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Finding the Spark (Pathfinder 1E Quest)

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Artemis1992 said:
This reminds me of how much better Inspired Spell/Wild Arcana is than its counterparts.

But really, that is only the case because of our format. Here we can collectively look for the best spells to use, making the most out of the whole Spell-list.
If this were an actual game of D&D, you'd have to think up what to use your Wild Arcana for within your actual turn, however long your DM and co-players allow you.
That means most inexperienced or moderately experienced players could only use Wild Arcana for spells they have at the top of their heads, not the most obscure bullshit from a hundred lorebooks like we can here.
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It's not just the quest format, it's also the fact that Pathfinder has so many specialized variant spells like the one that only works on a creature with a shadow, or the one that only works on a creature with lips, and a lot of these spells look to be "balanced" by tweaking drawbacks and benefits and applicability. Shadow Trap is broadly similar to the Command spell, which is also first level, choosing the 'Fall' or 'Halt' commands. Shadow Trap is illumination-dependent, Command is language-dependent. Shadow Trap lasts longer, but the target gets to move one square. And so on.

There's some point-based 'toolkit' RPG systems with ad hoc spell design. In one of those, you could get a great deal of power at low level by making a spell with a lot of drawbacks like "only works on Thursday afternoon, only targets humans between ages 30 and 35, only works within one mile of a lake", which would be hilariously OP in its niche and useless the rest of the time. Being able to pick drawbacks on the fly in one of those systems would be potentially game-breaking, because you could pick a bunch of harsh-looking but irrelevant drawbacks tailored to your use case each time, effectively getting free power because you've traded off against drawbacks that you don't have to keep next time you cast on a different day of the week.

Pathfinder isn't completely ad hoc, and I exaggerated above to illustrate the point, but Pathfinder does have a great many niche spells with drawbacks that provide a fraction of that game-breaking-ness when combined. I have no fix in mind, I just wanted to grumble.
 
Vote closed.
Adhoc vote count started by DragonParadox on Jan 27, 2025 at 12:50 PM, finished with 26 posts and 5 votes.
  • [X] Caught In The Net
    -[X] Kori uses Inspired Spell to cast Solidify Earth to trap the fleeing Vampire while the party deals with the Golem.
    -[X] Mina casts Summon Monster IV to transform Pepper into a Guardian Spirit.
    -[X] Sirim casts Ashen Path on everyone.
    -[X] Cob expends one Mythic power to make a Sneak Attack against the Golem using Surprise Strike as a Swift Action, he then continues attacking using Piranha Strike. He inflicts the Bewildered (-2 AC for 1 round, -4 vs Cob's attacks) condition on his first Sneak Attack.
    --[X] Surprise Sneak Attack Strike: +22 (+1 Mythic, +2 Morale, +1 Haste, +1 Trait, +1 smaller Size, +1 extra DEX), 1+12+4d6 damage (Ignores DR); 17-20/x2
    --[X] Piranha Strikes: +19/+19 vs -4 Penalized AC (+2 Morale, +1 Haste, +1 Trait, +1 Size, +1 extra DEX, -2 Piranha Strike), 1+12 damage, +4d6 Sneak Attack damage if applicable due to Flanking (which provides another +2 attack bonus); 17-20/x2
    -[X] Gorok expends one Mythic power to use Fleet Charge to Power Attack the Golem as a Swift Action after Cob makes his first attack, then continues to Power Attack it, providing Flanking for Cob to continue making Sneak Attacks against it.
    --[X] Fleet Charge Power Attack: +18 vs -2 Penalized AC (+2 Morale, +1 Haste, +1 Mythic), 3d6+9 damage (Ignores DR); 15-20/x2
    --[X] Power Attacks: +17/+17/+10 vs -2 Penalized AC (+2 Morale, +1 Haste), 3d6+9 damage; 15-20/x2
    -[X] Warty makes a full attack against the Golem.
    --[X] Full Attack: 2 Bites +16/+16 and 2 Claws +16/+16 vs -2 penalized AC (+2 Morale +2 Charge, +1 Haste), Bites: 3d8+8 damage, +1d4 Acid damage per bite (+1d4 in the following round as well), Claws: 1d6+7 damage
    -[X] Pepper sasses the Golem again, then targets it with a Snowball spell.
    --[X] Snowball Spell: +11 vs -2 penalized Touch AC, 3d6 Cold damage, DC 15 Fortitude saving throw to avoid being Staggered for one round.
    -[X] Avarice remains overhead out of sight, looking for additional attackers. He will telepathically warn the party of new threats.
    [X] Caught In The Net
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Arc 10: Post 35: From Black Sand Forged
  • Threadmarks
    • From Black Sand Forged​

    30th of Kuthona 4707 A.R. (Absalom Reckoning)

    Left handed your reach out and cast a spell you do not know the name of for all you see it in your mind's eye; a priest in green and blue lay down the foundations of a village that will become a town that will become a city that will be... Earth compresses into a form like stone and traps the vampire, though not for long. "Gorok..."

    Your friend needs no encouragement. His weapon is not made for the task so he rushes into the fight and starts pummeling the idol with the hilt of the rapier, smashing it elbows and knees. Slowly, like a wall-slip in a muddy cave, it begins to cave in on itself, whatever power keeping it animate struggling against the blows.

    As for Cob, you don't so much see him on the other side of the mass of black sand as hear him cursing the 'stupid dirt thing with no blood that won't stay proper stabbed.' Pepper only seems to grow brighter and larger overhead as he spins sphere as much light as snow at the failing idol, but still it won't fall, towering above you like a crumbling wall ready to bury you in its ruin.

    Then its head explodes. A diminutive shadow, draconic in form, flicks its tail in contempt in its direction as it surveys its work before spiraling upward to keep an eye on more danger again.

    Gorok Attacks: 28, 32, 26, 23 (Hit, Hit, Hit, Hit)
    Sand Golem Takes 45 Damage -> Now at 29/96*
    Cob: Attacks: 30, 39, 28 (Hit, Hit, Hit)
    Sand Golem Takes 19 Damage -> Now at 10/96*
    Pepper does     9 Damage -> Sand Golem now at 1/96
    Golem Fortitude Save: 1d20+4 =     23 (Success)
    Sand Golem Reflex Save: 1d20+6 =     14 (Success)
    Sand Golem Takes     14 Damage -> Destroyed
    *Immune to Precision Damage (Crits and Sneak Attack) due to Amorphous

    Mina starts to giggle in sheer relief as she dusts herself off from the wave of sand which had rolled over the both of you. "I withdraw any and all reservations as to your presence good... Avarice. He could've given you a better name though."

    "Why?" A voice like Sirim's yet not rings in your mind. "It is as I am, and I know no shame in being. If you still feel a need to make amends, collect some of the glass from the remains so that I may claim it for my hoard. A good start."

    "Where is the dead one?" Gorok cuts through the chatter. When you point to the patch of soil at the edge of the circle he seems satisfied, though quickly grows less so when you explain the spell won't hold him long and you will have to follow him to his resting place to put him to true death. "The hatchlings, can you question him?"

    Sirim cocks his head, as much as an ophidian form may. "He will not speak to me, heretic that I am. He thinks he will be safe once he has fled, perhaps."

    "I can follow him," you explain with confidence.

    Between your own calculations for how fast the mist can move and Mina's knowledge of those who hunt in the night you work out that the the coffin can't be much farther than a mile from here if he's to be able to get there in time. Yet all the while Gorok seems torn and it's no great leap to figure out why, on the one hand he feels he has to search for the hatchlings, on the other that he should lead you in battle again and lend his sword to the task.

    What do you do?

    [] Assure Gorok that you can deal with whatever the vampire has prepared to defend his resting place...
    -[]... Alone
    -[]... With only some of the company (write in who)

    [] Someone else can stay and loot
    -[] Write in who

    [] Say nothing, you should stay together

    OOC: I did try to hold off Cob since he could not use his sneak attack on the golem, but there was just no way to get it down in a single round without him and that thing hits like a truck. Hope the tactics make sense.
     
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  • Threadmarks
    • That went well, now we just have to make sure something like this doesn't happen again.

    Does Gorok have any way of finding the hatchlings?
    If there are no obvious traces nearby, I'd say they are most likely with the Vampire's coffin, or with some Chelish allies of his?

    We have a few minutes until the spell runs out, enough for a short Survival check to look for clues, I think.
     
    @DragonParadox, if Sirim used Shaper's Touch to reshape the ground trapping Cicat, would that work?

    Shaper’s Touch – d20PFSRD

    www.d20pfsrd.com www.d20pfsrd.com

    It's temporarily compacted by Kori's spell, but this should let Sirim be more thorough and the results last for 24 hours. He could compact the dirt and soil too tightly for Cicat to escape, then we could store it in a Bag of Holding for a while.

    EDIT: Would that perhaps even give him a Vampire corpse to work with if we crack the prison open after the 2 hour time limit needed for a Vampire to reach their coffin? Or would the Gaseous Form just disperse at that point instead of turning into a real corpse?
     
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    Goldfish said:
    @DragonParadox, if Sirim used Shaper's Touch to reshape the ground trapping Cicat, would that work?

    Shaper’s Touch – d20PFSRD

    www.d20pfsrd.com www.d20pfsrd.com

    It's temporarily compacted by Kori's spell, but this should let Sirim be more thorough and the results last for 24 hours. He could compact the dirt and soil too tightly for Cicat to escape, then we could store it in a Bag of Holding for a while.
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    Unfortunately not, the dirt isn't a distinct object.
     
    Hmm, unusual problems call for unusual solutions.

    @DragonParadox, if Mina Summons a Gibbering Mouther, could it use its Ground Manipulation ability on the area trapping Cicat to turn it soft and muddy, effectively making it impossible for him to move through, then use its Engulf ability to basically vacuum up the Gaseous Form and the mud trapping it?

    Gibbering Mouther – d20PFSRD

    www.d20pfsrd.com www.d20pfsrd.com

    Then she can have it climb into our Type 2 Bag of Holding. When the Summoning spell ends, the mud and Cicat will be sealed in the bag.
     
    Goldfish said:
    Hmm, unusual problems call for unusual solutions.

    @DragonParadox, if Mina Summons a Gibbering Mouther, could it use its Ground Manipulation ability on the area trapping Cicat to turn it soft and muddy, effectively making it impossible for him to move through, then use its Engulf ability to basically vacuum up the Gaseous Form and the mud trapping it?

    Gibbering Mouther – d20PFSRD

    www.d20pfsrd.com www.d20pfsrd.com

    Then she can have it climb into our Type 2 Bag of Holding. When the Summoning spell ends, the mud and Cicat will be sealed in the bag.
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    Unfortunately it doesn't work. Turning is soft would make it porous again and he could escape.
     
    Okay, tag team approach.

    First Mina uses Summon Monster IV to Summon a Medium Air Elemental.

    Then Sirim casts Expeditious Excavation.

    Expeditious Excavation – d20PFSRD

    www.d20pfsrd.com www.d20pfsrd.com

    The spell gives him an option to throw the excavated dirt up into the air. That would throw Cicat's Gaseous Form up into the air as well, where Mina's Air Elemental is waiting to snap him up and deposited him in a Bag of Holding. People in Gaseous Form are subject to the effects of wind, and you don't get much more of a wind effect than an Air Elemental.
     
    Honestly, if we can get the party on it, I'm not opposed to follow the mist to its coffin.

    That's where any loot it doesn't carry on its body should be.

    @Goldfish
    60ft of Undeath Sense is a good range, I doubt that the soil remains loose when so much of its own weight rests on it, a few meters deep it should get less porous?
    Not a geologist, obviously.

    But unless there's also natural caves underneath the loose soil, I see good odds that our entire party can follow the vampire, as it can't go too deep or too fast.
    And the actual location of the coffin, must have some normal entrance, or he couldn't have posted guards there, right?
    Unless there's a very complicated and expensive protection that only allows entry via Gaseous Form or Dimensional Door.
     
    Artemis1992 said:
    Honestly, if we can get the party on it, I'm not opposed to follow the mist to its coffin.

    That's where any loot it doesn't carry on its body should be.

    @Goldfish
    60ft of Undeath Sense is a good range, I doubt that the soil remains loose when so much of its own weight rests on it, a few meters deep it should get less porous?
    Not a geologist, obviously.

    But unless there's also natural caves underneath the loose soil, I see good odds that our entire party can follow the vampire, as it can't go too deep or too fast.
    And the actual location of the coffin, must have some normal entrance, or he couldn't have posted guards there, right?
    Unless there's a very complicated and expensive protection that only allows entry via Gaseous Form or Dimensional Door.
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    Fair enough.

    I'm still going to have Kori follow along as a Shadow. He's tapped out for Mythic power but still has plenty of spell slots remaining. Depending on what he finds when Cicat reaches his coffin, he might need to cast in a hurry without waiting for the others to catch up.

    [X] Catch of the Day
    -[X] Kori uses his Shadow Projection Revelation then Sirim casts Marionette Possession to pilot Kori's body. Once situated, Sirim then uses Wild Arcana to cast Death Sense on Kori's Shadow so that he can follow Cicat unerringly.
    --[X] Kori will track Cicat back to his coffin while the rest of the party follows along, remaining in contact with Kori via telepathy. He will relay what he finds to the party once Cicat reaches his destination and they will decide how to proceed.
     
    So glad that we took care of golem before it could hit anyone, since that would have hurt.

    Now just a matter of tracking annoying vamp, killing him for good, and finding hatchlings hopefully nearby.

    [X] Goldfish
     
    Massgamer said:
    So glad that we took care of golem before it could hit anyone, since that would have hurt.
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    Yeah, it was a huge relief to get that thing taken down. It worried me more than the Vampire, TBH. When what should normally be a mindless Construct killing machine is made in the likeness of an insane god and then starts talking shit mid-fight, that is cause for concern.

    The upgrades for Warty and Pepper really showed their worth here, too. Between the two of them they did a great job running interference and did a not insignificant amount of damage to it, too.
     
    Vote closed.
    Adhoc vote count started by DragonParadox on Jan 28, 2025 at 10:08 AM, finished with 20 posts and 5 votes.
    • [X] Catch of the Day
      -[X] Kori uses his Shadow Projection Revelation then Sirim casts Marionette Possession to pilot Kori's body. Once situated, Sirim then uses Wild Arcana to cast Death Sense on Kori's Shadow so that he can follow Cicat unerringly.
      --[X] Kori will track Cicat back to his coffin while the rest of the party follows along, remaining in contact with Kori via telepathy. He will relay what he finds to the party once Cicat reaches his destination and they will decide how to proceed.
      [X] Catch of the Day
    Click to expand...
     
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