I don't mind a slow pace myself, but in forum games like this it's definitely true that any slowdown in posting seems to breed more slowdowns. In my experience, things can get back on track if the GM commits to making posts on a regular schedule, even if the whole party hasn't responded yet. Eventually, everyone either gets back into the rhythm or drops out (which sounds bad, but it means we're not waiting on people who have already checked out). The only problem is that that requires motivation from the GM, which can be in short supply when you're not seeing a lot of enthusiasm from the players. For my part, I'm still enthusiastic about the game. It took me forever to build Khefu, and it would be a shame to wrap things up without getting to take him out for a proper test-drive. I was curious how he'd stack up as a vanilla character without any Spheres or PoW stuff to him. That said, if you're not enjoying running the game, then it is what it is. I feel like I was one of the main reasons we've done a lot of faffing about and no real progress, since I was the main one pushing the slow paced "tactical" approach. If we'd just buffed up and kicked in the door, the game might not have petered out the way it did. If so, then sorry for my contribution in robbing the game of it's momentum.

Yeah, I suspected that was the case, but figured I'd give a poke just in case anyone was still motivated to continue. I really like my character and am still intrigued by the game premise. I've always liked the idea of an urban-based campaign that focuses on a single city. Oh well.

To be fair, while I like my character, she's a bit complicated overall. Partly due to the open-ended nature, and the combination of Spheres and PoW. I'm curious to see how she handles in a fight, but we've had some initial scouting and not a lot of progression so far. Then, of course it's hard to maintain motivation with only a couple posts every few months. Not blaming anyone in particular, I've been complicit in that myself. I'm not sure what the fix for that is.

Yeah, sorry, to be honest I've kinda been struggling for motivation for this game for a while. From the fact that only half the party have posted I'm gonna guess I'm not the only one.

Pokes GM.

"The more the merrier." Velras says with a shrug, and walks down the stairs. Mechanics Velras takes point and goes down the stairs (although he can climb on air if they let out on him), with the others behind him. Statblock and Tracker 39/57 Spell points left Martial Focus: 2/2 Active Effects: The World, Swords, The Fool, Strength, and The Emperor (Duration: 16 hours from opening scene) Enhance Equipment (unarmed strike, warhammer, 7 other armors/weapons) Duration: 16 hours from opening scene) Darkvision (Duration: 20 hours from opening scene, from Zella) Staunch Resistance (Will, Reflex) (Duration: 160 minutes from night-time, applies to whole party) Cast Nature's Carapace (metal) and Resist Elements (fire, enhanced) (duration: 260 minutes from night time) Nature's Sense: Earth (Tremorsense 90 feet) (duration: 260 minutes from night time) blessing of the watch, hunter's blessing (+2 on , , , , and damage rolls made against humans. +2 on checks, , , and checks in urban areas), Blacksmith Maintenances: Clarifying and Quickening Reinforcements Blacksmith maintenances (+4 reflex and will saves), and Armor Maintenance (+4 armor, reduce ACP by 4) Defenses: AC: 48, FF: 36, Touch: 23, CMD: 39 (+2 per size category larger than me attacker is, +4 vs trip and +5 vs sunder) Cold/Elec/Acid Resistance 10, Fire Resist 36 and recover 1 HP for each damage prevented Fort: +17, Ref: +22, Will: +19, (all saves roll twice and take better) HP: 240 Immunities/other: Immune to disease, poison, age. 130' move, climb (including through air, or earth glide speed Skills: Acrobatics +42*, Climb +31*, Diplomacy +24, K. Engineering, local, and nature (+21), Perception +16 (+7 on traps, +2 bonus and auto-check to find unusual stonework or metalwork), Prof Blacksmith* +34, sense motive +24, Knowledge local +23, Stealth* +24 *Can take-10 even when rushed or threatened +5 insight bonus to skills when taking 10 Misc: Can make AoOs even when flat-footed. When suffering penalties to attack rolls, damage rolls, saving throws, skill checks, or ability checks, reduce the total penalty by 2, to a minimum penalty of -1.

Khefu smirked a bit at Velras' suggestion. "You might be smaller than us, but I'd say we're all equally light on our feet right now." To demonstrate, he also brought his feet off the ground, walking on the air about six inches over the tower floor. "As far as I'm concerned, there's no need to touch these stairs at all." "Still, if you wanna take point, I won't fight you on it." He gestured for Velras and Roth to go ahead. "We'll be right behind you." Mechanics Khefu is going to follow behind Velras and/or Roth, about 15' back. He's going to be airwalking about 6" off the ground for the forseeable future.

Roth focuses for a second, before lifting a few inches from the ground and floating over to the stairs. "Or, you and I go down together, then I create a trail that can teleport the others down? Safer overall, I think."

"I don't know. I'm pretty difficult to kill and lighter than most of you, I'll go first. If it is a trap, I should survive it. You all follow." Velras suggested Mechanics Velras is just going to walk down the stairs. Statblock and Tracker 39/57 Spell points left Martial Focus: 2/2 Active Effects: The World, Swords, The Fool, Strength, and The Emperor (Duration: 16 hours from opening scene) Enhance Equipment (unarmed strike, warhammer, 7 other armors/weapons) Duration: 16 hours from opening scene) Darkvision (Duration: 20 hours from opening scene, from Zella) Staunch Resistance (Will, Reflex) (Duration: 160 minutes from night-time, applies to whole party) Cast Nature's Carapace (metal) and Resist Elements (fire, enhanced) (duration: 260 minutes from night time) Nature's Sense: Earth (Tremorsense 90 feet) (duration: 260 minutes from night time) blessing of the watch, hunter's blessing (+2 on , , , , and damage rolls made against humans. +2 on checks, , , and checks in urban areas), Blacksmith Maintenances: Clarifying and Quickening Reinforcements Blacksmith maintenances (+4 reflex and will saves), and Armor Maintenance (+4 armor, reduce ACP by 4) Defenses: AC: 48, FF: 36, Touch: 23, CMD: 39 (+2 per size category larger than me attacker is, +4 vs trip and +5 vs sunder) Cold/Elec/Acid Resistance 10, Fire Resist 36 and recover 1 HP for each damage prevented Fort: +17, Ref: +22, Will: +19, (all saves roll twice and take better) HP: 240 Immunities/other: Immune to disease, poison, age. 130' move, climb (including through air, or earth glide speed Skills: Acrobatics +42*, Climb +31*, Diplomacy +24, K. Engineering, local, and nature (+21), Perception +16 (+7 on traps, +2 bonus and auto-check to find unusual stonework or metalwork), Prof Blacksmith* +34, sense motive +24, Knowledge local +23, Stealth* +24 *Can take-10 even when rushed or threatened +5 insight bonus to skills when taking 10 Misc: Can make AoOs even when flat-footed. When suffering penalties to attack rolls, damage rolls, saving throws, skill checks, or ability checks, reduce the total penalty by 2, to a minimum penalty of -1.

Okay that's fine, I just wanted to check. Zella To your keen senses, the staircase seems exactly as it appears to you all - a little worn with age, but well-maintained and sound.

Ok, so... Technically no. The effect works like the True Seeing spell, except as an extraordinary ability. I could gain the ability to do so, though Velras did use a detect magic effect. If he detected magic and I need it, I can activate my Spiritualism ability to gain access to that talent. Otherwise I'd have to be able to touch person or object to detect magic.

Okay this could potentially lead to a slightly weird mechanical interaction, so just to clarify - is Zella currently detecting magic?

"No magic, huh?" Khefu rubbed his beard in thought while he hung back to let the others ply their expertise towards the issue. "Well then. If what we're looking at now is real, then maybe it's my scrying that was off? But...why would I see stairs being older than they really are? What's the percentage in pulling a trick like that?" Statblock Active Effects: Delay poison, eaglesoul (passive, ), Greater magic weapon +3, ascetic armor +10, hunter's blessing (+2 sacred bonus on Bluff, Perception, Sense Motive, Survival, attack rolls and damage rolls made against humans. +2 sacred bonus on initiative checks, Perception, Stealth, and Survival checks in urban areas), blessing of the watch, wind walk, enhance equipment (unarmed, +5), Staunch resistance (+5 will and fortitude), clearsight (immunity to Zella's shadows), Air walk (75 mins), communal resist energy (fire 30, 30 mins), Freedom of movement (150 mins), Magic circle against evil (150 mins), Tears to wine (150 mins) Defences: AC: 39, FF: 36, Touch: 29, CMD: 54 Cold/Elec/Acid Resistance 5, DR 5/natural weapons Fort: +23, Ref: +18, Will: +22 (28 vs mind-affecting), HP: 195 Immunities/other: Immune to disease, death, aging, starvation, takes minimum fall damage, and delays poison. +3 vs fear, +2 vs paralysis and sleep. Attacks: Flurry of blows: +27/27/27/22/17 for 2d8+15 damage. Stunning fist DC 25. Each hit comes with free intimidate, enemies hit while shaken become flat-footed vs me, +2 attacks per round vs flat-footed enemies. Can flying kick 40' and full attack, or use Dimensional dervish to teleport/charge/full attack 200 ft (costing 2 ki). Two style strikes per round: Grapple + 32 Skills: Intimidate +42, sense motive +34, Knowledge local +33, Diplo +27, Stealth +26, UMD +12, Spellcraft +31, Perception +29, Misc: Attacks count as magic, lawful, silver, cold iron, adamantine. 100' move speed. RESOURCES SPELLS REMAINING: 6/6/3/4/6/6/5 Ki points: 17, Stunning fist: 14 Natural Divinations: +cha to saving throw (x2), +10 to skill check (x2)

"Hmm... Let me have a look." Zella concentrates for a moment as shadows fill her eyes for a brief moment. As the shadows recede, her eyes seem to be focused sharper, taking in more than surface details. She peers into the room to discern anything of note. OOC Spend a spell point as a swift action to activate to gain three combat feats for 8 minutes: 1. Extra Combat Talent: Discern IllusionsDiscern Illusions As long as you have martial focus, you gain a bonus to all Will saves against illusions (including glamers, figments, and any effects created by the illusion school or the Illusion sphere) equal to 1/2 your ranks in Perception (minimum 1). As a swift action, you can expend martial focus to share this bonus with all allies within 30 ft. for a number of rounds equal to your practitioner modifier. 2. Extra Combat Talent: True SightTrue Sight Prerequisites: Scout sphere, Discern Illusions, Piercing Eye, Perception 15 ranks. So long as you have martial focus, your razor sharp senses can no longer be fooled by illusions and misdirections, granting you the ability to see all things as they actually are. This functions as the true seeing spell but is a personal, extraordinary effect that allows you to see through normal and magical darkness, notice secret doors hidden by magic, see the exact locations of creatures or objects under blur or displacement effects, see invisible creatures or objects normally, see through illusions, and see the true form of polymorphed, changed, or transmuted things. Further, you can focus your vision to see into the Ethereal Plane (but not into extradimensional spaces). The range of this effect is 120 feet. This ability does not penetrate solid objects. It in no way confers x-ray vision or its equivalent. It does not negate concealment, including that caused by fog and the like. True Sight does not help you see through mundane disguises, spot creatures who are simply hiding, or notice secret doors hidden by mundane means. In addition, this effect cannot be further enhanced with known magic, so one cannot use this ability through a crystal ball or in conjunction with clairaudience/clairvoyance. 3. Extra Combat Talent: Identify Structural HazardsIdentify Structural Hazards You may use Perception in place of Knowledge (dungeoneering) to identify underground hazards, in place of Knowledge (engineering) to identify dangerous construction or determine a structure’s weakness, and in place of Knowledge (nature) to identify a natural hazard. This gives me the effects of True Seeing as an extraordinary ability for the duration, with the normal range of 120 ft. Further, Identify Structural Hazards allows me to use Perception in place of Engineering (or other skills) to identify hazards related to construction or structural weaknesses. If the stairs/floor are still damaged, I should be able to tell with my perception check, below.

I think I should, since I can grab it easily and at relatively low cost. I'll get a post up today.

My Sundering of magic isn't actually a spheres of magic effect (it's from spheres of might), so it doesn't use my casting tradition. But fair point on the detect magic. Someone else in the party want to try true sight?

Velras finishes bending a small piece of iron into a loop, the metal glowing red from the heat of his bare hands. He takes the loop and stares through it at the stairs. "Huh, I don't see any magic." Mechanics Statblock and Tracker 39/57 Spell points left Martial Focus: 2/2 Active Effects: The World, Swords, The Fool, Strength, and The Emperor (Duration: 16 hours from opening scene) Enhance Equipment (unarmed strike, warhammer, 7 other armors/weapons) Duration: 16 hours from opening scene) Darkvision (Duration: 20 hours from opening scene, from Zella) Staunch Resistance (Will, Reflex) (Duration: 160 minutes from night-time, applies to whole party) Cast Nature's Carapace (metal) and Resist Elements (fire, enhanced) (duration: 260 minutes from night time) Nature's Sense: Earth (Tremorsense 90 feet) (duration: 260 minutes from night time) blessing of the watch, hunter's blessing (+2 on , , , , and damage rolls made against humans. +2 on checks, , , and checks in urban areas), Blacksmith Maintenances: Clarifying and Quickening Reinforcements Blacksmith maintenances (+4 reflex and will saves), and Armor Maintenance (+4 armor, reduce ACP by 4) Defenses: AC: 48, FF: 36, Touch: 23, CMD: 39 (+2 per size category larger than me attacker is, +4 vs trip and +5 vs sunder) Cold/Elec/Acid Resistance 10, Fire Resist 36 and recover 1 HP for each damage prevented Fort: +17, Ref: +22, Will: +19, (all saves roll twice and take better) HP: 240 Immunities/other: Immune to disease, poison, age. 130' move, climb (including through air, or earth glide speed Skills: Acrobatics +42*, Climb +31*, Diplomacy +24, K. Engineering, local, and nature (+21), Perception +16 (+7 on traps, +2 bonus and auto-check to find unusual stonework or metalwork), Prof Blacksmith* +34, sense motive +24, Knowledge local +23, Stealth* +24 *Can take-10 even when rushed or threatened +5 insight bonus to skills when taking 10 Misc: Can make AoOs even when flat-footed. When suffering penalties to attack rolls, damage rolls, saving throws, skill checks, or ability checks, reduce the total penalty by 2, to a minimum penalty of -1.

Oh yeah, I forgot I had that. Basically all of Velras' magic is doing forging, which is not quiet. Whoops.

Well there's not much interpreting needed, Magical Signs is very obvious. Velras You don't detect any magic on the stairs.

My Detect magic is free as long as I spend a minute to cast it, so let's see if that detects a magic aura. If it is, I can try to sunder it, which also doesn't take any resources besides an action. The only downside is that depending on Llyarden's interpretation, it probably makes as much noise as combat does, so it might alert any residents that we're here.

By default, scrying doesn't see through illusions. My best guess is that we triggered a magic trap on the way in somehow. I'm in the same boat as Venn, in that I've got true seeing, but don't know if a weird staircase is worth such a powerful and expensive spell.

Velras can't see through illusions, but he can detect magic. I'll try that first to see if I can find an illusion aura. Assuming it is, I can then sunder the illusion.

Velras cocks his head, considering the strangeness. He mutters to himself, twisting himself around, looking at the stairs. "The intense focus of light but pointillism, into this juncture bits of light surround rough, inverted sky – The heavy mirage of dots, landscape locked" After a minute, he nods his head, he takes out his hammer. "Got it. A hard blow, right about ... there, would do it. If it's an illusion, the vibrations would counter the arcano-harmonic resonance. If it isn't an illusion, I'd just look silly." Velras hefts his hammer, considering his options. Mechanics I spend 1 minute to cast Divine, looking for magic auras on the staircase. That won't let me see through the illusion, but will let me see the illusionary aura if it exists. Taking 10 on K. Arcana is a 31 on the check to identify the school (includes bonus from The Fool) Statblock and Tracker 39/57 Spell points left Martial Focus: 2/2 Active Effects: The World, Swords, The Fool, Strength, and The Emperor (Duration: 16 hours from opening scene) Enhance Equipment (unarmed strike, warhammer, 7 other armors/weapons) Duration: 16 hours from opening scene) Darkvision (Duration: 20 hours from opening scene, from Zella) Staunch Resistance (Will, Reflex) (Duration: 160 minutes from night-time, applies to whole party) Cast Nature's Carapace (metal) and Resist Elements (fire, enhanced) (duration: 260 minutes from night time) Nature's Sense: Earth (Tremorsense 90 feet) (duration: 260 minutes from night time) blessing of the watch, hunter's blessing (+2 on , , , , and damage rolls made against humans. +2 on checks, , , and checks in urban areas), Blacksmith Maintenances: Clarifying and Quickening Reinforcements Blacksmith maintenances (+4 reflex and will saves), and Armor Maintenance (+4 armor, reduce ACP by 4) Defenses: AC: 48, FF: 36, Touch: 23, CMD: 39 (+2 per size category larger than me attacker is, +4 vs trip and +5 vs sunder) Cold/Elec/Acid Resistance 10, Fire Resist 36 and recover 1 HP for each damage prevented Fort: +17, Ref: +22, Will: +19, (all saves roll twice and take better) HP: 240 Immunities/other: Immune to disease, poison, age. 130' move, climb (including through air, or earth glide speed Skills: Acrobatics +42*, Climb +31*, Diplomacy +24, K. Engineering, local, and nature (+21), Perception +16 (+7 on traps, +2 bonus and auto-check to find unusual stonework or metalwork), Prof Blacksmith* +34, sense motive +24, Knowledge local +23, Stealth* +24 *Can take-10 even when rushed or threatened +5 insight bonus to skills when taking 10 Misc: Can make AoOs even when flat-footed. When suffering penalties to attack rolls, damage rolls, saving throws, skill checks, or ability checks, reduce the total penalty by 2, to a minimum penalty of -1.

I've got nothing to see through illusions, I'm afraid.

To clarify, does Khefu's scrying beacon see through illusions? Is the illusion something we're seeing now, then? To the group: Does anyone have an innate method of seeing through illusions? I can grab true sight for 8 minutes at a time, though I'm not sure if it's worth it or not at the moment. Clearly they felt it useful up here as a deterrent, but what else might we encounter further in?