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Posted by Hawke at April 02. 2013 Notes from previous session: The group came from the east, following the hacked orc trail. It opened up fro mthe woods to a clearing about 100 feet from the river. There was a ford there. The group tied up their horse, pony, and mule in the woods on the trail. Raven crept up to the edge of the woods and peered around, seeing three caves above the ford. The river above and below the ford was I na 30' deep sheer canyon on the east bank, and 50' high on the west bank. The group came out openly in their usual marching order along the trail heading to the ford. At about 50' from the ford, they stopped when they saw a humanoid figure lying on a rock on the furthest northwestern cave landing. The orcs are at a large penalty out in the sunlight. One has fallen asleep. The PC's from their current angle couldn't see the other 3 orcs (2 in front of the middle-height eastern cave, and 1 in front of the top cave midway between the other two caves).they started to veer north instead to stay out of sight of the (sleeping) guard. Josh's character madly charged for the cliff, leapt, and made it the 20' across to the opposite cliff face, successfully grabbed onto the cliff, and successfully climbed the additional 20' to the top! Then Raven threw his rope with grappling hook to Josh's, but fell short, and didn't grab the end of the rope, losing the rope and grappling hook into the raging torrent below. Huda threw his rope with grappling successfully across to Josh. Josh embedded into some rocks, then he crept southeast to peer carefullly over the cliff face overlooking the caves below.   Meanwhile Chris pulled out a piton and staked the other end of the rope in place.   Ryan tried crossing the rope, but fell halfway across. He took damage being banged against the rocks in the rapids, and failed to swim, so began drowing, and was knocked unconscious. Chris ran down stream to get Ryan's body at the ford. The Drugh accompanied him about 10 seconds later. Huda, Rob, and Jacob successfully crossed the rope and climbed the climbed the cliff to join Josh.   While Chris recovered Ryan's unconscious body, and tried (and failed) to revive him (and he failed to revive himself, not breathing, with lungs full of water), the others planned how to attack the orcs below. They now saw all 4 orc guards in front of the caves. They adjusted their position to be directly above the highest cave.   Meanwhile Mila helped Ryan start breathing again, he came back to consciousness about a minute later.             Lots of great action that didn't get caught on the camer unfortunately.     They killed all 4 orcs outside.   They killed 6 orcs inside that were initially sleeping. Josh's character slaughtered them horrifically.     Wolfie and Jacob over by switch by bars. Dark beyond, no light, bars still locked.   Rob by center of dead orcs by firepit. (Hole in ceiling but at an angle that comes out a long way away from where the actual den is (north east).   Josh is in hallway (east of firepit). Gloating over slain orc that tried to get away.   They heard simultaneously an orc running away, and then many orcs charging forward. Josh sees 9 orcs charging him.   1 orc had come running that was closer than the others that had heard the horn, but he saw the carnage, and the one orc running away that was splattered by Josh's character, and turned tail. Realizing they were in trouble, he is going to run east to the larger group of orcs as fast as Orcishly possible.. He will however see the mule, horse, and pony, and slit their throats.   Meanwhile, Ryan's character, with Chris's and Miyo have just climbed the ladder up from the lower cave. They heard booted feet running away as they were climbing up.     We stopped as the orcs were charging Josh's character, only 60' away (charge) contact for the leading 2-3 orcs. Will stop the chargbe of the other 6 due to space constraints. Some have bows, but only have melee weapons in hand.

Posted by Hawke at March 28. 2013 Some rulings   Implement small stack of post-its for every player, to make note to themselves, or to pass to me. Reinforce about raising hand to speak. Everyone consented to having all game sessions recorded on audio and video. These videos will not be made public. Benefits: * I can go through later and write down the rules made on the fly. * Can write down events and plot aspects to keep track of for later building/resolution. * Helps me become a more effective GM/DM in the long run by observing how I’m GMing, and what areas I can improve * Helps other players if a player is unable to attend, I can arrange for them to view the video to catch up on the missed session..     RULING: If you buy armor, it includes the cost of helm of choice. Remember, no plat armor, but can have individual breast plate (Prince of Dol Amroth).   Character generation method: 4d6, take away lowest die. Roll this 6 times. Then a 7 th separate roll for Comeliness. Do 3 sets like this, then pick one set from the 3. Can assign the six rolls in any order to stats, but 7 th roll MUST go only to COM.   Dwarf = 40+d20 If want to be younger than average, then would have the immature stat adjustments as per PH/DMG.   Elf = physically start out the same as Men, but difference in maturity. D6 = 100 to 600 years old.   Explained folks need to raise their hand to talk to me whether in combat or to speak to me out of character. When speaking to other players once role-play has begun, a player needs to state if they are speaking out of character or not, if they are speaking to me or the other PC's. We will start with the ~60 second timer, and go up or down as needed. When speaking to other players once role-play has begun, a player needs to state if they are speaking out of character or not, if they are speaking to me or the other PC's. If race/culture or background option states bonus in Acrobatics = that is bonus to tumble, balance, climb, and jump.   Dwarves and Elves have the ability to imbue items with magic through special craft skills. As did the Numenoreans. Generally the mannish races did not (with exceptions like the Druedain, or specific branches of Men or descendants of Númenor).   Ruling regarding bows, composite, etc. Can use composite bow. Elves bonus only applies to Longbow, not composite.   RULING: Alcohol affects everything, not just Intelligence and Wisdom. As far as I am concerned, it impacts all stats and actions.   RULING: Fatigue affects all 6 stats.

Posted by Hawke at March 28. 2013 When last we met... You had followed the trail of the orcs south-east, then south, then south-west, and finally curved back west to the village Buléh. You found everyone there slaughtered, and the village still burning. You found tracks indicating the orcs had taken a few survivors were taken. You did not find any Orc bodies. The total villager death count was total dead: 77. You found the rope bridge across the swift-flowing river was cut from the far side. After several ideas and efforts, you crossed by a combination of ropes and fallen trees. Your party separated for a bit. You came across a young girl face down in the road with her skull and neck split but still alive though mostly non-responsive. Your group rejoined. Your faintly heard orc laughter in the distance. You were debating what to do next. We rolled fatigue checks for each of you. If you do not rest, about half your party will have penalties for fatigue. Fortitude rolls: Failed: Rilyn, Elros, Hoda, Raven. It is night time, around 11:00 pm. The date is: Second Age, 1198 – 11:00 pm of the 26 th of August. Urui the 26 th , 11:00 pm.       The group came from the east, following the hacked orc trail. It opened up fro mthe woods to a clearing about 100 feet from the river. There was a ford there. The group tied up their horse, pony, and mule in the woods on the trail. Raven crept up to the edge of the woods and peered around, seeing three caves above the ford. The river above and below the ford was I na 30' deep sheer canyon on the east bank, and 50' high on the west bank. The group came out openly in their usual marching order along the trail heading to the ford. At about 50' from the ford, they stopped when they saw a humanoid figure lying on a rock on the furthest northwestern cave landing. The orcs are at a large penalty out in the sunlight. One has fallen asleep. The PC's from their current angle couldn't see the other 3 orcs (2 in front of the middle-height eastern cave, and 1 in front of the top cave midway between the other two caves).they started to veer north instead to stay out of sight of the (sleeping) guard. Josh's character madly charged for the cliff, leapt, and made it the 20' across to the opposite cliff face, successfully grabbed onto the cliff, and successfully climbed the additional 20' to the top! Then Raven threw his rope with grappling hook to Josh's, but fell short, and didn't grab the end of the rope, losing the rope and grappling hook into the raging torrent below. Huda threw his rope with grappling successfully across to Josh. Josh embedded into some rocks, then he crept southeast to peer carefullly over the cliff face overlooking the caves below.   Meanwhile Chris pulled out a piton and staked the other end of the rope in place.   Ryan tried crossing the rope, but fell halfway across. He took damage being banged against the rocks in the rapids, and failed to swim, so began drowing, and was knocked unconscious. Chris ran down stream to get Ryan's body at the ford. The Drugh accompanied him about 10 seconds later. Huda, Rob, and Jacob successfully crossed the rope and climbed the climbed the cliff to join Josh.   While Chris recovered Ryan's unconscious body, and tried (and failed) to revive him (and he failed to revive himself, not breathing, with lungs full of water), the others planned how to attack the orcs below. They now saw all 4 orc guards in front of the caves. They adjusted their position to be directly above the highest cave.   Meanwhile Mila helped Ryan start breathing again, he came back to consciousness about a minute later.   Lots of great action that didn't get caught on the camer unfortunately. They killed all 4 orcs outside. They killed 6 orcs inside that were initially sleeping. Josh's character slaughtered them horrifically. Wolfie and Jacob over by switch by bars. Dark beyond, no light, bars still locked. Rob by center of dead orcs by firepit. (Hole in ceiling but at an angle that comes out a long way away from where the actual den is (north east). Josh is in hallway (east of firepit). Gloating over slain orc that tried to get away. They heard simultaneously an orc running away, and then many orcs charging forward. Josh sees 9 orcs charging him. 1 orc had come running that was closer than the others that had heard the horn, but he saw the carnage, and the one orc running away that was splattered by Josh's character, and turned tail. Realizing they were in trouble, he is going to run east to the larger group of orcs as fast as Orcishly possible.. He will however see the mule, horse, and pony, and slit their throats. Meanwhile, Ryan's character, with Chris's and Miyo have just climbed the ladder up from the lower cave. They heard booted feet running away as they were climbing up. We stopped as the orcs were charging Josh's character, only 60' away (charge) contact for the leading 2-3 orcs. Will stop the chargbe of the other 6 due to space constraints. Some have bows, but only have melee weapons in hand.  

ke at March 28. 2013 Meeting at Middle Village Buléh   The PC's gathered, for various reasons, within 24 hours of each other, at the middle village of Buléh (byoo-leh). This will be seen by the villagers as fortuitous and a good sign. The PC's first spent the time getting to know each other and the villagers, there was a great feast and celebration well into the night.   The Drugh's Plight The Drugh/Wose had to try to convince the PC's to take a brief detour from their original reasons for coming down here, and get them to help find and free the captured Drúedain. There are 4 captured Druedain still alive. The Drugh had seen 5 alive, from the original 8, but 3 were killed at their camp (as the Drugh as seen), and another has died along the trail from the abuse eventually killing him. The PC's found the body of one of the Drugh (Kor-t'san-Koth). Beaten to a bloody pulp, clearly dragged some distance, then clearly stomped upon many times, crushed into the ground. The body is rapidly decomposing, and torn at by various carrion animals, and insects. All but one of the PC's was happy to help, but one dwarf insisted "what's in it for me?", and was convinced when one of the elves talked one of the village leaders into bribing the dwarf (after negotiations) with 3 deer skins full of the local alcohol. Pursuing the Orcs The PC's followed the Drugh north to where the Druedain were attacked and later where the Wose broke off pursuit, they will find the trail veers back south-east, then south, then southwest. The orcs are clearly not hurrying. The Orcs aren't making any effort to hide their trail, chopping their way through the woods and killing wantonly along the way. A few days later, the PC's smell and soon see smoke in the forest, this is found to be coming from the smoke of Ossar village... The Massacre of Buléh Village By the time the PC's were less than a day behind the Orcs, they saw smoke over and through the trees and come across the smoldering ruins of Buléh. Most of the village warriors were slain, as well as the elderly (the lead elder was not here, instead at Hawaeur), and the youngest of the children,. There were indications that some children were taken prisoner. The total death count at Buléh village was: Elderly: 21 Chieftain: 1 Able-bodied Warriors/hunters: 9 Sick/injured: 4 Women: 17 Male children: 7 Female children: 13 Babies: 5 Total dead: 77 Some of the warriors were not there, since they were gone on a lengthy hunt.    

Posted by Hawke at March 15. 2013 Sorry for the last minute cancellation for the March 12th session due to family health emergency. He is doing better, but we're still keeping an eye on him. Prognosis is hopeful. Meanwhile, we will have the next regularly scheduled session, Tuesday, March 19th, 6:00 pm to 10:00 pm at the Monroe street office. See you all then!

Posted by Hawke at March 01. 2013 Additional Rulings:   > Practiced Spellcaster, page 82 of Complete Arcane. Prerequisite-spell craft > four ranks. Benefit-plus four to caster level for spell effects (not > spells/day or spells known). Would you be willing to let this apply to my > base level of spells, or would it affect the highest level I can cast the > spell at? > I think (correct me if this is incorrect), in order to be consistent with my previous ruling of base, but you have more flexibility, we would go with it increasing the highest level you can cast the spell at (with the added cost of spell points, and the higher DC for casting). --      

Posted by Hawke at March 01. 2013 Spells and Shadow / Sanity Risks Additional notes that are not yet in the Magic in Middle-earth (but will be soon): Question: Will all damage-related spells cause taint? Short Answer: No. Longer answer: A fireball or lightning bolt in and of itself would be Neutral, neither evil nor good (though the use of it could be evil depending on the circumstances). It might have "V" (varies) for Taint depending on how it is used however. So using a lightning bolt on a bunch of orcs is just part of the war of good versus evil. But using it on a bunch of defenseless villagers would be evil. Using flame strike to burn down a forest would be evil (unless it was 100% evil everything within (not likely), a tough call), using flame strike against a Troll would not be evil. So, where spells may have inherently destructive capacity, but not automatically always evil in their destruction, they will be marked as Neutral, but they might have a "V" (varies" for shadow/taint and sanity, depending on how they are used. The screams of the dying helpless villagers being burned alive by that fireball might trigger a sanity check. Anything that sucks life force away would be evil, and thus a Shadow / Sanity check. Inflicting plague and pestilence would be evil and thus a shadow / sanity check. Anything that takes away a free person's free will is Evil. What happens if you try to bend the will of someone not free (like an orc that is under the control of Morgoth or Sauron)? This would depend on what the PC was doing. If they were trying to torture the orc, that would be evil, if they were trying to free the orc from its subjugation by Sauron/Morgoth (good luck with that!), then that might not be considered an evil act, it would definitely depending on the circumstances and motivation, but generally taking away anyone's free will in any way would fall on the side of the Shadow. Deception is Neutral (depending on use), but actual mind control is Evil (following Tolkien's guidance), in the context of The Free Peoples of Middle-earth. Inflicting mental pain/damage/anguish is also evil along the same lines. Using a spell that destroys the land, or existing life (blight), would be evil, while using a spell like entangle would be Neutral (using nature, but not really harming it directly). Summoning demons would be evil and have high sanity risks (and risk of possession too!). Raising the dead is a little problematic. If they were at rest, it is evil, if they were already cursed to be undead (like the Halls of the Dead and Erech), then just calling upon them (as Aragorn did) would not be evil (though not wise unless you are Aragorn). "Turning" undead would not be evil. Resurrecting to life (not raising to become undead) would not be evil, (unless done to keep torturing to death, and then resurrecting to do so again in a hideous cycle).

Posted by Hawke at March 01. 2013 Money in Middle-earth Coins from one realm do not automatically equal the value of coin from another realm in Middle-earth. When first creating characters, just use the standard D&D gp coinage for starting wealth at first level, and for purchasing equipment from the PH equipment list. For level adjusted characters, this can be quite a sum! In this case, allow them to spend up to 1/10th of the money as above (still a handsome sum), and then convert all remaining gp to Middle-earth "standard" bronze pieces (if this is too many coins, allow them to convert 10:1 bronze to silver to make it more manageable to carry). All future coinage once play begins, will use the Middle-earth coin system, instead of the D&D coin system If the DM is not using different monies for different realms, then a "Middle-earth Standard Coin System" can be chosen for ease of use. Tin, copper, and bronze are the most common coins for day-to-day purchases (food, lodging, etc.). Silver is less common, but not rare. Gold coins are fairly uncommon in the countryside and small towns, and generally only in the wealthier quarters of larger cities. Mithril pieces are extraordinarily rare. Originally minted by the Dwarves, some have slowly trickled out to the general populace over the centuries, these are incredibly valuable. mp mithril piece 100 gp No D&D Equivalent (~10,000 gp) gp gold piece 10 sp D&D = 100 gp sp silver piece 10 bp D&D = 10 gp bp bronze piece 10 cp D&D = 1 gp cp copper piece 10 tp D&D = 1 sp tp tin piece 1/10th cp D&D = 1 cp  

Posted by Hawke at March 01. 2013 Level Adjustments We had a lengthy discussion about how level adjustments impact character creation and advancement. We followed most of the rules listed in the DMG and Monster Manual (and additional input from Josh from Races of Faerun), but I made a number of house rulings to enhance the desired effect related especially to Elves (and their higher corresponding level adjustment ratings), while also trying to not make it impossible to play an elf with an advancing group of non-elves.   ECL = Race/Culture Level Adjustment + Hit Dice + Class Level.   Example: Noldor Elf with 1st Level Beguiler Class has an ECL of 7 Race = +5 Level Adjustment HD = 1 (d8) (this is in ADDITION to their class hit die, they are going to need it, because it is going to take a long time to get to their next level to earn more HD). 1st Level Beguiler = 1   While the Races of Faerun book would start the character (LA +5) at 15,000 XP, and require 21,000 XP for 2nd level, the DMG (page 172) states to use the total ECL (rather than just the level adjustment in RoF) and refer to the PH's Table 3-2, which would actually make the base XP for 1st level (ECL 7) at 21,000, and 28,000 needed for second level. Following the DMG over the RoF, the example PC would thus begin with 21,000 XP, and needs 28,000 XP to make level.   Also note that the level adjusted PC will initially get fewer experience points compared to other PC's because the XP for the level adjusted PC is from a higher ECL. However, as the other PC's level up, this difference will change. As a house rule however, the Character Level for XP determination is not going to be equal to the ECL, this would make the Level Adjusted PC just simply take far too long to catch up with the party at higher levels. Instead it will just be their Level Adjustment (+1 for those with only +1 LA), rather than full ECL. So class level 1 with LA of +1 would still be Character Level for XP of Level 2, but all the other LA's would be: LA +2 = 2 LA +3 = 3 LA +4 = 4 LA +5 = 5 The reason for this modification is because the PC is not equal in every way to a full 7th level character, noted differences include far fewer hit points, much lower base attack bonuses and base saves, and it will take far, far too long to catch up to the rest of the party, and possibly the party would be very old people by the time the elf caught up. While I like this from an overall story perspective, for the sake of the party balance, this will hopefully have a little more equilibrium down the road. It's not a huge boost, should help a little.   As per DMG pg 172: Creatures with 1 or fewer Racial HD can get bonus class feat, and skill points. NOTE: Any race/culture skills in the race/culture description are treated as class skills. As per DMG pg 172. As a house rule, they will NOT get the skill points for their race (per se, this is actually already somewhat factored into the racial description), but instead will be allowed to get the full skill points for their class instead (x4 at first level). As a house rule, they are allowed to receive the bonus feat for the first level of their class, but do not get any of the ECL feats for their race (per se, this is actually somewhat factored into the racial description).   They use ECL to determine Character Wealth Level from DMG Table 5-1 (pg 135). However, see notes about money in Middle-earth in the next posting...   The PC gets the following from the PH 3-1 Base Save and Base Attack Bonuses are same as CLASS level, not ECL, though keep in mind most of the level adjusted races have exceptional bonuses for saves and/or other bonuses, so it isn't necessary to count it by ECL or HD, the class will be added to the racial bonuses listed in the cultural description.   As per the D&D Wiki http://www.dandwiki.com/wiki/Effective_Character_Level_%28terminology%29 I agree with this statement, so quote it here: "Certain races are [initially] intrinsically more powerful than others, either because they possess racial hit dice or because they have powerful abilities. ECL exists to balance this out by sacrificing hit points , base attack bonus, saving throw bonuses, and class abilities for higher ability scores and special abilities"   From the PH 3-2 chart: The PC uses the full ECL on this chart for XP,  and skill points, however a house rule applies for Feats and ability score increases, see below.   Example PC: ECL = 7 Class skill max ranks = 10 Cross-class skill max ranks = 5 Additional Feats = 0 (DM ruling, see below) Ability Score Increases = 0 (DM ruling, see below)   House Rule Because the race/culture already has such significant ability score bonuses, special abilities, and other bonuses, initial additional feats and ability score increases are not chosen for the race. They are treated as the feats and score increases that the PC would otherwise allocate, and instead they are predetermined by the race/culture, rather than the player assigning them.   Level Adjustment "Buyoff" Allowing the Level Adjustment Buyoff option. Originally I was unsure about the overall consequences, but with the existing house rules this will keep the PC from being too far behind the rest of the party forever, while still making it take a long time to get those initial first levels while the rest of the party "catches up" to the level adjusted PC. For lower level adjustment races this can happen fairly soon (3rd level for +1, 6th level for +2), but for high level adjustment races, this can be a very long time (the Noldor with +5 will have to be 15th level for the first buyoff), but it is better than never, and still reflects the Elves longevity, so that they will "get there eventually", while Mannish races might not otherwise live long enough to achieve it.

Posted by Hawke at February 20. 2013 Many thanks to everyone that made it to the first meeting. Sorry Sarah was unable to make it. Unknown if she will be able to make it in the future. Sorry that Josh had to leave. Hopefully he will attend nest week to finish his character. We are scheduled to meet again next week to finish the character generation process. Merlyn's Feb 26th, 6:00 pm (Tuesday) to 9:00 pm. The group agreed to Josh's suggestion to set the campaign sometime around Second Age 1050. I will research and select an exact time based around that time period. Everyone selected the Race/Culture and Class their character would be, and everyone (except Josh) rolled their initial stats. The process we used was: 4d6, remove the lowest die. Roll those dice six times for six stats that can be assigned in any order to any attributes except COM. Roll a seventh time just for COM. Repeat the above process 3 times. Then select which one of the three sets to use for the character. It is a first level adventurer group (though some have level adjustments). The first level of hit points everyone gets maximum hit points. Folks chose the following: Chris = Dwarf, Fighter (which tribe?) Gary = Woord Elf, "Archer" Jacina = Druedain (Wose), Mystic (from Dragonlance) Josh = Dwarf (Firebeard), Barbarian. Rob = Ryan = High Elf, Beguiler Wolfie = Hobbit Ancestor, Rogue   Everyone will hopefully email me during the intervening week to continue the character development and background stories. With 6 players, this just crosses in my threshold of a "large" group. I will be implementing my large group GM rules (I will post them before our first full game session), which helps keep the pace of game play up to speed, but tends to be more strict than with smaller groups. We will use a small timer/minute-glass for each person's turn. Each person will have 60 seconds to decide, declare, and resolve an action before the next person's turn, and we will have be fairly strict about speaking out of turn, so hand raising will be required for folks requesting to speak out of character when it is not their turn. We will finalize character development February 26th. If we have time that night we'll get some beginning adventure hooks started. That following week in March, we will have the first complete session of role-playing. Namarie!