Hi-ho. Please post here once with your characters name as to make my life a little easier. Please keep posting in "recruitment" for as long as the adventure is not yet underway, as this will also make my life a little easier.
And all the little things help, in the end :D
First! Oh well second but first amongst the players :D
Many people claim to know how to read the ancient cards, but most of them are just out to fleece a few townies. Others waste their time gambling with the cards. A select few actually know the art of reading the Harrow deck. And for those who do have the knack, the Harrow deck can reveal crucial threads in the tapestry of anyone’s life—past, present, and future.
—Riana, Varisian harrowerr
For those ready with their character ideas (if not crunch) I would like you to think of something you would like to know more about, in the present, past and future.
I figure an adventure like "The Harrowing" wouldn't be complete without an actual harrowing, personalised for each character.In other words: What do you seek?
Phrase the request in the form of a single question,.
"Honour" is a good one. Let's see how fasrt I can put down the cards and give you your feedback :)
Anja looks around to make sure no one is around to hear her.
"I don't know if I want to kill him or forgive him. So my question is, 'How will I treat Darius if I see him again?'"
"What happened to my father that he was never around?"
Kahr, it has to be "vague" enough so that I can do something about past, present and future.
Shan-yu > "honor in my family"
Anja > *spoilered*
Khar > family? fatherhood (your father, how it affects you now, and how you will be as a father?)
The harrower's eyes glow bright blue, and there is an eerie silence in the cart as she starts placing the cards on the table.
Past:
Good
The midwife is a conduit of creation, though she does not create on her own. This indicates that you have been a part in retrieving honour for your family in the past but it was not your honour. This could mean you helped your father or uncle, maybe you mother, brother, sister and this brought honour to your family, but you were not responible.
Neutral
The big sky stands for an epic moment in the past, something similar to all the slaves in an entire nation being freed. This could indicate that in your past, your family had honour for doing something extraordinary. Since this is not exactly good or bad, it could indicate that your family simply rested knowing they had done enough.
Evil
The snakebite is a vile poisoned weapon, and represents thee death of ideas and freedom. In your case, this means that someone in your past has worked against your goal of honour. This couldd have been a friend you trusted a great deal, and it doesn't even reveal if you are aware of this.
Present:
Good
The fiend normally depicts a devil swallowing innocents. However, since it is not on the right spot in the allignment, it will point more to the fact that you are right now actively pursueing to gain or regain this honour. You can bring salvation by becoming the monster and defeating your opponents.
Neutral
The tyrant on this card is a dragon, and indicates many things, but always someone in power. This could indicate you, since you are right now the head of the household. You must be careful though, because this person will harm others, and sometimes even the people he is fighting for, and possibly without knowing it.
Evil
The demon's lantern is the card of traps and tricks, sleight of hand and sleight of mind. This means that you should be aware that some things will lead you to your doom even though you think they won't, just like the will'o'wisp led the lost person into a dangerous patch of swamp. This is happening right now, so be wary!
Future:
Good
The eclipse represents self-doubt and loss of purpose. However, this card is found completely in the opposite corner of where it should be, so it becomes the card that will augur an unheralded ability coming to the fore or a concealed location that will be revealed if the time is right.
Neutral
The paladin symbolizes standing strong in the face of adversity. This indicates that you should not back down under any circumstances. This card indicates the need to stay the course or do what one knows is right, even if this takes a heavy toll, to achieve what one is looking for. Many hardships you will endure, before reaching the honour you are currently looking for.
Evil
The bear is pure strenght. On its own it's neutral, and many eople think they can train or tame the bear, but this is folly. This card indicates for you the folly of using brute force on the wrong moment, for the consequences of going against the bear might be severe.
Okidoki. I'll wait ith your harrowing then, to seewhere you want to take it. :)
KHAR EFRAN
The harrower's eyes glow bright blue, and there is an eerie silence in the cart as she starts placing the cards on the table.
Question: "What happened to my father that he was never around?"
Special card = "The Empty Throne", not present in the Harrowing
Past:
Good
The betrayal is selfish incarnate. Even though it is "good"aligned, this card indicates that your father chose envy over love, and this twisted his spirit, leading to the devastation of your family.
Neutral
The teamster is a driving force that keeps the subject going, no matter what. This means there was some external power, physical but most of the times mental, maybe a kind of desire, that drove your father away from your family.
Evil
Since the joke is completely found opposite its intended place, it indicates that the joke has been on you. It stands for a terror that must be overcome, but not by physical means. I don't think I need to tell you that your father leaving has left a certain impact on your life, but according to the cards to best way to deal with this is by use of humour.
Present:
Good
The midwife is a card that is on the perfect spot, exactly where it should be. This indicates that all the other cards are taking a small step back, and everything must be seen in this light. Now, the midwife is a conduit to creation, although she does not create on her own. It means that you will be a key figure in bringing new life into this world, even though you will not be at the center of attention. The new arrival has the possibility of becoming a great force of good, if it is guided in the right direction.
She whispers: If you are ready to be with child, tonight might be a good night to start. It seems the cards indicate that the fruit is ripe for the picking.
Neutral
The survivor represents a person who has been through an ordeal of some kind. It tells the story of something of someone thought lost forever, but found once more. In your case, I believe it stands for a rebirth of fatherhood, within your family line. This is good news, as it indicates that you will be an efficient father. Maybe loved, maybe hated, I can't tell, but you will perform your duty as you are inspected to.
Evil
The forge evokes strength through great diversity. It represents those who survive a (literal) trial by fire, even though many are burned to cinders by the fire that burns so strongly. This card represents a dangerous event that needs many sources of strength to overcome, and I personally believe it reflects the stress of parenthood all too well.
Future:
Good
The theater is the card of true prophecy. The puppets act out a scene, just as I as the prophet act out a scene in which I have no part. I read the cards, and might put you on your way, but it is not to be considered because of me. I have no influence on what I see, just as you might not see who will be influencing you.
Neutral
The trumpet is a declaration of power. It represents you as an aggressive force who wades into the direst of situations without hesitation. This tells me you will stop at nothing to be a father, to give to your future children the father you have missed.
Evil
The wanderer is a collector who appreciates that which others regard as junk or trash. This cards shows me that you will need to be clever enough to find the true worth in something others ignore or treat as worthless. Be wary that you do not throw away things you or others consider valuable, for you may only ever have one. I fear this might be concerning your children, so keep him or her close!
Well, what do you two think about your personal harrowings? Like it, does it fit your character idea/background some?
They have a habit of popping up, yes. Strange though, coz I never really aim for that, but Duke Solovei's first (and only) Harrowing hasn't dropped a stitch so far..
My introductory post is ready, just saying! ;)
And the story has lift-off!
For those of you that want to see the majority of the artwork, PM or spoiler me your e-mail account so I can add you to the Gdrive.
(Gmail works best obviously, but others work aswell.)
Very nicely done, Valeeran and Shan-yu!
Way to ser the bar up high fir the others :-)
*breaks out pompoms*
Cmon guys, hit us with your best high'n'low, zigzag quickened curve ball. Can't wait to read more, and almost feeling sorry I'm going away for a few days :D
*+1 breastplate (1350) 7+2dex
*amulet nat arm +1 (2000)
*ring/protect +1 (2000)
*cloak/resist +2 (4000)
*ring/feather falling (2200)
*brooch of shielding (1500)
*wand of CLW (750)
*Handy haversack (2000)
*fighter's kit (9gp, 29lbs)
*ranseur (10gp, 12lbs)
*guisarme (9gp, 12lbs)
*cold iron longsword (330gp, 4lbs)
*sling & bullets (10) (1sp, 5lbs)
*quickdraw light steel shield (59gp, 7lbs)
*silversheen (1 hour) (250gp)
*hip flask (1gp, 0.5lbs)
*oldlaw whiskey (20gp)
3x Prot/Evil (1 min) 50gp
1x Hide/undead (10 min) 50gp
1x resist electricity 300gp
1x resist fire 300gp
1x darkvision (3 hrs) 300gp
4x bull's str (+4 / 3 min) 300 gp
1x align weapon (3 min) 300 gp
4x CLW (50gp)
4x CMW (300 gp)
By my calculations, I have 3197 gp left. Any good magic items I should look into?
DM Rick, her backstory's as complete as it's going to get. Aside from any suggestions on other purchases I might consider, I think I've got her geared up. I just need to revise her equipment and stats in the stat block, which I'll do in the morning.
Alright, Here's what I've got at the moment for gear. I have ~3200 remaining. I'd love to spend it.
Full Plate of Light Fortification +1
Keen Falchion +1
Headband of Alluring Charisma +2
Belt of Giant's Strength +2
Wand of CLW
Cloak of Resistance =2
Handy Haversack
10 days trail rations
Holy text*
Monk's Outfit**
*I bought this as a spell book. There's no listing for "Holy Text" or anything like it in the CRB.
**To cover the Sackcloth celice and the steel one.
Doh hadn't popped into the discussion thread until now. As mentioned in his post Valeeran asked the Harrower about his parents.
If it's ok I'm going to give his gear another run through and tweak a thing or two.
Rick do you still have my email? If not I'll send it over.
For reference, my gear breakdown -
Weapons - 805 - ~3%
Armor/Magic Protection - 10000 - ~31%
Other Magic Gear - 14000 - ~44%
Expendables - 4000 - ~13%
Gear - ~2507
Coin - ~683 - ~8%
Hope that works out ok. Being a magic user I don't get a lot of benefit from weapons and armor.
Valeeran, just assume I don't have it anymore :)
Also: I won't be able to do your harrowing before leaving (eta 24hrs) but I'll definitely do it as soon as I get back.
BLAH! My post got eaten :*(
Yes, that was kind of the point. You're in the same spot right now, as you all teleported at the same time through the same portal.
I'll try to get a last post in tomorrow, and then it's 5 days of getting to know eachother ˆˆ
Also: loving the responses so far guys!
Sorry about the goblin post-eaters guys! Should have warned you ;)
Two guys added to the google drive folder!
Harrow Deck:
Okay, little more information about the Harrow deck that came through the portal with you.
During the adventure you will encounter people, places and animals/monsters that are native to this little part of the "world". While going through the motions, you can, if you so desire, *use* or *activate* one or more cards in order to make things easier to convince/defeat/circumvent/...
You are given absolutely *zero* clues on what cards would be beneficial to use, apart from the link in my/our Gdrive showing all of them. The names and the corresponding drawing should give sufficient clue as to whether or not you want to activate the card.
I will however help you by saying something similar to "You feel the cards glow against your side." indicating that you can choose to activate one or more cards for this 'scene'. Cards can only be activated once, and if you chose the wrong one you obviously receive no benefits, neither at that time or later.
Is this clear for everyone?
For the record, and this might be purposeful, I can only really see the image on three of the cards in the drive.
If anyone's interested in a Curse of the Crimson Throne game, we're recruiting a replacement. Here's the link to the recruitment thread. The gameplay and discussion tabs can be accessed from there.
Rick is back, will be moving along...
*snore*
the game when i manage to pry my eyes open for longer than...
*snore*
three minutes! :-p
G'nite, and awesome roleplay so far. Little bit of conflict can lead to epic moments, and none of you took it too far (imho) :-)
For the record, and this might be purposeful, I can only really see the image on three of the cards in the drive.
One: If you open the drive you can indeed see only three images. However the one marked "Collection of Cards" should contain all of them.
Two: I added the last three. Everyone should be able to see the files.
I will post here whenever I add another file.
Three: You're currently in area "A", if that wasn't clear yet.
Four: Has everyone understood what to do with the cards and their activation and such?
Five: Working on gameplay post, be there in a few minutes. Let's get this show on the road! :D
Can any of us activate a card or just the person holding them?
The image is opening properly now. No idea what was going on before. It was just opening a larger version of the restricted, 3 card view.
My suggestion: The Crows.
The carnival might work, but I imagine we're in the carnivale for a while and might need it later. This is certainly the Crows, though.
My questions about the cards:
1) If we choose the wrong card, do we lose the card we chose?
2) If we choose the wrong card, can we choose another?
3) Do you need to use a card for any encounter, or does it just make it easier?
Answers:
1) A card that has been activated is "lost". Doesn't matter if it's right or if it's wrong, it's a one-use-item.
2) It's not exactly one card per time. Sometimes 1, sometimes 2 or even 3. I will not tell you how many, that's for you to try and guess. If you want, I can mark the cards as "right" or "wrong" (instead of "used") after you chose them, so you get a sense of fulfillment for choosing the right one.
3)You never NEED one card to finish a story arc, but it does tend to make things easier. For example, if you are trapped in a room with water gushing in, playing the "Bottomless pit" might slow down the water down a little bit. :)
4) It doesn't take an action, so it's more of a "player" thing and not a "character" thing. Hence you don't have to talk about it in-game.
More questions?
I'm good with trying out the Crows and see what happens. One other thing that might be interesting is The Beating :P
I'm good with trying the crows card.
EDIT: Or he could have a point with the beating one. I mean, how many other beatings are we likely to encounter that we're not personally responsible for? :)
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Crows or Beating is fine with me. I also agree that the act of picking a card has the potential to slow the game down immensely as people debate the option of what card to use. I propose that the first PC to act choses the card. If you see the magical words come up before that person posts, you can offer suggestions in the discussion thread, but it's ultimately up to them.
That works for me.
Looking in the drive I see three rows of four cards. None of them are the Beating or Crow so I'm guessing I don't see them all.
As for the card to use this time around, I'm guessing Beating.
If you click on the "open" button in the lower right hand corner, it opens the whole picture.
the avalanche
the bear
the beating
the betrayal
the big sky
the brass dwarf
the carnival
the courtesan
the cricket
the cyclone
the dance
the demon's lantern
the desert
the eclipse
the empty throne
the fiend
the foreign trader
the forge
the idiot
the inquisitor
the joke
the juggler
the keep
the liar
the locksmith
the lost
the marriage
the mountain man
the mute hag
the owl
the paladin
the peacock
the publican
the queen mother
the rabbit prince
the rakshasa
the snakebite
the survivor
the tangled briar
the teamster
the theater
the trumpet
the twin
the tyrant
the unicorn
the vision
the wanderer
the waxworks
the winged serpent
the crows
the hidden truth
the midwife
the sickness
the uprising
It should be six rows of each nine cards. It's as Anja said, click "open"
if you don't, coz you're probably stuck on the "preview".
I'll add all the names to the campaign tab, for easy reference. Names do a lot, but the pictures should be quite useful as well.
Edit: Most of the times, the picture says more than the name, imho.
So, to get back on the choice.
- Anja >> crows and/or beating
Durjaya >> crows
Khar >> crows and beating
Shan-yu >> crows or beating
Valeeran >> beating
So I will assume you'll use both the crows and the beating for this one.
Okay Shan-yu, see where you're getting from.
One more question, I'm trying to figure out your damage with a bow..
1d8 = bow
1d6 = enhancement
+3 = composite
+1 = point blank
+2 = weapon specialization
I'm missing the final "+5" to get to your 1d8+1d6+11 damage. Counted it so far, but if you would be so kind? :)
You guys sure know how to take out tengus, fast! :D
Oh, and I made a little battlemap, might be easier to figure out who is where. Area A1 in the Gdrive is outside the tent, where you are now.
Oh, and you can edit anything that says "Battlemap" :)
Aha, I missed the weapon enhancement (derp) and the deadly shot :)
I see in the last post you remembered to take into account the card, well done :)