Interest check PFS2 or PF2/SF standalone adventure workdays evening UTC or weekends

[stephan_]

As the title states, this is not yet a LFP post, this is a "get a sense of what people are interested in / when people are available / what is feasible to run" post.

If you are interested, please respond with the timeslots and the adventure you would be interested in (e.g. timeslots A and D, PFS2 or Malevolence).

Whether I'll run something and what I'll run when will however obviously depend on the responses. I didn't include a poll as that would just complicate matters at this point in time.

Technical details:

We'd use Fantasy Grounds Unity as a VTT (I have an Ultimate license, so a free version is enough to connect) and either Discord or Teamspeak for audio.

Session time would be around 3-4 hours, group size 4-6 players (a lower size is usually better but depends on everyone being able to make it reliably).

All times in UTC, be sure to adjust them to your local timezone. The UTC times are based on current DST, the times will likely get adjusted by one hour at the end of October.

I am reasonably familiar with the rulsesets (I've run one six book PF2 Age of Ashes campaign and several SF AP campaigns).

Possible timeslots for 3-4 hour sessions:

A. MON around 6 PM UTC (+-1 hour)

B. THU around 6 PM UTC (+-1 hour)

C. FRI around 6 PM UTC (+-1 hour)

D. SAT around 8.30 AM UTC (+-1 hour)

E. SAT around 6 PM UTC (+-1 hour)

F. SUN around 8.30 AM UTC (+-1 hour)

G. SUN around 1 PM UTC (+-1 hour)

Some PFS2 options (usually one 3-4 hour session):

Pathfinder One-Shot #2: Dinner at Lionlodge (this one is likely to take two sessions - or one longer session)

2-06: The Crashing Wave (3-6, repeatable)

2-08: A Frosty Mug (5-8)

2-13: A Gilded Test (1-4) [one player has already indicated interest for this scenario for the timeslot at roughly 5.30 PM UTC on Sunday]

2-19: Enter the Pallid Peak (1-4)

Quests or Bounties

Other scenarios (please note that I would still stay away from later season 2 and season 3 meta plot scenarios)

PF2 standalones (around eight 3-4 hour session):

Pathfinder Adventure: The Slithering (5th level) [non-human characters only; this one can be a bit problematic]
"In the cosmopolitan trading city of Kibwe, at the edge of the Mwangi Expanse, innocent people struck by a terrible curse known as the slithering."

Pathfinder Adventure: Troubles in Otari (2nd level) [optionally with the Beginner's Box adventure first]
"The anthology's three adventures introduce a number of play styles, including clearing out an abandoned fish camp, a sandbox romp to get to the bottom of sabotage, and a classic puzzle-filled dungeon crawl."

Pathfinder Adventure: Malevolence (3rd level) [horror-themed]
"The house has stood abandoned on its lonely hilltop, brooding quietly over the ruins of a once thriving town for decades. No one has lived within its walls since the night a terrific storm flooded the coastal town below—and since a tragedy struck down the noble family that once dwelt within—but now, the mansion has attracted the attention of a curious group of adventurers."

Pathfinder Adventure: Night of the Gray Death (16th level!) [depending on how many unique PCs there are, I may wait until the FG version is released]
"Galt's executioners are the masked and mysterious Gray Gardeners. Held above the laws of the chaotic nation, these grim killers soak the revolution-wracked land in dread and blood. They behead the guilty and innocent alike with their magical guillotines, but few possess the courage to stand against them."

SF standalones (around six to eight 3-4 hour session):

Starfinder Adventure: Junker's Delight (1st level)
"Centuries ago, the Stellar Flare—a science vessel researching the strange dimension known as the Drift—crashed on the surface of Akiton. Now, Vari-13, an android with a claim to the Stellar Flare, wants to find the wreck and rescue its valuable research. But Vari-13 will need help, and that's where [you] come in."

Starfinder Adventure: The Liberation of Locus-1 (4th level)
"Welcome to Locus-1, a research station on the frontier, using magic and science to study a strange cosmological phenomenon known only as the Locus. But the inhabitants of Locus-1 are far from civilization and they have a problem: pirates."

[myyra]

I would be interested in any PF2 or PFS2 stuff. Any timeslot except E would work usually.

[toastsniffer187]

I would do starfinder on sunday

[Malkavian_Andi]

I could do any of the suggested timeslots except B (probably, I'll have to see about the current development with the group I play with on Thursdays). (Depending on the specific day, of course, as I tend to schedule Society games in the slots I have nothing planned in.)

I could do PFS2 One-Shot, 2-06, or Standalones, or Starfinder.

[Nihthawk]

Malevolence standalone on a Saturday timeslot E or Sunday timeslot G. I haven’t played PF2 but I am somewhat familiar with the PF1 ruleset.

[stephan_]

Thanks for the responses so far. I'll still wait a bit and then I'll try to tabulate the results to make some sense of them.

Edit: Based on the responses here and via PMs, C, E and G PF2 currently seem to be the most popular combinations (3-4 people).

[stephan_]

No changes in the last two days, so C, E and G PF2 seem to be in the lead.

As far as PF2 adventures are concerned, the only preference anyone has indicated so far would be Malevolence.

Would the people interested in C, E or G PF2 also be in favor of Malevolence (as far as I can tell a bit heavier on the combat rather than the RP side) or does anyone have another suggestion?

The next step would be to narrow down the exact time with a doodle poll (I have a slight preference for FRI as that timeslot is less likely to have conflicting interests than the weekend but the others could also work).

If sufficient people are interested in a specific timeslot on the doodle poll the next step would involve sending me a sentence about yourself and a paragraph about your idea for a character background (that consists of more than a description of your ancestry, background and class).

Some other information up-front:

As mentioned, 4-6 players, depending on how likely everyone can make most sessions.

Character options: Common player options should be fine, uncommon options be sure to discuss with the GM first. If you choose a character option not available on FG yet, the onus is on you to input the details into FG. I can provide some assistance if necessary - though not five minutes before the game starts.

If at all possible, I'd try to finish the adventure before the holidays. Should players already be unavailable in December, it may be necessary to either shorten it a bit or resume in January though.

Expectations: You (and your character) should be able to be part of a team. Don't be disruptive to the game and don't disrespect the other players (including the GM). Once you agree to attend a session, short term cancellations should be avoided if possible. There are of course times when important real-life issues interfere but if do know that you'll likely not be able to make it, please give advance notice.

Edit: As a mystery adventure, weekly session make more sense. With some note-taking, once every two weeks may also work if necessary.

[Malkavian_Andi]

Malevolence sounds good. I'll await further planning, but as of now, my Fridays are pretty clear (except 11/05).

[Nihthawk]

I could play on a Friday but it would have to be evening game around 07:30 pm UK time. My choice would still be Malevolence.

[myyra]

Malevolence seems cool and Fridays should work.

[stephan_]

Considering the responses so far I would skip the Doodle poll and pencil in FRI around 6.30 PM UTC (note that this will get adjusted to 7.30 PM UTC when DST ends at the end of October - assuming you're in Europe, the local time should stay the same however).

I'll try to get started on October 29th, with the first 15-30 minutes for session 0 stuff.

I currently have Malkavian_Andi, terezin2015 and myyra on the list, as well as one player from Discord. To somewhat assure a functioning party even if one person is missing, I'll likely look for one additional person (two if people are unsure about their availability). If you know anyone else interested, let me know.

If you haven't played at one of my tables before, please send me a sentence about yourself and a paragraph about your idea for a character (that consists of more than a description of your ancestry, background and class) [it doesn't necessarily have to be the character you'll end up playing]. I'll write PMs so you have my contact details.

Some other preliminary notes:

As a horror adventure, the content includes body horror, filicide, domestic violence, gore, mental illness, mental trauma, mutilation, physical trauma, and suicide. If you feel uncomfortable about one of these topics, please let me know in advance.

There are no additional backgrounds in the adventure. As mentioned, it's more on the combat heavy side but it does use the (slightly modified) research system from the Gamemastery Guide.

Unless there are any objections I would use Obsidian Portal for the campaign management (players only need a free account) . As a standalone adventure, it shouldn't require a lot of coordination but there's already one person that's not on the FG forums, so to avoid a telephone game Obsidian Portal would be my preference.

The campaign page is here (https://malevolent.obsidianportal.com/dashboard) but you'll only be able to see it once you get access. Once you have created your account, please send me your Obsidian Portal username so i can invite you to the campaign (you should receive an email from Obsidian Portal with an invite link you'll have to click on).

[stephan_]

Updating also here for easier reference:

LF one more player PF2 standalone adventure Malevolence FRI 6.30 PM UTC [7.30 PM UTC once DST ends] (maybe around 8 sessions)

If you are interested, please send me a DM (or post here). Please include a sentence about yourself and around one paragraph about your idea for a character (that consists of more than a description of your ancestry, background and class) [it doesn't necessarily have to be the character you'll end up playing].

The other four players are currently thinking about an investigator, a magus or cleric, an oracle and a barbarian.

Five players in total to make sure there is a decent chance of at least four characters making a session.

[stephan_]

Currently looks like all spots filled.

[carlmund]

Hi Stephan,
I have played in a few of your games before with Alistair Bates.
As far as time slots go, being in Australia, D and F are the ones for us. Happy to do any of those PF or SF Mods. Actually I would like to do all of those, but Malevolence or Junker's Delight would be my first choices. Still keen to do them all though.
Thanks for this,
Andrew.

[Calchas]

I'd love to do F. My timezone (Australian) is hard to make any of the others.

[stephan_]

Thanks, I'll let you know if there is enough interest in the F timeslot and I have enough capacity for another timeslot. Malevolence would be the likeliest option (to reduce prep overhead).

In the meantime if you are interested in one-shots, I'm running Starfinder Society One-Shot: Intro #1: The First Test on Sunday, October 31st 9 AM UTC (bear in mind your UTC offset may change that day) (https://fantasygroundscollege.net/events/starfinder-society-one-shot-intro-1-the-first-test-2/) and Pathfinder One-Shot #3: Head Shot the Rot on Saturday, October 30th 5.30 PM UTC (https://www.fantasygrounds.com/forums/showthread.php?71072-Pathfinder-One-Shot-3-Head-Shot-the-Rot-SAT-October-30th-5-30-PM-UTC) (though that one may still get rescheduled to SUN sometime during the day if the original timeslot doesn't get enough signups).