Chapter 9: Q&A / Discussions

[Brian]

Okay, silly question time: The bubble of air is obviously spherical. Therefore, the distance between the bubble's surface and the ground is the least at the edges and the greatest at the center. If the bubble is big, say 3sq high, can we all huddle up in the center and be out of any of Sarquaa's attacks from above?

Just trying to force him to approach us, not have us chase him.

[Dave W.]

Good thinking brian but Sarquaa has reach... He can attack us from outside our melee range. The only exception right now is Adamant with his long spear. But then Sarquaa could just keep attacking the opposite side of our bunching.

Sorry for being vague, Jeff, but yes I was suggesting I'd be willing to use Martyr's Blessing if Condign got hit... I'll be more precise next time...

Btw, Adamant has reach so if he gets adjacent he should still be able to attack...

I like Kal's idea to use the bubble to drop Sarquaa...

[Darren]

Except that I'm not really sure how valuable it will be since Kal goes before Sarquaa, and Sarquaa goes before everyone else except Adamant. It seems like all it will really do is effectively put us in the water. Sure, Sarquaa will drop, but then he'll just bolt away again before everyone else has the chance to go. So I'm not sure it's worth doing.

[Ken]

Darren, you could delay Kal's action and have him go after Sarquaa. Sure, this means that Sarquaa potentially get another round of hits on Kal before Kal can even act again, but you could get Sarquaa in the bubble and have everyone pound on him before he gets to act again.

For instance:
Kal delays.
Sarquaa goes.
Kal moves the bubble up, Sarquaa drops.
Kal could trade his standard action for another move action to LOWER the bubble, so that we're all on the ground, including Sarquaa. Kal wouldn't have an attack that round, but hey, it might be worth it.
Everyone pounds on Sarquaa.

So it could work.

[Ken]

Yikes. Okay, my suggestions:

Option 1:
Condign is the only one in a position to reach down and use two move actions to raise and lower the bubble as Darren had originally suggested. That'll prevent Condign from doing anything else, though.

Anyone else who tries to grab the pearl will have to spend a move just to get to Kal's position, and wouldn't be able to raise and lower the bubble in the same round...

Actually, Streko could do it, if Joe were willing to spend an action point and take essentially three move actions. But that doesn't sound like something Streko would impulsively do after seeing Kal get dropped like that.

Option 2:
The fallback is that Shorak do it. One move action to swim to the bubble (assuming he makes his Athletics check) and another to raise the bubble and make Sarquaa drop. Sarquaa might still be able to swim away in the next round, but he would still open himself up to attacks from ALL of us before having the opportunity to do so.

I'd prefer Option 2, except for the fact that the move action (swimming) requires a roll.

Regardless, Belarin will still attack: crackling fire if he's able to zap Sarquaa without hitting his friends; witchfire if that's not possible. (Jeff, since both powers are vs. Reflex, I'd like to keep my d20 roll and the max damage even if witchfire ends up being the power that's used. PLEEEEASE.)

[Brian]

Sorry, Ken. I posted before I read your excellent post.

[Darren]

Hang on, Jeff. I specifically said that if Kal got hit he would use the power of his armor. Also, Dave said that Adamant would use his power if one of his allies got hit....

[Ken]

No problem, Brian. Condign did a very Condign thing. Besides, realistically none of our characters is going to see Kal drop in a bloody heap and immediately think, "Oh, maybe I'll grab that shiny pearl...!"

....okay, maybe Belarin would. ooohhhlookittheshinything

[Dave B.]

Okay, now I'm confused. Did Kal go down or is Darren correct and Kal suffered more damage then he should have? I'm going to wait for some resolution from Jeff before I turn back time for Shorak and reuse my rolls (one pretty crappy). Though if we still get to rethink our previous moves regardless of the final word on Kal's situation, Shorak might be able to turn the advantage our way even without trying to go for the pearl, which I don't think Shorak would attempt anyway. Will check back in shortly.

[Jeff]

Hang on, Jeff. I specifically said that if Kal got hit he would use the power of his armor.

I looked and couldn't find it. Kept Ctrl F-ing for "mithral" and it never came up. Then I found it as just "the power of his armor." Ugh.

Okay, all of you: give me a day or two to get back to this. I'm racing a deadline right now.

Also, Dave said that Adamant would use his power if one of his allies got hit....

Nope. That's only if Kal was adjacent to Adamant.

[Darren]

Gotcha. I had no idea how that power works. Just trying to keep Kal from dying. Sorry for the confusion.

[Dave W.]

We can all wait for you Jeff. Take your time.

I like Streko's action; that's a great power. If Joe retracts it to go for the pearl, remember Streko has an action point. So if the swim check fails the extra action may be used.

Actually it might be the time to use the action point anyway... It's time to pull out the stops. I think we might want those dailies. This guy is an elite, that makes this a boss fight.

[Brian]

Okay, now I'm confused.

Jeff, are you using Condign's old post where he used Viper's Strike on Sarquaa? And does that mean he didn't use Inspiring Word on Kal?

[Jeff]

Sorry, yes. Since Kal didn't drop, I was discounting the posts that were made based on that development. Sorry!

If you'd like Condign to do Inspiring Word as well (minor action anyway, right?), I can add that in.

[Brian]

Nay, I'll hit him this round with one.

[Ken]

Brian, if you delay Condign's move by 1 segment, then Streko will go before Condign, and Joe may be in a position to provide that boost to your roll.

Sept 27, 2011 8:35:53 GMT -4 Jeff said:

Ken, with Sarquaa down on ground level again, I couldn't see another way for Belarin to reach him with a blast effect without him going into the water.

Not a problem, Jeff. It's the sort of the impulsive, suicidal thing that Belarin might do. (If the impulsive, suicidal act involved walking into mud, not water, though, he'd pass.)

One odd question: Is it remotely possible to do a Stealth check underwater? The DMG doesn't say anything specific about that, but I'd assume there would be penalties if it were possible at all.

If so, though, there's an encounter power in Belarin's bag of tricks that he might have used at the end of the round for the sake of self-preservation....

[Joe]

Streko tries yet another Lance of Faith, but between the mass of bodies in front of him and the kicked-up sediment around him, he's not sure he can hit Sarquaa...still he must try, for his friends' sakes!
____________________________________________________

Standard Action - Streko casts LANCE OF FAITH.

ATTACK: 1d20+7=17

HIT: 1d8+6=9

+2 power bones for Condign and his next attack roll against Sarquaa.

[Dave W.]

If adamant shifts do I still need a swim check?

Sorry Brian but I won't be able to get you flanking... I would have take an opportunity attack and he's been too good at hitting me...

[Brian]

Nice, Joe. Wrong thread, but still nice. Thank you! ;D

[Ken]

Dave W, here's what the DMG says about underwater actions and movement (p. 45).

Creatures move using their swim speed. A creature without a swim speed must use the Athletics skill to swim, as described in the Player’s Handbook.

So, unfortunately, since shifting is a movement and it wasn't listed as an exception to this rule, the Athletics check still applies, in my humble but nosy non-DM opinion.

[Darren]

Sept 27, 2011 20:47:49 GMT -4 Dave W. said:

If adamant shifts do I still need a swim check?

Sorry Brian but I won't be able to get you flanking... I would have take an opportunity attack and he's been too good at hitting me...

Unless he moves again, which he's been doing a lot of....

[Jeff]

Sept 27, 2011 21:08:55 GMT -4 Ken said:

... in my humble but nosy non-DM opinion.

Nosy surrogate DM opinions always welcome. Especially when I'm not here fast enough to answer.

He's got it right, Dave. If you shift into water, then that's moving into water and you have to make sure you can swim it first.

[Dave B.]

Put down the wrong power name for Shorak's first choice of attacks. Will modify.

[Jeff]

Ken, sorry for not replying about concealment and shrouding gloom. I see no reason why Belarin can't do that. It's just about light and shadow, which applies underwater just the same, as I see it.

Everyone else: If your posts allow for some wiggle room, I'll generally try to get you your flanking bonuses. Hence both Shorak and Condign were able to move into one. Only I can see the battlefield as it shifts over the course of the round, so I do want to give you the benefit of the doubt.

[Ken]

Teamwork, baby! THAT's what I'm talkin' about!

In reviewing the rounds, it looks like at least 2 of of Sarquaa's misses would've been hits if not for Streko's shield of faith and Condign's bastion of defense. Add on the flanking bonuses (thanks for being flexible, Jeff) and the extra damage from vulnerabilities... well, COOL. Well done, everyone.

Excellent prose, by the way, Jeff. You must be a writer or something.

[Brian]

I second Ken's comments. Everyone did a fantastic job blending skills, keeping one another alive, and generally kicking butt.

And hat's off to Jeff, as always, for crafting a tricky encounter.

[Jeff]

Thanks. I'm mostly impressed that you've done this well for a fight that wasn't "necessary."

[Darren]

Not that it matters, but I think Kal was supposed to do more damage with his last attack, too, since Sarquaa had a vulnerability to lightning and fire until Belarin's next attack, which hadn't happened, yet.

We should probably check the four-armed dude's body, if possible. He might have some good stuff.

[Jeff]

Yes, you're right. I kept thinking fire. It would have done another 5 damage. It wouldn't have changed the moment of his defeat, though.

[Darren]

Sept 28, 2011 14:01:14 GMT -4 Darren said:

We should probably check the four-armed dude's body, if possible. He might have some good stuff.

...and then I read Jeff's post. So I guess we'll have to hope that if Sarquaa had anything good on him, H'raska didn't eat it.