Dungeon Master Forum

Ameena wrote:I realise she's also probably unlikely to remember much of this in very clear detail, but even an emotive reponse is better than none.

Actually, this is a very good way to play it! I had been thinking of giving you some deja vu liek thoguht just before certain events, but having a very emotional reaction ot a situation and not knowing why until slightly later is also very cool

Seeroc
-What happened the last time they met him? For example, did he put on the "Brighteyes" act?

The party gathered there was a mage controlling the grak-graks (which theyhad met and defeated, one would assume), but would probably have had to enter his room through the false wall. Seeroc/Soorec would not have put on the Brighteyes bit, but I'm sure the party would have not realised whom they were dealing with and so lost initiative!

-If he wasn't "Brighteyes", did he ever at least act friendly? Or did he try to nuke them on sight?

Probably more curious while summoning grak-graks, and then trying to capture them

-Was he encountered in his lab before, or somewhere entirely different - encountering him out of context now if they didn't meet him in hs lab before (or even visit his lab, which of course would have smelt of him) might cause a little confusion on Ameena's part - otherwise she might enter the lab, see the gnome, and remember more stuff since he's in the same place they met him last.

I don't imagine Ameena would remember much of the exact details, so in a way this fight would seem like deja vu if she'd seen the start of it. Lets assume the scoprion was not released right away, only when someone was trapped behind the haze and had to be released

-An important one - what was the state of Seeroc the last time Ameena saw him? Like, you know, was he dead or something? What would be the last thing she remembers of the group's last encounter with him? If he died, how? If not, what happened?

Interesting one. Ameena might remember that the party did kill him, and thta something bad happened. Really bad. Ameena would probably find her mind would not let he recall exactly what - that would be a will save. And for some reason, Seeroc - actually Soorec, the party would have known about Seeroc, but Ameena would then recall he was actually called Soorec. That's his proper gnomish name, she would not know his nick-name was actually Brighteyes, and she might dimly recall he used Seeroc - or let the soldiers use Seeroc - to sound more like a human mage.
Anyway, Ameena will recall the party did something with him but left him alive. She might not recall exactly what, it seemed like it should hold him at the time, unconscious. So she could naturally assume he just escaped and this is round two

Grak-Graks
-Can they mimic smells or just appearance? Because, you know, this will give Ameena an easy way to distinguish them from her friends, provided she dares get close enough for a whiff (or somehow manages to be downwind in this underground dungeon ). Or do they have some kind of visual difference anyway?

Technically speaking they 'become' what they mimic, but not completely. So for example they will always have that oily, undeath smell to them even as they also begin to smell like a sweaty, horrible version of Haynuus or Westian. Note the metal clothing (or actually any clothing) never smells like clothing. So Westian and 'Westian' right now would smell completely different - one is metallic and westian like, the other is undead, oily, westian like but with no metal smell.

-What does she remember of the last encounter(s) with them? I gather that she remembers they are undead creatures who can change their appearance to match someone else's, and if injured while in that person's guise, the person takes the damage rather than the grak-grak...or does the grak-grak take damage too, as seems to be under debate in the other threads of the RPG?

She's certainly remember them, because it is still planned that the party should encoutner them alot. They should be a puzzle to figure out. So I don't really want to give you all the answers. Ameena would recall that they seem to ignore damage when they are the other person - it's liek a shield sharing it with them. Their tactic seemed to be to chase down someone, let them be all but dead, and then change to a hideous creature and cut that person down. The grak-grak always seemed fresh when it did. However, Ameena might recall once that Haynuus and a grak-grak fought, and somehow they knocked the grak-grak unconscious while Haynuus still, somehow, managed to remain standing. So it is possible the creatures take the same damage, or are affected by damage, and if they can't 'pull out' of it in time they can get knocked out. And therefore they aren't exactly liek the ones they copy. For exaple, they don't suddenly sprout the weapons, don't smell like metal, and also Ameena wouldn't recall any using magic or anything like that.

-Does she remember anything about them with regard to what can injure or scare them (assuming they can be scared...they are undead, after all)...or maybe banish them, or whatever? You know, weaknesses, generally ways to beat them .

Ameena will just dimly recall that after them being initially really tough buggers, the party just slowly got better at fioghting them. Partially they just managed to gang up better on single ones, partially they just got better equipment and spells and items to use on them and kill them. Westian used to have trouble with pushign them back, but did manage - dimly Ameena might recall - to start pushign them back sometimes. Though then Ameenw mgiht recall a worse version of grak-grak that Westian couldn't do that too, if she presses the memory.

-As with Seeroc, anything relevant regarding context? Wil she recognise a grak-grak as soon as she sees one?

If it's being a double, probably becuase it will just have that predatory look and oily smell and usually it's trying ot attack. And if it's looking normal, then it's unmistakeable They never have tried to 'infiltrate', and pretend to a memor of the party nor anyone else. It seems to be an attackign instinct. Of course, a shame only Ameena will dimly recall that right now, innit...

She's picked up the scent but would she twig if she enters the lab and sees one across the other side of the room where she can't get an instant smell of it?

If she only saw one Haynuus in a combat, for example, she might not twig instantly. However, the armour and clothes always look slightly off, so a perception check might make her twig, and they would just act too weirdly compared to the one they intimidate to fool her for more than a round or two. In Seeroc/Soorec's room? She's probably realise right away there would be some around.

Screamers (Since there's one in the room, might as well, if it's not dead by then.)
-Presumably an obvious memory, for Ameena, at least, regarding these guys is "loud high-pitched noise + sensitive rattish hearing = OOOWWWWW ". Alright so that would be more of an RP than a mechanic thing, but I figure that these guys would affect Ameena more than the rest of the group, so she may have more of an over-riding memory of them.

Yes, but not for the reaosn you think. The scream would be annoyign, but screamers actually attack using spores (and occasionally whippign with their roots). Ameena's nose (as you foudn already) is exceptionally sensative to that, so it would have been more unpleasant than to the rest. Infact, her reaction to it might have allowed the party to realise that spores had been released and ingested and might still be a threat. I imaghien Ameena would not like screamers at close to.

-Will she remember that they're edible? If so, what will she recall about the nommy slices?

The rest probably ate them, and they aren't releasing spores afetr dead, so she might well have eaten screamer slices instead of whatever else the party could have managed. Up to you. Probably bland, mushroom like.

-Anything else. Alright, so Screamers are hardly a major source of vast amounts of plot detail right now. But Ameena will probably want to give the thing more attention than anyone else would, because of the "pain in the ears" thing.

Again, the shrieking own't be anything - it's only loud enoguh to be annoying. The pain in her nose and feelign of being bunged up instantly? You betcha!

Scorpions
-I suppose even without any memories, the mere sight of this bugger will cause Ameena to take note. I think she would probably be about as freaked out by the snarly noise as I am .

She will just recall they were very, very vicious. Note that since they are technically level 10 creatures, iit might be a little odd to recall them right now, and so her mind might just skirt passed exactly where she knows them from.

-Likewise as with the others - anything relevant regarding weaknesses, etc?

None she would recall, just because she wouldn't recall much. They are just big bastard that can crush a man easily, and their stinger delivers a powerful nasty poison. She might recall someone temporarily beign almost dead or even dying because of them. Because I'm sure I could kill at least one of you with them. Like Haynuus right now when I deliver his first lot of damage via grak-grak.

Seeroc's lab
-Did the group come here the last time around? If so, what happened? Will Ameena remember anything of the layout, the forcefields, exits, the surrounding area, etc?

She won't recall too much specifically. Fight, grak-graks (which will be a common place occurance), a miniature spellslinger (just like Falkor spellslinging, so again nothing too much to recall). Like I said, something about death, something about that being really bad, something about Seeroc coming back to life, and something about not killing him the second time but leaving him captured/trapped somehow. She'll probably recall the forcefields trap tyhigns, and can be released, and she will probably recall the illusionary wall top left (after a moment's pause, afetr all she came in from the other side of it).

Aurek
-The group didn't meet him last time around, did they? So Ameena is okay to react to him as a complete stranger? Would his apeparance/scent trigger a Will save regarding conflicting memories of the "second run" (ie, this one), where she did meet him?

I don't think Ameena has interacted with Aurek enough for it to really trigger that strongly. Afetr all, he's been mostly a smell of sweat and huamn, just liek every other soldier. And I don't think she formed any emotional attachment to him. I'm goign to go ahead and say she just won't recall him properly, unless a will save intrudes. However, that would only be if she recalls the discussion with Passin, the same area with Helm, or the fight that Falkor started.
I really think she'd just assume he's a soldier they've met before, but she can't quite remember from where.

-I've completely forgotten what he's wearing. Actually, I can't remember what anyone's wearing. Maybe I should check their sheets - do you know if they're all up-to-date (apart from mine, obviously, because I know it's not, nor will it be till I've rejoined the group for sure )? Anyway, if he's wearing any of the blackskull armour, am I okay to have Ameena react to him with confusion/suspicion (depending on whether he appears to be helping or hindering the group when she arrives)?

I think some peopel are better than others. Falkor is wearing what he probably always wears. Haynuus is pretty underdfressed, just his sandlals, leater trousers, and a crappy breastplate front. Aurek and Westian are both wearing the lesser of the blackskull armour - so skulls at the joints, but no faces on them. Farel is wearing his customary shiny armour. And yeah, Ameena would have no reason to assume Aurek anything other than a soldier. Indeed, Westian never mentioned a guardian paladin before (althoguh that might ring a vague bell, thoguh she wouldn't know why).

Farel
-If I recall what you said, the group met him, albeit briefly, on their first run - what will she recall of this? Was he searching for Ardur then, too? The current time is "two-weeks-ago-from-the-time-they-entered-the-dungeon-and-Chaos-threw-them-back", yes? So presumably that means, by that time, Farel had spent two weeks in the dungeon...for some reason. Looking for Ardur all that time? Or maybe he (Ardur) was dead and Farel was out for revenge?

Nah, Farel would have been taken to Seeroc's room eventually, met with Ardur, and managed to escape - but sadly only by goign deeper. He would have had to exist on his skills while keeping Ardur - who is actually a level 1 fighter - safe. You would have encoutnered them both much deeper. Ameena might not recall specifics - that they were on the same mission, and Westian trusted him for some reason - but otherwise not too much. She will recall she trusted him too, because he did seem to be the least aggressive human she had ever dealt with, despite his armour and weapon-carrying. And she might recall he was very curious abotu her race.

-How did they meet Farel, how long was he with them, and under what circumstances did they part ways? And did anything significant occur during that time which Ameena might remember?

As above, partng ways she won't recall how, just that they did. How they met, just theyencoutnered each other - you can imagien the scene, hearing something, assumign a soldier, gettign ready to spring the surprise attack only to find Farel was trying to do the same in reverse.

-Appearance/personality - what will Ameena remember and will this conflict with the way he is now? You mentioned that she would recall that his sword is blunt. Anything else? Is he wearing blackskull stuff too?

Fare lnever has and never would wear blackskull armour. She will recall the sword being blunt upon seeing it, recalling he never sharpoed it - even though he kept it immaculately - because he never wanted to fall into violence if he could help it, certainly not to kill. Nothing should conflict with what she remembers now. IF she had seen him throttle Seeroc/Soorec earlier, she might have thoguht him a different man.imposter, though not known why she thought that.

The dead(?) bloke in the corner
-Would Ameena remember anything about this guy, provided the group survives long enough to examine him? Well, I suppose this is something I'd find out when we get to it - it will hardly be an urgent need-to-know when Ameena arrives on the scene, I'm sure . At a glance, I'm guessing that that wouldn't be enough to establish any sense of familiarity if he's someone she's encountered before.

Nope, he would probably have been removed by then.

The rest of the group
-Obviously, they're wearing different (crappier) gear to what they had the last time she remembers seeing them (ie two weeks in the future). I presume it would be okay to just have Ameena look at them and think "Hmm, that's weird, they look somehow...wrong...", rather than trying to remember exactly what gear they had. Just that whatever they had then, they haven't got it now (except Farel's sword).

Just like Ameena finding she didn't have her right gear on, and shrugging it off. Also, since they will also look right to her more repressed memories, she can perhaps find herself slotting in this appearance as 'oh, yeah, maybe we didn't have as much at the end. So, some confusion, but probably her mind would skirt passed it unless pushed, in wich case willsave time

-Regarding what Ameena can tell them, ie what she remembers about Lord Chaos and all that...as far as she's concerned, the last time the group was together, they were all in a big room, something weird happened (she remembers nothing of Gholst/Theron, I'm guessing?), and there was a mage in either a grey robe or a black one, who had blue eyes or maybe red ones, who cast some kind of spell or something, which threw everyone backwards...and then Ameena woke up under the scary ceiling with an ache in her right foreleg and some kind of weird bite mark in the back of her neck. Is it okay to have her tell the group all that or can she be more/less specific about the Gholst/Theron/Grey/Chaos encounter?

She would probably recall confronting Theron/Gholst, that it was somehow going badly, and that someone in - as you say, either grey or blakc with either blue or red eyes - then blasted them.

Hopefully, the players might think this is her recalling their previous life before being put into misrrors, and they were dead We shall see!

Soudns liek you have the memories correct, obviously they will more come into play once thigns have settled down for her as post-traumatic stress. For now, she's still got stress!


-I presume she remembers nothing of Helm, or indeed of the entirety of the "second run", so will just be confused (or have to make a Will save?) if anyone brings it up. Mass confusion - wheee .

Again, little things can slot in. If the party press her on the whereabout of Helm, and say she went to the entrance with a thief, she can perhaps be concenred that some form of shapeshifter tried to intimidate her recently and confusethe party Yeha, if they press her, it's gunna be will save city and some contradictory weirdness and dizziness. We'll see what comes of that. Not a total memory of 2nd run, maybe just some confusion and her being concerned about false memories, etc.

With regard to the way Ameena remembers things, as opposed to anyone else, being a murafu, I expect she'd remember personality-related things more than, say, visual things. And scent would have a high priority too. Emotive scenting, I suppose you could call it - you know, when you smell something and it puts you mind of a certain place or feeling. So, like, the small of grak-graks incites nervousness/fear, because she has only bad memories of them. What would she get from the other scents (besides her friends, of course, because in their case, friends = good )?

Indeed. But be careful about going overboard with exactly what Ameena's nose can tell when. Looked over your IC post, and the fact you wanna be able to tell which charatcer went down first from one minute to the next is pushing it a huge amout! TRacker dogs can, after all, get fooled by someone goign one way, doubling back, then jumping into water. Scents hang around, scents might be untangleably, but it's not liek you get a perfect book of times and places and exact details. given that, if something should trigger a memory - like smells can - or an emoptive reaction, I'll certainly add a PM, etc to you!

Ummm there was one more thing...ooh yeah...with regard to the "Ameena-reintroduced-in-GM-posts-to-prevent-untentional-metagaming-on-the-part-of-everyone-else" thing...shall we switch to PMs for that or continue it in here?

See, I was starting to think you you were there, exact I want you to write the posts. I think everyone assuems I am such a duplicitous troublemaker I would do anything - including having you write Ameena posts when you are someone else now. So yeah, what you shoudl do is write your proper post (including all the internal thoughtm, and OOC questions) here. However, as you say, can you make the post in two parts,. External actions only - with no thoguht process - that you then copy over to the main thread and post.

The fact you have altered your style - apparently - and aren't actually indicating ehat you charatcer is thinking or why she is doing it, might be enough to create lots of 'huh'.

What I'll do once the group finally realise you are really you is then edit al lthe full Ameena posts into the space where the reduced posts wre - if that makes sense,

Because of that, if you have any time quetsions or will saves, etc, could you use the OOC thread here for that? Or PM me?

Anyway, yes, lots of time taken to type that. Still, it's alll tiem waitingfor pizza to come, isn't it?

Ameena wrote:umm, let me know if you're gonna be closing off this area of the forum again so I know to copy and paste it all to somewhere .

Will leave it open for a while, unless anyone decides to split off from the group, in whch case I'll let you know

Do grak-graks speak? Did one in disguise ever actually vocalise anything (I mean, the first time around)? It would be another means of quick identification - "Oh no, two Westians! Quick, which one of you is the real thing?"..."Me!"..."Phew, that's alright then!". Or would this be another thing Ameena can't remember?

Not that Ameena would recall. They don't seem to be trying to foll anyone, it just seems to be the way you know they are distributing damage. So yeah, it's very likely whoever talks is the real one. Of course, none of the rest know that, so if Ameena ever has to prove she isn't a grak-grak... well, I dunno what to say. Probably 'duck'

-Just to clarify regarding Seeroc...on the first time through they knew him as "Soorec", which was his gnomish name, but were familiar with "Seeroc" too as that was what the guards called him, whereas the term "Brighteyes" never even came up, yes?

Indeed. They knew of Seeroc as some form of mage (probably human) jsut as now. They then met this gnome Soorec Moongold in his room, and then all hell broke loose. Soorec/Seeroc never mentioned brighteyes. Note, if Ameena namedrops Soorec, and of couse mentions she is Ameena, both those facts will make for some fun

-A side note on whether or not Ameena would eat Screamer slices...well, as long as she was certain they'd do no harm...you know rats will eat pretty much anything, right?

Yet can't vomit...not a conducive combination unless they can poo really fast!


Meanwhile, you want me to actually put up my own posts when Ameena reappears? Will that work?

Indeed it will, and will mean less work for me! As long as you leave the main post as 'external' actions without justification, and keep the parts where Ameena thinks or reacts as separate paprgraphs, it should be fine.

I think me just being overenthusiastic and O.O about you joining in will work wonders. Hopefully, you guys know anything is possible. Wahahaha!


Ohhh and one more thing...since it's likely that Ameena's arrival will be in the middle of the chaos of mid-round combat (though I suppose her move-times will have been gradually incorporated so that she's actually moving in turns by then), could you give me a description of what Ameena will see at the moment she steps past the threshold of the lab?

Indeed, once she's in there I can do that, though I think the battle map will be the easiest to work with :p