This is a place to post out-of-character comments, questions, complaints, and other stuff.
This message was last edited by the GM at 09:21, Sat 16 July 2016.

Character Sheet is done and set up for everyone.

Regarding 20 Questions...

Personally, I have a hard time conceptualizing a character until I start generating him, so answering those 20 questions is just as hard if not impossible. And while that's just me, I'm sure there are others that have the same problem.

Others, however, come up with a concept before they can generate the character.

Anyway, for those of us so handicapped, you don't need to fill out the 20 Questions at the beginning of character generation. You can wait until after your character is done and then use it to answer the questions.

Oh, my, so many players. Hello, all. Seraphine is going to handle the ships socializing/teleportation needs. It's many teleportation needs.

Wow, actually getting to use Porte is pretty thrilling.

Hi all!

Nice to see so many for this game. :)

Mathurin is a Montaigne ethnicity, but raised in Castille. While skilled with a blade, he tends to seek intellectual solutions to troubles first.

Looking forward to seeing how this turns out. :)

7th Sea is rightfully very popular right now - excited to join in the fun.

If you are in need of someone to not understand your civilized culture, Nicoli is there for you.

Greetings all!

If you have need of a drinking companion, then Edward is your man.  If you have need of a wenching companion, Edward will gladly step to the fore!

And if you have need of a fighter, a person armed with various weapons, posed to take on those who offend you or hold you back from your needs...well, you get the idea.

Drinker, lover, fighter.  All of these and more.


Oh very well, not that much more, perhaps.  But he is loyal.  Earn his friendship, do not betray him and you will have someone to stand beside you in all to come.


(Concept idea: Porthos from the Disney Three Musketeers movie.)

It certainly seemed like I'd get a lot of people for this game, which is why I made the set-up versatile enough to handle many characters.

So far, we have 3 from Avalon, 3 from Castille and 3 from Montaigne, and one each from Vodacce, Vestenmannavnjar, Ussura and Crescent.

Those from Avalon, Montaigne, Vestenmannavnjar and probably Ussura would have no problem if we start out in Crieux in Montaigne. It might be a stretch for the others to get there.

On the other hand, I can't see anywhere else that wouldn't cause even more problems, though the lords know the Porte sorceresses can get anywhere.

So, unless anyone has a better idea, or serious objection, Crieux it is.


Also, I have one bonafide crewman for the ship. While I say 'crewman', keep in mind that this is merely referring to someone who is on the ship that would NOT be part of the Adventuring Group. This could be a diplomat or other professional.

The only reason I would like to have two groups is that with this many players, posting on the board would get very confusing.

So, any other volunteers to be part of the ship's complement, rather than in the Adventuring Group?

Tentative name for the Adventuring Group is The Seekers, as in they are seeking the Black Pearl. I'm open to suggestions for a better name.

I am up to being a member of the ship's crew. Being that my character was a third mate of a Sea Dogs ship. He was promoted for extreme bravery despite his young age.

Just so players know his background. He is the Farm kid/privateer combo. My one hope is that we will not be secondary in adventure since we are not the seeking group

One challenge I see is languages. The old game allowed every one to take a common language cheaply. This system is still cheap, but you know them all

I am the sole (so far) Vestenmannavnjar in the group, a warrior-caste instead of a merchant-caste.  I would like to have ties to at least one other character coming into the game in the form of a blood debt owed.  (I owe you a debt that will take a deal of time to pay off.  Details can be figured out in private.)

I have been in a few games on rpol that took advantage of the language tools provided by RPOL. That adds a very cool element.

I have as well. I guess my point is that still say there is one player from Vesten, and no other players from there he will be forced to talk to the characters that take linguist. I could see my character knowing a few words from other languages, but not all.

I just thought that the old game had languages down. They were cheap, and you did not have to buy all, but most likely you would have one or two so you were not limited in RP options

If your Vesten PC has a sense of humor, he could owe the blood debt to Alicia de Larrocha, my Castilian scientist.

She is a little older, say 23, has some physical ability, possibly has Miracle Worker to cure dramatic wounds, but is otherwise pretty much Wits Skills at this time.

All characters start with languages equal to their Wits (p163). This generally means their home-nation language and Old Thean. I looked out for this specifically, because I personally abhorred 1st Edition's use of languages (want to play an Avalonian in a Vodacce game? That'll be a four to five point 'appearing in this picture' surcharge).

Seraphine could also be part of the ship's crew. Well, not it's crew so much as a passenger. She's part of the Montaigne diplomatic network, and having it well known that she travels around on the Southern Wind allows just a little more confusion to circulate about her true intentions and location.
This message was last edited by the player at 23:34, Sat 16 July 2016.

thank you that solves my question. Makes languages much better.

I am likely to have Linguist.

Separating the characters into two groups is only for starting out. Once the adventure is underway, characters can swap groups as needed or desired.

Gabriela has Linguist. She's a young Castillian aristocrat and scholar.

I would say that if needed, Edward could be slotted into either of the main groups.  So, I can either be part of the Seeker group or the crew.  If part of the crew, then he may be a "marine" or what have you.  Brought on board for mainly his fighting skills but otherwise a random crew member.

So, either works for me.  I will adjust my character build to fit either.

Mathurin would fit better in the Seekers. His quest is for knowledge, so what better? :)

Since it looks like Alicia is taking up my offer for the character tie, Jarrun will be part of whatever group she starts on.

Gabriela will be a Seeker; her grasp of shipboard skills is a bit... lacking :)

(At least she can swim if the ship suddenly starts steering downwards.)

Greetings everyone from the lone Vodacce scound... upstanding citizen.  I would definitely be better suited for ship-board (that being my background).  Whatever we decide for languages is fine, but if the game is based in Montaigne, I will take that as my extra language.

Looking forward to this.

The adventure will start in Montaigne, but probably won't stay there long.

And remember, everyone can speak Old Thean, so no problem communicating with each other.

Fellow Avalon and Sailor Background Characters. I sailed with a Sea Dog Privateer Ship. I am wondering if any Player wants to tie background together

In reply to Christian Neville (msg # 25):

Edward hails from Avalon, so if you would like to tie together that way, no problem with me.  My past is still in flux, but I have no problem linking up.

A wandering Knight Errant with the soul of a Warrior Poet.

Edward, if your background is still in flux, perhaps a fellow knight?

I suspect I'll be posting tomorrow on the gathering thread.  But there's some background material we are still working on.

Hello, I am a distant relative to L'Emperor. One of his many distant cousin and nephews. I worked in the government, but I am now a gentlemen Adventurer.

I will be a member of the seekers

Hello all, just got finished with designing Samira and was wondering if any of you had any reason to be in contact with the Crescent or not? She is a ship's officer and swordswoman, just throwing it out there to see what my link up.

Working on detailing the ship, but I was thinking that the Avalon ship had been captured by pirates at one point, then captured from them by Vodacce, which is when Marcelo became captain of it. That puts it down in the Crescent area, so that might be the best bet.

I'm still waiting on character sheets to be filled out for:

Edward Port
Jacques d'Apcher
James Walker
Kalen Macleod
Mathurin Berkouchard

Once your sheet is done, I'll give you access to the active posting thread.


If you need any help with your character, just let me know.

Alicia would prefer to join the Seekers group. Which would mean that Jarrun would too.

Of course, Alicia could be comfortable on board a ship too, if there is a possibility of switching or of defending the ship.

I've still got to get my Story together and some gear/personal details, but the sheet is updated otherwise. :)

I wonder if we lost Marcelo. He Private message me saying he was the Captain, and I have not heard form him since. Also, he has not posted.

I think he's still around. Besides the usual RL issues, you need to keep in mind that not everyone runs on the same schedule.

I have been in Rpol for a couple years. I realize that but I find when people post 1 time sometimes it is a bad sign. Either they quit or bad RL has happened

So, here's where we stand.

James Walker's player lives in Rio, right near the Olympic Village, so things have gotten a bit crazy for him, and may stay that way until the Olympics are over. So I'm just going to say he's aboard the ship for now. If he doesn't return, then maybe he'll get washed overboard in the first storm.

The other player I haven't heard from for over a week now, so I'm thinking he's not going to be joining us.


That means that the ship is ready to sail. I'll put up a post to that effect sometime tomorrow. That gives you one more day to do whatever you need to do to get ready.

Any last minute questions?

In reply to Dread Pirate Robert (msg # 38):

Alicia and Jarrun will be on the ship.  There's been lots of development there, but don't leave without us.

I will post entering aboard the ship shortly... well maybe in a few hours...
This message was last edited by the player at 03:55, Mon 25 July 2016.

As will I.

Sorry about that - I composed a post a few days ago, but must have failed to send it.

I'm getting there! I just got swamped all of sudden... trying to get caught in the midst of more swamping!

Just curious. If, the Captain does not come to play. Will there be a NPC. I can rework character slightly. I could of received ship as reward from Sea Dogs.

Dueling is so much more lethal. Combat use one raise equals one wound. A duelist uses one raise, and he does wounds equal to their weaponry which would be probably 3 considering Starting Skill level rules

Awesome you are back Marcelo. Problem solved.

Was there a problem?

We thought we lost a player that was playing the Captain, but he is back

This is a modern interpretation of the Duties of a Captain

Responsibilities of the Captain

 This is the top maritime job, that of a Master or Captain on board a cargo or passenger ship. A Captain is, simply, overall in charge of the entire vessel and the highest authority at sea. More specifically, he is in charge of safety of the crew, vessel and cargo. He is charged with ensuring that all international and local laws are followed properly, and that all management policies are fully complied with.

He is responsible for the navigation and discipline of the crew. In addition, although the Chief Engineer is directly responsibility for the ship’s machinery or engines, the ‘Chief’ reports to the Captain on all operational matters, and the movement of the Engines are under the Master’s control.

If, I remember right that Passengers were actually considered as Cargo thus subject to the Captain.

Somewhere I'd heard the word 'supercargo' applied to passengers. I think it was used to differentiate crew from passengers, but also cargo from passengers. Even though that's not the true definition of supercargo, it's the term I'll use.

Technically, it could be construed as accurate. The supercargo is a person aboard a ship who is responsible for someone's cargo being shipped. So you could say a passenger's possession are her cargo, and since she's responsible for it, that would make her supercargo.

In other news.  GenCon next week, which I'll miss this year.  But they said they'll be mailing the new books to kickstarter backers after GC.  I can't wait.

Most captains derive their responsibility from one or more ranks of authority above them. Kings. Admirals and such. Unless he is a pirate, of course.

The Seekers are not line officers or warrant officers. They are civilians who have contracted transportation. At least one of the Seekers will be telling the captain what they want he, the ship, and the crew to do for them.

Think of this man, or woman, as an admiral...

I've been going to GenCon for 35 years or so. It's much too big for its own good nowadays, but it still has things that aren't at any other Game Con.

Again, I think you are incorrect. I agree with your idea that a ship derives authority from a government. I would have to believe that this ship would be the same whether by letter of Marque or Registered privately to a country.

The Seekers would of purchased the right passage which would place them under the Captain's direct authority on items regarding the ship.

I agree there would be a contract stating what service would be rendered, but none the less that does not diminish, or grant higher authority then a Captain. Example, if there is a rule not to drink on the ship, and a passenger was found drinking they would be subject to the Captain's Authority under Maritime law. One would think the Captain would handle it differently with them than the crew.

But, I will defer to the IC Captain and the ST

Looks like the books are in the mail unless you are in Australia.  Should have mine soon.  Anyone planning on playing 7th Sea at Gencon?  Not going this year, and it's been many years since I went, but I did get in a 7th Sea LARP my last trip.

I agree that it is too big - I end up liking the gaming at my local cons better.

So, I guess what we need from the GM is a little bit of clarity to resolve the disagreement.

1. Is the ship privately owned?  Does it have a commission via a governmental navy?  Is the captain of the ship the owner, or is the owner a non-sailor who has hired a skillful captain to keep his/her interests afloat?
2. Are the Seekers simply passengers?  Or does the Seeker's have a formal charter for the full use of the vessel and crew?  (IE: Who determines the goals/etc of the ship?)


The ship's captain has absolute authority over its crew, but until we figure out whether the Seeker's are paying the bills as a whole or are simply riding along, the rest is still in the air.


I figure some of this would be hammered out in game, but some of it will really need to have been addressed before anyone stepped foot on the ship.

Very Well said, I sort of think it is a combo of Charter and Privately owned.

But again, I think you defined the issues well.

I take it that we are awaiting final word from Dread Pirate before continuing?


Because honestly, if it's that the captain is NOT the captain of his own ship, I'm going to have a little...disassociation/disagreement with that.

Whether or not it affects the rest of the game, I have no idea.  But it definitely needs to be nailed down, especially since it's already affected how some people have responded to certain...intriguing actions already taken.

Marcelo is not only the captain of the ship, but he is also the owner. At the present time, the ship is not registered to any country.

He and the ship are always subject to the local authority of whatever port they put in to.

The Explorer's Society has chartered the ship for the Seekers, even though the Seekers, individually, may be along for their own reasons.

There has been some speculation that the Black Pearl may be a Syrne artefact, or it may be a cursed item. It is the former that interests the Society... outside of the reputed value of the pearl, and, of course, the reward being offered.

While the charter is in effect, the Seekers tell the captain where they wish to go, but it is generally up to the captain to decide how and when to get there. He still has final say; for example, if the Seekers wanted him to sail into a whirlpool, he would have the right and authority to say NO.

It is up to the Seekers to decide when the charter has been completed: the Pearl is found and delivered to someone willing to pay for it.


Does that answer everyone's questions?

I think that answers the out of character questions nicely.  Thanks.

Apologies for not posting: had some RL issues to deal with.

Now with a new portrait.

If anyone saw the old British series The Onedin Line, that had the interesting dynamic of the owner aboard and the captain - the owner employed the captain, but the captain was still in charge of the ship. Which led to a few arguments :)

So, the meeting thread seemed like it was for the Seekers only.

Are any of y'all around? This seemed to kind of grind to a halt.

I tried to get a little bit of conversation going on the departure thread.

And woohoo!  I just unboxed my deluxe edition from the kickstarter campaign.

Yep. Still here. Game is still going. Just had a crappy week and weekend last week. Still getting caught up.

I'm with Lydie that I am unsure what the crew should be doing (or where we should be posting) now that the seekers have their gathering and the ship has left Crieux (which seems the logical end of the first thread.)

And jealous of that deluxe edition, Jarrun,  but I have my regular book in hand and adventures in mind.

I am thinking of running a game called 'A Distant Land.' Eventually, the players will sailed to the Eastern shores of Rokugan. If, any player is interested in playing in it. Please contact me. I am also asking for patience from the players. I am really interested to see how to make mechanics flow for PbP.

Hello! Eisen Merc for hire here. Can someone give me a quick run down of how best to introduce myself to the party?

My suggestion Eisen is not being part of the ship's crew. We already have a marine and a man at arms. I would suggest that you are part of the seekers. The shawl is all about preventing wars and doing good. They are not certain the Black Pearl is not a weapon or at the very least a reason for nations to fight. So, they have you in the seekers. Currently the seekers are meeting with the Captain to discuss the voyage.

Hmm. Good idea. I'll make him a Seeker then. Just as well, he's useless around a boat except for fighting.

I am still her. Just waiting for game to move along. Seems most of the Seekers have gone quiet. Really want to play, so lets all post

We sailors are waiting...

Yeah; nothing for the ship folks to do right now...

Although the ship's crew hadn't been told of the destination or the reason for it, the captain also hasn't been trying to keep it secret, so someone could overhear what he's saying and pass it on to the crew.

It's conceivable that one of the crew might know this sailor.

Well, the Seekers are all in the cabin of the captain.

So, unless one of us was eavesdropping, the Crew is not likely to overhear.


So, while the Seekers are actively involved, the Crew is, for all intents and purposes, background at the moment.  Nothing for us to actively worry about.




I was curious as to how the division into two groups would work.  I'm...a bit concerned if this is to be the manner of things.

You know...

On one level, Alicia won't have a whole lot to talk about with many of the Seekers, let alone crew, with her professional interests.

But, as we have seen, Alicia can create situations in which most everyone can join in and communicate. :)

I'm hoping after this initial meeting, there will be more of a chance to integrate the two groups as we come to face the same obstacles.

The two groups was because there were so many characters. Usually, more than six characters in a group gets very unwieldy and confusing, so I was taking a preventive measure up front by splitting them into two groups.

The general intent was that each group could pursue different avenues... such as the ship's crew would know their way around the docks while the others would know their way around the better parts of a city. Or an adventure on the shore as opposed to inland.

There was no fixed reason for the groups to be locked in... a group exploring inland could easily be half and half.


As I said above, though, the crew would know that if the captain leaves his door open, which he has in this case, it's because he's not expecting the meeting to be secret.

Did we lose people?  I apologize if it looks like my character is monopolizing the conversation.  It turns out he is more outgoing than I had originally envisioned.

Well Eisen is the quiet sort. Nominal grunts is the most people get out of him. He mostly reacts to most people, never giving his own opinion unless asked. Perhaps I should make him more outgoing. He does have a gallows sense of humor though.

Haha.  I tried that too, but that plan wrnt right out the window within a post of two.  I blame Alicia.  :p

Sorry for not posting - broke my computer :(

Just a note, I don't believe the sailors are in that meeting. They're sailing the ship, please correct me if I'm wrong.

In reply to Samira al'Anwar (msg # 83):

*is sailing the ship, carousing with the newbs, showing them the ropes*

*holds up rope*

See?

"As you said, local talent would be best. How about if Christian tries his hand at that? Are you okay with that, Mr. Neville?"


When the Captain said that it sort of opened the door that the sailors were there

Sorry I've been away for the most part. Been sick. Feeling better though and am ready for action.

Yes, the meeting is being held on the main deck. The ship is already docked, and anything that still needs done can be done by the NPC sailors.

Apologies for another delay. I was going to start new threads for each of the groups today, but I was sick all day. Hopefully, I'll get to it tomorrow.

Okay, posts are up for each of the sub-groups that went ashore. If you can't see one for your character, let me know. I may have gotten the Group numbers mixed up.

no thread is available for me

Apologies for that. I didn't understand which sub-group you wanted to join. I thought I asked you this, but I must have forgotten to actually post it.

So, asking now.

Second, I could go with the First Lieutenant as it is not strange for a patron to support a ship.


I believe the First LT was going to the Harbor Master

Yes, I saw that you wrote that, but I'd lost track of who the 1st Lt. was!

You should be all set now.

Ah, Samira's Character

Yep, I'm going to the Harbormaster's with Seraphine, and anyone else that would care to.

I suppose everyone was waiting on me... other than RL stuff, I have no idea where the last two weeks went. I can't even use the hurricane as an excuse.

Anyway, for future reference, if you are waiting more than two days for a response from me, REMIND ME! More than likely I read a post and then forgot to reply, or I'm waiting for someone to post, or... I just had a brain-fart.


What about Alain? I was sort of waiting for him to post.

Just let me know when it is alright for me to start posting.

So, Eisen is your secret twin, eh?

BROTHER!!! My uh, Not-Poland brother....

Alicia and Jarun have made it out to the site, Vilhelmas, so you can start posting with them now.

Nikoli, you still with us? Otherwise it's me. Sitting alone at a bar. Crying into my pint. Kidding. Esiens don't cry.

Posting... and therefore I assume enthusiasm has died down. So just checking interest in this game. Is there anyone still here that would like to continue?

If for some reason you aren't happy with the way the game is going, drop me a PM and let me what you'd like to see to make the game fun and interesting for you.

I'ma just waiting on my thread to continue. I'm all for continuing.

Still interested.  Had some things keeping me busy for a while there, but I haven't left yet.

The months or so before Thanksgiving are usually the busiest for me in the year, with the week just past being the busiest. I'm still here!

Yes, that's another issue this time of year. The holidays often have extra draws on our time and energy, particularly for those with families.

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!

Well, it looks like there are only 3 players left in this game: Alicia, Jarrun and Lydie.


So it looks like I either need to pull the plug on the game, or, if the three of you still want to continue, recruit more players.

On the other hand, I could just continue it with the three of you. I'm willing if you are.

I'd like more experience with the 2.0 rules.

My busy time of the year is fading, and I should have more time from now on.

Now down to 2 players, so I think the game has finally died.


Trying to recruit new players is an option, but I don't see much chance of success with that.

Unfortunately, I agree.

Sorry all.  I had some things pop up and I didn't have the energy or spoons to hop on rpol for any game for a good long time.

There seems to be only two players left: Alicia and Jarrun.

It's up to you to as to what you want to do.

1. continue the game with just the two of you;

2. recruit a few more players;

3. or should I go ahead and delete the game?

I actually had a good time coming up with the background tie with Alicia.  However, I'm wondering how we would proceed with the original storyline with only the two of us.

Let's think about this. No hurry is there?

Jarrun, did you mean the original storyline with you and Alicia, or the game storyline?

In the case of the game storyline, that was mainly a hook to get people interested. It doesn't have to be pursued further. It was always up to the players what they wanted to do.


And, no, Alicia, there's no hurry.


I posted this in most of my games, but missed a few.

2.5 weeks ago, I went to the ER with stomach pains and two days later, had my gallbladder removed surgically. So I'm still recovering. Pain is mostly gone, but so is my energy, so I'm slow to get to things.

Add in a crisis at home with mom, and internet problems today... so, really, no hurry.

Another player said he was interested in 2nd Edition, so he might show up soon. And bring a few of his buddies.

Meanwhile, do you want to continue to pursue the Legend of the Black Pearl? Or should I come up with a new story arc? Suggestions are also welcome.

If the new player brings a lot of buddies, perhaps they should sound off. :)

In reply to Alicia de Larrocha (msg # 118):

Here's the first of those buddies ^^
Hiya!
At least one more to come!

Yay cool.

So, kindly enlighten me.
What is the current situation ?
I would be part of the Seekers if that is still applicable.
Or maybe I only joined at a later point ?

---

EDIT: am enlightened now.
Well in parts only, most obviously.
Did not quite get the reason for all the fuss between Alicia de Larrocha and Alain Gaspard
This message was last edited by the player at 11:56, Fri 17 Mar 2017.

Also one Buddy here!

Will go through the rules around 30/3 when on airplane.
But eager to start.

Is there some function on the crew unfilled?

Alain believed that the captain of the ship was God as well, and Alicia thought he was merely the captain of the ship.

It probably did not help that was is a snarky man and she is an uppity woman.

And somehow the Vesten had to be the rational voice?!  How did that happen??

FYI.  This is still the game where I have the worst grasp of the rules.

The aggression and antagonism involved for such a minor thing (leader or no leader, who cares, never been in a game with a leader, never seen any need telling everybody else what to do, consensus suffices well enough, no need to be bossed about, can only cause unnecessary friction) right at the start of a game, however, is... daunting... even off-putting.
Indeed, the more I think on it, it may have been instrumental in people dropping away.
Roleplaying is supposed to be fun (in my book anyway), there's no need for bickering, quarrels and contention among fellow players. And it did not stop but continued over some time, picked up again even when it was already resolved, or seemed to be anyway.

Well, whatever, that's the past.

Have to complete pondering those 20 questions and delve into Step 7.
Looks like I have two weeks to do so.
Oh, and I don't know the rules either, but they are not complex, right. They are story-telling based and not simulationist, so it should work out well. Delving into the setting might be the bigger effort there ^^

I am thinking of playing a criminal thug/sailor type.

Are we pirates or what is the theme of the game and situation? I would like to put the backstory to good use.

^^
I'm still grappling a bit with the notion that each character is already a well-known (and well-travelled) 'hero' or otherwise important personage :D
Step 7 confuses me a bit, too. The 'personal quest' idea somewhat clashes with the major plot for the whole group, i.e. the search for the Black Pearl.
Cannot see at the moment how a personal thing, rather thickly linked to Montaigne, could be pursued with everyone coming from a different Nation ^^

There's also the matter of introduction of the character.
I take it we ant to pursue the Black Pearl plot further, i.e. we continue onwards to Vendel.
Have Etienne and Arax been with the ship from Crieux or do they enter at a later Point, e.g. has there been some other reason why these two are at Wandesborrow at the moment ? Or maybe they just enter at Vendel ?
Some GM direction may be helpful. In essence I'm fine any way, just need to know, so I can 'rig' my backstory to be at the right point at the right time :D

Hey! 7th Sea is a fun game!

Don't struggle/worry/introduce sh*t that makes for rough/tough going.

The "Search for the Black Pearl" is an overriding story arc that moves the general plot along. Within that scheme, we can interact, impose our will, or get imposed upon!

If Etienne (and/or Arax) need something/someone to stir up trouble, I'm sure Alicia can do that... in spades... if it should be necessary. :)

Arax.  We aren't pirates.  Originally, players could choose to be sailors on a chartered ship or members of the Seekers who are following up on rumors of the mythical Black Pearl.

As for personal goals and how they interact/conflict with the larger story... that could lead to some excellent rp.  Jarrun's goals involve uncovering lost lore in general, but a few things in particular that turn him from a linear brute into a more rounded individual.  I suspect part of the entire genre is that every character has a story to explore.

IT'S A CONSPIRACY!

Finally recovering from my surgery, I get a cold last week. Wound up coughing half the nights so didn't get much sleep, making me tired the next day.

Then on Thursday and again on Friday, my computer picked up its own virus!

Somewhere along the way, I misplaced my brain. Been looking for it ever since.

The next mission may have to be The Search for Dread Pirate Robert's Brain!

(Hides the box under the tarp.)  No problem sir.  we'll get right on it.  :p

Eisen Vitaliembruder

Name will be : Klaus Stuerzdenbecher

Alicia would like to try her experiments on willing guinea pigs, out-of-luck shmucks who are dying, good-spirited friends!.

Hey now.  Jarrun's not a schmuck.  He may have been dying when we met, but he's at least a nudnik.  (Had to look that one up too.)

Good-spirited friends!

Just so you know... guinea pigs aren't pigs and they aren't from Guinea!

I will be good to go within this week

In reply to Klaus Stuerzdenbecher (msg # 137):

Actually I'm struggling with background, specifically how and when I meet everybody else

Perhaps you were at Death's Door, you made it alive to wherever Alicia was at the time, and she saved your bacon...

A Castille saving a Montaigne? Requires some Background connection I dare say.
Naturally I did serve in the war or I never would have been accepted with the Musketeers.
Maybe the Montaignes, actually preferably mercenaries, were about to burn some books or something and I ... nudged... them not to?

Poor innocent father Carlo seems to be un high demand at the moment :)

So, Carlo, are you the same as in the game where I was Lila?

In reply to Father Carlo Eldersan (msg # 141):

You are the only reason for anybody to get back into town rather than straight for Vendel :D

In reply to Alicia de Larrocha (msg # 142):

Quite possibly :) as I never really got to try him out intuit game I was glad to be given the chance to give the priest a go here

Do we need a separate thread for those going to see Father Carlo?

Hmm.
Perhaps we ought to continue in the one provided rather than wait?

So, Father Carlo, Etienne, Jarrun.  Am I missing anyone?


And Dread Pirate Roberts was having some health and computer problems last I heard.

In reply to Jarrun (msg # 147):

I thought Alicia was with us, too ?

Alicia is the thorn in Jarrun's side is always welcome wherever Jarrun wanders.  I didn't know if she was going to join us at the church, though.

In reply to Jarrun (msg # 149):

Yeah, stupid me, I thought you were referring to who is still in the game ... and I forgot about Klaus while doing so ... :P

If Alicia can also be a thorn in Father Carlo's side, of course she would come along!!

Still have the usual shortage of energy, and crashing early in the evenings... well, earlier than I used to do. Midnight to 4am used to be my prime posting time, but I think I've managed that only once this year so far.

Days just seem to disappear and I don't where they went!

Mom's been diagnosed with cancer again, but the tests haven't come back saying what kind. Preliminary is multiple myalomas, so she's now in Hope Hospice (after going to long-term care, then the hospital)... but she's actually getting better at the moment. We're just not sure what that means...

Uff, that's tough news for sure.

Sorry for Father Carlo being a bit obtuse just waiting for our glorious GM to answer a few questions I've PM'd him so I can give more specific answers :)

Yay new content for 2nd Ed Kickstarter folks!

I'm out of the email loop. Is there another one?

Nations of Thea Vol 1 and Vol 2 preview.

Got it. I guess my emails are slower.

Well, it sure looks like a re-ignition of this game has failed.
I withdraw from the game.
Thanks for the brief time.
Enjoy and have a good time !

Sadly I to am withdrawing from the game due to the lack of movement over the last month or so.

Thanks for the opportunity to participate and hope you all enjoy your gaming in the future

My apologies.

I've been having a hard time keeping up with all my games, plus I was expecting the rest of you to resolve the meeting with Father Carlo and return to the ship.

I should have stayed on top of it more, and posted to move things along.

As I've said in other games, if you are waiting on me for a post, send me a PM to let me know that that's what you are doing. Otherwise, I let you just post on your own.

Anyway, so that leaves us back with Alicia and Jarrun.

Do you still want to continue?

I would be tempted to continue. Even though I am a backer of Edition 2.0, I'm probably never going to play it again.
This message was last edited by the player at 05:35, Mon 29 May 2017.

I'm sure Jarrun and Alicia could get into trouble together.  I'm still here.

Okay, then the game continues (as long as I remain conscious).

Seriously, if I don't get to do a post early in the day, then I'm usually too tired in the evening to think straight, so posting goes right down the drain.

I'm still trying to wrap my head around this, because this is completely backwards from what I was doing up till my surgery. I just can't see to get back on track.

During the day, I do chores and run errands as needed, but that doesn't take any energy, just time.

Pfui!

Take your time!

Yep. Just trying to figure out what I need to do...


But, we've got a new player.

Hello everyone! :)

Hello!

Hi, it is going to take me a day or three to totally put together my character and be ready to play him, so bear with me if the GM strikes inspiration before that occurs.

I just looked back in the ooc and I see that you guys are down to only 2 players (3 with me)? Maybe we can pitch some ideas to the GM to get his creative juices flowing?

Well, if you don't mind my saying so, the character with your present Avatar was a major .... problem... for Alicia in an earlier scene. :)

I am not married to it, if you would like me to change it

If you like it, I like it!

So, I finished my character, barring anything I may have done wrong or that's inappropriate. :)

Time to start reading back on threads to see what I've missed, I guess :)

Welcome to the game.  I just got back from some travel and can now respond better.

And the GM gave us a jump start to get going too. :)

And, I'll be leaving on a short trip, Tuesday through the 18th. It's possible, but unlikely, that I'll be able to post in that time.

I'm not only getting old, but I'm feeling old! I'll post tonight.

So, it's been a month since Jarrun signed in.

And, I'm losing interest in 7th Sea 2.0. I haven't yet downloaded the last two publications from Wick & Co., and haven't really looked at the two before that.

:(
Apparently that was insufficiently meaningful. It's too bad you're losing interest. Other than heroes and villains, I thought that the splats so far have been good, and significantly improved the game.

Well, to me, 2.0 seems inferior to 1.0 in most every way.

i) The attempt to utilize a narrative sequence is particularly irritating and artificial. Even four players in a tabletop game is too many.

ii) Character creation is too generic, uninteresting, and just boring.

iii) Most GMs do not have the knowledge/expertise to run a decent game imo. All four games I played in at GenCon last year exposed this.

iv) Have the Swordschool issues been fixed?

v) I could go on and on...

Yeah, I think character creation would benefit from 5 extra advantage points. I am not sure what the problem is with swordschools, honestly; other than being so expensive, they seem to work; they certainly are very advantageous in combat.

Yeah, in the initial feedback I suggested that the Artist and Merchant skills should be offered for background, but never even got the courtesy of an acknowledgement.

Yeah, Jarrun hasn't checked the board in over a month now, so I guess he's gone.

That's a shame, since that was a good plot.


One of the advantages of RPoL as far as the GM is concerned is that there is time to look up anything that you don't understand or remember. But, I know what you mean about GM's not being able to run a 7th Sea game. I find myself wondering if I'm getting it right. Part of me thinks that it's 'just another RPG' and it should have the same elements, only the mechanics are different. But I also get the impression that I may be missing something, that I'm not quite capturing the 'feel' of the game.

Perhaps that's why I haven't been able to keep players.

Or possibly it's my sporadic posting.

As far as 7th Sea 2e goes on RPoL, we can modify it to suit us, so any drawbacks it may have can be 'fixed'.


Anyway, the question now is: should I try to recruit a few more players? Or is this game effectively dead?

I'm sorry for my long absense from rpol as a whole.  Things got... difficult to say the least.

I am withdrawing from half of the games I had previously joined, but keeping this one if I can.

Welcome back Jarrun. :)

I think you should recruit more players, especially since Jarrun is back. ;)

Thanks.
I'm now down to this game plus 3 others.

Ha! I'm down to only 28 games that I'm GMing!

It was relatively easy when I started them... just that this year has become an utter mess... computer problems, hospitalization, internet problems, mom in the hospital and long-term care...


I'll wait for Alicia's response before I try recruiting more players. I can't imagine that'll have any success, though, since I think most of the players who are interested have already joined and bailed.

Well, as Jarrun and I managed 50 posts between the two of us, three should be pretty easy.

My advice is to stress swashbuckling adventure rather than Rules when you recruit. Characters would be 7th Sea 2.0, but you can include/insert House Rules as you will...

edit: not Swashbuckling Adventures, the d20 version!
This message was last edited by the player at 05:17, Sat 12 Aug 2017.

To be honest I know almost nothing about the rules for either 1.0 or 2.0, so for me the key is the ability to explore the individual stories and goals in the midst of the overarching plot.

Setting up scenes where the players can talk and explore without absolutely needing a response from a GM has helped me in rpol games specifically.

That's generally my philosophy... you shouldn't have to wait on the GM in order to post and do some role-playing.


I've been dragging my feet a bit... need to put up a Posting Rules thread. It's not meant to be an absolute rule, but just suggestions to help improve the game for some players that need it.


Anyway, put up a Players Wanted post, so hopefully we'll see some response.

I'm at GenCon thru Sunday.

Howdy folks!

I'm Albert, your "friendly" (as friendly as folks from Eisen get) Eisen marine.  I'm going to have to sit down with y'all and figure out how exactly he fits into the story, but if anyone wants to create some tie ins ahead of play, I'm more than amenable to it!

I'm always up for some historical ties.  Prior to joining up with Alicia, Jarrun was a wandering professional pugilist.  He would earn his travel money either by working as an able seaman or in the ring.

Excellent!  Well, Albert's a marine (and a dabbler when it comes to fisticuffs), so perhaps they served on a ship together?

Still alive!

As bad as Hurricane Irma was, it wasn't all that bad. Almost no building damage has been reported, not even broken windows, but signs and lots and lots of trees have been uprooted.

15 million people without power. It's starting to come back online now, but probably won't have it at the house for another 2-3 days. Posting from a friend's workplace, which never actually lost power because it was part of the evacuation route.

All we had were a few roof leaks, and the backyard fence got blown down.

I'm glad you made it through relatively unscathed.

10.5 days without power!

 Lost power on the 9th just around noon as the hurricane passed by.

 No power, no AC, no lights, no stove/microwave/toaster oven, no hot water, no TV, no computer, no modem, no internet.

 Florida. Summer. Hot. Humid. Sat around in the dark and sweated. Didn't sleep well, didn't eat much.

 Couldn't go anywhere since most places were also without power.

 For a few days, gas was scarce, because most gas stations didn't have power, and so couldn't pump gas. The few that either had power or emergency generators had long lines and then ran out of gas. Tried getting by on ice, but so was everyone else, and ice quickly sold out.

 Finally got power back about 8:30 last night.

 So now we're cleaning up the mess.

 It'll probably be another day or two before I get caught up on all my games.

You must live around Naples, then. My cousin lives around Tampa and was much more fortunate.

The main thing is that you are alright!

Yup.
I'm actually considering putting my name in as an emergency responder through my office for a disaster team.  Every time I see how bad things can get when disaster strikes, I want to help however I can.

Here's to recovery.

Yeah, live 3 communities north of Naples... four if you count North Naples.

Taking longer than I thought to clean up.

The big issue right now is cleaning up all the debris lining all the side streets. A news report the other night said it was estimated to be 4 million tons. The downed trees and branches, if they dry out, could wind up being a gigantic fuse! And the interior material from houses that got flooded are out on the street and starting to turn into a biohazard from the mold. Most of the flooded houses have been condemned now because of the mold growing inside.

To further complicate things, my internet provider seems to have had some damage to its wires or towers or whatever because I've been fighting with them all week. I can't stay connected for more than about 15 minutes at a time, although it's been better today. I write something and go to post it and find I've lost internet connection and the post also disappears.

While it's not all that big of a deal, it means I wind up playing tag with the internet... matching time and energy with when I'm online!


Anyway, hope everyone is still here.

I am in Italy until the 12th, then go to a mini-Con until the 15th evening.

Still here and back to normal work hours for me.

Bleh. Struggling to get back into this game. With so many players dropping out/disappearing, I've just had a hard time refocusing on this game.

Since I haven't deleted it yet, it's not quite dead, so one last attempt to reboot this...

If anyone is still here, still interested, speak up!

If you have any ideas for where you'd like the story to go, also speak up!

A suggestion?  Do a role call and clear things out.

And I'd love to start playing!  ... You'll just need to figure out how to introduce my character.

Still here.

Still here, just trying to figure out how to fit in.

Also here...

For those who are looking for ways to get introduced, unless you already have a plan, Jarrun had spent the past few years traveling from port to port as a pugilist ring fighter before his run-in with some rather murderous types and joining this quest at Alicia's side.

I'm open for ties.

Glad to see everyone is still around. Plus Albert recruited two new players; working on getting them done.

Ties are always good!  Drop me a PM when you're around today and we can figure something out.

For game purposes, Alicia had been at the University in Altamira for several years.

While I won't object if another player wishes to create a Background with her, I don't have any trouble in 'creating' links with other characters going forward.

Alicia's history in the Cast has several possible hooks, but she has lots of interests that are not necessarily mentioned there as well.

(Temporary avatar, I'm chronically indecisive)

Anyway, Hi! I'm leaning towards a Ship's Captain, myself. Possibly Probably with ties to the Brotherhood of the Coast, but we'll see what happens when I have a chance to hash out something concrete.

Hi everyone!

There's a house rule I've seen for this system that I think is pretty cool. It's a three dot advantage that gives you two of the dueling abilities and they call it A Bit Of Knowledge. Gives some of the flexibility of being a duelist without the fluff and the five dot cost. Thoughts?

To be fair, of all the games I own and play, this one is the one I know the rules and balance factor the least.  When we get into actual combat, I will likely be lost until I see things in action a few times.

Given the massive disparity between duelists and non-duelists, I'm all for this.  And this is coming from someone who took duelist.

There's already a book advantage like that; it gives you parry, slash, and one other basic manuever of your choice, for a 3 pt advantage.

It is called Student of Combat.

There is?  O_o

I see Honest Misunderstanding, Bar Fighter, Boxer, Bruiser, Brush Pass, Camaraderie, Deadeye, Dynamic Approach, Fencer, Foul Weather Jack, Masterpiece Crafter, Opportunist, Ordained, Patron, Quick Reflexes, Rich, Signature Item, Sniper, Tenure, and Virtuoso for the 3 dot advantages.

 Are there more books out for this system than just the core?  If so, I may be super off base. =X

Yes there are the Nations Book 1 & 2, the Heroes and Villains book, the Pirate Nations book, and the Crescent Empire book. They all have at least some additional advantages. Student of Combat is in Heroes & Villains and in Nations of Theah Volume 1.

Here's the full text:

STUDENT OF COMBAT
You learn the Slash and Parry Maneuvers, as well as
one Maneuver (not a Style Bonus) of your choice
and can perform these as a Duelist does. The
Duelist Academy Advantage is considered a 3-point
Advantage for you.

Golly.  Okay, when I went to the JWP website there was just the core rulebook mentioned, so I thought there weren't any others.  I'll have to see if DriveThruRPG has them for sale! =X

Thank you, Vasily!  House rule request rescinded on account of it already being a thing!

DriveThruRPG should have them, since that is where kickstarter backers download them. I've actually seen a couple of them in our local RPG store as well.

Speaking of kickstarter...

I really need to see what all I've been given and actually read them.

I've got a lot of reading ahead of me tonight...

Witht he additional books they've really fleshed out/eliminated most of the holes in the core. The only things that still niggle me that're left are; how to make sword schools useful when dealing with brutes, without being completely overwhelming, and how to make minor challenges meaningful.

Hero point economy still strikes me as kinda wack. You can't save them session to session, and they can be hard to generate, and soem characters need boatloads of them (like super-panamax sized boat), while others can pretty much take them or leave them without any concern. To me it seems that if you're going to have heavy and light users, the heavy users should come with more built-in ways to generate them; they will cycle through them a lot, but it won't be that they suddenly feel useless because they ran out of juice and have no way to generate more.

Oh, I forgot, there was one other thing: automatic dramatic wounds; they need definition. It is unclear from the rules whether they fill up the wound boxes up to the next dramatic wound or if they just fill the dramatic wound box. Both present issues, of a sort.

If it is the latter, then everyone should be carrying like 20 pistols everywhere, to deal with Villains; once a firearm (or other such ability) is used on someone, there's little point to try to use anything that DOESN'T do automatic dramatics, because it will almost certainly never catch up (especially on Villains, who have loads of flesh wound boxes). But, with the former, the more powerful the Villain, the more powerful the gun (or other effect) becomes, also, the less wounded they are, the more powerful it is (measured in number of wound boxes filled).

I don't know if there's a good answer for that, but, ultimately, the answer determines a lot about how fights will go.

Given you can spend raises to reduce the wounds a gun deals but cannot negate the dramatic wound, it seems like you only deal a dramatic wound + the wounds from raises, as opposed to all wounds necessary to get you to and then also including the dramatic wound.  I see what you mean about that causing problems for people attacking in more general ways, since the only downside to losing wounds is that it gets you nearer to a dramatic wound.

I participated in four official 'games' when 2.0 was presented.

Only one of the GMs was able to carry the Rules Mechanics at all well. And, in my opinion, few GMs would have the knowledge/ability to be able to conduct a game very well, whereas most any GM can utilize 1.0.

My impression/opinion was/is that the proactive/FATE approach would only work well with four or fewer player-characters at a table.

There are a few interesting ideas in 2.0, but lots that are just bad. The combat mechanics were terrible, although it seems (from what I read here) that some corrections have been attempted since... which should have been made before the game was introduced, after all!

In perspective, I am 70 years old, have been playing RPGs since 1976 and 7th Sea 1.0 since 2001, and GM'd nearly 100 game sessions of those Rules.

Edit: I haven't bothered to download the latter books, and Wick Productions hasn't sent me any of the Pirate Booty that was promised in the Kickstarter.
This message was last edited by the player at 19:24, Wed 25 Oct 2017.

Oh, I got all of my pirate booty and have downloaded all the books, plus ran and played IRL. It definitely has a learning curve; it takes at least 2 or 3 sessions before things start going smoothly (and that is if you are focusing on learning the mechanics through play, as opposed to actually playing).

"Given you can spend raises to reduce the wounds a gun deals but cannot negate the dramatic wound, it seems like you only deal a dramatic wound + the wounds from raises, as opposed to all wounds necessary to get you to and then also including the dramatic wound."

See, I don't read that as being some sort of sure fire intent one way or the other; you can only reduce the additional wounds beyond the dramatic wound, sure; that doesn't say anything about wounds caused by getting an automatic dramatic wound.

When this came up in my IRL group, someone scoured the Internet and could find no official comment about it and no hard and fast consensus about it either; people go both ways. And both ways encounter logic problems; one way guns do super-highly variable damage, while the other they do consistent damage, but cause other weapons to, apparently, do basically nothing.

Given that the argument you made is for them to mark only the dramatic wound, consider this: if someone (who we'll say has the typical 5 wounds per dramatic) is shot (by a gun) then hit squarely with a sword (say, with a lunge, doing a pretty hefty 6 pts of damage), would you expect the sword to do pretty much nothing, simply because they already have a gunshot wound? I certainly would not expect that. That problem gets even worse with Villains, who have a number of boxes between dramatics equal to their rating; it is not uncommon for them to have like 10 or more; one gunshot and suddenly trying to do anything with raw damage is pointless.

Another way to look at that is that it means the gunshot only does 2 points of damage; mark a dramatic wound and a single wound box; everything else is just raises. In other words, they are only for finishing the enemy. That can be good, but it does mean that Villains should just be gunned down, and never waste raises on trying to hit them with a sword (or fists, whatever), since the wounds generated in that way will simply be wasted.

I won't contest that the rules are unclear here, just tossing out my kneejerk reaction from what I read.  I'm a newb to the system, so grain of salt, definitely.

I think "villains should always be gunned down" is true.  But your example of "a lunge after a gunshot should still do something appreciable" makes a lot of sense to me.  Do you have a preference on which interpretation is used, Vasily?

Well, you have my opinion of 2.0. I have no interest in learning any of fine-points of the Mechanics, new or revised.

The last I knew, Resolve and Brawn had no effect upon Flesh or Dramatic Wounds, or the Death Spiral. That's enough to disqualify 2.0 from serious consideration IMO.
This message was lightly edited by the player at 20:04, Wed 25 Oct 2017.

Was this originally a 1e game, and then it got converted into a 2e game?  (I stomped on into the game without realizing if it was ever not 2nd Edition. =X)

The original game was published in 1999. The Second Printing, in February 2000, corrected a few issues.

Edit: 1.0 was the usual action/reaction of RPGs going back to the beginning. 2.0 is the collaborative FATE version, which is completely different.
This message was last edited by the player at 20:08, Wed 25 Oct 2017.

Sorry, I mean the Legend of the Black Pearl game, not 7th Sea as a franchise.

It always was a 2.0 game.

This was announced originally as a 2.0 game.

My preference, as far as which worked better in IRL play with my group (keep in mind this can change drastically from group to group, given, as Alicia says, that this is a heavily collaborative style of game) was the filling the flesh wound boxes up to the dramatic wound when an automatic dramatic wound is dealt. It allows characters to be the "I don't like guns" type and not be pointless in group fights against Villains.

BTW Alicia; they didn't revise mechanics, so much as add Advantages (and Backgrounds, Sorceries, and Dueling Schools) to fill in the gaps. Some of the new stuff (like Student of Combat) make some of the mechanical issues (like duelists vs non-duelists in combat) less of a problem (almost everyone can find a way to fit in a 3 pt advantage; if they can't it only takes a 3 step story to make up for it). If you prefer an action/reaction gameplay style, then 2.0, no matter what they add, will never be quite right for you, I think.

Cripes! Go to sleep for a few hours and suddenly the board erupts in posts!

After reading through all these, I'm not so sure I want to GM this game any more!

Just kidding. Although, in my defense, I tend to focus on the 'story' aspect of the game rather than the mechanics. I've always found that mechanics tend to take too long to resolve online, though some go better than others.

Mutin... I mean... hey cap'n.  Don't mind us... we're... um... playing cards.

There's so much not to like about 2.0. But, PbP may be the only way it can work for me.

My greatest frustration with 2.0 is that the Mechanics work against the story rather than with it- again IMO.

If a GM knew a lot about most everything in history, science, and applied technology, just to name three fields, then that GM might be a good collaborator. The problem is that most GMs are not. I argued with one GM that he did not understand how hardened steel worked, so how could he Rule as he wanted to do? Some others just don't know much about history.

How does one collaborate if the GM doesn't have a clue?

The whole idea of requiring a player to continue with his approach, even though the circumstances may have changed, makes no sense in a collaboration!

Anyway, I'll give it a try.....

I'm a science fiction geek, so I tend to know a lot about science tangentially. For example, I was creating my own science fiction game many years ago because I simply didn't like the universe any of the other games were set in. Or didn't like the mechanics. Or just felt they missed too much. One of things I did in my game was 'create' all these exotic elements... borrowed from SF and comics. The transparent Amazonium that Wonder Woman's plane and bracelets were made out of became amazium in my game. Anyway, I felt compelled to stick it into the periodic table, and said that these were all heavy elements up beyond the transuranics. I explained it by saying that once the next electron shell was filled, the elements became stable.

As it turns out, scientists now think there is an island of stability at some point.


Likewise, I started working on a world atlas for Earth for Space: 1889, and wind up researching a lot of data on history of countries around the world.

So, not only do I know a bit about science AND history (though I hated history in high school), I tend to research a lot of material before I decide on a post.

Hopefully, that'll help me with the interactive game.

I don't think you'll have a problem, personally! It seems like a fun system, to me at least.

I'll give one of the three other GMs credit for listening to me about how paper, ink, and cursive writing (as well as a watermark) appear/is made. I got seven raises for analyzing a message my character found, and gave the GM seven points on it to consider.

At least he was trying!

On one of our trips in Italy, to Fabriano at the paper museum there, I saw how paper was created roughly since the 12th century.
This message was last edited by the player at 01:25, Fri 27 Oct 2017.

"This player has not yet created a description for their character."

By the way, Albert? How can you be a leader in recruiting new people, yet be a follower in not (yet) providing us with Albert's Description?

Just askin'

I suspect because Albert and I have been discussing making our two characters brothers (thus my name change) and he found it prudent to make sure the details were finalised before putting anything up.

Aha! That is a reasonable excuse justification if the Description in 'The Cast' were not editable. However, it is editable!

Certainly some assistance to the rest of us could be possible. Note below:

Name: Alicia de Larrocha
Nationality: Castille
Height: 5'6"
Weight: 130 lbs
Hair: Brown
Eyes: Gray
General Demeanor: Alicia is outgoing, personable, and friendly with some... passive-aggressive, arrogant, and dismissive with others.

Better to get it all up properly the first time then go through 50 edit cycles before the character is even finalised, no?

It'll all be up before our characters enter play. Don't fret!

Yep, they're still working out details with me. He can't decide if his character is going to be tall, dark and handsome, or short, bald, and amusing!

That's a matter of style, yes.

Then again, maybe it won't be.  Descriptions aren't required as far as I can tell.

They aren't required, but sure leave a negative impression!

I guess you have a point, Alicia.  We should all strive not to leave negative impressions.

I think I was GMing on this site for about a year before I realized that the description box even existed! I've seen some people add in awesome picture of their character--probably the picture that prompted the creation of the character in the first place.

I think it was about a year ago before I discovered that you could access the Description from both the Profile box to the left of your posts, and from The Cast list.

So, no, they aren't really required, but I'd say they are 'encouraged'. If nothing else, you can just copy that section of your character sheet.

Most players simply post what other characters would see, sometimes intentionally, sometimes just as a matter of course.

As a GM, it have access to everyone's character sheet, so it never bothered me if there wasn't a description.

I don't think there's any negative impression generated, just a lack of impression. It's one of the reasons I put data in the Biography boxes. For that matter, I don't have a Description for me, the GM!

I personally just went for a physical description. It made the most sense, given that's all people will have to form their initial impression of him. I might chuck up some more as the story progresses.

I'm super pumped to start though, and I think I've got most things organised now. Just need to think up a personal story, but it appears my creativity is determined to fail me!

This makes sense. Alicia has been around for quite a while (108 posts).

Can I quickly check whether we got a ruling on Vasily's question as to whether guns fill up just the Dramatic Wound only, or the wound boxes up to the Dramatic Wound as well?

I just realized I need to fix my own profile.

Tsk! Tsk! Maybe I should examine mine as well.

Answering the question about guns...

A gun shot that hits automatically does a Dramatic Wound. It will also do regular Wounds depending on the Raises the villain spends, and that the Hero can't/doesn't negate.

So, to clarify; it only fills the next dramatic wound box, not any of the wound boxes leading up to that dramatic wound box except for those added by raises (and the +1 specified by firearms), correct?
This message was last edited by the player at 22:34, Mon 30 Oct 2017.

Correct. Except for the +1 part. The only book I have is the CRB, so if one of the other books give different specifics for firearms, I don't know them.

Example: the villainous Lucretia MacEvil rolls 7d10 firing her pistol at the Hero, and gets results of 10,7,5,3,3,2,1. Groups of 10 give her 10, 7+3, 5+3+2+1 for 3 Raises. The Hero takes 3 Wounds and 1 Dramatic Wound.

Only the regular Wounds can be eliminated by the Hero rolling 3 Raises.
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:18, Mon 30 Oct 2017.

I vote we actually get to keep a villain with the surname "MacEvil."

I was planning it. "Lucretia MacEvil" is an early 70s song by Blood, Sweat and Tears.

Ah, yeah I was remembering wrong; the minimal damage output of a firearm is 1 dramatic + 1 damage; that's because you have to spend at least one raise to fire it, and that raise causes a point of damage. For some reason I was thinking of that as being the base damage (as opposed to minimum).

I'll be away thru Sunday afternoon late.

My brain has been fried... I'll try to post later today.

Just got back from a business conference.  Phew!  That was a whirlwind.  I should have a post up soon.

Just sent a a PM to DPR to make sure my basic understanding is right since I don't have the book available to check while I'm at work.

Cheers, lads and lasses. Jacob Carnavon at your service.

Why hello!

Howdy chap, and welcome aboard!

Err, so. Is it Jabob or Jacob?

Description says Jacob, name says Jabob, is all!

Which is the alias?

There's been a typo somewhere. I meant it to be Jacob.

Awwwwwwwwww.

That's my bad! I typed it wrong and didn't notice. Will fix soon.


Fixed! What often happens is that my brain types faster than my fingers, so my brain was typing the final 'b' while my fingers were still on the 3rd letter...
This message was last edited by the GM at 15:31, Fri 17 Nov 2017.

Jacob it is but I'd figured out that I could be Silent Jabob.

There's something there, give it a minute.

I didn't say that it was worth it though.

More seriously, should I roll Wits + Notice? I'm not sure that figuring out what's going on at this point is really an Action sequence.

Typo. Ask about Approach.
This message was last edited by the player at 15:49, Fri 17 Nov 2017.

No, no roll is needed at this point to notice what it going on. If you want more detailed information, though, then you'd need to roll.

I dig it.

Long-ass post of mine, I know, but I was sort of trying to explain what on Earth we were doing. Being moored to a quay and needing to do a sudden getaway with a frigate = no bueno.

Jacob, if it helps you integrate any, the Gespenst is a fairly obvious ship, so you should have no trouble seeing what we're doing. Other than that, I'm trying to think of a way to integrate you with us short of literally having you just leap on as we pull away. There should have been enough time for you to get to us in the time it took us to row the kedge anchors into position, so I'm open to ideas!

Alternatively, I dunno if Dread Pirate Roberts wants us to go investigate the wreckage of the Southern Wind at any point? Jacob might go to help any survivors and we meet up there?

Thoughts?

The interesting thing is, we *have* to go talk to the survivors.  After all, the Charter does tell us "All souls aboard a captured ship shall be set free and determine among themselves, by vote, the course they set once their hull is plundered."  Just because our brothers aren't following the Charter per say, doesn't mean we won't.

I know what I should have Jacob do for the sake of the game is jump aboard Gespenst but I think what he would do is jump aboard Southern Wind.

I think the post I'm writing works to marry those things. If not, is everyone OK if we recon it?

I'd say reconsider mate, because you've only got 2 raises, not 3.  Remember, you've got to make pairs of 10s, not simply total the dice together!

Today: Jacob Carnavon rolled 34 using 4d10 ((10,9,8,7))

For the record, my ship, with its fully crew took 2 raises to get moving and clear of the dock.  And we're not being shot at.  I imagine there are a lot more complications to deal with on the Southern Wind.

Also, remember, you're a total stranger, jumping on a ship that's being shot to pieces and then promptly trying to assume control?  Probably not going to end all that well, I'm just saying.

Honestly? I agree with Albert.

I think the Southern Wind is pretty toast if she's taking broadsides while docked. You can see the utterly ridiculous amount of trouble that the Gespenst is having even while not being shot at. There's no way the crew is going to be able to man oars, unmoor, set her sails, prepare guns, and maneuver under that sort of barrage, let alone get into a favorable firing position, and especially when (given she's docked) her full crew isn't even likely to be on board. It is infinitely more difficult than just "getting underway." This is also assuming generously that her masts aren't already shot to pieces, if not sustained substantial damage, and disregarding what the hull is going to look like.

Just with those, there's enough complications there to swallow your two raises, plus change. I strongly recommend against this.

That's right! Knew it when I rolled it but overlooked it when I posted.

I agree it's not a wise tactical move. I never thought it was. I think it's an interesting narrative choice and one that fits his nature. I also think it fits a swashbuckling theme pretty well. He's fresh off (an on, I suppose) the boat. If he goes into the drink with Jonah, so be it. We'll make a new one.

I would recommend trying to help rescue the surviving men off the ship before it's sunk rather than trying to lead them to their deaths. That allows you to keep Jacob while also still being narratively heroic.

Dread Pirate Roberts?

Whoa! This ship is that bad off? I didn't get that from the original posts. In that case Jacob might have actually tried to order them off the ship.

But a crew squad did man the guns despite being ordered to abandon ship by an officer belonging to the crew? That order I gave to the single crew squad used 1 Raise, leaving me with one, correct?

From my understanding, you're already out of raises if you wanted to order the crew.

This is also why I was advising the way I was. I didn't mean to be discouraging, but taking a broadside while docked at close range like that, with an unprepared crew, is utterly catastrophic.

Hopefully I can get a post up shortly!
This message was last edited by the player at 03:05, Tue 21 Nov 2017.

Nobody was actually looking at the Southern Wind to see what was going on.

It took a broadside from the pirate ship, and about half the crew was already ashore.

The remaining crew mostly reacted to be fired on by attempting to fire back!

The crewman yelling 'abandon ship' wasn't really an officer such that he commanded the other men. He was just reacting in blind panic.

Yes, you've used one Raise, and have one left... mainly because some of the things you were trying to do just weren't possible... although 10 Raises might have gotten the ship moving!

Without any association with the Southern Wind, there wasn't really any perspective from Jacob's point of view.

Should I burn the Hero point to use Dynamic Approach and try to make my way to Gespent

In a typically swashbuckling setting seems like using the shattered rigging to swing over might be a good plan.

Haha, DPR, if we could get an MS Paint sketch of where you visualise everyone to be, that would actually be super handy <3

You could use an Approach to use the rigging to swing across to another ship, but the distance is a bit too far to do it reasonably... I suppose you could spend sufficient Raises to accomplish it... but that'd have to be by altering the scene... such as having the tide move one of the ships closer, or the cannon fire shattering the anchor hawser and pushing the ship away from the dock, etc.

Oh, interesting! Those ships aren't quite where I'd pictured, whoops. I feel kedging away a short distance would still have been necessary to ensure we didn't scrape/hit the dock before setting sail, but this should still work with what I've already written and we should be able to tack in nicely.

Props to our GM too for kicking the adventure off with a (literal) bang <3
This message was last edited by the player at 00:58, Wed 22 Nov 2017.

FYI: I hadn't detailed the orientation of the ships ahead of time because I hadn't anticipated the scene progressing the way it did. Nothing wrong with what happened; I just didn't see it coming!

Basically, still getting a feel for how everyone is going to play.

Another FYI... had a death in the family last Wednesday, so dealing with that. It wasn't unexpected, but it's just left things a bit unsettled at the moment.

So, just a bit behind in my posting...

My condolences. Take what time you need.

Oops. I just had a friend pass just a few days before Wednesday. I know how you feel :\

As Jacob said, we'll be around. Don't stress us, RL takes priority <3

Dag nab it! Watching Slave Hunters and shopping for the kids on the internet -

Which thread should I get posting in? Looks like On Stranger Tides, yes?

Yes, post in On Stranger Tides.


To make things even stranger, we were heading to the store last Thursday, and when we were stopped at the light getting ready to turn, we spotted an animal in the middle of the lane next to us. At first, we thought it was a squirrel about to get run over, but then realized it didn't move like a squirrel. A van making the turn just missed it, but the lady behind slammed on her brakes, got out and picked it up. She looked at my friend, and said she didn't know what to do with it, so my friend said he take it to the vet, which we going to pass anyway when we made the turn.

It turned out to be 7-week old orange tabby kitten! We took it to the vet, and the vet said it was fine, hadn't been hurt, but was clearly scared. It had oil on its head, so we thought maybe it had crawled up into the engine compartment of vehicle and finally fell out when the vehicle made the turn.

Since the last of the three cats that we had died back on July 4th, and we'd been trying to decide if we wanted to get another cat, we've kept him. After a rough first day, he's settled in nicely and quickly becoming a holy terror. He's still not big enough to challenge the dog yet.

After a lot of deliberation, we finally decided to name him Dodger, cause he'd been dodging traffic in the middle of a busy intersection when we found him.

Merry Christmas Dodger!

I had to run one of mine to the vet this morning. Got in a fight and scored  a couple of nasty looking abscesses. Little shot of antibiotics and he's fine but that other cat that had been hanging around the garage is nowhere to be seen. Guess the old man's still got something in the tank.

Hopefully the Dodger will not be such a ruffian, although his namesake was a bit scrappy... Congratulations on the new home Dodger, and congratulations on the new friend everyone.

Dodger has settled in quite well. We weren't sure after the first day, because he hadn't quite been weaned yet, so we had to feed him with an eyedropper. We made a secure area for him with two laundry baskets, more for his protection in case the dog got a bit confused and thought he was a squeaky toy. He was old enough, though, that he should have been weaned, so it only took a day before he was devouring any food we gave him. And Rusty, our dog, was used to having cats around, so he just avoids the annoying kitten behavior.

Dodger took to the litter box right away, and quickly became a daring jumper and skilled climber. The laundry baskets were on the couch, and the couch was his domain for two days, until he finally got brave enough to jump off the couch to the floor because the floor was a whole new world for him to explore. He promptly climbed back up onto the couch and jumped off again... just to make sure it wasn't a fluke, I guess. He has no problem jumping off of anything now, and climbs up the recliner front and sides whenever he wants attention.

He's got the run of the house now, and meows mercilessly when it's time to feed him.


Anyway, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to everyone!

After my last post here, I'd started to post in the other threads. I'd had one about half written before Dodger decided to help me type. Somehow, he managed to hit just the right keys to delete everything I'd written.

I was going to retype it, but he insisted I feed him. Then I got busy, and just didn't get back to it till today.

The Little Holy Terror (but he's so cute!) notwithstanding, I've asked Santa for another brain, as I seem to have lost mine somewhere along the way.

The last month-and-a-half have been the busiest in memory, and I have a five day game Con over New Years Day.

Alicia should be able to return in the new year.
This message was last edited by the player at 23:32, Sat 23 Dec 2017.

I hope everyone had a great time over the holidays!  Happy New Year soon!  ^_^

Happy New Year to everyone, too!


Now that the holidaze is behind me, things are back to normal (for what that's worth).

I see someone in the Wanted GM thread is looking for a 7th Sea game. Before I invite him to this one, I just want to make sure that this game is still going.

Does everyone still want to continue?

Yep, still on board. :)

Just recovering from a five day con over the new year.

It looks like we've lost Albert, Johann and Carmen.

And no one else has posted, so I guess this game is dead.

I'll give it another week and then I'll delete it if there's no response. Fair warning.

hmmm, darn.

Well, still waiting to hear from Alicia and Jacob.

Jarrun is dealing with RL issues.

We can continue with just 2 or 3 players.

I can continue, but I can't promise to reply quickly...

Sorry I haven't kept up on this game in a more timely fashion. I've mostly been waiting for people to post, but apparently most of you aren't even checking the board, even when there's a new post.

Three PCs are on the ship: Albert Ravenkamp, Johann Ravenkamp, and Carmen the Jenny. After the pirate ship sunk the Southern Wind, it turned away, apparently having no interest in Albert's ship. Albert never posted what he was now going to do.


Alicia de Larrocha and Jacob Carnavon were at the opening to the alley behind the Chandlery, and caught a glimpse of someone moving farther away from them down the alley.

Jarrun and Vasily Pavlychenko are in the Chandlery. Jarrun has just finished tying up the monster; however, it's still savage and struggling at its bonds. Its continued actions keep away the two ladies that Vasily was 'escorting' from wanting to get any closer.

I'll give this game another week; if no one posts in that time, I'll consider the game DEAD, and I'll go ahead and delete it next weekend.

Hello there Guys!

I've got two other new players also joining, so feel free to chime in here.

I was thinking that they might have taken passage on Valentino's ship to get here, but, of course, there are other ways for them to have done that.

The Bucephalus is always accepting of passengers!

Alicia is still around.

Apologies for the delay. Family event, house cleaning/prep, medical procedure, and old age all hit me over the last two weeks. Plus, I had a brain fart. You guys' posts were so good I couldn't figure out how to respond! Finally worked through it!

Oh I am away from my Rulebooks at the moment.... can someone look up Disarming smile and tell me if it needs a Hero point to activate or if it is just something you can do once a session or something like that.

Also... How do the "Once a Session" things work in this game.  Is that effectively a once per thread thing?

Yes, Disarming Smile requires a Hero Point.


The book is actually a bit wishy-washy on what a 'session' is. For the most part, it seems to mean a 'game session'. But that isn't defined either. In general, however, it would seem to mean each time the group of players get together. Based on the evolution of the game and the application during game conventions, I'd have to say that's meant as a 'four-hour session'. Players get together one evening a week and game from 6-10 or so (or 7-11). Even if they get together more than one night per week, each one is a 'session'.

There was a time when my gaming group got together on Sundays and gamed for 8-10 hours. In that case, I'd say it was 2 sessions back-to-back, perhaps breaking for supper being the delineator between the two sessions.

The 7th Sea book says a session is an Episode, but seems to define Episode as a 'game session'.

In other words, what they seem to be saying is that these 'once per session' abilities should be restricted to once each time your group gets together... a sort of 'one per customer' thing.


Obviously, this becomes problematical at best with online/PbP games. However, you could easily interpret an Episode as a Scene. Or, to qualify it a bit better, a Major Scene. Like the old movie and radio serials, each episode tended to be a limited event--set-up, derring-do, chase, cliff-hanger. Scenes weren't normally strung together... or, if they were, they weren't involved scenes. An adventurer might fly to Rio and then take a boat up the Amazon. A conversation on the plane, however, would only be a minor scene to establish some important plot information, but otherwise there wouldn't be any significant event/threat/danger/etc.

So, that's what I'll do for this game.

The current scene is two-fold: the Beast in the chandlery, and the confrontation in the tavern. When any of those characters change scenes, that's a new 'session' (provided the scene change is significantly different). Example: Vasily and Valentino could go to the chandlery, but unless something significant happens in the chandlery, it would only be a minor scene change.

How does that sound?

Sounds good for me! I was just pondering for the using of Virtues/vices to get Hero points back and similar.

I like the idea of a "session"/"episode" consisting of a single major scene, along with any ancillary minor scenes as they come. It makes good sense for both PbP, and even for in person gaming. For PbP it also makes it so that you can feel like you can use your hero point stuff (and once per session stuff like Arcana, Quirks, etc) in any big scene, since you don't have to worry about pacing them out for the next big scene.

That stuff (the hero points and once per session stuff) is one of the biggest impediments to the fun derring-do style of the game, in my opinion. Since you have to economize them so much, you end up tending to act a lot less derring-do and a lot more mousy accountant.

I agree with you there Vasily.  It also depends on the GM I have found.  I have played in two pen and paper games of 7th sea, and this is my first play by mail one so to speak.   One GM I found myself hoarding my hero points a little more, whilst the other gave them out a little more freely.  Both led to subtly different experiences in the amount of daring do.  I was also playing much different characters.

Funnily enough.... both were on the Anti-hero spectrum.  Hopefully Valentino will be somewhat more Heroic.

Howdy folks. New player here, just thought I'd say hello. I'm currently sorting out my number crunching in between interviewing for a new job & working shifts in my current one. If it all goes to plan I'll be up & running by weekend.

Welcome! Just in time for Daring do!

PbP is like slow motion. Very few games actually last long enough for XP to be granted.

I did play in a 7th Sea 1.0 game here on RPoL that lasted four years+ and the GM did grant XP, but that was the exception.

edit: That's 30XP, 12DD for 628 posts.
This message was last edited by the player at 01:02, Thu 08 Mar 2018.

Yes, you have to remember what the point of 7th Sea was originally--John Wick wanted to create a game where you could play the Captain Bloods, Zorros, Robin Hoods and Three Musketeers without having to play your character for 5 or 6 years in order for him to get good enough to BE those characters.

When you look at it that way, XPs seem a bit pointless, but you obviously need a way for your character to get better.

Its why I quite like the whole advancement stories in 2nd edition... however... I have yet to actually finish one in a 2nd Edition game.  The first game I played, the story was perhaps a little long.

This is probably not going to work like advertised, but Knocking people out from behind is part of the genre.  So lets give it a go!

At very least it could be a "bash" maneuver... which is like a daze sort of effect. :)

Ah yes! That is true

Geez, Mr "I Roll 10s or I don't bother rolling!" haha, and, yes, I believe you counted right; 3 raises.

Nice to see someone brought a Gun to a Gunfight though.

I will be posting in a day or two.  Sorry I haven't been about, life has been a little rough of late.

No problem. I've been sick for the past two weeks, so my ability to post has been rather limited.

All better now... well, mostly. Still a bit tired. I'll probably recover that slowly.

So, are we still playing?

If you're up, I'm up :)

I'm still here, raring to go.

It looks as if there are only two players left.

And, since I seem to be struggling to GM all my games, I think it may be time to pull the plug on this game.

The premise seemed to interest people... or maybe it was just the game itself that people wanted to play.

Whatever the case, I had a dozen or so people sign up for the game, but then they all just started dropping out. So, maybe it was just my ability to run the game that was lacking.

Anyway, as per the site's rules, I need to make sure everyone knows I'm ending the game. Unless something changes between now and then, I plan on deleting the game in two weeks... Sunday, July 22, 2018.

Ok, sad though it may be, at least I got a chance to play v2 a bit. :)

I just got a new player that wanted to join, so I guess this game isn't quite dead yet.

How about a rolecall to see who is still here and wants to continue?
This message was last edited by the GM at 02:58, Sun 15 July 2018.

In reply to Dread Pirate Robert (msg # 341):

Still here

Also still here

Just waiting for someone else to post now...

Oh, waiting on me?