0.4=4.4 for 70.8
Week 8 of Bajutso training:4+(70-70.86.2)/10=+2=2   for 72.8

So just 2 after 70?  Is this ok? Did I get it right? I rounded up and down off of 5 up, 4 or less down.

Also, if all checks out, can I have a pony, I mean war horse requisitioned retroactively for the journey?

Almost Arashi.

Anything after 60 score is at a hinderance.  So:
Week 4 of Bajutso training:4+(70-50.2)/10=4+2.0=6   for 56.2
Week 5 of Bajutso training:4+(70-56.2)/10=4+1.4=5.4 for 61.6
Week 6 of Bajutso training:4+(70-61.6)/10=4+0.8=4.8 (divided by 2 for 2.4) for 64.0
Week 7 of Bajutso training:4+(70-64.0)/10=4+0.6=4.6 (divided by 2 for 2.3) for 66.3
Week 8 of Bajutso training:4+(70-66.3)/10=4+.4=4.4 (divided by 2 for 2.2) for 68.5

You are allowed to requisition a horse from Jizai's stable.  Or course, it is not yours, but you have access to it.

Anyone with investments with Ayare will gain 30% return at this point.

In reply to Chiisai Tori (msg # 143):

I ask Ayare if she is looking to reinvest in the tea house.  If she is I will reinvest, if not I'll take my 30%

She can reinvest, but it won't be the teahouse.  She has other options and if you'd like to keep fronting her the money, she'll keep looking for opportunities.

Having traveled with her so long, you DO know she loves to gamble.  Most of her spare time is taken up with gambling.  That may, or may not, affect her style of investing.
This message was last edited by the player at 12:16, Tue 11 Aug 2020.

PM
This message was last edited by the player at 13:33, Tue 11 Aug 2020.

In reply to Ayare (msg # 145):

I let Ayare know that if she has another business opportunity (not a dice game) I'd be interested.  Let me know what other business opportunities she has and I'll let her know which ones I'd be interested in investing in.
If she has nothing at the moment then I will hold onto the money until she has one.

In reply to Totsu (msg # 147):

Arashi will reinvest with Ayare.

More for Totsu and Hiro-matsu, I sent an email with a Roll20 link.  I thought we could schedule a day to show you two how it works (if you don't know already).  Then, when we get to fight scenes, we might set up a 2 hour block to do the fight and go back to RPOL.

Let me know if you didn't get the email.

In reply to Chiisai Tori (msg # 149):

I got the email.
I'll try to set it up in the next couple of days.

Sorry for the delay everyone.

House hunting got intense, and we found one, are moving, cleaning, organizing, ditching, donating, etc, etc.

I'll get a date for an online soon.  Might be another couple weeks though.

Thanks.

Ito listened with half an ear as the Buddhist nun droned on and on about the beauty and elegance of the Buddhist spirit.  What could she possibly know about symmetry and perfect structure of the ‘real’ universe rather than our imperfect clay one?  It seemed that the older people got, the more they needed a world where all the pieces of the puzzle fit in such a clean line that nobody ever would know it was a puzzle.

Clean.  Perfect.  Symmetrical.  Words that groped for the feeling of Nirvana when language hindered understanding it.  Ito felt, not without reasons, that language failed so spectacularly to help bring people to harmony was because it was pure structure.  Pure system.  The opposite of Nirvana.

“Are you even listening to me?”

Ito tried to catch himself in mid-eyeroll and immediately realized the biddy old nun’s little beady hawk eyes would have caught it at first squint.

“Oh.  Humor the old cow?  Is that what you think was your smartest option?  You’re supposed to be the bright shining student of the monastery and all I see before me is a snotty little kid who has been coddled his entire life.  We’ve been pouring our learnings and money and energy into you and I’m the only one around here that seems to understand that it has been a complete waste.  You’ll never see even the smallest piece of Lord Buddha.”

Ito had gathered his patience and just let the nattering of the nun to wash over him.  He thought about his latest meditations about the chaos of rain patterns and how different they were from the spray of blood from the chiburi move of the katana.  He understood the physics.  He just didn’t understand why physics controlled it.  After a while, he realized silence reigned.

Looking up at the crusty ole bag, Ito figured the yelling was over and he’d take his punishment for stealing three of the monk’s desserts.

The nun just stared at him.   “What?”, Ito said.

The woman just shook her head.  “I said, Brother Uteta is packing your old personal belongings.  You will leave immediately.  You will have no succor from any of the monasteries or priests for a period of five years of your pilgrimage.  You will not be taught by us, we will not shelter you.  You will live however you can.  You will live as part of the world rather than our insulated school.”

She watched his horror with just a little bit of satisfaction.  Punk kid.  Hope he never came back.

In reply to Ito (msg # 152):

Who is this Ito guy hanging out around town.  He seems real suspicious.  I say we rough him up and make him tell us what he knows.   ;)

Don't piss off the guy that can summon those electrical dudes that kicked your teeth in before.

In reply to Ito (msg # 154):

I have my rubber gloves and want a rematch

In reply to Totsu (msg # 155):

Yeah, Hiro is back.  I thought maybe Ayare had killed him.  :)

In reply to Totsu (msg # 156):

Please disregard longspear attack roll.

In reply to Arashi Fukushu (msg # 157):

It's all about the Chicken.  I think it is a super chicken that will kill us all unless we stop it.  :)

In reply to Totsu (msg # 158):

You guys see a white blur fly to Totsu, and leave in a fraction of a second.
Totsu's eyes go big as he grabs his neck, blood flows between his fingers. It has been slashed... a mortal wound.
Before any can react to offer help, he slumps to the ground.


Any body else wanna talk about the chicken?






hahaha, just kidding.
:)

Are you saying that, er, a Chicken choked Totsu?

In reply to Ito (msg # 160):

You see I told you.  Super Chicken.  It is the end for all of us.

I can Roll20 and set up something with Totsu.

The next two weeks, though, are tough for schedule.  Getting ready for a vacation and graduations and kids jobs and such.

In reply to Ito (msg # 162):

Sounds good to me.  Although next week for me might be unpredictable.  I will have to do some testing and it might require some evening time.  It is all up in the air right now.  Hopefully I'll have a better idea by the end of this week.

Maybe we do the first combat online and the next through d20?  Sounds like we have a do over we might be using?

I have no life any more as the whole shutdown killed my remaining softball leagues.  :(
I'm about to just starting hanging around softball fields with my glove asking if I can play.

We will do this next conflict with this software and continue the thread.

In reply to GM KEN (msg # 164):

I am thinking Ito and Takeshi could take position in the extreme corner of the room.  One in the corner square and the other adjacent while Arashi could be one square diagonally inward toward center of room to lend positional protection as they would be behind him.  Arashi will start as previously stated with Dai-Kyu at the ready and bowl-racker nocked.

For example, Arashi at U2 and one at V1 and the other at U1 or V2.  Thoughts?
This message was last edited by the player at 13:57, Thu 10 June 2021.

In reply to Arashi Fukushu (msg # 165):

Rolled a 7 for duration of +6 BCS buff.

10:40, Today: Arashi Fukushu rolled 7 using 3d3.  +6 BCS Buff roll for duration time :3d3DT.

Evil Arashi : BCS for 5 rounds
12:13, Today: GM KEN rolled 5 using 3d3.  Evil Arashi BCS duration.

Dang. I should have cursed rather than blessed. Ito would live forever then.

In reply to Ito (msg # 168):

If anyone is available to do the roll D20 tonight or Thursday let me know.  Wednesday is still kind of up in the air to me but if we make it later (like at 9pm) then I know I can make it Wednesday.

TOTSU POST QUESTIONING EVIL TOTSU ATTACK AND ENTANGLE

I thought as soon as I got the effect number to 10 the target was subdued? Per rule, if the target is considered entangled UNLESS he makes a speed saving throw, which evil Totsu did. Therefore, he is not entangled but suffers Restrictions which he is now under the affect of.
I thought that is how it worked when I tired it under previous GM? Don't know, I am going by the rules as I interpret them.
Can you go back and re read entangle on page 63? I have many times.
If the target to entangle is not 10 then what is the number I need to get to in order to entangle someone? It is.
How does stacking affects work? You keep adding the effect number.
What carries over to next attack this round? His restrictions, until after his BAP next round.
Next attack the following rounds?
Can you break how all of this works somewhere?
Thanks

Also can you break down how you got the 14 effect number?
The procedure to resolve an attack goes as follows:
—determine the character's Base BCS
—determine the target's effective Armor Class and subtract this from
the Base BCS
—determine all Situation Modifiers and add the total to the BCS
—make any modifications due to weapon quality.

Base BCS in Kusari-Jutsu is 15 +6 for Ito's spell is 21
Minus AC is 2
No situation modifiers
No weapon modifiers
=19
You rolled a 5. 19-5 = 14.



Entangle
The Entangle attack is an attempt to subdue an opponent. If the
attacker makes his BCS roll, the target is considered entangled
unless the target can make a Speed Saving Throw. If the Saving
Throw is made, the target suffers Restrictions equal to the attacker's
Effect Number.
An entangled character may attempt to break free on any Primary
Action Phase. It requires a Strength Saving Throw to break free.
Alternatively, if the character has a cutting weapon available, he may
attempt to cut his way free. Attempts to "hit" the restraining cord are
at 50% of the character's Base BCS. It requires 5 points of damage to
sever a hemp rope, 10 points for a hair or silk rope, and 20 points to
sever a chain.
The attacker may attempt to completely subdue the target by
thoroughly wrapping him up. Once the target is entangled, the
attacker, on each available Primary Action Phase, may accumulate
Effect Numbers from his Base BCS. Once the Effect Numbers total
10, the target is totally subdued and incapable of attacking or
breaking free. If the Effect Number total reaches -10, the target is
freed.
A Critical Success by the attacker on the initial Entangle attack or
a Critical Failure by the target on his Speed Saving Throw results in
the target being automatically subdued.

In reply to GM KEN (msg # 170):


It says he gets a Strength saving throw to break free from the Entangled but he is both entangled (from first success in BAP15) and subdued (from success in BAP 9).  Reading the rules it looks like you can break free from the entanglement with a Strength saving throw but it says if you are subdued you are incapable of attack or breaking free.  So correct me if I'm wrong but if he makes his Strength saving throw he could break free from the entanglement but would still be subdued, correct?



Just for rules understanding.  Let's say evil Totsu would have made the speed saving throw on the second attempt in BAP 9 would the restrictions have stacked with the ones he already had?  Thus he would have had 15 restrictions from BAP 15 then add another 14 from BAP 9 putting him at -33 restrictions through the next round through BAP15.  Then in BAP 14 the original 15 would go away leaving him at -14 restrictions through BAP 9.  Is this how it would work?

In reply to Totsu (msg # 171):

You are correct, evil Totsu is completely subdued and cannot break free.

Go Good Ito, Go!
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:39, Fri 18 June 2021.

In reply to GM KEN (msg # 172):

I think Evil Totsu would remain subdued as long as Totsu takes his actions to hold on to the chain.
Unfortunately for me, I think if I attempt to tie him up so I can leave then I think there is a whole new process that comes into play under Hojujutsu.  You probably want to read this and see if it applies.

What if I just let go of the chain and left him?  How long would it take him to unravel himself?  I think the effect number was 14 and he still had 15 restrictions until after BAP 15 ended.

I should have just punched him and drove his nose out of the back of his head and killed him in one strike like Arashi did.   :)

In reply to Totsu (msg # 174):

Why did Totsu not resist?
Does Totsu know he is possessed and can he do anything?


Stupid spirits always messing with my head.

In reply to Totsu (msg # 175):

Hey if Totsu dies he can be reborn with more points to put into attributes.
KILL HIM
New and improved Totsu 2.0.  :)

In reply to Totsu (msg # 175):

The spirit rolled a 1 on a 17 BCS to possess you.
Totsu rolled a 12 on a 4 trying to resist

In reply to GM KEN (msg # 177):

Ok so I did try to resist but failed.  I feel better now
So I assume Totsu knows he is being controlled, again.
These Kami’s are always messing with my head and pissing me off.

In reply to Totsu (msg # 178):

Good Job Arashi, way to kick my butt.  :)

In reply to Totsu (msg # 179):

Totsu Damage:

-6 from Evil Totsu (subdual)
-10 (maybe more if critical) lethal? from Arashi's first attack
-11 subdual damage from Arashi's second attack
-9 subdual damage from Arashi's 3rd attack
+7 lethal damage from Ito
This message was last edited by the player at 03:18, Wed 30 June 2021.

In reply to Totsu (msg # 180):

All wass subdual damage

In reply to GM KEN (msg # 181):

LOL.
Hiro, you should put that Ito guy in a chokehold before he steals the box.  :)

In reply to Totsu (msg # 182):

Yeah, Ito is in the group.  Let's all get team jackets.  What should we call ourselves?
Hmm, how about M.C's(for Michizane Clan) Kami Killers.