Talk:Epic Path

magic weapons notes

• remove masterwork done
• remove ability to enchant ammo; only projectile weapon can be enchanted
  • delete the magic ammo properties page done
  • update limitless quiver to allow other ammo types, but non-magical.
• create some non-magical ways of adding +to-hit and +damage to weapons/shields/armor/implements
  • will not stack with magic, but cannot be suppressed by anti-magic/dispel, etc.
  • instead of costing more, I think they just shouldn't go as high as +9
  • no properties? (we could, but it would be a lot of work that we don't really need to do right now)
    • quenches of oil, water, brine, blood for +to-hit
    • tempers of single, triple, and seven-fold for +base damage

open questions:

• do we still want to require at least a +1 enhancement bonus for any magic properties?
• just realized that, if we do away with absolute bonus, and change all the plusses on properties to gold piece costs, we have the following issues:
  • harder to track when/if you reach +9 worth of properties
  • new pricing model would HEAVILY reward putting a lot of +1 properties on the weapon -- they would cost like 2,300gp each, without scaling... this is a problem.
  • recommendation: keep absolute bonus and plus-cost of properties, even though its complicated. Just change the math to scale the cost of enhancement bonuses and property plusses independently.
    • this doesn't really make creating these items any easier, unfortunately, but I can't think of a better way to avoid the pricing and capping issues, without it.

hmm, I see the point, but I really want to move to the new costing and also make it simpler.  counterproposal: you can never have more than one weapon property.  if that's too restrictive, you can never have more than one weapon property of a given rank.  I lean to the first, personally.  weapons with many different magic properties irk me, but I can understand if we want to keep the flexibility

Reese: I fully support moving to the new pricing.  I probably explained it wrong.  If we re-price each plus-cost of each property to a gold piece value, where +1 properties cost 2,300 gp each, +2 properties cost 10,000 gp each, etc., then suddenly  a weapon with three +1 properties is cheaper (6,900 gp) than a weapon with a single +2 property (10,000 gp).  If, however, we sum all the magic property plusses before determining their cost, three +1 properties are the same a one +3 property, so the math works, and everything is fine.  What I'm recommending is that we keep summing the property plusses to determine cost.  But we still split the enhancement bonus cost out from the magic property costs.

So, calculating the cost of a magic weapon would look like this:
-- base cost of weapon
-- cost of any enhancement bonuses
-- cost of the sum of all magic properties
-- cost of any dweomermetal used

stuff to update

• Perform: performance complexity - clarify to setting the CR of the song
  • same for entertaining an audience

• retraining, and anything else with intervals of days -- clarify how spells can be used to buff the underlying skill bonus.
  • based on how many times you'd have to cast it in an 8 hour period.
  • No more than 4 times per 8 hours, and you must have the ability to cast it that many times without rest.

• put in a formula and an example for creating magic weapons, armor, shields, implements
  • put it in a box

Started But Unfinished Stuff

• converting ranged / ammo / armor / shields into templates
• converting magic weapon properties ranged / ammo / armor / shields into templates
• creating new senses
• defining equipment
• new status conditions (diseased, poisoned, burned)
• magic item crafting rules are only halfway re-written
• Cosmology of Creation page
• rebuild of level drain to essence destruction

Siegemetal Alloys

• like a dweomermetal - any enhancement bonus or magic properties on weapon (or armor?) become extraordinary instead of magic-based.

• Tempered Siegemetal - max absolute bonus of +5 (12-10)
• Annealed Siegemetal - max absolute bonus of +10 (20-10)
• Quenched Siegemetal - max absolute bonus of +14 (28-10)
• Forged Siegemetal - max absolute bonus of +18 (35-10)

• DR x/magic works against this weapon, since it is not magic.

Skill Challenges

• use initiative as a means of controlling who acts when
• require more skill checks each round than there are players -- make the players decide which parts of the challenge they care about most
• determine what happens if each of the checks isn't made -- consequences are fun. Use the consequences to trigger the event of the next round
• the first round should simply lay out the challenge, and let people know what skill checks exist
  • may also want to include mystery checks -- players who don't want to do any of the 'mandatory' checks can try something different
  • set the scene -- make sure there's lots of gimmicks, treats, odds & ends to interact with
  • determine the timer -- there should be a clearly defined timer -- "if the foe gains ground at least three times, they escape".
• the second round should add a complication or twist, or perhaps a boon (if the players did really well)
• skill challenges should probably be timed to last about 3-4 rounds, just like combat. This would allow traps to become skill challenges, for example, but also weird things like poisons and disease. Chase scenes, bar brawls, verbal sparring, contests, etc. are all also good examples of skill challenges.

• abstract encounters re-tool -- exceptional success rewards a d6 (or even 2d6) which can be applied to anyone's future checks during the skill challenge. Bonus dice are additive, and as many as you want can be applied to a single roll. However, any roll which has bonus dice applied to it cannot gain bonus dice itself. If you want to accumulate bonus dice, don't get help.

• need to work out how xp and treasure would be awarded for skill challenges, especially when they are taking place in the middle of a fight (traps, poisons, contests). The challenge itself would ideally represent one or more monsters of the same CR as the encounter, but the math seems a little fuzzy.

• common skill challenges (bar brawls, chase scenes) might have a random table of complications for the GM to roll. Complications don't occur right away -- the players are notified that the complication might occur if they don't take action to prevent it, and are given a round to deal with it (in addition to dealing with all the other skill checks required).
  • each complication should have a few variants of outcomes, depending on how well the players mitigated it, ranging from "made it worse", to "not as bad", to "didn't happen at all".

possible skill use

• movement - challenging DC to ignore movement penalty of 1 square of difficult terrain. 2 squares if hard DC, 3 squares if impossible DC.
• movement - hard DC to resist 1 square of forced movement. 2 squares if impossible DC.

item names

On the march in unfriendly terrain, the legionnaire would be loaded down with armor commonly (lorica hamata), (lorica squamata), and 1st-3rd Century (lorica segmentata), shield (scutum), helmet (galea), two javelins (one heavy pilum and one light verutum), a short sword (gladius), a dagger (pugio), a pair of heavy sandals (Caligae), a Sarcina (marching pack), about fourteen days worth of food, a waterskin (bladder for water), cooking equipment, two stakes (Sudes murale) for the construction of palisades, and a shovel or wicker basket.

character sheet changes

• include might skill modifiers to encumbrance
• bailiwick skill ranks granted to associated knowledge skill
• add button functions from Rick's sheet
• start listing out the possible moving parts relevant to combat in the buffs and debuffs tab

Highest Priority Things To Do

• review equipment bonuses to skills: e.g. masterwork tools, thieves' tools
• Add definition of triggered free action

• New Senses
  • Write up telepathy as a sense
  • Cloudsense (see through clouds, fog and mist; akin to radar)
  • Improved Tremorsense - detect and see through solids even past gaps in solids (i.e. detect solids on other side of a wall) as long as within your max range for sense

• Monsters
  • validate that everything we want in the monster template is in there. Any other changes?
  • restart moving existing monsters to the new Monster template (version 2.0)
  • Finish converting blueprints to new template
  • finish creating heroic-level monsters (CR's 17 to 20)

• update weapon qualities for the new status conditions/combat maneuvers, as needed

• consider renaming Prowler to Skirmisher, Corsair, Drifter, Outlaw (to de-conflict with similar-sounding "brawler")

• review 'breaking objects' page, in light of changes to vehicle combat and removal of abstract encounters rules
  • unless we want siege weapons to continue to be cumulative forces, though it seems like people hated all the dice rolling of the abstract encounters
  • right now, vehicles will never penetrate heavy defenses and fortifications; the target DC's are way too high, as are many of the durabilities
• add weights for all doors and such on the 'breaking objects' page, for purposes of the Might skill.
• Make traps more interesting/fun

• Redo analysis pass for all character classes
  • I'd like to revisit the Brawler's restriction on magic weapons (e.g. Amulet of Mighty Fists). Why? (I forgot)

• siege weapons - how do they work with the vehicle combat rules?

• Finish Equipment descriptions

• feats:
  • Warlord - more formation dice
  • Ranger - more quarry dice
  • Ranger - better traps (better action economy, use against an occupied space)
  • Prowler - improve save DC for encroaching jolt?
  • add a feat to allow "deny saving throw" under Heal to be non-provoking, and take only a move action (no bonus to check)
  • Review mounted feats, in light of changes to Mounted Combat
  • Update any feats which apply to abstract encounters
  • review/update combat maneuver feats for new status conditions, as needed
• Review barbarian feats again

Lower Priority Things To Do

• templates:
  • consider redoing rogue talents pages into a template
  • finish moving the weapon/armor/shield magic properties pages into templates
  • consider moving fighter tactics into templates/separate pages
  • move armor/shields into templates like the weapon entries

• Add to the SR magic enchantment page to include a section which grants a +1 through +6? bonus to existing (class-feature) SR.

• Epic Bloodline (archaic bloodline) writeups

• Create dweomermetal properties for implements, and add dweomermetals as an option for Implement creation

• Partisan (was Cromlech) - primary tank class

• Sharp (was Gambler) - buff/controller class

• Pariah (was Warlock) - striker/caster

• Build/flesh-out basic rules pages
  • How to gaming page
  • Ability Scores page
  • Finish Character Advancement page
  • How to Combat page
  • Glossary of Terms page
  • Re-write "what is epic path" page. (Started)

• Sorcerer Bloodlines page
• Cleric Domains page
• Import spells to page - started!

• Auramancy
• True Dweomers

• If we ever allow multiclassing, we need to create feats for each character class akin to the Shaping Focus (Feat).

• Create master list of allowable spells for spell effects for magic item creations (optional?)

Playtests

Class	Sub-Class	Char Name	Lvls	Campaign
Alchemist		Zanril	1 - 5	Fane
Alchemist		Hydrazine	1 - 8	Windward Marches
Barbarian		Gant	1 - 5	Fane
Barbarian		Keladin	1 - 6	Windward Marches
Barbarian	Urban	Wrathia	1 - 6	Fractured World
Bard		Fennec	1 - 12	Golden Portal
Brawler		Punch	1 - 5	Fane
Brawler		Culotta	1 - 12	Golden Portal
Cleric		Scoria	1 - 5	Fane
Cleric		Tedrick	1 - 12	Golden Portal
Druid
Fighter		Corvus	1 - 8	Windward Marches
Fighter		Sojourn	1 - 12	Golden Portal
Monk
Paladin		Edric	1 - 8	Windward Marches
Prowler		Sigel	1 - 5	Fane
Prowler		Gabriel	1 - 12	Golden Portal
Prowler		Draught	1 - 6	Fractured World
Ranger		Nerium	1 - 12	Golden Portal
Ranger		Coldre	1 - 6	Fractured World
Rogue	Clever	Vellum	1 - 8	Windward Marches
Rogue	Clever	Ashe	1 - 12	Golden Portal
Rogue	Ruthless	Senka	1 - 6	Fractured World
Sorcerer		Ruin	1 - 12	Golden Portal
Warlord		Skipia	1 - 8	Windward Marches
Warlord		Brin	1 - 6	Fractured World
Wizard		Atticus	1 - 5	Fane

Character Classes

• Physical Adept class (Fleshcrafter?) - arcane-powered melee, re-tool eidolon-style abilities as self-buffs
• Mentat Warsage Storm Knight class - intelligence-based melee and thrown weapons user.
• Fanatic class - divine melee/unarmed, low heals, light armor, no spells. Lay on Hands that does damage; touch attacks.
• Toxotes - high damage ranged attacks, trick shots (possibly just create via new rogue talents?)
• Galvanist
• Seeker
• Templar
• Effigy (Artifact? Vestige?)

• the character is an actual artifact, which is intelligent. The actual artifact is /somewhere/, though even the player may not know where. They have extended their consciousness into a remote effigy (moppet?) with which they interact with the world.
• they can use their experience to augment their effigy, giving it better abilities
• like a summoner or pet class, except that the master isn't present on the battlefield

Character Class Mini-Games

The goal of the minigame is to keep each class feeling distinct from any other class (drive home the theme of the class), and also prevent the "I hit him again" same-ness that can happen with combat. Give people something that requires planning or tactical awareness or resource management every round, to keep them engaged. The prowler's mini-game is simple, but it's great, in my opinion. You have to look at the board, you have to remember where you last attacked, you have to think about how you're going to set up your next attack.

Ideally, the mini-game is largely optional. You can play any character as "I hit him again", if you want, and you'll do okay. But if you play the mini-game, it gives you opportunities to optimize your play and improve your outcomes by 10 to 25% or so. Enough of a reward to give the min/maxers something to feel rewarded by, but not so much that it unbalances the class.

Already Addressed

• Barbarian - generate fury by getting attacked, decide how to spend fury
• Druid - wild shape; animal companion; spells -- probably busy enough each round
• Partisan - establish zone of control; govern it
• Prowler - displace 10 feet between each attack
• Ranger - determine how to spend quarry dice; keep quarry active
• Sharp - fate deck

Need Work

• Alchemist - throw bombs or hulk out; fetish;
• Bard - "compose a stanza"? arrange a sequence of power words to determine your actions for the round?
• Brawler - jab and counterstrike are interesting options; the status attacks seem to get short shrift vs haymaker; class is very "I hit him" oriented
• Cleric - stay adjacent to injured ally; could use more, IMO. Maybe a bonus once/encounter spell (based on domain) that is triggered by something thematically relevant?
• Fighter - wall of steel fighter is fine, IMO; other fighters may feel a lot more "I hit the guy" than I would want.
• Monk -
• Paladin -
• Pariah -
• Rogue - seek flanks, maybe some better stealth tricks?
• Sorcerer -
• Warlord - keep temp hp's up, probably need a little more (maybe a variable way to improve their hold the line stance each round as an action?)
• Wizard -

Dice Roller

• All electronica baby!

http://www.anydice.com/

• it hurts me, but I am unable to stop poking at it:

http://www.cut-the-knot.org/recurrence/word_primes.shtml

hexatrigesimal prime numbers as words. (whimper)

• Name Generator Site:
  • fantasy name generators