Chapter 15: Q&A / Discussions

[Jeff]

I daresay everyone did something helpful and important here. From Streko’s initial banishment (Histra did try), Shorak and Belarin’s hard-hitting sniping, Kal’s spell movements, and the brutes doing tricksy melee attacks.

Of course, the tieflings helped remove the nycoloth’s advantage.

In any case, this ain’t quite over yet.

[Brian]

It was a team effort. We all did spectacularly well. Congrats to all.

But...yeah, the grapple and drag to Adamant was pretty cinematic.

[Elvis]

Happy July 4th, you rebellious Yanks!

[Dave W.]

I agree Elvis! Happy Fourth all!

[Jeff]

Jul 5, 2018 13:38:02 GMT -4 Dave W. said:

"Or perhaps I should investigate that light over there?" He looks to where the spark of light is.

Sorry if I wasn't clear. At the moment, only Shorak sees that. He's on road watch.

[Dave W.]

oops... I'll edit... Addy still wants to go stand with Kal.

[Dave W.]

Just to be clear, Adjalarr and Melethos moved off to have this conversation in private. We can't hear what they're saying...

[Jeff]

Not really. They met in the middle to talk. She wasn't trying to have a private powwow; hence the Common. It's up to each of you if you decide not to pay attention to them, though.

[Elvis]

My post was a bit of an overlap with Brian's.

Thul's intent is to support Melethos's argument... not speak for the group.

[Jeff]

Sure, I took it as such.

[Brian]

I edited my last post because I realized that Big Red's bracers were destroyed when we freed the sphinx. So I had to amend what I wrote.

[Dave W.]

Jul 11, 2018 10:40:28 GMT -4 Jeff said:

Dave: Props to you for using the word weregild perfectly. I only knew that word from Tolkien, wherein Isildur claims the One Ring as a weregild for the death of his father at Sauron's hand.

I confess that's where I first learned too...

[Jeff]

Jul 18, 2018 9:29:11 GMT -4 Darren said:

Kal offers Grafth a nod. "Agreed," he says. "We will continue to maintain our end. To a safe journey," he says, raising his hand as though offering a toast.

Kal sits down next to Sem. "Of course I will take your council," he says. "I think I would be lost without it. So, what was Larest's plan after this? Is there anything I need to know that I don't already know?"

Grafth!

Boy, I bet Kal thinks all shifters look the same. Racist bastard...

[Darren]

Somehow I knew that was wrong as I was typing it.

[Brian]

For now, Melethos will stow the axe under his bunk. He’ll keep it wrapped in his cloak.

[Dave W.]

Jul 25, 2018 16:29:04 GMT -4 Jeff said:

The new mechanics for warforged from this PDF are pretty good. Still processing them. It's an improvement from the last iteration and 4E stuff, but it's still a strange evolution from where they started. In this version, after each long rest you can choose an Integrated Protection mode, which changes your AC for that entire day. So like one day you could go about lightly a darkwood core (and have AC 11+Dex) or go with heavy plating instead (16+prof bonus), etc. I'm not sure I like it or not. It's not bad, it's just different. I don't tend to think of warforged bodies being that malleable. Though they do and can be changed.

This being Eberron talk, I'm not sure this stuff need to be in the Off-topic thread, though.

Agreed, moved to the regular discussion thread.

I just bought the pdf, but I am still in deep with work so I may not get to read much for a while.

Yeah, I don’t think of warforged as transformers... changing their build every day seems weird. Though I suspect Adamant would stick to heavy plate... he was forged as heavy infantry and has spent his few years that way, I’m not sure he’d know what to do with himself if he were suddenly lighter...

otoh, if you want to change anything, I trust your judgement...

[Jeff]

No, no big changes on my end. And nothing at all immediate. I'll slowly take in all this stuff and we'll talk about anything I want to fiddle with.

The Integrated Protection thing I interpret as not so much dissolving and regrowing armor each day, but sort of redistributing the composition of existing layers. So if, hypothetically, Adamant chose the darkwood core one day, then he'd still have this metal plating but it would be thin, and beneath it would be a thicker layer of darkwood instead. And he'd probably be a bit lighter. But still, that's now how I want warforged all across the world to suddenly be. Adamant being a walking heavy tank is fun.

Dragonmarks are definitely handled pretty interesting. I've started to listen to Keith's summary of things in the Manifest Zone podcast which Ken told me about.

A little more on-topic: Ken, don't forget you do have that gift bag from the Orien heir. And an artificer in close proximity.

[Ken]

Oh yeah, the bag. But I think Streko is holding on to it for the time being.

Jun 9, 2018 0:08:41 GMT -4 Joe said:

Jun 8, 2018 22:52:11 GMT -4 Jeff said:

The bag from the Orien heir, at least at first look, seems to contain four potion vials (each labeled with a tiny piece of paper: Celerity 1, Celerity 2, Celerity 3, Celerity 4), and something smaller rolling around the bottom. A bauble of some kind.

"Belarin," he calls out. "These vials aren't for healing, but provide quickness and speed. Perhaps they can be of some assistance to us here and now. If not, I will hold them for future use."

Not a big deal either way. We can say that Belarin held on to it, if that'll make things simpler.

[Jeff]

Right. I wasn't meaning Belarin physically has them. I just meant they were given to you, to you all. Figured Belarin would remember more than anyone else. Just so you don't lose that resource.

But yes, I have those potion vials in Streko's inventory.

[Joe]

Elvis, no hard feelings here. Just character development, as it were. Hope everyone knows that.

[Jeff]

A bit of out-of-game advice. I'm happy to see some battlefield chain of command talk, loose though it is so far.

But I also think it won't amount to much if you don't as characters (as opposed to players) also talk about tactics and what your characters' capabilities are. What often happens is one or two fighter types go out at the lead and then Kal throws down a Wall of Fire that changes the course of battle and likely forces others to change tactics. But if they know he's going to do it (based on X, Y, and Z) then that Wall of Fire can almost be counted on. Likewise, it's good for others to know that Melethos can do some stuff that allows others to do some stuff as a reaction. And Thul went head-to-head with a vampire spawn with his bare hands (kids, don't try this at home) because he's got some good grappling tricks.

Stuff like that. It doesn't have to be right now (especially while everyone's still exhausted and banged up) but the voyage is the perfect time. You don't have to try to convert all game mechanics into regular speech....a combo of in-game speak + out-of-character pink explanation below is always fine.

[Brian]

I'm intending to do just this, Jeff. With several of us on vacation, off and on, during the next couple of weeks, I hope to start this about mid-August. After all, battle tactics are not improvised on the spot.