@BESW that is true, and battlestar galactica did something similar
though i still totally like it being short
this is not as opposed to providing summaries, this is as opposed to other shows providing a 90 to 150 second thing that gives you variously either a bit of an idea or no idea about the show
@doppelgreener Care to give a look-see at my extra-explainy snorkel paragraph?
> And then --more importantly-- **he'll suffocate**, because a three-foot-long straw is too long for him to get fresh air to breathe. > Even unburied (and don't underestimate the weight of dirt on his lungs!), his lungs can't draw in a sufficient volume of air to draw in all the stale air in the straw *and* get enough fresh air from the surface to give him the oxygen he needs (by rough math, with a thumb-width tube only 2/5 of each breath will be fresh air). Widening the tube would increase the tube's volume and make the problem worse.
(Shouldn't Mythbusters have done this long ago? I don't watch Mythbusters.)
@Magician Hi!
@doppelgreener You realise that using tidal volume mechanics to answer an RPG question means we both get to punch another hole on our Incurable Geek membership cards, right?
@BESW Argh! When I'm watching shows like Avatar now, I'm plotting out in my head all the Fate-y bits. Like the fire nation guardian of Roku's temple creating a Secret Door aspect via some means, that just so happens to be right there!
Anyone wanna give me some advice who has a cursory knowledge of 3.5? (no need for expert advice here, just a bit of knowledge of the system, everything I'm referring to is from the SRD)
Alright, so I have 28k to mess with to give this magic lance whatever I want out of the item special powers.
It's a +3 starmetal magic lance. It's also intelligent
I'm using 1500 or 3k to give it a way to move on its own (probably) these are house ruled prices to give it the Psicrystal Self Propulsion or Flight abilities (self propulsion is 30ft base land and 20 ft climb via ectoplasmic legs, flight is 50ft of poor maneuverability iirc).
So now, my decision is how to spend about 25k on intelligent item special powers and weapon abilities. Note: I have to avoid any + bonus weapon abilities because that'd be an immediate 12k for a new +1...
I want to make this as useful as possible without being a weapon, because noone uses lances... So yeah. I was thinking detection abilities out the ass.
My character is a stealthy archer. Bigtime. Like, freaking ninja. Massive acrobatics/stealth/etc. Stacking Skirmish and Sneak Attack as well.
The DM granted it to us, and gave me the "privilege" of building it. Backstory, personality, alignment and all.
He waived the cost for a +3 starmetal lance, and waived the cost for the 17/17/10, Darkvision 120, speech, telepathy, sight, hearing rank intelligent item.
percentile roll 98 on the table.
He's just charging me for any additional abilities I give it via intelligent item powers (any amount of any rank allowed within the cost) and any other magic weapon powers I give it.
I'm going to try to convince him to allow me to give it a once-off per wielder transformation to the new wielder's preferred weapon, but it's unlikely that'll happen.
But I was going with (if I can get it to do what I want with the DM, who isn't responding to msgs all week...this is due by 5est today btw, so in 4 hrs)
I was going with a Longinus/Jesus story essentially.
Soldier to a current lawful regime killed a heretical profit to a "new god" at the time, exacts are rather sketchy because IDK this setting's deity timeline, and I'm going WAY back like this.
I was going with the personalities merged to a certain extent, combining the "blood of christ" with the soldier's death and etc (some inspiration from NWoD here, the Fateweaver weapon in Armory Reload says something like noone knows what happened to Longinus, he could have been killed, or cleansed, or tainted, or something else)
The "purpose" was something along the lines of "Kill heretics/Unlawful beings" Essentially, anything Chaotic aligned and etc. I was going to go with the personality changes to match a wielder (and alignment) but is always lawful
I was going to try to give it class levels (something the DM said I can do) possibly in Psion, and give it healing abilities. But since no DM input here I'm going with Raws.
For this now I'm looking at detect spam.
essentially, if noone uses it as a WEAPON, it will be a dousing rod.
In the event that I can't get it to have the once-per-wielder changing ability, it'll essentially be a LN +3 Starmetal Intelligent Lance with Detect abilities.
The healer of the party I've never seen in melee, but she's been doing pewpew tactics with a bow.
She's also a cohort, so we don't want her in melee.
Those are the only "Intelligent Item" powers period unfortunately...
I'm looking into various magic item creation rules as well to give it some things, but alot of the equivalents are much cheaper on the intelligent item powers.
Take for example Cure Moderate there for 6500. that ability through Magic Item Creation rules would be twice that iirc.
Either way, I'll get a chance for sure to speak with the DM today, but Im' currently RPing the lance (since my character is petrified). Luckily it's broken.
Recent backstory is that it was used by a recurring NPC the group knows a bit about to try to kill a monster (oh, and the NPC's name is Lance) and broke the bloody lance trying to do it.
So I'm flubbing everything with: it can see, hear, and talk, that's about it. It's personality and memory are essentially gone.
For quite a while (sometime in the past 100 years this happened) this spear has been broken, sitting in a dark room unable to see shit, without memory, and with a 10 in every score. He's a cranky git right now, and until he's fixed he won't know any better lol
So, this gives me time to play with it. If the DM gives me permission to use some of the ideas I have that aren't RAW, I'll be working on it heavily for another week incorporating alot of different things.
As for non-slotted items, yes, I believe there is a rule pertaining to that.
zone of truth seems like it would be handy in some circumstances, and I do believe the justice freak of the party (healer cohort...) would love having that around.
Also having Detect Evil/Detect Chaotic would be handy too.
I know there's an evil party member, but I wouldn't want to let the justice freak of the party get her hands on detect evil since the evil party member is pretty decent (and a trip god)
True. I was thinking of other possible ways I can make it too though for a while.
If my character possesses the lance for example, and finds out that the other char is Evil, he wouldn't give a crap. My character is TN, and as long as the evil trip god continues to fight alongside them honorably, he won't say a word.
He's worked with far worse lol.
I had thought of making a full on detection rod with essentially a backstory consisting of "i was made to find things and kill them" in frustration of wanting this awesome Longinus/Jesus backstory to be for a better weapon that will STAY with the party and be a good standalone.
But I'm merging things... Just looking at notes all around.... Frustrated in general at this though since I was told to make this last sunday and have it ready today...
And the DM hasn't been online all week and i have no other way to contact him.
Also, pretty sure another party member might be chaotic.
the club guy...
not 100% on that though
Don't think I'd want to give it a special purpose though even via PF rules there.
I'm going to cross my fingers and hope that the DM lets me use the PF rules. I'm going to gank that Magic Aura at least.
Hrmmm...
Might go without the alignment detection stuff altogether and go with other things... Meh................................ Hard to make this thing be useful.
I need at least one version before 5 today finished. Even with a crap backstory.
If the Dm allows me more time and actually speaks to me regarding some things then I'll go more into the Jesus/Longinus story probably. For now I think I'll try to give it something base and generic.
So, generic usefulness stuff. Stuff along the lines of communication/scouting/detection.
Dorian growls in frustration and throws something.
Hmm... I think I have an idea. Going to go with detect evil, special purpose to defeat spellcasters, pf detect special purpose foes, detect magic, possibly hold person and/or the Sudden Stunning ability if I have extra. Even if it's a pain to use, the sudden stunning could be useful in a pinch.
Was also considering the Merciful ability but iirc that's a +1 ability.
Would have been nice though considering. Add extra dmg to it even if it's nonlethal.
I instituted a "Roll on a handbook; if one die goes off the handbook, re-roll all the dice" policy. Eventually they learned to control their rolls, and now they can do it without the handbook.
