Just wondering, but has Ii referred to Nergal enough times for the party to wonder whether she's 100% orthodox? 
I doubt most Githyanki would even have heard of Nergal.
So, anyone have a plan? I don't. 
I'd recomend running from the gazebo as fast as you can 
Also, I have a concept in my head (a mobility-focused psychic warior)+other stuff. I'll have a finished sheet and at least a partial writeup sometime tomorow.
Just wondering, but has Ii referred to Nergal enough times for the party to wonder whether she's 100% orthodox? I doubt most Githyanki would even have heard of Nergal.
Thats a judgement call Azure will have to enlighten, as i am trying to hint she is influenced by "Nergal", but not necessairily at first glance religiously fervent
If and when we gain a lvl, i will be taking a lvl of priest, but to say she is a religious fanatic is a whole different ballgame... 
I suppose by Zim asking, Ya'shenn is asking herself about Ii and Nergal. But you're right most githyanki haven't heard of Nergal, of if they had, might think Ii was just using foul language.
Dunamin asked: Are yuan-ti also treated as having psi-like abilities rather than spell-like?
The MM says Psi, and it fits, I think. Makes sense why the illithid like 'em. Mmm snake brains.
I also would like to make a plot adjustment. It makes more sense for the wounded to have stayed in Sigil instead of following through the portal. They could easily make it back to Git'riban through a route already cleared. That way, there is only one other group of NPCs to worry about finding.
Does this mean that they have power resistance 16 rather than SR 16?
Well, let’s see…
Perimeter patrolled by two groups, one with 2 spearmen & 2 shield-slaves, and one with 1 spearman, 1 bowman, & 3 shield-slaves.
Gazebo guarded by six groups, each with 2 spearmen, 1 bowman, & 3 shield-slaves.
Gazebo houses 2 illithids, 2 yuan-ti halfbloods, and 1 yuan-ti abomination?
If we face the entire force at once, that’s 22 decently capable guards, 23 shield-slaves, and what seems to be an elite team inside the gazebo. This would be bad news, especially since we’re stressed for time.
It would be a huge benefit if we could divert as much of the force away as possible, for instance by having one team engage and draw fire from the majority of outer troops, then lure them away as a distraction while the other team goes straight for the illithids.
We could also do a teleport drop-in, take out the illithids, and teleport out before we get overwhelmed. No idea what our chances are, though, could get extremely messy if many giths get mind blasted.
I’m thinking it might work better to flush the illithids out instead. Preferably by literally burning down the place and exposing them to the sunlight they hate so much. Options include fun cocktails Ar’dru might have left, serious spellfire from Kirath, and/or calling in the skiff(s) to airstrike the gazebo until its razed to the ground. Nuke it from orbit, it’s the only way to be sure.
Anyway, I don’t know if that snake trying to bite Ii means we’re already in extended combat and should roll initiative?
Combat still on, yes, but initial initiative will last whole garden scene. Unfortunately, this means Ar'dru strikes after guards, but he is wielding a greatsword, so it kind of fits.
If you call in a skiff, it will be piloted by Weishan's new PC (soon as I get him/her)
There are the psi-grenades too. They would work on the slaves, but I'm not sure if they'd work on the yuan-ti. They would NOT work on illithids.
I've got my sheet done, pending final aproval, and I'm typing background now. The githyanki language document on the wizards board seems to have vanished. Does one of you happen to have it? (I'm having name troubles)
Correction, the character is done now.
Edit: oops, I meant to edit my above post. I fail.
Well, let’s see…
Perimeter patrolled by two groups, one with 2 spearmen & 2 shield-slaves, and one with 1 spearman, 1 bowman, & 3 shield-slaves.
Gazebo guarded by six groups, each with 2 spearmen, 1 bowman, & 3 shield-slaves.
Gazebo houses 2 illithids, 2 yuan-ti halfbloods, and 1 yuan-ti abomination?
If we face the entire force at once, that’s 22 decently capable guards, 23 shield-slaves, and what seems to be an elite team inside the gazebo. This would be bad news, especially since we’re stressed for time.
It would be a huge benefit if we could divert as much of the force away as possible, for instance by having one team engage and draw fire from the majority of outer troops, then lure them away as a distraction while the other team goes straight for the illithids.
We could also do a teleport drop-in, take out the illithids, and teleport out before we get overwhelmed. No idea what our chances are, though, could get extremely messy if many giths get mind blasted.
I’m thinking it might work better to flush the illithids out instead. Preferably by literally burning down the place and exposing them to the sunlight they hate so much. Options include fun cocktails Ar’dru might have left, serious spellfire from Kirath, and/or calling in the skiff(s) to airstrike the gazebo until its razed to the ground. Nuke it from orbit, it’s the only way to be sure.
The party can discuss here what to do and how to go about it, and IC I will make it seem like orders from the kith'rak.
Note you can call in a skiff piloted by a psiwarrior (wei's new PC)
We could have the skiff's attack from one side, accompanied by Ar'dru or someone else who has a few D Doors left to draw/kill off most of the guards (The two warriors present a 'soft target' to draw the guards into a mass which'll be easy to hit with bombs, Ar'dru stays because of his immunities, the other d-doors out after the initial charge) and while the distraction's going off the rest of the party could D-Door/ move closer, wait the round to recover then charge the gazebo to take out the commanders.
Alternately the members of the group who have the highest intimidate scores could follow up the bombardment with an offer to spare the snakes if they aid us in turning on the illithid.
What do people think?
Ya'shenn has two D-doors remaining. She doesn't have Intimidate (as it isn't a class skill for her), but would be happy to contribute a suggestion or two and a Bluff modifier. Or even missives to the yuan-ti leader.
Edit: How many/what kind of incendiaries does Ar'dru still have?
OOC: If I used the skiff's ram to collapse the gazeebo, how many enemies would I kill? 
Also, how many rounds will it take me to close with the gazeebo?
You'll have to try it to see......
By flying low over the roofs, you can appear over the gardens and close on the gazebo in one round (speed 150' per rd, "run" for a short distance at 600')
Current incendiaries tally - 2x Black Smokers, and 4x Burning Dust, 2x alchemists fire, 3x flasks of Oleum, 13 flasks oil, 1d6 fire-breath.
Burning dust could work well here and the smokers could cause some good distractions/ view blockers as we target the gazebo but I figured if we can call in an air-strike we might as well save the ammo.
I am in favor of asking the Snakes to back off etc.. we should though show power, in that it gives them a reason to want to back off.... (have Intimidate 7, bluff 10, diplomacy 10)
Kirath also has a wand of fireballs to combine with a few incediaries could yiels (pardon the pun) some explosive results. Kirath could also call in the skiff (which might be the most tactically sound idea). As far as talking to the yuan-ti Kirath might object to that as one part of his mission was to punish the snake men for giving shelter to the illithids so that could stick in his craw a bit.
Oddly enough, I had a similar idea. 
A palace full of yuan-ti probably has enough pet snakes to make snakeskin boots for the entire party.
Welcome back, Weishan... but you're totally mind blasting me with that chartreuse text color!
yea the tex color was tough. i think you were gong for jade, but you should use a darker green..
yea the tex color was tough. i think you were gong for jade, but you should use a darker green.
I can post a little later tonight, but I just got off of work, only to find I left my work from my other job there so have to drive back 
Oh, and wei, the name of your subodrdinate, Sthar. Should it be a single sylable, "STHaar", like "star" without a hard t? That's what the spelling says to me. If you were going for a more "SUH-thar" it should be S'thar.
Fixed. Sorry. I invisioned Sthar as 'star' with a lisp, yes. (What?! Why are you looking at me funny?!
)
Neat! That 'sth' sounds like a linguistic remnant from ancient Undercommon... yeah! ; "Laughing"){kind=small}
[Edit for clarity: I particularly enjoy using long "ssth" or "ssh" syllables in the middle of names of illithids from Gyrus, i.e., Rassthilian and Uliusshuk. Perhaps the name Sthar IS a remnant from Undercommon. 
]
Weishan I'll pm you most of Kirath's background tomorrow after work I have to jey now. BTW Welcome back!
OK so it should be Sthar, no problem, no need to fix it.
But, having done her clairvoyance thing, Ya'shenn knows how the paths work, right?
A skiff holds 4, including the driver. Driving the skiff takes about as much concentration as driving a car, maybe less. If the pilot steps away from the control skull*, the skiff will stay on its last heading and speed, but not 'run' speed. The pilot could, himself, fly in and drop alchemist fire on approach, then take control and ram on the second round. The gardens are big, but 120' air movement is no joke, either. The only animals that come close in the MM are dragons (who a skiff can out-manuver) and a Pegasus (without a rider).
Kirath's skiff force is 24. If thalf were troop-carriers with a pilot and 3 warriors, he has 36 warriors, including himself, running around the palace. The remaining dozen skiffs are loaded with 'pots', which are basicly barrel-sized flasks of alchemist fire. Bombs, really, and some are specialized. They have 'wet fire' (in case of weather or used against ships) as well as 'long-burning fire', 'sticky fire', and 'amorphous flame' (which is quite runny but burns very long and hot, designed primarily to block movement. It has a nasty habit of finding basements and sewer grates, and setting fire to towns from underneath). They also carry a number of personal-sized grenades, including one kind with a fuse that explodes in a white flash with an extremely loud bang (thunderblasts). Lighting a bunch and dropping them is unlikely to hurt anyone not close to the blast, but the sound carries for miles, and they can even weaken structures if they hit the right spots.
A bomber skiff can hold, I figure, four pots for every gith's place, so 12 max, but more likely 8, since it makes sense for someone to pilot the skiff and another to drop the bombs and/or man a crossbow. The skiffs have an arrow slit on either side, the front, and the back. There is a top hatch and a bottom hatch. A skiff that holds a pilot, a warrior, and 8 pots has enough room left for about 20 thundrblasts and smaller grenades, about 60 crossbow bolts, and enough supplies for a journey of a couple of days.
The second wave is coming. It consists of five astral brigs, medium sized ships with 2 decks that can hold 50 warriors. These, however, are also outfitted as bombers. I figure they can carry about 150 pots in addition to the dozen warriors to fly the ship, man the crossbows, drop the pots, and repell any boarders. 750 amorphous flame pots will burn the palace down to its foundations. It is therefore critical for several illithid to be killed and their heads dropped over the city with the heads of the Yuan-ti nobles, to let them know why githyanki attacked. Only single tenticles are allowed as trophies on this mission.
*flavor notes, this all comes from Dragon magazine's Incursion issue, but within that I'm making the BoG'r campaign githtastic.
*A control skull is actually the front of an illithid skull, wired with a complex matrix of psi-infused crystal circuitry. Of course, ony undamaged illithid skulls can be used to make one, so they are a valuable comodity.
*In the Incursion days the githyanki had an unannounced but well-known policy. Any graith bearing three illithid heads (preferably with the front of the skulls intact) would be known as not-foe. Any small group, squad, adventuring party, or minor guild with nine illithid heads would be seen as valuable to the Great War. An emissary from a nation bearing twenty-seven illithid heads would be heard by the warlords of the githyanki, and offers of alliance be judged. A cultural disconnect often occured, however, since the githyanki consider larger organizations like churches, large thieves' guilds, trading costers, etc. as nations. To the githyanki an emissary is an outcast who beseches alliance on behalf of his people. Such a person is expected to stay with the githyanki, not return. Official messengers from a "king of graith" do little good. If the king wants an alliance, he can go himself (but most kings don't work like that).
But, having done her clairvoyance thing, Ya'shenn knows how the paths work, right?
I suspect Gy-Nath is literally reading Du'minh's mind and speaking Du's tactical ideas through his own orders. 
Sweet review of githyanki air force weaponry. Napalm, flashbangs, this place is really gonna be obliterated. The numbers on that graith policy seem pretty steep, though - 27 illithid heads to be heard by a gith commander is pretty tough terms!
Its getting frustrating that i get passed by in quickness of replying about tactical things, grrr, i am a officer...
Speaking of which, if the group or individuals want to teleport to some specific spot in the gardens, Ya'shenn can probably provide that through missives.
<QUOTE='Bladedancer'>This is a quote.</QUOTE>
<QUOTE='Zimrazim'>This is a quote too.</QUOTE>
Like that, but use brackets [ ] instead of <>.
Ah Thanks Zim that helps alot.
Not much to add here, other than:
Ya'shenn may well use suggestion on one of the shield-slaves encountered (which hopefully will have a demoralizing effect).
Should there be a really good opportunity to do so, she may use one or more psi-grenades as well (but preferably not around one of the two illithids, as they can activate the grenades too...). Speaking of which, if Ar'dru would like one of the grenades...
which incendiaries do you want to keep with the group? I'll pass them across in my next post. Oh, and yeah, a psi grenade would be great.
Good question... I'm not sure what many of them do. :P (Specifically, the black smokers, Oleum, and fire-breath.)
black smokers for smokescreen - I was thinking of dropping one in-between the decoy and the gazebo to block the line of sight between the troops and the real attack (and to prevent the decoy team copping the full brunt of the attack from the heavy hitters in the gazebo).
Oleum is from sandstorm. It's basically lamp oil that produces a lot of thick, nasty smoke. it also acts as an insect repellant and you can put it on your skin to make yourself harder to grapple.
Fire-breath refers to how much breath weapon Ar'dru has remaining today.
btw, Ii'Jyka'Vaar has acid immunity, so, we might on a later date capitalize on that in the same way we do with the Duthka'Gith
Ya'shenn wouldn't mind an alchemist's fire for herself (as well as a much higher BAB...), but Dunamin may have specific incendiaries in mind also. (I also forget what the Burning Dust does... ; "Embarassed"){kind=small}
)
And where are we? aka the rest?, i have no clue what we r supposed to do, and i am not going through the jungle
Smart choice. So far nobody has stated they are going anwhere, but you are free to d-door in at any time.
i dont have any d doors left, right?
I need a mount!, any flying one will do in a pinch, but prefferable a red one, lol, aarg, i hate this footslugging....
We could do a group dimension door (is that like a group hug? 
), especially if Gy-Nath is willing to help. As long as someone picks a destination.
), especially if Gy-Nath is willing to help. As long as someone picks a destination.
ROFL u made me nearly pee my pants when i read that bit about the hug....lol
...I wonder if Du'minh's adamantine uber-mace would be effective against the dread gazebo?
Yea, i remember that one, the mace i wanted, and did not get (even though the dm had me in mind when he placed that weapon) lol, no worries, just sarcasm.
That reminds me, i havent put the other weapons on Ii'Jyka'Vaars character sheet....
And the Dm hasn't answered how much money yet we got out of the vault (i prefer if he PM-ed me the answer to that as Ii"Jika knows that one only, hehe, and its in her magic bag
Sweet review of githyanki air force weaponry. Napalm, flashbangs, this place is really gonna be obliterated. The numbers on that graith policy seem pretty steep, though - 27 illithid heads to be heard by a gith commander is pretty tough terms!
hmm, didn't realise the gazebo was so far away, or so well guarded. Ar'dru'll hold back to discuss strategy before charging into that though I swear that gazebo's head will be in my trophy bag before this day is done!
"We're making a better world. All of them, better worlds." - Anonomous Harmonium Officer