Main / PC-2018

Player Communication Archive 2018

12/22 TMO

Lisa, I missed your compliment after my spell descriptions the first time through last night. Sorry about that. That was a spur of the moment thing I just thought I'd throw in, especially since it's an unusual, never-before-been-seen-in-game spell. Not something I'll probably do all the time (not to mention it'd probably slow things down). It didn't work quite as well for Read Magic a moment later. ;) I probably got the idea from Critical Role, although there it's the DM that describes what the spell looks like, the effect it has on the players can be pretty fun to watch (although they are all actors and are undoubtedly hamming it up for the cameras).

It might be something fun to do for the first time she casts any particular spell, just to add flavor to the character and aid in imagining the scene. Especially for that Phantom Steed spell. *big grin*

I should probably save those descriptions to her character page when I have time.

Thanks!

12/21 Ryan

Hello all.

Hope your end of year celebrations are all going well. Unfortunately, I will not be able to attend this week's session, but should be able to attend next week. Best of wishes to everyone.

12/18 Carissa

I figure even if some of these trips are a wave of the hand, that's what the site is for: posting IC. If the elves end up back home, even if briefly, there are definitely stories in my mind to be had.

And don't misunderstand, BOB. All that XP is very nice (especially those 5th level spells...), but at this point I'm trying to get my single year of perfect attendance in and want to make sure Friday counted. That way I don't have to worry about it ever again. Only two more sessions! ;)

12-17 BOB

First - the computer is back up and running and as of the first glance it looks like we did not lose any data from KloOge. Still not sure about everything yet but we are good to go for Friday.

Second - Yes to John about having options to roleplay and or click time off in multiple configurations as Lisa said. With the overall more amorphous story arc of training and building we will do some clicking some roleplay and some debating. I am anticipating going through as much as a year or more of game time by the time that story arc is all done. It might take us several sessions to play out with building complications, side treks, etc.

Third - Thank you again to TMO for the discord channel and thank you to everyone for logging in and looking things over. I am crediting everyone with a session played for this past week as everyone logged in there at some point.

Fourth - Thank you yet again to TMO for having that available to everyone going forward. To be clear I want the In Character conversations to be here on our site still and I would prefer the Out of Character stuff also. But I do know it can be easier to chat in near real time so feel free to use the channels there to discuss and debate and in general hang out. If something interesting happens that everyone should know about and or we just want to archive it for future reference someone can copy and paste it here please.

Updates as needed through the week but right now the key thing I am missing is the most up to date plug in for Google Earth. Hope that it is buried in my saved files somewhere. I know it is just finding that one needle in the haystack might be a bit of a challenge.

Thank you to everyone for understanding if not exactly likely the unexpected time off.

BOB

PS Yes I can hear Carissa saying, What about that XP he talked about? Yes I will award that to everyone because they logged in to Discord. :)

12/17 Lisa

Sorry you didn't make it in last Friday. For me, my phone has too small a screen to handle chat and posting on it. I only use Discord on bigger screens with keyboards! And yes, Discord is really almost intended as a chat drop in and out kinda place. It is hard to scroll up as chat keeps moving forward at the bottom.

Please post what you think about travel plans, story arc theories, etc. About the side trips, I wonder if we can't do a compromise. Maybe click off the travel (time marches forward, but we aren't doing the 6/day encounter checks, but then roleplay out the visits. Possible, BOB?

12/16 John

Have to say, it was a little odd trying to install app and log on to Discord from tablet, then picking up phone to get text from Bob and Discord finishes installing on phone. Having to scroll back again and again after breaking was a bit much, as was a bit late to see live, but it's good to have a back up plan and nice to know you are thinking of me.

One note, Miranda is going to Loosend to get permission to get married, I thought it might be a chance for role playing when I heard others might want to go, but may be part of the wave of the hand. (I would say snap of a finger, but that concept has changed recently)

12/14 Spring

I didn't get the link and I don't think Ryan did either. The one below is expired. Another please?

Nevermind. The below one is working on my phone, just not on my computer.

Spring - Ryan is in. New code is discord.gg/8Jputp

For computers, download the Discord app here: https://discordapp.com/download

12-13 BOB

So it looks like we will not have KloOGe for this next session on the 14th. I am sorry for that.

I am going to take TMO up on his offer with the Discord channel and I should be able to log into that with my phone to talk with people. TMO will send invites out to spread to everyone.

The plan is to talk about higher level topic stuff rather than try to actually roleplay without characters. But if that happens too that is fine by me.

Things to discuss:

Discord Invite link (good for 24 hrs as of 12/14 1805 Central): https://discord.gg/8Jputp
If you don't get this one before it expires I'll create a new invite link on demand.

12-12 BOB

SO on the good side, new hard drive arrived, they upgraded me from 120 to 500 gigs. On the good side, the old secondary data hard drive checks out perfectly fine. On the bad side, the recovery software they had me download does not work. On the good side because I am under warranty they will ship me a brand new customized USB with the exact software I need. On the bad side, that will be in 2 to 3 days.

I do hope that anyone who wishes is participating on the Discord Channel. If there are any good discussions there please copy them to the chat logs here.

I will try to figure something out for this upcoming Friday. I think I can get KloOge as a program up and running but not sure if I can do anything more than have a chat room available for people with no characters.

I will do my best, sorry for the disaster.

BOB

On the sorta-ish plus side, I've added some Dragonslayers channels to the Discord server I created to run my RPG last year. I'd discussed doing it with Mario as a place to do and mess around with Dragonslayers art projects. I've added a random chatter channel and a voice channel as well.

It is *NOT* intended to replace posting anything to the DS website. But things like off-topic discussions, beta versions of art (like the trial faces I did for Ilero's family a couple months ago, or the HeroForge minis Mario and I were messing with a few weeks ago), or just talking about the weather.

I'll be happy to send an invite to anyone that wants it. My contact info is below. At this time, Lisa and I are the only members. - TMO

PS - Also, if Bob isn't comfortable with it, or becomes so, I'll shut it down. ;)

TMO - I noticed that I only have permission to post/view the DS Art Channel. I still need permission to muse if people are interested in being Discordant. :-) Lisa

I think I contacted everyone over the weekend. The computer hard drive is dead, pining for the fjords.

Luckily it is under warranty and they are shipping me a new hard drive in the next day or three. Unfortunately there will be zero data. Luckily I have a cloud back up that runs automatically in the background. Even better I have KloOge automatically make a back up every ten minutes so we should not have lost anything at all from the game. Not so great is that there will be multiple gigs worth of KloOge data alone to download.

We have a lot of time from here till game time on Friday so we should be ok.

Sorry for the cancellation.

BOB

Not a good sign when you walk up to the computer and it says critical hard drive failure.

Will post later but guessing no game tonight.

-- If anyone wants to chat on Discord or Skype, either voice or text, just drop me a line at my gmail master.tmo TMO

11-30 BOB

Looking over the remaining portion of Wedding Crashers and then wrapping up Bebbux after that it looks like we will be getting back to the Jistille Estates about the beginning of the new year.

So it should be that in January we will be discussing several things (avoiding the P word ;P ) and I think this will be a big adjustment in the campaign. First we will work on awarding XP through the end of the year awards and the end of two adventures. Then we will assess what people want to do with two different tracks.

1 - training 2 - building Branwyn's new domain

Building the domain consists of two key parts. Physically building the manor house with a local village and the scattered hamlets. Then also clearing the land of problem areas. That will be in addition to the adventures that the building process generates.

Building will go faster with higher level characters. Building will also generate XP for characters. So you will have to balance out training with earning even more XP etc. It will be something that will likely end up with characters scattered over several locations and mini groups solving various issues or training etc. Much of that will be handled in roleplay during sessions but some will be done on the site both IC and OOC. The whole process will take three or more sessions to complete.

Just want to start people thinking of things.

11-27 BOB

Yes I corrected the spelling for that obscure type of magic that will likely never be used or seen in the game but comes from a fun variant on pre-columbian legends of a new world. But then again our Dream mages have been on that page for just as long.

11/24 Carissa

So of course I had to look up what the other mage specialties are, but they have no links so I Googled them. The only result that pops up for "Hinashapers" is this website. And another one in a different language (but oddly a different one depending on if you make it plural or not).

After a little more Google, wondering if that's supposed to be "Hishnashapers"? If so, you can correct it OR, if not, add information because now I'm curious what a hinashaper is :P

11-20 BOB So I did a bunch of testing, poking prodding and lots of cursing tonight but it all seems to be working now so that I can access everything remotely while I am away for the holiday weekend.

We should be good to go on Friday for our normal session.

11/20 Carissa

Thanks all for covering summaries, quotes, and songs! Always much appreciated and enjoyable to read. Should be a normal schedule from here on out for me (with only minor possible delays during the holidays, but not this last hour at best stuff).

@TMO: That pretty much was exactly my problem when I first started choosing quotes because, let's face it, every pun I have ever written has been 100% hilarious and should be quoted. Yep. Definitely always hilarious (to me). Right...? But, uh, anyways, then you remember that if people hate the quotes you chose or wants others added, they are free to do so, so choose whatever makes you happy (which you did). And awesome job on first summary! It won't be your last (insert evil laughter?).

And yes I'm kicking myself for missing a trip to the normal library and the book on making poison from mushrooms, not that I have a character to make use it (ten bucks every mushroom in the swamp is poisonous, though, so yeah...). And yes, Thistle probably would be making pretty pictures out of berries. Hope she was stacking them and not using them as fingerpaint ;)

Related question: can one tell normal berries from goodberries?

-- TMO: I actually don't mind doing the stuff, I just like to grumble and complain until someone else does it. ;)

11/19 Lisa

From a game I was playing. I know it's not an elf, but Mario/Kel sprang to my mind when I saw this assortment of weapons. So this is how you walk around with every kind of weapon!

https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/photo/106503234620943107105/6625753601922187650

11/16 TMO

I was in the Ancestry account checking to see if Earl Brandon Cowles was already there, he wasn't. And I also looked up the actual relationship between Princess Anastacia and Queen Willimina (no close one - Anastacia is daughter of the prior Queen; under "normal" inheritence rules, Willimina would have married one of Anastacia's brothers to become heir to the throne, but none lived).

But while there, I discovered Anastacia and Marisu are actually second cousins.

Shaen Doeskin (f)
Bethany Doeskin (f)Queen Mihaela Doeskin (f)
Nieve Doeskin (f)Aatos Uklo (m)
Marisu Doeskin (f)Princess Anastacia Eustace (f)

Queen Willimina Mosskin is probably related too, her mother was an Uklo, but nothing is entered to show how she's related to Aatos. What we do know is that Jistille Uklo, the Queen's mother, is not listed among Aatos' siblings.

Edit: I didn't do quotes for my summary because my initial inclination is to list all of mine. 0:D I'll go through the page again now that Lisa has posted the formatted version and see if there are any others I want to add.

11/02 TMO

How to Play More Than One Character in the Same Game (Player Character Guide)

Haven't finished watching yet, but this might be interesting since we've all got multiple personalities.

11/3 John - Thanks TMO, some good reminders and new ideas.

11/15 Michael - What, the rest of you don't have schizophrenia? :) *And the Customary I meant no offense disclaimer just in case*

10/28 TMO

What having an animal companion is actually like:

Actual Animal Companions

10-24 BOB

Of interest particularly for Spring but I found a way to make this site more mobile friendly. I hope to work on it this upcoming Sunday.

Please - Carissa (on the road and with only phone to reply).

Woooooo hoooo!!! - Spring (imagine Carlton dancing).

10/15 Carissa

I wasn't on to comment at the time, but I feel like I need to point out that one of the absolute worst things you can get bitten by is a (marine) snail...

Link: The most venomous animal on Earth is truly surprising

...and then point out that one compound of the venom is one of the best painkillers available. See? Poisons and venoms aren't always bad! Just...depends how they are used ;)

Link: Snail Venom Yields Potent Painkiller, But Delivering The Drug Is Tricky

10/12 Lisa

I don't know if anyone's going to let Indigo tie anyone to a chair. :(

@Carissa - Will your visit have to do with this flea-borne typhus that is all over LA at the moment?

Oh and saw this and laughed. Who needs to talk to BOB when you can talk to Bob?

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/pissoffthebotbotbob/piss-off-the-bot-bot-bob?ref=category_newest&ref=discovery&term=video%20games

10/12 Carissa

Just got word that they're looking to send people 10/18 so if I'm on that list, I'll be going. But it's still typical if and anything can change between now and then (like realizing how dang expensive it is to send people from the opposite coast last minute).

As for tonight, I'll try to get on briefly during my short layover. Never bought WiFi for a flight before. It's close to a 3 hr flight. Worth paying $8 to be present when Indigo ties someone to a chair finally? ;)

Oh and no summary until Monday earliest from me.

10/4 Lisa

And I just found out I have to go back to San Diego the week of the 15th so I will be there on the 19th. Let me know what your schedule is as we get closer.

10/1 Carissa

The state is supposed to start taking back over since it's not as bad as it was in the summer (but it did hit a Live Bird Market which is exactly what we didn't want to happen). I'm hoping they won't be working me as much as last time. I plan to ask my supervisor when he gets back this week what to expect (if lucky, I'll be in LA not Ontario).

So yes, if I end up going (lots can happen between now and 10/15, it's the government after all), definitely need to try to meet up again for another gameplay in person :)

10/1 Lisa

No offense taken, Carissa. I often say the exact same thing for a wide variety of reasons, re: "Damn California."

If you are going to be in SoCal, maybe we can arrange another gameplay in person. I hope they aren't planning to work you all night!

9-22 BOB

I am back and all caught up (HA!) on things on the site. I am hoping that we only have one more session to miss this year, but I will not know until after this next one if I will miss one in November or December.

There are lots of good conversations on the Birthday Game 2018 - Out of Character Discussions page. One thing I wanted to explain more fully.

For in session out of character discussions we all obviously do a lot of that. I would like (and I know Lisa would too with all the hard work she does on the formatted chat afterwards) for everyone to do their best to flip in and out of character to make it clear when we are talking in and out of character.

I also would like everyone to talk in chat when you spot something that seems out of wack, damage being assigned that should not be, spells being used in a way that is questionable, etc. Rather than whisper or private message say it in chat so we are all aware of the idea and everyone can help catch mistakes before they get to a spot where things get out of control or not easy to fix.

For the key part of the conversation about "can we actually talk out of character in combat" I am mostly liberal with this. I do think that you can speak in character to help guide everyone to what you would like them to do. Tiberius often calls out to Kel or Branwyn advice he thinks will help (at least from his point of view) but I rarely give out of character advice because this is the story of the Players by the Players not mine. Yes Lisa can call out "STOP" and try to make a quick out of character plan. Or Michael can say "WAIT" to clarify just how wide that passageway is and who can see what from their point of view. {side note - that is what I miss about the failure of Tabletop Connect, character point of view on the map}. I do reserve the right to say, Yes this is the setting that you are in, this is what you see, make a decision on your own without help from anyone. But so far we have not seen very many times that I feel the need to push things forward quickly without giving a pause for thinking.

Do also continue to use the OOC sections of the story arcs to keep conversations and planning going so that you can do actions during the sessions.

We are staying on Bebbux this upcoming next session or two to wrap up this part of the encounters before switching over to Wedding Crashers and jumping back a couple of days and everyone seeing what the hell BOB was thinking about having you come all this way through all these encounters.

9/20 TMO

Not sure if many of you watch Critical Role or not, but here is a video talking about how one of those players creates his characters. This is someone else analyzing his play, so I'm not sure how much is intentional by the player and how much is the analyzer reading into it, but it's still a good watch.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4XYqrbhLjIM Taliesin Jaffe: Lessons in Making Characters

9-16 BOB

Thank you to everyone for a very eventful day.

It did not go the way I had planned nor the way anyone else thought it would either I am going to guess.

Two weeks of online discussions and roleplay will be interesting.

Thank you again,

BOB

9-11 BOB

No worries about how you want to proceed on Friday and through into Saturday.

Everyone has a character they can play, I am not anticipating any visitors either time. You can go forward and attempt to complete the mystery in Ghostwood before we switch over to Wedding Crashers and discover what twists will happen over there.

Grins

You know there is a twist coming.

- JTom has asked about joining the last couple of weeks, but deep in mysterious caverns hasn't been the best timing. :) And he never remembers to ask early. If you can let me know if we're getting close to a good spot for him I can prime him to be ready. - TMO

I am not sure, lots of talking going to be happening tomorrow night I am certain and again at the wedding. I am pretty sure there will be combat coming up in the woods, maybe, perhaps, if people follow the clues? I guess?

9/8 Carissa

Yes to Lisa, I'm back to doing summaries this week as family leaves today. Will be done either today or tomorrow :)

Thanks again for doing them past two weeks!

9-5 TMO

Real life levelling:

9-4 Mario

I will be on the entire time for the Birthday Game, probably from Bob's home. However, I will have very limited time online on Sept 7, right at the start from the airport, and possibly from the air later if the connection is sufficient. So Kel, and possibly Mara if that storyline is persued, will be unavailable. Plan (or not) accordingly. :0)

8-31

We are three weeks away from the next BOB's Birthday Game which will be solidly in the Wedding Crashers story arc. If anyone knows of timing issues for being there that day we will be playing our normal Noon till Midnight.

8-13 Mario

Related but not: TMO, if you are looking to dive in 3D Modeling for face and body, there is a free 3D program called Daz3D. It has basic components for free, like basic male and female forms, and clothing and accessories are offered for purchase. I managed to get a few decent poses when I was creating tokens. The learning curve is a bit steep, but once you get the hang of it, it makes sense. Check it out if interested: http://www.daz3d.com

-- TMO:: For whatever reason, DAZ hasn't ever caught my interest. *shrug* This program I'm using has an alternate version that exports to DAZ3D file format, but I bought the 3D Printer compatible version.

8-13 Lisa

The male Sauschas all look very nice. However, I am seeing the same issue with the females as in the other program though. The females all look like men's faces with long hair. They look very creepy to me. Are there any female starter kits?

-- TMO - kinda sorta. I didn't actually put much work into the wives except for Aeli, since I didn't have to worry about making them look similar to anyone. I just created random European women and tweaked from there to fit their stats.

There is a library of celebrity faces here: http://www.relativitybook.com/CoolStuff/facebank.html

A lot of it appears to be adding makeup. ;) (And also I think the jawlines. I will definitely play around with making better women faces. After all, I still have Shur and Marisu to do.)

PS - Riari Sauscha really reminds me of Lindsay Jones from Roosterteeth. It's not exact, but seems pretty close.

08-13 TMO

All - please offer any and all feedback on the Sauscha family profile pics. All pics are viewable here: https://drive.google.com/open?id=11UguNOpY9ZgTBZ5AIdwlQz6-nQZTkYoS

I've had the program less than a week, so I'm under no illusions that this first draft is any good. :) But I'm also the creator, so I'm a bit blinded by that.

Carissa - Mario is wanting to do one of these for Kel, and since Shi and Kel should have roughly the same overall look and style, I'd like to get the two of you together to decide what that is. Ideally a Skype call, because then I can share my computer screen with both of you and try out various looks.

2023 - I have decided to be optimistic

8-02 TMO

For fun and giggles I picked up FaceGen 3D Artist today, so I'll be playing around with 3D face models of my characters. I'll be happy to include anybody else's characters in my experimentation if you want.

On the plus side, the program lets me alter the expressions, so I can make them smile. :)

7-29 BOB

We will have two stories running at the same time. My plan is to use our next handful of sessions to explore in Ghostwood Domain with the second group. Lisa & John will be away for the week we come back so part of the group will have the chance to move about the Castle and Town to explore and of course get involved in the new adventure.

Then later in August we will swap back to the Wedding Crashers group and run that for several sessions in a row. The current plan is to have that story arc completed and everyone back together in Ghostwood at the end of the Birthday Game on 2018 09 15. Everyone will be back together with both story arcs complete.

Of course there should be lots of speculation in the intervening time.

Then the real planning for building and training can get finalized.

7-28 TMO

The whole rain of gold = wheat shower scene is something I'd read somewhere too, but I can not remember where.

7-28 BOB

It will be fun.

More to learn about The Mist, more to learn about Gypsies, more to learn about a new strange Estate tucked into the corner of Drillian.

Have you any dreams you like yourself?

7/28 Carissa

The Emperor of Dreams by Clark Ashton Smith

Setting? Averoigne.

I know nothing beyond that quick Google search, but yes now I'm tempted to read it.

7/28 Lisa

You weren't in game when we first met Thistle, but I got a reminder that you can do blood magic in the Mist. Not sure how they could do a read on Branwyn without her blood, but I'm not completely familiar with witches or scrying/divination spells. So, it is possible. When I thought about it, I do remember Indigo getting gypsy readings and him having to draw blood for it.

Dame Camille's vision? No clue. Maybe she is just an old crazy lady. Maybe she is working with her own gypsy caravan. Or maybe there is some denser Mist magic that we don't know about.

7/28 TMO

I was going to bring this up in character, but I doubt I'll remember it in 2 weeks. The Mist is supposed to block all scrying and fortune telling. But this Dame had a vision of us, *and*, more importantly, was familiar enough with visions to trust it as something more than just a daydream. All well inside the Mist.

7/27 Michael

Um, yeah that's totally us. Well, actually you, bob, everyone else except me to be honest :). I never get the good puns.

7/26 Carissa

Not saying this is definitely any of us but...

6/25 Carissa

Agreed with Lisa - great summary! Really, I very much appreciate both of you stepping up to the plate and taking a stab at it. Both of you did awesome for first attempt! But who knows where work will send me next so don't count this as first AND last. Besides, practice makes perfect, right? ;)

So...who gets third and hopefully last for awhile? (Hope being I can return to normal schedule soon - I'm exhausted!).

6/25 Lisa

Mario - I thought you did a great job with the summary! Don't be so hard on yourself. They aren't easy to write, as I learned from last week.

6/25 TMO

I would like to point out that we're about to drag a boat full of treasure into potentially hostile territory. Unless we want to try and use it to bribe the family into being loyal with it?

Lisa: Actually we aren't. We're past the Bolpel danger zone and we reach Ghostwood and Count Drake before we go to the wedding. Drake is our ally and vampire friend. I was thinking that on the way back we could have Hoffman and Indigo build a shack to put the room scroll in to put the coins in there. Sorry I didn't think about that in game on Friday, but just this morning while finishing the Party Pack page. If we want, they can do that before we hit the guard gate at Ghostwood.

TMO: Ah, I was thinking of the wedding party, actually. I'd forgotted that we were visiting a f(r)iend first.

Lisa: Nice! :-)

6/23 Carissa

Reminder for Mario that you volunteered to do summary this week, please and thank you :)

Update: also not opposed to Lisa doing another or anyone else who wants to take a stand at it! (Thanks for the song list again, Lisa!)

Update: I am working on the summary, but it may be as late as Tuesday evening before I get it posted. Than you for your patience! - Mario

6-23 BOB

Found and fixed the problem with Shur's attacks.

It was missing (not sure why) a plus sign on her abilities page, was not the weapons page.

6/20 Michael

Wave at my place when you pass through Koosharem :)

6/20 Spring

Should have said something earlier but I keep forgetting. Not going to be there Friday. I'm doing a scooter club ride in Southern Utah. This is the route.

06/19/2018 Michael

Love the songs list! We gotta keep doing that because it's hilarious! Though I do have a question: Why is Dreams by Fleetwood Mac Hugh's foreshadowing? I'm probably just missing something really obvious but hey. I'm curious :)

6-19 TMO

Not really relevant for our games, but an interesting setup nonetheless: https://imgur.com/gallery/yr5pS2b

6-19 BOB

Separate thing for TMO and others to consider.

I think that the Weapon data file should contain all the data for using a weapon in combat.

There should be a separate data file for Weapons to add to the Equipment tab on the character sheets. That way one file has weapon type and weights the other has combat info.

Makes it easy to add additional information about weights such as non-encumbering {magical} but counts as weight, or bulky items like a Large Chest that is 4 foot long. You can carry it sure but not carry four of them no matter what your strength score is and still be able to see to walk.

6-18 BOB

I added the KloOge Shortcuts page to help everyone find helpful bits easier. I thought these two commands might be of use to those with single monitors.

Hope this helps

Bob - can you email me the raw text data file for weapons? I'll play around with adding weights to it. - TMO

Here you go: Weapon data file

So that is what the raw file in your folder looks like? I wasn't sure if there were any changes to make it web readable. Thanks. - TMO

Yes to TMO. All the Data Files here are the raw txt files. Just copy and paste the information in between the "@" signs and there is the text that pops up in KloOge.

I figured out why the data file didn't look right - it's TAB delimited data, so it didn't line up right visually or appear to be properly delimited. Imported into Excel as tab delimited lines everything up just right. - TMO

6/18 Carissa

Thank you for the awesome summary and song list, Lisa! Here's your virtual thank you card!

But you also benefit more than the others in that I'll be sure to have some wine for Friday ;)

6-17 BOB

I did some testing and tweaking for the chat. I added new names for each character with a different language. So you can while chatting go change the name you are using and it will automatically put out the correct code for what ever language you are talking in. This will auto populate the chat logs here on the wiki with the correct style for that language and will show everyone live in KloOge what language you are speaking in.

I added it to all the elves, halflings, dwarves and to Hugh so he remembers he can speak with Giants {Jotun}.

I tried to make it even faster as just a chat macro but that would not work for me so I doubt others can get it to work.

6/15 Carissa

Just a test post to see if it was internet or computer garbling text. If this posts fine, it means it was internet at the Residents Inn, so if you can get to fixing that Mario, aka VP of all Marriotts, I'd appreciate it! ;)

6/13 Michael

On a side note, bob do you have a dropbox for this? I can start to organize materials and uploading files to it to make life easier. Things like excel sheets, architectual plans, etc. If not, no big deal. For everyone else rolling their eyes, I'm really sorry. This stuff is my dream hobby to think this stuff up. I do this even without the Dragon Slayer Campaign.

6/13 Michael

I mean that sounds great John but what about wheels? Do you think Bob would make us wait a few days even with the proficiency? I hate the idea of a sled because it likely wouldn't be very useful on the way back (Probably be destroyed by the time we get there) but once we are there, we might be able to procure new skiffs? Otherwise, I say go for it! I like the idea of a cart. Then again, tools?

On that vein, Bob, would it be likely where we are going that we could procure those types of goods? Is it a full estate like Jistille? I would think so with the wealth of the D'Ambravilles, but hey it's your world ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

6/13 John

Hoffman has Carpentry and should be able to make something from the broken skiffs. Maybe even a make shift cart that Hoffman and Kel can push or pull. Between the two they can cary about 400 pounds without slowing down beyond the movement of 6 of our short legged friends.

---

6/13 Michael

Well Yeah! It's just so applicable Lisa :) . It's just so hilarious because of the actual relevance it has to us haha. Swamps aren't very condusive to castle and town building per say. I've been spending a lot of time considering building materials that can be used that are lighter than pure stone. Think legionare fort, or better yet i've been thinking more along the lines of this https://www.pinterest.com/pin/261912534560211490/?lp=true

The problem with wood and timber is the problem with fire... It also would be much larger than some of the pictures within that webpage. I've drawn up designs for a large scale compound and will be attempting to replicate the drawings into autocad soon.

I don't suppose anyone knows of anything that isn't as heavy as stone yet isn't as flamable as wood........ :) I thought bricks might do the trick, but will need to think on it some more. (Yes, i'm aware that you could consider bricks as rocks, but depending on what they are made of I.E. mud, clay, they might not be as heavy, yet still strong enough to be worthy of a fortress compound. Thoughts would be greatly appreciated. I'm working through how the sewer system will work. This is difficult because I gaurantee that if you dig about 6 feet down you'll find water. Not really condusive to a sewer. I'm having trouble drawing up the sewage plans. At least I don't have to figure out where electical lines are going :)

TMO - don't forget we potentially have access to useful magic spells, like "Transmute Mud to Rock" or "Dig" and so on.

''John - There is a spell that turns wood into I think Iron - Iron Wood"

6-13 Lisa

Every time someone talks about the building project this Monty Python thing starts running in the back of my head. Because Branwyn has "huge tracts o' land!"

Listen, lad. I built this kingdom up from nothing. When I started here, all there was was swamp. Other kings said I was daft to build a castle on a swamp, but I built it all the same, just to show 'em. It sank into the swamp. So, I built a second one. That sank into the swamp. So, I built a third one. That burned down, fell over, then sank into the swamp, but the fourth one... stayed up! And that's what you're gonna get, lad: the strongest castle in these islands.

Or you can just watch the whole thing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aNaXdLWt17A

6-13 BOB

You know dogs have been used to pull things for a long time and wolves are just like dogs......

(Well yes but since I'm on a weird schedule for three weeks I was offering another possible solution :) - Carissa)

For the construction details Michael & John there is no page yet. I would start conversations on the For the Love of Mist - Out of Character Discussions page until Wedding Crashers is finished and everyone returns home. I think that planning on how to build things is helpful. Learning about what goes into each building, how much things will cost etc. will do everyone good. That way when the actual final plans are made it will go smoother. Branwyn still needs to make it back to the Jistille Estates and then pick a place in the Craniate Wastes that she wants to call her own. After that point you will all be able to help with things about building which particular structures, how you want to run the new estate, what to call the estate, etc. Then you also have to work out what sort of thing a scouting guild looks like and how you are going to support that with the limited resources available with that amount of land.

John referred to clearing the land which will still need to be done. You can also choose to clear more land to add to the Royal Grant if you decide you want/need more space.

For speculation purposes look at the map on Google Earth with all the Political Boundries turned on. The Jistille Estates is another Royal Grant that is 10 square miles. You can see that one border to choose could be the Skull Church, one could be the Farmers Turn, another could be the Valoris Wood which is the northern border of the Jistille Estates. You can pick an area to include some swamps and some more dry land or just about what you wish in that area. Experiment with the measuring tool in Google Earth to see just how much your Royal Grant takes up and what landmarks did you want to use for a boundary. This will take time to plan outside of game and a bit inside of game. Plus it will not happen until after Wedding Crashers which we can see now will be running through at least October if not into December.

Go copy and paste the parts of this and other conversations to the OOC page and start talking about what is possible etc.

This is a group effort that Lisa & TMO will have the final say on.

TMO - yeah, the book says, for Thieves Guilds: "you need a building. Everything else is up the the guildmaster's personal preferences." I would suggest that there's probably a Castle Guide spreadsheet out there somewhere. If we find it, we can put it on Google Docs and share it amongst ourselves for a common resource that we all edit.

Posted by Lisa for Carissa. Not sure what is happening with your computer! I saw in the recent updates that you posted here and didn't see anything, but in the history there is the post below and garbled text in the history but not on the page. So strange. But I thought you had good ideas so I didn't want them lost in the history. Hope you don't mind that I copy/pasted them back here.

- Thank you!! I was trying to retype it on my phone. There is something weird with the internet connection here, I think (phone is on cell network - can't get on wireless for some reason). I switch to a new hotel briefly in two days. I'll test and see if it's my computer or the internet. At least I have this backup but not easy writing on it...

6/12 Carissa

And unrelated: thank you Lisa for cleaning up that garbled text. I haven't a single clue how that happened. Half why I gave up trying to write more...

06-12 Michael

On construction

Bob, I'm gathering lots of materials in regard to planning out building and etc. Is it possible to set up a dedicated page to the construction? A place where I can ask questions such as: Is this location I'm pointing at on Google earth close to a roadway? Do we need to build a road? Things like that. The guide is really helpful, but there are way more aspects to think of than what I origionally thought of. I figure if I start learning this stuff now, it will move much quicker when we actually being the work. And, if there is a page already set up for that, is there anyway you perhaps could post a link?

06-12 Michael

So had a brief message convo with Bob but am posting here for the rest to see. For anyone (probably it was just me lol) who didn't happen to know, the last time the party went through here, they managed to leave the skiffs at a village. However, due to circumstance, war, bad luck etc, that village is no longer here.

So, we are faced with a civil war and are trying to move quickly through what appears to be hostile lands. We can force march, but that is a very long way to go and still manage to be in one piece. I do like the idea of hiding the skiffs, but I just can't shake the feeling that going on foot (our feet not the horses) is a great idea. For one, if we need to get away quickly, a horse might be a better option if Guy decides to shoot another guard (I love you Guy and I understand the motive, just saying).

However, along with that same vein, I understand that with both armies competeing for resources, it may indeed be hard to find reliable animals. I did some research and found that during WWI (The great war) the officers of Britain and France were required to pay for their horses outright and the government requisitioned horses from the populace for a "fair" price. I still need to look into that some more to verify this completely. That being said Bob is most likely correct. The horses were probably taken by force.

I also know that it is highly likely that with the war going on, people will be desperate for money. Either to provide for their families to make up for lost income because of the war, or to escape it. Not to mention all the other ailments to be found in the mist. I would be willing to bet that perhaps a chest of silver would get us at the very least a pack animal or two.

I mean I'm totally open to suggestions, I'm just really excited and want to hit the ground running Friday.

Thoughts?

Michael P.S. If you guys need me to post elsewhere let me know. I've got some spare time this week so I have some time to work on the site if necessary

6-12 BOB

Movement: for all your movement debating points.

Also, have you seen any horse sellers around these parts? If you were part of an army would you take horses or buy them?

6-12 Michael

No bob I havent forgotten to post. Will do later today.

Now that that is out of the way :)

Lisa has a point. Short of stuffing everything in the room of requirement (bonus points if you get the reference :) ) I think we may have a problem. I've given up for the time being looking at the google earth map because I suck at it but is there any real danger in traveling overland? I know I know that leaves us with other problems, but it seems that relying on the skiffs is becoming somewhat of a difficult situation. I'm not exactly sure of the money conversion but we should have enough money to purchase horses? Look I know you all are probably shaking your heads and saying i'm crazy! But, that's why I'm just asking if it's possible. There has to be some sort of settlement that would be willing to part with decent horses for the right fee?

If we stick with the skiffs, I'm not sure how long it will take for us to either scrounge or fix them and we are already behind schedule for making the party. Its definitly a problem that I have no idea how to solve so I just thought I would throw out an idea. :)

Just looked at the rate of a wagon when pulled at a quick rate from the 1800s. Do not recommend we get any sort of wagon. If we go overland. Best solution is either pack horses or distribute weight equally among the players and mounts. Besides, knowing our luck, it would be smashed anyway. That's sort of how it goes :) .

Also, by following an actual road, we may have more encounters (definitly a risk when it comes to Bob. RIGHT BOB!?) But we would be actually following an established road. That would greatly increase the pace I think.

6-12 Lisa

So, are you saying the hill giants were actually doing us a favor by smashing half of our skiffs to pieces?

This is not a great situation, as without the skiffs we cannot travel further home than where we are right now. We would have to forage for materials to make 10 skiffs and sit there for as long as it takes to make them. I doubt if we left them at the side of the road that they would still be there when we get back.

Initial options as I see it, but happy for more:

  • We have Ilero and any other character with camouflage nwps or similar type spells try to hide them in an area near the road. We would still have to make about 3 skiffs to get home, but 3 is better than 10. Rolling the dice that the protection lasts for a week while we are gone.
  • We can drag them until we see a safe place to leave them which would require determining if the safe place is safe and paying a skiff locker rental fee.
  • Yes, we can drag them a few hundred miles bouncing along the way letting everyone in shouting distance know we are coming. Not sure what the problem is with that! :) The skiffs are nice for lugging cargo. We have 4 small chests to carry along with weight restrictions for our weaker STR characters and those 4 chests would be carried on top of all other backpacks, weaponry, and other equipment the characters are carrying. If the chests are in the skiffs on a rope and a dozen bullywugs leap into the road, you drop the rope and fight as opposed to dropping a chest you are carrying or trying to reach around the backpack and the small chest you have strapped to your back to get to your bows and arrows. Not sure how light everyone is traveling. E.g., off the top of my head - Hugh has a backpack and a crossbow and bolts he needs to be able to reach. Neith has a shepard’s crook (thinking as long as a quarterstaff), whatever else she’s carrying, and a toddler who probably doesn’t want to walk hundreds of miles. Branadarus & Branwyn both have backpacks. Shi can barely carry her long sword much less a chest too! Is this why we allowed Jon the Sailor to join us? He should be good for 1 chest. Dragging skiffs around can also be useful for when we have walking wounded for a day unless the 1 hp characters want to walk it off while they wait until morning to get actual healing beyond the 1 point they currently have.
  • We could do a combination of the above. Try to hide or store most of the skiffs and take two for luggage and the nearly dead, knowing that dragging skiffs may damage them during the journey.

I can do whatever everyone wants or comes up with. Indigo doesn’t carry a backpack so he can take a chest and he only uses his military pick when he absolutely needs a magic weapon so he shouldn’t have a weapon changing delay problem for him to lug one. We just have to figure out who gets the other 3 if we decide to carry them. Well, 2 since I vote for Jon the Sailor taking a chest if we are carrying them.

Let me know if I have anything wrong in my thinking.

6-12 BOB

One thing that can be worked out in the In Character pages as well as in game is what are you going to do with the skiffs?

Previously when you traveled this way you left your skiffs at a fisherman's house in a small village near the roadway here. Apparently that village does not exist anymore.

Do you really want to drag your skiffs overland bumping and bouncing behind you for a couple hundred miles? Do you want to go search for someone to take care of these for you?

Letting the group be creative in how they handle everything.

6/9 Carissa

For those of you who still haven't done as I asked earlier (not the busy ones, I know you'll get to it, but others who read these and don't post) which you can read two posts below, I leave you with this that can also apply to you (unless you're Michael; it directly applies to you):

[Master] Michael got away
[Master] without posting
[Master] need to needle him on that
[Carissa] Hmm he did. I can nag him. Or enlist help to do that.
[Master] if Nyrma can post
[Master] he can

So remember, kids! If Nyrma can do it, so can you! Please and thank you :)

6-7 BOB

Not opposed to Fantasy Grounds overall. I just do not want to spend the time and energy creating a 2.mine working file for the existing program and then redoing the work again for FG3d or what ever it gets called in the future. Having all of our things in text files that can be easily converted to which ever format is needed will be the best way forward for now I think.

6/7 TMO

He's done a couple of Fantasy Grounds tutorials. While I'm sure they're still off the list, I thought I'd post them just for informational purposes.

6/5 Carissa

Okay I'm going to nag you guys on this one if you didn't see it on the recent changes comments. Please, please add your thoughts (takeaways, memorable moments, whatever you want to call them) to the summary page at the bottom. Then please follow that up with your favorite quote (or quotes) on the main page - from the summary, from the chat, or that you vaguely remember.

I'm glad you guys like the summaries I do, but sometimes I like seeing your point of view, too. :)
And the 25th Anniversary Game is significant enough that you really should add to it!

And @John: for a second I thought you were asking if TMO's landing problems were because he landed in a swamp that needed to be cleared. I was only was slightly confused!

6-5 John

Does this take into effect usable land in the swamp or is this not part of the swamp? And does it need to be 'cleared'?

6-5 BOB

For the planning for Branwyn's new lands I added a link to the Castle Guide on the Agriculture & Holdings in Chapter 5. A quick note here to help with getting started.

Simple Farming statistics: For ease of game play, an average production to support a population of non-farmers works out to the following. With one square mile to work (640 acres) a community of 35 people can provide enough surpluses to allow 4 non-farm workers to live there. Each person farming (ages <7 is 0 worker, 7-11 is ½ worker, 12> is 1 worker) contributes 2.8% to the yield.

So with 10 square miles of the Royal Grant you can farm about 9 square miles. That means 36 non-farmers can be supported by the 315 farmers that need to be attracted to work the land. You currently are at 25-28 people in your group.

These new lands will be in the Craniate Wastes, with the Jistille Estates one of your neighbors. It remains to be seen through your own planning and adventuring what parts of this area you claim for your own.

6/5 TMO

I eventually made it home, a bit before 1am. You may remember I had a few troubles getting to Ft Lauderdale on Friday? Coyotes on the runway for leg 1, having no catering supplies kept us waiting for an hour on leg 2? Yeah... that was *nothing* compared to trying to get home. Flight from FL to Dallas didn't show up for 3.5 hours, because it was coming from Dallas and their storms. So I missed my connecting flight out of Dallas. They booked me on the 7pm flight, and as standby for the 4:40 flight. Then they cancelled the 7pm flight. And I was #15 out of 25 on the standby list, and somehow did not make in on board. So then everybody got rolled to standby on the 10:30pm flight... and this time I made it! So instead of getting home at 5pm, I got home 6 hours later. And then turn around 5 hours later and come to work. ;)

John - Please do not let this dissuade you from coming back.I hope we all can get together again.

5-30 BOB

Yes to TMO we have access to a lot of code. It is all XML so we can rebuild just about anything we want.

Thank you for the reminder I will check that for the Flanking tonight.

After the weekend is over we can talk about the ongoing KloOge projects that I would like to implement. That stalled when I thought we would be going to Tabletop Connect but we can see if there are things that are easy to add in.

5-30 TMO

This video is nicely topical: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q2peAtDwGFw

BOB - does Klooge have a spot on it that tells you how much weight you're carrying, or is it something that has to be calculated and updated manually per character?

KloOge does not currently auto calculate weight. There is a spot to put that in on the sheet but it does not total everything you have yet.
If you have access to code, that might be something I can fix. And the Hit Roll formula *needs* to be fixed. ;)

5-29 BOB

Yes the skeletons took a lot of time last session for a couple of reasons. The key one being no one (except Johan) had a bludgeoning weapon. All other attacks do half damage against skeletons. The other thing we neglected to track, because it did not really matter that time, was Fatigue during the battle.

In brief: every time you make an attack/cast or move it costs one point of Fatigue. The number of points you have is based on your Hit Dice so Johan (with a d4) could move up to half (1 point) swing his hammer (1 point), next round move (1 point) attack (1 point) then if he moves or attacks the next round he becomes Fatigued. Emcumbrance becomes important with negatives to saves and attacks. To undo the effects of that he must take a round to rest and make a save v paralyzation.

In large battles {foreshadowing} this will affect certain mages who like to use daggers a lot. It could also affect those who take multiple attacks every round.

Which "certain mages" could you possibly be referring to?

5-27 BOB

I do like the idea of various sizes of Griffons. There is also a mage specialty with spells just for creating hybrid creatures........

Really?? Oh that could be so much fun. Not hard to think of fun hybrids. And Lisa did think we needed more mages (or that's how I'm interpreting that comment). Tempting. But anyways, in other hybrid news... - Carissa

@Carissa - Don't let BOB lure you into the all you have to do is become a mage and you can create hybrid creatures malarkey. (Isn't malarkey a nice word that no one uses any more?) He kept telling me that I could create magic items! Yay! You know when I can have Branwyn create magic items? 12th Level. It has taken me 8 years to get her to 11th and I still have 200K XP left to get her to 12th. Lisa

Hahaha! That is a good point I didn't think about! Thanks for the warning. I thought my only worry would be figuring out how to transform a skiff into a mobile laboratory (pronounced la-bore-a-tory, of course). ;) - Carissa

1st Branwyn can make scrolls and never have the excuse "Oh I do not have that spell prepared today" 2nd Don't under estimate the ability to recharge magic items. Oh your wand only has so many charges. Just remember to count down before you count back up so you don't make it explode. 3rd "Both wizards and priests must be at least 11th level to create any kind of magical item other than a potion or a scroll." from his own rules http://www.dragonslayers-society.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php?n=Main.CreatingMagicItems -John

5/25 TMO

Michael - I'll have to think about your request, see what else I can come up with. If anything. RWBY is kind of unique. You might want to look up EruptionFang on YouTube though - he does a pretty good analysis of the series.

RoosterTeeth has several other shows, but they are all wildly different from RWBY: Red vs Blue, Camp Camp, Nomad of Nowhere. Perhaps I'll come up with other ideas for you by next week.

Other TV Show suggestions:

Link of custom D&D critters for Shi to obsess over: https://imgur.com/gallery/W0ZZczf

Shi or me? I'm pretty sure we're on the same page here and need them all (okay maybe not Black Beast of Argh). This'll end up like Pokemon soon enough at this rate. - Carissa

5-24 BOB

TMO you can have Marisu respond, she is in the next skiff and can easily have overheard part? some? all? you get to choose. The last part about not wanting to marry someone was very emphatic so could be a point to start with.

TMO: I didn't realize the skiffs were close enough for easy chatting. With your post to the OOC conversation, stated as the GM's Truth, I'll put in Marisu's thoughts here in a bit, after arranging things in my head.

5/23 TMO

It's going to be real hard pretending I hadn't read Anastacia's tale... >.<

5/21 Lisa

That’s a great analogy! I like it.

I don’t have any insider info either. I think I posted somewhere before that I am just going with this how she would see it and I know that there is a chance that she could be totally wrong and get betrayed. I want her character to be her and not second guess herself just because “Lisa” knows that Bob can have the story twist in all different ways at any moment. I am having Branwyn act like Branwyn and I am going off her IC knowledge, history with the NPCs, and the ways Branwyn generally reacts to things. (I seriously sound like I have multiple personality disorder!)

TMO, I think you did a fantastic job last Friday! I like watching the progression and development you are giving to Marisu and actually don’t want you to talk about it too much OOC. I like to be surprised during roleplay sessions and see how things go. Makes it much more fun.

Everyone else’s characters acted somewhat how I would expect them to act – which was very supportive of their friend. Why wouldn’t they? Very good roleplay from everyone all around. And I got more surprises there too – which is fun and was the inspiration for my IC post over the weekend. So thank you! :)

5/21 TMO

Poor Branwyn. ;) The analogy came to me last night that she and Marisu are kinda in similar situations. Both of them having to react to important events without knowing for sure what the truth really is. Like they're siblings whose parents are in the middle of a nasty divorce. 0:)

Another thought I had last night was that, while I'd love for nothing more than to talk with folks about the Marisu situation when we meet up, I have a feeling it will make for a better story if all of that is handled in-game. Every question or situation that is answered out-of-character is one that won't show up in game anymore. However, I do want to state for the record that I'm working off the same information all of you are - i.e. - None. ;) Bob hasn't given me anything he hasn't mentioned in the logs.

5/12 Carissa

You never know what you'll find at a book sale...
It was only $1 so of course I bought it. It's a small book. If you have a deep desire to read it, let me know. I'll bring it.

Yes please!!! That would be awesome! - Mario 5/12

5-11 BOB

So we are back.

Over the last 24 hours we had our Phone line cut, our Cable line (so no TV or Internet) cut, Nyrma's Mom go into the hospital and back out, and the water pipes for the sprinkler system cut spewing water all over the place.

But now we are back to normal and the game is on tonight.

TMO - Bob, please share your definition of normal with us, because I don't know that it matches mine.

5/11 Lisa

Bob's landlines are working and the cable guy just showed up. Things are looking hopeful for Internet and game tonight.

5/10 Lisa

Bob wanted me to let everyone know that his landscaping guys just chopped up the telephone and cable cords to his house. The earliest appointment he could get to get his Internet fixed is Saturday. Kind of puts a damper on the possibility of playing tomorrow night. Unless one of you local peoples could give Bob a place to run the game tomorrow??

Bob will post a status update later. Stay tuned.

5/7 John

Thanks Carissa, I do not remember seeing this page, I was just going off of the proficiency Animal Training. I am gonna add a link to each other and see if I can train a bit more when the time comes.

5/6 Carissa

Could have waited until Friday, but putting this here since it applies to Eddie (John) and to seek clarification from BOB:

Decided to reread dog training page to look at skills. Found that:

  1. Water skills: This trains the dog to enjoy entering the water and swimming. Normally, without water skills, a dog must make a successful resist instinct check to enter water over its head. No such check is made for dogs with this skill. Furthermore, dogs with water skills may dive and swim beneath the waters surface with a successful resist instinct check. Dogs without this skill may never be enticed to voluntarily submerge.
    1. Yes, if they can swim they can dive, and yes, Anor could have chased that lizardman.
  2. Alarm: The dog remains in a given area and alerts its master (bark, whine, and howl) when strangers enter that area. The dog can monitor any area that is well-defined (i.e., a room or chamber). If no such boundaries exist, such as in a field or forest, the dog alerts its master of intruders within a 50’ radius. Alarm can also be used to cover a party’s rear during movement.
    1. The real question: does this apply while on the skiff? I can't imagine the wolf (or dog) is helping steer or anything. They're probably told to keep a look out. No boundaries, and technically remaining in an area (the skiff) so I can see it applying, but also moving boundary since the skiff is moving, so can see you saying no, still doesn't substitute for observation or alertness. So...can if be used/helpful when skiff traveling?:

5/4 Mario

Time to rewrite the rule books, and break out the suit of field plate +3 in the Party Pack!

https://www.woot.com/blog/post/the-debunker-was-medieval-armor-incredibly-heavy

5/3

Going to be late. There's a graduation thing. But i do plan to make it.

Spring

5-2

I added a list of food and beverage preferences on the Planning page for the game.

Please add what you like and as important what you do not like.

I like meat on my pizzas, some do not. Let us know so we make sure everyone's preferences are considered.

TMO - I am absolutely not a picky eater. I'll eat about anything on pizza. If I'm ordering for just myself I get Italian Sausage + Black Olives + Mushrooms. Snack-wise: nuts, chips, dip, veggies, pretzels, whatever. If sugary junk is available I'll probably binge a little on it, but I'm not worried about that for a single weekend.

4/29 Carissa

Current Skiff Configuration has had some significant updates and overhaul which is main reason for posting here. Go check, see if you're happy with things, know that we still have enough time between now and Friday for new thoughts and changes to happen ;)

...but I think I'm happy with it for the moment. I think.

Update: Changed spots, moved discussion to skiff page, comment on changes there please :)

Not skiff related, but feel free to say bye for now to Jennevive (and anyone else) if you feel like it.

4-27 TMO

Well, as I told Bob, that didn't go like any of the scenarios I'd run through my head, but it went very well I thought. Thanks all for putting up with the drama. I'm not sure how much longer it will last, but there's a fair number of hanging threads in both my character's storylines that might crop up at any time. Don't be shy about tugging on any of them if you feel like it, either. :) People who spend this much time together and care for each other would definitely do that.

Hmm.. in fact, it might be worth assembling a page where we keep a collection of things about their characters that the others might want to talk about. I'm usually doing good just to remember *my* characters' plot threads. Remembering other characters' threads accurately is often beyond me. Something similar to my notepad, but organized by character. Opinions?

  • I think that's a great idea! Want to start us off? There is no shortage of hidden secrets and drama in almost/if not all of the PCs lives. Lisa
  • Great idea! I certainly don't remember all those threads to be able to tug them. This will help for all of them :) - Carissa

4-22 BOB

Yes to TMO when your group was adventuring it was illegal to be a Therianthrope in Drillian.

However with the 'convert the Eustaces into werewolves' rumors and apparently maybe confirmed by Anastacia that might not be the case any more.

Also I updated all the character XP with the 10% through the end of A River Runs Through It plus I updated the character sheets in KloOge to reflect the new XP goals so the level up will not pop up again until you really do level up.

I checked the Character Level entry for each character, their Experience entry and the Next Level entry for everyone. I did NOT chance the level of your character in the rest of that section {i.e. Thief: Level 6, etc.} because that {should} show the level you have been trained up to. I also did NOT check saving throws or Hit Points for anyone.

This brings us all up to date on the Bonus Experience Points you will have until after Wedding Crashers is finished.

4-22 TMO

Bob - can you tell me what Marisu knows about the legal status of weres in Drillian? At least as of before she went to Dryads Lair, since it might have changes since then and she wouldn't necessarily know.

ie - I thought it was illegal to be a were, with a penalty of death.

4-21 BOB

So all the new pages are up for the new Story Arc. We are picking up here on the site at breakfast with the Royal Family, then a quick formal greeting in Court to welcome you all back. Then in mid day you will be leaving and heading off into the swamps to try to get to the wedding on time.

As everyone will see the Era page goes back to a fairly static one and the Story Arc page will be updating throughout. I think that this current Wedding Crashers story will play out over about 20 sessions or so. That takes us from now through the Twenty-fifth Anniversary Game and then into the BOB's Birthday Game on 2018 09 22 and beyond.

Once this story arc plays out and everyone is home in Jistille again we will take a three or four session Recovery story arc for cleaning up experience levels, training, roleplaying break time, etc. I expect that story arc will only take about three sessions but we will be clicking off a year or more of game time to make sure everyone gets all they want done.

There was a bit of XP given out so far and I will be updating XP again before we start next week with the 10% bonus that some characters have earned. First thing next week is making sure people have the correct Hit Points and THAC0 and Saving Throws. Then unpacking and repacking and heading out into the swamps.

4-20 BOB

Very glad we had everyone in for that last part. I am looking forward to a race through the swamps with lots of craziness. Then all formal and proper for a wedding at the mid point of the adventure. Then find your way back home.

After this Wedding Crashers Story Arc I will have one labeled Recovering for training and rebuilding and sorting out all the things. During the week I will add in the remaining bonus XP to everyone as well so there is more to come shortly. Then more at the Anniversary Game, and again at the end of Wedding Crashers so there will be potentially lots of training and building and organizing.

New pages will be up later this weekend to accommodate In Character and Out of Character discussions about the new story arc as well.

4-17 TMO

Just to ruin the lives of all you who love the Disney Hercules movie:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Megara_(mythology): In Greek mythology, Megara (/ˈmɛɡərə/; Greek: Μεγάρα) was the oldest daughter of Creon, king of Thebes. In reward for Hercules' defending Thebes from the Minyans at Orchomenus single-handed, Creon offered his daughter Megara to Hercules,[1] and he brought her home to the house of Amphitryon.[2] She bore him a son and a daughter,[3] whom Hercules killed when Hera struck him with temporary madness; in their hero-tombs in Thebes they were venerated as the Chalkoarai.[4] In some sources Hercules slew Megara too,[5] in others, she was given to Iolaus when Hercules left Thebes forever. She was mother of Leipephilene by Iolaus.[6]

In some traditions, in order to atone his guilt, he was forced to perform the Twelve Labours, but in Euripides' tragedy, Hercules' return from his encounter with Cerberus in Hades begins the agon.

4-16 BOB

I have the info for TMO, Lisa, Spring and Carissa for arrivals and departures. Michael is not on the calendar yet. If you can message me your details I will add it on to my calendar so we can make sure the Mario Cart is timed right. :)

4-12 John

Still feel we need an answer on how much cargo we have to finish the skiff planning. Everyone should have their personal belonging, the party pack and especially the scroll is with Indigo but is there anything else specific we need to know. Cooking items and suppliers with Jilly? Bedding with Shur ? Or some of both with everyone?

4-12 BOB

Just a quick note to say that I have gotten two comments in the last couple of days now that said, "You have a great website!" And I said, "It is all my players contributing."

So THANK YOU

4-12 BOB

So overall it looks like there are options to bring Sarengar back if that is what Guy wants. We are also clear now on infections.

You are about 66 miles away from Jistille at this point. Needing to use the Scroll of Shelter to retrieve the wand you just have to find a wall. So actively searching for a hut or building will do as you are traveling along the stream here. You pass them all the time, they are just not significant enough to create an encounter for you on the rolls unless someone special lives there.

Hopefully Guy will be in early on Friday, you can move things forward and we get to Jistille by the end of the month.

4-11 John

Yea, I was worried you missed it. I knew we knew he could be a weregator but as not sure how much Hoffman knew, so I had some fun. Figure we have to wait until Friday to roll but can still have a little more fun on line.

4-11 Lisa

Brother Foto's objections duly noted. :)

I thought about this right when it happened on Friday night, but then when Guy's character died, I lost it. Until last night...

After Sarengar turned into a weregator, he BIT Miranda!!

I thought since Branwyn was only told the tale second hand, maybe this is something Hoffman and Miranda would like to discuss? Or your post, John, had so many fun things in it, I only addressed two of them on this first go round. I went back and posted that Sarengar turned into a weregator since it seems Hoffman didn't know that happened. (Time gets fuzzy for me sometimes on who was where for what) Also someone should follow up on that Himdal conversation drop! Hoffman's getting converted?

From chatlog:

[Master] Sarengar: Attack: Bite: (14-(d20+0)) [1d20=19] -5. HITS [Miranda Paige]] (AC FINAL: 10)!!!

[Master] Sarengar: Damage v SM: Bite: ((1d6)+1) [1d6=2] 3 [MODIFIED (+1)] added to: [Miranda Paige]]

TMO - I don't remember the infection event specifically, and apparently haven't made it there yet in my note-taking.
TMO - Correction, I had made it there, but it wasn't called out in the logs, and had overlooked it. It was Shur's first day, so I didn't realize what was happening and have her give him the cure.
TMO - Also, Bob has passed some knowledge to Shurkural about weres, so if it comes up in conversation she can pass it along.

4-10 John

Thank you Lisa, this will require some thought. How to quote Deadpool but still be in character.

TMO: you could always adopt your own personal logo/symbol:

Carissa: Not sure that one would work. Ever gone shopping at Target? You go in planning to buy one thing, but end up buying everything except that thing. Hoffman would just attract all the other creatures except the one he meant to attract ;)

4-8 BOB

I updated some links to make it easier to find things.

Thank you to all for collaborating on the new Skiff and Watches pages. Those will help make things go smoother over the next few months of travel through the swamps on your first adventure in the new Era.

I updated the listing of potential players and characters for the Anniversary Game, listing some of the characters that I think are available for guests. I will be creating new additional NPC's for people to play as well once you make it back to Jistille and start the first adventure of the new Era.

I have to double check the Alligator XP still.

Two or three more sessions of travel it looks like then you will be home in Jistille.

4-7 BOB

Fixed the Ilero HP issue adding 9 to him.

Did not check the alligator XP issue John mentioned, will do that later.

Great work on the Skiff page, that will be very helpful for several months. Thank you all.

4-7 Lisa

I noticed when doing the chat log that Kenna sent 9 pts of healing to Ilero and it doesn't look like he got it applied. Can you please check that?

4/7 Carissa

John set up this niffy Current Skiff Configuration page. Just want to make sure people see it. I set it up with configuration of before entering the swamp (minus cargo change) pending Guy's response to Lisa's memory of the wand.

And yes, I know we sometimes hate planning, but now is your time to speak up if you didn't like the arrangements from last night :)

But speak up over there, please!

4-7 Lisa

Woke up at 3:30 am and thought - Wait! We have a Wand of Resurrection! So I looked at the Party Pack and I had it under the Magic Item category (which would put it in the room scroll). But that is an insanely stupid mistake. It should go in with the scrolls and potions chest, which the whole point of carrying it around is, so we have these things when we need them... Wish my brain worked as well when I am awake as it seems to do when I am asleep.

Can we let Guy know that we have this option?

4-4 TMO Augmented Reality D&D: https://imgur.com/gallery/ieB0K

3-29 TMO

3-28 BOB

Yes Branwyn would recognize that opera as there were two different discussions about it with Sarengar.

Yes I reached out to Kaz and Guy, Guy is not sure if he can make it.

Jenn and Sean are both confirmed now, Marco will be in for one of the two days he said and likely bringing a kid with him.

I reached out to Eric, Devin and Bill also. Bill's email bounced back. No response from Eric {as expected, someone else might have alternative means of contacting him?} and TMO knows Devin so will be able to forward responses.

That leaves Christy as one person I have highlighted to come that I have not heard from at all. Then there is Jeff and Rob both local people who will be last minute decisions I am sure.

3-28 Lisa

Can I roll Local History nwp on the opera? I went to Rolz and rolled a 1 (honest!)

Speaking of Sarengar, have you reached out to Guy and Kaz for the Anniversary Game? It would be nice if they could at least be online.

3-27 BOB

TMO I did double check the pummeling tables and and there is no additional check after you make that percentage roll to knock someone out. Unlike when you roll a Knockdown (which no one even me remembers to do) where you get a save with the pummeling table if you make that small percentage chance then you get to reap the reward.

-- So be it! I will attempt to remember that every attack with the Fist is a check on the chart. ;) Dunno if there are some monster types that are immune - undead obviously, not sure about others. (Ilero next tries to suckerpunch a gelatinous cube..) I do wonder if I can code the attack roll to automatically append a percentile roll? *shrug* - TMO

3-26 Mario

Hi All! I have moved the Build A Token post to its own page for consolidation. Look for the page here. I posted a link to a document where you can select the components for your token, if you choose to have one. Check it out and let me know.

Thanks!

3/26 TMO

Bob - this is a just off-the-cuff though regarding Pummeling and knocking someone out. Would it make sense to give the target a save of some sort to resist? CON or PPD perhaps?

3-19 Lisa

Those are great! I hope Branwyn gets an ocean view room. :)

And your map is fantastic! I love all the detail you put into it. Maybe you could make Bob some swamp maps.

3-19 Mario

As you may or may not know, I work for the Marriott Hotels Learning and Development team. I create learning objects for our property management system. Currently, I am reworking trainings that should live for quite while into the future. The screen shots below will be incorporated into the learnings that should live for a long, long time!

3-11 BOB

We do not stop playing because we grow old. We grow old because we stop playing.

In just a few weeks we will celebrate 25 years for my campaign on May 11th.

Then on June 1st and 2nd I will host the 25th anniversary game for people from all over the Country to fly in and celebrate together.

Then on June 8th we will celebrate 15 years of having online participants in our game.

We have had 50 players so far throughout the years.

We are getting close to wrapping up our 100th adventure that the players have participated in.

I had a talk last night with one of my players about what adventures I want to run in 2020.

We do not stop playing because we grow old. We grow old because we stop playing.

3/11 Carissa

Who Knows What Here (When Why How)

Just so no one misses it, link there is trying to now summarize who knows what in regards to Queen Cinna and the situation (and separate player knowledge and character knowledge). I can only keep track of so many characters (easier when it's not in chat, too). Feel free to add anything you know your characters know and that I missed (and link to where it was discussed for organizational purposes, please!).

3-10 BOB

On the Armorer page it shows 2 weeks for a shield and 4 weeks for leather armor. So yes it is possible just takes longer than you have in town right now.

3-9 TMO

Bob- Ilero is looking to try and convert some of that black dragon hide into leather armor for him, if possible. He doesn't know if it's possible, or how long it might take, or how much it would cost. While we're idle in Rivers Bend he'll try to find an armorer who would be able to educate him. Odds are we won't be in town long enough to get it done here, but if he can, great.

3-7 BOB

So that everyone knows what I am planning.

This week and likely one or two more sessions will be involved in Rivers Bend and getting out of the city and into Drillian. You need to work out transport for everyone and everything. When you were traveling TO Dryads Lair you had a full barge for all the household goods {Indigo saving it at the last moment from thieves one night} and you will need to work out that plus the increased number of people you have with you also. Skiffs, oars and what ever else. We will likely be clicking off a day or nine to make this go smoothly for everyone.

Then you travel into the swamps of Drillian and into The Mist.

You will stop at the Jistille Estates as that is your home base. Then you will get another adventure shoved at you right away.

That adventure will lead through the Anniversary Game. After that is completed then you will make your way back to Jistille.

AT that point we will pause and potentially skip forward in time by months. That will be the time for people who need training, to organize things when everyone actually gets to sit down and relax for more than a night or two. Other than Branwyn and Tiberius everyone has been in full adventure mode for the past year and a half or more. They are finishing their honeymoon and look who shows up on the doorstep to drag them back to reality.

One reason I mention this is one of these nights all the Bonus XP from the current and previous Era will be added to everyone's character sheets. Plus the bonus xp for abilities (ie Branwyn gets an extra 10% based on Intelligence) that I have not added in for a year and a half of game play. So there will be some potentially significant XP awards coming. It will create training opportunities. I do not want to pause/click off time until after the Anniversary Game because there will be more XP along the way through that and I want a continuity for the story line.

TL/DR: adventures continue, training is delayed

BOB

3-2 BOB

So there is 17 days total for Branwyn's time in the city. They arrived and spent a couple of days, then had her meeting with Bellamin at some point. Then Lisa can decide what the honeymooners did.

2/28 Carissa

When a local news story inspires you. It's been a slow news week...

2-26 BOB

So it looks like we will have a nice long stretch of games right into the Anniversary Game.

I am starting to do more obvious work on Drillian pages as we get closer to doing more adventures there. Some of it is historical in nature for background stuff and others are for upcoming adventures. As always I want everyone to contribute as they wish. Build a town, add a small noble family, flesh out something in history, etc.

Over the next couple of sessions it looks like the two groups will reunite in Rivers Bend and then make your way down into Drillian.

2-20 BOB

Yes I like Hin2 also with the slightly darker version. I can live with either.

I like Hin2 too - Lisa

2/20 TMO

I've added a Hin2 style suggestion, a bit browner/darker to give it more contrast to the basic gold color. While I could read the gold font, it wasn't something I'd want to do for long. Let me know if you think it's too dark, it can be tweaked further.

I tweaked the size of the Hin font so it's a bit smaller. Because Symbolism. :)

That is an amazing tweak and I fully support the size change. Also like the color - Carissa

2/19 Lisa

Yeah, blue was kind of a "give up and go for something safe" color. I can read the gold and completely don't mind if you change it back. When I looked at it I was worried that BOB, who is colorblind, or others might not be able to read it easily against the parchment-style background. Can everyone read it all right?

And thanks for editing the session style key page. I totally forgot to do that!

2/19 Carissa

Thanks for the tips, Lisa! I always thought Tuesdays were better. I'll compare one day, but hope to book tomorrow.

Not related to that, long story short, in updating the visible styles page with Hin I saw you initial tried gold for color. Apparently I really liked that idea (Gold Hill, I'm guessing?) because now I'm back to try to make it work. Blue just doesn't fit in my mind. Up for changing it gold you can read? Or some variation of that? This one at least shows well on my screen.

2-19 Lisa

Airfare Booking Tips: 54 days out is still roundabouts the best amount of advance time to book airfare. Sundays are the best day of the week to book at low prices. Lowest fares for departing on Th/Fri and Returning on Mondays (but for hotel people the fare difference would have to exceed the extra hotel charges so shouldn't make much diff returning Sun or Mon). Got this info from the 2018 Air Travel Outlook Report, put out by the Airlines Reporting Corp. & Expedia. You can look at it here if you are interested in that sort of thing:

https://viewfinder.expedia.com/tips-trends/annual-arc-air-travel-outlook-report/?PRID=1&AID=13115899&PID=7925973&affcid=network.cj.7925973.13115899

2-18 BOB

Fun things from everyone over the past weeks.

I added a tentative plan of events for the Anniversary Game just to have some times available for ease of planning. Nothing is written in stone yet except playing 7 to Midnight and Noon to Midnight. Please add in your own thoughts. My days when I run the normal BOB's Birthday Game days are similar to that except adding in walking at the park, if anyone wants to come pace with me. Mario is a good cook.

Again for those traveling the Hampton Inn and Suites in Coconut Creek 5740 SR 7, Coconut Creek, FL 33073 is the closest hotel and Fort Lauderdale (FLL) is the closest airport. TMO and Spring are staying at my house. Do not let housing keep anyone away.

I will be taking the week before and the week after for vacation to make sure that things are clean around the house, last minute game prep is done, etc.

For anyone who does not normally play with us on a weekly basis they will have an pre-genned NPC to play that can easily be continued before or after the anniversary game.

Only a dozen more sessions to go.

2-15 Lisa

Wow, John! That is incredible. :) Can't believe that BOB created a world where every day has its own name.

Also - Someone remind me to get the Ancestry login info on Friday please.

2/13 Carissa

Hahaha wooow! That was more entertaining than expected. Now, I admit I haven't seen it yet, but I have a feeling Stirges On Broadway won't hold a candle to that puppet show. As for the undergarments? Surprised but not really by Shur's admission ;P

Also two Indigo was really confusing. I can only imagine the confusion at the time.

Didn't think to post it earlier, but here's a possible spoiler alert of something we might encounter upon returning to Drillian/Jistille Estates. Forgot when it was added, but I believe it was recently (as in within the past few months)...

If only I knew how SKR translated to TGR to know a better timeline.

Thanks BOB! If I did my math correctly, spoiler alert happened a few months short of two years ago. Next thought is if there might be another spoiler alert on the way...?

3/18 Edit: Just to keep all this together, adding it here rather than new post. In searching for answers to Jennevive's information (since she certainly won't give it up), I found out that Jennevive mentioned the spoiler alert way back when (Nov1017). Actually, she said there were two so... But will also add one is missing from Ancestry as well as the lineage page.

2-12 Lisa

Awww ...that puppet show makes me miss Marco. :( And yes you have to follow BOB's link and find puppet on the page to get the undergarment ref in the title to this post.

I have a busy week for work, but can try to work something in if you are feeling inspired. I don't have anything compelling off the top of my head at the moment.

And yes, we do need to start thinking about home. That was next on my Howard list of discussion topics before we all got covered in stirges. Maybe you can flip up the map of Orchard House sometime. I remember thinking it was HUGE when we moved in. And Branwyn has her own medium sized tower that she and Jilly used. I thought that was pretty good sized and now she has a husband and two apprentices and Jilly besides herself. I am thinking Orchard House is going to feel pretty small when we all get there.

I believe Rivers Bend is the last real city stop before the Mist - so last chance at divination for anyone that wants to do any. I thought Portown was the closest place to Jistelle where we could dock a ship as big as the knar - otherwise wouldn't we have taken it closer to home anyway? Portown has a tavern and taverns have information, so I was definitely planning on using our skiff making time there to try to get as much gossip as we could as to whether the Queen was residing at Jistelle, and other matters. We may also want to get Marisu some scruffier clothes for the trip back so she doesn't look so Countess Doeskin-like when we return, but these are all fun IC discussions to have.

2-11 BOB

I re-saved the chat logs from this year to the new date format and added the ChatLog category to each of them.

At this point I am not going to go back and do the work on changing them for 2017 and earlier. If TMO or John (or anyone) wants to go forward{backward?} with that project please feel free. I am leaving the old chat logs with the old date format there in case of links from other pages etc so that those still work.

Also Lisa, did you want to do more stories in Rivers Bend before the rest of the group arrives? It is easy to have Tiberius get involved in something.

Finally once everyone does make it back together I wanted to point out that the reason this last leg of A River Runs Through It stops in the Jistille Estates and not simply when you get into Drillian is that you will be entering The Mist and heading to Jistille because 'that is what you have always done' and you do not have any good information on what the state of the Kingdom is. Plus you want to get the knarr as close to Jistille as you can so that you have a base of operations to work out of in your unknown future. And also Branwyn's sense of obligation to the Mosskin family and her own home is there now too.

You will I expect attempt to find out information on the way after the group leaves Rivers Bend but I also expect that you will not quite take anything you hear along the way as the pure truth until you talk with the Queen herself.

Also you do need to go read this chat log and experience the true chaos of Lisa and Marco and TMO at a puppet show.

2-5 TMO

... and I really want to add the following to Branwyn's letter to Tiberius:

"P.S. - And your mother is a vampire."

LOL! Considering that the man can't read, the whole letter is somewhat of an exercise in futility. But that would make things easier. :) Lisa

2-4 BOB

Michael Happy 100th game session! (as of 2018 01 26) Our 19th player to reach that plateau.

Happy 50th birthday to John! (as of today) I think he is only the 3rd person to reach that plateau while playing in the game? (BOB, Barb and John?)

2/4 Carissa

Squeezing under here to leave that up there. Congrats to Michael and Happy Birthday to John!

Thanks, Lisa! Glad you like it! It was a bit tedious, but fun seeing a pattern forming like who maybe is on YouTube too much (no names mentioned not because I'd be on that list, nope), common artist choices, and the surprise of not a single link posted during the Birthday Game! Not sure what that'll mean for the Twenty-Fifth Anniversary Game...

Glad you like the tables. I wasn't sure about them. BOB already made one tweak I was contemplating. Might change them to advanced tables later, or maybe wait until next Era, but that's neither here nor there nor really important - just thoughts for me to come back to later :)

2-4 Lisa

@Carissa - Fantastic job with song page!! Looks great and looks like it was a lot of work. Thank you! :)

1/31 BOB Excellent letter and meeting as always Lisa. Of course Tiberius can go traipsing around the city creating adventures :) Was there one in particular you would like? grins

I should have time on Friday morning also before I go to the Art Event that late afternoon.

1/31 Lisa

Finally wrote the Loplin missive. Move it if it's in the wrong place. It's kind of a "for the record" kind of thing since I don't know when/if we will ever interact with the cast of characters from Dryads Lair again, but 7 years of playing with Bob teaches me that good relationships with NPCs can be helpful and you never know when one of them may pop up again. Anyway, I think I only owe one more letter and then any further Rivers Bend outings I feel like writing. I can always respond to one if Tiberius gets it into his head that he wants to make an excursion. :)

1/28 Carissa

BOB's idea is now reality with Songs from A River Runs Through It. We decided to make it its own page so summaries page doesn't get too busy with more info and such. It's a work in progress, but if you have ideas or contributions, go for it! Otherwise, I'll slowly be working on it for the next two weeks :)

And for now, the official link is under A River Runs Through It - Sessions Summaries. That'll probably change next Era (and current thought is one page per Era rather than per story arc - provided we don't get too crazy with YouTube links).

Updated: put up first one (most recent first is easiest) and will go continue that format unless someone suggests otherwise. Or I decide I hate it and change it.

1-23 Lisa

Finally posted but wasn't sure where to put it. BOB can you move it if it needs to go somewhere else, as well as responding and filling in anything you want throughout the post? Thanks

1-22 BOB

Quotes I unearthed while researching...

"This book obsession with the Queen is a bit unsettling. The last time Queen Wilamina got overly interested in her reading material, she disappeared without telling anyone, got kidnapped by werewolves, took to hiding in the Count’s castle and then ended with me taking part in making that fiend Count Drake a vampire. Doesn’t she have a parade to watch or something? "

1/15 Carissa

  1. Oh right. Duh. And double-checked schedule and shouldn't actually be late Friday unless something comes up.
  2. There. I think *almost* everyone is one there with exception to the dwarves (too much math and little care for their age at the moment) and the new NPCs (Tarsaps) mainly because I'm not happy yet with their story and might rewrite it. Hopefully their ages make sense? Wish I had just stuck to generalized "middle-age" and "super old" but noooo. Also added a few extra NPCs and family trees to the slightly more important ones. Probably won't add them to the page, but they're at least on Ancestry. And a few relationships. Have fun with it!
  3. If only Ilero hadn't chickened out and backstabbed those 32 orcs we could have had a bigger ship... ;)

1-15 BOB

TMO emailed me this:

Bob, This is just a me thing, and if you decide to do it, would involve a *lot* of pain and work. So I don't expect you to go with it. ;) The dates for the game sessions are MMMDDYY, and when sorted in the Search list (or categories), the game sessions are sorted into an order that is very hard to look through. Whenever I put dates in file names (I do this a lot at work), I use YYYYMMDD (2017-01-11) so that everything always sorts into ascending order. Like I said, changing would be an incredibly massive task. 25 years of files and links .... *shudder* But I thought I'd at least put the idea out there for you to consider (assuming you haven't before now).

So I thought I would take the time to post a bit about why I did this. Over in the Dragonslayer Thoughts section that has fallen on hard times.

1-15 Lisa

Good news that Portstown is out of the Mist. Then all I need to do is roll the dice one more time on a teleport. Portstown is where we usually dock the knarr, Branwyn has stayed at the tavern there and was where we had the original meeting with Toybin, Anastacia and Red Cloak after Wilamina disappeared so she should have enough familiarity to make it a relatively safe roll. Because my teleport rolls are never close calls, right? :)

1-14 BOB

No to Lisa that Portown is inside The Mist.

Yes to a hard limit of 20 people on the Knarr.

Yes this puts a kink in the planning in Rivers Bend when the two newlyweds expect to re-board their ship to head home.

I will point out that before you hit Portown you will be inside of Drillian and all that entails with a civil war maybe happening etc.

It will depend on what you find out before you get there and who you want to walk in with.

1-14 Lisa

I realized when I was looking at updated pages with all the people on the knarr, that we are fully loaded with 20 people - without Branwyn and Branadarus! Do they need to get their own boat? Is 20 people on the knarr a non-negotiable reality? If I remember correctly Portstown is inside the Mist so we can't teleport - is that correct?

I do like how all these NPCs want to follow around my PCs, but they are seriously overfilling the knarr.

1-14 BOB

Yes to Shi being able to ask, there is an In Character page here for a reason :) Use the Leg C In Character page to ask away for anything that anyone wants to before getting the loading of the knarr started next week.

Yes to being able to add new people in Ancestry. How I do it is I pick a person, make a husband of wife of that person as the new tree that I want to start and then build up that. You can then go remove the original link for that person and the tree still stands on its own. We have lots of disjointed trees there with various Dragon families or Elves on there already.

1/13 Carissa

  1. Shi meant to ask if there were any letters (or birds with letters) at the manor before they left and since they technically haven't left yet (and there is a chance work might make me late on Friday...)
  2. Trying to add to Ancestry like previously requested, but I don't know how to add someone completely new with no relations to anyone else on the tree? Figure it's worth asking on here since it might be worth others knowing, too.

1-10 BOB

I am ok with people tagging categories on pages. It might make searching easier also because you could restrict your search to that category only.

BUT I would not require it from anyone and I would not want it to interfere with the ease of what we do now by just adding the brackets.

How it looks to work with Ilero's page seems just great.

If people do choose to use them then we should have a page set up to keep the categories organized (ie spelled consistently) which we can add as an appendix to the Rule Book.

1-9 TMO

Okay, this is a little out of left field, about the wiki. This is not my first wiki. 0:D One of the things I set up on my previous wiki was the use of Categories. From a bit of research, it looks like this version of PMwiki handles them a little bit differently than my prior one, but it's still usable.

A category is a flag added to a page, and a page for that Category automatically links to every page with that flag on it. So, for example, if we put the flag PC on every player character page, the wiki will automatically create a page called Category.PC with a link to all of those individual pages.

If anyone wants to see the previous wiki, here are some links (I'm not responsible for a lot of the content - it's user supported):

I honestly don't know for sure if this would be worth the effort of doing, but it might be. The wiki here has a defined and intentional style, and categories have not been part of that design so far.

1-3 BOB

I was thinking along those lines of adding color commentary/notes on people and places to the pages that have things you visited. Mostly off of the Rivers Bend - City Proper page and the various districts. Very much the Branwyn's guide to Rivers Bend sort of thing.

1/3 Lisa

Slightly confused. You mean just making a summary page that consolidates info we already have? Mario and Carissa are world building - which is absolutely fantastic by the way. I'm not good at that, so I hope that's not what you are asking. I did find that it took me a while to even find the page that lists all the regattas, so I can do a kind of highlights page of the people to see and places to go in Rivers Bend kind of thing. Fodor the World Traveler's Guide to Rivers Bend?

1/2 BOB

Also Lisa if you have information about places, people, events to add to the pages for Rivers Bend so that everyone can find it that would be a very helpful thing. Grins, sort of like what Carissa and Mario are doing for their village.

Rivers Bend and Loosend are going to back to being the big cities on the edge of your adventuring area so the more info there the better. Plus the more there for when the group arrives the better.

1/2 - BOB

You have a good point on how often the regattas are. They start at the harvest festival (beginning the 8th month so about two weeks away) with practices and then kick off with the Regatta di Burano on the 1st day of the Ninth month.

Which is to say that if Branwyn and Tiberus stay in Rivers Bend for a while you will be there, or the group might be there in time of them depending on how long everyone takes.

Branwyn teleported on 22-6-1267 TGR, arriving in Rivers Bend that same day under a pile of fish. :) So you have about 62 days before the anniversary of the race you did during Pirate Queens. Of course there is always something happening in a city like this. Feel free to watch or participate in a smaller run up regatta to the main events later on in the year.

The rest of the group is currently on 4-7-1267 TGR and about to reach Dryads Lair the next day. So the earliest they would arrive in Rivers Bend would be about the 10th. That gives the newlyweds about 18 to 20 days of alone time in the city if they wait until everyone arrives.

Sarengar is at the Opera house working on his current production. You have all those NPCs at your disposal as well.

1/2 Lisa

Great! I will try to work on some things. I forgot before to ask - Are you sure there are no regattas? I checked the page and there is one every month from the 9th month to the 1st month of the year and we are in early fall are we not? Not that it really matters I guess. I was just going through our old Rivers Bend information yesterday since that seemed a better plan than college football.

1/2

Lisa, I should be available for several posts this week before we get to Friday. Only a couple of meetings and I need to work on a presentation for Friday morning so I will be distracted to look on the site during the day. :)

You can run with the Lodge with no problems.

BOB

1/1 Lisa @BOB

Last teleport entry is up. I did want to have a Branwyn/Bellamin chat at some point and can't really do it myself as I wanted her to talk about the vampire and don't have the necessary information to answer my own questions. Well I could, but you might disagree with the answers. :) Let me know when you want to do that.

Hope you and John enjoy Branwyn's choice of lodgings in the city.