BoG'r OOC.

Wow. I need to read that story again. I missed that part. Talk about a surprise interference!

Edit: As to the current party situation, I'd like to recommend a few suggestions, which my character may do IC once you acquire the Black Fleet (He'd be joining as a special forces/tactical consultant from Silver fleet).

-A respect/bolster approach to leading the ships would be better than induce fear. Intimidate has its place (esp. with pirates), but I think it will be better used on the battlefield, demoralizing the enemy and forcing them to waiver in their assault against our "Operation Dunkirk.". I could see the knight on her wyvern being a particularly good diversion as she snaps enemy leaders' wills with her amplified intensity.

-It'll be good to check the fleet's stock of alchemical, cannon, and magical/psionic weaponry. We might find some doozies worth unleashing, perhaps akin to Pale's necro-chemical nasties. Styrrn was a crafty, tricky fellow. Ya'sheen's respect from Ib'm and Lahar might gain the Git'ribani some assistance here as well.

-The party might want to decide on what portal they wish to reach, eventually. It might even be good to plan a "get away" ship, probably one of the Astral skiffs/sloops, to break off from the main fleet once we've completed the objective of rescuing as many gith as we can. I'm sure one skiff would carry the party and we could cobble a decent psionic pilot from among us [hopefully].

Opportunities inherent in this "separate" track:
+ Secure goodwill with Na'rai of Jade by solidifying the command under the Heartforce when we leave and basically leave with an "I owe you" from a Heartforce strike force (access to color pools in the future?). At this rate, the party will win influence with major Apocalyte and Heartforce members for their participation in the rescue mission.
+ Leave before Pale finds a way to revenge agains the party for ruining his plans (Trying to stop his lichdom in the Neg Plane seems unlikely for our party for now).
+ Do damage to the graith cause in some way as we fly as an unexpected task force into enemy territory...

What do you guys think?

And as a Cast (Potential Foreshadow Flashback) for our return to Git'riban:

Redacted: Zimrazim, not Azure, projected this as a possible problem going down in Sigiltown.

Totally was Zim. I'm sorry, Azure.

The OOC thread has been almost as entertaining and insightful as the IC thread.

Probably via the other half of the Black Fleets command then I guess, so as not to impose you on us as the player group to much initially?

Interesting interpretation of the use of Intimidate, I dont see the skill having that much power, specially in a battle that big.. And respect/bolster?, I dont persay disagree with you BUT.. Fear would work, but I have to work on getting that kind of magic..

A far stretch imo, as we have already taken most of the items available atm to us from this town and the gith around already.

You dont need only a psionic pilot to pilot a skiff if I understood correctly, a magic user also works just as well. I have a contact who is just such a person, but not a sweetheart at all, not even by Gith standards..

2nd and 3rd bit, sure, logical, but 1st bit, how will we make that happen, just by going in and rescueing loads of Gith? hmmz...

There you go .

Lol, well, its not "Artifacts", it's called "Magic Item Compendium".
Any half decent magical items can be seen as artifacts in their own right btw, imo.
Not just on a powerlevel of 20+

By nature of being a consultant, he wouldn't impose. It would probably be unwise to insult the Silver fleet (and by extension, the Silver Warband) by ignoring his presence, but he's not there to wrestle control from the party. He'll join under Na'rai as one of her lower "lefts" (lower because, similar to relating to the party, he would not assume her most trusted advisor's position).

Any advice would be given as that. He's more joining Black Fleet because it coincides with his purposes and is along for the ride/offer assistance.

A) Intimidate allows you to "Demoralize Opponent." It works against one person, normally. When used against a leader of a squad/platoon/regiment/division/etc, proves more powerful than say, in a one-on-one brawl, because you cause the one giving command to become shaken. Sure, it's for one round each attempt, but the fact the leader is shaken goes a long way to hurting the morale and efficiency of his troops. It is why, in stories like Return of the King, the death or daunting of a king/banner bearer symbolized a turn in the tide of a battle.

B) Fear would work. Temporarily, at least. But it would leave the situation less than desired for say, if the party should ever be jaunted back into Toril, or have to meet affiliates of these groups down the line. The Git'ribani are incidentally ambassadors for the Gith of Sigil, and how they treat fellow Gith here will determine how they/their kinsmen are received later. (The rub of being ECL 10 characters).

Respect went a long way for Kirath in his short stint as Captain. Sure, Styrrn was a dueler, but I think it might become more of a Rehoboam situation where the "new management" would incite a rebellion by being harder than the "leaving management."

Are you referring categorically or just to magic/psionic items? I meant things like ballistae, cannon, volleys of alchemist fire, perhaps some roguish seige weapon Styrrn or his men invented to outfit their Capital ship. I figure even shipboard gunneries might have some magical, psionic, or alchemical enhancement.

Yep, I forgot that you only need an intelligent creature to operate the ship. I figure we would want someone experienced or adept at driving such vehicles at the helm.

And, reading Azure's last post about Lahar's advice for Gith to "jump into any portal they see," we might even be able to convince a shipload of Gith to go with us through the portal. It would probably be best to take a squad of mid-to-high skilled berks to ensure we don't max out the portal's "No more than 20" trend Lahar referred to...

The fact that the party is sticking around to assist in the evacuation and willing to serve under Na'rai says a lot. They could just as easily demand a skiff of their own and jet for the nearest portal. They chose the harder road, deciding to stake their lives on saving their kinsmen--a big thing for a group coming from a place most Gith viewed as seedy and of ill-repute before the Void Bombs went off.

Serving under a Strike Force commander from Jade also gives a sense of honor for the Heartforce Bloc. It may only be out of expediency and because it would look poorly for the Git'ribani to object to Jade's leadership when the Council decided she was the new captain. If the party affirms her leadership, she is a valuable contact, which is why I meant it could lead to benefits with the Heartforce along the way.

Thanks, BS, for your input.

What is Lahar's plan (or apparent plan, if the party isn't privy to his designs) in regard to Westport? Have the Gith rush the portals, or slip into them as covert squads?

Stable portals sound favorable after the last go around with skipping portals. However, Will and his cohorts in Sigil might be anticipating that the party will head for a stable gate precisely because of their last experience.

WiP reply!..

Sounds ok so far, no objections from my side, just making you aware of conflicts that might pop up unintentionally... because of power-shuffles..

Ok, I guess

If you say so, I never saw Intimidate as such an impacter of a skill (unlike some ways Diplomacy could be used ruleswise.., but I ain't no fan of that either)

I would like to be able to use the Fear spell (something like 3x/day), on top of the intimidate thing..

What does Rehobam mean? (I guess so, maybe, as far as I get the gist of the reply)

I was mplying to mostly magical/ psionic stuff, not mundane equipment as yet.

We already have a astral skiff atm, and my drake.. so that would be easy to accomplish.

I guess we do, makes for better roleplay/ game I guess.

I am not sure I entirely agree with this.. i'll have a think about it..

Very welcome, no worries, I am not shy of a decent discussion

Now bed time, had a night shift here in the UK.. need sleep.

If Ya'shenn is along for this adventure:

She'd be happy to persuade as many or as few of the graith associated with the Black Fleet as the party wants. She would also be quite willing to sort them to find the best/worst, and would be more likely than most to detect signs of mutiny before they happen.

Her vote as to the party's destination would definitely not be for places that are chock-full of Ascendancy supporters, especially if they include ancient undead terrors...even if they do make for awesome NPCs. (That includes Urmlaspyr, doesn't it? I don't recall...) That doesn't mean that the party can't do that, just that Ya'shenn would definitely advocate to go somewhere else.

Certainly appreciated.

It allows those who invested large ranks in skills to actually do something with them besides hustle a local merchant or "make friends" with the tavern barmaid. Your dislike is understandable, and a shared sentiment, despite it's usefulness at times.

Fear would be handy coupled with Intimidate, for sure.

He was an ancient Israelite king who forever split the kingdom because he decided to increase the forced labor in his country as opposed to giving the complaining citizens a break.

Perfect.

Yep, always fun to play a party of evil "do-gooders."

Cool, same here. Looking forward to joining in again on the festivities.

I referred to Na'rai of Jade, who is commander of the Black Fleet. Her and her strike force are Heartforce.

I also mentioned Apocalyte forces as well, since the party is familiar with the Firebringer of the Toril Incursion. That, and they did forewarn the fleets in Starmantle that the Necromancer was coming, so I'd say that y'all have been making a name for yourselves among the Gith inhabitants.

Well, my bad, but at least I got some part of it right,
It's all quite extensive and chaotic, all the different groups and forces..
I am not keeping all the tabs up as I think I should..

Yep, you were right about there being loads of other groups in control (Apocalyte should be the forces seen and felt on the Incursion worlds. Heartforce tend to stick to their guns in the astral, except for missions like Na'rai). It is easy to get things turned around. I keep having to read back through the last page or so on the IC thread to figure out what fleet is going where and what fleet commander is doing what. So, no worries about feeling lost.

Perhaps that's the point, for both players and characters alike to feel lost in all the politics and power play.

OK, before leaving Starmantle:

Buy a model boat somewhere in town, to test out that "boat without a bottom" portal idea if it comes up.

Confer with one of Lahar's engineers about the proper method of removing an illithid head so that it may be turned into a control skull later. While it's useful to know on its own, it might be a way to curry favor with Lahar and his Apocalytes in the future, while reducing Gib's influence. When it comes to meeting the engineer, she'll follow whatever chain of command/etiquette is necessary to do so, though it would be ideal if Gib herself remains unaware of this development.

Also, can we get a decent shipboard cook? Have you tried Githyanki cooking? Additionally, for those who have seen 300, opportunities for "And eat hearty, for tonight we dine in Hell!" jokes.

Additionally: A couple of Lahar's scouts were captured by Pale/Mist. I do hope they get returned...

Yes, I second that. Perhaps we could go for some 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea cuisine while we're at it. I have some ranks in Survival to help out with the "acquisition" aspect. Craft(Cooking) on the other hand...better wait for Burning Spear's chef.

As well as the astral skiffs and sloops Pale conscripted...

I agree on all accounts. I don't want either IC or OOC to send my character through the blender, d12s be darned. I imagine that Pale's mission will be catastrophic in the end...

I am too!

If Pale isn't beelining towards Urmlaspyr, then I am all for that one, but if he is.. hmmz...

Although Ar'dru was the "heaviest" fighter (literally ) I wasn't far behind...

I keep wondering if Lahar and the Singer of Fire will eventually get together. A strong, politically popular consort would strengthen her own claim to power. Lahar is obviously ambitious himself, and it would give him a direct connection to the royal bloodline. It would also give the Singer an edge over the other Ascendancy candidates; only the Singer is able to produce heirs at this time.

Even if nothing of the sort happens, it seems like the sort of thing that might make it into the rumor mill.

Urmlaspyr works for me!

When we arrive in Urmlaspyr, how do we want to organize the party? My suggestions would be contingent between "air" and ground" stages.

In the air:
-Utilize ranged abilities to pick off enemy forces on our way to pick up Gith and to recon the city.
-The knight has great versatility on her poison drake, so she can effectively act and transition between "air" and "ground" stages.
-Yasheen, Kirath, K'tch, and my PC can offer ranged support while searching for good drop zones, evac points, and portal locations.
-Yasheen could coordinate with ground forces via psionic missives (hopefully conserving your power points, Zim) if we cannot simply drop down and join the stranded/fleeing Gith.
-Party can drop down to clear an evac point, if need be.

On the ground:
-If the knight is better positioned in the air, she and the drake would provide air support (much like her fly-by attacks in the fight against those Druids a while back).
-Yasheen and Kirath seem better positioned in the middle to make the best use of their powers:
->Yasheen has an awesome mind blast ability, but I don't know how cramped the streets/landing zone will be.
->Kirath's fireballs will be nasty from the air and likely handy in blowing open any barricades.
-Urban setting means there may be no true "rear" position, so my PC can cover rearguard since he has decent melee abilities, though not quite up to Ar'du or Ij's standards. He has good scouting/tracking skills, too, if we need them.

Party order in the air would look like: (air/prow/amidships/stern) (Ar'du, Ij/My PC/Kirath/Yasheen)
Party order on the ground would look like: (Lead/middle/rear) Ar'du, Ij / Yasheen, Kirath / My PC.

Related questions:
-Do astral skiffs have a similar levitate function on their metal hatch that corresponds to its feather fall property? I'm wondering if this wouldn't be their fallback option for beleaguered troops who've spent up their psionic abilities.
-What kind of detection/divination abilities does the party have at their disposal? May prove handy to know what we are facing and the positions of both enemy and allied forces.

I am thinking of making the cook into a kind if healer...
Isn't that the way that it is on a ship anyway? Cook/ Bucher/ Healer... All roled into one?