Scheduling Greengrass Events

[Ithildur]

Any predetermined rules for the other contests? Especially intrigued about how the mage duels will function

I can't remember off the top of my head whether none wizzie/sorcey casters can participate in mage duels or not.

[edit] Just checked, it looks like it's wizzie/sorcey types only in canon, though maybe it can be fudged with ALFA having such a small population of such PCs? *shrug*

[Zelknolf]

The arena makes your spell damage into subdual damage (sort of... it actually notes when you've taken lethal damage at the end of the round and says "Oh that's not right. Let me turn that into subdual damage for you.") -- I hadn't really gotten more into it than that.

Should be able to draft up the formal bits soon, insofar as they can be given to NWN2.

[MaskedIllusion]

I remember two years ago we just let it all happen naturally and just healed or offered a res to anyone who accidentally died. (I don't think it actually came to that for my memory). Not sure what we are doing this year as far as it goes but I know that didn't seem to be a problem then.

[Zelknolf]

Yeah, the worry, really, is just factions and the fact that death/rez is a huge pain in the ass. Which is why we have the ring.


I suspect, though, that our mage players would be keen on something near the mage duel as it is presented in the FRCS, just because one-on-one fights against axes to the face tends to not let mages shine very much, so I'll provide something like that. And we might include exhibition spars or somesuch ("just get in the ring and beat each other up however you know how") for fun and other prizes. I definitely have more prizes than events right now.

Anyhow, I added how I'll run each event precisely to the first post.

[MaskedIllusion]

Last year we broke sparing down into two groups
We had the normal weapon to weapon
and we had wrestling. (Grapple and pin rolls)

Perhaps we could do something like that again to add another event?

[MaskedIllusion]

We also as the final thing had a battle royal. Mages, clerics, fighters, whatever. All to see the last one standing. I thought it was one of the best things that year. We would have to work out how to do it again and I think it would likely be a higher level thing, but it was still fun.

[Zelknolf]

The way to the fairgrounds is now open.

You can find this nice lady

in Ruqel, and she will show you to the party. A regular AT takes you back out when you've had enough.

[ImStrokerAce]

Humbug; I can't make it till tomorrow.

[MaskedIllusion]

Well nothing is happening till tomorrow right?

[Zelknolf]

Yeah, anything going on in the fairgrounds tonight will be people socializing and playing with the arena. There's no proper events, unless someone who has been itching to have a thing swoops in and whips something up.

Which is fine. I've arranged 5 contests and have like 15 prizes.

[Analogkid]

Last year we broke sparing down into two groups
We had the normal weapon to weapon
and we had wrestling. (Grapple and pin rolls)

Perhaps we could do something like that again to add another event?

I did it that way so more PCs could have a way to get into sparring who are not your typical melee types. It was a little more time consuming with all the rolls but I think it worked out and would be great to do again

[Zelknolf]

Well, the best I can say here is that it's possible, maybe? The arena should support group fights (and mixed PC/NPC groups if DMs show up).

I didn't really plan for it; nobody asked when I was asking which events we should have, so it's somewhat stuck being squishy and ad hoc.

[Ithildur]

If, on any call, neither contestant casts a spell, the remainder of the contest is handled as a spar, with spells still allowed until the conclusion.

Maybe I'm misunderstanding this bit; does this mean normal physical/non spell attacks (including armed) are allowed for the mage duel? Seems that would heavily favor gish types (or clerics if they're allowed to participate). Or does 'spar' refer to switching to free flowing/game engine combat (via spells only)?

What about use of magic items?

(iirc Magic of Faerun rules allow for use of such as long as its effect is not an 'attack' vs opponent)

*prepares for a slapfest*

[Brokenbone]

Even if systems and scripts and stuff are in place to support broad "everything's subdual" type cases... what's IC will be whatever a given contests rules are, right? Magic only fight. Melee only fight. Magic, melee, use whatever tricks you want fight? Although again with goodly hosts, using spells with like, [Evil]* descriptor might not be a good idea (*animates dead in the arena*)


*come to think, "Protection from Alignment (Good)" is pretty effective against fellow PC opponents, but itself is an [Evil] descriptor spell.

[Zelknolf]

If, on any call, neither contestant casts a spell, the remainder of the contest is handled as a spar, with spells still allowed until the conclusion.

Maybe I'm misunderstanding this bit; does this mean normal physical/non spell attacks (including armed) are allowed for the mage duel? Seems that would heavily favor gish types (or clerics if they're allowed to participate). Or does 'spar' refer to switching to free flowing/game engine combat (via spells only)?

What about use of magic items?

The end condition at the end only comes to be if both sides fail to cast a spell in one of the rounds (and having rounds called out for attack spells/defense spells is to give something that resembles the canonical rule of free counterspells every round).

Basically, if you're out of magic, you grunt and punch to decide a winner.


I didn't restrict clerics from the contest, but I did design it such that they're at a disadvantage if they do (after all, they've got crap for attack spells and have to stand there and be shot by them).

I didn't forbid magic items in the mage duels, so I guess they're allowed. Keep in mind that the prizes are worth about 1k each, unless a DM decides to drop in and change what the items I'm giving away are. You'll lose money if you shoot of expensive consumables-- but maybe bragging rights are worth it?

Even if systems and scripts and stuff are in place to support broad "everything's subdual" type cases... what's IC will be whatever a given contests rules are, right? Magic only fight. Melee only fight. Magic, melee, use whatever tricks you want fight? Although again with goodly hosts, using spells with like, [Evil]* descriptor might not be a good idea (*animates dead in the arena*)


*come to think, "Protection from Alignment (Good)" is pretty effective against fellow PC opponents, but itself is an [Evil] descriptor spell.

Things can be done IC however you like, sure. The rules posted in the first post are things presented to your characters in character-- they can break the rules if they like, and may or may not get away with it. Just remember that I am not a DM; I don't count as a DM overseeing whatever you're doing, so if the kind of cheating you want to do is also CvC, get consent and take a screenshot of the tell.


And yes, Ruqel has normal laws-- that means undead and slavery are illegal. If you bring or create either in the course of the contest, Ruqel will react like every other government on the server.

Casting spells with the evil descriptor isn't itself illegal, though most evil spells produce effects that are. Protection from Good is a fine example of one that won't get you thrown out of the contest or banished from the country or any such, because it doesn't do any of those bad things that other evil-descriptor spells do and a government might make laws about (like creating undead, sowing pestilence, or dragging creatures from the hells to the prime), it will probably negatively impact your reputation, and thus can bar you from merchants/static content/whatnot.