Cantrips overlapping isn't much of a problem; between all the spellcasters on this team, I'm sure bases will be covered, but Mending and Dancing Lights are both very good Cantrips that I can't access if you didn't want to duplicate.

How tied to Calm Emotions are you? I ask because it's not a great spell to duplicate on the team, I've a smaller list to choose from than you and it's one of my Patron spells. It's also likely that your Charisma is better than mine (the best I can get at this stage is a +2), so you've a better shot at getting a single target spell like Hold Person or Suggestion to stick. With Calm Emotions being multi-target, my lower Cha isn't as much of an issue (it's bound to stick to someone, if I target enough!).

edit: are you averse to my also being an Entertainer?
This message was last edited by the player at 12:19, Thu 24 Sept 2020.

In reply to Placeholder 2 (msg # 35):

If it helps narrow down your choices, I picked Folk Hero as my character's background.

Ok, thanks. It definitely helps narrow things down!

I'm starting to think that I might switch to Wizard. I like Warlock, particularly the ability to have a Sprite and/or Pseudodragon familiar from Chain Pact. Buuuut, it looks like I'm getting some serious overlap from/with Basilisa and I don't want to rain on her parade. With Lathalan playing Transmuter, I've got plenty of wiggle room to avoid the same kind of niche infringement and I can still snag Find Familiar as well as playing heavily into Fey themes via Conjuration and Illusion (or I could go down a very different route; Necromancy could be an interesting subversion, perhaps?).

Would you object to playing alongside another Wizard Lathalan?

I could go with Suggestion, but I hope you’ll go with another Background, because it feels like you really wanted to be a Bard.

It's less that I wanted to be a Bard and more that I'm concerned you'll feel like I'm muscling in on your territory. Like my earlier comment about scholars, you don't have to be a Bard to want to sing a song, any more than you have to sing or play a lute to be a Bard. Given the strong Fey ties of Gnomes in this setting, I want to lean into it; which means a certain lyrical tendancy and a prediliction towards rhymes, misdirection and to an extent, mischief, as well as a tendency away from directly offensive actions (hence the spell list).

If you feel like that's going to tread on your concept as a "typical" Bard too much, I'm happy to gravitate away from that a little. I'll still be leaning heavily into the Fey themes I mentioned, but I can stray into a more scholarly tone by playing Wizard or perhaps Druid if Lathalan isn't condusive to some Dual Wizard action.

Depends on what you want from your vision. I'm playing a Wizard who takes inspiration from nature, so having a Druid would be very compatible with my concept. Playing a high and mighty Wizard would also mesh well with my concept, simply because we would be studying the same ideas from different points of view. Potentially different positions for the same thing.

However, if you were looking to lean into the Fey elements, you could ask the DM if you could use the Circle of Dreams since that draws heavy inspiration from the Fey. Otherwise, I feel your Lore Bard concept is perfect. Since you gain access to Magical Secrets early, you can pick a Fey spell normally restricted to Druids or Clerics and change it out at later levels if you want. That and we always need more Scholarly Bards in the world.

If I do go Wizard it would be as one who doesn't take inspiration from nature so much as is an intrinsic and inseparable part of it; learning not by studying it, but by alowing it to teach him (if the difference between those makes any sense to you). I'm talking a rune carved staff, festooned with fetishes and tokens, topped with a decorated skull and dressed in ragged furs and rough cloth in place of a traditional leather-bound spell book and gilded scholars robes. Granted, if I went Druid it'd be largely the same deal!

As you say, Bards make remarkably good "druids" too; particularly Lore Bards who can cherry pick a choice few Druid spells on top of the ones they already have access to (e.g. Animal Friendship, Speak with Animals, etc.). They also have the enviable Expertise and Bardic Inspiration in their favour, on top of full spellcasting. Bards in 5e really are too good! I have, however, been down that road before and was really trying to avoid doing the "druid Bard" thing again.

I'm differing on one aspect, really; Wild Shape vs. Familiar. I mean, I could play Druid and pick up either Magic Initiate or Ritual Caster for Wizard, or multiclass Wizard, to get Find Familiar to get both, but I'm not 100% I want to lean into the shapeshifter thing so much. I'm also conscious that our front-line is a little sparse at the moment and a Moon Druid could go a long way towards bolstering that aspect of our party right now, albeit at the cost of being a little lacking at later levels compared to Land Druids' superior and more versatile spellcasting. If we can survive with a weaker front-line until level 5, though, the Conjure X line of spells start coming online.

Oooor...as I've hinted at, I could go super creepy and delve into Necromany as a subversion of the Gnome-Fey connection and/or as a potential devotee of Nurgle Xyr.

One last thought for the moment is whether we have a locks and traps guy yet? As far as I can tell, we don't and while not necessary, it's nice to have one on hand. I could certainly steer my concept toward a street rat, urban gnome. I do have a concept that's been bouncing around my head for a rouguish scoundrel type but as a Druid (Class); using the Underdark Circle spells in conjunction with Wild Shape to be a superlative scout/thief. It might take some finagling to get the concept to fit the character I have in mind, but it could be fun!

Any and all opinions welcome! Who do you want on your team, is the question?
- A lyrical Warlock and his Spritely companion?
- A hedge Wizard that's more hedge than wizard?
- A roving (and potentially unstable) Druid with an alien mindset?
- A disgusting practitioner of the dark arts and foul anathema of his race?
- A slippery rat of dubious faith, but handy in a tight spot. Like, really. Mostly a rat. Literally.

I'd cast a vote for a rogue, myself. You can have fun with arcane trickster and the gnome thing. Mischievous, but not too shady to work with a team.

If you're worried about our front line, we will have Optimus' warrior and my cleric will definitely be able to hold his own in a melee. So 2/5 isn't horrible. Especially if we do add a rogue.

I'm aiming for a barbarian, so between her and the tempest cleric, I think the frontlines will be well-covered (and noisy).

I like your ideas, Peetoo. Maybe a Druid with a Criminal background (a Druid spy, perhaps) could be fun. Sneaking is fun, sneaking as a rat, even more so. And you wouldn't have to be a Moon Druid. Wild Shape is so useful out of combat.

I played a sly Lightfoot Halfling as a Fey Warlock with a criminal background and it was heaps of fun. At-will Silent Illusion and Minor Illusion kept the bad guys all mixed up while he was safely hidden behind taller allies, and when he was cornered, he'd just charm everybody and run away... And then blast them to pieces with eldtritch blast.

I mean, all someone need do is take the Criminal background and we'll be good for traps/locks, since it's just based on thieves' tool proficiency. Get expertise on that and, boom, trap and locks guy. I'd say go for the rogue only to add some diversity, but we're going to be diverse outside of everyone being 20 years old, so... moot point. Currently, we have a lot of magic in the party. Two clerics, a wizard, and a lore bard means no shortage of magic users out here.

I was thinking Urchin rather than Criminal, but yeah, that's pretty much exactly where I'm going with that one. Now add the Underdark Circle spells and you have a really very good infiltrator.

Oh and it's Raelan now! :D
This message was last edited by the player at 20:01, Thu 24 Sept 2020.

I'm all set and ready to go as well. It's a shame I can't have all the spells I want yet, but there are just so many of them out there... I'll just have to wait... No, I'll just have to sit on my hands and wait.

Quick question: What Encumbrance rules are we using? Standard (carry up to 15xStr) or Variant (encumbered at 5xStr etc.)?

Decided to mix'n'match a bit as an Urchin Druid/Warlock in the end. Let's me play with some Patron/Pact Magic fun while indulging myself with Wild Shaping sneaky business (I am and always will be a Rogue at heart). It means waiting a little longer for some of the more entertaining features (like a swim speed, a familiar and Invisibility), but they say that good things come to those that wait...

Also, I'm a bit grubbier and more foul mouthed than eloquent now.

I’ve finished my sheet, other than some character description & brief background teasers on the way. Did our characters acquire any magical items between Levels 1-3?

I don't know about magic items, but I rolled a trinket and was happy with the result...

I generally handwave encumbrance systems. Just keep it reasonable. I don't enjoy counting individual pounds and never met someone who does. And, as a DM, I don't enjoy having to come up with weights of random objects off the top of my head.

No magical items by 3rd level.

I should be ready to start this weekend. Most people are finished or finishing.

Barely started, but this is my sole project for the night once my finger stops throbbing. Protip, kids: when hitting a door at the mall, decide whether to use knuckles or open palm before you reach said door end up crushing a couple fingers with the open palm.

Sorry for the delay guys, it's been a busy few days. Will try and have sheet finished tomorrow.

In reply to Rethsiren (msg # 54):

Prefer to just push or pull the door instead.

Ouch!

Never hit a door, because the door always wins!

(Unless you’re an Orc or Ogre)

I’ve finished my sheet.

Sheet's done- just waiting on DM nod of approval before I jump in on the rp.

So, to clarify things for a moment. We witnessed a gnome hop off a cliff than a giant spider just came up the side without any warning and go for the throat of the thugs we're trying to disable/knock off balance? We're not trying to kill them at the moment, right? Did we catch sight of the druid turning into the spider beforehand so I'd know not to get him caught in any spells? I get that that might minimize or eliminate the potential for a surprise factor on the thugs, but I also want to be clear on how we are going to run this next bit and moving forward from here on out.

To an extent, yes, you have it about right. My intention was not to be noticed as a gnome, either changing into spider form, or going over the cliff from a hiding spot.

If you didn't spot me going over the cliff/changing (which I'd be happy for you to choose to or not), then all you've seen is a giant spider come over the cliff, loom threateningly and attack. I'd expect others to act accordingly!

In the metagame, I'll point out that giant wolf spider venom is non-lethal and that you particularly, Lathalan, might know that...

Of course, but the question is only for the thoughts as to whether or not you intended to be viewed as a wild animal/potential threat, or if this was supposed to be a kind of con that we would be aware of. I have a few cone spells, and since I'm not an evoker, I don't exactly have the ability to shelter some spots within the cone. Even if we could just get a retcon where you wink before moving off or something so we are in the loop about this. It's more just to set expectations for how we get to mess with people in the future than right now. That, or we can roleplay Lathalan making a mistake and needing to talk about that after we deal with these thugs. I'm more looking at this as a way to decided how he would choose his spells.

My question for Raelan is which one did he target? To my understanding, Reth's is prone and Thalla's is not. And what Reth does next is a bit dependent on whether he had to challenge a giant spider for its prey.

Because I guarantee you he was too action-focused to notice the shape-changing. Not even going to roll for it :)