Actually, the first one went to reconcile those who had quarreled, the second went to comfort those who the sick, and the third went to the desert and prayed...

The story of Bishop Nonus and Pelagia was more colorful, since Pelagia was the most famous actress in Antioch in her day, and was riding through the city wearing her jewels and little else when they met...
This message was last edited by the player at 01:03, Thu 08 Sept 2022.

Everybody okay?  Have we run out of steam here, or are we okay to keep the game going?

I'm ok and ready to play on.

I don't know. The game has been feeling a bit directionless for me lately, and also personally I have very few spoons lately (which is nobody's fault but mine), so it's hard for me to find the enthusiasm lately. At the same time, I don't want this to go the same way as the vampires vs spies game, that was a pity.

And that was a lot of latelies.

I agree about the lack of direction, honestly.  The original group of players voted to do some exploring, with background plot to explain why, so I put together this island with things to find but nothing specifically pulling you toward one or another.  Note that the group is you three, if you're not feeling it with the "explore an island" game I would be okay with switching gears.  Is there anything in particular that you'd rather be doing, or just something more structured? (this question goes out to all of you, to be clear)

I don't mind doing some more exploring, but sooner or later we probably should expect to go back and report to our patron (it is a pity in my view that the player who was running the representative of our patron dropped out early), and maybe do as many early explorers did and recruit support for an actual colony. That might be a good opportunity to see if we could find some more players who would join us.

Wow, I have a lot of spoons. I didn't know how many spoons I had.

My preference is always pretty much for a dungeon crawl, preferably with a module-imposed structure. I don't know that if this system caters to that.

But there isn't really anything to be done until Sandra washes a few of her spoons and completes her current encounter -- except that she doesn't have enough of them to complete light housework. That's the Spoon Catch-22.
This message was last edited by the player at 20:50, Thu 22 Sept 2022.

I think her current encounter has proceeded far enough that we can safely assume an ending.

If everyone is on board with a dungeon crawl then it can happen during the current expedition, with just a little rearranging on my part.  If not that then we could also fast forward to your return to Dellavria, handwaving a few more days' worth of exploration, and then go with whatever would be your next move from there.

It's generous of you to offer a new dish, but I think at this point it's best to clear the table and plan a new menu with some new guests. Sandra's only going to feel more pressure to participate, and she doesn't appear to have the energy for it. I do think games need 4 or more active participants. If we had 5 players, then a Sandra could slip into the background for a spell until her appetite returned.
This message was last edited by the player at 16:22, Sat 24 Sept 2022.

Personally I don't like dungeon crawls at all. So if the whole team would rather crawl in dungeons as stated, I'm happy to bow out and let you guys have your fun without being an obstacle.

I do not think that accurately represents the discussion that we've been having. I further object to your characterization of yourself as "an obstacle." There are some barriers to overcome and we're discussing them.

A dungeon crawl was suggested. GM said he could do that. It was up for discussion with nothing else, as of yet, advanced.

There is very little in the way of a whole team here. We don't have enough players.

In a manner of speaking, you have already bowed out by leaving your encounter hanging and then by mischaracterizing the follow-up discussion. DM said he would only crawl with all on board. You are part of that all.

Now, if you don't cotton to a crawl (wilderness or dungeon), what are you in the mood for? If you simply don't have the energy for gaming (or this game), then, yes, we should probably wrap up here and try again with a new players wanted.

I also enjoy investigative Mythos games or survive the night in Hill House type of games.
This message was last edited by the player at 13:09, Sun 25 Sept 2022.

I'm not mischaracterizing anything. All I said is, if you want a dungeon crawler, go ahead and play it. Please don't explain to me what I said or did, it comes across as patronising even if that surely wasn't your intention.

Personally I'd be fine with a CoC style game, or anything with intrigue/politics in it, or espionage/thriller with or without supernatural touches like the previous game.

Regarding group size, I would much rather have 3 stable players than 4-6 with a lot of inconsistencies (I'm wrapping up another campaign right now which went exactly this route).  Only 2 stable players would be a different story though.

As far as game content... if I'm sticking with Mythras, I would want it to be the same sort of low-ish fantasy implied by the core rules.  I could definitely do a politics and/or espionage game within the setting I have here, although if people don't care for this setting then I can whip up a new one.  It could be a continuation of this campaign, skipping ahead to what happens after you've explored the island, or we could scrap this whole storyline and start fresh with some new characters.

Lately I've also been feeling tempted to run something in the Warhammer setting using the Mythras system, if anyone wants to do that instead.

Mystery/horror/espionage/etc in a more modern setting I would want to do with a different system.  Fate if it's going to be cinematic action levels, maybe GURPS if we want something grittier than that, or Kids on Bikes if you're more in the mood for that tone (although this one is mechanically pretty light, which I know is not to everyone's taste).

If we can reach a consensus for which everyone has both interest and energy, then I'd like to do that before we start looking for new players.  If we can't reach a consensus then we'll decide on next steps at that point.

Personally, I would prefer to stay in this general setting, but if the other players want more intrigue, I think reporting back to Dellavria and working on getting backing for a colony might satisfy that desire without a drastic change in the system or setting. If there is to be a drastic change in the system or setting, I would be likely to drop out.

That's definitely an option.  To clarify (in case you would be interested) I was also offering to start a new campaign with new characters and plot but in the same setting.  Either way is fine with me.

Probably I'd lean towards reprising our characters in a more intrigue-oriented way. Maybe the easiest way, as Makawmano suggests, is to get back to Dellavria and deal with the political ramifications of our discovery.

In reply to Salty 'Sandra (msg # 285):

I am glad you see the option I suggested as workable.

Alright, looks like same campaign, shifting to more intrigue has the votes.  I have some initial thoughts on where to go with it, but I'll need a week or two to put together enough details to get it started.

In the meantime, everyone gets 3xp (or "experience rolls" in Mythras jargon, but personally I don't like that term since there are other ways to use them besides rolls).  You can spend your xp in the following ways:
-spend 1 to improve any skill that you have already put points into - roll 1d100+INT, if you roll lower than your current score in that skill then increase the skill by 2, if you roll equal or higher than increase the skill by 1d6+2.
-spend 3 to purchase a new Professional skill at default value.  Besides the xp, this also requires one month of training time, and some way to learn the skill.
-spend 1 to temporarily increase any one of your attributes by 2 points (except for SIZ).  This boost will last until the next time I give out xp.  If you spend more than 1xp to boost the same attribute, then it only loses 1xp(2 points) of improvement at each interval.

In addition, all of you get a free 1d6+2 improvement to Dellavrian or Ginto, whichever one is not your native language (or get it at default level if you don't already know it).

Last question for now, before I start recruiting new players - with the move to political intrigue, do you guys also want to open up the game to potential PvP, or stick to everyone being on the same team?

Very good. I hope Barnutan is also satisfied with the decision to go back to Dellavria and work for support for a colony. Sandra should be able to take out the ape before we head back to our ship.

On the language benefits, Makawmano rolled 4 on 1d6+2 to improve Dellavrian -- which he will definitely need.

On the use of the other points, since we are looking towards more intrigue, he will take the new skill "Deceit" at default level. Is "default" 25 for him (INT +CHA)?

On whether newcomers would be all in our party or rivals, I would be open to discussing that with the other current players and newcomers, though I tend to favor our all being in one allied group, with rivals being NPCs.

Aye, the votes have been tallied.

I can't promise that Barnutan has any head for court politics but maybe he'll pick up a few things as the plot progresses. His combination of a high customs skill and a low insight skill make him an odd duck in that respect.

PvP would seem to be a lot of extra work in terms of running the game.

Very glad that Barnutan is agreeable to the new plan.

Barnutan - if you want we can talk about ideas for changes to the character, or events that could happen in the next chapter that would nudge him in a new direction if there isn't a reason for him to go that way just yet.

I...don't have strong feelings about this. It's always good to have some muscle in a court setting.

Ironically (or not), Alessandra might need some little tweak to fit, character-wise if not necessarily skills-wise (I do see a few of her piratical skills being useful in this new cloak and dagger business, but she needs a motivations to get involved in politics when so far her main plan was "do the job, find a ship and get back to piracy")