Goldfish
Friendly Spider-Fish Abomination
- Location
- Formerly of the Far Realm
The king was not happy.
But with a name like that, you know he's just got to be a good boy.
Finding the Spark (Pathfinder 1E Quest)
- Thread starter DragonParadox
- Start date
- Fantasy
-
- Tags
- pathfinder
But with a name like that, you know he's just got to be a good boy.
The being appeared to be Huge sized, not merely Large.
- Location
- Germany
Maybe a large creature with Enlarge Person added?
That would do it.
Goldfish
Friendly Spider-Fish Abomination
- Location
- Formerly of the Far Realm
That's my thought as well.
They could even use Reduce Person to shrink down to Medium-size to better blend in afterward.
A single Mythic Enlarge person spell could also do it, as could a Giant Form II spell, though either of those options is unlikely. The first because of the rarity of Mythic casters and the latter because of the rarity of 8th level spells. Plus the fact that anyone capable of casting Giant Form II has much better ways to kill someone that shooting pointy sticks at them.
Goldfish
Friendly Spider-Fish Abomination
- Location
- Formerly of the Far Realm
I've been looking at another feat for Mina to learn at 7th level. I still want her to learn Improved Familiar at 7th level, so if she learns another one it would require retraining. Potent Hex, maybe?
Anyway, the feat is Summon Guardian Spirit.
www.d20pfsrd.com
It's a pretty neat feat that lets the caster gain a Guardian Spirit.
www.d20pfsrd.com
Basically, it's an enhanced form of Summon Monster spell that lasts for one minute per level instead of one round per level, along with providing all sorts of additional abilities. The Guardian Spirit is always the same creature, too, so it remembers its existence from one Summons to the next.
What if in addition to being an Improved Familiar, Pepper could also become a Guardian Spirit when Mina casts an appropriate Summon Monster spell, like magical steroids? He could gain real combat ability in addition to extra utility. Could that work, @DragonParadox?
Anyway, the feat is Summon Guardian Spirit.
Summon Guardian Spirit – d20PFSRD
www.d20pfsrd.com
It's a pretty neat feat that lets the caster gain a Guardian Spirit.
Guardian Spirit (CR varies) – d20PFSRD
www.d20pfsrd.com
Basically, it's an enhanced form of Summon Monster spell that lasts for one minute per level instead of one round per level, along with providing all sorts of additional abilities. The Guardian Spirit is always the same creature, too, so it remembers its existence from one Summons to the next.
What if in addition to being an Improved Familiar, Pepper could also become a Guardian Spirit when Mina casts an appropriate Summon Monster spell, like magical steroids? He could gain real combat ability in addition to extra utility. Could that work, @DragonParadox?
- Location
- being near locations is my passion.
Mythic Hex does reduce the utility of Potent Hex, and if DP allows it, this looks spiffy as heck.
To mix the spell with 'Being a familiar' (though DP might well give different stipulations/disallow this entirely), I would say that
Mina preforms the ritual to tie Pepper to a certain Summon Monster level:
He needs to be present for the spell to be cast on him
If he dies while the spell is in effect he can't be resummoned for 24 hours
Mina can tie Pepper to a different Summon Monster spell she can cast, and/or change his spell loadout, but to do any/all of this requires another 24 hour ritual.
It gives him the ability to project/summon different hats depending on what skills he's chosen as his eldion racial ability.
And along with the feat, it would only make sense that one of Mina's spell picks next level is Summon Monster IV
---
Edit: Next level, it is important to me that Pepper takes at least one rank un UMD. Also, we need to recalculate the skills he gets at Mina's level 7, as a figment, apart from whatever he'd get from Guardian Spirit, if allowed.
To mix the spell with 'Being a familiar' (though DP might well give different stipulations/disallow this entirely), I would say that
Mina preforms the ritual to tie Pepper to a certain Summon Monster level:
He needs to be present for the spell to be cast on him
If he dies while the spell is in effect he can't be resummoned for 24 hours
Mina can tie Pepper to a different Summon Monster spell she can cast, and/or change his spell loadout, but to do any/all of this requires another 24 hour ritual.
It gives him the ability to project/summon different hats depending on what skills he's chosen as his eldion racial ability.
And along with the feat, it would only make sense that one of Mina's spell picks next level is Summon Monster IV
---
Edit: Next level, it is important to me that Pepper takes at least one rank un UMD. Also, we need to recalculate the skills he gets at Mina's level 7, as a figment, apart from whatever he'd get from Guardian Spirit, if allowed.
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Goldfish
Friendly Spider-Fish Abomination
- Location
- Formerly of the Far Realm
Because he's a Sage Familiar, in addition to being a Figment Familiar, his INT increases to 12 when Mina reaches 7th level. That means that on top of the 2 skill points he gets per level as a Sage, he'll also be getting another 7 skill points because he'll have an INT bonus of +1.
When he Pokevolves into a Silvanshee, his CHA will go from 7 (with a -2 penalty) to 13 (with a +1 bonus). It will make more sense to learn UMD at that point, since he won't be penalized and he'll have some points to spend. We need to put points into his other skills, too, but we can spare at least a couple for UMD.
When temporarily transformed into a Guardian Spirit, his CHA would increase to 18 using Summon Monster III, or 20 using a Summon Monster IV spell. That would help with UMD, too.
Also, one of the first 1/Day SLAs a Guardian Spirit can get is Ill Omen. That should be helpful and will help save on wand charges.
- Location
- being near locations is my passion.
Oh, when I was saying I want him to learn UMD, I intended that to be when Mina levels up.
I just wanted him to have one level, so he can attempt to use those wands (with the bracers of Spell. Uh... Key?) I'd be satisfied, but more is better.
Oh shoot, @DragonParadox, I don't know if it was made clear, but the bracers thingys that give a +10 to UMD for a specific spell was intended to be able to be worn by a kitty cat.
----
Edit; oh and I've been thinking on it, and I think that not using Haste now is a mistake of trying to preserve resources at the expense of time.
We want to cast stuff like that before combat, and it'll let the abductor move faster, if it has to go further than where the arrow was shot from, and if need be, Sirim'll still be able to Wild Arcana a new casting. We're in a chase. Every moment counts.
I just wanted him to have one level, so he can attempt to use those wands (with the bracers of Spell. Uh... Key?) I'd be satisfied, but more is better.
Oh shoot, @DragonParadox, I don't know if it was made clear, but the bracers thingys that give a +10 to UMD for a specific spell was intended to be able to be worn by a kitty cat.
----
Edit; oh and I've been thinking on it, and I think that not using Haste now is a mistake of trying to preserve resources at the expense of time.
We want to cast stuff like that before combat, and it'll let the abductor move faster, if it has to go further than where the arrow was shot from, and if need be, Sirim'll still be able to Wild Arcana a new casting. We're in a chase. Every moment counts.
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Goldfish
Friendly Spider-Fish Abomination
- Location
- Formerly of the Far Realm
That's what I was saying. When she levels up again, Pepper will as well, and he'll get more skill points, some of which can be spent on UMD
Okay, I'll update the plan.
- Location
- Germany
I'm still in favor of Faery Dragon.
It's mechanically better (in some way, except for commune), it's a very nice flavor for Desna-adherents and it would be further proof for the idea that cats and dragons are actually the same, just with or without wings.
Also its shiny and colorful.
Much better Int and Charisma, due to its innate magic it would also profit quite a bit from further increased Charisma, better movement, has telepathy, even stealthier than a cat.
And if the added HD from higher-level summoning spells used for Guardian Spirit are added as Sorcerer levels (like Draconic HD usually are, at least partially) the dragon also has more staying-power for being combat-relevant in future, higher levels.
Goldfish
Friendly Spider-Fish Abomination
- Location
- Formerly of the Far Realm
I agree that it's strictly mechanically better. I like it for that reason alone, but I don't think it works for Mina's character. Pepper is the cat who saved her, died doing it, then was brought back as a cat powered by her magic and imagination. He's important to her as he is.
Luckily, the Silvanshee option lets him stay as an effectively identical cat while upgrading him significantly. His innate alignment will even match hers.
If we could have picked her Familiar from the beginning, I would probably chosen Faerie Dragon, too. Pookas, Pipefoxes, Chuspiki, or Pseudosphinx would have also been great. Silvanshee are pretty good, though, so we can work with that. Wouldn't be the first mechanically sub-optimal decision we've made for the group.
EDIT: That said, if @DragonParadox confirms that Mina and Pepper would be just as happy with him becoming a Faerie Dragon, I would for him to transform into a Faerie Dragon.
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- Location
- Germany
Isn't a faery dragon basically just a cat?
But with Butterfly wings, which you can take as a sign from Desna.
Goldfish
Friendly Spider-Fish Abomination
- Location
- Formerly of the Far Realm
Pretty much.
You replied before you could see the part I added to my previous post. If DP says Mina and Pepper would be happy with him becoming a Faerie Dragon, I would be too. This is just an important aspect of her character, so I don't think we should change it willy-nilly.
EDIT: But Pepper's personality would need to stay intact. Faerie Dragon's are the equivalent of crazy cats, like mine, who do weird, nonsensical shit for the lulz. If Pepper became one of those, he would be like an entirely different person, and that's not cool.
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Vote closed.
- Location
- St. Petersburg
That comes back to the question, why Pepper is with her, and why as Pepper, a figment that isn't like any other figment? He never was a regular cat (was he?), and was powered by her magic and imagination from the start, so why this form? We were promised we could look into how she got her blessing from Desna, but other than wait for the reply from the monastery regarding possible hints about her background (and we specified any sensitive details would have to be omitted, too) I am not sure where to begin.
I do want to know, though.
There is enough ambiguety about Pepper that him turning into a dragon wouldn't feel out of place. It's not like Mina is the one deciding which form he takes, as he is a being separate from her. Her imagination runs a lot wilder ever since she started adventuring, too.
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Goldfish
Friendly Spider-Fish Abomination
- Location
- Formerly of the Far Realm
When you need to ask a god a question, you can always try a Commune spell. Best not to have frivolous questions for them. I don't think asking about Pepper's nature would be frivolous, though.
Conveniently, if Pepper becomes a Silvanshee, he gets Commune as a 1/Week SLA.
Arc 9 Post 67: On a Cold Trail
New
On a Cold Trail
19th of Kuthona 4707 A.R. (Absalom Reckoning)
Whispers into shadow cast you reach out to Leontas and the main guard who had looked towards you: "Be not alarmed at the guise of our mount."
Granted that may have sounded a little alarming judging from the way two heads jerk in your direction... and Leontas' call of first cursing in his native tongue and then calling out over the screams of the crowd: "They're friends! Don't mind the squid thing!"
The princess doesn't seem to even notice as she jumps down from her horse with practiced ease, draws a vial of glowing liquid out of a hidden seam in her sleeve, and presses it to the fallen Bozbeyli's lips.
"Bjron, watch for trouble," the command has a weight to it you don't quite understand, but it's too late to stand and gawk. Gorok suddenly vanishes from sight under Sirim's power and a moment later you can hear the eerie screeches of the newly awoken abductor beast, thankfully mostly covered by the panic of the crowd and the snorting of the horses.
I might not be able to find the giant, you reason, but I can find his bow.
But there's no tug, no echo to follow, as though that bow had somehow ceased to exist between shooting that arrow and now.
"I'm not hearing anything," you send to Sirim when a tendril of smoke brushes against your shoulder.
Something approximating a mental sigh answers you. "It might have been a temporary construct, the assassin might have withdrawn from their plane of reality entirely, into the embrace of the Shadowfel or the Spirit Realm for instance, or they might simply make use of magical bags to lighten their load just as we do."
You grab hold and fly in the direction you'd last seen them, but while you spy plenty of bewildered and scared citizens, none of them stands out and Mina's eyes, though they see the unseen, catch no sight of the assassin. The shot had originated from one of 'the Green' for which the neighborhood was named, the former grounds of the ruined Arodonite abbey, but that too is empty of all but evening shadows and birds untroubled by the doings of the city's other residents
Just then Leontas' voice comes at you from afar. "The governor is safe, as well as he can be at least. We are escorting him to the palace. The princess would like to meet you and find out, and I quote, 'Where in Asmodeus' burning ass did they find a giant flying sea monster?'" You get the sense that the sellsword approves rather more than he had expected to.
"Why didn't they finish the job?" Mina asks, the question a far cry from the sheltered girl she once was. "If they had the magic to vanish this completely after three shots, surely they could have just kept shooting. It's not like they were expecting us to fly over. Was this a message? A distraction?"
"We might conceivably have done so, or simply translocated, so might some of the princess' guards. There is no way to know what manner of protectors royalty calls on, for their charges are safer for the world not knowing, but one would be well-served to overestimate them rather than underestimate," Sirim answers thoughtfully.
What does Kori think?
[] You should join the others in withdrawing to the palace, this is almost certainly connected with the spiders' nests the governor has been poking with your help
[] This is a distraction, you should try to divine what's going on
-[] Write in how
[] Write in
OOC: Rolls hidden since they would be spoilers of a sort, but for now no luck.
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Goldfish
Friendly Spider-Fish Abomination
- Location
- Formerly of the Far Realm
Yeah, figured that was going to happen.
@DragonParadox, since Kori never did find anything to chase after, can we assume that Sirim didn't get around to casting Mythic Haste?
EDIT: Or the second round of spells, like Mina casting a See Invisibility into her ring for Cob, Sirim casting Mage Armor, etc.
@DragonParadox, since Kori never did find anything to chase after, can we assume that Sirim didn't get around to casting Mythic Haste?
EDIT: Or the second round of spells, like Mina casting a See Invisibility into her ring for Cob, Sirim casting Mage Armor, etc.
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Mina still looked for invisible things so that was spent, Sirim cast mage Armor out of an abundance of caution so that's on, but other than that no.
Goldfish
Friendly Spider-Fish Abomination
- Location
- Formerly of the Far Realm
Okay, next step is to go meet the princess, after doing some basic investigation. If the assassin was as well prepared as I am assuming, we aren't going to find anything here, but it would be silly not to check.
Assuming competence in your enemies makes sense, but expecting it, and acting accordingly, can be a mistake.
[X] You should join the others in withdrawing to the palace, this is almost certainly connected with the spiders' nests the governor has been poking with your help
-[X] But first examine the area from which the assassin fired, searching for magical auras and traces of Fiendish power. Pepper will attempt to discern any scents he might be able to recognize later, and Gorok and Cob will search for tracks or other clues the assassin may have left behind.
-[X] Once we reach the palace and speak with the princess, Kori will offer to perform a Divination to gain some information about the assassination attempt, if that's what it really was.
Assuming competence in your enemies makes sense, but expecting it, and acting accordingly, can be a mistake.
[X] You should join the others in withdrawing to the palace, this is almost certainly connected with the spiders' nests the governor has been poking with your help
-[X] But first examine the area from which the assassin fired, searching for magical auras and traces of Fiendish power. Pepper will attempt to discern any scents he might be able to recognize later, and Gorok and Cob will search for tracks or other clues the assassin may have left behind.
-[X] Once we reach the palace and speak with the princess, Kori will offer to perform a Divination to gain some information about the assassination attempt, if that's what it really was.
- Location
- being near locations is my passion.
Darn.
OK, for the sake of having better stuff to report (well, almost worthless stuff to report, but trying here looks better), I think Kori and Mina should disguise self as law/investigator looking people, and Kori bluffs (implies but does not state that they're Tadori state agents or such) loudly asking for anyone who got a good look at the attacker. Mina uses fortune.
Then we Inspired Spell that level 3 spell that lets you read someone's memory. Mina uses fortune on the targets "how well do they remember" roll
(Or if it takes too long to cast, then lend them a hat of disguise, (Cob's? And he hides) have them practice a moment using it, and they take that person's form.
It'll not be the attacker's real face, but gathering data is good practice, and looks good.
But the memory itself might have more clues.
Then we pay them a bit?
Alternatively, if the memory spell takes too long, we ask to bring one or two to the palace, where the governor can call upon someone to get that memory?
----
Also, while we're here are there any other spells we can use?
----
Apart from getting a memory and any other magics we can throw at the problem (did the birds see anyone pop up or change appearance suddenly? (Mina uses Fortue on Gorok's handle animal check).
If we find the exact location the arrows came from, and it wasn't busy, if we can try to get the scent? It's raining though.
----
If we have a "possession" someone can attempt the Scrying spell on the target (they get +8 on the save), so maybe those arrows?
I'd much rather leave that up to the governor's people, since it would cost a scroll and has such low odds of success.
OK, for the sake of having better stuff to report (well, almost worthless stuff to report, but trying here looks better), I think Kori and Mina should disguise self as law/investigator looking people, and Kori bluffs (implies but does not state that they're Tadori state agents or such) loudly asking for anyone who got a good look at the attacker. Mina uses fortune.
Then we Inspired Spell that level 3 spell that lets you read someone's memory. Mina uses fortune on the targets "how well do they remember" roll
(Or if it takes too long to cast, then lend them a hat of disguise, (Cob's? And he hides) have them practice a moment using it, and they take that person's form.
It'll not be the attacker's real face, but gathering data is good practice, and looks good.
But the memory itself might have more clues.
Then we pay them a bit?
Alternatively, if the memory spell takes too long, we ask to bring one or two to the palace, where the governor can call upon someone to get that memory?
----
Also, while we're here are there any other spells we can use?
----
Apart from getting a memory and any other magics we can throw at the problem (did the birds see anyone pop up or change appearance suddenly? (Mina uses Fortue on Gorok's handle animal check).
If we find the exact location the arrows came from, and it wasn't busy, if we can try to get the scent? It's raining though.
----
If we have a "possession" someone can attempt the Scrying spell on the target (they get +8 on the save), so maybe those arrows?
I'd much rather leave that up to the governor's people, since it would cost a scroll and has such low odds of success.
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Goldfish
Friendly Spider-Fish Abomination
- Location
- Formerly of the Far Realm
It's one thing to poke around looking for traces of magic, trying to find tracks, a scent, etc., but sticking around to try to run a full investigation, including interviewing witnesses, while burning through a lot more Mythic power, is just being excessive.
We've already put a lot of effort into reaching the assassin and we don't have anything to show for it. Pouring more resources down a hole isn't going to do us any good when we don't even know what is really going on.
Better to get to the palace and keep ourselves as fresh as possible for whatever comes next.