OOC A Tide of Discussion: the d20 ToF OOC thread

Also, while it's always dangerous territory to introduce Real Life into D&D calculations, smoke inhalation =/= bronchitis. One is an inflammation of the broncheal passages; the other is inhaling the hot, gaseous products of combustion which is responsible for 50-80% of deaths in (indoor) fires. It's not the same as sucking on a durry.

 

I'm not gonna argue on what its like to be in a fire and smoking and have bronchitis. I actually had to define what the heck a "durry" was. Darn Aussies and their strange lingo!

I can make myself not have air, cover my mouth and plug my nose. There. No air. I can hold my breath then


But eh... D&D rules are funky. So I guess I'll spend that AP to do something like oh... maybe move away and possibly cast Healing Sphere if I can? Unless I can spend another AP to amp CLW (Mass) after swapping it out with another prep'd spell? If not, Healing Sphere it is.

 

Well, the AP spend means you make your save against the smoke, since if you add one to your Fort score it makes it higher than the smoke's attack roll. So rather than coughing and choking for the round, you act as normal and can do a move action and a standard action. You can't spend any more APs because you're limited to one per round and yours is spent on getting the Fort score up. So I guess it's move and cast Healing Sphere (I have to check whether you've got that spell memorised, can't remember as I type.)

As for strange Aussie lingo: just don't ask an Australian if he wants a root beer. OR talk about landing on your fanny.

 

I don't see a Healing Sphere on Zanaek's list, though I do see a Healing Spirit. Healing Spirit only heals 1d8 points of damage per round though (+8 from Augment Healing?) to one person per round.

There's also Mass Lesser Vigor, which will heal 23 +6 points (from Augment Healing) or 46 + 6 points when extended, but it takes several minutes to get that healing. Other than that, there's Mass CLW, which heals 1d8 + 13 + 10 (augment healing) hit points.

While we're on the subject, I don't suppose Healing Lorecall applies to the "choking on smoke" effect?

 

Sorry... Healing Spirit, got it's name mixed up with another spell from another game that is called Healing Sphere and does pretty much the same thing. XD


Actually I think I'll swap out Righteous Wrath of the Faithful for Cure Light Wounds [Mass], and cast it on the party. Provided everyone who needs the healing, is in range of me, otherwise I won't cast it until they are in range.


Edit: Woooooow. Seriously? Only a 1? COOOOME OOOOOOOOOOOOON!

 

Nope, Healing Lorecall doesn't apply to choking from smoke, etc, because it doesn't actually impose an effect. Or no effect that Lorecall covers AFAIK.

But on a related note to that: Mitth, note your Imbued Healing feat - you get to flick either DR 3/evil or 12 temporary hitpoints on everyone the subject of the spell, in effect, since you'd be casting a Conjuration [healing] spell with Mass CLW. Those temporary hitpoints last up to an hour.

EDIT: Also, what grid positions are you guys moving to?

 

Gonna be working up a post, but the gist of it does include dragging our hapless bard along with me into shelter.

 

On that: Mazarun has STR 20, so let's call pulling Evelios along the ground a Medium load: I've never kept really good tallies of weight, and I'm assuming Evelios's build tends towards the "artistic" than the "Schwarzenegger", so the load probably falls at the top end of the 133 - 266 pound range or so, giving some allowances for the fact it's dragging rather than hoisting him over his head. Per the rules on the subject, your speed drops to 40 feet per round while dragging, there's an Armor Check penalty of -3 to skills, and your Dex bonus to AC drops from +4 to +3.

Call it a standard action to grab Evelios's ... uh ... actually, probably his shoulders or something since he's covered with his shimmery diamondlike plate of Ectoplasmic Armour from head to toe, but anyway that probably leaves you 40 feet of movement to work with, if you wanted to go that far. Won't bother with a DEX check to grab him since he's either (a) in no condition to object (b) wouldn't want to object and (c) hasn't really got an AC or DEX score to speak of on this one. So, yeah. Guess it comes down to what square you want to move to in mechanical terms, though I'm dying to see how Mazarun deals with it, and what Ramza makes of Evelios getting groped by a drow warrior

 

what does DR 3/evil mean?


As for moving, to the west is the gate right? I'd assume we would head for cover so the dragon cant get another attack on us be it breathe, fang or claw? Guys?

And whats over there that we can see, if anything at all?

 

DR 3/evil means that if the attack isn't made with an evil-aligned weapon, it does 3 less damage to us. The dragon may be evil, but its weapons aren't evil aligned because they're not evil enough. Useful if the dragon makes any melee or ranged attacks next round, since it can't breathe again for quite some time. In our case, the DR might be more useful than the THP, since the THP eliminates 10 points of damage, but the DR 3/evil eliminates 3 points of damage per attack for the next five minutes, and thus might be able to prevent more in the long run since the dragon can make up to 6 attacks per round. Good news is that the concealment and cover works both ways- blindsense lets the dragon locate us, but it's not blindsight which lets the dragon see us, so the 20% to 50% miss chance is still in play, along with bonuses for cover and possibly range increment penalties.

Skadi is going to go into cover with everyone else and cast Air Walk on Evelios, spending an AP to hold on to it. She's going to try to stay adjacent to as many of them as possible to shield block any ranged attack that comes at the party, and remain towards the front of the formation.

 

Hmm.... 3 less dmg or 12 extra HP.


I think I'll go with the DR 3/evil since the thing probably hits like a truck.

 

Couple of things on the surroundings. Better we get this sorted out substantively now so there's no misunderstandings about the locations.

Check the map.

At grid references X and Y 13 through 15, you have the passage through the inner gate into Brindol. There were doors there; they've been blasted down, presumably by dragonfire. That section is not under an archway. It's open to the sky.

The area that is under an archway, i.e. under cover as you're contemplating, is the area at X through Z, 5 to 8. That's the outer gate, covered by an arch and by the roofed area of wall. In short, the area from roughly P4-AO18 is a barbican. The area of T3 - AC8 is roofed over: it's a small room, if you will, above the archway. As Light noted, it's not on fire. Even if it was, the archway below wouldn't be smoky. The air is still (pretty much) clean inside the barbican.

(In passing, the outer doors were far more substantial than the ones at the inner gate. They, too, have been blown down by dragonfire and they're lying in the archway.) There wasn't a barbican at the South Gate, mainly because the original builders of Brindol never got round to finishing one off, or possibly ran out of money for it, or didn't see the need. The Dawn Way was Brindol's main trading route, so the greater security was seen as needed on that east-west road -- and there is a barbican on the East Gate, for what it's worth.

I point that out because of your movement speeds. If you guys are intending to cast and move in the same turn, you're not going to reach the cover of an archway that turn. Maybe that has some significance, maybe not.

As to what can be seen through that gate: Mazarun and the rest of you can catch glimpses of fighting going on out there to the west, but it's impossible to pick the distance at which it's occurring. In essence, the hussaryn are fighting a losing battle trying to hold a perimeter so the Red Hand can't just overwhelm the West Gate, which has no defenders at the moment. They're literally caught between a rock and a hard place: they can't fall back to the West Gate because the dragon is there, but they can't break for the south because (a) the Red Hand is swarming the walls right now and (b) if the hussaryn did abandon their positions, the West Gate would fall, having no defenders. If the dragon is driven off or otherwise dealt with, obviously the coast will be clear to bring up reinforcements from Brindol's garrison and the hussaryn can fall back to the wall, but until that happens, they're spending their lives keeping the West Gate from being overrun and buying enough time for someone to take out the dragon.

 

Problem sorted. Mitth, just let Zanaek get undercover along with the rest of us? He can get another turn this round, courtesy of Mazarun's White Raven Tactics. Once there, he can bust out the heal.

 

Sounds good Rilwen.

Edit: So we take cover in this barbican then?

 

Is the inner gate currently covered with smoke? If it isn't, that's where we should head. It's not that far away, so we can still move and cast. If we don't have line of effect to the dragon thanks to things like walls and houses and smoke, it doesn't have line of effect to us either and needs to move to draw a bead on us, which means it can only make one attack on us at most. It also gives Zanaek enough time to cast two spells, one normally and one via WRT.

Also, if Skadi has any way to relay a message to the guys fighting out there, tell them to start pulling back. The dragon will probably be out of commission within the next 30 seconds or (six rounds).

 

No, the inner gate isn't covered with smoke. Skadi can use her Telepathic Bond to contact Jarmaath and ask him to relay the message, so that's what she will do.

 

Allrighty then, if Zanaek has time to do his mystic-healer business, he will get that second chance at a spell too then.

 

Right, so: Evelios is down coughing, so Mazarun goes first of the four of you. White Raven Tactics only has a range of 10 feet, which Zanaek won't be in if Mazarun hustles Evelios into cover.

So I'm assuming:

(1) Mazarun delays until Zanaek has his turn.
(2) Zanaek does ... something.
(3) Mazarun then uses White Raven Tactics (swift action) on Zanaek, pulls Evelios into cover (standard action and move action) to ... where?
(4) Zanaek gets his second shot at a full round of actions. What?
(5) Which leaves Skadi to go last according to Light's instructions as set out above, so he doesn't have to set out a grid reference if he doesn't want to.

Rilwen, when you post, feel free to act like a full-on commander here, because Mazarun really is the centre of this round by reason of White Raven Tactics.

Mitth, in case you missed it -- White Raven Tactics is a maneuver Mazarun gets to use as a Warblade. Basically, it amounts to "pick an ally (Zanaek). That ally now acts on the initiative count after you. Yes, even if they've already acted in this round. You get a second full round of actions at your new initiative count."

 

Zanaek goes to cover with others, gets his second chance and heals the group with CLWm, in which no two can be 30ft apart.

And aren't we heading for the inner gate or barbican?


Tapatalk Signature
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Use the light switch, Luke. Trust your feelings!

 

I vote the inner gate. It's within a move action from everyone, leaving Zanaek one action to cast Mass CLW, then cast another spell with his WRT turn.

That would make it

(1) Mazarun delays until Zanaek has his turn.
(2) Zanaek casts Mass CLW and moves into cover.
(3) Mazarun then uses White Raven Tactics (swift action) on Zanaek, pulls Evelios into cover (standard action and move action) in the inner gate
(4) Zanaek gets his second shot at a full round of actions, allowing him to cast another spell.
(5) Skadi goes last, does what I've already established.

In terms of formation, I'd put Skadi and Evelios in the first rank, and then Zanaek and Maz right behind them, in a 2x2 square with the front rank at X and Y 14. So if -- represents the wall, then it'd be something like...
------
ME
ZS
------

So the wall extends in front of us, blocking line of effect to the dragon.

 

I like that better. So for the second spell... another heal or Antidragon Aura? I think i prep'd that one.

 

Well, with the 24 HP healed by Mass CLW, we're only down 19 HP or so from the 43 fire damage, which can be easily recovered with other methods later (such as Zanaek's Sacred Healing ability, which heals 18 HP eight times per day). I think antidragon aura is the better option.

We're also all under the effect of Magic Circle Against Evil, which is good.

 

Rilwen - Annoyed!Mazarun is a treat.

Anyhow, I think I've got enough for an update if Mitth is going along with Light's suggestion to cast Antidragon Aura. I'm assuming he's not doing anything else with his second move action.

Ramza, you still planning to write a post for Evelios this round, or should I just move along?

 

All I know is Im moving with everyone, casting CLWm, and then getting WRT to cast ADA.

 

I plan on writing, but since it's going to be "Since Evelios can't do anything let's have some fun in the mindscape!" it's fine by me if we keep on trucking.