TheRPGSite

Seeing as i'm unlikely to ever get to play a face to face game of Tal is anyone interested in a play by post game?

Sure, I might be interested.  Which edition are you going to use?  I remember reading that you wanted to play Tal4 (the big blue from Shooting Iron) in some post here, IIRC.

I would play. If it's to be 4e I'd probably be willing to scare up a copy of the big blue book, although my prefs lean toward earlier editions.

This would be my first pbp.

I only have 4e. I have no idea as to differences to earlier ones. I think it's the way that magic works that has been changed most, if i recall conversations i've seen.

Well, the magic system is one of the major changes from the earlier editions, and probably the most significant change.  I'd play using the Tal4 rules.  Although, I'm with Elliot, I personally prefer a blend of the 2e/3e rules (i.e. earlier rules).  However, that's not a knock on Tal4, it's an awsome and elegant system that deserves all its praise.  I like Tal4 very much as well.

Are there any special House Rules that you are going to implement?

I'd be in.

OHT, unless for some reason you have a strong desire to explore an earlier edition, you've got my support on using 4e...for whatever that's worth.

I would like to know what geographical region we will be playing in and what the focus will be on (action/adventure, cultural immersion, etc).

BTW I did go out and grab a Tal 4e...so I'm very much ready to go!

Me too. I am all geared to go.

Groovy.

You lot tell me what type of game you want to play.

I'm up for action and adventure so anything involving the exploration of strange lands, discovering ancient ruins, and escaping danger without worldwide repercussions would be great. Therefore, I would like something local scale and standard fantasy set in either the Wilderlands, the Southern Rim, or the Northern Reaches. However, I don't think such a campaign would suit the PBP format well so I'll defer to the others if they want something else.

I should probably point out my own preferences - not on game style, that's up to you, but on area. The only area that i find rather underwhelming to have a game set is the Northern reaches. Far fewer possibilities there, as far as i can see.

I'm flexible, so it really doesn't matter to me.  I think there's the opportunity for adventure almost anywhere in Talislanta.  The Seven Kingdoms offers a classic view of the Talislanta milieu.  I think that a campaign set in either the Eastern Lands or the Desert Kingdoms would be interesting.

Here are a couple of ideas i've had, with 3 game possibilities. If you want something else, pipe up. If one takes your fancy, do the same! :)

The Rise of the Ur

After centuries of fearing the eventuality, it has finally happened. A single King has united the three tribes of the Ur - The King of Grod. Reports have come from that blasted land of a great mobilisation and a great host forming. Mighty Ur warlords and their hosts are answering the call of their King, bringing thousands of fierce 7 foot tall warriors, countless Darkling slaves are corralled on the foul plains, waiting to go to war and die for their cruel master, stinking Stryx mercenaries and advisors fly with the host, adding an aerial danger to the land the host will assault. The Ur seeks new lands to despoil. But where will the hammer fall?

Will the Ur head into the Plains of Golarin? Will they assault the Ice Giants and reclaim the land they lost to them millennia ago? Maybe they will stream over the Obsidian Mountains and into the Seven Kingdoms. Perhaps the mineral wealth of Arim will draw their gaze and the Gorge at Akbar will see an assault the like of which it has never seen before.

Saving Private Iron – Western Lands

·   Since the news leaked about the gathering of the Ur, mercenaries have been gathering at the Citadel of Akbar in Arim. A cosmopolitan collection of warriors, wizards, rogues and...others have been trickling into the fortress for weeks, waiting to see if the hammer will fall on them. Some of the more gifted mercenaries are being pressed into assault and scouting groups and are being paid well for their services. Those services include ranging into Ur, spying on them, taking out leaders, sowing dissent and sabotage. Should the Ur come to Akbar, these mercenaries will be well used also. Behind the scenes move unknown numbers of Revenants, their purpose unknown. Your group is one of these mercenary companies.

This will be an all action campaign. The PCs will be an elite group harrying the Ur, gathering info, scouting, assassinating and all things in-between...and getting paid for it! Suitable archetypes: Go nuts!

Dangerous Liaisons – Seven Kingdoms

·   Your group is a diplomatic mission in the Seven Kingdoms. The Gnomekin have warned of the danger, but the interior of the kingdoms has become lazy and content. There have been no armies prepared; there have been no missions over the Obsidian Mountains to confirm numbers, deployment and weaknesses. Nothing has been done. Only your group are preparing. But you need help and that help can only be given through the courts of the Seven Kingdoms. You must travel to each and beg help and warn of the danger. Navigating the courts will be perilous; politics are another form of war, one that you must win first in order to win the second. Are you able to get aid? Even a small expeditionary force to verify your claims...you'd even lead it, if that got everyone's attention. Are other powers working in the Seven Kingdoms to thwart your efforts? If so, who are they?

This will be a political campaign containing skulduggery, diplomacy, networking, with a splash of espionage and action. Suitable archetypes: Gnomekin and other Archetypes from the Seven Kingdoms.


The Southern Rim

Ancient tales tell of a magical fountain to be found somewhere along the huge stretch of the Southern Rim. Every now and then, bold explorers set out to try and find it and make their fortunes. For it is said to rejuvenate any who drink from its waters.

Bazaar of the Bizarre

This year, you are determined to take part in the famous Festival of the Bizarre on the isle of Thaecia. To this end, you have decided that if you manage to find these magical waters, a prize of 10,000 Gold lumens must surely be yours. You have a motley crew, a talking Quaal (well, he says 'pants' a lot) and the gumption to search wherever you can to find it.

This will be an exploration type campaign that would suite nautical types – although nearly any Archetype you can think of could be a part of the crew.

My order of preference is:

Saving Private Iron
Bazaar of the Bizarre
Dangerous Liaisons

My preferences are:

Bazaar of the Bizarre
Dangerous Liaisons
Saving Private Iron

My preferences are:

Bazaar of the Bizzare
Saving Private Iron
Dangerous Liasions

Well, giving 3 points for 1st place, 2 for 2nd and 1 for 1st, i make that 8 points for Bazaar of the Bizarre, 6 points for Saving Private Iron and 4 points for Dangerous Liaisons.

Is everyone happy with us playing Bazaar of the Bizarre?

It's the pirate's life for me!  

Yes, I'm cool with that campaign.

As the other 2 had it as their favourite, i'll take that as a yes!

Only two restrictions on archetypes here. One of you must have an archetype that gives you an ocean going vessel and all archetypes noted as NPC aren't open.

We'll go with standard rules, rather than heroic or gritty.

Sounds great!  I'll get working on a concept.

Who wants to be the Captain, or the ship owner?  I'm flexible, so I would be the owner of the vessel if no one else wanted it.  So, I'm cool if Elliot or DeadU wants to the ship owner.

I'll note that captain and the ship owner (or whoever initiated the expedition) don't have to be the same person!

Which way do we want to go? In any case I think one of those roles ought to be filled first.

Personally I like the idea of them being separate.

Which ever role you want to play, go ahead and pick it.  I'm cool with just being a regular sailor.

It might be worth the 3 PCs being equal partners in the venture. Although, if one of you is bringing the ship, the other two should probably bring something too...

It's only a suggestion. If you guys are fine with 1 player being boss and the others being part of the crew, then i'm fine with it too. :)

Well, I find myself gravitating toward playing the person who's actually looking for the fountain. Possibly a Cymrilian or Sindaran, but I'm also going to look through the archetypes and see if there might be some other kind of eccentric entrepreneur type. I'd like to be able to hire a ship with a captain. As for the third character, aside from being a member of the crew, perhaps a bodyguard?

Or another way of doing things, we could have an entrepreneur with the money, a sage/wizard who's got the clues, and a captain who's got the ship. Just tossing out ideas here.

Quote from: Elliot Wilen;267853Or another way of doing things, we could have an entrepreneur with the money, a sage/wizard who's got the clues, and a captain who's got the ship. Just tossing out ideas here.

That sounds like a pretty good idea to me.

Let's see what the others think.

I guess I could be the captain. If I am native to the Southern Rim and want access to a seaworthy vessel, I can play either a Mangar Corsair, a Sunrasan Dragon Hunter, or a Gao Sea Rogue. I could possibly play a Phantasian Dream Merchant or Guardian assuming the ship lost its flight capability by some means. Such a vessel wouldn't be as "comfortable" as the others though.

Edit: For ease of play, the Gao Sea Rogue seems to be the best choice, but before I make a decision - what is everyone else playing? The face? The brains? The brawn?

Quote from: DeadUematsu;267858I guess I could be the captain. If I am native to the Southern Rim and want access to a seaworthy vessel, I can play either a Mangar Corsair, a Sunrasan Dragon Hunter, or a Gao Sea Rogue. I could possibly play a Phantasian Dream Merchant or Guardian assuming the ship lost its flight capability by some means. Such a vessel wouldn't be as "comfortable" as the others though.

We could open up the vessel to airships if folk like - that opens up a few more archetypes for the person wanting to be the ship guy. Windskiffs would probably suite things best. They have a crew of captain, first mate, a windpilot and 7 'others' (listed as swordmages in the book, but we don't need to abide by that). Cymrilians, Phantasians, Farad and Rajan folk know how to build them.

Edit: Alternatively, if folk don't want to be constrained a bit in their choice, we can say that you've been hired on to find the fountain and are using a patron's vessel. I'm easy.

I'm happy with either an ocean or air vessel.  It's really up to Elliot and DeadU because it depends on their characters.

I think that the three different roles works well.  It sounds like we've already got it set up tentatively; DeadU can take the Captain position, and Elliot can take on the role of ship owner, or a person who has hired the ship for this adventure.

I'm totally cool with taking the role of the muscle.  I gravitate towards combat-orientated characters naturally anyways.  I've some different ideas that I can go with here; I can play a sailor and crew member, I can play the role of 1st Mate, I can play the role of hired muscle by either DeadU or Elliot, or represent another individual on the adventure, etc.

My choice of archetype and character's role will depend a lot on Elliot's and DeadU's characters.  So, go ahead and start working on your character concepts guys.  I'll build my character's concept around your choices.

Here is my character...

Slantaris, Gao Sea Rogue

Slantaris is a usually even-tempered green-skinned scallywag of Cymrilian descent topped with platinum hair styled in dreadlocks. Still shaken by the lost of his lady, Slantaris takes desperate measures whenever he is on the verge of losing someone he cares for. Currently, he seeks to find Thaecia so that he may use his share of the reward money to free his blood brother from the unscrupulous Imrian slaver Gugfatten. Of course, Gugfatten is infamous for foiling all agreements to buy back one of his charges...

Attributes
HP 21
CR +3
MR +1
STR +0
DEX +2
CON +1
SPD +2
PER +0
CHA +4
WIL +0
INT +1

Skills
Dueling Sword +4 (+7)
Crossbow, Light +1 (+4)
Evade +5 (+7)
Pilot Mangar Carrack +8 (+8)
Swim +5 (+7)
Appraiser (Treasure) +3 (+3)
Underworld +6 (+7)
Stealth +3 (+5)
Deception +3 (+7)
Seduce +3 (+7)
Ettiquette +3 (+7)
Haggle +3 (+7)
Wandering +7 (+8)

Languages
Sea Nomad, native
Low Talislan, native

Equipment
Diverse, flamboyant garments - including cloaks, sashes, tunics, pantaloons, bandannas, ear baubles, eye-patches, and high boots; dueling sword (DR 6); crossbow, light (DR 6, 1 round reload, 150' range); quiver with 30 quarrels; leather armor (PR 2); a small chest; a large chest; 2 kegs of mushroom ale; 10 weeks of road rations; a traveler's satchel; bed roll; coin purse; hide sack; waterskin; tinder box; access to the Delirious Muse, a stolen Mangar Carrack; 12 gold lumens in assorted coins and valuables

I was also thinking of hiring some crew. Since we're in the Southern Rim, it is likely we could hire crew on the cheap (5 sp a week, 1 gl if they are combat ready) but the GM can decide otherwise.

Here is my character:

Character Name: Chan-Ra
Player Name: Drohem
Archetype: Sun-Ra-San Dragon Hunter

Description:  
Chan-Ra stands 6'2" tall and weighs 200 pounds.  His skin is covered with fine silvery scales, and he has deep blue eyes.  He is 27-years-old.

Attributes:
Strength +2
Dexterity +1
Perception +3
Charisma +0
Constitution +2
Speed +0/+4
Will +0
Intelligence +0
Combat +7
Magic +0

Hit Points = 24

Skills:
Harpoon +4 [+11]
Spear +4 [+11]
Dagger +3 [+10]
Survival +6 [+8]
Pilot (Dragon barque) +5 [+8]
Cartography +4
Artificer +1 [+2]
Artisan +2 [+3]
Song +3
Swim +9 [+10]
Sun-Ra-San, Native +10
Sign, Fluent +3
Climbing +3 [+4]
Conveyance +3 [+4]
Nomadic +7

Special Abilities:
Semi-aquatic; can breath underwater for up to 24-hours; can survive out of water indefinitely without discomfort; SPD +4 underwater.

Equipment:
Armor of sea dragon scales [PR 4, 30 lb]; boots of rainbow kra hide; bone spear [DR 8, 4 lb]; bone dagger [DR 4, 1 lb]; dragon hunter's harpoon [DR 8, 8 lb]; astrolabe; kra scrimshaw case for sea charts; quill pens; crystal vial of sepia ink; 40 gold lumens in pearls, scavaenged treasure, and mixed coins.

Background:
Chan-Ra's ship was damaged in a storm near the Pana-Ku islands.  The Sun-Ra-Sun found a spot to dock and repair, but were discovered by Na-Ku and attacked.  Chan-Ra was knocked unconscious during the attack was taken captive by the Na-Ku cannibals.  Chan-Ra thought that he would end up in a Na-Ku stew pot, but fate had other plans for him.  The Na-Ku camp was attacked by Mangar Corsairs, and Chan-Ra became a sailor upon a Mangar carrack.  Chan-Ra stayed long enough to earn the respect of the Mangar crew and captain, and his freedom.

Awesome. Now, did Chan-Ra become a part of the the stolen vessel's crew or did he actually serve with real Mangar Corsairs? The second one might pose interesting possibilities. Can't to see what Eliot comes up with.

Sorry to be a little slow but I have settled on a Cymrilian Magician for my character.

With only limited resources to my name I think I will have had to obtain financing from a Kasmiran moneylender as well as promising a share to Slantaris. More details shall be forthcoming as I get up to speed on the system and especially the magic system.

A carrack is a big ship isn't it? I think we will need some crew, cap'n.

Is Chan-Ra a previous associate of the captain?

If we are looking for quantity, I think I can afford to hire six non-combatant crewmen for 4 weeks (assuming the surplus of labor rate). That would leave me destitute though (a dire situation in the making)!

No worries, Elliot. Take your time. There's no rush.

As far as crew go, you need a skilled one to get the best out of the Mangar carrack. Chances are, your speed will be a bit slower than that listed.

Crew are available for 1gl per head/per level of ability each week. I think the carrack probably needs a crew of about 30 to function fully. Specialists such as First mates, carpenters, navigators, ship's doctor, cooks, guides etc are available for 1 -5 gl per week per level of ability (tell me what you want and we'll work something out). As this is an exploratory expedition i'm going to presume that all the crew have some skill at defending themselves and won't bother about the extra cost this normally entails. If you want to hire on extra-specialist help (such as an NPC with a listed archetype), let me know and we'll work out a price.

The talking Quaal is free. :D

Edit: Alternatively, you could hire crew on with a promise of a cut in any takings you make. With a minimal wage for a 30 crew, i'll say 6gl a week, bar specialists & super specialists if you, say, agree that the crew get a 10% cut of profit.

In that case, with just my twelve lumen, I won't be the one hiring the crew. If neither of us can afford so, perhaps we'll need to run a quick odd job before sailing off.

Quote from: DeadUematsu;268064Awesome. Now, did Chan-Ra become a part of the the stolen vessel's crew or did he actually serve with real Mangar Corsairs? The second one might pose interesting possibilities. Can't to see what Eliot comes up with.

I envisioned the latter; that he served with Mangar Corsairs for a time after earning their respect.

A choice for you lot. Have the nominated money guy flush with 3000 gold lumens to spend on crew and specialists (discuss your requirements amongst yourselves!) or spread the money around in a more even way. It's up to you guys.

Perhaps you can work something into your background to explain the money and create a hook or two.

Quote from: Elliot Wilen;268074Is Chan-Ra a previous associate of the captain?

I was thinking about this as well.  We could start off with Slantaris and Chan-Ra already familiar with each other from Gao-Din.  We could have it that Chan-Ra is Slantraris' First Mate, and they hire on a new crew for this voyage.  

However, I am just as cool as playing him as hired muscle for the voyage, either hired by Slantaris or Elliot's Cymrilian Magician, or playing him as a normal sailor hired on for this voyage.  If the latter, then he will distinguish himself in the course of play.

I think that it would naturally flow that Slantaris and Chan-Ra are already connected at the start of play, but I'm cool however we want it to go down.

I'm cool with Chan-Ra and Slantaris being buds though I also like the possibilities of Chan-Ra having ties with the Mangar Corsairs.

Quote from: DeadUematsu;268207I'm cool with Chan-Ra and Slantaris being buds though I also like the possibilities of Chan-Ra having ties with the Mangar Corsairs.

Sweet!  After his time with Mangar Corsairs, Chan-Ra traveled to the city of Gao-Din.  Chan-Ra met Slantaris there, and they became friends.

Name: Phenirian of Quil
Player Name: Elliot
Archetype: Cymrilian Magician

Physical Description: 6' 2" tall, 140 lbs, pale green skin and hair, golden eyes, slender build, handsome...ish

Attributes
STR -1
DEX 0
CON -1
SPD 0

PER +1
CHA 0
WIL 0
INT +3

CR -1
HP 18 [Base 19, -1 for CON, if I read the rules correctly]
MR +6

Skills (I don't have my book with me, so I'll put in the attribute modifiers later)
Arcane Lore +5
Etiquette +5
Fashion +4
Ride +3
Urban Background +1
Haggle +1
Barter +1
[Last three are Background and Common Skills, step 5 of chargen]

Languages
High Talislan: Native +10
Low Talislan: Basic 0
Archaen: Fluent +3

Magic
Wizardry: Attack +3, Defend +6, Heal +3, Influence +3, Reveal +3, Alter +3
Elemental Magic (Aeromancy): Move +4, Conjure +4, Summon +1, Transform +1, Enchant +1

Equipment: High collared cloak and robes of spinifax in purple, green, and silver, black dyed leather boots, assorted jewelry, leather and silver-bound spell book, pouch, 3 potions in amberglass vials (rejuvenation, love, fire resistance), 3 magical trinkets (to be determined), 80 gold lumens in gold pentacles

Background: Fresh out of the Lyceum Arcanum, Phenirian is a young Cymrilian who is determined to make a name for himself. Using an orchard at his family manse as collateral, he has borrowed cash from a Kasmiran moneylender to help finance an expedition in search of the magical fountain. Spurning what might seem a more direct route to the sea through Aaman, Phenirian has somehow managed to pass through the swamplands of Mog by joining an amber caravan. His goal: Gao Din, where he has been told he can cut a deal with one of the Sea Rogues to provide a ship and crew.

Phenirian of Quil looks great!

After seeing Elliot's character, I realized that I forgot my background and common skill choices.  I picked Climbing and Conveyance as the Common skills, and I picked Astromancy as Chan-Ra's Background skill.

Me too. I've updated my character sheet with them (I chose the Wandering background and picked Haggle and Ettiquette as common skills). Just one quick question for Elliot, where did you find the default skill rating for common skill picks? I couldn't find it at all.

Quote from: DeadUematsu;268624Just one quick question for Elliot, where did you find the default skill rating for common skill picks? I couldn't find it at all.

It isn't stated in the rules, that's why you couldn't find it.  I've always assumed in my games that it was a skill level 1.  It appears that Elliot made that assumption as well.  

Also, the Background skill thing isn't clearly defined as well.  You pick one skill that is applicable to your character's background (see first paragraph on p. 12).  

"You'll need to choose a Background skill, based on the type of culture in which your character was raised."

I guess that we should get a ruling from One Horse Town on the starting skill level for the Background and Common skills.  What do you think OHT?

Aren't the Background skills the categories listed at the very beginning of the Skills chapter, i.e. Urban, Rural, Wandering, etc.?

Quote from: DeadUematsu;268732Aren't the Background skills the categories listed at the very beginning of the Skills chapter, i.e. Urban, Rural, Wandering, etc.?

Not to my understanding of the material, especially with the information under #5 on pages 11-12.  However, I may be wrong. :) Let's see how One Horse Town reads it.  I'm cool either way.  :)

Some ideas for you to employ your crew from. I'll get on the skill question later today. :)

Crew

20 normal deckhands required. (half the normal crew can be press-ganged if you like. They might not like it too much though).

Standard crewmen 3 gold lumens a month

You probably need at least 1 of each of the following crew-members also.

Carpenter/Sailmaker 4 gold lumens a month per ability level

Ships Doctor/healer 5 gold lumens a month per ability level

Navigator/Pilot/First Mate 5 gold lumens a month per ability level

Available NPC specialists

These guys are kicking around and are currently looking for work.

Chi-Chi-Kar
Green Aeriad Botanomancer - 45 gold lumens a month & 5% share of profits

Krosk, Zadz & Trask
Jhangaran Mercenaries - 6 gold lumens a month & 1 gold lumen per day on active guard duty & 2 kegs of grog a week for each one employed.

Yain
Yassan Technomancer – 80 gold lumens a month & 5% share of profits

I believe Elliot can handle this. I am not exactly flowing in lumen at this point. :P

Bueller?....

Well, you guys can do your background skills as Elliot has done his.

Then, you can decide on your crew.

I believe both Drohem and I have already chosen our skills and, since neither of us have the money, were expecting either Eliot or yourself to divulge the total amount of wealth we have to spend on crew.

Quote from: DeadUematsu;269935I believe both Drohem and I have already chosen our skills and, since neither of us have the money, were expecting either Eliot or yourself to divulge the total amount of wealth we have to spend on crew.

Well, i did give the option of 3000 gold lumens. I guess we're waiting for Elliot then.

Ah, it was still an open question whether bg skills were to be interpreted as urban rural etc or specific things like astromancy.

Anyway, if the 3000 is all mine from mortgaging the orchard I'll approach things thus. Mr. Slantaris, my good man, I offer you  150 gl to show I'm serious, plus ten percent of the prize or other profit which may flow from this endeavor. You may share this as you wish with your scaly friend. As you are captain and familiar with the ways of the sea I shall rely on you to provide me with a budget for necessary other personnel. I anticipate a voyage of up to a month.

[By the way although I've got healing spells I don't exacly advertise my repertoire and I would not object to a ship's doctor being included on the roster]

While Slantaris and Chan-Ra are engaged in this I shall wander Gao Din and hire the Jhangarans personally. If you wish to bring on the other specialists [speaking ooc I like them both] you can present them as part of your budget.

Shall we do the crew hiring before we start or do you guys want to do it IC? I can start up an IC thread if you want to get a feel for Gao Din before the expedition proper starts up. :)

I'll defer to my coplayers' preferences. I'm okay with either approach.

Slantaris, although desperate for money, feigns desirability to the miserly Cyrmilian with an affable smile, "Why, good sir, while your money would be most suitable, if not outright generous, for any other sailor in this here port town, the most exceptional Slantaris - that's me - is the best investment you can get within sixty miles and it would be insulting to you, myself, and my partner (he points to Chan-Ra) to accept only 150 lumen upfront. 300 lumen would be more suitable and I would humbly accept such an appropriate sum."

He continues, smiling more sincerely, pulling for his more taciturn friend, "And before I forget, a shared payment would be the death of both me and Chan-Ra. To divide the money and the share of the prize money amongst us two grown men would lead to a pair of distended stomachs and a shattered friendship. Therefore, for the sake of continuing friendship and good health, we will also humbly accept 300 gold lumen apiece and seperate 10% shares of the prize money."

I asked these questions on the Yahoo! Talislanta group and this is the consensus:  

1.  There are only four background skills: Nomadic, Rural, Urban, or Wandering.  Each is modified by Intelligence, and starts at skill level +7.

2.  If you wanted to use a background skill in place of a specific skill that may be associated with the background, then a -5 penalty is imposed on the roll.  For example, a character with the Urban background skill wants to use the Streetwise skill, but doesn't have any skill levels in Streetwise.  The GM may allow the character to roll their Urban skill at -5.

3.  The starting skill level for the two Common skills chosen is +3.

Wow. I'll definitely need to slap a post-it with that information on my book's inside cover.

Ah, thanks for checking on that. We should revise our sheets accordingly.

I've been distracted by Thanksgiving and other matters, but, returning to the scene, I will say this to Slantaris, considering that a partner with an interest in future gain is likely to be far more motivated than a hireling...

"My dear Captain Slantaris, please do not misunderstand me; the consideration I offered was merely a surety, a token of my good will in engaging you as a co-venturer in the enterprise which I propose. As such it reflects on me, not on you. Please consider that I will be financing the crew and supplies for this expedition; nevertheless as you have shown your faith in Chan-Ra I declare myself as well to be his ardent partisan. I will offer him the same as I have you: 150 gold lumens and a 10 percent share (of whatever profit remains after expenses). Furthermore I will personally, as president of our little corporation, declare a bonus of 100 lumens to each of you upon discovery of the fountain which I seek."

Although Slantaris did not get exactly what, he is more than happy with Chan-Ra taking a share of the wealth and the promise of a bonus as well. With a sigh and a resigning smile, "Duly considered and no misunderstandings between us. I will accept your offer though I cannot vouch for my friend should he prove talkative and will be ready whenever you are ready."

[ooc]Excellent. Then with that business out of the way I'll leave hiring a crew and provisioning the ship to you guys.[/ooc]

Chan-Ra took another drink of his Aquavit as he half-heartedly listened to the bargaining between his Gao Din friend, and Captain, and the Cymrilian magician named Phenirian of Quil.  Chan-Ra secretly loved this effervescent liquor, and the amberglass goblets in which the drink was usually served.  

After all, it was only hospitable to offer a Cymrilian a glass of Aquavit to drink, Chan-Ra thought slyly to himself.

Suddenly, Chan-Ra realized that the deal was being finalized, and that he was being asked for his approval.  Chan-Ra was no fool, and it was clear by their tone and demeanor that a satisfactory agreement has been met between them.  Chan-Ra trusted Slantris' judgement in these matters.  Chan-Ra's skills were better served with a rolling deck under his webbed feet.

Chan-Ra looked at Slantrisjudgment and Phenirian and said, "I am in agreement as well gentlemen."

Chan-Ra raised his amberglass goblet and proposed a toast, "there is strength in the number three.  May Aqus bless this venture and create the bonds of friendship strong and true!"

Hello?  *tap, tap*  Is this thing on?

We need to put together a crew list. I was thinking you two could do that. And then if we prefer we can just cast off.

Quote from: Elliot Wilen;271205We need to put together a crew list. I was thinking you two could do that. And then if we prefer we can just cast off.

In case anyone missed this first time around...

Crew

20 normal deckhands required. (half the normal crew can be press-ganged if you like. They might not like it too much though).

Standard crewmen 3 gold lumens a month

You probably need at least 1 of each of the following crew-members also.

Carpenter/Sailmaker 4 gold lumens a month per ability level

Ships Doctor/healer 5 gold lumens a month per ability level

Navigator/Pilot/First Mate 5 gold lumens a month per ability level

Available NPC specialists

These guys are kicking around and are currently looking for work.

Chi-Chi-Kar
Green Aeriad Botanomancer - 45 gold lumens a month & 5% share of profits

Krosk, Zadz & Trask
Jhangaran Mercenaries - 6 gold lumens a month & 1 gold lumen per day on active guard duty & 2 kegs of grog a week for each one employed.

Yain
Yassan Technomancer – 80 gold lumens a month & 5% share of profits

Right, I personally hired the Jhangarans out of my pocket. If it'll help speed things along I'll suggest we take up Chi-Chi-Kar and Yain as well (treating their salaries as expenses and then cutting them into the profit as they request). I'd prefer not to press-gang a crew. What's a decent "professional" ability level for the carpenter, etc.?

I believe an ability score of +4 for the carpenter and the first mate should be sufficient (assuming they are reasonably gifted in the associated attributes). For the doctor, let's get one with an ability level of +6. We do not want our men dying quickly since once we cast off as it might be a burden to replace them. So, the 20 hands, one carpenter with +4 ability level, one first mate with +4 ability level, and one doctor with +6 ability level. That's about 126 gold lumen in expenses per month. As for the specialists, I do not want to hire the technomancer at all. I am neutral in regards to the botanomancer though, he might be a suitable replacement for the doctor and prove himself useful in other ways.

For hired help, ability 3 would be considered pretty decent. 5 would make up a well regarded crew. Higher than that and you get towards the better crews available.

I assume OHT intends that the cost per ability level is for the total, after you add in attribute values. So a less "experienced" but talented person will be equally effective and ask for just as much as an experienced person with less native ability.

It seems we have to cap our doctor at +5.

What do you have against the technomancer, he could be pretty handy in a pinch, don't you think?

I don't want to press gang anyone either.  Having a doctor at +5 is fine.  

Now, I am not so sure about either the technomancer and botanomancer.  Although, I have a question regarding their employment.  

Do they come with their own equipment and portable labs?  

The technomancer is expensive to keep on retainer.  His services may be limited on the voyage, and they are specific in their contracts.  

The botanomancer is cheaper to keep on retainer.  His services may prove useful, but might limited as well.  

We might do well with not hiring either the technomancer or botanomancer and using those funds to hire more crew, experienced crew (can guard), or mercenaries.

Okay. We'll just get the first mate, doctor, carpenter, and crewmen then. Is it possible for me to haggle those rates down?

So, is this game dead One Horse Town?

Bueller? ... Bueller? ... Bueller?  LOL!

I'd like to keep going, I think maybe we just stalled out over some details. Is it the strict bookkeeping implied by the way we've been doing things? If so I'd be fine with handwaving it now that we've got the essential down. You two are the "old salts" so if you say no technomancer, then Phenirian will bow to your expertise. I'm also fine with giving 5% to the botonomancer and assuming market rates on the (non-press-ganged) crew. If that means we run out of cash later, so be it, there are interesting things that could lead to.

I don't have anything concrete I want to do in town. If either of you do, then I think maybe you should describe it in general terms; I can riff on how my character is or isn't involved, and OHT can frame the scene more concretely. Otherwise, maybe we should just cast off.

In that case we need some more info what it is my character knows...and how much...about getting to the fountain.

I'm still pretty excited about this game and would like to see it go forward.  However, it seems (to me, at least) that One Horse Town has lost interest in running this game.  This feeling is due to the infrequent posts by OHT.  Now, I could be wrong and he's letting us loose in a free-form sense at the moment.  However, I not really big into free-form role-playing.  I like a little more structure and involvement from the GM.

Edit- Or, this is all on me.  It's just moving too slow for my tastes, LOL!  I'm not trying to be a dick or anything.

Well, it could be that we're not giving him material to work with.

I also would like this game to go forward. If OHT needs more from us, I'd like to know how we can help. If OHT would like to aggressively put us into the kind of situations he envisioned for the game, I'm okay with that, too.

If OHT is having second thoughts, best to get that out in the open. I'd like to keep the game going, but no hard feelings, and maybe we could salvage it in another way.

Slantaris has six hooks that you can build situations around...

1. He is still haunted by the loss of his lady. (That can be taken literally or it can be "Hello, twin double!")
2. He will do stupid things to protect those who truly cares for.
3. He has a blood brother he wants to free from slavery.
4. He needs money.
5. He will probably be foiled by Gugfatten.
6. He stole a ship from Mangar corsairs.

If there are any hooks that you feel suit this campaign better, OHT, I am more than willing to change Slantaris' background.

"It's dead Jim."

Too bad, I was excited about this game.

Really?

Is it possible to schedule a voicechat game? I mean, PbP is pretty darn slow so I can see why interest would plummet.

Hey, peeps. Sorry for the silence - my time on the site has been cut down recently. I'm jumping through hoops to get a job for the government :eek: and to get the playtest document of Stone Horizons completed. I haven't checked this thread for a while.

I'm still game....but not 'till after christmas. Both private life things should be sorted by then and i can turn my attention fully to the game. :)

Good to hear, Dan. Good luck with the new job and your writing.

Job hunting can be very stressful.  I hope that find something that accomodates your life.:)

I am down to pick this up after X-Mas.  Just shoot us a PM when you're ready to pick it up again.

I'm sending good vibes and thoughts your way.:)