Nioca

Originally Posted By: Triumph Several campaigns have allowed non-magic users to gain a number of abilities (battle disciplines or combat techniques or whatever). I think a common rule for such abilities has been that players may have a number of techniques equal their intelligence number. I would like to suggest this should change. A magic user likes to boost Intelligence because it increases the effectiveness of spells AND lets them learn more spells. A weapon user, however, needs DEX or STR; and yet to make use of fighting abilities they are required to boost intelligence too? Perhaps players could have a number of techniques equal to INT + (half of one martial skill)? I agree, but the catch is that skills in martial and in magic are not mutually exclusive (A strong example here being Grastakoss). So you either have to separate the two entirely (meaning someone skilled would have access to both INT number of spells AND however many martial skills would be decided on), or the two would have to be compatible to allow mixing and matching. I definitely don't think that fighters should have to train up INT in addition to their other attributes, but... Wait, hang on. Here's a thought: All attributes provides slots. STR grants melee-technique slots (sword maneuvers, spear strikes) DEX grants missile-technique slots (bow maneuvers, sharpshooting, etc.) INT grants spell slots as usual. This would allow a character to have battle techniques AND spells if they're trained in both magic and martial, but would also allow a pure fighter (or pure archer) to have a decent array of techniques available to him.

Friday the 8th? Works for me.

Huh. I've always fought her, and I usually wound up dropping out of a portal right near her. At any rate, if you can pull it off and kill her, you can get Morog's Scepter, which is a very powerful missile weapon for mages.

Really, you want the Spore Shroom Talisman from Morog. It's the only way (other than perhaps flight) to get through the cavern without burning a week or more on spore-induced catnaps (especially considering there's a similar cavern near the end of the scenario as well). As far as I'm aware, you have no choice but to travel through the caverns, so the mushroom is a good investment. However, to get it, you'll either have to steal it from Morog (which results in a BRUTAL fight, not to mention wandering her maze-lake palace) or agree to work for her to get the Scroll of Dragon history. As an aside, I wish you luck in trying to beat the clock. I'm sure it's possible to get through the remaining caverns in three days, but it is going to be close.

Thursday evenings work for me.

Originally Posted By: Lilith Originally Posted By: Nioca In my case, I was just trying to make a light tank with mage abilities, based somewhat on the idea that he could draw fire towards himself or redirect fire away from allies. I did this on the assumption that someone would be the healer, and that I also would not be the primary tank. I also swapped out a point of STR for a point of INT. I'm kinda regretting that now. yeah, i see what you were trying to do, but being a tank works better if you can actually take hits i'm just sayin' Hexelion can take hits and fight up-front; he's got decent martial skills and okay stats (for L1), plus some light body armor (the Brigandine) and spells to bolster prowess or knock a foe off-kilter. Also, under this HP system, all characters start off kinda squishy unless they've got ridiculous STR. I'm just saying that I wish there was, at the very least, a healer to support tanking, or a heavy tank with high HP and Melee to back us up.

Originally Posted By: Dantius For instance, you don't want to be a healer, because a party of four white mages five healers would be useless, so nobody becomes a healer. Not really, battles would just take a very long time. But seriously, just because a character's fulfilling one role doesn't mean they can't fulfill others; Arell Iseil can heal you one moment and rip you apart the next, Josun could brawl with the rest of the party AND break curses and enchantments, Eva Roe could alternate between healing, support, utility, and attack, and that's just to name three characters off the top of my head. Hell, even Kurex had some healing ability in RomD, but would you say he was useless in a fight? Quote: Likewise, everybody built their character with like five or six skills in order to ensure that they'd be useful in every situation, but the result is that nobody's able to deal with a situation. For instance, everybody has martial skills, but nobody has more than a few points. Hence, my point stands. Eh, it's more that the responsibility's spread out; instead of having one mainline tank, the whole party IS the mainline tank. The lack of healer could hurt, but Safflar's alchemy might be able to offset that. And in any case, all it takes is one level to start addressing the weak points in this party; we might not have everything covered yet, but once we get a few skill points, you can bet money that those holes will get filled quickly.

In my case, I was just trying to make a light tank with mage abilities, based somewhat on the idea that he could draw fire towards himself or redirect fire away from allies. I did this on the assumption that someone would be the healer, and that I also would not be the primary tank. I also swapped out a point of STR for a point of INT. I'm kinda regretting that now.

Originally Posted By: This Charming Man! For those with training in weapons, if you haven't already please feel free to come up with some combat techniques like Lilith did. They aren't essential (in fact, they're entirely optional), but they do add a bit of flavour/extra firepower. You're allowed as many techniques as you have INT - that is, if your intelligence is three, you can have three techniques. Is that in addition to spells, or for those with training only in weapons? Anyway, filled in the calendar, but I'm available most reliably in the evening... which was pretty much removed from this calendar. So my submission to the calendar is not a pretty sight. Sorry.

Click to reveal.. (Arell Iseil, L5) ARELL ISEIL RACE: Dragonborn, Female OCCUPATION: Apprentice Flamekeeper Spiritualist ALIGNMENT: Narcissitic LEVEL 5 ATTRIBUTES: 4/3/7 (+INT) HP: 13/17 STM: 4/10 SPEED: 5 ARMOR: 4 XP: 00/64 (+14) Magic (Vitaemancy) - 8 (36XP) [+1 | Intermittent Understanding Achieved] Martial (Staves) - 4 (10XP) Composure - 3 (RB+3XP) First Aid - 3 (RB+3XP) Stealth - 3 (6XP) [+1] Perception - 3 (6XP) [+1] HARLIFIGRZIX'S REWARD (TRAIT) EFFECTS: The lich Harlifigrzix has 'rewarded' Arell with a change in physiology. -Arell's breath has been changed to a form of negative coldfire. At the cost of stamina, she can create powerful bursts useful in combat. -Arell gains a small bonus to handling necromantic fire. -Arell has improved resistance to cold climates and ice attacks. -Arell has reduced resistance to warm climates and fire attacks. COSMETIC: A blue triangular burn-pattern on her chest. Arell's blood is now blue. EVOCATIVE STUDY (PERK) EFFECTS: Intense study has left the party with a greater understanding of Evocation. -Provides one free level in Magic: Evocation. Acts as a racial bonus. And the spell we've all been waiting for... (Plus a couple others). [EDIT: All approved!] Click to reveal.. (SOULFIRE) SOULFIRE (VL8) COST: 1STM EFFECTS: Sprays a target or area with Soulfire, a brilliant blue flame which burns not on normal materials, but on both positive and necrotic life energy. -Soulfire continues to burn or spread until all life energy has been consumed. If there's no life energy to consume, it starves and extinguishes. -An enemy hit with Soulfire takes moderate damage from the flames until they're put out or the target dies. -Incorporeal creatures take extreme damage from the flames (since they not only catch on the creature, but wind up effectively burning INSIDE it). -Soulfire does not harm non-living objects -Soulfire is somewhat more difficult to put out than normal fire. Most regular fire-prevention methods work, but are slightly less effective. Any mage who knows how to cast Soulfire can magically put it out, even if they don't have the spell prepared. -Many magic guilds and Motian governments consider using (and in some cases, even just knowing) this spell ILLEGAL; use with caution. -Additional stamina can be spent to increase the spray-radius of the flames. DESCRIPTION: A brilliant blue "inverted" flame, with a dark center. Does not give off any light. Victims of the flame, rather than charring, simply seem to whither and die. Click to reveal.. (Spirit Lance) SPIRIT LANCE (VL8) EFFECTS: Fires a lance of energy at a target. Upon impact, the lance damages and destabilizes the victim's life energy, making it more vulnerable to necrotic energy. -Inflicts damage on the target. -Weakens the target's resistance to necromantic spells. This effect does NOT stack. -Works against both living and undead creatures. -Additional bolts can be fired against multiple targets at a cost of 1STM per extra target. DESCRIPTION: A long, glowing bolt of light, firing from the caster to the target(s). (Basically, a higher-level attack spell that doesn't burn stamina) Click to reveal.. (Void) VOID (VL8) COST: 1STM EFFECTS: When cast on a creature or object, causes the target to start absorbing energy from whatever it touches. -Creatures that touch or are touched by the recipient creature/object will take damage as their life energy is drained from them. -Magical energy, spells, and effects that the recipient creature/object contacts will be drained. This in effect provides some damage and effect resistance versus magic. -Mundane energy (such as light and heat) are also absorbed. -The recipient object does not gain any benefits or experience any effects from absorbed energy, save for special circumstances. -Duration lasts anywhere from 10 minutes to an hour, depending on casting strength. -The caster is immune to the effects of his/her own casting (but not to the effects of a Void cast by someone else). DESCRIPTION: The recipient creature/object appears in starker contrast and also seems to absorb light around it. In decent lighting, a dark, wavering aura appears around the target's form. (Thought this up as I was leveling. Good as both a combat and a utility spell.) One thing I'm discovering is that it's rather difficult to do good utility spells as a Vitaemancer. Everything's either high level, related to combat, or overly specific.

I'll submit a character sometime in the next few days.

Originally Posted By: upon mars Originally Posted By: nocia Or maybe because when you did write, it read more like a bad LP than an actual fanfic. I know that it's hardly my buisness, but what does LP stands out for? Let's Play. Basically, it's a recorded playthrough of a game with the player's commentary.

Originally Posted By: The Turtle Moves Yes, it's OK for women to have masculine titles, but not vice versa. What does that tell us about our culture? That we enjoy drawing large-scale generalizations from a single data point?

Originally Posted By: Arch-Mage Solberg Someone tries to write a story based on the first Geneforge and people beg for more. While I do the same for the first Exile/Avernum game and am handed nothing but sarcasm and ridicule. Here is the forum I'm talking about. Maybe because Upon Mars is actually writing a fanfic, while you were simply positing the idea of a Avernum TV/Movie series. Or maybe because when you did write, it read more like a bad LP than an actual fanfic.

Theoretically. In practice, considering UBB's history of general instability, there's a notable risk that doing so could mess up one of a dozen things, and leave us worse off than before the upgrade.

Lilith: Grastakoss ended this session at 19/28 HP and 7/10 STM. This is before whatever is gained from resting.

Well, it's been a bit cooler than average around these parts; I've only had to kick on the air conditioner twice thusfar. Also, there's been a surprising number of spiders this season.

Originally Posted By: Sarachim Originally Posted By: Nioca On one hand, sending forces to a foreign country to perform ops without giving the country a heads-up is, while not illegal, at least somewhat unethical. . . Sending armed forces into another country without that country's consent is, in fact, illegal. The fact that Pakistan consented to other military actions in its territory in the past doesn't change its right to decide whether or not to permit new ones. Ah, I wasn't 100% sure on that, so I erred on the side of unethical.

LSoSU: Y'know, you could just read the thread. Short version: US got a lead on his location in Pakistan, and sent in some SEALs to take him down in some manor/bunker complex. Firefight ensued, Osama took more bullets in the face than is entirely healthy. The real miracle is that no US troops were injured. But then, I guess that's just what Navy SEALs do. EDIT: On a tangentially-related note, I keep reading this thread's title as "Obama is gone", and keep doing double-takes.

General observation: It's a situation like this where you're damned if you do and damned if you don't. On one hand, sending forces to a foreign country to perform ops without giving the country a heads-up is, while not illegal, at least somewhat unethical, thus contributing to the generally poor image this country has. On the other hand, standing idly by can be just as bad, even if it does keep your hands clean, and it finally nails one of the most notorious criminals of the past decade. Anyway, personally? I'm glad they didn't take him alive. Not because of any patriotic fervor or anger, but simply because it finally brings this to a quick and tidy end, rather than putting on airs and creating a media circus. We all knew how it would end anyway. That said, I really hope they don't show pictures. A little class goes a long way.

Congrats on your 5000th, SoT. ...I'm also coming to realize that I didn't celebrate my 4000th.

Crap! That's today?! I completely forgot! ...guess it's a good thing nothing came up in the interim, though. I'll be there

Originally Posted By: Synergy Heaven forbid that one intentionally start a dialog on one of the two great taboos of polite conversation in mixed company: politics (the other being religion), but I find that I cannot restrain myself. I am fervent, personally, on behalf of the state of my own nation, America, and the dire path it is upon, and I know that under globalization and American imperialism, the situation is becoming convergent with many other farflung nations. I am fervent, communually, on behalf of the state of our planet. We're one world now and so intertwined, we are all in this together, like it or not. Alright, which one of you chuckleheads left a thesaurus lying around for just anyone to pick up? Anyway, I really don't have much to say on the subject, other than to say that I firmly believe that entropy always wins. This isn't the first time the American economy has collapsed, and I'm willing to bet it won't be the last. Not betting money, mind you, because I'm flat broke at the moment.

I for one can't wait for its release. Not so much for the game itself, though I anticipate that greatly, but so I can use the Active Topics feature of this forum without getting inundated with spoilers.

LEVEL!!! Click to reveal.. (Arell Iseil, L4) ARELL ISEIL RACE: Dragonborn, Female OCCUPATION: Apprentice Flamekeeper Spiritualist ALIGNMENT: Narcissitic LEVEL 4 ATTRIBUTES: 4/3/6 (+STR) HP: 17/17 (+3) STM: 9/10 SPEED: 5 ARMOR: 4 XP: 00/50 (+12) Magic (Vitaemancy) - 7 (28XP) (+1) Martial (Staves) - 4 (10XP) (+1) Composure - 3 (RB+3XP) First Aid - 3 (RB+3XP) (+1) Stealth - 2 (3XP) Perception - 2 (3XP) This is a big level for Arell, because not only does she have a new point in Vitaemancy, but she's got a new set of spells to go with it. Click to reveal.. (Emic's Entropic Energy (VETOED)) EMIC'S ENTROPIC ENERGY (VL7) EFFECTS: Burns the target's life energy to provide it raw potential energy. -Recovers 2 stamina in the recipient. -Inflicts 5d2 damage in the recipient; this damage is dealt to both the character's current AND max HP. -The damage to the caster's max HP is only healed via resting. Epic-level healing might also be able to cure the MHP damage. -If the recipient's max HP drops to 0 or less, the character is killed instantly with no save. If the recipient's current HP drops to or below 0, the character will start hemorrhaging stamina the round after casting as if they were bleeding out. -If the recipient is already at full stamina or is only down 1 stamina, the spell fails with no harm to the recipient. -Can only be cast on a willing recipient. Casting on a resisting target will automatically cause the spell to fail. -Does not require a roll (other than the 5d2). DESCRIPTION: Feels as if a fire was racing through the target's veins, but also makes them feel more energetic, as if granted a second wind. (Useful for an emergency stamina recharge, but at a high price that takes time to recover from.) Click to reveal.. (Salamandric Blood) SALAMANDRIC BLOOD (VL7) COST: 2STM EFFECTS: Alters the target's blood; when exposed to air, the target's blood becomes corrosive and bursts into flame. -When struck by an attack that draws blood, the recipient's blood will spray out. In the case of melee or very-close ranged attacks, this sprays on the attacker, doing damage proportional to how much damage was dealt. -The blood will also corrode the offending weapon, potentially sundering it. -If the recipient dies while under the effects of the spell, their body combusts, severely burning anyone nearby. -Wounds received while this is active are more serious and deal more damage. Fortunately, they also self-cauterize. -Lasts roughly 15 minutes. Additional stamina can be spent to prolong the duration. -A person can only undergo the effects of this spell once per day. DESCRIPTION: A sense of warmth, with a brief aura around the target. The flame's color depends on the recipient's life energy; in Arell's case, it's a dark gray. (This spell is a powerful defensive ward because, to quote the movie Alien: "You don't dare kill it." It's not a cheap spell, however, and it can only affect a person once per day. Also, may I just say that this spell really would have come in handy tonight?) Click to reveal.. (Vitaepulse) VITAEPULSE (VL7) EFFECTS: Not so much a spell as a raw blast of life energy, Vitaepulse hits the target with a fast-firing pulse of positive life energy to mend wounds. -Heals damage on a target. (FORMULA: [1d3+Vita]-[x*2], where x is the number of castings on that recipient). -At the cost of 1STM, can be fired as a move-action. -Like most heal spells, can be targeted against undead beings as an attack spell. However, this cannot be done as a move-action DESCRIPTION: A light yellow beam firing from the caster to the recipient. (Because having to spend a turn healing an ally that could instead go to knocking down the angry treemonster trying to take your face off sorta sucks. This spell would enable Arell to fill her role as healer while still acting in other useful fashions.) Click to reveal.. (Guardian Spirit) GUARDIAN SPIRIT (VL7) COST: 1STM EFFECTS: Summons a powerful yet loyal spirit to protect the caster and do its bidding. -The spirit is incorporeal and incapable of physical interactions. -The spirit's touch, however, is capable of disrupting life or magical energy, making it a strong combatant. -The spirit's incorporeal nature renders it nigh-immune to physical attack. Magical attacks or magically-charged weapons can harm it normally, however. -The spirit can also see, hear, and observe, making it a useful short-range scout. -The spirit cannot travel far from the caster. -Lasts for roughly 1 hour. -Only one spirit can be summoned at a time, and this spell cannot be swapped out while active. DESCRIPTION: A faint, glowing, shade-like spirit. Has an orangish-yellow coloration. (Because Arell hasn't really been able to find any suitable bodies, and being a "Spiritualist", this spell sorta fits her. I'm glad I found it browsing through some old character sheets. At any rate, one issue we keep running into in combat is being outnumbered, and this might help even the odds.) Whew. All of these await approval have been approved or vetoed. Session VII is finished. And here are yet more lessons we have learned. *The RNG is not your friend, and will laugh at your misery (Or: You know the RNG is against you when you have difficulty rolling over a 10 but your opponents crit you EIGHT TIMES IN A SINGLE FIGHT). *When wandering off on your own around magical wood, be prepared for possible danger. *When stuck in something, if the word "Entombed" is used to describe how stuck you are, it is a surefire signal to you to get unstuck very quickly. *It's better to be able to set the forest on fire and not need to than to need to set the forest on fire and be unable. *When introducing a former NPC by name, make sure the PCs all actually know that NPC by name. *This party is not fully equipped to handle rampaging tree monsters. *Throwing rampaging tree monsters at your fellow party members is ill-advised and may be looked down upon by the rest of the party. *Monsters appreciate getting healed. They will demonstrate this appreciation by kicking you in the face. EDITED 04/18/2011 Click to reveal.. (Edit Reasons) -Emic's Entropic Energy vetoed by DM. -Vitaepulse approved with modification to effectiveness. Also, unmentioned stipulation added. -All others approved.