Completed [Play-by-Post] Magic World/BRP: "In Search of the Sorcerer"

[nikolokolus]

Spoiler

We're all present for this, right?

Spoiler

It would make things easier

 

[Grimgravy]

"Aye, it is." Rhenmyr takes in the scene.

 

[nikolokolus]

Fanrin leads you to a tent in pink and gray stripes where a badly deformed man sits on a stool; when you get closer you see that half of his face is covered in pustulating sores, and bits of fungus and mushrooms seem to grow from his head, hands, and neck. He smiles a black-toothed grin at Fanrin and the two share a hearty handshake. Other pleasantries are exchanged and after a few moments of explanation, Fanrin makes his introductions to his cousin Yavo and explains your predicament. He nods and smiles and ask, "Whaddya got?" he waves aside any show of coins -- he's not interested in money.

 

[L'ennui]

"What are you interested in, if not coin?"

 

[nikolokolus]

The deformed dwarf looks you up and down, "No offense neighbor, but ye've a mighty strange look to ya' . . . surely ye got sumpin' yer willin' tae trade fer yer 'ealth? I'm mighty curious about that robe ye've got on." He leans over and pokes Urash's hip-pouch. "Whatchya got in dere? smells 'spicy,' Yavo's got a keen interest in 'spicy' things."

You realize that he's poking the pouch with the black orb you've been carrying around since the encounter with the wolf. You also realize that he (and just about everyone you've encountered up to this point, haven't been speaking Hyperborean, or Illyrian at all this whole time; they're speaking their own native tongue, but somehow the alien sounds have been forming coherent ideas and images in your mind's eye, so that most of the time you feel like you're hearing your mother tongue. this new word you hear that forms the image of "spicy" in your mind, is something untranslatable (i.e. in this case your babel-fish just broke for a second).

Disease Check

I know Solon, Urash and Marcán contracted the disease, and Solon and Urash are still suffering, but Siveon I can't remember if Marcán made another check against disease (should be (14x2)=28% today), at the very least I didn't spot it when I went back through the posts. If you roll equal or under you've kicked the disease. Of course you always have the option of having bought a salve from the apothecary for 10sp, that boosts your CON vs disease by 10, so the check would be (14+10)x2=48% to resist disease today. The salve is a poison that can scar and can make you slightly arthritic (-1APP and -1DEX permanent), but you'd have a 60% chance to resist its effects if you want to chance it.

 

[Siveon]

Spoiler

(28) vs [1d100] = 78 no salve.

 

[nikolokolus]

As you stand in front of the dwarf's tent haggling, a low, rumbling murmur washes over the large clearing, as folk stop what they are doing and turn around to stare across the meadow. A tall, gaunt figure cloaked in a pure-white fur mantle is walking slowly through the now hushed crowd, flanked by two equally tall heavily-armored men, adorned in a strange kind of dark plate armor that covers them head to toe that is very ornate and boroque -- unlike anything any of you have every seen.

The nearly 8' tall figures walk unhurriedly and oblivious to to the small-folk underneath them. The white-garbed figure takes his time to peer into several of the stalls as if he were a casual shopper, but the way folk give ground and step aside without meeting his gaze gives you all a slightly bad feeling about all of this. After a short circuit around half of the market, he finds a seat in front of a meadery about 80 to 100 meters away and settles himself at a two-seat table. Immeditely, little green goblins almost trip over themselves coming out to wait on him. They bring him a ewer of mead and he pours it daintily into a crystal glass and savors it, while seeming to ignore the rabble of hawkers, buyers and buskers around him. His two companions stand impassively to either side of him facing in opposite directions, with their hands folded over the pommel of great two-handed axes that are resting head-down in the soft verge. Their faces are impossible to see inside their great, closed-face, conical helms, but you feel like they are watching everything around them without moving a muscle.

Fanrin and Yazo cough and clear their throats before Fanrin whispers softly to no one in particular, "Mind yer manners 'round that one, Mallowheart is a fearsome faerie to be drawin' attention to yerselves."

Spoiler

 

[nikolokolus]

Spoiler

(28) vs [1d100] = 78 no salve.

Spoiler

OK, you lose a point of CON. It won't start to regenerate until you've kicked the disease. make a note somewhere on your character sheet what your Maximum CON should be (or I can do it for you).

 

[Siveon]

Spoiler

(28) vs [1d100] = 78 no salve.

Spoiler

OK, you lose a point of CON. It won't start to regenerate until you've kicked the disease. make a note somewhere on your character sheet what your Maximum CON should be (or I can do it for you).

Spoiler

Done

Marcán, turns and stares directly at Mallowheart. "What do you say chaps? We were planning on meeting him, why not request an audience?"

 

[Grimgravy]

"If we can achieve our goals without meeting that fellow, that would be nice. Now as for trade, I've got this fine powder. Got it off a Hyperborean assassin. That chap went and melted himself, so you know he's into interesting things."

 

[nikolokolus]

New Character Sheet

If anybody is interested in converting their current character sheet to a much more useful one that I've been working on, you can download it and take a look. The easiest thing to do is export the form data from your current sheet and then import it into the new sheet. It should all be there without losing anything. FYI, if you lose the dropbox link to the file below for some reason, I also host this file at BRP Central
Features:

• Keep track of characteristics as they go up or down
• built-in dice roller widget (that adjusts dice based on the species)
• Much more legible
• auto-calc armor penalties with a toggle button, (or turn them off if you are unarmored, or just have a helm)
• keep track of temporary hit points and magic points easier
• Tracking Free INT for Sorcerer's/Caster's easier
• Apotheosis to Champion of Balance properly recalculates Hit Points to CON + SIZ + POW
• Apotheosis to Champion of Shadow properly recalculates Magic Points to POW x2
• toggle back and forth between "Heroic Hit Points" (CON + SIZ) and standard (CON+SIZ)/2
• tabbing through the document is now much more logical

https://www.dropbox.com/s/q6rl3gbv1uqzss2/MagicWorld CS (form-fillable).pdf?dl=0

 

[nikolokolus]

Spoiler

(28) vs [1d100] = 78 no salve.

Spoiler

OK, you lose a point of CON. It won't start to regenerate until you've kicked the disease. make a note somewhere on your character sheet what your Maximum CON should be (or I can do it for you).

Spoiler

View attachment 8879 Done

Marcán, turns and stares directly at Mallowheart. "What do you say chaps? We were planning on meeting him, why not request an audience?"

CON

Hmmm . . . I've got your sheet open in front of me and it says 14, I'm not sure where you got 12 from?

 

[Llywelyn ap Gruffydd]

Amon looks over at Rhenmyr when he mentions the powder and whispers to him. "White powder? What is that white powder? If it's from the person you are describing, maybe we should see about "gifting" it to this Mallowheart? I dont think anyone would miss him from everyones reaction. It might make our job a bit easier also?"

 

[nikolokolus]

"If we can achieve our goals without meeting that fellow, that would be nice. Now as for trade, I've got this fine powder. Got it off a Hyperborean assassin. That chap went and melted himself, so you know he's into interesting things."

Yavo holds one of the phials up to the light, uncorks one and sniffs it, "Hmmmm, interesting. Powder of the Sleep of the Dead. A pinch of this in somebody's drink or their porridge and they'll be out like a light for days. Very rare herb taken from the root-bulb of a 'delicate white flower" *he says a word that jars your ears, but forms the picture of an unknown white flower in your mind* "This will do nicely! for such as this I feel I should do more than merely cure your friends of their ailment. What else would you desire? A Love potion, Philter of the Savage Heart, Puissant Potion of Powerful Punishment, Honeyed Mead of the Honeyed Tongue? Name it, Yavo might have it."

 

[nikolokolus]

Allegiance

Because I'm a shitty GM and I always forget. You all have taken extraordinary risks and come along way in pursuit of your goals. So whether they are noble, selfish, or whatever go ahead and give your characters 10 Allegiance points to Light, Balance or Shadow (as you see fit). If you have an Allegiance 20+ points higher than any others you can swear yourself to one of the forces if you want and take whatever benefits that gives (make a note in the apotheosis box, or put it in your notes):

• Light= 3x session* add a bonus to any skill equal to 1/10th your Light score (successfully used skills don't get an experience check). Anytime you use this ability you must make an Allegiance check afterward (roll under your Allegiance and gain 1D6 points
• Balance=1x session you can add 1/5th of your Balance score as extra hit points. These Hit Points are the first to go and evaporate after any danger has passed. Ditto on the Allegiance check.
• Shadow=3x session you can add 1/10th of your Shadow score as extra Magic Points. You can only repeat this after all prior bonus MP have been exhausted. Ditto on the Allegiance check

*for our purposes a "session" is 1 real-time week.

 

[Grimgravy]

"The powder could prove useful, but I have nothing else to trade. Unless someone else has something to offer, I'll have little choice, Amon. What are the practical applications of your Philter or Puissant Potion?"

 

[nikolokolus]

Yavo explains in vague details, but you get the impression that they are not just simple drugs, but truly enchanted potions. The "Love Potion" given to somebody will make them infatuated with the first person they see (If you want the object of obsession to be a specific individual he says he'll need a strand their hair), "The Philter of the Savage Heart," will boost your stamina (he says it's distilled from a gland of a werewolf). "The Puissant Potion of Punishment," will give you the strength of 2 men and sharpen your reflexes, but he cautions that it will leave you in a torpor for hours or days afterward. The "Honeyed Mead" will make the drinker's words more pleasing to those who hear it. Lastly he has 2 Healing Potions for sale. In addition to providing a Cure Disease potion for everyone, he considers the powder a fair trade for two of his potions.

Nuts and Bolts

Here's the rundown of the game effects for each potion: Each Potion lasts for 10 rounds.

• Love Potion: POW vs POW 20 to resist. Affected comes to regard the object desire as if they had just made a 'special' success with the Oratory skill against them. Every day thereafter the drinker can make an Idea roll to come to their senses, otherwise they regard the object of desire with amorous feelings for a week or more. Bad treatment by the object of desire or actions which violate the drinker's basic code of morality grant an immediate IDEA roll. If they pass the charm breaks.
• Savage Heart: Same as the spell Sorcerer's Vitality(3). CON increases by 9 points for 10 rounds: refigure HPs, Stamina roll and Perception skills. Extra Hit Points are the first to go if you are wounded.
• Puissant Potion: You come under the effects of the spell Herolight(5) (see pg.121 of Advanced Sorcery), but you will be "Fatigued" for 4d12 hours (quadruple fumble chance)
• Honeyed Mead: Same as the spell Guile(4) (pg.114 Magic World) Increases imbibers Fast-talk skill by 80 percentiles for the duration.
• Healing Potion: Removes 3D3 wounds, and can be forced down the throat of a person who "died" as long as it is done before the end of the following round in which they collapsed.

Cure Disease Potion

L'ennui and Siveon; Urash, and Marcán immediately recover 3 lost CON points, and you need to make a new CONx5 Stamina roll. If this fails then disease isn't curable by any means except fighting it off with your own immune system; i.e tomorrow's Stamina roll is CONx3, then the day after that is CONx4, etc. If you fail, you continue to lose another point of CON each day.

 

[Siveon]

Spoiler

Stamina (70) vs [1d100] = 59

 

[nikolokolus]

Spoiler

Stamina (70) vs [1d100] = 59

Spoiler

Add back 3 points of lost CON (up to your normal maximum) and Marcán is now cured.

 

[L'ennui]

Spoiler

[1d100] = 96 vs 45... gonna have to fight it off the ole' natural way.

Urash's hands go to the pouch containing the strange orb he recovered what seems like a lifetime ago. "What do you know of this... "spicy" artifact?"

 

[nikolokolus]

Yavo holds out a bowl and asks you to place the orb on to it, "Hmmm, 'Gwyrigon Tears,' I'd reckon. Very hard to come by these days since The Retreat. Did you know the elder folk used to harvest these weepings from those ancient beings, while they gibbered and dreamt -- The raw stuff of creation, and extremely useful in the right hands. For this I can give you whatever I have, or with enough time, perhaps you'd let me keep a portion for myself and let me create an infusion for you."

Mechanics

If you let him create a potion, it will take a day. The potion will raise the drinkers INT and POW permanently 1D3 points.

 

[nikolokolus]

Spoiler

[1d100] = 96 vs 45... gonna have to fight it off the ole' natural way.

Urash's hands go to the pouch containing the strange orb he recovered what seems like a lifetime ago. "What do you know of this... "spicy" artifact?"

CON

At least add back up to three lost points to your CON score.

 

[L'ennui]

Urash bows deeply. "I kindly thank you for sharing your impressive knowledge. That latter option sounds reasonable, an infusion for me and a portion of the orb for you."

 

[nikolokolus]

You hammer out terms with Yavo, and Fanrin serves as witness to the deal(s) (for whomever actually wants to trade, PM and deduct any items you trade; he's strictly interested in chemical compounds, or things that have a magical aura, he's not picky, he'll take anything it seems.)

After about 15 minutes you watch across the clearing as Mallowheart rises to his feet and walks through the throng and out of view into the deep woods.

 

[Grimgravy]

Kick the disease? (65+10): [1d100] = 28

"I'll take the healing potions as useful as your other offerings sound."