Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Dyne 03-09-05, 11:50 PM	Ahead of you stands a grand castle, with 20 ft. high walls and six towers guarding the perimeter. Atop each tower waves a banner of blue cloth with a silver trim. Men patrol the walls and the courtyard, each one wearing a white surcoat and bearing the symbol of Swordpoint: a silver sword pointing to heaven, the sword on a blue shield. As you approach the gate, it opens for you, and you are greeted by five men, each one distinguished from the soldiers by his white cloak. The leader, a strong man with a white cloak, greets you. "Welcome to Swordpoint. I am Bren Dundragon, the commander of The Academy. This is where you will be staying for the next few months in your military studies. Rest assured that you will be quite taken care of here, all your needs will be provided for. Take this time to brush up on your skills of warfare, for that is the whole purpose of coming here, is it not?" The man takes you on a tour of the grounds, and you see that there is plenty of room for training and living room, and also that the place is quite well-fortified and would hold its own in a battle. This is a military academy where we will discuss all means of warfare, concentrating more on mass-warfare, since that is the prominent style at this time. We will discuss strategies for waging war, as well as for preparing your armies ahead of time. For those of you from the previous incarnation of the Purple Dragons of Cormyr (if there are any of you left), consider this the foundation rebooted, except no purple and no Cormyr. Characters of all types are accepted here, but characters of Fighter class are favored, as well as all non-chaotic. Members List: Dyne (Founder) Turalisj Lady Rolindin Frostbite_Ravenheart Rurik "The Silent" Kingside_Bishop Jagggar Orcy the Green Wonder Wilds Premier666 Sssargoth ShadowNinja Soldiers Roster: Bren Dundragon (RP only) (Dyne) Captain Harandel (Frostbite_Ravenheart) Hector-Mataff (Sssargoth) Golos (http://boards1.wizards.com/showpost.php?p=5553069) (Turalisj) Severis (http://boards1.wizards.com/showpost.php?p=5272454) (Rurik "The Silent") Dul-Grek (Orcy the Green Wonder) Kelreth (http://boards1.wizards.com/showpost.php?p=5304784) (Wilds)
turalisj 03-09-05, 11:55 PM	add golos as a soldier.
Dyne 03-10-05, 12:03 AM	First point of discussion: Equipment for Mass Combat. There are several pieces of equipment that are beneficial for the different elements of mass combat. They are: Ranged Weapons Melee Weapons Polearms Armor Ranged weapons are essential for any army. Before the enemy is in melee range, it's likely that they are already firing arrows into your ranks. If you charge straight into melee, you will have already been weakened some from the enemy archers. If the enemy didn't have any archers, however, you could pull the same thing on them by pumping arrows into the enemy army. There are 4 different projectile weapons that I will discuss. They are the Longbow, the Shortbow, the Light Crossbow, and the Heavy Crossbow. Longbows provide very good range and decent firepower. They also take no time at all to be loaded, and so give an army the advantage of mobility and speed. Shortbows are a cheaper version of a Longbow, having a shorter range and less firepower, but they give the same mobility and speed. The crossbows provide good range and more firepower than bows. However, crossbows take time to load, and so an army using crossbows sacrifices mobility and speed for firepower. The Light Crossbow provides a good balance between firepower and speed. A low-level army can fire Light Crossbows as fast a Shortbows, but they will not be able to move up as fast against the enemy (only a 5 ft. step per round). So, Light Crossbows are a good weapon for a unit that doesn't mind standing still, and instead prefers to fire bolts into the enemy. The Heavy Crossbow, however, takes a good amount of time to load. A soldier takes twice as long to fire a Heavy Crossbow than a Shortbow, and he would still only be able to advance on the enemy as fast as though he were using a Light Crossbow (5 ft. step per round). Because of this, Heavy Crossbows are mostly used as one-shot weapons, in which the army fires off the Heavy Crossbows, then slings them around the shoulder rather than take the time to reload it. A nice tactic in theory is for an army to be equipped with both Heavy Crossbows and some other ranged weapons, so the army fires off its Heavy Crossbows then switches to the other ranged weapons for the rest of the encounter, and so does not sacrifice speed.
Dyne 03-10-05, 12:05 AM	add golos as a soldier. I'll take that as your request for membership? "Welcome, Golos. May Swordpoint serve you well, and may you serve Swordpoint well."
Tenzhi 03-10-05, 01:53 AM	The only advantage crossbows have over short/long bows is that they are simple weapons. A heavy crossbow appears to do more damage than a longbow, but you can only fire it once per round (which may make it a better choice for some characters at low level). A light crossbow can (with a feat) be fired as often as a long bow, but they are equal in average damage (though a longbow has a higher max damage on a critical) and the light crossbow has shorter range. Repeating crossbows other than heavy are largely worthless. A repeating heavy crossbow is almost on par with a longbow for one or two rounds (it cannot benefit from a strength bonus, and you have to take a feat to use it). But if you're going to use an exotic projectile weapon the Greatbow is a better choice for the same damage and more efficient reloading (and better range IIRC). There should be a way to just load a heavy crossbow as a free action. You can already spend one feat to get better damage at range than a longbow with the greatbow exotic proficiency. Rapid reload (or a special combination of Rapid Reload/Quick Draw) should just let you reload a heavy crossbow as a free action (and hand crossbows should reload as a free action by default, IMO).
Lady Rolindin 03-10-05, 02:35 PM	You need to mention the stragies of how to use the archers, how their lines need to be formed. Every battle is different, the archers must be aranged so they can have cross fire to each other and form a wegde in some instances. the archers having 2 to 3 ranks in their lines. the terrain will deteraim how they are deployed. it takes a good leader to know how to use the terrain to thier advanagte, and how to place them. the archer commander wil have to be taught how to use terrains, and how to place the archers. so that they complaent each other so as to cover an grid from both sides. MY red knight war wizard would work great here, she a battle tacticion. even how to set up your wizards, archers, fights, pole arms troops, clericks, magics on the battle field, traps, magic spell for battles, what kinds of weapons to use where. this is what i was trying to set up at the knighs of corymer. a school for the knights, so all the guilds could send thier leaders to train for war. this is a good ideal. she will serve the acadamey with honor and teach battle stragies and wizard stragies. with this she will teach improved leadership feat witch no commander is a effective commander with out having it. the Red Knights teach this at their Red Knight War colledge where she learnrd it. Where she also learned battle field tactical operations, deployemnt, operations, spells, placement, weapons and which ones work best in what terrain, alot more.
Frostbite_Ravenheart 03-10-05, 02:48 PM	You see a man in chainmail and dark green colors upon horse approach the gates. Those with military or more specifically cavalry backgrounds think the Rangers horse was breed for light for scouting and skirmishing. "Open the gates." You hear enthusiastically form above. As the Ranger pulls into fortress he is greeted by cherry howls from the veterans and awe from the rookies. A host of stable boys approach him and take away the horse while the Ranger tossed a few silver to the lead boy. As he proceeds down the hall to Dundragons office he tells the guards “Captain Harandel Half-Elven, I’m here on a new assignment.” They nod “He’s been expecting you.” As Harandel enters the Commanders room he salutes “Captain Harandel Half-Elven, reporting for duty sir.” Dyne, I know, I know, I said I wasn’t going to play more then one character but now I decided its not worth it to cry and not take full advantage of the rules. My next character which will be familiar to some and not to others Harandel is a 15th level Half-Elven Ranger and if you wouldn’t mind I’d like to help teach scouting here. Even better would be to teach actual rangers, but that might not be fitting for your setting. This won’t be Harandels main foundation obviously but I’d still like to be a apart of it. Worse come to worse if you are totally against any form of stealthy warfare at swordpoint that I’d be glad to just take on the role as cavalry commander and/or instructor. -Frosty
Rurik "The Silent" 03-10-05, 04:44 PM	another useful item for mass combat are banners. They inspire allies to keep fighting. And they are useful in directing an army too becasue they are easily seen among the chaos of a battle. also seeing as we can have be in more than one foundation per character. Add Severis to the ranks of soldiers. In his decription he's an Ex-military scout, so he might be able to help out. Weather as a soldier or teacher; or what not. He might not be the best for mass warfare, but he is good for scouting out the battle grounds and finding the enemy force before they find us. If thats alright i'll join up.
Kingside_Bishop 03-10-05, 10:11 PM	From the towers of the castle, a column of soldiers can be seen with a long wagon train trailing behind them. They march in ordered colums, at a steady pace, and exhibit the professionalism of career soldiers. There are about 25 of them. As they close, it can be seen that they wear the white surcoats of Swordpoint men. Their banner, waving in the breeze, bears a blue background trimmed with silver, in the Swordpoint manner, but with a silver ballista positioned in the center, pointed skywards. They march to the front gate of the castle, and halt. A human man marches forth from the midst of ranks. He wears the cloak of an officer. "Lieutenant Decius Oduran, Commanding Officer of the Swordpoint Corps of Engineers!" he yells upwards at the gate wardens, with a touch of imperiousness. The gates open slowly for him, and he walks calmly through, approaching the Commander and briskly saluting. "Lieutenant Decius Oduran, Commanding Officer of the Swordpoint Corps of Engineers, reporting for transfer!" The man is of average height and build, carries a giant crossbow and a large shield strapped to his back, has a traditional longsword belted at his waist. He wears a gleaming set of breastplate armor that bears the insignia of the Corps of Engineers. Just below this insignia is an arcane rune, signifying that this officer has gone through the Swordpoint College of War Magic. His black hair blows gently in the wind as his gray eyes bore into those of the Commander, judging his worth. Aparently, he finds no fault: "I stand with my men, ready to serve, my lord!" I like this idea of a military academy. I'll be playing a Marshal 2 / Fighter 2 / Warmage 6, in charge of the "Corps of Engineers" -- the fixall that every good army needs. I'll be able to churn out massive amounts of siege equipment, see that this equuipment is used properly, craft special siege weapons using magic, and drastically cut down on the cost of building anything we decide to build. All of my followers are experts. I'm going to play this character with just a little bit of arrogance. He's been through engineering, officer, and warmage training, and he figures it's his rightful place at the top of things -- but he respects those above him (not too much, though). His men respect him, and recognize him as an innovative and responsible leader. Very ambitious though, but True Lawful all the way.
Dyne 03-10-05, 10:55 PM	Awesome, we've already got a few members. It looks like we'll have quite a few bases covered already, for scouting, magic, and engineering already. I'll add you all to the members list. You are most welcome here. Hopefully, we'll be able to churn out ideas to make warfare using D&D rules be able to flow smoothly while being interesting, in addition to exchanging strategies. @Tenzhi: I didn't really think of that. I was really concerned with tactics for the average army of 1st-level Warriors. I've never heard of a Greatbow, however. Could you elaborate on it, state what book it's from? @LR: I'm not familiar with mass archery in regard to terrain. In fact, the only effects of terrain that I can think of are higher ground and cover, and that usually only applies to melee anyway. Could you elaborate? I think I'll post a little more in a bit about other tactics besides mass archery.
Dyne 03-10-05, 11:01 PM	Dundragon returns the salute to Harandel. "Welcome, Captain. We are in need of men with your experience. Your first assignment is to Wilderness Training. Take the boys out back and teach them how to camp." I knew you'd come around eventually. ;) We could use some Rangers and scout types, so Harandel and Severis will find a lot of use here.
Dyne 03-10-05, 11:10 PM	Dundragon stares back at the Lieutenant. "Engineers will prove useful to The Academy. Have your men set up shop and begin constructing siege engines immediately. Also, Lieutenant, you shall have the responsibility of a Siege Warfare course. Hope you don't mind, but you are the most qualified for the job at the moment." Bren Dundragon used to be a Lawful Good Paladin/Purple Dragon Knight when I used him for the Purple Dragons of Cormyr. His father was a Paladin/Purple Dragon Knight/Divine Champion of Helm, but he was killed in an arena battle with Droga. This time around, however, I'm using Bren Dundragon as a Lawful Neutral Marshal or Fighter, or maybe both. Might also give him levels in some PrC that is more Knight-esq, like the Purple Dragon Knight but more broad and not tied down to a particular country.
Tenzhi 03-10-05, 11:19 PM	@Tenzhi: I didn't really think of that. I was really concerned with tactics for the average army of 1st-level Warriors. I've never heard of a Greatbow, however. Could you elaborate on it, state what book it's from? Yar, for first level warriors with Rapid Reload, the Heavy Crossbow is a great weapon from a defensive perspective. The Greatbow is, I believe, from the Complete Warrior book. Unfortunately, I am mostly familiar with it through second-hand info. In war, fire is a great tactic. It can demoralize an enemy, its smoke can confuse the enemy, and you can burn an enemy's supplies to greatly hamper them.
jagggar 03-10-05, 11:28 PM	"I-Umm. . ." A tall, lanky boy of a man scratches his sandy hair nervously as he tries to speak. "You are still taking students, aren't you? I'm not too good with a sword or a bow- well I am, but it's only 'cause I train hard, and I will, honest. I'm not too good at it by birth, but I will train hard. And I mean, if it's not too much trouble, I- I think learning more about, uh, how to plan the battle, not just fight it, I- I think I could pick that up too if someone would be willing to teach me." If we do end up going with the 10th level characters allowed, ya actually have yerself a student. Umm. . . crap, he needs a name. . .
Orcy The Green Wonder 03-11-05, 12:41 AM	The top of a swirling portal appears in a distance, just poking up over a hill. The sound of marching feet follows shortly after it's appearance. Slowly, from beyond the hill rises a banner. Coming into view, the banner holds the symbol of a red eye branching out from the sides and top. Riding infront of it as men and orc appear over the hill, a massive Half Orc atop an equally large gray wolf. The shining metal arm gives him away easily even in the distance as Orcy The Green Wonder. He pauses, moving off to the side and nods to a Half Orc who appears to have Ogre characteristics. The hulking orc nods to The Green Wonder and raises it's gargantuan mace into the air, pointing toward the castle. It, along with the soldiers begin to march on toward the castle. When they reach the castle the hulking creature looks down and nods to the leaders standing before him. He smiles and speaks with a booming voice as the soldiers file into place behind him. "Greetings pink skins. I am Dul-Grek, a Knight Von Drache. Lord Kabel sends my troops to help you and your people train. All of my men are strong and worthy soldiers, they will do well in combat. They will of course be under MY command however. I don't take kindly to too many orders. Ask politely and I might help." The hulking creature smiles a wide toothy grin. Huge tusks making it look akward. Up close, it's arms were as wide as tree trunks. The weapon held in them was easily larger than any man. Almost coming up to his own height. "So, do you accept our help here? We wish to join your group for now, until we are needed again by Lord Kabel... or Orcy as you would know him."
Rurik "The Silent" 03-11-05, 12:50 AM	Yar, for first level warriors with Rapid Reload, the Heavy Crossbow is a great weapon from a defensive perspective. The Greatbow is, I believe, from the Complete Warrior book. Unfortunately, I am mostly familiar with it through second-hand info. In war, fire is a great tactic. It can demoralize an enemy, its smoke can confuse the enemy, and you can burn an enemy's supplies to greatly hamper them. complete warrior p. 156. Great Bow: You need at least two hands to use a bow, regardless of its size. A greatbow sized for a medium character is 6 ft or more in length when strung. A greatbow is too unwieldy to use while mounted. Like other bows, if you have a penalty for low Strength, apply it on damage rolls when using a greatbow. If you have a bonus on Strength, you can apply it to damage roll when you use a composite greatbow (see below) but not a regular great bow. Composite Great Bow:You need at least two hands to use a bow, regardless of its size.A composite greatbow is too unwieldy to use while mounted. A composite greatbow sized for a medium character is 6 ft or more in length when strung. Composite greatbows follow all the normal rules for composite bows, including strength ratings. Each point of Strength bonus granted by the bow adds 200 gp to the cost. Complete Warrior p. 154 on the New Exotice weapons chart. Ranged Weapons Greatbow cost: 150 gp Damage 1d10 x3 120ft. 6lbs. Piercing Composite Greatbow cost: 200 gp Damage 1d10 x3 130ft. 6lbs. Piercing Ultimately i don't like them as weapons. The damage isnt too much more at all: you can't use them mounted, you have to take a feat to be able to use them properly, and they are huge...i mean a 6 ft. long bow...just gosh... Also in the stronghold builder's guidebook there are some nifty lil trinkets that can be shot from balistas and catapults. I belive one expoldes one makes a web, and some other stuff too. I'll check up on it.
Dyne 03-11-05, 12:53 AM	Dundragon looks up at the hulking creature, unwavering in his stance despite being very small in comparison. He eyes the group of soldiers and then looks back to the Half-Orc Half-Ogre. "You and your men may stay here, but under the banner of Swordpoint. If you have no loyalty toward The Academy, you will have no place here. But, if you consider placing your loyalty under dual banners, you will be welcomed and accepted here." Just a little sidenote, everyone here must have some loyalty toward Swordpoint. Everyone can't just have their own personal agendas, using The Academy for its strategical knowledge. At least, you have to pretend to have loyalty. Swordpoint is a military order afterall, in addition to being a Military Academy. Orcy, I'm looking forward to see that Knight von Drache in action.
Orcy The Green Wonder 03-11-05, 01:24 AM	Well, perhaps we'll have us a little spar when the rules get finished? The hulking half orc nods to his troops, who procede toward the castle. He turns his head back toward Bren. Grinning down at him as he rolls his shoulders a bit. Twisting his head till his neck cracks he makes a satisfied sound. "Very well, we will vow to assist the Swordpoint Academy in battle, defend it from it's enemies, and support it in general until a time comes that we can no longer do so. I look forward to seeing your style of battle little friend." The hulking half orc holds his hand out toward Bren, a hand that was around as large as half of Bren's arm. He smiled as he looked down at him and his troops headed into the castle.
Kingside_Bishop 03-11-05, 02:17 AM	Dundragon stares back at the Lieutenant. "Engineers will prove useful to The Academy. Have your men set up shop and begin constructing siege engines immediately. Also, Lieutenant, you shall have the responsibility of a Siege Warfare course. Hope you don't mind, but you are the most qualified for the job at the moment."The Lieutenant continues his level gaze at his Commander. When he finishes speaking, Decius simply nods, apparently pleased with his Commander's judgement. "Indeed, my lord, that is the position I would expect to fill. I shall begin at once." He steps outside of the castle once more, and begins issuing orders. Before long, a temporary siege workshop has been constructed outside the castle walls, and the skeletons of several large catapults are brought into existence. Several squads of engineers begin combing the castle for every weakness, as well. "I-Umm. . ." A tall, lanky boy of a man scratches his sandy hair nervously as he tries to speak. "You are still taking students, aren't you? I'm not too good with a sword or a bow- well I am, but it's only 'cause I train hard, and I will, honest. I'm not too good at it by birth, but I will train hard. And I mean, if it's not too much trouble, I- I think learning more about, uh, how to plan the battle, not just fight it, I- I think I could pick that up too if someone would be willing to teach me."The Lieutenant sees the boy shuffling his feet nearby, and walks over to him. "Have you thought of a career in the engineers, boy? You don't need to be good with a sword or bow to be useful in the engineers -- many of my men weren't, when they joined up. They've only got the most basic combat training, even now. No... a keen mind's what you'll need in the engineers. What're you playing, jagggar? The only advantage crossbows have over short/long bows is that they are simple weapons. A heavy crossbow appears to do more damage than a longbow, but you can only fire it once per round (which may make it a better choice for some characters at low level). A light crossbow can (with a feat) be fired as often as a long bow, but they are equal in average damage (though a longbow has a higher max damage on a critical) and the light crossbow has shorter range. Repeating crossbows other than heavy are largely worthless. A repeating heavy crossbow is almost on par with a longbow for one or two rounds (it cannot benefit from a strength bonus, and you have to take a feat to use it). But if you're going to use an exotic projectile weapon the Greatbow is a better choice for the same damage and more efficient reloading (and better range IIRC). There should be a way to just load a heavy crossbow as a free action. You can already spend one feat to get better damage at range than a longbow with the greatbow exotic proficiency. Rapid reload (or a special combination of Rapid Reload/Quick Draw) should just let you reload a heavy crossbow as a free action (and hand crossbows should reload as a free action by default, IMO).There is actually a way to get a Heavy or Great Crossbow down to a free action, although it takes a small amount of generosity from a GM. Give the weapon the "Quick Loading" ability. It's a +2 weapon enhancement from the Arms and Equipment Guide that reduces the time to reload a crossbow by one action. Then, take Rapid Reload. If your GM will let the effect stack then you're set (which I think he should, they represent different types of rapid reloading -- one represents you drawing the lever back quickly, the other represents a bolt being automatically drawn from an extradimensional space). That's where I'm going with my character -- Great Crossbow with Far Shot, Distance, Explosive, Quick Loading, and Rapid Reload. Overall, I tend to agree that bows are better than crossbows unless you're limited to simple weapons. But that's why the bow is martial, and the crossbow simple. My men are all going to be equiped with crossbows, because they don't have martial weapon proficiency (they're all experts). But crossbows are more appealing to the image of the engineer, anyway. One of my favorite infantry formations is Tower Shield + Longspear + Scale Mail + Javelin + Shortsword. High AC, good offense, short range thrown weapon for Str to damage just before the clash, etc. It's a good formula for a decent infantry unit, and can be virtually immune to enemy archer fire. The Tower Shield is key.
Orcy The Green Wonder 03-11-05, 02:25 AM	The hulking half orc laughs, turning toward the lieutenant. He grins wide as he hefts his mace onto his shoulder and looks at the siege engines. He shakes his head, the grin disappearing for a moment before once again showing itself as he looks up. "Who needs a siege weapon? I've got more power in these arms than all of that contraption has. See, watch." The massive half orc brings his mace backward and swings foreward with tremendous strength. Digging a huge trench in the ground quite easily. He nods in satisfaction then looks toward the others and holds up a finger, spitting into the trench. "There, moat." The half orc laughs an earth shaking laugh then grins once more.
Kingside_Bishop 03-11-05, 02:45 AM	The hulking half orc laughs, turning toward the lieutenant. He grins wide as he hefts his mace onto his shoulder and looks at the siege engines. He shakes his head, the grin disappearing for a moment before once again showing itself as he looks up. "Who needs a siege weapon? I've got more power in these arms than all of that contraption has. See, watch." The massive half orc brings his mace backward and swings foreward with tremendous strength. Digging a huge trench in the ground quite easily. He nods in satisfaction then looks toward the others and holds up a finger, spitting into the trench. "There, moat." The half orc laughs an earth shaking laugh then grins once more.The Lieutenant calmly watches the half-orc dig his hole, then smirks. "Corporal Talus!" A young engineer, working under the tutelage of a nearby sargeant, jumps up, walking quickly to the Lieutenant and saluting. "Corporal Talus, reporting, Lieutenant!" the young engineer says with enthusiasm. "Corporal, inspect the proposed moat." The Lieutenant points. "Yes, Lieutenant!" With this, the young corporal jumps into the whole, and begins poking at the crumbling wall. "What are your findings, Corporal?" asks the Lieutenant, a few moments later. Reports the eager engineer: "Lieutenant, I report that this hole would be unusable for anything but burrying bodies, sir! The wall is entirely unstable -- any water put into this hole will immediately seep into the ground and become lost! Furthermore, these erosionary forces will eventually cause the whole to collapse in onto itself!" "Excellent work, Talus. Inform your Sergeant that your squad is to recieve an extra ration of ale this week. You're dismissed." Talus salutes, and returns to his assigned work station. "Now, Sir Dul-Grek, I will be sure to call you if we need some bodies buried. Until then, however, I expect that you'll leave us to our work." With this, he turns to his men, walking away from the half-orc: "Sergeant Goram! See that this abomination of a trench is filled in. I'll have no unstable area on these grounds!"
Orcy The Green Wonder 03-11-05, 03:01 AM	The hulking half orc grinned and began laughing. He looked down at the man's back as he walked away. "No sense of humor. You're boring pinkskin. If you had listened to my words, you'd have realized "trench" was a joke. I was demonstrating destructive power without smashing one of your toys. My argument was "who needs siege engines" if you can remember that far back." The Half Orc grinned again. Hefting his mace and swinging it back to his shoulder. He looked over toward the moat and chuckled to himself. "Think before you have one of your men state the obvious. The obvious isn't the most important part of a battle. It's what you don't see, whats hidden, that you should concentrate on." The half orc laughed to himself again and walked toward the castle. Swinging his mace around with ease as he whistled a tune.
Kingside_Bishop 03-11-05, 03:16 AM	Yeah, I'll admit it. This character? No sense of humor at all. Which is a nice break from playing Ryn, who makes everything into a joke.
Tenzhi 03-11-05, 03:25 AM	No sense of humour and he is voiced (in my mind) by R. Lee Ermy.
Rurik "The Silent" 03-11-05, 09:01 AM	Severis stands observing all of the commotion from attop a wall. He was ammused by the movements of the mass troops. It reminded him of back when he was in the military. He had since grown accostumed to traveling alone or in small *quiet* groups. The noise of a moving army was so loud. The clank of the armor,the sound of footfall, and the playful banter. Kb, if you plan on using the tower shields and things in that formation; you shoudl take a look at the tactical feats from CW. They woudl come in handy keeping your low level guys alive a bit longer.
Kingside_Bishop 03-11-05, 10:02 AM	No sense of humour and he is voiced (in my mind) by R. Lee Ermy.Who's that? EDIT: Is that the drill sargeant from Full Metal Jacket? At any rate, this guy's not really a drill sargeant type. Take the drill sargeant, make him consistently calmer, less apt to use colorful language, and more likely to reward his men, and you've got the Lieutenant. Kb, if you plan on using the tower shields and things in that formation; you shoudl take a look at the tactical feats from CW. They woudl come in handy keeping your low level guys alive a bit longer.It was actually a toss up between commanding a corps of engineers and a roman legion (in the style described above). But I was limited to a relatively small number of followers by the fact that this is one of my tenth level characters, so I decided to go with a more elitist unit type tha doesn't take a whole lot of man power. Before I made that decision, though, I was looking at those feats. They're cool, but I think they require a high BAB (as I recall). Swarmfighting would have worked, too, but I didn't want any of my followers to be small size. Am I missing something?
Wilds 03-11-05, 10:50 AM	Kelreth walks towards the castle eyying the guards as they work their rounds. He continues to walk till he reachs the front gate. "Hail the Keep! I seek to talk with the leader of this great academy, i believe that i might be of some use here." My char is a warmage 10 / rouge 5.
Dyne 03-11-05, 01:48 PM	"I-Umm. . ." A tall, lanky boy of a man scratches his sandy hair nervously as he tries to speak. "You are still taking students, aren't you? I'm not too good with a sword or a bow- well I am, but it's only 'cause I train hard, and I will, honest. I'm not too good at it by birth, but I will train hard. And I mean, if it's not too much trouble, I- I think learning more about, uh, how to plan the battle, not just fight it, I- I think I could pick that up too if someone would be willing to teach me." If we do end up going with the 10th level characters allowed, ya actually have yerself a student. Umm. . . crap, he needs a name. . . "Of course we are accepting students. Prove yourself, and you may find yourself among our finest soldiers. What is your name young sir?"
Dyne 03-11-05, 01:52 PM	The Lieutenant continues his level gaze at his Commander. When he finishes speaking, Decius simply nods, apparently pleased with his Commander's judgement. "Indeed, my lord, that is the position I would expect to fill. I shall begin at once." He steps outside of the castle once more, and begins issuing orders. Before long, a temporary siege workshop has been constructed outside the castle walls, and the skeletons of several large catapults are brought into existence. Several squads of engineers begin combing the castle for every weakness, as well. "Very well." The commander turns to the massive half-orc once more. "Thank you for refraining from destroying any of our equipment. But, I am also doubtful that this little hole here will make much of a moat." He says, chuckling with the last comment. Dundragon continues to stride around the grounds, watching the various goings-on.
Dyne 03-11-05, 01:55 PM	Kelreth walks towards the castle eyying the guards as they work their rounds. He continues to walk till he reachs the front gate. "Hail the Keep! I seek to talk with the leader of this great academy, i believe that i might be of some use here." My char is a warmage 10 / rouge 5. Bren Dundragon goes up to meet the newcomer. "Well met. I see we will certainly have stealth and magic covered," he says, looking at the others who came before. "I ask that you go to the Great Hall at this time. With the recent arrivals, we have much to discuss. We must get things organized before anything can happen here." The commander goes around the grounds, calling all the officers to the Great Hall for a meeting.
Orcy The Green Wonder 03-11-05, 02:08 PM	The hulking half orc stands in a field to the side of the castle. Soldiers in a small group around him. He slams his fist into the ground and his skin grows visibly harder, almost taking a stone-ish appearance. He stands and slaps his palms together, green energy flowing around him and into his arms, which bulge further than their already considerable mass. He then grins and shouts out to his soldiers. "HIT ME IF YOU CAN BOYS!" Soldiers charge at him, swinging swords and other weapons that feebliy bounce off the half-orc's flesh. Hammers and axes hitting and simply being turned away by his body. The half orc laughs. "I said hit me, not tickle me. Come on boys, you can do better than that!" Hearing the call the hulking half orc motions for his men to stop and nods. Heading back toward the castle, he rolls his shoulders and picks up his mace, which rests a few strides away from him.
Kingside_Bishop 03-11-05, 02:45 PM	Lieutenant Oduran, currently lecturing to a group of young corporals on basic erosionary principles, compliments his men on their fine work and politely excuses himself. "Master Sergeant Tobulus, report!" A gruff, older man steps forward from the crowd of engineers gathered around a nearby catapult. "Yes, my lord?" he says. "I must attend an officer's meeting. Please continue the lesson I've begun with these corporals -- I was speaking of the erosionary principles of water, and their application in wartime and peacetime." "Yes, my lord." With this, the Lieutenant walks towards the keep, his white cloak billowing behind him, the silver ballista on a blue background waving in the breeze. Reaching the portculis, he enters, and asks a saluting soldier where the Great Hall is located. After recieving directions, he enters the Great Hall, and waits for the call to begin.
Lady Rolindin 03-11-05, 03:38 PM	tae sun the art of war wicth is taught in most military academys. terrain is imporant, you want to get your army their first and get the best terrain. If you cannot then you have to set up your attacking forces so that you use the terrain to your adavatage. like so if your army has surrounded a army of what ever they aer and they have the hills, they have the advanadge of fireing down on you, but you have to set up your forces so that you can attack in a 3 pronged attack. the reason for this is to break thier lines. Your forcews have to concentrait your archers on the left, the right, the center to cover your advancing forces and also concentrait on on area. this could be atrack to have them pull their forces into one area. so you can attack from hidden forces to the left,or the right. you have to concentrait your fire on a single area, covering all angles with arrow and spells. you can then break their defensive line. If you are defending you want to get the best terrain to have natural cover fror your troops. on your front line troops you want them to have pikes to repeal an attack with them. You need to have your archers set up in pockets of fire, in groups of three. the 3 groups will have to cover each other by covering the right,left, and center. use all types of bows for long range to short rapid fire type bows. I haven't talked about the wizards or clerics, or the other specailties that are needed to protect your line from a charge..lots of differnet things one can do depending on terrain. but you have to set up your archers in 3s so they cover each other, and the whole area they have. think of it as a whole lot of small groups covering small areas. with 10 to 30 archers in one fireing cluster.
Rurik "The Silent" 03-11-05, 06:15 PM	severis still observing the comtion sits down attop the wall in the sunshine. Pulling out an apple he begins to enjoy his lunch while watching the spectical of the training army.
premier666 03-11-05, 06:43 PM	You all see an dark looking human wearing a breast plate and holding a doubl sword entering the area. I want to join your organisation! (Sorry for intruding in your trhead but how do ou join the guild?)
Frostbite_Ravenheart 03-11-05, 07:30 PM	"Sounds fine by me Sir" Harandel said with a nod. "I still have other duties I will have to attend to unless we go to war. But don't worry should I ever be called out to duty my equally qualified aid will take command." Of course Harandel was refering to his small get-to-gather of some of the most infamous outlaws and gallant harpers. As Harandel approached the fresh new recruits he was acopanied by several men lightly clad in the colors of the forest. They looked as if armed with only bow and sword but the trained eye could tell there was more to it. "You have all finished basic training. With superior training of the fine school of SwordPoint You've learned to march, fight, ride a horse and operate as a member of an organized infantry unit. You've learned how to form defensive formations and cavalry wedges. You've been trained in the arts of unarmed combat, leadership, logistic and even basic principles of field engineering.” He paused for a second and smiled at the “worlds finest” smile there arrogant little smile. “If you go back home and remember your training you will indeed prove to be the greatest army officers this side of the world. Now forget it. Forget it all. Forget all that you’ve learned from the moment you walked through those gates. Your training won’t help you now. You were trained in the basics of the army officer but I wasn’t brought here to train Army officers now was I? I’m here to train rangers and rangers I shall make you.” Harandel hadn’t taught in a while and was a little and had to make few speeches to motivate outlaws or Harpers to do anything. “Your first lesson for today, ‘Ranger Superiority.’ The Ranger may not be the strongest individual warrior on the battlefield nor are they of any real use en masse. The ranger may not be as skilled with heavier armor or weapons. However in an army structure the Ranger can prove to be the most valuable. Tracker, scout, hunter, forager, bowman, trapper, cavalryman, guide, advisor, A ranger must be ready to take these roles among others on a moments notice. No archer unit, no matter how skilled, has both the skills necessary to both sneak up on a smaller force, ambush them with one strong shot and disappear before they realized they were shot. While a company of rangers might not be able to single-handedly sweep across nations but who else is going to guide the army over the mountains, through the swamps and across the deserts without loosing a single life to geography. Me and my associates here will teach you what is required to become a Professional Ranger. Some of you won’t make it, I promise you right now. Some of you quite and some of you will decide this isn’t for you. Sometimes we will decide it isn’t right for you. If you make your way through the last series of training and graduate you have two options open to you. You can go back to your home nation as a fully trained, experienced teacher and ranger. You will engage your skills in real combat situations and you will become more battle-hardy then the majority of your nations army. Or you can stay with me and join me and my compatriots…I’ll elaborate more on that option later… -Frosty
Dyne 03-11-05, 10:48 PM	Harpers and outlaws... not the average army officer. ;) Dundragon appears behind Harandel. "I'm not sure all that training should be forgotten. Afterall, what kind of Ranger could someone be if they had no self-discipline and no skill in combat?" You can tell Dundragon is trying to be light-hearted, but he always seems very serious about everything. "I'm afraid I have to cut this lesson short, Harandel. If you would, make your way to the Great Hall. There is much to be discussed and planned." The commander continues to search for any other officers that haven't already gone to the Great Hall.
turalisj 03-11-05, 10:51 PM	"sorry i am late, i had some buisness to addend to. golos says as he flaps in. "so, what should i do?"
Dyne 03-11-05, 10:51 PM	Welcome Premier666. No apologies necessary, simply posting onto the thread is how it's done. Bren Dundragon looks the dark human up and down. "I'm certain you will do fine here. I'd like to know more about your background and training, but that can all be discussed in the Great Hall. If you would, make your way there. There is much to be discussed and organized."
Dyne 03-11-05, 10:52 PM	"sorry i am late, i had some buisness to addend to. golos says as he flaps in. "so, what should i do?" "Get to the Great Hall. We're getting it all straightened out there right now."
turalisj 03-11-05, 10:53 PM	"yessir!" the dragon says in a mock salute as he flaps off towards the great hall.
Lady Rolindin 03-11-05, 11:50 PM	this way the classes can be set up, and be perpaired for the stunentds to come. there is somuch to teack about stradity and the battle field. And what do i call my part of the teachings, the way of the battle field, how to use your offense and defense. thats good title.
jagggar 03-12-05, 12:05 AM	The Lieutenant sees the boy shuffling his feet nearby, and walks over to him. "Have you thought of a career in the engineers, boy? You don't need to be good with a sword or bow to be useful in the engineers -- many of my men weren't, when they joined up. They've only got the most basic combat training, even now. No... a keen mind's what you'll need in the engineers. What're you playing, jagggar? Not quite sure yet. And not sure how the rules are starting to sound now. I actually think it would be funny if he really was a commoner. "Well my pap says I have to follow in the foot-steps of him and his pap. My mum said I should learn whatever I can though. I, I may not be bright, but like I said, I'll train hard. Do you have to be bright to be good at engineerin'?"
Wilds 03-12-05, 08:10 PM	Walks to the great hall, nods to Severis and sits down next to him. And watchs as things start
Dyne 03-12-05, 08:39 PM	"First order of business. I need a roster from each of you, listing each of the men under your command and their respective ranks. We need to know everyone that attends this Academy before we can really do anything. I'll need those rosters as soon as possible. Next, I need to know your backgrounds and your previous training. I can't assign tasks until I know what you are qualified for. Once I have this information, we can organize classes and select instructors." The commander waits for the officers to respond.
jagggar 03-12-05, 08:44 PM	So, umm, where is my trainee guy? I mean, only KB's guy's answered him so far.
Dyne 03-12-05, 08:48 PM	I answered him. And he could be there if he wants. I do need more info on him. If he isn't there, his commanding officer (if he has one) would have to be there.
turalisj 03-12-05, 08:51 PM	"First order of business. I need a roster from each of you, listing each of the men under your command and their respective ranks. We need to know everyone that attends this Academy before we can really do anything. I'll need those rosters as soon as possible. Next, I need to know your backgrounds and your previous training. I can't assign tasks until I know what you are qualified for. Once I have this information, we can organize classes and select instructors." The commander waits for the officers to respond. edit: nvm
Dyne 03-12-05, 08:54 PM	"well, heh, i don't really have anyone under my command." :rolleyes: Whatever. Who the heck are you, then?
Orcy The Green Wonder 03-12-05, 08:54 PM	The hulking half orc stands up and slams his fist into his chest. "I am Dul-Grek! I am a Knight Von Drache, trained in Darkwood. I'm stronger than mamma's chili and tougher than a dragon's hide. I've been a knight and defender of Darkwood for years now. I've fought against them shadowy freaks, I've turned away hordes of undead, and I've crushed anybody stupid enough to challenge me." The beast of a man looks around before hefting his mace and swinging it up onto his shoulder. "As for that list, I'll be gettin that to ya later."
jagggar 03-12-05, 08:56 PM	Grr, I hate missing posts. I'm annoyed that I missed it. But names. . . I hate coming up with names. I'll get around to that in a bit. I think I'm not going to do too much statting him until we actualy finalize how many characters we're having.
Dyne 03-12-05, 09:01 PM	The commander clears his throat. "I suppose I haven't really introduce myself. My name is Bren Dundragon, a knight, military commander and tactician, and warrior of the battlefield. My father was a Paladin of Helm, but I never was as much of a religious type, so I didn't go that path. I have been formally trained in fighting techniques and well as combat tactics. I can hold my own in a one-on-one fight, but I also excel in leading my troops through the carnage of battle. I founded The Academy in order to promote the instruction of the arts of war so that warriors of this day and age will be more ready to handle combat. Also, I felt it was important to have an independent Military Order that is seperate from the government of Tyranor. If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to contact me."
turalisj 03-12-05, 09:01 PM	"i am golos, psion and shaper. i have 49 dedicated shapers under my comand. edit: fixed number of followers.
Dyne 03-12-05, 09:13 PM	I thought you said you didn't have anyone under you command? :confused:
turalisj 03-12-05, 09:15 PM	I thought you said you didn't have anyone under you command? :confused: meh, i swapped flyby attack with leadership. but does his LA count when figuring the leadership score?
Dyne 03-12-05, 09:16 PM	Of course LA counts. The Leadership Score depends on level, whether that be actual levels or ECL.
jagggar 03-12-05, 09:17 PM	"Of course we are accepting students. Prove yourself, and you may find yourself among our finest soldiers. What is your name young sir?" "It's Nathaniel. But you can call me Nathan or Nate or whatever ya want to sir. I don't really mind." As I said before, I don't really want to stat him till we're given better guidlines on how many chracters we can have.
Kingside_Bishop 03-12-05, 09:29 PM	"My name is Decius Oduran, rank Lieutenant, commanding officer of this Swordpoint Academy's Engineering Corps. I graduated at the top of my class from Swordpoint, receiving high marks in marksmanship, theoretical and practical engineering, magical aptitude, and command. After graduation, I enlisted in the College of War Magic at Swordpoint, again graduating at the top of my class. I then enlisted in the Swordpoint Corps of Engineers, and shortly thereafter recieved officer training in that unit. "Thus, I have full training as an engineer, a war mage, and an officer. I am also a capable marksman. For my weapon, I prefer what some have referred to as a small ballista, on which I have honed to be as accurate as possible to extreme ranges. "Under my command are 28 Engineers and one other officer. I have 25 Corporals and 3 Sergeants. Additionally, Master Sergeant Tobulus serves as my second in command, a man well versed in troop morale as well as the engineering sciences -- he is a devotee of St. Cuthbert, and can serve as a healer under dire circumstances. His original training was in the Heavy Cavalry Corps, but in his age he has expanded his already extensive knowledge of engineering, and I was happy to accept his transfer."
Kingside_Bishop 03-12-05, 09:32 PM	As I said before, I don't really want to stat him till we're given better guidlines on how many chracters we can have.Especially now that Stav seems to have reversed his prior position...
Wilds 03-13-05, 11:20 AM	"I too learned to fight in a Mage Academy, after some time i grew bored and struck out on my own. I became an aquirerer of wanted goods and such. I resently joined another guild then found this one and believe that i will be able to help in its goal"
Sssargoth 03-13-05, 12:43 PM	I don't know where else to post this PrC, so here it is. It's quite appropriate for here, though. The Bowman Charger By Thomas M. Costa Dragon magazine issue 325 Many nations and many armies make the claim to have the finest cavalry or the most splended horsemen. None, however, are born and raised in the saddle like the great nomadic cultures of the steppes. From a young age, childre learn to ride and shoot, and many recieve bows and arrows as gifts. By the time children become adults, they are skilled riders and excellent marksmen. As adults, these warriors fight almost entirely on horseback, making extensive use of their riding tradition to attack their enemies from a distance. When their foes rush into battle, the nomadic warriors retreat, avoiding melee to shoot their enemies from a safe distance. Some consider them cowards, but this strategy minimizes their losses in a battle. The wandering tribes lead a harsh life, and consiquently many place a low valu on the lives of those outside their culture. These mighty warriors live in vast, open steppes where a nomadic lifestyle is both common and necessary. Examples of such people include the Mongols under the great khans, the Valenar elves of Eberron, the Rovers of the Barrens and the Plains of Paynim's numerous tribes in Greyhawk, and the Tuigan hordes of the Forgotten Realms. Not all members of these horse-riding steppe dwellers become bowman chargers, but those who do rise to great esteem among their clans and tribes. Bowman chargers wear the best light armor they can acquire. They almost exclusively use the composite shortbow, scimitar, and spear, although a few occasionally make use of other weapons. Depending on their particular culture, needs, or beliefs, some bowmen chargers make use of falchions or kukris. Fighters have the easiest time becoming bowman chargers, and indeed nearly every bowman charger has multiple fighter levels, but the majority of bowman chargers have at least one level of another class. Most who multiclass take levels in barbarian or ranger, although a fair number of fighter/paladins join the ranks of bowman chargers. Other classes gain little or no benefit from the class and most find its requirements difficult to meet. HD: d10 Requirements: To qualify to become a bowman charger, a charicter must fulfil the following criteria. BAB: +6 Skills: Handle Animal 8 ranks, Ride 8 ranks Feats: Mounted Archery, Mounted Combat, Ride-by Attack, Weapon Focus (composite shortbow) Class Skills: The bowman charger's class skills (and the key ability for each) are Craft (Int), Handle Animal (Cha), Intimidate (Cha), Ride (Dex), Spot (Wis), and Survival (Wis). Skill points at each level: 2 + Int modifier Class Features All of the following are class fetures of the bowman charger prestige class. Weapon and armor profiency: Bowman chargers are proficient with all simple and martial weapons, and with light and medium armor and bucklers. Burst of Speed (Ex): The bowma charger can urge her mount to greater than normal speeds. This ability doubles the distance of the mounts normal charge movement (the mount must charge to use this ability). The bowman charger can use this ability once per day without without risk of injury to her mount. She can try to use this ability more than once per day by "pushing" her mount as per the Handal Animal skill (see the Players Handbook, page 74). If the bowman charger succeds at her skill check, the mount makes an additional charge using burst of speed, but it must then make a DC 20 Fortitude save after the conclusion of the charge. If it succeds, the mount becomes fatigued; if it fails, it becomes fatigued and takes 2d6 points of damage. Two as One (Ex): At 1st level, the bowman charger can attune herself to her mount by spending two weeks alone with it. She can bring no food or water for herself or her mount, and instead they both must eat and drink where and when they can. During these two weeks, the bowman charger must learn to eat and sleep in the saddle. At the end of those two weeks, she and the mount become attuned. The bowman charger gains a bonus on all future Handle Animal checks made to influence the attuned mount equal to her bowman charger level. The attuned mount and bowman charger gain specific benefits, depending on the charicter's level in bowman charger, as shown on the table below. The only gains these benefits when rideing her attuned mount, and her mount only gains these benefits when its attune bowman charger rides it. A bowman charger can't be attuned to multiple mounts at the same time, but should a mount die or should the bowman charger wish to attune to a new mount, she must spend two weeks with it as previously described. Bowman Charger Level Special Ability 2nd Riding Mastery 4th Speed of trust 6th Elusive 8th Riding Dervish 10th Horse sense Riding Mastery (Ex): The bowman charger gains a bonus on her ride checks equal to her bowman charger level. Speed of Trust (Ex): The bowman charger gains a bonus on her initiative checks equal to half her bowman charger level when she begins combat on her attuned mount. In addition, her mount gains the use of the Dodge feat as long as the bowman charger is riding it. Her mount can choose to dodge a different foe than the bowman charger. Elusive (Ex): Once per round, when her mount is affected by an effect that allows a Reflex save, the bowman charger may make a Reflex save (using her bonus) instead. The result of her save becomes the result of her mount's save. The bowman charger must declare that she is going to use this ability before she makes the roll. Riding Dervish (Ex): The bowman charger may utilize Ride-by Attack to make a powerful assult through the ranks of her foes. While riding in a straight line and using a full-round action, the bowman charger can move up to her mounts speed, making a melee attack against any foe within reach on her path. For each foe attacked beyond the first, each attack suffers a -1 penalty, so the bowman charger must declair how many foes she attacks before she starts (minimum two). The bowman charger gives up her regular attacks to take this action. This is an extraordinary ability that draws no attacks of opportunity, even if the bowman charger passes through threatened areas on her way through the assult. In addition, her mount gains the use of the Mobility feat as long as she is riding it. Horse Sense (Su): Once per round, when her mount is affected by an effect that allows a Will save, the bowman charger may make a Will save (using her bonus) instead. The result of her save becomes the result of her mount's save. The bowman charger must declare that she is going to use this ability before she makes the roll. Improved Mounted Archery (Ex): At 3rd level, a bowman charger suffers no pealty when using a ranged weapon from horseback while her mount is making a double move, and a -2 penalty while her mount is running. Weapon Specialization (Ex): At 5th level, the bowman charger gains Weapon Specialization (composite shortbow) as a bonus feat. Improved Critical (Ex): At 7th level, the bowman charger gains Improved Critical (composite shortbow) as a bonus feat. Greater Weapon Specialization (Ex): At 9th level, the bowman charger gets Greater Weapon Specialization (composite shortbow) as a bonus feat. Great Khan (Ex): At 10th level, a bowman charger evinces confidence. She gains Leadership as a bonus feat, and gains a +2 bonus on her leadership score. On the battle field, all cohorts, followers, and allies within 60 feet of a bowman charger gain a +1 morale bonus on their attack rolls while mounted. Different Bowman Chargers Halfling Warhound Corps: Riding armored dogs into battle, the Halfling Warhound Corps accepts only the most experienced halfling riders. Those who manage to join the prestigious fighting force enter a rigorous training program that focuses ot only upon riding and archery, but also upon taking up the pack mentality that allows the Halfling Warhound Corps to function almost entirely by instinct as a unit on the battlefield. Goblin Wolflords: Feared throughout the lands that border the misty forests they claim as home, these goblins are known for their unusual tactic of dismounting and firing their bows from behind the cover of their prone mounts. When a foe comes too close, a goblin's wolf knows to stand and trip the foe, allowing the goblin to attack their prone enemy with a melee weapon. Elven Windriders: The Elven Windriders divide their members into two forces: the pegasi riders who patrol elven lands during the day and the giat-owl-rideing night patrol. Although people more often see the pegasi riders, the mysterious night patrol is the most famous of the two. Accustomed to quietly flying through the close confines of the forest, members of the night patrol even venture into caves and dungeons when threats arise from such places. Bowman Charger Advancement Level BaB Fort Ref Will Special 1st +1 +0 +2 +0 Burst of Speed, Two as One 2nd +2 +0 +3 +0 Two as One (Riding Mastery) 3rd +3 +1 +3 +1 Improved mounted archery 4th +4 +1 +4 +1 Two as One (Speed of trust) 5th +5 +1 +4 +1 Weapon specialization(composite shortbow) 6th +6 +2 +5 +2 Two as one (elusive) 7th +7 +2 +5 +2 Improved critical (composite shortbow) 8th +8 +2 +6 +2 Two as one (Riding Dervish) 9th +9 +3 +6 +3 Greater Weapon Specialization (composite shortbow) 10th +10 +3 +7 +3 Two as one (Horse sense), Great Khan
jagggar 03-13-05, 01:19 PM	Is posting that legal?
Sssargoth 03-13-05, 01:41 PM	A lone figure on a horse is seen in the distance. It appears to be surveying the keep, since it doesn't move from that spot for several minutes. At that point the figure spurs his mount to imposible speeds straight for the main gates. Several men on the walls mistake the mounted figure as a werewolf, but those with more common sense point out that werewolves don't ride horses. After a short time, the figure slows his mount and is more clearly seen. He rides like a great prince of the nomadic tribes, but looks more like a man with the head of a wolf, and coveres in thick fur, of varying shades of brown. He wears no armor and carries few weapos, but appears confident that he can defeat entire armies on his own. To the captain of the guard, hesays in highly accented common, "I wish to speak with the commander of this outpost as soon as possible."
Sssargoth 03-13-05, 01:56 PM	Is posting that legal? yeah, as long as I state it's source, which I have. I also put the author, because I thought it was a good idea.
Dyne 03-13-05, 02:16 PM	You might put it up at the Baldurs Gate Archers Guild. I'll take a look at it. There looks to be quite a lot for this one.
Sssargoth 03-13-05, 08:29 PM	I'll post it over there in a few minutes. Whee would I post a race without resurecting a thread that hasnt had any activity in almost a year?
Dyne 03-16-05, 03:49 PM	:bump: The aged Bren Dundragon looks around at the officers. "Well? I still haven't heard from all of you. And I need those rosters."
Sssargoth 03-16-05, 03:58 PM	:ahem: You never responded to my RP intro, which is better than I usually do anyway. Ask orcy, or nightscreamer if you dont believe me.
Dyne 03-16-05, 04:01 PM	Huh? Let me look it over.
Dyne 03-16-05, 04:04 PM	A lone figure on a horse is seen in the distance. It appears to be surveying the keep, since it doesn't move from that spot for several minutes. At that point the figure spurs his mount to imposible speeds straight for the main gates. Several men on the walls mistake the mounted figure as a werewolf, but those with more common sense point out that werewolves don't ride horses. After a short time, the figure slows his mount and is more clearly seen. He rides like a great prince of the nomadic tribes, but looks more like a man with the head of a wolf, and coveres in thick fur, of varying shades of brown. He wears no armor and carries few weapos, but appears confident that he can defeat entire armies on his own. To the captain of the guard, hesays in highly accented common, "I wish to speak with the commander of this outpost as soon as possible." The captain of the guard nods. "Open the gate!" The massive gates are pulled open with rattling chains. The lupin then sees a very large, open grounds, with massive guard towers and one tall keep in the center. Sorry Sssargoth. I must've been very tired.
Sssargoth 03-16-05, 05:00 PM	The captain of the guard nods. "Open the gate!" The massive gates are pulled open with rattling chains. The lupin then sees a very large, open grounds, with massive guard towers and one tall keep in the center. The lupin nods as his horse walks through the gate. Sorry Sssargoth. I must've been very tired. thats ok
Dyne 03-16-05, 05:28 PM	A man in chainmail with a white surcoat approaches the newcomer. His surcoat bears the emblem of Swordpoint. "The commander is currently meeting with the new arrivals in the Great Hall. I would suggest you go there immediately and introduce yourself." The guard points the lupin in the direction of the Great Hall.
jagggar 03-16-05, 10:38 PM	I replied for my guy, hmm, what was his name. . . Oh yeah, Nathan. Anyway, what's going on with him during the meeting?
Dyne 03-16-05, 11:15 PM	I don't know, he's fidgeting I suppose. He does fidget, doesn't he? He seemed the nervous type.
Sssargoth 03-16-05, 11:30 PM	A man in chainmail with a white surcoat approaches the newcomer. His surcoat bears the emblem of Swordpoint. "The commander is currently meeting with the new arrivals in the Great Hall. I would suggest you go there immediately and introduce yourself." The guard points the lupin in the direction of the Great Hall. "Thank you, sir." The lupin gets off his horse, and goes to the great hall. His war horse goes to the stables. He opens the door to the great hall and goes inside, closing the door behind him. Seeing the people gathered, he introduces himself. "Noble warriors, I am Hector-Mataff, and I have come to teach the way of mounted combat. Will you accept my offer?"
Dyne 03-16-05, 11:55 PM	The old commander eyes the newcomer. "Perhaps. That is why we are in here, to figure out what we are going to do as far as who trains what. I suppose we have reached that stage allready. Now, fine officers, don't be shy, just put it out there. What specialization are you interested? What are you qualified to teach?" I'm thinking to make the commander older instead of young. I would think an older man would found an Academy anyway, plus I'm starting to feel that I don't plan on using him in the IFG2. I'm rather tired of a crapload of characters, they take too much time and are more work than they're worth. So far, I'm going with 2 or 3. One an assassin, one a pirate, and possibly one a healer (Cleric).
Sssargoth 03-17-05, 01:01 AM	The old commander eyes the newcomer. "Perhaps. That is why we are in here, to figure out what we are going to do as far as who trains what. I suppose we have reached that stage allready. Now, fine officers, don't be shy, just put it out there. What specialization are you interested? What are you qualified to teach?" "In general, my area of expertese is mounted combat. More specifically, the use of bows and swords from horseback." While he says that, he takes a seat and leans his sheathed katana against the table Ive been making alot of charicters with katanas lately for some reason...
Dyne 03-17-05, 01:09 AM	I dislike katanas for some reason. Maybe it's just me, but they seem to attract newbs and wannabe swordfighters (not that everyone who uses a katana is a newb or wannabe swordfighter).
Sssargoth 03-17-05, 01:29 AM	I'ts my favorite historical melee weapon. I guess I might have a samurai's heart. That would explain why I own 4 battle sharp katanas, and practice with them... :twitch: :twitch: :twitch: :twitch:
Dyne 03-17-05, 01:36 AM	:twitch: /\ || Yeah, I do that a lot.
Frostbite_Ravenheart 03-17-05, 02:07 PM	The ranger came to the meeting late and looking just a tid bit annoyed. "Why was I summoned here? I've already chosen my path of work, I needn't supervise these respectable looking military men?" The Captain eyed the rest of the teachers. He stuck his hand out for the man with the Katana to shake "Your new around, I see? I have just came back recently myself. I'm going to guess that your one of our new cavalry instructors aren't you?" You could always tell the cavalrymen from the others, so arogant yet so smelly. ;) -Frosty
Sssargoth 03-17-05, 06:33 PM	The Captain eyed the rest of the teachers. He stuck his hand out for the man with the Katana to shake "Your new around, I see? I have just came back recently myself. I'm going to guess that your one of our new cavalry instructors aren't you?" You could always tell the cavalrymen from the others, so arogant yet so smelly. ;) -Frosty The lupin shakes the captains hand, and he notices that the lupin's palm is rough, like a wolfs paw. "Yes, I am new here, and no, I'm not a typical cavalryman. I am one of the highest ranked bowman archers of the nomadic tribes, and I will be teaching such skills to your cavalrymen, especially if the pay is good." Everyone notices the lupin grin when he sees the captains sword. "My sword is bigger." :P
Dyne 03-17-05, 06:35 PM	The ranger came to the meeting late and looking just a tid bit annoyed. "Why was I summoned here? I've already chosen my path of work, I needn't supervise these respectable looking military men?" The Captain eyed the rest of the teachers. He stuck his hand out for the man with the Katana to shake "Your new around, I see? I have just came back recently myself. I'm going to guess that your one of our new cavalry instructors aren't you?" You could always tell the cavalrymen from the others, so arogant yet so smelly. ;) -Frosty At least they're not as smelly as a Half-Elf. :P
Sssargoth 03-18-05, 12:58 PM	The Ranger Knight of Furyondy by Charles Dunwoody Dragon 317 By the decree of his pious magesty, King Belvor IV, the Kingdom of Furyondy is in a "permanent and unalterable state of war" with the Empire of Iuz. Waging this war falls to the warriors of the realm, especially the Knights of the Heart. Unfortunately, the northern reaches of Furyondy are in ruins. Villages in ruins, roads washed out and not maintained, and raids by bands of monsters make life dificult and dangerous. The weather is damp and harsh, rusting armor and spreading sickniss. Although the standing army and the Knights of the Heart do much to bring war to Iuz, they have not been able to do it all. These warriors are ready to fight on the battlefield, but this new war calls for spying, assassination, and covert strikes against supply units and the leaders of Iuz's army. This war requires a new type of warrior: The Ranger Knights of Furyondy. The ranger knights cocentrate on the northeastern boarder with Iuz. Because of the vast plains and distances involved, the ranger knights combine the skills of a hunter with the speed and power of a warhorse. This combination makes the ranger knights a force to be feared. Only skilled warriors with proven battle success and nerves of steel can join the ranger knights. Membership is by invitation only and is usually offered only once. HD: d10 Ranger Knight requirements: To qualify to become a rager knight, a charicter must fulfill all the following criteria. Alignment: Any good Base Attack: +5 Handle Animal: 4 ranks Hide: 2 ranks Move Silently: 2 ranks Ride: 8 ranks Feats: Mounted Combat, Track, Trample, Two-Weapon Fighting Ranger Knight class skills: The ranger knight's class skills are: Bluff (Cha), Climb (Str), Craft (any), Disguise (Cha), Gather Information (Cha), Handle Animal (Cha), Heal (Wis), Hide (Dex), Intimidate (Cha), Jump (Str), Knowledge (dungeoneering) (Int), Knowledge (geography) (Int), Kowledge (local) (Int), Knowledge (nature) (Int), Listen (Wis), Move Silently (Dex), Ride (Dex), Search (Int), Sense Motive (Wis), Spot (Wis), Survival (Wis), Swim (Str), Tumble (Dex), Use Rope (Dex). Skill points at each level: 6 + Int modifier. Class Features All of the following are class features of the ranger knight prestige class. Weapon and Armor Proficiency: A ranger knight gains no proficiency with any weapon or armor. Mounted Track (Ex): At 1st level, the ranger knight can track while mounted on her special mount without additional penalty, using the special mount's speed for the purposes of determining what penalties are applied if moving at greater than half the special mount's speed. Special Mount (Ex): At 1st level, the ranger knight gains a special mount as a 6th level paladin. The ranger knight's class levels count as paladin levels (with 1st level counting as 6th level) for the purposes of determining what special abilities the mount gains. For example, a 10th-level ranger knight would have a special mount that gains abilities as though the ranger knight were a 15th-level paladin. The standard mount for a Medium ranger knight is a light warhorse, and the standard mount for a Small ranger knight is a wolf trained to take a rider into combat. If the ranger knight already has a special mount, she does not gain another special mount, but her ranger knight levels stack with the levels of her previous class for determining the special mount's abilities. Favored Enemy (Ex): At 2nd, 6th, and 10th level, the ranger knight gains a favored enemy. This ability works exactly as the ranger class feature of the same name. Class levels in ranger knight stack with other class levels that provide favored enemies. For example, a ranger knight that lacked ranger levels before gaining this class chooses his first favored enemy at 2nd level. When he chooses his next favored enemy at 6th level, the bonus against any one favored enemy (including the one just selected, if so desired) increases by +2. A ranger knight that had 5 levels of ranger before gaining this class chooses his third favored enemy at 2nd level of the ranger knight prestige class. In addition, the bonus against any one favored enemy (including the one you just selected, if so desired) increases by +2. At 6th level, he chooses his fourth favored enemy and he may again choose to add +2 to any oe of his favored enemies. Saddle Strike (Ex): At 2nd level, the ranger knight can attack with two weapons without having to make a Ride check to guid her mount with her knees. Her mount can attack as well if she maked a DC 5 Ride check. Two Fight as One (Ex): At 3rd level, the ranger knigh may fight with her mount without the need for a Ride check, Any dodge bonuses to Armor Class the ranger knight has also applys to her mount. Silent Hoof (Ex): At 4th level, if the ranger knight's mount is wearing light barding or no barding, the ranger knight can use her own Move Silently skil checks in place of her mount's when riding it. Bonus Feat: At 4th, 7th, and 10th level, the ranger knight gains a bonus feat chosen from the list below. The ranger knight must qualify for the chosen bonus feat. Ranger Knight Bonus Feat List: Animal Affinity, Athletic, Improved Two-Weapon Fighting, Mounted Archery, Quick Draw, Ride-By Attack, Self Sufficient, Spirited Charge, Stealthy, Two-Weapon Defense. Horse Archer (Ex): At 5th level, the ranger knight reduces the penalties for mounted ranged attacks by half. If the ranger knight has the Mounted Archery feat, the penalties are halved to -1 if the mount makes a double move or -2 if the mount is running. Double Stomp (Ex): At 6th level, if the ranger knight's mount is wearing light barding or no barding, and the ranger knight uses the Trample feat successfully, her mount may make two attacks instead of one. Ranger Lord (Ex): At 7th level, the ranger knight can wear medium armor and use any abilities that require the charicter to be wearing light or no armor so long as the ranger knight uses the ability while mounted. In addition, the ranger knight's special mount suffers no discomfort from wearing light barding and can sleep in it without suffering fatigue. Great Trample (Ex): At 8th level, if the ranger knight's mount is wearing light barding or no barding, and the ranger knight uses the Trampel feat successfully, her mount may make a full attack. Each attack is made with a-2 penalty. The mount still gains the standard +4 to attack rolls against prone targets. Overwhelming Charge (Ex): At 9th level, the ranger knight gains her most devastating attack. When a ranger knight is mounted on her special mount and charges, she does not suffer the -2 penalty to AC normally associated with a charge. Her mount still suffers the pealty. In addition, if the ranger knight wields two melee weapons, she can attack once with each (istead of being limited to a single attack when her mount oves more than 5 feet). If the charge is combined with the Spirited Charge feat, both melee weapons deal double damage. This ability can't be used with weapons that have reach (such as a lance). The Ranger Knight of Furyondy Level BaB Fort Ref Will Special 1st +1 +2 +2 +0 Mounted Track, special mount 2nd +2 +3 +3 +0 1st favored enemy, saddle strike 3rd +3 +3 +3 +1 Two fight as one 4th +4 +4 +4 +1 Silent hoof, bonus feat 5th +5 +4 +4 +1 Horse archer 6th +6 +5 +5 +2 Double stomp, 2nd favored enemy 7th +7 +5 +5 +2 Ranger lord, bonus feat 8th +8 +6 +6 +2 Great trampel 9th +9 +6 +6 +3 Overwhelming charge 10th +10 +7 +7 +3 3rd favored enemy, bonus feat
Frostbite_Ravenheart 03-18-05, 04:23 PM	The lupin shakes the captains hand, and he notices that the lupin's palm is rough, like a wolfs paw. "Yes, I am new here, and no, I'm not a typical cavalryman. I am one of the highest ranked bowman archers of the nomadic tribes, and I will be teaching such skills to your cavalrymen, especially if the pay is good." Everyone notices the lupin grin when he sees the captains sword. "My sword is bigger." :P "Sometimes my friend," The Ranger smiles taking out his blade "Its not the size of the sword, its how you use it." That hit a mark ;), -Frosty
Sssargoth 03-18-05, 04:47 PM	"Sometimes my friend," The Ranger smiles taking out his blade "Its not the size of the sword, its how you use it." That hit a mark ;), -Frosty "Indeed it is. Care to spar later to see who is the better swordsman?" and with a grin he removes his sword from its sheath and it grows to about 8 feet long and 3.5 feet wide at its widest. "Like I said, mines bigger." :P I love the sizeing enchantment
Frostbite_Ravenheart 03-18-05, 04:50 PM	Harandel continues to smile "Thats the problem with militia today. All they do is spar and fight to the death. Why I say? Why must my enemy see me before I kill him?" "If you ever think I'm comming to kill you, its not your front I suggest you be watching." -Frosty
Sssargoth 03-18-05, 04:58 PM	Harandel continues to smile "Thats the problem with militia today. All they do is spar and fight to the death. Why I say? Why must my enemy see me before I kill him?" "If you ever think I'm comming to kill you, its not your front I suggest you be watching." -Frosty "You come from behind, while I come from every direction, never staying in one place for long." The lupin re-sheaths his sword as he says this. "We should compare specific strategies later."
turalisj 03-18-05, 06:47 PM	suddenly the lupin sees a smaller version of himself dacing around, making faces at everyone. "and i strike from above, using distractions such as my astral consturct here. cut little thing, isn't he?" golos said, hovering upside down."You come from behind, while I come from every direction, never staying in one place for long." The lupin re-sheaths his sword as he says this. "We should compare specific strategies later." i love playing as a shaper. too bad i can't add another one........ :D
jagggar 03-18-05, 08:33 PM	What's the sizing enchantment from?
Lady Rolindin 03-18-05, 11:16 PM	She is Kaylle Skylore the red Knight War Wizard, teacher of the battle tatics for wizards and all spells and terains fighting stlyes. she is a red knight and she went to the Corymer war wizard collage(they have to go to red knight war collage to become a red knight, the red knight war collage teaches tatics and the higher level are battle tatic masters, for spells and troop movemnt.) just battle tatictaion for wizards an thier spells and what spells to use at different times. spell battle tatiction, some of the guilds needs to trtain their armies or need to have their characters trained in such matters. kaylee will go to the gate after watching the training and wait for them to open the gate and go in and talk tothe commander of the training. she has on a low red hue armor with a red falcon crest on her sur coat. (yes red knights wear armor even wizards, takes away from spell casting. its just one of their bad habbits. even the red knight battle priest master tatication does the same; plate mail armor all the way with a red hue.) paladin and wizards spells hum.
Sssargoth 03-18-05, 11:22 PM	What's the sizing enchantment from? Complete Advetnurer
jagggar 03-18-05, 11:39 PM	k. That just might end up the first Complete book I buy if I decide to buy any of them.
Sssargoth 04-03-05, 07:11 PM	casts Animate Thread (http://boards1.wizards.com/showpost.php?p=4778771&postcount=287)
Dyne 04-03-05, 10:28 PM	We need to choose an IG leader in the event that I'm not able to have a character for this guild. The way things are going, it looks like I won't be able to, except for just roleplaying (basically, I could talk, but not actually "do" anything).
Frostbite_Ravenheart 04-03-05, 10:35 PM	We need to choose an IG leader in the event that I'm not able to have a character for this guild. The way things are going, it looks like I won't be able to, except for just roleplaying (basically, I could talk, but not actually "do" anything). I've given myself little responsabilty as I was unable to commit the time before and as a result I have little to do other then manage the CoA. I will likely also have only two characters... ;) -Frosty
Dyne 04-03-05, 10:38 PM	I've given myself little responsabilty as I was unable to commit the time before and as a result I have little to do other then manage the CoA. I will likely also have only two characters... ;) -Frosty Did you actually think I would leave the Academy in the hands of a Half-Elf?! Are you MAD?! ;)
Sssargoth 04-03-05, 10:45 PM	Did you actually think I would leave the Academy in the hands of a Half-Elf?! Are you MAD?! ;) Well, the fact that he's half human should answer this question nicely. ;) I guess I could manage a leadership position in 2 guilds, except possibly for my vacation at the end of the month. I'm not sure if Ill have internet connection during that time or not to be honest.
Dyne 04-03-05, 10:49 PM	I suppose we'll have an election. Anyone wanting to be a candidate can either post it, PM me, or email me as you prefer. Nominations will close, I don't know, maybe on Wednesday. Then we'll start the elections, which I guess will run through Friday. I could announce the winner on Saturday. Anyone wanting to be put on the ballot, speak now. So far, Nominations: Sssargoth
Frostbite_Ravenheart 04-04-05, 09:52 PM	Nominations: Sssargoth So whats this mean? I'm off the ballot? You foolish fool how dare you mock me! Lets compare Ssargoths psionics foundation versus me own foundation ;). Notable contributation by half-elves also include the second most powerfull foundation, the Half-elven foundation. I rest my case. -Frosty BTW - I may change my character to more of a Thri-kreen Psionic warrior/Ranger/Elocator. Harandel Half-Elven may have fought one-too many of wars.
Dyne 04-04-05, 09:55 PM	So whats this mean? I'm off the ballot? You foolish fool how dare you mock me! Lets compare Ssargoths psionics foundation versus me own foundation ;). What are you talking about, you bloody tainted blood? You specifically stated that you didn't want put on the ballot. Look, you even signed this contract, renouncing all powers and responsibilities in this guild. It also gives me all of your riches, but that's besides the point. Ay, Half-Elves.... :rolleyes: Notable contributation by half-elves also include the second most powerfull foundation, the Half-elven foundation. WAS the second most powerful. Sadly, it seems to be buried under a pile of spam at the moment....
Frostbite_Ravenheart 04-04-05, 10:19 PM	Aye Dyne fool of fools, had I not such honor to turn my back on anything I've commited to I could rally the half-elves and destroy the world in an instant! You forget our Surpreme Better Then Elven High Half-Elven. So...if you forgive my half-elvishness...I will forgive your little runaway from the CoA and you can join us as freely or as part-time as ye wish. ;) -Frosty
Dyne 04-04-05, 10:21 PM	You forget our Surpreme Better Then Elven High Half-Elven. BLASPHEMY! Nobody is better than the haughty High Elven! No one can match our egoes! Except for the Gold Elves, of course.
Frostbite_Ravenheart 04-04-05, 10:23 PM	Alright, Forgive me. I, for a moment, forget my hatrid of gold elves. Due to the lack of a certin special Gold Elf that has disappeared from sight this is easy to understand. Also, forgive me for being biased about half-elves. Only Sils Half-Elven Followers are more egoistic then Gold/High Elves ;). -Frosty
Dyne 04-04-05, 10:25 PM	Only Sils Half-Elven Followers are more egoistic then Gold/High Elves ;). I can agree to that. ;) So does anybody else actually want to run for the In-Game leader of this guild?
Sssargoth 04-04-05, 10:28 PM	BLASPHEMY! Nobody is better than the haughty High Elven! No one can match our egoes! Except for the Gold Elves, of course. Or dragons in general, and red dragons in specific, especially the older ones.
Rurik "The Silent" 04-07-05, 02:58 PM	Or dragons in general, and red dragons in specific, especially the older ones. What about the nice shiney gold ones? :)
Sssargoth 04-07-05, 05:28 PM	What about the nice shiney gold ones? :) Surprisingly less arogent than a red, not by much though. :D
Solmund 04-07-05, 06:00 PM	it'll be ineresting to see the swordpoint military academy face the raizer mercenary academy.
Dyne 04-07-05, 11:20 PM	it'll be ineresting to see the swordpoint military academy face the raizer mercenary academy. We would most certainly win. ;) A few announcements: The Seafarer's Guild is looking for new members, specifically for the Navy and Privateer sub-guilds (which will operate as separate guilds In-Game). I think it would be fitting for some of the members of the Swordpoint Military Academy to be sailors, serving in the Royal Navy and chasing after pirates. Another thing: It looks like Sssargoth was the only one who wanted to run for IG Guildmaster of Swordpoint. But, I'll leave it open for nominations for a little while longer. If no one speaks up by Saturday, I'll leave things in the hands of Sssargoth.
turalisj 04-07-05, 11:46 PM	golos, though a dragon, will also run for leadership of the guild. though, i am thinking of changing him to simply be a half-dragon. a half-green skullcruhser ogre that is. :D
Dyne 04-08-05, 12:14 AM	Allright, so: Nominations Sssargoth turalisj Voting will begin on Saturday I guess. Give people a little more time to get nominations in.
Frostbite_Ravenheart 04-08-05, 03:14 PM	Excuse me, but does Golos "teach" here? And if so...what does he teach... Not to be mean but I just dont see it really...fitting IG... Also - Dyne...grow up and add me to the list. You dont think I have a chance? Or prehaps...jealousy? I'm not going to rip this guild out from under your feet. At least, not unless bait were to be ally in that. Not that I need him for skillfull politics...I just would need compitition ;). Do know Dyne...I can make your characters lives a living hell. -Frosty ;)
Dyne 04-09-05, 03:15 PM	Make up your darn mind. Okay, voting time. Email me your votes (you can find my email address in my profile). Here are the nominations: Nominations Sssargoth turalisj Frostbite_Ravenheart Let the voting begin! Geez, I hope there are more active members than just the three of you.... *Checks Members List* There are plenty of members, but I don't know what they're all up to. Sssargoth wasn't even on the Members List, however. Eh, sorry 'bout that. Anyway, voting will continue until I actually get some votes from our less-active members, however long that takes. I'll have to start PMing people....
jagggar 04-09-05, 03:42 PM	I've been typing up variants from UA and ordering Urban Arcana. Boy is that gunna get fun when I start talking about both books at once. (I've yet to buy d20 Modern.) Okay, are we voting for characters being leaders of the guild or for the player? 'Bit lost. And if it is the character, could you also say the character name?
Dyne 04-09-05, 03:49 PM	We're voting for the character, I guess. Nominees Sssargoth (character is Sssargoth, I think) turalisj (Golos) Frostbite_Ravenheart (Harandel Half-Elven)
Frostbite_Ravenheart 04-09-05, 04:50 PM	We're voting for the character, I guess. Nominees Sssargoth (character is Sssargoth, I think) turalisj (Golos) Frostbite_Ravenheart (Harandel Half-Elven) Yes...yes indeed. Also Dyne - Tura, Sassy and Myself don't have to vote right? I don't want to vote for myself just beacuse you'll allow one of those other two too. -Frosty
Dyne 04-09-05, 05:57 PM	Yeah, nominees shouldn't even bother voting.
Sssargoth 04-09-05, 08:17 PM	We're voting for the character, I guess. Nominees Sssargoth (character is Sssargoth, I think) turalisj (Golos) Frostbite_Ravenheart (Harandel Half-Elven) Wrong charicter. My charicter for this guild is Hector-Mataff. (http://boards1.wizards.com/showpost.php?p=5661992&postcount=177) The link is also in my sig
Cazic 04-09-05, 08:39 PM	[deleted] please ignore that this post ever excited.
Wilds 04-09-05, 09:27 PM	i do not want to run
Rurik "The Silent" 04-10-05, 12:21 AM	beign as im here for more observation than participation. And that im just liking the flavor of the academy, i will not run nor vote. This is in the hands of the members willing to get blood on their hands. Im merely here for the ride and the show. If the guild gets in a war i'll help defend it, don't worry im honorable
Solmund 04-10-05, 12:29 AM	well, its either the sp acedmey is against the raizer academy, or allied with it. which one? :D
Wilds 04-10-05, 09:30 AM	man you are really looking for a little rumble
Dyne 04-10-05, 05:59 PM	well, its either the sp acedmey is against the raizer academy, or allied with it. which one? :D That'll be up to whoever is made Guildmaster.
Frostbite_Ravenheart 04-11-05, 07:24 PM	well, its either the sp acedmey is against the raizer academy, or allied with it. which one? :D Well to be honest - If I had it my way - They'd be allies. Two of the same united together...we'd have a monopoly. I'm very diplomatic in peace and in war. The more allies the better. In the end, if we feel like we need to be the sole academy, we'll have enough power and influence ourselves to take the raizer academy. That is...only if I was guildleader ;). -Frosty
Dyne 04-11-05, 11:31 PM	Anyone actually going to vote? I repeat myself: Nominations Sssargoth turalisj (Golos) Frostbite_Ravenheart (Harandel Half-Elven) I think most of you already have my email. If not, it's in my profile.
ShadowNinja 04-15-05, 03:54 AM	Hey, so are they tenth level or 15th level characters? 10th lvl ranger or 10th level Ranger/5th level Order of the Bow Initiate. I will teach archery to the members of the academy, and I have the leadership feat so I have followers. please get back to me on this.
Sssargoth 04-15-05, 09:16 AM	Hey, so are they tenth level or 15th level characters? 10th lvl ranger or 10th level Ranger/5th level Order of the Bow Initiate. Most of the PCs here are 15th level. Im not sure if that answers your question or not. I will teach archery to the members of the academy, and I have the leadership feat so I have followers. please get back to me on this. I'm glad my charicter for this guild isnt the only archer. I can now focus on teaching mounted combat.
ShadowNinja 04-15-05, 03:12 PM	Great, now the SwordPoint Military Academy has snipers! :D Mounted Archery... oooohhhh ahhhhhhhhh ;)
Dyne 04-15-05, 06:09 PM	This whole academy is full of mounted archers. Is anyone going to vote? Anyone at all? Would you guys rather be leaderless?
Sssargoth 04-15-05, 06:47 PM	Is anyone going to vote? Anyone at all? Would you guys rather be leaderless? I vote for myself. There, atleast somebody voted. :P
Dyne 04-15-05, 06:55 PM	Yeah, but you weren't supposed to vote. :rolleyes: How about we do things this way: Candidates, you must vote for one of the other candidates (not yourself). Whoever gets two votes is elected. (Send votes in an email, please)
ShadowNinja 04-16-05, 12:27 PM	There is a bow in the Arms and Equpment Guide that is a essentially a mounted archer's best friend, it is the "Bow of the Steppes" can't quite remember what it does. Sssargoth might want to look in to that. Do we have to post our characters or just say the class and introduce ourselves?
Dyne 04-16-05, 02:37 PM	Put your full stats up at the Player Character Thread 3. Here, just put up your class and introduce yourself.
Sssargoth 04-16-05, 06:48 PM	There is a bow in the Arms and Equpment Guide that is a essentially a mounted archer's best friend, it is the "Bow of the Steppes" can't quite remember what it does. Sssargoth might want to look in to that. It decreases the attack penalty to fire a bow while mounted. A -2 when the mount makes a double move, and a -4 when the mount is making a full run, which is worse than what I get normally from feats and abilities from the Bowman Charger PrC. Improved Mounted Archery (Ex): At 3rd level, a bowman charger suffers no pealty when using a ranged weapon from horseback while her mount is making a double move, and a -2 penalty while her mount is running. See what I mean. ;)
ShadowNinja 04-17-05, 06:10 AM	oops. Anyway, its still a cool bow for any other horse archers with out Bowman Charger levels (followers etc.) if you can aford one for them.
ShadowNinja 04-29-05, 03:25 AM	:bump:
ShadowNinja 04-29-05, 11:50 AM	:rimshot: the sound of silence..... BUMP!
Dyne 04-29-05, 08:04 PM	How many people are still active here? And we never finished that election.
Frostbite_Ravenheart 04-29-05, 08:35 PM	My Thri-kreen Psionic Ranger and Half-Elven Ranger are still around. -Frosty
Dyne 04-30-05, 01:38 PM	My Thri-kreen Psionic Ranger and Half-Elven Ranger are still around. -Frosty Both in this one guild? :confused: Allright, for those of you that are still here: If you want to be in the IFG2 as part of the Swordpoint Military Academy, Frostbite_Ravenheart is now your guildmaster. The election is off. I'm rather tired of waiting and not receiving a single vote. Plus, I think Frostbite is responsible enough to be a good leader. If anyone has any objections to this, speak out.
Frostbite_Ravenheart 04-30-05, 11:10 PM	I Object! Well now, I really don't...but I would not have minded if you were to have maybe previously informed me of this...but thats alright. I accept. Anyways I'm going to build an active player listing for this foundation. IF your planning on playing a character for this foundation and you want to be officially recognized by us then you need to post here and state clearly that you have one character that in this foundation. As for both my Thri-Kreen and Half-Elven characters - I'm not sure exactly which one will be in here. It pretty much decides on if the Forest Dwellers foundation has any activity or not. If so, then the HeF will go there and the Thri-Kreen will be the leader here. If not, then the Half-Elven character will come here and the Thri-kreen will go somewhere else. Possibly with stormhand? Dyne, would your character stormhand mind if I were to "hang out" with him? Could he treat such a character as an equal? From what I understand of him, no. But I haven't seem him too much to make a perfect guess. -Frosty
Dyne 04-30-05, 11:41 PM	Um, sure, if you want. What type of guy is your character?
Frostbite_Ravenheart 04-30-05, 11:58 PM	My Thri-Kreen is going to be a Psionic Warrior mixed with Ranger. I may or may not take the Elocater PrC. He is a hunter pure and simple growing up in such a society. Think of the Thri-Kreens as the Spartans of rangers and predators. He is a very stubborn person and would have a definite problem submitting to someone like your character. In his society, leadership is highly contested. Its not like the drow where everyone just wants power but rather its necessary for survival. At least how I interpret it is that Thri-Kreens are all very loyal to the “clutch” which is a small group but tightly-knit group. They are very loyal to it and to each other and the best person is always leader. While maybe not always testing the leader if a Thri-kreen feels a leader is not doing his job for the Clutch its his duty to challenge him. Its not a very hostile thing and would be expected. Anyways if your character, which I’m guessing is a wizard, is of equal level to my character then he’s going to feel that your not superior. While they may develop a clutch-like bond with anyone, a human wizard of equal will not be seen as a better leader of a small-tactical group like a clutch. Thri-kreen have alien thinking and while we may not always been in a “small-tactical group” like setting like a clutch is a designed to be in, that’s how he will view life in general. That is how my character would have been raised. There is no sense of “community” as there are no cities or permant dwellings. What there is, is a sense of great unity among a small group which will always exist. It extends farther then just being a “group” when together. Even though maybe your not always together to form a group your still part of the same “club” that is the clutch. So the leader remains the same. Sorry if I rambled a bit or made no sense…it’s a little late. Point out anything if I didn’t make sense or if I lost you. -Frosty
Dyne 05-01-05, 12:06 AM	I posted a lot about my character at the Stormhand Federation (I finally created it). To summarize, my character is a Wizard 5/Fighter 1/Eldritch Knight 9. Even though he's a wizard, he actually has more combat feats than magical ones. He'll be almost as good at melee as your thri-keen, probably equal with his magic. I'm seriously considering changing him, though. I might change him into a Psionic character, maybe a War Mind or Psionic Warrior or something. I don't know, I just like Psionics a lot better than D&D's magic system. They handled it much better, in my opinion. EDIT: Nah, I won't change him. Wizards are too much fun.
Dyne 05-01-05, 04:47 PM	A new item that I also posted at the Storm Federation: Surcoat of Command Counts as a shirt for magic item slots. Provides the same effect as a Breastplate of Command, minus to breastplate. Strong enchantment; CL 15th; Craft Wonderous Item, mass charm monster; Price: 21,400 gp; Cost 8,625 gp + 690 XP. The Breastplate of Command supposedly makes "Friendly troops within 360 feet of the user become braver than normal." Yet, in the SRD, it does not exactly say how they are braver. Does it elaborate more in the DMG?
ShadowNinja 05-02-05, 02:33 PM	Hey, my Ranger will be active! But, why did everyone stop posting :( Oh well, back to teaching snipers. *Shoots random follower* dont touch my warpaint!!
premier666 05-02-05, 06:30 PM	I havent posted here in a while (which was one or two posts about three or four pages ago) but, hey, I'm back as a member of the swordpoint miliary academy! So, hey, I if i can a wanna have a character on this foundation, an eldritch knight.
Dyne 05-02-05, 06:47 PM	You can have whatever character you want. I like Eldritch Knights, I think it's a good PrC. I haven't had a whole lot of time lately, and I apologize. I'll try to keep the first post up to date as much as possible.
premier666 05-04-05, 06:33 PM	Hey, my eldritch knight is done, his name is James "Darkstorm" Raynor. In summary, he is a Sorcerer 6/Fighter 1/Eldritch Knight 8 I would have made him shugenja/samurai instead of sorcerer/fighter, but I'm not sure it is alowed rule-wise.
Sssargoth 05-04-05, 07:09 PM	IF your planning on playing a character for this foundation and you want to be officially recognized by us then you need to post here and state clearly that you have one character that in this foundation. I have 1 charicter in this foundation that will be used in the IFG. Clear enough? :P
Frostbite_Ravenheart 05-05-05, 03:38 PM	I have 1 charicter in this foundation that will be used in the IFG. Clear enough? :P So, it will pretty much be just you then? Thats a shame. Btw the way Vinny was a DnD player...I find that absolutly amazing. I'm athletic and I know other athletic dnd players but an action movie star used to play dnd...I feel so honored... -Frosty
Kingside_Bishop 05-05-05, 05:34 PM	Hey, my eldritch knight is done, his name is James "Darkstorm" Raynor. In summary, he is a Sorcerer 6/Fighter 1/Eldritch Knight 8 I would have made him shugenja/samurai instead of sorcerer/fighter, but I'm not sure it is alowed rule-wise.They're allowed. Any WotC material is allowed at the moment, except for stuff from Unearthed Arcana (which we'll go through, eventually). ;)
Sssargoth 05-05-05, 06:58 PM	So, it will pretty much be just you then? Thats a shame. Looks like it, unfortunately. Btw the way Vinny was a DnD player...I find that absolutly amazing. I'm athletic and I know other athletic dnd players but an action movie star used to play dnd...I feel so honored... Hes not the only movie star that played, theres several others. Vin is just the only one to admit playing for 27 years and is still interested in it on national tv. :D btw, the quote from him in my sig is his response to the question "If you were a jedi, would you be with the light side or the dark side?" Amazing what you find out while reading SciFi magazine.
premier666 05-07-05, 07:28 PM	hey, is it true that no one can have more then one character in the IFGW? no matter how many guilds they are in? if so, I wont be able to post my shugenja here, cause I already have one in the CoA.
Master_of_Flames 05-07-05, 07:41 PM	A red clad rider comes up to the academy mounted on a warhorse, very few recognize him as verous leader of the rising flame foundation, but others wonder who he is and what he is doing here. "greetings" the elf says, taking off his helm, "i am Verous, outrider of the plains. I wish to join your academy."
Sssargoth 05-07-05, 08:58 PM	hey, is it true that no one can have more then one character in the IFGW? no matter how many guilds they are in? if so, I wont be able to post my shugenja here, cause I already have one in the CoA. No, you can have three 15th level charicters and three 10th level charicters. You just cant have more than one in the same guild.
premier666 05-08-05, 02:16 PM	Great! so now I can say: I have 1 character in this foundation that will be used in the IFG.
Dyne 06-10-05, 03:40 AM	:bump: Stormhand is sortof a member here. He probably won't actively attempt to further the Academy's goals, but he did learn his skills here, and he will try to avoid conflict with the Academy when possible. He may also provide some amount of assistance, such as his input on certain things. Aside from the IFG, I checked out a copy of Complete Warrior from the library, and I'm pretty pleased with it. For being 160 pages it has quite a bit of things I would find very useful. I especially like the section on classic/modern battle tactics.
turalisj 06-10-05, 10:16 PM	alright, i'm pulling golos out of this foundation, and instead, my primary character is taking his spot. guerilla tactics are his specialty. the sounds of footsteps come from in front of the castle, yet when the guards arrive to investigate, they can't seem to find the source. Suddenly, a blue-white blade appears in front of on f the gaurds throats. Where is the headmaster of the academy?
Dyne 06-11-05, 12:09 AM	The blade of a longsword finds its way to the intruder's throat. "Do not cause trouble here. As for the headmaster, I believe he is out currently. What need have you of him?"
turalisj 06-11-05, 12:54 AM	Then I will wait for him out here. Oh and... With a snap and a hiss, a second blade forms in Turalisj's other hand, it strikes out and finds it's way to the guards gut. As the gaurd doubles over, Turalisj forms the two blades into one huge mindblade, and decaptates the guard. No one threatens me. Turalisj dissapeared again, leaving the bodies. :cool:
Dyne 06-11-05, 01:21 AM	Then I will wait for him out here. Oh and... With a snap and a hiss, a second blade forms in Turalisj's other hand, it strikes out and finds it's way to the guards gut. As the gaurd doubles over, Turalisj forms the two blades into one huge mindblade, and decaptates the guard. No one threatens me. Turalisj dissapeared again, leaving the bodies. :cool: Turalisj, I'm going to give you a chance to change this. It was Stormhand's sword that was at your throat. Now, of course you wouldn't think of attacking Stormhand, since you would have an army hounding you for the rest of your life. On the other hand, it would probably be a bad idea to kill his guards right in front of him, since you would then have a very angry Spellsword to deal with.
Sssargoth 11-27-05, 01:53 AM	*casts Raise Thread* I figured this place might want to get moving again. The enigmatic werewolf hunter rides into the court yard and looks around. He shakes his head at the lack of activity, or people for that matter. "Looks like its time to recall the troops."
Dyne 11-27-05, 02:49 AM	We never really figured out a guildmaster here, did we? I assigned Frostbite, but he's inactive lately. I could still be involved here, but my character would only be RP.
Sssargoth 11-27-05, 01:26 PM	Ill take up the IG guildmaster post for a while if you dont mind then.
Dyne 11-27-05, 07:12 PM	Ill take up the IG guildmaster post for a while if you dont mind then. Go ahead. I'll stay on as a wise old man of sorts. Alliances: I don't think this place ever established any alliances. I would suggest Ghashmal Keep and the Stormhand Federation, since they are basically military orders. And, if we allied with both, it would establish Swordpoint as a neutral institution. Unless all of you wanna be a bunch of good guys, that's okay too.
premier666 11-28-05, 10:12 AM	Go ahead. I'll stay on as a wise old man of sorts. Alliances: I don't think this place ever established any alliances. I would suggest Ghashmal Keep and the Stormhand Federation, since they are basically military orders. And, if we allied with both, it would establish Swordpoint as a neutral institution. Unless all of you wanna be a bunch of good guys, that's okay too. James "Darkstorm" Raynor was a member here, if this guild goes in the IFGW he will appear here again.
Sssargoth 11-28-05, 01:58 PM	James "Darkstorm" Raynor was a member here, if this guild goes in the IFGW he will appear here again. I had every intention of bringing it into the IFG. I just need to figure out where its going to be located.
premier666 11-28-05, 04:34 PM	What about the oasis town of Carnak? in the Burnig Marches? seems like a desertic place would be ideal for military training. (noone around, we can test siege engines and mass destruction spells...)
Sssargoth 11-28-05, 04:43 PM	I already went with the Lowland foothills, but that isnt finalized. We could always have 2 locations anyway.
premier666 11-28-05, 04:47 PM	I already went with the Lowland foothills, but that isnt finalized. We could always have 2 locations anyway. The foothills are a good place for a fortress, but I like the idea of someone having to travel troughout desert to be able to find us and learn the skills of a true soldier.
Dyne 11-28-05, 05:36 PM	I'm broadening the character of young William Emrys to become a Purple Dragons Knight and general honorable warrior. Since he'll be in both the Purple Dragons and Ghashmal Keep, I could have him be a part here as well.
Dyne 12-10-05, 03:17 PM	Alright, I'm opening up a discussion of the Mass Combat Rules, which we shall also test here. So far, here were my ideas: Dyne's Mass Combat (http://boards1.wizards.com/showpost.php?p=7902635&postcount=203) And the current Mass Combat Rules at the Welcome to the Guild House! thread: Mass Combat (http://boards1.wizards.com/showpost.php?p=5996208&postcount=10)
Orcy The Green Wonder 12-10-05, 03:23 PM	The percentage seems a tad bit confusing. Though the decrease in roster would be a bit more realistic in the long run. Orcy's old rules represented the loss of unit members and such, but have been changed to favor the more 'swarm-like' idea. He begins to think that focus is going to be taken off of the players and put onto the armies with the large damage bonuses against smaller groups they possess. But thats not the matter at hand. Either of the systems works for Orcy. Your own system would possibly make smaller units of higher level characters far less effective than the other... so those guilds with high level followers in favor of the lower level might be disadvantaged.
gabrion 12-10-05, 04:48 PM	I have a question to which people probably have very obvious answers. Could someone remind me why we need a differend system for mass combat? Why don't we just use the D+D rules and apply them to large groups?
Wilds 12-10-05, 04:52 PM	cause common sense has no standing in this realm :D
Orcy The Green Wonder 12-10-05, 05:07 PM	Because hundreds of soldiers each taking a single turn would make Orcy cry? The typical dnd rules don't apply themselves that well to mass combat. They are meant for much smaller numbers than we would be using. That is why there are so many different versions of mass combat created by different sources. Orcy believes heroes of battle has rules for mass combat, but he doesn't have the book and he doesn't believe a lot of people have it either. So currently, we are making our own.
gabrion 12-10-05, 05:20 PM	@Orcy-So I was guessing that the answer to my question would be something like that, but I'm still concerned about why it applies here. I've run games in real life (with varying success) that included mass combat, and as you said, the main reason for creating a mass combat system was to hadle the fact that so many rolls would have to be made and things would be so complicated. My concern here is that when playing PbP we don't have the same constraints we have in RL. For instance, making 200d20 dice rolls is a huge pain, but here we can simply type 200d20 in the dicebot and *poof* we have the results. We also have much more time in between actions, unlike RL, which makes it possible to figure out what exactly is going on. I guess my main point is that I'm unconvinced that the regular D+D rules wouldn't work for mass combat in a PbP setting. Has anyone on here tried it?
Orcy The Green Wonder 12-10-05, 06:22 PM	In the same we would have to determine who every one of those 200 soldiers is attacking, then compare all 200 attacks to 200 ACs. Then calculate the remains of 200 peoples HP and individual damage for each and every one. It would grow incredibly annoying to calculate every little thing. On top of that, each person would take up a single square, making it nigh impossible to plot out on our maps, unless we made a REALLY huge map. It is simply more practical to have rules regarding mass combat than just using the regular dnd rules. On top of that, mass combat may have been run successfully in a different situation, but here it is pvp, not just one person controlling the armies. It is just more pratical in the end to make rules for units than to roll everything individually.
jagggar 12-10-05, 07:33 PM	200 attacks dont scare me too much. (Okay, so comparing 200 attacks to even the same AC scares me.) It's the 200 initiatives that really scares me. I'm really not for the idea of recalculating the Roster whenever an individual would go down. I guess my best arguement against this would be say a mass damage spell which ends up dealing 10 damage each to a unit who's indivdual members have 20 HP. How will/does the percentage chart handle demoralizing or feinting?
gabrion 12-10-05, 07:43 PM	Well even in the standard D+D rules, it talks about rolling a single initiative for a group, so that wouldn't be a change. As for all the attack rolls, dmg, etc, I guess I still don't see how it could be more of a headache than sitting around trying to make up a system from scratch that handles all possible problems. Mostly what I'm trying to say is that the RAW allows for us to run mass combat if we decide to use it, and we really don't know how tough it would be (unless someone is going to come out now and say they've done it and it doesn't work). Given that, I don't understand why we are smacking our heads against a wall trying to rewrite the system on the off chance that we might be able to make something that works better.
Orcy The Green Wonder 12-10-05, 08:04 PM	Orcy created the first set of mass combat rules we had to use. They were then changed to fit a more 'swarm type' unit setup. Orcy's rules were based around mass combat rules that are already in existance and modified slightly to fit the guild wars better. So it isn't exactly 'from scratch' and can be done. Orcy would say that mass combat rules prevent headache later from different problems that might arise. Besides, the GMs decided to use mass combat rules a long while ago. Orcy doesn't see how we should completely change direction. It doesn't work. Orcy has tried a very small scale 'mass combat' situation and didn't see it working too well. After all, arena combat takes a while, and thats only six characters. Can you really imagine how long mass combat would take with 200 soldiers each, running them as individuals?
jagggar 12-10-05, 08:25 PM	Well, I'll do the insane: Upon posting I'll roll 200d20+10 (gotta have an attack bonus right?) and compare it to AC 20. Rolling on Invisible Castle under 'test' and there's a note starting "mass insanity" of course, It'll be hard to miss, it'll be the one with 200 rolls. I'll post again when I'm done counting. And there shouldn't be must distraction. Figure skating is the best thing I've got on.
jagggar 12-10-05, 08:42 PM	http://invisiblecastle.com/find.py?id=310666 119 hits, 81 misses. Did not count how many threatened criticals. Now if we end up with a unit of 500, I'm not sure I could do that.
gabrion 12-10-05, 10:46 PM	Well the way it would actually work as per D+D rules is that only people at the edge of a unit (for medium characters at least) would be attacking/getting attacked. So if a roughly sqaure unit of 195 members were to attack, we would only be making 13 or 15 attack rolls.
Orcy The Green Wonder 12-10-05, 10:54 PM	Well the way it would actually work as per D+D rules is that only people at the edge of a unit (for medium characters at least) would be attacking/getting attacked. So if a roughly sqaure unit of 195 members were to attack, we would only be making 13 or 15 attack rolls. Have you ever seen a group of soldiers stand next to eachother and let a line attack at a time? Perhaps a phalanx... but really its a large battle where they are among one another. Each taking up the same area and attacking eachother.
gabrion 12-10-05, 10:57 PM	Have you ever seen a group of soldiers stand next to eachother and let a line attack at a time? Perhaps a phalanx... but really its a large battle where they are among one another. Each taking up the same area and attacking eachother. Have you ever seen a wizard cast a fireball? For that matter, have you ever seen a fight were people stand around and take turns hitting one another? Realism isn't at the top of my list of priorities when playing D+D.
Orcy The Green Wonder 12-10-05, 11:04 PM	Have you ever seen a wizard cast a fireball? For that matter, have you ever seen a fight were people stand around and take turns hitting one another? Realism isn't at the top of my list of priorities when playing D+D. But does it make sense for an army to stand with the ends of their formation touching and swiming at eachother in that way? It makes sense for a wizard to cast a fireball (if it isn't against something fire won't harm). It simply makes more sense for it to work the way we have it. If we do go into doing as you've said... then we are still modifying or making new rules. So either way we are making changes.
Demonfey 12-10-05, 11:08 PM	In D&D, its wizards with fireball. In real life, it's claymores, bombs, and grenades.
gabrion 12-10-05, 11:24 PM	But does it make sense for an army to stand with the ends of their formation touching and swiming at eachother in that way? It makes sense for a wizard to cast a fireball (if it isn't against something fire won't harm). It simply makes more sense for it to work the way we have it. If we do go into doing as you've said... then we are still modifying or making new rules. So either way we are making changes. So I have two responses to that... 1) Point taken on the sillyness of people standing beside one another with only the perimeters doing the fighting. Two things come to mind about this though... 1a) People use the phase "front line" for a reason. People at the front of an army die a lot more and that is where the fighting is. This would just be taking that a step further, since only the people on the front lines would be able to engage in melee. Realistic? No. Could I handle playing that way? Yes. 1b) Even if we discount the fireball example (since it is just a difference between magic and no magic), it seems like the issue of "turns" in D+D is still one to consider. Making people take turns hitting one another is clearly something the rules makers had to do on a functional level, even though it doesn't really jive with reality. 2) Yes, some changes from the Core Rules would have to be made in my system, and maybe this is one of them. I wouldn't have a problem with allowing characters to occupy the same space in mass combat, and thus allowing overlap in units. In this case I don't think we need a damage modifier though, since we could simply use the flanking rules. Still, I would prefer to have the edges not overlap. @GMs-Is this discussion useful? As Ocry pointed out, now that we have a made up mass combat system in place, reverting to the real D+D rules would be a big change. Given this, if none of you think my ideas are viable at this point, I will simply stop discussing them so that energy might be better aimed toward more realistic ends.
Demonfey 12-10-05, 11:30 PM	It's broken down into turns simply to explain it. In the game, everything happening is going on simultaneously, with some people moving faster (hence the initiative) than others. It's just to keep everyone from going "wait, I'm shooting/hitting/whatever at you! You can't do that!" at the table, or just having people run ahead while you're describing what you're doing.
jagggar 12-10-05, 11:44 PM	I'd say the problem with any mass combat rules, is that we'll only be able to represent one type of combat (or perhaps we could represent many but very crappily). The current system we're working on/with/whatever is of the Braveheart charge in and kill fashion.
Demonfey 12-10-05, 11:47 PM	How about each group (say, 1 group is a horde-style army, another behind it's the archers, and the third behind that's the mages) rolls separately for initiative and such? Same charge-in and kill stuff workings, but with each group separate.
Kobold_Ur_Priest 12-11-05, 12:13 AM	may i join?
jagggar 12-17-05, 12:28 AM	Darn it, I thought I'd replied on this. . . I guess it's one of the times my computer froze. On Mass Combat: I've been thinking of things that might make them more swarm-like. One thing that didn't make sense to me is how an army could "miss" with an attack, based on one die roll, when there are potentially hundreds of soldiers swinging their swords. So, I came up with a mechanic that would keep the one die roll, but instead of being 100%, it determines what percent of the soldiers succeed on the roll. This mechanic is used for any task-resolution die roll (d20): Roll Percent that Succeed DC+10 100% DC+9 95% DC+8 90% DC+7 85% DC+6 80% DC+5 75% DC+4 70% DC+3 65% DC+2 60% DC+1 55% DC 50% DC-1 45% DC-2 40% DC-3 35% DC-4 30% DC-5 25% DC-6 20% DC-7 15% DC-8 10% DC-9 5% Multiply the percentage by the number of soldier's performing the action (the number that are attacking, the number that are making a Reflex save against a Fireball, etc.) to determine how many soldiers succeed on the check. Well, didn't like it originally, but after a little fooling around with it, yep, this is the way to go. Gotta ask though, how would you resolve Intimidating combat for example? Organization: Armies must be composed of soldiers that are all statistically identical. This rule system depends on a theory of averages, and if one or more soldiers in the unit differ, the mechanics are thrown off. YES!!!!! Movement: Armies move like swarms. The speed of the army is the same as the speed of the individual soldiers. In order to engage in melee with an enemy army, the unit must occupy the same space as that army. When so engaged, neither side may attack with more than 8 times the number of soldiers in the other army (this may be adjusted for creatures of different sizes).Looks good. Only question I had (which hadn't been answered previously, so it's not like you've changed something that was working) is how much needs to overlap? Damage Resolution: If a unit takes enough damage to reduce one of its individual soldiers to 0, the unit roster decreases to represent the casualty. Example: An army of 500 men (Army A) attacks a much smaller army of 100 (Army B). Army A moves into Army B's space, and attacks with all 500 soldiers. The player that controls Army A makes an attack roll against Army B's AC of 15 and gets a result of 18. 65% of the 500 attacks hit, or 325 attacks. Since Army A wields longswords, Player A rolls 325d8 and adds on the Str and other mods. In total, the attack deals 975 damage against Army B's 1,000 HP (10 HP per soldier). Army B is left with 25 HP, or 3 soldiers (one at 1/2 health). Dun like it. This makes it less swarm like. And it wouldn't make sense if say a unit was attacked by some mass damage spell that deals less than the individual's HP.
Dyne 12-17-05, 03:51 PM	Dun like it. This makes it less swarm like. And it wouldn't make sense if say a unit was attacked by some mass damage spell that deals less than the individual's HP. It's not perfect, but we need some way of calculating when soldiers die and whatnot. It probably wouldn't handle all circumstances perfectly, but it is a simple mechanic. Besides, since our mechanics already take into account every individual soldier (as I believe they should), the system won't be completely "swarm-like," neither should it be. Swarms are composed of an unknown number of creatures that function as a whole. Armies/Units, however, are composed of a definite number of creatures that function as a whole. The only alternative I can think of would become to track individual soldier hit points, and that would be very tiresome. Looks good. Only question I had (which hadn't been answered previously, so it's not like you've changed something that was working) is how much needs to overlap? I'm not quite sure. Movement could become a tricky problem. Depending on how much of a unit was overlapping another unit, they could attack with more of their men. Perhaps if a unit completely covers an enemy unit, it gets to attack with all of its men.
jagggar 12-17-05, 04:16 PM	"A swarm of Tiny creatures consists of 300 nonfling creatures or 1,000 flying creatures. A swarm of Diminuitive creatures consists of 1,500 nonflying creatures or 5,000 flying creatures. A swarm of Fine creatures consists of 10,000 creatures, whether they are flying or not." You don't happen to have a book with an intelligent swarm in it? I know MMIII has a shimmerling swarm or something like that. Once it reaches 1 hp per HD its intelligence score drops to 1. Could try something like that? Also I think Orcy said that it's supposed to also represent morale dropping and soldiers running away and such, not just flat-out being killed.
Dyne 12-17-05, 04:23 PM	"A swarm of Tiny creatures consists of 300 nonfling creatures or 1,000 flying creatures. A swarm of Diminuitive creatures consists of 1,500 nonflying creatures or 5,000 flying creatures. A swarm of Fine creatures consists of 10,000 creatures, whether they are flying or not." You don't happen to have a book with an intelligent swarm in it? I know MMIII has a shimmerling swarm or something like that. Once it reaches 1 hp per HD its intelligence score drops to 1. Could try something like that? Also I think Orcy said that it's supposed to also represent morale dropping and soldiers running away and such, not just flat-out being killed. I don't own any books like that. Sure, if running away and such is basically the equivalent of dying (i.e. the character loses followers, has to hire new mercenaries, etc.), then I suppose it would be fine. Of course, some creatures don't have morale, like undead. The main point would be that soldiers would be "lost," whether they're killed or run away or whatever could just be flavor.
Orcy The Green Wonder 12-17-05, 04:35 PM	"A swarm of Tiny creatures consists of 300 nonfling creatures or 1,000 flying creatures. A swarm of Diminuitive creatures consists of 1,500 nonflying creatures or 5,000 flying creatures. A swarm of Fine creatures consists of 10,000 creatures, whether they are flying or not." You don't happen to have a book with an intelligent swarm in it? I know MMIII has a shimmerling swarm or something like that. Once it reaches 1 hp per HD its intelligence score drops to 1. Could try something like that? Also I think Orcy said that it's supposed to also represent morale dropping and soldiers running away and such, not just flat-out being killed. Orcy did say that, but that was with his sytem. Its been changed a whole lot since then.
jagggar 12-17-05, 05:02 PM	True, that was before. Okay, I think the losing of soldiers should be a temporary thing. Why? Well it seems most everyone's voted against an honor system which could also be used to say "You lose too much, we don't want to die for you." So X amount of the followers are lost, regained at some sort of amount per turn until followers are back up to leadership score.
Dyne 12-17-05, 08:33 PM	True, that was before. Okay, I think the losing of soldiers should be a temporary thing. Why? Well it seems most everyone's voted against an honor system which could also be used to say "You lose too much, we don't want to die for you." So X amount of the followers are lost, regained at some sort of amount per turn until followers are back up to leadership score. That's not what my interpretation of the "honor" system was. The "you lose too much, so we don't want to follow you anymore" is incorporated into the Leadership feat, and I believe that would follow along more of a "glory" system. Where "honor" deals with following the law and pleasing your overlord, "glory" would deal more with showing courage and doing heroic acts. Of course, there could be considered different forms of "courage" and "heroics" for different alignments, so "glory" wouldn't pertain to any particular alignment (whereas "honor" leans more toward Law and Good). I'm not exactly sure how "glory" might work, but it would be somewhat similar to Reputation in some ways.
jagggar 12-17-05, 10:19 PM	Well, it'd be some weird combination of everything. As I said, we'd get rid of the really culturally dependent stuff like "dishonorable weapon" and make it more based on the winning and the "killing unarmed or helpless foes." Winning would net you so many points. Slaughtering the enemy (taking 100 6th level fighters to a unit of 25 1st level warriors) would make you lose so many points (but you'd still get the points for winning). If you're extremely lucky and your warriors beat those fighters you'd get bonus points. Losing with those fighters would sink your points pretty fast. Then toss in slaughtering the common folk to reduce DL as losing points and that'd be about it. The big part if we do go back and have a cultural shift for honor would be creating a way to measure the level of units since you are free to over or under equip uints giving a third variable beyond levels and numbers in a unit.
Dyne 12-17-05, 10:34 PM	Honor is strongly lawful-aligned. For a lawful campaign with lawful characters, it would be a good measure of achievement. But, for example, a powerful Evil or Chaotic character would never spare a person simply because they're unarmed or helpless. If slaughtering enemies is a particular character's style, then he should be rewarded for getting better at it. Basically, characters would get points for being true to their alignment and character, and for plain being successful, in any form. I'm not sure I like any more mechanics being added to the mess, though, especially ones that need to be tracked on an individual basis. Something that would be simpler would just be bonuses to Leadership for certain accomplishments (as long as these accomplishments aren't judged based on "honor" or some other alignmentally biased system).
jagggar 12-17-05, 11:08 PM	Evil is supposed to provide it's own reward. . . Uhh. . . I think this is a conversation for the Neutral Guild. . . Anyway, being honorless you've got the sure win right now, but eventually you'll lose favor with people. Besides, many a topic on if good or evil would win mention that a fair amount of neutral people (not the BALANCE IS EVERTHING!!!!! type) will side with good because they're generally easier to live with. Like I think I may have said before, it's kind of another way to track mass NPC attitude--and massive peasant populations tend to be neutral.
jagggar 12-19-05, 09:34 PM	Discussion of honor system aside. What else needs to be worked on? Demoralizing and feinting in combat. How will those work?
Sssargoth 12-19-05, 10:01 PM	What else needs to be worked on? The keep/defenses...