All character sheets have been sent.  I'm working on my post now.

Please remember - in general, your posts should meet the minimum requirment of 3-5 short paragraphs.  Not everyone will churn out Eol Fefalas, breebles, alovet level novellas eevry single time, and that's fine.  But keep in mind that a big attraction to play by post games is the collaborative storytelling aspect.  For that to work, we need to pretty much always be reading about your characters's thoughts, emotions, musings, etc.  

Thanks.

I'm going to give our ranger a little more time to post, then we are off to the races...

At this point, I still have to send our sheets for Rain and Dak.  Everyone else should have one.  I will not guarantee that they are 100% accurate (I mispelled the coin names on Rosa's sheet, I know), but I believe all stats and spell lists are right.  

I will never understand people that want to play D&D like it's "players vs DM".  Yes, I am creating antagonists.  Yes, the obstacles are dangerous, and yes - characters sometimes die.  If there's no risk, how satisfying is the victory?

I always, always want my players to win.  I have made mistakes before and misjudged how tough something might be, or had crappy dice rolls make things suck.  But I have never tried to ruin the fun, even in the worst moments for the players.  

I love the crazy schemes and out of the box ideas that I'd have never thought of.  I love when they come up with great plans, even if they totally deflate some big encounter I had planned.  Awesome, let's move on to the next challenge.

Because you also get amazing players to make up for it.

In this current game I'm backfilling - literally the next one I talked to after this douchenozzle -  I have a lady who is dying to play a cidal cleric of Valdorn.  She has read the information for both and put together a great little concept of thins tiny little wise woman halfling who roams the world seeking inspiration for dreams, getting her room and board at random farmhouses and blessing them with good dreams, etc.  Such a fun little concept.

I mean, look at the recruitment thread for the game you guys are in.  Creativity, fun, respect... it's worth wading through a little crap to get to that.

The owlbear is charging into the middle of the party - Rain is well away.

The pleasure is mine, arwen en amin.

Marching order added!

Nope, once you cast aid, it's cast.  It lasts until the spell duration expires or it is dispelled.  You can do anything else, including cast other spells.  If you are injred, there is no concentration check to maintain the spell. 

Now, if you are actively casting and are interrupted before the spell completes, it can fizzle and be lost.

I.e. you rolled a 3 initiative.  Casting time is 4.  Enemy got a 6 initiative, they hit you before your spell completes (3+4 = 7).  

There are a very few spells that must be concentrated on to maintain.  Their descriptions will clearly say so.

In almost every case, a caster can elect to end their spell at any time.

Play by post combat is interesting.  I like to run at LEAST 2-3 rounds per post, else fights can take weeks.  Whenever possible, give me in depth strategy.  If this, then this.  If that, then that, otherwise...

There is no concentration mehanic in 2e unless the spell description calls for it.  For instance, Chant lasts as long as you keep canting... but you can't do other things.  

I can send you a list to the rulebooks if you want the PDFs to look stuff up.

I was thinking that Alan as a pure caster might be scary...

Your sheet is ready to that point.  I'm sending it to you now.

lol Shadowheart didn't pet the mama, now did she?  But yes, they are a classic.  And what makes sense in the deep forests....?

lol, you are not.

I appreciate the ongoing help there with the translations.

As for the creature - it doesn't take a genius in monsterology to know that a creature the size of a gizzly who happens to have a beak and feathers around its head is an owlbear.  Unless your character has had good reason to encounter them in the past (Rain, Rosie have surely encountered them, perhaps Arathea), then you may not be familiar with their exact tactics.  But pretty much anyone with basic logic can surmise what an owlbear is, and knows of their fierce reputations.

Edit - as for those tactics, owlbears are incredibly aggressive and vicious.  They attack prey and they Do. Not. Retreat.  They attack with claws and beak, but they love to grab up a target, lift it from the ground, and squeeze it to death.  A target so grabbed is subject to ongoing crushing unless they can break free, and are still vulnerable to the deadly beak.

Owlbears are terrifying.

I was thinking we ight start a thread where we share some cringeworthy players and stories.  Here's a start.

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Oh, use sylvari in the posts!  The players will enjoy the immersion!

Except when you copy/paste the wrong thing.  Durr...

Your first taste of battle.

Sitrep: the group is in a loose single file, roughly five feet between each of you.  There is a ridge to your right (the creature is coming downhill at full steam towards you from there).  The ground is ore flat to your left.  There are scattered large trees, but the ground cover here is mostly ferns and scattered bushes.  

Rain is a close to a hundred fifty yards ahead of the group.  The creature has surprised you, will be in the midst of the party within moments.  

Please share your general tactics.  Feel free to offer as much or as little detail as you wish, contingencies, etc.  If you are unclear, feel free to reach out to me directly - PM here, email, FB message, whatever.

24th Bre Taola, 452 E.R.
Forest east of Hyanda Nost

Seleliniel had been insistent and persuasive on her suggestion of veering south into the human lands; her desires to visit the fabled streets of Felarin were hardly hidden.  Nevertheless, Rainminainen had made a compelling case of his own to instead move west, to obtain intel from the soldiers of Hyanda Nost, and to then move into the Khordal mountains before turning south into Sendria.  Given that Lord Tansathil had apparently chosen the ranger specifically for his experience in moving undetected through various borders - to say nothing of the fact that the idea of avoiding unnecessary fights with the humans had broad appeal - the rest of the party were more inclined to go with Rainminainen's proposal.  Finding herself with no supporters, Seleliniel bit her tongue and gave in to the will of the group.

The Isil'nari estate was situated rather close to the Alloryen capital of Ela-Ishtel, and lay very near the center of the great forest in terms of east-west navigation.  As such, the journey to Hyanda Nost in and of itself was a good three week trip.  Rainminainen set a brisk pace, and while he often shunned anything approaching a road or well traveled path, he proved his worth right away at having a nigh-uncanny ability to pick out the best route through any given area.  The travel speed was good, though the days were long.  Fortunately, the provisions from the Isil'nari estate combined with the exceptional hunting and foraging efforts of both the taur'ohtar and the Huntress of Taudor Salka meant that the party always seemed to have plenty to eat.

The group mostly stayed single file when traveling through the great forest.  Rainminainen tended to range ahead of the group as he scouted, staying withing shouting range, for sure, but often moving beyond the line of sight of the rest.  The rest of the group stayed together, with Arathea leading, Mae'rel, Seleliniel, Rosariel, and Dak following, and the hulking form of Ruadhrí bringing up the rear.  While the party traveled mostly at ease, these were experienced souls, and no one kept a hand too far from a weapon.  The sylvari forests were relatively safe, but much of the territory they covered amounted to untouched wilderness, and the fact remained that one could never know exactly what one might encounter in such environs.

Late on the afternoon of the twenty-fourth day of Bre Taola, the party found themselves traveling a relatively rocky stretch of forest.  For the past couple of days, the terrain had been more rolling, with small streams tucked here and there between various ridges and cliffs.  

As the taur'ohtar moved quietly through the low brush, a pair of tracks caught his attention.  Morko, he thought to himself.  A big one, at that.  The group would need to be cautious; there was no sense provoking such a large bear.

Just as he began to turn, he gave a second glance at the tracks and realied that the indentation of the claws were too big to belong to even a great brown bear.  No, these belonged to...

A deafening screech broke the air a hundred yards or so behind the ranger as an eight foot tall creature constructed of fur, feathers, and seething hatred broke through the brushline in a full tilt charge into the midst of the party.

Sorry, folks.

I had planned to post Friday. As stated, I spent all of Friday (until after 10 PM) working on the van and the fence, then all of Saturday doing the same.  Then Sunday, we spent six hours in the ER with my wife.  Monday, we took the van to a mechanic and we borrowed a vehicle.  Yesterday, I was sick and we had the election disaster.  

As of today, I'm looking at $10k for the van, Donna has a new major health issue, and our country voted for facsism.  Sigh.

But I don't want our fun escape into fantasy to fizzle out.  I'll have a post here shortly.

Silas has a half dozen backup characters that he desperately wants to play - that I know of.

I've spent the last two days working on our van, only to find that my efforts have been futile.  We are looking at an expensive, extensive tear down of the engine.  

Sigh.

I will be sending out preliminary character sheets today.

If you haven't given me fun things like proficienceis, languages, or alignment... I need those!

I hope to get a post up today, as well.

lol fireball

Thanks, vibe.  I think that covers the items we need right now.

I have it right now at four votes for the mountain path, one for Ertain.  The only ones I haven't counted are the cow man (who I believe is also for the mountain path) and the bladesinger - who I again think is pretty set on the mountain path.

If it's a six to one vote, will our wizard make a stink or go along?

Our friendly neighborhood wizard has suggested a third alternative.

Here are the choices:

1) The straight shot.  Move directly west-southwest into Sendria.  Hang a left, move due west, pass the ruins of Viastel, find the Lanalthir manor house.

Pros: shortest route.  Least travel time.  Easiest navigation (great reference points, no worries about missing anything or wandering the countryside).

Cons: certain to be a well-guarded border.   Possibility of observation by other sylvari as the party crosses into enemy territory

2) The mountain route.  Move west until reaching Hyanda Nost.  Gather intel, continue west into the Khordal mountains, then hook south to cross the border and find the manor house.

Pros: the khord-Sendria border is likely to be far less guarded.  Hyanda Nost will likely have excellent intel as to the patrols and such; it may be possible to slip out of the Empire here without detection.  This route includes far less travel time in Sendria proper.

Cons: the route is longer, and the mountains - even the foothills - will be harder travel.  Navigating to the manor is likely a good bit more challenging to do accurately, the chance of taking a straight shot to it are a good bit lower due to a lack of definitive landmarks.

3) The Ertain route.  Move southwest into Ertain.  Cross Lake Haven, find passage through the Felarin wood, enter Felarin.  Allow Seleliniel the chance to consult with her Order, and perhaps, with other Orders to gain relevant intel on the items that may be found within the crypts, as well as possible intel on what might have protected the crypts.  Move northwest, cross the Thrace River, move across the border into Sendria.  Then hook a left past Viastel and travel west to the manor.  

Pros: potential to gather the most intel this way.  Seleliniel may be able to obtain assistance above and beyond intel.  Avoids the difficult travel of the mountains in autumn.  Landmarks should be easier on this path, so navigation within Sendria may not be too bad.

Cons: the longest route in terms of mileage.  Requires two different water crossings.  Requires the party to navigate the notorious Felarin Wood (those who hate magic cannot enter it, those who are not welcome have been known to wander in circles until they die).  Potentially raises the chances of others knowing about the mission; seeking help means that others may notice the quite distinctive group.  Subjects the party to the worst possible border crossing - Ertain and Sendria are in a cold war situation, so the border will be well-guarded.  The odds of having to fight your way in are highest here, and the odds of sneaking in are much lower.


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In the interest of time, we don't have to RP this out.  People can give thoughts/votes here in the Q&A or via email, DM, etc.  But we need to come to a decision.