# TRM's Second Darkness, a Pathfinder RPG game (closed)



## The Rolling Man

The game has now started and is full.
IC Thread
RG Thread

Party :

*Tolneus "Tolly" Garnus*, human rogue and dabbler in arcane matters. (played by Dr. Simon)
*Tosh*, black dragonwrought kobold rogue, boneyard sneak. (played by Ambrus)
*Chan Ti*, half elf monk from far away Tian Xia. (played by ghostcat)
*Kronk Madaxe*, deranged dwarf fighter, enemy of squirrels. (played by Mark Chance)
*Rorgar*, half-orc druid and feral shapeshifter. (played by Walking Dad)
*Voadam*, human ranger, madman or traveller from some other world ? (played by Voadam)







*Second Darkness*
_A Pathfinder RPG Beta playtest_​
_A foul omen looms in the sky over the scoundrel city of Riddleport, an ominous shadow that defies the light. Is it a curse laid millennia ago by forgotten mages? Does it forewarn against the return of some terrible foe? Or does it portend a terrible new era, a second Age of Darkness?_

After reading the pathfinder campaign setting over the holidays, the itch to DM a game here has become too strong. I haven't DM in a while however and, with my limited time, I've decided to run published adventures. Second Darkness just fits the bill perfectly.

 I'm looking for 4-6 players that can post at least 3 to 5 times a week for this game. If there's more then 6 applications, I'll probably have to pick the ones I prefer. The other could aways be keep as alternates. The character creation rules will be posted below. I'll also post some information on the city of Riddleport on the Varisian coast to help you come up with fitting characters. Most of this will be taken strait out of the Second Darkness player guide which, this time around, isn't free, so don't be afraid to ask me more details if you don't have access to it.

As for the game itself, I'd first like you to pick up a distinctive sign (it can be colored text, bold,  italics ...) to show what is said out loud by your character. It will make the reading of the thread easier and make it easy to see who's saying what. For dice rolls, I can make all the rolls for you but if you feel like using invisible castle for your own roll, please feel free to do so. Just keep the 'name' you use for those rolls constant (using your character's name is probably the most obvious). I'll still roll a few check myself however, like some perception, search and stealth checks, to keep them secret. I'll probably also roll most of the 'reactive' rolls (like saving throws and initiative) to keep the game moving at a decent pace. On that note, it would help me a lot if you posted the basic tactics of your characters so that I can NPC you character if needed (I'll try not to do this often). If you don't want to go into too much details, at least tell me whatever your character is cautious or reckless, or if he usually targets one type of foe during combat.


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## The Rolling Man

*Character Creation*

*Core books* (You can use almost everything in these books to create your character.)
Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Beta playtest, including the web enhancements (PFRPG)*
Pathfinder Chronicles, Campaign Setting (PFCS)
Second Darkness Player’s Guide (SDPG)
Curse of the Crimson Throne Player’s Guide (CotCTPG)*
Rise of the Runelords Player’s Guide (RotRPG)* _note that you won't get a bonus 'regional' feat as shown in this. I'll instead use the traits system of the SDPG (see below). The feats presented here are still available as normal feats however._

* all these are available in PDF format for free on the Paizo web site.

*Races*
All the standard PFRPG races except that humans with at least 10 intelligence have an extra (in addition to Common) automatic language depending on their cultural background. Humans with 9 or less intelligence only speak Common or 1 of the cultural languages. Here's a non-exhaustive list of the human languages of Golarion (for more info on these consult the PFCS or ask me about them).

Common (Taldane/Chelish)
Varisian
Skald
Shoanti
Hallit
Kelish
Osiriani
Polyglot
Tien
Vudrani

The SRD tiefling is also available with the following modification :

There's no level adjustment.
The favored class of tieflings is rogue or wizard. This choice must be made at 1st level and cannot be changed.
The tiefling automatic languages are Common and one of the following : Abyssal, Infernal or one of the human cultural languages (Varisian, Shoanti, etc ...).

*Classes*
Only the standard classes as presented in the PFRPG. I might allow the class variants from the PFCS as long as it doesn't conflict with the rpg changes.

*Ability Scores*
15 Points as in the PFRPG (Standard fantasy)

*Alignment*
Any alignment is available but be aware that the adventure isn't very friendly to very lawful good type characters. Riddleport isn't exactly the most friendly city.

*Starting level* : 1

*Hit Points* 
At 1st level, your character gets maximum HD hp + con bonus + 1/2 your constitution score (rounded down). 
At all following levels, your character get a fixed amount (depending on your HD : d4 = 3, d6 = 4, d8 = 5, d10 = 7, d12 = 8) + con bonus.

*Saving throws and multiclassing*
You can only get the +2 bonus to a saving throw at the 1st level once. For example, a fighter 2/barbarian 1 would only have a fortitude save bonus of +3 (not +5). A mage/fighter would get both the bonuses to will and fortitude since they simply aren't the same.

*Traits*
To better reflect your character experiences before becoming an adventurer, he/she will get 2 traits. One will describe his recent past and link the character with the starting adventure and/or with the other characters (I'll list those below). The second trait can be more general in nature. Traits offer small bonuses and are somewhat similar to feats. The differences is that traits offers more details on the character's life but the bonuses are only about half as good as feat's. Note that all bonuses offered by traits are of the 'trait' type and don't stack with one another. The SDPG present a long list of traits that I'm not going to reproduce here. Feel free to create your own (and get my approval). In general, traits grant a +1 bonus to a saving throw, +2 to initiative, +1 to one skill and make that skill a class skill, or some other small bonus or ability. If you don't own the SDPG and want to consult the trait list, you can leave your email address here or contact me by my hotmail account (philkav@ you know the rest ...).

Here's the list of traits that is supposed to help bring the characters together at the beginning of the adventure. You must pick one of these as your first trait or come up with another one that places you at the Golden Goblin during the 'Cheat the Devil and Take His Gold' gambling tournament.

[Sblock=Campaign Traits]
_Fools for Friends:_ You don’t think of yourself as a gambler. In fact, you rather detest the whole thing. Unfortunately, one or more of your friends (pick one or more of the other players’ characters) doesn’t think so, and you’ve recently learned that friend—or friends—have decided to go to the Gold Goblin’s “Cheat the Devil and Take his Gold” tournament. Which pretty much means you have to go as well, since if no one’s there to watch out for them, they’ll lose all their money and respect. Again. Sometimes it’s hard being the responsible one. Your devotion to your friendships (even when said friends seem, at times, to be trying to test that devotion) is a point of pride to you. Whenever you take the Aid Another action to help an ally, or whenever an ally aids you in this manner, a successful check grants an additional +1 trait bonus to the check for which aid was being rendered. Additionally, as long as one of your friends is within 30 feet, you gain a +1 trait bonus on all saving throws against charm and compulsion effects.
_Into Enemy Territory:_ The shadow in the sky is visible from all around Riddleport, not just in town. It’s certainly come to the attention of several druids, rangers, and other rural folk who dwell in the nearby mountains, forests, and swamps—among them, yourself. You’ve consulted with several seers and Harrowers, and may even have performed some simple auguries yourself, and all the signs point the same way—something or someone in Riddleport is connected to the blot, and it means bad news for the region. You’ve avoided the sleazy, dirty town for most of your life, traveling there only when absolutely necessary, and although you don’t relish the prospect of going there now, you see little other choice (especially if one of your superiors is ordering you to go investigate). Fortunately, an eccentric friend of yours (pick another PC) is in town, and you’ve heard this friend will be taking part in some gambling thing at a place called the Gold Goblin. Your friend’s always had better luck interacting with the cityfolk, so you’ve decided to accompany your friend to this gambling tournament and plan on letting him find a safe place for you to stay while you’re in town. Your long life of self-sustenance has toughened you and made you more resistant to hardship, in any event—pick one of the
three categories of saving throw. You gain a +1 trait bonus on all saving throws of that type.
_Looking for Work:_ Although out of work, you aren’t particularly keen on the prospect of gambling away your last remaining coins simply for a chance at riches. That said, if the Gold Goblin’s fortunes reverse after this big gambling tournament, you’re relatively certain its owner, Saul Vancaskerkin, will be needing to hire on some new staff members. You’ve secured payment for the tournament, and intend on attending mostly to check the place out, to decide if it’s a place you’d want to work at (as a bouncer, bartender, croupier, server, entertainer, spotter, or cook), and hopefully get a chance to catch Saul’s eye and make an impression. You’ve long worked at honing your skills, and are quite accomplished and certain that you have something to offer. Pick one of the following skills: Bluff, Craft (any), Diplomacy, Intimidate, Perform (any), Profession (gambler), or Spot. You gain a +1 trait bonus in that skill, and that skill is always considered a class skill for you.
_Optimistic Gambler:_ You’ve always seemed to have trouble keeping money. Worse, you always seem to have debts looming over your head. When you heard about the “Cheat the Devil and Take His Gold” gambling tournament, you felt in your gut that your luck was about to change. You’ve always been optimistic, in fact, and even though right now is one of those rare times where you don’t
owe anyone any money (you just paid off a recent loan from local moneylender Lymas Smeed), you know that’ll change soon enough. Better to start amassing money now when you’re at one of those rare windfall times! You’ve set aside a gold coin for the entrance fee, and look forward to making it big—you can feel it in your bones! This time’s gonna be the big one! Your boundless optimism, even in the face of crushing situations, has always bolstered your spirit. Effects that grant you morale bonuses persist 1d4 rounds longer than they normally would as a result.
_Researching the Blot:_ You may or may not be seeking membership into Riddleport’s most prestigious magical guild, the Order of Cyphers, but you certainly have heard their call for aid in determining the nature of the strange shadow in the sky above Riddleport. You arrived in town several days ago and had some issues with security and safety at several inns before you finally settled on the Gold Goblin; you’ve been staying there as a guest for several days now, and the owner, Saul Vancaskerkin, seems like a nice guy. He’s even given you a pass to attend the gambling tournament he’s about to throw—you’re not sure how into gambling you’ll be, but perhaps there’ll be some visitors from out of town you can talk to about the strange shadow in the sky. At the very least, you’re hoping someone at the tourney will be into magic—there’s not really enough folk in this town who seem all that interested in magic, you’ve found. Your interest in magic dates back quite far, and as a result, you’ve developed a knack for identifying common magical items at a glance. You can use Spellcraft to identify magic items in the same way you can use Spellcraft to identify a potion. The DC to identify a magic item is equal to 20 + the item’s caster level.
_Scouting for Fiends:_ You belong to an organization (most likely a religion) that has definite views on the menace posed by the lower planes. The willfulness with which the city of Korvosa (they even allow a temple of Asmodeus to operate in broad daylight!) tolerates infernal influences is, to you and your organization, the greatest symbol of what’s wrong with civilization today. And now, in Riddleport, there’s news that a gambling tournament is using devils and Hell as an idle decoration. It’s likely that this is just an example of poor taste, but there’s a chance that something sinister may be lurking beneath the goings-on at the Gold Goblin. You have been contacted by your organization (or may have decided on your own) to travel to Riddleport (if you don’t already live there) and attend this tournament under the guise of a patron. Keep an eye on things there, even after the tournament is over; if you can, get a job working for the owner. Demons and devils can be subtle, and it could take weeks or even months to find proof of their involvement. Your near-obsessive hatred of all things fiendish grants you a +1 trait bonus on all attack rolls made against foes you know to be evil outsiders.
[/SBLOCK]

*Starting wealth* 
Your character gets a random amount of gold coins to purchase his/her starting equipment. You must spend at least half the starting amount or lose the extra cash. The amount depends on your starting class as shown on page 98 of the PFRPG. As with most rolls you can use invisible castle (and provide a link) or let me roll for you.

*Experience*
I'll use the 'medium' column (see page 13 of the PFRPG) for the experience needed to level up. I might revise this later.

*Non-core feats, spells or class variants*
I'm open to allow up to one of these (at lvl 1) per character but you'll have to check with me first.


I think that's everything, don't be afraid to ask additional questions.


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## The Rolling Man

*Riddleport, City of Cyphers*

_The third largest city in all Varisia, Riddleport is also the most notorious. Once a secret pirate haven, Riddleport has grown over the last three centuries into a port city in its own right. At first it served as a den of piracy, but over time the city has expanded into a true settlement, the frontier’s frontier, the  Northernmost outpost on the lonely strip known as the Lost Coast. Yet while Riddleport has grown into a proper city, it remains true to its roots—you can get rich quick in Riddleport if you’ve got skill and a bit of luck. Yet, for every Riddleport success story, there are a dozen nameless bodies buried in potters’ fields or tossed to the hungry denizens of the sea._

*Riddleport's Demographics*

Population : 13300 (77% human, 7% dwarf, 5% half-elf, 4% half-orc, 3% tiefling, 2% halfling, 1% gnome, 1% other)

As the high amount of half-elves, half-orcs and even tieflings shows, the lawless city of Riddleport is an haven for all sort of outcasts from all over Goralion. In a city without strong establishment, even people who would be mistrusted in other lands can make their own way. Of course, like the introduction paragraph mentioned, the city can also be very unforgiving to those who fail.

*Current Events*
At the start of the game, two events are the talk of the town. The first is the manifestation of the Blot, a strange and ominous shadow in the sky that looks like nothing so much as a cloud of darkness. The Blot captured the interest of Riddleport’s citizens when it first manifested, but that was months ago—now, after the strange cloud hasn’t done anything particularly dramatic for so long, most folk have grown accustomed to it. Most—but not all ; some, such as the Order of Cyphers, remain concerned by the strange cloud, and worry that it may be the harbinger of something worse.

The other event is a gambling tournament called “Cheat the Devil and Take His Gold.” Held at the recently reopened Gold Goblin Gambling Hall, talk of the tourney has spread throughout the town of Riddleport and has even reached some taverns in cities as far as Magnimar or even Korvosa. Excitement for the tournament has been building for a month, and now that the day is finally here, people from all over are flocking to take part. The somewhat restrictive entrance fee ironically makes it not possible for many of Riddleport’s own citizens to attend, but in the case of each PC who takes a Second Darkness Campaign Trait, that 1 gp entrance fee has been paid, either by an interested party or by yourself (this expense does not come from your starting cash).

[Sblock=Power groups and points of interest]*Pirate captains*: As the founders of the city, the pirates are the traditional power in Riddleport. Various captains would fight and betray one another for the title of overlord and leadership of the city. This changed thirty years ago when the former pirate Gaston Cromarcky became Overlord. Instead of calling on fellow pirates for support, he hired many mercenaries from land-based groups to keep the order in the city. To pay for such new expenses, the overlord runs a sort of official protection racket. No pirate wishing to dock in the city can attack a ship flying the Riddleport flag. The price for such protection is extremely high however, so the Riddleport's pirates still have plenty of targets. As such, while the pirates are still a force to be reckon with at sea, their power in the city proper has shifted to the permanent residents, like the Overlord and the criminal groups. Overlord Cromarcky resides in his heavily guarded compound on an island in the middle of the  Velashu river.
*Gendarmes*: They are the armed forces payed by Overlord Gaston Cromarcky to keep a semblance order in the city. They consist mostly of mercenaries with little links to piracy. While they do a better job keeping the streets safe then the pirates ever did, the Gendarmes have been know to turn a blind eye to quite a few criminal activities. Their barracks, the Devil's Folk, are nestled in the hills in the northern part of the city and serve as both training ground and prison for the city.
*Cyphergate*: The enigmatic Cyphergate looms large over Riddleport’s harbor, a constant reminder of the transience of life and even civilization, since no record has ever been found of who may have raised this architectural wonder. The arch rises 350 feet above the water at high tide, secured by the rocky crags on either side of the harbor mouth—its diameter is exactly 700 feet. It is of an unidentifiable stone of nearly supernatural hardness that resists almost all efforts at defacing or marking, and as with most Thassilonian monuments, it has weathered the passage of years amazingly well. Most scholars believe that the runes on the arch have no meaning, and are decorative. Magical attempts to decipher the runes have supported this theory, yet the Order of Cyphers believes that this simply points to the runes’ mystic nature, that even magic cannot decipher their meaning or the Cyphergate’s true purpose. Cracking this code has become the primary goal of the Order, yet they are no closer to solving it today than they were when their order was founded.
*The Order of Cyphers*: A group of wizards, sorcerers and scholars dedicated to deciphering the secret and use of the Cyphergate and other Thassilonian ruins, the Order of Cyphers is the rising power in Riddleport. Their ways are mysterious and a lot of the more traditional inhabitant of Riddleport mistrust them. The order is lead by Elias Tammerhawk, a accomplished wizard that some say might be poised to become the next Overlord. The Cypher Lodge, their headquarter, overlooks the southern cliffs of the city and offers an excellent view of the Cyphergate. It also holds the most complete library in northern Varisia.
*Criminal groups*: In a lawless city like Riddleport, the thieves, smugglers, cutthroats and other scoundrels hold a lot of sway. This ranges from small groups of pick pockets banding together to full fledged criminal associations headed by a criminal boss. One of the most notorious of these is Clegg Zincher who own the infamous Zincher's Arena where desperate men fight monsters or each other for the entertainment of the clients. Other crimes lords include Boss Croat, a fat half-orc who apparently controls drug traffic, and Shorafa Pamodae, the dark and alluring tiefling priestess of Calistria who controls the 'hospitality' business from her House of the Silken Veil. Outside the city, clans of Varisian Sczarni like to take as victims the travellers coming or leaving.
*Gold Goblin Gambling Hall*: Once a high profile venue and shining diamond of the bustling Wharf District, this run-down gambling hall has been recently rebuilt and is the site for the upcoming “Cheat the Devil and Take His Gold” gambling tournament.
*Gas Forges*: The second most know feature of Riddleport (after the massive Cyphergate) is the dwarf operated Gas Forges. The gas forges stand out as a tall metal and stone structure in the middle of a city mostly build out of wood. Long ago, some dwarves discovered rare gas deposits in mines below the city. The industrious dwarves knew that they could use that gas to heat forges to an incredibly high temperature which now allows them to smelt even the hardest metals, like adamantine. To this days, dwarves control the extraction of the gases as well as the forging operations. The day to day operations aren't glamorous however. All the toxic compounds that the forging processes release are taxing even on the hardy dwarves. Many of the gas forge's workers die before they can benefit from their (albeit high) pay. The gas forges are owned by a consortium of rich dwarves that stay in faraway Janherhoff.[/Sblock]

[Sblock=Deities in Riddleport]Although not a particularly pious lot, the people of Riddleport know better than to trust in luck alone. Thus, a number of unruly congregations flourish in the City of Cyphers, the largest being dedicated to deities sympathetic to sailors, gamblers, criminals, and free spirits of all walks.
*Besmara*: Although primarily worshiped among the Shackles far to the south, the Pirate Queen is the goddess of pirates, strife, and sea serpents. Thus, her faith suits the scallywags and seafarers of Riddleport well. Her temple, derisively known as the Fish Bowl, makes regular blood sacrifices to assure safe and profitable voyages.
*Calistria*: The fickle goddess of trickery, lust, and revenge maintains a particularly healthy following in Riddleport. Her temple, the House of the Silken Veil, encourages her flock’s vendettas and oversees the city’s “hospitality” industry. Several thugs and assassins are known for quoting Calistria’s collection of holy poems, Blood for Wine, before setting about their grim work.
*Cayden Cailean*: From the raucous Publican’s House, the clergy of Cayden Cailean, god of alcohol, bravery, and freedom, welcome nearly all comers and hearten those who seek to live lives free of laws and restrictions. The church of the Drunken Hero is known for helping newcomers find homes within the city and encouraging legitimate trade—especially the import of exotic wines and brews.
*Desna*: The most blessed and cursed deity in Riddleport, the butterfly-winged goddess of travelers, luck, and the stars watches over gamblers, navigators on ships, and those seeking fortune and new beginnings. Although her faith does not support an actual temple within the City of Cyphers, nearly every gambling den in the city bears a statue in her image and several wandering priests—particularly of Varisian descent— do her work.
*Gozreh*: Although no temple in Riddleport bears the symbol of the Wind and the Waves, few sailors don’t in some way pay respects to the god of nature. Many docks bear small shrines so departing seafarers can offer last-minute sacrifices, and wandering clerics and druids of Gozreh sell blessings and prayers for their god’s distraction.[/Sblock]

[Sblock= Riddleport Slang]*Abbess*: A priestess or whore of Calistria
*Bridge Monkey*: Someone from Magnimar
*Capp*: A trusted lieutenant or henchman
*Cattle*: A group of Varisians
*Cow*: A Varisian
*Church Work*: Any lengthy job that is slow to finish or is otherwise drudgery
*Dog Biter*: A large rat, small child, or halfling
*Earth Bath*: An unmarked grave
*Easy Lad*: A male prostitute
*Fancyboy/Fancygirl*: A cyphermage (sometimes an elf )
*Gendarme*: A city guard
*Grog-Blossom*: A facial pimple, or an unsavory person
*Hushman*: A hired killer, generally one kept on semipermanent retainer
*Kiss*: To stab someone—“Kissed the snickersnak” is a phrase used to mean “Got murdered”
*Laced Mutton*: A prostitute (gender neutral)
*Leaky*: Someone who can’t keep a secret (“Don’t tell him about the heist—he’s leaky!”)
*Lumber*: A passenger on a ship (typically an unwanted or unwelcome passenger)
*Pigeon*: A person targeted by a criminal to be the victim of a crime, or a person that visits a prostitute
*Pigmeat*: A dead body, or someone who is about to become dead
*Pump-Sucker*: A dwarf (particularly one who works at the Gas Forges)
*Quickwife*: A female prostitute
*Rathole*: The mouth (especially a mouth that belongs to someone who is saying unwelcome things)
*Rotgut*: Liquor (particularly foul-tasting liquor)
*Sideshow*: A tiefling
*Snickersnak*: A small knife that can be easily hidden on a person’s body
*Soaker*: A priest of Cayden Cailean
*Soggy Plum*: A drunk
*Whisker*: A wererat[/Sblock]


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## Mark Chance

Ooh! Ooh! Me! Pick me!

I don't really have an idea or anything for a character yet, but I've been hungering to take _Pathfinder_ out for a test drive.


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## Ambrus

Ooh! Ooh! I'm all over this too. I've adopted Pathfinder for my home Planescape campaign, am playing Curse of the Crimson Throne in another online game here and would love to see another Paizo module. Not sure what I'd play yet though...

An odd question... might there be some way to take one of the creatures in paizo's Classic Monsters Revisited as a PC? It's a great book. 

Edit: Hey. I just noticed that you're in la belle province too. Do I know you?...


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## The Rolling Man

I've updated the 'Riddleport' post with some more information. You don't have to read it all if you don't feel like it but it could inspire you for a character idea.


Mark Chance said:


> Ooh! Ooh! Me! Pick me!
> 
> I don't really have an idea or anything for a character yet, but I've been hungering to take _Pathfinder_ out for a test drive.



Thank you for expressing such interest, I look foward to seeing a character concept .


			
				Ambrus said:
			
		

> Ooh! Ooh! I'm all over this too. I've adopted Pathfinder for my home Planescape campaign, am playing Curse of the Crimson Throne in another online game here and would love to see another Paizo module. Not sure what I'd play yet though...
> 
> An odd question... might there be some way to take one of the creatures in paizo's Classic Monsters Revisited as a PC? It's a great book.



 I also have a pdf copy of this, and I like it (especially the crazy goblin and the scary bugbear). Riddleport sure is the perfect setting for some more usually pc race, so it could probably work. I'd prefer if you picked a race without racial HD however. Just tell me what you have in mind and we'll work it out.


			
				Ambrus said:
			
		

> Edit: Hey. I just noticed that you're in la belle province too. Do I know you?...



I guess it's possible but I doubt it. I haven't been very active in the 'rpg scene' in the last few years. It's quite possible we saw each other in 'Le Valet' at some point however .


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## Dr Simon

Ooh, I'm interested....

Hope I can fit another game in, I'll see how quickly I can put together a character.  I love the sound of this campaign!

Think I might go spellcaster or rogue this time. Hmm...


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## ghostcat

Sounds interesting.

However I have not seen the Pathfinder rules so it will take me two or three days to put a character together.


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## Dr Simon

Okay, first pass.  I'm liking the idea of a roguish character with magical power, probably MC rogue/wizard moving to Arcane Trickster later. To that end, I'd like to take a trait that allowed him to use Knowledge (arcane) as a class skill for rogue (plus bonus?). Maybe the son of a hedge wizard or something? To facilitate MCing to wizard, I've given him a spellbook that he's carried with him, studying it for months (years?) in the hopes of making a breakthrough.

Tolly Garnus

Str 12 (2 points)
Dex 14 (5 points)
Con 10
Int 15 (3 points to 13, +2 racial bonus)
Wis 10
Cha 14 (5 points)

Human (Chelaxian heritage).
30 ft. base move, +1 skill point, bonus feat, martial weapon training (longsword), favoured class rogue.
AL: NG

Rogue 1
Hit points 13 (HD 8 + 5 (half Con))
BAB +0, melee +1, ranged +2
Fort +0
Reflex +4
Will +0
CMB +1
Initiative +6 (+2 Dex, +4 feat)
Traits: Hedge wizard (+1 to Know (arcana), Looking For Work (+1 to Bluff)

Skills 12 (8 class, +2 Int, +1 human, +1 favoured class)
Bluff +7
Diplomacy +5
Disable Device +6
Escape Artist +6
Knowledge (arcana) +7
Knowledge (dungeoneering) +6
Linguist +6
Perception +4
Sleight +6
Stealth +6
Use Magic Device +6

Feats
1st level Dodge
Human Bonus Improved Initiative

Equipment
Longsword
Starknife
Shortbow
20 arrows
Backpack
Leather armour
Spellbook
Thieves tools
Bedroll
Caltrops
Flint and steel
Vial of ink
Pen
Traveller's Outfit

Total weight 40lbs
Money 7 sp, 5 cp

(Note: I used Average gold, as I didn't see your note about rolling. Is this acceptable?)

Height 6'2"
Weight 184 lbs

Light load <43lbs
Medium 44-86 lbs
Heavy 87-130 lbs

Tolly is a thin, rangy looking individual with reddish hair and a charming smile. A chancer and wanderer by nature, Tolly moves from place to place picking up whatever work he can do, and sometimes pilfering a bit of food and drink if work is unavailable. He's spent a bit of time travelling with Varisians, but is Chelaxian by birth. Part of a large extended family from East Side, Korvosa, Tolly has picked up bits of background knowledge about magic from his older sisters who studied at Theomenexus's College. He carries with him a battered old book of basic magical theory, but has not quite come to grips with the spells listed therein, despite his best efforts. 

Tolly has no dark secrets or tragic upbringing, his worst attribute is probably his total lack of responsibility or focus - some say he is a gnome trapped in a human body. Always dabbling, always curious, always friendly.

Tolly has come to Riddleport partly by happenstance, partly out of curiosity about rumours that he's heard about the place. Not only does the free-for-all nature of the city and the gambling tournament appeal to his happy-go-lucky side, the mystery of the Blot appeals to his magical interests.

Quote "This is indeed a fascinating conjecture. Where _could_ the pie have gone?"

I'm happy to have you roll the dice for me, less faffing than IC.


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## Walking Dad

Interested!!

Will post more soon. I think Pathfinder is D&D 3.5!



> Non-core feats, spells or class variants
> I'm open to allow up to one of these (at lvl 1) per character but you'll have to check with me first.



Would you allow me to take the druid shapeshifting variant from the PH2? I'm not that happy with the pathfinder polymorph/wildshape solution.
BTW: The shapeshifting doesn't seem strong enough to loose both normal wildshape and the animal companion. Could I retain the druid domain (air, animal, earth, fire, plant, water, or weather)? Would be most likely air, plant or  water.

Would be more like a half-orc druid. Perhaps with connctions to a criminal group (beggars guild or the pirates).
Trait: Into Enemy Territory or Scouting for Fiends

I will use lime green as speaking color.


----------



## Ambrus

I'm considering a either a goblin ranger or rogue. I'm working on a background and then I'll start in on stating it up.


----------



## Walking Dad

Rorgar

[sblock=stats]
Str 16 (5 points to 14, +2 racial bonus)
Dex 13 (3 points)
Con 13 (3 points)
Int 10 (2 points to 12, -2 racial)
Wis 15 (3 points to 13, +2 racial bonus)
Cha 9 (-1 point)

Half-Orc (Chelish heritage).
30 ft. base move, Darkvision, Weapon Familiarity, Orc Ferocity, Orc Blood
Favored Class: Druid
AL: LN

Druid 1
Hit points 16 (HD 10 + 1 (Con mod) +5 (half Con))
BAB +0, melee +3, ranged +1
Fort +3
Reflex +1
Will +4
CMB +3
Initiative +3
Traits: Into Enemy Territory (+1 to Reflex), Reactionary (+2 to Initiative)

AC: 16 - Flatfooted: 14 - Touch 12

Skills  (4 class + 1 fav class)
Know (nature) +5
Perception +5
Spellcraft +3
Survival +7
Swim +5

Feats
1st level Dodge

Spells prepared
o - Detect Magic, Guidance, Resistance
1 - Cure Light Wounds, Longstrider

Equipment (80 gp):
Leather Armor 10 gp
Scimitar 15 gp
Dagger 2gp
Heavy Wooden Shield 7gp
Holly and Mistletoe -
Spell Component's Pouch 5 gp
Backpack 2 gp
Bedroll 0.1 gp

Wolf-Shapeshift
Str 20
Dex 13
Con 13
Int 10
Wis 15
Cha 9

AC: 16 - Flatfooted: 14 - Touch: 12

50 ft. base move
Att (Bite): +5 / 1d6+5
CMB +5
[/sblock]
------------

[sblock=Background]
[sblock=Image]
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	



[/sblock]
Rorgar has lived his early life as a little dog biter in the seedier parts of Riddleport. His first memory is of himself avoiding to become pigmeat beyond the waves. As an orphan who didn't know if all this was a terrible accident or if his own parents tried to hush him, Rorgar had a difficult early life.
His life changed after trying to pick-pocket an elderly man he thaught to be just another soggy plum. The man revealed himself to be a druid and he saw potential in Rorgar. Thinking that better than ending in an earth bath, he followed him. There, he grew strong and wise.
This sect venerates more primal powers an less nature gods like Gozreh. They think they are charged to protect the material realm from otherworldly, unnatural forces (including celestials!).
After the shadow in the sky has become visible from all around Riddleport, the druid elders have performed some auguries, and all the signs point the same way—something or someone in Riddleport is connected to the blot, and it means bad news for the region. Rorgar has avoided the sleazy, dirty town for most of his 'new' life, traveling there only when accompanying his now deceased mentor, and although he doesn’t relish the prospect of going there now, he has little other choice. Fortunately, (PC name) is in town, and Rorgar has heard this friend will be taking part in some gambling thing at a place called the Gold Goblin.
[/sblock]


----------



## Walking Dad

Ambrus said:


> I'm considering a either a goblin ranger or rogue. I'm working on a background and then I'll start in on stating it up.



If you go ranger, perhaps our characters know each other.


----------



## The Rolling Man

*To ghostcat and everyone*

It's good to see more interest. I'll probably close recruitment soon, 5 players would be fine.

Also, *cough* talents *cough*.


----------



## The Rolling Man

*To Dr. Simon*

I did said I wanted random starting gold but I guess the average will be fine for you since you already pick up some equipment. Now, if anyone else wants to take average gold, I'll allow that too. Other then that, Tolly seems fine to me at first glance (I haven't gone into details yet). For your talent, there's one (Mathematical Prodigy) that gives a bonus (+1) to knw arcana and engineering, plus makes one of those a class skill. It's fine by me if you want to pick another knowledge skill to replace engineering and change the flavor of the talent to better fit your background.


----------



## The Rolling Man

*To Ambrus*

Looking at the 'classic monster revisited' entry for goblins, I've come up with a few bonuses that brings them closer to the pathfinder version of the other races. Tell me what you think.
[SBLOCK=PC Goblin]As the SRD goblin except

-2 Strength, +2 Dexterity
Goblins get a total bonus of +6 to stealth checks (+4 for size and +2 racial). This replaces the +4 racial bonus to move silently.
Weird mind: While scared easily, goblins are also always distracted by all sort of weird things. This makes it hard to magically control them for long and grants them a +2 racial bonus to saving throws vs. mind-affecting spells and abilities.
Pyromaniacs: Goblins LOVE fire. When dealing fire damage, add +1 to all dices rolled for damage (this doesn't stack with similar bonuses). 
Mobility: Goblins gain this feat as a bonus.
Weapon familiarity : Goblins are proficient with dogslicers.
The favored class of goblins is rogue or bard. This choice must be made at 1st level and cannot be changed.
[/sblock]


----------



## The Rolling Man

*To WD*

I like the PH2 shapeshifter variant but I don't think I can allow you to pick a domain in addition to that. You already can shift at will with the variant and giving you another 'at will' magical power with a domain would be a bit too much. Losing both wildshape and nature bond is still a lot however, so maybe you could have a little bonus like d10 for HDs or the ability to make the Natural Spell feat work in shapeshift.

As for the 'born acrobat' talent, I'm not against the idea of a talent giving you that bonus but I'd like you to maybe come up with some more background details on how your character ended up being so good at jumping around.

Finally, I got an 8 on 2d6. So, 80 gp for Rorgar (druids are poor).


----------



## Voadam

Ambrus said:


> I'm considering a either a goblin ranger or rogue. I'm working on a background and then I'll start in on stating it up.




Care to bring back the team of Maelicent and Voadam?

Voadam heard Gamad scream and spun around to see the deformed dwarf had once again pulled out the Fragment of the Rod of Law. "I see Darkness, it is coming … Nooooo!" Gamad wailed. Then all turned black as the Queen of Chaos used Gamad's contact to send her power bubbling through the artefact and banish the heroes to the corners of the multiverse with her raw power.


----------



## Voadam

Many considered Voadam touched in the head. The man was said to have called himself "the Green Wizard of Althora" but performed no magics claiming "it works different here" and nobody had ever heard of Althora. He swore by gods nobody heard of and was concerned about the machinations of demons and the forces of Law and Chaos. Still he is friendly, inquisitive, and quick to learn. He's also tough, brave, and ready to step into dangerous situations. 

A bearded brown-haired bear of a man with blue eyes dressed in black robes with a green sash.

Voadam was in fact a world hopping, demon-hunting viking wizard who fell afoul of demonic planar magics that banished him to this world as he quested to restore the Staff of Law. He was skilled in spells, bladework, and the lotus petal style of martial arts. On arriving here however he found that magic worked differently and much of his previous lore and powers were now inapplicable.

He has seen many things and is an experienced hunter of evil. Pragmatic, greedy, and mercenary though he may be, underneath he is a good man and can’t help himself from getting involved in the affairs of the worlds he finds himself in. He is currently interested in learning about where he is, recovering his magical powers, and rebuilding a new spellbook. He expects the dark forces at work in the world to draw him into their ambit before too long.

The concept is a Ranger Wizard heading towards either eldritch knight or loremaster, he is rebuilding his magical abilities from the ground up again as he learns of this new world he finds himself in.

Note this is a character I have played before, including in pbp games here (including canadienne bacon's Rod of Seven Parts game with Ambrus' malevolent goblin Maelicent).


----------



## Ambrus

Voadam said:


> Care to bring back the team of Maelicent and Voadam?



Actually no. I like the idea of a wily goblin and so thought this campaign, with an altogether different set of players, would be a good fresh opportunity to try playing one since my last PBP attempt to do so failed. But I think I'd prefer to try something different if there are to be players around who are familiar with my past characters. 

So perhaps a kobold sneak thief then...


----------



## Mark Chance

*Kronk Madaxe*

Here's my initial work on a dwarf fighter. He's still under construction.

[sblock=Kronk's Class Photo]





[/sblock]

[sblock=Kronk Madaxe, male dwarf fighter 1]
N Medium Humanoid (dwarf)
*Init* +1 (+4 surprise round); *Senses* darkvision 60 ft., Perception +5 (+7 taste- and touch-based, and +7 vs. unusual stonework)
*Language* Common, Dwarven, Goblin
-----
*AC* 11 (+1 Dex), touch 11, flat-footed 10; Defensive Training
*hp* 19 (1 HD)
*Fort* +4*, *Ref* +1*, *Will* +1* (*Doesn't include +2 vs. poison, spells, and spell-like abilities)
-----
*Speed* 20 ft. (4 squares)
*Melee* , or
*Melee* (vs. orcs and goblins) 
*Space* 5 ft.; *Reach* 5 ft.
*Base Atk* +1; *CMB* +3 (+7 when resisting bull rush or trip while standing on the ground)
-----
*Abilities* Str 14, Dex 12, Con 15, Int 14, Wis 12, Cha 8
*SQ* defensive training, keen senses, stonecunning, weapon familiarity
*Feats* Intimidating Prowess, Power Attack
*Skills (Ranks)* Appraise +3 (+6 with greed racial trait) (1), Intimidate +5 (1), Knowledge (dungeoneering) +6 (1), Knowledge (engineering) +6 (1), Perception +5 (1)
-----
*Possessions:* 5d6=17 x 10 = 170 gp
-----
*Background Traits:*
_Looking for Work:_ Perception is a class skill.

_Talent for Sudden Violence:_ You grew up in and around violence. Survival often depended on drawing first blood, or at least being the first one to get out of harm's way. Consequently, you developed quick reflexes in dangerous situations. Gain a +3 initiative bonus during a surprise round.

*Racial Traits:*
_Slow and Steady:_ Dwarves have a base speed of 20 feet, but their speed is never modified by armor or encumbrance.

_Stonecunning:_ Dwarves treat any Profession skill related to stone as a class skill. They receive a check to notice such features whenever they pass within 10 feet of them, regardless of whether or not they are actively looking.

_Greed:_ Dwarves treat Appraise as a class skill when attempting to determine the price of nonmagical goods that contain precious metals and gemstones.

_Weapon Familiarity:_ Dwarves are proficient with battleaxes, heavy picks, and warhammers, and treat any weapon with the word “dwarven” in its name as a martial weapon.

_Defensive Training:_ Dwarves get a +4 dodge bonus to AC against monsters of the giant type.

_Favored Class:_ Fighter.
[/sblock]


----------



## Dr Simon

TRM, sorry about the gold, I jumped in there without checking properly!

As for traits, I see there's already one called "Hedge Wizard". I'd like to keep the idea that he's gleaned various bits of magic-based knowledge over the years, so how about replacing Knowledge (engineering) with Knowledge (the planes)? Maybe call the trait Mystical Education or something?


----------



## ghostcat

Here's my initial attempt at a Half Elf Monk. I still need to work out starting money and equipment. I also need to finalise the Traits.

As far a traits are concerned, my background implies that he has a trait that makes Diplomacy a class skill. In which case, the campaign trait would be "Looking For Work" (+1 to Intimidate) Is this OK?

At the moment part of my background is DM ONLY. This is because it contains information that it not generally know in the world. If you like, I can make this "Player Information"

[sblock="Chan Ti Male Half Elf Monk 1"]
Str:	13	(3 points)
Dex:	16	(5 points to 14, +2 Half Elf Bonus) 
Con:	12	(2 points)
Int:	10	(0 points)
Wis:	14	(5 points)
Cha:	10	(0 points)

Half Elf (Tien heritage).
30 ft. base move,
Low-Light Vision,
Keen Senses (+2 Perception sight/sound),
Elven Immunities (immune to magic sleep, +2 against enchantment),
Adaptability (Skill Focus as bonus feat),
Elf Blood
Favoured Class Monk.
AL: LN

Monk 1
Hit points 15 (HD 8 + 1 (con mod) + 6 (half Con))
AC 15 (10 + 3 (Dex Modifier) + 2 (Monk Wisdom Bonus)
BAB +0, melee +1, ranged +3
Fort +3
Reflex +5
Will +4
CMB +1
Initiative +3 (+3 Dex)
Tlraits: Looking For Work (+1 to ?)
	 (SEE COMMENT)

Skills 5 (4 class, 0 Int, +1 favoured class)
Acrobatics +5
Diplomacy +4
Escape Artist +7
Perception +6 (+2 to Sight and Sound from Half Elf)
Stealth	+10 (+3 from Skill focus)

Feats
1st Level 	Combat Reflexes
Monk 		Improved Unarmed Strike
Monk Bonus	Deflect Arrows
Half Elf Bonus	Skill Focus 

Equipment
TBD

Total weight ??
Money 


Height:	6'1"
Weight:	140lbs
Age:	23
[/sblock]

[sblock="Description"]A tall skinny looking Half Elf wearing a dark gray monk's outfit. Ti's features are fairly nondescript, with brown eyes and a long thin face. However, this is made up for by his hair which is dark orange worn in a Mohecan cut.
[/sblock]

[sblock="Background"]Ti does not know his parents. All he knows is that his mother sold him into the service of the Di-Chan order when he was a baby.  From that day until his 23 year, Ti was cloistered in the Di-Chan monastery, perfecting his art and skills. 

To give the novice experience of the world outside of the monastery, they are taken to town near the monastery during the final year of their novitiate. There they are given a series of tests. These tests always take the same form, the novice has to follow someone for 24 hours and then use his dipolmacy skills to determine what the target was doing. 

Ti was given three of these tests:

In the first test, he fell for the charms of a pretty young whore and totally blow it.

In the second test, Ti was introduced to drinking and gambling and woke up in the gutter broke and hung over.

By the time of the third test, Ti had become a little more streetwise and managed to ignore the various temptations that where put in his path and completed his mission.

Shortly after his third test, Ti was initiated in the Di-Chan order and was told to go out in to the world and perfect his art.  
[/sblock]

[sblock="Background DM ONLY"]The Di-Chan Order

The Di-Chan order maintains a monastery in a hidden valley in the foothills.  To the Novices, Initiates and the few outsiders that know about it, the Di-Chan is just an order of monks dedicated to the perfection of the marshal arts.  While this is true as far as it goes, the order actually supports itself by acting as an information broker.  Its initiates roam the world and report back to the monastery. There, the information is collated and sold.  Occasionally, one of the Initiates will receive orders either to go on a specific mission or to obtain a specific piece of information.

Ti was ordered to report anything "interesting" back to the monastery. (A part of Ti's training involved learning how to recognise what was of interest to the order.)
[/sblock]


----------



## Walking Dad

Thanks, I will take shape shift and d10 HD 
I also took a more common trait from the link you provided.

Do we have a cleric? Looks like we doesn't. Would you also allow Spontanous Rejuvenation variant (also PH2)? The druid is, with the change to turn undead, already a much worse healer tahn the cleric and this would help to compensate. Summoning on the other hand can get annoying quickly.

I have changed my second background trait. Still working on some background details.


----------



## The Rolling Man

I've created a rogue gallery. You can post your characters there once their mostly finish. I'll then review them in greater details.



Voadam said:


> Many considered Voadam touched in the head. The man was said to have called himself "the Green Wizard of Althora" but performed no magics claiming "it works different here" and nobody had ever heard of Althora. ...(snip)



It's an interesting proposal for sure but I wonder if such an 'ancient hero' character will fit well with the first adventure of the adventure path. By this I mean that we don't get to fighting demons and ancient evils right off the bat .



			
				Mark Chance said:
			
		

> Here's my initial work on a dwarf fighter. He's still under construction.



Looking good so far. I wonder what sort of class makes you take photos with dead rats . Seriously, I just have 2 small things. First, about the trait, you can have a +2 bonus to all initiative rolls (there's already one such trait in the player's guide) or I'd allow a +3 to initiative in surprise rounds (i.e. only applicable if you're aware in the surprise round). Second, you should switch out 'spot' for the more general 'perception' skill of the Pathfinder RPG.



			
				Dr. Simon said:
			
		

> As for traits, I see there's already one called "Hedge Wizard". I'd like to keep the idea that he's gleaned various bits of magic-based knowledge over the years, so how about replacing Knowledge (engineering) with Knowledge (the planes)? Maybe call the trait Mystical Education or something?



This is all fine by me.



			
				ghostcat said:
			
		

> Here's my initial attempt at a Half Elf Monk. I still need to work out starting money and equipment. I also need to finalise the Traits.
> 
> As far a traits are concerned, my background implies that he has a trait that makes Diplomacy a class skill. In which case, the campaign trait would be "Looking For Work" (+1 to Intimidate) Is this OK?



I like the background and your trait is fine. It can be something like :
*Di-Chan initiate* : You have passed the tests of the Di-Chan monks and have been initiated to their order. The training and philosophy of the monastic order allows you to easily interact with others. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Diplomacy checks, and Diplomacy is always a class skill for you.

I'd like to assume that your character was borned and raised in distant Tian Xia continent (the Golarion's 'Far East Asia' analog). He traveled throught the Crown of the World and hasn't been in Varisia for very long. Tell if that's fine with you.

You can also pick the Tien language instead of Elven if you wish. Finaly, I've rolled 30 gp for your character (monks are poorer then druids)



			
				Walking Dad said:
			
		

> Do we have a cleric? Looks like we doesn't. Would you also allow Spontanous Rejuvenation variant (also PH2)? The druid is, with the change to turn undead, already a much worse healer tahn the cleric and this would help to compensate. Summoning on the other hand can get annoying quickly.



I prefer to keep this as is for now. Maybe the group will have to quickly invest in a good old _wand of cure light wounds_. On that note, I'd like to inform all of you that my potions, scrolls and wands aren't always actual potions, scrolls and wands. For example, there might be a potion effect on a waxed fruit you need to take a bite off, a statuette might be charged with a wand effect and you might need to shatter a crystal and recite a few words to release a 'scroll' effect. This doesn't have any mechanical effects but brings a bit more variety to the magical items.


----------



## Ambrus

Sorry for failing to post a character thus far; been busy. I'm currently looking at kobolds and was wondering what changes if any you'd see fit to make for Pathfinder. Here are their PC stats from Races of the Dragon:

+2 Dex, -4 Str, -2 Con
Small size: +1 bonus to Armor Class, +1 bonus on attack rolls, +4 bonus on Stealth checks.
Humanoid (dragonblood, reptilian)
Base land speed is 30 feet.
+1 natural armor.
Darkvision out to 60 feet.
+2 racial bonus on Craft (trapmaking), Profession (miner) and Perception checks.
Light Sesitivity: Kobolds are dazzled in bright sunlight or within the radius of a daylight spell.
Automatic Languages: Draconic. Bonus Languages: Common and Undercommon. 
Favored Class: Sorcerer.

In an attempt to give them a little more oomph as PCs, since they're so weak, WotC put out this web enhancement to further empower the little guys: Web Enhancement: Races of the Dragon -- Kobolds: Playing to Their Strengths

Let me know what you think and whether its too late to post a character.


----------



## Mark Chance

The Rolling Man said:


> Looking good so far. I wonder what sort of class makes you take photos with dead rats .




Not rats. Squirrels. Can't stand the things. Always hiding nuts. I mean, seriously, what the hell's that about? Creepy little rodents.... *_mutter, mutter_*



The Rolling Man said:


> Seriously, I just have 2 small things. First, about the trait, you can have a +2 bonus to all initiative rolls (there's already one such trait in the player's guide) or I'd allow a +3 to initiative in surprise rounds (i.e. only applicable if you're aware in the surprise round). Second, you should switch out 'spot' for the more general 'perception' skill of the Pathfinder RPG.




Let's go for the +3 on surprise rounds. And, yeah, I caught the Spot vs. Perception mistake last night. I actually woke up around 11:30 p.m. when I realized it. Apparently I proofread characters in my dreams.


----------



## Dr Simon

Ambrus: All PF character races have a +2 ability score bonus above standard 3.5 races, so perhaps that might help make him less of a weed.

@ Rolling Man:  I think I missed out languages. With an Int bonus of +2, Tolly should have Common, plus two bonus languages, plus another human language, is this right?  What would be a suitable language for a character with familiarity with old magic books? Draconic is usually considered the standard, but would Thassilonian be possible?


----------



## ghostcat

The Rolling Man said:


> I've created a rogue gallery. You can post your characters there once their mostly finish. I'll then review them in greater details.
> 
> This is all fine by me.
> 
> I like the background and your trait is fine. It can be something like :
> *Di-Chan initiate* : You have passed the tests of the Di-Chan monks and have been initiated to their order. The training and philosophy of the monastic order allows you to easily interact with others. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Diplomacy checks, and Diplomacy is always a class skill for you.
> 
> I'd like to assume that your character was borned and raised in distant Tian Xia continent (the Golarion's 'Far East Asia' analog). He traveled throught the Crown of the World and hasn't been in Varisia for very long. Tell if that's fine with you.
> 
> You can also pick the Tien language instead of Elven if you wish. Finaly, I've rolled 30 gp for your character (monks are poorer then druids)




Like the Trait and I agree about just arriving in Varisia. I'll move the character over to the Rogues Gallery and update the Traits and Background later today. I'll also spend my money wisely.

Still not sure whether to take Tien instead of Elven. Although given the background it makes sense.


----------



## Ambrus

Damn. I had the stats for my kobold rogue, but lost it due to a glitch while uploading it. Fortunately I managed to save the character background I'd typed up. TRM, please take a look at it and let me know what you think. Feel free to also roll my starting gold and to suggest possible campaign specific feats and traits that you think might be appropriate. I'll wait to hear back from you concerning Pathfinder kobolds before I go about stating him up again. 

[sblock=The Rolling Man]Here's tha dark of it, bes as I can figure. Few years back some eggsucking bigfeet bashers done in a brood of kobolds somewhere up north; probably in tha Lurkwood or past tha Red Mountains. Came inta town with whatever shiny shinies they'd got to buy some bub and ta rut with some laced mutton.

Mayhaps they was canny, mayhaps jes ol' sodding hatchwits, but they'd snatched a shiny-shiny egg from tha kobold brood's rookery that they took ta be that o' some kinda trueblood. Sodding leatherheads. Came down with goldfever an so went ta tha Cypher Lodge ta bilk a fancyboy. Eggsucking fancyboy got all giddy at tha sight o' that shiny-shiny an gave em some pelf fer it; thought he'd got hiself a lil shoulder dragon familiar in tha makin. Addle-coved twit.

So off go tha egg snatchers ta rut or drink bub till they've no shine left. Tha dandy fancyboy builds hiself a nice lil nest and sets ta work on hatchin tha thing. Fortnight later, I come on out ta say hi. Peery fancyboy tumbles ta tha dark 'o it right quick; I aint ever gonna be no shoulder dragon. Now this top-shelf fancyboy, Tammerhawk – yeah, that Tammerhawk, is plenty pissed that he's been bobbed, but don't want none o' his fancyboy buddies tumbling ta just how big o' a gully he is. So he takes me, a tiny hatchwit, and does tha same that he does with tha rest o' tha drek from his arse; dumps my hide down a midden chute.

The redgut gnawin away got me crawlin an digging through tha stink-stink. Had ta run-run from tha plagues ta live; so damned many o' em down in tha sewers fightin fer turf. Got it figured out in time though; made some slow fangs, learnt ta fight-fight and turned em inta meat and skins. Even took on a donkey rat once; that'd be this here skull. So these years later, lucky or no, I aint dead yet. Tammerhawk be damned.

Now I got this burg figured out. I watch from the grates at tha blackeyes scurying around in tha streets overhead. I listen at the drains to em spillin tha dark o things. I take what they toss down here; tha good an tha bad. When I get tired o' waitin on em I jes go up an take what I need. Some o' tha bashers I even work with; rat-catchers, toshers, sewer rats, tinkers, sewer hunters, rogues an even a few other kobolds. Some o' em aint even half bad.

As I seez it, startin from tha gutter, things can only keep headin up fer me. A while back a dark splotch started blottin out tha damed daylight. Good that. One less thing ta worry bout if it gets big nough. Now I hear talk about a shiny-shiny game goin on at tha Goblin. Might jess have ta check that out.[/sblock]
I'm considering taking the Dragonwrought feat from Races of the Dragon. Are you familiar with it or should I post the description for you?


----------



## Walking Dad

Will be back on Tuesday with a background


----------



## Ambrus

I found some spiffy images of Riddleport online. Thought some of you might like to take a look at the burg.


----------



## The Rolling Man

Ambrus said:


> Damn. I had the stats for my kobold rogue, but lost it due to a glitch while uploading it. Fortunately I managed to save the character background I'd typed up. TRM, please take a look at it and let me know what you think. Feel free to also roll my starting gold and to suggest possible campaign specific feats and traits that you think might be appropriate. I'll wait to hear back from you concerning Pathfinder kobolds before I go about stating him up again.
> [...] (snipped the background)
> I'm considering taking the Dragonwrought feat from Races of the Dragon. Are you familiar with it or should I post the description for you?



Yeah, I really hate to lose posts, so I almost always try to save the longest one before trying to post them. But, back your character, it's not too late to post one. I think I'll only start the game around the end of next week. Here's what I have for a PC kobold :
[Sblock=Kobold]
+2 Dex, -4 Str
Small size: +2 bonus to Armor Class, +2 bonus on attack rolls, +8 bonus on Stealth checks. (see slight built)
Humanoid (dragonblood, reptilian)
Base land speed is 30 feet.
+1 natural armor.
Darkvision out to 60 feet.
+2 racial bonus on Craft (trapmaking) and Profession (miner) checks.
+2 racial bonus to sight and touch based Perception checks.
Light Sensitivity: Kobolds are dazzled in bright sunlight or within the radius of a daylight spell.
Natural Weapons: Kobolds have two primary claw attacks that deal 1d3 points of slashing damage plus Strength bonus, and a secondary bite attack that deals 1d3 points of piercing damage plus 1/2 Strength bonus. Despite possibly being the weakest reptilian humanoid, kobolds retain a connection to their feral nature.
Slight Build: The physical stature of kobolds lets them function in many ways as if they were one size category smaller. Whenever a kobold is subject to a size modifier or special size modifier for an opposed check (such as Stealth), the kobold is treated as one size smaller if doing so is advantageous to the character. A kobold is also considered to be one size smaller when "squeezing" through a restrictive space. A kobold can use weapons designed for a creature one size smaller without penalty. However, the space and reach of a kobold remain those of a creature of their actual size. The benefits of this racial trait stack with the effects of powers, abilities, and spells that change the subject's size category.
Automatic Languages: Draconic, Common. Bonus Languages: Goblin, Orc, Undercommon. 
Weapon familiarity : Kobolds are proficient with light and heavy picks and treat greatpicks as martial weapons.
The favored class of goblins is rogue or sorcerer. This choice must be made at 1st level and cannot be changed.
[/sblock]I basicly removed the constitution penalty and added everything from the web enhancement. This still makes them pretty weak (it's kobolds after all) but gives them a few interesting quirks. The only thing that worries me a bit is the 3 natural attacks + sneak attack. But, we'll see how it plays out. I also limited the perception bonus to sight and touch (makes sense with the search bonus) to bring it in line with the other racial bonuses to perception.

As for the Dragonwrought feat, I don't have the book, so you'll have to post it here or something.

[Sblock=About the background and traits]I really liked the background you wrote. The way you mixed kobold and Riddleport slang made it pretty funny. There's only one little problem, however : Riddleport doesn't have much of a sewer system. That's the way the paizo people made it and I'm incline to agree. It is after all a city that grew in size pretty quickly and without much vision, planning or a central authority. There is something that could replace the sewers however. A lot of the filth of the city just washes down into the river and ocean by the way of gullies and ditches, but part of the garbage ends up in a small salt marsh east of the city, called the Boneyard.







			
				SD player's guide said:
			
		

> The Boneyard: This deceptively named place actually serves as the city’s dump and ship’s graveyard. Its name is derived from the many old hulks and collections of ships’ ribs that protrude from the swampy ground. The whole area is a partially flooded salt marsh that is generally 2 or 3 feet deep, although some hidden patches of quicksand are much deeper. Monstrous cockroaches, swamp barracuda, and (it is whispered) wererats infest this area.



Your character could have lived there instead of the sewers. Hiding in some ship's hulk by day and sneaking into the town at night. I figure that your kobold either ended up in the ocean and was brought by the rising tide into the marshes or Elias could have abandoned him there directly. Anyway, just some suggestions.

As for traits, there's one that fits your character pretty well. 
Resilient: Growing up in a violent neighborhood or in the unforgiving wilds often forced you to subsist on food and water from doubtful sources. You’ve built up your mettle as a result, and gain a +1 trait bonus on Fortitude saves.
For the campaign one, it gets a bit tricky as none of the existing one really fit. I'm thinking it could be something named 'Curious about the Golden Goblin' which explains that your character is used to sneaking into all sort of places and he's planning to make a visit to the Golden Goblin during the gambling tournement. It could give a +1 talent bonus to stealth and stealth as a class skill but that's not really much of a bonus for a rogue. We might have to think of something else.[/Sblock]
Oh, and one last note, I rolled 100 gp for your rogue.
Edit: Yeah, that attacking Bunyip is pretty bada**.


----------



## Ambrus

Thanks for all the feedback TRM. I'll revise my character background with your suggestions in mind and go ahead with stating him back up with the racial writeup you completed.

All in all it seems good, though I have to admit that the by-the-book -4 penalty to Str seems a bit odd to me since the kobold's monstrous writeup lists them as having 9 Str; almost as strong as a human. Similarly, the Con penalty doesn't make much sense either since they've normally got 10 Con. I'm not complaining, I'd play one regardless of the stats, just saying it's a bit counterintuitive.

One question: Did you want to include the kobold racial variants from Classic Monsters Revisited too or skip them?

Here's the feat I'd mentioned.
[sblock=Dragonwrought]
You were born a dragonwrought kobold, proof of your race's innate connection to dragons.
*Prerequisite:* Kobold, 1st level only.
*Benefit:* You are a dragon wrought kobold. Your type is dragon rather than humanoid, and you lose the dragonblood subtype. You retain all your other subtypes and your kobold racial traits. Your scales become tinted with a color that matches that of your draconic heritage. As a dragon, you are immune to magic sleep and paralysis effects. You have darkvision out to 60 feet and low-light vision. You gain a +2 racial bonus on the skill indicated for your draconic heritage on the table on page 103.
*Special:* Unlike most feats, this feat must be taken at 1st level, during character creation. Having this feat allows you to take the Dragon Wings feat at 3rd level.






[/sblock]


----------



## The Rolling Man

Dr Simon said:


> @ Rolling Man:  I think I missed out languages. With an Int bonus of +2, Tolly should have Common, plus two bonus languages, plus another human language, is this right?  What would be a suitable language for a character with familiarity with old magic books? Draconic is usually considered the standard, but would Thassilonian be possible?



Right, common, 1 human language and 2 others. Thassilonian would certainly fill the bill but others could be possible. Elven (they learned magic first), Azlanti (dead language of the mystical 'first civilized nation of men', think Atlantis), or since there's a strong tradition of wizard in northern Garund (the pseudo-Africa) Osiriani or even Ancient Osiriani (to continue crude real world analogies, think arabic and ancient egyptian, respectively) could also work. Varisian would probably make sense too, given your background. I can't guaranteed how useful some of these languages are gone be in the long run.

Also, the starknife is a martial weapon so your rogue isn't proficient with it. Other then that, I didn't see anything wrong with your character sheet.



			
				ghostcat said:
			
		

> Like the Trait and I agree about just arriving in Varisia. I'll move the character over to the Rogues Gallery and update the Traits and Background later today. I'll also spend my money wisely.
> 
> Still not sure whether to take Tien instead of Elven. Although given the background it makes sense.



Thanks for posting your character in the RG. Almost everything looks good but there's just 2 things that would need some attention. First, the traits give you a +1 bonus but not an actual rank to a skill and you don't get the class bonus to a skill until you have at least 1 rank. Diplomacy and intimidate should then only be at +1. Of course, you can still move around your 5 skill points to change that before we start (with one rank your bonus to those skills would then be +5). Second, the unarmed damage of a lvl 1 medium monk should only be 1d6+str not 1d8.


----------



## The Rolling Man

Ambrus said:


> One question: Did you want to include the kobold racial variants from Classic Monsters Revisited too or skip them?



I thought about it but with the green one giving another bonus to hide (or stealth), I didn't want it to stack with the increased size bonus kobolds are getting with slight build. Besides, I didn't really like the fact that some choices were pigeonholing those kobolds to a certain class. The breath weapons are cool but somewhat powerful for lvl 1. It could maybe come back as another draconic heritage feat (with some better scaling as you gain lvls) somewhere down the road.


Ambrus said:


> You gain a +2 racial bonus on the skill indicated for your draconic heritage on the table on page 103.



The feat seems a bit powerful but I don't have a problem with it since you're just a lowly kobold . It also works well with the multi-colored kobolds of Goralion. I just wonder what color you are thinking and what skill is getting a bonus.


----------



## Ambrus

The Rolling Man said:


> I thought about it but with the green one giving another bonus to hide (or stealth), I didn't want it to stack with the increased size bonus kobolds are getting with slight build.



That'd be the way I'd likely go, though the blue's +1 to Wisdom is also tempting.







The Rolling Man said:


> Besides, I didn't really like the fact that some choices were pigeonholing those kobolds to a certain class.



Yeah, I largely agree. So, you want to drop the variants' bonuses altogether?







The Rolling Man said:


> The feat seems a bit powerful but I don't have a problem with it since you're just a lowly kobold .



Watch yer tongue or I'll bite yer kneecaps off sunmeat.


The Rolling Man said:


> It also works well with the multi-colored kobolds of Goralion. I just wonder what color you are thinking and what skill is getting a bonus.



The table in question includes pretty much every true dragon in the game including all of the extraplanar species (40+ sub-species in all) so it's pretty much pick-a-skill. If I've a mind to go with Stealth for instance (and I do) then I could go with either Black, Blue, Copper, Green, Li lung or White. For a creature living in the Boneyard, I'd imagine that a bonus to swim (Chiang Lung, Lung Wang, Oceanus, Styx, Tun mi Lung, Topaz or Yu Lung) might also be appropriate. The Emerald dragon's bonus to Knowledge (local) could also be helpful though. You tell me; is there a particular color or dragon species that's particularly appropriate for the area or plot?

Also, would you allow me to take the Dragon Wings feat at 3rd? Essentially it grants a +10 to jump checks, negates falling damage and allows one to glide short distances from a height. Actual flight can only be gained at 6th level by means of yet another feat: Improved Dragon Wings. If so, then I could start off with a pair of useless vestigial wings that'd grow more useful over time.

Here are a couple of ideas I had for traits, the first would serve as a campaign trait. The second is based on the kobold rogue's 1st substitution level from RotD. I'm also considering taking _Reactionary_ since it seems appropriate for a kobold who lives by his wits.[sblock=Traits]*Guileful Pickpocket*
The lure of wealth has drawn many to the Gold Goblin's gambling tournament, but not all are pinning their hopes on a winning streak to gain their share of the stakes. Not being one for games of chance, you plan to skip the gambling altogether and use the tournament's hubbub as a backdrop for larceny. With a bit of skill, luck and guile you hope to lighten the purses of a few competitors before making your escape with none the wiser. You gain a +2 on Sleight of Hand checks to take something from another creature.

*Rapid Retreat*
Kobolds learn to survive by retreating quickly from dangerous situations. Any time you use the withdraw action, you gain a 5-foot bonus to your speed.[/sblock]
Edit: I was looking over equipment and found a few items that I was wondering if you'd permit. I could make the first two cheaply by taking a rank in Craft (alchemy) [sblock=equipment]*Sundark Goggles
*from _Races of the Dragon_
(10 gp cost / no weight / DC 15 Alchemy check to create)
The smoked lenses of these goggles block light. They are typically fixed into a band of canvas that clasps together at the back to keep the goggles from falling off. Sundark goggles negate the dazzled condition experienced by a creature with light sensitivity whille in bright illumination. As a side effect, they grant the wearer a +2 circumstance bonus on saving throws against gaze attacks. A creature wearing sundark goggles can't use a gaze attack, since other creatures can't see its eyes. Creatures without low-light vision or darkvision that wear sundark goggles take a -2 penalty on Search and Spot checks.

*Bitterleaf oil*
from _Races of the Dragon_
(25 gp cost / no weight / DC 15 Alchemy check to create)
Kobolds use this salve to keep their scales healthy and shiny. Each bottle of bitterleaf oil holds enough for ten applications. If the oil is applied each day (a full-round action), it staves off shedding indefinately. In addition, on any day when bitterleaf oil is applied, the character naturally heals 1 additional point of damage per HD (max. 5) with a full night's rest.

*Tumbling bolt*
from the Arms and Equipment Guide
(5gp cost / 0.2 lb.)
A tumbling bolt resembles a standard crossbow bolt except for a few minuscule holes and vents along the shaft. A channel allows air to pass through the bolt, which causes it to tumble when fired. The bolt deals +2 damage but only has one-half its normal range increment due to the way the projectile moves through the air.[/sblock]


----------



## ghostcat

The Rolling Man said:


> Thanks for posting your character in the RG. Almost everything looks good but there's just 2 things that would need some attention. First, the traits give you a +1 bonus but not an actual rank to a skill and you don't get the class bonus to a skill until you have at least 1 rank. Diplomacy and intimidate should then only be at +1. Of course, you can still move around your 5 skill points to change that before we start (with one rank your bonus to those skills would then be +5). Second, the unarmed damage of a lvl 1 medium monk should only be 1d6+str not 1d8.




TRM.  I've reworked the skills and changed the Unarmed damage. I think I've got it right now.


----------



## Dr Simon

The Rolling Man said:


> Also, the starknife is a martial weapon so your rogue isn't proficient with it. Other then that, I didn't see anything wrong with your character sheet.




Oops! Didn't spot that. Well, it was only meant as a flavour piece anyway, and as I think he might need a bit of coin to waste in the Golden Goblin I'll swap it back for the 25 gp. Lucky I kept the reciept.

Edit: I see that's a nice reeflcaw someone's caught in that third picture. Of course, that's nothing compared to Ol' Meatclaw back in Korvosa, but then no-one's ever caught _him_.

Further Edit:  I think I've beaten the cyphermages to figuring out what the arch does - it's a Stargate!

Edit edit edit:  Looks at Rogue's Gallery. .... Yeah, I'm definitely going to be the one doing the talking to regular folks...


----------



## The Rolling Man

@ Ambrus : Sorry for the delayed response but here we go. First, yes, no variants from classic monsters revisited for your little guy. We'll stick with the races of the dragon stuff. As for a type of dragon, I would prefer if you choose amongst the classics, ie metallic or chromatic dragons. The most likely  (geographically) in the ones you listed are probably black, green and white but others can work too. The dragon wings seem alright as are the traits you proposed. Sundark goggles and bitterleaf oil are also no problem but I'm not sure I like the tumbling bolt. A range reduction isn't much of a penalty for +2 damage. I'd accept it if the bonus was only +1. I think that's everything. I'll hold up reviewing your character in more details until you completely finish it up.

@ Mark Chance : All power attack, all the time ? Interesting  I didn't see anything wrong with your sheet. A few lines about Kronk's background would be great however. 
Edit: Actually seems like Kronk could have another language.

@Dr.Si & ghostcat : Thanks for making the changes.


----------



## Mark Chance

The Rolling Man said:


> @ Mark Chance : All power attack, all the time ? Interesting  I didn't see anything wrong with your sheet. A few lines about Kronk's background would be great however.  Edit: Actually seems like Kronk could have another language.




I'll get around to the additions/changes ASAP. I'm a bit under the weather, and not being able to stay home from work isn't helping. It's semester final exam time for my students, and I'm having to work too hard for what I get paid.


----------



## Ambrus

My character is largely finished I think; I'd just like to review my skills and equipment once more when I have a minute.

So do we have a final tally of who's playing and a scheduled start time yet? Is there anything else we should go over before we start?


----------



## Voadam

Voadam
NG Human Ranger 1
6’2”  240 lbs brown hair, blue eyes, beard

Str 14
Dex 13
Con 14
Int 16
Wis 7
Cha 10

AC 11 (+1 Dex)
HP 19

F +4, R+3, W-2

Initiative +1
BAB +1
CMB +3
Favored Enemy: Evil Outsider
Wayfarer Lore (planar)
Favored Class wizard

Attack unarmed strike +3 melee d3+2 (+2 favored enemy evil outsider).

Feats: Improved Unarmed Strike, Deflect Arrows
Skills:
Diplomacy +5 (1 rank, +3 int(*), +3 class skill, +1 trait)
Knowledge Arcana +5 (1 rank, +3 int, +1 lore)
Knowledge Dungeoneering +8 (1 rank, +3 int, +3 skill, +1 lore)
Knowledge Engineering +4 (+3 int, +1 lore)
Knowledge Geography +4 (+3 int, +1 lore)
Knowledge History +4 (+3 int, +1 lore)
Knowledge Local +4 (+3 int, +1 lore)
Knowledge Nature +8 (1 rank, +3 int, +3 class skill, +1 lore)
Knowledge Nobility +4 (+3 int, +1 lore)
Knowledge Planar +6 (1 rank, +3 int, +2 lore)
Knowledge Religion +4 (+3 int, +1 lore)
Perception +2 (1 rank, -2 wis, +3 class skill)
Profession Sailor +2 (1 rank -2 wis, +3 class skill)
Ride +5 (1 rank +1 dex, +3 class skill)
Spellcraft +4 (1 rank, +3 int)
Swim +6 (1 rank +2 str, +3 class skill)
Survival +2 (1 rank -2 wis, +3 class skill)

Languages: Common, Mongolic, Orcish, Abyssal, Giant, 

Equipment:
140 gp budget http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/1896835/ 
Wand of cure light wounds 9 charges 135 gp.
Black robes
Green sash
5 gp

Traits

Makes Connections: Voadam is a friendly and outgoing man with a good heart. He is willing to work with most any being under most circumstances and worked with allies ranging from renegade demons to paladins, elves, dwarves, gods and men as well as various guilds, groups, and governments. He is used to working with people or beings from a wide range of backgrounds and viewpoints and at one point was a merchant prince with a world spanning network of allies, though that was many years and worlds ago and has had to start anew multiple times on multiple worlds. He recently found himself in the Golden Goblin in Riddleport, newly arrived in the world and stripped of his former magics again. He heard that mages were not common but there was a fellow in the Goblin named Tolly who sounds like he might be a mage. Voadam decided to meet the young man (gain a +1 trait bonus in Diplomacy, and Diplomacy is always considered a class skill for you).

Tactical diplomacy: Voadam's negotiations are guided by his quick mind and keen insight into possibilities and opportunities. He applies his intelligence bonus to diplomacy checks.

Class adjustments, gave up ranger tracking, wild empathy, and animal companion for bardic lore renamed wayfarer lore.


A bearded brown-haired bear of a man with blue eyes dressed in black robes with a green sash.

After the shadow in the sky became visible from all around Riddleport, the druid elders of the Clawed Watchers sect performed auguries and all the signs pointed the same way—something or someone in Riddleport is connected to the blot, and it means bad news for the region. The sect is charged to protect the material realm from otherworldly, unnatural forces and they sought further divinations through a circle ritual about what forces they could bring to bear on the situation. These rituals tapped into ancient not fully controlled powerful forces of druidic magic. They were somewhat surprised when a black rift opened up amidst their sacred standing stones and a bear of a man in black robes crashed through. Magics coursed over him, wracking his body and leaving him a smoking heap on the ground, unconscious.

They restored him to health and answered some of his questions about where he was and what had happened. He claimed to be a demon hunter who walked worlds, of late dealing with ancient giant magics, dragons, and animals corrupted by planar forces into unnatural abominations. He claimed to be a wizard without magic, but he demonstrated he could tap into nature magics. Some of the druids felt their ritual had failed spectacularly and brought them a madman, others felt the man was sent to answer their need.

Ultimately he convinced the sect to ask him to go with their agent Rorgar to learn what the two could of the Blot. Voadam agreed, provided they grant him a druidic healing wand, and a bargain was struck.

Many considered Voadam touched in the head. The man was said to have called himself "the Green Wizard of Althora" but performed no magics claiming "it works different here" and nobody had ever heard of Althora. He swore by gods nobody heard of and was concerned about the machinations of demons and the forces of Law and Chaos. Still he is friendly, inquisitive, and quick to learn. He's also tough, brave, and ready to step into dangerous situations. 

Voadam was in fact a world hopping, demon-hunting viking wizard who fell afoul of planar magics that banished him to this world as he encountered a dragon while seeking out secrets of ancient giant magic. He was skilled in spells, bladework, and the lotus petal style of martial arts learned among a Mongolic people. On arriving in Riddleport however he found that magic worked differently and much of his previous lore and powers were now inapplicable.

He has seen many things and is an experienced hunter of evil. Pragmatic, greedy, and mercenary though he may be, underneath he is a good man with a lust for life and can’t help himself from getting involved in the affairs of the worlds he finds himself in. He is currently interested in learning about where he is, recovering his magical powers, and rebuilding a new spellbook. He expects the dark forces at work in the world to draw him into their ambit before too long.

The concept is a Ranger Wizard heading towards either eldritch knight or loremaster, he is rebuilding his magical abilities from the ground up again as he learns of this new world he finds himself in.

Party role to start: Healer with the cure wand and lore expert.

*Bold* for speech


----------



## Walking Dad

Finished my character and added him to the RG.

Who wants to be Rorgar's eccentric rural friend (background)?


----------



## Dr Simon

Voadam: I don't know if Tolly would be that well known as being a wannbe magician, since he tends to keep such stuff to himself (until he actually masters the stuff, that is).  If you want to be aware of him, that's fine, but he'll be surprised that you are.

As for job offer, I was thinking that he'd be angling for work as a croupier in the Golden Goblin.

TRM: Languages again. I looked up Pathfinder Linguistics skill and it says
_Learn a Language: Whenever you put a rank into this skill,
you immediately learn to speak and read a new language_
so since I've got 1 rank, can I add another language to my list?


----------



## Voadam

Dr Simon said:


> Voadam: I don't know if Tolly would be that well known as being a wannbe magician, since he tends to keep such stuff to himself (until he actually masters the stuff, that is).  If you want to be aware of him, that's fine, but he'll be surprised that you are.




No problem, I'll try and come up with another hook then.


----------



## The Rolling Man

Ambrus said:


> My character is largely finished I think; I'd just like to review my skills and equipment once more when I have a minute.
> 
> So do we have a final tally of who's playing and a scheduled start time yet? Is there anything else we should go over before we start?



I don't see anything wrong with Tosh so you're good to go. As for who's playing and when do we start, I'm hoping to make the first IC post friday or this weekend, depending on the state of the PCs and my own time. The PCs are:

*Tolneus "Tolly" Garnus*, human rogue and dabbler in arcane matters. (played by Dr. Simon, good to go)
*Tosh*, black dragonwrought kobold rogue, boneyard sneak. (played by Ambrus, good to go)
*Chan Ti*, half elf monk from far away Tian Xia. (played by ghostcat, good to go)
*Kronk Madaxe*, violent dwarf fighter. (played by Mark Chance, could use a background to help me with the initial post)
*Rorgar*, half-orc druid and feral shapeshifter. (played by Walking Dad, just need a few corrections, see below)
*Voadam*, human ranger, madman or traveller from some other world ? (played by Voadam, incomplete)


----------



## The Rolling Man

Walking Dad said:


> Finished my character and added him to the RG.
> 
> Who wants to be Rorgar's eccentric rural friend (background)?



It could be Tosh or maybe Kronk since the others are all recent arrivals. I also noted a few errors on your sheet (mostly in your favor  )

Hp should be 17 (half con is 6 not 5).
Reflex save should be +2 (+1 trait, +1 dex)
All your skills should have an additional +1 (it's +1 (rank) +3 (class skills) +ability mods and other modifiers)


----------



## The Rolling Man

Dr Simon said:


> TRM: Languages again. I looked up Pathfinder Linguistics skill and it says
> _Learn a Language: Whenever you put a rank into this skill,
> you immediately learn to speak and read a new language_
> so since I've got 1 rank, can I add another language to my list?



Interesting, I didn't notice that. I guess Linguistics is Decipher script + Forgery + Speak Language so, yeah, you can pick another language.


----------



## Ambrus

Six players. Wow. Big group. I'll need a cheat sheet to keep track of who's who.


----------



## The Rolling Man

*@ Voadam*

Thanks for posting a good draft of your character. It sure isn't your 'cookie cutter' character . Most of it looks fine but, at first glance, I see a few errors. First, you get +7 to your initial hp (half the constitution score). Second, the will save should be -2 not -3. Third, I'm a bit confused about your skills but I guess it depends on what you get as traits so I'll hold up on checking them in details until the character is finalized. Finally, you get either +1 hp or +1 skill points if you select Ranger as your favored class (as a human you can pick any. From your background and future concept, wizard might fit too).

The bonus of your first trait poses no problem to me. If the mage Voadam is looking for can't be Tolly, he could have heard that some cyphermage or another arcanist will be at the tournement. Mages aren't really sparse in Riddleport. The bonus for Knowledgeable Wayfarer is way too great for a trait however. I'd allow something like +1 to all knowledge skills (no scaling) or the ability to use knowledge skills untrained but not both. The other possibility would be to modify the ranger class to get some bard abilities.


----------



## Voadam

The Rolling Man said:


> The bonus of your first trait poses no problem to me. If the mage Voadam is looking for can't be Tolly, he could have heard that some cyphermage or another arcanist will be at the tournement. Mages aren't really sparse in Riddleport. The bonus for Knowledgeable Wayfarer is way too great for a trait however. I'd allow something like +1 to all knowledge skills (no scaling) or the ability to use knowledge skills untrained but not both. The other possibility would be to modify the ranger class to get some bard abilities.




Can I ditch wild empathy and tracking for bardic knowledge?


----------



## Voadam

updated hp, will save, and made skill breakdown more explicit.


----------



## The Rolling Man

Voadam said:


> Can I ditch wild empathy and tracking for bardic knowledge?



Add Hunter's bond (the animal companion ability) to that list and I'll allow it.


----------



## Mark Chance

Walking Dad said:


> Who wants to be Rorgar's eccentric rural friend (background)?




I can handle that action. After all, Kronk is wearing a tunic made out of dead squirrels.



I'm fixin' to head over to the RG to add a bit of background to Kronk.


----------



## Dr Simon

The Rolling Man said:


> Interesting, I didn't notice that. I guess Linguistics is Decipher script + Forgery + Speak Language so, yeah, you can pick another language.




Running the Crimson Throne with Pathfinder, I've found it pays to double check everything against 3.5 rules, as there are a lot of subtle differences. 

This is cool, I figure Tolly as being someone who has a knack with languages and knows a smattering of loads of different phrases "Hello, yes, no, two beers please, don't kill me" in a range of tongues.

Looking forwards to interacting with this right bunch of oddballs!


----------



## Walking Dad

Mark Chance said:


> I can handle that action. After all, Kronk is wearing a tunic made out of dead squirrels.
> 
> 
> 
> I'm fixin' to head over to the RG to add a bit of background to Kronk.




Thanks .


----------



## Voadam

The Rolling Man said:


> Add Hunter's bond (the animal companion ability) to that list and I'll allow it.




Done.

For a new trait how about either of the following:

1 Curious mage: If Voadam takes levels in wizard his wizard levels stack with his ranger levels for purposes of wayfarer lore. (Mechanically this means he will gain a skill rank in knowledge planar at every wizard level and will get a +1 lore knowledge bonus at his third and fifth wizard levels).

2 Tactical diplomacy: Voadam's negotiations are guided by his quick mind and keen insight into possibilities and opportunities. He applies his intelligence bonus to diplomacy checks.

3 Eclectic lore: Voadam picks up a bit here and there as he goes. Each level Voadam gains an extra skill point. This skill point can only be spent on knowledge skills that were used in the last level. Normal skill rank maximums apply.


----------



## Voadam

Proposed background with connections to Rorgar and therefor indirectly to Kronk:


After the shadow in the sky has become visible from all around Riddleport, the druid elders performed auguries and all the signs pointed the same way—something or someone in Riddleport is connected to the blot, and it means bad news for the region. The druid sect is charged to protect the material realm from otherworldly, unnatural forces and they sought further divinations through a circle ritual about what forces they could bring to bear on the situation. These rituals tapped into ancient not fully controlled powerful forces of druidic magic. They were somewhat surprised when a black rift opened up amidst their sacred standing stones and a bear of a man in black robes crashed through. Magics coursed over him, wracking his body and leaving him a smoking heap on the ground, unconscious.

They restored him to health and answered some of his questions about where he was and what had happened. He claimed to be a demon hunter who walked worlds, of late dealing with ancient giant magics, dragons, and animals corrupted by planar forces into unnatural abominations. He claimed to be a wizard without magic, but he demonstrated he could tap into nature magics. Some of the druids felt their ritual had failed spectacularly and brought them a madman, others felt the man was sent to answer their need.

Ultimately the sect decided to ask him to go with their agent Rorgar to learn what the two could of the Blot. Voadam agreed, provided they grant him a druidic healing wand, and a bargain was struck. So now the two are headed to Riddleport, to meet Rorgar's old friend, a dwarf named Kronk at an inn called the Golden Goblin.


----------



## The Rolling Man

Voadam said:


> For a new trait how about either of the following:
> 
> 1 Curious mage: If Voadam takes levels in wizard his wizard levels stack with his ranger levels for purposes of wayfarer lore. (Mechanically this means he will gain a skill rank in knowledge planar at every wizard level and will get a +1 lore knowledge bonus at his third and fifth wizard levels).
> 
> 2 Tactical diplomacy: Voadam's negotiations are guided by his quick mind and keen insight into possibilities and opportunities. He applies his intelligence bonus to diplomacy checks.
> 
> 3 Eclectic lore: Voadam picks up a bit here and there as he goes. Each level Voadam gains an extra skill point. This skill point can only be spent on knowledge skills that were used in the last level. Normal skill rank maximums apply.



2 is fine. I don't much like 3 but I'd allow 1 if we limit it somehow. The way I see traits, they are meant to be simple bonuses at start of the game but they fade in importance as you gain more levels. Granted such levels are far away in a PbP format but I'm just trying to be fair while letting you make the character you want ... So, back at your option 1, there's an existing talent that gives +2 to one of your casting level, as long as it doesn't exceed your HDs. I think your talent should be somewhat similar. But, since bonuses to knowledge skills aren't as great as an increased caster lvl, I would double the benefits (i.e. +4 lvls) and apply it to your class ability rather then a caster lvls. So the trait could be written as such :

1 Curious wayfarer: If Voadam takes levels in another class then ranger, up to four of these levels can stack with his ranger levels for purposes of wayfarer lore.

I like the link you've made with the druids of Rorgar's sect, so I'm gonna use this in the upcoming first ic post.


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## The Rolling Man

The game has started !  The thread for the first chapter, Shadow in the Sky is here.

Please post/correct (as needed) your character in the RG as soon as possible but feel free to post in the IC thread anyway. Have fun.


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## Walking Dad

I'm fine with the connection to Voadam


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## The Rolling Man

*to Dr. Simon*

Am I correct in assuming that Tolly is only going to the Gold Goblin a short time before the start of the tournament ? If you prefer, we can fudge things a bit and make him arrive at the Goblin when Chan Ti is still around.


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## Dr Simon

If it'll help bring the PCs together, sure. We can assume that he swings by earlier just to check out where the place is, plus any handy exits...


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## Mark Chance

_OOC: My daughter Adrienne is in the hospital; hence, my lack of posting. Things should be back to normal in a day or two._


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## The Rolling Man

Mark Chance said:


> _OOC: My daughter Adrienne is in the hospital; hence, my lack of posting. Things should be back to normal in a day or two._



Perfectly understandable, best wishes for her and your family.


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## The Rolling Man

I'm sorry I could not post earlier but enworld was very slow for me all day. I think we're almost done with the 'morning activities' and I'll fast forward the action to the evening once I rap up things with Chan Ti and Tolly.


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## The Rolling Man

I was finally able to post updates for the IC thread ... bad ENworld.

Also, here's a map of the first floor of the Gold Goblin to help you situate yourselves.


Key:
1 Grand (main) entrance
2 Casino floor (where the gambling tables are)
3 Cashier (you can change actual money for gambling chips here)
4 Cashier's cage 
12 Kitchens
13 Scullery
14 Staff Lounge
15 The Goblin’s Tankard (the bar)
16 Public Privies


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## The Rolling Man

*Gambling games*

There's 4 primary games at the Gold Goblin for the tournament. Here's the rules and how we're gonna deal with them for this PbP game.

First, all games are played with the house chips (bits of painted wood with a symbol). They can be exchanged at the cashier.
Copper Heart (Dull red paint), cost: 1 cp
Silver Tooth (Dull gray paint), cost: 1 sp
Gold Eye (Dull yellow paint), cost: 1 gp.

*Bounder*
_“Bounder, bounder, bounder! No doubles, no doubles!”_
*What You’ll Need:* 3d6 for the dealer and 2d20 for each player, plus coins to track bets.
*How to Play:* Bounder is unique among gambling games in that both the players and dealer use dice. The dealer gets three 6-sided dice, and each player gets two 20-siders. To start, each player bets a stake (minimum 1 sp). Each player rolls his first d20, making his “point.” After all players have rolled their points, each player may double his stake if desired. Then the dealer rolls 3d6. Anyone whose point the dealer matches loses his stake. Then each player rolls his second d20. If the player’s two dice results are on either side of the dealer’s result—one greater than and one less than the dealer’s number—he “bounds” the dealer and wins an amount equal to the amount he bet. Otherwise, he loses his stake. If a player rolls a 1 and a 20 (or a 20 and a 1), he wins double his bet.
*For this game:* Since this game mostly involves dice rolling and not many descisions, we can run it pretty much as it is. I can make all the rolls but, if you want to make your rolls with invisible castle, just post your bet, your 'point' roll and the fact that you double or not in one post. Then go make your second roll on IC and put it in a second post. (I guess it would actually require 3 post, i.e. one for just the bet, but it's a bit much so I'll trust you ) I'll post the dealer's roll afterwards.

*Ghoulette*
_“What a mighty hero! Ready to rescue the ale from any mug!”_
*What You’ll Need:* A spinner or a d12, plus markers and coins to track bets.
*How to Play:* To play, each player puts a marker and any number of coins on one or more of the spaces on the ghoulette wheel (minimum 10 cp per space). The croupier then spins Dungo (a 'mummified' and enchanted ghoul head) until he comes to a stop. Dungo then issues an enraged insult at someone based on the particular topic he is looking at on the wheel. Any player who has coins on the subject matter of this insult is paid the amount of coins he bet in the next highest denomination—copper gets paid in silver (e.g., a 15 cp bet gets 15 sp), silver in gold, gold in platinum, and platinum in ten times the amount. If Dungo says “something nice,” each player gets a consolation prize of the amount of coins he bet in the next lowest denomination, rounded down (e.g., a 15 cp bet gets back 1 cp). Then the croupier presses a button that tilts the edges of the wheel slightly inward, and all original bets (regardless of win or loss) slide into slots under Dungo’s head and into the coffer under the table.
1 Appearance
2 Bloodline
3 Demeanor/Presence
4 Hygiene
5 Skill
6 Clothes/Equipment
7 Body
8 Race
9 Courage
10 Profession
11 Brains
12 “Something Nice”
*For this game:* This one is also pretty strait forward. Post your bets on one of the categories and I'll roll the d12 and provide the insult .

*Golem*
_“It’s you verses the greedy golem! Test your skill and take the monster’s pot!”_
*What You’ll Need:* A deck of cards, plus an amulet and coins to track bets. A golem deck is identical to a realworld poker deck, except the cards go from 1 to 13 in four suits: flesh (hearts), clay (spades), stone (diamonds), and iron (clubs).
*How to Play:* Golem is a player-vs.-player card game similar to five-card draw poker, but with a “golem hand.” Golem is played in a series of games; one game must be completely resolved before the next begins. The player to the right of the dealer gets the amulet to start the night. The dealer deals five cards to each player. Starting at the amulet, each player can bet, raise one coin, or fold. Anyone who folds is out of the game, and can’t come back in until a new game begins. Next, each player may discard up to two cards and receive that many back from the dealer. These discarded cards go facedown on the center of the table. Another round of betting occurs, starting at the amulet. If, at any point, only one player hasn’t folded, he wins the pot—the house taking 5 percent—and the game is over. If at least two players are still in after all bets are called, those players reveal their hands. Then the dealer “ups the golem.” The golem hand—those cards discarded when players had the chance to draw new cards—is revealed, and if the player with the best hand beats the golem, he wins the pot, and the game is over. But if the player with the best hand does not beat the golem, that player must put into
the pot an amount of coins equal to what’s already in the pot, and all cards are collected so that a new hand can be dealt for the players who were still in at the end. This continues until someone wins the pot. The house takes 5 percent of the final pot, and then the amulet moves one position to the right and a new game is dealt.
*For this game:* I don't really want to play a PbP poker game so we'll simplify this by using the quick gambling rules. First, choose a stake you want to put in then roll a Profession(gambler) check or a Charisma check (which ever is higher) and consult the table below. One check represent about 5 minutes of gambling.
*Quick Gambling Results*
Check DC Result
Below 10: Lose all your stake.
DC 10 Loss: Lose 50% of stake.
DC 12 Minor Loss: Lose 20% of stake.
DC 14 Break Even: Regain stake.
DC 16 Minor Win: Regain stake plus 20%.
DC 18 Win: Regain stake plus 50%.
DC 20 Big Win: Regain stake plus 100%.
DC 22 Jackpot!: Regain stake plus 120%. For each 2 points by which your result exceeds DC 22, increase the additional win by another 20% (for example, DC 24 pays 140%, DC 26 pays 160%, and so on).
You can also choose to make a Bluff check to add a bonus to your main check. A roll of 5 or less gives you a -2 penalty, DC 15 provides +2 and DC 25 +4.

*Skiffs*
_“Step up to the lake and get your racers ready! There’s a storm a’comin’!”_
*What You’ll Need:* A three-by-three grid (or a set of nine small boxes of the same size), a large bowl, and a different-colored set of 25 identical tokens, beads, cubes, or chips for up to eight players.
*How to Play:* Skiffs is a halfling gambling game played on a three-by-three board or set of boxes (the “lake”). Each player puts up in 25 tokens (“skiffs”). The dealer takes one skiff (the “racer”) from each player and then places the rest in a bowl called the “storm.” The storm is flipped over the lake in one smooth motion, so each of the skiffs falls into one of the 9 boxes. (If a skiff falls between parts of the lake, the dealer places it where more than half of it lies, choosing randomly between the two boxes if it isn’t clear.) The dealer places the racers in the bowl. Then the dealer pulls out one racer at a time, and that player takes a turn. 
On your turn you must do exactly one of the following, if you can:
• Remove any one skiff.
• Remove one of your skiffs and any one skiff from anywhere on the board.
• Remove one of your skiffs and any two skiffs from the same box.
• Move one skiff to an adjacent box.
When a box contains exactly one skiff, that skiff is “anchored.” An anchored skiff can’t be removed except by its owner, and no one can move a skiff into that box except the anchored skiff’s owner.
In all cases, each skiff you remove is worth one coin, regardless of whose it is. After everyone has taken a turn, the dealer puts the racers back in the bowl, and starts a new round of turns. The game can end in two ways. The first way is if anyone has the only skiffs in a straight line vertically, horizontally, or diagonally. In this case, that player wins all the skiffs still on the board. The house keeps the racers. The second way is if each box contains skiffs of just one color, or none at all. In that case, the game ends, the house keeps the racers, and points are counted. You get one point for each skiff on the board, and one point for every box in which you have the only skiff(s). Whoever has the most points on the board takes all the remaining skiffs. In the case of a tie, those skiffs are split evenly between the tied players.
*For this game:* Once again, this is a skill game and it's too complicated to play in a PbP format. If anyone wants to play this game, we'll once again use the quick gambling rules (see Golem) except you can't use Bluff here. An Intelligence check can also be used instead of Profession(gambling) or Charisma. Also, your stake will always be 25 cp, 25 sp or 25 gp (depending on the table). Finally, you can focus on removing the boats of a particular player in this game. If someone does this to you, you get a -2 to your roll. On the other hand, if someone does it to someone else, you get +2 to your roll.


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## Mark Chance

I beat my breast and utter _mea culpa_s as I type this. I've been off-line for a week or so, and I'm sure it's been an annoyance.


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## Voadam

Hope a bar fight or near confrontation does not screw up plot stuff. Leaving insults unanswered just does not sit well. Plus it gives an opportunity for a certain bouncer to intervene to try to cool things off.


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## Voadam

I knew I should have stuck with my classic 1st level Voadam build and kept blindfighting.


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## The Rolling Man

I'll post the next round tonight if Enworld doesn't go down like yesterday.


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## The Rolling Man

Here's the tokens I'm using for the maps. Tell me if you want to change the one representing your character and sorry for any confusion.

*Party members*
Chan Ti

Kronk

Rorgar

Tolly

Tosh

Voadam


*Allies*
Bouncers (including Hans)


*Enemies*
Angvar (black-haired mage)

Thuvalia (one-eyed woman)

Sailors

Ulfen raiders


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## Ambrus

I haven't seen any updates from The Rolling Man in nearly a week and a half. Just wondering if this campaign has gone the way of the dodo. Anybody heard from him?


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## Walking Dad

His last post in another game I'm in was 18th March. So there is still hope


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## Mark Chance

Hope is good. I just hope this isn't a false hope is better than no hope at all situation.


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## Ambrus

Hm. Almost two weeks and no word from TRM. Breaks out the defibrillator. Alright everyone. *CLEAR! * Thump thump...


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## Mark Chance

In unrelated news:

Woo hoo! I scored 274 out of 300 on my state exam for certification in special education. First major state-imposed hurdle out of the way. I rule.

So, even if the game is dead, my career lives on!


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## Ambrus

Hey, congrats Mark! That's great news.

In an unrelated matter, I fell off my bike last Friday and broke my left collar bone. Ah well. Life goes on. I'll heal. 

As for this game, two and a half weeks and still nothing. "Charging. Everybody, CLEAR! *thump thump. Beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep...* Somebody care to call it?"


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