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[D&D 3.5] Magipunk / Re: Die Rolls
« on: May 19, 2013, 05:40:30 AM »Arthur's Initiative 1d20+1 : 9 + 1, total 10
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September 1776 / Re: Chapter 2: Burning Farms of Death
« on: May 16, 2013, 06:57:35 PM »
"I suppose I could always see if the shop is open. I don't believe Peebles would have any complaints under the circumstances." Robert gives Jones a sharp look. "Though I suppose that depends entirely on what you intend to teach."
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[Tome] The Fall of Pun-Pun / Re: Off-topic chatter
« on: May 12, 2013, 05:35:48 AM »
Let's not leave Raoul stranded in Hell's 9th Hole. Who knows what terrible torments could befall him if he's there when everyone wakes up?
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[FATE]/golden entelechia / Re: Day One - Compass Rose
« on: May 11, 2013, 04:58:29 PM »
As ever, the central park is deserted. It's not that it's especially ugly or barren. Quite the opposite, in fact. The park looks absolutely dazzling, with moss pink drizzled along the lush, thick grass and wisteria vines bending tree branches under their weight. Even some early tulips are poking through the ground enough to cast long shadows in the late daylight. No, the reason the park is abandoned is that despite the beautiful scenery, it still has the atmosphere of a graveyard. The air, rather than the crisp clean breeze that would be expected, is unnaturally still and heavy, and for that reason no children, dogs, or elders out for a stroll interrupt Lancer and Laoise as they walk through the grassy silence.
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[FATE]/golden entelechia / City Map and History
« on: May 11, 2013, 04:19:15 PM »
Fuyuki City
Fuyuki looks much the same as it did a long time ago, with its oddly divided houses and the Miongawa river being mostly untouched by the Fourth Holy Grail War. The war's biggest impact can be felt in the central park, which feels unnaturally quiet and still. The improper war ended here, according to the most reliable information the Association has on the matter (which isn't very reliable). Most residents of Fuyuki avoid the park entirely due to the atmosphere.
The Fourth Grail War
Events of the Fourth War are largely speculation, not only because the supervisor died almost immediately after the war began, but also because the war itself was spectacularly lethal. None of the known Masters survived the war, and emphasis is placed on 'known' because of the seven Masters, only three were known to the Association. The other four Masters are believed not to have come from proper magus families.
Regardless of the outcome, it appears none of the participants made use of the Grail. While the War's duration was marked by a number of strange disappearances, deaths, and 'unscheduled demolitions' that could only have arisen through the presence of Servants, nothing served to indicate the end of the War. The built-up prana was not expended through a wish, as made evident by the Fifth War's start ten years later, but for all intents and purposes the Grail appears to have vanished - which, according to most understandings of magecraft, is impossible.
Major Families
The Einzberns retain much of their involvement in the war, as would be expected. They are also immensely secretive about their preparations; however, recent news suggests that there has been something of a feud between various parts of the family who differ in opinions on how to go about winning the Grail and what to do with it.
The Matous have been much reduced in recent years. With their only capable heir, Kariya Matou, killed during the Fourth War, the only surviving member of the family known to have any magical talent is Zouken Matou, who lives in Fuyuki City. Zouken is utterly withdrawn from magi business, and is likely far too old for any active participation in a Holy Grail War, but given that he is over three hundred years old by any reckoning, he must have significant power in his own right as well as reason enough to want the Grail.
The Tohsakas lost one of their finest magi, Tokiomi Tohsaka, during the Fourth War, who left behind his wife and three children. Their most talented magus at this moment is the eldest daughter of the family, Rin Tohsaka, but her father's death appears to have made her unwilling to compete in the War. At present, Rin is studying at Clock Tower, and has made waves among the magical community by advocating that the Grail be completely dismantled, as it only serves to ruin promising magi with little to no benefit.
Fuyuki looks much the same as it did a long time ago, with its oddly divided houses and the Miongawa river being mostly untouched by the Fourth Holy Grail War. The war's biggest impact can be felt in the central park, which feels unnaturally quiet and still. The improper war ended here, according to the most reliable information the Association has on the matter (which isn't very reliable). Most residents of Fuyuki avoid the park entirely due to the atmosphere.
(click to show/hide)
The Fourth Grail War
Events of the Fourth War are largely speculation, not only because the supervisor died almost immediately after the war began, but also because the war itself was spectacularly lethal. None of the known Masters survived the war, and emphasis is placed on 'known' because of the seven Masters, only three were known to the Association. The other four Masters are believed not to have come from proper magus families.
Regardless of the outcome, it appears none of the participants made use of the Grail. While the War's duration was marked by a number of strange disappearances, deaths, and 'unscheduled demolitions' that could only have arisen through the presence of Servants, nothing served to indicate the end of the War. The built-up prana was not expended through a wish, as made evident by the Fifth War's start ten years later, but for all intents and purposes the Grail appears to have vanished - which, according to most understandings of magecraft, is impossible.
Major Families
The Einzberns retain much of their involvement in the war, as would be expected. They are also immensely secretive about their preparations; however, recent news suggests that there has been something of a feud between various parts of the family who differ in opinions on how to go about winning the Grail and what to do with it.
The Matous have been much reduced in recent years. With their only capable heir, Kariya Matou, killed during the Fourth War, the only surviving member of the family known to have any magical talent is Zouken Matou, who lives in Fuyuki City. Zouken is utterly withdrawn from magi business, and is likely far too old for any active participation in a Holy Grail War, but given that he is over three hundred years old by any reckoning, he must have significant power in his own right as well as reason enough to want the Grail.
The Tohsakas lost one of their finest magi, Tokiomi Tohsaka, during the Fourth War, who left behind his wife and three children. Their most talented magus at this moment is the eldest daughter of the family, Rin Tohsaka, but her father's death appears to have made her unwilling to compete in the War. At present, Rin is studying at Clock Tower, and has made waves among the magical community by advocating that the Grail be completely dismantled, as it only serves to ruin promising magi with little to no benefit.
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September 1776 / Re: Chapter 2: Burning Farms of Death
« on: May 09, 2013, 03:58:20 AM » (click to show/hide)
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[FATE]/golden entelechia / Re: Day One - Compass Rose
« on: May 08, 2013, 12:16:36 PM »
The tendrils of the bounded field react in precisely the way they were meant to, growing rapidly as they are infused with the energies of Laoise's blood. If the school boundaries are a trellis, the energy flows are the vines and roots all in one, and each energy flow splits into increasingly delicate offshoots as the field matures. A few minutes later, the field is complete, a network of probing magic concealed under the ambient pulses of the area's own energy. Almost immediately, the alarm goes off - faint blossoms of energy pop into existence and fade slowly in Laoise's mind. The reaction is far too weak to be from any magics currently happening, but it's indication enough that there was at least one magus or Servant on the school grounds today who wasn't one of the two to set up the boundary field.
(click to show/hide)
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[D&D 3.5] Magipunk / Re: The Evernight Chronicles, Chapter I: Usual Suspects
« on: May 08, 2013, 12:02:02 PM »
"Bowler hat...bowler hat..." Arthur mutters under his breath, eyes tracking back and forth behind the lenses of his glasses as he attempts to coax DivNet into divulging anything it knows about the heavily-accented man upstairs.
(click to show/hide)
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[FATE]/golden entelechia / Re: Day One - Compass Rose
« on: May 05, 2013, 04:37:46 PM »
Laoise can feel the field, pulsing with the magical lifeblood of the school grounds. The flow of heat and potency reacts like a living thing to the presences of magi, and both she and Lancer create faint warps in the current. There are some other odd branches of the flow, but until the bounded field is completely established, it's impossible to tell whether they're the byproduct of another magus' presence or simply instabilities in the field.
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September 1776 / Re: Chapter 2: Burning Farms of Death
« on: May 05, 2013, 07:14:02 AM »
Robert beats out the smaller fires on the docks, wiping sweat off his face. "That was...immensely satisfying."
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[FATE]/golden entelechia / Re: Day One - Compass Rose
« on: May 05, 2013, 07:12:33 AM »
While Laoise sits through classes, Lancer hurries around the school feeling out the magical currents. The work is a bit rushed, what with trying to complete a long day's work in a few short hours without preparation, and his unfamiliarity with the school leads him to some locations that would get him in quite a bit of trouble if he were corporeal. Why there's a nexus just inside the girls' bathroom is anyone's guess. Eventually, however, Lancer's last seals go up, just a few minutes after Laoise's homeroom ends. Students start pouring out of classrooms to attend club activities, or just to go home, chattering loudly. Laoise, as usual, is mostly ignored by her classmates, apart from a few of the friendlier ones who wave good-bye to her on their way out the door.
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Homebrew and House Rules (DnD) / Re: Talking the Monster to Death (new feat)
« on: May 04, 2013, 05:55:00 PM »Having checked, this is still better. Can be used round after round (not a maneuver), scales better, slightly harder saving throw, and (importantly for this debate) actually usable by a random expert at level 1.The Scholar can recover it as a swift action, which renders the more important of those complaints moot.
Still afforable by anyone 1st level with decent skills.Any expert willing to spend one of (maybe) two feats on this. Again, that's a very poor choice given that you could be spending that feat on something more likely to make you money and less likely to get you killed.
Why the objection to building cities, society and wanting to take prisioners alive?What the hell are you talking about? This has absolutely nothing to do with the discussion.
You've been arguing for several posts for shooting people more than 50 feet away. When my example was specifically in a town. That, once more, has buildings and stuff that block line of sight. Forests have trees. Mountains have rocks. Only in a featurless plain can you keep moving backward every single turn while keeping a clear line of fire.The feat requires that you be able to see your target too. Which, surprise surprise, requires line of sight. So those things benefit the ranged attacker as well.
But nice attempt at turning away the dicussion once more.
The noteworthy result is that this bypasses basically all defenses and allows for large groups of mooks to easily take out much higher level enemies automatically whitout need of any roll.Except that it doesn't? Because these "much higher level enemies" are making the save easily, taking trivial amounts of damage, and wiping out the mooks, who had to get within spitting distance to attack.
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Homebrew and House Rules (DnD) / Re: Talking the Monster to Death (new feat)
« on: May 04, 2013, 05:38:04 PM »It's doable with a single level in Scholar.QuoteReally, the fact that you are arguing against something that can deal a paltry amount of automatic damage at close range at level 1 is laughable when I can look into your own homebrew and find something that will do exactly that.
Can we just check that this, whatever it is, is something freely available to the general populace and not contingent on a particular setting or species (especially one that doesn't have hands or something)?
As for the other objections, if you'd prefer, you can replace "longbow" with "sling." It's much cheaper and still has a bigger range than a bunch of first level experts using this feat. But even if they were able to catch up with someone slinging on the run and knock him out, I'm not sure what the point of this whole thought exercise is in the first place. A bunch of specially prepared level 1 NPCs with this feat can take on another level 1 NPC who doesn't have as much preparation and sometimes win? That doesn't strike me as an especially noteworthy result.
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Homebrew and House Rules (DnD) / Re: Talking the Monster to Death (new feat)
« on: May 04, 2013, 05:28:49 PM »If you give the other side loads of extra cash out of nowhere, certainly.But feats are not, funnily enough.
Hint:longbows are 75 GP each, actually out of reach of most 1st level people. Arrows aren't cheap either. Words are free.
Funny, I could swear you could make money out of skills alone, and that experts had those to spare.Then why the objection to the longbow?
That you were trying to turn away the discussion to irrelevant stuff. And still are now, with now empty featurless plains instead of towns (that have, you know, buildings and other stuff to block line of sight while one aproaches) while granting your side massive wealth bonus out of nowhere.Who said anything about featureless plains? When you're willing to talk straight instead of putting words into my mouth, come back to this argument.
Really, the fact that you are arguing against something that can deal a paltry amount of automatic damage at close range at level 1 is laughable when I can look into your own homebrew and find something that will do exactly that.
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Homebrew and House Rules (DnD) / Re: Talking the Monster to Death (new feat)
« on: May 04, 2013, 05:18:24 PM »Experts have 1d4 hp, +4 temporary (assuming four guys lined up directly behind them).Temporary hit points from the same effect don't stack.
Quote
Basically, odds are that they'll survive any one attack he makes. This is assuming he hits, because he only has a +1 to hit, and they're armoured (because talking isn't impaired by armour). So, one round buffing, next round simply moving.What makes you think the guy with the superior range on his weapon is going to stop moving when they're moving toward him? If they don't stop moving, you don't either, and depending on your armor compared to theirs, you might be gaining some distance. At worst, you're staying out of range.
Hell, 'one guy with a longbow' isn't going to be able to take down an entire group before he's mobbed.
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Homebrew and House Rules (DnD) / Re: Talking the Monster to Death (new feat)
« on: May 04, 2013, 05:06:01 PM »I was explaining how they could get into range of this one guy with a longbow without all being immediately dead. And, hell, the amount of damage doesn't matter if you're talking a guy with 1d8+con HP.But they can't get in range. If they're just discouraging, that's a standard action, so they can only take a move action, which longbow guy does as well. If they're discouraging and encouraging to turtle up, that's a full-attack action, so they can only five-foot step. In neither case can they catch up with the guy.
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Homebrew and House Rules (DnD) / Re: Talking the Monster to Death (new feat)
« on: May 04, 2013, 04:58:17 PM »... where are you producing a competent militia from? :OSo how high level are these militia experts? Because they don't get iterative attacks until 8th level, so they can't encourage each other and still toss insults at 1st level unless they opted for the TWFing route, in which case they're still getting, what, two temporary hit points? Three, if we're generous and giving every single one the elite array. Their offense is also three hit points worth of nonlethal damage, or one if the target makes a piddling DC 12 Will save, and can only be used on targets within 20 feet. Meanwhile, one guy with a longbow can plink away at them with impunity.
We are assuming these are only level 1's, right? Everyone's made of glass. Later on, when the normal militia is more likely to survive, the experts are much more capable of jeering everything to death.
If you get enough, you can have the experts further back encourage those ahead of them, and those in the front row encourage whoever's to either side, and everyone gets temporary hitpoints as they shuffle forwards wearing armour they can't use but which doesn't impair their ability to insult everyone to the grave.
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Homebrew and House Rules (DnD) / Re: Talking the Monster to Death (new feat)
« on: May 04, 2013, 04:42:05 PM »You don't need a feat simply to make stuff, humans make up a large percentage of the population, and experts have enough skillpoints for something like this. Turn a crowd of experts into the city army. Problem solved. Armour check penalties don't matter if there's no attack roll.If you're doing that, you have a bunch of untrained experts dealing a point of damage if they get within 20 feet of something. Or you could get an actual militia that knows what it's doing and can't be mowed down by any idiot with a longbow.
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Homebrew and House Rules (DnD) / Re: Talking the Monster to Death (new feat)
« on: May 04, 2013, 04:36:21 PM »Why not? Marauders do what they have to do to get loot.Because then they'll all be slaughtered by someone that wanted to do actual damage?
Experts make a significant part of town population, otherwise there wouldn't be a city to begin with, since commoners in overwhelming majority do not make such a place.And these experts will all have spent their feats on doing something likely to get them beaten to a pulp rather than something that could have brought them an actual livelihood, yes. That sounds like it makes sense.
Missed attacks don't deal damage. This deals damage whetever you make the save or not.So does Fireball. Your point being?
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Homebrew and House Rules (DnD) / Re: Talking the Monster to Death (new feat)
« on: May 04, 2013, 03:54:37 PM »This kinda makes both heroes and solo monsters obsolete unless they're blind or deaf.Most roving bands of marauders aren't going to be trained in diplomacy or oration.
The orc raider band no longer bother trying to kill you with pointy sticks. They just throw insults at you for auto-nonlethal damage regardless of your defences until you colapse. You're immune to nonlethal damage? Excellent! You're taking actual damage in that case, and then you're finished off with splash damage from an alchemical flask.
Try to piss off the townsfolk. You'll end up crying on the floor discouraged before you can do anything else. There's also no quest for taking care of that wandering angry giant. His natural and manufactured armor was no match for the villager's boos and hisses.Commoners get precisely none of the prerequisites as class skills, so unless your towns are populated with super-peasants...
Also an auto-pick for martial users, because who doesn't love auto-hiting maneuvers to make sure the carrier effect always lands? With extra range added in for free.The intent is pretty clearly that if your target makes their save, the attack is treated as though it had missed (although clarifying text to that point would be good).
That being said, the prerequisites are probably a bit too open for what it is. If you tightened those up (most tactical feats kick in at level 6 or so), added clarifying text to the attack options thing, and maybe messed with the damage a bit, it should be okay.