Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 bblythe Aug 26, 2008 14:59:58	I am working with a group of players and we are starting a large “party” this party will actually be a crew on a ship. The only problem we are having is there aren’t rules for sea faring vessels! No costs associated for the vessel, no skill that pertains to “sailing” and no damage rules for cannons. We want to design our adventures around gaining money to buy a ship and doing piraty things. Heroic tier will be gaining money for the ship, Paragon tier will be buying the ship itself and being a pirate, and epic tier will be stopping some worldwide evil (the DM was thinking “sailing the planar sea”). Does anybody have any sources for rules for ships, long guns, and sea faring skill checks? Also, we are interested in joining the RPGA, is it impossible for us to get a ship IC till rules are published?
#2 drmorganes Aug 26, 2008 17:15:47	I am working with a group of players and we are starting a large “party” this party will actually be a crew on a ship. The only problem we are having is there aren’t rules for sea faring vessels! No costs associated for the vessel, no skill that pertains to “sailing” and no damage rules for cannons. Cool! Pirates > ninjas, y'know... *ducks* We want to design our adventures around gaining money to buy a ship and doing piraty things. Heroic tier will be gaining money for the ship, Paragon tier will be buying the ship itself and being a pirate, and epic tier will be stopping some worldwide evil (the DM was thinking “sailing the planar sea”). Does anybody have any sources for rules for ships, long guns, and sea faring skill checks? Unfortunately, 4E doesn't not have rules for such things. You'll need to get creative and come up with house rules. If you have access to the 3.5 sourcebook Stormwrack, I think you could potentially use the rules for ships pretty much whole-cloth. 3.5 had Profession (Sailor) to cover all things nautical. I think adding a new skill to 4E is a mistake. Instead, allow ship-related checks to be made under an existing skill. Athletics strikes me as the best for general sailing tasks, which seem to involve a lot of running, climbing, and rapid hauling of ropes. Actual navigation (like reading maps and charting courses) could fall under Perception or a straight Wisdom check. Also, we are interested in joining the RPGA, is it impossible for us to get a ship IC till rules are published? No. You'd simply keep the ship in a minimal role until such rules arrive. Ship-to-ship combat would be a sticky issue for RPGA games, but combat on the ship would be fine. You'd have to use cut-scenes for getting from place to place, or use narrative to deal with issues that pop up.
#3 Cohen95 Aug 26, 2008 17:24:55	It'll probably be out in the Adventurer's Vault. Oh, and Brutal Scoundrel Half-Elf Rogue = awesome pirate. Don't ask me how, DM's NPC one time. All I can say is either that build was awesome, or he had a d20 with all 20s.
#4 Lord_Ventnor Aug 27, 2008 12:23:12	I am working with a group of players and we are starting a large “party” this party will actually be a crew on a ship. The only problem we are having is there aren’t rules for sea faring vessels! No costs associated for the vessel, no skill that pertains to “sailing” and no damage rules for cannons. We want to design our adventures around gaining money to buy a ship and doing piraty things. Heroic tier will be gaining money for the ship, Paragon tier will be buying the ship itself and being a pirate, and epic tier will be stopping some worldwide evil (the DM was thinking “sailing the planar sea”). Does anybody have any sources for rules for ships, long guns, and sea faring skill checks? Also, we are interested in joining the RPGA, is it impossible for us to get a ship IC till rules are published? Try some skill challenges for places where do-or-die sailing is required. Like, say, navigating through a dangerous coral reef, or trying to batten down the hatches during a storm. (Batten? Is that how you say it?)
#5 stilettojonquil Dec 31, 2008 0:30:33	Well, if you think about it then there really should be a new skill for sea-related navigation things. For example, Dungeoneering is used for dungeon-monster knowledge, for navigating dungeons, and understanding dungeon ecology. Nature is used for understanding land animals, navigating forest, and nature ecology. Why not have a skill like "Mariner" for understanding sea animals, navigating on ocean, and understanding marine ecology. Just a thought. ALternatively, you could put navigation under dungeoneering, ecological knowledge under nature, and split the monsters between the two. The problem is that under this system, every adventurer knows how to navigate a ship when, in fact, this should be specialized knowledge that you would need specialize instruction for. How about replacing dungeoneering with Mariner in your pirate campaign?