Sunday, April 25, 2010

Wilderness Adventure Kids this Tuesday

We will be playing the HEX scenarios for the Wilderness Adventure Kids this Tuesday. I expect that we will be making characters and will get through the first of two adventures this week. We will finish up anything that we do not get done the next week and play the second adventure.

The Wilderness Adventure Kids adventures are not necessarily traditional Hollow Earth Expedition scenarios in terms of setting. The Wilderness Adventure Kids find adventures in their neighborhoods, on camping trips, or just going for a bike ride to the lake. The might not be fighting dinosaurs or Nazis all the time, but that’s not to say that they couldn’t come face to face with saboteurs, evil scientists, or Thule agents that are skulking about their neighborhood.

Traditionally WAKids adventures take place in the 1950's.

The only real differences for this variant of play are:
  • The Flaw Young (SOTSW) is not available.
  • Children are considered to be size 0 instead of size –1.
  • In a Wilderness Adventure Kids Adventure 1 style point may be used to offset 1 point of Lethal damage as opposed to 2 style points offsetting 1 lethal point of damage.

Monday, April 19, 2010

Upcoming games for the next few weeks

We will continue the PFS game this week. We should complete the current scenario and most everyone will level up.

Next week, and likely the week after, I plan to run a variant of HEX called Wilderness Adventure Kids. I have two scenarios. They are only supposed to take a few hour each but I know this group. I expect that we will be making characters for part of the first session. I also have some pregens but I thought that you would enjoy making your own characters. I have an adventure from Gen Con 2008. I also have one that I volunteered us to playtest for this year's Gen Con.

After that, the fouth part of the current PFS arc should be out and I will run it.

Wednesday, April 7, 2010

Made a treasure mistake

I made a treasure mistake during the second adventure last night.

There was some treasure that you missed during the search of the spider room. (It was hiding in a paragraph on another page. I must have mixed them up.) The treasue is:

2 potions of Cure Moderate Wounds
Leather Armor
Short Sword
Repeating Light Crossbow
10 poisoned bolts

I reported the event today. (Because the new rules came out yesterday, I received full rewards rather than half.) Looks like Randy and Corey still need to register. Kara may want to edit her character to be Simone Dickenson rather than her name.

Phi-Torr - 14524-1
Sir Roland Rittern - 14370-1
Simone Dickenson - 14365-1

We should pick up and finish this adventure next week. We will start the next one.

New Copy of the Pathfinder Society Guide

A new copy of the Pathfinder Society guide has been published. It can be found at http://paizo.com/pathfinderSociety/scenarios/v5748btpy84k4 or if you have downloaded a previous version, it needs to be personalized and downloaded again.

Friday, April 2, 2010

Chain Weapon Facts

(This came up last week and I needed to do my research before responding.)

First Dave rants about the spiked chain.

It does still receive the bonus to disarm, the ability to trip and can be used with Weapon Finesse. The only difference in Pathfinder vs. D&D 3.5 for the spiked chain is that it no longer has reach. I am not sure why nor do I really care. It is what it is and I can live with it.

Chain, Spiked - 25 gp S:1d6, M:2d4 Crit:×2/20, 10 lbs. Piercing, Disarm (+2 to attempts), Trip (allows for a trip attack, weapon may dropped to avoid tripping self), Two-Handed

Chain, Spiked: A spiked chain is about 4 feet in length, covered in wicked barbs. You can use the Weapon Finesse feat to apply your Dexterity modifier instead of your Strength modifier to attack rolls with a spiked chain sized for you, even though it isn’t a light weapon.

Now Dave rants about the meteor hammer. (Which gets him ranting about the spiked chain again….)

The meteor hammer could be a cool weapon but I do not believe that it invalidates the spiked chain. It costs 4 times more to purchase than a spiked chain. The damage max is the same but the average damage is slightly lower when making a single attack. As a double weapon, the meteor hammer requires an extra feat (Two Weapon Fighting) to use the meteor storm style. It will also cost an additional 600 GP to buy a masterwork version and making one magic will cost more as well.

One more note, the Legacy of Fire Adventure Path, where this weapon is found, was done under 3.5 rules. This item may get updated/changed for the Pathfinder RPG rules. There is a new equipment book coming out in May. It may be included there.

Meteor Hammer -100 gp, S:1d6, M:1d8, Crit:×2/20, 10 lbs, Bludgeoning, Disarm (+2 to attempts), Trip (allows for a trip attack, weapon may dropped to avoid tripping self), Reach 10ft, Double Weapon, Two-Handed.

Meteor Hammer: The meteor hammer is a deceptive and unpredictable weapon, as simple as it is versatile. A typical meteor hammer consists of two spherical metal weights like flail heads attached via a 5-foot length of rope or chain. These weights are whirled and wrapped around the wielder’s body, and can be used for strikes, grabs, and trips. With a meteor hammer, you get a +2 bonus on opposed attack rolls made to disarm an enemy (including the roll to avoid being disarmed if such an attempt fails). You can also use it to make trip attacks. If you are tripped during your own trip attempt, you can drop the meteor hammer to avoid being tripped. If your trip attack is successful, you can choose to forego the knockdown in favor of dragging your opponent 5 feet closer to you. Using a meteor hammer always requires both hands and gives you a 10-foot reach. In addition to the above abilities, the meteor hammer has different effects depending on what style is being used. Switching between styles is a free action and must be declared at the beginning of the combat round.

Fortress: In this style, one of the hammers is held close in the off hand and used to parry attacks as if it were a shield. When using this style, you gain a +1 shield bonus to AC.

Meteor Storm: This style involves spinning both heads in complex patterns, occasionally smashing in from the side or coiling the rope around a forearm before launching a weight forward in a punching motion. This style allows the meteor hammer to be treated as a double weapon.

My final assessment is if you want to whack the crap out of something, take an exotic and/or two-handed weapon that deals more damage rather than take either. If you want to do the special maneuvers and have the ability to use martial weapons, take a flail (you will be able to use a shield as well). If you have Weapon Finesse and an Exotic Weapon Proficiency, take the chain. If you have Weapon Finesse, an Exotic Weapon Proficiency and Two Weapon Fighting, take the meteor hammer.

Iconics 2

Iconics 2
New Paths Compendium: Pathfinder RPG Expanded Edition -- Kicktraq Mini
All for One: Satan's Playground -- Kicktraq Mini
Perils of the Surface World -- Kicktraq Mini
Revelations of Mars -- Kicktraq Mini
Space: 1889 - SF Role Playing in a More Civilized Time -- Kicktraq Mini
Leagues of Gothic Horror -- Kicktraq Mini
Quantum Black: Cosmic Horrors -- Kicktraq Mini
Globetrotters' Guide to London -- Kicktraq Mini
Perils of Mars -- Kicktraq Mini
Sandy Petersen's Cthulhu Mythos for Pathfinder -- Kicktraq Mini
Leagues of Gothic Horror: Shapeshifters & Vampires -- Kicktraq Mini
Leagues of Cthulhu -- Kicktraq Mini
Leagues of Gothic Horror: Ministry & Mordavia books and Dice -- Kicktraq Mini
Pathfinder: Kingmaker -- Kicktraq Mini
Starfinder Masterclass Miniatures -- Kicktraq Mini