Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Combat Resolution

With two strikes of his silver sword, William makes short work of the wererat, without the wererat managing to land a scratch; Gauronne therefore doesn't feel the need to cast Slumber.

[I figured that, had the battle raged onwards for more than two rounds, then Slumber would have been attempted.]

However, the wounds have left a lot of rather contagious lycanthropic blood pooling around, some even ending up on the party, aerosolized by the strikes on the anthropomorphic rodent. What effect, if any, that this has is unknown at this point...

At any rate, with the current immediate crisis out of the way, there is the magic grated wall to consider, as well as what else may lie around the next corner. Of course, the party could always backtrack and consider taking another avenue as well.

[Numbers]

Round 1
William suffers 0 HP damage from Male Wererat.
Male Wererat suffers 11 HP damage from William.
Male Wererat suffers 0 HP damage from Kit.
Male Wererat suffers 0 HP damage from Leremy.
Male Wererat suffers 0 HP damage from Mephis.

Round 2
William suffers 0 HP damage from Male Wererat.
Male Wererat suffers 11 HP damage from William.
Male Wererat is killed by party.
20 XP earned per party member.

Sunday, July 26, 2009

Afternoon, Day One - Part 2

As Kit throws the food towards the corner of the room, the scrabbling becomes louder. Around the corner, at about knee-height, emerges a black nose on a long, pointy snout. Whiskers and two large front teeth can be seen alongside matted gray hair, streaked with mud and blood. As the rest of the triangular face comes into view, the creature turns its head towards you and squeals in fright. Its head disappears, only to reappear much higher.

The wererat's clawed hands are completely filthy, given it has chosen to scurry about on all fours, but that just makes them even more dangerous. It's beady eyes are filled with red hate as the cursed being stares back at your group. It looks reasonably small and weak, but Gauronne and Leremy both note that as it has a form of lycanthropy, your party will have to be very careful about the wounds it receives, particularly its bites. It hisses as it attacks, its long pink tail twitching menacingly.

[I'm twirling my moustache as I type...]

Friday, July 24, 2009

Afternoon, Day One

[The map is based on squares (since I made it in a spreadsheet). Every square is 2m x 2m (or 6' x 6'). The 'inner' (shorter) wall along the east passage is 12 m (36 feet) and the 'outer' wall is 14 m (42 feet). The northern 'inner'/'outer' wall are 6m and 8m (18 feet and 24 feet) respectively. I can report distances traveled if it's wanted (I'll assume so for this update.) The height of the current level is about 5m (15 feet). Obviously this may vary slightly given the room.]

The party continues to the north. Eighteen metres (48 feet) down the corridor, just before the passage makes a left-hand turn, Gauronne's perusal of the walls spots a small barred opening half a metre (one and a half feet) in height, and about a metre (three feet) across, near the top of the wall.

Furthermore, it is apparent to Leremy and Gauronne, and to a lesser extent the remainder of the party, that there is something particularly magical about this wall, as it is almost shining with magical energy.

Meanwhile, Kit overhears a rustled squeak from around the corner...

[There may not be an update tomorrow, so that will (fingers crossed) give you enough time to come up with a plan.]

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Early Afternoon, Day One - Part 3

[OK, slightly updated map. You guys are at the position marked with the "@" symbol; if you've played a roguelike you'll know why I chose that symbol!]

The party waits at the intersection; careful observations seem to suggest that nothing is going to approach them here.

At this stage, the journeying can continue either to the left (west), or straight ahead (north), or they can back track (south). Or perhaps they will come up with something else to do?

[I will generally pause at any place where there's a choice or important action to be made. If nobody suggests otherwise, I will continue going "to the right" (which in this case will be north) in the next update, which may be the last one until August; fingers crossed that it won't be, as some interesting stuff lies ahead...]

[Also, if you feel it is too empty, I can always add in some more monsters and stuff if you'd like. There's a certain... potato... that I'm waiting to use that hasn't been added in yet.]

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

Early Afternoon, Day One - Part 2


[Mephis casts Light at a cost of 1 MP; I'll assume you'll want to keep this up while the party is traveling in darkness and while you have the MP points available.]

Along the passage they have just taken, neither Gauronne, no anyone else notices anything terribly hazardous, or anything particularly of note in this section of the dungeon.

At the current crossroads, the party pauses; unlike the previous intersection, there doesn't appear to be any signs of incoming danger.

Sarah keeps up the map, which currently looks as given above.

[Here the "V" points towards the dungeon entrance/exit.]

Sunday, July 19, 2009

Early Afternoon, Day One

[Sorry for the delay in updates, but as I mentioned things were quite busy this weekend and I was waiting for more of a majority of replies. I will try my best to keep the updates going while I'm away as well.

If anyone is finding themselves too busy or disinterested and cannot or does not wish to continue, that's fine with me; but PLEASE tell me so I'm not waiting around for you.]

The party soon heads down the path to the right; the long corridor quickly descends into darkness. After traveling a fair way, the party comes to a corner, which swerves them to the left. Eventually, they reach another junction: the main passage continues forwards to the north, while the main path branches off to the east.

Thursday, July 16, 2009

Notification

First, I should tell you that there may be some upcoming breaks to the updates.

The first is this weekend; I'm not sure when I'll be home long enough to handle the updates, but I'll try.

The second is next week; I will try to update as regularly as possible, but I'll be going to a place with almost no internet connection and so I'll have to make do with what time I have.

Midday, Day One - Part 5

[Next Heading Votes: 1 East, 1 Abstain. The next update will be heading in the most popular direction, assuming nobody is willing to split the party at this point.]

Kit's examination of the wooden bow provides nothing further; it is just a normal wooden bow.

The mace William picks up is iron.

[William gains: Iron Mace (Blunt Weapon)]

Aside from the mace, the male centaur was carrying nothing of value.

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Midday, Day One - Part 4

[Cubist, re. note: I have already considered doing that kind of thing, but thanks for the suggestion anyway. I won't tell you just yet if there's anything like that involved in this instance, sufficed to say that there will be things of that nature happening in the game at some point. Also, if you prefer, you can contact me at CYOC; I have the same "name" there that I do on FA.]

Kit's poking at the female centaur's bow produces no discernible reaction, he decides it may be prudent in the future to keep a hold of it.

[Kit gains: Wood Bow, and Wood Arrows (Bow) [13].]

Sarah, meanwhile, wishes to treat the remains of their now-deceased foes with some dignity.

Leremy decides to attempt to heal Mephis' wound, while the latter decides to beat a dead horse... well, kick a centaur in the guts anyway.

[Leremy casts Heal at 8 MP, healing 4 of Mephis' lost HP]

Gauronne meanwhile examines and documents the results of their strange encounter for their record using his Sonilumigraph Stone, enchanted using some magical probing.

[Gauronne casts Probe at a cost of 1 MP]

His closer inspection reveals the marks of chains on both the hind legs of the centaurs and on the wrists of the human portions of either body. This suggests at some point they had been prisoners of some form. Moreover, Gauronne's Probe spell indicates that the equine and hominid parts had at some point been separate; though quite how this novel combination was formed is quite uncertain, save that it was through some form of magical manipulation.

After this, he curiously inspects Leremy's work on Mephis' wounds.

Leremy's question "Which way should we go?" remains to be answered: shall the party proceed to the right, as per the popular vote? Will they change their minds, and possibly try the only route where danger has not come from, the north? Should the party split up here?

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Combat Resolution

[Sorry the update is a bit late today]

Mephis and the male centaur bash at each other: Mephis gets in a fairly good cut into his opponent before the mace sends him flying backwards with a huge hit. Kit's bolt fires, but the centaur dodges it just in time. Immediately recognizing the danger, Gauronne casts Slumber upon the raging horse-man hybrid. Though he is physically powerful, his resistance to magic is weak and the giant equine-legged creature collapses to the ground.

The female centaur, engaged by (I'll assume) William, is a much simpler affair. Though Leremy's arrows do no damage, his bolts, Sarah's bullet and William's swing make short work of her.

The combat is over; the party is victorious.

[Numbers]

Round 1
Mephis suffers 9 HP damage from Male Centaur.
Male Centaur suffers 4 HP damage from Mephis.
Male Centaur suffers 0 HP damage from Kit.
Male Centaur is Slumbered by Gauronne [1 MP]

William suffers 0 HP damage from Female Centaur.
Female Centaur suffers 10 HP damage from William.
Female Centaur suffers 0 HP damage from Leremy.
Female Centaur suffers 3 HP damage from Sarah.

Round 2
Male Centaur [Slumbered] is killed by party.
50 XP earned per party member.

William suffers 0 HP damage from Female Centaur.
Female Centaur suffers 10 HP damage from William.
Female Centaur suffers 3 HP damage from Sarah.
Female Centaur is killed by party.
50 XP earned per party member.

Monday, July 13, 2009

Midday, Day One - Part 3

COMBAT!

With adequate forewarning, the party is not surprised by the arrival of the two centaurs; one male, wielding a heavy mace coming from the east, and from the west a female, holding a short, scuffed wooden bow prepared to fire a sharp-looking wooden arrow.

The pair regard each other with a rather fiery, passionate look, before they engage our six heroes.

[This is the pre-battle round: in your replies, please give me guidelines as to how you want to approach this combat. If you're just going to attack them with weapons, then just say that; if you want to use any skills, you will need to specify which and under what conditions. The same thing holds for spells, non-combat inventory items, and the like. Since this is a multiple-enemy combat, you will need to specify whom you are targeting, unless it is obvious from the context of your attack. Tomorrow I will update you on the outcome of the fight.]

Sunday, July 12, 2009

Midday, Day One - Part 2

With the sound of the clip-clopping growing closer and more rapid, the argumentative party become focused on whatever the creatures, beings, or things which are currently descending on them from opposite sides.

Kit, Sarah and Leremy prepare their ranged weapons, Mephis and William stand ready with swords in their hands, while Gauronne attempts to determine what exactly is descending upon them.

[Gauronne casts Probe for 1 MP]

Gauronne's mind picks up a trace of magic; it seems that, whatever these approaching things are, they have been enchanted in some manner. His brain triggers with reflected mental images: the feeling of sodden dirt underhoof, the taste of grass, the musky smell of lathered beasts after a run, and even louder clip-clopping than even Kit can hear, as well as visual images of various equines; intermingled with these are more familiar memories: a car, a job, friendly faces, all strange vague and nebulous.

The consolidation of this mental image is clear: centaurs, alerted to the presence of intruders, are slowly galloping their way towards the party.

At William's cry, the trotting of hooves halts for a moment from both directions; then vague rustling noises resound down the corridor. A few moments later, and the clip-clopping begins again, only this time accompanied with a clink of metal upon metal and wood against wood.

Saturday, July 11, 2009

Midday, Day One

or, Kit Fiddles While Camaraderie Burns.

As Kit plays with the gold ring on his finger, the newest member of the party makes his presence felt immediately through a confrontation. William intervenes to keep the peace and tries to maintain some sense in decorum.

Any argument is cut short, however, from the ominously loud clop-clopping noises coming from the east and the west...

Friday, July 10, 2009

Late Morning, Day One - Part 3

[Notices]

First, I'll apologize for being less frequent in my replies as I would like. I've gotten a little sidetracked on things that I shouldn't have. Anyway, I will be doing daily updates whenever possible: however, to keep things moving along, I won't wait - as I sometimes do - for everyone to reply. It won't be the end of the world, but I am hoping to get this game completed before the end of November, as I'll have a hectic time of things until February and I don't think a large delay would work in our favor.

Second, we have a new player interested. I'm not sure how they will be addressing themselves in comments, but the character's name is Leremy Kisse. So, welcome aboard! I shall probably place this new character into the 3rd position in the walking queue, lest there be any objections.

Third, Year_of_the_Fox has been incredibly kind and talented enough to produce character sheets. Kenku, I don't think I have either IM or email account for you, so I can't pass it on to you: you can get in contact with me via the email/IM addresses in my FA account, and I can send it to you. Note there may be some inaccuracies, but that is completely my fault for not keeping the spreadsheet up-to-date. I'm taking care of that right after this update.

Fourth, I'm in contact with many of you via the various methods of IM: AIM in particular seems quite common. If any of the other players wish to get into contact with me via IM (either to discuss this, or anything really) , you can find my contact info on my FA page.

Fifth, a new inventory item - stationery - is now available; thanks to Xandre on this account. The pack will be $10 (base cost) and will come with anything you will need to draw, write, etc. I'll be more than happy to adjust things at this stage of the game, if you feel your character would have bought it should it have been an option. [NOTE TO SELF: ADD TO PRICE LIST] I will also be adding a flashlight (if I haven't already), I will inform you of the price in the next update.

Sixth, I got a little sidetracked and forgot this was a RPG; so I forgot to provide experience points: the four original characters get 50 XP each for their previous encounter, apart from Gauronne who gets 100 for actively dealing with the taxi driver.

Seventh, dual-wielding is in, with penalties that I'm still trying to work out; I'll have it determined by the time actual combat happens!

Finally, if you have been in contact with me, and it appears as though I've forgotten something, PLEASE tell me! I've been getting over a cold and dealing with nearly infinitely more social interaction than I'm used to, so I'm liable to forget. Also, if you have suggestions for improvements, then I'm definitely happy to hear them, so speak up. This is my first time as DM, and it's possible people here know a lot, lot more about it than I do. Plus ideas are most definitely welcome.

[Game]

The three party members who have decided upon a direction come to a two-to-one majority, in favor of heading down the right path. Meanwhile, Sarah works on a map that Mephis watches, until Sarah adds the few finishing touches to the area that they can see.

Suddenly, along the southern path comes a young man with a cloak, a wooden bow and an aura of arcane power about him. He introduces himself as Leremy Kisse.

[At this stage, the party can either split up, or follow a majority rule vote. It's up to you guys to figure out. Regardless, the party moves on tomorrow.]

Tuesday, July 7, 2009

Late Morning, Day One - Part 2

[First, Year_of_the_Fox has been incredibly helpful in helping to make the character sheets more picturesque and less verbose. I'm quite pleased with this, as it saves me a heck of a lot of time from having to do it myself.]

[Mephis, I'll have to check, but I'm pretty sure I mentioned in the rulebook no dual-wielding; though I guess I could change it as long as it's not too unbalancing and won't cause too much problems with the upcoming character sheets.]

While Mephis offers some luminary assistance, Sarah begins to sketch out a map; a sensible thing, given the possibly labyrinthine dungeon they have found themselves in. Even if everything is simply laid out, the potential size of this underground collection of tunnels, corridors and rooms is enough to warrant such action. It is light enough in this juncture, though each of the paths beyond save the one they have just passed through quickly lead to inky darkness.

Standing guard with his crossbow, Kit strains his feline ears, but does not notice anything particularly hazardous from the immediate areas in any direction. Neither does Gauronne's magical investigation; at least nothing that's tremendously helpful: there's something influenced by magic along each of the northern, eastern and western paths, but the magical aura around each is too far away at the moment to detect their precise nature.

Their investigations concluded, Gauronne enquires about Kit's not-quite-human features. Meanwhile, William asks the fateful question: which was forward for the quintet?

Sunday, July 5, 2009

Late Morning, Day One

While they mutter between themselves, the party eventually notice a fifth person walking along the path. This young man, strange for the fact that that he has a set of feline ears and tail, introduces himself as Kit. Eventually, through much discussion, they conclude that, as they have the same goal, they should pool their resources and join forces.

With the sun inching higher and higher into the sky, the party assembles as follows:
  1. Kenku
  2. Mephis
  3. Gauronne
  4. Sarah
  5. Kit
[To avoid having to wait for any further discussion, I figured to set an order going on the basic heading of the discussion. Obviously, any major objections can be sorted out later. Kenku's a standard fighter, so should go near the front. Gauronne can take up the center, being the frailest of the characters, which should allow him to heal and the like. Mephis can act as fighter support, as he has reasonable equipment, including a lot of fire-protective gear. Sarah has a gun, so she can still be effective near the back of the party. Kit has a crossbow and a sword, so should be very effective as a rearguard.]

The dark mouth of the dungeon entrance consumes each member of the party into the inky blackness beyond. The thick, sticky webs of long-dead arachnids cocoon the party as the slip through the narrow entrance into the downward-sloping tunnel. A faint ominous murmur of living things grows as they slowly make the first few steps towards defeating Count Vladimir.

Walking in file down a short, slanting tunnel, the party quickly stumble on to a cross-roads. Stone-lined pathways extend in all four cardinal directions (N, E, S, W); the southward tunnel leads out of the dungeon. There is just enough light from outside to see; though the party will need to have another source of light should they need to venture farther.

Friday, July 3, 2009

New Character Introduction

Sorry it's taken me longer to get on to this than I wanted; and it's still not ready, because we have a new player: Year_of_the_Fox on FA has joined the game, and will be playing Kit, male and aged 19.

Kit has feline ears and a tail, (and thus has spent some points of Humanity to gain better balance and hearing).

This throws the current discussion into the air again, somewhat, though I think the general idea is heading in the right direction. I *will* have an update for you tomorrow.