Hey gang. Good to see you guys addressing likes/dislikes with this week's game. Here's some of the issues I had as well. First: the encounters I had set up for this adventure were by-the-book set up to be standard encounters of 3rd level. So they are supposed to be, points wise, a standard encounter for a group of 5 3rd level characters. So not-impossible, but reasonably tough still for a group of 6 2nd level characters. Time was also an issue, as there was another encounter planned for the brewery (I probably shouldn't be giving that away) that I knew we just weren't going to have time for – so I scratched it at the last minute. That encounter would have followed immediately after the beer zombie bash, so no one would have their spent encounter powers back, instantly scaling the toughness up a notch. By the dmg's reckoning, 3 encounters should take 4 hours. I gave us 6 for the sake of eating/easing into a new campaign/learning the PCs etc. With 6 players we either need more time or we need to be faster at combat. Also, before this game, devon asked to create more opportunities for Role-Playing, which I fully endorse. However, going into this session and knowing how much we had to get done, I felt rushed through character interaction, which turned all the NPCs one-dimensional. There is a lot! to discover about and around Barley Keep. I expected more inspection/questions from you guys about what was what beyond where can I sell my shit and who will give us magic items. No one asked if there was a temple until a chase led you there. There's a whole adventure hook waiting to be discovered in that temple.
With the encounters this time, I wanted to mix it up between monster types. Giving Devon plenty of grouped together minions for his controller ways and some tougher baddies for our new striker. I don't think anyone expected the wizard to run up and put 3 level 5 Hobgoblin warriors to sleep in the opening round! Acting in concert they are pretty tough opponents, and he effectively neutralized them, which shows there are some kinks to work out of 4E both on our parts, (including me setting up appropriate encounters) and the game system. The last encounter had much fewer + much tougher opponents, who you'll just have to wait to face.
Time + Place: Leaving the game Sunday Kara told me that she had a lot of fun, but that was probably the most time she could possibly spend playing the game. I know the same is true for Rebecca. I myself have played DnD for 22 1/2 hours straight. That was a Cheboygan-area record at the time I believe, and nowadays could easily spend 8-10 hours at the game table. Not only do we get more done, we have more opportunities for immersive role-playing where we really discover who our characters are. (And hands down the best DnD moments of my life took place at 3 in the morning). I'm up for it, but we have to convince the ladies to go all in, or figure out a reason why their characters come and go in-game. Place: City BBQ is really starting to grate on my nerves. Bottomless iced tea aside. its always dirty, the bathrooms are a tragedy and the service is weak at best. Also, having someone poke their head in every 1/2 hour to see if we're done yet does not make the game go any smoother. There is at least one Columbus gaming store with a room dedicated to role-players that i know of and it would be a lot closer for everyone (except me) I assume its on a first come first serve basis, but then who the hell games at noon on Sunday? Another option would be to find a library or some other civic building with isolated rooms that can be reserved. The gaming store at least I know would let us order pizza and bring bags of chips. I'm open to suggestions, but I'm looking to get out of the City BBQ experience. And no, not just because I made some poor kid puke all over the floor because I locked the bathroom door. Suggestions?
Comments
July 29, 2008 at 01:15 AM
So obviously, us girls are getting a bad rap about the amount of time we’d be willing to spend playing. Sorry guys, but being that I’m relatively new to this, I haven’t got the dedication you all have. Perhaps, as time goes, my involvement in this story will grow and thus my need to play dubious hours. Though I doubt I’d play 22 hours, being a woman and all, I do need my beauty sleep.
As for the story, I too was wondering why we didn’t spend more time casing out the joint “Barley Keep.” We sort of rushed through the brewery and didn’t ask enough questions about the bodies or really check them out. Then when we hit the temple, it seemed odd to me that there were no paladins or priests or whatever. So I asked. But I don’t think my question got heard, because everyone else was talking over everyone else. If I may make a suggestion to the DM, honey, it may be helpful to have turns with questions (possibly even rolling) you’d still of course get to ask as many questions as you want, but everyone could be heard and possibly arise better questions from someone else. This could also save precious time to get to battles. I thought the battles were pretty good, but I’m no expert. I almost died several times cause I happened to be in the middle of everything, while several of you were busy drinking beer. I’ll miss you all the next two weeks, but can’t wait to see what arises.
July 29, 2008 at 03:27 AM
Commenting on the place in which to play, i personally liked city bar-b-q. The endless sweet tea and soda is just perfect for gaming (at least the gaming i’ve taken a part of). If we r just going to order pizza or chips at any other place we go to, then i have to point out that we all walk in with book bags and lap top cases… shouldnt have to use too much creativity to see what i’m getting at. And as far as the cleanliness goes, i’ve spent all my gaming days playing in a poorly lit, uncarpeted, unheated basement. so i’m not complaining, the tables we get to use sure beats the floor haha i guess my expectations arent too high. I’m up for anywhere though, im not picky
July 29, 2008 at 03:29 AM
About the venue – I of course am not opposed to bringing the game closer to home. Did you mean the guardtower? Their back room is pretty sweet and would work well so long as we didn’t have some issues scheduling buuuuuuut store hours on sunday: 12:00 PM to 6:00 PM so that might not work. Also if you meant the soldiery I know my wife wouldn’t like that, last time we were in there it reeked of B.O. and she was really grossed out. lol Other than that I definitely agree, the bathrooms are disgusting and the private room ain’t so private (needs a lock on the door).
As for roleplaying and such, I always come and sit down with great intentions but somehow when it comes time to actually roleplay and delve into the story, I end up sucking :\ I guess that’s something I need to work on.
July 29, 2008 at 03:51 AM
Like I said, I have full faith in Josh as a DM to make things fun & challenging.
I mirror some of the criticism of the BBQ as the gaming place of choice. I can get into my role ($ roll) anywhere but it might be easier for others if it weren’t being interrupted by NG’s (non-gamers). As for amount of gaming time, as I said I’d be up for more, but beggars can’t be choosers. I’ve played for about 36 hours before (breaks for food and bathroom) and my best moment in gaming was at about 1 AM when I grappled a 18lvl Gnoll Monk and dragged his ass over to the fountain with a huge sized likeness of himself and drowned his gnoll but. I was 13th lvl and did it as a Dire Bear! can you say “exp.” That aside my votes are:
different place, longer times of play, tenser’s working on water, more sleep for everyone! (beauty sleep aint just for one sex)
July 29, 2008 at 03:57 AM
oh ps- I have no doubt that women can get into the game and their roles just as hardcore as men, it’s just easier for men… we have a looser grip on reality… Since we all think we’re the center of the universe & such ;)
July 29, 2008 at 06:18 PM
Ah didn’t see this place to comment before, so I left my comment elsewhere, but yea pout we are getting a bad rap. This truly is as much time as I can commit to this game. I’m sorry about that.
July 29, 2008 at 08:25 PM
that’s it, you’re fired. lol.
July 29, 2008 at 08:45 PM
HEy guys, I’ll make this quick. I never meant for this post to accuse you guys of not Role-Playing enough, I just wanted to point out that time constraints inhibited more character interaction. There is a short write up of the three falls region (and Barley Keep) from a link under the Forum thread or from the index page. I put it there Sunday morning. Later this week, I’ll add more details (things your characters would have seen if not explored, such as businesses, etc.) as well as some NPC information on any of the NPCs you’all talked to. As to location, I am still looking and I didn’t realize the Guardtower closed at 6 on Sunday. So do all the libraries that have private (so you can be as loud as you want Aaron ;)) rooms in the area. I thought early on we figured out that a lot of people can’t play on Saturdays. Is that still true? P.S. more roleplaying does not have to be characters going out on their own, but there are a lot of people in Barley Keep that can be good sources of information or can provide adventure hints/hooks. And I didn’t do a good enough job describing the place, but Barley Keep is actually a fairly large city, just built up instead of out, which is what makes it unique.
July 29, 2008 at 10:30 PM
Ah, well okay then. I/we should have asked “what else is there?” but we’re all stupid. we just went with the ones you mentioned there having been. I just know we wanted to see our loot, but other than that we didnt’ really have a “goal” per se. Shit, if you give me options of places, I’ll check’em all out. Shit, yeah!
Also, how far do you guys want/are able to travel for gamage? I mean, should I start looking around here, or is that too far for you guys to travel?
July 29, 2008 at 10:30 PM
*sell, not see.
July 29, 2008 at 10:36 PM
Response to men having a loser grip on reality: There’s a center to the universe! When did this happen? I’ve never had a chance to go to reality world, what’s it like? ;P
July 30, 2008 at 12:48 AM
Ellethe: I just saw your comment on the other forum. I made you feel more comfortable? Most women would say otherwise, but thanks for the compliment. Couple dinner date? I’ve never done one of those. I don’t know when we’d have the time, but it could be fun.
July 30, 2008 at 02:27 AM
Well yes in the future we can all be a little more inquisitive and I have no doubt that it will happen for us!
Yea reality isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, you can’t fly and you definitely can’t shoot lazer beams out of your eyes
Oh and as for the center of the universe yea that happened in like 1972, I think is was around the same time Nixon visited China?
July 30, 2008 at 10:56 AM
:) well I feel somewhat less out of place having another chick to game with. I always enjoyed it when there were other women to game with online and I’ve made some really good friends that way. Any evening that works for you… might work for us also. If you guys are up for it… maybe we could try to make a plan.
July 30, 2008 at 01:20 PM
hey mike all these girls talkin is makin me feel left out. When r we going on a group date? I need some1 to help me paint my nails!! Haha sry ladies just nvr thought I would see dnd lead to group dating…
July 30, 2008 at 03:58 PM
First off… gay… second off, I think were going out Saturday
July 30, 2008 at 04:48 PM
lol. so i’m the only one not doing anything, straight, gay, or otherwise. sigh I better ball up and ask that cashier chick out this sunday or i’ll probably not get another chance too since we’re gonna be moving locations.
July 30, 2008 at 05:18 PM
yea now is always the best time, since it’s the only time you have control over… PHILISOPHICAL!
July 30, 2008 at 07:03 PM
.... remind me to hurt you later
July 31, 2008 at 12:16 AM
Greetings me hearties. have no fear, I have a potent vat of chili brewing on the stove, a sixer of ‘stones by my side and nothing to do this evening but work on posting campaign info. Lets see how much i can get done between runs to the bathroom…
July 31, 2008 at 01:22 AM
Ok, looks like I have to go do work and stuff. Even though, i’ve been working all day… So I added some more to the Three Fall page. Check it out. I’ll update more later this week.
July 31, 2008 at 01:31 AM
is it later yet?
Aaron- Don’t forget to hurt me!
July 31, 2008 at 01:31 AM
is it later yet?
Aaron- Don’t forget to hurt me!
July 31, 2008 at 08:26 PM
..... sigh I’m surrounded by idiots. lol. I love it.
July 31, 2008 at 10:33 PM
Aaron you missed a great opportunity just there…
“How many assholes do we got on this ship” “Yahoy sir” “I knew it, I’m surrounded by assholes.” ‘click’ “Keep firing asshole!”
July 31, 2008 at 10:40 PM
look for more three falls updates tonight. Now with spell check!
July 31, 2008 at 11:07 PM
shrugs i’m not really smart. I dont’ even know where that’s from, sadly.
August 01, 2008 at 12:08 AM
God i knew it was spaceballs! I read it and immediately thought spaceballs but i googled to double check lol
August 02, 2008 at 02:24 AM
OK team. Two levels of Barley Keep are now more fully detailed for the curious on the Three Falls wiki page. That’s probably all I’ll be able to get to before we game on Sunday. (except for maybe the legend of Fellwood) A reminder, we are still set for the same old, gross, City BBQ at noon. I hope everyone can make it. I will try to do a better job of describing the various elements of the Three Falls Region before we take off for either the enemy camp of dark elven wood. Also, I hope you guys are prepared for the new, beefier encounters… you asked for it. Muhahaha.
August 02, 2008 at 04:10 AM
haha this is great DMing, like literally, not joking. thanks for all your help joja
August 02, 2008 at 04:54 AM
Josh, you rock, cant wait for sunday :D
August 02, 2008 at 02:13 PM
I’m really sorry, but I’m not going to be at the game on Sunday. I hope this doesn’t create too much extra work for you Josh. On the up side, this likely means you can play a lot longer. Again really sorry!
August 02, 2008 at 02:23 PM
Im still going to be there though, can’t miss any D&D :p
August 02, 2008 at 03:15 PM
That’s it, you’re fired. Again!
August 02, 2008 at 03:58 PM
Did you guys pick up on Kara’s hint last week that she too would not be able to make it this week. (She’s in Denver at a playwriting conference)...Lol you guys are soooo dead. I recommend not doing anything that might require healing.
August 02, 2008 at 04:59 PM
But we have a cleric? :o
August 02, 2008 at 06:42 PM
apparently he thinks kara is much better than mike. Hmmm… I guess you need to step it up a bit, huh, Osko?
August 03, 2008 at 03:17 AM
So I just went back over all of this week’s encounters to make sure everything was in place and things go smoothly… Soooooooooo Dead.
August 03, 2008 at 03:21 AM
P.S. So I broke down and bought more miniatures. Both individuals from Miniatures Market and a couple booster packs from my local shop. Would anyone be interested in playing the D&D Miniatures battle game (skirmish style) sometime? I’ll have well over 60 minis when my next order arrives and I bought one of those Fantastic Locations supplements with the battle maps today in case anyone wants to try putting together a warband for fun. You can download the DDM rules for free at wizards.com/dnd Maybe sometime when we can’t get enough people together for an adventure but want to blow off steam trying to kill each other on the battlefield… let me know if anyone is interested.
August 03, 2008 at 04:38 AM
Goodie goodie goodie! I look forward to the challenge. As for minis, I dont think I have anywhere near enough of them to play, plus im not sure i kept all the cards for the ones i bought lol… I do have Pirates and Star Wars pocketmodels if anyone wants to play that, I’ve got loooots of em ;) They’re just so darn cool and fun to put together.
August 03, 2008 at 05:49 AM
You don’t need a lot of minis to play in Skirmish battles. Most are fought with no more than 8 creatures per side (and that’s a lot). I only said I have 60+ because it means I have enough to loan out should anyone want to give it a try. I have no idea what a pocket model is, but I’m intrigued…
August 03, 2008 at 05:50 AM
Soooooo dead.
August 03, 2008 at 12:26 PM
Keep in mind we out number you. and your wife won’t be there this time to protect you, girly man. hehe
August 03, 2008 at 01:53 PM
Hey I used to play D&D mini, before I sold most of my mini’s I can help you learn or play with ya if you want
August 03, 2008 at 02:37 PM
I’ll bring a few pirates and starwars things with me so you can take a look at them.
August 04, 2008 at 11:51 AM
Awesome game yesterday guys, I had a ton of fun. As for the next meeting, I actually can do August 16th (Saturday) and basically can’t do August 17th (Sunday). If that means a venue change, thats cool with me, BUT… Guardtower is usually pretty crowded on a Saturday and there is every chance that both back rooms could be just full up, so we might want to check that first.
August 05, 2008 at 12:25 AM
New venue would be good, as the gut rot food every other weekend isn’t worth the pain.
I’m searching for my boat and on private pirate adventures. Basically lots of beer and whoring it up with male prostitutes. I might bring my brother along to the next game August 16th or 17th. (I haven’t seen him in a year and he’ll be leaving for two more). Though I’m reluctant. He’s the kind to ask “what’s happening” during a movie six hundred times and expect you to explain it in full detail. He’s rather humorous that way. Till then, may your sails be full and your mugs over flow.
August 05, 2008 at 01:58 AM
I guess I will b requesting off Aug 16th and skipping kickboxing so u all better show up!! Gonna also have to say great game the other day even though there was little combat, thats ok… but wuts gonna b our plan for next time? find the bumbling Paladin, hope our whoring midget pirate finds her way back home, interrogate green guy(s?), try to find/kill missing green guy (prob wont happen), head to forest? I just figured that at least i would like to tie up all loose ends and then progress the plot a little ya kno? and then this will give josh an idea of wut to plan for…
August 05, 2008 at 04:48 PM
Sorta Good News gang. The Guardtower is open from noon to 9 on Sundays, but the guy there said that can be really chancy. Somedays it’s dead, somedays it is wall to wall from the minute they open because of tournaments and what-not. He said Saturdays are actually the deadest. Almost no one games on Saturday there he said, and if we came in at noon we’d almost be assured a spot. It sounds like Hayden and Devon (Rebecca?) are good for Saturdays, but what about you Mike, Aaron? Can you guys shift your schedules around so we can start gaming on Saturdays? Or is that a no go? Let me know, so we can start planning this out. We’ll probably have to do the BBQ either way on Labor day, but we can ask next week if Guardtower is open that day or not. Basically I’m wondering if playing at the tower will be a one shot deal, or if we’re going to try and make it a regular thing.
August 05, 2008 at 07:49 PM
I’m in. Also, I noticed we/I forgot to add something to the Group inventory list: that magical, spinning thing the green robed guy that was attacking William was using. What is it, so I can add it to the list. Did any of the other goons have stuff like that?
August 06, 2008 at 12:03 AM
I sent josh a message, but mike and i have practice every saturday so we can skip this one saturday to play, but (i cant speak for mike) i dont want to make it a regular thing…
August 07, 2008 at 02:03 PM
So yea as long as we don’t have anything specific going on that day I should be able to make it… I’m about 92% sure I can. Looking forward!
August 09, 2008 at 02:32 AM
I just want to say: Though I may be short in stature, we halflings are of no relation to the “human” midget or little person. Our genetic makeup is completely different. You see the human midget is actually a mix between a dwarf and a human, a half dwarf, if you will. Most human males can’t admit that they had sex with a dwarf female, or on “accident” a dwarf male. Human females find dwarf males and dwarf females rather vigorous in the sack, but are ashamed to admit it. Hence the invention of half dwarf porn, displayed privately in any of your local seedy taverns.
Halflings, on the other hand, are very open about their human, elf, dwarf, etc relationships. We see no need to be ashamed. We know how to use protection against the transmittal of other genetic makeups, so there is no confusion, like half dwarves or half elves or half halflings. In fact, I’ve taken a vow of unconception. I mean, what kind of halfling would I be to bring a youngling into a world like this?
August 09, 2008 at 10:46 AM
Ummm…wow
August 09, 2008 at 03:58 PM
Ummm…sessy
A bit off topic, but not really, I love watching the TLC channel especially when they do those shows about folks with weird conditions. I call it freak night (though I think Dev actually coined the phrase). We were watching it the other night and they had on a show about primordial dwarfs. I was thinking a primordial dwarf is probably as close to a real life halfling as you could get.
August 09, 2008 at 03:59 PM
oops… points above Rebecca on Dev’s computer… not actually Dev…
August 10, 2008 at 12:21 AM
@Mak, what about a half Dragonborn, half Halfling mix? Mmmm…. a joyous union, indeed. lol.
August 10, 2008 at 01:45 AM
The kids are arriving from Virgina @ 1 pmish on Saturday, so it looks like I’m a no for next Saturday. I’m sorry, but carry on without me please. Thanks.
August 10, 2008 at 02:05 AM
Wuss! lol. have fun with the brats. I’ll smash something in the head for ya.
August 10, 2008 at 08:40 PM
Wow Josh the maps are AWESOME! I hope when we sit down to play next you can put these out for us to look at up close, they’re really neat. Now I have some ideas where I want to go and explore for next time. Theres so much to do, theres not enough time to do it all!
August 11, 2008 at 12:46 AM
I was thinking the same thing, Dev. I’m seeing little dots and crevices that I’m just dying to explore. If we ever stop working for ‘da man, then maybe we can all go out for a look-see. Also, I hope we have some time for “extra” stuff come Saturday, cuz Gravendarr has somethings he wants to do, time permitting.
August 13, 2008 at 08:46 PM
sigh Quiet
August 14, 2008 at 01:52 AM
Too quiet…
Hope you’re all ready for the next adventure. Soooooo dead.
A reminder. This week we meet Saturday, Aug. 16 at Noon. New location: The Guardtower gaming store 3600 Trabue Rd. in Columbus. (closer for everyone except me) Kara and I might bring along her brother who has never played the game. I’ll still make it fun for you guys..promise…unless you all die.
August 14, 2008 at 03:07 PM
Unfortunate news, but I have to be in Cincinnati this weekend for two reason. I’m sorry I won’t be able to make it, I was really looking forward to progressing the story in the forest. I will give Hayden my character sheet and you guys can proxy him if you need the heal stick, because I do still want my character there and want that sweet exp to the 3rd level! I will show Hayden how to play my character, but anyone can run him if they want, especially Josh!
Once again I really do feel sorry I couldn’t make it both for the late notice and my own missing-out.
August 14, 2008 at 05:34 PM
man, you’re a wuss too. I’m missing a picnic for this.
August 14, 2008 at 06:48 PM
picnic? :O
August 14, 2008 at 07:22 PM
my dad’s work is having a company picnic this saturday and I was gonna go but then we switched the gaming date from sunday to saturday and I told him I had other plans.
August 14, 2008 at 07:47 PM
saturday are do-able for me but always seem to have more going on… sorry
August 14, 2008 at 10:06 PM
bah. you should be like me and not have a life. it’ll serve you better when you actually decide to start having a life. lol
August 15, 2008 at 02:40 AM
just read gravendarr’s journal and let me tell u, got some good laughs out of it. The fact that i killed a man in reno caused a quick laughing fit. The complaints make for an interesting read as well… “how long do u need to make these warehouses?!” funny stuff. just thought id share…
August 15, 2008 at 03:47 AM
Verjaeger: Bummer. Better make sure someone takes notes for you because I have a feeling you’re going to miss a lot. We’ll fill you in on how the tower works out as a gaming pad, too. Looking forward to it guys. 36 hours and counting…
August 15, 2008 at 02:09 PM
bounce bounce
August 15, 2008 at 03:03 PM
I’ll be out of work by 3-4ish on saturday so if there is any big question for my character you can call me (ex. do you sacrifice yourself to save the party). I’m sure I’ll be able to catch up though.
ps- joja don’t kill my character plz
August 15, 2008 at 03:12 PM
Maybe it’ll be ME that kills your character :D
August 15, 2008 at 06:20 PM
who’s playing him? If its Hayden, then you’re probably be fine; he seems like the sensible sort. If it’s Josh playing…. “Soooooo Dead.” cuz he’ll probably make you do something stupid like run into the middle of battle alone (cough William cough) or insult a Dragonborn and have his head biten clean off.
Rebecca’s out of this one two, right? Is Mak (Kara, right? I keep forgetting) playing this time, or is she out too?
Also, thanks Hayden for the compliments. I put a lot of time into making it completely Gravendarr, instead of just me retelling the story. His views are different and his opinions on things are… warped, but I think it makes for a great story. You should try your hand at writing a journal too. Oh, and Dev, you give up on doing yours?
August 15, 2008 at 06:27 PM
also, I’m glad to hear you picked up on the Cash reference. I was wondering if anybody would get that.
August 15, 2008 at 06:38 PM
.... my bad, I should probably CHECK before I question things, huh Devon? hehe. sorry. though it seems to me you can do better. stop rushing through it! it should be a JOY to write these. lol
However, I do like the line: “Wimpy especially likes it when I magic his grass into various colors and flavors and I believe the other’s horses were jealous.” that’s the William humor we all have come to know and love.
August 15, 2008 at 08:07 PM
Dar. Mak is playing (I mean Kara) and I think we’re bringing her brother along. He is in transition between a 1 year stay in Korea (for the Air Force) and a two-year stint in Germany. He’s never played DnD, but plays a lot of WoW and said he’ll give it a try. So I think the group is Dar, Corvin, William, Mak & unknown guy. I’ll juggle bending the rules of “reality” enough that we can get characters in and out and it all make sense. Bear with me. Also, Anyone want to game next Saturday or Sunday (Aug. 23 or 24)? I can make another go then I think, and again on Labor day. See you guys in 20 hours…
August 15, 2008 at 08:53 PM
Almost definitely cant do next weekend, but I will ask my wife. OSU graduation and Sarah is graduating and we’re having a party so, not the best weekend.
Also, I didn’t think I had rushed through it, I just felt like it was in William’s nature to skip details of things like battles and comment on the things he, the character (not me necessarily), would find most interesting. Also its not quite done either. I ran out of time when I was writing it and so i just picked a spot to stop for the time being, but thats not really a complete entry.
August 15, 2008 at 08:57 PM
Also, I thought it was important to have a clearly different portrayal from Darr’s lest it become too tiresome ;)
Also, Wimpy <3>s Will
August 16, 2008 at 12:00 AM
i can do next weekend, but after that i’m not sure for a while cuz my lease will be up. i can probably work something out where i can come visit my gf on a friday and then play on a sat or sunday, but its gonna b tough so dont bank on me being there too much after this next weekend.
August 16, 2008 at 12:01 AM
....for about 3 or 4 weeks…..not forever : )
August 16, 2008 at 12:30 AM
as of rignt NOW, I’m free for following weeks, but since i’ve moved down here, I’ve become… what’s the word? Popular. so my weekends tend to fill up suddenly. Mostly its you guys, but occasionally other people desire my attention also. It’s an… odd experience.
August 16, 2008 at 12:30 AM
My wife says I could probably play on Saturday next week but counter hour out, yet again, cause shes got to get prepared for a party. Sunday is graduation and party day so it’d have to be Saaaaaaturday. So yea, there you go.
August 16, 2008 at 02:08 AM
saturday will b fine for me! excited for tomorrow
August 16, 2008 at 01:17 PM
....I just realized something… something very frightening. Oskilar is the group’s only “balancer” of Gravendarr’s…. “just hit it in the face” tactics. So in essense, I’m now “group leader” since Oskilar is gone. lol. This… could be bad. lol.
August 16, 2008 at 01:46 PM
bad news guys…. mike didnt leave me his dice. so u remember all those natural 20’s? i think we might b out of luck this time….
August 16, 2008 at 01:59 PM
Speaking of dice. Gravendaar might want to buy a new set while we’re at the game shop. No more 2s dammit!
August 16, 2008 at 02:18 PM
Has everyone been there? incase you haven’t: http://maps.google.com/maps?ie=UTF8&oe=utf-8&client=firefox-a&q=guardtower+hilliard+oh&fb=1&cid=0,0,7119420441650208303&t=h&layer=c&cbll=39.992907,-83.091721&panoid=vcqEKZWUuyy4NWvocaKPMg&cbp=1,12.56050772481143,,0,5.167808569455385&ll=39.994597,-83.091938&spn=0.011392,0.019312&z=16
It can be tough to spot, I drove past it the first couple times I went, but just look for that big green sign in the picture there. The guardtower is the last shop (farthest from road) in the little strip mall.
August 16, 2008 at 03:23 PM
hope you all have a good session today… while I sit in conference rooms and do interpersonal relationship speeches.
Oh I’m good for next weekend
ps- Hope you guys can handle Darr w/o me… mwwhahahahahah
August 16, 2008 at 03:42 PM
He will be handled.
August 17, 2008 at 12:54 AM
Long live Mak the Pantsless, Halfing Pirate Wench Extraordinaire!!
Missed a great session, Mike, lots of shinies!
Dev, nice new orb for ya when you next play. Nice. New. Shiny. I predicted squealing and bouncing, don’t let me down.
Overall, I REALLY liked this new place. Noisy once it got filled up, and we still had those pesky “lookers” but I really enjoyed the “extras” we had available and the back-BACK room is a great spot. Looking forward to playing again soon!
August 17, 2008 at 01:19 AM
Heeeeeeeey tell me everything that happened, my character was there, so i need to know. LOTS OF DETAILS. I left and was still wanted to play so bad so we are totally on for next week, cant wait. DETAILS! LOTS! :D
August 17, 2008 at 02:44 AM
well to sum it up, i got owned, bad… but i ended up giving the killing blow to 3 of them and managed to stay concious (i was at 4 hp one time). new kid got SUPER lucky time after time as he went head-to-head with the wizard baddy(grav tm) and never got hit. u still didnt get hit, u still didnt hit ne thing (lol) but the sphere did some nice secondary damage. mak came and saved me grav did his whole stand in the doorway thing for most of the encounter, taking on a big baddy(grav tm) and that pretty much sums it up. o and we got loot, and u got an orb, and its gonna help you…. lots
August 17, 2008 at 02:47 AM
o for a little more detail (cuz u said u wanted detail), u remember how i got smacked from inside the doorway? ya well when i stood up, a diff guy was attacking me, and then the next round the first guy who smacked me was attacking me too. after about a round of that i burned some action points and that mixed with mak coming to my rescue i managed to get out. ur wizard hit one guy with a direct hit by the orb, and i dont think ur character moved once, so yes ur still alive and safe.
August 17, 2008 at 02:52 AM
geeze i keep thinking of extra stuff to say, ur orb prob did about 30 points of secondary damage, one time it hit 2 diff people for 8 damage each (rolled seperately) and then one direct hit, plus a couple times for like 6 damage. so that was nice…
o hey mike, we talked to the elf king in the tree, he was slimy, and a necro, and we found ur raven queen brand in a monastary in the mountains. wizard was still a crazy ass, gravendarr got a new friend (a second dragonborn who wanted to burn down everything, im talking like the entire fellwood forest…. for no reason) i can give more details whenever u come back home.
so to everyone… i may not keep a journal for my character, but i pretty much just wrote one
August 17, 2008 at 03:53 AM
Ok sounds like the final combat was really epic! Did you guys just stop right there after the combat? Nothing else happened? Im excited for next week, who all is going to be there, and we’re going to do it Saturday, right? Same time as today? Same place? CANT WAIT! I want my orby guy :D
August 17, 2008 at 03:53 AM
bouncebouncebouncebounce
August 17, 2008 at 01:53 PM
Oh also, how much XP did we get? Are we level 3 yet? bounce
August 17, 2008 at 02:30 PM
you have now leveled: 2320 total exp for YOU now.
Oh, and I’m glad to see my prediction has come true.
Hayden, what’s (grav tm) I keep seeing?
August 17, 2008 at 03:22 PM
“trademark” of gravendarr. i believe he is the one that has come up with the terms baddy and squishy, so i feel like i need to throw in the ^tm to b fair…
August 17, 2008 at 03:49 PM
lol. well “to be fair” josh has called them squishys, though I do believe baddy is still mine, but I appreciate the markings. lol.
August 17, 2008 at 04:09 PM
Aaron, everyone has 2320xp total? We are all level 3? How much did we get for yesterday? bouncebounce going to level up.
August 17, 2008 at 04:16 PM
u, me, grav, and mak all have 2320xp. that means we got like ~450
August 17, 2008 at 04:24 PM
What about… Mike? lol
August 17, 2008 at 05:13 PM
......
August 17, 2008 at 05:16 PM
we only get the one Encounter power for lvl 3, right?
August 17, 2008 at 05:42 PM
Yup, I think the only changes to your character sheet are Level, XP, HP, Surge Value, and 1 Encounter Power.
August 17, 2008 at 08:20 PM
you sure the surge value changes as well? cuz i thought that only did it if your Con went up? ie, on an even number level.
August 17, 2008 at 08:51 PM
the surge value is 1/4 ur health, so if ur health goes up than so should ur surge value
August 17, 2008 at 09:35 PM
ah. okay. also, Kara’s brother: what was his name, what was his character’s name, and what he a paladin of?
August 17, 2008 at 10:47 PM
bahamut, and thats all i know
August 18, 2008 at 12:35 AM
no, he wasnt’ a Bahamut priest, was he? I thought he was something different and then the one hanging from the evil keep was the old Bahamut priest.
August 18, 2008 at 02:05 AM
Im pretty sure he was a Paladin of Bahamut, it makes sense, most dragonborn’s worship Bahamut, he is a dragon afterall.
August 18, 2008 at 02:42 PM
The guy hanging from the keep was a former Paladin of Bahamut, and until his unfortunate end, the keep’s resident priest of Bahamut as well. Garret, who was playing a dragonborn named Rogar, also is a Paladin of Bahamut. As for (grav TM)don’t forget Shinies(grav TM) Gravendarr’s second favorite word behind “Pantless wench,” of course.
August 18, 2008 at 05:13 PM
Ok so it sounds like we are on for Saturday, will we be playing @ the Guardtower again? I kind of liked it, though maybe in the future we should try to have food sorted out ahead of time so we don’t have to take long breaks to hunt for food and drink.
August 18, 2008 at 06:06 PM
i’ll take care of the drinks again. this time BEFORE I get there. I was just sort of trying to find the place first before I started wandering around looking for shit.
oh, and as for the “Pantless Wench” Kara wasn’t upset about that? I can NEVER understand women, but I “thought” she was okay with it and understood I was just joking and being stupid. if she was upset, let me know and I’ll be more careful with my stupidity.
August 18, 2008 at 07:08 PM
hey darr i was just lookin at ur sheet to see if u had leveled up and i was looking at ur powers, and when u attack are you ever using reaping strike? cuz even if u miss u still do 4 damage and i never hear u say that. and y r all ur ability modifiers 1 higher than they should b? cuz half level doesnt affect the modifiers themselves, only in attack bonus and saves and stuff like that…
August 18, 2008 at 08:38 PM
you saying I’m cheating, boy? lol. if so, I’ll have to fix that, but when I did my 2nd level, everywhere on my sheet it said that 1/2 level thing, I added one to. on my sheet we have posted here, I displayed that info because it is what I have. I may have either just displayed it wrong/improperly here, or I may have completely done it wrong to my character. Saturday, somebody who knows what they’re doing (ie, not me) should take a look at my sheet and see which of these errors I made. While I’d like to do as much damage as I can (rolls not withstanding) I’d like to do it legitly, so if there’s a mistake with my character, we need to fix it.
as for the Reaping Strike, I was not aware that it did damage even if it didnt’ hit. I’ll have to use that more. To be honest, I dont’ know why I dont’ use my At-Wills more than I do. I usually just attack, which is a total waste of my skills. As much as I miss, I should try to take advantage of any extra (legit) damage I can do. See, this is why I keep you fools around; to help my dumbass out of the corner I keep painting myself into.
August 18, 2008 at 11:56 PM
ya im gonna make sure u use ur powers next game, cuz with covering attack and get over here, u should def b fighting WITH an ally at all times, no more door tactics for u, leave that to some1 else, the wizard can make the door hard terrain or sumthing. and u have two 2w’s every encounter! and a 3w if u want it (once a day) in the same encounter. if u r fighting one guy u automatically do str damage (reaping strike) and if u r fighting two guys u can damage them both in the same round with cleave as ur AT-WILL POWERS!! ur gonna have more fun next game….
August 19, 2008 at 12:37 AM
...unless you die… Ha! That never gets old. So I need some honest feedback about the encounters, because I scaled them up (of course I didn’t count on Garret playing… or that orc wizard to never roll higher than a 6 for the whole encounter) and I thought they were a little more fun for everyone, but still not totally bad “oh my God we’re all going to die” ass. Give me an honest apprasel before next week and take into account that most of you will be a level higher. Also, really nice job working together to beat your first real Skill challenge. Good team work. I hadn’t fully thought out the consequences of failure, but lets just say they would have been …grim.
P.S. If any of you have not seen Tropic Thunder yet, by all means pony up the loot and go check it out. Outrageously funny. I think you Aaron would most enjoy it. Solid Dar humor throughout. Devon, don’t watch it with the kids, though.
August 19, 2008 at 01:38 AM
i liked the encounters, even though they werent the only ones rolling poorly. it’ll b nice to have a heal stick next game though. we need a little bit more team cohesiveness, like when the whole party goes up to the front doors in the day light when we kno some1 is in there, we really gotta work on that. if they dont know we r there, we have the advantage.i should have waited for the light spell to counteract the darkness BEFORE i went in to the longhouse though, but hey we all make mistakes
August 19, 2008 at 01:40 AM
So it sounds like you guys had a bit of a rocky time with the session. As you did not have your tactician at this session I take full responsibility for any negative events that happened to the party as a whole. Hopefully my soon to be played-out interrogation of the “Green Cloak” man will prove worthy of an arduous adventure for my colleagues of this odyssey. Hayden filled me in on both the overall subject matter as well as the smaller details of your voyage in the forest. Well it sounds like you guys got the job done clap* clap* ;) even if it wasn’t in the most finessed fashion. Congrats on the skill challenge, wish I could have been there for that!
Apparently Oskilar had to stay behind, not in his nature but something that was unforeseen. I hope that I will not be penalized for my last minute trip to Cincinnati to help my parent, and look forward to catching up with all of you both in the forest and at the Gaurdtower! That is, if you all enjoyed our new setting for our romps in the fantasy world :)
PS- got to see Tropic Thunder before it came out in the theater (pre-tickets) and it was hilarious… Fav Line—“what kind of farmer am I… I’m a lead farmer! Motherf@#$&! BANG BANG*. OMG SO many more quotes just came into my head, but I won’t ruin it, go see. Oh and don’t go see Pineapple Express unless your high or with good friends who you’ve know for a while… just that type of movie.
August 19, 2008 at 04:01 AM
Yea that’s what I heard about Pineapple express too. Haven’t seen Tropic Thunder yet but I really want to cause it looks hilarious. Went to see Star Wars Clone Wars instead on Friday (meant to mention that cause) it was really really awesome. I wasn’t sure what to expect going in, but its just an all out action fast from start to finish.
I’m starting to get more and more into my character, and he is definitely a very rash and impetuous guy. Which is, believe it or not, very NOT like me. I generally enjoy a good plan and seeing it come to fruition. For instance, I play lots of real-time strategy games, C&C, AOE, Company of Heroes, and I ALWAYS play a very defensive game, slowly building up to an epic tidal wave to crush my foes. MUAHAHA. HA. HAHA! But I am really enjoying just taking William to heart and sallying forth whenever it seems like he just might make it. SO, that said, I will listen to your tactics and strategies, and may provide some OOC input, but as you have seen on many occasions, Will doesn’t always stick to the plan!
As for an honest appraisal of the encounters and such, I think they could still be BEEFIER!! :D Honestly, I can think of only one time when anyone has been incapacitated. Also, so far, we have generally not fought more than one or two encounters in a single day and having access to our daily powers really increases our strength. So you might want to keep that in mind, ofcourse, we haven’t been on a true dungeon crawl yet, unless you count the intro game ofcourse, and even that was only 2 encounters. Remember that challenging encounters can be 1-3 levels higher than party level for a good challenge but I agree, it is difficult to balance when your not sure how large the party is going to be. Hopefully we have a good idea of how many party members will be there (Me, Aaron, Hayden, Mike makes 4). Last thing I can think of is that we have encountered few fights where there were groups of monsters that were mixed strengths and roles. The largest being the goblins we fought @ Josh Session 1 ;) Hope that helps.
August 19, 2008 at 04:03 AM
Oh also, I cast Light expecting nothing at all to happen! I felt like a fricken genius when it worked though!