Difference between pages "Across Boknafjord" and "Something Lurks"

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== Travel ==
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__TOC__
By three o'clock, the wind has strengthened even more, verging on a strong wind.  The sky is nearly overcast, but there's no rainfall yet.  The two masted sloop has slung your mule and donkey into its hold and the cart as well, stowed your gear and assigned you to bunks, about 22 in. per manAs you get underway, the swaying of the ship causes you to swing and bump into each other, as you lay in near dark, one lantern swaying in your room.  The captain has ordered that food will be served after 5 o'clock, when the weather permits.
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When last we left our heroes, Pandred had tossed his light into the hold with the webbing, slammed the door and had called out for another torch from Oddsdrakken, outside the holdWhile the halfling fumbles around trying to find something to light a torch with, what does the rest of the party do?
  
By six, you've eaten, the temperature has grown brisk (in the high 40s F) ... but though you might expect a storm, the intensifying weather passes. By midnight, the sky is clear again, the wind has slackened to a moderate breeze.  By morning, the weather has improved so that it is cool, though unfortunately the wind is still against you.  By nine in the morning of the 24th, you can see the southern peninsula of Karmoy.  By 11, you're there. It takes an hour to unload your gear and set you ashore.  The sky is clear as a bell.
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'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' I crawl back out of the the hallway and recommend [[Pandred]] do the same. "I don't want to be stuck in a crawl-space if whatever's in there comes out fast."
  
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' I say load up the cart, hitch the donkey, and head northward along the road. No real reason to hang around the dock while daylight is burning. Are there any other passengers disembarking here?
+
'''The DM:''' As you say that, something slams into Pandred's door with a hard bump.
:'''The DM:''' Today, no.  The sloop is picking up two passengers, a young man and a woman, and a load of winter potatoes, three bales of wool and two tons of timber.  With this wind, it will be back in Stavanger in about 5 hours.
 
  
== Karmø ==
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[OOC-MC: ''hello everyone thank you for understanding my absence'']
The little hamlet of Karmø is nothing but three rickety docks supported by stone braces, half a dozen buildings and a 20 ft. stone lighthouse.  The road from here to Treborg is cobbled, smooth but rackety, with a dirt shoulder and wide enough for wagons to pass.  There's minimal drainage if it rains.
+
: [OOC-DM: ''Welcome back!'']
  
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' Then let us be off! If there is rain I would like to make some headway. I will have spotty availability over the next few hours, but I'll work out the AP penalty for the donkey and post as soon as I can.
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'''Marcule''': Standing next to Oddsdrakken; I hear Pandred shout for a torch. I head towards the shouting.
: ['''OOC-DM''': to be completely honest, I'm somewhat distracted.  Full disclosure, my daughter has been in labour since 2 a.m. this morning and still hasn't -- as far as I know -- given birth. Should be sometime today, however, because its the real thing]
 
  
:['''OOC-PAN''': I have a new medication that pretty consistently drops me around mid-day, so I'm no stranger to needing to bow out for a bit. No worries, and take care of what matters.]
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'''The DM:''' You stumble across Vafrandir coming out of a sideways-laying hall as you enter the cargo hold.
  
== Travel ==
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'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' "There's something in that room, and it's not happy. We saw webbing so I'm guessing spiders or similar nastiness."
'''The DM:''' Pandred's agreement assumed, the party starts off for Treborg at once.  The journey is very beautiful, with the road located high above a rocky coast, looking out over the fjord.
 
: Can you please tell me the AP of the cart?  Additionally, looking at [https://tao-dndwiki.blogspot.com/2019/12/routes.html this page], can you tell me if you wish to amble, move normally, hurry or rush?
 
:: '''[[Vafrandir]]:''' We will need to carry some things by hand, but I think we can get the cart down to about 900 lb, which would put us at 2 AP (slow, unfortunately) with the mule. Normal movement if possible.
 
::: '''The DM:''' That's not bad. It takes you 7 hours to reach Treborg (passing through some farmland on your way, but you see no other travellers).  That's a pay of 2 lbs. of food each.  By the time you reach Treborg, on a clear and sunny day, is it still cool and the wind has slackened to a light breeze.
 
  
== Treborg ==
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: '''Marcule:''' "Oh Fantastic, do we have a plan... i hesitate to solve this problem with more fire"
The village is a transshipment point for goods throughout Ryfolke, this part of Rogaland. It is a shelter from storms from ships heading to and from Bergen, and for fishing boats in the Boknafjord and beyond it.
 
  
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' I assume there is not much here in the way of lodgings?
+
'''[[Pandred]]''': "HEY! LITTLE HELP?!" I fish for my battleaxe and draw it, bracing against the door.
 +
: '''The DM:''' The door does not seem to be breaking down, but there is scratching against it.  You do not smell any smoke.
  
'''The DM:''' There is a hostel for sailors that have been rescued from ships.  It holds about 30 people, but it is little more than a wooden shed with hay for beds.  As you're not victims, there is a nominal fee of 3 c.p. apiece; there is stone bench to which you can tie your animals for the night.  There is no shelter for the cart.  Do you have a canvas to cover it?
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'''Marcule:''' I rush over to the door holding my hands against it feeling for force "Im going to take the lack of smoke as a bad sign, it tells me there is a real risk whatever is behind this door could be Juicier than we expected"
  
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' No canvas as such, but several linen tents we could perhaps use. I'll go ahead and pay the fee since I'm thinking about it.
+
'''The DM:''' Because Marcule is gnome-sized, I'll allow it; it will take about two rounds for him to reach the point where he can do this ... is there anything you want to do for those two rounds, Pandred?  I'll presume that Marcule makes his intentions clear as he rushes forward, climbs into the hallway/crawlspace and comes up to the door.
  
'''The DM:''' What do you do on the morning of the 25th, when you wake?  It is 8 a.m., the weather is cool-to-pleasant, the sky is still clear from horizon to horizon.
+
'''[[Pandred]]''': As long as my battleaxe is in hand I don't think so. I'd rather wait for the party to assemble than check on this by myself in this circumstance.
  
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' Our intent is to explore the wilderness hex to the east of Treborg. I see on the map that there is a track that branches off from the main "road." If there are any folk about, I'll chat to see if anyone has been up that way.
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'''The DM:''' Okay, Marcule.  By the time you reach the door, the scratching has stopped. You don't feel any pressure.  There still is no hint that a fire has started from the torch.
  
'''The DM:''' That branch leads into the agricultural district there and then stops.
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'''[[Pandred]]''': I'd like for at least Odds and Vafrandir to come back before we crack this thing open again. I tossed mine in so when we open this again we might be able to see something. I get blinded by sudden light changes, and without (or even with) this might count. It's probably just some animal that's found it's way in, but I think we all know it could be something more sinister.
  
'''[[Pandred]]''': I'll ask around, and send Odds for that same purpose, about the countryside of Ryfolke, particularly up the road. Even knowing someone's cousin who lives up there might be useful.
+
'''Marcule:''' removing my hands from the door "fine" (nevously) "we wait" i dig threw my bag for a flask of oil to move to my belt.
  
'''The DM:''' Though Embla would not know it, not being from around here, several members of the party would know that the farmers up there, just four miles from Treborg, would be gently friendly peopleBeyond the road there is the small forest indicated, and then stony fields between mountains somewhat taller than those of the Appalachians, about 7,000 ft.  Not many, of course, as the group is only 18 miles across; but the ground is barren and alpine once you climb above the forest and treeline.
+
'''The DM:''' You waitNothing substantially changes from what you already knew.
: Once you reach the end of the cart-track, the ground will be too rocky and uneven for your cart; you learn that at the top of the road, particularly in the mid-summer, trees are picked and logged out of the small forest and dragged down to Treborg, for shipment to Stavanger.
 
  
'''[[Pandred]]''': Alright. So the cart is no-go for now. The mountains seem difficult, but at least promising. I'll disarm and de-armor myself to ask a nearby farmers about the surrounding area, particularly the nearest mountains. What lives there? Has anything unusual happened lately?
+
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' I'll go to where Odds can hear me. "Have you got that torch lit? I've got a tinderbox you can use in my pack. Hurry in!" I'll point him to my pack on the ground near the hole we climbed in. Then I'll head back into the hallway. "Push it in, Pandred, let's see what's in store!"
  
'''The DM:''' If I live to be a hundred, I will never understand what players expect when they ask questions like thisDMs are just too ready to dole out exposition on the flimsiest of premisesWhat would a real farmer say?  "Those mountains?  No idea; haven't been up there since I was a boy, when we searched for Old Sven, who went up there after he killed his brotherCold up there.  Why would you be wanting to go up there, Mister?"
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'''The DM:''' One moment at a time.  When you get outside, Vafrandir, you don't see OddsdrakkenThere's his pack, there's the torch laying on the ground and a tinderbox next to itYou're sorting this out in your mind for all of about 5/10ths of a second when you hear a sound from your right, hissing at youIt's Oddsdrakken, laying flat in a divot on the ground, with his face half hidden behind his arms.  "Vafrandir!  Look out!" the halfling says with a terrified grimace.
: Prior to the Romantic craze in the late 1700s, no one ever went into the mountains just to hike around and see what was thereWe have no literature at all of any poet or explorer just "going up into the mountains."  It wasn't done.
 
  
'''Pandred''': Maybe, but frankly those people didn't have the benefit of living in a place where something like a Troll or a Giant was a real thing. If we had asked in Hole, they would have said something about some spooky wolves. Fuck if I know. I popped open the megalith page we originally used to decide on Mimmarudla, and here I am stymied by not knowing what Treborg is a stand-in for and understanding that your Norway's coast is really damn good, but not exactly 1-to-1. So while I '''can''' say that I'm reasonably certain there's barrows or megaliths within 30 miles, I have no better orientation than that. Has this farmer heard of "The Sewing Needle of Virgin Mary"? That seems like it'd be something notable, but we previously rationalized Mimmarudla's discovery with a Druid in the party, so I do not know the rules here.
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'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' "Shit!" I draw my sword and turn to my right. I have no shield.
  
'''The DM:''' I've never heard of it, until you'd written it here, so you can't expect that I'd have put it into the mouth of a farmer. Regarding my world's 1-1; yeah, well, never been to Norway. The map that I worked off from to make this part of the world did not indicate that 200 meter separation of land between Rossabø and Storasund north of Avaldnes, nor any of that 1 km to 500 meter gap north of Kopernik. So, I drew my "Karmøy island" as a peninsula. My source material called "Kopernik" by a different name, because it was a much older source, 70 years old; so their researchers called Kopernik "Treborg." As regards the needle, reading around, consider: in the 17th century, tourism wasn't a thingAnd there are cairns and stuff all over this country; no doubt, it's there, but it's just a curiousity leaning 9.2 cm next to the church, it's not something to go and see and it wouldn't ''mean'' anything except that it's old.
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'''The DM:''' About 25 feet away, moving very slowly, hardly at all, is a very ... big ... spiderCovered in brown furAbout 8 feet wide across its legs and about 5 feet high at the top of its abdomen, with about 18 inches between the body and the ground.  It is facing you but it does not rush forward and attack at this timeSurprised or not surprised, it gives you a chance to recoverYou feel that if you move anything except maybe your mouth to speak, you'll have to roll initiative.
: I'll try to explain this bugaboo of mine.  "Adventures" are not found by asking the locals where they are.  They are found by going there and finding that thing.  You didn't ask Høle to tell you about something interesting there; it was passed along to you because that was the story you found when you got off the boat.  The same thing applies here: I have no "story" for Treborg.  It is just a place.  Not every place is an adventure.  IF there's an adventure in the mountains, you will have to go to the mountains.  You can't always expect me to set up the adventure for when you get off the boat, and you can't make it happen by asking people for rumours.  If you go to a place, and nothing happens, you have two choicesMake something happen, or go to another place.  Set yourself up in Treborg, count it a peaceful base, build a house, put your stores in it and then hexcrawlOr kill someone and leave.  Or prospect or whatever you want.  But don't try to make something "happen" or create a narrative by asking me, "What do random people have to say about the place I want to go?"
 
: I should think that knowing there are trolls and giants would make them more insular, wouldn't you?
 
  
'''Pandred''': That's all fair. Can you understand from my perspective that not asking seems like negligence? If something were to happen to us on our excursion, something preventable by saying "Hey, you live a day of this thing, what's up?" and we hadn't done so, I'd feel even more foolish than I do during this exchange? You might view it as wasting time, but for me at least it just seems like due diligence. The answer "Never been." is disappointing maybe, but it is AN answer.
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'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' Do I see Willa or Fjall?
  
== OOC ==
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'''The DM:''' Not at the momentPerhaps they went to see some other part of the ship.
Pandred, your response, that you're seeking to avoid the preventable, and not do something foolish, and thus perform your due diligence, is in your own words, "all fair." So, let me deconstruct that.
 
  
If your real person went to the supermarket, wishing to obtain the best possible produce, you wouldn't say to the manager, "Is there anything I should know about the produce aisle?"  Questions like, "Has anything unusual happened lately?" is not the way that we human beings speak to one another daily. The question presumes the grocery manager understands the context of your speech, or that the farmer understands that you're an adventurer in a D&D game and that you're going up into the mountains. But, the farmer doesn't KNOW, from the context you're giving, WHY you're asking, "what lives up there?" Without any context — and I'm not granting any context, because the farmer isn't a game construct, he's a ''farmer'' — you sound like a crazy person asking the question in precisely that way.
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'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' "Odds, I think this is about to kick off. I'll try to draw it off, please go and warn the others inside the ship." I'll move slowly between Odds and the spider.
  
Now, let's suppose you said, "I step up to a person and introduce myself, saying 'My name is PandredI'm just up from Stavanger and I've never been in these parts beforeMy friends and I were planning on exploring the mountains.' "
+
'''The DM:''' Odds will have to make a morale checkIf he hasn't a morale listed, it starts at nine; Pandred should know the morale otherwisePlease roll 2d6, Pandred or Vafrandir, whomever gets there first.
  
First off, you'd be tempted to add, "Is there anything you can tell me about the mountains?"  But the obvious answer from a stranger would be, "Why are you asking me?  What would I know about it?"  But just say, you DON'T add anything else.  You just give your intentions.  One part of you might think, I should explain why I'm telling him this, or he won't say anything.  Or you might think, if there's something dangerous up there, the farmer won't tell me, because I'm a stranger and why would the farmer volunteer information?
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'''Marcule:''' I cast chromatic orb
  
I would argue, the farmer would DEFINITELY volunteer information.  If there ''were'' something dangerous up there, the farmer would say, "My gawd, woman, don't you know about the Snarfblag!?"  Because no common, everyday farmer would want anyone to go to their death that way.  The farmer would warn you, and because it's a small town, the farmer would tell everyone, and they'd come forward and tell you, "Don't go up there, the snarfblag will get you!"
+
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' I roll a '''10'''.
  
If they don't say anything like that, it wouldn't be because they don't care.  It would be because the truth is, "Sure, why shouldn't you go into the mountains? Sounds difficult, but to each their own."
+
'''The DM:''' Oddsdrakken finds the courage to skip low across the ground (lower than most!) and dives through the rent into the ship. The spider pauses, turns minutely towards Oddsdrakken's movement and then shifts to its left like a crab, putting Vafrandir between it and the place where Odds has just disappeared.
  
The tendency is, I think, to always assume that I'm going to lead you to some place and then have a wizard pop out and absurdly kill you with a 14-die fireball, out of the blue.  That every hook, from Mimmarudla to Høle or wherever, is a deliberate set-up to fuck over the party, because I get my jollies watching TPKsI've been running online campaigns now for 10 years, and not once have I ever done a TPK.  The worst fight that has happened were those firebeetles, where three 1st level party members got killed, but that wasn't me; the two that lived did so by running away; if everyone had recognized the danger when it was obvious, they would have all run away early and probably all survived.  But they stayed and fought and counted +1 bonuses like that alone would win the fight for them, and it went very badly.
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'''The DM:''' The orb is cast MarculeOddsdrakken begins talking very quickly, explaining the situation while sweating profusely with terror.
  
I am not interested in hurting people.  No matter what, if there's a 150 hit point red dragon up there, if Baalzebub is sitting on a throne up there making flies as big as houses, there is zero chance that there won't be an opportunity to see it, back the fuck out and run down the mountain.  Players don't get killed because I screw with them.  They get killed because they think the enemy is the Toad, when it's actually the Demon, and they single-mindedly decide to do stupid things when the pressure is on.  They get killed because AFTER seeing it's Baalzebub, they think, "Oh, now that I know, I'm sure Alexis won't kill me, so I'll go down and talk to Baalzebub and strike a bargain." I will ALWAYS give you warning as a DM as to what you're getting into.  I won't give you plot armour. Players will be allowed to see what the risk is, but what they do AFTER seeing, that's not my problem.
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'''[[Pandred]]''': "Marcule, I think Vafrandir could use a hand. Good work Odds. Hold this, will you?" I'll have him brace against the door. "Don't jostle it." And start making my way to Vafrandir.
  
I swear and I promise, if you tell people that you're going to those mountains over there, and there's a reason not to go that these people know about, they WILL tell you so.  Cross my heart and hope to die. But if you shoot out context-less phrases and presume the locals know what the hell you're talking about, they'll cock their heads, blink, and think, "I'm talking to a crazy person."
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'''The DM:''' Vafrandir, while you're waiting, a dribble of sweat has fallen off your brow and into your eye, and it stings rather nastily.
 +
: '''The DM:''' it really, does hurt.  Would you like to wipe it?
  
'''Pandred''': I 100% understand.
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'''Marcule:''' I follow pandred out of the ship
  
== Treborg Countryside ==
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[OOC-DM: ''We'll start tomorrow at 10 mountain time with Marcule and Pandred stepping out of the ship and see if Vafrandir wants to be blind in one eye (that's a joke)'']
  
'''Pandred''': I'd like to get started on exploring the mountains while we have food. "Barren" is not ideal for keeping us supplied, but if we get a decent vantage, maybe we'll find something, even a few valleys over. The cart may not move but I can still lead a mule with food. Do we want to leave someone to watch the rest of our supplies here, or go back to Treborg and set up a proper place to store it?
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'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' Ha! Yes, I'll wipe it ... slowly.
  
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' [[Pandred]], we haven't stated our action to go, so we're still in Treborg, as far as I know. I am in favor of storing it the supplies in the village, somehow, until we can return. Otherwise I agree, let's explore the mountains: and if nothing is there, we'll either make something happen or leave!
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'''[[Embla Strand]]''' I move towards Vafrandir as well.
  
'''Pandred''': I had interpreted Alexis' description of the friendly farmers outside Treborg and the mention of the end of the cart-track to mean we had traveled there. Going back I see I was mistaken. Good catch.
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== Spider Rnd 1 ==
 +
[[File:Spider 1.jpg|right|420px]]
 +
'''The DM:''' You have initiative at this point, as the spider is not attacking as yet. I did not see Embla's move until this morning, so she is one round behind; she'll appear in 0405 in the next round.
  
: '''[[Embla Strand]]''' [OOC sorry to be so late to this - I hadn't seen there was a new page up] An expedition into the mountains will be quite an undertaking. Let's establish something of a base. We've a keg of ale and plenty of food, and I certainly have a fair amount of coin. Why don't we see if we can get the folk here to pitch in and help us build a house?
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'''[[Pandred]]''': I draw my hand axe, step one hex south into 0406 and throw at the spider, getting 16 and hitting '''AC 2'''. D6 for damage is '''2'''.
 +
:'''The DM:''' So noted.  Not a stun.
  
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' I've no argument with that if we have the coin. We're on no schedule.
+
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' I roll a '''6''' on my wisdom check. I have no shield, so I'm at '''AC 6''' and '''4 AP'''. I intend to ''direct charge'' the beast if I have the distance.
 +
:'''The DM:''' The 6 covers your wisdom check, you can charge up to 32 hexes if you want to run. You don't need that much, stride-2 will do it, the spider has no missile weapons so there is no opportunity fire.  You need to roll initiative with me to see if you attack first when you come face to face with it.
  
'''Pandred''': After my refund I'm not doing so bad myself, so this sounds like a fine idea.
+
'''Marcule:''' I would like to throw my magic missile -- I roll a 4 (miss)
 +
:'''The DM:''' Magic missile?
 +
:: '''Marcule:''' Sorry Chromatic orb
 +
::: '''The DM:''' Oh, right.  Okay, yes, miss.  The flash-bang on the light hits 0806, which is still 10 ft. from the spider.  The spider fails save and is blinded/stunned for 1 round.
  
'''The DM:''' Correct.  I have not heard anyone say they were leaving Treborg.  I was giving a description of the landscape as might be learned from the locals.
+
'''The DM:''' Vafrandir, while the spider is stunned, you win initiative and can charge at will.
  
'''The DM:''' There is plenty of wood around; no one in the party has any housebuilding skills, but I'm certain that there are people here who could help.  Can you give me an idea of how much money you'd like to spend?  A 15 ft. square, single-beamed roof house with fireplace and foundation costs 189 g.p.; adding a 10% builder's fee, that's 18 g.p., 14 s.p. and 5 c.pWould you like it on the road, north or south of town, towards the sea or against the woods?  How much land would you like to purchase? You can find the price of land listed under the Town Market on your Stavanger price list.
+
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' I will direct charge (into 0807), swinging my sword: '''14 raw, 18 adj to hit; 1 raw, 2 adj damage'''. My total weight is 160.6 lb.
 +
: '''The DM:''' The spider weighs 400 lbs., so you're -12 to attack with overbearingThe spider is not wearing "armour", so you have to hit AC 4. I think that's a no-chance on the overbear.
  
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' Is the land price per acre?
+
'''The DM:''' Let me make another map with Embla in it and the party can attack again.
:'''The DM:''' Yes.
 
  
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' I am in favor of forest land near the road to the north. A single acre should suffice for now. What would be our options for clearing and selling the extra timber? Also, how long will this take to build? I ask so we can consider our resupply options.
+
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' Ha, I figured, worth a try anyway.
:'''The DM:''' You will observe there is an entry for clearing timber per acre; without a sage ability for selling goods, you can reap between 20-50% of the wood's value per acre you clear.  The cost of hiring a woodsman is 8 s.p., or ½ g.p., per day.  Which means you will probably operate at a loss.  You can do the woodcutting yourself, but there is a chance of accident and it will take longer than 10 days, and reduce the cost of the wood sold by 20% (due to the poor job done).
 
  
'''The DM:''' The house I described would require 3 months to build; you can double the builder's fee and have it completed in 2 months; if you quadruple the builder's fee, you can have your house completed in 5 weeks and 5 days.
+
== Round 2 ==
 +
[[File:Spider 2.jpg|right|420px]]
 +
The party should feel free to act again.  I trust I have everyone's position right.
  
'''The DM:''' To clarify the day and time, I assume you're asking around to get answers for these questions.  The builder's name is Anders Hagen.  It is now about 1 o'clock in the afternoon on the 25th of May; you spent one night in the hostel and I assume you all spent your copper for that.  The weather is cool, the sky is clear and a gentle breeze is blowing from north northwest.
+
'''[[Embla Strand]]''' I grab my battleaxe, convert it to a hand-axe, and advance to 0405.
  
'''[[Pandred]]''': Does adding our own labor to either the woodcutting or the building decrease the time to complete those tasks, or would we only get in the way?
+
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' I swing again: '''4 raw, 6 to hit'''. It's going to be one of those fights. I'll move around to 1007.
: '''The DM:''' You would most likely get in the way. You might consider that those woods would be more valuable to you as hunting ground than as wood.  This [https://tao-dndwiki.blogspot.com/2018/04/foraging-sage-ability.html page needs some rework], but once you obtain foraging from your logistic study, and I figure out the rate of food per acre searched, you will do better selling or using it to support yourselves.
 
:: '''The DM:''' Obviously, the more acreage you buy, the better your potential food supply.
 
  
'''Pandred''': I can chip in for an acre of forested land at 39gp. How many do we think we actually want? Embla's father was a farmer, do we think we can benefit from the quite-cheap tilled land?
+
'''The DM:''' I think it is fair to argue that you've already had time to pull your weapon on your way to the fight, Embla.  I'll cost you 1 AP to get into 0405.
 +
: Sometimes, Vafrandir, I think all the party's fights are "one of those."
 +
:: ^^^^
  
::: '''[[Embla Strand]]''' I have amateur Logistics, and thus the foraging sage ability. Consequently, let's go for a larger area - a half-dozen acres, perhaps? And I'd like to expedite the building to take only 2 months. That'd run to about 461 gp, or 115gp and 3sp each. How does that sound? I can sow crops, but that'd be a full-time job for Embla.
+
'''[[Embla Strand]]''' In that case, I move further to '''0306''' and throw the hand-axe at the spider. I roll a natural '''2'''... but only '''2''' damage.
  
:::: '''Pandred''': I only have 73gp. If someone can chip in the extra 42gp to cover the rest of my share, I'd be fine with contributing my store to that total.
+
'''[[Pandred]]''': Stride 4 to 0808, saunter in at Stride 1 to 0907 and bonk with the battleaxe. To-Hit of 5, hitting '''AC 13''' with a resounding whiff, damage roll of 2+3 ('''5'''). Them's the breaks.
  
'''The DM:''' I think I will go with one day of foraging = 1 acre searched, so that 6 acres would provide you with 6 days foraging per month (as it would replenish)Likewise, 1 day of hunting would mean 10 acres hunted over, but the replenish time would be every week.
+
[OOC-DM: ''damn these interruptions; my daughter has shown up with my grandson, it's my first day of seeing him since he was born'']
 +
: ['''[[Embla Strand]]''' Enjoy!]
 +
'''The DM:''' A natural 2, Embla, hits Vafradir in the back, Vaf takes two damage.  Pandred misses ... and it is a typical first roundMarcule?
  
'''The DM:''' incidentally, I worked on one of puissance sage abilities last night: '''[https://wiki.alexissmolensk.com/index.php/Close_Drop_(sage_ability) Close Drop]'''  Please note it and remind me should you drop any weapons.
+
'''Marcule:''' I move stride-3 to 0806 and attack. I roll a 9.
  
'''The DM:''' I cannot ask for any pledges from Marcule, but the character does have 1,100 g.p. that he can draw upon in creditWhen he's able to return, you could make arrangements for him to cover the cost and refund his share of the moneyUnfortunately, he cannot draw his money in Treborg, it is too small.  He would have to return to Stavanger.
+
'''The DM:''' Rolling a die, the spider will attack Marcule, rolling a 3Whew!  MissingIt will then move back three hexes from Marcule, into 1208.
  
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' I have a small bit left over but not much, [[Pandred]]. I assume we'll also need lodging costs until the construction is complete?
+
== Round 3 ==
: '''The DM:''' you had mentioned tents?  The temperature at night hasn't shown much chance of getting less than brisk (40s) and is generally as comfortable at night as during the day.
+
[[File:Spider 3.jpg|right|420px]]
  
'''The DM:''' I've just finished a description for the sage ability, [https://wiki.alexissmolensk.com/index.php/Gain_Proficiency_(sage_ability) Gain Proficiency].
+
The party's go around.
  
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' Yes, we have plenty of tents, so that's taken care of. If someone can pick up for Pandred, I think we are in good shape to start. 6 forested acres total, 2 months build time.
+
'''[[Pandred]]''': Stride 4 to 1210, Stride 2 to 1308, eating the attack of opportunity if I must. Assuming I'm not stunned, that's a To-Hit of 18 hitting '''AC 0''' for 3+3 or '''6''' points of damage! HROAGH!
: '''[[Embla Strand]]''' I can pitch in the extra funds. We might want to draw on that credit to improve the place (it's not very big, and we will probably want more space soon), but that's a matter we can leave for after the completion of the current construction.
 
:: '''[[Embla Strand]]''' Scratch that, I only have 146gp. We need another 11gp.
 
::: '''[[Vafrandir]]:''' Now that I can do (just barely).
 
  
== The House ==
+
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' I move to '''1107''' and attack again: '''16 raw, 18 adj to hit; 1 raw 2 adj damage'''.
  
'''The DM:''' Here's one to consider, nowThe size of the house will enable you to store 69 tons of goods.  Each person that eats, shelters and sleeps there will need 4 tons of that space. Objects that have empty cubic footage, like a bed, will take up 62 ''extra'' lbs. over their base weight '''per cubic ft.''' of space.  From that, without having to lay out the interior, you should be able to figure your living arrangements and storage.
+
'''The DM:''' Pandred cannot stride-4 to 1210 and then stride-2 to 1308If you look at it, that is a 90° turn and [https://wiki.alexissmolensk.com/index.php/Movement_(stride)#Procedure the rule] clearly states that no more than a 60° turn can be made. At this point I'm going to suspend the dexterity check you should have to make to attempt the turn, as the rule is still new and I don't want to be unduly inflexible; but at some point, when I see characters take wild actions like "running around to the back side of the spider in order to get a +2 bonus", which is obviously an attempt to circumvent the spirit of the rules, and presumes the spider wouldn't turn to face you as you came on, I am going to become a real assholeLet me make it REAL clear; I am not going to stand for people thinking they can use the movement rule to run around the enemy and attack it from behind just because the magic of D&D rule making lets them.
: '''[[Embla Strand]]''' So, with room for 8 people, we're down to 37 tons. Each bed is roughly 6 tons and has room for 2 people, so beds for all 8 brings us down to 13 tons left. That's not going to work long-term. Fortunately, it's nice out and bound to stay habitable outside for a while yet, as we're heading into summer. We'll need a second house asap, I think.
 
:: '''The DM:''' Did you calculate for cubic footage above and below the bed, to a 10 ft. ceiling?  I get the same number (12,090 lbs.) near to yours, for a 6.5 x 3 ft. bed to a ceiling 10 ft. high, I'm just being sure we're on the same page.
 
::: '''[[Embla Strand]]''' Oh, no - I just calculated for the bed (8' bedposts) My bad. The bed description says 6x4 on the price table, not 6.5x3.
 
:::: '''The DM:''' No problem, I was just guestimatingFor that dimension, I get 14,880 lbs. or 7.44 tons.
 
::::: '''Embla''': ... I like my numbers better... :) OK. Even at 4' wide, 2 people/bed is not super reasonable. At 1 bed/person, we get 11t/person, or 3-4 people per house with a reasonable amount of space left over (for a table, empty space to perform in-house work, etc.).
 
:::::: '''The DM:''' consider bunk beds?  I can figure out a price for those.  And for narrower, 3 ft. wide beds.  You won't be able to buy them here, but you can figure for their dimensions.
 
  
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' Bunk beds are a reasonable addition. But for now, ~7 tons of space is plenty.
+
Now.  You have two choices.  I can either have you make a rational, realistic, actual combat move like running to 1109 and then to 1209, and the hit will stand, or we can do it your way and you can make a dex check. Your call.
  
'''The DM:''' I count at 11 tons a person, that's 6 persons for the size of house you're proposing. Point in fact to consider, a 20x15 foot house would increase the cost by 23.8% (in terms of wall & roof), but it would also increase the space/storage by 33% (300 sq.ft. over 225 sq.ft.).  That change would increase your carrying capacity to 91.8 tons.
+
'''[[Pandred]]''': For reference, I didn't factor in the +2 for a rearward strike in my roll. It wasn't on my mind at all. The creature is retreating, and I was moving to cut off that retreat, not jimmying for bonuses. I was even explicit about understanding there could be an attack of opportunity for the action. But you're right, I completely forgot about turn rate, and I'll be more mindful next time. Pop me in 1209.
 +
:'''The DM:''' Your attack stuns the spider; it staggers right into 1307.
 +
 
 +
'''Marcule''': I stride -3 into 1106 , I swing and thats a 3.
 +
:'''The DM:''' You'll have to move into 1206 to be in reach - deal?
 +
 
 +
: '''Marcule''':yes

Revision as of 12:24, 15 October 2020

When last we left our heroes, Pandred had tossed his light into the hold with the webbing, slammed the door and had called out for another torch from Oddsdrakken, outside the hold. While the halfling fumbles around trying to find something to light a torch with, what does the rest of the party do?

Vafrandir: I crawl back out of the the hallway and recommend Pandred do the same. "I don't want to be stuck in a crawl-space if whatever's in there comes out fast."

The DM: As you say that, something slams into Pandred's door with a hard bump.

[OOC-MC: hello everyone thank you for understanding my absence]

[OOC-DM: Welcome back!]

Marcule: Standing next to Oddsdrakken; I hear Pandred shout for a torch. I head towards the shouting.

The DM: You stumble across Vafrandir coming out of a sideways-laying hall as you enter the cargo hold.

Vafrandir: "There's something in that room, and it's not happy. We saw webbing so I'm guessing spiders or similar nastiness."

Marcule: "Oh Fantastic, do we have a plan... i hesitate to solve this problem with more fire"

Pandred: "HEY! LITTLE HELP?!" I fish for my battleaxe and draw it, bracing against the door.

The DM: The door does not seem to be breaking down, but there is scratching against it. You do not smell any smoke.

Marcule: I rush over to the door holding my hands against it feeling for force "Im going to take the lack of smoke as a bad sign, it tells me there is a real risk whatever is behind this door could be Juicier than we expected"

The DM: Because Marcule is gnome-sized, I'll allow it; it will take about two rounds for him to reach the point where he can do this ... is there anything you want to do for those two rounds, Pandred? I'll presume that Marcule makes his intentions clear as he rushes forward, climbs into the hallway/crawlspace and comes up to the door.

Pandred: As long as my battleaxe is in hand I don't think so. I'd rather wait for the party to assemble than check on this by myself in this circumstance.

The DM: Okay, Marcule. By the time you reach the door, the scratching has stopped. You don't feel any pressure. There still is no hint that a fire has started from the torch.

Pandred: I'd like for at least Odds and Vafrandir to come back before we crack this thing open again. I tossed mine in so when we open this again we might be able to see something. I get blinded by sudden light changes, and without (or even with) this might count. It's probably just some animal that's found it's way in, but I think we all know it could be something more sinister.

Marcule: removing my hands from the door "fine" (nevously) "we wait" i dig threw my bag for a flask of oil to move to my belt.

The DM: You wait. Nothing substantially changes from what you already knew.

Vafrandir: I'll go to where Odds can hear me. "Have you got that torch lit? I've got a tinderbox you can use in my pack. Hurry in!" I'll point him to my pack on the ground near the hole we climbed in. Then I'll head back into the hallway. "Push it in, Pandred, let's see what's in store!"

The DM: One moment at a time. When you get outside, Vafrandir, you don't see Oddsdrakken. There's his pack, there's the torch laying on the ground and a tinderbox next to it. You're sorting this out in your mind for all of about 5/10ths of a second when you hear a sound from your right, hissing at you. It's Oddsdrakken, laying flat in a divot on the ground, with his face half hidden behind his arms. "Vafrandir! Look out!" the halfling says with a terrified grimace.

Vafrandir: "Shit!" I draw my sword and turn to my right. I have no shield.

The DM: About 25 feet away, moving very slowly, hardly at all, is a very ... big ... spider. Covered in brown fur. About 8 feet wide across its legs and about 5 feet high at the top of its abdomen, with about 18 inches between the body and the ground. It is facing you but it does not rush forward and attack at this time. Surprised or not surprised, it gives you a chance to recover. You feel that if you move anything except maybe your mouth to speak, you'll have to roll initiative.

Vafrandir: Do I see Willa or Fjall?

The DM: Not at the moment. Perhaps they went to see some other part of the ship.

Vafrandir: "Odds, I think this is about to kick off. I'll try to draw it off, please go and warn the others inside the ship." I'll move slowly between Odds and the spider.

The DM: Odds will have to make a morale check. If he hasn't a morale listed, it starts at nine; Pandred should know the morale otherwise. Please roll 2d6, Pandred or Vafrandir, whomever gets there first.

Marcule: I cast chromatic orb

Vafrandir: I roll a 10.

The DM: Oddsdrakken finds the courage to skip low across the ground (lower than most!) and dives through the rent into the ship. The spider pauses, turns minutely towards Oddsdrakken's movement and then shifts to its left like a crab, putting Vafrandir between it and the place where Odds has just disappeared.

The DM: The orb is cast Marcule. Oddsdrakken begins talking very quickly, explaining the situation while sweating profusely with terror.

Pandred: "Marcule, I think Vafrandir could use a hand. Good work Odds. Hold this, will you?" I'll have him brace against the door. "Don't jostle it." And start making my way to Vafrandir.

The DM: Vafrandir, while you're waiting, a dribble of sweat has fallen off your brow and into your eye, and it stings rather nastily.

The DM: it really, does hurt. Would you like to wipe it?

Marcule: I follow pandred out of the ship

[OOC-DM: We'll start tomorrow at 10 mountain time with Marcule and Pandred stepping out of the ship and see if Vafrandir wants to be blind in one eye (that's a joke)]

Vafrandir: Ha! Yes, I'll wipe it ... slowly.

Embla Strand I move towards Vafrandir as well.

Spider Rnd 1

Spider 1.jpg

The DM: You have initiative at this point, as the spider is not attacking as yet. I did not see Embla's move until this morning, so she is one round behind; she'll appear in 0405 in the next round.

Pandred: I draw my hand axe, step one hex south into 0406 and throw at the spider, getting 16 and hitting AC 2. D6 for damage is 2.

The DM: So noted. Not a stun.

Vafrandir: I roll a 6 on my wisdom check. I have no shield, so I'm at AC 6 and 4 AP. I intend to direct charge the beast if I have the distance.

The DM: The 6 covers your wisdom check, you can charge up to 32 hexes if you want to run. You don't need that much, stride-2 will do it, the spider has no missile weapons so there is no opportunity fire. You need to roll initiative with me to see if you attack first when you come face to face with it.

Marcule: I would like to throw my magic missile -- I roll a 4 (miss)

The DM: Magic missile?
Marcule: Sorry Chromatic orb
The DM: Oh, right. Okay, yes, miss. The flash-bang on the light hits 0806, which is still 10 ft. from the spider. The spider fails save and is blinded/stunned for 1 round.

The DM: Vafrandir, while the spider is stunned, you win initiative and can charge at will.

Vafrandir: I will direct charge (into 0807), swinging my sword: 14 raw, 18 adj to hit; 1 raw, 2 adj damage. My total weight is 160.6 lb.

The DM: The spider weighs 400 lbs., so you're -12 to attack with overbearing. The spider is not wearing "armour", so you have to hit AC 4. I think that's a no-chance on the overbear.

The DM: Let me make another map with Embla in it and the party can attack again.

Vafrandir: Ha, I figured, worth a try anyway.

Round 2

Spider 2.jpg

The party should feel free to act again. I trust I have everyone's position right.

Embla Strand I grab my battleaxe, convert it to a hand-axe, and advance to 0405.

Vafrandir: I swing again: 4 raw, 6 to hit. It's going to be one of those fights. I'll move around to 1007.

The DM: I think it is fair to argue that you've already had time to pull your weapon on your way to the fight, Embla. I'll cost you 1 AP to get into 0405.

Sometimes, Vafrandir, I think all the party's fights are "one of those."
^^^^

Embla Strand In that case, I move further to 0306 and throw the hand-axe at the spider. I roll a natural 2... but only 2 damage.

Pandred: Stride 4 to 0808, saunter in at Stride 1 to 0907 and bonk with the battleaxe. To-Hit of 5, hitting AC 13 with a resounding whiff, damage roll of 2+3 (5). Them's the breaks.

[OOC-DM: damn these interruptions; my daughter has shown up with my grandson, it's my first day of seeing him since he was born]

[Embla Strand Enjoy!]

The DM: A natural 2, Embla, hits Vafradir in the back, Vaf takes two damage. Pandred misses ... and it is a typical first round. Marcule?

Marcule: I move stride-3 to 0806 and attack. I roll a 9.

The DM: Rolling a die, the spider will attack Marcule, rolling a 3. Whew! Missing. It will then move back three hexes from Marcule, into 1208.

Round 3

Spider 3.jpg

The party's go around.

Pandred: Stride 4 to 1210, Stride 2 to 1308, eating the attack of opportunity if I must. Assuming I'm not stunned, that's a To-Hit of 18 hitting AC 0 for 3+3 or 6 points of damage! HROAGH!

Vafrandir: I move to 1107 and attack again: 16 raw, 18 adj to hit; 1 raw 2 adj damage.

The DM: Pandred cannot stride-4 to 1210 and then stride-2 to 1308. If you look at it, that is a 90° turn and the rule clearly states that no more than a 60° turn can be made. At this point I'm going to suspend the dexterity check you should have to make to attempt the turn, as the rule is still new and I don't want to be unduly inflexible; but at some point, when I see characters take wild actions like "running around to the back side of the spider in order to get a +2 bonus", which is obviously an attempt to circumvent the spirit of the rules, and presumes the spider wouldn't turn to face you as you came on, I am going to become a real asshole. Let me make it REAL clear; I am not going to stand for people thinking they can use the movement rule to run around the enemy and attack it from behind just because the magic of D&D rule making lets them.

Now. You have two choices. I can either have you make a rational, realistic, actual combat move like running to 1109 and then to 1209, and the hit will stand, or we can do it your way and you can make a dex check. Your call.

Pandred: For reference, I didn't factor in the +2 for a rearward strike in my roll. It wasn't on my mind at all. The creature is retreating, and I was moving to cut off that retreat, not jimmying for bonuses. I was even explicit about understanding there could be an attack of opportunity for the action. But you're right, I completely forgot about turn rate, and I'll be more mindful next time. Pop me in 1209.

The DM: Your attack stuns the spider; it staggers right into 1307.

Marcule: I stride -3 into 1106 , I swing and thats a 3.

The DM: You'll have to move into 1206 to be in reach - deal?
Marcule:yes