As Beranhond strapped his gear to his backup he was lost in thought.
Where had the Paladin on watch gone? Who were these people and why had they left them alive?
The two men seemed to be just doing their duty, but the woman from the north with the scythe had an unnerving grim quality about her. As he looked towards the bodies of his fallen companions he couldn't help but worry about Ceilith. Had she been out on a similar patrol and ambushed by people such as these? She had been making patrols through this area for much of the past month and had yet to return to Waterdeep.
She was tough and probably was not so foolish as to camp out in the open with less than trustworthy watchers. He thought. However, in all honesty, who expected a Paladin to up and leave their watch duty? Well. I was a Paladin, or at least was nearly one, and know that they are not always as virtuous or striving to good as they appear. Plus, good and evil are not nearly as easy to spot as they appear from behind the walls of the citadel.
As a result, as they put their packs on and followed the three he kept his eyes moving about the three, waiting, and watching. He did not immediately offer any conversation, but waited instead to see if their new escort offered any.
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
42 comments:
The following tags added to your comments will allow you to format your comments: (Remove the spaces within the < > for the formatting to work)
To italicize text, surround desired italics text with < i> and < /i>.
To create bold text, surround desired bold text with < b> and < /b>.
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
The three captors gathered Beranhond and his two crew members up into a small clump in camp, and prepared to lead them away. Just before they left the camp, a large red owl silently landed on the ground next to the man with the maul. It seemed very intelligent, and looked straight at Tigrisclawu, as if daring him to attack. After a single hoot, the owl hopped into the air, dropped a small note in the man's outstretched hand, and flew high overhead. The man took a second to look at what was in his hand, nodded to his two fellows, and said, "Come," to the captors.
ReplyDeleteThe man with the maul led the way, with the three captives in the middle and the man with the club and the woman with the scythe in the back.
As they walked southeast, Beranhond thought he saw the body of the last of the Paladins. Apparently he thought it was a good idea to make a large loop of the camp and had not been able to make it back to the camp when the attack had come.
As they walked, the man with the club asked, "What god do you follow?" He didn't really direct the question at anyone in particular, as nobody was facing him, but after a short pause it became obvious that the captives were intended to answer the question.
oooh! I am going to Hogwarts!
ReplyDelete"I myself follow Narath, she is a little known Goddess in these parts." Or any parts, he thought to himself. Beranhond had decided to be honest as they had killed the followers of Lathander and Torm, so it certainly would not pay for him to say those gods.
ReplyDelete"Might I ask what God you follow?" Beranhond asked in a tone that he hoped conveyed idle curiosity, but also respect.
Diplomacy:
Roll(1d20)+8:
17,+8
Total:25
"Sylvanus," was the terse reply. "What role does Narath hope to play in sending you to this part of the world? Or are you on your own?"
ReplyDeleteCould I get a religion check on Sylvanus. I looked it up, but that is kinda cheating.
ReplyDeleteReligion:
Roll(1d20)+6:
11,+6
Total:17
It is, plus I have a slightly altered, though essentially the same view of the gods of this world. Thank you for the check. Here is your info:
ReplyDeleteSylvanus is known as the Oak Father, and is the protector of wild nature, sometimes going so far as to send his servants to kill those that are encroaching on the forest. He is allied with Chauntea, the goddess of the fields and harvest, and Lathander. His religion is very pervasive throughout Faerun, and he has followers in most of the wild places of the continent.
Sylvanus, the ally of Lathander? Beranhond thought quickly. The forest connection and the animal companion hinted that his new companions were druids. That perhaps explained why they hadn't heard from them recently...
ReplyDelete"Narath sent me to look for information." Beranhond said, wording it so as to keep it somewhat close to his chest. "She suspects that great, and possibly terrible, things are happening in this region. Things that could impact the rest of the world. However, at this point we, Narath and myself, are really on our own. I was on my way to see the Druids to try and collect any information they might have had. The Priests of Lathander and Paladin's of Torm have not been as knowledgeable as I should expect. Might I ask your names? Mine is Beranhond, I am the surgeon and quartermaster for the Lady Narath, and this is Kailina and Janusa, also of the Lady Narath." Beranhond said in a hushed tone to keep in the mood of the night, as well as aiming for polite pleasantry. It felt odd to be trying to exchange pleasantires with this new escort, but they had not shown any overt signs of aggression towards them and this region had shown itself to be full of odd political games.
Diplomacy:
Roll(1d20)+8:
18,+8
Total:26
What are the beliefs of Kailina and Janusa? Here was our original conversation:
ReplyDelete"saxytenordan: So of the 15, 4 were Lathander, 4 were followers of no gods (a couple secular humanists, a pragmatist, and an atheist), 2 followed Selune, 1 Torm, 1 Helm, 1 Istishia, 1 Tyr, and 2 Sune"
"I am Sifuhn - "
Before Sifuhn could continue, the woman interrupted, "What were you doing with these traitors?!?"
Kailina follows Selune, Janusa follows Istishia.
ReplyDelete"We were with them because they agreed to lend horses and show me the way to the Goldenfields - being new to this region I have little knowledge of it. As for their being traitors..." Beranhond quickly recounted the story of the Lathander Priest. "In the end, I take what help I am offered as I piece together what happened. If you could enlighten me as to the situation our here in the plains and the badlands."
Diplomacy:
Roll(1d20)+8:
19,+8
Total:27
Sifuhn regains control of the conversation from the woman, "What do you know already?"
ReplyDeleteYou don't have to do a diplomacy check every time you post. They will tell you what you get with your two previous rolls, but it doesn't make sense that some questions are so much better worded that they spill all the information they've ever known and others are so poor that they tell you nothing.
ReplyDeleteI am mostly rolling diplomacy in an attempt to change their mood/temperament towards BH.
ReplyDelete"Well unfortunately, not as much as I would like" Beranhond told the perspective of the Lathander priests and about the attacks by animals and the undead. He also told them about the abbey being shut, and their failure to connect with the Druids of Goldenfields.
"However, there are clearly other things going on. Particularly in light of my experience with the Lathanderian priest in Balder's gate and the attack on the temple."
Well, you can't use diplomacy to try to change someone's attitude more than once in any 24 hour period. They won't just start talking to you and after 2 or 3 minutes decide you're not their mortal enemy, and they should switch sides to join you instead. That would be broken. You may roll diplomacy 1 more time, then, and see how you influence the third person.
ReplyDeleteThe woman snorted loudly at his view of events. "You say you were with them because they were willing to share their horses? What do you know about Lathander's priests in Baldur's Gate?"
"Precious little - I buried most of them after the Tsunami hit. A new contingent arrived there from Waterdeep roughly ten or eleven days after the Tsunami, but I did not spend much time with them."
ReplyDeleteDiplomacy:
Roll(1d20)+8:
17,+8
Total:25
Your three diplomacy rolls were amazing there... all 17s or 18s? Nice.
ReplyDeleteAnother snort of derision from the woman. "You claim to know little of them, yet you are the one that buried most of them? How did that come about, then?"
"The firsy day in Balder's gate I spent most of the day trying to heal as many as possible. Unfortunately, the only other healer in town was a Lathander Priest who decided I was a threat. I disabled him and went about healing. However, I gave up trying to heal them one by one and called forth Narath to help me heal the entire crowd of the square where the temple sat in ruins." He paused. "When I awoke the next morning I searched the ruins and found many death Lathander priests. Life is precious and an untimely death is saddening. I gave them what last rites I could and buried them to put them to rest and so as to avoid them decomposing in a city already in turmoil."
ReplyDeleteI was quite pleased with the rolls, as a test I tried out the next one... and it wasn't quite so pleasant. Nor have the other three test rolls I did, so hopefully I have them out of my system.
Not having anything more to say on the matter, the woman stilled her tongue and the man took over the conversation again. "You are in our custody now, so you should know that we represent Chauntea and Sylvanus, and are at war with the minions of Torm and Lathander. We will be stopping soon, and you will be questioned more thoroughly there."
ReplyDeleteReligion check on Chauntea:
ReplyDeleteRoll(1d20)+6:
11,+6
Total:17
Alas, that such things have to come to this region. Beranhond thought. Though it certainly is odd that the Tormish and Lathander priests and clerics mention any conflict.
With all these rules on the diplomacy rolls I can't help but feel like the DM is against us...
ReplyDeleteREALLY? In the real world, are you able to convince someone who is set on killing you to be reasonable and be your friend in a single day? I think that would be a miracle, and things don't just change that fast.
ReplyDeleteYou obviously do not have my gifts...
ReplyDeleteAlso, these rules came straight out of the book. I didn't make them up. I am just relaying them and correcting an incorrect use of the skill.
ReplyDeleteReally? When was the last time you were able to talk somebody holding a gun to your head that a round of drinks and a night on the town would be more fun, and you should hang out more often?
ReplyDeleteLast night as a matter of fact.
ReplyDeleteYou are obviously wasted on Sports Authority. The military needs you to talk terrorists into joining the ranks of the decent, fun-loving Americans.
ReplyDeleteBut then I would have to join the un-fun, imperialistic military.
ReplyDeleteBut the world would be such a better place if we could all be just friends. And since it only takes you minutes to convert enemies into friends, the whole world should be converted within a year or two, and you can then probably be pretty easily elected to the position of world leader. :D
ReplyDeleteWowsers, you guys had quite the conversation about this. I have been doing multiple diplomacy rolls because that is the way I have been running it in my game. Which is quite fair as games are run differently.
ReplyDeleteI have been making one attitude change easier, but each successive one gets harder and harder. However, diplomacy can't be immediately done and they will have to wait a round. I feel there should always be the chance for a really charismatic person to convince their enemies to join them and there are lot of those situations throughout history. But yes, they do not typically occur immediately.
But, I also tend to use my diplomacy within skill challenges - which this is not.
ReplyDeletehttp://community.wizards.com/go/thread/view/75882/19647222/Breaking_Diplomacy?pg=6
ReplyDeleteHas a very interesting discussion that mirrors this. I didn't realize some people were so nervous, or angry, about railroading:
"To a lot of people, including me, 'railroader' is one of the ugliest accusations you can throw at a roleplayer. It's the equivalent of calling someone a cheater, because that's effectively what they're doing--they're disregarding what other people want to do to force an outcome that they want."
I might not be all that opposed to railroading because things just happen in the world and neither you as a person, nor you as a PC, get full autonomy over the world.
Also, as usual, they point out that I am used to a more more fluid idea of diplomacy as per 4e.
This conversation reminded me a lot of several scenes from The Gamers, particularly the one where the monk demanded to roll the dice to see how compelled he was by the demon.
Speaking of amazing diplomacy rolls:
ReplyDeletehttp://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/transport/article6719191.ece
The thing is that with those three rolls, you were still able to convince all three of them to switch their disposition towards you. That seems amazing charismatic to me. Two went from unfriendly to friendly, though the third of them remains unfriendly (coming from hostile).
ReplyDeletehttp://www.d20pfsrd.com/skills/diplomacy
I think that is an amazing change, for three strangers to be completely changed by only a couple of minutes. Two of them are friendly now. FRIENDLY. They are no longer happy to see him hurt, and will follow out their orders without malice, rather than torturing information out of him as they might have done.
I grant that as a DM, I do have to avoid railroading so I do not cause everyone to do things exactly the way I want. However, I feel like there are always choices, and my use of the book's diplomacy rules does not mean I'm not giving you any choices.
For example:
You probably could have fought your way out of being arrested and tried for murder. However, I chose not to allow you to do it with the help of the NPC's. I do not think that is unreasonable. You could have all chosen to try to work together to outwit your retainers and run away, but you instead chose to go through with the trial and see how it went. You CHOSE to go to Waterdeep on Whittaker's suggestion, not mine. I really don't think I'm railroading you that much. At any point in time, you can choose to ignore everything that's happened so far and just run away to the south, if that's your choice.
What I think you are upset about, Darvin, is that you control only yourself and any events that I let you control. I control the weather and the NPC's for the most part, but that doesn't mean that I cause them all to be difficult and malicious. I just like you to have to work for what you get rather than having it handed to you.
Well, reading that, I'm not sure where that rant came from, but there it is. Do with it as you will.
Beranhond:
ReplyDeleteReligion check on Chauntea: She's known as the Great Mother, and is the parallel to Sylvanus in many ways. Where he is the god of wild growth and life, she is the goddess of crops and herd animals. Often, their priests clash over this difference. She is very old, and is the godly incarnation of the world.
I think that is amazing yes, but it is also a game and doing so does suggest the entire reason for actually having the diplomacy check.
ReplyDeleteI understand your annoyance - my group's bard (Erin) managed to get a friggin 32 on her diplomacy check.
I just rationalize the diplomacy by saying that high diplomacy means is more a measure of charisma and negotiating. People with high diplomacy are charismatic, can make people feel at ease, and can make friends easily.
But, there are those circumstances where diplomacy won't work (like a hungry orc).
I'm not annoyed at individual uses of the skill. It makes sense here for you to try to figure out what's going on and make the best of the situation. I just think that if it is used to such amazing effect on every enemy that comes up, then it becomes broken. It is very powerful, currently, and so it has limits - use once a day per target.
ReplyDeleteYeah, which is a slightly different rule than the 4e one, which says you can, but that it is probably stupid as it will strengthen their attitudes toward you.
ReplyDelete"What led to this war starting?" He asked of the man. "I thought that Torm and Sylvanus were allied." This was mentioned often throughout their courses at the Citadel. Beranhond had found it an odd marriage, but the order of Torm was interested in upward mobility and Sylvanus was an important God in the pantheon.
Yet another snort of derision from the woman. Can I start using abbreviations like SoD? "Torm and Sylvanus? You certainly have some odd ideas. Never. Lathander and Sylvanus were once allies though, before those foul scum began this war..." With this, she spat on the ground very loudly.
ReplyDelete"Ahh... slip of the tongue - I did mean Lathander. I must have slipped because the Lathanderian clerics and Tormish Paladins seem to be working together a lot lately. How did Lathander start this war?"
ReplyDeleteAs Beranhond asked this, the man in front, with the maul, motioned to hush them. They had come to the path from Red Larch to Secomber. Without a noise, the leader crossed the path, crouched low on the other side, and gave a long, shrill whistle. Several long moments passed, and the owl alighted on the man's gloved left arm. The man gestured, and the party crossed the road, and continued on their way.
ReplyDeleteAs they crossed the road, Beranhond leaned down and picked up Tigrisclawu.
ReplyDelete"I am tired of all this walking. Why did they leave the horses?" Tigrisclawu whispered.
"No idea." Beranhond responded nearly silent.
Also, which one is the leader - the one who gave me his name or not?
About 1 mile past the road, the hills of the badlands started becoming evident and the grasses of the plains made way for scattered sage and heather. Eventually, the group were led down to a depression between several hills, where Beranhond saw a small camp of between 50-100 people.
ReplyDeleteBeranhond, Kailina and Janusa were each led to a separate tent, with posted guards. The three tents were close to the center of the camp, part of a group of 5 tents that were laid out in a circle with their openings toward a fire. One guard sat at the fire, watching the entrances.
Sifuhn gestured to the tents. "Please spend the rest of the night here. We will send someone to gather you when it is time to talk once more."
Note: You arrive in the camp around 3:30 AM.
ReplyDelete