Boy, who would have guessed the first PC/PC romance in my games would turn out so Springer-eseque.
Anyway, XP is up, and we have some bookkeeping to do.
Heather, all I need from you is a 1d4 for HP, and you're good to go.
Likewise, all I need from Nuke is a 1d8, divided by half, for Ryan's HP.
Lillian, I need a 1d6 and for you to distribute your 15 thief skill points. As for Lillian's bardic magic, I'll address that via PM.
Speaking of PMs, I may send some of you one with some questions about the chapter, in regard to your character's motivations and actions. This is just to clarify things for me, and give me a clearer picture of how they think and such. Understand, it's not my intention to judge or imply you are roleplaying badly. So if I ask something like, "You said before your character loves children. So why did he burn down the orphanage?" I'm not trying to suggest you are playing your character wrong or anything like that. I'm just trying to understand what's going on through their head, is all.
Anyway, here are my notes on the chapter:
Title and ThemeThe title of this chapter, "Sandon's Festival" is pretty much self-explanatory.
FlinntonI had a few personal scenes set up for Flinnton that will now never be used. This included a scene with Myra and another one with his grandmother, Vera. Much like with Rivi and Zurgrim, Flinnton will remain in the village as a normal NPC. He won't go adventuring, even if asked, but will otherwise fade into the background.
Justin TymeLikewise, I had a few personal scenes for Justin that will never be used. As a swashbuckler, he was a magnet for trouble, so along that line, I had some interesting scenes prepared. Guess those will go to waste. But who knows, he might come back. It's not impossible, at any rate. I probably shouldn't hold my breath, though.
Finbul vs DamonDuring their argument at the inn, stepping in to side with either would have improved your relationship with the one you sided with, but lost relationship points with the other. Siding with Finbul also would have lowered prestige a bit, while siding with Damon would have improved it. Since nobody took a side, nothing was gained or lost.
Arbitrary SkepticismNot criticizing or anything, I just thought it was interesting enough to point out that both Theron and Jherek had both expressed disbelief in Garnet's visions. This is a world of magic and monsters, where the kohen can perform miracles and Ingot is Earth-touched. I mean, I understand if they don't particularly like Gonto or her teachings, but I wouldn't have guessed they thought her power wasn't real.
'Bout Time!Originally I had considered having the bout be more complicated than just 'one hit, you're out.' Like maybe you needed to knock your opponent down to 0 HP (but since it wasn't a real fight, you didn't die, just get too tired to fight and have to bow out). This would have given a bigger advantage to anyone over 1st level or with a high CON. But I didn't want the bout to drag on too long. The 'one hit, you're out' system made everyone pretty equal (those with a higher level had a slight advantage), so the whole thing was way more luck based than skill based.
You can just imagine how things would have hit the fan if a demi-human had won, especially Bula or Finbul. Damon getting tagged out in the first round was particularly unexpected!
Ubisek's ReturnSo now the main plot is here again. Was Ubisek sincere in wanting to warn Buho, or was it like Damon said, and he was just using them to further his own people's agenda? Can they really trust him, or could they be walking into a trap?
Divine FavorTheron earned some favor from Gonto for apologizing to his aunt. Then he gained favor from Crizza from stealing from someone. Ladonna earned some favor from Renos for manipulating people. Jherek earned some from Crizza for lying to Katya.
PrestigeTheron earned a point by apologizing to his aunt for his recent behavior. Whether he meant it or not, she believed he did, and soon word will get around about him turning over a new leaf. Ryan and Ladonna both earned a point by helping the councilman, Ethen Benton, get home. Katya earned a point by winning the bout. She also earned a point for passing all of her dancing checks, as did Lillian for passing all of her singing checks.
RelationshipsLadonna managed to improve her relationship with Damon by one point by comparing his legacy to his father's. Theron managed to improve his relationship with Coha by one point with all of the attention he gave her. Ryan lost another point in his relationship to Damon by insulting his body odor. At this point, Damon now actively dislikes Ryan.
GoalsRyan's only goal so far is to improve his relationship with Damon, but he actually worsened it a bit. Damon does not like being insulted, as it turns out.
Let me know if anyone has any questions, comments, or feedback about the chapter. As soon as everyone is leveled up, we can start up chapter 4.