[PF-2e] Thrum

[Atalla Wanderer]

Game Name: Thrum
Game System: Pathfinder 2e
Theme: Undead Standoff
Style: 70% RP, 30% Combat
Posting Rate: 2-3/week
Players new to PF2e and/or RPGX are welcome to apply!

Thrum
Nine Nights of Darkness

Singantis is an insignificant island in the Shackles, difficult to approach for any size of ship due to the treacherous waters and rocky shoals surrounding it. In that archipelago, it is only in recent history that is has been discovered. A pirate ship under the command of the dread pirate Güneş was sunk nearby by an orc of little renown. The orc's ship, in turn, was too damaged to escape an approaching storm, and was shipwrecked upon Singantis. The only escape would be building a dock and carving out a bay, tasks that would take time. The orc, Ronk, took command of his sailors in their moment of despair, and put them to work salvaging all that they could from the wreckage of their own ship, and the ruins of the pirate vessel nearby. In a fortnight, ramshackle buildings had sprung forth from the island, and ships passing began to notice that a settlement was developing on Singantis. Ronk had never intended for this refuge to be permanent - but shortly before a ship managed to make contact with the stranded sailors, Ronk made a life-changing discovery. Beneath the soil of Singantis, there was gold. Ronk and his sailors accepted rescue from a ship, and traded the location of the pirate ship they'd sunk, and Güneş' treasure, in exchange for their lives and safe passage to Port Westcrown. With no ship and no future, most abandoned Ronk, as he had kept his discovery a secret from all. With only a handful of loyal friends, the Orc vanished from the city, headed east, and Singantis vanished off maps once more. This was ten years ago.

After a decade, Ronk and his loyalists returned to Westcrown, purchased ships and supplies, and headed back out to see. His passing was a fad, and nothing more was thought about it - until 6 months later, when one of the ships returned to the port, this time bearing freshly mined and minted gold, exchanged for weapons, food, and miners - anyone interested in grabbing an ax and sailing off into the unknown in pursuit of gold was welcome. By the time the Free Captains, rulers of the Shackles, learned where the gold was coming from, Singantis was firmly secured under Ronk's control. For three years, gold flowed out, and wealth flowed in. A single town, no more than a few hundred souls, mostly miners and their families, lived on Singantis. A fort over the entrance of the gold mine, called the Rock, had been erected prior to that first shipment of gold was sent out, and since had been defended from pirates and privateers each. Singantis would not fall, and the Free Captains preferred to see gold flowing out of the island, that it bottled up within.



Three years of mining, smelting, and shipping gold, and then two days ago, the regular ship that could travel between Singantis and the rest of the Shackles was smashed upon the treacherous shoals just beyond it. Two escort sloops of hired guns had waited for the cargo ship to leave port, and bore witness to the screams of terror as the crew was murdered, and their ship sunk. Something had attacked the ship, something that came from the island. With sole safe passage to the island blocked by the wreckage of the ship, the two escorts could only wait until morning, when the sun rose on a burning village, and people used whatever they dared to try to flee the island. No boat remained, but in their fear the sailors refused to allow anyone on their ships. At last, a message was shot by bow from a settler, a message marked with Ronk's insignia.

Call for Aid Aid Required on the island Singantis! 500 Gold Coins to every man who responds! Undead on the Island. Source unknown. Investigation and assistance required! Please send help! -Ronk, Mayor of the Rock

The message, both warning and cry for assistance, was carried back to Port Westcrown, and spread from there. The Free Captains decreed a blockade of the island until the matter of undead could be resolved. They called for assistance, far and wide. One ship would leave for Singantis, with a representative of the Free Captains'. No ship would be called to land on the island until the representative declared it free from undead. Singantis once more, would be struck from all maps.

Character Applications This is a one-shot PF2e game with permadeath. If an accepted character dies, their player will not get to re-roll a new one. I'm looking for four (4) players to round out the already accepted players GleefulNihilism, Gath, and Vislands. If you're wondering why half the cast is already accepted, I retired from my previous game after a death in my family. I decided it would only be right to extend an offer to those players for another stab - though an entirely different game. Giving the setting I've put together, three characters won't be enough to survive. So this advert is an attempt to round out the group. Once the pre-accepted player post their characters / applications, I'll link them in a table below. (If any/all of the three fall through or withdraw, at the end of the day I'll still be taking 7 applicants if at all possible.) Level: 7th Class: Any from Core Rulebook, Bestiary 1-3, Gamemastery Guide, Advanced Player's Guide, Secrets of Magic, Guns & Gears, Book of the Dead, Dark Archive, Treasure VaultCore rulebook sources. Free archetype rule is in effect. No multi-classing. Ancestry: Any common or uncommon ancestries are accepted. If you want a rare ancestry, secret message or DM me to discuss it first. Age: Realistic, please. For non-humans, give their age, and the human equivalent in brackets. Theme Music & Pictures: If I can't visualize your character from your words alone, I'll ding you for it. At the end of the day, PBP is where our words are meant to shine, not our selection of images from the web. If you do include any pictures, place them tastefully. Starting Wealth: 750 gold pieces. Core Rulebook, Bestiary 1-3, Gamemastery Guide, Advanced Player's Guide, Secrets of Magic, Guns & Gears, Book of the Dead, Dark Archive, Treasure VaultCore rulebook items. For Lost Omen items, ask me first (I don't have those books/PDFs). No 3rd-Party items. Deadline: March 17th at Midnight CST. If a player requests feedback, I'll provide it on the 3rd or the 10th. Notes: Archive of Nethys is Paizo's official source of information about the game. I personally recommend Pathbuilder for character-building, I used it to create Ronk, and will use it to round out other prominent NPCs on the island. Questions - if you have them, post them here and I'll be happy to answer! Don't hold back.

 

This is what every character gets every level:

Free Archetypes: The only difference between a normal character and a free-archetype character is that the character receives an extra class feat at 2nd level and every even level thereafter that they can use only for archetype feats.

Automatic Bonus Progression: This variant removes the item bonus to rolls and DCs usually provided by magic items (with the exception of armor’s item bonus) and replaces it with a new kind of bonus—potency—to reflect a character’s innate ability instead. In this variant, magic items, if they exist at all, can provide unique special abilities rather than numerical increases.

Gradual Ability Boosts: Each character gains one ability boost when they reach each of 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th levels. These are collectively a single set of ability boosts, so a character can’t boost the same ability score more than once per set; players can put a dot next to each boosted ability score or otherwise mark it to keep track. PCs also receive an ability boost at 7th, 8th, 9th, and 10th level (a second set); at 12th, 13th, 14th, and 15th level (a third set); and at 17th, 18th, 19th, and 20th level (the fourth and final set).

Level	Standard Abilities	Gradual Ability Boosts	Free Archetypes	Automatic Bonus Progression
1	Ancestry Feat, Background	Ability Boost to Four Abilities
2	Skill Feat	Ability Boost to a Single Ability (Set 1, 1/4)	Archetype Feat	Attack potency +1
3	General Feat	Ability Boost to a Single Ability (Set 1, 2/4)		Skill potency (one at +1)
4	Skill Feat	Ability Boost to a Single Ability (Set 1, 3/4)	Archetype Feat	Devastating attacks (two dice)
5	Ancestry Feat	Ability Boost to a Single Ability (Set 1, 4/4)		Defense potency +1
6	Skill Feat		Archetype Feat	Skill potency (two at +1 each)
7	General Feat	Ability Boost to a Single Ability (Set 2, 1/4)		Perception potency +1
8	Skill Feat	Ability Boost to a Single Ability (Set 2, 2/4)	Archetype Feat	Saving throw potency +1
9	Ancestry Feat	Ability Boost to a Single Ability (Set 2, 3/4)		Skill potency (one at +2, one at +1)
10	Skill Feat	Ability Boost to a Single Ability (Set 2, 4/4)	Archetype Feat	Attack potency +2
11	General Feat			Defense potency +2
12	Skill Feat	Ability Boost to a Single Ability (Set 3, 1/4)	Archetype Feat	Devastating attacks (three dice)
13	Ancestry Feat	Ability Boost to a Single Ability (Set 3, 2/4)		Perception potency +2; skill potency (two at +2 each, one at +1)
14	Skill Feat	Ability Boost to a Single Ability (Set 3, 3/4)	Archetype Feat	Saving throw potency +2
15	General Feat	Ability Boost to a Single Ability (Set 3, 4/4)		Skill potency (three at +2 each, one at +1)
16	Skill Feat		Archetype Feat	Attack potency +3
17	Ancestry Feat	Ability Boost to a Single Ability (Set 4, 1/4)		Ability apex; skill potency (one at +3, two at +2 each, two at +1 each)
18	Skill Feat	Ability Boost to a Single Ability (Set 4, 2/4)	Archetype Feat	Defense potency +3
19	General Feat	Ability Boost to a Single Ability (Set 4, 3/4)		Devastating attacks (four dice), Perception potency +3
20	Skill Feat	Ability Boost to a Single Ability (Set 4, 4/4)	Archetype Feat	Saving throw potency +3; skill potency (two at +3 each, two at +2 each, two at +1 each)

Player	Character	Class	Complete?
Gath	Crakku the Quick	Rogue
GleefulNihilism	Philip "Fang" Argoros	Investigator (Undead Slayer)
Vislands	elected to build based on selected applicants
Exeter	Nandae Conor	Monk	?
Ysolde	Joy Hillstrider	Cleric
HenryLockwood	Nikolai Ivanovic	Champion	?
Nebula	Lady Satvi Tsao	Thaumaturge (Mummy)	?
Tyeal	Morg Blackstar, The Red Storm	Druid (Marital Artist)
Danilar	Konstantin Devar, The Sword Thrower	Magus (Soulforger)	?
Player	Character	Class (Archetype)	?

[GleefulNihilism]

Well, if this party is kicking off…

The Honorable Mortuary Guild
Sanctity Division

Reasonable Rates
For Inquiries, Contact Your Local Guild Representative

Info Name: Philip "Fang" Argoros Class: Investigator with Undead Slayer Archetype [Tentative] Short Bio: The illegitimate son of a paladin he's been, whether accidently or on purpose, training to hunt undead since as soon as he could pick up a weapon. He even inherited his father's Platinum-Blonde hair, if not his attitude. Clearly the man wasn't as sunshine and good as advertized if he had an illegitimate son. Phillip Argoros, known as "Fang" for his habit of making and wearing trophy necklaces featuring teeth from undead creatures, always was a bit of a bastard. An advocate of pragmatic solutions, if your house is haunted he'll definitely get rid of the ghosts - even if he has to burn your house down to do it. The Mortuary Guild recruited the bastard orphan for Sanctity Division. The Mortuary Guild of course handles the end of life arrangements, the Sanctity Division specializing in handling things when somehow the process of death has gone wrong. Essentially, "Fang" is a particularly ruthless assassin and bounty hunter that just happens to specialize in undead targets. He's mostly tolerated by holy types because while he seems entirely in it for a paycheck, he's also very good at what he does. His reputation often precedes him as the only living being that out-bastard an undead; and he's got the fang-trophies, bank account, and string of broken hearts to prove it. So if you need something that should be dead to be made extra-dead again, contact the Mortuary Guild for their services. Reasonable Rates, No Job Too Small.

[Atalla Wanderer]

Zev already got the game folder made, too, so I can start setting up all the threads and wa-hoo this weekend. Exciting DMing stuff!

[FoggyKnight]

Interest! Oof and then I read the whole thing. I’m new to Pathfinder 2e, so going to bow out. Need to start a game at first level and work up first. I just got really excited when I saw you pop up.

[Nebula]

Hey, I see that Book of the Dead is available, does that mean undead pcs are allowed?

[Atalla Wanderer]

Originally Posted by Nebula

Hey, I see that Book of the Dead is available, does that mean undead pcs are allowed?

That's an interesting question. If you believe your proposed undead character can fit within the scope of the setting, and you are prepared for the consequences of running a character that would be discriminated against, and possibly face outright attempted murder from NPCs, then I won't hold you back from pitching that character.

I view my job as Game Master / Dungeon Master to select interesting and developed characters and then guide them through an interesting narrative while trying to being out their full potential. Everyone who comes to our fictional table should be bringing a character they want to play. It could be something new, or it could be an old favorilte that's been countlessly reimagined as the systems we structure the games with change. My job is to bring the world, the story.

Impress me with a character, and it won't matter if they're undead or a plant or grandma with psychic powers who bakes the best muffins we'd ever taste. A well-written and well-roleplayed character trumps all.

[Atalla Wanderer]

@ Foggy - Hi! If you want we can work through getting a character up to 7th. Really it's just getting a bazillion feats from different lists. If not, I'll have something brewing for later in 2023 that'll be starting at level 1.

@ Seekr34 - Greetings! I agree it's unlikely we've crossed paths before. Of course I'll accept PF2e newbies! I'll take RPGX newbies too. In fact, I'm anticipating there to be more players unfamiliar with PF2e than experienced in it. Hence why I'm starting characters off at level 7, as a player I understand the joy of mid level or high level games. For a system that's not as popular on RPGX, it's an excellent lure.

I anticipate characters will level to either 9 or 10 by the end of the 1-shot, so there's that, too. It depends on which challenges the party will overcome.

[Atalla Wanderer]

I'm out walking the dogs but I'll be able to provide you with more comprehensive answers tonight when I'm sitting on my trusty laptop. Including a table to explain what each character gets at each level, and where to find the pertinent info. No point buys, the ability scores are tied to ancestry, background, and I think class, but I'll have to look that up for sure. I haven’t looked at dhampir in 2e at all, so no idea off the top of my head.

[Seekr34]

ok, no problem

[Atalla Wanderer]

In respect to the dhampir question, a dhampir is a versatile heritage. It is applied on top of whatever ancestry is selected, in lieu of the other available heritages. Per the Advanced Player's Guide pg28

To play a character with a versatile heritage, first select your ancestry, just like you would for any character. You gain Hit Points, size, Speed, ability boosts and ability flaws, languages, traits, and other abilities from that ancestry. Then, instead of choosing a heritage from those normally available to that ancestry, apply your chosen versatile heritage. You gain all the features from your versatile heritage, some of which might modify or replace statistics, abilities, or traits from your ancestry.

Since a versatile heritage is a heritage, you can have only one, and you can't have any other heritage in addition to your versatile heritage.

Sometimes a versatile heritage might give you an ability that conflicts with an ability from your ancestry. In these cases, you choose which of the conflicting abilities your character has.

When selecting ancestry feats, you can choose from those available to your ancestry as well as those specific to your versatile heritage.

So, you'd want to select an ancestry from this list: LINK and then apply the dhampir heritage on top of it. I'm good with any common or uncommon ancestries, but would like to review any of the rare options first.

[Sirviantis]

I feel like with the island's name being two letters of from my username I have to apply, buy I gotta see about some things first. Do you have an expected posting rate?

[Seekr34]

Oh, another question. Yup, like I said, I'm a 2e newbie. Anyway, if I understand, the bonus abilities are 2 pts to one score. However, if were to roll for the abilities instead, then all the bonus abilities would be halved, which is 1 pt each instead of two. Correct?

[Atalla Wanderer]

Moved to the top (the table)


@ Seekr34 - So you'd get two ancestry feats, which could either be from the human list or from the dhampir list.

For ability scores, I'm going to rule against rolling for them. Counter-intuitive to a dice game, I know; it makes sense to me that it'll benefit everyone going forward in PF2e to understand the most common way of getting ability scores. Rolling doesn't make the process easier, it adds a level of randomness on top of the existing steps. It's not exactly easy as "half of normal".

Originally Posted by Ability Scores per Player Handbook

Each ability score starts at 10, representing human average, but as you make character choices, you’ll adjust these scores by applying ability boosts, which increase a score, and ability flaws, which decrease a score. As you build your character, remember to apply ability score adjustments when making the following decisions.

Ancestry: Each ancestry provides ability boosts, and sometimes an ability flaw.

Background: Your character’s background provides two ability boosts.

Class: Your character’s class provides an ability boost to the ability score most important to your class, called your key ability score.

An ability boost normally increases an ability score’s value by 2. However, if the ability score to which you’re applying an ability boost is already 18 or higher, its value increases by only 1. At 1st level, a character can never have any ability score that’s higher than 18.

Ability flaws are not nearly as common in Pathfinder as ability boosts. If your character has an ability flaw—likely from their ancestry—you decrease that ability score by 2.

Also, I'm good with Feral Child

@ Sirviantis - I'm asking for 2-3 / week, but if we can post faster, especially in combat scenes, I'll keep up. I'd rather see shorter but consistent posting over intermittent posts that are Post of the Year quality every time. Consistent posting is much better for helping folks to stay in character (something I learned the hard way).


For character sheets - yeah, once I announce accepted folks, if they have a completed character sheet they can PM them to me for review. Ideally, all the selected folks will copy/paste their apps into a [Characters] thread in the game folder, and attach the PDF there, so everyone can view it. And then, when leveling up, attach the newest version and remove the old version. I think it's the best course of action until the RPGX angels (read: Aethera 'n Crew) grant my Wish of PF2e sheets connected to the site.

[Seekr34]

Ok, thanks. Man, they really changed things in 2e. Seems more work just to make a character.

[Atalla Wanderer]

It's a bit more work at the front end, but ya don't have to plan your entire build out from the first level. Overall, I think it's solid work. And while there's more rules overall, it's a lot easier to DM than 5e because I can just look up every single situation, and those rules are already defined.