Chapter 7: Q&A / Discussion

[Jeff]

Just once I was hoping to have the map up before Darren whined about it!

Stay tuned.

[Jeff]

Syrdan holds his ground, keeping focused on the action unfolding by the wheelbarrow. He quietly mutters a few choice words in his native tongue under his breath as Resh noisily grabs the goblin - "oh, you're a fine one to complain about Adamant, aren't you, Lord Stealth?"

Heh. For the record, their unspoken goal was to get close enough to the goblin to kill it and keep it from falling at all. But Kal's and Condign's spoken words rushed their plan, so when it fell Resh couldn't catch it in time to prevent the bell ringing. Anything except keeping the goblin upright was going to ring that dang bell.

[Dave W.]

Sorry, completely off topic, my daughter Caitlyn just got a phone call from Indiana University of Pennsylvania... She just got accepted to the Cook Honors College!!!! It's a BRILLIANT program... I'm crazy proud!!!

I will try to post later... But first, CELEBRATING!!!!!

[Joe]

MUY CONGRATS!!!!!!

[Jeff]

Regarding Ghost Sound, Darren:

You cause a sound as quiet as a whisper or as loud as a yelling or fighting creature to emanate from the target. You can produce nonvocal sounds such as the ringing of a sword blow, jingling armor, or scraping stone. If you whisper, you can whisper quietly enough that only creatures adjacent to the target can hear your words.

Can't he use it, though, to amplify his own voice? So if Kal used a deep voice and said the words, couldn't it be made to sound louder?

Yeah, I'm okay with that, as long as it's clear he's amplifying his own voice. He can exaggerate it a little, as soft as a whisper within the range of the spell, or as loud as a yell. As long as it's clear he's doing the talking in both cases. But he can't, say, produce the voice of a monster speaking actual words. That's the nonvocal limitation of the spell description. It'll always sound like a human's voice, just stretched a bit.

Or he could make it sound growly and monstrous but just be gibberish. In that case, it's not his own voice being amplified, but a pure construct of the spell.

That make sense?

[Darren]

Makes perfect sense. Thanks, Jeff.

[Brian]

"Time to move," says Condign as he rushes forward, being careful to stay with the group.

Okay, maybe this whole sentence was a contradiction. I assumed everyone was hustling forward. Now I find Condign has rushed forward exactly zero squares.

I thought we only listed squares moved during combat rounds. I think I made a mistake there too.

My intention was to have Condign move along with Syrdan (at the least). I had hoped to move as a collective. After all, resistance is futile.

Jeff, do you want me to make another post to accomplish this?

[Jeff]

No need, Brian. The main problem is probably that I posted too soon. Not everyone's posted yet.

So yeah, Condign will keep up with the group. But the other thing is, at the time of Brian's "stay with the group" post, the group was already in two places so I didn't know where to place him. Keeping him still also kept him with the group, too.

Although we're not in combat rounds at this time, it's handy for me if you are specific about where you go. Not that it's required. Because there actually is a map and there are squares.

I'll update the map once everyone's had a chance.

But in general, I definitely do need to hear what actions you guys have, not just dialogue. If someone just posts dialogue while everyone else is moving, don't assume you'll be moving, too.

[Brian]

Gotcha. Sorry about the confusion.

[Darren]

Condign frowns and shakes of his head. "The halfling mage guards the south, so unless you think Varna is part of a trap set for us, that is unnecessary. And you will not lure those gnolls away from their position. They have the advantage where they are at. They will make us come to them." Then he smiles. "But I do agree that we need to stay together." Then Condign moves closer to the gnolls.

Don't forget, Brian, that our goal is to cover Resh so he can get inside the building.

[Brian]

And don't forget--from Condign's POV--he believes the crates will be guarded, and the gnolls are the most logical place to start looking. We plow the road, Resh follows to see if the crates are there.

And besides, Resh said:

"Your job is to deal with the threats that present themselves. If someone tries to kill any of us, kill them first. Eye for an eye. Easy enough?"

The last time I looked, arrows are a threat. He didn't say "cover me while I snoop around."

[Jeff]

I'll be gone all day today, guys. I was just waiting for Mike before posting. Now that he has, I'm outta here.

Late late tonight or tomorrow I'll process round 1.

[Dave W.]

Sorry, meant to reply sooner; work doesnt always agree with my priorities...

I like how all the melee folks are going together one way and all the squishy spellcasters are scattering. This promises to be an interesting encounter.

I was also wondering if anyone had any long range spells? Or medium ranged with a good aoe effect?

[Darren]

I was hoping to get a better sense of what's around us and/or draw them towards us before running straight in. Kal's longest range spell is 20 squares, but I'm not about to just stand out in the open and trade jabs with a pair of archers.

[Brian]

I don't see how we can draw them out, Darren. I'd like to, really. But they (gnoll and goblin) have the advantage of ranged weapons and the terrain--and I'm sure they know it. I'm hoping that Mike and I can keep those two occupied while you and Ken and the others watch out for the alleged troll and ogre. I don't think Jeff includes little details like that without at least making their appearance possible.

[Mike]

I'm in agreement with Brian. Drawing them out is a good idea, but they already saw Syrdan and Condign and stayed put. With ranged weapons, they don't need to move. (Also, if they're expecting company, why move? They know a fight is coming.) So Syrdan's heading over towards them as much for recon purposes as to fight.

Syrdan's also able to cover ridiculous distances pretty quickly. If others further back get in trouble, he should be able to double back and help.

[Darren]

We'll see how it plays out, I'm sure. My only point was that we don't know what's on the other side of them, and we don't know what's to our left and right, and we can also easily stay out of their range. I don't see a problem with going after them, I just didn't think everyone needed to run up there as a group.

[Brian]

Why don't we all get past that terrain problem just east of where we came in? That way, anything coming from the west would be slowed by the rubble. We can gather up in the middle and watch the stairs, the west and the northeast. Let's put that terrain to our use when it comes to reinforcements.

Does that make any sense?

[Ken]

Sounds good, and I agree that having a couple of our guys engage the archers in melee is more likely to bring out their bruisers and allow Resh to sneak behind them and do his thing. Belarin is doing a quick threat assessment in the back alley, then rejoining the rest of the group; whether more foes are hanging back or not, at least we'll be better informed.

[Mike]

Agreed. Sounds like a plan to me.

[Dave W.]

Dec 7, 2010 11:08:24 GMT -4 Mike said:

Agreed. Sounds like a plan to me.

Sounds like a plan to me too... Let's see how long it survives contact with the enemy.

[Ken]

Jeff, in my previous post, I had said that if Belarin saw an enemy, he would curse and use eldritch blast. Are we saying that, because the goblin was about to fire on him, he had time only for one action and not both? I'm fine if that's the case -- just wanted to be sure. And if by "curse," it wasn't clear that I meant Warlock's Curse, I apologize -- obviously I could have been clearer. It's important in that if he DID curse the goblin, he'd know whether or not the goblin was dead.

[Jeff]

Sorry, yeah...it helps to capitalize the curse so I know for sure. The goblin is dead, regardless!

[Ken]

Brian,

Since you've described talking to another PC as a "minor" action recently, I just wanted to point out that chatting with someone in combat is a free action, as described in the PHB. I certainly don't want you thinking you can't take a minor action (e.g., pulling out or picking up an item, or using a particular ability described as a minor action) simply because Condign has spoken to someone that round.

[Brian]

Thanks, Ken. I was kind of being trite. I know it's a free action if I wanted to do a minor one. Which . . . Mike, I'm so sorry I didn't check Syrdan's hit points before my post or I would have thrown a heal your way. I'll pay better attention from now on.

[Mike]

Oh, don't worry, Brian. I went into that knowing there was a good chance Syrdan would get tagged. I was sort of planning on the action point/healing surge, unless Jeff's virtual dice went cold.

[Jeff]

[Mike]

Dec 9, 2010 15:31:49 GMT -4 Jeff said:

Hey, Mike. Don't forget those bracers of yours. Could come in handy. If you want, it can even apply right now for Syrdan's latest healing surge.

The bracers only kick in provided an ally adjacent to Syrdan regains hit points. That's not happened so far. They don't stack on top of Syrdan using a healing surge.

[Jeff]

Ahh, right. So if someone next to you spends a healing surge, it can trigger them and then you or they or someone else close enough can get a few extra points.

[Ken]

I don't know what you're talking about, but Belarin wants them. ;D