Dr. Si's Curse of the Crimson Throne OOC

[Dr Simon]

LOL, yes!

Grau: "What do you need that for?"

Brindom: "Sometimes it's the kindest option."

 

[HolyMan]

Ouch LOL

Never going to leave home without it again. Brindom was stuck in a cramped dungeon and really couldn't use it. and when he finds himself outside and some excitement starts and he didn't have it.

It is Erastil's favored weapon, and he shouldn't have left it behind.

Reminds me that if I cast spiritual weapon does it attack from a distance or do we just say it "appears" to be attacking from a distance??

HM

 

[Dr Simon]

From PFSRD:

"Even if the spiritual weapon is a ranged weapon, use the spell's range, not the weapon's normal range increment, and switching targets still is a move action."

I'm away next week myself as well. Probable been a bit slower recently because of getting things tied up at work, plus we're currently in a section that requires a bit more writing on my behalf. Will be back to speed when I return.

 

[HolyMan]

The harrowing was diffently kool, kudos Ambrus

But (did you know that was coming), I think it maybe hard to remember down the road say 3 or 4 months from now, Could you link those posts in the first post of the IC thread Dr Si? or somewhere else we can use for easy reference/referal in character.

Also Brindom would be like huh? What does all that mean but I think I will wait to see what the Mamusia has to say first.

HM

 

[Neurotic]

You can link or quote in your character as needed. I know I'll link it if we get harrow so there is proper bookkeeping. Otherwise, we'll discuss, make decisions and moev on.

It was very good, Ambrus, did you do real drawing? Or just aligned them to fit the story?

 

[Ambrus]

Thanks for the kudos and the xp HolyMan. It's nice to have the effort be appreciated.

And yes Neurotic, I did actually perform a true Harrowing with my own cards; drawing each card randomly as intended. If I'd been choosing the cards I would have done some things differently.

 

[Dr Simon]

The design, meaning and titles of the Harrow Deck seem to be designed to fit in with this campaign particularly, so no matter what the draw is, something will resonate with past, present and future happenings. Although I suggested a couple of additions to the reading, Ambrus had it pretty much nailed already.

For those who hadn't figured it out, there are six suits to the Harrow deck - Hammers, Keys, Shields, Books, Stars and Crowns, corresponding to the six ability scores Str, Con, Dex, Int, Wis and Cha. Each adventure in Crimson Throne is keyed around a different Harrow Suit for the Choosing (last one should have been Keys, but they don't tell you to only use that suit for the Choosing in Edge of Anarchy).

If you look at the placement of the suit symbol on each card, you'll see that it moves. Left to right is Lawful, Neutral, Chaotic. Top to bottom is Good, Neutral, Evil. So each suit has nine cards, one for each alignment.

It's a nifty little system to tie it all in with D&D attributes.

Oh, and those who were here at the start of the campaign, the first card that you got from Zellara wasn't a random choice. See if you can work out how it was made.

 

[Ambrus]

The design, meaning and titles of the Harrow Deck seem to be designed to fit in with this campaign particularly, so no matter what the draw is, something will resonate with past, present and future happenings.

I wouldn't say that they're tailored to this particular Adventure Path, but that they're more generally tailored to fantasy adventuring and all that it entails. Let's face it; every adventure has one or more NPCs, somewhere, that are more than they appear to be, have dark secrets, have committed some bad deeds in the past and are harbouring secret agendas, etc.

The fact that this random draw of cards gives the illusion of being tailored to the events surrounding our characters simply reflects the tendency we have as human beings to perceive patterns and make connections between things that are, essentially, random in nature. It's why tarot cards have been used for centuries, quite convincingly, to relate seemingly personal details of people from diverse backgrounds and cultures. A reading can appear particularly accurate if the fortuneteller is persuasive and the audience is eager to try associating what she says with what they already know. The cards merely offer up talking points that are broad enough in scope that they encompass the common experiences all people share; love, desire, conflict, deception, etc.

I own several tarot decks and, although I don't pretend to have any particular oracular ability, I've occasionally done readings for interested people. Some were utterly amazed by my uncanny insight into their personal lives, which in turn amazed me that they would think so. Two important facts are usually working in a fortuneteller's behalf. The first is that people love talking or listening to others talk about them; that's simply human nature. The second is that people will tend to latch onto the details that appear accurate while conveniently ignoring or downplaying those elements that are inaccurate.

Another thing I've found while doing readings for people is that there are certain descriptive statements I can offer a listener that seem specific to herself but that, in fact most people would likely say is accurate about themselves; things that, if not entirely true, most everyone wants to believe are true about themselves. This for example: "You are somewhat guarded with your true thoughts and feelings. You prefer to keep some details about yourself secret; sharing them with only a handful of people with whom you're very very close. You're very careful in choosing your friends, but once you've accepted someone as a friend, you'll do literally anything for them when they're in trouble. You possess an astounding amount of untapped potential; there's truly nothing you can't achieve if you give it your all..."

Oh, and those who were here at the start of the campaign, the first card that you got from Zellara wasn't a random choice. See if you can work out how it was made.

Hm. Is each card tied to the campaign trait we initially selected?

 

[Dr Simon]

I wouldn't say that they're tailored to this particular Adventure Path, but that they're more generally tailored to fantasy adventuring and all that it entails. Let's face it; every adventure has one or more NPCs, somewhere, that are more than they appear to be, have dark secrets, have committed some bad deeds in the past and are harbouring secret agendas, etc.

Hm. Is each card tied to the campaign trait we initially selected?

Nope, that's not it.

On the Harrow Deck, perhaps not the meanings, which are, as you say, purposefully vague. However, some of the specific images depicted on the cards, IMO, fit Crimson Throne (which is the only AP to specifically use the Harrow Point mechanism) more than any of the other APs that I'm familiar with. (Although The Eclipse goes well with Second Darkness....). More specific examples would be giving too much away

 

[Ambrus]

However, some of the specific images depicted on the cards, IMO, fit Crimson Throne more than any of the other APs that I'm familiar with.

I'd started to run a Second Darkness campaign with a harrower PC and so was similarly struck by how some specific card images reflected events or personalities in that A.P.

For example, Lixy Parmenter and her sidekick Dungo seem thematically related to the Betrayal card while Saul Vancaskerkin, with his key stump, seems to be symbolized by the Locksmith card; a shadowy figure who carries a hand that is in fact a key. And there are other examples...

I wouldn't be surprised if the images on the Harrow cards, in part, inspired Paizo' game designers' or vice versa. But I also wouldn't be surprised if these similarities are merely coincidences that we perceive as being related. That's how tarot cards work after all.