Text Based RPG

[redbaron]

Got any questions about propane or propane accessories?

 

[Jennywocky]

I'm pro-pain, if someone tries to screw over my character.

 

[Cognisant]

*takes note*
Screw over Jenny's character.

 

[Jennywocky]

We start this weekend.

WOO HOO redux!!

 

[Cognisant]

It's 5am.
Fine chew on this until tonight.

You're onboard an airship, a refitted coal barge with a big old gas bag above it, the rigging is an interesting affair with two masts mounted to the sides (kind of like the arms of a trawler) with a third stubby one in the center that's used to raise/lower them. The whole ship sorta glides where it needs to go, alternately ascending and descending with the wing like sails both directing and propelling it, looks stupid but it works surprisingly well.

Under the deck there's two levels, the first is the cargo hold and crew quarters (you're not allowed there), the bottom is essentially a prison cell (you're allowed to there but not to leave). At the rear end of the deck there's a raised section with the quarterdeck on top, in here is a traveler's lounge which probably doubles as a mess hall for the crew, no bedding is provided since it's only a short trip.

As far as you can tell the ship has about a dozen crew, you don't know for sure, plus about half a dozen musket wielding guards (their bayonets in their belts) though there may be more below, speaking of which you don't know how many prisoners there are but this is a prisoner transport, its unlikely to be empty.

More tonight.

 

[redbaron]

We kill the crew, rescue the prisoners and arm them, set the ship on a kamikaze course for the central hub of the Chelaxian Overlords, rappel down off the dumb looking airship right before impact and sieze control of the parliament by force, thus inspiring civil outrage from the lower class Chelaxians who start on a violent riot that sees power over Cheliax return to the people.

Our new government demands blood for the blood god, skulls for the skull throne and Gently Sloping Ramps For The Handicapped. (c)Absurdity 2014

 

[Jennywocky]

We kill the crew, rescue the prisoners and arm them, set the ship on a kamikaze course for the central hub of the Chelaxian Overlords, rappel down off the dumb looking airship right before impact and sieze control of the government by force.

Our new government demands blood for the blood god, skulls for the skull throne and Gently Sloping Ramps For The Handicapped.

Yay, that was fun!

Where are we going next week? <IN OUR NEW AIRSHIP?>

 

[redbaron]

I say we visit Varisia, I hear it's nice there.

 

[Ex-User (9086)]

Yeah, leave the room for 5 minutes during a storytelling session.

Come back to see people conquer the multiverse and then discuss philosophy or argue their different ideas and definitions of infinity and probability/sample spaces...

 

[Jennywocky]

"I rolled a 29 on my existentialism check, which beats your 21 Deist role. So I win: There is no meaning in the universe except what we create for ourselves. HA."

 

[redbaron]

I think we just ruined all of Cog's plans.

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

 

[Jennywocky]

^^ I think it's a gift.

 

[Cognisant]

As long as you're having fun.

 

[Cognisant]

Blarraun I need your inventory, traits and feats.

 

[Ex-User (9086)]

Blarraun I need your inventory, traits and feats.

It's in the google doc link spreadsheet I've sent you more than a week ago.
edit: resent the link

 

[redbaron]

Vow of Airship Mutiny

 

[Ex-User (9086)]

Vow of Airship Mutiny

Vow of truth:
"Yes, we are going to kill every crew member and hijack this vessel.
Anything wrong with it?"
Vow of cleanliness:
"But before that, prepare my bath."

Or I will bathe in blood.

*Chants* "Blood for the blood god"

 

[redbaron]

Why do I get the feeling that a monk on a vow of truth would be an absolutely awful conspirator? Or maybe he's the perfect conspirator because he's exactly the guy you'd expect to ever conspire against you?

When do we get to kill stuff?

 

[Cognisant]

Oh there's tabs, I'm an idiot.

First official game post is at 4am AEST (so I can triple check everything)

And because I'm dying to talk about this:

Airships 101
Since they are based upon the principle of gliding as they change altitude longer ships tend to go faster, shorter ships tend to turn faster and in combat bigger is better because you want to get above your opponent but you can't move without descending (the longer you ascend or descend the more speed you pick up).

A bigger ship has either bigger guns and thus longer range or a higher lift to weight ratio in which case it may be able to fly around just fine at higher altitudes. So smaller ships simply can't play the altitude game or they get shot to pieces before they can enter within firing range, although specifically built ships with extreme lift to weight ratios can get the drop on larger more conventional designs.

Airship combat is at its most exciting when they intentionally deflate themselves in a swoop maneuver, essentially turning a dirigible into a very large glider, in a swoop a purpose built attack vessel can reach breathtaking speed and even regain some altitude by sheer momentum. This is normally done to ambush ground targets, to briefly escape another airship or to conduct hit-and-run attacks on a better armed ship with a lower lift to weight ratio.

 

[Cognisant]

The ship you're currently on IS NOT designed to swoop, it'll tumble, that's bad.

Or hilarious depending upon you point of view.

 

[Ex-User (9086)]

Why do I get the feeling that a monk on a vow of truth would be an absolutely awful conspirator? Or maybe he's the perfect conspirator because he's exactly the guy you'd expect to ever conspire against you?

When do we get to kill stuff?

When you tell the truth bluntly and when you are a 5 CHA character. No one is going to believe it. Besides, I'm not planning on being the most talkative of monks. I'll try to make it so that if I say something, it has some wisdom© in it.

 

[Cognisant]

I am Groot.

 

[Jennywocky]

When you tell the truth bluntly and when you are a 5 CHA character. No one is going to believe it. Besides, I'm not planning on being the most talkative of monks. I'll try to make it so that if I say something, it has some wisdom© in it.

Yay! It's a fortune cookie monk!

 

[Ex-User (9086)]

Yay! It's a fortune cookie monk!

I have a few bags of tactical cookies. Good for making friends.(At least that's what my character would think).
I plan to approach neglected children if I find any.

 

[Jennywocky]

I have a few bags of tactical cookies. Good for making friends.(At least that's what my character would think).
I plan to approach neglected children if I find any.

The tall mysterious awkward stranger handing out candy to emotionally needy children.

Everyone is gonna love us!

 

[Cognisant]

Your party has two tall mysterious awkward strangers and two short ones that could pass for kids, as I see it you're a gay couple with a daughter from a previous relationship and an adopted son.

 

[Jennywocky]

Your party has two tall mysterious awkward strangers and two short ones that could pass for kids, as I see it you're a gay couple with a daughter from a previous relationship and an adopted son.

Family values -- we got 'em.

 

[Jennywocky]

Disguise self (as provided by my cap):

You make yourself - including clothing, armor, weapons, and equipment - look different. You can seem 1 foot shorter or taller, thin, fat, or in between. You cannot change your creature type (although you can appear as another subtype). Otherwise, the extent of the apparent change is up to you. You could add or obscure a minor feature or look like an entirely different person or gender.

It's just the cap is limited to a few forms (human child being one) versus being a full-fledged disguise.

IOW, she doesn't have to be carrying a bow. She can just be carrying what looks to be a walking stick. And so on.

So half the shit you made up about my character doesn't even make sense. Are you just having fun at my expense, since you never even brought this to my attention until it appeared in the official thread? I see you bitching about semantics and how much you hate them in the existential thread, yet here you are playing semantics with my character before the game has even started rather than working with me on the character and how your rules will work. Is this going to continue?

----

.... we never did settle the specifics of play. We're posting in here? or discussing in here? and when do we post to the official thread?

 

[Cognisant]

So as not to disturb the flow of the main thread I'll post extra exposition here, you don't really need to know this stuff it's just what I'm coming up with to help add depth to the world for myself.

Everything on the Pathfinder Wiki about the nation of Galt is true but out of date, Korran Goss was exiled about fifty years ago by a half-orc named Gorak Ballaster who also played a major part in disbanding the Gray Gardeners. Despite his brutality as a combatant he had a gentle personality and treated people fairly which won over the people's hearts and they made him their chieftain. It was an odd move for a nation known primarily for its philosophers to make someone so uneducated an unintelligent their leader but they were all sick of Machiavellian plots and after Korran the dim-witted half-orc was the only contender anyone was willing to trust.

Over time the title "chieftain" became "king" and Ballaster's children were regarded as royalty, for the first time in over a hundred years Galt was in a state of peace and prosperity. However twelve years ago the Cheliaxian army returned to reconquer what they had lost and despite a valiant defensive effort Galt once again fell under their rule.

Gorak himself died defending the capital of Isam but rumor has it that the hell knight assault force that attacked the royal palace (well a palace by orcish standards) was held off long enough for his children to be evacuated. As the story goes when a Cheliaxian airship swooped in to deliver its hell knight cargo the citizenry of the town stormed the palace as an angry mob with butchery on their minds. For over a hundred years the nation of Galt was ravaged by angry mobs, when it came to storming palaces these were the experts and having only just acquired peace and prosperity thanks to Gorak they had bloody murder on their minds for anyone that would dare attack his kin.

Death on the battlefield is not something a hell knight fears, however being disarmed and dragged kicking and screaming by a howling mob to the basement of a museum to be executed with a soul stealing guillotine is a different matter. Typically hell knights who serve well in battle are resurrected if they die in service to Cheliax but that antique guillotine prevented it and with no Grey Gardeners around anymore nobody knew the secret to lifting the curse.

 

[Cognisant]

So half the shit you made up about my character doesn't even make sense. Are you just having fun at my expense, since you never even brought this to my attention until it appeared in the official thread? I see you bitching about semantics and how much you hate them in the existential thread, yet here you are playing semantics with my character before the game has even started rather than working with me on the character and how your rules will work. Is this going to continue?

Alright alright calm down, I thought it was funny that's all.
Excuse me if I don't remember every single detail of every single item and ability.

Besides you're going to need to get changed, that's not going to happen on deck and if say while you were below deck you were to sneak away and release the boar and prisoners...

You also don't know what's in the cargo hold.

we never did settle the specifics of play. We're posting in here? or discussing in here? and when do we post to the official thread?

Discuss here, post what you want to do there, if there's an issue I'll discuss it here with you and add the discussion to my next post in a spoiler in case we need to refer back to it.

 

[Cognisant]

I mainly wanted to have Viktor be the irresponsible dad

And to give the redcoats a chance to be human, they're not murderous dicks all the time y'know?

 

[redbaron]

Where's Snowy (Viktor's tiger)?

 

[Ex-User (9086)]

I request an in-depth explanation of the events leading to where we are now.

You already know each other although nobody else on board knows that, the stern eyed human is Viktor, the apparently human girl is V'as, the oread monk is Innodiey and the mercenary looking gnome is Agrotsar. After an incident in Edme involving a slave market, some redcoat guards and more than a little spilled blood you all decided it was a good idea to leave on the first airship out before the bodies were found and the manhunt began. Beyond which side you'll pick in a fight you really don't know that much about each other but when you've gone and made an enemy of the world's largest nation and most powerful military maybe that's all that matters?

Redcoats are the Chelaxian military? Could you be more specific as to what happened there? Why was there a slave market in a farming town?

 

[Cognisant]

Where's Snowy (Viktor's tiger)?

Cargo hold, it's perfectly acceptable to transport animals this way be they exotic or otherwise, Snowy is in no danger although probably not very happy at the moment, still you don't commit mass murder, free slaves, then stick around for the authorities to arrive.

I request an in-depth explanation of the events leading to where we are now.

Well I wasn't going to start you off in the capital and I considered having you start in the lower hold with the prisoners (y'know do the whole Elder Scrolls thing) but that's depressing and you'd be separated from your weapons and I'd have to find a contrived reason to give them back to you and frankly this seemed so much simpler.

Story wise it's pretty simple, some slavers came to town with goods to sell (it's a town not a farmstead so there's people with money) and one of you (I let you decide who) did the noble thing and freed them in the middle of the night. This went poorly, a few dead slavers later the redcoat guards show up, everybody else in the party comes to the rescue and it's a bloodbath, you hide the bodies and unanimously decide not to stick around.

The slaves hide amongst the locals (indeed some of them were locals) and you lot buy passage aboard a Cheliaxian prisoner transport because what kind of criminals hide on a prisoner transport manned by the very kind of authorities that will soon be looking for them?

You made a clean getaway, nobody (surviving) saw anything except for the former slaves and the mostly grateful townsfolk and you would assuredly never have to worry about this again... unless you pressed me for details.

Redcoats are the Chelaxian military?

Yeah, the fuckers are everywhere.

For the most part they'll leave you alone unless you do something unlawful, as far as they're concerned you're all human and human-like, you're not unlicensed spell casters, indeed out in the far reaches of the Cheliaxian empire adventurers are needed for all sorts of odd jobs.

 

[Cognisant]

Redbaron just sent me some instructions via PM, you can post them directly to the thread if you want...

Actually I suppose it's better this way, more tidy, yeah just PM me and I'll reply if I have any questions or feel the need to remind you of something.

 

[Cognisant]

When the four of you have PM'ed me your instructions and I feel I understand them adequately to be true to your intent I'll update the CoF&F thread.

 

[Ex-User (9086)]

possibly useful info for the future:

Spoiler

I have the modding capacity to edit and merge your messages should such steps be required.

I would ask of other players and GM to share their skype details, so that we can have some interaction with creating posts together.
Mine:

Spoiler

Name:Adon Blar
Location:North Korea

 

[Jennywocky]

Skype:

Spoiler

name: rhynalae
location: Maryland, USA

I'm not doing all the discussion in PM, my PM box will have to be emptied constantly if that happens. If there's anything secretive, sure.

So we're on a prisoner transport, with not a ton of scenario hooks to decide what to do next?

Sounds like Galt is back under Chelax control, but the mobs aren't happy about that and also wouldn't mind Ballister's kids from being in charge again. For a larger more long-term goal for this region.

Short-term goals:

- We could release the prisoners. (After paying to get on the ship.) our tiger is also stuck down there.
- We could take over the ship as part of that and/or hurt the guards.
- We could investigate the cargo hold.

?

EDIT: We'll probably write up some intergroup roleplaying between us (doesn't change the plot) as part of flavoring thing. Blarraun and I are interacting a bit.

 

[redbaron]

I don't even know my Skype so I'll just add everyone else.

 

[Ex-User (9086)]

A bit of hopefully useful OCD.
I decided to merge the more relevant posts from both threads into a single file for anyone interested in the chronologically sorted story/details.

Spoiler

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Dw5Em31lUy1KQKd3dfJSjcNXJQ_tILcxmGFYGnaICVQ/edit?usp=sharing

edit:I'll be updating this as frequently as I can. I may consider creating a thread on the forum, but not convinced yet. Please point out any inconsistency, lacking posts, ad nauseam et cetera. I'll edit it to the Cog's OP so that it's easy to find.

 

[redbaron]

Wow. That's awesome, thanks Blar

 

[Jennywocky]

So aside from any group banter... plans?

V'as scampers around the deck looking over the edge in wonder, as if she's never been on an airship before. "Look at that, all the trees and buildings look so tiny!" she exclaims, pointing. One of the guards/sailors looks at her, irritated, as she scurries in front of him to run to the other side of the ship to see what else she might have missed.

But from there she can hear the noise from the captive pen and her face falls a bit, before hardening slightly. She looks back at her companions, questioningly.

V'as is looking off the sides of the ship, to see whether there are open windows or extended decks -- i.e., if she decided not to take the main stairs into the bowels of the ship, could she actually climb down the sides to these other openings in the hull and thus enter that way?


EDIT: Blarraun and I have RP'ed some dialogue we will be sending Cog.
I also sent plans for what we think might happen -- both V'as and Illoniey think it would be good to free the prisoners (for different reasons each), and so V'as is climbing down the ship in monkey form (if not being observed), she has a climb speed, and stealth into the hold area to look around and then back to the group to share what she's seen. We can then base actions on what information she brings back. Does that sound palatable or are there other ideas?

 

[redbaron]

Okay, I guess I'll add Viktor's actions here as well.

Viktor is standing in the corner and observing events unfold in the room. As V'as makes a commotion running from side to side, he waves his hands and mutters something briefly before quickly folding his arms across his chest again and returning to his alert but non-threatening disposition.

For the sake of not wanting to overly meta-game, unless Viktor is expressly announcing what spells or abilities he's using I probably won't be specifying it. I kind of like to keep my character and player knowledge separate. Of course he'll point out if he notices any traps or enemies around.

 

[Cognisant]

V'as scampers around the deck looking over the edge in wonder, as if she's never been on an airship before. "Look at that, all the trees and buildings look so tiny!" she exclaims, pointing. One of the guards/sailors looks at her, irritated, as she scurries in front of him to run to the other side of the ship to see what else she might have missed.

But from there she can hear the noise from the captive pen and her face falls a bit, before hardening slightly. She looks back at her companions, questioningly.

There's no buildings and you don't control the NPCs.

Tell me what you want to do, I make the appropriate checks and tell you (and everyone else) what happens when I post in the main thread.
By all means go into detail regarding how your character behaves.

Viktor is standing in the corner and observing events unfold in the room. As V'as makes a commotion running from side to side, he waves his hands and mutters something briefly before quickly folding his arms across his chest again and returning to his alert but non-threatening disposition.

There's no penalty for trying (the guards are relaxed and not readily alarmed) but you're not guaranteed to succeed, when I update I'll roll the checks, explain what happens and post the roll results in a spoiler.

 

[redbaron]

No that was the attempt. I was just making a show of Viktor doing it quickly/discreetly. Viktor still did 'it'.

 

[Cognisant]

V'as is looking off the sides of the ship, to see whether there are open windows or extended decks -- i.e., if she decided not to take the main stairs into the bowels of the ship, could she actually climb down the sides to these other openings in the hull and thus enter that way?

Not without attracting attention, the main deck has deckhands, guards, other passengers and the captain watching everything from the quarterdeck, if you climbed over the side someone would likely grapple you and drag you off the railing.

If you just wait your pants & tunic will be finished and the guard will lead you to hold where you'll be left alone to get changed. Considering for all they know there's a girl getting changed down there nobody's going to come looking for you for about 10mins and when they do become suspicious they'll likely send your "father" down first.

When you boarded the ship you saw portholes on the sides but they didn't extend all the way to the bottom so the lower hold where prisoners are kept likely has no windows but also means there must be a way to access it from the cargo hold.

 

[Cognisant]

No that was the attempt. I was just making a show of Viktor doing it quickly/discreetly. Viktor still did 'it'.

Oh nevermind I thought you were doing the same thing as Jenny.

It'll be a lot easier for me to write and easier for everyone to read if I'm the one who does all the storytelling, it also prevents inconsistencies like if two people were talking to the same NPC and getting different reactions. Everyone just tells me what they want to do, how they want to do it (for the sake of roleplaying it) and I'll patch it all together into a coherent narrative from there.

 

[Ex-User (9086)]

At what hours are you going to be availible for us? I want to finish the roleplaying piece with Jenny but we need you to provide detail and consent.

Also doing it in this thread or PM is frustrating and prone to get disorganised, I'd rather skype. We could PM but I'd like to know when you are on. I'll have some time in 8.5 hours from now.

 

[Cognisant]

Just get on with it, maybe spend your first turn doing perception and knowledge checks, maybe check out the traveller's lounge, it dosen't matter if you don't immediately achieve anything the ship isn't going to get anywhere for a good while yet.

Outside of combat I'd say a round lasts about a minute or two and Isam is still probably half an hour away, so relax, talk a bit, get to know who's going on.

Ideally I should be updating the main thread once or maybe twice a day, not playing twenty questions with the four of you, it's not like I'm going to spring something on you out of the blue (unless it's a surprise attack or something) however you have got a lot of time to meta game so I suggest you carefully consider what I have told you.

If I were you I'd be curious about the passengers and crew, do any of the passengers look dangerous and how can we figure out which side they'd take in a fight? Likewise is the captian Cheliaxian navy (air force?) or is this a private vessel in Cheliaxian employ?

If you tried to take over the ship what will the captian do?
I'm not going to just tell you, go talk to him.

 

[Ex-User (9086)]

I may have no time today. So I'll try to do it step by step. I'll communicate simple actions here, descriptions will come when I have more time.

Situation is as follows, Innodiey got to know V'as, recognised her as a monk. He learned about her idea of freeing the prisoners. So from now on my character will try to help V'as with scouting the lower parts of the ship to find about the prisoners from the hold and how to free them.

When I finish roleplaying this, I'll give it to Cog to post.