Chapter 13: Q&A / Discussions

[Jeff]

D'oh. For a moment I had him and Aven in the same spot, that's why. Sorry, I'll fix.

[Ken]

To answer your question, Jeff, about Belarin's intent: Yes, Misty Escape can only be used in response to being hit, and yes, I wasn't referring to the game mechanic Dodge but to the "passive" dodging that's implied when you add the Dec modifier to the AC. (That's why I used a lowercase D.) All is good!

[Darren]

Jeff, is it safe to assume that Aven would have had to put down Adamant to tackle the other warforged?

[Jeff]

No, not necessarily. He basically rammed the other warforged. His being heavily encumbered doesn't stop him from all actions, just makes him very slow to move and definitely disadvantaged on some things. In fact, I should have made his shove attack disadvantaged (and thus neither advantaged nor disadvantaged because he's also invisible), but he did have two attacks and the second one's lower roll still beat the other's roll. But anyway...

Now, if he'd tried to a weapon attack, of course he'd need a hand free (and both his hands are very busy holding Adamant right now). Moreover, if he'd dropped Adamant, I'd have mentioned the sound of it. Adamant dropping is not subtle.

[Darren]

From now on, dropping non-subtle hints shall be referred to as "dropping an Adamant."

[Dave W.]

And I went to:

Master: What is the sound of one Adamant dropping?
Student: Uh, gee, I don' know
[Suddenly 300 lbs of metal, stone, and wood land on the student]
Master: Now do you see?
Student: ggurrgle...

[Darren]

I'll ask two questions at once so I can try to figure out what to do next:

1 - I assume the "puff of wind" that can be created by Prestidigitation is insufficient to do anything about the cloud that's been created?
2 - I likewise assume that Kal needs to be able to see his target to use the Wand of Magic Missles that he has?
3 - Is it still possible to attack the warforged through the cloud with disadvantage, or is it just not possible to hit them at all? I also assume that Kal's Spell Sniper feat has no bearing here because this is full cover and not partial?

[Jeff]

1 - Right. Much too weak.
2 - Right. You still have to be able to see your target, even just a little, for Magic Missile.
3 - Look at the map. Kal never even saw that newer warforged and he's got no line of sight. If he can move to somewhere where he CAN see the warforged, he can target it. You have to know where your enemy is to target it.

[Darren]

Right, but he saw the first one move, so does that mean he could target where he thinks it is?

[Jeff]

A 1 in 10 chance of him even guessing which square it went. And likely shooting through allies. The warforged ran out of his sight even before the cloud went up so it's very unlikely he could pinpoint it.

[Darren]

Understood. Thanks!

[Ken]

Jeff, can Belarin use his action to physically guide Shorak out of the cloud, so that Shorak doesn't have to make the Constitution save? I guess that would also require Shorak to delay his turn until after Belarin acted.

[Jeff]

Sure. If he devotes both his action and his move, he can stay beside Shorak and escort him through. Keep in mind that Belarin can't see through it himself, so he doesn't know where it ends until he gets there. Just have Belarin say something brief now so Shorak can take advantage.

[Dave B.]

Sorry for the delay. Tried to post several hours ago, got kicked off just as I hit the create post button and couldn't get back on until just now.

[Jeff]

No worries, Dave. Plus it's a weekend. I did get your email but I was in CT at the time, looking at sharks.

[Joe]

Just out of curiosity, are we still attempting to do non-lethal damage to the guards (including the 'forged)?

[Brian]

Good point, Joe. I'd forgotten about the lethal vs nonlethal damage. I'll have to consider this as we fight the warforged.

[Brian]

Jeff, you mentioned not taking the maneuver damage into account because I had specified using it on the first attack. We may have covered this before I forgot the answer, but can I wait and see if Condign hits (or it think he hits) and then use the maneuver? If both are clear misses, I can decide not to spend a superiority die?

[Jeff]

Yes. I'm almost certain you never have to decide about maneuvers until you do hit. In this case, I didn't want to assume you'd necessarily want to spend the maneuver on the second attack. Also, the warforged is in bad shape and a single hit might bring it down. Wasn't sure you wanted to waste a superiority die trying to intimidate just for what might not last anyway.

[Brian]

All right. Thanks. So I'm back to four superiority die?

[Jeff]

Whatever you were at before this round.

[Darren]

Jeff, how does the whole anti-venom thing work? If Kal uses it, can he stand in the cloud without dying? If he's inside of the cloud, can he see the warforged to target them, or does he need to be full on the other side of it?

[Jeff]

Antivenom is in the PHB. It just gives you advantage on saving throws against poison, that's all. Doesn't let you see through the cloud at all. Even Belarin, who seems to immune to the poison at the moment, still can't see through the cloud. It's still obscuring line of sight.

[Darren]

For what it's worth, Ken and Brian, I suggest we move to negotiation at this point before continuing combat. I'm guessing a Coin Lord is a pretty high-level encounter and doesn't die easily....

[Brian]

In an effort to avoid metagaming...

Belarin's at bat. I'll wait and see what Ken posts, and then decide what Condign would do.

[Ken]

Yeah, I'm going to post something along those lines in character.

[Jeff]

I appreciate the curbing of metagaming. Just wanted to say.

And don't misunderstand. I'm never opposed to metagaming as a whole, just under certain circumstances. It has good uses, too. But in moments like this, working out a new strategy, out of character, based on the changing circumstances just doesn't seem right. You've had a lot of re-planning going on, in character, so when you make a point of contact, it's time to choose moment to moment how it's going to go down. Obviously we're in a moment of confrontation and every action counts.

[Darren]

Jun 29, 2017 11:53:44 GMT -4 Jeff said:

I appreciate the curbing of metagaming. Just wanted to say.

And don't misunderstand. I'm never opposed to metagaming as a whole, just under certain circumstances. It has good uses, too. But in moments like this, working out a new strategy, out of character, based on the changing circumstances just doesn't seem right. You've had a lot of re-planning going on, in character, so when you make a point of contact, it's time to choose moment to moment how it's going to go down. Obviously we're in a moment of confrontation and every action counts.

Wasn't my intention. I wasn't really planning to say more than, "This is probably not a time to fight."

[Jeff]

Jun 29, 2017 12:11:01 GMT -4 Ken said:

"Greetings, my lord. This is very unfortunate. We're going to release Llash-Tava from her cruel captivity. My friends and I have overcome many, MANY formidable obstacles to get to this point, and I sincerely hope - for your sake - that you don't become another. Let's discuss how we make that happen."

__________________________________________________

Jeff, I'm seeing this as a polite way of saying, "Hey, friends, we've kicked a lot of powerful asses today. Let's find a way to avoid you being the next one." So I'm treating it as a Charisma (Persuasion) check, with an undercurrent of intimidation.
Roll: 1d20 (17) + 8 = 25.

My interpretation is that this is straight-up intimidation. Even if delivered politely. At the end of the day, Belarin's words are a threat, not an attempt to change someone's mind.

[Ken]

Fair enough. It's a roll of 21 in that case. I'll revise the post.