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Post by Rigil Kent on Sept 10, 2012 18:49:13 GMT -6
Making it official: Valsúl will be joining the city guard…and the Cerulean Guild at the same time. He'll probably tell both that he's spying on the other for them. This will be a little more difficult than just signing on. Consult PHB-2 and Affiliations. Both the Society and the Korvosan Guard are considered an affiliation. You'll likely need to pick one as your primary and expect that there will be some eventual conflict.
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Post by Rigil Kent on Sept 10, 2012 18:50:53 GMT -6
If any of those were "trade items," they are 100% The only thing that may be a trade item is the amber necklace - but that is up to the GM to decide... No, that is not a trade good.
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Post by Rigil Kent on Sept 10, 2012 18:53:31 GMT -6
As such, my first action will be spending some gold at the establishments throughout Korvosa (disguised appropriately for the area) and get a read on the cities thoughts regarding House Devreaux... I will be checking out the poor tier, middle class tier and the noble tier... I'd also like to figure out the guards/militia's thoughts on them.... How much gold are you planning on spending? I'm thinking that we'll say something like: - 25 gp = +1 circumstance bonus to Gather Information check
- 50 gp = +2 circumstance bonus to Gather Information check
- Etc.
Needless to say, a Gather Info check will be required to find out what the "mood" is about the House.
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Post by WxMAN on Sept 10, 2012 19:32:35 GMT -6
Would you like one roll for all of the tiers or individual?
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Post by Rigil Kent on Sept 10, 2012 19:35:30 GMT -6
Let's go with 3 rolls: Lower, Middle (Guard will fall here), Upper tiers. The monies spent applies only per tier rolled - e.g., if you spend 100gp, you can split up the bonus to +1 on two rolls or +2 on one.
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Post by WxMAN on Sept 10, 2012 19:38:55 GMT -6
Gold was just for a few drinks and whatnot... let's call it 25 GP (its coming out of Aria's purse afterall ) for the upper tier only: Low Tier = [dice=20]+ 9 (skill) Middle/Guard Tier = [dice=20]+ 9 (skill) Upper Tier = [dice=20]+ 9 (skill) + 1 (circumstance)[rand=587689464526852298014436270925741145811622199784628260023841547]
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Post by WxMAN on Sept 10, 2012 19:48:25 GMT -6
Making it official: Valsúl will be joining the city guard…and the Cerulean Guild at the same time. He'll probably tell both that he's spying on the other for them. This will be a little more difficult than just signing on. Consult PHB-2 and Affiliations. Both the Society and the Korvosan Guard are considered an affiliation. You'll likely need to pick one as your primary and expect that there will be some eventual conflict. Careful on playing them both for fools... I don't remember your bluff check being all that awesome ... may as well just add them to the list of the legion of doom Jareth has been gathering
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Post by Rigil Kent on Sept 11, 2012 16:35:30 GMT -6
Low-Tier (the "common folk") - 21. Result: After spending a day or so in the markets and low taverns, you realize that House Devreaux isn't very well known these days. In fact, very few of the minor noble houses are really well known amongst the smallfolk. The most you're really able to discern is that House Devreaux was considered to be one of the better ones in the city and it's dwindling presence in the city is often pointed to as a symptom of how far Korvosa has fallen. The few who recognize the name wonder if it and the Starkweathers aren't perhaps cursed, what with the various tragedies that have befallen them, and pretty much all of them believe the house is completely gone now.
Middle-Tier (the "merchants" and Guards) - 27 - Result: The merchants of Korvosa have conflicted feeling about House Devreaux. Those that you would consider the more upstanding and honest generally regret Devreaux's decline and subsequent loss of political power, while those you would classify as the worst of the merchants don't miss them at all. An afternoon with Grau at a local pub reveals what you would classify as the Guards' mindset about the House - nobles are nobles, wherever you look. Sure, the Starkweathers were tolerable for aristocrats, but there's no way they were completely clean. The tragedies that befell them - the deaths of Lord and Lady Starkweather, the murder of the merchant-boy who married into the family and then the subsequent death of his brother - all point to very powerful enemies, and one doesn't make enemies like that without reason.
Upper-Tier (the "high-born") - 26 - Result: Getting any of the younger children or the servants of the lesser noble families to even talk about the Devreaux family is difficult. You very quickly get the feeling that most of them tend to take the same view that the Guard - the Starkweathers have some very powerful enemies ... they just don't know which of the greater Houses were pissed off. There were rumors that Lady Starkweather cuckolded her husband early in their marriage, but no one you speak to really has any proof of this. Overall, the opinion of the nobility toward House Devreaux remains firmly "neutral."
Good?
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Post by WxMAN on Sept 11, 2012 18:46:29 GMT -6
Good is a relative term... sounds like house Devreaux didn't know / wasn't willing to play the game... Jareth will need to sit down with Aria and figure out how precisely nobility works, how 'power' is determined, who you need to impress/talk to in order to boost her familiy's profile/power.... Jareth needs to know where to start applying pressure to get things moving...
(The player has no clue how nobility works in this setting, nor in 'real life'... so I am even dumber than normal in this situation)
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Post by Rigil Kent on Sept 11, 2012 19:21:19 GMT -6
sounds like house Devreaux didn't know / wasn't willing to play the game... Another equally valid take would be that they did play the game ... and lost. "When you play the Game of Thrones, you win or die." As to the rest, I'll have to get back to you. Politics is always screwed up, regardless of whether it's in a fantasy setting or real-life. If either you or LabRat come up with something that you want to do to actively push forward, let me know and we'll figure out the next step.
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Post by WxMAN on Sept 12, 2012 15:32:01 GMT -6
So here all is what Jareth is planning on doing during this break: - Go back to Rolth's lair (asking Val if he'd go with me) the day after Red Ghost appears and vandalize it in such a way to say "The Red Ghost Was Here"
- Read Rolth's books. Paying special attention to what he is focussed / planning... I'll especially be looking for any notes he wrote in the books.
- Spend time with Kroft, discussing the goings on in the city, her thoughts on the Red Ghost, further trying to charm her towards a possible relationship... if I need to do I will use Spymaster's Coin on a pebble or other small item that will be unnoticed and activate it after my talks (leave it in her office or wherever we talk) and see what further info I can glean
- Study with Logain, my Wizard Feat will be the Sculpt Spell Metamagic Feat [CAr 83]. Also, I'd like to gain his trust and kinda figure out who is keeping him in check and preventing him from loudly standing up for mages' rights.
- Go to Trinia and deliver her paints and her painting we lifted from her appartment to give her something to do while in hiding.
- Spending time talking up Aria (as seen in my PM and discussed in this thread)
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Post by Rigil Kent on Sept 12, 2012 16:37:28 GMT -6
Noted.
As an addendum, Jareth gets the feeling that there's always someone watching him. He isn't sure who and never actually sees anyone - it's more a hint of someone there just out of the corner of his eye.
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Post by WxMAN on Sept 12, 2012 19:17:00 GMT -6
Like always everyday or just when visiting certain people?
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Post by Rigil Kent on Sept 12, 2012 19:22:59 GMT -6
Frequently, throughout the day, but there appears to be no consistency to it. Whoever they are, they're damned good.
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Post by WxMAN on Sept 12, 2012 19:35:06 GMT -6
Well that rules out Val .... Must be the legion of douche.....
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Post by Rigil Kent on Sept 12, 2012 19:44:47 GMT -6
Well, he did pick up the +5 circumstance bonus to the stealth checks ... so maybe he's trying it out. Probably not, but who knows?
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Post by WxMAN on Sept 14, 2012 9:12:18 GMT -6
Frequently, throughout the day, but there appears to be no consistency to it. Whoever they are, they're damned good. I'll let Val know about my suspicions and ask for his help... "Counter Spy" if you'd like... Assuming this has been happening frequently over the course of the entire "downtime" I would start casting Spymaster's Coin on a pebble or the like when venturing out and when I have these paranoid feelings I would drop the pebble and keep walking as if nothing had happened, then switch my viewpoint through the pebble to see if I can get a better angle on if someone/who is following me Probably to no one's surprise, I was extremely dissatisfied with the ending of this week's session. I rushed it and I apologize for that. Feel free to vent as you wish. Sorry to re-dredge this up but I had something else I forgot to say earlier on in the week. Sometimes it is very easy to focus on the negative, especially when something doesn't happen "to our liking" and forget everything else around that. While the ending may not of been to your liking, I wanted to specifically say what a great session it was besides that. The fight was fantastic and often teetered on the edge of multiple rolls and you handled things very fairly and well. I know I didn't feel safe for the party until after the Otyugh was dropped and I know Shelley didn't feel safe until essentially the end of combat... Furthermore, the idea to have unique magic items that 'called to us' was really cool and well thought out and built up... so overall the session gets an A, and it is important to remember just how well it did go and not focus on the little problem at the end.
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Post by Gigermann on Sept 14, 2012 14:48:57 GMT -6
Consult PHB-2 and Affiliations. Not sure I like this whole "side-Class" treatment; it's over-complicating and over-doing it a bit. The way the listed examples grant actual supernatural abilities at certain levels doesn't feel right. At any rate, Val isn't necessarily attempting to rise in their ranks, anyway. He'd happily keep working the mail-room job, beneath the notice of anyone important—not trying to make a name for himself, here.
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Post by Rigil Kent on Sept 14, 2012 15:02:53 GMT -6
If it is decided that the group as a whole isn't all that interested in using Affiliations, that's cool.
As an aside, I've got a great idea what Jareth is planning during the month or so of downtime between campaign events, but what about the rest of you? Be proactive!
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Post by Gigermann on Sept 14, 2012 15:33:27 GMT -6
To reiterate Vaal's tween-mission intentions: - Work the "guard" angle
- (Potentially; secondary) Work the "Cerulean" angle—can start this later
- Work with [Contact]—training, and any side-missions that might come up
- Nothing to report back to the Mistress at this time
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Post by WxMAN on Sept 14, 2012 15:39:10 GMT -6
Oh, Val... will you help Jareth cover up our activities in Rolth's lair and leave messages to the effect of "The Red ghost was here"
and help trail me and see if you can help figure out who is following me....
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Post by Gigermann on Sept 14, 2012 15:39:57 GMT -6
Oh, Val... will you help Jareth cover up our activities in Rolth's lair and leave messages to the effect of "The Red ghost was here" and help trail me and see if you can help figure out who is following me.... …and that
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Post by Rigil Kent on Sept 15, 2012 15:27:13 GMT -6
OK, some player-specific notes that will definitely need feedback and response: - Aria - A sealed scroll arrives at Devreaux Manor arrives, bearing the symbol of the Aspis Consortium, a trade group primarily based out of Korvosa. It is loyal to no single government but carries a trade charter with—and is recognized by—most of the northern nations. This scroll is directed to “Lady Starkweather” and refers to an old (expired) business agreement between House Devreaux and the Aspis Consortium. Couched in the bureaucratic speak is a request for assistance - the Consortium needs able bodies to help guard a valuable trading depot against incursions by cannibal savages who recently moved into the area and is essentially requesting that House Devreaux provide these guard for a percentage of the profits from this trading post. The depot is well-defended and has successfully fended off many attacks, but the defenders are on the verge of exhaustion and need some temporary relief from competent sword-arms until company reinforcements arrive from abroad. The scroll also includes the address (in Korvosa) of the Aspis Consortium headquarters for additional inquiries.
- Val - Arashikage provides him with a Name: Lord Galdur Vendikon. He is a known spellcaster and graduate of the Acadamae. His home is a manor in The Heights. How the Man dies matters not to Arashikage, but he is to die.
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Post by Rigil Kent on Sept 16, 2012 15:12:10 GMT -6
Forgot to mention: Giger suggested using a Reputation mechanic (which exists already here) and I thought this might be one of the various ways to accomplish Jareth's master plan...
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Post by Gigermann on Sept 16, 2012 15:27:30 GMT -6
I think I like "Event Based" best
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Post by LabRat on Sept 16, 2012 16:49:17 GMT -6
I think I like "Event Based" best I second that
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Post by WxMAN on Sept 17, 2012 10:15:16 GMT -6
As an aside, for the rest of the parties' knowledge:
That spellcaster in the alley? Well passwall is a 5th level spell... so that means if s/he was a wizard that's a minimum of character level 9 or level 10 if a sorcerer....
"bitch please" indeed... I'm lucky I wasn't turned into a newt...
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Post by Rigil Kent on Sept 17, 2012 10:20:16 GMT -6
Cue ominous music...
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Post by Rigil Kent on Sept 19, 2012 10:52:31 GMT -6
We've got two votes for the Event-based Reputation. Any other thoughts? @ LabRat and WxMAN - have you given any further thought to the "Victory Points" angle for Jareth's master plan for Aria? What I'm thinking we can do is first develop the Final Results table: - <0. Abject Failure. For generations, the Devreaux name is held up as an example of things not to do and is roundly mocked. Providing she is still alive, Aria is forced to go into hiding or leave Korvosa entirely. All characters linked to the house (e.g., the PCs) constantly suffer from being recognized
- 1-6 - Failure. Things do not go well. House Devreaux struggles to stay afloat but have more enemies than friends. Within a generation, it has been absorbed by greater houses and forgotten entirely.
- 7-12 - Mild Success. Things could have gone better, but they certainly could have been worse. House Devreaux clings to what it has already accomplished but has few new successes.
- 13-20 - Success. House Devreaux ascends to the role of Great Houses, though they are the least of them. Aria's family enjoys great wealth and prestige.
- 21+ - Great Success. House Devreaux ascends to the role of Great Houses and is considered the most powerful of them all. Even the monarchy must seek out Devreaux approval ... providing the Devreaux isn't the monarch.
From there, we then determine what constitutes a Victory Point and so one...
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Post by WxMAN on Sept 19, 2012 11:18:53 GMT -6
We've got two votes for the Event-based Reputation. Any other thoughts? @ LabRat and WxMAN - have you given any further thought to the "Victory Points" angle for Jareth's master plan for Aria? Sorry, with Shelley's new job I'm back to doing half of the domestic stuff and have really got behind - that and work has a huge project I'm swamped on. I will desperately try to focus on this and give you feedback sometime this week (hopefully before Friday)...
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