The two opponents start in the red and blue areas. Two more opponents can start in green and yellow.

The ground is hard-packed sand, and the walls around the arena are 10 feet high.

Elias starts in Red, Turin and Lyssander in Blue. Begin!
This message had punctuation tweaked by the GM at 10:06, Mon 27 Jan 2014.

OOC:  Initiative 4

Turin materializes in the sandy bowl of the arena. He looks perfectly at home in this environment. Not wasting a moment, the arcanist then goes through the well practiced maneuvers of spellscasting, not the least hindered by his armor. The first casting makes his hand shimmer with arcane energy before leaving it looking somewhat rougher and heavier than before. The second casting conjurs a flaming sphere that sits still about half-way between the combatants.

Prep Round 1:
  [Move] Draw Dagger
  [Free]
  [Standard] Cast Fist of Stone

Prep Round 2:
  [Move]
  [Free]
  [Standard] Cast Flaming Sphere in M12

  Initiative: 12
  AC (Touch AC): 18 (12)

  Damage Taken:   0
  Damage Dealt:   0

Effects: Fist of Stone 1 min (+6 STR for attack rolls, etc), Flaming Sphere 5 rounds

Final position: S13

OOC: Thanks to a feat, Turin's CL is +1 in "waste" and sandy environments wrt Spell resistance
This message was last edited by the player at 10:15, Tue 04 Mar 2014.

A tumbleweed rolls erratically across the sandy arena, the faint susurrus of its passing crisply audible amidst the utter silence of the battle-venue.  ;P

Eli conjured a hippogriff before disappearing.


initiative 11
Prep Round 1
Round: Summoning...

Prep Round 2
Free: Celestial hippogriff appears
Standard: drink potion - disappear


Start: E-12
End: e-12

AC: 18
Touch: 10
FF: 18

Effects:
Hippogriff
Invis

Celestial Hippogriff
Prep 2

Free: Appear!
Standard: Total Defense (+4ac)


AC: 15 +4
Touch: 11 +4
FF: 13 +4

Start: F/G-12/13
End:

Effects:
Celestial Hippogriff
This message was last edited by the player at 08:57, Thu 06 Feb 2014.

Turin whispers something to Lyssander as soon as the pale priest is within earshot:

Lyssander nods, and commences casting from the scroll in his hand.  This time he begins with a different prayer - he invokes the frigid wastes of the North, and soon is enveloped by a swirling cloud of snow.  Invisible behind the white flurry, he continues to chant.

Prep Round 1:
  [Standard] Cast Obscuring Snow from scroll (3 Min)

Prep Round 2:
  [Standard] Cast Bull's Strength from scroll (3 Min)
  [Move] Draw weapon (spiked chain)
  [Swift] Activate amulet (2 charges)
  [Free] Assign dodge bonus (hippogriff)
  [Free] Drop scroll
  [No action] Hide within the snow's concealment:  Hide check 26

Status:
  Initiative: 4
  AC (Touch AC): 19 (12) (+1 vs. hippogriff)

  Damage Taken: 0
  Damage Dealt: 0


Effects:
Bull's Strength: +4 Strength (30 rounds)
Obscuring Snow: 30' radius snow, total concealment beyond 5', partial concealment within 5' (29 rounds)
Tyche's Touch: bonuses to saves (pre-cast)

Final Position: S12

OOC: Looks like we have the following initiative order: Turin, Elias (and summons), Lyssander. We had agreed on one extra prep round. I don't have any other actions, but the two of you please go ahead.

OOC:  Elias - are you planning to take another prep round, or shall we start the combat?  Your choice; either way, you're up next.

Might as well - resist energy fire on hippogriff and I. Temp Hp on hippo!

Lyssander activates his goggles.  Let the games begin!

Turin, I think you're first.

OOC: So, I can't see a thing through the blizzard?

OOC:  Umm, that's right.  If you move to the edge of the blizzard (outer 5' rim) you will be able to see outside, albeit at 20% concealment.  Alternatively, you can wait until my initiative count (letting Elias go first), while berating Lyssander and telling him to go away and move the blizzard away from you ;P

Turin casts Lyssander a glare. A blizzard? How am I supposed to work now? Also, my clothes are going to be all damp.
He stalks off while trying to shield his eyes from the whirling snow, trying to get out of the worst affected area. At the edge he pauses, catching his bearings. There! The winged monstrosity stands vigilant, and Elias' alcove behind it. Of course the Waukeenar is nowhere to be seen, but Turin would soon change that!
Reaching into his memories, Turin quickly visualizes the movements and words needed to focus and unleash the arcane energies. Once done a globe of brilliant radiance silently erupts next to the Hippogriff, eventually causing it and anyone else caught in the blast to glow like a torch. Elias luminous form is now easily seen.

Round 1:
  [Move] Move to M13
  [Free]
  [Standard] Cast Dawnburst at FG 11/12, 10' radius burst: all within glow outlining invisible creatures and making hiding difficult

  Initiative: 12
  AC (Touch AC): 18 (12)

  Damage Taken:   0
  Damage Dealt:   0

Effects: Fist of Stone 1 min (+6 STR for attack rolls, etc), Flaming Sphere 3 rounds, Dawnburst 4 rounds, still somewhat concealed by snow

Final position: M13

OOC: Elias?

Elias's glow ran to A-15, while the Hippogriff flew to block view in B-C/14-15.
Standard: open doors

Hippogriff: Standard: Ready
OOC: Sorry. Had a big interview eating my brain.
This message was last edited by the player at 14:01, Thu 27 Feb 2014.

OOC:  A-15?  Isn't the arena surrounded by a 10' wall, which you'd need to scramble over to get there?  (Apologies if I'm misunderstanding the layout of this arena map, I've never had a match in it before.)

Good luck with the interview!

I think there are 4 sets of stairs...

OOC:  Oh, the stairs lead up to the seating area?  (I had figured them as leading down to the pits where the combatants are held prior to battle... ;P)

But it takes a move-action to open the doors to get to the stairs, in any event, so if you open the doors, and then move to A-15, you don't have an action left to ready.

I didn't notice doors or seats... I thought the stairs went up to the stone level 10ft up.

OOC:  The little dark rectangles (e.g., between squares D12 and E12) normally represent doors.  However, the arena description does not address this, nor does it specify, e.g., whether the doors are locked or not.

So, I think we need DM input to figure out how the arena map works.

Someone called?
Yeah, the squares do look like doors. I like the way you think Elias, and will allow you to spend an action opening them to get through (thus, they are not locked). I had also thought they would lead downwards, to some unknown area or something. But your interpretation makes more sense.

OOC:  Elias, please let us know once you've modified your actions to account for this input.

Done! Sorry!

The globe of swirling white blankness lifts into the air and moves purposefully, as though borne by swift wings, to the southwest quadrant of the arena, leaving Turin with a view of his opponents but obscuring the area just to their south.

Round 1:

  [Standard] Activate wand
  [Move] Fly to H-20, 15' up
  [No action] Hide within the snow's concealment:  Hide check 24

Status:
  Initiative: 4
  AC (Touch AC): 19 (12) (+1 vs. hippogriff)

  Damage Taken: 0
  Damage Dealt: 0

Effects:
Bull's Strength: +4 Strength (29 rounds)
Obscuring Snow: 30' radius snow, total concealment beyond 5', partial concealment within 5' (28 rounds)
Alter Self: Protectar
Tyche's Touch: bonuses to saves (pre-cast)

Final Position: H-20, 15' up

Turin directs the flaming sphere closer to the door through which Elias just entered. Looking up towards the seats he ponders what offensive action to take for a second before invoking the arcane gestures and words of a spell. Two bolts of force speed towards the celestial creature, penetrating its magical defences with ease, and ignoring the partial concealement granted by the flurrying snow to the south.

Round 2:
  [Move] Move sphere to G13
  [Free]
  [Standard] Cast Magic Missiles at Hippogriff (Caster level check 22, beats SR 8), Damage (9)

  Initiative: 12
  AC (Touch AC): 18 (12)

  Damage Taken:   8
  Damage Dealt:   9 (Hippogriff)

Effects: Fist of Stone 1 min (+6 STR for attack rolls, etc), Flaming Sphere 2 rounds, Dawnburst 3 rounds,

Final position: M13
This message was last edited by the player at 08:17, Wed 05 Mar 2014.

Ready triggers:
The Hippogriff flys above Turin, threatening his spell casting.
Free: AOO, hit AC 27 for 8 damage, concentrating check or lose your spell. Passes 20% concealment check.

12:27, Today: Elias St Clair rolled 27,8 using D20+8,d4+6. Hippogriff AOO Turin spell casting after ready trigger.
13:27, Today: Elias St Clair rolled 2 using 1d5. Miss Turin on 1.
This message was last edited by the player at 19:28, Tue 04 Mar 2014.

OOC: Clever move! There is the philosophical question if the AoO can really trigger in this case as the attack happens before the provoking action takes place, and if Turin can simply change his action as the hippogriff comes flying by.

Turin whinces as the winged beast comes bearing down on him, talons ripping the skin. His rigorous training aides him though and he manages to complete the spellcasting and retaliates accordingly. Concentration, DC 19 (26) pass.

The assaulting Hippogriff ignored the missiles, though Waukeen's favor no longer protected the beast from harm.
With a sense of urgency, the celestial minion swiped at Turin, who deftly avoided the blow, but failed to evade the second claw! The creature then missed with her beak and landed on the ground next to her prey.

The invisible waukeenar cast some protective wards about his person and moved closer to his starting zone.

Round 2
Standard: shield of faith - self


Start: A-15
End: A-13

AC: 21
Touch: 13
FF: 21

Effects:
Hippogriff
Invis
Mass resist fire
Shield of faith (3 temp Hp)

Celestial Hippogriff
Round 2

Free:
Standard:
Full: full attack on Turin: Claw (miss), Claw (hit AC 21, pass concealment, 10 damage), bite (miss)


AC: 15
Touch: 11
FF: 13

Start: L/M-12/13 5ft up
End: K/L-12/13 ground level

Effects:

Damage:
Turin: 18

Rolls:
02:27, Today: Elias St Clair rolled 10 using 1d4+6. Damage to turin.
02:26, Today: Elias St Clair rolled 5 using 1d5. Miss Turin on 1.
02:26, Today: Elias St Clair rolled 13,21,12 using d20+8,d20+8,d20+3. Hippo full attack Turin.

The white sphere heads toward Elias' origination site; Lyssander can see his opponent's luminous form now, and is counting on the eddies of snow to outline the Waukeenar's position even after Turin's spell ends.  There!  Some patches of snow-dusting start collecting on the dawn-lit figure!  The death-priest summons his monstrous scorpion directly adjacent to Elias, and the vermin quickly orients itself (it knows perfectly well where Elias is even without the tell-tale glow, for it has other senses than sight) and begins flailing about with claws and tail.

Round 2:

  [Move] Fly to C14, 10' up
  [Standard] Activate amber ring - summon scorpion, 1 minute

Status:
  Initiative: 4
  AC (Touch AC): 19 (12) (+1 vs. hippogriff)

  Damage Taken: 0
  Damage Dealt: 0

Effects:
Bull's Strength: +4 Strength (28 rounds)
Obscuring Snow: 30' radius snow, total concealment beyond 5', partial concealment within 5' (27 rounds)
Alter Self: Protectar
Tyche's Touch: bonuses to saves (pre-cast)

Final Position: C14, 10' up

Scorpion round 1 (appear B-C/12-13):

  [Free] Clack claws
  [Full-round] Full attack (all miss)

Status:
  Initiative: 4
  AC (Touch AC): 16 (9)

  Damage Taken: 0
  Damage Dealt: 0

Final Position: B-C/12-13

OOC:  Getting dusted with snow is like being dusted with flour.  DM guidance is required on the following questions:
(1)  How long after leaving the Obscuring Snow area does the snow on Elias melt - and at that point does he regain full invisibility or are the stains of dampness visible?  (I'd lean toward regaining full invisibility)
(2)  While marked by snow, Elias presumably still has some concealment.  Would this be full concealment (50%) or normal concealment (20%)?  Not relevant to this round since the scorpion missed its attacks, but may be relevant to future rounds.
This message was last edited by the player at 20:07, Wed 05 Mar 2014.

OOC: Hold on a second. How is the hippogriff full attacking, then moving to settle on the ground with only average maneuverability? It looks like Turin should at least get an AoO for the Hippogriff leaving a threatened square.

OOC: Also, the Dawnburst spell is still active thus negating the concealment offered by invisibility. For a few more rounds they are visible.

1. 5ft step to the ground. No AOO.
2. A globe of brilliant radiance erupts silently, as though the light of dawn had arisen.
All creatures in the area glow with light equivalent to a torch for the duration of the spell, making hiding difficult and even revealing the location of invisible creatures.
(Invisible creatures are still considered to have concealment).
In addition, undead and creatures within the area that have light sensitivity or light blindness take 1d6 points of damage, +1 point of damage per caster level (maximum +5).
A successful Reflex save halves this damage.

Location is revealed but no more. Still have total concealment and can't be directly targeted.

OOC: forgot about that, sorry. It's concealment though, not total concealment, so 20% miss chance against attack rolls. You can't 5' step in aeral combat AFAIK.

If you are ok with it (since it conforms to the rules) the hippogriff can full attack, and since it doesn't maintain enough forward speed to stay airborn, simply drops to the ground at the end of its turn. It provokes an AoO, but benefits from concealment.
This message was last edited by the player at 19:38, Wed 05 Mar 2014.

Round 2 addendum

As the celestial creature touches ground, Turin finds an opening and thrusts his dagger forward, drawing blood from the wing.

AoO (22), pierce concealment (77) success, no crit, damage 4

Fairly certain a flying 5ft step is allowed and the bird's location was selected with the intent of full attacking, but 4 damage isn't too bad, so we can progress with the damage in limbo until the GM has a chance to rule whether you get an attack.

OOC:  If the dawn burst revealed Elias' location even before the snow dusting, then Lyssander's actions are slightly different.  (Not much effect on the final result - he still conjures the scorpion etc. - but edited the post above to reflect that Lys was aware of Elias' position even before the snow.  Note, Lys' final position is now C14 rather than D14.)

OOC: Possibly allowed for something with perfect maneuverability.

OOC:  Good maneuverability suffices, according to Rules of the Game.

Take 5-Foot Step

A flying creature cannot use the 5-foot step rule unless it has perfect or good maneuverability (and thus no minimum forward speed).

http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/rg/20040706a

A hippogriff, alas, does not reach even this lower threshold, and thus is disqualified from taking a 5-foot step in the air.

Right. I forgot Good also does not need minimum forward speed.

Turin touches the amber amulet he's wearing around his neck and utters a word in the harsh language of the bedine. On the opposite side of the hippogriff a chitinous monstrosity appears and immediately attacks the celestial creature with snapping claws and stinging tail. The first claw manages to grab the beast by the throat and tears it open.

OOC: Pausing here. Hippogriff can't be invisible anymore since it has attacked. Managed to roll a critical hit with the first claw attack leading to damage 19+4+9=32, which by my count exceeds the HP of the beast including the temp HP. Please let me know if I'm mistaken.

You are mistaken. Total HP with temp included is 40. 6 above standard from constitution and 9 from temp Hp.
The Hippogriff was never invisible either. It had concealment from the snow, just like you.

OOC: hence me pausing. You don't need to give out the total, just indicate if it still lives! As for invisibility it says so under hippogriff above. If I've misread I'm sorry. I'll post the rest of this round's actions later today.

Hippogriff has no effects listed though it should have resist fire. Hippogriff itself is listed as one of Elias's effects, which is where invis is listed. Totally understandable confusion due to my poor organization. I don't mind giving out the HP total. Really unfortunate that you both have those terribly underpriced vermin amulets though. I imagine it makes big encounters fairly easy in game!

They aren't that hot in battles really: but when rolling a 20... Back to the game though.

The giant vermin follows up with a snap of its other claw and a thrust with its poisonous stinger. While accurate, the snow is clearly not what the creature is used to and the attacks miss narrowly the glowing hippogriff. Turin takes a step back to put some distance between himself and the sharp talons of the winged beast before sending forth the ball of fire that threatens to singe the warded creature.

Round 2, continued/completed:
  [Move] Move sphere to K12
  [Free] 5' step to N13
  [Standard] Already used

  Initiative: 12
  AC (Touch AC): 18 (12)

  Damage Taken:   8
  Damage Dealt:   13 (Hippogriff)

Effects: Fist of Stone 1 min (+6 STR for attack rolls, etc), Flaming Sphere 2 rounds, Dawnburst 3 rounds,

Final position: N13

Giant vermin
  [Move]
  [Free]
  [Standard] Full attack: second claw and stinger both hit (19, 20), damage 7, 3. Fort save DC14 or take 2 CON damage

  Initiative: 12
  AC (Touch AC): 18 (12)

  Damage Taken:   0
  Damage Dealt:   29 (Hippogriff)

Final position: IJ 12/13
This message was last edited by the player at 08:43, Fri 07 Mar 2014.

OOC:  I'm not sure the snow extends to the hippogriff / Turin's scorpion, you may want to recheck the positions.  Lyssander is in C14, 10' up.

Also, don't forget grapple checks for the scorpion's claws...

Really nothing I can do against your standard action vermin summons. It'll take awhile, but without the full rounds to summon I don't have much offensive power. I'll call uncle again and concede. And promptly buy vermin of my own :)

So, when do you get your rapid summons then?

In reply to Turin (msg # 48):

Either sometime after level 9, with 12 ranks in spellcraft and the quicken spell feat, or after taking a level of specialized conjurer, ditching the familiar for rapid summoning.

Not going to happen :)

You should get a metamagic rod then.

In reply to Turin (msg # 50):

It takes me a full round to use metamagic rods as a favored soul. Until I have the "Rapid Metamagic" feat at level 9 I can't use quicken at all. Skill point and money-wise, it'd be easier to just take a level of conjurer.

I think Elias' instinct to get a vermin amulet is spot on...  Though a rust-colored bag of tricks wouldn't be a bad alternative, for 3k.