Johan Hale |
@ Helaman: Man! Work seems to be kicking your butt recently buddy! Hope it eases out for you soon.
On topic, I know it flies in the face of all adventuring common sense, but I'm really fighting the urge to split the party <GASP>.
There's enough tasks that don't require all of our attention that we could each pursue a goal on our own and keep the time table on track:
Johan: Follows Varnings next patrol to scope out a likely ambush site. I could stay a day behind them and they'd never be the wiser. Even if I did blunder into them, I've already laid the cover of trying to offer them goods. A lone blundering trader just trying to turn an honest coin that got lost in the woods. This would take Johan out of the picture for 5-6 days.
Fet: Work the Mama Guiseppe angle. Figure out what poison to use - brew it, buy it or steal it. Make nice with mama and maybe you can get into the castle as her assistant, getting a weekly safe pass into the fort. Also, start figuring out how to burn the inn to the ground with no survivors :>
Eldred: Take point on the Mott/Eddarly/Mott love triangle. murder, forgery, fraud, whatever you think best.
Agrippa: Be there to support Fet and Eldred however they need. I see your linguistics skill is off the charts - forged love letters here we come! Keep plying Barhold and any other key NPCs with charm person.
When Johan gets back, we'd hopefully have a couple of reliable ways in and out of the fort, two captains out of the way, and the stew plan ready to go when we need it. After that we all head out to ready an ambush for Varning.
What's everybody's thought?
Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa |
Agrippa agrees
ELDRED CROFTER |
Love it - and we can all share the spot light.
Johan Hale |
Due to Easter and then some messy personal obligations at the beginning of the week I will likely be unable to post anything of quality until Tues or so. Sorry.
Bot Johan as needed - Mostly he will look official and menacing as needed...
Fet the false-hearted |
More or less the same, but I love the plan. One of those charm person scrolls would be useful for the Mama Guiseppe angle. I believe she's already at least neutral if not better toward me due to my past diplomacy role.
ELDRED CROFTER |
I am due to fly o/seas on short notice for a project - I will have delayed posting for the next 3 days. I hope this does not equal 'No posting' and will try to put something up.
I will do my best to keep things flowing BAU but air travel will chew the next day or so.
DM Aku |
@Niles
I was talking about this rumor:
A troupe of travelling actors and acrobats is heading to Balentyne to perform a one night exclusive engagement of the famed play “The Fall of Amberlyn.” Posters are everywhere in Aldencross.
I was sure tho Johan had suggested to pass as then. :O
Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa |
Ahh, so much going on, a wizard cannot keep up with all the plotting.
Johan and Eldred are simply too devious for me.
Johan Hale |
Hopefully now that we have found the passage, we won't have to use the actors...
...Though just in case, AKU can you mark their performance date on the calendar. And Mamma Guiseppe's stew nights please.
Fet the false-hearted |
Questions for the DM:
Do I have ample supplies of Alchemist Fire?
Do I have ample supplies of a poisoning agent for the stew? ( Belladonna for instance is cheaper than Arsenic and potentially more effective. In fact, I think Oil of Taggat, which is even cheaper might be better. It doesn't do any damage, but it knocks the target out for 1 to 3 hours. Oil of taggit: ingested 15 Fort, Onset: 1 min. — effect - unconscious 1d3 hours, 1 save )
Questions for the party:
What should I have my character do?
ELDRED CROFTER |
Onset is too fast - we don't want guys falling over the same time as their mates are still ordering.
What poisons can pass for natural or semi natural diseases/causes after a few hrs? We MAY be able to get another bite at the apple later that night.
Johan Hale |
Re What to do: Honestly I'm not sure. It feels like we're waiting for the GM to move us along. Somebody should spend some time on the captains frame job today though - find out where any of the involved lovers live. Could be as simple as some time in the town archives looking at real estate deeds..
Re poison: We did get a hint (OK a big hit me over the head with a hammer sized clue) with the local alchemist storing arsenic for rat poison. Not as effective as the other poisons but potentially free! What's one more building burning to the ground inexplicably after all?
ELDRED CROFTER |
I'm on the captains frame job... lets not rush it.
We can move on day 6, day 7 etc at this rate for a few more days at the same rate.
Day 7 I am ready to move into the keep in the guise of one of the soldiers and get the layout as well as find the residences within.
I am thinking the VERY best way to do this? Is kill the woman, kill the supposed lover violently and then frame the innocent husband for both. I can manage that part I think. Day 8 works for me. I'll need Johan or someone along + the mage for our incusion to murder.
I do need to get a look at the cuckold to get a feel for his appearance and voice if we are to really make this stick.
We do need to call the priest out 1 day before the event to whack him at the farm attending the sick daughter. I can immitate him well enough to leave a message at the church for him to come and then ride off again quickly, leaving them to follow.
Arsenic works for me... and then we can visit the sick ones later with a belladonna top up as well as poison the rest of the guarison with free food again, Mama Guiseppe being all upset for the troops makes a second meal so they can focus on their duties... whacking the troops who didn't get feed or enough of a dose the first time around.
DM Aku |
Questions for the DM:
Do I have ample supplies of Alchemist Fire?
You can't mass produce then. This town does not have all it takes. But you can buy enough raw material for about 20 of then.
Questions for the DM:
Do I have ample supplies of a poisoning agent for the stew? ( Belladonna for instance is cheaper than Arsenic and potentially more effective. In fact, I think Oil of Taggat, which is even cheaper might be better. It doesn't do any damage, but it knocks the target out for 1 to 3 hours. Oil of taggit: ingested 15 Fort, Onset: 1 min. — effect - unconscious 1d3 hours, 1 save )
If you have? No! You don't have! You'll not find in this town, any 'poison' other than Arsenic, Or you'll be able to buy the raw material to create yourself.
If you have herbalism, you may leave town for some days, searching for 'plants' materials to create poison, but it's not guarantee you'll find then.
DM Aku |
Re What to do: Honestly I'm not sure. It feels like we're waiting for the GM to move us along. Somebody should spend some time on the captains frame job today though - find out where any of the involved lovers live. Could be as simple as some time in the town archives looking at real estate deeds..
Okay. I think the fault is mine here.
I'm used to let players do whatever they wanted, throwing just pre-programmed events on their way, the rest doing it on fly.
I'll respond for some of your events in game, and try give you a more 'dm guidance' along it's way.
Johan Hale |
I didn't really mean we needed more guidance per se, just that we're still waiting for answers to some of our inquiries. For example, Johan's trying to find out when the patrol leaves so we can plan around that. If its tomorrow, then he needs to get cracking, and he'll be out of action for several days following it, but if its not for a week, we need to adjust our plans. Maybe we rob the alchemists shop during that week, or ambush the high priest. I'm a visual planner, so not having the dates on the calendar is making it hard for me to make decisions too.
DM Aku |
I didn't really mean we needed more guidance per se, just that we're still waiting for answers to some of our inquiries. For example, Johan's trying to find out when the patrol leaves so we can plan around that. If its tomorrow, then he needs to get cracking, and he'll be out of action for several days following it, but if its not for a week, we need to adjust our plans. Maybe we rob the alchemists shop during that week, or ambush the high priest. I'm a visual planner, so not having the dates on the calendar is making it hard for me to make decisions too.
I updated the 'calendar' some days ago.
You are currently on day 5. (the green one.) The reds means they are already pass.
If it's still confusing, tell me and i'll try to make it better.
Johan Hale |
That's great! thanks!
ELDRED CROFTER |
Sickness, project demands and travel have delayed posting - will try tomorrow. Sorry all.
Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa |
Just checking in here, but I'm mostly waiting on Eldred and Johan because Agrippa isn't the plotter. He's more the helper.
Fet the false-hearted |
I figure that my current plan is to become the old alchemists assistant. That should make stealing from him or murdering him far easier to do, which will also give us access to the store of arsenic and whatever other useful materials he might have.
Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa |
If Fet needs any arcane assistance Agrippa is here waiting to cast some spells!
Johan Hale |
Just wondering if there is a copy spell or cantrip we can use here... to get a copy of that map. I believe there is a spell that copies the contents of a book
Surely we can do the same through mundane means. If we really need a skill check, Agrippa has linguistics (similar to making a forgery)- we can smuggle him into the room for 20 minutes mid-day without much risk.
@ Fet: Sounds like a good tactic. You can even turn the shop into a 2nd base of operations of sorts. Are you planning to use the Tef alias with Mamma Guiseppe?
And...Yea for forward momentum! I was beginning to get worried at everyone's silence.
Johan Hale |
I've added a "Tentative Actions" line to the planning calendar to give us a framework to execute stuff from. Can you guys look it over and see what you think? Make changes and additions as you think necessary.
The one thing that I haven't addressed and I think could be a problem is that head wizard lurking around somewhere. Currently we have no plan to remove him from the equation. We also don't really have an exit strategy for after we set off the firework.
DM Aku, do we have any idea how long between when we set of the signal and when the bugbears attack? Minutes, hours?
ELDRED CROFTER |
Moving a force of blood thirsty bugbears? 10 mins to 30 mins for the initial elements to hit AFTER the firework. Figure a full 20-30 mins after that for the full force.
But given that no one will know what the fire work means its just gonna be some sort of confusing and so it will be a surprise when they show up.
I need to know the layout of the tower, the keep and all the residences and for that I need two gullible or greedy guards AND I need Johan the Inquisitor.
Posting in a moment.
Johan Hale |
Fortress layout will come from the map the dwarves have...
Are you sure we can keep two guards intimidated into silence and on the payroll for several weeks? All it takes is one guilty conscious or drunken boast for things to go squirrely...
Something to consider re the wife and captains - if it is a murder frame up, they have a priest and wizard to bring to the investigation. Can our frame job withstand magical scrutiny?
Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa |
The plan looks awesome, lets do it!
ELDRED CROFTER |
Fortress layout will come from the map the dwarves have...
Are you sure we can keep two guards intimidated into silence and on the payroll for several weeks? All it takes is one guilty conscious or drunken boast for things to go squirrely...
Something to consider re the wife and captains - if it is a murder frame up, they have a priest and wizard to bring to the investigation. Can our frame job withstand magical scrutiny?
If you and I do the job right? They only need to stay bought and silent for a week or so. We're not that far out.
Fear and money and promise of rewards... maybe a promotion, will go a long way. Once we have the information? We can get them a double helping of Mama Guiseppes stew.
As for withstanding magical scruntiny.
You have a point but my initial reason for attempting it is morale hits and imprisonment of key resources than anything else.
Maybe we can move it closer to raid day to distract the spell keepers.
That farmer we sacrificed has been missing about 3 days now. No news so far is good news... not sure how long we can count on our good fortune there.
ELDRED CROFTER |
Read the planning sheet - nice work.
I'd suggest a double dose of Mama G's stew. One the day before the assault and then one the day of, to get the guards who hadn't got it before and to the sick who can't defend.
It also looks like we have shedloads of time so we can take it a bit slower with the dwarves etc. Lets not have a rookery accident too early.
THAT said? The guards scared/bribed is needed to get access to the daily schedule and passwords and for me to get to the ladies chambers for samples of writing and to the captain lover to get a set of his underwear or socks or something to throw under the side of the bed.
Johan Hale |
Read the planning sheet - nice work.
I'd suggest a double dose of Mama G's stew. One the day before the assault and then one the day of, to get the guards who hadn't got it before and to the sick who can't defend.
Mamma G is only scheduled to go to the fort once a week. We won't have an opportunity to use it two nights in a row. And food poisoning is probably the first thing they'd think of when a whole lot of people get sick all at once only hours after a meal. I think we can only use this one once.
It also looks like we have shedloads of time so we can take it a bit slower with the dwarves etc. Lets not have a rookery accident too early.
Agreed... I put it in there mostly because I'm getting restless and want some action :>
...and for me to get to the ladies chambers for samples of writing and to the captain lover ...
That part is done - Agrippa is making the forged letters right now.
ELDRED CROFTER |
ELDRED CROFTER wrote:Read the planning sheet - nice work.
I'd suggest a double dose of Mama G's stew. One the day before the assault and then one the day of, to get the guards who hadn't got it before and to the sick who can't defend.
Mamma G is only scheduled to go to the fort once a week. We won't have an opportunity to use it two nights in a row. And food poisoning is probably the first thing they'd think of when a whole lot of people get sick all at once only hours after a meal. I think we can only use this one once.
That's the beauty of my double dose tactic - Mama G offers to make a special soup with so many guards sick to take care of the sick ones and give the survivors , now working double duty, something nice.
DM Aku |
Other thing:
Now that the game has fallen to 4 players again, I'm considering inviting another player to join us. So if we have any situation where one of you need some 'time' to get things going, game 'ill not fall for lack of postings.
I'm still in consideration mode, and I would like to hear your opinion on this.
Thanks.
ELDRED CROFTER |
Thats cool - who did we lose?
As for what to do next? Maybe we could do a montage of 'scenes'?
Scene of some of us doing 1 thing as an encounter, while some of us do another. Slow posting rates on one team wont matter much.
Johan Hale |
ooh I like montages. I'm for whatever gets the game moving again, but really, we've got a plan we just need to stop talking about it and do it. I vote Aku moves us along on the plan we have set - He can prompt us for more details as needed and we can interrupt if there's any deviation or additional actions we want to take.
Re a 5th player: meh, four's good for now for me. Maybe we can look at adding someone if we survive this section...
Johan Hale |
DM Aku: Regarding the way the soldiers are organized, when I see a command structure of 4 captains, I assume they've either got a quarter of the soldiers reporting to each captain, or each captain is responsible for a specific shift each day. Do we know which it is here? If each captain has his own crew of loyal soldiers, we might be able to spin this Mott vs Eddarly feud into a grand brawl that sucks in half the garrison...
ELDRED CROFTER |
Business travel, wife hieing off to Europe and sickness caused a drop in posting. Will be online again soon.
Johan Hale |
OK, I will try to sit patiently :>