OOC THREAD

[Posterboy]

Very kind of you, Paul! Thanks!

I'll try to make sure Arbogast gets home in time for dinner. 

[Eclecticon]

Thanks, Aryn.  Take it away, man. 

[Eclecticon]

I'm back again, freshly tanned and currently sweltering in 32 degree heat.  At 11:00 pm. 

Aryn, thanks for doing such a good job.  If Doug's willing to let your wolf-hunters make a dramatic entrance, now would be a good time! 

[Posterboy]

Thanks, Paul! Glad to have you back.

You'll note that I did such a good job playing you, Doug didn't even notice you were gone.   

[Eclecticon]

Indeed.  Well done, sir.   

[tomcat]

Welcome back, Paul! Glad your vacation was nice. We are ready for you guys to send us back summer anytime.  

Ayrn, which character did you decide on?

As for introducing him - I am fine with that, but I do not want to introduce a whole hunting party. I am trying to think of a way to bring him/her in.

I am open to your thoughts.


As for the broken Lamp and what Morirúsë learned in his near-death...

To light it will require Hope. It may come at the cost of these heroes, but that is what a hero does, right? They give all of themselves for the betterment of the world (i.e. Frodo). Granted, this is not a great "there and back again" to destroy the Ring, but in all the books, this creature is defined as a beast from the First Age when Morgoth ruled, and so, like a Balrog - or other monstrous spirit of old - it is going to take a lot to truly defeat it beyond its physical body. That is why it has terrorized so long - the outer shell might be slain, but the spirit finds a new body (man, woman, wolf, or other) to reside in and continue to affect the living world.

The broken Lamp still contains the crystals that once lit it. These crystals may have been made by Fëanor himself, in the depths of time, but they have been in the darkness so long that this blighted place has mostly devoured their light. They need to be rekindled.

So, here is what will need done:

• Each round, the Lamp will require 1 spent point of Hope from each PC.

• That PC will then roll the feat die (d12) and a number of success die equal to the number of Hope they spent thus far in a previous round that was successful.

• Each test will be TN 12. This will be hard at first and become easier as they progress. If the test fails, they must try again in the next round, by spending another Hope. No Hope points can be spent on any failed test.

• Once they have 3 cumulative successes over however many rounds it takes, the PC will have sacrificed enough of themselves for their part of the lighting of the lamp.

Understand, if the werewolf is slain in his current form - the spirit will flee. So, be careful that you don't free him from his current shell before you can truly 'destroy' it.

You guys have to decide if this is what you want to do with your PC's. Yes, Hope can be restored over time, but not for all character types - Dúnadan and Elves - and I want this to be an indelible mark on your character's spirit. They will be giving so much for all. Cool?

So, as an example...

In this round 7, Morirúsë has spent a Hope to rekindle the Lamp of Amon Lanc, and Eregion before that. He rolls 1d12 plus 1d6. If he achieves a 12 or greater, he has 1 success.

The next round he must spend a Hope and now may roll 1d12 plus 2d6. If he succeeds, he has another success and then may prepare for the next round and hopefully his last point sacrifice.

If he fails during any round, he does not lose any accumulated successes, but he must try again, if he is willing.

Any questions, please ask.

I will track each rounds' successes for each PC in the opening thread.

Good luck

[tomcat]

Rolled 1d12 : 6, total 6
Rolled 1d6 : 3, total 3

[tomcat]

Actually, Ayrn - let's introduce this hunting party of yours.

I need you to make an introductory post in the current round to give us back-story of your primary character and why Bard has sent you guys to the mountains in pursuit of the wolf.

Understand that only Orophal the Elf knew the location of the lair of the Werewolf, and he told the companions where it was prior to his death. I don't care if you use that fact, as the folk of Dale have good relations with the Elven-realm, but make it logical, please.  

[tomcat]

BTW - you guys may still sacrifice hope in Round 7 into the lamp, if you have not yet done so.

Also - if  a PC does not wish to participate - maybe it is TOO much of a sacrifice to give. The other characters may make an additional sacrifice to add the missing companions part.

So I guess it can be said, it will take 12 total Hope points to be sacrificed into the lamp and it has to come from someone.

This said, I will only allow a minimum of 2 from Ayrn's new PC if he can make it into the cavern, as the PC is new and has not realized what needs to be done to overcome such a great foe. To further complicate this, Ayrn, your PC must be in the cavern for at least two rounds prior to realize what is going on inside.

Cool?

[tomcat]

To define Lair Actions, so you guys don't think I am pulling stuff outta thin air:

I am using it like D&D5e legendary actions. Each round, the Werewolf can do 3 Lair actions; this count renews at the beginning of its next turn.

Unlike D&D5e, I am making it like the hole it lives in has accumulated a pool of Hate that it can spend on certain powers. These points do not include the werewolf's own. The lair started with 20 points

Here are those powers and their costs to use.

Toughness - 1 per use

Terrible strength - 1 per use

Strike fear - 2 per use

Holding spell - 3 per use

Darker than darkness - 3 per use

Corrupting spell* - 4 per use

This does not include any corruption tests I will require for an roll, or time spent within the Blighted Lair.

[Posterboy]

So... I'm just seeing this and it has kind of caught me off guard.

Thanks for the invite, Doug, but I think you should let round 7 (and any others as need so as not to hold up the game) go by without the hunting party and I will try to write something up over the next 24 hours.

As far as why they are at the liar, I imagined that they've just managed to track the beast back to the lair, like Orophal. Good fortune and skill have brought them here.

As far as why they are tracking the Werewolf, I imagined King Bard had commissioned Kol and company to deal with the creature because of Bard's relationship with the Woodland Realm and that the beast has ranged far enough to trouble the men of Laketown, interrupt trade, etc.

Kol, I imagined to have a long standing grudge against the were-wolf... the beast killed a member of his family long ago, and the story and lore has been passed down the generations.

Tate and Hobson are just good companions of Kol.

Doug, did you only want me to bring in these three, or did you want me to fill out the hunting party with other Bardings in the King's service?

[tomcat]

You can fill in others, but only your PC will get to do standard actions.

All others I will setup a combat table to determine results.

[Eclecticon]

Ought it be possible for a character to use a Command action to flip the initiative (i.e. from the Fellowship to the Shadow, or vice-versa)?  Perhaps only when the narrative has established that the tactical situation has shifted - perhaps when the physical environment has changed (rocks falling, things catching fire, sudden magical elf-lights), reinforcements have entered the fray or similar. 

[tomcat]

I like that idea!

I think I would limit it to one initiative shift in an encounter.

[Eclecticon]

Sounds fair.