Lucius Cypher

We be Wizards [D&D 5e] (Everyone died, applications inside!)

For those who's still around, got a question for ya: How do you wanna handle Level Ups? A sort of milestone progression where you'll level up after certain events are completed, or a more EXP based one where you could level up through actions like killing random mobs, completing RP events, etc? Additionally, when you are eligible for a level up, would you rather gain your new powers during the long rest or as soon as possible? I would allow you to add your additional abilities/health when you obtain them, or even wait until certain events to gain them like in the middle of battle for that sweet shounen power up.

Thoughts?

Gaia Frontier (5e)

@Searat

You see that they’ve knocked over a barrel and it smells foul. You’re not sure what it is but it’s sixkening just being here. The goblins seem unaffected, perhaps use to living in such squalor. Either way you also notice some of the goblins have fresh cuts on themselves as if they had gotten into a fight at some point tonight.

We be Wizards [D&D 5e] (Everyone died, applications inside!)

Once everyone was on, the wagon was off. It was, admittedly, a smaller group than Pylia had hoped, but at least some people came! Plus with less students meant more of an excuse for Pylia to be on the field with them, something her master normally didn't approve of. The ride was largely uneventful aside from Lithe providing some ambiance in the form of her musical skills while Pylia did her best by answering questions and chatting. Their first stop was the village of Ferris a small farming community that often acts as the first and final village the academy students will come across before heading into the wilderness. Notable structures here included the town hall, a large stone building with the village's emblem above the door, the Four Shield Tavern and Inn, and surprisingly enough a library. While not as grand as the arcanuem, Ferris's Public Library had many books free for the villagers to check out, and for traveling mages they have discount cantrip scrolls. For just 10 gold coins one could buy a scroll that has the powers of a cantrip in it. Some were even spells normally not available to wizards, making them quite a bargain.

Aside from that there also seemed to be some adventurers out and about, resupply or relaxing before their next big job. Most of them looked capable enough but not quite the sort of legendary figures anyone would recognize; little more than sellswords who haven't sold their dignity away yet. Their asking price would be far above what a college student could afford, but perhaps for the price price they have wisdom to impart. If nothing else they may make for interesting company until it was time to leave. And finally, there seemed to be a chance to earn some easy money; near the library was a help wanted sign for translating some texts. Anyone who could help is welcomed. They were paying 2 gold for each page translated. The group would be here for at least an hour before they'll have to set off again, as Pylia was checking up on people and information. The party could stick together or go their separate ways, as this place seemed peaceful enough.

I, the Demon King, Will Summon My Own Damned Heroes!

Soon the goblin camp was starting to stir up. Goblins waking up, likely due to Clod's stone napping, as Orchid stood to stretch and get herself some water. Dew wasn't exactly her preferred means of hydration, but perhaps she was just spoiled from having that pond to drink out of all of the time. She drank from a leaf to wet her tongue as Crispy got up and chatted with her. Apparently he wanted to know if Orchid had any dreams, and she wondered if she was suppose to. But she just shook her head. "Nah. Not last night." Apparently Crispy's mother had dreams too, not that Orchid particularly cared. If Crispy wanted to tell her she'd listen, but once he was done she was going to get the goblins to start working. As the new Mini-boss she was going to make sure none of these gits were mucking about.

"Alright, everyone awake? Good. Got some goblins going to get food. Until they come back, you got work to do. If you know how to make rope, I want you to start breaking rocks into sharp stones, or sharpen stones until they're nice and pointy. If you don't know how to make rope, come over here and I'll teach you." Orchid's rope lesson was simplified for the sake of the more dimwitted goblins who would care to listen to her; first she told them what sort of trees would have good bark that make good rope fiber. It was the trees that were thin enough that you could grab in your hands, and when you scratched the bark the bark peels instead of breaking off. Chop them them and you should be able to peel off the bark and see the green side. If it's not green, the bark's no good and it'll break too easily. Then it was just a matter of peeling this green stuff off the bark and twisting them together until you run out. Then Orchid would show them how they could link the old fibers to new ones to make a longer cord. She'd repeat this process however many times it took to make sure the goblins knew what to do, and once she felt they had a decent enough grasp she'll either have them start making more cords or send them out to find more wood and bark to make rope from.

First thing Orchid needed to do was give everyone proper weapons. Spears at the very least; those were easy to make and Orchid could likely make twenty or more in an hour since the goblins have already gathered all the stone and wood she'd need. But remembering what Clod had asked for, she was going to start making some swords for the group. Orchid was no swordfighter but she knew the advantage of having that sort of weapon against animals and monsters that don't wear armor. Heck even ones who do wear armor won't have it any easier. However the sword that Orchid first made was, while impressive, fragile and made out of bones. Here she had wood and stones which should allow her to make sturdier weapons. She noted that Clod had made some impressive stoneheads himself, and she could easily make them into axes. Good for chopping down bigger and sturdier wood. Using her own stones, including the sharp stone from her club, she shaved, tapered, and bore a hole into two decent sized clubs that could fit the axe heads into. She handed these to Clod. "Here. Put those stones into the stick and you'll make an axe. That's sort of like what Rattleskull had. Go with the other goblins and help them chop down wood, I'll make some weapons while you're gone."

Orchid had plenty more sticks she'll need to clean and shape. At the rate she was going she ought to be able to make at least one for everyone before the day's end, though ideally she'll find a goblin or two who'll pick up on her craft skills to help make more, or at least make their own. She wanted to make a reliable weapon for everyone first, followed by some sort of armor be it body armor or a shield. Wicker shields would be easier to make but wooden armor could be more handy for the ones who are strong enough to carry bigger weapons. The last thing Orchid had on mind to make was range weapons like bows or even a crossbow. She can't say she has any idea how to make a perfect crossbow, but if she could at least make a bow she'd be on the right start. Sighing, Orchid grabbed her rocks and some sticks and would get started on making those stone swords.

As she was shaving the wood she thought out how she was going to do this. "Alright, the one I made the first time wasn't too bad. I got better supplies this time so maybe I could make something similar. But this time I want to try and use less of my rope. I remember those indian people have wooden paddles with rocks on the edge. I can't remember what it's called, but I think something like that could work. Take the straighter looking sticks and shave off the bark until it's nice and smooth. The handle should be big enough for two hands, but I don't want it to be too heavy that you can't hold it in one hand too. Clod broke some stones so I have plenty of shards to work with. I could just cut some shallow holes into the side of the stick to wedge the shards into. Maybe let the sticks cook in the fire first a bit, get the moisture out and harden the sticks more, plus make the holes a bit more fitting. Then just put the shards in and bam, sharp club. I'll only need to wrap up the handle so you won't get splinters swinging it around. Cheap and easy."

Stats/Inventory

Health - Full
Magic - Full
Stamina - Full

Skills -
Use Light Equipment (--)
Pacify Animal I (1.1)
Stronger I (1.4)
Crafting IV (4.1)
Material Analysis I (1.6)
Monster Analysis I (1.25)
Smash I (1.2)
Charisma I (1.05)
Taboo (1.0)
Fireball (0.5)

Inventory -
Raw Dire Rat Hide (Equipped)
Loincloth (Equipped)
Stone Spiked Club (Good) (Stored)
Torch (Equipped)
Plant Fiber Sling (Loaded) (Equipped)
Rawhide Bag (8/12) (Equipped)

• Hard Stones x2
• Antidote Fern
• Fiber Cordage (Average)
• Fiber Cordage (Well Made)
• Fiber Cordage (Above Average)
• Bloody Garrote

Leaf Sling Bag (1/3) (Equipped to Rawhide Bag)

• Sling Stones x4

Log Horizon: North Wen Alliance

Chopper had missed most of what was said after she had left, and was already walking down the stairs when she heard Parks come following her out. When she received an alert that she was being offered payment, a potion, and other flashy gifts, she simply declined the offer. She stopped as she did so, speaking to Parks without facing him. "As I said, dealing with monsters was something I was going to do anyways. I'll shan't take charity for that. If you're here to berate me, you're better off writing a letter. If you want to talk, than you should start following. There's work to be done." Chopper needed to vent her frustration the only way she could in this world; violence. Unlike in the real world, it was easy to find something to kill that no one was going to feel too sentimental about. Those monsters were a fair bit of ways away, but being able to murder them with impunity was a perk of living in a video game world.

Traveling to the monster site was long but simple enough. She was actually already aware of the monster population problem; their numbers have effectively blocked an important travel route for some treasure she's been meaning to find. But with so many mobs about, it was impossible for her to safely get to the dungeon, set up a camp, and do raids without having to constantly be fighting or traveling from the local cathedral. She knows in advance that she's going to have difficulty dealing with the sheer number of mobs; normally not that much of an issue since hack-and-slash brawling is what she does best, aside from boss killing, but in this instance the numbers were just too concentrated for that to work out like it normally would. And so she'll need to be tactical.

Chopper might have the attitude of a raging barbarian type but she is capable of some level of thought. Perhaps not exactly the super genius that she wants to be, but enough to know when is or isn't the best time to do what she does best. Arriving near the monster infestation, Chopper took to the high ground, going slow and low. She needed to get an idea of what she was up against and mark hard targets and soft targets. Hard Targets were things that she knew were going to be a pain in the ass either due to their destructive abilities or how how it'd be to destroy them. Soft targets were easier to get to but also important to take out as well; if she can't utterly destroy a hard target she should finish off soft targets. Hard Targets were things like minibosses, magic users, and zone traps. Soft targets were enemy buffers, treasure mobs, and possible loot locations.

From her initial observations, it seems like most of the enemies are event mobs, or at least there were a notable amount of them. "Right, there was a Christmas event thing during the whole apocalypse stuff. Guess they haven't left yet." Things like goblins dressed as santa elves, polar bears out of their element, snow golems, all that christmasy stuff. Among other mobs of more mundane variety too. Their levels were low enough that Chopper could kill swaths of them easily, but their sheer numbers were going to be an issue. Being outnumbered was something of a weakness Chopper had, though she imagined many players are weak against being swarmed by massive amount of enemies. Still there was one benefit to a massive mob like this; no way they could hide all of them inside caves or dungeons. Some will be out and about which means they'll be open for big environmental attacks. Chopper just needed to find something that'll work. A mountain they're based out of, a river they're camped near, a forest they're foraging in. The Elder Tales may have been an MMO before with all the usual limits of an MMO, but now that it has a bit of realism in it, Chopper wasn't limited to just things she could have only done as a Youxia warrior.

"Still... That's a lot of mobs. I wonder if infecting them with a plague would be an effective tactic?"

D&D 5e - Hoard of the Dragon Queen

With the last Kobold struck down, Orchid was quick to sheer off it's remaining wing. If they had time perhaps he'll go about skinning the rest of them, but for now he'll just collect their wings for a new cape. After retrieving his other scimitar the paladin approached Orchid asking if he needed healing. The wound from the kobold was still bloody but no longer bleeding, though it stung. Nothing that Orchid felt needed attention, but if Brannor was offering he wasn't going to say no. "Orchid okay. Hurts little. Brannor want to heal, Orchid say okay." Once Brannor gave his aid, Orchid would keep an eye out as the rest of the party scouted ahead. Seemed like there was some sort of trap among the fungi or something. Brannor and Parum recommended watching out for the last step on the staircase and to take the left path. "Okay. Orchid go first? Fight bad guys?" If there was nothing else, Orchid would take the lead, noting the final step and prodding it with his scimitar to make sure whatever trap it was doesn't cause some sort of chain-reaction effect. Once it was safe he would continue on with the party's guidance.

Rolls

HP: 26/30
AC: 14 (No Shield)
Rage: 3/3
Status: Traveling with the group
Weapons: 1d6+3 Scimitar/ Off-Hand Scimitar 1d6

Ruins of Norn: Walking Apocalypse

@Duthguy

Stealth is only needed if you’re doing anything more than sitting and watching, like trying to hop buildings or set up something big. If you’re just waiting for the others or doing minor things like drawing your weapons I won’t make you roll for it.

Ruins of Norn: Walking Apocalypse

So in case it wasn't clear, the cyclops definitely didn't spot you guys. Move yourself as needed, you can proceed to the next part of your plan.

Ruins of Norn: Walking Apocalypse

As the party plotted and spoke, the orcish woman simple kept and eye on the Cyclopes as he feasted. He ate quickly, leaving behind nothing more than a bloody stain where the frogs were once bleeding out. He sat there and let out a deafening yawn, scratched and belly, and looked around. He seemed to have noticed something but it was uncertain if it was the party he noticed. The beast just continues to sit there, woefully ignorant of his surroundings.

Then he farted. It was wretched. ”I swear if that bastard shits in front of my base I’m leaving.” the orc grumbled.

Rolle

Cyclope Perception = 9

I, the Demon King, Will Summon My Own Damned Heroes!

After a long and tedious talk, the goblin group and the monster group went their separate ways to opposite sides of the cave entrance. Orchid followed Crispy towards the goblin side, mainly to get food, but also because Crispy needed to talk to her. Tired and annoyed Orchid wanted to ignore him but knew that if she did that would only get his ire. She had hoped that she had verbally beaten him down already but evidently he was stronger than that.

Orchid would meet Crispy at the edge of the goblin camp, leaning against a tree with her hand crossed but close to her club. She still didn’t trust the goblins but then again she doesn’t really trust anyone. She just knows who is her enemy and who might not be her enemy yet. Once Crispy arrives Orchid says nothing and just listens to what he has to say.

When they stopped at the tree, Crispy turned towards Orchid with a frown. His eyes glanced at her club, close to her hand. He looked at her face, clearly tired, but still listening...but hoverhanding that club, and that hard glint to her eyes, left no question that she was considering a "what-if" situation. And now Crispy nodded in approval.

"Youngling, you know what you doin' right now? You bein' smart." began the older goblin. "If I was mad enuff at yas to hit ya, you'd hit me first wif dat dere club. Ya waitin' and seein', like Crispy." But now he pointed at her. "But ya makin' mistakes! Listen to Crispy, not an Elder Gob yet, but been roun' da cave a few times!"

Now he pointed at the other side of the clearing. "Dem mobs ain't s'posed to talk at all, but dey REALLY not s'posed to talk Gob! Humans talks, but dey don't talk Gob! If dey talks, why not talks Dragon-tongue, or Fey-speak?" He slammed a fist into his palm. "Anudda ting, if dey wants to helps us, why dey not bring nuffin' ta prove it? Pygmy Drake say can make potions, me ain't seein' no potion! Dun add up, it's, uh, capricious!"

But now he shook his head and turned away from Orchid.

"But dat not biggest mistake. Lemme tell yas bout da time Crispy saw dis mistake first--almost neva see any Gob make dis mistake. But Humans, Ventures, dey makes it lots!" He turned back to her, traced a finger along his tattoo.

"When Ventures come and I fall in fire, was hurt real bad. Human coulda killed me easy. But Rattleskull Smashed anudda one, didn't kill 'im but hurt 'im bad. Da one dat was gonna kill me? Stopped fighting!" Crispy looked incredulous, and seemed to be looking at Orchid to gauge her reaction as well. "Used red water potion, poured it on one dat got Smashed! Dat gave Rattleskull and sum o' da Old Gobs time to hurt anudda one bad, den we wuz able to get away! Old Gobs, before dey die, dey tell Crispy bout it."

He crossed his arms sagely, looking back towards the other goblins. It seemed the last two had come back--Orchid's last shieldbearer had filled his shield with rocks instead of food, and Jezee was carrying much firewood as she could in her two arms in front of her. They were stacked up so high she couldn't see over them.

"Is called "kindness." Biggest weakness evah for Humans, Elves, lots of tings. Gobs is smarter, so we sees how stupid it is--waste chance to kill enemy. Use tings ya gots for yaself on uddas, instead of makin' dem bring tings to you. You already doin' dat right, look at ya minions bringin' ya stuff! I tinks you tryin' to be smarter Gob--you tinks we makes da udda mobs our pets, makes 'em fight for us. Sumtimes dat werk. But yas bein'...ya's bein' nice to da udda mobs! Gobs ain't nice! When yas nice, ya gets stabbed in da back, or while ya's sleepin'!" He gestured over his shoulder with a thumb, back towards the cave.

"Just ta shows ya how stupid it is, when me an' my minions went to check out Rattle's body, we runs inta udda mobs too! And dey wuz askin' me for help--wuz sayin' dumb stuff about dunjons and zombos. Dey act like dey needz me--so I tricks 'em, cuz Gobs don't needz dem! Made 'em tink dey wuz gonna make fair deal! Dey say dey gonna meet us at old bonfire tomorrow, only gonna send one guy."

Now Crispy seemed to be feeling his oats again, and proudly held up one hand to cut Orchid off.

"But I knows wat ya gonna say! Dat's awful smart, let dem send one guy, den WE gang up on 'em! Pick 'em off one at a time! But Crispy do one betta!" He wagged a finger. "Just one guy, can't CHASE us! If'n he tries, all da gobs just gang up and kill 'im den! So Gobs home clear! We gonna leave stoopid cave--woods dangerous, but Crispy go on raids with Old Gobs and Rattle before, knows ways to stay safe...mostly. And knows where we can go!"

He put both hands on his hips, looking quite smug.

"So dere, Orchid, do ya sees? Kindess, dat a weakness. Gobs NEVER be kind--but when UDDA PEEPLES kind, Gobs smart! Gobs stabs 'em whenever dey sees da chance!"

Orchid looked at Crispy warily. One part of her wanted to feel happy that he praised her, but she wouldn’t dare show it. The other part understood what he said though. How kindness is a weakness. Orchid knew that all too well in her old life. Or maybe kindness was just how she rationalized her weakness and unwillingness to stand up for herself. Being so “kind” as to not talk back against her bullies and oppressors. Being so kind as to not ignore her family and do her own thing. Kindness was an excuse. Kindness got her killed and now she’s here fighting tooth and nail for every little bit she could get.

Got a while Orchid didn’t say anything and just shrugged. “Can’t say I agree with you. But you’re not wrong either.” Orchid didn’t want to bombard Crispy with her own lecture so she would do something she hasn’t done since she got here; be honest. “I don’t really trust the other monsters. I don’t even trust you goblins. But you aren’t trying to kill me right now and you’re useful, and that I can trust. Those monsters on the them side are useful, a few of them at least. That’s really all there is to it.” Orchid stepped away from the tree, hand still on her club as she looked towards the other goblins who gathered food and materials.

“But if you want to live outside of the cave you need better weapons and armor. Sticks and stones won’t protect you against adventurer weapons. And to get better weapons we need a home. Doesn’t have to be the cave but we can’t just keep running away either. So… Got any ideas?”

Crispy frowned again, but it was the kind of frown one used when they were frustrated because something was difficult to grasp. His anger had abated somewhat, but Orchid was likely still talking over his head to some degree. Still, he seemed to latch on to "better weapons" and "got any ideas?"

"Makin' weapons good, but right now we gots to rest. Gobs been up all night. Make Bigs an' Wej take first watch, dey been sittin' around da most." He looked around at the others. "You and Clod should take Jezee and Sqwal each, since youse strong and dey weak. My minions finish up da night."

He started heading back towards the camp. The other goblins had already begun to eat the grubs and other assorted things that had been gathered, and Crispy had to shout at them to make way so that he could build a fire. He speared a few wriggling things for himself on a pointy stick and began turning them over the crackling flames.

"Tomorrow, we's gonna head for a place ain't none of yas prolly seen yet. Is called a farm." Crispy said, taking a juicy bite out of a beetle, shell and all. "Dere's Humans dere, but dey weak...most of 'em. Sometimes Ventures is dere. But dere's lots o' places to hide roun' dere, lots of tings to steal. Like Cluckees! Any of yas ever seen Cluckees? Dey good eatin'!"

Clod, shoving a handful of berries into his mouth, approached Orchid. Now that she had figured out by process of elimination what name to address him by, much like the others he became a little more distinct in her mind. Now that she actually bothered to look he was one of the only goblins thus far she had seen to have hair--two little spiky tufts split from their root just above the center of his head. They were blonde, if that made it any more odd.

"If Crispy da new Boss, dat makes you da new Mid-Boss now, Mini-boss." said Clod. He held up his spear--the best of the three that Orchid had helped her crew make. "Ya dids good on dis spear, and da shields too...but I dun like da pointy bit on da end." He gestured to the stone tip mounted on the end. "Can only stick'em wif dat one end! Wanna be able to swing at 'em, too! Like wif Crispy's knives, but biggah! Tink yas could help me tomorrow?"

Orchid helped herself to some food, though she waited for Crispy to actually make a fire so she could cook the roots and grubs. Not the grosses thing she’s ever eaten considering she’s gone quasicannibal already. As she ate her food another goblin approached and asked her about her spear. Apparently he wanted something different. Apparently he wanted a sword. Looking around the supplies they had Orchid rubbed her chin. It was doable.

“Tomorrow… Yeah. Gunna need a few things but I could probably do that. You need to help too. But we can deal with that tomorrow.”

Once the other goblin was placated Orchid mulled on Crispy’s plan ya raid a farm. How strange that she’ll be going to a farm to raid it. Would they kill the humans living there? Would they keep the farm for themselves? What if adventures and such were there? A lot of questions. The one that she didn’t ask, and didn’t want to know; was it the right thing to do? Orchid was too tired to be philosophical right now. She needed to sleep. Put her back against a tree and her hand on her club she curled up and closed her eyes. No doubt there’ll be trouble eventually. Her watch would be coming up soon anyways.

And when her watch did come up, it was pretty uneventful. The fire kept the goblins warm while Orchid and Jezee, the young goblin assigned on watch with her, were on patrol. Jezee seemed more attentive than Orchid was. Perhaps he was scared. To alleviate his fears she gave him a shield though he only had a torch as a weapon. Meanwhile Orchid couldn’t really settle down just watching, so she grabbed a few sticks and such to make more twine and rope using the wood fibers. She’ll need a lot of it for the stuff she’ll be making tomorrow. Hell, she may need an entire day to dedicate into just making rope. She ought to teach some of the goblins how to make it. It’ll be worth it in the end.

---

At some point after her shift, Orchid went back to sleep. And not much long after she'd be awake. The fire was still going albeit slightly weaker, and the goblins on guard duty were still up. Orchid got up from her spot and stretched her body. She had some rope she never finished making nearby, and she still had plenty more to make. No doubt once all the goblins are awake they'll get to work figuring out what to do. Some would need to head out to fetch more food and water, some will need to get more supplies. Orchid needed to teach anyone with more than half a brain how to make rope. And of course, she'll need to check on her monster allies too. Orchid might be willing to work with them but the goblins still aren't convinced. And knowing of their traitorous ways they aren't going to try and be friendly. It'll be up to Orchid to make sure some sort of alliance works out. Fine by her though; she doesn't want the other monsters to get too friendly with the goblins in the event that she does need to leave the greenskins. Or vise versa.

In any case right now Orchid needs to make more rope. It'll be important since the first two things she wants to make for herself and the group are new weapons, and more importantly, armor. Shields were good but even a wooden breastplate would be better. Or maybe she could just make a shirt out of wooden panels, like how her mother made curtains. It was something.