Chapter 16: Q&A / Discussion

[Dave W.]

not to kibitz too much but doesn't Hallow also take a day to cast? I mean, technically.

[Jeff]

Oh man. See, even I missed that.

Yes, yes it absolutely does. It's funny, because it's very powerful (because it's a permanent effect unless dispelled!) and as I was brushing up on it I was wondering what the catch was. That's a big part of it. Yes, thanks for noticing that, Dave. I'll make some adjustment in the main thread. Stay tuned.

[Jeff]

Dave, Brian, Ken, this is the object we talked about: ashlock.proboards.com/thread/269/chapter-14-cloud-fear Then do Ctrl F with the word "docent."

Sem has been left with it.

Meanwhile, in case it refreshes your memory, for context it was inside the puzzle box (opened by the sphinx), which in turn came from that undersea chest, which in turn included that note: ashlock.proboards.com/post/17005/thread

[Dave B.]

Thanks Jeff. I totally forgot what it was. Shorak will have to try to convince Adamant to plug in at some point. Maybe Sem can help him with that.

[Dave W.]

Jun 24, 2019 22:03:57 GMT -4 Dave B. said:

Thanks Jeff. I totally forgot what it was. Shorak will have to try to convince Adamant to plug in at some point. Maybe Sem can help him with that.

David is eager and excited to plug it in... Adamant's the one that needs convincing... did we ever figure out what exactly it does?

[Brian]

No, we never did figure it out. And Adamant was never too keen on trying for his Tony Stark upgrade, but that was a while ago.

[Dave W.]

So are we all going to roll 16?
Elvis: Perception: 20+4 = 16
Me: dlw32:1D20+2 → 16(14 + 2)#perception
Ken: Belarin:1D20 → 16(16)#Perception check

Oh, wait…
Brain: Melethos:1D20+1 → 2(1 + 1)#Wisdom (Perception) check

[Brian]

Yup, Big Red, he don't see nuthin'.

And don't call me Brain. LOL

[Jeff]

Marisa calls you Brain all the time, FYI.

[Brian]

She's allow to call me that.

[Ken]

It's an easy mistake to make: youtu.be/k2T52oob-xo

[Jeff]

Jun 28, 2019 13:49:29 GMT -4 Darren said:

Still, he can't help thinking back to his previous encounters with dragons, and to the prophecy that was relayed to him regarding a dragon the color of a bronze coin....

But do remember, and I think you keep missing this, the dragon here is a brass dragon, not a bronze.

[Darren]

Yep, I know....

[Brian]

I'm going to do a little meta-gaming and hope Jeff doesn't mind too much.

Elvis, I purposely had Melethos ask Thul if he had an objective/goal for freeing the others. I'm keeping in mind what you want to accomplish as a player--and you seem determined to have Thul do this. I'm also trying to keep in mind your feelings about being relegated to NPC status. No one wants that. But you gotta give me something, some reason for Melethos to agree to change plans and help Thul. I can't work with because I said so.

Am I forgetting something? Did we already agree to free all three creatures? Wasn't the goal to get the armor, return it to the azer, and get the hell out of Dodge?

I see no harm talking it out here, briefly. But the resolution should come from the in-game posting, prefeably initiated by Thul.

[Elvis]

Admittedly, by design, Thul doesn't say much. He keeps his personal feelings to himself.

But he has made comments along the journey to his distaste for slavery or captivity...

Without playing it on the nose by having him monologue it, this is a good reminder of his personality.

It's not a side mission. Less than a minute per circle and he'll be satisfied.

[Brian]

That's an excellent character motivation! But the problem with hints and clues in this game is the time (in real world terms) that passes between the hint/clue and the action. What might be only hours in game time can be days, weeks, or months in real time. I for one cannot remember all the hints to character motivations. Thul might have to be more direct, perhaps in exasperation.

The problem right now, as I see it, is not Thul's desire to free the captives, but timing of this discovery (by the rest of the party.) Had you had Thul mention this at the start, I think we would have worked out a solution--or at least tried. But now, with the dragon coming and the plan already agreed upon, it is hard to just turn on a dime, as it were.

I know, based on your post, that we're moving on, returning to the ship. But I suggest you make Thul's distaste for slavery and captivity known. He might find an ally or two within the party when it comes to that, and we can incorporate that into the gameplay.

That's just my opinion, though.

[Elvis]

So...

The rest of the party doesn't understand there are captives?

I dont think its much of a puzzle... it's more willful ignorance in Thuls estimation. 😉

[Dave W.]

i may have missed something but i dont think we know enough about the captives. i know i missed thuls anti-captivity stand... or at least the extent of it. we should talk in character when things calm down.

but its also a time and resource question... i think adamant has repeatedly bored the group with his concern that we’re woefully behind on the quest and having just learned that the dragon is gone but returning the time pressure in his mind is doubled. and if opening the circles was a skill check or cost money he might indulge thul, but if the dragon comes back angry we’re going to need those spell slots and about 20 more! Dragons in 5e are no joke. i believe they all get legendary actions for example. maybe im putting to much player experience in here...

[Ken]

Jeff, I meant to ask this a few days ago, but forgot: Did the Hex spell get through to Alaq, or was it absorbed by the barrier? Belarin would know.

[Jeff]

Absorbed, I'm afraid, since Dispel Magic didn't succeed in punching as much through, per your instructions.

[Ken]

No problem. That's what I expected. Thanks!

[Brian]

Jul 2, 2019 12:03:40 GMT -4 Darren said:

Kal frowns, then nods. "Fine." Kal looks back at Melethos and shakes his head slightly. I don't like this either, but what choice do we have? "What is your plan? You don't plan to just run into the dragon's chamber yelling your head off and run straight into his jaws, do you?"

It seems...Kal clears his throat in his mind, if that's even possible....we're going to be fighting a dragon....

Darren, is that question meant for Melethos or the efreeti?

[Jeff]

Captain Brack, pretty sure.

[Brian]

No, I meant the "what is your plan" question.

[Jeff]

Alaq, I assume.

[Darren]

Correct. He was talking to Alaq there.

[Elvis]

No... Not yet. Thul will wait until the slaad gets into range... THEN he will cast darkness.

He can only cast it at 2nd lvl

[Jeff]

Sorry, I meant elevation level. In any case, the slaad hasn't come nearly close enough yet nor has it moved more than a few steps closer since the last map update. But I'll update it this morning.

[Elvis]

He will cast it on the bridge level when the slaad is within range of the spells radius.

[Elvis]

Based on the latest map...

Thul will cast darkness on the 4th square due east of Thul. He will cast the spell when the slaad moves 6 squares (columns) east along the bridge.