Ephesos

Those parties involved in a certain expedition to the city of Sarden would be wise to double-check their packs, so that they may re-examine any documents from their employer. Also, less than 48 hours until the session. Huzzah! Originally Posted By: Gotay Zeshas Wanted: Adventurers, Inquire Within

Hey all, first off, next session is THIS SUNDAY, OCT. 3rd, 5pm CDT. Second, there might be some exploration in this session, so I'd like to try something new. Everyone please see if you can view this map. Feedback is appreciated.

OMG, WE HAVE A LOG! Also, we have a campaign page! Also... quotes! Click to reveal.. (Burn, burn, burn down the quotes!) "Shouldn't be too bad, as long as we can cooperate." - Josun "Adon Zek does not flee from insects, though a fire is something a little less defeatable." - Adon "Have I mentioned that I hate the jungle? Because it turns out I hate it even more when it's on fire." - Aurora "Incidentally, I think it might be a good idea to keep the fact that we started the fire on the down-low." - Kurex "Hey! Guys! I found ew!" - Mal Also, because the party was awesome and filled out the calendar already, I can safely announce that session #2 will be Sunday October 3rd, at 5pm CDT! Because, *gasp*, everyone can be there! Thanks everyone for being awesome, and I look forward to seeing what happens now that you're finally into Sarden.

So that was a thing. It's good to be back, and I hope people had fun. Originally Posted By: RCCCL Just wait till the log is put up. I think there was some interesting side stuff as well. I don't think I'll be splicing in the ten dozen side conversations everyone had tonight. Unless people really want to hear the story of How Josun Ticked Off A Guard. I guess I can try and work some of 'em in. Expect a log before the weekend, and any subs can go ahead and fill in the calendar... the party already did it because I thought ahead! *gasp* Also, since most people were craving a little more... "direction" from their patron back in Selaneus, all PCs can expect a PM with a letter containing their instructions. Originally Posted By: Khielik, human shaman "Gods, not again."

...oh. Hunh. Nice catch, Lilith. I sent Mistb0rn a PM, so hopefully we'll get it cleared up. Yup, tomorrow. It's gonna be awesome. Also, lest I forget, Josun gains a free spell: Break Enchantment (Attempt to dispel an enchantment or curse) Somebody needs it, and he's the only one with Abjuration. Originally Posted By: Kura, beastlord "I have never seen an artifact that can stand up to a hypersloth's foot."

Originally Posted By: Dantius Ah, Bond villains used to be so awesome. Of course, they suck now, but I can always keep hoping that they'll ditch blond Bourne for some insanely British incessantly punning hard-drinking womanizer like Bond should be. Dantius, for once, I am in full and total agreement with you. Originally Posted By: Alo —Alorael, who was really sold once digitized lobster brains gone virally sapient became a supporting character. Wait what. I NEED TO READ THIS BOOK.

Um... whoops. I definitely forgot about that. But, rest assured, I have not forgotten that TOMORROW, September 22nd is our first session! Be there, whether you be a spectator, sub, or player! As for the character reveal, I will be doing things slightly differently for this campaign. But all that will really affect is backstories, because I'm not posting them yet. However, you still get the mechanics: Click to reveal.. (Mal Travers, Lacewing Hero) Name: Mal Hirosi Travers Occupation: Aspiring Hero Alignment: Optimistic Naive Deity: Phol-Phoram Strength: 6 Dexterity: 5 Intelligence: 3 Speed: 5 Health: 39/39 Stamina: 10/10 Martial (Swords): 7 History: 4 First Aid: 4 Perception: 4 Thievery: 3 Nature: 2 Perks: -Heroic Valor - When reduced to 0 HP, Mal gets one more round to act before falling unconscious. He can take extra rounds past that one, but will bleed stamina at double the normal rate, and all damage taken becomes stamina loss. Click to reveal.. (Combat Abilities) Wings of Fury (1 STM) - Mal leaps and takes wing, either flinging himself upward and attacking a low-altitude foe or hurtling over obstacles (or creatures) and slashing at a chosen enemy. After the maneuver, Mal's defense is reduced for one round while he recovers his footing. Depending on the distance involved, the technique may require more than 1 stamina to perform. (Basically, it's a technique that hits foes that'd normally be out of reach for a normal fighter, capable of clearing obstacles to hit a foe behind cover and launching straight up at a ceiling-clinging or airborne enemies.) Blitz Barrage (1 STM) - Unleashes a devastating and lightning-quick barrage of blows onto a target, doing elevated damage and either penalizing or outright stunning the victim for 1 round. (Basically, it's useful for locking up a spellcaster or simply throwing a wrench into a powerful melee fighter's assault. The stun part, however, isn't a guaranteed; it depends on the strength of the roll and how tough the target is.) Impregnable Barrier (1 STM) - Once per encounter, can designate a foe as blocked. For the rest of that encounter, Mal will keep his shield positioned between himself and the designated foe, providing defensive bonuses and minor damage reduction against that particular enemy, at the cost of a minor defensive penalty and inability to use the shield against other enemies. This technique is nullified if Mal engages the designated enemy, and requires a shield to perform. (A nifty and powerful defensive technique that's useful when attacked by multiple enemies or when getting sniped at by a distant foe. The caveat being that Mal can't take offensive action against the opponent targeted without losing the bonuses) Click to reveal.. (Kurex, Traveling Mage) Name: Kurex Occupation: Travelling Mage Alignment: Magnificent Bastard Race: Human Deity: Imaunte Strength: 5 Dexterity: 2 Intelligence: 7 Speed: 5 Health: 35/35 Stamina: 10/10 Magic (Evocation): 8 Magic (Conjuration): 5 Martial (Sword): 3 Composure: 2 Stealth: 1 Perception: 1 Perks: -Smug - When you hit an enemy, gain +1 to all intimidation rolls against them for 1 round. Click to reveal.. (Spells) -Burning Hands - Thin sheet of flame, close blast. -Plasma Bolt - Little bit of damage, fire. -Magic Missile - Little bit of damage, force. -Force Spray - Cluster of magic missiles. -Crackling Blast - Lightning bolt, optionally extend the bolt to an adjacent enemy. (1 STA) -Stun - Stuns an enemy for 1 round. -Shout - Sonic AoE around caster, stuns & damages (1 STA, 5 HP) -Cyclone - Push & prone adjacent enemies, stun on good roll. -Light - Illuminates an object. -Shining Aura - 50-ft radius light around caster. -Black Hole - 20-ft magical dark around caster. -Icy Spray - AoE cold damage. -Fireball - 10-ft radius fireball. (1 STA) -Immolation - Engulfs target in crippling flames. (1/day, 2 STA) -Heal - Heals CONJ hit points for an adjacent target. (1 STA) -Cure - Cure a poison/disease. -Summon Familiar - Choose element, summon a familiar of that element. Kurex can only cast spells of that type while the familiar is present. (1 STA) Click to reveal.. (Josun, Dragonborn Priest) Name: Josun Race: Dragonborn Occupation: Cleric Alignment: Calm Deity: Phol-Phoram Strength: 4 Dexterity: 3 Intelligence: 7 Speed: 5 (4 w/armor) Health: 29/29 Stamina: 10/10 Magic (Conjuration): 6 Magic (Abjuration): 5 Religion: 5 Martial (Mace): 3 History: 2 First Aid: 1 Composure: 1 Perks: -Divine Healing - When healing, heal 1 extra HP. Also +1 to all healing rolls. Click to reveal.. (Spells) -Greater Healing - Heals an adjacent target (1 STA) -Purify - Cure a poison/disease, purify water/food. -Succor - Summon food & water. -Summon Celestial Serpent - Summons a winged serpent. (1 STA) -Shield of Faith - Bolsters a target's defense for a few rounds. -Iron Will - Shields one target from mental assaults, and can remove such effects. -Blessing of Phol-Phoram - Allies get a bonus to all rolls and defenses, while the caster takes an equal penalty. (2 STA) Click to reveal.. (Aurora, Elven Empath) Name: Aurora Race: Elf Occupation: Empath Alignment: Conceited Strength: 3 Dexterity: 5 Intelligence: 6 Speed: 5 Health: 25/25 Stamina: 10/10 Magic (Enchantment): 5 Martial (Knives): 5 Composure: 5 Streetwise: 4 First Aid: 3 Perception: 3 Stealth: 1 History: 1 Perks: -Cold Reading - When first meeting someone, you gain +2 to Composure against them. Click to reveal.. (Spells) -Empathy - Gain a temporary bonus to Composure & Streetwise (1 STA) -Confidence - Grants a target a bonus to all rolls for 1 round. -Despair - Curses a target with penalty to all rolls for 1 round, also makes future mental attacks easier. -Fear - Sends target into blind panic, fleeing if possible. -Command - Clouds target's judgment, and issues a simple order. -Battle Rage - Gives a target a bonus to attack, mental defenses, and some temporary HP. Click to reveal.. (Adon Zek, Human Assassin) Name: Adon Zek Occupation: Assassin Race: Human Alignment: Arrogant Strength: 6 Dexterity: 5 Intelligence: 3 Speed: 5 Health: 36/36 Stamina: 10/10 Martial (Blades): 5 Stealth: 4 First Aid: 4 Crafting: 3 Thievery: 2 Composure: 4 Perception: 3 Perks: -Indignant Fury - When insulted, you gain a bonus to damage against whoever did it, but take a small accuracy penalty. Originally Posted By: Zarusa, pyromancer "Don't touch that. Trust me."

Once more, returning to the original intent of the topic... there's an annual hot air balloon race in St. Louis, and the night before they light up all of the balloons in a fair-like atmosphere. It's awesome, and I got a bunch of pictures. And this one is the best. Also, giant spider!!!

Yep, this is why I'm handling reminders via email now. I am really curious how tonight's session went, and would very much like to read a log of the part after I had to leave.

Originally Posted By: Nioca And to the others that didn't get selected, don't worry; someone dying has been long overdue. This. This, many many many times. Originally Posted By: Tabazinth, elven necromancer "Out here, the best kind of artifact is a sundered artifact. Yes, ancient and powerful things are hidden in this marsh. But I wouldn't trust any of them for a heartbeat."

ATTENTION! First off, thanks again to everyone who submitted characters and filled out the calendar. Rest assured that if you were not picked to start the campaign, you will be the first in line should any PC(s) meet an untimely death. Or a timely one, for that matter. Second, I would like to apologize for the long lag between my initial post and this one. I fell somewhat ill at the start of the week, which was shortly followed by a long-overdue endoscopy that knocked me out for another day. Third, the first session of the campaign will take place Wednesday, September 22nd, 6PM CDT in the AIM chatroom spidwebRP. All are welcome to attend. Fourth, and perhaps most importantly, it's time to meet the five characters who will be starting the campaign. Some may leave, others may join, but these five will kick things off. Detailed character sheets will be posted soonish, I just wanted to get this post out tonight before I passed out. Mal Travers, the lacewing hero - (played by Nioca) Kurex, the traveling human mage - (played by Dantius) Josun, the dragonborn priest - (played by RCCCL) Aurora, the elven empath - (played by Lilith) Adon Zek, the arrogant human assassin - (played by Mistb0rn) Once more, thanks to everyone, and I promise to make this campaign epically awesome. Originally Posted By: Ikthak, goblin archmage "I have always found it puzzling that the most powerful of artifacts exude a magic so subtle that the finest detection can be required to even notice it. That subtlety is a virtue I wish some of my peers would adopt."

Originally Posted By: Dikiyoba A way to avoid this would be to take what we do now in one long session and split it up into two shorter sessions. The first would be the lead up to the final confrontation and the second would be the actual confrontation plus wrap up. This is what happened with Labyrinth, and I'm actually really happy with how that went. Splitting the end also let me prepare for the final fight in Jareth's castle to a much greater degree than usual. Needless to say, I want to do this with Rumors. But I also hope that I can run that campaign slightly longer than my past efforts. Anyway, we'll see.

Alright, so we're done with the lame jokes here. Know why? Because everyone who submitted a character has been at least tentatively approved in concept. That means there's one step left in determining who plays and who is left to wait in the wings for the first character death. What's that step? Well, the almighty CALENDAR. Go there, fill it out to the best of your ability, and I will compile the results. Originally Posted By: Thiaspor, priestess of Sliros "In the chaos that followed the great skirmish, we were able to break a record number of slaves from bondage. Sliros has heard our prayers, and delivered in his typical understated fashion. Our deity only helps those who helps themselves."

*cough* Are you folks done?

Originally Posted By: nikki. Originally Posted By: Dantius Originally Posted By: Ephesos hoping I can win back what I had lost in [...] casino games. You do realize that's impossible? I mean, even computers (especially computers!) can win in casino games. But the casino games are played against other players, so it's totally possibly to win it all back! No. No it's not. Not if you're me.

Originally Posted By: Tirien, Master of Waffles You possibly COULD do a zombie apocalypse, but it would have to be set on some small, out of the way island that nobody cares about. Besides, a zombie apocalypse is to cliche, a landshark apocalypse would be better. Like, the entire Blood Marsh campaign. Also, a wizard did it.

Originally Posted By: Dinti In my ideal world, there would be no random encounters, and every enemy we face would have a detailed backstory. This is because in my ideal world DMs have unlimited free time. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA ...yup, if only. Originally Posted By: Dinti But in general... Mote is really becoming a shared setting, and we should decide now how much the status quo should change during the course of a campaign. On the one hand, we don't want one campaign to ruin the setting for all future campaigns (no "Chalmy comes back and now Mote is a zombie apocalypse setting"). On the other hand, we still want to keep the possibility of an epic storyline for each campaign. And, ideally, we'd want to avoid something like a canon split. I love that it is becoming a shared setting, which is why I don't want to get too testy about anything anyone does to the setting. Again, unless it's along the zombie apocalypse lines. Like, I have plans for Ouracasos one day in the future, but they will easily be adapted to the changes Sarachim wrought. (It will be something much higher-level than anything so far, to the point where I might go with abstraction) But I digress. The shared setting thing is what I want. In a big way.

'Twas an example. Saves against fear, I dunno.

Originally Posted By: Triumph Speaking of real improvements to the system...this is a very small issue, but... Is there any chance of a change that will involve Elves, Dragonborn, and Goblins NOT all getting the same racial bonus to Composure? All existing characters would have the right to keep existing bonuses, of course, regardless of a change. And one of the three races will keep the Composure bonus. But it'd be nice to have more variety on this front. Currently no race has bonuses with Martial or Crafting, FWIW. I've been debating changing some of them to something more interesting, like "Goblins get a +1 to all rolls involving intimidation, including saves against it." Basically I never got around to it. Also, now I'm sick, so I'm thinking kinda slowly.

Originally Posted By: Triumph I feel some of this discussion is getting worrisome-ly close to sacrificing one of AIMHack's great charms (as least IMO) in favor "balance." Part of what I love about the system is it's simplicity. Refining the system to make it better is great! But I hope that simplicity is not sacrificed on the altar on balance. Quoted for truth. So much truth. Point-buy is about as complex as I ever want it to be, at least on the player side.

Originally Posted By: CRISIS on INFINITE SLARTIES You have an addictive personality? Huh. Eh, it's not clinical, but I know how I work with most games. I tend towards completionism, whether it's getting every square of map explored in a borderline ocd fashion, acquiring every familiar in KoL I possibly can, or frantically hoping I can win back what I had lost in KoL's casino games. Yup, that was a pretty bad day.

(I know it's not my campaign thread, but I feel compelled to respond anyway.) Originally Posted By: Nioca 1. Magic Classes I only ever designated "epic spells" because I wanted some awesome stuff at a higher tier, for the record. I dunno about formalizing spell tiers... it feels like too much work. Originally Posted By: Nioca 2. Double the levels, double the trouble. Pretty much why I'm liking point-buy more and more now. Originally Posted By: Nioca 3. Trials and Attribute-lations Stat-less would basically be what we always used to run on the boards, but with a DM. I could get into that. Or we could just do away with people getting attribute bonuses on skill rolls. I kinda like the second option. Originally Posted By: Nioca 4. Wait, don't we already have someone who does that? Yeah. Fix #3 and we fix this to a large extent. And I find this kinda funny given how we at one point discussed collapsing the skills available down to even fewer. We could always add Knowledge (Pick Area Here) and... no, no then someone will just whine when their 8 ranks in Knowledge (Fish and Chips) isn't used. Originally Posted By: Nioca 5. I roll for Deus ex machina. I agree with this criticism. The only time I've ever used Religion checks like this was that one time Lanrezac crit a roll, when the party was like right outside the Temple of Sliros. And I think that's about the only time I would use it... normally, I see it functioning as Knowledge (Religion). Also, I was shocked to find the session had ended up in the Labyrinth, but yeah. It worked. In the future, I'd rather that people avoid that, particularly when they toss virulent magic-eating molds into the Labyrinth. Not that the setting is sacred, but some of us might have plans for it...

O.o ...wow. That's a lot of characters. Um. Gimme a day or so. Also, I need to start doing the flavor snippets again. EDIT: I think I've replied to everyone who has submitted a character so far. I've got eight to choose from right now, so we will see. I am trying to give preference to new players, but we'll see what we get. If you sent me one, you might want to check your inbox for feedback. Originally Posted By: Liomha, dragonborn weaponsmith "There are two ways to make magic items. The first imbues the items with raw magical energy, and it requires patience, knowledge, and high-quality stuff. Those ones are the good ones: stable, dependable, and powerful. The other way usually depends on trapping an elemental spirit, or some other powerful entity within an item. Of course, it's dangerous, unstable, and normally comes at a great cost for the person who makes it. Guess which type is more common."

Fyi, this won't be a "first 5 or get out" thing. It's going to boil down to the best characters I get. And that is not a judgment on the ones I've already received. Because... wow, that was fast. Originally Posted By: Zarusa, pyromancer "I heard those Sarden fools killed each other. Good riddance."

Quote: The island of Selos has been a busy place since the Concordance festival, to say the least. Two weeks have passed since the assassination of Lord Hakkel, and it has been just four days since Selaneus nearly went to war with Quera. But the people of Mote are no strangers to tragedy, and have already begun to rebuild. And for enterprising folk such as adventurers, there is always something to be gained... --------------- They call her Rikkla the Cold, and she likes to leave the frozen corpses of her enemies on display outside of her stronghold. Her magic is potent, and she is known to have a penchant for collecting magical artifacts. In brief, she is not an elf to be trifled with. Of course, all of this is something of a moot point now, given that she is believed dead after her forces clashed with those of Trassak the Nimble. Though she may be dead, her stronghold still stands. And the rumors of the treasure waiting inside are persistent. You are familiar with these rumors, and so is your current employer, a Selaneus dragonborn by the name of Gotay. He wishes you to retrieve a specific artifact, one that was allegedly the source of Rikkla's power. Naturally, you accepted. What could be more tempting than a stroll through a warehouse full of artifacts? Even if you have to pry them from someone's cold dead fingers... With the conclusion of Dust Bowl, I've decided that it's finally time for me to run another campaign. This one picks up right after the events of Selos and the Oracle, and shortly after Treachery at Selaneus. It is, of course, directly concerned with the fallout of those two campaigns. This will be my first stab at a higher-level campaign, so all characters entering should be Level 5. Now, since we've come up with a bunch of leveling methods, let me explain what that means. I'm effectively using the City of Hope system (thanks Lilith!), with a few changes: Start with 10 points, spread out across STR/DEX/INT. You begin with 10+STR hit points. No more of that starting with 8 nonsense. For each level, you gain one attribute point (STR/DEX/INT). After you raise your attributes, gain your STR in hit points. Point-buy for all of your skills, and you start with 60 skill points. Make one perk for your character, subject to DM approval. Important to note here, since this is kinda-sorta continuing where Selos left off, and thus in the same range as Blood Marsh, old characters are eligible for use, as long as they re-train. You won't be able to crank your skills up quite as high, but rest assured that 60 skill points was not a random number (it was in fact roughly what Lanrezac would've had to spend, since his were the most balanced skills in Selos). And trust me, you'll want to keep those skills balanced. So with that all out of the way, I welcome anyone and everyone to submit characters to me via PM or email. I'm capping the party at 5, unless I get a ton of incredibly amazing characters. And if you want to participate in the campaign, you have to supply your email address (preferably one you check regularly), because that is how I will be handling scheduling reminders. Go!