I'll have some more information about the premades soon as well. We need to talk about which ones we want to play in so you can get your characters sorted. You're welcome to start talking about your character ideas either here or in the Session 0 thread if you've already got ideas.

I don't care about party balance, if you all want to be wizards that's fine with me. I do want your character able to work well with others though, so keep that in mind when you're thinking about personality traits.

I've got a live game tonight, so may not have time to contribute more to trimming down the list more until tomorrow.

To clear up the confusion, all of your current character names are just plays on your usernames, it doesn't have any bearing at all on the game or your characters. I'll rename everyone after we make the actual characters.

Since there's been some confusion on the character sheets - where you see the dice roller links that start with: [dice=d20+0  blah, blah

If you plug the numbers in there, it will make a link in your character sheet so that you can click on it and it will take you to the dice roller with the dice that you typed in there, saving you some time/hassle. It makes things a little simpler for you. You don't have to use them if you don't want to, but they're a nice feature of the site that other PbP sites don't have.

The text that you put in the quotes for text="" is what the link will show up as on your character sheet, so I usually put the name of what the roll is. For example, Scimitar has text="Scimitar".

The memo="" portion is what it will say on the dice roller as the Reason for Roll. So if you click the link above, you'll see that I had set the memo to be memo="Attack with Scimitar".

The dice portion of that, since I'm rolling multiple dice, is done with a comma. So that same link is [dice=d20+4,d6+2
This message was last edited by the GM at 04:46, Tue 04 May 2021.

Also, for those who had not yet chosen a character portrait, I grabbed one and stuck it in there for you. I pay attention to pictures more than I do names when I'm looking at who did what. You're free to change it if you don't like the one I picked for you, just have something there.

I think I got everyone their intro letter from Gundren. If I somehow missed one of you, let me know and I'll get it corrected.

I think the party should support our goblin member. I know it's meta and contrary to a ranger with a goblin favored enemy, but remember; "Don't split the party."

I agree....but though Akyra isn’t openly hostile towards her, she is neither fully trusting either. A goblin history taints her view of her.


Plus....warrior priest that is stubborn

Giving our two busy players a little more time to post again before I bring in Gundren.

This part is mostly for RP and getting to know each other, which we've got literally the whole game to do, so I'll get it moving forward tomorrow after Rose posts, or tomorrow evening if they're still not feeling up for it.

Updates tomorrow will probably be later in the evening since I have to go to the office in Dallas for a meeting.

Apologies for the big wall of text I dumped on you for the quest intro. I probably should have wrote it out in advance and then highlighted the important parts, but I hadn't thought about it until just now, and I need to get to bed.

Hope you all had a nice weekend. Looking forward to getting this started off for real this week.

In reply to Psynister (msg # 12):

I picked up the sickness my daughter was having through the week, so that sucks.

I woke up at like 2 this morning and got out of bed at 4 cause I was too frustrated to get back to sleep, that really sucked.

But, as they say, means tomorrow can only get better.



I know this is a homophone, and fully aware of what you were trying to go for, but reading that as needing more child labor is a thing that could still be true, and is a very humorous alternative reading.

Oh jeez

I really want to get some replies out tonight, but I'm unexpectedly exhausted, so I'm heading to bed early.

I want to do these replies justice, so I'll get you tomorrow.

Today I got to transition from a contractor to working direct for my company, so that's good news. The orientation was a whole lot of information and forms to sign. I think driving to/from Dallas in heavy rain and lots of traffic is probably what's got me so worn out.

For the sake of celebration though, I'm going to start everyone off with Inspiration. You can use it whenever you want to, to have advantage on a d20 roll.

Congrats on the promotion.

Yippee for inspiration.

As Bonthot has said.....congrats and a huge thanks

I have a live game tonight, so any posts from my will be later tonight.

Congrats on the promo.

Live session went pretty well, even if I did nearly kill them all with a group of ankhegs. With 30 minutes left, I gave them the opportunity to take a short rest and call it a night, or we could fight all the creatures that were left in this location in a single encounter, and they chose the latter.

Life Clerics are ridiculous, in case anyone was wondering.

Oh they are pretty crazy....they are the ultimate healers.

Me...I'm a mix of healer and warrior

I'd like to get things moving for real this weekend, or on Monday at the latest.

one of the things I notice with 5e is that there's an awful lot of turnover. The 1st edition guys/gals are typically rooted to their computers waiting for the next melee round to start.


I wonder why that is.

I'm here waiting.

You're free to RP with one another all you'd like in the "A Night In Neverwinter" thread. We'll consider it a separate timeline from the other IC posts. I'll keep it open until interest in those scenes dies down. If an open RP thread sounds appealing, I can set another up as we reach new cities.

Game thread is open.
This message was last edited by the GM at 06:13, Sat 22 May 2021.

I'll get us moving tomorrow. Had a long day getting my au pair moved and settled into my place.

Putting it off for one more day. I've got another player coming in to fill Rosalyn's spot while she's gone, and we'll work her back into the story when life's done serving her lemons.

I'll have the new guy introduce himself, but we'll handwave his intro and pretend he was at the dinner and everything with the rest of you for the sake of keeping things rolling.

Hi, guys! I'm the New Guy. I play in another one of Psy's games, but am eager to join this one.

Does anyone see any niches or roles that need to be filled in the party. I'm fairly flexible when it comes to creating and playing characters. Also any immediate character hooks I could latch on to for anyone?

-Ken

Howdy, Ken. You know me as Maric from the other game. Good to see you step up over here.

This is a pretty interesting start to the game. Some interesting characters as well. Think this will be a fun campaign.

Cheers and welcome.

Plot hooks, not much yet. Once you start interacting, it'll be easier to figure out what hooks there are.

By the way, my character's name is BonThot.
This message was last edited by the player at 03:13, Wed 26 May 2021.

Everyone comes from rather unique places and backgrounds, so the common hook right now is that all of the PC's have a connection to one, or both, of the gentlemen who hired everyone for this opening job. Once your character has been made, I'll give you that hook.

Further hooks will come into play as we progress the current story.

Howdy, BT! Glad to see you over here, too! I've got to spend some time on character creation and the thought process. I'm reading the IC RP threads and I'll get caught up on the main thread, too. If I find a niche needs fillin' I'll jump in with something. Right now, though, I'm sorta drawing a blank.

BTW, how're we creating characters, and at what level?

-Ken

We're starting at first level. Character Creation is the standard method, I believe.

Ah, that's a shame. Eliminates a multi-class character I had in mind ...

-Ken

you can ask. worst case, he'll say no.

Are you all needing more combat oriented characters, or more challenge/thinking oriented? I have a pending build for a Paladin that can do both, but I also have an alternative idea for a Rogue (or, perhaps, my preference, a Monk/Rogue) if we need sneaky characters...

-Ken

Not sure if this helps, but I am a sorcerer.

I have a cleric that is war domain so she is a fairly martial cleric

A rogue or bard may help

I'm a ranger with a bow.

To confirm the PM's, you are on a cleared road that is in a heavily wooded area, so you are technically in a forest right now, but at the edge. There's a decent amount of clearing right where you are, though. If you want to get into the thick of the real forest, it's about fifty yards to the east. The road does go more heavily into the wooded parts when you leave again tomorrow morning, but tonight you have some choice of thick forest or wooded roadside for campsite.

If I were to put you on a 10x20 map of where you are right now, there would probably be 12-15 trees on it, and a number of bushes.

I'm dragging my feet just a little bit for Ken to get his character made for...reasons.

I will get a character tonight. Going with a Halfling Monk that will multiclass Rogue.

Please change my name to Sakamoto.

-Ken

Character done, awaiting submission in some format, and also for how GM wants to introduce me.

-Ken

EDIT: What is it with me and child-like characters!? :D

-Ken

throw back from a misguided youth.

I decided to change it back. I like the more mysterious aspect to the original image, better.

I've also added a brief bio as well.

-Ken

I looked at the map to double check the direction of the sound, and I swapped two locations in my head, so I'll have to try to remember that for later to keep the story clean.

The sound was far away, and the forest has played some tricks with the location of it. You can tell it's south and east, so possibly in the direction of your final destination, but not of the path you'll be traveling today. It could be further south or further east than where you're going.

I'll look for a map later today that doesn't have all the secret locations of things marked on it, so we have a visual reference of things for you.

Sorry for the delay, guys, I'll get posts out tonight!

-Ken

Tied up with work stuff all evening. I'll get us moving again tomorrow.

This week is looking extra busy, so things might slow down a bit in general. I won't really know until it happens to me.

On your turn you can move and see if that puts you in line of sight to nullify their Hiding. If one then comes into your view, you'll have a chance for your Passive Perception to see them or for their hiding place to no longer quality and you just see them regardless of rolls. If not, you'll need to spend your Action if you want to make another Perception check.

You could also use your Action to Ready a cantrip or an attack, with a trigger of being able to see one.

In this fight, the goblins have a tactical advantage, so while I don't suggest you blow through all of your resources, I do suggest you play it smart and not take their being goblins for granted.

---

I'm going to be working a couple hours late tomorrow, but then my schedule goes back to normal. I have to start an hour earlier too, so right now I need to get to bed.

absolutely. I have 2 spell slots, but I figure if i'm facing three of them at the start, bane may just save my life from them hitting me. the other spell slot will be saved for healing I think.

I'll move us on to the next round tomorrow evening. I know Bharkel was out with family this weekend, so I'm going to give them a chance to post, but I'll move forward tomorrow with or without a post.

Akyra, the goblin you close with is going to attempt to flee. I'll tell you that 2 of the 4 remaining goblins are already dead by this point in the round, and the 5th goblin has fled with only 1 HP remaining.

If you want to take your opportunity attack, go ahead and roll for it.

---

I've gone ahead and posted the recap, so you can see what's happened for the round.
This message was last edited by the GM at 03:17, Tue 08 June 2021.

Is there another map forthcoming?

-Ken

That depends on Akyra's action and if she kills/KOs the last goblin.

I'll hold Sakamoto's action, pending the results of Akyra's action...

-Ken

I've added a map so you can be mindful on your follow-up actions. Note that at the time Akyra has a chance at an OA, it is within 5 feet of her just up/left 1 square.

I have a live game tonight, so I'm going to be busy with that for the next few hours. If there's RP you want to do, or if you want a short rest or something, go ahead and discuss that. When I get back on later, I'll get us moving again.

The Inspiration lasts until you decide to spend it.

Posts later tonight.

-Ken

I'll be training at Annapolis next week, so I wouldn't expect much out of me through that time (not that I've been contributing that much, sad to admit)

Thanks for the heads up.

Looks like a rest might be on the table?

Discuss yes/no and short/long.

I may be bringing in 1-2 more players as well. If they get everything lined out and pitch their character ideas to me, I might bring them in and hand-wave their joining the group as well. I'll keep you posted on that.

I say a rest is in order (Long if we can).

And your welcome boss. Those players I recommended are pretty good players.

Sakamoto isn't in need of a rest at all, but he'll go along with the party needs.

-Ken

It looks like we have enough support for taking a rest. Short or long?

long if we can....that way myself and BonThot can regain spells

We won't have our replacement PC for another few days, so we can move forward without them for the time being, and I'll slip them in when the time comes.

Long is my vote then.

Sounds good. Long rest goes through without issue, no random encounters.

You'll finish the rest with about 90 minutes of sunlight remaining.

BonThot nods agreement to Akyra's suggestion."

Wow....the dragonborn cleric of war is tbe voice of reason.

Gods help us all!

I've put you into a rough tactical marching order. Feel free to discuss and make changes as you wish, and I'll adjust accordingly.

Akyra
Bharkel
Sakamoto
BonThot
Pavel

Looks good. Only difference is Bharkel may want to take lead, in which case her and I will swap

She's temporarily AFK, so I'll keep you leading for the time being.

no problem.

Maybe for the sake of things i'd have it as follows

Akyra
Bharkel
Bonthot, Pavel
Sakamoto

So the healer of the group is down to 2 hp....glad I insisted on a long rest!

Yeah, level 1 is dangerous like that. ;)

Sorry for the delay, haven't been at my PC for a few days. Working on responses now.

-Ken

How hard of a check would it be for Sakamoto to make an Acrobatics roll to leap or bound from the top of the North Tower to the top of the Southern Tower? Or, barring that, is there any way for him to go from where he's at to where the goblins are and still get a strike off?

-Ken

You don't have enough movement to move and strike.

You can long jump a distance based on your Strength, which in your case is 10, which is 5 short. But, for the sake of coolness, if you can get a DC 15 Acrobatics check I'll let you make the jump anyway. You'll land in the southern window, which will put you in striking range of the goblin with Akyra, and you can attack this turn.

If you fail, but get at least 10, I'll let you get to that same spot, but not be able to attack, or you can go to the round and run back in through the entrance, but your movement will only get you onto the squares with the broken doors.

I'll take those odds! :D

-Ken

Hello, everyone!  I'm looking forward to join you all.   :)

Things certainly escalated quickly there. Good job sticking through it and pulling out a victory without a single KO on the team.

You can get a Short Rest now, wherever you feel like taking it. While taking that short rest, everyone advances to Level 2. Roll for your new HP, and if you get less than the average, take the average instead. These new HP increase your Current HP as well as your Max HP, as HP is a measure of skill and experience just as much as it is your physical wellbeing.

You can spend one or both of your hit dice for healing if you like. Don't forget to add your Con modifier to each die if you do use them for healing.

Casters, you do not regain your used spell slots, but you do gain your new spell slots, new spells learned, and you can prepare additional spells appropriate to the new level. You can't change your existing preparations (unless your class lets you), but you can fill in the blank prepared slots with any available options.

Ariadne is a druid who is now joining us. I'm going to let them decide how they want to handle the reasoning for joining the group, and you can RP accordingly once they've said how they joined you.

Yay....another person who can heal

I say if we're to take on another big group we may need a rest. With the level up I have one spell slot, and a lot more HP, but would you rather I have 1 heal up my sleeve, or 3?

So at tbe very least, short rest. At most, retreat, meet our newest member, get a long rest and in the morning, go back in and kick some goblin buttocks

Welcome, Ariadne! Looking forward to joining up with you soon!

As far as the Short vs. Long rest, Sakamoto would only point out (and may, IC) that the longer rest WE take, the longer rest the ENEMY takes.

-Ken

It's been presented as an option that Ariadne was friends with Rosalyn, and that she sent me to find your group to help out with your quest.
Does that sound good to everyone?

Thumbs up from me! I'm a late addition myself! :D

RE: Sakamoto, I'm taking his first level of Rogue, now and "handwaving" that he's sort of been this "trained" all along as it's really how the character backstory would work. I don't think there'll be much disconnect as I've already been sort of playing him "rogue-like" anyway.

-Ken

That is quite a plausible angle to play.

Welcome, welcome! Druids are fun. My other game I play a druid, so I speak of what I know.

In reply to BonThot (msg # 91):

*smiles*  it's my first one ever, so i might need some advice here and there

Should be fun, though

Well I'm going to be a beastmaster ranger, so no need for me to be a secondary healer now. Maybe we can work together and bring forth the wilds.

Sounds like a plan!!   :)

Which Druid Circle did you pick?

I went with Circle of the Land, Grasslands

Ah....circle of the land. I once had an artic circle of the land, before the game shut down. Set in ice wind dale, the artic theme suited her....she liked to travel as an artic fox

In reply to Akyra Clethtinthiallor (msg # 97):

That sounds like a lot of fun!
I'm still pondering animal options

I'm thinking a fox or bobcat might be my default form, unless I'm ready for combat

A fox is small and fast (my artic fox had minuses hiding in snow, so that's why)

A wolf is always good, but something unusual is always fun....a hare, a deer, etc

A jackrabbit seemed in character as well.

But perhaps that will evolve over time

I'm back home, and getting caught up on things. I'm going to give everyone's sheets a glance for anything that sticks out, and then we'll get back to exploring this castle.

Language groups are enabled already, so you can speak in languages your characters know. Ariadne is the only one that I don't have added to the language groups yet, but I'll do that when I take a look at her sheet.

edit: looks like Saka didn't have his assigned either
This message was last edited by the GM at 04:39, Mon 21 June 2021.

Character sheets look pretty good. Two people need to make minor adjustments, and Bharkel was out of town all week so she needs to update all of her stuff.

I'm going to give Bharkel a chance to level up and post tomorrow. . They logged in yesterday, so I'm going to assume they're back from their vacation. We move forward tomorrow, regardless.

Vacation is inaccurate, but I am back, which is the important thing.

Have not had any time to work on leveling up, but I will do my best to get that going when  I'm home from work tomorrow (~3pm EST)

My vacation is finished. A good time was had by all. Time to move forward again. Psy - is BonThot one of those who needed tweaking?

A bit. I sent PMs to everyone who needed updates.

got it. i've updated the character sheet.

Back to combat we go. The initial clash is going to be a bit chaotic with movement and placement, so go ahead and post your actions kind of like general intentions. "Rush in and attack with my sword," works just fine. You'll have some at advantage and some not, so I'll put people in advantageous positions based on your actions, and we'll worry about placement for after the semi-surprise round.

So sorry for delays. Back to back busy irl gaming days. I'll post tomorrow, promise. Have a completely free day.

-Ken

I'm going to go ahead and take actions for you this round so we can keep it moving.

Yeah, that's perfectly fine. Most of Sakamoto's combat actions will revolve around stealth and sneak attack, obviously, in case you need to puppet him again! :D

EDIT: "some dope monk shit" is ALWAYS acceptable, too! :D

-Ken
This message was last edited by the player at 06:25, Fri 25 June 2021.

It was Thursday, so I had Critical Role on the brain.

Understandable

Quick poll - do you want me to use the X'd out pics for enemies you kill, or would you rather I just delete them when they're dead so the map isn't cluttered?

In reply to Psynister (msg # 113):

I'm okay with X'd out goblins, so we know what's where.

On a related note,  I'm presuming i can't see goblin 5?

Only Sakamoto can see the goblin at the moment, as there's a wall in the way for the rest of you.

In reply to Psynister (msg # 115):

Understood

Welp, scored a crit, but I don't think I actually have the moment to reach that Goblin, so that kinda sucks.

I assume sakamoto is the only one who knows there's still a goblin alive

Everyone knows he's still alive, because he ran out of the room. The goblin that was killed was killed right in the doorway, so you don't really have a reason to believe the other one is dead.

Oh....tabt changes my move then

You can edit.

Have....just added a bit on

Bharkel, did you want to make a post for those rolls, by chance?

I guess something to point out with how I handle combat is that I always put a line in at the end of the recap posts letting you know whether combat is over or we're onto the next round. Since everyone's decided to chat and chill, we'll roll with it, but if I could direct your attention toward the initiative order you'll see that the goblin acts before Sakamoto, and he's running deeper into the dungeon where, presumably, there are more monsters to fight.

I don't have any problem with you doing what you're doing, I just want to make sure everyone is aware of how things work.

The only one with any serious damage at this point is Bharkel, whose down to around half, so you're in a decent position at things considered.

My apologies.   I was just pausing long enough to heal myself, check the others, and then join the monk.    I'm not sure how long that takes

There's always enough plantlife for you to cast Entangle.

Then she'll prepare to.cast that once she can see the monsters,and the monk is clear

I don't think Sakamoto is coming back into the room. He's got a plan to take out the last foe in the party (if he can do so w/o raising suspicion) then going after another target ...

-Ken

Since we have some AoE planned here, I need to know positioning. Using the image above for reference, where do you want your character to be? Also, for those who are readying an action to use AoE, what is your specific trigger? 1 target in range? 2? 3?

Did Sakamoto go to the room in the northeast, or down the stairs?

He went into that hallway to the east, turned north, and you haven't seen him since.

In reply to Psynister (msg # 132):

That works.    Okay, as soon as Ari sees something not a halfling appear,  she'll cast, putting the front edge there

By suggestion is

Bharkel - G3
Akyra - E3
Ariadne- D2
Bonthot - C2
Pavel - B4

In reply to Akyra Clethtinthiallor (msg # 134):

If i can see what's going on from there, I'm fine with that

Psy - is each square 5' or 10'? If it is 10', the other players should be out of range.

Squares on this map are 5 ft. Why they went with some maps in the module being 5 and others being 10, we'll never know.

well crapola. So much for that.

That round flew by quite nicely for you. Akyra's spell effect was short lived (as were her targets), but only one of you took damage.

Since the question came up - Yes, this is part of the Lost Mines of Phandelver adventure, with some tweaks since I have combined it and the Dragons of Icespire Peak adventure. So if you're familiar with either of those, you'll see a lot of both adventures in this game, but don't expect everything to be the same from either of them. Something has been changed in almost all of it.
This message was last edited by the GM at 05:23, Mon 28 June 2021.

If I can I'll get to Bharkel and try to defend her until we can get enough room for me to heal her.

Well that was anticlimactic.

Good for us, but wow

There's another group of enemies out there somewhere, doing something.

Sorry for my absence this weekend, guys. I had a semi-last minute trip to nearby Dallas to meet my absolute favorite anime English voice actor for the FIRST TIME EVER. It was an amazing trip and an amazing memory, but I should be sufficiently de-swooned now to get back into gaming!

-Ken

If you'd told me you were in Dallas you could have met me too. ;)

In reply to Sakamoto (msg # 143):

That sounds wonderful!!!  I'm glad you had fun!

Ah! Next time, for sure! Dallas is a hub for anime cons and only 3 hours away from me!

-Ken

In reply to Sakamoto (msg # 146):

I'm in Waxahachie, so if you're in the Austin area then you drove less than a mile from my house to get there.

No, I'm in OKC, north of the Red River. :)

-Ken
This message was last edited by the player at 08:32, Tue 29 June 2021.

I'm in College Station,  Tx.  I'm happy to see everyone so (relatively) close

I win....Melbourne, Australia

I made it to Perth and Darwin during my Navy days. Got my tattoo in Darwin. LOL! For the record, I loved Australia. Got my Shellback certification for going over the equator.

FWIW. I would love to live there.
This message was last edited by the player at 13:34, Tue 29 June 2021.

How long ago was that? My old man got his Shellback in the late 80's and still has it hung in  his office.

Be volunteering for my first mobilization as a reservist in February, which will be putting me on a ship, but unlikely to cross the equator.

Homeported out of Greece, so the equator is a long trip for something that isn't a "big deck" I would think.

I was in the Navy from 92-96. I took the long way home, meaning, I went to college first, nearly failed out, but then finished my degree (in political science) while in the Navy. It was an incredible journey. I was West PAC, so my home port was Yokosuka, My base was Atsugi (I was an airedale so we actually had barracks - really nice new ones - when we got back to port).

Of course, of the three years I was in Japan, I was out at sea for two of the years. But I got to see that portion of the world: Tokyo, Korea, Singapore, Hong Kong, Darwin and Perth, Pearl Harbor, Guam. I'm probably missing a few in there and many of those places were more than once.

When out at sea, I was aboard the USS Independence. It was Diesel driven (which should give you an idea how long ago that was). Sadly, it is gone now, chopped up for razor blades. My one peeve from my Navy days was the push to name Aircraft Carriers after political figures instead of keeping to the traditional ideals such as Intrepid and Enterprise. Independence was my favorite Carrier name. But oh well...

TBH: I had a great time. But once I finished my degree I pretty much knew that I wasn't re-upping.

And yes, I have my Shellback certificate on my wall. I'm looking at it right now. LOL!

I am jealous of you, however. I never got to go to Greece. I would have loved it.
This message was last edited by the player at 17:42, Tue 29 June 2021.

That's crazy, my old man was on the Indy for some of that period. Was the first ship to respond to Desert Storm. Was an OS1-OSC Terry Ford, depending on which year. At that time, it was homeported in Italy, so little old me and my brother got to spend about three years there. Must have changed its homeport to Japan sometime after he PCS'd back to the states (94, I think, which would have made seven at the time)

I agree with you on the naming conventions. I remember it burned my dad up something bad when he heard that the latest Independence was a LCS, and not a CV, but what can you do? (Worse, they're decommissioning her next month, after only ten years in service.)

For what it's worth, it does look like the Navy's learning it's lesson, slowly. The following names of the Ford class CVN are a new Kennedy (which, is fair, he was the first Naval president) a new Enterprise, and USS Doris Miller which, pardon my language, is fucking huge.

Holy crap - I just wiki'd the Doris Miller. That is a huge honor. And it makes me really happy to see that. I know I'm not perfect, but it's the ideals that push me to be better than I am.

Thanks for sharing!!!

Oh, and regarding the Indy, yes, they were first on the scene. I didn't get to the fleet until April of 93. By then Desert Storm over and became Southern Watch.

Thanks for sharing, all. That was some interesting info to catch up on after work.

I'm going to work on posting things for the next round here in just a little bit. There's a lot of enemy movement for round 2, but some of them will be close enough to take actions as well. If you haven't posted an action for Round 2 yet, now's the time to do it. Otherwise I'll pick a default action for you. The healing spells and such do count for the round, so I have things for most of you.

I went to Mass Maritme. Played D and D there

I'm working on the recap now. Let the boss fight begin.

Is this where we all die in a blaze of glory, bloodshed and stubborness?

NAH!

Quite possibly.

*laughs*  when i wanted my 5 minutes of fame, i didn't mean that literally

What was that like, Pavel?

This is absolutely a fight to blow all of your resources on. I know most of you already have, but don't hold back here. If you've got spell slots, racials, rages, anything, now's the time to use them.

I was thinking about something similar.   :)
I'm still learning about 5th edition spellcasting,  but I'll see what I can do

I was a shore side oriented Major and had time to burn on hobbies. I caught the D&D bug in high school and have mostly been a DM ever since.

Not a bad gig!

We've got 2 who haven't posted yet. I know the plan for Bharkel, but I'll give Sakamoto until I've got the post finished, to chime in with something. Otherwise I'll pick something for him to do.

With this being a holiday weekend, I'm not too concerned with forcing a round through every 1-2 nights. If we can, that's great, but it's no problem.

I'll get a post up within the hour.

-Ken

Likely be out tonight. Possibly much of tomorrow.

Happy 4th, everyone in the States!

-Ken

If I get actions from 1-2 more, I'll post tonight. Otherwise, I move us forward tomorrow with or without the posts.

Yes I just used British humor on the bugbear.

Go ahead and add a roll of whatever skill you feel fits what you're trying to do there, Pavel. Your choice.

Seven misses in that round, across both sides.

Wow....I'm suprised I'm still conscious.

...or alive

In reply to Akyra Clethtinthiallor (msg # 174):

Hopefully some teamwork will help

I'm not a bard, so maybe use my Casting DC to resist the Taunt?

This is a nice scrap. Wonder who's gonna die, if anyone.

Wonder if I can make an untrained Handle Animal check on the owlbear?

Edit: I have +2 from WIS, hopefully it counts as somewhat domesticated. Maybe I can get the +2 from us being less than an hour outside a forest.

Wish I hit 3rd level already and was a beastmaster.
This message was last edited by the player at 19:10, Tue 06 July 2021.

If just 1-2 of those missed had been hits, Akyra would be our first casualty.

Yikes! We don't want her to go down. Medic!!!!

Sadly,  I'm out of spell power

Both of the remaining bosses are now at 50% or less of their hit points, so you're in the final stretch. There are some subtle clues in the text that can help you with this last stage. Legendary Actions are now in effect, taking the place of Lair Actions, which is both good and bad depending on how you slice it.

I'll get a reply up much later today or tonight. Back to back in person gaming days, sorry!

-Ken

Only spells I have are cantrips. And since myself and Ariadne are major healers….we gotta get these major bosses down fast.

…and the owlbear, well let’s hope it leaves us alone (though I doubt it)

In reply to Akyra Clethtinthiallor (msg # 184):

Sadly,  i have no healing left until at least a short rest

I need a long rest....I've used every trick on these goblins and their pet worm

One of my class features is getting one spell back after a short rest, so i could potentially get one cure back

wish we still had those medical kits instead of sending them ahead with Rosalyn.

Suddenly things have gotten real...

Those of you making Death Saves, let me know if you want to roll your own so you know how close you are, or if you want me to roll them for you so that you don't.

Also, you'll see if you check the dice rolls in the post, but not otherwise, King Grol is currently making reckless attacks, which gives him advantage on all of his attacks, but also gives everyone advantage on all attacks against him.
This message was last edited by the GM at 00:18, Thu 08 July 2021.

I'll roll mine. Fortune favors the bold right?

So far, evidence suggest you are half right.

I'm going to give Bharkel a chance to post before I move us forward, since her attacks could potentially end the fight.

I should be able to get a response in tomorrow evening (Friday), but wouldn't expect anything from me Saturday or Sunday.

-Ken

You have survived a very deadly encounter and lived to tell the tale.

If you want to chase down the Grick and/or Goblin, they can be killed easily (no rolls required, just post how you do it in the IC thread). If you want to kill both, at least two people will need to post actions to go after them.

We also have 3 people bleeding out right now. Medicine checks are required to stabilize them. It's a DC 10 Wisdom (Medicine) check to keep them from dying.

Even though we are out of combat, you each get one action before the next round of Death Saves.  You have until they succeed on 3 or fail 3 to make a successful check.

If I understand this correctly, I rolled an 11 which means I stabilized whomever is the worst off. Yes?

Yeah, whichever of the three you want to start with. In order of worst to best - Ariadne, Pavel, Akyra.

I think we're only missing one post, but I'll push forward later tonight either way.

I'm still new to 5th edition rules, but I'm assuming there's nothing I can do to help?

No. Since you were stabilized you've stopped dying, but you'll be unconscious for a while. Magical healing of even a single point would have woken you back up, but with this you'll have to heal naturally through either a short or long rest.

In reply to Psynister (msg # 199):

Understood

I forgot to add the recap to that last post, but Pavel passed his check and stabilized himself, Akyra was only 1 away, so I applied BonThot's successful check to her, which means all of the party is stable and alive.

Everyone can level up to 3 at your earliest convenience. If you need/want me to look things over, let me know.

I am rewarding magic items as a part of looting this place. Pick which of these options you would prefer:
1: Custom Item - I will make something tailored specifically to each of your characters, everyone gets the thing I give them
2: Pre-Gen - I will take the magic items that exist in the parts of this module that I'm not using, and put those here for the party to discuss and divide up however you wish
3: Random - I will roll on level-appropriate random tables, whatever happens happens, let the group decide what to do with them
This message was last edited by the GM at 02:13, Wed 14 July 2021.

I would prefer a custom Item.

Random please.

Can I change out spells or do I have to research them or what not?

You gain 2 new spells every time you level up, from the ones available to you. When you level, you can unlearn one of your spells and replace it with a new spell that you're capable of casting (so you can unlearn a level 1 spell and replace it with a level 2 now if you want).

Cantrips can only be replaced in a similar fashion except that you can only do so at levels 4/8/12/16/20 and still only one. You gain new cantrips according to your class table in the PHB.

Sakamoto excels in a Cloak of Elvenkind, so if there's a wish list, that's on mine! :D

-Ken

No wish lists, just one of the three options.

Maybe masterwork versions of his weapons with a quirk? Like they are tainted by an unnatural enough energy to mess with Primal Awareness. Like an axe that has a fiendskin wrapping on the handle, or a bow soaked in dragonblood.

In that case, I think I'd rather go with a Custom Item than risk something that might not be useful.

-Ken

If you want to request a cloak, of some kind, I can take that into consideration.

I'll admit that asking for a custom item feels greedy,  butni suspect I'll regret asking for a random item.  *smiles*

Tell you what,  I'll go with a random item, and if I regret it I'll know better mext time.   :)

Everyone go ahead and get yourselves leveled up to 3. If you need a hand, let me know. I'll have the Long Rest take place once I have everyone's updated characters, and then we'll get back to moving forward.

The unconscious crew will all wake up after 1 hour, so feel free to RP while we wait for the sheets to be updated. Since you get the long rest, go ahead and restore all your HP and all of your spells and special ability uses as well.

I'll work on the magic items tonight or tomorrow, as I have time.
This message was last edited by the GM at 02:01, Thu 15 July 2021.

I am pretty much done: got my meta magic and my spells...just need a little nap.

Oh, and you may want to check the hyperlinks.

I bought my wife a dice subscription for Christmas last year and we got this month's dice today, so I used her d10s to roll for the two random magic items that have been request so far. I rolled a 90 and a 91. I don't know how the other dice in the set roll, but her percentiles have started out hot.

I'm still waiting on character sheet updates from two people, then we'll move forward.

In reply to Psynister (msg # 215):

I think I'm done.  If i forgot something,  please let me know

I'm going to finish up the custom items today or tomorrow. I'm still waiting on a couple of people to tell me which form of item (custom, random or pre-gen) they want, as well.

Since we will have some RP coming up, I'm going to introduce the next scene this weekend, which will cover doing a sweep of the rooms in this dungeon that have nothing important, and then ending in the ones that do.
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:01, Sat 17 July 2021.

Just FYI: 20 gold and 15 electrum per character. Not including items of interest which have mostly been apportioned to the folks that asked for them.

And we rescued our employers - gotta figure that's worth something. LOL!

Let's not forget the potions and other assorted items that don't have a definite owner. If no one is interested in carrying those, BonThot will be happy to do so.
This message was last edited by the player at 18:59, Sun 18 July 2021.

Ariadne wouldn't mind carrying a heealing potion,  as it makes a good back up in emergencies.
And the weapons should bring a good price as well.  :)


And also rescuing What'-His-Name isn't a bad thing,  either.    *wink*

Bring everything. If we can’t use it, we can sell it

New development Pavel has an owl.
IRL I just got a promotion at work, so my post quality might start to suffer. I'll try to keep up the quantity.

Congratulations on the promotion

…and the owl

Very nice!!!

Today got too busy, folks. I'll get us going again tomorrow. Sorry.
This message was last edited by the GM at 05:16, Tue 20 July 2021.

Thank you, Thank you very much.

I just got home from the dentist, but I had a little time for a quick post. Interactions with Gundren and Don-Jon will come after I finish with work. You're free to RP all you wish in the meantime.

I hadn't highlighted it in the big recap thread, but there's a map sitting on the table here in this room, next to the three healing potions.

In reply to Psynister (msg # 228):

Oh, my apologies.  I forgot that

Info dump.

I definitely feel dumped upon.   ;)

Akyra, if you need to tag me in on info about the Red Wizards, let me know.

Why do I get a bad feeling about this place?

In reply to Pavel Marsk (msg # 233):

Probably because you're paying attention.   ;)

Since we're all kind of running around doing different things in different places, you can all consider yourselves privy to information that any of the other players gains from talking to a person.

I'm going to hold off on replying for a bit, to give the other players a chance to do something.

Good Morning. My name is Mike Eschbach. I am a published author of 3 short stories that range from about 17000 words to almost 40000 words. My publisher is Smashwords.com, which has been in business for almost 17 years and going strong. I've been writing since I was a young man and I've been writing this series since 2018. I'm currently writing the fourth installment as we speak.

I asked our DM if I could share this with you. My stories are very affordable, starting .99 for the first two, then $3.99 for this latest story.

More important, I believe these stories are exciting, interesting and because I am prior military, there is an element of authenticity that many writers don't have.

This is the first step of my writing career. I'm not quitting my day job just yet, but my greatest goal is to become a full time author. If nothing else, I hope you will wish me well on this journey. Thanks for listening.

Mike Eschbach

Talesofthemerc.com

That sounds wonderful!  I'm not in the market for stories at the moment,  but I'm definitely intrigued

I think that's everyone but Akyra who has chimed in on where they want to go. I'll push us forward a bit later tonight and Akyra can jump into whichever group they want (if he hasn't posted in the meantime).

New threads are up for each group.

Do we need someone to stay behind to help guard our dwarf friend?  Given what happened to him the last time he was out on his own, i can understand that the party wouldn't want to leave him with only a minimal guard.  :)

You don't need to, but Bharkel has already offered to do so.

Okay.

Finally done with work stuff. I've got a lot of things to catch up on, so I'll try to hit this one tonight too, but it might be late.

I just realized I stuck Bharkel and Ariadne in the wrong groups for this split. It should be fixed now, so that you see the new threads.

I had no notifications of posts here last night, and yet I see 9 posts in the group thread from yesterday. Appologies for that, I will try to get a post in during my lunch break if I can. If not, then later tonight.

no worries on my end. I'm at work as we speak.

You can +/- your starting position by 30 ft for free. We'll say you had time to do more movement while BonThot cast his Mage Armor spell.

I'll have a Sakamoto post later today/tonight.

-Ken

To give some perspective on the manticore fleeing, in 2 rounds you had him down to 14 hp, and he'd managed to hit one of you.

From his perspective, he should have fled in the first round instead of the second.

I wished i could have gotten closer sooner.   A nice ice knife might have made all the difference

You still get full credit for defeating it, so you don't miss out on anything beside satisfaction of the killing blow.

*pouts*  but that's my favorite part!!   *sighs dramatically*

You're welcome.

Heh!

Fyi: don't take me seriously.

Your entangle spell held it in place for a round. Had it not we wouldn't have gotten that far

It was a well rounded effort on all parts. I was kidding, but everyone did pull their weight. This is a good group - and I'm not being condescending. I would happily play any of these characters. And as players, you all do a fine job of playing your characters. FWIW.

So, that said, let's keep on truckin'.

In reply to Akyra Clethtinthiallor (msg # 255):

It's definitely a lovely spell.   :)

Umberage Hill group, don't forget to tell me if you want to be inside or out.

Anything with an attack roll can be a crit.

In reply to Psynister (msg # 259):

Yay!!

I'm giving Sakamoto some more time to chime in. Probably moving us on tonight regardless.

You can take multiple short rests per day, but only 1 long rest per 24 hours.

I think a short rest, and the donation of some healing potions for saving her skin (again) should be all the party needs?

-Ken

The free items as payment are the acid flasks.


There is additional healing if you choose to take a short rest here, but not in the form of healing potions.

She's sure stingy!

-Ken

Is she stingy, or are you greedy?

She is stingy. She'd be dead twice over if it weren't for us!

-Ken

She's the only source of healing potions for the entire adventure, so if she had been killed, your non-spell healing would be gone alongside her.

Which is why she's stingy!!

-Ken

I just want to confirm that Madam Gwynn passed along some healing?

There is some healing involved, but how much and what kind depends on whether you take a short rest or not.

I vote for a short rest before going on.  I'll have an extra spell that way

Short rest is fine

I was hoping for a healing potion from our benefactor, but I guess that's up to me. Seems like a waste of a healing potion you ask me. What dice do I use for a potion of healing? I'm at half damage right now.

If we're taking a rest, which it looks like majority vote says we are, do that before you burn consumables unnecessarily.

Good call. I can also use my healers kit if worst comes to shove for an extra HP or two.

I'll take a flask of acid, unless everyone else wants one

I would like a flask of acid as well, if supplies are available.

That leaves one more up for grabs. Whoever wants to claim it, go ahead and post here so I know it's not just floating around somewhere. Meanwhile, I'll get us moving forward again.
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:38, Sat 21 Aug 2021.

Is D5 the tunnel we crawled through?

No, the tunnel you came in through doesn't exist on the map, because it's a change I've made to the core modules to tie 3 quests into one. You came in on the south wall in the middle of the room, half-way between both sarcophagi.

Sounds good

The spiral staircase ends here, and goes up. You're currently under ground, so if you're looking for a way out of here (besides the tunnel you came in from) then the staircase is probably the intended way to reach this place to begin with. In hilly country, it's hard to say if it goes straight to the surface or just to another floor, but as far as secret places goes, you're already in the secret place.